The Moving picture world (November 1925-December 1925)

November 28, 1925 MOVING PICTURE WORLD 323 A LARGE and representative gathering of national celebrities, headed by Vice President Charles G. Dawes, paid tribute to Pathe News at the Fifteenth Anniversary Dinner held at the Hotel Plaza in New York City on Saturday evening, November 14, in celebration of the founding of news films. Never before has such a notable assemblage of the Nation's leaders and distinguished men rendered such tribute to the fifth estate. Such a demonstration is a marked honor to Pathe News and its popular editor, Emariuel Cohen, who has for eleven years commanded the army of cameramen covering the world for this great pictorial disseminator of news. The event further emphasizes the high place the pioneer newsfilm holds in the minds of the people of the United States. Vice President Dawes paid glowing praise to Pathe News in his talk as did Governor Ritchie of Maryland. Editor Cohen related the history of the pioneer newsfilm. The Vice-President roused the distinguished gathering with his stirring plea for revision of the Senate rules. The surprise of the evening was presented on the screen in "Flashes of the Past," a comprehensive newsfilm review of historic events from 1910 to 1925. Musical interpretation for this film was provided by a symphony orchestra under the direction of Doctor Hugo Riesenfeld. As proof of the speed with which Pathe News covers and screens events, scenes of the YalePrinceton football game played in New Haven Saturday afternoon were shown. Then the guests had the pleasure of seeing themselves actually at the banquet in scenes photographed earlier in the evening. "Flashes of the Past" will be presented serially in the semi-weekly issues of Pathe News so that the public may see this remarkable film. Frederic R. Coudert, attorney for Pathe, presided at the dinner in the absence of President Paul Fuller, Jr., who is in Europe on business for the firm. Following his introductory remarks, Mr. Coudert introduced Emanuel Cohen, Editor of Pathe News, who spoke as follows : "On behalf of the Pathe News, I, as its editor, want first to thank you, our distinguished guests, for joining with us this evening in the celebration of the Fifteenth Anniversary of the origin of news presentation by motion pictures. This illustrious audience, representing, as it does, every avenue of life which the newsfilm has trod, Pathe News welcomes not only as an honor to itself but as a tribute to the deeper significance of the occasion-^the increasing recognition of the newsfilm as a new institution in the dissemination of world news. I can add nothing to the brief eloquence of our guest of honor, Vice-President Dawes, who, when honoring us by accepting our invitation wrote of the newsfilm: " 'It is the newspaper of film literature. It has become a necessity in our national life, and its accuracy in daily presentation of world news has made it a national institution. It fosters good will between the peoples of the world and greater tolerance of other nations' problems has been taught through its penetrating eyes. All peoples irrespective of thought, find instantaneous expression and common understanding in the newsfilm.' Challenged Art of Angelo "Vice-President Dawes has thus splendidly epitomized its service and value. The evolution of the still camera into the motion picture machine has challenged the art of Michael Angelo, for it paints the drama of 'moving life with the broad brush of a realism within the understanding of everyone. When, in the early nineties, the new art of the motion picture was developed, mainly due to the inspiring genius of one of our distinguished friends who, unfortunately, could not be with us this evening, Thomas Edison, its purpose and scope were conceived largely for the entertainment of the masses. Here and there, at that time, the pioneers of the industry went beyond this scope and directed their lenses on some news events — but only in a sporadic fashion — an occasional glimpse of new possibilities. "It was in 1910 that there came the fuller realization of this newly discovered but unexplored field of motion picture usefulness, when Charles Pathe presented for the first time a regular and systematic medium of news dissemination by films. Public recognition of this usefulness has steadily increased, and I, personally, in my eleven years of editorship of the Pathe News, have had the opportunity of seeing the newsfilm grow from a mere exhibition in a few hundred scattered theatres, where it was used mainly as a filler oii the program, down to the present day, where the combined circulation of all newsfilms reaches almost 90 per cent of the 18,000 motion picture theatres in the United States alone. It is conservatively estimated that the newsfilm is now seen by forty millions of people a week. Also, we find it now not merely a filler, but a vital part of the program, an institution (Continued on next page)