Exhibitors Herald (Jan-Mar 1920)

82 EXHIBITORS HERALD .March 13, 1920 Republic Devotes One Department to Distribution of Its Short Subjects Republic Pictures has instituted a special department to take charge of distributing the company's short subjects. Briton N. Busch, president of Republic Pictures, has engaged George Ames, who has been connected with the Pathe exchange in Philadelphia, to organize in Xew York a special sales department for one and two reel pictures. Mr. Busch says: "The success we have had with one and two reel pictures such as 'The Ghost of Slumber Mountain,' and later with the Chaplin reissues, Prizma natural color pictures, kinograms and Chief Win. J. Flynn scries of eight two-reel pictures in which Herbert Rawlinson is featured, has convinced me that the one and two reel picture is as necessary to the success of the picturetheatre as any feature of longer length. Public Demand Variety "The public demand that entertainment shall have the element of variety. Nothing drives patronage away so quickly as the deadly monotony of a program that lacks pictures of contrasting character. "The theatre manager who will be guided by the success made by others, will not go very far wrong. The secret of the enormous profits made by the B. F. Keith houses can be directly traced to the genius of E. F. Albee, the guiding spirit and managing head of this wonderful organization, who demands that the theatres under his control shall present a program in which no two acts be booked on the same bill that are similar in character. Satisfied With Entertainment "The public patronizing the Keith theatres may not be pleased with one act on the bill, or even two, but they are more than satisfied with the expenditure in money and time by the pleasure and entertainment tendered them by the rest of the program, because of variety. "The same reasoning or psychology obtains in the picture theatre where the wise manager formulates a program in which the outstanding elements of success are contained in the variety and character of the pictures that he holds forth as a lure to tempt the public to spend their money at his box office. May Aid Mediocre Film "Oft times -a mediocre feature may be lifted out of a rut by surrounding it with one and two reel pictures that even to the blase theatregoer is a somewhat different picture from those that have preceded it. The one reel picture can, because of its subject matter and treatment, be a bigger drawing card than a five or six reel feature that lacks the element of interest because of its stereotyped story, incompetent direction or imperfect cast. "It will be a policy of Republic Pictures to give to the exhibitors a full and complete list of productions regardless of length so that he can book his show from the one distributor, and thereby save quite an item in express charges which would result in the booking of a news reel from one company, an educational picture from another, a comedy from another and a feature from another company." Picture Runs Seven Reels "The Sporting Duchess," Yitagraph's new Alice Joyce production, will be presented in seven reels. Lucien Hubbard, who made the screen version of this famous Drury Lane success, found such a wealth of material in the original script, he said, that he made no attempt to keep the action down to live reels. George Terwilliger directed the picture. "The Sporting Duchess" is now completed in every detail. TwentySeven Showmen Listed as New Members Of the United Pictures Exhibitors from Maine to California from the North to the South, still continue to become members of the United Picture Theatres of America. They --till are joining at the rate of ten or so a day. The first two days of last week saw twenty-seven new members, including the following: J. Brokaw, Brokaw theatre, Angola, Ind.; Bangerter & Johnston, Greenwood theatre, Seattle, Wash.; H. Fleming, Lee theatre, Seattle, Wash.; K. L. Burk, Orpheum theatre. Baker City, Ore.; John Woodhouse, Kent, Kent, Wash.; F. L. Stannard, Portola theatre, W. Seattle, Wash.; M. W. Mattechcck, Princess theatre, Kennfl wich, Wash.; Stephen Parker, Alaliambra theatre, Portland, Ore.; S. Mukai, Jackson theatre, Seattle, Wash.; M. J. Cline, Starland theatre, Aberdeen, Wash.; H. C. Jergenson, Liberty theatre, Poison, Mont.; H. M. Lyons. Victory theatre, Seattle, Wash.; C. C. Vaughn, Vogue theatre. Kelso, Wash.; Partridge & Morrison, Gem theatre, Tillamook. Ore.; G. W. Armour, Gem theatre, Montesano, Wash.; J. A. Brady, Echo theatre, Portland, Ore.; Barth Theatre Co., Main theatre, Anna, III.; Frank Golle, drand theatre, Roscoe, Pa.; Thomas E. Grady, Lyceum theatre, Montgomery, I'a.; Charles W. Stahr, Union theatre. Liberty, Ind.; \Vm. V. Snyder, Rex theatre, St. Anthony, Idaho; C. E. Haupert. Orpheum theatre, Steamboat Springs, Colo.; Dan Canaris, Queen theatre, Eagle Lake, Tex.; Ruben Frels, Unique theatre, liellville, Tex.; John C. Joseph, Liberty theatre. Rosenberg, Tex.; L. N. Cot,* Princess theatre. Ardmore, Okla.; Hunt Bros., Princess theatre, Madill, Okla. Griffith Changes Title With the announcement that the title of D. W. Griffith's second personally directed productions for publication through First National Exhibitors' Cirsuit has been changed from "Fires of Love" to "The Idol Dancer." is revealed a remarkable exhibitor exploitation feature in the fact that it was Mr. Griffith! effort to obtain genuine South Sea settings and outdoor locations for its scenes which led to the narrow escape he and his party had from death aboard the yacht "Gray Duck" off the Bahamas in' December. The publicity which wal given the experience is believed to be without precedent in volume and in the degree of importance attached to it by practically every newspaper in the country. "Oh, Baby," Comedy Title The first Hall Room Boys comedy produced at the Hollywood. Cal., studio under the supervision of Jack and Harry Cohn, producers and distributors of the series, has been titled "Oh, Baby!" N'eely Edwards is featured in the subject. May Invest N. Y. Money ED WARDS VI LLE, ILL— W. A. Edwards, former manager of the Wildey theatre, announces that New York theatrical interests are back of the project for a new motion picture theatre here. MIX MIXES PLEASURE WITH BUSINESS The Fox star ropes two of the actresses who appear in his support in "Desert Love," while waiting for the company to arrive and accompany him to location for some western scenes.