Variety (April 1923)

■^.r %. : .--c-•■.-j»».^'.'-i-^T»,,'-:,-,r'»'JT,. V--' • V 'rT'-;' ' • • • ■■ ■• '•• ' 1^ ' • '»■■ ; ,!«•••» ..;u- ■•• 1.. ■»^. ^ j-' «-rf ''•■■-J'- )• PICTURES 'V. '■.•(ff,.'*'t'"'*'!^-w'"^^»^'*'^T" T'/'r^.'-'X-'' / '*'.'.-•■■■>1V-,-^''* f. HAS THE WORLD GONE MADT Kquity rtlms*. Htory and firrijit by l):«n- lel i'arwon Cuudman, dircctvil' by ii"mr> I'awloy. Khuwn at Fo»'« AcadMnv. S>-w York, April ir>-lS. l>i>uble feiiUiiv Mil. Time, OT minutes. Mr. Adaitvi Ttf>b<>rt Kil.'"i'<n Mrs. A<lanis • llo«l<lu llopprr Their Son , Vincpii' ('ii!<>inan Mr. Bfll..., , Charl.'s Iti' htn.tu Mrs. Bfll .Mniy Alden Their I>auvhter........ KHuor Kair Cabaret Dancer l.yi\:t l.uJa Thi.<i hIiouM have l,ppn a uh^ile. That it i»n't is in custinfj an<l direc- tion. There wus a real «tory bohlml, u Mtuiy dfctunK wJt^ the unrest that In tteetliir.g in social conditionH of tho day. The author du« a real tlieme and was wise enough to con- fine Jt to a short cast. thUH driving It home with greater effect. Had the direction been as simple and atralghtforward. therw would have been something the showman could have gx)ne after with a sort of a "your home and mine" idea. Atop of this, one looks at a cant that has names, names that mean something In the picture world, but when it is B&id Hedda HopiMi- ran ^ away with the picture antl that people of countless stjige and sdroeu succecises fell by the way.side. such as Robert Edeson. Mary Alden and Charles Kichman, it seein.s conclu- sive there must have lx*en som'.- thinj wrong with direction. How- ever, It measures ft little above the average Independently released pro- gram picture, and as such it con- tains a fair entertainment value for the shorter run theatres. . It iH not by far a week-stand picture In a flrst-class neighbr^rhotHl house. The story is of the unrest that there is In one family of wealtlu ■where the mother craves the free-^ dom of Bohemia, even though fthe* has a son who is old enougli to vote, and decides fo live her own life in a modem studio apartment. In th/»t «ame apartment there i*? onarher family. Here the w>ife and husband are Of about the same age and have a daughter. The daughter i« en- gaged to marry the son of the far more wealthy family. The wife of the former, now on the loose, and the father of the latter meet. An affair develops, with the daughter finally discovering who the woman is that is causing her father to break his home ties. The woman ^In the caee at the same time, realiz- ing that this le the girl her eon in betrothed to. aees the foolish figure her search for freedom ha.a led to. An expose of the father to a certain extent brings about the happy end- ing for three couples, each forgiven and forgiving, two wives and hus- bands and a younir couple. In sets the picture is all th-xt could be asked, but it hasn't got the punch that it might have had. Fred. to pull the suspense angle along through the yarn. Tho thrillM are badly done and the Htiimpede scene that undoubtedly was counted on an the big punch falls to get any- thing from the audience. I; is .^ust u western liiat will get by perhaps on tho strenstli of the star's name In the dajly change houses on double featur.^ bills, but that is about all that can be said for It. The .Htory in brief is that of two ranching partner.**, one of whom risks his life to .save the other an-1 is so injured that for years he is tinuuit; iu uatr liia Ir-ge. ThO '.TtV&lid i« a widower with a son who turns out to be in league with a gang of horse thieves. The partner who was rescued from death, played by Carey, has been doing the house- work, until he decides that the ranch needs more attention to pre- vent all of the livestock from b*'ln^ stolen, to he advertises for a wife. The reply that come.s decidea him on sending for the woman, but when she arrives, though she is comely, she has brought h»*r daughter with her. ft d;*M»?iiter that she has not hinted about in her letters. So .the matrimony is off fcr the time belns- Later, hcwf. er. the star falls In lo\e v.'ith tilt' daM«;htor and the in- valid pAiintT. wlu>«e health i.- re- Riored through loVe. wins the mother. There is a murder mystery that play.s tlK- .suspense angle to the limit. When it is cleared up tho gang tint the boy is traveling with liVf discovered as guilty, and the boy Is shot and killed in a round-up of the crooks. Nothing there that is startling, and liUe.visc nothing in the screen tcIUns of it thai wlii cause an audi- ence to go wild with joy. Fred. HER ACCIDENTAL iHUSBAHD IJ-'Ir.tiro production (•»'< r>avi«I n^ta«ir<»), froin the sto'jr by Ix>is Z*tlner. dlreclwl by Itailsfl M. Fitx«eratd. Reteaserl throuicti C. B. C. Hltown .-M Proctor'* 2»rd 8t.. New York, for tbrrr days, commencing April 16. Time, Aa minutes. Hera CJorlng Miriam ("ooper Oorli>i; Mitchell I<ewis Paul I>upre Richard Turkor i;<»rdon Oray Forrefct Stanley Mrs. Cray Kate l,c«tcr Vera Hampton Maude Wayne capable people, a« there were l»ut six parts. Rena Uoring and her blind father operate a flshinir boat. During a •torm at sea she lecates a man in the water and dives overboard to rescue him. Towing him back to the boat, he is pulled aboard, and her father falls into the ocean and is drowned. The newcomer is' blamed for his death. The girl forces him to marry her and con-^ tinuee to operate the fishing boat, which was her fatjier'a wish. This continues for six hionths, when he finally persuade? b*** t*^ g** to his home, he having been a youth of wealth. At his home she Is taught the traits of a polished lady. Her husband had been engaged to a girl whom he thought dead. His wife meets the girl at his home. Through the efforts of a photographer who had met her as a fishing girl she is led to believe her husband loves the other woman. She returns to the little village. The photographer follows, and later comes the has- band. The two men battle and the girl is finally convinced her husband loves her. "Her Accidental Husband' Is a cheap picture. A diacrlminatiug buyer would not touch it except for the cheaper grade houses. UarL A NOISE IN NEWBORO Harry BcMumont production, distributed by Loew-Metro. Adapted for acreen by K*« Taylor from st^Wy by Bdfar FrankUn. I'hotosraphy by John Arnold. Five reels. l»cw'a State. April IS. Time 70 minute;). Marlba MaWMi Viola Dana Bea Cotwalt David Butler Anna Halaiay Eva Novak Buddy Wayn«...,., ...Allan Forreat Leila Wayne Betty Francisco ErbMt Palaiey AlHred AUen Harry Dixon ~.... Malcolm McOresor Dorothy Maaoa...... Joan Htandln< ••Da<" Maaon :. Bert Woodrult CRASHING THRU H.irrv C.ircy-K. B. O. productktn ad<tp(rd fiom Uie Ktary by rM.aibi'th PcJeans by B(»alri<t* Van. Direetrd by Val l*aui. Slio^'n at lA)f>w'8 N'fw York on dciuble fea- ture bill, Al-rii 17, 1023. Tim© 74 minute^. Blake Harry Carey Allison L'ha.i. LpMoyne 8a umli'rs Vcala PesK Kid Allison CuUen I/andis Morelos Jo». Harris <!racla .Nell CraiR Olla VVnrren Mrytle Steadn»:\n I>lane W:«i rrn Vola -Vale Vncle Uenedkt Chas. llilirMniles Tliis is not a particularly strong western, at iea»t for Harry Carey. The story isn't p.articularly strong and extraordinary lengths ar^ taken Mctodrama of the old school Is the basis upon which this Belasco pro- duction is de\'eloped. It Is the tale of a New England fishing village, with all the melodrama the briny deep can give worked into the story. The producers have taken a short cast of experienced picture players, surrounded them with a rather hackneyed story and an unimpres- sive production, and demanded a feature of 5.000 feet or over. B'itz- gerald. the director, had people of experience at his command, and, with something real in the way of a stor.v and some worthwhile sets in which to (U'vclop the plot, would have produced a picture. A large portion of the story is worked up at sea—a portion on a fishing boat and pome on a private yacht. To call the yacht used a fishing boat would be giving it too much credit. As far as the fishing boat was con- cwned it fitted the bill, although tlnre was little fishing'golnjj on at any time in the story. There have been a number of productions with stories of thi.s nature. This is but a weak-kneed effort in the division. It is not realistic. The mclodra- matics are far-fetched and not well sta;;ed. The cast stands out, duo to the produLcra being able to secure TO LOAN ^^ainst Completed |MotianPictureNe^dtives< I^lecisePrints Financed. COMMERCIAL TE^/a)EI^| CINEMA CORPORATION 126WEST52^8T.NCW YORK A etagey picture that gives the Impresaion of a lot of actors work- ing before a camera. It isn't the actors' fault, but the picture fails to hold the mirror up to nature— it's mainly the story itself, and to some considerable extent the direc- tion. Starting with small town school room types that plant the rural at- mosphere, it is passably interesting for the first 1,500 feet or so. It's in the second section it wanders in a rambling fashion into the far- fetched realms of farce. Viola Dana is starred. She Is in gingham in the forepart and silk in the latten portion. She's a mnall- towner with an ambition to become an artist. After seven years in the big city the girl returns to the small town and renews the love aflajr started when a kid. He's the town lawyer now, and she expects him to marry her. He has grrown pompous with success and playa the chill for his childhood's sweetheart. Inci- dentally, the girj had planned giving $5,000 to the local school board as a remembrance. When the pompous one gives her the air the girl be- comes peeved and seeks revenge. It happens in the form of the re- porter from the local paper. He, scenting a yarn to discredit the town lawyer, who's on the opposite side of the political fence from his boss, the editor, ribs up a wild pipe about the gal wanting to give ^50,- 000 to the school board and the law- yer turned it down. Not very clear in the film—the lawyer turning It down—but the reporter makes him a horse thief and worse because the reporter feels that way about it. This part is preposterous farce, fun of hoke. The reporter is a slick looking guy, too. The rap in the paper doesn't get such an awful rise out of the rube lawyer. That town lawyer character, by the way, is another thing that makes tlie picture unnatural and stagey'. He's at a^sw^ll reception, the only one there with white socks and a dress suit. If that town was such a rube burg as the .story otherwise would Indicate, all the rest of the guests wouldn't look like fashion plates that stepped out of the Ritz. Funny the lawyer should be the only yap in the village. Miss Dana does well as the artist. I handling it as convincingly as an artificial part like that can be. Bert Mason makes the small role pf the girl's father stand out. and Hank Mann is wasted on a comedy char- acter that bnlong^d in a 8lap-.*«tick farce. Good comic, but his good line of hoke only added to impres- sion of unreality. Some good night scenes with plio- tography soft and pleasing. Picture Is a bit below average progr.im •tuff, and mu.st depend for drawins; power on VJola Dana's name. Bril. carry the picture to a trIumptMot ensemble effect. ' It Is the novelty and spectacular features t^at put the film over father than the acting personnel, for Virginia Brown Fair* and Van Mat- timore are the roost unconvincing of lovers. But there is no getting away from the thrill of some of the ex> ploits of the pearl fishei-«i. In one episode there is a battle between a natinr fl'hor and what looks like a sure-enough shark shown partly above and partly below the surface by A submarine device. There is a lot of the subsea stuff. It is^^ot so clear as the Williamson films, but It is genuine and highly impressive for its dramatic quality. The pearl divers are shown at work surrounded by the weird growths and the strange creatures of the depths. Some of the shots are of divers in the clumsy contrivances hh they grope along tho bottom, and some of th* natives who go to the bottom without the apparatus. One of the big scenes is the cap- ture of a diver by a giant shHl fish and his escape by clinging to the ship's anchor line as the hook Is drawn up. Another good bit of ad- venture stuff Is the finding of a pirate's treasure chest on the bottom and the running down of a pearler's canoe by a fishing schooner. All the water scenes are well managed and convincing, and It is only when the people have to act out obviously the- atrical scenes that the illusion is injured. The scenic background is beauti- ful, especially the deep-water and beach" scenes and those aboard the schooner. The reality of these set- tings helps the action. On land the company .is not so successful, espe- cially as the story has its rough places. We never do learn what became of the treasure chest, and it was not made plain why the cap- tain's daughter fell so violently in love with the beach comber. But the whole story is naive, unpreten- tious melodrama, and these'nicetiee do not paVticuIarly matter. All the story is meant to do anyhow is to provide an excuse for the impressive undersea exploits, and it serves this purpose adequately. RuMh. if Thurtdny, April 19, 1»)^ and John D. working (or th^m. This ' one character aeeka investments in other directiotia. and in the finish, "^ when oil ha« been discovered ool^ ' to have the wells run dry in a week ' or so, he is vindicated, and the town, again resumes its natural way through life. There Is a love story, that runs through, with Eva Novak' and Landls as the principals, that helps to fill in the picture. Just a program picture, without extra frills or wallops. Fred. GOLDEN SILENCE In.Upaadent d«»iKn*tad a SyU'anlte Pro- duction, releaasd throu«i» Richard Kipunc Ent'Tprlsps. Paul Hucst, director. Pro- duction time, 83 minutes. Hedda Nova and Paul Perrin faatarad. Half double feature bill at I^oew'a N«w Tork. Marcb. TRIMMED IN SCARLET Universal feature adapted by Edward T. T^we from tb« William Hur.tnirt P'*y of the sam« title. Directed by Jack Conway. Shown at Loew's New York «N>w York) double feature bill April 13. 1»3. Time, 54 minutes. Corde.ia Ebbing ) Mme. DeLAKieurj Katblyn Wllllama Kcvere Wayne Roy Stewart Faith Kbbtnr Lucille Ricksen David Pierce Robert Avaew Charles Knisbt David Torrence Pet(>r Ubbiar Philllpa Smallay Fill Barclay ...Eve .Southern I>un>c Uert Sprott Molly Todd Grace Carlyie Universal gathered a cast full of names for this picture and then went out and made a production that is old-fashioned as far as the story is concerned. Undoubtedly in the dayr agone. when William Hurlburt wrote this play for one of the stage stars, the situations must have been fairly new, but the general Idea has been used over and over again so often in pictures that one knows what the story is going to be before it gets fairly under way. However. Jack Conway han- dled the direction nicely and turned out a picture that will hold its own in the houses where there is a daily change of bill, with the names in the cast being counted on to pull a little money for the exhibitor's box office. The story Is that of a wife that deserts her husband l>ecause he is on the loose. Later Mis daughter also leaves his home because she re- fuses to remain there with the woman that lias been chosen as her stepmother. A brief time later, while working in an office she steals $5,000 to protect her mother from a blackmailer. The mother in turn takes a chance of appearing in a compromising position in the eyes of a former admirer, who has re- turned to her side, In order to pro- tect the daughter and to obtain the money to cover up the shortage in tlie office funds. Eventually a happy ending all around. It is the cast that makes the story at all possible, and MLs.s Wil- liams does her full share toward carrying the taJe over. Fred. Average program wewtern pro- duction in all respects. Investment small by reason of action taking place exclusively in the free out- doors. Has brisk riding episodes and the u.sual spirited fights—this time in a mountain snow bank—be- tween hero and heavy. Simple, well- told narrative of the familiar style of mining camp intrigue. Played satisfactorily by an average cast. In fact, eveflry detail alrout the pro- duction is in the medium ground oC "good enough." but nothing particu- larly stands out. There are many bits of excellent scenic effect, apparently the joint work of a clever cameraman and a good location picker. Much of the action takes place In lake country and beside lovely water courses, .and the landscape composition has been neatly worked into the picture for picturesque backgrounds. Sam Corwin. stage line owner and camp bully, makes unwelcome love to Polly, daughter of an old pro- .spector. The old man drives him off the place at gun point and Sam conspires to have the old man sent to prison. He stages a fake hold-up^ leaving the old man's hat on the scene. This is managed with the connivance of one of Sam's atage drivers. By one of those far-fetch«»d coincidences of the screen the whole plot is unfolded to a stranger in those parts, and he impersonates the hold-up artist, double-crossing the plotters, vindicating the old man, overthrowing the villains, and in the end winning the girl. The suspense, principal mainstay of such stories, Is rather well sus* tained up to the end. when it is dis- closed that the hero is not the cow- boy* wanderer he appeared, but a U. S. secret seri'ice operative gun- ning for the mail robbers operating under direction of Sam. The title arises from the laconic habits of the sleuth. Pleading light program fea« ture for the daily change houses. Rtt9h. r.i ■ii VENGi;ANCE OF THE DEEP 5?outh Seaa rom-ince productHl by A. T* rkTrinner, who wrote s;ory ami dirr.";"'! frt)nri the aconurjo Iiy .T. T.. l.,nmothc unA .\Riies Par«i>ns-. I'hotogriplK^rs, Vnu' Ivin. Willlim MrC.inn :in.l Hom^r Scoft. !{.•- I<^ftsed April Ih Ity Aineric.in Kelea.Htnjf. rrojection timo, .'L' inn.^ : foofago, 4,"."•.'' ffH»t. Trailc ^li^\*infr, April 1.1. cnplain Musurove Ratph T.ei<'' KtliPl Mu^^rovc \irKiini» Hrowno I'.iir Jian i..., V;i II M.I r I mn >: Fr«vlorI<'<> .' M,»rni.»ii .Mr(Jr.-;;i> I'aKu William An<l»>r.-fin N'Ulvp t hief: "SM-'If.^" TiiHi ■■•• Ki:ikl Mald.i VuU -Acceptable coniniirci.il jiicture with plent\' of hitartliii« .'»<'(i(»n in its underscas pliotogrtphN ;»rid a fail- amount of romantic inferesf. Tlic story has Itji wci^k spol.x .-ind the act- ing averages no betf»^r than fair, but the extraordin.jiy scenic fe.Uure. DOLLAR DEVILS A. HtMlkln.<)on relon.to from n acrlpt hv T.'.iils Stovpns. I>irv.;<'tl by Victor S'rhert- zinger. Fhown at Ia>pw"« N>w Vrrk. N. Y . double feature bill, April 13, 1U1.M. Time, •»l minutes. Zrtr.non t'arthy .Tospph Dnwlinjr Hid Andp'ws Miles Mr<nrth\ -Mrs. Andrew* May WaDaiv •^n'V Kva Nnyak Hru>>e Morlln HaJlam C.kjI.'v ■Jim Hi^rifers Cullnn I^in.lif. .Mr?. riiKtors l.ydia Kii.^lt Kc'lon Andrewa S'oy I'.im-ll Just an averaire program pro.lur- fioii. containin;,' no particuhu- dia- matlf punch, but a story that i.s 1:1 illy interestiuK in entertainment value as it pro,i;ro.sse.«? nii the srrooii. th«' performance of Cuileu I.andis ht inj; about the outstanding feaiur.^ of the picture. it i.s ju.st one of lhi)s«' produitlons that the .iverag'' il;i;lv eliange e\liil>i(or cm plav ,411 1 i;i I .ivv.iy Willi vviUuJUt i)^ui»i»i( 1*;^ huiisHM. but. .tt llie .same time, with- out giving liis jiudic nee anythini; ihat they are going to rave ov.t. It i.s a little tale of .'i N.v. Hii--,'- land town that kooh wild beciuuse :, .smart city fellen comc.s alon;^ :md (lisrovers oil. All th** inli.ibilant.s. with one exception, sees visions of millions of dollars in their hund.s LOST IN A BIG CITYj Providence, April 18. The latest of the old-time melo- dramas to be converted to the screen is "Lost In a Big City," which had its first showing at the Bialto (Providence) last Monday, John, Lowell and Baby Ivy Ward, who starred In "Ten Nights in a Bar Room," appear in person all week. Lowell fits into the character pC the strong, virile and at the some time lovable Harry Farley. Others in the cast'*are Miss Ward. Evan- geline Russell, Charles Beyer, James Watkins. Charles Robins, Jane Thomas. Leatta Miller, Edgar Keller. Anne Brady, Edgar Phillips and Whitney Haley. "Lost In a Big City" is a fast- moving melodrama, adapted from the screen version of S. C. Woods' famous play by Lb Case Russell. It carries much action, punctuated with romance, pathos, adventure and good comedy relief. New York's East Side slums, Broadway, and finally the Adirondacks serve as a background, coming in logical se- quence. The story relates the adventures •f Harry Farley, a prospector, who returns from Alaska and finds that his sister's husbajid has deserted her and that ghe has sold the old farm and gone wifli her blind child. Florence, to New York. Richard Norman, the missing husband, be- lieved to be dead. ha«. under the name of Sidney Heaton. married Blaiuhc Maberl.v, the daughter of an old friend of his father. Dick Watkins, an old pal of Heaton. who has been i»aid to report his deatlt, threatens to blackmail him. To raise money Heaton joins a g.in!4 of IxxJtleggers in the Adiron- dack*". \\'atkins demands more nione>- for liis sllonco. but Heaton cannot agree with him and as a i.ist resort decides to kiiinap lu>^ daiijThtor, Florence, and hide her in the mountains. Mc?inwhlle. H»»len. hit; tlr.'^t wife, dies, and Wat- kins. fearing that he will be cheated out of lii.s inOTiey. ttirn.« the t-ibl-'S on Iloaton by telling Farley the ulicle ^tor.N. itidvol'^a^. «$B9$^«0^«^' I FdifhfuH) Portray Full NegativeVtilues