Hollywood (Jan - Mar 1943)

amon and Pythia§IHHIoIIvyvooiI Style John Shepperd (left) and Philip Dorn share one of Hollywood's most ardent friendships. They both appear in Twentieth Century-Fox's Chetnik ! Bv DOROTHY HAAS ■ Remember Damon and Pythias, those two ancient Greek lads who were such good friends that one was willing to forfeit his life for the other? There is a reasonable facsimile of the team out in Hollywood, with each boosting the career of the other, and that, in a town where rivalry is rampant! Hollywood's own Damon and Pythias are John Shepperd and Philip Dorn. The story behind this friendship is unusual. Talk to one and you get a story about the other. When Shep was interviewed at lunch on the Twentieth Century-Fox lot, he spent all his time between bites discussing Dorn. "There is an actor," he exclaimed with warm enthusiasm. "He always has been good on the screen, but wait until you see him as General Mihailovitch in Chetnik! It's one of the greatest roles of his career. And he keeps insisting to Director Lou King that my part, as his aide de camp Alexis, be bigger, more important. Imagine that!" "But why?" "I did a small favor for Philip one time," Shep answered and tried to dismiss the matter. But Philip Dorn's comment on this "small favor" was not so non-committal. "I owe my start toward success in pictures to Shep," he declared. Piecing their two stories together, this is what actually happened: About three years ago, when Shep was under contract at M-G-M, like any other young contract player, he had to do his share of reading with other actors being tested for roles. Eight times he had read the Robert Taylor role in Escape, while other men tested for the part of the sympathetic doctor. Each of the eight was rejected. Then someone had a brilliant idea. Why not test Shep as the doctor? The test was so good that Shep was assigned to the part. But it was his for only twenty-four hours. The very next day someone brought Philip Dorn to the studio as a candidate for the role. He was an unknown newcomer, the role was assigned, but nevertheless, it was agreed to let him read. ■^"WP^Pv?HBPf^ '.'"™ ' ™ ' Shep was called. Would he, as a special favor, back-track and read the Taylor role for one more test? "Dorn and I were introduced," recalls Shep. "I looked at him, heard him say only a few words with his kindly voice and soft accent, and liked him immediately. I knew just as quickly that Dorn was the man for the part. Of course, I wanted it myself, but in all fairness I was sure he would be better. I just did all I could to make it a good test." Dorn's story, however, gives Shep full credit. He says, "I was quite ill, that day, in the middle of a siege of grippe. I should have been in bed, and never felt less like acting. But Shep put everything he had into those scenes. I could sense that he was trying to draw out the best in me. I didn't find out until much later that he was throwing away his own chance of having the role by making me respond to the excellence of his acting in that test. That is why I say I owe that part to Shep. And that was the beginning of my success in American pictures." Shep played no role in Escape. He was assigned to other pictures, and was later contracted by Twentieth Century-Fox. He did not see Dorn for two years, until they were both cast for Chetnik! During production of the film, their friendship developed. An amusing note came in one of the early scenes of that exciting picture about the Jugoslav free fighters who are giving Hitler plenty of headaches. Shep and Dorn were to ride spirited horses. Dorn had never been on a horse before; Shep has been riding since his childhood in the rolling hills of North Carolina. ' "Dorn's riding was perfect," Shep related, his brown eyes bright with amusement. "You would imagine he had been in a saddle from the age of two. But what happened to me? You've guessed it. My horse stopped short on a muddy spot of ground, slipped, and I went sailing off. I knew Phil could out-act me, but I certainly thought .1 could out-ride him." Shep's role of Alexis also calls for all sorts of stunts. To escape from the Gestapo he uses jiu-jitsu, overpowers guards, takes daring falls, fakes death in a thrilling tumble after supposedly being shot. To the surprise of the studio, he did them himself, without benefit of a double. Shep explained this by pointing out his stage background. "I don't know why anyone is astonished," he said. "The studio people seem to forget that stage actors are trained for those things. We can't have a double come on stage for every fall or fight!" Despite this [Continued on page 71] 30