Screenland (Nov 1935-Apr 1936)

for December 19 3 5 83 the dishes, "picking up" the living room and weeding the garden, chattering about as busily and merrily as ten little girls. And I would say to myself, "Isn't it nice that Bette is home again!" I became used to saying goodbye to her laughingly by the name of the heroine of the new book when she was embarking on one of these make-believe adventures. And how many there were! With Alice into "Wonderland"! With Jo March and the whole March family in "Little Women's" tempestuously picturesque home life ! Sharing the adventures of "Dotty Dimple," "The Little Colonel" and all "The Five Little Peppers," to name a few. She made up plays and carried on imaginary conversations with them. As she grew up her reading became more intellectual and cultural. She did less imagining on her own initiative, but more absorbing of what the author had to say. Today whenever she embarks upon a new picture I say "Goodbye" to her as I did when she was a little girl, by the name of the role she is to play. For from the moment she receives the script and leaves for her first day's work at the studio she runs away into the land of make-believe again, taking with her the new imaginary character that she is to clothe in flesh and blood, and closing the door behind her. From then on until she finishes the picture, she lives, breathes, sleeps and eats the new story. Her sister Barbara's dresses which she has brought home from the dress shop where she is employed with the avowed purpose of selling them to her sister, languish on their hooks. And Barbara and I and "Ham," all three, will see practically nothing of our brilliant and witty playfellow. Sometimes Bette manages to telephone Barbara and me at 6 :30 in the morning The Davis girls, Barbara and her famous sister, Bette, ready for a canter over the Hollywood hills, when she is leaving home for the studio, or around 1 :30 at night when often she is just getting home. Sometimes when she is desperately tired or exhausted and her schedule will permit, she manages to come over and take refuge for an hour or several hours or perhaps a day or two in "Wendy Cottage," hidden away under a hill and filled with sunshine, where Barbara and I have our home. The simplicity and charm of this tiny place rests her and gives her a chance to do the same simple things that she did as a child at home in New England. Bring in the firewood for the delightful fireplace she recently had put in for us. Dig in the garden. Arrange my flowers. Read before the fire, while her mother shields her from pursuing friends and undue pressure from without. Nothing more wild than a mild game of cards or a sun bath on the "Wendy" roof is practically ever indulged in — unless it is a game of parchesi in front of the fire on those rainy days that come much more often than Easterners are supposed to know. Especially has she enjoyed the restfulness of visits to this little place since her producers have concentrated on giving her the highly dramatic pictures of which we have been talking, which test her strength and disposition to the utmost. The "Wendy" is a contrast to Bette's own more formal home with its exquisite exactions and management. Contrary to common belief, Bette is not a simple home lover with domestic inclinations. She knows perfection in housekeeping and demands it. Her home is beautifully luxurious in every detail. Three perfect servants, (my selection), carry out her every wish — and heaven knows there are many! The tiniest scratch on her white picket fence or a scrap of paper in her back yard never escape her attention. The angle of her brass wood box or the slant of a cushion may mean an unpleasant or a pleasant evening at home. The fact that she cares for only simple food has led some to believe that it is necessary for her to diet. This is not true. She eats heartily, but her favorite foods are wholesome and plain. One of the secrets of her growing success, I feel, is due to the regularity and charm of her life. I have never seen two people so happy and congenial as Bette KIND of Mildness ^dentists have found the mildness of cigarette smoke depends not on the tobacco but on its preparation. The smoke from your Philip Morris cigarettes has been proven definitely and measurably milder than from ordinary cigarettes. This fact has been presented to, and accepted by, the medical profession. America's Finest |f 15* Cigarette La II JOT PHILIP MORRIS