COMMENT FROM CULVER

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 68, 11 June 1927, Page 23 (Supplement)

COMMENT FROM CULVER

LON CHANEY’S NEW VEHICLE Culver City, U.S.A., April 21. Monta Bell, who has turned out a steady procession of successful pictures, including MThe Torrent,” “Lights of Old Broadway,” and “Upstage,” has signed a new long-term contract with Metro-Goldwyin-Mayer, and will direct John Gilbert in a story soon to be selected. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer has started a production on Lon Chaney’s new starring vehicle, “The Unknown,” which Tod Browning, who directed Chaney in “The Unholy Three,” “The Road to Mandalay” and othei successes, is directing. Joan Crawford and other well-known players are included in the cast. William Haynes’s first starring role will be in “Spring Fever,” a comedy of golf and love by Vincent Lawrence. The cast to support Haines has not yet been announced, but will include a group of prominent players. Haines has been prominent in featured roles for some time. PROMISED FEATURES

Tully Marshall, Karl Dane, George Cooper and Harry Carey have been cast for important roles in “The Trail of ’98.” Actual filming of this picture is expected to begin very soon under the direction of Clarence Brown and is planned to be one of the most

elaborate productions of this year. Conrad Nagel has the featured male part.

Tom O’Brien, whose popular screen portrayals include “Bull” in “The Big Parade,” has been added to the cast of Jackie Coogan’s new starring vehicle for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, “The Bugle Call.” The supporting cast in this film now includes such well known players as Claire Windsor, Herbert Rawlinson, Harry Todd, Mary Jane Irving, Nancy Price and Nelson McDowell. Edward Sedgwick, responsible foi many successes, will direct.

As the result of his successful direction of Tim McCoy’s first two historical outdoor pictures, W. S. Van Dyke has been given a new long-term contract with this company. Van Dyke directed both “War Paint” and “Winners of the Wilderness,” and will begin work soon on a new McCoy picture written for the screen by Peter B. Kyne.

Now that Lucy Beaumont, Daniel Tomilson, Del Henderson and Freddie Fredericks have joined the cast of King Vidor’s new, but as yet unnamed, picture, the list of players is complete James Murray and Elinor Boardman have the leading roles.

Metvo-Goldwyn-Mayer have signed Lionel Barrymore and George K. Arthur to contracts whereby their services will be kept exclusively with that company. Barrymore recently completed an important role in John Gilbert’s starring vehicle “The Show,” and will portray one of the featured roles in “ The Branding Iron,” which Reginald Barker will produce. George K. Arthur, English stage and screen

actor, has just finished an important role in Marion Davies's “Tillie the Toiler.” Ralph Forbes and T. Roy Barnes are the two latest additions to the cast of “The Branding Iron,” Kathlyn .Newlin Burt’s story of the Swiss Alps, which Reginald Barker will direct. Forbes is now playing the romantic lead in Lon Chaney’s "Mr Wu,” and with the completion of this role will immediately start work with Lionel Barrymore and Aileen Pringle in this production. The title of the new picture which Harry Millarde is directing has been changed from “The Grey Hat” to “On Ze Boulevarde.” Lew Cody and Renee Adoree play the leading rdles in this production. MAE MURRAY’S GOWN During tlxe making of “Altars of Desire,” Mae Murray, who is starred, in climbing over the stones and through thickets for scenes in the picture, ruined one of her gowns. As this was necessary for later sequences, a car was sent for cloth that would match the torn garment. With the aid of her maid, a needle and some thread. Miss Murray made a duplicate frock to finish the remaining scenes. “Altars of Desire'’ includes Conway Tearle and other well-known players.

In an address on Empire films at a : Royal Colonial Institute luncheon in London, Sir Robert Donald said Australia, on the basis of population, was ' the greatest film market in the world. He predicted that in the near future ; good British and Dominion films would far exceed the quota prescribed in the j : Film Bill. Americans did not endorse ; the depreciation of British films. On the contrary, they were very anxious j to participate in Empire productions ! and were keenly buying them to send J to Australia. Americans feared the i Empire’s protective measures, there- j fore they were hurrying to create a new Hollywood in British Columbia, and thus share in the preference. The difficulty in the past had been that Britain had no direct agencies in Australia and New Zealand. He was confident that : in ten years Britain would supply hall the Empire's film requirements.