NEWS AROUND HOLLYWOOD
- Director John G Blystone passes away of a heart attack in his Beverly Hills home. [His last work was at Hal Roach’s studio on his two 1938 Laurel and Hardy features – ‘Swiss Miss’ and ‘Block-Heads.’ In Hollywood since 1914, and Blystone held a director position at Fox and 20th Century Fox for 17 years, for whom he made 67 features, one of which was ‘Charlie Chan’s Chance,’ starring Warner Oland].
- Venita Varden Oakie (stage name for Frances Evelyn Kemper) filed for divorce from her husband, screen actor/comedian Jack Oakie (Lewis Delaney Offield). The former show girl/dancer charged him with mental cruelty. They separated on July 30. [They met at the time she was appearing in ‘The Great Ziegfield’ at MGM. He was finishing his seven year contract at Paramount at that time, and was at this time at RKO in the Annabel series. He has no credits for 1939 – the divorce hit him hard, professionally and personally].
- Looking for a project to follow his first independent production, ‘The Shop Around the Corner,’ Ernst Lubitsch has announced plans for a reteaming of William Powell and Carole Lombard. Wanting to go in an opposite direction than their last pairing (the screwball comedy ‘My Man Godfrey’), Lubitsch was on the hunt for a dramatic script. [This would have been an interesting prospect, but sadly did not come to pass. Lubitsch had problems bringing the first project to fruition [see August 2]. And William Powell was recovering from rectal cancer].
- With ‘America’s Sweetheart’ Mary Pickford looking on, workmen began to tear down historic sets worth almost $400,000 on the United Artists studio lot. The sight of the destruction of many sets upon which she once worked, brought tears to her eyes.
- Actor Lee Tracy was in trouble with the IRS. They called into question his statements about living in Trucksville PA, while working in Hollywood, CA. And taking a $2600 deduction for food and lodging while away from home. According to the news article, the Bureau argued that,”The fact that a room in his mother’s home in Trucksville was set aside for his exclusive use wasn’t a valid evidence of residence for income tax purposes.” They also called into question his deduction for tips to studio employees to let him sleep in (ie – call him only when he was needed on set). They ruled that this also was not a valid ‘business expense.’
REPORTED ON THIS DATE
The assistant dance director David Robel at Paramount married dancer Mary Manners on Wednesday in Malibu. Groom was formerly with the Ballet Russe; the bride formerly with the Pavlowa group. [Robel danced in films since 1936 at MGM and Paramount. He was the dance director for a couple of 1939 films – ‘Allegheny Uprising’ and ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame.’ They would work together in 1942’s ‘Rio Rita.’ David hit it big in the 50s with Fred Astaire films].
OUTSIDE HOLLYWOOD
- Warner Oland dies in Stockholm, Sweden of bronchial pneumonia. [Zanuck on his European tour this summer met with Oland, wanting to know how he was faring. Oland had exhibited some very odd behavior on the recent Charlie Chan project. In fact, he had left the sound stage where they were shooting, and didn’t come back. Fox took the script and changed it into a vehicle for Mr Moto, (Peter Lorre). Being one of the number one money makers on his lot, Zanuck was concerned. So with his death, a search was launched immediately for his replacement].
- Pearl White is laid to rest at the Passy Cemetery in Paris. [When she retired to France she used the wealth accumulated in her career to acquire other money making investments – the Hotel de Paris in Biarritz, with attached casino, a Paris nightclub and a stable of thoroughbreds].
- Columbia Studio employee, Ray Garber, raced to Turlock CA to be by the side of his wife, injured in an auto accident the day before. She died of a fractured skull received in the crash. [I could find no credits for Garber attached to any films. According to the CA voting rolls for 1938, Ray Garber is listed as a driver. So he must have worked at Columbia some how in that capacity. It would make sense, for in 1926 he was a manager at the HertzDrivUrSelf in the Pasadena branch, and for 1927-8, he was the manager of the Hollywood branch]. (This marks the second accident related tragedy involving Columbia employees – see July 10).