Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-06-21

" ThatS q question you near
quite often in wandering
around the film colony. Many Of the celebrities
themselves wonder just where they would be
and what they would be doing if it wasn't for
the magic celluloid Yet none Of them has
grown any gray hairs from bordering over the
question, for the simple reason that nobody
believes such a calamity to be even the re-
hottest possibility the way things are.
At the same time however, it is interesting
to speculate on just what would happen to
them. Some, of course, would devote the rest
of their lives to spending the huge fortunes
they have saved. Others would go into some
kind of business-and make good
You see some of celuloid's celebrities have
good business heads A good many of them
already have proved that. All Of which brings
yod down to the point of this Story-movie-
lands business ventures outside Of the movies.
A survey of the business enterprises of film
folk reveals some startling facts, namely, that
more than a score of persons. whose names
and faces are familiar to film fans the world
deriving comfortable incomes aside
from the salary checks they get from the
studios.
Outstanding among this group is Ruth
Roland queen of all serial stars a few years
ago. Ruth well paid, even movie
salaries run, back in the days when no stunt
was too difficult for her. Her bank balance
mounted with startling rapidity, so she decided
to invest some of the surplus cash in real
estate. That the starting of a business
that today places her among the leading realty
operators in Los Angeles-which is saying
something
At first the real estate business was merely
o well paying sideline with Miss Roland But
business soon grew to such proportions that
she decided to quit pictures and devote all Of
her time to selling plots of ground-and she
coined money even faster than she had been
doing before the grinding cinema cameras
She proved to be smart business woman,
CT rt N a
tune running into millions.
A ND now she has gone into the fish business.
as an outgrowth of the miniature golf
craze. When every one went 'putt-putt" crazy
last Summer, Ruth built tricky golf course
right in the center of the exclusive Wiltshire
residential district. For a while the cash
register rang merrily. Then, as every one
knows, miniature golf took terrific nose dive.
Not liking the idea of having bad invest
nent on her hands, Miss Roland decided to
turn her "putt-putt" course into trout pond
The fairways were turned into an artificial
brook which was stocked with trout. Now
homeward-bound workers can stop and catch
their own fresh trout for dinner-at so much
per trout.
Another member Of the. film colony who
figured there was good living in fishing was
Noah Berry. A few years ago Berry opened
his Paradise Trout Club in the mountains
about 80 miles from Hollywood. "A natural
mountain stream running through his property
was damned in such a manner as to create
numerous pools in which trout of various sizes
are segregated.
At first the club was open to only limited
number of members, but when Berry found
the public clamoring for a chance to catch his
trout he decided to hold "open house" at all
times. And the few hundred trout with which
the stream was first stocked are now counted
by the hundred thousand. Visitors at the club
can catch as many they want, at IS cents
o trout.
In addition, Berry supplies trout to hotels
throughout Southern California. AS business
increased he also erected number Of cabins
put in swimming pool and some tennis courts
and bought a number of horses. So now his
club offers q perfect vacation spot for day
or month, whether or not one likes to fish.
4 AARY PTCKFORD is reputed to be one of
wi the smartest business women in the
celluloid hamlet, but listen to what she has
To say.