Browning chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1941-1953, 1945-05-25

clal lte, Walter IA
told me as we
chatted on the set Walter Huston
of "Ten Little In
dians." "When you come right down
to it, social life isn't important any
more. People say it is, but all that
counts is the job you do on the
screen. You can be perfectly happy
here without ever doing anything
but 60 to a driven for hambur-
ger. It's just that I'm funny kind
of guy. have to get out where I
can breathe-where I can get COM
pletely apart from pictures when I
want to. But don't get me wrong
love pictures"
When he's making one he lives at
the Beverly Hills hotel, but Walter
has two other homes where he goes
whenever he can get away. One is
his huge and ultra mountain lodge in
Running Springs, in the San Bernar-
dino mountains. The other, his 5000
acre cattle ranch at Porterville,
Calf.
The Inner Man
It's in these two places that you'll
uncover the real Huston, the man
who is not an actor, but the man
who has found that elusive some
thing you're always hearing about
and always wondering what it really
is-happiness.
When you're talking to this char
acter actor who has dignifed so
many important films, conversation
switches from his lodge and ranch
to his favorite subject-his son,
John. In Walters mind John is the
best director-and writer-in Flick
erville.
"Give John a story he likes, let
him alone, and he'll come up with
the doggonedest picture you ever
saw" Walter told me. There's
nothing I'd like better than to go
into the producing business with
John when the wars over" ~
Rare Bird for Hollywood
Walters modest. He never talks
about his performances-just goes
ahead, does his job the best he
knows how, and shuts up.
His whole life has been one of
plugging away at acting. Even when
he was kid in Toronto, Canada, he
knew he was going to act.
There was a matter of schooling.
He was one of the worst students
Canada had ever known, so it wasn't
too hard to understand why he
left school rather early and got
job as a clerk in a hardware store.
From here he joined a dramatic out
fit in Toronto, where he stayed I'M
til a travelling repertoire company
came along.
Then he decided to go to New
York. He arrived there frozen stiff;
he had jumped a freight during a
blizzard.
Richard Mansfield was addition
ing players and Walter was handed
part. Mansfield personally hon
ored him that night by throwing him
out of the theater.
Electrician, Then Vaudeuillist
Next he went to Detroit, tried cleo
trical engineering, then tried vaude-
vile. In one of the acts on the cir
cult he was playing there was
girl named Bayonne Whipple. She
and Walter decided to merge profess
sionally-and maritally. For about
IL years they were headliners on
the Keith circuit with their song
and dance act.
This marriage like former one
blew up. He decided to go on his
own with big-time act. The Schu-
berts paid him Sl,750 a week.
At 80 he turned to the legitimate
stage. He managed to get backing,
and made his Broadway debut in
"Mr. Pitt"
The play wasn't so hot. But Walter
was. He's never played anything
but star roles on Broadway since.
1t was during the run of ELMER
the Great" that he met Nan Sunder-
land and later married her. They
are still working happily at it.
He began to make pictures in 1929,
and since then has alternated be-
tween Broadway and Hollywood.
I've known Walter for years. He's
a square shooter. All he asks of
life is a reasonable amount of
security, good companionship, and
the respect of his fellow men.