 dedicated to the strength of the nation. Flee, we hail. A miracle of San Juan Capistrano, United States Army and United States Air Force presentation. And now, here is your host, the well-known Hollywood showman, C.P. McGregor. Much and greetings from Hollywood, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to your Theatre of Stars. We're all those famous names of stage and screen. Join us in plays we know you'll enjoy. Our star is the lovely actress, Mary Anderson, and the title of our drama, The Miracle of San Juan Capistrano. We'll have the curtain for act one in just a moment, but first, here is your announcer with a message of importance. Valuable professional assignments in the Army Medical Department are now available to a limited number of young doctors. In these positions, doctors have a chance to work closely with top specialists in the various fields of medicine and keep abreast of the newest developments and the finest modern medical equipment. In addition to regular pay and allowances, they receive $100 per month professional pay for details right to the Surgeon General, Department of the Army, Washington, 25 D.C. And I'll back at the microphone your host, C.P. McGregor. The curtain rises on act one of The Miracle of San Juan Capistrano starring Mary Anderson as Jillian. On St. Joseph's Day for 169 years, so the Indians say, the Swallows have returned to San Juan Capistrano. March 19th is the day of The Miracle, and they come with the certainty of day that follows night, swift and true on their wings that cause mild whirlwinds in the effort of homing. Now in the wonderful garden of The Miracle, a boy and girl once walked, their hands entwined with the closeness of love like the creeper leaf entwines the scrub pine. Jillian? Happy? Awfully. When I was a kid, my mother read me stories of the garden of Eden, ferns and trees hanging with blossoms, friendly birds, the chosen of God. I wonder, Peter, if Eden wasn't Capistrano. I shouldn't wonder, Jill. All things come home to Capistrano. Have you seen them in the fields? The birds, I mean, when the Angelus rings. Perhaps I'm wrong, perhaps it's just imagination. Somehow even the crows bow their heads. You think I'm silly, Jill? Oh, no, Peter. Even the wheat bows toward the south. You think it's the wind or the bells of Capistrano? Well, don't you think? Well, perhaps the wind is from their swing. Jill, look. What? That old stone bench. Oh, there's an inscription. An old Spanish, isn't it? Yes. What is it, Peter? The language of Geronimo Boscana. It says, todos las cosas que vengan a Capistrano. What? All things come home to Capistrano. Oh. Jillian? Yes, Peter. In this garden, there are many homes. Oh. My heart is like this garden. But with only one home. And that's for you, my darling. Peter. Jillian, inside here in my heart, there's a mission with bells swinging wildly, choirs singing praises of... You know who? Peter, please. Good evening, my children. Good evening, father. Are the birds pecking holes in your boots? Pecking holes in our hearts, father. Such holes should be filled, my son. Oh, Peter. Padre, would you bless us? You'd like that, wouldn't you, Jill? Of course. Will you, father? Shall we go to the church? The candles are lit. And the altar is a... Come along. Oh, God, the eternal father. We ask thee in the name of thy son to bless these children. Give them thy smile. They are young, oh, father. And their pathways are devious. Watch them and protect them. Oh, God, one day, if needs be, return them home to Capistrano as ye returneth our beloved swallows. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Fell softly over the shoulders of Southern California. The vineyards on the hill were heavy with purple grapes and still under the spell of the Padre's blessing, Peter spoke. I love you, Jillian. And I you, Peter. Will you marry me? Will you be my lady of the house, the mistress of my vineyards and my estates? Only no vineyards, no estates. But will you love me and be my wife? Oh, Peter. No. Why? You just said you loved me. Oh, try to understand, my darling. My father's a farmer, like yours and like you. But my mother, my mother was a lady once. From France, Peter. She had fine gowns and laces and jewels and she wore rings on her fingers and carmen on her lips. Well, darling, we can't look, Peter. At what? The dirt underneath my nails, from scrubbing in the grapevines, from digging muck to nurse the new ones. Oh, Peter. I love you very much. But I won't marry you. I want to see the world. I want to be as my mother once was. I want to go away. I want all that life has to give and I'm going to have it. Where? Chicago, New York, London, Paris, Cairo, Singapore. All the places in the world there are to find adventure. To be a lady. To be someone. Besides a farmer's daughter. Or a farmer's wife. Oh, Peter. Peter, please understand. I love you very much. But I can't marry you. I'm going away. And this is goodbye. Goodbye. The Padre said, all things come home to Capistrano. Jillian, I shall wait for the spring. The 19th of March. From the sunny climbs of Capistrano, Jillian sped eastward to the crowded boiling streets of New York. And then, in a shabby boarding house, Jillian found an open door. Albeit one of dubious quality. Yeah, I got a room. Second floor back. Eight dollars a week in advance. Have you got it? Oh, yes, ma'am. Here. It's five, six, seven, eight. You get your receipt in the morning and look here. No radios on after nine o'clock, see? Oh, no. And no boyfriends in the room, understand? Oh, yes, ma'am. Oh, and one thing more. Yes, ma'am. No drinking and cooking over the gas jet. Do you get it? Oh, yes, ma'am. Winter in New York is white and cold. Hope in New York is for lawn and seldom found. Each day to the agents of theatrical producers, Jillian sloshed her way. My name is Jillian Renato. The girl told me to come back today. Oh, I'm sorry. Miss, no casting. Mr. Shapiro said I could see in it one o'clock. Nothing a day. I'm very sorry. Oh, but this is the fourth time I've been here. And every time you say it. You'd better come back when you've had some more experience. I'm back again. Well, I tell you, there's just might be a spot for you at dust bar. Oh, no. Yeah, he's producing a new show at the Humboldt. Be there at 10 o'clock shop and don't count your chickens until you've got some. And lads. The girls are here, Mr. Baron. I've got eyes in my head, ain't I? Yeah, but I was just trying to... Don't interrupt. Who do you think you are anyhow? Hey, well, I was just... Shut up. Go soak your head. Wait a minute. Bring the new girls in. Let's see how they stack up. Yeah, okay, Mr. Abbey. I'm... All right, you dumb doors. Mr. Baron wants to see your work, so on your toes. Okay, Harry. What is that? Shut up, that's the animal. Yeah, well, hold it, Harry. Now, you're with the animal. What's your name? You mean me? Who else? I put one and three quarters, and I'm just dragging 98 pounds. Could I do, Mr. Baron? For a bone factory, yeah. For a chorus line, you ain't even a good stage brace, scram. All right, Bert, come on, come on. Who's next? Okay, what's your name? I said, what's your name? Bert, maybe you can tell me what that coy clam's name is. Maybe she talks in sign language. Oh, well, that's Eva Levier. She's scared. She just got through doing six seasons with the Hollywood fantasies. Before that, she'd done four seasons in top villain with the Chicago follies. Stripper, huh? Take it away. Try the East Hudson or maybe Minsky's. This is a legit musical, not a peep show. Oh, Bert, what kind of casting you're doing? Ask for girls, ask for glamour, and you'll give me a lot of broken down four stringers. I ain't got no more time for flusies. Mr. Baron, please. I said I ain't got no more... What's your name? Jillian Ronaldo. Turn around. Like... Like this, sir? Where'd you come from? You ain't from New York. No, sir. I'm from California, sir. Sure, sure, sure. Hollywood, no doubt. Oh, no, sir. Capistrano. San Juan, Capistrano. Oh, one of those swallows that return, huh? Something like a burp. Oh, the swallow returns. Get it, everybody? Good game, huh? Okay, Bert, sign her on. She gets 50 a week and starts Monday. Oh, thank you. Thank you very much, Mr. Baron. Save it, save it. Just be here on Monday and on time, or you'll be just another fledging on your way back to Capistrano. Ho, ho. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha. We pause briefly from our story the miracle of San Juan Capistrano starring Mary Anderson to bring you an important message from our government. Young men and women, here is your opportunity for a career in the world's greatest aviation organization, the United States Air Force. The Air Force offers you training and advancement in any one of 42 broad career fields. Careers are open to high school graduates, in clerical administration, personnel work, and practically every other field found in any large business or aviation organization. After careful consideration of your preferences and your capabilities, the Air Force assigned you to a career field. You start right in with on-the-job training. Later, you may go to an Air Force technical school for training in your chosen career. You're on your way up, assignment to an interesting job, advanced training at specialist schools, increase in pay and advancement to jobs with greater responsibility, and lifetime security through a sound retirement plan. Remember, you find your choice of many careers in the Air Force. Get details today at your nearest Air Force base, or U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force Recruiting Station. The curtain rises on act two of the miracle of San Juan Capistrano starring Mary Anderson as Gillian. New York, a place of heartbreak, of success, of failure, of much of nothing. In the boarding house on East 56th Street, an old-fashioned pull-bell makes dissonance with the chimes of Old Trinity Church. It's late for peddlers, and we don't want any. Oh, excuse me. Is this where Miss Renardo lives, Miss Gillian Renardo? Yeah, upstairs, fourth room to your right. Visitors ain't allowed after nine. Shall I call her down or will you go up? I'll go up. Okay, mister, just as you say, but don't forget what I said. No visitors after nine o'clock. These are the respectable house. You should go soak your head in a bucket. Ah, smart aleck. What'd you say? Nothing, nothing at all. Mr. Barron, I didn't know it was you. Naturally. Good evening, Miss Renardo. Good evening. I... I... Well, won't you come in? I... I... Thank you, Miss Renardo. Won't you sit down, please? I didn't expect this. Well, I mean to say, I... I guess I just look frightful. I... I've been trying to fix my hair in a little different way. I... I'm not having much success. That may be your opinion. It isn't mine. You look very nice, Miss Renardo. Uh, Jillian. It's very nice of you to say so. But I guess you're just being polite. Gus Barron, don't waste time on just being polite. I saw your address in the casting sheet and seen as how I... Well, I had some business in your neighborhood. I... thought I'd drop in and say hello. You're very kind. I am. A lot of people wouldn't agree with that. There isn't... There isn't anything wrong with that, Mr. Barron. My work at the theater is... Oh, it's great, eh? Nothing wrong with your work that a little more experience won't fix? Relieved? Yes. For a moment, I thought... Well, I thought that... You're on this, kids. I'll skip it. You're not. In fact, you're on your way up. Oh, thank you. Thank you very much, Mr. Barron. I've been watching you from out front, Miss Renardo. Gillian? I've overheard what some of the customers have had to say about you, too. Oh? Would you like to know what they're saying? Well, I... Modest, huh? Oh, you're trying to kid. In show business, nobody ain't modest. Well, here's what they're saying. You're too good for the line. That's the way I figure it too, so seamless how the customer's always right. I'm gonna do something about it. Yes, Mr. Barron. You know that top spot in the second scene, second act next to the finale? Do you mean the one Vera Allison does? I mean the one Vera Allison did. She's not with us anymore. She isn't. Is she sick or something, Mr. Barron? Yeah, she's sick, all right. Makes most stars pretty sick when they get fired. Fired? Put it any way you want. A fired sack kicked out. It's all the same. Oh, I am sorry, Mr. Barron. Why should you be sorry? What's one person's poison is another person's meat. You open in her spot tomorrow night and you're billing in a 200-buck raise. Me? I ain't talking to Lillian Russon. Oh, but Mr. Barron, I couldn't. Why? Well, Miss Allison's act was a... Well... Well, I couldn't come on stage like she did, wearing just a... Oh, still modest, huh? No, no, it's not bad. It's just that... Well, I just couldn't. Listen, Miss Renardo, don't give me that line. I didn't give Allison the gate to have you give me that innocent, angelic act. When I want angels on my stage, I'll produce a passion play. But I couldn't, Mr. Barron. But you're going to. I've already broke the publicity. The marquee pictures are all finished and your puts and your name is on all of them. I'm sorry, Mr. Barron, but I can't do it. Why can't I just stay in the line like I want to? Because I'm running the show. You're either going on tomorrow night in Allison's spot or you're through with the theater. And when I say through with the theater, I mean through. Is that clear? Yes, Mr. Barron. I guess it is. Well, what's the answer? I guess I'm through with the theater, Mr. Barron. Now, if you don't mind, good night. I'm sorry, but you see, visitors aren't allowed after nine o'clock. Being in Central Park means the first rose buds. Spring in the 42nd precinct station of police headquarters is a meaningless word. There, as always, the seasons mean only the stench of humanity, the glare of lights against the show-up, and the voice of the law. Eva Smith, Alias E. Brown, Alias Yvette Jordan, Brunette Brown-Eyes, 5 foot 2 and 1 quarter mool on left cheek. Charge of vagrancy, 11th offense. Mary Gile, Alias Marj Giel, Alias Margaret Gwyn, Blonde, Braxile, Blue-Eyes, 5 foot 3 and 3 quarter charge, vagrancy, 9th offense. Step down. 90 days in bond. Gile and Renato, no alias, black hair, black eyes, 5 foot 2 and a half charge, vagrancy, petty larceny, 30 offense. Miss Renato, you were here just three weeks ago. At that time, I saw a fit to grant you the leniency of the court. Is it the proviso that you left New York and returned to your... your back? Yes, Your Honor. Have you anything to say to extenduate your willful disobedience of this order? Have... have you ever been hungry, Your Honor? 90 days, Miss Renato. That's all. A cubicle, 9 by 5, cement wall, steel bars, prison. This, you see, is the tombs, by the bridge of size beyond which New York scurries and runs and hurries and lives and dies, and is reborn. Gile and Renato, I have here the probation officer's report on your conduct. It's been good, Gileon. Thank you, sir. I'm going to release you, Gileon, once more, with the proviso that you leave the precincts of New York in 24 hours. Any further arrest and charges brought before this court will result in the maximum penalty of three years. You are not a bad girl, Gileon. I don't think any girl is bad, really. We just call it that for one of another answer. Gileon, I have a daughter. She's nine. Her name is Gay. In a few years, Gay could be very easily standing before this bench. And God forbid. You perhaps think I've been a bit harsh, but believe me, I've only been the law. Gileon, don't come back to this precinct. Don't force me to do what the law prescribes. The best of luck and God go with you. God go with me. Where is God? What is He? And is there a God? Oh, God. Whoever, whatever you are, help me to find out. Grand Central Station, and then the train rattling westward, the rhythm of wheels, the rolling hills of Nebraska, then Salt Lake City, and on to California, and a quiet bend of the great Pacific, mother of peace, where God's hand is touched San Juan Capistrano. This is the day of the miracle. This is the day of March 19th. You're crying. Yes, Father. I'm afraid my tears might stain the drapes of the rail. Such tears should become the stain of the world. Gileon, the tides always come in and the tides always go out, and the birds always leave, but the birds always return. Do you know me, Gileon? I know you as a man of God. But as a person, Gileon, look at my face. It is Peter, isn't it? It was, my dear. They call me Father Joaquin now. And you've done this. You've done all this since I left, since I went away, since I went away to become a lady. A great lady. Oh, Peter, Father. No, no, my dear. Don't let the bitterness of the past remain in the present. Let your eyes be the windows of your heart, Gileon. You see, as I said a long time ago, all things come home to Capistrano. Come home as the birds. Oh, no, Father. Not as the birds. The birds return in peace and in purity. They come home with a song in their hearts. Take their song, Gileon. Sing it within your own heart. Let it be your hymn as well as theirs. If I only knew the notes. If I only knew the words. The notes are simple, Gileon. As simple as the words are profound. What are they? They are the notes of Tadeum. It is a song of homing, of repentance, of worship. Let your heart sing it for you. And the words? God moves in a wondrous way His miracles to perform. All things come home to San Juan Capistrano. It is the time of the miracle. The time of the miracle. Thank you. It falls in the final act of the miracle of San Juan Capistrano. Our star, Mary Anderson, will return for a curtain call after this timely message from Wendell Niles. College-trained young men, here is your opportunity to become an aviation executive. You receive the finest aviation training in the world from the United States Air Force if you can qualify and are selected for aviation cadet pilot or navigator training. To qualify, you must be single between the ages of 20 and 26 and 1 half and have at least two years of college. When you successfully complete one year of training, you win your wings in a reserve commission in the U.S. Air Force. Outstanding graduates receive regular commissions immediately. All others have excellent opportunities to earn regular commissions while on active duty. For complete details, visit your nearest Air Force base or U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force recruiting station right away. And remember, only the best can be aviation cadets. Now back at the microphone, C.P. McGregor and our star, Mary Anderson. Hello, Mary. It's been a long time since we had the pleasure of a visit from you. It's been over two years, C.P. It always seems longer when nice people like you are away. I thank you. And believe me, I'm glad to be back. Anyway, I know you were very busy in the East. I heard you a few times on radio and I saw you on television, and you were on the stage, weren't you? Yes, I was in three Broadway productions. I remember you so well, and guest in the house. Thank you, C.P. Still, it is time that you came back to motion pictures. Let's see, wasn't your last picture to each his own? Yes, that and the Whispering City. And now you have a brand new one that came out last month. It's a picture called The Whipped. Now tell our audience something about it. Well, The Whipped is a Howl E. Chester production, and the picture was released through United Artists. We have quite a cast in it, too, C.P. Van Der Ye, Herbert Marshall, Gayle Storm, Howard De Silva, Michael O'Shea... And Mary Anderson. Shall I say something about the picture? You certainly should. Well, it's a fast-moving romantic who done it and the one who's accused of murder. A beautiful girl like you? But I think that's all we'll tell them. Well, Mary, many, many thanks for joining us. It was grand of you. Oh, it was wonderful to be here. But tell me, C.P., who's going to be your star here next week? Next week, Mary and ladies and gentlemen, Tom Tully joins us to star in a heartwarming play titled The Voyage of the Scale Model Ship. It's a wonderful story of a very old man and a very young grandson who have imaginary journeys to the faraway places of the world in the scale model ship and find comradeship and a deeper philosophy of life. Oh, that sounds fine. I'll be listening. Goodbye, C.P. Goodbye, Mary. We shall join us next week, ladies and gentlemen, when Tom Tully stars in The Voyage of the Scale Model Ship. Until next week then, this is C.P. McGregor saying thanks for listening and cheerio from Hollywood. The courtesy of the Hollywood Coordinating Committee, which arranges for the appearance of all stars on this program. Script was by Kimball S. Sant with the music of Eddie Dunstaffer. This program was transcribed in Hollywood for release at this time. Wendell Niles speaking.