The Washington herald., 1918-02-05

dramatic critic, mas proken MS "oru.
He always swore that never, never
would he stoop to plsywriting. 1t
was his business 10 review and not
write the play. His first effort is now
being tried out on the dog and will
soon come to New York.
The Rialto is wondering what will
happen. Alan Dale-and that is not
his real name but never mind-has
written some caustic reviews in his
time and he has panned several plays
that other critics have written
Once a new play opened at the old
Herald Square Theater. The next
morning Dale devoted a whole column
to the electric light out front He
told how it flashed and fiickered and
how rainbow hues chased around the
whirligigs. In the last line he made
the only mention Of the play: Inside
was presented"
The author OF the play never got
over 1t and the play fingered only for
a week. Dale has a following. When
he says a show is good. the producers
reproduce his words in electric lights
the next night. Such as: "A hit
Alan Dale.
Then the box Office does a rushing
business. Alan Dale was about the
first critic in New York to handle re-
views in sprightly fashion. He would
review a Shakespearean production in
the same Alan-Dale-y chatter that he
reviewed a burlesque show.
4 few years ago a difference OF
opinion came up on the Hearst news
paper where he was employed. Mr..
Dale inserted advertisements i'm other
newspapers announcing the fact that
he had resigned.
Several others tried TO fill his shoes
but not so long ago he went back TO
the Hearst fold TO continue where he
left off. He is to have the novel eX-
perience of reviewing his own play
when it comes to New York.
For awhile all Broadway was ukule-
Icing and yac-ka-hula-ing. Ukulele
shops opened up and were prosperous.
All the catarets had their Hawaiian
orchestras, where the dusky tribes
worked perspiringly and with great
energy. The late Diamond Jim Brady,
commenting upon a Hawaiian band at
Murray's one night said: They don't
show the dust. but they surely do the
heat" The Hawaiian craze suddenly
collapsed like a toy balloon. Most OF
the musicians went back to Honolulu.
Others went to work in munition fac
tories. They are gone but not for
gotten. however. for now nearly all
the popular songs are sentimental dit
ties about Hawaii. Hawaii, America
Loves You" drifts out of the cabarets
and over the footlights Of the vaude-
vile houses. When the war is over
and dancing is again popular it is be-
lieved that the Hawaiian orchestras
will come back into their own.
The 2-cent newspaper in New York
was a boon to the space writer-that
is, men VINO are paid so much a
column for news or feature stories.
The people generally welcomed the
jump from 1 cent to cents because
news space was Tightening up all the
time.
There were some space writers on
New York newspapers before the war
who knocked out s125 a week easily.
Those who remained found it hard TO
garner $50 a week. And many of the
space writers at their own requests
were put on a regular salary basis.
Under the 2-cent regime the news
papers have started of printing
larger papers. Also there is a decided
trend toward light and breezy stories
to offset the run of sordid news just
now.
The Purple Pup has been raided
by the new administration. 1t was one
OF the first of the candle-lighted at
mospheric rendezvous Of Greenwich
village, which has been in operation
for more than a year in Washington
square. Tea and camo. music ana
dancing and highbrow talk were the
chief attractions. 1t would be more
fitting il some proprietor would name
his Mo - 40 this sorr ssYa Rlind Tiger /"