Canadian Film Weekly (Mar 11, 1942)

Page 6 Canadian FILM WEEKLY March 1lith, 1942 That’s How Things Used To Ke Those Days Have Gone Forever—But More Than the Memory Lingers On. Things Have Changed Plenty But on the Other Hand— NOUGH celluloid has run through the machines since August 8, 1914, to lace the globe. The industry has changed vastly since then. Many things have been forgotten that deserved to be. Many things have been forgotten that should have been remembered. And many things have been remembered, particularly -the main requisites of exhibition, entertainment and service. These thoughts came to mind while loafing through the weatherbeaten pages of a vanished magazine called Reel Life bearing the above-mentioned date. It was edited by Merritt Crawford and published by the Mutual Film Corporation of New York. The first fan and trade magazine, it hac 32 pages and was a worthy effort. There was a war then and there is a war now. Between that war and this one the motion picture grew into the dignity of an art and the power of a great industry. Will the post-war years be as fruitful ? The magazine is filled with names of exchanges, studios, and Couldn't Happen to A Nicer Fellow Cockiest man in Canada right now is Tom Daley, manager of the Imperial, Toronto. Tom’s house had “How Green is My Valley” when it won the Academy Award. The following Saturday the Imperial set an all-time Dominion record on a day’s take and it looks like a few more will be hung up before it’s all over. Not only that. The Imperial had almost every winner, picture and person. Previous programs were “Sergeant York,” ‘Suspicion,” “Dumbo,” “Churchill’s Island,” “Target for Tonight” and any other honor films and _ performances you can think of. Nice Gesture Manager J. J. Paul of the Park, Welland, pleased the people of that town with a friendly action, The Park was showing Movietone News, which contained a clip of the RCAF precision drill group on the march during their recent visit to New York. He held a preview showing for the benefit of two Welland families whose representatives, as part of the squad, were caught by the camera. The boys enlisted several months ago. The word got around local folk were attracted by the prospect of seeing the homegrown boys in blue on the screen. eS players no longer heard in the marts of the trade. There were such names as Mutual, Majestic, American, Thanhouser, Reliance, Domino, Keystone, Appolo, Beauty, Kay Bee, Komic, Princess, R & M, Royal and Continental. James Cruze played Joseph in “Joseph in the Land of Egypt.” Mae Marsh was in “The Great Leap,’’ Mabel Normand in “Zu Zu, the Band Leader,’ and Enid Markey and Walter Belasco in Defaulter.’’ Thomas H. Ince produced ‘‘The Wrath of the Gods” or “The Destruction of Sakura-Jima,” a Japanese story with Japanese actors. Majestic was busy producing “Frenchy,” a western and who do you think was directing? Donald Crisp, Oscar winner for ‘How Green Was My Valley.” We’re glad he remained an actor. Serials, oneand _ two-reelers were big stuff then. The serial, “The Million Dollar Mystery” was being plugged everywhere and was running in story form in various magazines, stills being used to illustrate it. What we now call the. Documentary Film was beginning to take form then. There were Mexican war Torreon, made by special contract with General Villa and a threereeler called ‘‘Seeing South America with Col. Roosevelt.” Mutual issued a weekly newsreel which covered the first Great War. Before the Gangster era a film named “Gangsters” was enjoying a run in New York. * ur * The Dying Drama? Ben then they were bemoaning what the film was doing to the drama. Says an item: “The rapid advance of the motion picture to the dignity of a distinct art and its increase in popularity among all classes has resulted in a corresponding decrease in the receipts in the so-called legitimated drama.” The opinion of a writer in the American Magazine is quoted as to prices being too high for stage shows. “They go to the motion pictures, because the pictures are cheaper, or else they go home and read.” In preference to paying two dollars, “The motion picture,” says Reel Life, “with its superior dramatic potentialities, its universal appeal and its minimum of cost with a maximum of enjoyment has won its popularity by sheer merit. Steadily it replaces the older forms of popular amusement and with reason, for it contains all the * He “The | films of the battle of, elements which please or thrill possessed by others, with very many that are distinctly and exclusively its own.” Yet Broadway has had some of its biggest years since that was written. Vaudeville may be dead Sput the drama has a birth in most cities. The film ‘companies put money into stage productions and are a valuable aid in keeping the stage alive. * a wh HE ‘Going After Them 4 ae boys were racking their brains in those days, the same as now, on how to intrigue the potential patrons. One advertising man used an interesting idea, according to Reel Life. Part of a letter to his boss read: | “The connection between vacation time and time spent at one of our shows is responsible for the set of cards you spoke about, which I have tacked up outside the theatres. “Tt seemed to me that we could get a whole lot of men to come in here for short times, and the cards were the result. You know how they go: Mutual Movies Make Time Fly While. you’re waiting for that appointment; while you’re waiting for your train—come in here. Mutual Movies make time fly and there’s a clock inside to keep you posted on how fast the time is flying. “Now, boss, in regard to our newspaper advertising. I have been scattering short phrases _ all through our paper lately. Just little phrases saying something about our theatre and our show. The result has been that lots of people have spoken to me about the great amount of advertising we are doing.” “As a matter of fact, our advertising bills are no greater than before, but by scattering small stuff without taking very much away from our big advertisement I have managed to give the impression of more publicity and of greater importance to our shows.” This sounds like it might have something for oneor two-theatre towns. a % * a * 4 = There’s Nothing New XHIBITORS and distributors were wrangling in those days too. A letter from the London correspondent of Reel Life discusses the problem which was the point of dispute then between renter and user—the exclusive, which we presume to mean first run. One of the reasons why exhibitors wer favoring the exclusive, accordin to the correspondent, was ‘‘the frequent weakness of the ordinary )program sent out, which practical|ly compels the exhibitor to go in et the exclusive.’’ He quotes the opinion of a big exhibitor that the vogue wouldn’t last. And refers to “the absence of novelty in many films of the day.” Even then trade practices were a sore spot. “It seems a general | Opinion,’ he writes, “that the next winter season will see some fur | ther modifications in the business methods in the industry, which, from the intermediary position it occupies between the manufacturer and the exhibitor, is a most important one.’”’ This, of course, was written from the point of view of the distributor, since the magazine was Officially sponsored by the Mutual Film Corporation. | After 24 years it all sounds very | familiar. The industry has changed in business methods and technique. But we hear the same old arguments. Winnipeg Scenes in American Newsreels Winnipeg’s “IF Day” made news and sent that city’s Victory Loan drive over the top. It got an international press, and now has been included in major newsreels. Theatre audiences throughout the United States and Canada will see the event as filmed by Newsreel Cameraman Lucien Roy of Associated Screen News. Four newsreels in Canada have the “IF Day” story: Paramount, Movietone, News of the Day and Universal. The mock invasion by Nazi troops is shown, the hoisting of the swastika, municipal and provincial officials taken prisoner, the invaders’ orders published in the press, churches and schools closed, a restaurant taken over— all the graphic events that could happen if this country were invaded. The all-out efforts of Winnipeg to make its mock invasion realistic are the talk of two nations. & ‘Fantasia’ Ends Run week run at New York’s Broadway Theatre. Over 1,250,000 pat rons pushed their way in and six prints were used up. Popular release in the USA is slated for April 3rd. ee The Walt Disney technitu film, ‘Fantasia,’ has ended a 57-% / ee a