Acting vs. Horses

This week I have talked about Leslie Howard's dislike of acting vs. his love for horses. I am not one of those fortunate people who have spent my life around horses, but I know some who have. And those who have will tell you that people can learn a lot from horses. Horses challenge those who care for them to be better people. And horses are unpredictable. And, of course, horses are beautiful. All these qualities are opposite to Howard's feelings on acting.

Leslie Howard may not have liked acting, but just as he loved the beauty, challenge and unpredictability of horses, I love the beauty of his performances. I wish that Mr. Howard could have appreciated that his acting, for a great many people, was the same as his quiet talk to the horse that needed soothing.

Watching Leslie Howard on the screen is a beautiful thing. Just look at his eyes and you will see his despair after he kills Ace Wilfong (Clark Gable) to protect the woman he loves (Norma Shearer) in A Free Soul (1931). Or feel his resignation with every movement of his hands when he realizes his wife, Cee (Myrna Loy), is manipulating him with sex, not love, to get his money in The Animal Kingdom (1932). See the shock and hurt on his face when Mildred Rogers (Bette Davis) screams the words he feared but always expected to hear, "a cripple, A Cripple, A CRIPPLE," in Of Human Bondage (1934). And then, in just the turning of his head, see his surprise and then disappointment when he realizes that Scarlet (Vivien Leigh) would strip him of all his dignity without a second thought in Gone With The Wind (1939).

I wish that Leslie Howard could have enjoyed acting the way he enjoyed horses. I wish that he had found acting a challenge. I wish that acting for him had not been so predictable and boring. And I wish that Mr. Howard had realized the beauty in his performances and how much they meant to his fans then and how much they would still be enjoyed nearly 100 years later by people like me. I wish that Leslie Howard had realized that in his acting there was artistry.

Have a fantastic weekend everyone!

[Leslie Howard by Reginald G. Eves]

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"Winkie"

In Leslie Howard: Trivial Fond Records, a book containing the writings of Leslie Howard, Howard tells a story of the first time his son, at the age of nine, visits him in the theater, long before Howard made his way to Hollywood and the movies. His son was Ronald Howard, aka "Winkie," who became an actor himself.

Howard recalls that his son, upon entering his dressing room, commented on how small, poorly furnished and dirty it was. Winkie wanted to know why his dad didn't have a dressing room like the movie stars. His father tried to explain that everyone connected to the movies had a lot more money than was available in the theater. Of course, Winkie wanted to know why his dad wasn't in the movies. Movie actors had much bigger houses--bigger than theirs. He also wanted to know why his dad's name wasn't on the marquee outside. Leslie Howard was beginning to see that his son thought his profession undignified and poorly paid.

Winkie watched as Howard applied his makeup, commenting that he would hate to have to put that "stuff" all over his face everyday. At that point the stage manager came into the room to advise Mr. Howard that in Act I he had called the bartender George instead of Charles. Because his son was watching, instead of saying what he normally would have said, he apologized and admitted how terrible it was that he had made this error. When the stage manager left the room Winkie asked him if he had to say the same words every day, over and over again. "Holy smoke," he exclaimed, "I wonder you don't go cuckoo!"

What Howard wanted to say was, "I do go cuckoo, my lad. After the first few weeks of saying the same things night after night even the substitution of George for Charles is a holiday." But what he actually said was, "A play is a work of art conceived by an artist and every word counts." Howard told his son he would realize this after he had watched his performance, to which Winkie replied, "Have I got to see it?" "Isn't that what you came for?" asked his father. "Well, no," his son explained apologetically. I came to get 75 cents to see The Student Prince."

[Leslie Howard with his son, Ronald]

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Leslie Howard, Horse Whisperer?

Leslie Howard had a horse named Betty. Betty was a thoroughbred but had fallen and broken her hip during a game of polo. But Leslie Howard took pity on Betty and bought her a field in England for her to live out her days.

One problem. Getting her on the boat. As Howard tells the story:

At the time that Betty was being shipped away to pastures new, there was a big dock strike and scabs were working to load the boat and great crowds had gathered, about two thousand strong, at the pier to watch things generally. A friend of mine who is very good with horses promised to look after Betty and as soon as I had finished a picture, or something, I promised to get down. 

They had tried for two hours, with this enormous gallery, to get her into the cradle, that coop-like contraption for carrying live stock from the dock to the boat, but no one could get her near the thing and it got to be pretty embarrassing. Just as soon as they worked her close she'd shy off and that was that. 

Finally I came along and found the situation fairly desperate, from their point of view. I could see the horse was simply frightened and needed some intimate conversation to take her mind off her troubles. So I walked her up and down the pier a bit and spoke soothingly to her all the time, and then I'd edge her nearer and nearer the cradle, always making sure that my body obstructed her view. She calmed down and in no time--just two minutes to be exact--I had her backed into the thing, the gate was quickly clamped down and she was on her way.

[Leslie Howard with three of his polo ponies]

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So Why Act?

Leslie Howard was one of the few actors in Hollywood during the "studio system" to refuse long-term contracts. He had a specific idea of the types of pictures he wanted to make and he didn't want to be forced to do films he thought were beneath the audience. Howard took on the roles that other actors refused--roles they said the audience wouldn't understand. But Howard thought the audience was smarter than previously believed and that they wanted something different.

Howard wanted to direct. He wanted to make pictures that challenged the audience. He had written, produced and directed plays in school and on the stage in London and New York. He thought that to be a successful movie director "one should either write the story or collaborate on it." He didn't see his acting performances as accomplishments at all. But the plotting of pictures "according to scenic effects and camera angles" and seeing this through to production, that was an accomplishment. Acting was just a means to an end.

[Leslie Howard directing Spitfire, aka
The First of the Few, 1942]

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The Horsy Mr. Howard

Leslie Howard once said, "Polo is living, much more than acting is."

Howard didn't much care for acting. As a matter of fact, he said that "acting isn't a profession for men. It's much better for women. It's an outlet for emotion..." And Howard did not like to show emotion. His performances are known for his nuanced style. He was known as the "thinker's actor." One reporter noted that while watching him film Of Human Bondage (1934) with Bette Davis the only difference she could see in his acting between the first take and the fiftieth take was that by the fiftieth take he seemed bored. But he did act.

During the 1930's Howard was considered to be one of the consistently best actors in Hollywood and was nominated for two Best Actor Oscars, one for Berkeley Square (1933) and one for his portrayal of Henry Higgins in Pygmalion (1938). When Rex Harrison was asked how he won the Best Actor Oscar for the same role in My Fair Lady (1964) he stated he merely played Leslie Howard. Howard was always in demand by leading ladies and he was a favorite of studio executives. His peers thought he should have won the Oscar for his performance as Peter Standish in Berkeley Square. Back in those days the winner was announced along with the runners up in order of votes. When Charles Laughton was announced the winner of the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933), the audience applause was muted with one watcher stating they "sat on their hands." When Leslie Howard was announced as runner up, however, the audience roared.

[Leslie Howard on the polo field]

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