Motion Picture Herald (Oct-Dec 1956)

LUNCHEON IN ATLANTA, for national officers of Women of the Motion Picture Industry, Mrs. Stella Poulnot, president, and Mildred Castleberry, corresponding secretary, both seated. Speaking to them, Mrs. Jackie Cowart, president of the Atlanta unit. ( Continued from page 38) Co., Covington, Tenn., chain operator, was a Memphis visitor. . . . Lyle Richmond, Richmond. Senath. Mo.; M. E. Rice, Rice, Brownsville; Amelia Ellis, Ellis at Millington; and Aubrey Webb, Webb, Ripley, were among visiting exhibitors. Milwaukee A premiere showing of Elvis Presley’s first movie, “Love Me Tender,” was held at the Fox-Wisconsin theatre here this week with a contest as the highlight. . . . Russell Leddy, operator of the Orpheum theatre, Green Bay, will retire from the business as of December 1. . . . Ben Marcus is taking over the operation of the Orpheum, Green Bay. this month. . . . Ranee Mason, new circuit head of the Michigan Copper country, was in the city this week doing his booking and buying. . . . Morey Anderson, branch manager at RKO, is back to work after his recent check-up. . . . “Giant,” in its second week at the Warner, is still doing very big business. Minneapolis Albert H, Rosen, formerly of this city, was in briefly for the opening of “The Chalk Garden” with Ruth Chatterton and Judith Anderson at the Lyceum. He is the brother of Eph Rosen, assistant branch manager of MGM. . . . “War and Peace” will break in 11 28-day houses in the Twin Cities on Christmas day. . . . Hy Chapman, branch manager of Columbia, spent the Thanksgiving weekend in Des Moines. . . . Volk Brothers are spending $1,100 for refacing of the canopy at the neighborhood Nile theatre. . . . “Teahouse of the August Moon” will be the Christmas attraction at the Loop Gopher. . . . Gen Kudzia, booker at Republic, vacationed in Chicago. . . . Peter Ildved and George Severn have purchased land for a drive-in at Baudette, Minn. They also operate the conventional Grand theatre in Baudettte. . . . Mrs. Arlys Wagner has leased the Majestic theatre at Clear Lake, S. D., from J. E. Wilson. New Orleans John F. Saunders, Manley’s district manager of southeast zone, after a two week’s visit here, departed for a visit in Dallas, to be followed by a trip through northeastern Texas into Shreveport, then back home to Memphis. He is accompanied by Mrs. Saunders. . . . Republic Pictures held a special screening of “Above Us the Waves” at the 20th-Fox screening room. . . . The business men’s clubs in Homer, La., which has a population of very near 5,000, were so eager for the reopening of one of the town’s two closed theatres — the Pelican and the Paula, that they joined W. P. Florence in a drive to sell season tickets which resulted in the reopening of the Paula. ... A small fire which started in the janitor’s closet on the third floor of the Saenger theatre building in Mobile, Ala., touched off the automatic sprinkler system, water soaked the walls, loosened the plaster and gathered in the orchestra pit in the auditorium. Damage by the fire was of little consequence. . . . A group of 85 San Antonio civic and busi ness leaders were here to visit MPA’s remodeled studios headed by C. J. Mabry. Oklahoma City The Moonlite drive-in at Stillwater, Okla., closed for the season November 17. Children under 12 were admitted free on that day. In addition, all adults received a free pass which is good at the Leachman or Aggie theatres in Stillwater. . . . The Ritz theatre at Tulsa, Okla., has opened a full-time free nursery for its patrons. The new service was announced by Warren Patton, general manager of Tulsa’s Downtown Theatres, who said the nursery facilities could accommodate children under five years old. If the nursery proves successful, similar facilities will be established at the Orpheum, Patton said. . . . The Airline drive-in held a dusk-to-dawn holiday show November 21. No film was shown twice. Philadelphia Mrs. Beatrice Z. Miller, former member of the State Board of Motion Picture Censors, became the first woman State Representative to Harrisburg and will take her seat in January. . . . Kerry Cronin, son of Comerford Theatres comptroller Tom Cronin in Scranton, Pa., won scholastic honors at the Scranton Preparatory School. . . . Tri-State Buying and Booking Service here is now servicing Don Mowery’s Cumberland drive-in, Newville, Pa. ... A drive-in theatre with a capacity of 1,000 cars will be constructed immediately on the new Causeway at West Beach Haven, N. J. It was leased for a long term of years by Beach Haven Drive-In Theatres Co. from Jerome and Herbert L. Shapiro. . . . The Variety Club Camp for Handicapped Children will be one of the beneficiaries of the newlyfounded Buss Feuerstein Memorial Fund of which Variety Club Barker-elect Sylvan M. Cohen is the secretary, and theatre architect David Sumowitz the treasurer. Other industry members on the sponsoring committee for the Fund in memory of a prominent Philadelphian who died last month, are Jack Beresin, former international chief barker of the Variety Clubs, and Norman Silverman, Republic branch manager. Pittsburgh The Harris has set “Anastasia” as its Christmas picture. . . . “Hollywood or Bust” gets the nod at Christmas for the Stanley to be followed by “Baby Doll.” . . . Bob O’Hare is the new Studio theatre manager, replacing Jack Kiefer, who went to Florida to look over the film situation there. . . . “Inherit the Wind” returned the Nixon to its legitimate stage show policy after six months with “Oklahoma!” . . . The Fulton gets “Written on the Wind” for the holidays. . . . “Fantasia” is a surprise click in the Squirrel Hill. . . . Thieves carted away a safe containing between $300 and $500 from the Shadyside theatre. . . . Starlet Betty Creech spent a day here plugging the forthcoming Penn film, “A King and Four Queens.” . . . The city’s two major deluxe houses, the Stanley and Penn, are both doing well with their heldover hits, “Giant” and “Friendly Persuasion.” . . . Harold Cohen, Post-Gazette movie critic, and his wife Stephanie, now appear Monday, Wednesday and Friday nights over KDKA-TV in a “man and wife” program. Portland Good films will get the customers out of their homes and into the theatres. This was proven again here last week and looks like a duplication this week. The town is loaded with big films and good campaigns by house managers. All first runs did terrific business despite the single billing, wind-blown rain, and transient attractions. . . . “Oklahoma,” “Giant,” “War and Peace,” “Friendly Persuasion,” “Love Me Tender” and “Lust for Life” are bowling over anything that stands in their way with big takes. . . . Hamrick Theatres city ( Continued on page 42) 40 MOTION PICTURE HERALD, DECEMBER I, 1956