Variety (Sep 1948)

Wednesday, Seplember 15, 1948 HOUSE REVIEWS S3 CapKol, X. Y. Gene Kuipa Orch (18) vsith Do- lores Hawkins; Ronald k Rudy, Betty Reilly, Georgia Price; "Lwa-u- ry Lmer" i.M-G),jieviewed in Va- riety Aug. 8, '48. iiOmetliDig old, kowething new . This bill ijs that sort of man-iage, And the ingredients are surefire tor any happy comho. There's Georgie Price for the oldtime showmanshipi ■ And'in the more modern idiom are Gene Krupa's orch, Betty Reilly and 1 the: Renald and Rudy aero t«am, When Pnce first wallcs out there's hardly a npple from the ' audience ot • johnny-come-latelies. To them the name of Price could mean nothing more perhaps than to serve as a grim reminder of the high cost of*living. Small wonder ft the wealc opening greeting. But when -he saunters off with that jaunty strut, Price has 'em in his old mitt. From his signature, "Bye Bye Blackbird,'' through his sock Impression, of Cantor, Jolson, Jes- se! and Gohan, Price socks homcr-r^ a tribute to a veteran showmanship • . that the passing years have never diminished. Miss Reilly, ''the Irish senorita," is still botfing .'em with thoseXiatm rhythm tunes, and she remains, as ■ ever, a str<jng personality for any bill. She has an easy grace at all times, but one thing Miss Reilly should definitely cut out is the Yid- dish; number with its downright offensive gestures. She has enough talent on her own with resorting to that Renald and Rudy still excite the femmes with those, ripplmg mus- cles as they go through their slow balancing routines. They're a sock; •■ act whatever the medium they play, and here they go over as jstronglv; as , ever. Krupa ' has several licks on his own at the drums and he emcees the show neatly It's a big band he's fronting of five reeds, nine brass and tour rhythm, but it's little more than a framework for Krupa's own virtuosity at the skins. .The outfit's "Rhumboogie," ot .: cotirse, IS the climaxer, a standard piece of business that Krupa pounds out to close the show. That 'Scheherazade" number, however, ..t'ould be eliminated, since it slows th'e pace of the layout too much Dolores Hawkins has an inning or two . .singing . some rhythmics . with the 01 ch Kahn. straight heel and; toe work winding into spins. . Jay and Lou Seller ring the laughmeter consistently with a raixure ; of panto a n d platter comedy. Oversized ski bit, as usual, IS the top howl getter, with duo ofting to strong reaction. Another standard for this house is Pansy the llorse. With the usual/nifty . femme guiding, the antics get the giggles, to lenffiim favorable impresh made here pre- viously.. .. ■ Following what seems to be house booking policy of playing local acts as frequently as possible, Red Thornton, niteiy act, is in- cluded in the lineup Forte is comedy cartooning with aud.call-. mg out niinibers from which sketches .develop. Juves went for his stint, .Les Rhode and liouse orch, cele- brating .their fourth anniversary, background pioceedings in usual capable style Lary. Apollo, Y. Ray Anthony Band (111, with: Frances Foster, Ditk A'oel, Coolie Wtlliams Band (7) with Walter Green, Carl & Hairielle, Shoare gued Dane rs (4). Spider Bruce & Co, "Chit 0/ the Storm" (Rep). 'Hilarities' Review Morey Amsterdam s "Hi- larities," which debuted at the Adelphi, N. Y., last Thursday (9), as a l^git vaude-revue, is covered in detail under Plays on Broadway. Casino, London London, Sept, 7. Harry Green m "The Chirry Tree," wit' Diana Napier, Francis Bethmcourt; Gerald Pnnq and Les- lie Spurhng; June Richmond; Coles Sc Atkinsi Afrique, Frakson, Walter "Dare" Wahl,' Johnny Lockwood; Mane Louise & Charles, Harold Collins Orch. €hl««{$o,i Chi Chicago, Sept. 10. Ginny Swims, Susan & Fred Barri) Paul Regan Ben Ben, Jack Fulton Ort/i, Foreign Afiair" {Par). Length of the film (two houis) keeps stage show into a compact 40 minutes Gmny Simms making her first theatre -appearance here m some time, suiters via; cropped running time ot bill. Gal has good voice and. fine appearance, but walks oft the accent on head stands and pat- ter, surprise as curtain raisers with a tast, amusing display ot stunts. • liowe. New Acts Oriental, Clii Chicago, Sept. 9 Jerry Wayne, Arron & Broderick Church It Hale( Dave Barry, Mart- [ iyn O'Shaughnessy, ■ Carl Sand's Orch; "Pitfall" iUA). With the revival of his one-act play, "The Cherry Tree,' Harry Green tops the Casino bill in an interesting experiment designed to .Church and Hale, tapsteis, do some test. public reaction to departing rapid twirl rolls, but need better Bill this, week IS not in the name headlined class that theatie has been -offering in the past. While most of the acts are standard, it's the picture that's going to count at the b o. Carl Sands opens with a salute to the Chicago Railroad Fair with orch playing- a medley ot railroad tunes with Marilyn O'Shaughnessy, songstress, doing nice job on "At- chison, Topeka and Santa Fe." With Ray Anthony's solid combo and Cootie Williams' band sharing toplme honois for current stanza at; the Apollo, this sepia vauder should garner happy returns. It's a lepeat date foi both and they keep the payees stomping and jiimpin'. Anthony's ofay crew; comprising lluee ihythm, four saxes, two trombones and four trumpets (in- cluding the maestro I . are equally adept on sweet and jump tunes to garner plenty salvos. ; Band tees off wiUi siz/lmg ar- rangement of 'Sweet Georgia Brown" as . prelude to nittv tap-; stering session of ,Cail & Haiiiette, colored mixed team, wlio win ap- preciation for their slick routines. Dick Noeli band vocalist, baritones "Gloria" and "You ve Changed" for neat returns. . Spider Bruce & Co.. sepia house c- mics, spot their burlev blackouts in next spot. Despite corniness of material, it s good tor laughs here. Anthony and lads take over for "Harlem Nocturne," spotlighting nifty trumpeting of the maestro, tor solid applause Fiances Foster, attractive band chirp^ scores with sexy versions of a brace of torch- ants ; • The Sho .regued . Dancers, sepia team of ;three girls and fad, i^e- pri.se the Balmcse ballet and Ball- nose boogie, which thev did on previous stand here, to good ap- preciation. Coot le Wi Hi a ms a nd. his big 1 ittle band close and really set oft the pyrotechnics with iheir lump and race; tunes. Williams carries the' buiden of the sesh with his scat singing and tiumpeiing However, he gets splendid support from; the three i^hythm, two saxes and trom- bone that background hini. . Al- trom accepted vaude acts. Other things ■■ being equal, idea would: have 50-50 chance of catching oni but unless more potent material is brought in; to compete with top- flight artists from the U. S., it nmU barely make the grade. Green, confident and polished as everi and commanding a large fol-' lowing, puts his best talents into the part of George Washington Cohen, who cannot tell a lie Part IS a natural for him and he suc- ceeds in capturing sympathy and applause; ot the audience. -Diana Napier is neatly cast as the woman whose honor and happiness he saves, and there. is able support from the other two members of cast. Talent from U. S. includes June Richmond;. sepia songstress, and Coles; & Atkins, colored dancers, holdovers from previous bill, and both getting warm acclamation from an appreciative audience. Opening bill are Maue Louise and Charles, providing plenty of thrills with their aerial spinning, and then another. holdover, Johnny Lockwood, a breezy comedian with a steady flow of comic stories. Wal- ter "Dare" Wahl, with the aid of stooge,, has nice line of comedy acrobatics, while Atrique is m top torm with; his wide range ot vocal impressions, which include a skit between Jack Benny and Roches- ter, Sophie Tucker singing ' Yid- disher Momma," a James Fit/.- Patrick traveltalk, and sock im- personation of Winston Churchill. Slickest item on the bill is Frafc-; son, wh'ose cigarette luggling act. is as tascinating; as it is mystifying^ while his card tricks are one ot the»brightest pieces: of magic. Myro routining and building. . Dave Barry, billed as "Mr. Rip- ple" of the Jimmy Durante radio show, gets some hearty guffaws with oldies and his radio impres- sions. Jerry Wayne, headliner, is the latest recruit from the platter field. He vocalized on the Ken Gntfln recording, ; "You Can't Be. True Dear" on the indie label, Rondo, which is still high on the bestsell- ing disk; lists; Tall, good looking crooner, pays' tribute- to another golden ear of corn singing, "You Call Everybody Darling." He scores with reprising ' a, real >Bldie,"I'd Love to Live in Loveland." For change of pace, he gets chuckles with special lyrics to"If A Man Could Be." Then grabs a guitar to strum and croon another oldie, "Boy of Mine." For closer'he does his platter but for .solid returns. . Arren and Broderick are the strongest item on the bill. It's the old routine. of satirizing the semi- classics with femme giving out with some of the most terrific facial and body contortions as she yodels "Indian; Love Call.". . Male does some fine 88ing and piano string olucking in his solo, "World Is Waiting .Tor the Sunrise." Encore with "Kiss Me Again" for .solid bowoff. «> Zabe. CapIAoiy Wasli. Washington. Sept. 9; . Ben Wheeler, Jen Keeuer, Pedro & Durand, Zarco & Beryl, "That Lady m Ernmi" (20). before the audience IS warmed up though most ot the numbeis ai She; sings tour popsy getting her best . respon.se on "Love Some- body.'; which has the bandsmen asking the questions. .Encores with special arrangement ot 'SI. Loius Blues" lor additional plaudits. Susan and Fled Bariy aie sock In their ballioom routines.^ Re- Viewedunder New Acts unidentifiable, thev re plenty; loud and seem, lust, \\;hat the doctor or- dered tor this audience. ■ Edba. •■ Capitol's current layout follows usual tour act loimat, is wtll bal- anced . and smooth; yet doesn't quite click; Headliner Bert Wheel- er proves disappointing to payees, while the acts at beginning and end of show get major attention. 10%ersFeel 3 Continued from page 1 SS then, ; theatre buyers have found that patrons aren't interested- in seeing contest winners. They: can- not be sold on the beauty, angle alone and Miss America's song and dance talent is frequently on the level of a Major Bowes amateur. . While all the talent offices agree that the basic reason tor lack ot interest in the pageant winners is insufficient ' playing v time, there's some division of opinion on why the. condition exists. One segment feels that by making 'ftalent ' a qualification, the Atlantic Citv pageant IS not purely a search for the "most beautiful" temme. and since the;.talent of the winners and runners-up are negligible, there's Hi p pikdronitv Ra i Baltimore, Sept. 12 Chester Dolphin K Co <2t, Cass Frankhn Monica Moore: Leon Ben Ben tlicks «ith his comic I ^ , ^' l^ombardi Juggling Suave appealance and ex- f'°"''« ^/c/i U2i, Cttiioit City ; i;eit; manipulation ot Indian clubs, i V*''-^'- ___ tennis balls, and tambourines, plus 1 clowning, get him nice response. I Good combination of standards Paul Regan mimic, has some good is paving off in solid enlertain- bits, but slung of oidinary take nient Nicely paced bv Leon Na otfs. which he could drop ea.sily to I vara, who luindles intro.s in addi- build up the olhn'. Ills best is the , lion to his own solid slot lavout GaiM Co()|)ti W.iliei Bicnnan skit iplajs smoothh Chestei Dolphin Ja(k I ultoii oith Icadci wiiislopens Hith small juggling some nice ip'.pon^e toi his singing ot'good balancing and a tiansient gag seveinl tunes liom Oklahoma'' Sets matteis smaitlv for CaSs ■;■ ■ • ■ ■ ; Zabe ; ' [i'ranklin and- Monica ;Moore ifi-a L.'?-':.'' : ■ .1 ..■ ':;';" sock M)<h of le.ail \\''arblirig: .■■ ^A, quick .repeat. here.: nice - looking ; eoMpl^ ,'itve;;?..' But'".\v;ilh .'liif dleyr of '.niiisicat':,'e:bmedy''.tiinie'fi-i:'' ■fiic'ely, , Wheeler, topnotch comic and "ot^^'ne ^or the theatres to buv 'consummate showman though he Another section of talent agency is, lust doesn't work at it hard , "Pimon holds that for the pa.st I enough to capture the gallerios. • tew years, different type leniales {Impression is that-hes just bridg-ihave been entering the contests, ing the gap between Bioadwai 'Many seeking the title do so m the I shows, and that material has been hope of getting one of the scholar- V hipped together huii'iedly The sh,p, offered as prizes. They teel I fine visual s apsUck v\hich chai ac- i,,e beauty quotient has been low- iteu/ed this tiouper in the p.ist is.^^^j considerably by the new type absent except lor one hilariou.s I - • ^" ■ \ '-r:' JOAN BARTON Songs 16 Mins. PenthoN&e Club, N. Y. .loan Barton is an interesting Eersonality who obviouslj; - knows er way around, though this is her debut in the . Vabiety New Acts , files Miss Barton has sung with bands, done a single and has been in pictures. With the right: kind of management she conceivably; can- trade on het personality projec- tion. She's dark-haired and attractive, with a pleasant voice that she can use to particularly good advantage at an intime spot. At the Penthouse Club, however, the physical encum- brances make it almost- prohibitive tor a performer to achieve the best possible effect. But Miss Bai- ton circumvents this to a consider- able - extent by her apparent showr hu know-how. For example, her opening number is a stroll around the room with a band mike, during which she does ■ the "Beautiful; Flowers" number while at the same- time distributing a basketful of the sweet-scenters to the table-sit- ters. It's an ingratiating opener that helps establish her as a per- sonality, and gives the terrace-sit- ters a chance to gander her as she weaves round the lower floor. There is a; series; of walled parti- tions that separate the two floors, and without this' intro ^ she would have considerably more difficulty. establishing herself. Miss Barton is wise, generally^ •in her choice of numbers. This is the kind of spot where the sweet, stuff is the thing, and she conse- quently is leaning to ballads and novelties. Just one fault in the performance caught: she did two slow-paced numbers consecutively- at one point, whereas the "Grand- father's Clock'' number could have been inserted one number. earlier to have broken it up better. But outside of that. Miss Barton IS a personality for any kind of intimate room. Because ot this room's intimacy, she presumably has to keep her voice under ^^raps from the volume standpoint, but there's more than a suggestion that Miss Barton's voice coiad easily fill a theatre as well. Kahn. business ot exaggoialed dic-s wilh ] Wheeler sporting a lovvcut pair oC' pants and his paitnci wcaiing the j other extreme in trouser cut rhis igoes over-best. Another highlight i lot the act IS Wheeler's singing ot, "It Aint Woith Fighting Foi with many innuendos and an ellec live stunt ot stopping shoit oC the punch line. Comic works with of entrants. Slimmer Than Ever ,,; Atlantic City,'.:-Sept.'; 14. AHHough an estimated 15,000 at- tended the final of the' 1948 iVJiss )Vii)erica Pageant, ■patl'Onfige wa.s off for the four nights of elimina- tion contests : ift the resbVl^ii.; big. , luditoiium Not only was business stooge, who is, elficienl and a con- ^iit so was the talent al- SUSAN and FRED BARRY Dance ■•' • ' . 10 Mins. Chicatro Theatre, Chi Fred Barry at first announced his plans tg retire after the tiagig death of Elaine, his wife and part- ner, earlier this year in an auto accident. But it's a good thing he changed his mind. There are few ballroom : teams who possess the smoothness, looks and stage ptcs- ence ot this youthful team. 1'his IS Susan Graves' first at- tempt as temme half of a dance team. She started as a Rockette and later became a club specially dancer. She does a fine job on the lift and twirl end. Barry seems more mature, and, by the same token, more polished m .hi& terp maneuvering. • ; ;.: Duo sticks to the old numbers, with Viennese waltz for opener, fol- lowed by an eccentric number with ovei tones of jitterburg; and then an Americanized flamenco. It's un- usual in this house lor seat-holdcis to give out with bursts of spontane- ous applause duung straight ball- rooiTi terping, but it hnppened sev- tial times during the pcrtoimance. Co&luraing IS tops. The pair aie i-eacly tor any top-drawer engage- ment in clubs, theatres, etc Tliey aie ideal lor video. Zabe. Olvmpiii. 3lianii IMiami Sept 11 Pni^s!/i;,f m„s< FoheMilU, Bed togelhei a ul ^old to the Ihonnon L<s Rhode Hoi-.e O-c), 'V'^ \'''"T,"" ' '' '.'^./'L" "nil mil I Prn 1 tan Do ^ll\tlt)ng \ou (an Do' Blight pace is set lno^t of the '•tandoul and gets enlhiisiaslic ic- wav by Ihe quintet ol acts hcie ''Vome this week with (oniponents add Mavai'a is.a slick '.lioumaii and hig uj) as good example ol tamilj ddept at the ivoius 1 equipped vaudci booking Set the nio^l out of llic k('\boaid \nniii! utiiince Uam Babljill lie 'las the knack ot taking hold of lops tilt liridip ill M)licl lashion an audience and making it ic-pond The c\-K.iv Kvsii xocalisl sots up to His slufi toi suiedie letuins a (Miotully loutined seiies ot son»s Gimmick ol chanRiiig ke\s on his that hH lor full I etui ns alllhc \\a: "lustling auditois l)uil(ls laughs Easy woiking lad has impiwod and medlcv of Ifgit msti iinic'nla- snue seui Ik lo last his amiable ^lon '"^ a (-liiului appioacli plus dcludv on sliainht The Kuui Kvaiis close ujlh (wo mimbcis and the loppei in which contiastingK .ig<d coui)les gi\ing he displavs the moppet talsello ' out with the laps in sl\ks ot ves- notes wi.-ipping up lei day and todav Sdio .kio lap Pace scltei is tapstress Folic bv \oung limint numhii is a nice Milloi who in 1(11 niei \cais pla\cd spot and the nitiif act has plenty .in the best nitcries hereabouts. . appeal. Mu.sical backing by. .lo Ls(hfws the a(io woik which high- Lombaidi and house oich is in usu- lichtcd hei act in picvious viow- allv fine .stjle. ingi, but still does okay with her Biz okay. Umtn. though the giils wcie a^ bcauliUil ; as', ever. -.- ; .Bob Kussoll. back after the eom- niillee tiied 'led Malone as niastei niity trast m build and manner to him self Also lings Jen Keevei bhus singei whose act precedes hini into the loutine Ail Ihf makings ot a ■.sho.w stopping act-are there.; Willi , . , , , a gencial step up ot pace and some ceremonies last yeai did moie hep iiialciial, il could be )ob ot emceeing the event built foi tops Sealing aiiangements weie not Miss Keevei bcauleous blonde loo bad Giils weie seated on big chantoosev is greeted bv wliisilcs, stage and did then slulT down long but nevci quite lives up to hti cn- iunw.iv Boxes wcie hack ot the liance Ilei voite is on the thui p,ess stand and ic^civcd side. and. her style somcwlialmo- 'i:^'^ '""lor. pace\o'';;'hrch r,"']„fUH^'rih''""'"^ otiKi two niimbeis, Sou Goto Mv t"** °* ^^e lunwa.v With Head' and a novel \eision of big setting those out liont Take Me Out to the Ball Game" "ad to have glasses lo get a ica- fail (o live up lo Gal's geneial shle sonable view of the giils IS llie con\entiona! lowei legistei The new Miss Amenta is Bea blues tvpe and not individual Ince Bella iBehei Sho))p, (ntcied WW on Tele Continued from, oage 1 .seat.s General atiiYiis- enougli to. click. Zaico & Bctyl got (he pavoes oil as. Mi.ss, Minnesota. She gets, a ■^5 000 scholaiship and a S.UJOO their hands at show caught witH/ convcitible coupe Miss W.voming beautitully cooi'dinaled, sUiUluilv executed routine of Ca.sliUian clan(cs Couple speciaii/<s in daz- zling whirls and rhylhinic li-ind ino- Cirol Held, was next, getting $3,- 000, Maltha Ann Ingram, Miss Alabama, thud $2 500; Veia J lions Bung down the (Uitain to ^'''s Kansas, fouUh,i2- biggest mitt action ot the show 000, and Donna Jane Briggs, Miss ' Pedro & Duiand. aero team with Oklahoma, filth, $1,500. K-F to make use both of ABC-TV s eastern net and its new midwest hookup, out of Chicago Time-and- lalont figure is under wnips, taut It evidently will amount to one of the biggest, it not the biggest, one- shol 1 V deals lo dale it it.'g O C s; through. ABC un^ doubledly will make use ot its en- tile stable ot hewsmen and com- mcnlalois. and while Winehell will not betoinQ an ABC piopeity until nt\t scar, lad that he is soon to bf and that his luluie sponsoi is banki oiling the stanza indicates he will he stiongly (lersuaded lo get into the act ] TV One -shot, howevei, is not being placed via the William H. ^WoihtiMub agency, which inked Winclicll for K-F. Election night billing IS being set Ua the Moiris , F. ijwancy agency.