The Naughty Husband single work   musical theatre   revue/revusical   humour  
Alternative title: Honeymoon Troubles
Issue Details: First known date: 1926... 1926 The Naughty Husband
The material on this page is available to AustLit subscribers. If you are a subscriber or are from a subscribing organisation, please log in to gain full access. To explore options for subscribing to this unique teaching, research, and publishing resource for Australian culture and storytelling, please contact us or find out more.

AbstractHistoryArchive Description

Revusical.

Described in the Sydney Morning Herald in 1926 as 'a new revue written by Jim Gerald' (19 June 1926, p.10), this one-act musical comedy is set in a hotel where two couples have come on their honeymoons. Jim Gerald (as the naughty husband, Teddy Short) manages to lose his masterful wife (originally played by Essie Jennings) and finds himself caught up with a beautiful actress, Mrs Loveday, who has also mislaid her new husband. The increasingly angry Percy Loveday, meanwhile, has to endure the nagging of Mrs Short, while they search in vain for their missing spouses. The Brisbane Courier's theatre critic writes that 'the threads of the story were kept intact from the beginning to the end, allowing for the introduction of scenic interludes and by-play. A most laughable farce ended the dramatic meeting of the two couples in the lounge of the Hotel Riviera, where hitherto "henpecked" Teddy lays down the law to a meek and respectful wife' (16 May 1927, p.16).

One of the best received songs of the 1933 revival was, according to the Sydney Morning Herald, Reg Hawthorne's rendition of 'When Dixie Stars' (13 February 1933, p.5).

Production Details

  • 1926: Fullers' Theatre, Sydney, 19-25 June.

    • Director Jim Gerald; Producer Fullers' Theatres Ltd; Stage Manager Lance Vane; Chorus Polly McLaren.
    • Troupe Jim Gerald's Revue Company.
    • Cast incl. Jim Gerald (Teddy Short) Essie Jennings (Mrs Short), Reg Hawthorne, Polly McLaren, Lance Vane, Mona Thomas, Ernest Crawford (Percy Loveday), Howard Hall, Myra Rowe, Betty Lambert, May Geary (Mrs Loveday), Neva Carr-Glynn, and the Six Twinklers.
    • The troupe was joined for this production by Leslie Pearce.

    1926: New Bijou Theatre, Melbourne, 16-22 Oct.

    • Director Jim Gerald; Producer Fullers' Theatres Ltd; Stage Manager Lance Vane; Chorus Polly McLaren.
    • Troupe Jim Gerald Revue Company.
    • Cast incl. Jim Gerald, Essie Jennings, Reg Hawthorne, Polly McLaren, Lance Vane, Mona Thomas, Ernest Crawford, Howard Hall, Myra Rowe, Betty Lambert, May Geary, and the Six Twinklers.
    • Iris McKenzie's name is mentioned in several reviews during the Bijou Theatre season. It is unclear at this stage if she had become a member of the cast or was still one of the Six Twinklers.

    1927: Empire Theatre, Brisbane, 14-20 May.

    • Director Jim Gerald; Producer Fullers' Theatres Ltd; Stage Manager Lance Vane; Chorus Polly McLaren.
    • Troupe Jim Gerald's Revue Company.
    • Cast incl. Jim Gerald, Essie Jennings, Reg Hawthorne, Harry Burgess, Polly McLaren, Lance Vane, Ernest Crawford, Howard Hall, May Geary, Betty Lambert, Dalton Payne, Harry Payne, Flora McDonald, Ray and Dot McLean, Jack Manners, and the Six Twinklers.

    1927: Fullers' Theatre, Sydney, 10-16 December.

    • Director Jim Gerald; Producer Fullers' Theatre Ltd; Stage Manager Lance Vane.
    • Troupe Jim Gerald's Revue Company.
    • Cast incl. Jim Gerald, Essie Jennings, Reg Hawthorne, Harry Burgess, Howard Hall, Lance Vane, Phyllis du Barry, Ray McLean, Mona Thomas, Cecil Scott, May Geary, Dot Creswell, Les Pearce, Neva Glynn-Carr, Betty Lambert, and the Six Twinklers.

    1930: Tivoli Theatre, Melbourne, 19-25 April.

    • Directer Jim Gerald. Producer Tivoli Celebrity Vaudeville.
    • Troupe Jim Gerald Musical Revue Company.
    • Cast incl. Jim Gerald, Essie Jennings, Reg Hawthorne, Howard Hall, Jim Foran, Sadie Gale, Tom Dale, Joe Hudson, Ray McLean, Joan Graham, Lily Coburn, Marie Ward, Thelma Duff, Edna Ralston (the actress), and the Six Twinklers.

    1933: Tivoli Theatre, Sydney, 10-16 February (as Honeymoon Troubles).

    • Director Jim Gerald; Producer Con-Paul Theatres (Mike Connors and Queenie Paul).
    • Cast incl. Jim Gerald, Lily Coburn, Reg Hawthorne, Frieda Bohning, Howard Hall, Thelma Duff, Will Perryman, Lou Cottam, Tom Dale, Heather Jones, Thelma Bryce, Jess Gillam, Vilma Kaye, and the Twelve Twinklers.
    • NB: Frieda Bohning's surname is sometimes given as 'Bonning.' It is unclear which is the correct name.

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

Works about this Work

New Tivoli Theatre : 'Honeymoon Troubles' 1933 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 13 February no. 29676 1933; (p. 5)

— Review of The Naughty Husband Jim Gerald , 1926 single work musical theatre ; Happy Ideas Jim Gerald , 1929 single work musical theatre
A review of the 1933 Sydney season of Honeymoon Troubles (aka The Naughty Husband) and the first part revue, Happy Ideas.
Fun at the Empire 1927 single work review
— Appears in: The Brisbane Courier , 16 May 1927; (p. 16)

— Review of The Naughty Husband Jim Gerald , 1926 single work musical theatre
Fun at the Empire 1927 single work review
— Appears in: The Brisbane Courier , 16 May 1927; (p. 16)

— Review of The Naughty Husband Jim Gerald , 1926 single work musical theatre
New Tivoli Theatre : 'Honeymoon Troubles' 1933 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 13 February no. 29676 1933; (p. 5)

— Review of The Naughty Husband Jim Gerald , 1926 single work musical theatre ; Happy Ideas Jim Gerald , 1929 single work musical theatre
A review of the 1933 Sydney season of Honeymoon Troubles (aka The Naughty Husband) and the first part revue, Happy Ideas.

PeriodicalNewspaper Details

Note:
This entry has been sourced from research undertaken by Dr Clay Djubal into Australian-written popular music theatre (ca. 1850-1930). See also the Australian Variety Theatre Archive
Last amended 29 Aug 2014 08:21:51
X