The Film Daily (1929)

iTHE ^NEWSPAPER o/" FILM DOM ALL THE NEWS ALL THE TIME ;VOL. L No. 42 Monday, November 18, 1929 Price 5 Cents \Silent Versions Available on All U. A. Pictures BOXOFTICES UNAFFECTED BY MARiv^fSLUMP Government Program Revised Due to Talkers In Cincinnati — and the man who's afraid ■=^By JACK ALICOATE=. THERE is a goodly portion of human nature, splendid reaction and forceful conclusion in a fine little drama, of interest to this whole industry, that has just been played down Cincinnati way. Those involved are three newspaper critics, a red blooded, up-and-at-'em exhibitor and a picture of spotless reputation. The story follows: < )n Saturday the picture opened in a representative house in Cincinnati. On Monday the critics of three Cincinnati papers panned the picture in no gentle fashion. The first week's business broke the house record. The second broke the receipts of the first, and the third week, just finished, topped both the other two. Backed with this ammunition of facts against theory the fighting exhib called the publishers of the three newspapers together with the sportsmanlikerequest that they themselves view the picture, watch the crowds waiting in line for admittance and count the box office receipts. The verdict of these men of good sense and sound judgment of course was in favor of the showman. Cme even went so far as to editorialize on the subject, giving the name of picture and advising all to go see it. Oh yes. This paper was the "Cincinnati Post." the fighting exhib was Ike Libson and the picture was "Sunny Side Up" and the moral of this all to producers, distributors and exhibitors is — don't take critics too seriously. Reckless Propaganda Quite the most childish bit of reading that has come our way during (Continued on Page 2) Service to Industry Revised by Dept. of Commerce in New Era Washington Bureau of THE FILM DAILY Washington — Complete revision of the program of the motion picture session of the bureau of foreign and domestic commerce lias bee»i necessitated by the introduction I talking pictures, it is disclosed in the annual report of the director of the bureau just submitted to Secretary of Commerce Lamont. Considerable service of value to the American industry was perform(Continued on Pane 2) Pittsburgh — ■ Recent purchase c>i the Sheridan Square from the Harris Amusement Co. will be followed by further expansion by RKO in the theatrical field in this city, it is announced. The RCA subsidiary is considering the construction of a talking picture bouse next year in downtown Pittsburgh. According to the Harris company, its relinquishing of the Sheridan Square is not indicative of curtailed activity. The firm announces an expansion program in towns of 1110,000 population, with construction of a new hcjUge ahead: started in Butler. Stability in Theaters Reported in Survey, Proves Sound Despite Market Activities Theater business throughout the United States is holding up despite the stock market situation, a national survey just completed by THE FILM DAILY emphasizes. Theater attendance throughout the nation remains at normal, in some spots a slight upward trend being noted. The survey demonstrates the stability of theater business and emphasizes that theater attendance offers a safety valve to the nation in time of stress. In the East, theater business is holding to a steady keel, while in the Far East it is considerably above average. The Middle West is spotty but business generally is normal. Opening Postponed Atlanta — Invasion of this territory by Fox will not become a reality until after Jan. 1, THE FILM DAILY learns. It had been planned to open the new Fox here by Thanksgiving Day. LICHTMAN IN NEW YORK DE FOREST TO ADDRESS OHIO MEET AT COLUMBUS Columbus — Dr. Lee De Forest has been added to list of the speakers for the annual convention here tomorrow and Wednesday. The gathering is to be addressed by M. A. Lightman, bead of the M.P.T.O.A.; \l ram F. Myers, president of Allied States Ass'n; Charles C. Pettijohn i the Hays organization: S. R. Kent, ral manager of Paramount and 1 ( 'ontinued on Page 4 i New Company Formed to Run Lightman 's Southern Chain STRESS VALUE OF THEATER I The importance of the theater in building up the prestige of a district was stressed in addresses over Station WPCH from the Hammerstein Theater Building, New York, in a program sponsored jointly by the (Continued on Page 2) Memphis — Formation ol Malco Theaters, to assume active management of all the theaters now controlled by M. A. Lightman. of Memphis, president of the M.P.T.O.A.. and entrance of that company into Memphis with two theaters and into Fort Smith with one, was announced this week. The new company will take over at once all the holdings of the State Theaters, Inc., and Arkansas Amusement Enterprises. Inc., Lightman's first company, as well as the Rose(Continued on Page 4) United Artists will release one short subject Featurette each month, said Al Lichtman upon his return from a nation-wide tour. Silent versions on all United Artists talking pictures will be available to the hundreds of unwired houses in the United States and elsewhere, according to Al Lichtman, sales head. (Continued on Page 14) SAYS WALL ST. GRIEF HAS NOT HURT THEATERS Chaotic conditions in Wall St. have not injured picture theater business throughout the country, says Al Lichtman. "Popular-priced showings of pictures haven't been hurt any (Continued on Page 14) Warner in N. Y. to Plan Next Season's Program J. L. Warner, vice president and production supervisor of Warner Bros., has arrived in New York for a series of conferences with executives of the organization regarding the company's next season's program. Accompanying Warner is William Koenig, general studio manager.