Screenland (May-Oct 1940)

While Deanna Durbin was romancing for the screen in "It's A Date," her new film, Betty Harrison, her stand-in, was finding real-life romance with Fred Reinecke, an aviation engineer. Deanna is shown congratulating the happy pair after they told her of their wedding plans. Betty will retain her stand-in status after her marriage. "Torrid Zone" Continued -from page 25 to stay until the next boat left, and another grand thrown in if I got Rosario before a firing squad again. Not bad for a couple of week's grind, so I gave in. Dough is dough and could I spend a wad like that on the Chicago cuties. Wow ! Jocko had some business to attend to so I sauntered over to the dump they call a hotel and hired me a room and bath. Then just to get the taste of it outa my mouth I dived into my suitcase and got out a bottle. If you've never been down here you don't know about the glasses this hotel hands out. They throw in the rings gratis. You know the kind of rings that come out with a bit of soap and water. I'd just come out of the bathroom where I'd been rinsing it out when who should I see closing the door to the balcony behind her but the red-headed dame. She looked like she'd swum the Atlantic. Her clothes stuck to her like they were glued on and I saw a couple of curves that had escaped me before. The way that chassis went in and out inall the right 'places was something. But I didn't want her to know it was getting me. "Raining out?" I asked casually. "I didn't notice," says she, just as calm as you please, but. her lips were chattering and she didn't say no to the slug I handed her. "Thought you were on the boat" I said. "So did the captain," says she. "I didn't like the suite they gave me. So when the boat pulled out in the harbor I got a headache, and the cluck who was playing watchdog took me for a walk around the deck. First thing I knew the clumsy lug tripped over one of my feet." "I get it. He fell so hard, he knocked you overboard." I gave her the wink. "That swim back wasn't any picnic. I'm not Johnny Weissmuller." "Nobody's going to argue about that," says I, liking what I saw of her more and more. "What happens now ?" "Well, the ship's probably radioed back, so the cops will be looking for me," she said. "I thought you might put me up for awhile. I don't know anyone else to turn to. You're the first guy here who didn't try to boot me around." Boy, if this was a dream I didn't ever want to wake up. "Here," says I, tossing her my bathrobe. "You better get out of that shower bath. But you understand this isn't one of the larger suites of the Waldorf. What I mean is, there's only one bed." She started to get mad at that so I hurried on. "What I'm getting at is that someone's going to have to sleep on the floor." By the time she'd put on the bathrobe and had another drink I found out her name was Lee Donley. She was a bit mysterious about other things though, and I admit I w:as surprised when she picked up my deck of cards to see how she shuffled them. Her technique was as good as her figure. It was then I saw the ring she was wearing. It was mine, the one Rosario had taken from me. I knew they'd held her in the jail till the boat left and by that time I figured she'd met Rosario. Things are a bit informal in our jail house. But when I mentioned his name she didn't bat an eyelash. "Nice looking ring you got," I told her. "Tell you what I'll do. I'll cut you cards for it. If I win the ring's mine and if you win, well — what about twenty bucks?" She fell for it. But after I saw her luck I knew it was me that had fallen. The luck that girl had. Before we were through she'd won my roll, three hundred smackers. No girl's worth that dough. I didn't like it. "I'm turning in," I says, starting to take off my shirt. "Me too," she agrees and before I could stop her she'd started to dive under the mosquito netting draped around the bed. "Not in that bed," says I. "I said someone's going to sleep on the floor — that's you. You can use that three hundred bucks for a pillow and watch out for the splinters." She musta been reading about Sir Galahad the look she gives me. But I just turns over on my side and goes to sleep. And I'm lost to the world until I think there's been an earthquake the way someone's banging at my door. It was those cute musical comedy cops after Lee. But she'd gone. Then I heard what she was in jail for. A card cheat! What a sucker I turned out to be. I was off Lee good and plenty. Curves are curves and all that but so is cheating. And I can't stomach a cheat. Especially when it's me she's been taking. So I wasn't pleased when I got to the plantation next day to find her rolling out of the baggage car of our tin rattler. But there was nothing to do but let her stay until the next train pulled out. And that wouldn't be until the boat left in another week. But you couldn't kick a girl out into the jungle. I got back my three hundred bucks, though. I had to ruffle her up a bit to get it, but I was sore. Jocko hadn't kicked in with the thousand he promised either. He'd given me a hundred on account when. I said goodbye to him in town and let it go at that. I took Lee over to Gloria's shack. I was looking for an excuse to see Gloria again anyway. She's Anderson's wife and we'd been pretty friendly before Jocko sent me to the swamps. She's a nice eyeful herself, Gloria is. I never could understand how Anderson got that cute dish. Those girls hated each other at first sight. They looked like a couple of fighters eyeing each other before the bell. "She goes back to Puerto Aguilar with the next load of bananas," I said. "Can you put her up until then?" "Oh, I suppose we can find room for her somewhere," Gloria said, looking as if I'd asked her to give hospitality to a scorpion. "Don't strain yourself" says Lee pert as ever. "I can always sleep in a tree." "Hereditary, I guess," snaps Gloria. By the sound of it you know those girls didn't get together on a tea party. It was a good thing for Lee that Jocko was still in town. But it gave me a laugh when he called me up on the phone telling me how him and the police was looking for her all over town. Gloria and me took up where we left off which was plenty. And one night when I strolled out to her shack I found her on the porch and her eyes looked all puffed as if she'd been crying. "I can't stand it here another day," she said. "I married that guy thinking South America would be romantic. If a mug like you hadn't come along I wouldn't have stayed." And she threw her arms around me and kissed me and I sizzled. She is cute and she smelt sweet and anyway I've always been a sucker for dames. Suddenly I heard a laugh and there stood Lee at the door in one of Gloria's nighties. "I understand the Chicago fire started from something like this," she said. "That was caused by a cow," I told her, giving her a dirty look. "Yeah, I know." She laughed and looked at Gloria who burned plenty. "I was trying to cool off but I can see it's much hotter out here." She started to go and then she turned and grinned at me. "You'd look pretty funny with one of Anderson's bullets nailed to your back porch." Evidently she thought that was the note to leave on for she went in banging the door behind her. Gloria was all for going on with our little interlude but I'd kinda lost the taste for it. But I had to be chivalrous and play up to her. She was a lady, wasn't she? Not like Lee. "Nick, you've got to take me back to the States with you," Gloria said. Just then I spotted Anderson coming up the path and I edged away, making it in something under a second. "I haven't intruded on anything private, I hope," Anderson sneered. "Not at all," Gloria said innocently, and went in the house. Anderson and I went in too and when he saw me in the light he suddenly leaned over and mopped 76