The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1918-05-28
I'M THE
FRONT ROW
kEAoLlNERs TONIGHT.
MuSleal Comedy.


tlgoa......The Whispering Chorus
I1lo.........K Kaiser, Beast Of Berlin
IncoSB. Floor Below
1EADED by Billy House, a come.
dian par excellence. and one who
q pretty well known in this
lNn among theatre patrons and liked
u everyone who has ever seen him
! % on stage, the LaSalle Musical
somody company opened a weeks en-
8omont at the Hippodrome ycster-
~, presenting a brilliant musical
- play which somehow got the name
i step Lively" II We we're 10 name
according 10 our idea Of the fitness
Lnings chances are 70 would be
allod Safety First" But what's in
name, anyway? In this instance its
u IN the show, and Billy House him
" gets about seventy.five per cent
~ the credit from the audience for
loklng Il so riprOaringly funny II
onl0nt be Otherwise The sixty
lgh power" fun maker, or some such
qme for which his press agent is re.
ronsible, is a vcritabc dynamo He's
steam engine OF joy with the boilers
D and the fireb0X q meIt.n' 2 CO.
acity cargo OF bon mot. and the on
Taught he makes on the risib'c1 would
lufder a weaklinc You've got % be
well organized individual 70 survive
u commissions he creates every time
ID moves a muscle, says something or
hats an eye.
~ al performance yesterday the
audiences were either shrIeklng out
1ht whOOping like Comanche In
ans or getting blue in the face try
% maintain a dignity that was Ut
liy impossible under the circum-
fonces. For almost an hour and a
AZ there was a regular riot Of laugh.
II on each occasion. But tho proy0Ca-
80 was great. No one need try OK
ito himself for his conduct on occa-
IONS like this. As a matter OF fact il
} Mr.. Houses big aim In life 10 make
people act foolish RE does il him.
elf, and he does il 80 infccti1usly that
here Is no escape. J. w1uld take q
% OF space to tell all the things he
does, and It would he attempting the
impossible to describe the way he
does EN-.
Whether he is a born comedian and
aopOeque1tly Just naturally funny be.
|loo he can't help it. or whether he
ts5 acquired the art Of making people
laugh at win by practice and, study,
would not do;ract Of add one io.a 70
~ indisputebe fact that he IS q rare
l9od comedian.
Ho<does rot resort 70 makeup"
EVol the Clothel he wears on the
ttage would let HIM g.. b. on the
streets without GttrGctirT thc at'cl-
Ion OF q Fairmont policeman. But
- hes VT. lie showed d sample o.
his lact night wnen in his lines C.
1recr trek OF the mind mglc him s2y
cfkchurg Instead Of Fc.rmont. Ee
stsaiChtecod the Clip iD loW sec
nnds and turned . .a,. joke that was
better than INC C".sinGl.
Granting that he is very big part
10 tis show, there arc also others.
Not tho least Of these is a ~10d sing.
Ing cad dancing chorus. The ca. oil
Principals II excellent. George bona
huo IN blacE face adds lot 10 the
M, while Doris Follow aEl lone
O'ponnell help the show to q CLASSY
altitude. Ectelle Booth shows con-
rIncing degree Of histrionic art in the
part she plays and together with Rob
ert Doyle and Howard Pcuca and 9th
er5 contribute much to making step
Lively" the best and biggest laugh ics-
llfal ana musical show that has ever
been at the Hippodrome.
There Is also a word OF CJmmenda-
l'on due the story Of the play. 1t is a
ven constructed farce and hangs to-
gclher while countless things are hap.
ranine that are not essentially part
on the story. It permits OF the intro.
auction OF speciaties without beiog.
Iingit.
There are several points Of Outstand.
Ing merit In such things as a burlesQGe
5n the exemption board the lie.de.
ecting clock, and in a song number
near the finale which introduces the
.olors OF allied nations in an entirely
Unexpected manner. In several in.
stances there are surprises to cap
something that one Is about ready TO
regard as something they had seen or
heard before.
Of course, everything in the show is
0t new The gags and even most OF
ne songs are more or less familiar,
5ut they get over In such shape that no
BE cares whether they are old or new.
Unlike Dan Robeys Bevo, they lave
he punch.
This same bill will run up to
Wednesday night and on Thursday
The County Boy" a rural comedy,
ill Be- presented for the last half OF
h6 week BY the same company. Billy
louise win play the titular role.
The Birth Of q Nation" Coming.
d. W. Griffith's magnificent his.
ofical spectacle The Birth OF a Ma
On" viii come to the Grand Thurs
~ % remain three days. The Birth
q Nation" Is one Of the most widely
scnssed topics in this country. It
tahlished an absolutely new art IN
- realm Of the theatre-the art of
aniomlmic screen spectacle with mu.
Z also created a tremendous sen.
ton because Of its vaster and more
rcefnl treatment OF the same theme
Thomas DixOn's 1.-THE Clansman."
- anmannnone0a ~ fha Civil War IN