Harrison's Reports (1931)

HARRISON’S REPORTS 59 April 11, 1931 “Dirigible” — -wilh Jack Holt and Ralph Graves ( Columbia , no release date set yet; 105 min.) The story is not of much consequence, but the first half of the picture is so thrilling that it makes “Hell’s Angels” sink into insignificance : it shows a dirigible breaking in two when it met with a thunderstorm and was unable to weather it. The crashing of the thunderbolts preceded by blinding lightning, with the men rushing to one end of the dirigible on orders of the hero, who had realized that they had to run away from the break for their lives, the two halves falling into the water with the men clinging onto one of them, are a sight one cannot forget easily. The fact that the hero is surrounded with sympathy because he was the victim of misunderstanding on the part of his best friend makes the spectator follow his fate and that of the others with intense interest. Earlier in the film the spectator is treated with genuine thrills when the hero’s chum (Ralph Graves), supposedly the crack-flyer of the navy, is seen performing hair-raising stunts when he reached the flying field in the East from the Coast in an effort to break the time record, which he is supposed to have succeeded in doing. The hero was piloting a giant dirigible, belonging to the U. S. Navy, and his chum was seen performing his stunts so close to the dirigible, that he threw fear into the hearts of the onlookers. Since the picture was produced with the cooperation of the Navy, most of these stunts are genuine. The one that is not such is where he is shown flying around the body of the dirigible in a circle, close to the envelope ; but the trick photography was done so successfully that one is made to believe that it is a genuine stunt. Most close ups of the dirigible are life-size, and those of the instruments genuine. As to the second half, it is draggy and in places gruesome, in that the men, who were marooned at the South Pole, are shown suffering from cold and hunger. In one scene, it is implied that the hero’s chum, commander of the expedition, had to cut the leg off one of his men. In another, one of the crew is shown dying. In still another, the man with the leg cut off secretly divested himself of his clothes and went into the dark night to freeze to death so as to lighten the burden of his companions. The details are harrowing. The first half of the picture has been built around the crashing of the Shenandoah ; the second, around Byrd’s flight to the South Pole. Although the details of both these occurrences are in a way re-enacted, the story is entirely fiction. It deals with the wife of the hero’s chum who asks the hero not to take her husband to the South Pole expedition. The hero, though he knew that this would break his chum’s heart, carries out her wishes. The chum attributes selfish motives to the hero and sets out to get backing to go to the South Pole by airplane. News that the hero had crashed off the Coast of Florida had reached him. The chum gets backing and succeeds in reaching the South Pole but over-confidence ruins him ; with the consent of his men, he attempts to alight and crashes. By means of a radio set they were able to save from the burning aeroplane, they communicate with their base. The hero flies to the South Pole with a new government dirigible and saves the hero and another man of the crew, the only survivors of the disaster. They reach civilization. The chum regrets, oi course, his having misunderstood the hero. The story is by Frank Wead ; the direction, by Frank Capra. Fay Wray is the heroine. Hobart Bosworth, Roscoe Karns, Harold Goodwin, Clarence Muse, Emmet Corrigan, A1 Roscoe, Selmer Jackson and others are in the cast. The talk is clear. Note : Columbia has withdrawn it from the contract on the strength of the Road Show clause. But the same Clause gives you the right to take out of the contract one picture — the one you want, and not the one Columbia may designate. “Men Call It Love” — with Adolphe Menjou {MGM, March 14; running time, 73 min.) A fairly entertaining story of married life. It illustrates how much harm rumor and misrepresentation may do to happily married people. Children will not understand it and therefore they will not get any enjoyment out of it ; but it conveys a good moral lesson to adults, particularly to those who are married : — Discord first enters the lives of the hero and the heroine, married, when the heroine overhears a chance remark that her husband had been playing around with a chorus girl. The husband, who loves his wife passionately, proves to her that it was an untruthful rumor, but their happiness is ruined ji.st the same; therefore, when the heroine returns home and finds the hero in the arms of another woman she seeks no explanation. The other woman alone was responsible for the incident; although she did not love the hero, she craved for the company of men. But the heroine has it firmly fixed in her mind that the hero is unfaithful to her. The heroine befriends a golf professional man, with whom she seeks an affair. The golfer’s intentions toward the heroine, however, are honorable and he discourages her. Although she stays at his apartment one night, they commit no indiscretion. The heroine desires her freedom from the hero. The hero agrees to a divorce when the heroine told him she wanted to marry the professional golf man. After the divorce, the heroine realizes that she still loves her husband, and that jealousy was the cause of her having misunderstood him. They are reconciled and remarry. Edgar Selwyn directed it from the play by Vincent Lawrence. Leila Hyams is the wife, Norman Foster the husband, Adolphe Menjou the golf professional, and Mary Duncan the other woman. Not for children. (Out-of-town review. Not a substitution ; it is one of the “Lucky Seven.”) “Parlor, Bedroom and Bath” — with Buster Keatcn {MGM, February 28; running time, 72 min.) This picture W'as reviewed in last week’s issue, but through some oversight the release date and the running time were omitted. A JUST EXHIBITOR COMPLAINT AGAINST WARNER BROS. An exhibitor writes me as follows : “I played recently the Warner Bros, picture entitled, ‘Divorce Among Friends.’ In one particular part they advertised Brunswick radios. As a result of it, several of my patrons who are in the radio business complained to me that I am discriminating against them by advertising Brunswick radios and not permitting them to advertise on my screen the particular radio brand they handle. “Will you please inform me what action can be taken to stop Warner Bros, from repeating the advertisement in their future releases? Would this give us the right to bring an action in the courts for damages ?” The answer to this question is given in an editorial in last week’s issue. STATEMENT OF THE OWNERSHIP, MANAGEMENT, CIRCULATION, ETC., REQUIRED BY THE ACT OF CONGRESS OF AUGUST 24, 1912, OF HARRISON’S REPORTS, published Weekly at New York, N. Y., for April 1, 1931. County of New York. State of New York. Before me, a Notary Public, in and for the State and County aforesaid, personally appeared P. S. Harrison, who, having been duly sworn according to law, deposes and says that he is the Editor and Publisher of the HARRISON’S REPORTS and that the following is, to the best of his knowledge and belief, a true statement of tile ownership, management, etc., of the aforesaid publication for the date shown in the above caption, required by the Act of August 24, 1912, embodied in section 411, Postal Laws and Regulations, to wit: 1. That the names and addresses of the publisher, editor, managing editor, and business manager, are: Name of Publisher, P. S. Harrison, 1440 Broadway, New York, n. y. Name of Editor, P. S. Harrison, 1440 Broadway, New York, N. Y. Managing Editor, None. Business Manager, None. 2. That the owner is: P. S. Harrison, 1440 Broadway, New York, N. Y. 3. That the known bondholders, mortgagees, and other security holders owning or holding 1 per cent, or more of total amount of bonds, mortgages, or other securities are: None. 4. That the two paragraphs next above, giving the names of the owners, stockholders, and security holders, if any, contain not only the list of stockholders as they appear upon the books of the company but also, in cases where the stockholder or security holder appears upon the books of the company as trustees or in any other fiduciary relation, the name of the person or corporation for whom such trustee is acting, is given; also that the said two paragraphs contain statements embracing affiant’s full knowledge and belief as to the circumstances and conditions under which stockholders and security holders who do not appear upon the books of the company as trustees, hold stock and securities in a capacity other than that of bona fide owners; and this affiant has no reason to believe that any other person, association, or corporation, has any interest direct or indirect in the said stock, bonds, or other securities than as so stated by him. (Signed) P. S. HARRISON, (Owner). Sworn to and subscribed before me the 28th day of March, 1931. LILLIAN SILVER. (My commission expires March 30, 1932.)