Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-05-31

Folly Koppy writes: AN !ntellec-
tual bird. disfgured by the taml!iar
tortoise shells and sicklied Ger with
the male cast of thought. in my hearing
recently gave voice to this obter die
rum: "A scrivener in the public prints
a professional writer whose effusions
are read by the multi minded mob
should be free from preJudices.
"I contended there were no seen
ouill drivers; that no scribe can avoid
being biased in some degree: 1t was
nsychical auirk or somethin'. But. l
maintained. writer's chief function
or paramount duty-was to put IL
down without fear or favor. pe-
lieye YOU belong to the latter guild. IL
YOU don't like one or anything you sa!
"A after the fashion of man TO whom
assembling bunk is anathema: ana
therefore I read your stun 1t rings
true-and there is virile timore 10 II
that strikes sweetly on my tEmpanum
80
"I hold no brief case for Mae Murray.
I think, however, Enrico. she deserves
more applausive appralsemehI ifoh
you. o.oss,o,
''She has risen in her profession
through hard. earnest work. and. be-
give her audiences the best that IS IN
bsr About eight years ago little Mae
was dancing with Clifton Webb. She
had been 'Follies' girl. But. paired
with the lean. agile Clifton, she was
siying exhibitions at that time. when
dancing was enjoying wide vogue ana
there was a febrifc demand for trip
ming duos. She possessed no dramatic
tsIent that l could discern. but she was
sifted with 1.-the limbs, graceful toes
and a lithesome body that swayed as
a flower in June zephyr. In me
phraseology of Browning, she couid
shake a spiffy shank. ~
.'Robert L. Leonard had not then
come into her life. Jay Brien was
her beau gallant. She married him and
subsequently was divorced.
"It was on a pier in Atlantic CITY
eight years ago that she appeared as
holiday attraction for one or Two Gays
with Webb. She worked under ths
handicap of a cold in the head. anu
hor small Milesian nose was-er-red
and watery. She dabbed it frequently;
with a handkerchief-Irish linen-and
for all the world appeared to me TO be
q little girl named Maggie Murray who
lived in q side street with her old man,
Mike Murray, who loved his usquebaugh
md pine above all mundane things, And
he wore red fannels and woolen socks
and removed his brogans when he en-
tered his kingly domain. And Maggie
was his little blue-eye girl, with a
wistful. piquant face which even the
neighbors did NOT deny Appropriated q
sort of rare beauty.
"She was just a little pensive girl,
with dreams and ambitions tilling her
Celtic soul--which grew into an OBJ
session. And when she left the neigh
borhood to seek an outlet for what
talent she believed in her heart she
possessed, the old man wiped away
more than one surrrpt!tious tear and
sighed more openly than he believed he
ever would.
"Well. Maggie made good. And in
the years Rfterward-nOt 50 many
she was Mae Murray. dancing FOL
lies fiiy who won wide recognition
And then came the movies-and glori =
fcation. And success didn't go TO her
head. She didn't change 50 you would
notice II.
'She has brought visual pleasure r.
thousands--this graceful fgurHntc e
the screen. And | think now she pos
seSses more than modicum Of histri-
onic skill though dancing Is he'
rrticr. And am strong for Ma'
Murray, whose nam" :, unsmir"Icd by
the sort Of scandal which isis pity
It's true--ConS!dcrcd an adyeut.t!ou,
aid 10 success in tho films
"And II 1t were not for the romance
and sentiment that were part Cf hrl
being-a heritage Of the raCe-Sh'
probably wouldn't have been lured from
her humdrum existenre and, through
her talents, scale the almost insupNr'
able obstacles TO reach the iridescen
heights attained by olly few.
"rhats how | view Mae Murray
She deserves her success and the sym
pathy and well wishes of the cinema
cognoscenti, including yourself, oh
Henry, Mahatma of the Movies 80
(Gosh, that's good letter. Folly
Koppy. It's 50 smooth and sincere and
/. humon. Any comment Of mine would
only spoil It, hut you've come mighty
close To winning me over, so ,et's shake
hands on an agreement to wish l.ttlt
Maggie Murray well and boost her
along II we conscientiously can. And
since "Fascination, I'm beginning tc
believe we cam
''luterested' writes: GIVE me q
erack at 'Beyond the Rocks, won't you
SAonsey I haven't read your comment
a. Il ~ vet and can hardly wait unit
d