The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1911-08-12
DUEL BETWEEN
NAT GOODWIN AND HIS LAST
EX-WIFE, EDNA GOODRICH

Six thousand miles apart, he in Pas
adena, she in Paris, Nat Goodwin and
his most recent ex-wife, Edna Good
rich, formerly of Logansport, Ind, and
later a Chicago high school girl, are
fighting a literary duel. She is armed
with her novel, THE Deynard Dr.
vorce," the first publication of which
begins in the current issue Of the
Green Book Album-Septembe
Nat Goodwin has rushed into print
with personal "reminiscences, which
he, Americas most married actor, is
said to have been engaged in writing
for the past year, and few excerpts
from which have already appeared in
the newspapers.
Whether the mick Deynard' of her
novel is the NAT Goodwin" of her
married life, Miss Goodrich refuses
definitely to say. The reader, how
ever, is struck at once by the aural
similarity between mick" and Nat
no less than by the ocular similarity
between the EDNA" of real life and
the Brenda" of the story.
Furthermore, one reads on with a
further suggestion of the analogy Miss
Goodrich may have sought to draw
between her own short marital expert
ence with NAT" and that of the novel
Brenda" with her mick"
Where, in the story, Brenda" feels
that "Nick" is drifting from her, Miss
Goodrich writes of her heroine:
while, outwardly, she had as
sumed, of late, careless Indifference
concerning the irregular going and
coming of her lord and master, Bren-
da Deynard felt keenly, nevertheless,
the change in their relationship, which
after less than two years of marriage,
had been evolved by a gradual proc
ess of Independent and distinctly sell
fish thought and action, on the part OF
the man who, such a short time be-
fore, had sworn that she would always
be above all things else to him. The
barrier which had thus risen between
them had been of slow, almost imper-
ceptible building, like unto, as she was
wont to think, the coral formation of
her own island birthplace. Unsuspect-
ed, it had grown by degrees, beneath
the surface of environing circum.
stance, to appear, suddenly, threat
ening, foam-crested reef, for the
wrecking of her conjugal content"
A little later on in her story Miss
Goodrich writes this of her novel hus
band:
ut was between quarter and half
past seven. 1t must have been about
seven, then, when the telephone last
rang; and still Nick had not returned
She wondered if it was cards, this
time, that was keeping him. In the
earlier days of his late homecoming
cards had been his excuse. But once
when she had inquired, he was sulleI
and refused to answer And since
then, she had asked no questions
After all, what was the difference
cards, or something else-since what
ever it was, he preferred it to her?
Does Miss Goodrich Describe Herself
The curious similarity between thu
given names of her hero" and he
husband, as we'll as between her her
oine" and herself, is, if anything, in
tensified by such paragraph as tn
following where Miss Goodrich's de
scription of Brenda might quite a
we'll be that of herself:
Brenda Deynard, unlike mos
women. either young or old, looke
her best in the morning. Her wake
full night had detracted in no way irol
her abundant beauty. If anything
had merely served to soften-to trar
quilize, as it were-the resplenden
comeliness of vigorous health an
youth. In type, she was Oriental; ye
with the modifying charms OF the U
oident. Though her eyes and ma
were gloriously dark, her skin wa
wondrously fair, and delicate of te'
ture, with an exquisite play of colo
And she was endowed with a grace
contour that was like masterpieC
of Greek sculpture"
Less striking but none the less 81
nificant, perhaps, is this account
Miss Goodrich of "Nick's" courtshi
of his wife-to-be. 1t will be recalle
that for two years before their ma
rage Miss Goodrich was MI GOO
wins leading lady"
Brenda recalled now, as she sipp'
her coffee, and as the maid drew NJ