Variety (July 1922)

fVWay. July as. 1988 PICTtTRES 85 FORGET ME NOT f«»*V!J.. «crfpt by John B. Clymer. dJ- «"?!2* Mr W S Van Dyke. Presented " ^}iLrtlr\on. New York, for a run._ at *^^^irion' New York, for a run. S« <iJ',v'r Irene Hunt »• i.K-r William Machin T>»« ??i I Besslo Love Tbf 0»' * Garoth lIuKhcB 35!!li'ie»«"*' M*v°rtf;*1^nA 15! Other CJlrl Myrtl« Uml The V? Quecnie The I>o« _1,1111L A corking sob special which, if it <. oroperly handled, may develop . ♦A » «tronff box ottlce weep drama ^" -Over the HUl". did. It has that Srticulur type of heart appeal sure K: olease the women, and the cbaiJces are the Metro-^s tie-up in Spw York with the orphan asylums •Til help to put over the production. Jhe picture looks strong enough to i« Into any of the week stand houiee and pot money if exploited fo Its full strength by the exhibitor. The cast is fairly strong, with Bessie Love and Gar?th Hughes as *!,« youthful stars of the picture. Th« two play the roles of orphans who are sweethearts while inmates Tf an asylum. They are parted when taken to different homes, but In time are reunited. At the opening of the story the aaylum is shown with Miss Love aa one of the older inmates acting ag a httle mother to the other par- entless kidcties. The boy (Hughes) and she are the last two youngsters left after a drive to find homes for the youngsters. He is finally adopt- ed by the real mother of the girl, the latter being passed up by all of the child seekers because she Is a cripple. Finally a supposed blind musician, who each day would give the kiddies a concert from the other side of the yfiil\ of the a.sylum. dis- , covers her alone and sobbing and iiears her story, which causes him to adopt her. In time she develops into a talented violinlste under his tuition and on the night of her ini- tial concert is discovered by the boy. There is a tremendous quantity of pathos throughout the picture and that will be its greatest appeal. Fred, sc snow scenes. It has the tox star, Charles Jones, as its principal player, with dainty Beatrice Burn- ham supporting him. The direction was capably handled by C. K. Wal- lace and Scott Dunlap. The picture looks good enough to play any of the houses that are running fea- tures from one to three days. There are touches whore the de- tail is slightly overlooked, but the incidents will not be caught by the average film audiences. Also Jones at times is prone to overact, but otherwi.se he look.s like a corking bet for outdoor stuff. The story is of a trooper of the Canadian Nortliwest Mounted who is sent o\it to investigate a murder. A r9okie accompanies him. He visits the scene of the crime and makes his deductions, which are to the effect that the ptr.son who did the killing was wounded in the right side. Later when he has fallen in love with a girl of the neighborhood and embraces her. he discovers that she is wounded In exactly that spot. He arrests her. While talcing her to jail the real culprit makes a, dying confession and clears her. Prior, there was in the minds of the audience a doubt as to who really committed the crime. They had four people whom they might suspect, and the picture had them guessing. That is where, the direction counted most. Tutting a mystery of this sort over on the film isn't an easy matter. The opening of the picture has a corking fight in the mountains in which the star and Claude Payton. as the heavy, mix In great style. A couple of other fights also help out. The picture for the greater part-Is shot in exteriors with the photography fairly good. Fred. THE HARDEST WAY ward or forward erraticnlly. As an examiile, just one of the big dra- matic passages Is approaching, the heroine goes from the Bteamship saloon to he. stateroom, changes her wrap.s. got s up to the moonlit deck and spends 50 feet or more in looking over the water. Then she returns to her stateroom to change her wraps again and returns to the saloon. The action is mere crude p.idding. It has no relation to the story and migiit as well have been cut out in toto. The rest- of the picture Is filkd with the same sort of stuff. Tiiere has been no effort to economize interest or footage, and before three reels have been projected tlte audience is weary. The photography i.s technically splendid. So are the sets. But the French makers have not learned that these elements alone do not make a picture for the American market. It takes two reels of stall- ing and laborious planting to get the tale started at all, and even then nothing happens tliat coula be called vigorous screen action. The picture is just aimless wandering. The director and .author, by way of illustration, couldn't be satisfied with introducing the hero as an American in Paris, but had to ex- plain in detail that he was a hanker and had a war record whirh in dis- closed in numerous fade-backs. Everybody else has to be introduced with similar elaboration, and it be- comes tiresome. Ellen Olcott (Miss Ward), beloved by the hero. Jack, is the daughter of ajD American shipping magnate, and his social intimates are two French ship owners. Along about the middle of reel two it is disclosed that Father Olcott h^ ruined him- self by a passion for gambling. He starts back for America on one of his own ships, apparently a luxuri-« ous passenger liner, although there are no passengers ex<'ept Olcott, Ellen and one of the French ship- pers. Father and the Frenchman play for high stakes on the trip un- til father runs out of funds and gives his guest a check for $30,000. worthless because father knows ho is bankrupt. When the Frenchman-goes to bed father enters his stateroom armed with an automatic, determined to recover the check, but Is prevented by Ellen. The French ship owner finds Ellen in his cabin, and, mis- taking her purpose, tries to make dishonorable love to her. Father meanwhile has returned to his own stateroom and committed suicide with a hypodermic noodle, although why a bankrupt for millions should be so disturbed over a 130,000 debt does not appear. The girl orders the ship back to Havre while the Frenehman, basing his action on the girl's appearance in his cabin, determines to disclose the affair to her fiance. Jack. Ellen cannot clear himself, because her father had left a letter begging her not to reveal hia guilty intentions against his guest. Back in Paris, Ellon goes to the Frenchman's home to plead with him not to tell her lover of the incident, and the Frenchman again tries to urge his dishonorable suit. There is a struggle, and a falling statue knocks him unconscious. The girl thinks she has killed him and is terrified with the prospect of arrest. In the end her Innocence, both of the cabin affair and the injury of the Frenchman, are cleared up, one by the unintentional reading of the dead father's letter and the other by the recovery of the injured man and his admission that the blow that almost laid him low was acci- dental. Ru»?^ MOONEY VIEWS CONDrTIOHS Paul Mooney, general saleii in«n<< ager of the Louis B. Mayer produc- tions, returned to New York thl>i week after a trip through the "bad belt" In the middle west. Mooney visited Cleveland, Cincinnati, 9t. Louis, Kansas City, Dos Moines, Omaha and Chicago tn two weeks. The outlook in those towns, which are the key cities of the middle west territory. Is for a revival of business generally In tlie fall, says Mr. Mooney. According to bankers In the ter- ritory the savings accounts have been on the Increase during the summer and the crops are said to be bumper ones along the corn belt. The answer to conditions in the ex- hibiting field, according to Mooney, is found in the fact that no one of the exhibitors with a good theatre is in the market to dispose of his property. An odd cause for action is In- volved in the $16,000 damage claim for injuries filed In the New York Supreme Court by Clementine Simpson against the Fox Film Corp. The plaintiff alleges that on May 22, 1922, Fox was the lessee of the Lyric, New York. That at 8.25 that evening motion pictures of the exterior were taken, a powerful 'light and a hose or a cable stretched across the sidewalk being used for that purpose. Her alleged injuries were caused by tripping on the hose or cable through the strong light, which was focused on her, temporarily blinding her. TROOPER O'NEIL A William Fox flve-rcel northwestern without snow, with Charlrs Jones starred. Prom the story by (Jcorgp Uoodchild; •cript by William K. Howard: dirfcted by C R. Wallace and Scott Dunlap. Trooper ONeil Charles Jones ^,H» Beatrice liurnham Pierre'.'. Francis McDonald Black Flood Claude Payton Rodd Sidney Jordan Paul ^^^^ Roilens Jules Lestrange Karl Forms Here is a northwestern mystery screen play that is a corker for sus- pense. In that regard it is different from the rank and file of northwest- ern tales in film form; also dis- tinctive because M hasn't a lot of Society play of feature length made in France by Fannie "Ward and marketed In this country by -the Joan Film Kales Co. The BUpin-ftlng company appears to be made up of American and French players, including Red McDouKall and M. Sisnoret. Story by Henry Kietenmaeckers. Half of double feature bill at Loew's New York, July 21. Here is a first-rate exposition of the reason few films of French manufacture reach the American public. It has as its star an Ameri- can actress of great experience and considerable drawing power, but the picture isn't there. It has breaks that no American director could allow to happen; its action moves haltingly and slowly, and worse than anything else, the story is dull and uninteresting. The footage is padded out with every known device to eat up cellu- loid. Action is repeated without apology or rea.son, and the story development at times moves back- ii^^NCE in a season we ^^ get a picture as fine as this. For simplicity of theme, originality of devel- opment and flawless pres- entation it comes close to a classic. A triple action plot» full of novelty." — New York American. **One of the most interesting pictures of the year." — New York Tribune* 'A>ne of the really splendid things we have seen in mo^ tion pictures. What a joy it is to come upon anything so hnel"—iVeu; York World. mm STUFF ON PICTURES On Bro.-^dway, ^etwe€n 51 st and 52d street, are two stores, each giving free demonstrations of radio or other talking performances. Arthur James has retired as editor of th^ "Moving Picture World." It was at first reported he would settle in the Hays oflUce, but this has not materialized. Bob Welsh replaces James on the "World." He was formerly managing editor of the "Motion Picture News," and from there became advertising director of the Wid Gunnfng film enterprise. An indep^hdent promoter of personal appearances for picture stars has been feeling out the exhibitors in the Middle West territory on the advisability of a tour on the part of Fatty Arbuckle. In the event that he can secure some 20 or more exhibitors in the citks in Ohio. Kansas, Missouri and Illinois, it is possible that the comediaYv-^11 make a trip through that section of .the country tog<th«r with one of his late pictures. A picture star wanted to play poker. Mrs. Star is deadly against her husband playing cards outside his own home. The star informed Ws •pouse he was going for a night's fishing. Breaking up the poker game at his club, the star started for home around 4 a. m., but could find no fish market open. It was 7.30 before the fish man ariived, but when he reached home the picture evader had a whale of a lot of fish. Two investigations into the alleged grafting in the orchestra organi- ation of one of the largest Broadway picture houses are in progress. One li in the ha,nds of the Federal ihcomo tax authorities, and the other through the local of the musicians' union. According to one version, the Contractor was discovered to have had a substitute player Indorse the check of another musician, and taken a tut from the salary paid by the house as Ms commission. When faced with this he Is said to have alleged the orchestra leader was obtaining 110 a week from each of the »nen In the orchestra and splitting it.wilh the managing director of the house. This was discovered to be simply a defense on the part of the dismissed employee, according to the house management, who called in the executives of the local union and Insisted on a full investiga- tion. The Federal authorities are said to have obtained an inkling of the row and checked up the income tax reeturns of a number of tho ttiuslclans to discover if anyone was getting either a cut from the niUBlclans* saLirles or the musicians were falsifying their returns, thereupon a fuller Investigation, which is now in progress, was ordered. ^ Considerable of an inter-office row is on in Paramount over the title, "The Mysteries of India," bestowed on the big foreign feature pre- fcleaaed at the Rlalto, New York, this week. The picture Is of eight '^ols. When shown to New York exhibitors they were unanimous In Mating that the title was too much of a "cerial'' nature. They fbupht the New York exchange heads on booking the picture with the title it had, and stated that they would change it for their own housea in the «vent that it was not changed by the disributor. The n* xt result was tifli?^"^® of title which would make a difference of anywhere from •iOO.OOO to $200,000 one the bookings. With this in mind the New York J^'fchange executives tried to get the home oflico to change the title '«t« last week, but without success. One of the new titles suggested _ *^jr the production was "Above All Law," which phrase occurs in one i?^ the spoken liHoa. Several of the exhibitors fiald they wire going i«"i!r ^^^^ *^^^® whether the company liked it or not, and tiiul Ihv^ j '"ouid Hubcrdinate the "Mysteries of India" title. Jignes c/iyres A^^ .mm. .^ ^1^ ^m ^mm. m. a «. .^^ H hi BORDERLAND Story by Bcuhh Marie Dix . Directed by i'aul Poivell Three column press ad above. Mats or electros at exchanges CC Cparamount Q>ictum FAMOlJf> FI.AYFItS I ASKY(JOKI-ORATION ^*inm^-y 1% m Ti»t* ir^