Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1938-02-05
Billings High School Girl Who Cried When She
Left for Hollywood Because Folks Were So Nice
to Her, Writes OF Experiences in MoUie Colony

A former Billings high school girl,
19-year-old Ruth Rogers, has for the
last three months been living the
dream Of every pretty girl. On October
20 she was a cashier at the State
theater in Spokane. Since then she has
been found by a talent scout, wired q
contract, rushed to Hollywood, and
been given bit parts in four pictures.
Though her story reads Like an ex-
travagant fairy tale, her letters give
a picture of a wholesome little girl
whose eyes sparkle but whose head is
neither turned nor dizzied by Holly
wood For Ruth Rogers has, besides
beauty and brains that tempering
quality, balance. Friends say she is the
modern girl at her best with modesty,
sWeetening sophiStication and intelli
gence, a girl who cried when she set
out for Hollywood, because everyone
had been so nice to her
She was born in Tracy, Calf, and
lived for II years in Billings. She was
graduated from Billings high as salut-
atorian of the class of 1885. Her in
structors agree that she had scholarly
attitude toward her work. Quietly,
asking no help and volunteering none
unless asked, she did college-grade re-
search and produced work that had
finish" An English theme, history
topic, an algebra problem, a speech for
ItOLdlJ N4Q0f Ill WIZ Viz oeAAA@N N~~-@-%i
No DOwdy BOOkworm
But even in high school Ruth was
no doWdy bOOkWOrm. No term paper
ever made her eyes bleary or caused
her shoulders to sag or made her neg
lect her hair. AS regularly as the
school paper. the Kyote, Of 1934-35
listed her name among its honor stu
dents it also carried allusion to the
blonde menace and though many high
school girls used peroxide within those
wears there was only one blonde menace
and that was Ruth. A Kyote reporter
of that time marveled how KUN
Rogers could be Ruth Rogers and still
get AS" For Ruth was a colorful eye
mi with her well-poised body and her
blonde beauty, and those dazzling ever
changing coiffures, copied from movie
magazines, but home made every one
of them, even though the Kyote car
ried an ad of a local beauty shop which
boosted, Ruth Rogers has her hair
waved to fit her personality at IS.
With scientific thoroughneSs talmost
one might say with bit Of that schol-
arly research she used on her lessons)
Ruth developed and set off her beauty
to advantage. And then forgot about
ftl No posturing, no artificial airs, no
pseudo-cultured speech spoiled the Ell
feet of wholesome schoolgirl sophlStl-
cation.
She had trained herself as a mimic
by reproducing movies to her family.
In high school she was cast as the
heroine of the plays, "The Green Coat,
iBeauty and the Jacobin," and Polly
of the Circus" She had hoped to go to
college and study dramatics, but was
unable to avail herself Of the offered
scholarship to the state university at
Moves to Spokane
Early in the summer of 1895 she
moved to Spokane with her parents. |
She had been in Spokane about ID
months. working as usherette and later
as cashier, at the State theater, when
the Bing Crosby talent contest finals /
were held in Spokane. Ted Lesser, head
of the talent department. OF Paramount
pictures and James Moore, Paramounts
chief test director secuted the town.
They saw Ruth Rogers on duty at the
theater. The contest was over.
Two girls and boy, Janet Waldo,
coed of the University of Washington,
Beth Andretta of Great Falls, and
Howard Rhines, Spokane radio an
nouncer. had been selected as winners.
That night, Ruth had gone skating.
Dashing in in her ski toys, she heard
the phone ring. They were calling her
to come to the theater at once. what
EOuNQ
in the cash? She hurried over. There
She was told that she was to be given a
screen test at the Davenport hotel the
next day.
The Spokesman-Review, enthusiastic
at the outcome of the contest of which
they were co-sponsors, said, the scouts
Hare enthusiastic about her POSSIBLE
tiles. Mr.. Lesser declared from the Fox
theater stage when he introduced her,
that she was one of the loveliest girls
from a screen Photographic viewpoint
that they have ever found"
A week later the same paper had a
scoop. Ruth had not yet received her
wire. Paramount Pictures was offering
her a seven-year contract with option
TO be effective Immediately. Ruth
Rogers received the same news from
and wired her acceptance to Everett
and Larry Crosby, (brother of Bing),
who operate a talent bureau in Holly
wood. The Spokesman Review quotes
Ruth as saying, II am to go into the
Paramount dramatic school at once. I