Movie Makers (Jan-Dec 1935)

330 AUGUST 1935 UNIPOD The above illustrations convey at a glance the important function and ready adaptability of the DA-LITE UNIPOD. Its practical utility, simplicity and compactness appeal instantly to users of all movie and still cameras. Insures perfect framing; holds the camera steady. Indispensable for panoramic or telephoto filming. Instantly adjusted to exact height desired. The ideal camera support for use on either hillside or level footing. When not in use as a camera support, it may be quickly converted into a neat and useful, light-weight walking stick Manufactured solely by the makers of the popular DA-LITE portable picture screens and the DALITE Projector Stand .... See your dealer or write us for details. DA-LITE SCREEN CO. 2723 N. Crawford Ave. CHICAGO, ILLINOIS Inc. Closeups —What With the passing of Eugene A. Lauste, who died late in June in the Montclair (N. J.) Community Hospital, the science of motion pictures has lost the last living figure of that small group of inventors who were responsible for the early developments of cinematography. Mr. Lauste was seventy eight years old at his death. As early as 1888 he had conceived the possibility of photographing and reproducing both scene and sound, but the practical developments of his idea were slow, so that it was not until 1910 that he achieved results worth commercial exploitation. His efforts in that line, however, were soon interrupted by the World War, and a few years after peace was declared came the flood of sound patents by others which marked the beginning of the theatrical talking film. Latter day recognition of Mr. Lauste's genius came seven years ago, when he became a consultant for the Bell Telephone Laboratories. There is a permanent exhibition of his original sound picture devices in the Smithsonian Institute, at Washington, D. C. IN taking a reading with one of the popular photocell exposure meters on a symphony orchestra assembled for an outdoor concert, John L. Forrest found out exactly what people think of one phase of movie making. When holding the dialed, impressive meter, the length of the black cord around his neck, he heard a comment which he wasn't supposed to. "My dear, look!" chirped one old lady to another, "that poor boy can't hear a thing without that machine." J. V. D. Bucher described as a "busman's holiday" the recent activities of himself and Harry Dunham. Both are in the business of practical film production, and in the hours from dawn to midnight of a recent holiday they shot a 400 foot, 16mm. film story for the fun of it. Called Venus and Adonis, the producers experiment interestingly (if not too clearly, for this reviewer) in the This modern land yacht has 16mm. projection equipment Frame enlargement Shot in "Venus and Adonis," surrealist cine experiment use of surrealist symbolism. They present the story of a young violinist, his ballet dancing friend and a siren woman of the world who completes the inevitable triangle. The three roles are played with striking reserve and deliberate timing by Victor Kraft, Eric Hawkins and Anne Miracle. A musical score, especially prepared for the film by Paul Bowles, and the occasional jangle of an alarm clock are used in a post recorded, sound on film accompaniment. In New York City, Charles J. Carbonaro, ACL, has concluded a series of six lectures on the fundamentals of amateur movie making, presented at the Central Branch Y. W. C. A., in Manhattan. Porter Varney, ACL, author of Canyon lures, in this number of Movie Makers, used to be a salt caked yachtsman and first appeared in these pages as the scrivener of bang up articles on deep sea filming. Now, as you will see from his present discussion and the illustration below, he has deserted his first love for another kind of gipsying — equally fascinating. La Casa del Errante, which his land yacht has been christened, has all the comforts of home, even to the inclusion of "a complete motion picture theatre", as it was phrased by an over zealous reporter on a Santa Fe paper. Mr. Varney disclaims this description but admits that la casa did carry a 16mm. projector.