STAGE AND SCREEN

Evening Post, Volume CXXV, Issue 110, 12 May 1938, Page 21

STAGE AND SCREEN

SALLY EILERS'S NEW HOME.

When Sally Eilers finishes her lead role in Universale "Nurse from Brooklyn," she will supervise . finishing touches on her new home in Beverly Hills. Sally and her husband, Harry Joe Brown; expected to move into the residence early in May. One of the most attractive features of the new house will be the distinctive furniture that Sally purchased in England while she was making a picture there last summer. In explaining its purchase, Sally., emphasised the" fapt that she did not buy it because it was better than anything she could obtain in America, but because she believed that those who earn their money in a foreign country should spend a portion of *it there. In addition to the furniture Miss Eilers also purchased many pieces of antique silverware.

RUTH DRAPER NEXT MONTH.

Mr.-H. Stringer, New Zealand representative for Messrs. ■J. C. Williamson (N.Z.) , • Ltd.,- and J; and N. Tait, announces that Ruth Draper, the famous s one-woman artist, is to commence her Dominion tour at Auckland on June 27. Miss Draper, who is an American, is world famous ior, her ;pertormances, in; which she plays the whole cast of characters -herself. Hers is a most unique and her performances parts of the world are hailed as wonderful ■ histrionic : achievements. Miss. Draper is a charming woman, and her flawless delineations have sent critics wild .with delight. Nothing quite like her productions has ever been seen in New _ Zealand before, and there" is great interest in' her forthcoming tour.

TTBBETT IN AUGUST. It is announced that the Dominion tout of Lawrence Tibbett, the famous baritone of opera, screen, and concert platform, begins at Wellington on August 9. The tour is being planned by Messrs. J. arid N. - Tait, Who announce that the Australian season of the popular singer is proving something of a sensation. His personal appeal is instaritarieous, while allied to the Tibbett charm of manner is the voice that has lifted audiences to their feet in all parts of the world.

SUCCESSFUL PLAYWRIGHT.

! The nom de plume "Jay Mallory," ' the authoress of that tear-compelling : play "Sweet Aloes," hides the identity of Joyce Carey, who has since : written another, fine story, "A Thing Apart." 'Like Dodie Smith (who wrote "Autumn Crocus" under the pseudonym of "L. C. Anthony"), Miss Carey may now discard nom-de-plumes and write under her own name, as has .Miss Smith. "Sweet Aloes" has been a popular choice whenever staged, and Miss Carey's*' second work, which starred Diana Wynyard, bids fair to rival her first. Also in the cast were Madge Titheradge and AJan Webb. The latter is a youn,g, actor 1 who showed proof of his accomplishments and ver- " satility in Noel Coward's dramatic circus "Tonight at 8.30."

A STAR AND HER JEWESS.

The beautiful jewels • possessed •by Mara Losseff, the lovely Russian singing star, in "The Sky's the Limit," the new Jack Buchanan/musical, were a constant source of worry to the production staff on the picture. 'She was careless of them, leaving them lying about on the sets , and in her open dressing-room;, and every evening it -had- to be-one'hiaii'&'task to check up that, nothing had been. , left behind. ■ One long rope' of perfectly matched and graduated pearls which she wore with evening dress was valued at many thousands of pounds. She had two massive diamond bracelets, a gorgeous diamond "and emerald necklace, and diamond brooches and clips galore.

STUNNING WARDROBES. I Among the most elaborately gowned \ 1 people ever to face the Hollywood t > cameras are the "Goldwyn Girls," apr 1 pearing in the new Technicolor musi- £ J cal, "The Goldwyn Follies." Each of 1 the girls has sixteen complete costume ■ changes, ranging from nightgowns and ' negligees to !formal evening gowns. 5 Between the two extremes are sports ' outfits, street ensembles, cocktail I ■ gowns, and latest bathing suits. All g t the outfits were created by Omar fc L Kiam, Goldwyn studio fashion de- fc signer. j

"THE FIREFLY."

Each recent year has brought to the screen a finer type- .of musical picture and 1938 is no exception. "The Firefly," Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's impressive adaptation of Rudolf Friml's memorable operetta, with Jeanette Mac Donald in her seventeenth musical triumph, will be Hollywood's new offering here soon. Allan Jones and Warren William are the star's leading men. "The Firefly" presents a powerful story" of dramatic, romance, as well as a vehicle for remarkable music. M.G.M. has gone the limit in its settings and in the artistry of presentation. Hunt Stromberg and Robert Z. Leonard produced and directed, respectively. Lavish scenes in the High Sierras and others made on thirty massive sets present the sweeping drama of old Spain in the period when Napoleon was defeated by Wellington at Vittoria. Seven musical numbers, five of them from the original Friml operetta, feature the picture. Two others were written by Friml especially for the film. Miss Mac Donald dances beautifully and sings "Love is Like a Firefly," "He Who Loves and Runs Away," and "When a Maid Comes Knocking at Your Heart" in perfect voice. Allan Jones sings "A Woman's Kiss" and "The Donkey Serenade," and they sing in duet, "Giannina Mia" and "Sympathy" with charming effect. WALLACE BEERY AGAIN. Heralded as an impressive epic of the West, "The Bad Man of Brimstone," starring Wallace Beery, will open here shortly. Portraying in graphic detail the manner in which law and order came to the lawless town of Brimstone, the new picture production offers Beery a picturesque characterisation. Directed by veteran J. Walter Ruben, the picture brings to prominence Dennis O'Keefe, sparkling new cinematic find, in the role of an Eastern prize-fight champion who swings into clean-up action on Beery's gang controlled town, spurred on by, bewitching Virginia Bruce, daughter or Lewis Stone, Brimstone's Justice of the Peace. A large assisting cast includes Joseph Calleia, Guy ' Kibbee, Bruce Cabot, Cliff Edwards, and hundreds of character actors. Filmed on an epic scale against the background of the West's wide national forest country, "The Bad Man of Brimstone" and its hard-riding, hard-shooting crew of topnotch players offers comedy, romance, and drama. MORE SMART GIRLS. - .r- */ Opportunity does knock more than once. Three young players are to get the biggest chances of their careers at Universal shortly. The studio is going to make another "Three Smart Girls" picture. It is to be a romantic comedy -called ''Three Smart Girls Leave Town" and three unknowns, not the original "three smart girls,'? DeSnria Durbin, Nan Grey, and Barbara Read, will be selected for the lead roles. It will be a chance for them to become stars just as Deanna Durbin became a star in her first' picture. Indicating the production value which will go into the picture, Charles R. Rogers, in charge of production, has borrowed Joel McCrea from Samuel Goldwyn for the male lead. At the same time Rogers borrowed Archie Mayo from Goldwyn to direct. The picture will be produced by Joe Pasternak, pro* ducer of the Durbin pictures, and will go before the. cameras in the near future. "LET GEORGE DO IT." Ken. 1 ' G. Hall, general manager of Cinesound, advises that production has been completed on "Let George Do It," starring George Wallace, and that the fijm is scheduled for early release. "Although we only shot the final production scenes last week, the film is already in advanced stages of cutting," said Mr. Hall, "as all through produce tion we have been preparing for an early release by keeping our progress cutting apace with production. 'Let George Do It,' continued the Cinesound director, "is an original riotous comedy, specially written for George Wallace, and we are very confident that the picture will prove most popular with, all audiences." The greatest cast of comedians ever used in a Cinesound film, support Wallace. Playing opposite . George is Letty Craydon, whose rapid-fire comedy work will be remembered in "Tall Timbers." JoeValli, Australian screen veteran, is castas "Happy," Wallace's offsider. j , ANOTHER GRIMM STORY. The brothers Grimm break into the medium of Walt Disney's productions again., Disney's feature-length version of their "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" is currently breaking box office records all over the country. Now, Mickey Mouse is at work starring in the title role of the Grimm's ''The Brave Little Tailor." This, however, is to be a short subject. Most people will remember, the story of the puny little tailor who was so proud of having killed seven flies at one blow that he made himself a belt upon which he embroidered "Seven at one blow." His adventures in this respect, with everyone taking the seven to nean human beings, comprise the. rest 3f the story, with the tailor winning half of a kingdom and a lovely prin:ess for his "brave" deeds. In the Disney version, Minnie Mouse plays the role of the princess whose hand Mickey wins. WILL FYFFE'S HIT. Many critics have written of Will Fyffe's portrayal of McAdam, the Scottish sheepfarmer in the G.B.D. attraction, "Qwd Bob." as one of the rery best—some say the best—charac-, terisations ever seen on the talking screen. It is certainly fine work, yet it did not come as a surprise v to those who knew Will Fyffe as an old experienced stage player with a remarkable record of successes made in many of Shakespeare's greatest THEY SERVE WHO STAND IN. A new service has come to light in Hollywood. For 25 dollars you can »et a man to "stand-in" for you at the lospital when your wife is having a alessed event. Claude Rains, Warner Bros, star in the forthcoming Cosmopolitan picture, "Gold is Where You find It," found out about it. To the studio came a letter from the Hollywood Nerve-saving Service. "When four baby comes, think of us," the etter read. "Why risk your health walking up and down the corridors of ;he hospital waiting for your bundle :rom heaven? For 25 dollars we will 'urnish one of our courteous men to ;tand-in for you." AUSTRALIAN ACTOR'S SUCCESS. The author of "Bedtime Story"—a nodern variation of the Cinderella egend—is Walter Ellis, who wrote "A Little Bit of Fluff" that ran at the London Criterion throughout the war and became part of the life of the ;imes. When "Bedtime Story" was Droduced at the Garrick Theatre, London, recently, it was playing in seven languages and thirty-seven European cities, simultaneously. The author :onsiders it odd that London should 3e one of the last cities to see his new jlay, which for some time has been jnjoying cosmopolitan success. Vicki Lester headed the cast at the Garrick; >he is a twenty-year-old actress from Vienna who was playing her first leadrig part in London. Australia's own -yril Ritchard played the leading male :ole, and gave an excellent account of limself. Others in the cast were Eliot Vlakeham, H. R. Highnett, and Marie Milt

PROGRESS IN AMUSEMENT.

Mr. Jack L. Warner, vice-president of Warner Bros, and executive in charge 3f the company's production activities in Hollywood, is widely quoted in American trade journals. His remarks are of interest to the public, whose chief concern is the effect the -novie industry's internal problems are likely to have on their future entertainment. Mr. Warner's remarks are prompted by what he describes as a :;ase of box office "jitters" which have, from time to time, registered at Hollywood from various American cities and which are apparently currently threatening a fresh outbreak. "Real progress in the amusement business," says Mr. Warner, "is always born in periods which challenge creators of entertainment. The time to worry is when mediocre output, is accepted as the genuine article. When and if people are not visiting the theatres there's a sure way to bring them back. Better pictures—as this decidedly is not the moment for curtailment in production. I never had more faith in the greatness of the picture business than at the present. All around us in the production field men are tackling their jobs with more determination and eagerness. We are approaching a period of change and transition. The going is getter tougher, the competition keener, and the fight to maintain a top position is getting harder every week. "Acute is the problem of cutting costs .and retaining quality, and rare are the producers who have not sat up nights worrying about it. To my mind the answer is that the two things just don't go together. We are in the middle of a high production cost period right now due to innumerable causes, most*-of which are beyond our control. lam as much concerned as anyone -about costs but I know that good pictures cannot be produced by spending less. Even with the most vigorous supervision in our studio, we are exceeding budgets. The vital tiling is that the pictures shall be well made to the utmost of our ability and designed to please the great public who have to pay for them. "In production, things do not always work out so that certain talent is available when a: picture is ready to start which is eminently suitable to the particular capabilities of the talent. Freelance players, writers, etc., are not obtainable sometimes for months to come. What's the alternative? Concentration on other showmanship qualities in production, more careful and intensive searching for story material, more originality in its presentation, more painstaking planning in its mounting." TITLE CHANGE. "The Texans" will be the release title of the picture which Paramount has been preparing for production under the titles "Marching Herds" and The Lone Star Rises." Randolph Scott, May Robson, Robert Barrat, and Raymond Hatton will have leading roles in The Texans," and Jsimes Hogan will direct. A BRILLIANT SPECTACLE. Dorothy Hyson, the daughter of a clever mother, Dorothy Dickson, one of London s best, known stage celebrities, had the leading role, withEsmond Knight, in the Phoenix Theatre production of "The Melody That Got Lost, by the talented Danish playwright, Kjeld Abell. it is comedy in twenty-two scenes, with incidental music. It was produced by G. Denis Freeman, who worked with the author personally on a hew adaptation. Mr. Freeman thinks that the Danish playwright has conceived a more imaginative use of the theatre than any modern playwright. M. Abell is famous ?? ? j ce mF designer and he wrote "The Melody That Got Lost" with &n eye to brilliant but simple scenic devices, perek Hill, a new young designer who is making a name for himself in London, collaborated fully in presenting the piece on a scale of exquisite beauty. "DODSWORTH" IN LONDON. Gladys Cooper and her husband, Philip Merivale, did not have a great success- with their play (written by James Parish, author of "A Distinguished Gathering") when it was presented in London under Basil Dean's direction as a sort of welcome-home appearance by the veteran British actress. After th'is disappointment, the Merivales chose as their next vehicle, Sidney Howard's adaptation of the Sinclair Lewis novel, "Dodsworth." This was a gveat success in America. Lee Ephraim, whp presented the Merivales, expressed his' desire to dispel the idea, that the locale of "Dodsworth" is American only, and pointed out that most of the acflpn takes place in Europe. It required a big production of fourteen scenes' and a cast of forty. Haidee Wright ( as the Austrian baroness and Nora Swinburne as Mrs. Cortright were prominently cast with Miss Cooper and Mr.* Merivale. THE FARJEONSV AGAIN. Herbert, Farjeon, whose output of work for the British* l stage has been small but good, has turned his hand to revue which recently had successful production at the Little Theatre. He was the author, with Horace Hprsnell, of Sybil Thorndike's comedy success, "Advertising April," and wrote 1 , two happily-remembered intimate revues. "Picnic" and "Marty Happy Returns,' as well as a more lavish spectacle tfut on at the Saville. This was "The Ti\ra Bouquets" (by Eleanor and Herbert Farjeon), a lovely musical piece. Some of the music for this was discovered by Miss Farjeon in an old album belonging to her mother. The Farjeon family has a New Zealand background. The latest work of Herbert Farjeon is described as very entertaining. Thte score is by Walter Leigh, the composer of that excellent musical joke, "The Pride of the Regiment." Hedley Briggs did the decor, and produced. ENTERTAINING COMEDY. Guthrie McClintic, husband of the famous German-American actress, Katharine Cornell, was producer for Ina Claire (well known on stage and screen in the States),-when she appeared on Broadway in "Barchester Towers," as Madeline Neroni. The play was taken by Thomas Job from the Anthony Trollope volumes when he was teaching English and drama at Carleton College, Minnesota, as a sort of text; his students presented the play and it went into the files. Later he took the script to Yale and showed it to Professor Walter Pritchard Eaton, who became enthusiastic about its prospects as a commercially profitable investment. Miss Claire was invited to see a production by the Yale students, and liked it so much that she took an option on it; Guthrie McClintic accepted the job of producing it. The story concerns Madeline Stanhope, a Victorian miss, who marries a dashing Italian and after eleven years in Italy returns to peaceful Barchester where she stirs up a social row by championing the cause of a handsome young curate. > Madeline tinkers with the ginger-beer jugs, and a stiffly Victorian gerttleman opposing this young minister gets the hiccups before the Bishop, for champagne has been substituted. Madeline has designs on the curate, believing herself a widow, but as the young man's romantic leanings are towards a pretty member of his congregation, embarrassment is happily prevented all round when the lady's Italian husband is found dealing cards at Monte Carlo. There is plenty of clever dialogue, and any amount of victorious bouts with stodgy Barchester residents.

NOEL COWARD'S OPERETTE

Fritzi Massary, who was engaged for the leading role in Noel Coward's latest musical success, "Qperette," in London, holds a unique position in Germany, where she has created the leading roles in the most popular musical plays, and also appeared with great success in such comedies as "The First Mrs. Fraser." She has a magic personality, and has done some recording for wireless. Her part in the Noel Coward piece suits her voice and charm, as her role calls for acting as well as singing ability. Peggy Wood, who gave such a feeling of reality to the Coward musical play "Bitter Sweet," and Griffith Jones, one of Britain's leading juvenile players, were well .cast, also two members of the Gate Theatre Company, Richard Haydn and Kenneth Garten. "Opcrette" is a costume piece with a strong romantic interest. REPERTORY CELEBRATION. The Birmingham Repertory Theatre celebi-ated its twenty-fifth birthday in February of this year. Planned, built, and opened by Sir Barry Jackson, this little theatre's influence has spread well beyond the boundaries of Birmingham (where it is one the city's most treasured institutions) to .the world's chief centres of drama and its more remote corners. Many brilliant actors, playwrights, and designers owe a great deal of their success to the early encouragement they received at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre. Celebrations included a luncheon given by Sir Barry, which was attended by representatives of the city and University of Birmingham, and by many famous people who began their careers under the aegis of the theatre. To mark the occasion an appeal was launched for subscriptions to a silver jubilee fund, the money to be devoted to the Barry Jackson Trust Fund, now the theatre's chief means of support. CONQUERING LONDON. Jevan Brandon Thomas is a young man who is fast making a name for himself in the British theatrical world as a producer. He has been doing useful things for the theatre, and has a record of a ' four-year season of plays in Glasgow and Edinburgh, where he presented good but not pretentious works; his productions and settings are of a notably high standard. He recently began a new venture when he opened a season at Hammersmith with Sheila Donisthorpe's new play, "Gaily We Set out." He found that London managers could not spare the time to journey north to Scotland to see his productions, so decided to bring them to London. He also put the play on at Wimbledon and intends to keep the two theatres open all this year, giving way to pantomime at Christmas. His idea is to present a new play at Hammersmith in the first week of every month, transferring it to the other theatre the following Monday. SHERWOOD GOES TO LONDON. Robert Sherwood's much-discussed play "Idiot's Delight 1 ," in which Alfred Lunt and his wife, Lynn Fontanne had such a big success in America, was staged in London during recent months. The chief roles were taken by Raymond Massey and Tamara Geva, a young Russian actress has been successful in the States. She delayed taking up an important Hollywood contract in order to play in the Sherwood piece. "Idiot's Delight" has been described as primarily entertainment —romantic comedy with a topical background. It is a Pulitzer Prize play. Mr. Massey, in association with Henry Sherek, produced, acted, and presented the play to West End audiences after a preliminary run in Glasgow, Leeds, Edinburgh, and 'Manchester. ' Mr. Massey and his colleague, who know the theatrical world both sides of the Atlantic, are enthusiastic for a greater exchange of plays, actors, and even critics, between England and America. ' A "LONDON" THRILLER. The Walter Hackett play, "London After Dark," at the Apollo Theatre, proved a thrilling murder play. It marked the twenty-second play that Mr. Hackett has produced in London with his talented wife, Marion Lome, in the leading role. In addition to writing; producing, and casting his own plays, he invariably creates his own effects. Effects are an important feature of the Hackett dramaturgy. For "London After Dark," he reproduced the sounds of Piccadilly Circus at night. One of the highlights of the play is a murder in a London mews; the action of the play takes place' in one evening. Walter Hackett, who is . an American, went to England many years ago with a company and liked it so much he has stayed on. He thinks there is more drama in London than in any other city in the world and has found the inspiration for many of his plays in the great metropolis. Supporting players to Miss Lome included Cathleen Nesbitt, Edwin Styles, Robert Andrews, Richard Gray, Leonard Lipton, and Phyllis Morris (one of the cleverest exponents of Cockney types on the English stage). ABOUT PEOPLE. Geoffrey Nares, son of the famous English actor, Owen Wares, is a young man only 20 who does the decorationof stage plays, and already has three plays to his credit—"Candida," "George and Margaret," and "The Constant Wife." The latter is a Maugham play and is considered by many to be his best play. It had an unfortunate first night, though. There was some mistake in the seating arrangements at the premiere, and such an uproar was caused that much of the dialogue was sJmply .not heard. It has been acted w;th great success since in America and the Continent. In its latest Lonpresentation, Ruth Chatterton, the famous American actress, was starred. Miss ■ Cbattebton deeply impressed people with her quiet, retiring demeanour. Sshe does not court publicity, and the open air—riding, swimming, or: flying in her own plane, for she .is a qualified pilot. She has a wonderful speaking voice, almost entirely devoid of American accent. Supporting het* in the Maugham revival were Cecil Parker, Eileen Peel, Helen Haye, Ever ley Gregg. Walter • Piers, Dorothy Lane, and Cyril Raymond. Richard Bird, vho produced, has produced two playa a year for the London Repertory Plyiyers for 15 years. PLAY OVf DUSE. Le Roy Bailey wrcte "Curtain Call," a dram? having to do With the latter years of the life of Elejinora Duse, the great tragedienne of the American stage. It had a very shaft run in New York when • put on airly in 1937. Eleanora Duse passed awvy following an attack of pneumonia aftii,r influenza, death taking place in Pittsburgh. "Curtain Call" rather capitalise.?' the romance that linked her name \with that of Gabriele D'Annunzio. It ,to,Us litrle of the true story of that great ramance. and catches none of the spiritual quality tha* surrounded its heroine. The author tells of Isola Casella. a great Italian actress who retires from the stage when her lover dies, a.nd bears bis child in a convent home. An impassioned young poet is the only person who can wean her back to the stage, but after five years' association, with the actress, he leaves her for an affair with her manager's wife. His : crowning insult is the publication of a , novel descriptive of their adventure, ; holding up to ridicule the passion of ' the woman ten years his senior. In 1 the New York presentation of the play, : Ara Gerald was Isola; she wisely re- j frained from attempting anything re- ] sembling a suggested imitation. J

"SOCIAL" THEMES FAIL.

The New York Theatre Guild execuive has come to the conclusion after :9 years' experience that plays on iocial themes never make, money, yet leserve production. It guarantees such slays a five weeks' hearing. The guild :an claim an existence of courageous idventure and success. Some of its nost notable productions have been jox-ofrice losses; it has weathered as nany as seven consecutive failures, ind experienced as many as eleven successes in a row. The successes included Shaw's "Pygmalion"; Pirandello's "Right. You Are If You Think ifou Are"; Shaw's "The Doctor's Dilemma"; and Eugene O'Neil's "Strange Interlude." The losses were;—" Red Rust." a play on Soviet life; "Valley Forge"; "The Moon in , the Yellow River"; "Juarez and Maximilian": 'Roar China"; "Back to Methuselah"; Too True to be Good"; "The Adding Machine"; "Processional"; "Goat song"; "Wings- Over Europe"; "They Shall Not Die"; "Hotel Universe"' -From Morn to Midnight"; "Both Your Houses" (which won the Pulitzer Prize); and "The Failures." Committed to the professional production in New York of at least six plays annually, the £uild meets its losses to some extent by its subscription guarantee. Of its social plays, "R.U.R." alone rnaae money. - PLAY ON RALEIGH. The latest play about Raleigh produced In London, "The King's Pirate " did not strike the late Paul Dornhorst, critic-playwright, as anything but "an honest downright affair with no nonsense about it, and very little subtlety." It begins with Raleigh imprisoned in the Tower, dreaming of the spacious days of Elizabeth, and peopling his bare room with the ghosts of Drake, Marlowe, Frobisher, and Hawkins. After many weary years of intrigue, King James allows Raleigh to undertake the voyage to Guiana to find the gold mine which is to restore his, and England's fortunes. Treachery, fever, and despair dog this tragic voyage, and Raleigh returns to 'death and the headsman's axe. The authors have idealised their hero, but it is King James who, in the opinion of Mr. Dornhorst, steals the stage. Wilfrid Lawson's King James was a padded, grotesque, flesh and blood performance; Wyndham Goldie was forthright and ironically heroic as Raleigh, and Lawrence Baskcomb, Anthony Ireland, and Peter ' Ridgeway excellent in their roles. , ' . A POISON PEN. Theatre audiences at the Emtaassy Theatre, London, liked, fhe strong drama of "Poison Pen'," an eventful 'play that was rewritten by -the author after a try-out. He profited by the experience of having his public criticise the play in its initial form. Margaret Yarde played the outwardly impeccable but repressed maiden lady who finds an outlet for her instincts by writing mischievous letters to her neighbours. Hence the title —"Poison Pen." The maiden lady is a, startling character in the play, for it is from her actions that much of the drama develops. CAUGHT MANAGER'S EYE. Noel Coward witnessed a performance at the Gate Theatre of a revue entitled "Members Only," and liked it so much that he chose two members x>f the company for, his new musical play "Operette. Mr. Coward sent his manager, John C. Wilson, to the Gate performance and the upshot was that Richard Haydn and Kenneth Carten were selected by the discriminating gentleman who superintends the Coward activities. "Operette" introduced to London audiences a charming German actress, Fritzi Massary, who has created the leading roles in most of Berlin's musical plays. > BUSY > ''C.8." Since his return to London from America early this year, 'C. B. Cochran, the noted entrepreneur, has been a bupy man; his first activity was the presentation of the big New York success, "Father Malachy's Miracle," followed by work on a new musical play for the brilliant partners, Flanagan and Allen, and the introduction to London of Clifford Odets's play "Golden Boy." CUTTING THE CAKE. - There is in London an annual eVCftt of importance when the famous Baddeley Cake is cut at Drury Lane Theatre. This year marked the 144 th year in succession. The ceremony is witnessed only by the management and the company appearing in the current play. It happened to be Ivor Novello's second experience of tl\e cutting of the cake, as his play "Crest of the Wave"- followed last year's success at Drury Lane, "Careless Rapture," on the stage of the historic theatre. It is interesting to record that Robert Baddeley perpetuated his name in this way with a £100 clause in his will. He directed that the interest on this sum should be used for making a cake to be eaten by the company at Drury Lane every twelfth night. He has another claim on the memory of posterity, for he created the part of Moses in "The School for Scandal." SNOW AND TACKS. Director Anatole Litvak will probably always remember the last day of »Tovarich" as the day it snowed tin-tacks. That is what happened. : Right in the middle of the final scene of the Warner Bros, picture it snowed a whole lot of tin-tacks. And Mr. Litvak, Claudette Colbert, and Charles Boyer were much annoyed, for the fall of tacks spoiled the ; scene. This is how it happened. In thei scene Miss Colbert and Boyer, as the Russian Grand Duchess and Prince turned maid and butler, were standing in the kitchen of their master's home waiting for the dawn of the new. year. "Action," called , Director Litvak. "Start the snow.'VThe §nowmakers, on the runways above the set, opened their hoppers and the snow started to fall. But with it came hundreds of tacks. It seemed that the : men who filled the hoppers with arti- , ficial snow had accidentally included a few pounds of tacks. LYDA ROBERTI DEAD. Lyda Roberti, film actress, died on ; March 12, in her apartment, of a heart 1 attack. She was 32 years old and had been in poor health for the. last two years. The heart ailment she suffered caused her to retire from active screen work. Her husband, Hugh Ernst, radio announcer, was with her when she died. Miss Roberti was born in Warsaw, daughter of Roberti, a famous clown. She travelled with circuses through Europe and"'Asia, beginning her theatrical career in Los Angeles on the stage of a motion picture theatre. She appeared in Broadway stage shows, including "You Said It." Among the motion pictures in Which she worked were "Dancers in the Dark," "Million-dollar Legs," "Threecornered Moon," and "The Kid from Spain," She met Mr. Ernst in a Los Angeles hospital when she was recovering from an appendectomy in 1935. They were married on June 25 of that year in Yuma, Arizona. Miss Roberti made her first hit in "You Said It," which marked her Broadway debut in the season of 1930-31. She was an immediate success as a comedienne, and her years of vaudeville and touring were ended. In Hollywood she appeared in "The Big Broadcast of 1936," ivith Claudette Coubert in "Torch SViger," and "George White's 1935 Scandals." After illness forced her to •et&'e, she was several times reported ;o bt x about to return. Last November t wap said she would play the leadng feyninine comedy role in a /Joe E.

COLOUR AND STYLES. The screen's wholesale swing to colour promises to cost Adolphe Menjou a cool £5000, possibly more. To uphold his long-established reputation as the cinema's best-dressed man, Menjou is finding it necessary to acquire a • Technicolour wardrobe to supplement the extensive—and. expensive—one he already possesses for black and white pictures. "For my Technicolour role? I can't buy any more plain suits," Menjou explained. "If I choose a grey, for example, it must have contrasting checks or stripes. I found that out when I was making *A Star is Born' for Selznick International." Menjou said he has already purchased fifteen new suits for his current role in Samuel Goldwyn's Technicolour musical, "The Goldwyn Follies," and that there would be more. He is, he added, using every colour shade—blues, browns, greys, and even greens. The fashion arbiter believes that colour films will have a tremendous influence on male clothing styles.'

j "GOLDEN BOY." t ■ i "Golden Boy," Clifford Odets's cur- ; rent stage success, now. in its fifth 1 ■ month in New York, has been, puri chased by Columbia, and will be one ' • of the forthcoming important produc- J ■ tions offered by the company. Con- , ■ sidered the Group Theatre's most sue- J cessful Play, "Golden Boy" has also * brought Odets the greatest praise of r his short, though brilliant, career. He t first came to fame with the sensational r "Waiting For Lefty," which was fol- v lowed by "Awake and Sing," aijd s "Paradise Lost." The cast and direc- r tor of Columbia's ,version of "Golden t Boy," not'yet selected, will be out- s standing. When the Odets play opened v at the Belasco Theatre New Yoirk news- e: paper critics accorded it high praise b for its brilliant characterisation, tense h drama, and vital dialogue. o

BUCHANAN AND CHEVALIER. .

Jack Buchanan and Maurice Chevalier team in the G.B.D. attraction, "Break the News," light comedy entertainment produced and directed by Rene Clair. Appearing as a .couple of do&n-and-out stage artists who boost themselves to fame by means of a publicity stunt involving a fake murder, the co-stars are at the top of their form, while a large supporting cast aids them with distinction. Lavishly presented in settings that .include the theatre, Old Bailey, the Riviera, and Ruritanian. backgrounds, the film was screened to an enthusiastic audience recently.

LUPE VELEZ GETS HER MAN. "I Always Get My -Man;" written by Dave Dreyer and Heyinan Ruby, will be sung by Lupe Vel«z in her current RKO-Radio picture, "High Flyers," in which Bert Wheeler afad Bob. Woolsey have the chief roles. "Interspersed In the number will be! imitations of Katharine Hepburn, Simon'e Simon, and Shirley Temple, :■ as" well as a glimpse of Martha Raye. ' In '.addition to her solo number, Miss Velez will-do a soAg and dance with wToolsey. BUSY BARRYMORE. v The new Paramount production schedule has John Barrymore slated for seven productions all starting within the next two months. The list includes "Spawn of the North," "The Gracie Allen -Murder Mystery," "Things Began to Happen," "Caf» Society," "Midnight" "Four-leal Clover,": and another "Bulldog. Drum* mond."

UP TO HIS NECK. Cary Grant was actually "up .to l hit neck" in comic predicaments recently, while .filming his latest picture. Yet, once the situation, was anything but funny. Among a part of 140.he had trekked high into California , Sierras for scenes in "Holiday," the Philip Barry comedy drama in which Grant co-stars with Katharine Hepburn. The troupe established a base at Bishop, then struck *out for an area where Producer Riskin had ascertained there was fourteen feet of snow. The first scene required Grant to celebrate a romantic meeting with Doris Nolan by turning exuberant somersaults in the snow. , Grant came in a hollow— wholly unsuspected beneath the smooth jxpanse of snow—and in an instant waj juried several feet, his legs threshing lelplessly, the rest of him all but out of sight.

CARY GRANT AND LEOPARD.

••It was probably inevitable, with two •live leopards and a-stuffed one working in R.K.0.-Radio's "Bringing Up Baby," but it gave Cary "Grant quite 9 shock r?cei\tly to enter his pbrtable dressing-room and find a leopard reclining upon his couch. Upon his hurried exif he* encountered Katharine Hepburn arid Charlie. Ruggles wearing expressipns that gave the hoax aWay. It was the stuffed animal that was oni the. couch. "After working two weeks With those big cats," Grant remarked, "I'm getting so I don't evaft trust a dummy leopard."