Variety (March 1918)

SHOW REVIEWS 19 3{*«""* *»4 Bnausaeat Siotere. Sketch. 10 Mins.f PuU SUm. City. Oscar Siegman is the comedian now with the Beaumont Sisters. He has replaced Billy Van in the three-cor- nered combination. The act that they are offering is a mixed hodge-podge much revised. The scene represents the drawing room of the Baggs home, and the widowed sister, who has been in Atlantic City on a visit, returns home, bringing her second husband with her. He has saved her life by wading into the surf and pulling her out. Just for that she marries him and to hear her rave regarding her Adonis before his advent makes the audience expect a* freak and they are not disappointed. Seigman is one of those long, gangley fellows, with a horror of germs and a ministerial mien. The two sisters take him in hand and brow beat him until he takes to drink and then turns the tables. There is but one humorous touch, but it is suggestive and in ex- tremely bad taste at this time. This is not the day when one may safely poke fun at the national emblem and that is about all the final punch of this act is. There is a picture on the wall of the first husband and when hubby No. 2 turns it a soap ad with a girl in a bathtub is disclosed, at which the comedian sings the "Star Spangled Banner," the final .gag being "What are you singing that for?" and the reply, "I'm trying to get her to stand ap," which lets the curtain down on the laugh. Fred. Winchell and Green. "SpooMyrUlt" (Skit). 12 Mins.s Two. American Roof. In forming a likable act for the No. 2 position Walter Winchell and Rita Green have made a promising start. Theirs is a sort of bench turn, but it has dialog, songs and dances. For an opening the girl is perched on a bit of brick wall, and there is a duet, the lyric of which is rather bright. They wander to a bench for a spooney bit, followed by another song. But here, while the lyric includes the names of famous men, it is not so well written. While Miss Green is making a costume change Winchell handles a war song, and he gives way for the girl's eccen- tric solo dance. There is another duet for the close, and some stepping takes them off. The first two numbers appeared to be written, and were helped by the naive manner of Miss Green. The turn isn't one to bring forth any volume of applause, but it's pleasant. Ibee. Mullar and PotUr. "Afternoon Tea" (Comedy). 23 Mint.; One. City. Maud Muller, assisted by a woman of the grande dame type, is presenting a comedy act in "one" that is very rough at present and virtually a mon- olog for Miss Muller. The act is en- tirely too talky at the opening, but is talky from the point that it is laugh- less. Then Miss Muller starts a string of talk alone, interrupting it with a number that won hearty applause. She fails to seem at home in handling the talk end and there were several times when the City audience grew restless. A finishing number is a duet, "Things That a Woman Can Do," with a patri- otic touch that got over but fairly. The act is far from right at present. Fred. Peppine and Perry. Music. 12 Mint.; One. Jefferson. Two young men. First play accor- dions. The slender chap switches to the violin. Routine runs usual gamut of classical and topical, with the Jef- fersonites most partial, of course, to the airs they know best. One member of duo very serious throughout. The other boy loosened up occasionally. Sure-fire m tke pop theatres. Mmrh. PALACE. •ae ef the eest all around programs ef Us ason, wsll balanced, top-heavy with talent, and generally entertaining from every angle. Ths headlining responsibilities and olsss of the bill Is shouldered by s trio of women, three of vaudeville's best Incidentally, and the returns certainly justified the booker's selec- tion. Eva Tanguay Is the particularly bright attraction this week, the Bessie Clayton Dance Revue and Grace La Rue being hold-overs from the previous week, Tanguay, looking quite as well as ever, never accomplished more In her long theatrical career. Following the Clayton turn, which, up to that moment, had topped everything preceding It, and which to the casual observer threatened a sure stage "death'' to its successor. Tanguay preaeedonT and was promptly stopped with a 50-seoond reoeptlon. It was the biggest and kindest oompllment ever handed the cyolonio and ec- centric singer, and before she had warbled half through her opening ditty the entire house had forgotten the Clayton turn, and Immediately tingled with enthusiasm over Tanguay. And the reoeptlon was not only unanimous, but spontaneous. It seemed'as though the packed house understood the peril and realised that a hearty welcome would thwart it. It certainly did. Tanguay worked as she never did before, and at the finale she had proven her right to the title of vaudeville's greatest beedTlner. Her repertoire is almost entirely new. llkewlee her ^^"TMf The opening number, "Lovlngless Day," is a lyrical gem. and It softened the way for the balance of the routine. "If They'd Just Bend Bva Tanguay Over There" le also sure-fire for Tanguay. She Introduced a rather novel costume In this, the gown being made of dollar bills, and built In the form of a cannon and Its base. "If I Were a Boy I'd Belong to the Navy." with a short hornpipe dance, followed, and then- "Please Don't Forget Me When I'm Gone." This has a ring of smeartty that Tanguay emphasises nicely, and can be safely stamped as one of the best numbers she has Introduced since "I Dont Care." which she encored with. She also rendered the "Marsellalse" In French, with a costume made up of the flags of the allied nations. She oould wear some headgear of appropriate make. A oostume of blue' beads corralled a gasp from the female patrons, but such a con- dition is generally expected of the Tanguay wardrobe. Progressive and aggressive, Bva Tanguay Is still the peer of vaudeville head- liners, a truly wonderful woman. She stood the genuine sold test Monday night, and came through with a genuine 22-karat report. The Bessie Clayton production will top any- thing in the dancing line that vaudeville has seen in seasons, being particularly strengthened by the preeenoe of the Marooni Brothers. The eccentrlo dancer actually made them stand up. while the duet dance by the brothers wss a veritable "riot" such as the term le applied professions! ly. Mies Clayton's toe work was thoroughly appreciated, and the Gilding O'Mears earned their just share. Opening with the usual weekly pictorial, the show ran along evenly right up to the final number, which came on after 11 P. M., bring- ing the exit march around 11:20. It was rather late, but the houee remained right up to the conclusion of Miss Tanguay'a specialty, when the general exodus practically killed the closing turn, the Three Kane Brothers (New Acts). This was unfortunate, but its an ac- cepted fact that a metropolitan audlenoe will not stick for the finish. The Morln Sisters opened with their classy little dancing routine, and packed away a tidy hit with little or no trouble. Under ordinary clrcumstanoes this specialty ahould hold a spot nearer the center of the bill, but this Is no ordinary bill, and any other spot would cause a oonfllctlon. Next came the Three Hlckey Brothers, with their acrobatic danclpg turn. It's one of the best acts of Its kind, wholly good and generally funny. The dancing duo were well rewarded for their effort, and the comic pulled many a laugh with his ec- centricities. Walter Brower was on a trifle early to RIVERSIDE. »Ki tt V M ky *v U t wmy **• •<»«»•»•• received . • i^ w at tk% Rlvaraide Monday evening. It Is first-rate entertainment From first to last every sot was heartily applauded. Noth- ing flopped, nor was there, at any time, any suggestion of such a condition. Mcintosh and His Musical Maids, Scotch singers, dancers and Instrumentalists, three girls and a man In Highland costumes, played drums, the man the pipes, one girl used the RA an «i/ n t d two ,P Uy t* ▼A 0 ""' the girls sang "Annie Laurie," and all four finished with braes. Classy act of Its kind and was accorded big applause at its conclusion. It was followed by another piano act. Corporal Arthur Fields, vocalist, and Private Leon Flatow at the piano, both in uniform. They are members of the 2?:^*^*. Prop?.™ ■«*• «tatea they are S??*^ 11 ? ^ heir •*»rtee for the benefit of the 71 st infantry. They offered a number of pop- ular ditties, mostly patriotic, the pianist cut- ting up capers at the instrument They were well received, due to a considerable extent to the patriotism of their appearances. Florence Roberts and Co. are back with a revival of J. Hartley Manners' brilliant dra- matic sketch, "The Woman Intervenes." They don't write sketohee like that every day—not like Mies Roberts In vaudeville every day. Therefore the return Is welcome. It could stand repeating for years and years. Inci- dentally, the story would make a better motion picture scenario than 60 per cent of those being ueed in the highest grade film features. It was announced from the stage that Jack Wilson would be unable to appear and that Bert Fltsglbbon had been substituted. Wil- son was scheduled to olose the show, but Flts- glbbon went on fourth, as he had to double at the Royal. Hie nonsenslealltles elicited a riot pf almost continuous laughter. Adele Row- land and her pianist closed the first half and ?* nf ..S^?. 011 "",?' °*»«es a little chatter in the "Knitting, Knocking" ditty, from which she extracted lots of lsughs. One of her other songs wss also ueed by the Watson Sisters, separated only by one act and Intermission.' Psge, Hack and Mack opened the second part after Julius Lensberg pulled down a little applause for himself with "Hungarian Rag," ons of his own compositions. They are a corking trio of acrobats, two men and a woman In olvlllsn attire, the woman doing contortion work and the men a number' of original hand-to-hand combinations. The fin- ish, a dive by one man from a three-high table to the understander's hands, the latter having the woman wrapped backwards about his body, is a nifty. Watson Sisters hsve a lot of smart chatter, barring a couple of "released" jokes, but still finish their songs with right hands extended in approved old style* fashion. The "released" gags are: "We don't get much money, but we ave lots of fun" and "If I fell In a coal- hole I'd be arrested for stealing coal." The "curse" Is taken off the letter one by a re- Joinder from the smaller to the larger sister: "You couldn't fsU into a ooal-hole." Their ludicrous dance finish earned them eo much applause they were forced to employ a comedy ZST^JI wh «» ttare 5o a?e pSeTStae S^k.fcwtly.and Norton. uinltZTTZ ™L2* T^omas^sVlff .3 ££ £$£* J^fS with a bit or sinking and «Sm? aee?5 genuine novelty, cleverly eonaol£SS C ..4 TV* -*. quately put over. The ac?rankl wlth*t& h-tofjem. and entitled to a^cVc? J* vEFLPV* 1 " •■««■■• «3ueEe sella 1 In3i»!£S ■*** . i0m# tactions, whichever* applauded as strongly as they alwmra T57 no matter who dees" them, or hoVgey aw dcttjTjg before' ig"""*' ™ %* ROYAL K^mJ 4 *****, 1 ** *•** •* the lower finer Sm 1 S^. 011 ' , and Mol, « m fcoogan who did exceptionally well but spoiled Ita hltSJ owning took for two encorceVhen one wesS have sufficed. One of the boyiTln^tneTaeL Cocgan, was help*, -long materially hi Vfc orchestra, which put hto Lnce musle SL^t OooeVo t S5JS5 nUbln9 J* ^"SEeiVMr! ^."•^•"i* •W^ftfafi it. far when finishing hs remarked. "Some lass. hevm> Nat Kamern can certainly path Unsilf «?ffe l*S«i p S?*?* •»• of thereat"orchestra*t2 nsS OLA* *•**•! with a Jess ISnS tSi n# T*L. f * mr •*•■* **• »«n to the nST followed.by Gardner and Hartman n and Ardlne did themselves proud with and dances, the encore they did going ._„ JML-rtifi". A'* 111 * •aowed to advantage •kiCk* 1 **£• «•*«■•• worn an<P ™*" •nd, with no tittle assistance IK. mJXS.—V!* fc 00 ** 11 wasted little time la The defection of Jack Wilson moved Ryan and Lee from fourth to next to dosing with their comedy skit, "Hats and Shoes," and they registered a most satisfactory laughing nit. The couple are constantly changing the act, adding to It laugh upon laugh. Langdon Mo- Co nnlck's spectacular melodramatlo produc- tion, "On the High Seas," Is a big enough act to close any show anywhere. It Is one of thoee suspensive Interest "wlrelese" ship- board storiee, with a tremendous patriotic naval spectacle for the flnlah, which looke as big as anything of the kind ever tried In vaudeville. Jofo. ALHAMBRA. gather his customary results with his mono- log, but every point found its msrk, and he can be properly credited with a laughing hit. The sketoh was "The Weaker One" (New Acts), coming next In the order, and Inter- mission was olosed by Grace La Rue (oeoond week). She has changed her repertoire some- what, opening with "Last Night." a high class number that equala anything she sings. It gave her a corking start. Toward the finish. Mlse La Rue'e voice went "blue", a trifle, but she quickly recovered, and It was hardly noticeable to many in the house. Two gowns are worn, one, a stunning black crea- tion, and the other a vari-colored affair that shows her graceful llnee. Miss La Rue was well received, taking several bows at the flnlah. Everest's Monkey Circus opened Inter- mission, and provided the essential variety through the comedy. It called for laughs aplenty, and the closing trick, a bar leap by one of the simians, rounded the affair Into a neat hit. Whiting and Burt have a new routine, Mies Burt nololng now with "My Little Service Flag Has Seven Stars," a well written num- ber, with a comedy "kick" that insures its safe passage anywhere. The pantomime ac- companying the love number Is also well staged. "Lump of Sugar In Dixie" makes an exceptionally good encore song, and the couple might have still offered another. They were one of the bright hits of the program. The Clayton act followed with Tanguay and the Kane Brothers nsxt in order. Weft*. Practically four solid hours of entertain- ment at the Alhambra this week. Tuesday night the shew opened at 8.10 with the Pathe Weekly and closed at 11.12 with Barbaran and Orohs, in a new dancing act for their reunion. With the exception of "Camou- flage." a dramatic sketch with trick scenery, every turn of the evening wss highly success- ful and even the puerile, old-fashioned counter- feiting melodramatlo playlet received en- couragement by moderate handclapplng. What an ancient thing the story is, and as for the trick scenery, which Is ohanged in something leas than a fraction of a minute, that's as simple as the striking of any In- terior set and substituting another. The "perlsoope" idea of "Camouflage" is a new application of the old "diminishing" mirrors, and that about lets it out. The finish is an Insult to one's Intelligence. The dialog dis- tinctly discloses the scene is the fourth floor of a private house. Ths counterfeiters have the federal officers covered with revolvers and are about to kill them, when one of the fourth floor windows is smashed in by a ehot from an officer outside. On what is he sup- posed to be standing? Only a moment before the crooks looked out the same window and remarked there waa nobody around. Four Bolses, three men and a woman, have a good tossing act with pleasing comedy, finishing with a sensatlnal ''over the bar" stunt. Alexander McFayden, the distinguished Milwaukee pianist, who was a prodigy In his youth, Is living up to early expectations. HIb paraphrasing of famous waltzea Is brilliant and his rendering of the "Lucia" sextet with his left hand a marvelous bit of execution. Ed. Lee Wrothe and Co. In a farcical skit. "Janitor Hlgglns," Is designed solely to ex- filolt the personality of the star, the other our people piling on dialog and situations for his ludicrous come-backs. In these days •f modern playwrlghtlng the producer ahould aet" five intoutee^afterthei7 eMranel Thar •earned to appreciate the wayThchw^rna 22?^ ^ZL*** worked a bit hej^tE ba^inE^tLT 1 *•■»«•* ^ what mlgSS £*.••!!•* * rml 0U «H»ret. They returned T^f? p *" • nco F' *•» ««~rvedVbet irtlieei a little In coming back the Mooad flZT r a I lor - 0 «"»? •»* Co. closed tntenrisalen and amused lightly with a sketch; TherdS w ?4 ,~~«? ^ to '« was all ever; #f * M Olive Briscoe, assisted by Al Rauh. besan *S!2Pmfi 2? d0 V b !!? ,In *l*g. Both have ™ lc *V*«** when singing are at their hestT Miss Briscoe looked exceptionally well In her closing costume. It was an Item that helped the turn along to a great extent: ■■■»•■ ~.I a H? ka ???*$ he,d *• *•«•• •© much se 2m '?■• J* !,6d fortb » "hand." Mtaottorett still looks as well as ever. Her^amatS •ketch was well received by the Royaffiesi got four or five curtains after It was ever Bert Fitsgibons closed the^aow/aadI ?• was on pretty late had ae trmbtein things up. He Is the same "KtfT ae always! and the more "nut" stuff he does ttehassS they like It The bunch from the Brea*eheefc to the finish to see Fltxgibbons make his e3t COLONIAL Tble week's bill furnishes satisfactory eater- telnment. Probably the only compUilnt Is too much fast specialty and comedy enter- tainment packed into the first half, and not enough In the second. ^ One thing that may contribute to this Is the presence In the middle of the second half ef the sketch. "Kisses," with William Oaxton featured. The playlet Is interesting, but when all the action consists of the exchange of talk between persons seated In chairs It scarestr mskee for the enlivening kind of entertain- ment necessary to keep running a show that has up to thai moment been made up of the fastest kind of specialty material. An Ideal variety bill, of course, should be- gin In a moderately Interesting way. and should progress to the aooompanlment of gradually Increasing speed to a climax. Some- how this week's Colonial bill, excellent as It Is, misses this crescendo effect. Joyce, West and Moran open with their varied routine of song numbers and daaees. The turn has a wealth of capital material, le never for an Instant tiresome,* and takes on an additional value In the really striking beauty of the woman's frocks. The small amount of chatter le amusing, and the dan*. log at all tlmee interesting. Moon and Morris' stepping is also flawless in the unison work, and from first to last they have a etsjen, straightaway offering. Joseph B. Bernard's sketch trifle, "Who Is She?" Is a oaprtalbrt Its laughs are well placed, delivered Plenti- fully, and always In good taste. Mr. Bernard's comedy method has In Its something of easy assurance that is highly effective, and his partner, Ninita Bristow, makea a satisfactory foil for his calm, smooth method with her volatile activity. Evelyn Nesbit, supported by Bobby OTftell, has a fast arrangement of danoe and song numbers, backed by highly attractive etage setting and first rate costuming. The act takes much of its interest from Its etghtll- neRfi. Hunting and Francis In "Love Blossoms" opened the Intermission satisfactorily. "KlHiKjB" followed. The Courtney 81stere filled in an agreeable Interval next to closing In (Continued on Page 21)