Exhibitors Herald (Jun-Sep 1924)

30 EXHIBITORS HERALD July 5, 1924 Free Luncheon Will Celebrate Removal of Tax California Exhibitors Hold Big Pow-Wow — Earlier Filming “Great Divide'’ for Metro By HARRY HAMMOND BEALL Hollywood, June 24. — Southern California exhibitors are going to celebrate the removal of the admission and seatage tax with a grand pow-wow luncheon to be held this coming Monday at the Elite. The Motion Picture Theatre Owners of America, California division, are giving a free feed to every theatre owner in the state, at which the national convention delegates will be guests of honor. The knockout of the proposed day-light saving, which would have been fatal here, is also to be celebrated, while active warfare is to be planned on tent shows and carnivals, as well as an attack on the music tax. Hal HORNE is the new manager of the Criterion, the West Coast’s big long run house. The popular publicity man assumes charge with the opening of Frank Lloyd’s “The Sea Hawk.” H. B. Wright remains manager of Loew’s State. Since coming to Los Angeles, Horne’s rise has been rapid. Joe Steele has assumed the publicity directorship for Grauman’s Hollywood Egyptian theatre, and with Mark Larkin as his ally is already hard at work on the pre-opening campaign for Doug’s “Thief of Bagdad” that will be given its western premier on the night of July 10. Eddie Armstrong, Universal division manager, is rapidly recovering from a serious operation, performed not long ago at the new Hollywood hospital. With a vacation in sight Ernst Lubitsch did not hesitate to shoot the final scenes for his latest Warner picture “Three Women” on Friday the thirteenth. He is now enjoying said vacation. “War may be all that General Sherman said it was” wires Reggie Barker, MetroGoldwyn-Myer director, “but perhaps he never heard of Arizona.” Reggie is in the torrid state picking locations for “The Great Divide” which he is to have the pleasure ( ?) of filming in Arizona in midsummer. Two of the legitimate shows in Los Angeles are to take the count for the summer, namely the Biltmore and the Mason, the two houses where the bigger attractions play. Business for the past two weeks has been deplorable with the higher priced palaces of entertainment. Tom Ince’s “Galloping Fish” at the Rialto has proved the box office sensation of the summer here, breaking all records at the Paramount long run playhouse. King Baggott is in Idaho filming “The Tornado” for Universal. A1 Cohn, title writer and literary expert, continues his busy pilgrimages around the studios, doctoring a weak play here, writing titles there, and oftimes advising producers concerning the story market. From an obscure Arizona newspaperman, A1 has climbed the ladder of film fame with a rush. With Alice Gentle, the noted opera singer, as featured soloist, Sid Grauman staged an impressive memorial service for the officers and sailors who lost their lives in the turret explosion on the battleship “Mississippi,” at the Grauman Egyptian theatre in Hollywood this Sunda}'. When President Harding died the young showman held a similar service at his Metropolitan theatre in downtown Los Angeles. “Watty” Rothacker has come and gone. The laboratory magnate of Chicago who has turned producer as well scattered his usual broadcast of sunshine and joviality during his all too brief stay here. Hollywood and the Ambassador “regulars” are anticipating his return sometime in August. It is persistently rumored that Wallace Worsley, who but recently finished filming “The Man Who Fights Alone,” starring William Farnum, for Paramount, will film the first big special under the recently signed contract between the Motion Picture Directors Association and the Grand-Asher Distributing Company. It is said that Worsley will be given a large appropriation with which to produce the initial M. P. D. A. special, which will mark the advent of the directors’ organization as an active producing company. Eddie Cline has been named to direct Jackie Coogan’s next picture, “The Rag Man.” The famous “kid’s” role in this feature will be similar to that he essayed in Charles Chaplin’s, “The Kid.” The Suggest Commandments For Democratic Plank (Special to Exhibitors Herald) NEW YORK, June 24. — Glendon Alvine, who has been keeping “The Ten Commandments” before the eyes of the public in New York with great success, hit on a real idea when he sent a copy of the Ten Commandments together with a handsome brochure of the picture to each delegate to the Democratic convention with the suggestion that the Ten Commandments be incorporated as a plank in the Democratic platform. Don Allen in the New York Evening World, in commenting on the publicity stunt, gave it as his opinion that the Eighth Commandment would be a mighty fine one to have in any political platform. story is an original from the pen of Willard Mack who also wrote “Little Robinson Crusoe,” Jackie’s last picture, for him. “Curley” Stecker, noted animal trainer, is dead. The famous handler of beasts passed away at his home in Lankershim last week as the result of injuries received about a year ago when “Charlie,” a trained elephant owned by Universal, turned on his master and mauled him severely. As a result of this incident, “Charlie” Was executed and “Curley” was persuaded to give up his hazardous work. Since that time he has been assisting his brother in the conduct of an' animal ranch in Lankershim. Besides “Charlie,” Stecker trained “Joe Martin,” the famous ape, “Ethel,” the educated lioness and other four-footed screen stars. He is survived by a wife and three children. Hedda Hopper, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer featured player, is recuperating from an operation for appendicitis at the Angelus Hospital where she has been confined for the past two weeks. The star but recently completed work in “Free Love” and upon her recovery she will be scheduled to take part in another picture at the M-G-M plant. Duane Thompson has been engaged as Walter Hiers’ leading lady for the first of the series of comedies which he will make for Educational Film Exchanges release. Hiers arrived in Los Angeles last week after closing his contract in New York with E. W. Hammons, and will start work on the pictures immediately. Ten Features on Pathe Program; Ray Seen in Four and Lloyd in Two (Special to Exhibitors Herald) NEW YORK, Jan. 24.— Ten feature productions will be issued by Pathe during 1924-25. These will supplement a program of more than 100 two-reel comedies from the Hal Roach and Mack Sennett studios, and an indefinite program of short subjects. Of the feature productions, four will star Charles Ray; two will be Harold Lloyd pictures and four will comes from Culver City, where the Hal Roach productions are made. The first of the Charles Ray pictures, temporarily called “Dynamite Smith” will be available in early fall. C. Gardiner. Sullivan wrote the story. Harold Lloyd is at present at work on the first of his two features for the coming year. The production, as yet untitled, will be ready in November. Of the four features which Hal Roach is to produce, two will star Glenn Tryon, a new “find” for whom Mr. Roach predicts a meteoric rise. Dempsey Will Make More Films for (Special to Exhibitors Herald) NEW YORK, June 24. — Jack Dempsey will make six more pictures for Universal in addition to the series of ten two-reelers called “Fight and Win” he is now making. The additional pictures will be a continuation of the same series. The new pictures will be made by the same directors who are making the present ten — Earle C. Kenton and Jesse Robbins.