Variety (November 1917)

NEW ACTS THIS WEEK 21 Emmett Corrigan and Co. (2). •War Ballad** (Dramatic). O Mini.) Full Stay* and On* (Parlor) On* (Special Set). "War Ballads" is in three episodes depicting different military stages, somewhat bordering the sure-fire" classification but nevertheless run along different lines through which"'it should attain a distinctive position to- gether with the splendid performance Sy Emmett Corrigan. The playlet has three ideas, well enough blended to hold the interest. Condensed the re- sults are so interesting little time is allowed for anything to detract atten- tion. It is Corrigan all the time. The opening episode is the weakest, rather drawn out, but the idea is so different it immediately gives its intended im- pression. It is called "The British Soldier." Corrigan relates to a woman the experiences of an English soldier during a trench raid. The second is "The Reunion," the real "sure-fire" por- tion. It is the reunion of a Union and Confederate soldier who celebrate by playing a number of Civil War melo- dies. This is in "one." The final, The' Belgian Priest," is in a special full stage set of a supposed Monastery garden. Here Corrigan is at his best, and brings into play his available and abundant stage strategy. There is something more to his performance than the reading of lines. It is put across with telling effect. While rather heavy playing, Corrigan shows no signs of exertion and almost had the audience breathless. At the close Mr. Corrigan was forced to take a number of bows. S. Millar Kant and Co. (2). Dramatic Sketch. 17 Mins.; Full Stage (Parlor). 23d Str**t. A war playlet with a slacker for its plot. The boy is in love with the adopted daughter of a Major. The Major, lately restored to rank, believes the girl is also in love with the boy, ind seeks to bring out the boy's better qualities through harshly reprimanding him as a slacker. Upon the Major trying this, the boy draws a revolver and attempts to shoot the # Major, whereupon the latter says he is satis- fied the boy is there, after all, and the boy proclaims he now sees things dif- ferently, but the girl, meanwhile trans- formed to a Red Cross nurse in full uniform, spurns the young man and confesses her love for her guardian who agrees to take her with him to France. S. Miller Kent is the Major, but appears to have forgotten to obtain a full khaki uniform for that rank, unless he knowingly omitted some de- tails, such as the color devices and shoulder insignias, besides black boots —and black boots with khaki are not being worn this season. Mr. Kent plays very well, as he always does. The boy is not bad and the girl fits in, although a better performance of the young woman role would help the playlet. It may do for the small big time. It's not a big time act, but might be if a kick could be placed somewhere in it. At present the love scene at the finale lets it down rather than holds it up. John Neff and Exempt Army (4). Comedy, Songs and Talk. 13 Mint.; One. 23d Street. John Neff has not a bad idea at all in resurrecting the nondescript or mis- fit army in the present times, for a hokum comedy turn. This act has as its "army" four soldiers in grotesque character who are also a fair singing quartet. The opening has been taken from a burlesque show of this season, one of the four soldiers, a very tough- looking fellow, refusing to take orders :,...] ♦!<<• i ommanding officer apparently afraid to oblige him to. The tough one later turns out to be cissified in voice. The usual matter is employed for laughs and when worked up it should fit nicely into the smaller time for a laugh and songs. -A Jan Nightmare" (•). IS Mlns.f On* and Th Palace, Chicago. Presented by Joseph Santley, who staged and produced this turn, it smacks of the reserve, gentility and class that cannot be divorced from anything that bears his touch. As a pleasant few minutes it undoubtedly stands up; those who want to scream or howl or tear out chairs in hyster- ical outbursts, however, need not look to it. F. Wheeler Wadsworth is fea- tured. He is a local saxophonist and cellist who has led local orchestras, and who was among the pioneers of dancing jazz accompaniment. He talks, dances and sings, doing all of that remarkably well in view of his first time, on with anything except an instrument. His saxophone solo is the centerpiece of the act and brings down the house. The act opens before a spe- cial practical drop. Wadsworth and John Byam, a sweet-voiced youth from local cafes, enter in immaculate even- ing duds. The four natty and pretty girls follow them. There is a song and an exit dance. Then Byam comes back and does a ballad with one of the maidens, going off with a suave duet dance. The curtain rises to an interior, a bachelor apartment. The boys change to lounging robes and pajamas. Byam sings a love song and Wadsworth does a cello obligato. Then they turn out the lights and go to bed. Enter the nightmare—the girls dressed as ghosts, flitting in through the window, in the green lights. By any bachelor should be such a night- mare! The girls dance, Byam gets up in a dream and sings and leads them; the girls leave, a giant papier mache animated saxophone comes in and ghosts Wadsworth out; he finds his own golden horn down in the eerie contraption and goes into his solo. For the finale everything follows him into a jazz dance, the girls, Byam, the furniture and even the horse in the picture on the wall. The act, with many friends of Santley and Wads- worth in, drew salvos at both Monday performances. In a strange city it ought to earn its share, though it is too light to be of headline or featured caliber. No. 3 or 4, it can bolster a show before the most captious of vaudeville "sharks." And it is clean, fast and bright, whereas with a few slight daubs it could have been made low-down, rough and tumble and coarse. Santley is coming to mean something to vaudeville, because he typifies one thing that vaudeville al- ways needs—good taste. Lait. Mayo and Nobeclc Songs. 11 Mint.; One. Hamilton. Man and woman in conventional singing two-act. Woman remains at piano as accompanist, besides offer- ing a solo that might as well be omitted. Her partner has the proper idea for delivering numbers, but is lost by himself, with the woman mainly responsible for it. She is either ahead or behind him, more often the latter, on the piano. He works hard with a repertoire of numbers that could be somewhat shortened. He is trying too much. After cutting the running time and rearranging the entire specialty they should prove an acceptable couple for an early spot in the smaller houses. Mel Eastman. Songs and Talk. 10 Mint.; One. American Roof. Mel Eastman should keep working with this act. He is sailing along with- out stalling, opening with a medley of old songs and' closing with the same, but using new numbers. In between are some good stories, with but one aged. Mr. Eastman was recalled, but declined, complaining of a cold. Roger Imhoff, Hugh L. Conn and Mar- e*ll* Corejne. "A P**t Hon**" (Comedy). 2S Mias.f Foil Staff*. Majestic, Chicago. Chicago, Nov. 28. In the far west territory, everybody knows and loves Roger Imhoff and his associates, Conn and Coreene. No vaudeville bill that has this act on it can be half bad. The plot of the sketch is very simple. The setting is a very rural hotel. A very Irish Irish- man, whose horse expires on the road, comes there for a room for the night. He gets it. The room has a bed. In the bed the half-witted, half-deaf porter keeps the coal. At the side of the bed is a trap to catch a rat. The spring is weak, so weak a heavy bpdy would cause it to break. There you have it. Imhoff plays the Irish- man—a shabby Mr. Dooley, who in the sketch is Michael Casey, a peddlar. Imhof plays with discretion and re- straint, and is no more like the usual comedy harp than David Warfield is like the customary Hebrew comic. Conn plays the rube porter. There is no nasal twang in his accents; an- other cherished tradition shot to pieces, but Conn is as funny in his characterization as Imhof is in his. Miss Coreene doubles as the landlady's daughter and a trained nurse. Be- tween the coal, the trap, the bed and the gently humorous lines and busi- ness of this sketch, it will establish itself as one of the most wholesome and genuinely funny acts in vaude- ville. Swing. R*x Adams and Vara Thomas (2). "After the Ball." It Mins.; One. Windsor, Chicago. This is Joseph Santley's third pro- ducing effort, and his first without music In it are Rex Adams, most re- cently of the films. His most success- ful vaudeville connection was with "The Night Hawks," in which act Vera Thomas also played. The present act is concerned with mutual recrim- inations following the attendance of two hicks at a society function. The act is in "one," with a drop represent- ing the brownstone mansion of the society leader, whose name is, of course, Mrs. Van Puyster. It is after the function, and the two are ushered out by the butler. Then Adams, as the husband, begins to bitterly berate his flashy wife, who graduated to silks and birds of paradise from the Gem Beanery. The subsequent dialog con- tains some very good lines. The lights furnish an early morning effect. After they have been arguing a while, a newsboy comes along and drops a pa- per on the stoop. Finally the butler emerges and states the talk has kept their hostess awake, and would they like to come in for breakfast? She takes the invitation seriously. Where- upon the man loses patience and drags h«r off the stage bodily to a laugh- ing exit. Rex and Vera are both blessed with good looks. The ward- robe and drop exhibit the delicate showmanship of Mr. Santley. The act gets plenty of laughs and should do well. Swing. Musical, Juggling and Talking. 10 Mins.| One. Hamilton. Henry Sterling appears in street attire, without make-up, and making his first appearance in a cap, which he wisely discards immediately. It could be forsaken before appearing. He iuggles tennis rackets and dances while juggling Indian clubs. Some comedy is the drawing of a land- scape and having the lights go out with the picture then shown. He finishes with a steel guitar, the best iiked. His routine allows little oppor- tunity to display the versatility he claims to possess. The guitar play- ing put him over, although he had an easy spot, something he will be rather fortunate in obtaining on other bills. Harry Tighe. Songs and Talk. 14 Mia*.f One. Fifth Avenue. Harry Tighe is doing a single, al- though for a couple of his songs a young woman accompanies him on the concert grand in "one." Mr. Tighe commented upon his reversal of the usual vaudeville procedure wherein a male accompanist is generally at the piano for a young woman. He said at the Fifth Avenue Monday night that since other male singles often had a male accompanist, he thought a little change could do no harm. Mr. Tighe stated that to his mind it was a rather novel manner of "combining business with pleasure." It must have struck Mr. Tighe as peculiarly novel, he sing- ing to an accompanist in vaudeville, for Mr. Tighe came into vaudeville with a piano that he played himself. For the remainder of the turn, when Mr. Tighe was either singing or telling stories, he was alone upon the stage. His is a comedy single act. Everything he does in song or story has a laugh. If a ballad or story song there is a comedy kick at the finish. Some sound exclusive or especially written for Tighe. One is a popular number, about a wife on the other side who should remain there while the husband is having a good time over here at home. Just how much amusement that may afford a great many in these days is problematical. The Fifth Avenue audi- ence laughed at it. One of the songs tells how he "chased" a girl down the street to find it was a Scotchman in kilts. That has been used as a straight story by two acts hereabouts. Tighe has a couple of laughable war stories, one very good, and there is some inci- dental humorous talk to his "Wedding Bells" song, while current comment on the Suffragettes is quite apt and ap- parently written since election. When first appearing Mr. Tighe is unaccom- fianied, even by the piano. This is ater dragged under the drop by two stage hands who are engaged while doing so in an argument as to the best way of moving a piano, they interrupt- ing Tighe with the wrangle. One of Tighe's best bits is when he announces he will sing an Arabian love song, but savs it calls for a brief explanation. After explaining it, Mr. Tighe informs the audience that since they know the story what's the use of singing it, and goes into another number. There is a decided and noticeable improvement in Mr. Tighe's stage presence and de- livery. The former is quite easy and the latter more likeable, although he retains the laugh that breaks into the stories or comedy points. Mr. Tighe should shut off that laugh. If he must do something at that time, he might smile. The laugh sometimes started before the point is fully out indicates the finish. It looks as though Harry Tighe has a marketable big-time single turn. Sim*. o Lou Holts. Songs and Talk. 11 Mins.j One. 23rd Street. Lou Holtz in blackface has new ma- terial in songs and talk. The songs are comedy ones and his talks got over very nicely, but the best bit is a parodied recitation, on all of the familiar recitations of late in vaude- ville, from Kipling to Sen !ce and back again. Holtz has a jumping song, "I'm Single Again" and strums a guitar while singing a point number to a Spanish air. This is quite amusing to an audience. It looks as though Holtz with his present material could hold a big time spot and should im- prove. Just now at times in work he suggests Eddie Cantor, then again Al Jolson, but not enough of either to le?.ve an impression he is trying to do an unannounced imitation and as he seems capable of putting over good material the farther away from each he trains himself the better off ulti- mately he will be,