BIOGRAPHY OF STARS

Chronicle (Levin), 31 October 1946, Page 5

BIOGRAPHY OF STARS

EVELYN KEYES' RISE TO TOP . Evelyn Keyes, a lovely * .bldnde from Atlanta, Georgia,' ar'ose late for an appointment and es.chewed lacquering her nails with carmine. Her innocent omission that ''d.ay helped in getting her a job.. It caught the eye and won the approbation of Cecil B. De ' Mille, the movie mogul, who signed Evelyn to a contract. That was in 1937. Miss Keyes, obviously ■ is. .living proof that a girl can get ahead without cosmetic embelishments' to her fingertips, even thqugh she now'wears nail polish whenever her, mood or role calls for it. ' Port Arthur, Texas, was '.her birthplace, but she was taken to Atlanta when she was still- a baby. Her father had died and ■••her mother moved to Atlanta with her children: Evelyn ' has three'" sisters and a brother, - all of them older than herself, • and very proud i'oftheir young sister. Evelyn was 4dii- • cated ,in Atlanta's public schools, and after schooT, 'she proctised^her ' piano lessons and tap dancingv She was acti've iri" th'^ h'iglr. scttool dramatic club, goocl. at Eriglish' dnd mathematics, ahd got. to be a chber leader. After she finished high 5chool, Evelyn took some intensive dance coaching, and was put iii, a professional unit of four. Her family said no, but she went any way, , Shortly afterwards Evelyn made an unsatisfactory test for some Universal talent scouts, but her ambitions fired, she persuaded bandleader Ted Fio Rito to give her a letter to a Hollywood ■ agent and made' her way west. An introducr tion to one of De Mille's writers resulted in an introduction tq De. Mille himself and a screen debut. in "The Buccaneer." The real break came at the Selznick studio when. she was tested and aecepted: forthe important role of Suellen, Scarlet O'Hara's sister in "Gone With the Wind." Her performance was solid. Evelyn was sought after, and Columbia won the toss. • She went on a long term contract with that studio, and has progressed through k wide variety of roles .to win recognition as one of the most accomplished younger players in the contract list. Her standing as a top-line star will be enhanced by her stellar performance in "The Jolson Story" in which she has the exacting role of Jolson's wife. Studio predictions are rosy fOr both Evelyn and her. leading man Larry fParks who plays Jolson. He has been awarded the male lead opposite Rita Hayworth . in ' her n,ew musical "Down to Earth," . wnile Evelyn will take top role in."Ren-. dezvous in Rio," new large scale' Latin-American musical, as a result of their work in "Jolsen.','