The Film Daily (1929)

THE -3&% Thursday, October 3, 192 Timely Topics A Digest of Current Opinion —€)— Despite Dialogue, Picture's Still the Thing in Comedy TALKIE* technique alters comedy production methods materially, but fundamentally the picture is the thing. The eye seems quicker than the ear, a gag gets over better pictorially than it does audibly. Harold Lloyd * * * Says Art Must Come Second to Business in Film Trade IT'S all very well to talk of art and artistic ideals. We all have artistic ideals to some extent. But when you think of the millions and millions that are tied up in motion picture productions, you must remember that there's got to be a return on that money. Gloria Sivanson * * * The Stage Is Seen as Film Industry's Savior THE stage — and Western Electric— have just about saved the cinematic life. Just because a couple of million people who never went into a theater for $3 or $4 or $6 now go to a movie for $1 or $2 to see a rehash of the real thing is no reason for rejoicing on the part of the screen people — outside of their ,pocketbook. All they are doing is getting back a market that was rapidly dwindling, and the stage is showing them how to do it. O. H. P. Claxton in "The New York World" * * * Talkers Must Develop Own Writers to End Borrowing UNTIL they develop a group of special writers, conversant with the talkie mechanism, knowing its capacities, and intelligent enough to direct experiments, the talkies will naturally borrow, and their growth will depend on the skill with which they reduce their material to their own terms. Gilbert Seldes THEIR FIRST JOBS HOWARD DIETZ copy boy New York American Along The Rialto with PhilM. Daly, Jr. MARILYN MILLER has returned to Gotham after completing "Sally" for First National Paramount is putting a great promotional campaign behind "Two Black Crows." Harry Ross, former district head for Paramount in the Middle West, received a fine tribute from S. R. Kent, when he switched to Publix Neil Agnew succeeded him in the Middle West and in turn was succeeded as Windy City branch manager by J. O. Kent Charles B. Seeland, Paramount News photographer, got a nice break when he was assigned to accompany Col. Lindbergh on the initial Miami to South America airmail trip Lily Damita, 'tis said, is deserting fillums for a Broadway revue Educational can be rightly chesty these days over a 40-day booking of "The Constabule" over Loew time in Greater New York Mort Downey, Pathe star, is singing two songs from "Lucky in Love," Pathe opus, in his current personal appearance at the Noo Yawk Palace Among Hollywood aviation enthusiasts are: Bebe Daniels, Ben Lyon, Howard Hughes, Wallace Beery, Victor Fleming, Ken Maynard, Charles Farrell, Priscilla Dean and plenty of others The Paramount-Publix hour on the radio is proving a great hit The Duncan Sisters have signed a new contract with Emgeeem Darryl Zanuck, Warner production ace, gets into Noo Yawk today with print of "Show of Shows." An unruly taxicab crashed the front window of "1 he Variety" office Arrkayoh is feeling kinda proud over the "Rio Rita" sign atop the Earl Carroll .-.'Member how "Simba" proved to the fillum wiseacres that the house is a real stand? Rex Beach, who writes real stories, is a real story-teller. John Eberson, premier architect, got a real thrill out of his first fillum golf tournament Publix got a real reception from the Chamber of Commerce on reopening of its Springfield, Mass., house 57 NUMBER 57 Industry Statistics Bv JAMES P. CUNNINGHAM Statistical Editor. The Film Daily ASSESSMENTS made by the City of New York on 11 Broadway theaters showing motion pictures, for the year of 1930, show that both building and property of each is well above assessments made in 1929. The 11 theaters and their assessments are: Rialto, $3,200,000; Astor, $2,000,000; Gaiety, S2.430.000; Globe, $1,300,000; $2,500,000; Rivoli, $1,$4,000,000; Winter Garden, Capitol, $3,350,000; 930,000; Strand, Loew's State, $5,150,000; Lincoln Square, $1,550,000; Roxy, $4,550,000; Earl Carroll, $1,400,000, and the Paramount for $14,600,000, of which land is assessed for $6,600,000. MANY HAPPY RETURNS October 3 Best wishes and congratulations are extended by THE FILM DAILY to the following members of the industry, who today are celebrating their birthday: Tom Wiley Henry Clive Charles Furthman Frank B. Good Leo McCarey Warner Oland James R. Grainger C. S. Franklin George Moran Ralph Mills C. Hughes AND THA TS THAT By PHIL M. DALY f A GREAT idea is this semi-annu j get-together when the boys s< I aside a day to forget all about reih .als, publicitv copy and advertising :ontracts, and step out for a whi ', of golfing and good fellowship. The!" call it the Film Golf Tournamen But underlying this now famous iir stitution of the industry is somethin far more significant than giving ti\ gang a chance to show what pun golfers they are. It is the one bi, occasion taking place twice a ye<! when important individuals in widel separated fields of the business ca get close to each other and learn tj know the other fellow as a reguhf guy and not just a "name" in tb! picture industry. * * * On Tuesday, up at Gedney FarnJ Golf Club, three fellows told us o' three different occasions with a loi to surprise in their tones somethin to this general effect: "I never kneJ just what a regular guy So-and-Sl was till I went around the court* with him." And in each instance ui got a great kick out of it. For i! each instance they alluded to a get who happened to be quite a cloi! friend of ours. We had alway known that So-and-So was a regt lar guy. But it took a> round of go< to convince these hombres of th fact. * * * Why should such ideas gain currency th So-and-So is not quite regular, a hard-boilel egg, upstage, highhat, etcetera? Becau there are a lotta dumb guys with grouch1 walking around with a fancied grievance ar'i nutting in the rap against somebody who someone has hinted to them is not strict , on the up-and-up. It doesn't take long tj h;s kind of grape-vine propaganda to put tl 1 blackball on a fellow who hasn't earned it. 1 * * * But when you follow this cha around for 18 holes, and talkjzboil many things and get his slant, yol wind up at the clubhouse feelini that you have been missing a loan of good fellowship with a guy whi you should have cultivated long ag<\ That's the secret of Film Golf Tom naments' popularity. It teaches me to really understand each othe Credit this kolyum to Bruce Gallut for he gave us the thought as u have tried to express it in our dum ivay. TEN YEARS AGO TO-DA^ IN D. W. Griffith arrives to main headquarters in New York. * * * First National directors conver for semi-annual meeting.