Photoplay (Jul-Dec 1951)

STUFF IMPERTINENT >art owner of stations in Monterey, Los Yngeles, Miami, and has applied for con, traction permits for TV stations in ither cities . . . The neuroses that caused lis draft evasion (according to testinony) resulted in six months’ imprisonnent and a $10,000 fine for Dick Contino, ;he bewildered accordionist ... It was i hernia operation for Gary Cooper and lothing more serious as reported. Baby Daze: This time the Bob Mitchims, who already have two boys, have ordered a little girl. They’ll even accept wo baby girls, on account of because here are already three sets of twins in drs. Mitchum’s family! . . . The Anthony Valentino) Dexters are so thrilled with -heir new baby daughter, they wouldn’t hrow rocks at the stork if he paid them mother visit . . . It’s win and lose for the dazzling Twentieth Century-Fox star, flicheline Prelle. She is going to have a )aby but Mrs. William Marshall ain’t >oing to get that juicy role in “Five Fingers”— and Danielle Darrieux is . . . David Brian, who doesn’t appreciate being i “heavy” on or off the screen, was exonerated by a jury which decided he wasn't the father of the child born to his second wife after they were divorced. Here and There: Their appearance together at Ciro’s caused the usual reconciliation rumors for Jane Wyman and Ronald Reagan— also the usual annoyance, oecause they are friends who enjoy an occasional evening out . . . Gloria Swanjson finally found a good script at Repubic, her first since “Sunset Boulevard.” Yes, she plays an actress— for the fifth time! . . . Evidently it’s love, love, love between Anne Jeffreys and Bob Sterling, who flew from New York to San Francisco to share her “Bittersweet” debut . . . Marlon Brando’s usual cream and raw eggs send his luncheon companions scurrying in all directions. INTERVIEW BY ALINE MOSBY U. P Hollywood Correspondent Ever hear of Hollywood’s ladies in retirement? Well, there’s Hedy Lamarr — and Ingrid Bergman— and other movie queens down the years who’ve announced they’d quit the celluloid. But then the items about pictures they might do pop up in the gossip columns. And sooner or later, they come back. The latest lady in retirement is beautiful Virginia Mayo. Recently her actor husband, Michael O’Shea, let the secret out that they planned to give up movies in five years and pull weeds on their new ranch in Arizona. Virginia trekked from the ranch to Hollywood to collect the screams, whistles and envious “oohs” from her fans at the premiere of “Captain Horatio Hornblower.” There I inquired how she could bear to give all this up. But Miss Mayo insists she’s one lady who means it. She says she’d rather be a housewife than a star any day. “I’d rather care for a home and make a career out of that,” she said. “I think that’s more satisfactory to a woman. “The ranch is an investment for our future. We’re planning for the worst in the career angle. Especially me. After all, a man can go on when he’s old and do character parts. But not someone like me. “And frankly, I’m not that interested in movies. I’d rather have more time for myself and for living. Movie-making is such a precarious business. Your jobs are so dependent on other people. We want a little bit of security in our old age. “Making pictures is such a tedious job. It takes all day. And I’ve never really had any vacation. I work constantly. “I’d love to retire now, but I can’t yet. I need some more money. The ranch isn’t built up yet.” According to the Mayo-O’Shea five-year plan, they hope to be raising cattle on a paying basis by 1957. Then she hopes to quit, or at least, she hedged, “be a free lancer. “I like the outdoor life and more leisurely living. I’ve helped fix up the ranch house and, with our partner’s wife, I help with the cooking. I don’t know much about cooking,” the glamour girl confessed. “But I’m catching up on that.” Greg Bautzer — whose way with the girls is a Hollywood mystery — always seems able to pick up where he left off, took Jane Wyman to big benefit dinner Bill Holden and director John Farrow went on location with the Navy to make “ Submarine Command ” After four weeks aboard a sub, Bill says their food and service are best in the world!