Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1917-12-06
Army IS
BEYOND COMPARISON
It WiI Be In Action Two
Evenings Next Week In
The Man From Home

The notable company of local players
which the EIks have gathered together
to portray the various roles in Booth
Harrington Is powerful comedy of Am
erican life, "The Man From Home, y
are SO well known to Salem theatre
goers, that very little that is really
new can be said about them. There are
three or four brilliant exceptions in
the shape of newly discovered dramatic
material, but for the most part the ac-
tors whe will appear next Wednesday
and Thursday evenings in the 1917 Elks
Play have already thoroughly estab-
lished themselves as thespians of the
very highest rank.
Particularly is this true of Mrs. Rob-
ert Mckinney Hofer, who plays Lady
Creech, one of the most amusing char
acter creations that any playwright
has yet given us. Lady Creech is an
English Grand dame, who thanks God
that she is not as others are. She sin
cerely believes that the world was ere.
ated for her special benefit, and that
the creator made terrible mistake
when he permitted anybody else to live
in it. Unfortunately, like her painfully
proper brother-in-law, the Earl of Haw-
castle Charles V. Galloway she is des-
perately in need Of money. So she con-
spires with the Earl and a certain
vampire lady, " the Countess de Cham
pignY( Mrs. Al .Rahn) to marry off her
worthless nephew, Alemric, Murray L.
Hart) to a young American heiress,
Ethel Simpson miss Olga Gray who
has temporarily gone nutty over the ar
istocraey bunk that Lady Creeeh starts
to hand out the moment the play opens.
How the poor child is saved from the
clutches of Lady Creech and the rest
of the remnants of nobility is a tale
which will not be unfOlded until next
Wednesday evening. To tell it now
might spoil the Whole show for you. 1t
is sufficient to say, however, that saw
ing the child and squelehing the Lady
is some JOB. 1t requires the united eff
forts of an Indiana lawyer (James
Motif Russian Grand Duke august
Huckestein, Jr.) and the entire Italiax
army, which consists of Tom Kay, Ben
Olcott and Walter E. Keyes. This may
sound like tragedy-espeeial the It.
allan army part of it--but it is not. 1t |
is comedy. 1t is melodramatic comedy, |
to Sbe sure, but comedy nevertheless.
There are no tears in "The Man From
Home. y 1t is all sunshine and laughter. I
To say that Mrs Hofer gives a splen-
lid performance of Lady Creeeh is sim
ply using up newspaper space. The hum
lreds of people who jammed the thea r
re year ago to see the last Elks play, I
Get Rieh-Quiek Wallingford will
'ecall her remarkable performance of
he. Landlady in that sparkling comedy. L
n this years play, under the same di-
ection and in much better part, Mrs.
Iofer S host of friends are expecting to
witness the finest bit of stage work this
alented actress has vet done.
''The Man From Home will be play
d for two evenings, and viii positive
Y not be repeated. The annual "Elk
ihow" always plays TO capacity, so $
hose who wish to secure their choice
f seats should reserve them the day 9
he seat sale opens, which is Tuesday
Zee. IL at clock in the morning G
he price for reserved seats is $1.00. 4,
he proceeds go to the Red Cross fund. I