THE DEADHEADS DIARY

NZ Truth, Issue 869, 22 July 1922, Page 11

THE DEADHEADS DIARY

Tho many who must have read and enjoyed "Kipps." the story of a young man's* lifo so brilliantly told -by H. O. 'WViIIs, will doubtless be interested to sco it depleted on the screen. George fC. Arthur is seenun the title role, and, with M ins Edna Flugarth, does some 'fine acting. ' i: : r tt As A. 10. Coleby is playing the lead- , Ing role m the -picture he is producing for Stoll.s, called "The Peacemaker," andi as his assistant producer, H. Nicholls Bates, has an important role m it as well, some of the 'members of the .cast are half-expecting . the camera man to do an extra turn. j

ti :: :: ' Hope Hampton is a model and sales girl m the shop' of a fashionable modiste m the opening of "Love's Penalty," which' 1 is screening m Wellington this week, and the woman who wants tp be posted on the very latest thing m New York gowns should see ■Miss Hampton 1 cope with- the vagaries of a cranky customer. • ' : Visitors to' the Sfoll- studio, at Cricklfewood, nearly always call-the-pro-jecting room ~ : the "operating -'■ room." The other day as Milton Rosmer^ was .coming out of the darkness with Maurice :Elvey,. a stranger who was being shown round the premises exclaimed, "ifcn't .that the operating room m •thfefe'?'''' "Yes, responded "Mr. Rosmer, ''that 'ls "what it might well be called, since it's where you have your feelings cut." i: '' :: :: Lovers of ' James Oliver Curwood stories have something to look forward to m "Kazan," a photo- drama describ!!ed as "extraordinary," from, the pen •Of! this famous author, who is famed ' for "ft'is 'stories of the Far North and of natural history. ' "Kazan" is adapted; from- the author's ..remarkable] tale ■ of! the great',' ,wplf- dog, known as "Kazan the Killer," and has to' do with a gripping tragedy and. a love affair, which Zander : through". many hooks and corner's of a Northern' wilderness little; : khown to- man. "The piece de resistance of thi9 uhdsual' 'phpto'piay js:the wonderful lesson' of faithfulness taught : bv : the dog ''.Kazan." ." iV'^u'peicb'' casts interprets 1 the picturesque characters of the story. Jane Novak m! the leading role, with Ben Deeley >nd Edwin Wallock gave a remarkable characterisation. .- ].■„;-, :.. ■ :: : - •- i: ■■• There has- been a tremendous slumpin" the theatres : (writes "Truth's" London 1 rep.) : , and the oircums-tances of 'the : rank ahd file of the profession are really calamitous. Play after play is ; announced as coming off and- theatres.are .closing rather than preparing for 'hew productions, a course of ac.tfon which -throws more and more of} the. actor's 'and 'actresses Out of employment while, the "road shows" are coming m and ; disbanding. A variety of; causes ; 'is assigned for the falling off m attendances— hot weather, trade depression, competition of the cinemas, and so on— but as a matter of fact the real reason is m the mediocre, character of the shows that are being put on. When the "goods" are there there is no complaint of failing off m, attendances. The crop of new playß.thiS year has so far been very uninteresting. .No really new dramatists. have shown up yet and the oldestablished ones have gone on m the same, groove that they have found payable up to now— but their last experiments are likely to give them a rude shock. . Some idea of ,the state of! the native drama at the present time may be gauged from the .fact that there are half a score of . revivals running at London theatres just at present,' including that " hoary old 'favorite. "Trilby." No one has announced . "East Lynr-.e"! yet, but as Julius Knight is ''somewhere m the country, Australians over here would never, be surpised to read that a production'of "A. Royal Divorce" was contemplate"d. Oscar Asche has not another "Chu .Chin 'Chow'' m "Cairo," which comes off. m a few days, and indeed none of the "big" productions seem to be earning their > money; though ]thie> National Opera . Company must be excepted from that rule. . It isl.curious this slump, too, for m other respects this year's season has begun more brilliantly than ever. London is crammed with people and ail the recognised "events" are" simply rushed. But they stay away from the theatres. «» »»■:-.. , «J

■ . ....i.iHm.. Norma Talmadge/ m "The "Wonder-; ful thing," is a wonderful girl! She's even encroaching on sister Connie's preserves of light comedy. It's something new for Norma to find comedy m drama— she is at one moment a loveablc madcap, at • tho next a sorrowing wife who has just learne'l that her money buys- her husband's kisses. She is the French-convent-educated daughter of a U.S.A. hamking, and her marriage to a scion' of the British aristocracy (Harrison Ford) holds roseate promise, but disastrous fulfilment. However, there's a happy ending, and it's Norma at her best.

■ ••■' It ■-■■■-■■•** ■ J I Alice Joyce was never more lovely, more appealing or natural than m "Everybody's Girl,'' a romance of a little hat trimmer. A healthy, happy fova story of an everyday girl livingalone m a big- city, earning 1 her -living ancl figuring- out for - herself all life's problems, including the greatest^,conundrum of them all — to a young", girl — Love. ::' : : ii-'- - In the arts, especially m music, we are getting more publicity than for many : years past (writes "Truth's"' London correspondent). Florence Austral is one of tho outstanding successes of the National Opera Company,' and just this week we have had a new tenor — Alfred O'Sliea-, swim 'ito-' to our ken, with such- a unanimously: enthusiastic press that one trembles for the- self-esteem of a young man just embarking on his career. One' paper even we t n't so far as to placehim alongside Melba as one o£> the great l singers that Australia has sent to England. . : ■■:.:•: :: :i '.; A picture that will be heralded as the finest of its kind ever . made! : I's : "Peacock Alley,'' with'' 'May' Murray, which is being screened m- New 2ea-. : land -m due course. It is a picture' which to :; the natural interest of a powerful love story, is added the attraction of gorgeous settings arid wonderful costumes. 'The story opens m a -small'; American vlllagey' ■S , hlfts""*''t6' Paris', back to the village and then '.to ;Ng.w York. It pictures the adven.'tinres^of;-::^ Parisian dancer who forsakes!; ih>*plaudits and favors of the gay city of pleasure to become the wife of ,<a : small town American youth, ' only to find that her husband's people are seandalised\at her arid will > have nothing to do with her. As Cleo or ; Paris, r the dancer, Miss Murray does the; finest, acting of any of her pictures; , \There is no : drtist 'on the screen can display gorgeous costumes to ' better advantage than the blonde star and she has a wealth of them m "Peacock Alley." Monte Blue m the role of the small town husband plays the part to perfection. Others ''in the Oast are EJdmund Lowe, W. J. Ferguson, and Anders Randolf. : •;««; . ■»:■;, 1 1 "If variety is the spice of theatrical managerial life, Mr;' W. A, Low 'has tasted of it to the full. Chatting with a couple of his confreres m Auckland the other day, he ran off, at their'request, some of the shows lie has been associated with' during'' the iasf ' 18 years either as business manager, touring manager or treasurer. They mounted up as follows :" Alf red Wood's Dramatic /^Company, George Stephen-' son's; English Musical Cgme.dy [. Company, American Musical Comedy Company,' "Bo Peep" Pantomime Company, "Mother Hubbard" Pantomime Company, "Fun on the Bristol Company, J. C. Williamson's Fred Niblo Company, Pollard's Opera Company, 1 Hugh 1 J- Ward's Company of •'Comedians, 1 Allan . Hamilton's "jbeauty.. and the Barge" Company, Hamilton' and Plimmer Dramatic Company, George Marlow i Dramatic Company,: Rickard's Vaudeville Company, Brennan's Vaudeville Company, Maud Allan, and the Cherhiavskys, Carrie Moore Comedy Company, ' Carrie Moore Follies Company, the Ellwood trio and John Prouse, Rosina Buckman Concert Party, 'Tiny Town, World's; Pictures and Vaudeville Company, E". J, L CarI roll pictures, Red Dandies, -Fijian ; Firewalk'ers, Annette Kelterman and i Ella Shields, and at the'. Christchurch I Exhibition he represented' Wonder- | land. I< r the last five; years Mr. Low I has been touring with Super-feature pictures, ranging from the famous 1 Johnson- Willard fight to educational films. -;■-:-:. :.ll ■ ' U: ;v -ii y-lA;-' : y.y

From Milton Rosmer': "A screen actor is ■as old as he looks, but not necessarily as dark as he is represented. His heig-ht- is lost somewhere between the long shots and tho close-ups." ' n • :s ' - ' : :» , On hearing 1 that Joan Morgan, who is playing the heroine m the' ■ Stoll, screen ; version" 'of- 'A.' E. W. Mason's novel, "I^fre Truants," began film work at eight, Teddy Arundell cheerfully remarked that he ha.d frequently worked all night! • ■ , :: :: :: It is said that on one : occasion a gen-, tleman approached the distinguished, author of "Running Water," "A Ro--mance of "Wastdale" and. 'The Tru- 1 '.ints," and inquired, "Are you a Mason?" "I am not only A. Mason." replied the distinguished author, "I am A. E. W. Mason." Wh6reupon the stranger remarked sadly that he didn't ■fcnow that lodge. More than one hundred road companies of "The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse," a Rex Ingram production for Metro of the internationally famous novel of Vicente Blasco Ibanez, are to-day touring America wh'.le the home offices of the big producing company are besieged with requests to send out additional companies to'me^t the'demand for this, the most popular film m the history of the screen. The special presentation which Metro ha < arranged m 'connection with every showing of "The Four Horsemen." has received unlimited commesidation. As a setting for this most elaborate offering of the cinema world a special musical score was arranged by Dr. Hugo Riesenfeld, director of the Criterion, Tivoli and •Rialto theatres, New York, which has proved universally .popular. This wonderful production is due for release m New Zealand some time early m August, and will be handled throughout this territory by "The British and Continental Film Co., Ltd," it :: ii Betty Compson was -amusingly tricked during the production of the Gaumont film of Sir J. M. Barries "The Little Minister." One of the most exciting scenes is that m which Babbie, finding that shq cannot blow the horn to warn the weavers, of Thrums of the approach of the English troops, cleverly tricks the Little Minister, who preaches the doctrine of non-resistance, to do! it. for her. To realistically show Babble trying desperately to blow the horn, the director gave Miss Compson instructions to blow with all her might, and make as much noise as she liked, m spite of the fact that the sound would not • show m- the picture. Miss • Compson did blow- hard, without getting any result; which is precisely 1 what : Babbie did. When the cameras had finished tnrning she discovered that they had carefully given her a horn without any reed m th© mouthpiece.

■ : ii ii' ii ■■'■■In!' all : the' length and breadth' of fiction there is no more, i.picturesque a character than Hajj, the beggar of Bagdad. Edward Knoblock, the playwright, made Hajj famous m the stage: version of ' "Kismet,!' and Otis Skinner; 1 perhaps the 'best -known and- most : popular actor m the country, immortalised Hajj during the years he gave life to this characterisation on the stage. The • pf oduction having' been .picturised, New Zealand is to have- ah, opportunity "of seeing Hajj, the beg-' gar, portrayed by nq less a person than Otis Skinner, himself- It is a safe prediction that the 'swaggering; crafty, 'adventure loving^ and amusing pld Bagdad vagabond will win everyone's heart arid m the years to comei ■when' old -plays ara- discussed, ; :: 'his • memory wIU; be: green. ;Qn tl|e stage Hajj made an instantaneous hit: whereeV'er c4 Kismetr" wks played; the screen' version will do that and imorerfor,' on the screen Hajj has an opportunity far beyond the limitations of the speaking stage, and Skinner's inter:pretatl6n of this role m the. scr&en: version' 1 'will' stand '." for; a ; long ' tinie tp! : come- as 1 'the ' finest study ' ih ; eharacte'r' ! work that the moyins picture .cameras „ ever recorded, -