New-York tribune., 1921-07-24

beaning with the expectation that he would
know them cut of all this throng, filed past,
she supplied the little nicknarnes, the trivial
Incidents mentioned in their letters, that would
forever bl and as a lie the runor that he mad
secretary who answered his MALL
"Mrs. peane-not dear Aunt Amanda
from Circinnati." she would explain, and the
star. etching the cue, would grip the work
worn aa,-t. in both his own and murnlur, with
his {. Is smile, why Aunt Amanda--you
carse char from Cincinnati to see me-won-
oerf,i, Oh, my friend with deepining voice.
u m@~e have a little talk with you before
you &C.
Or - N exuberantIy clad youth presented
hinlse,f visa erinning Guess you know me
al = III sent you picture OF myself last
vecl-, tie cccrt t.-ry would calculate. "Ohs Mr.
9la~l. wa s. proad of that picture that ne
sNe9.ca il Jc lle--you're Harold umpdash, OF
Dere + VI; know you are1
Al l~.ev tie guests were heard to con-
ida 70 crc another that the star was
peach-kasg them right away. "But how on
earth does he stand that secretary Of his, al
Of course, not all the letters are intimate
and personal There are hundreds and hun
dreds asking for photographs. 81 am collect
ing movie actors and want to hang you with
them''-it comes far more often than one
would think possible. There are the requests
for clothing, for money, for "a lock Of your
hair for souvenir" AS admirers frequently
send in locks of their own hair, with their pho
tographs, that request is easily granted; /
know of one long brown curl that kept a hand
some man heart smasher in locks of hair for
nearly six months.
There are the presents. too-handsome, hid
eous pathetic. The kind of thing you've seen
in souvenir shops where you were idling away
a half-hour while somebody fixed the tire or
took look at the engine, things you've exam
med with amusement and justified with, We'll,
somebody must buy them!'' There are elabo-
rate centerpeces, embroidered in the stars fa-
vorite flower and favorite color-every star
must be equipped with these colors and flowers,
even before stardom is attained. There must
be favorite quotation, too, TO write on photo
graphs that are to be auctioned off for charity.
''To thine own self be true"-the one that
starts that way is always good.
Of course all this correspondence means
good deal to star. It's the crystallization of
his applause. 1t gives him a pretty good idea
of what his public likes about him and what it
doesn't like. l know of one star whose friends
had taken their lives in their hands and tried
to tell her that she used too much mascara on
her eyes. She didn't believe them, but when
her fan mail drove the fact home she was
convinced. | know of another star who felt
that he had played one type of role long
enough, and changed to another. His pictures
didn't draw so well, and the exhibitors reported
that he was losing his pulling power. His
secretary was able to tell what the difficulty
was, and he went back to stories of the old
sort and stood em in line, even on rainy nights
once more.
Sometimes, too, real flesh and blood friend
ships grow out of these correspondence, but
not often. Unless the glamour is strong enough
to hide the fact that the star is not what he
seems on the screen, or unless, as happens in
rare cases, the star really does fit the screen
appearance, it's unwise for star and star gazer
to get acquainted.
This disclosure of what the stars write and
why is likely to bring forth storm of protest
81 aJWGys answer nay own maiP'--of course
Well, some stars do. Some stars, also, think
of something other than how they're screening
with the new makeup on, and what sort Cd
publicity they're getting, and what somebody
else is getting away with when there ought IL
be law against it.
Also, some people never have even thought
Of writing to movie star. You never have
of course. Neither have I. But I wouldn'
bet on the rest of the world.