The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-03-02

| The plays that really do upllft and
ennoble and the kind it would be OF
lasting good for us to see, are, indeed,
few and far between. People go to a
musical comedy or comic opera to
laugh and forget and be happy. That
| is no way to improve ones mind
Perhaps not, but how many of the
modern plays afford any mental stim-
ulus? And so far as using the stage
to preach reform is concerned, it has
not yet been definitely decided
whether or not it is fitting place
| from which to deliver sermon.
The great success won by Effie
Shannon in years of Discretion" is a
source of much pleasure to her friends
in all parts of the country. Miss
Shannon has long been recognized as
an actress of marked ability and the
fact that she has been off Broadway
for some time makes her reappear-
ance and unmistakable triumph there
all the more conspicuous. If memory
is not at fault, Miss Shannon last ap-
peared in "The Thief
There seems to be a marked diff
ference of opinion in Birmingham as
to the merits and demerits of Bought
and Paid For" the Broadhurst play
which was presented here for the first
half of last week at the jefferson
theatre. Hardly anyone, we think,
would assert that Bought and Paid
For" is a great play, but it's merits
lie chiefly in we'll written dialogue,
some refreshing humor and just
al 49, 30 hoI
ance in more or less satisfactory
manner the other component parts. 1t
would be hard to find better drawn
character, or more entertaining one,
than Jimmy" Gilley, and, in fact, all
the characters are interesting. Per-
haps the playwright was at times
rather bold in treading on delicate
ground, but in this case one might
apply the old adage, .Honi sol qui NAL
|y pense." In our modest opinion, If
Mrs. Stafford had not been SO peevish
to start with, her wealthy but "piffli-
Gated" husband would not have
smashed the door Of her bedroom.
Mr.. Harry Lauder is not the only
comedian who is piling up riches so
rapidly that he will soon be close
rival to Andrew Carnegie. The other
day Fred Stone bought piece of
property in New York and paid for it
approximately $450,00O in cold, un-
tainted cash. Mr.. Stone is marvel
of agility and comedian who can
always be depended on to. do some
thing surprising. This time he has
made all the other members of the
profession sit up and take notice,
while the newspapers have lost no
time in giving publicity to his real
estate deal.
| Dustin Farnum has announced that
he will retire permanently from the
stage as Legitimate star" and will
appear in moving pictures. Mr.. Far
mum visited Birmingham quite re-
Gently in "The Littlest Rebel" His
statement, which may be followed by
change of mind later, is neverthe-
less significant as indicating the in
roads being made by moving pictures
on the ranks of stage celebrities. The
talking" pictures seem to be rather
disappointing, but the silent kind con-
tinues to grow more popular every
day.
Jess Dandy, who visited Birlning-
ham this season and gave his inimit-
able performance of the Cincinnati
brewer in "The Prince of Pilsen," was
recently presented with a handsome
loving cup by the members of the
1928 prince of Pilsen" company
The cup represents the stage fountain
in which Mr.. Dandy is said to have
splashed about more than 5000 times.
Although he has been on the stage
more than so years, his debut having
been made at the tender age of sever
years, Willis Sweatnam will next
season be the star of a play for the
first time in his highly successful
career. Mr.. Sweatnam spent many
years doing "black face" comedy ir
minstrel shows. He will be remem.
bered by local playgoers for his
laughable portrayal of Sassafras Liv-
ingston in "The County Chairman
and the porter in Rupert Hughes
farce, Excuse Me-" Mr.. Sweatnam il
fine delineator of negro character
and his advent into stardom, undel
the auspices of Henry w. Savage
! will be awaited with much interest.
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