Talking pictures : how they are made and how to appreciate them (1937)

Talking Pictures After Tom Kane's name appears "Character, Comic, Crook, Bumps." These words mean that Mr. Kane is a good journeyman laugh-getter, that in appearance he is a crook, and that for a consideration he is not averse to being "bumped" from windows by police, or handled roughly. This gentleman used to be a professional acro- bat and knows how to handle his body to avoid injury. Clark Gable tossed him down a ladder in China Seas. The Casting Corporation also aids the studios in getting specialized types not frequently used. It has lists of practical seamen and both infantry and cavalry groups of ex-soldiers. Players who closely resemble famed historical characters are carefully listed in cast- ing offices. When needed for a picture, it is vital for a casting director to know where they can be found. If a General Pershing is wanted, the telephone quickly brings Joseph W. Gerard to the studio. Thomas Pogue greatly resembles Benjamin Franklin. A very little make-up, mostly mustache, transforms Sidney Blackmer into Theodore Roosevelt. Frank McGlynn has played Abraham Lincoln for a score of years. A list of "atmosphere" players needed for the next day is filed at 3:00 p. m. on the preceding day. The players are notified by telephone when to report and what wardrobe and properties they are to bring from those departments. After the player arrives in the morn- ing, he is sent to a dressing room with orders to report in make-up to a certain assistant director at a certain hour. This may be 9:00 a. m. if the set is in the studio, or 6:00 a. m. if the company is working at a distant "location." [134]