Moving Picture World (Jul - Aug 1918)

July 6, 1918 THE MOVING PICTURE WORLD 97 Sales of the Week Perrefs New Production Combines Romance and War Activities in State Rights Market During the Past Seven Days. HARRY RAPF announces sale of the following territories on his two productions, "The Struggle Everlasting" and "The Accidental Honeymoon": To Motion Picture Theater Owners' Association for Illinois and southern Wisconsin; to All-Star Feature Corporation for California, Arizona, and Nevada; to Pioneer Film Corporation for upper New York state; to Keystone Feature Company for eastern Pennsylvania and southern New Jersey; to Frank Gersten, Inc., for northern New Jersey; to Masterpiece Film Company for Ohio, and to V. H. Hodupp, Inc., for Indiana. * * * The following territory sales are announced by the W. H. Productions Company: Series of twenty-eight Keystone reissues, twenty-six Charlie Chaplin reissues, sixteen Shorty Hamilton reissues, and four W. S. Hart feature reissues for Gardiner Syndicate, Buffalo, for New York state north of Westchester county; series of twenty-six Charlie Chaplin reissues to B. N. Judell, Inc., Minneapolis, for Minnesota, North and South Dakota. The Gaumont Company announces that its independent News Service, issued semiweekly as the Gaumont News and Gaumont Graphic, has been sold for the following territory: Illinois: To Celebrated Players Film Co., 207 South Wabash avenue, Chicago. Ohio and Kentucky: To Masterpiece Film Attractions, 404 Sincere building, Cleveland. New York State, north of the counties of Dutchess, Ulster and Sullivan: To Doo-Lee Film Co., Inc., 445 South Warren street, Syracuse. Betzwood Company Working On Two Feature Pictures CAMERA work on the Betzwood Film Company's production featuring Lady Tsen Mei, said to be the only Chinese star on the screen, has been practically completed. Meanwhile Ira M. Lowry, the director, has already started on the western story, "Sandy Burke," by J. Allen Dunn, in which Louis Bennison is put forward by the Betzwood Film Company. With matters in this shape the executives point to the two productions for corroboration of the policy set down by the company at its conception. This was that in possession of abundant capital and a well appointed plant and with no scheduled release dates it could concentrate upon specialty features which exhibited possibilities not presented in the average screen subject. Director Lowry is said to have surrounded his unique Chinese star and thrilling story with a lavishness of scenic atmosphere. Mr. Lowry and his associates are confident that in Louis Bennison they have a "trump" possessing youth, brains, the gift of natural acting, a splendid physique, good looks and a winning, friendly smile. Petrova's W. S. S. Tour Proves a Great Success BEULAH LIVINGSTON, personal and publicity representative for Madame Petrova, left New York on Tuesday for Atlanta to arrange for Madame Petrova's appearance at Jake Wells' theaters in connection with her W. S. S. Drive. Miss Livingston will act as advance agent, keeping three days ahead of Madame Petrova on her tour, which will embrance twenty-seven of the principal cities of the country, covering nine weeks. In addition to contributing her time and talent, Madame Petrova is bearing the entire expense of the tour. At Tom Moore's Garden theater in Washington, L A. DeHoff's New theater in Baltimore and Nathan Gordon's Olympia theater in Boston she is said to have sold nearly *50,000 worth of War Saving Stamps. E. K. Lincoln and Dolores Cassinelli Featured in "Lafayette, We Come," a Patriotic Picture Based on Pershing's Speech at Tomb of French Patriot. LTHOUGH Leonce Perrefs forthcom _f\ ing production, "Lafayette, We Come!" carries a patriotic appeal, its message is not direct. The film is said to be an absorbing and thrilling story of mystery and intrigue, flavored with the romance of love and war. E. K. Lincoln is cast as an American boy composer, Leroy Trenchard. Dolores Cassinelli, the talented and emotional Italian actress, appears as Therese Verneuil, Leroy's sweetheart. A carefully select cast has been engaged to support Mr. Lincoln and Miss Cassinelli. The story of "Lafayette, We Come!" has to do with an American boy (Leroy) who becomes one of America's fighting men; his sweetheart mysteriously disappears. Leroy meets Princess Zitkoff and is astounded by her resemblance to Therese. He is blinded by the weapon of a Hun. Overcome, he yearns for Therese. Therese has entered the service of the Allied Secret Agents and is instructed to assume the role of the German spy, the Princess Zitkoff. She succeeds in her mission and devotes herself to carying for blinded heroes in a French hospital. She recognizes Leroy, but does not reveal her identity. She takes care of him until after an operation restores his sight. Leroy, when he discovers Therese, pushes her from him as she beseeches him to forgive her. A letter explains the work Therese had done, and Leroy and Therese are united once more. Throughout the story Mr. Perret has woven touches of incidents showing American soldiers being entertained in French homes, tending to portray the growing fraternity between the peoples of the United States and France, and is said to have embodied in his production numerous startling effects. ■ It closes with a scene in a cathedral. Leroy completing the composition entitled "Our Prayer Over Here for the Ones Over There." The roof of the cathedral opens, and through the rifts in the clouds the allied forces are seen sweeping on to victory. As the last strains die away, a distant medley reaches the ear. It seems to be drawing nearer, increasing in volume, then crashing forth into a medley of national anthems of the Allies as the enlightened rays of the sun break through the clouds, illuminating the earth and blazing a path of victory for the allied champions of civilization. "Topics of the Day" Is a Screen Novelty A SCREEN novelty which is now in its seventh week at the Strand theater, New York, is "Topics of the Day," which is being distributed by the Topics of the Day Film Company, Times building, New York, of which A. E. Siegal is the proprietor. This film is issued weekly in approximately two hundred foot lengths consisting of about fifteen timely "punch" paragraphs carefully selected from newspapers and magazines from every part of the world. They are prepared with the cooperation of the Literary Digest, published by Funk and Wagnalls. The staff of this publication selects fifty subjects from which the Topics company pick out fifteen which are considered to be the best. These are then filmed in the same manner as motion picture subtitles, making what might be termed "a picture-less motion picture." With its large staff of experts combined with the fact that the Literary Digest selects its reading matter from five thousand periodicals from every country the wide field that "Topics of the Day" has access to can be appreciated. Mr. Siegel announces that he is arranging for international distribution of these "Topics," and is having them translated into several other languages. European rights have been sold to Robertson-Cole Company, and Sol Lesser has contracted for rights covering California, An and Nevada, while deals covering other territories are pending. Not only has Mr. Siegal entered Into an exclusive contract with the Literary Digest, but he advises that this publication will from time to time carry publicity covering this film, referring to the fact that it is based on the news s lected bv their staff. "Topics of the Day" is being offered on state rights basis, also on a franchise basis for theater circuits, and the first four weeks service is now ready. In addition to being shown at the Strand it is also being exhibited at many other theaters, including the Playhouse in Chicago for an indefinite run in connection with the Prizma colored naval pictures. LockwoodAllison Films To Be Released by Arrow A QUIET campaign to ascertain the demand for reissues of productions with stars of present-day popularity has been conducted by W. E. Shallenberger, president of the Arrow Film Corporation, for the past four 'weeks. As a result, the Arrow Film Corporation announces re-issues of four five-reel Lockwood-Allison features heretofore entitled "The Buzzard's Shadow," "The End of the Road," "The Other Side of the Door," "Life's Blind Alley." These productions are being re-edited at the laboratories of the American Film Co. under the supervision of Mr. Shallenberger, and a new and original line of advertising matter is being prepared. In the case of these reissues the productions are said to retain all of the original with a re-assembling and re-cutting so as to make the story more modern and up to the present high standards of feature releases. The new titles have been determined upon, but have not yet been announced. • These releases are being disposed of under one contract — the first production to be released the middle of July. "The Hand of Vengeance" Sensational but Clean THE new Gaumont serial, "The Hand of Vengeance," is said to be not c-nly thiriiling and startling, but also to be absolutely clean, and that parents need feel no compunction about letting their children see it. It has been built to suit that portion of the theatergoing public that likes sensational entertainment, and the hero is a thoroughly "red-blooded" person. After being wronged the hero gets his revenge and then becomes champion of others who have also been wronged, using spectacular and effective methods always. "The Hand of Vengeance" will be re• leased weekly in two-reel episodes, the entire serial requiring two and a half months for a complete showing, and the serial is said to grow better and better with each episode until the sensational climax at the end is reached. Lesser Handling "Pershing's Crusaders"! In California SOL L. LESSER has been appointed by Governor Stevens of California to act in the capacity of chairman of the Division of Films, State Council of Defense for California. It is announced that the contract with the California State Council having been affirmed, the Committee on Public Information has released "Pershing's Crusaders" for distribution in California under Mr. Lesser's direction.