Evening star., 1927-05-29
Motion Picture
Album
Ry ROBERT e. SHERWOOD.

THE Academy of Motion PICTURE
L Arts and Sciences has been born
in HOLLYWOOD. Although the reports
of it's first meeting have taken up
columns of newsprint, no one seems
to know just yet what l. is all ABOUT.
Its fiossy title suggests an ofganlAa.
tion similar to the French Academy
of "Immortals," but it's purpose. as
outlined by various speakers, smacks
more of the old commercial propa'
yanda than of the indicated artistic
altruism. If there is one thing the
public needs nothing more OF THESE
days, it is propaganda.
The American citizen today eats,
drinks and breathes propaganda; 1t
overwhelms him during his waking
hours; he dreams about 1t at night.
1t is awful to think how many million
gallons will be added to the propa.
ganda flood when the Academy or
Motion Picture Arts and Sciences gets
going.
The first meeting of this impressive
group must have been an incredibly
colossal bore. All meetings are nee
essarily dull, but this one appears to
have established new records for te-
diousness.
Douglas Fairbanks, president of the
academy, spoke first, being followed,
in slow succession, by Fred Niblo,
Conrad Nagel, Joseph NJ. Schenck.
Cecil B. De Mile. Frank Lloyd. D.
w. Griffith, Roy Pomeroy. Milton
Sills, Carey Wilson. Mary Pickford.
VIII Hays, Louis b. Mayer, M. c.
Levee, j. Stuart Blackton, Sidney
Olcott and possibly a few others.
Two hundred and seventy-five mem
bers of the academy attended the
meeting, that being approximately
one.half the proposed oaembership.
When you consider that there are no
more than 40 in the French academy
recruited from all the arts and
sciences-you will realize how COM
pletely the bigger and better idea has
triumphed in Hollywood.
x<* \
Most Of the speakers dilated at
length on the glorious mission Of the
moving picture to elevate the morals
of our young, to stimulate the golden
glow of romance in the hearts of hu-
manity, to promate international good
will, and so forth and so on.
1t remained for the practical Miss
Pickford to come down to cases. Said
Americas Sweetheart: 'Too long We
have accepted, without protest. the
chastisement of outsiders and have
been the recipients Of many figurative
spankings. But we have suddenly
come to the realization that we are no
longer the iufant+-We have grown, and
as grown individuals and as a ma
ture industry, we are capable of self
government, OF defending ourselves
and of protecting our good name
against accusations" hts'@
Miss Pickford pointed out that the
press Is sometimes unfair to the slaves
of the cinema. Whenever a crime is
committed in southern California,
newspapers. everywhere are eager to
identify it with the movie colony.
1--WE KNOW" said our Mary, that
Jennie Jones, accused Of shooting her
husband, is not picture actress, but
only pretends to be; but the world
does not know, and each one of us
suffers ,unjustly the consequences Of
Jennie Jones' crime. Whenever an
extra or any person even remotely
connected with the picture industry
gets into trouble. the whole picture
world suffers a loss of prestige and
its goodwill value with the public,
which is the very soul Of our exist
ence."
Here. then, is the key to the Acad-
emy of Motion Picture Arts and Sci
ences; it is a protective organization
"a first line of defense against the
barrages of SANDER and calumny
that are so frequently hurled at Hol'
1ywood.
The plan, as outlined by Miss Pick.
ford, is to make use OF the millions
of fan letters sent to the various stars
letters which, by the way. have
hitherto been worse than useless. The
names and addresses OF the senders of
these missives will be recorded and
will form the subscription list of a
bulletin to be published by the acad-
emy.
In this bulletin propaganda will be
dished out to the fans to convince
them that the movie stars are in fact
a group Of righteous, high-minded,
church-going, law-abiding, home-lov-
ing, God-fearing people, worthy of the
sacred trust with which the dear pub
lie has endowed them.
Just what connection the Academy
OF Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
has with either art or science remains
to be seen, but it is a beautiful. noble
idea and will probably harm no one.
Bulletins.
HOLLYWOOD, Calif.-Cecil Be De
Miles 1.-THE King of Kings" and sgd
Grauman's new Chinese Theater open.
ed together, the premiere attracting
the usual number OF celebrities and
fiashlight photographers. These
special super-feature and new theater
openings always give Hollywood
splendid chance to find out just who
is going around with whom at the mo-.
ment. Elmer Clifton, who
made "Down to the Sea in Ships" is
to direct film version of THE Wreck
of the Hesperus" at the De Mile stu
dios, Continuity writers are
now at work on Longfellow's famous
poem and hope to make a complete
wreck of it. The Paramount
group of comedians is to be consider
ably depleted this year: Eddie Cantor
and Ed Wynn are to return to the
stage; w. c. Fields has signed up with
+. E. o. and Douglas Mclean and
Raymond Griffith also are expected to
make other plans. Harold
Lloyd, however, is still in harness,
which means that neither Mr.. Zukor
nor Mr.. .Lasky are losing any unusual
amount of Sleep