The Moving Picture World (Apr-Jun 1913)

I238 THE MOVING PICTURE WORLD Doings at Los Angeles A Lively Budget of News From the Great Western Motion Picture Center Submitted by Our Correspondent. CLOUDY weather, which has prevailed throughout Southern California for the last ten days, has interfered more or less with all the producing companies. There lias been no rain, but blankets of dark gray clouds have hung across the sky, cutting down the light to such an extent that most of the companies feared to risk photographing lest they get flat and undertimed pictures. In the East where weather interruptions are normal a week or ten days of bad light would cause no comment, but out here where there is perfect light for nine or ten months in the year, a week of bad light evokes loud cries of woe from the producers. * * * Within the last week two of the most successful photoplay writers in this vicinity have given up the independence that belongs to a free lance and have contracted for the sale of their entire output for an indefinite period. William E. Wing, whose photoplays have been produced by the Biograph, the Western Vitagraph, Selig, Kinemacolor, Keystone and several other companies, signed a contract with William Selig, just before that individual left for Chicago, under which he agrees to write for the Selig Polyscope Company within the next year a number of scripts just about equal to his producing capacity. William M. Ritchey, another writer whose stories have been produced regularly by companies working in this field, has taken the position of scenario editor for the Western branch of the Lubin Company, under Wilbert Melville. Ritchey was formerly city editor of the Los Angeles Express. * * * Not content with being an exhibitor, a manufacturer and a director, "Billy" Home has now broken into the ranks of the scenario writers. "The Tug of War," a comedy now being made by the Biograph Company, is a product of his brain. Home is proprietor of Home's Popular Picture Palace, principal owner of the Seltagraph Motion Picture Company, and an occasional director of Seltagraph releases, none of which has been released yet. * * * Edwin August, who recently left the Universal Company in order to join the Western Vitagraph players under Rollin S. Sturgeon at Santa Monica, has returned to the Universal studio at Hollywood. Now he is no longer an actor, however, but a director. The principal condition upon which he went back, aside from increased salary, was that he should have a company of his own. Mary Charleson, one of the clever actresses of the Vitagraph pictures, went with him to be his leading woman. * * * There have been more changes among the directors at the Universal studios. E. H. Grandon, who directed a traveling Lubin company at Glendale until it was disbanded several weeks ago, and who then went to the Universal, has dropped out after making three or four pictures and is about to return East. Francis Ford, who made his reputation as a producer of big spectacular pictures with the New York Motion Picture Company, and who has been directing Bison brand releases for the Universal for the last six months, is now "at liberty." Frank Montgomery is again directing Bisons for the Universal. He resigned about a month ago and organized a company of his own to produce a series of Western features, with Mona Darkfeather as the star, but before his first picture was finished the Universal tempted him back. * * * Despite the bad weather of the last week, Wilbert Melville, head of the Lubin Western branch, has just finished a big Mexican war picture which called for 600 extra people in the battle scenes. It will be called "The Amber Cross" and, notwithstanding that the expense and the spectacular features were sufficient to have justified a two or three-reel production, it will be released as a single reel, making an unusually strong picture. Melville has disposed of the property at 4550 Pasadena* Avenue, where the studio is now located, and within a month will begin work on a much larger and better studio in a new location, the whereabouts of which has not been announced yet. * * * June 1 came and went and found the Biograph company still in Los Angeles, although June 1 is the usual annual leaving date. Moreover, Griffith and Tony O'Sullivan are both engaged on big pictures which will probably keep them here another two weeks, and there is every possibility that the organization will not get away this year much before July I. * * * Margaret Loveridge, formerly of the Biograph Company and more recently with the Selig organization, is playing leads in the dramatic pictures of the Majestic Company in Los Angeles. * * * Lem Parker, Selig director, has been called to Chicago by the death of his mother. * * * Jack LeSaint, formerly with the Imp and lately with the Kinemacolor, went to Selig as soon as he got his notice from the Kinemacolor Company. * * * The Kinemacolor studio at Hollywood is still closed, and the fact that most of the property is being packed and shipped East indicates that the closing is permanent, at least as far as Los Angeles is concerned. David Miles is preparing to go to New York and most of the other employees are trying to find places with the other motion picture companies in this field. There are a great many more people seeking positions in all the branches of motion pictures than there are positions. This is a bad time for motion picture people to come from the East looking for places. * * * William Paley, former cameraman for the old Nestor Company, has just completed the manufacture of a hand-made motion picture camera which is one of the finest machines ever seen in this city. Paley, it will be remembered, was injured while on a photographing trip for the Nestor Company, contracted blood poisoning and finally had to have one of his legs amputated just below the knee. He is now confined to an invalid's chair, but that has not prevented him employing his hands and making practical use of his profound knowledge of motion picture camera building, or of his fine skill as a workman. The new camera is valued at $300, which is ridiculously cheap considering its excellencies and the amount of time and work he devoted to the making of it. It is to be hoped that he will find a purchaser for this and subsequent machines, for it is the only means he has available to make a living. * * * The election of Judge H. H. Rose as Mayor of Los Angeles, on June 3, recalls the fact that Fred Mace, president of The Photoplayers, also ran. * * * Director Harry Matthews, of the "Powers Photo Plays. Inc.," company, has finished a three-reel production of "Sleeping Beauty." It has been decided that he shall produce a series of fairy tale pictures for adults as well as children. J. F. Macdonald, the other director of the "P. P. P. I." company, will stick to film productions of wellknown classics like "Elsie Venner," which he is now producing. * * * Ernest Shipman, late of the "One Hundred Years of Mormonism" company, has gone East on a two months' business trip. He is after something, but he is too sly to talk about it until the papers have been signed, sealed and delivered. P. M. POWELL. THE RELIANCE TO STAR ROSEMARY THEBY. Manager J. V. Ritchey of the Reliance has selected "The Tangled Web" as the drama in which to introduce Rosemary Theby as a new attraction in Reliance films. "The Tangled Web" is the work of Garfield Thompson and was one of several strong dramatic stories written expressly for this talented actress. It is in three reels and will be staged by Oscar C. Apfel. Miss Theby will be starred in the production, playing the part of an adventuress, a strong emotional role, somewhat similar to several of the characters created by her for the Vitagraph Company. After a much needed vacation, part of which was spent in St. Louis, Miss Theby started work under J. V. Ritchey's management on June 1st, and will be seen in at least one release every two weeks beginning at an early date. ZUKOR ON WESTERN TRIP. Adolph Zukor left New York last Sunday night on his way to the office of the Famous Players' Film Company in Chicago. It is rumored that Mr. Zukor has some unusual purpose in this sudden trip West, but what its significance is could not be learned. It is promised, however, that upon his return some interesting news may be forthcoming.