Year book of motion pictures (1951)

THEATER TELEVISION By NATHAN L. HALPERN Television Consultant, Fabian Theaters FTER A FEW YEARS of incubation, theater television appears ready to meet some of its first big opportunities during 1951. Several hundred tests of theater television in operating theaters before the jjaying public have readied the equipment. This is not to say that the television picture is perfect. The applicable test, however, is whether the picture is adec|uate for television presentations today to the public in theaters: the answer furnished by the public for the events shown is that it is adequate. rence, so that the public can become fully aware of it. It is worth noting, meanwhile, that the only exclusive programs tried in HALPERN Improvements in equipment will continue for some period of time just as it did after the early beginnings of sound in the theater. A perfect picture, however, can never be developed in a lahoratorv alone; it recjuires practical application and commercial incentives to impro\e quickly. During the past year home television made great strides in practically all phases. Still there are basic and inherent limitations upon the ability of home television to develop superior programs. This is where theater tele\ision comes in. By affording the public with a convenient liox office for the payment of the programs which it desires, theater tele\ision can develop new and different television programs for the public. Television can afford a change of pace of simultaneous and current programs alongside film features which emphasize stories in a more finished and permanent form. The de\elopment of theater television programs rests squarely upon the motion picture idustry. When there are sufficient installations there will be creative talents who will become interested in developing programs that will fit into this new medium. Meanwhile, the diet will continue to be in large measure sports and news. The first concrete step is to develop a suffilient number of theater box offices to make good programming possible for theater television. The so-called "box office tests" of theater television under the existing conditions of 1950, where there were only a few theaters involved in sporadic tests ancl mostly of home programs, is not a practical reality. Box office can come only when theater television is sufficiently widespread to develop programs only for theaters, well promoted and exploited in a somewhat regular recur theater television resulted in very substantial i)ox office increases. The early experiments with theater tele\ision have been most encoiuaging. It has proved to be an exciting experience for theater audiences. In those instances where it has been possible to program regularly with interesting attractions o\er some period of time, it is noteworthy that the word of mouth has developed greater audiences at each succeeding event. This could happen only because the people liked it. On occasions of important Presidential messages on the war emergency, theater television has brought many persons to the theater who might have stayed home to hear and see these crucial national events. The year 1951 will raise for theater tele\ision many basic growth problems. In view of the war crisis, there may be shortages in electronics manufacturing. At this writing it is not yet clear what the ultimate impact may be on theater television manufacture durinng this year. It is known, however, that for the first half year or more there seems to be adequate opportunity for the manufacture of theater television equipment. The manufacturers have indicated that they expect in any case to manufacture three to five million heme sets during 1951; the scarce materials common to both theater television and home sets are conserved to a much greater extent in theater television where each unit is the equivalent of no more than five or six home sets, while each unit serves thousands of people. In keeping with the times, theater television has given to the theaters a dramatic new instrument for information. Thus, recently 10 theaters carried President Truman's State of the Union message to Congress as it actually happened, and other important emergency messages have been relayed through this important defense communication system. More developments along these lines can be expected as the nation develops its strength. 1 he year 1951 will also see important 761