Screen Guilds Magazine (July 1934)

1934 July AUTHOR? AUTHOR ? by Dudley Nichols WARNER RROS.-FIRST NATIONAL B by Manuel Seff “GENTLEMEN, BE SEATED!!"—- Cosmic Productions, Inc. Produced by J. Worthington Gribb. Direct¬ ed by Alonzo Blonk, An Alonzo Blonk production. Previewed at Hollywood Theatre. "Rating—6 Stars! "j" HIS Cosmic super-special, pro¬ duced by J. Worthington Gribb and directed bv Alonzo Blonk, an Alonzo Blonk production, starring Edyth Noolze and Will Sparks, costumed by Adrienne, superbly mounted by Clar¬ ence Wellington Jines, photographed by William Sykes, with lyrics and music and additional dialogue by Alon¬ zo Blonk, is Class A entertainment— sure-fire in any house. Mr. Blonk’s genius is evident in his use of sparkling dialogue, the way he creates suspense, builds characteriza¬ tion, and the masterly way he tells the story on the screen. The picture is crammed full of “directorial touches and his attention to small details, such as cutting to a pair of gold fish mating in the pool while the stars are making love openly in the park, is sure to win critical praise. Mr. Gribb, upon receiving over¬ whelming congratulations in the thea¬ tre lobby after the preview, reiterated his determination to continue produc¬ ing only epics of outstanding merit and cleanliness. As evidence of this latter he pointed out that the original title of the picture had been “Lie Down, Lady”; but after a talk with Mr. Will H. Hays, the Federal Church Council of America, Mrs. August Belmont and representatives of upward of fifty Protestant and Catholic organizations, the studio accepted its responsibility to make pictures only for the family and altered the title ’ to “Gentlemen, Be Seated.” As for the acting, never have these two stars been seen to better advan¬ tage. Their efforts kept the audience in laughter and tears. Mr. Sparks received spontaneous applause for his daring rescue of Miss Noolze in the final cli¬ max. Baby Lena, the new child prodigy, cooed her way into the heart of this hard-boiled critic. She, too, spoke lines that left the audience wondering at her childish wisdom and cleverness. While giving full credit to producer, director and the entire cast, this super¬ special could hardly be the epic it is (Continued on Page 23) ^ EGINNING with Tom Bucking¬ ham, the second fellow from the left, reading downward, we shall work our way up to Tom Reed, the tallest writer on earth, with the possible exception of Bob Sherwood. Guides will be fur¬ nished on payment of a small fee. Mr B., rosy-cheeked and in fine fettle, and that’s only his second-best fettle, has returned from a short vacation, or hia- tus, as Ben Markson says, to throw himself with renewed vigor into his beloved labors. The hiation (combin¬ ing both words, thus pleasing all con¬ cerned) was spent on his eight-thou¬ sand-ton clipper, for whi ^ h r _ r , h A e KI ^ s thought up the name, ILE DE FRANCE. The French Line is about to file a heavy plagiarism suit. Which brings us to Charles Kenyon, dean of Laguna, the Westport of the Southwest. He has instructed us to spread the good news that his seashore villa is now serving free drinks to all comers, be they friend or foe. While this information was received from an unusually unreliable source, it is guar¬ anteed. Just left of him, as the crow flies, we find F. Hugh Herbert, bon vivant and scholar, discussing Socrates in the original Creek, with his bootblack, and quoting fluently. There is a movement afoot to enter Mr. Herbert as a quote thrower in the coming Olympics. That spectacled lad with the reddish mane (Poil de Carotte) would be Er¬ win Gelsey, affectionately known all over the studio as “Mr. Gelsey. It has just been discovered that he is the same Erwin Gelsey upon whom Field¬ ing based the character, Squire West- ern. Now a quick tour through the foot¬ hills of the Pyrenees by camel and ox¬ cart. On the right, under that size nine foothill, we see Aben Finkel, re¬ nowned author, puffing on a dingah as he writes. You find yourself uncon¬ sciously humming, “Finkel, finkel, lit¬ tle star.” Further along the road we unexpectedly come upon a strange fig¬ ure, wearing a tropical helmet and studying the dim trails with a micro¬ scope, as he shouts, in blood-curdling tones, “S. S. Van Dine! S. S. Van Dine!” It’s Robert Lee, of course, pay¬ ing homage to the novelist whose mys¬ tery yarns he adapts. Now back to camp for a good night’s rest and an early start in the morning. Having changed horses and fortified ourselves with a real southern break¬ fast, we move on to the office of Earl Baldwin, where his little Mary greets us with delicious helpings of aspirin, bromo-seltzer, bicarbonate of soda and cough drops. She proudly displays a certificate of thanks from the Drug¬ gists’ Association who have voted Earl their best customer of the month. Refreshed, we continue by plane to the home of Lillie Hayward, a member of Warner’s left wing or female con¬ tingent. At the moment she is serv¬ ing, as a main course, her noted pet, Myrtle, a baby lamb, well-roasted and seasoned, to an assorted group of scriv¬ eners. Gathered about the groaning board happily munching are Brown Holmes, Warren Duff, Ben Markson, Peter Milne, Sy Bartlett, Mike Boy Ian, Seton Miller, Dan Templin, Carl Erick¬ son and Kitty Scola, all First National boys and true, with the exception of Kitty, who is a First National girl and true. We cheerily try to exchange the greetings of the season with them, but they are absorbed in Myrtle. So we pass on, with understanding nods among ourselves. We, too, once munched roast baby lamb at Lillie’s. Now our little journey draws to its close. As the sun begins to drop into the pallid sea to make room for the moon, our caravanserai has only time left for a rapid handshake with Law¬ rence Hazard, who convinces us that the horse is man’s best friend, espe¬ cially when he runs first ... or even second. We stand on deck saying a benedic¬ tion for Delmar Daves, Our Boy Over There, in Europe. Among our tired group we hear a murmer of sympathy for the wanderer. What are we mur¬ muring? You guessed it: “The lucky dog!" HEmpstead 1 200 RALPH D. PAONESSA COUNSELLOR-AT-LAW Hollywood Center Bldg. 1 655 North Cherokee Avenue HOLLYWOOD 229 North Broadway LOS ANGELES [15 1