Motion Picture News (Jan-Feb 1920)

Uiiiii The Fiction Mart A Service Department for Producers and Studio Executives The Single Track By Douglas Grant laracter of Story: Adventure. Tcme: Romancf. ^: acter»: Janetfa Gildcrslecvr ; Oliphaiit Icrsleevc, her brnthrr; Andrew Geddes, Kuardiap : Adam MacLeod, manager the Northern Star Mlnlnf; company, rdon Winfield and his son, Ronald, icrs of the l.^natika Company; Grace "held, their niece and cousin; Pcrsis ! W illiam Chcever, friends ol Janetta's; cle Everton, her chaperon j Peddar, her iKitler; J. Barnaby Hoyt, Jr., hero; sevi eral miners. he Plot: Janctta Gildersleeve. on her > -nty-first birthday, is told by her guar-i^ :i that the minin); company which was^% • her and her brother, which has always I them large dividends, has failed, due the enmity and unfair play of Gordon TilieJd, who has a personal grudge >nst hex family; that a dummy comy, the Northern Star, has been formed ontinue working the mine, but that it ' not be able to do so. unless it can .blish a railroad from the mine to the •f^.>nt before a rival company, the does so. Whichever company in laying its tracks first will have ^lit of way, and the other will be ■ ed to sell out at any price because it I have no transportation facilities. >tta asks why the Northern Star can ■ nend enough men to ensure their estabing the road first, and Geddes explains I MacLeod cannot be spared from the A York office, and that it is almost ini— ible to obtain the services of anyone can trust, that the I'natika are reiing to any measures and will bribe • ine they can who is working for the them •Star. The Northern Star have iged Barney Hoyt as their chief eii ■ er, and they feel certain that they can -t him, but they know of no one else to I Janetta's brother is fighting in "If Janctta is so disturbed by all this goes out that night alone in her forgets to watch the road, and ■ . in order to avoid a collision with ■iuT car, has to swerve off into the ierbrush on the side of the road. A ■up happens to be sleeping at the foot 1 tree, and Janetta's car injures him -htly. The other car goes on, and while .ctta, horror stricken, is wondering what to do, a young man with a motorcycle comes to the rescue. She is willing to give the tramp all of the two hundred ilollars she has in her purse, but she cannot bear to touch him. The young man 'i nds up his bleeding head, tells her ■ rely to give him only a small part of money, as that is not the way to -^c amends for careless driving He her car back into the road and leaves ' very indignant. After thinking over mining situation, she decides that she take her brother's jilace. and go to >ka to supervise the work in whatever ly she can. Without telling her guar■ lian, she persuades the butler, who Has -erved her family for twenty years, to go ' • r. posing as her' father. She Manager MacLeod to send her out int to the company store keeper, 1 •!ti;ii> her friend. Persi* Cheever, into promising to say that she is spending the ■iummer with her in Maine and to forward letters to her brother from tfiere. When *he reaches the mining town, she finds things much worse even than she had anticipated, but she resolves to stav for her brother's sake as well as her own. She abo finds that Barney Hoyt is no other than the man who helped her on the Post Road the night she went out alone, but he does not believe that the girl he sawthat night could, by any possibility, go to a mining toj^n to keep a store. The meii are very much surprised at having a girl sent out. but when they sec that she is really ready to work, they become loyal friends, with one exception. This is Hugh Malison, a miner from the T'natika, who comes to the Northern Stai -T.re in order to spy on their work. Vari accidents happen from time to time, ^ch Barney Hoyt believes are caused by r L'natika. but he is unable to prove it. One of their houses is blown up. and a little later there is a fire. Janetta happens to see a suspicious man loitering near their wharf one day and warns Hoyt. T'pon investigation they discover that the wharf was wired and would probablv have been blown up that night. Next Ronald \\ infield appears upon the scene, saying BOOK AND MAGAZINE STORIES RECENTLY THE I Niels The BOUGHT FOR THE SCREEN HE RIVER'S END, by James Oliver Curwood; Marshall Ian. Mystery of the Abandoned Room, by Wadsworth Camp; Jans Pictures. The Branding Iron, by Katherine Newlan Burt; Goldwyn. The White Moll, by Frank L. Packard; Fox. Bruce of the Circle A, by Harold Titus; Fox. The Last Straw, by Harold Titus; Fox. The Sagebrusher, by Emerson Hough; Benjamin B. Hampton. The Strongest, by Georges Clemenceau; Fox. The Fighting Shepherdess, by Caroline Lockhart; Anita Stewart Productions. Polly of the Storm Country, by Grace Miller White; Louis B. Mayer. The Woman in Gray, by the Williamsons; Serico Pictures. A Hard Proposition, by Wm. R. Lighten; Goldwyn. The Place of Honeymoons, by Harold MacGrath; Pioneer-Atlas. Hearts and Masks, by Harold MacGrath; National Film. Partners of the Night, by Leroy Scott; Goldwyn The Return of Tarzan, by Edgar Rice Burroughs; Numa Pictures. The Right of Way, by Gilbert Parker; Metro. Sherry, by George Barr McCutcheon; Edgar Lewis. Quincy Adams Sawyer, by C. F. Pidgin; Metro. The Marriage of Little Jeane Sterling, by John S. Wayne; Vitagraph. The Fighting Chance, by Robert W. Chambers; Lasky Find the Woman, by Gelett Burgess; Fox. The Law of the Yukon, by Robert W. Service; Mayflower. The Penalty, by Gouverneur Morris; Goldwyn. A Damsel in Distress, by P. G. Wodehouse; World Film. The Cinema Murder, by E. Phillips Oppenheim; Cosmopolitan Film. The Honey Bee, by Samuel Merwin; American Films Behind the Door, by Gouverneur Morris; Lasky. The Wild Fawn, by Mary Imlay Taylor; Vera McCord Productions. Other Men's Shoes, by Andrew Soutar; Pathe. Black Pawl, by Ben Ames Williams; Goldwyn. The Paliser Case, by Edgar Saltus; Goldwyn. that he is travelling for pleasure. He does not remember Janetta, but makes love to her as an attractive little store keeper. She encourages him, hoping that he will tell her what she already suspects, that it is his lather who owns the Unatika. Hoyt, of course, misinterprets her motives, and his friendly attitude changes ai once. Finally, Janctta learns what she wants to know, just as Winfield's fathei and cousin Grace join him on their yacht. The enmity is then openly acknowledged and there is a fight between the Northern Star men and the T'natika. Janetta goes into the fight, as her men are far outnumbered, and she wants to encourage them. She is slightly injured, and when she gains consciousness, she finds that Geddes, the Cheevers, and her brother have learned of her plan and followed her to Katalak, arriving just in time to save the day for the Northern Star. Barney is then presented as J. Barnaby Hoyt, Jr., and Janetta invites all her mining friends to her wedding in the store in Katalak. Locale: New York and Katalak, Alaska. Picture High Lights: Alaskan scenes, the explosion and fire, the fight. The Talleyrand Maxim By J. S. Fletcher Character of Story: Crime. Theme: .\mhition. Characters: Linford Pratt, young attorney; Antony Bartle, book dealer; Eldrick, solicitor, Pratt's employer; Bartle Collingwood, solicitor and nephew of Bartle ; James Parrawhite. law clerk ; Byner, a detective; Esther Mawson. a maid; Mrs. Richard Mallathorpe. owner of the Grange ; Harper Mallathorpe, her son ; Nesta Mallathorpe, her daughter; Reuben Murgatroyd. The Plot: Linford Pratt is an ambitious and unscrupulous young lawyer in an English provincial city. He is alone in the office of his employer when a client, an old book-dealer calls and dies suddenly in the office, after telling Pratt of a will left by old Mallathorpe — who was supposed to have died intestate and whose property went to a cousin. Mrs. Richard Mallathorpe and her children. Under the will, which the dealer found in the pocket of a book bought of the estate, these people would inherit only thirty thousand pounds and the rest of the estate would go to the city for educational endowments. Pratt steals the will and blackmails Mrs. Mallathorpe into promising him a life stewardship at the estate for concealing the fact that a will exists. Parrawhite tells Pratt he was hidden in the office when the will was stolen and that he must be counted in on the deal. They quarrel. Pratt strikes Parrawhite and accidentally kills him. He conceals the body in a shaft full of water in a quarry. Mrs. Mallathorpe plans to do away with Pratt. Collingwood arrives to take charge of his uncle's afTairs, falls in love with Nesta Mallathorpe who does not like Pratt. He nearly stumbles on Pratt's secret but just misses it. Mrs. Mallathorpe writes Pratt to come to see her by way of an unsafe bridge which she has on her property and which she feels sure will not hold him. Pratt arrives at the bridge in time to see young Mallathorpe fall through the bridge and be killed. Mrs. Mallathorpe now gives Pratt a power of attorney to act for her in all affairs. Nesta is much upset by the fact that Pratt is running things and demands an explanation. Her mother refuses it. Nesta confronts Pratt and he tells her that he has a double hold on her mother. He tells her if she goes to the police he will ruin the whole family. She tells Eldrick. Eldrick hears from a firm in London who are searching for Parrawhite who has been left a legacy. .\larmed, Pratt bribes Murgatroyd, a poor 111 jeweler who books steamer passages on the side, to say that he sold a passage to America to Parrawhite. Detectives visit Murgatroyd and, alarmed, he admitsthat this IS a lie. A search is made and Parrawhite's body is found. I^ratt determines to flee after raising more money from Mrs. Mallathorpe. He goes to her house and is drugged by his tool, Esthei Mawson. a inaid. Esther Mawson blackmails Mrs. Mallathorpe who buys the will and immediately destroys it, then giving the alarm and having the maid arrested. Pratt, trapped, commits suicide. Nesta refuses to continue on the estate and marries Collingwood. Locale: A provincial city in England. Picture High Lights: Plenty of excitement throughout and good character work, possible for Pratt. The Coast of Opportunity By Page Phillips Character of Story: Mexican adventure. Theme: Fight for a mine. Characters: Dick Bristow; Julian Marr, president of the .South Eastern Railway Co.; Sylvia Marr, his daughter; Wade Farrand, his secretary ; De Boer, president of Dc Boer Exploration Co. ; Jose Cripo. Bristow's friend; Rosita, a Mexican girl ; Pepe, a bandit. The Plot: Dick Bristow is left at his father's death the owner of some worthless property in Mexico; land which is under water and bought by his father of swindlers. I'nder pressure from the United .States Government, the promotors of the sc'iieme buy up some other land and substitute it for that originally deeded to their victims. Dick gets some of this an<l goes to it intending to cultivate it agriculturally. He finds that he has no means of shipping his product and applies to the president of the South Eastern to run a branch line to his property, promising a certain amount of capital for the project. The railway, however, refuses to guarantee what t'.ie freight rates will be, so the project falls through. Dick discovers that some land on a neighboring mountain, owned by his friend Cripo contains valuable iron ore. He obtains an option on this property and also on an adjoining piece owned jointly by Marr and Janet Ashley. Marr has sold this to Janet's father at an exorbitant price but now that he has a chance to sell it tries to persuade her to let him buy out her interest for a small sum. Bristow, who has met her, advises her not to do this. Bristow secures the backing of De Boer of the De Boer Exploration Company for a railway to be run to the mountain as soon as he obtains possession of it. Farrand, the secretary of Marr, believing that Janet will make a good deal of money out of the property if she hangs onto it, makes love to her add becomes engaged to her. Marr learns of t'.ie existence of the ore in the mountain and is anxious to defeat Bristow's intention of buying it. He also brings his influence to bear in Washington to prevent the granting of a railway franchise to De Boer. Marr instructs Farrand to see that Bristow does not have the opportunity of exercising his option and as the time draws near learning that Bristow has the necessary money to buy in the property, Farrand has Bristow waylaid by bandits and made a prisoner. They fail to find t'.ie option upon him. however. Pepe, the leader of the bandits, being absent, three of theni fall asleei) and Bristow overcomes the fourth who is killed in the struggle. Bristow escapes. Farrand gives orders that he be shot on sight. He is overtaken and wounded but again escapes. Marr again attempts to buy out Janet but Farrand warns her not to sell. De Boer gets a message from Jose regarding Bristow's disappearance and appears on the scene in time to claim the option which he has with him, this having been assigned to him through the bank. Marr threatens to kill De Boer but cannot refuse to accept the money. Bristow feels that he '.las cheated Janet and to atone for this makes her his heir. Farrand, finding she will make little out of her property is glad to be released from his engagement. Bristow and Janet are married. Locale: Mexico. Picture High Lights: Combination of financial struggle and primitive combat, strong emotional interest; plenty of action. 1 L