Page:The Point of Attack, or, How to Start the Photoplay.djvu/14

 audience with the characters and the surroundings, and then flows gradually and naturally into the sequence of dramatic situations, after which it passes on to a peaceful and happy ending. Briefly it is a state of calm, then a violent storm, which is in turn followed by the same quality of calm in which the story started.

18. "Red Hot Dollars," in which Charles Ray was featured, may be taken as a good example of this form. It will be remembered by those who witnessed the production that Tod, an orphaned young man of perhaps twenty, saved the life of his employer, the head of a great steel mill, was adopted by him, fell in love with the daughter of an old rival of the mill owner, and after overcoming a series of obstacles, married her, at the same time re-establishing the friendship of the rival fathers. Analyzing the point of attack or beginning of this story, we find Tod among the other mill hands, busy with his day's work. The five o'clock whistle blows and Tod, hurriedly dropping his overalls and washing up, hastens out to meet his "girl." The entire atmosphere is peaceful and quiet. The audience is immediately interested in the simple little love affair and laughs sympathetically at the wholesome young fellow's awkward love making. As one simple though interesting event follows another, the characters are established and the spectators are thoroughly familiarized with the general environment, thus preparing them for the first of the series of crises when Tod courageously throws his employer from beneath a falling crane and nearly loses his life in so doing. It is unnecessary to go deeper into the story itself, other than to state that after all the conflict and obstacles are passed—after the storm is over—we find the two old rivals shaking hands and the lovers busy with the kiss that we know precedes a not distant wedding. 12