SCREEN and STAGE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24738, 15 October 1941, Page 8

SCREEN and STAGE

By Harlequin

“Gunga Din” Teamed together for the first time, Cary Grant, Victor McLaglen and Douglas Fairbanks, jun., are seen as three comrade sergeants whose adventures form the basis of the stirring screen version of the famous ballad by Rudyard Kipling, “ Gunga Din,” which will be released at the State Theatre on Friday. The three stars portray a trio of British soldiers stationed at an army post in northern India. Their exciting experiences while trying to quell an uprising among a band of religious fanatics, who cbmmit wholesale murder accord-

ing to religious rites, provide the dramatic action of the story. Grant has recently achieved added popularity in such successful pictures as “Bringing Up Baby," “ Holiday,” and “ The Awful Truth.” McLaglen has scored in “ The Lost Patrol,” "The Devil’s Party," “Battle of Broadway,” and “Wee Willie Winkie.” Fairbanks’s most recent hits have been “The Rage of Paris," “Having Wonderful Time,” and “Joy of Living.” Joan Fontaine has the leading feminine part in “Gunga Din,” the title role of which is portrayed by Sam Jaffe. Other players are Eduardo Ciannelli, Montagu Love, Robert Coote and Abner Biberman.

“Men of Boys’ Town" Spencer Tracy and Mickey Roonev are together again, as co-stars of " Men of Boys’ Town.” sequel to “Boys’ Town.” with Tracy again playing Father Flanagan and Rooney “ Whitey,”

From GREEN ROOM and STUDIO

The picture will commence at the Regent Theatre shortly. With Tracy and Rooney, it’s one for all and all for one. It is interesting in this respect that Rooney literally has grown up with Tracy, and their careers have shared many mutual outstanding moments. Tracy is the first to give Rooney credit for contributing to his outstanding successes. Roonev points to Tracy as his guide and Their first picture together was “Riffraff,” filmed in 1936. At that time Tracy had yet to play Father Tim in " San Francisco ” and to go on from there to become one of the greatest

stars of the screen. Rooney was just another boy actor, with his future ahead of him. Tracy and Rooney have since continued their parallel careers, the former making “ Edison, The Man.” and the latter “Young Tom Edison.” Norman Taurog. who directed them in both films, says of the two stars: “ Most of their scenes are made in a single take. Tracy never tries to take a scene from Rooney or Rooney to take one from Tracy. I have seen them more often than not try to throw a scene to the other.”

After 16 Years 'Way back in 1925 Ronald Colman starred with May McAvoy and Irene Rich in “Lady Windermere’s Fan.” It was directed by Ernst Lubitsch. It is now up for a remake at Warners, Interesting that only one of these personalities, May McAvoy, is no longer connected with the picture industry.

“ One Night in the Tropics ” America’s greatest living composer, Jerome Kern, furnished the musical score of five original numbers in Universal’s romantic comedy feature, “One Night in the Tropics.” which will be shown at the Empire Theatre on Friday. A reunion of star and composer was marked when Allan Jones was assigned a stellar role opposite Nancy Kelly in the new film. In “One Night in the Tropics,” Jones sings three of the new numbers by the veteran composer of the scores for “Sally,” “Sunny.” “Roberta” and many other successes. “ You and Your Kiss,"“Simple Philosophy” and “Your Dream ” are the numbers sung by Jones. Miss Kelly makes a vocal debut by singing “Your Dream.” Peggy Moran, young leading lady who has her most important role to date, also sings for the first time when she vocalises Kern’s “ Remind Me.” “ One Night in the Tropics ” presents the story of a young insurance man who sells his best friend a million-dollar “ love insurance ” policy, and thereby causes romantic complications among two couples.

“The Great American Broadcast”

John Payne accomplished something that few top ranking stars can boast: He persuaded his studio, 20th Century-Fox, to allow him to stunt his own plane in the opening sequences of his latest picture. Co-starred with Alice Faye, Jack Oakie, and Cesar Romero in the “The Great American Broadcast.” which comes on Friday to the Octagon Theatre, the handsome, rugged John Payne is an expert pilot in his own right, having rolled up 1500 hours in the air. The plane is a new, specially built replica of the famous World War I “ Jenny ” model used by American pilots in France. This one. however, is guaranteed to withstand any punishment to which it might be subjected, and as an additional safeguard. John wore a parachute. He never needed it. The featured cast of “The Great American Broadcast,” includes Mary Beth Hughes, the Nicholas Brothers, the Wiere Brothers, and the Four Inkspots. Archie Mayo directed from an original screen play by Don Ettlinger and Edwin Blum, Robert Ellis and Helen Logan.

“Washington Melodrama” A tense murder mystery amid world shaking events of to-day in America’s national capital forms the theme of " Washington Melodrama,” coming soon to the St James Theatre. A millionaire. engaged in a campaign to feed the hungry of Europe, becomes enmeshed in a strange blackmail and murder plot and faces disgrace. His socialite daughter turns amateur detective, aided by her fiance, a newspaperman, to solve the grim mystery.

Ann Rutherford, famous as Andy Hardy’s sweetheart in the “ Hardy Family” series, plays her first romantic lead as a society girl. Frank Morgan, plays a dramatic role as her father, and Fay Holden, the “Ma ” Hardy of the screen, becomes a new person with elaborate gowns and coiffure to play her mother. Dan Dailey, jun., and Virginia Grey stage songs and dances as night club stars, and Kent Taylor plays the male lead as the newspaperman. Players include Lee Bowman as a debonair reporter, Anne Gwynne as leader of a bevy of bathing beauties in a night club “ Aqua-dance,” Douglas Dumbrille. Olaf Hytton, Sara Haden and Cliff Clark.

Mayfair Theatre Presented by an impressive cast, headed by Spencer Tracy, Mickey

Rooney. Freddie Bartholomew. Lionel Barrymore and Melvyn Douglas. Metro-Goldwyn Mayer’s screen version of Kipling’s “Captains Courageous” will commence a three-night season at the Mayfair to-night. Coming from the studio that has given to the world such a powerful epic of the sea as “ Mutiny on the Bounty." this Kipling masterpiece attains even greater heights in its visual and audible treatment. “ Captains Courageous ” will be supported by “Arms and the Man ” and “ Sea Scouts,” one of Walt Disney’s delightful coloured cartoons.

His Majesty’s Theatre Timely in its presentation and powerful in its dramatic effect, the Russian film “ Chapayev,” which comes to His Majesty’s on Friday, brings to the screen in rugged, and sometimes lurid, fashion warlike events from the history of the Russian revolution. The picture takes its title from the name of the hero, a peasant who became commander of a division of the Red Army, and the story is that of the fighting between Reds and Whites. Photography and sound effects are skilfully blended to achieve tense drama, and the natural acting of the players adds to the realism. The dialogue is in Russian, but brief English translations are given. “ Chapayev ” is a film that should be of outstanding interest to Home

Guardsmen, especially as the story is developed around the theme of men who fight with improvised equipment and in a manner that has little to do with formal drillbooks. Strand Theatre Reproducing an old-fashioned Eastern farm in California provides many problems for the horticulturists who grow flowers, trees and other vegetation for a Hollywood motion picture set. One of the gardening miracles necessary for such a feat occurred during the filming of “The Penalty,” dramatic story of a boy’s regeneration, coming on Friday to

the Strand Theatre. The script called for an Eastern farm, in which Robert Sterling and Gene Reynolds experiment with a field of Indian corn. The corn season was over. Oranges or avocadoes could be had—but they wouldn’t do. Jack Hinds, of the property department, solved the problem. He located some late corn in Mexico, brought it to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and it was transplanted. The Eastern farm was then perfect. “ The Penalty,” based on Martin Berkeley's New York stage hit, deals with a gangster’s son who finds regeneration amid the simple folk on a farm. Grand Theatre

Hugh Herbert, known in every part of the world where movies are shown as the “ woo woo ” man, because of his unique falsetto exclamation utilised with comical effect to express various emotions, heads the list of featured principals in “ The Villain Still Pursued Her,” Harold B. Franklin’s new comedy hit. That Herbert’s, quaint vocal device has gained him international fame, is evidenced by his fan mail. which contains mail letters addressed to him simply as “ Woo woo Hollywood.” In the new picture he has the role of Frederick Healy, a reformer and philanthropist of the mid-Victorian era. The story depicts the evils of demon rum, utilised by the villain to despoil the hero and gain his nefarious ends! Anita Louise, Alan Mowbray, Buster Keaton, Joyce Compton, Richard

Cromwell. Billy Gilbert, Margaret Hamilton, Diane Fisher and Charles Judels are Herbert’s fellow principals. “Robbers of the Range,” with Tim Holt at his best in a stirring western drama, is the supporting feature. Versatile Schoolboy Singers

Singing is by no means the only accomplishment of many members of the Southland Boys’ High School Choir, who, will assist at the Choral Society s concert in the Town Hall on Saturday night next. Three of its members are associated with the shooting team of five which won the Earl Roberts Trophy, which is competed for throughout' the Empire, by secondary schools. In the school "sextet, which will be heard in special numbers, five of the boys are members of he first Rugby fifteen, while the sixth is captain of the hockey team and won the A grade badminton tournament this year. In the same sextet are four prefects, including the head. The musical .versatility of the boys, too, is considerable, and the baritone soloist. Jack Thompson. already has an exceptional voice and shows great promise. In the school choir are 230 singers, and the 60 who will appear in Dunedin have been carefully selected from the big choir. The musical director. Mr Kennedy Black, who conducts from the piano, has had wide experience with boys’ choirs and was formerly prominent on the operatic stage.