Photoplay (Jan - Jun 1943)

Maria Montez is another such girl. In the days when men were plentiful Maria was seen in every smart spot with eventually the entire roll call of male desirables. The famine set in. Maria made no bones about telling the world her heart belonged to her English captain fiance, now in a German prison camp. Some unkind observers pointed out that this was merely a face-saving device to cover up the lack of eligible men on her list. In that case, they'll do well to keep their eyes on Jean Pierre Aumont, soon to be seen — and long remembered — in "Assignment In Brittany." For once more Maria has scored against the field. Aumont first fell to the lucky lot of the ladies at the Metro lot. And they did their best. But with little more than a gracious nod he has made his way over to the Montez colors. They had a wonderful romp together when they were recently in New York at the same time on tours. Trust Maria! Livvie de Havilland: Will she end up "Mrs." or remain in the ranks of the ladies-without-men? pINGER ROGERS suddenly ^J awakened to the fact that there were few unattached men left in Hollywood and that if she wanted one to call her own she'd have to hustle and find him. For a while she toyed with the idea of marrying Philip Reed, but he was apparently not the answer to her maiden's prayer. So she went more than a hundred miles, to the Marine base at San Diego, to fall in love with Jack Briggs and hear an honestto-goodness "Will-you-marry me?" Olivia de Havilland's spot in this noman picture is quite a different story. Livvie's dilemma is not that she hasn't got a man but that the number-one gentleman in her life is not free at the moment. In the old days when men were more plentiful than they are now, she set her cap, and a pretty cap it is, at Jimmy Stewart. Livvie adored him openly; he liked her; but the end was only separation. Then she went about with millionaire Howard Hughes. But Howard then was a playboy first, foremost and last. Jock Whitney (then between marriages) was next for Olivia. He liked her, but apparently the important question was never asked. And then, on her home lot (Warners) she met the brilliant young director John Huston, married but separated from his wife. If this marriage does not come off, it will be a body blow to Livvie. With most of the unmarried men in the fighting services, the publicity romance is practically dead. Hedy Lamarr was linked briefly with Jean Pierre Aumont, but it was pretty obvious that they did not care two buttons for each other and the "romance" lasted about two weeks. Hedy, by the way, seems genuinely in love with John Loder and thanks her stars that 30 she is now one of the lucky few with a beau she can call her own. The last splutter in publicity romances was furnished by John Payne and June Havoc when they appeared together in "Hello, Frisco, Hello." June made a pretty good job of it, too. The light in John's eye was no mere polite glow. And recently when John made a quiet trip into town, they had all their dates far from the click of news cameras. But don't lay any bets that theirs is one of those forever matters. The predicament of the women stars here is even worse from a professional viewpoint. There just aren't enough men left to go around for the thirty to fifty odd pictures each studio has to make a year. You should see the bigshot actresses scramble for the few remaining eligibles. Katharine Hepburn would like Spencer Tracy for every picture she makes here. She's had him for two already and wants him for the next. But fun is fun and Metro needs Spencer to support some of the other girls. Joan Fontaine, who used to be a quiet little thing, is now vociferous in demanding important leading men for her films. For "The Constant Nymph," Joan invited Director Edmund Goulding to lunch and showered him with arguments as to why she would be good for the part opposite Charles Boyer. "But the girl must be a weak, undersized, puny thing with freckles," Goulding told Joan. He looked a little closer at her and shrieked, "By heavens, you're the girl!" Claudette Colbert has the French woman's aptitude for making the best of things and she says that if she cannot get a man with a big name for her pictures, she'll take a goodlooking unknown with personality. It was she who chose George Reeves for her opposite in "So Proudly We Hail." She sat in the projection room and looked at thirty tests of unknown young men. Reeves's test was there by mistake. But when Claudette saw his face, she shouted, "Stop, that's the man!" Betty Grable tried to wheedle Fox into getting George Raft for her next film. She succeeded with the studio but failed with Raft, who was afraid he would have to play second fiddle in the picture and wasn't willing to risk his romance for top billing. Marlene Dietrich has always liked young men in her pictures, although an oldtimer like Menjou could show her off to better advantage. But Marlene would rather appear desirable to a young man than the best veteran actor in the business. Talking about Menjou, when the shortage of actors first became apparent, a producer said to Adolphe, "It looks as though you older guys will come back to films." "If we do," replied Menjou, "it will be the first time that some of the leading ladies have played with men of their own age!" The End. COLOR PORTRAIT SERIES Tyrone Power Page 31 Now in the U. S. Marines Betty Grable Page 34 Sheila Ryan Page 34 Martha' O'Driscoll Page 34 Laraine Day Page 34 Carole Landis . Page 35 Anne Shirley Page 35 Marjorie Reynolds Page 35 Donna Reed Page 35 Rita Hayworth Page 38 Walter Pidgeon Page 39 Paulette Goddard Page 42 photoplay combined u ith movie mirror