Employees' Entrance (Warner Bros.) (1933)

..his months in Europe. landed at New, and a contrary government sent him LIFE STORY OF WARREN WILLIAM. Warren Krech’s Bad Boy The Life Story of By Carlisle Jones. William Chapter II terrupted Warren William’s career by declaring war on fi United States government, which had so rudely in Germany, repaid the hopeful young actor by giving him his first chance to play a leading role. Under the auspices of the ‘‘Over There Theatre League’’ William, known then, of course, as Sergeant Warren Krech, on detached service from his infantry regiment, toured France for nearly six months with the theatrical company playing “Under Cover.” William played the “Steven Denby” role, the best male part and he played it in theatres, tents, barns and old Napoleonic barracks. For this service he was allowed fifty frances a week in addition to his regular sergeant’s pay, as well as all living and traveling expenses. Altogether it was a fairly happy and reasonably prosperous six months. For many reasons, however, he was anxious to get back to America and home. During the long stay at the training camp in New Mexico, William’s sister had introduced the young soldier-actor to a girl friend. Warren had registered more than a casual interest and they had corresponded with some regularity during ¥ z ~inia to Aitkin, Minnesota, to be mustered out. He landed back on American soil on July 4, 1919, the same day a fighter named Dempsey had flattened a human mountain named Willard at Toledo, Ohio. William stayed in Aitkin with his family for a few days and then started back for New York where both his girl and his career were waiting for him. His first job was Richard Dix’s role in a road company playing William Le Baron’s “IT Love You,” a striking parallel to the first words he probably said to the girl. The show closed after a brief road tour but the girl stood by to become Mrs. Warren William Krech on January 11, 1921. A Checkered Career But before that happy culmination of a war time romance was reached Warren William Krech had gathered a collection of unique experiences. He found himself with an Erie, Pennsylvania stock company the winter of 1919-20, after the “I Love You” company had disbanded, and for the first time in his life he was expeeted to learn lines and memorize parts on short notice. His only extensive experience had been with the army company with which he had played the same role for six months. He found it difficult to memorize—a difficulty he has never entirely overcome and which today makes him one of the hardest working actors in Hollywood. For ten weeks he struggled against these odds. Florence Eldridge, now a well known screen actress and the wife of Frederic March, was the leading lady for the eompany and Krech, as he was known then, : played various character roles. It was, William recalls, a long, hard He struggled hard to memorize those lines and then generally tripped over them the first few performances of each new play. At Christmas, the company gave him a miniature airplane with the suggestion that he should try going up in it instead of in his lines. He had one part in which he thinks he made a minor hit. That was in the play “A Stitch In Time” and as a result of it he got a hand the next week when he appeared on the stage in a very brief and unimportant chauffeur’s role. At the end of the ten weeks, however, there was a reorganization of the company and William was out. He remembers that he was more pleased than disappointed, and when he was offered his place back again just before he took the train for New York, he refused it. winter in Erie, Pennsylvania. ui aiew £0 kk -.vie in the play Sa. anu lilah,” (not the opera, and failew to get the part he tried or. It was eventually played by a= actor who was just then attracting much attention in New York under the name of Edward G. Robinson, today a great movie star working at the same studio with Warren William. Before 1920 had progressed far toward summer, however, William got his first New York role, the part of a pickle saleman in “Mrs. Jimmie Thompson.” He went on the road for ten weeks with this company later and returned to New York to take part in the Theatre Guild’s dismal failure, “John Hawthorne.” New York critics had a lot of fun with that one although one or two had kind things to say about one Warren Krech. | Plenty of Jobs | William seemed to have no trouble getting jobs during those boom times of 1920. After “John Hawthorne” closed he accepted an offer to appear in a motion picture, which was to be made in New York. The picture was “The Town that Forgot God,” and in it William played a religiously symbolic figure which made it necessary for him to raise a beard. He grew the beard and kept it in a constant state of disrepair, as demanded by the part, with the help of nail scissors. Moth-eaten beard and all “the girl” was still faithful and she endured with William the stares of New York as the lean and bearded young man made his way about town, The picture opened at the Astor theatre for a two dollar run and William saw himself for the first time on the screen. Other screen offers were forthcoming and William selected from among them the chance to play hero opposite Pearl White in a serial thriller, called “Plunder.” For weeks William alternated between getting Miss White into hairraising episodes and out again. He jumped out of windows, dashed through fire, jumped from trains and risked his neck at least twice in every episode, not aetually, of WARREN WILLIAM sutith Widely-heralded star of “Employees’ Entrance,” Warner Bros. drama which begins an engagement at the Strand on. Cut No. 22 Cut 30c Mat 10c course, but from the viewpoint of the audience. For this he received what was, to him at the time, the highly satisfactory sum of $150 a week. His next “job” was something altogether different again. He turned down tentative offers to go to Hollywood for picture work and acecepted the role Ronald Colman had played in New York in “La Tend resse,” with Henry Miller and Ruth’ he might have the part and then ~ nea une road. They aelphia, and closed = later in Chicago. William took his savings and hurried back to New York and marriage. His Elopement They ran away to be married, since nobody seemed |to approve of the match so long as William was still a struggling actor. They ran to The Little Church Around The Corner, where they were refused permission to be married because William admitted, in an unguarded moment, that his parents at least were unaware of his intentions. They soon found another church however and having learned to be guarded in their statements, they were successfully married in front of the minimum number of witnesses and “escaped” to Atlantic City for the honeymoon. Then followed the leanest period in the William story. Although never actually in want, the luck that had followed William since his’ return from the army seemed suddenly to desert him once he had assumed the responsibility of marriage. There was a minor panic on in New York and the theatrical business was in a bad way. William has a theory now that most young couples who marry on a wave of temporary prosperity, experience adversity before long. The weeks without work stretched into months and when the actor Krech finally did get a place with a Lennox Hill theatre production he did two things. He grew a mustache and he changed his name. Changed His Name Friends of his, interested in the occult, in numerology and similar pseudo-sciences, advised the change in name and his own sister suggested the use of his two Christian names “Warren William” as the substitute for the constantly mispronounced “Krech.” The play was H. G. Wells’ and St. John Ervine’s “The Wonderful Visit,” and served only to introduce ‘which Mr. William has worn almost weeks it when it later was revived. This trouble gave him a free-summer, a welcome freedom this time, because he and a partner had bought a boat, a “blue-nosed” Nova Scotia schooner which they named “The Cutlass.” Mr. and Mrs. William spent a happy summer on that, with William frequently exercising his “mean ability to scramble an egg.” Not long ago he sold the boat — at a sacrifice — rather than bring it to California waters through the canal. Since then he has been the best but toughest prospective customer for boat salesmen on the whole Pacific coast but to date has made no purchase. “Those We Love,” proved to be the best of the 1929 roles — George Brent was connected with that play too, for a time. The following year found William in “Week End,” “Out of a Blue Sky,” which was directed by Leslie Howard, “The Vikings,” which they pronounced “Veekings” and finally in “Stepdaughters of War.” The last named was a moderate success and carried William over a_ slightly “lean” period to the successful “Vinegar Tree” with Mary Boland. That was an undoubted hit and the motion picture companies for which William had from time to time been making tests — without results — became more interested in him than ever. Signed by Warner Bros. He consented to make a test with Violet Heming for Warner Bros. on the same day he made one for them on his own behalf. He was signed for a role in Warner pictures because of his work in the Heming test. A week before he left for Hollywood his father died in Aitkin, Hig mother had died several years before. No member of the family was left in the little Minnesota City and William’s first few months in Hollywood was a mad criss-cross of studio options and private business details, D the newly renamed actor to the critics. Several of them commented upon the change. The mustache constantly since, aroused no comment and no opposition. In due time, after several unsuccessful plays had folded in rapid succession, Warren William tried out for a role in the play, “Expressing Willie.” First he was told Tar0 Tw ——_=ssi WHOL TO iwnucd in Hollywood. His first picture was not financially successful. The second “Honor of the Family,” gave more promise and won him immediate attention. When “The Mouthpiece” was released Warren William was definitely on his way to screen stardom. The Williams live in Hollywood in a rented furnished house high up on the Logs Feliz hills over-looking Glendale and the film capital. Jack and Jill, two wired haired terriers live in the big house with them. They have bought a pair of lots on a@ new beach tract fifty miles or so from Hollywood. They have plans for a house there, a very beautiful house and very beautiful plans —-‘which William suggests he will probably frame. If he does frame them he will probably do so himself, in his own workshop. He has never gotten over his mechanical leanings. He still wakes up in the middle of the night, sometimes, with schemes to improve the methods of making pictures. [THE END ] <—-Was tulg—. 7 augnt Nov 7c it. “It went on that way for days,” he says. “I was actually in and out of that role almost a dozen times.” Eventually he was given the part in “Expressing Willie,” and found himself, suddenly, enjoying his first real New York success. He played through the long run and then went with the company on the road for nine months. It was an important milepost in his career. Another good role _ followed shortly, that of the hi-jacker in the play “Twelve Miles Out.” That seems to be Mr. William’s favorite role in all his stage experience. It was fairly successful in New York but closed after a brief run in Chicago. Compared to Barrymore After that there was a long period of idleness when roles, good or bad, were not forthcoming. He appeared for a short time, with Michael Strange, then the wife of John Barrymore, in “Easter” and “One Day More.” A short time later when playing in “The Blue Peter” at the Stagers theatre and sleeping nights there in order to learn the part for the next production, Ibsen’s “Rosmersholm,” Alexander Wollcott made his now famous comparison between John Drew, John Barrymore and Warren William — a comparison which was kept alive to haunt him when he came, in 1931, to Hollywood to play opposite John Barrymore’s new wife, Dolores Costello in the picture, “Expensive Women.” Other productions followed in rapid and discouraging succession. William played in a mystery play, “The Sign of the Leopard,” and took the part of a Jewish cowboy in Fanny Brice’s show “Fanny,” for Belasco. This was along in 1926. “Paradise,” lasted one week. “The Golden Age,” was another failure. Then he found his second considerable success, box-office as well as artistic, in “Let Us Be Gay,” opposite Francine Larrimore. Due to contract trouble between the Shuberts to whom William was bound, and the producers of “Let Us Be Gay,” he did not finish the New York run but was put back into Suggested Announcement for Front Page Don’t Miss It! The first authentic life story of WARREN WILLIAM “KRECH’S BAD BOY” & Read the romantic career that made a soldier of fortune the screen’s favorite in less than two years. Complete in 2 instalments & Beginning Today 3 Page Eleven “mparison re_