1940-05-08 — Page 3

1

Wednesday,

HONGKONG TELEGRAPH

May 8, 1940.

- MAGAZINE PAGE

ENTERTAINMENTS

Hepburn is returning

to the screen

KA

ATIE HEPBURN, who retired from Hollywood

with her ears singing in 1938, is going back.

She held her hend high when the Independent Motion' Picture Theatre Proprietors published the charge that she was "box-office poison."

She still asked £30,000 a picture. Now she's going back,

She has sold her play, "The Philadelphia. she'll get more. Story" (for which she paid £3,000), for £15,000. And her- self for another £20,000. The cameras grind in June.

Query: Why was Hepburn "box-office poison"? A.: Be- cause she stepped out of character. All the clever fellows who make pictures saw her as A great actress-n sort of female Paul Muni-which she may be.

But the public pald to see her as Kathe Hepburn. For lips, she could act her russet curls while and flare her nostriis ke a Derby' winner. It didn't work unless the pal let her be herself. She was Hepburn "the queer one." Thust's what they pald to see.

It's the same with Elisabeth Bergner. Most every day I pray Mr. Shaw won't let her be his screen Salut Joan

COME

• what may. Clive Brook is determined la gel intu naval uniform. There is now quite some considerable doubt about the Gral Speelm.. "Death of the Katder."

Already there is the ducumentary "For Freedom.“* with the British officers playing their actual battle parts.

But if Mr. Brook can't be Ad- miral Sir Henry Harwood, he'll be the explain commanding the light cruiser escorting fleet of ter- chantmen across the North Sea in "Convoy," which British studios, are now making.

Que sentence in the synopsis of the story makes me angry. It says: "Embittered by an unhappy már- rlage, the captain's task is mude more difficult by the presence on the convoy of a young lieutenant who-before the war-had come between him and his wife."

I'm the mug. 1 thought that the one good thing you could say about the war was that it had done away with the need in pletures for old. hack situations like that.

Or maybe the script man wrote it out of force of hobit.

*

JUST_ps_eager_for_a_uniform_85_ Mr. Brook is Mr. Niven. After four months' waiting, he has got a com-' mission in the Rifle Brigade. Two pips. His part will take longer to

play..

Anna Nen-

BY the way gle to be teamed with Cary Grant in "Tree of Liberty.".... Bette Davis to be Sarah Bernhardt.... Michael Stoller, singing footman in "Me and My Gal,"

sung well enough in get a job with the opera- tics. He's in "Beggar's Opera,” backing up Michael Redgrave.... Spencer Tracy Mickey Rooney will sequel Boy's Town."

George Formby has cancelled all stage contracts to leave himself free to play his banjulele to the troops,

Hildn Glyder, who made the cur- rent hit song, "Oh, Johnny, Oh," popular twenty-three years ago, is now honey mooning in California with Dave Goldman. She was pre- viously Mrs. Harry Weldon.

•vic

Dietrich will get glamour and McLaglen in "Seven Sinners" (Seven? I didn't think Dopey could be bud)

June (Four

Feathers) Duprez has arrived in Hollywood and is being tested by Alf Hitchcock for "Personal His- tory,"

Deanna Durbih earned! £34,000 in 1030.

his

MICKEY ROONEY and father-appear together in a picture for the first time in Mickey's sercen curcer. In Judge Hardy and Son, starring Mickey, his father, Yule, will have a minor role. They playet together in vaudeville when Mickey was four years old.

Joc

GEORGE BRENT spent part of his childhood in Ireland herding sheep. He related his experiences as we sat around huge charcoal burners on the night location set of The Fighting 60th, which covered several acres.

A troupe of forty workmen and technicians returned from a three- thousand-mile journey through Ok- inhona, Texas, New Mexico, Ari- Zon and California, where they exposed more than twenty-Ave thousand feet of flim getting back- for The Grapes of ground shots Wrath. The cast, headed by Henry Fonda, and director John Ford were working at the studio at the same Lime. Juhn Steinbeck approved the script which was adapted from his book.

June Withers' voice was used for impersonating cartoon characters on the screen before she became mi actress.

INANITY FARE

When Sir John got the

invitation

To be Minister of Infor

mation,

He remarked: "It looks to

As easy as 8,B.C."

me

GRIN AND

HE NEVER TOLD

HIS

PARENTS

OF HIS EXPLOITS

SQUAL

QUADRON LFADER KENNETH CHRISTOPHER DORAN, who became the first air hero of the Allies, is reported missing.

He was awarded a bar to his Distinguished Flying Cross on January 30, the first time this dis tinction has been accorded a Bri tish flier since hostilities began

September, Inst

suc-

Young Doran-he is only 20-- was awarded the flying cross by King George last November in recognition for leading the cessful attack on German nuval bases ht Wilhelmshaven

and Brunsbuettel on September 4, less than 30 hours after Great Britain declared war on Germany.

Britain announced that direct hits with bombs had been mide on a German battleship at WI- helmshaven und that another war- ship was attacked at Brunsbuettel.

BEAR IT

Cuan, 1918 by Called Fonlara Bračivala, Tan.

By Lichty

"I wish you'd watch what papers you give me to sign-this is the third time this week I've committed myself to prison!"

In describing the Wilhelmshaven ruid, Docan Bald:

mwe renched Wilhelmshaven after two hours of flying. We could see a German warship tak- ing on stores from two tenders at her stern. We could sec sunie washing hanging on a line but un- daunted by this, we proceeded to bomb the battleship,

"Flying at 100 feet above mast height, all three aircraft. In

I

the flew

flight converged on her. straight ahead. The pilot of the second craft come across from one side, and the third crossed from the other side.

"When we flew on top of the balleship we could see the crew running fast for their stations. We dropped our bombs, The sec- ond pilot, flying behind saw two hit. We came around and the to fire for hume."

ship's lens begun

us we

The exploit for which Doran was awarded the bar to his fly- eross was the leadership of it re- connaissance flight of nine Bris- tol Blenheim bombers which en- countered a group of Messer- schmitt 110 "destroyer" planes over the North Sen. One of the British bombers was shot down, but their fire downed one German plane and damaged two others,

DORAN, a handsome, mustached officer, is so modest that, accord- ing to his mother, he refused to wear his uniform while home on leave. He never told his parents of his exploits and the announce- ments of his decorations surprised them both.

Barn at Leicester, Doran Was educated at St. Albaps school, and he enlisted as a private in the Ter- ritorial Army in 1932.

fle was commissioned it thr Royal Air Force in December, 1935, promoted to pilot officer ten months inter and was advanced to flying officer in May, 1038.

In March, 1939, Doran was made an acting fight lieutenant and was raised to a squadron lender December of last year.

in

On February 1, he was awarded bar the D.F.C. for leading formation of bomber aircraft which was attacked by Messerschmitts over the North

Two fighter aircraft were com pelled to break off the fight. third was shot down in flames Into sea and the remainder eventu- ally abandoned the attack.

the

Although one British aircraft was lost and second had to return to the base, Doran led the remaining aircraft 130 miles further to his objective..

How Poland's £21,000,000 of Gold was Saved

ON September 26, 1939, thirty-

one tired, dirty, unshaven men. Hned up with other refugees to wall their turn for free soup and bread at a charity soup kitchen at the Gare de l'Est, in Paris.

One of them had in his pocket a receipt for £21,000,000 worth of gold, which the party had just handed over to the Bank of France.

That receipt was a symbol of perhaps the greatest victory over Hitler that has yet been achieved

this war.

in

in

The story begins 23 days before, Warsaw, which was at that the being threatened by the huge mechanised Nazi army, that was ever coming nearer, The Polish Government was busy leaving the capital for its brief stay in Lublin, and the city, already under shell fire, was preparing for its Kallant

hopeless but

resistance.

Colonel Adam Koe, former Polish Finance

Minister, paid a visit that night of September to the Bank of Poland and to the Finance Ministry to ask what arrangements had been made for the transter- ence abroad of the Government's gold reserve, As he had

* 12

WAR CHANGES IN OUR LANGUAGE

WE are using quile a number of words which, only a few months ago, most people would not have understood-pr it-they had understood them, would have given a different meaning.

"WARDEN”. Used to conjure up the Governor of a US gool as represented on the Alma. Now, if we hear the word, we think of the man or woman who tell us that our "black-out" (another war word) is Imperfect.

"POOL" is an adjective for petrol or other commodities which are doled out by controllers and have lost their famillar brand names.

"EVACUEE" is a genuine new war word formed from "EVACUA- TION" which is here used in a different sense from its formed one. We cbined the word in Hongkong for the people who came down from Shanghai during the early days of the Sino-Japanese War.

The economists are popularising #VICIOUS SPIRAL"--which means a situation in which prices and wages rise, chasing each other as it were up a spiral staircase. The phrase is quite old, but it has hitherto been confined to books on economics,

The most popular of the new words coming from Germany is "BLITZKRIEG." much more used than its translation, "lightning war."

ERSATZ (substitute) familler in 1914-18, has been revived now. It has such a bad name in Germany that the Naz! Government discourages its use, preferring such terms as "synthetic."

"CONCHIE" and "RATIONS are both words from Inst war. The latter again being pronounced "rashuns," with the short "n" instead of "rayshuns, which is considered more correct, and is used in the Services.

Some of the war words are not particularly desirable additions to the language. Perhaps after the war. English will be "DECON- TAMINATED"-another wartime term meaning, sa applied to streets, houses, and goods, freed from contamination by gas,

}

It is not true that Hitler's conquest of Poland was an -unqualified-victory, far-it-failed to attain one of its principal objectives-the capture of the gold reserve of the Polish Republic.

How the £21,000,000 of bullion was transferred from the Bank of Warsaw to the Bank of France is one of the greatest thrills of this war.

Nothing had been done. All was confusion. The Government had left without the gold.

*

SO Koc took upon himself the responsibility of ordering and or- ganising the removal of the gold lo. France before the city fell. He had no legal standing, no trans- port; the country was over-run

with German spies and saboteurs, constantly flown over by Nazi air- craft, and was soon to fall a prey to the advancing armies of the Fuchrer.

Koc telephoned to Colonel Ignacy Matuszewski, also a former Fin- ance Minister under Pilsudskl, and put the problem to him,

+

ONE hour later Matuszewski reported to Koe at the bank. With him he brought 10 volunteers, sol- diers, clerks, mechantes--all mere boys,

The lads were sent out to find transport, while Koc and Maius- zewski worked out possible routes to the Rumanian frontier. The search for transport seemed hope-

Every

bus or lorry available had been commandeered for wor purposes or for evacuation. five derelict, creaking, worn-oui Which nobody had thought removing from the garages, could be begged, borrowed, stolen.

Only

or

By the time these five wrecks had lumbered up in the bank the two leaders had decided that the best plan was for the convoy to sel out eastward for Brest-Litovel, then strike southward for the fron- tier.

Only £8,000,000 worth of the Hold could be accommodated in the Ave derellet buses. It was decided. that this amount should be taken Immediately and, if possible, u re- turn journey could be made for the remainder Matuszewski took his As soon as the bullion was aboard, sent in the leading bus and the ex- pedition set out. Koe was left ba- hind to deal with further arrange- ments.

ALL that night and the next night the buses lumbered on over, shell-pitted roads

through and bomb-torn villages: During the day

they hid and

and camouflaged the buses and also added to their petrol supply by siphoning fuel from the tanks of derelict farm tractors, abandoned cars, and broken-down lorries. They snatched very little rest. Overhead they heard Ger- man bombers, which were actually searching for them.

On the second night they arrived at a point just outside Brest- Litovsk, which is 125 miles from Warsaw. Here they learned fucts that altered their plans entirely. The German wireless had un nounced that the plan of the con- voy and its route

known. So it was impossible to

110 on southward: the Gestapo was watch- ing, mining bridges and roads and the German air force was search- ing for them, ready to bomb the buses.

were

ON the other hand, there was plenty of petrol in Brest-Litovsk. It would be possible to return to Warsaw and plek out a new route. But Matuszewski could not con- sult Koe by phone' or wire. Com- munications had broken down and there was not a whole aeroplane in the city.

However, a shot-down acroplane was found. Its engine was useless. But in the city's aircraft instruc- tian school they found n set of parts which could be made up Into an engine and one of the luds knew how to do it.

It took 28 hours to do, then one of the party few this makeshift machine to Warsaw. He came back with the message: "Return to the capital."

*

ON the night of September 9, they got back. There were now ten more buses, loaded with the rest of the gold. A new route to the south-east had been worked out and fuel supplies were arranged

for along it. Twenty more volun- "teers were ̄ready, too.

So the enlarged convoy set out on its 470-mile trek.

had

Soon Nazt spies found the new route and was doing all they could to stop the convoy. Enemy air- craft hovered above. But the convoy travelled only by night, Bridges mined and the buses

were constantly to discover new ways. Roads had been bombed to breakdowns pieces. Frequent occurred. But on the evening of September 13 the last bus arrived in the town of Saintin on Rumanian frontier-arrived hours ahead of schedule.

the

two

Heren train was waiting, thanks to arrangements Koc made by wire from Warsaw. The gold was im- mediately loaded on it. The

to train thundered over the bridge that led Into Rumania, And 30 minutes later the bridge blew up. The Gestapo had set their time- bomb too late.

*

AT Constanza, the Rumanton Black Sea port, the gold was put aboard the American oll-tanker Eocene, skippered by an English- man, Captain R. E. Brett. There was a hitch when lie crew do- serted. They had been bribed by the Germans or frightened at the thought of submarines But the Poles combed the dockside taverns and got together a new crew, by threats or by persuasion.

Soviet Russia was by this time invading Poland, and there were Red submarines, warships, and Red planes to be avoided, as well as German agents, but the Eocene got through quite safely to Istanbul.

Here the officinis demanded £6,000 in cash to pay for a special train with guards. They suggested that the money could come out of the hoard of gold, but Matuszewski refused, declaring that he had no authorlly to touch it.

An American oli company came to the rescue and lent them the required amount of money.

So the train set out from Scutori (on the other side of the Bhos- porus from Istanbul) on on us- eventful Journey to Beirut, Syria, where the gold was trans- ferred to French cruisers.

in

Most of this story is told in "The Polish Gold," by Robert Westerby and R. M. Low, published by Methuen at 35.

Lowry, Barane Crop

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