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Show By VIRGINIA VALE Released by Western Newspaper Union. ON THE first day of shooting shoot-ing for ""Mrs. Miniver" Greer Garson was knocked down in a street scene by a boy on a bicycle. On the first day for "Madame Curie" she was knocked down by a camera cam-era perambulator. "Maybe It's a good omen," said she. "But I hope I never start a picture in a scene with a locomotive!" Nobody was surprised when "Mrs. Miniver" got the Academy Award for the best picture of 1942; it was especially good hews to Major William Wyler, who directed he recently directed the filming of the bombing of the German naval base at Wilhelms-haven. Wilhelms-haven. Nan Wynn, the popular radio, night club and motion picture singer, has been placed under long-term long-term contract by Columbia, and will ; ifV f - i NAN WYNN get a star build-up. She's already been given the top role In the new musical, "Rhapsody in A Flat." An actual attack by British Coastal Coast-al Command planes on Nazi raiders in northern waters is shown bt "Coastal Command," the factual film released by RKO. It was made )y the producers of "Target for Tonight," To-night," the British navy co-operating. If you think you're busy, consider Anna Lee, one of the many stars of "Forever and a Day." While working work-ing in "Commandos Strike at Dawn" ' she turned up at the RKO studios at 10 every night and worked till past midnight in "Forever and a Day" also managed her house and family. The only stipulation she made was that after finishing her day's work she must have time off to put her two babies to bed before starting her swing shift at RKO. Robert Haymes also got a Columbia Colum-bia break. With time for only one more film before being inducted into the army, he was removed from the lead of "Doughboys in Ireland" and replaced by Kenny Baker and assigned to the romantic lead in "Two Senoritas From Chicago," the two senoritas being those two very lovely ladies, Jinx Falkenburg and Joan Davis! That Charles Boyer production, so badly titled "Flesh and Fantasy," has a new and better title, "For All We Know." Robert Cummings and Betty Field have been given ' the romantic leads in the fourth and final sequence. New Yorkers have learned that the place to be caught during a blackout is a radio studio instead of turning their guests loose to wait in the corridors, the stars turn to and put on a show. Burns and Allen, the "Duffy's Tavern" folks and the members of "The Aldrich Family" can all give a superb extemporaneous extemporane-ous show when the sirens scream. A stranger in Culver City . might think that Leo the Lion has turned prize fight promoter. Five big name boxers are working there. Freddy Steele, ex-middleweight kingpin, has been coaching Richard Carlson for "The Man Down Under"; Maxie Rosenbloom's working in "Right About Face," as are Lou Nova and Jack Roper; Johnny Indrissano, former lightweight threat, now a referee, ref-eree, is technical adviser. So far Jean Gabin's American pictures pic-tures haven't been up to the standard stand-ard of the French ones that made him famous. But it looks as if ha might remedy that situation this isummer; he's obtained bis release from 20th Century-Fox and will be starred by RKO in a picture to be written and produced by Dudley Nichols, and directed by Jean Renoir, Re-noir, which looks like a perfect combination. com-bination. ODDS AND ENDS Kay Kyser and the band have started their third year oj entertaining the boys in the armed forces ; in the first two years they played for more than 4,000,000 soldiers, sailors and marines . . . Robert Benchley returns re-turns to Metro to write and star in a new series of shorts . . . Alec Temple-ton Temple-ton gives a half-hour miniature concert prior to his broadcasts . . . Fred Allen is the only man u-ho has been master oj ceremonies on radio's two biggest quiz programs 'Take It or Leave It" and "Information Please" . . . Ginny Simmt has been named "the girl with whom a paratrooper would most lovt to be ttranded in a parachute." |