Franchot's Association with the Group Theater, Part 2

Franchot left the Group for Hollywood (click here for part one of this story), but he continued to support them. Harold Clurman wrote that Franchot's financial generosity funded much of the Group's script purchases and productions.

Franchot wrote to Harold that the Group had been ¨the most important influence¨ in his life, but that he deeply loved Joan Crawford and intended to remain with her in Hollywood. Franchot knew that the Group members judged him for his decision, yet they also came to him frequently for money, the same money he made from the Hollywood career choices on which they judged him. Clurman recalled spending afternoons with Franchot and Joan when he visited California:

Franchot was happy to play the host to his companions of old. To him we were clean spirits who brought light and warmth into his almost locked heart. Joan Crawford, a good sport, wanted to make friends with Franchot's friends. She thought at times of appearing on the stage, an ambition perhaps stimulated by Franchot. She wished to be able to follow him in all his steps, so that he might not be included to wander too far from hers.

In the afternoon we would chat, mostly about the theatre, play badminton, swim in the pool, dine, and see a picture in the projection-room, right off the pool. It was quite a pleasant routine that we followed almost every time we visited them. Once, while I lay afloat in the pool, basking lazily in the Sunday sun, Franchot observed me with friendly malice and remarked: “The life of a prostitute is pretty comfortable, isn’t it?”

Often, Franchot would take a loss on his investments with the Group. Clurman remembered:

He wanted to know about his failure to realize any money on Awake and Sing, and I tried not to be sheepish in admitting our mismanagement. He did not take the matter amiss however (in these questions he always alternated between peevishness and indulgence). Basically Franchot was an idealist, and he still idealized Lee Strasberg and me. Though in the long run there is more peril than pleasure in being idealized, I was at the moment the beneficiary of Franchot’s warmest hospitality. I was the (awkward) prophet of a religion centered in the theatre. Franchot’s wife, Joan Crawford, was prepared to believe. Some day, Franchot intimidated, he would return to the theatre, and, at the time, theatre was synonymous to him with the Group.

Franchot's return to the Group-1939's The Gentle People

The success of Golden Boy strengthened Franchot's desires to return to the stage, or as Clurman put it, Franchot ¨glowed in anticipation.¨ Once his marriage to Joan ended, Franchot found himself financing and starring in The Gentle People. Clurman no doubt was eager for Franchot's return to the theater and credited his ¨excellent¨ talent many times over the years, but he also seemed to be banking on the fact that two former Group actors-turned-movie stars (Franchot and Sylvia Sidney) would fill seats whether the play was a hit or not. Although definitely using Franchot's financial and professional reputation for the Group's gain, Clurman did seem to care and worry about Franchot the idealist:

I warned Franchot that he might encounter disappointment in the Group…I suspected that Franchot looked toward the Group with the fondness of a youthful memory. “Franchot, “I said, “promise me that you will stay with us for one year no matter what happens. Give yourself and us a chance.” Franchot looked solemn and uncertain, but he promised.

Franchot threw himself into his work with an eager will. On the whole, he was well pleased with the conduct of rehearsals; his criticisms were affable and slight. When conferences on the progress of The Gentle People were held, I failed to invite him to join them, as it was not our custom to consult members of the cast on production problems of the plays in which they took part. That Franchot was not only one of the leading players but the play’s backer gave him no special privilege in this matter. It was not my intention to snub him in any way, but Irwin Shaw pointed out that, whatever my intention , my behavior was tactless. Franchot, however, bore this with good grace. 

But Franchot was restless, just as he'd been in the year leading up to his departure from the Group and arrival in Hollywood years before. He praised the Group at a speech he gave at the Town Hall Club, saying:

I’d better not get started on the Group,” he began, “because I’ll get emotional about it and then I won’t be able to talk at all...The Group has a well-defined attitude toward human problems and affairs, and while I’m perfectly sure that such a formalized policy as this is by no means necessary to success in the theatre, it is necessary to me.

Still, Franchot turned down Clurman's offer to do the play Quiet City saying that he was too tired to do more than one play at a time. When he was offered My Heart's in the Highlands, Franchot made stipulations before stating that he didn't feel he would do a good job in the role.

When Franchot wouldn't fully commit to the Group in the 1940's, Elia Kazan, Clurman, and others staged a sort of intervention with him. They asked him to commit to them and trust in them and the theater. Franchot asked if they respected him. When they answered that he was the kind of actor they needed, Franchot asked pointedly, ¨But you don't respect the reputation I have made in pictures?¨ Clurman answered, ¨This is not why we want you.¨ Franchot confirmed his fears about the Group when he asked, ¨But you are willing to exploit my name for its commercial value?¨ and Clurman answered, ¨Of course.¨

In his book, Clurman seems misunderstood about why Franchot alternated between complete worship and bitterness in his feelings about the Group, even going so far to say that Franchot ¨built up a case against us in his mind. Perhaps he needed an inner justification for giving us up.¨ I don't believe it's that hard to see why Franchot had mixed feelings about the Group and in all of my own personal research I have only read kind or nostalgic remarks about the Group from Franchot in interviews. As late as 1966 Franchot was praising Lee Strasberg to TV Guide:

Everything I know about acting I learned from Lee Strasberg. At the Group, I learned Strasberg's variant on the Stanislavsky System—that's S-y-s-t-e-m, not Method. Method actors lack discipline. System actors are disciplined. I'm a pretty good actor today only because I've always renewed myself at the feedbag—the theater.

It's clear that Franchot acted out in many ways, but it is also clear that he had some insecurities and wanted to be told he was valued for his own talent. When he wrote to Clurman baring his soul about his deep appreciation for the Group, Franchot probably hoped for a return letter with the same sentiment about himself. Instead, he received a letter requesting money to fund another show. Back in the early 30's, young Franchot had been hurt when Strasberg told him they didn't care that he was leaving for Hollywood; after all, Franchot was secretly hoping for validation (and a personal request to stay with the Group) from this father figure he idealized. It's no surprise that Franchot would be sullen and hurt again in the 1940's when he realized that the Group begging him to come back still didn't fully respect or include him despite now benefiting from his wealth and celebrity status.

Despite this complicated history with the organization, Franchot was proud of his association with the Group and always attributed his passion for acting with the skills and conditioning he gained as a Group member.

You might also be interested in these previous related posts:
Franchot's Association with the Group Theater, Part 1
Franchot and Sylvia Sidney
An Ernest Hemingway Hero
The Gentle People
The Strasbergs Remember Franchot
John Garfield Blogathon

Sources:

• Clurman, Harold. The Fervent Years: The Story of the Group Theatre and the Thirties. Knopf, 1950. 
• Kramer, Joan, David Heeley, Joanne Woodward, Steve Lawson, Stella Adler, Harold Clurmaan, Cheryl Crawford, and Lee Strasberg. Broadway's Dreamers: The Legacy of the Group Theatre. New York, N.Y: PDR Productions, 1994. 
• Lewis, Robert. Slings and Arrows: Theater in My Life. Stein and Day, 1984. 
• Smith, Wendy. Real Life Drama: The Group Theatre and America, 1931-1940. Knopf, 1990.
• "Who Has Ever Had a Better Time?" TV Guide. January 1, 1966. 12-14.

Franchot and Sylvia Sidney

Sylvia Sidney was born on August 8, 1910 in New York and, like Franchot, never abandoned her first love of the theater. In fact, Franchot and Sylvia had a lot of connections throughout the years as you'll see. Sylvia successfully juggled theater, film, and television from the mid-1920's all the way up to her last role the 1998 tv reboot of Fantasy Island. (Sylvia would argue with me that it was simply a "part," not a role...she was particular about that.)

Sylvia is a member, along with Loretta Young and Natalie Wood, of my trio of favorite actresses. I could watch her work without end. I'm fortunate that Franchot worked with all three in his lifetime. I've watched a lot of Sylvia over the last several years and wrote about the Tone-Sidney 1939 play The Gentle People back in 2016 (here.) This summer I finally read Scott O'Brien's biography Sylvia Sidney: Paid by the Tear which I highly recommend. Sylvia was beautiful, driven, talented, and very outspoken. As she grew older, she became especially cantakerous, but sometimes her quips to reporters and fans were delivered with an ounce of humor and mischief. If you've ever watched 1990's interviews of her on Youtube, you know what I am talking about here. Let's just say if I had had the opportunity to meet her, she may have very well made me cry. O'Brien writes that when a fan approached Sylvia in Bloomingdale's and told he had hundreds of photos of her, Sylvia replied, "You're f'***ing crazy! Your house must be a mess!" Reading that passage made me laugh out loud, but if I were that fan, I would've been shocked. Without further ado, all of the Sylvia Sidney photos and play-related scans in this post are from my own collection. I assure you I'm not crazy and my house is mostly tidy.

Sylvia was so much more than a grouchy workaholic (look how exuberant her smile is in the candids above) and O'Brien's biography really delves into her familial and professional experiences and her dedication to her son, dogs, and career. I also think it's telling that Sylvia liked to attend celebratory film events and then criticize its attendees for living in the past. She didn't have to attend these events or be interviewed. But she did and I think it's because she secretly liked it. There were disappointments throughout her life that I believe hardened her shell a bit so that she increasingly spouted these harsh, irascible comments as a shield of protection. As a fan myself, I wish that she would've been more receptive to and outwardly appreciative of her fans' interest in her, but I must admit that I really admire how she lived her life on her own terms. I wish that I had an ounce of the audacity she possessed. 

Like Franchot, Sylvia grew up in a household without financial issues and very early on dedicated herself to being an actor. Both Franchot and Sylvia could've coasted through life, but possessed the drive to embrace their own paths and be discovered through hard work on the stage instead. They would both state how disenchanted the film world made them feel at times and continuously worked at improving their skills while delivering plays with important social messages through the Group Theatre. Both Franchot and Sylvia refused to take fame too seriously and embraced their transformation into character actors. On top of their personal and professional similarities, Franchot and Sylvia simply liked each other.

Ten years before they teamed up for their Group Theatre comebacks in The Gentle People, 24-year old Franchot and 19-year-old Sylvia acted together in Cross Roads. It ran for 28 performances at the Morosco Theatre in November and December 1929. Written by Martin Flavin, the play would be adapted into the 1932 film The Age of Consent. Eric Dressler played a first-year medical student Michael who wants to quit school to marry Pat. When Pat (Sylvia Sidney) wants to wait, Michael is caught in a clandestine evening with a waitress and his life at school and with Pat is threatened.

On November 6, Variety called it a "poignant, wistful little comedy...Excellently acted, the dialog, easy and natural, and it has all been staged superbly." By November 27, the play had grossed $8,500 (Measuringworth.com rates that around 1 million today.) 

The dialogue may have not been the only aspect that came "easy and natural" to its actors. Author O'Brien reveals that Franchot told interviewer Gladys Hall in 1933 that he had been "seriously in love" with a co-star:

We didn't marry, because I felt it would be unfair to the girl. She was very talented. She had a big career ahead of her. We broke it off and she has gone on, as I knew she should. She is a very successful star right now.

Although Franchot didn't name the costar, Hall then and O'Brien later guessed that Sylvia may be the girl. By 1933, Sylvia had become a big star in Hollywood. 1931 to 1933 saw Sylvia in such classics as An American Tragedy, City Streets, Merrily We Go to Hell, Street Scene, Madame Butterfly and Jennie Gerhardt. In 1934, movie magazines declared that Sylvia was the Hollywood beauty with the most ideal face. I believe that it is very likely that Franchot is referring to Sylvia in this interview. Although a great deal of his costars were very successful in theater, Sylvia's the only one of his early theater costars that comes to mind who had that level of stardom in Hollywood in 1933. Franchot had many, many love affairs—some not so serious and some very serious, some well-publicized and some very secretive. But I have a feeling he may be talking about Sylvia here, too. 

In 1939 after many years focused on films, Franchot returned to the stage in The Gentle People, a Group Theatre production co-starring Sylvia. On February 6, 1939, Life magazine reported:

Where The Gentle People lags, it is supported by radiant acting from Franchot Tone, Sylvia Sidney and Sam Jaffe, all returned from Hollywood to Broadway, and from the Group company who have become past masters at U.S. realism.

Variety, on January 11, 1939, reported:

Franchot Tone returned from Hollywood to play Goff, giving the part a clear reading and believable type of tough guy...Sylvia Sidney is the willful Stella, an assignment which she excellently delivers.

During the play's run that included 141 performances from January to May 1939 at the Belasco Theatre, Franchot and Sylvia were frequently seen out together socializing for fun as well as for a cause. Sylvia was married to actor and director Luther Adler at the time and would give birth to their only son Jody whom she absolutely adored by the end of the year. Still, Franchot and Sylvia were photographed together in restaurants and many wondered if a romance was afoot.

Franchot and Sylvia took the social causes that drew them to the Group Theatre to heart. They were committed to using their fame to bring awareness to injustice. Just two months before The Gentle People's opening night, German Jews were brutally attacked by paramilitary and civilians in retaliation for the assassination of a Nazi German diplomat. We know now that this horrific persecution would only get worse. To encourage the United States government to take a stand against Nazis and brutal acts such as these, Franchot and Sylvia hosted a fundraiser for Committee of 56. The 56 was named for the number of original signers of the Declaration of Independence. The Committee aimed to rally against acts of Nazism and boycott anything associated with Germany until those acts were prevented.

Franchot and Sylvia also traveled to Washington, D.C. together. They met with President Roosevelt to protest the budget cuts against the Federal Theatre Project.

Having spent a great deal of time together in 1939, Franchot and Sylvia went their separate ways but still took such similar paths. Sylvia had her son Jody with Luther Adler. In 1946, Sylvia divorced Luther and was married to Carlton Alsop from 1947 to 1951. Franchot would marry actress Jean Wallace in 1941 and have two sons. He and Jean would divorce in 1948 and he would later marry Barbara Payton and then Dolores Dorn. Franchot would balance a life in films, theater, and television as would Sylvia.

When I'm asked which two actors I'd liked to have seen in a film together, I've always immediately answered Franchot and Sylvia. I'm so disappointed that they didn't do something together in the 1930's. I think they would've been perfect in a romantic drama together. Look at Franchot's movies that include messages about the human condition and moral dilemma. I could easily picture Sylvia as Franchot's leading lady in Exclusive Story or Gentlemen are Born or Straight is the Way. Equally, I could envision Franchot as Sylvia's leading man in Street Scene, Jennie Gerhardt, and One Third of a Nation.

It seems I was almost granted my wish in the 1940's. O'Brien's book reveals that Franchot and Sylvia nearly did co-star in a film in 1946. They both signed on to co-star in the film Repeat Performance. After the film was delayed, Sylvia dropped out to film Love from a Stranger instead. Franchot would film Honeymoon, Lost Honeymoon, and Her Husband's Affairs in 1947. Repeat Performance went on to star Louis Hayward and Joan Leslie and was released in 1947. It as a film noir that includes elements of time travel and science fiction.

In 1956, Luther Adler and Sylvia reunited to co-star in the play A Very Special Baby. There was a lot of tension and bickering between the two exes and although the play was noted for Sidney and Adler's superb acting, critics found the play to be "overwrought." Playwright Robert Alan Aurthur witnessed the battles and ended up writing The Thundering Wave, an episode of Playhouse 90. The Thundering Wave was about two exes who are reunited on the stage and clashes ensue. Those two exes, based on Sylvia and Luther, were performed by Joan Bennett and....Franchot Tone.


Sources:

• "Cross Roads." Variety. November 6, 1929. pg 63.
• Doherty, Thomas. "Remembering the Hollywood Mogul who Rescued Hundreds of Germany's Jews." The Hollywood Reporter. December 29, 2015.
• "Low Tide Totals of Between Holiday Period Expected by B'way Legits." Variety. November 27, 1929. pg 59.
• O'Brien, Scott. Sylvia Sidney: Paid by the Tear. Bear Manor Media, 2016.
• Smith, Wendy. Real Life Drama: The Group Theatre and America, 1931-1940; New York: Knopf, 1990.

John Garfield Blogathon

I am happy to be participating in Phyllis Loves Classic Movies' John Garfield Blogathon since John and Franchot were good friends with similar career interests. Garfield has been a favorite of mine ever since he stole my fourteen-year-old heart when I first watched Four Daughters.

The Group Theatre

Franchot and John both got their start on the New York stage and honed their skills in the Group Theatre. Franchot was one of the Group's original members when Harold Clurman, Cheryl Crawford, and Lee Strasberg formed the Group Theatre with the hope of presenting plays that featured believable characters who spread important real-world messages through their thought-provoking scripts. Franchot actually starred in the group's very first production The House of Connelly in 1931 and the plays that followed that year and in 1932. Franchot used his own money to finance much of the group's work and was a firm believer in its essentiality to modern theater. In fact, when Franchot first pursued a film career in Hollywood in 1933, his main intent was to earn a lot of money quickly and eventually return to the Group with the additional funds. But he immediately fell in love with Joan and—despite sporadic statements that he may permanently return to a solely theatrical career—Franchot never fully abandoned Hollywood.

John joined the Group after Franchot physically left it (I say this because Franchot always morally and financially supported the Theatre.) John was a student of method acting at the American Laboratory Theatre, which included Group Theatre founders Strasberg, Crawford, and Clurman. John gained critical success in Lost Boy in 1932. After an apprenticeship, John was accepted as a member of the newly named "The Group," but, like Franchot, was drawn to Hollywood. Unlike Franchot, John's first film Four Daughters garnered him immediate acclaim and an Oscar nomination. Despite his obvious talent, John, like Franchot, was soon relegated to quickly churned out, pleasant films. But John fought back against the studios much harder than Franchot ever did. While Franchot was never able to recapture the early critical success of his mid-1930's work, John's lasting success came in the 40's with films like Destination Tokyo, The Postman Always Rings Twice, Humoresque, and Gentlemen's Agreement. I went through a period where I watched every single one of Garfield's films, and I cannot think of one performance that did not impress me.

In spite of their success, some Group members made both John and Franchot feel guilty for leaving to pursue opportunities in Hollywood. In later interviews, some group members shared that they felt that Hollywood had put John and Franchot’s focus on money, women, and alcohol, and interfered with their ability to produce quality work. (In my opinion, the two actors were able to balance their dedication to the craft with their extracurricular pleasures quite successfully.) This frustration with Franchot and John for pursuing film careers makes better sense when you realize that one of the Group's main objectives was to be a cooperative ensemble and an emphasis was placed on the good of the group, not the pursuit of fame by one individual.

For more information on the Group Theatre and both actors' involvement, I highly recommend the full-length American Masters documentary on the Group Theatre that the Stella Adler Studio of Acting posted on Youtube:

Friendship in the 1940's

In the early 40's, Franchot and John were involved in many of the same wartime support efforts. They both worked hard to support their fellow men overseas by serving on multiple war effort committees, making public appearances, and selling war bonds.

In Hollywood, John and Franchot were prominent board members of the Screen Actors Guild and participated in meetings until September 15, 1946 when they had to resign due to a new “conflict of interest” by-law. Also resigning were Robert Montgomery, James Cagney, Dick Powell, Harpo Marx, and Dennis O’Keefe.

Another connection I find interesting is that John's 1941 film Out of the Fog was based on Franchot's 1939 play The Gentle People and, in these productions, John and Franchot played the same role.

In 1945, Franchot and John returned to New York to discuss future theatre plans
with their former Group Theatre leaders. Film Daily. November 12, 1945.

Variety. November 1945.

Their similar career beginnings, current involvement in important causes, and enjoyment of a good time brought Franchot and John together as friends. They were frequently seen out together in bars and restaurants with a drink in one hand and a pretty lady not far from reach. Sherry Davis recalled that her grandfather, actor Robert Davis named his son Franchot because of his friendship with Tone. Robert Davis, Franchot, and John would gallivant around the nightspots drinking heavily, until young Franchot Davis was sent by his mother Myra to fetch them home.


John and Franchot on the set of Jigsaw, 1949.

In 1949, John made a cameo in his pal Franchot's noir Jigsaw. That film (a good one, in my opinion!) is in the public domain and can be viewed in full on Youtube here.

The Blacklist

The promise of the 30's and fun of the 40's were no match for the HUAAC who attacked John and Franchot—both public about their liberal beliefs—in the late 40's and early 50's. Although Franchot was publicly cleared by the Dies committee early on, he was softly but purposely blacklisted throughout the 50's. (You can read a more in-depth post on Franchot's blacklisting here.) Obviously, John was more publicly and viciously attacked by the House Committee. John refused to name names when he was forced to testify and as a result, was blacklisted by the major studios. But the blacklist damaged more than his career. It destroyed his health and led to his tragic death of a heart attack at only 39 years old.

Thank you Phyllis for hosting the John Garfield Blogathon! For some great Garfield reading, please head over to Phyllis Loves Classic Movies for the full roster.

Sources:

• Kramer, Joan, David Heeley, Joanne Woodward, Steve Lawson, Stella Adler, Harold Clurmaan, Cheryl Crawford, and Lee Strasberg. Broadway's Dreamers: The Legacy of the Group Theatre. New York, N.Y: PDR Productions, 1994.
• Gelman, Howard. The Films of John Garfield. Citadel Press, 1975.
• Hirsch, Foster. A Method to their Madness: The History of the Actors Studio. Da Capo Press, 2001.
• Kazan, Elia. Elia Kazan: A Life. New York: Knopf, 1988.
• Lasseter, Don. Body Double. Kensington, 2002.
• Media Lantern Digital History Project: http://lantern.mediahist.org/
• SAG: www.sagaftra.org
• Smith, Wendy. Real Life Drama: The Group Theatre and America, 1931-1940; New York: Knopf, 1990.

The Gentle People (1939)

The Gentle People ran for 141 performances from January to May 1939 at the Belasco Theatre. The play, written by Irwin Shaw and directed by Harold Clurman, was a Group Theatre production and Franchot's first play in 6 years. The cast included: Franchot Tone, Sylvia Sidney, Sam Jaffe, Elia Kazan, Karl Malden, and Lee J. Cobb.

The play is about two men who fish in their downtime to escape everyday pressures. On one outing, a gangster named Harold Goff (Franchot Tone) demands protection money from Jonah Goodman (Sam Jaffe) and Philip Anagnos (Roman Bohnen). To save their boat and maintain peace, the fishermen pay him. Soon, through his romance with one of the men's daughters (Sylvia Sidney), Harold discovers that the humble, middle-aged guys have saved quite a bit of their hard-earned money. When a court of law does not protect the men from Harold's threats, they take the matter into their own hands. Jonah and Philip take the scheming gangster out for a boat ride and he never returns.

Franchot Tone and Sylvia Sidney in The Gentle People. Source: www.collections.mcny.org

Franchot in The Gentle People. Source: Life, February 6, 1939.

On February 6, 1939, Life magazine reported:

Where The Gentle People lags, it is supported by radiant acting from Franchot Tone, Sylvia Sidney and Sam Jaffe, all returned from Hollywood to Broadway, and from the Group company who have become past masters at U.S. realism.

Postcard promoting The Gentle People from my collection.
The back of the postcard includes a comment and critique section
for the play's audience members to complete.

There was much publicity surrounding Franchot's return to the New York stage, because it coincided with his divorce from Joan Crawford. Reporter Inez Robb was disappointed to find that the "never lovelier" Franchot darted into the Belasco Theatre and successfully dodged all questions about his personal life during the run of the play. Although Ms. Robb speculated that Franchot was completely over Joan, columnist George Ross predicted the Tones would reunite following a performance of The Gentle People, to which Franchot had given Joan tickets.

Franchot, who had been a celebrated young stage actor before he moved to Hollywood, dealt with a lot of putdowns and pondering in the gossip columns of the day. While he was busy rehearsing the play, most of the entertainment columnists were focusing on Franchot's "mighty, mighty purty" face, hinting that he'd been a failure at M-G-M, and questioning whether he could make it as an actor without Joan Crawford at his side. Once the play began its run, Franchot received rave reviews and the play was a major success. From 1939 on, Franchot would steadily perform in both films and plays.

Sylvia Sidney and Franchot Tone. Source: www.julia-loves-bette-davis.tumblr.com

Sources:

Robb, Inez. "Valet Helps Franchot Tone Evade Persistent Press, Public." The Deseret News. February 14, 1939.

Ross, George. "Rumor Rumbles." The Pittsburgh Press. January 19, 1939.

"The Gentle People." Internet Broadway Database. https://www.ibdb.com/Show/View/3806

"The Gentle People." Playbill. http://www.playbill.com/production/the-gentle-people-belasco-theatre-vault-0000010886