DEREK MONSEY talks to a top star whose eye is on high dramatic things
!
Where does Lemmon the clown go from here?
HA
New York.
ALFWAY up the 27-floor prison-looking luxury block is Jack Lem- mon's apartment. Far below, spread out like a browning wilderness, hazed romantically in autumn mist, is Central Park..
On the walls of the living room are old engravings of Garrick as Richard 11 and Bernard Shaw as himself. In the bookcase Shakespeare Pars against luxury bound volumes of Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euri- pides.
Lemmon has ambition, you think, fe teas, Bui Uils 5sm', in fact, his apartment. It is rented Sir Cedrie Hardwicke. **Rented,” says Lemmon, "for six long moths, The play bad het. Jeg run."
Since he mule Star Like It Hot with Marilyn Monroe, and The Apartmen with Shirley Marlaine, Lemmon has moved mto top-star class even in con- Avative Britzan flere in Autorica he is one of the best aked top stars in the business. Even so his uncertainty about whether his procent play will run understanciable.
'Preposterous'
Bul
"I'd love to, of course. 1 haven't got the equipment. Maybe when I'm 8 years old. I'll put on youth make-up. ...
"I'm toying with An abso- lutely ridiculous Idea of trying Jago on TV.
"You can put. yourself out or work if you wall for the thing you really want to do. was looking for three and a half years for n play to do. I want- ed a play. An actor should come back to the stage and be actor. Not just stay out there in Lotus land (Hollywood) and count his money.
"I've lost short 10lb on this play. Now I can go out anel drink stout and eat pork....
go to Brital whenever I Cafeu Face of a Hero (and
But, Not to eat pork. bano un the book by Piene you know, every Americual actor Boulley it opened on Broadway still holds the English actor in
te night titi its east woke up nak moghing to discover that are English; they've a few of the New York critica line
can.
great awe. The great
actors
blood
ย
of herety and style, seemed to know what it was quality, a true relish of acting. about, and stat six of them, Thes give a channeler size.
didn't they net. There is nothing in thein of The Actors' Studio rejects, the Method man mutter- ing about his own reality, a
having sat it through, CT4
The New York Times called hansy. If you preposterous
the Herald Tabua
WIN Hought the whole thing "really
dramatic suicide.
¡E CHSC
Jack Lemmon is refreshing,
I wouldn't wirprise me at af il he rides the rest of this so- called smash-Bop of a play, and
Yet Face of a Hero is, though ends up, contrary to Brontway awkwardly and obsurely write ter an enthralling play.
11 is about a young District Attorney, a lawyer determined
Ao do good and to make good, who comes fresh and Iniest and ambitious to his powertol position in a quiet country thin- trict. Huthlessly correct, frigid- ly just, he prosecutes withous fear or favor anyone who in- fringes the law.
frightening 21
Then
Ching by He witnesses, happens. chance, a lansing row between the degenerate son of the most instuenital rich nun in Che district- by who
Lut ared intumer- away with, ispe
his
ale jesser erines through father's wirepulling-and a local girl who is pregnant by the buy.
Amnesia
eventually
He sees the boy walk away and, unnerved and incapable of any action, the D.A watches as the ght, suici dally miserable, throws herself into the darkness of the river.
As time goes on, anxious to forgel his
own
personal eowardice
relentlessly ant
great determined to be
afraid of po
district attorney,
one, influenced by no one,
he
allows a charge of murder to be
brought against the boy,
he prosecutes him himself.
And
He has, in Phet, "forgotten" that he witnessed the truth, Justice. ambition, a longing for to clean power and the urge
his mind of his own sence of gult-all lead him Into a con- venient state of amnesiu.
heru.
The D.A. will be a Defender of the poor, scourge of the richt. When the vicious boy is sentenced to death the D.A. who is demanding the sentence will bu several rungs up the political indther.
We know all along it was D
Lemmon Micult piny,"
→ successful
"On TV It was
said.
failure. I was controversial. Which was good, TV being bad in general.
Traditional
"We expacted that audiences might worry about it, might not understand. But we thought erkies woulch. As it turns out, the erities didin't, but audiences be upset love it, They may
or unsatisfied, but they're pro- voked as hell. There have been Bghts in the foyer about what It's all about
Lemmon's fact is cuger, questing, brightly engaging. 1 is the face of a clown, but of atrocional clown: the colo and atrist whose eyen rotain pinpoint of deadly seriouumass wlintover shapes the rubbery
mask takes on
Does he, like all clowns are supposed tp, long, to play Hamletr
traditions which Insist you can- not defeat the crities, long, successful rum.
with a
I don't see him os Hamlet, even at 80, with youth make-up. But don't think he will long) remalt the clown.
America Trends ፡፡ first-rate Lennon night serious actor. well he i,
(London Express Servic)
THE CHINA MAIL, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 9, 1980.
Since they've heard about our pay increase this is the third time I've been slugged and had me wallet whipped"
DONALD EDGAR looking at LONDON
Why London especially? Because
I believe it is still the world's most exciting city. Because here. the human story is told on broader, more colourful canvas than anywhere on earth...
CUMMINGS:
а
THE "Afluent Society" has become almost as much of a cliche as the "Establishment."
But cliches only exist because than since I last mot him, a thought instead of putting on a middle- they are expressing which for the time being is signi- age spread he has acquired fleant.
middle-age dueness of fine which has brought out all the qualities
this
ม
John
ke
the
I have recently been talking of his bone structure. to two people who both d He is very much 2
aboul
uent Buchan Reus
character.... wasn't Society."
somewhere summit of Everest you couli The first was Sir John Hunt, always huagine him living as a leader of the victors of Everest. fakir somewhere in the Himt-
Rear
He has grown ever craggier layas folling some dastardly plat
ugalest us.
THE MOST QUOTED POLITICAL CARTOONIST IN THE WORLD
LINO
(Morocco
UNO
Ghana
UNO
India
LINO Liberia
UNO Sweden.
UNO
UNO
Burma
Canada
Indo
UNO
Malaya
Inesia.
UNO
Ireland
JUNO
Ethiopia
CONGO
UNO
Nigeria
UNO
Pakista
UNO
Egypt
Cummings
“Ah, for the bad old days before freedom and Independence!
Then we were occupied by only the Belgians
London prase, Bervion;
Not for him the succosets of him, the task of devotion, the stony path.
easy welth. For
was that
Very English-how "Everest' Hunt is
helping
youth
Regrettable-the changes I see
in Chelsea
And the reason why he was talking about the "Affluent society
is he getting ready to talk to the Duke of Edinburgh and * national gathering of Haison
about the ollicers
Duke of Edinburgh's awards.
IN CHARGE
of
Sir John has been in charge
this idea of the Duke's
since its inception three or four years ago. And it is having
great success.
Very
broadly.
sitempt to bring
is 悲
an a sense of
Princess Margaret
and the intriguing
singular verb
I might add he is one of the... and after inspecting the adventure, gafety and enter- most gay and amusing people to vessel was entertained or Lun- prise to young boys and girls meet...and his wife, Jean, chon by the Offeers.” who are entrapped by an Indus- helpy onormously....among the
irial elvillsation.
The youth of the country may be affluent as nexer befora, biri, inovitably, they are tied to machine, desk Ur even 10 But automation
they have lolsure....the idea of the Duke of Edinburgh's Awards is to anable them to use this so that their lives are enriched.
At Its present role of growth
it will soon cover the country
younger generation of the government,
DESERTED
1
It is the "was" lut fascinu ted me.
1 should have thought thut "were" would have been more polite and appropriate. Prestum- ably, Mr Armstrong-Jonas Was I also given Luncheon, with a in capitol L, by, the Officers, with a captial O, and not relegated to the moss-decka.
PAROCHIAL note... think the Fulham-rond becoming more interesting than the King's-road.
In the last 10 years Chelsea
It is a sign that, even in the Princess's own entourage, there
is a psychological attitude which is quite stupid.
I think the Duke is lucky to has become so rich, so fashion have Sir John to manage this able, so snob, that the intel
The Princess and her husband great venture. A venture which lectuals, the artists, the beatniks
are have been out dancing quite as wide
....oven the journalists canvas as covers business firms. public schools having to desert it.
at the Tost often recently. But the Fulham-road, only a fashionable night-club in Lon- There is a practical idealism little to the north, is now the don. It is ane area where in the pubs, court publicity. about it which is very English,
and approved schools.
mode Chelsea famous,
that does not
The other person I was latkestaurants and cafes you can
meet the social mixture which FEW_LEFT ing to about this "Affluent Society" was Anthony Barber, the Economic Secretary to the Treasury..
In a few years
Here are the Irish workmen. The poets. The gay and beauti.
When they go out they are beatnik he
ful girls. The awful 1108 established himself as one of the beards. All the tail that is the early always on their own.
very much the newly-married idealism, the madneяz, the brightest stars in the Macmillan
couple. Arst act of La galaxy.
Once or twice she has worn "You know," he said Poverty of the
Boheme.
on Empire-line dress which has talk about the 'Affluent Society*
started the women naturally
to me, "there are people who Maybe a little stupid. But full
as if the adjective was a four- of all the wonder, the beauty and
the galety of youth. letter word,
"Of course the material things
of life are not the ultimate in RUMOURS..
a sense they are only the trap-
pings of civilisation.
"But is fur un I am concerned, THE Armstrong-Jones story
I am glad that government hos given jobs, homes and care of hantth to the people of this country.
"
What I like about Tony Barber
is that he is not hide-bound by the shibboletha of his parly.
lie is not slimed by the complacent phrases of the Tory Central Office.
rumours.
of
4lking.
It has not been an easy period of adjustment for Mr Arm- strong-Jones,
The problem of a. title and ja
job for him are still undecided.
Because he will be accer- still fascinates the world.
ty foll
panying his wife to the wedding The foreign, Press
of King Baudouin there by talk that the queen may give him a The obvious rumours about ille in order to preserve British expected Interesting event. But prestige, they remain just runour, Bill,
And, of courre, since the inar- apart from the rumours, there ringe the pundlis have said that tre a few, facts about the man- it Princess Margaret in to have
a child, a title will be given in' age.
There was, for example, the order to guneble the offspring.
There are few county titles
For example, he said to me communtius tasued from Kon when wa.. were discussing the sington Palace a few days ago. jért in North Wales where his great debate between the Never, have 1 found the dif
Western and Eastern ways of ference between, a singular and family comes from,
ife..."Untess the West in so. c.plural verts more interesting."
The message ran.
A suggestion has baen made
that he might · well first be The created Viscount: Dinsa. of Plas jorgmise Re economic affairs.
that it helps the emergent Fincess Margaret arcompiled" Dines With, perhaps, "an earle
no by Mn Antony Armstrong-Joneerdam to follow. cointring...well, there: ÍS- Duture for the Wort.
today vialled HMNZS, Otago