Mary Janes Pa (Warner Bros.) (1935)

Being Funny Is Serious Business, Says Comedian Guy Kibbee, Lead In ‘Mary Jane’s Pa,’ Always Plays Comic Parts Straight KING funny is serious business. B So declares Guy Kibbee, one of the funniest persons of the screen. He is, all agree, qualified to know. Everyone knows Guy Kibbee. He’s the rotund and redapple cheeked comedian who always finds himself in the most embarrassing situations. because of that, if for no other reason, he creates laughs. Now, after thirty-four years of stomping about the stage, Guy has come to the _ conclusion there’s a great deal that’s serious in this business of being funny. Sitting on the sidelines of a Warner Bros. set where the company. was shooting scenes for “Mary Jane’s Pa,” now showing £21 a 0s Herein. a ale Theatre, he was asked point-blank: “Why is a comedian funny?” “Well,” he said, mopping that massive face, “it’s story mostly, the humorous situations. A comedian must play his part just like any other actor. He must play it straight.” Kibbee believes that a comedian must never act as though he knows he is being funny. He must always carry a “dead pan,” that is, a serious face. Through his through his evident agony—the unfortunate situation in which he is placed—comes the humor to the audience. It sounds complicated, perhaps, but Guy should know. Thirtyfour years of it is a long, long time. Guy is forty-eight now and for the past thirty-four years, with the exception of four, he has been trouping. During his four year absence from the stage, Guy was out to succeed in the printing business in San Francisco, where his brothers are still engaged in that occupation. As sailors return to the sea, seasoned theatrical performers return to the stage. That was Guy’s case. He made a serious effort to interest himself in printers’ ink, but it didn’t work. He likes comedy roles best, but in accordance with all the traditions of his calling, yearns to do a dramatic role now and then. He once played romantic leads. “Just to prove to myself,” he said, “that I’m not forgetting how to do those parts.” Audiences laugh at the strangest things, he declares. It’s all in the way a situation, a role, is played. In “Mary Jane’s Pa,” Kibbee plays the role of a tramp printer who itches to hop a freight and be off to a new town every time he hears a train whistle. The picture is a combination of rollicking comedy, tense drama and heart-throbbing action, based on the play of the same name, by Edith Ellis Furness and the novel version by Norman Way. The cast includes besides Kibbee, Aline MacMahon, Tom Brown, Robert MacWade, Minor Watson, Johnny Arledge, Nan Gray and Betty Jean Haney. William Keighley directed. Child Actress Gains Pound In One Scene Most film stars would be angry if one single scene was responsible for putting on a pound of weight, but not so with little Betty Jean Haney, who is playing in the Warner Bros. production, “Mary Jane’s Pa,” now showing Bt. the. 2.5. 3; 3 piece: Theatre, co-starring Aline MacMahon and Guy Kibbee. During the filming of a scene in the picture, Betty Jean had to drink four glasses of milk. seriousness, or * He personifies misfortune and .. And She’s Ma Aline MacMahon one of the most lovable performances of her career in the First contributes National _ production, “Mary Jane’s Pa,” which opened yes terday at the________________ Theatre. Guy Kibbee is co-starred with her. Don’t miss it! Mat No. 5—10c Kibbee Knows How To Roll His Own Guy Kibbee, who has the leading male role in the Warner Bros. production, “Mary Jane’s Pa,” which comes to the............ PROGLTO KOR = ceo ee ion z knows how to roll his own. In one scene he is called upon to roll a cigarette. Director William Keighley was a bit worried about the scene until he spoke to Kibbee. “That'll be easy,” said Kibbee. “Just give me a few minutes to practice.” After wasting half a bag of tobacco, Kibbee could roll ’em with the best cow punchers. Kibbee explained that he had rolled his cigarettes for years when he could not afford to buy tailor made cigarettes. He was out of practice but picked up the old trick in a few minutes. Food Marts Stripped To Make Film Scene There was a shortage of produce in Burbank one day during the production of the Warner Bros. picture, “Mary Jane’s Pa,” which comes to the............. Bheatne: sone. sean ak) Sees It was necessary to fill an entire floor of a vast warehouse with fresh vegetables for one scene, Early in the morning a fleet of trucks left the Warner Bros. lot and returned with their load of fresh vegetables. Many of the local markets had been stripped bare and the housewives had to journey into Hollywood to fill their market. baskets. The cast of “Mary Jane’s Pa” includes Aline MacMahon, Guy Kibbee, Tom Brown, Robert MeWade, Minor Watson, Johnny Arledge and Mary Jane Haney. Child Star Gets Thrill Riding On Top of Elephant Betty Jean Haney, Warner Bros. youngest star, is not a child prodigy. She is eight years of age, claims Hollywood as the city of her nativity and is at present playing her second prominent part in motion pictures, that of Mary Jane in “Mary Jane’s Pa,” which comes to the SNe ai bana Theatre on She is the offspring of a very popular vaudeville team. Her dad is Frank Haney and her mother was Harriet Whitlaw, once of Winnipeg, Canada. Betty Jean’s education has been mostly by a tutor and it must have been a capable one for the youngster has been able to read since she was three and can’t seem to find enough time to do all the reading she’d like to do. She has the distinction of being the youngest star ever to play an extended engagement at the Palace Theatre in New York. This was the very top of the ladder for vaudevillians. To Betty Jean it was just another engagement. Her career began at the age of three with “The People’s Choice” in Milwaukee. After this, she became a member of the popular team of Olsen & Johnson, whose radio, stage and screen fame need no reviewing. It was with this team that Betty Jean made the Palace Theatre stand. Her screen debut ante-dates this vaudeville experience for she enjoyed her role in “Mary Jane’s Pa” hugely, especially the scenes in which she rides an elephant. The picture is a combination of rollicking comedy, tense drama and heart-throbbing action, based on the play of the same name by Edith Ellis Furness and the novel version by Norman Way. The cast includes Aline MaceMahon, Guy Kibbee, Tom Brown, Robert MacWade, Minor Watson, Johnny Arledge and Nan Gray. William Keighley directed. Johnny Arledge Happy Over Reporter’s Role Johnny Arledge, Warner Bros. contract player, was more enthusiastic than usual about his part in “Mary Jane’s Pa,” which COMER LO FCNES a ees ee Dheatre<on ye oe In 1930 Arledge was selected for having given one of the ten best performances of the year in the stage play, “Up Pops The Devil,” and the part he played was that of a newspaper reporter. Thus when he was selected for the role of a reporter in in “Mary Jane’s Pa,” he was delighted for it was the first newspaper role he had been given since his part in the legitimate production. “Mary Jane’s Pa” combines light comedy with tense drama, with Aline MacMahon and Guy Kibbee in the stellar roles. Others in the cast include Tom Brown, Robert MceWade, Minor Watson, Nan Gray and Arledge. Aline MacMahon Buys Only New York Gowns Hollywood is said to have some of the smartest women’s shops in the world and many of the movie stars purchase all of their gowns in the film capital. Aline MacMahon, however, insists on buying all her dresses and accessories in New York. So in her latest starring picture for First National, “Mary Jane’s Pa,” which comes to the Theatre on ......... x she will be seen in gowns from Gotham’s smartest shops and not those of Hollywood. Movie Set Razed To Free ‘Lady Annabelle’ Annabelle had seen all sorts of motion picture sets before she was brought to the Warner Bros. lot for ‘‘Mary Jane’s Pa,’’ co-starring Aline MacMahon and Guy Kibbee. This particular set was a Carnival Company which was a little more to her liking than several of her recent engagements. In the seventeen years of her elephant life, much of which has beeu spent on motion picture lots, all this business was getting very boring. With Anabelle it meant one thing. If there were children on the set they would, without doubt, buy her peanuts and feed them to her but peanuts with Annabelle were no delicacy. Why at the Seelig Zoo where she came from she got all the peanuts she could eat every Saturday and Sunday and anyway this was a Saturday night and she had all the peanuts she wanted. Sure enough there were children called for this Carnival set and just as she expected, they bought her peanuts. Not that she cared about the peanuts for she had already eaten several bags that afternoon but Annabelle wouldn’t hurt the children’s feelings so she did the expected and held open her great mouth while the kids tossed peanut after peanut down her throat. The children didn’t know it but Annabelle was holding out on them. She held a great quantity of these peanuts in her mouth and then when the kids weren’t looking, she put them back in her trunk and tossed them over her great shoulder. ..The children finally went away. Annabelle was thirsty. If only these kids would have given her a drink of something. Soda pop for instance. Kids didn’t seem to realize that she liked soda pop. An older person, one day, had given her four bottles of beer. He wanted to be smart. Thought it would make her drunk. But not Annabelle. When an elephant gets a feeling that she doesn’t like the place to which she is tethered, she just up and goes somewhere else. Annabelle was smart enough to know that if she wandered out where the lights were brightest she might possibly spoil a “take.” Years of motion picture experience teaches one that. Annabelle decided to walk back where it was darkest and this she did. Just to the rear of where she had been tethered was the great coal mine set that had been used in Paul Muni’s latest picture, “Black Fury,” and it was there that the elephant wandered. Now a coal mine was something new to Annabelle and she was interested. How she ever got into the entrance of the mine shaft is a secret that will go to Annabelle’s grave with her. This shaft entrance was wide enough for her but it didn’t have the height, but Annabelle made it without so much as breaking a single board. Onward she went, exploring the galleries, the first aid room, the room that had been the workshop and then at the very end was a place that had been used for stabling the mules. Here was some hay. Not bad hay either. That was something, so Annabelle set to work to finish what was left of this food. Just about that time Annabelle was called for a scene but she was nowhere to be found. Someone thought that Annabelle had gone home but she had never been known to walk off a job yet. All the exits were checked but no one had seen an elephant pass. Annabelle herself was beginning to get a little conscience-stricken about all the time she was taking and began to look for an exit, but somehow she had lost her way and couldn’t retrace her steps. Then came a great trumpeting and that is how she was finally discovered. Elephants seem to know that this is the way they can be found most readily. They came and got Annabelle but they had to knock out the top of the entrance to get her out. “Mary Jane’s Pa” combines hilarious comedy with heart-throbbing action and tense drama. It is based on the play by the same name by Edith Ellis Furness and the novel version by Norman Way. William Keighley directed from the screen play by Tom Reed and Peter Milne. Mary Jane’s Pa Johnny Arledge Gets Last Laugh in ‘Mary Jane’s Pa’ Johnny Arledge had to wear a raccoon coat for days during the making of “Mary Jane’s Pa,” the Warner Bros. picture now showINP CAL CHON Coe a aie: Theatre. The heat generated by the many are lamps, coupled with that of the Southern California sun, made the wearing of this coat almost unbearable. Johnny was ragged by other members of the cast. But John get even. Later the coat became the envy of the entire company. One night when working an an exterior scene, the thermometer dropped from around eighty-two degrees during the day to thirtyeight about nine o’clock at night. Aline MacMahon and Kuy Kibbee again co-starred in “Mary Jane’s Pa,” a picture packed with light comedy as well as tense drama. Others in the cast include Tom Brown, Robert MeWade, Minor Watson, Nan Gray, Robert Light and Betty Jean Haney, besides Arledge. That’s the part played by Guy Kibbee in the new First National comedy of that name. Betty Jean Haney, shown with him in this scene from the picture, is included in the supporting players—as also are Aline MacMahon and Tom Brown. Mat No. 4—10c Page Seven