Variety (June 1922)

OUR FAMILY By BELLE BAKER •i' Kow when it cornea to rhyming, I don't know a thing, ««t rhyming the bill at the Palace seem* to be the erase this spring; oq I pranced down to the matinee, my Maurey couldn't go. ^aa I couldn't bring my baby, so I went alone to the show. Gautler's Dogs, the Bricklayers, held the opening spot— Everyone enjoyed them, they're sure a talented lot. • ■■ • Only 'aa far as I'm concerned there was one thing wrong. Mr. Gautier should have taught those dogs to sing a little song. Hy Maurey wrote a number, called "That Dog Gone Dog of Mine." With that song in the act It sure would have been Just fine.. The Le Orohc, thre? contortionists, came on No. 2; They contortionished, and took a couple of i»ows when they were thru. One of the men is tall and slender—the other one's quitn stout — But neither has a figure like my Maurey's—why. without a doubt. For a man thatVi not an acrobat—is my Maurey there? Did you ever see his shoulders? Never such a pur. And my baby la just like my Maurey. What a kid he Is! Why, even my Maurey says our baby has a shape like his. Slgnor Friscoe's some musician. He played and played and played. If he used some of my Maurey's songs! Can you imagine how long he'd had stayed? My Maurey writes lovely music, but I don't like to talk. Still I think he's the best writer in all New York. Why, If the Beaumont Sisters had sung a «ong or two That my Maurey has written—no telling what they wouldn't do: As it was. they were a great big hit; their act—why, it's a peach— But with my Maurey's music, they'd have had to make a speech. You know Maurey's not only a musician, he's comical, too. I laughed at the Four Marx Brothers, but I'm telling you My Maurey should be In that act, he's an awful clown- Hardly anyone know* it, he's so dignified down town. He can do female impersonating, too, and make Julian Eltinge look sick. He's got a*better form than Julian, and of course that does the trick. My Maurey loves Ethel Levey; he thinks she's the greatest of all. And, some afternoon this week he says I ought to call V- ' And show Miss Levey our baby—she's seen many a one— But wait till she sees my Herbert, my little son. He's just learning how to walk, and says "Ma-ma" and "See See," And Just think that tiny little living thing belongs to Maurey and me. Sylvia Clark. I didn't forget ydu, but I want to mention you last. And seriously tell you I love your work—you're cert,iinly getting there fast. What a little irtiwte! My Maurey says he's My bonnet's off to going to let you see you our baby. too. PALACE A variety show made up prin- cipally of specialty turns, with a dash of burlesque at the end of the bill at the Palace this week. The lay-out figured attractively on paper, but fell somewhat short of expectations. Five of the nine turns were singles, Signor Frhu »e, Sylvia Clark, Julian Eltinge, Ethel Levey and Chic Sale. The burlesque flavor mentioned in the opening sentence arrived in the Marx Brothers act, t"On the Balcony." The four brothers have been away from New York for nearly a year, playing the Orpheum time. Since last seen here the act appears to have been rough- ened up considerably by the intro- duction of low comedy business, not to the original script as written by Herman Timberg. One hit had r Harpo" manipulating a rubber glove after the fashion of a person milking a cow. Pretty crude for any place. In another part Julius had a bit of dialog about something creeping over him—addressing his conversation to one of the women in tne act—and following it up with another remark about "scratching U out. The Marx Brothers are an exceptional quartet, all talented, «arpo and Julius particularly, but m? y »i oem t(> necd direction. A bit iiK • ruhhor K\ove thing doesn't Jine W ith Harpo's remarkable tal- m^t. u? a I>*ntomimlst. and the scratching crag is equally out of S™S,u y wifh J uUu»*« comedy abil- ity. The turn closed the show, held 2 m . v ery well, hut the house seemed SLS"?? 10 s how-weary along to- W»... e .* ?ml of the act - mainly nr^ 8e ,° f P* h ™S MH that had Preceded and partly because of the InnI Bro f n «P« turn covering too *ong a period—it ran 45 minutes. ♦hJ he Le BfOhi, No. 2. disclosed aeir novel acrobatic turn. One of ELiT 0 n,,>n l3 3tout and a contor- ESr\ aIso a PPlcndld ground tum- W. A fat contortionist assuredly 52Li Way fr>m the conventional— hL?K a * un "»ual M a none-talking 22? ? r :l civil •levator man. The 22f* chap [ * "lender-* good con- sist for the fat fellow. He is like- J «e a corking acrobat. The slender L e 'i°. w n *s i trick of walking on EH? - and tV,4t - on a »*<* l > oni1 "«ata not been done around in «ni ^ ' , • AnoiM °r unusual feat is n somersault with the body curved « a halj bending position. The In• ? doea foiw <»"is on one hand gj* class by themself. On^ of the JJJJJ acts of its type in vaudeville. nl Z T an y otnor day. ^WJtler/s Bricklayers, log ir| y™ea. That made two silent tarns dntlu- » i Friscoe was third, and gjPUcated the hit he has )..-.. reg- JZ" 1 ? » rf, ii"<l in the other m dro- turi, mu OUW " with his xylophone arf \ 7 h * UHP of Plants takes the ■maw? • of ,h " mu»*cal claw *nd Tho ' f ' lira t-ratc come<lv turn 'ftg* the'"''-" ,,laMt Whefl " , ' p,|UrJt he r *t. thw ' ,)j - sir.ij T+ tK,for e bv another »" vaudeville. It bowled 'em over.at the Pilate, as it has at the rest of the Keith houses in New York. Both the man and woman plants are good ones—they don't tip they are plants and get laughs—lots of 'em. Beaumont Sisters, fourth, had the whole house singing the old songs from a sheet at the finish, and gen- erally whooped things up for a man's size hit. Funny about that old song thing In a theatre. The men of 40 and thereabouts are more on the level about remembering the old ones than the women—who ap- parently believe too good a memory of the old melodies may tell their age. That so many of the younger generation are -familiar with the melodies of the songs of 20 and more years ago Is probably ex- plained by the talking machines, which have put out a number of medleys of these old time numbers In. the past few years. The Beau- mont Sisters did a couple of double dances that showed they can still step. Sylvia Clark, next, with the char- acter eongalog she has been doing for a couple of seasons, has a gen- uine sense of travesty and marks most of her numbers with a gen- uinely satirical touch. The one about the cabaret girl appears a bit overdone as regards the toughness of the characterisation. The Rus- sian dancing bit as handled by Mis3 Clark Is a gem, 'so is the one about the spotlight. The latter should have some new verses of a topical nature—such as the one about Bryan and other politicians liking the spot. Miss Clark In response to insistent applause at the finish asked if the house wanted ^ speech or song. Someone said both, so she did another song. Julius Eltinge wis accorded a re- ception when his card was Hashed. He did four numbers, each one a classic in the art «»f impersonation, and each embellished with a crea- tion in the way of costuming Clos- ing the first half wasn't an easy assignment; but Eltinge did it handily and they had to hold the curtain until he made a brief speech of acknowledgment; Ethel Levey, opening the second half, had to follow considerable singing with her own four numbers, the three acta preceding, Beaumont Bister, Sylvia Clark md Kltinge, each reeling off ■ flock nf songs Miss Levey r dved i welcoming outburst when her card ippeared and another whe.i she entered, Bach of the numbers landed, Miss Levey probably could have Jockeyed her nnUjhing ipjifause foi i Speech burl didn't. (?hic S lie next to ' >-n>'.r. grabbed off hn regulation whale of \ hit. Mr. Sale, (ike ill other < lever comics, evidently lit- » yen to »»•> » serious ictor. He Is now finishing Oft tin- l.-ni )n h-i d-Mil; il o-h-.in playing tut with ■ bit of pathos it's ver\ w •:! done, !ruf will woi K out bel let »- M Is ' ■•••■•'<>i i The Patfcco lid - »i» icHy Tuesday aight, w: ii a couple 01 I >»' s of stnidve* V"U ORPHEUM A half houso at Keith's Orpheum. Urooklyn, for the holiday matinee—a pretty good crowd at that, consider- ing it was in Brooklyn and a nice lay on a holiday. Fanny Brice headlined, with Vivi- enno Segal another new single over the bridge. # Miss Bogal but lately d"butted into tiie twice daily. Miss Brice has been absent for about seven years, meantime with Ziegfeld "Follies." The program framed as entertain- ing for this season of the year. There was quite a variety on it without much dancing; that lift it easy for Morton and Glass in their new skit, 'April Showers," to score heavily on their stepping. It's a different set- ting but the same Tramework as the other turns of this couple—talk, songs an.I family crossfire. It did well all the way. The Morton-tJlass act had a land- scape effect of a moving red light on a train, with the Harry J. Conloy comedy, "Itice and Old Shoes," hav- ing a* similar effect on an auto. Mr. Conley's showed first and got the benefit. His turn, with Naoma Ray, was a laugh maker through his boob rum I character. It could well have exchanged the second after inter- mission position with the CJibson- Connelli farce', "The Debutante" (New Acts), that was second after intermission, and very tiresome, to say the very least. The Conley turn was No. 3. Opening after intermission was Edward (Eddie) Miller, with his splendid voice and numbers, and Victor Vesola at the piano. Miss Segal and Mr. Miller composed two similar singles of opposite sex. Miss Segal had Charles Ambler as her pianist. She was No. 4. Mack and La Hue were programed to close, but opened, in their roller skating that is all summed up in a SWiWel trick they do. with the girl swiveling while clear .of the ground and held by a neck brace attached to an apparatus upon the chest of the man. It's their one real trick, the one that will hold them on the big time, and the only trick of it3 kind ever seen in anything ap- proaching an act of this description. How long the girl can stand it is problematical, as the strain upon her neck and head must be terrific. No. 2 held a novelty int of what is known as "finger dancing." Frank Ward does it. He bai now composed the turn of all finger work. For- merly that was employed as a bit. At one time Ward did the same thing with Marty Culhane. Culhane is also now doing it, usually in Broadway restaurants, where Cul- hane has grown to be a favorite, he adding talk, songs and music to the finger dancing accomplishment. Mr. Ward performs nicely with the lin- gering impersonations of interna- tional dances, concluding the act with an encore bit of a walking doll that Is brief but good. The trouble with finger dancing is that once seen it tells everything, and it is difficult to follow the opening. Ward at that time is holding a little doll in either hand, with the two fingers of each sticking through. He calls It an imitation of the Dolly Sisters. The billing is Frank Ward and Dollies. It's a worth-while novelty for once around, and if Mr. Ward can con- trive to do away with the monotony of repetition he can make it stand- ard. Sansone and Deliah, with their strong and balancing turn, closed the show. Miss Segal presents an attractive stage picture as a single singer, with red hair and looks. She uses several grades of numbers, brought in through an introductory rhyme, broken up for the songs, and which tells how the several members of her family suggested different melo- dies for vaudeville. With Miss Se- gal's Broadway reputation In musl- i il comedy she should do nicely all of the vaudeville way if she can go that far between IegitimAte engage- ments. The present act of Miss Brice's Is not the one she will present at the Palace week after next. Next week Miss Brice is at Keith's, Washington. Last week sh« wis in Pittsburgh, previously playing Cleveland after breaking in at ML Vernon. The turn as given »t th« Orpheum in eluded songs she hid made in dif- ferent "Follies'* The Brice aet at the Palace will have some new num- bers written by Blanche MerrilL/who also wrote most of Miss Brice'l pro- duction numbers. With Fanny Brice now it's a matter Of the draw. When last appearing In vaudeville she re- ceived $r,().')-$(;o(). Now she is being paid $2000 i week. .S>mc. RIVERSIDE Hal weather coupled with Decora- tion Day's lure hurt the usual M>»ti- day ni«ht attendance < f the River- side, but Bushman and Bayne, who were headlining, must be credited with h iif tilling the house. The matinee attendance was tlso touted is beyond the expectation! of the m inagemeni The h«>adliners closed th.- tiist halt, holding the spot splendidly in their Bketch, "Poof Kii-hMan " Mr. Bushman must Inv- i».-<-n suffering from i cold, for his voice was Inaudible at times from the middle «»f ihe housed The former lilni favorites h i\- proven one of iiic season's best Iraws," according to the vaudeville bookers, bui rumor . u it, it Mi.-y ii • »•> rerann to the pictjtre r«ifl<et." despite U^'t^ring offers to continue on the speaking stage , KigJitMici* oft #rd<nary « ludeville surrounded the film stars, with the honors going to Glenn and Jenkins, opening after intermission. The col- ored boys gagged and hoofed their way to usual returns. The slender member of the team must have lost live pounds handling his broom. They finished in high favor, but de- clined to encore, taking a decision from the heat. Dorothea Sadlier«and Co. next in "ISM," Wm. C. DeMilles satire, got laughs, but the turn dellates like a punctured tire at the finish. Denton Vane as "Kollo," the reversed apex of the triangle of the future, has a diilicult and unsympathetic role as the domesticated husband. The males in the house didn't take kindly to the caricature and were silent. Miss Sadlier broadens the character of the third person, aiming at com- edy. She gets some laughs, but the skit is sadly in need of a finish. The idea has been done several times previously in other acts. Dolly Kay endeavored to close the show, but Mopped dismally. Miss Kay is assisted by a pianist and sings the usual pop songs. She tries to get her numbers across with action and gives one the impression she is shadow boxing. Sans voice and restricted njumbers Miss Kay is at best an early spot entry for the big time bills. A "claque" tried val- iantly to avert total rout, but didn't quite succeed. A trickle of walk- outs started when the singer at- tempted a slow ballad and continued through the next two numbers. Acknowledging some applause from one portion Miss Kay foolishly es- sayed an encore to an emptying house. . Lucas and Inez, a man and woman hand-to-hand duo, opened, and were accorded one of the heartiest ova- tions given a bill started at this house all season. This turn could have held a spot. Both of the mem- bers made a neat appearance in yel- low one-piece form-fitting suits and bare. legs. A corking routine of hand-to-hand stunts and ground rumbling with the woman handling the heavy man at times held the at- tention of the house like a vise. It's a pip of a turn. The Caits.Bros. deuced and hoofed to nice returns, but "gummed things up stalling for bows. The antiquated business of reluctantly backing into the wings, at the same time signal- ing your partner to come on out has been discarded even on the Gus Sun Circuit. The latest method of stealing bows is to have the orches- tra play "Mr, Gallagher and Mr. Shean" for encore music. Grey and Old Rose followed with their veteran vehicle that wears well. The special drops provide a pretty setting for the dancing of the pair, which run the gamut from the old style minuet to the acrobatic waltz. The costumes of the girl got a buzz of admiration from the women. It's a pleasing addition to any bill. De Voe and Hosford, next, went strongly. The singing of the boys landed solidly ,and the *'damo" of the comic was good for big laughs at this house. Two new comedy songs got something, one having a couple of catch lines that were good for woofs of laughter. "Topics of the Day" hung up an unsullied record of reloased gags, hut th*» "Kahles" proved an enjoy- able diversion. Con. BRIGHTON The Decoration Day matinee Tues- day at the Brighton, Coney Island, found but a handful of the faithful in, perfect weather for outdoor sports and baseball furnishing com- petition that simply ruined the after- noon attendance. So few wero out front that the performers' voices sounded hollow in the auditorium. The small delegation were a nice bunch to play to, however, reacting quickly to anything that called for a sign of appreciation. Kldie Leonard was out of the show after the two performances Monday, reporting sick Tuesday morning. Emma Carus replaced the blackfacer. Four of tho eight acts used a piano on the stage. Bob La Salle put plenty of life into the show, No. 2, with songs and a varied dancing routine. As an encore bit he announced Eddie I^eonard's ab- sence, and said he would do an Imi- tation of the minstrel. It was a good one and registered. La Salle went splendidly, overcoming the difficul- ties of netting the house warmed up with case. Billy Arlington, assisted by C. I. Taylor. E. F. Hennessey and Eleanor Arlington, chalked up a neat score with a collection of burlesque hoke nicely mingled with music. The fiddle and guitar duets tickled the house pink. «nd the litushing "Chira Birra Bee" travesty was a small- sised panic. This was announced simply as ft burlesque on Italian street Singers. Why not credit the Melani Trio with the bit in the an- nouncement, inasmuch as they were the first to do the number over here, and in the manner and .>tyle affect- ed by Arlington and his troubadours McLaughlin and Evans, fourth. held em solidly throughout their distinctive character turn. Both portray their roles in the little skit by Ben Ryan in the natural style of characterisntfon thni denotes real H'ntry. The laughs popped contin- uously while the pair were on, and (he vocalizing put a fitting clitnai L0 in Kt. that i iteS M one Of the s" rron*s imds. Miss CarUS is i fivorde with Itiooklyn audiences, and she received i reception jrh,en she entered. Miss . c trus' ih it costume was i trifle too voluminous for her bufomness. All of the Kong numbers glided over smoothly. The act is about the same as during the season. Donald Kerr and Effle Weston started the second half off with a rush. Kerr is an expert dancer. One style is the same as another to him. apparently. Miss Weston, in adtlition to contributing her full share of the stepping, displayed sev- eral nifty costumes. A flapper song with inane lyrics was made enter- taining through the team's charac- terizations and dancing. Lou Hand - man, at the piano, is an excellent ivory tickler, but if he expects the house to hear him, he will have to ask tho orchestra to tone down a bit. Tuesday afternoon the brasses easily won the contest in one of Handman's solos. Herschel Henlere, n xt to closing, found a house rather surfeited ^viUi show, but went right at 'em and held 'em at least to a draw. A lot of Meniere's talk went right out the windows, because of the house not being able to catch what he was saying, through the application of too much dialect. The business of playing a medley, and changing the key frequently with the house whistling, and consequently being thrown oft by the key changing plan didn't land its usual quota Tuesday. This was because It's the upper part of the house that does most of the whistling—and Tuesday there just wasn't any upper part of the house to speak of, to whistle. Bert Green used the key changing idea for years. So did Mike Bernard at Pas- tor's, before Bert Green. The Hedieys closed with a finely staged head balancing turn, backed by a production setting, and Morale Sisters opened. Ucll. AMERICAN ROOF Business was almost as light Mon- day night In the American as day- light saving. "Is Marriage a Fail- ure?" was the feature, and as a drawing card it was. There was nothing in the vaudeville to draw. It looked like a regular Loew sum- mer show, especially in the early part and in the layout. Two two- men acts followed one another— Nos. 2 and 3—while the two single women on the bill—Corinne Ar- buckle, opening after interralMaion, and Ethel Davis, next to closing— were placed in the second half, with but one turn intervening. One of the two-men turns was songs and the other a wire act, but the first, Walters and Goold (New Acts), opened in "one" in tuxes, and remained there, while the other, Mel- notte Duo, started off in "one" in evening dress, later going to full stage for their deft wire work. It was a bad conflict Ion. notwithstand- ing that perhaps Miss Arbuckts couldn't close for the convenience, etc., but separating the two sets of turns would have made a large dif- ference. As It was the first part ran rather devoid of anything other than thu wire walking and Clay Crouch's blackface comedy in bis semi-pro- duction number ending the first part. The Clay Crouch Co. of five got a little something during the running, but died hard at the finish through an inexcusable ending that they may have thought was prepared for through an announcement there could be no finish. If .small time will stand for things like this — meaning that finish particularly — why should It expect that producers should give any thought to small- time productions? From what has been heard and seen about small- time productions, producers there don't glvo any thought to anything beyond figuring how much not th"y can grab. And they are grabbing' One of the acts Monday night got Its best comedy trying to steal bows and Hopping in that, having to re- turn cold to take its encore. Mow stealing in Springfield, III., may be an art. In New York It's not Cveu artful. Funny, too, because if the small time should be fooled the mise wouldn't be over $25, add one must steal an awful lot of bows to even make the booking olMce consider a raise. The same time spent in im- proving the turn might bring a lot more in less time. Miss Davis is from the big time and a good card for the small time. Her sneezing song Is sure fire, but her best is red-headed looks. Like many other red Ifrads she is partial to grey coloring through knowing that Is the most becoming, and Miss Davis' change was Just as attractive as her ilrst gown. She delivers her numbers in a conversational style, getting everything over with the aid of a modest piano accompanist. Bhe may find other numbers better liked by the small time, but the present routine is all right for that popul i - tion, for Miss Davis can make them look hard ut her. It's noL so often small time gets a looker. Miss Arbuckle cn\ carry 'he small time along at any cnontenL She must be a small-time standard. Her act is full of tricks that get over, in changes of costume and numbers. A "gopd-lookinc brunet with a likable vaudeville voh-e, she registered so strongly with an Irish song that it Sth avenue and 42d street the hojs<» was hers from that moment. Bchafer, Weymar and Carr had i little nkit with music that was « mistaken identity fare© in int"io. one man trying to sell another an auto with the other be'«eving be w ■ * speaking >>t t womar Old stuff, but still4aughahie f<»r -.mm n *wer finer • - n<»n r»f stnaM-t'.fts patrotis. if the (Conti lUCd on p !.;.* }|>