*** Two extraordinary Americans graced the City Hall stage this week, haberdasher, family man and President of the United States, Harry S. Truman, brought to life through the magical touch of veteran actor Kevin McCarthy.

In the "damn the torpedoes,'' spirit of the late President, Mr. McCarthy battled against the odds -- suffering from a cold, the exhaustion of travelling here from the West Coast, and the distractions of the noisy City Hall air conditioning system -- to turn in a delightful performance as the irascible, straight talking 34th President.

Truman's career was extraordinary by any standard. He got into Missouri politics in the 1920's because his haberdashery shop failed and he was looking for a job. After serving in the Senate he was nominated as Roosevelt's running mate -- a job he did not sign up for. He had opposed FDR's successful bid for a third term in the White House.

He became President in the closing stages of the War after Roosevelt's death, and was immediately thrown into the conference at Potsdam, bargaining with Churchill and Stalin over the future of the world.

Truman's surprise progress to the White House led his being dubbed "his accidency,'' by political experts who expected this yokel shopkeeper to fail miserably.

He confounded the experts again and again, not least when he trounced Republican golden boy Tom Dewey in the election of `48.

As leader of the most powerful democracy in the world, Harry Truman oversaw the dropping of the atomic bomb which effectively ended the Second World War, the reconstruction and partition of Europe, the formation of NATO and the United Nations, the birth of the nation of Israel, the stand-off and conflict in Korea, and many of the other events which shaped the world today.

Anyone who underestimated the abilities of this plain spoken man who abhorred hypocrisy did so at their peril, as the labour leaders, political bosses, industrialists, Generals, potentates and extremists who took him on found to their peril.

The highlights of Truman's career were brought to life by Playwright Samuel Gallu in his one-man show "Give `em Hell Harry'' which opened in 1975, and Mr. McCarthy has been on the road with it for the last 14 years.

On the face of it the script would seem to be an unlikely success. Any theatrical work dealing with four decades of US and world politics runs the risk of dragging the audience down with documentary narrative, and "Give `em Hell's'' one-man format further jeopardies the play by placing the burden of carrying this potentially heavy material on the shoulders of one man.

If the piece was merely a humorous look at the life of a man who lived through fascinating times, it would not have the substance to hold the audience. If, on the other hand, the material was too heavily historical it would be as boring and happily forgotten as the Eisenhower Years.

The fact that "Give `em Hell Harry,'' has played to packed houses for more than two decades is eloquent testimony to the considerable talents of both actor and playwright.

Mr. Gallu's script entertains and delights by constantly, but painlessly, shifting the emphasis from the historic to the personal. throughout one has a very strong sense of Truman's wry take on the world and the people within it, his sense of loyalty, honour, humanity and humour, and above all, his extraordinary ordinariness.

Although the script meanders from subject to apparently unrelated subject: (trickle down economics, what to do with retired Presidents, dropping the bomb, Clement Atlee's lack of personality, civil rights, the foibles of hard drinking prohibitionists, running a shop and living with your mother-in-law, is a typical jumbling of themes) the audience gets wrapped in the comfort of Truman's personality and taken along.

The challenges of the script are more than matched by Kevin McCarthy, a newcomer to the Bermuda festival, but veteran of stage and screen whose career is every bit as exceptional as the President he brings to life.

Mr. McCarthy has worked with the legends of American theatre and garnered an OBIE Award and Academy Award nomination in the process.

He starred with Paul Mini in Elia Kazan's production of "Death of a Salesman'' and appeared in "The Three Sisters'' under the direction of Lee Strasberg. He won an OBIE for his role in "Harry Outside'' as Off Broadway's Circle Repertory Company and has recently appeared in "Love Letters'' with Sada Thompson and "A Life in Theatre.'' He got an Academy Award Nomination for his portrayal of "Biff'' in the film version of "Death of a Salesman,'' and is probably best known to movie buffs for his starring role in the cult-classic "Invasion of the Body Snatchers.'' TV viewers have seen him in countless production over the years, most recently in "Fame,'' "Dream On'' and "Murder She Wrote.'' As Truman, Mr. McCarthy is charming. After performing the role for over 14 year, in venues as varied as school halls and major theatres, he might be forgiven for turning in an over rehearsed and formulaic rendition. He does not. His work is full of natural spontaneity which is a joy to watch, and an example for lesser actors to emulate.

SEAN DILL THEATRE REVIEW REV