THE ANSWER CORNER.

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 52, 2 March 1929, Page 5 (Supplement)

THE ANSWER CORNER.

REPLIES TO INQUIRERS. Brown Eyes.—May McAvoy is five feet in height. Norman Kerry was born June 16, 1897. Dorothy Revier play.ed opposite Jack Holt in "Submarine.'. Screen Lover.—James Murray was born in New York City on February 9, 1901. He is five feet, eleven and a half, weighs 178 pounds, has light hair and green eyes. M.B.—Renee Adoree is married to William Sherman Gill. Marian Nixon is not married. Write Renee at the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, Culver City, California. G.P. —Percy Marmont and not Clive Brook played in "Ine Street of Forgotten Men." Perhaps your friend is referring to "Forgotten Faces," starring Cliva Brook. > 0.8. (Papatoetoe).—Ramon Novarro was born in Durango, Mexico, February 6. 1899. He is five feet eight, weighs 155 pounds, black hair and brown eyes. Send your letter to him at the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, Culver City, California. Bertie. —Breta Garbo's next picture will be "Wild Orchids." Nils Asther is her leading man. Louise Brooks went to Germany to make pictures. Alice Joyce is now appearing on the stage in California. The song you have reference to is "That's My Weakness Now." F.M. (Otahuhu). —Norma Talmadge was born on May 2, 1895. Helen Foster, Cornelius Keefle, Ray Hallor and Alice Lake have the leads in "Circumstantial Evidence," Chesterfield Prod., Metropolitan Studios, 1040, No. Las Palmas Avenue, Hollywood, California. T.B. (Newton). —Gary Cooper was born in Helena, Montana, May 7, 1901. He is six feet two, weighs 180 pounds, and has reddish-brown hair and blue eyes. He is an American, not English. He lived in Helena until- nine years oTd and then was taken to England, where he the grammar school at Dunstable in Bedfordshire. After three and a half years he returned to Helena and there entered high school. He began as an extra, his first real screen hit was in "The Winning of Barbara Worth." Kitty (New Lynn).—Clara Bow was born on July 29, 1905; Joan Crawford, March 23, 1906. Anita Page is eighteen years old, her next picture will be "The Duke Steps Out," Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, Culver City, California. Barry Norton's tQal name is Alfredo de Biraben. David Rollins was born in Kansas City on September 2, 1908. He is five feet ten, weighs 135 pounds, and has brown hair and blue eyes. You may send your letter to him at the Fox Studios, 1401, Western Avenue, Los Angeles, California.

The latest Charles Rogers" starring picture which will be seen fn New Zealand is "Someone to Love." Greta Garbo achieves a new screen triumph in "The Mysterious Lady." In her latest film production, Miss Garbo is the heroine of a vivid plot centring about the military intrigue that engulfed Europe before the World War, plotting the downfall of a young enemy officer, whom she realises that she loves after he has been disgraced. Conrad Nagel plays opposite as the dashing Austrian cavalryman who falls under the charm of the beautiful spy.

Fay Wray, who has played the leading role in many Paramount productions lately, plays the part of the heroine in "The Wedding March." Von Stroheim, the producer of the picture, himself portrays the character of the Austrian prince, around whom the story centres. A new British International picture full of great possibilities is "The Flying Scotchman." The L.N.E.R will affording considerable assistance in this production for the stery, as its name suggests, is one of Britain's iron roads. Moore Marriott will play the leading male part as the driver of the express, with Estelle Brody playing the part of his daughter.

Manhattan Cocktail" is one of the early releases for 1929. The picture gives interesting glimpses of back-stage life in a large city theatre. Richard Arlen and Nancy Carroll are co-fea-tured, other roles being played by Paul Dukas and Lilyan Tashman. "The Four Feathers," Paramount's picturisation of the famous A. E. W. Mason novel, has been completed in its silent form at the Paramount studios in Hollywood. It will norw be put into production as a 100 per cent dialogue picture. The same artists will asrain appear, including Richard Arlen, Fay Wray, Noah Beery, Clive Brook and William Powell. All of these players will be heard and seen in the synchronised version.

Gwen Lee asked .for a tall order when she requested a good-luck horseshoe to be hung over her dressing room door at the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios. The prop, man reported that horse's shoes were as scarce as hen's teeth. Betty Compson plays opposite Richard Barthelmess in "Scarlet Seas," a powerful story of two of the world's waifs and strays cast adrift in the Pacific. A horribly realistic mutiny, colourful characterisations' 1 and gorgeous shots of exquisite South Sea Islands help to enhance the value of a really virile production. Romance and drama, visions of surpassing beauty, Oriental magnificence, lovely women and evil deeds of violent passions flow through the pages of the "Thousand and One Nights," which no producer has ever ventured to put upon the screen before. A fortune has been spent to achieve the effect of the wealth and luxury of these Arabian' Nights tales. Neved was such a magnificent spectacle staged for a film, nor finer entertainment. The whole of the Dominion will be talking about the "Secrets of the East," said to be the greatest Ufa spectacle yet made. Two years ago, the two adventurous cameramen, Merian Cooper and Ernest Sohofedsack, who nraade "Chang," set out into the wilds of the African Sudan. They went with the script of "The Four Feathers," a screen adaptation of the well-known novel by A. E. W. Mason, with the intention of filming scenes of wild life which would form a back l ground to the story. Returning after a year, they brought with them many cases of properties, which were essential to give authenticity to the production. These profiferties included, rhinoceroshide shields, native sandals, spears, musical instruments and many hundreds of other articles.

Soldiers, sailors, Follies girls, professors, lawyers, cowboys, salesmen, newspapermen, miners, clowns, acrobats and artists —all are to be found in the magic city that has grown up around the picture studios. Here are some of the professions once followed by members of one studio. Clarence Brown, the highest paid director in the business—he gets £60,000 per annum whether he works or not—was formerly air engineer. Monta Bell, another famous director, was a newspaper man, company promoter, and Press agent. Norma Shearer was a Montreal society girl, who became a stenographer when the family fortunes failed, and later sought a screen career. Marion Da vies came from the Follies, as did Joan Crawford. Renee Adoree was bred in a circus, and later was in vaudeville. Tod Browning, director, has tried bis hand at almost everything. Tim McCoy was a "reguifW Army man," interpreter for the IndSlan*. who have adopted him as their white brother. Ramon Novarro was a dancer with the Marion Morgan troupe. King Vidor left college determined to be a short story writer, but found that no one wanted the stories he wrote. Then he wrote scenarios," and after fifty-one failures the fifty-second was accepted.

Karl Dane, the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer comedian, gave a party on the lawn of his beautiful bungalow in Hollywood, and foF amusement pretended to squirt a garden hose at hisiguests. George K. Arthur, who was present, unknown to Dane, turned the water on. Dane 13 still paying cleaner's bills.

Two important additiona have been made ito the cast of "The Charlatan." They are Holmes Herbert, who plays the title role, and Rose Tapley, one of the early Vitagraph players, who is returning to the screen after an absence of several yeara. George Melford is holding the megaphone over one of the finest casts ever assembled at Universal City.

Will Ohappel has been engaged to write the adaptation and continuity of "The Great Microphone Murder," one of Universal's talking pictures for next season. Dorothy Boyd, who plays the leading role opposite Sir Harry Lauder in "Auld Lang Syne," is a well-knojvn English actress. She has appeared with much success on the London stage, and has also been seen in many British film productions. "The Haunted Lady," a recent novel by the popular authoress Adela Rogers St. John, has been purchased for Laura La Plante. The adaptation is already being made by Paul Schofield although no information is available as to when Miss La Plante will commence work on it. "The Further Adventures of the Flag Lieutenant" is said' to have received enthusiastic receptions in Dunedin and Christchurch. In making this film of intrigue and romance in China, W. P. Kellins, the director, has produced a screen melodrama which from an artistic and entertaining standpoint ranks with any pictures seen on a New Zealand scrcen. Henry Kdwards is again the breezy naval lieutenant, and this time finalises his romance with the Admiral's daughter, which was only blossoming in "The Flag Lieutenant," Isabel Jeans, as Pauline Alexander, the beautiful international spy, delights feminine hearts with her excellent taste in clothes.

Tim McCoy, the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer outdoor star, is looking for a successor for his stable bity, who mistook molasses for leather dressing and Applied it to McCoy's saddle. McCoy has also purchased a new pair of riding breeches. The delicate and difficult work of cutting "Show Boat" to release proportions is progressing rapidly. It is now down to fourteen reels, and in that length it is regarded by all of the studio officials as the outstanding production of the year. Greta Garbo's entrance into motion pictures resulted from her falling over a wire on a stage in Sweden and attracting the attention of Director Moritz Stiller. She is a recluse, but, despite rumours, is not at all temperamental. Miss Garbo is a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer star. If cold baths make for good health, it's no wonder that Karl Dane is all muscle and brawn. When he and George K. Arthur made "Circus Rookies," Dane was thrown in a horse trough. Then in "Detectives" he had a fire hose turned upon him, ani in "The Trail of '98" he dived into an icy pool. Now in "Brotherly Love" Dane experiences another frigid bath when, his clothes being stolen at the public baths, he chases a man into the street to recover them. The production of Warwick Deeping's famous novel "Kitty" amidst the picturesque and natural settings of one of the most charming beauty spots on the banks of the River Thames, makes this latest British International attraction of more than usual interest. The rights of this book were obtained in the face of keen competition from America. Like his other great novel "Sorrel 1 and Son," this later work of Warwick Deeping's is a world-wide best seller and in Britain it is now in its seventh edition. It took a whole year of intensive research and six months to gather data and properties to; begin the filming of "The Trail of '98." It took Clarence Brown six months to direct it, another three months to cut it, yet upon the screen there are flashed but i 2,000 feet of the 3,000,000 feet of film used to make the picture. "The Trail of '98" is based on Robert W. Service's story of the Klondike gold rush, and the cast is headed by Dolores Del Rio, Ralph Forbes, Karl Dane and Harry Carey. ! lSxciting aa is the story, clever as is the direction, brilliant as is the technique, it is the acting which brings "The Spy," the big Ufa super attraction to be released very shortly in New Zealand by Cinema Art Films, to a level seldom reached by films of its type. Not one of the leading players i? allowed opportunities in excess of the role to the story as a whole, yet each gives a performance which puts many a star in the shade. From this point "of view alone it is worthy of the keen study of all motion picture directors. F. Lang, the man responsible for the making of "Metropolis," has been responsible for the production of this unique and remarkable picture. "Shiraz," produced at Agra sjjd Jiapur, is said to be the most secret film ever made. It is the story of the Taj Mahal and pivots on the tragic life story of the beautiful Mumtaz for whose tomb the Taj Mahal was built by her adoring husband. The production is named after the unfortunate Shiraz, who was blinded by the JShah on completion of the designing of the Taj Mahal in order that he should neither design nor build another. The narrative is full of real Indian colour and entirely acted ky Indian artists, the star being the Hindo actress Suta Devi. Mr. Victor Pears, assistant director, was the only Englishman or European concerned in the making of the film. This will be a ! British Dominions Films release.

An ex-European screen star, only 27 years old, who has been in America less than a year and. already has made his mark in the motion picture world, briefly describes Nils Asther, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer player, intimate friend of Sarah Bernhardt, first civilian to be invited to Soviet Russia after the world war, and Hollywood's newest sensation. Asther was born in Malmo, Sweden, the son of wealthy parents, who destined" him for the diplomatic service. From his youth he was of a solitary, sensitive temperament, and his ambition was to act. As a boy of 14 he spent weeks at a time all alone, except for his two dogs, on an island owned by his family off the coast of Sweden. At the age of 16 his father sent him to the Royal Academy at Stockholm, only to have the boy return home a few weeks later with the announcement that he had forsaken the diplomatic service and intended to be an actor. Despite threats of being disowned, Asther refused to return to the Academy, and, instead, went to a dramatic school in Copenhagen. Graduating from there he played several roles and attracted the attention of Maurice Stiller, the great Swedish director. In 1922 he was invited to Russia?, where he spent two months as guest of the Soviets, meeting Lenin and Trotsky, and advising them on stage and motion picture activities. Returning to Berlin, Asther made a comedy entitled "He and the Woman," which attracted the attention of Joseph Schenek. and resulted in an offer being extended to the actor to go to Hollywood. He arrived there and played the leading male role in "Sorrel and Son." He is six feet in height, weighs 1701b, and has black hair and eyes. is regarded a 9 one of the most promising screen newcomers.