Exhibitors Herald (1927)

28 EXHIBITORS HERALD November 12, 1927 PRESENTATION ACTS Rotation Brings Better Results Small Houses Claim Acts Help B. O. Exhibitors State Acts Bring in People Who Never Attend Movies It seems that most of the small town theatres agree that Presentation Acts or stageshows of any sort always bring in a certain class of people that very seldom attend a straight picture show. The biggest handicap in securing good acts is found in getting the artists to play one and two night stands. Below we give some of the exhibitors’ own views on the matter: PRESENTATION ACTS— To the Editor: Will endeavor to answer your recent letter about the use of vaudeville or some form of presentation in connection with the picture show. My experience makes me agree with the exhibitor whom you quote, that a vaudeville act will usually bring: to the theatre people who seldom attend a straight picture show. We have a theatre seating 320 in a town of about 900 population. We play vaudeville acts occasionally, probably averaging one every two months, booking them by correspondence or with advance agents. We play them in conjunction with the picture, and usually feature them in our advertising over the picture. Some we use only one night, others two. We have a piano only, no organ. As to vaudeville paying dividends in a email town theatre, it all depends on how carefully you pick your acts. We have had some very good ones, also some bad ones that hurt our business, though these latter have been very few. Recently our regional magazine. Greater Amusements, established a reporting service on traveling showB, vaudeville, etc., and if exhibitors report truthfully, this should be of great help to the small town theatre man. But, we have seen in this department already many favorable reports on acts that we know from our own experience to be poor, or at best, decidedly mediocre, so these reports are likely to be misleading in some instances. I think this covers all the points you asked about, and hope the results will be satisfactory. — GEORGE BENSON, Community theatre, Minneota, Minn. * * * PRESENTATION ACTS— To the Editor: We don’t play vaudeville in our theatre. We have straight pictures only. We have a large Kimball Organ. I’m leaving for a new theatre L^-bor Day that will be located at Norwood, Pa. The house will seat 1,500 people. We are going to put on a few acts in there. The new theatre will be called the Manor. — ROBERT KESSLER, Benn theatre. Philadelphia, Pa. Werrenrath at Capitol NEW YORK. — Reinald Werrenrath, baritone, was the soloist at the Capitol November 6. The Flying Leader Besides being known as the singing band leader of Marks Bros, stageshows, CHARLES KALEY is also a leader in other things such as the first band conductor to fly from Chicago to New York by the National Air Transit Company to make a number of records for Columbia — this chap broke all records by making the trip in less than six hours, that is he left Chicago in the morning and was back at his theatre by that same day for the evening show — again proving that once a feller is a leader he’s always a leader in anything — Kaley is also a fine violinist and ballad composer, one of his latest songs is now being published by a well known firm in New York. Mayor Attends Ball Given by Comedy Club The Chicago Comedy Club, which was recently organized with Milton Weil as president, gave its first ball last Friday evening, November 4, as the 6tarter of the season’s entertainment that the organization plans to offer. This ball was given in honor of Paul Ash, the Rajah of Jazz, who sailed for Europe on November 7 for a six weeks’ vacation. Among the notables attending this affair were other leaders of bands in town as well as members of various legitimate attractions and presentation acts. Mayor William Hale Thompson was the guest of honor and the dance together with the entertainment programs lasted way into the wee-hours of the morning. There were over 2,000 people present and nearly every music publisher was represented. Paul Ash and his band offered 6ome fine arrangements for some of the dances. Sameness in Acts Often Tires Public Limited Engagements Are Now Proving Popular in the Larger Houses By A. RAYMOND GALLO In the last six months presentation in the form of stage bandshows has been going through many changes. One of the most noted changes is the shifting of personality band leaders from one house to another. This step is necessary in order to keep up the interest of the public in attending stage bandshows in their community, for after all it is only a rare case that one man can continue to be the leading light and drawingcard of a theatre indefinitely. Only one man in a thousand can accomplish the feat that Paul Ash has ac^ complished in his field. Coming to Chicago about three years ago as comparatively an unknown he lias originated a policy that has instigated over 300 deluxe theatres all over the country to follow suit and in doing this he has proven that regardless of the many imitators his name and his various tricks still pull them in to this theatre after being in one town more than 130 weeks and approximately a year and a half in one theatre. Must Be a Showman To do this a man must not only be an artist and a thorough showman but also a phenomenon and Paul Ash is that, for after all they still line up at the box office to see him. There have been a number of other cases where one particular personality has proven the box office draw but sometime or other even these other cases have gradually passed into oblivion, not for reasons of incapability of the leader but because the audience and that particular neighborhood has become tired of seeing that same personality each week. And so with this thing in mind it is wise for the wise showman not to tire his audience with too much of one person or the sameness in entertainment. Feel Public Pulse If you now have a personality band leader who has been in your theatre quite a long while by all means exploit