Universal Weekly (1924-1936)

October 23, 1926 Universal Weekly 13 s Royal Welcome Carl Laemmle, Jr., Mr. Laemmle and Miss Rosahelle Laemmle on the deck of the "Berengaria" as it nosed into port. is a small word of four letters, spoken in a breath, yet expressive of a world of pleasure, the quintescence of happiness, the one and only glimpse of Heaven on earth accorded us, and Welcome Home is fine under any circumstances. But this time, Mr. Laemmle, as you must sense, you come to us in all your old relationships, and, frankly, you come to us almost as one cominp^ again from the Great Beyond. That means very much to all of us. "This is as sincere a situation as I have ever seen. It couldn't be more. Speaking, assuming to speak, for your organization, voicing words I know are in their heart of hearts — and they are there — there must come to you a great happiness to know that those who are your partners and your friends are glad with you — love you. What more tribute can be paid a man than that. And for the Keception Committee, of which I have the honor to be chairman, and from one or two of whom you will hear, I extend to you audibly some little measure of that welcome which is in the heart of all of us, but which cannot be expressed in words. To adequately express it is impossible, because there are situations in which words fail. That is literally true. This is one of the situations. With a happiness that i.s inexpressible, with a feeling of joy that is immeasurable, we, who are your friends and all of us love you, as do your family, welcome you back to our midst again and to our hearts. " 'Why all this toil for triumphs of an hour, 'What though we wade in wealth or soar in fame, " 'Earth's highest station ends. " 'In "Here he lies" and "dust to dust," " 'To close her noblest song. " 'We live in deeds, not words, " 'In thoughts, not breaths, in feelings, " 'Not in figures on a dial. " 'We should count time by heart-throbs. " 'He most lives who thinks most, " 'Feels the noblest, acts the best.' "He most lives who thinks most, feels the noblest, acts the best.' "Carl Laemmle, that is your record. "And when you have finished the course and run the race and all is recorded and all comes out — and this is the experience of all men — then they will not feel or say any more than they feel or say of you today. "We do, my friend, we DO welcome you. You don't know how much." William Fox Speaks from His Heart Mr. Hays was followed by William Fox, president of Fox Film Corporation. "I wish that I had at my command the flow of the English language that our big General Hays has," said Mr. Fox, "but I haven't and I am just an ordinary layman and business man and cannot express as freely as he can the thoughts that are in my mind and in my heart. But to me this occasion and your coming home has a different aspect entirely than it might have to the great majority of neople that are in this room. "'I go back twenty years, not to pictures of today, nor of yesterday nor of tomorrow, but to those that you used to make when you were afraid to show your camera because the Patents Company would have their detective force out to be sure you weren't making any motion pictures. Those were the days when real courage was necessary to ultimately bring the motion picture of today to a successful culmination. It was during that period, as you recall clearer and better than any one man in all the business — because many of those who now claim to be leaders in our business were not in the picture business at that time — you will recall distinctly that it was I, and I alone, without wanting to sing my own praises, who brought about the final litigation that broke the Patents Company and allowed you to throw away the shield of your camera and make freely what you wanted to make. You were the one man with the greatest courage of all I knew in the picture business at that time, and for you I have always had the greatest silent admiration, one I never expressed to you until this time. And when I heard you were ill in London in a hospital and close to death, I prayed for you and prayed that God would spare you and bring you back. He did. And I extend to you from the verj' depth of my heart cordial welcome home." Murdock Lauds Universal Chief Then J. J. Murdock of the United Booking Office was introduced by Mr. Hays. Mr. Murdock said : "Mr. Fox said that he hadn't the flow of the English language that General Havs has. but would speak from his heart. I think he did. While I am in the kindergarten compared to either one of them, I wi.sh I could express the real feeling and real affection that I have for the man whom you are now honoring. I have known him for a number of years, probably as long as any man in the room. I have known of his struggles; I have had business dealings with him in the past. I can say without an exception that he is a man of high standard and of honor. (Continued on Page 34)