Evening star., 1939-12-03

or spear carrier. Yes, there plent
pay is good hear.
You're going to have some trol
into the studio to see the man who
might hire you He has a three
drawer cabinet bulging with appll-
cations from people like you. who
are talented and experienced. He
isn't taking any more applications,
though. He quit years ago.
He has enough help and he pre-
fers, when he occasionally puts on
An extra man or another stenogra-
pher. to give the work to one OF the
dozen or more of his department
he's had to lay off in the last few
months
You'd better realize, before you
start making the rounds, that Holly
wood has a chronic unemployment
problem. The tales about sudden
success and, seemingly, so much OF
it 1--WE writer's never tell about the
faillTes), seem to have given the rest
of the country an untrue picture OF
the conditions in this part of Cali
fornia. They ran out of free milk
and honey long ago and usually the
nights are too chilly for sleeping in
orange groves.
There must be four or five, or
maybe six, people for every job IN
HOLLYWOOD The way the unions and
the guilds here have insisted on
closed shop and restricted shop is
very good evidence there wasn't
enough work to go around.
For example. I heard about
cameraman, who'd worked for
big picture magazine. who needed
a lob. He was told he'd have to join
the union first and he said he didn't
mind that. but what, he wondered,
was he going to do while waiting
for the required 18 months to pass.
To get into the still mems union,
one has to be a resident OF Holly
wood for at least 18 months.
1t used to involve little more than
presenting oneself at a studio to
become an extra. That is changed
now, for the protection of the extras
who are trying to make living. The
casuals have been eliminated, and
to be registered at Central Casting.
an organization formed by the
studios to simplify the process of
hiring. membership in the Screen
Actors Guild is compulsory.
That presents another problem,
virtually insurmountable. Before
your application for membership in
the actors guild can be considered.
saws John Dales, assistant executive
secretary, you have to present evil
dence that the movies want you.
asked the next extra I met about
this evidence" Here's what he
said:
Il tried for months to get in. No
luck. I knew Alice Faye's family,
so I asked her to write letter IN
nv behalf. She got director to
write a letter, too. saying he could
use me in some of his pictures.
Alice also got an executive to write
the same sort of letter.
Getting back to Dales and the
guild. he explained that the organ
ization is not a closed shop but a
restricted shop"
You see" he went on. we've got
too many extras for the work we
have. When a person presents some
proof that he is type the producers
can use, that proof is given 10 the
Membership Committee.
This committee meets every three
weeks and Dales says that since
February, 1898, when the guild
agreement with the studios was
signed, only six or seven appllca-
tions per meeting have been acted
upon favorably."
Here's another case: A man who'd
been a photographer for the United
States Army wanted to be studio
cameraman. Through a friend he
got in to see the man who might
hire him. But the head of the
camera department told the for
mer Army man that even if he had
an opening-which he hadn't
membership in the cinematograph-
ers' union first was necessary.
The initiation fee of $500 is the
least of it, An applicant must have
had screen credit on five important
pictures. The Army man told me:
From where 1 sit, it looks i'm
possible"
The ordinary job-seeker, who Is
willing to do any kind OF work IN
a studio (where, he is sure. the
boss eventually will see him and
make him a director hasn't lick
of chance these days.
I'm convinced that it takes "ln-
fuence" to get a studio job be-
cause the following gave testimony
that it does: A script clerk, a
director, a messenger boy, gate
man, a janitor, prop man, a
plumber, writer, a draughtsman
a stenographer. telephone opera
tor, a truck driver, hairdresser
and an extra.
Without exception. all of them
had influence of some kind-they
knew somebody in a studio, they
had letters from friends to friends
they managed introductions thai
led to employment.
A single exception I encountered
was Rita Morrison, who said SHE
certainly did not have any studio
friends to whom she might appea
for a job. She just telephoned the
manager of the Warner Studio Cafe
opd asked for a lob as a waitress.