The Denver Jewish news., 1922-12-27
The Nelu Movies
By RoBERT p. SHERWOOD
Oar Special New York Movine Picture
Correspondent.

BY ROBERT F.. SHERWOOD
Oar Special New York Mevins Picture
Cofrespendsnt.
The gold medal offered by Photoplay
lMagazine for the best motion picture
Of the year has been awarded to
"Tdrable David" The award was not
made by a group of selected judges,
but by the readers of the magazine,
who expressed their preference by
means of votes.
1t seems to us an eminently satis-
factory choice. Following the selec-
tion of "Aumoresqne." which was the
first winner of the medal. it indicates
that this prize will become n worthy
Iaward-the Davis Cup Of the movies.
The producer who wins It each year
will have something that he may well
be proud of.
"Tol'able David" indeed, must rate
as one Of the best pictures in the brief
but turbulent history of the silent
drama. Its chief claim to distinction
was Its simplicity. 1t was not con
stFucted upon a, stupendOus scale. 1t
relied upon a comparatively small num-
ber for persons for Its dramatic
strength. and 1t was n homely story.
To gain its ends it Travelled the most
direct route. rf. ,.a
Sometimes. perhaps, there will he n
Hall Of Film Fame. Probably when
that IL opened the movies will have
progressed so far beyond their present
standing thnt none of the pictures
which hnve been produced before now
will deserve place in the archives
of posterity.
1t seems to us. however. that there
already have been pictures with legiti-
mate claims to greatness. We're we
called upon to submit list of nomi-
nations to the Admissions Committee
at the Hall Of Fame we should pro-
pose the following: ii-ssr f
'The Birth Of n Nation
"IntOlcrance."
Shoulder Arms"
THE Coward"
"Broken Blossoms
"The Miracle Man"
1.-THE Mark Of Zorro"
"The Kid
"T'he Four Horsemen Of the Apocn-
lypse."
THE Three Muscketeers."a
"Tol'able David"
"NanOok of the North"
"Grandnm's Boy"
"Oliver Twist"
robin Hood
OF the fourteen photoplays on this
list four are Grifiith productions, three
douglas Fairbanks. two Chaplin. one
Rex Ingram, one George Lonne Tuck
Ter, one Richard Barthelmess and Henry
King. one Frank Lloyd. one Harold
Lloyd and one Robert J. Flnherty. 20
It In not large representation a1d
one wonders at the absence Of such
names as Mary Pickford, Norma Tai
madge. william 3. Hart and mnny
others which ard accustomed to glare
forth in the electric lights
1t is our list, however, md we shall
srick to 1t. Most Of the selections,
like The Birth of a Nation" THE
Miracle Man" and robin Hood are
obyioua. and will not be contested by
any large proportion Of our readers
There are others, however. which are
open to debate. "The Coward was
produced by the old Triangle company,
Of which Grifiith, Thomas H. Ince and
Mack sennett formed the three angles.
It was n Civil War drama. with Frank
Keenan, as an old Southern gentleman.
and Charles Ray as his lily hvered
son. The old man was greatlv disap-
pointed in his offspring because the
lad refused to fight.
When the Federal troops occupied
the family home, the young coward
suddenly had an access of herOism. and
proceeded to rout them with due dis
patch.
'-The Coward started Charles Ray
of upon his successful career, and he
has never done anything to equal it
since.
"Nanook of the North" is another
nomination that may be questioned.
So far as we are concerned it is one
Of the first choices.
Robert ]. Flnherty, who produced 1t,
did something that had never been
done before in the movies-and did 1t
extraordinarily well. Working with no
material save a family of Eskimos and
IN unlimited amount of snow, he con-