Motion Picture Classic (Jan-Jun 1929)

Giving Hollywood Fitts And the Pom I'uiji, that night club run by a graduate of Oxford — yes, my dears, Oxford—it specializes in nine-tenths-nalced women who in their turn specialize in bosoms. That also has been raided. Twice in fact, with the D.T.'s men still watching. And The Double Eagle, the second attempt of General Lodijinski — his first having cone up in a gas explosion — just when will tnere be a difTerent type of explosion there, is Hollywood's worried-look question. And the Russian Club — and all the other Bohemian haunts of the little boys and girls who think it's a bit of fun to be a little — just a little — wicked. And then came the Asa Keyes case. And it was all tied up with Aimee Semple Mcpherson and the Julian fiasco. Now, Hollywood didn't worry particularly about Aimee. Saving souls and disappearing in oceans and deserts was her own business. But the Julian case. With revelations upon revelations promised of men high in rank who had done things which — well, at least, to see them in print would be awful. Didn't they remember some publicity — publicity which got by the press agents — about it? Of course, they just couldn't drag in the names of our movie people. But stijl, this little American Legion boy who had jumped to lieutenant-governor and then to district attorney. Kid the Kid Along ABOUT this time 1 figured it r\_ was time to go down and see nim. Any man who could sit way down in the Hall of Records building in Hollywood's little suburb, Los Angeles, and cause so much talk and consternation — what was he like, anyway; and what was he up to in this business of cleaning up our already sun-fumigated city? I expected — I don't know what I expected. I talked with a lot of the newspaper boys about him. And frankly, they weren't so flattering in their remarks about this D.T. person. "Just tell him he's a great little boy and you think he's going to take Mabel Willebrandt's place or Hiram Johnson's and he'll give you any kind of information." Or again, "Tell him you voted for him and think what this country needs is a few honest men and you'll get by with him." Of course, the first person I saw was Mrs. Earle, his sister, who acts as his secretary and keep-away-unnecessary-interruptions protector. A wise man, this, to have someone in his own family. Let them talk about graft — at least, his own sister won't doublecross him. She was charming and wanted to provide the interview information for me. But I used my most demure manner and told her frankly — oh, so frankly — that when I interviewed Norma Talmadge, I didn't go to Peg Talmadge, her mother. " I just couldn't put Norma's personality on paper by talking to Mrs. Talmadge, even though she is Norma's own mother." And she saw the point and took me through the big glass door and into the presence of that man who limps with his foot but doesn't limp one second in his battling actions. And before I had a chance to say anything about honest men whom we need for future national positions, he pranced right in with both feet — or rather both hands and his tongue — and started giving me the real reasons why 74 {Continued from page 25) Hollywood and all the rest of Los Angeles has the right to be frightened if they think the laws of this country were made to be broken. The Old Army Game IENTP2RED the war on the first day of service. I have the viewpoint of the officers on the battle-front. I am by nature emotional. I regarded the men at the front with something very much like worship. Many in my outfit were killed. I felt the emotional side of service and duty. The feeling I have is that this job of district attorney is no different than the one I had in France. That was risk of life; this is risk The storehouse for the legal dynamite with which Buron Fitts is going to make boomboom: the Los Angeles courthouse in the world. What will you do about it?" "I don't agree with the natives. Our trouble does not come from the motion picture colony. They have too much at stake, these stars, to get into trouble. I don't say it's lily-white. We do have trouble with the extras. The life of an extra is a protection for the gangsters who come here from other cities. But the stars have as much to lose as I have. However, we have our eye on them. You heard about the Roosevelt hotel opening? " I nodded. "Well, every hotel and eating place in that city is being watched. "The citizens in this country are waking up. In Chicago, in Philadelphia they are demanding a clean-up of conditions. Why, crime is so well organized today that the Standard and Union Oil companies must be jealous." "Speaking of Hollywood, Mr. Fitts, have you read the morning papers?" He nodded. "The Alma Rubens case. Yes, I know Alma. She has been up to see me. A charming woman." He rose, walked to the window, stood locking at the trickling humanity six stories beneath him, then whirled about with a vehemence not to be forgotten— especially not to be forgotten by Hollywood and Beverly Hills physicians. "We had a conference on that subject this morning. We have reorganized our narcotic division. And we'll get them. Narcotics are a greater menace here than the liquor to individuals. It isn't Alma Rubens who should pay the penalty. It's the narcotic vendors — they should pay the death penalty. And if I had an opportunity I would support such a legislative measure. of popularity. I knew when I took this job it might kill any future political ambitions. In France we had to send men marching to their death; that is no difTerent than sending a man marching toward San Quentin; organized crime cannot survive unless it is protected. Above all things we must be protected from dishonest public officials. A prosecuting officer is like the carburetor to a machine. If it is out of order, no matter if the cylinders are perfect, the car will not function. The sheriff's office, the police department, the judges — if tjic district attorney's office isn't in working order, none of these others can function. "There are two kinds of public officials: theones whoare passive, negative — don't go out looking for trouble; and the ones who are scra[)py, belligerent, looking for opportunities to better the conditions in their city. I am scrappy. Am always looking. This is the second largest district attorney's office in the country; second only to Chicago. To run it perfectly honestly but passively might do some good — but to run it aggressively and honestly. You can't do away with crime but you can minimize it by constant harassing." The Extras the Trouble I INTERRUPTED a moment. "Dorothy Donnell, Western editor of our magazine, says that when she was in Northern Africa the natives asked her what part of the States she hailed from, and when she answered Hollywood they said, ' Oh, that wicked city.' It's supposed to be the most wicked After the Bootlegger's Friends AS for liquor, it's a bit dififerent. There . are three or four rings in this business. The moving of liquor traffic is what makes the professional gunmen. Gang wars come from rival protective agencies for liquor traffickers. If there were no market, we would have no gunmen. If you didn't buy a quart of whiskey from your bootlegger, he wouldn't need a fellow to protect that quart for him. Don't misunderstand me. My men have orders not to go into private homes or stop private automobiles if they are not assured there's a reason beforehand. The ones I want to get first are the officers and public officials who protect them. Give me one crooked official in preference to one bootlegger. If they know the officials are honest, then we can harass them. "The morals of Hollywood? You mean their supiK)sed libertine relations? I have no jurisdiction over that. It's the city prosecutor's business. "But don't misunderstand me. Hollywood is not as bad as most cities. Our least trouble comes from there. But we are after them all and we'll harass them until we get them. And if they get me — well, at least we'll go down together. One person is the same as another in the eyes of the law. At the front we shot a traitor. Those who break the laws are traitors. I don't make the laws, but it's my duty to enforce them. And if the people don't like the laws, they had better change them — not try to bribe or intimidate public officials." Personally, my hat's off to this D.T. person.