Universal Weekly (November 23, 1912)

THE UNIVERSAL WEEKLY A FOUR-FOOTED HERO Wonderful New Bison Coming WM. H. SWANSON Secretary of the Universal Film Manufacturing Company A vivid portrait of the real wild west will, owing to the enterprise of the Uni- versal Film Manufacturing Company, soon be brought to the public’s door or, in any event, to the nearest moving pic- ture house which has the sagacity and forethought to insist upon that “Uni- versal program.” In “A Four-Footed Hero,” being produced under the “Bison” brand, several hundred feet of film are devoted to a Rodeo, which will bring the audience up on its toes. It is not too much to say that even the frontier day at Cheyenne, Wyoming, could not bring together a bigger galaxy of cowboy stars than those which figure in this remark- able presentment of frontier life. Cham-: pion cowboys and girls came from every western state and every event was con- tested in dead, grim earnest and not merely for the sake of taking a picture. Each competitor strained every nerve to make the best showing he or she knew how, for each one knew that the efforts made would be viewed with in- terest in every civilized country. A stage- coach race with cowboys shooting off their revolvers shows the famous coach- ing four with the intrepid William Strat- ton wielding the ribbons. A cowgirls’ race and one for the cowboys show Demand That UNIVERSAL PROGRAM From Your Exchange. It is the BEST PROGRAM in the world. some riding which is tremendously ex- citing, whilst the roping contest gives some of the finest bronco busting by several champions ever seen, for the horses are amongst the “meanest” ob- tainable. During the “bucking” contest, one horse turned a somersault over a wire fence and the well-known horse, Buckskin, cannoned off a post, throw- ing himself and Bertha Blancett, who re- mounted while the horse was down, and gave a splendid exhibition. ********* Teeming with excitement too will be found the steer “bulldogging,” which consists of a cowboy throwing him- self off a horse going at high speed upon a longhorn steer’s neck and so twisting his horns that the steer is thrown and held down. Riding a buck- ing longhorn bareback and a mule with- out harness are but two of the sev- eral other exciting events depicted. Amongst other famous cowpunchers ex- hibiting may be named Art Acord, a champion bronco rider and bulldogger; Vesta Pegg, who has taken part in many exhibitions; Otto Meyers, a champion bronco rider and roper of Oklahoma; Ferdinand Mitchell, one of the best rid- ers in the country; Del Blancett, cham- pion roper and rider of Oregon; Bertha Blancett, champion relay rider and all- round cowgirl, and Ed Gibson, winner of the saddle and $1,000 at Pendleton, Ore- gon. Other riders, male and female, who appeared in these contests, have been important prize winners in different parts of the West. An interesting feature of this two-reel production is the wonder- ful performance of the almost human horse, “Happy,” a trick horse which un- ties knots and opens doors and which does other remarkable feats. The horse is a beauty and performs its tricks nat- urally and with perfect ease. Another feature is the procession of the various contestants, the Indians, the cowboys, coaches, steers, burros, etc., headed by a mounted cowboy band through a gaily decorated Western street lined by a cheering crowd and the wild enthusiasm of a huge grandstand. “A Four-Footed Hero” is far and away the finest Western picture of its kind ever produced, and will assuredly make a sensation wher- ever it is exhibited. Over 750 people participated in its making, and the cost of production runs into the thousands of dollars.