Canadian Moving Picture Digest (May 1926-Apr 1927)

Page scan 000649 from Canadian Moving Picture Digest

Record Details:

Title:
Canadian Moving Picture Digest
Date:
May 1926-Apr 1927
Volume:
Canadian Moving Picture Digest (May 1926-April 1927)
Leaf #:
000649
Language:
English
Subjects:
Motion Pictures, Film Industry Trade Magazine",Canad
Collection:
Hollywood Studio System, Global Cinema, Early Cinema, and Canada
Format:
periodicals
Contributor:
New York Public Library
Coordinator:
Media History Digital Library
Description:

Canadian Moving Picture Digest

Editors: Merrick R. Nutting (1917-18), Raymond S. Peck (1918), Ray Lewis (1918-19 and 1920-54), Walter Greene (1919-20), Jay Smith (1954-57)

Canadian Moving Picture Digest (1917-57) was initially a Montréal-based rival of the first film paper in Canada, Toronto-based Canadian Universal Bulletin (1915-18, edited by W.A. Bach 1915-17, J.W. Cambridge 1917-18, Raymond S. Peck 1918). The two periodicals were combined in 1918, keeping the Digest name, but moving production to Toronto with Peck as editor. Canadian Moving Picture Digest assumed The Bulletin’s volume numbering and always claimed 1915 as its year of origin. Ray Lewis (née Rae Levinsky) was a writer and playwright, who spent time in early Hollywood’s publicity departments. She briefly took the Digest helm in 1918, then long-term editor, later owner and publisher, from 1920 until her death in 1954. Under Lewis’s leadership, the trade paper claimed to serve as a voice for independent exhibitors and advocated for a Canadian cultural presence in cinema, particularly emphasizing British films as a way to keep a distance from Hollywood. Lewis's editorials were notable for their advocacy, wit, and critique of American dominance in the Canadian film market. While initially positioning herself as an outsider, she became integrated within the industry and a true insider. She even had an ongoing correspondence with Canadian Prime Minister R. B. Bennett, advocating for the industry as a whole and supporting British film imports. She was well-known at Toronto’s Dundas Square film row as well as in New York and Hollywood. Variety’s Sime Silverman called her “the Girl Friend in Canada,” and she delighted when U.S. writers not “in the know” presumed “Ray” was a man’s name. Lewis was later an inaugural member of the Canadian Picture Pioneers, eventually the group’s first female president and Pioneer of the Year. After she died in 1954, her son Jay Smith took over editorial duties until Canadian Moving Picture Digest was bought by Nat Taylor’s Film Publications of Canada in 1957. Taylor incorporated the legacy journal into a joint masthead for Canadian Film Weekly (1942-70), which subsequently dated its roots back to the 1915 origins of the film press in Canada.

– Jessica Whitehead and Paul Moore, March 2024

Further Reading

  • Whitehead, Jessica, Louis Pelletier and Paul Moore, “‘The Girl Friend in Canada’: Ray Lewis and Canadian Moving Picture Digest (1915–1957).” In Daniel Biltereyst and Lies Van de Vijver, eds., Mapping Movie Magazines: Digitization, Periodicals and Cinema History, 127-52. London: Pagrave-Macmillan, 2021.

Date Added:
August 07, 2025
Something wrong or inaccurate about this page? Let us Know!

Thanks for helping us continually improve the quality of the Lantern search engine for all of our users! We have millions of scanned pages, so user reports are incredibly helpful for us to identify places where we can improve and update the metadata.

Please describe the issue below, and click "Submit" to send your comments to our team! If you'd prefer, you can also send us an email to mhdl@commarts.wisc.edu with your comments.




We use Optical Character Recognition (OCR) during our scanning and processing workflow to make the content of each page searchable. You can view the automatically generated text below as well as copy and paste individual pieces of text to quote in your own work.

Text recognition is never 100% accurate. Many parts of the scanned page may not be reflected in the OCR text output, including: images, page layout, certain fonts or handwriting.

Page Fifty-six \ A Message from J. C. Brady J. C. Brady, president of the Motion Picture Theatre Owners of Canada (Ont. Division), and owner of the Madison Theatre, Bloor St., Toronto, on being requested for a Christmas message to: the Industry states, “In this day of the merger of all interests, the formation of Combines, involving grocery stores, merchandising, manufacture, industry and finance, the combine of little interests into bigger interests; and the bigger in| terests into vast enterprises, I see only _one unit of one Industry unorganized. I refer to the Exhibitors of the Motion Picture Industry. “It is with this unit my interests lie, it is in this unit I am predominantly interested. It is for the organization of this unit-I strive, for I realize today as | did in 1913, that the accomplishment and power of this Industry rests in the ' Screen of the Exhibitors in relationship . to its’ contact with the world at large.” . ; of LARRY SEMON ‘Mack Sennett’s director, playing Santa for his comedians appearing in Pathe Comedies. Google JESSE L. LASKY (Continued from Page 29) extremely popularform of amusement. The: continental music halls were immensely successful and Jesse Lasky decided that if they were so popular there they ought to be equally so in America. THE WONDERFUL FOLIES BERGERE “We introduced New York to the word ‘cabaret’” says Mr. Lasky, “a' word that has since become very common through usage. And we built the ‘Folies Bergere’.” The theatre, one of the handsomest in the city, was on 46th. Street near Broadway. It can be seen today — with no alterations beyond the changed name, for it is now the Fulton Theatre. at that time, a great electric sign proclaimed the Folies Bergere. termed “more Parisian than Paris” and it was. On Monday, April 24th, 1911, the doors were opened after months of preparation upon a sumptuous theatre and a most elaborate spectacle, embodying revues and ballets and European novelties produced in the most beautiful manner possible. It was an innovation and nothing like it had ever been seen in Manhattan. The lower floor was devoted to tables and chairs; the upper floors had regular seats. There was an intermission at eleven and then a new audience was admitted for the cabaret. , Incidentally, in Mr. Lasky’s Hollywood home hangs framed the first dollar taken in at the box office. The admission was $2.50 — outside the Metropolitan Opera House, ‘the highest then obtainable. It was, prophesied this high admission would kill the theatre but it did not. Other things, however, contributed to its failure. Harris and Lasky dissolved partnership. ‘The latter was again absolutely ‘broke’ — Mr. Harris lost a large sum — and the Folies Bergere went out as it came in — in a blaze ‘of glory. With the idea of California ‘in his mind, came the inspiration. to write an operetta with the name of the beloved state as the title and dealing with the old Mission days and the Indians and padres. He had the theme but wanted someone to help on the actual writing and so he went to see Mrs. H. C. DeMille, who then conducted the largest dramatic agency in the city. HE MEETS CECIL B. DE MILLE Mrs. DeMille was sorry but William DeMille, her elder son, who Mr. Lasky wanted to work on his oper etta,, was busy upon a play called (Continued on Page 57) But» It was ' ! : CANADIAN MOVING PICTURE DIGEST J. FRANK. MEYERS : Entered the industry in 1904 as exhibitor, operating theatres in Western Ontario, continuing same until the spring of 1917, at which time started as sales -man out of Toronto Branch ‘with V.L. S.E., remaining in that position until 1920. Transferred to Montreal in .the capacity of Branch Manager, remaining there for three years, at the’end of which time returned to Toronto as Manager ‘BARNEY MURPHY Associated with Fred Taylor in management of Ideal Theatre, Toronto, 191517. Booker with Fox, Toronto, 1918-19, Assistant Manager 1920-22. Assistant Manager for First National, Toronto, 1922-23, Branch Manager 1923-25. Joined Greater F.B.O. June, 1926. \