Talent Scout (Warner Bros.) (1937)

Hollywood’s Inner Workings Shown In Film (Lead-Off Story) : ‘Talent Scout’ Coming To The Strand Next Week Comedy With Jeanne Madden and Donald Woods Gives Lowdown On Hollywood If you’re at all interested in the machinations of moviemaking, (and who isn’t?) ‘‘Talent Scout,’’ a First National picture coming to the Theatre on will give you more than a share of the inside information. Done in an airy manner, the comedy, starring Donald Woods, and veterans of last year’s Gold Diggers Air Tour—Jeanne Madden, Fred Lawrence, and Rosalind Marquis, is the story of a young singer who makes good in Hollywood through the shrewd efforts of a fast-talking and faster thinking talent scout. Woods plays the part of the scout who takes a group of chorus girls across the country in a bus, an idea originating from the airplane trip made by the “Gold Diggers of 1937.” Woods is fired by his boss on account of his extravagance. Soon afterward he discovers Jeanne Madden singing in a small town amateur night contest. He takes her to Hollywood, fails at first to put her over, but by a clever ruse, he has the president of the company from which he was fired, begging for her at a fantastic salary. Thereafter she rockets to success with singer Fred Lawrence whom she eventually marries after Woods plays the martyr by concealing his own love. A smart and light seript written by George Bilson and William Jacobs, and directed by William Clemens, the picture is especially interesting because of the manner in which it gives us the lowdown on Hollywood’s inner workings. Miss Madden, who is being considered by the Metropolitan Opera Company; Fred Lawrence, and pert little Rosalind Marquis sing several hit numbers written hy M. K. Jerome and Jack Scholl. JEANNE MADDEN IS UNSPOILED Hollywood will Jeanne Madden. The little Scranton, Pa., high school girl whose golden voice brought her to pictures, has made a vow that she will never let herself go “high hat.” Miss Madden, who is currently playing the feminine lead in the First National production “Talent Scout,” which opens at the ‘Theatre OW «25... says she does not feel that she has accomplished anything out of the ordinary by getting into pictures. not change “T’m just lucky,” she claims. “But if I realize my ambitions and become a grand opera star, ll probably be a little puffed about it—for a while anyway,” Jean admits quite frankly. “Grand opera,’ she explains, “ig something different. You don’t get there by sheer luck. You have to study voice and practice for years and years. When you get on the grand opera stage you know you’ve earned it, and can be proud of it.” Jeanne sings several songs in “Talent Scout,” which was directed by William Clemens from an original sereen play by George Bilson and William Jacobs. Others in the cast are Donald Woods, Fred Lawrence, Rosalind Marquis, Joseph Crehan, David Carlyle, Teddy Hart and Mary Treen. .M. K. Jerome and Jack Scholl wrote the songs. HOLLYWOOD 13 NO MYSTERY AT ALL TD MISS MADDEN Jeanne Madden is bewildering Hollywood by refusing to be bewildered by Hollywood. “Tt’s all so amazingly simple,” says this Scranton, Pennsylvania, girl who made good overnight in the movies as Dick Powell’s leading lady in “Stage Struck,” and who is currently playing opposite Don Woods in the First National production, “Talent Scout,” at the Theatre. “There’s nothing the least bit mysterious about pictures and I find them not at all glamorous and awe-inspiring as I expected,” she adds. “You learn your dialogue, the director tells you how to say your lines, you sing a song when they tell you to, you move through the action as the director and cameraman instruct you—and that’s all there is to it.” In the year she has spent in Hollywood Jeanne has attended only three or four parties. “T don’t like them much,” she says by way of explanation. “T’d rather stay home and read or practice the piano.” As for romance, Jeanne says she hasn’t time for that either. “Oh, yes, I find the young men of Hollywood very interesting and attractive,” she admits, “but I just don’t think I could find time to fall in love.” “ve made a number of good friends out here though,” says the young singing star. “Contrary to what most people think, Hollywood is a fine place for making friends who really stick.” Jeanne sings several songs in “Talent Scout,’ which were written by M. K. Jerome and Jack Scholl. William Clemens directed the picture from an_ original screen play by George Bilson and William Jacobs. THE Steve Stewart (Donald Woods), talent scout for Apex Pictures, becomes stranded with a group of chorus girls he has been guiding on a personal appearance tour, and gets a long-distance dismissal from his studio. He drops into a local theatre on amateur night, where he sees and hears Mary Brannigan (Jeanne Madden), is so impressed, he makes himself her manager. In Hollywood, by persuasive highpressure, he gets her a screen test, which turns out unfavorably because she sang the wrong type of song. By another ruse however Steve puts her over. He takes her to a prominent night spot in Hollywood at the height of a charity affair, attended by most of the cinema colony’s notables, B. Carter (Charles Halton), president CROONING TEAM — Rosalind Marquis, petite brunette, and Fred Lawrence, handsome crooner, who are co-featured in the First National comedy with music “Talent Scout” which comes to thes. oe Theatre, on. .................. ‘ Mat. No. 101—10e MEMORY FAILED HER ONLY ONCE Jeanne Madden has not muffed a single line of dialog in the two pictures she has made since her arrival in Hollywood — “Stage Struck,” in which she played the feminine lead opposite Dick Powell, and “Talent Seout,” her new picture, in which she has the feminine lead opposite Donald Woods. “Talent Scout,” a merry comedy directed by William Clemens from a sereen play by George Bilson and William Jacobs, is now showing at the Theatre. The only time Miss Madden’s memory has failed her was during the making of her first screen test. The 19-year-old singer, who came to pictures via the Metropolitan Opera Co., has a “photographie mind” and seldom has to read even the longest speech more than twice to memorize it. As for song lyrics, she seldom has to read them more’than once to have them completely mastered. “That’s from long practice,” she says, “I’ve been learning songs ever since I was two years old.” With Miss Madden in “Talent Scout” are Donald Woods, as leading man, Fred Lawrence and Rosalind Marquis as featured players, and a large and capable cast. Jeanne sings several songs in the production. (Opening Day Story) Search For Talent Theme Of Film At Strand Today ‘Talent Scout’? Shows Hilarious Picture Of Hollywood From The Inside The tribulations of an unusual profession form the basis of ‘‘Talent Scout,’’ a First National comedy which opens today at the DONALD WOODS 13 AMBITIOUS FOR A WRITING CAREER Donald Woods, the movie actor, has written—started and finished —36 plays. Only one has ever been produced. That was during his college days at the University of California. The others are at the bottom of a trunk. Woods has started somewhere between 75 and 80 other plays, none of which has ever been finished. Some of these, which he calls “false starts,” are only two or three pages long. Several cover fifty, sixty and more pages of manuscript. “They’re all terrible, including the one that was produced at the University,” asserts the handsome young First National leading man, who is currently featured in “Talent Scout,’ which is now showing at the: =.= fc: Theatre. But Woods is determined that some day he will realize his boyhood ambition and write a great play. “Tf it takes forty years and ten thousand more false starts, TV’m going to do it,” he declares. Woods doesn’t have as much time as he’d like to devote to writing but invariably when he has a few moments to spare he turns to his portable typewriter and does a bit of what he deseribes as “experimenting.” Woods confesses that he would rather be remembered as_ the author of one good play than the star of a hundred good motion pictures. “Hollywood,” he says, “is one of the best places I know of for gathering dramatic material because every imaginable type of character is represented here.” ‘Jeanne Madden is Woods’ leading lady in “Talent Scout,” which is a lively farce-comedy directed by William Clemens from an original screen play by George Bilson and William Jacobs. 1 ORY of Apex Pictures. He gets her a spot on the program and when Mary sings again, Carter can not wait to get her signature on a contract. In her first picture Mary, whose name has been changed to Doris Pierce after her first screen test, plays opposite Raymond Crane (Fred Lawrence), the screen idol of the moment. They find themselves falling in love, much to the dismay of Steve and Bernice Fox (Rosalind Marquis), a singing ingenue under contract to Apex. Bernice manages to break up the ro mance but later Steve nobly brings them including M. Page Two back together by writing a song for the pair to sing in a scene and which makes them see the light. The picture ends with Steve taking the whole company on his long cherished dream, the airplane tour of the country. Theatre. Donald Woods plays the title role. His job is to dig up talent for the movies, wherever he can find it. He finds a marvelous singer in the person of Jeanne Madden—whom he discovers in a small town theatre amateur night. He takes her to Hollywood, by trickery brings her to the attention of the film magnates, and launches her upon a_ successful and lucrative career. Miss Madden is the girl who played opposite Dick Powell in the very successful “Stage Struck” film of a few months ago. She has a remarkable voice, and is being considered by the Metropolitan Opera Company of New York. “Talent Scout” is her second movie. She sings several songs in this picture, which were written for her by M. K. Jerome and Jack Scholl. Featured with Woods and Miss Madden are Fred Lawrence, formerly a famous radio singer, and Rosalind Marquis, who’s also a top-notch crooner, and had one of the leading roles in “Gold Diggers of 1937.” Lawrence, Miss Madden and Miss Marquis were featured members of the “Gold Diggers” air tour which made a eross country flight last year. William Clemens directed “Talent Seout” from a_ sereen play by George Bilson and William Jacobs. Among others in the cast are Teddy Hart, Joseph Crehan, David Carlyle and Mary Treen. DONALD WOODS NOW REAL YANK Donald Woods, the movie actor, was born in Canada but is now as intensely patriotic an American as anyone in Hollywood. So is his wife, who was the Germanborn Baroness Josephine Van de Horek. In their colonial-type home at Beverly Hills they have one room called the Lincoln Room, which is devoted entirely to trophies, pictures and mementoes of the Great Emancipator. Don can recite almost all of Lincoln’s famed speeches, including the Gettysburg address, and also is familiar with the writings and speeches of other’ great fathers of the nation, like Wash ington, Jefferson and Patrick Henry. He has an_ extensive library of Americana, and his greatest hobby is collecting new volumes for it. He’s prouder of his voting privilege than most Hollywood folks are of their swimming pools. Likes Yankee food, too, and Boston baked beans and brown bread are a regular Saturday night feature at the Woods home. Woods is now playing the lead, with Jeanne Madden, in “Talent Scout,” a First National comedy which comes to the Theatre Next. ..2.7).45 2. also in the picture are Rosalind Marquis and Fred Lawrence and a large cast of others including Joseph Crehan, David Carlyle, Teddy Hart and Mary Treen. It was directed by William Clemens.