Variety (October 1919)

80B|B. witting pbiB&on. Irvios LfUlMUng aim* tat many "ymit. B* it iniMiwn ttjm. Ii«r«, >.lMre ^'fii* tongs are wmir. to coohMm 'trittre tbegr a»» only played. Ttia years liave advmced, ana Berlin has advaheed with ij^jini, BnwlcailyAiia^lyilea^^ Bis Ideas '•oAm«islo WW* abasit a> popular UMn 'ai itunt are bow^ For wttasssr at 'lUvtraUe Monday night wben the MAr enot demanded Mr. Berlin sing Ills fliiit' ienaatlonal song hit, "AlexaadofS |I«C« . true Band." Previouaiy ha had mum ^vr.v.?r:.SA;.v(eome<ijr . without invitation one oC hlS atag^ •Nobody*Knows, and Nobody CarMb** . 9here Is as wide a range hefttaen UiOM . Iwo numbers. In thought, theme; and l iair as there is between the top oC the ' Tines Building and the subway station beneath it. Just where Irving Betltai ' secures his Ideas for some of his best : qutnbers possibly he doesn't know hto- sSl£ They seem to tell the IKe story of Irvins Berlin, for the most part That may be why they hit wch responsive . appeal in others, In lyrics and tunes. Victor Herbert Is a famous comi>o»er. • Ho writes melodies. Berlin writes tunes. . 4ni sticks in the punch with his words. Listen -lb the lyric of "You'd Be Sur- prised," Berlin's very hitest song; a eomlo with each verse full of punch lines. That Berlin bay can't be over 30. Wibat la he going to be at 60 as a song writer? Or oldei^-or before. He is without a Ibnit He wrote "You've Got (o Gkt Up." One can't hear a bugle with- ^giut recalling it. That came from his »*'u«i - own experience at Yaphank. He wrote ¥miyy^::^y:'.'n[^, yip, Yaphank," the best musical 'eooiedy'Broadway has ever Been. He "'^S lt, aU o« It it, about blnqseU and fl^Mler boys In eamp. B« wrote dot Mir Olptaia Woridiaf toe Me W-''::^^^^'!^^fftli>tfi>- lirrlednr''«WNiiiBt- thf IMInc ■L....'..'.t/ 4l«QiliwgiM^pTlvil«■.. .H4' wrttM. 'llNd^ hMft il6 the feMrln whether It liCftir • aoK a btoch or • daao^b Mr.. '>-mirtiii doe«n*t sine is wtfl m to writM. .Vjinot W sbiit to g«t'iito ganvp ovw; mA >';!|deiH'» «nit« . Mopdar airiiit his voloe wM off, .through B«rvouiBS«i' or a oold. It cracked on high' qid after cneklng a couple of times, &ryliit .flAn»^ meniced to skip the top ones'! But that did not hurt him. No doubt half the . bVua paki admission to see Ikrvlng Ber- lin himself, thinking they had heard all ojt his-songs. But thoy had not. He ^sans some new ones. A ;yrlcal Intro- duction was a partial apology for his vocalizing, then he sang without stop* ping, "If I Had My Way, I'd Be a iay.- Followtog several others, Uicluding a medley of the "Yaphank'^ hits, he did ^Kobbdy Knows" with a male plant In a bbx for extra comedy verses, and closed 1J«th "I Lost You" (by invitation), fin- ishing up after eleven as the bill's big hit, dd(ng 26 minutes. Irving Berlin is now. at the head of his own music pub- ■' Jllhinff firm, Irving Berlin, Inc. He's so - «lrtaln as a box office draw It isn't'a ' .a question whether he will eontlniie in ^iniudevllle—the only point ia <^.yaude- vvitre hold himr ; fM* ■V-V Pi'?. : m ^ ■- Irene-Franklin and Burt: ra MiiM.; Fun Stage; . Majcstie, CUeago. • Chicago, Oct 8. Opening cold .after an absence of months from vandeville and years from Chicago vaudeville. Irene Franklin shot an (ihtirsiy new act. Her routine is daring, even revolutionary. Appearing ■ In' a straight gown she got a generous hand, and sang a little lntrpductl<^ about her old successes and. tektiv dewa Itfr hisurlant auburn jhalr and ft« ;a»aaglaff it for each cliertta did hi t«m her rCMM Wattreas," "Oiamber. BMUd," •' •'laMllM^a • OUK^^ . 'Xittta iUther" and filed AmUT" ' 'akoounK'''awar-..UM timm far thp advaiielar :;hMiMu-^^ looked Ulta>iM fir. ■» cbtiai: hnt wher* does ihejiia MHb hitfT narwmt. all right Amf< ah' ifltMiAiiiliir^^^^i^^ by Barton Creen, In his nsaal straightfor- ward and tricitlssfl style, Irene watted In as a little ghetto child; as good a make-up characterization as her old Janitor's child. She sang a heart- touching little thing In Yiddish accent of a poor kid bringing a rent receipt, the family's most precious possession, to her teacher for a Christmas gift (Adapted from a Myra Kelly story.) Her intonations were,kosher save for an occasional slip that only brought back Irene Franklin without hurting the character. The piece de resistance of the musical strain was "Roslnkes mit Mandeln," a Jewish classic lullaby. The Bumbe^ dropped'just a mite at the end, bavliig clutched the heart mightily until ^en< but never sagged enough to prevent a hMTy band. She.ttieaoluijiCed to an eventng dook, undeirAresaod. gad tore off a tBMpvv ^ntto. ahottt a .«djD^ of nowadays who -fot « drinks Instead «C ttpmr on tha tomed stuff; aad M was a ,4nM Idea i* a awn t0A Irena J«;• tmbt. pqUMMr. Bto, nMpi ;<ha Mimi «ith ^ bdM^f^liniMpr «( . Jk; •■^_tor Shun iha toiaed the. haadMwia auuitle aad appeiured fa-dlny eolor oomblaa- ytUn'-;,(Bi''%liBiiBia: tnd ovahfa; a rl^cr aweh of nuo aiilkilnat hear ohade of baJr. She aid a i^ndi girl greeting SanUhy. but she did It, oh,^ so differently; and the . song was so different, too. She got laugh after laugh and rounded it all out with a true French music hall dance which shone iridescent In the warm rays of her Individuality, her dis- orderly colors and her flushing magnet- isnpi of person. Half a dosen recalls after the curtain fell were her portion. It started her on her way across the Orpbeum tour with the settled fact that she has an entirely new act as strong as the best of her old ones. And that seemed unlikely again after the numy knockout blows she had landed In tho vaudeville ring. This young woman is original and has :t]|«. soul of the true comedienne, seasoniht: With a dash of quaint pathos her oommentarie/ on contemporary life viewed from indtil- gently satirlq. angles. Green gives hw. a backgrounl^ot dignity which she' Illuminates by. qule^. jMMnt Mm and again. The mnr.. aet ii time headltae atoff at It* flaast and., snrait. SU^ty, Senna and I«e (3). ttigers and Instrumentalists. sS Mins.; One. " » ■ I'Iftii Avenue. Three men In comedy songs and bal- indUr, playini^ their accompaniments on stringed instruments. The men present i classy appearance, in blue serge Jack- ets and wbtte flannel trousers. Act opens with a harmonised number. Two grultars and a mandolin are used for this. The lallest of the trio puts over a first rate ' comedy song. In which ho interpolates •ome excellent yodelling. The trio get ^ on the yodelling thing next with good reqUlts^ "On a Midnight Train aoing W^ili^' one of those "Casey Jones" dog- lerels, containing several, couplets that souiid blue for vaudeville, sung to the aeoompanlmer' of ukeleles, and "Back Home In Tennessee," complete the turn. W'Hh a little tonhig down of the "blue" ftplS the aot wlU At Id la any 9ld spot ■: ■ ■ :■ >\ ■■..'>■.■-fi^.J .1- ■ Joe Laurie. ■ -. " *Whatika" (Monotog.) aa Mins.; One. • - ■ • Riverside. Fonnetly of Laurie and'*ronson, Joe Laurie is now a single turn, really a monologlst. although carrying a com- pany for a brand new idea on the vau- devil're stage. Speaking of his sister, "Bdna," his folks and downtown where he liyes, Mr. Laurie remarks to the au- Meniee'~ Ms parents are .' la the wings watdilng htan. This happens after he has been talking and singing for 12 aahuties. moetlr talking. He. drags from fha^iaga ea nafatacs two elderly peo- . pie. man .•aadriweamh. tnitraducing them aa^Mr. anu Xiri. fiiMtola:* Thar have boen .^awniid Iar't4:ye|n. aagrs yamc Laaiia. •nim ha-kUi' then aad ahMt'lfeMW with the old oovpla bfttiuM gluBtaik at each other in s'ttawBlent^ at 'MMr smiling at some fresh sally «(; "son." It's a very effective plefla<p( Mt- irtg. for the couple look the rel<Mi ther assume, and it is tinlikely that np to the very-close of the remaining elflfht. minutes "they remain there, without speaking, that a Iwre percentage of the lay audience properly grasps the situa- tion. It finishes off the Laurie turn so differently it Is bound to esUblish him. Previously In the talking section, Mr. Laurie runs lightly along, speaking about almost everything, but not la the conventional BtyIeb;makUig one blunder only, tellhig of his irlrl—that If the audi- ence tuns him out a winner he will then secure engagements and make enough to~ nlarry the girl who is wait- ing to hear the verdict While this Biada humorous In a way, it Is too ' 'vtllsd to be in a turn that be- ■6 much origtaiality as does M^. UmU/t» Bis tltl4 "Whatlka." Is taken ^ftott the feraMT kid spoech, 'rwhat I earst" la tba lAUIrirC knd Bronson act IBr. iMUto iliet 'te go/' at iha epefriag. '^vi^^ ha waa of .Ihii tifOra4t*-%$bd#».> ''iireit-'.hU(ga..in«r^ ' giD 'lB'^:lte:hfliii'ajM>«aTCd ;t9';;ln«!irt«C' that at: his IbI^i^mms. MMittonlag *ia ooafldenee,'' li«?iil • long wHtar, Br. Laurie says *h« . will abig bis comiwsl- tloas, going into a mediajr of popular song hits, bowihgr as a eompMsr would whenever the strains brought in Vol- untary applause, ending It by stathig those were the songs he had hot writ- ten. 'While this section is. brief and sure Are for some applause, it can go out when Mr. Laurie finds something bet- ter to replace it Another section that needn't wait so lonit Is Laurie's iencore speech. In falling for the "speech thing," Mr. Laurie turned a lomerisault It wastj^ two minutes, and as his Impres-' sion was such when exiting with his "parepts," the young man should liave been Well content No author la an- nounced for the Laurie stuff, it hardly sounds like the same writer, the body of. the turn and the encore. As a sin- gle, Laurie recalls somewhat in vocal Intonation and style. Jack . Korworth. Laurie has an easy bearing on the stage alone.. Bis n«w ao^ for real enjoyihent oaa go aay phMi aaywhar*. .' Olive Le Cbmpte and Co. (z).' . Songs and Piano. . 15 Ming.; One. AiBerlean -Rool. .■'_. ' •.■ Olive Le ^ompte, recently with the Farrel-Taylor Trio, has framed up a linging specialty, using some welt select- ed publlshed.-numbers. . She is assisted by a pianist Who is a corking musician, and quite an asset to the aot Opening with an introductory song she wears a becoming opera oloak which, when dis- carded, reveals a green evening gown. She exhibits a pleasing soprano voice and an impressive range, but her upper register could stand a little toning down. The volume attained la reniaifeahly strong. Miss Le Conipte has.appear- ance and should have no trouble advano- lag. She ia. imdy. aaw for,tho - Catherlha ¥awdl fail Co. <0)^' . Dances.. ■■'■••;•..' x8 Mins.; Fall Stagt- (ipacial). ^Fiftii Avenna; . '. :Catherine. Powell has onlaxgcd her former single toe-danelng specialty by Adding four glris and a mate dancer. As now framed the turn opens with a -hort dance by the girls In which Miss Powell figures for a few moments. Then a: double by Miss Powell anO. the male dancer, the latter wearing a French ar.ny uniform. Another ensemble num- ber by the girls, followed by Miss Powell's toe dance in ballet costume. For a flt)lsh the male dancer and the girls otter a combined singing and danci. g number called "My Ice Cream Girl." Miss Powell gets into this toward the end and slips Over another toe dan <. A pretty dnpery 8«t is used. The act needs the servtees. of a good producer i.t its present totm it ir^ hot 1^ oa the big time, «vm-«ith'JllMi Powai's penfoael '•aortal' ■ IKtty Doner and Co. <g).' ■fipngs and Dandng.- aiS ISitia; Parior, .'and Hangiagi). CoKbii}^ ;•' :, Kitty Doner. lata «C the Winter Qsr- 4en. Is asslstid h)r her alster IbNNv Boby Dale an^ Uir«« loaba <- Vh* latter are ussd in ae'fliiU huiBb«' alid\add color to the eycibtttina: dtt^etUig ' 4 desert ecette. A blajcdk velvitfc.diMp part- ed hi the middle starts-thlaga ]«tth Boae at a piano, .kitty ettten in ttiala uttiia as a golfer Kraktng for hf^; ball, a flirta* tlon bit with double song and dancer •'Teach Me How to Love." A c&rlO-iet^ sohK her own accompanist in the or* chestra, and the next Is another sing- bis and dancing double with Kitty la swagi^'er Bogllsh cutaway walking suit, topited .bff with a brown derby. Rose ia prettily gowned and makes a plea;,;ng picture. "I'm Berty" Is the lyrical. ;-? medium. Then la- "oae^' Rose Is discovo ered In bed aad attired in pink siOtv^^i^ pajiuaaai 'she worea.an .inu...ua(ii aut:% vtth a clmr daaoa Mio. Then BiMy/^fi ■gain, in the liwt leted to mfla'a;.av«ibjjr#.i attire; She Tea ]>oh*t XBow tllfirj^v^ Bait of Xt," and polls ^a. alfilerit imi*;.; tino of legmania Jaszbig iiaa aayirha% Then to the full stage deaart Meae wMl^ the Arabs tumbling, '^to. Kitty whMa on in Arabian attire and sings 'Tm tb» Devil of the JaSs" following -with a ooilta ing acrobatic double with Bobby Oalib himself no mean stepper. All-dahcjt; *t the flnal^ with Kitty dotes a shiiAimy. It's the greatest dancing in vaudevUl% and Boae Inherlto her sister's ability. •■'si Bitty Com.- Aileen Stanley. Singing CharMMr/^ lo^Mini.;Oat. ■'- iUhimlira. I : One of thtfss'irMlly pimitm ^| ;apngstrMfa*.:oe.,aM^ipq^^ - load «t 'PMlimipy^M^ • put h«r:.'tfBoHa'e«iV;|ii:'JiDiMi\8L She is a blonda «(IhU miir^4|ifiu- and ono on whhtii''Clothes -leilE which Is Bighifled by her t*i» itU^^ , of wardrobe. She la accompanied b^ jliU young man at the piano who £ets awaiy 'C^; froiii the conventional way of all pi- - v anlsts by singing a comedy song inistesd :: of obliging with a solo of the heavy order or ragging the scales. Her open- ing niunber, a seaside aong, 'gets the house quickly and payee thi» vray.Ior her first of the "BlUes" colleotlon. She has several. In this song, "Alibi Biues," at first one gets the impression she Is attempting a "darky" portrayal of char- acter, while It really turns out^to be a "wise" type rendition. If Miss Stahlsy ; would tone the opening, which she dPM In a talky. way, down a. bit it would .tie . of great value to her and! speed thO soitg over a little easier. The balance^rot Ur number^ with-French and''Iriaai'vchay- acterisations, for two of them, at).d tlie '•. Prohibition BOng' are splendidly^, rea^ dered with a cultivated flnlse.' ^ '^^ ■■4 Bolsheylkl. Bla«i'! a9ai . alight' i)* slbaf . hwtaii "iar thk;'taedif^i .'«s'VU'.'..hara^ megporM ntt' to^ti ^HrwIeoaaMiA -hor.eadiaviiri, aad'it mlght'-tMiiaCvWiw ta gataway tt«tAiX»: ^.v^tmii^i^^^ f|»em' wanting,".: iQi^n t^^glva .this ber. With thai^iaumihated.'the iue'wduu run abw^t, vli7; aJautes and - bei! set - for the M<Dl.4 vnwt la ^he hlg; boufles. .'. Bdwards and CNtit Tongg aqd SaiiMa. .-tv-vT- • ,x6'Mine.; We.•••'•^■ .^•vv'?^»^:Vi^■'.•'■ :Fifa'Avenue. -.■A^^-' ,, Edwards and O'Neill size up. very well as a regulation man and -woman singing aad dancing combination. -Both -weti clothes of modish design and cariry their costumes in the ;classlSBt tnahner. Crossr flre starts 'em off nicely. . Th.ea a doulbM song, followed by a sIngM Iqr ihk man* in whleh he shows a fine saihpie o( BtWPinf- ^ ">il<I "shimmy" by th^ wenian next and a double dance doSins. Tho turn should easily hold dowh 2(0, a la.tJia latger Wlji, i •» ■•■'. •• !. •rfe'.-i'iiffei'isiii^i (2 r':*i!-:.«-; ■' .<ii.->v.-'>'.;F.v>-w_i