ANIMAL ACTORS

Evening Star, Issue 20511, 16 June 1930, Page 12

ANIMAL ACTORS

■ 4* ■ PLAYING FOR PICTURES MONKEYS ARE GOOD BUT MANY ARE SHY. The animals of the jungle, and birds, and reptiles, have taken to the microphone. The latest talkie stars are elephants and monkeys, lions and tigers. Peacocks are line actors, and have good talking voices; snakes have good recording voices, and are always ready to perform, says Dr R. L. Ditmar, curator of the famous Bronx Park Zoo in isew York, describing some of his experiences in making talkies of various animals. i studied tigers, lions, parrots, and many other birds and animals bolero 1 made any talkies.” Dr Ditmar said recently. “ i was surprised to find that the voices of some of the animals I thought would record the best proved to bo the worst. Some had throaty voices; with others the iutonahee was poor; some were too shrill and rasping, and the frequency of vibration, was not all that could bo hoped for. “ In short, like people, some of the animals had fine microphone voices, while others had hopeless ones. .Some of the small animals had the best voices. “ Some of the animals proved to be too temperamental, some too stubborn, others too meddling and inquisitive. A director can coach human actors for the talking pictures, explaining to them just how to use their voices, but with animals a director’s hands are tied. The animal actor either has a good microphone voice or he hasn’t. And if he hasn’t, nothing can jie done about it. MONKEY ACTORS. “ The big cats are poor talking picture actors, although they make the loudest noises. The lions are the worst, and the tigers only a shade better. The wolves, when they howl, have fine ‘ mike ’ voices, but the monkeys are ideal types to go’ on sound records. “ They, like good singers, have the trick of throwing their voices into Uie nasal chamber, and this makes them record well. Their incessant chattering and screaming sound excellent, but the trick is to get them to chatter and scream when we want them to. 'They are always jabbering and fighting and arguing with each other, but when the ‘ mike ’ appeared they were stunned into silence. Some reached out and tinkered with everything in sight. They displayed the most lively curiosity about what was going on. So we got big bunches of bananas, and their hunger and eagerness for them diverted their attention from the ‘ mike,’ and made them babble for a while at (past.

“While it was fairly eass, by the banana bait method, to get them to make cries of hunger, it was more difficult to cajole them into making the particular strident calls, approaching screams, which they utter when angry. When monkeys are frightened they have a curious strident chatter, and this fright we had to induce by showing them a small snake. Even though the harmless reptile was placed 2511 away from them, it aroused their insensate fear.

“Monkeys have a crude vocabulary of expressive signs by which they communicate ther feelings to one another. It was interesting to observe their reactions when we put on the phonograph records they themselves had made. These records, of course, may be geared to run with a picture, and their sounds greatly amplified by radio apparatus. When the monkeys shrieked with fear in the records, the same monkeys later looked around their cages in fright, though the snake was no longer there. In one record they must have been preparing each other for some new and delightful object, for wo got a positive reaction when this record was put on immediately they all showed pleased anticipation, and one monkey even reached out and delved deep into the loud speaker apparatus itself, as though hunting for buried treasure. WHISTLING FOR CRICKETS.

“After having observed that some of the largest animals wno made tho loudest noises were not always the most interesting for micropnone work. 1 studied tho possibiities of a number of the smaller creatures. I picked out tree toads and katydids and crickets, all of whoso voices are lino for sound pictures. But the crickets wouldn’t sing unless they hear some one whistling in imitation of them, and it’s hard for a man to keep this up. Sometimes 1 could get them started with one of those wooden rattles used at New Year’s time as racket-makers. Sometimes we had to saw a piece of bronze with a hacksaw to get tho tree toads started, for they dote on rasping sounds, but this presented a difficulty, too, for when w< made noises like a boiler factory thosi noises went on tho record also.

“Tree toads will seldom sing ex cept during breeding time—a brief sea son in tho spring—which made it difficult for us to get their voices. 1 found that tho best method was to capture them, keep them in a hot, moist studio, and arouse them by sawing on brass and making other stimulating sounds, then, as soon as they started singing, stop the buzzsaw and make the records. But usually when the filing stopped they stopped, too. “ Snakes have good sound voices, and they are always ready to perform. The sharp hiss of tho cobra, as he strikes, is sibilant and loud, and the rattle of the rattlesnake is remarkable on a record. One of tho best sound-picture voices is that of the African puff adder. He is short and about 4in in diameter. His hiss is characteristic and unmistakable. This snake, when angry, makes a low hiss as he draws in his breath, and a sharp hiss when he ejects it. You can hear him from a distance of 75ft.

“ Elephants are good talking-picture actors. They make a tremendous

noise when they trumpet/ but little squeals, and pleading sounds when they are coaxing for something. In contrast to the big elephants, I have seen some good bird actors. SEA LIONS ARE GOOD. “ Sea lions are good before the ‘ mike.’ They make a loud harking noise, and it isn’t difficult to cajole them into talking for the pictures. The method is this: Take the picture one-half hour before feeding time, which is at noon. Show them the pail in which thcii fish are usually brought to them, and they will start their eager barking. “ Peacocks are not only beautiful actors, but they have good talkingpicturo voices. They make raucous noises, like a prolonged crowing, preceded by a series of chattering, but they are the most temperamental ot animal actors Two rival peacocks will often spread their tails into wide am gorgeous fans, and 'then make t..ei. distinctive noise to attract attention to their plumage. Tasy are, at the same time, insulting each other, for their noises are prompted by a mingling of vanity and jealous anger. ■in this act you have a combination of beauty and sound—but just try to capture that combination I “ Sound pictures of 1 animals and birds would bo easy to make were it not for the fact that- the animals are so often microphone-shy and temperamental, and that their voices are not always perfect, even though they are successfully bribed into. making sounds. But sine© motion-picture directors have the same trouble with human actors, the scientist should not complain.”