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Keith-Albee managers' report book, March 9-December 14, 1908

Page 234

DEC. 7th-08.     PHILADELPHIA SHOW.     C. E. BARNS.
HEARN & RUTTER. Parody Singers. 10 min. in one. These two boys do a neat little turn in the song and dance line. Their singing does not amount to much, but their wooden show dancing and eccentric work is acceptable. Very good applause.
HELEN PULLMAN & LYDIA POWELL. "Plucky and the Dream Lady." 17 min. F   S. This sketch is much too talky and not enough relieved by comedy. The little girl is clever and will develop into a strong actress; but she is now handicapped with an indifferent playlet along very hackneyed lines, and her support in Miss Powell leaves a good deal to be desired. Miss Powell is not an impressive nor an emotional actress. She is stagy and affected. There is scarcely a laugh in the whole act, nor a song to relieve the monotony. The pathetic finish, which was obvious from the start, got a small hand at the close.
WILLIE WESTON. Imitations. 18 min. in one. This man is very versatile and has a good line of stuff. He caught the crowd very strong today and they compelled him to do more than his allotted time. Laughter and applause throughout and closed strong.
BROWN, HARRIS & BROWN. 20 min. F.S., close in one. A well known combination except that the third member is new, a boy with a very good voice. Of course, Brown's comedy is the whole thing and it went as strong as ever. Plenty of laughter throughout and a strong finish.
THE GIBSON GIRLS. 13 min. F.S. This act, of course, is trading upon Gibson's cartoons and might be called living illustrations. The act consists of various poses in imitation of Gibson cartoons in "Life in Collier's." The gown[s] are very beautiful, but the music consists of only one song, drawn out to an interminable length. Posing good and got a good hand and the act closed fair. Think that the Gibson Girl craze is about done for, and it is certainly much overpaid.
STANELY & RUSSELL. 14 min. in one. Same act as presented here before, with some variations, including some good imitations, notably that of Laddie Cliff, which was particularly well done and proved Laddie's extraordinary popularity here. The act went well as a whole and pleased the crowd. Good applause throughout and good finish.
SIX BONESETTIS. Acros. 7 min. F. S. Five men and one woman. Make a very good appearance, and are certainly wonderful ground-tumblers and acrobats. Each one of their feats got big applause. An act that would please any audience.
PEARL & YOSCU. The Harpist and Yodler. 15 min. in one. Pearl has found a very good partner in Yoscu. The latter has a very sweet voice of the high baritone quality, and he also plays the cello very well. Of course, Pearl's work on the harp always scores well. The applause was liberal and the finish strong.
LASKY'S "At the Country Club." 32 min. F.S. Second and last week, and just as much of a hit as ever. A genuine production in every sense of the word.
JULIUS TANNEN. Monologuist. 20 min. in one. Advance applause. A good line of new material delivered in his own characteristic manner.


KINETOGRAPH. I HAVE LOST THE BALL. a good comedy film. WORLD'[S] CHAMPIONSHIP BASEBALL SERIES OF 1908. Interesting but a little too much of it, even for a baseball town like this.
ROSSI & STEVENS. Comedy Acrobats. 11 min. F.S. A good rough-comedy knock-about act, including some contortion work. Received some scattered applause and finished well.
COPELAND & JONES. 13 min. in one. Two colored singers. Their line of talk does not amount to much, but they sing very well. Good applause for a three-a-day act. Two changes of costume.
FOUR MUSICAL KLEISES. 16 min. F.S. Man, woman and two little boys. Make a good appearance. The two little boys are merely ornamental. The man and woman are both good musicians, playing trumpets, cornets, Xylophones and saxophones. Only a fair act and needs a whole lot of hard work to make it acceptable in a good spot.
GENERAL REMARKS. This show plays off very well and ought to do the business.

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DEC. 7th-08. PHILADELPHIA SHOW. C. E. BARNS. HEARN & RUTTER. Parody Singers. 10 min. in one. These two boys do a neat little turn in the song and dance line. Their singing does not amount to much, but their wooden show dancing and eccentric work is acceptable. Very good applause. HELEN PULLMAN & LYDIA POWELL. "Plucky and the Dream Lady." 17 min. F S. This sketch is much too talky and not enough relieved by comedy. The little girl is clever and will develop into a strong actress; but she is now handicapped with an indifferent playlet along very hackneyed lines, and her support in Miss Powell leaves a good deal to be desired. Miss Powell is not an impressive nor an emotional actress. She is stagy and affected. There is scarcely a laugh in the whole act, nor a song to relieve the monotony. The pathetic finish, which was obvious from the start, got a small hand at the close. WILLIE WESTON. Imitations. 18 min. in one. This man is very versatile and has a good line of stuff. He caught the crowd very strong today and they compelled him to do more than his allotted time. Laughter and applause throughout and closed strong. BROWN, HARRIS & BROWN. 20 min. F.S., close in one. A well known combination except that the third member is new, a boy with a very good voice. Of course, Brown's comedy is the whole thing and it went as strong as ever. Plenty of laughter throughout and a strong finish. THE GIBSON GIRLS. 13 min. F.S. This act, of course, is trading upon Gibson's cartoons and might be called living illustrations. The act consists of various poses in imitation of Gibson cartoons in "Life in Collier's." The gown[s] are very beautiful, but the music consists of only one song, drawn out to an interminable length. Posing good and got a good hand and the act closed fair. Think that the Gibson Girl craze is about done for, and it is certainly much overpaid. STANELY & RUSSELL. 14 min. in one. Same act as presented here before, with some variations, including some good imitations, notably that of Laddie Cliff, which was particularly well done and proved Laddie's extraordinary popularity here. The act went well as a whole and pleased the crowd. Good applause throughout and good finish. SIX BONESETTIS. Acros. 7 min. F. S. Five men and one woman. Make a very good appearance, and are certainly wonderful ground-tumblers and acrobats. Each one of their feats got big applause. An act that would please any audience. PEARL & YOSCU. The Harpist and Yodler. 15 min. in one. Pearl has found a very good partner in Yoscu. The latter has a very sweet voice of the high baritone quality, and he also plays the cello very well. Of course, Pearl's work on the harp always scores well. The applause was liberal and the finish strong. LASKY'S "At the Country Club." 32 min. F.S. Second and last week, and just as much of a hit as ever. A genuine production in every sense of the word. JULIUS TANNEN. Monologuist. 20 min. in one. Advance applause. A good line of new material delivered in his own characteristic manner. KINETOGRAPH. I HAVE LOST THE BALL. a good comedy film. WORLD'[S] CHAMPIONSHIP BASEBALL SERIES OF 1908. Interesting but a little too much of it, even for a baseball town like this. ROSSI & STEVENS. Comedy Acrobats. 11 min. F.S. A good rough-comedy knock-about act, including some contortion work. Received some scattered applause and finished well. COPELAND & JONES. 13 min. in one. Two colored singers. Their line of talk does not amount to much, but they sing very well. Good applause for a three-a-day act. Two changes of costume. FOUR MUSICAL KLEISES. 16 min. F.S. Man, woman and two little boys. Make a good appearance. The two little boys are merely ornamental. The man and woman are both good musicians, playing trumpets, cornets, Xylophones and saxophones. Only a fair act and needs a whole lot of hard work to make it acceptable in a good spot. GENERAL REMARKS. This show plays off very well and ought to do the business.