Screenland Plus TV-Land (Nov 1952 - Oct 1953)

IT'S EASY TO CATCH A MAN'S EYE [CONTINUED FROM PACE 29] an exciting personality, not only to other women but overwhelmingly to men, as well? What are her actual glamour secrets? No one is born glamourous. It's definitely an acquired asset. For my research, I went directly to Jeanne. She doesn't depend upon a tricky backdrop. She met me in an office at 20th Century-Fox. She wore a sophisticated sapphire blue street dress with no contrasting colors, and no jewelry except her wedding ring and dashing earrings. Her hair sweeps across her ears into a luxurious bob again, but not to her shoulders. You are quite wrong if you guess that Jeanne, born beautiful, has relied on her looks for what she has. She's never paused to be pampered, and is remarkably modest. "A man, above anything else, wants a good-natured woman!" said Jean. This, to him, is far greater than beauty. However, her disposition doesn't give a girl license to let everything else slide. "Glamour always begins and matters most right in your own home. It's not a veil you mysteriously throw over your real self when you go out and cautiously remove and put on a shelf when you return." We tried to pin down a terse definition of the term. An alluring personality invariably has a tremendous vitality that is thrilling. Imagination certainly is an essential ingredient. The courage to invent when others are monotonous is another facet of the individual with charm. Reactions are enthusiastic, never indifferent. "Glamour," Jeanne said, "starts at breakfast. No girl should ever greet her family over the morning toast with her face all buttered up, and with scraggly hair. No one will mind your other face, the one with no make-up, if you splash water on it and beam, and whisk your hair into a neat effect. The attractive morning coats you can buy now are perfect for early morning glamour. I jump into one, pull the zipper, and I've solved my first wonder about what to wear. "Shortcuts are what we all need. A lack of rest is the worst enemy of looks, so budgeting time is a game we all must carefully play. My home dryer is one of my prize possessions. When I'm making a picture I leave home at 7 a.m. to have my hair fixed at the studio by an expert hairdresser. Between films, there are so many things I want to do, so I save a trip by shampooing my hair myself once a week at home. I set it with half water and half cologne so it'll dry twice as fast, then I sit conveniently under my dryer. I bought a used one. An inexpensive hand dryer can be as much of a time-saver. "It takes a lot of planning for any woman to stay presentable and still attend to all her obligations. I had to learn to put my plans into definite action. By nature I anticipated, then wanted to hesitate. Since I was a small girl I've made scrapbooks, and still do. I have boxes and boxes of my projects, scrapbooks on so many subjects — on geography, history, architecture, all that could go into a house for comfort and to decorate it, fashion ideas, color schemes in detail, what I'd like to buy if I ever can. "I study all the newest styles in clothes, save my clippings and notes on what I might try. I won't consider what obviously isn't right for me." She isn't afraid to be original, nor to wear brilliant colors. When Jeanne likes a color she doesn't stick narrowly to one hue. She has five new ensembles in different tones of green. "I avoid picking up isolated bargains now. You may emerge victorious from a marvelous sale, but how does the trophy finish an outfit that's been crying for the final touch? I have learned to think of an entire costume suitable for an occasion, instead of losing my head over a single thing." She, as you can see, takes care of her large wardrobe personally. "A woman's anxious to be admired by the man she loves," Jeanne accented, "because to be taken for granted by him is her worst temporary fate. No wonder it's instinctively feminine to change. We can, every so often, do something surprising about our hair and eyebrows. This," she smilingly added, "is a minor switch, comparatively, but any improvement is fine." Hair stylists, this year, decree hair should be shorter. Jeanne, having tried that a year ago, is having none of this fad. "Today women have a distinct advantage. We don't have to be sheep. All the emphasis really is on expressing your own self at its best, whatever that is. Appeal is only partially visual now. You develop your own special look and personality, and keep changing it because that's normal." She frankly admits she's never been content with herself. On the screen Jeanne has to compete with a steady stream of ravishing figures. Her own form and grace indicate she is acutely aware of proper diet and exercise. She has disciplined herself on both scores. Alibis would photograph appallingly! Her gentle voice has a vibrant quality that is another of her many charms. She's studied speaking attractively, compellingly, so no shrillness stabs a listener. If your voice doesn't come from your diaphragm, rather than your chest, it can't be low and well-pitched like hers. She insists she has overcome handicaps that were habits. "I was too shy, wasn't able to talk enough. I listened endlessly, because I didn't want to appear foolish or uninformed by giving an opinion. Gradually, I found I would survive a few mistakes. A fault can become a matter of false pride if we evade living fully in this world we're all very much a part of. Women aren't helpless, I recognized, as I felt satisfactions from efforts I'd supposed beyond me. I'm glad I got over pretending to like or know what I didn't like or know. By tactfully being honest, but not insistent, people respond wholeheartedly. And I never would identify myself with a group only of my own age anymore. You don't have to be that limited. You can understand what any age is up against, and what it appreciates. Today belongs to everyone who wants to be mentally clear, not to one favored generation. The only girl who's passed by is the one who doesn't want to do her utmost today." END Jeanne Crain getting make-up refreshed before going into scene. Declares Jeanne, "All the emphasis really is on expressing your own self at its best."