Variety (January 1959)

NIGHT CLUB REVIEWS 87 Wednesday, January~l4, 1959 Pfo&ETY Copaeabanji, N. Y. Jimmy Durant* with . Sonny King ; Johnny Mdck, Stilly Dams, Jack Roth , Jules Buffano,, Betty Madigan, Bob Warren, Doug Coudy Line, Paul Shelley & Frank Marti Orchs ; $5.50 minimum. Jimmy Dur ante's annual visita¬ tion to the Jules Podell hospice is generally regarded as one of the more important events in the cafe ear, and marks a spell of solid usiness. Durante has come in with one of his better shows. Per usual, this vet has a vigorous dis¬ play of classic cafe clowning. Durante’s trip to the Copa this year contains more than the nor¬ mal quota of interest by virtue of the fact that his partner of many years, Eddie Jackson, has left the entourage on the ground that most of his chores had been usurped by Sonny King. The act that has come in has a lot of zip, some new material, (which somehow still comes out like the old Duranteisms), and a new face. Johnny Mack. The results are excellent in virtually every department. Durante has a rich vein of co¬ medy that has never yet been ex¬ hausted. He is constantly showing, new and refreshing tangents to his work. He works along gargantuan lines big enough to encompass everyone. In fact, he’s doing one of the best acts in his career, thanks to a lot of new writing, plus new faces along with the assistance* of King. Latter is an energetic singer who adds considerably to the turn with his chansons, strut¬ ting and all-around stylings. It’s Durante & Co. for just a shade over an hour, and not one surplus moment as far as this crowd is . concerned. The mittings are plenty . powerful. In their usual places are drum¬ mer Jack Both, pianist Jules Buf-' fano, and there’s a damsel with a bit of excess weight, Sally Davis, who Comes on toward the end to. provide a further lift to the come¬ dy. Mack is a pleasant softshoe practitioner who lends a an easy touch to the turn. Preceding Durante is Betty Mad¬ igan, a good singer who has made a mark on Coral diskings. Miss Madigan, like others from time im¬ memorial, has a rough spot in the warmup to Durante. She hits her peak with “Joey” and registers with an okay tune assortment. The Copa production by Doug Coudy holds up exceedingly well. Bob Warren essays the vocals and the well-drilled line does consider¬ ably more than per usual by ap¬ pearing during Durante’s turn in several spots. Frank Shelley does the showbacking and Frank Marti the Latin terp music. Jose . Rilz Carlton, Montreal . Montreal, Jan.' 6. Julie -Wilson, John Gallant , Pqul Notifr Trio; $2-$2.50 cover. Julie Wilson is the type of per¬ former that means sophistication in any room and this, one of her many attributes, is particularly evident in the Ritz Cafe. A wel¬ come repeater in this attractive boite. Miss Wilson restores the en¬ tertainment level which estab^ lished this spot as a major show¬ case for thrushes on the circuit. ' Handsomely groomed and ele¬ gantly coutured. Miss Wilson does a hefty session and covers all types of numbers from a scorching blues to something rowdy such as “Twelve Good Men.” Some of the material is from other appearances here, but the improvement shown; each time is -appreciated and the. polish exhibited makes her a cinch with all. Frigid weather and early closing due to local holidays have cut into biz but despite these handicaps, f femme Is up over the last few entries. Backing Miss Wilson in able fashion is house pianist John¬ ny Gallant and the Paul Notar trio. Newt. Deauville, Miami B9ch Miami Beach, Jan. 10. Victor Borge, Lee Martin Orch; $3.5Q-$6-$7.50 minimum. Originally booked for a oneniter (later in month) for this hotel’s “Cavalcade of Stars” series, Victor Borge was high-checked into a 10-day run in its Club Casa¬ nova after a planned visit to Cuba was thwarted by the Castro take¬ over of the country. It’s a depar¬ ture from Owner Morris Lansburgh’s determination to play modestly priced acts until arrival of the “New Stars of ’28” nostalgia package on the 20thf > Based on preem attendance, he’ll do okay with Borge. Notable fac¬ tor was. the presence in plentiful numbers of visitors from Bal Har¬ bour; Fjt Lauderdale and the other poshy Gold Coast resorts who don’t often come down for a night at • Beach cafe* They were the pre¬ dominant attendees and obviously, devoted followers of the Danish f0rr)p^tiflii.piflpkt Borge didn’t disappoint them, purveying his standard brand of tongue-in-cheek, deceivingly diffi¬ dent chatter*, of which there is more provided than his fine talents at the keyboard. Tbe material is a mixture of twists on old stuff and a plentiful ladling out of the new and topical, and with local refer¬ ences considerably to the steady laughs. On for some 80 minutes, he held them all the way with his plus-ivory noodlings encompassing some serious approaches to the classics; medley of variations on evergreen-standards “requested” and worked into a recurrent theme, and the bit. with his “former pupil” who comes on for a laughable seg¬ ment. Borge could have stayed on longer, for the auditors wanted more. This is, actually, Borge’s first stand in what can be called a stand¬ ard Miami Beach location. His appearance a year ago Christmas, at the Americana was in a hotel not considered a part of. the cir¬ cuit, per se. Going on first-night attendance and reaction, a con¬ tinued strong pull will set him among the annually hid-for musts on the Beach hotel-cafe bonlf aces lists; they had, formerly, con¬ sidered him strictly an act for the Ft. Lauderdale-Pahn Beach trade. Lary. El Rancho, Las Vegas Las Vegas, Jan: 12. Joe E. Lewis, Mary Kaye Trio, Jolene Lontere Dancers ( 8 ) , Dick Rich Orch (11); produced by Tom Douglas ; presented by Beldon Katleman; $3 minimum. Joe E. Lewis brings some old Scotch and new comedy material with him this time to the Opera House; he proves again that he’s an entertainer who can do no wrong — and even if he did, nobody would care. On opening night, even the nonmembers of the cult rewarded with hearty yocks the fresh parodies, one roughly called “Doctor, Can You Spare A Dame?” and another, “I Keep Out Of Mis¬ chief,” plus a topicalaugh-getter about a Texas girl marrying an Alaskan. Austin Mack at the 88 keeps the gliding . Vegas, blockbus¬ ter on an even keel, and it remains one of the backbone acts in the bistro biz. The Mary Kaye Trio, co-headlin¬ ing, accelerates its rapid climb to full-fledged stardom in a demon¬ stration here that clearly indicates the group is ripe to topline any room in Vegas or elsewhere. The stylized vocalizing is stimulating; the solos by Mary and Norman Kaye add sectional strength; and Frankie Boss spreads icing on the cake with his clowning. On this outing they toss such as “Just One of Those Things,” “Day In, Day Out,” “Do It Again,” “Believe In Me,” “Toreador” and “My Funny Valentine.” Yockside, they score with a parody about Mary’s preg¬ nancy; an impresh of Louis Prima & Keely Smith; and their w.k. ver¬ sion of “Begin the Beguine.” Pro¬ duction numbers are by the Jolene Lontere Dancers . 18), with Dick Rich’s orch (11) giving solid back¬ ing to the show which is set through Jan. 27. Duke. Hotel New Yorker, N.Y. * Catamaran Bays, Mona Joy, Talua , Greeneries Trio; no cover or minimum. The Hotel New Yorker, once an important part of Manhattan night¬ life, went' into eclipse in the pres¬ entation of shows during the past few years. It seems to he reseeking that former glory and prestige with the new policy in its larger Golden Thread Room. This room is expected to be superseded by the Terrace Room, should the pol¬ icy catch on. The .current show, a miniature Hawaiian revue imported from the Islands, is similar to the dicko policy for many years at the Hotel Lexington. The layout here adds up to easy entertainment. Topper is Taloa, a pleasant looking singer who can also weave a hula. She pipes in a soothing manner. She has two spots and pleases in both with an assortment of tunes in the native tongue and those under¬ stood by mainlanders. Mona Joy is a petite hula swayer who forms some picturesque body patterns. The native show accompaniment is by the Catamaran Boys, also im¬ ports from the Hawaii, who pro¬ vide vocal as well as musical back¬ ground. They also purvey an easy beat for ierpers. Some vigorous music is provided by Greene-Res Trio, comprising organ, piano and drums, who make some colorful harmonic and rhythmie patterns suitable for (both listening and dancing. Jose. St. Regis, N. Y. Ro&ta Serrano, Milt Shaw and Ray Bar i Orchs; $2 cover. Rosita Serrano, the Chilean ; chanteuse, is back in New Yosk after a gap, having first been heard from in these precincts at the. Pierre’s Cotillion Room. Since then she’s played around the world, in many capitals, and Lon¬ don saw her at Quaglino’s &. Al¬ legro in the forepart of 1956. She’s probably the only singer extant, homegrown or imported, who can get away With a favorite four-letter word in French, in the polite spots, anyway — and although the same word en Anglais would rate her walking papers pronto, in the other tongue it’s an idiomatie cover-up that can €ven be de¬ clared cute and possibly even sophisticated. The word in English often has been altered to; “Nuts!” It’s an example of her rowdy and hoydepish qualities, which she pairs with a pretty good voice in the upper hut not the uppermost reaches. She growls and scowls, pelts and belts in a kind of feline attack replete with 4 asides to ‘anonymous ringsiders.' She has charm in a surface sort of way. Although' Miss Serrano is from Chile, she seems to lean heavily on French, or the idioms thereof (only one hep to the language can be sure); but the Espanol shows through, too. And although she presents herself as a soloist, she gives much -evidence that a mis¬ tress of ceremonies role would not be strange to her. The senorita does not sustain one mood of one language long enough to make an impact in a specific groove; but she’s a versa¬ tile woman, with ah attractive stance. Questionable is her con¬ tinual reference to the poorness of her English, and after a while that gets to be a bore, not to mention that there shows through a facility in spoken English which belies the self-effacement in that direction. Miss Serrano does seven num¬ bers and a designated encore. The latter is “Whistle Song” and the girl is quite . a whistler. In a middle piece she hops on to “Amo Tu Yane,” _an Indian Chilean song that’s self-gui tarred and very good both ways. Others are various Spanish-French tunes, most'y bal¬ lads and a folker or two. but all with tbe same type of approach. Her number in English is “I Love Men.” Her acting is often superior to the words ind song. She even emoted at the opening to the ex¬ tent of “haloing” Milt Shaw lead his Local 802’ers. The batonist hardly needs such assistance even . from fiery personalities. After all, the maestro is a Maisonette fix¬ ture. Net result: Scarcely more than polite applause. (St. Regis said yesterday (TuesJ that Miss Serrano exited on plea of illness. She was. replaced by Mar¬ garita Sierra. Above review is printed for the record.) Trau. Drake Hotel, Chi Chicago-, Jan. 6. Denise Lor, Jimmy Blade Orch (6); $2 cover. Denise Lor, thrush on Garry Moore’s former daytime teleshow, comes to the supper clubs obvi¬ ously well-prepared, and with pre¬ possessing qualities that amply justify her on the circuit. She yields an appealing, . if diffuse, catalog with beaucoup warmth and charm that had the Camellia House regulars glomming appre¬ ciatively. Miss Lor gives a poignant treat¬ ment to Sophie Tucker’s “Some of These Days” , that merits the nice response it collects. High spot isa narrative-linked medley from the “Bells Are Ringing” tuner, an effective show-within-a-show pres¬ entation. She has a neat begoff, chirping “I’d Better Go Now ’to ringsiders while cradling flowers in her arms and slowly moving off the floor. Singer looks a cinch to cement relations with this poshery. Miss Lor lingers through Jan. •29, with Jane Kean set for the 30th. Fit. Latin Quarter N. Y* (FOLLOWUP) The Donn Arden longrunning production at the E. M. LoewEddie Risman pleasure dome is further enhanced by a couple of acts new to this spot. The net re¬ sult is one of the more glittering shows on Broadway with renewed interest in the proceedings com¬ ing with the acts by Jaye P. Mor¬ gan & The Morgan Bros. (3), and the LQ bow by Harry Mimmo-. In a holdover spot is -Francis Broun, aided by a comely assistant. He juggles and does acrobatics in a peripatetic manner for his usual good results. Miss Morgan is a personable blonde with a strong selling voice and a solid showmanly style. Miss Morgan goes after the audience on terms that would 'make a practic¬ ing vauder proud, Her easy manner belies the fact that she is punching solidly, and her tune assortment is designed for wide appeal. Miss Morgan possesses both visual as well as aural values. The act is so designed, with stag¬ ing of several numbers by June Taylor, so that interest is con¬ stantly renewed. There are solo parts and numbers done with the fest of her family. They do a wide variety, but somehow they go a bit overboard on spirituals, doing them in two sequences not too far apart. The lads are versatile, chiming in with a battery of three electric guitars to provide a strong back¬ ground to the turn. In all, they hit a maximum response here. Miramo, who hasn’t been seen on Broadway for some time, never had it so good as his opening show here (9). His peculiar bit of busi¬ ness in which he lines up his neck¬ tie with the centre of his face, plus an assortment of zany impressions and a solid hit of tapstering at the end, give him a prime palm in this situation.. In the production, Dick Curry and Pony Sherrell assume the lead parts, and bellyrina Roubouka wig¬ gles out a brief bit of entertain¬ ment. Jo Lombardi backs with his familiar competence and assur¬ ance, while Buddy Harlow" ^oes the dance relief. Jose. Desert Inn, Las Vegas Las Vegas, Jan. 6. Peggy Lee, Bernard Bros. (3), Evelyn Freeman & Tommy Rob¬ erts Choir, , Donn Arden Dancers (13), Carlton Hayes Orch (12); production numbers staged by Donn Arden; original lyrics. Pony Sherrell ; musical arrangements, Phil Moody , $3 minimum. Peggy Lee brings the package she recently displayed in H’wood’S Moulin Rouge almost intact to the Painted Desert Room, and wordof-mouth should bring it brisk biz even during the next few “slow” weeks. The turn, smoothly staged by Nick Castle, is stimulating, and. has appeal for motley tastes. Singer’s casual style is highly ef¬ fective in a Well-balanced reper^ toire, She offers her current disclick, “Fever,” her trademarked “Lover.” and includes “It’s All Right With Me,” “My Man,” “Golden Earrings,” “Manana,” ‘‘Why Don’t You Do Right?” “It’s a Good Day,” “Blow, Trumpet, Blow,” and, with a most memorable arrangement, “When The World Was Young.”. Miss Lee is joined in several numbers by Evelyn Freeman and Tommy Roberts’ “Xciting Voices” (11), one of the best vocal groups ever to play Vegas. Finale is a rousing -“When The Saints Go. Marching In.” The Bernard Bothers (3), too long absent from the Strip, click with their comedy crammed with out¬ landish costumes, props, and romps through disk pantomiming. Two new Dorm Arden produc¬ tion numbers, “Speaking of Love” and “Another 'Day, Another ‘-Dol¬ lar,” have bigtime brilliance. They feature the voice of Art Johnson, and the terps of Barbara Frederick and Larry Maldonado. Carlton Hayes’ orch (12) is a strong asset to the show, skedded through Jan. 26. ^ Duke. Eddys’, K.C. Kansas City, Jan. 9. Sue Carson, Del Ray, Tommy Reed Orch (5); $1-$1.50 cover. Two of Eddys’ steadies, Sue Carson and Del, Ray, are back, each for the third time inthe spot, and the combo comes off with 50 minutes of solid entertainment. As always, Del Ray is. the acme of nfagicos, reeling off his baffling bag of tricks with the disappearing doves and switchy canaries, cards that change their spots before your eyes and the drinking teddy bear, among others. There is no lull in his 20 minutes, and the house is ujr his sleeve throughout. Miss Carson has made her mark as a comedienne here before, and only reaffirms the earlier impres¬ sion. This time she runs out some of heri tried and true numbers and intermixes them with several new episodes, all on the tongue-in-cheek side and benefiting from her per¬ sonal drive. Her opening “So Sophisticated” leads right into the snappy pace and carries through to “I Seen Every Pitcher That Ann ' Sheridan Every Made” and “Per¬ son To-Person” (without Murrow). There’s /l change of pace in her closer, . “Rockab.ve Baby,” done straight, and well, the whole pro¬ ceedings being to -the customers delight Quin. Hotel Pierre, N. Y. Stanley Melba production of “An Evening With Jerome Kern” with Lois Hunt, Mark Dawson, Jim Hawthorne; Joseph Ricardel Orch , Alan Logan Trio; $2 corer. Take three good voices, let them whisper, soar and boom in the vast repertoire of Jerome Kern music, and here’s one good reason right off why '‘An Evening With Jerome Kern” at the Cotillion Room of the Pierre produces an hour of musical charm. Most of the Kern favorites are assembled in this 45 minutes of song, and since they’re performed by three capable, oper¬ atic voices, the tunefest generates plenty of nostalgia and mitting. Lois Hunt, Mark Dawson and Jim Hawthorne take turns, singly and together, to run down the varied Kern moods. Their strength is primarily in their voices, be¬ cause only one or two of the floor routines they’ve worked out come off effectively and their patter is hardly imaginative. They may work out a smoother interplay as the show matures. Right now, it could stand a little more imagination to match the musical quality. To make matters worse, the mike broke down at the first show, dis¬ torting the voices with a certain shrillness. Also, show-catching was from a table located behind the set, permitting only a side view of the performers, at best. Dawson gets things started brightly with “Can’t Help Singing,” then Hawthorne joins him for a switch of pace in “I Dream Too Much.” Miss Hunt puts a lot of feeling into “Smoke Gets In Your Eyes” and follows with Dawson in “All Through the Day.” Duo gives out with “I Won’t Dance,” done with tongue-in-cheek and shaping as the show’s most engaging num¬ ber. It’s a pleasant and attractive cast that fills the room with the Kern melodies, and there’s much to he said for the choice of voices with operatic backgrounds. Miss Hunt, gowned by Hannah Troy, looks at¬ tractive and doesn’t hold back on the vocal volume. At the same time, she’s capable of applying the softer sentimental touch where it’s needed. Dawson has a good bass and plenty of assurance and Hawthorne is a tenor with the kind of lungpower that doesn’t need a mike. Producer-director Stanley Melba apparently is aware that the songs alone can’t carry the show’, but his formula «for introing the numbers lacks charm, and it’s fairly obvious that the performers themselves aren’t as yet a “team.” Staging, by Dolores Pallet, utilizes a handmike for lead-in cues but, with some ex¬ ceptions, doesn’t make best use of the room’s potentials. Joseph Ridardel backstops the show inlelligehtly, although for one sitting virtually on top of the orch, it’s difficult to judge balances. Alan Logan Trio is a real plus dur¬ ing the break?. Hift. Hotel R^dissan, Mpls. Minneapolis, Jan. 6. . Hildegarde (with Martin Freed), Don McGrane Orch <8); $2.50$3.50 minimum. “Better than ever” is an everdone cliche. Nevertheless, it seems particularly applicable to the stunningly gowned Hildegarde on occasion of her fourth visit to the tony Flame Boom (she also has played at another room here and at a theatre concert engagement). Her present act, including manynew songs and much original mat¬ erial, undoubtedly will impress her legion of local admirers as even superior to its predecessors al¬ though, of course, along similar lines. If possible, she exudes higher spirits and more sparkle and -the performance provides maxi¬ mum entertainment. Hildegarde has developed into nearly as much of a comedienne as a songstress. Wisely, several of her numbers are aimed to stir the risibilities, which they do. Also, the trademarked banter she exchanges with ringsiders and the manner in which she enlists them for funmaking purposes and her patter generally accomplish a com¬ edy goal. The result is that more laughs than ever are sprinkled through the 40 or so minutes. Hildegarde ihis time has been booked for her longest Flame Room fun. Instead . of the usual fort¬ night, she was set for four weeks which, however, have been cur¬ tailed to three and a half at her request because of an upcoming television show. She opened New Year’s eve and on a midweek night at dinner show caught the room was packed. It’s a cinch that’ll be the case her entire stay. Her pianist-accompanist, Martin Freed, and Don McGrane and his orch lend admirable support. Noth¬ ing booked yet to follow. Rees.