Her Husbands Secretary (Warner Bros.) (1937)

STAR & PRODUCTION FEATURES, READER PUBLICITY Former Radio Star Finds Sereen Much Harder Work Warren Hull, Leading Man in “Her Husband’s Secretary,” Tells of Difference Warren Hull, who ought to know, says the screen makes twice the demand that the radio does on an actor. Hull, it may be recalled, was a favorite on the big transcontinental radio programs before joining Warner Bros. as a leading man. 3efore this, he had to his credit such stage suecesses as ‘‘The Love Song,’’ ‘‘Student Prince,’’ ‘‘My Maryland,’’ ‘‘Rain or Shine”’ and ‘‘Follow Through.’’ “An actor who uses his voice well and has a proper understanding of his role can give a good performance on the radio,” he said, “but for the screen he must also have a good presence, grace and skill in pantomime. “When I first started work on the screen, I found myself working to the microphone. I took several days to loosen up and move about naturally, as I had on the stage. Too much radio work had made me _negiect facial expression, natural movement and gesture.” Tall, handsome and_ virile, Hull is an ideal type for romantie sereen roles. After less important parts in several pictures, he has been rewarded with the leading male role in the First National picture, “Her Husband’s Secretary,” which is MOwWercplaviior The Chemis |. co eran theatre. In this romantie comedy drama, Hull finds a severe test for his acting talents, first as a lover, then a doting husband and finally as a man torn between two loves. “Tt is a good thing for me,” he said, “that I had so much stage experience before going into radio. Otherwise I could never have played this role. Good voice is only a small help because a fine screenplay is largely action and pantomime. The finest dramatic moments in the film are practically silent scenes.” “Her Husband’s Secretary” is a melodrama built around a triangle theme, with Miss Muir as the wife, Hull as the husband, and Miss Roberts as the secretary. An _ excellent supporting cast, as well as the three featured players, was directed by Frank McDonald from a screen play by Lillie Hayward. Office Business! Beverly Roberts and Warren Hull lift the curtain on some inner office conferences, and reveal why so many executives “cannot be disturbed” in “Her Husband’s Secretary,” the First National drama coming to the ae Dhentre 0102 Mat No. 101—10c It Was Bound To Happen “Aunt Carrie’? Now Movie Player “Aunt Carrie Bodkin, the pest of San Fernandy,” is now on the sereen. This famous radio comedienne, who is Minerva Urecal in real life, has a comedy part in “Her Husband’s Secretary,” the First National drama featuring Jean Muir, Warren Hull and Beverly Roberts, at the theatre. which is now playing Jean Muir (right), Beverly Roberts_and Warren Hull show. what happens when a wife steps into her husband’s office and finds him in the arms of his secretary, in “Her Husband’s Secretary,” the First National drama making a hit at the Theatre. Mat No. 203 20¢ Traffic Jams for Movies Not kasy Things to Make Much Advance Planning Needed for Scene in “Her Husband’s Secretary” Nobody knows better than the Sunday driver how easy it is to create a traffic jam. It’s a different and harder job in the movies. Those merry mix-ups which result in a wide and varied assortment of language on the screen don’t happen with the spontaneity of a perfectly natural jam at the corner of 42nd Street and Fifth Avenue. Studio traffic jams must be planned in advance and a hundred details must be watched. A traffic jam was staged at Warner Bros. Studio for “Her Husband’s Secretary,” in which Jean Muir, Warren Hull and Beverly Roberts play the leading roles, and which is now at the theatre. The first thing to do was to get a hundred extras who owned their own cars. The list had to be made up carefully, assistants seeing to it that every extra didn’t own the same make of ear as his fellow worker. Variety in cars was necessary to make it look like a _ normal traffic mix-up. Then the studio had to cheek its own property automobiles. Those were the cars in the thick of the jam. That was to avoid injury to extras’ autos. MceDonald had to arrange the aection of the jam scenes accordingly. After the action had been figured out and each driver had been given specific instructions, the company moved out to the location for a rehearsal. Each individual station was pointed out by the director and his as sistants. The key ear, of course, was the one carrying the Misses Muir and Roberts and Mr. Hull. Then each car was driven to its place. Through a public address system Director McDonald gave his general instructions. Everything was prepared for a. first class, tongue-loosing, traffie-tieing mix-up. McDonald gave his action orders and _ gears ground as the rehearsal for a traffie jam moved forward. Minor adjustments, unforseen during the planning, had to be made. After an hour of concentrated rehearsal, the traffic jam moved very smoothly. The scene will oceupy only a few seconds in the unreeling of “Her Husband’s Secretary” on the sereen but it was vital to the filming nevertheless. When finally seen by audiences it will last just about as long as it takes to plead “guilty” and pay a $5.00 fine for tangling traffic. “Wer Husband’s Secretary” is a melodrama built around a triangle theme, with Miss Muir as the wife, Mr. Hull as the husband, and Miss Roberts as the secretary. Ancient Taxi, ‘Old 77 Seen in Many Pictures Veteran Cab Used at Warner Studios Has Carried Seores of Famous Stars All records for numerous appearances in motion pictures aren’t held by players. ‘*Props’’ are very often used in more movies than the busiest actor or actress. ‘Old 77’’ is one of the property veterans at the Warner Bros. studios. ‘Old 77’’ is a taxi, which has appeared in 127 pictures in the past five years. Its chassis is the same as it was when it was first added to the studio’s collection of cars. A dull orange color now, it has the number 77 painted on each door in black. The latest appearance of old “77” is in the First National picture “Her Husband’s Secretary,” in which Jean Muir, Warren Hull and Beverly Roberts have the leading roles, and which is now showing at the theatre. Before then it appeared in “That Man’s Here Again” and was repainted white, with black trimmings. Oceasionally it has had a checkered design. Christened in the property department by a staff member who had memories of Red Grange, famed gridiron star who earried the numerals “77,” the car has a sawed-off duplicate which is set up on rockers and used when elose shots of the taxi’s interior are necessary. Such a shot was made for “Her Husband’s Secretary,” showing Hull and Miss Roberts as they ride together to a depot. The rockers, of course, are used for the effect of motion and because it is a sawed-off replica the cameraman gets shots at almost any angle he wants. “Old 77” is never used except before the camera. It has probably earried more famous motion picture personalities than the busiest cab in front of the Brown Derby. Among its passengers have been Edward G. Robinson, Joan Blondell, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Kay Franeis, Dick Powell (Dick drove it, in fact, in “Broadway Gondolier”’), Warren William, Ruby Keeler, Bette Davis and many, many others. “Old 77” will be retired—on call—next month. Then it will join the ranks of “period” cabs which are used for specific films. “Her Husband’s Secretary” is a melodrama built around a triangle theme, with Jean Muir as the wife, Warren Hull as the husband, and Beverly Roberts as the secretary. Beverly Roberts Is Real Modern Movie Cinderella New York Girl, Now Leading Woman, Had to Go to France for Discovery The Cinderella story has been filmdom’s favorite, on and off the sereen, ever since the invention of the old cinemato graph. leaping across a silver sheet. It was a favorite yarn even before shadows started 3ut nine times out of ten, the little lady who wins the beauty contest in her home town—‘‘First Prize a Trip To Hollywood”—goes back East or becomes one of Hollywood’s beautiful waitresses. Once in so often a Cinderella story “takes.” The latest lass to come from relative obscurity, is Beverly Roberts, twenty-two year old American girl with English family background. Following her success in her biggest role to date, “God’s Country and the Woman,” Miss Roberts was east with Jean Muir and Warren Hull in the First National picture, “Her Husband’s Secretary,” Which comes -hoettie.s ss.2) 8: thea tréesonihte 0. el: cata? tes Miss Roberts travelled 3000 miles to be discovered. After leaving New York to make a name for herself, she got a job in a London play. This was nice while it lasted, but that wasn’t long enough. Paris was her next port of call. There, in a Left bank hot spot, she literally sang for her supper, and a few centimes besides. An American scout saw her, and, after he got back to New York, cabled her to come home, that he had a job for her. Back in New York and eating regularly again Miss Roberts became popular with the habitues of the House of Lords. A Warner talent hunter heard her singing there, and offered a screen test. It was successful and she was packed off to Hollywood, where, a few weeks later, she made her debut opposite Jolson in “The Singing Kid.” Another Hollywood Cinderella had made good. Be Indifferent, Says Jean Muir To Movie Folks Jean Muir, the movie star, says the key to success in Hollywood is indifference. “Hollywood is cruel,” she said. “It shrugs at anybody who makes too marked an effort to please. “Somehow, the picture colony seems to have most respect for those who quietly attend to their own business, without thought of commendation. “T have seen newcomers to Hollywood—many of them with a record of stage success—strain too hard to make an impression —and fail. If they had not eared what anybody, except audiences, thought of them they might have succeeded. “Independence of thought and action has always paid in other businesses. Why not on a pieture lot? “This idea of trying to please everybody is not only a waste of effort but it kills the aggressiveness necessary for the Hollywood struggle. “Tll fight for anything that affects my career or affects me professionally. Otherwise, I’m strong on indfference. Jean is at present to be seen in “Her Husband’s Secretary,” the First National picture which comes to the theatre on Page Nine