Variety (March 1932)

Tncsday, March 1, 1932 TO THE LADIES VARIETY 49 By on Ruth Morris Heroines Mu«t Take It Ladies of the cinema have lately Deen subjected to pretty roueh treatment. Once upon" a tlntie they ■were considered too precious for all byt reverence. Today they are •whammied .around as unceremojil- ausly as a custard pie. Ever since 'Smart Money' shocked a/ hearty laugh out. of audiencesi heroines jiave l»ad: to back out of doorways. It must bo pretty disconcerting tb. Emlly. Post as well, as to the. ladies «f Hollywood. John Barrymore, ■vfrho us6d to be .such a Ballant sWaln, has. his own naive contribution to ; pibtur© etiduette. In a fit of- prankish, •Arecine Lupin* glee, he emptlesv a "pitcher of ice water over the head of Karen Morley. What It does to her dignity Is nothing. After' aH, dignity's a itiatter of spirit. It's -What It does to her marcelle wave that must hurt Miss Morley. The colfCure, prior to Its icy drench- ing, is described in soft, deep waves condned by an encircling .coll of Ikalr. But It never recovers from that drenching. "Thereafter, It is plastered too cl osely to the h cad and forgets, that it should lie flattering as well as tidy. ■ Miss Morley, one of the few In-, geriues who can enact a well 7 bred heroipe without consciously, priding - herself on pure diction: atid quiet good taste, coritributes. a pleasant, orderly performance, to the some- what distraught melodrama of 'Ar- sene' Lupin.' Line Turn In'dividuaii^t The ; Chester Hales, tesldeht dancers at the Capitol^, are eclipsed this week by the 10 American Steppers, as ..sprightly a llnc-up as ever risked breaking a leg in rapid- fire rhythm dancing. Each girl Is aii Individualist, hooflng away for dear life as though she, and she alone, occupied the spotlight. The audience gets the Impression that this 10 American Steppers dance because dancing Is the one thing lii the world that t.hey want to do, and Its an awfully pood. Idea. By comparison, the regimental drills of the Hales—the unit, by the •Way,. Is called 'Forward March?— eeem carelessly executed.. Though they wieiir chic, smartly braided uniforms and gleaming busbies,: .though they shoulder phosphores- cent guns aiid twirl, glittering batons, they don't snap Into rou- tines with their usual enthusiasm. Uaybe they're a little sad that they can't step oiit of line , and be in- ;divlduall6ts, too. ."Hollywood French A blackmailed mother, a re- Btrlcted daughter and a jewel-los- ing actress face the problems of Tile No. 113.' They go through a lot—what with a past, 4 thwarted marriage and a. thefted bracelet harassing one or. another of them. But exigencies of plot do npt . dis- turb them as much as the pronun- ciation of 'Monsieur.' Clara Kimball YoUng approves of •M'seer'; June Clyde prefers 'M'shoo'; Mary Nolan hesitates be- tween 'M'soor' and 'M'syear.' As long as the girls were working on the same set, they might have gone Into conference and emergdd with one answer to .their problem. Tlie audience would then have been free to pay more attention to a dull, Blow plot and less to the vagaries of Hollywop.d French. "Without really 'pretehdlrig to be native born Parislennes, the trio enacts Its charades with pardon- able urienthusiasni, considering that It has seen the scrljpt. Miss Touhg appears: as a sweet, worried mother; Miss: Clyde registers West Coast charm and Miss Nolan sum- mons beauty arid langorous allure to tell Lew Cody that she's a gen- erous lady,, willing and weak. Court Clothes Tip-Off Audiences can differentiate easily between the . guilty and innocent ladlps subpoenaed to cinema court fopm .trials. Their . wardrobes tell more than their testjriiony, neces- sarily ambiguous to sustaTn, plot suspense.. The auiet home girl* Who will sooner o.r later be revealed ?f ^'^c heroine, M-cars sombrie black, Wth the modest skirt'length, high' neckline and careless fitting of a retiring well-bred fr.ock. The. clrcss lells at a glance that Its* wearer, no matter ho^ much sufsplclon may be directed toward her, didn't commit "le crime. •A. costume that removes all doubt asi to her character relieves Sally Blane of the necessity of speech In 'Cross Examination.' No hCrolne hais had so. little to say for herself since the Inception of the talkers. ConQdent :Of her wardrobe, aided by the dirooplng line Of .a sad. little turban. Miss Bjlane surveys court procedure In practically unbroken silence, looking frightened, heart- broken and as culpable as she can In fluch a righteously ordered cbs- ;tume.-' Even : If audiences didn't know that Natalie Moorehcad is alway;s mixed up in whatever , villainy's a- fobt, they'd guess she was up to no good in a snugly fitted gown and SivUcy iyrap of. summer ermine. Her hat tips back at a brazen angle, eager to. reveal a, sleek; gleaming coiffure to Judge and . Jury. You know right away if she didn't com- mit • the, murder it was through no fault of her own. /; Sarah Padderi, Nlta Caviller Arid Margatct I^ealy feign guiltiness in turn. Miss PaddCh finally, . coming oft with tear-jerker honors. . B-way Touches ^ ' (Continued from page Iji ho blows Hollywood now for neigh t boring resorts where the hold-up hotels are cheaper - than the Holly- wood gamut. Sad stoirles of .conditions arouiid Times Square frighten the studio crowd. It's not that they turn dea;f ears, to pleas, but simply that the number of taps is too great arid In self-defense those getting ^ good salaries but not weekly fortunes have to protect themselves. . Feeling is that if options aren't taken up they might be making touches themselves before long. Recent crop of telephone number changes by promlrier ■ people out here is to avoid those expensive conversations. -Private numbers are now guarded with much secrecy. Did You know that— Jcanriette . MdcDonald, who bought a breathtaking bracelet last week,, was rushed by all. tho big Jewel houses in to^n ,.. .Helen Menken looked Very chic at a performance of 'Bliessed Evient* recently.... she wore a, black broadtail coat trimmed in silver fox and a perky little French hat.... Ma.i"Ion Spltzer will leave shortly for California to Jplh her hubiby, Harlah 1?hompson ... .Lois Moran's smile Is reminiscent of Marilyn Miller in "Of ThCe I Sing'.'...iMary; Brian wore a sweet coat of clipped lapln . and a smart brown liat strolling down Fifth aveiiuc the other. day.,. .corir trary to advance, rumors, Edr. die Sullivan .did attend^ the ' openih-s of the new"PIerretto. ..Club'' Saturday^lilght....Billy i)oye was lovely In .white, as ■was Pola Negri, who wore ia sequin band oh her hair... .Inr deed, head bands. were ratlier : popular, as. Linda "Watklhs wore A- red velvet one with a green velvet dress. . . .Earl Gar-; roll lied the orchestra again and Barbara Newberry and Eddie Foy . waved sweetly to eaidi ■ other on the floor. ...Grace Me.nken .was there', and Basil Rathbone, Jimriiy Walker, Bert Lytell, Lawrence TIbbett, cbni- . rad Nagel, Mary and Florence Nash, Anatol. . Frledland, Charles ■ Freeman. Barbara Stanwyck, Frank Fay, Jack Haley, J. Harold Murray, and Nancy Carroll, who also :v\-as in white... .the supper was. elab- orate, though not enough wait- ers apPiirently for the overflow crush. Mitzl Green III; Hollywood, Feb. 29. Down with thei flu and. under a doctor's cariB, Mltzl Green w'on't be able ito start her RKO dates March (4) in St.Louis. It Is expected she'll recover in time to open the following v^eek (11) In Cincinnati. Going Places By Cecilia Agef . . Roxy Girls' Nighties .It is Interesting to learn from the Roxy stage show, 'Dreams,' that the Ballet Corps sleeps in nightgowns and the Rpxyettcs In pyjamas. This, signinoant choice of nightgear by the two groups .of Roxy maidens has ibng been suspected;. It is good of the Roxy to confirm it. And the Roxy goes further. It re- veals that the Ealliet Corps sleeps In two monstrous • beds, twelve to a bed. Also,, that the Ballet Corps takes'care pf the, Jiist Girls depart- ment, for these playful minxs can be se.eri ctrrylnfe on nVlschieyously an. this week with pillow flghts. They tie; baik their curls with pink ribbons, and aftex* they. are weary abandoning themselves to their girl- ish good spirits, they.: line . up on, their knpes and say their prayers,, the little darlings. ■ . . , • Tho Rpxyettes, on the other hand, are top modern to sleep. "They only get ready for bed, patterning their pyjiimas after gleaming white can^ dies Aylth" flame colored ruffled tulle nightcaps. The business of praetls- ing .and perfecting their Intricate dance routines keeps them up all night. The section, 'Dream of.Aphrodite,' that closes the show, .has tho Rbxy- ettcs, the Ballet Corps, the stage cre\v, iPatricia : Bowniari,. some adagio dahcers and. all the stage elevators giving of their utmost. An ciidless. painted cycle continually descends, .Venus cOmes lip froni the seal the Ballet. Corps throw flowers, next ciPuds of petals, then batiked scarfs, waves of chiffon flutter up and down, the whole shimmering, revolving, glittering and swaying In many varied directions, bptli librl- .zontal arid perpendicular.. Screen's Best Homebody The best little housewife in pic- tures, Lois ^Vilson, has become In- terested! in women's clubs. Bight in line with her desire for self-Im- provement, she now; uses the type- writer, on which she used to write on . A condensed review, in points on thar vvomen of th« atafle mentioned he None can rank over 10 points, on a single item, hor ovef 100 points in total. - There are 10 iteme .coyered by the reviewer, with the named points .oppptite-each player'e name. Slight comment is added. : 's^ V ToUI . Tomntcmt. Lillian Cooper.... (20th , Century fltevue) 41 Swilt ino\iiig ac r o b-a i i n Chorus .. (20th Revue) ■ c ,0 Century Majoi',. Sharp, and Minor .. . ........ 36, .VouOji'uI line-up iJesorvlng ,■ [ 7!V<H-'; iiu<;rf;stlu^ costum- i'l I tf. • Houlinc hainiony trio rap- iilil'; or a stronger finish. her recipes, to type the minules of. the last meeting. .She's running the home in 'The Expert' so elTlcIently that she must find further outlet for her ability for organIzatIon. She finds prepar- ing refreshments for the ladies when they meet at hCr horiie a great hell) In solving her problem. . Miss ' '>yilson Js such a . capable person it's a little surprising to seb. lier going tb pieces whon she Inter- yicws the-new maid. Perhaps she's . con.sclbus that $13 a week' Is not a living wage, but still: phe*s faced so many/domestic situations In her picture career that she should liot faltej' now. She's looking .very well. Honiemakiiig agrees with her, and her simple house dresses are. bcgin^. ning to take on a discreet: dash. She's Jiist .as understanding as .ever| J list' as \yrtrmly .isympathlitic. She's doing quite .a bit 'of shaking her head at the funny little wayj; of Old - "Uah' Minick at ' present, but . that's . because It's a habit of Miss Wilson's alw:ay3 to , dO' as the director; tells her.-; ■ ;/ . It's gratifying: to learn, that pic- tures', best . housewife: has at last - met Louise Beaver, pictures' best colored maid; Miss BeaVer has worked In many of pictures' finest families, and has. alway.s. proved herself loyal, devoted* willing. Lady Clown Goes Staid . Chai'lotte Greenwood's, gone well behaved in "Cheaters at Pl;\y.' Her remarkable legs and arr.is: arb ; cloaked in the garments of, respect tabillty; her. conduct is staid. Sli©: adapts 'herself to tlie role of a, • decoroUs matron . with such gustO: that One fears she rfeally likes it and Is going to forget her gift for clowning, \inrestrained. Just pnic© is the new Greenwood put in lier place by the old, when the. former imp can stand it no, longer and bursts out tossing truriks down a staircase in an eriiinently success- ful attempt to ward off her rascally pursuers. 'riib whole cast of 'Ciieaters at Play' lias changed its spotg. Linda. 'V^atkins, who usually glows with a soft spiritual flame, here is a master-crook's - moll, but dt least, she's, punished for her ."sins. Her part is so small, so incidental, that': its brevity must teach her a lesson. Barbara. '\Veek3, technically the heroine of this "Victorian Jewel ihleves yarn, Is so hidden : by on-' ruJsiilng crooks, machine guns, gaga and the. rest of the-accoutromonta of villainy that . only her nice young profile survives. Booking Changes (Contiriued from page 33) garii.zcd. Gorrton later stated his. name was submitted without his knowledge or authorization, and that if the offer were marto he would turn It down. Gordon haa not and will not change his nilndi RKO disbanded its production department about three years ago, shortly after Gordon re.slgnod .ts its head and entered the agency busi- ness. Prior to dissolving, the pro- duction bureau had shown a deficit of $500,000. . Godfrey, who had bf>pn away from iRKO for about a year and ia, half, rcturnod about three months ago as a franchlsed aigont! His last booking . office conriectlbn was as one third of the trlumvlr.'ite Goriti-- ppspd Of Godfrey, Freemon and Ben I'iazza. Prior to that* for about a year,. Godfrey was i3ble head, of the booking oflioe. "When leaving he received a S20,00O bonus from the circuit and roturned to rn'actlsing; • law. His new appointmr'iit obmes ,throuKh Bf/i'.k, Ciodfrey Is dnssified a.s a booker only arid concerned. e,X(;luf!ivc;ly with tlif; hoii.tes he is assiKn^'d to book. AVhpn f ;o(irrey„l,eft the book-, tng offlpc the last tini", I'.KO y.as forced to make. Settlements, mipiintlng ti> around $250,OaO with Individual, i-roducers .whose .acts flodlrf-y hadC'jmi'acled to play and didn't. Arthur Willi, replaced fiy Godfrey on the Palace and New York .bouse .bovjb, transfers to 'tlie intacrt, route, Avhcre he.'.sn<;;ceeds Dolf Lefl'ler. > Latter,- who took Sam Tishman's place on thr. intact book last year, Ijf.coniC'S Go'lfrey's assistant. He is Godfrey's rif phew. " Only other ciiangeg. involve switching of a few houses, ihclud- •Irig ^^'asl^Irigtbn from Howard'* book to Kal<-luin»"s arid the Chea-. ter, New Si'ork, from Kalcheim to i Dempscy.