Evening star., 1919-04-20
AInuSQnlQnt&
The PhotoPlay

NHERES a divinity that Shapes
~ our ends, rough-hew them
hoy we will" So wrote the
immortal bard of whose an
c:ent existence Washington but re-
Gently was again most pleasantly re-
minded. md that poetic thought.
strangely enough, seems applicable
even to the motion picture industry.
which is gradually. if slowly. shaping
itself to conform to the laws which
govern other human objects. This is
not homily on things celestial,
hut Indulgence in a thought suggested
By the record recently established in
Washington by the photoplay adap-
1sttion of THE Better Ole" Being an
English picture production, perhaps il
were better to clothe it's description
in the Nern;icciar of the Briton and
call il cinema. DespiSed and rejected
Cf experienced EXHIBITORS as an "ver-
expensive proposition, it nevertheless
caught the fancy of the management
OF one OF the humber theaters and
despite tnS outlay required to present
il. y rewarded daring enterprise with
Two weeks of .ecord- breaking busi-
EcsS and Il subs ,antial pront in the
worldly sense. Ii mus appears. again
little employment nath the aa.iticr
sense.
Alter all. the photoplay will have
to accuStum Itseif to the experience
or her elder sister in the flesh and
reaIizc I a: the eloquent pen Of the
tancifui press a.5ent, however sue
cessfu! i'll iauding the mediocre, may
not obscure the shining virtue OF
modest worth. People win patronize
pictures. jus; as they p..tr.-ize the
pay. when tl.ey offer no, so mucp
y h;a. the tired business man wants.
but what the pressure seeker least
expects and seldom gets-somethlng
original. something inherently GOOD,
something that will lead the thought
onward and upward and send him, or
hear away with an inward feeling OF
real satisfaction. of q profit distinctly
gained for the time expended. The
All" that follows the "siss, boom
Of the rocket is 5nort-lived and soon
forgotten. But the joy of an enter
rainment which is really felt rather
than expressed is, after all, the only
lasting advertisement The human
mind and heart may be dulled by
abuse. but both will joyously respond
10 the touch OF the master hand that
discovers the sensitive keys from
which proceed their sweetest har-
monies. Perhaps this is why the pro-
ducers are ever promising and the
public ever looking for better photo
PLAYS.
y $ 3
''VirtuUus Men," proclaimed with ex-
traordinary publicity and, it is under
stood. designed in its method of pres
entstion as a test for managerial ex-
pertinent. was abruptly Cancelled with
no prom Use of a release later. There
is therefore nothing ahead to excite
the u-usual thrill. of expectation.
Mary Pickford, it is true, will re
appear after a long screen absence
and may furnish the surprise. There
are also many others always with US
who are capable of giving it, If their
new pictures offer full opportunity for
their talents. AS a rule. when the pic
ture world has something really big
and out of the ordinary. the press
agent does not overlook the fact and
his literature, in consequence, be-
comes enthusiastically alluring. WASH
ington has thousands of enthusiastic
photoplay fans, and it is safe to say
that not one of them but is ready and
willing to find "a really absorbing
drama" "a melodramatic master
piece" or "a romance unique and ex-
quisite-"