Evening star., 1940-04-04

we IlOI W uldkc d SuSSeSClOu! we
make it, therefore, right now, with
quiet feeling of confidence that
the studio and the pages superiors
will be able to work out a deal
which will not interfere with the
smooth working of democracy. CMis-
sionary, that's what we are)
1t was the idea of Lou Smith,
expert at both producing and pub
licity, that Washington news
paperman who did not get together
Immediately with Mr.. Rogers was
crazy. Naturally, we got together
with Mr.. Rogers. quicker than a
f1ash-an old. tired flash, but a
flash, nevertheless
First, and entirely natural, feel
ing of such a meeting is that you've
been scooped, that Hollywood has
picked up a yarn that has been
lying in the lap of every Washing
ton newspaperman since the Senate
started having pages. The enthu-
siasm and happiness Of Mr.. Rogers
are infectious enough that the
scooped scribe is diverted from that
temptation to kick himself which
seizes disappointed story te11ers.
An interview on the subject of
Senate Pages" is an odd sort of
thing. Mr.. Rogers asks most of the
questions. Not, however, before he
has outlined the story, whose hero is
to be lad of 16 who comes to the
Senate as kind of Dead End" kid,
who is suspicious of life in all its
guises and who acts accordingly.
Even the young Senator, whose ward
he is, is not beyond the pale of the
youngsters impression that it's a
lousy world and should be accepted
as such. His experience as page,
which will cover all the details of q
pages life and work. is an educative
and regenerative one. even though
those are somber sounding words for
anything which packs the drama of
a Rogers account of the script.
x
The romance ingredient, which
might seem a worry to the nom
expert in creating movies, is no
worry at all to the producer of Sen
ate Pages" The sour child who is
being sweetened throughout the
narrative will be blessed with a
sister. The sister and the young
Senator will provide the love ele-
ment. as only a beautiful sister and
young Senator can. It is that easy.
Senate Pages" has not been cast.
Melvyn Douglas is the nearest thing
to a definite selection made to date.
He would play the Senator, natur-
ally. Jean Arthur might do for the
sister, but it is necessary to keep far
away-save in mood-from ''Mr.
Smith Goes to Washington" and it
viii be remembered that Miss Arthur
was quite conspicuous in that one.
The boy, who will be the impor-
tant character. has not been Sc
lected, For all its apparent diff
Guilty in casting, Mr.. Rogers is con-
fident that he will have no trouble
finding the right lad.
The role, of course. would have
been a natural for Mickey Rooney
and every time he thinks of that,
Rogers breathes a little prayer of
gratitude that the idea was not
peddled originally to Metro-G Gold
wyn-Mayer.
One Of the things which convinces
the producer that Senate Pages" is
that good story with which every
movie must start is that so many
writer's are willing to work on it.
Usually when a group Of writer's is
approached with the thought of a
treatment for a given yarn, there
will be various immediate escapes.
One will demur that it is not his
type, another that the approach is
one which he would not like to
undertake.
Senate Pages" was complete
exception to the rule. Every script
ist to whom the idea was presented
leaped at it. Lew Foster, who did
so much of the work on Frank
Capra's "Mr. Smith Goes to WASH
ington,' finally got the assignment,
anu ny lOSlcdl process ON rogers
part, which strikes us as interesting.
1t is the producers first and most
positive idea that the picture will
have to avoid resemblance to "Mr.
Smith" He figures that the influ-
ence of that film upon Foster, who
wrote so much of it, will be less
than it would be upon an entirely
new man. Another factor in his
selection of Foster is that the latter
learned so much about Washington
and the Senate during his research
for the first picture that he will
have a great deal of unused mate
rial available.
Evidence the slightest knowledge
of Senate pages in the presence Of
Mr.. Rogers and 1t initiates one Of