Universal Weekly (1917-1934)

14 Universal Weekly February 4, 1928 CARL LAEMMLE, An Interview by ADELAIDE E. BECKMAN (Reprinted by Courtesy of The Jewish Tribune) CARL LAEMMLE, the great moving picture producer, is such an outstanding figure today in the world of affairs tliat the public in visualizing him naturally conjures up a great dynamic force, a man of most extraordinary vision, one, too, with hardly a peer in business acumen. A man bom to be a leader in the world of finance and industry. One who in a comparatively few years has attained such an altitude of position in a chosen field is undoubtedly all of these. But with those who know Carl Laemmle, those whose lives touch him most closely, the reputation he enjoys is still more enviable; it is one more exalted than that accorded by the unknowing public. For these, his associates, the men with whom Carl Laemmle's vast interests are interwoven, the men of that colossal industry in which field the producer's name ranks second to none, know him as one who throughout the years of stress and difficulties which confront every pioneer, has never sacrificed any of liis ideals on the altar of ambition. They know him as one who has left no blur or shadow on the pages of his life's story, as one whose achievements have left his history an unsullied record. To all these, his fellow producers and exhibitors and to his other intimates (the members of his great organization), Carl Laemmle stands for the biggest, the best, the finest type of man of commerce. This being the concensus of opinion throughout the industry, it was with a distinct feeling of . anticipated pleasure that I prepared for this interview. I recognized a privilege in meeting a man whose acclaim has been one of universal satisfaction; one, to whom all types of men have paid a merited homage. I entered Mr. Laemmle's office in the Universal Film Corporation's splendid home on Fifth Avenue armored in a conscious sense of joy in the task I had allotted myself, and the pleasure that I knew was awaiting me. But I was quite unprepared for the Carl Laemmle who greeted me; this was a Carl Laemmle of whose most beautiful attributes I felt I had known nothing. His legions of friends and admirers, notwithstanding their great tributes, had still left many songs unsung. One glance into his eyes, a grasp of his cordially extended hand, and I knew myself to be in the presence of a man endowed with vast sympathy, a man who would readily efface liimself or his personal interests in any humane cause, a man who, as the poet has put it, "loves his fellowmen." This is my outstanding impression of Carl Laemmle, financier, the great producer, the man of affairs. A certain ingenuousness of manner ever in evidence and generally attributed to mere youth, seems to dispute that virility of thought and action of which we know him to be possessed. I took small account of Mr. Laemmle's personal appear 1N 1884 a young German Jewish lad walked off the gangplank of the S. S. Neckar and found himself for the first time on American soil. Then he had fifty dollars in his pocket. Today the same man, Carl Laemmle, is rated in the millions and has established for himself the reputation of being one of the finest types of business men to be encountered. Mr, Laemmle, however, is not only prominent as a film executive. He is outstanding for the admiration and respect in which he is universally held. In this article the interviewer describes the impression conveyed by Mr. Laemmle to one who met him for the first time. ance. I think few do. I know that he is rather short of stature, neither slender nor robust, somewhat past the meridian of life. But the haunting features of his physiognomy are the illuminating eyes in whose clear depths are revealed the gamut of the emotions; and the set, determined jaw, the key, perhaps, to his success. During the interview never was there once an implied haste or hurry, although I am sure that he was steeped in engrossing problems requiring an immediate attention, his stay in New York being limited. He had returned from abroad about a fortnight back and was most eager, therefore, to get to Universal City. Also he confessed to a real homesickness for a sight of his beautiful estate at Beverly Hills, California. His visit here was somewhat prolonged, however, in order that he might privately view the organization's latest production, i. e., "Uncle Tom's Cabin," before its premiere. The necessity of remiaining over for the occasion gave me the chance for this interview. Two stories related to me in asides by one of the organization's foremost officials will, I am sure, prove interesting. This gentleman, who is greatly devoted to Mr. Laemmle, told them to me in most confidential whispers for fear of embarrassing the producer. While viewing the picture of "Uncle Tom's Cabin" in the projection room of the organization's Fifth Avenue establishment, Mr. Laemmle, although carried away with enthusiasm over the beauty of the production, was so greatly affected by the pathetic story that from time to time he wept, copiously and openly. His daughter, Rosabelle, seated l3y his side, was kept busy pleading with her father to control his emotions, for she feared that giving way to such intense feeling might prove harmful. "The other story is of a faded old autograph album which figures in Carl Laemmle's life as one of his most precious possessions. Unobserved by Mr. Laemmle, the gentleman got the book, which was under lock and key, from out its safe retreat and handed it to me. Carl Laemmle has treasured this quaint little volume for more than forty years; that is, ever since he came to America. Its pages are covered, not with eulogies from the pens of celebrities, but with little literary efforts indited in affection and esteem by relatives and friends. Such an album in this unsentimental age provides a real thrill. Many of the effusions were written in the days when Carl Laemmle often walked about with less than a dollar in his pocket; the very last one is from the pen of a beloved cousin who resides in Laupheim, Germany, Mr. Laemmle's birthplace, which he visited recently. He came to America, the land of promise and the land that was beckoning to him, in the year 1884. He embarked at Hamburg on the steamship Neckar, fired with the en