davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-20
This American Scene.

UDEsPITE the cry that the stage Is
~ waning with the advent OF the
talking picture, America offers the as
piring young actor more opportunities
than any country in the world, accord
ing to Bella Lugosi, Hungarian stage
star and creator of the role Of Ora
cula in the theater. Mr.. Lugosi Is now
PLAYING the detective in THE Thir-
teenth Chair" Tod Browning's talking
production.
America" he says. with more free
dem than any country in the world,
offers more opportunity for self culture
than any other by virtue OF this very
freedom" he says. I'm Europe we are
slow and sure-in America you hurry
and take q chance. In Europe, for In
stance, the municipal control OF thea
tiers is highly systematized, and the
Young actor advances slowly step by
step. There is no other way. OF
course, he learns much that way.
But in America young actor car
make a single hit and obtain what you
call o break Some say it's matter
of luck--and perhaps it is--but there
are opportunities In this country the
European aspirant to the stage never
sees"
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-20
Picture c4lbu,,r
By Robert e. Sherwood.

were made) to stand up under the hor-
rible strain Of success. One OF the most
pathetic cases Of all was Charles Ray.
Here was fine young actor who gave
startlingly competent performance in
a Civil War drama called THE Cow
ard" and in: family shot upward toward
the zenith of the Hollywood heavens.
At one time Mr.. Rays drawing power
was great enough to I'LL any theater
with his adoring admirers. He was
willfully murdered as popular idol by
his ever-greedy employers. Knowing
that every Charles Ray picture made
money, they made more and more
Charles Ray pictures. There were as
many as nine of them In one year. It
were or how much or how little thought
went into the preparation Of each one.
All that mattered was the stars name.
The market was glutted with Charles
Ray. With the result that this able
and unfortunate young man faded into
obscurity long before his time.
The same thing has happened to
dozens of others In the brief but turbu-
lent history Of the screen. Over and
Is nothing so tiresome as too much OF
good thing.
THERE Is no reason for the public to
mourn the passing Of the star sys-
tenn. It was economically false, it was
absurdly unbalanced, and, worst of ALL
1t was productive of bad pictures.
Formerly q star could afford to be
arrogant and demand all the best dra-
matte moments and all the close-ups
in every Aim. II an important male
star were playing scene with his lead
ing lady. all that the audience would
usually see Of her was the back OF her
neck, although she might easily be the
one in whom the audiences interest
was concentrated. And any player in
any minor part wo gave evidence OF
being too good would be arbitrarily
squelched, perhaps eliminated entirely,
lest he steal some of the stars thunder.
I remember the case Of one star who
had o contract giving him complete
control of every detail Of every picture
in which he appeared. A story was
selected for him in which he was to
appear as a war hero who knew in his
heart that he did not deserve the medals
and honors that had been lavished upon
him. In fact, he knew land the audi
ence knew that he had possessed q
yellow streak. The whole story was
concerned with his attempt after the
war to live down that terrible memory.
The star In this case read the story
and said: Eyes, it's fine part and
very dramatic, and I'd love to play it.
But there's Just one thing we've got to
change. We've got to Ak it SO that guy
really was Q hero in the war;"
That particular stars long-term con-
tract came to an end just few weeks
ago. It was not renewed.
Copyright, 1929
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-20

WEXFORD BEAToN, whose frequent
w trenchant observations upon the
art and science Of motion pictures In his
own Film Spectator have made him
something of q well known figure, has
this to say in a recent issue Of his jour-
nal about the initial venture Of Douglas
Fairbanks and Mary Pickford into
Shakespeare:
when The Tanning Of the shrew'
is released the public ID going to see
some things in it that never were pre-
scented on any stage. 1t is going to see
Mary Pickford fall of horse into q
particularly juicy mud puddle. 1t also
is going to witness the throwing Of the
nearest approach to custard pie that
the period Of the play boasted as well
as q lot Of other slapstiek heretofore
denied any audierce which assembled
to witness q stage performance OF this
Shakespearean comedy. Some critics
are going to abuse Mary and Doug for
taking liberties with the Bard Of Avon
And still there is not scene in the
screen version of The Tanning Of the
Shrew' that cannot be found in the play
itself. Sam Taylor, who made the adap-
tation for his own direction, merely has
visualized on the screen some OF the
incidents the characters in the play
describe, and which no doubt would be
presented on the stage II 1t were prac-
tical. In the play Katharine not only
falls of the horse, but the horse falls
on top of her, so If any blame can be
attached to Sam it lie on the score that
he did not give us in that scene every
thing that was in Shakespeares mind.
THE Tanning of the Shrew' is ex-
cellent screen entertainment. 1t is done
superbly, with keen sense OF humor.
with q satirical twist that Is exquisite
and with q pictorial establishment that
would be impossible to any other
medium.
"The greatest difficulty It Is going to
encounter will be that Of making the
public believe that it really Is Shakes
peare, because that greatest genius
whom the world has known belongs to
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-20
Guiding the Drama

scription support in previous seasons,
is, of course, partly experimental in
those cities which are being visited this
wear for the first time in regular SUBJ
scription repertory, Mr.. Largner noted.
I'VE are trying to find out" he said,
which cities want the guild, want the
type of plays that the guild produces.
AS we find that out. so will we arrange
our schedules and itineraries in the fu-
ture. We are told that our present
season here, from the angle Of local
considerations, such as variously affect
theaters in different cities, is excellent
and fully comparable to other indi-
vidual attractions"
Mr.. Langner's comment, though he
did not say 1t as abruptly as the reporter
does herewith, indicated that it is OBJ
viously "up to washington" to reveal
its desires in the matter of recurrent
guild ENGAGEMENTS here. Such a desire
takes only one form In the theater, and
that is the form of patronage-not q
mere vocal or theoretical support, but
concrete display OF sympathy with
the guilds dramatic ideals. provided
that sympathy exists in the first place.
Permanent success Is not easy for
dramatic enterprise, even for the Thea
ter Guild, which might appear from
its present solid entertainment in New
York and divers subscription cities tc
be sailing along on its own remarkable
reputation. The undertaking Of the
touring project entailed the most Seri-
Gus consideration of all those factor:
which admittedly initiate against sue.
cess on the road today. 1t has meant
hard, painstaking work; it has cost 6
great deal of money; it has met dis.
appointment in some instances and in
spring recognition in others. What tht
undertaking has actually meant to TIT
outlying stage, what 1t may EVENTUAL!
mean, cannot be estimated, but thu
guilds effort to share in bringing abou
whatever rejuvenation Of the theatei
may be possible Is sincere and q cour
ageous one. It needs but one glance a
| the care and energy given to whipping
"R. q. r. into shape to discover that.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-20


THURSDAY morning at the National
Theater - backstage detonations
heard from q darkened auditorium; fig-
ures weaving about in an almost ghostly
pattern; voices far away but notably
warm and cordial; the trivia of greeting
and Jest as new figures joined the group.
And through it all an uncommon in
tentness upon the matter OF getting
"R. u. r." staged and set for q trial
rehearsal
Reuben Mamoulian, the Theater
Guilds young Armenian director, feel
ing the texture Of q woman'S hair TO
see if it would serve her robotess self
without q wig; some one asking Lee
Sinmonsor, the guilds star designer, II
he could dash OF couple of wall pos
tiers ine his spare time 80 they, after
all, have any spare tirnef1; Mr.. Manou-
Ian giving directions for the first act,
the third act, for all the myriad details
Of prod,tction connected with this meio-
drama of mechanical men, every detail
being psychologically important.
Lawrence Eangner, who sounded the
first clear call for guild organization,
more than 10 years ago, was one Of the
group at the National. having come down
from New York 10 witness the Wash
ington evolution Of "R. y. r." The OBJ
vious question put to him by The Star
reporter concerned the success Of the
guilds fifst washington subscription
season thus far, and it seems that while
local hospitality has been nothing phe-
nomenal, the guild is rather well pleased
with the reception given the work OF
the guild acting company. Subscrip-
lions, emitting holders to preferred seats
at subscribers rates. have been taken
on q good scale, and the non-subscrip-
ton seats (such as those in the bal
cony), bought by box-oface customers.
have gone we'll Washington has been
quite as satisfactory, Mr.. Langner feels,
as other first subscription season cities,
such as st. Louis and Cincinnati.
The sending Of IAN acting company
IN the road, while 1t has passed the
experimental stage In those cities which
& We proved Themselves reliable for sub
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-20
Ta-Ha. the Indispensable.

ONE Of the most important men in
all Of Africa, so far as Hollywood
Is concerned. is Ta-Ha. q 42-year- old
F'uzzywuzzy whose home Is Port Sudan,
on the coast Of the Red Sea.
Without Ta-Ha the filming Of 1.-THE
Four Feathers" would have been an
even greater task. for he was the one
Interpreter found by Co-director Ernest
B. Schoedsack and Merriam G. Cooper
among the 100, 900 members of that IA
nous Dervish tribe.
That the language of the FuzEys Ia
difhcult IL attested to by the directors
who knew as little about 1t at the end
Of eight months among these natives
as when they first arrived. Ta-Ha had
been captured by the British at Suakin
when he was IL. and had spent four
years as a cabin boy on a British gun
boat learning fairly good English.
With Ta-Ha's help, Cooper and
Schoedsack obtained excellent results
with the hundreds of savages who ap-
pear In the African scenes Of The -Four
Feathers"
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-20
Strange, Mysterious Sea.

WHEN Columbus, making that cele-
w brated east-to-west hop in 1892.
encountered q vast world of seaweed so
thick that 1t impeded the progress OF
his vessel has men became frightened.
To avoid 1t he veered north, and 50
discovered islands OF the coast OF North
America instead Of the South American
mainland.
since that time the Sargasso Sea has
figured both az q scientific reality and
legend. The only deliberate attempt to
explore 1t and prove that, as theory has
it, veritable solid floating island Of
seaweed and wreckage exists at its CEN
ter, was made q century ago by the
famous Friedrich Won Humboldt. HIS
scientific expedition found land animals
and wreckage such as floating trees
from three continents there. but he
could not penetrate the center.
The Isle of Lost Ships" is picture
using story of the Sargasso Sea as a
background. Great pains were taken
in research to make the backgrounds
for the story scientifically accurate.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-20
THE DRAMA ON BROADWAY
BY Percy Hammond.

n n ANY followers of Ring Lard
Nh ner's work In the arts Of lit
I'M erature and the drama do not
know that he also excels as
musician. Possessing diplo-
mas from several conservatories, ne Is
skilled In the operation OF numerous
instruments, including the piano, tne
pipe organ, the accordion and the ME.
He tells me that once when O child IN
Niles. Mich, his parents discovered tnat
he was missing from the nursery. Inc
Adam Forepaugh shows were In Town
at the time, and he was found at sun
rendition of Sousa's High School Ca
diets" His little legs and arms were
barely long enough to reach the gadgets
of the machine, but he had mastered 4.
His subsequent progress from cymbat
to tuba in the village band was swift,
and he soon became almost as noted In
the neighborhood as Mozart ana Wag-
ner.
However, circumstances over which,
as ne describes it. he had no control
forced him to be man Of letters. But
he remained at heart troubadour, not
novelist, playing and singing when
ever he could get an audience. His pas
sion finally led him to write June
Moon" q comedy about the frustrated
music makers, which, with the assist
ance Of George S. kaufman, has be-
come as necessary to New York as Tam
many or the Brooklyn Bridge. It Is SO
popular drama that unless you are an
intimate friend Of Newman or McBrioe
you win not be permitted to attend.
You know. of course, that June
Moon" IS remarkable for the wit and
humor with which its eavory charac-
tiers are illustrated. It Stimulates one
Of those old-time Winchell Smith IA
bles with def doses of subtle burleeque
making. it new and fresh, but not toe
young Norman Foster as bard, from,
Schenectady. comes to Broadway to
market his infantile lyrics, and here he
| meets the amusing riff-rah OF Tinpan
alley and involves himself in its fur
and pathos. To prove his acrid SYM
pathy for a suburban minstrel, Mr.
Lardner writes song for him, as fol.
| lows:
Life Is q game.
Playing the b best we know how;
Don't let 1t wranRle
No one can win All the time.
Seem dead against you
What WI, ., has to %. be h. has to Be.
For life is came
| And God is a fine referee!
Mr. Lardner's music for the ballaC
Hello, Toxic" is unprintable, but hi
words, as sung delectably by Philip Loeb
| 90 something like this:
| Hello, hello, Toxic.
| Grille, you'll excuse 1t, please, -
/ II no spik japanese
| This little call will leave me broke-e-o,
4 But / simply had to say, IT love you So"
Believe me, dearie, it's no joke-e-o.
I'd gladly fly through FIRE and smoke-e-o
Fairest flower Of Toki-oki-okio.
They tell me that June Moon" tn
theme song Of June Moon" is alread,
best seller, and that Montana Moon
one Of the minor numbers OF the play
establishes Mr.. Lardner as the first min
strel Of his day. with the possible ex
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-20

A SCORE Of mural artists, preparing
"A wall decorations for the newest
Fannie Brice picture, worked on what
was probably one of the largest easels
ever constructed. 1t was 400 feet long
by 80 feet wide.
The easel mounted ten 20-foot pam
els in modernistic motifs depicting the
evolution of the jazz age. When COM
pleted the murals were glued to quar-
ter-circle columns and formed the walls
Of q gigantic cafe set.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-20
The snoring

TIME old Hollywood stars are slowly
sinking beyond the western hor-
lion and new stars are not ris'
Il ing to take their vacant places
You have only TO glance at the
movie advertisements In newspapers to
realize that the star system is definitely
on the wane. These days the name OF
the picture comes first. There are still
Q few solitary luminaries who monopo-
lie the electric bulbs, notably among
them being Harold Lloyd, Greta Carlo
Clara Bow, Al Jolson, Gloria Swanson
Will Rogers, Ina Claire, George Arliss
Marion Davies, Ronald Colnan and
John Gilbert. But their ranks are thin
ming, and not because Of the 1S-day
diet, either. n
The big pictures now--"The Holly
wood Revue" cold Disgers Of Breed ;t. :;
Broadway" "The CocS-Eyed world
etc.-do without stars, and DO nicely,
Top-heavy casts are not practicable in
talking pictures. As q: matter Of fact,
they were not practicable In silent pic
lures, but &c was the tradition in the
cinema that the names Of stars were
closely associated with the size Of box
office receipts.
This tradition went back to the earli-
est years Of the movies infancy. In
those times, when all sorts Of people
from all sorts Of trades were focking
to the new celluloid Eldorado, the dis
tribution and sale Of pictures were in
trusted to men who knew nothing cf
the principles of showmanship. In the {
frantic efforts to advertise their wares
and to interest the public they seized
on the one talking point" that was
most obvious to their limited sense Of
perception. That talking point was per-
sonality.
If q Mary Pickford. a Theda Bara
or a Wallace Reid made a success in
one Aim and established certain de-
gree Of popularity, then that previously
unknown individual instantly became a
star whose name was glorif1ed on the
electric signs and the florid covers Of
fan magazines.
The public was encouraged-indeed,
1t was compelled-to believe that the
show. The presence of q big star was
supposed to atone for d bad story,
stupid direction, incompetent photog-
raphy, general dullness ''If Francis x.
Bushman is in It, 1t must be good"
The personality rather than the play
became the thing.
INDIVIDUAL stars in the old days
gained fame and were paid incredi-
BILE salaries. But they also carried in
tolerable burdens Of responsibility.
When they collapsed, as almost all Of
them did, their downfall was swift and
traeically complete. :.
All Of them were grossly oversold. It
was impossible for flesh and blood (of
which all the stars, without exception,
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-20

announcing "The Isle Of Lost ships,"
q First National Vitaphone production,
for the Earle Theater this week. It Is
said to take q striking romantic and
dramatic situation, to shipwreck all the
characters and then plunge them
worlds still UNEMPLOYED, enigmAtic re-
gion, the Sargosso Sea. For Virginia
Valli and Jason Richards (the lovers Of
the story and Robert O'Connor (who
plays o detective) the SArgosso Sea
proves, as it were, to be inhabited, for
there's Q little colony there under the
rule of an ex-whaling ship captain
en- who make up the colony
While the story Is sweepingly mag
NATIVE, unlike THE Lost World" it is
said to be based upon scientific fact,
and for this reason more likely to In
trtgue and entertain, especially as the
flne histrionic efforts Of the actors and
the treatment given the plot by Direc-
tor Irwin Willat entitle It to first con-
sioeration on the grounds of sheer
entertainment.
Mr.. Willat has filled his cast with
picturesque characters, and the scenic
value Of the island of seaweed and
derelict ships, with the artistic quality
Of the photography and technical work,
which reproduces miles Of wrecked ships
VA GFCAy CCAtuky OaCk 10 bk1C COEnSu
galleons; Is said to be worthy Of ex-
ceptional note.
The love affair is novel and the pic
ture abounds In humor as well.
FRENCH MARIONETTES, FRIDAY.
Gordon Craig, Maurice Maeterlinck
and other high luminaries Of the lit
erary field have always believed that
marionettes had O very definite niche
in the value Of the drama and conse-
quently spent years in studying the pos
sibilities Of the figures; also they have
contributed remarkable pieces Of lit
erature for rnarionette use.
Four performances of the French
Marionettes are to be given at the
D. A. r. Hall this week-"Uncle Wig
gely" at $3.50 o'clock on Friday after
noon and at 2:30 on Saturday, while
''Skippy" will be given Friday evening
at $3.50 o'clock and on Saturday morn
ing at IL O'Clock An added attraction
to the performance Friday evening win
be an Illuminated ballet with illuminat.
ed marionettes.
Tickets may be obtained through r.
Arthur Smith, 1880 G street, or by mail
order sent to Miss Christy Jones, 1928
street northwest, or telephone to
Metropolitan 1889.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-20
A Slapstick Shrew

period four centuries divided from this
one, his modern audience, either OF
readers or theatergoers, is limited, and
the fact that he was as much master
of slapstick as Mack Sennett or Hal
Roach ever was credited as being has
been lost sight of. Shapespeare was
the Molnar of his period, the Eugene
O'Neill, the Arthur Hopkins and the
Mack Sennett. and Doug and Mary have
brought the Mack Sennett side of him
to the screen, presenting it with q
faithfulness that any one who knows
his Shakespeare will accept with de-
light"
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-20

London playgoers. relenting in their
patent dislike for gloomy continental
Drama" have greeted a Dutch tragedy
as the first hit Of the new season. 1t
is Rising Sun" written by Herman
Heijermans over q decade ago, and
previously presented for q single per-
Torrance.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-20

EARLE--"The Isle Of Lost Ships"
No producer, 1t is claimed, has dared
to be so imaginative and succeeded in
being likewise so strikingly realistic and
convincing as the producers Of 1.-THE
Isle of Lost Ships" since the time when
the same company sponsored the film
The Lost World" This is advanced III
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-20

The Theater Guilds opening play,
tepidily received, by the way, lost q
whole act between the dress rehearsal
and the public premiere. The powers
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-20
JEWISH NATIONAL FORUM
October 80.

The National Forum Of the Jewish
Community Center Of this city will for
mally open itS fourth season wednesday
evening. october 80, with Count Ilya
Tolstoy as the big drawing card on the
program. Count Tolstoy, son OF the
World-famous novelist Leo Tolstoy, will
lead a symposium on Russia, and Sen
ator william H. King and others have
been invited to participate In the dis
cussion.
The season Of the National Forum
will include seven other events Of un-
usual diversity and interest, all open to
the public. Two outstanding women will
appear on the program in November
Nine. Anna Shomer Rothenberg In a
song recital, with emphasis on Russian
folk music, wednesday evening, Novem-
Der 13,. and Mrs. Mabel Walker WILLIE
brandt, making her FIRST public appear
ance In lecture since the publication OF
her prohibition articles, on Wednesday
evening, November 20.
December l Bertrand Russell, the
noted English philosopher, will give a
lecture, and after January the events
will present such outstanding celebrities
as Jacob Ben-Ami, one of the founders
Of the Jewish Art Theater and co-star
with Eva La Galliene Of the Civic Rep
ertory Theater, and Dr. Morris Fish
bein, leading medical lecturer in
America and editor Of the American
Medical Association Journal.
The final event in the program of the
National Forum will take place in April
when the Kreyborg Puppet Shows will
be presented, with musical accompani-
Ynent.
The series is open to the public and
tickets for individual events are to be
had at the Jewish Community Center
Sixteenth street at Q northwest.