The Moving Picture World (November 1907)

THE MOVING PICTURE WORLD. 577 has effectually taken the place of living characters. As is pointed out, however, what the theater people are feeling here, as in England, is the competition of the variety houses, which give a performance in every # way more in harmony with modern con- ditions of life. The living picture cannot take the place of the theater with its actors, for obvious reasons, but it can actually provide the latter with more work, for acting for the kinemato- graph is now an important business, calling for as many quali- ties as performances on the boards. * * * "PICTURE SHOWS" CROWD OUT VAUDEVILLE. The vaudeville venture at the Grand Theater started five weeks ago by Henry Fincus in Passaic, N. J., is discontinued, and Monday last the house opened with a dramatic stock company headed by Hal Clarendon. The enterprise opened with big business, but attendance fell off steadily. Mr. Pincus attributes the failure of the vaudeville policy to the fact that upon the opening of the Grand as a variety house the moving picture establishments fought the inva- sion by putting in several vaudeville numbers to attract business. The innovation caught on and the picture places practically monopolizd local patronage. In addition 'to this competition, other picture shows started up until there were seven operating within half a dozen blocks of the Pincus house. The moving picture industry has received a tremendous im- petus since last Spring. W. B. Pyle, formerly manager of the Parlor, in York, Pa., spent most of the Summer and Fall search- ing New York State, Connecticut, New Jersey and Pennsylvania {or an unoccupied theater in some, of the promising smaller towns, but found that all available sites'and buildings had been taken up by the picture shows. a£ - * * * STOP POLICE FROM INTERFERING. Justice Marean, in the Supreme Court, Brooklyn, N. Y., sprang a surprise by declaring that he would issue injunctions restrain- ing the police from interfering with Sunday exhibitions of mov- ing pictures in that borough. A moving picture man had filed an application for a restrain- ing order of this sort and it was granted. The matter will be threshed out thoroughly when the temporary order comes up for argument. The writ was taken out upon evidence offered by the applicant to the effect that his moving picture show was not in violation of the Sunday law. * * * Miles Bros.* I~»te Employees. Following the sensational arrest last Wednesday of C. B. Purdy and John S. Clark, on charges of grand larceny and breach of trust preferred by Miles Bros., recent developments indicate the probable implication of one or more of the lesser film-renting houses, as well as certain parties, well known in the moving picture world, who acted as "go-between." It is said that confessions as to the general scheme to despoil the concern have been procured and detectives are now following the dues furnished. Purdy and Clark have been released on bail. The most interesting as well as sensational feature connected with the entire plot is the part played by S. B. Gibbons, for many months assistant cashier of Miles Bros. He enjoyed the fullest confidence of the firm, and his post gave him access to the books. Taking advantage of this fact, he evolved a scheme, is nefarious as it Was bold, to seriously cripple, if not wreck, the concern. How he betrayed his trust and how the general scheme was unraveled and nipped in the bud, are matters which we best told by Mr. Herbert Miles, general manager of Miles Bros. The unfolding of the plot and what the conspirators hoped to accomplish," said Mr. Miles, "present as interesting a chapter jn latter-day criminology as ever came under my notice. . Clark had been with us more than six years, Purdy and Gibbons not »long, and we trusted each one implicitly. "We have known for several months that petty pilferings were EOtng on and that we were losing some reels each week. The magnitude of our business and its wonderful development ren- dered it rather difficult to devote as much time to these matters ■Jj we would ordinarily have done, but three weeks ago we ;;|?«ermined to make a full investigation and weed out the crim- !;| raa 's. On that very day I was made aware of a most startling ■X"' gigantic scheme having for its object the serious crippling, pt'Bot actual wrecking of our business. The plot, as revealed to '"Ke, seemed incredible, but without an hour's delay I placed the ?atter in the hands.of the Drummonds. The first results came a the arrest of Purdy and Clark on the charges of grand larceny sad breach of trust, and the dismissal from our employ, after a w fflplete confession, of Gibbons. The next denouement may involve others. I am not now at liberty to call names, but you may say that the drag-net is out and -all caught in its meshes will be punished to the fullest "The chief plotters interested two Jersey City attorneys in the formation of a new company. In order to properly impress these gentlemen with the possible profits of the business, they were given a record of the firm's income for the year ending July I last, and the receipts for the first twelve days in October. It was also shown these capitalists how easy it was to dissatisfy our subscribers by sending out repeaters and injecting now and then films from the junk heap. Taken as a whole, it was the most stupendous undertaking of wholesale fraud I ever heard of, and I consider the firm fortunate in having escaped with a mere monetary loss of some $20,000 or more, a good part of which will be recovered. "Many of the 'little fellows' included in the confession in hand are scrambling to protect themselves and returning films and parts which they knowingly took in a criminal manner. In several cases the firm has consented not to prosecute these offenders, but they are very bitter in their attitude to this whole gang of grafters, and as all of them and the amounts of their peculations are definitely known, many more arrests may be made at an early date. "The whole tendency of Miles Bros.' decisive action in this matter is to clear the moral atmosphere of the business in general and put the moving picture industry upon a much higher plane. As a profession and commercial pursuit it has come to stay, and the Moving Picture World can but applaud the efforts of this hustling, energetic firm, which has shown such wonderful virility and resource in anticipating and meeting every need and emergency of the trade." * * * The Fire Department of New York has interposed to prevent the moving picture show which has been advertised to open in the cafe of the old Hotel Saranac-Rossmore at Broadway and Seventh avenue. The place did not conform to the new theater ordinance. * • * Geo. W. Bennethuni, Reading, Pa., has leased 437 Penn street, until recently occupied by a penny arcade. He will introduce a moving picture exhibition. It opened November 2. An innova- tion is the introduction of a plate-glass front, which reveals the operator to public view. » * * Brazil, Ind.—The owners of picture shows and of the Airdome, of this city, have organized to resist the payment of the $100 license fee, providing for which a city ordinance was passed at the last meeting of the aldermanic body. The ordinance grew out of a determination' of the Council to prevent Sunday theatri- cal attractions. * * * Lawrence, Mass.—The Theater Marquis, a well-appointed mov-. ing picture resort, was opened by the Hippodrome Amusement - Company, of which M. Mack is the president. J. T. Michael is the resident manager. The theater has a seating capacity of 300. * * * Word comes from Chester, Pa., that the new moving picture palace which will be started under the auspices of the Clifton Heights Military Band, in the band hall, on Baltimore avenue, will soon be ready for public entertainments. The new place will be called the Casino. Manager John R McGirney hopes; to have the entertainment house ready for shows in a very' short time. Three entertainment houses in a town the size of Clifton Heights is not so bad. While Judges Bregy and Kinsey were hearing testimony in Court of Common Pleas No. 1, Philadelphia, in the injunction proceedings brought to restrain William G. Boogar from con- ducting picture shows on Market street, and evidence was being adduced to determine how long it was possible for the "Holy City" to be rendered before it became a nuisance, Councils' Sub- committee on Fire and Police was making an inspection of all the moving picture places in the business part of the city. The investigation of the moving picture places by Councils' Sub- committee included all those places in the central part of the city. When the inspection was concluded Chairman Harris said: "We have no fault to find with any of the places." Other members of the committee were Dr. Morton and Messrs: Boal and McGurk. The committee explained that its inspection had only to do with the observance on the part of the show owners of the laws pro- viding fire and police protection to the public attending the per- formances. When the inspection of all the moving shows in the city is completed, it is understood the committee will recom- mend to Councils that proprietors of-the shows be compelled to take out licenses.