Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-11-18

| the ScnOOl ana the 1OOG Dali prospects
to secure her revenge. She has a
work fout in a fashion almost too good
| to be true. It's too good to be spoiled
| by telling. Go and see for yourself.
The splendid voice of George Dewey
| Washington. colored baritone, is the
| brightest spot in Boris Petroff's stage
| revue, They're Of" He sings AT
| the End of the Road" and BLACK and
Blue" both numbers being received bv
the audience with marked. enthusiasm
AL Evans and the Palace Syncopators
.Forsythe and Kelly, Eddie McKenria
and the Fred Evans Ensemble all do
their bit The International News Reel
just one more word for. Jack Oakie
and Helen Kane-they'll drive those
blues so far away that you'n be taking
about ''Sweetie" for days to come.
PTATTO Once again the talkies
- have reached into the
"The grabbing of college stories
Sophomore" and pulled out a, battered
= piece of atmosphere
called THE Sophomore" It Is offered
at the Rialto this week.
Full of ideas about campus life. twist
ed threads of villainy and heroisn1 in
fraternity houses and on the gridiron.
THE Sophomore" does nothing more
than juggle an overworked phase of
American So-called education into a,
glamorouS, pathetic screen drama. The
fact that the whole thing is here man
tied. by broad comedy Gas if the pro-
ducers poked a waggish finger at you
ana said, oh, come, come; it's all in
fun; you mustn't mind!") does not
make its. literal phases any more divert
ing or any the less silly
The picture has two pleasantly direct
performances by Eddie Quillam and
Sally ONeill, all embroidered about
With campus romance and pretty Sacri-
f1ce, and at least one excellently satiric
touch in the radio announcements of
the big football clash. Once again,
however. the picture, Of campus social
distinctions, social rudenesS and petty
disloyalty makes the average college
man or woman seem, the main reason
for publishing book of etiquette.
Russell Gleason and, Jeanette Loft
have smaller roles. Spec" O'Donnell
makes amusing contributions in the
foot bali sequence. Corey Ford, that
gentleman whose mock erudition has
more than once proved bicarbonate of
of THE Sophomore" in its original
story form. Somewhere along the route
they threw him, out.
experimenting the feature are a
number of short subjects. one with the
Rooney family. an animated comic
strip with the little cats and mice and
rabbits which have been popular for so
long, done with sound and vocal effects;
Grantland Rice "Sportlight," a senti-
bond Lover" and, in finale, The Eve
ming Star Universal Newsreels.
r. c. o.
RKO-kEITH Given a third
Rio Rita" O-Keith Theater,
Rio Rita" soon
may .have everybody in town singing
to himself. An extravagant statement,
but "Rio-Rita" Is an extravagant and
a melodiouS production and the state
ment is about as long as it is broad,
judging by the line OF patrons, the
capacity audiences and crowded Hobbies
Sunday afternoon and evening, and 1t
raining!
Rio Rita" is tuneful and interesting.
In the principal roles, Bebe Daniels and
John Boles are distinctly pleasing. Miss
Daniels has, a better singing voice
than one would suppose. Boles is espe-
cially capable. He has the ability to
in manner and facial expression, which
lends vigor to his portrayal. The mo-
ton picture magazines quote him as
saying he finds himself half in love with
every woman he plays opposite, and
that may account for a great deal OF
his charm.
1t may be that the success of Rio
Rita" and similar productions means
that our theaters are to be flooded with
this type. Of entertainment Musical
comedy suffers when translated to the
screen, albeit retaining much of the
beauty attaching to gorgeous scenery
and costumes. Not lending itself to
the rapid movement and the light
someness possible on the stage, the
theme or plot must be bolStered, with
the result that phases of the picturiza-
ton are tireSome and entirely foreign
to the effect of the whole.
Rio Rito" lends itself to criticism on
that score. It Is q spectacular, inter-
esting piece and several of its scenes,
done in Technicolor, are quite pleasing.
and the comedy antics of Bert Wheeler,
of the original ziegfeld cast, and Robert
WoolSey, save an audience from bore
dom not infrequently.
Rio Rita" has full play as the en-
tertainment, Supplementals having been
omitted. Fred Clarkes and his R-K-O-
lians play sprightly conglomeration
of tunes as an introduction. H.C~
METROPOLITAN oeorge
Arl j S s.
Disraen" wo nderful
character
ization of Benjamin Disraeli in the
Warner Bros Vitaphone reproduction
of the Louis N. Parker play. "Disraeli,"
which is in its second week at the
Metropolitan Theater, is enlightening
photoplay audiences, as well as delight
ing them, more and more in one of the
great characters of history as the run
of the picture continues.
It's basic theme is, of course, the ac-
QUESTION of the Suez Canal, resulting
in the transformation of the British
kingdom into an empire; and the pic
ture, not improbably, shows sample
of the detailed diplomacy that brought
this about, although there is little doubt
that many of the details of the picture,
as of the play, have not the historic
I -