Picture Play Magazine (Sep 1920 - Feb 1921)

36 The Observer A few years ago The Drama laughed at the motion picture. Now it finds that the motion picture is the greatest amusement in the world, and that, because of its backing by the public it is in a position to obtain the finest writers, actors, directors, anybody it wants. The public demands more fine motion pictures. It will pay well to see them. And the producers, knowing this, are ready to take everything worth while that the stage has. It isn't any virtue on their part — they've got to. Famous Players is producing on the stage because in this way it can interest authors in writing for motion pictures and can offer both motion-picture and speakingstage engagements to actors. The motion picture is an amusement. The highbrow drama is not. The motion picture is for the masses. The highbrow drama depends for its existence upon a limited few. The Drama fears the coming of things popular. It fears the motion picture and the way to stir up opposition against a thing that is likely to put you out of business is to cry "Menace ! Menace !" The motion picture won't be rough with The Drama. It will let it play in its own yard if it will behave and not take itself too seriously nor pretend that it is better than it is. But good motion pictures are what fifty million people in the United States want and what they will have, even if, in getting what the}' want, they have to trample on drama, Drama, and DRAMA. Anyway, the speaking stage will have a hard time maintaining that it is on a level higher than motion pictures. For every good spoken play you have seen in your town in the last year you can name five motion pictures that were better entertainment. Am I right? You know I am. Make out a list yourself. Then send it in to The Observer to help him prove his point. rpj t* Al H. Woods is one of the theatrical 1 lie menace prociucers wh0 js menacing motion of Al H. pictures. He took Theda Bara and put Woods *n a sPeaking play which is prob ably the worst show ever produced. It wouldn't be so bad if the drama would take the blame, but Al Woods blames it on motion pictures. He doesn't explain that Theda Bara as a motion-picture star is no more. She wouldn't do any longer in motion pictures— so she went on the speaking stage. Al Woods offered many thousands of dollars to Bill Hart to appear in a play on the stage. Bill turned it down. He's not ready for the minor league yet. The Capitol Theater in New York, The Box tne world's largest amusement palace, „ ~. D . which started out with a "top" price Ujjice rrice 0f two dollars, has cut its prices in half and seems to be on its way to greater success as a motion-picture theater. It is The Observer's feeling that one dollar is enough to pay for the best motion picture in the best theater on earth. We do not underestimate the value of a fine performance, with expensive singers and a sixty-piece symphony orchestra, but the motion picture is a staple, and it should be kept to a reasonable price. Prices for motion pictures are about at the top now. Theaters know that they must depend upon regular patronage and that thirty-five to fifty cents is about enough for ? neighborhood theater to charge. "Two-dnllar" motion pictures have seen their day. We doubt if "The Birth of a Nation" could again play to two-dollar prices, even these days, when everything has doubled. There are so many good pictures that the public is willing to patronize theaters regularly, and it is better to play to a lot of people at a moderate price than to a few at a high price. Next fall will see interesting developProdllCtion ments m motion pictures. A great o .j. many stars and directors are all lookjSpectallzed jng toward having their own companies. To have their own organization pleases them because it sounds well in the public prints — and because there is a possibility of greatly increasing their earnings ; though this does not always f ollow, since some of these independent ventures have been as great failures as others have been successes. The only thing the public is interested in is good pictures, and if a star or a director can do better on his own, they hope he will break away from whatever organization holds him. But if, in deserting the big organization, he assembles a poor staff and begins making poor pictures, the public will soon forget him. The big pictures of the past prove nothing. D. W. Griffith nearly always has had his own producing unit, and he has made some commonplace pictures as well as some very wonderful ones. George Loane Tucker has worked by himself for several years and he turned out several failures before he made "The Miracle Man." Cecil B. De Mille always has had a big organization back of him, and it must be admitted that in recent years De Mille has probably had a higher percentage of popular successes at least than any other director. Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford have made some splendid productions since forming their own companies, though perhaps no better ones than some they made before. Sifted down, it really doesn't seem to make much difference to the general public. It would, though, if the stars were all like Charlie Chaplin. If they were, the public would rise up and demand that all "own companies" be abolished. For when Chaplin worked for wages, he turned out at least eight comedies a year. Since he has had his own company he seems bent upon making about one comedy every eight years. at / / The attorney general of Massachu 1\0I JO) setts deeded that the motion-pictureMiissa censorship bill was unconstitutional, so chusetts Governor Coolidge promptly vetoed it. when it came to him for signature. Then the House, which had passed it under the urge of Massachusetts reformers, upheld the veto by a vote of 202 to 14. So the Pennsylvania idea of cutting films to pieces will not be adopted in Massachusetts. Massachusetts will have to continue on its career of crime while Pennsylvania, protected by the motion-picture censors, will remain pure and sinless. Out in Ohio they trimmed down The Ohio "Treasure Island" because it dealt with n pirates and other wicked things. Here L elisors js a ciassjc that for years boys have read, a book that parents have always thought was good for their kids. But, alas, it seems not. The Ohio censors cut out of the film lines written by the master hand of Robert Louis Stevenson, lines which have been read by thousands of boys for years and years. Especially obnoxious to them was a threat by a pirate to cut Jim's throat! Out of the film went the threat! It might drive boys out into an orgy of throat cutting.