The Wilmington morning star., 1940-03-02
Hollywood
Sights And Sounds
-bx Robbin Cooas

HOLLYWOOD. March Its time
that eminent scenarist and plot doc
tor, Mr.. Pouty, got a little screen
credit around here.
Mr.. Pouty is as good a name for
him as any, especially good now be-
cause he rhymes with Prouty, the
latest actor to call him in to work.
Mr.. Prouty Jed has been the pa
Pa of the Joneses in the movies. Mr..
Prouty has been pouting. I doubt
that the Prouty features have been
covered with a genuine pout, but
"pouting is Hollywood's blanket term
for an actors expression on his dis
satisfaction with roles or pay. Mr..
Prouty's pout sprang from the ques-
ton of pay. Maybe he figured that,
with the Jones family growing as it
has been through marriages and
births, papa needed a bigger check
to make ends meet.
Mr.. Prouty was beginning to make
his desires known some time ago,
cAio SlloI 40 1lOW lul. L Olty, LIE SC6ll-
artist, got in his work in time. The
new Jones picture, which went be-
fore the cameras the other day, is
entitled ION Their own" Mr.. Pouty,
ready for whatever, thoughtfully pro-
vlded two scripts-in one Of which
Mr.. Prouty (Jed) would play about
his usual role, in the second of which
Mr.. Prouty would be conveniently
hospitalized for the duration, leaving
the family literally ION their own"
The second of the scripts was fol-
lowed on the first day of shooting.
Alice Armand, playing a nurse, re-
assured Mrs. Jones-outside the hos
pital room of a Mr.. Jones who wasn't
there-that with rest and quiet Mr..
Jones would be all right.
A couple of days later, when Mr..
Prouty had not yet reported for
work, he was suspended from salary
until such time, if ever, as he should
reconsider.
Scenarist Pouty had not yet
played his trump card. which he
would be loath to do inasmuch as
Mr.. Prouty Jed is an institution in
the Jones Family and would be sore
ly missed. Scenarist Pouty could,
in a pinch, make Papa Jones' sojourn
in the hospital the end Of Papa
Jones i'll the series. Papa Jones's
illness could always be his last.
Scenarist Pouty had other jobs.
He's an a%ll-around handy man about
the studios. He shows up frequently,
in star-studio crises, in the casting
office. 1t was he who slipped the
word out, during Bette Davis's late
fuss with her bosses, that Bette's
plum role in "All This, and Heaven
Too" would be played by Miriam
Hopkins. Mr.. Pouty changed his
mind when Bette changed hers. 1t
was he who used to keep Tala Birell
under contract at Metro. Tala was
the girl who looked like Carlo. She
was nice to have around, Mr.. Pouty
thought, during those bleak days
when Carlo talked about gong home
TO stay.
Mr.. Pouty isn't always the heel
you might think him, serving as he
does to goad or whiplash the protest
ing actor into submission. Mr..
Pouty did Jeffrey Lynn a good turn.
Mr. Pouty intended, of course, mere
1y to let Enrol Flynn know the stu
dio could get along without him,
and Mr.. Pouty used Jeff Lynn for
the purpose-but "Four Daughters
put Jeff vel.
Sometimes, however, Mr.. Pouty is
a wash'out. He pulled a dozen Gag
ney substitutes and Raft substitutes
out of his bag of tricks, and both
gentlemen are still doing business at
their respective stands.
Mr.. Pouty's worst setback came
IN his quest for a second Valen-