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SCREENLAND
Gould YOU Pass
Passing the Combination of Screen and Talking Picture Makes the Well-Known
By Barton
mm
First, the candidate, in this case Charlotte Henry, is interviewed by the director of the test department. If he says "Okay!" she is set for a test.
F
OR many are called but few are chosen!"
Passing the combination of screen and voice tests for a role in an all-talking production at a motion picture studio in Hollywood, makes the frequently mentioned acid test, by comparison, seem like child's play, or a Regent's examination a simple pushover.
Crashing the studio gate, guarded by an ice-cold attendant, is, comparatively speaking, an easy matter, but passing the 'combination' — that's a test.
The rigid and meticulously careful process of elimination is often heartbreaking, but, at the same time, it is most interesting. Let James Ryan, director of the test department at the Fox Studio, with twelve years of experience behind him, tell the story in his own way.
"There are several steps to be taken before the actual test is made," said Mr. Ryan. "First, the subject must be found. New faces must be located and we are constantly on the lookout for talent. My staff is always on the alert for screen prospects. We scan the faces of those we meet socially, those on the street, at the theater, in restaurants, hotels, even in church! We call our staff the Christopher Columbus Crew of Talent.
"We even have scouts searching and questing for the elusive spark. Directors, assistant directors, writers, attaches of the casting office, in fact, almost everybody on the lot are commissioned on our staff to keep their eyes and ears open.
"Character and personality is given more con' sideration than beauty, and the subject must have a voice that not only registers satisfactorily, but that can be trained or cultivated. Before the advent of all-talking pictures, the selection of possibilities was much easier than
Well, here she is. She got by! Charlotte is being made up for her camera test by the makeup expert — above.
Left: the test of tests! Old Man Camera and Mister Microphone are the judges while Charlotte Henry is put through her paces in the soundproof gallery.