The New York Clipper (December 1919)

December 3. 1919 THE NEW YORK CLIPPER Duponts Incorporate To Make Motion Pictures. Powder People Who Have, He*etafbra7cca*fias«i fam Aelmlie. to ControDmg Theatres, Now An Preparing to Compete With Manufacturer. yrnMXSQTOV, Del, Dec. 1.—A S10,- 000,000 motion pacture company known as the Dopont Moving Picture Cor- poration, -wlU be Incorporated at Dover this week, according to Bernard Levy, a' New York promoter who la in the .city completing the preliminary ar- rangements. Levy says the new company will la- sue a eerlea of educational and fea- ture pictures to be produced In this city, a elte already having been select- ed. The company also plana to enter (the Industrial field, manufacturing the essential materials for the produc- tion of film work. The plant will extend over a large area. Just what Its location will be will be announced at a meeting of directors of the new company to be held In New York this yeek. There was a meeting here in the Dupont Bunding Saturday, hot no one would confirm what interest the Duponts had in the proposed new corporation. Assertions were made, however, that the company would be ready to enter the production field by early Summer and that several noted stars had been given tentative contracts. This Is the first announcement made that the Duponts had definitely entered the motion picture field. For a long time their, money has been. In photo- play ventures, pictures and theatres alike, but It has been bandied through representatives and, except as dis- closures have been made by the ap- pearance from time to time of Dupont associates on various boards of direc- tors, It all has oeen under cover. The powder people first entered the- atricals about eight years ago, when they built the Playhouse at Wilming- ton and placed it under the manage- ment of William A. Brady. This was more of a personal affair than a busi- ness venture, for it was meant to beautify the town and to give the resi- dents a first-class theatre, as they al- ready had a metropolitan hotel, also built by the Duponts. As the profits from the hotel got them interested in Oils line of investment, so the success of the theatre caused them to become more so, and eventually lead them in- to furnishing the huge amount at money they now have In theatricals. About two years ago; It was discov- ered that quite an amount of waste from their various powder plants was the almost identical Ingredients nec- essary In the manufacture of flhn. Through the retirement of Sigmund Lubln, the Philadelphia photoplay pro- ducer, from the field, the Duponts ac- quired the IiUbln plant and backed the McClure Publishing Company, as an experiment. The picture producing company it- self was a failure, but the powder peo- ple became satisfied that It was a field for investment and, consequently, took steps to operate In it on a large scale. The first development <was the dump- ing of money into the Famous Playere- Lasky Company, which, from the small beginning that Daniel Frohman and Jesse Leaky made, branched oat to be the world-embracing corporation it now is. Gradually, as it was discover- ed that toe production field was a hard one to control, with the possibility of anyone entering it wfco ha enough money to make one or two pictures. the control of theatres was then un- dertaken and the Rivoll and Bialto, in New York, were taken over. This waa followed quickly by the acquiring of theatres in other important cities, un- til ' now the Famous Players-Iaaky Company is entrenched in such a man- ner and Is so swiftly growing that it is giving grave concern to both inde- pendent producers. and all exhibitors throughout toe country. The powder people then turned their attention to small time vaudeville, with the result that Marcus Loew was approached and it is reported that they are behind the great expansion recent- ly made in that circuit They also tar- nished the money for the bnHdlng of toe Capitol Theatre. Equity Against Sunday Shows (Continued from Page 4) play on Sunday, anywhere, anyway. The explanation was received with ap- plause. Continuing, he explained that, by a clause at the close, Ins resolution did not affect those who play in vaude- ville, either in or outside of New York. This brought the question from a Mr. SlIvemaH as to Just what stand- ing an Equity member; temporarily playing hi vacdeville, had. He wanted to know If an Equity member, playing in toe two-a-day, would be backed up by Equity In any dispute that arose with the vaudeville managers. Paul Gilmore here took the floor and ex- plained that In such an instance Equity would do what it could to right any wrong, hut that no official action could be taken by the Association against the vaudeville people. Mr. Emerson then -brought his ex- planation to a close with the reading of the final clause which states that Equity Is not against Sunday perform- ances when they are given as benefits, either for individuals or for any char- ity. 'With everyone seemingly satisfied, then, the motion was again seconded and passed. Another member then quickly arose, and. In a speech that waa frequently Interrupted, advocated Oat $1,000 be sent to the publicity bureau for the etisV c rs in the steel Industry. On Mr. Wilson's explanation that $250 already had been contributed to the treasury Of the union of Steel Workers, this waa voted down. The meeting "them adjourned. As an aftermath of the meeting, the complaints of Margaret Vail received a general airing among the departing members. Miss Vail, early in the ses- sion, arose to explain her position In the matter of the organization entering politics. At the meeting last month She at- tempted to have a resolution passed against such activities, but, she claims, she was steam-rollered out of it As a consequence, personalities have en- tered and she now insists that she Is entirely misunderstood. Her efforts to Interpret herself clearly were met with the same methods formerly used to quash her otion and, evidently, a number of those present agreed with her. She Insists she has an explana- tion to make and that she will bring the matter np at all- future meetings of the Association until she is heard. MAY SELL BIG CIRCUS It was rumored in several quarters last week that the two living Hlngling brothers, John and Charles, would operate the combined Rlngllng Bros, and Ba mum and Bailey shows only one more season. Both, It Is said, will then sell their Interests and retire from the game. John and Charles Rlngllng are the only two left at fire brothers who or- iginally were partners In the circus which bears their name, and, as both are said to believe they cannot proper- ly oversee the operation or tne olg out- fit, they will, it Is said, turn It over, with the rights to use both names, to whoever will pay the price. The Rlngllng brothers were circus men born. Any of them could do any- thing around a circus from driving a stake to posting a twenty-eight sheet. It waa their ability in every depart- ment and their dose attention to de- tail, the present survivors chum, that got them where they are, and now. with three brothers dead, It is beyond the powers of the two remaining to at- tend to affairs as they should. The circus will not be sacrificed. If anyone wants to buy it they will have to pay the price the controlere believe It Is worth. That probably will be an immense one, for it is said that the combined shows netted easily over ?l,O0O,000 this "LADY Df RED" TO CLOSE John SlocunVs show, 'The Lady In (Red,", which has been on the road since early in the. season, playing all the time, it is claimed, to a profit, will be brought into town and closed be- fore the holidays. Unsatisfactory con- ditions on tour and the impossibility of obtaining consecutive bookings are given as the reasons. ', The show will bestored pending the betterment of conditions, but the pres- ent cast will be .dismissed to permit the members to obtain other work if they wish. CHORUS GIRL KILLED Adele Freeman, a chorus girl, was fatally Injured in an automobile ac- cident just outside of .Springfield, Mass., late Thanksgiving night She died Monday In a hospital there. Miss Freeman until recently was a member of "The Magic Melody." She lived at No. S East Forty-Seventh Street this city. Late Monday after- noon, it was reported that Chorus Equity had taken temporary charge of the dead girl's affairs. "rlFlY-rlFIi" CsVpaM Instead of going on the road, as an- nounced, "Fifty-Fifty," which closed Saturday night at the Comedy Theatre, went to the storehouse. All the mem- bers of the cast were dismissed. It is the purpose of Barry Carroll and Har- old Atteridge, who recently were given a piece of the show for their services as doctors, to rewrite It, with the pros- pect of sending It on tour after the holidays. But when is goes out then, if it does, it will have an entirely dif- ferent cast from that which partici- pated in the New York run. "CHOW MAIN" REHEARSING Herman Timberg has begun rehears- als for his elaborated version of "Chicken Chow Main," which recently was In vaudeville as a tabloid, and which he will present as a musical comedy early in the new year. The cast so far engaged includes Flo Lewis and Jay Gould, Battle Darling, Pearl Eaton, Helen Birmingham, Gertrude Fitzgerald, George Mayo, Irving Irwin and Mabel Neff, a newcomer. It Is probable that Timberg will play a part In the piece also. MAY SUE PICKFORD AGAIN Cora Winkeniag, who lost a flOcV 000 suit against Mary Plckford for commissions which, she alleged, were due her. Is reported to be contemplat- ing another suit She formerly sued on an express contract If she starts a second suit, however, it win be on the theory of "quantum emit," which, instead of asking for a specific amount asks for damages that would be a reasonable valuation of ser- vices rendered. The suit would, if In- stituted, come before the Federal Court ROAD MM FLOPS <3us Bin, mho was active several weeks ago in forming an association of road managers, has about given op the project in despair. At one time he had the New York contingent Used up, and then an official forming of the body was put off until the Chicago managers could he taken in. Though the Chicago crowd promised to send representa- tives to (New York to Join the organisa- tion, they so far have failed to do so, and now local enthusiasm has grown cold. HTXON SIGNS WITH SHUBERTS Hal Hlxon, the acrobatic dancer who appeared in the Ziegfeld "Frolic" snows atop the New Amsterdam nam four week* ego, when be left, ostensib- ly «s the result of an injury to bis neck, has signed a year's contract to appear hi Shobart wtwi shews. He Is scheduled to go Into a nsw Shnbert production, he says, that win be ready for presentation on the 24th "LINCOLN" A GAMBLE HERE Washihotoh, D. a, Dec. L—John Drlnkwster's "Abraham Lincoln," pre- sented last night at the Shubert-Gad- riek here for toe first time In Amer- ica, Is a production which Inspires doubts SB to Its ability to qualify as the production that London reports have credited It with being. Drink- water claims the production is his per- sonal representation of Lincoln, the man, but In presenting his portrait of the emancipator, he has taken too great liberty with historical incident He has, in fact quite overstepped the per- characters commit any number of Ms» cbadacters commit any number of his- torical anachronisms. The characterisations are also gen- erally loose and poorly drawn and bits of dialogue that possibly, psssed with- out challenge in London, fall tossHy on American ears. The play Is staged with considerable care as to the scenic appropriateness of the settings and the political trend of the timss is repre- sented with veracity. ■ . Frank MdGlynn has been east as Lincoln and he apparently fails to real- ise the full stature of the man he zap- resents physically. However, he as- sumes an appearance that wtU pass current most places. His delineation, though, was decidedly verbose. Albert Phillips made a fair General Grant and, though the rest of the ma- jor characters are badly drawn, the production is farther marred by the lntrodoctloh of oratorical prologues be- fore each act These are pedantic and stilted in language to the last degree and have little meaning to an audience. This feature is practically certain to be eliminated. There was a suspicion' in Washing- ton to night that Drinkwacer. instead of casting the play for American au- diences had practically left It intact so far as the dialogue and situations were co n cerned. It cans into play, however, a great deal of sectional "hokum," Which has a marked effect on audiences and this element is so strong that the play may register in spite of its glar- ing technical delinquencies.