Canadian Moving Picture Digest (Jun 1921-Apr 1922)

OME of the finest and most efS fective moving picture exploitation ever seen in Ottawa, the Canadian Capital, was used during a recent week by Manager Fred Brooker of Loew’s Ottawa Theatre to boost ‘‘The Easy Road.”’ Although the painting of signs or pictures on the pavements or sidewalks of the city is frowned upon by the civie authorities, the people came down town Monday morning to find that the roadway at all the principal trolley stops was covered with huge letters which read, ‘‘This is The Easy Road to Loew’s.’’ On the front of every street car all week were cardboard signs which read, “This car takes The Easy Road to Loew’s Theatre.’’ In addition to these stunts, Manager Brooker erected scores of traffic direction signs on the roads leading into the city and also on the main routes through the outskirts which told the following message — ‘‘The Easy Road _ to Loew’s.”’ Manager Brooker specialized on these three ideas in addition to the usual newspaper advertising but he had the three ideas all over town. Brooker also made good use of the display window of a large vacant store adjacent to the theatre during the week of August 29 to advertise “The Great Moment,’’ starring Gloria Swanson. He hooked up with the window dresser of BrysonGraham, Limited, a large local department store, for a handsome display of silk dress goods, strikingly arranged in vivid hues, along with a very large transparent portrait of Gloria Swanson. Small gilt prize ecard frames were used to announce the name of the feature at the theatre and to give eredit to BrysonGraham, Limited, for the fine exhibit. The fine part about this stunt was that many passersby gathered the impression at first glance that a new ladies’ wear store had just been opened in the long-vacant property and they stopped quickly to take in the display of silks. HE Imperial Theatre at Cornwall, Ontario, suffered loss through fire on Saturday evening, August 27, when the film ignited in a projection machine. The operator, Fred Kane, was engaged in loading the other machine and dropped the reel to extinguish the outburst with the result that both machines caught and the room was soon fireswept. Kane was seriously burned but will recover. Thanks to the prompt use of extinguishers, the fire was confined to the projection room and the large crowd of people emerged quietly and safely. LEATRICE JOY proposed U. S. Customs tax of 30 per cent. on imported moving pictures would mean a levy of $80,000 on ‘‘The Man From Glengarry,”’ a new picture that is to be produced in the logging camps of the Ottawa Valley based on the book by that name written by Ralph Connor of Winnipeg. Ernest Shipman, who produced a feature in Winnipeg not long ago, visited Ottawa a few days ago to make preliminary arrangements for the work of the new production and to discuss tariff possibilities with Canadian Government officials. It is felt that such possibilities may be of a retaliatory nature because of the move on the part of the United States to throw up a protective wall. ; eee if has been estimated that the Among important releases representing the Exchange’s Fall policy, Regal Film Corporation is sending out ‘‘Shams of Society,’’ a Robertson-Cole special; ‘‘The House that Jazz Built’? with Wanda Hawley; May Allison in ‘‘Extravagance’’; ‘‘A Trip to Paradise,’’ with Bert Lytell; and ‘‘The Beach of Dreams’”’ a Hayworth special. izes by GOOgle T a general meeting of all moving picture theatre man agers in Ottawa, Ontario, and district, at which 14 theatres were represented, it was unanimously decided to conduct the theatres under ‘‘open shop’’ conditions, if an agreement could not be reached with the three theatrical labor unions for reduced wages. It was decided to use returned soldiers to replace. regular employees, if necessary. Union representatives have stated that they will continue to work an indefinite period, pending a final decision regarding new wage scales. The managers cut down the proposed wage reductions from 25 to 15 per cent. and they have pointed out that wage increases during the past year were from 23 to 40 per cent. higher than during the previous season, “THE CONQUERING POWER’’ EX INGRAM’S newest producR tion for Metro, ‘‘The Conquer ing Power,’’ from Balzac’s story, ‘‘Eugenie Grandet,’’ is to follow ‘‘The Four Horsemen (jof the Apoealypse,’’ in the various cities where the latter is shown. The decision to have the ‘‘little masterpiece,’’ as the critics designated ““The Conquering Power,’’ trail Mr. Ingram’s colossal. depiction of the novel by Vicente Blasco Ibanez, was influenced by the remarkable reception it received from those who had become familiar with the youthful director’s work in ‘‘The Four Horsemen.”’ It was considered by the Metro officials that the exhibitors should be given the benefit of the prestige of ‘‘The Four Horsemen’’ before showing ‘‘The Conquering Power.”’ The fact that many of the characters appearing in ‘‘The Conquering Power’’ won fame through their portrayals in ‘‘The Four Horsemen”’ was also a factor. In the Balzac story Alice Terry is the heroine as she was in the Ibanez picturization and Rudolph Valentind has the leading male role in both productions. June Mathis who made the adaptation of ‘‘The Four Horsemen’’ also wrote the continuity for ‘“‘The Conquering Power.’’ It was photographed by John F. Seitz, who had charge of the camera work in the larger picture. Thru Regal. “BLAZE YOUR TRAIL’’ with Digest Advertisement. = @ @ Famous-Players are taking over the Hodkinson productions for next season in addition to the Goldwyn and Select Pictures. Page Five