Variety (January 1922)

18 NEW SHOWS THIS WEEK Friday, January 20, 1922 • PALACE Tin >• cheer< i Bessie Clayton and her artist* Monday night, not am-. but several time*. Coming at the end of a 40-minute revue that neans tome thing, ►<<> enthused was the audi-: o ihat the plaudits comin- ued no less than three minutes, and Miss Clayton ofi the Verge *-■• hysteria called out her company, thrilling ".»*t' to poms before the curtain. That finny ol exciten* came at n o'clock and there v m '.«• show to «oroe, t b C ytor. ai t befi ■ • \< •:'!). it was p. rhaps t of the l'i. •• • 11 i ; Mi Tlnyion's career. I \ t<.u turn, bfil< <l as " The T.< x Parti * was ti.. high lu:h; of a gtri it , pne that held n. until tho finals .it n "• •. Th- .-. might have been a few box I 1< It upstairs but the bous< looked virtual cap- acity) " Certainly this is the best of all th Vaudiviile productions credited to Miss Clayton. This Week is the fourth time it has played tho Palace within two months. She has gathered about her a group of..sterl- ing artists. Kvery one is "there" in his or her specialty. The Temple- ton brothers singly and as a team drew down smashing applause. . So did the giddily whirling Guy and Pearl Magley. The spot on the back of Miss Magloy's kimona in the Jap number was the only trifling marring note.. ^ And the all important Versatile Sextette "tore 'em wide open" sev- eral times. This is a noted musical Punch. One from which Ted Lewis and Hector Downs are graduates. j\\ Lentz, tho character singer per- haps scored over the others with his Yiddish .humorous lyric. Sam Kahn and Herman Hyde danced and played at the same time to real suc- cess and the others of the sextette doing their work cleverly were Irv- ing Aaronson, at the piano, John D'AHesandro and Andy Hamilton. Yet amid the wonderful pace car- ried throughout, Miss Clayton twinkled her toes with the grace of yore. Hers was and is a re- markable performance. Her act is the season's vaudeville sensation. Brilliancy in dance had it this wr. k. Mrs. Irene Castle, who is Mrs. Robert Tremaine in private life, held over from last week and closed intermission as the class fea- ture of the performance. There is a reason for Mrs. Castle's excel- lent work, for with the late Lieut. Vernon Castle she appeared in Vaudeville before going abroad, \\ here they really won fame as a ballrOOm couple. They originally from the obscurity of a musical show chorus. It seemed odd to see tho titian tinge to Mrs. Castle*S hair, when her pictures al- ways gave the impression of raven tresses. Class in stage settings and costumes matched the work of the artists herself. Mrs. Castle looked the thoroughbred in the film shown hit number •» out of the Flowers" a "Music Bos Revue "Everybody St« p," from the same >]n>w w.;s used for a dance number in tho Clayton act. . lhios Fraserc opened with his dar- ing exhibition of heel gripping of the trapses bar, wjiile swinging in a wide are. Franzere is chattering quite some and some of the talk could be made bcightcr, especially that at tho opening. The news film showed spilling pjtconfiscated liquors into the s.wa ra and also the feces of prohibition chiefs. One or the other was the occasion for hisses by spme of the audience. Ibi'. COLONIAL They mix- that before the act and in person. She was given such hearty applause that she appeared before the curiairt, saying she was so much pleased be- cause her mother was into see the act for the first time. Tho turn ahead also used a film as a prelude—Flanagan and Morrison (New Acts). Lewis and Dody opening inter- tftisslOQ, delivered the comedy hit of the evening, this being their Initial Palace showing with the present turn, holding the "Hello" eong, which they call "Chera Bochcha." Tho ventriloquist bur- lesque won laughter and pulled down a heavy hand. But it was as "Mike and Ike," the singers of comedy lines that shot them across. They came out six times for choruses of the number at tho close. To take up the running after the idayton act, was the job ably handled by Ole Olson and Chic Johnson, the "Swede nuts." were "right after 'em" with a ture of fast song nonsense diverted the house after the Clayton incident. Laughter greeted the clever telephone bit, which sent the vornedlan-pianist sprawling all over tho instrument shaking in mock rrerriment much to the amusement of the crowd. The bar rail bit and number also lande"d strongly and after that it was easy for the team. Clayton White, Grace Leigh and Co. made a capital number three in George V. Hobart's "Cherio," which Is now so pleasantly dressed With an Interior which lends atmos- phere of a Long Island bungalow. Jf the legitimate revivals could stand up as well as this vaudeville re- vival, there would be less complaint along Broadway. M Cherie" is in Skilful hands and it is made amus- ing from curtain to curtain, show- ing that some vaudeville values are long enduring. LVArmors Franklyn and Douglas Charles, assisted by SSells Goodman closed the long show, necessarily rutting the opening song number and M'»ing immediately into the tough dance. The stairway feat was also out. the boys performing their spectacular hand to hand routine nfter one song by Miss Goodman. Despite the lateness, the act won gov* ral curtains and held the house with comparatively few walk The Quixy Potlf made a strong Ki. ?. winning enough admirers to get a 'Toss for a hit. That was ma- terially aided by the Instrumental f< tture. One thing the instrumental " • I T >: the pa:. Inj WINTER GARDEN / An average nine-act running order , insta'hd th.s week that neither •'.nod one way nor the other and ted to develop any undue en- thusiasm at BhubertS' Winter Gar- den until late in the evening, when Georgie Price showed. Previous, to that time the audience seemingly enjoyed itself, though in no instance i did they approach that point which registers an outburst of popular ac- claim. Price garnered unto himself top honors and encountered very little difficulty fn doing so. En- tering at 10:34, he recited, kidded and sang his way to large re- sponse which brought blm back for a trio of encores before the gather- ing was satisfied to call it quits. It was a soft spot for Georgie, with his showmanship taking full advantage of it. Business was good on the initial evening of the week, though at j scattered intervals there were many vacant chairs to be seen. Slow in assembling, coming down the aisles as late as 8:45, they proved a ma- terial offset to the first trio of acts. Francis Renault, No. 3, was last in feeling the awunt of the stragglers, though he succeeded in holding the attention through the medium of his costumes. This boy is wearing considerable raiment, with each in- dividual dressing of a number call- ing forth a hand. In actual work Renault falls shy of equaling the mark set by his clothes, and espe- cially does his finishing number, an- nounced as that of Ruth St. Denis in the death scene from "Madama Butterfly," smack of a snicker to tho knowing. Whether it's an ex- cuse to wear a splendid Japanese robe or not, Renault would do well to find some other pretense, for when did St. Denis, a dancer, ever do "Butterfly?" Whoever has seen the opera or knows the story will have to have a pretty lively imagi- nation to picture "Butterfly" sprin- kling a few blossoms around, thence going into a dance (accompanied by ged fcy*nbals strapped to her fingers) tossing a few more blossoms about and killing herself. Tho Seven Blue Devils opened with their pyramid building and fast finish, being followed by Moss- man and Vance, who put over a coupfe of melodies and some step- ping of which their^oft shoe tap- ping, minus muslcr* gained "them sulficient recognition to score as an acceptable two-spot offering. It's a return engagement for Lil- lian Fitzgerald at the Garden this week. She was reported as about to join a legitimate production, but the rumor later carrying the state- ment that tho sho t was not in readiness, hence her adherence to the twice daily. Miss Fitzgerald drew attention through her appear- ance, but was a long time getting under way, and not until she did her cat mimicking was her head en- tirely above water. That one inci- dent did it, which allowed for an abundant closing encore. Johnny Dooley, originally slated as second after intermission, was moved up to closing the first half, and clowned through a 20-minute interval that pleased. Dooley is ad libbing all the way and gets enough comedy out of a vehicle which is minus a wallop to make it acceptable and keep him busy. George Mayo, with his Herman Timberg tab, switched places with tho Dooley act and did nicely. They hopped* on Mayo's phone business for considerable laughter, while the action and girls supplied additional advantages which were not over- looked. A particularly s noteworthy item in the act was Ruth Valle. In a schedule which calls for all four girls to specialize Miss Valle has been allotted the major portion bf the assignment and handles it in a style which predominates through- out. Being not hard to gaze upon, as a beginning this young woman goes to work in a manner generally labeled "cute," and, with some coaching, gives promise of develop- ing into something more than a specialty member of a production turn. The act continues to look well with the clothes and setting, while Mayo's efforts are capable of •upplying the comedy values needed. Dolly Connolly and Percy Wen- rlch put under way the latter half of the performance with a sextet of songs, added to which was Wen- i.« h's reminiscent medley. Miss Connolly's nppearaneo, backed by an >easy manner of delivery and ■ongfl which were all special and above the average, breezed through easily, connecting solidly enough to outs. ^ permit of the Introduction of s new melody for an additional bit. A pleasing couple, this pair, with ma- terial worth listening to in lyric as w< II as melody. Following was Georgie Price's o: '-S y it N\ Kb i Co. , ,-:. :<•• mm 44TH ST. The last week of Shubert vaude- ville at this house does not frame up as a very by jingo entertain- ment, although certain acts In spots stood out like eameos in comparison to the rest >of the program. It is little wonder that this house as one of the links in the Shubert chain failed to catch on if this ia the sort of stuff they have been feeding 'em. The lay-out is not at fault; the switching of acts could have* proved but very little more effective, but whoever sent this show into the 41th Street had no sense of vaude- ville (proportions. Two musical acts of the "dumb' order, a mis-spotted woman single, ditto male solo per- former, a mild two-man cross-talk dam, a Sketch, a mental telepathist turn, a Wlllrogeresque monologlst and an animal act comprised the program. And each was handi- capped through poor running order made so only through unbalanced booking, # Arthur Terry with his talk and lariat gave the show a good start that the two ensuing acts could not maintain Terry's style of Working is not Unlike th .t of Will Rogers, but the fact he knows it-and makes sport of it alibis him. As he refers to it. "Some people say I'm a rank imitation of Will Rogers, but tho only difference li about $2,tl0 a week; Rogers has a tough time of it and l don't (sarcastically), and we both chew different brands of tupv" Terre is a coital monolog- Ist in h :, : emploj n j Minus an outstanding name on the program or any action which threat- ened a tie-up, the show-ran along a,n ev.-n plane. The patrons gathered for a figure that marked business as being good though not sensational, and it might have been much worse for a bill relying upon Up collective ability to draw at the box office. .The nine acts ran mostly to comedy, and in this respect Jack Osterman, with Dooley and Sales, reached forth to grab the most abundant allotment of approval. Osterman. placed next to closing in the first half, encountered little diffi- culty to getting to the house early, and eared along well up to a'finish which permitted him to predominate over the remaining members of his section. In returning just once for a brief encore Osterman displayed head work, as the forthcoming re- sponse would have sponsored an ad- ditional- bit if taken advantage of. but he sensibly allowed it to go at that. Frank Browne put the evening un- der way with his xylophone playing and registered abov/; average for the early position, Bernard and Garry sang a trio of songs winding up with a medley of imitations, which were pro and con, to accept- able returns. The boys present a neat appearance, with their double numbers outranking their individual efforts. Mme. Besson in her divorce sketch followed and, mainly due to her ovtn accomplishments, succeeded in up- holding the interest to the finish, which has a twist to It. Allan Kelley as the lawyer produced a mediocre piece of work in his conception of the role, and should get away from the stereotyped manner of delivery. It would be of material value were he to eliminate the sing-song man- ner, as at present it throws the en- tire burden upon Mme. Besson, with the remaining two women in the cast having too little to do in order to be classed either way. Anatol Friedland terminated ahead of intermission with his production offering, which had Osterman run-' ning on and off the stage at intervals for laughs. The act remains as ap- pealing to i'e eye, with the girls also attracting attention. Outside of a decided tendency to "plug" a par- ticular number (which had the leader in the pit warbling the re- frain, Ofterman doing a chorus and the orchestra playing as a selec- tion, preceded by mention of the phonograph recoct), there was ulfi- cient action to keep the pot boiling until the closing out, which was of ma:" ed approval Dooley and Sales walked In with an abundant majority over the lat- ter half of tho schedule. Miss Sales is wearing two dresses which are most becoming to her, while Dooley realized on his clowning and the mention of the boys 'way up being his gang. Following the "Topics" film was placed Bert Krrol, who did five songs and proceeded to steal a bow or two with an added speech to make it sure. It was out of place, but might have been warranted if the routine had been abbreviated. Backed by a most attractive setting, the female impersonator connected for appre- ciation on various costumes, though detrimental are his masculine man- nerisms, which aje so forced, when in costume, as to appear unnatural. Franklyn and Charles won ap- proval with their versatility that had the burlesque Apache dance and the chair lift standing out as the most prominent bits. The hand-to- hand balancing continues to be the main item, with Franklyn departing from the arrogant and posing atti- tude displayed when on the floor at the Palais Royal, which adds credit to the act. Harry La Vail, and Sister closed, working on an aerial bar to appre- ciation from those who remained. Skio. an effective line of "wise" small talk that starts with a soliloquy he is supp osed to entertai n the orchestra only anyway, while the audience is getting seated, and from then on gathering speed with comment on national topics, etc. That line about his once knowing a lot of re- porters in New York, but since all the saloons have closed up, etc., seemed to tickle the house en masse. The crack is far from libelous to the members df the Fourth Estate, but the way the majority of the laymen took it they must have the impression Volstead took particular vengeance against the scribes. Three Musical Avollos could have exchanged spots with Terry to ad- vantage. Being a xylo turn, it would have been to Terry's advaiu- tage on the patter end to have been moved down a spot, thus ascending the grade, whereas the musical act seemed to let it down. Vinic Daly, too, would have been better in that fashion instead of following her singing act right on top of a musical offering. Miss Daly was further handicapped by orchestra miscues, although she got by strong on the finish. Opening with a "pirate" number, she sports a strik- ing skull and crossbones designed costume, which was only marred (and the women will bear witness to that effect) by a tubby appear- ance because of a lack of proper dress line?. Clayton and Lennle next to shut 4 the first half with a crossfire routine which had considerable to do with the straight's silly and logically un- called for tactics of discommoding his English chappie partner's top piece ever and anon. It was pro- ductive of laughter, but grew tire- some toward the end. And as for that "green grass grew all around" number, it doesn't belong. Nor did the duo in that spot, somehow or other lending the impression of not fitting just right into the niche. Emily Ann Wellman's "theatrical storm in ten dramatic flashes," fea- turing Richard Gordon in the sup- port, proved to be the cream of the first half. The production act top- lines, and if the house will draw anybody because of any individual act, Miss Wellman's offering will be the lodestone. Out in the lobby during Intermission the men were talking about it, including not a few professionals, and a few of the women raved over* it. The act not only is a miniature "meljer" in it- self gripping on its story alone, but than two hours, with a and dances and a flash or 'ew songa a pretty girl or so and some 55* strained laughs, is a relief. Bofhwell Browne topped. Both well has trimmed his support dowa to four girls and the Browne SIm ters. The cut wasn't noticed —he could reduce the down ncss and. have much whole busl. to the Browne Sisters probably a better turn The little accordeon-playing confec- tions got the whoop-it-up apniaul* of the act and the show, if - feld ever stumbles into the Zieg way while this troupe is there, rood"" by Bothwell's act. The girls tool two bows on the star "hand' night, and Bothwell took six per cent as much. Gilbert Wells, as a single, pre ceded the Browne "review and did smartly. He is the dancing, singine comedian of Lloyd and Wells separated from Llovd and took of the on ten its wise chatter, the playlet within a playlet idea, and the surprise twist goals them. Mr. Cordon's acting was really of a grade to be com- pared to the legit, standing out par- ticularly in the quarrel scene with his wife, where he tears her gown off in anger, suspecting she did not get it legitimately. The last scene twist of addressing each other by their real names, such as Miss Well- man, Mr. Gordon, Franccsca Rotoli (doing the vamp part), etc., the set- ting being the home of the leading man after the show is over proved novel. Miss Wellman is program- ing each of the .ten scenes, which aids materially in Clarifying the action that is inclined to confuse at' times. Palo and Palet. musical buffoons, reopening the second stanza,*walked off with the hit of tho evening, if stopping the show is any criterion. After acknowledging two bows though the lights for Leona La Mar were up, they were forced to an- other rendition on their manifold wind instruments. Opening double on piano accordeons, the team switches off with each number in a continuous medley, employing at least a dozen different instruments. Each is a capable performer, but what establishes them so strongly is their intelligent repertoire selec- tion, including up to the minute musical and pop numbers and classics that are sprightly and fa- miliar. , }? n on * La Mar> " ,he Hrl with the 1,000 eyes," interested with her mental telepathic act. Describing several people's individual appear- ances in rotation, starting from one end of a row to another, tellini? their names, foretelling a few things and so on is among her accomplish- ments. The act Is a novelty in its construction and preset]I ition. Buddy Doyle, blackface comedian handicapped by a late hour, came on to a show-palled audience, but succeeded in holding 'em interested Doyle is a corked dude in appear- ance, eschewing the eccentric sar- torial getups so dear to so many other blackface performers Hla opening number fits as if specially written for him. |Songs and stories KS g 0 * 10 ' 8 routine, topping it orr with Impressions that clicked Ho responded with one encore, but wisely bowed off to mako way for idplnski's canines, which 11 Sharp and 11borej h the hasty audlehcc about 50 per cenl . which is not ucl ba*i rating at that. In summary, however, frames up as > rratlc started at mrd to hold It succt eded the show entertainment. A brl. BROADWAY Ni< CO shOW, This Broadway com- bination of little and big time with ■even acts makes Just the right ning time and gradation for tired show-business man dull bill is a bore a humdinger IS wearing, too. But program with the run- the A very and a hardship; uccession of wallo: s Be pictures for a time. Then ho broke in as a single on the west coast His kosher southern accent gets him right to an audience. And he dances niftily ui eccentrics and floor shift. He tells two stories that he ought to have left on the coast or sold to someone for two film spe- cials—they're stupid enough. With some snappy lines Wells will d 0 well, and can scarcely be denied a place on the best time. Grace Huff and Company of three, surrounded by an unusually neat manicure parlor production, trem- bled on the verge of a big hit and didn t just make It. Miss Huff la a darb; she has pe/sonality, hearti- ness, perfect vaudeville enunciation and a laugh-generating stage dis- position. Her support is uniformly excellent, three accomplished play- ers, each perfect to type, and the whole presentation intelligently and even subtly staged and played. The idea, too, is more than commonly acceptable. But the finish was tame and lame, abrupt and as flat as a punctured inner tube. There is much corking material In both the script and the company, and Miss Huff is strong enough to gild the apex of both; but the situati'n is allowed to peter out when it should climax. There is room for a dozen more big laughs, too—such obvious room that It makes one nervous not to have them bob up. Whoever wrote this vehicle is no amateur; hut he must have gone away when he had it almost ready, leaving the last minute of it to his valet. With that last minute pulled up. Miss Huff has a corking skit, and she should have, for she is a vaudeville gem. OlUen and Muleahy, pianist and romantic tenor, deuced all right. Muleahy is the singer. lie is more than six feet tall, ami does an im- pression of John McCormack as well as several other Intense ballads. Gillen is a bearcat pianist, and runs to chimes in his specialty. The act did very well for the spot. Quinn and Caverly furnished the other act in "one." In costume, makeup, manner, material, ethics and ideals, this team delivers exactly the sort of "two-act that used to be heard in Coney Island In 1890 with a nickel glass of beer. Woeful and vulgar puns are followed by two dirty parodies, the whole tiling passing by without much recognition. The best thing in the act is a comedy drop that doesn't belong, and that is terrible enough. The Four Ortons closed, and whanged in a hit. Two boys and a girl on the tight wire performed amazing stunts, while a clown ran in and out with one-ring circus props, a trained goose and the like, and flew across for howls with the bird on a Collins find Hart wire. The turn drew reusing appreciation. Roma Duo opened, a man and woman doing skating dancing with- out skates and some desultory ef- forts at Russian and figure si Got nothing and earned it. Lait. tepay huh! i I . ' out, i atl oaAy-rollin«pnru,.romping ntial JEFFERSON - This eight-act bill is probably the costliest show ever booked into this house since the Inception of its vaudeville policy. With Sophie Tucker in lights they were standing fivo deep before oit;ht o'clock Tues- day evening, with the congestion unrelieved until the concluding fea- ture picture, after 10 o'clock. Ditto capacity prevailed Monday, and though the show cost totaled heavy the house more than broke even on fhe gate. Sophie Tucker, Dave Roth, McLaughlin and Evans, a new Leo Ed wards llve-peoplo turn, and a neat supporting lay-out isn't such bad value for 60 cents. Tho fcpuse being seated solid by the time the first act came on, the Mclntyros* shooting turn command- ed strict attention. The closing marksmanship test of shooting at a target through the hole Of B phono- graph disk It a good Hash for the getaway. The audience responded nobly, Spontaneously raising an ap- plause barrage that can only bs likened to the crack of a whip in its elaeqneing shrillness. This un- usual enthusiasm was a feature throughout the evening, each act scoring and acclaimed with similar enthusiasm. Parana, a nice-looking violinlste, fiddled effectively for some 15 min- utes, gosling them with tho pop medley getaway, although faring mildly at the beginning. Miss Pagans could stand coaching on taking bows and making exits, to discard her mincing, skippm*.: stylo off. But there are essential elements v cw Yt worse violinistes extant P sinless* ..ninued ou page 31) i