Variety (Aug 1941)

Wednesday, Av^ust 13, 1941 63 'Can't Rush Film Talent' ;ConUnaed from page 3; talent-digger expounded, 'there was vaudeville, which developed untold numbers of picture stars. That con- tact with the audience is particu- larly needed in comics to develop timing. Even right now -there's Abbott and Costello, Jack Benny, Bob Hope—all out of vaude. •Then, too, kids with that un- conquerable desire to act came to New York and could get jobs. They could work in legit five or six years or longer and get a solid foundation. Now it's almost impossible for them to get a role in a play and if they do, • and are any good at all, we grab 'em for pictures before they've learned the difference between stage right and stage left.' i Too much of the work and money expended on the filmland tyros, in the opinion of another of the hunt- .ers-up of new faces, goes into pub- licity and not enough into teaching theni the rudiments of performing before a camera. You can get to a certain point in building a star by rubbing a couple press agents to- gether, it is pointed out, but unless the . player has some real assets there's that old bogey of so-far-and- no-farther to meet again. Top many, top-billed players now have learned to act after they be- came stars, not on the way up, an- other scout declared. Process would have been not only faster but built on solider foundation had it been reversed. Another understandable fault of the studios^in handling of potential A players is the fact that they have money invested in their talent lists and they are determined to use these people whether they are ready or not. Instead of allowing them to break in gradually, producers think about the dough the newcomers are getting and determine to toss - 'em into a film as quickly as possible to cut the general overhead. Talent snoopers claim they are searching harder than ever, but that their sources are drying up. Radio— because jt demands only voice and not looks—has but in the most minor sense replaced vaude as pasture ground. But, say the boys with the long' range — plenty long-range — vieW' point as they gleefully rub their palms; 'Wait for television.' Some Castofis Make Good Hollywood, Aug. 12. By admitting their own major re sponsibility for the early flop of promising new talent and giving players another chance, producers are saving themselves much experi mental coin and the extravagant dis card of stellar material. Recent case history is filled with examples of the value of the second chance—even the third and fourth for novices who were slow in mak- ing the grade. It was a common boast in the in- dustry not so long ago that almost any boy or girl could be grabbed off the street with an eenie-meenie haphazard selection and converted into a top money name over night. The oft-disillusioned film poobahs no longer cherish any such ideas, despite occasional exceptions of phenomenal success. The wise ones know that it takes time, seasoning, the proper casting and careful grooming to es- tablish a dependable actor or actress, The film fate dispensers are profit- ing by a volume of experience, finally, after a lot of costly and em barrassing failures properly to ap praise the talent they let slip through their fingers. The classic reminders of failure to spot or properly use names which have gone on to subse quent greatness, or at least to top money rating, embrace a startling number of current boxoffice aces— Clark Gable, Tyrone Power, Deanna Durbin, Ginger Rogers, Robert Tay- ,lor, Sonja Henie,. Katharine Hep- burn, William Powell, to mention only a few. And no one- knows how much potential talent has been lost, after an equally incalculable amount of conditioning expenditure, because the players were discarded after an Inconclusive test in one or two im portant support roles which didn't fit them. Playing It Safe So, producers and their staffs are becoming very ||iary about dropping players who, they have had, initial reason to believe, are personalities worth cultivating. Snap Judgment— the one-shot—is apt to be very costly and to reflect badly .upon the com- pany executive, rather than upon the actor. If there's a doubt, the player now is almost certain to get the benefit of it • Instances of recent second-chances at 20lh-Fox, where Darryl F. Zanuck was one of the first film executives to admit that early player flops might be chargeable to the front office, rather than to the novices themselves, include Gene Tierney, Arleen Whelan, John Payne, George Montgomery, each of whom is forg- ing ahead after a period of precari- ous uncertainty which might have halted a career; Miss Whelan lan- guished after an inauspicious launch- ing. But she wasn't penalized. Given more time to develop, she got her promising second chance as one of the femme'leads with Jack Benny in 'Charley's Aunt.' Gene Tierney Unimpressive Gene Tierney was unimpressive in Hudson's Bay,' flashed through 'To- bacco Road' as Ellie May, and now show3«?,er calibre in the title role of Belle Starr.' John Payne didn't click at Paramount, Goldwyn and Warners and felt he was about washed up, when he moved to 20th and began to get the second chance buildup which has him on verge of stardom and regarded as an impor- tant property. George Montgomery lasted one day in his first chance at 20th in 'The Girl I Married.' He had had a few small parts previously. Ordinarily he would have been through after the 'Girl I Married' ex- perience, but Zanuck decided it wasn't the lad's fault He was put into 'Cowboy and the Blonde' with Mary Beth Hughes, clicked, and is now well on his way in "The Last of the Duanes' and other scheduled roles. Walter Pidgeon is an outstanding example of a topliner who, until re- cently, ha3 been kicked around for years, his unquestioned talent wasted on inept or typed roles. 'How Green Was My Valley' and 'Man Hunt' at 20th and 'Blossoms in the Dust' at Metro are his recent demonstrations of star calibre. He came to Holly- wood 11 years ago as a singer, and when the musical cycle waned at that time, the casting executives didnt know what to do with him. Betty Grable, at Paramount for about three years, had to flee Holly- wood and demonstrate what she had on Broadway in "Du Barry Was a Lady' before she was re-discovered by the films to become one of the hottest items in the picture market at 20th-Fox. Robert Cummings is a notable sec- ond chancer. He was at Paramount in a small scene in ,'College Swing' —just another player. Paramount let him go. He knocked around for some time before he emerged again at Universal with the first Gloria Jean picture. Then 20th borrowed him for'a Sonja Henie film, used him in 'Spring Parade' and gave him one of the top spots in 'Moon Over Mi- ami,' which shows ho.w his gifts have been permitted to go only partially utilized for a long time. Par's Henie MIss-Oot Sonja Henie, brought out by Para- mount after her Olympic champion- ship skating, -wasn't even tested by that studio before they let her go to be grabbed as a money performer by 20th. Then there's the case of Clara Lou Sheridan from Texas, more familiarly known as Ann Sheridan. She came to paramount as a 'Search for Beauty' contest winner and was put into stock. Subsequently she was given an important minor part and did so well with it that she roused the jealous resentment of the star in thgt picture. She got no more roles there and was eased out to go to Warners for her second chance, Ann Sothern came a cropper un- der the name of Harriet Lake. She was determined never to play an- other ingenue role. Making her bid again in character part quite remote from anything the casting officials had previously conceived, she clicked in the first 'Maisie' picture at Metro and is now regarded as one of Metro's most valuable stars. She had been off the screen a year. Red Skelton today is one of the most talked-about personalities in the film village. He didn't get over in his first assignment at Metro, and his option wasn't taken up. It was not until Mickey Rooney touted him again after the President's ball In Washington that Metro re-signed him through the suggestion of Nicho- las M. Schenck. Susanna Foster was not used by the first studio to sign her as a con- test winner, but she blossomed forth at Paramount as 'one of the first songstresses of the screen'. Lew Ayres had to get his second chance, after he went from playing to directing at Metro, in the 'Dr. Klldare' series, Stanley Morner banged around the studios for a long time before he clicked as Dennis Morgan in RKO's 'Kitty Foyle' and started the second phase of his ca- reer. The recital might go on through many other names, not all sensa- tional, but all pointing the fact that, learning from experiences of neglect, short vision, insufficient testing, pro- ducers with few exceptions are giv- ing the young talent, especially, much wider latitude and much longer period in which to prove its poten- tial worth. Bills Next Week - Contlnaed from pft^e 5tg Herb Lewis Cmwford IloaM - Ray Cnlllnn Urc Mlrliwn JolioBOD Crawfordetteo Carolo Hall Ray Ml lea Buddy Raymond Fox & Hounds Milton Georpe Oro Hl-Uat Peto Herman Oro Lucille Gr«y Frank Petty Hotel Bradford (Circus Room) Florence Hallmnn Runklo Lambert Hotel EftHTX Erneat Murray. Oro Billy KtiWy - Jack Manning Al Lcwia Victor Donato Adele Corcv Rita UenderaoD Jerry Dale Fay Starr Hotel ijardner Burt Shaw Kvalyn Harvey Hotel HhcmtoD (Sky Garden) Don Dudley Oro Hotel Stntler (Cufe House) Salvy Cavlcchio Ore Hotel WrHtmlDflter (Roof Garden) Jimmy McHalo Oro Harry Drake Rev Roof Garden Gla Vitta.Glbnon Murlo & Klnir Ibanez £ Juanlta Hal Freed Xoet Sherman GIs Hotel RItx Carlccoo (Rltz Roof) Dick Rogers Ore Dr Giovanni Marcla & Gunnett Inlernaflonal Caatno Henri Jobert Ore TIm CaTa Ralpb Porraa Oro Jd.ck Flaber Tamara. Dorlva Jerry & Lillian Colita & Corral ^ Phil Barry PITTSBUBGH Anchoraso Hugh Morton Oro , Maynurd Deaoe ArUncton LodRe PhJI Cavozza Oro Balconadeo Buddy Curlaon Ore Bill Gre«n'g B Hoagland Ore Don Burke Boogle-Wooffte Club Booff Sherman Maxle Simon Harry Coraorada Buddy Blaine Tubby Miller Reggie Dvorak Cork and Bottl* Lloyd Fox Colonial Eddie Weltz Ore Eddie Peyton'* Art Schamberg Ore Mildred Segal Eddie Peyton Sandy Mccllntock Marlon MuUer ETervreena Revelera ICay Burke Ray Valance Nancy Grey Hotel Fort Pitt Ken Bailey Ore Johnny Mitchell Hbrry Walton Hotel U4*nry (Silver Grill) Stan RucKer 4 (Gay BO'a) Dorothy NetibUt ifutel Yth Avenne Hesa Saundera Ida iola Hvftrtit Havdn Betty Donahoe Al Devtn Evcrgre«n Gardena Revelera Sam Sweet Alice Sone Zelda Wicked Wllllea Hotel HooHevelt Johnny Kaalhue Royal Hawliane Hotel Wm Peno (Continental Bar) Wanda Eacnrt* Merry-Go-Round Benny Burton Ore Betty Harper Babe Rhodea Kenny wood VmtU Tiny Hill Ore Wilfred Mae 3 Caneatrellla Mile La Toaca New Peaa Gay Carlisle Oro Lorraine St LaMarr Sue Stevena Buddy Birch Jimmy WUtlams Nlzon Cafe Al Marlaco Oro Bob Carter Eden Sis Lon RIcardo Co Renee 8t Root Nut Hou.40 Sherdlna Walker O Ted Blake Ceor^e GreRg Evelyn Nellla Arthur Lloyd Chuck Wllaon Onels Bobby Annls Oro Stu Draden PJnea Howard Becker Ore Mae Harris Trelon Yachtsmen Nancy Gardner George Webber Yaclit Club T[ Middleman Ore Gordun & Siiwyer Mary Sawyer Al Ferguson Manch GIf) Shirley Heller Sky-Vno Teddy King Ore L'nion Grill Art Tatfcllo frank Natale MJke Sandreito Villa Madrid Etzl Covnio Oro Mark T^nnc Cllrt WInehlll 2 Co-Eds Peter IJIeglna Key Taylor Wcat View Park Buzz Ashlon Ore Waldos NBC PACT {Continued from page i3- has agreed to render such releases to NBC and RCA and their officials but has refused to do the same for CBS until ,that network has like- wise become a signator to a con- tract. ASCAP has also consented to make similar waivers for the N. A, B. and Broadcast Music, Inc., but only in so far as they involve NBC ofCicials and any others who are parties to an NBC contract. As far as suits brought by ASCAP members outside of ASCAP are con- cerned, it has been the contention of ASCAP counsel that the Society cannot grant any release since such actions constitute personal busi- ness and ASCAP could be held li- able for interference. Patience Needed Some ASCAP board members yes- terday (Tuesday) were of the com- mon viewpoint that the Society should exercise patience on the NBC matters, even if it meant as much as four weeks of waiting, if ASCAP could be certain that the entire broadcasting industry would accept these contracts and that with such settlement would come ai* v\A WHAT THEY THINK Seeking Edirar B. Stronf^ht Stockton, Calif. Bditor, VAniETY: Am seeking'information concern- ing a cousin, Edgar B. Strout or Strought, as I believe he spelled the name. After his connection with the theatrical life, which began about 1898, Mr. Strought's boyhood days were spent in Chelsea, Mass., where he lived with his mother, Mrs. Rachel (Mathis) Strout and whose address he used as his per- manent address until her death about 1905 or '06. After that he used as a pennanent address that of his uncle, Jonas W. Strout, in Brunswick, Me., until the family moved to Portland,, Me., in 1918. From there we came to California and after two years returned to Maine, where we remained until 1925, where we went to Coatsville, Pa,, and spent the winter of 1925 and '26 there. It was there in the summer of '26 that I last heard from Edgar, who wrote from somewhere in New Hampshire that he and his wife, Grace Verno, were joining a stock company in- Bridgeport, O., planning to work their* way west- ward and to make their home in California. I wrote. him at that time that we were leaving immedi- ately for California but as I did not know in what part of the state we would locate I could give him no permanent address and as he had only a temporary address we lost touch with each other. I suppose he came to California but have no .way of learning the facte. He may be in Boston as he always was much Interested in that place, or almost anywhere. He may not even be living, as he would now be 73 years old and is probably no more connected with the theatre. I wrote to the Masonic Lodge of which he was a member, as I. have his masonic certificate which he left with Masonic Lodge No. 296, Mass,, but he evidently had not kept in touch with the Lodge and on their advice I am writing to you. Any information which you may be able to send me either of him or his wife, Grace Verno, will be gratefully re- ceived by (Mrs,) Eva Strout Hale, 1128 N. Harrison, Stockton, Calif. Re: Postal Subsidy New York. Editor, Vabiety: I have been reading the opinions regarding the section of the emer- gency tax bill which proposes to tax radio and outdoor advertising rev- enue. There is a very important matter which seems to have escaped general attention. That is the fact that newspapers and magazines are beneficiaries of tremendous govern- ment subsidies to which radio sta- tions as taxpayers are now contribut- ing support. I refer, of course, to the low rate on second-class mail, John W. Boehne, Jr., of Indiana, in- formed the House of Representatives that, for just one year, the loss to the Post Office Department resulting from the low rate on second-class mail for daily newspapers was $26,000,000, The total Post Office loss on second-class mail, including magazines, amount to $85,000,000. Radio pays its own way ,. , . and always has. Besides, radio con- tributes a great deal of time with- out charge, for public service. If it is necessary to tax the adver- tising revenue of the various media, at least let us be fair and non-dis- criminatory. First, cut out the sub- sidy of $500,000 a week to news- papers and the millions a year to magazines. Then, if more money is needed, tax all media on an even basis. Until newspaper and magazine subsidies be removed, it would be rank injustice to add taxation of revenue to broadcasting burdens. Victor van der Linde, And From New York, Too New Albany, Ind. Editor, Variety: Your editorial on 'Blushing, Un- noticed,' has a phrase in it which to all bitterness between radio and ASCAP. It has been intimated by .sources within the broadcasting in- dustry that before the music-radio war can be brought to a certain conclusion it may be necessary for the N. A, B. board to delegate Ne- ville. Miller the association's pres- ident, to tour the country for a series of district meetings, explain- ing the contracts and urging their acceptance. As pointed out by one broadcaster, the leaders of the in- dustry would be faced with the problem of .selling up something that they had sold jiovin, aiicf cohvincingly so, to the same quarters' within the past' 18 ifionths. explains most of radio's troubles. You really should elaborate on it, as never, ([o my knowledge, hcs any trade paper had the nerve to call the shot as you have in the particular quotation: 'J?adio iaces, belatedly, a world in which in/lvental men are prepared to belieuc that rndio is a spectacular soft touch...' Boy, is that right! And who knows it? Everybody but radio, the nets, NAB, IRNA, and the independents! Like Hitler, radio's enemies and vultures are trying to pick us off, one by one. Like some folks in Europe, some folks in radio think a soft answer will turn away a racket, a bit of appeasement will win free- dom from a knockdown and drag out affair, etc. One hell -raiser or two can't do the job. But sooner or later the worm is going to turn. Thanks for your own fine expres- .sions. It sounds wonderful coming from New York. It just doesn't seem ■possible. Steve Cisler. If s An Epidemic Newark, Aug. 12. Jess Myers, manager of the Em- pire, local bi.rley house, is having the same kind o^ chorine trouble, fhat has been bothering Broadway producers and managers. With the theatre scheduled to reoj^en late this month, Myers has been unable to secure enough ponies to form a line. Ads inserted in the local papers for chorus gals have brought little response. Dave Rose sContlnaed from page Z; □ eign correspondent, who was oO, on the ship that carried Rose, on a rov- ing assignment that he hopes will bring him to the borders of the Russo-German squabble. Seated across the way from Kerr In the Clipper's lounge was David E. Scherman, Life magazine photogra- pher who was on the Egyptian liner Zamzam when it was scratched where it counts by a torpedo, on his way for a few shots of the shots around England. Saturday's (9) spies spotted" Alice Faye step down the runway of the TWA Stratoliner into the arms of her band leader-husband Phil Har- ris. Miss Faye will be in town for a week before returning to the Coast to begin a new celluloid. Eastern Air Lines sends out the news that Andre Kostelanetz, Lily Pons' favorite musicmaker, will be back in town Aug. 21 from a trip in the hamlets south of Hoboken. At long last, Anna Neagle and Di- rector Herbert Wilcox are skedded to head back to England Saturday (16). Three times the pair made reservations aboard the PAA Clipper ships, and' three times they changed their minds at the last—or next to last—minute. This time,- they say, they really mean it. Early last week, the couple flew to Canada to ar- range their passage from Lisbon to London, for a serious aerial transit situation exists on that route and commoners without the well-known 'fix' stand an excellent chance of getting the wrong kind of pleats in their trousers and skirts while wait- ing for the London express out of Portugal. Bcnee de Marco's Briefle Renee de Marco sadly. passed through the Airdrome-on-the-Park- way during the past seven day.i on her way to Reno to be unspliced from her ex-dancing partner and, soon, ex-husband, Tony, The dancer expects her divorce in three weeks, having established residence in Ne- vada some time ago. She made ■ flying hop to N. Y, to arrange for her part in Georgie Jessel's 'High Kick- erst' which will go into rehearsal in September. Thursday's toddlers noted Uni- vcrsal's Peggy Moran, a lassie with a shapely chassis, fly in from Toronto aboard the Trans-Canada Airways' New York express; and Edmund O'Brien, Nancy Kelly's mate, in from the end of the line aboard the sTWAtoliner. The mid-week Clippers, as' usual, were responsible for the arrival and departure of a considerable cargo of celebs. George Jordan, Associated Press's man Friday in Italy, re- turned, \Vhile iRaymond Clapper, S'crjppS'^bward's Wasl)ington scribe, was oil to'the lanci "of the'.' BroSd A for a Orsl-hand look? at t^* ifl'tf-class argument there! ' '' "