The New York herald., 1922-03-19

NHcIc. DOco any ODt TGCdll SUCH dH dTIcoL
in New York? OF much greater signif-
canoe is the fact that even in the inside"
gossip of the California movie zone the
number of well known players suspected
of addiction is very small. Wherever I
went asked, who are these dope fiends
we've been reading about?" OF the names
given me by more than two persons the
public would recognize only five. One Of
these was that of the handsome matinee
idol heretofore mentioned. The others
were women. There are in the Hollywood
district when the studios are booming.
which is not the case now, about 5000 pro-
fessional actors more or less regularly
engaged, in addition to a swarm of extras.
About 100 of these are stars or featured
performers whose names sparkle in cleo
trio lights everywhere. Only five of the
100 were seriously mentioned as addicts
even by lovers of scandal, and the only one
concerning whom first hand testimony was
offered was that of the screen hero said to
have been seen jabbing himself with a
needle.
/ admit that was an outsider in Holly
wood, but do not believe that any dope
cult" exists among the well known players,
and am sure that the great majority Of
them have the same horror of narcotic
drugs as other normal beings. And, by the
way 1t seems to be pretty well established
that William Desmond Taylor, the direc-
tor who was murdered, was not only try
Ing to get famous actress to give up NOR
phine but was fighting group of peddlers
who were smuggling drugs into one of the
Hollywood studio Enclosures. He had
caused one of the peddlers to be beaten
almost 70 death at this studio. Most of
the drug users are among the low grade
extras certain small comedy companies
and a gunman type OF hired hand. There
has been until recently no concerted effort
of the producing managements to stamp
out the traffic.
I was told by the Los Angeles police
that such an effort now is under way. l
might add here that Hollywood physician
who give me a closeup view of the com
munity as he saw 1t said that within the
past year he had encountered only three
addicts. Two were girls. both extras"
The other was man, a relative of an ac-
tor. The Rev. Neal Dodd, an Episcopalian
pdbkOI, WHO lS a SuTL VI IuONl6 CHdpldlU
and is to have charge of Little Church
Around the Corner to be built in Holly
wood, said he personally knew Of only one
dope case" involving an actor
So much for narcotic drugs Next, alco-
hol. This topic can be dismissed with a
few words California under prohibition
is one Of the wettest States. Liquor easily
is procurable in every large community
including Hollywood. In parts of Los
Angeles 1t is sold openly, notably at soft
drink counters. It cannot be bought openly
anywhere In Hollywood, which always
has been a saloonless town and is now
An old timer said to me, my daughter, Is
years old, has never seen drunken per-
son."
The homes OF Hollywood are stocked
with liquor in about the same proportion
as elsewhere. Every thirsty burgher has
his list of bootleggers' telephone numbers.
He swaps telephone lists with his neighbor,
just as he used to trade home brew recipes.
He phones his order to the bootlegger and
the stuff is delivered at the back door. The
prevailing poison is synthetic gin at sS a
quart. There also is California wine to be
had in any quantity, prohibition having
at least doubled the price of the grape
growers product Grapes may be bought
in season by the pound or the ton. Un-
fermented grape juice Is sold by the three
gallon jar for IS the JAR I believe. A
friend told me that three parts of water
added to the juice produced, after an in
terval and without any attention whatever
the rarest burgundy. How this exciting
mutation is accomplished don't know but
that is what he said. There Is much drink
ing in Hollywood. Most of 1t is in the
homes of movie and non-movie residents
Many homes are abstemious. Douglas Fair
banks and Mary Pickford are among the
abstainers They serve no liquor in their
home except at formal dinners.
An alcoholic cross section of Hollywood
presents no phenomena not TO be found
nowadays in other communities East and
West, with this exception My impression
is that the movie people, taken collectively,
have in the past given and attended more
booze parties" than most other communi-
ties OF the same size, and that reckless
indulgence has been more frequent. Holly
wood probably will dispute this. Anyway,
we can agree that since the Arbuckle ex
plosion there has been slowing up all
around.
Another count made against Hollywood
is that girls who try to enter the movies
or to advance in their profession are sub
ject to the moods Of unscrupulous directors
and even OF "magnates." asked one Of
the best informed and frankest OF men
what truth there was in this