The Wilmington morning star. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1909-1990, 1943-10-12
Washington Column
BY JAMES THRASHER

The neWsreel theater manager beamed as
he laid aside the morning papers and took
sip of his second cup of coffee. "
To-day is the Washington premiere Of Mrs.
Roosevelts trip to the South Pacific, and the
press agents have timed their releases per-
fectly,'' he told his admiring family. Zone
paper has statement by Republican rep
resentative who demands congressional in
vesigation. He says that Mrs. Roosevelt tells
story during the film that classes Japs and
Republicans common enemies, What a
build-up. Terrific.
'And the other paper has done even bet
ter" he continued enthusiastically. ''They sent
clear to Australia for picture of Mrs. Roose-
welt in grass skirt, and used it as three
column cut on page three-Without me much
as asking them, mind you. That's better than
they ever did for Dorothy Lamour in a sa-
rong."
The new sign was already up when he got
to the theater. The manager gazed at it
proudly: 1.-The Missis Tells FDR's Favorite
Story"
Other people were looking at it, too. BY
noon there was pretty good crowd inside,
as noon crowds go-more than the accus-
toned audience of shoppers with their shoes
slipped off, out-of-to businessmen killing
time between appointments soldiers W h
nothing much to do Also there was one
newspaperman who had bravely put down the
80 cents admission on his expense account,
as a legitimate disbursement in the interest
of journalism.
The manager veteran Snowman, h d
placed Mrs. Roosevelt's neWsreel in the choice
next-to- closing spot on the BILL That which
went before was calmly designed to increase
ones Impotence for the feature attraction,
and to make that attraction look doubly good
by comparison.
There was not one, but two, technicolor
travelogues, in which the narrator babe fare
WE'LL too reluctantly and too late, to beauti-
full Mexico and Australia, respectively Sand
WICKED between them was sports feature,
with the announcer outdoing himself in the
matter of atrocious puns and corny, rhyming
descriptive adjectves.
Then came the neWsreel. The anecdote that
| rocked the Republican congressman back on
his heels was the smash climax, coming after
| some scenes in hospital and serious mes
sage from the First Lady.
Maybe you know the joke already. There
| is feeling in some hypercritical circles that
| if you don't, you aren't missing much Any
way, it has something to do with marine
| in the Pacific area who shouts across at a
Jap, ITO hell with Hirohito." Inc Jap yells
back, ITO hell with Roosevelt. Inc marine
| lays down his gun and says Il just can shoot
| a fellow Republican, It's supposed 10 pe
the Presidents favorite joke-as advertised
| Mrs. Roosevelt told the story with profess
sional polish. She faced her Guaoa1canal au-
dience and grasped the microphone with the
smiling composure of a Bob Hope. ana she
spun out the narrative confidently as that
king of long winded raconteurs, Lou Holtz.
She didn't even get ratified when her ap,,
preciative audience jumped the gun n
howled at the ITO hell with Roosevelt sew s+ line me-
She smiled and nodded, waited 1or e !us. "le
right moment then gave them the 1nlsh'
No, Mrs. Roosevelt wasn't ratified put the
newsreel people were. What with all n
laughter on the sound track, they were SO
afraid that theater audiences would miss the
gag line that they printed it on the bottom
of the film. ,..e,
Well, that's cautious Hollywood tor you
And maybe Hollywood is uncons sc y: eau.
tious in this case because OF IT'S persistent
memory of all the trouble that even d olscree1
oath can cause on the screen.
The first profanity to assam c1ne e ears f,o ol
. damn in Gone with the Wind And, if
memory serves Producer Davld tbe c oetzlck
had to fly several times across the con'lne men
and approach the Hays organlza'loil III Sack