Variety (April 1918)

16 SHOW REVIEWS PALACE. The current week's Pa luce program lacks the one big essential of a .luccessful enter- tainment, i. e., comedy. The show ran through with hardly a single laugh, until the arrival of James and iiounic Thornton, away down in the second part, and with this Ingredient missing, it suffered accordingly. Another no- ticeable thing was the late arrival of the audience. The dnyiight-saving plan has had an apparent effect on the Palace gathering, for, unlike former days, they kept straggling in until after ten o'clock, when the total attendance measured close to capacity. This huuuicapped the earlier acts to a great extent. With the pictures on and off the Four Botses, a speedy casting act, began proceedings before a light crowd, and while the quartet offered some semi-sensational stunts, the position and conditions went against them and thoy closed with little or no returns. Fred Berrens with his musical novelty was on second, opening with a violin solo and proceeding through his repertoire of talk and music. The reproducing Instrument, a piano that automatically plays every requested tune, gives Berrens a Bplendid opportunity for some comedy patter. He might have fared far bet- ter In a lower spot, for the turn shines with originality, but In that dreaded second posi- tion he suffered the usual fate. The Kouns Sisters, in their third week at the house, while on rather early, bad a reason- ably large attendance to work to, and with their unchanged routine chalked up a nice score. But Eddie Bowling, who followed, seemed perceptibly handicapped by a bad cold, and with the exception of his comedy puns his offering went rather flat. The "Stow- away" recitation is draggy and overdone. It doesn't belong in a routine such as Bowling offers. This chap Is undeniably clever, has a good style of delivery, but should recon- struct his bpecialty. Berwent Hall Calne and A. £. Anson in "The iron Hand (New Acts) closed the first part with Bessie McCoy-Davis and Co. open- ing intermission. Miss Davis was a popular favorite with the house and cun be credited with a repetition of her last week hit. One of the two big hits of the show came with the Thorntons. The old-timers seemed in fine fettle, and the audience, having Its first taste of genuine comedy, roared at every line. Bonnie looks wonderfully well and, while admiltiug 03 could have passed for .'JO years less. They cleaned up with ease, being forced to an encore and finally a speech, and there was none of the current day stalling for bows either. "The Vlol-lnn," with Herman Tlmberg (New Acts), followed the Thornton turn, and for a closer the Stampede Riders were intro- duced. The western affair kept the house seated right through the trick riding and roping stunts. Wynn. RIVERSIDE. Bue to the presence of several extra length turns the bill was cut to seven acts this week, but the show played to overtime Just the same, with the news weekly starting at exactly ten minutes past eleven—the show having consumed Just three hours. A good house was in Monday night, the daylight sav- ing plan having no effect, and patrons acting by clock as predicted. The show ran to the form of Its framing, with the headllners, attraction and feature, made up respectively of Pat Rooney and Marion Bent, Gus Edwards' wliandbox Re- vue" and Wilbur Mack and Nella Walker, de- veloping strength as billed. Pat Rooney is a favorite at this house. In an after speech he mentioned that he and Miss Bent were present for the first time— thin month—at the Riverside. Responding to the cordial reception Pat "worked bis head off" in next to closing, and stopped the show after the somewhat lengthy comedy playlet, "Over Here," by Samuel Sbipnian and Clara Llpman. This act is the one Lewis «fc Gordon sent west some time ago, and is a replica for the east Rooney and Uent are starred in it. Its patriotic flavor bit-- the popular trend, but Rooncys antics helped greatly. Down lu "one" Kooney then danced and kidded for some 12 mimics or more, making the total running time for his appearance around M) minutes. He started off imitating his father singing "Kosle O'Grady." and finished with the- hou^.' whittling the c.horu.-. Pat's htunts In "one" were necessary to set the stage for the final act which was Gladys Hanson in "Liberty Aflame," and was prob- ably figured on. Miss Hanson's stirring de- livery held the house with but few exceptions, and hardly a person stirred on the orchestra floor. Rather a good idea lor closing the show since the drop of the flag and the na- tional anthem brings the audience to its feet. Mack and Walker with their comedy. "A Pair of Tickets," were the class of the show, they being used to close intermission. The extreme ne-atnesH uf both players and detail are always welcome, and the breezy etyle of delivery of the principals helped In earning the turn four or more curtains. The "Handbox Re\ue" went over quite big, on third. They liked the "vamp" bit of Cud- dles and Gecrgie, ami from the appearance in the bit of the former, she sure will make some stunner upon maturity. Marie Hall was not in the act Jur i-oine reason, one of the choristers doing one of her numbers. Where In r second number was progiammed there was Inserted a classical dancer, apparently ulso from the chorus. She p; a blonde miss of promise, with an easy, graotul style of kick- ing. Individually Vincent Ol mnnell. the diminutive singer of the bunch, won the hon- or-, but the net went over with a hang at the cloHe. Dorothy Urenrx-r, with her tnsteful coh- tumes and bright lyri<-, opened Intermission cleverly. This practically completes her trip over the big New York houses this season, and it looks like Bbe'll have no trouble re- peating next season. Her cute "kid" at the finish stands out strongly in her routine. Bert and Harry Oordon brought forth plenty of laughs in fourth spot. The one referred to as "Willie" sure has a funny style of mug- ging, and In addition he's a likable comedian. Lloyd and Wells with their dancing skit. "Alabama Bound," performed nicely ou sec- ond, deserving credit for evolving something away from the usual run of dancing turns. Both boys were liked for their individual work and the odd dual "step" for a finish. "Tho Girl in the Moon" made a novel opening, getting attention when she was low- ered to the heads of the audience via the lever contrivance. She gave roses to several men In uniform and kissed them on the brow. A man in the audience afterwards asked a soldier how It came about that he had picked the seat for such attention. Ibee. COLONIAL On paper the bill at the Colonial this week looked like good small time show. On the stage it was capital entertainment. There wasn't anything in it that could pull at the box office from the "name" and the business at the house showed that. Usually the first week following the lentcn period finds a strong show laid out, but the Colonial had none of this. The lower floor held but a two- thirds house and the upper floors did not seem to be filled. There was an eight-act bill programmed, but for the Monday night performance' the act originally slated for the closing spot was missing and seven acts appeared with "On the High Seas" finishing off the bill. This act was the headline attraction and worked bet- ter than at any of the three previous times that the reviewer has seen it. It was one of the solid applause hits of the show. After the act was over the audience remained In its seats. It was fully a minute before they realized that the show was over. The orchestra rang In with the overture at 8.lo, and the Hearst-Pathe Weekly followed, putting the first act on at 8.20 with the house fairly well In. Frank Parish and Steven Peru were the openers and pulled down a hit. The boys were slow in getting started with ' their opening dances, but once into the acro- batics and barrel work their success was as- sured. Emily Francis Hooper and Herbert Marbury (New Acts) achieved the distinc- tion of the "Colonial clap," a result of the scenery and dances rather than the singing. The ending of the act was weak. James Watts and Rex Storey, in their comedy lightning calculating specialty, were a solid hit. The comedy went over and the figuring caused the audience to wonder. Stephen D. O'Rourke, the Irish tenor, assisted by Franz Black, offered five selections, all of which appealed. Clarence Oliver and Georgie Olp, originally billed for the second part of the show, closed the first half. "Discontent," by Hugh Her- bert, was presented in an appealing manner, although rather a weak offering for the spot. - Dave Genaro and Ann Oold opened the sec- ond part in "Wanted—A Model," by James Madison. The offering is unchanged as pre- sented about a year ago, although the opening has been revised aud several numbers Inter- polated. Miss Gold looked stunning In the five gowns that she displayed. Bert and Harry Gordon were a solid com- edy hit next to closing. They should watch themselves In the bigger houses, for they are letting a touch of salaclousness slip. Fred. ALHAMBRA. If the Harlemites haven't voted this show the best hill of the season, they surely have placed it up with the best. The way the close to capacity house showed appreciation Tuesday night is a fuir test of the bill's merit. The entertainment was quite filled with dancing, but it wh« largely of the clever , order, aud it was counterbalanced by a full quantity of luugh getting comedy. Four su-e hit- were scored, there being no weak spot* throughout. Also there was a sure fire favorite—Sophie Tucker —who in closing Intermission- Just about grabbed a riot hit. Miss Tucker has he-en wc-t tor most of the season and seems to have happened back at about the right time. She still has that corking musical quintet t Live Kings of Syncopation"), and they are more a feature of her turn than ever. The boys go further than before and get bet- ter results. Also they help Miss Tucker in several numbers by joining In the Chorus. Miss Tucker has brought several new num- ber.; back with her and several novelties In way of presenting her act, although It is alone the same lines. She opened the. act in "one" with u lyric, explaining that her boys had ctriick. That was interrupted by the ni'i' h-ians calling from the wings and making good vocal harmony about wanting to come back. In their own specialty number they showed class again. Phil Sax, the demon saxaphoni-t, bad added tome new stunts. Sam Green, the fiddle player, and in fact all the boys are "there." Then, ot cour c, Frank Westphal had a lari.e »-hare of the proceedings, he coming on near the finish of the Tucker turn to kid. It's a great comedy stunt for th.; audience, and the Miim-wliiit intimate nature- of the kidding makes It all the surer of a mark. Miss Tucker mentioned her marriuge several times, and Frank predicted that maybe they'd have a family as big as Kddlo Foy's. Miss Tucker looked well save; at fir t, when a violent green hat was out of order. When she doffed the "katle" It was. much better. Westphal. ono pi t ahead, rambled on in his usual dry fash- I'ui, but instead of a song finish he recited a humorous verse called "Hunk o' Tin," written with apologies to Kipling's "Gonga Din." Ida May Chadwlck and her daddy pulled the first hit, No. 8. Ida's Immaculate opening costume is sure a strong contrast to her make- up as the "hee-haw" girl. There was a time when Miss Chadwlck copped all the dancing medals she went after, and she hasn't lost any of her foot cleverness. White and Halg, next to closing, ran second to Miss Tucker in scoring. No easy dancers were picked by the house for George to Imi- tate, and he won favor in the doing. The act is featured by the appearance of both dancers, and it classes with the best. The Three Dooleye figured strongly in the bill's comedy, and in seventh spot they rolled up a hit score, with Westphal adding some laugh by taking the bows with them. Paul McCarty and Elsie Fay opened after inter- mission, that spot being originally allotted to the Ponzillo Sisters. It's a pleasing turn, winning nice appreciation and featured by Miss Fay's agile kicking. McCormack and Dougherty, the latter once of the Dougherty Sisters, filled No. 2, getting something through the dancing, in which Mc- Cormack displayed considerable cleverness. The Wilson and Aubrey Trio started the show off excellently. The men's work on the bars is fast and it drew applause, but the comic wrestling burlesque in "one" won the trio real returns. The Belgium Trio ap- peared in the closing spot at eleven o'clock, and perhaps because of the good preceding bill not more than half the house remained. That portion witnessed a somewhat unusual acrobatic turn (New Acts). Ibee. ROYAL There was not a great deal to the Royal program Monday night. About the biggest thing in it, physically and entertainingly, was James J. Morton, who acted as special announcer for the acts. When the house grew to expect Mr. Morton after each turn, it ap- plauded him on his entrance each time, and laughed, applauding again, as he exited. But James J. had little to work upon, at least during the first part, for the big act of that division, "Childhood Days," was such a ter- rible thing Mr. Morton probably had not the heart to kid it, and used his Judgment in not extolling the turn. The "Childhood" affair closed the first sec- tion, and made it almost impossible for any- thing in the second half to get over as they should. Theodor Kosloff and his fine company of dancers were the big card, next to closing, and made a great big sight act for the Bronx. Closing the performance was Eddie Dowling, who doubled from the Palace. The Royal bill underwent some rearrange- ment Monday night, following the matinee. This placed Moss And Frye to open the second part, in "one." Moss and Frye are colored men who have been playing about these parts several seasons oh the small time. They can make the big time, for they can make any audience laugh, with a series of questions and answers. They got enough, but would have gotten more in an earlier spot, for although some in the house laughed at "Childhood Bays," the majority probably couldn't forget it that evening. The Geuaros opened the performance, fol- lowed by Holmes and Levere, Hunting And Francis, and Brltt Wood, in that order. Hunt- ing and Francis fared much the better of the earlier turns. The weather was nice and the house but fair. Sitae. AUDUBON. The show opens in conventional fashion with a comedy dnmb act and closes the same way. Between, there is a plentiful supply. If the show for the first half had a fault, it was lack of comedy. Perhaps the booker de- pended upon Mr. and Mrs. Norman Philips in their sketch, built upon the old theme of a domestic cyclone. If tbey did bo, the Phll- lpses fell down, for the sketch won few laughs. Eddie Montrose In whiteface with his.tables opened the show. The table stuff Is well handled and the comedy Incidental to the routine of balancing feats does nicely. Mlroslova and Gerbearis picked up the run- ning and helped the show along with their very sightly singing and musical offering. The woman knows the art of dressing. She had several costume changes, one in pink be- ing especially good to look at. The Phllipses were third, and should have cleaned up, having the first try at talking comedy. The complications of the story in the sketch move haltingly and the give-and- take of the dialog Is sluggish. The woman dresses neatly In black velvet and cloth of gold and the pair have class In appearance. What tbey need is speeding up of talk. "The Girl on the Magazine Cover" was the "flash" of the bill. It has a new man In the person of Gallagher (formerly of Gallagher and Kerwln), but the rest remains unchanged. The offering, for all Its absence of cotnedy, In the pop bouse sense, mukes a sure Impression, on the strength of Its swift chungc of set- tings, numbers and costumes. Some par- ticularly good management is disclosed in the Japanese numbers by Miss Mlllershlp. The simplicity of the stage picture is conspicuous lu this—a simplicity that is well calculated to bring the principal figure to a compelling focus. Tho four girls work nicely, and the whole act has an atmosphere of youth and enthusiasm which Is one of its best assets. Patrons of the Audubon endorsed the number unanimously. Bert Hanlon had the difficult next to clos- ing place and fairly stopped the show, with bis songs and talk of tbo "nut" variety. Emerson and Baldwin closed. HARLEMO.IL Business at the Harlem Opera House was big Monday night, considering the bill held no special feature, and the weather was fine. The "Daylight Saving" plan brought a Urge number of children to the night performance. They helped a few of the acta, for the kids were pleased by comedy. Out of the seven acts on the bill four did mighty welL - Pope and Uno, man and dog, held •tUn- tlon in the opening spot. The dog several tricks. The dog's final feat of put- ting out a light going to bed and pulling the covers up, without a visible cue was tbo biggest applause getter, sending tho act over. Cantwell, Wright and Martin did littlo in the second spot. The harmony singing is poor, although tho nolo numbers are good, es- pecially the basses selection, whloh got muoh applause. Tho boys final number, "Hang tbo Kaiser Under the Linden Tree," got big re- turns. Fox and Ward, oelebrating their 60th anniversary as partners, scored a solid hit. Emmie and Effle Elliott started slowly and finished the same way. The girls have an ordinar? straight singing turn. Following the Hearst-Pathe picture, Faber and Taylor occupied twenty minutes. The act at pres- ent is too talky. Browning and Denny ware sure-fire all. the way and stopped tho show, forcing Miss Browning to make a speech. Potter and Hartwell closed and bung up a well earned hit. AMERICAN ROOF. The average show at the American for the first half, with Nat Naxarro topping tho bill (held for the full week) and producing the hit of the evening. The Roof Is oomlng into its own these warm nights, the house being well filled with a most congenial audience, willing to laugh at most anything. Frank Carmen opened and was followed by Beatrice and Evelyn O'Neil, who got away to a nice finish with their songs. Tho blonde makes excessive efforts to throw her hair about, which seems unnecessary, as her golden locks bob enough while she is dancing without any shaking of the head. The girls are sing- ing one or two tunes that have a swing and their finish with a rag put them over. Horton and La Triska presented their doll and clown act that held tho interest for a while, but showed a tendency to drag. The girl, as the doll, allows herself to be taken down in the audience with the object of some- one trying to make her laugh, sho in the meantime falling into men's lapa and so forth on her Journey up the aisle. It could stand a little cutting. The Columbia City Four (New Acts) pleased. Nat Naxarro closed the first part. Tho boy was a decided favorite after he had been on five minutes, so much so the house seemed not to realize the merit of ground work ono of the other men did, which was certainly pretty to watch. After singing "Laddie Boy" for an encore in "one" by himself, the lad made a speech that sounded a bit too pre- pared. If delivered more frankly It would sound decidedly better. However, it's quite evident the act's week stand at the house will not be overdoing It. Jere Sanford started the second half of the program and did well enough with his whist- ling and yodeling. In "one" and mixing talk with his numbers he did a nice single for nine minutes. Dolan and Lenharr, In a comedy crook sketch, kept them laughing throughout the time they were on, and did better than the usual skit playing on the Roof. The act holds one or two real laughs in it, and has numerous chuckles mixed in on the way, all of which la backed up by a good laugh finish that puts the skit across solidly. Adams and Guhl found no obstacles to overcome, next to closing, and scored accord- ingly, while Nelson and Nelson can split the credit between themselves and a Hart film. 230 STREET. Whether the Fairbanks or Arbuckle pic- tures, or the show Itself was the big "draw" was not known, but, nevertheless, Tuesday night the 23d Street had capacity. The boxes and lodges were comfortably filled and the lower floor had a number of standees during the earlier portion of the evening. Two hours were consumed by the vaudeville and an hour and a half more by the pictures. Silas Slicker and Co. opened and passed with slapstick comedy. The act will do for a while as an opener for the smaller houses. Mobr and Fields, second, in a neat little planolog have a clever offering and could easily have been shifted to a spot further down. Mr. Mohr played and sang his com- position, "Liberty Bell," well received. His partner, Miss Fields, is a pleasing little blonde, a good entertainer and works nicely opposite him. The turn as it now stands is eligible for the better houses. Fred C. Hagan and Co. in a corking good comedy playlet scored a well earned hit. The three In cast all work fast and deliver the comedy lines In a way to keep the house laughing all the way. Carrie Clark and Earl La Vere passed. The couple started off like wildfire, but slowed down, picking up again near the finish. Miss Clark takes a "rube" character In fine stylo, but her male partner at times doesn't work well as a "straight" and slows the turn to a certain extent. Their accordion "Jazz" finale sent them over with some to spare. Raymond Wylle and Co. kept things going and he was brought buck for an encore. Conoly and Webb registered with singing and "nut" comedy. Walters and Wnlters, clever ven- triloquists, were liked. They make a nice appearance, work smoothly and were re- warded. Gerard's Monkeys closed, holding 'em seated for the feature. (Continued on page 40.)