ACROSS THE FOOTLIGHTS

Taranaki Daily News, 25 July 1931, Page 22 (Supplement)

ACROSS THE FOOTLIGHTS

COMING EVENTS. EVERYBODY’S. To-night, Monday and Tuesday. — “Way Out West” (William Haines) Metrb-Goldwyn-Mayer production. July 29' to 31.—“01d English” (George Arliss'), Warner Bros, special production. August 1 to 4.—‘The Cohens and Kellys °ln Africa” (Charlie Murray-Geo. ■Sidney), Universal production. August 5 to 7.—“ The Better Wife °(Ruth Chatterton), Paramount pro-, duction. *- THE REGENT. To-night, Monday and Tuesday. “A Devil With Women” (Victor McLaglen), Eox Movietone production. , „ July 29 to 31. —“Renegades’’ (Warner Baxter), Eox Movietone special pro,duction. August 1 'to . 4.—“ The Perfect Alibi (all British production. August.s to 7—“ Top Speed” (Joe E. ■ Brown—Bernice Claire), Warner Bros, production; and “The Notorious Affair” (Billie Dove), First National production. OPERA HOUSE. To-night.—“ Song of My Heart” (John McCormack) Fox Movietone special. August I.—“ The Cuckoos” (Bert Wheelver—Robt. Woolsey), R.K.O. produc- ■ tion. August 8. —“The Vagabond Lover ° (Rudy Vallee—Marie Dressier— Sally Blane), R.K.O. production. * ' * * “WAY OUT WEST.” The adventures of a carnival barker who becomes initiated into the mysteries. of cowboy life brings in the laughs in William Haines’ latest talking comedy, “Way Out West,” which commem ces at Everybody’s to-day at 2 and 7.45 pm. 1 The'cast includes Leila Hyams, Polly Moran, CUf Edwards, Francis X. Bushman,.' .Jr., Vera Marsh, Charles Middleton’ and others. The . picture,, which was filmed on an Hopi Indian reservation near Gallup, New Mexico, resulted in a unique experience .for members of the cast, namely that of working before the camera for several days in gauze masks. The reason for this is that the plot called for the Alpina- of'a big scene during a windstorm, and when the wind starts blowing sand flies through the air at the speed of bullets. .Directions in the script required Haines and Miss Hyams to drive a motor-car out on the desert, step out and .run against the wind. While actually before the camera, the players of course discarded the gauze, but . the masks were resumed the instant Director Fred Niblo stopped the scene. The fun in this scene is bound up with misunderstood intentions, for Haines is trying to get the injured heroine to a doctor while her friends, thinking he is trying to kidnap her, pepper the air close to his heau. with bullets. The ridiculous antics of the ‘‘dude cowboy aided and abetted by the equally ,comic Cliff Edwards and Polly Moran are said to make this picture one of Haines’ funniest to date. • * * ♦ ■ “A DEVIL WITH WOMEN.” -

On© dark-eyed senorita should he enough to keep two men busy fightin" over her, but in “A Devil With Women,”' Victor McLaglen’s latest Fox Movietone offering, commencing at the Kegent to-day at 2 and 7.45 p.m., the noted actor and his rival buddy successfully come to blows over three charmers. Mona Maris, Luana Alcaniz and Mona Rico have the roles of the trio in this exciting story of the trop-;. ics. McLaglen inaugurates a new type of role, that of a captain in the army of a little Central American republic who is assigned to capture a notorious bandit leader. His encounters with the outlaw, and his serio-comic rivalry with Humphrey Bogart over the aforesaid damsels, together with a fast moving and thrilling story, make this picture a unique one in the long list of Me Laglen successes. Michael Vavitch, Mrs.. Jiminez, John St. Polis, Robert Edeson and other screen favourites are in the cast. Irving Cummings, who m'ade “Behind that Cur-tain,” “In Old Arizona,” “Cameo Kirby,” “On the Level” and other Fox Movietone talking hits, directed the production. « * • • “SONG OF MY HEART.”

It’s a kind world and a good world and a soft-hearted world after all. If you have any doubt about it, see and hear the world's greatest tenor, John McCormack, in “Song of My Heart.” showing at" the Opera House to-night only. During the evolution of the delightful romance of Ireland and America from the screen, McCormack sings 11 songs. See what happens when this great singer takes faith and trust, love, memory, forgiveness, loyalty and courage and wraps them in'the silver of his > voice and brings this old world back to its own simple honest faith again. The cast includes such artiste as John Garrick, Maureen O’Sullivan, J. M. Kerrigan, Farrell Macdonald, Alice Joyce, Effie Ellsler, Tommy Clifford and Emily Fitzroy. ■ • * • • ‘•RENEGADES.” , Four' comrades —a French officer .flee- , ing from the spectres of the past, a burly. German, an aristocratic Russian and a hard-boiled American —none of them a credit to his country, all hiding the bitter memories that drove them into the last refuge, the French Foreign Legion, rebellious of discipline, but loyal to each other, if to no one else —these are the “Renegades.” In the picture of that name, coming to the Regent Theatre next Wednesday, the adventures of this queer quartette and their joint battle with the treacherous woman spy who had betrayed their leader, form the plot on which a strikingly vivid and breathless portrayal of Legion life has been based. Warner Baxter plays the leading role of the ex-officer, with Noah Beery, Gregory Gaye and George Cooper as his companions and Myrna Loy as the woman in the case. Directed by Victor Fleming, who made ‘‘Common Clay,”;“Renegades” is a picture notable for its realism and swift action. It is .an adaptation by Jules Furthman of Andre Armandy’s novel, “Les Renegats,” and the millions who appreciated the dramatic quality of Fleming’s previous offering are said to be eagerly awaiting the initial showings of this Fox Movietone. * * ♦ * “OLD ENGLISH.” “Old English,” the Galsworthy play which proved so tremendously popular when played on the stage by George Arliss and which has been made into a Warner Bros, and Vitaphone picture, opens at Everybody’s Theatre on Wednesday next. ‘‘Old English” can be

compared best perhaps to the epochal “Disraeli” of last season, which introduced the genius of George Arliss to the talking picture world. “Old Eng-, lish’’ is considered by Mr. Arliss to be his finest characterisation. Incidentally, it is the first Galsworthy drama to reach the talking screen and it is understood that no little persuasion was, needed to secure from the English playwright the permission to produce his play as a picture. A distinguished cast supports Mr. Arliss in “Old English,” among those included being Ivan Simpson, Doris Lloyd, Betty Lawford, Leon Janney, Harrington Reynolds, Reginald Sheffield, Murray Kinnell, Ethel Griffies and Henrietta Goodman. • * * • “THE PERFECT ALIBI.” It took an Englishman, .celebrated as a writer of gay and whimsical stories and plays, to write the finest mystery drama of the past ten years. A. A. Milne, author of such plays as “Mr. Pim Passes By,” and the famous children’s books such as “Winnie the Pooh” and “Now We Are Six,” is also the writer of one of the most thrilling and suspenseful of modern murder mysteries, “The Perfect Alibi.” Proof that “The Perfect Alibi” is a smashing success is found in the fact that it played on the stage for two years during its Broadway engagement several years ago. Now it is a talkie, coming to the Regent Theatre with a distinguished English cast and the direction of Basil Dean.

THE COHENS & KELLYS IN AFRICA

Universal studios, which has given to the world such brilliant super-produc-tions as “All Quiet on the Western Front” and “King of Jazz,” has turned its attention to a new era of advancement in the production of comedy features. “The Cohens and Kellys in Af- . rica,” which comes to New Plymouth shortly, may be considered a real attainment in comedy screen-fare. Charlie Murray and George Sidney, two of America’s outstanding comedians on both stage and screen, are featured in this photoplay, which has received the same careful attention to detail as its two prize pictures of 1930. Neither money nor time has been spared to make “The Cohens and Kellys” the finest entertainment of its type. With an excellent cast of characters, huge and beautiful settings for the physical making of the picture, “The Cohens and Kellys in Africa” is in a class apart from usual film farces. • • • • J? “THE CUCKOOS.” Filled with mad waggery, riotous fun and delirious nonsense, “The Cuckoos,” all-talking musical comedy, which will play a return season at the Opera House on Saturday, August 1, is an innovation in sound pictures. Radio Pictures has stepped out into the lead among producers by introducing an all-comedy entertainment at the time audiences are sated with drawing-room dramas, backstage stories, and underworld melodramas. “The Cuckoos” is not a musical revue. It is a full-length production based on a Well-developed plot, with the comedy sequences holding full sway. Bert Wheeler and Robt. Woolsey head the big. cast. OPERA HOUSE, HAWERA. July 28 and 29.—“G01d Diggers of Broadway.” July. 30 and 31.—“Cimarron” (Richard Dix). August 1 and 3. —“One Heavenly Night” (Evelyn Laye). GRAND THEATRE, HAWERA. August I.—“ Desert Vengeance’’ (Buck Jones). BIG CAST IN “CIMARRON” ■

In all the history of talking pictures no greater cast has been assembled than for the picturisation of Edna Ferber’s 'story of early Oklahoma, “Cimarron.” Forty-three players, in addition to the thousands of extras, enact • definite parts, for the picture includes every character created by the author of the popular book. Richard Dix is starred as Yancey Cravat, and Irene Dunn, as Sabra, plays opposite him; The huge cast includes: Estelle Taylor, Roscoe Ates, George Stone, Robert Me Wade, Stanley Fields, Eugene Jackson, Frank Darrien, Edna May Oliver, Donald Dilloway, Junior Johnson, Douglas 'Scott, Buster Collier, Dolores Brown, Otto Hoffman, William Orlamund, Frank Beal, Nance O’Neil, Ann Lee, Tyrone Brereton, Lilian Lane, Henry Roquemore and Neil Craig. “Cimarron” will be shown in Hawera next week. • • • * OFT REPEATED PHRASE. In the shooting of a scene for “One Heavenly Night,” her first picture, Evelyn Laye was seated in a limousine, waiting to be greeted by Leon Errol. That renowned comedian opened the door, and with the proper amount of stage surprise,' said, “You shouldn’t have come!” The script girl laughed. “What’s the matter?” asked the director, George Fitzmaurice. “I was just thinking that Samuel Goldwyn should use those words for a trademark,” was the reply. “They’ve been used in the last four pictures.” A check-up proved her right. When Ronald Colman came to Joan Bennett’s cottage to save her from the crooks in “Bulldog Drummond,” she exclaimed in alarm, “You shouldn't have come here!” The same phrase was used in “Condemned” and in “Raffles.” And similarly Eleanor Hunt cautioned Paul Gregory when he came to warn her that the sjieriff w’as after her and Eddie Cantor in “Whoopee.” Every one of those pictures has proved successful. Studio mystics believed this insured the success of “One Heavenly Night.”

“GOLD DIGGERS OF BROADWAY.”

Many people slave for years to lay aside a sufficient bank balance to keep them in their old. age, but a gold digger believes in swifter methods to feather her nest. Such is the conclusion which might be reached by the manner in which the charming nugget-gatherers work in “Gold Diggers of Broadway,” which will be at the Hawera Opera House next week. The modern miners in “Gold Diggers of Broadway” appear as members of a Broadway chorus. But through a hilarious series of fast-mov-ing events they prove that many of the petty vices generally attributed to them are not well grounded.

* « « * CARBURETTORS AND COWBOYS.

Carburettors and cowboys are not usually associated together; in iaet, the antipathy of the average horseman toward motoi - transportation is almost legendary. There are exceptions to every rule, of course, and an outstanding instance is Charles, or as he is better known, “Buck” Jones, who is featured in “Desert Vengeance.” Buck Jones is not only particularly fond of mechanics, but has & marked ability

with motors, having progressed through all the stages from antique “one lungers” to radial airplane motors and the ultra-modern Diesel engine developed for aviation. It is not generally known that Jones served in the American Air Force in France. He also holds a firstclass transport pilot’s license, and is a daredevil stunt flyer. Not that his penchant for mechanics lessens by any means his love for horees. “Desert Vengeance” will be shown at the Grand Theatre. Hawera, shortly.

NEWS OF A FAVOURITE PLAYER. DENNIS BARRY’S SUCCESS, Dennis Barry, formerly romantic lead! with the Allan Wilkie Shakespearean Company, writes from London by, the, last mail to say that ho had just coneluded a long season with Sir Frank i Benson’s Shakespearean Company, and contemplated a holiday- trip to the Continent before taking up ,a summer, engagement. Mr. Barry states that he often meets people in England whom he met during his New Zealand tour. He sees a lot of Alan Kitson (formerly of the Humphrey Bishop Company) and his stage partner Jack Mayer, and just before writing he had come across Paul Longuet, formerly of Invercargill, who was lucky enough to get a good part in a new play, “Payment Deferred.” almost as soon as he arrived in London. The play .has Charles Laughton, considered by many to be England’s most brilliant actor, in the lead, and looks like having a long run, so Mr. Longuet is fortunate. Mr. Barry mentions that John Cameron, the New Zealand actor with whom he ivas so long associated in the Allan Wilkie Company, and who was i great, pal off-stage as well as a fellow player, is contemplating a trip to England in the spring. Naturally they are both looking forward to the reunion. “I shall come back to New Zealand some day,” concludes Mr. Barry. VETERAN OF MELODRAMA. BLAND HOLT’S CAREER. The recent death in Sydney of Miss Nellie Stewart ' brings to mind the fact that another veteran of the Australian and New Zealand stage, Mr. Bland Holt, is living in retirement with his wife at Kew, Melbourne. He was born in Norwich, England, the son of Clarence Holt; the noted English actor and producer. In addition to training his eon, the latter schooled a number of actors who subsequently reached stellar rank. One mentions George Arliss, now acknowledged a pastmaster of hie profession. Bland Holt went to Australia in 1576, and at the Old Victoria Theatre, Sydney, opened in the burlesque “Ixion.” Amazingly versatile, he succeeded as an aerobatic clown, proved his ability in Shakespeare and fairly- shone as a comedian and in melodrama. Among his Australian and New Zealand successes were “East Lynne,” “Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” “The Span of Life,” “The White Heather,” “The Lights of London,” “The Absent-Minded Beggar,” “For England,” “The World,” “One of the Best,” “The Golden Ladder,” and his turf thrillers, “The Derby Winner,” “The Betting Book,” “Zoe, the White Arab” and “Riding to Win” (with real horses galloping like fury on a cycloramic platform). Those were the days of spectacular stage effects. Still connected with the Melbourne Theatre Royal, Mr. Holt has a miniature theatre at his home, which he conducts as a hobby. He frequently visits the talkies, which rightly suggests that he has no hard feelings against what has been described as the new entertainment. Sometimes, too, one might happen upon jhim at a theatrical dressing room. Tffere will be fond recollections of this remarkable stage favourite for years to come. . He has surely made theatrical tradition. “FASCINATION.” YOUNG LOVERS. Excellent progress is reported from the Regina Films unit at Elstree on “Fascination,” which is being directed by Miles Mander. One of the most outstanding features Of this picture is the discovery of what is considered to be an ideal pair of young lovers,- and if expectations are realised, the Hollywood opposites of the Gaynor-Farrell persuasion will have to look to their laurels. Dorothy Bartlam and Carl Harbord portray a young married pair in ‘‘Fascination” and the happiness of their wedded life is based on a set of “Ten Commandments ( to Love,” which they have agreed and drawn up between them. Dorothy—small, dark and vital —has created a great impression by her performances in the studio and she is in ideal contrast to the fair and nervously energetic Carl, who has already proved his worth in “Tell England.” It is anticipated that the united efforts of these young lovers will be responsible for much of the emotional appeal in “Fascination.” “THE SHADOW BETWEEN.” A “MODE” FOR EVERY MOOD. Kathleen O’Regan, the star of “The Shadow Between,” a new talkie to be made by British International Pictures has elected in the role of heroine to go to gaol, not in a Black Maria, but in a black and white two-piece.' As the young wife who breaks down the barrier raised by her husband’s unjust imprisonment by allowing herself to be imprisoned for another’s theft, Kathleen O’Regan has several attractive gowns in the course of the film. In the opening scenes, taken during the Nice Carnival, she wears a pale blue and rose chiffon evening gown which accentuates her youth and simplicity. Back in England she adorns a country vicarage in a smart brown and white check tweed frock. This introduces the new and popular braces and is worn with a parchment satin shirt. A short cape in the original tweed gives the frock its finishing touch.

Chantilly lace in black over a pale pink slip is chosen for another scene, and the long delicate line of this gown is surmounted by a berthe of the same lace ornamented by a singl; rose on the corsage. For the most dramatic scene in “The Shadow Between,” wherein she learns of her husband’s impending arrest, Kathleen wears a gorgeous creation in silver metal, embroidered with sequins. This sumptuous gown is cut low back and front and supported by invisible chiffon shoulder straps. A neat green office frock denotes, with its simplicity and workmanlike pique collar and cuffs with a black ciree artist’s bow, the change of circumstances and finally she faces imprisonment in a black and white check dress with which is worn a long blai': coat and small black hat. A happy ending is achieved, however, when she greets her liberated husband in a silk frock with a rucked net vest and embellished with three tier epaulettes on the shoulders.

CHE MYSTERY MAKE-UP, NEW TINT DISCOVERED, While idly experimenting with various colours of grease-paints in the palm of' his hand, Harry Davo, the make-up expert at Elstree 'Studios, discovered a new tint which is now in great demand by film artists and sought after by cameramen. The new tint has a preponderance of pink,' a colour hitherto avoided, and has valuable. camera properties owing to its softening and rounding effect on the features. Prominent cheek bones and' angular jaws are now no source of trouble from a photographic point of view and hollow cheeks no longer require .shading with light tints. . Davo, on finding- what a valuable discovery he had made, was, at first jubilant, but when he realised that he had made no note of what proportions of the various colours were mixed in his hands he found himself faced with the difficult task of re-discovering the formula of this mystery make-up. After three weeks’ concentrated experiment, he determined the new colour, which he has graded into three shades. With it is used a new lip rouge of a more brown than red hue, and the eye shading is now more red than brown. When this complete make-up is' assumed, the photographic beauty of the wearer is said to be enhanced a hundred per cent. Moira Lynd, herself an Elstree discovery, is to be the first ,to appear in the mystery make-Up in the title role of “The Lovelorn Lady.” BRUNETTES ARE PREFERRED. A CAMESKX SECRET. That brunettes are far easier to photograph than blondes is a trade secret revealed by Victor Milner, one of the lens-and-light veterans of Hollywood, Milner, who recently completed the photographing of William Powell’s latest film, “Man of the World,” is vice-presi-dent of the American Society of Cinematographers. “The reason that brunettes are photographically superior to blondes should be obvious,” says Milner. “Shadows and dark tones are what makes a picture interesting. Blondes offer little contrast to the camera. Light hair, light eyes, light skin,' all blend into one another. You, can readily appreciate then the difficulties I faced in photographing ‘Man of the World,’ for both Carole Lombard arid Wynne Gibblondes. The problem was'splved, howson, the leading ladies, are decided ever, by careful attention to the lighting effects.” “Man of the World,” based on Michael Arlen’s novel, “Cavalier of the Streets,” features Powell in the role of a blackmailer. Others in the cast are Lawrence Gray, Guy Kibbee and Maud Truax. “THE CONSTANT. NYMPH.” ■SURPRISINGLY GOOD. Margaret Kennedy’s “The Constant Nymph” came to Sydney on June 27, through the medium of the Independent Theatre Company at the Savoy Theatre (states a Sydney correspondent). They are seen at their very best and the production is surprisingly good. The credit goes to Miss Doris Fitton, but Frederick Blackman, J.O.W.’s top-notch producer, also had a large hand in making the wheels go round. Most amateurs would jib at “The Constant Nymph.” It is most ambitious and hard to cast. The company went blithely on and did not seem to think of that. The result is more than adequate. Miss Grace Hart, who toured England in Galsworthy’s “Escape,’’ has had professional experience, and her rendering of the complex part of Tessa Sanger deserves to raise her to the professional stage in Sydney. Mr. Richard Parry as Lewis Dodd, the part played in London in the beginning by Noel Coward, is excellent —better than he has ever been. Mrs. Heath Green is just the right type for the woman whom Lewis marries and lives to regret it. Convention is written in every line of her body and face as she plays this unsympathetic wife. The minor parts are nearly all well played, if one can call any of the parts minor. The play is fasci- ting from start to finish and always unexpected. “THE LOVELORN LADY.” COME INTO THE KITCHEN. An ultra-modern and up-to-the-min-ute kitchen has been the scene of intense activity on the part of Milton Rosmer and his company for the filming of “The Lovelorn Lady,” and the principals of this diverting British International picture have enacted 'scenes in it which should biing a wealth of comedy to the screen. Frederick Lloyd, well remembered for his portrayals in “The ‘W’ Plan,” and “Tell England,” is constituted chef in these scenes and it was not his fault if the kidneys which he grilled had suffered from some hours exposure to the arc lights. Moira Lynd, as Lady Ann, who 1 takes the position of maid to an actress in order to study feminity, has been busily employed in mixing cocktails and charming the other male characters played by Reginald Gardner and Harry Wilcoxon into willing and domestic dalliance.

Simple as this kitchen may appear to the eye, and enviable as every woman will find it, the modern fittings it contains would represent to a house owner the expenditure of some £5OO. An “Easiwork” cabinet of large and commodious dimensions, an aesthetically pale green porcelain sink with an attached miniature geyser; a Frigidaire chest; an electric stove; a vacuum cleaner; a patent mincer and utility furniture are some of the attractive features in “The Lovelorn Lady’s” kitchen. EUGENE YSAYE’S DEATH. FAMOUS BELGIAN VIOLINIST. M. Eugene Ysaye, the famous Belgian violinist and composer, w r ho had been ill for some time, died recently at Brussels. He was 7’2 years old. Ysaye’s last thought was of music (says the 8.U.P.). Shortly before he died he spoke of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony to the doctor at his bedside. A few moments later his heart weakened, and death followed.

It was owing to illness that M. Ysaye was unable to attend the first performance last March of his opera written in the Walloon dialect, entitled “Peter the Miner.” At tbe request of the Queen of the Belgians (who war one of his pupils), the opera was broadcast so that M. Ysaye might listen to it in his room. M. Ysaye made many visits to England, and his fame was firmly established by the recitals he gave there in 1899, while he was one of the first famous musicians to appear before the microphone of the 8.8. C. In 1927 M. Ysaye married for the second time, his wife being Miss Jeannette Dincin, of Brooklyn, U.S.A., who had been his pupil, and was 25 years old at the time.

Ysaye had his right leg amputated la 1929 after & long ilhi&u.

A GOOD ENGLISH PLAY. J. B. PRIESTLEY’S BOOK. J. B. Priestley, who stormed the market with his best-seller picaresque novel, “The Good Companions,” in 1929, arid has since followed this up with “Angel Pavement,” has dramatised his first book, in collaboration with Edward Knoblock. The play, bearing the title “The Good Companions,” was staged at Sis Majesty’s Theatre, London, recently. “The authors and the producer have managed to preserve most of the gusto, the hearty _ English flavour, the atmosprere which gave the book its immense popularity,” states a critic. “No one will complain here of a dull and mumbling sub-naturalism. This is the theatre all out, and thank heaven for it; there was never a better occasion for a strong whiff of greasepaint, an abundance of wise barnstorming and music to taste. From this it must not be supposed that the play is all sound and fury.. On the con " trary, it is a firm, rapid narrative of the fortunes of Mr. Priestley famous concert party, beginning with the evening on which Oakroyd lost his job and took, to the road, and ending—a conspicuously well-chosen ending with his marching up the gangway of the ship that is to take him to Canada. It is a dashing piece of bravura, designed with courage and discretion sparklingly right in its romantic place.” Adele Dixon appeared as Susie Dean,. John Gielgud as Inigo Jollifant, Edith Sharpe as Miss Trant, and Edward Chapman as Jess Oakroyd, the stout-hearted little Yorkshireman. The music of the play included two songs which Inigo was supposed to write, one of them, “Going Home,” being the ballad that won him fame in London. The score was written by Richard Addinsell. BRIGHT MUSICAL COMEDY. DOMINION TOUR PROMISED. Theatre-goers of New Zealand will be delighted to learn that it is- the intention of the J. C. Williamson management' to stage in the Dominion the sparkling musical compdy, “Sons o Guns,” which created a sensation when first produced, and which has been described as one of the brightest and merriest of entertainments ever presented. The exact dates of the Dominion tour are not yet- available; but the company will be one of the very best, and-all the special features in this mest charming of musical comedies will be presented. “Sons o’ Guns” possesses all the attributes that go to make a production'out of the ordinary, and as the company chosen includes many J. G. Williamson favourites the New Zealand season should be a most successful one. There are some beautifully romantic episodes in this most entertaining of musical comedies; . the solos and choruses are really inspiring, and the dancing and comedy work of the highest J.C.W. standard of excellence. SESSUE HAYAKAWA RETURNS. NINE YEARS’ ABSENCE. ■Sessue Hayakawa, looking not a day older than when he left making silent motion pictures nine years ago, has gone from Japan in a hurry call to play one of - the important roles in Sax Rohmer’s “Daughter of the Dragon, in which he will be starred with Anna May Wong, the San Francisco-born Chinese actress. This will oe his first talking picture. “I have been enjoying Japan very much, but I am happy to -be in America again,” he said on arriving in San Francisco. “I have been acting on the stage in Japan, playing in American plays and very successfully. We were preparing another when the cable came asking me to act in Daughter of the Dragon.’ . “I did not make pictures in Japan. The market is too limited for pictures with Japanese speech. When I went back after the many years in America, I found Japan had changed a little; had become Westernised, maybe,_ with Tokyo and its other cities beginning to look like 'Paris and London and . Berlin. Why, even Shanghai is getting to be like all other cities. “I acted quite a good deal on the stage, however. The Japanese are growing to like American plays, done, of course, in Japanese language. “Nine years ago I made my last picture. After that I went to Europe, where I played on the stage in London and other cites, and I came back to America for vaudeville tours with my wife, Aoki Tsuru.” STORY OF A SONG. “THE FLORAL DANCE.” Peter Dawson, the famous baritone, was one of the earliest singers for the gramophone, and probably his most popular recording is that of “The Floral Dance.” It is not commonly known that this ■ delightful song perpetuates an incident | which actually happened to its author and composer, Katie Moss. This is the story iu Peter Dawson’s own words: “One summer evening David Brazel, the singer, was standing alone in the High Street of Helston, Cornwall, where the famous dance takes place every year, and being partnerless he felt so lonely standing there that he could only stand and stare. Then to his joy he saw suddenly, hastening down the lane, a figure he knew, and with no more ado he appropriated Katie Moss for the dance, and in thia fashion the famous tFlorai Danoe* beja.’*

AMERICAN INFLUENCE.

A NOTE OF WARNING. A note of warning against American influence on the stage is made by Mr.. C. B. Purdom in a recent criticism of C. B. Cochran’s 1931 Revue, now being presented at the London Pavilion. He considers that Mr. Cochran, who is himself an enemy of American tradition, has been the latest to fall under its influence. The 1931 Revue, states Mr. Purdom, is wisely less lavish than usual. But the producer has erred on the side of economy, in that the material for the artists has been cut down, thus diminishing the energy and vitality which the show most needs. “The revue gave one the impression of being bits and pieces, and nothing on earth (not even Noel Coward’s contributions) could have made it go. The American atmosphere that hung over it did harm, I think. We can’t get away frorr America in popular music, for what does not come from America is prepared for that market. But I feel sure that audiences are sick of the Americanisation of- our stage and actors, and that the sooner our musical comedy and variety theatre managers stop trying to translate everything into the American idiom the better. Even our English actors are adopting the American voice, and in the case of our actresses it sounds even worse. They should give it up, and leave such hideous things to the talkies.” TWO SEVERE BLOWS. ALLAN WILKIE TALKS. The depression was being felt as much on the stage in Australia as in _ any other sphere, stated Mr. Allan Wilkie, Well-known Shakespearean actor, in Christchurch recently. The' theatrical profession had been struck two severe blows. Th'e talking picture and the economic stress of the country had both affected it with the result that the (Stage, in Australia, at least, was in a bad way. “The stage will riot recover until the theatre owners literally put their houses, in order,” said Mr. Wilkie. “The talking picture theatre proprietors have set a standard of comfort in their houses which as yet the theatrical men have not reached, and until they do something in that direction they cannot hope to do much good.” Mr. Wilkie with his wife, Miss Hunter Watts, is at present touring New Zealand, giving extracts from the various Shakespearean plays and from old English comedies. MICKEY MOUSE CONTRACT. HIGH RANK AT HOLLYWOOD. One of the best contracts of the season has been signed by Mickey Mouse, who joins the immortal family of screen royalty at United Artists, and who is featured with Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks, Gloria Swanson, and others. This is the first time in screen history that a cartoon character has attained sufficient importance and popularity to become one of the most famous of Hollywood. ~ Mickey’s new contract calls for the distribution of 18 ‘‘Mickey-Mouse” shorts and 18 “Silly Symphonies” each year. It begins in 1932, and gives the Prankish mouse one of the largest means of distribution possible to-day. _ Mickey Mouse is said to be one of the most powerful holds the films have on world dominion. Charlie. Chaplin is another. Both may be understood by all ages, all nationalities and all types. ACTRESSES’ MARRIAGES. VERY EARLY DIVORCE. Miss Betty Compton, the 24-year-old musical comedy and film star, has achieved fame with cue of the briefest marriages and quickest divorces in history, states a New York correspondent to the Daily Mail. She married Mr. Edward Dowling, a young film director, in New York on February 16 and obtained her divorce in Cuernavaca, Mexico, on March 21. Her petitio was based on grounds of cruelty, personal violence and refusal to provide maintenance. Miss Pola Negri, the film actress, who was granted a divorce in Paris in April from Prince Serge Mdivani on the ground of desertion, intends, so she says, henceforth to remain maritally free. Prince Mdivani, in dra.matic contrast to this announcement, no sooner heard of his liberty that he declared, his intention of immediately surrendering it to Miss Mary McCormic, the operatic singer. “Such a wonderful woman as Miss McCormic,” he proclaimed, “deserves a grand wedding, and she is going to have it.” Miss McCormic motored from Chicago to Hollywood for her wedding to the prince, whose friend Miss Negri says she will always be. REVIVAL OF VAUDEVILLE. AUSTRALIAN SUCCESSES. There seems to be a distinct revival of vaudeville in Australia. In Sydney Nat (“Stiffy”) Phillips and Sid Beck are in their ninth montu at the Grand Opera House, and Mike Connors, Queenie Paul and Roy (“Mo”) Rene are doing well at another theatre.

In Melbourne Clem Dawe is attracting the crowds to the Bijou Theatre, and there is a strong company at the Tivoli. Sain Stern, an old favourite, is appearing at a picture theatre. Variety has also been revived in Adelaide, with a company headed by Amy Rochelle, who was principal boy in the pantomime, “The House That Jack Built,” in New Zealand a few months

PRAISE FOR MARIE NEY. VAN DRUTEN’S NEW PLAY. Every paper that arrives from London gives great praise to the peiformance of Marie Ney in John van Drutens new play, “London .Wall.’ The Sunday Times says: The play does not really get going, until Mane Ney wakes it up in the first scene of the second act. .iMiss Ney, in the part of a typist of 35, who has been engaged for seven years, has to listen' to that engagement being caddishly broken off over the telephone; she is a sufficiently good emotional actress to make one realise that the way to fight the talkies lies not through quietism,, which means the appearance of restraint on the part of players who have nothing other .generation understoo’ it. The to restrain, but through acting as anhouse rose- at Miss Ney in a manner of which few of to-day’s leading ladies can hava had experience.