Variety (June 1913)

16 VARIITY CAPT. SCOTT. Xo tragic drama offered within the walls of a playhouse could surpass in interest and thrills this uplsodlo adventure of Captain Scott and bis associates in the Icebound re- gions of the Antarctic in a dash for the South Pole. It is now at the Lyric. Unlike the big feature Hubjects of the theatre proper, com- posed in their subject matter of plays wrought of imagination and Interpreted by mimics, this feature offers in Its cast the actual principals of the pathetic life and death drama unfolds. Familiar as you are with the fate of the ad- venturers, from the newspaper reports of the survivors, the grip of death, not the fascina- tion of the make-believe thing of grease paint and puppets, but the awful thrall of dra- matic human extinction, seizes you almost with the first exposure. The valor of the bat- tlefield is an inspiring element of human initiative, but in the gallantry of this little band, undertaken without the spur of martial strains or the huzzas of commanders, there Is inflnitely more to excite the average hu- man being's pity, wonder, admiration and awe. And it is the fact that you know that five of the men whose struggles you are fol- lowing from day to day, who smile at you fraternally from the canvas, as they chiase seals, or whales, or play with their dogs or donkeys, never came back—that tinctures your Interest throughout and causes you to view some of the frolics through a mist of tears. As moving pictures of the farthest land be- low the equator trod by man. the subject Is profoundly informing. As the pictorial diary of a small coterie of adventurers moved to their valor by a love of their country and a desire to benefit mankind, the feature Is ab- sorbing. As a record of a grim trudge of death of five men. Including their leader, oyer thousands of miles of frozen Ice. at varying temperature, that sometimes went as far aa UO degrees of frost, the tragedy is appalling. A good part of two hours is consumed In re- vealing about 80 scenes that comprise the feature. Many, happily, are In light vein, serving to modify the intense Incidents and episodes which they accompany. This Is specially true of a penguinary, reproduced, evidently within a few feet of the birds, which, because of their white waistcoats, raven spiketall coats, and habit of gesticulat- ing with their wings while standing upright, look for all the world like a colony of mlna- ture clowns at an old home week celebration. The far south habitats of seal, "killer whales" and squa gulls with their manner of play and preying are also shown. The pictures are al- most faultless in their clearness, and were taken, in the main, with a practiced eye for vivid effect. ('The Undying Story of Captain Scott." Gaumont Co., London; Photographs by Her- bert O. Pontlng, F. R. Q. S., London.) "THEODORA'' AT IRVING PLACE. "Theodora," a big Roman picture spectacle made from Victorien Sar- dou's novel of that title, was released this week by Warner's Features Co. Arrangements are being made for the picture to run a week or so at the Irving Place theatre. It is in three reels. STOrPKD JAP WAR FILM. Seattle, June 25. The city officials recently prohibited a picture drama depicting what was termed "The War of 1920" between Japan and the United States. It showed President Woodrow Wilson and Colonel Theodore Roosevelt as participants. The film was advertised at one of the principal theatres. The local hoard of censors believed they could see wherein the Japanese were shown in an unfavorable light, calculated to engender a race prejudice. HACKETT'8 NEXT FILM. James K. Hackctt is again about to face the camera. He has entered into a contract with Krncst Sliipman and his associates in tlic Golden State Mo- lion Picture Co. of California whereby the actor will enact in pnotoplay "The Bishop's Candlesticks." Hackett's first camera posing was in "The Prisoner of Zenda." SENSATIONAL FEATURE. ".Steve" King is promoting a feature lilin, five reels, entitled "100 Years of Mormonisni," tliat is i>aid to be very sensational, imluding a tar and feather scene. BATILE OF GETTYSBURG. If David Belasco had produced the new war drama In motion pictures now on view at the Grand Opera House under the title role of "The Battle of Gettysburg," he undoubtedly would have Invested it with more suspense and greater clarity, but even that wliard of big effects could not have charged It with more of the smoke and din and clash of conflict than has Thomas H. I nee, whom the program credits with its production. It Isn't history, but it's smashing, thrilling warfare that the film depicts. Once the story reaches the out- skirts of the CTettysburg Battle sone. things* come with a bang and rush and roar, with the two factions of the greatest combat of the Civil War in constant action. Enough of the memorable features of the sensational three day's engagements are introduced to give the play veralmilitude to the spectator who is satisfied with approximations. For a good part of an hour the battle scenes succeed each other, without interruption, at a speed sug- gesting the action of a Maxim. It's gory warfare, all right, and when it's over, rou get the horrors of it afresh In a ravine of dead men and horses mute in the moonlight after the third day's clash. It is a pity that the picture falls almost throughout to show more definitely the actions and reactions of both sides. In a project so ambitious, and one fraught with so much achievement that is commendable, it is to be deplored the suc- cessive stages of the several attacks and re- pulses of the two forces could not have been more clearly indicated. A lecturer couldn't remove the confusion of the spectator, so rapid and merging is the action. Explana- tory cut-ins, might. Considering the almost constant haze of battle smoke in the w<«r scenes, the photography in the main is excel- lent. A love story introduces the battle, but is lost in the vaster drama of the conflict Itself. The play is in five reels. (Mutual Film Corporation, Distributors. Produced by the N. Y. Motion Picture Cor- poration.) 2,600 PEOPLE IN PICTURE. Joe Conoly is negotiating for a seven reel film on a well known Biblical sub- ject. The picture is of a spectacular nature and is said to have used 2,500 people in its production. BROADWAY MAKING MONEY. The Broadway with pictures, under the management of the Loew circuit, has gotten itself into the winning class. The house is doing around $2,500 weekly now. The rent on a full year is a little less than $1,300 a week. The gross figure will give the management a profit of about 1800. To what extent the Broadway has affected the Herald Square, another pic- ture house of Loew's, at Broadway and 35th street, is not known. KINEMAGOLOR SUMMER CIRCUIT. Al (Kinemacolor) Lowe has installed the colored pictures in a summer resort circuit, comprising the Idle Hour the- atre, Far Rockaway; Arverne Pier, Happyland theatre, Staten Island; Ocean theatre, Asbury Park, and Ocean theatre. Long Branch. Keeping track of the Kinemacolor changes on this circuit means "week end" excur- sions for Al. "GETTYSBURG" FOR KEITH'S. "The Battle of Gettysburg" picture, now at the Grand Opera House, will close Saturday and open the following day at the Bronx theatre, playing the latter house on a percentage basis. An- other "company" of these pictures will open at the Crescent theatre, Brook- lyn, Monday. The Keith people are going to advertise an engagement of a week only, but will hold them as long as they draw. The "Quo-Vadis" pic- ture at the Astor is also booked for a two weeks' stay at the Bronx, Alham- bra, Bushwick and Orpheum, when business at the Astor drops. BRANCH IN PORTLAND. Portland, Me., June 25. A branch of the Motion Picture Ex- hibitors League of America was or- ganized here Monday. JACK LONDON'S. You've got to see the Melia-Meka dancing girls of the Fiji Islands in the South Seas In A. H. Woods' film presentation of jaclc Lon- don's South Sea Island Adventures at the Criterion theatre to discover wher« Florens Zlegfeld got his designs for the choregraphic costumes he offers In his new revue. The Woods' pictures show that the oniv raiment the dancing girls in this part of the Pacific need to d^n for company is a lampshade, worn with discretion, a flood of sunshine, and an expression that artlessly asks: "Weill— what's—the—matter—with—It?" From the— er—lamp shade up, the girls wear beautiful bronxe brassieres, a la Eve, and from the shade down, the kind of tights Adam ad- mired. And such a lot of dusky trotters 1 One blushes to conjecture what the dancing ladies would do with their—er—modesties in a galel But the dancing girls aren't the only Inter- esting feature of this brimming travelog of Intrusion in remote places in the Island re- gions glorlQed by Stevenson and Louis Beck. Your moving views are constantly changing, with the nose of the London launch, the Snark, Jutting into the picture every now and then Just to show that the pictures are on the level. There are several exciting moments in the constantly shifting panorama, one when a gaunt panther is seen fleeing across a stretch of open country in Sulu land, to turn suddenly and put a horde of pursuers to flight; another when a crocodile as long as a Broadway surface car yanks a live goat from a lagoon bank in Borneo. As a photo- graphic motion film summary of wild and near-wild man, bird and beast life In the Southern Paciflc the Woods' pictures are in a class by themselves because of their unend- ing variety. You see the natives of Borneo catching turtles as large around as the tops of giant hogsheads, see the Pelorus Jack pilot fish guiding the Snark through New Zealand channels, see the capture of flying flsh in New Guinea, the Maoris diving for coins, a monkey village, a tribe of Solomon Island folk said to be cannibals, the hurdle-Jumping canoe sports of the New Zealanders, the vol- canoes and craters of Java, one in violent eruption, with the smoke showing so real and near that you're sure you smell the sulphur, and other curious and interesting far trop- ical things that hold your interest unflag- gingly. The pictures, fairly without impor- tant exception, are remarkably clear through- out. Some of the Jungle and forest effects are exquisite in their variations of light and shade in their presentation of rare foliage and flora. The photographer has also captured some very delicate tones in the sunlit bodies of the bronzed blacks of the long Paciflc stretch he transversed. The adventures con- sume about two hours. Perhaps a half dozen explanatory still pictures are introduced. One of the remarkable motion photographic cap- tures of the hunt is a village of Beri Berl victims in Sumatra, showing huddles of the unfortunates, emaciated, rickety and forlorn. Once the pictures start, you see little of Jack London, but that doesn't lessen the sense of exploration one experienced in the survey. (Jack London's Adventures in the South Sea Islands. Presented by A. H. Woods. Photographed by Martin Johnson.) TALKING QUO VADIS FLOPS. The David Kessler theatre opened Monday with the "Talkaphonc Quo Vadis" pictures to very poor business, due to the imperfection of the machine. The house manager tried to replace the Talkers with another "Quo Vadis" film. Unable to do so, he closed the theatre. POLO GAMES FILM. The Edison Co. had the exclusive privilege of filming the recent interna- tional polo match and will release the picture June 30. BERNSTEIN IN COURT. Isador Bernstein has resigned as general manager of the Monopol Film Co. to become Pacific Coast manager for the Universal Co. He leaves Sat- urday for San Francisco. GOODMAN DIRECTING PICTURES. Robert Goodman has again deserted the road to become stage director for the Pilot Film Co. He is staging a three reeler of Judge Brown, the famous "Juvenile Judge" of Salt Lake City and some of the boys which the judge has brought east with him. The film will be entitled "Law and the Boys." The first release from the Pilot Studios will be a comedy film July 11th entitled "Sanitary Gulch." Mr. Goodman is the author of the scenario. L. A. PICTUSE GOSSIP. Los AngelM, June 25. THE WEEK'S WEATHER. Thursday Fair Monday Fair Friday Fair Tuesday Fair Saturday Fair Wednesday Fair Average Temperature, 68*. A week of fine fair weather has been most encouraging to the picture makers, sometimes known here as the "aun worshippers." June Stone, for many years a member of the late Delia Fox's company, is now con- nected with Biograph's comedy players. Betty Harte, for four years a member of Sellg company and for a time with Edison, is now posing for the Blograph camera. Henry King, of Melville's Lubin crowd, tells me he is about to start for Honolulu in a few days with that organisation. Sylvia Ashton. of Dell Henderson's com- pany (Blograph) has issued invitations for a dance to be in the nature of a farewell to her fellow players. Miss Ashton has a per- manent home here, a most Imposing villa in the Mexican style of architecture, up on a beautiful hill. Laura Oakley is fast recovering from a re- cent spell of illness. Lois Weber (Mrs. Phillips Smalley) is now mayor of Universal City, filling the post made vacant by the retirement, from the company, of A. M. Kennedy. May Radford, the very young and very shy niece of "Billy" Bitter (Biograph's camera man), is having the time of her life at the parties given by the picture people, where she is always very popular. I am afraid some of the horseback fans among the Blograph players will miss their Sunday morning mounts when they reach New York. A popular trip with picture people Is out to the Cafe Nat O'oodwln at Santa Monica. Many of the picture artists have promised to assist at the monster benefit it Is proposed to give here for the much-talked-of actors' hospital, which. It is hoped, will be located in Southern California. At the Photoplayers' Club Saturday night many good-byes were spoken and hand clasps exchanged. Harold Beaudine and Wesley Warner are quite some hunters when they go to Newhall. in addition to which Wesley has killed and skinned some fine specimens of gophir snake. The taking of outdoor pictures Is so Inter- esting to the natives here that the trolley companies are advertising where special scenes are to be done. This forms part of the Itiner- ary of several "trolley trips." Olive Skinner, a member of Universal at Santa Barbara, has retired from that company and Is to leave for the east In a few days to Join a musical comedy oompany. Ford Sterling was badly Injured last week while working in a Keystone picture. In an exciting scene it was Mr. Sterling's business to throw a bomb from a stage coach. The bomb exploded. Igniting some powder In the coach. He is certain to loss several fingers and Is suffering intensely from body bums. Mabel Normand, with him in the coach, was severely shaken up, but otherwise unharmed. Mr. Sterling has been doing some splendid work recently. Mack Bennett Is much upset over the affair. LADY BUG. TWO FEATURBS MONTHLY. Chicaffo, June 25. Adolph Zukor was in town last week looking over the field in the west. Mr. Zukor, who is widely in- terested in theatricals, and is just now devoting all his attention to the Famous Players Film Co., said it was on busi- ness of this concern that he was in Chicago. While here he probably made some arrangement for the handling of the Famous Players output in this vicinity. Frank Meyer, who has been looking after the concern's interests here to advantage, will be taken into the New York office within the next fortnight, and the western office closed. The Famous Players Company is bent on widening its scope. The com- pany now has two directors, and from Sept. 1 will be in a position to send forth two releases a month. R. K. Hynicka left for Europe a fortnight ago for a six weeks' vaca- tion.