Evening star., 1938-03-20
Joan Faces
OfCareer
Four Years of Bad
Films May Be
Remedied.
By Sheilah Graham.

HOLLYWOOD.
4 FEW evenings ago I saw a re-
~ showing Of Dancing Lady"
~ Joan Crawford was the star;
her leading man. in a second
ary role. Clark Gable. Franchot Tone
portrayed the cad's part. Bit players
included Fred Astaire and Nelson
Eddy. In the four years that have
elapsed since that picture was made,
Clark Gable has climbed to box-office
favorite No. of English-speaking
countries. Fred Astaire and Nelson
Eddy are bright particular stars in
their own right. Franchot rome has
been graduated to self-sacrificfng lead
ing men parts. Only joan Crawford
has deviated from the position that
was hers in 1894
Dancing Lady" was Joan's last
grade A picture. It was followed by
series of mediocre oderings-to
name few Of them, Rain which
was terrible; The Gorgeous Hussy''-
poor; The Bride Wore Red"-bad,
and "Mannequin"-which was only
slightly better-pictures that would
have destroyed any actress less es-
tablished or less determined than Miss
Crawford. Joan is now facing the
most critical crossroads of her long
career. Her next picture must be
success. Or else. And no one is more
aware Of this than Joan herself.
10 60 back little About six
months ago F. Scott Fitzgerald ar
rived in Hollywood to script Three
Comrades" for M-G-M. He was a
pre-l934 fan of Miss Crawford's-had
not seen any of her later films and
could not understand the "we-must-
save-Joan Crawford" meanings that
filled the studio. But she's a good
actress" he told the walters. "She
was" they replied.
TO Producer Hunt stromberg Fitz-
gerald was mamma from heaven.
Stromberg gave him Ursula Parrott's
story. "1nfldelity." and told him to
write scenario that would please
Joan-but, more important still, her
box-of11ce patrons. As a preliminary,
the writer spent several days in the
projection room viewing all of Joan's
earlier and later pictures. The sum
total Of his research was that Miss
Crawford Is at her acting best when
she has something big for which to
hght-at her worst in the same
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS, since 1894. her
fghting has been as obvious as the
breathing Of badly trained dancer.
In shaping "Infidelitv" Fitzgerald
has given Joan lots to fight for-the
preservation of her screen happiness,
her screen marriage and her career.
But he has disguised the struggle so
that Joan will win 1t before she real
lies she is on the battlefield. And the
strained. desperate look her eyes and
mouth have featured since Dancing
Lady" should disappear.
Joan's inherent will to win became
apparent to screen audiences only
after college-bred Franchot Tone came
into her life-with To-day We live"
made in the same year as Dancing
Lady" He imbued his future wife
with the desire for a gentility that
would equal his. She had already been
made culture-conscious by Douglas
Fairbanks, jr., whom she married in
1929 in the face of tremendous oppo-
sition from Doug, senior. and his then
wife, Mary Pickford. But she man
aged to keep her yearnings under con-
troll until she fell in love with Gentle
man Tone. Now she goes to the opera,
entertaining prominent musical con-
ductors. reads the right books, is a
gracious hostess, keeps up with for
eign affairs and looks very bored with
1t all. -
TT IS hard to believe now-but during
the five years preceding her first
marriage, Joan. Hollywood's hottest
swing baby, had 200 dancing cups to
her credit.
Her first film role. bit in pretty
Ladies' (1925). netted her SIS q week
Today Joan's weekly income is $4,000.
Mr.. Tone has substituted indoor cul-
ture for outdoor lovemaking-butt the
strain is as hard on Joan as the result
Of her film public. And localities are
Just as skeptical Of the longevity Of this
marriage as they are about her career.
Here's hoping Miss Crawford wins out
on both counts. Personally, like q
fighter.
(copyrisht. 1898. by the North Amsr,s4r
NeWOap8 ANiAnes, Me.)