Boxoffice (Apr-Jun 1939)

piLMROW Bowling League wishes to thank those who kicked in with prizes for the banquet last Saturday. Names of the donors are published this week in the item which briefly outlines the banquet. Our congratulations and best wishes to Art Levy, who has been elected president of the league. He’ll need more than just our good wishes, so let’s give him our undivided attention and cooperation for the new bowling season. Winners of neckties at the banquet were Melvin Barrett, Jim Alexander, Pete Quiter, Art Morrone, Norman Fleishman, Lou Hanna, Duddy Lefton, Melvin Mann, Joe Hanna, Carl Miller, Saul Perilman, Bill Hollenbaugh, George Ball, Bud Thomas, Jack Ryave, Milt Lefton, Harry Passarell, Jerry Valdenzer, Walt Walters, Herb Shearer, Lou Michaels, Joe Pemberton, mid Angy Marino, who participated in all games during the season, and Jim Clark and Joe Saccone, who missed but one game. Advisory committee for the George Sallows-George Cumuntzis Silver Anniversary Dinner met at the Monarch exchange Monday noon and reported progress for the big affair which will be staged at Morgantown, W. Va„ June 5. Danny Davis, secretary of the ITO of W. Va., stated this week that the exhibitor meeting to be staged at Morgantown the afternoon of the Sallows-Comuntzis 25 th anniversary will be a whopper. Senator Neely will be present at the June 5 banquet and other prominent West Virginians will be on hand to extend best wishes to the veteran showmen, Sallows and Comuntzis. Harry Kalmine, Harry Fein stein, John H. Harris, Harry Harris and George D. Tyson took in the Billy Conn-Solly Krieger fight in New York last Friday . . . Rah! Rah! Rah! . . . Kalmine also took in the Baltimore Preakness Saturday. George F . Callahan, president of Exhibitors Service Co., was re-elected as a member of the executive committee of the National Film Carriers, Inc., convention in New York last week. Callahan has been delivering film here for 30 years. A. I. Weiner, UA manager, Jimmy Nash, Harry Rees and Bill Scott, sales representatives, are back from their UA convention in Los Angeles. Betty Murray, cashier at the Warner exchange, has set June 12 as the date of her marriage to Harry Finn . . . Ruth McGough, also of the Warner exchange, was given a farewell luncheon at the Nixon Cafe last Saturday afternoon by the girls of the exchange. She has moved to Los Angeles and has been transferred to the company branch there. Betty and Ruth have been Filmrow girls for a decade. Film distributors and exhibitors joined in sighs of relief when coal mining was resumed this week . . . Local newspapers are continuing their editorials favoring the licensing and controlling of billboards . . . Sammy (Genius) Steinberg astounds his friends with his consistent golf. Sammy has his strokes working to perfection, says Edward (Monty) Onoretta, Schenley professional (and this is quoted from Paul Kurtz on the sports page of the Press ) . Mrs. M. A. Rosenberg recently took in the New York World’s Fair; Mrs. Lou Fordan was there this week and she will join her husband, the Warner manager at McKeesport, in taking in the San Francisco Exposition within a couple of weeks . . . Harris Alvin and Senator were hosts to all mothers over 60 years of age for all performances Mother’s Day. Variety Club’s American Legion Post has discontinued its monthly show at the Veterans’ Hospital, Aspinwall, until September 6. The 13 shows presented this season were more appreciated than mere words could describe, so thanks to Commander Harry M. Kalmine, Adjutant C. C. Kellenberg, Joe Hiller, Brian McDonald, Jerry Mayhall and his orchestra, and to the many acts which participated, and thanks, too, to Ira H. Cohn, chief barker of Tent No. 1, and all Barkers who assisted. Fred J. Herrington, MPTO secretary, as usual, has been in Harrisburg looking over the legislative situation . . . Frank Roberts is no longer conected with Warner Bros, at Morgantown . . . Eddie Moreels, West Virginia representative for Monarch Pictures, is working the local territory for several weeks. Sam Gould’s Ohio Theatre, north side, has cut operations to Saturday and Sunday only . . . Garland West, ITO of W. Va. treasurer, and Mrs. West were Filmrow shoppers, the latter attending a screening of “Rose of Washington Square” . . . Stanley returned stage shows featuring Hugh Herbert, the “Woo-Woo” man, and the next show will star Eleanor Powell . . . The Ritz Bros, are set for the following week . . . Burtus Bishop jr., M-G-M manager, was grieved this week because of the death of Ira Furman, M-G-M manager at San Francisco, with whom he was closely associated at the Charlotte branch for nine years. Furman substituted here for John J. Maloney when the latter was seriously ill a dozen years ago. Furman’s widow is the former Mary Levy, who had been employed on Filmrow here before their marriage. The Barry will play Doug Corrigan’s “ The Flying Irishman,” which formerly had been set for the Warner . . . Harry Hendel of the Granada Theatre is pushing “Hill City,” a club operated like a mu Popcorn and Candy Are Excluded Columbus — The Ohio supreme court has ruled that candy is food, consequently it will not be necessary to collect the three per cent sales tax on such purchases. At the same time, the tax commission added popcorn to list of exempted commodities. nicipal government set up for 1,600 members of the Junior Crime Prevention Bureau (which is part of the city police department’s effort to provide activities and education for Hill district youth) . The club is now being equipped in the Granada Theatre Building . . . Snappy Girl show season is drawing to a close at the Casino. Stick-em-up Jesse James, lately romanticized by 20th-Fox, has broken into the sedate art galleries of Carnegie Institute. A Wild West train holdup print, the work of Thomas Hart Benton, native of Missouri, depicts the social history of the state capitol at Jefferson City. It’s a real thriller, with plenty of action. Yes, Jesse James has been “hung” at last! Jane Keith, formerly with the Theatre Guild and well known here as subscription secretary at the Pittsburgh Playhouse, became the bride of Warren Perry Munsell jr., also associated with the theatre . . . Rufe Blair, official handshaker for Paramount, is due in the city to say hello to the newspapermen, and M-G-M’ s studio contact chief, Barrett Kiesling, will be here around June 1 . . . Max Herschman, in charge of the special trailer department for NSS, was here on business . . . The wife of Lyle Harding, manager of WB’s Sheridan Square Theatre, underwent an operation in Montefiore Hospital. Ken Hoel will fill in at the Harris advertising office when George D. Tyson journeys forth to promote his annual “Miss America’’ campaign . . . When Mayor Cornelius D. Scully was inducted as an associate member of the Variety Club there were 73 present. W. J. Clark, 20th-Fox short subject sales manager, was here, and Don Reed, ad sales supervisor for the company, was expected; M. Schmalzbach, auditor, goes to Canadian branches from here . . . A. N. Notopoulos of the Altoona-Publix Theatres was in New York for conferences at the Paramount office . . . Ira H. Cohn was in New York on a circuit deal, as was John J. Maloney . . . Those Filmrow strangers you have been noticing for several weeks are investigators in connection with a pending anti-trust suit. The Variety Club was featured in the May issue of the William Penn Points with a page history of the organization and a page of five photo reproductions. George D. Tyson ushered us through the new offices of Harris Amusement on the first floor of the William Penn Hotel, this being the floor above the one where the Variety Club is located. The new setup is certainly one of the finest theatrical offices in the country and the headquarters of John H. Harris are without question “the tops.” Screening room, beautifully appointed and comfortable in every respect, is known as the “Nickelodeon,” named after the world’s first all-motion picture theatre opened here by John’s father, the late Sen. John P. Harris. Executive offices of John T. McGreevey, James G. Balmer, Frank J. Harris, George D. Tyson and others and the conference room 60 BOXOFFICE :: May 20, 1939