Hollywood (Jan - Mar 1943)

what a good band did. It was sort of a gypsy outfit and one day we were sitting around and one of the guys said, 'Gee, we ought to have a name for our band. Maybe if we did we'd do better.' So we thought 'Mike O'Shea and His Five Gypsies' would be a swell name for us — but there were objections to that. Heck, we didn't stroll around, we just sat in one place. And one word led to another and before we left we were 'Mike O'Shea and His Stationary Gypsies.' After a while we got haircuts and tuxedoes and five more men in the band and we really stepped out." The years went by and Mike O'Shea was learning everything about the theater that he could. He played in every branch of show business. "Gosh," he says, "I've lost count of all the turkeys I had a part in, but I was in stock and I was in vaudeville, and I did a season in burlesque just so I'd learn timing. Name me one part of show business and O'Shea's been in it." Long before Mike knew where his next meal was coming from, when he was nineteen, he got married and within three years there were two children. "I really had to hump. I couldn't wait for jobs in the theater, I took what I could get. I had a family to look after and maybe one week I'd be in Cincinnati in a play and the next week I'd be laying bricks in Mobile, Alabama." He jerked sodas and ran an elevator. One job Mike missed was being an iceman. "Outside of that I did everything — Jack of all Trades — that was me." Eventually he got a job as a bell boy on the luxury liner, Leviathan. He crossed the Atlantic thirty-six times before he decided there was no future in his work. So he remained ashore and again went back to his love. It was in 1932 — you remember that year — banks closed and brother didn't have a dime — he couldn't get a job in a play but he hit in radio. He auditioned for a "G-Men" series at Columbia Broadcasting and created a new type of mug. Not the kind that talks out of the corner of his mouth, but a "sharp guy who knows the answers and is quick on the uptake." So distinct and distinguished was his creation that very quickly an active radio career was begun. After a year of this he yearned to return to vaudeville and went on tour with his own band. In 1935 he went to Hartford, Connecticut, as a producer, director and actor in radio shows for Station WTIC. He remained there five years and then returned to New York to appear in featured spots in many transcontinental broadcasts. When Maxwell Anderson's Eve of St. Mark was being cast for Broadway, Lem Ward, the stage director, chose Mike for the American Artillery man who sees hell break loose on Bataan. As rehearsals progressed, both the director and the author continually built up the part until it became one of the high spots of the play. Reviewers and audiences hailed Mike as a brilliant actor! Even after Producer Stromberg convinced him that he would photograph well and would be suitable for the screen, Mike refused to go to Hollywood. His argument was that he had no right to quit a show which had given him his great chance! [Continued on page 451 Your Own Favorite Snapshot BY FAMOUS HOLLYWOOD FILM STUDIOS MOM TOW AHUM 10 BAT I V .m KZ? ,o • I, , .»»""', .»»« Just to Get Acquainted... We Will Make You a Gorgeous FREE 5x7 ENLARGEMENT FROM ANY SNAPSHOT, PHOTO, KODAK PICTURE OR NEGATIVE Have that small picture of yourself or of someone you love made into a big studio quality enlargement— absolutely FREE! Simply mail us the picture or the negative and we will make you a beautiful 5x7 inch enlargement ABSOLUTELY FREE . . . something you can keep and cherish always, or send to a service man. MEN IN SERVICE WANT PICTURES FROM HOME They want pictures more than letters. That's what soldiers, sailors and marines all over the world told reporters of a famous weekly magazine. Think what happiness "your man" in service would get from a beautiful enlargement of his loved ones at home! And certainly you would cherish a studio quality enlargement of Him. Important — Be sure to include color of hair, eyes, and clothing, so we may send you full prompt information on a beautiful, lifelike colored enlargement, hand colored in natural, lasting oil colors, with handsome FREE frame! Artistic hand-coloring adds character, beauty and personality to YOUR enlargement! Here's All You Do — Just mail the coupon (or a letter) to us today . . . giving name, address, color of hair, eyes and clothing. Include ALL information. Please enclose 10c to cover cost of mailing. Your original snapshot or negative will be returned with your FREE 5x7 Enlargement. Act NOW! Offer limited to U.S. HOLLYWOOD EpTJ:. 702. SANTA MONICA "',!>'/ ""'/„ NLM Studios MAIL COUPON TODAY] HOLLYWOOD FILM STUDIOS, Dept. 646 7021 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood, California Please make me a FREE enlargement of the enclosed snapshot. D 10c is enclosed to cover mailing. (Offer limited to U. S.) COLOR HAIR COLOR EYES COLOR CLOTHING. 43