Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-07-07

! am not Fundamentally In sympathy
with the attempts Of Mr.. zukor, Mr..
Fox and the others to control the world
Aim market. should like nothing bet
grueling competition, at home and
abroad, but do support them in their
contention that the French form of
blockade Is grossly and foolishly unfair.
They could raise no reasonable objee-
ton II they were compelled to pay
heavy tariff duties to the French gov
eminent; but they have right to pro-
test when they are asked TO hand over
large sums In the manner Of blacknlai!
TO their own competitors.
r Il
p ATHER than submit 10 the exorbi-
tant demands Of the contingent"
system, the American merchants have
refused to sell any Of their Aims In the
French market. They are disnissing
most Of their employees in France, clos
ing UP their cfIices and adopting a surly
"we-wont play with you -any-more"
attitude.
In view Of the fact that normally 90
per cent Of the Aims shown in France
are American made. there Is now seri-
Gus celluloid shortage from Calais to
Marseille. Pending the settlement Of
the contingent" war, the French public
Is being forced 10 struggle along with
out seeing the latest efforts Of Norma
Talmadge, Marion Davies. Reginald
| Denny and other favorttes.
One would think that this would be
an ideal opportunity for the French pro-
ducers to step in and make hay. With
no movies whatever being brought in
from America and with Scant COMPETE
tLon from other European countries,
there would seem to be chance for
wholesale production and sale Of French
films.
Nevertheless. the French producers
are doing absolutely nothing. Their
studios are, for the most part, empty
and idle. The better French cinema
stars, unable to find employment at
home, have gone to work In London and
Berlin. There is no activity and no
immediate prospect Of activity.
The cause of this amazing inertia Is
the talkies. The French producers are
afraid to make silent pictures because
and they can't make talkies because
they have no equipment, and even II
they had there are only half Q dozen
theatcrs in which sound pictures can be
shown So they are doing nothing.
They are merely living on the hope
that, with the governments aid. they
will be able to extract some golden dol
lars from Carl LAenlnle and his
brethren.
One of these days some enterprising
courageous and imaginative producer Is
going to come forward In France and
amass a fortune of staggering proper
tons. The stage is perfectly set for
his entrance.
| THOSE who wish to find any signs OF
life in the production of moving pic
lures in Europe will have to 60 to Ber-
lin and to Moscow. The Germans, as
always, are going at the work with
astounding energy and with q surpass-
ing degree of mechanical genius. Their
producers are enormously burg ana
prolific and prosperous.
The Russians have become the I'M
| questioned leaders in experimentation.
Most of the advances that are now being
made in cinematographic art are being
made In Moscow.
The directors who have given US ''The
End Of St. Petersburg" Ten Days That
Shook the World" and THE Village OF
Sin" have already gone far in explor-
| ing new realms Of possibility on the
screen. They will 60 considerably far
Their when they have learned Gas they
are learning now to be less passionately
CCopyrisht, 1897