Boxoffice (Oct-Dec 1962)

THE NATIONAL FILM WEEKLY Guest Editorial Published in Nine Sectional Editions BEN SHLYEN Editor-in-Chief and Publisher DONALD M. MERSEREAU, Associate Publisher & General Manager JESSE SHLYEN . . . .Managing Editor HUGH FRAZE Field Editor AL STEEN Eastern Editor CHRIS DUTRA Western Editor I. L, THATCHER. . .Equipment Editor MORRIS SCHLOZMAN Business Mgr. Publication Offices: 825 Van Brunt Blvd. Kansiis City 24, Mo. Jesse Slilyen, Managing Editor; Morris Scliloznian, Business .Manager; Hugh Kraze, Kield Editor; 1. L. Thatcher, Editor The Modern Theatre Section. Telephone Cllestnut 1-7777. Editorial Offices: 1270 Sixth Are., Itocke(eller Center, New York 20, N. Y. Donald .\1. Mersereau, Associate Tuhlisher & General .Manager; A1 Steen, Eastern Editor. Telephone COlunibus 5-6370. Central Offices: Editorial — 920 N. Michigan Are., Cliicago 11, 111., Erances B. Clow, Telephone superior 7-3972. Advertising— 5809 North Lincoln, Louis Uidier and Jack Broderick, Telephone LOngbeach 1-5284. Western Offices: Editorial :md Kilm Advertising— 6362 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood 28, Cal., Chris Dutra, manager. Telephone Hollywood 5-1186. Etiuipnient and Non-l'TInv Advertising — New York Life Bldg., 2801 West Sixth St., Los Angeles 57, Calif, Boh Wettstein, manager. Telephone Dunkirk 8-2286. London Office: Antliony Gruner, 1 Woodherry Way, Elnchley, No. 12. Telephone Hillside 6733. TTie MODEllN TTIEATBE Section is included in tile first issue of eacli month. Atlanta: Jean Mullis, T. 0. Box 1695. Albany: .1. S. Conners, 140 State St. liaitimoie: Geoige Browning, 119 E. 25th SI. Boslun: Guy Livingston, 80 Boylston, Bosloii, .Mass. Charlotte: Blanche Carr, 301 S. Church, ('incinnati: Eranccs Hanford, UNiversity 17180. Cleveland: W. Waid Marsh, Tlain Dealer. Columbus: Ered Oestreieher, 52% .North Broadway. Dallas: Mahle Guinan, 5927 Winton. Denver: Bruce Marshall, 2881 S. Cherry Way. lies Moines: Tat Cooney, 2727 49lh St. Detroit: 11. E. Keves, 90G Eox Theatre Bldg., woodward 2-1144. Ilaitford: Allen M. Wideiu, CH. 9-8211. Indianapolis: Norma Geraghty, 436 N. Illinois St. ■laeksonville: Kohert Coimvall, 1199 Edgewood A\e. Memphis: iNiill Adams, 707 Spring St. .Miami: .Martha l.ummus, 622 N.E. 98 St. .Milwaukee: MTii. Nichol, 2251 S. Laylon. Minneapolis: Taiil Nelson, 3220 Park Ave. S. .New OiTciUis: Mrs. Jack Auslet, 2268% St. Claude Arc. Oklahoma City: Sam Brunk, 3416 N. Virginia. Omaha: Irving Baker, 5108 Izard St. Thiladeliihia: Al Zurawski, The Bulletin. Tittsburgh: B. F. Klingensmith, 516 Jeanette, Wilklnsburg. CHiirchill 1-2809. Portland, Ore.: Arnold Marks, Journal. Providence: Guy Langley, 388 Sayles St. St. Louis: Joe & Joan Pollack, 7335 Sliaftshury, University City, PA 5-7181. Salt I*ke City: H. Pearson, Deseret News. San Eranclsco: Dolores Barusch, 25 Taylor St., Oltdway 3-4813; Advertising; Jerry Nowell, 417 Market St., YUkon 29537. Washington; Virginia It. Collier, 2308 Ashmead Place. N. W., DUpont 7-0892. In Canada .Montreal; Boom 314, 625 Belmont St., Jules Larochelle. St. Jolm: 43 Waterloo, Sam Babb. Toronto: 2675 Bayview Ave., VVillowdale, Ont. W. Gladish. Vancouver: 411 Lyric Theatre Bldg. 751 Granville St., Jack Droy. Winnipeg; The Tribune, Jim Peters. Member Audit Bureau of Circulations Second Class postage paid at Kansas City, Mo. Sectional Edition, $3.00 per year. National Edition. $7.50. NOVEMBER 12, 1962 Vol. 82 No. 4 HERE WE By MARSHALL H. FINE President, Allied States Ass’n of Motion Picture Exhibitors L ,^FFQRTS are being made at present liy many circuit operators and other interested exhibitors to contact distribution heads now and to convince them of the necessity of releasing top-calibre product during the April-MayJune period of 1963. It is my own conclusion, however, arrived at reluctantly, if not somewhat bitterly, that these valiant attempts on the part of responsible exhibitor leaders will meet with little more success than had been achieved by similar efforts carried on during the past several years. Most regrettably for all concerned, distribution in general still does not seem to realize that the lack of a regularly delivered flow of good product is undoubtedly the most serious problem plaguing our industry today, and, to me, poses the only threat to its future. IF ONLY ALL EXHIBITORS WHO AGREE WITH ME IN THIS CONTENTION WOULD MAKE THEIR FEELINGS KNOWN TO DISTRIBUTION. HOWEVER, IT IS CERTAINLY TO BE HOPED THAT THE COMBINED FEELINGS OF ALL COULD NOT CONTINUE TO BE IGNORED, AND A MORE ORDERLY FLOW OF PRODUCT COULD BE THE HAPPY RESULT. The present inability of the exhibitor to show top pictures for long periods of time — such as the current Labor Day to Thanksgiving period, for example, as well as the specific post-Easter ' to July first period, as mentioned above — poses tbe threat of forcing the great bulk of our movie I customers out of their moviegoing habit. I feel i this has definitely been the case this present P summer, when many of the top-flight produc ^ tions that had been anticipated to draw maxii mum audiences failed to recapture the movie i fans who had been offered such generally in p ferior fare in the months previous, and who i had, therefore, started to look elsewhere first in i spending their leisure time and dollars. I Surely, no other business markets its prod I uct in such a limiting way, so as to allow its p customers only to be pleased at holiday times or |i during the summer months, thus disregarding I completely their satisfactions for perhaps 75 i|j per cent of the year. Instead, our competitors for |i the entertainment dollar and sensible business I men in every line realize the importance of de veloping in their customers the habit to purchase their product. And it, of course, goes without GO AGAIN saying that this habit can only be formed through offering top merchandise consistently throughout the year. In our business in particular, where advertising and ballyhoo form such a necessary part, this consistency of good merchandise is even more important. For the movie fan who is attracted to a theatre two or three times in a row through showmanship or hard-sell advertising, only to feel he has been misled or taken advantage of and shown what he full-well realizes is inferior fare, not only loses his appetite for future films, but develops a resentment against the industry in general and his local theatre in particular. It is unfortunate, indeed, that in most instances today individual producers, who are only concerned with, perhaps, one film in a given six-month or year period, have the ability to dictate to distribution in general as to just how and when their specific pictures should be released. And it is further unfortunate that the films controlled by these individual producers comprise such a high percentage of the overall market. For, surely, the distributors themselves must realize that they risk jeapordizing their own futures whenever they allow a movie patron to leave a theatre feeling disgruntled two or three times running, such as is often the case in the between-holiday periods in other than the summer months. Let us hope that these distributors seize tbe initiative, before any more time elapses, in controlling the release dates of all films they handle, to the end that this present pattern of “feast and famine” distribution may be eliminated. For distribution must be made to see the long-term folly of such a method of releasing their major product, which, surely, would lead only to harder times ahead for all concerned, if allowed to remain unchecked. It is my hope that every exhibitor in America, who has suffered through an inability to show top product regularly throughout the year to his patrons, immediately makes his feelings known to every film company president and general sales manager, to the end that this evil of sporadic releasing of such top product can be replaced instead by an orderly and methodical plan of distributing top pictures regularly throughout the year. For through such combined efforts, surely, the responsible heads of distribution will come to realize that such a change must be made, and the months of April, May, and June in 1963 will not be lost to us all in what has previously been treated as an orphan period.