Arrowsmith (United Artists) (1931)

Attention-Gaining Current Newspaper Stories RICHARD BENNETT HAS IMPORTANT ROLE IN NEW GOLDWYN FILM Appears in Support to Ronald Colman in Film Version of Lewis’ “Arrowsmith” Richard Bennett, one of the most brilliant and tempestuous personal¬ ities on the American stage, the sub¬ ject of legends which will be re¬ membered for generations, supports Ronald Colman in “Arrowsmith,” the Samuel Goldwyn production of Sinclair Lewis’ master-novel which comes to the Theatre on. . Between his record of famous performances and his habit of stopping shows and lectur¬ ing the audience from the stage, Richard Bennett is a proverb in the theatrical world. There are few per¬ sonalities big enough to get away with either. Long Famous on Stage Besides being such an eminent stage-figure, Richard Bennett is, of course, the father of the screen Ben¬ netts, which includes Constance, Joan and Barbara, and recently ap¬ peared in the same picture as Con¬ stance in “Bought.” But, although he is just beginning to establish him¬ self in the cinema, he was famous on the stage before three beautiful daughters were out of the cradle. He played opposite Maude Adams in Barrie’s “What Every Woman Knows.” He was the sensational star of “Damaged Goods.” He has appeared in more than 150 stage plays, among which every theatre¬ goer will at once recognize the names of “The Dove,” “They Knew What They Wanted,” “The Barker,” “Beyond the Horizon,” “He Who Gets Slapped” and “Jarnegan.” Yet he started life under the im¬ pression that he was a pugilist and left home in Indiana at the age of seventeen to barnstorm as a boxer. A period as a tailor, and a short while as singer in a glee club, turned out no better than boxing. Eventual¬ ly he joined a medicine show in Colorado and trouped with it for a while until getting his first chance on the legitimate stage in Chicago forty years ago. Played in Silent Films He had some experience in the old silent pictures, when he played the leading role in the screen pro¬ duction of “Damaged Goods” a long time ago. Now he frankly says that he did not like the silent movies to work with at all; but that with the advent of dialogue he can be comfortable in them. According to him, the talkies make it possible for an actor to perform on his own and use his own methods, whereas in the silents the actor was merely a puppet who obeyed the orders that were shouted at him. And that fits his na¬ ture. He has always been most fa¬ mous of all for doing things his own way. “Arrowsmith,” is a United Artists picture. Recognized Authorities Aid in Making “Arrowsmith” The names of people of recognized great achievements crowd round “Arrowsmith,” Ronald Colman’s new picture which comes to the .Theatre on . Sinclair Lewis, author of the novel from which it was taken, is the only American novelist ever to be award¬ ed a Nobel Prize for literature. Sid¬ ney Howard, who adapted it to the screen, was awarded a Pulitzer Prize several years ago for his hit drama "They Knew What They Wanted.” And John Ford, who directed it, is acknowledged throughout the pic¬ ture world to have made one of the greatest pictures of history in “The Iron Horse” when he first came to fame. In addition to Ronald Colman, the cast of “Arrowsmith,” a United Artists picture, includes such glam¬ orous stage names as Helen Hayes and Richard Bennett. Her Second Success Helen Hayes, the newest queen of the talkies, makes her second screen appearance in sup¬ port of Ronald Colman in “Ar¬ rowsmith,” Samuel Goldwyn’s picture version of the master- novel by Sinclair Lewis, which comes to the.The¬ atre on. Already acknowledged to be one of the most eminent actresses on the American stage after her triumph in “Coquette” four years ago, Miss Hayes’ first picture, “The Sin of Madelon Claudet,” was such a sensation that Samuel Goldwyn immediately signed her to play the leading lady of “Arrowsmith,” the United Art¬ ists picture. Helen Hayes Started Screen Career When a Child at Vitagraph Studios Samuel Goldivyn’s “Arrowsmith” is the Inside Story of Modern Medicine Now Portrays Important Role Opposite Ronald Colman in the Samuel Goldwyn Screen Version of Sinclair Lewis’ “Arrowsmith” Presentation of Sinclair Lewis’ Famous Novel is Brought to Screen With Ronald Colman and Helen Hayes Helen Hayes has always been a veteran whatever she turned her hand to, all due to the fact that she started acting before she was old enough to be quite sure just what the word veteran meant. When New York first took solid notice of her as the adolescent queen of Egypt in the Guild’s “Caesar and Cleopatra,” she had already been trouping since she was eight years old. And now that she is breaking into pictures opposite Ronald Colman in Samuel Gold¬ wyn’s “Arrowsmith,” a United Art¬ ists picture, as her second venture, she can hark back to experiences on the screen of such an early day that in comparison she makes even the most experienced movie queen look like a newcomer. For, back when she was the infant phenomenon of Weber and Fields shows, her mother used to sneak her over to the old Vitagraph Studio in Brooklyn to play the roles of the ubiquitous child who was so popular in the first dawn of picture¬ making. Sneaking was necessary be¬ cause, in those days, it was a dis¬ grace for a legitimate actor or actress of any reputation to have anything to do with moving pic¬ tures, and there would have been very little prestige remaining to the pride of the Hayes family if anyone had found out about it. Played with Vitagraph The period is dated by the fact that John Bunny, Mabel Turner and Maurice Costello were then the stars of the Vitagraph lot. They all used to travel together over to Brooklyn on the elevated and Mau¬ rice Costello’s small daughters, one of whom is, of course, now Mrs. John Barrymore after making a big reputation as Dolores Costello, were Helen Hayes’ playmates, as a par¬ tial compensation for lowering her professional dignity. Between then and “The Sin of Madelon Claudet” which the world took to be her picture debut, she had no connection with pictures. True, her husband, Charles MacArthur, is by this time a veteran of the writing end of the film industry, but Helen Hayes herself was engaged in con¬ solidating her position on the Amer¬ ican stage as an actress, no longer a child wonder. She survived even a road tour in the title role of “Pollyanna” and finally, when “Coquette” appeared four years ago, became one of the most eminent names in the theatre. Did Not Trek to Hollywood The gold rush of Broadway actors to Hollywood following the intro¬ duction of dialogue films offered no temptations to her, possibly because the notion of acting in the movies was something she had already been through. Or possibly she preferred to let things quiet down and not take chances on entering a line of activity which, to put it mildly, was then in a state of chaos. Now that her participation in pictures has be¬ come such an important event, her judgment appears to be justified. Nor has she any intention of giv¬ ing up the stage, though most people seem to take it for granted that she has gone Hollywood for keeps. She will, she thinks, keep one foot in the studios of the west coast and one in the New York theatres and not be worked to death either. That is one of the good things about always being a veteran—if you know what things are all about, you can keep yourself from doing anything rash in sudden excitement. She likes picture acting, and she likes the stage and she has been used to both of them these many, many years. Ronald Colman in. Samuel (jolduuyns ^mOWSmith" 5 —One Column Colman Scene Head (Mat, 5c; Cut, 30c) COLMAN DISPLAYS HIS VERSATILITY IN NEW “ARROWSMITH” ROLE Screen Star Gives Striking Per¬ formance in Goldwyn’s Latest Production Portraying one of the most striking characters in modern American fiction, Ronald Colman comes to the screen of the Theatre on in the title-role of “Arrowsmith,” the motion picture which Samuel Goldwyn has made from the famous novel by Sinclair Lewis. Thus Colman fans will again have an opportunity to see him returning to serious emotional impersonations, after his recent successes in the line of light com¬ edy. Ronald Colman has, however, displayed a great versatility in his long screen career, and played great varieties of parts since he first left the legitimate stage for motion pictures. The romantic dash of “Beau Geste,” the comedy melodrama of “Bulldog Drum¬ mond,” the tragic seriousness of “The Dark Angel” and “Con¬ demned,” the light farce of “The Devil to Pay,” have all shown dif¬ ferent angles of the actor who has been called the premier performer of talking pictures. “Arrowsmith” is, of course, his first appearance in the role of an American. Supporting him in this transcrip¬ tion of Sinclair Lewis’ master nov¬ el is a lengthy cast of famous names. Opposite him is Helen Hayes, the stage-star who tri¬ umphed recently on the screen in “The Sin of Madelon Claudet,” and in major roles are Richard Ben¬ nett and A. E. Anson, both famous veterans of the legitimate stage for many years. Myrna Loy, Alec B. Francis, Beulah Bondi, Claude King, and Florence Britton are other well-known players who contribute to “Arrowsmith.” Conoid Colman in samue/ goidwyns !4rrawsmit h * 3 —Two Column Scene (Mat, 10c; Cut 50c) The moving pictures have shown on the screen the inside story of politics, newspapers, war, the thea¬ tre, dance halls, bootlegging and prison. Now for the first time the frank inside story of modern medi¬ cine comes to the picture public at the .Theatre on in Samuel Goldwyn’s screen ver¬ sion of “Arrowsmith,” Sinclair Lewis’ master-novel, with Ronald Colman playing the leading role of the brilliant young doctor who risks his life and everything he has in the pursuit of scientific truth. When “Arrowsmith” first appear¬ ed as a novel several years ago, it raised a storm of protest from medi¬ cal men all over the world. Its pic¬ ture of the ignorance and jealousies and thirst for publicity which handi¬ cap disinterested workers in scientific medicine was the last thing that the world of medicine wanted to see in print. It described the heroism of scientists who fearlessly expose themselves to the worst forms of death in the interests of humanity, but it also bitterly attacked the pedantic stuffed shirts of medicine with all of Sinclair Lewis’ well known powers. And it is Arrow- smith’s battle with his selfish and jealous colleagues which is the theme of the picture as well as the book. Get Authentic Facts Sinclair Lewis knew what he was talking about, since he derived all his background for “Arrowsmith” from Dr. Paul de Kruif, author of “Microbe Hunters” and “Hunger Fighters”, and perhaps the best known general writer on medical subjects in the United States. Every detail of his hero’s life from his in- terneship in a big hospital to his tragic battle with the Black Death on a savage island in the West Indies is founded on established fact. And there are just as many facts be¬ hind the attitude of his jealous col¬ leagues toward his discoveries, and the sacrifice he is compelled to make in the interests of his work. The Nobel Prize Winner “Arrowsmith” is the first of Sin¬ clair Lewis’ novels to be screened with dialogue. His eminence in mod¬ ern American letters was universal¬ ly acknowledged last year when he was awarded the first Nobel Prize ever given to an American novelist. “Main Street,” “Elmer Gantry,” “Babbitt” are other books that brought him to fame, but critics generally acknowledged that his story of the career of Dr. Martin Arrowsmith is his masterpiece. The cast supporting Ronald Col¬ man in “Arrowsmith,” the United Artists picture, includes such brilli¬ ant names as Helen Hayes, Richard Bennett, A. E. Anson, Beulah Bondi and Myrna Loy. It is directed by John Ford, famous for “The Iron Horse”, and is adapted to the screen by Sidney Howard. COLMAN PORTRAYS ROLE OF CRUSADING DOCTOR IN “ARROWSMITH” Helen Hayes Appears Opposite Star in Screen Version of Sinclair Lewis’ Novel You have to be something of a jack-of-all-trades to be a movie actor in these days of realism in pictures. Ronald Colman, who, at various times in his picture career, has been a sea captain, casting his eye aloft at the luff of the sail, a professional soldier, and a deft pickpocket, had to turn himself in¬ to an expert physician and labor¬ atory man in playing his starring role of the crusading young doctor in “Arrowsmith,” the Samuel Gold¬ wyn production of Sinclair Lewis’s master-novel, which comes to the .Theatre on. There could be no fooling or amateurish sloppiness about it be¬ cause, although there are very few professional soldiers and sea cap¬ tains and pickpockets, there are hundreds of thousands of doctors to resent any slips he made in play¬ ing his role of expert with the microscope and the hypodermic needle. Consequently, among the things Mr. Colman had to learn to do with ready skill in a few weeks were: Skilled Medicine Man Be able to pull a tooth by means of the old-fashioned piece of string. Administer hypodermic injec¬ tions to a herd of resentful cows. Pack towels about the throat of a diphtheria victim. Take a temperature in a profes¬ sional manner. Handle with expert assurance electric furnaces, retorts, micro¬ scopes, pipettes, filters, slides, and all the other delicate parapher¬ nalia of the professional bacteri¬ ologist. Give hypodermic injections to a mob of five hundred negro extras. And construct laboratory equip¬ ment in a country kitchen out of toothpicks and few pieces of string. All the details in the novel were supplied by eminent medical authorities, and prominent physi¬ cians in Los Angeles gave the aid of their advice throughout produc¬ tion. Helen Hayes, Richard Bennett, A. E. Anson, Beulah Bondi and Myrna Loy are some of the well known names who appear in sup¬ port of Ronald Colman in “Arrow- smith,” the United Artists picture. It was directed by John Ford, fa¬ mous for “The Iron Horse,” and adapted to the screen by Sidney Howard, the Pulitzer Prize play¬ wright. Helen Hayes Started Her Stage Career at Age of Eight in Washington Stock Female Star in Samuel Goldwyn’s “Arrowsmith” Achieved Big Success on Broadway in Stage Play of “Coquette” Mrs. Brown had always been curious to have a look at back-stage life in the theatre. So she put her small daughter in a stock company in her native town of Washington, D. C., and satisfied her curiosity. She could hardly have realized what she had started. For the small daughter is nowadays one of the most eminent actresses on the American stage and now seems to be repeating that success on the talking screen. Her name is Helen Hayes and her appearance opposite Ronald Colman in “Arrowsmith,” the Samuel Goldwyn production of the Sinclair Lewis novel which comes to the . Theatre on ., is her second picture. The world of movie-goers already knows her brilliance in her first, “The Sin of Madelon Claudet.” Now, as the young nurse who marries the brilliant young doctor and gives her life to support him in his work, she has another role to startle the pic¬ ture world as she startled the blase world of Broadway some years ago as the heroine of the memorable “Coquette.” Started Career at Age of 8 It was a dramatization of Mark Twain’s “The Prince and the Pauper” which saw her first stage performance in Washington at the age of eight. She was the child won¬ der of Washington and when her mother took her to Lew Fields, of the famous comedy team of Weber and Fields, he had a special part written for her into their current production of “Old Dutch” and con¬ tinued to supply a place for her in all the Weber and Fields shows. She played the title role of “Polly¬ anna” on the road before making her first big success with William Gillette in Sir James Barrie’s “Dear Brutus.” From that time on she rose steadily to fame as a comedienne, climaxing this phase of her career with the Theatre Guild, as young Cleopatra in the Theatre Guild’s fa¬ mous production of George Bernard Shaw’s “Caesar and Cleopatra.” Established Dramatic Ability But it was “Coquette,” the tragic play of a small town southern girl in which Mary Pickford appeared on the screen, which established her as a dramatic star of great emotional powers. Overnight, with the open¬ ing of that play, she leapt into en¬ during fame as one of the great American actresses of all time. Besides Miss Hayes in “Arrow- smith,” the United Artists picture, Ronald Colman is supported by such famous names as Richard Bennett, A. E. Anson, Beulah Bondi and Myrna Loy. The picture was directed by John Ford, the maker of “The Iron Horse.”