Nothing Sacred (United Artists) (1937)

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Fredric March and Carole Lombard in a romantic scene from “Nothing Sacred,” David O. Selznick’s Technicolor comedy sensation now at the _ theatre. It is a United Artists release. 9 -B — Two Col. Scene ( Mat .30; Cut .50) What Price Service? Selznick Showmanship Scores Again With “Nothing Sacred” Says Studio Grapevine Carole Lombard and Fredric March in a scene from “Nothing Sacred,” David O. Selznick’s Technicolor comedy sensation* which conies to the _ theatre on _ _ . It is a United Artists release. 4 -B — Two Col. Scene (Mat .30; Cut .50) A yachtsman painted himself out of a thousand dollars, all because he was greeted by a sudden stroke of good fortune! It happened in connection with the David O. Selznick technicolor picture, “Nothing Sacred,” now at the. theatre, co-starring Carole Lombard and Fredric March, and directed by William A. Wellman. Mason Litson, locations manager, was combing Los Angeles Harbor in search of a particular kind of yacht, with just the right degree of discolor¬ ation. The boat had to match perfectly the previous scenes made in color and with a studio-constructed boat deck on a sound stage. Finally, Litson stumbled upon the exact craft he needed. He located the owner, then discovered the boat was legally tied up because of the skip¬ per’s financial obligations. Litson solved the problem by paying a day’s rental in advance, enabling the owner to buy clearance for his boat. The next day, when a studio truck called at the harbor to pick up the boat, there lay the craft in dry-dock, with a shiny coat of paint. The owner happy over his good fortune had the boat redecorated! Within three hours, Litson had to locate another yacht, at last finding the “Synnove,” which is used in the picture. Triumphant Successor To “A Star Is Born'’ (ADVANCE FEATURE) David O. Selznick’s showmanship takes another step upward! If you want to get the advance dope on a film, advance information that has never failed to be borne out by the box-office results later, listen to the gossip around the cutting rooms, between the workers on the sets, the electricians in the rafters. “Nothing Sacred,” Selznick’s Tech¬ nicolor successor to that great hit “A Star Is Born,” coming soon to the .theatre, will be the great¬ est box-office film ever made in Technicolor, is the word that is sweeping around. Selznick, in his producing wisdom, signed the entire crew of men behind the cameras that was responsible for the making of “A Star Is Born,” from the director William A. Wellman down to the most minor stage hand. He selected Carole Lombard and Fredric March to be co-starred and signed Charles Winninger, the famous Cap’n Henry of the radio, Walter Connolly and Frank Fay for the im¬ portant supporting roles. The story is a romantic farce adapted from James H. Street’s short story, “Nothing Sacred” which w ! ll be published in Cosmopolitan magazine. Ben Hecht’s facile typewriter pro¬ duced the swift moving comedy ro¬ mance. Starting in the small town of War¬ saw, Vermont where Miss Lombard is seen as a small town girl, with a yearning for New York, the picture quickly switches locale to the big city. March, as the ace reporter of the New York “Morning Star,” of which Walter Connolly is managing editor, brings the girl to Gotham. Winninger, small town medico in the picture, comes along. To disclose the actual nature o' the hoax which turns New York up¬ side down and inside out would rob fans of future pleasure when the film is released. Let it be sufficient to say that Hazel Flagg (Miss Lombard) and Wallace Cook (March), sided and abetted by Winninger and Connolly take New York for the ride of the century. Through scene after scene, the film runs on with machine-gun pace. During its production, the cast fell into the spirit of the story so heartily that Selznick International sets ex¬ perienced new high records in daily visitors, who came to see the show. No day was complete without its quips, gags and practical jokes. Just to convey some idea of what the stars went through (and they swear they never had so much fun), here are some of the scenes Miss Lombard and March enacted: 1. They stage a fist-fight in a hotel suite bedroom set, punches, kicks and wrestling holds included. It took eight hours to film, and the stars had two days off for recuperation. 2. They had dumped into thei'r laps two giant wrestlers, “Bad Ben” Morgan (315 pounds) and Hans “The Terrible” Steinke (240 pounds), who leaped over the top rope of a ring, and landed on the stars, who were sitting at ringside. Only casualty when the squirming mass was unpiled was Steinke, with a bruised ankle. 3. They jumped into 12 feet of water, while fully clothed, and swam around shouting dialogue, in a dock constructed over the Selznick Inter¬ national Studio tank. 4. They rode the back of a bounc¬ ing fire-engine, clinging to the stand¬ ing bar. 5. They played a romantic se¬ quence, while cramped in a packing case. The dock set was a marvel of stu¬ dio artistry, fashioned somewhat after the 59th street wharf in New York. Likewise, the art department, under Lyle Wheeler; the construction de¬ partment, under Hamid Fenton, and the set dressers, under Edward Boyle, combined their efforts in designing and building the huge banquet hall, the Cafe Moderne and other sets used in the picture. No night club in any motion pic¬ ture has contained a scene like the one which occurs in the Cafe Mod- erne. Six trained horses, ridden by six beautiful showgirls, perform an act for the benefit of the cafe audience. And here, presiding in his natural role of master of ceremonies, is genial Frank Fay. The man behind the camera in these scenes was Howard “Duke” Greene, who photographed “A Star Is Born” for Selznick. We might offer another tip regard¬ ing the plot. The hoax might have worked had not Hazel and Wally fallen in love. As it is, “Nothing Sacred,” with its mixture of lau°hs and love, will aopeal to any audience, whether it likes to laugh, cry or feel romantic. *Knd Selznick still maintaining his 'eadership in the color field, has an¬ other hit, if those grapevine rumors ire as true as ever. “Nothing Sacred" is released thru United Artists. “Story-Telling” Dance Routines In “Nothing Sacred” Creation of “story telling” dance routines for the technicolor produc¬ tion, “Nothing Sacred,” now at the .Theatre, was placed in the hands of Dave Could, film Acad¬ emy award winner, by David O. Selz¬ nick. The picture, co-starring Carole Lombard and Fredric March and di¬ rected by William A. Wellman, has New York and its gay night spots for a background. These places of fun and revelry, in keeping with the swift-moving humor of the story, were filled by Could. It was clearly understood, prior to staging, however, that all dances would be an integral part of the screen play written by Ben Hecht, based on a story by James H. Street. Each number accordingly has the as¬ signment of carrying to the audience an important story point. Unusual costumes were used to heighten the effect. Could won the award of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for the dances in “Broad¬ way Melody” and “Folies Bergere.” “Nothing Sacred” is a United Artists release. Carole Lombard and Charles Win¬ ninger in a scene from David O. Selznick’s Technicolor comedy “No¬ thing Sacred,” released thru United Artists. 13-A— One Col. Scene (Mat .15; Cut .25) Page Fifteen No holds barred in the new David O. Selznick Technicolor comedy sensation, co-starring Carole Lombard and Fredric March and released thru United Artists. It is scheduled to open on _ at the _ theatre. 3-C — Three Col. Scene ( Mat .45; Cut .75)