Star-dust in Hollywood (1930)

Star-dust in Hollywood Then I believe our charman uttered his dictum that these people " hare barbarians." But 7.30 came and eight o'clock approached before the car arrived. A negro chauffeur hurried to the door and panted out that the delay had been caused by a Mr Jockey, or some such name. Opposite our tiger-striped entrance Jo found a glittering Rolls-Royce, into which a rather portly gentleman bowed her with true European ceremony. However, his preliminary politeness did not prevent him from interrupting Jo in the middle of a phrase. "Whose car is this? " he said abruptly. " I'm sure I don't know," replied Jo, and enclosed herself in an annoyed silence. To break the very perceptible ice the gentleman tried to talk of aeroplanes. " Oh, are you interested in aeroplanes? " asked Jo. The man stared at her in amazement. His eyebrows lifted, he raised himself visibly in his seat, thrust his hand into his coat, after the well-known model of Napoleon on the Bellerophon, and said slowly and distinctly : "/amMrFokker." He had become accustomed to the cries of enthusiasm, the flush of compliments, the passionate desire to grasp his hand which had hitherto followed this announcement, and he had prepared himself to accept graciously. Jo, however, laughed and exclaimed : " Then here you meet one of your greatest enemies." The effect was startling. Mr Fokker cramped himself spasmodically into his corner. In the shadow of the car his face seemed to blanch. We suppose he may have thought here is a mad Englishwoman who will take immediate revenge for the bombing of London. Jo tried to explain her joke by saying that our enmity was purely theoretical ; that while he was striving for greater and yet greater speeds we, with [48]