Variety (January 1922)

n NEW SHOWS THIS WEEK Friday, January 27, 1921 — - v. - *. NEWS OF THE DAILIES Charlie Chaplin had a credit bal- ance Of $100,000 \\;lh the stock brokerage firm of K. W, \Vagn< r & Co. when the concern waa foi i. to bankruptcy, D.e. 30. Flo Zicgf.id waj fined |25 by Magistrate, House In the Traffic Court on a charge of In Ing in his automobile while the chauffeur was traveling at the rate of 29 miles ]>. r hour. The chauffeur was fined a like amount. Magistrate House also sent r. w. Burnslde, Jr., pro- fessionally known as William B. Fredericks, toenail or 10 days on a charge of (ip 'din;/. Fredericks had failed to respond to a previous sum- mons, Warwick, Ina Claire, Edmund Lowe, Maclyn Arbuckle, Marie i>oro, John Steele, Ada Mac Weeks. Andn iW Tom best Harland Dixon, Marie Cal- lahan, Jane Wheat ley, J. Cooper Cllffe, Beatrice Leslie, Theresa Maxwell Conover, Walter Abell, Estelle Corcoa, Florence Eldridge, Dooley and Bales, Arnaut Brother*. "gpOrtj of the World." done by society frmininc member*, and hands from Port Jay and the Brook- Ij Q Navy Yard. STATE Mrs. Ka:herl..o S. White, alleged to be a vaudeville actress, filed suit for divorce in the Supreme Court at White Plains, N. Y., against her husband, G. C. White, who is a salesman and 63 years old. Mrs. White is 21,.and was married to her present husband in November, 1917. r< ggy Thayer, a m» mber of the younger society sei of Philadelphia, [has received an offer from Charles Dillingham -to appear in musical comedy. MPs Thayer has been noted for her achievement* in ama- teur theatricals, and is a daughter Of the late John B. Thayer who was lost in the 'Titanic" disaster. The New Jersey property left '.vy the late Knrleo Caruso includes his contract with the Victor Phono- graph Co., under which he or his personal representative was to re- ceive royalties amounting to 10 per cent, of the catalog price of all his records. The amount is estimated at $250,000 yearly. Charles Dillingham has bought the American rights for a new Lon- don detective play called "Old Jig." An inquiry Is under way In the Supreme Court of Brooklyn to de- termine the cause of the collapse of the American theatre on Bedford avenue, Nov. 29, when seven work- men were killed and 17 injured. Rochester is about to erect the largest school building in the world, which Includes provision for a stage that will be double the size of any other theatre in the city. The build- ing will cover almost four acres and have 211 rooms. The estimated cost is put at $4,000,000. A speed ordinance regulation was re-lntroduced before the new-Board of Aldermen by Peter J. McGuin- ness which would limit all trucks and taxicabs in Njw York to 15 miles an hour. The ordinance pro- vides a timing device shall be car- ried by each vehicle, which would be subject to Inspection and scaling by the Police Department. The Players' Assembly, a co- operative organization of actors, has been incorporated in Albany with the following oMIeers: Helen Lowell, president; Clarke Silvernail, vice- president and art director; Frank Doane, secretary, and Brandon •Hurst, treasurer. John Brunton will be the technical director. The ultimate aim of the players Is to establish a permanent company in New York, with the first play sched- uled to go into rehearsal this week. Willard Mack was married to Mrs. Beatrice Stone by a justice of the peace at Los Angeles, Jan. 21. It is Mr. Mack's fourth marriage. C. B. Dillingham is getting ready a new musical show for presenta- tion next fall. The piece is to be called "The Bunch and Judy," and will have Jerome Kern and Anne Caldwell collaborating on the book and music. Frank Fay's "Fables" show, which Is scheduled to follow in "The Wild- cat" at the Park theatre, will carry a sextette of red-headed show girls, with the cast Including Olga Steck, Helen Groody, Georgiana Hewitt, Nina Olivette, Loui.i Cassavant, Eddie Carr, Bernard Granville and Herbert Corthell. Fay is rehearsing the company. Kdrauarf Gwenn, C. M. Hallard and Vane Fetherstone have arrived in Montreal from London to join Mario Lohr's company in "The Voice from the Minaret," opening at the Hudson, New York; Jan. 30. Charles H. Morrell, playing in an act called "The Littlest Girl" at the Follies, Brooklyn, was arrested on a charge of exhibiting a minor. The sketch carries Rita Fryer, nine years old, in its cast, which brought about the charge from an agent of the Brooklyn Children's Society. Besides Morrell, Harry Lefkowitz, manager of the house, was also ar- raigned in the Bridge Plaza Court on a similar charge, both being held in $500 bail. Dixie Dixon, said to have been a vaudeville actress, .died in the Har- lem Hospital, New Y'ork,. Sunday night. No definite diagnosis of the cause of her death was made, though she was taken to the hospital suffering from an alleged attack upon her made by the chauffeur of the taxi she was riding in. The at- tending physicians believed she had also taken an overdose of morphine. Martin Ryan, the driver, was held without bail. Karl Carroll's new theatre. New York, is scheduled to open Feb. 20 with the initial attraction to be named later. Evelyn Nesbit has been forced to give up her tea room on 62d street, New York, because of unpaid rent. Miss Nesbit was declared by a reaj estate agent for Lee & J. J. Shu- bert, who own the building, to be two months behind in her rental dues, which amount to about $300 monthly. The former dancer stated she would attempt to reopen the establishment if another location were available. Before the legislative committee on social welfare in Boston four policewomen testified the dancing in the hotels and cafes was "sug- gestive, vulgar and immoral," with the committee proposing that the bean town hotels and cafes be re- quired to obtain dance-hall licenses. The National Retail Dry Goods Association recently undertook an investigation into the phonograph departments of the larger stores to secure data on the matter with the Bureau of Research and Informa- tion issjing a report that in part 'says: "Although there are more than 150 phonograph manufacturers [that have been producing machines I for the past four years, less than a (dozen are known to the laymen." One authority on the subject esti- mates that 1,500,000 machines and 100,000,000 records will be sold in the next twelve months, with avail- able information showing that 6,000,000 phonographs have already been sold in this country, and that if the estimate for the current year holds true, there will be a new ma- chine for every 72 inhabitants. The 1910 census discloses that 2,226,000 phonographs were produced in that year. Letraunik, known in a.s "Senator Murphy," for a decree of annul* his wife on the grounds widow at the time of their marriage, though she stated it was her initial matrimonial ven- ture. Samuel Vaudeville lias asked ment from r-he was a A small fire on 42"d street around 10 o'clock one night last week was the cause of an Unusual piece of work by the fire department wh» n they were order* d to "tone down" because of the hear proximity of the theatres" and their Inhabitants. No bells, whistles or cutouts wen used, with the men work as quietly as possible as a precautionary measure against starring a panic amongst the theatre patron-. Act- ing Deputy Fire Chh f Janus Sher- lock was given credit for having "staged" the noiseless n -pond to the alarm. The Actors' Fund benefit, held at the Century in the afternoon of Jan. 29, is reported to have realised $-0,- ciiO In receipts. The total amount Include* the souvenir program. Those who appeared were: Donald r ..m, r, ■: : C ■ \ Utwthome, It B. W nier, lloocrt Agitation arising from so-called objectionable shows produced on Broadway this season and which threatens legislative censorship of stage plays was the cause for a meeting of managers, actors and au- thors held at the Belasco theatre Tuesday afternoon. A plan for vol- untary censorship was proposed which calls for a contract between producer and manager to submit to the play in question being closed without notice if a jury decides that it violates any of the decencies. The jury would be chosen from a panel of j00 citizens, excluding those con- nected with the theatre or a reform movement, drawn by the Commis- sioner of Licenses when a sufficient number Of objections to a play have been filed. The sponsors Of the plan are the Drama League, the Drama- tists' Guild, the Producing Man- age :s* Association, the Actors' Equity Association and the Better Plays Association. Charles i>. Co- burn la credited*with having orig- Inated the proposed action. Tuesday afternoon "Bulldog Drummoml" was presented at the Knickerbocker for a professional matin* e. In the evening the per* formulae was given for the benefit bivji ..ft of i * ■ • I • L Another typical state bill, small time In all" its dimensions. The huge State was filled to its uttermost rows downstairs Monday evening, (live the credit to the temperature of 14 al ave, which doubtless drove many idlers into the newest and haftdsonv st theatre in Times square. They gave every evidence of enjoy- ing the ShOW from start to finish. The entertainment was well worth the modest price at the gate at that. It WOUld have been a bargain with- out the Six arts of vaudeville. The picture section alone was a good buy. It hid Tom Mix in the best western adventure film seen in a lone time; it had a capital Fox kno kabout comedy, the news week- ly with a lot Of interesting items, one Of "Tod's" absurd animated ear- toons and a laughable "Mutt and Jeff." If that Isn't worth anybody's four bits let's go back to the nickel- odeon. It was possible to sit in a comfortable chair from 7.30 to 11 on the dot without getting a repeat Three Martells, bicycle riders, opened the variety portion around 0.30, Three men, two working straight, In a well-handled routine which has little extraordinary in it, while the third does indefinite com- edy in grotesque getup, part fat Dutch, part tramp. The best o - the straight work was a ride around the stage on a high mono-wheel by the two straight men in hand-to-hand balance. For the finish the forma- tion was head to head, which may be more difficult but is less spec- tacular. Shun Tock and Yen "Wah (New Acts), something of a novelty as coon shouting and cake walking specialists in Chinese costume, were brief and lively enough. Lehr and Bell, girl and boy singing and talk- ing pair, were on and away in less than a quarter of an hour. They laughed at the grotesque antics of the comedian, who is rough shod in his comedy method. He appears in "travesty dame" makeup, with lurid ballet costume of wild colors, and does a minute or two of bur- lesque on the interpretative dance. There was a good low-comedy laugh here, but the rest was Indifferent gaggirr^- and mugging on his part. The girl Is pretty, but a colorless singer of published songs. Her first dress is rather dingy, but the second one, a black jet affair, is sightly. Sam Liebert and Co. in "The Shat- tered Idol" took up a profitless "5 minutes of talking sketch. The briefer and bolder a sketch is the better for the spacious State. Mr. Liebert's playlet has tough going. The girl in the act appears to be new. She was unintelligible for* the most part, but enough of her lines carried to demonstrate that she is not gaited for playing ingenues at this stage of her career. The quiet finish of "The Shattered Idol" re- quires ease of playing and delicate handling. In the big State, of course, it was lost. Betty Bond used up nearly 20 minutes and could have departed earlier, although they accorded her strict attention and a fair return, but It required careful nursing to make the applause stretch over for several returns. She has a first-rate delivery and a knack of handling comedy lyrics. The lyrical descrip- tion of the Woolworth store song- stress who finally landed in a mus- ical comedy chorus was her best. This bore marks of special design. The others were selected from the current catalog. As a single she made good next to closing. Powell Quintet (New Acts), three men and two girls, in jazz on the brasses, provided the specialty hit of the evening, holding them in at 11 o'clock and rounding the even- ing off at its maximum of entertain- ment speed. Hush. o AMERICAN ROOF Good booking judgment was dis- played in the layout of the first-half bill at the American. It was a genuine vaudeville bill with no con- flictions and ran without a hitch from the start. It contained all of the elements which go to make up a real show. The Braminos, a two-man novelty musical turn, opened the show*. The team appeared In the same spot at this house ten years ago and follow practically the same routine. The returns started with this turn. Josephine Davis appeared No. 2. Frank Shields with some nicely arranged rope spinning displayed some feats with the lariat that place him well up in his line. The rope work on the ball . id laddi r are two of the outstanding features of the-turn and can be considered real assets. The real bang of the first half was landed by Alhe Morley nnd Irene Chesleigh in No. 4 spot These piiis have a turn framed largely along the lines of the for- mer Morley Sisters a< t at. 1 can look for the proper returns in the b* ' houses the three-a-day has to offer it is one, of the few two-girl com- binations,that contains rial Comedy value. In the comedy work Alice Morley display* ability. In Mis." Chesleigh she has n)\ easy working partner who firs hi Well with the foo1ery< Next to eh sing H the proper spot for these gins in pop bills and Ihey can be relied upon to get a Pig t;:ne hill Upd'T WjtJ I ; jir t ,rn< il plan d No. 1! it) the bl I IgPr hOfJf"**, CsifJ Nix m Revue t.Ri I IA »ts| eios» d i lie first half. ' !' •« «' I'ov i #.?•< Mil sfter ■ • i a musical routine practically the same as that offered by Ector and Dena, Miss Powell is a contralto with a good idea of syncopation who can deliver with straight singing. Her singing and the instrumental work by her partner top the turn off In good style. Mark Hart and Co. (New Acts) followed, digging up a few laughs with a vehicle that is based upon an old idea. Fox and Britt, the customary two- man next to closing act, had little difficulty in that position. The comedy chatter gathered in the laughs, with the vocal work secur- ing the desired results. James and Besiie Aiken, a standard closing turn, provided the proper finishing touches Hart. BROADWAY A seven-act running order, topped by the Barthelmess "Tol'able David" picture, got under way at 8.45 and closed up at ten thirty. The continued cold snap didn't seem to effect the Broadway's usual attend- ance either one way or the other, though the nip in the temperature had 'em dropping in until fairly close to ten o'clock. Hot or cold, the house showed *a distinct friendliness towards the performance, and augmented by a couple of boisterous laughs located In different sections of the theatre it kept the majority in good humor throughout the evening. Particular advantage was taken of the dis- played mellowness on the part of the patrons by Frank Gaby and Joe Laurie, on second and fourth, re- spectively, with both boys sailing along easily to solid responses at the finish. Gaby, with his imper- sonation of Ed Wyhn, tore things up early in his routine to a total that demanded more but displayed a marked inclination to dodge the issue of returning until actually forced into It. Laurie walked on, 13 minutes later, ad libing his way along with considerable success that Improved upon his bringing forth of the old folks, who are as fine a looking elderly couple as one could wish to see. .It's a nice piece of- sentiment, tapered with Laurie's kidding and the way ho does it, staying away from intruding on the moral respect due, that is bound to connect and registers as a corking piece of business. Between Gaby and Laurie came the Dawson Sisters, adhering closely to their former routine outside of having substituted a girl at the piano for the boy who was formerly car- ried. The pianist is covering up the waits between numbers, by vocalizing and a selection upon a saxophone, which brought approval. The sisters offer an average step- ping routine, while costuming them- sleves attractively which, with the special setting, makes for a sufficient "sight" act to be an asset on the smaller house bills. The Flying Henrys (New Acts) opened, with Kitty Francis and her revue holding the No. 5 position. The production tab took its quota of appreciation mainly through the comedy efforts of Miss Francis clos- ing out to appreciable returns. Moore and Jayne followed, breezing through with the responsibility of the next to shut position in no uncertain manner. Moore's clowning along with a tendency to get away from the text pleased the assemblage out front, while Miss Jayne handled her solo melody well enough to repeat for an earned encore. -Familiarity with the routine and the addition of a couple of new songs has aided the pair to the point where they ease through their schedule without un- due effort to marked appreciation, and with the girl's appearance should continue to find little opposi- tion in gaining enough prominence to permit of the act fitting In nicely, no matter in what company placed. Moore took exception to the taxa- tions the orchestra was lending to the score, especially the eornctist, but it's not a bad idea to allow the boys in the pit, when capable, to step on it. as a good orchestration is never detrimental, and the Broad- way band did well enough with their improvising of the ''pop" selections —though it's horrible to think what some of the musical combinations In the vaudeville h <.. > could do to an act supplying tin exaggerated accompaniment' The El Key Sisters concluded. value developed in connection wttu her slight build. The comedy %L turns were forthcoming for this a* from curtain to curtain, with "Henri and Lizzie" (New Acts) No. 4 keen- ing up the laughs. v A dash of the big time was of- fered by Ford and Cunningham next to closing. The couple hare class and hat* little difficulty with the pop audience. A hokum comedy turn is the customary next to closer here, with Ford and Cunningham a pleasing relief from that style. Steed's Septet comprised of a jaza band. Anne Mae Bell and Ralph Hertlalfl closed the show, it is a corking Jazz combination, with the musical work above the average for turns of this order. The dancing tops it off in an effective manner. Hart. 23RD ST. Business was off to a marked de- gree Monday evening, with the sud- den eohl snap perhaps to blame. The six-day vaudeville section con- tained a name here and there of big- tun*' caliber, With the picture di- vision bolstered by a two-reel com- edy in addition to the customary feature, the latter, however, of less prominence than the general run of ph tur«*x at this house. Herat and Wlllcs < New Acts) Opened the vaudeville section fol- lowing the customary news red, Willi I eon Vai vara No. 2. The lat- ter has been playing some of the larger houses and appeared annoyed down here. His act was carried on In a kidding manner, unbecoming and Which detracted. His ability as a pianist Is pronounced, and the 23d Ktreet audience sppreclated it, regardless of h|«« jarring manner. No. '1 In d lie I.e.i and Orma, a man and woman comedy team, Who got along fi'eeP, (it ;ill stages. Tilt, woman, an thmfcated person, is tP" ROYAL Tuesday night the Royal sold out at 8 p. m. It is expected that the present week will break the attend- ance records for the house. The draw isn't credited to any one act, but a bill that contains such Bronx favorites as Gallagher and Sheah and Ruth Roye cannot fail to pack them In. Gallagher and Shean closed the first half and sang their usual allot*. ment of 15 or more verses of ''Mr. Gallagher." They finally begged off to double down to the Palace. This topical song which has caught the popular fanoy has made this pair the — ost talked of act in vaude* vllle. Three-quarters of the house were singing it as they exited after intermission. Bryan Foy wrote it, but, according to the rumor, made them a present of the ditty. Now it is on the records and also pub- lished by a local publisher, which should teach Bryan to be very care- ful. The other laughing wow of the first half was Billle Burke's "Tango Shoes," a sure-fire piece of hokum. The act is one of those peculiar "naturals" that nit the funny bone of any gathering on account of the "types'' employed. The cast is rich and shouldn't represent much of a salary outlay, which makes it a val* uable piece of vaudeville property. It has been killing them in all Kinds of houses for the past six years. The turn was canceled Its opening week at Bayonne. Mabel Burke, assisted by Helen Rush was third. Miss Rush is a strong accomplice, having an excel* lent contralto voico and being a good pianist. Miss Burke was one time house soloist at Proctor's Fifth Avenue. She is spoiling her present offering with an unnecessary plug for a popular song via a picture slide and a plugger In a box. Miss Burke holds on sheer ability and personality and doesn't need artifi- cial stimulants. D. D. H.? clutched the customers with his clever, witty line of talk in the fourth spot, softening it up for Gallagher and Shean's entrance. The Initialed monologist is about ripe for a production, having a real nov- elty and a unique delivery. He is a glib talker on any subject and has a talking routine worked out that embraces a sure-fire appeal to any class of auditors. At this house hej convulsed them time and time again, and had to alibi off with speech. Opening after intermission, Frank De Voe and Harry Hosford (New Acts) were in a soft spot. The pair registered with comedy songs and hokum and probably held the spot on account of the doubling of D. D. H.? and Gallagher and Shean. IX D. H.? doubled the Royal and Colo- nial. Florence Nash and an excellent cast were next in Edgar Allan Wbolf's "A Breath of Fresh Air." Miss Nash was splendid as the worldly wise city lass who marries a prize fighter and returns to the old country homestead to discover her kid sister addicted to cigarettes and love affairs with city slickers and the kid brother a bootlegger and a lover of the hooch. She irons out the family tangles, shows up the kid's lover for the villain lie is and saves her '.rother from jail. Miss Nash handles slang in her own In- imitable style. It's a fr^sh. whole- some little playlet for vaudeville and should keep Miss Nash active v.til her next legitimate role is ready. Ruth Roye entered to a reception which proved her a "fave" here and rolled up her usual total. A new dress was the only new thing in the act. The popular songs which were fresh several weeks ago are becom- ing frayed with usage which hasn't been augmented by (epeat engage- ments ground Greater New York. Adelaide Herrmann in her inter- esting magical offering luld np ino6t o. the walk out. The flash of the turn is the 'Noahs Ark,' 1 f»*<> n ) which is produced an assortment of live stock and a woman. El Clove, a fair xylophoni-t but an excellent showman, op» ned and took an uncalled fog-encore after ponaja* arable stalling for bows. t.©*> vsck J. McNevin has been ap- pointed manager of the Bor© r ar ' c theatre, Brooklyn. Dudley Wilkerson, who was forced out Bayes act three w • el 44th st. theatre, n«-w a heart attack, hae j.^ntet, of'the Nora h .!--• at tne v ,., due to d the- ir |,i if a turn. Harry •vn ~. n /. | • sutoSti kUU for