The Indianapolis times., 1936-05-25
ACHING HEART
By Charles McGuirk


art and then sputtered out like a
light. Nobody but Sol Horowitz
Sol was willing to tell-try anc
stop him!
GOL. HOROWITZ always had liked
~ Venita. That is an understate-
ment. Sol always had worshippec
Venita. He had come into show
business via the Office boy route Just
at the time she was at the first
high spot in her career. He used
to save nickels and dimes from his
lunch money to catch" her act, anc
that combination of feminine lowell
ness and gorgeous voice which she
possessed had him walking on his
heels.
Sol was natural, Snowman, and
1t didn't take him long to climb to
the top. Seven years after he rep
resented his first actress he was
booking big-time acts and placing
his clients to their immense advan-
tage and his own. Venita was one
of them for a couple of years until
she walked out because he couldn't
get her billed at the Palace over
Fannie Brice.
Then she walked out on him. and
he never even saw her act for years
He met her one day on Broadway
when she was in the midst of hel
own private depression.
He noticed that she looked a little
threadbare and with his ready tact
the little guy has lot of charm
he invited her to drink. And over
that drink and two more she tolo
him her troubles. HE got the COM
plete picture and asked her whc
was handling her act.
CHE told him she didn't have an
- agent. She didn't tell him, but
he surmised, that no agent would
handle her. He only told her he
would handle her and asked to see
her act. When he had heard ano
seen her, he shook his head.
'Venita," he said, you've lost your
zam. You don't give it and get il
like you used to. You just take q
song and humble the words. Where
is your old fire?"
But Venita didn't have any of the
old fire. as Sol found out after two
weeks of watching her and trying
to improve her act. So Sol Sc
himself down to think of some wa,
to give it to her.
What a dame has got to hav
for torch singing" he told himself
"is fire and tears. And how is
dame going to get them when she
hasn't any? Why, she's got t.
get them from heartache. She
got to have an aching heart. Well
how is she going to get an aching
hearth"
He thought that one over a lons
time and two weeks later he ap
preached Ed Marion, a juvenile
whom no one would ever suspect
of crowding 40, but who couldn't
land job.
Eddie" Sol told him, IT got 6
funny kind of an offer to make tt
you. 1t means so bucks a week
but maybe you'll get sore at me?"
IT ISTEN, SOL" Eddie told him, "it
~ it's murder, just furnish the
weapon and point out the guy. Fol
so bucks I'd do worse than that"
"Oke," Sol said. "All I want you
to do is to make dame fall fol
you. Hard. You got TO make hel
nuts about you, because if car
get her that way, she'll be worth
dough to me and to herself Re-
member that if you should get cold
feet, you'll be doing it for her own
good"
Il knew there was a catch in it,
Ed said sadly. "I'll bet she's cross
eyed and has fat feet. Who is
sheP"
"Venita Darcy" Sol told him and
the agreement was sealed then anc
there.
Eddie was an actor and it was
easy to play such part with q
woman as beautiful as Venita. But
at first, Venita couldn't see him
She would have nothing to do with
him.
1t took him a month to get hel
into the frame of mind where she'c
even let him buy her drink. How
ever, he got her that way and then
suddenly, she fell hard for him
Eddie found it more than easy tt
tell her how much he loved her ane
to kiss and fondle her. He reported
his success to Sol Immediately anc
Sol rubbed his hands.
"COOD" he said. Nov you gel
" to hell out of town. Get out
tonight. Don't tell anybody but me
where you're going. And watch
the papers for Venita's name. She
will be in headlines in a week."
Eddie laughed and beat it. He
went to Chicago and watched the
papers. You know what he found
1t took less than a week. One night
Venita, burning with spurneo
passion and unrequited love, elec-
,trified her audience with the pas
sion and the beauty of her sing
ing. She was a terrific hit.
She was terrific hit but most
unhappy woman. Anybody who
spent more than 10 minutes in hel
company came away crying. She
was walking mass of gloom with
a hatred for all men and a mur-
derous yen TO slay Eddie Marion
who had set her alight and ther
left her.
Well, that went on for the II
months of which you already know
And then, one night, she came ano
pulled the first of her terrible per.
formanceS.
HERE Sol pauses and shakes his
i L head.
Well" you say, what happened?
What caused her to flop?"
why" Sci says, cant you fig-
ure? That dirty rat, Eddie Marion,