Bright Lights (Warner Bros.) (1935)

Bright. Lights. Publicity Ann Dvorak Now Thrilling Public By Song And Dance Feminine Lead in “Bright Lights’? Always Keeps Herself Fit by Training Ann Dvorak, whose dancing is thrilling theatre audiences in the First National picture ‘‘ Bright Lights,’’ now showing Ae 5h i Theatre, keeps fit by a series of exercises she invented herslf. ‘I always know my turn would come some day to be in a musical picture,’’ even though I’ve been playing dramatic parts with no opportunity for dancing, I’ve always kept up with my practicing and seen to it that I was limber. Besides the actual dancing practice, I make it a point to do setting up exercises’. several times every day, so that I can step into a dancing role at a moment’s notice.” Wearing trim shorts and a sweater, Ann begins her exercises by jumping up and down, over and over again, in a crouching position. “That’s good for the leg muscles,” she says. Then she does shoulder exercises—stretching them, limbering them up, much as the men do when they’re in training for an athletic contest. A series of high kicks follow, with suppleness and strength of back and stomach muscles the aim. This is followed by a eold shower, during which Ann pounds industriously on the parts she wants to keep down—“especially the tummy,” says Ann, whose slenderness is the envy of her girl friends and the joy of the clothes designers. Five feet five inches in height, she weighs only 110 pounds, and has trouble keeping that heavy! An exponent of modern dancing, Ann has never studied ballet, and doesn’t include the standard “five positions” in her training. In fact, she’s careful to avoid them, since she believes that exercise after the Russian school tends to make the dance seem too ecaleulated, too artificial. “T can look at a large group of modern dancers,” she contends, “and tell by the stiff ones those who have studied ballet.” Between exercise times, Ann makes a practice of walking around her San Fernando valley home with a book on her head. “It keeps the body erect, the shoulders still, with only the legs and hips moving,” Ann points out. “In this way, you learn perfect balance. I invented all of my exercises myself, and adapted this one to my own uses by ob Good Troupers Here’s a new team of screen lovers—Joe EH. Brown and Ann Dvorak—whose romantic interludes are punctuated by screams of laughter from the audience in Joe E.’s big hit “Bright Lights,” the First National comedy at the__..._____ Theatre. Mat No. 103—10c says the First National player, ‘‘so serving that native or peasant women carrying bundles on their heads always have a beautiful walk.” Ann shuns the acting bar or the wall in doing her exercises, preferring to do them unaided in the center of a bare room, so that it’s up to her own sense of balance whether she stands or ' falls. “Bright Lights” in which Ann both sings and dances is Joe FE. Brown’s latest comedy with music. The supporting cast ineludes Miss Dvorak, Patricia Ellis, William Gargan, Joseph Cawthorn, Henry O’Neill, Arthur Treacher and Gordon Westcott; also the great acrobatic team known to vaudeville fame as “The Maxellos.” The screen play is by Bert Kalmar, Harry Ruby, Ben Markson and Benny Rubin from a story by Lois Leeson. Busby Berkeley is the director. 600 People Given Pay for Watching Joe E. Brown Work “Gee, this is fun!” exclaimed a member of the atmosphere audience at the all-night shooting on location of the First National picture, “Bright Lights,” which comes to the........ tase theatre on “The best part of it is that we’re getting paid.” Hundreds of people had gathered in front of the Los Angeles “Follies Theatre” on Main Street, Los Angeles, to see Joe E. Brown and his company work on location. There was almost a riot when Director Busby Berkeley came out and announced he wanted extras for an “audience.” Six hundred of the erowd not only got to see a movie comedy being made but were paid the standard rate for extras, and also enjoyed an excellent “location dinner” at 3 A.M. Burlesque Sitar Given Singing Role in Film The insistence of Joe E. Brown upon the utmost realism in his new First National comedy “Bright Lights,” at the Beh ON Theatre, gave Esther Burke, Los Angeles “Follies” soubrette her first chance in pictures. Brown’s title role was that of a burlesque hoofer. “Instead of getting screen people,” said Brown, “let’s get some regular working troupers out of the burlesque showhouse in Los Angeles.” Director Busby Berkeley agreed. The girls of the show were not only cast en masse, but Miss Burke, their leading lady, was chosen as_ soloist after a voice test. Ann Dvorak and Patricia Ellis sing the principal songs of “Bright Lights,” though the star Joe E. Brown, sings several comic numbers. Joe E. Brown Autograph Brings $300 Joe E. Brown has found out how much his autograph is worth in Manila. Enrique Santamaria, gold broker, visiting Joe E. on the set of “Bright Lights,” the First National comedy, with music, which COMOS.; COMMERA re oe ona theatre OTM ere ease , told the star that .a good Joe E. Brown autograph brings 600 pesos or $300 in American money. When Joe visited Manila last year he autographed a jai alai ball. After the actor had left, the ball was put up for auction. The 600 pesos went to charity. Joe EH. Brown is coming to the. In Joe’s Big Show Joe E. Brown Has Lived Most Of His Movie Roles Part in ‘‘Bright Lights” Parallels His Own Colorful Career on Stage When the day comes for a biographer to sit down with Joe E. Brown and record the events in the star’s exciting life, the biographer will be taken to a movie. The modern Boswell will spend most of his time in the private projection room on the Brown estate. On the silver sereen will be shown many motion pictures, the stories, of BPW Ane? sho Pa COGH CONE. age een 43 in the First National comedy with music, “Bright Lights,’ which is said to be the biggest hit in which he has appeared. He is shown above with Patricia Ellis and William Gargan, two of the film stars in the supporting cast. Mat No. 204—20c Patricia Ellis 18, Has Everyone Fooled On Age Lead In “Bright Lights” Had To Boost Her Birthdays To Get In Films Patricia Ellis, during the progress of the shooting of the First National comedy ‘‘Bright Lights,’’ which comes to 3. ee oe eae ae _.Theatre on i Shak eae , celebrated her birthday. Then and there for the first time in three years, she admits, she told the truth concerning her age. On her last birthday she was 18 years old. Hence, when she entered the studio three years ago at the age of 15 and became a featured player, she rather set a record. Of course, nobody knew); she was that young—she said, in fact, that she was 17 years old at the time. Young as she really is, however, Miss Ellis is quite mature in experience in acting for she was literally reared in the theater. Her father is Alexander Leftwich, and he’s a celebrated impressario of Broadway. Director and producer of many important shows in New York, he recently came to the West Coast to stage ' musical productions. Hence it is not surprising that Miss Ellis, when just old enough to walk out on the stage, appeared before the footlights. At first she was a child actress; then when she grew older and was large for her age, her father let her understudy the leading ingenues in some of his shows. Thus, at the age of 15—though she then had advanced her age several years—Miss Ellis’ had actually graduated into leading roles. She was in fact, playing in “The Royal Family” and “Blizabeth the Queen” when she first attracted the attention of First National executives. PATRICIA ELLIS with JOE E. BROWN in “Bright Lights” at the Strand Mat No. 101— 10c Coming to the Pacific Coast, and immediately cast in important parts, Miss Ellis continued her stage success in screen roles; and also continued her education on the studio lot. “Bright Lights” is a hilarious comedy, with music, by Lois Leeson. The screen play is by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby with adaptation by Ben Markson and: Benny Rubin. The lyrics and music are by Mort. Dixon and Allie Wrubel and Kalmar and Ruby. Busby Berkeley directed. which were built upon the actual varied experience of the star who comes to the Theatre next “Bright Lights,” a First National comedy with music. “My early days as a comedian in a burlesque show?” Brown will say. “Well, take a look at me as I was.” Then on the sereen will be flashed scenes from “Bright Lights,” a film depicting Joe as a burlesque comedian. The story, now being shown paints a true picture of the star as he was. It has to—Joe insisted. Joe, once a professional baseball player with the St. Paul Club and the New York Yankees, will relive those days on the diamond when “Alibi Ike” and “Elmer the Great” are screened for the biographer. “Yup, I was a circus performer and clown with Ringling Bros.,” Joe will say. “Look at me in ‘The Cireus Clown’.” When Joe was a kid—back in 1901—he ran away from his home in Holgate, Ohio, to be one of the Five Marvelous Ashtons, aerial acrobats. Later he gave up spangles for outlandish clown costumes. Joe, who was starred in the “Greenwich Village Follies” and “Twinkle Twinkle” before First National brought him to Hollywood to appear in talkies, will show his biographer the Joe E. Brown of the musical comedy stage by screening “Sally” and “Hold Everything.” It’s hard to visualize the comedian as a Shakespearean actor, but he was, just the same. When Joe was 23 he played “Hamlet” for two weeks in Toledo. Joe wasn’t such a howling success in the dramatic role, he admits, but the show made money the first two nights. Joe E. Brown playing Shakespeare will be seen by the biographer in “Midsummer Night’s Dream,” the Max Reinhardt directed film. Joe is a comedian in the film and plays the role of “lute.” When the star wrote into his contract with First National that a print of every film in which he appears must be given him, the comedian was not thinking about biographers. Joe wanted those films so he could study and criticize himself from time to time and thus improve his tech ‘nique as an actor. Two or three times a week Joe and his family review one of his starring films. With the exception of “Bright Lights,” “Alibi Ike” and “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” the Browns have seen every one of the star’s films in their projection room at least a dozen times. All 18 of them. “Bright Lights” is a hilarious comedy by Lois Leeson, adapted for the screen by Ben Markson and Benny Rubin. Others in the ast besides Joe E. Brown, inelude Ann Dvorak, Patricia Ellis, William Gargan and Henry O’Neill. Busby Berkeley directed the picture from the screen play by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby. The story contains many musieal numbers written by the famous song teams of Mort Dixon and Allie Wrubel, and Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby. Page Nineteen