The Chief Cameraman for Silent Film Director and Legend D. W. Griffith Was Harold ("Hal") Sintzenich of Pelham

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Harold S. Sintzenich was a famous cinematographer and film director of the early 20th century during the silent film era.  Born August 14, 1884 in London, England as Arthur Harold C. Sintzenich, he was known variously as "A. H. C. Sintzenich" as well as "Harold" and "Hal" Sintzenich with his last name occasionally spelled "Sintzenick."  His nickname was "Snitch."  He served as Chief Cameraman for famed silent film director D. W. Griffith during the 1920s.  His personal papers including diaries are held in the collections of the Library of Congress.

Portrait of Harold A. C. Sintzenich as a First Lieutenant in the

U.S. Signal Corps While in Paris in May, 1919.  NOTE:  Click

on Image to Enlarge.

During the 1920s and 1930s, Sintzenich and his family lived in Pelham when.  In addition to his camera work, he tried his hand at directing.  He filmed at least one silent movie in Pelham (in part) in 1926.  The movie, entitled "A Short Tail" was released in American Theaters on September 10, 1927.

The two-reel silent movie was a drama filmed entirely from the perspective of a dog.  A portion was filmed in the home of W. L. Brann of Pelham Manor, then located at 669 Wolf's Lane.  Though the original home no longer stands, a lovely Cape Cod home built in 1949 now stands in its place.  The movie reportedly starred actress Beatrice Roberts of New York City and featured a host of Pelham youngsters including two of Sintzenich's sons (Cedric and Robert) as well as:  Edward and Frank Fenlon of Secor Lane in Pelham Manor; Harmon Fisher, son of Mrs. Julia Fisher of Second Avenue in North Pelham; Fred Head, son of Mr. and Mrs. Gorham Head of Fourth Avenue in North Pelham; Harold Zeller, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harold Zeller of Fourth Avenue in North Pelham; Rodman Pitman, son of Mr. and Mrs. Jean Pitman of Fifth Avenue in North Pelham; and Robert Held, son of Mrs. Marion Held of Fifth Avenue, North Pelham.  Though the youngsters were filmed for the movie, the work was considered unique at the time not only because it was filmed from the perspective of a dog, but also "hardly" showed a single human face.

During his cinematography career, Sintzenich worked with some of the greatest actors of the era in addition to such silent film visionaries as D. W. Griffith.  For example, he worked with Oliver Hardy and Stan Laurel in "The Tree in a Test Tube" (Sintzenich's last film, a brief World War II propaganda film released in 1943); W. C. Fields and Alfred Lunt in "Sally of the Sawdust" (released in 1925); Al Jolson in "Mammy's Boy" (released in 1923); Carol Dempster in a host of films including "America" and "Isn't Life Wonderful" (both released in 1924); Hedda Hopper in "Has the World Gone Mad!" (released in 1923); and many, many more.

Sintzenich's sons were active members of the Scouting program in Pelham.  Thus, Sintzenich was an avid supporter of the program.  In fact, he served as a Troop Committeeman while living in Pelham.  See Formal Court of Honor Held By Pelham Scouts, The Pelham Sun, Jun. 18, 1926, p. 5, cols. 1-4.  

Sintzenich and his family lived in Pelham at least during the period 1925 to 1933, if not longer.  However, in 1928 Sintzenich was sent to India for three years by the Eastman Kodak Company to serve as technical advisor to the entire motion picture film industry of that nation.  Although he spent much of his time in Bombay, he visited virtually every section of the country as part of his job before he returned to reside in Pelham, once again, in 1931.

Sintzenich began his career as a cinematographer while still living in England in 1909.  In 1914 he filed an African safari, foreshadowing a major film presentation he made to all of Pelham in the Pelham Memorial High School auditorium in 1925 during which he showed exciting film of big-game hunting in Africa.

In 1917, during World War I, Sintzenich received a commission as a cameraman in the U.S. Signal Corps.  He became a driving force behind the formation and administration of the U.S. School of Military Cinematography in 1918.  In May, 1918, Sintzenich became a U.S. Citizen.

After the War, Sintzenich moved his family to Pelham, apparently during the 1920s.  He became a notable resident.  Though he spent several years in India (as noted above), his family remained in Pelham.

Sintzenich eventually moved to Charleston, South Carolina where he died in August, 1974.

Harold Sintzenich With His Movie Camera While Serving as

Official Photographer with the U.S. Signal Corps. During World

War 1.  Source:  Wikimedia Commons.  NOTE:  Click on Image

to Enlarge.

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"Boy Scouts to Hear Adventures In South Africa
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Harold Sintzenick, Chief Camera Man For D. W. Griffith to Tell of Filming Big Game
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Pelhamites are to have an unusual opportunity in a Thanksgiving party arranged by the Boy Scouts when Harold Sintzenick, Pelham, chief camera man for D. W. Griffith, will lecture on Big Game Hunting and adventures in Central Africa in connection with seven reel pictures in which is shown the most thrilling lion charge ever filmed and the first photographic record of a rhinoceros charge.  Mr. Sintzenick, through whose courtesy the pictures were secured, had the experience of a wounded lion charge his camera and leap over it and him and this is all faithfully recorded.  Those who see these pictures will find many an intense moment as well as much of interest in the way of such animals as elephants, giraffes, hyenas, apes, zebras, water buffaloes, antelopes, and hippotami [sic].  African scenes and the mode of travel are also depicted and these coupled with the descriptive talk by Mr. Sintzenick will make an evening well spent.  The Boy Scouts are taking this means of expressing their appreciation to the people of the Town of Pelham for their support and interest in the new log cabin.  The Thanksgiving party will be held at Memorial High School, Saturday November 28th at 8 P. M.  There will be no charge for admission and no solicitation of any kind.  The Boy Scouts are hosts and they cordially extend an invitation to everybody in the Town of Pelham to see these remarkable pictures."

Source:  Boy Scouts to Hear Adventures In South Africa -- Harold Sintzenick, Chief Camera Man For D. W. Griffith to Tell of Filming Big Game, The Pelham Sun, Nov. 20, 1925, p. 9, col. 1.

"Scouts Invite Visitors To Movie Party
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Harold Sintzenich, Camera Man Will Tell of Filming Wild Animals in Africa
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Interesting Entertainment at Memorial High School Tomorrow Night
-----

When the hero of the movie finds himself in the jungle surrounded by wild beasts and in imminent danger of death from lions, tigers, elephants, etc., etc., one seldom gives a thought to the camera man who is busy clicking off the reel so that the untold millions of picture fans can be thrilled.  Sometimes the camera man gets an unexpected thrill himself, as when a huge lion dashed out of African jungle and -- 

But we're not going to spoil you evening.  Harold Sintzenick, chief camera man for D. W. Griffith will tell you all about the dangers of filming wild animals in the jungle if you accept the invitation of the Boy Scouts to attend their Thanksgiving party tomorrow (Saturday) night at Memorial High School, where Mr. Sintzenick will present an evening of talk and pictures on big game hunting and adventures in South Africa.  Sintzenick by the way is a Pelhamite.

Pelham scouts are anxious to show their appreciation of the many things that Pelham people have done for them and take this means of showing it by inviting you all to the Thanksgiving party at Memorial Auditorium where you can be assured of a great evening.  No admission fees."

Source:  Scouts Invite Visitors To Movie Party -- Harold Sintzenich, Camera Man Will Tell of Filming Wild Animals in Africa -- Interesting Entertainment at Memorial High School Tomorrow Night, The Pelham Sun, Nov. 27, 1925, Vol. 16, No. 39, p. 1, col. 7.  

"Griffiths' Camera-Man Gave Great Entertainment
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Harold Sintzenick Exhibited Films of Big Game Hunting in Africa to Boy Scouts
-----

The Thanksgiving party of the Boy Scouts to the people of Pelham last Saturday night was a success with the auditorium of Memorial High School well filled with enthusiastic supporters and well wishers of the Scout movement.  The seven-reel picture of Big Game Hunting and Adventures in Africa proved to be even more thrilling than had been promised and this, coupled with the most interesting descriptive talk by Harold Sintzenick, the man who 'shot' the picture and chief camera man for D. W. Griffith, left nothing to be desired for a worthwhile evening.  The Scouts are greatly indebted to Sintzenick, through whose courtesy the picture was secured, for both the pictures and for his efforts on their behalf.  Mr. Burroughs of the High School Staff again gave his services as operator of the moving picture machine."

Source:  Griffiths' Camera-Man Gave Great Entertainment -- Harold Sintzenick Exhibited Films of Big Game Hunting in Africa to Boy Scouts, The Pelham Sun, Dec. 4, 1925, p. 4, col. 2.  

"BOYS, DOGS, ICE CREAM, MOVIES, ALL MIXED UP

Last Monday there was a parade -- unofficial -- of boys and dogs.  The parade led directly from 'location' where Harold Sintzenick of North Pelham, chief camera man for D. W. Griffiths [sic], had been 'shooting' the boys and dogs in a puppy picture, to the nearest soda fountain where the 'actors' replenished themselves with a certain delicacy dear to their palates.  Unfortunately Sintzenick was not on hand to 'shoot' this scene.

The local boys who will appear in the new release were Cedric and Robert Sintzenick, sons of the camera man; Edward and Frank Fenlon, Secor Lane, Pelham Manor; Harmon Fisher, son of Mrs. Julia Fisher, Second Avenue, North Pelham; Fred Head, son of Mr. and Mrs. Gorham Head, Fourth Avenue, North Pelham; Harold Zeller, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harold Zeller, Fourth Avenue, North Pelham; Rodman Pitman, son of Mr. and Mrs. Jean Pitman, Fifth Avenue, North Pelham; and Robert Held, son of Mrs. Marion Held, Fifth Avenue, North Pelham.  Miss Beatrice Roberts of New York City is the star.

The residence of W. L. Brann, 669 Wolf's Lane, Pelham Manor, is 'location' for part of the two reel picture which is not a comedy.  The picture will be unique in that all the pictures are taken from the angle of vision of a dog, hardly a human face appearing.  The title of the new picture is 'A Short Tail.'"

Source:  BOYS, DOGS, ICE CREAM, MOVIES, ALL MIXED UP, The Pelham Sun, Jul. 2, 1926, p. 9, col. 1.

"MOTION PICTURE MAKES PROGRESS IN THE LAND OF GHANDI; SOUND FILMS ARE DIFFICULT BECAUSE OF DIALECTS
-----
Harold A. C. Sinzenich Returns to Pelham After Spending Three Years as Technical Advisor to the Motion Picture Industry in India; Says That Indians Are Fond of Movies, But Sound Films Are a Problem
-----

By G. Allyn Van Winkle

Motion picture theatres are sprouting up along the Road to Mandalay because of the fact that India, land of mystery, of many sects and creeds, and home of 360,000,000 persons, likes to go to the movies just as much as America or any other land into which the lure of the silver screen has entered.

Mr. Sintzenich was sent to India in 1928 by the Eastman Kodak Company as technical advisor to the entire motion picture film industry of that country.  During the three years spent there, he visited practically every section of this country and spent much time in Bombay.

India has a thriving film industry, Mr. Sintzenich told this interviewer, there being at the present time about 50 companies producing motion pictures for Indian consumption.  These are entirely Indian companies, with native stars cameramen, officers and the like.

'One way in which the growth of the film industry in India during the last six years can be gauged,' said Mr. Sintzenich, 'is by the fact that in 1925, importations of raw film totalled 500,000 feet, while in the latter part of 1930, these had grown to 21,000,000 feet.'

India's film industry has two great centers, one, Dum Dum, being situated on the east coast, and the other, Dadar, on the west coast.  Dum Dum originally received its name from the fact that there was a large arsenal there at one time which turned out bullets of this type.

The majority of the films produced in India are based on Indian history and mythology, although recently, said Mr. Sintzenich, 'attempts have been made to introduce the love interest, so prevalent in films of the western world.

'The Indian does not understand the word love as we do,' Mr. Sintzenich explained, 'because the parents of boys and girls of that country make all marriage arrangements and the prospective bridegroom does not see his bride until the ceremonies.'

Because of the great number of different languages and dialects spoken in India, it is not uncommon to see a picture with the sub-titles printed in six different languages in addition to English, he explained.  When productions are imported, the sub-titles which may be in English, or some European language are translated by an ingenious device.  Two screens are used in the theatres, one for the two, while the other hangs down some distance below.  The sub-picture being the smaller of the titles are translated into the prevailing languages and dialects of the district and then made on lantern slides.  When the picture is exhibited, the operator must watch closely and when the sub-title appears on the picture screen, he flashes the translation onto the lower screen so that all may understand.

Due to the great amount of illiteracy in India, Mr. Sintzenich said, the educated natives who attend the theatres read the sub-titles out loud so that their neighbors who cannot read can still follow the picture.  This causes a steady hum during the entire performance.

Although the Indians are very backward in their methods of making motion pictures, they have recently introduced talking pictures and at the time he left India, Mr. Sintzenich said that seven companies were producing Indian sound films.  Here again the fact that over 360 different languages and dialects are spoken in India had to be considered.

'I told them,' said Mr. Sintzenich in referring to heads of a number of film producing companies, 'that if they made their pictures in the language of their district they would lose money.  They did not see it that way but after their first picture they realized that I was right.  This narrowed the choice down to two languages, English and Hindustani.  As English is spoken by only the more educated natives, Hindustani was selected and this in my opinion is the greatest step ever taken towards a unified  India.  After some years, a constant universal use of this language in talking pictures will result in a better understanding between the various sects and peoples of India.'

In Bombay there is only one small modern theatre, but there are a considerable number of former legitimate theatres which have been converted into movie houses.  Five of these are European and there are 25 or 30 native theatres.  When they attend theatres, the natives never sit with their feet on the floor but sit cross-legged on the chairs, their feet on the seat.

India has its own movie stars much as the United States and for India, their salaries are large.  The top price for a film luminary according to Mr. Sintzenich, is 2,500 rupees per month.  This is about $900 a month.

After this discussion of Indian motion pictures, this interviewer asked (as thousands of other interviewers have and as thousands more will in the future) about the Taj Mahal, termed one of the seven wonders of the world.

'It is a very beautiful building,' said r. Sintzenich, 'and although it is more than 300 years old, it appears to have been only recently completed.  It is of white marble and gleams brightly in the sun.  But the building I think is even more beautiful than the Taj Mahal and perhaps the most beautiful building in the whole world is the Diwan-i-khas, or Hall of Private Audience in Delhi.  This is the hall in which former emperors of the country received royal visitors, and it cannot adequately be described.'  Pictures which Mr. Sintzenich had taken of this building and its interior during the inauguration of New Delhi, bore out his contention of its beauty.  This inauguration held last February, marked the return by the British of the capital from Calcutta to Delhi which was the capital of India down through history.  When the British took over India they moved the capital to Calcutta.

'India is so varied that that is a rather difficult question to answer,' said Mr. Sintzenich when asked what part of the country he liked best.  'You can almost be boiled in some sections and if you go into the Himalayas you will find the opposite extreme.  Of all the cities, I prefer Bombay because it has the most even climate.  It is situated practically on an island with water on all sides so that there is always a sea breeze.  Even at that the humidity is high, averaging 85 to 95 the year round and 98 to 100 at the hottest seasons of the year.'

Speaking of the great amount of illiteracy in India, Mr. Sintzenich said, that many persons might believe something was wrong when such a condition existed in a country over which England had had control for 50 years.  He pointed out that this was due, however, to the caste system which relegates each native into a division from which he can never escape without universal education and in the past, the higher castes have taken care that the lower castes were kept ignorant.

Taking another angle, this reporter asked Mr. Sinzenich regarding the fabled Indian rope trick and was promptly told that he had not seen it nor had he encountered any person who was positive he had seen it.  He spoke however of a Mohammedan who had performed, in the streets of Bombay with four trained sparrows.

'Time means nothing to these people,' he said.  'They know that the sun rises and that it sets and care little about anything else.  This Mohammedan had trained these sparrows to perform various tricks.  One would thread beads on a needle and thread while another, which the old man claimed was the dove from the Ark, would fly out of sight to return with a leaf in its bill.'

Another instance depicting the great patience that the Indians show, was exhibited by a present that Mr. Sintzenich brought to his wife and two sons.  This consisted of a chest covered with plush which contained magnifying glasses and a small glass tube.  In the lid of the box was a typewritten message from Mr. Sintzenich the words of which contained a total of 196 letters.  The entire message was printed on one grain of rice which is contained in the small glass tube and when examined through the magnifying glasses, the message appears clearly.

Besides numerous souvenirs he brought back with him, Mr. Sintzenich has in his apartment some living examples of life in India.  He has a cage in which nine birds of three varieties are quartered.  The plumage of these feathered creatures, one in particular, is much brighter than the birds of this country.  This bird, a small creature, has a red head, a purple breast, a yellow stomach and a green back, all colors being distinctly outlined by a darker band of color.

Starting from India on his home trip, Mr. Sintzenich purchased ten of these birds but while at sea one day he was feeding them and one escaped from the cage.  The porthole being open, it flew out and vanished.

Mr. Sintzenich does not contemplate an immediate return to India but says he is on a vacation now and will rest for a while and get acclimated.

Mr. Sintzenich numbered among his personal friends during his sojourn in India, Prince Azam Jab, heir and oldest son of Sir Osmari Ali Kahn, Nizam of Hyderabad, termed the richest man in the world.  The young prince was welcomed last Thursday in Nice, France, to Princess Durai Shehvar, daughter of Caliph Abdul Medjid Effendi, spiritual leader of 300,000,000 Moslems."

Source:  Van Winkle, G. Allyn, MOTION PICTURE MAKES PROGRESS IN THE LAND OF GHANDI; SOUND FILMS ARE DIFFICULT BECAUSE OF DIALECTS -- Harold A. C. Sinzenich Returns to Pelham After Spending Three Years as Technical Advisor to the Motion Picture Industry in India; Says That Indians Are Fond of Movies, But Sound Films Are a Problem, The Pelham Sun, Nov. 27, 1931, p. 11, cols. 4-8.

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More on Famed Western Film Actor Harry Carey, Who Grew Up in Pelham

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Harry Carey, born Henry DeWitt Carey II, was one of the most successful western film actors ever.  He appeared in well over three hundred movies during the early years of Hollywood well into the Golden Age of Hollywood.

Carey was born on January 16, 1878 on 116th Street in New York City.  In 1884, he and his family moved to City Island before the area was annexed by New York City.  Carey grew up on City Island and rambled throughout the region of today's Pelham Bay Park during his youth.

Henry DeWitt Carey II was a son of Henry DeWitt Carey who served as a judge in the Special Sessions Court at White Plains for many years and founded a local dairy known as the Willow Brook Dairy in which he owned an interest for many decades until he sold that interest in the mid-1920s.  Judge Carey also served as president of the New Home Sewing Machine Company.  He also owned an interest in the little horse railroad that once ran from Bartow Station on the Branch Line to Belden's Point at the tip of City Island.  Thus, the Carey family was comparatively affluent.

I have written before about Western actor Harry Carey and his father, Henry DeWitt Carey.  See:

Wed., Jul. 01, 2015:  Western Actor Harry Carey of Pelham, Born Henry DeWitt Carey, Recalls His Boyhood Days in Pelham.

Mon., Jun. 02, 2014:  Henry DeWitt Carey Of City Island in the Town of Pelham.

Mon., May 28, 2007:  Brief Biography of Henry DeWitt Carey, 19th Century Pelham Justice of the Peace.

Today's Historic Pelham article provides more background information on Pelhamite Harry Carey.

Henry DeWitt Carey II was only six years old when his family moved to the Town of Pelham.  The family lived in a home on Terrace Point (sometimes called Carey's Point) on City Island.  

Newspaper reports say that Carey lived a "Huck Finn boyhood" in Pelham.  He hunted, fished, swam, and trapped game in the Pelham Bay region.  One of his most vivid boyhood memories involved driving a horse railroad car on one occasion on the City Island line.  After his death in 1947, a reporter recalled:

"Harry told me how he once drove a horse car in the Bronx.  His father owned and operated a street car line, horse-powered, with headquarters and barns at City Island.  Harry, as a boy, did chores around the barns, and learned to love the horses.  One day, before sunrise, the driver of an outbound car permitted young Harry to drive the team.  It was the great thrill of his life."

Indeed, Harry Carey's exposure to the horses that pulled the street cars may well have played a role in his later love for the west and western-style entertainments.  

After graduating from college, for his health, young Carey took some time and traveled out west.  He reportedly spent some time working as a foreman of a ranch in Montana.  While working on the ranch, he wrote several scripts for "light melodramas."  

Carey's father was not happy.  He wanted his son to return home, attend law school, and settle down.  Carey finally returned home and entered New York University Law School.  According to one account, however, he studied law "against his will."  He wanted to be an actor.

Harry Carey's father, Henry DeWitt Carey, was happy when his son graduated with a law degree from NYU Law School.  He was not happy, however, when his son decided not to practice law and, instead, decided to try his hand at acting.  Carey joined a stock company at the Yorkville Theater where he had a brief run acting in a single show.  He then joined the "Ferris Circuit" playing in so-called "tom shows" at fairs in the region.  (Tom shows were shows based, even loosely, on the novel "Uncle Tom's Cabin" by Harriet Beecher Stowe.)  

Finally, Harry Carey decided to try his hand at writing and starring in his own play.  At the age of 28, Carey fell seriously ill and used a lengthy convalescence at his family's home on City Island to write an epic western play titled "Montana."  He set about to have the play produced with him as the star.  

Carey's father was fed up.  He struck a deal with his son.  If the new play, Montana, was a flop, the son would "abandon the stage, and return to the practice of law."  

On April 26, 1906, "Montana" opened before a large audience in New Rochelle Theatre.  Harry Carey made his debut that night as a leading man, playing the role of Jim Graham, foreman of the ranch that was at the center of the show.  The show was a wild success.  The audience was overwhelmed and applauded the entertainment, and Carey, thunderously when the show ended.  There were curtain calls.  

Carey's father, a lawyer and ex-judge at the time, reportedly relented after the show with tears in his eyes and said "So long as it is Harry's choice and the people are with him, I humbly surrender."  Harry Carey took his show on the road for four years and earned $18,000 performing it throughout the country.

Harry Carey had an extraordinarily successful film career playing cowboy heroes for more than thirty years.  He was never truly affected by Hollywood or his success.  Late in life he repeatedly was described as "unaffected," "genuine," "unpretentious," and the like.  He and his wife, Olive, homesteaded a ranch in Saugus, California (part of today's City of Santa Clarita).  Early in his career, as they homesteaded the land, they made ends meet by raising and selling turkeys on the property.  By 1931, the couple had acquired by homesteading and by purchase 1,100 acres of ranch land in Saugus and maintained "a real ranch with no frills about it and . . . staffed with Navajo Indians."

Harry Carey died in Brentwood, California on September 21, 1947 with members of his family and his friend, famed Hollywood western film director John Ford, at his bedside.  Some have suggested he died of a broken heart.  His final stage appearance in New York was in a show titled "Ah Wilderness."  Carey reportedly was "extremely nervous" about the show because it had been done often in New York City and was considered by many to be "outmoded."  The show flopped.  Thereafter Carey reportedly "worried himself into a nervous breakdown, and was ill from that time until his death."

Actor Harry Carey in 1919. Source: Wikipedia.

NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

1920 Movie Poster for "Human Stuff" Starring

Harry Carey. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

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Below is the text of a number of items that relate to today's Historic Pelham article.  Each is followed by a citation and link to its source.

"JUDGE'S SON TURNS ACTOR.

Father of Harry Carey, at First Opposed, Surrenders After Seeing Play.

Harry D. Carey, son of ex-County Judge Henry D. Carey of Westchester, capitalist and former President of the New Home Sewing Machine Company, made his debut last night as a leading man in 'Montana,' a play written by himself, before a large audience in the New Rochelle Theatre.

Carey, who is 28 years old, is an athlete and ranchman, and, although his father was strenuously opposed to his going on the stage, the elder Carey joined with the audience in its applause last night.  Laboring under a severe strain, Actor Carey, known in the play as Jim Graham, foreman of the ranch, responded to curtain calls.  As he left the stage Judge Carey's eyes filled with tears.  It is said that Judge Carey, who wished his boy to make a name for himself in the legal profession, said:

'So long as it is Harry's choice and the people are with him, I humbly surrender.'

Young Carey is a graduate of New York University.  After graduating he went west for his health and became foreman of a Montana ranch.  

While there he wrote several light melodramas, which are now being produced.  When he returned home his father desired that he study law, which he did against his will.  It was young Carey's wish to become an actor and portray on the stage the part he played in 'Montana,' which he wrote while West [sic].

It was learned that Judge Carey and his son had a talk before the play was produced, and it was mutually agreed that if it was not well received in the opening night that the young actor would abandon the stage, and return to the practice of law.  Judge Carey's home is at Terrace Point, City Island."

Source:  JUDGE'S SON TURNS ACTOR -- Father of Harry Carey, at First Opposed, Surrenders After Seeing Play, N.Y. Times, Apr. 27, 1906, p. 11, col. 1 (Note:  Paid subscription required to access via this link).  

"Hollywood News - by John Chapman
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Hollywood, Cal., June 6 -- Harry Carey, who has been hot stuff in the films longer than anybody else I can think of, is the most homespun guy you'll meet anywhere -- and that goes for his wife, Ollie, too.

Harry is New York-born and his real name is Henry De Witt Carey, 2d.  Many a New Yorker has come out to the films and gone Hollywood.  Harry is one of the few who have come out here and gone genuinely and unpretentiously western.  The Carey ranch at Saugus is a real ranch with no frills about it and is staffed with Navajo Indians.  Harry and Ollie literally live out of mail-order catalogues and can quote Montgomery Ward and Sears Roebuck prices on anything from plows to chintz.  Harry even has coal oil lamps in his bedroom because electric light is too harsh for reading.
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Many a film star has acquired a 'ranch' after he's got his money.  It is usually very fancy and it rarely makes any money.  The Careys got their place the hard way -- by homesteading it, and Harry and the original Man Who Came to Dinner Joe Harris cleared it.  And before they filed the homestead claim the Careys had a seventeen-acre place in Newhall, just below where Bill Hart is now, and they pieced out Harry's Universal Pictures income by raising and selling turkeys.  They didn't have money enough for real turkey equipment and the birds would roost on the house.  They were restless sleepers, those turkeys, and frequently would keep Harry and Ollie awake.
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A week hence will be the 33d anniversary of Harry's movie debut, so Paramount is whooping up a big barbecue party at the ranch -- and, more than incidentally, whooping up interest in Carey's latest picture, The Shepherd of the Hills.  Which is all right, too, because The Shepherd is a big technicolor production and reportedly one of Harry's best jobs to date.  You have to be sort of vague and say 'one of' because Harry has been in more than 300 movies and even he can't remember half of them.
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Carey is 63; straight, lean, strong enough to outwork Indians on his place, quick of mind.  His father was a special sessions judge in New York.  Harry grew up on Carey Point of Pelham Bay.  He lived a Huck Finn boyhood, hunting, fishing, swimming and trapping.  First stage show he saw was Frank Mayo in Davy Crockett.  'There was some shootin' and I got scared and hollered.  The old man took me out in the lobby and walloped my tail,' he recalls.
-----
He went to military academy, then through the N.Y.U. Law School.  But he never hung out his shingle.  (A classmate, James J. Walker, was among those who did.)  Harry joined a stock company at the Yorkville Theater, played a villain in tights in When Knightwood Was in Flower.  Then played the ferris wheel circuit in a tom show.  [NOTE:  A "tom show" is a general term for any play or musical based even loosely on the 1852 novel "Uncle Tom's Cabin" by Harriet Beecher Stowe.]  Then he fell ill and spent his convalescence writing a play, Montana, which had its tryout at a city island [i.e., City Island] church.  In the fall of 1906 he got a Klaw and Erlanger booking for it, toured in it four years and made $18,000.  He lost it all on another epic he wrote, The Heart of Alaska.  During summer layoffs he and Joe Harris, a stage villain, lived in a shack on Chimney Sweeps, a little island off Pelham Bay Park.  Harry, a veteran of the stage from the time when actors wore cross-over beards, never played Broadway until a couple of years ago, when he appeared in Albert Bein's railroad fantasy, Heavenly Express.
-----
When Heart of Alaska flopped, Harry took a job making four westerns for the National Film Distributing Company.  And June 14, 1908, faced the camera in Bill Sharkey's Last Game.  Since then he has never been out of pictures for long, and his nearest competitors for the long-run record are Lionel Barrymore, Donald Crisp and Bill Farnum.  Right after he made Trader Horn it looked as though he'd be out of pictures for good -- for he had been in Africa so long that agents and bosses had forgotten him.  But Will Rogers, in a Satevepost piece, happened to opine that Carey was the best of all the western stars, and that compliment put him back in the game.
------
Carey gave John Ford his start as a director, when Ford was eighteen.  One rainy day Harry and Jack were at the Newhall Turkey Farm doping out their first five-reeler, Hell Bent, when John Harris came to call.  'Who's that?' asked Ford.  'A heavy I used to know in Stair and Havlin shows,' said Carey.  'Let's use him,' said Ford.  So Joe got a job and Harry and Ollie asked him to stay with them during the shooting.  That was in 1915 or '16.  Joe is still the Careys' guest.
-----
The Carey fortunes have had their ups and downs.  As homesteaders, they added 420 acres to their original 160, then bought more, now have about 1,100.  They built a clapboard house, added to it from time to time instead of building one that would be more heat-resistant.  They were sentimental about the place because their children, Dobie and Cappy, were born there.  Dobie, twenty and a promising baritone, is so nicknamed because of his baked red complexion and hair.  He's really Henry De Witt Carey, 3d."  

Source:  Hollywood News - by John Chapman, Buffalo Courier-Express [Buffalo, NY], Jun. 7, 1941, p. 10, cols. 1-2.  

"Harry Carey, Who Portrayed More Than 300 Movie Roles, Dies at 69

HOLLYWOOD, Sept. 21 -- (AP) -- Harry Carey, 69, veteran motion picture actor and cowboy hero of the silent screen, died today at his home in suburban Brentwood.

The cause of death was given as a blood clot in the heart, following a weakened lung and heart condition from a recent illness.

The veteran of more than 300 movie roles succumbed as members of his family and Director John Ford, a long-time friend, gathered at his bedside.  

Surviving are his widow, Olive Golden, silent screen actress, and two children, Harry Carey, Jr., and Mrs. Ella Carey Taylor. 

Born Henry D. Carey on January 16, 1878, in New York City, the actor gained popularity as a hard-riding cowboy star in the early days of the motion picture industry -- although never west of the Hudson River until Hollywood beckoned in 1910.  

He was a graduate of New York University, where he was a classmate of the late ex-Mayor Jimmy Walker, of New York city.  His father was the late Justice Henry De Witt Carey, of New York.

Outstanding roles in recent films included parts in "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,' 'They Knew What They Wanted,' 'The Shepherd Of The Hills,' and 'Sea of Grass.'"

Source:  Harry Carey, Who Portrayed More Than 300 Movie Roles, Dies at 69, The Cumblerland News [Cumberland, MD], Sep. 22, 1947, p. 1, cols. 1-2 (Note:  Paid subscription required to access via this link).  

"NEW YORK DAY BY DAY
-----
By CHARLES B. DRISCOLL
------

New York. -- Passing of Harry Carey, Hollywood movie star, affected New Yorkers as deeply as it touched the people of California and the addicts of the western movies in which Harry appeared as hero.

This cowboy hero, who was an honored guest in our home when he could steal time for relaxation, was a native New Yorker, and spent his youth on City Island, a long time ago.  He was nearly 70 at the time of his death.
-----
Harry told me how he once drove a horse car in the Bronx.  His father owned and operated a street car line, horse-powered, with headquarters and barns at City Island.  Harry, as a boy, did chores around the barns, and learned to love horses.  One day, before sunrise, the driver of an outbound car permitted young Harry to drive the team.  It was the great thrill of his life.
-----
At a Christmas party in our home, Harry and his brilliant wife were the center of much attention.  Both were unaffected, intelligent, and devoid of the appearance of boredom which so many Hollywood celebrated stars wear when being saluted by their fans.

Over the coffee at a midtown hotel, Harry and I often discussed farming, horses, and cattle.  Harry was a real farmer posing for the newsreels.  He worked hard at the job, between pictures, and managed to make money in a practical farming venture.
-----
We talked with Harry before and during his last stage appearance in New York, in 'Ah Wilderness!'  It was evident that the actor was extremely nervous about the play, which had been done often in New York and was a bit outmoded.  

Despite the fact that Carey turned in a perfect acting job, the production was not a great success.  Harry worried himself into a nervous breakdown, and was ill from that time until his death. . . ."

Source:  Driscoll, Charles B., New York Day by Day, Joplin Globe [Joplin, MO], Oct. 4, 1947, p. 6, cols. 2-3.

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Small Town Girl Mona Freeman of Pelham Became Hollywood Movie Star

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She was a fresh-faced small town girl dressed to the nines and ready for her screen test.  She lived with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Stuart F. Freeman of 220 Carol Avenue in the Village of Pelham Manor. On July 8, 1943, she stared proudly, with a wide smile, from the pages of the local newspaper read by her family, friends and neighbors known as The Pelham Sun.  Her name was Mona Freeman.  Actually, her name was Monica Elizabeth Freeman, but she was known as Mona.  She and her stage mother were determined to make her a star.  Beneath her photograph, The Pelham Sun proudly reported that she and her mother would depart that week for Hollywood where she would "be given a screen test, and may be selected for a part in a forthcoming production."  

"GOING TO HOLLYWOOD FOR SCREEN TEST

Miss Mona Freeman, who is under contract to

Howard Hughes, motion picture producer, will

depart for Hollywood this week, accompanied by

her mother.  She will be given a screen test, and

may be selected for a part in a forthcoming production.

She is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Stuart F. Freeman

of 220 Carol avenue, Pelham Manor."  Source:

GOING TO HOLLYWOOD FOR SCREEN TEST,

The Pelham Sun, Jul. 8, 1943, p. 7, col. 3.  NOTE:

Click Image To Enlarge.

What a screen test Miss Freeman must have had!  Following her screen test, she became a Hollywood glamour girl and one of the most successful Hollywood movie actresses of the 1940s and 1950s.  

Mona Freeman in an Undated Studio Publicity Photograph.

NOTE:  Click Image to Enlarge.

Mona Freeman was born on June 9, 1926 in Baltimore.  Her father, Stuart F. Freeman, was a contractor.  As a young girl, she moved with her family to Pelham.  She and her family lived for a time in a house at 142 Third Avenue in the Village of North Pelham, but later moved to the home at 220 Carol Avenue in the Village of Pelham Manor.  She attended Colonial Elementary School where her first "big role" was in "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," a Colonial and Siwanoy School play.  The elementary school play certainly received critical acclaim from the local newspaper which described the "Delightful Presentation Of 'Snow White' Offered By Pupils Of Schools" and noted that Mona Freeman played the "major role" of the Good Queen.  

According to her obituary that appeared in the June 9, 2014 issue of The New York Times:

"At 14, motivated by a desire to help put her older brother through Yale, she decided to take up modeling.  Enrolling at the Powers agency's school in Manhattan, she was asked for $300 in tuition -- the equivalent of about $5,000 today.  'Your school is Champagne, and I'm a gal hungry for bread and butter,' she was said to have retorted.  Tuition was waived."

Source:  Fox, Margalit, Mona Freeman, First 'Miss Subways,' Dies at 87, N.Y. Times, Jun. 9, 2014.  

Freeman began high school at Pelham Memorial High School.  While there, she wrote for the school newspaper.  She hoped to be a magazine illustrator, but was interested in "school dramatics" while in high school.  She participated in Sock N' Buskin and played the role of "Eva" in "Uncle Tom's Cabin" while at Pelham Memorial High School.  Freeman played to critical acclaim in "Uncle Tom's Cabin."  The local newspaper reported that "Mona Freeman showed splendid theatrical capabilities."

Blessed with stunning beauty, in May 1941, Mona Freeman was selected as New York City's first "Miss Subways" in a contest judged by the John Robert Powers modeling agency.  It was Mona Freeman's big break.  She became a sought-after professional teenage model.

The Contest That Started It All.  Subway Poster Reflecting

the Selection of "Lovely New Yorker Mona Freeman" as the

Winner of the "MEET MISS SUBWAYS" Contest of May, 1941.

Note the Prescient Acclamation:  "Broadway and Hollywood

Please Note!"  NOTE:  Click Image to Enlarge.

Mona Freeman began modeling clothing for teenagers.  Her photograph appeared in several catalogs.  She participated in Westchester County and Pelham fashion shows, modeling clothing on the runway with other young women of the area.  See, e.g., Fashion Crimes To Be Disclosed, The Pelham Sun, Mar. 20, 1942, p. 7, col. 4 (referencing "Mona Freeman of Pelham" as one of the models for the "Teen Age Group" at a fashion show hosted by the "Junior Advisory Committee of Arnold Constable, Westchester").

According to tradition, as Mona Freeman's modeling career bloomed, reclusive billionaire Howard Hughes saw a photograph of her and, based solely on that photograph, signed her to an acting contract without meeting her in person.  Thereafter, according to one account:

"Howard Hughes signed her to play the stepdaughter of Barbara Stanwyck in 'Double Indemnity,' but she was replaced when tests showed she looked too young.  The same thing happened when Mona was borrowed for a role in 'National Velvet,' at MGM.  The chain of bad breaks was broken, however, when she won the cute part of Irene Dunne's daughter in 'Together Again,' at Columbia.  She played Peggy Ann Garner's older sister in 'unior Miss' at 20th Century-Fox and went to Warner's for a role in 'Danger Signal."  In short, Mona Freeman began finding success playing so-called teenage ingenue roles.

Soon after signing Mona Freeman, Howard Hughes reportedly sold her contract to Paramount.  According to another account, Mona Freeman was able to cancel the contract with Howard Hughes and purportedly walked into the Paramount Studios and demanded a job.  In any event, Mona Freeman soon had a seven-year contract with the studio. 

Mona Freeman, Featured on the Cover of

the June 1945 Issue of Coronet Magazine.

NOTE:  Click Image To Enlarge.

In those early years, Mona Freeman's mother was her chaperone in Hollywood.  As they worked to further her acting career, they stayed together in the St. Frances Hotel on Hollywood Boulevard.  Pelham's local newspaper followed Freeman's early years in Hollywood and trumpeted each development in her career in a sort of "small town girl makes good" way.  At the time, young Mona Freeman worked to further her education, working each day in a classroom with two other students for three hours each day.  In those early years she seemed to miss Pelham and her friends.  According to one account:  "In a letter to one of her friends, Mona stated that she misses Pelham.  'Hollywood is a swell place to make money, but that is all."

Mona Freeman matured into an experienced Hollywood Star.  She played significant roles in a large number of films including:  Here Come the Waves (1944); Till We Meet Again (1944); Together Again (1944); Danger Signal (1945); Roughly Speaking (1945); Junior Miss (1945); Our Hearts Were Growing Up (1946); Black Beauty (1946); That Brennan Girl (1946); Variety Girl (1947); Mother Wore Tights (1947); Dear Ruth (1947); Isn't It Romantic? (1948); The Heiress (1949); Dear Wife (1949); Streets of Laredo (1949); Branded (1950); Copper Canyon (1950); I Was a Shoplifter (1950); Dear Brat (1951); The Lady from Texas (1951); Darling How Could You! (1951); Flesh and Fury (1952); Jumping Jacks (1952); Thunderbirds (1952); The Greatest Show on Earth (1952); Angel Face (1953); Before I Wake (1954); Battle Cry (1955); The Road to Denver (1955); Men Against Speed (1956); Huk (1956); The Way Out (1956); Shadow of Fear (1956); Shadow of Fear (1956); Dragoon Wells Massacre (1957); The World Was His Jury (1958); Welcome Home, Johnny Bristol (1971). She was active in the film industry from the 1940s until the early 1970s.

In addition, Ms. Freeman acted in more than eighty television shows. She acted in episodes of such television series as Wagon Train and Perry Mason.

Mona Freeman Featured in a Glamorous Max Factor

Cosmetics Advertisement.  NOTE:  Click Image to Enlarge.

In 1945, Mona Freeman married wealthy Hollywood automobile dealer Patrick W. Nerney.  She was nineteen.  He was twenty-five.  In 1947, Mona was pregnant while filming the movie "Mother Wore Tights."  Her daughter Mona Freeman, known as "Monie," was born in Los Angeles on October 25, 1947.  Monie also became an actress.  

On September 26, 1952, Mona Freeman was divorced from Patrick Nerney.  Thereafter she dated entertainment lawyer Greg Bautzer, hotel heir Nicky Hilton, and singers Frank Sinatra and Vic Damone.  She later dated Bing Crosby after the death of his wife, Dixie Lee.  At about the same time, she also dated actor Robert Wagner.  In June 1961, however, Mona Freeman married Los Angeles businessman H. Jack Ellis.  

Her second husband, H. Jack Ellis, died a little more than 20 years ago.  At the time of her death at the age of 87 on May 23, 2014 at her home in Beverly Hills, California, Mona Freeman had a daughter from her first marriage, Mona Nerney Hubbell, as well as six children and two-great grandchildren.

Movie Poster in French Language for 1950 Movie "Branded"

Starring Alan Ladd and Mona Freeman.

NOTE:  Click Image to Enlarge.

1956 "Half Sheet" 22" x 58" Movie Poster

for Shadow of Fear Starring Mona Freeman.

NOTE:  Click Image to Enlarge.

*          *          *           *          *

I have written briefly about Mona Freeman of Pelham before.  See Wednesday, March 22, 2006 Mona Freeman, Glamour Girl of the Silver Screen, Lived in Pelham.  Below is the text of a number of articles that address Mona Freeman's time in the Town of Pelham.  Each is followed by a citation to its source.

"Delightful Presentation Of 'Snow White' Offered By Pupils Of Schools
-----
Talented Young Cast Stages Well Known Fairy Tale in Auditorium of the Siwanoy School.
-----

Pupils of Siwanoy and Colonial Schools successfully presented Rose Tyleman's version of 'Snow White' before an appreciative audience in the Siwanoy School auditorium last Friday night.  Snow White was delightfully portrayed by Margaret Collette; while Donald Roberts, Herbert Vaughan, Ernest Malnati, Norman Winter, Anthony Austin, James Page and Charles Cornell gave a realistic portrayal of the famous Seven Dwarfs.

Other major roles in the production, the cast of which numbered 78 pupils of the two schools, were played by Mona Freeman as the Good Queen and Joan Marvin as the Bad Queen; Robert Burrows, the Prince; Alan Seldner, the Page; John Glore, the King; Dorothy Burgess, the little Girl; Martha Brown, the Voice, and Robert Campbell, the Messenger.

Also included in the cast were Carol Conant, Helen V. Markey, Edith Cory, Nancy Lee Swift, Judith Freedman, Barbara Jai, Barbara Jean White, Ethel Alice Miller, Elizabeth Ann Blottman, Edna Pickard, Jean O'Neill, Vivian Deruka, Bessie Kellogg, Jacqueline Walker, Eleanor Coombs, Maureen McGee, Phyllis Derby, Nancy Messinger and John Henningsen.

Also, George Evert, Robert Alcivan, Sally Condon, Alevell Dugger, Deborah Drummond, Francis Dutch, Edward Gilmartin, Susan Hackers, Frances Janet Gore, Mary Jane Littell, Elaine Kennedy, Robert Luce, Anne Neilson, Suzanne Noble, Sally Stevens, Kimball Williams, Barbara Anderson, Martha Brown, Iola Case, Helene Derby, Ellen Glaser, Antoinette Fitzsimmons, Peter Hadley, Jeanne McConnochie, Sheila McGee, James McIlhenny, Caroline Powers, Hope Redington, Gerald Reilly, George Tully, Joyce Walker and Lillian Zernoske.

Malcolm McCoy was stage manager for the production assisted by Robert Jordon and Robert Bosworth.  Alan Zimmerman was electrician, assisted by Edwin Golding."

Source:  Delightful Presentation Of 'Snow White' Offered By Pupils Of Schools -- Talented Young Cast Stages Well Known Fairy Tale in Auditorium of the Siwanoy School, The Pelham Sun, May 13, 1938, p. 10, cols. 1-3.  See also Siwanoy and Colonial School Pupils Will Present 'Snow White' On Friday -- Talented Young Cast Will Offer Stage Version of Well Known Fairy Tale in School Auditorium, The Pelham Sun, Apr. 29, 1938, Vol. 29, No. 4, Second Section, p. 1, cols. 3-4.  

"School Production Of 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' Proves Delightful Performance
-----

Truly one of the most delightful performances to be staged in the Pelhams by a theatrical group was the production of 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' staged in the auditorium of Pelham Memorial High School on Friday night by the talented members of Sock & Buskin, school dramatic society.  The play was presented in a manner typical of such a performance given in the year 1875, and the young members of the cast appeared to be fully mindful of the tradition which was theirs to uphold and the performance was a credit to themselves and to their director W. Francis Scott.

In the old favorite roles, 'Uncle Tom' and 'Little Eva,' Harry Jackson and Mona Freeman showed splendid theatrical capabilities.  Louise Fischer as the distressed 'Eliza,' James Leahy as Phineas Fletcher, her white champion, and John Pugh as the generous-hearted St. Clair dendeared themselves to the audience in a proper manner.  Miriam Holzheimer as the straight-laced 'Ophelia' was amusing and properly tender-hearted when pity for the slave 'Topsy' required it.

As 'Topsy,' Frances Ingalls ran away with the show if any one did, as could be expected.  Miss Ingalls showed a full appreciation of her roleand was a delight every moment she was on the stage.  This performance, particularly attracted the younger audience which viewed the production in an afternoon matinee last Thursday.

There were some real rogues in the roles of the villainous 'Simon' (Edward Cudmore), and 'Haley' (Clinton Kenney), and throughout the cast the high school students gave an excellent performance, which was augmented by chorus singing under the leadership of Albert J. Fregans, head of the Music Department of the school.

Even the ever-looked for mechanics of the production, Eliza crossing the ice and the ascent of Little Eva into Heaven, were accomplished in fitting style.  True it is that the Great Danes wo were pressed into the roles of the bloodhounds failed to show a proper appreciation of the need for speed in chasing Eliza across the ice, and it is said that 'Eva' had difficulties in making her ascent at a dress rehearsal.  These only added to the enjoyment of the play.  

Other members of the cast included:  David Cole, Albert Jeffcoat, Weston Roberts, John Graziadei, Stephen Lee, Fred Landenberger, Murray Lifschitz, Robert Schuster Jr., John Kreuter, Jerome Conkling, William Burrows, William Hawley, Herbert McLear, Irving Lyon, Kenneth Moore, Bruce Parker, Peter Haackes, Richard Tomset.

Also, Marilyn Lange, Gloria Sisti, Gretchen Fuller, Mary Hurley, June Bevan and Betty Lou Scott.  

Even the program followed the old type theatre bill, and it described the high school auditorium as the 'Pelham Opera House,' Messrs. Brown and Fairclough, owners and managers.  The audience was requested to follow its natural inclinations, 'To applaud Virtue in distress and to reward villainy at appropriate moments in the drama.'  With great glee the audience followed the suggestion and never was a villain hissed so generously as 'Simon Legree.'  

Included in the choral group were Toni Hemmenway, M'Liss Mentley, Betty Ridout, Lorraine Doyle, Gretchen Fuller, Anna Mastrangelo, Catherine Deck, Jean Deck, Claire Cudmore, Ellen Bristol, Elaine Ackley, Nancy Gay Robb, Helen Seibert, Beverly Nash, Priscilla Peters, Gertrude Gill, Sarah Babcock, Helen Stone, Jane Dickerson, Shirley Hawthorne and Ann Smillie."

Source:  School Production Of "Uncle Tom's Cabin" Proves Delightful Performance, The Pelham Sun, Apr. 11, 1941, p. 11, cols. 5-6.  See also SELECT CAST FOR SCHOOL SHOWING OF FAMOUS PLAY -- Many Talented Young Thespians Will be Seen in Production of 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' at High School, The Pelham Sun, Mar. 14, 1941, p. 7, col. 2; "UNCLE TOM" TO BE PRESENTED IN OLD TIME STYLE -- High School Dramatic Society Will Present Historic Old Play Thursday Afternoon and Friday Night, The Pelham Sun, Mar. 28, 1941, p. 8, col. 5.  

"Miss Freeman To Act As Model In Fashion Display
-----

Miss Mona Freeman of Carol avenue will act as one of the 'junior miss' models at the fashion show sponsored by the Junior Consumer Advisory Committee for Arnold Constable this afternoon at 3:45 o'clock.

'Crimes in Fashion' is the title of the novel fashion display which is to be presented at Locust Arms restaurant, Locust avenue, New Rochelle.  The clothes selected have been chosen by team members who will explain the reasons for their choice and will act as commentators.  The audience will try to find the 'fashion crime', glaring or subtle, in each case.

Mrs. Anne Albee, fashion director of Arnold Constable will be the judge."

Source:  Miss Freeman To Act As Model In Fashion Display, The Pelham Sun, Mar. 20, 1942, p. 4, col. 4.  

"Tales of Three VILLAGES. . . 

Should be Bridled.

We are in favor of muzzling or rationing some publicity agents.  Currently we have been besieged with inquiries as to why we have not published the story about Miss Mona Freeman of Pelham Manor, who, to quote the press agents, 'walked into a producer's office in Hollywood, asked for a job and was engaged right away.'  That type of publicity gives an entirely false impression to a lot of Hollywood adolescent aspirants and might cause some of them to try and do likewise.  Miss Freeman's good looks had caused her to be in demand by illustrators as a model for some time prior to her departure for Hollywood.  She was under contract to Howard Hughes when she went to the Coast last August, and it was not until she was able to cancel the Hughes contract that Paramount gave her a job.  We gleaned that information from a letter received from her by a Pelham friend.  Hollywood is full of good lookers, but the producers require something more -- an aptitude for hard work, sustained effort and a willingness to learn."

Source:  Tales of Three VILLAGES . . . Should be Bridled, The Pelham Sun, Nov. 11, 1943, Vol. 33, No. 32, p. 2, cols. 3-4.  

"MONA FREEMAN GETS HOLLYWOOD CONTRACT
By Aline Collins, 9-B

Not long ago the startling news that Mona Freeman was in Hollywood reached the ears of her Westchester friends.  The residents of Pelham, particularly the students of Pelham High, were filled with pride to think that one of their former members was now signed to a seven-year contract with Paramount.

Mona had attended Colonial School and her first big role was in 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,' a Colonial and Siwanian [sic] school play.  After graduating from Colonial, Mona entered Pelham High where she played the part of 'Eva' in 'Uncle Tom's Cabin.'  In May, 1941, she started modeling for John Powers, and in the same month she was chosen as 'Miss Subway,' of New York.  Miss Freeman has done photographic work only, modeling teenage clothes for several catalogs.  

She was in a picture with Barbara Stanwyck, but after a few weeks the studio decided that she looked too young to play as rival opposite Miss Stanwyck.  However, Mona now has a small part in 'Tomorrow's Harvest.'

Mrs. Freeman is also in Hollywood acting as Mona's chaperone, and they are staying at the St. Frances Hotel on Hollywood Boulevard.  Mona is back in school; being one of the three people in the class, and only for three hours a day.

In a letter to one of her friends, Mona stated that she misses Pelham.  'Hollywood is a swell place to make money, but that is all.'"

Source: Collins, Aline, MONA FREEMAN GETS HOLLYWOOD CONTRACT, The Pelham Sun, Nov. 23, 1943, Vol. 33, No. 34, p. 2, col. 2.  

"Tales of Three VILLAGES
-----
On Way to Stardom

Mona Freeman, who is under contract to a motion picture concern in Hollywood, is doing very well.  The Pelham girl, according to Richard Berger, producer for RKO, is a great success in her first picture, which will be on this market within a short time.  Mrs. Berger, the former Sherry Pelham, writes to her parents, Mr. and Mrs. T. M. Kennett of Linden Avenue, that Mona has stardom 'potentialities.'

Incidentally, Sherry Berger will be home from Hollywood for Christmas."

Source:  Tales of Three VILLAGES -- On Way to Stardom, The Pelham Sun, Nov. 22, 1944, Vol. 35, No. 32, p. 2, cols. 3-4.  

"Tales of Three VILLAGES
-----

She Went Through The Air -- 

Ammouncement of the wedding of Mona Freeman, former resident of Pelham but now a Hollywood star, was made at the Peltowners Pub one day last week and it moved Richey Unger to stretch his right arm aloft and exclaim dramatically:  'No more will Mona have to be pulled up to heaven on a wire.'  He was referring to Mona's earliest dramatics at Memorial High School when she played the part of Little Eva in Uncle Tom's Cabin and was hoisted heavenward on wires."

Source:  Tales of Three VILLAGES -- She Went Through The Air, The Pelham Sun, Oct. 11, 1945, Vol. 36, No. 26, p. 2, col. 3.  

"Mona Freeman's Movie Star, Now Ascendant, Predicted As One Of Five Great Stars Of Tomorrow
-----

Charles Samuels in his 'Stars of Tomorrow,' published recently, chooses five personalities as most likely to head the movie bills of the next decade.

Mona Freeman, Pelham High School graduate and star of school plays, is one of the five.  He writes of her as follows:

'Tiny Mona Freeman who is as pretty as a Christmas postcard -- and almost as small -- is just beginning to get the breaks she deserves.  Mona is 19 years old and comes from a nice family, but her people lost everything in the depression.

'She was a Powers model four years ago when Howard Hughes signed her to play the stepdaughter of Barbara Stanwyck in 'Double Indemnity,' but she was replaced when tests showed she looked too young.  The same thing happened when Mona was borrowed for a role in 'National Velvet,' at MGM.  

'The chain of bad breaks was broken, however, when she won the cute part of Irene Dunne's daughter in 'Together Again,' at Columbia.  She played Peggy Ann Garner's older sister in 'unior Miss' at 20th Century-Fox and went to Warner's for a role in 'Danger Signal.

'At Paramount she is known as the 'loan-out kid.'  About the only thing she's done on her home lot so far is a small bit as a college vamp in 'Our Hears Were Growing Up.'

'Mona is so very little and young-looking that you can't help being astonished at the maturity of her approach to a Hollywood career.

'I pointed out to Mona that sometimes being borrowed by other studios is a quicker path to stardom than being used at one's own studio because other studios only pick players when they are perfectly suited for parts.

'Mona nodded her head with gravity.

'Nevertheless, I'd like to play on the home grounds once in a while.  That may have its good side, but you get no publicity.  The other studios won't give you a buildup because you're not their actress, and your home lot doesn't because you're not in one of their pictures.'

'I asked her what she expected to get out of stardom?

'Money, first of all,' said Mona, 'but there is something far more important that one finds in Hollywood.  It's an education.  You learn to understand people, learn how to work and live with them.  Then you have a chance to meet the top people in many professions -- writers, artists, actors and craftsmen.  

''I was scared when I came out here, but this is a business, and I intend to know it before I'm finished in Hollywood.  That, most of all, is what one has to learn to understand to succeed in Hollywood -- that you are in a business, not in some wonderful never-never land of dreams.'

'For some reason Mona remainds me of the late, great Carole Lombard.  Carole also was scared when she came to Hollywood, but she learned to live and to act superbly.  I think Mona will too.

'Wally Westmore, who heads Paramount's make-up department, is one of Mona's most enthusiastic supporters.

''You can bet on that little kid,' he told me.  'She has freshness and a wonderful personality.  In my opinion, she'll become a star because she has a deep understanding, young as she is, of human emotions.  She'll always know what she's doing.  She knows that right now, and she's only in her teens.  With her looks, talent and good sense, how can she fail?'"

Source:  Mona Freeman's Movie Star, Now Ascendant, Predicted As One Of Five Great Stars Of Tomorrow, The Pelham Sun, Nov. 8, 1945, Vol. 36, No. 30, p. 3, cols. 4-5.  

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