Variety (September 1921)

Friday, September 9, 1921 NEW SHOWS IHIS WELK -•j»-^>5^'—^ i^» PALACE Ijibor Vny being the final hoHilaj Af the summer uenuon, dodc of the itroodwav houwH look for unuHual kQgisieM at the matloee performancea. Almost everyone takes advanUge of • tk« opportunity to pwt In the lant extra length week-end out of town, and therefore it waa aurprising tiiat 1^ Palace held almost a cnpacity au- fM^M for tha Mo nday matinee. It the audience appearing to be transir enta that were in town for the day. Bacanse o' that there was a lot of appUuae handed out that would have been missing if the regular crowd luid been on deck. Too big acts on the bill stretched out the show until after 5:30, with the majority of the crowd sticking (0 the final trick thnt the Alexander Itrothers and Evelyn, who were as- sisted by Joe Cook for laughs, pulled. ^at interpolation of Cook in the turn makes a sure fire 'liold 'em" closing: net.. Igor's Uallet Russc (Xew Acts) opened the show, following the Newd. The house >v««> pro<^'tirflny empty for the act. but the quintet tnanngpd to pull some applause as they worked along. Dave Roth on second did not seem to hold enouph class for the I'oIrcc bill. There i? no novelty in an imi- tation of Paderewski. which he uses to open, or in the Violinsky piano player nt the picture show, which i» his second bit. nor in the playing of a single string cigar box violin. That washed him up in the musical end. after which he went to stepping with Georgia White and Pat Uooney imitations not any too good. This does not look like big time booking for the bii;sest nni best of New York's vaudeville houses. Harry Carroll ami Co. Oield over) was the clas;^ of the bill, and al- though the turn consumed 4.1 minutes they passed like 20. The applause was genuine, and seut the act a\va> with the first real honors of the aft- ernoon. Ben Welch wa.s tendered a recep- tion, and he wa.s worthy of it from every angle. The manner in which he works despite his affliction i.s worthy of a monument in .show busi- ness. He makes no capital of his in- firmities, and. in fact, tries most skill- fully to cover them up. but the show- manship is there at all times during his offering. His w...s the applause bit of the afternoon. Closing the first half of the hill Miss Marriet Remple presented the delightful sketch novelty. "The Story of a picture." It nleased the holl- diir crowd immcnselv. The second section of the whew contained The Pour Marx Brothers, who opened and held the stage for 30 minutes with an offerinc that is miles behind the act whi*»h they oris- inally presented here. The boys have been ploving this act for some time now. and it nhould bo in better shapr than ifr is. Tf they con't improve It they had better go back to their oPTinal ofTerinff, .Toe Cook failed to got over 'n the next to dosinsr spot. He did not seem to be workinT at his best, anil may have been d'sconr.Tged at the mnnnec in which the forenart of his offering went over and ''just laid." without tt responsive ripnle from the aumenee. Later, however, he A\<\ mansge to pet, to the .'»"dienr»e. and finallT n'b'»u h** worV'»'l w'^h the dosr- fnu trio he was pulling lan'^h e'ter laugh from the hoii^o Vrcd. RIVERSIDE rVespitc the opposition of the Wil- son-Downey fight in Jersey, a double header at the Polo Grounds, the lure of the beaches and the conniving of the weather man, the Riverside got away to three-quarters capacity turn out for the Labor Day matinee. A holiday spirit pervaded the house which waxed enthusiastic over each and every act on the bill. Hits followed hits with nearly all ruuning to speeches. Patricola. opening after intermis- Rton, and Jack Donahue closing the show divided the comedy honors but were just a breath ahead of Fen- ton and Fields, who wowed them in the fourth spot. Julius Lensburg, back at his for- mer post, labored valiantly with his pit mates but the orchestra can stand • lot of rehearsing on the Monday showing. The drummer seemed to have forgotten that cymbals accom- pany the dancers and had to be ver- bal y cued by the leader when the Kolfe Hevuc appeared. Patricola also had to shout, from the fast en- trance before she made her initial appearance, following which there ^ns much shifting of music sheets and o» entirely different introduction played. Patricola hos a couple of »>«w numbers that are pips. They JN^ere "Rimoney Ray," a clever lyrical l!'^* with a play on beverage, and I Dulu't Understand," played to her J-ioUn nccompMniment. She exhousted iier repertoire and was forced to en- core vith -Casey's" song reminiscent f'f * Hns Anybody Here Hcen Kelly." .lack Donahue closed the show and "'.'"K "P two distinct hits. The first ^^»th his rxcellent monologue, the sec" ^^ With his clover dancing. Donn- ""P «s pnradoxicul, oK-oIling «t each specialty. He held them in like a vise and took down one of the afternoon ovations. Rolfe's Revue sandwiched in be- tween the female and male singles pleaaed and duplicated the Palace Hhowina. The program is now billing the pei^le in the cast which iaa 11 strong with the aarvicca of tha afore- mentioned above. Walter Blorriaon, a Juvenile fradaatc from burleaqne, l:]Unort Uarte, tha soprano and Jean Berkeley were the non-muaical mem- 1RR ^trcifei^.* !"•??? or single and double vocal niiaibera, two solo dancing apecialtles, a violin aolo and a female quartet broken up by a mixed i>raBs sextette staged in the Rolfe style. It held entertain- ment and pleased the customers throughout. 8ylvia Loyal and her plgeona opened the snow. It is one of the pettiest aight acta in vaudeville. The Frenh poodle who retrieves every- thing that is dropped during tha turn, merits individual mention. Bpeucer and Williams were second. They are a mixed singing and talk- ing duo who have been plaving around the intermediate circuits for seasons. The man works in a manner remin- iscent of Al Herman, shoutina his points, repeating gags that don t get over and manipulating a cigar throughout. The girl opposite bandies a solo in clever style. She haa^ an unfortunate speaking voice, enunciat- ing indistinctly and crabbing several gags. His cfforta to overcome it by exaggerated imitation of her pipes doesn't quite cover up the deficien- cies. They went very well at this house, considering the spot. Frances Pritchard, assisted by two of the cleverest male dancera in vaudeville, held down the third spot. Edward Tierney and Jamea Donnelly were the dancers. The turn is the same ns last season, framed around the dancing "duel" idea, with Tier- ney and Donnelly hoofing for the ladies' favor. Their travesty on Ruth St. Denis is u classic. The encore in "one' is an anti-climax. The trio should remain back of the apron to acknowledge the applause. I^Iiss Pritchard is a pleasing; dancer but the boTH deserve equal billinir on ability. Fcnton Fields, next with loads of hokum, found a home hero. The old stand-bys were greeted like new- born infants by the Riverside crowd with gales of laughter sweeping the house at the "iutermption" bit and the other familiars of the double blackface comedian'a routine. For vaudeville thia pair hare the right formula. Bert Errol (New Acts) closed the first half. Billed as a single, this season, the Enallshman is working with his wife and a male pianist. He is probably the only female imper- sonator before the pOblic who is doing a "family" act. They liked the new offering at this house. Con, ALHAMBRA They cleaned up a generous slice of the universal approt>ation. Stan Stanley went strongly fourth move<l up from next to closing to avoid conflict with the Jean Grunese act. closing the show. The latter trio subbed for Rome and Gant who were off the bill. The Italians doubled down from the Royal hence the lute spot. Rome ond Gaut were spotted fourth. Stanley always a favorite at this house caught on immediately with his at the tfjdttoaed monologist. Tne latter is a Hew mUn thia season and a big improvement over the former incumbenL Betty Maurice ia the other member of the trio, handling the former role of May Standley. The crosnfire after Stanley ascends the stage could be brightened up. Some of the gaga arc not only aged but humorless and slow up the turn momentarily. The re.it of act went like the wind, hittiug uu all cjlin- dera and giving the show a comedy punch just in- the right spot June and Irene Ilelva opened with' an interesting double xylophone frame- up. Both of the girls are good musicians and have the right reper- toire for vaudeville. A comedy touch was the playing of an conglomerate assortment of liquor bottles filled with water. Many a mouth watered sympathetically as the- pair hammered- out a sweet assortment of melody from tlie wraiths. Jack Le Vier a mouologing comedy acrobat with talk and comedy business erected around his ascend- ing a trapeeze and the performance of a chhir balancing stunt upon the bar. Ia Vier has a funny line of old anl new chatter and gets con- siderable out of his efforts to balance the chair. The audience react to the near falls psychologically as they do to ^he Melrose fall. His finish is a drop to a heel catch. He makes a good deucer for the big time bills and will improve the conversational part of his routine with material and ex|)erience. Frank Burt and Rosedale in a hodge iMMlge of kokura, music and dancing made the grade following. Burt is an experienced comic being a former partner of Bob Hawthorne. His present turn lacks consistency but gets by on the eccentric dnneing of Burt and his "nance" Hebrew mannerisms. He is nearly dialectless but .ido[>ts a comedy hair part that is effective. IMore this "soft" hunol) he had no trouble but the material doesn't give him the scope he reeds to capitalize his abilities as a come<lian. Erford's Oddities Avas sacrificed in the closing position, getting on the stage alxNit 11:15. The whirl- ing apparatus averted the walkout for a few revolutions but after the first series of gymnastics the house left in a body. Maurice Diamond aud lle»en Mc- I Mahon (New Acts) back in vaudeville I from a recent engagement ib "Snap Shots" were a eensation, closing the first half. Con. years, and if that be true maybe that account(i for it. The Ford Sisters <lance revue closed the first section, and made the third act of a five-act stanza to use the piano once more, iWxa time for the jazz band pianist, lire giria have a splendiforously costumed offering that is fully deserving of this sui>er- lative description. The act commands attention on its drtessing alone. Their iissiatiug company, though subsidiary to the dancers, are exceeilingly aupe- riorin their own lines of endeavor. 7i naTuanjUlfig fltly ^ ' T V 'a^*f?»p L '*wi' instrument, and Is fully deserving of taking tbe final curtaina with the sisters. Sidney Landfield (New Acts), re- opening after intermission, made the fifth piano act on the bill, and Anna Chandler (New Acts), billed to next- to-shut, though in reality closing the show, was the sixth pe<Ial turn. The Treuucll Trio opened with a hybrid acrobatic rout'ne that falls below par even for an opening act for the Royal. The understander, a good looking young chap of leading man stage presence, is the sole capa- ble performer of the trio. The ec- centric comedian ns unfunny and the gal topmounter has no business sport- ing bare knees. She would make a better appearance in tights. The combination is pop house in speed. John Boyle and Virginia Bennett deuced it with their straight dance ofTcring. Both are hard and vigor- ous workers. The only other act unaccounted for on this bill is Bert Baker and Co., with their "Prevarica- tion" comedy classic, to which may be accorded the hit and comedy hon- ors. The sketch is a howl from cur- tain, and though Baker has played this farcelet for more than one sea- son, he still inserts that *pep" to his lines, as does the balance of the cast for thnt matter, as if it was only new. The house yelled, nothinjc else. Baker seemc<l to be toying with hia audience in the style in which he stalled until the denouncement, fur he knew they were impatiently waitiny; for that situation when he'd be caught with the goods. Baker also authored this piece, and in baseball parlance "won his own game" when he as- sumed the leading role. The Palace Trio, billed to close, did not show Tuewlay night. Pathe Newt closed. Abtl, introductory singing and closing with his double-jointed specialty. A feature film closed. Ahtl. The new season 'opened auspicious- ly nt Harlem's oldest big time stand with a wow of a crowd and a yow of a bill. The house was just a trifle short of capacity which was a re- markable turn out' considering the holiday 'and weather. A nine act bill containing all the elements tbat^ the vaudeville re(;u!ar insists upon in his national amuse- ment, played well despite "names". The most pretentious turn on the program and incidentally the head- liner was -Klick Klick" with Florrie Millership and Al Gerrard in the lead- ing roles which were last season al- lotted to Joseph Santley and Ivy Sawyer. The ne^v leaders have detracted nothing from tlie net's strength. The production remains the same, also the book and num- bers. The turn-seems to have gained a bit of speed with the recasting. Gerrard while not up to the juvenile standards set by Santley either vocal- ly or satorially, is a dancer of parts and showman of the first water. He was given an enthusiastic recep- tion by Paisely Noon and a party from the front of the house, upon his first entrance. Miss Millersnop !is as charming as ever radiatinc personality and looking chic and fetching in her costume changes. "Klick Klick" Is a pleasing pretty punchless revue that will pass the (onsorH. The lighting and color ef- fects are a new note for vaudeville. It was spotted next to closing. The hit of the bill went to an added starter in the Jean Granrse act. Tiic male singer and pianist arc plant- ed in the audience and ut-^rt n "wpp" argument that breaks up the girls opening song That's all of the plot but when the "wop" climbs on the stage for a solo and his partner begins coaching him from the front, the Harlem crowd went wild. Later a ballad delivered in a stentorious t«'nor with exquisite showmanship and knowledge of values tore the place down. Tliey did cvervthing but throw up their «hairs. The girls should refrain from smearing up her eyes so heavily and all of the trio K-hould be billed. The solo billing may be an effort to disguise the nature of (he turn but the day when the "au'lience" entrance can fool a gang oi" vaudeville regulars has passed be- yond recall. Olher comedy bangs were De Hiven and Nice opening after inter- mission with their clever and funny dance travesties. The "bubble" dance i.s a Htire k. o. with the ronjjh cc /i'utric '."^ap" doublo a closo second. ROYAL Ten acts were programed, nine showed and six used the piano. Pad- erewski's favorite instrument was never so much overworked. Jean (iraneso in the trey poaitiou, was the first to en;iploy the baby grand for her vocal calisthenics. Her "brother Charlie" is allowed sub billing honors (there is a third member to the act) and his singing attempts also scored on a par with Miss Granese's and were really rcspousible for the extra recall. Th Wilton Sisters immediately fol- lowing had the grand brought down from "three" into "one," and they. too, performed thereon as part of their offering. The girls are still sporting the sox rigout, although they appear to liuve outgrown it. However, the wardrobe did not hin- der them from walking off with a sweet hit. The "blues*' double num- bers minus orchestral accompaniment scored heaviest for them, although the straight fore section was none the less pleasing nnri effcctivr. To vary matters, Joe Towle. No. T% on the program, drp.frg«'d out the un- liretentious ui)riKlit and got more re.il music out of that box than the others did on the aristocratic iiistrummt. Towle wisely has eliminated the com- monplace punning, billing as "a clean net." and thfe program nicrcly pre- sents him "in his own peculiar en- tertainment." And "pQCulinr" is f^r- word. Ii'b v»tv o<]xlity :;;:.'! rr.rcloj-j abandon are all the more efTiTtivo. flippantly nonchalant, as if applause and arclamation ar»» tlio la.st thing he desires, it is literally thrust on hinj by the enthusiastic uudionce. That's siiouraanship for you, and if other artists would gauge their attempts at nppl«use-coi)ping simil.irly and ana- lyze this study in mob psvrliology inaybe the hand to hand music wotild not be so elusive after all. Towle's stylo of working is very "intimate" nnd chummy, and he swings every ^ . ,, .^.,^„^. h^^art with him Hccordin-ly. One su^- ' versrat.onal hnM.ness gcstion to Towle would bo to edit his (hatter about the locil hoard nnd w.ir stulT. It is a past issue, and he-^ides the talk as to how he re- ceived a card mnrked "CJreetings" and tl>e f'la.^sifjcation A-1 thereon, with the ensuing <lescript.ion of the fthy.-tical examination, is familiar and hn8 f»receded him locally by (juitf a fow months. Towlo ad lihbod ho hasn't plsyed the Uoynl for threo JEFFERSON Judging from I^abor Day matinee'a attendance at this house ther6 is no doubt something new must again be resorted to in order to boost the bos office percentage. Maybe the '^State Lake*' policy, which goes into effect next Monday, will prove aa beneficial for this house as at the Broadway. As it was, this week, the gaping areas of vacant seats waa disheart- ening. East and West (new) opened, fol- lowed by Combe and Nevins, a two-man piano act that got consid- erable out of its repertoire of pub- lished numbers. Some of them are quite up to date and one somewhat antiquated, but all were spankiogly sold for good value. "Moonlight" (new) topTined. Pearson, Newport aud Pearson showed a lively collec- tion of acrobatic steps to interesting attention. The trio have improved considerable since last seen, the change from straight to eccentric get- up enhancing the stepping soloes muchly. The woman presides at the grand soloing with a "Choo Choo JUues" number nnd accompanying very ably otherwise. Mack and Lane, man and woman, crossfired in "one" for fifteen miuutes to good purpose although the burden of the team's labors rested with the man who was chiefly responsible for the act's scoring. The resultant stopping of the show may be as- cribed solely to his efforts. Mist Lane Joes little else than wear tf few expensive wardrobe changes. Her solo effort on the vocalizing end re- ceiving charitable attention rather than on its merits. The shivery tremble in her voice does not belong on the professional stage and as a singer she is a far better gag "feeder." The r.ernivici Brothers and Co. showed their musical skit in front of the special Venetian sotting to strict attention. The "Co." has changed his ballad number which appears to ho a change for the better judgin;; from the returns while the Bernivicis as before .<oll their tlioir violin stuff interestingly. Ilibbitt and Mnllo, two boys with a Southern drawl, wore a howl from en trance to exit with tlioir (rosstalk anent their "womon," the comedian tl.ishing an irresistahly non.^.cnsical (loiitifrice smile at just the right mo- nioiits whi-n the g.-igging let down. The ijoys hnvo drc^sod up the .net for cor.trnst inri)f)sos since last seen, the roMiorlian caressing a stogie during the course f>f his session for the con- FRANKUN 'Die initial bUI the first half at tha neW B. a Moss Franklin at ifilat street and Prospect avenue (Bronx) consisted of six acta, a feature pic- ture, and tha Pathe and 'Tbplca" short reels. Tha vaudeville program conitioad |M>p iiuU interine<liate housei wtih Dave Harris and Band the bcadliaer. Harris ia an ex-single who probably took a peek at Henry Santrey's rec- ord and decided upon hia present w> hide. He has surrounded hiuself with seven good jaaists acd leads them vocally and musically. The com- tdy heading wtli the baaay viol !t in.iy be original with Harris but the Whitij Kuhna have been doing it in vaude- ville and cabaret for a decade. Har- ris has framed an offering that will "flash" for the split week house.j. Harris cloacd the vaudeville portion. The hit of the bill was pulled down by WcUa, Virginia and West in sec- ond. The boy In the turn ia the best all around hoofer veen since Fred Stone first flashed across the terpsi- chorean horizon. He is a wix at buck, eccentric, achobatic and Rua^ -Mffll stepping, tyiug up the act eacn time he cut loose and also showing a comedy flare in handling dialog. The. turn consists of * hoke" and rcleused gags that will hold it down despite the youngater'a talenta. The trio are great prospects for some author pro- ducer. The Iloyal Gaacoynes opened. Gas- Coyne's juggling and ad tibbing caught on strongly and gave the show a punch that helped every act following. The De Wolff Girls, thiH with their last season's rcvne, also caught on with their dancing and production. Tliey are "personality" misses and clever dances with a neatly con- structed singing and dancing specialty that was built for the boat of the housea. The turn will go anywhere. Uandia and Miller and more danc- ing fourth. The male team b«*ked them with their "nutting** and hat juggling. The bandllng o! the lida is rcmlsiscent of Chris Richards. 8top time dancing and crossfire hokum complete the turn which la a good comedy bet They were well Uked here. Jimmy Lucas and Francene were fifth. Lucas bailt up hia oflarlng from an ordinary a tart into a ipOiefc puller. All of hia fanfllar chnmlaff cot roars but ha klHad than w1i#b he and Francene PQlled a traveralty melodrama in ^'Tlddiah." Harria cloaed a «>o4 ▼aaderflla show to be followed altar a ahort Is- termlflsion by the f^atura ptctara. Tha attendance Tueaday night waa heavy, about thrae-qaartera of tha lower floor being rapadty with tha balcony nnd boxaa In proportion. Tha capacity is 3,000. C&n GREELEY SQ. The first half Ml at thia rx)ew's Sixth avehue house quite outdid any of the programs displayed here within the past alx montha. While confined to six acta there waa sufficient enter- tainment to be well worth the ad- mission. Warden and La Coste opened the show. The turn by its general makeup was not framed for an open- ing spot but did exceedingly well. Warden with his baseball dance bit handles one of the best assets with the couple topping their work off in good style with a fast double dance. Al Carpe. No. 2. with his fiddling had little trouble placing the stand- ard numbers as well as the rafa across the footlidif^ Carpe works with apparent case making straight paying stand up without any frills. Ills musicai ability is pronounced and gained recognition. Challis and liambert. No. 8. were credited with the fir/it big applause hit. The young woman is a second Irene Franklin. With the closing of one's eyes it would seem Miss Frank- lin was singing. This is especially true of the kid number. This coup'e had no trouble selling their wares and landed safely. Herbert Denton and To. in a familiar comedy sketch had little difficulty in garnering the laughs. The Denton vchic'e has seen much service but held up nicely in the No. 4 spot at the Greeley. Moris and Shaw took the real com- edy honors next to closing. This two- m.in team is a sure fire bet for any of the Loew houses. The boya have a vehicle bristling with humor thot I4 handled in tip top shape. The ('asting I/loyds, a clever bi'l closer, topped off the evening. FIFTH AVE. For the first show of I-ahor Day week the Fifth Avenue held a fair (juota Monday afternoon. The greater portion of the patronage filed ill well aftor the sliow had started, the botlor j-art of the house haidluj; over for tijo supper sliow. DnIIaii Walk or. with a diversified olTorinsf, oponcd the show. Miss Walker dis- [days consi<lorahlo jd)ility as a rot»e Itundlor. the loturUi) not coming up to expcctnlions considering die ef- fort ivenoss of this girl's work. A lator spot would ei«sily have placed thrcMiRhoMt ou ndlcrs. inaUiu',' t liro.> ' I lii"< spcio In the hit column. Dart rli.'iiiRfH. til" man mixing ii uj» with (t'ontiuurd on Tage 'JC> James and Hessi*' Aitken olosed tlio show and exhibited a hybrid sUntins- dnnr-ing - singing. - cruiLorf i(niistic act tliut otherwise might he d«*sorihod as moroly a closing turn. TliayUs to a j»orgeous peacock r(Mun solt inn, i^i- tonded to doiiict a (al>arot Iftcile, tho offoring is wo:(liy of l/iiliiig as a "nasli." The wfunati [x-rforms