Variety (September 1958)

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78 NKKT CLUB REVIEWS Vedaegday, September 17» 1958 JL. A. ' Los Angeles, Sept. 7. Aim Blythe Lou Wills Jr., Freddy Martin Orch (17); $2-2.50 cover, $3 minimum. Ann Blyth stepped off file silver screen (3) to fill the mostly-red Cocoanut Grove with a festive air that was Christmas, New Year’s Eve and St. Patrick’s Bay all rolled into one. There were stars on the ceiling for “Silent Night,” a com¬ munity sing for “Auld Lang Syne** and an emerald-sparkling personal¬ ity in the person of Miss Blylh for a trip hack to Ere. In short, she’s a superb performer, and, the open¬ ing night crowd received her as such. In the singer’s favor are a qual¬ ity voice, a classy, zestful appear¬ ance and a sincere attitude. She has an effective style that's a per¬ fect fit for a moving “Swing Low” and a sprightly, personal “Love and Marriage.*’ She is just as skilled with a soft “Cockles and Mussels.” Singer’s fine sound is artistically augmented by Skip Martin ar¬ rangements, played by the Freddy Martin Orch and conducted by Charles Henderson. Preceding Miss Blyth is Lou Wills Jr., a peronable, talented dancer. He scares staidly with his twirls and butterflies and socks across a funny impersonation of a Jewish square dance caller. Freddy Martin’s orch continues with its excellent openings, this time with an overture from “Gigi.” They're fine for dancing, too. Miss Blyth’s engagement runs through Sept. 24, with Sam Leven- son taking over the next night, Ron. El Rancho, Las Vegas Las Yegas, Sept 10. Eartha Kitt, Myron Cohen, Barry Ashton Dancers (11), Dick Rice Orch (14); produced by Tom Doug¬ las; $3 vmiumum. Eartha Kltt’s new act staged by Jonathan Lucas, is an ideal show¬ case for her unique chirp-and-terp talent Glamorously gowned and presented with dramatic lighting, she tosses her stylized songology into such numbers as ‘Td Bather Be Burned,” “I Learned To Smile” (both written by her conductor, Gerry Dolin), “Ain’t Misbehavin’,” “Love Is a Gamble,” “An Old Fashioned Girl,” “Those Little White Lies,” “I Like the Likes of You,” “I Wish I Could Shimmy Like My Sister Kate," and her trademark, "C’est Ci Bon.” She also impresses with a soliloquy from “Anna: Lucasta” her upcom¬ ing film. Co-headliner Myron Cohen, al¬ ways %.fave here, scores again as a story-teller and dialectician. Cohen keeps his dialog on a level that brings only hearty laughs. -. The Barry Ashton Dancers (11) are seen in an opening production number interestingly underplayed and soft-peddled—and thb girls wear plenty of clothes. However, in another scene, one of the show¬ girls appears bra-less — but com¬ pared to the other local “nude” shows, the presentation is quite subtle. Except during Miss Kitt’s stint, Dick Rice batons the orch (14) for the four-week skedded show. Duke. I -—— Conrad Hilton, CM Chicago, Sept. 3. Ice revue, “Out of this Worlds produced by Mendel Abbott. With Harrison & Kossi, Noberti, Helga Neff, Hans Leiter, Heinz Kroel , Jo Ann McGowan, Boulevar-Dears (5), Bovlevar-Dons (5), Essentials (4), Charlie Fisk Orch (10). Choreog¬ raphy' and staging by Bob Frell- son; original score and lyrics by Hessie Smith ; costumes by John Baur, Bernard Peterson; lighting by William E. Richardson; orches¬ tration by Norman Krone; $2 cov¬ er, $2.50 Saturdays . Themed to the sputnik age, Mer- riel Abbott’s new ice show for the Boulevard Boom is a fast 45 min¬ utes of splashy skating, pratfall comedy and drb-filling costumes that blend as a delightful family confection. Hilton’s rink isn’t ex¬ actly arena-sized, so the solo and ensenjble didoes have to be, and are, nimble. Harrison Kossi (former with plenty of exposure) is a firstrate adagio team, working through a series of stunning leaps and whirls. Distaffer is a looker. Noberti is a comic stamped with the Continental flair. As a “mis¬ sile man,” he’s a boob on ice, tak¬ ing best reaction for his broad bit ■with a barrel. It’s cinch yock stuff. Helga Neff makes an appealing “meteorite” with her convolutions, first solo and then with line sup -. port. Number is a standard piece j for a skate show, but Miss Neff : gives it more than ordinary bright- ! ness with her zest and aplomb. Hans Leiter, Viennese acrobatic dealer, if sufficiently whimsical as the man in the tnoon, and Heinz;' Kroel earns rapt attention with his dazzling spins in position. Jo Ann McGowan, one of the Boulevar- Dears, handles a featured spot dur¬ ing an ensemble number with con¬ siderable charm and -authority. Boulevir-Dears ° and Boulevar- Dons compose an attractive and well-trained line. Youngsters skate with satisfactory precision and ex¬ emplary vigor. The Essentials reg¬ ister adequately stf vocal accom¬ paniment, though Bessie Smith’s lyrics sometimes ire too coy for anyone but kids. Show's backed excellently by Charlie Fisks tooters. Production values all rate high, especially the imaginative and brilliant-hued costumes by John Baur and Bernard Peterson. Bob Frellson's choreography is arrest¬ ing and his staging slick, and Wil¬ liam Richardson has used lighting obviously meant to flatter the cos¬ tumes. Norman Krone’s orches¬ trating is a good fit for any ice revue. Show will be on view twice nightly for the rest of the year. Pit. Le Cupldon, N. Y. Ethel Smith , Ish Ugardi Orch; $4-$5 minimum. Le Cupidon is fast becoming a miniature version of the late Ver¬ sailles. With Robert, ex-Versailles maitre d',’ presiding over the room, the same accents begin to reappear. The single-class entertainer for¬ mat and the heavy stress on viands meticulously served is reminiscent of Robert’s former habitat. The layout opening presents nne of the major surprises with Ethel Smith dispelling a notion that she’s exclusively a superior operator on the electric organ. She’s a comedi¬ enne with a strong bent of the funny bone, has a natural flair for comedies and has suitable material that can put her over either in mass or Class rooms. Miss Smith, naturally enough,, opens at her instrument showing fancy finger and footwork. From there she segues into a session at song and guitar, and has an ami¬ able line of gab that hits the cus¬ tomers’ risibilities. Miss Smith shows versatility as a performer in several directions. Some of her humor is based on music and her instrument, others is just good material, including a tradey bit concerning the dress industry (ger¬ mane only to N.Y. audiences). In all, it’s a solid half-hour of delight¬ ful musical and comedy material that should make its way in hotels and cafes alike. Ish Ugardi’s Trio lends an oc¬ casional assist to Miss Smith and provides a strong dance incentive. Jose. Meulin Rouge, H’wood Hollywood, Sept 12. Connie Haines, Bob' Williams, Donn Arden Revue, Dick Stabile Orch (13); $5.50 package. Diminutive Connie Haines •emerged from retirement to pres¬ ent a pleasant, diversified song- alog in her 25-minute turn, at the Moulin Rouge. Miss Haines, making her first professional appearance since she quit a few years ago, pleased the opening night crowd with her dozen or so tunes. How¬ ever, she will need time and book¬ ings to rebuild as a name, and meanwhile chances for biz at the Moulin are just so-so. At times the-) star appeared nervous, due prob¬ ably to her absence from the stage. Backed by Eddie Grady’s special rhythm section, consisting of a bass, skin-beater and 38, the thrush shows savvy with her smartly¬ paced, varied repertoire. Including the bouncy “Witchcraft,” a haunt¬ ing rendition of “September Song,” a medley of disk hits from her Tommy Dorsey orch days, a sizzling “What Is This Thing Called Love?” A bit with batoner Dick Stahlle (on the sax), “I Can’t Give You Anything But Love,” was good, but the lead-in try for humor weak. There was a rousing closer, “When the Saints Go Marching In.” Bob Williams and his canine act preceded, turned out to be a real crowd-pleaser. One of Williams’ “assistants” is a real mournful looking mutt and his well-trained “inattention” to Williams’ orders played for laughs. Frank Sennes decided to spot Miss Haines before the final pro- | duction number of Donn Arden’s “Pariscope Revue,” which opened a year ago. . Miss Haines is booked through Sept. 21, when the huge ’ nitery shutters for two weeks for a $50,- 000 stage expansion and redecora¬ tion. Spot reopens Oct. 9 with a new Arden revue preeming, “Won¬ derful World.” with Anna Maria Alberghetti the star for the first showcasing. Booked to follow are Roberta Sherwood, the Mills Bros, and Modugno. Sennes, budgeted his new revue at $250,000. Daku. I Elegante, RracldjrB •; Domenica Modugno, Jimmy Casa¬ nova, Paul Mseres 21A Kim, Bob De Grace, Rms Currie Orch, Marty Franklin Orch; $5 minimum. Domenico Modugno it the latest to zoom like a meteor out of the: disk world into eafes. Having gone, into orbit at the boxoffice, this' Italian performer presently re¬ garded as one of the hot items sal-; ary having jumped from obscurity to the $7,500 class. He’s reportedly set to play -the Copacabana, N.Y,, upon completion of his present tour, which includes some of the top. spots in the country. All this is. the result of a single disk smash, “Nel B1 Dipinto di Bhi” ("Vo¬ lare” in the English version) 4 >n the Decca label. Modugno, making his bow in the New York area with his date at the Elegante indicates that he’s, no greenhorn on the boards. He knows what he’s doing projecting a canny song selection, mainly of his own writing, to applause al¬ most reaching frenzied heights. Of course a lot of this comes from Italian residents, of the area who have come into the Scandore Bros, site to aid their paisano from Italia, but there’s lots of applause com¬ ing from burghers with no nation¬ alistic ties as welL He has one tune in English also of his own manu¬ facture, “Stay Here With Me,” and one not of his own script, the durable “O Sole Mio.” All this, plus his guitar accompaniment and a persistant and almost bellowing* delivery that is at times ingratiat¬ ing, make him one of the b.o. hots at the moment. Just how long he’ll remain in that state of grace is hard to deter¬ mine. Disk names built upon a sin¬ gle record have a way of going back to the mainstream of singers and ultimately have to fight for their dates just like anyone else. Should he come tip with another and still another click, then of course, he’ll make it. There’s an¬ other plus with Modugno. It's evi¬ dent that a roster of dates in towns with sizable Italian populations provide him with a ready-made audience. These will offer a solid base of support. But whether he generates heat after “Volare” reaches its saturation is still prob¬ lematical. Meanwhile the prosper¬ ity at the Scandore Bros, spot is! highly evident. The other acts on the bill are well suited to the spot. Jimmy Casanova’s comedies are avidly ac¬ cepted here. He burlesques tunes with wierd noises which have a lot of humor and he intrudes a few. indigoisms which aren’t offensive. He does excellently here. Other act is Paul Meeres H Sc Kim. This dance pair in the Cuban tradition is built to generate heat. It’s an act'devoted to a buildup for the boudoir and generates ap¬ plause. They make a striking ap¬ pearance, both wearing minimal costuming, and providing a con¬ trast with sharp distinctions in skin shadings. The emceeing is by Bob De Grace arid backing is well done by the Russ Currie Orch. Business is so good , at this point that the regu¬ lar Marty Franklin relief band has been given a night off presumably | to discourage hangers-on who might dance on into the next show. Jose. | Down in the Depths, N.Y. David Allen ,. Bob Keefe, Jo March; $3.50 minimum. Down in the Depths, a small smaliie which opened last year, has been dedicated to the display of offbeat talents and the show-: casing of new faces. In this re-J spect, it’s performing a useful function in the trade, and at the same time, providing some fresh notes in entertainment ^ It’s seasonal opening provides a lot of interest, a major item being David Allen, who has been around for some time, but is now essaying a comeback. .Allen brings with him a reminiscent sound. It’s a type of singing recalling a better era in music, an era incidentally, that produced some of the top voices today, such as Frank Sina-j tra and Perry Como. However, 1 the latter voices have sort of! grown with the times, have under¬ gone several changes in style and! texture. Allen brings it -back to its pristine form, and such pro¬ vides too almost too radical a sound for today. But once he gets into the swing of his act, it’s pleasant to take. It would be in¬ teresting to hear some more mod¬ ern numbers'with this treatment, instead of a catalog comprising largely of standards. Another act here, Bob Keefe, shows talent, but still needs de¬ velopment. Keefe has some good ideas, but for his major strength seems to be forced to rely on standbys —impressions. He does well in this department, except for takeoff on an oldtime phonograph. Some of the sounds he makes are very unbeautiful, and some of the postures assumed in Ms satire on monsters take the seme adjective.. On night caught, singer Jo March, whe normally opens the bill was ill ana didn’t perform, Jose. Fa ir m ont, San Franctseo San Francisco, Sept 11. Patachou vnth accordionist Jo Basile, Ernie Hecksdher Orch (11); 42 cover, Patachou raises a volley of cheers in her first Frisco stand. She runs the gamut of a typical French-chanteuse repertoire, but adds -her own spiciness, a fine sense of tumor, vast authority and deliciously fractured English to her ; 45-mintrte show to make this one of the big Venetian Room’s stand¬ out attractions of the year. Her numbers include such stand¬ ards as “C’est Magnifique” and “The Poor People of Paris,” but she also throws in a great French version of “He’s My Man” (never' mentioning Fannie Brice, incident¬ ally), a delightful version of! “Wonderful Guy” in which she nearly out-Martins Mary Martin, the inevitable but refreshing; “Alouette” (with audience partici¬ pation, naturally) and a sock rendi- ] tlon of “All the Way.” She dresses simply—blue skirt, white blouse — uses her hands j beautifully in. running them! through her short-cut, straw-col¬ ored hair and sings in a strong, highly musical voice—no faking, ever. And, possibly best of all, she kids her own breed of chanteuses in a number of variations on “C’est Magnifique.” Accordionist Jo Basile works in perfect rapport with her, and Ernie Heckscher band gives good support. Patachou’s great vocal talent figures to keep Vene¬ tian Room full through the end of her date, Oct. 1. Stef. Riverside, Reno . Reno, Sept. 12. Jerry Lester, Midge & Bill Hag- gett, Palermo Bros. (2), Starlets (3), Bill Clifford Orch (11), $2 minimum. Comic Jerry Lester is a fine standup comedian with effective use of one-liners, and the more in¬ volved stories. He plays auditors by ear for selection material with ! a delivery that is perfected. Reac¬ tion is heavy, albeit some lines are dated. His best bits are his “how Tarzan got his yell” and a drunk impresh. Lester, competing with brother Buddy ’cross the street at Mapes Hotel, does a .special “Riverside” routine with clever lyrics. Ringside intimacies are good. Lester’s double frame debut is not drawing SRO audiences, but material is good and he could easily become a habit on the Reno circuit. Opening the three-act bill are Midge Sc BiU Haggett, a young and refreshing acro-terp team. Offer¬ ings are smooth and effortless, and well received. Duo shows command on both the footwork and aero bits. Also on bill are the Palermo Bros., practiced in juggling Indian clubs, balls, and conical felt hats. Duo uses stooge from ringside, who stays between two as clubs fly in front and behind—knocking a cigaret from his mouth and a hat! from his head. Freres show per¬ fect timing as tpam with intricate switch of hats while exchanging clubs and other split-second rou¬ tines. Bracketing show are the Starlets, opening with well-rehearsed terp- Ing to Irving Berlin tunes and clos¬ ing with colorful calypso number. Both are Moro-Landis productions. Bill Clifford and oreh capably play complete show. Closing date set for Sept. 24. Long. Drake Hotel, Chi Chicago, Sept. 5. Jane Morgan XErnest Bragg), Jimmy Blade , Orch (6); $1.50 cover. • Jane Morgan, the “Fascination” Kapp disk chirper, is in the Ca¬ mellia House for a month to teeoff the new chantoosie season for the plushery, and clicks on nearly all counts. She carols some current pops, “All the Way” and “Melody d’Amour,” but mostly keeps act highly visual, with special material pegged to “Around World” title tune and Ziegfeld Follies olio with quasi-carbons that allow for nu¬ merous hat and other accessory Changes on the floor. Piping is prosaic, but blonde thrush amply compensates with personality—and a sequined blue sheath with lots of cleavage. Her getaway, logically, is “Fascination.” Smooth support from Jimmy Blade’s orch (6), with Ernest Bragg, singer’s arranger, at the piano. Pit. 1 \ CopaealNui,^. Y. Joe E. Lewis (Austin Mack at piano ) K Toni Arden, Lois Ray, Bob Warrtit; Cops Girls ( 8 ), Lou Donn Orch and M. Pagan Copa Cha-Cha Band ; staged by Douglas Coudy; songs, Met Mitchel k Marvin Kahn; costumes, Billy Livingston iMme Berthe ); orchestrations, Deac Eberhard; $5.50 minimum. Joe E. Lewis is bade and the Burma Road—that far region of the Copa for the bns touristy and moujiks—is open. That means real business. Lewis is money In the grouchbag for any bistro, and boni- face Jules Podell who has been trying to offset matters by opening the Copa Lounge for luncheon biz, should he a happy kid again. This Is Joe E.’s 19th Teturn to the Copa and here, as in Vegas and other nocturnal, haunts that com¬ prise the almost year-booked-solid “circuit” for the pixie comedian (with time-out for operations when he puts himself on the bum with too much "occupational” drinking and the like), he is the saloon¬ keeper’s delight. Also the custom¬ ers’. Lewis can do no wrong seeming¬ ly. He does some naughty things, and a couple of the nifties are overboard even for the broad¬ minded bistro trade, but coining from Joe E. it’s “cute.” Calling a veteran cafe star “cute” is a little precious but it covers Joe E. in beaucoup clinches. No matter, they lo mjk ■D&dng chipper despite his Ce¬ dars of Lebanon (Hollywood) hospi¬ talization he makes capital of that as he does of bis other picaresque peccadilloes. “When the doctors cut me open they found too much blood in my alcoholic bloodstream,” he nifties. “When 1 complained that the operation took 5 Vi hours the sawbones cracked, ‘That’s more consecutive sleep than you’ve had in 30 yearsV’ Lewis rededicates himself, -as he hails customers, almost all of them a personal following, to such “new games as ‘Blotto’—winner gets the drunkest under the table.” Overly well-meaning pais do the same old straight for him with voluntary re¬ fills—and presumably, if personal wisdom caused them to ration these fraternal offerings, as Lewis makes with his zany “toasts,” that probably wouldn’t deter him al¬ though all agree he would be smart to ration himself. Lewis is too much of an American nite life in¬ stitution to voluntarily whittle him¬ self down. His stuff, of course, is in his usual high gear. He saluted his longtime scripter Eli Basse, him¬ self a recent convalescent. Basse gave him a new parody, “My Friend, The Rich Doctor” and an¬ other on “Purple People Eater.” He dedicated a new LP to Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra and Sarah Churchill — “Song That Put A Lump In Your Throat, or Songs •That You Can’t Swallow.” He con¬ trasted bonifaces Jules Podell and Beldon Katleman — “at the Copa you get paid, hi Las Vegas .you get faded.” Lewis was on for an hour and whammed ’em. New fall show has Doug Coudy assembling a new crop of Copa cuties, more in the old tradition t of lookers. Including fiie neat | blonde Croft Twins for the dose- ups. There’s no femme song-leader hs. heretofore—Bob Warren is an effective barytone ■with the new , Mel Mitchell-Marvin Kahn tunes, among them listenable items such as “Wholesome Honeys Here at Home.” Lois Ray is a leggy and lissome effective tapster who adds a little novelty fillip with a -miniature man nikin carbon of herself. While she manipulates the puppet with professional know-how the effect is lost on almost all but the ring- siders. since first New°Act-“noticed” at it now defunct Greenwich Village In in 1945. She did a stron half-hour which might have bee heightened a shade by change-o: pace, particularly the slow opener; and possibly also mixing up th two Italian numbers (one of thei Volare” in great style). She als essays a French item. 'The fin tnree are in the same ballad idion and an upbeat pace-change woul be wise here. She plugs her Decc disks, and uncorks some new one which bespeak promise. . Mis Arden is an authoritative thrus who can play anywhere. Sh dick 1 ** UP wittl a stron 2 persons n ® w Lou Donn band, vice the longtime Mike Dursoites, back¬ stops the show well and delivers the main dansapation, spelled by Fagan s cha-cha comho. Maitre tv. R ™ me ’ s back at the rope and the .fall season is-now official. Abet