Life, 1925-12-25 · page 21 of 37
Life — December 25, 1925 — page 21: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a theater review page from Life magazine's "Confidential Guide" section. The main cartoon depicts two men—one thin and artistically dressed, one portly and working-class—debating whether to add landscape paintings. The artist proposes adding scenic backdrop work; Joshua (the stockier figure) dismisses the idea, noting that last year a photographer replaced pictures with actual photographs, which "tuk about everything." The joke satirizes the shift from painted theatrical scenery to photographic realism in early 1920s theater production. The cartoon mocks artistic pretension while celebrating practical photography's superiority—a topical commentary on modernization in theatrical staging. The page lists current Broadway productions with brief critical assessments, indicating which will be reviewed in upcoming issues. Notable entries include productions starring Basil Sydney, Glenn Hunter, and Lynn Fontanne, reflecting the theatrical landscape of the early 1920s.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Owing to the time it takes to print Lire, readers should verify from the daily newspapers the continuance of the attractions at the theatres mentioned. More or Less Serious Chivalry. Wellock’s—To be reviewed Inter. Craig's Wife. Morosco—An excellent play att a woman who played safe, but played it badly. Chrystal Herne giving a memo- rable characterization, The Devil to Pay. Fifty-Second St— Reviewed in. this issue. . ‘The Dybbuk. Neighborhood—To be re viewed later. oo. Easy Virtue. Empiro—Reviewed in this The Enemy. Times Squere—The_ truth tout War, told for beginners. Fay Bainter beads the cast. lage—To be The Fount Greenwich reviewed next week. The Green Hat. Broadhurst—What the upstairs girl told the cook. Very well told, Suever. by “Katharine Cornell ‘and her ociates. Gypsy Fires. Cohan's—To be next week. Hamlet. Nationcl—Happily rescued by the public, this intensely interesting presen- tation of ‘Shakespeare in. modern dress has ed uptown again, with Basil Sydney as the well-dressed Dane. By no means fail to see it, In a Garden. Plymouth—Laurette Taylor her best in a play which is over no head worth having. The Jazz Singer. Cort—George Jessel as the Jewish boy who made good with the synagogue. A. Lady's this issue. The Makropoulos Secret. Charles Hopkins (formerly the Punch and Judy)—To be re- viewed later, _A Man‘s Man. Forty-Ninth St.—Dwight Frye in a poignant recital of the troubles of homo sap, the Man Who Never Died. Province- town—To be reviewed next_week. Merchants of Glory. Guild—To be re- viewed later. The Merchant of Venice. Hampden's— Walter Hampden and Ethel Barrymore. Paid. Booth—A problem in ethics stated in terms of Broadway. Salvage. Belasco—To be reviewed later. Stolen Pruit. | Eltinge—Mother-Love in its last heaves at this theatre. Twelve Miles Out. Playhouse—A melo- drama of illicit liquor trafic on the high seas. Vortex. Henry Miller’s—Dress-suit eneracy made not only palatable but at times quite thrilling. Young Woodley. Belmont—A_ beautiful little play of puberty, with Glenn Hunter giving one performance in a million. Comedy and Things Like That Abie’s Irish Rose. Republic—We under nd that a performance of this play In modern dress is now under way. American Born. Hudson — George M. Cohan in something that he dashed off in the barber's chair, He is in it, however. Androcles and the Lion.’ Klaw—A Shaw gem shown off to very good advantage. Arms and the Man. Gerrick—You don't miss the “Chocolate Soldier” music so much with Lynn Fontanne and Alfred Lunt to make up for it, Beware of Widows. Reviewed in this issue. Butter-and-Egg Man. Gregory Kell the theatrical sults. Cousin Sonia. Central Park—To be re- viewed next wi Cradle Snatchers, Music Bos—Eccentric necking among ladies old enough to know better. Very popular with every one but us. reviewed Virtue. Bijow—Reviewed in Maxine Elliott's— Longacre— all mixed up in the inside of game, with highly comic re- The Deacon. in this issue. Easy Come, Easy Go. Biltmore—Otto Kruger and Victor Moore in a farce which may not convince but does amuse at times. Is Zat So? Central—Last year’s hit im another new home. The Last of Mrs. Cheyne; pleasant crooked work, involving three of our favorite people in the world: Ina Claire, Roland Young and A. E. Matthews. Made in America, Frolic—The manage- ment offers to refund your money if you don’t like this one, But how about the lost time? Morals. Comedy—German satire on re formers which suffers from having been writ- ten in 1900, Naughty Cinderella. Lut_Bordoni, The Poor Nut. Forty-Eighth St—Fun at Ohio State. These Charming People. — Gaicty talk in the capable hands of Cyril and Edna Best, Young Blood. Rits—Another Younger Generation play, made worth doing by Helen Hayes and. Erie Dressler, with Norman Trevor as the Pater. Sam H. Harris—Reviewed Fulton—Very Lyceum — Naughty Arlen Maude Eye and Ear Entertainment Artists and Models. Winter Garden—The best yet, with Phil Baker and the Hoffmann Girls. Lyric—To be later. Captain Jinks. Mertin Beck—Above the average, Ada May and Joe Brown, Charlot’s Revue. Seiwyn—Beatrice Lillie, Gertrude Lawrence and Jack Buchanan, and what more do you want in life? Dearest Enemy. Knickerbocker — Some- thing very nice to look at and listen to. Helen Ford and Charles Purcell. Gay Pare. Shubert—Chic Sale. flowers. Forrest—Joseph Santley and Ivy Sawyer in a very nice evening. Merry, Merry. Vanderbilt—Smail but ef- fective. No, No, Nanette. Globe—Two song hits and considerable kidding. : Princess Flavia, Century—Big and im- pressive, Rose-Marie. mperial—Getting veteran show now. Sunny. New Amsterdem—Marilyn Miller and more stars than you ever saw in one show befo The Vagabond King. retta, Cocoanuts. reviewed to be a Casino—Real ope- : THOUGHT I'D DO A LITTLE LANDSCAPE PAINTING AROUND HERE. Joshua: DON’T THINK YE'LL FIND MUCH FER PICTURES, MISTER. THEY WAS A PHOTOGRAPH-FELLER UP HERE LAST YEAR, AND HE TUK ABOUT EVERYTHING. comicbooks.com