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The Playgoer

"Three Men on a Horse" An Hilariously Funny Comedy About Horses And Verses

"Three Men on a Horse" which first saw the light of day some eight months ago has become quite a thing. A sort of international institution is this comedy by John Holm and George Abbott what with companies romping through it from London to Australia. Boston is the latest of the theatrical nooks and crannies to be discovered by producer Alex Yokel and since the Monday opening at the Plymouth great sounds of merriment have been rolling out into Park Square.

A rowdy comedy is "Three Men on a Horse". Simple in structure, very Damon Runyon in execution, it has a contagious hilarity and nonsense which must bring all but the utterly high-brow to uproarious laughter. Erwin Trowbridge, henpecked author of verses for Mother's Day greeting cards has a bitter quarrel with his spouse and is so far diverted from his routine that he goes not to the office but forthwith to a very low pub where he falls in with a group of down-at-the-heels race track touts. It has been Erwin's harmless amusement as he daily rides the Ozone Park bus to dope out the day's horse races and figure up his paper profits. He shows the boys his predictions for the races and, desperately they lay their last "fin" as he indicates. His horse comes through and so do all his other prognostications for the day. The "boys" adopt Erwin as their oracle and with the aid of Demon Rum keep him in their hotel penning his sweet lines and doping the races. After a hectic few days of this the mild Erwin becomes a man in his own right and, considerably enriched, returns to take his place as wearer of the pants in his own home.

This poppycock is acted with such dash and ingratiating crudness that the show proves a succession of highly amusing situations productive of constant laughter. Teddy Hart, Jean Casto, Hume Cronyn and Betty Field stand out in a cast which is admirably fitted, physically and vocally for the strenuous activities of "Three Men on a Horse." It's the McCoy.

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