The Waterbury Democrat., 1936-11-16
OJ@ MA
In New York
BY GEORGE ROSS

ventional night-clubbers patiently
sit through an operate aria, that's
hardly news. They SIT through any
thing.
But when an operate dive
MARBLES "1'm Shootin' High" IN O
smoky night spot--and especially
when the songstress happens to be
the wife Of an. oil tycoon-the
queries begin TO n.y.
"Yet, I'd still like to know what
all the shootin's for" blonde,
ruffle-headed, ever-smiling Mary
Lewis wanted TO know during O
lull In her cabaret performance,
"What's so strange about an en-
tertainer wanting to 60 to work
when there's nothing else on her
fnind?"
on an eventful night not long
ago, the ebullient Mary Lewis
took the spotlight on the night
club dance floor, sang three oper-
attic airs and two popular songs.
The customers, inistaking their
ringside locations for the Dia-
mond Horseshoe, yelled "Bravo",
sent out for floral bouquets and
otherwise went into O. trance I'M
usual for o hot spot crowd. And
Mary Lewis, the preachers
daughter who ran away from
Little Rock, Ark, to become o
Metropolitan Opera star, took the
loud reception In her stride.
"rhey oil keep asking me-" she
continued, "Why did you do 1t
when you're married to o mill
lionaire husband and could re-
tire luxuriously for the rest Of
your lifeT True, I've lived o lux
urious life for the last five years.
Well, II has been fine but quiet.
Please remember, I've been o
working girl oil my life"
Worthwhile Follies
Indeed, she has been. Few re-
call, the earlier sagas Of Mary
Lewis life. How, for instance, she
once danced o. o chlorine In q
third-rate vaudeville act that be-.
came stranded on the Pacific
coast. ~
Miss Lewis doesn't remember
the name Of the act, but she 70.
Gals that she got her Job because
the chorus line needed blonde
In O hurry and she was the only
APPLICANT who qualified. Well,
when the act blew up In San
Francisco, her girl friend (third
from the righD had an offer to
Join the chorus OF Tate's Roof
Garden, o fashionable rendezvous.
They worked OF Tates as dancing
partners for year or 10.
A film naogul Of the silent" days
happened In one night and noticed
the striking resemblance between
Mary Lewis girl friend and the
vampire, Theda Bara. He asked
her to hike over TO Los Angeles one
day for o camera test and Miss
Lewis tagged along. II Is o fitting
climax TO the tale that Miss Lewis
got the Job and her boss was Al
Christie, the pie-throwing king OF
silent comedy days. Miss Lewis took
the Job conditionallyonly II her
girl friend were hired. too.
Easy as Pie
she tired, at the end Of q year.
The pastry7makers, It occurred to
her, were inexhaustible and had
pies enough to distort her lovely
countenance as long as AL Christie
held out enough dough. So she
gathered together the $500 she had
saved I'D and came by the speediest
RATHER to New York.
It was then that her ambition
rose. She had been developing
her voice, taking vocal instruction
at every available chance; and
one day, she risked q call upon
the awesome opera impresario
Signor Cattle assazza. Follows
the usual r. 9. In her life; she
got the Job. As O leading soprano
And It was news In its day that
o F'ollies graduate had become q
Metropolitan Opera star.
She retired from the operate
scene less than O decade ago and
her second marriage was with
Robert L. Hague. an oil million
ARE. She settled down in lux
urious 21st Moor suite and took to
idling away her luxurious leisure
by collecting odd coins, miniature
paintings and tiny dachshunda
Of which she owns l6.
Several weeks ago she turned
to her husband and remarked that
she would like "the smell Of saw
dust again." Hence. her appear
|ance IN . night club