Movie Classic (Sep 1932-Feb 1933)

♦ THE NEWSREEL OF THE NEWSSTANDS ♦ Karen Morley Weds Director Secretly Actress Reveals November Wedding To Charles Vidor Only When She Is Able To Take Vacation-Honeymoon— Had Denied Any Plans Of Secrecy By Jerry bannon RAREN MORLEY is more like Garbo than Garbo, herself. She is truly indifferent to public opinion. Without refusing interviews, she has managed to tell interviewers less about herself than any other actress on the screen. She even kept her recent marriage secret for more than a month. The only admission of a romance on Karen's part was a brief and unemotional announcement in the late autumn that she and, Charles Vidor, the handsome young foreign director (no relation to King Vidor) were engaged. She wore no ring. She would not set the time for her marriage. "When we decide, I'll let you know," she was reported to have told the studio. When the newspaper and radio gossipers first insisted that she was already married, Karen made no reply at all — until the studio asked her to make a statement. "No," she said then, "I'm not married. I wouldn't have any reason for doing it secretly. I'll let you know when we decide on a date." Perhaps she did let the studio know, and the studio kept her secret so that she wouldn't he annoyed by curious newspaper reporters before she finished "Flesh," with Wallace Beery. For the picture had no sooner been completed than she revealed that she had married Charles Vidor under her real name of Mildred Linton in Santa Ana, California, on November 5. By the time she made her announcement, she was free to go on Karen put the reporters off-uuard hv nying she would announce her wedding plans when they had hem made a long honeymoon. Before she released the news, Karen would not have her picture taken with her "fiance." He refused to give out any photographs of himself to the press. They were never seen together in a public place, where alert news photographers could catch a snapshot of them. They apparently wanted their romance all to themselves. Karen Morley has had a screen career singularly free from romance rumors. To be sure, there was a young aviator who occasionally took her to parties. But until Charles Vidor was given the first scenes of "The Mask of Fu Manchu" to direct, while Charles Brabin was busy elsewhere, and the young director took to talking with Karen between scenes in confidential murmurs, the romance-hunters had found little to say about this pale, thin, silent actress. Karen has been working at top speed this past year, making nine pictures wit bout a rcsr. One day recently, she fain led on the set, and 1 1 o I I v w o 0 d awoke to the fact that Karen Morley, instead of gaining, as she had t tied so desperately to do for s e v i' r a 1 /flirrrll Karen Morley met Charles Vidor on the set of "The Mask of Fu Manchu" — and before it was finished they "eloped" to Santa Ana, California months, had lost weight. Every few days, a doctor has been giving bet injections of liver extract, which is usually the treatment for anemia — reminding Hollywood that Garbo was seriously ill with anemia several years ago. When Karen made no announcement of her marriage plans, it was thought that perhaps her health was making for the postponement. Karen, already wed, must have laughed at all the speculation about her not setting a wedding date. Now she has a vacation— and the vacation will be both a health tonic anil a honeymoon. There is talk of a long European trip. And what could be better, especially as the Hungarian bridegroom would be an excellent guide ? Meanwhile, Hollywood is trying to figure out the reason lor all the secrecy. Karen, who has never shown any particular craving lor publicity, presumably would not have concealed her wedding just to make the headlines a hit more startling when the news dul break. I lei studio could not have asked s( cli c\ because studios don't do such things any more. Wonder it it's possible that cool, calm Karen "eloped" because it w as more romantic! A\