Motion Picture (Feb-Jul 1935)

IN THE folklore of old Ireland, g y there is a saying, "If the little 'fellies' are parading in the garden when ye are born, ye will never know a dul moment so long as ye shall live. They'll plague an dodge yer footsteps the rest of yer days." The "littl fellies," of course, are the elves and fairies withou which Ireland wouldn't be Ireland. Jean Harlow isn't Irish, but those little fellies mu have been marching in the garden twenty-three yea ago when she was born. Certainly, they have plagu< and dogged her footsteps ever since. Jean is one of tho exciting people to whom things are always happenin and she stands practically unchallenged as Hollywooc champion hard-luck girl. Yet she has never been other than a passive figure the whirl of gossip and innuendo in which she has foui herself since her first screen break in "Hell's Angel; She invites rumors just because she is Jean Harlow, startling beauty, and not because of anything she h done. So it must be the little fellies. It is Jean's misfortune to be the object of ma women's envy, and jealous women are never kind. H physical appearance and, naturally, her screen repul tion count heavily against her in their minds. Even that, the cataclysmic state of affairs in which she fin«o herself constantly involved might be more bearable if she had a valid means of defense. She can't go about, continually saying to everyone she meets, "I'm really not the kind of person you think I It is her destiny to remain passive even in the face am. of the most outrageous rumors Perhaps you may question my use of the word rageous." But if newspaper headlines screamed your every move, if you were unable to escape, even for a moment, the relentless spotlight of publicity, you would have reason to quarrel with the word — for not being strong enough. Newspaper headlines do scream at Jean Harlow all the time. I am not leading up to a rehash of the details of the tragedy of her three marriages. Too much has been said about them already. I merely ask you to hold in mind the fact that Jean has been in no hurry to divorce Hal Rosson since their separation some months ago. She is still legally his wife — and will be until she has a final decree of divorce — yet the latest gossip would have you believe that she is upon the brink of marrying William Powell. Don't the gossipers know that a girl can't marry a second man while she has a husband, without committing bigamy? Or are they suggesting that the statutes might be circumvented, somehow? It's all pretty confusing — and upsetting. Here, in her own words, is the first story of the almost incredible circumstances that have been employed to give credulity to the rumor of a Harlow-Powell romance. "As you know, Mother and I went to Arrowhead Hot Springs for a vacation," Jean told me. "I was badly in need ^i. us tugeiuer except at tormai Hollywood panics. "It was later disclosed that this particular photograph was a composite. Someone had found an old picture of Bill with Carole Lombard shortly after they were married. The man had then put my face on Carole's body and had it published." Now what about my word "outrageous?" Jean's studio, out of course, investigated and has a letter from the indi vidual who made the composite. Headlines and hard luck — these have been Jean Harlow's fate ever since she first became a screen sensation. They still are. But she is still keeping her chin up and fighting the good fight! ^S> i f Such tampering with photographs without explanation that the result is a composite is against the law and the matter may be taken to court. With the impetus given it at its beginning, the rumor that Jean and Bill are in love has gained wide circulation. Someone rein e m b e r e d that about two years ago in an interview, Powell had named Jean as his favorite screen actress. Much has been made of this. Can't you see how malignant is the fate that constantly casts Jean as the girl to whom things happen? She seems always the center of a vicious circle of gossip beyond her control. (Con tiivucd on page 94) HAPPENING TO JEAN 31