Movatterモバイル変換

[0]ホーム
URL:

Close
Please wait. Loading browse data...loading
Help
Prev column
Next column
Mouse:
X
0
,
Y
0

Article text

In: Sunday Magazine

Word position

Original
Corrected
Word properties
Mouse:
X
0
,
Y
0

Line position

Line Above{LINE ABOVE}
Current Line
Line below{LINE BELOW}
NOTE: Only lines in the current paragraph are shown. Click on current line of text for options.

Paragraphs

Paragraph operations are made directly in the full article text panel located to the left.
Paragraph operations include:

  • Adjust the order paragraphs
  • Add new blank paragraphs
  • Duplicate an existing paragraph
  • Remove a paragraph

Zones

Zone operations are made directly in the full article text panel located to the left.
Zone operations include:

  • Adjust the order of zones
  • Add new blank zone
  • Remove a zone
Zone properties
Mouse:
X
0
,
Y
0

Tables

Tables.
Coming soon

Table properties
Mouse:
X
0
,
Y
0

Illustrations

Illustration properties
Mouse:
X
0
,
Y
0

Metadata

Cite

Loading article contents, please wait...

loading
Sat 14 Oct 1950 - The Mail (Adelaide, SA : 1912 - 1954)
Page 2 - "Kangaroo" producer is coming here by camp trailer
'Kangaroo' producer is coming
here by camp trailer
by ZELIE
McLEOD
LEWIS Milestone, top-flight American film producer who is in Australia
to make 'Kangaroo,' a Technicolor movie for 20th Century-Fox, tried
to come to Australia from Germany 3? years ago; but he couldn't afford the
fare so he went to America instead.
' At that time he was a
practically penniless 18year
old Russian youth intent on
seeing the wdrld. Now he is
a mature man in his early 50 's
with a string of first-class films
and two Academy Awards to
bis credit.
vJilUestone isn't the least like
the popular idea of an Ameri
can high-pressure movie pro
ducer. He doesn't wear pecu
liar clothes, shout, wave his
arms, use extravagant language,
or bawl down incessantly ring
Ing telephones.
He is a quiet, composed man
of medium height, with a
heavily built body.
He looks 15 years younger
than his age. His light-blue
eyes have an engaging glint
most women would find provo
cative. His dark, thick hair
grows in a pronounced widow's
peak on his forehead.
When he laughs he gives
away the secret of his youth
ful appearance— he looks like
a merry, prankish lad ready for
any lark thatrs going.
When I interviewed him in
Sydney he wore a plain brown
business suit and an unspec
tacular tie. During the inter
view the phone rang only once.
While he spoke about his
early life and how he broke
into Hollywood he sat easily in
a chair smoking one cigarette
after another. But when he
started to talk about the film
he will make here he got rest
less and prowled round the
room.
He gave the impression he
doesn't like this preliminary
period of inactivity and wants
to get on his way to Port
Augusta, where most of the out
door shots will be filmed.
He plans to drive to Port
Augusta and camp in a trailer
on the way so that he can get
to know the country, especially
the country pubs — he's heard
about them.
Milestone says his successful
career resulted from a series of
accidents. 'I was always plan
ning to do one thing and end
ing up doing something else,'
he explains.
He was born at the Russian
Black Sea port of Odessa in
1895. His father, Emmanuel
Milstein, was in the wholesale
clothing business. The cele
brated violinist Nathan Milstein
is his cousin.
'I was one of seven children,
and by the time I was 17 years
old I began to feel I wanted
more elbow room,' said Mile
stone, pushing his elbows away
from his body to illustrate how
cramped he felt as a youth.
'My father wanted me to be
an engineer, but I was more
interested in the theatre. From
the time I was 14 years old I
spent most of my time hanging
rcund theatres.'
But Emmanuel Milstein was
a determined man, and in 1913
packed the 17-year-oM Lewis
off to a German engineering
school at Mitweide, Saxony.
'I'd been there a year when
the Christmas holidays came
rcund and my parents foolishly
sent me money for my fare
back to Russia to spend the
holidays with them,' said Mile
stone. -
'But instead I decided, with
two Russian friends of mine
who were also at the school,
to use the money to pay our
three fares to Australia, which
seemed a fascinating place to
us because it was so far away.'
But the fare to Australia was
too expensive. So they decided
to go to America.
'Our idea was Just to spend
a week there, see the place, and
return to Europe. But things
turned out differently,' said
Milestone.
'We had Russian passports,
of course. At that time Russia
was having a bad epidemic of
cholera and the shipping
authorities were wary of all
people travelling with Russian
papers. So, although we had
been out of Russia for a year,
they put us in with the steer
age passengers.
'After we sailed we protested
and explained the situation. We
were allowed to move up to
third class, but the extra fare
took all our cash.
'We landed in New York with
six dollars among the three of
us'
The three lads spent their
first night in America sleeping
in Central Park. In the morn
ing Lewis remembered he had
an aunt living somewhere in
New York.
'With the help of police and
taxi drivers we eventually
found her. I immediately bor
rowed 100 dollars from her
which I split with my friends.
I gave them 50 dollars and kept
50 myself,' he said.
That was early in 1914.
After knocking round New
York for several weeks Lewis
gaily wrote to his father for
money to pay his passage back
to Europe.
'My father replied that he
understood America was a land
of liberty and labor and, as I
had got my liberty, I'd better
get some work,' said Milestone.
'In the first year I guess I
had 100 jobs — all menial jobs
In factories. Then I landed a
job with a photographer. We
branched out into home photo
graphs.
'Home photography was
something new. We did well. I
suppose we photographed most
of the richest people in New
York. I worked only five months
out of every 12, and made be
tween 25,000 and 30,000 dollars
a year.'
This was a fabulous income
for a lad just turning 21, but
the job bored Milestone. In
1917, when America declared
war .on Germany, Milestone
rushed to join up.
Then came another 'acci-
dent' which pushed Milestone
along the road to success in the
movie world.
'When I was wandering
round a recruiting office trying
to decide what section of the
Army I'd join I saw a big white
banner with red lettering say
ing, 'Six weeks and over',' he
explained.
'I made inquiries and found
the sign meant six weeks' train
ing and then over to the front
in France. I decided to join
the section at once. Later, I dis
noneHelp
MILESTONE . . .
covered it was the Motion Pic
ture Division of the Photogra
phic Corps.
'But I never did get overseas.
Anyone who has been in an
army will understand how those
things happen. But I met and
worked with men experiencea
In the film industry like Josef
von Sternberg and Richard
Wallace. After the war I de
cided to go to Hollywood my
self.'
Lewis Milestone arrived in
Hollywood during December,
1919, and took a job in the
cutting-room of J. D. Hampton,
an independent producer.
He patched film, swept floors,
and ran errands for 20 dollars
a week. This was a big change
from his pre-war standard of
living, but he liked the job. He
made up bis mind to build a
career in films.
He rose from assistant cutter
to head cutter and worked with
several big producers, including
one valuable year with Thomas
H. Ince.
Ince had an extraordinary
knowledge of motion-picture
technique. Milestone was an
enthusiastic learner.
As a producer and director,
Milestone has a great capacity
for making his characters
human and getting drama into
his films without using trite,
obvious methods.
. un-Hollywoodish %
Many film critics believe this ,
capacity stems largely from the ;
experience he gained working
with Ince.
Then Warner Bros, made a
film about a dog.
It looked like being a flop
until Milestone got at it in the -
cutting-room and by skilful ,
cutting turned it into first-class
entertainment. The film was*
'Where the North Begins' and!
it starred for the first time the ]
famous dog Rin Tin Tin. '
In 1925, Darryl Zanuck, now '
head of 20th Century-Fox,
was starting to make his
way in Hollywood. He wrote
two scripts for Warner Bros.,
'The Seven Sinners' and 'Cave
Man ' Milestone directed both
these pictures.
In 1927, only eight years after
Milestone arrived in Hollywood, 1
he won his first Academy;
Award with 'Two Arabian
Knights,' a war comedy. I
In 1929-30 Milestone won his -
second Academy Award with
the great film of World War I., -
'All Quiet on the Western i
Front,' based on Erich!
Remarque's famous novel. i
By this time he was fully ln-j
his stride as a director and pro-*
ducer with a flair for getting
unusual effects by simple meth^
ods.
(Continued on Page 1)
Article identifier
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article55850804
Page identifier
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-page4652958
APA citation
"Kangaroo" producer is coming here by camp trailer (1950, October 14).The Mail (Adelaide, SA : 1912 - 1954), p. 2 (Sunday Magazine). Retrieved March 29, 2025, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article55850804
MLA citation
""Kangaroo" producer is coming here by camp trailer"The Mail (Adelaide, SA : 1912 - 1954) 14 October 1950: 2 (Sunday Magazine). Web. 29 Mar 2025 <http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article55850804>.
Harvard/Australian citation
1950 '"Kangaroo" producer is coming here by camp trailer',The Mail (Adelaide, SA : 1912 - 1954), 14 October, p. 2. (Sunday Magazine), viewed 29 Mar 2025, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article55850804
Wikipedia citation
{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article55850804 |title="Kangaroo" producer is coming here by camp trailer |newspaper=[[The Mail (Adelaide)]] |volume=40, |issue=2,002 |date=14 October 1950 |accessdate=29 March 2025 |page=2 (Sunday Magazine) |via=National Library of Australia}}

Download Citation

EndNoteEndNote XMLBibTeX

Close

Buy

Download

Please choose from the following download options:

Share

Share this item on:

Print

Print article as...

Article CategoriesHelp

Original Category

Article

The National Library of Australia'sCopies Direct service lets you purchase higher quality, larger sized photocopies or electronic copies of newspapers pages.

Order now
Scope
Format of download
Image orText

You need tologin before you can save preferences.

$
[8]ページ先頭
©2009-2025 Movatter.jp