Canadian Moving Picture Digest (May-Oct 1922)

THE NEW YOR PUBLIC LIBRARY 695511 A ASTOR, LENO” AND TILDEN FUUN ATION Ws “GANADA’S FIRSTBORN’ ~ : "a; The CANADIAN MOVING PICTURE DIGEST RAY LEWIS Managing Editor Subscription $2.00 Onited States $3.00 Foreign $3.50 —EEESS=_———SE SS The CANADIAN MOVING PICTURE DiGEST Published Weekly by The Dominion Embossing and Printing Company 27 JARVIS STREET, TORONTO HARRY J. MANHEIM Business Manager VOL. 14, No. | TORONTO, CANADA. MAY 6th, 1922 “DONT PUT ALL YOUR EGGS IN ONE BASKET” HE shrewd farmer says, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket’ when Mirandy is going to market. The reason is obvious. The merchant applies this bit of advice to his banking, or investments and divides up his chances of loss. The Exhibitor can apply this same rule to his buying of pictures. “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” Which means that the Exhibitor should not buy all his pictures from one Exchange. Producers who concentrate upon a certain line of production and stick to this line, generally turn out a specialized form of entertainment, providing, of course, that the Trademark of this producer stands for something in the Trade. The Exhibitor cannot do better than stick to this particular brand for that particular kind of entertainment. Another producer, not specializing in this direction, but producing another brand to perfection, will furnish the exhibitor with another species of picture-entertainment. It is up to the exhibitor to study the various Trademarks and what they particularly do well with, in the nature of production; and to buy this style of a picture from that Trademark which specializes along these lines. Following this method of procedure the exhibitor will be following the course of the bee, who flits from flower to flower, sipping the sweets. The bee knows the nature of the flowers it seeks and knows how to pick them and does pick them. The exhibitor is in position to do the same, but instead of visiting a variety of flowers to gather sweets in order to make honey, the exhibitor should select his pictures from a variety of exchanges in order to make money. It is not difficult if the exhibitor will break the wrapper of his trade papers and read what is written there for his benefit, for trade papers are .essentially for the benefit of the exhibitor; and the information contained therein will keep the exhibitor posted, if he will read and learn. The exhibitor who simply drifts along, and entering any exchange aimlessly says, “What have you got?” generally gets-one of the pictures which are scheduled as a “got to take picture.” What is a “got to take picture?” One which is forced upon the exhibitor with a picture which is really good. . Exhibitors should fly from the “got to take picture” as one flies from a plague. It is much better to pay a little more for the good pic~ ture in order to satisfy, the exchange than to accept the “got to take one.” The very best thing that could happen to this business would (eney role of exhibitors oogle to accept the “got to take pictures.” Exchanges loaded with this poor material would return it to its producer ; and either make him stand the loss, or eliminate him from their list of producers. Of course the very best producer will occasionally “put over” a poor one, not because of a lack of judgement, but because the psychology of the public when it comes to entertainment is sometimes erratic. This should go down on the side of loss for the Exchange, just as failures are charged up to loss in the conducting of other enterprises. The standard of merit in pictures would, following the refusal to accept the “got to take picture,” be much higher. There are a good many fine pictures available on the market to-day. The exhibitor should select these products, leaving himself free from entanglements in order to be able to do so. Buy serials from that Exchange which has identified itself with serials, don’t overlook a good serial by another exchange, however. Every rule is elastic in its practice and should be elastically applied. Buy one-reel features or comedies from that exchange which has identified itself with that brand of product, but don’t overlook a single reel or comedy handled by another exchange which is a feature. Buy society dramas and other dramas from the exchange who produces the best kind of this entertainment, melodramas from the exchange which knows what the public likes in this direction. Being an exhibitor, a successful exhibitor, means knowing the business you are in; and no exhibitor can be successful without knowing the Trademarks he is buying. “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” Visit all the exchanges and select their best. It might look as if you are a pretty hard customer, but when exhibitors become “hard customers,” in what they want; and cut out the habit of trying to get a feature for $2.50, less than has been asked for it, this method being all wrong, the exhibitors will find that the exchanges will make every effort to cater to them. Good customers are catered to carefully, respectfully in other enterprises. Good customers are nursed and every effort made to tetain their business. Let the exhibitor demand the best, insist upon the best. this is the finest kind of bargaining: and the only real bargaining spirit which he should develop in himself. The exchanges will then respect the exhibitor, co-operating with him for their mutual benefit. —RAY LEWIS