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Show Looking at HOLLYWOOD "TT TAKES an actor to direct an actor," says Irving Cumminjs. Well, he should know. - Cummings spent years on the stage and screen before he directed such motion picture pic-ture hits as "What a Woman!" and "My Gal Sal." He believes that a man who has worn grease paint himself understands a performer's problems better V than one whose experience has been limited solely sole-ly to wielding a megaphone, and now right he is! "Actors require understanding by a director if they are to feel at ease and give the best that's in them," Irving says Cummings. Cummings On the set of "The Impatient Years" Cummings was directing Jean Arthur and Lee Bowman. The scene was a law court. Jean and Lee were asking for a divorce. Bowman is a returned soldier who arrived from overseas to discover that the marriage with Jean was perhaps hasty. Theirs is a whirlwind wedding after a four-day courtship, then the soldier goes abroad. When he returns the girl and boy are total strangers. It's a human situation one that's happening hap-pening all over the country. Cummings talked the scene over in a calm way. When a bit of business busi-ness didn't jell he showed the actors how he thqught it should be done. Cummings acted it out for Jean and Bowman did it darned well, too. That gave the actors added confidence. confi-dence. Know the Ropes While we were waiting -for the lights to be adjusted for the next setup Cummings went od about the actors-directing theory. "Take the first day of shooting. Actors get first-night stage fright just as they 'do in the theater. I understand it, having been through it for years. I do my best to mitigate the situation. , "Usually I try for a simple, casual scene for the first few shots. Nothing too emotional or demanding. This gives an actor a chance to ease into a characterization, get acquainted with his leading lady, and sense the pace and inflections of a particular role. "Too, I try to shoot my films as close to the actual continuity of the story as possible. It's cheaper for a studio to have a film made without regard to continuity of scenes, because be-cause of stage space and actors' commitments, but I believe a better movie comes out if we all start from the beginning and work steadily toward to-ward its climax. That way, as on the stage, we get the feeling and tempo." Irving Cummings should know about good pictures. He's been connected con-nected with them 35 years. It's O. K., Pal Joe Pasternak called up to tell me that Alec Templeton will be in "Cab-bages "Cab-bages and Kings." He plays the piano and also will conduct the orchestra for several numbers which is good news to all of us who admire, respect, re-spect, and love Alec . . . Makes me a little ill to Alec Templeton read that Barbara Bar-bara Stanwyck takes a role intended for Bette Davis. Da-vis. Barbara doesn't have to take anything from anybody. There's a swell actress . . Ann Sheridan assures me her overseas wardrobe will weigh only 10 pounds. That includes in-cludes three evening gowns, too . . . It takes old timers to give old timers a job . . . Veronica Lake won't do another picture until November maybe not then. Little "Shut Eye Goldilocks," by her shenanigans, added $200,000 to the cost of "Bring On the Girls." The day is past when even big stars can get away with that. He Picks the Winners Michael Arlen can't get anybody to bet with him. He's too lucky. In January he made a bet with Edgar Selwyn, $500 against $1,000, that the war would be over March 1. Edgar died two weeks before time limit . . . It's nice to hear Betty Blythe has made a personal hit in "Public Relations" Re-lations" in New York. Betty was one of our most seductive silent sirens. si-rens. While this play won't last, it undoubtedly will lead to bigger things for Betty. Yes, She's Got It Gypsy Rose Lee came out under a year's contract to Bill Goetz. She's just signed on for four more years . . . Looks as though Warners is definitely off war pictures. Six of its writers who were working on 'em were ordered to slop . . . Understand Under-stand reason Louise Allhritton was suspended by Universal is that she went overseas without the studio's consent . . . Since Humphrey Bo-gart Bo-gart croons in "To Have and Have Not," will Frank Sinatra for revenge) re-venge) tote a gun in his next? |