Please wait. Contacting image service... loading

Article text

WEEKLY SCREEN NOTES BY STARGAZER
TWO PEOPLE WHO WRITE FAMOUS
SCREEN COMEDIES
PUNCTUALLY at 9 a.m. each morning two men walk
into their office at Shepherd's Bush Studios and start
trying to be funny. They are Val Guest and Marriott Ed
gar, comedy script writers for Gaumont-British-Gains
borough, the men who invent Will Hay's jokes, conceive
gags for Ashley and Murdoch, plan the craziness of the
Crazy Gang.
What's it like to be a comedy writer
with the Nazis buzzing overhead?
"Not so funny," says Val Guest, "but
we're crazy anyway, otherwise we
wouldn't be in lilms."
For the comedy script of "The Ghost
Train" they split the Hulbert part in
two, made new roles for Askey and
Murdoch. Both of themn wrote their
own versions of the mystery-thrillei,
got hopelessly involved with the plot,
sought the aid of Producer Edward
Black and neither he nor they knew in
the end who had done their murder!
These two men have done a lot to
make Britain laugh. They write those
"oi" jokes for Bud Flanagan; they gave
you that moment in "Oh, Mr. Porter"
when, Will Hay, driving an engine on
a single li?e, is told: "Don't look now,
but there's a train coming." "Comedy
has to be applied," says Val Guest.
"You can't give your funny lines to
any comedian. Each has his style."
"Biggest laugh in comedies," says
Val Guest, "is for people to witness a
situation they have been in themselves
and to see the comedian do the thing
they've always wanted to do."
Once, stopped by a constable for
speeding, Guest found himself in an
identical scene he had written for a
Will Hay comedy and had a wild im
pulse to use the comedy dialogue as
the constable questioned him. "I
wanted to see if the result would be
the same in real life." It wasn't.
Val Guest and Marriott Edgar break
rules in comedy, never use the Holly
wood excuse for dancing girls and
twlinkling legs, make their films stand
or fall on comedy alone.
"The Ghost Train." celebrated stage
sucess by Arnold Ridley, which ran
for 655 performances at St. Martin's
Theatre, London, has been handed down
through the years, and G.B.D. now pre
sents a third topical film version. The
first film starred Guy Newall, and the
Unpleasant surprise for Arthur Askey in "The Ghost Train," com ing soon to the Majestic. Help
Unpleasant surprise for Arthur
Askey in "The Ghost Train," com
ing soon to the Majestic.
second "talkie" with Jack Hulbert and
Cicely Courtneidge was produced in
1931.
Stage and broadcasting cannot claim
all the laurels, for the screen now pre
sent3 with scenic brillance the looming
horror of the phantom train, and the
bewildered and frightened collection of
travellers, each noted for his or her
specialised character acting, matched
by the hilarious comedy star, Arthuz
Askey. The film is an expert blend
ing of comedy and thrill in the story
of gun runners who use fiction of
"ghost train" to cover anti-government
activities.
$