Evening star., 1926-02-21
The Moving Picture
By Robert E. Sherwood

THOSE who go. on occasions. to
musical comedies seldom pay
much attention to the libretto, or
book" as 1t is called-for the good
and sufficient reason that the libretto
is usually beneath notice. The music,
| the dancing, the pretty girls with or
without elaborate costumes). the indi-
vidual work of the comedians-these
are what make for the popularity Of
musical comedy. The so-called plot
amounts to zero, being used only to
fill in the gaps between songs and to
give the musicians a chance to catch
their second wind.
OF late, however, these musical
comedy librettos, plotless, polntless
and stereotyDed as they may be, have
begun to drift into the movies, and
have emerged on the screen with
enormous success.
Sally" with Colleen More as its
star, made a fortune for its producers.
Now Miss Moore is about to be re-
vealed in Irene" which. when you
come right down to 1t, is precisely
Identical with Sally"
Another version of the same story,
sally. Irene and Mary with three
Cinderellas instead Of one), has earned
| handsomely in the box office. So has
The Merry Widow"
dIlouS fldS eTS Is dDOul 10 start
work on a dramatiZation of Mr.. Zieg-
fields celebrated "Follies." using his
slogan. "Glortfying the American
Girl as a title. Eddie Cantor is pre-
pairing to play in kid Boots" on the
screen, and W. c. Fields will make
his debut as a star in The Old Army
Game" Buster Keaton will soon ap-
pear in Battling Butler" another
ada ptation from the musical comedy
n ,lyr
Look and Listen" and Corinne Griffith
will have FRITZ Scheff's role in Mile.
Modesto
1t Is probable that a veritable de-
luge Of celluloid librettos will soon
descend upon us. The movie pro-
ducers. having discovered the posi-
bilities in these trite but sure-fire
stories, will not be slow to exploit
them. Even now they are going back
favorites as THE Red MILL "Ha-
vana." Good Morning Dearie,' The
Pink Lady" Watch Your Step" and
countless others.
The best movie plot of them all
THE Chocolate Soldiers not yet
available, for the reason that it was
written by that capricious Irishman,
George Bernard Shaw, who stead
fastly refuses to do business with the
il&ul pIOuuCtlS
= i x x
The craze for war pictures con
tinues, with "The Big Parade THE
New Commandment The Crowded
Hour Three Faces East" Behind
the Front" and Havoc on view, and
What Price Glory THE Unknown
Soldier" and a hitherto untitled story
Of the Marine Corps on schedule.
At the same time (and possibly
there is some connection) there exists
n sudden and inexplicable tendency
toward the lower regions, as evidenced
by the following current titles: "Hell's
Highroad," THE DEVILS Purse"
satan in sables." Hell Bent for
Heaven" "Helrs Trail" "Hell's Four
Hundred" and "Satan's Sister"
1t looks like big year for hell,
what with one thing and another.
Indeed, the inferno is gathering nj.
most az much publicity these days as
that other popular Winter resort.
Florida. y =
The history Of tho movie business
largely is a record Of crazes, started
in each case by one outstanding pic
ture and initiated by many others.
"a Fool There Was with Theda
Bara. started the vampire craze.
"The Birth of Nation" started the
patriotic craze.
rs Any Girl Safer" started tho
immoral craze (and. incidentally, mo-
ton picture censorship.
THE Spoilers" started the Alaska
craze.
''The Miracle Man" started the re-
ligious craze.
Passion" started the costume craze.
THE Covered Wagon" started the
frontier craze.
Sally" started the musical comedy
craze.
"The Big Parade" started the war
craze.
The movies travel through cycles,
each one distinct and each one
thoroughly unexpected Any one who
can anticipate these cycles, and can
climb aboard the band wagon before
it leaves the tent, is bound to gain
not only fame but considerable wealth.
The sum Of 1921, 900 has already
been expended on Rudolph Valentines
next production, Son of the Sheik,"
although no actual work has been
don on the picture as yet. :.
1t had better be good. Lionel
Barrymore has finished his two-reel
comedy contract, and is now appear.
ing in "Brooding Eyes" :. The
Barrymore brothers seem to have
Among the recent openings at New
York theaters are Rex Ingram's
Mare NostruIn," with Alice Terry
and Antonio Moreno lat the Criterion),
and King Vidor's La Boheme," with
Lillian Gish and John Gilbert (at the
Embassy. Most of the movie
stars who dwell hereabouts have gone
to Florida, ION location" as they say.
lConyright, 1921