Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-12-19

openly, OIL CHd1SS III thC oIc!
moral or artistic, from the lines OF
opinion and custom threatening to
become inhexible and irksome. All
plays are propaganda OF one kind
or another.
1t needed a Col. Bridau to buster
our gentle audiences out OF such
somber CONCENTRATIONS or even an
Al Jolson to scatter our brain furnl-
ture to the winds in cyclone OF
laughter. Otis Skinner has happy
faculty of seeming always at his best
in ro'es which have ranged from
the dignities of Brownings In a
Balcony" to the picture OF serv1le
cheating by Hadg. He IS one OF
the actors who may assert versatil-
ity and remain unspecialized.
II x T.
When Skinner first appeared him
self cynical Broadway, no less ad-
dicted to the harpoon than now,
brought up two obstacles which 1t
was loudly affirmed would be insur-
mountable. The first was his name,
considered far too prosaic for those
euphonious times. The other was
his stature. They" said Chat word
They has ever been all abominable
mask for malicious anonymity
that a man SO lacking in height
could not play the hero. This was
in spite of the we'll known men IN
our own time and in the far back
history of the theater who were
popular favorites. though many
inches from the six-foot mark on
the measuring rod. On the. other
hand, it was said with equal posi-
tiveness that James X. Hackett was
hopelessly handicapped by being un-
usually tall. He played. neverthes-
less. to the satisfaction of a devoted
" admiring public. His chief handi-
cap Law in finding a leading woman
tall enough to make the tableau and
prevent a love scene from being.
trihe absurd. Fortunately for him
Tobyna Rowland, a good actress, was
a woman of unusual height. 1t was
fortunate for Miss Rowland, too, tor
she was often heard to say that she
could not play opposite any romantic
actor excepting Hackett. She was
in comparative eclipse for a long
time and was practically discovery
in THE Gold Diggers," for no one
had suspected her before of being
coincidence.
Skinner and Sothern are warm
friends. Sothern in letter very
modestly related that woman who
had seen What Never Dies hac
paused at the box Office to remark
that she admired the play greatly,
but she did wish SO much that she
could have seen Otis Skinner in the
part. Skinner rejoiner was a chsi-
ienge to exchange. roles now and
then Just to let*their respective pub
Tics concentrate on comparison
with view to merger of clientele:
Thus is the public to its actor. And
professional jeaIousies are not nearly
so common as reputed.
- \ X
1t is probably fortunte for both
Sothern and Skinner that neither
ever learned to dance or sing. Per
haps more fortunate for the public
that likes its drama spoken in nat
ural. terms than for the player who
patiently proceeds through the sea-
son in an effort to respect the laws
of human probability and the rules
of grammar. Jolson is a DYNAMIC
personality, never still moment,
and yet apparently in tune with the
rhythms Of the universe. What he
says and what he sings IS sometimes
witty. occasionally coarse. and very
frequently almost pointlesS. But
the laugh he seeks is certain to ar
rive. The very sight of him after a
brief absence from the stage IS
enough to set the audience roaring
The art of the comedian appears TO
consist largely in the ability to tame
the brain into a mood for laughter
as early as possible in the evening
and then depend on the nerve CEN
tiers and the diaphragm.
In Il X
Jolson is one of the most versatile
men who ever began career in
black face. Players like Francis
Wilson forsook blackface for the
then more distinguished and re-
munerative prospects of legitimate
playing. Mr.. Jolson SO far as book
reputation is concerned is handi-
capped by high salaries. He could
not afford to join the ranks of those
who struggle TO find a play good
enough to carry their regulations.
Yet none who heard him in the spir-
itual number, who saw him lapse
into tense seriousness in moment
| of burlesque tragedy. who felt the
deep pathos he could throw into
some inconsequential rhyming about
home and mother, could doubt that
| the box Office in showering Jolson
with money deprived the theater of
a player of the highest artistic at
| tainments.
big Boy" hints at development
that may produce a distinctive
! American comic opera. It follows
the Duncan Sisters use of Uncle
Toms Cabin" for librctto and selects
a good old Southern horse-racing
play for a plot unusual in continuity
for this class of entertainment.
While the playgoers revel in impor-
tations there arc constant reminders,
which pass almost unnoted, that
there is tremendous native supply
of undcveloped resources in mirth,
music and serious entertainment here
in" our own country.
Said to Be "Neilanesque"