The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1934-05-15

N"AS~8O CAVbACO nHW WASA AAAS
hair lOOped familiary over his
forehead, he never failed to be
embarrassed before the screens
Oh-So-glamOrous beauties; his,
eyes, man," or "NO, Man,"
was the invariable diffident
reply to all questions.
MAKING GOOD: In March,
1920. signed one-year contract
with Goldwyn and there followed
films with Tom Moore, Jack Pick.
ford, Naomi Childers, Lon CLANCY,
Will Russell, Milton Stills, Claire
Windsor and Henry Wathall. At
Fox I did an old favorite, "a
Fool There Was" where, with the
facility I'd developed, 1 wept my
way to success in cast that in.
cluded Lewis Stone and Estelle
Taylor.
High up in the Sierras, in 1922,
came an amusing interlude wher
I did Drawn of the North" The
other lead was handled by Strong.
heart-canine favorite of the day.
In April, 1922, I signed my first
long term contract with Warner
Brothers and Immediately was
loaned to the Pickford lot where,
with Mary, we did "Rosita." This
was the first picture Ernst Lub'
itsch directed in this country and
he was thought mad for ignoring
my homespun, gingham dress
roles and giving me the part of
the Spanish queen. It was the
first chance I'd had to show ]
could wear beautiful clothes
needless to say. liked it.
What English he knew, Lubitsch
had picked up on the boat on the
way from Germany and his wife
asked how old the great man was,
told me, "He's 49," That" ]
exclaimed, must be a mistake. !"
"Ah no." replied Frau Lubitsch,
zone and three, that makes 49,"
i But Lubitsch at 81 was, as to-
day, the genius among directors.
Once in a crowd scene, he be-
came so excited at a mistake, he
walked off the parallel, high above
the set, and crashed to the floor
below. Luckily, he wasn't seri-
ously injured.
With Shearer
In August, 1928, I went back to
the Warner lot and did "Lucretia
Lombard" in which Norma Shear
er did such a grand job with her
part that she established herself
among the screen favorites.
About that time, in "Beau
Brummel," I had the thrilling op.
portunity to work with one of the
finest actors the screen has ever
attracted, John Barrymore. He
was so magnificent that I, for
one, had a hard time keeping my
mind on my own role and not
being carried away by the artistry
of his performance.
In January, 1924, came my first
fight with Warner Brothers.
Leads with Independents followed
until, in May, I went back to the
Warner lot at double my old
salary.
In April, 1927, I married for
the third (and laStD time; four
years later I gave this name back
to the courts. ~
Meanwhile, in April, 1928, there
came my final row with Warner
Brothers. Talking pictures were
just coming into vogue and it was
decided didn't have a voice
Which now amuSes me no end
particularly since I'm doing a
radio program, where all that mat.
tiers is a voice.
VAUDEVILLE AND RADIO:
There followed a vaudeville tour
using the same voice that dis.
turbed the collective Warner
Brothers ears and, in June, 1929,
a talking picture, '"They Had to
See Paris" with Will Rogers
Then more vaudeville - North,
East, South and West, with twd
engagements at the Palace in
three months; I was terrified the
first time I had such a large
audience.
Back to vaudeville, then a mad,
dening experience in pictures
when I did two quickies-inde.
pendents-in nine days.
After that came East-which
to my mind, Is the only place to
live. Then work at the EXPOSE
ton in Chicago and a radio con.
tract last September. More luck,
In between, there was guest,
starring in stock companies.
And all that leads to the pres.
ent moment which leaves me with
my chief ambition in life: To do
a really good play. Something,
let's say, that will compare with
Reunion in Vienna"
Then, perhaps, at 80 I'll take
to knitting-Or, worse yet, con-
tract bride (which I despise)
and as / rock back and forth,
I'll tell all about the old days.
And with a smile of recognition,
I'll remember how in 1888, the
motion pictures turned out the
grandeSt job Of their history
and gave as Walt DiSney's
"Thres Little Pigs"