The Washington times., 1936-03-24

Football became my first real
aim in life, by the time got out
of grammar school and enrolled
in Central High. Always big and
husky for my age, I made the left
half position without any trouble,
but I had visions Of going on to
college and making Walter
Camps "AIl American"-which
really meant something at that
time. SO I spent my summers
working with railroad and tele-
graph construction gangs, build
ing up a physique that has stood
be in good stead ever since.
However, I didn't make any ALL
American-or any college, either.
My brother, Archie, had hung out
his shingle as q doctor in Mime
apoliS, and our family moved
across the river to be near him.
That meant I had to transfer to
North High in that city, where
the faculty proved less sympa-
thetic with my gridiron ambitions
and more particular about Scho-
laStic standing. The upshot was
that I was declared ineligible for
athletics and, annoyed, I quit
school then and there.
A red-headed woman was the
cause of it all. AS a rising young
bank clerk with the munificent
income Of IS dollars a month, I
became deeply enamoured Of a
carrot-topped siren. She was at
tending night school, so, in order
to see more Of her, signed up for
night school too.
I didn't want to study, so
looked over the curriculum and
selected dramatics as being the
easiest and most amusing course
in sight. And that's how my Ca
reer as q thespian started. Before
long I was thoroughly absorbed
in the viStas the dramatic class
opened out for me, and I studied
as I had never studied in high
school.
While I must have been pretty
awful, the rest of the class pre-
Sumbably was worse; anyhow, I
was assigned the lead in the class
first play, "Riche.ieu."
'Richelieu" went on just one
night. A single performance was
probably enough for the Mime
apOlit& IS. Among the spectators,
however, was an incOnspicuOuS
chap Who turned out to be an
advance man for SOthern and
MarlOwe, due shortly for a
Shakespearean revival. Through
his kind offices was allowed
to give - reading They'd call il
an addition these days. for the
famous pair soon after they ar
rived. My hiStriOnic talents
simply overwhelmed them, and
/ departed with the offer of a
place in their cOmpany-and
SIS week!
Minneapolis was shrouded in
gloom when I got home and met
a stern perennial "No." To father,
anything that Smacked of the
theater was "evil," and this, I
think, was the bitterest diSappoint-
ment O my life. Even his subse-
quent mellowing to the point Of
letting me join the st. Paul Stock
Company, months later, by no
means healed the wound.
It's a grand sensation, appearing
before the footlights in your home
town. Seemingly every youngsEer
I'd ever gone to school with, and
all his relatives and friends.
packed into the house at every
performance, and cheered me so
convincingly that the manager
gave me a raise.
That was a mistake. I immedi-
ately got the impression that St.
Paul was much too small for ME
and that New York was clamoring
for my talents. Everybody advised
me to the contrary-but I knew
better.
Seven weeks after reaching the
Great White Way I was down to
my last few pennieS-and still no
Broadway manager had offered
me a job. Then an angel came
along. He was skinny and wore a
beard and didn't resemble the
standard angel Of fiction. But his
proposition was angelic enough -
q nice salary in a Pittsburgh stock
company-and I jumped at it.
Pittsburgh, Dallas, Richmond
hard work, learning new roles
constantly for 10 and IL per-
fOrmances a week, month after
month. But all good. sound
training-and how / needed it!
When I hit New York again,
more than a year afterward,
felt / really knew a little about
acting.
william Faversham, then at the
height of his glory, was casting
for "The Hawk" when I made my
second assault on Broadway. This
time was more successful, and
the great actor was kind enough
to offer me a very good role with
him. I broke all records for swift
acceptance, and in the first flush
of fame sent for my mother and
sister to come East and witness
my triumph.
Other Broadway shows, stock
company engagement in Mon
treal amid the pageantry of the
early dayS Of the World War and