Word: engels
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...stranded in Cairo. It is a tragedy of a broken nation, and it is the tragedy of one family trapped at the crossroads between nations. Mr. Tabori is clearly more interested in the second problem, and the play becomes a slow-moving, though extremely intense, psychological study of the Engel family and its efforts to obtain passage for America...
Strictly speaking there is very little plot. Franz Engel, wounded in the war and much older than his wife, is forced to depend on her completely while they await their visas in a stifling hotel in Cairo. His wife and son, Bubi, resort to all manner of strategems to obtain money enough to keep the family alive until the visas arrive. As the fight for survival becomes more and more difficult, their strategems become more and more degrading...
...manner of soldiers, doctors, refugees, and Arabs wander on and off the stage, but they all contribute more to the development of Lili Engel's character than to any coherent story. Their own character are sketchily drawn; one--a hunchback doctor by the name of Ghoulos--makes no sense at all. Except for Freund, a Viennese merchant convincingly portrayed by Paul Mann, these minor characters generally overact, perhaps because Director Elia Kazan feels the need of sharp contrast to the complexity of Mrs. Engel...
...outstanding performances of the play, which make it a rewarding dramatic experience in spite of its structural defects, are the interpretations of Mr. and Mrs. Engel by Paul Lukas and Gusti Huber. The latter, an Austrian actress appearing for the first time on an American stage, is particularly excellent in the difficult role of a cultured woman whose ideals and emotions corrode away in the struggle to live. Mr. Lukas is extremely moving in his portrayal of a proud man with indomitable will, who refused to believe that physical weakness could prevent him from achieving his goal...
Women are by far the worst offenders. Last week Manhattan's Jane Engel specialty store, whose well-heeled women customers return up to 20% of their purchases, tried a plan to cut returns. It offered to give its customers a merchandise bonus of 7% on their purchases three times a year, provided that their returns in the previous four months had not exceeded 10%. Jane Engel seemed to be cashing in on the plan already. Although total New York City retail sales lagged 8% behind last Christmas, Engel's reported that its sales were...