[New Act] Talking, singing, 16 mins; one. Comic with rubber tired cheaters. Straight in street attire. The former is carrying a Kodak which introduces long unfunny crossfire dialog about photography.
After the straight solos, the inevitable ballad, more crossfire about a menu with familiar gags.
A song is doubled, followed by a soft shoe double dance. The song is pleasingly harmonized and the dancing up to the average, but the material is of ancient vintage.
This pair could handle dialog acceptably if they had the vehicle. Their present one is hopeless.
[New Act] Songs, Whistling, Dancing, 12 mins.; one (special drop)(Dec.20). Exterior of coal mine. One member in miner’s outfit, other in tuxedo. Miner whistles, other offers soft shoe routine, followed by the miner’s solo song, a semi classical, with good baritone. Hard shoe dance by dressed up member, with both dancing at finish.
Some dialog between number conveys that straight owns mine or something to that effect. Goof harmonizing, fair hoofer, lack of experience evident. Smallest time.
[New Act] Comedy Sketch, 14 mins; full stage. An old standard sketch formerly titled “A Tip on the Derby.”
The story has to do with a middle-aged couple. The husband likes to play the races and is expecting a telegram with the low down about “Mabel B.,” a horse he owns a share in.
Wifey is expecting a wire from her brother Pat, who is to call on her. The telegram arrive, each opening the wrong one and the usual complications.
It’s a good comedy offering for the smaller houses, the situation appearing new to the present generation of theatregoers, or at least now at the Harlem.
[New Act] Dialect Monologist, 12 mins; one. (Dec. 20). Explaining he sneaked on to sell hats to the audience after canvassing back stage, a monologist carrying a hat box goes into a selling talk anent hats.
Taking a Scotch Tam out of the box, he explains the dialect goes with it and follows with some Scotch stories and song.
The same procedure for an English character and last a Cape Cod fisherman with a recitation.
The characters are far from class cut and need modernization. The method of introducing them is deserving of better follow up material.
[New Act] Songs, talk, piano, 13 mins; one. Frank Morrell after a long illness is back with plump, good-looking blonde partner, who plays the piano and vocalizes pleasingly in a clear soprano voice. This, couple with Morrell’s tenor, insures that department.
The talk and monologing between numbers in all familiar and consists mostly in Morrell’s efforts to kid his partner.
The act as framed is all right for the smaller and intermediate houses mainly through Morrell’s personal following, the girl could aid by making a change of wardrobe during the action.
27 Mins.; One. Clara Palmer and Bobby Barry won their spurs in musical comedy. Their experience in the legitimate is now serving them well in the present turn. Barry in Romeo make up and Miss Palmer as Juliet are supposed to be at a ball. They sing, dance and talk, with stepladder comedy, a burlesque on the balcony scene from “Romeo and Juliet” being given. For the closing Miss Palmer is dressed in an Italian outfit while Barry is in evening clothes. The act runs too long, but they appeared to relish Barry’s fun making immensely. The act will do better when played more. It may depend too much, though, upon the former musical comedy work of both Miss Palmer and Barry.
[New Act] Sketch, 23 mins; three (Special Drop). With Clem Bevins as the town constable before a rural “drop” and a cast consisting of a girl as the prodigal daughter, also a man doubling as the village storekeeper and the husband of the returned long lost member, the sketch did very well with a neighborhood audience.
The usual “hick” comedy with a bit of heart interest inserted toward the finish in the father reuniting his daughter with her second husband – and they liked it tremendously, The act looks “set” for the smaller houses, but it’s problematic about what would happen higher up.
Bevins is well known in burlesque as a “rube.”
14 Mins.; Four. Neat idea the young men have in using the old Roman gladiatorial ring background and gladiatorial raiment to show off their hand-to-hand balancing wares. The two chaps have an excellent routine, one similar to previous exhibitions by other teams on the big time, but effectively done. The Gladiators, however, have several lifts that are different and on these got big applause.
12 Mins.; Three (Exterior; Special). “Spooks.” An act that proved a novelty Tuesday night. Bayone Whipple handles the role of a smartly dressed widow who carries on a conversation with the house painter, a comedy role capably acted by Walter Huston. That the widow may benefit by her husband’s will, a portrait of the deceased man must be painted on the front door. The house painter volunteers. He draws a head, which comes to life, the movements of the eyes and face in the door panel giving Miss Whipple and Huston a chance to sing one of those quaky, shivery, ghosty numbers in floodlight. Huston had nifty and timely remarks that hit the house amid ship.
6 Mins.; Full Stage. Six men and two women form this acrobatic group. The “family” is dressed in the familiar garb of foreign nomads. They carry a gypsy camp drop and open with the women doing a tambourine dance. Pyramids, shoulder-to-shoulder leaps and somersaults, with groundwork the piece de resistance, are performed by the men. One of the women also puts in some acrobatic turns. The act has some flashy arabics, spirals and springboard (trampoline effect) somersault revolutions that are well done. The men are inclined to take to take their time with the work. Good act of its kind and a splendid closer for the pop houses.
