Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-07
OPENING ATTRACTIONS In WASHINGTON
THEATERS

persons who wanted to get this formula,
one wild-eyed newspaper reporter and
a very fine and up-to-date leper, work.
ing under the impression that he ought
to share his leproSy with others. What
would happen? Well, there's no telling,
but lone Mile Up" offers fascinating
suggestions And before any member Of
the audiences which witness lone
Mile Up" this week steps aboard Yep
pelin in the future you may be sure
that he Is going to ask the captain If
there are any lepers on board. If there
are, he will go bye the old-fashioned
route and stick to the steamboats,.
To describe what takes place during
zone Mile Up" would be unfair. But
there are certain statements which must
be made. One is that lone Mile Up"
ought to start on time, although it does
require time to build as fine Zeppelin
as there is at Polls. Another Is that If
the public wants thrillers, and the pro-
ducers seem to think that that is what
the public wants, there's a fine one, well
done, at Polls.
The cast is large and generally Ca
pable. The work of Rose Hobart as
Wynne Madison is we'll done, and Wallis
Clark gets away we'll with the rather
difficult business of impersonating a
hard-boiled captain of Zeppelin with
a lot of trouble on board. Edwards
Wood may be too excitable as Del Rod
man, the reporter, but-what a lot there
was to get excited about!
STRAND-"Step Along"
Burlesque shows are generally pretty
much alike in the ingredients relied
upon for entertainment, and one bur-
leSque show is sort of twin brother
or twin sister to the other, except that
sometimes leader like Lena Daley
comes along, and although the costumes
of her show, perhaps. are no more at
magnificent and the girls run about
the same in good looks, singing and
dancing ability, one finds something
different.
"Step Along" has homely name that
doesn't mean great deal, but Lena
Daley and her comedian, Lew Lewis,
manage to work into the show that
something which tells. In consequence
the patrons of the Strand Theater at
yesterdays performances seemed to find
what they liked and they let the world,
at least the Strand world, know it. But
the show Is not all furnished by Lena
Daley and Lew Lewis. Charley Smith,
Florence Trotman, Loretta Lee, Harry
Harrison, Dave Gardner and many
others contribute their bits in song,
dance or merry comedy, that, combined,
make breezy and attractive entertain
ment. "Step Along| is likely to hold its
own without question along with its
predecessors In Mutual circuit burlesque.
-uC.urS,aO
Not since the Cabinet of DR.. Cali
gari" and the Last Laugh" those two
European products of cinema art, has
the screen offered anything that is even
remotely comparable to Sunrise" from
any or all angles. It is overwhelming
masterful and defiant of criticism save
the most laudatory; and what is more,
it Is an American gem of which one
may justly be proud.
Although we would want to call this
wonder picture wholly our own, we must
admit that If it had not been for the
genius Of F. w. Murnau, who was i'm
ported by william Fox from Germany
to direct, the chances are that the great
American picture would be still in the
offing. Murnau took one of the stories
of Suderman, peopled it with living
characters, and subtly wove it into
pictorially vivid epic of human emo
lions that moves In lyric beauty to the
pulsing rhythm of genuine heart throbs.
TO him, therefore, must go the major
credit.
The lovely Janet Gaynor, made pur-
Superbly as the wife of George O'Brien,
Who incidentally, blossoms into a real
artist. We have come to expect much
from Miss Gaynor, but O'Brien springs
the most delightful surprise with his
remarkable delineation. Both are
charmingly natural, and one feels that
they, too, were inspired. Margaret
Livingston as the city siren, is always
convincing. The supporting cast is ex-
cellent, especially Bodil Rosing.
Few directors get much out of their
photography or tell so much with so
few Subtitles as Murnau, but there is
perhaps only one Murnau in the world.
Sound effects are Synchronized with the
film and although the sheer force of
drama and artistry would make Sun
rise" masterpiece, even in silence, the
sound Accomplishments seem to enhance
it.
Sunrise" needs no co-attraction to
gain your attention, but the very light
ness and freshness of the stage presen-
tation, "Dr. jazz" lends decidedly
jovial note, thereby nicely balancing
the somber tone of the feature picture.
Fred Berrens, in the name role of the
revue, returns with his violin to master
the gay ceremonies. Miss Theo Penn
ington and Lawrence Downey, the latter
being the invisible master of ceremonies
of the entire program. sing Irving Ber-
Inns latest hit, How About Me-" assist
ed by a dancing chorus of 10 clever
girls. Aileen Hamilton steps around in
weird contortionistic fashion IN her &C.
centric dance. Two young men, Harm
and Nee, MARBLE in pleasing harmony;
Madeline Klein dances gracefully IN
solo, while Mill and Shea bring the
festivities to close in a gale of laugh
ter with their clever comedy acrobat1cS.
The Fox Movietone, featuring Presi-
dent Coolidge riding in an OK cart While
on vacation In the South, and selections
by the concert orchestra under Leon
and Delilah" help to make this an I'M
forgettable show.
PALACE-"Three Week Ends"
Clara Bow has deserted her recent
attempts at heavy drama" and has
come back as her fans like her, to
score in Elinor Glyn's latest, Three
Week Ends"
Another of those inconsequential,
but, nevertheless, amusing comedies,
with Bow and a good subtitle writer
tied for honors, Three Week Ends" is
Nine. Glyn in her less hectic moments.
For, while the plot Is one of those an
cient things built on rather unplausi-
BILE coincidents, it Is we'll enough done.
To go into the story would be only a
rehash of an oft-told movie plot and
yet with several new angles and Clara
Bow to f1irt through the old ones, the
picture is "top-hole" for those on a
light diet.
Harrison Ford in a harassed bache-
lor bit uses his bag of facial express
SionS to make his last fling before
matrimony an exciting one. The man
ax,laA croo1I L4lain L. IL -....