Exhibitors Herald World (Oct-Dec 1930)

October 11, 1930 EXHIBITORS HERALD-WORLD 25 Michigan Independents Weld Fighting Lines at Convention Brookhart and Myers Heard In Attacks on "Big Interests" Asks Exhibitors to Avert Misrepresentation (Special to the Herald-World) COLUMBUS, Oct. 9. — P. J. Wood, business manager of the MPT O of Ohio, in a letter which he has sent to all exhibitors in his organization, has asked that they be particularly careful not to indulge in "misrepresentation" in advertising a picture, and "thereby assist in elevating the ethics of the business." He particularly mentioned the fact that the Universal film, "All Quiet on the Western Front," has been sold to some exhibitors with the suggestion that it be advertised as "All Quiet on the Battle Front." The Universal company as well as the Better Business Bureau have protested jointly against this practice as misleading advertising. Slug One, Bind Two With Wire, Get $1,350; Part from Pony Golf (Special to the Herald-World) LOS ANGELES, Oct. 9.— The Belmont theatre, Fox West Coast house here, was robbed of $1,350 October 7. Of that amount, $200 belonged to a nearby miniature golf course that had placed the money in the theatre safe. Two masked bandits executed the robbery. An employee was slugged. Both the unconscious victim and the theatre janitor were tied with heavy wire. • The armed pair then sat down and waited for the manager, R. S. Borst, who arrived two hours later. Borst was forced to open the safe and then tied and gagged. New Producing Firm Organizes in Canada; Capital Is $1,000,000 (Special to the Herald-World) MONTREAL, Oct. 9. — A new producing company, known as Canadian-American Talking Picture Studios, Ltd., has been organized to produce pictures in the Dominion which will meet the requirements of the British quota law. Construction has already begun on a studio at Chambly Basin, Quebec. It is proposed during the coming year to make six features, one serial and 24 shorts at the plant. The company hopes to realize a profit of $495,000 from these productions, it is understood. The capitalization is to be $1,000,000, financed by an issue of 100,000 shares of stock at $10 par value. Dr. W. I. Whitehead of Montreal is president of the company. John Barry, fiscal agent here, is vice president and Ray Jackson is managing director. Satire Printed in England (Special to the Herald-World) LONDON, Oct. 9.— "A Voyage to Purilia," a satire on motion pictures, is to be published in England this month. The author is Elmer Rice. The book was published in America earlier in the year. Allied States Affiliate Passes Resolution Against State Protection and Adopts Pledge System By GEORGE SCHUTZ GRAND RAPIDS, Oct. 9.— Measures adopted by the M P T O of Michigan, Allied States affiliate, at its convention here October 7 and 8, intensify that association's fight on what the national Allied States organization calls an attempt to destroy the independent exhibitor. One resolution attacked state protection, another instituted a system designed to effect for this fight a greater unity of state independent forces, while the issues these resolutions represent were carried beyond the state and into the national scene by Abram F. Myers, Allied States head, and Smith W. Brookhart, Senatorial block-booking foe. The protection resolution, passed unanimously without argument, denounced "unreasonable protection," a term aimed at the 60-day clearance period which is declared to be to the benefit of the Butterfield string of houses. The resolution directed the board of directors to appoint a committee to seek the abolition of this protection in the state. Protection in metropolitan Detroit was not referred to. Adopt Pledge System The action for greater unity, taking the novel form of a pledge, violation of which could mean expulsion from the association, was described by H. M. Richey, general manager, as the first step in the creation of "a great chain of independent theatres." He pointed out that of course each operator would retain his individual identity as an exhibitor. The nature of the pledge, which is given elsewhere in this issue, indicates that the "chain" sought would act mainly to bind independent theatres more closely and assure ample financial support of the association's program. One new source of revenue under the pledge would be advertising trailers run in member theatres, payment for such screening going to the association. Previous to the adoption to these members, the board of directors repeated its stand against percentage booking, with booking on a percentage-plus-guarantee basis being especially frowned upon. This matter, according to Richey, will be placed before the association for definite action at a later time. About 110 members attended the convention. Myers Asks Competition Test Myers and Brookhart appeared for the meeting Wednesday afternoon, when both A CORRECTION (Special to the Herald-World) NEW YORK, Oct. 9.— Through an error in transmission last week, it was published in the HERALD-WORLD that Electrical Research Products had extended credit of $10,000,000 to the motion picture industry. This figure should have been $20,000,000. election of officers and the protection resolution took place. Routine business broke up upon their entrance with Col. H. A. Cole, Allied leader of Texas, and Allen Johnson, retiring president, immediately presented Myers as the first speaker. Almost at once the Allied States leader introduced the subject of protection as "the biggest issue up to this time in the history of the industry." Admitting that a theatre with small overhead, paying lower film rental and charging lower admission prices, should not compete with a theatre having a large overhead, paying high film rental and charging higher prices, if they are in the same zone, he declared that no effort had been made to find out what competition exists between such houses when they are in different districts. "The method they [Hays organization] are using in drawing up these zoning and protection plans is based on pure theory," he asserted. Cites Chicago Plan Attributing a sinister purpose to efforts to have zoning and protection plans adopted throughout the country at this time, Myers referred to the Chicago territory. "There Aaron Saperstein [head of the Illinois Independent Theatre Owners, Allied affiliate] is holding out to prevent the greatest protection raid ever to be made in that territory. They [Hays organization] want their system in Chicago more than in any territory in the country. Why? Because they are paving the way to fight the government suits pending in the federal court there. "When the plan was brought up at the last meetings, what were their methods? Did they invite in the trade papers? No, they held their meetings behind closed doors. Then they asked Mr. Saperstein to place his initials on the plan, along with the others, probably just so the paper could be identified later as the same one. And the next day we heard these initials were construed to mean that the plan had been ratified." See Government Action? Declaring that any protection system could be justified only on a basis of actual competition between houses of varying classes, Myers demanded that tests first be made to determine whether or not such competition does exist. Further aims of (Continued on page 34, column 1)