Evening star., 1937-08-26

Normally, you would find Miss Lt
there now. because Selznick's little
boy, or some one from there, went
over one day and asked could they
borrow Carole. Paramount said sure
Selznick could borrow Miss Lombard,
and 30 they took her away. and we
have not seen her since. But we
will, because we intend to get out to
Selznick's studios and stay there until
they produce Miss Lombard and let
US talk to her.
Miss Lombard must be one Of the
most popular persons in Hollywood.
Even prop men, who are pretty cal
loused persons about blonds and peo-
pie, are ready at moments notice
to vote Miss Lombard as the girl most
likely to succeed in making every one
out here like her She does not try
to make people like her. Nature very
conveniently arranged for the accom-
plishment of that end without effort
on her part. So we are told. We in
tend to find out for ourselves If we
have to organize posse and 60 in
search Of her.
Looks now like we shall get to see
Dick Powell out at Warner Bros,
Mr.. Powell has been on location every
time we called at the big movie mill
out in Burbank, but he is coming
home now to work on Hollywood Ho-
tel" right on the lot. All we have
seen of that picture or its cast Is the
set. Rooms in a hotel which looks as
fancy as that would cost at least $l00
a day, and with Benny Goodman on
the bandstand, where he is going to
be, = party for eight in the night club
would pay of the last installments
of Finland's war debts. In the effort
to catch the spirit that is Hollywood
at its most lush Warner Bros. have
gone lavish enough to make a neu-
rotic out of the ghost of Karl Marx
And no doubt make themselves a lot
OF money with Powell and Goodman.
GONG to Warner Bros, to say
hello to Powell and to give him
those old (month old) regards OF
Frank La Falce will not permit us
to see two others of the employees out
there whom We wanted much to see.
They are Bette Davis, with whom
they say you cannot make bad
picture, and Olivia De Havilland.
The Misses Davis and De Havilland
are out of town. The former is out
of town somewhere along the coast
of California Miss De Havilland is
out Of town in Seattle If We could
have seen them, we should have asked
Miss Davis how she would like to do
. comedy part to get away from being
fallen ladies': Miss De Havilland how
1t felt to be so up-and-coming an
actress among the more or less ado
lescent beauties Of Hollywood.
Another disappointment with which
we shall end our Hollywood sojourn
is our failure to see Frances Farmer.
Miss Farmer Is farther out OF town
than any one else We had hoped to
meet, farther even than Shirley Tenn
pie. At this writing she Is either in
Montreal or Connecticut, while Shirley
is merely on her way home from Hon
olulu. For all her meteoric success,
the girl whose talents R-K-O and
Paramount have shared so definitely
to the advantage of all three Is some
one every one out here likes very well.
But We shall have to leave with the
cries Of TOO bad you didn't get to
talk with Frances Farmer" ringing in
our dropping ears.
But. to get away from the negative
part for a little while, we can report
that we saw Phyllis Loughton. You
have not seen her, but you have seen
her handlwork. Miss Loughton is the
drama coach at M-G-M, is one of the
most interesting personalities around
the place, and let us participate In
one of her coaching sessions so we
could see movie talent in the mAking.
The stars of the scene, which was
played before an audience Of three in
Miss Loughton's spacious of1ice, were
Douglas McPhail and Mary Howard,
two Of Metros younger contract play
ers. McPhail is fundamentally Z
young singer whose voice got him into
pictures. Miss Howard Is one Of those
extremely fresh and fair young things
who Is too pretty to. be kept out Of
pictures.
The scenes they were doing was 4
lovers quarrel bit from q sophisti-
Gated English comedy that Noel Cow
ard and Gertrude Lawrence could
have played much better because they
have had so much more practice. For
a whole hour Miss Loughton had them
doing it, trying to get gestures and
attitude to fit the lines and inflec-
tions OF the piece. For whole hour
Ohe same one), We saw just how far
two young persons have to go before
they become finished performers and
just how important drama coach
can be around a large movie studio.
And we saw, too, that the younger
players in studio can be extremely
earnest. sincere and ambitious. Three
persons never worked harder than
Miss Loughton and her young charges,
both Of whom probably will be getting
parts before you know it.
X X X
MISS LOUGHTON, who did the
same Job at Paramount for sev-
eral years (and had Marsha Hunt and
Frances Farmer as two of her pupils
while there), looks much too young for
her Job. Her stage experience, how
ever, began when she was II years
old. After playing child parts for
DANCING.
- School With National Reputation" I"
(Ovef 10000 pupils in q. 81