Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-20

nT%HIS is the forest primeval.
The n1urmuring pines
and the hemlocks,
"A Bearded with moss.


in the twilight,
Stand like DruidS of old, with
voices sad and prophetic,
Stand like harperS hoar, with
boards that rest on their buSomS.'
When Longfellow wrote those
words of "Evangeline," he almost
composed the music as well. He
wrote an epic poem of great hui
man depth, beauty of expression
and, withal, a. dignif1ed grandeur
And now we understand that Al
JolSon is to write the theme song
for Edwin Carewe'S film version OF
the immortal poem.
"Evangeline," although it has
been toyed with by movie pro-
ducers before, should be made
into the greatest photoplay ever
produced. 1t has the pictorial
possibilities; it has the emotional
appeal; its lovely lines are familiar
to every Schoolboy and girl
Deems Taylor might write the
music for such a picture, or there
are other musicians who are
capable, in a way, of contributing
but we will probably have JolSon
and Longfellow. Tin Pan Alley
and Arcade. And the theme song
may run like this:
"The steamboat whistles round
the bend,
Oh, Eyangeline, my Evangeline,
For-you-I- pine. (Sob)
The sun shines East; the sun
shines West,
But I know where the sun shines
best,
Away down South in Arcad-ee
You done stole nah heart from
me-"
Seriously, Longfellow'S poem de-
serves the highest grade of syn
chronization. If the picture is to
be big one, it should have big
music, a bit of the murmuring
pines and the hemlockS-maSter
music for a master poem, and not
the grade of Tin Pan Alley songs
usually associated with photoplayS
as theme songs. And, if you
should desire to know, Dolores del
Rio is to play the title role of
Evangeline in the Carewe produc-
ton. She, with her director. is
given an opportunity in blazing
a trail toward new screen glories
y x
WE attended, at a late hour one
Nv night last week, a pre-vieW
OF the new Fannie Brice picture,
my Man." screened in the pro-
lection room of the Metropolitan
Theater Building. And, during
the evening, the star herself, then
playing at the National Theater
dropped in to witness her first
photoplay vehicle.
MY Man" naturally, is built
around one of the songs which
have made Fannie so well known
to the American stage. Also, the
star appears in each and every
scene. She sings one song and
then another, but her principal
vocal effort comes through the
Sound-Screen production of my
Man." The plot has to do with q
factory girl who, with her antics,
amuSeS her fellow workers. In
the end, Of course, she meets with
stage success. And Fannie is the
whole picture-yoice and movies.
WEXFORD BEATON, editor of
The Film Spectator, pub
lshed where the movies are made,
in Hollywood, was one of the first
screen critics to, favor the sound
pictures, but in the last issue of
his publication he states that he
has changed his mind and that
"the dialogue picture never can
be a big box ONCE attraction" He
says:
AT the outset, I will grant the
truth OF any claim presented on
behalf of the dialogue picture. II
you argue that dialogue cannot
be judged fairly until it has been
given a chance to make further
progress toward perfection, will
agree with you. When I was an
earnest champion of dialogue In
pictures, / argued that all the me-
chanical imperfectionS that are
being encountered now would be
overcome, and I still am of that
opinion. Consequently any doubts
I hold about the future of screen
dialogue are not based on the idea
VIII
be able to reproduce it properly
The screen today is following the
trail Of the radio and the phono-
graph, and all the perfection in
reproduction reached by them is
available to Hollywood studios
In fact, I do not retract one claim
] have made for the talking pic
ture. I have not seen one yet
that does much more than give
a hint Of what is possible, but in
making out my case against dia-
logne am assuming this possible
perfection, and am not arguing
on the basis of what has beer
presented to us thus far"
Then, Mr.. Beaton not only goes
into the art of the thing, but he
takes up the sound pictures from
the box Office standpoint. He tells
OF instances where silent picture;
have had longer runs than the
sound pictures, stating that while
dialogue pictures still were Z
novelty they did big business, but
that stage has been passed, anc
now patrons shop for their enter.
tainment. I do not condemn al
talking pictures. They are a new
form of entertainment. The really
great pictures, those upon which
the industry will depend for it.
profits, will not utter word tina
the public can hear"
An investigation of the loca
situation shows that Mr.. Beator
may know all about what is hap
pening in Hollywood, but that h,
is not aware of photoplay affair
IN the National Capital. The mos
successful pictures in Washington
during the past few months hav
been the dialogue pictures. 9TH