The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1937-06-05
HOlUard Plays
Comedy Role
In This One
BY HARRISON CARROLL


Lights! Camera! Action!
No Shakespearean roles being
handy at the moment, Leslie
Howard is doing the next best
thing-playing a Shakespearean
actor.
With Pette Davis, Eric Blore
and Patric Knowles, he is re-
hearsing a scene at Warner
Brothers for the comedy, Its
Love I'm After" Howard plays
a famous Romeo and Bette his
Juliet. Off-stage they are always
fighting, as they are in this
scene.
Howard wears dark glasses
when he rehearses and does
plenty of rehearslng. Other
actors tell you he is lazy about
learning lines before he comes
on the set.
Anyway. the company takes a
half hour going over this scene.
When they are ready to take
it, Director Archie Mayo steps
up and slaps Howard in the
seat of the pants.
"Ar right, Leslie" he says
"give it some fire"
An informal business, the
making of pictures.
Romance PUSHES
The picture, "Firefly." is an
other movie of Napoleon's time.
We watch Warren William.
wearing high leather boots and
trussed up in an officers uni
form. trying to make graceful
love to jeanette Macdonald.
To give him a break, the scene
is being shot with the two stars
standing up.
Jeanette, a Spanish dancer
and q spy, appears to yield
warmly to the william embrace
but Is really looking over his
shoulder at a secret paper.
When the shot is okayed. she
hurries to the sidelines, so the
cameras can be lined UP again.
Jeanette is giving Director ROD
ert Leonard every cooperation IN
speeding up the picture.
She doesn't want to delay her
own wedding to Gene Raymond
CALIFORNIA; famous sun Is
being temperamental this week.
and producers are wishing 1t
was an actor, so they could suS'
pend its salary.
On the back lot at United
Artists, we watch Director John
Ford. with a village full OF
native extras on his hands and
budget that calls for 5000 a day
for lowered leis alone, try to
shoot a Samoan wedding pro-
cession.
An Irishman, hence a hrooder.
Mr.. Ford glares first at the
heavens and then at the actors.
The actors and the represen'
tavive of the newspaper protes-
sion. being fond OF Director
Ford, grin sympathetically. But
the heavens won't relent.
Samoan Bride
Dorothy Lamour and a group
of native girls stand around
waiting. Dorothy is a Samoan
bride, wearing a stiff organize
dress. When she gets lar
enough away from the church.
the girls will tear off her dress
ian old Samoan CUSTOM leaV-
ing her in her sarong.
We are always interested in
native customs and so we wait
to see the scene shot.
Suddenly, the sun breaks
through the clouds. "All right"
yells Director Ford. lets go!"
A siren wails-it sounds like the
fire whistle in small town
and the noise of hammering
stops on the back lou.
Nearly An Epic
Dorothy is in front Of the
camera, with the girls swarm
ing around her. Away comes
her dress and she stands re-
vealed in a bright colored
Sarong.
A sarong is quite respectable,
but Dorothy is the sort Of girl
who would have been stared at
in an 1890 bathing suit.
AL right" calls Director
Ford, Cut"
Dorothy shriekS: Did you see
what happened to me? My
sarong started to come Off"
But it didn't and the take
was merely okay. where it might