The Omaha guide., 1935-08-03
A Different Stepin
Famed Film Comedian Has Some
Surprising Traits.

L@OO - OoA-f o0L ~ -
Jacob Anderson for ANP-No
where IN America and perhaps no
where in the world, / believe could
the event which sat through last
Tuesday night have been dupli-
Gated.
IL was on the occasion OF the
seasonal opening of the Sym
phOnies Under the Stars" the
famous symphony orchestra con-
cert season at the Hollywood
Bowl here. Forty-thousand peo-
pie sat out in the open in this
great natural amphitheater
nestled down be tween the noun
tains in this fantastic movie and,
and heard a musical program
payed by one of the country's SUI
perlative symphony orchestras
conducted by the famed Otto
Flemparer.
was the guest Of "Stepin Fet-
chit, that noted prince Of clown
ish laziness Oh the screen, whose
name is a household word and
whose INDECENT drawing speech
and actions have brought marri-
ment to thousands Of theater
audiences.
The night was a perfect one,
the sort of California weather you
read about. The moon which had
been IN total eclipse the evening
before, shone with a radiance
which made electric lights superb
and the dome TO the heavens over
head was crowded with myriads
Of stars.
In Stepin Fetchits box, which
he confided later, he has retain
ed by the season ever since he
came to Hollywood in 1925, sat al
so Eta Moten, stage and screen
celebrity and two Of the film co
median's friends, Bernice Patton
and her husband. Nearby were ce-
lebrities by the score; Edmund
Lowe of the movies, Marlene
Dieterich, Lily Pons, the Metro
pelitan Opera Star, who later was
[ oappear on the program, Schell-
ing Flynn, the noted conductor,
Isabe Morse Jones, Reusen ID.
Bird, president of the Philhar-
monte Society and president of
Occidental college, all sorts Of
film stars and three or four hun
dred members Of the American
Bar Association, which was hold
ing its convention here were
grouped IN a body.
There in the center sat a man
who has devoted his artistry to
type of Negro, a type which at
the development of a humorous
times he seems to live off the
screen as well as on.
What attraction, / wondered,
could this distinctly high brow
entertainment have for an expon-
ent of definitely low brow come
dyf / was soon to find out.
As the conductor lifted his ba-
ton and the eighty musicians
swung into Debussy's "The Sea"
I watched Stepin Fetchit closely.
Well tailored, with a brown
SLOUGH hat lying in his lap, his
head resting on hsi hand which
was supported by his elbow care
lessly placed on the rail Of the
box, he sat In a familiar pose and
as the matchless music rose and
fell, his face wore a serious ex-
preston and be seemed oblivious
to all about him
A large section Of people clap
ped at an inopportune time. Step
in turned frowning and impa-
tient.
"Those are a bunch of first
nighters" he complained. "They
suspicious OCCASION. They are not
opening night because it is an
crowd Dut to the bowl on the
real music lovers. Most of these
people are here though because
of their sheer love of the beauti-
full and artistic.
"While / engage my box by the
season and never miss a perform
ance when | am not working, /
frequently occupy It alone be
cause SO few Of my friends really
care for this sort Of music. When
visitors come though, folk whom
u feel are appreciative, this is the
one place in ali California to
which | really like to bring them.