The Moving Picture Weekly (1917-1919)

34 THE MOVING PICTURE WEEKLY Song Used To Introduce Rough sketch of stage setting for tlie song "Destiny," sung at the New Garrick Theatre, showing of "Destiny" in Minneapolis. 'J'HIS Jewel drive is giving us an opportunity to demonstrate some of the succesful methods by which such Jewels as "Forbidden" "Destiny" "Paid In Advance" and others were put over by exhibitors who use their brains in their business. For instance when Jimmy Bryson booked the Dorothy Phillips subject "Destiny" in the New Garrick Theatre, Minneapolis some time ago, he told the manager of the theatre that they would play to capacity business. Now Jimmy knows that no picture in the world is going to play capacity unless it is properly boosted and presented, so when all of his preliminary work was fuiished he set himself to devise a proper presentation for the subject. A lot of exploitation men think that Bryson is lucky. He is lucky, but the luck consists in having a bean on his shoulders instead of a block of marble and there the luck stops. Bryson plays all of his hunches and anything that looks like a live idea is given an opportunity to develope in his fertile think cap. You might say that it was luck that Bryson came down early one morning to the office. Perhaps it was, but anyway as he opened the door a burst of "donna e mobile" rushed forth which turned the Universal Exchange temporarily into the Metropolitan Opera House. To Jimmie's intense surprise this amateur proved to be Louis M. Klebba, an employee of the Minneapolis Exchange and upon closer inquiry it was disclosed that Klebba was a former member of the Chicago Grand Opera Company. On the instant Bryson determined to take advantage of this dramatic tenor film handler and booked him immediately to sing the song which was composed on the inspiration of Dorothy Phillip's performance in the screen production "Destiny." Nothing gets over with Bryson unless it is in proper dramatic form so he set out to devise a stage setting to introduce both the song and the picture. In order to give the Editor of the Moving Picture Weekly an idea of this stage setting. Bryson sat down and made a rough sketch. The Editor decided it was too rough to take any chances with and so he reproduced it here just as Bryson sent it to him, only without the butcher's wrapping paper to which Mr. Bryson consigned "Destiny" his architectural effort. If you don't get the idea from this sketch we will endeavor to give you a personally conducted key to the map. The sketch on this page represents the stage setting which was disclosed as soon as the orchestra had finished the overture. It was drawn without perspective, but the original didn't defy the laws of gravitation as the sketch does. That is, the lake was perfectly level although in the sketch it looks as if it were standing on its head. On three sides of the lake mountains arose such as one expects to see in the Alps. A little church way up in the mountains is indicated on the sketch and suggests the site of a village. A small red light shines from the windows of the meeting house. Below the lake a really ingenuous and attractive waterfall gave one the idea that the city's hydrant had been let loose backstage. The effect was obtained in this manner. A great number of small holes were bored in a pipe the width of the falls, spacing one to an inch. Water flowed through this pipe. Before going "over," it flowed over a space of about an inch of tin which spread the water out and cave it a natural water fall effect. Two lighthouses, from the top of which a blue lieht was thrown stood in the foreground. Just back of the waterfall is a white gauze cloth and back of this Mr. Klebba stood. A light was turned on the waterfall from the wings but during the song Mr. Klebba stood in the dark with a black cloth at his back and beside him to mask his figure. The first verse and the chorus were sung thus in the dark. After finishing the second verse and starting the chorus a light at his side in the wings graduallv lierhted un his face and his body. The light beiner somewhat dimmed on the water-fall the audience was very soon able to distinguish the face of the singer back of the water. The back light grew brighter and brighter while the lierht on the falls became dimmer, until at the end one could see no water fall whatever, only the singer's face. As the song stopped the lierht grew dim. the singer disappeared, and the screen fell over the water fall and "Destiny" was thrown on the screen. This clever bit of stage management and the skill of Mr. Klebba was responsible in a large measure for the crowded houses which the New Garrick enjoyed for seven days. The New Garrick is one of the most elite and up-to-date theatres in the North West. It is one of the thirtyfour theatres owned and operated by Ruben and Finklestein in the Minneapolis and St. Paul region.