Motography (Jul - Dec 1915)

266 MOTOGRAPHY Vol. XIV, No. 6. ever its drawing power, it makes interesting reading, containing some brief, pointed talk by Mr. Coufal, the editor, and a series of cartoons dwelling on the adventures of "Opie, the Operator." The Life Photo Film Corporation is now comfortably situated in their new offices on the sixth floor of the Candler building, New York. Their former suite, located on the same floor, is now the home of the American Correspondence Film Company. On Monday night, July 26, a Universal company under the direction of Jack Harvey staged some scenes in and about the Cedar Cliff Inn, New Rochelle, N. Y., for a coming Universal release. At midnight the onlookers were the guests of the players at a "between days" supper at the inn. Harry Reischenbach, director of publicity for the Metro Pictures Corporation, is expected back from California either late this week or early next. H. R. has ever been a busy bunk artist, but during his stay at the west coast he far exceeded his New York speed, in one case getting columns on the front pages of all the newspapers for. a story which, whether true or not, is so sensational that it takes a master diplomat to put it over. Southard Brown, formerly in the publicity department of Warner's, and more recently publicity manager for Alliance, is now doing publicity for the Associated Film Manufacturers, which has recently become allied with Gotham. The Nichols-Finn Advertising Agency of Chicago have recently opened up an office in the Fifth Avenue building, New York City, with Mr. Kuhn in charge. Julian Solomon, publicity director for the Oliver Morosco Photoplay Company, is now away on a vacation. George Henken and Pete Schmid have inherited his work. David Horsley, who came East last week to sign up with the Mutual program and a day or two afterwards returned to his west coast studio, is expected back in Gotham within the next week or two. PACIFIC COAST NEWS By "Captain Jack" Poland Los Angeles The past ten days have been very busy ones for the motion picture heads, entertainers, publicity men and others, because of the hundreds of visitors. Last week the city was crowded with Elks attending the national convention in this city, and many special stunts and features were pulled off for the antlered herds at the studios. At Universal City last Saturday, Director-General Henry McRae pulled off a rodeo and western celebration for the Elks and visitors that was exceptionally interesting. At Selig zoo a special program was in order, with the naming of a baby elk born at the zoo after the local order No. 99. At other studiosthe Elks were welcomed, and many players who are Elks participated in the convention proceedings. Next came along the big Selig special, which reached Los Angeles last Friday with its twelve cars and special motion picture car and equipment, producing en route from Chicago to California the big feature, "The Seven Suffering Sisters." Many newspaper men, exhibitors and others were guests of the Selig company on the trip, and the concluding ceremonies and conclusion of the pictures at the Selig zoo were of unusual interest. During the present week the Shriners, numbering several thousand, have been wandering around the studios, and open house and welcome signs have been in order. Then the wanderers from the exhibitors' national convention at San Francisco dropped into Los Angeles, where special entertainments and courtesies were extended them, all of which adds to the prestige and popularity of this film metropolis of the Golden West, and the end is not yet. Tuesday Mayor Thompson of Chicago, now prominently mentioned for the presidency of the United States, arrived in this city with a special train loaded with officers and members of the Illinois National Guard as a personal escort. The mayor and his party had the picture fever, and after visiting several of the larger studios, where they were guests of honor, featured in pictures, etc., left for San Diego and the exposition, all of which made Los Angeles resemble a Chicago home scene with Chicagoans shaking hands and greeting each other. Macklyn Arbuckle, well known on the legitimate stage, is making a new record as he appears in films under the auspices of the Oliver Morosco Photoplay Company in a new picture featuring suburban politics of an original order. Neil G. Caward, associate editor of Motography, was a welcome visitor to the Los Angeles studios last week. He came as a guest of the Selig company on the Selig special, and was entertained royally. At the Universal films Assistant Director-General Don Meaney took personal charge of the visitor and towed him around the new $1,000,000 plant, showing it to the best possible advantage. Los Angeles friends of Isadore Bernstein, former general manager of the Universal Film Manufacturing Company and builder of the magnificent west coast studio, were pleased to read in the current issue of Motography that Mr. Bernstein had affiliated himself with the $3,000,000 Equitable Corporation and expected to return to the coast at' an early date, when a big new studio will be built and used in the production of motion pictures. Nat C. Goodwin, the famous actor, and "Governor" Otis Turner, leading director of the Universal staff, have already become great friends, with Turner featuring Goodwin in the French play, "Business Is Business," for early Universal release. It will be a four-reel film and is pronounced exceptionally strong. Director William C. Dowlan of the Universal staff is forging steadily ahead, and is now featuring Carter de Haven and Mrs. Carter de Haven in a college comedy that promises unusual circumstances and much humor. At the New York Motion Picture Corporation headquarters. Inceville, a large staff of directors, stars and camera experts are busily shaping up for the advance work for the production of big features to be directed personally by Thomas H. Ince for the oncoming Kessel Baumann -Griffith -Aitkin Ince-Sennett $2 pictures program. If present plans mature, as now conceived, masterpiece features of an unusually high class will be produced in southern California. It is an established fact that scenic experts are now visiting all parts of southern California seeking locations of the out-of-the-ordinary character for the building of the new special pictures. Mack Sennett, the Keystone comedy head, is sojourning in Colorado, taking a much-needed rest far removed from scenarios and players, and he reports that he is particularly happy. With Eddie Foy and all the little Foys, Raymond Hitchcock, Mabel Normand and such comedians constantly busy at the Keystone, an exceptionally interesting class of comedies may be expected for the summer releases. Charlie Chaplin, the half-a-milliondollar-a-year comedian of Essanay fame, is the star of Broadway in this city. All the kids are aping him by becoming miniature Charlie boys, and every time his name appears over a picture house it means full crowds. He is undoubtedly a popular drawing card, yet, withal, is modest and entertaining personally. David Horsley will arrive in Los Angeles July 27, and reports from his new moving picture studios are to the effect that he brings with him to Los Angeles a number of new leading men and women and will at once inaugurate a busy season of productions for Mutual releases, using eight to ten companies in producing popular-priced pictures. He expects to recruit his forces mostly among local players, and is receiving applications for positions in various companies now forming. Horsley's return and advent so strongly into the production fields is being watched with interest. Frank Lloyd, a former well-known Universal director, has joined the directing staff of the Oliver Morosco Photoplay Company and his productions are to be featured by that organization. CHICAGO GOSSIP C. C. Pyle returned on Monday from a trip which he made throughout the southern cities, visiting Asheville, N. C, and Birmingham, Ala. Mr. Pyle oversaw installations of the Bartola instrument in both of these cities. David Horsley arrived in Chicago en route to Los Angeles on the 22nd. He was quite pleased over the contract recently signed with Mutual. Mr. Horsley said he would probably be back in New York within three weeks to personally oversee the arrangement of the studio in Bayonne for the making of some master picture films for the Mutual company. H. E. Aitken, energetic, businesslike, returned from La Junta, Colo., after obtaining all the signatures to incorporate arrangements for the Triangle Film Company, arriving in Chicago on the 22nd. Mr. Aitken said that his new company was going to devote ample time to the making of the very best kind of fivereel photoplays and that the product would be fully up to that demanded by the public from the three big directors who form a part of this company. The