Work and Win #07: Fred Fearnot as Actor — page 26: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

EEE FRED FEARNOT 24 AS AN ACTOR. i ET ti LLL ks making of the lover, whilst Nellie, herself, was so carried away by his ardor that several times she had to be prompted, notwithstanding she had played it many a time before with Frank Gale. He introduced several phases that were startling, and expressions that added tenfold to the intensity of his love-mak- ing. The lover kissed his sweetheart in a way that was so entirely different from the traditional stage kiss, that all the young ladies in the audience were electrified, as though each one, herself, had received it, and the scene was encored three different times, a thing that had never happened with the play before within the knowledge of Hammond, who had seen it perhaps a thousand times. It established Fred’s reputation as the best love-emaker ever seen on the stage. He caught the girl’s face between his hands and kissed her eyes. Then he sang that most intense of all love songs, whilst still holding her face between his hands: ee «Thine eyes like the stars that are beaming Have entered the depth of my soul; And my heart hath grown wild with the dreaming, And the feeling I cannot control.” His voice seemed to fairly tremble with the in- tensity of his love, and at times, while even the notes | were floating through the house, he would kiss her and yet keep the song going. It was something new in the way of stage love- making and evena greater hit than the moonlight - scene in the Revolutionary play, and so great was the commendation of the press that Hammond announced to the company that he would double their salaries if they would give six matinees a week; they voted unanimously to do so. As for Nellie Traynor, who played the role of the lover’s sweetheart, she declared that gis love-making thrilled her until she was almost beside herself, not- withstanding she knew it was not real but simply acting. To Fred’s astonishment, the next day after the matinee he received over a dozen scented and beauti- fully written notes from as many different lovesick young girls, and at the next performance huge bouquets of flowers were thrown at him, or delivered to him by the ushers, while he was on the stage, im- mediately after singing the famous love song. ‘“Fred, old man,’’ said Terry that night, when alone in their room together, “ I’ll bet you could get a hundred and fifty dollars a week by simply asking for it, or threatening to leave the company. You’re making Hammond’s fortune.”’ ‘‘Well, that’s all right,’’ laughed Fred; ‘‘we’re having our share of the fun, ain’t we ?” “Oh, yes. I had more fun than you did, though, standing behind the scenes watching Gale.”’ ‘¢What’s the matter with him ?’’ Fred asked. “Why, when you were holding Nellie’s face be- tween your hands, kissing her eyes and singing to her, he turned as white as a sheet, ground his teeth in silent rage,"and clenched his fist as though he wanted to smash something with all his might.”’ Fe 4/4 oo Oe ee 28 ee Oe eee “By George, is that so?’’ said Fred. ‘CY 68.7" «‘Then he really loves ‘the girl, and I wish I could substitute another one for her. Though I really don’t think that she cares anything for him.” ‘Neither do 1; but I’ll wager a week’s salary that in less than a week she’ll be so dead stuck on you as to make trouble if you smile at any other girl.” “Oh, I won’t have that,” laughed Fred. «Well, you’d better look out for it,”’ advised Terry. ‘She says as a kisser you lay over anything she ever ran up against in all her stage experience.”’ «I guess she’s right about that,” laughed Fred, ‘‘for I think there’s where the -success ‘of the whole business lies, in getting out of the old way of slinging kisses around on the stage with no life in them.” It turned out that Terry was right, for Fred soon noticed that she was taking a great deal of interest in him personally, and one day asked him if he had ever made love to a girl off the stage. ‘‘Never,”’ he replied. ‘If I were really to fall in love with a girl I think it would frighten me half to death and I wouldn’t have the courage to tell her so.’ «Well, a great many people are asking me if we are not really lovers, because you throw so much reality into your actions.” «Oh, yes, they’ve asked me the same thing, too; but Lalways tell them if lam I don’t know it. I’ve had about a score of notes from young ladies and girls, nearly all of them asking if it is true that we are really lovers.”’ «Have you answered any of them?” she asked. ‘No. Idon’t know whether to do so or not. Yet Iam afraid if I do not, it may give offense and hurt the business of the house. I’vea notion of asking Mr. Hammond about it.”’ “Oh, I wouldn’t do that,’’ she replied, ‘‘ because that’s a personal matter with which he has nothing to do.”’ 2 Nevertheless, he spoke to the manager about it, put did not show any of the notes, as he regarded them as a lien upon his honor as a man. ‘«¢ Answer everyone of them, my boy,’ advised Hammond, ‘“‘and tell them that you are heart-whole and not inlove with anything, as yet, but your profes- sion, That will set them in a flutter and bring them to every performance, in the hope of attracting your attention in some way, for there is a tremendous streak of foolishness in the majority of girls and young women.”’ «‘T believe that’s a good idea,’’ he laughed, ‘ but it may subject me to a correspondence that I will be unable to keep up.”’ ‘Oh, never mind about that. Ill hire a secretary for you, if necessary. In another week I want you to try a heroic character, to see what you can do _ in that line.”’ “‘That’s pretty hard work,’’ returned Fred. ‘* Two performances a day leaves very little time for slee or study.”’ Eomicboo <S-com r?