The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1934-10-04

Little Show"D. This is doing we'll
for the income tax man and with
out violating any NRA code over
time clauses.
Laughton?
You can start an argument any
old time out in Hollywood If the
subject of Charles Laughton's act
ing is mentioned. For he has an
academy gold medal to prove that
he did the best acting of 1884 IN
Private Life of Henry VIII"
1t happens that Laughton, in
."Barretts of Wimpole Street." in
spires laughs with audiences
through the severity of the char.
acter and the hypocritical color
ing he applies with his acting.
The anti-Laughton faction asserts
that the terrible ham in him is
being recognized and cite that in
the stage version the elder Barrett
never moved an audience to
filters. In other words, the dis
senters say he is the champion at
overacting.
Those who side with Laughton
don't mention Henry VIII" his
Nero in Sign of the Cross" or
Barrett" as his best. Instead
they say Laughton at his tops was
present in Devil and the Deep"
in which he made a clean Sw1pe
from Tallulah Bankhead and in
Payment Deferred" These last
two mentioned pictures were first
rate box office flops, by the way.
The fact is, argument or no argu-
ment. uaughton will collect $4,000
for IL days work in David Cop
perfield." He had to shave his
head to get the part and suggested
that Metro-G oldwyn-Mayer pay
him at a pro-rate until his locks
attained their normal length. He
can buffalo directors who are
afraid to ask him to do it their
way, but M-G-M on this latest
decided Laughton grow his hair on
his own time and money.
.CenSOr Nathan
George Jean Nathan is for CEN
SorShip in the movies. He even
offers a long list of worth while
pictures which were never an
noyed by the censorS and blameS
cheap smut for all of Hollywood'S
troubles.
It is amusing to see G. J. N.
sleeping with the reformers. In
fact, I liked the old fire and brim-
stone Nathan Of 1925, who cut
loose after this fashion:
Like a laundering flood of
bilge and scum the flapdOddle
of the films has swept the
country, carrying before it what
seeds of perception were SprOut-
ing, however, family, among
our lesser peoples.
Controlled in the over
whelming main by the most
ignorant social OutcastS, by the
spawn of pushcart immigration.
by hereditary tOothpick suck
erS, soup cOlOraturaS and six
day sock wearers-the moving
pictures-the physic of the
proletarlat - have revealed
themselves the most effective
carriers of idiocy that the civil
lized world has known"
This was the Nathan Of the
furies. The high priest of de-
structive criticism who must sing
a sour solo if the rest of the
world shouted a hallalujah cho-
rus. His writings probably have
corrupted more aspiring dramatic
editors and would-be motion pic
ture critics than any other single
influence. For they tried to imi.
tate him with but classroom
background and no experience,
Forgetting Nathan was to be read
and not believed.
The worst that I could hope
for Mr.. Nathan is that he get the
censorship he appears to crave
and then be compelled to sit
steadily through a dozen reels OF
the Pollyanna cycle he is promot
ing. Would he burst an artery
thny1 oaffin0 IN hic %1yvoaHr,rifar0