Screenland (Nov 1929-Apr 1930)

for "November 19 2 9 CONFESSIO of the FAN S This is YOUR department, to which yon are invited to contribute your opinions about motion pictures. Say what you think about the screen and its stars. We offer $50.00 in prizes for the best letters — first prize, $20.00; second prize, $15.00; third prize, $10.00; fourth prize, $5.00 — received before November 10, 1929. By 'best letters' we mean the cleverest and most interesting on screen topics, not to exceed 200 words in length. Next best letters will be printed by way of honorable mention. Sign your full name and address, please! Letters should be sent to Confessions of the Fans Department, Screenland Magazine, 49 West 45th Street, New York City. The Editor FIRST PRIZE LETTER $20.00 To travel over the world, seeking ad' venture and meeting strange people has always been to me an ambition which I mean to realize some day. Meanwhile, the movies have acted as a medium between me and my desire. Often have I glimpsed the crystal clearness of a mountain lake set down like a jewel between its huge green guardians with their snowy caps; or have been transported to some fairy isle of romance in the South Seas, where the moon is a thing of awe inspiring beauty as it .sheds its rays on the gently moving waters of the lagoon. Then, too, has come before the vision and to the ears, the pulse-beat that is Africa — weird, eternal, the unsolved riddle of the tropics! I have seen, through the movies, the most beautiful lands in the world. I can only thank my lucky star that there is such an art, and never cease to marvel at the wonders that it brings forth as time goes on. There is more reality and idealism in motion pictures than can be found anywhere else that is touched by civilisation in the world. Virginia Byrd Pearce, Chester, Va. SECOND PRIZE LETTER $15.00 Just a few months ago, I was one of those fans who held out bitterly against the invasion of the talkies, and prophesied that they were just a passing diversion, and would not last. I used all the latest and snappiest arguments to tell just why they wouldn't 'click,' why they wouldn't last, and why we would eventually return to the all-silent picture. But now I'm using all the arguments I can think of in favor of the talkies. Here are a few of the most potent reasons for my hasty jump from the negative to the affirmative side of the talkie question: Mary Pickford's voice in "Coquette" — eloquent beyond my words to express; Pat O'Malley's rich baritone, with just the hint of an Irish burr to it; Louise Fazenda's delighted and delightful giggle; Paul Muni's voice, which held me entranced throughout two showings of "The Valiant"; Johnny Mack Brown's delicious southern accent; Betty Compson's lilting soprano, and Groucho Marx's ridiculously irrelevant speeches. Whenever I think of these, and other treats afforded me by the talkies, I shudder to think of their being taken away from us, and I sincerely hope that my prophecy never will come to pass. Miss R. Palonsky, 628-4th Avenue, San Francisco. THIRD PRIZE LETTER $10.00 Some people spend a lot of time worrying about the birthdays of the movie stars. Much of the time, missing the correct answer by ten or twenty years, they say: "Yes, yes! She's getting on in years. She'll be through before long." I don't like that. And I'll just bet you never saw one of those unappointed critics get up in meeting and read reports on their own birthdays, beginning, "I am sorry to report another year gone. In a few more years, I'll be junk." You bet they don't! And this is not all. These same devotees will discuss at length the most intimate details concerning the lives of the stars. We can't tell what effect such seemingly trivial things may have on the lives that are spent sowing pleasure and joy to the multitude. Why shouldn't they, in turn, have praise, power, money, every good thing in life? Let's check our own birthdays, together with all the unexotic facts of our lives. Step right .up and throw the first stone. But aim straight! Who's first? (Mrs.) F. R. LeBrecht. 1700 E. 15th St., Brooklyn, N. Y. Davey Lee is one screen star about whom there is no possible argument. Everyone loves him. FOURTH PRIZE LETTER $5.00 Garbo, like some faint, elusive perfume, steals into your heart — and you are charmed by her!