REGENT THEATRE

Evening Post, Volume CXXVI, Issue 89, 12 October 1938, Page 5

REGENT THEATRE

"A Letter of Introduction."

Fine, great, dramatic situations, interspersed with hilarious comedy moments, march grandly across the screen of John M. Stahl's production, "A Letter of Introduction," which opens tomorrow at the Regent Theatre. Adolphe Menjou, Andrea Leeds, and George Murphy provide the drama. The comedy is excellently taken care of by that remarkable pair, Edgar Bergen and "Charlie McCarthy." Stahl, the producer-director, is known for his intensely powerful and tragic creations such as "Back Street," "Imitation of Life," and "Only Yesterday." Yet. "Letter of Introduction" shows he is also master of the art of creating high comedy rapidly and,' effectively. A succession of vividly contrasting emotional scenes, forceful direction, superlative acting, and a powerful and dramatic story, the picture stands as John IM. Stahl's finest to date. Andrea Leeds and Adolphe Menjou carry the.story of an ageing actor who discovers, through a letter of introduction, that he is the father of a grown daughter, the role played! by Miss Leeds. The 'actor's ego, coupled with the fear of losing his ' screen-idol popularity, prompts him to conceal their true relationship from the world and to extract from his daughter a promise of secrecy. Through this deception comes a succession of events, some tragic, some dramatic, some hilarious. Enhanced by the extraordinary acting abilities of Miss Leeds and Mi*. Menjou, they merge to form a truly great screen offering. George Murphy reveals unsuspected qualities as Miss Leeds's suspicious fiance. Rita Johnson as George's dancing partner, Ann Sheridan as Menjou's society-fiancee, and Eve Arden as a sophisticated showgirl are excellently cast. McCar-, thy, however, emerges as tops in the comedy line, although he has an: unexpected rival in "Mortimer Snerd,"' a rural dummy who makes his screen j debut in "Letter of • Introduction." ■ I