Evening star., 1936-08-23

InlS SauCy mOrSel cnanceQ TO turn
up in a forgotten file the other day.
1t is the forerunner and equivalent
of today's Motion Picture Almanac" d"
a compendium listing all the working
actors, directors, writer's, producers,
ETC., in Hollywood. The 1896 Alma
nae" 1346 pages in length, is re-
garded by some as the greatest COL
lection Of egomaniacs ever put to-
gether in one book. Its ancestor Of
1918 had only $40 pages, but the
theory was the same.
REING quite as unconscious of
puerility as child is Of its alb
breviated pants, THE Studio Direc-
tory" points no morals about itself,
makes no excuses, admits no superiors.
In it Mr.. Sheldon Lewis took full
page add to announce that he was
known all over the world for his i'm
personation Of the Clutching Claw,
in a cinema called Exploits of
Elaine" and, equally famous as the
Iron Claw in THE Iron Claw" He
also wanted it known that he was
practicing for a workout as the Hid
den Hand in picture to be titled
"The Hidden Hand"
Julian Eltlnge needed similar space
to announce that he was off for a
six-week vaudeville tour, but would
soon return to California to resume
his female impersonations in pic
lures, his appearance as a beautiful
heroine meaning IS. r. o. at any
theater."
A chap named Frank Powell had
directed films called "A Fool There
Was" "Hedda Gabler," Mother
hood" and "The Dazzling Miss Da-
vison"-which sounds reasonable in
any age. But actors were admitting
unabashedly in their biographies that
they had played leads in epics known
as Exciting Honeymoon, Elusive
Kiss" "Oily Scoundrel," "Perils of
Divorce" 'Incorrigible Dukane," "The
Warfare Of the Flesh," and whatnot
Out of 20 pages of one-paragraph
sketches Of famous leading men, per-
haps a dozen individuals would be
recognizable to the new generation
Of film fans-the Barrymore brothers,
H. B. Warner, Henry B. Walthall,
Frank Morgan, Eugene Palette, few
others. OF the top juveniles, those
fellows who had great and undying
futures before them, half a dozen
monnikers still register. Richard
Barthelmess, Ed "Hoot" Gibson, Rod
La ROGUE, Paul Kelly, Dion Tith-
eradge and, most of all, Douglas Mac
Lean, who saved himself by turn
ing to the production end of the
game, and is now a mogul with the
new Grand National organization.
Among the character actors, time
was trifle kinder to those who sur
vived. although many already had
graduated from the leading man sta
tus to character work because of age,
and hence were filling out the last
years Of their careers. In the list
Of "heavies" not a single one survives
IN modern f1lmdom in any prominent
capacity whatsoever, but the register
draws blank chiefly because a new
conner named Rodolfo di Valentino
was not considered important enough
to be included. His manager went
to the trouble Of advertising Rodolfo,
complete with picture, in the back
of the book. The advertisement even
explained that Rodolfo was q new
type Of heavy" engaged for Joe Max
wells production of "The Married
Virgin" but the studio directorys
editors couldn't see the point, ad or
no ad. They caught on later when
the name was reduced to Rudolph
Valentino.
We need not inquire extensively
into the question Of the actresses who
faded, for that is commonplace, but
it is instructive to note that of the
blodsoming ingenues climbing the
ladder in 1918 three are even vaguely
remembered today-Florence Vidor,
Katherine Alexander (who was 20
years old them and Dorothy Mackaye
A SAD little book, no doubt. One
= that might put wrinkles of worry
IN the faces of those whose wealth and
fame depends upon having no wrinkles
at all. Yet 1t should be required
reading for the -idolatrous of
Hollywood. Maybe some burrows on
the brow will convert them into char
acter actors, and they will endure
longer.