The Moving Picture World (May 1907)

THE MOVING PICTURE WORLD. bers of his family" in the great tragedy of their li Y Thaw appeared to be chiefly concerned over the factt the pictures were not. correct- John E. Hauser/ the defendant, was charged with pairing the morals of children by showing moving p 2 j tures of the Thaw tragedy at his place at 416 First avj The' pictures" particularly complained of by "Abstain entirely." These two words constitute a cable reply received in St. Louis this week from the Madrid branch of the Credit Lyonnais, according to Secretary Wiedemeyer, of the., Erker Bros. Optical Co., in response to a letter inquiring about the validity of drafts drawn on E. Castelli Co., of Madrid, by A. Theus. & Co., of Buerios Ayres, South America. The drafts were sent to St. Louis wholesale dealers in photographic supplies and other materials, ac- companying orders to the amount of more than $2,000. Mr. Wiedemeyer says this cablegram has confirmed suspicions his firm has entertained regarding the South American concern and the order it sent and they will not ship goods to A. Theus & Co. Others who have received orders from the same firm express themselves more con- servatively and say they will ship no goods to A. Theus & Co. until they know more about that firm. In the latter part of March, Theus & Co. ordered bv mail, inclosing a draft in each case> moving picture machines and photographic films to the value of about $1,120 (240 pounds sterling, to be exact) from Erker Bros.; cameras to the value of $485 (100 pounds ster- ling) from H. A. Hyatt, dealer in photographic supplier and opera glasses and field glasses to the value of about $560 (120 pounds sterling) from the Western Optical Co. In addition, the same company is said to have ordered goods from and inclosed similar drafts to the American Bed Co., and E. B. Filsinger. The goods were not sent to A. Theus & Co. Instead the drafts were taken to their respective banks by thfi firms receiving .them. No assurance has been received from any financial institution that A. Theus & Co. is a firm of sufficient standing to warrant the St. Louisiana in shipping goods on their 90-day drafts. Erker Bros, cashed their draft at once through the Mercantile Trust Company, and it was in the investiga- tion that followed that the letter of inquiry was sent to the Credit Lyonnais. * . * * ' Orange, Tex.—Perry Burr, who recently purchased a half interest in the Empire Theater, a moving picture show, has sold his interest in the business to his partner, Hector McKinnon, who is now sole proprietor, and who will continue to operate the little house on Fifth street * * * The prosecution in the Court of Special Sessions, New York, of the proprietor of a moving picture hall drew a protest from Harry "K. Thaw against the character of pictures purporting to represent himself and the mem- new audience is coming in, the-piano player slips nue. agents of the Children's Socie^~ represented the leadq events in the lives of Thaw and his wife. The sen began with pictures of Evelyn Nesbit posing. they showed the marriage ceremony and the shooting < Stanford White on the Madison Square Roof Garde Superintendent Jenkins referred to them as lewd disgusting. Hauser was found guilty and the court was about 1 impose sentence, when Lawyer Dan O'Reilly entered; asked the attention of the court in behalf of Ham- ] Thaw. "Mr. Thaw has requested me," he said, "to inform 1 court that the moving pictures which have just under consideration are riot what they are purported 1 be. He wants it distinctly understood that the picture ( his wife is not a good one, and that the other pictures | not show the marriage ceremony as it occurred, nor l principals in it The same applies to the tragedy on 1 roof garden. My client wishes your honor to take 1 nizance of these facts." The three justices listened to Thaw's lawyer, but no comment. Hauser was fined $100. * * * - The nickelodeon shows have furnished occupation I young women, many of them girls, who, after they 1 practiced the piano for years, found they could not 1 a living as well as the girl who had learned nothing 1 to wash dishes. There must be two score of the mov picture shows in Pittsburgh, not to speak of those in I legheny and McKeesport, and every one of them has I piano player. The piano players at the nickelodeons of a year or i ago furnished excruciating music, for they were us girls who played at street carnivals and the attrac in the private parks. As the shows became known 1 people of taste learned that frequently very intere scenes were represented, the managers sought for girlsc another social class, with the result that the quality' music has improved and the higher class selections dicated as appropriate by the manufacturers of the artistic films are played with taste-and precision in of the shows; With the coming of these girls fac for withdrawal from the public eye had to be provid Even now One sees, at a few of the shows, the girl pis player boldly face the incoming audience, with the lig turned up; flirting with the ushers and altogether porting themselves with the same freedom as a me of a peripatetic German band; but at other places,: soon as the film has passed through the machine ai