ACTOR ON HIS KNEES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20958, 22 August 1931, Page 3 (Supplement)

ACTOR ON HIS KNEES.

GIRL'S REVOLVER HOLD-UP. A BET AND HOW IT WAS WON. Entering his dressing room with the applause of a packed audience ringing in his ears, Carl Brisson, the star of "Wonder Bar" at the Streatham Hill Theatre, London, found himself staring straight down the barrel of a revolver. And the revolver was held by a girl.' Mr. Brisson said in an interview: " Immediately after taking my bow at the fall of the curtain at the matinee performance I ran along to my dressing room. I pushed open the door of the room and found myself looking straight down the barrel of a revolver. It was held by a pretty, neatly-dressed girl with blonde hair. I stopped short in amazement, and the girl snapped out, 'Put 'em up!' "So half smilingly and half from a 'Safety first' point of view I put up my hands. Then the girl told me to go down on my knees. She waved the revolver menacingly at me. I still thought it might be a joke, but if the gun went off the joke would have been on me, so again I complied with the request. "While I was on my knees with my hands above my head the girl, still pointing the revolver at me, moved toward the door. As she did so the door opened and my manager entered. He stood there amazed and the girl jumped out of the door and ran along the passage. "Miss Gwen Farrar, whose room is next to mine, arrived and we gave chase, but the girl got to the stage door and jumped into a car waiting outside. She was out of sight before we could stop it, but we got the number of the car and a pochette which the girl dropped in the chase along the corridor. " In the handbag , was a tiny autograph album bearing the name of a Miss Gladys Gutteridge, with an address in Fulham. Seen later .Miss Gutteridge said:" I may as well tell you right away it was done for a bet. I have long been an admirer of Carl "Brisson, but I had never met him personally. The other night I bet one of my friends I could have Carl Brisson on his knees to me. "Well, I borrowed the revolver—not a real one—and dodged into the theatre on a friend's card. I intended to get Mr. Brisson's autograph to prove that I had actually done what I said I could do, but when the door opened unexpectedly I became scared and ran away. But I have now got my autograph—thanks to the kindness of Mr. Brisson —and I have won my bet."