Life — June 3, 1909 — page 26: what you’re looking at

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

‘LIF E> Vodeville as It is Wawdvilled N compliance with a Suggestion in a letter printed in a recent is- sue that Lire has * bee making a sur- OP as een_making vey of the vaudeville y performances in New York. One-half the world doesn’t know how the other half is amused, and if th oes only to the legitimate theatres, or doesn't go to the theatre at all, would make the grand tour of the vaudeville houses, it would find a good many things to open its eyes. irst off. it would be thoroughly sur prised to find how decent these shows are, even the ones that cater to audi. ences not generally supposed to be over- squeamish, In the cases of some of the two-men teams there is a tendency to get over the line in some, of their songs and jokes, but they are evidently afraid of the managerial club and, much as it hurts them, even these keep fairly within bounds. In fact, the vaudeville mana gers are considerably more careful of what is put before their patrons than are the rulers of many more pretentious ene MISTER! HITCH BEHIND! houses patronized by persons. ooo. @ EW of our high- fellow citi- y idea of the extent of this form of amusement. More than a dozen large theatres are de voted to it and give regular performances to 2 ; more pretentious browed zens have capacity every weck-day afternoon and evening, and similar performances Sun. days as well A curious thing about the afternoon audiences is that they are not composed mostly of women and children, but are made up largely of able-bodied men. At one house, of a Tuesday afternoon, fully ninety per cent. of the spectators were men, Nor were they old men and boys, but men in the prime of life, well-clad, well- nourished, and showing none of the pal- lor which might have enabled them to urge night work as an excuse for these day-time hours spent in the most frivo- Jous kind of amusement. 043 BA Be Big, HANGING the quotation into “Tell me what a man amuses himself with and Tl tell you what he is," would not be complimen- tary to the mental powers of vaudeville audiences. The main staple of these performances is fun, but fun of such a crude, obvious kind that it would apparently produce quite as much merriment ina retreat for imbeciles as in a Broadway music- hall. Anything in the least. degree subtle, or that calls for any knowl- edge not to be picked up in a yellow newspaper, falls on the vaudeville audience like a cold fog Vaudeville managers and vaudeville artists under- stand their public, and perhaps they show quite as much talent in keep- ing down to a certain level as is displayed else where in trying to rise to the requirements of more exacting intelligences. In making this fun go She there is expended much — sipr. individual ability and a tite! UNEXPECTED RESULTS tremendous amount of vitality, oF personal magnetism, or whatever it is that puts the performer in touch with his audience. In spite of its simple- mindedness the vaudeville audience is quick to discover inefficiency even if at times it is mastered by the brazen self- assurance of some of the performers. That it is not an altogether stupid public has been discovered at considerable cost OM, ISN'T THE MAN THAT THROWS THE BALL, ON YOUR JUST SPLENDID! HE SENDS IT SO THEY HIT IT EVERY comicbooks.com