The Washington times., 1914-03-30
THE BEST
Photoplay Department in
WASHINGTON
When Getting People
Into q Thedter Is
a Species Of
Con Game


You can't see photopiay
that shows or suggests a
pugilistic encounter in Washington!
You can't see even a burlesque OF
q fight here.
But you can see pictures of the IN
terror of a house of PROSTITUTION!
You can see death and destruction IN
a hundred different ways! 1ou Can
see burglaries committed, sa1es
blown, kidnapping done. street walk
ers soliciting, knockout drops given
in cafes-you can see all these things
shown on the films solely and purely
for the purpose of showing these
things and for no other reason!
And yet the head of the police de-
partment and a lot Of the exhibitors
believe that Washington has as gooo
and as clean a lot Of photoplays as
are shown anywhere in the UNITED
States!
Why not the very best? Why not
the cleanest?
At a meeting of women held Sat-
urdsy night at one OF the big notes
q woman who has done lot OF good
work among her kind took occasion
to state that she considered certain
kinds of photoplay theaters guilty OF
working the lowest and meanest kind
Of a confidence game. She didn't use
those; words, but that is what she
meant. She said there are a host OF
magnificent plays that would DO any
enc good-that are pleasure anc a
delight-that instruct and uphft.
But, she declared, in a large number
Of theaters when one goes to see q
6lm like this, one is compelled to sit
through either a collection Of vulgar.
cheap films that simply waste the
time of the person who views them,
or a production that Is vile-so vile
that you shudder to think Of the in
fiuence it might have On an unform-
ed or a depraved mind.
This simply shows that safeguard
ing the photoplay in Washington is
one OF the crudest things We do. The
men who own the photOplay theaters
have had long time in which to
work out some system of showing
how they realize their responsibility
to the public. They are In a very
responsible position to the public-as
responsible a position, in some re-
spects, as the teacher in the public
school or the minister in the church.
More children go to the photoplay
theaters in Washington than go to
church or to SCHOOL, Did that fact
ever strike you? More grown people
attend the performances at the
photoplay theaters than go to church
or to libraries or to lectures or to
regular theaters. More people pa
tronize the film than attend any
other public Institution or any other
form Of amusement
The manager of a theater there
fore occupies a very responsible po-
sItion toward the public. He has had
several years to realize his respon-
sibilIty and to show that he appre-
ciatcd it by careful selection of his
hlms. And the vast majority of
them haven't done either one or the
other!
So the time has come when the
matter must be taken out of lls
handS-and out of the hands of the
police department as we'll There
Is q general regulation in Washing
ton regarding the exhibition ot unfit
matter on the stage or in posters as
art And there is that one regula-
ton that makes a hard fast rule
against the exhibition of pugilislic
1t goes entirely too far. In its adop-
uon the Commissioners appeared 10
be trying to get rid of their re-
sponsfbilfties just as the pnotoplay
house managers seem to disregard
theirs. In order to prevent any
further annoyance the Commission
ers simply ruled everything out of
order and let it go at that or
course the Commissioners couldn't
Very we'll rule out scenes il houses
Of prostitution In the same way
that would prevent the presentation
OF such famous things as Camille:
they couldn't rule against murders
that would prohibit the production
Of Julius Caesar, Macbeth, and a
host Of others; they couldn't aCopt
such q hard and fast rule against
theft-that would do away with
things like Leah Kleshna or Sher-
lock Holmes.
There are plays where such things
should be shown to give the plot
properly and to present the lesson
to the people. But there are other
films that are made simply for the
purpose OF showing these things-not
bTazenly SO. mind you, but with a
play that is built simply IT, carry
such q scene. The moral lessor
these things carry is of a very fraiI-
fiimsy character.
These are the things that q broad,
proper censorship would eliminate.
There would be times, probably :,
when the exhibitors and tine public
would disagree with the censor, be
cause n censor is only a human be-
ing and makes mistakes Bat when
one takes into consideration the vast
majority Of things that the censor
would eliminate. the general air o.
cleanliness the censor would estap-
1ish around the photoplay house. the
little Disbursements with his judg-
ment wouldn't matter SO mucn.
We agree with the woman who
denounced the photoplay houses as
a species OF confidence game. She
Is absolutely right with respect 10
a lot ~ them. And we intend 10
night might and main for the -stab-
Nshnnent in this citv of A Just, a
reasonable. a healthy censorship of
photoplays that will safeguard the
health as well as the morals OF the
people. Ard We're doing II beca Use
many Of the exhibitors. whose dury
ard whose business interest II was
tn do IT. have most OF them. ignored
their pnnnrfupity - ~