Theatrical
Circles
W. Ruskin will describe the pictures
and, as he was ten years in the tropics
and artic getting these five reels, his
talk will be of great interest.
The methods of getting the pictures
involved they outlay of $250,000. The
loss of lives of those who were engag-
ed in getting the films together was an
incidental happening. It is probable
that it will be long before the equal of
this film will be made again, and it is
doubtful if it will ever be exceeded in
real interest.
Mr. Ruskin was with Harry Whitney,
"North of 76" when they met Dr. Fred-
rick Cook of North Pole fame. Un-
like most people, Mr. Ruskin has faith
in Cook, as has Mr. Whitney. He will
describe briefly in what dire straits
Dr. Cook and his two Eskimos were
when discovered and saved by the
Whitney expedition.
The pictures cannot be adequately
described. They must be seen to be
appreciated. A thrill comes over one
when he sees lions, in all their prime-
val savageness eating their meals, and
the scene showing a hearty cuff be-
stowed on the lioness by her lord and
master when she ventures too near to
him as he eats his evening meal is
one of the best. Again, a leopard,
catching a jungle fowl as big as a
turkey and cruelly torturing it to death
in the same manner that a cat does a
mouse is truly wonderful. A snake,
waking from its winter's sleep and
then going into the river and catching
and eating a 10-pound fish; wild cat
STAR OF PHOTOPLAY
Appears in Light Role in "A Gilded
Fool;" Has Played Many Heavy
Parts in Movies
HUNTS WILD GAME
W ITH HIS CERA 0
Jo1 W. Ruskin Has Invaded AllC or-
ners and Parts of Globe for
Moving Pictures
CAST IS ONE OF EXCELLENCE I CLOSE-UP VIEWS HIS1 HOBBY
Who that has seen William Farnum,
erstwhile the valiant Ben Hur, daughty
Prince Mahomet and resonant Ingo-
mar, whirling in a chariot race, defy-
ing fate with a Gargantuan sword or
stalking through the barbarian's role
in tige-skins and rhetoric, can imagine
the man who has been called America's
greatest actor of such parts in a typ-
ical Nat Goodwin characterization? Or
to come to a more recent date isn't it
an abrupt transition from Mr. Farnum 's
received masterly work as Samson in
William Fox's production of Bern-
stein's great modern drama of love and
frenzied finance to his rendition of
Chauncey Short, the village cut-up, in
the earlier scenes of the Fox pictur-
ization of Henry Guy Carleton's com-
edy drama "A Gilded Fool" in which
Mr. Farnum makes his latest screen
bow? Those who witnessed the fiveI
Hunting wild games with a mov-
ing picture camera is the vocatiop
of John W. Ruskin, who, under the
auspices of the News and Enquirer,
is showing at the Majestic thea-
ter some of the rarest and most in-
teresting wild aninal pictures ever
exhibited. John Ruskin seems to
have a charmed life, for he has trav-
eled in all parts of the globe, and
has explored its wildest and least
known sections, and has coie out
whole, though six of his men have
at various times lost their lives.
Ruskin is here with his pictures.
He is 36 years old and has been a.
hunter of' wild game since he was
12 years old. Animals, birds, and
reptiles have come under the focus
of his camera, and they are all shown
in the pictures exhibited here.
"How was it possible for you to get
such wonderful close-up views of wild
and dangerous animals," was asked of
Ruskin.
catching a rabbit and then having a USE MANY DEVItES
great parts of Samson, in which Mr.
tug-of-war with its body; a fox fore- "Well," replied Ruskin, "it would
going and catching a rabbit, are merely Farnum as Maurice Brachard did some take many pages of your paper to tell
a few of the subjects shown, - of the most masterly work of his ca- of the many devices I used to get my
reer will be equally enthusiastic when pictures with. Briefly speaking," he,
RUSKIN ANIMAL PICTURES ARE they see the high artistry this versatile continued, "I knew just where the lion
FULL OF INTEREST TOALL and notable actor displays as Chaun- was to be found. We know that he
cey Short.", always carries his prey to within strik-
A film of rare educational value will Mr. Farnum himself is delighted with ing distance of water and that water
be seen at the Majestic, commencing this chance to play a light role. is found in depressions or gullies. We
Thursday, May 27. "I thought I was doomed for life to always traveled on elephants through
John W. Ruskin, a member of the drive chariots or pack ninety-pound these countries for the reason that the
Harry Whitney Artic expositions of suits of armor about," said the actor elephant can break his way through
1909 and 1912 and exposition to Africa while "resting" between scenes at the the jungle much better than any other
and India, who is said to be one of the big William Fox studios in Jersey City beast of burden. Arriving at these
most entertaining talkers in the coun- recently,*"secretly I have always cher- gullies we erected our imitation tree
try, explains the pictures. ished an ambition to play a comedy trunks. These imitation tree trunks
During the six years, six trips were part. The chance to play Chauncey were made of wood pulp, when erected
made to Africa. During the six years Sbort delighted me beyond expression. were about fifteen feet in height and
six men gave up their lives while with This fellow, the fresh country bump- about twenty feet in width. Four of
the party of photographers, Two of kin in the earlier part of 'A Gilded us got in each one of these tree trunks.
these were killed by the leopard which Fool' who afterward becomes a strong Here we lived, principally on pre-
followed the party for over 100 miles, resourceful man of business gives me digested foods, being very careful to
when those men, who were not accus- just the opportunity I've been looking take 'with us enough water to last at
tomed to the ways of the jungle stay- for. For years I have had to declaim least twenty-five days. Inside of the.
ed behind the party, high-falutin lines and strut about in tree trunks, our cameras were erected
armor or don cave-man bear-skins, on tripods, so that we could throw
WILD LIFE. PICTURES FULL OF Thank heaven and Mr. Fox, for the them in any direction. There was one
THRILLING SCENES AND ACTION change, and a chance to wear evening very important thing that we were
clothes and a natural manner. Not but compelled to do continually; that was
Beginning with the Thursday night what I love the 'old fellows.' In fact to kill the smell of our bodies for the
performance at the Majestic, "How in the future I mean to give a series leopard is exceedingly keen and can
Wild Animals Live" a collection of of big revivals of the classic drama at smell a human being many hundreds
a Broadway theater. But-well vari- of feet away. To kill the smell of our
marvelous motion pictures of animals ety is the spice of life you know and I bodies we used assefoetida, not a very
from jungles, forest and field, taken fairly revel in Chauncey Short. Wheth- pleasant smell. Here we watched and
in all parts of the world will be on (er I can play a comedy part or not is waited, two men always peering
view. of course in the last analysis for the through the peepholes in our tree
The wonderful possibilities of the public to decide." trunk. All of our animal pictures in
motionpiu carThere is no doubt in the minds of the jungle were taken from these
moinpicture camera for the purpose"
of natural history study are revealed those who have seen "A Gilded Fool" "fake" tree trunks.
in these pictures. but that the answer will be in the LOSS OF LIFE
John W. Ruskin a member of the affirmative. From the rollicking, good- "The most unfortunate part of get-
various expeditions sent into all parts hearted, loud-mouthed "village cut- ting these jungle pictures," continued
of the earth to secure these wild ani-up" to the ultimately keen-minded man Ruskin, "was the loss of life. Six men
mal views, tells of the many interest- of business that Chauncey Short de- during the five trips we made into Brit-
ing and unique methods resorted to velops into, Mr. Farnum gives a won- ish East Africa were killed by leopards
to secure these remarkable pictures. derfully finished characterization that and lions.
In the far north you will see polar will certainly astonish his nation-wide "An imitation rock made of canvas
bears swimming in the arctic waters, admirers who have seen him in Ben and colored to resemble a mass of
while on the ice fields seals disport Hur, in which he starred for five years stone was used to get the big snake
themselves, not in the way they do in and other plays of .classic repetoire. life of South America.
aquarium tanks, but as they do in the Assisted by one of the most notewor- "Our device for getting close to the
open, thy companies gathered together since smaller wild life," continued Ruskin,
One of the most interesting and ; the making of motion pictures began "has been shown in the scientific mag-
thrilling pictures is that of a leopard Mr. Farnum gives a performance azines-a papier mache cow.
making a flying leap upon a jungle ,marked by distinction, subtlety and "There is only one country where the
fowl, which is sitting on its nest. The vclever comedy. "A Gilded Fool" is in sun shines that I have not visited,"
habits of this treacherous animal are every respect one of the "Productions said Ruskin, "and that is Thibet. This
Extraordinary" that have made Fox country has denied admission to every
very clearly shown as he tortures the'I
vun.erFeature Films famous on two conti- white man, but some time or another
jungle fowl. After racing and rushingnet.iagogtohtcutr"
up and down the hill with it, the leop-# _ents._ I am going to that country."
ard finally rolls over exhausted and
drops the fowl. Suddenly, the leopard soa"
springs to his feet, approaches the top
of the hill, arching his back and tail
and is ready. to make a spring. The
clinking of the camera has attracted
his attention, and were it not for the
fact the operators had killed the smell
of their bodies they would have never
returned to civilization.
There are hundreds of different sub-
jects shown in the two hours that it
takes to run off the five reels and
every one of them is interesting, novel
and educational. You will learn more ,
about animal life in their native haunts
in the two hours than you could learn
by reading books of natural history for
a solid month. In. the words of the
reviewer of the Boston Transcript who
wrote: "I came to the theater expect-
ing to be bored and to remain, half an
hour, but I stayed through the whole
performance and was sorry when it
ended,"
Scene from "A Gilded Fool" at the Majestic movies, Wednesday and Thurs-
day, May 26 and 27.