Evening star., 1935-06-14

When Mr.. Armetta made his first
stage appearance this morning at the
Fox he was stepping out into a real
spotlight. And in so doing he was
raising the standard for a dozen or
more other players who are far from
being stars and who are yet as well
known in the big cities, the prov
1nces, the ninterlands and the hay
seed communities as Marion Davies,
Garbo or the blushing Miss West.
Among these may be claSsed the
bulging eyed Cliff Edwards, that peren-
nial nitwit. Patsy Kelly; the ever
blooming Roscoe Ates, that weeping
willow, zaSu Pitts, and possibly the
even somewhat more in demand Ed
ward Everett Horton. Put these on
any stage and they will get as much
mitten enthusiasm as their more eX-
pensive sires-and the air will be
sundered with exclamations of joy,
surprise. enthusiasm and admiring
whatnotS.
X x
MR.. ARMETTA has won his spurs
~'A in distinctly novel fashion. Not
having been born a beauty, nor blessed
with a flow of Cambridge (EnglandD
English, he has had to trim his small,
squat figure to new style and evolve
something which would strike the at
tention of his customers for good and
ell.
When, therefore. he came upon the
scene, he knew that unless he could
outdo himself in some fanciful ges-
ture, throwing pride and everything
else to the winds, he would become an
also ran, bounding the mournful
wicket of that window where each
morning a narrowed female says NO
to most extra seekers, and running
out IA the evening with only measly
$3.50 for his days work.
Therefore" said Mr.. Armetta to
himself, Il must find something new"
And something new he found. He
found that by gritting his teeth, he
found that by rolling his eyes in
four directions. by screwing up his
mustache, by painting and heaving
and signing, by roaring and scream
ing and tearing his hair, by crying
and bowling and tearing his clothes,
by doing, in other words everything
that everybody else does about six
times harder, he could attract atten-
ton.
And attract attention he did, and
has done, ever since. And we don't
mind saying that no character on the
screen today Is more welcome than
Mr.. Armetta. His wrath is his joy
and everybody else's joy. He can
scream and howl and poke his neigh
Dor in the jaw and his audience will
be with him to the man. We haven't
seen him as yet at the Fox. but we'll
bet a Braddock against Baer that
he's knocking his customers cold and
that they are as glad to see him in
perscn" as they have always been to
see him in any old role on the screen.
ToDAY's news;
~ M-G-M is singing and dancing
In the streets already over No More
Ladies'" the new Joan Crawford Rob-
ert Montgomery picture, which will
be screened tomorrow morning for
the benefit of the local drama de-
partments.
Mr.. and Mrs. Eddy Duchin, after at
tending a dance last night at the
Curtis Club, left for Cleveland via a
couple of one-night stands.
One of the real events of next week
will be the performance of waiting
for Lefty" which will be given by the
New Theater Group at Pierce Hall
Thursday and Friday nights. This is
q play you don't want to miss-and
one that should particularly interest
local tax drivers at this moment!
Hardie Meakin entertained mem
bers of the press last night atop
Keith's Theater marquis. The night
before he also entertained there
but only one gentleman writer ac-
cepted, sitting there in the rain and
watching the parade with grim de-
termination in a rain coat and UNI
brella.
Maxine Doyle was one of the en-