WEfiE :THE COUNTRY COUSIN," BROAD, AND "MOTHER CAREYSCHjCKENS," ADELFHj -, ER OF FEATURE FILM HOUSES THREE YEARS OLD Stanley Ready for Birthday Celebration. jmf wnai it ana lis impresario nave Done for Photoplay '' nlvenwry Wrtk1 (the third annlver- P :t ,the Stanley la' upon us. On that tpnt Stanley V. Maatbaum'a comment iqaLmmmmmmmm o n cinematographic) thdse connected with playhouses and pro ductions. Is timely. The local Impresario of motion picture is, aa usual, optimistic about the future of , the art, craft, busi ness, or what you fill. "PeopH think that we have reached the limit of bit things In photoplay," he said, "but, mark my words, the next six months will produce dramas approaching; perfec tion of the nrt as well aa quality in the sea. I prophesy that before the first ttnext year there will be a veritable Vtlation In photoplay attractions. Tne vara! prominent producers nro bendlns fy energy, eery effort to improve ana M. notwiinsianaing tnai at present we rc educing pictures of such superior merit 'those qf a year or two ago that there e.llttle or no comparison. -VBIgness, art.stry, deep thought and skill re elements wnicn are going- to piay an nportant part, and you will find1 that the rket will not bo flooded with the com- 'laonolaco material which has had to suf- ikie In the past because we were not suf ficiently Versed In the higher degree of the Industry. Now men of brains, men of In- Venulty and of structural ability are en- caged In making pictures, with the result r'.tnat the tone and the tenor of films nae keen vastly improved. The big things In pictures are going to survhe, while the LSlcayune films and their makers arc going fttotslnk Into oblivion. : "So confident of the future am I that I KAtn comnletlnc nlans for the erection of Fi'Jtie new theatre at Nineteenth and Market tvtreets. These plans will be finished with- a short time and then tho actual work edectlng a picture palaco the llko of rwhlch has never been Ui earned of hitherto till begin. It Is worth mentioning that Jvalnce we first gave thought to the con struction of this new house, upon which we ad Intended to spend $1,000,000, there has een an advance in the prices of structural Pinaterlals of about one-fourth over the ures then submitted. This will mean, of ouree, that Instead of Unestlng f 1.000.000, will expend SI, 200.000, and I am not so iwr but that before the house Is ready to en the sum will be somewhat In excess of aBsBBBsfT ' tir &''' ssssMt'c'i;va-ia- f4iK-vi. e ---------v . Htf i -K : i bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbLw -r Harp "aBBBBBBB &4 aa k- h , ELSIE KENT a At ivcn.ns next itionaay ana tnere- ntter.ior a week. these figures. The new house win have a seating capacity of 4000 and will be sup plied with every modern convenience and comfort for the patrons. It Is my great faith In the future of pictures that prompts me to undertake not only the erection of such a costly structure, hut the Installment of an orchestra of 100 solo musicians and other Innovations of a noel character." TJie history of the Stanley Theatre might be said to parallel the history of the fea ture film In Philadelphia. Defore Its erec tion there una vnr such thing as a home of the flve-reel photoplay, or, If there was, It was mule and Ingiorlously un-press-agented Tho hoUse opened, unless the re viewer's memory has missed fire, with a ptcturizatlon .of Jack London's "The Sea Wolf." It wan one of the first productions of Bos worth, Inc., with Herbert Bosworth starred, nosworth had struck out for him self after a long connection with Seilg, and had contracted to turn almost all of Lon don's tales into celluloid, A curious feature of the movie was that It served to bring to the attention of Davll W. tirlfllth a young man named Elmer Clifton, destined later to shine as a Fine Arts star and In the Baby Ionian ep'lsodes of "Intolerance." On the same bill with "The Sea Wolf was a pretentious vaudeville act starring L!na Arbarbanell. Perhaps the most Interesting phase of the Stanley's augmented ogue since Its erection has been Its Influence on real estate values It Is said on good authority that Seven teenth and Market streets :s considered In a far different light in 1917 from that of other years. HIS VOICE-STUDIO IS INFAIRMOUNTPARK There, Amid Sylvan Calm, Jack Hazzard Unleashes His Golden Bellow Read this about Jack Hazzard, the breezing petrel In "Miss Springtime," and you will know why ho Is doomed to what they call a ripe old age. It will hint why the girls all like him as they do a sunny Easter, and why the old fellows with round fronts and clubby faces hail him a good fellow. "My boy, I nm glad you asked me how I prepared myself for such a role ns that I am now playing In 'Miss Springtime.' Out In front the public think the life of a comic opera comedian and such a one as I hae especially In mind Is, as you might say, a bed of roses They only see the bright side. They hear his rippling laughter and listen to the bell-llko qualities of Ills singing tones. They give him curtain call after curtain call one singing comedian In particular yet how seldom they give thought to the hours that he spends In pre paring for his public appearances, 1 do not allude to rehearsals to the real artist, le hearsals are a pleasure Take the role of Michael Robin, which I Illuminate In 'Miss Springtime.' Have you any Idea of the hours and hours bf study that I gave tn It, the midnight oil that I burned while the less fortunate members of fhy profession were probably pUylug Kelly pool? Every shade and gradation of that, character had to be thought out and that Implies a special mental equipment. Then there were the dally singing lessons. I do not believe In the studio or confined method of singing. I prefer the open. I found Falrniount Pari! an excellent place to practice and all of my friends approved of this choice. But really I fear 1 am prattling on about my profession too much, and it Is Just possible that 1 am needed on the stage It seems very quiet out there. Awfully glad to hae met you. Come around some night and hear me sing." And Mr. Hazzard, with a sweeping wave of his Jeweled hand, bowed himself nut and dashed upon the stage of the Forrest. In a moment there was a mighty loar of laughter from the big audlenco. The famous comedian was singing THE DOMREMY MAID, IN BRONZE AND FLESH One of tho most Interesting groups over snapped unaware in connection with a photoplay. Geraldlne Far rar, star; Jeanlo MocPhear-on, au thor, and Cecil DeM lie, director, of "Joan the Woman," at the Chest nut now. ntw . kj v l'f rll bbbibbbW I aaflBH BBBJL PijHHmKlwMaHMBVaBBBBB ' BB H LanBBBa9jr'kmMKTO'aBaBaBaBaB rsK---7KEv ra:'1r-RlHfr-. tBB9sMaE-E tBBBBw9M&aflBBBBW9BBBBl aJ?sHk. BHMHl&la E9L. I-.' 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''KBBLBM BBBBVaBBtBBBBLV dfj gB mBHbV BBBBBLBHH ,'KiXHIHiBBmBH atBBBslBmBBBBB K JUA bLbLbHH JIIbMbbbbKbbHP' aBHyBBalBBBl i-BWA izi rBBBBBBBJBMB bbbbb anaLV ' V w&- "'bb flHliBL VBBnr39BB9BuaBBBBBBBHBBBBMQBh.flBBBBVaViaBlsaBB t, " v f 1 ffa aaaaaaaaaa3HKM r k 'siaBaaaEAaaaaaBaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaHaaaaaaaBa xaaaBBaaaaaaaaaaFaaB aaai BaaaBap v.7ms BBBBaat WVk ilBBBaliBa!BaBaBaBBaHBaKBaBaK''fBBaBaBaWiB BHtaar l ' .' 4.VI raafHaaH BaBaBaBaBaBBHBC ' ' HvaaBalBaBaVBaBaESflaBBaBaBL ??H?KME'Kr anx' 'iBaTPv:' laB BaBaBaBiBiBBaBBv T bbb jBBHBBBaBaiBBajBIKVBBaBaBaBaKSBBE SeyF .fiWa Aj' SHBIBIC BbBbBbBbB3 VBBflV'BMBBVBBBBBBWlBEBBBIIBBBBHiiiW JbBF '"'rWJ"A?'''feSjiBaB aBaBaKBaV UBaB.'BaBaBaBBBBBTMBralBBTH BaaaaalaFfl A ''SaBfaB lBBBBBBBBBBTjrfs'BBaBHfcVBaBBBBHBBBBBBBB' VBJBBKa aBBYflYflYaBBBaiB' inlilltiBPa 4&tB9BaYaaBBaYaa h aB KyflaVBflByfuEjBS 'Sf I r BBBaHBVBKBBBaHtanBBBBV&BBBaaflBBKjBBMBBBBsfli 1 Hv''9HGBPBBBlaBlBBBlaBBBHBaBBBHaBIIB ''''"'"" ''.SSaalaWfS 1 ' - llaBwaMBttaKiillBB jwWbyIhWJWJs aaaaByBBBBjjwBBBBBBBWBaBtaBBaiaagjtftjaaMflaaarwaaiwnrainHrteiwianrtaMiiaM BMBBaBBJjaBjgBJBJBBaHBBCajKXHBEUBBWa GERALDINE'S JABS HER INSPIRATION There nre several reasons why Jeanlo Macpherson was successful In v rltlng the scenario for "Joan the Woman," now at the Chestnut Street Opera House. First of all. Mist Macpherson went to sihool in Paris, where, aa a child, she became dconly Interested In the story of Joan of Arc Sec ond, beforo she entered upon tho career of a writer of scenarios she wai an actress not only upon tho stage, but also In pic tuies. Miss Macpherson was born In Boston, of Scotch-French parentage. She was Ecnt to Mile. DeFncq's school Ip Paris, and there she de eloped a literary, tendency that seemed to Indicate a future as n poet or a noellst. But later there were those among her friends who told her that she should be a singer, and bo she went to Chicago to enter the grand opera field. After a time she decided that her training was insufficient for a brilliant career and that opportunities were greater In the drama. Consequently, she went to New York, and there It was her good fortune to be come acquainted with Sir Johnstone Forhes Itobertson, He wns starring then In Ber nard Shaw's "Caesar and Cleopatra," nnd Miss Macpherson obtained a role in tho cast. She played for a season in this company nnd then went with "Stronghcart." the Indian-American play, in which Kobert Kde son starred. Ju-it about this lime MlhH Macpherson decided to go back to her oeal Mudles. She engaged a teacher In New York and wns so far advanced when the new season camo that sho got tho role of Tlta In "Havana," of which James T. Powers was the star. Tho experience satisfied her, and At tho end of her theatrical year she had decided to give up singing professionally. But sho wanted to act, nnd just then the motion pictures were beginning to attract men and women from the stage. It wns not an easy matter to find a tudlo in those das, and Miss Macpherson almost despaired until one day hIio chanced to meet a "super." He told her that there was a man nanjed David W. Griffith with the Ulograph Com pany and that Griffith seemed to be willing to engage nspliants. It was several days before sho could get In touch with tho pro ducer, but at last a message camo from him by telephone, and tho result was a year of service under his direction. She played emotional and character roles. She went West subsequently ,and at Universal City, where she was acting for the screen, tried her hand at-scenario writing. Soon she was writing scenarios for her own use. One of these wub called "The Tarantula," The picture was finished under direction of IMwin' August. Something happened to the fi'm and It waa destroyed. This was Miss Mncpherson's opportunity, for tho head of tho concern came to her and asked her whether she would be able to remako the picture from memory, Without n moment's hesitation Miss Macpherson declared that she could reconstruct tho picture. She went to work nt once, and the new "Tarantula" became the most popular and profitable pro duction that the company had had tn some EVENING LEDGER PHOTOPLAY CALENDAR m . ' EVERY SATURDAY, SUBJECT TO CHANGE Ba. . lWJF,& ?0AP?DIL MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY ktov 23 TO ArRxLt Zo - - RltuAUDDA Seue Hajakawa. Ir, B'8JUK. USX-"!- 'r' Btu6 llaakawa. Ir. Houie Peters, In House Teters. In Houi Peters. In KALHAMBRA The Bottle Imp Th Bottle imp Th, UoMe jmp A, Men j,m6 Aa M'e 'mV As i Men l"e W"- ' .,..-. i ------------------------- ,, ,.,-,..,..-.--, ..,,. , , , , ,.. . ,. i BAHfT I fl , , ., ' riviliz.tlnn . "na ,0w'n' ,ln . . I.enore Ulrlch, In viola Dana, In William S. Hart. In fjJFifKJ IIjLiVJ Civilization civilization A Woman's Awakening " Her Own Teople Tho Mortal Sin The Kquare-Deal Man fil"A BfAni A Th9 rert Man T.1!" ,P,?It ,??"5,i. The Desert Man Tho Desert Man The Desert Man The Desert Man I'AKIAUIA Mrs. V. Castle. In Tatrla Mrs. V. Castle. In Tatrla Mrs. V. Castle. In fatrla Taut One at Rooney's Past Ona at Rooney'a Past One at Roiney'a l-DI MDHT Robert Warwick. In "ThVArrvf."';.1" Ilohert Warwick. In lJeatrls Mkhelena. In Heajrlz Mlchelenu. In ileatrlz Mlchelena. In ,JJIV1JIM 1 The Argylo Case TP Araym case The Artyle Case The Woman Who Dared The Woman Who Dared The Woman Who Dared K' t TTT T Fannls Ward. In .X'0l,'.,Dn Jl Virginia Pearson, In William Farnum. In William Farnum. In Marguerite Clark. In 'JLUKBIaJJ Wlnnlnr of Sally Temple The Mortal Mn bister Aaalnst Sister A Tale of Two Cities A Tale of Two Cities The Fortunes of Flfl wtoPTMP Etnet Clayton, It, ,. Fanny Ward, In 8een But Stars In Viola Dana, In Theodore Roberts. In Ms rtle Gonzales In ffiCEDAK The Web of Desire Winning of Bally Temple The Seventh Sin The Mortal Sin The American Cons" 1 Mutiny -i-kT TCCTTHf "Seen Deadly Sins"; ,Ann Jlilr'5?,',,,,n "Sunny June"; Mrs V. Ortruda -McCoy, In HIU Hall. In tiulsn Lovely and rtuntrt COLISEUM Charley Chaplin, The Cure "Seven Deadly Sins" Castle. In "IMtrla" "f.ash of Destiny" "A Jewel In Pawn" lullen, in '"The "lift Olrf 5v,TT''A William Courtney, tn Constar.ce Talmadre, In Karle Williams, in Ethel Clayton. In Ethel Barrymore, In I The Cure VJSUKi-KA Kick In Betsy's Buralar Arsene l.upln Man's Woman The White l"ven ' Back of VK Man MlWATUMnilMT '-eu Telleven. in uMiyJ'ck.,05 15, Wilfred I.ucas. In Mlllan Walker, In Mme. 01b Petrova, In Tannle Ward iT J The Black Wolf The Pride of the Clan A Love bubllme Sally In a Hurry The Waiting Soul Winning of San? Temple I'fJtTUOTPPPT Pauline Frederick, in Pauline Frederick, In Earle Williams In Karle Williams. In Walisire Held. In WalKice Reld hi g,A-OI-l alK-ti'I "Sapho" "P"0 , "Arsene Lupin" "Arsene Lupin" rtio Prison Without Walls The Prison Without Walls glTRANKFORD & '"wo'l? tIS SliSTw V..W?W,d1nk.1id-rJ J- '" TThhe'0A0mre9r,,cta0n"c,on',"ul T JUREAT NORTH. jh'Trn't T1n.rTgf-tVnBn,t Mrs. vnJ.'r?.eV'rn"patr,a Mrs. T"fia-,n"r.tn. ""'Taytfa'.-k" '" ""'ThaT.''1 '" ! DTA T "Earle Williams. In . Er!?hW1Hl1wk,, ln The People vs. The Teonle vs. Robert Warwick. In ' Robert Warwick. In KpMP!RIA- The Hawk The Hawk John Poe John Doe The Family Hnror The Family Honor BSsannoBenM V"y "Wand, in ISSs?! A'SSCT.'i'iJ ni,'rt ?,n,,r11. A" ,,'Rnn' Ward, ln Nailmova. In Lionel Barrymore. In' BUf PERSON "Babette" "The Arayle Case "Tamled Lives" "The Cheat" "War Brides" "Hl Father Son" Bkf e-a ri'lMS ,- Pauline Frederick, in irJ",1in?..rrJrhl',r.,irl" 1 Franltlyn Farnum. In Oeorae M. Cohan. In C.enrge M. Cohan. In Oeorge M, Cohan In gpMBADER "S, "Sapho"! "The Cure" "Sapho": "The Cure 1 .The Clock" . "Broadway Junes" "Broadway Jones" "Broadway J ones" innmir '. I Kr'e Williams. In IJ,arlm0.fMJll . H"d.a. J,or?' ,ln, William B. Hart, In Harold Lockwood. In Reena Owen. In LIBERTY f.v Apartment 20 War Brldea ' The Web of Life The bquart-Deal Man The Hidden Chlldrer. A Woman's Awakening &! -- - Voutlat Fairbanks. In RS1yJ&l,bAnlM,.nlB Earle w,uu.m.l! ln Erle Williams. In Olga Petrova. In Olra Petrova. in ,OCUST The Oood Bad Man The Good Bad Man Apartment SO Apartment ao The Waiting Soul 'inl Waiting Boul TOr anir-coTi e- Ella Hall, In Mme. Ola- Petrova. In Irene Howley, in Frances Nelson, in Dorothy Dalton. In Robert Mantel). Ir K. jpARKET ST. A Jewel In Pawn Tne Waiting Boul Her Father' Keeper The Power of Decision The Dark Road Tangled Lives Krttririr K,,1'r Oordor.. In ,, Pots and Pane Bryant Washburn. In A Jewel in Tawn George Walsh. In Mme. Petrova. in BPYJCKBKOOX Vera, the Medium Mrs- V. Castle, In Patrla Hklaner's Dress Suit The Voice on the Wire High Finance The Secret of Ke BBSTJTTc valeaka Buratt. In Valeska Suratt. In Valeska Buratt, In Valeska Suratt. In Valeska Suratt. in Valeska Suratt, In PBHJU4a,t 'V "She" v "" "She "Sho" . "Bhe" "She" Theda Bara, In . ''p,,,,lo5'.' Fanny Ward, In Mae Murray, In Anita Btewart. In Alice Brady, in BBkKISH "The Tiger Woman'; "Patrla," No. 13 Winning of Sally Temple "On Record" "The More Eiccllent Way" "Darkest Russia" Seena Owens. In u0!)tl JPm(,rJ ,n Theda Bara. In Vera Mlchelena, In Nance O'Netl.ln Wm. S. Hart, ln Woman' Awakening His Father' 8on . Her Oreatest Love Driftwood Mri. Balfame The Square-Deal Man The People vi. , ThT.;,rv,' ,renJ? Re?d,a,'n ??r1?? nefdC11ln Karle Williams, In Earle Williams, In HHHDfT s Johr. Do Johr. Doe The Eternal Bin The Eternal Bin The Hawk ' The Hawk KBmSSTZ" , 8eaue Harakawa, In Earl Williams, jn j0an Sawyer, In C. Aubrey Smith. In Vivian Martin, In I.enore Ulrlch, In HHp:' , t. . "Each to HI Kind" "Arn Lupin "Love' Law" "The Witching Hour" "The Rlijit Direction" "Her Own People" La 0,?y'ev? Pt?p ,n V!?J. P?1V,r,,.lJS!J.L?ln Kth' cla!05: ln Florence, Reed, In "New Myrtle Oontale. In "Aladdin From Broadway" BEfV .'? ,- "Tangled Live'1 Si Instal. War Picture 'Tha Web of Deslr" york"j Bth epv "Patrla" "Mutiny" "Scoundrela' Toll'H HPVlv ' 'j ' aHuart Holmes, in s Earle Williams, ln jack Plekford, In Vivian Martin. In Douglas Fairbanks. In Jlarold Lockwood. In Mf.in '.t-i'-' At "J Tna Derelict Tba Hawk The Dummy The Bptrlt of Romance Double Trouble Th Hidden Children HHaHMaae1!P"eeMMr m . i j ' ----- --- , His i wtv-' v AlitSJw,l-,,IW . E." ?r"'Jn Clara Kimball Toung, In Edith Storey. In Beatrix Mtch'lena In Mm. Olga Petrova. ln sKltska-!----- " MM"9n B1J A Jwl In Pawn Th Price Bhe Paid Csptaln Alvares The Woman Who Dared , The' Waiting Boul HhBT &' ib'Ta Valeatlaa Olrl '- The Valentine Qlrl Th Valentin flirt Th Valentin Olri Th Valentine Girl Th Valentin" Olrl f V T,w Brtelmrti .Bey- i Th Butctxr1 Boy Th Butcher' Boy Th Butcher's Bey The Butcher' .Bey Th Butcher' Boy HHfL "" "' tBtt 9ntHftft HlP&"2ttiu n. Sarah .'Bernhardt, In Altes Brady, In. Alice Brady) In r Alice Brady. In a--------------iiBii ill irti ' .BBMf Trtjr; 'f fVn o( Franf" "Mather of France" t "Darkest Buta" "Darkest Ruwla" "Darkest Huaala" time. From that time on Miss Macpherson was recoRnlzed not only ns a scenario writer, but also as n player nnd a director. Then, ono day nervous prostration, A Ioiir rot was licceshary. and when sho recovered she decided that she would forgo the pleasure of acting and would denote her enersles to scennilo writing, to directing and to tho asembllnp; of jllm. She becamo associated with the Lasky or ganization, and was directly under the eye of Cecil H. De Mille, who wns the director of "Joan the Woman." Miss Macpherson has been stanch in adherence to her deter mination to keep from the stage, but there was an awful temptation when Geraldlne Farrar beijan to act for the screen version of "Carmen." The temptation could not be resisted, and so it happened that Miss Macpheison becamo a part of that produc tion, for sho took the role opposite Miss Farrar and, In the cigarette factory, was seen In a terrific fight with the prima donna. FANCY "BELL" HART ASPOEMINSPIRER! Yet He Is One, and Here's the Evidence in Cold Type roetry and William S. Hart virtually nre synonymous, says tho press agent. The western actor, who Is beloved by millions throughout tho world for his Impressive screen portrayals, daily inspires writers of botn amateur and professional talent to pen verses about htm and his plays. Kach day he receives secral .dedicatory poems, and each poem radlaten the rugged spirit of the West, of the plains, of gun play. Martin Brown Is the author of tho latest contribution, a poem describing the town of Broken Hope, which serves na the locale for Hart's latest Triangle-Kay Bo western drama, "The Desert ilan," In which ho Is presented by Thomas H. Ince and which will bo shown at the Arcadia all next week. The verses apppear on the screen as a fore word of tho Btory and give a colorful Im pression of the scenes that follow. They arc: Spotting the face of the desert's gray With sharks of hue that matched it, A village that once was a city lay Mocked by the sun that watched it. All of Its glory dimmed and paliMl, Burned dry by the winds of tho slop; Th living death of th doom that failed. The name of It Broken llopul Other Theatrical News on Preccdinu Page wttctn TWO NOTED HEADS . ARE BETTERTHAN THREE Co-Author of "The Country Cousin," at the. Broad Next Week, Describes His Collaboration .A. "' i3 Belup a revelation conecrnlnp n more or teas miiunderstooil proccai by Julian Street, tcho altttd Booth Tarktngton in the writing of "The Country Cotufii." tehlrh Is to be prttcnted at the Broad next week. A great many people have asked me nboiit the method of work employed by Mr. Tark Ington nnd myself when wo collaborated In writing "The country Cousin." People seem often to suppose that Mr. Tarklngton wrote certain parts of the play while I wrote other parts nnd that we would later Join these partH together. Of course, we did not work In that way, and I ennnot con ceive of a coherent or balanced literary production of a n y kind being produced by such n method, I hate seen It tried several time, and the finished work al ways resembled a patchwork nullt . . The original Idea which resulted In our plav was Mr Tarklngton s. nnd I felt It to be a great compliment when he asked me to Join him In constructing nnd writing a play. His idea when he first proposed It to me was something like this- That the play should point the contrast between the more modest, wholesome and honest American ideals of ten or fifteen ears ngo and the looser and more dissipated social life to be seen in many American cities today. That was the Idea with which we began. Wc had no characters, no story, Just a central theme . ,., ., . I spent the month of July with Mr. and Mrs. Tarklngton at Kennehunkport, Me., where they pass their summers, and as soon ns I arrUed Mr. Tarklngton and I began to hold long stsslons In his studio discuss ing various means for presenting tho theme, as, for Instance, whether the Idea could best be elaborated through a male or female central figure, and whether this cen tral figure, representing tho better kind of Americanism, should be shown In contrast to the inferior group In New York or else where. As we worked these points out we kept In mind always the central Idea of the play and we renched our final conclusions on nil points by selecting from all the Ideas which came to us the one which seemed to give the most force and naturalness to our cen tral theme. At the end of four or nvo days the bare outline of n story had formed It self It was all vague as to the char acters. Wo had a figure which we called "our1 girl," and other figures which w know by like designations. At last for convenience, ns our characters began to emerge from the blurred outline of the story and become real to us, we began to nam them, and at the samo tlmo we began to construct the first net scene for scene. In this work wo followed the method of keeping nlwayn In mind the direction the play ought to take. I found myself ton tlnunlly etmmorcd of little vistas .off be. side the road which I wished to explore: that Is, I would ec, here and there, a chance for a comedy, scene or some other sort of scene nnd would suggest putting it ln, but In such cases Mr. Tnrklngton's su. p'erlor wisdom nnd experience would com Into play, and ho would point out to mt that while such a scene as I had suggested would make a good scene In Itself, It must be saci Iflced because It did not directly ad. vance our story. All my writing life I hae been trying to learn to cllminnte the unessential, no' matter how alluring the unessential may appear and 1 really thought I had learned to do It! but in the course of my work with Mr! Tarklngton on "Tho Country Cousin" i learned more, nbout hewing to the line than I ever did before. ' I learned It from him, and I shall always be Indebted to him for what he taught mo In the course of our work together quite regardless of whether our play succeeds or not. We outlined tl.o whole play carefully, scene for scene, building each act up to ward the climax which we designed to reach. Then wo began to All our skeleton with flesh. In writing tho dialogue we worked l'ke Siamese twins, that is with two heads. Ona head would suggest something. If the other head agreed that something was put down) If not, the two heads would debate the point and finally wc Invariably agreed. Almost every line in the play was written in that way. I sat at the typewriter and Mr. Tarklngton would sit ln a chair beslds me, or would walk about the studio while wa talked. Wlvjn we were In a delicate part of the work wo would discuss the exact way In which to say the thing wo wished lo say, and our discussion resembled as much aa anything cli-e the kind of discussion that a man will conduct In his own mind when ha Is thinking over some delicate point. One of us would suggest a line, nnd perhaps the other would catch at It. but suggest a slight change of wording which would improve it. Or the other would Bay. "Yes. that's It !" whereupon I would put the line down. I think Mr, Tarklngton nnd I could go over the manuscript today without being able to pick out fifteen lines which were contributed entirely by cither one of us. BUCOLIC DRAMA'S LATEST EXPONENT A Glance Backward at Former "Rube" Plays That Held the American Boards "Mother Carey's Chickens," aa the latest contribution to pastoral comedy, departs from the farm atmosphere of rustic plays which .have won much popularity. Phllft delphlans will remember the country life II. lustrated by such plays as "The Old Home stead, "Way Down East" and others. While comedy of rustic America, typified by "Mother Carey's Chickens," the latest contribution to the stage by Kate Douglas Wlggln, at the Adelphl next week, has been a feature In this country's theatrical pleasures for years, it has made no head way ln England, where theatregoers until recently preferred to see the Yankee char acter burlesqued. Research discloses that a first effort nt n rural play was "The Con trast," by a Boston writer, more than a century ago. Thirty years afterward another Yankee characterization appeared In the part of Jonathan in "The Forest Rose," a musical piece. A Chlcngoan, Dan field Marble, Is credited with attaining much success In a stage presentation of Yankee humor and Yankee shrewdness called "Sam Patch," which ho played more than a thousand times until he went to London in the forties. "Solon Shingle" appeared about that time, played by "Yankee" Hill. Joshua Whltcomb. the central figure ln "Tho Old Homestead," was first a part of a sketch (n two scenes, staged In variety during tho seventies. The first scene showed the Down easier in the streets of Boston, and the other at the birthday party. Gradually the piece was expanded Into a full evening's entertainment, bringing pleasure to millions, The late James A. Heme wrote and atted numerous plays which projected the Down easier as a paramount personality. ' In "Hearts of Oak," which Heme wrote ln col laboration with David Belasco, adapting from an old English play, "The Mariner's Compass," the principal character was a seafaring Xew Englander, rough, kindly, shrewd and firm. Heme turned this piece to further use, though tho rewriting- pro duced such changes that there was only the germ surviving In "Sag Harbor." In "Shore Acres" the people were New EnglanderB. Charles Hoyt undertook several Yankee characterizations, especially ln "A Midnight Bell," produced twenty-eight years ago, Maude Adams appearing in the cast. Neil Burgess presented the feminine gen der of New England types in "The Widow Bedett" and "The Country Fair," both of which profited extremely, Edward E Kid der's "Peaceful Valley" furnished the quaint character of Hosea Howe, among Sol Smith Russell's most famous portrayals. - 11 HUMBLE STREET CAR AS SCENIC AFFLATUS If You Want, to Understand the Last Word, Look at "Letty" Those who have attended a performance of "So Long Letty," at tho Lyric, and who have neer been In the West, wonder why Mr. and Mrs. Robbins and their neighbor. Mr. and Mrs. Miller, live ln abandoned street cars. They agree that Oliver Moroaoo, the producer and coauthor of the play, has provided something new In stage settings. But Mr, Morosco has good authority for tha novel scenes shown ln the two acts the first outside and tho second Inside a street car. To he westward of San Francisco on a sandy shore some eighteen mlle) from the Golden Gate Is a little settlement, Carvllle, When electricity displaced horses as the motive power for street transportation an enterprising oung man purchased some of the old street cars and had them shipped to the seashore. Then ha bought, for little' or nothing, strips of land on the beach and on them he placed the cars. When he had fitted the cars into a semblance of hablta tlon he had no difficulty In renting them to campers for the summer months. Some of the tenants bought the .little hou&es. The Idea took hold: more cars were moved to tho beach and some made Into quite pre tentious cottages. So tho Authors of "So Long Letty" selected this little settlement as their locality. To be sure, the Interior of Mrs, Rohbins's abode is somewhat larger and more luxurious than one would natu rally expect inside an old-fashioned street car, but that is "dramatic license." Livingston Flatt, who ' designed the scenery, has taken full advantage of the unusual opportunities offered. He uses an arch that mounts high toward the prosce nium, and It Is built to represent a consider erable thickness. One might think that this device would obtrude itself, but such is the use of the arch itself, of simple, graceful design and highly variegated, color and such are the quaintly formal and colorful designs of tho setting disclosed beyond, that the .Inner proscenium Justifies Itself. The scene of the two street cars converted Into beach houses, shown ln the first act, naturally gave Mr. Piatt an odd Idea to start with. But while another scene painter might .have designed the setting in nothing better than a fantastic sort oQ realism, Mr. Piatt, by combining a, genuine sense of design nnd color with a sense of humor, gets beauty and sufficient comlo suggestions, too. The two cars, connected by a dimlnutlvo "Bridge of Sighs," are del icately constructed, tlntea m warm pinks and light greens, topped by designs ln for- mal greenery and backed by a drop of deep bluo sky. NOT AS DUSKY AS THEY'RE PAINTED xljl h fcf,''i y ". .- ' i - a -- m i '. P-TO ..T 'V'1 Tjw-MviVI ' n"v :- i F1K:M K-:" ii HA' -', i F ' Z"1- ?" . .- H -i aiW - aK: VPHPr-H ; afVdi asW-i'-smti'v" Vifolsrr-e-Hils 'A i lSB4ViAfcf,s-v'!(5'isBRii i- ii if ' s mwN&t-- '"--'- ' ' -1I: ; J HMgjjJtaaajgttH0ajB
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers