Exhibitors Herald (Dec 1924-Mar 1925)

48 EXHIBITORS HERALD March 7, 1925 Fifty School Teachers Learn How Pictures Are Made Visual Instructors Visit Long Island Studios of Famous Players — Fred Stanley Receives Promotion at First National By JOHN S. SPARGO New YORK, February 24. — Fifty school teachers, members of the New York branch of the Visual Instruction Association of America, visited the Paramount Long Island studio last week to get a first hand view of the making of motion pictures. The group was headed by Miss Riat Hochheimer, 500 Park Avenue, president, Ernest L. Crandall, director of lectures and visual education, and Frank Reh, secretary. They watched the making of scenes for “The Little French Girl,” which Herbert Brenon is now producing at the studio with Alice Joyce, Mary Brian, Esther Ralston, and Neil Hamilton in the featured roles, and witnessed a preview of Richard Dix’s latest starring picture, “Too Many Kisses.” ‘‘'Viy'E were deeply impressed with the * ^ painstaking manner in which the pictures are made,” said Miss Hochheimer, after the visit. “I can easily see why the pictures of today are so much improved and know that the future will hold many splendid productions for us.” * * * Fred Stanley, for the past two years publicity director of the Earl Hudson units of First National pictures, has been promoted to the scenario department. Hudson yesterday announced Stanley’s advancement to scenario rank. He will be entrusted with the editing and titling of films, beginning with “I Want My Man” and “One Way Street,” the first plays to be completed by the Hudson units since their transfer from Hollywood to New York. This advancement is in line with Hudson’s policy of developing newspaper men for scenario work. Stanley is a former Boston newspaper writer and editor. He left Boston two years ago to organize the publicity department of First National’s own producing units which Hudson at that time was forming in Hollywood. He returned east with the organization last Fall. ♦ * * Two young stage stars were the guests of honor at last week’s meeting of the A. M. P. A. at the Cafe Boulevard. They were Wallace Ford and Nydia Westman, co-stars of John Golden’s comedy, “Pigs,” which has been running all season at the Little Theatre. The meeting was presided over by Vice President Charles W. Barrell in the absence of President Botsford. The guests of honor were introduced by Walter Eberhardt, secretary. Both young players are believers in clean plays. Rod La Rocque is in town and preparing for “The Coast of Folly,” in which he will play leading man opposite the Marquise de la Falaise de la Coudraye. Then immediately following this production he departs for the west coast, where he will be starred under the banner of Cecil B. De Mille as previously announced. Mr. La Rocque only returned from Europe last week and did not know anything of his stardom until a cable from Mr. De Mille informed him of the fact. After “The Ten Commandments” he could have been starred but asked the privilege of waiting a year or so while he studied further under Mr. De Mi lie’s direction as a featured player. Since then he has appeared in “Feet of Clay,” “Forbidden Paradise,” “The Code of the Sea,” and “The Golden Bed,” in all of which he fulfilled the promise of his outstanding performance in “The Ten Commandments.” In respect to leaving the Famous Players-Lasky Mr. La Rocque says “If there is any artist who ever worked for Famous and has an unkind word to say of them I have yet to find him. For myself I will never be anything but proud to fly the Paramount banner in any old part of the world. Its prestige brought me hosts of friends abroad. Among the functions I attended abroad was a dinner given by the famous Guards at St. James’s Palace in London. There I met the Prince of Wales and Prince Henry. On another occasion I was a guest of a fox hunt in Sussex and I was made to feel at all times that I was to make myself thoroughly at home. And all of this came to me through the prestige of Paramount and Mr. C. B. De Mille.” In mentioning Mr. De Mille Mr. La Rocque wants the world to know that his success as an actor is due to him entirely. “If it had not been for this great executive,” he says, “I would have still been an actor looking for a job. Ten years ago at this time I was an extra on the old Essanay lot and in my group of fellow extras was Gloria Swanson, Helen Ferguson, Agnes Ayres, and Virginia Valli.” * * * Wilfred Buckland, supervising artist of William De Mille productions, and his assistant, Edward Jewell, have returned to Hollywood to design settings for “Young Wives,” an adaptation of “Banco,” Alfred Savoir’s stage play, which Mr. De Mille will produce as his next Paramount picture. Messrs. Buckland and Jewell were in the east to design the settings for “Men and Women,” which was produced by Mr. De Mille at the Paramount Long Island studio. Clara Beranger is the author of the “Young Wives” scenario. 4: + * The ever-increasing demand for new faces to supplement the ranks of the screen’s favorite players has resulted in the discovery of another possibility in Kitty Kelly, who will be seen in “A Kiss in the Dark,” which Frank Tuttle directed, with Adolphe Menjou, Lillian Rich and Aileen Pringle in the featured roles. In this picture, which is her initial film experience, Miss Kelly plays a comedy role, that of a jealous girl who seeks an outsider’s advice on how to recapture the wandering attentions of her sweetheart. In her gratitude she becomes the innocent cause of a desperate situation between an erring wife who comes upon her husband kissing Miss Kelly. From this situation develop many of the laughs in the picture, which is based on Frederick Lonsdale’s “Aren’t We All?” ♦ * * Associated Pictures Corporation announce the addition to their publicity staff of Dewey Bloom, as assistant to Bert Ennis, director of publicity for Sawyer Lubin production. Mr. Bloom comes to Associated Pictures from the Fox organization and prior to joining the Fox forces handled publicity for the Selwyns. His personality and ability have made him many friends in amusement and publicity circles who will be pleased to learn of his* new position. He began his new duties on the Feb. 9 and is already busy on publicity for “Heart of a Temptress,” in which Barbara La Marr and Conway Tearle are featured. This Sawyer-Lubin picture was recently completed at the Fort Lee Universal studios and the announcement of its release by First National will be made in the near future. * * * Paul Sloane has returned to the Paramount Long Island studio from a short vacation in Montreal and Quebec and is now busy making preparations for the filming of “The Shock Punch,” a story by John Monk Saunders, in which Richard Dix will star. Luther Reed is writing the scenario. What an Exhibitor Should Know About Production: Rowland {Continued from page 37) industry. Through watching his patronage he should aid the producer — the manufacturer of his merchandise — in anticipating the changing preferences of film fans. If I were a small town exhibitor, I would check up as fully on the desires of my townspeople as the producer searches out material for production suitable to these desires. I would want to know what types of books were most popular in my community. I would want to know what magazines had the biggest sales, and the tone of the stories running in those magazines. I would want to know which newspapers had the most readers, and would take notice of the serial stories appearing in these newspapers. I would catalogue such facts in my mind so that, should I read in my trade paper that a novel particularly popular in my city, or a magazine story likely to have been widely read there, had been made and was soon to be released, I would book that picture. How many exhibitors trouble to keep themselves so informed of this means of pleasing their patrons and making new patronage? Few, I’ll guarantee. In another installment of this series I will deal more fully with this subject, and endeavor to show the small town exhibitor how I would go about getting facts as a guide to booking and exploiting pictures which could be considered half-sold to my patrons before I showed them. The exhibitor should never feel that he is too small to make, his opinions and observations known to those who make pictures. I would feel it my duty to make my requirements known to the producer. That is cooperation, and the producer cannot but recognize it for what it is. With exhibitors from all sections of the country submitting their observations, the total would represent a solid basis to which the producer could turn for assistance and guidance in his selection of screen material. « « * I am a firm believer in the value of trade paper exhibitor reports. But I think they should be evaluated by each exhibitor according to his knowledge of {Continued on page 50)