Boy's Cinema (1939-40)

Every Tuesday THESE STARS HAVE A SONG TO SING-O It is a far cry from Hollywood to tho road to Mandalay, and China is hardly across the bay. But the dawn, neverthe- less, comes up like thunder. It is a thunder of voices raised in song, and they range from the shrill, piping trebles of child players to the booming, bath-room baritone of fellows like Fred MacMurray. For Hollywood is a colony of confirmed early-mornmg chanters. The residents burble in their baths, shout in their showers, and otherwise make their ablu- tions audible Ever since Cecil B. DeMille glorified bath-rooms the natives have been prone to mingle warbling with the water. There is something about the noisy rattle of a shower that is conducive to exercise of the vocal chords. A wide-angle microphone placed on top of some surrounding hills in the early morning would pick up an amazing variety of sound. From the two-story white house over there on the brow of the hill comes a strange ditty native to Bermuda, something about "mama" not wanting certain garden vegetables. That means Fred MacMurray is up and doing, getting ready for his performance in Honeymoon in Bali." From down below, in the iBeverly Hills Hotel, the same words in an amusing monotone indicate that four-year-old Carolyn Lee is practising the same song. She and Fred sing it together in the picture. Irene Dunne can be heard knocking off a few high C's and such, apparently for the sheer joy of singing, as she does not carol in her latest film. From a fenced-in mansion near by comes a series of noises that might be unintelligible grunts. Finally they resolve themselves into something approximating BOY'S CINEMA "Home on the Range." Gary Cooper is getting shaved for his day's work at the studio. Bouncing from crag to crag and from valley to valley comes a stentorian bellow that for a moment drowns everything else. Curiously it is an ancient hymn called "Bringing in the Sheaves." The great voice can soon be identified as that of W. C. Fields, who seems to be thinking over some gags for his new picture with Mae West as he inserts some surprising new words into the old melody. - A gay French number can be attributed to Claudette Colbert, and that football song could not be sung by anybody else except Joe E. Brown, as he gets ready for his role with Martha Raye in Paramount's "A Thousand Dollars a Touchdown." A surge of Victor Herbert melodies soars skyward as Allan Jones gets into shape for his part in "Victor Herbert." while Martha Raye warms up the larynx on "Melancholy Baby." That is really something. Eventually quiet falls again, as the players hurry away to their respective studios. And the birds are happy about that, for they are finally able to get in a few notes of their own. ; 23 Murray and Brcnda Joyce have been can"- thus far In the big production, which is scheduled to go before the cameras soo''. C. HENRY GORDON ALWAYS A KNAVE BIG CITY BUILT FOR SCENES IN FILM Covering thirty acres, a replica of New York at the beginning of the nineteenth century is being built on the 20th Century- Fox lot for the spectacular production of "Little Old New York." The set is the largest single one ever constructed at the studio. Director Henry King estimated the cost of this one set would run into the neighbourhood of £60,000. Alice Faye, Richard Greene, Fred Ma> Honesty may be the best policy in normal life, but in Hollywood. C. Henry Gordon has found out that crime docs pay! Villainy has been Gordon's speciality since he made his theatrical d^but :n "Experience," an old morality play. He first trod the boards of the legitimate stage as a heavy and to-day, after appear- ing in more than 50 plays and 100 pictures, he is still cast as a heavy. Considered a superb portrayer of sinister characters, he is seldom given a sympathetic role. In "Trapped in the Sky." he is cast as the head of a spy ring which seeks to obtain vital defence secrets. Gordon is an actor who really does not have to work for a living. Educated both here and abroad, he was a mining engineer and had amassed a fortune in Mexico before he tried his hand at acting. A success at the outset, he has appeared on Broadway with Ina Claire, Mary Duncan Florence Reed, Fredric March and a host of other stars. He had an early fling at pictures, before they learned to talk, but returned to his first love, the stage. Later, when sound was introduced, he moved out to the cinema capital to stay. Gordon has appeared in more than 100 film productions, including such memor- able hits as "A Devil With Women," "Hollywood Boulevard." "Charge of the Light Brigade," "Death on the Diamond." "Men in White," and "Adventure in Sahara." November 4th, 1039.