| OCR Text |
Show - ' cMEN, WOMEN and CHILDREN TLA Y THE WHOLE DA Y LONG IN HAPPY UNIVERSAL CITY How the Essanay Was Organized and How It Fought Its Arduous Way to the Front Rank in the Motion Picture World Do you remember how, when we were little shavers, we used to watch the actors ac-tors on the stage, and wish that we might live among the gorgeous painted scenery in the Land of Make-Believe? How we used to envy Humpty-Dumpty and Columbine, and the other characters in the extravaganza, as they jumped blithely out of their little painted houses, and scurried away beneath the arching branches of the painted forests. Did you know that out in the California Cali-fornia hills there is a regularly incorporated incorpor-ated town, wherein two thousand people daily play amid make-believe surroundings, surround-ings, and that this play is their serious life work, carrying a message of uplift to millions of human beings? This town is Universal City, situated five miles from the city of Los Angeles, in the heart of the beautiful San Fernando Valley. Htre the Universal Film Manufacturing Manufactur-ing Company of New York City has established es-tablished its West Coast Organization, and has developed the greatest concerted moving picture enterprise in the entire world. The city is reached from Los Angeles by a beautiful drive up the Canyon. It SrM iPI 1 1 SbiLBBSIk ; 'iflRSGBl I occupies a comparatively level plateau, forming the front of a basin something over a mile in diameter, entirely surrounded sur-rounded by mountains. From the center of tin- city one obtains a view of a greater great-er diversity of scenery than is possible in any other place in America. Frowning mountains, deep arroyus, turbulent rivers, riv-ers, placid lakes, rolling meadows, desert wastes, bracken and jungle all are spread out before you; everything, in short, except the soa, and that is so near that it can almost be seen from the plaza. This wide range of scenery makes Uuiversal City an unrivaled center for moving picture production, To enhance the natural advantages the Universal Film Manufacturing Company has constructed con-structed whole streets of the most substantial sub-stantial houses, the fronts of which are made to conform to a variety of architectural archi-tectural style?, according to the necessity of the pictures to he produced. At times the. town takes on the appearance of an Oriental City again, it is a Spanish garrison, gar-rison, still again au Indian Pueblo village. vil-lage. Then on other occasions the visitor visi-tor will see a frontier settlement, or an army post in the old frontier days. The permanent buildings are used for a variety of useful purposes. Some are storage warehouses, others ore factories wherein arc made the costumes required by the actors. There are a tailoring shop, a saw and planing mill, a furniture furni-ture factory, a papier mache factory in which are made all of the wonderful art objects that seem so real in the motion pictures. Bunkdiouses to accommodate the cow-boys and military men, bungalows bunga-lows for the principals, and a great com-missary com-missary department are other useful buildings. The very first thought of the Universal Film Manufacturing Company Com-pany is the health of its employees, and to that eud they have constructed a beautiful and perfectly complete hospital, hospi-tal, where every resident of Universal City may receivo medical and surgical attention gratis. As to the inhabitants of Universal City, it is doubtful if nn community of like sise in the United States can show a greater variety of nationalities and types. There are whol? bands of red Indians; regiments of soldierv. both1 : x'?.y.nl.r-v an,J foot: cow-boys, Mexicans , riUpinos, negroes, Orientals, and every nationality among the Aryan and Semitic races are represented. It is a cosmopobs in the truest sense 0f the word. The fame of the Universal City Zoo has spread to the farthest confines of the continent. It is the largest privately owned collection of wild animals iu the world, and includes lions, tigers, leopards, leop-ards, elephants, camels, pvthous and boa constrictors, jackals, hyenas, chimpanzees, chimpan-zees, gorillas, ourangs and other jungle beasts. All of these are bejng used iu one of the greatest series of animal pictures pic-tures ever projected on the screen. Henry Sanders, one of the best animal trainers train-ers in the business, has charge of the beasts which are housed and cared for in a manner that would delight the heart of Henry Bergh, the founder of the S. P. C. A. As nearly as is praeticable, the animals are allowed to roam in enclosures en-closures that approximate their native habitat In addition to its fame as the only incorporated in-corporated motion picture city in the world Universal City has the unique distinction dis-tinction of being the only municipality in the world that possesses an entire outfit of women officials. The Chief of Police and the Mayor are each of the gentle sex, as also are the corporation counsel and president of the board of aldermen. Five miles from Universal Citv are the Hollywood Studios of the Universal Film Manufacturing Company, which is another little city in itself. Here is located lo-cated the largest motion-picture stage In the world, laboratories, property rooms and storage houses, and every device de-vice known for the production of motion pictures. Both the Hollywood Studios and Universal Uni-versal City are under the direct supervision super-vision of Isidore Bernstein, general Western manager of the Universal Film Manufacturing Company. Numbered among the foremost of history his-tory makers in the motion picture game is the Essanay Film Manufacturing Company, whose real birth dates back to the time when pioneering in the film business was just as arduous as was pioneering in the early history of our countrv. However, two of these pioneers, pion-eers, George K. Spoor and G. M. Anderson, An-derson, thoroughly believing in their own convictious, and whose convictions meant the fulfillment of their beliefs regardless regard-less of the opinion of other or of the seeming impossible barriers that lie along their course, they struggled forward for-ward meeting reverses, set-backs and discouraging situations, that would have caused the ordinary men to seek other fields of activity. These two, however, were imbued with the business in which they had launched, every moment of their exis-l tence was wrapped around it It has been proven in all their doings that they are builders. Builders of the motion picture business as a business and as an art. The meeting of George K. Spoor and Gilbert M. Anderson was accidental. In the conversation that ensued following follow-ing the meeting, they found that their views on the motion picture business coincided. co-incided. They each realized the vast-ness vast-ness of the future, and within a few weeks after this chance meeting the firm of Essanay wus launched. It was not until February 5th, 1907, however, that the firm became incorporated under the trade name of Essanay. Everyone, of course, knows the source of the firm's name. How when it came to naming the company it was decided that a part of each one's name be used, so it was agreed to use the first letter of Mr. Spoor's name and the first letter of Mr. Anderson's name, giviug us S and A, which was given the lengthy spelling spell-ing of Essanay. it is undoubtedly to Mr. Anderson's construct he mind that credit is due for the happy and timely suggestion that the Essanay Film Manufacturing Company be the first in the field to turn out one thousand foot subjects. At the same time it was agreed that the firm specialize in comedies come-dies and Western productions, the latter to be staged iu the heart of the West. The gn it Importance the thousand foot subject has played in motion picture industry in-dustry is obvious. For years the one-reel film, as it became be-came known, held BWay, and it is only within the last few years that the multiple mul-tiple reel films are known at nil. However, How-ever, the big idea, the one-reeler, is still in heavy demand. The Western subjects, also," with its atmosphere of the plains and buck-skin, showing the cow-boy cow-boy in all his pristine glory, and traversing travers-ing his native soil with his brusque Miff his native son won ins iuumimv means of metting out justice and his wholehearted hospitality and the many other characteristics for which he Is famed. The best known of these heroes of the plains is without a question of B doubt G. M- Anderson, the world-wide famous "Broncho Billy." If letters from admirers may be taken as indicative of the popularity of- a photoplay er, then Maurice Costello, of the Vitagraph Company, must be conceded con-ceded tin palm among the stars of Screenland. Every day the size of his mail increases, and the number of letters let-ters bearing expressions of good will, of encouragement und of appreciation of his art grows larger. Motion picture actors, like their brothers of the speak iug stage, are not usually made famous overnight Their firm grip on their public pub-lic comes through persistent acting in manv roles for many months. A recent domestic misunderstanding with which Mr. Costello's name was connected was given a certain amount of publicity in much exaggerated form and temporarily placed him in an unpleasant un-pleasant position iu the eyes of some who do not know him. Those who do know him, however, possess sincere respect for him and remind those who do not possess pos-sess his personal acquaintance that there are two sides to every story. The fact that Mr. Costello has chosen to remain silent increases the appreciation they entertain en-tertain towards him and the many letters let-ters he receives from thein bear assurance assur-ance of this. |
