Evening star., 1954-11-28
Fame Finally
Did Follow Her
Contest Win
By Hal Humphrey
HOLLYWOOD,


what peccadillos she had COM
mitted along her road to fame
as MY Little Margie."
When Gale explained with a
blush Of shame that she'd only
been married once, s+i'' 'o-'ed
her husband and had three
boys by him. the gossipy co..
urnnist exploded, Gosh! This
is gonna be dull!"
Gale Storm, who was born
as Josephine Cottle 80 years
ago in Bloomington, Tex. has
done everything wrong by
Hollywood standards-at least
those most 'publicized by the
blood thirsty corps Of press
and magazine writer's here.
The slender. attractive and
energetic star of Tv and ra-
dos MY Little Margie" never
has been involved with some
one else's husband, or tossed
a party that got talked about
for weeks afterward. She
doesn't smoke cigars. or wear
transparent, low-cut gowns.
Gale becomes news because
she's o healthy. normal human
being in a business and q
town which consider sin as
standard equipment for the
climb to success. Newsweek
Writer Leonard Slater called
her IAN island Of sanity" In
Hollywood.
She's Stortled, Too
Gale continues to wonder
what all the shouting is about.
The fact that her approach to
a Hollywood career startles
her professional colleagues is
no less startling to Gale her
self.
Years ago when she was do
ing minor feminine leads in
those B-western movies at
Monogram studios, actress
friends were always sympa-
thizing with her and advising
her to break away before she
became buried in hay and
'howdy, podners." But their
concern, even If it was gen.
uine, was lost on Gale.
II was happy at Monogram.
Looking back on those days
I realize I got as much salts
faction working there as I've
ever had," she says.
Despite Gales ambition for
q career, she was as uncom-
promising then about her
home and marriage as she is
today. Before starting a pic
ture with Gale, the studio had
to check first to find out II
its star was pregnant again.
Monogram soon learned to
adapt its schedule to. Gales
plan for a family, which
turned out to be three boys
in five years.
Schedule Is Heovy
Even with her career at its
highest peak today, husband
Lee Bonnell and their three
boys take priority over any
thing else.
Bridging successfully this
family-and-career life, a task
which has tossed most Holly
wood actresses into the divorce
courts, takes boundless energy
and tough -fibered moral cour-
age. Gale Storm has both.
Her, work schedule during
the TV-radio season tires most
Of her friends after just lis
tening to a recital Of it. She's
up at $50 am. takes five
minutes for rigorous calisthen-
les, Is minutes for meditation
or spiritual reading and then
sits down to a breakfast which
her husband swears would
stagger a longshoreman.
She reports for makeup at
Z am. in the Hal Roach
studios, and seldom leaves be-
fore 6 pm. Her portal-to-por-
tai TV day averages between
IA to 16 hours, three to six
days a week. TAPPING the radio
show almost must be sand
wiched in along the line. With
all Of this activity Gale still
sees as much of her family
as an average housewife, or
more.
Mother Knew Best
This determination of Gales
to constantly seek the proper
values in life probably stems
b from her mother, Minnie Cot
tie. who became sole caretaker
for the Cottle tribe of five chill
dren when Gale was II months
old and her father died.
In 1899 a 16-year-old,
starry-eyed girl boarded a
train In Houston, Tex, headed
for Hollywood. She was one Of
the State finalists In a Nation
wide talent contest sponsored
by Jesse Lasky for the ''Gate-
way to Hollywood" radio pro-
gram.
But as Minnie and her
daughter Josephine settled
down in their Pullman seat
the mother said, Nov remem-
ber, this Is just q nice trip
were taking"
Minnie Cottle was trying to
do two things shield her
daughter from disappointment,
and remind her that there
were other things in life be-
sides Hollywood contracts.
Gale found one of these