It was a revelation to see the little girl who was with me only a few years ago, moving through the pictured version of “Way Down East” with such perfect acting. In this play, you reach the very highest point in action, charm and delightful expression. It made me happy, too, to see how you and your name appeal to the public. Congratulations on a splendid piece of work, and good wishes for your continued success. Faithfully, DAVID BELASCO John Barrymore went even further, when he wrote: _My dear Mr. Griffith_: I have for the second time seen your picture of “Way Down East.” Any personal praise of yourself or your genius regarding the picture I would naturally consider redundant and a little like carrying coals to Newcastle.... I have not the honor of knowing Miss Gish personally and I am afraid that any expression of feeling addressed to her she might consider impertinent. I merely wish to tell you that her performance seems to me to be the most superlatively exquisite and poignantly enchaining thing that I have ever seen in my life. I remember seeing Duse in this country many years ago, when I imagine she must have been at the height of her powers—also Madame Bernhardt—and for sheer technical brilliancy and great emotional projection, done with an almost uncanny simplicity and sincerity of method, it is great fun and a great stimulant to see an American artist equal, if not surpass, the finest traditions of the theatre. I wonder if you would be good enough to thank Miss Gish from all of us who are trying to do the best we know how in the theatre. Believe me, Yours very sincerely, JOHN BARRYMORE Mrs. Gish, who was not a motion-picture enthusiast, made a single comment: “Well, young lady,” she said, “you’ve set quite a high mark for yourself. How are you going to live up to it?” [Illustration: THE RIVER SCENE IN “WAY DOWN EAST”] “Way Down East” was one of the most popular and profitable pictures ever made. Net returns from it ran into the millions. It has had several revivals, and at the present writing (Winter, 1931), is being shown at the Cameo Theatre, New York, “with sound.” Its day, however, is over. Taste has changed—has become what an older generation might regard as unduly sophisticated, depraved. This, with mechanical advancement—the talking feature, for instance—tells the story. A picture of even ten years ago—five years ago—is without a public.