Gilbert Wells comes on stage. He sings a few songs. He accompanies himself on the piano. He puts on a straw hat, sings and does an eccentric dance. It's a very enjoyable Vitaphone short from the era when they were recording a lot of vaudeville acts.
I can't find any reference to this particular performer outside the IMDb, but he performed songs, and judging by this short, he was a dialect performer. Lauder's would have been done with a Scottish accent. This one has Lauder performing novelty songs that strike me as the sort that African-American superstar Bert Williams would have performed in his heyday.
Modern Americans may have issues with the stereotyping or cultural appropriation. I see a popular entertainer of a bygone era.
I can't find any reference to this particular performer outside the IMDb, but he performed songs, and judging by this short, he was a dialect performer. Lauder's would have been done with a Scottish accent. This one has Lauder performing novelty songs that strike me as the sort that African-American superstar Bert Williams would have performed in his heyday.
Modern Americans may have issues with the stereotyping or cultural appropriation. I see a popular entertainer of a bygone era.
