Evening star., 1925-04-19
Plots Unmentionable
Or Indescriba able
By Ph,1ander Johnson.

most every familiar effect known to
| the crime and mystery drama and
yet gets its thrills and surprises
from moment to moment with un
varying accuracy. The play will
inevitably revive the word 'hokum,'
i which has attained through series
OF financial successes the reverenced
status OF commercial mascot
Through all this ordeal Mr.. Gala
her was as calm, suave and convinc
| ing as he ever was when engaged in
foiling a villain or discovering the
lost will. His faith in the manu-
script appears to have been vindi-
Gated, since the patronage OF the
play increased at rate warranting
an extension of the engagement to
two weeks. Only portion of this
week is available, owing to previous
contracts which the theater was un-
able to cancel.
Mr.. Gallaher was asked about what
seemed to be glaring omission-the
failure to ask people not to explain
the plot to their friends at the risk
of spelling the surprises. Mr.. Roy
ster pointed out that while the story
is perfectly clear i'll its foothght un
folding, anybody who tries to ex-
plain its multitudinous intrica cies
would merely result in heightening
the mystery. People are encouraged
to ask questions in advance. The
publicity method is in accordance
with the favorite remark of Her
mann, the magician: Please look
closely; as closely as you like. The
more you look. the more you don't
see something"
The play is by Ralph Spence, who
announces the viewpoint of the au-
thor in spirit of optimistic sweet
ness. The young man with manu-
script is welcomed with open arms
by business man who assures him
that he is perfectly willing to listen
for several hours and who, further
more, brings out box of cigars and
other refres shments. 1t is the most
gladstone note of encouragement
vet sounded for the benefit of young
authors. The play is as variegated
in its wares as Christmas tree
with jack-in- the boxes, torpedoes,
hrecrackers. geological mimicries,
and, in fact. every mechanical toy
calculated to delight the human
mind, which never quite RECEIVERS
from the childish pleasure, mixed
with fear, of having somebody sud-
denly jump out of dark corner and
say "Bool'
In order to get the fullest possible
thrill from The Gorilla" the play
goer should request a seat on the
aisle, for the audience is called into
the action as mob of innocent by
standers, among whom the gorilla,
having escaped from his keeper,
dashes madly in quest OF wider free
dom toward the main entrance.
This hint necessarily discloses some
OF the plot. Yesl they have goril-
la! That is to say, of course, not a
real gorilla, but an actor very care
| fully made up as one And there is
another gorilla known to the crimi-
| nal authorities for his audacious
cruelties and earning the sobriQuet
by his practice of leaving the
marks of a monkey paw on the
breast of the victim. This is the
! real gorilla, who manages to battle
| the radio announcer and put his
warnings in stalwart bass across the
microphone And besides this assas-
sin there is another gorilla in the
play. one whose exploits are copied
from those of the radio terror. In
addition comes the complicating
consideration that the father of the
girl whom the playwright loves is
| disclosed as the gorilla himself. with
a huge Sinian left hand, which, in
his respectable associate he keeps
carefully bandaged AS matter of
fact, the kind parent or genial host
only thinks he's the gorilla through