The Washington times., 1914-04-15

traction and their surest way
to success.
One of the significant items of the
photopla- that many thoughtful
people overlook in their Indifference
or contempt for the pictures, is the
fact that the production of an entire
story is possible before a camera
that would be impossible on the
stage. And that the producers can
more easily photograph a real scene,
an actual happening, than a faxed
or a forced scene. 1t is possible to
duplicate anything in photoplay, ex-
cept the voices that can be shown
in life. The expense of production
makes little difference. because it
must be done just once.
Too many people owe this
fact. The item of a fiji TEA
scene where a house is uL.ning-
can only be faxed or approximated
on the stage And the fake is usual
ly q very flimsy affair. On the
screen an actual fire can be shown.
1t can be shown for the simple rea-
son that the fire needs be taken
but once and the return from the
rental OF films is so enormous that
II is possible for the producer to
actually burn down a house and
still make money. In fact such
things are being done IN almost
every big studio in the country every
DAY. In the recent production of
Brewsters Millions" a perfectly
good automobile is actually wrecked
by collision with a railway train.
There is no fake about it. The ma
chine Is smashed beyond repair. In
another play recently put on
steamship is set afire and wrecked.
These things, perfectly practicable
in photoplays, would be impossible
on the stage, not only because they
would have to be repeated for every
performance, but because they sim
ply couldn't be repeated. That is
me secret of the realism of the
photoplay-the big scenes must only
he done once. And big scenes only
happen once.
We have called attention only to
the thrilling incidents because the
thrilling incidents put the greatest
emphasis on the point we wish to
bring out. But they do not cover all
OF ii by any means. In a play, of
Washington life. for instance we
see a painted setting of Washing
ton scenes. In photoplay of Wash
ingtou life We see Washington. This
phase is brought out very strongly
in a detective story produced by the
Edison company, and shown here
during the early part of the week.
The story dealt with the stealing of
q necklace from mummy in a New
York museum of natural history.
The thieves could not market their
booty In New York and were forced
TO take it first TO London. then to
Paris, then TO Venice, and then to
Rome. In a play produced on the
stage the scenes incident TO the story
would have either been very tame
or very melodramatic. In the pho
toplay the audience was shown the
streets of New York, London, Paris,
Venice, and Rome-not limitations
of them. The Victoria station and
the Strand in London, the Notre
Dame Cathedral, and one of the
great bridges of Paris. the grand
canal of Venice, the Coliseum, the
Vatican, st. Peters in Rome, to say
nothing of incidental street and in
terror scenes in all of these places,
took place in these streets, and be-
fore these historic places. And it
was just as cheap to have the actors
and actresses go to those places as
it would have been to construct
scenery to represent them in STU
dio.
OF course. It is not often that a
picture requires such an interna-
tional setting But the same sys-
tenn of doing things holds in every
picture. II is really cheaper. and
considerably better, to take the pic
tUre of the actual thing-that is the
OF course. in some battle pictures,
and in many pictures where the
scene can be Appropriated, it would
he a useless expense to go afar and
take 1t. For instance, practically all
Of the action of the famous 'Adven-
lures Of "Kathlyn" has been photo
graphed in Los Angeles. But there
have been several hundred scenes
shown In this film that were actual
pictures of India
1t is this realism-the stupendous
fact OF this realism-that so many
critics of the film do not realize.
II they would stop to think about
it for a minute they would under
stand that II is all real and why.
photoplay is far superior to the
stage production. II should be the
duty OF the producers and the ex-
hibitors to get this fact before the
public and to impress 1t on the pub
lie. The publicity manager of a
certain western manufacturer mas
recently sent out o long statement
in which he takes issue with the
tendency on the part of certain writ
ers to exploit the daily happenings
OF the studios. This gentleman may
be entirely sincere in what he says,
but It seems to Us that just the op-
rosite view is what should be held
by the producers. They should
strive to get more and more Of the
daily doings OF their players before
the public. SO that the public can
realize what earnest efforts are be-
ing made TO give the photoplay a
high. dignifed place in the realm
Of amusement. and should recognize
the value OF this work.
The men and women who make
the films are doing a great work
and the general public is intensely
interested in them, in their person.
alities, in the way they go about
their work. II is not only a duty
imposed on the manufacturer TO let
the public know all this, but II is
TO his business interest as we'll The
more familiar the public becomes
with the players and their methods,
the greater the number Of people
who natroniZe the theaters showing
the Aims. And II is this matter Of
ernpbasiZing the realism OF the
scenes that snems IN US q very i'm
portant one TO exploit-and an easy
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