Motion Picture News (Mar-Apr 1923)

107c Motion Picture News "Hearts Aflame" Gives Critics Thrill New York motion picture critics admit tkat thrills chased themselves up and down their spines when they saw the tremendous, realistic forest fire in Reginald Barker's production of " Hearts Aflame," which opened at the Rialto theatre February 4. " The Evening Post " says : " Interest in the film registered 100 per cent The absolute realism of the forest fire scenes is pointed out by " The Tribune " reviewer, who writes : "A woman sitting in front of us turned around and said : ' I was caught in a forest fire once, and that is so real that it frightens me to look at it.' " The critic for " The Evening Journal " wonders how it was done. " Your first mental question after the final f adeout will be : How did the director, Reginald Barker, stage this forest fire business without burning pretty Anna and the man who stoked the engine to a crisp. . . . The forest fire, of course, is the climax of ' Hearts Aflame,' which was adapted from Harold Titus' novel, 'Timber,' but there are other sequences which set one's nerves a-tingling." Beauty Cast Completed for Sam Wood's Film The last of the seven beautiful girls, selected from hundreds of applicants to enact the roles of seven wives in " Bluebeard's Eighth Wife," Sam Wood's production for Paramount, starring Gloria Swanson, has been chosen by the director. She is Maude Wayne, reputed to be one of the most beautiful blondes in Hollywood. Miss Wayne is a girl of the modern type of beauty, somewhat tall, very slender and exceedingly graceful. She will take the role of an American girl, one very fond of golf. In addition to Miss Wayne he selected these six other girls as follows : Majel Coleman, winner of a beauty contest in Cincinnati, Ohio ; Thais Valdemar, a newcomer to Hollywood from Russia; Arita Gillman, judged Oregon's most beautiful girl; Christiana Montt of Chile'; Irene Dalton, formerly a model in Chicago, and Helen Huntoon. Charles Ray Selects Director Frederic Sullivan to Handle Megaphone on "Courtship of Miles Standish" T) direct the production of the nost pretentious effort of his film career, " The Courtship of Miles Standish," Charles Ray selected Frederic Sullivan, who arranged, produced and staged the magnificent spectacle, " A Midsummer Night's Dream," in the Hollywood Bowl last autumn. The man now wielding the megaphone in the picturization of the great drama of American colonial days is a nephew of England's most celebrated composer, Sir Arthur Sullivan, of Gilbert & Sullivan fame. When Charles Ray decided to use Longfellow's epic poem as the background of an historical and dramatic photoplay which is expected to place the star in the " million-dollar producer class," he was faced with no easy task in selecting a director big enough for the job. The tremendous energy and ability of Frederic Sullivan, whose mind had guided the fine marshal ing of persons and things in the " Midsummer Night's Dream " pageant, impressed the star deeply when he appeared in the spectacle. Investigation showed that Mr. Sullivan had created similar spectacles in Boston, W ashington, St. Louis and other cities ; that he was long an actor, and then stage director lor artists like Nance O'Neill, Blanche Bates, James K. Hackett, Herbert Kelcey and Effie Shannon, John Mason, and others. But Mr. Sullivan was also a motion picture veteran, for he was with the pioneer Reliance, Thanhouser and Majestic companies in the East, leaving that field only to return to state direction. Another interesting fact in connection with Mr. Sullivan is that as a native of England, for forty years a resident of the United States, this director could bring to his task a valuable dual outlook concerning the events to be picturized, dealing as they do with both England and America. Arrow Special to Have Premier "Lost in a Big City" Due for Week s Showing in Paterson, N. J., March 6th WE. SHALLENBERGER, president of the Arrow Film Corporation, announces that the Blazed Trail special production, " Lost in a Big City," will receive its premier showing at the U. S. Theatre, Paterson, N. J., where it will play the entire week of March 6th. This production, which was adapted to the screen by L. Case Russell from N. S. Woods' famous stage play of the same name, was directed by George Irving and stars John Lowell, who is said to have duplicated his splendid work of " Ten Nights in a Barroom." Practically the entire cast that appeared-in "Ten Nights in a Barroom " is in " Lost in a Big City," with the addition of Jane Thomas, Edward Phillips, Ann Brody, Edward Phillips, Evangeline Russell and Whitney Haley. Other favor ites who will be recognized are Edward Keller, Jimmie Phillips, Charles Beyer, Baby Ivy Ward, Leota Miller and Charles Mackey. Manager Adams, of the U. S. Theatre, is planning an intensive exploitation and advertising campaign for this premier in which he will be assisted by representatives of the Exploitation Department of the Arrow Film Corporation. It will be recalled that " Lost in a Big City " was given a pre-release showing for one day at the Glove Theatre, Gloversville, New York, where the picture was made and in this instance it not only shattered the box office record of that house for any single day's showing, but received the unique tribute of the unanimous endorsement of the four trade paper representatives who journeyed up to Gloversville to attend the showing. "All the Brothers W ere Valiant" Approved " All the Brothers Were Valiant " was acclaimed with the highest praise by Washington's motion picture critics. " The Washington Post " says : " It may be on account of the appropriate title, or the name of Lon Chaney on the billboard ; or because of apt direction, or the humanncsof the characters; or possibly because the world still loves romance and melodrama of the sea; or it may probably be an accumulation of all these causes that resulted in the Palace throwing open doors to capacity audiences last night and hanging out the ' S. R. O.' sign when the premiere of ' All the Brothers Were Valiant ' opened and promised a week's full house run." The reviewer for " The Washington Daily News " writes : " Of all the . . . salt water dramas we have visioned in the past couple of years, the best is ' All the Brothers Were Valiant,' featuring the incomparable Lon Chaney. . . . another star in Chaney's crowded crown. . . . The film makes you almost smell the salt." Striking Posters "The Curse" for Six-color posters of the standard styles arrived this week at the main office of L. Lawrence Weber & Bobby North on their state-right release, " The Curse." The posters, in miniature, had been approved by the thirteen state-right distributors of the Weber & North release before the order to print them was given. As a result, the finished product showed the nearest approach to perfection that it was possible to get. All the high spots of the Chas. E. Blaney melodrama stand out in vivid colors. The sensational element of the five-star feature was given the strongest play. The wild runaway-train incident that brings the finish up to a climax was the subject of the three-sheets. The twenty-four sheets show the cast grouped in action, life-size, around a table, enacting the crucial quarrel scene. The cast is featured throughout, as their names are considered strong inducements. They are Harry Morey, George Fawcett, Edmund Breese, Marguerite Clayton and Miriam Batista. IERB0CRAPHI TRADEMARK REG. US. PAT OFF. MOTION PICTURE DEVELOPING AND PRINTING TELEPHONE AUDUBON 3716 203 to 211 W. 146 ™ St., New York City