She returned to the subject at least twice more; Her comments on the topic were discussed in Stephen Sharot's February 15, 2022 essay "Hollywood is a Woman's Town’: Masculinity and the Leading Man in American Fan Magazines of the 1930s", published at the Wiley Online Library:
Helen Louise Walker provided evidence that Hollywood was a woman's town from interviews with male stars. Gable is quoted as saying that the differences in salaries say it all: ‘feminine glamor, appeal, whatever you choose to call it, is worth more at the box office than anything a man can offer. Nearly all of the well-known women in Hollywood earn more money, per week, than men do’, and in a town where women earn more money than men ‘things get all topsy-turvy’. An unnamed ‘leading man’ under contract to MGM complained that a man's reward for achieving a big following at the box office was that he was ‘allowed to support one of the important women stars!’ Somewhat circumscribed statements of the female influence were provided by Errol Flynn who stated that, ‘there is probably no other place where men discuss their business and professional affairs with women as freely and as fully as they do here’, and by Humphrey Bogart who mumbled that the men let the women think that they control them. Walker's conclusion was that ‘women rule Hollywood pretty conclusively—and that men like it’.
The following images were taken by Ray Jones, probably in the early 1930s, and show Walker with actor John Boles. The snipe on the back of each photo reads: "Miss Helen Louise Walker, on the staff of Motion Pictures Publications, interviews John Boles, Universal's singing star" [Source: eBay]. Mainly a portrait photographer, Jones was the head of Universal's stills department in the 1920s into the early 1930s (he later worked for Paramount) and was the uncredited stills photographer for THE MUMMY.
MODERN SCREEN February 1937 "Is Hollywood a Woman's Town?" by Helen Louise Walker:
SILVER SCREEN October 1939 "How Women Rule the Men in Hollywood" by Helen Louise Walker:
Gable's comment about women commanding the higher salaries has also been made about the adult film industry. Of course, it has to be weighed against women's potentially shorter screen careers, certainly for those who leaned more heavily upon their glamour.
ReplyDeleteI'd agree with that. Many "fading" actresses resorted to seclusion and lived out their lives. Gloria Swanson was at least one exception who returned to the screen for Sunset Boulevard, a role perfectly suited to her aging beauty.
ReplyDeleteA lucky few were able to transition from starlet (possibly even beginning as a child actor), move into the young romantic lead and slowly transition into older roles. But as you say, it wasn't the norm.
DeleteIt was certainly easier for male actors. I've just written a magazine feature on The Thin Man (1934) and its sequels, and no one batted an eyelid that William Powell (41 during filming) was married to Myrna Loy (28). Even Cary Grant thought it absurd that Charade (1963) cast him (aged 59) opposite Audrey Hepburn (34), or Father Goose (1964) married him off to Leslie Caron (33), and quit before the audience began to signal its agreement.
Loved The Thin Man pictures. Poor William Powell :)!
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