Movie Age (1927)

AUGUST 27, 1 927 PAGE 7 Public Awakening to Fact That Pictures are “Buried” Newspaper Editorial Voices Public Opinion in Declaring That “The Play Is Not the Thing.” Nine Extended Run Films From Warners Ready By September Says Safier Warner Bros, have announced that the total number of Extended Run Pro¬ ductions to be produced by them for the 1927-28 season will be thirteen. Of these, nine will be completed and ready to be screened for exhibitors by Sep¬ tember 15, according to a statement from Morris Safier, head of the Ex¬ tended Run Department. The first nine to be finished will be: “The Jazz Singer” starring A1 Jolson directed by Alan Crosland — the first feature to have Vitaphone sound em¬ ployed for dramatic effect. “Ham and Eggs” a wartime comedy of negro troops. Louise Fazenda and Tom Wilson are n the cast. “The Fortune Hunter” starrng Syd Chaplin, directed by Charles F. Reisner. Other well known players are Helene Costello and Thomas Jefferson. “The First Auto,” with Barney Old¬ field supported by Patsy Ruth Miller and directed by Roy Del Ruth. “Old San Francisco” starring Dolor¬ es Costello, supported by Warner Oland. “When a Man Loves” starring John Barrymore with Dolores Costello. “The Missing Link” starring Syd Chaplin suported by Ruth Hiatt, Akka, Crauford Kent, Tom McGuire and Sam Baker. Charles F. Reisner handled the megaphone. “The Better ’Ole”, another comedy starring Syd Chaplin, also made under Charles Reisner’s direction. “Don Juan” starring John Barrymore, Mary Astor, Montagu Love, Warner Oland and Estelle Taylor head the sup¬ porting cast. The remaining four Extended Run pic¬ tures to be produced by Warner Bros, this year will be “Black Ivory,” a mod¬ ernized drama of “Noah’s Ark” and two Dolores Costello starring pictures to be made along line of pretentious pi’oduction qualities. Stenographer Film Finished and Given New Name The romantic comedy first called “Heaven Help the Workng Girl,” and then “After Office Hours,” with Esther Ralston and just completed has received still another name. It will go to the theatres as “Figures Don’t Lie.” Miss Ralston’s supporting cast included Ford Sterling, Richard Arlen and Doris Hill. The film has gone to the Paramount cut¬ ting room to be put in final form for exposition. Its theme is designed for “glorifying the American stenographer.” Sex and Divorce Pictures Bowing To Old-Fashioned Romances, Says Columnist Is sophisticated screen drama on the wane? And has the motion picture which has as its central theme a sweet little love story stepped to the fore to take its place? Harry Carr, the noted columnist, and recognized as one of the country’s fore¬ most critics, has ventured an interest¬ ing slant on these moot questions. Carr, who is now with the DeMille Studio in an editorial supervisory capa¬ city, is of the opinion that Mr. and Mrs. Public are tired of divorce and sex pic¬ tures, and that the current film season will find good old-fashioned romance in generous portions in the most popular productions Outstanding Cast in “Wreck of the Hesperus” Elmer Clifton, who is directing “The Wreck of the Hesperus” as a Pathe De¬ Mille special, selected for the romantic leading roles Frank Marion and Vir¬ ginia Bradford, who first scored con¬ spicuously in “The Country Doctor.” Assuring comedy for “The Wreck of the Hesperus”, Alan Hale, erstwhile screen “bad man” is essaying a role of the Wallace Beery type, with Slim Sum¬ merville as his comedy teammate. Sam DeGrasses as the “Skipper,” is giving a virile character performance while Ethel Wales, Francis Ford and Jo¬ sephine Norman also figure conspicuous¬ ly in character portrayals. James Aldine and Milton Holmes, in juvenile roles, complete the cast. “The Wreck of the Hesperus” was adapted for the screen by Harry Carr and John Farrow from Longfellow’s me¬ morable ballad. “Serenade” Menjou’s Next “Serenade” has been chosen as the title for Adolphe Menjou’s next Para¬ mount picture, Ernest Vajda wrote the story which will show Menjou as a poor and shabby hero for the first time. H. D’Abbadie D’Arrast will be the director. How elaborate stage presentations, band shows, featured orchestras and star organists put on the programs of the average big city first run motion pic¬ ture programs are killing off the mo¬ tion picture as entertainment is aptly illustrated by an item which appeared in the St. Louis Times of recent date. It was prepared by one of the special writers for the newspaper and appeared in the editorial news column that is fea¬ tured in the second page of the paper. It contains much food for thought on the part of motion picture producers, distributors and exhibitors, since it re¬ veals the trend in public thought — a di¬ rect outgrowth of the drift taken by mo¬ tion picture theatre programs in the past few years. The item in part follows: “The play is not the thing. The picture is now the least important feature of the big pic¬ ture houses. As a rule, when the form* erly impressive announcement of the ‘presentation’ flashes on the screen, the audience relaxes in its seat and wonders how long it will be before the other stuff is resumed. “There is not a large picture theatre in America that could survive on the ‘presentation’ if unaccompanied.” The writer of the item was not the motion picture critic of the publication, hence his views come closer to represent¬ ing the mine-run of motion picture thea¬ tre audiences than a writer trained in analyzing the motion picture. Hence his opinion cannot be dismissed on the same basis as the usual newspaper criti¬ cism of a motion picture. Audiences rarely agree with regular critics. His idea that “the play is not the thing” has been placed in his mind by the exhibitors who have featured other parts of their programs at the expense of the picture — the basis of their business. It is not an uncommon sight in St. Louis and other key cities to see a weary audience arise after 90 to 120 minutes of jazz and girley legs to de¬ part as the motion picture is flashed on the screen. “Where will it all end?” is a question oft heard along Picture Row these days.