The New York herald., 1922-06-23
Rex Beach Jars
Will Hays Party
for Better Films
Plain Talk at Conference
Movie Advisers for Head
of Industry.

! -<At a conference which VIII Fl. Hays,
president of the Motion Picture Pro-
ducers and Distributors OF America.
held with representatives of fifty ma
tionally federated organizations. princi-
pally educational. at the Waldorf-Astoria
yesterday a committee of three was
named to nominate a nationwide board
of fifteen from such organizations who
would present to Mr.. Hays a program
for the Improvement OF American mo-
ton pictures. The committee consisted
OF Lee Hammer representing the Russell
Sage Foundation; Mrs Oliver Hartman.
president of the Camp Fire Girls, and
James L. West, secretary of the Boy
Scouts of America. The resolution call
ing for such a national advisory body
was presented by Mr.. West. and was
carried unanimously. The committee
will be announced in a week.
Another outcome of the conference.
which was called by Mr. Hays to learn
the work being done by these organiza-
Ttions with regard to motion pictures
and their viewpoint with respect to the
relationship of the motion picture indus
try to the public in general. together
with any constructive suggestions they
might make, was the offer of Sydney s.
Cohen, president of the Motion Picture
Theater Oowners of America, to give the
Screens. rostrums and services of all
the theaters in the organization to the
program to be outlined by the new ma
tionwide committee" Hitherto the
Cohen organization has not been on the
friendliest terms with the producers
body.
While the general tenor of the dis
cussions before and after luncheon were
quite harmonious, Rex Beach, who ex-
planned that he came "as an author,
representing nobody" indulged in some
plain speaking.
"The business Is not as sound and
wholesome as 1t was some years ago,
he said. There are too many doctors
1t has been dosed to death. class of
meddlesome people who have made the
business of meddling a recognized pro-
fession and are well paid for 1t are re-
sponsible. They're not satisfied with
having the motion picture as great big
universal entertainment, but they try to
make ii into a soul saving device, night
school for illiterate immigrants and a
plaything for children.
People of creative ability aren't
wanted in the movies. When they get
such an author in they won't let him
write They want mush and slush, pre-
remain sick as long as the public and
the exhibitors want one thing and the
reform element want another"
Mr.. Hays in his introductory speech
as chairman said that the demand for
censorship will disappear because this
country is opposed to censorship OF the
stage, of the pulpit and of pictures as
un-American.
Other speakers were Fred Lands,
former Representative in Congress from
Indiana Saul z. Rogers, vice-prestdent
of the Fox Films: the Rev. DIR. F. Il.
Clark, president of the United Society
of Christian Endeavor; ]. H. Hall. edu-
cational director of the Associated Ad-
vertising Clubs of the World; Hugh
Frayne of the American Federation or
Labor, state Senator James j. Walker.
the Rev. Charles A. MacMahon of the
National Catholic Welfare Council,
Charles A. Perry OF the National COM
rriittee for Better Films Ernest l.. Gran
dali of the Visual Instruction Associa-
ton of America. Commander Hanford
NcNider OF the American Legion. Mrs.
Richard NJ Chaplin. president of the
Federation of Womens Clubs OF New
York city Howard S. Braucher of Com
nlunity Service, Inc, and Paul Dulzell.
assistant executive secretary OF the
Actors Equity Association.