Motion Picture Classic (Jan-Jun 1929)

The Movie Primer A First Reader On The Flikkers For Little Ones Vo LUME I — Five Little FiLLUMS And How Their Costs Grew H By ROBERT FENDER AVE you ever been to Hollywood? You haven't? How would you like to come with me this afternoon and take a peek at the very heart of movieland? You wouldn't? Well, you're coming anyway, see? Oh, yes, you are. I said yes! Come along now and remember, no whining. You don't want that teacher should have to bash your head in, do you? No, you're damned right you don't. Come quickly now and let's see a great big smile Well, say — here we are already! This, dear kiddies, is the Flikker-Art Movie Studio, one of the biggest in all Hollvwood. Think of it! And now that we re actually inside, let's look around and see what we can see. And Homer — look at me, dear — either you stop sulking this instant or — no, Grace didn't hit you first. She missed you by a good foot. And now if you'll all pay attention to me, I'll try to make this entertaining as well as educational. Sec the Pretty Company NOW that group sitting down over there is a studio c-o-m-p-a-n-y. A company is a number of actors and workers busily engaged in making a movie. For instance, if a studio is makmg five movies, that means there are five companies working. But those in this company don't seem to be working, do they? No, indeed not. They seem to be sitting. What's more, they've been sitting all Some pretty important people there, kiddies. Some high-priced orie«, too That »tnr. the gal on the director > lap, muiit get $4000 a week This, dear kiddies, is the Flikker-Art Movie Studio. No, Grace didn't hit you first. Homer. She missed you by a good foot morning and expect to be sitting most of the afternoon. Yes, that's right, Ethel. They must be waiting for something. Well, never mind what. They just must be waiting for something. Stop asking crazy questions. Some pretty important people there, kiddies. Some high-priced ones, too. That star, the ^al on the director's lap, must get ^4000 a week. Her leadmg man, the fellow with the profile, gets $2000. The bird wearing the puttees and open-work shirt, the director, only gets about ^1500. Then the assistant director may get anywhere from ?ioo to $500. So may the cameramen. Those are the cameramen playing mumbly-peg. The rest of the bunch; the script girl, prop men, electricians, laborers and others cost the studio about $150 for every hour they work or wait. So you can see what a great deal of money is wasted for every minute the company sits idle. What a great deal of money, indeed! And we know that it's not right to waste money, don't we? We learned yesterday that wilful waste makes woful want or something, didn't we? Their National Anthem BUT we mustn't tell them that, kiddies, because they've heard it before and they are very, very tired of it. Whenever someone brings that up, they sing a little .song entitled; Your Overhead's Our Off rtimf. Here's the chorus; fVho cares for dough {Ho-do-dee-o) Thai's not our woe {Ho-do-dee-o) It may be a crime but here's our rhyme Your Overhead's Our Overtime! Cute, isn't it, kiddies? But very naughty, too. You see, they have no rrlamas to spank them as you have. The men whose money they are wasting are a long, long way from Hollywood. They're 'way back East, in fact. And so what if they should get angry? What can they do about it? Yes, Aggie, that's the right answer. Nothing. Nothing except write letters to the studio asking where all the money's going. So the movie studios get a great many letters every week from the men with the money. Some of the letters are very pretty and many of them are quite funny, too. Whenever a new one arrives, the whole studio gathers in the plaza to hear it read. Then there is a great whooping {Cnntimird nn pnfir 05) .S7