The Morning Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Okla.) 1919-1927, 1921-04-03
TULSA PEOPLE
LIKE COMEDY
Type of Movie Inviting
Tear-Dimmed Eye Not
Popular Here
PLOT, NOT THE STAR
Favorite's Popularity Cannot
Survive Poor Vehicles
Is Claim

Tho other afternoon last week,
rbilo the crowd at the Majestic
,bcater was absorbed in the triangu-
ior nroblem OF Mary Maddox. Steve
ord the other man, another drama
yaa being silently unfolded just a
few feet away from the operators
roorn high above the heads OF the
audience Inside the Cup" adapt
"a from the story by Winston
churchill, was being shown in the
,riyate office of the owner and
manager OF the Majestic, Ralph Tai
hot. to a small group of people-a
miniature picture on miniature
screen before "A miniature audience,
one might say.
Not that this IA an unusual oc-
currcncc. 1t happens very nearly
every day The particular reason
for IL last week was the nature Of
.be picture. Inside the cup" in its
relation TO q particular church de-
nomination.
"People have asked me-" said
Ny Talbot. "why II Is that Il Is
usually the Episcopalian church
hat is used in films. I believe II Is
merely because the churchly vest
rnents Of that denomination give
the desired atmosphere"
So that was the reason why Rev
crend Rolfe y. Crum was one OF the
little audience. The picture was
thrown on a piece of cardboard fas.
tened upon the door; the portable
machine. resembling n suitcase more
than anything else. and was set or
a table in the darkened room. The
film was the same that Ia used al
Of this week, and the tiny pictures
thrown upon the screen reminded
one-or taught, If it had never
boen known before--that pictures or
the theater screen are magnified
800 times.
There were 80 many questions tC
ask while the story was being told
via the Celluloid: Was this the reEu.
lar thing2 How often and why die
they do it? Did they always see the
pictures they bought before they
we're shown here in Tulsa? Do they
ever censor here? How does the
musical director know what music
TO play? What do Tulsa people lik,
10 see best in pictures? And to al
OF these questions Mr.. Talbot gave
patient answers.
on the miniature screen and on the
regulation screen after theater hours
Is a daily occurrence In Tulsa picture
theaters. Their managers nevel
buy a picture that they have no
seen first, and they prefer often e
have several people see 1t with then
for the benefit of their opinions al
well as their own. The percentage
OF the pictures that they buy o
those screened privately is compare
lively small. All pictures are sub
iect 10 stringent censorship befort
they are bought for public eXhibi
tion. Occasionally n second privat,
showing of a really good pictur'
with perhaps few OBJECTIONABLE
features will eliminate those fea
lures before the picture is shown
publicly.
About the musical director. Trav
clogs. pictorial news, comedies. fea
tures-these are all flashed befor'
his eyes on the tiny screen in tn
managers office before they ar
shown. The director selects th'
music appropriate for those scenes
times them exactly with the aid o
dial and is ready for the initia
showing Of the new pictures. Il
front of the operator there is a dial
BY glancing at 1t he can tell whethe
the picture is being run at norma