The Westerner (United Artists) (1940)

Samuel Goldwyn’s “The Westerner” Unfolds Sweeping Spectacle Drama Gary Cooper Scores Brilliantly As Outdoor Hero of New Smash Hit Doris Davenport as the heroine of “The Westerner’’ 44A — One-Col. Head (Mat .15; Cut .25) Langtry Coiffure Is Very Feminine The “Lily Langtry” hairdress worn by Lilian Bond in Samuel Goldwyn’s “The Westerner,” star¬ ring Gary Cooper and the current feature at the .... Theatre, was styled by Goldwyn’s hair-dressing department head, Nina Roberts. Miss Roberts says it is an exact copy of that worn by the famous “Jersey Lily” during the days of her regime as the world’s first r “glamour girl” and friend of the late King Edward. Worn rather close to the head, it features curled bangs which fol¬ low the line of the head to the crown, and falls to a Grecian coil at the neck-line. Miss Bond, who portrays the celebrated British actress and favorite of royalty in the ’80’s, thinks that it is a very becoming hair-do and in perfect accord with the ultra-feminine styles that are fast returning to popularity. In addition to Cooper and Miss Bond, “The Westerner,” which United Artists is releasing, fea¬ tures Walter Brennan, Doris Davenport, Fred Stone and Paul Hurst. It was directed by William Wyler. SHORTS (Prepared Review) Action-filled scenes, suspenseful drama and romance with a punch sweep across the screen in Samuel Goldwyn’s “The Westerner,” which had a gala premiere last night at the .... Theatre, where it opened thru United Artists release. “The Westerner” has Gary Cooper in the title role, and the support¬ ing cast features such brilliant players as Walter Brennan, Doris Davenport, Fred Stone, Lilian Bond and Forrest Tucker. Cooper plays the type of he-man, outdoor role which has made him one of the screen’s top-notch actors, portraying quick-on-the- trigger Cole Harden, who drifts into the wild and woolly town of Vinegarroon in the roaring days of the ’80’s when there raged a bitter and long protracted battle between the cattlemen and the homesteaders. Cooper comes to grips with Walter Brennan, por¬ traying Judge Bean, the vicious “Law West of the Pecos.” Directed with pace and tempo by William Wyler, “The Westerner” unfolds a gripping story in terms of visual beauty, gorgeous se¬ quences and thrilling action. Budgeted by Goldwyn to accent showmanship and box-office at its best, “The Westerner” was pho¬ tographed on location in Goldwyn City, Arizona, so that the picture is brilliantly mounted, exhibiting spectacular outdoor shots of un¬ forgettable sweep and beauty and romance which provides the screen with breath-taking scenes in the old West. Cooper once again rings the bell as filmland’s most outstanding exponent of the outdoor hero—the tall, silent man of the West, who is quick on the trigger, a fast horseman, attractive to women and at-home on the range. His brilliant portrayal is equalled by Walter Brennan’s, as Judge Bean, the color¬ ful, unkempt, fearless “Law West of the Pecos,” who administered justice at the point of a gun. Other top-notch performances are turned in by Doris Davenport as the daughter of a hardened pio¬ neer, Lilian Bond as the glamor¬ ous and alluring Lily Langtry, Fred Stone as a homesteader, and Forrest Tucker as the other man. “The Westerner” was filmed by Samuel Goldwyn to give discrim¬ inating moviegoers the kind of picture that has everything—pic¬ torial beauty and sweep, unforget¬ table romance, punchy drama, and above all, crackerjack enter¬ tainment. CALICO DRESSES Extremely unusual is the fact that Gary Cooper’s leading lady in Samuel Goldwyn’s “The West¬ erner,” now showing at the .... Theatre, had only three changes of costume in the picture. The girl is newcomer Doris Davenport and she wears simple calico dresses costing not over five dollars apiece. Miss Davenport plays the part of a hardy frontier girl, whose clothes are made for hard usage rather than for their pictorial beauty. RANGE BALLADS Leading members of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra formed the major part of the 60- piece orchestra that Dmitri Tiom- kin conducted for the musical ac¬ companiment of Samuel Gold¬ wyn’s “The Westerner,” starring Gary Cooper and starting a run at the .... Theatre on ... . Tiomkin composed a great deal of original music but he built much of the musical background around old cowboy songs and range ballads that were popular in Texas in the days when Judge Roy Bean was the “Law West of the Pecos.” The conductor used guitars and a vocal chorus for unusual effects. VIRGIN ROADS More than eig;ht and a half miles of virgin roads were built by the Samuel Goldwyn company preced¬ ing the filming of “The Westerner” on location at Goldwyn City, Ari¬ zona, near Tucson. The roadway crossed a mountain range and meandered over forests of cholla and sahuaro cacti. “The West¬ erner” stars Gary Cooper in the title role, with Doris Davenport, Walter Brennan, Fred Stone, Lilian Bond and Forrest Tucker. William Wyler directed the produc¬ tion for United Artists release, and it begins a run at the .... Theatre on ... . STAR GETS INJURED No easy time was had by Gary Cooper during the filming of Sam¬ uel Goldwyn’s “The Westerner,” which is the current feature at the .... Theatre thru United Artists release. While the company was on location near Tucson, Arizona, Cooper injured his left leg quite seriously and limped badly during the entire four weeks of outdoor shooting. The star had to be lifted onto his saddle in all of his riding scenes. PENNY POSTCARD A penny postcard first issued in 1885 served screen actor Walter Brennan as a make-up cue for his role of Judge Roy Bean in the Samuel Goldwyn production of “The Westerner,” the new film which starts a run at the .... Theatre on ... . The postcard showed Bean—a Texas frontier character—in a remarkable close- up which Brennan utilized as a guide in recreating the man for the screen. Gorgeous Lily Langtry Was First Glamor Girl Although the 20th Century coined the phrase “glamor girl” to describe its particular beauties and their magic charms, the “glamor girl” is no modem invention. Almost from the begin¬ ning of history the public has been bewitched by lovely women, who have known how to capitalize on their glittering beauty and to cast a spell wherever they went. Back in the gay ’90’s everybody had his favorite actress whether he had met her or not. He dreamed about her, talked about her and cherished her picture, which he generally got off a cigarette package or a Christmas calendar. In those days, the reign¬ ing queens of the stage went out with road companies and appeared in person in nearly every large city in the country. And for months in advance their promised appearances were heralded by the gentry, and everybody who was anybody made elaborate plans to be present at the gilded “Opry House” on the great night. And in this gleaming parade of beauties who rode in victorias and wore feathers and furbelows, per¬ haps none cut quite as ravishing a figure as Lily Langtry, otherwise known as the “Jersey Lily.” Lily’s beauty was so dynamic and arrest¬ ing that it easily attracted the at¬ tention of the Prince of Wales and she became the most talked-of heroine of the day. Daughter of W. C. E. Le Breton, dean of the Isle of Jersey, Lily married Edward Langtry in 1874, but after his financial failure, she appeared at the Haymarket The¬ atre in London as Kate Hard- castle in “She Stoops to Conquer.” She was an immediate sensation. In 1882, she toured the United States, playing “As You Like It,” “As in a Looking-Glass” and “Lady Windermer’s Fan,” which Oscar Wilde wrote especially for her. Her glittering personality is currently portrayed by Lilian Bond in “The Westerner” at the .... Theatre. Page Fifteen