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538
MOVING PICTURE WORLD
December 12, 1925
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I Reviews from the Screen Viewpoint |
I of Plays, Books, Stories and Operas |
I By Qray Strider |
12 Miles Out
WILLIAM ANTHONY McGUIRE has written and presented a lust\', romantic melodrama — "12 Miles Out"— which could be quite happily transferred to the screen.
Jane Burton (Mildred Florence) has been miserably married for three years to a yapping bit of legal promposity, John Burton. (Albert Hackett). She obligingly married him because he saved her brother, Chuck, from prison. This charming but erring boy has returned after a long absence to make his home with his sister, much to John's discomfiture. The three are sitting at dinne' in John's modest little house on Long Island — a half mile from the nearest neighbor,— when, in the midst of a storm, Gerald Fay (Warren William) a rum runner, bursts in, followed by his men. He is being chased and commandeers the house to store his liquor. John yelps around about "upholding the law," etc., but he is pushed aside and many cases of Johnny Walker, Haig and Haig, et al, are landed.
Nobody is permitted to leave the house, but Chuck opens a case on his own, gets tight, tells friend brother-in-law what a skunk he is and tears out to catch a train back to New York. A shot is heard. Chuck has been killed by hi-jackers, commanded by Michael McCue (Frank Shannon) who have been pursuing Gerald. The hi-jackers rush into the house and force all the occupants — nor do they forget the liquor — on board Mike's old scow and start south.
Both Mike and Gerald fall iji love with Jane whose husband by this time proves himself a coward of rare low order. In a fight between run runner and hi-jacker, Mike is mortally wounded and dies in his cabin just as a revenue cutter captures the whole outfit.
Of course rum runner gets the girl, but she just came along for the ride, for it's a man's play — magnificently written and magnificently acted down to the last male character.
Morals
Ir would be difficult to screen Ludwig Thoma's delightful play "Morals" which Dudley Digges is staging at the Comedy Theatre without seriously ofifending the censorship regulations. No way has been found, to date, by which a house of prostitution can be hexed into an ice cream parlor.
ha Tosca
PASSION stalks through every second of Puccini's opera "La Tosca" which, musically and dramatically, is outstanding and could be made into an intense, vivid picture.
The character requirements are not difficult : Tosca, a famous singer, Mario, a painter, and Baron Scarpia, Chief of Police.
However, the role of Tosca would have to be played by a brilliant-minded woman of mature beauty ; an actress with hips, heart, hair and head. No shingled, spindle-legged, sexless dramatic junior could interpret the part which Jeritza has so ennobled.
When we recall that all the scenes are laid in Rome where every building is a cathedral, every day a Holy day, religious processions more numerous than bath tubs and Italian girls break into warm womanhood at the same age that the average American girl is having braces made for her teeth — we can understand how limitless is the color which could be put into this production.
The lion-jealous, cobra-true, indescribably beautiful Tosca loves Mario and loathes Scarpia. To avenge himself Scarpia has the painter arrested for assisting Cesare Angelotti, a revolutionary, to escape. Tosca — in a gorgeous white costume which enhances the loveliness of her voluptuous figure, comes to plead for her lover. The Chief of Police is sitting at dinner calmly eating some fruit. Tosca's blood is turned to water when she hears horrible, animal-like screams from the next room. Mario is being tortured to betray the whereabouts of Angelotti.
Scarpia swears to save Mario's life if Tosca will give him her love that very night. She vainly implores him by the Madonna and by God to release her. He only laughs : "Already the gallows stretch to heaven; the death drums can even now be heard."
Hopelessly she promises. He goes to the writing table and signs the purported pardon. While his back is turned Tosca's little hands — made for caresses, accustomed childlike to be joined in prayer — steal along the table and reach a fruit knife. Scarpia turns and tries to melt her with his kisses. She stabs him, hissing as he draws his last l)reath : "Die in your damnation."
With a terrible sort of religious fascination, she places holy candles at the dead monster's head and feet and falls out into the night. She flies to the prison as the sun breaks over Rome ; rushes to the top of the tall building where the execution is about to take place ; crushes the pardon into the chief official's hand and runs to Mario's arms whispering: "You are free. Scarpia is dead. I have killed him. A carriage waits below to take us to a ship — and then on the deep sea. But first the soldiers must pretend justice. Scarpia has written them to use blank cartridges as they did the last time. When they shoot, fall; lie still; don't move a muscle. Then we will fliy. Freedom trembles in the morning air. Love has vanished death."
Mario faces the squad bravely and is shot — dead, as the last prisoner zvas. Tosca agonizingly realizes that even in death, Scarpia has betrayed her. Her screams mount higher and higher in a horrible crescendo: Mario, Mario! M ARIOM ARIOMARIO ! The police arrive at that moment to arrest her for Scarpia's murder. She tears herself from Mario's body, climbs to the parapet around the top of the prison wall, stands for a second defying her tormentors and then jumps to join Mario as her beautiful body breaks into pieces on the courtyard stones far below.
Paid
TT COSTS at least $50 to be born and A three times that amount, anyway, to br buried— even with a cut rate undertaker. It's money, money, money from the cradle to the crematorium. At the Booth Theatre Sam Harris is presenting Sam Forrest's "Paid" which deals exclusively with the "long green," and if this plan is put on the screen it will be enthusiastic interest to every person carrying in his pocket a dirty envelope with a single sheet inside : "Account rendered; please remit." Naturally, for those few who cut their teeth on platinum rattles and pay their bills promptly on the first of the month this picture will hold no thrills.
It's a simple story: Two poor families, the Ramseys and the Baxters ; Ramsey is trying to perfect an electrical invention that will revolutionize indusrty ; he needs $5,000; Baxter is a scarcely-efficient, egotistic floorwalker who by eight years of self denial has saved $4,950. He disbelieves in banks and keeps the money hidden at home until his wife nearly has a nervous breakdown. She threatens to leave him if he doesn't permit her to put the funds in safe keeping. He gives a grudging consent. She starts out with the money in a shabby old handbag clutched in her hand.
A thief picks her pocket, loses courage and throws the pocketbook into a darkened doorway until the crowd subsides when he plans to return. But Ramsey happens along, sees the bag, picks it up and steps into a taxicab just as the thief doubles back in his vain search.
Ramsey, encouraged by his wife, keeps the money, invests it in his electrical invention and makes an enormous success. Regardless of this dishonesty he is a man of fine character and searches until he finds Baxter, who thoroughly crushed by the loss of his money, has fallen lower and lower until at last he is working as a waiter in a modest restaurant. Ramsey gives Baxter a position in his factory at $75 a week and gradually increases his salary until at the end of fifteen years he is making $30,000 a year besides receiving twice that amount from stock dividends.
Baxter is an abominable egotist and cynic. If he had not lost the money he would never have made a success. He is inefficient, boastful, forgetful and envious. He hates his benefactor and proves such a poor business man that Ramsey has to create a special department for him which isn't of the slightest consequence except in Baxter's eyes.
Of course, the Baxte.s have a daughter and the Ramseys a son, who inevitably fall m love. But the ending isn't inane or sugary. It's a fine play and would make a stirring picture.
Edward Ellis in his interpretation of Baxter is superb and Roger Pryor as Ramsey Jr., is the equal of any juvenile I have ever seen.
News Service
THE Fox Film Company has bought the motion picture rights to the James Gleason-Richard Taber comedy "Is Zat So?" now playing at Chanin's 46th Street Theatre. The Fox Company obtains this screen privilege upon the payment of a cash guarantee of $100,000 against a percentage of 10% on the gross receipts up to $800,000 and 15% on all over that amount.
Robert T. Kane has acquired the rights of Michael Arlen's The Dancer of Paris.
Columbia Pictures have purchased the screen rights to Guy de Maupassant's Poor Girl, which Charles Frohman produced on the legitimate stage many years ago.