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THE COMMERCIAL APPEAL, MEMPHIS, WEDNESDAY MORNING, MARCH 26, 1969 Ice Rink Becomes A Dazzle Of Pulchritude And Thrills By ROBERT SABBATINI Complete with beautiful gals, extravagant costumes, hockey-playing chimpanzees and breathtaking skating, the Holiday on Ice show opened last night in the Mid-South Coliseum. A disappointingly small crowd of 3,700 watched the initial show of an eight-performance run. This is a family show full of music and color, action and elaborate staging. Thehighlight x the program is a Spanish number featuring Ronnie Robertson who be comes a black-booted dervish on ice. Then there's the throbbing jungle beat of "A Village Voo doo Ritual" pounded out in a blackout sequence that enhances the ghostly and graceful skating of Anna Galmarini. In "Harrigan's Holligans", 10-year-old Kim Cook assisted by her 8-year-old twin brothers Kris and Kelly stole the hearts of the crowd in an acrobatic frolic with their father, Cal Cook. And there was comedy thick and fast throughout the show. Afred Mendoza and John La due as Ole Houn'Dawg Himself winked and scooted their flop-eared way around the ice and out into the audience. Werner Muller with his chimps, Congo, Trixie and Judy, high sticking each other all the way, played a rousing hockey match and put on a very fancy jumping display. The show opens with a nostalgic number set in New York during the 1890's and features beautiul skating by Helga Valle, Jprge Valle and Alice Quessy. And for the grand finale, Holiday on Ice salutes the early days of Hollywood with a dazzling and slick costume number that spotlights old movie greats like Shirley Temple, Charlie Chaplin, Jean Harlow, Ruby Keeler and Judy Garland. The colorful eyeful and elegance on skates is well worth it. Remaining qerformances start at 7:30 p.m. through tomorrow, 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, with matinees at 2:30 Saturday and at 1 and 4:30 Sunday. The Ole Houn' Dawg Himself ?╟÷Staff Photo by Fred Griffith