Canadian Film Digest (Mar 1973)

_ The Canadian Film Digest Books MARCH 1973 The Glamour Girls Norma Jean: The Life of Marilyn Monroe By Fred Lawrence Guiles Bantam, $1.25 Marilyn. MM. The blonde goddess who still sets men’s hearts acquiver. The epitome, in so many ways, of Hollywood. Dead before her time. Died of drugs. Too much drink; never was understood; treated as a sex object and always underestimated as an actress. Married umpteen times. Insecure. Every cliche is there to such an extent that you would think she had invented them. But she didn’t — she lived them. She was every one of the cliches in stronger doses than most, which is probably what made her such a great star. The question is how to regard her now. The fifties are a long way off. We have a new Hollywood, new roles, and power for actresses, and new ways of looking upon stars. Obviously Marilyn would have been a very different person today, and her life would have been much different. Or would it? Her personal life we can’t surmise about. And thankfully neither does Guiles. There is no attempt to categorise her as a premature, hippy or a remnant of the thirties. Her life and career are told and described as factual information. No ridiculous context is superimposed upon them. Guiles’ writing is not exactly the greatest prose ever written, but it serves its function. Marilyn’s life was not a discovery in a drugstore; she worked hard to reach the top. She constantly expanded her personal horizons, and this insecurity about her own intellectual inferiority was important in’ her search for affection, many marriages, setting up her own film company, and so on. What we see is a fascinating human being growing and changing. And that is what Marilyn really was. : MM: The greatest of them all? Lana: The Public and Priave Lives of Miss Turner By Joe Jorella and Edward Z. Epstein Dell, $1.25. Lana Turner was another kind of superstar, but she was like Marilyn in many ways. She lived her private life in public; she was discovered for her sex appeal. She was constantly under-rated as an actress. But she survived, even if her career is virtually over. Even in the late Sixties, when she did Harold Robbins’ TV series, she still had the limousine, private dressing room, and so on. She graduated to older women parts, as long as they had glamour. She was still a favorite with women audiences. Perhaps her sheer physical survival can be best attributed to what Morella and Epstein call her constant optimism and ability to bounce back from adverse events. She revived herself after her daughter killed her lover, countless marriages dissolved only shortly after they begun, her career suffered two major setbacks, and her looks started fading. Some reasons for each development may be given — consensus states that Lana married so often because she got bored with her current mate in bed — but she did in fact bounce back every time. Lana’s survival offers a clue to the wole raison d’etre behind Hollywood. She had an excellent sense of what parts were good for her, and she took pains to make sure that her screen life was kept on a different level than her private life. No matter what she did in public, her audiences still thought of her as the women she portrayed on the screen. Her ability to detach herself in this way is probably what sustained her. The only problem with the book is that no interviews with Lana herself were done. She refused because it sounded as if she was finished if someone was doing a biography of her. Still the same old Lana. | wens OF howe un? fen Veronica Lake and her ‘hairdo of the century” “Veronica: The Autobiography of Veronica Lake By Veronica Lake with Donald Bain Bantam, $1.25 Veronica was the girl whose sense of detachment was so great she walked out. Her films — I Married a Witch, Sullivan’s Travels, The Glass Key — are among the best. She rose to’ fame and then walked out at the height of it. Her book explains why she left. She could never accept the rituals of Hollywood. Lana used them and Marilyn succumbed to them, but Veronica laughed at them. Once a producer attempted to cast her by placing his penis on his desk. She ran out — and she is still friends with him today. Her famous hairdo was forced upon her by Busby Berkely. Before every audition was torture to her because her hair kept falling in front of her eyes. She never thought she would be a star, so it was easy to reject it. And she doesn’t seem sorry today. She’s frank and usually names names in the book, and the style is very light and flowing. Overall, though, you are let down, because we all want Hollywood stars like Marilyn and Lana, not like Veronica. Or we did, once. Digest Classified Do you have an article to sell, a service to supply, a position to fill? Place your ad in the Digest Classified for only 80 cents per line. Send your copy to Classifieds, The Canadian Film Digest, 175 Bloor St. East, Toronto 5. For Sale: Tape recorder. Uher 4000L portable mono. 5’’ reel to reel. Professional quality. All accessories. Contact the Film Digest, Box C, 175 Bloor St. East, or call (416) 924-8895. Are you looking for actors, technicians, teachers? We will provide a FREE listing in this column to help you. Send your information to Casting, The Canadian Film Digest, 175 Bloor St. East, Toronto 5. ANY personnel, not only movie people, are eligible. Amalgamated Artists Vancouver, B.C. Alex McCallum of Amalgamated Artists Casting Agency has been appointed as casting director of an upcoming feature film to be shot in B.C. in the late part of 1973. He requires pictures and resumes from boys between the ages of 11 and 13 years, and girls between the ages of 3 and 12 years. ACTRA members preferred if possible, but non ACTRA members are invited to send pictures and resumes as well. Please mail to Amalgamated Artists Casting Agency, c/o the Arts Club, 1181 Seymour St., Vancouver 2, B.C. Backdoor Theatre Workshop Toronto Backdoor Theatre Workshop has received a LIP grant. Gino Marrocco will be holding open auditions for actors and actresses. Also needed: Resident stage manager, business administrator and jack of all trades. 474 Ontario St., Toronto, Ontario M4X 1M7 (416) 9611505. Centaur Theatre Montreal. Looking for a House Manager whose responsibilities would include supervision of building maintenance. Job available immediately; ‘salary open to discussion. Apply in writing to: Mr. Stephen Gentles, Centaur Theatre, 453 St. Francis Xavier St., Montreal 125. The Citadel Edmonton The Citadel Theatre is accepting applications for the position of artistic director and guest directors for the 1973-74 season and thereafter. Those interested are invited to send a full resume and photograph to J. H. Shoctor, executive producer, 400-10004 Jasper Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta, marked Personal. Hamel Theatre Productions Toronto Hamel Theatre Productions need five actors and five actresses. Send Photos and resumes to P. O. Box 224, Station J., Toronto M4J 4Y1, Ontario. Hobel-Leiterman Productions Toronto Screenplays or script-outlines for feature length dramatic productions wanted. All submissions will be given careful reading with a view to production in Canada. Please mail with self-addressed return envelope to: HobelLeiterman, 573 Church Street, Toronto M4Y 2E4. Kingston Campus, Kingston, Ontario. St. Lawrence College of Applied Arts and Technology is seeking applications for instructor to teach and direct productions in a new, three-year, theatre arts program with options in technical theatre and puppetry. Requirements: Four year Bachelor’s degree in Digest Casting DIGEST QUIZ NO. 5 Page 15 theatre or equivalent certificate of study from professional school of theatre; three years teaching in accredited program or three years professional experience; experience in area of acting directing. Starting date between April Ist and June ist 1973. Salary commensurate with qualifications and experience. Resume to: Chairman, Visual and Creative Arts department, St. Lawrence College of Applied Arts and Technology, Portsmouth Avenue, P.O. Box 6000, Kingston, Ontario. New Century Theatre Saskatoon. Twenty-fifth street house NCT is looking for the following: theatre technician, music composer, actresses, actors, dancers and designers. Mostly looking for versatile people who can fill several bills. ‘‘Some of the above positions will be paid, some will be nonpaid, but all of them will be geared towards individual artistic development and the growth of original theatre in Saskatchewan.”’ Apply to twenty-fifth street house, New Century Theatre, 202-102 2nd Ave. N., Saskatoon, Sask. Patti Payne Toronto Shooting begins February 28 for CBC-TV’s eight one-hour episodes of Pierre Berton’s National Dream. Casting here and points west — mostly men in the 30-to-60-year-old range. Documentary projection techniques. Experience in a university munti-disciplinary arts centre is desirable. Must be capable of working variable hours and with minimal supervision. Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. Centre For Communication And The Arts (operations) needs a theatre technician. Should be experienced in the routines of preparing and operating stage shows. Should have some knowledge of stage lighting, sound and film projection techniques. Experience in a university multi-disciplinary arts centre is desirable. Must be capable of working variable hours and with minimal supervision. University of Alberta Edmonton Drama Department requires M.F.A. in design or professional equivalent, to teach in areas of undergraduate stagecraft, production, design and graduate design. Experience in professional theatre desirable; competence in costume, scene and lighting design; teaching experience desirable. Will design one or two main stage productions per season. Salary and rank negotiable to $12,900. at level of assistant professor (subject to budget approval). Position available July ist, 1973. Write: Thomas Peacocke, Cairman, Department of Drama, University. of Alberta, Edmonton. Also: Drama department requires M.F.A. or M.A. (drama) or equivalent, to teach oral communication, voice and speech, improvisation and or creative drama, and possibly introductory course in theatre art. Teaching experience necessary. Salary and rank negotiable to 12,900 at level of assistant professor (subject to budget approval). Position available July Ist, 1973. Write: Thomas Peacocke, Chairman, Department of Drama, University of Alberta, Edmonton. Special Academy Award Quiz 1. Greer Garson and Clark Gable both initially refused roles which subsequently won them Academy Awards. What films were these? 2. Name the films for which the following directors won Awards for Best Director: Billy Wilder, David Lean, John Ford. 3. Loretta Young won best actress for her role in what movie? 4. What year saw the first award presented for best Short Subject? 5. What female star won two best actress awards in a row — then disappeared into oblivion? : 6. In what year were the first Best Supporting awards given, and who won? 7. Each of the following songs won the award as the best for its year. Name the films they were heard in. ‘‘White Christmas,’’ ‘When You Wish Upon a Star,’’ ‘‘Sweet Lelani.”’ 8. Name the year that saw the following firsts for the awards and the ceremonies: The sealed envelope was used; the presentations were held in a theatre; the ceremonies were broadcast on network radio; the ceremonies were broadcast on network television; the Foreign Language Film category was included. 9. Each of the following actors were nominated for Best Actor only once, and they all lost. Name the films they received their nominations for Gene Kelly, Henry Fonda, James Mason. 10. Each of the following actresses were nominated for Best Actress only once, and they all lost. Name the films they received their nominations for Jean Arthur, Carole Lombard Marlene Dietrich. 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