1953–54 Volume 78 No 1–5 - Phi Delta Theta Scroll Archive

Northwestern Phi,
Jeffrey Hunter, Is
Rising Movie Star
By DON JABAS, Lawrence '50
THE writer was attending the summer
school session at Northwestern University
in 1947. While studying one hot night
a knock at the door of our quonset hut
came as a welcome interruption. I invited
in a handsome young man who introduced
himself as Hank McKinnies of Whitefish
Bay.
He was looking for me, had heard I was
a Phi Delt from Lawrence and that I was
interested in working for my meals in the
Illinois Alpha house kitchen. I was indeed,
and there followed several happy weeks of
work at the house. Actually it was more
fun than work because of the continual
flow of entertainment going on. . . . Hank
with his imitations and songs, ably supported
by Johnny Wyse, and not forgetting
Phil Urion, song-writer and punster
de luxe.
Soon the summer had passed and we said
goodbye, but little did I think that my next
sight of Hank would come some three years
later when I went to a movie in my home
town of Appleton. The movie was entitled
Frog Men, and there was Hank in the role
of the sailor known as Pappy—making good
in a big way—only as Jeffrey Hunter now,
according to the cast of characters.
After the initial shock and with more
time to think back to 1947, I realized that
my complete surprise was not well founded,
because the brofhers of Illinois Alpha had
often mentioned Hank's outstanding ability
in the field of theater and radio at Northwestern.
The big break in his career came in May,
1950. Hank had been pursuing his master's
degree at the University of California at Los
Angeles by day and rehearsing the key role
of Chris in the University production of
All My Sons at night. The play opened on
May 7, 1950, and things began to happen!
Among the people who rushed backstage
[9]
HANK MCKINNIES (JEFFREY HUNTER)
Northwestern '49
to see him that first night were two talent
scouts—one from Paramount and one from
20th Century-Fox. From then on events
moved so swiftly that the handsome 180-
pounder never had time to finish the last
fifteen minutes of his graduate wprk. Dairyl
F. Zanuck signed him to a long term 20th
Century-Fox contract and he was planed to
New York to start his first film romantic
lead opposite Debra Paget in Fourteen
Hours.
But it happened deviously. The Paramount
scout got to him first, and Hank
went to that studio first to read next day.
The following day. Paramount put him
under option. A week later they tested him,
and were so pleased they had a long-term
contract all ready for the head man to sign
as soon as the executive returned to Hollywood.
A studio upheaval nixed that, and
Zanuck, who heard of Jeff's fine test, signed
him without benefit of another and
promptly changed his name from Henry H.
McKinnies, Jr. to Jeffrey Hunter on June
1, 1950.
Jeff's apparently overnight career mirrors