The Gold Rush (United Artists) (1925)

Charlie Chaplin, the Little Fellow, gets his first glimpse of the glamorous dance-hall queen, played by Georgia Hale, in his greatest comedy, “The Gold Rush,” coming on.to the.Theatre. AB—Two Col. Scene (Mat .30; Cut .50) Charlie Is Funny — So Everybody Laughs Charlie’s Humor In “The Gold Rush” Mixes Slapstick With Pathos {Current Feature) It is quite some time now since the long-haired boys and the short-haired girls have made cults out of anything and every¬ thing generally regarded as profane. It is a long time, for instance, since they first foisted their cultism on the innocent head of Charlie Chaplin. Their defeat on this score didn’t occur a moment too soon, for they were attempting to take Charlie away from the people and make him their sole property. What finally licked them was their own belated recog¬ nition of the fact that Charlie Chaplin was funny not because of any abstruse intellectual qualities, but merely because he was very funny! This was a conclusion at which the common man had arrived many, years before. The whole story is: people laugh at Chaplin because he is funny. For even though humor has been defined in various ways by various highbrows, humor still remains something at which people laugh. The people laugh at Charlie Chaplin. When they see “The Gold Rush,” coming on . to the.Theatre, the chances are that not one out of a million will stop to consider why he laughs. They laugh whether it is Chaplin eluding an amorous bear in “The Gold Rush” or Chaplin the butt of the feeding machine in “Modern Times.” The point is that Chaplin is being funny at all times — whether he is being merely zany, whether he is being satiric, or whether he is mixing fun with pathos. Max Terr Directs Comedy Music Max Terr, who scored and con¬ ducted the music for Charlie Chap¬ lin’s “The Gold Rush,” the current attraction at the . Theatre through United Artists release, was born in Russia, but came to th-e United States before he was two years old. An accomplished pianist, arranger, composer and conductor of choirs, he is not, how¬ ever, from a musical family. In his early twenties he played at such famous New York land¬ marks as the Old Waldorf-Astoria, Delmonico’s, Sherry’s—the meeting places of the best people. 17A— One Col. Scene {Mat .15; Cut .25) Music Interprets Comic Action When Charlie Chaplin composed the musical score for “The Gold Rush,” which will have its local premiere at the . Theatre on ., he stated that he wanted the music to interpret the action rather than to merely height¬ en the background, as is usually the case in most pictures. It was Charlie’s idea, in a word, to have the music correlate the picture — that is, speak for the characters and the action, which is, of course, an entirely new approach in motion picture technique. Thus, in places where no narra¬ tion is heard, the music as well as the film footage tells the story. The narration also hits a new note in telling a story. Chaplin himself does the narrating, giving only th > essence of story and characteriza¬ tion, the film and music telling the rest. WORLD'S TOP COMEDIAN RULES COLORFUL THREE-RING CIRCUS Charlie Stresses Fun and Laughs In His Work Genius, somebody has said, is the word Hollywood gives to suc¬ cess it is unable or unwilling to explain by any other means. There are no unsuccessful geniuses in Hollywood and, conversely, there is nobody who has not, at one time or another, been a genius. It is a convenient expression, but also a misleading one. It is, as a matter of fact, such divine hedging as this that has hidden Charlie Chaplin for so long from the clear-eyed view of the public. His critics so unanimously admit his genius that it has never seemed necessary to amplify this statement, and Charlie has re¬ mained an almost mythical figure, shrouded in reverential mystery. Nobody is more annoyed by this attitude than Chaplin himself. He is a comedian, not an oracle, and it irritates him to have his laughter taken so seriously. He is, and wants to be, before everything else, a clown. Now, that Charlie is soon to be seen in “The Gold Rush,” which is slated for its first show- Char lie's Fans Who discovered Charlie Chap¬ lin? The critics? 'The so-called intelligentsia? Not at all. The general public, and in particular the children, can be credited with the discovery of the greatest co¬ median of our times. Charlie evolved the costume and character he was to make world-famous after several shorts for Sennett. Shortly afterwards children aU over the country were imitating his now famous walk, wearing replicas of the big shoes and baggy pants, and in only a matter of months, the public—convulsed by his antics —made Charlie Chaplin a na¬ tional figure. Charlie, who is now appearing in “The Gold Rush” at the. Theatre, has always looked upon the little man he created as a clown who knows how to be funny even when he is pitting himself against the powers that be and suffers the heartbreak and frustration common to every one at some time. ing at the.Theatre on., it is a fitting time to reconsider why he is the most famous actor in the world today and probably the most popular that has ever lived. The simplest and most likely ex- I planation lies in the fact that Char- Comedian Insists Genius Is Not In His Line lie Chaplin represents the Lowest Common Denominator of humor. His humor is the quintessence of all comedy which by its very sim¬ plicity is of universal appeal. When the little tramp with the big shoes and the wobbly cane makes his funny pathetic stand against the forces of regimentation, the whole world understands and laughs. When in “The Gold Rush,” Char¬ lie pretends on New Year’s eve in his shabby little cabin in the Klon¬ dike, that he is playing host to a brilliant assemblage and does his famous dance, the Oceana Roll, with two forks and two buns, his/ language is universal language. And though there is pathos and heartbreak, too, the inherent humor can be understood by everybody. That is why. Will Rogers once said, “Charlie Chaplin is better known among the Zulus than Garbo is in Arkansas.” “The Gold Rush,” which was written and directed by Chaplin himself, is being released by United Artists. Ersatz Roast Served In Style By Charlie {Week-End Feature) In the war-torn countries of Europe today over which the aggressors rule, much is made of the new word “ersatz,” which is the German word for “substitute.” Ersatz clothing of wood pulp, ersatz food—also of wood pulp—these and many more are being brought into general use, not by the people’s wishes but by government decree. How well these ersatz products are being received is not hard to guess. But what a blitzkrieg these dictators could achieve if their poor people could react to ersatz food as does Charlie Chaplin in one of his memorable scenes from “The Gold Rush,” which will start an engagement at the . Theatre on. Fun Formula Charlie Chaplin, hero of “The Gold Rush,” now at the . Theatre, is an indefatigable worker himself, but he believes there is sound psychology in getting fun out of any job. His formula for his staff combines politeness, calm and fun for relaxation. Press Department ^ Works In Reverse Charlie Chaplin — perhaps the most publicized person in the amusement world — maintains a press department, of course. But unlike other studios, instead of a staff, it is manned by one person. And that person’s chief job is to suppress publicity rather than fur¬ ther it. For Charlie, Tvho will be seen in “The Gold Rush” at the . Theatre on., believes that fundamentally the public is inter¬ ested in a star for but one reason —his pictures. If they aren’t good, he maintains, all the publicity^ in the world means nothing. And to that end, his studios con¬ centrate not on Charlie—what he thinks, eats, wears, likes or dis¬ likes—but the movies he makes. Then and only then, does news come from his publicity offices. His pub¬ licity department, however, is al¬ ways flooded with mail—all want¬ ing news or something of King Chariot. It is Thanksgiving. Inside the shabby little Klondike cabin, a pot is boiling. Big Jim, the rotund companion of Charlie, is delirious from lack of food. Charlie, no bet¬ ter off, but still retaining his sens¬ es, is diligently stirring the pot as Big Jim watches. With all the nuances of a French chef, Charlie lifts a big boot from the smoking pot, expertly presses a fork against the boot to see if it is cooked to the proper turn. He nods to himself, then taking the shoe from the pot, carefully bastes it with gravy. Big Jim pass¬ es his plate. Charlie, deftly wiping it, puts the shoe on it. Then follows some of Charlie’s most exquisite pantomime. To the melody of a salon orchestra play¬ ing dinner music, he professionally sharpens his knife. Then with all the elaborate motions of carving, Charlie separates the shoe from the sole, passing the portion with the nails to Big Jim who resent¬ fully returns the seemingly less desirable part, taking the upper for himself. Charlie attacks the sole with the most exquisite relish. Then the shoe laces, which he dexterously twirls as one would spaghetti. Finally he approaches the nails reverently, as an epicure would humming bird wings, ending this episode with the discovery of a nail bent in the shape of a wishbone which he holds out to his bewildered companion. Theatre on ..^' lOB— Two Col. Scene {Mat .30; Cut .60) Page Twelve