Exhibitor's Trade Review (Nov 1924 - Feb 1925)

January 10, 1925 Page 25 PRODUCTION HIGHLIGHTS Frank O'Connor has finished work on "Free To Love," which he has been directing under B. P. Schulberg's supervision as a Preferred Picture. This feature which will be released in January is based upon an original screen story by Adele Buffington. In the cast are Clara Bow, Raymond McKee, Francis Feeney, Hallam Cooley, Winter Hall, and Charles Mailes. Universal announce* the signing of a long term contract by Margaret Quimby, fornjer Follies beauty and dancer, who recently was leading lady for Jack Dempsey in his "Fight and W in" films. Aliss Quimby, one of the beauties of the American stage, is noted for her appearances in the "Follies" in George White's "Scandals" in New York, and her appearance on the Keith and other big time vaudeville circuits. * * * Betty Compson has finished her new starring picture for Paramount, "New Lives For Old," under the direction of Clarence Badger and with Wallace MaDonald, Theodore Kosloff and Sheldon Lewis playing featured supporting roles. ^ ^ ^ Robert Florey, noted French writer and -motion picture director, has been engaged by F. B. O. as Technical Director for "Parisian Nights," Gothic's big special under the direction of Al Santell. * * * Mai St. Clair has just completed "The Dear Pretender" under the title of "On Thin Ice" at the Warner Bros. Hollywood studio. This is the novel by Alice Ross Colder that made quite a hit on publication. It was adapted to the screen by Darryl Francis Zannuck. "Viennese Madness" has been selected as the title of Hunt Stromberg's third Priscilla Dean production, an original story by Harvey Gates, author of "The Wildcat of Paris" and other of this star's earlier screen triumphs. This is a story of post-war Vienna and offers the star the role of a feminine Robin Hood. * * * Melville Brown, who was associated with Clarence Brown in the production of •"Smouldering Fires," with Pauline Frederick and Laura La Plante, as "gag" man and co-author with Sada Cowan and Howard Higgins, is preparing the screen adaptation ■of Rex Beach's story "The Goose Woman." * E. H. Asher, general manager of Corinne Griffith Productions, Inc., has signed a contract with Lloyd Hughes to act as Miss Griffith's leading man in her next First National picture, "Declasse," from the Zoe Akins play ■which gave Ethel Barrymore one of her most successful stage roles. * * * Arthur Rossan has completed Hoot Gibson's latest Universal vehicle "The Taming ■of the West," adapted from B. M. Bowers' "The Range Dwellers," and Gibson is preparing to start work again with Clifford Smith as his director in "Dark Rosaleen." ^ ^ ^ Samuel Goldwyn will produce Shakespeare's immortal love drama "Romeo and Juliet" on a tremendous scale in the Fall. Ronald Colman who is under contract' with Mr. Goldwyn for five years will play the ■part of Romeo, and a feminine star of first •magnitude will enact Juliet. At the present time Mr. Goldwyn will not divulge the name of the feminine lead. Curling Wallace Beery's hair for the role of Professor Challenger in First National's "The Lost World" which will be released next month. Rupert Julian, working with three thousand people, in the huge replica of the inside of the Paris Opera House, has finished photography on the performance of the opera "Faust" staged as incidental to Lon Chaney's forthcoming spectacle "The Phantom of the Opera," now under way at Universal City. * * * Warner Bros, announce negotiations were completed this week whereby they secuie the screen rights to "Compromise" by Mrs. Jay Gelzer, a book that when published last summer caught on to popular fancy to such an extent both here and in England that it has since run into several editions. It was published in England under the title of "Jane Trevor" and created quite a furor. "Tracked in the Snow Country" is the title of the famous Rin-Tin-Tin's latest starring picture for Warner Bros. As the picture cpens, Rin-Tin-Tin is introduced as quite a joung puppy, and for the first time in the history of dog pictures, Rin-Tin-Tin's own offspring will play this part, Rinty having only recently become the proud father of 7 police puppies. * * * Director Irving Cummings is deep in the filming of M. C. Levee's next production for First National release, "One Year to Live," from John Hunter's widely syndicated novel, which he is making at the Clune Studios. The cast has been completed with the addition of Rosemary Theby, Joseph Kilgour and Leo White. It already had a roster of brilliant players— Aileen Pringle, Antonio Moreno, Dorothy Mackaill, Tully Afarshall, Marc MacDermott, Robert Edeson and Marjorie Daw. * * * "Lawless Blood" has adventure and rornance on the high seas woven into the activities of a band of bootleggers with their base of supply in the Bahamas. This is the fourth Evelyn Brent production to be made for Film Booking Offices at the F. B. O. Hollywood studios. ^ ^ ^ "Moonflower," the stage success in which Elsie Ferguson recently scored such a remarkable triumph, has been secured by Paramount and will be produced under the title of "Eve's Secret" with Betty Compson in the starring role, according to an announcement made today by Jesse L. Lasky, first vicepresident in charge of production of Famous Players-Lasky. * * * "Crossed Words" is the title of the second production in the forthcoming Renaud Hoffman series on the Producers Distributing Corp. prog\rarni This title while tying up with the present cross-word puzzle fad is also vteU suated to the story which deals with a package of missing letters that alters the lives of several people and causes complications that range from the sublime to the ridiculous. Everyone see;ms to have the cross-word habit. Here is shown director Maurice Tourneur, Bert L5^ell and Anita Stewart busily engaged in a puzzle between scenes of "Never the Twain Shall Meet" which will be distributed by Metro-Goldwyn.