The Los Angeles Times from Los Angeles, California • 49

Miffed Barbra's Act Opens Vegas Hotel id BY CHARLES CHAMPLIN Tlmtt lntrtlninnt toiler IB i PART IV FRIDAY, JULY 4, 1969 Jul. She is also an actress and comedienne of great gifts and she has a spiky directness of manner. The trouble was that manners had become mannerisms. Her performance had been finely calculated but that magic rapport which Sinatra, Tony Bennett- and Miss Lee-can establish with their audiences never really got going for Barbra. It was a performance which originated in a cool-intellect rather than a warm heart; it was a hand-out, not a sharing.

There were specific problems: The show was too long; the selections were largely an extended and finally counter productive plug for her three movies and a new album. The chat between was self-con-IMease Turn to Page 11, Col. .1 LAS VEGAS Amidst the rich aromas of fresh-cut carpeting, instant antiques and recent paint, the International Hotel the newest and largest pleasure dome In this thicket of pleasure domes opened its innumerable doors Wednesday. The International, a high-rise for high-rollers, soars 30 stories into the fierce desert air. Together with the tall, slender spire of the Landmark Motel, which opened Tuesday, Kirk Kerkorlan'a International plays still further hob with the gypsy and frivolous tone you somehow always associate with Las Vegas.

The winnings may be transient but they and the losses now transpire in an atmosphere of skyscrap-ing grandeur and permanence. Comfortingly, however, the International offers row upon row of nickel slot machines. Entrepreneur Kerkorian is easy to distinguish from Vegas' other principal entrepreneur, Howard Hughes. Kerkorian i3 also shy, but visible. In fact, Kerkorian was introduced to the open night invited audience by no less than Cary Grant.

The hotel is far from finished and the harassed-looking workmen have almost outnumbered the guests, but the opening has been relatively and remarkably low in chaos. The major crisis took place behind the scenes when for a time it appeared that Barbra Streisand, miffed at some details of the plan ning, might choose to reign on her parade and not perform, thus becoming the gambling capital's first no-show. Amiability was restored, however, and Miss Streisand went on for an hour and 20 minutes. Later in the night Peggy Lee premiered in the International's other entertainment room, the Casino Theater. It was a strange and instructive study in contrasts.

Even allowing for the opening night tension, Miss Streisand's ap-pearance was a curious, cold and intensely disappointing 80 minutes worth. As her admirers know, she has a superb voice, pure and power- W)HJiL, BARBRA STREISAND opens International. Iffl Wlrephott BALLET REVIEW Royal Troupe Opens 19th LA Season lilliigllPWI JACK SMITH Congressmen Take 2, Hit to Right or Left People often complain that "we aren't getting all the news out of Washington," Generally, our Washington correspondents do a remarkable job of covering our fantastically complex capital and its labyrinthine affairs. Sometimes, inevitably, significant stories are missed. My friend Lou Haas, field secretary for Sen.

Alan Cranston, has sent me a page from the' Congressional Record which evidently was overlooked by the press. I believe it deserves public attention. The Record notes that Rep. James Symington (D-Mo.) was given permission to address the House for one minute. His remarks are quoted as follows: 4.

rw '-i v. i nji BY MARTIN BERNHEIMER Tlmn Muilc Critic The marquee outside Shrine Auditorium promised something called the "Polack Circus and Old-Time Carnival Midway." But 6,001 balletomanes knew better Wednesday night. They packed the shabby old barn to give a royal welcome to the Royal Ballet, embarking on its 19th visit to Los Angeles and celebrating the 20th anniversary of its American debut. It was a good night. There have been occasions In the recent past when one worried about the health of the Royal Ballet as an ensemble.

One worried about the depth of the roster and the strength of the male contingent. But there was no need to worry Wednesday. The company never looked better. Sensitive Group Effort The old precision and elegance remain in tact, now coupled with a degree of spirit, solidarity and vitality which one might not have predicted a few years ago. The evening belonged not to a single star, but to the company as an artistic entity.

And, as such, the evening belonged to one man: the company's director (soon to be director emeritus) and chief choreographer, Frederick Ashton. Ashton's influence was felt indirectly in the sensitive group effort, overtly in two new ballets which dominated the evening. His "Enigma Variations," based musically and programmatically on Elgar's "classic," and "Jazz Calendar," a happy-go-lucky mod diversion, demonstrated two expressive perspectives of a choreographer searching for a middleground between formal restraint and experimentation. As if to remind us that the Royal Ballet still has its roots in Romantic Russia, and to reinforce the fact that the ensemble still boasts a pair of superstars in residence, the evening Pleasa Turn to Page 5, Col. 1 Thomas Jefferson, an art dealer, holds a local copy of America's Declaration of Independence.

Timrs photos by Jadd Gundersnn Names From the Past on Independence Day "Mr. Speaker, I simply want, as an ambulatory member of the Democratic baseball team this morning, to congratulate the Republicans on their victory last night, and the fine team they fielded Wilmer (Vinegar Bend) Mizell and perhaps eight others. (Vinegar Bend Mizell, as you may knew, pitched for the Cardinals and the Pirates before arm trouble forced him into politics.) "But, Mr. Speaker," Symington went on, "there has been progress. Last year we lost by a score of 17 to This year we lost 7 to 2.

We have cut them down to size. "Even Mr. Mizell struck out only five batters, leaving open the question of what might have happened had he faced a sixth. I would like to dose with three bits of advice to future Democratic batsmen, inasmuch as' through trades and drafts we may lose a few. "First, on the fast ball I suggest that if you hear the ball hit the glove, it is probably fruitless to swing.

"Second, in handling the curve, do not be alarmed by the noise. It is the normal sound of the landing gear falling into place. "Finally, if you have been standing there for 60 seconds and you have not noticed anything, perhaps you should walk with dignity back to the dugout. You are out." BY ARLENE VAN BREEMS Timn staff wnttr Thomas Jefferson and John Paul Jonss are cele- 'A, brating Independance Day today along with every- t. Dody else.

Not because of longevity but because the well-remembered names from American history books are the same for some very much alive in Los Angeles today. It is a mixed blessing to be a namesake. "Everytime you write a check, somebody makes a funny remark," said Mrs. John Paul Jones, whose --y i husband is a well-known artist living in Laguna Beach. Rarely Forget i "As a little boy I visited Monticello," said contem- porary Thomas Jefferson, a local art dealer.

"The lady who checked the visitors' signatures I thought my entry was a joke and not a very funny one." Very rarely does a mailman, secretary or host for- get the name. Bachelor Benjamin Franklin, an attorney for the county counsel's office in the Hall of Administra- tion, can cite numerous examples of disbelief at introduction time. "Once they realize it is not a put-on," said Fran-Please Turn to Page 4, Col. 1 UmiM. Mimm Artist John Paul Jones sometimes suffers from seasickness.

Security guard Robert E. Lee is wearing a different uniform. STAGE REVIEW Don Quixote Returns in 'La Mancha' At this point Rep. Charles Joelson arose. "Mr.

Speaker, will the gentleman yield?" "I am glad to yield to the gentleman from New Jersey." "I would like to tell the gentleman," said Mr. Joelson, "that tradition changes very slowly here. The Republican congressional delegation continues to win ballgames and the Democratic congressional delegation continues to win elections." Said Mr. Symington, "It is a consolation." I don't know whether this news would be considered sports or politics, but in any case I am happy to pass it along to the public. In view of the staggering problems they face daily in the halls of Congress, I am somehow reassured at the picture of our legislators out playing Sunday baseball, Republicans against Democrats.

Would it happen in any other country? I'm disturbed, though, by Symington's hint that the Democrats may lose some strength through trades and drafts. If that is so, we Democrats ought to begin right now to build for the future. I wonder if Maury Wills and Don Drysdale are Democrats? 't' 11-'! V'i. BY DAN SULLIVAN Timn Drama Critic "Man of La Mancha" is the musical about Don Quixote, but perhaps not the "Don Quixote" of musicals. It is a colorful show, an ingenious show (scenically, especially), a literate show.

On its return Wednesday night to the Ahmanson Theatre, it also seemed a very tedious show. Although not to everyone. The Civic Light Opera Assn. audience rewarded the company with the kind of applause described in minutes of Soviet political meetings as stormy, and the star, Jose Ferrer, with a standing ovation, rather as if he had just announced the advent of world peace. In fact, Ferrer had acted only indifferently well and had sung atrociously.

Show Disappoints But the disappointments in "Man of La Mancha" for this reviewer go beyond the lapses of a distinguished performer who may have been having an off-night. The show itself disappoints; so earnest in its desire to be more than a Broadway vulgarization of a great myth, and yet so ready to be exactly that in order to keep the audience awake. "Vou did what? people keep saying to Ferrer. "You're gonna kisi my If thii la Cervantes, gome-thing must have got lost in translation. However, to tAe up arms igainet 'Man of La Mancha qua ihovr at thii late rite woul 1 liu! Jik Quixote taking on lh windmill, rStiia Turs It rift I TODAY'S REVIEWS BOOKS: Nd O'Gorman's "Prophetic Voices: Ideas and Words on Revolution" by Robert Kirsch on Page 4.

MOVIES: "Heaven With a Gun" by Kevin Thomas on Page 7. "The Extraordinary Seaman" by Kevin Thomas on Page 9. MUSIC: Hoyt Axton by Robert Hilburn on Page 12. TELEVISION: ABC Summer Focus by Ray loynd en Page 14. AND OTHER FEATURES M( DEAR ABBY Page 3 ASTROLOGY Page 2 BRIDGE Page 4 CHRISTY POX Page 7 COMICS fog.

15 CfCIl SMITH foge IJ Attorney Benjamin Fronklm ofcajionolly fliei kitti hen wecjthtr condition! permit it, Retired proftswr Ulyssei 5. Grant IV omi hn wif Mv memtntoi of hit anceitor..