Evening star., 1935-09-21
BY E. de S. MELCHER,


- L Nor is Jean u slnum, blond
any more.
The former state Of affairs is likely
to be permanent. The latter Is q
whim Of the moment, Miss Harlow's
neat white locks being hidden under
q wig which has all the studio gentry
on It's ear. The wig is sort OF
cinnamon gold color, curly and in
flnitely becoming. In it Jean looks
five years younger than her actual "a
years, She is wearing it for Riff
raff"-in which she marrieS Spencer
Tracy. She also has child.
When Jean talked about Bill Powell,
she smiled that snall, attractive,
enigmatic grin which her friends
sdmire-her enemies hate. While she
sat back in a studio chair, her maid
combed her golden locks; Mrs. Bello,
her mother, kept an eye on her, and
Una Merkel made pleasant wise
cracks. Jean and Bill are evidently
the best of friends. Beyond that,
silence. Beyond that-apparently
nothing. The acre-sized diamond ring
which is meant to be adorntng her
finger was noticeably absent. 1t may
have been due to "Riffraf"-at any
rate it was absent.
Jean is younger looking, better
looking than ever before. Everybody
on the set said the same thing ex-
cept Mrs. Bello. But no." said Jeans
mother, she's always looked like
that Maybe she's right. Jean had
a two months vacation after China
Seas" got herself sunburned and
healthy, put on a couple of pounds.
A few days ago she almost had
nervous breakdown when family trou-
BILE again reached a peak and her
mother sued Mr.. Bello for divorce.
Jean is over that now. Although
runor has it that she wasn't too fond
of her stepfather, if you ask her about
him she says: That's my mothers
affair-not mine" Wisely she keeps
out of the argument. Sadly, though,
as anybody will tell you on the M
GIN lot, she has more bad breaks
which were none of her business than
sny one in the business. Still she
keeps up her chin. Still she keeps
smiling. And she and Una Merkel
and Spencer Tracy are having swell
time kidding the life out of each
other during the filming of their new
picture.
The happiest man at M-G-M.
however, is Bob Montgomery. He
hasn't started working on his new
film. For recreation he runs in and
out of the studio in his new gray and
silver car, which he brought with him
from England. 1t Is very low. very
long and has a red cover for the back
seat. He grins all over when ne stops
beside you Right away he starts in
on the cars virtues-includng: 1T
makes = lot OF noiSc"-whereupon he
pulls out some sort Of gadget ana
almost blows the street out OF its
mooring. Then he. says I've been
los miles in it in England"-and
finally he looks it all over with i'm
mense personal pride, pats it gently
with one hand, and then rolls of Tor
a conference with Irving Thalberg.
who Is due any minute from New
York.
X X y X
0THER items cleaned at lunch
" hour on the M-G-M set: Luise
Rainer could only say Eyes" no" and
Johnny" chats her dog In Engllsn
when she first came to Hollywood. -.
Clark Gable hops off every five min
utes to hunt up in the mountains
when he's not working on a f1lm...
Hugh walpole isn't too happy because
he's been sidetracked on story other
than the one for which he was
brought over Mickey Roony, now 13,
and playing IN "Riffraff," is said to
steal Midsummer Nights Dream"
RosaNnd Russell Is one OF the Dig
best right now.. Norma Sheafer Is
studying Romeo and Juliet" Tor all
she is worth. Everybody In Holly
wood (including Franchot Tone) has
been tested for Romeo. .Nobody's got
the role yet. Leslie Howard Is, how
ever, leading.
After a pleasant hour with Harlow,
Montgomery, etc., it Is dlfncut 70
come out in the light and face Holly
woods sun and the million and one
Harlow sidewalk imitators again.
Paramount has, however, seen to 1t
that its gigantic Hollywood opening
of "The Big Broadcast of 1885" Is put
at our disposal, with the radio broad
cast on the stage of the Los Angeles
Theater as one of the features.
Here is pandemonium. The stars
who are to participate in the event
(the theater was jammed to see them)
have arrived half hour ahead of
time to see that all is we'll. Every
thing is we'll except the stars. Carl
Brisson Is shaking like leaf. In
spite of Mrs. Brisson's pleadings he
remains petrified. 1t Is his first broad
cast.
Less petrified is Ethel Norman. She
bounches up and down the stage as
she did in Anything Goes" hum
ming bits of her great success and
being most cordial when any one goes
up to her and tells her that he
thought she was splendid in the show.
Dressed in a blue sailor suit, she Is
by far the calmest of the bunch. Jack
OalSie, master of ceremonies-you
probably heard this broadcast Mary
Boland starred in it at the other
end-New York)-strolls up and
down, very noticeable in q white suit
with q blue shirt, which Is Byronically
thrown wide open at the collar. Helen
Jepson, who arrived only 10 minutes
ago by plane from the East. is very
handsome, very stately, in black
hat and rich fur cape, which she
wears in spite Of the fact that 1t is
80 in the shade. Charles Ruggles
isn't there He arrives minutes
ahead Of the time he goes on-thus