Picture-Play Magazine (Mar-Aug 1921)

Advertising Section P Our Composer will write the music — w e'll have complete song r printed and copyrighted in your name according to our special plan« Submit Poems to Us on any Subject Edouard Hesselber&, Our leading Composer is a world's famous pianist, appearing in concerts with such celebrated singers as Sembrich, Nordica and de Reszke. Among his greatest song successes are, "IF I WERE A ROSE" of which a million copies have been sold. Don't let another day go by without submitting ot poem to us. Do it today. The Metropolitan Studios Department 254 Q16S. Mich. Ave..ChicaSo TfT^a Fail to buy these iJllNT Real Photos "WA ^ * of Movie Stars VOU admirers of thedover screen stars, just glance through this A selected list of the BIG ONES. Wouldn't you like to r ceive by return mail, genuine photos of your Movie Favorites, size 8x10, in original poses l»y tin Stars? They are beautiful and life-like. Wonderful value for the money. SOc each, 12 for S>5.00. Make your selection NOW from this list. Theda Bara All. ■ Joyce Clara K. Youne Frank Mayo Katherine McDonald Mae Murray Charles Ray Nazimova Charles Chaplin Mildr.-d Harrio y Miles Minter Mabel Normand Olga Petrova Mary Pickford Blanche Sweet Anita Stewart Norma Talmadge Pearl White Kichard Earle Williams Barthelmess or any of the other popular stars. 50c Each— 12 for $5.00 Money cheerfully refunded if not satisfactory. Mail at once with name and address plainly written to S. BR AM, Dept. 109, 209 W. 48th St., New York Cityj Affents Wanted No. 9, $4.50. No. 16, $5.50. TTTflT^ you were to purchase rings like these illustrated 1 |H above in Platinum, they would cost from $400 to **--* $500. We are now manufacturing; exact reproductions in Ladies, Sterling Silver, Platinum finish, basket setting, pierced designs set with a carat size Genuine "Egeria Gem" imported, possessing the rainbow fire of a diamond. Send your name now and receive this wonderful Gem. 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Low price includes Violin, Bow, Case, Chin Rest. Rosin. Tuning Pipes for all strings, extra set of strings and complete conservatory course of instruction. Special arrangement for lessons if you have your own instrument. Satisfaction guaranteed. Write to-day for full particulars — free! First Hawaiian Conservatory of Music, Inc. Dept. 238 233 Broadway, New York City Hints for Scenario Writers Continued from page 8 There is the married woman whose "life would make a book." She thinks she ought to write it. In fact, most anybody believes he has a book to write. Out of six million souls in New York, I venture to say there are not more than two hundred newspaper women writers in the city. Now, any young woman who thinks that she can be one of this two hundred must have something with which to be encouraged except just the desire to write. We might as well face the facts. The girl who will face the facts cannot be discouraged. She will accomplish her purpose. No amount of disheartening criticisms will keep her from her goal. There is one consolation in the profession of writing. You can't become a writer by influence or by favoritism or by "backing." In the vernacular, you've got to "produce the goods." Writing is one profession which money cannot buy. That is to say, you cannot become a writer by paying for it in money. You must be able to write — write what is wanted. The history of journalism and writing generally shows invariably that the writers who have succeeded have been unknown, unheralded, and have had to take their chances at recognition. That is why I believe so many people want to be writers, especially young people. I would say to them that the safest rule to follow is this : that unless you are perfectly unhappy in doing any other work but writing, you might well choose another profession. This may seem severe. But when I see the energy and enthusiasm and time wasted by many, many would-be writers, I am impelled to an effort to save them unnecessary heartaches. I repeat that there is room for the writer who has something worth while to give ; in fact, if there is no room, room is made for such a one. And though he hide himself in the innermost woods, as the saying goes, "the world will make a path to his door." A Chance for Amateurs W. Scott Darling, of the Christie Film Company, is one of the veteran scenario editors who finds an occasional story from a beginner, and whose letter, explaining the story situation from his standpoint, should be of the greatest value to those who are striving to write acceptable comedies. He says : During the last year we have made about seventy one or two-reel comedies. Of that number twenty-six were written by writers outside of the Christie scenario department, which is composed of Frank Roland Conklin and myself, the balance being credited to either one of us. Of the twenty-six bought outside, four were by bona-fide amateurs. By amateurs, I mean persons who are not earning a living or attempting to earn a living by writing. Two stories were bought from Clyde Campbell, Box 1302 El Paso, Texas ; one from Margaret Sechler, 17 South Lime Street, Lancaster, Pennsylvania: one from John Hall. Hotel Nason. Los Angeles, and one from Martha B Waters, 2343 London Street, Los Angeles. The rest of the twenty-sixwere bought from the following: M. B. Havey, A. H. Gooden, Nan Blair, H. Beers Loos, Jack Jevne, Ben Cohn, Keene Thompson, and Sam Taylor, with the exception of two stories bought from actors in our own stock company, Harry Depp and Jimmie Harrison. With the exception of the actors, all the others are professional writers, either free-lancing or with other companies in Los Angeles. The Christie company receives a very large number of scripts through the mail. Since the first of the year, the total, I am informed by our filing clerk, is six thousand four hundred and seventy-six. Out of this number of submissions we have purchased f our, so you can see the percentage. Everybody who thinks he can write a motion-picture story generally tackles a one-reel comedy first. A large number of the aspiring comedy authors, judging by their stories, are under the age of sixteen, and forty per cent of all submissions are in continuity. Although all scenario departments and you own department steadily advise against this, they will attempt to render their version of motion-picture continuity. This militates very much against their serious consideration. A reader will cheerfully go through a four or five-page synopsis to see just how it ends, but when you receive thirty or forty pages of "continuity," the chances a,re you are going to read the first page, and if nothing develops there, to toss it into the rejection basket. There is a large amount of miscellaneous thievery going on among the amateurs. A recent story in one of the prominent magazines was submitted to us, shortly after it appeared, from three different parts of the country, very thinly disguised. A very frequent exclamation in the scenario department is, "Ah, this gentleman has been reading last month's issue of the So-and-so Magazine." Just now we are having a flood of ouija-board stories; there is at least one a day in the mail. Before that it was the monkey-gland story. Whenever we find a neat, workmanlike script that has a real story, _ we always try and write a letter of criticism and encouragement, but they are few and far between. The reading staff go through the day's submissions, the stuff they like is passed on to me, and I pick out the material to submit to the directors. Whenever a director needs a story, the basket containing the "possibles" is passed over to him. If he can find one he likes, there are three hearty cheers ; but if he cannot, then the department has got to get busy and dig one up. Often the director has the beginning of an idea himself which starts the department off, and there is a conference, and the storv is built up around the round table. Then some one is detailed to write a synopsis of the story, which is submitted to Mr. Al Christie for his O. K. If it is O. K.'d by him, the story then goes into continuity, and in two or three days shooting has started on it. In no sense is there competition between the writers in the studio and those submitting through the mail. We have quite enough work to dq in hunting for material, continuity writing, subtitling, and editing, without attempting to do any original work at all.