Wednesday, January 12, 2011

May 2, 1932



CAGNEY DECIDES TO QUIT FILMS

Hollywood, Calif. May 2 (AP)
James Cagney, red-haired star of the Warner Brothers-First National studios, says he has definitely decided to quit films, take another turn at vaudeville in Europe and then study medicine.

Cagney recently “walked out” of the studio because of his failure to get $4000 weekly, more than double the amount his contract stipulated.




CHARGE HUSBAND OF ACTRESS BIGAMIST

White Plains, N. Y., May2 (AP)
District Attorney Frank Coyne was in possession today of an affidavit charging that Theodore Stewart, or Spector, committed bigamy when he married Olive Borden, the actress. The affidavit was made by Pearl Marie Haworth, beauty shop proprietor of Buffalo, who said she married Spector in March, 1919.

She attached a marriage certificate to the affidavit.




WORRIED?

If Greta Garbo looks a bit anxious in her latest photos, lay it to the bad news just received from home. It is that she has lost two thirds of her fortune in the Swedish depression. For that reason, Hollywood believes that she will return to make more pictures, her reported engagement to a European financier notwithstanding.




HIS FUTURE IS PROBLEM FOR JANNEY

Leon Must Decide Upon College or Studio Before Fall

By Chester B. Bahn
That blonde mop of thick curly hair which is one of young Leon Janney’s chief stocks in trade, thatches a shrewd head. The little boy who clutched at the heart strings in “Father and Son,” his own favorite picture, by the way, is just growing up and faces a real problem. Shall he in the fall enter the University of Southern California, for which he has passed entrance exams, or remain in the stage and picture field?

Leon, who has lived in Hollywood six or seven years, has observed the short memory of the public and the long, hard struggle of a forgotten star to come-back.

“In just two years, an actor can be completely forgotten,” Leon remarks. “If I retire now to go through college I’ll have to re-establish myself all over again. I want terribly to be a great actor, to do such roles as Shylock.”

Leon, who was 17 on April 1, considers his role in “Father and Son” his best. Lewis Stone he terms a “peach.” His favorite actresses are Dorothy Mackaill and Fifi Dorsay.

He has a deep admiration for little Jackie Searle and declares the youngster who plays the sissy is the most regular of fellows, the third best runner in his school and the best of his own grade. Jackie is a real baseball player, too, and incidentally the national pastime is one of Leon’s own chief interests in life.

Between shows, the 17-year-old fan spends a part of his leisure catching up with what has been happening in the big leagues. He has four favorites, with the Hollywood team of a Coast League right up in front. Next come the Yankees in the American League, and the Giants in the National. Newark, a fourth choice, is his favorite in the International.




Robert Montgomery plays the part of an Englishman for the third consecutive time in “Lovers Courageous.” Madge Evans plays opposite, and the cast includes Roland Young, Frederick Kerr, Reginald Owen and Beryl Mercer.




“Police Court,” drama of life behind the scenes in Hollywood, is seen today and tomorrow. In the cast are Leon Janney, Henry B. Walthall and Aileen Pringle.

Shown on the same bill is George Gershwin’s all-star comedy “Girl Crazy,” with Wheeler and Woolsey, Eddie Quillan, Mitzie Green and Dorothy Lee.




What Clark Gable would like to know is this – who put the cedar shavings of a pencil sharpener in his pet jar of pipe tobacco in his dressing room at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios.




From Luella O. Parsons:

Leslie Banks will have to give an exceptional performance on the screen to measure up to all the expectations. He was brought out here by Radio from the New York stage, but he has been loaned to Columbia to play the part of the general in “The Bitter Tea of General Yen.” He is the only “heavy” in captivity whose coming to Hollywood has been heralded in capital letters.

Herbert Brennon, who is very good on stories of this kind, will direct. Anna May Wong and Constance Cummings have the two feminine roles and production will be started immediately, according to Harry Cohn, who should know.



Snapshots of Hollwyood:
Jean Harlow, platinum locks dyed a nice red, creating somewhat of a sensation at the opening of “Grand Hotel.” She tried it on the first-nighters before she plays the role in “The Red Headed Woman” and it was not unbecoming.

Clark Gable getting the ropes broken by ambitious fans who craved autographs. Marion Davies in a white, fur-trimmed frock, signing her name for many fans. Michael Curtiz giving a farewell party to the Zanucks after the opening.

Estelle Taylor in brown, dancing with a handsome stranger at the Roosevelt.




TARZAN HAILED BEST SINCE TRADER

By Sam Woolford
Not since “Trader Horn” has there been such a picture as “Tarzan, the Ape Man,” now packing them in. This is another African picture by Van Dyke, the director who knows how to put thrills into pictures and leave hokum out.

The favorite old story comes to life with Johnny Weissmuller, the swimming champ, in the title role, and he is just new enough to the screen to act like an ape man.

Maureen O’Sullivan, C. Aubrey Smith and Neil Hamilton assist admirably.

Scenes which you will like (the ladies hiding their faces meanwhile) are:

Tarzan’s race across a lake with crocodiles.

The elephant stampede

Tarzan swinging through the trees.

The hippopotamus battle.

Tarzan rassling lions and stabbing them to death.

The entire picture is good with only the discordant note of the pygmies, who turn out to be midgets. However, these little fellows do a fine job of subbing.

Whatever you do, don’t fail to see this picture. It is one of the best of the year.

And then there is Charley Chase cavorting with a crazy man in a bathtub.

And lest you forget, “Grand Hotel” is coming Friday, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s bid for best picture of 1932.




If you like big he-men, logging camps, falling pine trees, go to see Ginger Rogers, Bill (“Movie”) Boyd and Hobart Bosworth in “Carnival Boat.”

A scene which will make you sway in your seat is the wild runaway lumber train going down the mountain side, taking curves at 50 miles an hour.

There is a big log jam, a dynamiting scene, and some good comedy furnished by a pair of comedians.




Another fine piece of entertainment, (there seems to be a lot of it this week,) is “Monsters of the Deep,” a deep sea fishing picture showing with the main film.
These daring fisherman pull in sharks, deep sea bass, tuna and lastly one of the biggest devil fish ever caught, ending a battle of 11 hours.




Joan Bennett and John Boles are appearing in “Careless Lady,” this being the story, “Widow’s Might.” Joan plays the role of a simple American girl who goes to Paris to get experience and then home to conquer males. Similar roles have been played by some of the screen’s leading stars, but this is the best job so far done.

John Boles meets Joan in Paris, where she has adopted his name. Complications follow.

Arthur Stone appears in another comedy in which he does some sleep-walking, getting into wrong rooms and beds. If you like Arthur, you will enjoy this.




Edmund Lowe and Claudette Colbert are playing in “Misleading Lady,” being a story of a society flirt who gets all tangled up with a big game hunter, who handles her like a wild zebra.

Stuart Erwin also has a role. It is all quite funny.

To cap off the comedy program George Sidney and Charlie Murray appear in a comedy short. There is a screen souvenir program and screen song.

5 comments:

A said...

Another great post!

I wonder who did play the trick on Clark Gable?

Kori said...

I love your posts! So clever and fun to read! Kori xoxo

GAH1965 said...

Thanks Blondie - I wish I could take credit for something other than finding, organizing and illustrating the info, but some other (usually anonymous) writers gave us all of the amazing text.

Amanda - I'm reading Donald Spoto's biography of Joan Crawford right now, and if I have the timing right, he states that Gable and Crawford were in the middle of a hot and heavy love affair around this time. (Doug Fairbanks, Jr. was carrying on his own indiscretions simultaneously.) Perhaps she was the one pulling a fun-one on him. I guess we'll never know.

Robin@DecoratingTennisGirl said...

Good post. I love Cagney!

GAH1965 said...

I love Cagney too. Especially these early years when he was new on the scene. It will be interesting to see if WB gives him the full $4000 a week that he's looking for, or if he ends up compromising.