“Did you tell her?”
“No. I don’t want her asking for a raise in salary.”
Biograph found it a difficult job sticking to their policy of secrecy. Letters came from fans asking about their favorites; the pretty girl with the curls—the girl with the sad eyes—the man with the lovely smile—the funny little man—and the policeman. What tears of joy Sennett would have wept had he known!
In bunches the postman soon began to leave the “who” letters at 11 East Fourteenth Street. “Who played the tall, thin man in ‘The Tenderfoot’?” “Who played the little girl in the Colonial dress and curls who danced the minuet in the rose garden at midnight in ‘Wilful Peggy’?” “Who was the handsome Indian who did the corn dance on the mountain top in ‘The Indian Runner’s Romance’?”
Other picture concerns than Biograph had not as yet made the actor’s name public. But they did give him his mail when addressed with sufficient clarity. Arthur Mackley, the famous Sheriff of Essanay, was receiving, those days, ten letters a day. They came addressed.
The Sheriff
Essanay Company
Chicago
Some boy, the Sheriff, getting ten letters a day!
It remained for English exhibitors first to name the Biograph players. For Biograph, long after all the other picture companies had made the actor’s name public, still refused to come out into the open. Over in London the fans were appeased with fictitious names for their favorites. Beautiful names they were, so hero-ish and so villain-ish, so reminiscent of the old-time, sentimental, maiden-lady author. I recall but one and a half names of our players. Dell Henderson was given the beautiful soubriquet of “Arthur Donaldson” and Blanche Sweet became “Daphne ——” something or other.
But the yearning American youths and maidens continued to receive the cold, stereotyped reply, “Biograph gives no names.” The Biograph was not thinking as quickly as some of its players.
Our friends from Cuddebackville, the Goddefroys, being in New York one time this summer, Mr. Griffith thought it would be rather nice to arrange an evening. They were interested in our California pictures, as they were planning a trip there. We fixed up the projection room and ran the better of the Western stuff. Afterward with our guests and a few of the leading people we repaired to Cavanaugh’s on West Twenty-third Street.