"THE LUCKY DEVIL" Paramount, 1925. Produced and directed by Frank Tuttle: story
by Byron Morgan, screenplay by Townsend Martin. 30 minutes.
Starring RICHARD DIX and ESTHER RALSTON with Edna May Oliver.
Paramount had an odd habit in the twenties of avoiding plots in their films! Seven, eight,
ten reels would be devoted to the thinnest of story-lines which rambled along slowly without
ever getting anywhere. Of course, occasional films ("The Ten Commandments", for example)
went to the other extreme and were over-loaded with story content, but it was typical of
Paramount in this period to avoid substance and to make up the length with sheer padding.
Sometimes the results were justified; Von Sternberg's "Docks of New York" has, basically,
sufficient plot for a two-reeler and no more, and yet what a powerful, wonderful film it
was! But the dearth of plot material really made itself felt in the programmers, denied the
camouflage of big budgets and production values, and of this species "The Lucky Devil" is
fairly typical. At seven reels the film was frankly a bit of a bore (as far as any 1925
film can really bore us today) and even this shortened version, condensed to two reels, is
leisurely and uneventful. However, it is a pleasing little subject, a fine toned original
print, and affords a welcome opportunity to renew acquaintance with the very beautiful
Esther Ralston and the rugged Richard Dix. A good deal of the film is shot out of doors,
and all told it makes for enjoyable light fare.
"MOVIELAND" Lupino Lane Comedies, 1926, for Educational Pictures. Written and directed by
Norman Z. Taurog. Photographed by Leonard Smith. Starring LUPINO LANE with
Wallace Lupine, Glen Cavener, Kathryn McGuire, Tom O'Grady. 30 minutes.
Although Lupino Lane is regarded primarily as a British music-hall and screen comedian, and
is known chiefly for his "The Lambeth Walk", which is as British as they come, he probably did
more film work in the United States than in England. He made a whole series of two-reelers
for Educational in the mid-twenties appeared prominently in D.W. Griffith's "Isn't Life
Wonderful?", and over into the sound era, was top-lined opposite Lillian Roth in Lubitsch's
"The Love Parade". "Movieland” is fast, non-stop slapstick which moves along at a breathless
pace and is noteble (a) for affording a free rein to Lupino for all his acrobatic stunts, and
(b) for providing always fascinating shots of the interior of a studio in the silent period.
Surprisingly, when Hollywood was at its peak as the centre of movie glamor and mystery, the
comedy film-makers, and notably Sennett, were doing their considerable best to satirise it
by debunking films themselves, and by ridiculing film production methods. The debunking in
"Movieland" isn't as subtle as Sennett's, but it moves along just as quickly!
"THE FLOWER FAIRY" Pathe, France, 1900. Two minutes.
This little gem is a real find, and Johnny Allen deserves a vote of thanks from us all for
resurrecting one of these wonderful old hand-colored films and making a 16mm color negative
from it. It wasn't as simple back in 1900: every single frame of every single print had to
be colored, meticulously, by hand. Despite the great beauty of this little film (and the
labs today have recreated wonderfully well the quality and texture of the original colors)
it was still but a beginning in the hand-coloring field. Ten years later, the technique
had been perfected until it was a fine art, and looking today at a film like the German
"The Margrave's Daughter"; (a full eleven minutes, still laboriously done frame by frame!!)
one finds it hard to believe that the film was not photographed in color. To say that, by
those later standards, "The Flower Fairy" is a little primitive does it no injustice; it is
a really fine little subject. In line with our policy of inviting guest program anotators,
we were pleased to find that the enthusiasm of Charles Shibuk so matched our awn that he
promptly sat down and added some coments of his own: "This two-minute short really demands
serious attention. 'The Flower Fairy' is one of the earliest examples of color in the film -
and what beautiful color! It can make technicolor hide its head in shame! The film itself
is a static display of a girl's flower garden, presented to us through dissolves, stop
motion and double exposure. For both technique and sheer pictorial beauty, this 55 year old
film is a film historian's choice item and a thorough delight".
- - - - - - - - - - -
"HERE TODAY, GONE TOMORROW" Butcher's Film Service Ltd., England, 1954. Written and
directed by James M, Anderson; narrator: Fredric Grisewood.
Produced by HenryFisher; camera - Billie Williams. Print loaned through the courtesy of
Gordon Films Inc., New York. 30 minutes.
During the war years, a new kind of filmic horror was thrust upon British exhibitors and
paying customers — the three-reel quota featurette. They were designed solely to meet the
exhibitors' legal needs for more British features, the law requiring that a certain percentage
of all product booked must be British. Anything over 3000 feet ranked as a full feature,
and thus the British cinemas became submerged beneath a welter of the most unutterably boring
so-called "interest" films running for approximately 35 minutes, and dealing almost
exclusively with the sort of fodder usually relegated to lesser-grade one-reelers - such
fascinating subjects as the training of dogs, the making of barrels and the pickling of
herrings were dealt with ad nauseum, and had more of an effect on British morale than the
robot bombs. The passing of time, the resentment of a long-suffering populace and the
increase in the production of regular British "B" second features put a stop to the wholesale
production of these quickies years ago, and only one good thing emerged from all the years of
suffering. Public and exhibitors alike had been attuned to three-to-four reel documentaries,
and provided the subject matter was of sufficient merit, there was never any trouble in
securing bookings. Films recapturing the past via old film - whether the past be historical,
political, cinematic or otherwise - have always been tremendously popular in England, much
more so than in America where films like "Fifty Years before your Eyes" have been comparatively
rare. Productions along similar lines in England, often concentrating in some detail on a
mere ten-year span, have been quite numerous, and many of the films have dealt almost
exclusively with the early days of the movies.
HERE TODAY, GONE TOMORROW - given its American premiere by this society — is a rather off-
beat member of this cycle of films. It deals with collectors - of old posters, match-box
covers, cigarette cards and similar curiosa - and of course, film, which for illustration
purposes, laps over into the other categories too. Since we have many such collectors in
our midst, we know you'll find the film a fascinating and nostalgic one. It has a good deal
of padding of course, to sustain it to a four-reel length, but we are concerned not with
its merits as a documentary after all, but with the interesting and rare things that it
contains. It was written and directed by James M. Anderson, a prominent British film
historian and collector, who has made one or two other films devoted exclusively to the
history of the motion picture.
A collection of postcards is responsible for introducing rare sequences from old films of
Lillian Gish, Mary Pickford and Maurice Costello. Wonderfully preserved newsreel footage
not only recalls the triumphs of Colonel Cody and the Wright Brothers, but also the less
spectacular but perhaps more fascinating records of England as its leisure - at the Henley
Regatta, at Brighton, at a monster carnival. Here too, we have an extract from Sarah
Bernhardt's film of "Camille", and photographic records of many of the top theatrical and
variety hits of the day - "East Lynne" and "The Curse of Gold" being typical of the former,
Marie Lloyd and escape artist Harry Houndini of the latter. Amazingly well preserved posters
of the 1905 era usher in filmic records of "Aladdin", "Nero" and other stage spectacles of
the period. At least two of these sequences are reproduced from what were originally hand-
colored films. The hectic days of the serial film's peak are admirably recalled by fine
highlights from "Zigomar", Pearl White's "Plunder", "The Voice on the Wire" and other
still-thrilling chapter-plays. Smooth transitions from a collection of cigarette-cards remind
us of the value of the cinema in recording, or recreating, history. Interesting newsreel
footage of King Edward the Seventh, Czar Nicholas the Second and others are followed by
intriguing extracts from enticing-looking epics. (Alas, many of these are not identified by
name, providing additional food for thought for historians in our midst!) Included in this
section is an early British film dealing with the Battle of Trafalgar and the death of
Nelson, the Battle of Waterloo, a well-staged Charge of the Light Brigade (from "Balaclava"),
the San Francisco earthquake and some really spectacular civil-war footage. (Apart from the
use of a phoney backdrop, it is almost worthy of Griffith). Finally, a visit to London
Transport's Legit Property office proves amply rewarded when, amidst a clutter of the usual
lost articles, an ancient projector and film are discovered. A rather nice touch this, both
projector and can look ancient and rusted. We still shudder when we think of the otherwise
admirable "Magic Movie Moments" from Warners which got off to a rather phoney start by
showing endless rows of thirthy-year old films gracefully reclining in brand-new Eastman cans
in a slick projection room! Needless to say, all of the cans must have been empty, and
their alleged contents, if still in existence, were doubtless rotting away in some hole in
the ground! "Here Today Gone Tomorrow" finishes off with a vigorous early Italian slapstick
comedy, following the classic pattern of its time - a hectic chase, with more and more
people joining in the melee as the film progresses.
"WHERE THE NORTH BEGINS" Warner Brothers, 1923. Producer: Happy Rapf; director: Chester
M. Franklin. Story: Fred Myton and Millard Webb. 80 minutes.
Starring: RIN TIN TIN, Walter McGrail, Claire Adams, Charles Stevens, Pat Hartigan, Myrtle
Owens.
It's a well-known fact that Rinty really paid off the mortgage for the fréres Warner on
many a costly flop, and this grand little melodrama is a good sample of how and why.
Obviously a cheaply made picture, it nevertheless delivers the entertainment goods with a
vengeance, mixing sentiment and action, throwing in a baby for good measure (dogs and tots
always meant more to the sticks than drawing rooms and boudoir dramas) and working up to a
rousing action climax. And despite its cheapness, it isn't a shoddy production either: the
photography is a joy, shots are nicely composed, and the camera is consistently mobile.
The print uses amber and rose tints throughout, and the few "exterior" sets constructed in
the studio put to shame a lot of the sets that are dished up today. For Rinty, it is a
comparatively leisurely film with less of the frenzied derring-do than usual; nevertheless
Rinty gets in some good stunts, performs heroically in the climax, and as always, acts to the
hilt. Here he has the opportunity to run the gamut of love, hate, jealousy, grief and joy:
one scene in which circumstantial evidence indicates that he has eaten the baby (!) brings
forth some really top-grade emoting. Make no mistake about it, Rinty was more than just a
well-trained animal (later in the year when you see Dynamite, Universal's equivalent, you'll
know what we mean) but a really fine little trouper, and, with Shirley Temple, one of
Hollywood's most remarkable stars.
Darryl F. Zanuck got his start writing scripts for Rinty; this is one that he didn't write,
and, coincidentally, it is one of the more sober scripts with which the canine star was
confronted. The two writers were Fred Myton (later one of the most prolific writers of cheap
PRC and Monogram westerns) and Millard Webb, who soon after became a director ("The Sea Beast",
etc.) Producer Harry Rapf, who died in 1949, became a slick maker of A-minus and B-plus
action pictures, two of his last being "Gallant Bess" and "Scene of the Crime" for MGM. Director
Chester Franklin continued as such on more imposing properties, and also became one of
the best 2nd unit directors in the business, specialising in animal material ("The Yearling").
Good old Charles Stevens, here seen as "The Fox", one of the lead heavies, is still going
strong in minor roles, "Killer Leopard" being one of his latest. Our print incidentally
is in fine shape, and is the full original six reels.
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OUR NEXT PROGRAM: March 15th. Thomas Inca's BARBARA FRIETCHIE with Florence Vidor, Edmund
Lowe. We have a fine toned original print on this, in its original length. Since this subject
runs a fall two hours, we will be playing only one or two carefully selected shorts with it,
to be announced in due course on our program notes mailed in advance.
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Thoughts In Passing .... our apologies to those of our members who were confused by a typing
error in our last notes which had our second show scheduled before our first! Several members
were kind enough to write and point it out, the modern element appropriately symbolised by
our contemporary "Film Experimentalists" who cryptically wrote "You goofed!" ... other sad
errors that should be corrected: Hart's "Wild Bill Hickok" was of course directed by Cliff
Smith, not Lambert Hillyer - and it is Wesley Barry, not Junior Coghlan, who appears in
"Skyscrapers" .... silliest story of the year - that "Stagecoach" is to be taken off the market
so that it can be remade! ... where do these idiotic stories start? .... Back issues of FILM
CULTURE and FILMS IN REVIEW can always be purchased at our meetings. Getting a new magazine
started is always a tough proposition, so FILM CULTURE, which is certainly worth supporting,
can use all your support, moral and financial ... the new issue should be out before our
next show, and good things are promised .... when Film Experimentalists played "The Birth of
a Nation" recently, this society helped out a little by providing program notes. This is quite
an elaborate brochure, running to five pages, and containing additional material not used in
our own notes last year. Spare copies are available, and we'll be glad to send one to any
member interested enough to drop us a postcard .... watch the Museum of the City of New York
for an interesting series of Saturday afternoon shows, among them D.W.Griffith's "Musketeers of
Pig Alley" with Walter Miller on March 5th., and Doug Fairbanks' wonderful "Manhattan Madness"
on March 19th. This is one of his best - and as far as we know, admissions are frees ... too
bad the Museum had to cancel its planned evening screenings of "Blood and Sand", "Man's
Genesis" etc. Let's hope the plan will be revived soon. .... are you as annoyed as we are that
Columbia hacked "Member of the Wedding" down to 65 minutes for release? ... incidentally, a
complete print of Ford's "The Sun Shines Bright" can be obtained on 16mm. If enough members
share our dismay at the missing three reels here in New York, drop me a line and we will
schedule the film for a future program .... sad to report that the new version of "Alraune"
with Hildegard Kneff and Von Stroheim is quite atrocious. Not even Von can save it, although he
has some good moments .... signs of the times: a nickleodeon in Hollywood, playing old movies,
has just installed a giant video screen! We assure our members that this will not be repeated
at our socitey. We haven't even gotten around to talkies yet! ... three eras of glamor on view
in Allied Artists' new CinemaScope epic of Wyatt Earp, "Wichita" - Gertrude Astor from the
twenties, Mae Clarke from the flaming thirties and today's Vera Miles. By today's standards
Vera isn't bad - but we'll still vote for Mae (and for Betty Bronson, Laura la Plante and a
few others) ... glad to report that Alice Joyce ("Beau Geste", "Dancing Mothers") has
recovered from a serious illness and is out of hospital ... the Swedish nudity cult seems to be
growing: Ingmar Bergman's recent "Monica" sets a new low in pointless nudity and miscellaneous
sex. It's nicely photographed, but that's all...........
Program Notes and enquiries: William K. Everson: Manhattan Towers Hotel
2166 Broadway, New York City 24, NY
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