Palisadian. [volume] (Cliffside Park, N.J.) 1906-current, 1916-05-20
Mr.. Bennett Seen
By "The Palisadian''
Representative

Richard Bennett, until recently a
Palisadian, has been scoring a fine
success in "The Rio Grande," Au-
gustus Thomas great war play at
the Empire.
A "Palisadian" representative was
a green room guest the other day at
the Empire and saw Mr.. Bennett in
a great act off the stage, that of
making up" Mr.. Bennett is the
s'same old Dick" giving the reporter
a cordial grip standing as he was in
a union suit Of B.V.D., preparatory
to entering the kakai suit of a United
States Colonel of the regulars.
Gust minute to shake hands,"
said the 'Palisadian' man."
"No you won't, either" answered
the actor. Here, sit down there and
tell me something. How's old Pail
SADIE? How's Carson? How's Mrs.
Reporter? How're things looking? I'll
bet it's beautiful over there about
now"
Answering all these things at one
time was duly accomplished while
Mr.. Bennett sat before great triple
mirror bedaubing his face, neck and
hands with the deep bronze of a
Texas sun tan. On either side of the
big mirror were four electric lights
that glared with binding flash in
his face.
"That's exactly the foot light eff
efct I've got here, so l can see
definitely how I appear to the audi
ence," remarked Mr.. Bennett. "Of
course, don't have to go into such
minute details as a lady piping her.
self for the salon, but you've got to
know how to get the effect, and it is
easy enough, once you know how"
So it seemed. Yet it required ex-
actly thirty minutes for the actor to
get that handsome phiz of his just
right. First he took shade of light
drab grease, stick, and ran two
perpendicular streaks across his fore
head, then three more up and down
his face on either side. Then with
his two front fingers he blended this
into one shade, spreading it all over
his neck, chin and hands. Next he
took a darker shade Of tan and put
over the first coat, then another and
another until the last showed him
almost Indian color. The Colonel's
part Mr.. Bennett was playing is of
the old-fashioned austere, kindly
hearted, blunt Colonel of the army,
who has won his spurs by long
career of efficient service. He is as
dry as bone for the most part, but
full Of dry humor upon occasion, and
honest as the day is long.
When Mr.. Bennett wanted to make
himself severe looking, he drew two
dark lines as wide as pen barrel at
forty-five degrees away from his
middle nose down past the corners of
his mouth. A Bit hlaS6 and the
face was fipix ~ A
tan witho1 heck
bones would be incohp7ete IN that
kind of a make up.
"Watch the blood go in now" said
Mr.. Bennett, as he took rabbits
foot pad and smeared brick red across
his forehead and on his cheeks. The
effect was magical Dead before as
a piece of buckskin, the face fairly
glowed. A bit of black on the eye
brows, sort of V-shape smear, and
Mr.. Bennett could not have been
chiseled into a more perfect army Of
ficer of the Texas plains.
"You will see an orator." he said,
''hold his head erect, and rear back,
showing the full open eye," said Mr.
Bennett, leaning back and spreading
his arms out, open their full length.
"The austere soldier, lowers his chin,
squints his eyes, and looks up while
his head is down, thus giving the look
of severity, as though he were look
ing over the rims of his spectacles. !"
One could see in moment the art
of expression as portrayed The eff
feet was quite remarkable to one
who was not altogether used to the
possibilities of mere pose and paint.
In the play of ''The Rio Grande,"
Mr.. Bennett is completely meta
morphosed. No one would ever rec
ognize Richard Bennett in this play.
He is at his best, and he rises to
heights of genuine subtlety in his art
that makes one wonder if Mr.. Ben
nett is not the one really big actor
of the old Jeffersonian school of ma
turalness we have on the boards to-
day. There isn't the least bit of any,
thing lacking to make his work
forced or unnatural, but as the liv-
ing type of the old soldier his work
actually transcends. Not only is he
clever-very clever-but he is really
great. No wonder the less captious
critics are. coming around to believe
in Bennett. He fairly lives this old
Colonels part, and it is genuine
: treat to watch him, and study him,
to see how he has rounded out into
an actor with real purpose and real
magnetic power. He grips you until
perforce you have just got to admire
and applaud.