Canadian Moving Picture Digest (May-Oct 1922)

Page scan 00059 from Canadian Moving Picture Digest

Record Details:

Title:
Canadian Moving Picture Digest
Date:
May-Oct 1922
Volume:
Canadian Moving Picture Digest (May-October 1922)
Leaf #:
00059
Language:
English
Collection:
Canada, Hollywood Studio System, Early Cinema, and Global Cinema
Format:
periodicals
Contributor:
New York Public Library
Sponsor:
Google Books
Coordinator:
Media History Digital Library
Description:

Canadian Moving Picture Digest

Editors: Merrick R. Nutting (1917-18), Raymond S. Peck (1918), Ray Lewis (1918-19 and 1920-54), Walter Greene (1919-20), Jay Smith (1954-57)

Canadian Moving Picture Digest (1917-57) was initially a Montréal-based rival of the first film paper in Canada, Toronto-based Canadian Universal Bulletin (1915-18, edited by W.A. Bach 1915-17, J.W. Cambridge 1917-18, Raymond S. Peck 1918). The two periodicals were combined in 1918, keeping the Digest name, but moving production to Toronto with Peck as editor. Canadian Moving Picture Digest assumed The Bulletin’s volume numbering and always claimed 1915 as its year of origin. Ray Lewis (née Rae Levinsky) was a writer and playwright, who spent time in early Hollywood’s publicity departments. She briefly took the Digest helm in 1918, then long-term editor, later owner and publisher, from 1920 until her death in 1954. Under Lewis’s leadership, the trade paper claimed to serve as a voice for independent exhibitors and advocated for a Canadian cultural presence in cinema, particularly emphasizing British films as a way to keep a distance from Hollywood. Lewis's editorials were notable for their advocacy, wit, and critique of American dominance in the Canadian film market. While initially positioning herself as an outsider, she became integrated within the industry and a true insider. She even had an ongoing correspondence with Canadian Prime Minister R. B. Bennett, advocating for the industry as a whole and supporting British film imports. She was well-known at Toronto’s Dundas Square film row as well as in New York and Hollywood. Variety’s Sime Silverman called her “the Girl Friend in Canada,” and she delighted when U.S. writers not “in the know” presumed “Ray” was a man’s name. Lewis was later an inaugural member of the Canadian Picture Pioneers, eventually the group’s first female president and Pioneer of the Year. After she died in 1954, her son Jay Smith took over editorial duties until Canadian Moving Picture Digest was bought by Nat Taylor’s Film Publications of Canada in 1957. Taylor incorporated the legacy journal into a joint masthead for Canadian Film Weekly (1942-70), which subsequently dated its roots back to the 1915 origins of the film press in Canada.

– Jessica Whitehead and Paul Moore, March 2024

Further Reading

  • Whitehead, Jessica, Louis Pelletier and Paul Moore, “‘The Girl Friend in Canada’: Ray Lewis and Canadian Moving Picture Digest (1915–1957).” In Daniel Biltereyst and Lies Van de Vijver, eds., Mapping Movie Magazines: Digitization, Periodicals and Cinema History, 127-52. London: Pagrave-Macmillan, 2021.

Date Added:
July 26, 2023
Something wrong or inaccurate about this page? Let us Know!

Thanks for helping us continually improve the quality of the Lantern search engine for all of our users! We have millions of scanned pages, so user reports are incredibly helpful for us to identify places where we can improve and update the metadata.

Please describe the issue below, and click "Submit" to send your comments to our team! If you'd prefer, you can also send us an email to mhdl@commarts.wisc.edu with your comments.




We use Optical Character Recognition (OCR) during our scanning and processing workflow to make the content of each page searchable. You can view the automatically generated text below as well as copy and paste individual pieces of text to quote in your own work.

Text recognition is never 100% accurate. Many parts of the scanned page may not be reflected in the OCR text output, including: images, page layout, certain fonts or handwriting.

Pace Ten “How To Grow Thin” Educational Special Released 6EFOW TO GROW THIN” is a. new type of one reel novelty now available at the various branches of Educational. The picture is a one-reel novelty production, and contains within its thousand feet both humor and_ instruction. Its purpose is to give a simple lesson in hygiene, showing how easily one may avoid the unpleasantness and actual danger of superfluous flesh. But it gives its simple lesson in story form, with enough good fun to provide as many laughs as the average comedy. The story is that of a couple slightly past the age of thirty-five, who have fallen into the so prevalent habit of settling themselves comfortably in an easy chair after a hearty meal, in which they have eaten unsparingly of the good things that weigh down the American table. The “jolt” comes to the couple when they receive an invitation to a “swell affair,” and find that they can no longer get into their evening dress. Then they are visited by a woman who was a bridesmaid at their wedding, and when they see her just as slender as she was the day of their wedding, they begin to do a little thinking. Mrs. Ima Gobbler, the over-stout wife, is introduced to a health specialist by this visitor, and finds that the process he recommends is simplicity itself. It looks so easy and so possible that every woman who sees “How To Grow Thin” will try it on herself. President Allen Enterprises Leaves For Hot Springs Winnipeg. — Bernard Allen, president of the Allen Enterprises, who has been in Winnipeg for the past four months, left May 19 for Hot Springs, Arkansas, for a stay of several weeks. Demonstration Motion Picture Advertising Before St. John Advertising Club A demonstration of Motion Picture Advertising and its possibilities was given before the St. John Advertising Club at a recent meeting. Miss Alice Fairweather of the Canuck Film Company, gave a short talk on the subject of screen advertising using the motion pictures of the Canuck Film Company as examples. At the close of the address Mr. Roy Kerr of Standard Films, showed two reels of comedy. Hearty votes of thanks were given to the speaker and to Mr. Kerr. Go CANADIAN MOVING PICTURE DIGEST “Beyond the Rocks” Paramount Production Held Over Second Week “Beyond the Rocks,” Paramount’s latest release featuring Gloria Swanson with Rudolph Valentino was held over for two weeks at the Stanley Theatre Philadelphia. The story is by Elinor Glyn and the direction under Sam Wood. W. P. Nichols Is Not Representing Canadian Exhibitors’ Exchange W. P. Nichols of Winnipeg has not been associated with the Canadian Exhibitors Exchange for the past eighteen months, according to a statement from the Canadian Exhibitors Head Office, Toronto. The combining of the three Exchanges in Winnipeg therefore has nothing whatever to do with the Canadian Exhibitors’ Exchange. Mr. Nichols is releasing some of the pictures which the Canadian Exhibitors Exchange are handling in Eastern Canada, Nichols having purchased Western Rights some time ago. Larry Semon’s next comedy will be “Golf” it is announced from Vitagraph. Corinne Griffith is enjoying a brief vacation after finishing her latest picture, “Divorce Coupons.” — W. J. Maclaughlin Returns From Trip. West Indies W. J. Maclaughlin representing British and Canadian Pathe News has recently returned from a three months trip to the British West Indies. Here he took a large amount of propaganda films for the Royal Mail Steam Packet Company. These films are being put out all over the Canadian Circuit. Mr. Maclaughlin, who has been in Halifax since 1913 and is one of the best known photographers in Eastern Canada having had a studio in Halifax as well as operating a Moving Picture Camera, is taking a business trip to Boston and New York. “A Blind Bargain,” a new Goldwyn picture in which Lon Chaney plays two distinct roles, is based on “The Octave of Claudius,” a’ magazine story by Barry Pain. “The Great Train Robbery,” Canadian Exhibitors, Old-Time Special, has been playing with much success many important engagements throughout Canada. The Imperial, Ottawa, will show this Special the week of June 11th. gle “Foolish Wives” Opens Pantages, Toronto, Allen, ' Montreal,’ First Weeks in June — Universal “Foolish Wives” will open at ‘Pantages for two weeks the week of June Sth. It has also been booked for the Allen, Montreal, the week of June 11th, this for a two weeks’ run. Miss Maude George makes a personal appearance at Pantages. Reports from St. John and Halifax where this Universal big picture has been playing are to the effect that the theatres enjoyed record business. “The Bashful Suitor” Gorgeously mounted, telling a sweet and simple love story and capably acted, this makes as wholesome and fascinating a short subject as an exhibitor could want. It is another of the series of two reel subjects inspired by famous paintings. Josef Israel’s work, “The Bashful Suitor,” hangs in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. It is a Dutch pastoral scene. In the foreground are two figures — a fresh, pretty, Holland country girl, and beside her a halfhesitating, rustic swain. From this picture they have made a story; not a very dramatic story, nor a very original one, but one of sufficient interest. And so perfect are the detail, the settings, the acting, that an audience can feel themselves in that fertile land of simple-living lace-makers and dairymen. Such heart interest, such a tale of pure emotion, such a romance so enchantingly told, outweighs the punch of the melodrama, the wild action of the thriller. For refreshment after a diet. of melodrama, sex stories, and slapstick, try “The Bashful Suitor.” We believe that an audience will welcome such a short subject; that it will win an exhibitor staunch friends among a class of people who are now unfriendly to the screen. For a simple love story, if it can be kept from the pathetic, and free from the gush the sentimentalist, is never old or never wearying. The picture was directed by Herbert Blache and the art work was executed by Lejaren Hiller. Mary Brandon and Pierre Grendon play the leading parts. — MATTHEW 4.TAYLOR. JAMES W. DEAN, syniicating a story to about 400 newspapers, said in part :— “I have just had a preview of Hamilton’s latest, ‘The Rainmaker.’ This comedy is not the equal of ‘The Kid,’ but I believe it is better than same of Chaplin's earlier comedies and the equal of Lloyd’s and Keaton’s latest.”