Show World (June 1909)

6 THE SHOW WORLD COCHRANE IS MADE A LAEMMLE MANAGER. Former Advertising Manager of New York Paper to Have Full Charge of Gotham Interests. Carl Laemmle left Chicago Wednes¬ day afternoon on the 20th Century Limited for New York, accompanied by Tom D. Cochrane, who is to as¬ sume the personal rnanagement of the various Laemmle interests in New York City, including the Music House of Laemmle, The Laemmle Film Service (renting) and the Independent Moving Pictures Company of Amer¬ ica (manufacturing), the name select¬ ed by Mr. Laemmle in his title con¬ test. Mr. Cochrane came on from New York and was in conference with Mr. Laemmle in Chicago Monday and Tuesday. Mr. Cochrane for a number of years has been advertising manager of the New York Evening Mail. He has had a wide experience, and under his di¬ rection the Laemmle interests in New York would appear to be in capable hands. Prior to his departure with Mr. Cochrane for New York, Mr. Laem¬ mle stated to a Show World representa¬ tive that he would be in a position to announce the New York address of his various enterprises by next week. While in New York Mr. Laemmle is making his headquarters at the Hoffman House. It is more than probable that the music business as well as the renting service and the eastern office for the manufacturing business of the Laem¬ mle company will be under one roof in New York. Mr. Cochrane will be the New York manager for all of these branches. It is probable that Mr. Laemmle will be in New York for a number of days in concluding arrangements for the New York headquarters for his in¬ terests. Prior to his departure from Chicago, Mr. Laemmle stated that the Independent Moving Pictures Com¬ pany of America would soon be turn¬ ing out American subjects for the moving picture trade. Addition to Big Zoo. MINNEAPOLIS, June 21.—Long¬ fellow Gardens, located at Minnehaha Falls, under the management of R. F. Jones, is rapidly becoming a very large zoo and is now the second or third largest west of New York. Last week a big addition was made to the animal forces in Jumbo, the second brought from Cuba and said to be the largest elephant in captivity, 12 feet 6 inches high and weighing six and one-half tons. Miss Mabel Hall is Jumbo’s trainer. Other menagerie additions this week were four lions, four leopards, two pumas, two cinnamon bears, etc.— BARNES. Mapes Wins Laemmle Prize. Charles M. Mapes. of 148th street and Third avenue. New York City, has been awarded the prize offered by Carl Laemmle for the most appropriate name suggested for the Laemmle film factory. Mapes named it The Inde¬ pendent Moving Pictures Company of America. The Red Man. The World Film Manufacturing company is making a bid for the sup¬ ply of truly American films, which appear to be in great demand by ex¬ hibitors. The most recent product of this firm is entitled The Red Man and is a story of the devotion of an In¬ dian to a hunter in the far,west. It aims to prove that a savage never for¬ gets to repay a kindness. The film is beautifully tinted. The film was taken alon^ the Columbia river and there¬ fore is well supplied with local color. Stubblefield Trio Here. The Stubblefield Trio, consisting of George, Anna and Miss Adda Stub¬ blefield, who have recently returned from a vaudeville tour of the west, are in Chicago this week for the White Rats convention. A TIMELY TALK ON INDEPENDENCE. By J. J. The United States, the greatest country in the world, owes its very to the fact that its pro- dy pioneers of the early inspired by the spirit of i n d e - pend ence. Indeed, the very corner stone of the nation i s made up of the realized ambitions of were willing to lay down their lives for the sake of freedom. Independence, no matter in what field of endeavor you choose to exam¬ ine it, is not so much a thing of im¬ pulse as it is of impregnable integ- It is easy enough for a man to say, “I will not be shackled by this or that,” but to free himself from such bonds is a matter entirel- foreign to the mere ambition for freedom. In all the independent movements, whether their object be the severing of ties between nations or the cutting of strings between acquaintanceships, are more or less hazardous. The man who would be free and independent is the man who is willing not only to take a chance, as it were, but who is willing to fight for his convictions of right. I might have made this a timely talk on habits, for the habit of con¬ ceding old conditions is the opposite extreme of independence, and a dis¬ cussion of the one must necessarily include an analysis of the other. Habits Easily Acquired. There is nothing much easier than the acquiring of a habit. Moving pic¬ ture exhibitors, watching their box office receipts, readilv come to the conclusion that no matter what hap¬ pens there can be little or no effect upon their income. They fall into the habit of expecting so much money each night at their door, and if, per¬ chance, the expected amount is not received by the cashier, many of them conclude that the weather or some other foreign influence is to blame for the laxity in attendance. But the, wise exhibitor appreciates the fact that habits—unless they are the best—do not nay a reasonable profit. That is why so many of the wise exhibitors hesitated—thought for themselves and demanded freedom— when the trust imposed an absolutely unreasonable tax upon them. Not alone did the wise exhibitors think for themselves—they acted! Had they not acted, the International company would today be a thin" of pen and paper, whereas it stands now, as it did in the beginning the friend and supporter of the well-meaning exhib¬ itor qnd exchange. The independent movement was started because of its need. If you will look backward, for a moment, at the condition of the mov¬ ing picture industry at the time when the International company had its in¬ ception, you will find that the situa¬ tion was ripe for a courageous inde¬ pendent force—a backbone upon which the freedom-seeking exhibitors and exchanges could hinge their ribs. Fortunes Could Be Made. From the beginning I appreciated that International exhibitors and ex¬ changes were in a fair way to make independent fortunes for themselves, provided that their independence was of a loyal calibre. Personally I had no desire to reap the rich harvest for myself and leave the exhibitors and exchanges, like Murdock. wrung out sponges, to dry on the hill¬ side of my own prosperity. This was what the trust seemed intent upon bringing about, and therefore it was but business wisdom for our company to seek the opposite side of the ques¬ tion. In other words to give both ex¬ hibitor and exchange an equal chance If the so-called Independent exhib¬ itors and exchanges have not made good profit for themselves, it is due entirely to their habit of clinging to old customs. It may have been that they did not fully appreciate the mag¬ nitude of the Independent movement from the time the International com¬ pany put its hand on the wheel. The International is steering straight for the harbor of- prosperity, but it is doubtful whether some of the exhibi¬ tors and exchanges are headed that Instead of listening to my ad¬ vice, the exchanges and exhibitors many cases, been so blinded by their old habits that the mere thought of independence is repugnant to them. Old Habits in Vogue. For instance, it has come to my knowledge that certain exchanges, in¬ stead of attempting to obtain new trade for themselves, have merely adopted the old system of going to some customer already taking Inter¬ national goods and offering him serv¬ ice for less money; a scheme which is neither profitable to those exchanges nor to the exhibitors. Such exchanges have utterly disre¬ garded not only their own welfare, but the welfare of the exhibitors, for the exchange cannot make a living- profit by offering goods at less than the staple price, and therefore the ex¬ change is forced into offering dupe and faked products and shoddy goods, such as no self-respecting exhibitor can afford to throw upon his screen. This condition is not confined to a limited territory, but is, on the other hand, an almost national state of af¬ fairs. It is not so much a matter of the future of the exchanges as it is a mat¬ ter of the future of the exhibitors, upon whom the exchanges must de¬ pend for a livelihood. _ In all lines of business, the con¬ sumer is the first and last considera¬ tion. In the moving picture field the exhibitor represents the consumer; he knows, or should know, what the jpub- lic wants and the exhibitor is now’-—as he has always been—the man to be considered above all others. Consideration of Exhibitors. The exhibitor has often been mis¬ lead by false promises; he has been made the butt of huge and expensive jokes at the hands of the picture trust, but from the time I entered the mov¬ ing picture game, it has been my one ambition to give the exhibitor a square deal, knowing as I do, his value to the industry. I may have said this before, but I want to say it again—^the exhibitor must and will get what he pays for, if not through the present channels, then some other practicable way will be adopted. There is a tremendous meaning be¬ hind the word “Independent.” Abuse cannot detract from its definition. The independent exhibitor is the ex¬ hibitor who stands alone, unfettered by ties to the Trust. The Independent exchange is the exchange which chooses for itself—which will not be satisfied with anything but the best that the market affords—for it is by this means, and this only, that it will attain to a high regard and a profita¬ ble revenue in the independent field. June 26, 1909. .] VAN DYKE AND EATON CLOSE AT MILWAUKEE. [ 1 When Hot Weather Came the Busi- tl ness Fell Off and There is Pos- W sibly a Lesson Connected *■' With Case. The Van Dyke and Eaton company closed its engagement at the Alham- I bra in Milwaukee last Sunday night and at the same time ended a season of 53 weeks. | The business was poor the last two 1 ( weeks, which may have been due to ! • the hot weather, or more likely (ac- I j cording to repertoire men) to the fact ' that the company moved away from | < the theater for one week to let “The ^ Prince of Tonight” appear at that ! house. It was just like it is out in i the one-night stand cities. When a ' night is taken out the chain of sue- | cess is broken and Curt Mack found that it was impossible to get ’em com- _: Ward Keet went to Benton Harbor, Mich., where he will be fea- ' tured in a stock at the Bijou, which will play two bills a week, giving two I matinees a week. He took Mary ] Enos, Maud Norton, Ed Sprague and William Butterfield with him. Har¬ vey Arlington will manage the com- j pany. ' Curt'Mack spent a few days in Chi¬ cago and will go on a fishing trip, j Hugh Harper and Virginia Baird came ■ to Chicago but left Wednesday night for Chillicothe, Ohio, where they open I in vaudeville next Monday on the Verbeck circuit. They will appear in i one of Mr. Harper’s dramatic sketches. Mr. Harper had been with the Van Dyke and Eaton company for 53 ] The New Southern Theater. * MINNEAPOLIS, June 21. —The j; foundations are being put in for the ' new Southern theater, located at 1419- ' , 1421 Washington avenue S. The ! ' Southern Amusement company, com¬ posed of local business men, are the I builders and it is expected to be open State Fair week. The building will be fireproof with f fourteen exits and with alleys on three ' « sides. The size of the building is 59x : | 125 feet, with stage 59 feet wide and ) 26 feet deep. C. S. Sedgwick is the j architect and M. Madson is the con- | > tractor. The management announce i J a four a day vaudeville plan with ten , cents admission, straight.—BARNES. j| Lottie Mayer a Hit. _ i Lottie Mayer, the deep sea diver at .■ Fred Brinkman’s show at Riverview i park, is proving to be a great draw- , ing card. She is conceded to be one \ of the best swimmers and performs ^ many miraculous feats under the i water. She is a hard worker and re- ! ceived many favorable press com¬ ments when she swam the Mississippi from Alton to St. Louis. Stage Employees’ Convention. A convention of the International , Alliance Theatrical Stage Employees ] will be held July 12 at Springfield, , Ohio. The Chicago moving picture j operators local No. 145 has appointed ] Ed L. Nickodem their business agent; j Clyde Moore their president, and Wm. i H. Havill, their ex-president, to rep- 1 resent them. Havill is an honorary 1 delegate. i E. F. Rogers in the City. E. F. Rogers, formerly manager of the American Music Hall, but recently appointed to the Morris’ New York office, arrived here Wednesday at 7:45 in the morning and left at 2:45 in the afternoon. It is said that he came to examine the plans for an improvement in the balcony at the music hall. Fred Ackerman Returns. Fred Ackerman, manager of the Olympic, has returned from a vaca¬ tion trip to Oconomowoc. During his absence Tom Carmody, manager of the Star theater, has been in charge. Ackerman began his service with his present employers on Friday the 13th of June, some years ago and thus was permitted to celebrate the occasion by a vacation.