The Film Daily (1924)

iTHE of FILI 4E>OH ^recocmizei Authority ^ol. XXX No 1 Wednesday, Octoter 1, 1924 Price 5 Cents BUYERS By DANNY Especially those who purlase for large circuits. Just 3W do they reach their decions? Easy, of course, as to cerin stars. xAnd certain box iice pulling director specials. ut what about the rest? What )OUt the great quantity of picires that have neither great ar value nor director special terest ? There arc some large circuits which ,ve excellent systems. For dc mining on picture values. The anley organization in Philadelphia rticularly. They have a card sysm on which is notated varioui opin18 of different members. Other cuits — w^ith committees — have like steins. But how many of such committees, or buyers, take into consideration the important point that pictures are made particularly — and especially — , to appeal to women? And if .so, how many have girls, or women on their committees. The ideal buying committee should ntain at least two women. One out 20. The other between 32 and Then the varying ideas of such )men could easily be batanced by showmanship value of the men the committee. Some day we arc ing to ask some woman — or girl — irely unknpwn to us. To write a ticism. On a picture. Just to see lat happens. Hope it can be printBroadway Business here's hoping the Piccadilly moves ng. It probably will. Lots of )m on the Main St. of New York more picture houses. Especially Saturday and Sunday. Then there so much business that the ovcr w from the bigger attractions fill : other houses. So you really Tv-er can tell. The strength of any I turc on Broadway. By the busi I'S it records on these two big Cf-s of the week. There are pictures and pictures. But this is the funny phase of all of them: that many pictures over which the critics enthuse — especially (Coiiliinicd on Page 2) ■ Play Dates Michigan M.P.T.O. Fighting Block Booking And "Robin Hood" Prices of Independents (Sfecial to THE FILM DAILY) Detroit — In a broadside issued in conjunction with the fourth annual meeting of the Michigan M. P. T. O. in Saginaw, is a circular letter, which, in part says: "During the past few weeks it has been the pleasure of this ofifice to talk to a number of New York men who are in the motion picture business. From nearly every one comes the same story, the same lurking fear, justified by a combination of circumstances which have developed during the past six months: "That a certain group of producers are reported to be in a perfect understanding and are making a determined effort to corral play dates. "I don't think there is a representative of a producing company in Detroit who hasn't given considerable credence to the report — I almost said fact. "But the remarkable part of the whole situation is that not a single move has been made to forstall such a move by a single one of them. Not a single move. "The game that is reiiorted as played is an interesting one. The exhibitor is on one side of the table, the certain group of distributors on the other side, and the old (.Coiititmed on Pacic 4) Brings 20,000 Ft. of Hunt Film .\. J. Klein, a champion lion killer has returned from .'Kfrica w'ith 20,000 feet of film showing native hunts, large herds of wild animals, including zebras, giraffes and hyenas and native methods of living. Klein has made no arrangements for distribution. He is making his headquarters at the American Museum of Natural History. Greeks to Produce? (.Special to THE FILM DAILY) Los .Angeles — The initial issue of "The Film Tribune" reports from Chicago that Michael E. Tellegen has been lining up a representative number of Greeks to form a production company that will make its lieadquarters hero. Pictures \\■\^\^ a negative cost of $75,000 arc planned Henderson on Ray-Art Serial Dell Henderson and f?en Lewis his assistant are en route to the Coas) to direct a serial for Rav Art. Executives at Glass Luncheon Samuel Goldwj'ii tendered Montague Glass a luncheon at the Ritz yesterday as a mark of appreciation for the collaboration of the author in the production of "In Hollywood with Potash and Perlmutter." An unusual gathering of important executives attended the function. Seated at the principal table were: Walter Wanger, J. Robert Rubin, E. A. Eschmann, Samuel Goldwyn, Edgar Selwyn, Dr. A. H. Giannini, H. O. Schwalbe, Harry Reichenbach, Will H. Hays, Adolph Zukor, Richard A. Rowland, Jesse L. Lasky, Courtland Smith. John C. Flinn, Paul Block, Arthur Brisbane, and Jules Eckart Goodman. Unique Buying Deal Employment for Husband Condition Under Which Woman Purchases Film in Northwest Minneapolis — 'Greater Amusements says a new use for a theater owner's buying power was uncovered at a meeting of the Minneapolis arbitration board, in the case of Mrs. E. W. Jensen, vs. Producers Distributing and Producers Distributing vs. Mrs. Jensen. Mrs. Jensen operates the Auditorium at White Bear, while her husband, is a film salesman. When he is out of work the company which will employ him is the company which gets the business of the Auditorium. That, at least, held good in the case of Producers Distributing, according to the claim of Mrs. Jensen, who declared that the company had t'ailed to keep its alleged promise to employ her husband, and asked cancellation of her contract with the firm, (Continued on Page 2) Cosmopolitan to United Studios (Special to THE FILM DAILY) Hollywood— T h e Cosmopolitan unit ijroducing "Zander the Great" is working in the United Studio. It is probable that other Hearst productions will be made there. Forest Fire in Benedict Canyon (Special to THE FILM DAILY) Hollywood — A forest fire raging in Benedict Canyon threatens some magnificent homes, especially the new house erected by Tom I nee. Going to the Coast It is understood that Marcus Locw plans to leave for the Coast earlv this month. New Merger Reported M. & S. and Steiner Circuit Again Mentioned — Small-Straseberg Control Williamsburg On the heels of the purchase of the Commodore, Roebling and Gem theaters in Brooklyn, by the SmallStraseberg Circuit, Inc., from the M. & S. Circuit, came reports yesterday that a theater deal involving the lattei concern and the Steiner group known as the Allwon Circuit, was in the wind. For about si.x months past, there have been rumblings that M. & S. would either purchase the Steiner group, including the Sunshine, 14th St., Atlantic Garden, and about five others, or Allwon would absorb M. & S. Indications yesterday pointed to the merging of the Allwon theaters with M. & S. This impression was borne out when it became generally known that M. & S. had disposed of their Brooklyn holdings for a figure said to be close to $1,000,000. By the purchase of the Commodore. Roebling and Gem, all of them in the Plaza section of Williamsburgh, Small-Straseberg assume full booking control of that thickly popidated section of Brooklyn. With the change of ownership, there ends a bitter battle for product. As a matter of fact, it was stated yesterday that so keen had the bid (Continued on Page 4) Lucas After Miami Site KSpecial to THE FILM DAILY) Miami — Arthur Lucas, who is mentioned in connection with the newlyformed International Amusement Co., is running ad copy in all local papers, seeking a site for a new house. If he is successful, this will make Miami a competitive town. At present all tiieaters are controlled jointly by the Leach interests and Southern Enterprises. Lazarus Out of Imperial Paul Lazarus has resigned as president of Imperial Pictures to reenter the publishing business in San Francisco. A. C. Berman will take over the duties of Lazarus until a new president is appointed. \ It is reported from the coast that K. A. Walsh, director-general for Imperial will return to Douglas Fairbanks after making one picture for Paramount,