Million Dollar Baby (Warner Bros.) (1941)

ADVANCE PUBLICITY—’MILLION DOLLAR BABY’ Advance Feature What Would YOU Do If You Inherited a Million? In Priscilla Lane’s new picture “Million Dollar Baby” opening Friday at the Strand she inherits a million dollars. So we asked Priscilla what she thought she would do if that really happened to her. And we put the same question to actors and actresses working on other sets at the Warner Bros. studio. “T really don’t know what I would do first. It would take me a couple of weeks to get used to the thought of having that much money.” Priscilla said. “But when I did get used to it I probably would go out on the maddest shopping spree imaginable. Clothes, principally. Lots of them. And then I’d think about some place to travel; South America, probably. “Investments? Yes, I suppose so. But mother would be the one to worry about those. I never know a thing about business, except that it baffles me and makes me nervous.” Jeffrey Lynn, playing opposite Priscilla in “Million Dollar Baby,” had his answer on the tip of his tongue. “Pq make sure that all the members of my family would be taken care of for the rest of their lives,” said Lynn. “Things were never too prosperous for us, you. know. Comfortable enough, of course. But no luxuries. Getting the first electric lights in our house was a big thing. “JT know I’d keep right on working. That’s one of my faults, I guess. Being serious about everything I undertake. But I want to do something really worthwhile in this acting thing I’m in. I’d be unhappy loafing. And just having a million dollars would be pleasure enough in itself.” Dennis Morgan and Ralph Bellamy, working with Merle Oberon in “Affectionately yours,” were inclined to agree with her that such great and sudden riches could be put to no better use at this time than Ronald Reagan Rivals Flynn in Fan Mail Ronald Reagan’s fan mail did not bring about his recently-announced stardom, but it helped. Warner Bros. has just discovered that he is runner-up to the Post Office’s best friend, Errol Flynn, in fan mail honors. The zoom in the weight of the Reagan mail bags was noted immediately after the general release of “Sante Fe,” in which he was George Custer to Flynn’s Jeb Stuart, and both were rivals for Olivia de Havilland’s love. Reagan’s current film, following a loan-out to MGM to play romantic lead in “The Bad Man,” is “Million Dollar Baby,” which is coming to the Strand. His click role of George Gipp in “Knute Rockne” also contributed heavily to his popularity. Gets Million Dollar Bid Priscilla Lane thinks that a proposal of marriage she received via Western Union the other day is a gag by a wag. “Want to make you real million-dollar baby,” it said. “If you marry me I will baby you. Am a millionaire fifty-one years old.” Priscilla isn’t giving out the name signed to the wire, just in case it’s a real person. But she suspects that the whole thing has something to do with the new title of her newest starring picture which is called ‘Million Dollar Baby.” investing them in the cause of democracy against totalitarianism. She said: “T’d set aside enough to provide myself with an income against unproductive old age, of course. Probably an annuity of some sort. And the rest of it, every cent, I’d divide among the various war relief agencies, those on the side of England and America, of course. The Greeks have been magnificent. The English, the Australians, the Canadian fliers, all the others have been magnificent. There would be no hesitancy on my part. That’s where my million dollar legacy would go.” Priscilla Gets a Million —And A Swell Exit! Priscilla Lane, working hard behind a counter in a large department store for a scene in Warner Bros.’ “Million Dollar Baby,” says, “I could wait a hundred years and never make such a wonderful exit as I do at the end of this scene.” Jeffrey Lynn, after trying for two days to talk to Priscilla, finally wins her attention as she is selling vegetable peelers to apathetic shoppers. Lynn hands her a check for $1,000,000 and says, “My client wants you to have this.” When Priscilla finally comes to her senses and realizes the check is authentic, she stands on her platform and, screaming at the top of her lungs, unsells what she had previously been selling. Then she rushes from the store shouting at the top of her voice, “I’m a millionairess!” Star Feature Priscilla Lane Does A Strip Tease—in Reverse! Priscilla Lane is just like millions of other girls. She rises each morning and puts on her dress. At night she takes it off. Priscilla has never thought anything about this routine. Her only problem was that of every girl, what she was going to wear. But yesterday, for the first time in her life, Priscilla discovered what a complicated affair putting on a dress can be. That was because she had to put on and take off a dress in front of the camera for a scene in Warner Bros.’ “Million Dollar Baby,” the picture opening Friday at the Strand. She was probably the only girl in the I! HAVE A LOT OF FUN! By PRISCILLA LANE In my newest picture, "Million Dollar Baby," | inherit a million dollars. Nice work, and | got it! Then | go out to see the town with Jeffrey Lynn (he was my boy friend in the "Four Daughters” pictures, too, remember?) and do we have ourselves a time! It all ends up, as you can see, with Jeff giving me a piggyback ride home. That's one date | didn't walk home from! WwW Still MW358; Mat 203—30c I wonder which gives more nourishment, the hole in a doughnut or the smell of an onion? Sounds crazy doesn’t it? But I decided that when I was given the chance to write I would forget serious problems. I’ll always remember the day I embarked on my theatrical career. My sister, Rosemary, and I were about to make our debut with Fred Waring’s orchestra at the Falace Theatre in New York. I was so nervous before going on the stage that I started chewing gum. I forgot to remove it before we took our places in front of the microphone. Naturally, I couldn’t sing. Mr. Waring, noticing my predicament, stopped the music and started kidding me. I returned his verbal barrage word for word and, as a result, he decided I had possibilities as a comedienne. I’ve never had as much fun since I was a little girl living in Indianola, Iowa. I was a tomboy in a family of five girls and Iowa is a place where a tomboy can find things to do. I built a soapbox wagon for myself and made Rosemary pull me around the front yard. There were plenty of barns and haylofts to explore and they proved to be good hiding places when I was supposed to be in school. I relished the idea of being a trapeze artist when I grew up. Every morning for three weeks, I’d wake up before the family did and practice swinging by my legs. One day the rope broke when I was several feet off the ground. I quickly forgot my ambition to swing from dizzy heights. My current Warner Bros. picture, ‘‘Million Dollar Baby,” is a light comedy, the kind of a role I enjoy doing most of all. We don’t let up when we finish a scene. Working with Jeffrey Lynn, Ronald Reagan and May Robson assures plenty of gags on the set. Our director, Curtis Bernhardt, says he’s never worked with such a “crazy” group of players. You see, we initiated Mr. Bernhardt by giving him the hot-foot and the hot-seat. And when you see “Million Dollar Baby,” which opens at the Strand Theatre on Friday, I’m sure you’ll have just as much fun as we had making it. 12 world who was dressing before a camera at that moment. The scene didn’t worry her. She was certain it would be the easiest scene she had ever played, “After all, my whole life has been practically a rehearsal for a scene like this,” explained Priscilla. She didn’t even have to worry about which dress she was going to wear. Her wardrobe during the first half of the picture consists of three outfits. The script had already selected the dress for this scene. During the scene she had to carry on a conversation with May Robson. This, too, Priscilla thought would be easy because she and her sister, Rose mary, usually carried on a morning conversation while dressing. There was just one hitch to Priscilla’s “easy” scene. Director Curtis Bernhardt is a man who has his own ideas of how to take off and put on a dress, when it’s being done for the camera, that is. Five rehearsals of the scene resulted in five haircombings and five makeup touches. The makeup man and hair-dresser sat next to the director and were the first to reach Priscilla at the end of each rehearsal. Bernhardt kept up a running fire of instructions as the rehearsals progressed. “Put the dress on slower. Let the dress hit your knees before you put your head through. Don’t muss your hair. Stand up straight.” When she had to take the dress off, Priscilla said, “Wait, don’t say anything. I’ll just reverse the awkward precedure.” Bernhardt replied, “Exactly.” Remembering, suddenly, that she was playing a scene with the most notorious scene-stealer in the business, May Robson, Priscilla became worried. She couldn’t even see May during the dialogue, and didn’t know whether May was scratching her forehead, lacing a shoe, or employing some other trick that has made her famous. It took one hour before the scene was finally completed. Priscilla was exhausted. “When I go home tonight, 1 think I’ll sleep in my dress,” she said. “I’m afraid I have forgotten how to undress the easy way, and I don’t, under any circumstances, want to take the chance of having to go through this performance again.” Million Dollar Baby Starts Vegetable Row Priscilla Lane today avenged all the indignities heaped on her fellow thespians through the ages by heartless audiences. A scene in Warner Bros.’ “Million Dollar Baby” required Priscilla to go temporarily balmy while portraying a sales girl at a kitchen supply counter of a large store. Reason is, she’s just been handed a check for a million dollars. It takes her awhile to realize that the check is not a phoney and that it really belongs to her. Where she does, she goes wild. While in that state, she showered the customers—played by 200 extras—with everything she could lay her hands on. Cucumbers, potatoes, ripe tomatoes, turnips, stringbeans and carrots went flying through the air smacking patrons right and left. When Priscilla ran out of her vegetable supply she started throwing salads. Vegetables were in the salads, too, but they were covered with mayonnaise and other oil dressings.