The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1916-08-29
LUSS|ER REPLIES
TODR. WRITTEN
Contends Showing Pictures
on Sunday Does Not Make
Them Immoral

That IL the showing of motion pictures
is immoral on Sunday it Is not made
moral by presentation during the week
days, was the statement of Richard f.
Lussier In a letter written in answer to
DR.. L. F. Written, an advocate OF the
movement to close the photoplay houses
on Sunday. The letter of Mr.. Lussier
follows:
To the Editor of The Age-Herald:
AS my name is more or less trifled with
in a letter by the Rev. l.. F. Written, it
seems apropos to keep up the badinage
of words on the paramount issue be-
fore the people of Birmingham-the clos
ing of the photoplay houses on Sunday.
Every quotation from "Footlights and
Screen" contained in DR.. Whittens let
ter which criticized a certain grade Of
motion pictures did not to my way OF
thinking, strengthened the argument to
close the theatres on Sunday. The show
ing of bad pictures is merely the lack
of judgment on the part of a. manager.
The closing of the theatres on SUNDAY,
it appears to me, is simply making
tigher the moral straight jacket on the
general public of the city.
But then as DR. Written holds to the
opinion that motion pictures on Sunday
represent gross immortality, ! can only
quote him George Bernard Shaw who
said:
DANGER NOT OF IMMORTALITY
The danger of the cinema is not the
danger of immortality, but of morality
people who. like myself frequent the
cinemas, testify to their desolating
morality-there is no comedy. no wit, no
criticism of morals or otherwise. no
exposure of the unpleasant consequences
of romantic sentimentality and reckless
tomfoolery in real life, nothing that could
give disagreeable shock to the stupid
OF shake the elf-complacency of the
snug. ......"
Nations Of today are the result of the
experiences of the past. Every human
being is made UP of his own past ex-
periences which accounts for the IN
finite variety of viewpoints. Or. WHIT
ter believes that the motion pictures on
Sunday is a thing of evil. Now / can
not bring myself to agree with him
rather the viewpoint of David Ward
Griffith. the creator of 1.-THE Birth of a
Nation seems to have more universal
appeal than the words Of DR.. Written
IT thoroughly believe that the principal
reason for the popularity of the motion
picture is that it softens the hard life
of the plain people with beauty and
sw eetness Tt keeps them away from
temptation, because it gives them a place
of recreation Unpleasant surroundings, II
brings to the poor who are unable to
travel away from their own dingy sur
roundings, the beauty and poetry OF liv-
ing foreign scenes of people, of flowers,
and waving grasses
BEAUTIES OF NATURE
Zone thing, remember, however unim-
portant or however crude may happen to
be the mannikins that tell the story in
our foreground, beneath their feet are
green grasses and flowers Behind this
is back drop Of beauty. of waving seas,
curving hillsf or crested mountain tops,
and this back drop must express mes
sage Of pure and sweet beauty, for II We
believe, we must confess that this was
done by the hand of God himself"
And then again DR.. E. E. Slosson OF
Columbia university in an article entitled
"The Birth of New Art wrote:
THE most beautiful picture put on cam
vas, the finest statue ever carved, Is
ridiculous caricature of real life compared
with the Pickering shadow of tattered
film in a backwoods nickolodeon."
And that is why cannot agree with
DIR. Written in the closing of the Sun
day pictures. If they are evil on SUN
day. they are not any better in my eyes
during the week. 1t may be that l am
wrong. Some of us must be-
RICHARD F. LUSSIER
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