The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-11-30
Joe WeIch-ReaIist

In the past two or three years, as the
Daturalistic literary movement has become
more influential, especial attention has been
paid to the stage and the writer's of the
Ghetto Of New York city. In the theaters
of that quarter of the metropolis a large
part of the plays presented are truly de-
scriptive of the life of the people that form
the audiences. Tolstoy's The Power OF
Darkness" which was acted in one Of the
Jewish theaters recently, deals with a ter
ri5le phase of Russian peasant character,
and 1t would be impossible in an Amerl-
can theater- The writer's OF the Ghetto
were described expertly in the November
BoOkman by Norman Hapgood. Their
sketches are of the miserable conditions
that surround the poor Jews and their
style is simple and dramatically graphic.
The craving for realism in their literature
and the accompanying ability OF their ac-
tors and writer's at truthful portraiture
heighten the interest that would otherwise
and the Bowery. Prosperous Americans
are conspicuous in the audiences at the
Jewish theaters of New York and at the
one in Chicago.
Joe welch, who is presenting "A Study
from Life" in the bill Of vaudeville at
the Grand Opera House this week. is a real
list of the New York Ghetto. He was born
there several more than twenty years ago
and spent his childhood there. The in
tensity of his desire 10 be truthful TO life
and his success in II have delighted the
audiences at the Grand this week. This
attribute is as noticeable in his personality
when he is cOnversing quietly in his dress
ing room as it is when he has on his make
up and stands just behind the footlights
and Just in front of the scene painters
picture of Hester street The restless wish
TO reflect artistically what he has observed
was born in him.
When 1 was a boy" said Mr.. Welch yes
terday afternoon after he had finished his
turn on the bill. Il liked to mimic the
n EN- of the Ghetto, and when / was four
teen years old 1 decided to see what L
could make out OF il. bought some false
whiskers for a quarter and got a long
coat and a red bandana handkerchief. L
had a friend that played the banjo and we
went around the saloons together. We at
tracted some attention and finally got a job
at the old National Theater, on the Bow
cry. We did a turn between the acts OF a
meiodTama. At that time i had no idea of
making a serious study of the thing as
/ have since done. and sometimes, after
j got to working in the variety theaters, l
cid Irish character work. 1t was then that
l got the name WEIGH Later 1 played
Jew characters in melOdrama. and the
only time that have been in indianapolis
before this week was six years ago when
i came here in a melodrama called On
the Mississippi. We played at the Park
Theater.
Almost steadily for the last eight years
4 have been In vaudeville and ali that time
1 have been developing my Jew character
study. i know that life in the Ghetto. Its
poverty is awful. In my sketch here this
week l speak OF the buttOnhole maker that
has had only a picked herring for break
fast But IL Is worse than ~that-many a
poor Jew working in the sweatshOps be-
gins at Q o'clock in the morning and quits
at 10 O'Clock at night without aking time
TO eat a meal. lie works with one hand
and puts a sandwich To his mouth with
the other. He works by the piece and wants
10 get in a full day. Those people are pa
tient and timid. always looking for a bit of
kindly encouragement and seldom getting
II.
You have seen the many comedians that
nave burIesqued the poor Jew. Frank Bush
was the first one % do II, and though he is
a clever mimic his work Is c~aricature.
When / saw all these actors burlesquing.
thought. Let them so ahead, but I'll stick
TO the truth The public is Interested i'm
the real picture of this Ghetto life. 1 get
letters in almost every city that prove this.
In St. Louis a woman wrote TO me and said
tFat my sketch was OF real life. Most
OF the people that only laugh at your jokes
don't know what nature Is she said. She
said she was an old woman and she signed
Aunt Jane The style OF the letter showed
that she was a cultured woman. She adj
vised me TO read Israel Zangwil"s Chill
dren OF the Ghetto. Zangwil Is a wonder
tut man.
when we come back from San Francisco
we play in this city again, and 1 am going
TO put on a little play here. II is a story of
a Jew that is out OF work and has two chill
dren and a wife 10 support. His room i'm
the tenement II clean and on the wall are
several religious pictures, one OF them OF
Moses in the bulrushes. The baby Is sick
and il dies as the ianitor OF the tenement
comes To evict the Jew. All quiet. you
know, and real
u takes Mr.. WEIGH an hour to make up
for his turn. The prominent nose Is built
with putty. The beard is curled hair put
on the face with paste and trimmed after
ward with a pair OF scissors. AT no two
performances this week has MIR. Welch'S
sketch been the same. his observation has
been so extensive that he has an ineXhauSt-
tble fund OF material. The story about the
Irlson van, which has been particularly
PRAISED. Is ten minutes or more in the tell
lrg- lie developed IL from two lines OF dia-
lOgue.
There Is "A point in that story" said he.
that shows the difference between bur
lesque and characterization. The Jew that
Is In jail for having peddled without a H.
censc Il being guyed by the American
tCusAs With him. one OF them tells him 10
say 20 the turnkey, You're Of your nut.
lie THINKS this r. some Kind OF a compii-
msnt and repeats it With q smile 10 the