Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-07-28
AS ONE WOMAN SEES IT
Young Authors Are Busy Again for
the First Time Since the War,
Say Publishers, and Most Of
Them Seem Movie Fans
BY SARAH ID. LOWRIE
PUBLISHER told me the otbe

that the writing output Of young
authors was now back at high tide-thc
first time since the war.
lie said that on an average Of 200 manu-
scripts. mostly novels. were submitted to
him weekly. After the sitting process by his
readers perhaps a dozen came back to him
for his appraiscment, and out Of those
perhaps two would be sent to yet another
set of readers, the experts of the firm. who
would pass uron their merits. l calculated
that 1t must cost that firm in the ncighbor.
hood of $500 n week just to pass verdict on
those manuscripts, because. o. course. those
readers are paid for their time and trouble,
and some of them are paid very high prices
for their expert opinions.
| asked that particular publisher what
was the prevailing CHARACTERISTIC of the
novels the" were obliged to reject. lie
seemed not to have analyzcd their particular
lacks. but he remarked generally that good.
bad and Indifferent authors rote nowadays
with the movies somewhere on their hOr-
IONS. lie felt as though many of the
stories that were sent to him might better
have gone to the Hollywood producers. SO
Mary Pickford. or wept and entreated like
Lillian Gsh. 80 many of the rescung
heroes might have been Fairbanks or Schd-
kraut.'
CERTAIN necessary adiuncts to movie
~ tai" were, however. omitted like the
Ride to the Rescue the "prying Old
Maid" the Clumsy Farm Lout." the
villain that made three strides across the
room and the mother TINT never knew her
daughter was leading double life. So many
Of the stories ended very sadly, too, which
is almost prohibitive in Il movie. Having
spent some time in Hollywood-the movie
end Of that big suburb of Los Angeles at
Ride to the Rescue interspersed with an
attacking villain, no story was apt to get
taken on by any one of the seven or eight
great producers who provide the films for
the country from their California studios.
T SPENT one amusing afternoon with one
L Henry Carr, of the Los Angeles Chron-
ic,c. who had been for some time a sort of
handy portable critic and snap shot udg-
mcnt man for David w. Griffith Carr took
US to see some rehcarsals for film the
Universal Company was producing of TIE
life of Buffalo Bill. They had just sent out
Foolish Wives and the scenery was set up
for an acre or so about the incosure in an
astonishing state of preservation. even to a
tram car, just in front of the Casino
grounds at Monte Carlo.
discovered from Carr what l have
always half suspected that the actors are
given very little plot and almost no lines;
just set going with an outline. and the story
worked out from the best of the films that
are shot.
In "Orphans of the Storm. for instance.
the old drama of ''The Two Orphans" an
old theatrical piece very dated now," was
used for the scenery and for some historical
details. Griffith got college professor of
history to come critic on matters per-
tanning to the French Revolution. but after
the actors began to act out their version,
the original story and even the history were
allowed to go by the board In fact, at
one point the college professor flung his
elaboratey taken no.cs from him in disgust.
''Oh. have Robcspierre marry Napoleon"
he barkcd out savagcly and left the re-
hcarsal not to return.
TT HAD never been the producers inter-
i ton to have Danton take so big. not to
mention so magnanimOus 4 part in the play,
but each time the actor who was made up
for Danton came on. he dominated the scene
even throwing the charming hero somewhat
into the shade
Indeed, no one could make the charming
hero interesting. not even the weeping and
clingng heroine, Lillian Gish until half
hundred young screen celebrities had tried
and had failed over part where there were
no lines and very few situations; until
Joseph Schldkraut came along and evolved
situations and lines to fill them.
Evidently the whole production as far as
the action goes is kept really movie; that
*. not fixed act, until the best out of n
great many ways of doing it has been
pounCCd' upon by the producer and his little
group of hawk-eycd hcnchmcn.
For instance, in the Cody lfe-which was
really the story of the southern Pacific Rail-
road. in which Buffalo Bill and his advcn-
lures supplied a sort of plot--there was
reel devoted TO the rise Of General Grant
and as picturesque detail. n reception
during his presidency was rehearsed and
"shot' while | was an onlookcr. The actors
were given only the barcSt details, the thing
was done over and over again during the
course of n long afternoon and never quite
done alike by all the forty or so actors par
t!c!pating. do not know quite what die
tatcd the final cholcc--some quick gesture
that was telling on the part of one or more
of the principals, | SUPPOSE. But 10 one
not even the director, had stopped to do more
than study the physical makeup of the
characters that We're present. The two men
who we're hcctoring the characters in and
out of the reception were very young
director. clever. but no render of history,
and Cherokee Indian chief, w.!o was there
with a great many Of his tribe for other
parts of the play, and was immensely in
tercsted in having the thing get on" as he
expressed 1t.
TNIE men and women were physically very
i we'll chosen and were made up with
care. 50 that one had the dismaycd feeling
that ones near Of kin from Il q fnm Y album,
in the ugly. stiff, yet very dccorous clothes
Of 1866, were being ordered about in a
nightmnrish way by two interlopcrs But
when ] observed n female who might have
been my own great-aunt remain placidly
seated in the center Of the reception room
and stay clampcd to her chair when the Off
Ger at the door announced ''rhe prcd-
dent and his Lady.' and when further saw
two generals and n statesman that had tho
look of Everett not bulge from the line Of
the Presidents approach. but continue con-
versing while he and 'his lady" stumbled
over their feet. | realized that the Cherokee
was cxrusablc for his gruntS Of srornful con.
tempt at their knowledge of what was what.
T ASKED the manager Of that particular
J. film company what they really did for
most of the plots for their productions. and
he said
"Oh. we make 'cm up as they 90 along as
for ns details 90 - Ono Of thr vcrv S,,crrsS