Screenland (Feb-Oct 1949)

After the scene was made, Wayne Morris whispered to the director and luncheon was called. Nonchalantly, everyone quit the set leaving Gary still tied up in the cast. How this so-called silent star fumed and fussed and yelled for help! Fifteen minutes dragged by, then the company returned, gave him a laugh and let him down, all the time mimicking his fussing. Before becoming engaged, Jeanette MacDonald invited Gene Raymond to dinner at her home and served a glorified version of eggplant. Now this is one thing Gene hates and never eats. But yearning to make an impression, he held his breath and swallowed it, then praised it to the skies. Thereafter, it was always included in the dinner menus until after he and Jeanette became engaged when he confessed his loathing. But Jeanette, carrying on the joke, sent Gene a case of choice eggplants all dolled up in fancy wrappings for his birthday. Gene scored a point, however, for he discovered all his friends shared his opinion of this delicacy and he couldn't give it away. So he gaily returned it to Jeanette — with his compliments. Dorothy Lamour and Tyrone Power were making "Johnny Apollo" at 20th Century-Fox. The scene was a ballroom, festive with streamers and multicolored balloons. Late in the afternoon, Dottie suddenly remembered she was due for a ladio rehearsal in Hollywood and hastily changed her sequined gown to a street dress. She was late but hoped to take some shortcuts, but she hadn't reckoned on Ty's love of pranks. Her car was covered inside and out with balloons, dozens of them, tied to every possible spot. She didn't have time to remove them so jumped in and headed for town. "I must have been a sight," laughs Dorothy, "with colored balloons escaping all along Sunset Boulevard. But I got even with Tyrone the next day. I nailed his pet shoes to the dressing room floor and it took him nearly an hour to pry them loose without ruining them. There's a scene in "The Great Sinner" where Gregory Peck is unconscious while the others move around him. It took an entire day to shoot the scene and while lying with closed eyes beneath hot lights, Greg dropped off to sleep. His co-star, Ava Gardner, discovering this, motioned to everyone to tip-toe outside and put out all the lights on the set. A moment later a painter with pail and brush aroused Greg saying, "Please, Mr. Peck, wouldn't you like to go home? It's midnight and I have work to do." Chagrined, Gregory scrambled to his feet as the jokers appeared with a big laugh. Gene Tierney, for a scene with Tyrone Power in "That Wonderful Urge," had to hit Tyrone smack in the face with an ice cream cone. The first one was chocolate and Ty complained, "I don't like chocolate, can't we use vanilla?" Director Robert Sinclair patiently explained that chocolate showed up better on film. So Gene took the mound again and pitched five cones at five different angles and each one blobbed in Power's face. It was a no-run, one-side hit game. "Nobody thought I could throw an ice cream cone," explained Gene, "but I practiced on a bucket that stood in for Ty. Guess the Dodgers overlooked a good bet in me." Ty has another version, saying, "Gene should have been born 30 years earlier. What a sensation she would have been heaving custard pies in the Mack Sennett comedies." Douglas Fairbanks always has a wired chair to tease the unsuspecting visitor. While making "The Lady In Ermine," he invited Betty Grable to his dressing room and courteously asked her to sit in a big chair while he took the one opposite. He touched a spring and Betty went whirling toward the ceiling at a frightening pace. But Betty is a gagster on her own and bided her time. Meeting Doug one day as he left the set she pointed out a new victim for his trick. Enthusiastic, he quickly invited the fellow to his dressing room, with Betty tagging along. But when the two men sat down, it was Doug who flew through the air as if on a flying trapeze. Betty had waited for a day when Doug was busy on the set and with two electricians had changed the springs from one chair to the other. This was once when Doug's famous wired chair gave him a dose of his own medicine. Ronald Reagan carefully kept it a secret from his pals, Jack Carson and Dennis Morgan, that he was to wear kilts when he went to London to make "The Hasty Heart." But these inveterate pranksters ferreted it out. They had the prop department make a pair of short tin pants, which they presented as a going away gift, with the hope that they'd keep him warm under the giddy kilts. Gloria Grahame had never met Robert Sterling until they started "Roughshod" at RKO studio. On the first day of shooting, Director Mark Robson introduced them and then promptly hustled them into their first scene. Now Gloria had some nice things she had planned to say to Bob but instead, the Kathryn Grayson and Johnnie Johnston, who took the same TWA Constellation we did to Chicago. They were on the first leg of their trip to London. They were either awful tired or had very clear consciences because both slept all the way to Chicago. — o — Coming back we stopped off at author John van Druten's desert ranch and heard the good news that he was writing the next Bing Crosby picture, "Famous," which Charles Brackett will produce. It's the Stephen Vincent Benet novel about a Broadway composer. I suspect it took all the considerable persuasiveness of Mr. Brackett to sell Mr. van Druten on scripting another movie — he's been off writing pictures for some time. — O — Not since Rita Hay worth took off on her European jaunt has there been so much speculation and rumor as that Van Heflin dining with his brother, Martin, at the Stork in Manhattan. next minute she was berating him like a fishwife and finally, slapped his face. "I was so disturbed that I hit harder than necessary and raised a red mark on his face," bemoaned Gloria. "Bob never really forgave me until I explained what was wrong with me. Then we became good friends." Then there is Howard Duff who almost caused a director to have heart failure during a radio rehearsal. The program, "The Phantom Pirate," opened up with the sound of air planes winging through the air, then landing safely. So Howard had a new record made with the plane landing in a horrible crash, with all the fearful noises attending such mishaps. As the director was taking his seat in the booth just before the show went on, Howard had this record run. It proved as sensational as the famous Orson Welles Mars Invasion. Yes, it's all for fun. Perhaps the movies develop a keener edge to one's humor and comedy sense. Also, to an appreciation of their beneficial influence on life and living. stirred up by Ingrid Bergman's Italian junket to make a picture for the romantic director, Roberto Rosselini. Europe shore is attractive to those in — and out — of love. Jennifer Jones fled to the continent to make up her mind about whether or not she was going to marry David Selznick and 20th has had its headaches trying to get Ty Power back to the Hollywoods to make a picture here. We had a nice family afternoon when Betty Hutton and Ted Briskin brought their cute little daughters over for a visit. Lindsay and Candy were dressed alike in navy blue and white embroidered frocks their fond father brought from New York. Very high-fashion dresses, trimmed at the belts with single, fat strawberries. Betty was raving about what a great guy Fred Astaire is. She'd been rehearsing with him eight hours a day for the dance numbers they'll do in What Hollywood Itself Is Talking About! Continued from page 23 60