Picture-Play Magazine (Mar-Aug 1926)

8S Two Ways of Getting Into Pictures One for the rich boy, one for the poor, and Eugene O'Brien, experienced actor of screen and stage, tells what they are. By Eugene O'Brien THERE are two ways for a boy to break into the movies, depending" on whether he is rich or poor. I'll address myself first to the poor boy. You will have a more difficult time than your wealthy competitor, but the harvest that you reap in the end is likely to prove more gratifying. The well-to-do boy, to whom things come more quickly, picks the first, half-ripe fruit. You wait for the juicy succulence of the matured crop. He wins opportunities more easily, but he may not have the ability or stamina to back them up with hard work. You are slower to gain, but from your set-backs you learn valuable lessons and so gradually develop. He may get near the top sooner, but you will stay there longer. The first thing for you to do upon arrival in Hollywood is to plan the cheapest way in which you can live and yet keep up a presentable appearance. I should advise taking a small room near the center of the studio section. One less expensive might be rented in some other part of Los Angeles, but you would spend more in car fare and, besides, it pays to be near the point of activities. A good investment would be an electric iron and a board. Pressing your own clothes won't hurt you, will save money, and will enable you always to look spic and span. I know several young men who have gone from the ironing board, so to speak, to featured roles. And they aren't ashamed of the way they had to connive to stretch their few dollars to cover weeks of idleness. Don't buy cheap clothes. Better to have one good, tailored suit that will photograph well than two cheap ones that look as though they came from an "up-threeflights" store. A tuxedo and full-dress suit are valuable assets and will pay for themselves in time. A scene requiring formal dress generally pays two dollars and fifty cents a day more than other scenes. The reply. "Complete wardrobe," to the casting director's question will place you on his list as prepared for any call. If you can afford the outlay, your wardrobe should include the following: one good business suit, or two if possible, one light and one dark ; a tuxedo ; a full-dress suit ; a top coat for formal wear ; a light overcoat. Hats : a straw, a felt, a top hat, and a cap. Good shirts, well don't Debts Eugene O'Brien has been in the acting profession for so many years that He is well qualified to advise beginners. made shoes. Gloves for wear, a cane, and such accessories are not absolutely essential, but it would be well to have them. If you have enough money, add a riding suit, bathing suit, white flannels, golfing suit, Western costume (chaps, shirt, kerchiefs), and a blue-coat-and-white-trousers sports outfit. All of these will help you to get engagements. Don't bluff or sham. If you haven't money pretend that you have. Live within your means. will soon cancel what credit you may be able to get. Nobody will disrespect you because you are poor, but every one will despise you if you aren't square. Save — and when you spend, be sure that it is for a good reason and that you are getting value. Economy may be practiced by eating at the less expensive cafes, by shining your own shoes, and in other minor ways. And there are certain kinds of work which you might do on the side, until you are regularly employed as an extra. Take, however, only jobs with flexible hours, for you must always be ready to answer a call to the studios. Never ignore a call. Many young beginners make the mistake of becoming stock salesmen, as that requires no stated hours. And usually, they attempt to sell to people connected with the film busiResult: they seldom because, in the first place, motion-picture people are so continually being bothered by salesmen that they won't have anything to do with them, and secondly, because they establish themselves in the minds of stars and directors as salesmen rather than as screen aspirants. They find themselves barred from the studios and from the homes of people they would like to know. Never try to sell anything to some one whose aid you hope to obtain in furthering your professional ambitions. For it prejudices that person against you. Then what kind of work can you do? If you can write well, there are opportunities occasionally on some of the smaller fan magazines, or perhaps you can induce a newspaper in your home town to accept a weekly or daily "Hollywood Letter" from you and pay you a few dollars a week for it. If you can paint or draw, there is sometimes extra work at the commercial-art and" advertising studios. Many boys have turned hobbies into work. I know one fellow who, in his spare time, takes care of the fan mail of two actresses. Continued on page 105 ness. make a go of it. This ideal arrange