Evening star., 1944-07-14
The Future Has a Dull Look
By PATRICIA SIMMONS.

= What happens in "It Happened
Tomorrow" at Lsew's Capitol,
shouldn't happen to anybody.
The whole thing probably started
because somebody got to, wondering
how simplified or complicated things
would be II we only knew what was
going to happen before 1t did. It
wouldn't surprise US If producers put
In great deal more time In this
sort Of worrying than we do. How
ever, it's too bad they Just didn't
keep on pondering their fascinating
theme to better end than is repre-
sented in this case. What results
Is slow paced and only slightly
humorous.
The idea Of tomorrow's headlines,
ahead Of time, Is movie material,
but handled in rather jocund fash
ion as here, 1t loses its chance for
any real story value. There are so
many angles that could have been
used to advantage. Instead, the Aim
Is satisfied with making a 'front.'
page reporter out of Dick Powell
and marrying him for 50 long years
to Linda Darnell. And at this happy
ending the picture begins. The
opening scenes use the couples
golden jubilee celebration as the
excuse for telling the story.
Imagine you're a reporter and
suddenly you find yourself able to
get ahold of tomorrow's news before
1t actually happens. We did and as
q result are puzzled at the very few
laughs the situation is able to pro-
woke. Evidently by the time the
script writer's made up their minds
to make the picture funny, it
was too late.
Inc news room scenes Of the Cap
ltols picture are unique after the
Rosalind Russell type of newspaper
dialogue Hollywood his dished out
In the past. But then this story
took place in the now-forgotten day
when a journalistic sanctuary was
complete without copy girls and
ladies OF the press, and when copy
pencils did the work of two REM
ingtons.
Throughout most of the picture
Dick Powell looks little too dazed
for reporter, but then who wouldn't
be, dating Linda Darnell between
editions. BY the way, Miss Darnell
must be Hollywood's idea of the
costume pinup girl. She's easy to
look at, she can act when she gets
chance and she has what goes
well with knee-length skirts. Yet
with all this on the credit side of
the ledger she inevitably ends up in
an diversified hustle of voluminous
draperies of some sort. It's about
time she gets chance in a story
That doesn't just hook in with q
pretty costume.
Powell meets Miss Darnell when
she's a mystic in a trance and from
then on he seems to be in pretty
much the same condition. This is all
explained by the fact that the lady
in question is a fair assistant to
CigoliAi. a man of magic who reads
the past, present and future, other
wise known to movie audiences as
Jack Oakie, Mr.. Oakie is a little on
the serious side to be his usual self.
Quite by chance Miss Darnell gets
herself involved with Reporter
Powell when he stumbles on the
phenomena which en-
ables him to know the future. His
front-page story already written, he
takes Miss Darnell along to the
opera house to see If it's really going
to happen. 1t does and Powell lands
in jail. One of the most amusing
scenes is the race-track sequence
where much to Jack Oakies amaze
ment the reporter picks five straight
winners.
OF course, the climax comes when
Powell reads his own obituary on the
front page for the following day.
AS the clock hands tick nearer to
the printed death time all the ele-
ment8 of suspense are inserted so
that When the end of the movie does
come there's too much of letdown.
Not that we really wanted to see
Nj. Powell bumped of. but there