New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1920-01-04
interviewing James Montgomery is
! tough Job. The difficulty Is two

tough Job. The difficulty is two
fold. For one thing, whereas Mr.. Mont
gomery wears the aspect of simple
soul-he is q youngish, fairish man,
with slender face and figure and
very blue eyes-he is really a highly
complex personality and chock full Of
the most disconcerting paradoxes. And,
| what is still worse from the inter-
viewers point of view, he is that most
exasperating and rare phenomenon-a
really and truly modest man.
Just how an author who for more
than two years has been raking in big
royalties from both sides of the At
lantic, and who has moreover for the
last eight weeks been turning 'em
| away" from several musical comedies
just how such young man man
ages, under such circumstances, to
keep. all his native modesty intact, is
neither here nor there. The fact
Is that the creator Of "Irene" is the
most reticent dramatist in Broadway
self, and the most elusive when he
hears that he is wanted for that pur-
pose.
And so, encountering him the other
day at the Vanderbilt Theater, appar-
emily by accident but really by care
fully planned scheming, the visitor,
knowing his prejudices. started things
with a casual and altogether perfume
tory remark about dramatic criticism
and dramatic critics. But Montgomery
His Irish blue eyes lighted, his slight,
neatly-built figure Strengthened invol-
UNFAIRLY, just as if he were q little
boy to whom one had spoken the magic
words sugar plums."
II wish you'd say, for mo, that I
value criticism very highly" he said.
"And l also wish you'd say''- Here
there was slight hesitation, as if he
didn't know whether to ve> ture Sec
ond request SO quickly onthe heels Of
the tlrst-"I-1-wish you'd also say
that believe it is worth while for any
dramatist to give respectful ear to
his critics"
Glow about the vitriolic reviewers 2"
yes, they, too, are important" came
the quick reply. GAS matter Of fact,
the most instructive lessons are fire.
quently to be learned from the most
savage and the most unjust, reviews,
unless, of course. they have been in
spired by personal animosity, which is
so rare as to be negligible. The crit
les job is pretty much like that of a
dentist If he does his work we'll and
to the best good of his patient-be the
latter dramatist or actor-he has got
to hurt him occasionally and sometimes
hurt him cruelty. The gentle critic
is not more dangerous to the ultimate
welfare of the stage than are the vari-
GUS Painless Perkinses' and Painless
Potters' to the dentition of that por-
ton Of the public attracted by their
seductive window signs. killing the
nerve of tooth is a painful opera
ton, but frequently there is no avoid
ing it if ones tooth is to be filled and
saved, and so, too, is killing the nerve
in dramatist or an actor. I know.
because l have suffered both opera
TONS"
Here Montgomery blushed, evidently
perturbed by the sudden realization
mat ne had been talking about any
thing so intimate as a tooth. Now
seemed the time to spring the real
question in the interviewer's mind. the
subject which was the raison d'etre
for his visit.
Glow did you come to do .Irene'?"
But 1 didn't" he protested, with a
whimsical little smile and a very seri-
Gus shaking \of his head. "It's a tri-
angular affair, and I am only one of
the sides of the triangle. There's Joe
Mccarthy, you know. Well, he wrote
He wrote the music. And there's Ed.
ward Royce, who staged the produc-
ton. and, most important of all, there's
Edith Day, who has created the title
role. You see, I've really done very
But the interviewer couldn't see it
that way at all, and now, feeling
little surer Of his ground, he proceeded
to exercise some of the prerogatives
OF his own craft, and by q cautious
process of induction and deduction
managed to extract the following in
formation about James Montgomery
Avenue.
As for Montgomery, for twelve years
before he began to write plays he was
an actor, his first appearance on the
stage being as member Of tho Castle
square stock company in his native
graduated from high school. From