Just Joan: A Joan Crawford Appreciation

The small percentage of actual conversations Jane Ellen Wayne had with Joan Crawford, originally related to her Robert Taylor bio, although full of fascinating and salty observations, are also “ad-libbed” since she openly admits she doesn’t carry a tape recorder. Her opinion of Joan Crawford remains hard to gauge, which lends an indifferent quality to the whole thing. It’s as if Wayne was a Taylor devotee who, while using Crawford as a source for her bio Robert Taylor: The Man With the Perfect Face, decided to take a stab at Joan as well, although not quite liking or ever understanding her much. Her meetings with Crawford, however fudged the dialogue, are the highlights of the book. Cherry picking juicy details out of sequence, Wayne boldly reassembles the moment when Crawford catches second hubby Franchot Tone in his dressing room with another starlet. The invented conversation is heavy on exposition.

Crawford: “Maybe that’s why I’m making three hundred thousand dollars a year and you only make fifty thousand dollars. Everything, sex included, should be kept in proper perspective. I might add that your excessive drinking hasn’t helped.” Tone: “How else can I face you at the front door each night?” Crawford: “Perhaps you blame my ambition, but I put the blame on your lack of it!” Then there is an alleged loud clatter which causes the guard to move closer to the door. Crawford to Tone: “Go ahead. I’ve become quite adept at covering black eyes and bruises with clever makeup.” Was Wayne there in the dressing room at the time? No. And if she was, she didn’t have a tape recorder. Ain’t it nice when nonfiction allows writers to create fiction?

Joan Crawford: The Ultimate Star by Alexander Walker - Many tidbits are amusing. While married to first husband Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., their home was “furnished for a perpetual honeymoon” with a knocker on the hall door “sculpted in the shape of two heads, male and female, their lips pressed together in a kiss.” The sunporch was stacked with hundreds of dolls, “as well as mechanical baby pigs, clucking hens, and Doug’s electric railway, which was his wife’s Christmas present to him.” When MGM signed Colonel McCoy, a stickler for authenticity, to the frontier drama Winners of the Wilderness, he “was not at all pleased when Pete Smith put out some publicity stills showing Crawford teaching Chief Big Tree the Charleston.” He notes that she always deferred to her husbands in the beginning, who were valued as much for education and savoir faire as sex appeal.

Franchot Tone got her to do radio, which she feared so much that her script pages were glued onto cardboard, “lest her shaky hand made them rustle. Franchot Tone kept a reassuring hand on her shoulder pad.” -"Just Joan: A Joan Crawford Appreciation" (2010) by Donna Marie Nowak


Joan Crawford & Franchot Tone perform "Chained" for Lux Radio Theatre. Presented & narrated by Cecil B. DeMille.

“Franchot Tone used to say stardom was like a Christmas tree — when they turn the lights on you know it’s Christmas, the rest of the time you sit and watch the needles drop.” -Joan Crawford

Barbara Payton: Lusty Blonde, Not Ashamed

-"Barbara Payton certainly could be rehabilitated. It would first require an abstinence from drink. After that a concerted effort by people she loves and likes to make her feel she still has a place in the sun. There is always hope for a girl like Barbara Payton who once had the recipe and qualifications for success and happiness. Her talents can always be renewed and nurtured by realization and growth." -Margaret Steger (Psychologist Author)

Barbara Payton hardly could have picked a worse decade in which to reveal herself as a sexual "alley cat in heat" (as Tom Neal supposedly described her). Any sexual deviancy was considered dangerous in the 1950s, so much so that a Republican Party chairman once claimed that "Sexual perverts... have infiltrated our Government in recent years," and were "perhaps as dangerous as the actual Communists." Much post-war propaganda, fueled by fears of nuclear war and images of happy couples setting up bomb shelters, emphasized the importance of a good family - anchored by a kind, submissive, domestic woman - as the key to keeping society stable in dangerous times. Payton couldn't have cared less. 'It’s a real sin, I think, to throw away one’s good fortune and the blessings in one’s life,' Barbara's biographer John O'Dowd said.

In 1951 her shocking publicity blitz had barely begun. Next stop on her media train was a rush of stories about her visit to Tone's hospital - by fire escape, no less - with what looked like martinis in hand to keep him happy while he healed. They even hitched up, but their union didn't last much longer than the cases of vodka it took to fuel it. This odd coupling of a Mae Westian, crass, lusty woman and a classy, wealthy movie star ground to a disastrous halt after only a couple of months." Their reconciliation and inevitable blowout was worthy of even more press attention, when Payton hurled a telephone at Tone and allegedly tried to kill herself on sleeping pills while he looked on in horror at a New York Hotel. Even the Kinsey Report (which revealed the dirty secrets behind white Americans' sex lives in the late '40s and early '50s) would have labeled Payton's behavior "outside the norm." Warner Brothers agreed. President Jack L. Warner dropped Payton from the studio and left her to wander through the professional abyss of pitiful B-movies like Four-Sided Triangle (1953), Bad Blonde (1953) and The Great Jesse James Raid (1953).

Barbara's personal life wasn't stable enough to sustain even a low-grade career. Her violence-and-alcohol charged relationship with Neal broke up and they went their separate ways, Neal to the eventual murder of his third wife and imprisonment in California in the 1960s. But was her decline really a result of the 1950s? Would she have led the sexual revolution of the '60s instead of being its martyr, if she'd only blossomed some 10 or 20 years later? Most signs point to yes. The public support that kept Hollywood suffocated by anti-Communist paranoia started to weaken as early as 1954, when Army attorney Joseph Welch made his famous retort to Senator Joe McCarthy, "Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last?" A few years later, postwar wife and mother Betty Friedan wrote her groundbreaking The Feminine Mystique, urging women to pursue careers of their own and breathe life into old ideas of female independence that had been discarded after World War II.

Soon America would be trumpeting the likes of Gloria Steinem, Shirley Chisholm, Janis Joplin, Lolita, legal abortion, the pill, the Equal Rights Amendment and on and on; surely Payton could have thrived in the glimmer of this cultural flashpoint. Would Payton really fare much better as a sexual outlaw today, where pre-packaged stars politely parade their boyfriend du jour up fancy red carpets? Would she fit in while unapologetically pitting one lover against the other, publicly boozing it up, attempting suicide on sleeping pills and rejoicing in her bad publicity? Who knows? But at least she would have a reason to live. -Neal Colgrass (2004)

Barbara Payton: In 1950, a year of unspectacular note in history, except for a Korean skirmish, I was sitting on top of the world and going higher. My peculiar acting talents were worth $10,000 a week and I was in constant demand. Boy, everyone wanted me. I know it sounds unbelievable but it's true that Gregory Peck, Guy Madison, Howard Hughes and other big names were dating me. Almost everything I did made headlines. I was such hot news the papers didn't even have to use my last name. Everyone knew who Barbara was. It was like "Ava," "Lana" or "Frankie." I was in love -crazy in love- with one man, Tom Neal. And I was engaged to (and later married) the actor with the most class in Hollywood-Franchot Tone. There was my picture on the front pages of every paper in the country. I was one of the six "Baby Stars" most likely to succeed. There was Piper Laurie, Mona Freeman, Debbie Reynolds, Mala Powers, Barbara Bates and yours truly. That was in 1949. The other five are still fulfilling their promises. Me, I goofed. It was an exciting year.

I was the only blonde among the six. At seventeen and still wearing bloomers, I dragged in an Air Force Captain (John Payton) who wanted to marry me. Nowright now! I must have really been something. I think my folks were too scared by his insistence to say no. I also think they felt it would take an Air Force Captain to keep me under control. Even he couldn't do it. He said, "Honey, where do you want to go on our honeymoon?" When I said, "Hollywood" it was the first step to the end of our marriage. It made no sense. Why should I be married to just one man, have a dull life and raise a family when I could have all that glamour? I had an awful lot of money one time. I made it in pictures and I got a big settlement from Tone. One day I told Tom he was a bastard and I gave him the merry air. I still have a sad fondness for Tom. [...] And you know if I had it to do all over again, I'd do the same. It's all in heaven in a little black book with neat lines. -"I Am Not Ashamed" (1963) by Barbara Payton

Franchot Tone & Joan Crawford's sophistication

Joan Crawford surprised everyone in "Today We Live" (1933) by not making a play for Gary Cooper – whose other conquests had been as diverse as [Lupe Vélez] and Marlene Dietrich – but for the fourth lead, the more sensitive Franchot Tone.

In "Dancing Lady" Joan looks fabulous in costume and braided blonde wig. Of the male leads, however, it was Franchot Tone’s irascible playboy who stole the show, resulting in his being offered the second lead in Joan’s next film, "Sadie McKee."

As for Gable, he was ordered to take time off and fix his rotting teeth. Throughout the shooting of "Dancing Lady" he had been in agony, constantly swigging whisky to numb the pain, and many of the cast had complained that, even from a suitable distance, his halitosis had made them retch. Gable hit the roof upon learning that Franchot would be partnering Joan in the film.

Joan’s next film was No More Ladies (1935), of note only because it was directed by George Cukor, with a screenplay by Donald Ogden Stuart. ‘The sophistication of No More Ladies is the desperate pretence of the small girl who smears her mouth with lipstick and puts on sister’s evening gown when the family is away,’ the New York Herald Tribune remarked.

It told the tale of society favourite Marcia (Joan) and her involvement with two men: Jim (Franchot Tone), who shares her ideal that a person should only have one partner in their lifetime; and Sherry (Robert Montgomery), who has had more women than hot dinners. Joan had wanted Clark Gable for the Robert Montgomery part in the film, but he was busy with Mutiny on the Bounty – as was Franchot, whose part in "No More Ladies" had been trimmed to allow him more time on the more important production. -"Joan Crawford: Hollywood Martyr" (2008) by David Bret

David O. Selznick, had just arrived at Metro from a tenure at RKO, and he was assigned to handle the production of Dancing Lady. Selznick had no great fondness for musicals, but he saw at once that the script lacked precisely what would make it a success for MGM and Crawford. Warner Bros. had just released the musical extravaganza 42nd Street, which was so lucrative that it very quickly saved that studio from bankruptcy. Selznick then clinched the deal with Joan by telling her that Clark Gable was available to be her leading man, and by agreeing to her request that the important supporting role be given to Franchot Tone, who was then being photographed as Joan’s escort around town.

Despite all the production setbacks, Dancing Lady shines with good humor, engaging songs, lively dancing and an astonishing polish, justifying Selznick’s belief that Metro could out-Warner Warner when it came to musicals. The picture provided a major boost to the careers of Crawford and Selznick.

Another of Joan’s contributions to the screenplay was the development of Franchot’s character, a snob forever tutoring Janie Barlow on proper grammar and the best way to dress. Those moments of corrective etiquette were lifted right out of the Crawford-Tone relationship. -"Possessed: The Life of Joan Crawford" (2010) by Donald Spoto

The Gatineau Lakes area is one of Canada’s most beautiful lake regions. The area lies in the heart of the Gatineau Hills located north of Ottawa. Most major lakes are an hour’s drive via Hwy 5 North from Ottawa, Ontario or the neighbouring city of Gatineau,Quebec. The Gatineau Lakes are known for their freshness, solitude, natural setting and the surrounding hills. There is a huge history of hunting, fishing, tourist lodges and cottages. Aside from generations of Canadian families, Americans and Europeans also own exclusive properties here.

Famous Hollywood celebrities such as Joan Crawford or Zsa Zsa Gabor have also vacationed here. The family of Franchot Tone - one of Hollywood’s leading male actors in the 40’ & 50’s – still has a cottage property in the Gatineau. The four largest lakes are 31 Mile Lake, Lac Heney, Lac Pemichangan and Blue Sea Lake. They are located in the Upper Gatineau near Gracefield, Quebec – one hour north of Ottawa. Source: www.cottagecountry.com

Vaudeville had flourished in America from 1881 until its final demise when the Palace Theatre closed its doors in 1932. Vaudeville had been the training ground for all the aspiring young comics, the battlefield where they sharpened their wits against hostile, jeering audiences. However, the comics who won out went on to fame and fortune. Eddie Cantor and W. C. Fields, Jolson and Benny, Abbott and Costello, and Jessel and Burns and the Marx Brothers, and dozens more. Vaudeville was a haven, a steady paycheck, but with vaudeville dead, comics had to turn to other fields. The big names were booked for radio shows and personal appearances, and they also played the important nightclubs around the country. Toby Temple played them all, and they became his school. The names of the towns were different, but the places were all the same. Toby’s act consisted of parodies of popular songs, imitations of Gable and Grant and Bogart and Cagney, and material stolen from the big-name comics who could afford expensive writers. All the struggling comics stole their material, and they bragged about it. “I’m doing Milton Berle.” “You should see my Red Skelton.” Because material was the key, they stole only from the best. Toby had lunch with O’Hanlon and Rainger at the studio. The Twentieth Century-Fox commissary was an enormous room filled with wall-to-wall stars.

On any given day, Toby could see Tyrone Power and Loretta Young and Betty Grable and Don Ameche and Alice Faye and Richard Widmark and Victor Mature and the Ritz Brothers, and dozens of others. Some were seated at tables in the large room, and others ate in the smaller executive dining room which adjoined the main commissary. Toby loved watching them all. In a short time, he would be one of them, people would be asking for his autograph. Toby appeared so innocent and wistful, standing up there on that stage, that they loved him. The jokes he told were terrible, but somehow that did not matter. He was so vulnerable that they wanted to protect him, and they did it with their applause and their laughter. It was like a gift of love that flowed into Toby, filling him with an almost unbearable exhilaration.

He was Edward G. Robinson and Jimmy Cagney, and Cagney was saying, “You dirty rat! Who do you think you’re giving orders to?” And Robinson’s, “To you, you punk. I’m Little Caesar. I’m the boss. You’re nuthin’. Do you know what that means?” “Yeah, you dirty rat. You’re the boss of nuthin’.” A roar. The audience adored Toby. Bogart was there, snarling, “I’d spit in your eye, punk, if my lip wasn’t stuck over my teeth.” And the audience was enchanted. Toby gave them his Peter Lorre. “I saw this little girl in her room, playing with it, and I got excited. I don’t know what came over me. I couldn’t help myself. I crept into her room, and I pulled the rope tighter and tighter, and I broke her yo-yo.” A big laugh. He was rolling. He switched over to Laurel and Hardy, and a movement in the audience caught his eye and he glanced up. -"A Stranger in the Mirror" (1976) by Sidney Sheldon

Love on the Run (1936): Joan Crawford, Clark Gable and Franchot Tone

Love on the Run, directed by W.S. Van Dyke in 1936, starring Joan Crawford, Clark Gable and Franchot Tone.

Behind the Scenes:

Clark Gable was assigned to the role to give Joan Crawford a hit; the only hits she had had in the past few years had been her films with Gable and her career was stalling.

Amelia Earhart’s $80,000 plane was used in the film.

Nobody would have been surprised to hear that Clark and Franchot did not get along on the set of this film. Back in 1933, both were costarring with Joan in Dancing Lady. Clark and Joan had been embroiled in a heavy off-and-on affair since 1931, and when Clark missed a lot of time on the set due to illness, Franchot and Joan fell in love. Clark, despite the fact that he was very much involved at the time with British actress Elizabeth Allan AND despite the fact that he was still married to second wife Ria, felt burned when he returned to the Dancing Lady set and saw that Franchot was a frequent vistor to Joan’s trailer.

Joan and Franchot eventually married in 1935 and so were married on the set of Love on the Run, although because Franchot was pretty much doomed to sidekick Siberia in the 1930′s he gets to watch Clark woo and win his wife. Despite this, Clark and Franchot were actually good buddies. They had discovered they had joint loves of booze and cards while on location for their film Mutiny on the Bounty in 1935. Franchot and Joan were the two bickering on the set, actually. All was not bliss in the Tone household. Source: dearmrgable.com

Five Tips for Weathering Hurricanes and Tropical Storms

Hurricanes, floods and damaging winds are increasingly commonplace around the globe. In 2013, weather events claimed the life of 445 people in the U.S. and injured 2,766 more. The National Weather Service (NWS) is part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and provides early warnings for major weather events to allow residents in affected areas time to prepare or evacuate before the storms arrive. By heeding the warnings issued by the NWS, individuals and families can increase their chances of survival when dangerous weather conditions occur. Here are five important strategies for riding out the storm in safety.

Don’t Delay

State and local authorities can issue voluntary or mandatory evacuation orders for residents in the path of a hurricane. Complying with these orders is vital to survival. For those who live along coastlines or in areas that frequently experience tropical storms, maintaining a kit that contains basic supplies for the entire family can make the evacuation process much faster and easier. Fill up the family car before leaving the local area; during hurricane evacuations, fuel stations along the highways and major thoroughfares are likely to have long lines and extended wait times.

Water, Water Everywhere

Floods are especially dangerous in low-lying areas or coastal regions. Ironically, however, one of the biggest risks associated with floods is the contamination of water supplies in the days and weeks following the storm. Maintaining at least a week’s worth of bottled water can help families during the cleanup period and can reduce the risk of dehydration or illness from drinking potentially contaminated water. Most authorities recommend storing at least one gallon of clean water per day for each person in the home to ensure adequate supplies during and after the storm. Pets will need the same amount of water per day to stay healthy and hydrated.

Batten Down the Hatches

Boarding up windows and closing storm shutters can often provide a modicum of protection for homes and personal belongings in minor to medium-strength storms. For families that plan to stay in their homes, taking steps to keep the worst of the wind and water out can offer added safety inside. Additionally, boarding up windows can help to deter vandals or thieves in the event of a full-scale evacuation order. Individuals and families who live close to the coastline, on coastal islands or who reside in mobile homes, however, should not remain in their homes at all if a major storm has been forecast for their area.

Monitor the Airwaves

Residents of coastal regions should obtain a NOAA-approved weather radio and keep a supply of batteries handy for the device. Weather radio broadcasts offer valuable information about the likely path of incoming storms, the strength of winds and the likely effects on homes and property. Official bulletins can also provide information regarding mandatory and voluntary evacuations, allowing residents in at-risk areas to make plans before the storm hits.

Prepare for the Worst

For families and individuals who elect to stay in their homes during the storm, a few simple strategies can help to ensure greater safety and comfort:

• Turning the temperature control on the refrigerator and freezer to the coldest possible setting and moving as much food as possible to the freezer can help to preserve it during a prolonged power outage. If the power goes out, be sure to keep the refrigerator and freezer closed to retain the cold as long as possible.

• Filling all sinks, bathtubs and large containers prior to the storm can provide water for washing hands and managing basic hygiene without dipping into bottled water supplies.
• Shutting off propane tanks and turning off gas lines into the house can reduce the risk of fire during and after the storm.

• Turning off or unplugging all non-essential appliances and electronic equipment can protect your home and belongings. If an electrical outage or power surge does occur, this will reduce the risk of damage to these items and will lessen the drain on the electrical system when power is restored.

Residents should be prepared to leave immediately if the storm strength is upgraded or if local or state authorities issue an evacuation order for the area.

Complying with evacuation orders promptly is the single most important factor in surviving hurricanes and other large-scale tropical storms. By preparing for major weather events well before they are forecast, residents in coastal areas can minimize the last-minute rush and can increase their safety during and after the storm.