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TV'S WIDE OPEN! by Jane Williams TV People and Pictures October 1953

Bob's daughter, Betta, is starting out on an acting career. Dad recommends lots of hard work and sincere studying.

Bob is friend and critic for Betta. Here he admires her painting, but Betta says she would rather be an actress than an artist.

Bob really enjoys TV. His NBC dramatic show, "Robert Montgomery Presents," is a terrific hit. Bob produces it and occasionally acts for it.

Television is like a magnet in the way it attracts young people...if they've got the talent and ability to work hard, they'll be successful, says veteran actor Robert Montgomery, now a TV Producer-Director.

"Getting into television is the same as any other part of show business," says Robert Montgomery.      "TV is a new field which always welcomes people with talent.      "TV is wide open for anyone who has talent and administrative ability."      Montgomery, for years a Hollywood movie star, is now a producer-director-actor for NBC-TV.      "The trouble with most youngsters breaking into the field of acting is that they think all they have to do is to get a chance. And they forget completely what they are going to do when they get the chance.      "In Hollywood I remember so many youngsters begged for a film test, and then had to admit they didn't know what to do when they got the test. Actually, all they had was the ambition. But they didn't have study, preparation, knowledge."      Montgomery's daughter, Elizabeth, is following her dad into show business.      She is a beautiful young girl of 19, who finished her schooling and at her father's urging studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York.      Montgomery says he told Elizabeth to go to the Academy and to play summer stock as preparation for a professional career. "Last summer she was an apprentice in summer stock. She graduates from the academy this summer. This doesn't make her a finished actress, of course, but it does give her preparation.      "Actually, there's no school that can imbue anyone with talent, but a school can give technique and kowledge of the job to be done.      "My advice to all young people is not to quit school. Finish college if possible and major in dramatics."      He did not oppose Elizabeth's decision to become an actress. And he had no special advice for her. "I have a feeling about kids going into acting. Advice is not of much use. Those kids will profit from their mistakes and successes. There is no short cut to learning how to act."      Elizabeth, who made her TV debut in one of the plays on NBC-TV "Robert Montgomery Presents," is now living with her Dad in New York.      Called Betta by her schoolmates, she confides that, "Daddy listens to my ideas on acting and then criticizes. It's all impersonal and contructive."      She recalls that she decided to be an actress when four. "I had just seen 'Snow White,' and was wearing a sheet and a crown and singing 'Wishing' with my brother Skipper as the echo." Last year, she played Rose in the stage version of "Meet Me in St. Louis" at the Geller Workshop in Los Angeles.      Father and daughter are pals, too. "We're terrific companions and are so much alike," says Betta. "We love to Charleston together. And Daddy is the only one who can tire me out. Usually, I sit out the Charleston at a dance. It's too strenuous for my dates."      Daddy notices her clothes. "Never get flamboyant and always dress well," he urges her. He likes suits for her, and says blue jeans are okay in the summer so long as they are clean.      He also insists on good posture. "I get a slap on the back if I don't stand up straight," she says.      Betta likes poodle haircuts, very little makeup, pearl chokers, face veils. She dislikes going steady. Her ambition is to be a good actress on the legitimate stage.      Montgomery, as a producer-director, is interestd in all phases of TV. In fact, he has established permanent residence in New York. He is now married to the former Elizabeth Grant Harkness.      He reads hundreds of scripts in an eager search for good stories for his "Robert Montgomery Presents" dramatic program. He writes magazine stories, too, and has a huge library that includes one of the world's largest collections of Max Beerbohm's works.      Like the scarcity of good actors and actresses, there is a dearth of good playwrights, says Montgomery.      "Movie and stage writers don't necessarily know the limitations and the assets of TV," he says. Montgomery is today 48, and looks 30. He is, as always, impeccable, charming, calm, affable--and still has the air of impertinence that made him such a movie personality. He lives in a fine town house in New York, and spends every spare moment in his upstate home, where he likes to putter around and make house repairs.      "I have a workshop and can use power tools. In fact, I'm building a shed right now, to use as a shop."      He is mechanically inclined and likes to tinker with his car and gadgets. As for the climate: "I don't miss the California climate at all. I like the change of seasons here in New York."      And he has become a terrific TV fan: "I have seen a British movie, 'Small Dark Room,' on television at least three times, and I still like it!"