“Playing the Ponies”

"Playing the Ponies" by Aaron Hoffman. Yorke and Adams make a very good team of Hebrews, Georgie Mack has probably the most prominent figure next to the principals. Chas. H. Prince played the bad man as though he enjoyed the job. Harry Lester was the down and out trainer and earned some distinction through the rendition of a Cohanesque song, "I'd Rather Be the Lobster Than the Wise Guy After All." Joseph Clark as Colonel Honey had little to do and did it very badly. Jack Clinton was the detective, romping on and off the stage about every other minute. Josephine Davis was an altogether too nice a little daughter for the bad man, but she took after her mother so that let her out all right. Adele Rafter was a very statuesque adventuress. Maude Campbell was the other principal woman. Theodore Morse wrote the music for the piece and the only kick that you can make is that he didn't write enough. Frank Smithson staged and produced and managed to think out several new ideas but rather fell a bit in carrying them out.

Variety 9:4 (01/04/1908)