Variety (Jul 1945)

MIMELLAMT Wednesday, July 4, 1915, Army Recnihing 100 Femmes to Act In Gl Shows in Europe for a Year K new pvoject quietly launched-' Iwo weeks ago, to locnut-100 young actresses Tor service in Europe, act- ing with GIs in dramas and vaude, has been surprisingly successful, ever 50 feirimes already have signed end the- balance is expected to be contracted within a fortnight. ' Drive has been iViade by Special Services Division of Army Service Forces in N. Y., independently ot USO-Camp Shows. Latter suppUes the Army with complete productions -in-legits-or- vauiety_sho_ws tq_be per- formed belore GI audience.=i, and cast and-rehearsed here, while the Ar- my'-S new need is for femmes to i,.i*h nic in <!olriier shows, re- -Worfc with GIs in soldier show hearsing abroad with local gioups, and staying in one area. Auditions have been held in N. Y., Cleveland, Chicago, Los Angcle.s, SeatUe and San Francisco. Capt. Frank A. McMullan in charge of iprOject. ;Peggy Wood and Betty Mc- Cafae have been appointed War Pept. consultants, with Miss Wood and Lt. Irving Tombach holding auditions in N. Y., and Miss McCabe and Capt. Henry Boettcher handling auditions out of town. Girls already selected ha\?e had radio, stock, Broadway or road legit, or USO experience. Army requiremtflts call for fem- nies 21 to 30, with some college or social background favored, as work with GIs is considered social and recr«tional as well. Of girls even tually picked, 50% must be able to variety work as well as straight drama. Girls must sign for a full year, and will be used only in Eu- rope, many in occupied Germany, cither with occupation troops or with GIs awaiting reshipment. Sal- arly is $4,680, which amounts to over 170 weekly net after expenses for food, clothing, etc., is deducted. Girls will he sent to base at Cha- ton,- near Pari."!, then assigned in -Units of five to various base sections. Stress is being laid by Army on fact that this is no frolic, that the work will be tough, with actresses eating with GIs, acting in cold Nissen huts as often - as in civilian theatres. Misses Wood and; McCsbe, who have been overseas for Camp Shows, have been telling auditioners of living conditions abroad. Girls will be un- der jurisdiction of the Army, wear uniform oft duty, and have assimi- r lated rank of caplain. Major Paul Baker, chief of enter- taii^ment; branch : .ETO, will , head pfo]e<;t aboard, with Capt. .Toshua . IiOgan to .supervise the project. Sally Rand's Divorce Made in 'Heaven' (Mont.) Billings, Mont., July 3. Sally Rand returned to "Heaven," the Billings ranch home of Turk Greeiiough, rodeo champ and' her hu.sband for 10 years priot to the divorce decree granted her for de- sertion. Fan dancer Rand"'! request was filed Wednesday granted by district judRe on ' Thur'^day-taSh Non-contesting Gretnough did not appear. : Have You Got a Little Nitery You're Not Using? American Theatre Wing is now desperate, it claims, looking Cor new quarters for its Stage Door Canteen. Although it has exlen.sion till end of July on the 44th street site,/ this doesn't mean the full month; it's claimed^ as equipment mi^st be re- moved and set up elsewhere <which takes time) if new quarters are to be readied by Aug. 1. Wing's build- ing committee needs eight to 10 thous'and square leet, and wants something in the,nitery or re.'itaurant line, which will require minimum remodeling. ■ Kermit Bloomgarden is chairman of the building committee, and not Lee Shubert. as erratumedt although Shubert is one of committee'» chief .workers.'-- ■ • "■. -.-'^ ■ GENE AUTRY SUES FOR EXrr FROM REPUBLIC • Hollywood, July 3. Gene Autry yesterday (Mon.) ask«sd Superior court to free him from his contract with Republic by mvoking the same legal point raised hy Olivia de Havilland in her suit to get out ot Warners' pact. Autry, through attorney Martin Gangv contends he was employed by Republic, July 1, ,1938, and accord- ing to State Labor Code, the {feriod of his contract expired last Sunday (1) Declaratory relief action asks the court to hold th.it the contract's pro- visions no longer are enforceable now that the seven-year period has expired. Flight officer Autry just got out of the Army Air Force. Both Sides Appeal In Chaplin Case Decish Los Angeles, July 3, Joan Barry and Charles Chaplin both filed notices in Superior court objecting to the findings in their recent paternity^ case. Miss Barry declares the $75 weekly .support award for her child is in- sufficient. Chaplin seeks relief troin, responsibility for parentage of the infant. Carradine No Alimony Dodger Court Rules Hollywood, July 3. John Carradine will leave for the east immediately, having had a war- rant for his arris.st dismissed by Su- perior Court Judge Roy V. Rhodes. Warrant was originally secured by actor's ex-wife, who charged he was leaving town with '"intent to de- fraud." Carradme was to have left Sat- urday to report for a series of sum- mer stock legiterS 'ilv New York vicinity, but his exrwife's complaint halted the trip. She charged that he intended to defraud her of $4, 000 in back alimony. After studying complaint. Judge Rhodes decided that pronerlj' asreetnent i'eaehed at time of divorce stipulated that couple slioiiki not mole.si each other and that Caniidine ha '^erm^t'.'H to work wherever he pleased. ^ ^ Anniversary Week Starting 4th Year KEN MURRAY'S "BUACKOUTS OF 1945" El Capitan Theatre, Hollyvyocdi C»l. 'Kxtremely fast and tunuy enter- taiument." . MARK HELLINGER. PIX INDUSTRY CHARITY DRIVE CONCENTRATED! Hollywood, July 3 By a 7-to-l count the molion picture industi-y voted to cbncentrate all its charity drives into one annual campaicn. Y. Frank Freeman, new president of the Permanent Char ities Committee, announced that the first concentrated drive will be held in autumn to raise funds to cover the period from Nov. 1, 1945, to Oct 31, 1946. Method 0( d' ibution among charity agencies Wi^i be de- cided prior to the autumn campaign Edward Arnold, treasurer, declared PCC operates at * cost-of only S^fc for administration, campaigns and collections, the lowe.st in the coun try for any comparable group. Sin gle collection plan -will be even "more, efficient. Protocol Caught With Its Prints Down Hollywood, July 3. lilva-sion of the molion picture studios.by foreign diplomats, expected this week with the finish ot tlie conference in San Fraticisco, is caus- ing grief among the camera department chiefs, who are up agaiiLst a print paper famine. Still photographers have been working under a handicap, and now come a flock of international boys in high hals and : striped pants, craving portraits to send to the folks back home. Camera / ' chiefs are asking the OWI for ejitia rations of print paper to cover the diplomatic visitations. . - -., As an alternative, it has been suggested that the studios turn over the negatives to the OWI and let that organization make the prints : for diplomatic consumption. 4^4»»»«»»»»»> ♦♦♦♦♦♦»>♦■»♦ ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦4-»4-»» SCULLY'S SCRAPBOOK | By Ffiink Scully ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦ * Old Curiosity Shop,. July I, ; Let's-try that one over again for size, eh?,' Carvath Wells, who with an i i English acceilt naturally has a Hollywood radio sponsor, also ha.s a nvnmh . bird named Haflfles. He and hi.s wife trained the bird to talk. Rafilcs did I so well he got them guest shots, lecture dates and even an article in the I Po.st. ■ In time publishers signed the bird for a book.: So when Wells said that Raffles now was writing a book I said. "Go.sh. with all this ghastly ghosting going._thc rounds, don't say he's writing it, I say he's dictating it!" If there is any further interest in things I wish I had said (and actually did) you-can add-these: Coming out of the preview of "The Story of G. I. Joe" I ran uito Maurice: de Kobra, the eminent French playwright. "Trop longue, n'est ce pas?" .said M. De Kobra. "But not as long aS the war, eh. mon brave?" I coimtered, .as proof that;, repartee had not died with O-scar Wilde, Then after catching "The Clock," Helen Colton asked, "Whafs the mat- ter with him, is he 4-F?" 'Asthma no questions and I'll teU you no lies," I said, "Can I say On the way home we stopped at Koberl's drive-in. A picture .star was striding the Top Deck next door. . "There's Bob Hope," cried one of my fleas from heaven> hello to him?" 'Sure," I said. •What'll I say?" she asked. 'Ask him would he like your old man's autograjph," I said. B'way Facelift The man said there's a swaml who' can stoj^' his own pulse beat. "He tells you to feel his wrist." Suddenly his pulse beat stops and he can slop , it all the way to his elbow." "If this thing ever gets to the ankles, " I said, "Earl Wilson's, researches are over." Continued trom paf e l Sam Hinds'40-Year Wait - _' _ ' _Jiollywood. July 3. Sam S. Hinds is going to play on the Broadway, stage, via detour through Hollywood, after. 40 years of waiting. As a youngster Hind.s wanted to break into Broadway but his father wanted him to be a lawyer. So he jj^racticed law for years before turn- ing to the screen. Now he has been: handed a stage role m a Ru.ssel Grouse-Howard Lindsay production in the fall. Maria Montez Okay Hollywood, July 3. . Maria Monte/., ij reported greatly improved at her home, where she has been ill lor over a w.eek. Actress originally was thought to have diphtheria, and members of the household, including her hu.s'band, ■"Jean Pierre Aumont, and her sisters were given inoculations. However, illness finally was diagncsed as a ■ severe strep throat. ; She is-out of danger now and well «« road' to recovery. •; ' ■ "■ Tliose Marryin' Erskines Rus.sel ("Buck"): Crou.se, press agent turned producer was married last Thur.'3da> (28) to Anna, daugh- ter of the writer, .Tohn Erskine. Er.skine in turn was reported about to take the marital step again, prospective bride-to-be being- Helen Worden, well-known N. Y. new-spa- perwoman.' Fanny Brice Doing Well Hollywood, July 3. Fanny Brice is reported Retting along nicely at Cedars ot Lebanon ho.spital. Comedionne ctitered the hospital last Thursday but is not seriously ill. Reported suft'cring a heart attack. BETTE IN 'FOXES' ABROAD Bctte Davis will appear in the Icgiler, "The Little Foxes' for USO- Camp Shows overseas. in.stead of the play "Holiday!; originally .sched- uled. Actress played in the screen ver.^ion of the Lillian Hellman ,drama'.. ■ , : ■*■■■ Production will be cast and staged on the Coast, with Herman Shumlin, who diT'ected the stage version, pro- ducing. Company will go to Europe in the fall. .,. ', and Leigh. They're the swamis of the spectacular. A pair in greater, stranger contrast has never been seen, even on Broadway. Yet these two men complement each other They're keen competitors, yet be tween the two they light the Mazdas that; make the Gay White Way brighter. Both are masters of light and shade, color and motion. Leigh is the impresario of the spectacular signs that make the pas.serby gape be he of' Broadway ,or Muskogee. Starr is the marquee and house-front man who projects. Varga's gorgeous creatures onto blow-ups that man could never have dreamed of before.: Together, they help: make Broadway, what it is, and they are set to.make it even more so. Leigh is a graduate of the Uni- versity of Florida; Starr got his training in a technical school in Czar- ist Russia. Leigh is a small, thin..soft- spoken chap of 35. whom (>tie would take for a poet or an architect. Starr is a middle-'aged gent, a chiiracter out, of Hemingway (with .sound by Lou Holtz), a high-powered advertising, man who talks like a Columbia Ph.D. at one moment and a stage manager the next. Perhaps the best way to illustrate the difference between the twp would be to : visit itheir ofTicesi Starr's is way over on N. Y.'s west side, at 57th street and 12th avenue, midst the clatter of trucks loading Liberty ships, where swanky ocean liners used to drop anchor in peace* time.-. Leigh's suite of offices, in Radio City, is decorated with beau- tiful photo-murals, has soft rugs, is furnished, in the. best of modern ■taste.:: '., . : Aiding Baijd-Drives Against: Leigh's good record as a lieutenant in the Navy; staging big war bond 'shows, and doing other spectacular jobs for patriotic purif poses, Starr's dossier stands 85-f^et-: high in Times Sq., where he planted, the Statue of Liberty replica, the Iwo Jima statue; and other such aides to making the citizenry lay the dough on the line tor Uncle SamV war bond drives. Starr has designed so many house; fronts for the Astor theatre tliat the fronts mounted up to a cost of, $3,000,000—more than the original cost ot the hduse Itself^ ■ Leigh created such Broadway spectaculars as tho.se . adverti.'iing Four Roses, Ciillctte, Camels and Coca-Cola. Between the two—-although they do not, but definitely, work together "The housing situation around Hollywood has become .so aciite.!' I .said to Mike Todd (who certainly was not listening), "people owning San Fer- nando ranches are sleeping their guests on apricots." I could go on like this, but why should I? Turn on your own radio because I have more important things to write about. "The Story of G. I. Joe,'V par example.^ Maybe it was too long, as Maurice De Kobra said it was. lie can crowd 25 years of an American in France in 292 pages, as he does in"A Paris Tous Les Deux" (In Pari.s Together). I. even remember his crowding BOO of the creme de la fromage into the Palm Beach Casino in Cannes to celebrate the publication of a book. Our troops blew that de luxe pool hall to bits when invading the Riviera. They did it in a matter of minutes. I ll-bel the very guys who did it were some of those pictured in "The Story of G. I. Joe." Still, 109 minutes may be too long, Robert Mltclium,'as Lieut. Walker, may steal the picture from Burgess Meredith as Pyle. The,picture may ■ be more about Lieut. Walker than about the GI's. It's quite possible that in switching the title from "Here Is Your War" to "Joe," Lester Cowan, didn't do anybody a favor, least of all himself or the dogfaces. But until a better film comes along, here is "The Big. Parade" of World War II. There are pieces of business in "Joe" that top the best in "Parade." IX ■ keeps moving. It gets from here to there, and when a picture does that : it lives.: Funny, the stuff that lives longest is what Billy Wellnian.I'e- memhefs"be.st" from the days of silentTrtctiircs;—His-breatlptulring-pa-n-ii—j tomime is-never "trop longue." The only disiUusioning thing -about this picture 'was:personal and pa.>.s- Ing. I saw Mitchura coming out of the Hollywood preview. Raised recent- ly from westerns, he does a magnificent performance as the lieutenant, 1- saw stardom for Mitchuni alter this performance. But as he came out ot the theatre it look as if all tho.se slogging battles had' gone for naught, I hear in the new army they don't, gig you for infractions; they reduce ypu ■ ■in.rank.', • ■ ■ ■■ •■, ...:,■•. So Mitch, who work.s up to a captain on the screen, was walking: out of the theaCre a buck private. He was al.so carrying a canvas sack and head.- , ing-fof camp. .It'seems he had, just-.been drafted. The war for Hubert Mitchum as Captain Walker may have been over, > but the war for Private Mitelium was" just beginning. For his sake 1 hope it is not "trop longue." If you want to know where the old circus copywriters have gone I can, tell. you. They're writing the ads for Beverly Hills auction sales. Next week's attraction: "An auction event of supremacy compri.smg the beautiful furni.shings from the former home of Grace and Lawrence Tibbett, world famous Metropolit.'in .star.' This one gets plastered around ■ the town in 12 sfieets. Coming lalei: "The greatest showing of the yewr. The exquisite antiques of glamorous Ruth Chatterton." :• Many of these sales are the McCoy. But many are the product of Rf4-. dlers of glamor, They gross $20,000 to" $60,000 on big sales. Thal'.s a lot ot dough to come from places that didn't even have plumbing in the original,,settings. —they have great plans for liltinii the face of the main stem. Stan talks of his Newsograph, which will fiaish not only the names of now pix on theatre marqueesy' but will also quote the latest cracks by rnlics. Starr talks also of the use-ot new materials, new kinds ot gla.ss, ticSi. miles and miles of Neons. Leigh talks about the same thlngsi— and adds something else.. He men- tions architesttiral. design that will take spectacular signs into con- sideration in the very planniuK .stajjc of buildings, so that a sign will be an integral part of tomorrows new structure. Both al.so talk about animated sisns, about tri-dimensional Avork, dioramas.,,: Leigh adds a word about plans for a fuU-dimensional sign which he expects to erect on Broad- way soon. Both- have nuicli nt W: sp.ice on Broadway—Stiirr ha\ iiig '8 nev/ spots himself, and Lei.uh luning mo.st ot the rest of the sign space for himself. ' : Between the chap from Radio City and the one from the riverfront, new nights, are coming to. peace- lime Broadway. And the nlKhts, aS .«ight.s, will be different-, new, colos- sal, sock.