The Film Daily (1925)

Ifllg 7Aff brAdstreet o/" FILHDOM ZI^^RECOCMIZEi Authority /ol. XXXIII No. 74 Friday, September 25, 1925 Price 5 Cents Blodgett Complains says Distributors Are Tardy in Supplying Names of Pictures Already Passed By ARTHUR W. EDDY H a r t f o r d — Tax Commissioner ilodgett yesterday expressed himself is being quite impatient with disributors for their failure to supply he list of pictures on which seals lave recently been affixed. He threatened to act at once uness the list on which the tax has aleady been paid is turned over with)ut further delay. The work of speciil agent Splain at New Haven in ;hecking up is at a standstill because )f this "lack of cooperation." Hartford Uninformed rhat City's Legislators Voted for Connecticut Tax, Believing Distributors Would Pay Hartford — A canvass of Hartford nembers of the Legislature made by rHE FILM DAILY reveals that »ractically each one voted for the Ourant bill while under the impresion that the tax would be paid by Ihe big distributors and not the Conlecticut exhibitors or the Connectiut public. Louis A. Samuel's Republican, said le believes that the law will be killed t the next regular session of the ..egislature. He recommends that he film people "stomach the statute" intil that time, when he will use his jallot against the law. Samuels beieves that the revenue produced by (Continued on Page 4) Clift To Direct Own Story Denison Clift signed a contract at he Ambassador yesterday to direct lis own story, "The City of Play," or A. H. Sebastian for P. D. Clift has been here shootbg scenes at Coney Island, Newjort and in Wall Street for the )icture, which will be completed in 926, after which he will join Cecil 3. De Mille in the production of his >wn story, for which Clift has been [athering first-hand data in New ngland. Coast Chain Grows funior Circuit Takes OverThree Los Angeles Theaters and Three I in Redlands Los Angeles— The Junior Theater Circuit, the $2,000,000 organization A'hich recentiv became affiliated with vVest Coast Theaters. Inc., has closed several new deals. The company is leaded by Mike Rosenberg and Hary Sugarman. (Continued on Page 2) 40 From Warners Plans for 1926-27 Set— C u r r e n t Schedule to Be Completed by Jan. 1 So far advanced are the Warners with their 1925-26 schedule that the company is already announcing plans for next season. According to H. M. Warner, who arrives from Los Angeles tomorrow his company will make 40 for 1926-27. Vehicles are now being bought so that work can be prepared with the completion of the current program around Jan. 1. Warner said the program would be headed by six specials, they will con iContnnicd on Page 2)' "Rudy" in Columbus FUm Following the completion of "The Eagle" and one other picture, Rudolph Valentino is to appear in a picture that deals with Christopher Columbus and the discovery of .\merica, it is stated by Enrique de Meneses, just returned from Hollywood. The film will be taken from "El Gran Capitan," a novel by de Meneses that deals with Spain in the ISth century. East Bronx Theater The Rosedale Engineering Corp. will start active work Monday on a 1.400-seat theater at Westchester Ave. and St. Lawrence St., East Bronx. Matthew Chrystos will operate the house upon its completion. Sofferman's arranged the deal. Fore! You had better hurry. The committee in charge of the Fall Film Golf Tournament advises there is little time left to complete arrangements for the big party at the Winged Foot Athletic Club on Tuesday, October 13. There is a flock of names in, but some of the regulars again failed to enter yesterday. What about it? Pathe Listed 156,209 Shares of Stock Admitted to Trading on the Big Board —No Par Value The Board of Governors of the N. Y. Stock Exchange has admitted to trading 156,209 shares of Class A common stock of Pathe Exchange, Inc . The stock is without par value. The company will reserve the right to increase the issue to 189,733 shares on official notice of exchange for outstanding stock option warrants. The company's consolidated statement for the eight months ended July 11, 1925 as submitted to the exchange officials shows gross sales of $8,805, (Continued on Page 4) Theater Boom In Omaha Omaha — .\t least six new theaters have been announced for Omaha during the past few weeks and now comes word of another, to be built in the suburbs. The Metclafe company is behind the new project and will build on the Country Club grounds, between Omaha and Benson. Norma's Schedule Norma Talmadge, who is due in from the Coast on Saturday with Joseph M. Schenck, her husband, will return to Hollywood in time to begin work in "Kiki" on Oct. 20. "Suicide Club" Charlie Chaplin's Next — Goes into Work Soon — Comedian Leaves for Coast Sunday Charlie Chaplin leaves for California Sunday to start work at once on "The Suicide Club", a slapstick comedy. The picture will be ready in about six months, according to present expectations. While Chaplin has been in the East, his studio force has been preparing for the picture so that (Continued on Page 4) Iowa Chain In Deal Des Moines — Miles and Coston, of Chicago, have bought the chain of Iowa theaters owned by Clifford R. Niles, of Anamosa. The deal involves seven houses: the Crystal, at Anamosa; the theaters at Louden, Cascane, Mechanicsville, Byersville and Wyoming, and the Princess at Monticello, which Niles recently purchased from E. T. Landis. Exhibitors' Review Out Oct. 5 Exhibitors Trade Review, published weekly for nine years will issue a daily beginning Monday, Oct. S. It will be known as Exhibitors' Review. Powers Heads Board Chairman of Associated Exhibitor Directorate — Ehner Pearson A Member Associated Exhibitors, Inc., announced yesterday that "at the instigation of the banking interests involved in the purchase of the company," P. A. Powers was appointed chairman of the board of directors. The other directors are (Continued on Page 4) Commission Basis Famous-B. ^ K. Deal Move to Effect Economies in Theater Operations, Says "Wall St. Journal" Famous will turn over its theater holdings to Balaban & Katz management on a commission basis, "The Wall Street Journal" said last night. In so doing, this publication continues, "Famous not only gets the benefit of their (B. & K.) theaters in distributing Paramount pictures but receives the advantage of their able management and will be able to make important savings in overhead and executive expense." The article concludes by saying that the arrangement merely provides that Balaban & Katz take over the management of the properties and is in no sense a sale or a merger. "The Wall Street Journal" calls the step an important one in the revamping process on which the management of Famous has been engaged for several years and proceeds to explain the company entered the theater field to secure "show windows" for its product. Then appears this: "Consequently the company engaged in an extensive program of (Continued on Page 4) British Universal Prod. Formed London — Universal pictures made here will be known as British Universal Productions. A studio has been secured and several stories are under consideration. Shooting will commence shortly. Ag^a Cuts Price Jack Cosman of Agfa announced yesterday that the price on Agfa Super-speed film had been reduced to 3.75 cents per foot. $1,500,000 Bond Issue Floated By Saenger Interests — Company Operates 44 Houses, with Holding Interests in 23 Others New Orleans — Saenger Theaters, Inc., through the Hibernia Securities Co., Inc., of New Orleans; and Hemphill Noyes & Co. and Merrill. Lynch & Co., of New York, has sold a $1,500,000 first mortgage and collaterial trust gold bond issue, paying 6J^ per cent, and due in 15 years. When the company was chartered in 1913, it operated five theaters. Since then, the circuit has expanded until now it includes 44. In addition, an interest is held in 23 others. Of the 44 theaters, 16 are o'vned out (Continued on Page 4)