The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-10-29
M B N :, w O M E N
 A ND T H l. N G s

|
 or Geraldine Farrar, I had no trouble in
 setting the following one.
 I picked up The Age-Herald on Tues day morning. and as is my custom,
 turned to "Dolly's" page, and to my
 amazement I saw that she had me down
 to make a speech of welcome to the
 famous prima donna.
 l admit that it is easy to get me to
 crate on short notice on any kind of oc-
 caston. but for once I was just the least
 Dit worried. for while had recently had.
 some experience with bunch of moving
 picture actresses. Geraldine Farrar is.
 both movie and an opera queen |
 But l said to myself, Why be rattled,
 for if she has sung all around the world,
 I am some little talker myself. having
 won the endurance record during the
 war as champion four-minute speaker in America, and so by degrees I got my
 nerve and agreed to meet Dolly at the 1 station.
 arrived just as the Palm Beach," her handsome private car. rolled in; but ! when she would not do what Schuman tHeink did for me when she was Increasing for me in her boudor-I just made up my
 mind that I wouldn't waste any time in
 a pretty speech on Geraldine in telling her how overjoyed was, along with the rest of Birmingham, that she was
 i1onoring it with her distinguished pres ence It's true that she has temper and tenn perament, but it is also a fact ..la,
 have boise and dignity. and can be just | as formal as any visiting celebrity. But as newspaper man never let any per- sonal matter keep me from covering an assignment. It was my business to write an interview about Miss Farrar, and so 1 give the following authentic story about ithe great American celebrity who so icharned Birmingham on Wednesday night.
 l And I challenge Miss Farrar to deny that l have, in a single instance mis- quoted her, as I was particular to stick 1 to her own story without any guessworK or establishment on my part The house
 in which she was born is still standing, a
 large, old-fashioned building on Mount l Vernon street, Melrose, Mass It was in it she spent most of her early life. i Her father Sydney D. Farrar, owned a store in Melrose; but in the summer time
 he played baseball with a local amateur
 team with sueh success that, when Ger
 aldine was years old, he was engaged
 by the, Philadelphia National League
 Baseball Club as first baseman. Yet dur l ing the winters he was always in Mel
 rose, looking after business. I suppose this is why today he is still such a fan"
 | It is intensely interesting to hear her tell about her childhood memories in the 1 old homestead. She recalls a large room with an open fireplace and flames flash | ing from log fire into which she spent many hours gazing, trying to couture up strange and fanciful shapes and fig
 ures. From the fireplace she would stroll to o|the great, old-fashioned square piano l in the corner, and, standing on tiptoe would strum upon the keys. It's a pretty
 picture of the wonder-child striving to give Oppression musically to the strange ! shapes and figures suggested by the fire
 and by her vivid imagination. I
 | Ut is also pretty fancy to hear Mrs.
 Farrar testifying with motherly pride to O "a hot baby, grooming and humming to herself,
 and singing when other babies usually l cry. Small wonder that the musically | inclined little one added to her childish repertoire the familiar airs of> the barrel
 organs, which were played in the streets every day, catching correctly the melody,
 but little off on enunciation. Singing l in he first concert at years old, she
 made palpable hit.
 
 1 Miss Farrar says: "I-,cannot remember the time when I did not intend to sing and act. As soon as I was a little older that is. after her appearance at 8, it
 was decided that should take piano les- | sons" But even at this early age she was rebellious against restraint, saying, T could not force myself to study ac- cording to rule or tradition. I wanted to try out things my own way, accord. ing 70 impulse, just how and when the spirit within me moved. I could not drudge at scales. and therefore found the lessons irksome"
 I was glad to hear this confession from her: 'The world of make-believe was be- coming very real to me. dramatized everything. I had the utmost, confidence in my choice to become great singer. for at all times I was busy with music, either alone or with my mother. Young as was it did not occhr to me that could possibly fail in my achievement. I felt impelled to try to touch the stars Young as I was felt that with my song I could soar to another world and revel in poetry, music and art''
 + A can't set down here the story of her struggles, how her indomitable ambition was backed by her will to be somebody, and how the "Farrar luck" always hov- cred over her. It's a long cry from fee of $1o, the first money she ever made, to, we'll say. what she got for singing here. or to the sums planked down in Berlin. Paris, New York and the worlds capXals to hear her. It's wonder story as she reveals it with a pride and abandon ,t<,I, t<a1lo xvt chn sC