Variety (February 1925)

;Wedn««Aor, February 18, 1925 '^i^: VAUDEVILLE REVIEWS > VARIETY *. 0 PALACE An* ot those rare occurrences^a y^w»g sliov •nly "fair"—marks this *'^^33u tflu>u«b It has Ita high spots. Mwih •* **>*y come. It doesn't run kai Otm throujrh express fashion of ,»40P ■P«*d, high and handsome. Hie ihow woefully needs a good '"* Mmun in "one" of the standard bisr- "^iUme brand. Paul Morton and Naomi Glass, laid out for next to closing, wen switched to the first half, ex- ■ :• cbancing with Herschel Henlere. It is needed a hot dancing act. There Isn't a step hoofed in the second part as Jt stands, nor is there a song, the order l>elng George Olsen's Band, Henlere, Readings. That gives the Mcond portion only .Henlere for <^med7. and his act is largely in- strumental, following the Olsen Iwys, All instrumental, followed by a cast- ing-«ct, silent. It was perhaps deemed too pre- carious to put Lily Morris in the [yital spot, though she seemed equal p^o the task. Despite a sort of ap- v plause which seemed almost 'too •potty to be kosher, the British vis- itor uniioiibtedly went powerfully imil. HKpt that'she has the Kng- music hall habit of singing ^ifte-and-three atiA leaving bare "■% stage-waits between numbers for >£ ebanges, she would give the show a *^ seeded kick down below, and that ^*<'-Aoeen't mean that the show deserves *^',the-kick, but aiiTiply means that it V.wonld profit by a punch near the ' i^ieiiil.- • jft» Morton and Olass have conslder- "1 .«b|ip new stuff, pretty quiet mostly. . Their dancing is minimized and their gagging is alcoholic. An automat eceae, apparently built as a plece- '^v.de<>reelstance. Is whittled down to {^a wangle nifty, and >not a very hot ,■ one at that. They use their old up- an4-down steps dancing finish. The '* Totitlne needs life, action, speed, / wtillop. It wks scarcely ready for a m PWace showing. ,♦% -Charles "Withers* "Op'ry" Is a }> ellgbt variant of "For Pity's Sake.'" ^ With most of the old guffaws and' ^^.eome. good new ones. It is comedy - -^'as low as comedy can descend, but ,'"it whacks out the midriff laughs aplenty. Withers' falls on the break- away ladder are immense, and the - weird props work and wow. ,^ . ^eplere. back aftef an European |v lavaeion, seems to be leaning in the i, •fttSe, <llrection. He made his en- ■"tiTince with « green feather ruff, huge galoshes With the same as edging, breakaway gloved, bouncing handkerehief; etc,, and suspenders and a hot-water bag for good meas- ure. The pillow fight with the or- chestra' and the exchange of "No" seems to have been augmented,duif- ' llAy the foreign renaissance of the ■■ T'As la pianist Henlere is Just what ^he doctor ordered for vaude- ville. He also in no amateur at hart- ■ • dlin^ an audience'and selling certain ■..ttyleaof pianistic hoke which he may i.;l>e credited with inventing. But his V ,ltet was a better one when he went , away than it Is now. He seemed f then to have Just enough comedy; now he seems attempting too much > of it, and too much of it away from the main subject-matter—the piano. Henlere hit hard—much harder to^vard the end of his long act, when '*e' did his regulat- and standard •*rork, than at the start, when he ' 'Wasted five or more minutes unbur- ' denlng himself of meaningless ap- .ilHurel props. His variations of "Ba- nanas" seemed overlong, also, and cJ^e magenta and green spots may >.!&» qt use for a ^econd to point the . ^qassical atmosphere, but stay on Jtpo long and^ake the audience un- leksy. They also kUl his expression, '. which, to a man who knows his rdeville, will easily be recognized inadvisable. The last few mln- liles are bang-up and get him over «.• WMh a roar. i)Ai George Olaen (New Act^), doubling the Ziegfeld "Follies," "Kid jots" and a cafe (maybe the record ror busy-bee stufT), knpcked 'em off opening intermission. This crew Js • 'A'relief from the blare and "eccen- ■^ic" noiyienee which makes for- eigners think our Jazz players are rowdies and escaped nuts, and it . has that rare quality, music, as well ai^ Heat novelties and charming diffl- .4ence without strutting, straining or ".(Stuelching. .,.^he Readings closed to a goodly- portion of the audience. The Meya- kos, a boy and two girls, opened and are good-looking Americanized Jap- anese. The girl* are sweeties, and dance in various pleasant styles. The boy sings straight songs and plays a special banjo. They dress prettily and they cut out all "sym- pathy" stuff, going at their business In legithnatc fashion, and scoring to fine appreciation. Mercer Templeton, who follows, would profit somewhat by their ex- ^uwple. He .slnKs about himself al- tffost exclusively, talks In second person ^sidea, and makes no secret p(^the fact that he thinks well of ■i4pfcer Templeton. AVcU, he has his assets. But It might serve his pur- nope better if he let the .ludlence Wgcover them. Ho dnnccH powers fuity and effectively and has a voice. 'A\1^' clothes hang well on him ahd he looks splendid. He was Inst seen here in Bcssl« Clayton's act, and Was since in several musical shows. Hethas the groundwork fei a»»U«as single, but should play down the "1" material. Eddie Leonard can get away with it, and very few more. Nita VerniUe. who bills herself as "former star of many musical suc- cesses." the titles not mentioned somehow, has two smacking girls in Florence Barry and Marie Russell, and they run away with her act be- cause they have saccharine person- alities, youth and agreeable, unpre- tentious ways. Mile, (or Is It "Sig- norlta" or "'Miss'?) Vernille. is an Intensively trained danseuse, who changes costumes and wigs for each number, and at times is excellent and at other times is Just so-so. The production is tasty and costly Her entrance and exit, via an ex- tremely artistic no%-elty by Willie Pogany, tops everything else in the presentation, aftd is worth Ziegfeld's stealing if his conscience doesn't out- wrestle his selection. Her opening dance, "Oriental," is best. The Span- ish doesn't come up to the prelimi- nary one done by the supporting girls. The Romeo-Juliet dance num- ber is a bloomer. John Walsh, who warbles and sighiJ, is Just a singer in a dance act. Hiere Is an impressive and meritorious production wltff three talented women, yet lacking one outstanding something to make it big. I.nit. ■ '.M HIPPODROME In all probability there isn't an- other vaudeville theatre in the world that would stand foi* the tap oa the salary list of two names such as Harry Houdini and Nora Bayes. But at the Hip on Monday night of the current week the advisability of this combination. Houdini playing the house for his sixth consecutive week and Miss Bayes making h%r farewell appearance in America for the sea- son, was proven through the fact that the big house was Jammed from pit to dome. If there were any seats open they were in the upper loft, and then only or the far sides. To one that visits the Hip for the first time since that gigantic monu- ment to both the late "Skip" Dundy and Frederic Thompson has been given over to vaudeville there is a certain something about the amuse- ment resort that hits right between the eyes. Vaudeville of the average class^ as one Is In ttie habit of-view- ing it in the better big-time houses, might or might not fit here. The chances are that it wouldn't, but the type of entertainment that has been devised certainly appeals t9 the masses. Still more strange is the fact that three artists In ttielr Chosen field of endeavor, ail appearing singly, so to speak, and grouped in the last half of the shpw. and one following the Other, scored the greatest hits of the evening. The three final acts of the bin, in the order named, were Nora Bayes, Bill Robinson and, last but far from least, Houdini. If there ever' was a consummate showman it Is Harry Houdini. Nora Bayes took the audience in the hollow of her hand and virtually stopped the show: then Robinson, a colored en- tertainer, stepped and walloped the house all over again, and, finally, building to an apex, Houdini achieved greater applause and thrilled to the utmost extent with an escape. For the final week of the sextet that he has been appearing at the big house, Houdini has gone back to the old "challenge week" idea. On Monday night he pulled a "pip." Four "nurses" appeared from the audience. They were women who were, according to the letter of chal- lenge that Houdini read, attaches of various institutions where they cared for the insane. They tied the es- cape king's hands, wrapped him in three sheets, mummy fashion, and then us^d seven additional sheets to tie him down to a regulation hos- pital bed, after which they poured wjiter over the bonds so that the knots might shrink, and Houdini was to release himself in full view of the audience. Suffice to say that he did it Inside of 10 minutes; but those 10 were replete with thrills for the audience, which watched his every move and applauded heartily as he progressed out of the bonds. At the finish—^be was closing the show— there was a tumult. Outside of the applause accorded HoudlDi, Miss Bayes achieved sec- ond honors. Of coui'se there is no comparison that can be made be- tween the offerings of these two ar- tists. But the surprise was the tre- mendous acclaim accorded the ef- forts of BJII Robinson, in the next- to-closing spot. This dancing man Is a reminder and the pcrsonffication of the original "Bon Bon Buddie," and to those who never saw George Walker he is a whiz. On his own he steps right into the witnesses and with his taps he has them dizzy before they realize what it is all about. In addition to his dancing Robinson pulls some gags, but they don't mean a thing when ho starts dancing, r.nd as a hard-shoe clog oitlst the rest of the field, with one, exception, gnos for th< end book. There were seven other acts on the bill, three of whiqh-wece decid- edly imposing because of fho fact that they had the additional dr^.«is- Ing afforded by the Foster dancing girls that lar* <i pcrnaaBent, feature here. Tfie girls first appeared as an adjunct to Grace Elder's act, on early in the first part; again with the operatic tabloid version of "Alda," which closed the first half of the bill, and, finally, as the danc- ing ensemble to the Maurice Dia- mond and Helen McMahon otTering, which, although scheduled to close the show, was moved up to second after Intermission. The condensed version of "Alda" was presented by the Groge De Feo opera company, and carried convic- tion in the performance presented. There were five principals, a prima ballerina and a chorus of 20 voices. Closing the first part of the show, the act scored heavily. The set used filled the big stage and, with 26 peo- ple of the operatic company aug- mented by almost a score of the dancing girls, the stage picture was one that filled the eye. Weir!s Performing Elephants opened, being followed by the M. E. G. Lime Trio with their contortlon- Istlo offering. The Grace Elder pres- entation, with the 'assistance of her own quartet of dancers and the Hip girls, was next. Then came Harry Watson, Jr., a holdover from last week, with his "telephone" and the "Philadelphia Jack" O'Brien skit. Laughs aplenty were accorded the act. Opening the second half, the Five DuUskys, likewise held over, Inter- ested, and then' the Dlamand and McMahon offerln/f, "The Originali- ties of 1925," Edythe Handman, Irene Smith and the Stroud Twln3 appear- ing in addition to the featured mem- bers. Eight numbers were put over in revue fashion, but it waa Miss McMahon in her rag doll bit that walked away with the «;aIlop of the act. The stepping at the finish "in one" for almost five minutes, to make possible the setting Of the stage, was cleverly gaggM by Dia- mondf who handled the Twins, and then, finally, went Into extra hoofing on his own. The show was good vaudeville, especially for the Hip. t'red. FIFTH AVE. An armful of show at the Fifth Ave. the first half, and one that went over from the opening to the closing act with no lets. The bill was cleverly laid out and played like a world's series, despite the fact only one new act was listed. This was dertrude Moody and Co. (New Acts), a singing and talking sketch, spotted fourth. One of the hits of the Wll went to Frank Farnum and Co., number six on tne eight-act llpe-up. Far- num's act holds new faces but is essentially the^ same In construction as his former vehicles. He )s open- ing with the tough waltz and clos- ing with the Imitation 'Vequests" originally shown around by Frisco, Farnum bulls them for an encore by carrying out a brown derby for a couple of bends.< Everybody who can spell grease paint Jchows the brown derby me&ns a jazz dance (thanks to Frisco) so Farnum gets the same reaction from it Duffy and Ingliss used to get by bowing with different instruments. Farnum has three corking girl dancers with him and a good Vincent Lopez unit for musical accompaniment. The act can go anywhere they need a hoof- ing carnival. After the Three and a Half Ar- leys thrilled them with their perch balancing and hand-to-hand opener Patrice and Sullivan registered mildly with a piano, violin and vocal turn. It is a mixed double combina- tion pleasantly routined, McGrath and Deeds; third, started things agaip with their two-man comedy, talking and singing turn. The "dame" of McGrath, with com- edy fur piece and hat, IS sure fire. Deeds has appearance, a good bass voice and feeds well but overworks a prop laugh. They liked them plenty here* Charles and Madeline Dunbar, fifth, are doing the beet act of their careers. They have the animal and bird impersonations routined per- fectly, and are far away from the usual turn of this nature. A spe- cial 'drop with animals. and barn yard fowl depicted gives them a legltlnlate reason for the imltatloaa. Dunbar's kid voice mimicry and mugging were good for howls. The attempts at dialog still need atten- tion, and the gags are familiars and lower the general average. The act took one of the hits of the bill and deserved It. Corbett and Norton, next to clos- ing, were the class of the bill and galloped away with the show. Nor- ton's comedy falls and crossfire and Corbett's straight, coupled with his international fame as an athlete, proved an unbeatable combo. Nor- ton's drooping fall was good every time he pulled it, also Corbett's boxing lesson, in which Norton mis- Judges the counter and takes the slap. The act la surefire anywhere. Georgalla Trio closed snapplly and were followed by the "Charles- ton Contest," a stunt which is prov- ing a business getter. It is conduct- ed along the lines of the former neighborhood dancing contests but gets over better, due to the Inimense popularity of the Jig dance. Invoked like capacity all ovei' the house, with standees back of the se4t« on the lower floor. Con. i STATE Show at the State >tomtay nlffht was overboard with dancing. There was also plenty of acrobatics and dancing Imitation.^. The "ffash" act was ''50 Miles from Broadway," the C. B. Maddock turn, featuring Harry B. Watson apd Reg. Mervale, and did well considering Watson's hoarseness and whose voice, at times, almost faded to a whisper. The t|ill started off with a special orche.'itral donation (Presentations) which scored. The opening vaude- ville turn was the unusually w^ell staged and well routined equillbrls- lic offering of McGood, Lenzen and Co. This dressed the stage nicely and the work of the two men and woman, a most graceful worker by the way, pleased immensely. Bud and Elinore Coll, with a world of speed and youth, fared better toward the finish with their danc- ing. Miss Elinore displayed some nifty wardrobe and she worked hard to please. A rearrangement of Rou- tine would help this youthful pair. Calvin and O'Connor dished up blackfaccd comedy, a little warbling, dancing and uke strumming that was not riotous but on the whole satisfying. After that "60 Miles from Broadway" went slowly along with Its rural hyplay. Moore and Mitchell have a com- bination of things, all funnily di- rected, with their travestied hand-' bulancing getting the biggest re- turns. It was hard to follow their talk which still retains some of its ancient wheezing. In the closing spot was the Llbby- Sparrow dancing act. "-■ While Ida Mae Sparrow was effective with hfer tcrpsichorean efforts, it was George Libby's foot work and dancing Imi- tations that, were the best liked. The feature picture was "Cheaper to Slurry" (Louis Mayer). Mark., of too much ego ie evident in the pop ditties which were originally written in the third person but for sunte reason changed to the first person. The overplus of the "I" and "me" stuff does not react favorably, particularly when she descrlt>ea herself as being a vamping knock- out, etc. Fenton and Fields with their crosstalji, stepping and nonsense took the comedy honors. Miller, Peterson and Co. (New Acts) closed. An afterpiece in which all acta on the blU participated was the "something extra" In the celebra- tion. "Lighthouse by the Sea" was the feature film. • Abel. ..\'i.- S8tH ST* A betterithah average blH for the first half here, with comedy preddm- inating. Six acts and a feature plt:- ture comprised the card, with two of the six being new hereabouts, namely, Pietro and Rock, In the deuce and Al Garbelle and Co. in the getaway spot. Capacity attendance Monday night. Hanson and the Burton Sisters opened with a combination of magic and dancing. Hanson contributed a routine conjuring that incorporated several clever stunts spaced by song and dance nunjbers by the attractive sister team. The combination gbt over nicely, iind evidently have something in their present turn that shoul^ assure them of steady going and possibly in a better than open- ing spot. Pietro and Rock (New Acts) came next with some lively knockabout comedy. James Coughltn, recruited from burlesque, proved a comedy knock- out in "The Rest Cure," hokum com- edy sponsored by C. B. Maddock. Coughlln essays the role of a neu- rotic taking the booze cure at a rest farm. The doctor has ordered that peace and quiet alone can pull him through. "The slightest shock or excitement may precipitate his cash- ing in according to the physician. A team of burglars stage an artil- lery battle with the police on the fire-escape, and any number of others turn the patient's ward Into bedlam, with the result being that Coughlln welcomes the opportunity of death to escape the noise. The act kept the mob In Incessant roars, with Coughlln working like a TrQ- Jan, adequately supported by a large cast. Foley and Leture, mixed team, also clicked in the foUow-up spot with some enjoyable vocalizing, comedy chatter and dancing. Brems and Fltz, male team, were other valuable assets to the laugh brigade, next to closing, in a neat routine of low comedy that hit tor a bull's-eye. Al Garbelle and Co. (New Acts) closed with a highly diverting sing- ing and dancing flaab. Edba. ORPHEUM The long advertised Keith Rem- edy Karnival this week at the Orpheum affords no guide as to the effect of the new Albee on this house, which la in the aame neighbor- hood and is now featuring a aplit- week, pop priced policy as agrainat the former grade A type of vaude- ville. The Orpheum is now scaled at 60 cents for any seat in the liouae which includea loges, orchestra, boxes, first and second tiers. The top shelf sells at'15 cents admlesion. Business was fair Monday night, taking the entire house into con- sideration, with the lower floor and first balcony capacity but light In the upper sections. The show of six vaude acts and a feature picture la good value for "four bite." It played amoothly. The Duponts opened nicely and gave the show the proper comedy start with their novel Jugglery and foolish by-play. Billy De Witt and Mabel Gunther (New Acts). Clem Bevlns In "Just Like Father" (New Acts). MelTa Talma has Improved con- siderably but there still la some- thing lacking In her vocal argu- mei|ts. A diaao^xcerting Ifnpcea^lon ORPHEUM, OAKLAND Oakland, Cal, Feb. 17. Those two kids, Weber and Fields, had the honor of heading the bill at the million and a half dollar new Orpheum, formerly Fox's, which la the baby as well as the finest house on the circuit. Occupying the next to closing; spot, Weber and Fields were ac- corded a reception that had never in the.past been accorded an act playing Oakland. The applause lasted for a full five minutes after their entrance. "Mike" and "Meyer" waited for the tumult to subside. They then went into the choking routine and from that'Into the pqol- room bit, after which they did tliclr scene in "one" with Armand Kallz. with the act concluding with the statue scene, where Florence Brown was added to the cast. Though this generation of theatregoers has only heard of Weber and Fields, It seemed as though they revered the pair ond gave the approbation that the couple were entitled to in an un- stinted manner. Patterspn and Cloutler, with Wil- liam Relnhart at the piano, were the first act to tread the boards on ' the new stage. The' couple wfent through their song And dance rou- tine with Relnhart doing his share at the ivories to the satisfaction of the crowd who filled the auditorium to overfiowlng. Next came Walter and Emily Walters with their ven- triloqulal efforts which proved to be the lirst turn to bring a show to a atop. Following were Signor Frls- coe and his Guatemalan alda, some aeven of them, besides two audience planta. Frlscoe and his gang took a full 30 minutes with their Instru- mentation, which proved to the lik- ing of the vaat mob. Next were Jessie Maker and Willlara J. Red- ford in the Paul Gerard Smith skit. "Rolling Stones," which waa a de- lightful contribution. Cloalns the show were McRae flnd Clegg with their cycling antics, which managed to hold the crowd to the flntah. Tom Mii in "The npadwood Coach" waa the screen fehnn'e. For the opening p^fonUance the house was compelled to turn away more than 2,000 persona. The crowd kept congregating in frpnt of the theatre during the entire day with all performances being played to an overflow of capacity. Harry Singer, western representa- tive of the circuit, was in charge of arrangements, the day'a proceedlnga going through without a hitch or hold-up In any way. With the removal of the Orpheum shows from the old house the scale for the new one haa been placed on a par with the high class picture houses, all seats at matinees being 25 cents, except Saturday and Sun- day, and the night scale on week- days 50 cents. The Orpheum was originally built by the Fot BMlm Company in 1928, opening in September of that year, ana cost $1,200,000 to erect. The house Is declared to be one of the finest on the Pacific Coaat and was operated by Fox from its opening until Dec. 21, 1924. At that time it was turned over to the Orpheum Circuit for « long term of years, with negotiations having been transacted by Marcus Helnrtan, president of the Orpheum Circtiit, and William Fox. It waa originally built aa an ex- clusive picture house. To be trans- formed into a vaudeville bouse a complete set of plans were redrawn for the stage, as the auditorium, seating around 3,090, remained the same aa heretofore. The entire stage portion of the house and or- chestra pit was completely gutted for this purpose, ai it was neces- sary to also provide 20 dressing rooms, an N. V. A. room, property rooms and animal rooms. This re- modeling cost In the neighborhood of $100,000 and was only completed the morning of the reopening of the house. The Peter Clarke system " ' of rigging was Installed as well as an elevator to carry the actors from their dressing rooms to the stage. The policy of the house will be to play six acta and a feature pic- ture, with two performances being given on week-days and three on Saturday and Sunday. The manager and working staff of the old Orpheum, which passed out of existence as a first class vaudeville house Saturday night, la operating the new house. They are Allen Warshauer, manager; Oliver v J. Binner, assistant manager; Frank ' Casey, stage manager; Oscar Pres- ton, musical director, and Katherine Bannon, organist. Due to the fact that a Week be- (Continued on page 51)|^.:j| ,,