I Love the Illusion: The Life and Career of Agnes Moorehead (27 page)

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1:
Stockton, Ca.
(That Agnes and Gist were a couple by this time, even
before the divorce was final with Jack, is evident from
some of the letters and telegrams which Aggie received as
the tour began, including one from a friend on the night
of the Stockton opening: “Dear Agnes just to wish you,
Bob and your Star group the greatest success on this
tour.”)

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2:
Fresno, Ca.
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3:
Sacramento, Ca.
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4:
San Francisco, Ca.
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5:
Oakland, Ca.
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6:
Travel
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7–10:
Salt Lake City, Ut
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11–13: Travel
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14: Denton, TX.
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15–16: Houston, TX.
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17:
Dallas, TX.
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. 18:
Shreveport, La.
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. 19:
Alexandria, La.
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. 20:
Traveling
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. 21:
Manhattan, KS.
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. 22:
Stillwater, Ok.
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. 23:
Fayetteville, Ark.
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. 24:
Memphis, Tn.
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. 25:
St. Louis, Mo.
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. 26:
Columbia, Mo.
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. 27:
Bloomington, Ind.
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. 28:
Urbana, Il.

While it was exhausting for
the actors, the Quartette did
gain strength from the reception
they received. They took part in
local activities and suffered
through many after-show
parties. Hardwicke especially
found these parties tedious
primarily due to the lack of
hard liquor. He began calling
the tour, “The Cranberry juice
circuit.” Yet, for all of his
moaning about the cranberry
juice, Sir Cedric would remember
the camaraderie fondly. “Our
discomforts are forgotten in the
fun of rushing to catch a train
or returning to our hotel, scraping
together what supper we can
find in a small town at that

hour, packing and unpacking and particularly solving the problem of laundry.
Boyer and I have a contest to see how long we can make our dress shirts last
between laundries. Miss Moorehead, being the only woman naturally has a
rough time of it, but she more than holds her own. I don’t have to tell you
that one woman is vastly more clever than three men.”

The travel from city to city was chaotic. Gregory called it “a nightmare”;
some wanted to fly, others wanted to take a train, and some wanted to take
the bus. A bus was actually the most practical solution and most used when
they traveled short distances. In his book,
Charles Laughton: An Intimate
Biography,
Charles Higham recounts Boyer’s nervousness when traveling:
“Gregory reserved a bus, which normally traveled 80 people, for himself,
the four actors, two staff members . . . Boyer was extremely nervous, sitting
just behind the driver, jumping up and complaining loudly everytime the
bus traveled at more than 40 mph. Laughton and Agnes Moorehead used
to sit on either side of the aisle and exchange wisecracks about Boyer’s
terror of speed. Finally Charles (Laughton) told the driver, ‘discount the
speedometer.’ He did. Whenever Boyer asked what exact speed the bus was
traveling at, the driver would say, ‘forty’ or ‘thirty-five.’ Boyer settled back,
feeling perfectly comfortable,
even though the bus was
rushing along at 60 mph.”

For his part, Laughton
would often appear before
civic groups giving talks or
reciting the Gettysburg
Address. He was invited to
judge a beauty contest and
was startled when Agnes, as
a gag, appeared as one of the
contestants. He promptly
declared her the winner.
When the Quartette made
a stop in Moorhead,
Minnesota, Agnes was
presented with a bouquet of
flowers from the Chamber
of Commerce of her namesake city. While Agnes
was in Oklahoma with the
Quartette her friend Greer
Garson wrote: “Was thrilled to hear about the wild success you are having
with D
ON
J
UAN IN
H
ELL
. It must be a really exciting experience and I am
awfully glad that you are doing it; you four must be a terrific team and I
hope you will repeat the program locally when you come back to the coast.”

For Agnes, one of the most gratifying moments of the tour occurred in
Sacramento. Two farmers came backstage after the show asking where they
could get copies of the play. She asked one of the farmers if he had enjoyed
the program. His reply would stick with her for the rest of her life: “I was
just struck by it. Sometimes it was a little quick. That’s why I want to get
the play so I can memorize parts of it.” Another remembrance she often
quoted for comic effect occurred in Kansas City where all the actors (while
on stage) became covered by streams of ants coming down from the rigging.
“Try to perform while these creatures were in your hair, down inside your
costumes, just everywhere, it was unnerving. The graceful gesture becomes
a little forced.” For audiences who recognized Agnes primarily due to her
film work, seeing her in person dressed in an elegant lilac evening gown

with a small golden crown atop her red head was a revelation. One critic
described her as an “elegant lily.” Paul Gregory recalled hearing people at
intermission say, “Isn’t that Agnes Moorehead gorgeous?”

While the tour was underway,
Fourteen Hours,
which Agnes had filmed
the previous summer, was released in March to good reviews and solid box
office.
Newsweek
called it “easily one of the outstanding film achievements
of the current season.”
Time
called it “tense” and the script, “ingenious.”
The
New York Times
raved and, in fact, Bosley Crowther put the film on his
ten best list for 1951. It must have been sweet for Agnes to simultaneously
be receiving widespread praise and audience approval for
Don Juan
while at
the same time appearing in a critically applauded and well-received film.

When the initial domestic tour of
Don Juan in Hell
came to a close at
the end of April, Agnes made her way back to Hollywood where she began
work on the RKO film
The Blue Veil,
which starred Jane Wyman. It was a
woman’s picture, written by Agnes’ old friend from radio, Norman Corwin.
Charles Laughton also appears in the film, but he and Agnes do not share
any scenes. Wyman plays a pregnant woman who becomes widowed during
the First World War and, compounding her tragedy, her baby dies soon
after birth. She becomes a governess so she can be around children. The
film is episodic, telling her story over the course of forty years. Agnes plays
one of the women who puts Wyman’s character in her employ. During the
course of the film, Wyman turns down two marriage proposals so she can
devote her life to being a governess. The film’s conclusion is a tearjerker.
Wyman is old, penniless and alone. One of her former charges finds her
and a party is held in her honor, attended by many of her former charges;
she will never be alone again. After Agnes completed her part in the film in
early June, the film’s producers Jerry Wald and Norman Krasna sent her a
letter of appreciation: “Thank you for the superb job you did for us . . .
While it was a short job, it was an impressive one.”

While shooting
The Blue Veil,
Agnes went to court to win her release,
after more than twenty years, from her marriage to Jack Lee. The publicity
for both was ugly. According to Jack, after Agnes had won her first
Academy Award nomination in 1943, she “went Hollywood,” giving the
maid orders to answer the telephone by saying, “This is Miss Moorehead’s
residence.” He also said Agnes began to criticize the way he talked, dressed
and ate. Jack also alleged that Agnes began talking in a “corny” manner
around the house, “displaying her thespian talents and emotions.” He said
that Aggie made him sleep in another room rather than sharing the master
bedroom. Jack said the “last straw” occurred on June 15, 1949 when he
came home one night to find a “strange man” (Gist?) sitting at his usual
spot at the dinner table. Agnes’ response was to tell him they were “just
rehearsing a play” and to pack his bags and get out. Jack asked the court for
all the community property, which he estimated to be valued at $200,000.

For her part, Agnes charged Jack with “mental cruelty.” But the cruelty
in question occurred in 1945, causing Superior Court Judge Frederick F
Houser to rule that since Agnes had lived four years under Lee’s roof, “a
reconciliation was evident.” However, the next day, Agnes’ attorney
brought into the courtroom the houseman, Marion McGuire, who testified
about some of the cruelties which had occurred since 1945:

·
Lee had called Agnes dirty names.
· Lee played the radio loudly and slammed doors when Agnes was trying
to study her scripts.
· Lee forced Agnes to sleep in his room despite her fear.
_{· Lee fired pistols from his firearms collection.}

·
McGuire testified that Jack was “drunk practically all the time” and
heard him “browbeating” Agnes.
· Jack’s drinking “got so bad he hid his bottles in bushes and a grandfather’s
clock.”
Agnes also testified that on the following occasions Lee struck or threatened to strike her:

·
M
AY
17, 1949
He told her he no longer loved her and threatened
to get a divorce.
· J
UNE
14, 1949
He again struck her.

Agnes also testified that Jack struck her at “other times.”
This second day of testimony was enough and Judge Houser granted the
divorce. The property settlement also was in Agnes’ favor. She retained
$100,000 in property, plus a Cadillac, while Jack got $5,000 cash, a
$40,000 apartment house and $11,000 in insurance, as well as a Ford.
Most people who know Agnes say that Jack was an abusive alcoholic who
used Agnes as a “meal ticket” since his career was clearly not going
anywhere. Over the years it appears that Jack, once a rising young star in
the AADA and on the stage, saw his career decline and Agnes’ eclipsed his.
This caused resentment on Jack’s part and his self-esteem dwindled. He
increasingly turned to the bottle. But Paul Gregory has a slightly more
sympathetic view of Lee. “He was a nice man, but she was a meat grinder.
He didn’t have a chance with Agnes. She was a tough, tough, tough woman.
She was driven like no one I ever knew. Her little husband never had a
chance. The more successful she became, the deeper the wedge between
them. She was on her way up and he was on his way down.”