Variety (April 1920)

NEW ACTS Tins WEEK . - m- kMiLINO BIUY MASON aiul jBMint.; On* VKth Aynnvi • Billing tbemMiyM M"Th«.7. N. (f, of Vatid«TUI«." Sriiillnc Bfflr '{ju^on received sbmtt Slight applauitt IMS bl« flnt appearancA in th« No. a ^t at tlie Fifth Avenue last half . Jaatweelc This oouFd have been ex- plained by an additional line follow- ing his name on the billing matter. •ft said "of the film's." Nothing in- dicated where Alice Forrest came ' from. She first entered seating her- self at a concert grand and accom- '{ panled Mr. Mason through a couple "of numbers, then joined in for the ■ :jremainder .of the rest, which were .doubles. They were exchange songs, mostly, such as "I Laugh When I 7hinlc of How I Cried Over You." The'conversational portion of each was cujpably tiandled by Miss For-. Test. As a vaudevillian Mr. Mason Isa singer, of the.Gene Greene type. His fli'flt number was/ "king of the .Bungaloo." Not alone Mason sings like Greene, but he looks enough as . Greene did to perfectly recall the Gene Greene of 16 years ago. Both of the two-act are blondes. Mason jwferred to it, mentioning although ' blondes they got along together, and asking If that was not strange. It was turned into a laugh by 3ilss •Forrest, replying how did the audience know whether they were J blondes or not. Some of the open- leg might be changed about. Mason is a bear as Greene was at his par- ticular style of vocalizing, and he ^should lean heavily on that. Just what his popularity on >the screen amounts to is not known. The ap- . piausc kept up after the lights were down and forced the couple to re- turn for another bow, also a t'apeech." The act alone, did not sound strong enough^or the hula- baloo that followed It. Miss Forrest has a certain cutenesa of manner and lool;s that largely aid her, while Ma8on'.s ia one of those personality faces that carries a long way. They should land on the big time and ad- vance once, they arc there. Blme, ANDERSON and YVEt.= Roller Skating. 6 Mina.; Full Stage. 'Riverside. Spotlighted, these two now ex-, ponenla of roller skating were seated on cushions at the opening and they olTei'ed a song, the lyric of which expressed the hope that the act would afford recreation. The girl in the turn is plump, but is extremely neat and graceful. She and her boy partner appear to be young. They, opened with a waltz number, the boy following with a single, a la Frisco; He used the •derby and "heater," but the skating tricks T^i^ro his own. Th'o-glri re- turned, after a cestume change, for a short dou^e number, ending with sterling aeroplane movement. iuRTEARLiind ■ •■ ?BOlSiejY BUDS/' W Mipiieab le-Mluai Thrtt. (Speoial.) wKn Street. Suft Edrl Kas added twa more temale Instrwnentalists to the six appearing with him the last time around. The act Is also further en- hanced by a new black and white set, illuminated with mUltl-cblored Japanese lanterns. The effect sought for and achieved is that of a tent such as might be used for a band enclosure at a swell garden party. Subdued and artistically blended flood lights, combined with the lan- tern illumination, make for an effective stage picture when -the drop rises and discloses the eight girls, clad in white evening dresses, playhJg "Mighty Like a Rose." This opening selection, for which the girls use vIoHn, cornet, trom- bone, clarinet, banjo, two saxo- phones and piano, is soft pedaled in accord with the subdued light- ing. The girls average high on ap- pearance. Earl, wearing evening dress, gets into the ensemble fol- lowing the opening, and backed up by the band, raps out a lively banjo solo; This is notable for the unusual volume Earl'gets out of the strings, as Well as some really difflcult fingering. "Swanee River," with Earl and two of the girls play- ing the melody on regular banjos, and the other sHc girls camping a hai;mony accompaniment on cello- banjos.* next; All are grouped in the center down stage for' thig, more appropriate lighting helping to make the stringed harmony very effective. Some show variations by Earl on the 'SWanee" theme. In which at times he produces the effect of three distinct parts, stand put conspicuously. Earl's talking banjo fiuiainess, identified with his old single turn, next. This and some business with the girls, dur- ing which Earl describes the char- acteristics and nationality of each, with some likable kidding, a la Al Rteves. gives the turn the neces- sary comedy touch which takes it out of the straight musical class. A medley played on nine saxophones offers a: good contrast to the string and orchestral selections. For clos- ing, the girls go back to violin, wjiich drew a good hand. The boy encored with a burlesaue' on ■Egyptian dancing, the girl partici- uating only so far as making an an- nouiiccment of the bit. It ia ncit skating olct, opening number. a providing an /6ee. col-net, piano, trombone, etc., with E^arl playing banjo and leading a medley of Civil War aongs, includ- ing "Old Black Joe," "Kentucky Home" and the old reliable "Dixie." Th*e musical numbers are nicely varied and each of the selections offered pulled down applause enough for an encore, which being side-stepped added speed to a turn that is notable for Just that quality. Earl, besides being a first rate mu- aiclan, owns a personality that reaches over the footlights to the last row of the gallery. No jazz is included, but it is not missed. As a high class musical act, -possessing plenty of talent and that indeHna- bre thing called "class,'* Earl and his Society Buds should make -a desirable number for the big time. Bell. HAMLIN and MACK. Singing and Danolng. >■ 14 Mins,{ Full Slag* (speoiat). £8th St. Hamlia and Mack have a hovel .openlns;. What appears to be two cabinet phonographs are apparent- ly playing a song. The tone pro- duced la almoat identical with that of a real phonograph. Following the Bong the phonographs have an exchange-of talk, after which it is disclosed the phonograph cabinets are imitations of this real thing, Hamlin and Mack (man and woman) respectively being encased inside of each and lifting the cab- inets up 80 as.to display their feet. The Illusion would ' be greatly heightened if the conversation be- tween the phonographs were omit- ted. The song is so convincingly done that it completely fooled the audience, but -they became wise the minute the gab started, and antlcir pated the appearance of, the sing- ers. A double dance with the phon- ograph cabinets covering their bodies and with only their feet shqwlng, is followed by each stiek- Ing their, head through an ojpentng at the top of the case. A bit of patter, along the lines of that used in the Cohan Revue court room scene several years ago leads up to a song by the wojtnan. A soft shoe dancd by the roan and then another' bit with the phonograph, which cre- ates the impression a song is ema- nating from the supposed machine. This loses also by the. audience be- ing awar^ of the deception. A double soiig with a well executed soft .shoei. dai^ce ior the ilnlsl). The Woman shows two heat costtime changes,'the nian wearing Tiixedo: A special flowered cyclbirama With red borders niiaices a claSsy setting. The act.is sbmevrhat different than th'e'>a.Dk and'file i^f small tirne dou- bles. Jl^ it stands it willdo nice- ly 'f()r "the pop houses. With some revision It could be whipped into shape for a try at the big time. Bell. FABOR and McGOWAKI.' ' ' Talking, Singing and Danciiig. 16 (Mine.; One (Special Drop). Columbia (April 26). A special drop represents the ex- terior of a hotel. A juvenllish looking youth backs out and mono- logs about being given the gate. A pretty btondc girl In a fetching pink street dress walkis slowly across looking' at a conipass which she carries In her haiid, arid eixelainiing "North," "North," she returns say- ing "iJouth* "South." This serves as the Introduction [o some fly wise cracking chatter that will'be sUre- flrc before any wise bunch. It's the brightest lino of sophistry h'dai'd around all seasbni The girl tells him she is'in the "Follies," and in response to his query, "What do you to good effect. During a play'i^" she answers "Old men." eotflunio change, the pianist offered While she Is making a change to a a composlilon, unfamlllnr. and not classy looking black evening affair KATHLEEN. Violiniate. ; ■.':'. 14 Mins.; One. . 23d Street. „ TliLs violiniate is assisted by a »ale pianist. Siie is out first in. Hungarian costume, with one of the rhapsody numbers credited to that land. Underdresscd in white, she reappeared for her second number looking young apd charm- ing, and played "I Hear You Call- ing Me" to BOOd effect. Dnrlnc a DOM. AMOR08 and JEANETTE. Singing, Dancing, Comedy, Muiieal. 14 Mins.; One. S8th St. Dominique Amorcs Is 'billed as a French comedian. /His comedy method and mannerisms, however, are far more American than those usually associated with a French- man. Jcanette leads off with a telephone song, following which Amoros enters as a foppishly clad Frenchman, speaking in that dia- lect, but not particularly suggesf^^ Ing the character otherwise. Some gagging and rough and ready com- edy business, in which Amoros gets numerous laughs, leads up to an- other song by Jcanette. Amoros then offers a. co.uple of concertina selections, the first comedy intro- ducing the tried and'true sour note gag and the second straight, and competently played. An imitation of bag-pipes with Amoros doing a travestied Scotchman, a song and dance by Jcanetje. and a short bit of comedy. Joggling by Amoros, With Jeanette dancing,. completes the act. It's an odd sort of hodge podge, but there is plenty of gooa comedy,.,of the kind that'is sure for the pop - houses running throughout the turn. Amoros works quletly^and gets his stuff over without forcing matters. The act seems set for the small time, where It should (Ind. Itself in demand. The turn .has not played around the lo- cal houses for about three years, which is another reason ,why r it sh(>uld keep busy. .Four bows at the finish,. ,: .; Ifcll. MME. DOREf'S OPERXLOGUE <11). 30 Mine.} Full Stage (Special Sets). 6th Avenue. : Another of the. Doree operatic vaudeville productions, and.an ex- cellent one.. Mme. Doree.has varied it somewhat, but it's the general ensemble, the plan in detail or in whole, and that the Madame always secures a voice or two that will draw attention, despite any or all shortcomings. She haa the voices here, a soprano (who sings "Juliet"), and a couple of tenors. One of the tenors sounds exceptional. Snatches of several grand and light operas are gone through, arranged for siiadlng, with Mme. Doree herself (and she also might be called a pic- ture) at tho piano, to the foreground leading her singers and the or- chestra. Between alras the Madame foretells what is what in the Amelia Bingham way. Jokes a' bit when there's an opening, and sort. of cheers up the party, if it needs cheering. Madame didn't seem to miss any of the operas. Those srand operatic airs do somehow seem to outlive the popular stuff. Perhaps because the composers can't collect royalty. One popular vintage song was employed for the finale, the "Twilight" number. About the only fault, from singers to production, which takes in the Madame aa well, is that the act seems too long. It could stand an elimination or so. T»^nty-two or twenty-four min- utes should Increi se the value. Though that isn't essential.'* Vaude- ville has grown accustomed to grand opera. It was a task though, from the chlrry birry bee howlers to the Doree warblers. So vaudeville can bank on the Doree group, ^bero they like, their grand opera all the time, like Montreal—the cheaper the better.- Bttne. fAUCE. . — unfamiliar, and not therefore especially good from an audience standpoint. Kathleen cosed with "Annie Laurie" after Playing a fantasle, tho second Chorus or the Scotch number being muted. There was no suggestion ot Ireland to match the indicated ^-elllc of the bllUng. The act was «Pcond, showing no strength other than mlifht go for pop. Ibcc Roe and Roe. Roller Skating. ;0 Min,.. One. . Jefforeon. Man and woman skating team, with the man bearing tl)c brunf of ine work on the rollers. After tho open nig number -the woman docs some vocalizing in fair fashion. The rouiinp is Bulted for small time »;o"sumpiion In the entre act spot. classy looking ho solos "I'ou Never Can Tell." More clever talk follow.^, with things tapcri'nB naturally Into a graceful, clever double dance for the.finish. Both have oodles of personality andU^y^jpct considerably. The other two MANHAttAN 'cptitEDY FOUR. Harn|tony iSirt^ing and Comedy. 14'MIns'.j 'brte.' . ' i25tiv, St/ ';' ■ ^ ,■ ■ '• .■ ■; A revival of d standard turn of years ago which still contains at least one of tho-former members, in Sam Curtis, who sticks to the fat boy ho did formerly. Another me'fh- ber. In all probability formerly do- ing "Dutch," is now wearing a small red skull cap and has censored tho make a Fifth avenue appearance The published song used should be replaced with something specially written, as it detracts from the class average. The act Is ready to stop into any of ihe big time spots. Con. CARLO STEFANIK. Magician, 12 Mins:; Full Stage. 125th Street. Stcfanik i.s an old school magician with a familiar routine of material- izing and substitution tricks. The act Is a mild small time opener In its present form. A female assistant is parried. C'on. are atralcht and legitimate which comprised the standard quartet characters of a decade ago. "Dance My Way Back to Dixie Land," "I Alnten Gotten," "Come to tho Land of Bohemia,'! "Bye Low," "Mammy 9'. Mine," and a straight solo ("Where the Harvest. Moon Is Hhinlng") are the songs used. The ensemble Binglng is pleasing, espe- cially the low, soft attempts. The comedy id the old style familiar Quartot creations aa switching hats, kicking tho man ahead while exiting in lock step formation, etc. It looks sure fire for the big small time- bills and cleaned up at this house. Co». A revue type of show this week, notable for plenty of class, with Just the proper leavening of comedy to balance off the entertainment. The show really started with "Put- ting It Ovet, Jhr; inh Division Boys' R^vue. 'The act has been changed around a bit since playing the local libuses last fall, and the boys evidence the experience'- ob- tained through continued playing, Walter Roberts and Conney O'Don- nell captured the individual honors Monday night, Roberts Is a female Impersonator who reveals hitherto unknown possibilities for that greatly overdone character. His make-up and general mannerisms would have, completely defied de- tection of his sex, but for tho pro- grammed announcement that all of the players were men. O'DonncIl Is a youthful dancing comedian, with magnetic peraonallty and stepping ability of a high order. Eight num- bers were pfteted, each vieing with the other for oxccllonce of costum- ing and production. The act was a real hit, and that strictly on Its merits rather than the boys' war record. ' Rockwell and Pox, fourth, went tho 27th Division Boys'' hit even one better, Rockwell's eccentric comedy antics Iceoping the audience in an uproar for 16 HOlld mihiitcs, Just how the musical comedy scouts have overlooked Rocl<wcll Is a mys- leiy. He's about' tho best '"nut" comic that has developed since the day of tho late Nat Haines, original In method, absolut<^y crazy in ac- tion, but withal screamingly funny, and what is also important never "fresh." A speech rewarded the team's efforts, and deservedly eo, as the act Inserted exactly the right comedy notein the first pari giving that section neces'sary compactness. Ford Sisters, opeiUng after inter- mission at the matlnoe, changed places ^vlth Harry Carroll and Co. at night and made a nice contrast to, Rockwell and Fox, following that team's eccentric comedy. The Hunting Dance, old fashioned min- strel easenco and hard shoo Bt4t>- pijffe, ■\Vero picked for the heavy ap- plause rewards. All Ihroiigh the Ford Sisters' act, however, thoro seemed to.bo ai. inclination on the part o» sovcL-al persons sitting In the roar of tho orchestra to start boo.stlng. This starting of applause after each dance may have been thoroughly legitimate but neverthe- less it looked suspiciously liko a claque. If it was tho work of well intcnttoned friends, it won ill ad- vised and did the girls more harm than goo'd. Hurry Carroll and Co. (Now Acts), the big hit of the show, opened the second half, and Horschci Honlero was next to closing. Honlere had to battle hard for every bit of ad- vantage, but won out handily, doing 23 minutes and holding 'em a -bit better than the average next to closing turn at tho Palace. Tho playing of a medley, with the gal- lery wljlstllng and tho paraphras- ing of "Yankee Doodle." with dashes of Liszt, Wagner and Strauss nice- ty interpolated pulled down the heftiest applause returns. The Pal-, ace grand piano needs a tuning very, very badly. Hcniere and Har- ry Carroll ahead of him were both retarded in putting forth their best orrorts on that account. Mljarcs opened with his daring wire • alk- ing specialty and was grtlhg along in great shape whei) a poorly braced section of the scenery fell over. OS, htm and caused the velvet curtain^ to be rung down while the dain^d' was repaired. This made a di8COn>' cortlng diversion in MUarea' act,,^ but he plucklly went after 'em again and closed to an appreciative hand. Emma Stephens' second did alt numbers, the best liked being a- comedy chambermaid song along. the lines of Irene Franklin's number' of that character. Miss Stephens uses tho piano for but one numbeh It might be a good idea to dlspenM' with the grand altogether and tts* the orchestra for all of her songs: Second was a dlfllcult proposition for a single woman, but Miss Stephens managed to pass. Tho Slayman All Arab acrobats' closed, doing five minutes of their*- unequaled ground tumbling and' pyramid work. The show ran unti) 11:20 Monday night. The house held, capacity with a mob oC standees behind tho rail before R:I6. Belt. .}:.< '"'S '■■ i-ii:' ■ -"i m .04 n COIXmAL. Eva Tanguay Is topping at ;-fhe' Colonial this week, and MO'i)dtiV'. night the box office was cleaned out' before 8 o'clock, Tho cyclonic pite^ looking as youthful as ever and. vcttli' the best cycle of songs that she haw sung in several ieasona, flashed'oti- and off In a bewildering array' of ttghts with bespangled and' l>e-. Jeweled bodices, and Jammed her- personality and first person lyriqak offerings across for 18 minutes, pif. enthusiastic response. . ,^ £1 Brendel and'Flo Bert (ioppea the laughing honors with slight competition. The team has a hew' pleco of business and It's a yelU' Miss Bert puts one of her own roc*.- ords on the victrola and harmon Ibises with her own voice on the chorus. Brendel makes a similar ahhoUhce>; merit and inseitB one of Tetrazlnril'8^ He pantomimes the lip aorobatica that would accompany tho aria and' has it timed perfectly aa regards' gestures, etc. It was a howl. The finish, with the dcesfi suit in con- stant danger of dropping off, 'ro- malns the funniest piece of comedy' business In vaudeville. Miss Bert ia a beautiful, accomplished asset. They mopped' up one of the most riotous hits of the season in fourth^, position. ':., Bobby Raiidal], opening 4'fter ^a-«*, termtssion, and Topics wefe the' other comedy contributions. Tlta^ new blackface single has made aev^y oral changes einoe his other metro-, polltan appearance last week, and. they smooth out his offering to adj. vantage. Ho has ironed out his dla«'-..;,-i,. lect and is now more in charaeteft''' :?>,ft Ho also has a now finish; using tlw ' Billy K. Wells recitation with the; comedy switch on the last line, "The Miser." Instead of gold, tho punqb line reveals a bottle of hoooh. RanW dall doesn't got as much out of It aa' Wells did, but it's good stuff, nover^i.' theless. His monologue remains thls' best line of war talk flushed sinca' they took down the Kaiser's number, John aiuran and "La Petite'* Marguerite In one of tho olassicst of vaudeville's diWicing acts made a distinctv impression following Ran- dall. Both are artists to their fixi-f- gertips, and both master of all .thJQ: torpslchorean Intk-lcacles. She ittits l^bout the stage like a sunbeam, and- vivid contrast is provided by Glu- ran's virilo male personality and graceful stopping. His solo danca 'of hoch kicking, jumping' ana marching steps was one of the high, lights, "rhey are an Ideal comblna-,.' tlon and were liberally rewarded. ' Wln)ftton'B 'W'ater Lions closed the first half and. were spotted perfect- ly. The animals are marvelously trained and perform their stuntsi without tho slightest friction. The. act plays fast and true ai\d Is a welcome addition to any \flll of> humans. . ' '"■':_ Emma and Al Frabclle (Now Acts) opened, followed by Espe atiA Dutton, two very good acrobats and- Jugglers, who insist on talking and degenerate into very, very unfunny and boresomo exponents of realized., gags. The comic could bp bi^ledT. "The trntunntest Man in the World;**-': Harriet Rempel, In the'romanttici playlet. "Tarrytown," was third, and Emllo and John ■ Nathano (Np^jvi Acts) closed the show with asra,; batlcs and ground tumbling.,'. A groat show cleverly laid out Oon':-^ ... '■'-■ . : .. . • , ■• '.•r>vV. BIYEBSIDE. . >:' An association bought the major', ity of seatij downstairs Monday ■ night, and tho house wont to over- capacity. Tho benefit crowd had a . run for Its money, for a real show was offered, with songs predomA inating, and general "class" p.-evail- Ing. The Mil brought a surprise In the appearance of Sam Llebert and Oo. In "Tho End of tho World." which was on third. The playlet was in tho much-talked-about "Wine, Women and 'Song" show, and will bo rcmem'..3red for the line, "Tab- lltsky says." Tho program stated that it is "a revival of the world- famous comedy." Llebert used thfe act >years ago, running lnt6 legal battles with the author. Since then . he has tried out a number of play- lets which brought him small time bookings. It appears, . therefore, ' that tho "Tablltsky" act was tho • best of his trys, with apologies t^ Carr and Hoffman. Its valdo fOr the big time Is probably figured oti the Hhortago of current comedy sketches. Llebert did-get lau.thS but the act Is too long, running haV an hour. Some or ♦»•«» iinni, tr;*' i