NOTES FROM THE FILM WORLD

New Zealand Times, Volume LIII, Issue 12394, 13 March 1926, Page 13

NOTES FROM THE FILM WORLD

FOX SPECIAL FOR KING'S, x Screening on March 19th, at the King's Theatre, is "The Wheel," a William Fox special attraction, starring Margaret Livingstone, Claire Adams, Mahlon Hamilton, and Imprison Ford. This picture is a melodrama of modern life. The special significance of *the title lies in‘the fact that it is through the use of the roulette wheel that the villain plays upon the hero's love for gambling and gets him his power. One can also find a deeper significance, however, in the strange and ever-changing situations brought about by the turns in the wheel of life. * • • • •

Pauline Starke has the leading feminine role in "As No Man Has Loved," the William hVs Giant special to be screened at the De Luxe Theatre for the week commencing April 2nd. In

this production she does t some of the best work of her career#, appearing, as •she does, as the faithful' sweetheart, who watted through all the yeaVs f£r her lover to be, pardoned. And she is ,an old woman of 78 when President Lincoln ‘signs and hands the document to her that means her lover's .release,: and ghe dies as she , waits upon the wharf for the vessel that is to bring him home. Her splendid characterisation of this role is so faithfully portrayed that tears come' to the. 'eyes of even the most hardened critics and. the theme, of love and faith t draws to its pathetic close. •• ■ • MARY PICKFORD Mary Pickford attended a fancy dress ball at the Ambassador Hotel, Hollywood, recently. She chose to impersonate .'Lillian Cish, one of her closest' friends, and represented Miss Gish, in the character of "Mimi" in "La Boheme." • ■ • • • • Princess BibeßCo, daughter of former Premier Asquith, of England, got a taste of real wild west life, while visiting with Mary Pickford at Hollywood. -A horse the Princess was riding ran away and threw her off, causing injuries that confined her to bed for several days/' • ■ •■ . „ • ;. • * - Winifred Dunn, author 0$ Mary Pickford's new photoplay, "Sparrows," a story with its locale on an: island: in the swamp country, was herself born and raised on a pretty island in the lakes of Wisconsin. -Sparrows" is an original story by Miss Dunn, who is known as the youngest scenario editor in pictures. •.. • • • TAKE NEW YORK BY STORM The local Metro-GoldwyiT exchange has received a cablegram from their New York office, the contents of which will, no doubt, be of interest to those people Who follow the movements of the picture industry, and look forward, with anticipation, for those ' pictures which have made history for themselves in other parte of the world. The undermentioned pictures have taken New York by stbrm. and have created a splendid record. Never before, in Broadway have such unprecedented crowds clamoured’ for .admittance to four theatres which were screening at one and the same time tthe product of one . producing company. These four productions, which, will be released in Australia and New Zealand by MetroGoldwyn, are:—"La Boheme," with Lillian Gish and John Gilbert; ''The Big Parade"; "Mare Nostrum" (our sea); "Ben Hur," the mightiest of all mo-tion-pictures. ••• . • “TESSFOR THE DE LUXE

Beauty and talent combine to ' aid Blanche Sweet in giving an excellent, thoroughly-satisfying interpretation of

the role of Tess Durbeyfield, the . heroine of Thomas Hardy's English classic "Tess of the D’Urbervilles," in the Metro-Goldwyn motion-picture version of the same name which will be screened at the De Luxe Theatre, commencing on March 19th.

Miss Sweet typifies young English girlhood, and at the same time possesses the histrionic power to enable her to portray vividly and realistically the reactions to the horrors which Fate visits upon the unfortunate Tese... .The picture was directed by Marshall Neilan and filmed in England. The glories of the English countryside, together with several notable scenes of London, invest the production with a k charm otherwise impossible to get* The

cast fits the powerful story perfectly. Visa Sweet has been mentioned. Opposite her Conrad Nagel plays Angel Clare, to whom the realisation of what true love means conies too late. Stuart Holmes, as the betrayer of Tess ? gives another faultless picture of villainy. George Fawcett is cast as Old John Durbeyfield.

UNIVERSAL FEATURES FOR N.Z. It has been said that "Before Mid* night," to be released i.i New Zealand by Universal, is the best picture in which the popular Mr Ruosell has appeared. This may be due to the fact that he has the role of a U S. Secret Service agent, a part to which his talents especially lend themselves. The element of mystery is held through to the climax, and" every foot of reel is a foot of action. • • • e Forty-four persons, half-a-dozen trained horses, a carload of properties, 6ix cameras, two large transportable generators for lighting scenes, were taken to Canada by the company which produced on Canadian soil "The Calgary Stampede,'' Hoot Gibson's latest starring attraction for Universal. • • • • "The Little Giant," a Universal pro-

duction starring Glen Hunter, is the first picture made by this company in fin East for seven years, many of the sqsnes having been taken* on the old Boston Post road. Hunter is supported by # a very strong cast of featured players, including Edna Murphy and David Higgins.

e • e • Marc McDermott, who played an important' rolq, in "Siege," a previous Uni-versal-Jewel, was cast for the part, of Ames Etheridge, wealthy impressario. around whom the sensational story of Rex Beach's: "The Goose Woman" revolves. This outstanding attraction was produced by Universal and is announced for early release.

Art Acord, who is being starred by Universal in "The Call of Courage,** is, or rather was, a regular cowpuncaer ami not a make-believe one. Acord has ridden for numerous large ranch outfits and in addition has won numerous bronchobusting championships. • Supporting Acord in his latest picture ere Otive Hazbrouck, Duke R. Lee, Frank Rice, Floyd Shackleford and others. • e • •

“BEGGAR ON HORSEBACK," AT# THE EMPRESS

In "Beggar on Horseback," James Cruz© is said to have his most ambitious production since "The Covered Wagon." "Beggar on Horseback" is a pioturisation of the Near York_ stage success, and features Edward Horton and Esther Ralston in the leading roles. Cruse spent a phenomenal amount of time in preparation and filming the production, and, the completed scenes are said to constitute one’of the most amasingly fantastic productions ever made. One of the largest stages at the Paramount West Coast studio in Hollywood was used for a single set. ' Edward Horton and Esther Ralston, who played Mrs Darling in "Peter Pan, are featured in the leading roles of the production. Miss Ralston has the role of Cynthia Mason, and Gertrude Short plays Gladys Cady; the other girl who > participates with Horton in the fantastic adventures which compose his dream and which constitute one of the most . amazing adventures ever screened, e•‘ • •

Revealing a new and fascinating story cf midnight merrymaking in Broadways classiest night dubs, “Night Life of New York" , is announced as an early Paramount release. Bod La Rocque is an engaging, lovable young man who is ready for fun, fight or. frolic at any time, and he gets it in the most surprising manner in this snappy picture of New York and its night life, which will be seen at the local Paramount house'shortly. Others in the cast are Dorothy Gish, Ernest Torrence, and George Hackathorne. . • • • •

"The Monster," a Metro-Goldwyn production, based on Crane Wilbur’s stagethriller, opens at the Britannia Theatre shortly. Lon Chaney, who played "The Hunchback of TOotre Dame* and "He Who Gets Slapped," appears in the title role. "The. Monster" is a surgeon whose twisted brain delights in a performing strange operations upon victims be lures to bis sanitarium. Johnny Arthur, who is featured with Chaney, is a stage comedian new to the screen. He plays an amateur detective who blunders upon the solution of the mystery of the horrors of the sanitarium. Gertrude Olmsted, who started her picture career by winning the Elks-Herold-Examiaer beauty contest, is the leading woman. She plays & small town belle who gets into as many dangers as Pearl White did in "The Perils of Pauline."