Evening star., 1936-01-19
Scores of Tricks Played
:. :. On Public Eyes and Ears
Many a Clever Individual Whose Name
F 2 Misses Programs Plays Vital Part in Pro-
- duction of Every Type of Film.

nOuNCeQ perleCL IN appearance Auo
action. The smallest creature he has
made was q caterpillar. the largest
q rhinoceroS. Mice, bats, alligators
elephants, snakes. horses and even
men are among his achievements, but
he likes his rhino best Of all. 1t was
full-grown-it could walk, run. wiggle
its tail and blink Its eyes. It would
even eat.
A ND Stephen Mcdonald. the man
= who gilds lilies. paints the rose and
points up the beauty Of anemones.
Mr. Mcdonald is florist for one Of
the big companies His corsages are
worn by the loveliest women on the
screen. his decorations appear In the
most elaborate homes. But few people
know what time and trouble it takes
to find the exact hues and types for
Photographic effects.
Pastel shades photograph grayish
white. Dark yellows and reds 60
contrasting shade. Some flowers beau
tiful to the naked eye don't photo
graph at all.
It's the same way with food. II
food is to be eaten on the set. John
Meier, chef for R-K-O and one-time
chief Of the culinary department Of
exclusive mems clubs and such hotels
as the Waldorf and Biltmore, provide
delicious dishes At for any epicure.
Fowls. however. refuse to photograph
like the perfectly cooked meat they are,
so he uses a meat glaze" on them
that doesn't destroy their tastiness but
makes them look the part. Makeup
for meat in other words.
Lettuce, too, insists on looking
washed cut. so he substitutes escarole,
carefully blanched in huge refriger-
Ator.
Other food experts cut up carrots
to make shrimps for cocktails served
on sets. since real shrimps wither in
the heat of lights. but Mr.. Meier pro-
vides an unceasing supply Of the small
fish, changing the dishes between each
take"
On another lot. birthday cake was
needed at an instant's notice. The
property man. ever resourceful. picked
up child's drum, stuck birthday can
dies on it with wire and glue, covered
the top and sides with stiff mixture
of soapsuds and carried it on.
pAUL GERRETS, over at Twentieth
Century-Fox Studios. has the
unique Job Of insect-herder. It is up
to him to see that nies do not make
merry on stars roses. since 1t costs
81 900 an hour when scenes are de-
layed because winged creatures are at
tracted to grease paint.
An expert hunter with spray gun
and mixed poisons, Mr.. Gerrets saves
his company thousands Of dollars q
month.
The horse opera" is his special
dish. The average horse provides
transportation for at least . dozen
flies, so when 120 cavalry chargers
used In Shirley Temples Civil War
drama were massed on one indoor set,
he had q man-sized problem.
You can't daunt Mr.. Gerrets. He
made a score Of cellophane bombs,
each holding q weak solution Of tear
gas, and just before each shot, he
released one Of the bombs in the
midst Of the animals, annihilating the
hies.
sidelines included in his job are the
removal Of crickets and frogs who try
to record their voices during location
trips.
Another studio has = thermometer
man, whose job it is to keep the stars
cool. B. c. Parker, an engineer, goes
around swinging his thermometer in
. slingshot to discover the humidity
and temperature. and then regulating
the air in sound-proof stages.
i One studio has q man who does all
the walking up and down stairs and
along halls and streets to make audible
footsteps in . finished picture.
Walter q. Elliott Is the head Of the
sound effects department ct this studio.