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The Exhibitor (1952)

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EXfllfllTDfi Vol. 48, No. 8 June 25, 1952 CANADIAN TRADESTERS GATHER IN THE KING EDWARD HOTEL, TORONTO, TO PAY TRIBUTE TO ODEON CIRCUIT'S SHOWMANSHIP AWARD WINNER. Canada Emphasizes Showmanship Gdeon Theatres Of Canada Limited Uses It As A Potent Instrument To Help Build Business Elliott Brown, winner of the Showmanship Trophy awarded in the Odeon Theatres of Canada Lim¬ ited drive, is greeted by Toronto Mayor Lamport. WITH showmen in Canada the envy of their brethren in the United States because Canada is enjoying an unexcelled prosperity, atten¬ tion has also been directed to our good neighbor because of the emphasis on showmanship on the part of Canadian exhibitors. Showmanship as an instrument to build up business was demonstrated in the “J. Arthur Rank Contest” conducted by Odeon Theatres of Canada, Limited, and won by Elliott Brown, manager, Odeon, Victoria, B.C. The contest, held among other things to honor the head of Odeon, resulted in not only boosting business for the whole Odeon Circuit but also in opportunities for managers all across Canada to prove that they are showmen. The 13-week contest was unique in that it not only reflected the boxoffice receipts of the participating theatres but also the candy sales and the exploitation ingenuity of each and every one of the 100 participating theatre managers. When the contest was first announced, David Griesdorf, general manager, said that it was a contest of “Know-how, Cando, Will-do ... a challenge to Canada’s Greatest Showmen,” those who were man¬ agers of Odeon houses. In setting up the contest, Don Hudson, then in charge of the contest (he recently resigned to enter television), arranged it so that all theatres would have a chance. They would be working against theatres with comparative seating, comparative ad¬ missions, and comparative populations from which they drew. To do that, all of the 100 participating theatres were divided into five leagues. The prizes were then awarded on percentage points, with the smallest theatre being able to chalk up as high a “point total” as the largest theatre. Each theatre was competing against its own operating record over an equivalent 7