Judge — August 7, 1926 — page 17: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

JUDGE ow I know why George Nathan N went to Europe so suddenly. He must have heard “My Magnolia” was going to open! My Magnolia” is listed as an all- colored musical comedy in two acts and eight scenes, but probably by the time this masterly review reaches the newsstands it will be a thing of the dark past. Being an honest Dramatic Critic I mustadmit to only seeing. fiv the first because as the sixth started my ey fell on the Fire Notice at the head of the program. I chose the nearest exit but had a difficult time beating some of my neighbors to the street. In fact, I think I recognized one of them as the Fire Commissioner him- self, The only way to rate this all- colored musical gem is to think of the worst white musical show you’ve ever seen and then say “My Mag- nolia” is a shade worse. With the exception of oneyoung colored gentle- man who does a remarkable clog dance sitting down, and a song, “Gallopin’ Dominoes,” there isn’t anything in this bologna (ah, there, George!) to put it above the Yonkers High School annual show. What this city needs is a Play Jury to pass on shows before they are produced and smother such wienerschnitzels (ah, there, George!) as “My Magno- lia” before they are hoisted on a poor public. It might be called the S. P. C. P. (Society for the Preven- tion of Cruelty to Playgoers.) scenes of I ENTLEMEN really prefer blondes, “The Blonde Sinner” ought to make “‘Abie’s Irish Rose” look like a one-night stand, for there are no less than four blonde females in the cast and one sandy-haired sheik. Leon De Costa, who is credited with writ- ing this dingus (ah, there, George!) evidently noticed that “The Bat” G “be SHC By JUDGE JUNIOR, essing’ for Oeene deamtinttan “Zieafeld Revue” (Globe)—No good show, and there's not a bit of nudity in it “My Magnolia" (Mansfield)—Awful. “The Blonde Sinner” (Cort)—Enid Markey is darn cute. “The Great Temptations” —Regular Winter Garden stuff. “Alias the Deacon” (Hudson)—Good show. (Ab, there, George!) “Sunny” (New Ansterdam)—Great show starring Marilyn Miller. “Scandals’ r West. (Apollo) —Great show starring “Kongo” (Biltmore)—Blah! Shanghai Gesture’ (Shubert)—Blah! “Tolanthe” (Plymouth)—Well worth seeing. “Great God Brown" worth seeing. (Klaw)—Also welll “Laff That Of comedy. (Wallack's)—Medioere “Craig's Wife” to this just before sh he house cleans. “Sez” (Daly's)—See “Kongo.” Vagabond King” (C: of “ILL Were King. ino)—Musical whe Cocoanuts” (Lytic)—Funny no end. Jarrick Gai kins, Bobbie Perl (Garrick)—Bobby Per s, Bobbie Perkins. “What Erery Helen Hayes.” Woman Knows" (Bijou “The Merry World” (Imperial) —Pretty good “Kitty's Kisses” (Playhouse)—Tepid music show with oni ong. “The Girt Prien: aves this one Vanderbilt) —The music “Is Zat So?” (46th St.)\—Yes. “The House of Ussher” (49th St.)—Cold. bie's Irish Rose” (Republic)—It seems there was an Irishman and a Jew. “One Man's Woman" (48th St.)—See “Sex.” “Lote in'a Mist” (Gaiety)—Or how Madge Kennedy kept a show going. “Vanities” (Earl Carroll)}—Joe Cook. ““Cradle Snatchers” think it's funny. (Music Box)—People “At Mra. Beam's” (Guild)—Good show. “The Patsy” saves this one. (Booth)—Claiborne Foster “Grand Not so hot. Street Follies” (Neighborhood “Pyramids” (Cohan) —Reviewed next week. “Honest Liars” (Harris) —Also re’ next week. . olin’ it's a | (Winter Garden) | (Morosco)—Take your wife 6 was a huge success, “Tip-Toes" a wow, and “Cradle Snatchers” a sell- out, so he decided to make a hash of the three and dead. About all he succeeded in doing wz knocking them into a state of coma. “The Blonde Sinner brand new in the theate It is a mystery farce with music. There is much running about by three of the girlies that gentlemen prefer, doors open and shut continuously and two revolver shots, accompanied by screams and the blinking of lights, is the cue for a song, in which the blonde sheik lets go with such rhymes as: “T could tell you offhanded. But you might be offended. Then the flat-footed stage detective sends the audience (at least that part that came in on passes, which was about 98 per cent. the night I saw it) into convulsions by reading from the paper that “Erysipelas kills two old women” and adding, “I'll bet that Greek gets the chair!” In spite of these things, and two terrible acts, “The Blonde Sinner’ has some good stuff in it. The music is very lively and three of the songs which I have listed in “High Hat” will probably be heard around the town all summer. And then there’s Enid Markey. There isn’t anyone can put over the “dumb little dear” stuff as appeal- ingly as she can and the intenseness she develops with that little husky voice of hers is remarkable. The other three blondes are Mar- jorie Gateson, who Elizabeth Hines it all over the place, a maid who does a terrible Charleston, and a young lady named Ruth Stevans who has an idea she can dance. The blonde sheik is one Howard St. John and he wears white flannel trousers with a dinner coat. knock ‘em something comicbooks.com