Fox West Coast Theaters Now (May 14, 1930)

NOW Stage'Wed Pair Highly Honored By Whole Town As Stores, Theatre, and Friends Shower Them With Gifts # STAGE weddings are not rare, but the manner in which Bill Conner, manager of the Fox St. Helens Thea- tre, Chehalis, Washington, arranged and promoted his is unusual. It cost him nothing to secure front page publicity for three weeks. Even the ad with which he announced the event was contributed by the paper. Three double trucks were run through the cooperation of thirty mer- chants who also gave the bride and groom more than $800 worth of beautiful and useful presents. Of the many couples who harkened to the call, Miss Priscilla Teeter and Mr. Leon- ard Henricksen were selected to march down to the town hall and accept the license which Clerk John W. Boone issued without charge. Then unlike most bridal couples, they were permitted to go about town and select their own presents. Priscilla and Leonard knew just about what they wanted. Various merchants presented them with suits for the groom, gowns for the bride, shoes, furniture, electric range, bank account, groceries, down pay- ment on a car, gas, oil, a spare tire, kitchen cabinet, table lamps, electric range, farm cultivator and with the cooper- ation of Conner, Rev. W. L. Kechley was secured to tie the knot gratis. The wedding night was per- fect. The Forest Degree team, of which both are members, acted as bridesmaids and at- tendants. A house packed to the rafters with happy friends of the young couple showered them with rice and old shoes. Conner had saved his best gift as a surprise. He arranged for the bridal suite in Chehalis’ finest hotel, provided an auto to take them there and then a guard in the corridor to see that the young couple were not disturbed. The following morning another auto took them to the airport where they took off in a St. John Airplane to Portland, their first honey- moon stop. Everybody was satisfied. The happy newlyweds could not thank Conner enough. His let- ter, in its concluding para- graphs, tells how the contact- MAY 14TH 19 3 0 • UPPER picture shows how Art Wenzel of FOX UP- TOWN, Los Angeles, took advantage of Boy’s week. Per- haps you recognize Jackie Coogan, Phillippe DeLacey, and Dickey Kilby. J. J. Frank- lin’s son, Stanley, is in front of flag. Lower picture shows Everett Sharp, manager, FOX THEATRE, San Bernardino, explaining sound to the boys. This picture clicked in the press. ing merchants appreciated the event. “I feel that this public wedding, gave out theatre wonderful publicity. Every merchant who had a tie-up with us is more than satisfied, and they all are looking forward to another co-operative stunt with the Fox Sr. Helens Theatre. “The only thing needed in the whole affair was, more seats. We turned away over five hundred peo- ple.” GOOD STUNT OVERCOMES CRITICISM • Newspaper Seconds Manager’s Plan # In The columns of the Times, residents of Palo Alto, California, have been waging a bitter battle as to the propriety of showing many talking pictures to children. Without expressing his own opinion, the editor printed hun- dreds of letters, both pro and anti. However, Manager George Teckemeyer of the Fox VARSITY Theatre gave the controversy much attention, and by an- nouncing the formation of a Mickey Mouse Club for special children’s Saturday matinees, he apparently has successfully solved the problem. Treating the matter in a special editorial the Times says: "Giving an ear to the complaint often heard from parents that the best programs in local playhouses are pro- vided on school nights only, whereas the Saturday matinees are the occasions which best suit the children’s sched- ules, Manager George Teckemeyer of the New VARSITY THEATRE, has launched an enterprise which he hopes will meet this criticism. He plans to inaugurate a series of talkies, specially selected for their suitability for juvenile entertainment, and will pres- ent them on Saturdays. The forma- tion of a club among the juvenile patrons for the purpose of assuring a continuity interest is a detail of the project. “The public has been abundantly critical in discussion of theatre matters when disapproving of particular pro- grams. It is only fair then that the public should be duly co-operative with the theatres in the showmen’s efforts to do something to remove any of the usual sources of objection. “We hope that the Mickey Mouse Club project of the new VARSITY Theatre will prove appealing to the parents and children as satisfying and wholesome fun for the juveniles, and that it will not be a losing venture financially for the theatre.” LETTERS ARE SENT MUSIC LOVERS • Stimulate' Patronage For Music Week # The First week of May was National Music Week. Apparently only a few man- agers noted it and of those who did, Lynn L. Peterson, man- ager of the Fox Rialto Thea- tre, Bremerton, Washington, profited most. A lucky break in the picture scheduled —The Rogue Song — was the inspiration for Peterson to write to about twenty clubs and musical societies, calling at- tention to the week and also to the picture that he was provid- ing. The second paragraph of his letter: "I am writing to you as one who is interested in the finer things of stage and screen—and since you are presi- dent of the Sunshine Society—to give you an ‘inside’ as to the problems of the theatre. What you and I would consider artistic ofttimes proves a ‘flop’ from an attendance stand point. Therefore it devolves itself upon you and me to interest those of the com- munity who appreciate better produc- tions, to the end that they can be made profitable to the theatre; there- by insuring frequent showing here in Bremerton of the classics of the screen.” is an artistic bit of showman- ship as it puts the question of presenting the finer kind of pic- tures directly up to the patrons. The Bremerton Searchlight lined up with Peterson’s gag strongly. In news and editorial columns it urged its readers to show that Bremerton appre- ciated and wanted more pictures of this type. Attendance assured Peterson of popular support in the continuance of his en- deavors. A MAMMOTH CAKE FOR PARTY Shared by Many of The W ellwishers • A City-Wide birthday party marked the first anni- versary of the Fox Theatre, Seattle, Washington. Under the leadership of man- ager Lou Golden, the first year has been just about all that any one could wish. Seattle has taken the Fox unto itself and made it its own. Appreciating the loyalty of his patrons, Golden provided a gigantic birthday cake and set aside Thursday evening, April 24th, for a big party to which he in- vited all Seattle. The mob that turned out, made cutting the cake a mathematical prob- lem of much difficulty. Business firms and civic leaders united in extending their congratulations to both Fox West Coast and Golden. Of course, Lou saw to it that the newspapers were furnished with plenty of publicity and pictures of the cake. And to further demonstrate the true showman, be it known that the cake was contributed by Manager Frank W. Hull of the Olympic Hotel. The birthday party was a wonderful event from all view- points. Lou looks upon it as outstanding inasmuch as the cost to the theatre was prac- tically nil. Best of all were the many testimonials and compliments which Golden received from his great mass of steady patrons. By letters, telegrams and phone calls, Seattle showed its appreci- ation of the splendid entertain- ment which the FOX THEATRE has continually provided.