Foreign-Made Movies for American Theaters

The fight against foreign motion picture films, which means the fight against the free importation of motion pictures made in foreign countries, was begun by the Hollywood Post of the American Legion and has been taken up by that organization throughout the country at large.

This fight was backed by the business men of Los Angeles until recently, when circumstances which will be related caused active opposition temporarily to cease.

The fight against foreign films is being waged by the Legion for two purposes, one patriotic, the other economic. The patriotic motive can be no better expressed than reprinting the following resolution which was adopted May 23, 1921, by Hollywood Post No. 43:

"Whereas, the United States and its Allies have been engaged in a great war with Germany and its Allies in which many thousands of American soldiers were killed and wounded, and

"Whereas, Hollywood Post No. 43, of the American Legion, is aware of a movement to spread propaganda in this country favorable to Germany and unfavorable to the countries allied with the United States in the World War, and

"Whereas, the two German films, Passion and Deception, exhibited to date, have taken for their subjects the fictionalized lives of two rulers of countries allied with the United States in the war against Germany, namely, England and France, holding up to ridicule these rulers and their countries in the eyes of the American people, and

"Whereas German-made films are being advertised and exhibited not as 'German' films but as 'European' films, and

"Whereas The United States of America is undergoing a period of reconstruction in which it finds one of its greatest tasks to be that of providing employment for its returned soldiers, and

"Whereas, Hollywood Post No. 43, American Legion, deplores the fact that due to the absence of proper import and tariff restrictions American capital is being withdrawn from the motion picture business and is being invested in this industry in Germany to a great extent, thereby causing loss of employment to thousands of American citizens, many of whom are veterans of the World War, and

"Whereas, there is a movement existent within the motion picture industry to create films of a more wholesome and elevating character, and

"Whereas, the moral standard of the above mentioned German films is that of Germany and not that of America, parts of these films having shown scenes unfit for public presentation,

"Therefore be it Resolved that Hollywood Post No. 43, American Legion, in regular meeting assembled this twenty-third day of May, 1921, does go on record as being unqualifiedly opposed to the importation and exhibition of any picture containing even so much as hint of the above mentioned propaganda, and

"Be it further Resolved, that Hollywood Post No. 43, American Legion, petition the Congress of the United States to enact such tariff laws as will protect American industry and labor from the encroachment of foreign products which in no way assist in supporting either the government or the citizens of this country through their production, and

"Be it further Resolved, that Hollywood Post No. 43, American Legion, petition the Congress of the United States to enact legislation requiring all foreign-made products in general and motion picture films in particular, to be plainly labeled with the name of the country in which produced.

"Be it further Resolved, that copies of this resolution shall be sent to the President of the United States, the Congress of the United States, the commander of the American Legion, the commanders of all departments of the American Legion, the commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, the commander of the Veterans of the Spanish-American War, the commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, all news syndicates, all Los Angeles papers and periodicals, the affiliated picture interests, the Ministerial Union of Los Angeles, the American Federation of Labor and William Randolph Hearst."

They should have said Jewish capital, because it was Adolph Zukor and Samuel Goldwyn who went to Europe and bought up the product of German studios. It was Adolph Zukor who hired away from the German film industry its stars and directors. It was the Jewish-owned and operated First National Corporation that bought and exhibited the German film Passion, a film depicting the licentious life of the court of Louis XV, with his mistress DuBarry, as the heroine. A film that shows France in one of the worst moments of its history just before the fall of the Monarchy, and by its very title, a title, by the way given it after its purchase by First National, is not fit to be shown before any but the most sophisticated audience. The general impression given by the film to those who are not students of history is that the French are a nation of routs. That this was the impression designed by the makers of the film is undoubted.

This film was distributed by First National as a European, not a German film, and the advertising was so worded as to give the impression that it was made in France.

Likewise Deception was a German-made film created to excite hatred against the English. This film was imported in and distributed by Famous Players. Its plot was laid the time of notorious Henry VIII and his mistress, Anne Boleyn, and was designed not only to hold England up to ridicule in one of the worst phases of that nation's history, but also excite the Catholics against that nation.

The Hollywood Post of the American Legion is known as the "Motion Picture Post," being composed mainly of men connected with various branches of the film industry who served in the World War. These men know the industry and they know Europe. They know the kind of men who are in control of the film industry- men to whom the dollar is everything and patriotism nothing. They know that the simple passage of resolutions availed nothing. They know that they must act and act in such a way as to hit these exploiters where it would hurt most, in the pocketbook.

Therefore, when The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, a German-made film, which perhaps carried no particular significance as propaganda, being simply a gruesome picture after the cubist style of art, but which would serve as the insignificant wedge for the showing of other pictures that would be dangerous, was advertised to be shown at Miller's theater they decided on more strenuous measures than resolutions. Miller's theater, together with the more pretentious theater, the California, belongs to the Goldwyn Film Corporation. Legion members picketed the theater, carrying large banners telling would-be patrons to stay away and why.

The police smiled tolerantly, many of them being Legion men themselves. Most of the patrons kept out. Some entered. Finally the affair generated into a riot. Outside rowdies who had no connection with the Legion availed themselves of the circumstances to get rough. Eggs were thrown. Patrons continued to stay away from the theater.

Finally the management capitulated. The picture was withdrawn and an American-made film substituted. Thus the Legion men not only won a victory, but they forcefully called the attention of the community to the situation. The business men became aroused. An organization was formed known as the Loyal American Film League. Its executive committee consisted of such men as Orra E. Monette, president of the Citizens Trust & Savings Bank; Sylvester Weaver, president of the Chamber of Commerce; Cliff Horne, secretary of Elliott & Horne; Robert Brunton, president of Brunton Studios; Edward J. Nolan, attorney; George E. Feagans, head of a large jewelry house; Benjamin Hampton, motion picture producer; Marshall Stimson, attorney; G. M. Schneider, president Retail Dry Goods Association; Roy Marshall, adjutant, Post 43, American Legion; Bradner Lee, Jr., attorney; W. E. Chamberlin, vice-president, Hamburger & Sons; Earnest Joy, manager, Actors' Equity Association; Charles Giblyn, first vice-president, Motion Picture Directors' Association.

It became a live issue in Los Angeles, the home of the motion picture industry. Not only was the patriotic zeal of the citizens aroused, but the business men began to realize that the making of pictures in foreign lands would imperil the industry, which has done so much to make Los Angeles one of the fastest growing cities in the world.

The Actors' Equity Association was, with the Legion, one of the first organizations to see the danger. With half of its members out of work owing to the curtailment of production, they saw where nearly all of them would be idle soon.

Famous Players, with more than 150 of foreign made films on hand- this was the admission made by a supervising director of the corporation at a meeting of the Loyal American Film League- closed its New York studio, throwing a large number of actors out of work.

Pressure was brought to bear by the association on members of Congress, who were opportuned to enact tariff legislation that would equalize the difference between the cost of production in this country and abroad.

It was pointed out that a special or super-special feature picture that would cost from $150,000 to $750,000 to make in the United States would cost only $6,000 to $25,000 to produce in Germany. This difference is not only in the cost of materials but in wages. Extra people can be hired in Germany for the equivalent of ten cents a day in our money, while these same employes are paid from $5 to $10 a day in this country. The latter sum is not exorbitant, for it must be considered that extra people are idle at least half their time.

It was also pointed out to Congress that the admission of these cheap foreign films meant no reduction in admission to the general public. As the exhibitor was charged on the same basis of rental as if the picture had been made in this country. For instance, Passion, although it was purchased with two other films, one of which was Gypsy Blood, at a total cost for the three pictures of $45,000, was rented to exhibitors as a super-special picture, which alone would have cost $200,000 to produce in this country.

Alarmed at the efforts made by the American Legion, which took up the fight throughput the country until posts in 14 states had adopted the resolutions against the foreign films Famous Players immediately started a backfire.

The Los Angeles Express had been the first to take up the fight in that city and the other newspapers- as is the habit of newspapers when one of their number is first to champion a cause- became lukewarm in their attitude. They printed the news, but remained non-committal editorially.

The main argument against putting a tariff on foreign films advanced by the Famous Players' representatives was that it was retarding art. Such an argument coming from men like Frank Garbutt and Adolph Zukor, whose idea of artistry is the engraving on a $20 bill, caused amusement in the picture colony, but it served to excite alarm among a number of well-intentioned but shortsighted dramatic critics. An argument which had more weight with other producers was the danger of foreign countries retaliating with a similar impost on American-films. This argument, however, was ably answered by Robert Brunton, one of the principal independent producers, who showed that the foreign trade comprises only 12 per cent of the total business of the motion picture producers of the United States.

It must be borne in mind that Famous Players has a large number of subsidiary organizations which distribute not only these foreign films but the lower class of its American-made productions. The trade name of "Paramount" is placed only on such productions as will not tend to lower the standard set for "Paramount Pictures." Therefore, when the picture fan views in one of the high-class motion picture houses "Paramount Pictures" he must not think that these are the only productions put forth by Famous Players. It is estimated that at least two out of every three pictures made are failures, from one cause or another. Famous Players must have a market for these failures else they would be a total loss. To prevent such pictures from injuring the established name of Paramount they are placed on the market and sold through some of the various subsidiary distributing organizations maintained for that purpose.

It is through these subsidiary companies that Famous Players will undoubtedly market a large number of the foreign films already in its possession. But even for the low-class theaters many of these films are unfit for presentation until a great deal of cutting and some retaking has been done.

"Foreign-Made Movies for American Theaters," Baring The Heart of Hollywood Part VI, The Dearborn Independent, December 3, 1921, page 12.

© 1998, David Pierce, on editing and revisions (if any)

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