Variety (July 1919)

■fe.Tirww.' •"'''. ! ''" MOVING PICTURE DEPARTMENT PAGE 41 TO 50 '•'■ 1;*-, ■,• •' ' : ■HSt E "■- <" <i> ... ... . . ,f r. : i PS- W. •> - ■ FAILURE OF CHAPLIN "SUNflYSIDE" CAUSES UPHEAVAL IN FILmDOM Rival Producers See Imperative Necessity of Keeping Closer Watch on All Releases and Exercising Greater Care in Producing End of Industry. ■■•^■■■■■:. ■■ ■ < : ■. ; . f ■■ ■ i. ■ I - r: . ; ■-.v. '. ; ;.'■.■. .:.'c [~ %■■' . ,,r.. . •■■:■ '..v. The bomb that the funny failure of the unfunny Chaplin "Surtnyside" proved to the film trade throughout the country last week resulted in one all night conference and several protracted day ones within 48 hours after the First National released the last Mil- lion Dollar C. C. feature. The conferences bombed by the pre- miere of the uncomic comic have since been followed by others, and are being supplemented by other meetings of . executives of the film firms, who sud- denly discovered in the unamusing Chaplin surprise a "Stop, Look and Lis- ten'^ warning. The conferences sparked to imme- diate action following "Sunnyside's" release were meetings of the financial and directing powers of two of the trinity of big rival camps summarized when mention is made of the Big 4, the Famous Players-Lasky-Moss Syndicate and the First National. And all the conferences indicated were aimed at the imperative necessity of considering instant searchlight close-ups of all products planned for release by the two combinations here- after. What the big combinations suddenly discovered with the; advent of the new Chaplin flivver, the rank and file of ex- hibitors, East, West, North and South, are never tired of shouting to the Eroducers, and that is that the best rains of the creative elements of film- dom, authors and directors, are cheap at any price, and that all the ink'and paper that the big producing octopus! circulate yearly in advertising space that runs into millions must perforce prove all sheer waste unless the prod- uct advertised is of standard value. Digging into the ether of filmdom with the jagged ruthlessness of a buzz saw through a piece of cheese, the Chaplin flop, furnished the trade' of the country with one of its biggest laughs coming as "Sunnyside" did fast upon the heels of flamboyant expan- sions of screendom's three leading or- ganizations. Oldtime film men who can take a hunk of camphor and a thimbleful of Run cotton and chemicalize it into cel- luloid and then make the celluloid be- have until it is the carrier of a play of grip and intelligence, whether comic or serious, are a unit in a hurried swinging just now of red lantern sig- nals. The veterans can't see anything but wrecks ahead for the big organiza- tions unless the greatest care is ex- ercised at the producing end of the industry. These experts raise their voices for quality in the output. Of what gain, they ask for the big com- panies to gather in hundreds of the- atres, with' nothing* to fill 'em? And they point warningly at the walk-outs throughout the country of audiences on "Sunnyside" and name in the same breath more than a score of other fail- ures in films within the past three months, failures that might have proved successes if given the concentrated at- tention at the production end that the companies circulating them exercised toward the features' distribution. Everyone knows that Chaplin's ad- mirers are world-wide, and that cap- tious criticism or envy never enters into the judgment of the world's mil- lions eager to roar at a universally comic idol, but not all the affection of all the comedian's followers could stem the admission everywhere that "Sunny- side" should never have been written, never touched, and never circulated, save possibly as a rube drama. No one has yet been found who thinks it is funny unless, possibly, the picture's surely stage-blind producers. The puzzle to the picture's exhibitor critics is how the studio and scenario departments of a corporation that has literally in the palms of its hands the fortunes that the Chaplin name spells could so blindly and dumbly spill the beans and send "Sunnyside" forth as a "Million Dollar" picture, when even unfunny Marie Dressier is a Bert Wil- liams roar in comparison. The red lanterns of the warning switchmen point to the fate of the General Film, one of the most astutely sewed-up financial institutions in all the category of the world's big business of all kinds. The brains of the G. F. were all at the top, or organization pivot of the group, and no one thought to take a look at the bases upon which the whole thinfe rested, i. e., the pic- tures, until one day the whole thing turned turtle and carried down prac- tically all the units that the G. F. in- volved. The veterans, exhibitors and producers, who swing the danger sig- nals suggest that it would be a good thing for the film industry now; con- fronted by a prosperity wave without precedent if the men who are giving all their attention to the capture of FOX MUST PAY. Judge Martin T. Manton handed down a decision in the U. S. District Court permanently restraining the Fox Film Corporation from interfering with Jewel Carmen in her choice of an en- gagement. |, The injunction awarded Miss Carmen also provides she be re-imbursed by Fox for the time lost by her since last July when she started to work for Frank Keeney. The exact amount of damages will be determined by Judge Manton later. It is estimated that Miss, Carmen lost about $53,000 by her twelve months of enforced idleness. That is the amount her attorney, Nathan Burkan, will sub- mit to- the court as approximating what his client would have earned/ in a year under the terms of the Keeney agree- ment. In writing his decision Judge Man- ton made a particular point of the question of interference, stating: "If one maliciously interferes with a con- tract between two persons and in- duces one of them to break the con- tract to the injury of the other, the in- jured party can maintain an action again the wrongdoer. That the de- fendants acted intentionally is proven beyond dispute. The mere fact that they may have thought they had an equitable or legal right to do so is not an answer to an equitable action if they were wrong in this judgment." In deciding the action in favor of Miss Carmen Judge Manton also stated that "the measure of her damages is the loss of salary which she sustained by reason of her inability to carry out the Keeney contract. But for the de- fendant's interference, she would have earned such salary as the contract provided. A decree may be presented accordingly. , GRIFFITH TO PRODUCE IN N. Y. D. W. Griffith wi\l either build or rent a studio in the vicinity of New York when he returns from the coast July 15. Griffith has decided to make his maiii headquarters in the East, hereafter^. The California studios will be re- tained, but all of the future produc- tions will be made in New York. FLYNN SERIAL FOR OLIVER. The Oliver Films is to produce a serial picture with Chief Flynn as the central character. It will doubtlessly have as its plot the recent bomb out- rages and the tracking down of the criminals as its principal punch. theatres and film contracts would in- stead dig into their scenario and stu- dio departments and have every move made therein the best that money could buy, and then have the work of the de- partments so equipped checked up by .another staff of editors and creators so that when any picture was finally released it came forth with a better blessing than a gambler's chance. TREMENDOUS EXPORT DEAL. $20,000,000 in films, all American made, ready to be dumped into Ger- many, Austria, Russia, the Jugo and Czecho Slovak states, Poland, the Bal- kan States and Hungary. For sev- eral months past, ever since the sign- ing of the armistice, there have been signs of activity in the foreign rights for these countries, but the details of the deals that were being put over by fhe film men ' who were working in he background, did not fully come to ight until the signing of peace. The corporation handling the rights for the European countries is the At- lantic Cinema Corporatiqn, the officers of which are Benj. Blumenthal, of. the Import and Export Co., as president; William M. Vogel, vice-president and treasurer, and Samuel Rachmann, the German impressario, who has been in this country for a number of years. - They have secured the rights to Ger- ' many, Austria and Russia and other countries for over 1,000 feature sub- jects and state their investment rep- resents between $15,000,000 and $20,- 000,000. They have secured 400 five and six- reel features, turned out by Triangle, Which includes all of the Fairbanks, Hart, Marsh, Talmadge, Ray, and other star features made by those producers since 1915, and none of which naturally got into any of the enemy countries. They also have something like 300 Keystone comedies. They have 100 five-reel subjects, turned out by the Metro in the last couple of years, as well as 12 special Nazimova productions. The entire out- put of Goldwyn, Select and Selznick are also signed tor. The Charles Chaplin comedies that were made by the Mutual and the product of the First National are con- tracted for and will be in the first shipments made for abroad. Of the shorter subjects,' the Outing- Chester scenics and several comedy series are also arranged for. Approximately 100 independent feat- ure productions are purchased outright and the serials include "The Master Mystery," with Houdini, and the "Craig Kennedy" serial. Mr. Blumenthal is at present in Copenhagen making arrangements for the shipment of the film into Ger- many at the earliest possible moment. The other two partners are still in this country and i arranging for the purchase of additional pictures for the territory. Working on Chamber*' Features. The Thanhouser studios at New Rochelle, N. Y., recently purchased by A. H. Fischer, are being occupied .by B. A. Rolfe, who has started on a series of ten features by Robert W. Chambers for Mr. Fischer. The first will be "The Shining Band." The plant was purchased from Craw- ford Livingston and Dr. Schallenberg. I .. V.- >. ./*::b.:i ,-. . .^. /..;i''\'"'l^"^ih^.;ii:, ,;.., ......... ^M-imfflk