The New York herald. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1920-1924, 1920-12-26

essential points, or winch manV girls
boast, enough to carry a feminine aspirant
to screen honors quickly from the extra"
to a member of the supporting cast and
thence to a stellar role?
A canvass of the various centres of film
activities convinces one that the chances are
slim. 1t also impresses the investigator
with the truth that something more than
beauty and youth and the fact that your
friends and your family think you take Won
derful pictures and would therefore be a con-
tribution to the screen world is required to
give you even a ghost of a chance with the
casting manager.
Salaries Running Into Six
Figures Is the Story
And the salaries big? That particular
feature of the profession is fraught with
deep interest. You hear extravagant tales of
film stars earning annually sums running
into six figures, and then you hear mention
of percentages and travelling expenses and
costumes paid for by the management until
the outsider begins to think that everything
is velvet in the movie world and the stars
rolling in wealth.
Then the girl of Is or 20 living in the
Middle West or the Northwest or the South,
perhaps, decides she wants to try her fortune
in the film drama and she scrapes together
all the money she can buys neat hat and
suit and boards a train for the studio world
in Los Angeles or New York
In view of the fact that there are hundreds
of these girls besieging casting managers
doors, and that their number is steadily in
creasing, few clear cold facts from the pro-
ducers themselves worth hearing. Their
words. it may be said at the start, are not
altogether encouraging to the film struck
girl. Yet each producer reminds these appli-
cants that there may be another Mary Pick
ford somewhere waiting to be filmed. and he
doesn't want to overlook her.
Here is plain statement of the film sit
uation by William De Mile, one of the direc-
tors for Jesse L. Lasky Right here in the
East Mr.. Lasky has of the largect picture
making centres in the world and he operates
another in Los Angeles. No studio has more
applicants for film tryouts than this pro-
Queer. Thousands storm his casting direc"
tor weekly Often they are the same per-
sons over and over again. They never seem
to get discouraged And when the director
hangs up sign announcing that girls of q
certain type are wanted that day he Is sure
to find an army awaiting him.
Nearly every girl in her teens wants to go
into pictures regardless of her qualifca-
tions," remarked Mr.. De Mile. Los Angeles
is filled with these screen struck young
women Many have travelled far to find
work. and often they spend all their money
and, when they fail to qualify, they go home
poorer but wiser girls.
Beauty isn't everything in screen work.
So many girls are told by their friends and
relatives that they are beautiful they begin
to think their charms will be wasted unless
immortalized by the camera. In their case
pulchritude may not mean anything to the
motion picture expert. Lack of 1t is handi-
CAP yet girls have made good without 1t. But
that Is for character work. Screen beauty
must be of the variety that pleases when T.
is reproduced by the camera. girl must
know how to act she must be intelligent, she
must understand the art of wearing clothes
and appearing at ease in any costume. She
must not be too tall or too short, too thin or
too fat too dumpy or too angular.
The Stage and Film Beauties
Have Little in Common
"The difference between the stage beauty
and the film beauty is marked. The actress
is seen by few hundreds while the motion
picture actress is seen by thousands, you
might say hundreds of thousands. And the
bigger her audience the greater the number
Of her critics.
Influence plays a small part, If any, in
putting a star before the public or, rather. in
giving that public the opportunity to pro-
nounce young woman of stellar inn
portance The usual routine for entering the
motion picture world. in the case of an un-
known applicant. is by letter and photograph
or in person. If her letter sounds intelligent
and her picture seems promising she may be
asked to call. Then she undergoes the same
close scrutiny and study other applicants
are subjected to.
when a girl appears full of promise the
casting director tests her out in pictures.
That, Is the final trial. IF she photographs
we'll and shows intelligence and histrionic
ability she may prove available material.
If she fails in passing this examination her
chances are over.
Thousands of applicants are card indexed
for future use. They are indexed as to type.
When the casting director wants girls of
certain type he goes through the file and
selects one from this list Most OF the mob
is hired by telephone The director simply
sends word to the agencies and the next
morning at o'clock whatever time the
picture is to be made he has all the mob
that he needs
cept when the picture requires specially
designed outfits, when these are supplied by
the film company. Every large film organi-
zation has its wardrobe from which
selections made If a girl happens to
please sufficiently to be offered place and
she hasn't the proper dress herself
THE fashion phase Of motion pictures Is
an interesting development of thinking and
arranging in advance. For instance II
picture requires four or five months in the
taking and then Is held for two or three
months before release naturally the cos
tunes would look a little out of date-we
move so rapidly in the world OF dress-so the
hasky company has purchased its own
atelier IN Paris where its dresses and cos
tunes made months in advance of the
style. SO that when the picture is finally