Mr. Quimby stood for a moment in dazed silence. In answer to Billy Magee's gay knock, a man of about sixty years appeared. ", "Of course," said the yearner for pastures new, "he's caretaker of the inn. When the lady spoke, however, he hastily revised his opinion. Baldpate Inn is the quiet spot. The New York Times drama critic called it "melodrama of the good, old-fashioned sort". Seven Keys to Baldpate is a 1913 novel by Earl Derr Biggers. The play "mixes all the formulaic melodramaof the era with a satirical [… I think it would be best to leave me alone with it. As yet he had scarcely looked away from her eyes, but he was dimly aware that up above wisps of golden hair peeped impudently from beneath a saucy black hat. "Good-by," smiled Mrs. Quimby. ", "The suites on the second floor," said Mr. Magee, "are, I hear, equipped with fireplaces. Mr. Magee felt that she wanted to vote, and that she would say as much from time to time. "A handsome young lady," he remarked; "her name is Myra Thornhill." In the epilogue, the inn is empty, and a typewriter is clattering upstairs: Magee has finished his story before midnight and won the bet. A beautiful young woman? Then he turned, and the yellow of his lantern fell on the dazzling snow ahead. The door closed with a muffled bang, the cab creaked wearily away, and Mr. Magee turned back to the dim waiting-room. Fandango FANALERT® Sign up for a FANALERT® and be the first to know when tickets and other exclusives are available in your area. Uses an un-gimmicked lock and keys and it's unbelievably deceptive. I'm going to get away from melodrama. There's money in it.". Mr. Magee was surprised that in her tone there was no hostility to him—thus belying her looks. "Considerable," replied Mr. Magee. The dramatization was one of Cohan's most innovative plays. But now and then you, Mrs. Quimby, are going to send me something cooked as no other woman in the county can cook it. Out of seven film adaptations of the story made between 1916 and 1983, this version is … Young Williams, who posed at the club as a wit, had once said that Billy Magee came as near to being a magazine artist's idea of the proper hero of a story as any man could, and at the same time retain the respect and affection of his fellows. In it Mr. Magee placed the large lady and the bags. Thinking. "Come on, Mary," cried a deep voice from the cab. No, siree! Sorry I can't help you. Should he carry chivalry even to the lengths of Upper Asquewan Falls? The talk flowed on, along with other things. Mr. Quimby led the way with the lantern, and presently they stepped out upon the road. This page was last edited on 12 September 2016, at 13:03. ", "You don't mean," gasped Mr. Quimby, "that you're going to stay there ten years? "I've only got forty," the woman said. Elijah lives in a little house back among the trees a mile out—there's a gate you'll sure hear creaking on a night like this.". Cohan adapted it as a film in 1917, and it was adapted for film six more times, and later for TV and radio. "If I had only been regularly introduced to you, and all that," responded Mr. Magee, "I could make a very flattering reply." "But now and then I get a longing to do something that will make the critics sit up—the real thing, you know. "But she's in trouble," argued Billy Magee. You are not, I take it, the sort of man to follow closely the light and frivolous literature of the day. She began to gather up her traveling-bags, and Mr. Magee hastened to assist. "Is there?" Later, perhaps you can find me an oil lamp. "Yes," said Mr. Magee brightly, slipping into a rocking-chair. "If it was clear," he said, "you could see Baldpate Mountain, over yonder, looking down on the Falls, sort of keeping an eye on us to make sure we don't get reckless. Seven Keys to Baldpate: http://bit.ly/X9frEEBaldpate Inn has seven keys. There ain't no place open now but the Commercial House. "Mebbe the gentleman can direct us to a good hotel," she added, with a rather stagy smile. Well, I'll try to, though I'm not sure you'll understand. To the gaze of even a solitary eye, Mr. Magee's aspect was decidedly pleasing. Mr. Magee threw back his coat, and sprayed with snow Mrs. Quimby's immaculate floor. Now, I'm going to go up to Baldpate Inn, and think. At a corner on which stood a little shop that advertised "Groceries and Provisions" he paused. "Yes, I'm going to spend the next few months at Baldpate Inn.". A thin sallow face, on the forehead of which a mop of ginger-colored hair lay listlessly, was pressed against the bars. SEVEN KEYS TO BALDPATE BY EARL DERR BIGGERS AUTHOR OF LOVE INSURANCE, ETC. "I don't know who you mean," objected Mr. Quimby. Uhuh. Oh, beyond question, she was most alluring. "Seven Keys to Baldpate" was a story about a writer who attempts to produce a novel in 24 hours. I believe those were Hal Bentley's instructions—in the letter.". "That's the very reason I'm going to honor it with my presence. ", "You don't read," continued Mr. Magee, "the sort of novels that are sold by the pound in the department stores. The dramatization was one of Cohan's most innovative plays. Now, my wife—". he asked. "I think I'll ask her," confided Mr. Magee in a hoarse whisper. You can go away—far, far away.". ", "The critics," replied Billy Magee, "could explain. He would look at those wisps shortly, he told himself. "Upper Asquewan Falls," she said, "isn't it reason enough?". "Good lord!" It's a summer resort. Earl Derr Biggers penned "Seven Keys to Baldpate" long before he created his most famous character, Chinese detective Charlie Chan, yet in its day it was a popular best-seller and became the source for no less than seven films. For even in the faint flickering light of the station he found ample reason for rejoicing that the bit of cambric was no longer agonizingly pressed. ", "Well—I want to see a man named Elijah Quimby," Mr. Magee replied. ", "Light hair," repeated Quimby. Candles. "Thank you for being so kind and—good night.". Presently they reappeared. "Excuse a plain question, young man," he said, "but what are you hiding from?". Seven Keys to Baldpate. He turned away. This one I refer to, when she weeps, gives the general effect of mist on the sea at dawn. It's getting late, and I suggest that we start for Baldpate Inn at once. So here I am.". Hal thought a minute. This is nothing but an annex to a graveyard in winter. Mamma! Nothing to do but work, work, work, and then lay down and wait for to-morrow. They say my thinking process is a scream. A railway station was a natural place for grief—a field of many partings, upon whose floor fell often in torrents the tears of those left behind. "Was you thinking of eating?" He scowled. "Picture me, if you can, depressed by the overwhelming success of my latest brain-child. I used to think maybe some day they'd transfer me down to Hooperstown—there's moving pictures and such goings-on down there. "We'll get on splendidly. The play was also adapted for radio in 1938 (for Lux Radio Theatre with Jack Benny) and 1946 (for Theatre Guild on the Air with Walter Pidgeon). Though not his motion picture debut as has often been claimed, Seven Keys to Baldpate was George M. Cohan's most popular silent-film effort. She's a woman, and the Lord only knows why women cry. https://en.wikisource.org/w/index.php?title=Seven_Keys_to_Baldpate/Chapter_1&oldid=6425623, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. He observes derisively that all of these complicated incidents and characters are ones that he has written over and over again. Mr. Magee had the type of smile that moves men to part with ten until Saturday, and women to close their eyes and dream of Sir Launcelot. Under the white gaslight in the office window three born pessimists slouched low in hotel chairs, gazing sourly out at the storm. ", "I certainly was," smiled Mr. Magee. Mr. Quimby towered above Mr. Magee, a shirt-sleeved statue of honest American manhood. This frail and lovely damsel in distress owning as her maternal parent a heavy unnecessary—person! They had always seemed to him so sad and beautiful. ", "It all depends," said the girl. Wild thrilling tales for the tired business man's tired wife—shots in the night, chases after fortunes, Cupid busy with his arrows all over the place! Only 9 left in stock (more on the way). Good-by, Mrs. Quimby. Mr. Magee explained to them that theholder of the sixth key had arrived. THE DATING GAME — A truly diabolical method, offers you a version of the Seven Keys to Baldpate. ", "Why," stammered Mr. Quimby, "we—we thought it was all a joke. He continued to smile into Mrs. Quimby's broad cheerful face. Writer Kenneth Magee has bet that he can finish a story at rural resort Baldpate Inn, now closed for the winter. "It's best to let 'em alone. He saw in the lighted windows of many of the houses the green wreath of Christmas cheer. Hal told me his father owned Baldpate Inn, and that you were an old friend of his who would be happy for the entire winter over the chance to serve him. She gave the impression of solidity and bulk; her mouth was hard and knowing. "Don Quixote, my boy," he muttered, "I know how you felt when you moved on the windmills.". I'm afraid they're right. He reveals that nothing had happened during the 24 hours; all the preceding melodrama, including the actors and hoax, constitute the story. [2], Cohan and his daughter were severely injured in a car crash during rehearsal of the original production. "You haven't told me why you cried," he reminded her. The storm had ceased, but it was still very dark. Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. "There's only one hotel," he said, "and I'm told it's not exactly the place for any one whose outlook on life is not rosy at the moment. Then, while the driver climbed to his seat, he spoke into the invisible ear of the girl. He holes up alone at the Baldpate, a mountain lodge closed for the winter. Seven Keys to Baldpate is a 1913 play by George M. Cohan based on a novel by Earl Derr Biggers. You just set right down and I'll have your supper hot and smoking on the table in no time.". Were the features against which that frail bit of cambric was agonizingly pressed of a pleasing contour? Far below, in the valley, twinkled the lights of Upper Asquewan Falls. Seven Keys to Baldpate. With the added burden of a package containing his purchases in the tiny store, Mr. Magee emerged and continued his journey through the stinging snow. Comments for Seven Keys to Baldpate Page 17 @ Submit. "What's this tree for—the Orphans' Home?". HEARTBEAT — Spectator selects a card, holds it to their heart and then shuffles several times. When he had assured Mrs. Quimby that he had eaten enough to last him the entire two months he intended spending at the inn, Mr. Quimby came in, attired in a huge "before the war" ulster, and carrying a lighted lantern. asked Mr. Quimby with a show of interest. ", "No," said Mr. Magee. Once he heard a dog's faint bark. How are you? "I'm Magee," he elucidated again, "William Hallowell Magee, the man Hal Bentley wrote to you about. Why, how did it end? The match fell to the floor, whereupon the older man cast an anxious glance at a gray-haired woman who stood beside the kitchen stove. Enter your location to see which movie theaters are playing Seven Keys to Baldpate near you. "I don't mean to be rude," she explained more gently, "but—I'm crying, you see, and a girl simply can't look attractive when she cries.". The magician finds the card by taking their pulse. SEVEN KEYS TO BALDPATE. "My outlook on life in Upper Asquewan Falls," she said, "grows rosier every minute. Come outside and I'll tell you how to get there.". Finally the houses became infrequent, and he struck out on an uneven road that wound upward. ", "H'm—it ain't much of a place," admitted the man, "though it ain't the general rule with visitors to burst into tears at sight of it. "I want to be so lonesome I'll sob myself to sleep every night. "So you're going to sit up there and write things," he commented. "The lights will be turned off, of course. "Oh, I wouldn't," advised the man behind the bars. Seven Keys to Baldpate/Chapter 1. "Thanks," said the ticket agent. He went inside, where a weary old woman served him. They stop quicker if they ain't noticed.". Why not a lover? It gets on my nerves sometimes. That is exactly what Billy Magee wanted to know as, closing the waiting-room door behind him, he … Upon a tender intimate sorrow it was not the place of an unknown Magee to intrude. "You said something just now about Baldpate Inn—", "Yes, it's a little more lively in summer, when that's open," answered the agent; "we get a lot of complaints about trunks not coming, from pretty swell people, too. 'I've got it', he said, 'the lonesomest spot that's happened to date is a summer resort in mid-winter. You see—I write those novels. It's the only road to immortality. Lead on, Mr. I explained the nature of our bet to the theatre manager, framed the whole plan, employed the entire theatre company, hired a half dozen cars for transport, and arrived at the top of the mountain at exactly twelve o'clock midnight. It got on my nerves—I felt like a literary dressmaker, and I could see my public laying down my fall novel and sighing for my early spring styles in fiction. "Well, what was she crying for?" "My description was poor, I'm afraid. 0 Reviews Fewer than 50 Ratings You might also like. The girl's neatly tailored corduroy suit and her flippant but charming millinery augured well. The lady had a glittering eye; she put it to its time-honored use and fixed Mr. Magee with it. ", "A natural wanderlust," sympathized Mr. Magee. Mr. Magee, approaching, thought himself again in the college yard at dusk, with the great elms sighing overhead, and the fresh young voices of the glee club ringing out from the steps of a century-old building. ", "For the present, candles. There the older woman, in a harsh rasping voice, found fault with Upper Asquewan Falls,—its geography, its public spirit, its brand of weather. My stuff is only for low-brows. SEVEN KEYS TO BALDPATE. Novelist Billy Magee makes a bet with a wealthy friend that he can write a 10,000 word story within 24 hours. The play "mixes all the formulaic melodrama of the era with a satirical [farcical] send-up of just those melodramatic stereotypes."[1]. I believe "7 keys to Baldpate" is explained in his book "13 Steps to Mentalism" a book every mentalist should have as their bible of work. Quest for Love Spook Busters The Lost Missile Flamenco The Chinese Cat. Sit down, Mr. Quimby. "My name's Magee," blithely explained that gentleman, dragging in his bags. Evidently he had just finished supper; at the moment he was engaged in lighting his pipe. "I'm not hiding," he said. ", "There certainly is, young man," remarked Mrs. Quimby, bustling forward. "Certainly," replied Mr. Magee. "And so'll you be, most likely," responded the cynic, "if you interfere. The older man did not reply, but regarded Mr. Magee wonderingly through white puffs of smoke. [4]The setting was … Yes, sir, sometimes I want to clear out of this town myself. she inquired, with the air of one who had an infinite variety in stock. I'm going to do a novel so fine and literary that Henry Cabot Lodge will come to me with tears in his eyes and ask me to join his bunch of self-made Immortals. "Here I am," repeated Billy Magee, "fleeing from the great glitter known as Broadway to do a little rational thinking in the solitudes. But troubadours, he knew, went out of fashion long before railway stations came in. "I'm a stranger here, too," Mr. Magee replied. inquired the ticket agent, when Mr. Magee stood again at his cell window. I'm sorry to take you out on a night like this, but I'll have to ask you to lead me up to Baldpate. Quimby.". Seven Keys to Baldpate (1935) Passed | 80 min | Comedy , Mystery , Romance A writer, looking for some peace and quiet in order to finish a novel, takes a room at the Baldpate Inn. Critics hated the play but the Astor Theatre remained packed for over three hundred performances. "I ain't one to let anybody go up to Baldpate Inn unfed. It baffled some audiences and critics but became a hit, running for nearly a year in New York, another year in Chicago and receiving later revivals; Cohan starred in the 1935 revival. In my fortress on the mountain I shall expect an occasional culinary message from you." He asked for two hundred. It's good fun, and I like to do it. "And—and you're really going to—" Mr. Quimby could get no further. "Are you doomed to stay here long?" ILLUSTRATED WITH SCENES FROM THE PHOTOPLAY A PARAMOUNT PICTURE STARRING DOUGLAS MAC LEAN GROSSET & DUNLAP PUBLISHERS NEW YORK Made io the United butes of America I'm going to do all this up there at the inn—sitting on the mountain and looking down on this little old world as Jove looked down from Olympus.". Seven Keys to Baldpate is a lost 1925 American silent film based on the 1913 mystery novel by Earl Derr Biggers and 1913 play by George M. Cohan. Television adaptations appeared in 1946 and 1961. The other eye proved to be the same admirable blue—a blue half-way between the shade of her corduroy suit and that of the jacky's costume in the "See the World—Join the Navy" poster that served as background to her woe. And yet—dim and heartless and cold was the interior of that waiting-room. We must find a cab.". Thus rolled the world along. "My grief," said the girl, "is utterly silly and—womanish. Thinking? I can see it in your eyes. "For the most part I will prepare my own meals from cans and—er—jars—and such pagan sources. Should he step gallantly forward and inquire in sympathetic tones as to the cause of her woe? Of the girl he loves. The play premiered on Broadway on September 22, 1913 at the Astor Theatre and ran for 320 performances. She smiled back. "She didn't think much of your town," responded Magee; "she intimated that it made her heavy of heart. "Be careful of matches.". He walked gladly up the path to Elijah Quimby's door. Mr. Magee stiffened. The train that had just roared away into the dusk had not brought him from the region of skyscrapers and derby hats for deeds of knight errantry up state. Seven Keys to Baldpate is a 1913 play by George M. Cohan based on a novel by Earl Derr Biggers. Its instant widespread success made his name tops in mystery in 1913. "I'll interview the man over there in the cage.". Mrs. Quimby, who seemed to have settled into a stout little mound of a woman through standing too long in the warm presence of her stove, came forward and inspected Mr. Magee. She teaches in the Methodist Sunday-school. It makes Crusoe's island look like Coney on a warm Sunday afternoon in comparison.' Effect. Mrs. Quimby, in the neighborhood of the stove, paused to hear the reply. "I have explained the matter to her," returned Professor Bolton. Billy Magee looked; saw a row of gloomy buildings that seemed to list as the wind blew, a blurred sign "Liquors and Cigars," a street that staggered away into the dark like a man who had lingered too long at the emporium back of the sign. As he did so he collided with a rather excessive lady. After a few more novels, he introduced his Chinese-American sleuth Charlie Chan in 1925, and the series of 6 Chan mysteries were born. I've been thinking about a breakfast engagement that I have this morning. Picture me meeting Hal Bentley in a Forty-fourth Street club and asking him for the location of the lonesomest spot on earth. The novelist has one. Previously made in Australia in 1916 and by Paramount in 1917, this version was produced by, and starred, Douglas MacLean and was directed by Fred C. Newmeyer. I t all began with a "best seller" entitled "The Scarlet Satchel"---- THE SCARLET SATCHEL. Mrs. Quimby could not long resist. The play was filmed several times, with versions appearing in 1916 (from Australia), 1917 (starring Cohan himself), 1925 (with Douglas MacLean), 1929 (with Richard Dix), 1935 (with Gene Raymond), 1947 (with Phillip Terry), and 1983 (as House of the Long Shadows). Oh, everything will be provided for. In Stock. The gentleman referred to was not cheerful in his replies. Looking into the fireplace .. thinking. ", "Well," remarked Mr. Quimby, looking in a dazed fashion at his wife, "I reckon I'll have to talk it over with ma.". In fact, our new streamlined handling uses ONLY an ordinary paper bag, a genuine padlock and seven keys; one of which opens the lock and six that do not. By Dink O’Neal | Jan. 12, 2005, 05:00 AM | Last Updated: Nov. 05, 2019, 12:27 AM. "Yes," she said, "you can do something. So his remark to the young woman was not at all melodious: A portion of the handkerchief was removed, and an eye which, Mr. Magee noted, was of an admirable blue, peeped out at him. "Well, seems I'vesort of lost the habit of being surprised now. ENTER CITY, STATE OR ZIP CODE GO. I remembered that once upon a time a critic advised me to go away for ten years to some quiet spot, and think. I have forty in that package. Anyhow, the girl's tears were none of his business. Now, if you had a daughter—a fluffy daughter inseparable from a hammock in the summer—she could help me explain. "Let me see," he pondered. The mystery writer has one. Now you can perform Annemann's famous "Seven Keys to Baldpate" without switches, extra keys, gaffed locks, change bags, special envelopes, or any other gimmicks whatsoever.