Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1922-12-08
Sd FIREMEN'S MTNSTRELS
BIGGER AND BETTER
THAN EVER
Auditorium Too Small to Accom-
modate Large Audience

The High School Auditorium was
entirely too small to accommodate the
large audience that turned out on
Wednesday evening to witness the
Third Annual Minstrel Show of the
wildwood Fire Department, and from
all comments heard at the close of
the performance there were none that
attended but were pleased with the
affair. Contrary to the usual custom
the minstrel varied by giving the per-
Torrance backward. They started
with their latter piece" then into the
olio and wound up with the minstrel
proper. It seemed an unusual method,
but a satisfactory one. Prior to the
rise of the curtain Mayor Smith
stepped before the footlights and ex-
planned that all the fire trucks were
handy to the school house and ready
to leave on a call, and that the men
to handle these trucks were not in the
cast of the play so that in case of an
alarm he stated that the performance
would continue and urged that the
audience give the iremen present free
access to the exit doors. This little
word of caution over, the orchestra
struck up an overture and then the
curtain parted to disclose a temporary
courtroom where Harry Heating, as
court officer, was seen busting the
chairs. Presently Bob Latimer in
comedy costume appeared and enacted
the part of an editor of a country
-~ao1xIxv III NO ca rood in tho h1T-
lesque that we sincerely hope he did
not take as his original model any of
the force of this paper.
]. S. Eisenhower, as the lawyer, was
followed by the members of the jury,
preceded by Judge Wisehead, enacted
by Horace Burke. The jury was n
that called forth the art of makeup,
for characters of all description were
found in it. Russell Cunningham, as a
Jewish gentleman, vas followed by
George Beaston as a nervous cripple.
Ajax Mosely was James Hamilton in
real life. Harry Mounts as a farmer
and Frank Grosh as a tramp came
next. Lynn Forcum made a typical
Irish bod carrier. Charles /. Childs
was a deaf old nan and Louis Har-
rison and Jack Wilson as a suffering
lad and a hair lip man scored the high
honors in makeup and characterize
ton. Herbert Nuneviller as a darby
minister and Bill Smith as a strong
minded forelady of the jury completed
the panel. William Hogan as a book
agent and William Hunter as a farmer
were the principals in the first case
tried before the Judge, and Mr.. Hun
ter was placed opposite William
Austin in female apparel in the last
case of the court, which closed with a
surprise ending hat left the audience
laughing as the curtain drew to-
gether shutting the actors off from
view. To give the entire dialogue of
this comedy skit would take more
space than we are allotted. but suffice
to say it was filled with laughter. Miss
Margaret Graessle, known around the
city as THE Little Songbird," was
next on the program and rendered two
elegant vocal numbers. "Sing Me to
Sleep" came first and was followed
by "Felice," a composition that called
on her to display all her vocal charms
in an unusually difficult arrangement.
She was loudly applauded at the close
of her selections. The next was also
a musical treat. This was the Wild
wood Electoral Orchestra, under the
direction of F. w. Robinson. Four
fine offerings were given by this ag-
gregation and we're also awarded with
loud applause at the climax.
A surprise treat was here intro
duced when the piano vas moved to
the center of the stage and a card
exhibited announcing Eddie Borrell.
ovation by the audience. He sang
several of his typical numbers and
told a few good stories and left the
audience begging for more. The clos
ing part of the first act was now in
order and this proved to be a one-act
playlet containing not only damatic
moments but a score or more of good
hearty laughs. Harry Heating, Ger
trude Chalmers and Gladys Love ap-
peared in the cast of the playlet and
F. Ogden CARL, the producer Of this
years minstrels, completed the cast
of characters and also showed the au-
dience some of his ability in the dra-
matte line. To give a story of this
playlet would be to spoil it for the
people who intend seeing the minstrel
when it is repeated. The intermis-
sion was followed by the minstrel
proper and the curtains parted to dis
close a circle with Bob Latimer in
Tuxedo as interlocutor, Harry Keat-
ing, Bill Smith, Herb Nuneviller and
Bill Austin in black face, attired in
the old style firemen's outfits and the
balance of the circle, made up of IA
men in firemen's uniforms looking
spic and span. This is one of the
first times minstrel audiences have
had to see Bob Latimer as an inter
I0ouf0r b,,f bo prOuod RI he &C pOod