Variety (Apr 1929)

1 Weiloesday, April 24, 1929 FILM HOUSE REVIEWS yARi?:TY LOEWS STATE , . . (WJr«d) Los ADgeJw; AprU 18. • ,. With Clark and MtiCullough hav- '{he an Idle week or so, Fox loaned i them to West Coaet to head the Bhow, with the Faiichon and Maroo «TVheel" Jdea. featuring Will Ritchie, tramp 'cyclist. Their use made It a wow of a-show. The natives here 'do not'know C -& Mo.'v But It took but a second or two for. the locals to recognize'real talent. Aiding tlie boys aa a feeder was Netta Packer, formerly of Anger and Packer. She la a great foil. They did just 12 ' minutes, with half the time devoted to comedy parody, "We're P-atrlotlc.'" It was a wow and took them off as show stoppers. Had. the pair been exploited here as they are' In the East customers would have realized they were get- ting a $4,0pO'extra buy and -gift with the show bel;ig offered. Pan- chon and Marco when they do have names that-m^ean box office In some , way slip up on the opportunity to seirthem, , It Is the policy of picture. h6uses'' to S61I the picture and. set stage policy'flrst, but where' they are spending money for names to draw theiy should devo.te eytra dlli • gence to exploitation and advertis- ing. ■ . ■ ■ , • ■ . . "Wheel" ' Idea shdws how far stagers of girl acta can go with the damsels. - What these F and M girl? can accomplish is nobody's businesu. They had tji'era doln'g stilt manip- ulation and that was thought the last word. ' Kow they put them on' bicycles and they do a routine that would do credit to the Kaufman .troup^ ye^rs ago. Glr]a also dance, do gymnastic feats end even chant Six weeks ago only' two .of them had ever been oh cycles,. Q'u^ train- ing made, good bike riders but of a . dozei^ of them. ' Reason for the "wheel" unit ,1s Will Ritchie, tramp cyollst, ' Act open^ with girls doing ' B semi-e^thetiie hoop routine dance led. by Natalie Harrison,' soloist. Then they go Into "The Gay 90's," •taged by Roy Mack. This has girls In the pi'bmenade ieostumes of that era, with Ritchie and his femme aide leading' song number. Then cotne the dilapidated trick bikes ridden by the various girls, with Ritchie going . Into hlfs trick 'routine'. For comedy p&hto'mime Ritchie is in a class by himself, a creator. -He goes Into his breakaway routine; doe<< tricks with various wh^eliT, and Is over In great shape. There are also the Rondus Duo, 'two men with unlcycle featb ending with the boys playing sfix aiid accordion 6rt.'thetr moving contrivances. For the' fliiale number 16 line girls do a military drill and dance and then 12 mount the cycles. ' ' Routine starts oft with fprmlng of flgures, then Into parade and squad tormatib'bs, sifter which several do sold 'work/'one in'particular, a con- tortionist, doing a bit of body twist- ing 'Which seemB new on the bike Then more' of the mass formation with fast riding in ^oup form for- the flnale. .' Prior to the start of the "wheel- Idea Rube Wolf with his orchestra In 1}it played a pop medley and then went into comedy singing number After unit leaves here for East' one or. two punch acts probably will he added to flt the time groove left ' by riark and McCulIough.. . .. "The Barker.?'. Vltaphone (F. N.I «n screen, and jSIovletone-' newB. Trade hot as hea'vy as might have been, due perhaps to picture having recently, played at Carthoy Circle for the $1.60 tariff. 'Looks better than $26,000 on week. ' Vng, STATE (Wired) Minneapolis, April 18. The title of this week's . stage Bhow, "The Surprise Party,'* bore no apparent relation to the enter- tainment Itself. The setting was the . street of a southern to'wn in the days before the Civil 'War. Two mansions with porches fronted on the thoroughfare. The stage held six 'dancers, an el<l<»rly woman p<(*ed with a young nian beside her, « violinist and^a young girl' vocalist. T)ie orchestral worked in the pit for .the flrst time in months. Attired in the viari-colored long skirts, and poke bonnets of the ante- ■bel'um period, the sextette of girls ^ started the ball rolling with a neat dance. -Singing a mother number to the white.-hnired woman the good- looking young tenor displayed an Indifferent voice and .the applause returns for this sentimental ditty were meagre. Then the mother her- self essny);d a vocal number of sen- timental import. Emerson and Baldwin, featured, offered their faml'lar routine of bur- Ie.<ique magic and comedy jueigllng which found favor and provoked a considerable laugh response. An .electric effect of flreflya. was used during a ylpUn number which led Into" a~sbrig by U' 'young'glrl- and- a dancing finale with all the per- formers before the footlights. "Coquette," feature photop!oy. In Us second week, went over big. An overture by the orchestra . In the .pit. "Naughty Marietta," pleased. Fox Movietone news good as usual and an Elolse Rowan pop organ se-r Jftctlon also liked'. "The False-Alarm Fire Co," Smith .& Dale comedy, n laugh hit Business good. PARAMOUNT ("Say It With Music''-Unit) ' (Wired) New Tork». April 20. Dick Dlx'e flrst talker, '.'Nothing But the Truth" (Par) hero this' week, and with Helen Kane getting second billing, because she's In the picture, there w«re more people Jammed Into the lobby at 1^30 Sat- urday afternoon than this star ho^ drawn on his two previous getaway days for preceding pictures. Rea- son can be split between hearing DIx open up vocally and the screen bow of Miss Kane at the house where she flrst clicked .on. the stage. It's the flrst good look the Para- mount regulars have^ had at the cooing, baby-talk songstress, as everybody can't get Into the flrst three rows. The revelation Is apt to be none too happy, for Miss Kane has become something more than cutely plump. House ought to have a good week, as they liked the pic- ture, and no ma,tter where yoU walk outside the auditorium Rudy Vallee gets In your shoes. He's' due next week in conjunction with "The Let- ter," the management looking for- ward to an $80,000 total on the com- bination.: Current show is tearing off two hours and 19 minutes 'before getting a turnover. That's mostly due to the 78-mInute feature, six on the overture, Crawford's usual seven, 34 for the stage show and another six for the news, which Is again pkdde/l by a Technicolor fashion display, proving nothing as much as that *Dprl8 Dawson looks like a com- posite of four magazine covers, but should steer clear of long shots. Evidently neither Manny Cohen or the Rpxy has yet convinced Publlx that a newsreel means anything. Boys have got it cut and dried that two to four clips of heavy or mod- erate action, plus what the girls Will .wear and the trailer on next week's ftoture, is enough screen informa- tion for anybody. Meanwhile there's a Broa'dway Testaurant which may Install newsreels for Its hit-and-run lunch patrons, and the Roxy Is drawing between $6,000 and $10,000 oh its. news from people whom It has educated to drop In Just to see the current clips and who take their chance .on what else the program holds. There's more> showmanship In compiling.a newsreel than telling an orchestra leader to dig up. an overture with a violin solo for him- self. As regards entertainment value, an Inquiring Publlx reporter can tab it, and quick, and this cir- cuit likes to clock thlngs-^-at prea- ent being concerned with all Broad- way grind marquees on the matter of how many persons read, 'em''and; then buy. News Is news,' and an orchestra sounds better playing for something that Is moving than be- fore an 'Inanimate curtain befor«> •which a spotted pit leader Addles. John Murray Anderson produced this week's nnit, the feaitures ot which are a rough-and-tumble com- edy adagio couple, Standler and Rdse, and a laugh Instrumental In- terpretation of the Demjpsey-Tunney flght by th9 band. Beyond that, 12 Foster Glrla do one neat Tiller rou- tine In the midst of a drum num- ber, and Sammy Krevoffi- demands attention for his spins after pre- viously flirting with an egg on taps. Henry Garden, aiinuonced as a star of the Chicago Opera Co., means nothing, got little more on one song, and has presumably been declared In because .Anderson had to have an operatic air among these music sou- -(renlrs. Specialists also include Charles Irwin, a name which recalls nothing to picture audiences, whose monologlng was continuously strug- gling to make the grade. A suave ElngUshman, neither fast nor broad enough for this type of patron. Walnwrlght Sisters, three, sang without shuffling the deck. Set had an enlarged table on the upper rear platform, holding books from which the specialists emerged. Usual Right flnale had these volumes turning for girl standees, two 'hiore of whom descended from the flies trailed by a drape which spread be- hind, them as wings. Performers reached the stage via a stairway dividing the orchestra. Stadler and Rose can either stick In the picture houses, go vaudeville or take a spot In a revue. Couple have discovered some new wrinkles and don't paus^ for applause on the tough ones. Good anywhere and cleaned here. Trailing a trailer on . Vallee, Crawford Is devoting his time to tunes made familiar by the U. of Maine-Yale radio lad. Organist was assisted,by the booth In the use of double. stereoptlcons, one acting' op an enlarged picture background for the lyrics. Sightly and a help. If Crawford didn't have to come up on the elevator he could have played It with one hand staved in .the rummy cnme with the other. Overture Is "Chanson Russe." a medley ending on "1812." A lot of show which can 'take nclseoring In many spots. . . . Bid. COLONY (Wired) New Tork. April 20. Still playing to about 100 custom- ers on a heavy Saturday afternoon at 76 cents top, and still trying to draw against the three bIggeRt pres- entat'on houses in the country. an>l on Broadway with neighborhood material. Any other kind .of opera- tion couldn't be any worse for.box- ofllce returns. With light picture matedal like "Scandal," a talker with less than 26 minutes of dialog and tio names, against 100 per cent talkers witn stars of drawing power all along, the street; Universal ne'-ds powerful and costly stage attractions to'holster with. Stage bands of any kind, with a half-baked, inexpertly rou- tined stage show lacking even a hooflng clincher, will never do.' Cost puts elaborate presentations out of the question, due to limited capacity. Sammy Kahn and a 10-pIece stage band trying hard, but uselesi; This week there are 12 Dancing Marvels, a carelessly formed group of glr^s doing presentation dance numbers which were used in the other houses years ago. No punch, speed or novelty, and that is the basis upon which the girl numbers have been built up elsewhere. Natalie and Darnell, adagio .team.' are; added, with Buddy "Truly kB the; ace songster. Total is not Broad- way in any sense. Two newsreels are growing where! one used to show before. . path'e' soand news and International ' The Pathe reel is very slim, but valuable on account of the sound, In this house each of the newsreels. has a', separate showing. Babe Ruth. and. his new bride are duplicated.... Between band numbers . the-. 12' Dancing. Marvels perform Indlffer-- ently on ' two or three occasions. Buddy Truly warbles lagaln.. the. adagio dancers waltz and Sammy Kahn Insists on being funny despite his appearance, speaking voice and; other hindrances to comedy at-' tempts, . "King of the Campus," of. the: Col-' leglans, series, in dialog, rounds oUt- the program with 20- minutes 'of fairly amusing fun. Superior to the- majorlty of silent comedies recently' seen. IfoH. - i STANLEY (Wired) Pittsburgh, AprU 19. Inaugurating a new stage policy, they've sunk anywhere from $8,000 to $10,000 in this show, but It's worth IL Units are supposed .to be brought in directly from Mastb&um, .PbiUy, but new stuff hais been adflftd here, notably Ben Blue and bis dance act. •,,'■' Going Roxy more or less,. there Is a permanent chorus of ii inixed voices under Frank Rybka and a ballet of 24 girls, with Frank Mas* ters in tmarge. . Catherine Little-: fleld, ballerina of Philadelphia opera company, however, makes-a. weekly trip to town for'the purpose ot help- ing both Rybka and Masters arrange the routidies. Stage, bai^d under Vio Irwin' who does only straight announcing, getting away from the hotsy-totsy m.c. While packed with sure-fire and class talent, show doesn't run as smoothly as It should. Seems to be some lack of co-ordination, more like a straight vaude' bill- than a movie house presentation. Top- heavy with 'dancing, but all of high' order. Caught again toward the last of-the week, however, things' were ruiihing considerably smoother than at opening. Unit labeled "Southland" and Ided carried out In costuming and set- tings. Orchestral production, '^Her-. bertonla," Bits from Victor Herbert's numbers, with stage revealing gypsy outdoor settings and chorus grouped about in pairs singing. Ballet on and then soloist, poor, steps from gypsy wagon for /Romany Life." Symphony, under David Broudy. who's getting more prominent bill-, Ing now, flnlshed up alone. Following news reel and organ- logue, show proper opens with b«and number, then Byron and Willis, a pair of cr^okerjack tap dancers who recently wowed 'em at the Davis, two-a-day vaude house. Boys blean- ed tip. Paul KIrkland with his lad- der dance and paper nose Juggling for nice returns. Production number had southern mansion Idea for background with; ballet and chorus in colonial cos- tume. Freddy Bernard, In black- face, warbled an unimpressive blued number, with sky blue back^ouhd and seven men in blackface strum- ming away at banjoes. Taylor and Randell, assisted by two men, on next tor the best adagio turn seen around here. Got gt«at returns and deserved twice as much, handl- es nped as they were by half stage Ben Blue, with his two "person- ality boys," had mob eating out of his hand. Gave 'em the works from his "dying duck" to that ;whlBky- bottle "Sonny Boy" number ianfl everything clicked. Finale had glrln and hoys grouped about stage in eye-fllling scne. Picture "Wolf Song" (Par) and houne capacltv. 'Whole show runs two and a half hours, much too long, and Aim wasn't able to hold thpm. Cohen. ' Mary McCarthy, under care of the N.V.A. In Kings Park £tate Hos- pital, Kings Park, U I., is not of the McCarthy Sisters. She was of the Harmony Sisters combination. Larry Lawrence,- once ah actor, recently with the Yates ofllce. Is now In the haberdashery business. STRATFORD (Wired) - Chicago, April -16. Russell Cooke,- ilew band leader here, has started talking to cut ex- penses. As long as Cookie was dumb there had to be an ni. c. to say the. words; and the-'extra salary was no 'Sweet moment to this bank- 'rupt house. So Cookie has opened his mouth, the exti-a name Is gone and the Stratford .is housing what probably will' develop Into an all- around good m. c. He plays a pretty sax, waves hie stick with authority. Is what the girls call cute, and 1ms an untouched ability at humor that will be his bid for recognition If It ever comes out. There are easier things than han- dling a bankrupt house for receiv- ers. James Boston, who operates, was progressive and determined enotfgh to convince the. receivers that, the house n>U8t be wired 'It pro^Ita were to be had. Now-Charlle Hdgan,'who books, has. contended tliat the house needs a little produc- tion for Its stagehand shows. ThiE week It blossoms out with a lineup' of flve chorines In costume routines relative to the setting. Five girls aren't many, but they make ai dif- ference. Presentation is In a Bowery set, with the 11-pIece orchestra In wasp- walst shelk suits. Chorus starts' with the conventional'Bowery rou- tine as a fair stab at comedy, then Joe*and Willie Hale, comedy Jug- gling team, fltting nicely Into the Idea. Ballet on again; as bums, for comedy that would have been weak -elsewhere,. but ciciked with these, unpretentious ' '.customers. ' Grace Doro, handicapped with a tiny and tinny , house .iriano, ,put over her" standard in spite of the tough break. Her imitation "of a pla;er piano is a darb. Closing act tiasslter B|>o8., acro- batic dancers, .who almost stopped things here. Presentation flnale had the ballet and musicians running from the stage to watch a flght, with Cookie and the pianist holding the stage alone In a short snatch of ballad as the curtains closed. Not hot technically, but a sure way to build the m. c. by having hlin put over the final impression. Presentation as a whole .consld- -erably above the usual stuff iaccept- ed without question here, and busi- ness should increase if the quaUty Is repeated. Feature w'as "Why Be Good" (P. N.).. This makes two straight sound pictures in succession, poor Judg-' 'ment for d. house Just wired. A hint to Oib new m, c; Quit concentrating on the flrst rows. Resi of the house paid to get in, too. Bing. ROXY (Wired) Apart from the stage shows, which maintain - a pretty consistent level of. entertainment and elleft much the same adjectives., from week to Week, Roxy's is interesting as a show place in which may be viewed a variety ot Interesting lobby fea- tures. There is, for instance, the matter of guard mount. People may smile at this solemn military maneuver. It> may be hokum, but it's an im- posing form and, even while the. wlsenhelmera giggle, they're im-. pressed. Those ushsrs have dis- tinction. There is also that lounge .dispens- ing free coffee and doing a buslhess that Schrafft's might envy. Bala- ban & Katz tried free tea in Chi- cago several years ago and even threw In Nablscos. It didn't work. Chlcagoans were self-consclbus. Roxy's patrons, on the other hand, seem very much at home and gargle Santos Juice with gusto. Passing the plate through the lege section for the N. V. A. brought out a crop of $1 bills that would make a Keith house manager dizzy. And at least one $6 bill arousing in a reporter an acute curiosity to know what kind of millionaires patronize this movie parlor. Current stage show shy o.n indi- vidual socks, but sum total plies up the usual Impression. "The MuUc Box" Is self-descriptive. Florence Rogge, Jenny Delaroff and Leo Per- nlkoffi as' animated figures on a boudoir do-dad. Markert's Roxyettes danced In line twice, latterly In the main presen- tation, "Voices of Spring," wearing rainbow costumes by Montedero that created a beautiful effect. "Woodland Sketches." series of short on-and-oft flashes behind a forest scrim. Patricia Bowman. Roxy male chorus and Harold Van Duzee's robust tenor participating. Leonard Mas.<<ine, versatile ballet confrere of M.sseB Bowman and^ Rogge, leaped about vivaciously as the breath of May, a;id Isabel Nor- wood and Douglas Stanbury, In Vi- ennese romanticism, established a demonstration In this sort of heart and-flowers-stuffT-s "Girls Gone Wild" (Fox) rather lightweight feature for this house. Usual Fox Movietone newsreel. Emo Rapee'B department offered Gershwin's "Rhapsody In Blue" as overture. This Is a standby, often -repeated at this house., -It has many lovers, while others may perl.anp fpel the Rrnry orchestra Is Worthier of nore Important works, l^nd. ORIENTAL (Wired) . ■ Chicago,' April 2ii, : . When stage bill, at the Oriental has been properly edited it probably win be one of. the best in the hous« for some time. Plenty of entertain- ment; in fact, an overabundance of talent, that made the flrst per- formance (Saturday) - much too long. Running carelessly for a 65- mlnuto stretch, it still looked like * flne show with the edges smoothed. Will Harris turned out this unit, entitled "Play Ball," timely topic . Harris has turned himself around in his last couple of shows. It seems he has found that a light but enter- taining production will get much farther than heavy book Ideas. This show should prove th^ contention. With practically no plot. It still car- ries Its title theme along gracefully for about three-quarters of the way. Then It digresses, but not enough to hurt. Scenlcally the show Is pretty, attractively laid out; Intelligent^ designed and tastefully produced. If there were no orte else but Ray (Rubberlegs) Bolger It ^ould stlu be sufildent. Bolger has come up like a rocket This boy is the clos- est thing to Jack Donahue yet seen . around. — Jack Osterman, going great guns since coming here. Is as fast and . guileful as always. The kid is her^ - there and everywhere; pronounced Impression of what an m.e.' should be. Starting with a screen sequenco of the Cubs-Pirates opening game, scene fades on to the stage, dis- closing the boys In baseball togs,' around Osterman. Maurlne ISar^i saiUes walks on to patter -with Os- terman about a ball game, Ho cracking wise. Then--the Grant girls -(12) do a collegiate strut, with. 4 colored kid hooflng a bit In front of'. the line. No apparent reason tor htS- being there -other than the ntascot . Idea. First band number by Vlctoc - Young and his gang clicks with • hot arrangement on 'Td Rather Bs Blue." Babe Morris, snappy Uttto . tap dantfer, originally Btartbig' around here anQ later going to tbs - Coast, gets across two routines-that ' should keep her in picture houses Indeflnltely. Just a slip of a g ~ but plenty ot action In her^ tf Bolger puts In his flrst appearariC in a cross-flre bit with Osterma' that drew laughs right" 'oft. fls.' walks on and oft aimlessly thereat- -- ter,. always for a laUgb. Miss Mar- sallies, despite her 'ability to sliik r and dance, at the flrst perfomancA -'- did too much. One personality' sonK < with Ostejrmani followed by bOT': high kick jpoutJne, would have been ': more to Miss- MarsaiUes' and tlifv. nhow's advantage. Second line nmn-". : her by the .feihroes, 'with chairs ahd '.'^ baseball bate, neat-and better eqce-:' cuted than their, initial .oiteHiii;'. Osterman trails the ballet Inf bass- ^ ball uniform'.' Bolger again on Cth« /> scene, clowning with Osterman. In 4||.-'~' "one" drop to permit shift In scenei, - . A very .clever team, Insa and:-!)*'-' Wynn, docisn'i belong In this UtiifW. - ' In another Spot.' somewhere tbey^d be great with their gymnastio stepir'^''''' upa showing mu8cIe»«dntroL OSWa man, for the first,.t|me,/.t#kes.W«''': stick, to-.Conduct the band In w:; Interpolation . ot vatlbus' melddleA.';: brought out. Individually-flrst.'iltoi. .' blending sypiiihonlcally. Arransci'''".' .ment,-by Toung, Is a darb. -V - Bolger, bringing the. windup, to k :\- near riot For trick and eccentrlfi steps, a flne ssnse of- comedy .-and - . ability to talk and. warble, this ttey. . measures up. Thems drifts In'tl^; V flnale to a;n orange gi^vo" plefqlr^vj^ with Ostetman ssplodln^^ s 'pop mlr- - lad around the iensejnble flnlsb. ; .v.-': House portion hm Proton Belters: ; •etllng his stuff .at thie organ; toa-v willing audience; singing. beeli' stni '. popular here. Pathe sound MOhem. '- upreels five intersstirig Items..wltlt .:> "Hot Stuff" (FJ».) the feature. - Torrents of rain Saturday hurt : trade. Loop. ■ .;,'^ MARRIAGES ; Anthony Bertera to Mary - Cat:- :^'^ men, both In "Scholars," vaude lict;-.''-: Vpril 8. In Pittsburgh. • "'; Dorothy Dean, actress, to CyrO-9«- Caulklns (non-pro), at WaukegftB. '-: TU., April 12. Bride- Is the daiigb^ - ter ot Jap la Con'r, former field. manager for Equity In Chicago." Marriage of Ginger Ro^rs to ;', Jack Pept>er Just announced. Mair*. ried In New Orleans March 126. Marie Ferruson to Frank Staneone (muBlclan), Greenwich, Conn., April J - 18. Sylvia Grossman (dancer) to Trv- 'ng Wolf (stage manager)/ in New .'' York April 18. '■1^' Val Le'wton. M-O press agent, 't^'{ 'luth Knapp, non-professlonal, In New York, April 19. Le'wton is a . ', -•p"''«»w of A^a >Tn7lmo*ai . . Frances Kertley Lyons, film act- ress, daughter of the late Eddie Lyons, to Russel Saunders (non- pro), April 20 at Riverside, CaL Ivan Kahn, screen artists' rep- resentative,—imd-^Doreen—■Pastor,"- ■ actress, April 21 at Agua.: Calleittiib ;' Mexico. Mildred Stevenson to Charles J. Besne In Phoenix, Ariz,> April. 11. . Bride former trombonist, with Baba Egah's "Redheads"' band.' Brld^-' eronm' I9 secretary ot Musicians*- Local 686, Phoenix