What was Erroll Flynn like and did you ever meet and work with Clark Gable? When you mentioned Lana Turner I always think of the movie, Imitation of Life with Sandra Dee and when I think of Bogart I think of the movie, Casablanca….“Here’s lookin' at you kid”.
Sybil: Thank you again for your wonderful posts as I don’t think that we have many former stars visit CT and to think you have chosen to post on the Grand Theater/Westfield NY site due to my comments about the movie, The Great O'Malley. I grew up in that area of western NYS and have to pick that theater as “my” theater as it holds so many wonderful memories for me. God Bless and I do plan to order your autobiography.
Below is a Amazon.com review of Sybil’s book….My Fifteen Minutes.
How often now are you going to get to read the real skinny about the Golden Age of Hollywood from one who starred opposite AL JOLSON and has plenty to say about him! Sadly most of his real life co-stars have passed away long ago but the children who knew him still remember him. Little Sybil Jason was a British charmer who made sixteen movies for Warner Brothers and Fox way back when (in the 1930s) and her memoirs are outstanding!
You owe it to yourself to read her account of making her very first American movie LITTLE BIG SHOT (1935) with Glenda Farrell and Ward Bond! As she tells the story, Michael Curtiz set one of the scenes at a real life Hollywood orphanage and, in the interests of realism, recruited real orphans to mingle with the child actors. Thus did you know that little Marilyn Monroe can be glimpsed in LITTLE BIG SHOT a dozen years before her first “officially recognized role”? It’s just one of hundreds of startling facts you’ll find in this book.
Little Sybil had her favorites, and she’s not afraid to name names if someone hurt her back then. She has some beuatiful tributes to Jack Warner, Roddy McDowall, Peggy Ann Garner, Judy Garland, etc. She was there when, after starving herself all day, Judy was denied food at a Hollywood party by a MGM flunky who was assigned to take food out of her hands if she should try to eat something! No wonder Judy G. was troubled. Barbara Stanwyck comes off as self-absorbed, Errol Flynn as charming, even to children.
William Dieterle was the type of director a child feared, and Bogart thought of a way to punish him for his many cruelties! In this book Sybil Jason reveals that during a scene together Bogart unbuttoned his flies and hauled out his “equipment” while the cameras were rolling just to prevent William Dieterle from filming him when he was not ready. Poor Sybil, I think, saw an eyeful that day and she wasn’t even 10 years old.
That film footage would be interesting viewing today.
Shirley Temple’s mother ruined poor Sybil’s career, merely by telling Fox bosses that it was either Sybil or Shirley. After Sybil ran away with the notices for THE LITTLE PRINCESS and THE BLUE BIRD, Ma Temple made sure that Sybil never worked again!
Sybil was also very good playing Kay Francis' artistically inclined daughter in the superb James-Wong-Howe-lensed COMET OVER BROADWAY. She makes you laugh and makes you cry, often within a single frame.
Sybil: It’s rare when someone gets an opportunity to chat with a child movie star and can tell us through the pages of a book (or here) what it was like to work with and personally know such Hollywood names as Humphrey Bogart, Judy Garland, Lana Turner and Shirley Temple (everyone’s favorite child star)so I thank you for posting on CT and saying hello. Visit often!
Sybil: I just went on a discount book site, www.abebooks.com and found your book, My Fifteen Minutes. I will now look for Five Minutes More. Thanks for telling the CT members about these books as I’m sure many members would love to read them.
I just read about the cast of The Great O'Malley and plot. I see that you played Barbara “Babs” Phillips and Humphrey Bogart played John Phillips. “Officer O'Malley arrests John Phillips for a traffic violation and costs him a chance at a good job. Phillips has a wife and crippled child, so he commits robbery and O'Malley sends him to prison. After this O'Malley becomes closer to Phillips'family.”
wbkid2: It’s always exciting to find a post on this link and I thank you for yours, Sybil Jason! The marquee that I was referring to in my Dec. 11, ‘04 post was from the former Grand Theatre and not the one I remember from my childhood days.
Paul: You anticipated my question though I was hoping to read that this guy was going to reopen the Regent and not pour any cement for other plans. I hope you get in before he makes those changes! The nearby Catholic church must have sold it as they were using the building for storage when I stopped at the church. I was hoping to see the interior then, but nobody offered.
Sure would be nice if every major city in the USA was as fortunate as Tampa to have this Eberson atmospheric theatre. The photos on Cinema Tours are always fun to view again and again! I’m sure it is mentioned in a previous post, but did this theatre have an orchestra pit in its past? So many did and then they were removed for various reasons.
Lost Memory: Your post of July 21, 2007 are spectacular and makes me wonder why this elegant theatre wasn’t saved especially with it’s rich Sinatra history.
I think there was a Strand Theatre in Erie, but there was also several others and among them was a Shea’s which may have had 1600 seats. The Avalon Hotel is on that site now, unfortunately.
What was Erroll Flynn like and did you ever meet and work with Clark Gable? When you mentioned Lana Turner I always think of the movie, Imitation of Life with Sandra Dee and when I think of Bogart I think of the movie, Casablanca….“Here’s lookin' at you kid”.
Sybil: Thank you again for your wonderful posts as I don’t think that we have many former stars visit CT and to think you have chosen to post on the Grand Theater/Westfield NY site due to my comments about the movie, The Great O'Malley. I grew up in that area of western NYS and have to pick that theater as “my” theater as it holds so many wonderful memories for me. God Bless and I do plan to order your autobiography.
Below is a Amazon.com review of Sybil’s book….My Fifteen Minutes.
How often now are you going to get to read the real skinny about the Golden Age of Hollywood from one who starred opposite AL JOLSON and has plenty to say about him! Sadly most of his real life co-stars have passed away long ago but the children who knew him still remember him. Little Sybil Jason was a British charmer who made sixteen movies for Warner Brothers and Fox way back when (in the 1930s) and her memoirs are outstanding!
You owe it to yourself to read her account of making her very first American movie LITTLE BIG SHOT (1935) with Glenda Farrell and Ward Bond! As she tells the story, Michael Curtiz set one of the scenes at a real life Hollywood orphanage and, in the interests of realism, recruited real orphans to mingle with the child actors. Thus did you know that little Marilyn Monroe can be glimpsed in LITTLE BIG SHOT a dozen years before her first “officially recognized role”? It’s just one of hundreds of startling facts you’ll find in this book.
Little Sybil had her favorites, and she’s not afraid to name names if someone hurt her back then. She has some beuatiful tributes to Jack Warner, Roddy McDowall, Peggy Ann Garner, Judy Garland, etc. She was there when, after starving herself all day, Judy was denied food at a Hollywood party by a MGM flunky who was assigned to take food out of her hands if she should try to eat something! No wonder Judy G. was troubled. Barbara Stanwyck comes off as self-absorbed, Errol Flynn as charming, even to children.
William Dieterle was the type of director a child feared, and Bogart thought of a way to punish him for his many cruelties! In this book Sybil Jason reveals that during a scene together Bogart unbuttoned his flies and hauled out his “equipment” while the cameras were rolling just to prevent William Dieterle from filming him when he was not ready. Poor Sybil, I think, saw an eyeful that day and she wasn’t even 10 years old.
That film footage would be interesting viewing today.
Shirley Temple’s mother ruined poor Sybil’s career, merely by telling Fox bosses that it was either Sybil or Shirley. After Sybil ran away with the notices for THE LITTLE PRINCESS and THE BLUE BIRD, Ma Temple made sure that Sybil never worked again!
Sybil was also very good playing Kay Francis' artistically inclined daughter in the superb James-Wong-Howe-lensed COMET OVER BROADWAY. She makes you laugh and makes you cry, often within a single frame.
Sybil: It’s rare when someone gets an opportunity to chat with a child movie star and can tell us through the pages of a book (or here) what it was like to work with and personally know such Hollywood names as Humphrey Bogart, Judy Garland, Lana Turner and Shirley Temple (everyone’s favorite child star)so I thank you for posting on CT and saying hello. Visit often!
Sybil: I just went on a discount book site, www.abebooks.com and found your book, My Fifteen Minutes. I will now look for Five Minutes More. Thanks for telling the CT members about these books as I’m sure many members would love to read them.
I just read about the cast of The Great O'Malley and plot. I see that you played Barbara “Babs” Phillips and Humphrey Bogart played John Phillips. “Officer O'Malley arrests John Phillips for a traffic violation and costs him a chance at a good job. Phillips has a wife and crippled child, so he commits robbery and O'Malley sends him to prison. After this O'Malley becomes closer to Phillips'family.”
wbkid2: It’s always exciting to find a post on this link and I thank you for yours, Sybil Jason! The marquee that I was referring to in my Dec. 11, ‘04 post was from the former Grand Theatre and not the one I remember from my childhood days.
Interesting site and so sad that this art deco Schine theatre was demolished in a college town like Wooster.
I certainly would be there if I lived in the LA area. Please consider Atlanta for a CT get-together as a great location would be the fabulous Fox.
Great article! I didn’t get to Carlisle this year, but there is always ‘08.
Paul: Can you tell me anymore about the theatre clock that is STILL IN DUNKIRK? Would love to see it!
Paul: You anticipated my question though I was hoping to read that this guy was going to reopen the Regent and not pour any cement for other plans. I hope you get in before he makes those changes! The nearby Catholic church must have sold it as they were using the building for storage when I stopped at the church. I was hoping to see the interior then, but nobody offered.
charlie c: Thanks for the website…very nice. Hope to see you this winter.
In the online Encore sales brochure it shows how the Carolina Theatre marquee would look which is very similar to the original design, imo.
http://www.cmhpf.org/surveys&rcarolinatheater.htm
This site shows some wonderful b/w photos of the interior and exterior as they once were along with interesting historical information.
HowardBHaas: Me, too!
Lost Memory: Found any photos other than the one I found in Remembering Charlotte?
Sure would be nice if every major city in the USA was as fortunate as Tampa to have this Eberson atmospheric theatre. The photos on Cinema Tours are always fun to view again and again! I’m sure it is mentioned in a previous post, but did this theatre have an orchestra pit in its past? So many did and then they were removed for various reasons.
“Eberson’s magic lives on” with this one! Hope to see it, in person, someday!
Jamie: Thanks for your post and explanation.
View link)
Lost Memory: Your post of July 21, 2007 are spectacular and makes me wonder why this elegant theatre wasn’t saved especially with it’s rich Sinatra history.
http://www.nyc-architecture.com/MID/MID110.htm
There is a photo with a timeline of the Paramount on this site.
I think there was a Strand Theatre in Erie, but there was also several others and among them was a Shea’s which may have had 1600 seats. The Avalon Hotel is on that site now, unfortunately.
Then I guess his name is only part of this theatre’s history.