Photoplay (Jul - Dec 1936)

BOOS FIRST PRIZE— $15 THE WINNER! ONCE in a long while a film is made that has everything — topnotch players, thrilling plot, picturesque settings, breath-taking "shots" and glorious music. "San Francisco" triumphs with all these qualities, and is being greeted with cheers of enthusiasm by the whole world of theater goers! Who, other than Clark Gable, could play the carefree gambler Blackie with that arrogant, likable assurance? Where could be found a more suitable setting for such a character than the Barbary Coast of 1906? What could be more spectacular than the havoc wrought by that unpreparedfor earthquake and fire? What could be more beautiful and inspiring than the goldenvoiced Jeanette MacDonald singing the "Jewel Song" from Faust? When actors and directors are able to combine forces and turn out such a splendid piece of work "once," why not make it more of a habit? Marjorie Brouillette, Seattle, Wash. SECOND PRIZE— $10 GOOD FOR GARY! "You know," he says in one of his recent successes, "it's like this: I grow on people. At first they don't like me, but afterwards they can't leave me alone." Which is exactly the way I feel about that big man from the west, Gary Cooper. His ready smile and carefree manner are his weapons; the movie audience, his target. Which is Witch? June Knight, M-G-M's blonde star, gives you an advance tip that Halloween is around the corner And how he has scored! His is the happy knack of bringing out the best in his audience. Men sympathize with him; girls admire his quiet sincerity. Everything he does is so laughably natural that one would have to try hard to leave the theater without having enjoyed every minute of one of his pictures. His finished acting combined with adroit comedy have provided sheer entertainment that is difficult to equal. I eagerly await Mr. Cooper's latest picture, "The General Died at Dawn." And I will come early and stay late. Frank W. White, New Rochelle, N. Y. THIRD PRIZE— $5 NO IMITATIONS NEED APPLY Why do movie letter writers liken one player to another? George Raft and Cesar Romero at their screen debut were each called a second Valentino. Rosalind Russell is a Myrna Loy. When a comparison fails the sterile-minded writers, the player is hailed as the "boy next door." (Fred MacMurray and Henry Fonda are the latest victims of the b.n.d. label.) Agesilaus, Spartan king, once declined an invitation to hear a man who could admirably imitate the nightingale. He said he had heard the nightingale itself. Likewise who wants to spend time and money to see a shadow boy -next-door when we can see more than we want of the real one free? Dozens of interviews have praised Errol Flynn; he deserves every word said. We want new stars of individuality, not imitation movie nightingales. Leoxie Poitiers, Washington, D. C. $1 PRIZE DRAMA IN THE HOME Millions may be lavished on such colossal, stupendous productions as "The Great Ziegfeld" without getting more than a passing gasp from a movie audience, but bring along a few pictures like "Every Saturday Night" and "Educating Father" and you have an instant hit. These productions, founded on the home life of the average American show us that even the most prosaic existence has in it something of the story book; that in every home of the country's staid middle class there is as much drama as you will find on the bounding main, the battlefield, or the night club. Their subtle moralizations do much to lighten our daily burdens of care and worn'. Give us more of these pictures about you and me and the man next door, so that "we may see ourselves as others see us." James Pool, Ventura, Calif. [ PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 106 ] Photoplay awards the following prizes for the best eigh. letters received each month: $15 first prize, $10 second, $5 third, and live $1 prizes. We suggest that your letters be . but there are no specific rules — any and all opinions on pictures and players will be considered. Photoplay reserves the right to use the letters submitted in whole or in part. Contributions will not be returned. Contributors are warned that letters eopied or adapted from previously published material, which constitutes plagiarism, will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Address: Boos & Bouquets, Photoplay, /-'-' East 42nd St., New York City.