Topper Returns (United Artists) (1941)

Big Show Stops When Hiccoughs Start Marathon Billie Burke in “Topper Returns.” 17A—One Col. Head (Mat .15; Cut .25) FAST TALKING PROVIDES FUN IN BIG SCENE The next time Donald MacBride plays a screen cop, he vows he's going to have a heart-to-heart talk with the writers first. “Something will have to be done,” he moans. “It’s the curse of the MacBrides to have a tongue that can run faster than their heads.” Evidence of the efficacy of the curse came out during production of the Hal roach comedy, “Topper Returns,” which is now on view at the .... Theati-e. In his en¬ counter with the name Gail Rich¬ ards, the lovely ghost played by Joan Blondell, MacBride consist¬ ently came out second best. Time after time he called her “Gail Patrick,” which was a charming tribute to that actress, except for the small matter that she was not appearing in the picure. The third time it occurred, Mac¬ Bride had his lips pursed to say “Patrick,” when he caught him¬ self, and froze. “She’s the only Gail I know,” he explained to di¬ rector Roy Del Ruth. “Why don’t we just call this girl Mary, and let it go at that?” In still another case, MacBride, playing a blustering, cross-examin¬ ing detective, says to Roland Young, who plays Topper, “Come on, stop stalling! Who done it?” The ungrammatical phrase, of course, was intentional, but it made no difference to the actor. He kept on saying, “Who did it?” “It’s that Oxford influence,” he apologized to Young. “What Oxford?” asked Young suspiciously. “Oxford Shoe Company,” replied the unabashed MacBride. “My feet hurt.” Joan Blondell went in for a hiccoughing marathon on the Hal Roach set of “Topper Returns,” the mystery-comedy, which is slated for its local premiere at the .... Theatre on ... . thru United Artists release. She had a hard time starting and a worse time stopping. Miss Blondell is play¬ ing the role of Gail Richards in the Topper picture featuring Roland Young, Billie Burke, Carole Landis and Dennis O’Keefe. Early in the picture she is mur¬ dered, and appears thereafter as a ghost with such mundane tastes as a liking for champagne. The hiccoughing sequence was filmed after Miss Blondell drank deeply from a bottle of champagne (water). She was supposed to in¬ tersperse her dialog with drunken hiccoughs. She attempted a few, but they were very feeble. “What can you expect on plain water,” said Miss Blondell. After much straining and grim¬ acing, the comedienne finally achieved a superb hiccough, loud, clear and with good timbre. Then came a sequence of hiccoughs that Miss Blondell couldn’t stop. It was fine for that particular scene, but director Roy Del Ruth wanted to proceed at once to another which did not call for any hiccoughing on Miss Blondell’s part. Everyone on the set had ideas about stopping the hiccoughs. None of them worked. And so the company broke for lunch. The food did the trick. Miss Blondell carried on. Trevor Bardette, the screen heavy who plays the part of the butler Rama in the Hal Roach mystery-comedy “Topper Returns,” at the .... Theatre, is thinking of putting his dog in a side-show. As a glass-eater. Bardette said that the dog, Doctor Brilliantine, a male chow, recently tried to get at a couple of small boys who were teasing him when he was locked up in the Bardette automobile. So whole-hearted were Dr. Bril- liantine’s efforts at returning hostilities that he ate a hole right through the glass window—with¬ out any ill effects. Screaming Heroines Get a Day in Court It’s practically an unwritten law in Hollywood that every mystery film have at least one hair-raising- scream. The idea seems to be that if the creepy business in the picture doesn’t curl the theatre patrons’ hair, the scream will. So the Hal Roach Studios, which is nothing- if not lavish, has included one super spine-chiller in its latest production, the mystery-comedy, “Topper Returns,” with several assorted shrieks thrown in for good meas- & ure. The new mystery-comedy is currently on view at the .... Theatre. The killer-diller is delivered by Rafaela Ottiano, who plays the sinister housekeeper of the fore¬ boding Carrington mansion, scene of the mysterioso hi-jinks which characterize all the Topper films. Miss Ottiano’s last task in the pic¬ ture, since she is murdered a mo- Even this sylvan scene won’t make Joan Blondell sign the paper proffered by H. B. Warner in this exciting sequence from Hal Roach’s “Topper Returns,” the hilarious comedy-mystery starting a run at the .... Theatre on ... . 5B—Two Col. Scene (Mat .30; Cut .50) ment later, is to let herself go and emit the mother of all macabre lung-whoppers. Incidentally, she also succeeded in scaring the day¬ lights out of herself, for it was the first time she had ever screamed in her life, professionally or otherwise. Two More Screamers The other clamorous coloraturas are Carole Landis and Billie Burke. Miss Landis’ offering was occasioned when a 250 pound crystal chandelier crashed to the floor, missing her only by inches. Her natural trepidation increased by being forced to wait three hours, while Director Roy Del Ruth made minute preparations for the safe filming of the scene, Miss Landis’ reaction was quite a study in fear psychology. It might be described as a bleating sigh, for she had fainted. Billie Burke’s contribution is in a class by itself. Hunting her missing husband, Topper, played by Roland Young and lovely ghost Joan Blondell, she is frightened by eavesdropping detective Donald MacBride. Whirling on him, her hands all a-flutter, she shouts, “Oh, you horrible man! You make me so nervous I could scream. In fact, I think I will.” Whereupon Miss Burke utters a shrill, bird-like twitter of a scream. It is so surprising that she says, “Ooh, that was fun,” and obliges with an encore. “Now you try one with me,” she suggests, but MacBride, beat¬ ing his head against the wall in exasperation, is too far gone to collaborate in a community-scream. Altogether, “Topper Returns” has as pretty a scream-recital as you could wish for. If the reper¬ toire seems incomplete to any hue and cry collectors, they are asked to communicate with the Roach Studios. They aim to please. Famous Menace Explains Some Strange Items Chances are you’ve never heard of Henry B. Warner. Few people have, including Henry B. Warner, himself. But if you are even a rare movie-goer, you have certainly been entertained by veteran char¬ acter actor H. B. Warner. And thereby lies a tale. “When I was a school-boy in England,” Warner explained on the set of the Hal Roach mystery- comedy, “Topper Returns,” which starts a run at the ... . Theatre on .... , “there were three grades of drawing pencils, B, BB and HB. Since nicknames were all the rage then, I was promptly dubbed ‘HB,’ and H. B. I have remained since, even to my family and intimate friends.” The third in the popular “Top¬ per” series to be produced at the Roach Studios, “Topper Returns” is directed by Roy Del Ruth, with a cast featuring Joan Blondell, Ro¬ land Young, Carole Landis, Billie Burke, Dennis O’Keefe, Warner and Eddie (Rochester) Anderson. Going through life distinguished by a few initials instead of a first name has sometimes proven em¬ barrassing to the actor. There have been moments, he reveals, when he has been asked for his full legal name, and has been hard put to recall it. “It’s a little trying to have to constantly prove that you’re not impersonating yourself,” he sighs. But there are consolations to go¬ ing through life with an alpha¬ betical prefix, Warner admits. “ ‘H.B.’ makes me sound somewhat like an institution, and permanency is rather a comforting feeling these days. Besides*, I’m only too happy my initials didn’t happen to be ‘B.O.’ ” Joan Blondell in “Topper Returns.” 14A—One Col. Scene (Mat .15; Cut .25) Reverse English Have some reverse English on the traditional case of the co¬ median who wants to do Hamlet. George Zucco is the man, and he is fulfilling his wish in the Hal Roach mystery-comedy, “Topper Returns,” which comes on ... . to the .... Theatre. For many years, on stage and screen, Zucco has been identified with heavy drama. He’s one of filmdom’s most sinister heavies. Zucco can transfix his intended victims with a look that makes a cobra, preparing to strike, seem as good-natured and inoffensive as a Cheshire cat. “This is fun,” Zucco said on the set of “Topper Returns.” “This is like a vacation. I think comedy like this is what the public wants, and I’m happy to be connected with it. “Seems to me that right now, with so much trouble in the world and people so tense, heavy drama isn’t the suitable kind of enter¬ tainment. Comedy lets them relax.” Prop man Jimmy Harris can boast one of the most unique mani¬ festations in film history—he not only played a ghost, but the cur¬ vaceous figure of Joan Blondell as well. In Hal Roach’s “Topper Re¬ turns,” now at the .... Theatre, there is a scene in which the ghost of Miss Blondell materializes ;n Roland Young’s bed. Jimmy played the part of this ghost, dressed in a pink negligee and lace nightcap which remained invisible to the camera. Jimmy was happy to play ghost, but confessed to Miss Blon¬ dell his shape was no compliment to her elegant figure. H. B. Warner, who plays the role of Mr. Carrington in Hal Roach’s “Topper Returns,” com¬ ing on .... to the ... . Theatre, is an enthusiastic fight fan and gets his exercise playing tennis and golf. He is married and has three children and is extermely fond of reading. He loves dogs, and is often accompanied through studio gates by one of his pets, a setter. His pet aversion is idleness; he likes to work. He isn’t idle very often; the motion picture studios see to that. Before he turned to the stage, he was a medical stu¬ dent. Page Fourteen