Evening star., 1920-04-04

~tST when tho world is settling
down TO the belief that. after all,
the press agent is richt-the peo-
pie do want the diaphanous
drama with jazz interjections or
lurid anatomical analysis of the
S-Nes-Sothern and Marlowe emerge
from declared permanent retirement
from the stage for a very brief sea
son of Shakespeare in America, and
everybody suddenly discovers what a
shamc 1t Is he cannot get seats TO
us faNorIte play. Mr. Sothern and
Miss Marlowe have shown a fondness
Tor Washington on more than one
occasion. and so il seems perfectly
natural that they should cancel "a
New Jersey engagement and give the
Shak-SpcaTean admirers at the Ma
7i"nal Capital another chance to revei
~ classic drama. II is an i'll wind
mat blows nobody good and il is TO
~ hoped that the American managers
frho are responsible for the Sothern
-darioWr engagement of two weeks
mink of it, two weeks. something
that only happens in the movies
wadays-whatever may have tempt
cd them to spring the surprise. may
he tempted 10 spring another
* x
Somebody. they say. has been fight
ing very hard to put recalcitrant
American artists where they belong.
1t is limited that the stages of Great
Britain. France and other outlying
places will be ranSacked and import
I'd TO win the fight, and. as the cost
Of living is very high abroad and the
chances for remunerative employment
IN the entertainment field more or
less limited. il would seem as if the
flght-if there be a fights likely to
h. continued until something hap
PENS. The story is told of a dog that
ONCE fought an imaginary foe so hard
that it wound up by biting its own
tail. SO that the huntsman who ow wned
il had to borrow another setter when
he wanted to go hunting. If only
The public. which in the fight of the
1keater is in the position of the hunts
man. doesn't have to borrow another
setter, all may yet be well. In bring
ing Sothern and Marlowe back to
Washington. even though but for
brief two weeks. the fighters have
given Washington an Easter JOY that
spirit of the Eastertide-if they know
what that means-once again let them
smooth their ruffied feelings and en-
deavor to reach peace with honor
that will bring about the restoration
of the former greatness OF the stage
News reports say that folks beyond
seas are angling for David Belasco.
II he is good enough for them we
cannot afford to spare him: but he is
not musical comedy producer. nor
have sex problems thus far command
ed the attention of his genius.
The theatrical story of the week
presents amusing features. although
some of those most interested in 1T
may not see it in that light once
again has George NJ. Cohan, the
miracle man of the American stage"
as his press agent admiringly ad-
dresses him, put the touch of his
magic hand to a failure, and at pres
ent writing il looks as il the Cohan
Comedians in The House That Jack
Built" may find comforting haven
after the house has been remodeled
and redecorated by the irrepressible
George. There is something. after
all, in the old injunction Let George.
do it, Three Showers" brought a
real Easter joy in their wake, and
those who did not or could not sat
isfy their craving for the Bard OF
Avon found grateful content in the
little musical play of southern atmos-
phere. Bide Dudley was less fortu-
nate with "Oh. Henry" The Little
Whopper" is joyously running its
course elsewhere. Somebody once
said it was bad policy to swap horses
in crossing a stream, and another
that the shoemaker should stick to
his last. Bide wrote the lyrics for
The Little Whopper." 1t was the
other fellow who wrote the play it.
self What is the sense of breaking
a winning combination just for 1ame's
sake?