THE MAWERA THEATRES

Taranaki Daily News, 23 February 1935, Page 20 (Supplement)

THE MAWERA THEATRES

PROGRAMMES FOR THE WEEK. THE OPERA HOUSE. To-day to Wednesday (inclusive) “Blossom Time,” Richard Tauber. Four nights and three matinees. Thursday and Friday, “The World Moves On,” Madeleine Carroll. THE WORLD MOVES ON ENGLISH ACTRESS’ SUCCESS. Madeleine Carroll, famous English actress and star of “I Was a Spy” and other successes has one of her greatest roles in “The World Moves On,” to show at the Opera House on Thursday and Friday. In a story giving full play for emotional acting of the highest quality, Miss Carroll achieves great success and through the picture she unquestionably ranks as one of the greatest actresses of to-day. . STAR IN MAKING DEATH OF RACING HUSBAND. The roar of supercharged racing cars—the hurtling, brightly coloured machines flashing round the big bend at Brooklands. On the bridge, which crosses the course, a girl is standing eager-eyed, thrilled by the excitement of a sight that has already become part of her life. Since her marriage to Clive Dunfee, racing motorist, Jane Baxter has watched him skilfully driving cars on many tracks, up many perilous hillclimbs. Now comes his car, roaring up the straight towards the bend. She watches, pride in her man mingling with a nameless fear. Suddenly noise fills the. air ... a tremendous, grinding crash that shatters the nerves of everyone near. It shatters, tod, the young love-story of Clive Dunfee and his bride. Standing there, dazed, Jane Baxter saw hope and love- and life itself die. That was just two years ago. It was a blow that would have broken the spiric of many women. That momentary catastrophe might have ruined Jane Baxter’s life as it had taken that of her husband. . And for a while it seemed that it had. She was too bewildered by the suddenness of tragedy to grasp the cruel truth. Then her natural courage asserted itself. She took hold of life again. She returned to the stage on which she had already made a name before her marriage. Jane Baxter will be seen with Richard Tauber in “Blossom Time,” to-day at Hawera and next Saturday at New Plymouth.

NEGLECTED AUTHOR STRANGE OBSCURITY. At the end of a big theatrical first night the audience usually calls “Author, author!” After a big film premiere, it is seldom anyone knows the name of the man who wrote the story. The obscurity of the author is a strange feature of an entertainment which thrives on publicity. It is taken for granted in the film world that the writer is a person of little importance—unless, of course, he happens to be a famous playwright, like Noel Coward, or a famous novelist, like J. B. Priestley. The box-office value of the professional screen writer is regarded as nil. He is classed on a level with the property man and the extra girl. Maybe this attitude towards him has a lot to do with the poor quality of many of the original stories specially written for the screen. A man who gets all the kicks that are going—and no credit—cannot be expected to do his best work. WODEHOUSE SCRIPT MARX BROTHERS TO STAR. An interesting likely return Hollywood engagement is that of P. G. Wodehouse, whose last visit to the. screen capital resulted in a sensation the repercussions of which are still being felt. After spending some months there, during which the only serious writing he was called upon to do was that of his signature on a large cheque weekly, he protested. As' a result, the bankers descended on the industry with a campaign against waste. Now Mr. Wodehouse may return to Hollywood to collaborate with Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur on a new script for the Marx Brothers. Prince of Wales Present. The Prince of Wales was present at the gala performance at the Plaza London theatre at which a new film, “An Eastern Odyssey,” was shown for the first time in England, in aid of the Royal National Life-boat Institution. The film was a record of an exploration party, which set out in the spring of 1931 to make a 500-mile journey across Asia in motor cars.

SELLING ABILITY WOMEN THAT MENJOU PREFERS. Women do not interest Adolphe Menjou unless they are over twenty-five. “Beauty doesn’t mean so much to me, either,” he said, “what’s the good of beauty without intelligence? And I don’t mean the intelligence which makes a woman paint, or draw, or sing; but the intelligence that makes that same woman go. out and sell that accomplishment. That’s the woman! “Give me a woman who works, every time. It isn’t the money, I mean. If the world will give a woman a job it means that the world acknowledges those accomplishments that her husband knows she possesses—if you get what I mean. It’s gratifying to * a husband’s pride. It means that others admire his wife in addition to himself. Besides, a woman who’s working isn’t continually fussing over her husband. Fussing’s fatal. It takes away all romance.” # * * ♦ 2551 Proposals of Marriage. While other girls are languishing for husbands, Hollywood screen stars receive thousands of proposals annually. Since January last Ginger Rogers, sparkling titian-haired RKO Radio star, has received 2551 proposals, mainly from college youths and children who want to marry her when they grow up. There is a sprinkling of more mature men and one offer from an Eastern potentate. Katharine Hepburn’s proposals reached the thousand mark a few weeks ago. They are principally from men with a high grade of intelligence to whom she has ■been an Inspiration. Most of them apparently have never written a fan letter in their lives before. . #. # # * Leslie Howard has completed the film “The Scarlet Pimpemell” and has gone back to New York. *#, * * Jan Kiepura has announced his engagement to Marthe Eggerth, who won success in the Schubert film “Unfinished Symphony” and is top of her class in the German screen colony. SPICE OF THE PROGRAMME EVERYBODY’S To-day, Monday and Tuesday: Australian Cinesound Review, Phil. Spitanly (Melody Master), Vaudeville Reel (novelty), “Oh Sailor Behave!” (El Brendel comedy), “Movie Memories” (old time novelty). Wednesday, Thursday and Friday: Double star programme. REGENT. To-day, Monday and Tuesday: Universal News and double star programme. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday: Paramount British News, “Superstition of the Black Cat” (novelty), “Cab Calloway’s Hi De Ho” (musical), Paramount Pictorial Varieties, American Sound News, Screen Souvenirs, “There’s Something About a Sailor” (cartoon). OPERA HOUSE. To-day, Monday and Tuesday: Fox Newsreels, “Allez Opp” (educational comedy). Wednesday, Thursday and Friday: Pathe News, “Wrong Direction” (comedy), “Ferry Go Round” (comedy).