The Film Daily (1931)

Sunday, October 11, 1931 f^^ DAILY A LITTLE from "LOTS" By RALPH WILK HOLLYWOOD QEORGE O'BRIEN, Fox star, has stai'ted production of his next Zane Grey story, "The Rainbow Trail." * * * Mary Kornman is one of the busiest Ingenues in town these days. She has just completed a role in the first of a new Hal Roach series of comedies, co-starring Charles Rogers and Charles Hall, with Roach personally directing. Mary but recently completed a featured part in Radio's "Are These Our Children, " which was previewed at Long Beach this week and proved a sensation. * * * Maurice Murphy, juvenile, who divides his time between the stage and screen has been signed for an important role in "Her Night Out," with May Robson, opening this week at the Hollywood Playhouse. Charlotte Wynters, well known Broadway actress, whose most recent New York stage appearance was in the leading role of "A Regular Guy" opposite Glenn Hunter, has a role in Paramount's "His Woman" in support of Claudette Colbert and Gary Cooper. W. C. Fields, Leon Errol, Ford Sterling, Chester Conklin, Harry Stubbs and Maude Eburne are among the important supporting players in the forthcoming Marilyn Miller picture, "Her Majesty, Love." Ben Lyon has the leading juvenile role in this Warner production which William Dieterle will direct. The lyrics are by Al Dubin. The large cast being assembled to support Lionel Barrymore, Nancy Carroll and Phillips Holmes in the Ernst Lubitsch production of "The Man I Killed" at Paramount, has been increased by two more character actors. Torben Meyer and Harry Schultz. * * * Mervyn LeRoy, who has completed the direction of "Tonight or Never," starring Gloria Swanson, will direct William Powell for Warner Bros. The story is expected to be "High Pressure," by S. F. Peters. The first authentic Rathskeller for the film colony has been opened by Jack Robbins and Jimmy Mannix, Detroit and Los Angeles cafe men, in association with Dave Kay, former newspaperman and Hollywood diamond broker. The decorative scheme, patterned after a famous Rathskeller in Bremen, Germany, is being carried out by James Calhoun, Hollywood artist, who recently returned from a tour of Europe. * * * Such is fame. One writer, commenting on the preview of Bert Lahr's initial picture, "Flying High," used Lahr's name seven times, always spelling it "Lehr." TO-DAY'S p^^^tiUft^ EVENT L ji^jy AS SEEN BY C'S?/^ ^^^ THE PRESS Wi? "Clark Cable dislikes dark clothes and would never wear anything but gray if It weren't for the demands of fashion." — M-C-M Our Passing Show: Al Christie, George B. Seitz, Earle Foxe, Paul Snell, Oliver Garver at tho U. S. C. -Oregon State game; Eli Dunn playing tennis at the Y.M.C.A. ; Willy Wyler, Charles Logue and Sig Schlager chatting at Universal. Cyrus Wood, playwright and scenarist, has written "The Cyclone Lady," in collaboration with Reginald Owen. The play will serve as a vehicle for Mitzi Hajos. Wood was formerly with Radio Pictures. Fred Kohler has today joined the cast rehearsing Radio Pictures' "The Dove" under the direction of Herbert Brenon. Dorothy Sebastian has been cast for the heroine role in Columbia's "Unwanted," in production under the direction of Louis King. "Mother-in-law's Day," one of the "Mr. Average Man" series of RKO Pathe comedies, is in production, with Edgar Kennedy as its star. Featured cast includes Florence Lake, Isabelle Withers, Dot Farley, Billy Eugene, Luis Alberni and Billie Bletcher. Harry Sweet is directing from hs own original story. * * * Eric Linden will have the juvenile lead in "The Lost Squadron," the Dick Grace story of the Hollywood stunt aviators to be filmed by Radio Pictures. Helen Chandler and Frances Dade essay the role of "Miss Information" in the two new Voice of Hollywood subjects. John Boles is the television master of ceremonies who tunts in on Malibu Beach where many of the Ho.Iywood stars are introduced. Roscoe Ates is the stuttering announcer of the second subject, and introduces Lola Lane, Robert Montgomery, Anita Page, John Miljan and Jean Hersholt. * * * May Boley, comedienne, has been signed for "A Woman Commands," the first Pola Negri vehicle for RKO Pathe. * * * George Davis, noted clown, and more lately a successful character actor with a knowledge of seven languages, has been added to the cast of the untitled Louis Weitzenkorn story being rehearsed at the Radio Pictures studios. * * * Emile de Recat is all smiles these days. He recently received word that the French version of "Trader Horn" is playing to capacity business at the Madeline theater, Paris. He wrote the adaptation for the French version. 4s 4< 4> Del Lord, Mack Sennett director, caught an octopus during a fishing trip. Del declares an octopus is certainly different from a bathing beauty — it never appears in anything less than eight-piece bathing suit + * * In the old days, contracts for writers were thrown around freely. Now it seems it's the writers who are thrown around freely. Of the first 64 short subjects listed by the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America, 13 were directed or produced by Elmer Clifton. Among those mentioned were "Vagabond" series, travel pictures; "Ghost Towns," the first of the Ghost of Other Days" series; "The Navajo Witch" and "Comrades of the Desert," two of the "Wild Life Pictures." Short Shots from Eastern Studios B\ HARRY N. BLAIR JOHN McCONAUGHTY, formerly J associate producer at the Cosmopolitan studio and more recently with Paramount as staff writer, has completed his first book. The title is "From Cain to Capone," and it comprises a history of racketeering in all forms. On sale Oct. 16. Vitaphone Vitarni7is: Russ Brown, late of "Flying High," signed for two shorts . . . Thelma White heads revue at Hollywood restaurant opening Oct. 18 . . . also starring in "The Girl Friends" series with Fanny Watson . . . busy girl . . . Jay Rescher, demon cameraman, enjoying location work during spell of warm weather. Nick Basil and Tony Martin, previously featured in the "Nick and Tony" series under the direction of Mark Sandrich, have completed the first of their two-reel humorous travelogues for Picture Classics, Inc. This new series will be known as "Sightseeing with Nick and Tony" and the first is set in New York. Max Hoffman, Jr., musical comedy favorite, heads a cast of 50 people used by Warner Vitaphone for "Relativity and Relatives," starring Dr. Rockwell. Others include Maurice Cass, veteran character actor, and Helene Barclay, who posed for the Fisher Body ads painted by her husband, MacLelland Barclay. Paramount's New York studios has a miniature League of Nations represented in the four "hello" girts employed there to take calls. Emma Gertani is Italian; Helen Kazmhrek, Polish; Ann Arneth, German, and Henrietta Slomka of Czech extraction. Robert L. Ripley, in his fourteenth "Believe It or Not" short, just completed at the Vitaphone studio, presents a man who can tear a deck of cards into eighths, the smallest book in the world and also reveals the identity of the Japanese Methuselah who lived to be 308 years old. No feature activity at the Paramount New York studio this week and only one short, Ethel Merman in "The Garden of Eatin'," which Aubrey Scotto is directing. Next week Rudy Vallee makes another short with a collegiate background, with Casey Robinson slated to direct. "Woman Against Woman." next Paramount feature, in which Tallulah Bankhead will star, is set to start Oct. 19. Harriet Lee, chosen as Radio Queen of 1931-32, is featured in a cartoon comedy titled "You're Driving Me Crazy," soon to be released by Paramount. Olive Shea, previous Radio Queen, has also appeared in Paramount shorts and features. During the past ten days. Vitashorts released are "Snakes Alive," first of the Booth Tarkington juvenile series; "Havaym Cocktail," one of the "Melody Master's" series; Robert L. Ripley's ISth "Believe It or Not" short; "Thrills of Yesterday," showing old time stars; first of the "Broadway Brevities" series; Ted Husing's "Sportslants" ; "Lucky Thirteen," first of the Watson-White series and "The Eyes Have It," starring Edgar Bergen and his dummy, Charlie, one of the "Pepper Pot" series. Numerous players engaged in eastern production, including Claudette Colbert, Irving Pichel, Tallulah Bankhead and Betty Lawford were present at a farewell party given by Radie Harris, who leaves for Hollywood in a few days to conduct a radio column featuring star personalities. Visiting west coast stars also present were Estelle Taylor, Fay Wray, Kent Douglas and Ginger Rogers. Jack Cherry plays the role of a butler in Vitaphone' s "Shake a Leg," under the direction of Alf Goulding. This in itself would not be particularly interesting except for the fact that twenty-two years have elapsed since Cherry last worked under Goulding' s direction. Back in 1901, wheyi Cherry was only ten years old and Goulding was 17, they toured the world together with a show troupe. Sidney Easton, colored actor, who has a prominent comedy role in "His Woman," has been cast for "Garden of Eatin'," Paramount short featuring Ethel Merman. Dr. Rockwell, who recently completed a Vitaphone short, is one of I he busiest gents in town. In betiveen takes, he dictated articles to his secretary which are syndicated to 40 daily nwspapers. In addition to his vaudeville, musical revue, radio and talkie engagements, he also writes for magazines. And while he is resting he looks after his hotel in Booth Bay Harbor, Maine, T ONNIE D'ORSA, associated with Edmund Goulding on many of the latter's productions, and who has been visiting such places as London, Paris and Budapest, writes from the Continent that he expects to return shortly and resume work in Hollywood. Pittsburgh 100% Sound Pittsburgh— With the wiring of the Idle Hour, 170-seater owned by Mrs. I. Golden and her son, Ed Golden, this city is now 100 per cent wired. Photophone was installed at the Idle Hour.