Evening Star Newspaper, June 16, 1929, Page 61

Theater, Screen and Music AMUSEMENT SECTION he Sunday Star. Part 4—20 Pages JAMES HALL. and VILMA BANKY - Palace, PauL MuNi end MARGUERITE- CHURCHILL~ Fox-~ I’hotoplays This Week SCREEN ATTRACTIONS OF THE WEEK. This afternoon and evening. FOX—“The Valiant.” PALACE—"This Is Heaven.” Th! EARLE—"“The Man I Love.” COLUMBIA—"“The Studio. Murd and evening. METROPOLITAN—“Noah’s Ark.” LITTLE THEATER—"Othello.” FOX~—“The Valiant.” “The Valiant,” & talking Fox Movi tone production, is the screen feature at | the Fox this week. Described as a, highly dramatic story without the gen- | erally accepted ingredlents of the | “movies,” it features Paul Muni, prac- tically unknown as a picture star, but | who won acclaim on the.two weeks' | ehowing of “The Valiant” at the Roxy Theater, New York City, recently. Supporting Mr. Muni are Marguerite Churchill, John Mack Brown, Don Ter- £y and DeWitt Jennings. From Shakespeare’s suggestion that the coward dies a thousand times, but the vallant taste of death only once, comes the keynote of this production, 8 story of real life produced with un- derstanding and feeling. On the stage, the Broadway enter- tainers will include Mabel Albertson, | singing comedian; John Irving Fisher, s master of ceremonies; Leon Brusiloff and the 40 Fox Jazzmanians, Melba Vierdag and the 14 “gorgeous Foxettes,” Micky Morton, Bemis and Brown, Mar- guerite Green, the Collette Sisters and Jack McClosky. Fox Movietone News will round out the program. PALACE—"This Is Heaven.” | This afternoon and evening. | traction for this week In the talking | |in Hollywood, has a motivating role; is afternoon and evening. er Mystery.” This afternoon This afternoon and evening. This afternoon and evening. is the theme of the Earle Theater's at- | picture, “The Man I Love.” It is de- seribed as a super-romantic drama, di- rected by William A. Wellman, the man who made “Wings,” “Legion of the Condemned,” “Ladies of the Mob" and | “‘Beggars of Life.” A strong cast han- | dles the thoroughly human characters | of the story. | Baclanova, the most-talked-of woman Harry Green, the well known vaudeville comedian, has an important comedy part. and Jack Oakle has the “wise- | cracking” part of n press agent | The story concerns an ambitious | WASHINGTON, D. C, SUNDAY TAGE and FREDDIE SHERMAN- /\Ja-honal /AABEL ALBERTSON: - FOK- (ff‘aye)_ young man who decides to seek fame in New York. The hometown girl to whom | he is engaged follows him to the big | city only to find that, through the in- | terest of a wealthy society woman, he | has made an instantaneous success, and, drunk with popularity, has entered into a mad whirl of living. The active jeal- ousy of a rival and the hometown girl's decision to leave him brings him to his senses, COLUMBIA—"The Studio Murder | Mystery.” | “The Studio Murder Mystery.” the| screen attraction at Loew’s Columbia | Vilma Banky, the irresistible lady of | this week, is a talking mystery drama the screen, in the United Artists pic- | with its locale in a motion picture | ture, “This Is Heaven” with music.|studio. The cast includes Neil Hamil- | sound and falking sequences, 15 the ion Warner Oland. Frederic March, | current screen attraction at Loew's poris Hill, Chester Conklin, Lane Palace. This picture presents Vilma | Chandler and oliver. “Baffing in her first modern role, according to announcement, and also in her first talking part. James Hall, Lucien Lit- tlefield and Pritzie Ridgeway appear in the supporting cast. Miss Banky plays the part of a Hun- arian immigrant girl who finds wealth, fove and happiness waiting for her in America, When she arrives she is taken in charge by her uncle, A sub- way motorman, and her cousin, a waitress. The scenes on Ellis Island are reproduced with apt realism. Vilma goes to live with her relatives in the Bronx and soon she is working in a Fifth avenue restaurant at the griddle 8he falls in love with Jimmy Stack- poole. & wealthy young clubman, whom &he believes to be a chauffeur, and he keeps up the deception to test the depth of her love. Eventually she does prove her love for him, but not until after several mishaps almost cost her both husband and happiness On the stage, “Hollywood's Ambas- eador of Joy” acts as director in John Guy mystery!” “Gripping climaxes!” “Thrill- ing hunt for a double slayer!” are some of ‘the expressions used to describe the picture. The story adapted for the screen was writted by Mr. and Mrs. Channing Ed- dington. 1t _appeared in_a photoplay magazine. The action takes place al- most, entirely within the guarded gates of a big Hollywood motion picture studio and reveals for the first time the sounds and sights of a talking picture in the making. It deals with the hunt for a double-killer whose canny ability | to cover up his tracks has set Holly- wood in An uproar. SIX Persons are sus- pected of the crime, and the audience is Jeft in suspense until the final chapter. Metro Movietone acts, short subjects and the Columbia Orchestra comprise the remainder of the program. METROPOLITAN— “‘Noah's Ark,” which is said to be at- | Hampden and Freddy Sherman, while ‘Noah's Ark. | Murray Anderson production, “Theme tracting to Crandall's Metropolitan the of Love,” declared the finest unit Loew- ' largest crowds since those who went to Publix has ever released. It is a min- see “The Singing Fool,” will be held Current Attractions. NATIONAL PLAYERS—"Loose Ankles. “Loose Ankles,” Sam Janney's satire | on modern youth, will be presented by the National Theater Players this week, beginning tomorrow evening, with matinees Wednesday and Saturday. In this play of modern life and man- | ners as they are said to be sometimes | found on Broadway and in other sophis- | ticated circles throughout the country, Sam Janney has contrived a series of | comical situations simply to provoke | mirth, rather than solve a problem. The play is built for entertainment purposes | and‘ with no other idea than to evoke | smiles, “Loose Ankles” concerns a young lady | who inherits a fertune, provided she marries with the approval of her rela- tives. She is a rebellious flapper, how- ever, and prefers rather to have her | relatives' disapproval, so she contrives an arrangement whereby she is placed almost in a compromising situation— and that, of course, stirs up quite a bit of action. The shafts of satire are shot at a type of young man who—for money—undertakes to play the role of gallant to ladies well past the age of frolicsome youth. Four of these are | hired by Ann Harper during her esca- pade to make matters the merrier. Edith King will portray the irrespon- sible flapper, Ann Harper, around whose social activities the plot revolves, and comedy demands will enlist the services of Roger Pryor, Edward Arnold, Charles the feminine contingent, including Mrs. Adeclaide Hibbard and Helen Wallace, will be found strongly in evidence in | belping to increase the merrument. SYLVAN THEATER—"Sherwood.” Robin Hood and his merry men of | Sherwood Forest in the days of Good | King Richard of England will live again iature musical comedy with fine cast, including Don Barclay of musical com- | edy fame as “the lovable idiot”; Mai feita, a_dancer graceful as a faun; Lillian White, vamp of vamps: John Walsh, struggling author; Nita Carol, a bundle of pep; Johnny Dale, the as- sistant director with his troubles, and the Gamby-Hale ensemble. The Fox | Movietone News, the M-G-M News, short subjects, tHe Palace Orchestra and Charles Gaige at the organ complete | the program. | THE EARLE—"The Man 1 Love.” YLove, its ups and downs, as Richard dArlen and Maxy Brian can portray ite for its third and final week, the en-|in all the glamour of heroic knighthood gagement ending next Priday night. | Thursday evening of this week at the | Touching the ends of the rainbow|Sylvan Theater in the Monument span of 50 centuries, “Noah's Ark” in- | grounds, where the Community Drama cludes in its cast more than 10,000 | Guild will present Alfred Noyes' drama, characters, and was more than three | “Sherwood.” years in the making. Darryl Francis| For many weeks the big cast of 100 Zanuck wrote the story. Michael Curtiz, ' players, dancers and singers have been Who produced many spectacular suc- irehearsing the production which is ex- cesses abroad, directed, and the sets|pected to be one of the most spectacular covered more than a square mile, outdoor presentation given in this city Dolores Costello is starred with George | in_many years, O'Brien. 1In the supporting company| Under "the ~personal direction of are Noah Beery, Louise Fazenda, Guinn | J. Milnor Dorey, who has made the Williams, Paul McAllister, Nigel De|Washington version of the piay, much ! Brulier, Anders Randolf, Armand Kaliz | opportunity will be afforded for_an (Continue { on liana Page) (Continued on Second Page.) MORNING, JUNE 1929. RLEN- DON BARCLAY- Pakac? (57 F59€) DOLORES CosIERELO /V\e’fropolH—ar\g (1) CHARLES GERRARD and BERT LYTELL-Rislto THE BROADWAY STAGE A Review of Theatrical Affairs Along the White Way By Percy HE fire alarm at the Longacre I fied by Robert Warwick, should be a blessed omen that the drama itself is not the only peril possible to theatergoing. It has oc- curred to several calm observers that we are growing forgetful of other dan- gers that lurk in the prosceniums’ neighborhood and that a jolt to our sense of self-satisfled security would do us no harm. So rife are the hazards of show business, both front and back, that we have littie time to be fearful of holocausts and panics. Now that it has been called to our |attention by the scare at the Longacre, let us urge the drama’s janitors to be even more careful than usual. It seems incredible that the electric wiring of a New York theater should be permitted to misbehave as it did on Monday night at the Longacre, filling the auditorium with smoke and endangering the wel- fare of the first-nighters. Yet it is a fact, that it did so. There we sat, more or less fascinated by the unfolding of a tale of bawdry and true love, only to have our rapture disturbed by threats of a catastrophe. As I remained des- perately quiescent in my chair while my neighbors sought safety upon the sidewalk, T comforted myseif by perue- ing Fire Commissioner Dorman’s advice to the drama lovers, as printed at the top of the Longacre's play bill. “Look around and choose the nearest exil,” says he—an admonition which makes him the wisest of the dramatic critics. Mr. Warwick was rather splendid when the tiny panic was at its height. No assuring word had come from the Longacre’s indifferent management and it was up to him to allay the fevers of a Broadway public, well nigh scared to death. As he bade us, impatiently, to be tranquil, he reminded me of that | tragic_Christmas matinee at the Iro- quois Theater in Chicago several years |ago when the innocent Eddie Foy made a similar though a less successful ad- dress. One trusts that the Longacre Theater hereafter will investigate its fire traps and make it safer for us to enjoy the privileges of drama loving uninterrupted by hose carts and nozzle men, - xx “Nice Women," ,"‘Wflllln A Orew, Monday night, while soon paci- | Hammond. | author of “My Girl Prida: another | theatrical scofflaw, seems determined to and wicked world. In the play at the Longacre he presents us to Miss Sylvia Sidney, & tough virgin, aged 18, bub- bling over with ideas and information. Being & modern ingenue, she knows nothing about life except, what she has learned from reading “The Captive” and from her doglike intuition that money is the root and blossom of all the cvils. As Miss Sidney makes her up she s an infant, mans bane, with flaming lips, eyes like deep, mysterious Broadway caverns, legs meant to be exhibited before the public and a com- plaisant attitude toward the difficulties of Manhattan's sex life. She leaps rather gracefully over the boundaries making remarks and doing things that shock those of us who belong to an elder and subtler generation of simners. “Nice Women” s a second-class third- rater, intended deliberately to startie, shock, amuse and edify the hicks w patronize the June dramas, and I am afraid that it will teach us that no matter how unconventional our sex shortcomings are, we can always de- | pend upon the Summer drama to give |us & rainbow and box-office finish. My | most _enthusinstic shouts about “Nice | Women™ are addressed to Mr. Warwick %ho in Monday night's crisis at the Longacre proved himself to be better as & man than as an actor, soothing as he did the excitement of an audience af- frighted_by fumes and flames. Al- though I think his acting as a Broad- way banker in middle-aged love with a Peiham blonde is not thoroughly genu- ine, I bare my head to his abilities as a fireman who, séeing his duty, per- forms it. (Copyrisht, 1920 | Expert Oplman. | 'O make sure of veracity in detalls relating to the courtroom scene, | which provides the setting for one of the high points of “Scandal,” the direc- tor consulted one of the judges of the Los Angeles Criminal Court. Critical inspection, the press agent avers, was passed upon .the set and work pro- ceeded. convince us further that this is a cheap | Motor, Aviation and Radio News ARY BRIAN and RICHARD Outdoor Amusements. GLEN ECHO PARK. With half holidays on Saturday for Government workers and business houses, Glen Echo Park invites those inclined to outdoor enjovment. +The poplar resort, a favorite of Wweek enders, in_addition to a pleasant ride along the banks of the Potomac in the | electric cars, or by automobile over fine | boulevards, the Maryland fairyland, of- fers thrilling rides on the coaster dip, derby racer and airplane swing, with milder diversion in a ride through the old mill, a circle or two around the EMIL JANNINGS LitHe Theater OT - all femininity have been developed in the current period, when it is quite popular to give the girls a rap for this or that which their mothers and their grandmothers are said never to have done before them. It is quite true that the modern girl is a new creation and there is little if any doubt that she is an admirable one. Her frankness, often condemned as a fault by those, perhaps, who are more familiar with the methods of conceal- ment, is really one of her finest traits. She has an independence, too, that has not wholly led her into trouble, but in reality has resulted in quite an improve- ment in her strength of character, a virtue always .extolled whenever it g pears. She seldom does things on the sly, but rather risks the shock caused by her daring and theh boldly sits up and defends it admirably in most instances. But the girl of today is not wholly an original, Rather is she a development of the girls who have preceded her and, in her own opinion, at least, if not in the opinion universal, she is stronger in health, sturdier of body, and indeed a general improvement upon the girls who have preceded her. Manager Steve Cochran, in addition { to _his many other qualifications as a caterer of entertainment that the public wants, is also an experimenter in psy- chology; and in the current week's a traction to be presented by his National Theater Players, he has unearthed a comedy that once set audiences laugh- ing heartily and kept them at it until the show was over. Its author, Sam the foibles of youthful Janney, had uppermost in mind when | Fun Yesterday and Toda_y‘ he wrote his satire, “Loose Ankles,” not 80 much the young flapper of his day as her elderly. predecessor, the girl whose brown or Taven tresses were be; ing how tinges of gray, and wi women always, ‘ffom time immemorial, waged bitter war with the years that robl her of youth and sought to stave off the day of her ultimate retirement from the pleasures of this world. Mr. Janney took advantage of the fact that some of these battling pleasure lovers were known, in the nece of the real article, to nurrerflfilou!ly hire young men to as their sweethea: without the slightest thought of ama- tory attentions, but in taki the theater and especiall for, like the girl of today, the girls that preceded her were every bit as fond of the delights of dancing as she is. But Mr. Janney, also sensing the years ahead and their progress in the development of the feminine juvenile, plucked out of the future, so to speak, the girl of today, with her independence and daring and blended some of her traits into the older girl to meet the demands of his play plot and make his audiences laugh the more heartily. He Succeeded admirably and the fact that “Loose Angles” is still able to attract capacity theatrical audiences with this blend ‘'of the oid and the new girl is evi- dence of the wisdom that inspired his play and, by the same token, also evi- dence that Manager Cochran is s psychological picker when it comes to entertainment, the public likes. It might be added also that “Loose Ankles” is likely to provide a world of knowledge to the girl of today of the tricks that used to be familiar to mother and grandma in the days gone by. carrousel, or a stroll through the mid- way and its many noveltie Glen Echo makes a strong bid for plenic parties, with its shady groves and adequate benches. In the baliroom McWwilliams' Orchestra, adding fresh laurels to its fame, plays for those fond of dancing. Music is provided throughout the entire park by one of the latest me- | chanieal reproducing amplifying sys- | tems, the Automatic Orchestrope, which | broadeasts the latest musical composi- {tions. The instrument may be seen at_the Arcade Building, adjoining the helter-skelter fun and thrill giving whip. MARSHALL HALL. For a pleasant ride, a trip on the steamer Charles Macalester, to Marshall | Hall, one of the landmarks in and | about Washington, is recommended. Originally a plantation of one of the distinguished men of his time, Marshall Hall retains its ancient charm, aug- mented by such entertainment as may be afforded by the roller coaster, the dip, the carrousel, the whip, airplane ride and other devices which have been | installed to give pleasure to visitors. The steamer leaves the HE is blonde, her husband is more than six feet tall, she was Max Lin- der’s leading lady in his final film and her first talking Ek‘tur! is now being exhibited. She has played opposite Rudolph Valentino and Ronald Col- man and the name of the town in which she was born is Nagydorog. She was married two years ago and Cecil B. De Mille was best man at the wedding. Constance Talmadge was a lady in waiting and so were the wives of Harold Lloyd and Samuel Goldwyn. She has a sister, a brother, a mother and a father, When she brought her husband to the old home town last year the chamber of commerce gave them a dinner, the mayor gave them the keys to the city and the family gave them some home cooking. She can cook. What is more, she does. She is not high hat, and even her press agents think sne 'is altogether lovely. She is a quiet, but very deter- Seventh Street | mined person. She met her husband at Wharf at 10 am., 2:30 and 6:45 pm., | a dinner party in the De Mille home. except on Sundays, when the sailing ' Charlie Chaplin saw her in her first is delayed until 10:30 o'clock a.m. Lambs in Hollywood. JINE of the film folk concerned with production of “The Locked Door,” United Artists’ all-talking picture, are members of ti.> Lambs' Club in New | York® City. George Fitamaurice, the Lambs for 16 years. Rod La Rocque, William Boyd, Harry Stubbs, Harry Mestayer, Edward Dillon and Gilbert | Clayton, actors, are all members of the Lambs. and %0 are Robert Schable, film in America and predicted she would be a great star. She was Valen- tino’s leading lady in his last picture. Her mother was an actress, too. She appeared on a European stage once and the whole family thought she was not so good. She agreed with them. ‘Two weeks ago she became an Ameri- can citizen. The talkies have not, and { will not, chase her back to Europe. Her director, has been a member of the press agent christened her “The Hun- garian Rhapsody” when she landed in New York four years ago and that ought to tell you who she is. She is not Pola Negri, not Lya de Putti, and she has never' played opposite Emil Jannings, business manager, and Earle Browne, director, ¥ George Bancroft %r uglas Fairbanks. Bhe never askedyShaw for one of et Portrait of a Lady his plays for the movies, never has been photographed with Mayor Walker at New York's City Hall, and never has been heard in a national radio hour, She has not indorsed any cigarette. There has not been any scandal asso- ciated with her name. She uses salt and takes two lumps of sugar in her coffee. She plays tennis pretty well and is learning golf. The story of her current picture is set in New York, it is & light tale that is con- cerned with her'character of a pancake- tossing waitress and James Hall's char- acter of a rich young man who drives a taxicab. It is her first. modern story in three and one-half years, the intertm | having produced costume pictures. | Irving Berlin com “Marie” as the theme song of her last picture and Walter Byron and Louis Wolheim had principal roles in that film. Noah Beery was the villain of one of her pictures and in another one Gary Cooper his first important role in any film. Surely you've guessed by now. She is Vilma Banky, star l?{ “This Is Heaven.” “Beef on the Piano." INA CLAIRE learned a new slang ex- pression the other day while worke ing in a scene in her first all-talking | picture. While rehearsing her lines with Henry Daniel, her leading man, she was startled by a booming bess voice ordering “P- “on the plano!” “What a strange place to put beef,” said the star. == 0o ackie spih uren stx husky e piano and movi m\gout. -