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An Open Letter
to ^
Do you know her? She's three different girls in one neat package: tawny siren, exotic temptress, and gay American girl. If you don't know her yet, just wait — you will!
DEAR ALEXIS SMITH: I'm leading with my chin, but I like to do that. I made a little prediction about you before I ever saw you on the screen, and now that "Dive Bomber" has been released, I'm following it up. I said, "Watch Miss Smith," and I said it because I thought your highly photogenic publicity photos revealed more versatility not only of features but of mood than any other "stock girl's" had ever shown before. There were the usual bathing-beauty poses which were different from the regular run of "leg art" because you displayed a dancer's grace and skill. There were those very phony Cleopatra poses one of which appears here — and they looked all the funnier because you were trying so hard to please the photographer who dreamed 'em up. Then there were "straight" portraits which resembled the Tallulah Bankhead of ten years ago without half trying. In other words, here was an apparently green girl, a newcomer in Hollywood, with sufficient sense and ambition to spend her spare time studying, or cooperating with the publicity department, or even practicing new expressions in front of her mirror, instead of concentrating on life at Ciro's. It seemed to show you had Something — that Something that made Joan
Crawford, and Bette Davis, and Barbara Stanwyck willing to work until they were stars, and left a lot of other girls lost in the studio shuffle. So it was no surprise when I received a letter from the very aware Miss Smith, which read in part:
"Being such a newcomer to the screen, I was, to say the least, thrilled to see my picture in your magazine. I was quite overcome, and can't help wondering why 7 should get such excellent publicity. The stars don't get more than that!"
Of course, I liked that, because as a rule actresses only write in to magazine editors when they want to complain about something — a sour review, an unflattering interview. Oh, yes, Miss Smith, you're on the right track. And fortunately in "Dive Bomber," though you haven't much to do, you do it with poise and distinction. So a 20-year-old from British Columbia, who is already a good dancer and pianist, may very well be a big movie star some day. I hope so — don't let me down.
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