Actorviews (1923)

82 Actorviews “As a matter of fact,” she went on, “I was notoriously the drinkless wonder of my age. I didn’t like the stuff. And it was my pride to be the only one at a party who didn’t. Just as it would now be my pride to be the only one at a party to sit up with a schooner of Scotch. Prohibition makes you perverse.” “What under the sun did we have to talk about before Prohibition?” Mrs. Janis helpfully asked. “Well, we didn’t talk about drink, for one thing,” said Elsie. “But now! Go to a luncheon and it starts with one of two sentences : ‘Pm sorry I can’t give you cocktails’ ; or, ‘These are made from a little bottle my grandfather left.’ ” “The rich don’t really suffer for it,” I put in. “Yes, and that,” said Elsie, “is one of the reasons Pm ag’in’ Prohibition. There are fellows in our Gang at the Illinois who’d fondly love to park their shoes against a rail after the show and throw down a couple of long red ones with very low white collars. I got to feeling for and with the fellows ‘over there.’ They used to say, ‘Those pussyfooters’ll never be able to put it over; they can’t get away with our beer and wine.’ Wise guys they were, and I was a wise guy with ’em!” “It breaks Elsie’s heart,” said her mamma, “when she thinks what our Prohibition has done to poor France.” “Think of it yourself,” Elsie said. “There was France, hard up, bled, wounded and all ready to step on her glorious grapes and crush them into wine for us, her ally. There were her treasured champagnes all ready to be shipped. When — bing! blah! Prohibition!” This was no moment to talk marriage. But we could always talk Gang, and we did.