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Reginald's Lament
33
Denny's mountain lodge is typically a man's retreat, and he spends as much time there as possible.
his best picture, though "The Leather Pushers" and other fight yarns appealed to him.
"They had action and thrill, and a definite characterization. I want variety, though. I don't care particularly what I play, so long as it has a story and an interesting character. But I cannot do slapstick comedy, such as I have had to do. My face isn't funny. My comedy must be of situation, and not dependent upon my face or personality."
A nerve-racking, uncertain business is this sort of stardom. It demands, leechlike, an actor's all. There is compensation for some, perhaps, in the financial reward and fame. But these cost the actor in the coin of worry.
His worries, though, do not compare to those of the star-producer, which is virtually the position allotted to Denny by Universal. He, not the company, supervisor or director, is held responsible for the caliber of his films. He has the final say-so on all matters, with the exception that he must accept the staff, the troupe, the story and the budget given to him.
An expert flyer himself, Reginald Denny owns numerous planes which he rents out to various film companies.
It is like telling a small boy, "This is Saturday, you can do just exactly as you please. You can mow the lawn, feed the chickens, or do your arithmetic. Suit
yourself." An actor so placed is given the respect due to a producer, but not the latitude. He has the name, and the labor, but he lacks the wherewithal to do what is expected of him.
Is it any wonder that the vicissitudes of a career, under such peculiar conditions, have turned this buoyant, nonchalant fellow into a man of cares and frowns?
"But, Reg," I asked, when after luncheon we had driven to his house, and were looking out on the rambling gardens, "aren't all actors more or less discontented ? They kick, everywhere. Why ?"
"We are egoists," he admitted, "a fault which grows out of public acclaim. Few people, placed in the center of the spotlight, could remain humble and forget self. Self is our stock in trade. Any actor is prone to overrate himself a little, and to feel, when this fame is. given to him, that he deserves more respect from his employers than he gets. Still, in cases where the actor is held responsible, there arc grounds for complaint." _ [Cont'd on page 105]