The Moving picture world (February 1920-March 1920)

2006 THE MOVING PICTURE WORLD March 20, 1920 Sporting Duchess'' and "Fortune Hunter" Are Booked by Many Prominent Theatres ALONG distance telephone call from the manager of the William Fox Washington Theatre at Detroit several days ago to the New York offices of Vitagraph, punctuated a booking run on Vitagraph's latest super-feature, "The Sporting Duchess" and "The Fortune Hunter." The William Fox national circuit of houses is conspicuous among those which are booking both features. It is understood that, so far as the advance schedules of these theatres permit, the entire chain is listing the two Vitagraph subjects. "The Sporting Duchess," which is set for release on March 22, received an ovation from the New York reviewers on the occasion of its pre-release opening last week at the Broadway Theatre. The Evening Sun, in particular, pronounced the subject as one of vast entertainment value, and declared that Alice Joyce presents in it one of the best portrayals she has ever given in her happy career of stardom. Among the other notable theatres throughout the country which have booked both the big features are the Rialto, at Washington, D. C. ; Fox Theatre, St. Louis; Fox Theatre, Denver; New Astor, Minneapolis; New Princess, St. Paul; American, Salt Lake City; the Apollo, Dayton; Regent, Rochester; Kalurah Temple, Binghamton; Bijou, Springfield, Mass.; Strand, Portland, Ore.; Superba, San Diego, Cal. ; Tudor, Atlanta, Ga. ; Wichita Theatre, Wichita, Kan.; Victory Theatre, Tacoma; People's Theatre, Portland, Ore., and the Victory Theatre, Providence, R. L The Hippodrome at San Francisco was one of the large theatres which made an early booking of "The Fortune Hunter." Others were the Strand, at Buffalo; Eckels, Rochester; Colonial, Utica; Liberty Theatre, Seattle, and Walnut Street Theatre, at Louisville. Much Dancing in New Reid Picture. Those who care for dancing will find plenty to their liking, it is said, in "The Dancin' Fool," Wallace Reid's new production for Paramount Artcraft. Mr. Reid, with his leading woman, Bebe Daniels, do three sets of what might be called interpretative dances. The cave man period shows them in skin costumes in a bower of primitive beauty; the Apache dance is executed with much abandon and skill; the modern steps are performed with grace. The story was originally printed in The Saturday Evening Post and is by Henry Payson Dowst. with a strong vein of patriotism throughout and the popularity of such pictures with exhibitors is forcefully shown by the fact that hundreds of exhibitors have written to the Pathe branch offices for full information on the J. Stuart Blackton production, "The Blood Barrier." The picture is the work of the late Cyrus Townsend Brady and Stanley Olmsted and is a vivid story of red-blooded Americanism. Begin Work on "Lucid Intervals." Douglas MacLean and Doris May began their sixth Thomas H. Ince starring vehicle, "Lucid Intervals," a sparkling comedy fresh from the pen of Archer McMackin. Ask Data on "Blood Barrier." The demand of the public for pictures Thirty Reels Without a Kiss. Thirty reels without a kiss I A daring departure from moving picture precedents, perhaps, but that's what was done in "The Invisible Hand," the Vitagraph serial just completed by Antonio Moreno. Pauline Curley was the unkissed heroine. Equity Buys World Rights to Pinero's 'Mid-Channer for Clara Kimball Young (C JOSEPH I. SCHNITZER, general manager of Equity Pictures Corporation, which concern distributes the products of Clara Kimball Young and other Garson creations, announces the purchase from Sir Arthur Wing Pinero, for the world's screen rights to that playwright's drama, "Mid-Channel," in which Ethel Barrymore, perhaps, as much as any play in which she has appeared, earned her reputation as one of our foremost stage personalities. "Mid-Channel," which ran for many months at Charles Frohman's Empire Theatre, was accounted, during its engagement, as the finest work of Pinero, who had many successes to his credit, and one of the most attractive dramas Ethel Barrymore had yet appeared in. "Mid-Channel" is peculiarly built for just such a figure as Miss Young, who is, of course, to be seen in the role that characterized Miss Barrymore's efforts in the stage production. To Close Series of Four. "Mid-Channel" will constitute the final of the first series of four of Equity's Clara Kimball Young specials, of which "For the Soul of Rafael" is to be the third and "The Forbidden Woman" and "Eyes of Youth" were first and second. A sumptuous production will characterize the staging of "Mid-Channel," and an extraordinary cast of prominent players will be seen in support of Miss Young. "The Soul of Rafael" is now nearing completion at the Garson Studios. Locations which took Miss Young and her supporting cast from Los Angeles all the way to San Francisco and back, and with stop-overs at most of the famous old missions of California, sets so huge that parts of their structure reached out of the studio into the lot, costuming which required months of research and no little effort to secure, are a few features of "For the Soul of Rafael," which will cause that picture to stand out as a fitting release as compared to both "Eyes of Youth" and "The Forbidden Woman." "The Forbidden Woman," which is now generally released throughout the United States, is causing new reports to issue in that it is even exceeding the results obtained by exhibitors with "Eyes of Youth* and promises to surpass that picture by many hundreds of days of additional rentals and longer runs. Goldwyn Flashes Pictures on Screen 85 Minutes After Taking Them at Walton ITH almost a thousand moving pic conception of the difficulty experienced in directing comedy situations, Mr. Lowry arranged with Kempton Greene, a former Philadelphian and member of the old Lubin Company, to enact a scene assisted by two young woman, who were calle'd from the audience. The situations, which were extremely ludicrous, kept the guests in an uproar, and when less than an hour and a half afterward the very scenes they had witnessed being portrayed before them were flashed on the screen, the feat was considered little less than marvelous and hearty applause met the finished effort. Some of the motion picture men who were present were: Pete Magaro, Regent Theatre, Harrisburg; C. Floyd Hopkins, Wilmer and Vincent circuit, Harrisburg; William H. Woehrle, Third Street Theatre, Easton; George Harrington, Trenton; Lou Brennamen, American Theatre, Pottsville; Frank Walters, Iris Theatre, Philadelphia; Samuel Stiefel, Stiefel circuit, Philadelphia; Abe Einstein, Stanley Company of America; William Herchenreider, Stanley Company of America, and Senator Edwin Wolff, of the Betzwood Company. George Archinbaud Whose directorial talent is now going Into Selznlck pictures. V/y ture fans and a large number of exhibitors from all over the Pennsylvania territory in attendance, the Goldwyn Pictures Corporation gave a practical demonstration of the making of motion pictures atop the Walton Hotel, Philadelphia, last week, at which all known records for rapid completion and projection of film were shattered. The official time-keeper for the affair recorded the event in less than an hour and twenty-five minutes. To lend "atmosphere" to the affair, Helen Greene, who has recently completed work with Madge Kennedy in "Trimmed With Red," came over from the New York studios especially for the occasion. Guests Astounded. While the event was planned primarily for placing the Goldwyn Pictures Corporation on a more informal plane with the picture-loving public, the feat of shattering the world's record for rapid completion of pictures was not overlooked. Ira M. Lowry, director-general of the Betzwood Film Company, also participated. He supervised the technical requirements for the event, which included the erection of a special set, lighting equipment and complete finishing apparatus. He had erected in another portion of the building an entire developmg and printing plant with special machmery for rapidly drying the film. In order that the guests might gain some 1 1 1 H 1 1 1 11 1 Hit II I HI N IIIR I iiiir