The Argosy, April 1916 — page 75: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE “SMUGGLER’S DAUGHTER ”—FIVE REELS. subtlest, cussedest, most contrary, most in- spiring and most changeable tools m the world—the more or less human beings known as moving picture actors. ‘Then, there are all the tricks ‘and uncertainties of photography. Some mighty queer things happen inside of the camera. Some mighty queer spots and flashes come out when ‘the films are developed. “T could tell you of a case that happened once out in ‘California while I was still new to the business. Right in the middle of a big scene, when the film came out of the dark room, we found a girl’s face like a vision. The girl was beautiful. None of us had ever seen her. How she got into the film:was a mystery until— “But that wasn’t ithe accident that I ‘was going to tell you about.” Cal also chewed on a dry cigar. Mrs. Cal came in—as pretty as a picture. She begged pardon for the interruption. “JT just wanted to tell you, dear,” she said, “that I’ve looked over the ‘boudoir-set for the ‘Princess Incognito’ ‘feature. Ithink you have a find in that new technical -man. The set was perfect—simple, good taste, very rich.” “Great!” exclaimed ‘Cal; ‘we ought to be able to,get to work on that scene early to- morrow morning. Tell Levine to notify the studio and get the people there at eight- thirty sharp.” Mrs. Cal was gone. “One of the happiest. accidents of all,” said Cal with a glint of sentiment in the depths of his steel-blue eyes. “I don’t know exactly where I’d be to-day if it wasn’t for her—still out on the coast most likely, wear- ing chaps and doing Indian stuff. That’s the way I got my start. “T was unmarried when I came East. That was five years ago when the Daguerre Corporation was a struggling infant, .a sort of adopted child. President Arnitz had just taken hold of it. He had come on from Chicago with good backing and plenty of ideas. “He found the Daguerre fighting ‘for life. The studio was an old stable up a back alley. There was one director and camera- man. They were both the same person, and his early training had been chiefly ac- quired by taking tintypes through the Mid- dle West. “But the Daguerre already had a reputa- tion. When moving pictures were still a , scientific curiosity the Daguerre was filming ec A 65 street-scenes and county ‘fairs. You re- member, every one else at ‘that time ‘was doing fairy-tales and costume-stuff. ‘“Arnitz began right away ‘to dig into that financial backing. The way he spent money made a record that ‘the trade has been ‘try- ing ‘to keep ‘up‘with:ever since. It was’fine. It ‘was ‘stirring. Only, ina short time, he aan ae ‘that he wasn’t getting his money ack. | ‘““The people behind him started ‘to squeal. They began to have their doubts. They began to think that it might be better, after all, to play the game safe and ‘sure. ‘* “Trook here,’ said Arnitz; ‘we’re in the biggest business in the world, and to get anywhere we’ve got to be ‘big ourselves. This thing’s a baby. It costs something ‘to bring a baby up, and no ‘baby can be ex- pected to be a big revenue-producer ‘before it’s out of the cradle. But ‘this baby ‘will surprise ‘you, if you'll orly help it to ‘live,’ . and a ‘lot more just ‘like ‘that. : “He was making the fight of his life. “It was at that time that he called me in. I had been making the fight of my life, ‘too. I guess it’ was the ‘fact that we got together at a time like that that has kept me with the Daguerre ever since. “T had never been East. ‘All':my work up to that time had been in Santa Barbara. You can do some great stuff in California with very little money, if the luck runs-your way and-you are willing to work twenty hours a day. “Out ‘there we never ‘had a dark -studio. That’s what they call a studio where artifi- cial light is needed. Out there, -all ‘you have to do to get all the light you want ‘is just ‘to build your drawing-room set under the open sky. I saw a fellow in evening- dress playing the part of an English lord, ‘in what was ‘supposed to be ‘the king’s pdlace, step ona live’snake, once. We-cut out ‘that part of the film and used ‘it m a feature en- titled ‘The Curse of Drink.’ »“Arnitz didn’t know anything about ‘me except that I was supposed to be a director, and he was going after directors like a robm after worms. “Tt’s always like that when a company ‘is new—or old, for that matter. 'We’re flooded with manuscripts, and if I came mto our office and didn’t find a hundred actors there crazy for a job I’d think there ‘had ‘been-a panic or something. “But there never ‘has been enough direc- tors. There never will be. The work’s CoOmicloooks Cc C@