The morning times., 1896-07-05

4 Il
every sense OF the word. When Murphy
recently appeared in Boston and New York
Variety tneaters, II was, Indeed, a case
of an actor turning to vaudeville. John
and Marion Kanola Mason are two sterl-
ing actors who have found preferment In
vaudeville: Mr.. and Mrs. Sydney Drew nd
Mr.. and Mrs. Charles Dickson Complete
the list. Not So many when. on the other
hand, 1t Is considered how many variety
teams take refuge in the mongrel ramatic
absurdity known as farce comedy.
/ cannot Hfesee' success for Miss Bennett
and Mr.. Kent. The formers career be
: gan and ended with Jane. OF which she
made. ii great. laughing success by. playing
her own novel self, but il was bad piece
of acting, for 1T no more typifieti SER
want girl than an. archangel She
made an absolute fiasco Of Lord Tommy
in The AmaZoDs.'' Mr.. KILLER Kent
: has less of Il hit To his credit, but he has
more excellent versatility. He will
average up much better. He ought to be
very popular on the va utieviiIe stage with a
partner who could play anything in
harmony with him. Anything played by
them will have to be written for Miss Bennett.
Which is to say that she is specialist and
and he is an actor. N' "a 'f'r'v 81 -i' .
-yERYONE knows Yours Merriiy,' v for
|. purposes of general identification call
ed John r. Rogers. 1t was generally
= supposed that lie had about all the
trouble he could take care OF at tie
hands of Louis Mann. who left him one
Saturday night with apparently no one
to play the German professor. 1t was the
last night before tie Washington opening,
and IL is n matter OF local history how
Charles Coote came to the rescue and
achieved 4 triumph in the Part IT seems.
from the following, dripped from the pen
Of a New York correspondent. that otIer
flies annoyed him: "John Rogers had a
good thing in The Strange Adventures or
Miss Brown but he was harassed nearly
out of his life last season by a gentleman
who advanced him some money TO start
the show on the road, then got frightened
at its expense, drew out, and then when the
play began to make money wanted to 'des
clare himself in again Johnny paid him
back nearly all the money lie advanced.
but the fellow wanted half-,nterest also
John S contract for the-American rights OF
the play stipulated that ne eS1yseited said
rights whenever he failed to Hiy his roy
alties two weeks in successf5h He De
faulted these payments sthe.laSt-tuo-keeSs
take the play awpy,lAtpns- t.isa.. y earn
mediateiy slipped oisr44 London and made
Il new contract fof@th6 Jaecefor next Year.
and when he comes back hiseneIny will find
that he hasn't leg to stand on. legally. and
he will have to wait for the balance that Is
due him until Rogers eaxns it
= ISCOURSING enterf ainngly of the
popularity OF the sensational melo-
- '--drania Audef dhe expressive caption
OF Stage Thrills Up to Date" a
swrter In Godey's for June says
Can II be that the nerves Of the public,
pitched at high tension by the rumors
and realities OF war the world over, seek
in the lurid melOdrama the excitement
which the condition, OF the times has made
necessary You know that people will
ordinarily leave n comfortable bed, BRAY
ing the inclesuencies of n clustering wintry
night, to witness n disastrous fire: and the
hosting Of an iron safe into a high.
building. or the perilous ascent of a steeplc
climber, win always attract an expcc'arit
crowd to gloat over the danger OF the
proceedings. Whatever may he the cause.
the fact remains that in casting a glance
over the theatrical season now ended
one sees many wrecks strewn along the
shore, while triumphantly riding high upon
| the siivery wave OF prosperity are sur
viving craft with the implements of stage
thrill dangling from their foremasss.''''..
Since this morbid thirst for the unusual
has developed. dfa aaiatists a the sensa-
tional school have seemingly ex hausted th,.
category Of horrors in their effort to pre-
sent startling occurrences in their stage
| pictures. Within the past decade the scene
| of railway train of twelve co1 ches DASH
| ing matliy through the darkness. to the ac-
compartment of the usual wIstling, steam
| and din, made a fortune for Elmer E. Vance.
| the author OF 1.-The Limited Mail" The
| craze foE, stage realism was inaugurated
forthwith. The tank" drama became
| popular. in which the heroine was in
variably re scuet from IA watery grave. Then
followed plays depicting steamboat ex-
plOsions, locomotives fell through trestles.
| purposely weakened by the irrcpressibie
| villain; cal fire engines were. drawn by
| real horses. and the .buZz saw" cuttiI:,
| through log upon which was tied the
| helpless hero. chilled the blood of the
| audiences nightly.
| The .rac c. horse and the circus dramas
| have furnished their share of excitement.
| and wi wheniBaOeeRtvictins were unexpected
| y rescued from the glllOws or the electro
cution chair. and safes were blown open by
| real burglars. ''in full view of the audi.
| ence." seemingly the limit of realism had
been reached.
| Then came the era of the confidence maj
and prize Fighter on the stage. followed by
the bridge Jumper hero. and the shade ri
Shakespeare must have hid his face in
anguish. naGcera. pistols and .chlormorn
| were cast aside for the hypOdermic syrng.
| in Northern l. lights" one af the latest sue
cessful meiodramas. in which the wicked
army surgeon ihjects enough bacili int,
his wife's arm TO kill a regiment sea-.
- Ina action, ,,.,, so,..,.-
! Her mother asked little Dot to go into
the next room anh see if the clock was
running, for she had not heard 1t STRIKE
| all afternoon. Dotcame running back, pu,
her head in at the door and exclaimed:
Why, no. mamma. de clock amt a
/ rai.,0 Il. in cf,I