Boy's Cinema (1930-31)

Every Tuesday j^t^.^^- Around the Corner, "t iCoDtinued from page 20.. ♦ to have a, deal ut tioubie maJiaKi'iK I'lat ioiiiig mail." Mr. Sinclair was a wily fatlier and a man ol the world. "Oh, no, I'm not I" immediately de- tlared Kosie with considerable warmth. ■ 80 you don't lliink we ought to .'^lop the hght ? " -Mr. Sinclaii- chuckled. "On the contrary," he said, "I think we ought to see it—it's going to be a good one. Miss Rosie O'Urady, may I liave the honour of your company on Saturday night? I've bought two ring- side scats." "Just try to keep me away!" cried Kosie excitedly. She never quite knew how she lived through the rest of the week. She wanted to see Tommy, but resisted the temptation to seek him out at his train- ing quarters. She wrote a number of letters to him. but tore them all up. The days dragged. Work was a torture; leSt was unrest, because she was in such a fever of impatience. Saturday night came at last, and Mr. Sinclair called for her in liis car and swept her off to Madison Square (Jurdens. The boxing theatre was crowded as they made iheir way down the central aisle to their seats. "Why are j'Ou trembling?" lie asked her, after they were seated side by side immediately below the ring. " You're not up there." •'Oh, yes, I am!" whispered Rosie. "You're really sure he'll win?" O'Orady and Kaplan had been I'fcsentcd with tickets by Moe Lcvine, and had airived early. They were seated not very far a\>ay, and were obviously excited. "Look," said Mr. Sinclair, "there are your—your guardians." "They don't know I'm here," Rosie informed him. "1 didn't till them, and they'd gone before you called for me. They've put all their savings on the fight, and 1 got them to let me place the bets for them. There's a man at my office who knows a really good Ijookmaker " "Whom are they betting on?" inquired .Mr. Sinclair. ■ Calahan." He looked round at her. "And you placed th«? bets, eh?" he e.Nclaimed. "Well, well, truly the ways of women are wonderful!" Two unimportant boxers put up a sparring match as a sort of curtain- raiser, and then a shout went up. Calahan was making for the ring in a jazzy dressing-gown over his shorts. Tommy followed a few moments later, and received almost as great an ovation as his better-known opponent, because of all the new.spaper publicity he had ie<-eived and the fact that he was the son of a millionaire. "He looks good!" groaned Kaplan, as the athletic-lo<jking young fellow bowed to the audience. " Listen to me for the tenth and last time!" snorted O'Grady. "Calahan can't lose!" "Yi-s," grunted Kaplan. "Veil, you know it, and I know it, but does Calahan know it?" The amiouncor lifted up his voice from I he centre of the ring. It was a power- ful voice, but not by any means a musical one. " I-adies and gentlomen," he sliouted. "the main event. Ten rounds. Terrible Terry Calahan in this corner, and in this BOY'S CINEMA one Tommy Sinclair, the Park Avenue Kid." The referee caused tlie contestants to shake hande for the benefit of some camera-men, and Kaplan asked O'Grady what they were taking pictures for. "So as Sinclair's family can remember what he looked like before the battle," was the reply. The first round went entirely ni Terry's favour. He got in a left and a right to Tomnij's face, a heavy blow over the heart and a left hook to the chin. But Tommy showed up gamely enough, and seemed quite a glutton for punishment. Towards the end of tlie round he went down with a crash, and Rosie started to her feet with a cry of horror. But almost instantly Tommy sat up. Terry stood over him as he rose to his feet, but he backed briskly, adopted a fight- ing attitude, and caught his opponent fairly and squarely between the eyes. " He couldn't stay down!" cried Mr. Sinclair proudly. " He doesn't know how!" "Look! Look!" cried O'Grady to Kaplan. "There's Kosie over there— with Mr. Sinclair." Kaplan frtood up and waved, shouting; "Hallo, Rosie!" "Sit down!" bellowed a man behind him. "Sir down, or I'll nail you down." Tommy and Terry were in a clinch, and the referee was parting them when the gong went. Tommy went back to his corner, seemingly no wor^e for wear than his opponent, who confided to Moe that the fellow was a shock absorber, but could be put out at any minute. The next round, however, suggested that Terry was mistaken, for in it Tommy carried everything before fiim. on points, and landed a number of blows that jolted the professional badly. "Tell him to use his left!" yelled O'Grady frantically. And Kaplan chimed in : "Tell him to use his left, Moe—if he's got anything left." "That was a beauty!" ei ied ^Ir. Sin- chair almost in the same second. "Right on Calahan's nose! Go it, boy —go it:' Terry was uii the ropes several times in that round, and one eye was nearly closed, and he was breathing heavily when, at the end of it, he tottered to his corner. "It's awfully brutal, isn't it?" shivered Kosie. "Will it go on like this for ten rounds?" "No," replied Mr. Sinclair confidently. He was perfectly right; it didn't. Half-way through the third round Tommy landed a terrific upper-cut, and followed it with a straight left to the point of the jaw. Terry Calahan went down to stay down—though O'Grady shouted frantically to him to get up. He was counted out and carried across to his corner, while O'liiady mopped his own brow, and Kaplan flung his hat on the floor and danced with rage upon it. Tonmiy was greeted with cheei-s from his supporters and with a certain number of hisses from those who had backed Terry to win. Ten minutes afterwards. Toimny's nianagci- and second^ stepped out from his ilrev-ing-room because his father ami Rosie wore about to enter it. Tommy's face haJ been sponged and his hair tidied, and he bore only a very few- scars of battle upon his hand.some face. "Hallo, Tommy, my boy!" cried .Mr. Sinclair. "That was one of the greale^: hghts I ever saw !" "I was afraid you'd be hurt,"' said Rosie. 25 At lliut iiionieiit llieie came a loud bang ut the door, and O'Grady iiid Kaplan burst into the room, uttering congratulations. "I knew all along you could lick th;'.C fellow," said Kaplan. "That's why you bet on Terry, ih?'" jeered O'Grady. "The best man v',ii, but two good men lost !" Rosie ran across to them. "Daddy." she said to Kaplan, "ilo you remember what you told me ulu.-i you gave me the money?' "We told you to put it on \our futuro husband," said O'Gradv. "At least, / did!" " Well I did it, ' cried Rosie trumph- aiitly. "I bet it on Tommy—and I got five to one, too! You've won about Iwenty-four thousand dollars!"' Kaplan gulped; O'Grady closed his eyes and screwed up his mouth. The pawnbroker was the first 10 recover from the shock. " Xow, now, now," he cried, "don't get excited. Twenty-four thous Veil, it's nice you should liave ri< li relations on both sides, ain't it?" Rosie hati been .swept into Tommy's eager arms and was hugging liim rap- turously. Mr. Sinclair invited thorn all to supper and celebration at his house, then discreetly disappeared. But. O'Grady and Kaplan lingered lill Tommy said significantly: "We'll see you later." The sound of kissing reached their ears as Kaplan was closing the door behind them. Kaplan winked and pulled his friend along the corridor. "I hope the first is a boy," he said. " Won't it .sound fine—Benjamin Kaplan Pinelaii !" "You're crazy 1" snorted O'Grady. "The --ou of a figlite,- like that! It'll l>e Patrick O'Grady Sinclair!" ■'Don't he a fool, you fool! I tell you " "Now wait a minute! Pll flip a iii<kel for it. I will, see?" "All right — certainly," nodded Kaplan. .■\nd thereupon O'Grady fisheil a nickel from his pocket, maxle sure that it was the one he wanted, and to->od it into the air. "Heads!" called Kaplan hurriedly. But it waMi't. It na-- tails! (By permission of W. & F. Film Service. Ltd.. starring George Sidney as Ben- jamin Kaplan and Charlie Murray as Patrick O'Grady.) Picking *em up all round the dial • an you get them all on your tlireo- valver ? I^ondon lliRioual, Miilland Regional, Radio Paris, Prague, Rome, Stoiklioliii, StuttBai-t, Vienna, Baioc- lona. Liin^i nl)urB, lii rlin. and tlie rest— arc tliey all waiting on your 'speaker ? It can be jolly annoying to know tliat the folk next door are enjoying » rattling good progiaimne wiiieh no aiiionnt of tuning will bring in to you. firing your set up to scrateli. POPlf..\R WJRKI.ESS will show you liow to get all tlie long-wave stations witli perfect clarity. P VlRSLBSS Buy a Copy TO-DAY. Septemher Cth, 10.30.