Camera - April 14, 1923 to February 16, 1924 (April 1923-February 1924)

Page 1 0 Camera! Mews Section Carrier i PSYCHOANALYZE BABY PEGGY Baby Peggy, five-year-old film star, underwent a test in psychoanalysis last week at the hands of Madame Fowlkes Haun, international lecturer, psycho-analyst and teacher. Mme. Haun was so impressed with the precocity of Baby Peggy that she begged permission to use the results of examination in a proposed lecture tour she will make throughout the United States this winter. "Baby Peggy." says Mme. Haun, "has the greatest speed of mind action I have ever seen in a child of her age, and 1 have made tests of hundreds of children throughout the world. This child can learn in one year what the average child would need five years to acquire. That is because Baby Peggy is being daily trained to use her subconscious mind through the mental suggestion she receives in her picture work. The ordinary child uses only the objective mind." Mme. Haun put Peggy to a severe test in concentration. The child was told to fix her eyes on a given point and not to remove them until told. All means were used to try to divert Peggy's attention, without success; even when the studio dog was called into the room Peggy's eyelids fluttered for a second only, but her eyes remained fixed on the mark. Mme. Haun was truly astonished at the results of this test and pronounced Baby Peggy as possessing one hundred per cent concentration powers. "With every one of her brain cells constantly being developed, Baby Peggy can excel in anything she attempts," Mme. Haun continued. "Her acting ability, great as it is, may not be her greatest talent. As her mind expands her creative power will develop, and she will begin to do things of her own accord, to c reate. Peggy shows no signs of repression, which proves she likes the work she does. Repression manifests in the physical make-up, and to me Baby Peggy appears to be about perfect in that respect." Mme. Haun spoke a few words of caution to Mrs. Montgomery, mother of the famous starlet. "Do not allow Baby Peggy to become aware of her talents. This would check her development. CJive her only the praise that is given to any child that has done good work, such as 'that is very good, thank you.' As Peggy grows older teach her that she is not superior to other children, that all children are naturally talented, but that she is especially fortunate in having had her talents discovered and developed." Baby Peggy will have another week of playtime before beginning work on "Captain January," which will be her first feature production under her new three-year contract with the Principal Pictures Corporation. STAGE EXPERIENCE NOT ESSENTIAL Much has been said anent the importance of stage experience for the motion picture actor, yet Lloyd Hughes, who has just finished the male lead in Zane Grey's "The Heritage of the Desert," is one of the prominent screen players who has never appeared on the stage. "While stage experience helps, the fact that a person has not appeared in the 'legitimate' is no reason why he or she cannot achieve success on the screen," says Mr. Hughes, who has been one of the busiest 'free lance' players in Hollywood during the past year. "Many veterans of the stage find that they must unlearn most of their theatrical tricks when they appear before the camera. It seems to me that a person who starts at the bottom in pictures has just as much chance as the established theatrical actor who obtained his schooling on the stage, if not more so. "Some of our most popular players have never appeared behind the footlights, and I feel that the stars of tomorrow, on the screen, will come chiefly from within the present ranks of the beginners now in Hollywood." Mr. Hughes himself is a striking illustration of his contention. Born in Bisbee, Arizona, and the son of a locomotive engineer, Hughes received his education in Los Angeles. While attending the Polytechnic High School and working as a Hollywood butcher boy after school Lloyd decided to become a movie actor. Without any "pull" or letters of introduction that might help him. Hughes, after many disappointments, finally obtained work as an extra at the Metro studio. Starting thus at the very bottom of the ladder, he worked his way up, and within two years he was playing important parts. King Vidor gave Hughes his first acting opportunity as the juvenile lead in "I'm a Man," a two-reeler. In this film the young actor had an opportunity to show what he could do, and his efforts won him recognition among producers. Another important part that helped Hughes up the ladder was his characterization in "Hearts of Humanity" for the late Alan Holubar. When King Vidor received his opportunity to make his first big production, "The Turn in the Road," he selected Hughes to portray the male lead. Followed portrayals opposite Enid Bennett, Viola Dana and then a year's contract with Thomas H. Ince, appearing in some of that producer's most successful plays. As Mary Pickford's leading man in "Tess of the Storm Country" Lloyd won wide popularity. Since then he played the leading male role in "Are You a Failure?" "Her Reputation," "Born of a Cyclone," "The Heritage of the Desert" and other prominent pictures. Lloyd Hughes' rise to fame was methodical and natural. He did not become famous overnight. He received a thorough schooling in pictures, and to-day is one of the sought-after actors by producers in Hollywood. Capek Drama For Theatre i. "R. U. R.," the weird melo d r a m a by Karel Capek, will have its first showing west of New J^f" ^^^P^B ^ vvitn ,ne *m opening of the play at the Fine Arts Theatre, 7 3 0 South Cirand Avenue, on Monday evening, December 3rd. It is the second of the productions being presented by Frances (ioldwater under the direction of Willamene Wilkes and Dickson Morgan. The play, dealing with the manufacture of mechanical human beings, is a brilliant satire upon our mechanical civilization. Karel Capek, who is admittedly one of the most original of the modern playwrights, has chosen the grimmest, yet subtlest, arraignment of this strange, mad thing called the industrial society of today. The play works out to a thrilling melodramatic climax that leaves the audiences spellbound. Miss Wilkes has chosen a splendid cast headed by Kvra Alanova, Katherine Van Buren, William Raymond, Franklin Pangborn and twenty others including Frank Dawson, Jerome Collamore, Inez Lowe, Joseph McManus, Billee Leicester, Wharton James. Carroll Nye, Carl F. Kroenke and Max Pollock. Returns to First Lot Family of Star Hoofers Sure, they did marathon dancing fifty years ago, only it was a solo affair in those days! Although Jack Lloyd, who appears with Lloyd Hamilton in "Lonesome," never saw his father win a contest, he saw him, as an old man, demonstrate a skill in clog dancing which could hardly be equalled among the star "hoofers" of the present day. Lloyd senior, known to the English stage as Ike Vernon, for eight years held the world's championship in the Lancashire clog, defeating all comers to his native Manchester. The awards were made on endurance as well as style, and Vernon's record was one hour five minutes of continuous step dancing, at the end of which time he was so exhausted that it took him several weeks to recover completely. But, true to tradition, whenever Dad saw little Jack begin to shake a leg, he picked up a ruler and told him to stop it, now! So Jack said it with song, in English vaudeville and American musical comedy, and then went into the movies ! Lew Cody. George Walsh, Raymond Griffith and Edmund Lone are letting their hair groiu. James Adamson, barber at the Goldnyn studios, has been ill for the past two •ueeks. Because he won his first moti picture success in a cowboy ro' Charles "Buck" Jones, Fox fi" star, is rejoiced to be back ' chaps, sombrero and spurs. He' now on location at Sonora, in t* midst of California's early mini' region, where he is engaged ' making "Not A Drum W Heard," an adaptation to the > ver sheet of Ben Ames Williar famous Western story. Following his success in plays the great plains and range sectic, of the West, Jones was cast < Fox in a number of dramas. I] now he is back to his old love a<i the famous star confidently p diets that "Not A Drum Vl/l Heard" will be one of his b! pictures. Director Wellman is charge of the Jones photopl' troupe at Sonora. AITKEN HAS OVERAL1 BIZ Spottiswood Aitken seems to ha/ the happy combination of the an] and the man of commerce in I make-up. While playing the H of the sea captain in Hunt StrorJ berg's "The Fire Patrol" Spoi bought a half interest in a am] overall factory and when thrm work at the studio at night he g'^ to his factory, where he superviJ the garb worn during workil hours by "the great dominant pl:1 people." ROOM IS REEL CI RK SHOP If the great Charles Dickens e came back to earth and saw studio dressing room of Ra' Lewis he undoubtedly would hi been inspired to write another b ger and better "Old Curio Shop," for Ralph's dressing-ro resembled nothing more than old curiosity shop of the days t are done. Ralph still uses his old stn trunk that carried his wardr twenty-odd years ago when he < a budding juvenile man on the gitimate stage. He has on view his pair of go luck shoes that he wore in his f D. W. Griffith film. The wig ; heavy-soled shoe he used as Sto man in "The Birth of a Nati' are in the room. Likewise his ( tume he wore as MacBeth and heavy armor from "Ivanhoe." 1 old, dilapidated coat and shirt ft his role of the miser in "The C quering Power," his judge's r from "The Outcast" and a club presented by a tribe of I Indians are among the many « ued possessions of Lewis wf make his studio dressing-room I like a veritable old curiosity tl Lewis says he has to double the door at night to keep the p men from taking his heirlooms ■ dressing the stage with them screen plays. Mildred Booth is in a Will F ers comedy Hal Roach is mak Marie Mosquini is the leading I and Perc Pembroke the directo