New Britain Herald Newspaper, December 9, 1922, Page 4

FAMOUS PLAYERS CO. DROPS MARY MINTER Wanda Hawley Out Too-Former in Taylor Murder Mystery A number of important figures will be missing with the new year from the motion plcture lineup of the Ia- mous Players-Lasky corporation, it was announced at the New York headquarters yesterday, Of these the most prominent is Mary Miles Minter, who has been rising with the development of the industry from early days as a child star. With her passing from the Paramount fold oc- curs the last echo, so far as this or- ganization is concerned, of the shoot- ing of Willlam Desmond Taylor, one of their directors, Contract Was $250,000. Following this case, in which Miss Minter's name and letters were men- tioned conspicuously, the public re- ception of her pictures was watched closely. '“South of Suva,” her first picture distributed after the murder, did not indicate any great amount of popular favor, and following the re- lease of “The Cowboy and the Lady” Adolph Zukor, president of Famous Players, did not feel justified in re- newing Miss Minter's contract, which was said to be bringing her $250,000! & year. i She is now working on her last pic- ture for this organization, a film ver- | sion of “The Trail of the Lonesome Pine,” which will probably be finish- ed this month. Her plans after that are uncertain. Her departure from Famous Play- | ers-Lasky means the end of an elab- | orate campaign on their part to de- | velop an actress who would take the place in their galaxy of stars left by Mary Pickford. She was known in the industry as ‘a synthetic star.” Wanda Hawley Also. Wanda Hawley likewise ends her association with Famous Players-Las- ky this year. Miss Hawley appear- ed last opposite Rodolph Valentino in ' *“The Young Rajah" and before that appeared in “Burning Sands.” ' Alice Brady and May McAvoy are the only, players now left from the group of | Realart stars affiliated with Famous | Players. Penrhyn Stanlaws, artist and illus- tritor, who was developed by Famous Players into a -director, also severs his connection with them, his contract expiring about this time, Stanlaws over two years ago gave up art for the movies, and after a year spént in studying motion pic- tures intensively at the Lasky studio in Hollywood he produced “The Lit- tle Minister,” ‘At the End of the ‘World,” “Pink Gods,” and other films notable for a feeling for beauty. He is expected to start production for himself. Hart May Go Too. It was also reported on good au- thority that William S. Hart would end his affillation of six years with the organization. Hart slipped quiet- ly into New York a week ago and has been staying at the Waldorf-Astoria. He has been avoiding interviews, but it s known that he is waiting here for the return of Zukor from the Pa- cific coast, when Hart intends to take up a renewal of his contract with the film chief. ¥ Arbuckle’s Successor To counterbalance this shifting of stars who have grown up with the films, Famous Players-Lasky now aims to star Walter Hiers, a come- dian who is intended to take the place of Fatty Arbuckle. GRANDMA’S BOY I3 LLOYD'S BEST; FOXS| Famous Comedy Starts Four Days’ Run Tomorrow Evening “Grandma's Boy,"” Harold Lloyd's newest comedy in five parts, and his| most ambitious attempt, comes to Fox's theater tomorrow night for four days. It is the comedy, that Bob Sherwood in “Life” said should win for Lloyd a “room and bath in the Hall of Fame.” On the same program tomorrow evening will be the usual news reels and comedies, as well as another feature, Antonio Mo- reno in "A Guilty Conscience.” Of| course Monday will see another big vaudeville program which will fea- ture “The Little Liar,” a bright com- edy playlet with special scenery; Rose Miller, queen of the singing comediennes; Joe Martini, an orig- inal Italian character actor and comedian; and Wheeler and Dixon, a sprightly couple who can sing and | dance with the best of them. * 0Old Kentucky Home" is the beginning Thursday. Hurricanes of mirth are cansed movie, ghe ! 8w to | American everywhere that “Grandma's Boy has been shown. In it, Lloyd imper- sonates a country boy who is afraid of everything. He had no more spirit | than a jack rabbit. He conquers his| fear, captures a desperate criminal that has tefrorized the community; then he thrashes the bully and wins the girl-—all to the tune of some 4‘(\ the most genunine comedy that the sereen has ever purchased. The movie attraction for Thursday, | Friday and Saturday is "My Oid Kentucky Hnm" presented hy nn‘ all-star cast. This is a screen W sglon of one of the most fam gtories of two generations. This pie-! ture presents a true revelation of the | manages the business end of her busi- | 6—ACTS—6 old days in the south. Through it |m a delightful love drama and an in- trigue and villainous plotting against ' the hero and heroine that is star- Aling. It is a thri'ar from start to finish. | A Christmas Gift Suggestion for Weverybody, every day, in the Herald | Classified Section. : Experience Gained on the Stage Helpful to Miss Sally Humasbn Vine Street Girl in Order to Learn Technical Phrases of Stage Works With Providence Stock Co. Miss Sally Humason, daughter of Mrs, H. B. Humason of 201 Vine| street, {8 perhaps the only New Bru- ain girl who has had the actual ex- perience of being assistant stage di-| rector and manager for one of the largest and best known stock com- panies in the castern United States. With playwrighting as her life am- bition and the desire to learn the technical phases of the American| stage to help her in her work, Miss Humason applied to Miss Jessie Bon- stelle for a position. Miss Bonstelle was owner and manager of the stock company bearing her name at the Opera’ House in Providence, R. I, last season. She was engaged and for four months, with the exception of a few Sundays, Miss Humason was ‘‘on the job” behind the scepes and, as she told a Herald representative when in- terviewed, “during this time I gnlncd MISS SALLY HUMASON. a vast amount of knowledge which no | one can take from rge.” Cared For Small Details. It was the duty of Miss Humason to arrange for the draperies, the win-| dow curtains and to look after the’ bric-a-bracs and other small details. Many times she was called upon to aid in the designing of various cur- tains and draperies and then asked to make them, securing the materials in larger Providence department stores. It was also always her duty to make a general survey of the stage before each performance to see that| everything was in its place before the curtain rose for the first act. Often Times Acted. As assistant to the stage manager, Miss Humason took extra cues, if he was acting a part in a production, and also assisted the director in running some of the shows. At various times Miss Humason took small parts in productions, although she has stated that she has no desire to become an actress. wHer first experience of stage life Wwas gained while a student at the New Britain Senior High school, where she, took part in one of the firet large productions to be presented at the local school. While at Vassar college, Miss Humason served on committees for stage managing and helped produce plays at college. She was a member of the class of 1921, Writes Two Plays. The local girl wrote two one-act plays while at Vassar which were produced at the Poughkeepsie, N. Y., Comunity theater, They were “‘Masks and Men" and “The Wreck.” Cne of the plays was later published in leaflet form with a serjes of other Vassar articles. At present Miss Humason is working on another new play which will probably be in three acts, but which is as yect unnamed, Life Is Hard. “Of course the life of an American stock actor or actress is not one ot " Miss Humason replied in an- a question, *“as they are cbliged to play from 10 to formances a week, in addition to giv- ing up most of their spare time for rehearsals.” There are even times when it 18 necessary for rehearsa be called on Sundays, Miss Humason stuted, Miss Humason, in commenting up- on conditions of the stock stage as she found them, said that despite all of the hard work and many hours which are needed to put a play across in stock the work is fascinating and most often the better clas are found in stoek companies, Stock a Training School. Stock is the training school of the stage, Miss Humason said, nd is no place for any person who is not intelligent and does nn( come prepared for hard work. in most companies but one aft a week the actor or actress may have to him or herself. Sunday morning and afternoons are most times for stock people in the east, but in the west where Sunday night per- | formances are given it is usually found necessary to have rchearsals on Hunday afternoons. Praises Miss Bonstelle. The Jloecal girl had the greatest amount of praise for Miss Bonstelle, who not only acts the character leads in her many stock companies but ness as well. She has two winter companies, one at Providence and the other at Detroit. For two weeks she will act the leads in productions at Providence and will then go to De- troit, where she will appear in two productions with her company in that ' eity, thus alternating between the two places. In addition she plans that her company members will meet the bet- 13 per-| s to} of people | free | ter class of people in the eity in Which they arve staying, which gains for them a good standing in the com- ‘i munity, PALAGE T0 FEATURE ‘THE MASQUERADER" |Gy Bates Post Makes Screen Bow Sunday It has been several years since any really distinguished actor of the stage has made his screen debut, and Guy Bates Post's leadership among con- temporaneous’ players makes his film inauguration all the more noteworthy at this thme. He has been upponrlm.l on the speaking stage in ‘“The Mas- querader” for over six years. His first fAm, ““The Masquerader,” a Rich- ard Walton Tully production for First | National will be seen at the Palace | theater starting Sunday night. Although he has been acknowl- | edged heretofore as the greatest ro- mantic actor of the day on the Amer- ican stage, critics and public alike have naturally been tempted to with- nold judgment on him as a possible | film star until they had witnessed hla\ debut on the silver sheet. This has| now becomne a matter of history. He | begins with an inimitable character)- | zation of a distinguishetl statesman— super-elegant to the point of foppish- ness, distant to the point of snob- bishness, and all contained to the point of vanity. Then, we see this carefully etched’ picture blurred by excessive indulgence. Chilcote sinks until he succumbs, With his down- fall is the rise of another character portrayed by Post—John Loder, a brilliant but unrecognized political writer, struggling with poverty, in humble surroundings. Plunged by a drug fiend’'s madness into the midst of the political arena, he finds him- self in the other man's home. The companion feature for Sunday night only is Bert Lytell in. “Sher- lock Brown,” and the Keith vaude- ville bill for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday will be headed by The 1O)((ord Four, who present an excel- | lent musical offering. [ Starting next week Thursday “Pink ;Gods" will be offered with an all-star i cast including Bebe Daniels, James Kirkwood, and Anna Q. Nilsson. TABLOID AT LYCEUM Charles Rogers and company, a big time vaudeville circuit musical com- edy tabloid show with a cast of thirty | persons, ‘mostly attractive young dam- | scls, will scintillate behind the foot- lights at the Lyceum theater for the last three days of next week, putting n a comedy musical sketch entitied This.show runs | | “Three Husbands.” an entire evening. However, for the first three days. of of equal merit as an entertainment,| | will be put on, together with the fea- ture picture, “His Wife's Husband,” a great mystery play starring Betty Blythe and exhibiting a female ward- robe that is astonishing in its lavish- ness and beauty. The vaudevillp numbers include: John E. Cuotss, in an amazing expose of Hindu magic, | including the exposure of the famous| stunt of sawing a women in half; Morton Brothers, a comedy variety act; Little Jerome, a junior Al Jol- son; “The Dream Dancers,” a scenic dance novelty; Marr and Dutton, special scenery and a great song and | dialogue ngmpber; Prince Cherzi in his musical novelty. For Sunday evening the presents a double feature program, with news and comedy reels. One \| feature is Anna Q. Nilsson in “Three Live Ghosts,” a comedy drama, and [ the other is Mary MacLean jn “Wild Goose."” The Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday picture will be “His Wife's Husband.” LYCEUM Where Everybody Goes Lyceum Continuous Show Tonight 1 “YOUTH TO I YOUTH” 6-~GOOD ACTS—6 Sunday Night | ANNA Q. NILSSON in |@ “THREE. LIVE GHOSTS” MARY MAC LAREN in “THE WILD GOOSB” Mon.. Tues., Wed. BETTY BLYTHE in |4 “HIS WIFE'S HUSBAND” A Star Who is a Star in A Story That is a Story GOOD VAUDEWLLE JOHN F. COUTT’ Famous Stunt o the week, a straight vaudeville show, | . “Sawing a Woman in Half” A, HAROLD LLOYD in “GRANDMA’S BOY” FOX’S—Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday ROSA PONSELLE HERE ON SUNDAY Famous Metropolitan Soprano in Alternoon Concert at Fox's ‘*‘Zero hour’ and ‘going over the top,’ " says Rosa Ponselle, the famous prima donna soprano of the Metro- politan Opera company, who appears at Fox's tomorrow aftérnoon under!: | for the auspices 'of the New Britain Mu- sical ¢lub, “are war-born phrases now firmly implanted in our language and are a far cry from the stage of the MetropolitantODpera House, hut when I recall my audition in that historic institution, I believe that I can un- derstand the state of mind under which men must labor while waiting | for those fateful words ‘let's go.' “Picture, if you will, that great place almost empty of life, lights and the sense'f security with which great assemblies of people are always per- vaded. Only Mr. Guilio Gatti-Casazza and a select few sitting back in the semi-gloom weaving the thread of your fate through their fingers. I have had soldier friends tell me that a common expression when ' going over the top was ‘Here goes nothing but when an attendant came to me, waiting tremulously in the wings, and | | Inquired if I were ready, I could have honestly said, ‘Well, here goes less than nothing,’ for that describes my feelings. These same warrior friends have also said that the hardest part of the whole business is-getting into detion; that, once in the thick of it, they went about the job as one does any other kind of task. There again, I believe I can understand and feel with them for at the first note struck on the piano by my accompanist, my courage came back, my knees ceased to beat the ‘long roll’ and a do or die feeling took possession of my mental machinery which had almost ceased to function. At the end of Ty effort I waited—ages it seemed, the usual ‘thank you’ which means failure. There was a long silence which I broke by asking, ‘Shall I do another?’ and when Mr. Gatti's voice replied, ‘ves, please,’ there was no happier mortal in all that great city than ¢. I sang Leo- nore's arla from the first act of Il Trovatore as my second offering bet- ter than my first and at the last note, womanlike, fainted in the arms of my sister, Carmela.” The American screen is to .have a new, handsome leading man. Ivor Novello, 26 years of age, the English- man who wrote *“Keep the Home Fires Burning,” will arrive in Amer- ica on December 20 and shortly after will begin work in a new picture to be filmed by D. W. Griffith. mmmwfimwwwmmmmfi —FOX’S— Some Boy! Sunday, Mon_day, Tuesday, Wednesday HAROLD LLOYD In the Greatest Comedy of His Career “GRANDMA’S BOY” You’ll Laugh at Lloyd — You'll Love His Grandmother Some Joy! - | 3 % | | | | | | Supreme Vaudeville “THE LITTLE LIAR” Scenery and Pretty Girls Thurstlay, Friday, Saturday g 3 A Musical Comedy with Loads of Special’ 3 ! 3 2 “MY OLD KENTUCKY HOME” The Greatest Racing Melodrama Ever s Produced MM”MMMWMM”M”& ¥ “Goorge Washington, Jr.," and the Dickens masterplece 18 “David Cop- perfigld,” 'Willlam Beaudine, who directed “I'reckles” in hls latest ple- ture, “Heroes of the Street,” has been engaged to guide the youngster in the three productions. “To Wed Busch A crowd as large as the one which turned out to hear the Paulist choir at Fox's theater recently is expected to hear Miss Rosa Ponselle at the concert to be rendered at that the- ater by her tomorrow afternoon at 3:30 o'clock, Miss Ponselle 18 a native of Meriden where her parents still make their home, When Willlam Fox's lease expires | on his theater on West Main street in Beptember of next year he will no longer control a theater in Connecti- cut unless he ucqulrcnfimu in the meantime. Several years ago he owned or controlled theaters in New Haven, Waterbury, Bridgeport and thig city. His only other New Eng- land house under the Fox banner is at Springfield, Mass. “The Birth of a Nation,” one of D, W, Griffith's first pictures and which: was shown at Fox’'s theater here several years® ago recently en- joyed a revival in one of the leading Broadway moving picture houses, Albert E. Smith, president of the Vitagraph motion picture company, has announced that 24 special fea- tures will be produced by this con- cern during 1923, “Love at first sight,” explained Miss Lotte Tauscher, daughter of Mme, Gadski, the prima donna, resulted in her approaching marriage to Ernst Busch, grandnephew. of the late Adol- phus Busch of St. Louis brewing the Warner Brothers as starring ve- | fame. European beauty and American hicles for Wesley Barry. The Cohan |wealth will thus be united when the plays are *Little Johnny Jones” and! wedding takes place in Berlin in June. Two of George M, Cohan's stage plays and one of Charles Dicken's masterpieces have been secured by Tfl;&tes Post, : Masquerader® Sunday Night—Monday—Tuesday—Wednesday THE REAL SCREEN MASTERPIECE ! Follow the Crowds and See— Masquerader THE MOTION PICTURE TRIUMPH KEITH VAUDEVILLE k| ; featuring “THE OXFORD FOUR”—A Musical Treat A TIP !—“The HERALD MASQUERADER” will purchase a ticket Sunday night between 6:30 and 7:15 to" see “THE MASQUI::RADER" Catch him and win the Herald’s $25.00 prize. Py N SEEBEEasBaoyoax