The Washington herald., 1922-03-21
By EARLE DORSEY.

Something moro than the quality
OF its theme, its manner arid It's in
depreciation must underlie the sue
cess that is credited to A. A. Mines
comedy, Mr.. PIN Passes By"
which came to the National last
night after a New York ENGAGE
ment that has resulted in a verit-
able Milne. vogue.
Mr.. PIN" Is an English comedy
OF manners. done In the usual draw
ing room fashion and eminently de-
liehtful to those who worship the
atmosphere OF such drama. As an
example OF English high comedy.
however. Il Is decidedly not repre-
sentative. for its theme Is shallow
to the point OF frivolity and its in
terpretation l. far below the usual
English standard of depressed but
forceful character delineation.
Mr.. PIN" must be rated as
ninety parts atmosphere" with the
other ten divided between its story,
It's interpretations and its coca
slonal flashes of humor. Divested
however. OF fits county accent and
reduced In narrative to q phrase,
this comedy leaves one quite at a
loss to explain its apparent popu-
larity.
In the story. Mr.. PIN, in the
course OF his trivial affairs, becomes
highly potent factor in the life
OF an upper class English family
The head OF the family is George
Marden. ]. p. who has welded an
minently respectable lady, who be-
lieved her first husband. a rogue
and a rascal. to have long since
died OF drink. Mr. PIN. in his
chatty fashion. pauscs to remark
That he Nhas recently returned from
Australia In company with a man
who is obviously Mrs. Marden's
first husband. who apparently Is not
dead at all.
TO go back little. Mrs. Marden
has been most anxious to win her
husbands consent to the marriage
or his ward. Dinah. to a penniIess
but promising painter. a ramp%iCn
halted by Mr.. PINS astoniv','- dis
closure. In the effort to lear" more
Of the details. Mr.. PIN is recalled
and. in his absent minded way. he
adds the detail that his shipboard
acquaintance died at Marseilles Of
a fishbone in the throat Which re-
stores. under somewhat hysterical
circumstances, the status quo ante
as II were.
Mrs. Marden. with her own CON
jugal position assured. now turns
her attention to the business OF win
ming over Marden to the cause of
the two young lovers and the way
she docs Il is by making him plead
his cause like any other lover. Car
ried away by his own exuberanCe.
he commits himself definitely on the
standpoint of male eligibility in a
statement so sweeping that 1t is
used by his wife to clinch the case
for the lovers.
Thus the course of true love is
made straight. aided vastly by the
return. for the third time, Of Mr..
PIN who announces that his mem
ory had played him false and that
his shipboard acquaintance bore
another name entirely and not n"
name of Mrs. Marden's first hus-
band.
The comedy Of Mr.. PIN" here
and there ceases to remain comedy
and becomes as farcical as Its sur
roundings will permit. Tho role OF
Marden. handled by Dudley DigEcs'
betrays flashes of farce in the CON
fused efforts OF this worthy to fell
low his desires and at the same time
to do the proper thing. Laura Hope
Crews makes the wife an engaging
creature while Erskinc Sanford
achieves honors with the title role
of Mr.. PIN. On the other hand.
Alison Bradshaw and Leonard Mu-
die. as the lovers. achieve their et-
fects chiefly by gusto and both So IN
never to have heard of such words