The Picture Show Annual (1926)

128 Picture Show Annual The Star with a Hundred Hobbies Clara Bow The Girl who won a Beauty Competition A lthough beauty competitions are pretty frequent, and through their organisation some charming girls become the recipients of an alluring prize or a big sum of money, it is strange to note that, apart from the publicity given them at the time of the competition result, few of the chosen beauties aspire to any great height. Clara Bow is therefore an exception, for, having got a chance by winning a beauty competition, she has shown her worth in her work and quickly climbed to the top of the film profession. The competition was run in a screen magazine, and although there were fifty thousand entries, the prize was allotted to Clara. The prize wasn't very valuable, as far as actual cash was con- cerned, in so far as it didn't mean actual cash, but to Clara it meant a great deal—an opportunity to commence on a career which had always been her ambition—a small role in a picture play. Her portrayal of the character was so marked that her beauty was almost forgotten, and important roles which called for emo- tional acting were assigned to her. The part which brought her into prominence was that of the little stowaway in “ Down to the Sea in Ships,” the great whaling picture in which she fought like a Trojan. Since then many important roles have come her way, and she has indeed been able to choose between the contracts offered to her rather than have to look around for them. " Maytime," “ Black Oxen," “ The Swamp Angel,” and ” Poisoned Paradise,” were films in which she had good parts. Then followed “ Grit,” in which she was given a fine oppor- tunity to display her effervescent self in action. Never was she seen to better advantage than m the role of the little East Side hoyden, who helped Kid (Glenn Hunter) to find his better self. T here are few film stars without a hobby of some kind or the other, but there are fewer still who cannot count their hobbies on the fingers of one hand. Theodore Roberts is an exception. Apart from his screen work—which is of para- mount importance to him—he has crowds of other interests. And somehow or the other he gives them all a certain amount of his time. He must have unbounded energy as well as number- less hobbies. His garden is a thing of beauty, tended by his own hand, with Quaint bridges, etc.—more of his handiwork. He breeds Aire- dales, and has an aviary of pigeons and tame seagulls. He paints, draws and sculpts, collects pictures and furniture ; and a cigar is such a persistent companion to him that one almost might count smoking as a hobby. Without his cigar Theodore would certainly feel lost. And he—well, he does a crowd of otiier thinn, but the thing of chief importance is that he acts wonderfully. Despite his sixty odd years, or perhaps it's because of his sixty odd years, every role he undertakes is perfection itself. It was so far back as in 1880 that Theodore Roberts began his stage career, and he played almost everything from Svengali to King Lear, from Shylock to Simon Legree. His picture career has been short in comparison with his years on the stage, but they have been momentous to him, for they have made him hundreds of thousands—even more—faithful friends the world over. Of all the screen roles he has played, he liked that of Wealth in “ Everywoman ”—although on the count of artistic value the part of the old bounder in “ Old Wives for New ” has his preference. On the stage he preferred portraying ” Shylock ” to any other role. I've told you a few of Theodore’s hobbies, haven’t I ? He owns to collecting almost everything—except collars, for which he has a great and unashamed distaste, as you'll witness if you visit him at home. Theodore Robertt