The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-11-20

N become luentined With whatever we happen to be doing? For instance-take that considerable actor, MT Robert Conness, who is play ing the doctor in the clever Belasco comedy ''The Boomerang; he's so thoroughly identified with .the doctor" part he plays-and why shouldn't he be, for he's played it now every night and twice a week at matinees, sometimes three tlmes-always when there's a holi- day or war benefit or anything un- usual-for two solid years, until he has gotten to the point that he dissects and vivisects things just like a real physi- elan; as witness:
 Acting is a disease and the syrnp- toms are easily detected" MT. Conness observed as I asked him about the pro- fession of acting and why he chose 1t as his life work.
 Before l so on with his part of the story-let me tell you that MT. Con- ness is very, very nice young man; sorry to say he's married; has a nice actress wife-and they've always played together and all that sort of thing until
 
 Boomerang" which took him away from Broadway and the bright lights and things and-as was about to say, Mr. Conness is very, very nice; married, and nice, so you can readily see just how nice he must be.
 He's tall and quite good 1ookinp. has jet black. hair-very Matinee Idol-ish' looking and has gray blue eyes-because he's Irish you see-that is, his ances. tors way back wonder somewhere, came from the Emerald Isle and the combi- nation of blue eyes and black hair-rs just what you'd expect a young Irish. man several generations from those we spoke of back there, to be-
 Also he's slender; all leading men, should be slender whether they are or not for one can scarcely imagine a fat lover-at least fat stage lover. MT Conness besides being attractive look ing is quite clever and interesting and has had many experiences since the early days when he first became an actor.
 T don't know what it is that seizes man when he decides to adopt acting as a profession," MT Conness was tell ing me as we chatted over his ambi- tions and his talents But acting. as l said before, is disease and the symp- toms are readily detected. I grew up out in the west-in Kansas City-to be ex- act-and I used always to be taking part in amateur theatricals. I loved to play in charades and affairs at schools and as soon as I was able to get away from home 1 got the job of usher inc one of the big theatres; from that view point l became even more enamored of the stage than ever before and made sol- emn VOW then and there that I would be an actor. I always believeds in the theory that if you wanted anything hard enough and long enough that there was way to get it and so I just begged away looking for every chance and op- portunity that came my way until l finally landed safe and sound right in the middle of a very nice theatrical opening
 T have run the gamut of acting since those days" Mr Conness said, indeed I have played every sort of part, every writer from 'Bassanio' in The Merchant of Venice to 'Legare' in Uncle Toms Cabin And do you know to my way of thinking, it is the only stage training worth rap. Experiences; it fits an actor for any role-it makes him con- versant with any part-it gives him chance to mold his own career and pick and choose just what he wants to do, and by the way, I would never advocate a particular style of acting and stick to it; it simply spells good actor for any thing else; if man becomes Identified with one style he can never get away from it; if he plays the romantic type he is always kept in romantic parts; if tragedy-then he is regarded as only de- sirable in tragedy-and the same obtains with comedy. I have played in one week a role in The Lion and the Mousse an Ibsen play-then Shakespeare, followed by some clever, up-to-date comedy; all of which has been a fine school of training.
 1T have always inclined to the TO- mantle dramas MT. Conness said, and the Rupert of Hentzau type of play--that