Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-03-20


to songs frowningly referred to as
Suggestive" They were the kind
of theater that made town authorl-
ties feel compelled TO paste paper
over pictures on the billboards that
revealed feminine trunks and stock
ings. Variety" vice was monster
or horried mien, although long way
behind the license currently assumed
by its aristocratic betters.
Reference to vaudeville as va
riety" was something that any re-
porter could depend on to bring the
vaudeville manager TO the office with
demand that the tactlesS scribe
be precipitously hurled from the pay
roll.
II remains for vaudeville itself to
come forward with tribute OF SEN
timent and to recognize variety as
the original model on which one OF
the greatest institutions OF enter
tainment the world has ever known
was originally founded. To draw the
distinction between the two was by
no means easy, for the two types OF
theater exchanged performers con-
tinuaily and the impressions offered
| by the two stages was pretty much
| the same. The idea that the most
accomplished and the highe st-salaried
stars would one day appear III
theater whose program included
acrobats, clog dancers and rapid
| fire comic skits would have been dis
missed as preposterous.
* X
In this city the phrase polite
vaudeville" was invented and rigid
Monday afternoon censorship was
established by the management TO
see that no questionable hint OF any
kind was allowed to remain in the
show. The slapstick and the settler
bottle, considered indispensable ad-
juncts of variety fun. were banished
| forever from vaudeville. It remains
for Mr.. Albee to stand alone with
little touch OF sentiment for the
rough old show. Many warrior
has found ii easy enough to drop a
tear on the tombstone of departed
foe.
The early history OF vaudeville
provides an important object lesson.
1t demonstrated that cleaning up the
stage is an entirely practical enter
prise if sincerely approached and
given unwavering attention by the
stage itself. From time to time
vaudeville lapsed into the idea OF
giving "the public what it wants,
but never permitted il to become
regular policy. 1t took no benefit
whatever from publicity that saw
ored in the remotest degree of the
risque, and actors from the legiti-
mate stage in the course of time
would often turn from a rather
questionable role in the legitimate
to give a neat and wholesome per-
Torrance to an appreciative and re-
spectful clientele.
The legitimate theater has never
shown complete and unequivocal
determination to clean up" 1t has
been too easy to profit by publicity
which pretends to be adverse, but
well manipulated. proves interesting
ly descriptive. The police and judges
on the bench have made earnest en-
deavor to curb the playhouse in its
impetuous audacities.
Theatrical producers have merely
grasped the opportunity to use the
court docket for a billboard. The
theater is we'll organized and should
be able by insisting on certain stand
ards to do for the rough drama of
today what vaudeville did for variety
years ago.
This city has shown how the stage
can be completely freed from i'm
proper material.
The method is drastic.
Keep the house dark.
Washington theaters have had
many vacant weeks and a number
that filled in with pictures. The
President Theater, after a willing
ness to try anything, has adopted
darkness as permanent policy.
The censorship agitation in New
York very promptly took on the
political aspect which usually de-
velopes where a subject apparently
of abstract morals or expediency is
agitated. Gov. All Smith is recorded
as not in favor of censorship. His
antagonists are said to be anxious
to have some kind of a censorship
bill passed sooner or later SO that
the governor will have to veto it,
thereby going on record by inference
as favoring impolite shows. AS the
gentleman who recites says, Whats
the use?"
England has a play-licensing sys-
tenn which does not constitute rigid
censorship with fanatical possibilities
such as would probably arise should
the experiment be attempted in
America. The play Gentlemen
Prefer Blondes" was recently
licensed in London. X. d. Mclean,
formerly of this city, now living in
Hollywood, points out an interesting
possibility of applying censorship to
purposes relating to considerations
entirely apart from the theater as an
artistic or intellectual mode Of ex-
preston. There was time when
many of our Irish citizens joined in
vigorous protest against the low
comedy stage Irishman, once so
prevalent, but now almost extinct.
Some even called for a censorship
relating to this particular point.
Yet no character is more beloved in
the theater today than that of the
typical light-hearted quick witted
IriShman.
One example of self-censorship
among theatrical producers is George
{. Tyler, who has held to a faithful
reliance on the public demand for
| the best that can be had In acting