Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1945-03-28
BY HAROLD HEFFERNAN.


Personality parade: To that all
important fellow who sits at little
table called the organ" on every
sound stage the quality of an actors
performance is judged exclusively
by the voice. High-pitched histri-
onics that win Academy awards and
raves from the critics leave him
cold. It's sound, and sound alone,
that this fellow concentrates upon.
So today let's meet one of the
outstanding sound mixers" in the
business, Prosper McGinnis of
RKO, and let him tell us about his
own particular candidates for
Oscars.
McGinnis has sat at that little
organ, the earphones piled tightly
against his ears, and listened to the
voices of almost every leading star
in Hollywood. Fresh out of the set
microphone they come to his ears
and he is the first one to when the
director turns when the scene is
finished. When McGinnis gives out
with 'okay for sound" the scene is
in the bag. Should there be grem-
Inns in the sound track, McGinnis' s
ear detects them and, of course, the
scene must be shot over.
II McGinnis's sensitive ears had
anything to do with it, here would
be the Academy awards list for
vocal achievements in Hollywood:
Ann Sothern in her "Maisie" roles
for the incest sounding high -heeled
walk.
Charles Boyer, not in "Gaslight,"
but in some of those pictures with
Irene Dunno, for the most seductive
masculine voice.
Lauren Bacall in ITO Have and
Have Not" for the most seductive
feminine voice.
Marlene Dietrich for the throat
lest singing.
Bette Davis for the best hystericai
sounds; Ida Lupino for the most
heart-rending sobbing.
Lee Tracy in a new picture, Be
trayal From the East" for fast talk
ing. GA championship which Tracy
has held for 10 years.
Fastest talking male team, Pat
O,Brien and Adolphe Menjou in
Front Page" and probably in the
new RKO picture which pairs them
again, The Amorous Ghost"
Humphrey Bogart for the tough
est-talking voice.
Peter LORE for "smoothest vocal
menace"
Laraine Day for "friendliest fem
mime voice"
Irene Dunno for the most musical
speaking voice.
Woman with the most contagious
laugh, jeanette Macdonald. Man.
ditto, Frank Morgan.
Man able to make the most hor-
rlble sound, Lon CLANCY, jr., with
his beStial Snarl, sometimes used in
horror pictures.
Best comedy voice Couldn't YOU
have guessed this one?y is Andy
Devine's. Best comedy laugh tan-
other easy guess belongs to Harold
Perry, the great Gildersleeve.
Most virile voice in Wally Berry's.
Its opposite among screen actors is
Edward Everett Horizons.
Spencer Tracy has the most dis
tinct low-key, or quiet, voice.
Most easily recognized voice, Kath-
airline Hepburn's.
Bing Crosby gets the nod for the
best combination understanding and
talking. McGinnis offers no femi-
nine counterpart.
Margaret O'Brien steps into
grown-up Judy Garland's shoes as
having the best childs voice.
Fred Astaire and Eleanor Powell
retain land have for years. the
sound mans vote for tap dancing.
And he'll take Danny Kaye and
Betty Hutton as male and female
comedy singers
The induStry's best screamer is a
woman you never heard about. Nc
Glnnls says, Louella Brown. She and
some of her scream specialist COL
leagues are so much better at it than
the name stars that the latter rarely
scream their own screams.
Ihls could go on and on If we went