The Ottawa Journal from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada • Page 15

If i 1 15 SATURDAY. JULY 8, 194.. THE OTTAWA JOURNAL OTTAWA i VALLEY-DAY, THIMBLE THEATRE Starring POPEYE rree Lire in Visualized by Peter; Gorman OUVe.006" CAUD ME UP. I WIST I KNOVJED WW AMA6H DON' WArTCAJSTO ME TO TAKE ER TO A MAfSHj BAU." IS; "BOT I DJDVJf HAWE hOTlME. THINK.

I WAS A KjMORAMUfcS LOOK THE TJVSHVOMARV riM MtK -I VOO-HOO 1 a lAa (PWi Nights of Gladness a Vanished World Ottawan's Premiere At Old Grand Negro Waiter's Advice to Boy Star; 1. Glamorous Lillian Russell and Heir Famous, Fur Coat .1 'v Our Golden Age i7 I it sf WrttMii I ar Jnraal fcy BLury Walks. QC he night of September 22, 187, an eleven-year-old Ot- tawa newsboy walked out before the drop curtain of the old Grand Opera House on Albert street and did. a step dance. It was only 'supposed to be an entr'acte "turn" while the scenery was being changed, but It down a packed house in wild acclaim.

Coins showered on the stage until that tattered newsboy with the talented feet had far more money in his hat than he would earn in a year of selling papers. But from that night Peter Gorman never sold' any more papers. New vistas suddenly opened before his startled young eyes, and before he bad retired from step dancing, he had toured and "conquered" the world in- his chosen specialty. Even then he never quite, left the toot-lights, tot as manager of the Russell Theatre from J9Q1 to 1921 he continued In close contact with all the famous personalities of the legitimate stage of that golden age. To recapture the.

mood and tempo of those nights of, gladness in a period of color and light so far removed from the sombre; i shadows of this present "twilight of the gods" we sought him out this week. It was the occasion of his 73th birthday and from every quarter of the compass, messages and flowers came to that front room of his hospitable, house from whence he looks out upon a changed world. Many friends visited him, and they saw a Peter Gorman who had looked death in tho-eye and with -Irish courage and I wit had Jested himself Into a new I lease, of life. And so we found him in the midst of thronging happy memories which for hun mill always be his "roses in De- Peter Gorman is a product of the great Victorian age of rugged individualism. Its later decades have been called "the horse and buggy but those catea who once thought it quaint and out-moded may be revising opinions today.

Its tempo may. have been slow according to blitzkrieg standards, but it at least did not lead the world in a mad 1 race to hell as this highly mechan-! Ized age is doing. By contrast with the present, the gay nineties and the sprightly 1900's was a 2 time" of leisurely existence lnter-j larded with action. life was tinged with color, and there was even a romantic thrill in the crunching of carriage wheels spinning up to deep cool verandahs under the moon. is no more revealing cross-section of life to that period than that mirrored by the theatre.

And so Peter Gorman took -us on a journey back through those spacious years Jim" corbett was the class of nstiania; when Teddy Roosevelt raised his Rough Riders to the tune of Dolly Gray; when Dan men was the king of pacers; 'when minstrel and burlesque snows packed 'em to the 'when musical comedy "queens" in ruffles' and flounces and Merry mow picture nats rerreshed the tired business man with soncs still live; and when the stage proaucea stars that -outshone Hollywood. Brave Irish Mother. MTe- had asked him about 'the secret' of his success, and without hesitancy he attributed it all to mother. Proudly he told us his boyhood years in this city; of the poverty that deprived the family of opportunity the snarp struggle for existence; of the five soup kitchens that were i or a tune Kept in operation in the Ottawa of the early seventies; of life on "Letter Row" by the old St Lawrence and Ottawa Railway yards near what is now Bolton street; and of later days on "the Plats" out Broad street The necessity of -contributing to family support (their father Ger-aid Gorman worked in those hard times for a dollar a day) deprived young Jerry and Peter Gorman of much schooling and they som newspapers and did odd Jobs. Both beys inherited from their mother a flair for' dancing.

The twinkling feet of a lovely Irish colleen, Johanna O'Brien, had won her the championship of Ireland in Irish jigs and reels. This talent she bequeathed to her sons, who -suDsequentiy Became, a world -champion duo. fi "Chaw ef Tebaeeo." Then came the night when old Jacques, the showman: was in our town playing at the! old Grand with a galaxy of troupers. He needed a turn to All in a interval between a change of scenes. 1 somebody recommended young reter oorman to do a step dance and the boy was given some pre- liminary coaching as to what was "required.

He was. to come on with his papers, do his dance, ind take "chaw of He swallowed the tobacco, the stage revolved around him, and the roar of the crowd seemed to come from tar away. But Peter finished Jus act and registered a decided hit. So much so that he was lm- mediately taken on with the cast "The next he reminisced, "a small boy in short lin- en pants and running shoes and wearing, a straw hat without a crown through which his hair stuck out took the train on his first Journey As Peter Xrorman continued in his delightful whimsical wit one could visualize the young boy's nervousness and anxiety in strange company in a big hoter in.a strange city. The' cast had put up at the old Queens and at breakfast the youngster saw his first negro waiter, 'who shoved an imposing menu in front of him.

Tea and Bread and Batter. "I Can't whispered young Gonnaii as' the puzzled negro then inquired what he would like, "Teal and bread and stammered the boy in nervousness. It was "tea and bread and butter" for everV meal that day as the pop-eyed wonder of the negro and the hunger of the boy paralleled each other. Next morning the boy was tip well In advance of breakfast time before the rest of the csst came down. There was no one around to cramp his style.

But the friendly negro waiter took him aside with some advice. "Lookee here, boy, you wid dose theatre folks?" Young Peter admitted that he was. "You est nuffln but tea and bread and butter, huh." Peter was silent as the negro admonished him further. "Well you suah better git some titles and beef Into that stummick of yours or you dont dance a hell of a lot Let me fix you up." And he did, and Peter ate and ate. "Now you suah dene sump-, thin' observed the negro approvingly.

Glamor Girl in Ottawa. That waa his first dancing act, and Peter Gorman soon graduated into "big time" vaudeville as a star In his own right Many a stirring episode he recalled of those who were headliners and of fascinating women who were the toast of the Broadway of Rectors. Possibly la 4 future article we may delineate some of these. Intensely human characters whose lives were a golden thread in a golden age that has gone forever. One story will conclude our chapter this week.

It is about Lillian Russell on her only visit to Ottawa and the purchase of a fur coat the gift of an admirer. Lillian Russell appeared In Ottawa in 1910 in a famous racing, play. There was an lndefineable something about Lillian Russell that commanded attention. She was in a striking statuesque way and she was one of the best dressed women of the stage, but she also possessed some -quality of voice, some compelling allure, that swept her into' the acclaim of the theatrical world. She was the glamor girl of Broadway, and among her legion of admirers was "Dia mond Jim Lillian's Far Coat She was scheduled for two appearances in Ottawa on December 23 and 24, the last being a particularly difficult date on ac count of the Christmas shopping my There was a sell-out the first night and her manager, Jim Stevens, had received a wire to purchase her a gift Now Jim was carefuL and did not want to spend too much.

Before making the purchase, however, he sought Peter Gorman's advice, and took him around to introduce him to the diva of the stage. The beauty of Broadway stared hard at Gorman as if trying to recall a former meeting. Then he started to hum a few bars of "After the Ball is Instantly the actress registered recognition. Years previously she had broken into vaudeville on the same bill as Peter Gorman at Tony Pastor's theatre on 14th street New York. On that bill was the Muldoon Quartet "It was rather a poor observed Peter, "but they had a new song which I heard being composed by Charles K.

Harris." The song was "After the Ball Is Over" and it became a famous waltz ballad that evokes nostalgic memories of vanished yesterdays. The Introduction over, the party went out to select the gift Thrifty Jim Stevens was set on something not too expensive in the Jewelry line but Peter Gorman had something better in mind. He steered the lovely Lillian and her manager into the fur emporium of R. J. Devlin where there was a truly regal coat retailing at $1,100 or so.

Lillian feU for it hard but Jim was whispering frantically to about the cost It staggered even the hard-boiled manager of a star, but Peter worked quietly on Jim, Impressing him with its advertising value and box office power. Finally the coat was sold at manufacturer's cost Lillian appeared in it the House was. again sold out all over the circuit Lillian and the fur coat knocked 'era- gag-gagat What would yen say If I kissed yu. Miss Sweet I. "I dent knew.

That sort ef seeeeh eheula alwaye be sxtsmperaneeus." Nrwm) Hear Mere ever there krstllnf ahowt hie wlfsT" What'a he seylnaf" He'e telling Xlark that all he la he ewee te her. Humph I Oe yew eall that ref glnr -s at kEBS. GUnS. XtT. SWNKI1MG KWIVK.aJMHNU II 1 iTA SSSl BPA.EVQsYTHIM6:7 Mil 7 i' N1! i I II MWm W- 17 W9 AMONDU DOMTFIDDH UTTLLRSH GO AFTER THE- UITWm THEM ml f-ck -j NOVW REMEMBER, Mi FRONT OF THE VTHEYU- SEE I U.

tmtm 0m I ft 1 POPEYE i 7TT7T77ii EXCUSE TT.PUEASE. A MISTAKE' ITS TWS 6ENrnJEMAHTHAT WINS FRST PRIZE 0 ANDTHE Y3UNG LAT3V GETS THE SECOND PRIZE INSTEAD luc- CO "WAY-YOU asw'f2C PWI iQ A JOKE 0M A BULL MOOSE AND MAKJf i HIM TWIMK TPEREJ A LADY PRESEMTV 7 Osw. 1401 Km hm Inc. THE WHEMMDKHARE FOR THE SUPPOSED TO NEAR A NORMAN, 7 i "7, km MASK TO TWS DANCE THEY'RE KNEVJ'YOLTO POPEYE, LOOK. OUOGES ARE MOTONlNGi USTQ TO BOV YOU CfJE, SO YOU 'WEAR MIKJE.

AND rUL GO T7 WHISKERS LADES ANf.GEMT THE WINNER OP the first prize FOR THE FUNNIEST" WHAS WRONG, OUVE? J7 kVPkfvwOAvT l'it SUMiPIN T.7M 1 I MASK 1 TMLl 1 I 7 if ONE OF THE JOS OF CAMPIMG.1 r.Hii. i TV i TV BEMIMaS'AimJl) THEtWFlRt' UfTH) SDMS ITJTHEQMLM-HFEi 74f. Am I GEE, POPEYE, AW, CiVJAN-rU. SOU-RE GOOD- 7 BET YER OUS UOOKJMCf TRYNA MAKE MASKV VM6 FEEL GOOD (tltoBHM Wl YOUNa VOU CAW TAME OFWOVRUE.HEBt VLADY-VS YOUR MA6K r-TlS A FUNKKER KNOWS WHY YfR SORE ITS B'CAUSR 1l? TV4AK WHV I 7-7 mm rr SHEMACE, AMD TOE APPETITE OWE GETS! LIKE A j. -X.

1 'vem vsj ttft MM! i THE GREAT ODTDOORJ7 ISCALLING "thatwakes A 7 BITES THE DUST! 7k FjnallyJ schae-owe' WAKEWS1Y0UT0W A nf CV, nSlflMS PAST BED- )fM time iamd to pur WlW 3 JsaskJsassKsflsAsSBJsBJsaA AA 4 1 -J. 77 A i 7, 1 V77, 7 771 A- 777 '7 ') 'A A 777 77 7 77 7.