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68 Ves, Mr. DeMille its final week. An hour later they rushed into his office. They begged and pleaded. Frohman sat at his desk, silent, cold- eyed. Suddenly Belasco seized the producer by the throat. The sight of the priestlike figure dragging Frohman from his chair and pinning him down on the floor filled the mild- mannered DeMille with terror. Egged on by his partner, DeMille grabbed a ruler and the two of them threatened to kill Frohman if he didn't keep the play going. The play, greatly improved by the cutting, went on to post 218 consecutive performances, yielding a nice profit for the management after liquidating a $50,000 debt. Belasco remem- bered the collaboration with real pride. '"We were successful because our way of thought was similar. We were frank in our criticism of each other. Henry excelled in narrative and had a quick wit. I acted while he took down my speeches. When a play was finished it was impossible to say where his work left off and mine began." Belasco became the family hero. Bill and Cecil stood as sentries in the quiet fields around Echo Lake to herald the approach of the man in the Roman collar, the shrill dispatches occasioning much bustling about the house. He brought the boys gifts, important ones at Christmas. One year Belasco penned a note to Cecil: This year a small gift, but next year a pony. DeMille kept the note, reminder of a boyhood tragedy, "I waited for 365 days, dreaming dreams about the pony. I arose that cold Christmas morning almost before daybreak. I was sure the pony would be in the barn. It wasn't there. Belasco had forgotten all about it. I was stunned. I couldn't believe it. I told no one, just suffered in silence for days. It taught me a lesson IVe tried to remember all through life-keep your promise to a child." Cecil was nine when his father died, at thirty-nine, and once more the family was faced with the same realities. The future had looked unusually bright, for his father s work with Belasco