Motion Picture Magazine (Feb-Jul 1915)

88 MOTION PICTURE MAGAZINE the direction of Van Dyke Brooke was undoubtedly the keynote of her success, and that all his workers feel that they owe more than words can tell to the kindly, gentlemanly guidance of Van Dyke Brooke. Mr. Costello then interrupted with "Those fade-ins I mentioned to you are about ready, and I would like you to see them taken.' ' In another moment he had my chair placed in the most comfortable spot where I could witness the entire performance. I asked Mr. Costello how many times he had proposed and married in his lifetime. He laughed and said at least a few thousand times. For even when he was on the legitimate stage, he had always been cast for the lover's part. But — he told me — when the time came for him to actually propose to his pretty wife, he blubbered, fluttered, flustered and otherwise made himself conspicuous by his lack of speech, until the poor girl decided that her handsome lover was not to pop the question, after all ! He finally managed to make his message known, after repeated efforts, and the result is that he is the happy possessor of a beautiful wife and two lovely little girls, Helen and Dolores, who, I may venture to say, are almost as popular as their genial father. I asked where they were, and he told me they were in school, but that they would be in pictures again during the coming summer. Then he told me about his trip around the world. How he spent days looking for ideal locations for photographing. He had his principals from the Vitagraph Company, but for real ' ' locale ' ' he selected the most likely-looking natives of the country he happened to be in, making these pictures some oj: the most remarkable ever taken. By the way, Mr. Costello is an inveterate smoker, and it is all he can do to refrain from the weed while at work in the studio. He had a lot of fun not long ago when he impersonated a sweet young girl in one of the pictures they took down at Brighton Beach. He makes a handsome lady, you know. When they reached the beach, he marched along, as devilishly as you please, with a big, black cigar between his teeth, while bedecked in all milady's finery. Some Brighton Beach lady visitors turned their eyes away in horror at seeing this sight, and Costello thought it the best joke ever. Well, look who's here! No other than our old friend, Bunny ! And in a tight-fitting rough-rider suit, with a broad, "sojer" hat. I watched him rehearse a scene from "Private Bunny," and then saw them take the picture. It was great. Flora Finch was in it, too, and as funny and homely as ever. "Miss Kessler, I want you to meet Mr. Kent," and I hastily turned round, to face that charming oldgentleman, Charles Kent, the grand old man of the movies. He is probably the oldest man in Moving Pictures today, and I could not help noticing the fine face and pure white hair. I watched them take a scene of one of his pictures, too, and altho I had been in the studio nearly an hour, I had not begun to tire of the fascination of watching the camera man turn that crank while the actors played their parts under the glaring combination of sun and arc light. The watchers seem to hold their breath until the director says, "All right!" Then, and only then,, dared I breathe, it seemed to me. Everywhere "Cos" was welcomed like a ray of sunshine, and it was with real regret that my watch hastened my departure, for I, too, was basking in the sunshine of the merriest hero of the film world. It seemed a real shame to have to leave this charming Happyland to return to such a prosaic place as a magazine office.