The Washington times., 1914-09-30
THE BEST
Photopldy Department in
WASHINGTON
Producers Realise
Plays and Players
Must Keep High
Standard.

Two ideas seem to be firmly
fixed in the minds of the photo
play magnatrs, just now. 1heE
must produce well-written plays
by people who know how 20 write
and they must produce them with
recognized actors and actresses
who are known TO their patrons.
As has been stated Frequently.
the gentlemen who inauSuralcu
the film business were impressed
with the idea that the big thing
to impress on the people was the
name of the producer. They with
held the names OF the people who
did the acting or wrote the plays.
The result was rather surprising
TO them. There are proha DIy MOI
mole than scant ! per cent Of
the phutoplay patrons who know
2nythinC about the producers.
while there is scarcely that many
who are not well acquainted with
the stars and some of the di-
rcctors of these stars. Today the
invitation to pay money for
screen production must carry
with II the name of ONE actor or
actress who is known TO the public
o. il will receive little attention.
The matter of the playwright is
not so important now as ii will be
in the near future and as it is gel
ting TO be every day. something
has already been said about the
marked improvement in the acting
which the actors declare is due to
the better quality play. Very lit
tie. however, has been said re-
rardinc- inc manner il which
these plays have been oblaincC.
The most IMPORTANT influence in
the direct on OF obtaining good plays
written by people OF recognized
standing in the story or playwritinS
wu'lC was probably the production
of dramatic successes by the Fa-
NOUS Players. the Jesse l.. LaSkey.
and the All-Star companies. The
Famous Players originated the idea.
" hile Daniel Frohman is the magic
NAM with which this company
hoped TO get people into the thUater
TO .,cc its productions, the idea vas
really Adolph Zukor's. Adolph Iukor
saw the chance. and he took the
chance to Mr.. Frohman. That gentle
man was at first inclined TO put I
aside hut Mr.. Zukor kept after him
and the Famous Players is the re-
suit. The other two concerns start
ed in business soon afterward, and
were shortly followed by the alll-
Rnce between klaw & Erlangec and
the B,ngraph company. This year
the Shuberts and William A. Brad
have entered the field as a COM
pany. and David Belasco has pre-
senied all his plays to the Laskey
concern. Thus. the public was as
sured the production of big plays.
The companies who failed to get in
on the theatrical invasion-whO failed
TO receive the attentions of the big
managers and their plays-were nee
essarily forced to find other means
In compete The old style director
made drama would never do-by TINS
we mean the drama that was built
bv a director around some thrill or
hair raising incident Therefore at
tention naturally turned 10 the mag
azines. Horace G. Plympton. the dl-
rector in chief OF the Edison forces
was one of the first to recognize the
chance for good magazine stories as
screen dramas. He started the Dan
rolling with the What Happened to
Mary stories and has followed them
With the other Mary series, the
Man Who Disappeared plays and
others. The Essanay company Sc
cured the services OF George Ade ana
started putting into screen form some
of the famous authors fables. And
with the beginning OF the George Ade
plavs tho public has seen the hrst
real comedy dramas that have ever
appeared on the screen. The rs
sanay company has now gone further
than this II has made an arrange
mcnt with the Munsey Magazine
whereby certain Of the Munsey
s,orles are to he used as screen
plays.
One Of the first of these is TO be
seen in this city today and tomorro"
when Francis Y. Bushman appears
N "Ambushed" at CTandall's :. Am
lTushed'' is a fine type al the screen
drama made from the magazine
story and it is type Of play that Is
becoming more and more popular
The. story is built along yiriln AmerI-
can lines and the plaE has been
made To- follow the action Of the
story as closely as possible This
brings to mind the fact that the
screen dra ma can follow WlltI"h
storr much closer than the ordI-
nary stage production can. Tho mat
tor nf dialogue Of course. Is not
nossibIe. FrI: the dramatic situation
which makes ;ha story can lie eN-
actIv duplicated ana on tho screen
fh, scenes lcaCiu" IN 10 this SltHd-
rlon can be shown with precision
that is not DOssiuie uu IT." stage In
fact in the NisualiZaIIun O1 tHc
stories by the camera the spectator
gets even a better idel Of what the
author intended than tn" story gives.
This fact was called 10 our alt"n-
tion by letter from Charming Pol
TncL n the Famous I1a .ers Com
pany which Ben Schulberg showed
Us the other day. NJ. P"llocN
stated that in the production Of
such a Little Queen. the Gamer
had been able TO reproduce thr ldea
or his drama with greater fal'hluI-
,s. tbsn had been done on tn"
.tage and that the big theme Vas
brought out on the screen in way
he did not believe was possible ether
in an acting verson or in 4 story
III n q. NJ