The Exhibitor (Nov 1938-May 1939)

22b NEWS OF THE TERRITORY ion seriously, Paramount acquires a substantial interest in the Allan B. Dumont Laboratories, Inc. SEPTEMBER Charles H. Olive’s Atlas opens, Washington. Washington theatres join in a civic safety campaign. Grand NationalEducational deal is set. ERPI’s Whiteford Drake passes away. Re-issues take attention of exhibitors, with Rudolph Valentino pictures, later to the "Dracula”-"Frankenstein” combine doing astonishing business. West Virginia Managers’ Association meets in White Sulphu*Springs. Victory resumes production of westerns, with Tim McCoy. Walter E. Cersley is named president of Washington’s Warner Club. Elmore D. Heins is fined $2 5 for operating a "Bank Night.” Warners’ Silver, Silver Spring, Maryland, opens. T. Kennedy Stevenson is named ERPI head, succeeding the late Whiteford Drake. West Virginia Allied unit is founded. OCTOBER "Birth of a Baby,” distributed in the Washington territory by Joseph Kaliski, formerly with Gaumont British, is approved by the Virginia censors. Joseph P. Morgan re-enters picture business as representative of Trailer-Made. Frederick W. Twyman, pioneer exhibitor, passes away. William Dalke’s Community, Woodstock, Virginia, opens. With John E. Otterson, Tri-National is formed, Harry H. Thomas handling the Washington area. Harry M. Warner launches an Americanism campaign single-handedly. Ashcraft sues Baltimore’s unit of the National Theatre Supply, but the case is thrown out of court. M. K. Murphy expands his Virginia holdings. "Brother Rat” makes its world debut at the Virginia Military Institute. Earl F. Taylor leaves 20th Century-Fox to join Harry F. Bachman’s Monogram exchange. George J. Schaefer resigns as United x\rtists’ general manager, to become president of RKO-Radio. George Randall Batchellor, one-time head of Chesterfield Pictures, passes away. New Grand National holds its first convention in Chicago. The 44-hour law becomes effective. The SMPE meets in Detroit. NOVEMBER "Movie Quiz” is declared a lottery in Missouri. Parley of distributor and exhibitors committees on trade practices start. Variety Club, Tent No. 11, holds its fifth annual dinner-dance. Theatres back Red Cross, Christmas seal drives. The National Exhibitor becomes a weekly. A. E. Lichtman is named chief barker of the Washington Tent. A permanent MPGY organization is suggest'd. One-time producer A. J. VanBeuren passes away. "Kute Kris Kringle” comes as a Christmas novelty for theatres. To President Roosevelt, United Artists sends protests against the Nazi outrages. Outof-state circuits are seeking more theatres in the Washington territory. General Talking Pictures loses its suit against Western Electric. Allied States Association seeks financial backing. Fortune reviews Will H. Hays and the MPPDA. DECEMBER T. Louis Rome is re-elected chief barker Baltimore’s Variety Club. Washington’s Little sets a cinema festival. Cooperative work on merry Christmases for the underprivileged are started by theatres. Loew stockholders start a $30,000,000 suit against the company. Memorandum of understanding, achieved at the distributor-exhibitor conferences, is issued, Washington’s A. Julian Brylawski is given a testimonial luncheon. Gaumont British drops out of the U. S. field, with 20 th Century-Fox liquidating the accounts. Warners’ Beverly, Washington, opens. Playing of the "Star-Sprangled Banner” at least once a day is inaugurated in Warner theatres, with other independent and circuit houses following suit. Pathe stockholders thumb-down a dissolution plan. Lawrence W. Davee is named Motiograph’s eastern sales manager. RKO-Radio’s Pictures and Herbert Wilcox announce the producing-distributing company, Imperator-Radio Pictures, Ltd. John E. Browne resigns as president of Malcolm Browne Pictures Corporation. Through The National Exhibitor, the trade wishes exhibitors, friends a "Merry Christmas.” "Bingo” is stopped in Baltimore, with 10 exhibitors feeling the law’s long arm. RKORadio and Wrigley combine in a "Gateway to Hollywood” talent quest. Bicycling leads unauthorized hold-overs as the principal copyright violation. MPGY ends. After differences, Franklyn Warner (for Fine Arts) and Grand National sign a new agfireement. Hearings on the RKO-Radio re-organization continue. Walter Wanger advocates U. S. distributors withdraw their films from "dictator nations” where uniust censorship is practiced. "Time Marches On.” THE $50,000 HAUL By Charles T. Hurley (Editor’s Note — Through courtesy of Hor lacher Highlights, house organ of the Hor lacher Delivery Service, what follows is reprinted.) FILM TRANSPORTATION of 20odd years ago was a neighborly sort of business, fashioned more or less after the village milkman of the day, who operated in a reasonable radius. It was a time when the exhibitor often had to come to the distributor, or some centralized spot, for his film; a time when shows were shipped by the trunkload to some distant distributing depot for subsequent assortment, rather than by the individual case operation of today. THUS, turning back pages of yesteryear we find the genial and ever popular Earl Taylor, Monogram’s Washington booker, playing the leading role in solving a booking problem. It so happens that the exchange he labored for, had a top flight feature that was in great demand. The show was booked solid for weeks, and with out-of-town shipments being made by parcel post and express, it was impossible to make circuit shipments to fill a date here and there. However, a spot booking presented itself from Richmond, Virginia, and orders were given to confirm same. The nearest available print was finishing up in Baltimore the day previous, so Earl was instructed to circuit the print himself, regardless of the cost. EARLY the next eve Earl headed for the neighboring city and procured the show at the appointed time. Each reel was wrapped in newspaper, and then packed in a suitcase, to serve as the necessary camouflage to escape the rigid railroad regulations against personal film transportation. The midnight train for the Virginia Capital pulled out at stroke of twelve, and snorted its way south to meet its scheduled arrival at three-thirty A. M. IT WAS A DARK and dreary morning when Earl alighted, and with seven hours to spare he decided to seek much needed and well-earned rest. After checking in, a colored porter was called to usher him to his room and tote the suitcase. After the customary light testing, curtain raising, etc., he was wont to remark: "Boss, that thar suitcase sho’ was heavy. What yo’all got in thar?” Earl, finding an opportunity for innocent fun replied: "Now, between you and me, there is $5 0,000 in gold in that suitcase, which I am going to turn over to the Treasury Department tomorrow morning.” And with that the porter was on his way, while inwardly gloating over his good fortune to have carried so much gold at one time. Earl, on the other hand, dismissed the conversation from his mind. He arose a respectable hour in the morning, and, after dressing, headed for the dining room. Upon opening his door he was stunned at the appearance of the selfsame porter, seated in a chair against the door. Earl’s opening remark was: "What are you doing here?” The porter replied in a proud and satisfied manner: "Well, boss, only you and I knows yo’ hab $5 0,000 in gold in that thar suitcase; and if it was goin’ dis morning, they wouldn’t have blamed you!” January 4, 19)9