Sunday, October 4, 2009

April 7, 1932



KEATONS PATCH UP DIFFERENCE AFTER FOUR DAYS

Beverly Hills, April 6 (UP)
Three phonograph records, sent by Buster Keaton, film comedian, to his wife, the former Natalie Talmadge, brought apparent harmony to the Keaton household to-day.

Mrs. Keaton, after an absence of four days, was living again with her husband following a period of disturbed domestic relations which, the film comedian said, resulted from his desire to “show who wears the trousers around the house.”

The first overture, made in the form of a phonograph record, You’ve Got Me Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea, was sent by the comedian to his wife yesterday morning.

A few hours later a second record entitled All of Me, was dispatched.

That failing to bring results, Keaton said he sent a third. It was entitled Can’t We Talk It Over?

Mrs. Keaton appeared at her home shortly after receipt of that one.

Airplane Trip Halted

The differences between Keaton and his wife came to public notice Monday when Mrs. Keaton enlisting the aid of District Attorney Buron Fitts, persuaded San Diego police to take Keaton and his two sons, Joe and Robert, from an airplane that stopped there while en route to Ensenada, Mexico.

Keaton said the domestic differences arose from his desire to take the boys on an airplane trip, and Mrs. Keaton’s refusal to permit such a thing.

“I just wanted to see who’s boss,” Keaton said. “I didn’t know I’d stir up a miniature war in doing it, though.”

Keaton was questioned by San Diego police for more than an hour and released.

While waiting for the return of his wife last night, the film actor has placed an old lamp in the front window of his palatial home.

“There, we’ve got a light burning in the window for her, boys,” he told his sons. “She’ll come home to-night.”




MARY PICKFORD SEEKS CAREER IN SCULPTURE

Actress Reveals She Plans to Begin Study of Plastic Art on Return to Hollywood

New York Times, April 7, 1932
The name of Mary Pickford, now synonymous with stardom, may be known a few years hence as that of a sculptress as well as an actress. She is about to essay the difficulties of sculpture, not with any desire to rival the fame of professionals but to achieve this form of expression for her own pleasure.

For several weeks it has been reported in art circles here that Miss Pickford planned to undertake sculpture. When asked yesterday about these reports, Miss Pickford revealed that she had definite plans which she hoped to realize on her return to Hollywood from her present New York visit.

The desire to model clay and carve stone is not new with Miss Pickford, she said yesterday, but for a long time she has been deterred by a fear that she could not excel in this form of art. Gradually, she explained, the realization has come to her that the true artist is not animated primarily by a desire to surpass his fellow-artists, but by an urge to self-expression and creation.

With this view of art, she hopes on her return to California to study under a sculptor who does not know as yet that he will be asked to teach her – Boris Lovet-Lorski, a Russian by birth but a naturalized American citizen., who exhibited last fall in the Wildenstein Galleries at 647 Fifth Avenue.

“I hope he will take me for a pupil,” Miss Pickford said.

Asked why she has selected this sculptor, Miss Pickford replied that a portrait he had made of Mrs. Jesse Lasky attained something of the spirit she had felt in classical Greek sculptures in the museum of Athens.

Portraiture rather than idealized sculptural forms appeals to Miss Pickford, she said. Even as a child she drew portrait sketches. But she made it plain that she does not intend to give up motion picture work.




GLORIA SEEKS NEW NAME;
‘BOY’ WAS TO BE MIKE

London, April 7 (AP)
Gloria Swanson and her husband, Michael Farmer, wanted a boy instead of a girl, Farmer revealed to-day, and Gloria planned to call the boy Mike.

They were “just a little bit disappointed,” he said when a girl was born the night before last. Provisionally, he said they have been calling the girl Mike, but another name will have to be chosen later.




VICTOR MCLAGLEN SUED FOR BEATING

Los Angeles, April 7 (UP)
Charging that Victor McLaglen, motion picture actor, “set upon him and beat him severely,” Thomas R. Hughes asked $10,000 damages in a suit on file today. The attack occurred at the Fox studios last January 29. Hughes charged that McLaglen, who played the hard-boiled Captain Flagg in “What Price Glory?” “viciously and brutally” assaulted him, without provocation, so injuring the cartilage of Hughes’ nose that it is now flat and makes breathing difficult.




KINSHIP CLAIM DENIED BY STAR

Los Angeles, April 7
Jack Nixon, who is alleged to have sold worthless stock by claiming to be a brother of Marian Nixon, screen actress, heard the relationship denied by the star in municipal court today.

Nixon, charged with grand theft, is accused of selling stock in a non-existent motion picture company to six persons. He is said to have claimed relationship to Miss Nixon and to be an intimate friend of Lew Cody, screen actor.

“I met this man a few times,” Miss Nixon testified, “and then I heard he was going around telling people he was my brother. But he’s no kin of mine.”

Cody was also scheduled to take the stand to repudiate Nixon’s claims to his close friendship.




L. A. ARTIST SUES TOM MIX FOR OIL PAINTING

Los Angeles, April 7 (UP)
Tom Mix, film cowboy, to-day was sued for $3,500 and charged with failure to pay that amount for an oil painting of himself, done by George Townsend Cole, artist. Cole declared that Mix engaged him to paint the portrait in 1926, and when it was completed expressed pleasure over its appearance but declined to pay for it.




The second John Barrymore picture at Radio has not yet been selected, but Dolores Del Rio has been named as leading woman. Miss Del Rio is now finishing “The Bird of Paradise,” and Barrymore is finishing “State’s Attorney.”




Cecilia Parker, who achieved a long ambition when she was named as leading woman for George O’Brien in “The Rainbow Trail,” has been assigned to the feminine lead in “The Killer,” O’Brien’s new picture from the Stewart Edward White story.


From Luella O. Parsons:



I am certainly glad Charles Laughton has made up his mind about the movies, or perhaps it was the movies that made up their mind about him. When “Payment Deferred” opened in New York and became such a sensation overnight we printed numerous rumors of his signing with this and that company. Not one of those offers jelled until just now when Paramount decided to bring him to the West Coast for pictures.

The Paramount play that brought about the Laughton contract is “The Island of Dr. Moreau” by H. G. Wells.

While here, Laughton will do a little studio visiting. He will take himself and his makeup box to the United Artists lot for a part in Brothers Karamazov, starring Ronald Colman. And then perhaps he will make other pictures out here.




Official reports on “Alias, The Doctor” show that it grossed more than any picture Richard Barthelmess has made since “Dawn Patrol.” Cables to that effect were sent to Dick by Darryl Zanuck and he is coming home all ready to make his next picture, “Cabin in the Cotton.”




Una Merkel, whose southern accent is the real thing, and if you don’t believe it just listen to her talk, will play one of the leading feminine roles. Ann Dvorak, Hollywood’s newest bride, plays the other feminine lead. Miss Dvorak, according to Darryl Zanuck, will not be kept in the background because of her marriage. She is headed for eventual stardom. Michael Curtiz, who admits he never saw a plantation up to now, directs.




Guess “Tuna” will be more than a fish story. It’s got Edward G. Robinson as the star and it becomes “Tiger Shark,” so maybe the shark will get more of a break. At any rate, from a deep-sea fishing expedition with tuna fish as the chief players, it becomes an exciting drama with Eddie Robinson, Warner Brothers’ favorite heavy, as the principle character. Howard Hawks is directing and he has already left for Mazatlan, Mexico where the picture will be filmed. “The Roar of the Crowd,” Howard’s last, is going very well in New York.



Snapshots of Hollywood:



William Desmond, younger than ever, and just as good looking, is back from New York. He flew back after his wife suggested he had been away long enough.




Joan Crawford entertaining a party at the Warners’ Hollywood theater in honor of the opening of young Douglas Fairbanks’ new picture.




Frances Marion, home from the hospital, has gone away to recuperate before she tackles the demon typewriter again.




Bessie Love, in pale pink, was lunching with her husband, her first public appearance since the birth of her daughter.




Lois Wilson sent the new Farmer heiress greetings via cable.




FORBIDDEN COMING TO STRAND THEATER

The story of a woman who devotes her entire lifetime to furthering the ambitions of her lover, sublimating her own life to his, is told in “Forbidden,” the Frank Capra production, starring Barbara Stanwyck, at the Strand theater Friday and Saturday with Adolph Menjou and Ralph Bellamy playing leading roles.

Cast as a drab little librarian, Miss Stanwyck one bright spring morning decides to take her savings of years and invest it in a grand adventure, She buys gorgeous clothes and sets sail for Havana. On the boat she meets Bob Grover, traveling alone. They fall madly in love, but know each other only by the numbers of their staterooms – sixty-six and ninety-nine.

Back in New York comes disillusionment for the girl, for he finds he is married and a divorce would be a caddish thing to do for his wife is crippled and loves him devotedly. That is when the girl becomes a woman. She had denied herself a personal career; she had given up her child for adoption by his wife; she had even married, at least, a man she didn’t love so that there would be no point in his publicly announcing that he was a hypocrite, and then on top of that sacrifice, she learns that her husband has discovered the truth and can prove his statement. What she does is the climax of “Forbidden.”

An added short subject is the radio crooner, Bing Crosby, in a song sketch, I Surrender, Dear.

To-nite, Joe Brown in “Fireman, Save My Child” will be shown for the last time.




SEQUEL TO SKIPPY ON NATIONAL SCREEN

Jackie Cooper is seen at the National Theater screen with another noteworthy performance in “Sooky,” with a large supporting cast including Robert Coogan and Jackie Searl. This is a sequel to “Skippy.”

There will be a special showing of “Sooky” Friday afternoon at 3:45 o’clock for the benefit of school children. Saturday will bring Ken Maynard in “Range Law” and chapter three of “The Vanishing Legion,” with two children under twelve admitted on one ticket from 12:45 until 1:45 P. M. only.




CRAWFORD STAR OF FEATURE AT LYRIC

Joan Crawford turns newspaper reporter in “Dance, Fools, Dance” which plays at the Lyric Theater Thursday and Friday. In assigning Joan to this role, the producers endeavored to supply a new angle to the gangster story.
Appearing in support of Miss Crawford is a large cast that includes Clark Gable, Lester Vail, Cliff Edwards, William Bakewell, William Holden, Earl Fox, Hale Hamilton, Purnell B. Pratt, Natalie Moorhead, and Joan Marsh.

3 comments:

  1. Fabulous post! I wonder what really happened in the Keaton Marriage? I guess we'll never know. Quite interesting as well that Gloria Swanson's husband was more than willing to say he didn't want a girl for a baby.

    I love this blog!

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  2. I think men pretty openly wished for sons back then, much more so than most would dare to do so today. The fact that his wife was complicit in it is the part that interests me.

    I glad you enjoy my blog so much. I love creating it, but unfortunately my life has gotten much more hectic as of late and I can't post as often as I would like to anymore. Thanks for sticking with it.

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  3. Wow, that John Barrymore photo! Thanks for yet another lovely post.

    ReplyDelete