Variety (February 1914)

VARIITV 19 COLUMBIA. The vaudeville show at the Columbia last Sunday started off wobbly, but got down to cases toward the ending and closed strong. The Langdons started the going all over again after Sullivan and Porter (New Acts) had given the bill a hard bump. The Langdons were the .hit of the afternoon in their "On the Boulevard" skit that employs a prop auto, with the man in a comedy make-up resembling John Burke's (John and Mae Burke). The Langdons should find booking on the big time very easy. If not, there is something wrong with the bookers, for there's nothing wrong with the act that also has a pretty woman for fur- ther recommendation. The prop auto conflicted with the opening of the Tom Smith and Harry Madison turn that followed it, they starting off with a motor racing boat that called for some similar remarks about "engine missing," and so on. The Smith-Madison act is the former Tom Smith-Ralph Austin turn. Messrs. Smith and Madison do well enough with the main portion to drop the open- ing in "two" altogether. A neat little girl who sings well is given a solo in the centre of the full stage section. She should not have this prominence, not being equal to it and besides slow- ing up the action that has by then got- ten fairly started. One or two bits bring regular laughs, and the two men are good performers. Bowman Brothers in blackface had to follow Finn and Finn, who also work under the cork. The Bowmans did very big, getting a heavy finish with "Mandalay." It looks as though Feist has the rag ballad summer hit in this number. It will take a good one in the beating. One of the Bowmans stretched out a curtain speech. They would have been as well off without that. Finn and Finn are now a man and wom- an. The act was known at one time as Finn and Ford, both men. They did nicely second. Holman Brothers on the bars opened and the Carl Eugene Troupe of ten acrobats was the closer, the big crowd of boys and men making quite a flash, besides doing some good aerial tricks, that included twisters and doubles from shoulder to shoulder, also a four-high formation. Jane Connelly and Co. in a sketch, "No. 3" (New Acts). The sketch could have stood a later position, while Porter and Sulli- van would have been fortunate "No. 2" on this bill instead of "No. 4." Perhaps an added act or a fill-in were Al B. White and Maurice Abrahams, playing the Abrahams list of songs (excepting "Get Out and Get Under"), starting off with Irving Berlin's "This Is the Life." That Berlin boy is a regular lyric writer. In "The Life" number are a couple of lines: Take her down to Rector's With the other wife neglecters. Al White certainly knows how to put a song over, and he does—and did —every one, Mr. Abrahams meanwhile clinging to the piano, interposing a medley of his own. Minus the "song publishing act" that necessarily gets attached to the turn, they did as well as any on the program, in the next to closing position, and could have taken an encore for "Get Out and Get Under" if they had wished. One thing Mr. White did not that any number of singers in "piano-acts" have been do- PALACE. It's a dancing show at the Palace this week. Seven of the nine turns employ more or less of it, three being out and out terpsichorean acts. The remaining two are a legitimate sketch, Claude Gillingwater and Co., and H. B. Martin, a cartoonist (New Acts). Gillingwater's sketch is billed as a dramatic playlet, "Wives of the Rich," with a comedy ending, the whole affair having been a dream^-or more correct- ly speaking, the playlet within a play- let. The idea is not new, but is inter- esting, and contains a good suspensive interest. The best part of it is the way it is acted. Gillingwater himself is an artist, very natural, and never once overdoes a role that is constantly tempting one to resort to heroics. His supporting company, especially Edith Lyle, is also thoroughly competent and intelligently stage directed. It is a por- trayal of modern acting that would stand the test of the Empire, New York. Mortimer and Clegg opened the show with a corking bicycle act, straight and comedy. The man has some ludicrous freak wheels, and the woman is most alluring in her short skirt at the opening. If the routine she does would permit of it, she should stick to the skirt throughout. Du-For Boys (New Acts). Elinore and Williams were their usu- al big hit with their give and take side- walk conversation and "tangle-talk." There should be some effective method of protecting such clever material as some of it has already been heard elsewhere. For instance, they have, "So he took the five dollars,'* which is being used by a number of small time acts. It's downright plagiarism. Joan Sawyer and John Jarrott closed the first part with their ballroom danc- ing on carpet. H. B. Martin opened the second half, followed by Eddie Foy. A slide was thrown on the picture screen preced- ing the Foy act, announcing no smok- ing would be permitted during the turn on account of the appearance of the Foy children. What about the chil- dren seated in the audience? Fannie Brice, "direct from her eight months' run at the Palace Music Hall, London," made her American re-ap- pearance Monday afternoon. Her "Fol de rol" and "Yiddish" kidding still re- mains the most effective portion of her turn, and she was a bigger hit than ever. Miss Brice opened with a song, in which she displayed a perceptible English accent, but soon dropped it. Saharet (New Acts) preceded the pic- tures. Jolo. ing: that is, to go into the second verse from the chorus without a vamp, malting the song continuous. It's prob- ably a matter of taste, but it does get the number through with in a hurry. Mark said, when reviewing Wohl- man and Abrahams that a song hit meant a new act in vaudeville, but it looks as though these "publishing turns" form to get titles mentioned in Varietv, since they cannot advertise them there. (That "cannot" makes all the publishers feel good when you tell it to them.) Anyway "Maury" has one of his own titles in this and one of Irving's; but the others, like "20th Cen- tury Rag" and "Push It Along," won't be mentioned. BlfM. AMERICAN ROOF It was not a good show at all on the American Roof for the first half, when "Classmates," a feature film in four parts (Picture Reviews) closed the show. It is said the Loew Circuit is paying 150 daily for the Klaw & Er- langer-Biograph films, and this, though it should not have cut down the cost of the vaudeville in total, may have made a difference in the quality of the acts. Too much singing in the first half, with the same thing throughout the show, made the program appear a repetition. The biggest laugh of the performance was that caused by a trio of Japanese, closing the first half, while pedal juggling. Brady and Mahoney in the second half, ending the vaude- ville performance, got the most ap- plause of the bill with their parodies on current songs. The team is strong en the parody thing, which isn't being overdone as it once was. Will H. Arm- strong and Co. (two women) played their "Baggageman," which starts off in a likely manner as a rough comedy turn, then switches to a three-act, with singing, dancing and impersonations. Mr. Armstrong attends to the latter without doing either of his two (Foy and Lauder) very well. It's been a small time turn for some time how- ever, and will likely remain there though Mr. Armstrong would be more sensible to have a sketch with his bag- gageman character running right through it. That is not so easy to do as to say, probably. Grey and Peters opened the show, with comedy and bicycles, appearing to be well liked. Rose and Moon were "No. 3," a two-act, mixed, of the same kind that is growing altogether too frequent for the welfare of the small time. The program says "Entertain- ers of Merit," and if they only were. Essaying a ballroom dance with songs and a recitation by the boy didn't say much for the couple, who have no voices to speak of, but the man wore "evening dress" (with a silk hat). Three "two-acts" on the American program Tuesday evening had "dress suits," and Mr. Armstrong also wore one that looked just as well on him as the others did on their wearers. So much "class" to one show. If some of these new people to vaudeville would rehearse wearing their open fronts it might do them some good. Just now most of the evening clothes look as though they were rented, and the silk hats, by the fit, appear to have been bought second-handed. And speaking of "class," would it be well to inquire if the clothes are there and everything else is not, including grammar and dic- tion, not overlooking gestures, does the "class" still prevail? When an actor or an amateur or an almost can pur- chase "class" at a cost of not over $65 (if he paid for the suit himself), the secret should be told to those less fortunate who wear rough materials in sack suits, but know how to handle themselves, also deliver dialog natur- ally. "Country Store Night" Tuesday, postponed from Monday through the holiday, did not bring out much over the usual Roof crowd. Sam Pearl and Dave Roth, Belle Oliver, Mason and DuTiel, New Acts. BimM. HAMMERSTEIN'S Bad bill at Hammerstein's this week. Even the "novelty" fell down with a dull thud, in the person of Dorothy Dale (New Acts). Tuesday erening while Dorothy was divplaying one of her numerous "swell gowns," a kid in the gallery, growing weary of her doing nothing but pose, yelled: "Go ahead and wriggle." The first two turns, fillers. The Brissons and Horan and Wright, under New Acts also. Joe Cook was again given an early spot at "the corner." On later he would have scored a big hit. As it was he did very well. His is the sort of turn that would appeal to patrons of that house. "Temptation," a combination pan- tomime, singing and dancing skit, featuring Madeleine Harrison, is a bad boy as an act. Miss Harrison, how- ever, can dance some but her panto- miming is atrocious and in that re- spect her male assistant, who plays the piano, is worse. Hussey and Lee were the first that approached "clasi/* and with the right sort of talk should go on the big time. Rita Gould, a very ample specimen of the soubret species, sang four or five songs with as many gowns. Rita is making the mistake of essaying "re- finement" in her work. All her num- bers are too slow. By all the rules she is designed for the "rough stuff" and should go in for that grade of vocaliza- tion. Miller and Lyle, colored comedians, registered their usual punch, due to the emphatic manner of delivering talk. John L. Sullivan was given a large reception. He appeared minus any make-up and in an ordinary business suit, told some good "anecdotes," all clean and without innuendo. He con- cluded with a recitation, "A Toast to Women." Westworth, Vesta and Teddy had a soft spot and made the most of it. Victor Moore with his perennial "Change Your Act" appeared to be as popular as ever. Winsor McCay has a new cartoon film for the second half of his let, pat- terned after his Mosquito reel. For this he has drawn a Dinosaur which he has named Gertie. He puts the mythical animal through a series of comedy stunts, talking to it and snap- ping a whip after the fashion of an animal trainer, timing his talk to the progress of the running of the reel. Ed. Wynn and Co., Asahi Troupe, Great Lester, and Miller and Lyle, were the last four turns on a bill that ran until close to midnight. The show is long on quantity this week, but shy on quality. Jolo. NEW YORK. For lu flDBl bin pr«o«dlng Ita b«loc glTen over to feature fllmt (commendnf Feb. 28). the New York, the second half of Uit weM, offered some good, but not new, reels and seven vaudeyille acts, not to mention an Illus- trated Bong. Three of the seven turns, Pur- cella Bros., Allyn Krleg, Fritz Schumann, are under New Acta. The Hperial attraction was James J. Cor- bett with bin breezj stories, which seem to be as popular to-daj as they were years ago; or perhaps he Is telling them to a different clien- tele. The "clans" of the bill was Van and Casslar, two men. one a singer of quality, method and dignity, the other a pianist who accompanies the "severe" vocalist and for his own specialty, the playinK of the "Lucia" sei- tet with the left hand. The sloKer commands attention and respect for his undoubted vocal gifts, but Hhould be a trifle more "unbend- Idk" for vaudeville. Even the length and Intcnnity of the creanes in his trousers ar« no perfect as to be painfully exact. Th« peo- pl<> who nhine in vaudeville can be coaBt«d upon to transgress all the rules of teehnUni* Joe Kettler and Co. wer* plettsaatlj Intor- •■tlBg with tksir bveolle eoMaij-^raaAUL Helgaas and Lantrr olOMi. /^i^