Moving Picture World (Jan-Feb 1927)

January 1, 1927 MOVING PICTURE WORLD 49 Del Ruth of the Fourth Estate, Now Star Director Twelve Years Ago He Became Title Writer for Sennett and Later Took Megaphone — He Has Continued Steady Progress Ever Since ROY DEL RUTH, one of filmdom’s leading directors is a former newspaper man who is grateful for his experience in the newspaper game. To the several years he spent on newspapers in Philadelphia, Del Ruth attributes considerable of his success in filmdom. Del Ruth leaped over many of the rungs which the average director has to ascend one by one before he is eligible for his megaphone diploma. In fact Del Ruth stepped directly from a reporter’s job on a Philadelphia daily to the position of title writer and scenarist for Mack Sennett. This was just twelve years ago. We learned from Del Ruth that at that time he was writing anecdotes for this newspaper. Boasberg Writes a Story of Salesmen “Frivolous Al” Boasberg has sold his original story, “The Road to Romance,” to First National and it is expected to go into production soon. According to Boasberg, it is a glorification of the traveling salesman. Boasberg is the crack title writer for F. B. O. After eight months with Buster Keaton, during which period he wrote titles for “Battling Butler” and “The General,” Al took a brief vacation, which turned out to be a honeymoon. Upon returning to Hollywood, he titled “Kosher Kitty Kelly” so much to the satisfaction of F. B. O. that they signed him to a long term contract. “Frivolous Al” has just completed the continuity and titles of “Her Father Said No,” from the story, “Charlotte Ruse,” by H. C. Witwer. Larry Semon Now “Tripling in Brass” Larry Semon is a few jumps ahead of the new year in landingone of the biggest propositions which could come to any man in the film industry. The year 1927 for him combines writing, directing and acting. Such an unusual contract with a company like Famous Players-Lasky may be attributed to more than ability. That, coupled with foresight and a systematic nature have been characteristic of Larry since he earned $60.00 for his first onereel comedy for Vitagraph. William R. Fraser, general manager of the Harold Lloyd Corporation. It was just after he had completed a series of sidelights on the Willard-Johuson championship battle in 1913 that Sennett gave him his first job in the picture game. In those days Sennett spent as much time on his titles as he did on his directing and photography. In fact the newspaper reviews at that time devoted more space to the nature of the titles than they did to the directing. Del Ruth spent but about four months as a title writer and scenarist with Sennett when he took up the megaphone for Sennett Comedies. Since that time this director has always been a director, and one who has risen steadily in directorial ranks. Del Ruth’s association with Sennett was broken into by a period spent with the old Triangle Company, after which this director moved to the Fox Lot. From Fox, Del Ruth went back again to Sennett where he remained up until two years ago when he joined Warner Bros. During the past two years, Del Ruth has made ten feature productions for Warner Brothers, including “Eve’s Lover,” in which Clara Bow, Bert Lytel and Irene Rich were headlined. “Footloose Widows” is another of Del Ruth’s successes, while his two latest features are “Across the Pacific” and “Wolf’s Clothing.” Under his contract with Warner Brothers, Del Ruth will probably make five more pictures for that corporation during 1927. His last three pictures for Warner Brothers have been melodramas, and this director’s expectation is that his next production for this company will be a light comedy-drama. While in this mood we jokingly asked him what he thought would become of the motion picture industry during 1927. He looked at us with a scowl and a grin, exclaiming “That’s just like asking one ‘if the film industry is still in its infancy.’ I say that it is and I say that no man in it can make any definite prophesy one way or the other. Of course we are still going to make pictures and we are still going to make money.” Roy Del Ruth recalls Harry Langdon’s first experiences in the picture game. One time early in his experience on the Sennet lot, Del Ruth told us, he was making a two-reeler, with Harry Gribben in an important slapstick part. It seems that the night before work was to get under way on this picture, Roy Del Ruth someone was giving a birthday party, or a linen shower, and that Gribben became such an enthusiastic guest that he forgot all about sunrise and the camera the next morning. Del Ruth says that Harry Langdon was under Sol Lessor’s Control. Del Ruth informed us that he had known Harry while the latter was on the vaudeville stage and that he recognized in him even at that early date, brilliant material as a screen comedian. His declaration to Mack Sennett that Harry was “there with the goods” was borne out by the fact that after the completion of the picture in which Langdon was substituting for Gribben, Sennett was so delighted with Langdon’s work and the record for two reelers that it ran up at box offices, that Del Ruth was able to direct Harry in seven other Sennett pictures. During the entire time that he was with Mack Sennett, Del Ruth made practically all of Ben Turpin’s pictures. Del Ruth is a hard man to get to talk about himself. When the pencil and paper were put away and the subject took on all the aspects of just a conversation between one newspaper man and another, Del Ruth opened up, otherwise we probably would never have been able to secure a line from him about himself for publication. News From Hollywood And Elsewhere For the first and most authentic news from Hollywood, see Tom Waller’s pages in this number. In the brief period of his efforts in the studios Waller has established the most remarkable trade paper contact in existence.