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SCREENLAND
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LAUGHTON!
CHARLES LAUGHTON was restless and impatient. A bit excited, too, for this was the last day's filming on the picture, "Mutiny on the Bounty," and he was in a hurry for it to be finished as he was leaving for England at eleven that very night.
"I expected to get away weeks ago," he said, in a gloomy voice, "but the picture was a tremendous undertaking
and took longer than anyone expected. We spent six weeks at sea, a rough sea, too, and I'm the world's worse seaman. That is the one drawback to my commuting between the London and Hollywood studios. As soon as I land at one point I begin fretting about the return voyage. I detest the crossing, but," he added, "I'll go right on doing it, for I love the variety this gives me. I wither under monotony."
Wearing the white breeches, wig, and heavy false eye-brows that converted him into the menacing character of Captain Bligh, in the historic drama, "Mutiny on the Bounty," Laughton and I were sharing a bench on the edge of the set as the final scene was being shot.
When I asked him if his Captain Bligh was to be meaner than his naughty Papa Barrett role in "The Barretts of Wimpole Street," or his vengeful Javert, the unrelenting crime investigator in "Les Miserables," he fairly snorted.
"You haven't seen anything yet !" he exclaimed. "When
Keep up with Charles as he commutes between Hollywood and London
By
Maude Cheatham
Charles Laughton, center, with his wife, Elsa Lanchester. The closeups show him in four famous roles: Henry the Eighth, Ruggles, Mr. Barrett, and Captain Bligh
this picture is shown I expect audiences will unite in a desire to cut out my heart, dogs will snap at my feet and women will faint at the very thought of me. But that's what I like — when I'm playing a villain role. Of course, I prefer comedy, such as I had in 'The Private Life of Henry VIII' and 'Ruggles of Red Gap,' but when I'm supposed to be bad, I never compromise." He chuckled, lustily, "I always wanted to portray the part of the father in 'The Barretts of Wimpole Street.' You see, I know a man who is the same detestable hypocrite and religious fanatic, though he probably misses the sadist angle of this Barrett codger, and I got a terrific kick putting him together on the screen. Lord, how I enjoyed revealing his ogreish qualities !
"As Mrs. Laughton and I came out of the theatre the night the picture was previewed, I heard a chap say, 'Good God, that Barrett man was my Uncle Tom true to life !'
"I wanted to slap him on the back and tell him I'd bet there were dozens of people saying he reminded them of Uncle something or other, or old Grandfather so and so. Ridicule is a powerful weapon to wield over these Barretts and I only hope some of the rascals recognized themselves in my portrayal."
Now, the big joke of all this ferocity is that Charles Laughton is the gentlest person imaginable. In real life, with his round chubby {Continued on page 94)