The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1904-09-16
FITz AS A TRULY ACTOR.
Bearing own Name and HOnOrs i'm
New Stage Thriller.
Fnom the New York SUI

"A Fight for Love" at the Meuop-
oils Theater. 1t was a sublime pro-
duction-the bills announce that it is
"protean" Bob helped write it. He
says so himself And he stars in the
part of Robert F'ttzsimmons, a
country gentleman"
You are aware that the Robert Fitz-
simmons of the play is, a gentleman
even before he enters arrayed in his
new riding brooches. because Bob's
footman appears in livery and tells
all about it. The blacksmith pugilisU
to whom he is talking calls Bob his
master" but the servant filings back
this repartee:
mo, not my master, but my en-
ployer, the best and kindest a man
ever had"
Pretty soon there is something do
ing at the forge. A gentleman comes
in and gives the blacksmith $3.50 to
loosen the shoe of his horse. There
by the beautiful girl with whom he
is driving cannot get home that night
and will be compromised and have
to marry him. 1t is useless to con-
ceal the fact that the beautiful girl
is Vivian Ellington. the bankers
daughter. as played by Julia May Gift
ford, otherwise Mrs. Fitz.
Bob to the Rescue.
The shoe is fixed and falls. There is
no one to mend it. And then enter Bob,
respondent as country gentleman in
a hunting stock and riding trousers,
which set off to advantage the famous
kangaroo legs. He shoes the horse and
saves the heroine.
The blacksmith tries 10 mt him ont
and runs into a left hook from Fitz,
who at one and the same time sends
the villain to dreamland with a right
swing. The curtain falls with Robert
Fitzsimmons in the limelight remark
ing in a conversational tone:
Remember you are in the presence
of ladies'
most abandoned villainess in gun
metal and red gets in her work in the
second act. She's a real devil, but the
villain is only fairly bad. Any child
could foil him. The villainess hires
Tobn. the blacksmith-pu gilist, to
throw vitrol and thus destroy What
woman loves more than life-her APP
pearance!'
But Bob foils that in his own way.
He lands biff on Mr.. Tobin's solar
plexus and gets another curtain in
the limelight.
What's the matter?" shrieks the fe-
male comic relief.
Nothing" says Bob, hes taking
some of Prof. Fitzsimmons sleeping
powders, that's ALI"
That got eight curtain calls last
night, and a whole greenhouse was
walked onto the stage.
Puts the Burglar on Watch.
Bob, after taking the count of nine
from Vivian's old man, who invites
him never to darken the door again.
saves Vivian from a burglar The
burglar has chloroformed the beautiful
girl and is snea king out with her ia
theirs last ten thousand. He parts the
curtains in his flight and runs pat into
Bob FitzSimmons. BY this time the
very sight of Bob puts the other play
ers down and out. The burglar goes
TO the mat and takes the count of ten.
Yet Vivian's governor lays the bur
glary to Bob.
So Bob holds out his arms to Vivian.
just the way the quarterback signals
for the ball. and she flies to him with
a little glad Shrek. For, as the viii
lain remarks in one of his better mo-
ments:
Where a lady is concerned Bob
Fitzsimmons is a gentleman. Even his
worst enemy has to admit that"
Anyhow. Papa Ellington is broke.
He's bet that last $4,000 with the viii
lain on the fight betwene his college
unknown" and Assistant Villain To-
bin. The abandoned villainess leads
the college unknown" to a cham
payne supper in the lunchroom of the
Hoboken ferry and dopes him.
So the old man is against the --al
article of hard luck. But he has f..
gotten Bob Fitzsimmons. Bob strides
to the -ringside in nile green tights.
Call me an old man if you want to-"
says Bob. I'm not afraid to fight
you" SO they fight.
Vivian, who is at the ringside dis
guised as. boy, remarks:
Now, father, which is the gentleman
the banker or the prizefighter?" and
with that Bob shifts on Mr.. Tobin's
front and it's curtains for the villain
and the piece.
In Full Dress and Gloves.
Bobs costume effects were great.
In the third act he was In full dress
and wore white gloves. which he never
removed all through, although he won
his lady, quelled her father and foil
ed burglar. 1t was in this act that
Vivian played and sang for him. And
Bob said subtly the was grand right
there):
II wish I had some one to play
for me like that through life"
You're getting to it, Bob" yelled
voice from the gallery, keep your
nerve" That made Bob look up and
grin.
Fftz was seen in his dressing room
between the first and second acts i'm
process of donning his outing rig. He
was feinting for the mouth with a
camels hairbrush and planting light
jabs to the chin with powder puff.
IT'S partly my own show" said Bob
Didn't that first climax kill 'em dead?
] put i'm the bankers daughter and
the blacksmith shop and the college
unknown and lot OF the lines"
It was suggested that this being a
first night he had right to feel ner-
vous.
"Nervous?" said Bob. 'Nervous
about show? Ever see 'em wake
me fifteen minutes before I went into
the ring for fight? Well. why should
j get nervous over a show?
But saw, Mrs. Fitzsimmons has
put me on to this acting business a
lot. Notice my new set of gestures?
She taught 'em TO me-"
BY way of illustration Bob made a
Delsartean flutter with a hand pro-
portioned like a Chicago ham.
Just then his negro valet was slim
ping his silk shirt over Bob's blue
undershirt. II was wet and il stuck
dreadtully. And a look came into
Bob Fitzsimmons' eyes-such "a look as
neither Rubin nor Sharkey nor Cor
bett nor even Jeffries ever saw IN
Boos eyes, Tor II was look of fear
Gee! What'n Mrs Fitzsinn,ops
m ffsfa k.