Photoplay (Jan-Jun 1946)

tically very happy, even though she was troubled, too. That bracelet was her first secret from her mother and sister. The real romantic turning point came one early 1945 evening when Jeanne went out to The Tail of the Cock, a little restaurant which is not a show-off place like the Strip places but one where quiet, nice people go for very good food. Jeanne was with Henry King Jr. but she felt a wave of possessive jealousy sweep over her, when only a few tables away, she spied Paul with another girl. Later that evening Paul and Jeanne talked long and ardently to one another by telephone. The upshot of it was that they agreed they’d never date anyone but one another. “Oh, baby, you’re so young,” her mother said when Jeanne told her of this promise. “Please wait before you settle down to one man.” “I’ve waited a year and a half already ” “Darling, do be cautious. Are you sure that Paul, charming as he is, is ‘the home type?’ Please, Jeanne, think this over a little longer. Promise me you will go for a little while without seeing Paul. If your love is real, it will survive the separation. If it isn’t, you will have discovered the truth without hurting yourself or Paul too much.” Jeanne looked at her mother, whom she loved so deeply. “How long do you want me not to see Paul?” “Six months. Can you agree to give yourself and Paul and me six months more?” “Yes, mother, I can and I will.” IEANNE lived up to her word. Almost that is, and she probably would have lived up to it completely, if the night of the Japanese surrender had not come along. She did not see nor talk to Paul for more than four months. She worked and studied, studied along with Rita, who was attending U.C.L.A. and was majoring in psychology. The charmed circle was almost exactly what it had been two years earlier, until that night of the Japanese surrender. Paul called up, when the news broke. He begged Jeanne to see him, if only a moment. “Oh, mother, may I, may I?” Jeanne begged. What could her mother say? That was a night unlike any other in history, a night that would live forever in history. Against her better judgment, mama yielded. Absence had done nothing except make Jeanne’s love grow infinitely stronger. Now she dated Paul, night after night, and there was no longer any doubt that these were the dates of a young couple madly in love. August melted into September, into October, into November. Paul’s war plant closed down. “What will Paul do?” asked Mrs. Crain. Jeanne is a dreamer. Jeanne truly believes that wishing will make it so. “Oh, something,” she said. “But what?” “He’s going to manufacture radios — he’s got new patents — I know there aren’t many materials now — but in the future it will be wonderful.” Mrs. Crain continued to drive Jeanne to and from the studio, but otherwise the charmed circle was troubled. It became December 24. In the Westwood apartment, the Christmas tree was up, the Christmas presents lay under it. It began to rain. Jeanne had always loved the rain. Jeanne had to work that day, so very little after dawn, she and Mama stood on their doorstep. “Oh, Mother, isn’t it a lovely day?” she cried. She phoned her mother from the set, late that afternoon. “Don’t come for me,” PERFECTLY PROPORTIONED TO FIT YOU . . . STYLED IN FOUR DISTINCT FIGURE TYPES Here are dresses styled and cut to fit your particular figure! Yes, Kay Whitney rayon dresses are distinctively styled and proportioned for the MISS, PETITE (the short miss), HALF SIZE and WOMAN. Made as beautiful inside as out ... of exclusive prints as colorful and fresh as Spring. Featured at Daytime and Budget Shops everywhere. Reliance Manufacturing Company , 212 W. Monroe St., Chicago ... 1350 Broadway, New York