Tony Grist (poliphilo) wrote,
Tony Grist
poliphilo

Harold Meets Some Film Stars.

Harold and Vita's grand tour of the USA eventually takes them to California- where the desert landscape reminds him of Persia. They spend a few days in Hollywood, where they have lunch with four film directors whom he finds "quiet cultured people- not in the least the noisy boasting lot we had supposed" but annoyingly fails to name- I suspect because he didn't think them important enough.

And then...

"Gary Cooper comes to join us... The beginnings of a double chin and the hint of greying hair indicate that he may cease to be the jeune premier. Yet he is a nice shy quiet modest young man, devoid of any brains...The stage-hands and property-men greet (him) with "'lo Gary, how's life?' He is very nice to them. He then leaves us to look for a house with a huge fence where he can live in peace."

The next day Harold is introduced to the actor his hostess (an all but forgotten British writer) tips as the one who is set to steal Gary's laurels. The young man's name is Leslie Howard.

"We find that Adonis at tea- he looks like an assistant master at some inferior private school. Glasses and bad teeth. But he is a nice man"..."

"Nice" as you may have gathered, is one of Harold's favourite words.
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