Motion Picture News (Oct-Dec 1930)

October 25, 19 3 0 Motion Picture News 85 MANAGE!?!' LRCUND TAEL.Lt CLUE Dan Weinberg Is Latest Virginia Showman to Join Another showman from Virginia comes to the Club in the person of Dan Weinberg, district manager for Warners, of the state, working under -——^^—^-^^—--——^———^ tne direct supervision of John J. Payette, general zone manager. He handles all of the houses in Harrison, Staunton, Lexington, Clifton, Forge and Bedford. Well versed in showmanship, having been in the game since he was knee high to a water bucket, Weinberg is well qualified to handle the job he now holds. In the olden days his father was one of the pioneers in the business, and has been handling houses since then. Weinberg himself has developed right along in the game, starting as an usher in the houses, shifting to ticket taking, billposting, and operating. He knows almost every phase of the business. The success of the Shenandoah Valley theatre can be accounted in no small way to his efficiency. Well, when a showman can present so excellent a card of admission, it seems to us that we have acquired a man who will join the ranks of the active Club members. We want to extend him a hearty welcome into the Club and express the hope that he is going to pass along some slants on his work so that his fellow members might also benefit from them. What do you say, Dan? A National Guard Tie-Up Netted Ray Peterson Publicity Tying in with the National Guardsmen was largely responsible for Ray N. Peterson increasing business over 200% during the showing of "All Quiet on the Western Front" at the Strand Theatre, which has been making theatrical history in Gulfport, Miss. Company M, 155th Infantry of the Mississippi National Guard paraded to the theatre from the armory in uniform with a full complement of officers at 7:30 P. M. on first day of picture's engagement. Upon arrival at the theatre they assembled along the sidewalk and went through a few drills and were then photographed. Besides the parade, Peterson had the guardsmen's full cooperation in putting over the picture. They furnished a machine gun which was displayed in the lobby during play dates with three uniformed guardsmen with rifles and fixed bayonets on duty at all times. The machine gun was set up behind a sand bag dugout in the lobby. A uniformed bugler was also secured who blew taps at the close of the feature each time. All lights in the theatre were dimmed and then the bugler stepped from the wings of the stage and was spotted with a dim baby spot which threw his shadow on the back curtain while he softly played Taps. This went over very nicely and was loudly applauded. Peterson then persuaded the Captain of the guardsmen to award, from the stage on the first day of the picture, Government medals for marksmanship which two of the guardsmen had won at the National Guard summer encampment. The medals were presented and the boys received tremendous applause from the audience. A special shadow box was made on which was painted two big guns pointing up toward top of box. Then at the mouth of the gun a jagged hole was cut out to resemble a bursting shell and this was covered over with red transparent paper on which was lettered the title of the picture. By the use of a flasher in the box, it gave the NOVELTY SOUVENIRS Make friends with your patrons Vew profits In your box office receipt* • lire kiddies "Brazel Novelties" end win there es Boosters for your show house . . . Inexpensive attractive novelties eerve as real business erettors always. St, Says W. Ward Marsh in The Cleveland Plain Dealer I know of no other big business which asks so little loyalty and gives so little human interest to employees as the film industry, as a whole. It is an enterprise which has never made inventory of the cost of labor-turnover — or what price it is to have a loyal, honest, affectionate employee. With but few exceptions, barring relatives, most men within the industry will tell you (if they speak the truth) that they expect to be "let out any time." I mean by "most men" to include all the workers with particular emphasis on the ones on the lower rungs of the ladder. A new boss comes in (which happens regularly), and there is a complete change of staff. This happens with astonishing regularity. And the pictures have yet to learn that no employee does his best or even tries to do his best when he knows that it's only a matter of months or weeks or even days when he'll be hunting a new job. The cost of these changes of staffs is terrific, but so far no one has made the slightest attempt to reckon the cost nor has any attempt been made to build up good feeling, morale or anything else which goes into solid, if abstract, construction of a business enterprise. In place of that, standardization has set in. AH ushers bow from the hips, direct you with extreme and annoying politeness to seats you do not want, and in all respects act as about as unAmerican as it is possible for them to act. House managers, not all but most, still have no great say in the operation of their houses. They are told to get business, and that they have a free rein — and then next day a favorite from New York appears, fires ushers, raises blazes because the rest rooms are not perfect (when no appropriation has been given to assist in perfection), and acts so lordly that every employee in the theatre knows the manager has no authority and thenceforth treats him with no respect. The theatre goes down. Then a new manager comes in. Often expenses seem to be running high, and so several jobs are closed and more work is thrown on the manager of the theatre, with the results that he can't do all the work allotted him. Finally New York asks, "What's the matter with business?" The trouble is that so little brains is going into management— both in exhibition and production. Only one factor is not neglected and that is this: Are we making as much money as we set for our quota? And then when the producers find they are not they begin cleaning house again, establish new staffs and begin the same rotten old process of doing everything to kill business, and just enough of the right thing to keep business going. What the screen needs is loyalty within its folds. What it also needs is enough sense to understand that its forte is telling motion picture stories. I think it will struggle along for a long time as it is. There is no telling how far it will go if it sets about telling stories which have movement in them. As for loyalty in its own house, that's its own grief. It costs millions to have its own hands bitten by the thousands who don't care what the hell happens to the old concern just so long as they can hang on. It's a great game among employees— this hanging on. I've been watching them come and go for a decade, and there are shining exceptions to every rule, but most of them hate the handouts which are feeding them. BRAZEL NOVELTY MFG. CO. "cln.i^f. 8' appearance of the guns firing. At each flash, the titles stood out boldly in the center of the explosion. Other mediums included 250 postcards being sent to American Legionnaires and to prominent people in the city; the distribution of 3,000 paper napkins printed in two colors; 1,000 heralds wrapped around bread and distributed by the bakeries and others. With so complete a campaign is it any wonder that they were yelling S. R. O. when the first show was half over? We have noticed from this showman's past activities that he doesn't waste any time in putting his campaigns across, so we'd like him to shoot along some dope to us on the various means and stunts he uses to sell them. Let's hear from you, Ray, and include your photo at the same time, so that the rest of the Club can meet you.