Boxoffice (Oct-Dec 1939)

^HE sudden cold weather of last week put a big dent in the boxoffices of every theatre in town. In addition the annual Community Fund Drive hurt plenty . . . The advertising department of Neighborhood Theatres is now issuing a twice monthly tabloid featuring stories and art layouts of feature attractions playing their houses. The papers are distributed house to house . . . Leon Nelson jr., who has made quite a name of a golfer here, has been promoted to supervisor of checkers for Warner Pictures, with office in Washington ... A. Frank O’Brien, Sam Bendheim jr., Morton G. Thalhimer and Allen Sparrow were among the Richmonders who attended the Variety Club annual banquet in Washington . . . Charlie Thorp, doorman of the Carillon, is father of a baby girl, Dolores Jean . . . Mrs. John Doherty, wife of the Colonial projectionist, lost her mother recently . . . Jerry Doolittle ha;§ been relieving Mervin Ullman, Altec engineer, for a few days. Dave Peterson, Altec engineer, was in town from Washington, driving a new Chrysler . . . Charlie Yerhy, assistant manager of Loew’s, was visited by his brother, Harry, and his bride . . . Joe Mullen, who was manager of the Bellevue, came down from Arlington for a visit last week . . . Ben Caplon, Columbia salesman, was a recent visitor . . . Natives who went to the Duke-Carolina game included Harry Nordin, Georgia Farthing, Billy Patterson from the home office of Neighborhood Theatres and Gordon Pulliam from the Byrd . . . Garrett Leahey, manager of the Westhampton, went hunting on his day off last week to help open the season . . . The state corporation commission has issued a charter to National Enterprises, Harrisonburg, with a capital of $25,000. Sam Roth, president and L. G. Payne of Fredericksburg , secured the charter . . . Mike Siegal, owner of a number of fight pictures for this territory, was in town talking about the Dempsey -Willard pictures which have never been shown here . . . Mildred Harris Chaplin made a personal appearance at the National . . . N. C. Haefele, Baltimore branch manager for National Theatre Supply Co., was in town. The State team took three games from the Colonial last Monday night and are now leading the league by four games, having won 11 and lost one . . . Charlie Hulbert, manager of the Lee, who withdrew his team from the league, is now rolling for the Park boys . . . John Curtis Caldwell, owner of the Lee in Appomattox, was elected president of the newly organized Lions Club in that town . . . A1 Nowitsky, manager of the National, flew to Fredericksburg with “The Dawn Patrol” . . . Allen Sparrow, manager of Loew’s, and his wife, visited Norfolk . . . Ml’S. Ida May Wells, widow of Jake Wells, widely known throughout the south, died in Pensacola, Fla. A. T. Hall, cameraman for Pathe News, recently presented a ten-reel story of the war in the Far East at the John Marshall High School . . , Eddie Martin, salesman for Republic Pictures, was a recent visitor . . . Herman Nowitsky, chief of maintenance for the Wilmer and Vincent circuit, was in town . . . Robert Hatcher is a new member of the service staff at the National . . . "Mac” McLaughlin came down from Baltimore to relieve Mervin Ullman, local Altec engineer, for several days. The recent Theatrical Ball at the Mosque, under the sponsorship of the Lichtman Theatres Employes Ass’n, netted several hundred dollars for the employes’ fimd . . . Jerry Newcomb, member of Sam Gordon’s service staff at the Venus, skidded his car while crossing the Ninth Street Bridge and damaged it considerably . . . William Rippard, manager of the Eaco, Farmville, was a spectator at the recent football game at the Stadium, also Harold Wood of the Neighborhood Theatres home office. Frank Mathews, maintenance engineer of the Capitol Theatre, went fishing and caught one this long . . . Warren Connor, Altec official, was a visitor here the other week . . . Charlie Yerby, assistant manager of the Loew’s Theatre, visited his mother in Portsmouth last Tuesday . . . Floyd Stawls, manager of the Carillon, also visited down on the coast, calling on his family in Norfolk . . . Allen Brown and his wife drove up to Washington the other day . . . Otis Kyger, former relief manager for Wilmer and Vincent here, and now stationed in Reading, has summoned his family. Otis Bugg and Floyd Armstrong, projectionists at the National, attended the recent convention of the SMPE in New York . . . Morton G. Thalhimer, president of Neighborhood Theatres, made a flying trip to California . . . Frank Storino, manager of the Lincoln, has returned with his bride from honeymooning in New York . . . Muriel Stevenson, secretary to Frank O’Brien, city manager for Wilmer and Vincent, visited New York. A driving contest, in which safe and courteous drivers will receive guest tickets to local first runs is underway. Drivers selected by a state trooper and city police officer, who will ride the city streets for one hour each day, get tickets to the theatres. The six weeks’ contest is being sponsored by the state division of motor vehicles, the News Leader and Loew’s, Colonial, State, Capitol and Byrd. Each day the numbers of ten drivers will be published in the paper and they will receive tickets at the division of motor vehicles. Paramount Dividends New York — Regular quarterly dividends on the first and second preferred have been declared by Paramount’s directors. On the former, it is the usual $1.50 and on the latter 15 cents, payable December 26, as of record December 8. Pre-Christmas Remodeling Norfolk, Va. — The Granby, Wilmer & Vincent house here, will be closed for a partial remodeling a week prior to Christmas, according to Manager Westbrook. See Little Peace Hope In Musicians' Tangle Philadelphia — ^The controversy between the Warner chain and Local 77, American Federation of Musicians, is moving toward a showdown, as the present contract’s expiration date — Saturday, December 2 — approaches. Neither side is very hopeful about reaching an agreement soon. A Warner informant explained that the company has no quarrel over wages or working conditions, but is insisting on the right to employ musicians only where and when it chooses to use vaudeville. The musicians are insisting that the orchestras now employed at the Fox, Earle and half a dozen neighborhood houses be retained, whether there are flesh shows or not. Rex Riccardi, secretary of the musician’s local, declared the S-W attitude constituted a “lockout.” He stated: “We are asking the stage hands’ and projectionists’ unions to back us up in our demand that Warner keep faith with the musicians, and keep us in theatres where we are presently employed.” At present, Warner is paying three orchestras— assigned to Frankford, Alhambra and Kent — which haven’t been used there for several weeks. Duals for Six Warner Philadelphia Houses Philadelphia — Double features are slated for six local Stanley-Warner houses and are already in operation in three out-oftown houses in the Philadelphia metropolitan area, a S-W spokesman reveals. The houses to start duals are the Germantown, Strand, Keystone, Imperial 2nd, Imperial 60th and Lindy. The three already following the policy are the Strand, Reading: Clementon, Clementon, (N. J.) and Princess, Camden (N. J.) Independents are trying to derive some consolation from a S-W statement that duals will be instituted only in situations where the competition makes it absolutely necessary. The S-W spokesman expands the statement to add that “we are going to study results in these theatres before determining whether to extend the policy elsewhere.” Around 500 at Capitol Variety Dinner-Dance Washington — Around 500 persons dined and danced at the annual party of Variety Club, Tent No. 11, at the Willard Hotel November 18. The combined stage shows from the Earle and Capitol theatres, with George Beatty serving as master of ceremonies, highlighted the entertainment program, augmented with the surprise appearance of Jackie Heller who flew in from Pittsburgh for the occasion. The party was under the direction of General Chairman Hardie Meakin, who was assisted by a large committee. Catskill House Closes East Durham, N. Y. — Millard Tubbs has closed Lawyer’s Hall in this Catskill Mountain town. It is a summer situation. 16-D BOXOFFICE :: November 25, 1939