Moving Picture World (Mar 1919)

1328 THE MOVING PICTURE WORLD March 8, 1919 Priscilla was explaining how she managed to look so wild in "The Wild Cat of Paris," and so unwild in real life. Picking on the Husbands. Going out in the bus Billy Campbell told me about the new wild animal comedy, "Loose Lions and Fast Husbands" he has just finished, and promised to run it off for me, and just when I had begun to think he'd forgotten all about it. here come Harry Burns and said all was set for the show. There were just the three of us in the audience, and as Campbell directed the picture, and Burns played a part in it, and neither could laugh without seeming vain, I had to do all the chuckling. It was not a hard job, however. I simply busted loose when the frisky husband crawled into a pile of hay and found himself on the back of a camel. If the ribs of the public are not tickled at that mix-up of monkeys, mokes, lions, classic dancers, jealous wives, babies, elephants and milk bottles, there is something wrong with them. Praising One of Our Forebears. Joe Martin, the almost human chimpanzee, is uncanny in the film. He takes care of a baby, plays a French harp, trails the villain, Harry Burns, who has robbed a nurse girl, takes the money out of his pocket and returns it to its owner — and even if he did drink most of the baby's milk, he played fair with the kid and let him have first go at the bottle. Lions seem to have found a permanent place in comedy, and as Campbell is one of the original lion tamers of the movies, he had the big cats in almost every scene. Taking it by and large, from Ike St. John's coco cola to Billy Campbell's comedy, the day at U City was a good day. THREE FRENCH INTERESTS CONSOLIDATE M. Vanday, Now in New York, and Charles Delac Head Group Which Secures Control of Companies CHARLES DELAC and M. Vandal, heading a group of influential men in the French motion picture industry, backed by abundant capital, have negotiated an alliance of interests whereby they assume the management and control of the Film D'Art, one of the oldest and largest French producing concerns; a highly perfected dis M. Vandal Off for the Front of Producing, Distributing and Exhibiting Interests of France. tributing company, the Agence Generale Cinematographique, and the most pretentious photoplay palace in. Paris, La Salle Marivaux (Marivaux Hall). The new organization will be known as C. Delac, M. Vandal & Cie (Delac, Vandal & Co.). The merging of these interests places into the hands of Delac, Vandal & Co. a large share of the production, distribution and exhibition of motion pictures in France. M. Vandal has just arrived in America and is making his headquarters with the office of Adolphe Osso. M. Vandal's mission is principally for the purpose of acquiring the French or other European rights to the recent American motion picture successes and to establish an outlet for the product of his firm in France. M. Vandal founded and managed the Eclair Company in France. It may be also interesting to note that Maurice Tourneur and Emile Chautard served their apprenticeship as motion picture directors with Eclair in France. The Agence Generale Cinematographique, which is the second unit in the combination, is responsible for the introduction into France of many of the American film successes and stars. It was this organization that opened the French market to Chaplin, Lewis, Farnum and Miss Pickford, as well as other now popular favorites of the screen. Under the management of Kasto, Astair & Lallemand the Agence Generale grew to be a distributing concern with twenty branches on the continent. La Salle Marivaux (Marivaux Hall) was built recently by Delac and Vandal on the Boulevard des Italiens to exclusively present motion pictures produced in France, as well as those sent there from America and other countries. M. Vandal is not unknown in America. He first came to New York about twelve years ago, and was one of the pioneers in the independent market. It was M. Vandal who helped make Fort Lee the center of motion picture producing in the East. After his first visit to the United States he returned to France and drew up the plans for a motion picture studio to be built at Fort Lee. He returned to America the following year and built the Eclair studios. Poli Circuit Books Lewis Picture. "Children of Banishment," Mitchell Lewis' second attraction under the Select banner, has been booked for advance dates over the Poli circuit in Connecticut, and is scheduled to play Poli houses in Bridgeport, New Haven, Waterbury and Meriden. Another advance booking reported by Select's Exchange is the Photoplay in Paterson. N. J. Tom Terriss Starts on Thirteenth Joyce Picture WITH the completion of his latest directorial success, "The Lion and the Mouse," Tom Terris has started work with Alice Joyce on their thirteenth joint production, "The Girl Without a Heart." During the eighteen months he has been affiliated with Vitagraph Mr. Terriss has constantly directed Alice Joyce, and together they have produced twelve pictures. Although this is their thirteenth production, and although Mr. Terriss' office at Vitagraph is 13, neither star nor director seem affected by the superstitious combination. "The Lion and the Mouse" was a triumph for both Mr. Terriss and his lovely star, and was acclaimed as such with enthusiasm by press and public. It represented the best each had done. If "The Girl Without a Heart" comes up to the standard set by its predecessor in the Joyce-Terris line, it will be heartily welcomed. Mr. Terris comes from England, and was conceded the best portrayer of Dickens' parts there. He was at the head of his own company and toured the United States and Canada, and later appeared for three years in this country in a Dickens vaudeville sketch. Finally Tom Terriss. World offered him a contract to produce the Dickens works for the screen, and this marked his entrance to motion pictures, where he has remained ever since. Successively a sheep raiser, sailor, silver miner, manager, actor, producer and now director, Mr. Terriss has enjoyed a wide and adventurous career. He is especially enthusiastic over the coming Alice Joyce pictures, as they include adaptations from Robert W. Chambers and Charles Klein's best works. Green Gets Discharge from Navy. Edward Green, formerly film department supervisor in South America for the North American Motion Pictures, has just received his discharge from the Navy. Mr. Greene is looking around for a chance to get right back in the same old harness. It fits him and he likes it.