The New York herald. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1920-1924, 1920-11-23
Daddy Dumplins'
Good for Children
of All the Ages
Maclyn Arbuckle Delightful
in Play Full Of
Sentiment.

There are three places most parents
Will want to take the children around
the Christmas holidays-the Hippo
drome, the toy department of some big
store (see ads. }. and Daddy Dumplins."
This comedy. which brought Maclyn Ar
buckle back to the local stage. at the
Republic Theatre last night. will prob
ably cause many grownups to steal off
TO 1t, for it Is like the Christmas Carol
which the benign old gentleman hero
insists on reading every Yuletide. and
If Earl Carroll. the producer. could only
provide individual hearth fires and indi-
vidual snowstorms for each patron. the
comfortable Dtckensian feeling would be
complete.
The fable--proper word in this case
has been built by Carroll around George
Bar McCutcheon's story of Mr.. Bingis"
and centres about Henry Daniel DoBip>
Inns, heavy piunger in what he con-
siders the only real estate-children
With large fortune left to him by his
uncle he brings up In luxury a brood CT
eight orphans. not forgetting Ginger, q
white Pom whose ginger was mainly
displayed in yawns. Then his cousin.
the natural heir, breaks the will after
twenty year fight in the courts. and tho
youngsters are turned out OF doors and
over 10. the children's society. while
Domplits in his old age is forced TO no
come q bookkeeper again and take en-
ployment from his former English but
Ter. who has gone into the fruit and
vegetable business" But happiness
comes in the end. even In a realistically
shabby flat, as every one could foresee
except those on the other side of the
footlights.
Out Of such simple ingredients Carroll
has built with McCutcheons aid play
that is effective. frequently humorous
and genuinely appealing, while it's IA
miliar qualities are none the worse for
being as familiar as ones own fireplace
or steam radiator. Sentimentality Is its
keystone. but it and its attendant pathos
are never overdone, and even Ginger
restrained himself and wasn't too dog
gishly doggy
Arbuckle gave the right amount of va
riety TO his performance. being by turns
bruske and tender, so that, like Victor
Hugo. he showed the world the art Of
being grandfather. He was dramat-
lcally forceful in the second act. when
he confronted the vindictive cousin, and
touched an almost tragic note when he
lied for ,the sake OF his eldest foster
daughter, estranging her in order that
she might remain in comfort with her
real father. the crouch who stewed in
his own poison and died of II.
The star also made n charming pic
ture in a handsome setting. reading the
Dickens story to his children on
Christmas eve, while the servants reg
stered their feeling for art In shores
If these had been the ordinary stage
children one would have been glad
when they were bundled off TO the
asylum. But they were the most nat
ural and amusing Riddles seen here in
a long while particularly Andrew Law
Tor. Jr., OF "Penrod" fame. who i'm
proved as the evening wore on and
won an ovation by smoking his first
cigar because he was lovesick and
wanted a speedy death Miss Florence
Finn was a trifle cool as the eldest.
but Louis Williams counterhalanced
this with his warmth as her lawyer
lover.
Do your Christmas theatre shopping
early with this play-and take your
handkerchief along.