Private Detective 62 (Warner Bros.) (1933)

(Current Feature ) William Powell Has Never Succumbed to Hollywood ADVANCE “Private Detective 62” Has New Love Team NE actor who may be said to have been in Hollywood for quite a while without ever being part of it, is William Powell whose latest Warner Bros. picture, ‘‘Private Detective OR Mt then Se See Theatre. Not that Powell’s whole life isn’t pictures, and picture making. He wouldn’t trade his job for any other in the world. Yet he never has been quite at one with the world’s famous film colony. Few people in Hollywood know Powell well. Those few have remained which Theatre presents a brand new love team. in William Powell, the star who plays the title role and the beautiful and talented Margaret Lindsay, the Iowa girl who made good as a Britisher in “Cavaleade.” According to word from Hollywood critics, Powell and Lindsay, made a most captivating pair. Lind “Private Detective comes to the +o 9 62, 62,”’ izations he had been playing, as could be imagined. And he proved more popular in the new roles than he had ever been in | CURRENT FEATURES — SHORTS CURRENT SHORTS Margaret Lindsay Posed Actor in Gangster Role As English for a Lark Scholarly in Real Life Margaret Lindsay, who plays the feminine lead opposite William Powell in Warner Bros. “Private Detective 62,” now at the Theatre, is not, as Walter Winchell discovered, English at all. She is a Dubuque, lowa, girl, who came back from a long sojourn in England so changed and so English speaking that no one in the home town knew Gordon Westcott, who plays the role of a gambler and gangster in “Private 62,” William Powell’s latest picture for Warner Detective Brothers, which comes to the Theatre . , is in real life the very antithesis of the gangster he plays. her. As a lark, she posed as an Eng practically the same through the years the old. He was educated in the Univer -—Barthelmess, Colman, a director or two, a writer or two. There are no iy others. 2 William Powell is no snob. f When he was e¢alled the wittiest man in Hollywood by a journalist, he took pains to deny it in every paper he could get to print the denial. ‘* Imagine anyone living up to a reputation like that!’’ he expostulated. It isn’t from any sense of superiority that he remains aloof from Hollywood. { | Stays Aloof | He remains aloof because he doesn’t think Hollywood itself has its finger very close to the pulse of the rest of the world. And it’s for the rest of the world that Powell is making his pictures. So he watches carefully what goes on in the world, what the new trends are, rather than be guided by what Hollywood thinks. He changed the type of pictures he : was making when everyone said he , Would ruin his following by doing so. He changed from lady-killer parts to fast, high-pressure roles that were us nearly opposite to the character (Current Feature 4 “Old Time Star System On Wane’ Says Michael Curtiz Noted Director Believes ERSONALITIES are not the main attraction any longer in motion pictures, and the star system is decidedly on the wane, is the opinion of M Warner Bros. picture, ‘‘ Private ee Theatre. to patronize pictures which are ‘‘Of course that does not mean there will be no stars,’’ said Mr. Curtiz. ‘‘The presence of a well established star in the leading role is always an advantage especially if ! they are capable actors, as in the case of ‘‘Private Detective 62,’’ where you have an exceptionally talented player in William Powell. What I refer to is the building up of a story merely to exploit the star, instead of having a perfect ensemble.’’ than because of its particular st The star system would be more secure if silent pictures had remained, Curtiz believes. He contends that the *stage and the silent picture are two y» separate arts, and that talking pictures is a fusion of these two to form _4 third art. ‘*Since talking pictures came in, they have followed the trend of the legitimate theatre,’’ Curtiz — said. “This trend has been toward realism as against the romance and melodrama of the end of the last century. Acting, ‘story and direction now have equal rating and the most Successful pictures are those presenting a perfection of ensemble instead of serving as a background for one individual. The story and direction of “I Am A Fugitive From a wm Chain Gang,” for instance, was on a4 par, and not overshadowed, by the splendid acting of Paul Muni. “This does not mean that we will not have great actors and actresses,” | Will Depend on Well Balanced Casts ‘‘There is a very definite tendency on the part of audiences say plays the role of a wealthy girl who is fascinated by gambling. Powell, as a discredited U. S. Secret Service operative, is forced by necessity to join a private detective agency engaged in the unsavory work of digging up evidence for divorce courts. In the course of his work, Powell meets Miss Lindsay, falls in love with her and then comes to her assistance when she becomes mixed up in a most embarrassing situation because of her gambling. Others in the cast of “Private Detective 62,” are, Ruth Donnelly, Arthur Hohl, Natalie Moorhead, Sheila Terry, Renee Whitney, Gordon Wescott and Arthur Byron. Michael Curtiz directed. In ‘‘One Way Passage,’’ then, as an interlude, he made a simple little love story that caught the popular fancy. Following ‘‘ High Pressure,’’ everyone had told him again, that he should stick to the high-pressure roles, now that he had made them so successful. Yet “Private Detective 62,” a fast comedy drama, is probably one of his best pictures with great mass appeal, although it is entirely different from ‘‘High-Pressure’’ or ‘‘One Way Passage.’’ He’s not fool-proof. He doesn’t suppose that he can tell exactly what people want. But at least he tries to figure what they might want. And he’s been singularly successful. His latest picture, ‘‘ Private Deteetive 62,” he believes, will prove popular with the majority, because it has plenty of fast action, thrills and a colorful romance. Supporting Powell in this production -are such notable players as Margaret Lindsay, Arthur Bryon, Ruth Donnelly, Gordon Westcott, Sheila Terry, Arthur Hohl, Natalie Moorhead and James Bell. The screen play by Rian James is based on a story by Raoul Whitfield and directed by Michael Curtiz. “Private Detective 62” Shows New Type Racket If your pet dog should disappear, don’t be so sure he has just wandered away. It may be just another racket, if William Powell’s latest picture for Warner Bros., “Private Detective 62,” is based on actual facts. The picture, which opens at the theatre on ......... . exposes a variety of rackets conducted by a private detective agency, one of which is the spying on love nests. But the oddest one to which the ageney stoops is coaxing pet dogs from their homes and then returning them for a reward. The incident is one of the humorous episodes in a story filled with comedy action as well as intense and exciting drama. Success of Future Films|,,. , , os sag ‘Private Detective 62 Bares Society Gambling Operations behind locked doors of a fashionable gambling house are laid bare in William Powell’s latest Warner Bros. picture, “Private Detective 62,” which opens at the theatre on : Men and women in evening costumes are disclosed sitting side by side at the gaming tables in beautifully appointed and elaborately decorated rooms. The action in the gambling house leads to the smashing climax of the picture in which an attempt is made to frame a woman who has won too much. Margaret Lindsay, who has the leading feminine role opposite Powell, is the woman who wins fifty thousand dollars at roulette despite every crooked effort on the part of the gambling house owner. ichael Curtiz, who directed the Detective 62,’’ now showing at interesting in themselves rather ar,’’ Curtiz said. Curtiz continued, “but that casts will be made up entirely of competent players who will fluctuate in importance of roles undertaken from picture to picture. They will be part of the ensemble which also includes story and direction.” What is known as the trend of “realism” in present day talking pietures, according to Curtiz, is nothing more than this tendeney to portray every detail and individual in a pieture faithfully and without misplaced emphasis, rather than concoct a story which has no other purpose than to glorify one player. “The cast of ‘Private Detective 2,’ is well balanced throughout,” continued Curtiz. “It is here you have a star in William Powell, but every one of the supporting players are experienced and unusually cap. able players, selected with an eye to the characterizations they portray. They all fit their parts and are a part of the ensemble.” The supporting players include Margaret Lindsay in the leading feminine role, Arthur Byron, Ruth Donnelly, Gordon Wescott, Sheila Terry, Arthur Hohl, Natalie Moorhead and James Bell. “Private Detective 62,” is a thrilling and fast moving drama based on the story by Raoul Whitfield and adapted by Rian James. No Double Needed for Powell’s Swim Scenes William Powell stayed home all summer last year and used his private swimming pool regularly. This habit twice served him in good stead in his recent pictures, and eliminated the need for a “double.” In “One Way Passage,” he had to take a high dive off a ship and a fully clothed swim for his life. In his latest Warner Bros. picture, “Private Detective 62,” which comes BO NG riick Theatre on.............. _ Powell again had to take to the water fully clad after diving off the high deck of an ocean freighter. In the latter picture, Powell escapes from a boat as it nears the shore, in order to avoid being returned to France at the request of the French authorities. lish girl, and it was as such that she met a prominent young motion picture producer, who at once signed sity of Dublin, and is the close personal friend of many of the Irish Kies, William Powell Has Fine Sense of Comedy Values says director Michael Curtiz Theatre. of light comedy, Barrymore, whom Curtiz has directed. “Of them all,” he says, “Powell knows best the right thing to do and say at the right time. His intuition in delicate situations, is unerring.”’ Powell Invents Game William Powell, star of Warner Bros.’ “Private Detective 62,” now at the Theatre, is the author of a new game which he calls “Detective.” One person is chosen as the “detective” and sent out of the room, while the others select one of their number to be “the criminal.” Some selected article is hidden on his or her person. The “detective” then each person on “the crime.” From guilty party. Powell has introduced it to a number of gatherings at his Hollywood home. The game was suggested by his role as a sleuth in “Private Detective 62.” Ruth Donnelly Denies Having Beauty Secrets Ruth Donnelly, who adds a touch of spicy comedy to William Powell’s latest starring picture for Warner Bros., “Private Detective 62,” now showing at the theatre, is one screen actress who denies hav her for pictures. She played in “Cavaleade” as one of the all-English cast. Her real name is Margaret “He has a finer sense of comedy values than any other actor I know,” of William Powell, whose latest pieture for Warner Bros., “Private Detective 62,” is now playing at the The statement becomes significant in view of the many fine masters including John cross examines their replies, he must pick out the and English intellectuals of the day, including James Joyce, Yeats and others. His penchant for gangster roles, and his ability to play them, he lays to an early liking for the works of Poe, Baudelaire, and other writers of adventure and mystery. Stevenson Advance Box How Movie Studio Secured 36 Moths During the production of “Private Detective 62,” William Powell’s latest starring picture for Warner Bros. which opens at the wae theatre on. py Director Michael Curtiz ordered the property department to furnish three dozen moths to be used in one of the scenes. Limey, the property man, was up against it. He had been fighting moths for years and had finally succeeded in destroying every vestige of them. He tried the wardrobe department. They had none. Then he ealled on clothing merchants, furriers and department stores without sue cess, A studio electrician heard Limey bewailing his hard luck. “Moths”? he queried. “Just turn that big sun are into the sky at night and you’ll get thousands of them.” So Limey laid for the moths that night. When the giant are threw its powerful beam against the mountain side an army of moths floated down to the studio. He got his three dozen many times over but he doesn’t know how many made their way into his beloved prop. room. While the moths appear in but one scene of “Private Detective 62,” there are several butterflies of the human variety, whose love nesting leads to many surprising and exciting episodes. Margaret Lindsay, Arthur Byron, Ruth Donnelly, Gordon Westeott and Sheila Terry appear with Powell ‘ , in the picture. ing any beauties secrets. 4 When asked what she did to keep herself beautiful, she replied: “What do you mean beauty? I'm a character actress.” In “Private Detective 62,” she dons horn rim glasses and plasters her hair down flat to make herself as homely as possible for her role as an efficient secretary to the head of a private detective agency. Margaret Lindsay Looms As Sensation of Year It looks as if Margaret Lindsay, who plays oposite William Powell in his latest Warner Bros. picture, “Private Detective 62,” now at the Theatre is going to be the screen sensation of 1933. With but few pictures to her credit, including “Cavaleade” and “Private Detective 62,’ she was chosen for one of the leading roles in George Arliss’ latest picture, “Voltaire’—which was given a production more elaborate than any of his pictures since “Disraeli,” Beautiful MARGARET LINDSAY whose charm is exceeded only by her histrionic ability. She appears in William Powell’s latest, “Private Detective 62.” Cut No.3 Cut15e Mat de Page Five ee