Modern Screen (Dec 1934 - Nov 1935)

MODERN SCREEN "But Davidson insisted that I was the fellow he wanted. Not a 'pretty boy,' but a rough and ready sort of chap to play the lead in 'The Call of the Road' which he was about to film. "I jolly well knew that I was finished with boxing. I was out of a job, and appeared like a square peg in the round hole of London life. Here was a chance for me to make some easy money, so I submitted to a test, and was given the part. "I worked six weeks in that picture at a salary of thirty pounds a week. It was big money for film actors in London. THE film crowd I now associated with struck me as a perfectly crazy lot. I had been used to an atmosphere in which you showed your friendship for your pal by cursing him like a trooper. In this new world of cocktails, over-polite conversation, superlatives of praise, and disconcerting familiarity, every man was 'old boy' and every woman 'darling' or 'sweetheart.' Like Hollywood, it was a world apart, where the values of life as I knew them did not exist, and I had to adjust myself to an entirely new perspective. But once I got used to the change, I found the film crowd consisting in the main of very decent people, good pals, and square rivals. "I worked in about twenty British films before I got an offer from Hollywood. "America had knocked the bottom out of the British film industry and things were in a bad way for us actors over there. I eagerly wired my acceptance. The part offered me was the lead in Vitagraph's 'Beloved Brute.' "After I gave up boxing and became a film actor, I married Edna Lamont. I had to leave her in London and make the journey to America alone, for I didn't know how things would turn out for me in that fantastic place called Hollywood. Even though its streets seemed to be paved in gold bricks, hundreds had failed there for every one who had succeeded. "I arrived in Hollywood with only twenty dollars in my pocket, and wandered down the Boulevard with a jaunty feeling, not knowing exactly what to do or where to go. "The first person to speak to me was an ex-pug. He readily recognized me as an Englishman just come over from the other side. Being very anxious to make a good impression on my new employers, I was dressed in the latest sartorial elegance of London, with kid gloves, spats, and walking cane. People stopped and looked at me as if I were a freak show. "This ex-comrade of the ring touched me for a loan. I gave him one of the two ten-dollar bills I had with me. I asked him the way to the Vitagraph Studio, and he told me it was 'just along the road.' "Well, I had to walk five miles along that accursed road to reach the studio. The weather was as hot as Bagdad in summertime. My old shirt was gummed to my back, my hands were clammy. "The first person to meet me at Vitagraph was an Irish publicity man who hated all Englishmen at sight. " 'Very few of you fellows make good over here,' he told me. Not exactly the kind of greeting to soothe my perspiring brow. He made it quite plain that any race as stupid, dishonest, and utterly lacking in initiative and decency as the English, would stand very little chance of getting on in God's Own Country. "I liked him. I owe him a great deal. I will never forget the whirlwind publicity campaign he conducted to put me over when thing's looked pretty black to me. "It was at his suggestion that I put aside my English reticence and reservethree years of Shaftesbury Avenue had 1. Two Cups Raisins or 2. Two Cups Corn Flakes or 3. Three Cups Coconut or 4. Two Cups Bran Flakes or 5. One Cup Nut Meats, Chopped MAGIC COOKIES \]A, cups (1 can) Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk cup peanut butter ^■1 Any one of the five ingredients listed at left Thoroughly blend Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk, peanut butter and any one of the five ingredients listed at the left. Drop by spoonfuls onto buttered baking sheet. Bake 15 minutes or until brown, in a moderately hot oven (375°F.) Makes about 30 cookies. • No flour! No baking powder! Only 3 ingredients! Mixed in no time! Yet — whichever of the 5 ways you choose to make them — these cookies are crunchy, crispy winners! • But remember — Evaporated Milk won't — can't — succeed in this recipe. You must use Sweetened Condensed Milk. Just remember the name Eagle Brand. FREE! World's most amazing Cook Book! Rotogravure picture-book (60 photographs) showing astonishing new short-cuts. 130 recipes, including: Lemon Pie without cooking! Foolproof 5-minute Chocolate Frosting! Caramel Pudding that makes itself! 2-ingredient Macaroons! Shake-up Mayonnaise! Ice Creams (freezer and refrigerator). Address: The Borden Co., Dept. MM 15, 350 Madison Avenue, New York, N. Y. Name StreetCity— -Static (Print name and address plainly) Anita Louise and Tom Brown, Hollywood's best loved juvenile players, are seldom seen without each other. In other words, they're going "steady." 69