Minnesota Walk of Fame

When I visited Warren William’s home town of Aitkin, Minnesota a few years ago, I spoke with one of the archivists at the Aitkin County Historical Society. He mentioned that he was in touch with the man who was responsible for choosing people to be enshrined in the Minnesota Walk of Fame, and that Warren William was not being considered for the honor. As is quite common, the committee insisted that Warren William was not well known, when of course, what they meant was that THEY did not know him. I decided that I should make the effort to advocate on Warren’s behalf, and to that end, I sent the committee this letter: 

 

It is true, Warren William is not as famous as some other Minnesota natives. Bob Dylan, Winona Ryder and Prince (Rogers Nelson) spring to mind. But the job of the historian and record keeper is not to celebrate only those we know today, but to educate the public about why we should remember those long gone. If we left it up to the public to keep the record, how long would it be before Sauk Center’s Sinclair Lewis was consigned to oblivion? Or F. Scott Fitzgerald? Or God forbid, Walter Mondale? 

Warren William Krech was born in 1894 in Aitkin to a lineage – the Krechs and the Potters – who helped found and build the town. He served in France during the Great War, then moved to New York where for 10 years he starred on the Manhattan stage during the Golden Age of Broadway – the era that brought us Eugene Oneill, Rodgers and Hart, and Cole Porter – before Warner Brothers signed him to a movie contract in 1931.

Within a year of his arrival at Warner Brothers he was a star. Not a second lead or character player, but a genuine STAR – a leading man for a who’s who of classic Hollywood: Bette Davis, Rita Hayworth, Mae West, Mary Astor, Barbara Stanwyck and many others. During his five years with Warner Brothers he headlined over 30 movies, including three that were nominated for Best Picture Oscars. His career took him to virtually every studio: Columbia, Paramount, 20th Century Fox and the gold standard of film making in the 1930′s, MGM. He was Ceasar in Cecil B. DeMille’s Cleopatra, played Sam Spade in The Maltese Falcon before Humphrey Bogart adopted the role, was the first man to play Perry Mason in any media, and starred in the film where Errol Flynn made his debut. By the time he passed away in 1948, he had made almost 70 movies, including some true classics.

When the Screen Actor’s Guild started in 1933, Warren William was one of a small handful of people at the meeting. He was the 61st member of the guild which now boasts 120,000 members, and served on the Board multiple times. His charity work is legendary, and (a rarity) one would be hard pressed to find a member of the Hollywood community who had something bad to say about him.

Shortly after Warren’s death, the Hollywood Walk of Fame was established, and he was one of the ORIGINAL stars in the very first installation made in 1960. His star resides at 1559 Vine Street.

Please consider that it is a great responsibility to be the arbiter of remembrance and forgetting. The public may not know about the past, and be uncaring – but if they are educated, you might just discover how important they think some things are. Warren William is a Minnesotan and a star. It stands to reason then, that his star should shine brightest in Minnesota.

Warren William still does not have a star on the Minnesota Walk of Fame. In the near future, I’m going to be researching what it will take to get our favorite scoundrel his recognition in Minneapolis. More to come… 

 

If Warren William can make it on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, he certainly should be honored by his home state of Minnesota.

At last!

I can finally say that the book is DONE - author copies of Magnificent Scoundrel were waiting for me when I staggered home last night after 12 hours at the shop. Although it didn’t feel as thrilling or exciting  as I might have wished, I felt the immense satisfaction (and pride) of having finished the project and thrown it out into the world. Two people I’d like to thank for the accomplishment of this moment are no longer with us. One is my friend Rich Vitone, who introduced me to the films of Warren William about six years ago, thereby setting in motion a chain of events that led to this book. The other is Warren William himself – not just for the enjoyment and pleasure I’ve had watching his movies, but for his being the kind of person who earned my repect and admiration, and as a result, kept me going throughout the process. I truly enjoyed hanging out with him these last four years, and I’m very glad to be the person who is bringing him back into the public eye in some small way. 

Congratulations, Warren - you deserve it.

Magnificent Scoundrel is IN PRINT!

After four years of research, writing and waiting, Warren William: Magnificent Scoundrel of Pre-Code Hollywood is PUBLISHED AND IN PRINT! McFarland Books has listed it as being “available for immediate shipment,” although some other on-line retailers might be lagging behind them a bit. Barnes & Noble has it scheduled for a November 21st release (possibly the lag until they receive books from McFarland), and Amazon has not listed it as “just published” quite yet. To get a copies, go to: McFarland, Amazon or Barnes and Noble (who are now offering a 10% discount). At signings, I’ll be offering the book with an exclusive author plate featuring artwork by yours truly.

At home in a boardroom or a bedroom, a conglomerate or a con game: the late, great Warren William.

Ebook and print editions

I just heard that the ebook version of Magnificent Scoundrel will be available through Kindle, although just WHEN it will be available is another matter. They can drag their feet quite a bit, I’m told. It will also be available through Google Editions, when that long-delayed service is up and running. The print edition is on press as we speak, and will hopefully be available by next week!

William and Davis: Enemies, A Love Story

Here’s another FREE episode of the classic radio series Gulf Screen Guild Theater featuring Warren William. The story is ”A Woman’s Face” also with Bette Davis and Conrad Veidt, based on the 1941 movie starring Joan Crawford. Follow the link and click on episode 100: A Woman’s Face

And, to explain the title of this post:

Much has been made of the supposedly stormy relationship between Bette Davis and Warren William, mostly by Miss Davis herself. In various places she and her biographers have characterized him as a wolf, a letch and a ego-maniacal Satyr, something utterly alien to any other observation of the man I have encountered. The real story may never be known, but in Magnificent Scoundrel I do my best to cover the available facts, and there is simply nothing to corroborate Ms. Davis’ story about Warren’s behavior. I can tell you this; her antipathy towards him – dating from 1932 – did not stop her from working with him many more times (inside and outside the industry), including this 1942 production. Check the book (now slated for early November release) for more details.

This publicity shot for "Satan Met a Lady" visualizes Bette Davis' image of her co-star, Warren William.

Amazon pre-orders

By the way – Magnificent Scoundrel is back up for pre-order at Amazon.com. You can get your copy here: WWATAMAZON

Going to Press

Magnificent Scoundrel is going to press as early as this Monday, October 25th. Once I have a solid street date, I’ll advise here and on Twitter. Sign on to the handle “magnificentcad” at  Twitter for updates.

Amazon pre-orders of Magnificent Scoundrel

Just a quick line to let everyone know that Warren William: Magnificent Scoundrel of Pre-Code Hollywood will be out within a few short weeks. Amazon recently cancelled pre-orders for the book, presumably because it missed thier own arbitrarily generated in-house release date by more than six weeks! FEAR NOT – I’m working with McFarland to get it back up as soon as possible, and I hope you’ll all re-pre-order in the coming days. More info as it becomes available!

The Wolf Man on AMC, October 24th

The Wolf Man is almost certainly the Warren William film most frequently seen by modern audiences,  but sadly very few remember him in it. Whenever I’m wrangled into a conversation about Warren William, people invariably get a blank look on their face and ask “what was he in?” My first choice (depending on the age of the person) is usually to mention The Wolf Man. It appears on TV every Halloween with metronomic regularity and Warren is billed second, only behind Claude Rains. It’s no wonder people forget him though - he has an utterly thankless role. As Dr. Lloyd he walks on, pontificates about psychiatry or lycanthropy for a few moments, then disappears for long stretches of the narrative. It isn’t until I prompt people - “His throat! RIPPED out by the bite of powerful teeth!” - that they shake their heads in semi-cognizant recognition. If you want to catch a great cast (Warren, Claude Rains, Lon Chaney Jr., Ralph Bellamy and Maria Ouspenskaya) in a horror classic, tune in to AMC this Sunday, October 24th at 6:15 AM (EST), for The Wolf Man!

Warren William radio drama

During Warren William’s 17 years in Hollywood he spent a lot of time on the infant medium of broadcast radio. Besides his 1940′s series Strange Wills, Warren appeared on the Fleishman’s Yeast Hour, the Kraft Music Hall, the Shell Chateau Program and many others. The Gulf Screen Guild Theater was among his favorites, appearing there three times (1940, 1942 and 1947). The program often featured the top film stars of the day recreating their screen successes for radio audiences. Most stars (Warren included) donated their appearance fees to the Motion Picture Relief Fund, which operated the Motion Picture Home for retired actors and actresses. Through the magic of the internet, you can hear at least two of Warren’s classic Gulf programs for free, with just the click of a button. Today’s long unheard Warren William performance is from Winter in Paris, also featuring two of Warren’s movie co-stars, Don Ameche and Maureen O’Sullivan. The original broadcast is from March 3rd, 1940.  GULF’S “WINTER IN PARIS” 

And check back for a link to Warren’s appearance with Bette Davis in A Woman’s Face later this week!