Born to be Bad (United Artists) (1934)

But Was She Good At Making Men Pay and Pay and Pay! Latest Style Trend Toward Simplicity Loretta Young wearing a few of the many lovely creations especially designed for her role in “Born to be Bad” 8 —Three Col. Scene (Mat .15; Cut .60) TEMPERAMENTAL? NOT LORETTA! Promises Recent Elevation to Stardom Won’t Turn Her Head (CURRENT FEATURE) “Temperament is simply a very vulgar display of bad temper,” ac¬ cording to Loretta Young who has her first starring role in “Born to be Bad,” the new 20th Century picture at the . Theatre, “and has been the downfall of many a Hollywod actress.” Loretta admits that it took two outbursts of temperament to cure her. On the first occasion it was a di¬ rector who caused the pyrotechnics. “I was just a child,” she explains, “and knew far less than I do now about the tricks of direction. The director told me I was probably the world’s worst actress. He said he couldn’t get anything out of me. I cried and kicked over a lamp before I was able to tell him that I thought he was the world’s worst director. Being very young and not very wise, I didn’t know that he was deliber¬ ately antagonizing me, so that he might get what he wanted out of me in the scene. However, I was too crushed in spirit to> give any kind of a performance. For the next three weeks I alternately felt ashamed that I had stirred up such a scene, and glad that I had given that director a piece of my mind.” The second time Loretta displayed her temperament was in the confines of her own home. “I had just been made a featured player at the stu¬ dio, and my name was to appear in lights for the first time,” recalls Miss Young. “I came home with the joyful news. My family was properly excited. Words of praise and encouragement rang in my ears for three or four days. I felt that the world was at my feet. I became a little headstrong and began telling my sisters where to head in. But this little flare of temperament was completely squelched when I came home one evening to find a huge star pasted on the door of my bed¬ room, with a sign hung over it read¬ ing: ‘Star’s Dressing Room — Silence Please.’ That cured me, and I am certain I have never been guilty of a show of temperament from that day to this.” And certainly if there had been any lingering seed of the demon temperament in lovely Loretta’s makeup, her recent elevation to the status of filmdom’s youngest adult star by Joseph M. Schenck and Darryl F. Zanuck would have brought it to flower. But Loretta has taken her good fortune like the splendid little trouper she is, determined that she will never let success affect her head size one whit. In “Born to be Bad,” an original story by Ralph Craves, directed by Lowell Sherman for United Artists re¬ lease, Loretta is co-starred with Cary Grant. The excellent supporting cast features Harry Green, Jackie Kelk, Henry Travers and Paul Harvey. Lowell Sherman Was Born to the Theatre (ADVANCE STORY) Lowell Sherman, famous actor- director, was born to the theatre in the truest sense of the term. His grandmother, Kate Grey, was leading lady for the senior Junius Brutus Booth, in Boston and San Fran¬ cisco, and also appeared as leading lady for Edwin Booth on a tour of the country. At the time of Lowell’s birth, his father was a star of the Baldwin Theatre in the latter city and his mother was a member of the same company. His whole childhood was spent in association with the stage. Sherman, who in the years he has been connected with the films, has divided his time and his energies be¬ tween directing and acting, admits that, while he likes both professions tremendously, he is inclined to favor directing. His latest job of megaphone wield¬ ing was recently completed on “Born to be Bad,” the Joseph M. Schenck- Darryl F. Zanuck 20th Century pic¬ ture coming to the . Theatre . Loretta Young and Cary Grant are starred in this United Artists release. Matt Briggs, brought from the original New York cast to play in the Hollywood stage production of “Twentieth Century,” will be seen in the 20th Century Picture, “Born to Be Bad,” which co-stars Loretta Young and Cary Grant. (FASHION FEATURE) An exciting indication of fashion trends for the late spring and summer seasons is to be seen in “Born to be Bad,” the Joseph M. Schenck-Darryl F. Zanuck 20th Century film, star¬ ring Loretta Young and Cary Grant and showing . at the . Theatre. As a customer’s girl in the cloak and suit trade whose task it is to model clothes for out-of-town buyers, Miss Young wears no less than twenty- four changes of apparel, all designed by Gwen Wakeling, fashion expert at the 20th Century Studios. Frocks, suits, cloaks, all tend to accentuate loveliness of shoulder line. Epaulets, or high puffy sleeves, tend to focus attention at a soaring point, according to Miss Wakeling. Elfin and at times almost angelic ef¬ fects, subtly reminiscent of medieval garb, suggestions of the nineties, Grecian simplicity and modernistic angularity, vie with each other these days, begetting a sort of eclectic philosophy of style, she says, and only agreeing in a few salient things. Loretta Young and Jackie Kelk in "Born to be Bad” 6 —One Col. Scene (Mat .05; Cut .20) Russell Hopton had just com¬ pleted work on the last of a long series of film assignments and was all prepared to embark on a long deferred visit to his parents when he was persuaded to remain in Hollywood to play the role of a breezy dress salesman in “Born to Be Bad,” the latest offering of Joseph M. Schenck and Darryl F. Zanuek’s 20th Century Pictures, currently showing at the _ _ Theatre. The most significant points of agreement are a return to naivete and even springtime freshness, as con¬ trasted with the heavy sophistication of a season or two ago, and the defi¬ nite disappearance of legs from pub¬ lic view. Two creations worn by Miss Young in this film are conservatively mod¬ ernistic. One, known as the cinema dress, suitable for afternoon and informal evening wear, is fashioned of uncut velvet in Burgundy, and has a naive collar of gold cloth and gold cloth trimmings down the front of the blouse, simulating a reel of cellu¬ loid film. The other, (illustrated above at right), is a handsome copper evening gown, its extraordinary simplicity at¬ tained by clever manipulation of the fabric above a high waistline, and of the folds of a long, simple skirt, re¬ sulting in a sculptured effect. Creek in its severity of line and mass, modernly American in its fresh¬ ness and youthfulness of material and color, is another evening gown worn (ADVANCE STORY) Something unique in the way of rough and tumble fights, as laughable as it is furious, will be seen when “Born to be Bad,” Joseph M. Schenck and Darryl F. Zanuck’s new 20th Century Pictures co-starring vehicle for Loretta Young and Cary Grant comes to the .Theatre This fast-paced picture shows what can happen when a hard-boiled young mother attempts to spank her equally hard-boiled eight-year-old son. The melee that ensues between Miss Young, as the mother, and Jackie Kelk, as the boy, almost rivals the memorable combat between Wal¬ lace Beery and George Raft in “The Bowery.” “Born to be Bad” is the story of a woman of unstable character, played by Loretta Young, whose only weapon is physical allure and who meets, at a critical moment in her life, a well- bred man of integrity, in the person of Cary Grant. This voluptuous young woman is a ‘customer’s girl’ in the cloak and suit trade, hired by wholesalers to entertain out-of-town buyers. She knows but one way to influence large orders, which is to amatively induce a state of largesse and recklessness in these buyers. The story, full of highly droll mo¬ ments, has much pathos as well and moves toward a striking climax and denouement. Lowell Sherman directed “Born to be Bad” from a story by Ralph Craves. Featured with Jackie Kelk in the imposing supporting cast are Harry Green, Henry Travers and Paul Har¬ vey, while Russell Hopton, Andrew Tombes and others complete the cast of this United Artists release. Dy Miss Young, (illustrated above at left). Beaded all over with powdery crystal, it is of pale green crepe Elizabeth trimmed at the neckline with massive braid of the same material. A third evening gown, (illustrated above center), repeats the Grecian in¬ fluence in an exceedingly simple and graceful model executed in the very soft and flattering eggshell satin. A sheer velvet evening dress with tunic effect, trimmed in monkey fur, is the most sophisticated thing Miss Young wears. Lounging pajamas, worn by Lor¬ etta in one scene, are of grey and garnet brocade, with silver buttons set with garnets. A Russian influ¬ ence is to be noted in the neckline and tunic. Other highlights in her wardrobe are two stunning tweed suits, one of granite gray, the other of a heavy green and brown mixture. “Born to be Bad,” an original story by Ralph Craves, was directed by Lowell Sherman for United Artists release. Director Sees Second Chaplin in Kelk Boy (CURRENT FEATURE) An eight year old boy now appear¬ ing in his first full length motion picture may turn out to be another Charlie Chaplin, according to Lowell Sherman. The boy is Jackie Kelk, who plays the son of Loretta Young in “Born to be Bad,” her first starring pro¬ duction for Joseph M. Schenck and Darryl F. Zanuck’s 20th Century Pic¬ tures, the current feature attraction at the . Theatre, in which she shares stellar honors with Cary Grant. “I dislike nothing more than superlative appraisal of any human being,” says Sherman, “But in this child’s case, it did not take long de¬ liberation to bring me to the con¬ clusion that he is, even now, a splen¬ did artist. “I thrilled the instant the boy walked onto the set and spoke his first line. And I’ve chuckled so much since I’ve had a hard time keeping a straight face while directing him in this United Artists release. What astonishes me most is his perfect abandon. And he effects a transition to the pathetic as swiftly and as im¬ perceptibly as the most seasoned artist. “Of course a great many things can happen to Jackie in the next few years to obstruct his development in¬ to a great tragi-comic actor. Too much adulation, too long hours, too little play, might mar his future. I hope not. For if he bears out his present promise he ought to be one of the greatest living adult actors fifteen years from now.” Already Jackie Kelk has made an enviable reputation on the New York stage, where he scored pronounced hits in “Bridal Wise” and “The Per¬ fect Marriage.” CARY GRANT RAN OFF WITH TROUPE Handsome Screen Star Sailed to America When He Was Fifteen (BIOGRAPHICAL FEATURE) While attending Fairfield Academy in Bristol, England, a young boy be¬ came interested in electricity and, at the age of twelve, conceived a new stage lighting effect which he carried to the manager of the Princess Theatre there. That young man was Cary Grant, co-starred with Loretta Young in “Born to Be Bad,” Joseph M. Schenck and Darryl F. Zanuck’s new 20th Century picture at the . Theatre, and that was how he came to make his entrance into the theat¬ rical world. The manager was so greatly in¬ terested that he permitted the youth to install the idea and operate it for a show. This brought the boy in contact with stage people out of which grew an ambition to act. Cary’s first ardent desire in this direction was to be an acrobat. He was particularly attracted to Bob Pender’s acrobatic troupe, which did eccentric dancing, acrobatics, stilt walking and clown routines—so great was the attraction, in fact, that Cary finally upped and did the most ad¬ venturous thing a boy can do—he ran away with the troupe. When his father, a clothing manu¬ facturer, learned of the boy’s where¬ abouts he assumed that a few weeks of his new life would be sufficient to cure him and so made no effort to force his return. Four weeks passed by, but Cary did not come back. His father grew uneasy and went after him and brought him back. At the age of fifteen, he again ran away with the same troupe. This time his father made no effort to in¬ terfere. Cary appeared with the ac¬ robatic group for a year, accompany¬ ing them to America to appear at the New York Hippodrome. The en¬ gagement lasted two years in New York and the East. After his American appearance young Grant returned to England where he worked in stock compan¬ ies, preparing himself for the legiti¬ mate stage. He learned to sing. Reginald Hammerstein met the youth, signed him to a contract and brought him back to New York. His first work on the New York stage was in “Golden Dawn.” Following this he played the leading role in “Wonderful Night” and then oppo¬ site Queenie Smith in “Street Singer.” The latter was a Broadway success and played a season, after which Grant toured the country with the show. In 1931 he joined the St. Louis Repertoire Company. He appeared in twelve operettas. The next fall he returned to New York in “Nikki” with Fay Wray and Kent Douglas. When “Nikki” closed Grant set out across country in an automobile. Arrived in Hollywood, the first studio that gave him a screen test signed him within two weeks to a long term contract. Grant is six feet, one inch tall, weighs 172 pounds and has black wavy hair and dark brown eyes. Among his many screen successes were “This is the Night,” “Sinners in the Sun,” “Merrily We Co to Hell,” “Devil and the Deep,” “Blonde Venus,” “Hot Saturday,” “Madame Butterfly,” “She Done Him Wrong” and “I’m No Angel.” “Born to Be Bad,” his latest film is a United Artists release, directed by Lowell Sherman. Cary Grant in "Born to be Bad” 4 —One Col. Player Head (Mat .05 ; Cut .20) Rough and Tumble Battle Ensues When Mother Attempts to Spank Boy