Evening star., 1943-02-07

fact that Noel COWardS mother
had an uncle who was an admiral in
his majesty's feet. and, as a boy he
heard this hero continually extolled.
This family exaltation must have
impressed the lad. for in writing the
saga of the H. NJ. S. Torrin he has
caught that spirit expressed in that
old adage, scratch an Engllshman
and you'll find sailor"
This chronicler Of things theatrical
has been following Noel Coward as
dramatist. actor and composer since
that night in 1924 when he opened
"The Vortex" at the National
Theater on E street. Null says he
remembers nothing Of that engage
ment except the Washington wealth
er was "beastlv' First nighters re-
call it as dull and indifferent play
until that third act climax. when
the playwright sat down at the
piano and in a hysterical musical
crescendo denounced his mother for
her prof1igate habits. They didn't
think much of Noel Coward then,
but Alexander Woollcott praised the
play, so began a beautiful friend
ship.
Was Broke in 1921.
The versatile Mr.. Coward has had
his ups and downs since he first
tried to conquer America in 1921.
His wallet was thin. and when Lynn
Fontanne suggested the loan OF $40
he took 1t to pay his boarding house
mistress. Now Alfred Lunt and
Lynn Fontanne were struggling at
the bottom of the success ladder at
the time. and they made this agree
ment: That when and If they ever
achieved any sort of fame they
would participate together in what
was to be the ultimate expression of
their own best capabilities. Some
IL years later the promise was full
filled when Coward wrote Design
for Living described as the legend
OF three people who live each other
very much"
When Coward came to New York
for this production in 1888 his name
was in BroadWay's electric lights at
the Gaiety Theater for his picture
"Cavalcade," the Paramount Theater
was playing Fredric March -Clau-
dette Colbert in Tonight Is Ours
(Which was the screen version of his
play, "The Queen Was in the Par
lor'O, the Lunt-Fontanne- Coward
combination was drawing $4,000 pei
week each as actors at the Ethe,
Barrymore Theater, while Noel hac
In addition his royalties as play
wright. his percentage as director.
Playwright Coward was swimming
In American dollars, and, though tht
critics called his output sophisti.
Gated froth, thin, airy and tenuous
some said his characters were the
children of Oscar Wilde, the public
f1ocked to the box Office.
"Cavalcade" Was Success.
"Cavalcade," which was one of the
first American pictures to gross ovel
IS ,000,00 profit, was written first a.
play. He outlined the effects of wal
on generations of an English family
to G. B. Cochran and that English
producer agreed to put it on. Before
he wrote a word he had cost sheets
on scenery and cast, but in six weeks
he turned In the completed script
Winfield Shield Of Fox saw the play
in London and the germ OF a great
picture. He bought the screen rights
for the Fox company and still lives
comfortably on "Cavalcade" divi-
dends.
Private Lives" was written hastily
in Shanghai hotel room while he
was on vacation AS Coward said
he thought 1t would be nice idea to
have Gertrude Lawrence break a
couple OF Victrola records over his
head. In 1t he concentrated his
nasty comments on civilization. his
bustling ships of dialogue, moving to
a moment of hitting the nerves with
abuse.
Escaped Hollywood.
1t has always been a mystery why
Hollywood permitted Noel Coward
to escape as producer author actor.
He appeared in 1885 in the Ameri-
can-made picture, The Scoundrel."
This was a Ben Hecht- Charles Mac
Arthur story, and the legend is that
Coward agreed to appear in it be-
cause he had been promised Helen