Sparrows (United Artists) (1926)

General Advance Story for Newspapers Mary Pickfot d Comes to Blank Theatre in “Sparrows,” Dramatic Film Comedy and Drama Highlights Of Star’s New Story Of Louisiana Swamps—Gala Opening MARY PICKFORD IN “SPARROWS From an original story by Winifred Dunn; adapted for the screen by C. Gardner Sullivan; directed by William Beaudine; Tom McNamara, Carl Harbaugh and Earl Browne, collaborators; titles by George Marion, Jr. Photography by Charles Rosher, Hal Mohr and Karl Struss. Art direction, Harry Oliver. Electrical effects, William Johnson. Released by United Artists Corporation. THE CAST Mama Mollie .Mary Pickford Grimes .Gustav von Seyffertitz Richard Wayne..Roy Stewart Doris Wayne .Mary Louise Miller Mrs. Grimes .Charlotte Mineau Ambrose Grimes ..Spec O’Donnell Bailey .Lloyd Whitlock His Confederate .A. L. Schaeffer Hog Buyer.Mark Hamilton Splutters .....Monty O’Grady Muriel MacCormac Billy Jones Cammilla Johnson Mary McLane Billy Butts Jack Lavine Florence Rogan Sylvia Bernard Seessel Anne Johnson SYNOPSIS Beyond the wall on the outer walk Was a pile of ashes high, With cans and rags &nd dirty things To offend the passer by. But God sees things so differently That Beauty’s everywhere, And out of the pile of ashes There blooms a rosebud fair. —Juliano As other more fortunate little girls hug their dollies to their breasts and mother them, Mollie looked upon the eight other little children as her own. They were prisoners at the Grimes farm and where they all came from nobody knew but Grimes and he would never tell. He and his wife could not have chosen a better place for sinister secrecy; here on the edge of the swamp with only one road out barred by a big gate. The bog was dank, dark and bottomless—a trap of death to every living thing that dared to tempt its coming horrors. With the beatings and hard work and cold, the children lived days of misery and nights of terror. Their only hope was Mollie. She never gave up. In an old tattered book of Bible stories, she had gleaned that God looks after the lowliest, counting even the fall of each sparrow. In the uncertain light of the old loft, she read the stories to them and they tried hard to believe that there was some relief from the cruelties of old Grimes. None of life’s experiences can entirely quell the spirit of fun in a child’s heart and so the dramatic episodes at the Baby Farm are relieved by moments of richest comedy, with Mary Pickford as leading spirit in the fun making. One stormy night a beautiful child is brought to the farm by two rough looking strangers. It is evident she comes from a home of luxury. She is plainly out of place among the children at the Grimes farm. Plainly, she was not an unwanted child, for she had been nurtured, cared for and loved. In the outside world, a distracted father was turning heaven and earth to find her, and the trail of the police led finally to the farm, and to the distorted mind of Grimes the only way to avoid the police is to destroy all evidence. The horror of throwing the angelic Amy into the swamp stirs no qualms in his callous heart. Mollie finds this out. She believes that a God who watches the fall of every sparrow must surely watch over her and the smaller children. She gathers them about her and prepares for the escape. With death stalking them every foot of the way, their passage through the swamp is a succession of tremendous episodes of breathless suspense, with a climax that transcends in power and emotional appeal any dramatic sequence ever brought to the screen. Mary Pickford will lead a frolicsome crew of gamins to the Blank Theatre next Sunday in “Sparrows,” her new¬ est and most dramatic film. “Sparrows” tells a grippingly absorb¬ ing story of adventures on a queer farm in the southern swamp country. Some suggestion of the special effort expended in making the new Pickford film may be had from the fact that this swamp set alone required transplantation of six hundred trees and wholesale hanging of Spanish moss for background. It was especially built for the picture ‘under direction of Harry Oliver. The story of “Sparrows,” which is directed by the same William Beaudine who wielded the baton on the eminently successful “Little Annie Rooney,” is highly dramatic, and the action fast from the very start. Sharply contrast¬ ing comic reliefs emphasize the film’s sheer suspense and tense moments. In the story a twelve year old girl, “Mama Mollie,” battles for her picturesque ret¬ inue of orphans against the harshness of a baby farm keeper. Her role of “Mama Mollie” affords Miss Pickford excellent scope to disport in rollicking, hoydenish fashion. The part is just such a one as the public likes her to play. Doug’s Opinion of “Sparrows” Not only does Mary here find the perfect role for her talents, but the tenseness and thrills of this swampland drama and the support of an unusual cast, including Gustav von Seyffertitz, Roy Stewart, Mary Louise Miller, Spec O’Donnell, Monty O’Grady and other familiar faces, have earned for the pic¬ ture itself the plaudits of Doug Fair¬ banks, who has publicly expressed his judgment. “Even without Miss Pickford it would still be' a great picture,” said Doug. Mary Aided by Veterans “Sparrows,” the present title of the film, supplanted the earlier title “Scraps,” after Joseph M. Schenck and Douglas Fairbanks had viewed the working print and acclaimed the picture’s greatness. This change was made in spite of thou¬ sand’s of dollars expended in advertis¬ ing “Scraps” as the picture’s name. The title “Sparrows,” is derived from those passages in the gospel of Luke to the effect that even the lowly, inconsequen¬ tial sparrow is not lost sight of in the eyes of God, any more than are the foundlings under Mary’s wing. Among the hectic adventures of these youngsters on the baby farm with a veritable Scrooge of a tyrant 'is much that suggests Dickens in certain charac¬ ters. Through all the comedy and heart interest in the treacherous swamp scenes, with live alligators a foot from tiny legs, stalks the implacable “Grimes.” This role played by Gustav von Seyffer- !itz, is as sharply drawn a Dickens por¬ trait as ever appeared outside the “Christmas Carols.” Charlotte Mineau, who plays his half-witted wife, might have stepped from out “Gre^t Expecta¬ tions.” The Bible,—and Dickens, Too Conscious of the sure-handed guidance of “Little Annie Rooney” to success and public approval, Mary Pickford care¬ fully marshalled her production forces from the ranks of established experts. Thus, “Sparrows” is adapted from an original story by Winifred Dunn; and C. Gardner Sullivan, famous scenario writer, who has been building his repu¬ tation since the days of “store shows,” wrote the “Sparrows” scenario. William Beaudine, director of “Spar¬ rows” and its predecessor, “Little Annie Rooney,” was a property boy at Bio¬ graph when Mary Pickford went to work there at $5 a day. In the diffi¬ cult work of directing three year olds and in catching the merged spirit of drama and comic relief of “Sparrows,” Beaudine’s capabilities were found in¬ valuable by Mary. His direction has contributed materially to advance en¬ comiums that have everywhere greeted Mary’s latest effort. The collaborators were Earl Browne, Carl Harbaugh and the well known newspaper cartoonist, Tom McNamara. George Marion, Jr., titled “Sparrows” and Charles Rosher supervised photography. “Sparrows” is a United Artists re¬ lease. The Pickford film will be shown at the Blank Theatre for the entire week, commencing with a gala per¬ formance Sunday. CHOOSE YOUR NAME FOR MARY PICKFORD Famous Little Picture Star Has A Wide List Of Names The World Over. Mary Pickford, who comes to. in her newest United Artists Corporation release, “Sparrows” is one American whose name appears in newspapers and magazines in every language the world over. Mary, “The World’s Sweetheart,” has many aliases as a result. In France she is known as La Bel'le Pickford. In Italy it is Mary Pickford In Sweden, Marie Pickford. Other countries have their own names. Even at Hollywood Miss Pickford has two names. At her studio, with members of her company and staff, she is always called Miss Pickford. At her home in Pickfair, where she is mistress of the house, she is ad¬ dressed as Mrs. Fairbanks, or by the house staff as Mme. Fairbanks. So Mary might be known as “the girl with many names.”