Page 7 - conlon1960_hart

BILL HART

stopped seeing his movies. It was a high price to pay for fame.
The ink on the sensational Chicago story was hardly dry
when a beautiful girl got past the front gate of Bill's studio
and stole into his dressing room. Bill at the time was busy on
stage shooting a scene. When it was time for the noon break,
Bill went back to his dressing room. Scoop and E. H. Allen,
the company manager, followed Bill a few minutes later, enter-
ing the dressing room from another door. Just as they opened
the door this eye-filling dame yanked down her hair and
ripped at her blouse. She had her mouth open to scream just
as the unexpected visitors walked in. Scoop still remembers the
scene: Bill Hart, standing• helpless with his mouth gaping in
astonishment as if to protest; the girl burning with frustration,
her beautiful face contorted with rage. Scoop escorted her to
the door-none too politely-but it was some time before Bill
stopped shaking and color returned to his face. He sat down
in a studio chair. "Sometimes," he told Scoop, "this celebrity
business gives you a pain, and I've got one right now in the
part that fits in the saddle."
What happened to the girl? Some of the company's rough-
and-ready cowgirls asked if they could have the privilege of
escorting her out. "I have no idea where they took her," Scoop
said, "but knowing how those cowgirls handled leather chaps,
it was a safe bet that the girl took her meals standing up for a
few days."

* * *

They were sitting around a table in Scoop's playhouse ( a
combination bar, rumpus room, office), discussing this book,
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