The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1931-05-05

"Well blow me down. if it isn't
our own little Bretta!" I cried.
She gave me a quick look and
then rushed up to me.
"Bert-please-cut the Bretta
Smith stuff, I'm Countess d'EsSie."
my old friend, the countess,
when did you come over. and
brighten up the moving picture
world?" I said, quickly.
"A few months ago-the last
time I saw you was in Barcelona"
Exactly, Barcelona" and then
I added some Spanish for good
effect.
She turned to her colored maid
and opened the big makeup box:
From a little case she took q card
and handed it to me
Tonight, Bert-that's a dear"
she whispered, and then, "Adlos,
senor!"
I swept off my hat and tossed
her a kiss.
A little later I sauntered into
the studio and finally located her
on a set. From what I could make
of it, she was playing a bad, bad
vamp, breaking up, or trying to
break up, the happy home OF
some goldcn-haired bride.
who is she?" I asked one Of
the grips.
Foreign dame, from Spain
gee them danes sure make hot
vampS," he told me; IAN she's q
real countess, too"
Broke, eh2"
"Sure, all them docks an
countesses is always broke" the
wise youth essayed to inform me.
GO I hunted up the place that
~ evening. 1t was a coy bunga-
low, and Bretta Smith greeted me
as If we had been meeting every
day since first we met nearly
three years before.
"Ah, countess, you are some
distance from Barcelona" was
my greeting.
BE yourself, Bert. we're alone.
Come in aid tell me all YOU
Know" she answered, with q
laugh.
Bretta brought out drinks.
where is your motter?" l
asked.
Mamma died on the way east
from San Guardo. ! tool. your
advice and went abroad"
Then you are a real countesS?"
She nodded. HE spent your coin
and you had to go into the flick
erS, is that it?"
I'VE had a homemade movie;
y German took it. He said that
I photographed we'll. I shook the
count-regular ~divorce-and here
l am. How about you-married
yet?"
I told her about what had hap
pened concerning the show and a
lot OF stuff, but I didn't mention
MaviS.
I saw Bretta a dozen times dur
ing the ten days I was on the Job
doubling for Claude, the baseball
film hero. 1 met a lot of people,
especially at her bungalow. I
also learned that the countess
was backing this picture, and had
more temperament than Holly
wood had extras.
I got a big kick out OF some of
the "rushes," that is, bits of the
picture that are projected for in
spectlon as soon as they are made.
Not that / appeared at all except
III some shots so long that I
couldn't be recognized. But some
or those pictures had been SLOW
motion: l got a better idea of lust
now the balls / pitched acted
than I could in any other man
ner.
This gave me a bunch.
HIRED a camera man and we
took a long drive o. into the
country with a life-size dummy
ilgure. l fixed up a plate, put a
cat IN the dummy's hands in O
Sltion, and proceeded to hurl the
pals. l threw everything 1 knew
nov ana tried to invent others. I
kept noteS IN proper order so i
could tell which was which.
The result was decidedly holm.
Iul, so much so that I got a little
protector so that I could study
those. pictures over and over r
1ound out much that I was never
sure OF IN regard to curves that I
tossed down.
we were to have a marty Of
bretta Smiths place, althouah she
always went by the name nf
Countess d'Essi. VI
Pick me up at z TONIGHT OF
Pete's," she requested. "Pefea w as
Tgaaiy Conn Garrison, her director.
OF times. eoople
just about Z I strolled o,,o.
from my hotel, expecting. tn f;nd
ner and her car. There was M na.
tnere, so I decided to call and wait
unLll she got there. ""AS
Inc qoor to the bungalow was
open: I called but got no answ "%
1 pushed the buZzer and aftor
w1lle l stepped inside,
IN the living room / found cor
I!son; sitting in a chair bv a Iittie
stand full of things for ~ LYLE
cocktails. He didn't look aro,,n
Wnen l called out, cheerilv s.tga'Io
yet?" ooui''eSs mere
Mnen I got closer I saw whv he
uhtuiIG answer. He was dead in he
cnalr! A glance showed tbat i us
naq peen murdered! NC
neard a sound at NV left ara
roi;nH ! saw two men. n IN
ponce uniform. The other 1noxaMa
chair. A4sure IN the
so you croaked him. eh9" =.
said. accusingly. ca" ne