Employees' Entrance (Warner Bros.) (1933)

Current Feature A New Alice White Returns in “Employees’ Entrance” Two Years of Trouping Have Given Former Hotcha Star Changed Viewpoint on All Things Cinema I T is beginning to look as though the Hotcha Era is in for a revival. The three Flaming Youth girls of yesteryear—Colleen Moore, Clara Bow and Alice White — have traipsed back to the screen and are staging what is an even more fear ful ordeal than breaking into the movies. They are out to see how their respective come-backs will ‘‘take’’ with the public. As far as the Hotcha angle is concerned, Clara Bow defi nitely states that she is going sedate, while Alice White is wishing out loud that she can do character roles, but glad to be back on the sereen again, Colleen Moore has become more mature and sophisticated. All three have changed, Alice White, perhaps more so than the others, as can be seen in her first picture in two years, “Employees Entrance,” which opened at the last The chipper, blonde flapper who left pictures two years ago is still as chipper and blonde as ever, but the twinkling eyes have an added look of worldly wisdom, and the two dainty feet that were famous for the capers they cut, are figuratively speaking, placed firmly on _ the ground. After two years of trouping around the country and wondering what the future had in store for her, Alice White is back again at the studio which had once taken her away from her script-girl duties, and built her up until she was a star of the first rank, affectionately called by the fans “America’s Girl Friend.” Alice did not come back to reoccupy the status she had left. Her return picture sees her as one of a four star cast supporting Warren William in the First National picture, “Employees’ Entrance,” which opens at the Theatre or — a pieddter sera eS ePal i Bawah S ae ee 8 ea 58 ee it. tures, but does not want to wear the crown of stardom. | No False Modesty | | “T have learned a lot of things in two years,” Alice confided, “and one of thse things is that stardom isn’t all it is cracked up to be. Too much is expected of the person who gets top billing. Whereas a featured player who steals a picture gets a much more gratifying reaction than if he or she were billed in electric lights.” There is no false modesty about Alice. She admits that she used to “steal” pictures. “But is wasn’t anything conscious on my part,” she added. “I was not enough of a technician in acting to deliberately figure out how to walk away with a scene. I used to romp through parts long before I became a star. I was just filled with happiness at having the chance to do something, and it showed in my work to the extent that reviewers would hand the laurels to me. “T never realized how much there was to the acting profession and how many different aspects it had until I went on my personal appearance tour. I have learned a lot from it, not only from the acting standpoint but also from the ethical and human angle.” It was with fear and trepidation that volatile Alice White started on the tour that was to last ten months. SESS Alice White, is back! She’s appearing in her first film in two years in a featured role in “Employees’ Entrance” at the Strand. Warren William and Loretta Young are starred. Cut No.5 Cut 30c Mat 10¢ before, did not know how to take curtain calls. Built Stage Following “Working all the time in Hollywood, I did not realize that I could step into a strange city and draw an audience by my name alone. When we opened cold in Chicago, it was one of those hot sultry days in August that drive people far away from the city. I felt very low, for I felt that my first stage appearance would have to be before an empty house. I confided my fears to my manager, and in answer he took me outside and showed me the crowd lined up to the box-office — two blocks long. I broke down in tears. Nothing had ever touched me so d never appeared on a stage ‘much in all my life” _._'so_alive _an Alice gave a dancing act throughout her tour. She made no mention of pictures and did nothing to trade on her Hollywood reputation. She was trying to build herself up to be a stage personality. The public continued coming in ever greater numbers. In one town in the East she broke a theatre’s box office record that had been established by Eddie Cantor — right in Cantor’s home territory. : She learned to thrill to that intangible response from a large audience — a thrill which she misses now that she is back in pictures. | A Living Public | “Everything and everyone seemed months on tour. The fan public, which. had before meant nothing more to me than a vague term and a daily bundle of letters, now became something living and personal in I loved to talk to them; to question them. I found them to be as much a part of the profession as the players themselves. my life. “IT took tips from stagehands, theatre musicians and electricians. Several times, I found myself in theatres where some other prominent movie person had preceeded me on a personal appearance tour. I learned who was good or bad, and why — and above all, I learned the penalties that snobbish actors unconsciously It takes such little effort to be nice and real, and so much effort to be aloof, that it is one of life’s little mysteries bring on themselves. why movie folk insist. on being snooty. “T don’t want you to refer to my return to work here as a ‘comeback.” I have never been out of pictures; it seems as though I have never left. The past two years now seem like a dream — more like a— I know that I am a saner and a wiser girl, and, I hope, a better actress — and I am just beginning in my fight tomake good.” a strange interlude. Alice plays one of the leading roles in “Employees’ Entrance,” which features Warren William aud Loretta Young, Wallace Ford and Allen Jenkins. In it she is the sassy, department store vamp. Others in the cast include Hale Hamilton, Albert Gran, Ruth Donnelly and Marjorie Gateson. The picture is taken from the play by David Boehm and adapted by Robert Presnell. = — -“~y Del Re Advance Feature Common or Funny Names Wallace Ford Born Jones; Warren William’s Name Is Krech; Loretta Young Answers to Belzer T seems that actors, who are expected to have very euphonious names, are just the ones whom the gods pick out to dish out the plain or funny sounding cognomens. Wallace Ford, who appears with Warren William, Loretta Young and Alice White in the First National picture, ‘‘Em ployees’ Entrance,’’ which comes next Theatre, was no exception to this rule. The picture is a tale of a ruthless, unscrupulous, successful de partment store head played by War-|tween the Smiths and the Joneses. ren William. By virtue of his parentage, he was destined to bear the name of Jones even before he was born. But when that “blessed event” actually came to pass, the matter was still further aggravated by having Sam tacked in front of it. And as Sam Jones he started to make his way in life. It was no wonder, then, that when he ran away from his adopted parents in Manitoba at the age of eleven, and wanted to carve a theatrical career for himself, he already had sense enough to know that the invented name of “Wallace Ford” would look much nicer on a program and would sound more distinctive than would Sam Jones — And Wallace Ford he has been to this day. Mary Pickford Changed He is no outstanding example in Hollywood in the matter of name changing, but his example probably ranks next to Mary Pickford who started out life as Gladys Smith. After all, there seems to be some connection in the public mind be But Wallace Ford -has company in this respect among the other lead ing players of “Employees’ Entrance.” Warren William and _ Loretta Young both changed their names when they started out as popular publie figures. Only their change was not because their names were too simple, but because they seemed to be just the opposite. Warren William was born Warren William Krech. It was a simple matter for him to drop the last name and get along on the other twothirds. Loretta Young made a complete change of hers. When she first saw the light of day in Salt Lake City, she went on the city records as Gretchen Belzer. But, as Shakespeare so aptly queried, “What’s in a name?” Others who appear in the cast of “Employees’ Entrance” are Alice White, who returns to the screen after two years’ absence, Allen Jenkins, Ruth Donnelly, Helen Mann, Berton Churchill, Frank Reicher, Hale Hamilton and Ruth Donnelly. It was directed by Roy Del Ruth. The screen play was adapted by Robert Presnell from the play by David Boehm. “So-O MUCH IS EXPECTED OF ee re (4 (® >) “WITH YOUR LOOKS YOU SHOULDNT HAVE ANY TROUBLE GETTING A JoB /! " “WHY DON'T YOU LET ME ALONE ? ALL | WANT _IS MY JOB!" “ —BOSS OR NO BOSS, WERE GOING To BE MARRIED | # Here’s the (name of paper)’s artist’s impression of the high spots of “Employees’ Entrance,” which began its engagement at the Strand last night. Warren William and Loretta Young are the picture’s stars, with Alice White, on the screen once more after a two-years’ absence, prominent in support. Loretta Young earned her first money in the movies when she was carried on the set ina Fanny Ward picture at the tender age of five. % * * Warren William is on his first vacation since his entrance into pictures. He and his wife are spending several weeks at Magdalena Bay in Mexico. * * * Loretta Young has a real screen Cut No. 36 Cut 45c Mat r5¢ Short Squibs for Program or Paper father in Ivan Simpson, fine character actor and tutor of dramatics. Ivan is somewhat of a _ foster father to Loretta and coaches her in all her screen plays. Simpson has been active in the theatrical~ field for the past thirty-five years. * * * Warren William used to won der how the Arabs and other oriental people who wear turbans got them on each morning without the assistance of an expert turbanputter-on. Since he has begun “The Mind Reader’ at First National Studios, he’s had to learn to put a turban on all by himself, as in more than one scene before the camera, Warren has to cotl it around his head by himself. Roy Del Ruth, who directed “Employees’ Entrance,’ also directs “The Mind Reader.” Page Nine