What may a cast-list entry say about a character's appearance and manner, and how does Sargent (1916) tell the writer to choose and use names?
Sargent (Ch. XXIX paras 6-16) says a cast entry should not describe looks unless a physical trait matters to the plot: a limp is listed because a disguise depends on it, not for colour. Permanent mannerisms go in the cast; temporary ones and disguises go in the scenes. Keep one name for each character throughout. Choose short, pleasant names for heroines, a harsh sound for antagonists, tag minor characters by role (Butler, Detective) rather than by name, and avoid fanciful or punning names. He also reports a Thanhouser convention of fixed names for stock types. The Brown, Agatha and Betty entries are his illustrations.
Sargent (Ch. XXIX paras 6-16) says a cast entry should not describe looks unless a physical trait matters to the plot: a limp is listed because a disguise depends on it, not for colour. Permanent mannerisms go in the cast; temporary ones and disguises go in the scenes. Keep one name for each character throughout. Choose short, pleasant names for heroines, a harsh sound for antagonists, tag minor characters by role (Butler, Detective) rather than by name, and avoid fanciful or punning names. He also reports a Thanhouser convention of fixed names for stock types. The Brown, Agatha and Betty entries are his illustrations.
Curator qualifications: Cast description and naming advice verified; stock-name convention is reported from one studio writer.
Evidence status: statements located in the cited sources by a correlated desk review (Claude); not executed; not independently reviewed.
Structured fields
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"citations": [
{
"url": "https://archive.org/stream/techniqueofphoto00sarg/techniqueofphoto00sarg_djvu.txt",
"note": "sar.flat (a3cff7eb) offsets per candidate; sar.flat regex spot checks"
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}Evidence claims
- [sourced_fact] Sargent (Ch. XXIX paras 6-16) says a cast entry should not describe looks unless a physical trait matters to the plot: a limp is listed because a disguise depends on it, not for colour. Permanent mannerisms go in the cast; temporary ones and disguises go in the scenes. Keep one name for each character throughout. Choose short, pleasant names for heroines, a harsh sound for antagonists, tag minor characters by role (Butler, Detective) rather than by name, and avoid fanciful or punning names. He also reports a Thanhouser convention of fixed names for stock types. The Brown, Agatha and Betty entries are his illustrations. · locator: sar.flat (a3cff7eb) offsets per candidate; sar.flat regex spot checks source
Rights
| component | license | hosting | redistribution | modification | training | Evidence and notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| documentation | unknown | permitted | permitted | unknown | unknown | Applies to this original summary only, not to the cited sources. |