Media History Digital Library (1944)

Olan Wafi&hcd AFTER seeing his performance in The White Cliffs of Dover Director Clarence Brown said of Alan Marshal, "He is the romantic find of the year." The son of Leonard Willey and Irby Mar¬ shal both of the stage. Marshal made his stage debut at the age of four in Maeterlinck's Blue Bird. He was born in Sydney Australia, on January 29th, but left there when he was five to come to San Francisco with his parents who had a stage engagement in that city. When his parents went on to Broadway, young Alan was placed in a boarding school on Long Island. He took time out from school, when he was fifteen, to play an important role on Broadway with Basil Rathbone and Eva LeGallienne in The Swan. Upon completion of his schooling. Marshal joined Fritz Lieber's Shakespearean company in New York and afterward went to Toronto and Montreal, then toured with various stock companies. He also served apprenticeship under Lieber and George Arliss in Shake¬ spearean repertory, and even won a chance to understudy Arliss as Shylock. When he returned to New York two years later he won roles in several successful stage shows, including The Bishop Misbehaves, with the late Walter Connelly, On Stage, Lady Jane, and Private Lives with Madge Kennedy which advanced him as an actor. Marshal, having made somewhat of a name for himself in New York, attracted the atten¬ tion of David O. Selznick who offered him a featured role with Charles Boyer and Mar¬ lene Dietrich in Garden of Allah. This was followed in quick succession by After the Thin Man, Night Must Fall, and Conquest which starred Greta Garbo. The most recent and reportedly the finest portrayal of his career is that opposite Irene Dunne in The White Cliffs of Dover Proud of his successful career Alan Mar¬ shal also takes great pride in being the father of four-year-old Christopher Marshal and the huband of Mary Grace Borel, former San Francisco socialite. Incidentally, this was a long-distance court¬ ship. An enthusiastic motorist. Marshal trav¬ elled the 400 odd miles every weekend by auto to persuade Mary that Southern Cali¬ fornia and Alan Marshal were more to her liking than San Francisco. One weekend. but not before he had accumulated a number of speed tickets, he succeeded, and he and Mary eloped. He refers to his wife as his "governor" be¬ cause her friendliness and easy comradeship is a balance to his quiet, retiring nature. Mrs. Marshal is considered one of Hollywood's most accomplished hostesses. Marshal, who is just coming into his own after several years in the motion picture col¬ ony, remembers David Selznick's first advice after signing him to a contract. "Alan, ten years will pass before you will be a star," pointed out the producer. "You are the type who needs maturity. Remember — maturity will become you." He's never forgotten those words and in the The White Cliffs of Dover their prophesy evidently has been fulfilled. Nothing amuses him more than comment on his "British" accent. Marshal, who came to this country from Australia when he was four, has never set foot in England, nor has he been out of America! Marshal goes in for sketching as a hobby, likes hamburgers with onions, is a nightly icebox raider, has a neat hand for flipping a flapjack, and his favorite columnist is K. C. B. He also admits he5s somewhat of a frustrated author. Tall and athletic, he frequently engages in his favorite sports, tennis, swimming, bowling, riding, and boxing. He attends pictures at least once or twice a week and likes to see his favorite films two or three times. His favorite pastime is amateur photog¬ raphy, and Alan and Mary often work far into the night developing their own films. LIFELINES Born, Alan Marshal Willey, January 29, Sydney, Australia; parents, Leonard Willey and Irby Marshal; Educated, New York City, Winwood Grade School and Hamil¬ ton Prep School; Height, 6 feet l*/2 inches; Weight, 170; Hair, brown; Eyes, brown; Occupation, actor. Plays: Merchant of Venice, Michael and Mary, The Bishop Misbehaves, On Stage, Lady Jane, Private Lives. Pictures: Garden of Allah , After the Thin Man, 1936; Parnell, Night Must Fall, Con¬ quest, 1937; Dramatic School, 1938; Hunch¬ back of Notre Dame, Women in White, 1939; Irene, He Stayed for Breakfast, The Howards of Virginia, 1940; Tom, Dick and Harry, Lydia, 1941; The White Cliffs of Dover, 1944. [91