STACK #159 Jan 2018

EXTRAS FEATURE

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F ollowing her signing with Warner Bros. in late 1937, Susan Hayward was enrolled in the studio’s drama school. Warner’s head coach, Frank Beckwith, was instantly impressed by Susan. She was certainly the most beautiful of his trainees and the most intelligent. Along with other promising WB contract players like Carole Landis, Penny Singleton and Jane Wyman, Susan Hayward was taught to sing, dance, walk and speak dialogue. Beckwith soon identified her as a determined young lady with a will of iron and just a touch of irascibility that he personally found attractive. He had no doubt that Miss Hayward knew what she wanted and intended to get it. She was going to be a star.

Susan Hayward Part 2 - A Star is Born HOLLYWOOD'S GOLDENAGE Forgotten Stars of

At Warner Bros. Susan Hayward posed for hundreds of studio photo shots. A furious Hayward would state, "I didn’t come to Hollywood just to damn model."

But the way to the top was not an easy one, for she would have to claw her way step by step to attain her place in movie history. Unlike Lana Turner and Hedy Lamarr, who were made superstars almost overnight, Hayward’s natural talent was totally ignored by the studio moguls. For most of her Warner contract she paid her dues by appearing in “blink and you’ll miss her” bit parts in movies and posing for studio publicity photographs. Her impatience for a lead acting role gained her a reputation for being difficult, strong willed and calculating. She was accused of being "cold as a polar bear’s foot", selfish and temperamental. As a consequence, Warner Bros. did not renew her contract. However, soon after, Paramount Pictures picked up her option and offered her a $250.00 a week contract and a part in the Gary Cooper action film Beau Geste  (1939). It was only a marginal role and Susan had only a few scenes in the opening and closing sequences. But the ferocity she put into her lines of dialogue prompted the director, WilliamWellman, to state: “Good God, they’ve sprung a redheaded Bette Davis on me.” Paramount’s handling of Hayward's career turned out exactly as Warner's had, for her next half dozen films were all minor parts in B-movies. Starring roles were promised but somehow never materialised, and she was dropped from any number of the studio’s major dramatic productions. Studio scuttlebutt was that most of Paramount’s established leading ladies saw Susan’s scene-stealing beauty as a threat, and consequently vetoed her from

Publicity photo for the film Beau Geste . Appearing with Susan Hayward are Robert Preston, Gary Cooper and Ray Milland.

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JANUARY 2018

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