Exhibitors Herald (Jun-Dec 1917)

X H B O R H R D Ochs Excoriates Manufacturers Who Foist Reel Tax on Exhibitors M. P. E. L. of A. President Charges Deceit and Injustice in Action of Film CompaniesWarns of Danger to Industry Lee A. Ochs, president of the Motion Picture Exhibitors' League of America, has issued a circular letter addressed to the distributors of the United States on the question of the fifteen cents per reel per day film charge to exhibitors. Mr. Ochs bases the charges made in his letter on telegrams and letters which he has received from exhibitors and organizations throughout the country and characterizes the notifications received by the exhibitors that the tax was to be imposed upon them as "curt and mandatory." He states that the exhibitors of the country cannot understand why the distributors "consider it necessary to gracefuly slide out from under the tax." Ochs' Letter "You have made statements in your meetings and in your advertising," Mr. Ochs says in his letter, "to the effect that you cannot pay this tax out of your own pockets and remain in business. Do you think that the exhibitor is in any better condition to pay the tax out of his pocket and remain in business, or do you think that he can arbitrarily collect it from his patrons without sacrificing a large part of his business? If you do, you have little knowledge of the business of entertaining the public. "It is by no means clear in the minds of the exhibitors that if you pay this tax you will be forced out of business. Let us say, for example, that 30,000 feet of negative are used in taking the average five-reel feature. This would demand a tax of $75. Let us assume that the average feature uses forty prints. This would demand a tax of $1,500, a total of $1,575 for a five-reel feature. Do you mean to contend that it is impossible to save the small sum of $1,575 in the production of a picture, a sum amounting to merely five and one-half per cent in a picture costing $30,000? No Basis For Action "Because Congress, in its ignorance of the motion picture business saw fit to pass a law, the meaning of which is subject to various interpretations, is no reason why the producer and distributor should seek' to shift the burden. "If the distributors have as their object the driving out of business of the eighty per cent of the small houses of the country in favor of the twenty per cent of larger houses they have taken a sure method of achieving their object. The exhibitors from all parts of the country hotly resent the arbitrary manner in which the distributors sought to impose this fifteen cent charge upon them. Unlawful Collections Made "The distributors merely called in a firm of accountants accepted their figures without even an examination of the books .of their own individual companies, and then endeavored to force arbitrarily the fifteen-cent charge down the exhibitor's throat. "The exhibitors call your attention to the fact that many of your exchanges are endeavoring to collect the tax on pictures that were released prior to • Oct. 4, the day on which the law went into effect. This is nothing more or less than an attempt to collect money under false pretenses, as you, as distributors or producers, are not compelled to pay a tax on such pictures. "They would also call your attention to the fact that your exchanges are endeavoring to collect taxes on film that was shown in first run houses prior to October 4 but which was not released until after that date. Such pictures are not subject to taxation as they were sold or leased by the producer prior to the day when the law became effective." In closing Mr. Ochs calls upon the distributors and managers, in the best interests of the industry, to give up their attempt to slide from under the burden that has been placed upon them. DIRECTOR R. A. WALSH JOINS GOLDWYN STAFF R. A. Walsh, one of the best known directors in the motion picture industry, will join the Goldwyn Pictures organization in December. Mr. Walsh has just signed a contract with Samuel Goldfish, president of the Goldwyn Pictures, covering a long term. At the expiration of his contract with William Fox, Mr. Walsh will begin work R A WALSH, WHO HAS JOINED GOLDWY? DIRECTORIAL STAFF. on a production which the Goldwyr' corporation is now holding. Among Mr. Walsh's notable achievements in pictures are "The Honoi System," "The Serpent," "Regeneration," "The Innocent Sinner" and "Betrayed.' He first attracted attention in the role j of John Wilkes Booth in "The Birth o a Nation" and assisted D. W. Griffith ir the making of this historical story. The cast is being selected and alread} the sets are under way at Fort Lee, N. J.l for Mr. Walsh's first Goldwyn picture. Wolfberg Attractions Add to Sales Force SCENES FROM "HIS ROBE OF HONOR" C. Burchfield Kennedy has joined the sales force of the Harris P. Wolfberg Attractions, Pittsburgh. He is the fourteenth addition to the company's sales force within as many weeks. Mr. Kennedy will devote his entire time to Ohio and Pennsylvania, and will handle "The Mad Lover," "To-day," "The Deemster," "The Crisis," and "Persuasive Peggy." There is no graft in the A. E. A. — it is operated for every member equally. It is simply a businesslike organization designed to promote and safeguard the interests of its members. HENRY B WALTHALL V/ILL MAKE HIS DEBUT AS A STAR IN PAR ALT A. PLAYS IN TH ROLE OF A SHYSTER LAWYER WHO REFORMS. (Paralta Plays.) 20