Angry Telegrams to Mack Sennett

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Chris Snowden
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Angry Telegrams to Mack Sennett

Postby Chris Snowden » Thu Jun 04, 2009 2:12 pm

Here's a post I wrote to alt.movies.silent a decade ago. I wish I could post scans of the telegrams that I describe; I did save them, but I saved them to an ancient format called the zip disc, and for whatever reason, my zip discs aren't readable anymore.

As I recall, there were four or five telegrams altogether, each of them from Adam Kessel and addressed to Sennett. One was a curt refusal to authorize more than $40 a week in salary for Dot Farley. The others are summarized below, and I thought the Mafiosi might be interested:



On eBay right now, a few telegrams relating to Keystone are for
auction. A couple of them help show how hectic the pace was at the
studio during Chaplin's early weeks there.

Here's an excerpt of one addressed to Sennett, from his superiors at
the New York Motion Picture Company, dated January 13, 1914:


"WILL BE COMPELLED TO SKIP A FEW RELEASES OF KEYSTONE UNLESS WE
(receive) THIS WEEK LITTLE BILLIES TRIUMPH MABLES BARE ESCAPE AND MAKING
A LIVING AND ENOUGH NEGATIVES NEXT WEEK TO ENABLE US TO BOOK FOR
FEBRUARY FIFTH SEVENTH AND NINTH(.)"


Evidently, the studio at this point was barely able to keep up with
its required output. The three films that hadn't even arrived in New
York by January 13 were ultimately released only two or three weeks
later:


"Litlle Billy's Triumph" (January 29)
"Mabel's Bare Escape" (January 31)
"Making a Living" (February 2)


"Making a Living" was the earliest known Chaplin film. Later in life
he recalled the hostility directed at him by his early Keystone
directors. The pressure that these men were under to wrap up new films
must have been part of the reason, because they were certainly keeping
him busy. He was featured in two of those three releases the home office
wanted for February 5th, 7th and 9th, "Kid Auto Races" and "Mabel's
Strange Predicament."


"...WE CANNOT RUN SO CLOSE IT TAKES ONE WEEK AT LEAST TO GET POSTERS
AND WE MUST SHIP TO EXCHANGE AT LEAST ONE WEEK IN ADVANCE OF RELEASE
DATE(.) BESIDES OUR CONTRACT CALLS FOR US TO NOTIFY THE MUTUAL OF
RELEASE DATES AT LEAST ONE MONTH IN ADVANCE(.) CANNOT UNDERSTAND WHY
KEYSTONE IS SO FAR BEHIND WHILE INCES COMPANY ARE SO FAR IN ADVANCE(.)
YOU ALSO PROMISED TO SHIP KID MELODRAMA MONDAY JANUARY FIFTH BUT HAVE
NOT RECEIVED SAME(.)"


This film must have been "Little Billy's Strategy," released on
February 5.


"...ALSO HAVE NOT RECEIVED YOUR ANSWER REGARDING HOW SOON WE CAN
EXPECT RAFFLES GENTLEMAN BURGLAR(.) IMPERITIVE THAT WE RECEIVE ANSWERS
TO OUR WIRES(.) WE HAVE DOUBLE CROSSED BOOKED FOR RELEASE JANUARY TWENTY
SIXTH BUT HAVE NOT AS YET RECEIVED THE NEGATIVE(.) FIGURE IT OUT
YOURSELF(.)"


"Raffles, Gentleman Burglar" was a two-reeler, and only the fourth
two-reeler Keystone had made up to then. It must have taken a long time
to produce, because it was the subject of another telegram, written
January 26:


"SEND RAFFLES IN TO US AS SOON AS POSSIBLE AS IT IS AND WE WILL
RELEASE IT AS A TWO REEL REGULAR RELEASE BUT THE MUTUAL ABSOLUTELY
REFUSE TO ACCEPT ANY MORE TWO REEL SUBJECTS AFTER THAT ONE(.)"


"Raffles" was released on February 16, and it was indeed the last
Keystone two-reeler until April. After "Raffles," Keystone released
eleven two-reelers that year, and Chaplin appeared in seven of them.


Interestingly, the films that the home office was the most impatient
for ("Little Billy's Strategy," "Raffles, Gentleman Burglar" and "Double
Crossed") all starred Ford Sterling or Paul Jacobs, who would both
resign from Keystone within a month for greener pastures at Universal.

Brent Walker
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Re: Angry Telegrams to Mack Sennett

Postby Brent Walker » Thu Jun 04, 2009 5:47 pm

What is actually at play here is that Sennett took it upon himself to make a few two reelers, while Mutual only wanted one reelers from him. In December 1913/January 1914 (from when these telegrams date), two-reels was something of a special length, reserved only for prestige pictures--and then, as now, comedies were not considered "prestigious". In 1914, no one else was making comedy two reelers. And Sennett's production of two reelers, such as BAFFLES GENTLEMAN BURGLAR, was throwing timely delivery of the one reelers out of whack, pissing Mutual off. That is why the one telegram is essentially saying "alright already, give us the goddam two reeler, but after that no more--stick to one reelers." Of course, Sennett not only made more two reelers, he would in a few months start making his feature TILLIE'S PUNCTURED ROMANCE at this time, on spec and outside of his Mutual contract, further throwing his schedule off in terms of delivering the product Mutual had contracted for.

David Kalat
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Re: Angry Telegrams to Mack Sennett

Postby David Kalat » Thu Jun 04, 2009 11:32 pm

Chris,

I'm pretty sure I have in storage here a USB-based outboard ZIP drive you're welcome to if you think it would help read your damaged discs. You can email me at david@alldayentertainment.com if you're interested and let me know your address.

I don't have anything to add to the discussion, sorry.

Chris Snowden
Associate
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Re: Angry Telegrams to Mack Sennett

Postby Chris Snowden » Fri Jun 05, 2009 11:55 am

Thanks, David. I've already tried the disc on a couple of drives already, though... I'm guessing the data either got erased somehow or the disc is damaged, but either way, it's a goner.

Michael J Hayde
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Re: Angry Telegrams to Mack Sennett

Postby Michael J Hayde » Thu Jan 31, 2013 9:28 am

Based on the following article from the NEW YORK CLIPPER of December 6, 1913, it doesn't look like Sennett "took it upon himself" to make two-reelers. He might have pushed for it, but he did get support - at least at first - from Kessel and Baumann:

MORE KEYSTONES COMING
There has been such a crying demand for Keystone Comedies from exhibitors all over
the world that the New York Motion Picture Corporation, of whom the Keystone Film Co.
is a subsidiary company, has decided that, beginning with the week of Dec. 15, there
will be three Keystone comedies released a week, and in addition to this there will be
released once a month a multiple reel comedy. These multiple reel comedies will be
released as specials.
The first of three will be ZUZU, THE BAND LEADER, a two reel comedy, staged by Mack
Sennett, managing director. Mabel Normand, Ford Sterling and all the Keystone
stars will be seen in this screaming farce. The special following this will be BAFFLES,
THE GENTLEMAN BURGLAR.

Although the article doesn't mention IN THE CLUTCHES OF A GANG, which was the two-reeler released between ZUZU and BAFFLES, it appears that all three were in the planning stages at the time. And the release dates shown in Brent's book confirm that Keystone's weekly output increased from two reels to three beginning on December 15, plus a two-reeler each month beginning with ZUZU on December 24.

As Brent notes, there were consequences: during the weeks of January 5 and 12, Mutual could only release two one-reelers each week, plus the two-reel IN THE CLUTCHES OF A GANG. Sennett got back up to his contractual 3 reels for the release week of January 19th and continued at that rate until the weeks of February 9 and 16, when again only two single-reels were released for each, plus BAFFLES. Sennett's erratic delivery forced NYMP to rush films out, prompting Kessel's telegram of January 13th. (Poor Mack must have been doubly-vexed, since a massive rainfall that would last two solid weeks began the day after Kessel's telegram arrived. This had to factor into the reduced releases of mid-February.)

After the week of February 16, Sennett maintained his weekly three reel schedule, but with a caveat: he and/or NYMP apparently got Mutual to accept two-reelers as part of Sennett's obligation, as opposed to as added "specials." The two-reel HOW VILLAINS ARE MADE, along with the split-reel TANGO TANGLES and WASHING OUR CLOTHES, was Sennett's obligation for the week of March 9. Likewise, the one reel A HASH-HOUSE BEAUTY and the two-reel MABEL AT THE WHEEL fulfilled the week of April 13.

Michael

Gary Johnson
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Re: Angry Telegrams to Mack Sennett

Postby Gary Johnson » Thu Jan 31, 2013 8:55 pm

What was behind Sennett's thinking at this time to expand the production schedule to include 2-reelers - artistic integrity or a chance for larger profits?

Richard M Roberts
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Re: Angry Telegrams to Mack Sennett

Postby Richard M Roberts » Fri Feb 01, 2013 2:41 am

Gary Johnson wrote:What was behind Sennett's thinking at this time to expand the production schedule to include 2-reelers - artistic integrity or a chance for larger profits?



Yes.


RICHARD M ROBERTS

Michael J Hayde
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Re: Angry Telegrams to Mack Sennett

Postby Michael J Hayde » Sat Mar 02, 2013 10:46 am

This past Thursday I leafed through the Library of Congress' actual issues of REEL LIFE from 1913-14. Mutual definitely distributed ZUZU THE BAND LEADER from the get-go. In fact, they advertised it in consecutive issues for at least four months. However, unlike the Keystone two-reelers that followed, ZUZU was not integrated into Mutual's regular release schedule, but sold separately as a "special," per the NY CLIPPER article (which also appeared in the December 6 issue of REEL LIFE).

So by falling behind on split- and one-reeler production, Kessel and Baumann were forced to submit Keystone's two-reelers, all of which were supposed to be "specials" like ZUZU, as part of Mutual's regular program. It's not that Mutual didn't want Keystone two-reelers - they sure did - but they wanted to be able to sell them separately and charge more for them; not integrate them into an existing, already bought-and-paid-for, program. Hence the January 26 telegram at the start of this thread. In the end, Mutual lost that battle and some of that came back to bite Keystone. That's why, when DOUGH AND DYNAMITE spilled over into two reels, Sennett withheld Chaplin's $25 directing bonus.

Michael


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