Neville and Brockway, with a scene laid in Alaska, put over some wartime material which did very well. One member is dressed as a sailor boy doing blackface, and the straight man is an officer of the aviation section of the Marine Corps. Their material is well written and they put their stuff over with a spectacular finish.
Joe Darcy ran away with all honors of the bill and had to come out to make a speech in order to stop the racket. This black-facer got ’em right off the go and tantalizing mode of putting over his songs and gags made the audience beg for more. Darcy is of big time class, and was last seen here at the State-Lake.
Jack Cahill and Don Romaine, a blackface and a wop, took the show’s comedy hit next to closing, with the comedy routine somewhat drawn out and below the Orpheum’s standard. Both are clever performers, with good singing voices.
8 Mins.; One. One boy plays the piano. Both sing. Both appear in blackface. Their comedy and songs scored Sunday afternoon. The young men get fairly good harmony out of their “duos.” The piano man tickles the ivories for one number. The team can get over nicely in the pop houses.
Jack Neville and Frank Brockway offered a military talking skit. Neville is a private in blackface and Brockway doing a captain straight. They have some good talk and included a number of established gags. They secured laughs despite the stereotyped and unfunny delivery, especially of the blackface comic.
Fred La France and Joe Kennedy got laughs on blackface dialog applied with a trowel, technically, and boxing gloves actually. The stuff is very corky and the makeup and wardrobe of the comedian are somewhat unpleasant. There were some hearty laughs and there would have been more had not the comic blunted many points by adding – not less than 10 times – “I’ll tell you that” after his cracker. No applause.
Austin and Delaney, blackface, scored the applause honors of the show with their dancing. Some of the lines got laughs, but without a doubt dancing in their forte. A blues song number by one of the boys, accompanied by the other on a paper covered comb, was a hit in itself.1
Black-face comedy talking act that is well-known along the line and which made quite a hit this afternoon. 15 Min. in One.
Black face entertainers. Work in “one.” These boys opened up a little poorly but after they get under way they had the audience with them and received a big reception at the finish.
Fred Warren doing black face with Keefe as a straight man. Have a difficult place. Their talk is light. Keefe is a good yodler while Warren as a wench singing “Alexander” in German, gets the laughs and they close very good. 22 minutes in one.
