Tom Barnes's Blog: Tom's 'RocktheTower' Blog - Posts Tagged "david-selznick"

This Week
David O.Selznick – The Early Years
Facts about Doc Holliday
Writers Notebook: On Blogging

David O. Selznick:
David Selznick was a staunch advocate of transferring literature as it was written to film. David was an avid reader and grew up with the classics including Dickens and Tolstoi. As a film producer Selznick is remembered best for his production of Gone With the Wind and if that was his only accomplishment he would have had a successful career. However, that was not the case and as Al Jolson said in The Jazz Singer, 'You ain't seen nothin' yet.'

David Selznick was born on May 10, 1902, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania the youngest of three sons born to Lewis and Florence Selznick. The boys Howard, Myron and David grew up in New York City. Their father was in the early motion picture business. Myron and David would follow their father into the movie business. Their older brother Howard had health issues and he didn't take part in the business.
David's world revolved around his father and the motion picture business, everyday after school, he went to his father's office in Times Square and worked with his father.David skipped school every chance he got believing it was more important to learn the movie business and analyze actors for his father than it was to follow tradition and attend school every day.
Father and sons worked hard at the business until 1923 when the bottom fell out of their world. The Selznick Pictures business model didn't work, and when Lewis Selznick determined that he was unable to compete, he filed for bankruptcy and sold all the family possessions. That was a setback for the family yet David was not about to give up, he was certain that he could and would be a success in the motion picture business.
It was quite a come down for the Selznick's as they were forced to move out of a huge Park Avenue apartment, with servants, to a three room flat. However, they all took it in stride, especially the mother. Florence Selznick set the tone by doing the cooking and house cleaning without a whimper. His mother's strong will had apparently rubbed off on David and he began to think of ways to rehabilitate his and the family image. When he looked around at successful motion picture executives he was drawn to men like Cecil B. DeMille and Louis B. Mayer. He looked close at those names in print and at that moment decided that adding a middle initial to his name might be helpful, so he added an O and became David O. Selznick.
David was a natural born promoter and entrepreneur. As he looked back at his father's business career he recognized some of the mistakes. Cost was never an issue with his father and it was obvious to David that Selznick Production's spent far too much on advertising and not enough on content and product development.
Starting out with no budget David had to find a low cost project with potential high end results. During his search for a project he came up with the idea of using a boxing match with a title 'Will he Conquer Dempsey?' He would make a two-reeler using the prize fighter Luis Firpo in training for his fight with Jack Dempsey.
David figured it would cost about two thousand dollars to make the film. He spent a couple of weeks promoting the idea and when he came up with the cash he approached Firpo and told him he'd give him a thousand dollars a day for his work.
Firpo agreed and David scouted locations all over Manhattan Central Park, the Battery, street scenes and rooftop boxing rings. He worked out the shooting schedule and just after dawn they began to shoot the star. David ran the fighter ragged from one location to the next using nothing but natural light. At the end of the day David announced that the film was finished.
Firpo got his thousand dollars, but just how many hours were actually in that day we'll never know. Apparently it was enough because when David edited and put the film together he had his first film in the can. The two-reeler sold and made a profit for the investors and for David O. Selznick.
David ran across his next project quite by accident. He read that Rudolph Valentino was not working because of a dispute with Paramount and of course the public wanted to see him. David seized on the idea of making Valentino a judge at an upcoming beauty pageant. He went to the pageant people and asked if they would like to use Rudolph Valentino as one of their judges. They were interested from the start and once Valentino agreed all David had to do was take advantage of the situation and get as much film as he could of the star.
It worked to perfection, David got the film and made a two-reel film of the great lover. The cost of the film and lights at Madison Square Garden were all the expenses he had – he made a cool $15,000.00 dollars profit.
His next film was called Roulette, which featured an all star cast including several stars he engaged for only an hour or two. Roulette didn't do nearly as well as Judge Valentino but you couldn't count it a loss because of the practical knowledge David got from the experience.
Myron Selznick had moved to Hollywood and urged his brother to come out and join him. David obliged and his first job in Hollywood was with Associated Exhibitors to scout around and find two-reelers that the company could release. David found several, unfortunately though Associated Exhibitors went out of business before the deals could be acted on, which left him without a paycheck.
Using some of his father's contacts he talked himself into a $75.00 dollar a week job at MGM. He was hired as a reader for producer Harry Rapf and not only did he read during those first few weeks he did something that might have been the precursor to his memo writing. There was a suggestion box at the studio and as it worked out it might just have been his lifeline. David stuffed that box with suggestions every day and it apparently got someones attention because within a couple of weeks he was promoted from reader to Manager of the Writers Department. That was a title without distinction, although it did get him some recognition and in a short time he was moved up to story editor. Next he became one of Harry Rapf's assistants. (They were called stooges at the time.)
David Selznick had proved his worth at every level and was very effective as an assistant to Producer Rapf. His next move came as an unexpected surprise when he was asked to produce Tim McCoy westerns simply because the McCoy producer got tired of the format and wanted out.
David accepted the job with some trepidations thinking how in the world can I make a reputation producing westerns?
It was a stepping stone though and he did a good job. After he made several films he could see a way to make two films for the price of one. By using two scripts and two leading ladies they could shoot two different films using the same setups. As it turned out it worked and with that innovation David had won his spurs as a producer.
(To be continued)
In the coming weeks we'll look at many David Selznick memos and films as well as some of the careers he launched: Katharine Hepburn, Vivien Leigh, Ingrid Bergman, Gregory Peck, Jennifer Jones and writer producer Alfred Hitchcock.

Doc Holliday's Road to Tombstone
False accusations and outright lies Aimed to darken the Holliday legend were not lost on journalist, Lucy Caldwell and producer, Bobby Anderson. They were convinced that the true Holliday legend was hidden beneath a veneer that Dime Store novels had drawn and Hollywood perpetuated. Lucy and Bobby work independently, searching for the real Doc Holliday, but success comes only after they join forces and fully explore the love story involving his cousin, Mattie Holiday.
The storybook romance between John Henry and Mattie is cut short by disease and family strife. The young dentist is forced by circumstance and failing health to abandon Mattie for a life in the West. And by using his gambling skills and caustic wit, Doc Holliday plays out the hand life had dealt him.
On the road to Tombstone Doc encounters some familiar names Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, Eddie Foy and Kate Elder to name a few.
In a card game at Ft. Griffin Doc, when forced to defend himself, kills a card cheater. The cheaters pals want retribution, but Kate plans and executes a daring escape from the hostile mob. Doc owes his life to Kate and even as they forge a salty and sometimes tumultuous relationship, he would never forget her act of heroism at Ft. Griffin.
Doc’s courage and loyalty are tested when he rushes in to save Wyatt Earp from a gang of drunken cowboys and a hangman’s noose at Dodge City. Three years later he once again shows his true character when he stands with the Earp’s in the shootout, at the Ok Corral. Doc survives the gunfight, but death from tuberculosis is never far away.
Mattie, desperate in her loneliness, writes Doc that she has returned to St. Vincent’s Academy, become a nun, and has taken a new name -- Sister Mary Melanie. Doc is stung by the news, but is quick to realize that it was his own neglect, of the girl he left behind, that had placed Mattie in the nunnery.

“...Doc Holliday’s Road to Tombstone is splendid. And it has the best telling of the gunfight at the OK Corral that I’ve ever read. I wish I’d written it.” --Martin Meyers, author of the Patrick Hardy mysteries, co-author of The Dutchman Series.

Writers Notebook:
On Internet Blogging:
Think of blogging as a community bulletin board.
Simply put; you blog to share information with others and you can blog about anything Aunt Suzie’s favorite recipes, politics, pop art, gardening or fly-fishing.
The political classes are having a field day in the blog world.
My ‘RocktheTower’ blog reflects many of my personal experiences including writing, acting and my 1945 season with the original Navy Hurricane Hunters.
Most writers have files filled with stuff (and some is just that – stuff) we’ve written in the past articles, essays etc. If you’ve written a book you’re in good shape because you have lots of material to fall back on. Use excerpts to promote your book or make a point.
You set your own schedule and deadline to post. My idea is to work with consistency in order to make that deadline. One of the incentives I use is that at the end of the day I will have accumulated enough material to edit into a book about storytelling on the blog.
Twitter is something you might look into, it will give you another way to generate new ideas and feed your blog: something to think about.

Tom Barnes -- Actor, Writer and Hurricane Hunter.
Check out my website for books, blogs, western legends, a literary icon, reviews and interviews. Also my novels Tungee's Gold, The Goring Collection and Doc Holliday’s Road to Tombstone along with a non fiction remembrance of The Hurricane Hunters and Lost in the Bermuda Triangle.
Facebook and Twitter
http://thehurricanehunter.blogspot.com
www.tombarnes39.com

This Week
Selznick Memos
Tungee's Gold and a Legend
Writers Notebook: Sherwood Anderson
Memos:
According to Rudy Behlmer, editor of David O. Selznick's Memos, David's first official memo was written to Mr. Harry Rapf on October 15, 1926. The subject was in regards to the film, 'The Armed Cruiser Potemkin.' The memo expressed his enthusiasm for the picture and suggested that MGM executives should look at it with the idea of acquiring the services of the film's director Sergi Eisenstein.

Possibly after one too many memos and an argument Hunt Stromberg, producer of White Shadows in the South Pacific, David Selznick found himself without a job and on the street again.
Following several months of inactivity his phone rang and he was asked to come to B.P. Schulberg's office at Paramount.
Schulberg offered David a job, but with less money, David declined the offer and walked out of the office.
Schulberg thought Selznick was arrogant and figured good riddance.
Several of David's pals director William Wellman, Paul Bern, B.P. Feinman and Bernie Zeidman heard what had happened, they thought Schulberg had made a mistake and told him so.
Schulberg bowed to the pressure and gave David two weeks to prove himself. Following the two week trial Schulberg apparently agreed with Wellman and the others and appointed David Selznick his executive assistant.
During that trial period David had proposed several good picture ideas, and at the same time proved to be a whiz at making up great picture titles. Paramount was giving a hundred dollar bonus for titles that were used and David made out like a bandit.
Those were the years of transition from silent to sound and every studio in Hollywood was racing to get talkies to the market. Giant sound stages were being built all over Hollywood. Paramount had their own sound stage under construction when the unfinished structure caught fire and unfortunately burned to the ground.
Paramount was never at a loss for innovative ideas though and this tragedy was no exception. B.P. Schulberg called a meeting that night to discuss a plan he'd come up with. They would put every sound picture they had on their schedule into production immediately. The only difference was that they would shoot at night. Hire off duty police to control traffic and cut down on street noise, then proceed to make movies.
The plan worked and the old slogan of turning lemons into lemonade was alive and well at Paramount. The tragic fire had actually given them an edge. So if you ever get the chance to see any of those early Paramount films, you might think – what a novel idea.
A memo sent to B.P. Schulberg July 2, 1928 regarding a planned film Dirigible gives us an idea about the importance Selznick placed on special effects, at the time referred to as trick photography. Other memos reflected his thoughts about public previews and editing as a way to shape audience emotions.
One particular subject was constantly on the minds of Paramount executives, and that was story material for the stars they had under contract. In 1929 some of their star players were Richard Arlen, Nancy Carroll, William Powell, Clara Bow, Evelyn Brent, Ruth Chatterton, Gary Cooper, Buddy Rogers and George Bancroft.
There was one picture that got more memo traffic and buzz at meetings than any other and that was 'Paramount on Parade' 1930. David Selznick alone put in several dozen memos.
.Variety's review of the film sums it up very nicely. 'Paramount on Parade' 1930 links together an almost incredible smoothness of achievements from the smallest technical detail to the greatest artistic endeavor. Interspersed through the twenty numbers and eleven songs was the work of thirteen writers...' Writing credit went to Joseph L. Mankiewicz.
To fill out that ensemble you need to go behind the camera and find the eleven directors then view the stars through the lens. The directors were Dorothy Arzrner, Victor Heerman, Ernst Lubitsch, Edward Sutherland, Otto Brower, Edwin H. Knopf, Lothar Mendes, Edmund Goulding, Rowland V. Lee, Victor Schertzinger and Frank Tuttle.
Leading the parade of actors was Maurice Chevalier, Jean Arthur, Gary Cooper, Clara Bow, Jack Oakie, George Bancroft, Clive Brooks, Leon Errol, Stuart Erwin and Kay Francis. (You late night old movie buffs will recognize those stars.)
During his years at Paramount, that lasted from early 1928 to June of 1931, David Selznick was in the middle of the decision making process at the executive level. As B.P. Schulberg's executive assistant he acquired practical experience he could not have purchased any other place at any price. And while he didn't produce a single film during that period he had input at executive planning sessions along with his own memos and suggestions to Schulberg.
Don't get the impression that David Selznick was all work and no play, he went to parties, drank with the best of them and he gambled. At one of those social events he met, fell in love with Irene Mayer. They married on April 29, 1930.
David had worked hard during the year of 1930 and with thoughts of raising a family he believed he deserved a raise in pay. On February 2, 1931 David sent a long memo to his boss B,P. Schulberg citing chapter and verse on the subject of executive pay. He compared his and other executives with directors and line producers and felt there was a wide disparity. He felt that his hours alone were worth more than he was being paid for. He got no answer to his memo, however, on June 15, 1931 he wrote Mr. Schulberg in reply to Schulberg's general memo asking all executives to decide and propose their own salary cut.
David Selznick fired off an answer announcing that he was not about to take a pay cut.
He was asked to resign, which he did in late June 1931.
(To be continued) Next is RKO Hepburn, Barrymore in 'Bill of Divorcement.'
Tungee's Gold: The Legend of Ebo Landing
Tungee Cahill background. Creek Indian War.

Hawkinsville, Georgia
Summer, 1836
Mama Sue Cahill wore a buckskin dress and sat on the front steps. Her raven hair fell loosely to her waist and she softly sang the words of an old hymn. “Amazing.Grace ... 'Tis grace hath brolt me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home ... “

The quiet of the afternoon was broken only by her gentle voice blending with the summer sounds of crickets and the river waters slapping against the boat dock at the bottom of the hill.
The boys watched their mother from the porch swing. Tungee was-twelve and looked like his Scottish father, Davy was two years younger and resembled Mama Sue, a full blood Creek Indian.
Davy whispered. "What is it this time, Tungee?"
"I don't know, but Mama is sure worried."
A bird call came from far up river and that was soon followed by the muffled sounds of hoofbeats. Riders were approaching along the river road at the gallop.
Soon two Creek braves, leading a third horse, came into the clearing and turned toward the house. The warriors sat erect and rode slowly up the hill and stopped in the front yard. The third horse, Papa Cahill's sorrel, halted just behind the others. The sorrel carried a blanket covered body strapped to the saddle. Papa's familiar leather boots hung across the horse's neck at the withers.
Mama Cahill stopped singing and tears coursed down her cheeks and she began to sob. The boys ran to her side and even as Tungee tried to comfort his mother, his emotions spilled into the open. "Damn you, Papa," he wailed, "it's all been a lie."
Mama Sue heard her son's invective, but ignored it for the moment. Papa had to be buried and the sooner the better. She drew a deep breath, scanned the area and quickly pointed to a plot hidden from the river by the scuppernong arbor.

As the braves dug a grave for their comrade they told the family what had happened. Their war party rode out of Hawkinsville expecting to take part in two or three small raids. But by the time they got to West Georgia a full scale war had broken out between the Indians and white settlers.
Their party was ordered to ride south along the Chattahooche River and take part in an attack on a white village below Columbus. Some Alabama Creeks got there early and set fire to the town. The Hawkinsville party rode into the middle of a fire fight and a burning inferno. Smoke was so thick you couldn't see more than a dozen yards. Robert caught a stray bullet that knocked him out of his saddle and he was dead by the time he hit the ground.
The men finished digging the grave and gently lowered Papa Cahill into the clay pit. Mama Sue read from the Bible while a sullen Tungee and tearful Davy stood beside their father's grave. As soon as the final prayer was said, the braves filled in the pit. And by the time they packed the dirt down and scattered a few leaves on top, there was no sign of a burial plot.
(To be Continued

Writers Notebook:
Sherwood Anderson on writing integrity:
Consider for a moment the materials of the prose writer, the teller of tales.
His materials are human lives. To him these figures of his fancy, these people
who live in his fancy should be as real as living people. He should be no more
ready to sell them out than he would sell out his men friends or the woman he
loves. To take the lives of these people and bend or twist them to suit the need
of some cleverly thought out plot to give your readers a false emotion is as
mean and ignoble as to sell out living men or women. For the writer there is no
escape, as there is no real escape for any craftsman… That is the truth.

Tom Barnes -- Actor, Writer and Hurricane Hunter.
Check out my website for books, blogs, western legends, a literary icon, reviews and interviews. Also my novels Tungee's Gold, The Goring Collection and Doc Holliday’s Road to Tombstone along with a non fiction remembrance of The Hurricane Hunters and Lost in the Bermuda Triangle.

Www.tombarnes39.com

www.RocktheTower.com

http://thehurricanehunter.blogspot.com

This Week
David Selznick at RKO
Tungee, Davy and Mama Sue
Writers Notebook: Steinbeck on dialogue

David O. Selznick Part 3
Hollywood Stonewall in New York
David Selznick's departure from Paramount was not so much a dead-end as was the case when was fired from MGM.
During the years at Paramount Selznick had put aside funds and built personal and business relationships with a large number of talented people in the Hollywood community.
David and Lewis Milestone, producer of All's Quiet on the Western Front and Front Page, had a hand shake agreement to organize a small production company. Ernst Lubitsch and King Vidor were to direct the first two films.
David went east to raise money for the project and also to arrange for a release for their films. He was unsuccessful in both instances. As it turned out he was blocked by his father-in-law Louis B. Mayer, the head of MGM. Mayer and some of the other studio heads determined that if these small units were allowed to make pictures at will, they would would cut into the profits of the major studios.
So without a release for their films the fund raising went no where.
David understood why the big studios wanted to protect their turf, but his thinking was that he had to find a way to produce films without having to go through the studio system.
After weeks at a stalemate it became obvious that he needed someone with clout that was outside the Hollywood group. That someone turned out to be David Sarnoff the president of RCA, which at that time owned RKO Radio. David made his pitch and as it turned out General Sarnoff was sympathetic to his situation and after several days of negotiation David Selznick signed an agreement in October of 1931 to take over RKO Radio and RKO Pathe, and to merge the two companies into a production unit.
RKO was formed in 1928 when the Keith Albee Orpheum theater chains and Joseph Kennedy's Booking Offices of America studio were brought together under the control of the Radio Corporation of America. RCA chief David Sarnoff engineered the merger in order to create a market for the company's sound on film technology, RCA Photophone.

RKO was located just around the corner from Paramount Pictures. It's ironic but that was the case. The physical distance was two city blocks, to work out the the corporate details was a lot farther away. That took a trip to New York and almost a miracle to put Selznick and Sarnoff in a position to negotiate a deal.
Once they signed the agreement there was only one thing on David Selznick's agenda and that was the production of motion pictures.
'Bill of Divorcement' had been on David's mind as a possible film for a long time but he could never get anyone else interested. Now that he was head of a studio 'Bill of Divorcement' was one of his first acquisitions.
David wanted a fresh face for the leading lady and George Cukor talked him into testing Katherine Hepburn. Selznick wasn't sure her looks would pass public scrutiny and he took all kinds of abuse from people at the studio as they referred to Ms. Hepburn as Old Horse Face. David Selznick had a great instinct when it came to talent and something told him that Hepburn would be accepted. As it turned out the camera loved her face and there was something in her personality that transcended physical appearance, not to mention her quick wit and personality.
In spite of all the outside carping about Katharine Hepburn's looks the film was produced by David O. Selznick and George Cukor. And once the public saw the film Hepburn was not only accepted but declared 'a new star on the cinema horizon' by The Hollywood Reporter.
'Bill of Divorcement' cast included John Barrymore, Katharine Hepburn, Billie Burke and David Manners.

When Selznick took over RKO he immediately realized that the company had a large investment in an animation process conceived by Willis O'Brien. Selznick hired Merian Cooper, an executive he had worked with at Paramount, and one of his jobs was to study O'Brien's animation process with the idea of how best to utilize it in films. Cooper went a step farther and not only figured a way to put O'Brien's system to work, he came up with some ideas that would utilize the process and a jungle story as well.
Cooper pitched his idea to his boss and with great enthusiasm David Selznick gave him the go ahead.
King Kong was the film and it was co-directed by Merian C. Cooper and Ernst Schoedsack, adapted for the screen by Ruth Rose and James Ashmore Creelman from a story by Merian Cooper and Edgar Wallace and produced by David O. Selznick. The film tells of an island dwelling gorilla like creature called Kong who dies in an attempt to possess a beautiful young woman. The film stars Fay Wray, Robert Armstrong and Bruce Cabot and it opened in New York City on March 2, 1933 to good reviews.
Fred and Adele Astaire: Born in Omaha, Nebraska Adele and younger brother Fred were ushered onto the Vaudeville stage in the early teens by their stage mother.
During the 20s,the sister and brother act appeared on Broadway and on the London stage in Lady be Good, Funny Face and The Band Wagon. They won over theater audiences on both sides of the Atlantic and Fred's tap dancing got rave reviews by the critics. Robert Benchley wrote in 1930, 'I don't think that I will plunge the nation into war by stating that Fred Astaire is the greatest tap-dancer in the world.'
On January 13, 1933 Selznick wrote an internal memo to Associate Producer Louis Brock and director Mark Sandrich lamenting the fact that RKO didn't have the budget to buy a bankable star. However, in the next paragraph he was enthused by New York's suggestion that Fred Astaire be considered. 'If he photographs he may prove to be a really sensational bet...' '...Astaire is one of the great artist's of the day a magnificent performer. A man conceded to be perhaps, next to Leslie Howard the most charming in American theater...' ...'He would be in my opinion, good enough to use in a lead in a million-dollar Lubitsch picture – provided only he photographs.'
Selznick signed Fred Astaire to an RKO contract, but the test made back in New York was clearly a disappointment to him and he said so. 'I am uncertain about the man, but I feel, in spite of his enormous ears and bad chin line, that his charm is so tremendous that it comes through even on this wretched test.'
According to Hollywood folklore, the early screen test report from New York read: 'Can't sing, can't act, balding, can dance a little.'
(To be continued.)

Tungee's Gold: The Legend of Ebo Landing
Background...Central Georgia 1836
Tungee, Davy and Mama Sue.
Tungee sat on the end of the boat dock and thought about his mother's story regarding the whereabouts of Papa Cahill.
'He's gone to Scotland, to take care of Grandfather Cahill's will and the family estate.' That was the lie she told and it was only after the Indian braves talked about the war party and how Papa Cahill died that Tungee's twelve year old mind began to comprehend the gravity of their situation. Of course he already knew the truce between white's and Indians was over. Washington had made that clear as they pressured the Creeks and their neighbors, the Choctaw, Chickasaw and Cherokee land owners to give up their homes and relocate to some promised land West of the Mississippi.
Mama Sue walked down the hill, crossed the dock and knelt down beside her son.
He looked out past the river and said quietly, "That sure was a whopper you told, Mama."
"You mean about Grandfather Cahill?"
"Uh huh."
"It was your father's idea and since he left in the middle of the night, he said it was best that you boys didn't know. None of the whites knew your father was fighting on the side of my people and taking part in those raids. He knew if they found out it would put all of us in jeopardy. Why, the land speculators would swoop in like vultures and take our home and our land."
Tungee thought for a moment and said, "I understand, Mama."
"Your father was committed to the Indian struggle long before we were married. He was involved in Creek politics for years, but that had to be kept secret."
Tungee's eyes brightened, "I never guessed that."
"It wasn't always easy keeping that secret from you and Davy." Then she sat upright and said with pride and affection, "Your father was a hero and he did make a difference. Robert just kept on looking for some sign of fairness from the government. But all we ever got from Washington was worthless treaties and broken promises."
Tears ran down Tungee's face. "I never got a chance to tell Papa I loved him. The last thing I ever said to him was, I hate you."
"What was that all about, son?"
"Same as usual, his drinking and whoring around. I hated him for that."
"Your father wasn't perfect, he drank and he may have strayed from time to time." Then she took her son's hand. "But you must forgive your father, Tungee."
He wasn't quite ready for that, but he didn't want to disappoint his mother either. So he nodded and said, "Yes, Mama." Then he sat upright. "What do we do now?"
"Tomorrow morning, you and Davy make the rounds, collect the pelts and furs. We must carry on the business and if anyone asks about your father, talk freely about your Grandfather Cahill and Papa's trip to Scotland. A little gossip will help to keep the lie."
Their white neighbors believed Papa Cahill had gone to Scotland. And it stayed that way for the better part of the next year. Eventually, though, there was implied doubt in the questions concerning his whereabouts. Mama Sue listened to the gossip and when the truth became part of the rumor, she knew it was only a matter of time. There was no doubt about their fate. They would be rounded up like the others and forced to march West in shackles and chains. The trail that had already become an American tragedy. A trail littered with graves of the dead and marked by blood and tears of the survivors.
(To be Continued)
Writers Notebook:
Another thought or two from Steinbeck: If a scene or section gets the better of you and you still think you want it – bypass it and go on. When you’ve finished the whole you can come back to it and then you may find that the reason it gave you trouble is because it didn’t belong there.
If you’re using dialogue say it aloud as you write it. Only then will it have the sound of speech.
Here’s another wrinkle on Steinbeck’s dialogue line. Use his method, but when you’re finished take a little cassette tape recorder and record those pieces of dialogue you’re working on and play them back. Take it from me; you’ll know if they sound real or not.

Tom Barnes -- Actor, Writer and Hurricane Hunter.
Check out my website for books, blogs, western legends, a literary icon, reviews and interviews. Also my novels Tungee's Gold, The Goring Collection and Doc Holliday’s Road to Tombstone along with a non fiction remembrance of The Hurricane Hunters and Lost in the Bermuda Triangle.
Facebook and Twitter
http://thehurricanehunter.blogspot.com
www.tombarnes39.com

This Week
David Selznick Back to MGM
Tungee Cahill Tragedy in Georgia
Writers Notebook: A Tip From Neil Simon

David O. Selznick Part 4
David left RKO when his original contract expired. There were many reasons for his decision to leave, but I consider one line from an unsent memo dated February 3, 1933 to be the most obvious....'I consider that it would be completely impossible for any production head to operate if he had to submit himself to what Mr. Aylesworth demanded – the approval by himself of every script and budget...'
Of course David was married to MGM in more ways than one. His wife Irene might have been on father L.B. Mayer's side in urging a reluctant son-in-law to return to MGM.
The fact that he had, earlier in his career, been fired from the company had to be troubling to him. Of course the result is that he put all that behind him and accepted their offer to become a vice president at MGM with the agreement that he would be in charge of his own production unit.
The fact that he was now part of the family probably made the transition easier and also faster. It took only about two weeks for him to settle into his new office at MGM and firing off memos regarding his first production.
Dinner at Eight was David Selznick's first production on his return to MGM. George Cukor directed a screenplay that was adapted from George S. Kaufman and Edna Ferber's Broadway play by Frances Marion, Herman J. Mankiewicz and Donald Ogden Stewart.
The Movie starred Marie Dressler, John Barrymore, Wallace Beery, Jean Harlow, Lionel Barrymore and Lee Tracy.
Dinner at Eight received good reviews, however it must be added that the first half was superior to the last according to most reviewers.
One of the outstanding films produced during Selznick's time at MGM was Viva Villa, which was also one of his favorites. Jack Conway directed the film from a screenplay by Ben Hecht. The stars were Wallace Beery, Leo Carrillo and Fay Wray. (Lady in the arms of King Kong.)
Selznick was not alone in his enthusiasm for the film for Variety said Viva Villa was a Corking western. The public and the Academy agreed and gave it a best picture nomination.
Charles Dickens classic story of David Copperfield was another Selznick favorite for different reasons from Viva Villa. David had fallen love with the Dickens stories as a boy and he had a passion to bring Copperfield to the screen, which turned out to be quite a challenge.
George Cukor directed the film from a screenplay written by Howard Estabrook and Hugh Walpole. Cast included W.C. Fields, Lionel Barrymore, Freddie Bartholomew, Frank Lawton, Edna May Oliver and Roland Young.
Variety's review brings up the point of how difficult it was to bring the Dickens story to the screen, but agreed that Selznick's production had pulled all the parts together and the actors gave performances worthy of the material they were working with. W.C. Fields was perfect in the role of Micawber. The Academy of Motion Pictures gave the classic a best picture nomination.

David Selznick said in some of his correspondence that from early March of 1933 and the first day he set foot on the MGM lot following his stint at RKO he was having second thoughts. By June he was openly trying to get out of his contract. He wrote a very long memo explaining why he didn't want to be a part of MGM. There was no doubt in his mind that he had made a mistake, however, MGM management including his father-in-law stood fast to the present contract and would not give him a release.
Of course he was making $4,000.00 dollars a week, a very good salary for the time. David was aware that nepotism played a part and he hated the constant carping and son-in-law jokes that were all at his expense. The classic was 'the son-in-law also rises.'
He honored the contract and kept his commitment even as he bridled in his own displeasure. David did receive comfort from his wife Irene, the one person that was really caught between two strong willed men, her husband David Selznick and father L.B. Mayer.

However, personal problems notwithstanding, David Selznick continued to produce good films at MGM.
Anna Karenina directed by Clarence Brown from a screenplay by Clemence Dane, Salka Viertel and S.N. Behrman. The stars were Greta Garbo, Fredric March, Freddie Bartholomew, Basil Rathbone, Maurine O'Sullivan and May Robson.

Another Selznick boyhood classic A Tale of Two Cities directed by Jack Conway and written by W.B. Lipscomb and S.N. Behrman. The cast was Ronald Coleman, Elizabeth Allan, Edna May Oliver, Reginald Owen, Basil Rathbone and Blanche Yurka. The story line of A Tale of Tow Cities follows the turmoil and aftermath of the French Revolution.
The film got excellent reviews and was nominated for best picture of 1936.
(To Be continued)

Tungee's Gold: The Legend of Ebo Landing
Excerpt background 1836 Central Georgia.

It was almost a year after they buried Papa Cahill. Tungee and Davy were riding home from the mill with burlap bags filled with cornmeal strapped to the back of their
saddles. Gunshots rang out in the distance and that was not unusual except that it sounded awfully close to their house.
Tungee urged his bay gelding to pick up the pace and Davy followed along on his pinto.
"Bet somebody just bagged a turkey or maybe a deer," Davy shouted.
Tungee hoped his brother was right, but something deep inside told him otherwise.
They pulled their mounts up near the kitchen and quickly poured the meal into a clean bin.
Davy, in almost a whisper, said, "Tungee?"
"What."
"Something ain't right."
"I know."
They called, "Mama," a dozen times, but all they got in return was a piece of an echo. The place was still and it seemed the only thing in the world that moved was the river at the bottom of the hill as it's muddy waters flowed past the boat dock.
The boys ran through the house and kept calling and opening doors and the doors didn't even make their proper sound. A muffled quiet was all they heard.
Davy said excitedly, "She must be down at the bee-hives."
They ran out the front door, jumped the porch rail, just missing Mama's flowers, and landed on the run. Tungee and Davy both called out as they crossed the sandy yard and raced for the brush covered trail that led to the hives.
They stopped short of the wood. Horrified at what they saw. Their mother's lifeless body was sprawled near the trees. She must have died instantly from a single gun shot wound to the head. Her protective bee clothing was still in tact. Her left hand clutched the smoker and her right lay lifeless beside a two-gallon pail of honey.
Davy grabbed one hand and Tungee took the other s they knelt down and called to her -- unsure about what to do.
A horseman could be heard thrashing through the brush. The youngsters froze in place, too scared to move. When the rider came into the clear they relaxed. It was their cousin, Ray, one of Mama's kin.
As soon a he saw the boys he put his finger to his lips, signaling them to be quiet. Riding his sorrel bareback, Ray leaned over the mane, nudged his mount closer and whispered, "Tungee, you and Davy clear out. Run away. Hide yourself, don't stay here and don't take a boat. They're watchin' the river."
"What'll you do?" Tungee asked.

"I'm goin' West to join Menawa. He's gonna try and make a stand."
"Why can't we go with you?"
"Because I say you can't."
Ray wheeled his horse and kicked him into a trot. Then he called over his shoulder, "Now bury your ma and git."
As the hoofbeats faded in the distance the boys realized why the place was so quiet. The animals were gone. Stolen by the same people who killed Mama.
Tungee and Davy set about digging a grave and burying Mama Sue Cahill next to their father.
When the burial was done they went into the house and gathered a few belongings into two separate saddlebags, and walked back out to the front porch. They dropped the bags on the steps, ran down to the dock, scuttled and sank their two boats.
As they walked back up the hill Tungee's mind raced. Where do we go? Maybe we should go to Augusta and contact Uncle Mitchell Cahill. They had only seen their father's brother two or three times and he wasn't like Papa, he was a businessman who had always lived in a city. Tungee worried about the reception they might get. Then he remembered the most exciting place he had ever seen. Papa Cahill had taken him along on a business trip to Savannah. A quiver went through his body as he recalled the experience and his first look at the Savannah River. The wharf was lined with tall
ships, cargo and people from all over the world. And as they neared the houses he looked up at the sky and said to himself, I'm going to be a part of that world.
When they got back to the porch Davy said, "Should we lock the door?"
What a silly notion, Tungee thought. "No, we're going to burn the house."
"Why would you do a fool thing like that?"
Tungee set his jaw and said bitterly, "They may take the land, Davy, but they'll not have our home. We can't let them steal that."
Davy wasn't quite sure what his brother meant, but he followed him into the house. Tungee lighted a torch from the kitchen stove and instructed Davy to pour turpentine on the carpets and furniture in all the downstairs rooms. Then they set five small fires and ran to the front porch, picked up their saddlebags and strapped them into place.
They stood in the yard until the fire began to burn and produce flames and smoke. Then as they scrambled into their saddles, Davy asked, "Where are we going?"
Tungee took a long breath and announced, "Savannah."
The boys didn't need a map, they had hunted the woods and fished the streams, they knew the way. Follow the trail on the left bank of the Ocmulgee, ford the Ohopee, then take the shell road to the port city.

Writers Notebook:
Pay attention writers to this timely observation and tip made by one of Broadway’s most prolific comedy writers. Neil Simon develops character first, and then plot. But he has said on a number of occasions that the main force that drives his comedy is conflict. Keep that in mind when you're putting your plot together and look for ways to keep the conflict honest.

Tom's Books and Blogs:
Tom Barnes -- Actor, Writer and Hurricane Hunter.
Check out my website for books, blogs, western legends, a literary icon, reviews and interviews. Also my novels Tungee's Gold, The Goring Collection and Doc Holliday’s Road to Tombstone along with a non fiction remembrance of The Hurricane Hunters and Lost in the Bermuda Triangle.
Facebook and Twitter
http://thehurricanehunter.blogspot.com
www.tombarnes39.com

This Week
Selznick International
Doc Holliday: Fact or Fiction
Writers Notebook: Tip from Stephen King

David O. Selznick Part 5

David Selznick's stay at MGM was not without its rewards. The production facilities and personnel alone were a big plus and for the most part he managed to get good story material. There were a few exceptions such as Vanessa: Her Love Story and Meet the Barron, both of those stories found their way to Selznick's production unit through studio pressure.
Two other pictures were less than successful because of casting errors, Clark Gable was not suited to the part in Night Flight and Reckless was originally intended for Joan Crawford but replace by Jean Harlow, which didn't work out.
Dancing Lady was a rehab picture for Joan Crawford coming off two box offices failures Rain and Today we Live.
Dancing Lady was successful and with its large cast had a number of personal success stories outside the film.

The film starred Joan Crawford, Clark Gable and Franchot Tone and it featured the screen debut of Fred Astaire, borrowed from RKO to play himself. Dancing Lady also featured the the first credited film appearance of Nelson Eddy. Robert Benchley an old Algonquin Round Table Regular had a featured role and in minor roles were three characters that were later to become the Three Stooges, Moe Howard, Curly Howard and Larry Fine.
Quite a collection of characters, and it turned out to be a pretty good film.

Manhattan Melodrama was a low cost film that was a big box office hit that was no doubt helped by the casting of Clark Gable, William Powell and Myrna Loy. The chemistry between Powell and Loy might have sparked their later pairing for The Thin Man, which eventually turned into a series for both film and radio.
Manhattan Melodrama was also the lure that was used by The Lady in Red, an FBI informant, to bring John Dillinger out of hiding. As The Lady in Red and Dillinger left the Chicago theater Dillinger was gunned down by the FBI to the dismay of the general public. John Dillinger had become quite a folk hero to many Americans during those dull depression years.
Nearing the end of his contract with MGM, word got out that David Selznick would be leaving the studio. All the executives including L.B. Mayer pleaded with him to stay on with a renewed and better contract. Greta Garbo came to him and asked him to stay and produce all of her films. That would have been a great honor, but David Selznick was on track to fulfill his dream, produce pictures he could be proud of and without too much outside interference.
Financing was the first order of business and being in the middle of a depression it would not be easy. However his reputation as a first line producer had grown over the years both inside and outside the industry. It was no secrete that he was going to form his own company, Selznick International and produce first class motion pictures. David was not as sure about financing his company as he was in his own personal abilities as a producer. Fortunately, in this case, his reputation as a producer had grown even larger than his ego.
The proof of that remark came when Irving Thalberg and his wife Anne Sheridan became the first investors in Selznick International. They gave him $200, 000.00 in seed money and that was matched by David's brother Myron.
And with almost a half million dollars in the bank, David set off for New York again. He felt more confident this time as his associate Merian C. Cooper (of King Kong fame) introduced David to some of New York's old money millionaires. All of those contacts were interested, but the bulk of the financing for Selznick International came from the Whitney family. John Hay (Jock) Whitney, C.V. Whitney and Mrs. Charles S. Payson, Jock Whitney's sister.
Cooper and the Whitney's owned Pioneer Productions and part of the deal with Selznick was that he would take over certain responsibilities in Pioneer along with operational control of his own Selznick International production company.
Selznick International Pictures set up shop in Culver City, California only a few blocks from MGM. The building was originally The Thomas Ince Studio built in 1919 and located on Washington Boulevard in Culver City, California. The Colonial style building, used as a movie set by Ince, was converted into an office building by Cecil B. DeMille during his independent years.
Little Lord Fauntleroy was the first film produced by Selznick International. Directed by John Cromwell written by Hugh Walpole with a cast that included C. Aubrey Smith, Freddie Bartholomew and Dolores Costello and was released in 1936.
Fauntleroy went through its production stages without a hitch. The same couldn't be said for The Garden of Allah directed by Richard Boleslawski, screenplay by W.B. Lipscomb and Lynn Rigggs.
The Actors were Marlene Dietrich, Charles Boyer, Basil Rathbone and C. Aubrey Smith. During production of the film Dietrich got into a the habit of slurring lines and changing a few words of dialog form time to time. Selznick was scrupulous when it came to the proper word and when he saw Marlene drifting away from the script he made a fuss about it. To get his point across Selznick used a string of memos to the director, which eventually got Dietrich's attention. She argued and bridled a bit, but eventually began to use the words written in the script. The Garden of Allah was completed and released in 1936.
A Star is born was filmed in technicolor and directed by William A. Wellman from a script written by Wellman, Robert Carson, Dorothy Parker and Alan Campbell. It stars were Janet Gaynor and Fredric March, other cast members included Adolph Menjou, May Robson and Andy Devine.
The production was filmed during the months from October through December of 1936 and Premiered April 29, 1937 at Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood.
The industry paper Variety's review said, ...'Although not the first film, which has attempted to capitalize the International reputation of Hollywood, it is unquestionably the most effective one yet made. The highly commendable results are achieved with a minimum of satiric hokum and a maximum of honest storytelling.' ...'The story relates the experience of a young girl who rises to cinema fame while her husband, having touched the heights, is on a swift descent. Love is the heroine; alcohol, the villain.'...
The scene of the falling star walking into the ocean at sunset caused Selznick and the whole production staff many sleepless nights trying to strike the right balance, was Norman Main's death the result of an accident or was it suicide?
(To be Continued)

The Life and Times of John Henry Holliday.
Doc Holliday’s Road to Tombstone is a novel, using real and imaginary people, the story begins just as the American Civil War is coming to a close. It's the story of passion and deceit, loyalty and adventure – beginning in the old South and later plays out on the Western Frontier.
Most of the settings, characters and incidents are real, the births and deaths of family members within the Holliday household are documented by factual accounts.
John Henry Holliday was born in Griffin, Georgia and the family’s move to Valdosta, Georgia in 1864 is a matter of record as is the death of his mother Alice Holliday in August of 1866. John Henry's father, Henry B. Holliday, caused an irreparable rift with his son when he courted and married Rachel Martin before Alice was cold in her grave.
John Henry's association and work with Dr. Frederick Frink of Valdosta led to his attending and graduating The Pennsylvania College of Dental Surgery in March of 1872 are also a matter of record.
John Henry's return to Georgia and romantic relationship with his cousin Mattie Holliday, setting up a dental office in Griffin are more ambiguous. However, his inheritance of property in Griffin, Georgia, his being diagnosed as having tuberculosis, the death of his adopted brother Francisco from their shared disease is a matter of record.
The sale of John Henry’s Griffin real estate that coincided with Francisco’s death is recorded and was likely the reason John Henry went west in search of a drier climate.
Doc’s life in the West, his gambling, gun fighting, some time dentist, and tumultuous relationship with Kate Elder are well known. His friendship with Wyatt Earp is a part of Western Lore. And Doc's standing with the Earps on the side of law and order at the shootout at the OK Corral is well documented.
Following the shootout the Earps and Holliday were charged with murder and hauled into court. As you read Doc Holliday's Road to Tombstone you will be inside Judge Spicer's courtroom every day of that 28-day hearing.
But even as law and order won the day in the courtroom, the night guns came out and everyone on the side of law and order were targets. Mayor Clum and judge Spicer were shot at and missed, but Virgil Earp was severely wounded and Morgan Earp was shot in the back and killed.
A blood bath ensued and when the killing, on both sides, got out of hand Doc decided to leave the shooting to others and go to Colorado. Wyatt argued against it, but eventually sided with Doc and followed his friend out of the Tombstone Territory.
Doc had several encounters, with the law, during his stay in Colorado, but the greatest tragedy came when Mattie wrote and told JohnHenry that she had entered St. Vincent's Academy to become a nun.
( Next week: Doctor John Henry Holliday graduates from the Pennsylvania College of Dental Surgery)

Writers Notebook:
Inside the front flap of my writer’s notebook are several notes; among them is one that always makes me stop and think. ‘What is the single most important piece of advice you’ve ever gotten about writing?’ I’m not quite sure, but this note contained in that same flap is high on the list. Stephen King once said, ‘I write about four hours a day – first draft – just write. Let it all hang out – don’t stop for misspelled words – punctuation – nothing. Let the passion and heat of the moment take charge. And don’t rewrite that same day. Write in am and rewrite in pm – no, no, no. Leave it alone, at least overnight.’

Tom's Books and Blogs
Tom Barnes -- Actor, Writer and Hurricane Hunter.
Check out my website for books, blogs, western legends, a literary icon, reviews and interviews. Also my novels Tungee's Gold, The Goring Collection and Doc Holliday’s Road to Tombstone along with a non fiction remembrance of The Hurricane Hunters and Lost in the Bermuda Triangle.
Facebook and Twitter
http://thehurricanehunter.blogspot.com
www.tombarnes39.com

This Week
Selznick signs Ingrid Bergman
Doc Holliday Graduates Dental College
Writers Notebook: Quick Fix for Writers Block

Selznick: Part 6
The Prisoner of Zenda followed The Star is Born in the Selznick International production lineup. From a screenplay by John L. Balderston, Wells Root and Donald Ogden Stewart, and directed by John Cromwell. The Stars were Ronald Coleman, Madeleine Carroll, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Mary Astor, C. Aubrey Smith, David Niven and Raymond Massey.
The public and a majority of the critics liked the picture Daily Variety took a different stand. The reviewer said, 'Zenda is hokum of the 24-carat variety, a shear piece of romantic nonsense about a European mythical kingdom.
Even though Variety was at odds with the story line they liked the overall production and cast. Action scene depicting mounted horsemen in body armor crossing the drawbridge is exciting and drew a lot of attention, a night scene between Carroll and Coleman was excellent and the sword fight between Coleman and Niven looks so real that, at moments, is almost too freighting to watch.
Facts about the latter scenes: The so called renunciation scene at twilight between Coleman and Carroll was actually directed by George Cukor. The sword fight between Coleman and Niven was directed by Cromwell, but once it was edited, sliced and diced it was thrown out and re shot under the direction of W.S. 'Woody' Van Dyke.
Mr. Perfection Selznick at work.
The followup picture to Zenda Nothing Sacred directed by William A. Wellman, screenplay by Ben Hecht and Starring Carole Lombard and Fredric March was well received by critics and public alike.
The Adventure of Tom Sawyer, Young in Heart and Made for Each Other were all well produced and accepted by the public.
Selznick International produced two films in 1939 that put them on top of the heap. Intermezzo: A Love Story and Gone with the Wind.
The Intermezzo a Selznick International picture introduced Ingrid Bergman to an American audience.
Here is a brief back story on how Ingrid Bergman came to Hollywood.
The importance of good story material was constantly on David Selznick's mind and in the early stages of organizing Selznick International he sent a memo to his New York office and alerted his people to be on the lookout for European films that might be adapted and produced by Selznick International.
Elsa Neuberger assistant story editor to Kay Brown saw the Swedish film Intermezzo, that featured Ingrid Bergman, and sent a copy along to Culver City.
Once Selznick saw the film he wired the New York office to find particulars about remake rights on Intermezzo, and authorized Kay Brown to take the next boat to Sweden and not to come home without a contract with Miss Bergman.
Kay Brown was apparently successful. Selznick International made a deal for the remake rights of Intermezzo and also signed Miss Bergman to a personal management contract.
Ingrid Bergman had starred in a number of European films, but had not become a box office draw at that point in her career. Selznick was sure that she could be, although he wasn't sure that her given name would work in America. He discussed the possibility of changing her name with several people on his staff and he discussed the possibility with Miss Bergman. The lady argued that she had worked hard at her career using her own name and if at all possible she would like to keep it that way. In the end Selznick agreed that she would continue to use her given name.
There was also a small language problem, Bergman spoke and understood English well, but needed work on her accent.
Miss Bergman agreed with that assessment and was diligent in her studies and worked very hard with her dialogue and English coaches to develop more of an American accent.
The last and final problem proved to be the most challenging.
While doing screen and wardrobe tests they discovered that Ingrid Bergman was not an easy photographic subject. In one of his memos Selznick voiced an opinion that the difference in her photography is the difference between great beauty and a complete lack of beauty. 'And unless we can bring off our photography so that she really looks divine, the whole picture can fall apart.'
They did more tests lighting, high and low camera angles, left and right profile and while they made some headway it was still insufficient according to Selznick.
The picture had just gotten underway when Selznick, after watching film rushes, made his decision to replace the Director of Photography Harry Stradling with Gregg Toland. Then working with Monty Westmore in makeup and doing another series of lighting and camera tests Toland found the key to photographing Ingrid Bergman.
(To Be Continued)

Doc Holliday's Road to Tombstone
Philadelphia
March 1, 1872
The Pennsylvania College of Dental Surgery was holding its
16th Graduation Ceremony at stuffy old Musical Fund Hall. Twenty-six members out of the original class of sixty-three had completed their prescribed work, earned their degree’s, and became eligible to graduate.
John Henry Holliday, the fair-haired Georgian, sat on the second row among that elite group of cap and gown graduates.
Professor Tyson completed the valedictory address and moved away from the podium to a round of applause as the likeable Dr. W.W. Fouche stepped forward and took his place.
Dr. Fouche nodded recognition to the audience and immediately commenced with the ritual everyone had been waiting for. As he called the names in alphabetical order each graduate would gather up their gown and dutifully march up to the stage where they would receive personal congratulations and a diploma.
John Henry maintained an outward calm that would mask a stomach churning anxiety until he actually got the diploma in his hand. He wasn’t concerned about his grades, but had to admit that his card playing and general rebellious nature had drawn more than one reprimand during his stay in Philadelphia. However, his anxiety disappeared when the affable Dr. Fouche looked at him and called his name. John Henry rose from his seat and as he made his way to the stage caught the eye of fellow Georgian Robert Mc Reynolds gave him a high sign, quickly ascended the steps to the stage, accepted his diploma, and joined the others forming a semi circle behind the podium.
Once the certificate was in hand time seemed to pass more quickly and when the last special award was handed to Charles Hamilton Dr. Fouche peered over his gold-rimed glasses, and mimed a handclap. Decorum was then tossed aside with shouts, whistles and even a few jigs danced on the stage setting the celebration in motion.
John Henry discarded his cap and gown, and mingled with the crowd, exchanging jovial banter and good will. He made his way to the exit and as he neared the door felt a sharp slap on his back, turned and stood for a moment in complete disbelief at what he saw. “HC, you old rascal, gosh . . . where did you come from?”
“New York. Came down on the train this afternoon.”
“I can’t believe it’s you,” enthused John Henry. Then he stood back and smiled approvingly at his friend.
HC wearing an expensive, tailored, dark suit, cut with stylish lapels, matching waistcoat and a blue silk tie smiled and said, “This is a big night for you, John Henry, but I haven’t seen any of your folks?”
“None of them are here, but of course I didn’t expect them either.”
“What about Mattie, didn’t she want to come?”
“Sure, but she couldn’t come alone on the train and ship passage up the coast this time of year isn’t good either.”
“You sure have grown, John Henry.”
“Some I guess, but not as much as you, and something else, you’ve lost about half of your Southern accent.” Then he took HC’s arm and turned him toward the door. “We are going to Bookbinders for supper and a little celebration, what do you say we walk.”
HC nodded his acceptance and they made their way out of the hall and faced a chilly breeze as they strode up Arch Street in the direction of the restaurant.
“How are things down home?” HC asked.
John Henry shoved his hands into his coat pockets and mumbled, “Ok I guess. But I don’t want to get into that; I want to know how you’re doing. I heard that you did well in Cincinnati and then you went on to New York. How are you making out there?”
“Well, I’m playing the dives and bordellos in Lower Manhattan. And I’m not proud of the places I have to work, but the pay is good and it gives me a place to practice my technique.”
“Have you ever thought about the concert stage?”
“Are you serious?” HC said laughingly. “This is no time for a black man to put on tie and tails and walk on stage to entertain the gentry of America and Europe. That’s not my kind of music anyway. I’ve been told I was born with a musical gift. But your Mama taught me how to use it. Her sisters added something too, Miz Margaret and her fiddle, Miz Melissa’s guitar and Miz Eunice with that four-string banjo.”
(To be continued)

Writers Notebook:
'Ninety percent of the failures come from people who practice the habit of making excuses.' George Washington Carver
Writers block is nothing more than an excuse for procrastination.
To get off the dime, try this method for a jump-start.
Go to a large mirror and confront the monster. Look the character right in the eye and speak the truth. “You lazy spineless wimp — go back to work!” Don’t whine, just do it…
Turn on your computer or pick up the stub of a pencil and write something bold, daring — outrageous.
So what if it’s not your best effort, consider this. It’s a whole lot easier to rewrite something than it is to begin tomorrow with absolutely nothing.
Now this little quick fix is not the end all for everybody’s problems, some of you need to go back to your shrink. Just kidding. But don’t be too hard on yourself either, lighten up, relax and laugh at that character in the mirror. Then visualize the blank page being full of words and so what if the quality of the work isn’t up to snuff, it’s only a first draft. Remember what Truman Capote said about writing. Writing is not so much writing as it is rewriting. Trust yourself, the good stuff will begin to show up the second or third time around.

Tom's Books and Blogs:
Tom Barnes -- Actor, Writer and Hurricane Hunter.
Check out my website for books, blogs, western legends, a literary icon, reviews and interviews. Also my novels Tungee's Gold, The Goring Collection and Doc Holliday’s Road to Tombstone along with a non fiction remembrance of The Hurricane Hunters and Lost in the Bermuda Triangle.
Www.tombarnes39.com
www.RocktheTower.com
http://thehurricanehunter.blogspot.com

This Week
Selznick Oscars
Doc Holliday Celebrates Graduation
Writers Notebook: John Steinbeck

David O. Selznick Part 7

Gone With the Wind, Intermezzo and Rebecca

Three of the most important Selznick International films were Gone With the Wind, Intermezzo and Rebecca. Gone With the Wind was first when in early 1936 David Selznick's New York literary agent Katherine Brown sent him a memo urging him to read the book Gone With the Wind. The asking price $50,000.00 for the rights were too high for his present circumstances. He also gave a number of excuses why a Civil War story about the South wouldn't be particularly successful at the box office, in any event in his memo written on May 25, 1936 he said no to the idea.
Miss Brown was tenacious though and pitched her idea to Jock Whitney, one of Selznick Internationals main financial backers. He liked it so much that he decided to purchase the rights and work something out with David later.
It couldn't have been much later because as I look at the dates on two memos there must have been a flurry of telephone calls between the East and West Coast that evening. The memo written on the 25th to Kay Brown had said no to the Gone With the Wind idea. The following day a memo was sent indicating that the answer was yes, he was interested.

Gone With the Wind production story Part 1 of 18 Click Here

The European version of the film Intermezzo was released in 1936. In short order Selznick's New York office spotted it, sent him a copy and as we now know he bought the rights to remake the film in English and he also signed Ingrid Bergman to a personal management contract.
Rebecca, the other important film proved to be more difficult to manage than either of the other two, although in the end it proved to be worth all the aggravation.
Selznick had few ally’s when it came to Rebecca, he liked the story and was very enthused about it. He was also an exception to an old Hollywood slogan that reads, 'Don't judge a book by it's movie.'
Without a doubt David Selznick was the most rigid producer in Hollywood when it came to transferring a book with its actual content to the screen. He was adamant in the respect to sticking to the story and in many cases using actual dialogue from the book.
During the time Selznick was making a deal for the film rights to Rebecca he was also in communication with Alfred Hitchcock to sign him to a contract with Selznick International as writer and director.

A habit had prevailed for too long in Hollywood to buy the rights to a best selling novel then write a screenplay that had little to do with the content of the book. They'd use the title and authors name to give it recognition and then jazz the story up any way they liked. Fortunately for movie goers David Selznick helped to turn that trend around.
Alfred Hitchcock had been commissioned to write a treatment on Rebecca. After the work was received and read Selznick wrote a memo in reply on June 12,1939. 'Dear Hitch, it is my unfortunate and distressing task to tell you that I am shocked and disappointed beyond words by the treatment of Rebecca. I regard it as a distorted and vulgarized version of a proven and successful work, in which, for no reason that I can discern, old-fashioned movie scenes have been substituted for the captivating and charming du Maurier (Daphne du Maurier, author of Rebecca) scenes...'
'We bought Rebecca, and we intend to make Rebecca.'

Fortunately Selznick and Hitchcock ironed out their differences. Hitchcock came to America and directed Rebecca.
Another problem came up in casting Joan Fontaine. Selznick was in her corner, alone. As tests and time went along the situation came to be similar to that of the Katherine Hepburn episode when he cast her in Bill of Divorcement. Of course he expected to take some flack when he cast a leading lady in a role that no one else could see. Sam Goldwyn didn't like her, Hal Roach didn't care for her. RKO had put Joan Fontaine in a couple of good roles, but dropped her contract when it ran out. Some of the people in Hollywood were saying that Fontaine had so little talent that they called her 'the wooden woman.' Nobody at Selznick International, except for David Selznick himself, could see her for dust. But he persisted and eventually Joan Fontaine played the female lead in Rebecca.
The film was released in 1940. Alfred Hitchcock directed, Screenplay was written by Robert E. Sherwood and Joan Harrison. The cast included Laurence Olivier, Joan Fontaine, George Sanders, Judith Anderson, Nigel Bruce and Reginald Denny.
Rebecca got a glowing review from Daily Variety.
'Picture is noteworthy for its literal translation of Daphne du Maurier's novel to the screen. Presenting all the somberness and dramatic tragedy of the book. Alfred Hitchcock pilots his first American production with capable assurance...'
And they went on to applaud every member of the cast as well as the production.
Rebecca won the Oscar for Best Picture in 1940.
Gone With the Wind had almost run the table the year before on Oscar night.
Intermezzo didn't win an Oscar – but it brought us Ingrid Bergman and without Bergman would Casablanca have been the same?
(To be continued)

Doc Holliday's Road to Tombstone
Dental College Graduation Night.
(Continued excerpt)
John Henry and H.C. chatted past the William Penn House and caught a cold blast of wind coming in from the Delaware River just as they were about to go into the Bookbinders Restaurant. They checked their great coats and joined the graduation party already in progress.
John Henry introduced HC to his Philadelphia cronies and each introduction was accompanied with another sip of bourbon.
A special dinner of steak and lobster had been prepared and individual menus with lamb, poultry and fish dishes were offered by the popular restaurant. The din of chatter continued throughout the meal and later a kind of ritual started where each graduate would stand up and say a few words before giving a short toast.
John Henry took his turn, held up his glass and smiled. “To the class of seventy-two. May you all be good at your task and gentle with your patients.”
The response was a collective, “We’ll drink to that.”
John Henry stayed on his feet and said; “Now I’d like to say something about my guest, a lifelong friend, I grew up with down in Georgia, HC Glover. And as it happens he’s a very talented musician, plays for the clubs in New York and I haven’t asked him, but I expect if we twist his arm a little, he will go to that upright in the corner and liven up our evening.”
The crowd responded with applause as HC got to his feet, and with just a hint of boyish embarrassment, moved toward the piano.
Arnie Primrose, a classmate from New York, that had failed to graduate, moved toward John Henry, and with a mocking Southern accent snarled, “Why, I didn’t realize a good old Southern boy like, John Henry Holliday would own up to bein’ a friend of a Nigger,
let alone, a lifelong friend.”
John Henry leapt to his feet and stared in disbelief as Arnie continued. “Did y’all suck from the same mammy?”
“Primrose, you are drunk. But if we weren’t in the company of some pretty decent folks—you would already be minus a couple of teeth—you owe us all an apology and especially HC,” John Henry declared. “And I expect that apology right now!”
Arnie winked at his audience, “Now, now, I’m beginning to wonder if old John Henry just might be double-gated too.”
Robert McReynolds recognized a fight was brewing and hurried across the room to break it up.
Mac was a little late as John Henry unloaded a right cross to Arnie’s temple and a left uppercut to his jaw, but Mac was in time to grab Arnie, as his eyes glazed over, and guide the unconscious heap into a chair.
The quick knockout didn’t end the party but it did reinforce John Henry’s view that Southern folks didn’t have exclusive rights to hypocrisy and bigotry.
HC didn’t miss a beat and played right through the altercation.
The audience warmed to his performance and John Henry settled in, sipped his bourbon, and listened with a sense of pride. He recognized his pals’ accomplishments as a musician and that he had developed a unique style. But more than that HC had become a skilled entertainer that knew exactly how to connect with his audience.
Long after the celebrants had gone home, John Henry and HC walked toward the railroad station. John Henry made an apology for his quick fists. “I swear I tried to hold back, but I guess bigots bring out the rebel in me faster than just about anything.”
“You best be careful then, John Henry ’cause there are lots of them about.”
“So you’ve got a few in New York?”
“More than a few.” Then after several moments of silence, HC said, “John Henry, I want to ask you a personal question.”
“Go ahead and ask.”
“Its about your father.”
John Henry had an idea what it was about but said, “I’m listening.”
“I get letters from Mama now and then and she told me that
after Miz Alice died your father married again and that you don’t
get along much with his new wife.”
“That’s an understatement, HC. I don’t get along with her and she can’t stand me.”
“And that puts your father right in the middle.”
(To be continued)

Writers Notebook:

Answering a friend’s call for help in writing an important biography John Steinbeck wrote and said, ‘…Write freely and as rapidly as possible and throw the whole thing on paper. Never correct or rewrite until the whole thing is down. Rewrite in process is usually found to be an excuse for not going on. It also interferes with flow and rhythm, which can only come with a kind unconscious association with the material.
Forget your generalized audience. In the first place the nameless faceless audience will scare you to death and in the second place unlike the theatre it doesn’t exist. In writing, your audience is one single reader. I have found that sometimes it helps to pick out one person – a real person you know, or an imagined person and write to that one.’

If that phrase ‘write freely and as rapidly as possible’ seems familiar it’s because you might have heard it quoted by Stephen King. King takes a similar approach.

Tom's Books and Blogs
Tom Barnes -- Actor, Writer and Hurricane Hunter.
Check out my website for books, blogs, western legends, a literary icon, reviews and interviews. Also my novels Tungee's Gold, The Goring Collection and Doc Holliday’s Road to Tombstone along with a non fiction remembrance of The Hurricane Hunters and Lost in the Bermuda Triangle.
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http://thehurricanehunter.blogspot.com
www.tombarnes39.com

This Week
Selznick Bows Out in Style
John Henry and HC Talk Family
Writers Notebook: Somerset Maugham

David Selznick Part 8
The film Rebecca would ring down the curtain on Selznick International Pictures, ending the run of the most successful independent motion picture company of its time.
There were many reasons for ending production and liquidating the company and here are a few. One was financial – they had accumulated too much income from Gone With the Wind and Rebecca to take ordinary tax write offs that would give them a profit. Another was Selznick's need to take out money in order to finance other films that he had an interest in. The war in Europe and the looming possibility of American becoming involved.
The end of Selznick International didn't take him out of the business. He formed his own company without outside partners as David O. Selznick Productions, Inc. In a sense though he did have partners, they were executives he had worked with for years.
In late 1941 Selznick Productions bought into United Artist with a twenty five percent share.During that period he was also working on two projects Since You Went Away and Spellbound.
Since You Went Away
Directed by John Cromwell produced by David Selznick and screenplay by David Selznick. Cast Claudette Colbert, Jennifer Jones, Joseph Cotton, Shirley Temple, Monte Woolly and Robert Walker.
Variety gives the film a good review. 'Since You Went Away' is a heart warming panorama of human emotions, reflecting the usual wartime frailties...'
The film got a Best Picture nomination from the Academy.
Spellbound
Directed by Alfred Hitchcock, produced by David Selznick with a screenplay by Ben Hecht and Angus MacPhail and starring Ingrid Bergman and Gregory Peck.
Spellbound caused major contention, not the first, between Alfred Hitchcock and David Selznick. Selznick wanted Hitchcock to make a movie based upon Selznick's own positive experience with Psychoanalysis. He even brought in May Romm M.D., who was credited in the film as a technical adviser. Dr. Romm and Hitchcock clashed frequently. There is no doubt that there was conflict and contention on the set of Spellbound, but in the end it was worth it.
The film got good reviews and Daily Variety said, 'The story, employing as it does psychiatry and psychoanalysis in a murder mystery... Gregory Peck, suffering from amnesia, believes that he committed a murder, but has no memory of the locale or circumstances surrounding the crime. Ingrid Bergman as a psychiatrist in love with Peck tries desperately to save him from punishment for the crime she is certain he could not have committed, and doing so risks her career and almost her life....
Salvador Dali designed the dream sequence with all the aids of futurism and surrealism in his sets...
Spellbound won a nomination for Best Picture by the Academy.
Duel in the Sun
Directed by King Vidor, produced by David Selznick, screenplay by David Selznick.
Cast included Jennifer Jones, Gregory Peck, Joseph Cotton, Lionel Barrymore, Lillian Gish and Walter Houston.
The film got favorable reviews and while it didn't win any prestigious awards it scored big at the box office and was one of the highest grossing films ever up to that time.
The Paradine Case
Director Alfred Hitchcock, produced by David Selznick, screenplay by David Selznick.
Cast included Gregory Peck, Ann Todd, Charles Laughton, Charles Coburn and Louis Jourdan. It tells of an English barrister who falls in love with a woman who is accused of murder, and how it affects his relationship with his wife.
This dramatic courtroom drama plot concerns a murder of a blind man by his wife so she can marry her lover. The story, cast and film are applauded by Daily Variety in their review.
Portrait of Jennie
Directed by William Dieterle, screenplay by Paul Osborne and Peter Berneis. Cast included Joseph Cotton, Jennifer Jones, Ethel Barrymore, David Wayne and Lillian Gish. Daily Variety says , 'The story of ethereal romance between two generations is told with style, taste and dignity. William Dieterle has given the story sensitive direction and his guidance contributes considerably toward the top performers from the meticulously cast players. '….Joseph Cotton endows the artist with a top performance, matching the compelling portrait by Jennifer Jones.
Selznick said he stopped making films in 1948 because he was tired. He was a hard driving producer that had been producing for twenty years. Something else, at that time the motion-picture industry was taking a terrible beating from television. Overall it seemed to be a good time to take stock and to study objectively the obviously changing public tastes. Selznick was born into and wedded to the business so he had no intention of staying away from production for too long. He spent most of the 1950s nurturing the career of his second wife, Jennifer Jones. His last film, the big budget production of A Farewell to Arms (1957) starring his wife and Rock Hudson.

In 1954, Selznick ventured into television, producing a two hour extravaganza called Light's Diamond Jubilee, which in true Selznick fashion made TV history by being telecast simultaneously on all four TV networks: CBS, NBC, ABC, and DuMont.
David Selznick was always a great promoter and here is a brief description of the event and what it was all about.
THE legend "Produced by David O. Selznick" will appear for the first time tonight on television, preceded by the title "Diamond Jubilee of Light." A foreword to the show describes it as "a potpourri of dramatics, whimsicality and oratorical flight (with bits of music too) celebrating the birth of the electric bulb; paying tribute to the American individual and his offspring, and including some commentary on a few of the lights that guide them.
Some of the stars that will appear are Judith Anderson, Lauren Bacall, Robert Benchley, Walter Brennan, Joseph Cotten, Dorothy Dandridge, Dwight D. Eisenhower, George Gobel, Helen Hayes, David Niven and Debbie Reynolds.
And that was the man behind King Kong and Gone With the Wind – a motion picture producer with a touch of genius and a large portion of P.T. Barnham.

Doc Holliday's Road to Tombstone
After the celebration. John Henry and his pal H.C. Talk about the past.

“And that puts your father right in the middle.”
“He put himself into that spot, got married much too soon after Mama died. And in my book that’s when he dishonored her name.”
“I guess you have every right to feel that way, John Henry. But just to let you know where I stand I’ll tell you that Major Holliday is a good man. Mama told me how you felt. She said you wouldn’t go to the wedding.”
“Aunt Susie got that right,” John Henry snapped.
“Listen, my friend. I might not have ever said this before, but outside of Mama, your mother and father were the most important people in my life.”
“I appreciate that, HC.”
“I think I can explain my feelings better by telling you about something that happened while we were still in Griffin. Remember my accident on the lime-spreader where I messed up my hand?”
“Yeah and I still blame myself for that.”
“No such thing, the fault was my own, but that’s not what I’m getting at. It has to do with my recollection of what happened when you all came in the carriage and your father picked me up and got back into the seat. I guess I had lost a lot of blood and everything seemed a little foggy to me. But after a long ride in the carriage, I was still cradled in his arms. And I remember we were going up some steps and I thought, where are we going, Papa?”
“You called him Papa?”
“Not out loud, but that’s what I thought at the time and I say that just to let you know how I feel about your father. Major Holliday was a good man that afternoon and I bet he’s still a good man.”
John Henry nodded.
They arrived early at the station and stood on the platform for a while before John Henry began to cough.
“Maybe we ought go inside, seems a little chilly, now the bourbon is wearing off,” HC said.
“No, let’s walk, I’m OK.”
“Now that you’re a dentist, what comes next? Go back to Valdosta and open an office.”
“No. That’d be the last place I’d go. My fi rst choice is Griffin, and if that doesn’t work I might fi nd something in Atlanta.”
“What are you and Mattie are gonna do?”
“What are you talking about?”
“Just what I said, are you going to marry the girl or what?”
“I wish I knew. First I have to establish some kind of practice then there’s that nagging reality that we are cousins.”
“Plenty of cousins get married.”
“I know that, HC and Mattie doesn’t seem to mind—not about us and our being cousins, but we both worry about family reactions.”
“I expect you’re right about that, but I’ll bet you two can work it out.” Then HC abruptly changed the subject. “Tell me something, how’s that horse of yours doing?”
“The Gent?” John Henry said as he broke into an open smile.
“That character is a joy, HC. He’s always been healthy and can he run.”
“Do you think he could compete?”
“We’ve had him in some match races, down home. He won every event he started.”
“That sounds good to me. You know when I get tired of sitting at the keyboard, I let go, take the train out to Long Island and spend a day at the races.”
John Henry shook his head at the remark and laughed. “What with all the stalls you mucked out back home, I’d think horses would be the last thing you wanted to see.”
“You may not believe this, but some of the best days of my life were spent down home working around the barns.”
The train chugged in and boarded passengers. John Henry said good-bye to HC and stood on the platform and watched the train ease out of the station and head north.
Get away day.
It happens every year, pack you belongings say good-bye and go out into the real world. The down stairs hall and parlor area at Mrs. Greens boarding house looked like a baggage terminal, bags packed and strewn all over the place. Hacks and drivers parked on the street were waiting for fares.
John Henry and Robert McReynolds had gathered up their luggage and headed for the front door when Arnold Primrose, with a bag in each hand, walked down the wide staircase. John Henry glanced up and they made eye contact.
McReynolds nudged John Henry and suggested he forget what happened last night. Arnie wore an affable smile on his chubby face as he descended the stairs and crossed the room. Then when he got close he suddenly dropped the bags and extended a hand toward John Henry. “Guess I owe you an apology.”
“You guessed right for one time in your life, Primrose.” McReynolds quipped.
A wry grin crossed John Henry face. “I’m listening, Arnie.”
Primrose cleared his throat and with his bad Southern accent said, “Ah should be most honored, Doctor Holliday. I Arnold Primrose, in the most humble manner I can command, wish to apologize for the scene I caused last evening. I apologize to you and I apologize to your friend, Mr. Glover. And now, descending from my soapbox, may I add that I feel somewhat like an ass.”
John Henry widened his grin. “I accept your apology, Mr. Primrose and I must admit that I thoroughly enjoyed the part about the soapbox and the ass.”

Writers Notebook:
The idea for my writing notebook came from Somerset Maugham. Maugham's notebook was a kind of journal while mine is a collection of conversations and tips that have been passed along by some of our famous writers.
This one is guaranteed to get your attention and might even make you think. Ray Bradbury says, ‘Write from the heart, not from the mind. Go ahead and jump over the cliff – build your parachute on the way down.’

Tom Barnes -- Actor, Writer and Hurricane Hunter.
Check out my website for books, blogs, western legends, a literary icon, reviews and interviews. Also my novels Tungee's Gold, The Goring Collection and Doc Holliday’s Road to Tombstone along with a non fiction remembrance of The Hurricane Hunters and Lost in the Bermuda Triangle.
Www.tombarnes39.com
www.RocktheTower.com
http://thehurricanehunter.blogspot.com