Exhibitors Daily Review (1927)

A Newspaper Devoted to the Motion Picture Industry Vol. 21. No. 96 New York, Monday, April 25, 1927 Five Cents I Observes TIME OF NEED Everyone that reads the daily newspapers. Must realize the terrible situation. Of ! people living. In the lower I Mississippi Valley. I Thousands upon thousands of i acres. Of land. Are under water, j Homes have been swept away. I Hundreds drowned. Disease and I famine are rampant. And the suffering is most intense. Even in spite of heroic rescue work, i That there are hundreds of exhibitors. In the midst of all this suffering. Is also true. The motion picture industry. Will unquestionably do its bit. Toward giving succor. To the helpless and suffering. In the midst of busy life. We must not forget to stop. And give consideration. To the other fellow. Especially when many of our own picture folks. Are in it. CHECK UP If every exhibitor. In the country. Both large and small. The owner of the smallest theatre. The owner of the biggest chain. Would sit down. And properly analyze. Covering a period of years. The box office value. Of every type of picture. That he has run. This business. Would mighty spon. Get on a basis. Where we would use. The proper type of stories. In our productions. We could then buy. Only the kind of stories. That we know the c.xhibitor can make money on. If llie exhibitor finds. When the picture comes through. It doesn’t fill the bill exactly. He can supplement its drawing power. In other ways. To take care of the box office. Knowledge of box office values. Eliminates the blind buying. Of a number of pictures. That the exhibitor has. .no knowledge of.. The motion picture business. Has reached the point. In its career. Where its records can protect it. Agaimt mistakes. For the first few years. With no history. To go by. Everything was an experiment. And a gamble. The gamble now. Is pretty well removed. The shrewd man. Will always take advantage. Of all the information. That he can get. U F A WAR PICTURE READY FOR SCREEN Big Enough for International Distribution — But How? IN THREE INSTALLMENTS Contracts under which productions made by the German UFA company considered suitable for use in the United States arc handled provide for Paramount’s selecting three a year and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer two a year. Cable advices from Berlin report that on the evening of April 22nd UFA held a private showing of the first installment of what has been touted as the most ambitious photoplay they have ever made — a treatment of the World War. It is big. important, and expensive and unquestionably the distribution plan conceived for it contemplates its exhibition in manj' countries other than German3n As j'et there is no record that it has (Continued on page 2) SOUTHWEST’S~FINEST Oklahoma City to Have Magnificent Theatre — $1,000,000 Property Lease OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla., Apr. 20. — Lease involving nearff' $1,000,000 signed by John Sinopoulo Friday, for property owned by the Perrine estate at 128-1.12 West First Street, Oklahoma City, is the first step in a plan to give Oklahoma Citj' the finest theatre in the entire southwest. John and Pete Sinopoulo and Tom H. Boland, with the ^lidwest Enterprise association, are the prime movers in the building of the new theatre, and Boland and John Sinopoulo are now in New York City working out the financial details. The theatre is to Ire built and completed within the next twelve months. Five Paramount Junior Stars Opportunities such as have never before been opened to those seeking three young women and two young men have been awarded special contracts entitling them to be known as the Paramount Junior Stars of 1927. Those chosen are: James Hall, Richard Arlen, Louise Brooks. Nancy Phillips and Sally Blane. So that each will get off to a flying start, Jesse L. Laskj" has cast all five in one picture, “Rolled Stockings.” DEVRY SUMMER SCHOOL INCHICAG0,JUNE27-JULY1 Tire third annual session of the DeVry Summer School of. Visual Education is to be held in Chicago June 27 to July 1 under the direction of A. P. Hollis, author of “Motion Pictures for Instruction." This summer school inaugurated by the DeVry Corporation two years ago has already begun to excite nation-wide interest among educators. The second session of the school, held last summer, showed an increase in attendance of more than 100 percent and there is already every indication that the forthcoming session will show an even greater percentage of increase. The tuition is free to teachers and ministers and many schools throughout the country are finding the course sufficiently valuable to them to send them to Chicago, with all expenses paid, to learn of the rapid strides which are being made in the use of motion pictures in the classroom. Reading the Lines — and Between the Lines! Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford and Charles Chaplin in communications to Joseph M. Schenck formally expressed their gratification at the news that D. W. Griffith, copartner with them in the formation of the United Artists, had returned to the fold. “Doug’s” wire from Hollywood was signifiicant; he said: "/ am more than glrid that D. W. Griffith again has the freedom of expression to which an artist is entitled and that we shall have once more the benefit of untrammeled genius in the great productions of our old associate. ” WILL BE LARGEST IN HISTORY M.P.T.O.A. Over One Thousand Delegates Expected at Columbus Convention With Every State Represented. The June convention of the M. P. T. O. A. in Columbus, Ohio, will show the largest turnout of exhibitors ever gotten together in one convention in the history of the picture business. President R. P'. Woodhull expects from present reservations that over 1,000 exhibitors will answer the roll call. The Los Angeles convention of last year now holds the record in attendance with 800 exhibitors present. “WILL SEU ACTUAUTIES” SAYS UNIVERSAL CHIEF Checking up in anticipation of the company’s forthcoming convention in Chicago beginning May 1st, Lou B. kletzger, general sales manager of Universal, finds reason to be proud of the fact that such plans as are outlined and discussed at the convention will have to do with a complete line-up of product definitely set and arranged with little or no possibilit}^ of change or slipup. "No other company can point to such a line-up and to such advanced results,” he says. “Our selling campaign, which opens at the convention, will be based on actualities.” Twelve super-pictures, 33 Jewels, ten thrill features, and twelve fast action westerns, besides a tremendous number of short subjects, make up the season’s product. CAMERAMEN KILLED FOLLOWING THEIR DANGEROUS TRADE T. G. and E. H. Randolph and Helper, of International News, the Victims ACCIDENT ^CTACULAR KELSO, Wash., April 22. — Three men taking pictures of a gigantic blast on the Ocean Beach Highway, 20 miles below here this afternoon, were killed when a great wave, caused by hundreds of tons of rock falling into the Columbia, engulfed their boat, drowning them. The dead; T. G. Randolph, cameraman for International Newsreel of Seattle. E. H. Randolph, also employed as a cameraman by International Newsreel. Arthur Bassett, driver for Monticello Hotel Bus at Longview, Washington, and an amateur cameraman. Mrs. F. H. Randolph was a witness (Continued on page 4) No Action on Censorship The Haj-s office has just been advised that the Porto Rican Legislature adjourned without taking any action on the drastic motion picture censorship bill which had been introduced by Senator Guerreros. PHONOHLMFORBROADWAY WITHIN FEW WEEKS Ihc UeForest Phonofilm folks will provide the next interesting move in the talking picture situation in New York. DeForest is all set to begin an agressive campaign for business along commercial lines entirely aside from its position in the matter of patents which maj' have something to do with the operations of the other companies. The DeForest apparatus will, it is authoritatively announced, be installed in one of the big theatres in the Times Square district within the next month. Work has been in progress for the past tvo weeks on the special program which ^vill be used for the Broadway exhibition. roslej’ Radio Co., which recentlj' purchased control of the DeForest radio interests, is to manufacture apparatus for the talking picture device on a large scale, the initial order calling for 100 sets. Easter Holiday Week Big For Broadway Movie Shows The extraordinary business which theatres along Broadway did Monday of last week, Easter Monday, continued in a reasonable measure throughout the week with the result that the takings everywhere were considerably above the average. It was a welcome tonic after the let-down — even though slight — throughout the Lenten period. The Gaiety, opening with “King of Kings” on Tuesday night, provided another box-office mouth to feed — and it was well fed for the remaining performances of the week without appreciably hurting the other attractions. Receipts were slightly in excess of $14,000, inclusive of j-esterday’s performances. “Camille,” the other movie to grab off one of the so-called legitimate houses during the week, got under way quickly and turned in a gross of about $7,300 from Thursday night on. There was no abatement of interest in the Roxy show where “Ankles Preferred,” a Fox picture, was the attraction. Figures there were given as $116,750 for the week. “Knock-out Reilly” caught the fancy of patrons at the new Paramount and (Continued on page 4)