Evening Star Newspaper, February 23, 1930, Page 81

e THE SUNDAY" STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, FEBRUARY 23, 1930. e « m—— ‘Washington Lad Is Youngest Showman BY GENE A. DAY. ILLIAM DEXTER, a Washington schoolboy just turned 16, is prob- ably the youngest showman in the South Atlantic latitude—an . exhibitor, by the way, who has designed and built his own play house and who manages his own shows. True to tell, the theater is nothing more than & midget simulation of the real article, while the performers are made of metal and actuated by electricity, but, notwithstanding, their acts are entertaining, while the scenic and lighting effects are pleasing. In fact, for a schoolboy show the Dexter theater and its theatricals are veritable “wows,” in the parlance of that profession. This theater does not specialize in “Punch and Judy” shows. Neither does it feature hid- den hat tricks, modern magic, sleight-of-hand nor legerdemain. It fosters stock companies with regular changes of program and frequent shifts in the acts and acting personnel. Young Dexter is experimenting constantly with his electrified theater, seeking to improve the shows even as are the managers of theatrical rcality. THE stage of this schoolboy’s homespun +* theater is made of ordinary cardboard, but you would never recognize the material as such, it is. so skilfully camouflaged with brilliant paints and decorations. As you view the stage from an appropriate distance the effect is that of an imposing proscenium arch, with the velvet curtains folded back in proper position, and a plethora of stage scenery gay as the colors -of the rainbow ornamenting the theatrical setting. Altogether there are a dozen different pieces of scenery made of cardboard and decorated with gaudy bits of Christmas papers and the colored lithographs and pictures cut from maga- zines and mounted appropriately. All this scenery is portable and can be shifted about quickly in_imitation of activities in the profes- sional theater. Young Dexter devotes his spare time to the design and production of additional scenery as well as the origination of new acts and mechanical or electrical actors. The lighting effects on this lilliputian stage are of particular interest to the average theater-goer. Willlam Dexter, by the exercise of his wits and his knowledge of electricity, has linked together an artificial illumination set-up, controlled by a trio of switches and one rheostat, which will surprise you when you see it. The rheostat was salvaged from an old elec- tric fan and was geared for its new and novel duties. The dwarf-size stage is equipped with colored lights such as are used on the ordinary Christmas tree. Thus different lighting effects are secured in the homemade theater at the desire of its owner. Exterior lights, standard footlights and flood- lights as well as overhead illumination are all provided in this clever little theater, which demonstrates the effSiclency of the juvenile mechanic as an imitator. The use o4 the rh2ostat permits of dimming the s lights gradually in simulation of sunset, for example, and is securing other unusual artificial light effects, ~ae stage is so built that it can be dis- mantiad “or repairs or improvements. Willlam Dexter has concealed a two-inch electro- magnet, salvaged from a discarded electrie door bell, underneath the stage so that it is invisible from the audtorium where the spec- tators are supposed to be seated. This electro- magnet gives animation and physical activity to the actors who perform their tricks, feats and stunts on the stage above. It is provided with a simple control switch purchased at a 10-cent store and a black connecting cable. The junior showman hides the control switch in his pocket during the performance, while the black cabl> is not visible against his dark suit. HE actors are accommodated in special ‘ booths or dressing rooms, awaiting their curtain calls. That is to say, the actors for act number one occupy the first\booth, and so on down through the program., - This handy ar- rangement aids the schoolboy showman in shift- ing quickly from one act to another. Small printed cards bearing the names of the actors are in view on the stage during that act and are then changed for the next one. The actors, consisting of daggers, boxers, fockeys, bathing babies, tap dancers and the like, are made of tin, copper, wire and from large round-headed tacks. All these perform- ers have been manufactured out of scrap ma- terial—odds and ends which the youthful pro- ducer collec'ed in his juvenile treasure chest, as amateur mechanics have the habit of doing. The actors are really cut-out metal figures painted gay colors and mounted on rockers similar to those which which the ordinary child’s hobby horse that travels is equipped. For example, two of the actors represented boxers with arms extended and fists clenched tightly. These boxers are pushed on the stage from opposite wings. And as soon as they come into full view of the audience, the the- ater manager announces their names, weights and the number of rounds which they will fight. Then as the bell for the first round sounds, young Dexter presses the switch, hid- den in his pocket, which controls the electro- magnet. It forthwith actuates the boxers mounted on rockers so that they dance and prance about the stage, raining blows at each other and injuring the atmosphere more than anything clse. However, as the electrified pugi- lists “rock” about, they sooner or later run intc each other. A knockout and sometimes a double-knockout results, while the spectators laugh at the electrified antics of the boxers. “Another act features the bucking mule that attempts to throw her colored rider. This con- test invariably results jn a draw, because the figure of the rider is nothing more than a eontinuat’on of his steed. The electro-magnet pulls the rocking mule up and down, this way Midget Electric Robots Are Actors in Lilli- - putian Playhouse Designed and Built by William Dexter to Delight His Schoolmates and Friends. The midget theater is jully equipped with lights and scenery. and that, and finally may cause her to rock 80 violently that she tips over. ‘The tap dancer is a droll act of exaggerated proportion—and garbed grotesquely—which by means of & pivot taps first one foot to the floor and then the other in response to the-attrac- tion of the concealed electro-magnet. This effigy is made of metal and copper wire. This droll dancer usually “brings down the house™ with his eccentric footwork. " The ballet dancers are made of large round- headed tacks, which are inverted end for end during their act. The point of the tack thus is the head of the dancer. By means of wire framework, these tacks are dressed like dancers, the wire holding the clothing in place. ANOTm amusing feature on the. Dexter show program is a baby made of metal seated in a bath tab with a base shaped like a half moon. The varying electric charge causes the tin tub to bob about like a dancing monkey. As a result the infant appears and disappears from view in swift alternation. Yet another act features black Sambo, the disappearing boy. Sambo, a tiny tin figure, is installed on a wire seesaw seated in ‘an or= dinary match box. The box is placed on the stage, and then as the electro-magnet is altere nately switched on and off, the cover of the bog opens and Sambo bobs into view and then dis= appears again as the box closes. Instead of motion pictures as the finale off this theatrical program, William Dexter pre= sents comical shadowgraphs. Cardboard cute outs of human figures, with arms or legs which are operated by hidden strings, are the actors in these silent comics. The arrangement is such that an electric light bulb placed behind the cut-outs, with their wigwagging arms and legs, provides the source of light than centers the shadowgraphs on the screen, where the spectators can enjoy them. William Dexter, as efficient generalissimo of his one-man electric theater, presents a sort of monologue as the show proceeds, introduc- ing the actors, telling about their peculiarities and generally tiding the entertainment over the short periods where scenery is shifted and acts are changed. A novel little music box, about the size of a playing-card case, is the automatic source of tuneful melodies during the progress of this theatrical entertainment, which is operated by electricity. Young folks, in particular, are delighted with this electric manikin show, which is the property of a Washington schoolboy. Detecting Gas Leaks, NATURAL GAS and blue water gas, having a way of sneaking up on the householder unawares with disastrous results sometimes, the Bureau of Mines has worked out a method of detecting leaks that is highly effective, if de- cidedly offensive to one whose olfactory sense is more or less cultured. 2 Because these gases are odorless, often a high percentage may be present in a home th leakage, with danger of illness, if not death, ever present. 4 : A gas, ethyl mercaptan, has been developed . which will travel along freely with the natural gas and yet which possesses such a distinctive odor that a leak in a home would be readily discovered. In fact, the odor is so strong that leaks in the mains in the streets are easily discovered by the- passerby. Utah Metal Mining. i MHAL mining is looking up in Utah. During 1928 the output of silver, gold, copper and lead exceeded $96,000,000, more _ than $17,000,000 over the previous year’s total, Utah led all States in the production of silver and was second to Arizona in copper " 4nd third to Missouri and Idaho in lead proe duction, William Dexter and his: home-made ‘theuter, “iohich"is opérated by