Motion Picture News (Apr - Jun 1927)

1910 Motion Picture News giiuiiimiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiHiiiii 11 iiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiiniiiiiiii Ill Ill iiiiiiiiiniiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiimiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiimiiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiN in iiiiiiiiiiiiin uiiiiiiiiiiiiiimiiiniiiiiiiiiinniiiiu I William A. Johnston's Survey iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiNiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii miiiiuiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiNiiiti.iiNiiiiiiiiiiiiiiitiiiiiiiiiiNiiii niiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiiaiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiniii^^ of all ages of invention. Will it be greatly affected? Of course it will; nothing can stop it. Those who constantly think that so marvelous a basis of entertainment will stay put and stay in certain grooves and under the brain control of a few concerns and the power of financial interests, theatres, etc., are thinking in the days of the Patents Company. And some people, at that time, thought wrong. ANOTHER thing about Warner Brothers — their pictures. In the East we have, of late, been discussing this company mostly in terms of the Vitaphone. Before I left New York I heard that Warner pictures were, as a whole, topping the box-office record of a certain prominent chain. Since arriving here I have talked about picture programs with the heads of two other chains located West of Buffalo and they tell me pretty much the same thing. And the answer is, I think, that there's a good deal of practical showmanship at the head of the Warner concern. Which is the answer generally out here. J. L. Warner is rated a showman producer, even by his competitors. And there are three other showman brothers ! "This business is all right," said he. "But I've got one criticism and it's this: there isn't so much studio competition here, as there used to be. There isn't the competition there should be. And the reason is that there's less theatre competition. Put them in two or three or several chains and there will be too little. That is what is happening right now. It is a vast change over the past, when there were no chains." All of which sounds pretty true. "Take our picture 'Wolf's Clothing'", he went on. "It is just one of our pictures. It was held over a second week in The Roxy, where apparently it pleased several hundred thousand people. What showing would it have otherwise had in New York? "However, we're not kicking." And, apparently, they are too busy, on the Warner lot, to kick. T SAW on the Warner lot an odd assortment A of automobiles, beginning with the first one that raced with a horse and so on up to Barney Oldfield's famous racer, old "999". These curiosities have been used in "The First Auto." Jack Warner is enthusiastic about this and also about "Old San Francisco" with Dolores Costello. He promises a very human, and novel picture in "The First Auto." The latter picture, by the way, has been made with Mazda lamps, the first to be turned out here with this new studio illumination. "You can put these two down" he said," with 'My Four Years in Germany' and 'The Sea Beast', two pictures I was sure about in advance." Two more specials are "Black Ivory" and "Noah's Ark." Considerable preparations are being made for the latter. It will be directed by Michael Curtiz, the Austrian director, of whom very favorable things are being said; he has just finished "A Million Bid," with Dolores Costello. Dolores Costello follows this in "The Heart of Maryland." "Ham and Eggs at the Front" — a comedy war drama of two colored warriors sounds good. In addition to the Warner twenty-six there will be, altogether, some eight or more specials. JOSEPH P. KENNEDY is going right ^ ahead with his policy of adding the best executives to the F. B. O. roster. A year ago last Fall he secured Edwin C. King, head of the Eastern Paramount Studios — generally regarded as the most competent studio manager in the business. And now William LeBaron is coming out. And King will welcome him with open arms.