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Show j ' II I?r. A. II. G1EIILEK. pHE "extra" is to the movies 1 what the supernumerary was I to the regular stage. The word "was"' is used because we never eco any or the good old-time stage plays with their big scenes as we used to when the Shakespeare repertoire company came to town, and two or three dozen high school noys who hac , the histrionic itch would get jobs at "Buplng", and earn the envy of all I j their friends and 50 cents by wearing j I the tin armor and cheesecloth togas of noble Romans in "Julius Caesar," or helping to bring the forest to Dunsi-nano Dunsi-nano in "Macbeth." The "extra" is of more importance to the movies than the "supe" was to the regular stage, however, because there arc more of "him" or "her." In fact the extras come mighty near to being the whole show In some pictures. pic-tures. Many of the so-called big productions pro-ductions would fall as flat as a cafeteria cafe-teria wheat cake without tho thrill that is put into the action by the movements of hundreds of extras. Many a movie would cut a sorry figure fig-ure at being heroic without the sup-i sup-i port of the noble army of extras he leads to victory In the big battle scene. The extra represents atmosphere, background, sometimes scenery, mobs, armies, pcoplo at society functions, crowds in the street, onlookers at a fire, and, if we believe the talcs of woe the directors tell, one of the contributory contrib-utory causes that whiten their hair at an early age; and sends many of them to a premature grave. There is little glory and not very much pay to the extra's work. . He must stand out In front of the burning burn-ing building with the fair young girl leaning out of the third-story window and yelling "Save muh!" And al-fhniirrh al-fhniirrh ho would be inst a .ihlo tn I save her as the leading man, he cannot can-not stir hand or foot except to applaud ap-plaud the hero when he comes down tho ladder with the girl in his arms. Maybe he gets to be one of the six that hoist the hero on their shoulders and carry him away to be wined and feted for his bravery, and maybe he has to go and lie down. on the grass and be a pathetic white figure of a fire victim. The White Sheets. It docs not' matter how disastrous tho fire, or how much hypothetical property is destroyed in a studio nre, there are always plenty of nice white sheets to spread over the bodies of the fire victims as they are laid out in a row on the lawn. These white sheets serve a double purpose. They make the scene look gruesome and 'pathetic, and at the samo time lessen the cnanccs or tne victims sitting up and looking arouna before the scene is over. If you arc ever an extra in a Are scene in the movies or in any scenc where you are supposed to be dead, for goodness sako don't sit up or move until some one in authority tells you to. You can put a curse on yourself that will never como off by spoiling a scene in that way. Being an extra has got to bo a sort of branch profession in itself. There is hardly a picture mado nowadays that does not have Its big crowd, its mobs, Its street throng, its big ballroom or battle scene. Some of the larger studios keep a large number of extras at the plant all the time and pay them whether thoy are used or not to insure getting good people. Other plants depeud on picking the extras they need from the crowds that apply at the studio gale as each picture is cast. Being a good extra is not as easy as it looks. It would seem that any one could walk down the street In a natural manner, but there are few who can do it naturally before a camera. Crowds passing on the street in movie scenes look and act Just like ordinary or-dinary people, and this very fact goes to prove that thoy arc not just ordinary ordi-nary people, but well-trained extras, with perhaps a half dozen experienced actors and actresses among them, all of whom have been carefully rehearsed re-hearsed for the work. In fact, one of the big Jobs of tne directors is to keep Mr. Ordinary Citizen Cit-izen out of the picture. It would seem that James Jones going go-ing to his lunch, John Robinson on his way to have his hair cut, and Maisic Mulkins, stenographer, on her way to look at some perfectly darling hats in the next block, could walk past a camera just as if they were going to lunch, for a hair-cut, or to look at a hat. But thoy cannot do it without being drilled and talked to in a manner man-ner they would very much resent, so, for that reason when an actual street scene is bcins made. Jim and John and Maisie are politely, or even- impolitely, steered outside of camera range and not allowed to make their first appearance appear-ance In tho movies at the expense of a spoiled scene, due to the fact that Mafsio would be almost sure to strut or mince along, and that Jim would walk stifflcgged and too fast, and that John would throw out his chest in too important a manner, and that all three of them would look the camera right in the eye like they do when they are bplng snap-shotted by a pocket kodak fiend. Street scenes that show ordlnary crowds are often used, but they arc usually photographed when the crowds are unaware of what is going on. The big crowds at the entrance to Brooklyn Bridge In the rush hours are often taken by having a camera concealed con-cealed in an auto and standing in a location lo-cation that renders it inconspicuous to the hurrying throngs. braking the Pnbllc Help. Sometimes Mr. Average Citizen does get to appear in the movies. When the interior of the theaters are U3ed In pictures, the sets arc usually built up in the studios, but now and then a real Ngggr j H M'V; 'f W theater will be filmed, and then Mr. Average Citizen "sometimes" gets an invitation to save the studio money by appearing as a fractional part of tho audience. And as he has nothing more to do than to wear his good clothes and sit down, he usually acts very "nice," and seldom "boobs" the picture. When Margaret Mayo'a stage play, "Polly of the Circus," was filmed recently, re-cently, a convention gathering -of newspaper men were used as a part of the audience that sat under tho circus cir-cus tent. , Once in a while tho hotel lobbies or corridors of celebrated hostelrics and summer resorts arc photographed to get the correct local color; and the guests of the place are always willing to fill up the scenes with their presence pres-ence and fine feathers, and as they are grouped in small squads, or used to decorate the chairs and settees, they "get by" in good shape. ' And after it is all' over, they never fall to rush off to the post-card counter count-er to- write to their friends that "George and I have just been acting in tho movies. Flim Flam Film Company made picture of hotel, and Ave consented con-sented to appear In picture. "Will send you name of film so you can see us when it is shown at the Dreamland." Extras are paid at the rate of from ?3 to $5 a day. The $3 Is for plain mob and battle scene stuff. For work where a higher degree of skill Is required, re-quired, the higher rate is paid. Some of tho studios keep a register of the names of extras who arc sent f6r as they are needed. Others depend on hiring them from the seventy-nve to 100 size crowd that shows up at the studio lot every day. People of striking looks and personality person-ality are always pretty sure of lots of work, A man 6 feet 4 in height is more apt to get work than a smaller- sized individual. Types are much :n demand. The extra with a bullel-ahaped head and littlo hair will be used in "dive" scenes, bocause be look3 tough, while another with a high brow and the evident need of a hair-cut will b? employed by some director wno thlniis that intellectual people look that way Men with whiskers are usually pretty pret-ty much in demand. They are used to decorate rural comedies, ana in An. scenes. A picture where a numDer of Arau camel drivers were used was made recently re-cently in a New York studio. One of tho "sons of the desert" who had lone, flowing whiskers asked a visitor for a cigarette, saying that he had no money, ' although he had been working at the studio for over a week. Inquiry developed the fact that the man with the Shlek's beard was con-siddcrcd con-siddcrcd a rare find, and he was not paid off until the picture was finished, to make sure he would not allow a sudden and unusual influx of money to make him forget his duties as head of the caravan, and thus spoil a valuable val-uable picture. Many stars have graduated from the ranks of the extras, and there are many more among the ranks of tho extras who hope to be stars, but never will, for that kind of lightning striking strik-ing in the movies is getting moro rare every day. Being an extra is not the easiest work in the world, and there is considerable con-siderable danger to it. Many people -get hurt in the big battle scenes, and when a fight in a "dive" is stagee ihany black eyes are in evidence among tho mimic rioters, who got enthusiastic en-thusiastic In trying to please tho director, direc-tor, who stands outside of the camera range and urges them like a football coach, so that they pound each other up in groat shape. yn ps extras in circus j) j v Jjy li H& |
