The Moving picture world (January 1926-February 1926)

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January 16, 1926 MOVING PICTURE WORLD 273 You ve Got to Have Equipment To Get the Laugh Into Comedy So Argues E. H. Allen, General Manager of Educational Studios, in an Informal Talk Exclusively for YOUR EQUIPMENT 1 There isn't anybody on the lot that is more looked up to or more highly respected for I 1 his ability to get the effect needed in comedy production than is E. H. Allen, who guides 1 i the destinies of Educational Studios. While not new these studios are practically so — | 1 the lot ivas first occupied by King Vidor, who made several feature productions there. 1 1 When purchased by Educational the ground held only one covered stage of less than, I i 12,000 square feet; now — six months after occupation by Educational — 40,000 square feet 1 I of space is available. Just one of the go-getter stunts. But let Mr. Allen do the talking. | 1 — Editor. I iiiiiiiii mill iiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiia:iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiHiiii I iiiiiiiiiiiii mill uniiiii 1 E. H. ALLEN ready to throtv light on Educational' s studio equipment. ABOUT a century and a half ago, Ben Franklin made a statement to the effect that "A penny saved is a penny earned." Too many people in all lines of production have taken this adage too literally and have found that pennies saved in the purchase of equipment have been dollars lost in time and quality of product. Especially is this true of the motion picture industry. Due to the peculiar conditions surrounding motion picture production, compared with the manufacture of some staple or standardized article, equipment must not only be efficient, but adaptable to every demand made on it in every phase of production. Nowhere are these varying demands more in evidence than in a comedy studio. Every picture presents widely difTering mechanical and constructional problems and it is only through the use of well chosen and efficient equipment that these problems can be economically solved. Of primary importance is the question of stage space. At Educational Studios we are using 40,000 square feet of space, an amount which, on the face of it, seems almost too great. But although it has been available only a few weeks we are already realizing on it, for production moves faster and more smoothly than would ever be possible without it. Directors move from set to set without delay; carpenters erect sets without disturbing working companies, and since the last stage has been finished we have never suffered the loss of an hour through waiting for space. Lights are of equal importance, and in this instance, too, a surplus is real economy. Greco stand, rotary and scoop lights, Sun light Arcs and Cooper-Hewitt banks furnish the illumination. We have just installed a "remote control switchboard" which is proving its efficiency. Through the use of this piece of apparatus the electrician can control every light on the set from a small metal switchboard which he holds in his hand. It is connected to the larger main switchboard by a long cable. This enables the many cables leading to and from the main switchboard to be placed out of the way of the director and his crew, clearing up the space near the camera. Lights are useless without a steady and dependable source of current. Two Westinghouse generators, one fixed and the other portable, supply the stages with 7,500 amperes hourly, assuring current enough for every conceivable situation. An especially installed power switchboard, with instruments JUST A C, L.IK CI:, at / / ■ Educational studios equipment that helps put laughs into their comedies. Top, right, is a "prop" location truck; top, center, camera and film storage vaults; top, left, remote control switchboard with cable, allowing use at a distance from main board; lower right, motor-driven pressure painting outfit; center, rolling stage, used often in photographing ship interiors, and, lastly, trolley used in many ways in comedy production.