Picture Play Magazine (Oct-Nov 1915)

14 PICTURE-PLAY WEEKLY Professing to have gained a sudden desire for huge doses of the drug to which he had become addicted, Harry led the blind Vinton to believing that he was getting worse. But, with his plan in mind, and the thought that his wife was lying in the filthy asylum, Harry became stronger. Daily he awaited the time when he could be able to grapple with his rival. Whenever Vinton came, Harry, with a well-assumed air of being a fiend, caused him much merriment. Then came the day on which Agnes escaped. Vinton came once more to gloat over Harry. "Ah, to-morrow your own daughter is mine !" he grinned. With a snarl of rage, the rejuvenated Harry seized him about the waist. Across the narrow room, Harry mauled the surprised Vinton. To the door they struggled ; then, with a mighty toss, Harry hurled him over his head and down the staircase, where he lay — neck broken. With another cry, Harry darted down — to freedom ! Agnes was not the only one who mourned for her mate. Eagerly Harry searched for his wife and child. But nowhere were they to be found. Tired nearly to death, he sat to rest on the steps of a church. He noticed that it was the Little Church. And it dawned on him it was also the anniversary of their wedding. With a sob, he fell on his knees. Two little children approached. "Oh, see the poor stranger!" said the girl. "Come, Jimmie, let us invite him into our church." She tapped Harry on the back. "Come inside, poor man," she said. With a cry, Harry looked up. "Jennie !" he whispered. "It's my daddy!" she cried, throwing her arms about his neck. "Oh, daddy, where have you been?" "Aw, say," said Jimmie, standing near, "why don't ye bring him inside ? Yer mother's in there." "Come, daddy," she said softly "Mother is praying, too." "Mother, look !" she said to the silent figure kneeling in prayer. Agnes looked up. "Harry!" she gasped, rising and swaying forward. His voice was husky as he replied : "The Little Church Around the Corner! Come, Agnes ; come, Jennie ; let us kneel and thank God for His goodness !" Screen Gossip By Al Ray \\/ELL, the requests for the five " greatest have be^n coming in at a pretty lively rate lately, and most of them have asked for the five greatest old-people portrayers in filmdom, so I will name them this week. There are five of them that stand out 'way above all the rest. Here they are: First, W. Chrystie Miller ; second, Mary Maurice ; third, Spottiswoode Aitken ; fourth, Daddy Manley ; fifth, Mother Benson. These five are without a doubt the greatest of them all. W. Chrystie Miller will be remembered for his wonderful work under D. W. Griffith at the old Biograph. Mary Maurice, of Vitagraph, is known the world over for her grandma parts. Spottiswoode Aitken is at present Griffith's best bet, and Daddy Manley and Mother Benson are playing together with the Rex company, and are great favorites. Keep up the requests for the five greatest anything. They will all be answered in this column as best I can. There are lots I haven't used. Send in yours. Al Thomas, the veteran actor and character man, who scored such a success as the mayor in "Smashing the Thief Trust," is being congratulated all the time for his great work in this film. Al had never played in a comedy before, always taking strong, dramatic, character roles, and his success is as much of a surprise to him as it is to his many friends. Ah, ha ! Charles Moore is in town. We told you so, Mosha Pepeek Fleming. You can't fool us as to where you got that bad-looking glimmer. A notice in one of our many monthly motion-picture magazines starts as follows: "Mary Pickford, the little eighteen-year-old world star has " Magazines are supposed to be up to the minute, but this one is evidently 'way behind the times. Mary Pickford was eighteen four years ago. Can it be that this magazine is four years old and is being sold as this month's? Speaking of the Pickfords, a constant reader asks where Jack Pickford first got any stage experience. Jack was the ch-e-e-i-l-d that was carried across the chasm on the hero's back in the stage production of "The Fatal Wedding." In fact, all of the Pickfords were with that show. Murray MacCoid is in town. He arrived last week from his eighteen-thousand-acre ranch in Houston, Texas, to appear in pictures for the Federal Film Company. Murray is one of the greatest dare-devils on the screen to-day. and outside of this knows the motion-picture game from a to z. He will also act as assistant director to the comedy director. Harry la Pearl has been a very busy man lately. Besides appearing in "Smashing the Thief Trust" he was working on two other films at the same time, which kept him working day and night. Harry's family thought that he had become a traveling salesman, he was away from home so long. Wil Rex, the dramatic director of the Federal Film Company, is staging a film that ought to be a real thriller. He has not as yet decided what he will call the piece, but he has engaged some mighty tough-looking characters to appear in a fight scene in a dance hall that he is going to stage in this film. Some are preliminary boys, and some are semifinalists. Al Ray will play a gunman, and mingle in this fight. Help ! Roscoe Arbuckle and Sidney Chaplin nearly came to blows the other day when Sid accused Roscoe of getting fat. The idea ! Sidney, how could you say such a thing?