The Daily Worker Newspaper, January 15, 1927, Page 13

A PEEK EACH WEEK AT MOTION PICTURES “WE'RE IN THE NAVY NOW.” Hear ye! All ye gullible, hear ye! “We're in the Navy Now” is not the funniest picture of the year. emn statement about a funny picture is made after thoughtful deliberation, accurate counting of laughs and weighing all evidence appended here- to. And yet, we feel that with four bits to spare this picture showing at the McVickers wouldn’t be a bad invest- ment. Wallace Beery is a prize fight- er and prize dumb-bell, whose equally dumb manager is played by Raymond Hatton. Beery particularly is a dead- ringer for the numerous heavy numb nannies that pass as prize fighters. If you have spent any time around a gymnasium you'll appreciate the act- ing. Chester Conklin has a minor part of little importaance. The sub-titles are snappy enough to entitle the writer to be put in elec- tric lights as a co-star. You can’t expect us to tell you the plot of a slap-stick comedy. It’s about war and of course our dumb hero catches a German spy. They all do and they all get medals. The whole business is not designed to discourage recrnit- ing for the navy altho the dignity of the navy also is subject to an occa- sional pot-shot of ridicule. However since you have not joined yet despite the premium of a free trip around the world (scrubbing decks) you’re not likely to join after seeing this pic- ture. As a whole it is a little overdone, slightly long-winded, just a bit too clever—but you'll laugh alright. And you'll laugh often. Especially when you see Beery in a prizefight in which he gets hit just once, after which the sub-title tells us—“He was out all night without going any- where.” —W. C. ALASKAN ADVENTURES. Justa word on this scenic. For the first time we have heard an audience applaud a travel picture. Capt. Rob- ertson and Art Young (not our great cartoonist), one of them a champion with a bow and arrow, make over a year’s trip by all conveyance available thru Alaska, They have photographb- ed the natural wonders of the coun- try: Yukon river, ice break-ups in the spring, the salmon run, animal life, midnight sun and other things. It’s a beautiful job, an interesting one and ag a whole, one of ‘the best edu- cational pictures we have ever seen. We should have mere of these. “ew picture “1 winkistoes,” a story of the London Limehouse district, at the Chi- cago theater. THE WAY IT iS DONE. It will be interesting to watch how the producers will guess “What the public wants” in the case of the Rius- sian mi f Natli Barr. If they will only give her the stories to act in which have almost ruined Pola Negri as an act- ress, the thing will be complete, In the meantime Natalie, beg pardon, Natli, is being cast in “a romantic dramatic role” by the First National Pictures. t ; rt Se This sol-’ Lols Wilson co-starring with Es- telle Taylor and Ricardo Cortez in the new film, “New York” at the Oriental. “NEW YORK.” There is this in its favor: the cast includes Lois Wilson, Ricardo Cortez, Estelle Taylor (Jack’s wife) “Skeets” Gallagher and one or two other actors of ability. And then they put this capable troupe thru a story a blurb telis us is: “A song writer’s romance with a society heiress. Jazz songs and mil- lionaires tangled by fate.” (Oh ye Gods, who supervises movies when, oh, when will we hear the last of Irving Berlin’s marriage?) The story is cut on an ancient pat- tern and hasn’t been changed since Columbus wore short pants. The hero repeatedly tells his sweetie his low birth on the East Side of New York doesn’t make him good enough for her. But she has different ideas. De- spite complications which are finally untangled, her diagnosis is correct. Honesty ‘and noble ambition win out in the -end,. God. is..good—and the picture is terribie. Lois Wilson particularly, and the rest of the troupe also, do all that the story allows. That means nothing. There ig only this consolation you can get at the Oriental theater in Chicago where the show is on exhibition: the Paul Ash show is particularly good this week. And this isn’t consolation. It’s a treat. A_ DOZEN IN BRIEF. BARDELYS THE MAGNIFICENT —Gilbert does a handsome combi- nation of athletic Fairbanks and passionate Valentino. THE BETTER 'OLE—It is. With the Vitaphone (Woods). WHAT PRICE GLORY?—We'll _ tell you: high priced—but worth it. (Garrick). THE SCARLET LETTER—A good picture of a bad girl. THE BLONDE SAINT—A bad picture of a good girl. PARADISE—Far from it. FAUST—Jannings, the little devil. THE WINNING OF BARBARA WORTH—Horses!—on the desert. THE BLACK PIRATE — Fair- banks on the high seas in colors. THE TEMPTRESS—I'll say she is! Greta Garbo (Uptown). LONDON—Vote no! BREAKING CHAINS—Yes—by all means! “Victor McLaglen es Capt Flagg in “What Price Glory” | SRI eee THE WORKERS’ DRAMA LEAGUE By MAX GELTMAN, $ ‘wan Workers’ Drama. League, char- acterized as the. “first proletarian theater in America” is situated in the finest part of Greenwich Village. At 64 Washington Square it enjoys the distinction of being bounded on the west by the Provincetown Playhouse, on the north by Washington Square Park, on the east by New York Uni- versity and on the south by what most characterizes the Village—its eating places. Enough of the external physical aspects of the league, What is the league doing? What does it intend to do? The Workers’ Drama League has just presented, ag its initial produe- tion of its first reorganized season, “The Biggest Boob in the World,” a fantastic melodrama of workers’ life, by the young German writer, Karl Wittfogel, who may be remembered by readers of this magazine as the one who wrote the article on Bernard Shaw. The show was a tremendous success. It was shown three times at the Church of All Nations in New York. At the conclusion of the third verformance requests came in to have he show performed in various parts 0 the city and Passaic. The play will be shown in Passaic sometime in January. -s The Workers’ Drama League ig_an organization made up entirely of workers in its “acting” body. That is al] its actors are workers at vari- ous trades. For its realization as a true proletarian theater it uses profes- sional people closely connected with the radical left movement of the coun- uy. On its executive committee are THE THEATER such people as Michael] Gold, Florence Rauh, Low Lozowich, Low Hartman, I, Tarnapol, Hugo Gellert and Harbor Allen. The director who made pos- sible “The Biggest Boob in the World” is Jasper Deeter. Mr, Deeter.is also directing the Provincetown Playhouse and Brookwood Labor College. The league’s plans for the future ate many, It is already preparing pro- duction of Upton Sinelair’s “Singing Jailbirds.” The play will be produced some time in February. Another play it intends producing this ‘year is Bunechi Friedman's “Miners,” But just merely the production of plays is not the only purpose of the Workers’ Drama League. The league must spread its ideas not only from the acting siage, but also from the lec- ture platform, In _ intra-production periods, the league is planning a series of lectures on the theater from a sociological aspect. Some of the lecturers whom it has already invit- ed for the purpose are V. F, Calver- ton, Michael Gold, L, Lozowick and H. W. L. Dana. The most ambitions undertaking yet attempted by the league will be the holding of a symposium, the sub- ject of which shall be, “Is a Workers’ Theater Possible in America?” Many of the biggest actors on Broadway, playwrights, critics, directors and scenic artists will be asked to partici- pate. This symposium (with the help of a few philanthropic comrades—ad- dress all checks payable to the Work- ers’ Drama League, 64 Washington Square South, New York City.) should be held some time in February. This ought surely to prove one of the most interesting intellectual events of the new year. YEOSESEAEA EE ETSCEG EEE e Tell It to the Marines By ADRY WOLFF Uncle Sam’s the benefactor Tell it t0 the Marines! Uncle Sam thas no intention Of any kind of intervention Ha, ha, Tell it to the Marines! Not at all imperialistic Uncle Sam is altruistic Ha, ha, Tell it to the Marines! Unele Sam is the good plain people Not Wall Street of the golden steeple Ha, ha, Tell it to the Marines! ———<—<—<—$ MU eee THE TINY WORKER A Weekly. Editor, Leo Sonkin, Chicago, tI. Johnny Red, Assistant Editor. Vol. 1. Saturday, January 15, 1927 No. 33 A FAIRY TALE COOLISH CAL By Charmion Oliv- er, San Francisco, A minister in our neighborhood said to his congregation one Sunday that the only place where the teach- ings of Christ were ever put into prac- tice is Soviet Rus- sia! Now what do you think happen- ed when he said that? The congre- gation got up and gave him three cheers! NOTE: If you don't like this for a fairy tale you might uze it as a “Bug House Fa- The bosses thought workers But THE POLICE AND PASSAIC -——_ By LEO SONKIN, Chicago Spartacus Group The famous textile strike In which the workers fight Is the cloth makers Great fight against Ty using the policemen By Henry Sampo- linsky, Grand Rap- ids, Mich. In a little Vermont village Some forty years ago, lived a boy named Calvin Coolidge. Now a great foe of the working class As all wise work- ers know. 3. He went thru Am- hurst College And president he became Because he served his masters Who bought for the fakers. him his fame. they'd scare the Good boy Henry. You're not a great poet yet but you x @ workers were no shirkers ble. And Tought them back again. have the right 3 idea, Come again! Alright Charm- Altho the capitalist rules And hey, Hank, fon, this will do for either one. Send us in some more, The workers are no fools They'll fight and fight "TH vietory is bright. where are all the rest of the Grand Rapids » Pioneers? A TTT ime