20th Century-Fox Dynamo (June 3, 1939)

NEW DYNAMO 2A “Young Mr. Lincoln Special’ “YOUNG MR. LINCOLN” GIVEN UNPRECEDENTED OVATION! STIRRED BY ITS MASS APPEAL 50,000 Jam Streets of Springfield, III., As Critics, Stars, Other Notables Applaud Zanuck’s Latest Achievement! By ROGER FERRI Overshadowing the brilliant and never-to-be-forgotten festivities that marked its world premiere at the Lincoln theatre here on Memorial Day were the sincere, thunderous applause and loud “Bravos!” from everyday moviegoers inspired by Darryl Zanuck’s greatest human drama, “Young Mr. Lincoln.” And these moviegoers were representative not only of the city type of folks, but ruralists as well. They included lads and lassies who delight in the swing music, who still think Mr. Moon is the s weel hear! of them all, who want their entertainment down to earth. And there were adults who know life, who live with their memories of younger days. There were business men and there were men and women of learning. There were factory workers and there were professional people. And each paid from $1 to $3 for the privilege of mingling with the stars and notables at the first public showing of “Young Mr. Lincoln.” And from various parts of the country there came fastidious newspaper critics, publicity men and exhibitors. And these, too, were swept off their feet by this admixture of comedy, romance, drama, suspense and action. For weeks everyday theatregoers, newspaper readers had been reading about the great picture that was coming to town. For years Spring- fieldians have been hearing about their most distinguished citizen, Mr. Ahraliam Lincoln. He was nothing new to them. Every phase of his life, his every utterance, his every move was known to these folks. This company subjected “Young Mr. Lincoln” to the stiffest possible test when it selected Springfield, 111., for the world premiere. Make no mistake about that. Folks down here may speak in reverence of the Great Emancipator, hut a majority of them even today differ with his political doctrine. Believe it or not, where Lincoln’s political beliefs are concerned, there is little difference between Springfield, 111., and Macon, Ga. But Springfieldians know superlative entertainment when it is presented—and, so they cheered “Young Mr. Lincoln” because it provided them with what Mayor John V. Kapp said was “the most enjoyable picture we have seen in a long, long time.” And it had to be a great picture, an extraordinarily great picture, to earn the applause of an audience, tired from a day of unusual activity and participation in an endless line of festivities, of star worshipping, of listening to numerous speeches, of being jostled about under a boiling sun. By the time “Young Mr. Lincoln” was flashed on the screen, Springfield had undergone a program few cities have ever had to cope with. And just before the picture was screened, there was the singing of the greatest contralto of the day, Marian Anderson. And whatever ordinarily follows Miss Anderson finds itself in anything but an advantageous spot. But then you cannot measure the worth of “Young Mr. Lincoln” by ordinary standards. It is something that stands apart from anything cinematically created this season. It is great in every way, in its conception, in its production, in its performance. And all this was proved not only by the world premiere audience, but by the crowds that were on hand at the showings the following day when Springfield became its normal self. Critics representative of every daily east of Kansas City agreed “Young Mr. Lincoln” was one of the outstanding triumphs of Hollywood. There were some among them that placed “Young Mr. Lincoln” first among Darryl Zanuck’s accomplishments. (Continued on page 12,A)