Variety (Sep 1928)

Wednesday, September 19, 1998 PICTURES VARIETY TOO MUCH VOCAL ATTENTION Girls of Paul Ash Club in Chicago Raise Ad Fund to Bring Him Back; mMembers Donate 25c to $1 TOO ACAOEMIC. IS Chicago, Sept. 18. . Around 3,000 girl members of the Paul Ash Every Week Club of this city, organized When Paul Ash was making Jiis phenomenal run here for Balaban &-Katz, and remaining Intact sinco his departure, have donated from a quarter to $i to advertise in the local dailies re- questing -Ash's return. Besides tlie local advertising, the irirls Insisted upon placing a half page announcenient in Variety, in this Issue to the same effect. Ash reappears Sept. 2? at the Oriental> where he made his sen- sational Cliicago stay. He may re- main there this time for about threia. months. He will return to the Paramount, New: York, at the expiration of thie return Oriental engagement., There is no precedent in any of the greatest of enthusiastic fandom to par With the adoration of these girls for Ash. A comrnittee of. the girls, appointed by the . member- ship to promote the return of Ash and distribute the aidvertising fund, called several times at the Chicago offlce of Variety. All young and mostly Working girls of every line, the sinceirity of the young -vvoTnen Is beyond question. .Mary Fuller is president of the club and Dorothy Gulman its sec- retary. They solicited the aid of . Variety in drawing back A.sh, as they did of the local dailies./ iSeemlngly^ the girls made the same Inipression all over tpwn.v Bob Reel, picture critic of the Chicago "American," ran a column story asking if Chicago wanted back Paul Ash, That started the com- motion, resulting in Ash's return. The "American" ran an advertise- ment paid' for by the girls, with a duplicate of it in this issuei Girls Advised The girls informed all of the newspaper people that they had been advised not to ask favors of the papers and were prepared to pay for the publicity sought. It was stated by the committee that nearly every girl in the club has read Variety every week since Ash left here, to follow him at the Paramount; New York. Asked In Variety's offlce if the'girls had not purchased but a few Varietys and passed them among the members, the committee replied that had •T>een so at the outset but more latterly llie girls each purchased their own copy. The Paul Ash Every Week Club started here as a press agent's gag When A!5h originally opened for B & K. at McVlckers. The members ""at that time: were imagi hati vej but the idea was so readily grabbed off by young women who \yere con- stant' patrons of the Ash shows that the cliib ran away from its publicity promoters, electing.' its own ofTicers and becoming an es- , tabllishcd inKtitutio.n. * . ' .\. There is no suspicion of press agontry in the Paul Ash return The girhs are too tense in the mat- ter for that. Thoi'r comrnittee first visited'. Variety's. Chicago ofTice about, eight weeks ago, soliciting the paper's aid in having Ash re turned and requesting advice as to how to go aboiit it. Bobby Too High Up I^o.^ AngOKvs, Sept. 18. Robert Ciislle, Jes.se Lasky's per Konai "find," o.innot play opposite Cl.^ira Bow. He is six feet, two "lRclVc:.s""irLTl;" Sifd"'^^^ high for Clara. -S>11 Hiimilton's five . feet, 11 inches, oknyed. "Throe \Veok Ends" is the pic turo conrern(-d. Cnstlo. will await the next Bobc T),'iniels production before doing hi sinff. Australia Interested . Sari Francisco, Sept. 18. That Australia Is keenly in- terested in the sound pictures was evidenced here by the ar- rival on the Sonoma of Stuart F. Doyle, managing director of Union Theatres of that country. He will make ia, personal study of the talkers with a view of wiring some of his firm's houses as soon as possible. On the same boat was • Hal Carlton, manager of J. C. Wil- liamson's Prince Edward in Sydney. He is alsd expected to inspect the sounders at close range. ^iscussiohsi by Prof cissors and Picture People at Academy's Meeting on Coast—^'Art in Speech" and "Testing the Voice** Subjects of Talks Skits for Revet Lps Angeles, Sept. 18. Fraiik Reicher will be jester at the Masquers' fevel Sept. 30. Among the features will be "The Hall of Fame," conceived by Larry Ccbal los. In the ckst will be Robert Ede son. Edmund Breese, Richard Carle,. Williani V. Morig, Frank Campcau arid James Bradbury. Reicher will stage his .own skit, a French novelty, with a French speaking cast, and Alan Hale acting as interpreter. Ceballos also will put on ''Back Stage," with Alan Hale, Charlie Chase, Billy Dooley, Clyde Cook, Georgie Stone and Billy Sullivan Other acts will be "The Supervisor," by and with Mai St. Clair; Clark and Cullough, Laurel and Hardy, Liupino Lane and his brothfer In a music hall sketch, and Henry Olive will do two of his blackouts. Harry J, Brown is chairman of entertainment. Brimswick-R. C. A. Records R. E. . Benslnger, president of Brunswick, who returns from abroad this week, and the general manalger and other sales executives of the Brunswick-Balke-Collender, Co., will confer in New York this and next week regarding recording activities on behalf of RCA Pliotophone, Inc. In Vio\v of Photophone's lack of facilities its, progress has been de- terred. No Ft. Lee Talkers ...Universal has__decided _tq_ aban- don all plans of converting its Fort Lee (N, J.) holdings into an eastern sound studio. Cost and duplication of the coast plant are igiven as the reasons, with the ex planation that all • U talkers will bo made at Universal. City. Blaydoh, Pathe Mgr. Los Angeles, Sept. 18. • iliohard Blaydon, unit business manager at Pathe, has been pro motcd to production manager on all of Paul liern's pictures. Blaydon for a long jtin'ie was at Paramount in various capaeitles and before that produced independ ently. "MADONNA'S" LEADING MAN Lo3 Ani,M'k'.'<, Sept. 18, ="-Pr61Tac lioir on-''^Tadonfia^ nue A," starring iJolores Costello has been delayed a week while War nei'.s .scour Hollywood for a Ujading man. Conrad Nagol was slated but when produr-tlun wa.s about to start i was di.seovfved he had h'-'-n loaned to Fox. New York Exhibs Dealing With Fox Receive Open Proposal ^^^^^^^ DAVID AS EXAMPLE Lo3 Angeles, Sept. 18. Alec Frances, William DeMille and Frank Bushman enlivened what otherwise would have been a very quiet siession of thie Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences jpecially called to dlsci^s language and voice when each intimated too much attention was beiiig given by the Industry to voice culture and training. A. well-attended iheetlngr more than half composed of women ^ad listened under the chairmanship of Donald Cirisp to university profes- sors discuss "Art In Speech" and 'Testing the Vpice." The'first sub- ject was treated by Helen Miller Senn of the department of public speaking of Oregon University, and the latter by Professors Ray K. Immel and W. M. McDonald of the University of Southern Ca,lifornia. Dean Immel placed stress on proper training for speaking'before the microphone, declaring the con- dition of the voice first should be determined by tests conducted with the aid of recording, apparatus so as to eliminate the human element and any personal opinion. Professor McDonald delved Into the classification of voices, aided by a chart which he has devised on which are set forth the many kinds of voice and the even larger num ber of defects; At the .conclusion of : the stated addresses. Chairman Crisp called on the players named, as well as Monte Blue and Jean Hersholt. Francis opened his remarks by saying one thing to be very careful about was not getting too academic If too acaderhic, he continued, un- natural. The work of the actor, he said, was more than a matter of elocution^—It was frona the ,head to the heart. It was difflcult,. the speaker went on, to .stand in front of both the microphone and the camera and not to concentrate too much on one or the other. Francis closed by saying that with the help of the unlverr sitles there is no reason why Holly wood should not put out the best talking pictures In the world. Explaining David's Aim. '^If David of the Old Testament had been obliged to figure out New ton's law of. gravitation and the laws of centrifugal forcei and the to hurl and the rela;tive density of the skull against which ho was to hurl it, 1 wonder If David really Would have hit Goliath," remarked William DeMille in opening. He said that while once he had been a director of pictures, now. he was nothing but'; Roy. Ppmeroy's very, iearne.sl as.slstant, with promise that if he displayed duo diligence he might again bie pro- moted to be a director. One of the things ho has learned in his ap- prenticeship is that no one really knows anything yet, that the indus- try is experimenting and starting frftm scratch. "The new form is going to bo dominated rnoro thoroughly by the, Ifchnique of the picture than by the technique of the stage," DeMille svent on. "The talking picture will iiot .be a pt/ige play photographed. It will be a motion picture that talks." . Th6":PIvofl-ke?"=doela^^ cvitabJe that tlie liuidity of the pic- turo form be k"pt, with the con.se- quont ability to move quickly from (.•ne place to another without los.s of time. "Tho .sci'eon entertainment of the future ■will remain the motion picture," ho coneluded. Bushman told of con.sulting a U on Stock Rise The sudden rise, of Uni- versal stock on a bull mar- ket is. nothing for trade paper reporters to get excited about, according to an ofllcial of that company. "If the stock goes up a few points why must it prpve something?" the official de- manded.. "Must be rumors around Wall Street?" suggested the reporter. "Why must it?" . "Are you buying or soiling any theatres?" "Who said so?" "Anything alse new?" . "Glad you called, Good day." Murder Over Girl Usher Rochester, N. Y., Sept. 18. , A small town theatre romance played a part last week in the mur- der of Joseph Schwanko, shot through the abdomen during an argument In the highway near Ba- tavla with Raynfiond L. Sohafcr, film operator at the Family the- atre, Batavia, over Helen New- man, usherette at the same house, Schwanke and the girl met last fall at a skating rink. Later Miss Newman started going about with Schafer. Kleih^e^s Jail Sentence Chicago, Sept. 18. William Kleihege, Hammond, Ind., theatre owner, convicted of havlhjg bribed gangsters to bomb his mil- lion-dollar theatre at Hammond, was sentenced to serve from two to 14 years and pay a fine of . $1,000. At a meeting of the Aaron Sapiro organization members last week lu. New York, with Sapiro presiding, Harry Warner of Warner Brothers, spoke to the Greater New York independent exhibitors present, Warner told theni be was prepared to take over their theatres, and in- dividually. The Inference was that if Warners could make the deal. It would leave the theatre owners With the Sapiro group. ; Other exhlba than those now deal- ing with Fox for theatre transfer were present. It Is said t)iat the theatre owners doing buslne^ with Fox, now rep- resenting about 70 theatres In the metropolitan section, were not In- fluenced by the Warner offer... According to report the'Fox-lndle exhlb matter has progressed toward its closing point. With Fox said to have .formed a subsidiary of Its the- atre holding corporation to handle the added New YbrTc houses. It is claimed If Fox gets the 70 theatres, he will wind up with 200. within Greater New York, air Indie houses. It Is rumored that If the Fpx- indie exhib deal Is closed, the dis- solution of the Sapiro organization will follow, the indies involved in the Fox closure holding oveir a .60 per cent, total of membership with Sapiro. It requires a 60 per cent, vote Of menibers' theatres to dis- solve the Saplrp group. VOICE LANDS LEAD Masquers' Annual Tour Los Angeles, Sept. 18. The annual revel of the Masquers Is set for November. This year for the first time the show will be given outside of Los Angelea. San Francisco will see the performance, and possibly one other city. The Masquers was fpunded by members of the Lambs now resid- ing her©. At the present time In spite of the organization's expan- sion one-third of the members owe allegiance to the New York club. voice specialist when he determined to return to tho istage after years on tho screen and later, of inviting the nationally famous instructor to tako a part in his play. The result was a total failure, because, the exr port concentrated on his voice and diction to the cxclu.sion of the more essential elements of tho dram,atlc portrayal. . The speaker quoted Johnston Forbes liobcrtson as saying he found .something now about the voice every day and n;dded it would be a most desirable thing if Forbes Robertson could be brought to this country aa a consultant on voice problf'm.s. ].>f-an Immel remarked that the viewpoint of tho university and the .sere(>n wore not so far apart a.s might peem. Pkegarding David's suc- ee.ss . in spite of liis ab-u^-nce of =lmoT?'lefrK?"" Sb^atr iii atlTefri a I IvTf ^ dean pointed out that the afi.'uratf aiming of high jKAV'i-ed ai-Tiiy .'irul navy guns was controlled by malli'!- matlea. DeMille replied that mliflit Ik- .sf), but when sel'-etlng a Ihto for a .seven-reel drriiiiJi lic ■ li'm. c David OVT Xewl'Ti i-\-<]y lin:". Marie Hennessy Chosen, for Hutch* inson's Talking Short Los Angeles, Sept 18. Craig Hutchinson, who recently completed a series of colored short fllm.g, plans to Inject sound into his next color picture, an untitled film, on Which production Is scheduled to start the latter part of the present month. It wlll .be a short and will have singing and at least one dialog sequence. . As leading woman for the picture^ he has signed Marie Hennessey, who has been, in pictures only eight months, playing bits and small parts. Miss Hennessey has a lyrio soprano voice which was a big fac- tor In her choice. The filrn Is to be made at ths Metropolitan studio. U's Ist Talkers, Sept. 29 Los Angeles, Sept. 18. ' -Universal'3 first all-talking ■ pic- ture, "Melody of Love," goes Into Pantage.s, San Francisco, for Its premiere week Sept. 29. Airrelea.se prints of this .subject are "being made In Los Angelea instead of the ea.st. Gilbert's Conference Los Angeles, Sept. 18. John Gilbert and his manager, H. R Kddlngton, will arrive in New Yovk Sept. 20. ' Object of the trip' ca.st is a confrronoft with Nicholas Kehf-nck regarding the latter'.s with- drawal of objections • to Gilbert .siw-ning with ITnitod Artl.sts. Gilbert's eontfaet with M-G-M ex-, pirr-.s in ."srarch. A deal was on with IT. A- .md announced when a~ re- quest came irum New York to drop nfLCoti.'iiions until Sehonck dis- eii.'-'.-ied 11i(! prot)i.>.silion. llir^rt'^rf t^f or--^Xt'w--y OT^k-'-.s viil-- dfiily, with I.r'Aiis B. Mayer akso duo in New i'ork .S- pt, 22. Marion Davies' Return Mmi'in D!ivi".«,' aiiroad over' the -••■iMiH-r, i.-i ( v))ei'1fd to return to .\' \v Vfiik- urciuid Dr't. 1.