Blonde Crazy (Warner Bros.) (1931)

—~GIVE HER A BIG HAND! Fates Team Cagney And / = Yachtsman and ‘Pacific nts Blondell On Stage And In Film “‘Blonde Crazy” (Current—Plant 5th Day) “Blonde the Bros. production now at the Crazy,” Warner Theatre, co-features James Cagney and Joan Blondell, who made their screen debut in “Sinners’ Holiday,” sereen version of “Penny Arcade” they both in whieh appeared on Broadway. These two young favorites of picture audiences everywhere are New Yorkers, though Joan has_ spent many years of her life abroad, traveling in the company of her father, who is known as the “Katzenjam mer Kid.” Jimmy and Joan are seen in the wise-cracking, bewildering sequences of “Blonde Crazy” as bellhop and linen girl in a big city hotel, partners in the brittle business of humbugging humbuggers. Others in the cast are Louis Calhern, Noel Francis, Guy Kibbee, Ray Millard, Polly Walters,. Charles Levinson, William Burress, Peter Erkelenz, Maude Eburne, Walter Percival and Nat Pendleton. The unique story is by Kubee Glasmon and John Bright.. Roy Del Ruth directed. “Blonde Crazy” Director Cruises To Alaska (Current Reader) Roy Del Ruth, was responsible for “Blonde Crazy,” the Warner Bros.pi the director who number of long cruises ill “tnt including a trip to Alaska where ie did some research work for the gov ernment. James Cagney and Joan Blondell are ceo-featured in this modern story, in which they play an easy-money-getting team, as bellhop and linen girl in a big city hotel. “Blonde Crazy” Hero Is He Who Gets Slapped (Current Reader) In “Blonde Crazy,” the Warner Bros. picture now playing at the Theatre, there is a scene in which Joan Blondell is called on to slap James Cagney. When the scene was made Roy Del Ruth, the director, told the two players that he would let the cameras keep grinding, and that they were to do the same scene several times without stopping. They started, and Cagney was slapped so often that even he, used to. taking ’em on the chin— began to get dizzy. He finally noticed that the crew and cast were laughing and realized that it had been planned to see how much punishment he would take. Glasmon-Bright Again Dip Into The Devil’s Album (Advance Reader) Kubece Glasmon and John Bright, authors of “Blonde Crazy,” the Warner Bros. production co-featuring James Cagney and Joan Blondell— also within the last year did those two extremely successful plays — “The Public Enemy” and “Smart Money,” in both of which Cagney appeared. Glasmon and Bright, exnewspaperman and ex-druggist, have for years clipped and pasted in serap books all the stories of crime and eraftiness that could be found in the newspapers. They get material for their work by referring <o the books which are huge and number over a dozen. “Blonde Crazy’ portrays the exciting adventures of a bellhop and a chambermaid—in the difficult business of cheating cheaters. GORGEOUS PEACOCK ALLEY USED IN “BLONDE CRAZY,” CONSTRUCTED BY ARMY OF EXPERIENCED CRAFTSMEN Interesting Story Of The Building Of The Huge Set For The Warner Bros. Picture Co-Featuring James Cagney and Joan Blondell, Coming To Strand (Feature—-Plant in No. 2 Paper) During the production conference preceding the making of ?? ‘‘Blonde Crazy,’’ the Warner James Cagney and Joan Blondell, coming to the next, director Del Roy announced that Theatre Bros. production co-featuring the main set must be three hundred feet long, half as wide, and not too modern—this to be but part of a big hotel, which must be completely furnished. TODAY AT 10.30 a.m. tenes CACNEY Here he is in a big way. in one of the biggest pictures of the year! with JOAN BLONDELL the preferred-est blonde of Jimmy's whole bevy— wiser, wittier and more vivacious! Noel Francis ~ =x. Ray Milland = . Guy Kibbee A WARNER BROS. & VITAPHONE PICTURE CIRCLE Cut No.6 Cut 20c Mat sc “Blonde Crazy” Player Has Hit In ““Torch Song”’ (Curr ent eader) Guy Kibbee, ( New York ‘ plays one acterizati now at t ma ing, “Blonde Crazy,” story by Kubec Glasmon and John Bright, authors of “The Public Enemy” and “Smart Money” is written about the “Peacock Alley” or promenade of a big city hotel, where confidence men and women and others who stay just within or just without the law, congregate to hatch plots. Mr. Del Ruth wanted to show, in one moving shot, the men and women along this lane as they discussed the previous night’s events, and laid schemes for the future. For this reason he specified that the hotel corridor or gallery should be at least as long as a city block. When the location department attempted to find such a hotel-spot, only one was discovered in Los Angeles—the Gallerie in the Logs Angeles Biltmore hotel. It was then found out that the Gallerie would be available for picture-making only between the hours of one in the morning and daybreak. The next problem was the lighting of this huge space for picture purposes. Lighting Effects Frank Murphy, veteran electrical specialist of Warner Bros. "spell¢ discarded. ~ Hartley, of the art department of the studios was next called in, and Del Ruth roughly sketched on a scrap of paper, the set that he wanted built. The lobby of the hotel must be half as wide as it is long. Directly adjacent to it there must be a main dining room, with orchestra stand and dance floor. There was no stage at Warner Bros.-First National Studios in Burbank large enough to hold such a set. So Hartley went to the Warner Studios on Sunset Boulevard and found that by tearing out partitions between stages 2 and 3, he could create the desired set. The Blue Prints Twelve draftsmen next started on their labors, making designs, and as fast as these were officially approved of crews of workmen began building the set, working in three eight-hour shifts, seven days a week, to -eomplete it in time for the picture schedule. Three weeks from the day the set was ordered, the first scenes were made in them, more than five hundred extra people being used in addition to the feature players, James Cagney, Joan Blondell and other members of the east. The set was one of the largest and most costly every built by Warner Bros. Thousands of feet of lumber were used in its construction, and more than four hundred thirty workmen had a hand in its erection. More than three thousand pieces of costly glass were used in the construction of eight mirrors for the lobby walls. Twenty five huge pillars of artificial marble were constructed for the set—artificial marble photographing more like the original than real marble does. Electric chandeliers were transported on trucks, with the costly glass hanging from overhead cranes, and installed on the set. Eight ten-ton trucks were required to transport the furniture used to the rugs and FOLLOW THE Ss “With your looks and my brains, we could burn up the town, Blondie!’’ **Say this town’s hot enough for us alfo? ready! WARNERS TAT BLONDE LINE E with J as the bell-hop who gives more tips than he takes. Red-headed Jimmie! Blondie Blondell! authors of Hot? In a story by the “Smart Money.”’ It’s sizzling! AMES CAGNEY And JOAN BLONDELL as a chambermaid who changes her linens to silk. Noel Francis — Guy Kibbee Ray Milland — Lou's Calhern A WARNER BROS. & VITAPHONE HIT Cut No. ro Cut 4oc Mat roc struction of the orchestra stand alone cost $1500. A complete row of telephone booths were installed, equipped with practical telephones so that conversations might be recorded directly. Fifty-five electricians operated five hundred and seventy three lights on the set, ranging from sun arcs to tiny spots. Enter The Players Thirty make-up men, and fifteen hairdressers were necessary to prepare the hundreds of extras for the scenes. There were forced to start work at five in the morning in order to be ready for the photographing at nine. A erew of seven. property men, armed with carpet sweepers, were kept busy between scenes, picking up the lint and dust from the tramp of many feet. Fourteen bellboys rushed ice water to the hotel “patrons”, and one of these bellboys was paid a salary running into four figures for each week’s work. He, of course, was James Cagney, the leading man in the picture and the most expensive “bellhop” in hotel history. Beside Cagney and Miss Blondell the cast includes Louis Calhern, Noel Francis, Guy Kibbé Milland, Polly Walters, Levinson, William Burress, Erkelenz, Maude Eburne, — Percival and Nat Pendleton, : CAGNEY AS SEEN BY “BLONDE CRAZY” DIRECTOR Roy Del Ruth, who directed “Blonde Crazy,” the Warner Bros. production in which James Cagney is featured, says that ” is the word that best describes Cagney’s growing popularity. “Cagney is as modern as next week’s Atlantic flight” says Del Ruth, “as fresh as the first draft out of a new keg. The last thing I want to do is to be too extravagant in my praise, but everyone welcomes a new type— and Cagney is a new type. Other favorite two -fisters of the screen have ususally lacked youth. Here comes a youngster to bid for the honors. Probably Jimmie should be a middleweight boxer. But he’s not. He’s a mighty sweet actor. Watch him go.” Co-featured with James Cagney in “Blonde Crazy’ is Joan Blondell. Others in the cast are Louis Calhern, Noel Francis, Guy Kibbee, Ray Milland, Polly Wal ters, Charles Levinson, William