The Brooklyn Daily Eagle from Brooklyn, New York • Page 41

TREND: A SECTION OF THE BROOKLYN EAGLE SUNDAY, MAY 14, 1939 Passed in Review Rise of Gae Foster Woman Behind Girls Behind Roxy Footlights Struggled to Top Through Love for Dancing The theater is full of success storiet. There's a new one every time some little wide-eyed girl from the "sticks" crashes Broadway and shows Familiar Touch Henry Fonda's Role In 'Graham Bell' Parallels Early Career Henry Fonda got an opportunity to combine his first love with his life work In Darryl F. Zanuck's production of "The Story of Alexander Graham Bell," which co-stars promise of becoming a star. But today's success story from Broadway and the footlights is a bit unique. It has a new kind of heroine.

Her name is unusual Gaa Foster the only name she has ever used professionally. Hers isn't the "flash in the pan" success story. She wasn't discovered as were many of the Great Whit Way's stars. She won success I OM poster (and that's her real the hard way up a long, tough name, too) was born In Bunker Hill. Nat Fcrbcr Got Around and What He Saw Was Often a Caution, Here, There, Everywhere, From Benefit Shows to Politics By ARTHUR RHODES Brooklyn's Academy of Music, long recognized as a dignified citadel of cul re, redolent of the lore of past and present, was being offered as a show place for a "sensuous" shimmy dancer.

At least this was the ltrpression some years ago when the Salvation Army was to benefit from a performance In that sedate house. The "better people" cherished that idea and were somewhat voluble about It. "I was abfc to announce a program featuring such artists as Dorothy Jordan of the Chicago Opera Company, Sophie Breslau, Nina Morgana and Cecil Arden of the Metropolitan Opera Company," remembers Nat Ferber his vigorous and vivid autobiography, "I Pound Out." The mporary misfortune was that he caL It was in California that she had her dancing training and it was there she lived until about six years of the one-block ghetto in Brooklyn," and introducing his life on the East Side in Manhattan, Fer- from Wtidmon (leff), has brought toeerher some ef kit batter short stories in volum for Simon and Schiittar entitled The Horse That Could Whittle Their range from mother love to murder, from tha lumt to tha peaks at mountains. Elsie-Jean it tha lady in tha aval. Her 'Seeing the New Yerk Werld't Fair: A Magic World for Boy and Girls' (McLoughlin Broth art, Springfield), it her second effort dealing with Graver Whalen't thaw else pointed for children.

Wholan co-operated with the noted author of children's stories In her first volume, 'A Trip to the New Yerk Werld't 'air With Bobby and Gerald W. Johnson (right), hat delved Into tha statecraft of Henry Clay, John C. Calhoun and Daniel Webster in 'America's Silver Age' Harper) Had to Ride Books in Brief neglected. The book goes forward to explain tone values and color designs fairly thoroughly and leaves a desire to associate color with things of familiar use. It also stresses the dramatic element in colors.

Out for Fling Holly Van Alyn peeks tha glamor-out in life, and adventure, at against peace and security and normal love. She discover- her mistake In 'Tomorrow Comes Never," by El path. And now, taking her place as the first woman producer of major stage productions, such as are seen every week at the Roxy Theater, she becomes the inspiration of every' Gae Foster Won success the hard way theatrically inclined woman on Broadway. And the handwriting on the wall indicates that Gae Foster's claim to fame is based not alone on her being a woman producer, but primarily on her being a producer of good productions. It takes something to keep the interest of principals, 24 girls in the line, to keep things in general moving with the many technical staffs in a modem theater, and to keep an audience at high pitch for 52 weeks a year.

Gae Foster apparently has that something originality. What about Gae Foster, the woman behind the girls behind the footlights at the Roxy Theater? What does she look like? Where's she from and what training did she have? And how did she become the producer Of the Roxy stage ahows? i LI Ill Included, along with the cast of the Ziegfeld Follies and Will Rogers, the crackerbox philosopher, a certain Miss 'Bee Palmer. But "The Academy of Music crowd," adds the author, "would not accept Bee Palmer, noted chiefly for the artistry of her sensuous shimmy. I defended her, but the committee proved obdurate. Some of its members argued that the box-office would be seriously affected.

"'You one reminded me, that Oeneral Vanderbilt Brig, Gen. Cornelius Vanderbilt, head of the entire drive will be And Ferber was much alarmed. But Rogers insisted Miss Palmer would shimmy or he would withdraw the entire Follies group. "She's goin' on," said he, "and I'm Coin' on, and they're goln' to take her. And if they don't, It's just too bad." Whereupon the show promptly started, while Ferber, the newspaper reporter, and the Academy committee quaked as If from nervous disease.

"The show had been on some time when Rogers and I decided that Oeneral Vanderbilt, In an upper box, appeared to be sulking," relates the author. And Rogers shortly demanded that Miss Palmer perform without further delay. Moments of despair and anguish nd sheer fright engulfed Mr. Ferber. And Miss Palmer, too.

But Bee's artistry found an eager response In the audience and soon, according to Ferber, tr. ere "rose the roar of approval." The sinuous Bee had "wowed" them. Ferber's book bubbles with such people of renown, personalities who made the '20s the glittering era that it was, the men and women with whom he conversed while he "cru saded" as a "newsmaker" for Wil liam Randolph Hearst's "New York American" and Fremont C. Peck's "Brooklyn Daily And through the book Brooklyn Is covered rather elaborately, for Ferber was reared on Moore St. in this borough.

He labored for years as a reporter in the Borough Hall section for the "American" and ie has many, engaging observations about Brooklynites, such as former Mayor John F. (Red Mike) Hylan, He also has stirring words for Arnold Rothstein, the glamorous gambling man who was finally shot to death; War President Woodrow Wilson, former Supreme Court Justice William Howard Taft, former Mayor James J. Walker, former Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan, former United States Senator William Gibbs McAdoo, William Randolph Hearst, the publisher, and Supreme Court Justice Ferdinand Pecora as a rising assistant district attorney. Beginning with his boyhood gcenes, where "not even Germany was ever surrounded by a more hostile ring than were the residents him with Don Ameche and Loretta Young and is now at the Albee Theater with "Ex-Champ." When Director Irving Cummlngs first talked to Fonda about playing the role of Thomas Watson, assistant to tha Inventor of the tele- phone, in this romantic drama, the actor showed a greater interest than he had in any of his previous roles. The conversation revealed that Fonda had an amazing knowledge of the subject.

The explanation Is that Fonda's earliest effort were directed toward a career In telephone work. 'During my high school days, 1 became deeply Interested In the telephone," Fonda related. "In my last two achoo'. years, I worked as a 'trouble shooter' for the telephone company, getting the practical background for the work I Intended to follow." As a matter of fact, Fonda got his college degree at the University of Minnesota on the basis of a thesis which he had written on communi cations systems, particularly the telephone and telegraph. Before he was launched on this career, however, Fonda got Into a Little Theater group by chance, the theater "bug" bit him and acting became his life work.

Another Cycle Kildare Series, Now At Capitol, Rivals M-G-M's 'Hardy' Films Right on the heels of the Judge Hardy series, which seems to be setting a rapid pace throughout the country, comes another series from M-G-M which Is making a counter bid for popularity. This is the Dr. Kildare group of stories, with Lew Ayres In the title role of tha young physician, and Lionel Barrymora as the sage, veteran fellow-counselor. The Dr. Kildare stories, like the Hardy series, emanated originally under the mental wing of Carey Wilson, script writer for "Ben-Hur" and in recent years a Metro staff producer.

He has been acting as a sort of central clearing house for fresh Ideas on the two groups of stories. To date, six stories have been run off in the Hardy series, with a seventh now before the cameras. Dr. Kildare Is a much younger cinematic creation. The second story, "Calling Dr.

Kildare," Is currently at the Capitol Theater. Although the two groups of sto ries are radically different, they exercise one fundamentally basic ap peal to theater audiences: they deal with recognizable and Intensely human characters whose prototypes may be found in small, middle-sized and even big communities from San Antonio to Bangor, Maine. In a supplementary way they may be said to shape themselves into the pattern of Americana sagas which have been so popular this season. A hospital so practical that it was actually used by a physician to treat an accident case was constructed when the Craig Hospital (supposedly a modern New York institution), was erected for "Calling Dr. Kildare." It was so complete in detail that when Horace Hough, assistant di rector, tore his hand on a nail the wound was treated by Dr.

Gilbert Lee, technical adviser, without Hough leaving the sound stage. The series, starting with "Young Dr. Kildare," deals with the training of Lew Ayres, a young interne, by a veteran diagnostician, enacted by Barrymore. Each story has a detective twist, with the younger man showing a bent for detection. Plot in England A chase half way across England, with a white-shlrted Fascist band chasing Noel Mason, who holds England's fate in an envelope In his pocket, is related In "Traitor's Way," by Bruce Hamilton (Bobbs-Merrlll, Mason, escaping from prison after rioting at a Fascist meeting, then finds himself the one man who can thwart a conspiracy of English Fascists to sell the nation out to the Nazis.

It's a swift moving novel. Among tho Indians Gladys A. Retchard, who for a number of years was a resident of Navajo Indian territory In the Southwest, catches the emotions, allegiances and endurance of the Indian series on the pastoral Navajo of that section. Dezba Is a sedate matron in whose hands rests her family's welfare. Mexican Art "Modern Primitive Arts: of Mexico, Guatemala and the Southwest," by Catharine Oglesby (Whittlesey House, presents an Insight into the arts and crafts becoming steadily more popular as practiced by the Mexican, Guatemalan and Southwestern Indians of today.

She traces the development of these peoples' skill and indicates how to distinguish good and bad in pottery. baskets, textiles, silverware and lacquer. Colorful Description Ami Mali Hicks, In writing "Color In Action" (Funk and Wagnalls, points out "It Is my desire to make color a reality In the minds and feelings of more people." Indeed, the author wants to startle folks into thinking in terms of color and believes color schemes are being Best Sellers Of the Week Fiction THE GRAPES OF WRATH. John 8teibeck. Viking, $2.75.

ALL THIS, AND HEAVEN, TOO. Rachel Field. Mac- millan, $2.50. THE PATRIOT. Pearl S.

Buck. John Day, $2.50. REBECCA. Daphne de Mau- rier. Doubleday, $2.75.

Non-Fiction MEIN KAMPF. Adolf Hitler. Reynal, Stackpole, $3.00. DAYS OF OUR YEARS. Pierre Van Paassen.

Hlllman. $3.50. A PECULIAR TREASURE. Edna Ferber. Doubledav.

S3. AUTOBIOGRAPHY WITH LETTERS. William Lyon Phelps. Oxford, $3.75. eanor Browne (Arcadia, Pioneer Days Women find no place In the life of Jere Boone, young trapper and buffalo hunter, until he saves Alice Markley from being swept overboard In tha Missouri River In "Rivers Westward," by Denver Bardwell (Hillman-Curl, a story of two lovers moving Westward in young America.

Missionaries The adventures, sacrifices and In fluences of pioneer missionaries who trekked across the continent as America was being settled are re lated in "Homeland Harvest," by Arthur H. Limouze (Friendship Press, Sheriff Aspirant Tom Bonner Is eager for the chance to run for sheriff and exhibits neither fear nor favor In chasing rustlers and those who are diverting a dam for evil purposes In "Fighting Sheriff," by Timothy Hayes (Phoenix, Parallel Naturalists What "naturalism" is, how it began, its relation to life, evolution, mind, morality and religion, and the difference between the "crude" and "critical" naturalist are brought out in "Naturalism," by James Bissett Pratt, professor of philosophy in Williams College (Yale University Press, "We are reaching a point," he concludes, "where the empirical naturalist and sincerely religious thinker may Join forces in their common understanding." Looking at Fascism The development of corporativism and its bearing on the industrial working class, agriculture and the peasant, and the Institutions of property and profit in Italy are discussed In "The Corporate State in Action: Italy Under Fascism," by Carl T. Schmidt (Oxford University Press, 12,000 Miles to Destiny Greer Garson, Donat's Leading Lady in New Astor Film, Traveled Far to Grasp Success This will serve to introduce Miss Greer Garson of County Down, Ireland, who Is about to give Hollywood a second chance. It is not Miss Garson's fault if her name lacks a familiar ring. For two years she has been an embryo movie star.

One of those years was spent 1" Hollywood, with negative results. She made scores of tests but they never got out of the projection rooms. The balance of her probationary period saw Miss Garson ag0 when she came to New York and the Roxy. Gae Foster left school when she was fry young. She went to school at night, however, with the salary she received from operating a telephone switchboard, studying to become a bookkeeper and comptometer operator.

After completing the course she secured a job as a comptometer operator in a big department store In Los Angeles. She was 16 then. At about that time Gae started the study of dancing. She says It wasn't ambition that made her take the lessons simply that she loved to dance. She spent her money for dancing for the same reason other girls spent theirs for hats or on entertainmentbecause she enjoyed her lessons.

Her first dance job was in Loa Angeles with one of the West Coast Albertina Rasch productions. Following that engagement came a number of dance assignment, Including one with Foklne In his production of "Aphrodite." About then she married Bill Kelly, musician and aviator, and San Francisco became her home. She worked for Fanchon and Marco in San Francisco. At this point her business training came into the spotlight for the first time. In 1923, when Miss Fanchon returned to Los Angeles, Gae Foster became Marco's assistant.

She trained some 30 units a year and sent them on the road. Gae Foster is still associated with Fanchon and Marco but these last six years since her advent at the Roxy the units she trains for tha theater and for the road are called The Gae Foster "Of she says, "if I'm picking girls for a short engagement, I choose the prettiest girls I can find. But, when there 1 an opening for a new girl at the Roxy, I put good sportsmanship and tha ability to get along with the others first." when, she had come Into full bloom as an actress, with her name in lights over St. James' Theater, the star of Gilbert Miller's production of "Old Music," Louis B. Mayer came into town.

Mayer's Interest was centered on establishing the Studios. But, also, he had an eye out for talent. At every hand he was urged by all means to see Miss Garson. Finally he did. The next day Miss Garson's name was affixed to a contract.

Some 6,000 miles later, Miss Garson was in Hollywood. There was for influenza. Exceedingly ambitious, and honest I about it, Miss Garson felt she could never regain the time lost In Hollywood. Moreover, It became her firm conviction that she had been forgotten. She wasn't.

There simply were no pietures available and suited to the launching of an unknown personality. For "Mrs. Chips," It was thought essential to have the biggest possible name. There was no dearth of candidates, for, after "The Citadel," Donat could have had his pick of leading ladies. Wood saw dozens of tests.

None fitted his mental picture of "Mrs. Chips." The day before he left for England Wood stepped Into a projection room to view a final series of tests. "Among them," he said, "was one of Miss Garson, who hadn't even been mentioned for the role. She had a freshness and vitality and seemed to me "Mrs. Chips' in the flesh.

The odd thing about It is that her test had slipped in by mistake. It was a test for another picture." And so she returned to England 12.000 miles I in all. There came a day, finally, when Wood informed Miss Garson that she was to play her first scene with Donat. She found herself with an appropriate first line to speak. IS read, "It nice to meet you all and a little terrifying." ber, who was to go on to a career of "yellow Journalism," traces his Inewsboy days in the vicinity of Bushwkk and Willoughby his years of cub reporting for "City Editor Cromwell" who "had a walrus mustache and no patience with kid reporters" and who asked Ferber to 'cover" a portion of the "General Slocum" disaster; and his rise as a reportorial Investigator for Hearst the kind, he contends, that is non existent today.

Under the direction of Victor Watson, the veteran and talented city editor, who ultimately walked out of a hotel window to hts death Ferber dashes through memory after memory. He "made" Mayor Hylan, for wnen (Red Mike) was a he quoted him on anything at all. He was instrumental In uncovering a $6,000,000 "bucketshop" stock swindle ring In New York, He exposed "racketeers" profusely. He believes that Rothstein's death was definitely connec'd with that of Capt. Alfred Loewensteln, the Belgian.

Mr. Ferber also halted a "run" on the Brownsville branch of the Municipal Bank through a suggestion to delay the frightened depositors by bringing in trucks laden with $1 and $2 bills. Also, he urged President Wilson to believe there existed an artificial coal shortage in New York; he sought to persuade Justice Taft that the New York State bankruptcy laws were muddled; he discovered that former Governor Alfred E. Smith caused ex-Mayor Walker to forget about his chances of being renominated; he exposed the "rotten milk" situation In New York; he learned to denounce Hearst, whom he had at first had idolized; he castigated William Jennings Bryan because that man insisted he and President Wilson would be remembered "a thousand years from today." Ferber brashly Inquired of Brooklyn Borough President Lewis H. Pounds, Dr.

Walter Gunnison principal of Erasmus Hall High School; Dr. W. L. Felter, principal of Girls High School, and Rabbi Alexander Lyons of the 8th Ave. Temple, If they could name a gen tleman who lived in 916.

None could, accurately, Ferber, in short, says all this and, indeed, he must have seen much. There is a more than moderate indication, however, that, In rolling this story together, he was carried 'off a bit by his own exuberance. I just can't be persuaded to accept all of the details of this "confidential chronicle" when the author doesn't even know how to spell the name of one of the editors he discusses. "I Found Out," by Nat Ferber. Dial.

$3 Otto Kirchhelmer dealing with the close relationship between forms of punishment and the social and economic structure and needs of society In any particular period; "Strikes a Study in Quantitative Economics," by John I. Griffin, an instructor in Brooklyn College presenting available statistical data on strikes In the United States during the past 57 years. Also "Fragments From Babel," by John Dyneley Prince ($2.75, containing tributes to the man and the scholar, as well as a collection of his characteristic but comparatively inaccessible essays on linguistic subjects; "John Skelton, Laureate," by William Nelson a biography of the poet and 16th centudy English clergyman who has gained Increasing attention in recent years, who tutored the prince who became Henry VIII and who satirized the Church of England on the eve of Its separation from Rome, and "Federal Administrators," by Arthur W. Macmahon and John D. Millett which approaches the prob- lem of governmental management through biographical studies of the Individuals who hold high positions in the Federal departments.

Laidlow, Cast in 'Man of Conquest Crashed the Films Ethan Laidlaw owes his movie career to his home town, Butte, Montana. Laidlaw arrived in Hollywood In 1922, a complete stranger there. His energy, sincerity and ambition soon brought him to the attention of producers. When one of them learned Laidlaw had been born in Butte, he figured Ethan knew how to ride a horse, and cast Laidlaw in an Important cowboy part. Laidlaw didn't know how to ride, but he went through his role, over coming poor horsemanship with good acting.

From then on, he portrayed many characters. His latest role is at a member of Sam Houston1! Texas army in Republic's "Man of Conquest," now at tha Fox Brooklyn Theater with "On Trial." A graduate of tha University of Michigan, Laidlaw began his professional life as an engineer. In Chicago, he turned to theatricals. A performance by Wallace Beery influenced Laidlaw to turn exclusively to acting. Laidlaw Is built along Beery lines and Ethan was seeking a vocation where his physique, energy and acting ability could find an outlet.

He decided, and set out to become another Wallace Beery, Good in 'Bad' Actresses Often Find Unrespectable Roles Boon, Says Bette Davis Actresses who play the "other kind of women" In their early pic tures often arrive at stardom ahead of their more respectable screen sisters. A good "bad role" is a better stepping stone to public favor and producer attention than any good secondary straight role can be. There are many Hollywood careers to prove this contention. Bette Davis was merely an acceptable leading woman until she surprised both Hollywood and the movie-going public with her characterization of the despicable Mildred in "Of Human Bondage." A thoroughly "bad" girl was Mildred and Miss Davis played the role for all It was worth. Bette continued to play ladles of questionable virtue in several pie tures.

Including "Dangerous," which won the Academy award for her, and she has played such roles suc cessfully on occasion since, notably In "Marked Woman." Since that picture, however, she has reformed in her screen life and has lately limited her screen sins to displays of high temper and selfishness. In her latest picture for Warner "Dark Victory," which is now showing at the Brooklyn Paramount Theater with "Torchy Runs For Mayor," she goes the whole way toward respectability and sympathy, her first completely "good" role in several years. One reason for the eventual sue cess of young actresses who start out In their careers playing these "other kind of women," thinks Lloyd Bacon, who directed Bette Davis in "Marked Woman," is that such roles demand real acting abil Ity and the woman who can play them successfully can usually play almost any other sort of role con vinclngly. Rosay-Wieman Film At 86th St. Garden The 86th St.

Garden Theater Is showing "Die Hochzeitreise" in its American premiere presentation. The picture, a German language film, stars Francoise Rosay and Mathias Wieman, star of "Eternal and features Angela Salloker, Carsta Loeck, Elizabeth Wendt and Paul Dahlke. It was directed by Karl Fitter. The music was written by Theo Mackaben. It was taken from the novel by Charlet de Coster.

mostly on boats and trains, traveling 18.000 miles from London to Hollywood, back to London and now Hollywood again. These items. Miss Garson has written down in red ink. On the credit side of her ledger are four months in Denham, where she was featured opposite Robert Donat in "Good-Bye, Mr, Chips," the first picture in which she has appeared on any screen, to be presented by at the Astor Theater Tuesday. It has been a long haul.

At the memory of it Miss Garson displays a flash of temper, reflected in her the usual slight flurry of excitement green eyes and Florentine hair. She on her arrival. She was news for a says, quite frankly, that her year in day. In the midst of becoming ac-Hollywood was the unhappiest oflclimated, she was carted off to her life. Nobody was to blame, the hospital one day for an ap-really, Mist Garson admits.

It was pendectomy, topped off by a long one of those unfortunate things. 'period of convalescence. This left Light From Another Age Nicholas Murray Butler Sees Kant's 'Perpetual Peace' as Relevant to Present Day Dilemma Immanuel Kant's essay, "Perpetual Peace," first issued in 1795, published in an English translation in London In 1796 and now available in a new edition of that translation, brought out by the Columbia University Press is "the classic discussion" of the present-day problem of international peace, according to Dr. Nicholas Murray Butler, president of Columbia University, who has written a foreword. England, too, until recently, wasiher weakened and a perfect target peeved at Hollywood on MLss Gar son's behalf.

The London stage, in particular, relished Miss Garson, lavished favors upon her and vls-ioned for her a lush future. Just -p-m n. Miiiiiiiimmmnj .1 fv a I Ir: St -f -1 When "Perpetual Ptace" was writ ten, the smoke of the French Revolution had not yet cleared away. The Government of the United States was in its cradle. German unity and Italian unity were still In the far distance.

Great Britain was moving forward ward the Reform Bill and a democratic monarchy but still had some distance to go. Absolute kings were still sitting on thrones that seemed secure. "Into such a disturbed and suspicious world," Dr. Butler writes, "the great philosopher of Koenigs-berg projected the brilliant rays of light that shine out from the pages of his "Perpetual Peace is not only practical philosophy but It Is also modern practical politics. Although written in the eighteenth century It Is as timely today as any of the current books being written on the subject of international peace.

Other new Columbia University releases are "The Spirit of French Canada A Study of the Literature," by Ian Forbes Fraser study- ing the reflection of the spirit of French Canada in the works of its writers; "Punishment and Social) Structure," by George Rusche and; la Mr. Chips Presents His (Catherine Co-Starred on Music Hall's Screen Cary Grant and Jean Arthur in a scene jrnm Columbia's aviation filfy, 'Only Angels Halt (fines' Greer Gnrson and Robert Donat as they appear in 'Goodbye, Mr. opening Tuesday at the.