Motography (Jul 1918)

July 13, 1918. MOTOGRAPHY 67 Big Theatre Shake-up in Montreal THIRTY HOUSES CLOSE, REOPEN OR CHANGE HANDS MONTREAL moving picture theatres have had a shaking up, the equal of which has never been seen before in that city. In fact, the numerous changes probably establish a record for any city. Upwards of thirty local houses have been closed, changed hands or been reopened after short periods of darkness during the past few weeks. All sizes of theatres have been affected. Many Reasons for Condition It is declared that the numerous restrictions and taxes recently imposed by the Canadian government have had a disastrous effect upon the business. These enactments have included an increase of one cent per foot on imported films, a reel tax of fifteen cents per day and an embargo on advertising matter. In addition, there is the provincial war tax, a campaign by the Montreal authorities against the admission of children to the theatres except when accompanied by parents or guardians and the censorship worry. In a few days, about fifteen exhibitors were arraigned for permitting the admission of unaccompanied children, and fines ranging from $10 to $50 were imposed. Frequent military drafts have also tended to make the situation difficult. Some of the Changes Here are a number of the recent changes: The Wonderland Theatre has been closed down permanently and dismantled. The St. Denis has been closed until fall. The Star has been closed for the summer at least. The Comet has been closed for an indefinite period. The Windsor has been closed for good and has been partially dismantled. The Alcazar, owned by J. Perras, has been closed temporarily. Manager A. Desmarteau of the Arcade has closed the house for the summer months. Liberty Gets New Name The name of the Liberty has been changed to the "Allies Theatre" by Manager Thierren, who is now keeping his theatre open all week instead of on Saturdays and Sundays only. Mr. Astphan, formerly manager of the Star Theatre, Notre Dame street west, has reopened the National Palace Thea tre after changing its name to the Victoirescope. The National Palace was closed for three months. The house has been renovated. The Connaught Theatre has a new manager in the person of Thomas Dobligan. Manager Charles Thorn is reopening the Circle Theatre on Main street. Joe Block and P. E. Neal are now the joint proprietors of the Canada Theatre. The Rialto Theatre, which was closed early in May, was reopened on June 22 under new management. Exhibitors Swell Membership The membership of the Canadian Motion Picture Association, which is the organization for Montreal exhibitors, now boasts of forty. It is pointed out that these exhibitors represent the most aggressive theatres in the city — those that do not close down during the summer months. A campaign is under way to gain out-of-town members in order to strengthen the hand of the film men of Quebec. Albert H. Beaulne, who resigned from the secretaryship of the Montreal association to accept a position with the Specialty Film Import, Ltd., was invited to reconsider his decision. He did so, with the result that he is once more the secretary and organizer. The exhibitors recently took up the subject of petitioning the government to have the exchanges collect the 15-cent reel tax. Several directors of the association were appointed to confer with the Exchange Managers' Association with a view to obtaining an amendment from the government. It is pointed out that the tax is imposed on pictures without consideration of the cuts made by the censors. One picture, for instance, was cut down from nine to four reels, yet the theatre was called upon to pay the tax for the whole feature for the seven days that it was screened. Pats Hardship on Theatres This picture was "Panthea," which was presented at Loew's Theatre. The tax collected by the government from Manager Mills was $9.45. The government collected a tax on something for which value was not received. This is an exceptional case, it is admitted, but there are other instances where the eliminations made by the censors amount to a thousand or more feet. The exhibitors appointed to take up this matter were Manager Nicholas of the Strand, Manager Rotsky of the New Grand, Sam Freed of the Tivoli and Howard Conover of the Imperial. Mae Marsh, Goldwyn, star, as she appears in her new picture, "The Glorious Adventure.'