The Moving Picture Weekly (1917-1919)

16 THE MOVING PICTURE WEEKLY Carl Laemmle, president of the Universal Film Mfg. Co., and his son, Julius. (ij -TNIVERSAL City is going J ahead at full steam," said Carl Laemmle when questioned after he had stepped off the train from the coast. He was very enthusiastic over the prospects of the new year, and spoke of extending his company's activities. His flying tour of inspection of the Universal studios made him very optimistic in so far as production progress is concerned. He found the big film city bustling with activity despite the fact that the holiday season was in full swing. "Contrary to certain unfounded reports," said Mr. Laemmle, "Universal City has more people on its payroll at the present time than any other individual film company in California. If that sounds as if Universal is slacking up well then you know more than I do about my own organization. "When I was out there I found the whole place working at high efficiency. Everything was being done to keep things going fast and big. Every department was working at full pressure to keep up with the unprecedented growth in business. What He Saw at Universal City "As an indication of what we are doing I found three serial companies working, one company turning out Jewel pictures and no less than six companies producing our special attractions. This is in addition to the numerous companies turning out the usual number of Universal comedies, westerns and other short reel sub JGCtS "If this sounds like laying down on Carl Laemmle Says : "Watch Universal" PRESIDENT OF THE UNIVERSAL, JUST RETURNED FROM FLYING TRIP TO UNIVERSAL CITY, SAYS UNIVERSAL HAS MORE PEOPLE ON PAY ROLL THAN ANY OTHER INDIVIDUAL COMPANY. the job then it means that other companies have no job to lay down on. If anybody thinks that Universal is going to rest on what it has done, well that person can go right ahead thinking as he pleases. All I can say is WATCH UNIVERSAL! We're so far ahead of our competitors now, both in quality and quantity of production that all this talk means nothing to us. "I had occasion to see three of our future feature pictures now in course of cutting, "The Devil's Pass Key," "The Gorgeous Canary," and "The Beautiful Beggar," the two latter titles being temporary. I can unhesitatingly say that I am very proud of these productions. Universal has never done anything better. "Stroheim's masterful direction has made "The Devil's Pass Key" a picture of unsurpassed beauty and power and stamps him indelibly in the circle of the world's premier directors. "Tod Browning, too, deserves special credit for his work on "The Beautiful Beggar," Princilla Dean's latest picture. He may well be proud of his efforts, for his five months work on this production is justified and the picture is his masterpiece. "The Gorgeous Canary" with Dorothy Phillips surpasses even Universal's "Heart of Humanity," which made such an unusual record throughout the country. "Is Universal letting up? Are we shifting and going into second speed? Not if I know it! When you see these pictures and the others that are coming, you can answer for yourself." Tendency Toward Bigger and More Costly Productions "The tendency for the production of bigger and better pictures has manifested itself in a marked degree during the past several months, but this is only an earnest of what we are to expect in the forthcoming year. Practically every manufacturing concern realizes that more money will be made by all persons connected in the industry with fewer but better pictures, than with a flock of ordinary or mediocre ones. The public has shown that it wants pictures of the highest quality, and the eagerness with which it is patronizing theatres where the better productions are shown has given producers the hint and incentive for attaining a higher standard of perfection. "And when I speak of higher quality, I mean that everything that goes into the making of moving pictures will be on a higher plane. Better stories will be secured, regardless of the cost; more attention will be paid by directors in making pictures absolutely flawless. Directors of the greatest prominence have profited by the mistakes which have been pointed out by press and public, and they all profess an eagerness to do their part in establishing new records for accuracy and artistry. New Photographic Process "Photographically, there doesn't seem to be much room for improvement although there are some discoveries being made which may become extremely popular. A new process known as pastelography has been perfected by Eric von Stroheim, director and star whose first big production, 'Blind Husbands,' has created a furore in film circles. "The effect of pastelography is to give moving pictures the appearance of paintings, and while the effect of soft diffusion is obtained, there is none of the murkiness which appears in some of the ultra-futurist photodramas, so difficult for the eyes to follow. Mr. von Stroheim worked out his system of pastelography in collaboration with Ben Reynolds, the cameraman who filmed 'The Devil's Pass Key,' which has just been completed. "Speaking for Universal, I can say that it has been our policy to put all the money a production will stand into its making. As an example, I may cite 'Blind Husbands.' When Mr. von Stroheim, who wrote, directed and played the principal role in this picture, first discussed it with me, he (Continued on page 35)