Exhibitor's Trade Review (Mar-May 1922)

1362 EXHIBITORS TRADE REVIEW Volume 11. Number 19 SHEA'S NORTH PARK "SCHOOL DAYS," Wesley Barry (Warner). This neighborhood house being in the center of a big and high class residential section attracted all the kids in the community. The kids, of course, brought their parents. Business excellent. PALACE "A PAIR OF SILK STOCKINGS," Constance Talmadge (Select). As a revival it attracted fair business, playing up Harrison Ford and Wanda Hawley. In addition a Chaplin revival was shown. This seems to be a good policy at present. CHICAGO BARBEE "CAMERON OF THE ROYAL MOUNTED," Gaston Glass (Hodkinson). A tale of the Canadian Northwest fashioned according to regulation specifications. Business was very good all week. CHICAGO "SCHOOL DAYS," Wesley Barry (Warner). A delightful entertainment with the little star adding to his laurels. Presented to excellent patronage at every performance. CASTLE "CHARGE IT," Clara Kimball Young (Equity). A society drama providing fair entertainment. Business for the past seven days justified holding the picture over another week. TlVOLl AND RIVIERA "THE SEVENTH DAY," Richard Barthelmess (First National). A comedy drama that finds the popular Barthelmess in role that does not measure up to his ability. Business held up very well all week at both theatres. ROOSEVELT "FOOL'S PARADISE," Dorothy Dalton (Paramount). An elaborate De Mille fantasy well worth seeing. Excellent attendance at every showing during the week. CLEVELAND ALLEN "COME ON OVER," Colleen Moore (Goldwyn). Good business. Exploitation. — ^Manager McCormick introduced this new Goldwyn attraction as the featured photoplay during "Cheer Up Week." A week in advance of the showing of the picture, the newspaper campaign was launched tieing up the old sage of "The optimist sees the doughnut while the pessimist only sees the hole." In all his copy there appeared a halftone reproduction of a doughnut with some caricatured outlines of men, women and children. At each performance; doughnuts were passed out to the audience by little bakery maids. During the week several club luncheons were "stormed" by the doughnut maids. The stage prologue introduced Harry Rose, who acted as master of ceremonies and also as the proprietor of the Prosperity Bake Shop, which turned out about twenty doughnut maids and with them came baskets filled with doughnuts. It was a novel stunt, well presented and created a great deal of talk. LOEWS STATE "THE WORLD'S CHAMPION," Wallace Reid (Paramount). The picture was advertised along with "A Trip to Spain," the second of a series of musical adventures to foreign countries. Spanish songs and dances were featured on the stage. Business Good. Short Subjects. — Mermaid Comedy, "Step This Way," Pathe News and Mutt and Jeff Cartoon. LOEWS MALL AND PARK "WHY ANNOUNCE YOUR MARRIAGE?" Elaine Hammerstein (Selznick). Business fair. Just a little advance publicity was given to this production, featured for the first half of the week at these theatres. STANDARD "MAN TO MAN," Harry Carey (Universal). Good business. Exploitation. — Advance newspaper advertising and an attractive lobby did much to build good business on this picture that will be held over for a second week. Short Subjects. — Qentury Comedy, "Mutts" and International News. LOEWS STILLMAN "THE FOUR HORSEMEN OF THE APOCALYPSE," Valentino and Terry (Metro). Brought back for a return engagement that warrants at least a two weeks' showing. COLUMBIA, S. C. LESTER'S RIVOLI "TEN NIGHTS IN A BARROOM " (Arrow). Premier showing in the South of this production. Capacity crowds. A box office attra<ction. Wonderful audienceappeal picture. IMPERIAL "BOBBED HAIR," Wanda Hawley (Paramount). A pleasing picture and did good business. KANSAS CITY LIBERTY "CAMERON OF THE ROYAL MOUNTED," Special cast (Hodkinson). This one proved to be a good box office attraction, playing to large houses all week. Short Subjects. — "Mutts," comedy; Pathe News, current events, and "Aesop's Fables," comedy. Exploitation. — Author of the story, Ralph Connor, and individual members of the cast played up in newspaper space. Also liberal space to the comedy, "Mutts," which was surrounded by half-tone cuts of various types of dogs. Also lobby display and billboard space. DORIC "THE BRIDE'S PLAY," Marion Davies (Paramount). Played to fair crowds for a week, despite strong competition. Short Subjects.— "Hot Off the Press," Snub Pollard comedy, and International News, current events. Exploitation.— Picture played up, in conjunction with original poem, as the "opening spring play of spring," in Sunday newspaper space. Marion Davies also given prominent mention. Lobby display and billboards. NEWMAN "FOOL'S PARADISE," Special cast, (Paramount). A real drawing card, one which played to crowded houses for a week's run, Cecil B. De Mille's produc tions being almost certain to draw well here. Short Subjects. — Newman News and Views, current events. Exploitation. — The production was widely advertised as "The very greatest triump of Cecil B. De Mille's career." Half-tones, portraying battle with alligators, used in newspapers, while the cast was played up big in lobby display and billboard space. ROYAL "THUNDERCLAP," Special cast (Fox). Best box office attraction in several weeks. Played to large weekly attendance. Short Subjects. — "Battling Torchy," Johnny Hines comedy, and Royal Screen Magazine, current events. Exploitation. — The fact that the production was shown in New York at $2 top price was played up in lobby display and newspaper space. Mary Carr, as the famous "mother" in "Over the Hill," was given much space. TWELFTH STREET "SERENADE," Miriam Cooper (First National). Aided by a good comedy, this one did a good week's business. Charles Chaplin, featured in the comedy, has not lost one ounce of popularity here. Short Subjects. — "A Dog's Life," Charles Chaplin, comedy, and Screen Magazine, current events. Exploitation. — The comedy was played up much in excess of the feature, large cuts of Chaplin being run in newspaper and lobby display space. Also billboards. LOS ANGELES CALIFORNIA "COME ON OVER," Colleen Moore (Goldwyn). — The management used only average advertising, with tie-ups in about 45 stores with Colleen Moore's photographs. The feature is the biggest drawing card of the 13 first run houses in Los Angeles. It is a sure winner and is scheduled to run the second week, much to the contrary of the California policy, as the theatre is strictly a one-week house. Short Subjects. — Carli D. Elinor selected for his 50 piece orchestra, "Poet and Peasant," Prelude and Siciliana from "Cavalleria Rusticana" and "Memphis Blues." Goldwyn Sport Review, "Winter Pep"; Jose Rock Comedy, "The Whirlwind"; California Topical Review and Magazine, Topics of the Day. MILLER'S "THE SILENT CALL," Special cast (First National). In the seventh week and the end is not yet in sight. One of the best exploitation pi<;tures that Manager Miller has booked in a long time. The latest stunt pulled was a float Avith the dog's head on either side, announcing the picture in the seventh week at Miller's. It is a great kid's picture and all the military schools, other private schools and most of the public schools have endorsed the picture with the big "Okey." Short Subjects. — "Schoolday Love." SVPERBA "WILD HONEY," Priscilla Dean. (Universal). This picture proves that the public really does shop for its pictures and that Priscilla Dean is a drawing card whether she is extensively advertised or not. Picture has played to a very good week. Only the average advertising was used with press notices. Short Subjects. — International News. Baby Peggy in "Little Miss Mischief."