Evening star., 1924-02-18
Behind the Screen
Intimate, Personal the Stars OF the Slrer Sheet
Copyrg by George Dorrn Compan

Twist" and the set was pre-empted
by some older members Of the COM
pany. For a time Jackie. attired in
| blue overalls, listened to the d.
rector's voice and watched the rival
talent. Then, going over tn his
father. he caught the Others hands
and looked up appealingly into his
! face.
"Oh. daddy" he pleaded, I'm not
getting any kick out of this. Mayn't
go outside and play?"
1 When this permission was granted
| Jackie availed himself of an oppor-
tunity to assemble his favorite
playthings. These consist of a ham
| mer. some old nails and plot of
ground outside the studio. Here for
| half an hour the juvenile actor, who
| might recruit the most costly cleo
] trical toys-these have been show
world-squatted on the ground and
| hammered his beloved nails into stray
| pieces Of wood.
While he was thus occupied the
| friend have mentioned happened to
| refer to the gold chain she was wear
tion. THE Order of the Golden
| Fleece" she added laughingly to the
group of older people watching with
her over Jackie's recreation.
He stopped his hammering for an
| instant and quickly. with a look of
yes to her face.
The Golden Fleece" he repeated.
"oh, l know all about that. It's
| what Jason sailed after"
l quote this to show the information
already at the command of this as
founding lad. All l have heard from
Chaplin and from others convinces
ne. in fact, that his histrionic ability
is accompanied by one of those child
ish minds which work in all direc-
. -1,;x . L.
held back from learning too much.
One incident in connection with the
production of The Kid throws into
relief Chaplin's feeling for his small
co-Star. He was directing the child
in particularly affecting scene when
suddenly he turned to Jackies father.
You direct him--I can't stand It,"
he said. turning away quickly. The
child's tears, even though histrionic
ones, had been too much for the
high-strung. emotional Chaplin.
Charities devotion to Jackie Coogan
of the child. So. too. are the words
of a certain woman 1 know. There
is something about that boy" says
the latter, that always makes me
feel like crying. l don't know why,
for he seems so gay and happy"
myself caught in an instant that
same touching. even solemn, quality.
What is it? Perhaps because in those
wide childish eyes one feels a wis
dom brought from some other world
and not yet dimmed by that of this.
/ feel that l cannot bring my recol-
lectionS of Chaplin to Il close at
point more deeply significant of his
artists nature than the account OF
my own preview of The kid" When
he finished with this picture, attended
as it was by his conflict with Mil
dred Harris, he was in an abysmaI
state.
Sam" said he one day. Il wish
when YOU have nothing else to do
you'd come over to my studio and
look at my picture. Id like to get
your opinion of it-advice, too. If you
have any to offer"
What do you think of it?' / asked
him.
Rotten he answered. I'm aw-
fully discouraged over it,
! had heard such comments from
him before on similar occasions. for
by the time he has finished Il story
he has SO completely lost all sense of
perspective that nobody can convince
him that the production has one glim-
mering ray of merit Consequently
| attached no Importance to this
mood of his. Putting down his
words to the divine discomfort of
genius, i went over that very day
with Gouverneur Morris to see "The
Kid
Even my prejudice in favor of any
thing that Charlie does did not pre-
pare me for this supreme manifesto