The Washington times., 1930-03-31
GAPBO TALKS
OF GOING
ON STAGE
By ANDREW B. KELLEY


founded custom with huge au-
dience for the Poll premiere. To
nights performance Will be uni
yersity women's benefit with a
sell-out imminent.
The National Players start their
sixth season tonight with Philip
Barry's Holiday" a lobby deco
rated with congratulatory buds.
a bulging audience assured by a
D. A. r. society benefit, and
company which looks on paper
like the best ever recruited to
carry the Cochran standard.
For IA talks on the radio, each
less than Is minutes, Will Rogers
viii collect $4,000. This is
new high mark for air converse
tion and as Floyd Gibbons fig
ured it out on his adding machine
and announced it Saturday night,
the wiSecracks are being paid for
at the rate of $3.50 a minute.
These airologues will be sent out
through the Columbia network
although the first was broadcast
last ngiht over the NB.C. waves.
Rogers is now making $50 This
Is London" for Fox pictures and
among other things which will
occupy Florenz ziegfeld while out
on the coast is trying to get the
gum.chewing comedian to take
another fling at the FollieS.
Still with all this talk Of easy
money there are many who will
contend the Softest and most
easily acquired pelf for the
Rogers bank book came from the
Fox Happy Days" where the
sum total of his salary grabbing
effort was a chewing gum plug.
Metro -Goldwyn is nightly dis
turbed-and who can blame 'ern
because Greta Carlo has con-
fided in one or two intimateS as
soon as her command of English
Is perfect, and her M-G-M con.
tract is fulfilled she will have a
fling at the stage. Such news at
a time when the great Carlo
looms as the greatest box office
winner of all time is enough to
drive anybody to the aspirin
bottle. Her Anna Christie" is
the first feature to win third
week at the Capitol Theater in
New York. At present the actress
is making Romance" the play
which served Doris Keane faith
fully for many seasons.
Ruth Chatterton, steadily
mounting in popularity with movie
audiences, appears to be an
actress gifted with the rare talent
of picking good stories. Sarah
and Son" looks like another win
ner and is a screen fiction in
which the emotional appeal has
been so adroitly carpentered the
cumulative effect on the Senti-
mental movie-goer is devastating.
OF course it is brilliantly acted by
the star.
The Chatterton success is su-
prising because it is no longer a
secret that this stage star was
on the down grade as a footlight
favorite when the movies came
along. After her footlight separa-
ton from Henry Miller she lever
touched successful play and was
reduced to stock engagements.
Then the Hollywood venture and
such talking hits as Doctors
Secret" Madame x" THE
Laughing Lady," Charming Sin
ners" and Sarah and Son" until
today her name means something
when spelled out in the electric
bulbs.
It is one of the paradoxes pecu-
liar to the movies. Who, for IN
stance, would ever believe that
Lenore Uric, the greatest OF
Belasco's recent sta: would find
such difficulty in clicking for pic
lures, while Sydney CMr. Lenore
Ulric) Blackmer whom a good
many, including myself, regarded
as pretty much of a ham actor,
finds himself in demand with all
of the coast studios.
Managing director John j. Pay
ette of the Warner Brothers
Washington theaters, WOULD Ike
to ring up bumper week for
the Earle Theater b. booking
"Amos N Andy" Every time he
goes to New York, which means
about every week, he renewS his
effort for the Correll and GoSden
signature, but aside from some
what vague promise the act will
eventually play here, returns with
out a contract.
Completing right now for the
CANA" services are Florenz Zieg-
field who would use them in the
new FollieS, MeSSrS. Brady and
Winan, who want the team as
the nucleus for the new Little
Show and the MeSsrs. Shubert
who have a new musical that
could utilize the star act Of radio.
With such competition a new
high for salary may be registered.
Earle Theater customers have
shown a strong liking for name
stage acts and while the appetite
is profitable Impressario Payette
is eager to satisfy it, even to the
extent of competing with Broad,
way bank books.
Bert Lytell closed his show,
"Brothers" in Newark Saturday
night after playing in it l6
months steadily and earning divi-
dends as actor and co-producer.
The original production Of
4 4.