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This sketch entitled “Holding a Husband” was eighteen minutes long.
The sketch stars Mrs. Louis (Alphie) James, who plays a woman with a flighty husband. He immediately begins to fall in love with her best friend. She succeeds in making him forget her friend, which prompts him to “inelegantly” exclaim, “To hell with Carolyn.”
When Bostwick held his stage wife in his arms at the end of the sketch, the curtain failed to descend. This prompted Bostwick to improvise the line: "We are through now. Let down the curtain when you are ready." This fortunate mishap was a such a hit with the audience that the company was asked to re-create the bit for the evening show (although, for whatever reason, they did not do so).
Mrs. James as the wife and Elwood Bostwick as the husband both give substantial performances.
Source:
Variety Vol. 25:10 (02/10/1912)