New Musical in Manhattan

Texas, Li'l Darlin1 (book by John Whedon & Sam Moore; produced by Studio Productions, Inc. & Anthony Brady Farrell Productions) is suitably Texan in size and general good nature. But it is no less Texan in sprawl; it ranges over a lot. of flat country, strikes snags more often than oil, and displays no great sense of direction. Half satiric and half folksy, it is never quite sure whether it is stalking wild life or big shots, finally bags neither.

The satire is itself twofold, kidding Texas by way of a national picture magazine that decides to boom a small-time Texas politician (Kenny Delmar) for the presidency. The politician is meanwhile running for re-election as state senator against a young veteran (Danny Scholl). The plot is thickened by stirring in the old candidate's daughter (Mary Hatcher) to be the young candidate's sweetheart.

As spoofing, Texas, Li'l Darlin' is sporadic and seldom adept. It shines brightest in Johnny Mercer's lyrics, notably about private secretaries:

We keep his shirts from shrinking, We make his dates for drinking, We keep his glasses clinking . . . Protect him when he's stinking, But we don't do what you're thinking with the boss.*

On its folksy side, the show has some agreeable music and peppy dancing, but nothing better; and as if Texas weren't big enough, it makes several fumbling forays across the state line into Oklahoma!. The show is actually best when it has a straight Broadway blare and stomp and when the cast, which could use more personal glamour, can show its professional savvy. Somehow Texas just can't find the right girl or gag in the pinches; it dawdles when it needs to spurt, and turns cheap when it ought to be charming.

*Copyright, 1949, by Johnny Mercer and Robert Emmett Dolan.

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