Moving Picture World (Jul - Aug 1918)

July 27, 1918 Universal Working to Get Negatives Ahead ACTING upon instructions issued by Carl Laemmle the producing units at Universal City are hard at work on subjects which are to be scheduled for release during' the coming autumn and winter. With all plans for the most aggressive sales drive in the history of tbat organization already completed it is the desire of the Universal executives to be even further ahead in negatives than is now the case. Information issued from the office of the general manager at Universal City states that Monroe Salisbury now has a new director. William Wolbert, and a new leading woman. Adda Gleason. The picture on which Salisbury is at work has been given the title of "That Devil Bateese," and affords the Universal player an opportunity to return to his most congenial roles. Edith Roberts, having finished "The Deciding Kiss," is at work on a screen version of "The Doings of Diana," by Rex Taylor. The working title of the production in which Mae Murray is being starred under the direction of Robert Leonard is "Merry Mary McGuire," and among the cast will be found William V. Mong. Ruth Clifford has started a production under the direction of Rupert Julian, the tentative title of which is "Mating Time." The story is by Elliot J. Clawson, Rupert Julian and Fred Myton. Kenneth Harlan is the leading man. Eddie Lyons and Lee Moran have a new leading woman in Dot DeVore, a former musical comedy singer. > Little Zoe Rae has been started in "Sinbad, the Sailor," a unique story adapted from the Arabian Knights. Priscilla Dean is working as the star in a story entitled "Joan of the Apaches," written by Harvey Gates and produced by Joseph DeGrasse. Allen Holubar has started production on a story of his own for Dorothy Phillips. It is entitled provisionally "Till We Meet Again." Douglas Gerrard is at work on a sensational subject which has not been named as yet. The story was written by Sidney Toler. THE MOVING PICTURE WORLD &7 Scene from "Petticoats and Politics" (Plaza-Hodkinson ). Anita King in "Petticoats and Politics" Is First Plaza THE home office of the W. W. Hodkin in several tense scenes. A thread of son Corporation announces that humor runs through the story. Anita King is to be the first star Several other productions following Miss whose productions will be released under King's initial offering are already comthe new section of Hodkinson service as pleted, and the Hodkinson Corporation Plaza Pictures. It has been published assures exhibitors that there will be no that this addition to Hodkinson service chance of a delay in release dates, would consist of three star series. The Anita King series, which, it is understood, will consist of eight pictures, commences with "Petticoats and Politics." This production is a particularly happy one for Miss King, inasmuch as it gives her an opportunity to display that athletic ability which has won her fame in the past. In "Petticoats and Politics," which is a satirical comedy on the development of woman suffrage in a small Nevada town, Miss King is given an opportunity of handling her six-shooter and racing over Western deserts, as well as participating Miss Fisher in Comedy of Clothes Heads Mutual List MARGARITA FISHER heads Mutual's schedule for the week of July 22 in "Impossible Susan," a typical fivereel Fisher comedy drama, dealing cleverly and originally with the question of whether a woman makes the clothes or clothes makes the woman. The picture casts Miss Fisher as an unsophisticated, completely awkward country girl, who, upon the death of her father, turns to a distant relative who has been for. years housekeeper to a rich young bachelor. The relative secures the consent of her employer to bring Susan into the house, and he. convinced that "clothes makes the woman." agrees with an intimate friend, a tailor to fashionable women, to test his theory. "On Her Account," the Strand comedy released on July 23, is a clever appeal for money for the American Red Cross. It deals with the troubles of an unbusinesslike bride, whose bank balance is constantly overdrawn. Her husband lets her go to jail to teach her a lesson, but he gets a $100 fine from the court when it is revealed that the offending check has been drawn in favor of the American Red Cross. "A White Wilderness" is the fifth of the Outing-Chester adventure pictures of the series available at Mutual exchanges. It is scheduled for July 28. The picture is of a cameraman's visit to the ice fields of British Columbia, two hundred square miles of snow and ice, glaciers, towering mountain peaks and unexplored wilderness. Screen Telegram, Mutual's twice a week news reel, is to be released hereafter by exchanges upon receipt. It carries the latest events up to the hour of closing in New York, where the editorial offices of the news weekly are now located. Goenese Handing Laugh to Islanders. Chaplin every day for sixty days! That record has been established by Paul Goenese, a Coney Island exhibitor, who has booked the twelve Chaplin-Mutual specials continuously for the summer season at New York's famous playground. Every twelve days all summer Mr. Goenese will repeat a Chaplin-Mutual. His summer booking gives him a total of twelve repeats on the entire series, a total of 144 days for twelve pictures. Diamond Comedies Shown at New York Theater THE Diamond comedies released by General Film Company, produced by Diamond Film Company, of New Orleans, and directed by Frank P. Donovan, have been booked over the Doew circuit, two playing a New York theater on a recent Saturday and Sunday. The Saenger Amusement Company in the South has also booked these comedies for their fifty-two theaters for one week runs. Chester Beecroft has secured the exclusive foreign agency for these comedies, and is now offering them to European buyers from his office at 501 Fifth avenue, New York. The Diamond Film Company has a large daylight studio situated on the famous Bayou St. John. The studio is capable of accommodating ten directors, all working at one time. They have laboratories, projecting rooms, cutting and negative departments, jungles, carpenter and property shops, water tanks, and practically everything that a modern studio should have. Director Donovan and General Manager William J. Hannon are installing new ideas in the plant that they gleaned in a recent trip to New York. Mr. Hannon has had picture experience, having been a producer and the owner of the Nola Feature Company, which the Diamond Company bought, although this company has no connection whatever with Nola. The Diamond is desirous of obtaining good scenarios from experienced writers, for which they will pay the regular rates. They want stories that feature a girl and comedian of the better class, with a little farce comedy intermingled. William Morgan Hannon is scenario editor of the Diamond comedies, and was formerly editor of the Nola Films. He is also the author of books on scenario writing. Scripts should be addressed to him.