Exhibitors Herald (1927)

48 EXHIBITORS HERALD August 13, 1927 LETTERS From Readers A forum at which the exhibitor is invited to express his opinion on matters of current interest. Brevity adds forcefulness to any statement. Unsigned letters will not be printed. Campaigning Against Tentshows EAGLE LAKE, TEXAS.— To the Ei>itor: My first letter and my first reports on pictures. However, I have been a Herald reader for several years. Mr. Branch from Hastings, Mich., seems to have had the same trouble with a tentshow that I had, about the same time, only our fight seems to have gone further. Being tired of tentshows and their policies,, I cut my admission to 10 cents with all kids free. Took my camera and photographer on the streets on preceding Saturday and made a newsreel of the country folks in town, incorporating it in a regular weekly local reel I run. Gave a benefit show for band boys, and they came down in front of show in street and turned their 4.5 piece band loose for 45 minutes before show. Gave the fire boys a little money and they turned on their sirens right in town just as the tent-show band started playing on the street. Showed the “Tender Hour” for 10 cents and actually made money, despite a high rental on it. Had better than 4,000 paid admissions during week, besides kids, and the tent-show spokesman told the crowd he lost more money here than any week in 15 years. The real trouble started when the tentshow announced each night from his stage that the people here could force me to show for 10 cents, that if I could show for that price with opposition that I was holding them up when he was not here. This has hurt me, I think, since he has gone. He put out circulars at his first nights showing, a copy of which I am enclosing. Several of the surrounding towns fought him the same way. Consequently, guess he will not come this way again. To fight them in the right way will stir up such comment to increase business, stimulates interest, and we boys that have no opposition need just such a stimulus to make us get out and work. My town has about 3,000 inhabitants. I have been a consistent buyer of the Billboard, but after their recent articles about small towns fighting for their rights, I’m convinced I have no reason for reading the Billboard other than to find out what the tentshow will do next. Thanking you for your attention, I am, — C. S. McLellan, Rex theatre. Eagle Lake, Tex. An Invitation to All ALEXANDRIA, MINN.— To the Editor; It seems the old guy with the lantern that was always looking for a truthful guy missed J. C., and now I am up against it, as J. C. says I caught the big northern pike, when I thought it was him, but the brand of lemonade we had in the boat might have had something to do with it. At any rate, J. C. will have to come up here and catch another big fish so that he can be photographed with the fish, and an affidavit made before a notary that he did catch the fish, which will prove he is capable, and that the fish are here to be caught. I thought long and serious over this denial of J. C.’s and have come to the conclusion that he was afraid of Phil of the fishy fame, and decided he would not claim to be champion angler as long as Phil cared for the title. Well, folks, J. C. and his folks, or any of the rest of you, are sure welcome to come in here to try your luck, and we will try to prove that Alexandria is what it claims to be, the best place in the U. S. A., to summer, fish, and enjoy golf, motoring, and at the same time keep comfortably cool while at it. J. C. and I thought this would be an ideal place to pull a big golf tournament of exhibitors, and of course we included the Herald and other motion picture periodical workers who would care to get in, and let it be known, there are many big golf tournaments held here, while visitors are in convention and vacationing, all of them coming back after the first visit, if it is at all possible. Well, at any rate, when J. C. heads Clara this way, we aim to make him enjoy his visit, as he seems like a lifelong friend, having heard of him, about him, against and for him, until his good old soul was an open book when we met. Back in the days when there were no pictures, at least excepting in the largest cities, we both contributed to the Opera House Reporter, telling how good or how rotten some of the stock companies were, and it was good to go over the old days. I can’t see how the editor of The Spotlight can be so ungrateful as to doubt the statement that J. C. (or we) caught the fish pictured in the Herald and here I have (been thinking all the nice things about her possible. She must be like my wife. When I come in off the lake and mention that the biggest bass, maybe of six or seven pounds, had thrown the hook and made a clean getaway, she hardly ever believes those statements and asks if I had any witnesses. Well, how many of you exhibitors, exchangemen, editors, writers, producers, stars, salesman and etc., wish to enter the big golf tournament, which we want to try to organize for the latter part of August? There will be no lines drawn, everybody can enter, and we’ll see who is the champion of the U. S. A., and I’ll ask Eagle Eye Joe to compile the list, publish it when arranged, while we in this section take care of local end of the tournament. Alexandria boasts eight big summer hotels, outside of uptodate city hotels, all of them being located on one of the 200 lakes in this county. — H. J. Longaker, Alexandria, Minn. Stettmund Declares Himself CHANDLER, OKLA. — To the Editor: Well, boys, the Beauty Contest is over now and I want to tell you what a relief it is to a lot of them that I was not in it. I guess what one of the girls wrote me tells the story in a few words. She said “Us girls in the race are sure glad you did not take a movie contract, because if you was a actor someone would nominate you and we girls wouldn’t have a chance !” When I think about getting into the movies I am glad I didn’t, because I would have won the Beauty Contest and all the girls would be disappointed and I’m not a fellow who likes to disappoint the girls. When I think of Beauty Contests I think of the Herald and when I think of the Herald I think of J. C. Jenkins and when I think of Jaysee I think of him in Chandler hunting for me and some maidens telling him that when he sees the most handsome man he ever saw, why that’s him. (Meaning me). Then when he saw me he said, “I was expecting to see something, but by-dam, nothing like this !” See, my looks just knocked his ears down. I’ll bet if he saw some of the movie boys he would not make a remark like that be cause nothing will ever surprise Jaysee anymore. I was thinking of spending my vacation in Hollywood and then I got to thinking of the trouble the producers are in now and the rotten pictures they are making. If I went out there the pictures would be worse than they are now because all the girls would be wild about me and while they was making pictures they would be wishing it was quitting time so they could be with me. I would be such a riot they couldn’t work good for me being on their brains. The boys in the cast would be so jealous they wouldn’t work good and the result, poor pictures instead of the knockouts the salesman sold you at advanced prices. I’ll tell you, being the most handsome man in world has some drawbacks. Here I am having to stay away from Hollywood where most everybody else would give their right arm to be. I wish I could trade looks with Jaysee or any one else as hard looking as him, because beauty is just hard luck. — H. G. Stettlund, H. & S. theatre. Chandler, Okla. A Bouquet for “Rough Riders” MENARD, TEX.— To the Editor: I enclose some reports of recent pictures played, but cannot refrain from making special and a bit more lengthy comment on Paramount’s “Rough Riders,” which we played July 27 and 28 as a state preview for Texas. Here is a real box office attraction. I notice that Pete Harrison says that_ it is not a “special.” It may not be a riot at $2, but to my mind that is not the measuring stick for a really good big picture. That stuff has been overworked and we know it. I can only express pity for New Yorkers both for what they have to see and what they have to pay to see it. I used to live there and can appreciate the situation. While it is not my business to advertise any one company’s output particularly (and, incidentally. Paramount and I have had our differences in the past, this being the first picture of theirs we’ve run for some time), I can’t help giving my reaction, both personal and box office, on this one. It is big; it is good; it is unusual in theme, very splendidly handled by Director Victor Fleming ; marvelously well acted by all concerned. The work of Charles Parrel stands out, closely followed by Charles Emmett Mack. Not a weak spot in the cast — Beery and Bancroft keep it from dragging. Miss Astor is lovely as the girl. Frank Hopper’s handling of T. R. is very good indeed. But, the direction makes or breaks a picture, and Fleming did a mighty fine job here. Personally, the big kick in the picture is the scene where Farrell carries Mack, who is dying, to the hospital tent. Going back over all the big films it has been my pleasure to see I can’t recall a single scene that surpasses this bit of footage for power. Without any elaborate backgrounds or display of money outlay, for pure excellence of acting and direction, it is perfect. We ran it two days and two nights here, and the last night found me with a catch in the throat at that piece of work, which is something that doesn’t often happen to one in the business. Yes, I’m enthusiastic about “The Rough Riders,” and so was my box office. Music is a tremendous part of it and I’m mighty sorry for the boys who have to play with it with a mechanical instrument of any kind. It’s a picture that has to be well cued. Excuse the undue amount of space devoted to this epistle, but I want to let those who run it soon know that, in my humble opinion, they can go after it strong and not be afraid. — Henry Reeve, Mission theatre, Menard, Tex.