Evening star., 1934-06-29

trim looking young lady, no wider
than a match, who has progressed in
leaps and bounds since she played
those fine scenes with Ethel Barry
more in "Rasputin and the Empress"
As we walked onto the set, and were
introduced to Director David Butler,
who wrote this story originally for
Janet Gaynor and Charlie Farrell,
poor Mr.. Irwin was having an un-
happy time with q plate of spaghetti
conceal under his hat. II you have
ever tried to balance a plate of spa
ghetti on your head and keep on your
hat at the same time, you will know
that this Is no cinch. Miss Merkel
was helping him with the spaghetti,
and unkind onlookers were saying:
GLUE it on, Stu" and mail it on"
TO the further discomfort of the gen.
tleman. Whether this scene will be
funny or not in the final washdown,
it was certainly amusing to watch.
Ten times the spaghetti act had to be
rehearsed.
During some sort Of an entre'act,
we had a chance to talk to Jimmie
WOllS 11OWC, OIlC VI lllC UCOJ IdIIlCId
men in the industry, and the young
man who was responsible for those
beautiful pictures of Mexico in "Viva
Villa" Mr. Howe is Chinese, not
quite over feet, who at one time
weighed 95 pounds and was a popu-
lar bantamweight fighter. Now he
weighs more-and makes of course
plenty more money. He said that
they had fine time filming that
Mexican revolution for the film. They
were at 1t 10 days. And it was no
trouble at all-because you can get
Mexican to crack another Mexican
over the head for almost nothing
When the sequence was finished there
were 40 or so Mexicans in the hos
pitals. They were even offered six
real corpses for the hanging scenes
Lunch With Miss MerkeI.
After the spaghetti scenes were
recorded Miss Merkel gave us that
dressing room lunch-in that long.
low bungalow building which at the
end houses Miss Garbo and that white
wicket fence which separates her from
the rest of humanity and that pri-
| vate staircase which is the envy of
every star. Miss Merkel's room has
been done over in blue and white, and
while we wait for lunch we are
| treated to the sight of a stars hair
being wetted and put up in irons so
| that in an hour it will be fuzzy and
in order again for afternoon scenes.
Miss Merkel finished one picture
three days ago. another two weeks
before that. another four weeks be-
fore that, and she has worked every
Saturday until and sometimes Sun
day. too. She is therefore exhausted
and not at all sure that she is up
TO being funny in Have a Heart"
In between mouthfuls of salad she
says that she and Madge Evans cher
best friend) plan to come to Washing
| ton in the Fall (if all the people come
who say they will come Washington
should be Hollywood by October and
that Anna May Wong is coming back
to Hollywood, and how are the Gil
mores Eddie and Barbara and, of
course. Carter Barron,
When the salad has disappeared
and the lady comes back to take those
irons out of her hair. it is time for
us to be off. We have yet to see
Franchot Tone work out with May
Robson, Karen Morley (there's a
pretty girD and Gladys George in
-Four Walls"-the play which first
planted Paul NUM- into fame. Miss
Robson cries for 10 minutes in the
very teeth Of the camera and we are
amazed at that wonderful old ladys
endurance.
Later there Is a snow scene to see