Boxoffice (Apr-Jun 1939)

Swapping Yarns With Bob Burns — Are Max Greenwald, Les Irwin, J. Bernie Gardner, Cleveland salesmen; Jack Hunter, Toronto branch manager; Burns; Ed Stuve, Pittsburgh salesman ; Duke Clark, Cleveland branch manager; Bob Caskey, Philadelphia salesman. The occasion ivas provided by the Paramount convention held on the coast. Sunday Show F oes Remaining Alert Pittsburgh — The Pittsburgh Catholic, official organ of the diocese, would reopen the question of Sunday shows, according to an editorial published June 8, which read: FORGETTING SUNDAY “Although the session of the Pennsylvania legislature just ended devoted itself largely to negative enactments, to undoing some of the “progressive” measures put on the statute books in recent years, it is significant that it left undisturbed the law under which motion picture houses have been operating on Sundays for the past three years. Two bills bearing on this subject were introduced: One to repeal outright the permission to show commercial movies on Sundays and the other to make it illegal to admit children to Sunday showings. Both bills were allowed to remain in committee and died with the adjournment of the legislature. As the original law was introduced and passed, not in response to “popular demand,” but at the behest of the producerexhibitor corporations, it is a fair assumption that the same influence kept the repeal proposals from being even considered. “It is too bad that the bills were not taken up and public hearings held to bring out just what has been the effect of granting the motion picture industry a privilege denied other profit-seeking businesses, that of working its employes and selling its product on the day reserved for rest and worship. It would have been interesting to leam how far the promises made by the film companies and by the daily papers which supported their campaign have been carried out: The presentation of ‘clean, wholesome amusement,’ the greater prosperity for their employes, the increase in real estate values, the reduction in the patronage of dives, etc; doesn’t all this sound silly today in the light of what has actually happened since the public was propagandized in favor of ‘forgetting the blue laws?’ It would have been interesting to have the evidence in black and white of how the warnings of the religious groups that opposed the Sunday movie proposal have been borne out: how it has operated to the advantage of the chain theatres and to the disadvantage of the ‘neighborhood’ houses, how it has led to the growth of other business on Sundays, how it has interfered with church attendance, how it has extended the pagan, materialistic influence of the movies from the other six days of the week into the day which God Himself decreed was to be ‘kept holy.’ It would have been interesting to learn the facts of how honestly the movie industry has obeyed the law which it wrote itself: whether it has observed the specified opening and closing hours (the brazen violation of the law that occurred on last New Year's Eve would be an important piece of evidence) ; whether it has required its employes to work more than the legal number of days per week. “These hearings were not held; the film industry continues to enjoy, untroubled, its place of privilege. It remains for a more social-minded legislature and a more alert citizenry to reopen the question.” Keeps Blue Law Marlinton, W. Va. — Sunday shows were voted out at last week’s election. Favoring the issue were 275 votes and the opposition mustered 342 votes against Sunday shows. Occupied — At the left, with dancing, J. J. Oulahan, Cincinnati branch manager. Below, with table talk, G. B. J. Frawley, home office ( with dark shirt ) ; Harold Hurley, production executive; Harry Milstein; Dave Kimelman, Pittsburgh branch manager. Gray-haired man and one on his right unidentified. Butterfield Rewards Two for Ballyhoo Detroit — Manager interest in the Butterfield circuit has been centered for the past several months on the “It’s a Wonderful World” contest — special event for Butterfield managers, with prizes of $100 for major towns and $50 for minor towns of the circuit, donated by Frank J. Downey, M-G-M branch manager. Managers have, as a result, been resorting to their own ingenuity in exploitation of this film. Award for the major houses went to Wirt S. McLaren, manager of the Michigan Theatre at Jackson, and for the minors to Gus Bartram of the Vogue at Manistee. McLaren is an old-timer in show business, known to Michigan showmen through his connections with motion picture, vaudeville, and legitimate theatres in Jackson for the past 31 years. Bartram, although a “youngster” in the business, has a record of accomplishment behind him already: Singer at the Ada Meade Theatre, Lexington, Ky.; manager of the Plaza (now Capitol), Charleston, W. Va.; in the vaude team of Bartram and Saxton, playing the Palace at New York, and Keith and Loew time in Greater New York; contracted by B&K as pioneers in presentations in Chicago, playing the Chicago, Rivoli and Uptown for 15 years; and lately associated with Butterfield, winning this top prize in his first year as manager — a real accomplishment record. Strong local newspaper publicity followed the success of each manager, in their own towns, and personal letters of congratulation were received from E. C. Beatty, general manager of Butterfield circuit; E. R. Saunders, M-G-M western sales manager; J. E. Flynn, M-G-M division manager and Frank J. Downey, M-G-M branch manager. Building in Florida Clearsfield, Pa. — Charles H. Richelieu, formerly with the Clearfield Amusement Co., is building a new theatre in Tarpon Springs, Fla. 60 BOXOFFICE ;: June 17, 1939