Motion Picture News (Oct-Dec 1927)

18% Motion P i c t u r c N e iv s Showmanship Brief si A NOVEL display in connection with theatre construction is being attempted in Detroit by the Fox Theatres Corp., with the erection of its $10,500,000 theatre on Woodward Avenue above Grand Circus Park. William Buttner, sculpturist in ornamental work, is already at work modeling the Hindu temple design and he has baen placed in a huge show window on one side of the theatre, where his work is commanding the attention of thousands of passersby daily. The new Fox will have the largest balcony span of any theatre in the world. Steel work has been completed and plastering is about to commence. The theatre will be op;ned in midsummer of 1928. ALTHOUGH Sunday performances are taboo in Ontario and other Provinces of Canada, Manager Charles Querrie of the Palace Theatre, Toronto, arranges a special lobby display for every Sunday, the exhibition comprising posters, still photographs and announcements on early attractions. The lobby is left wide open and plenty of people walk in, during their Sunday strolls, to look around. Each poster is duly marked with proper dates. MANAGER CHARLES J. JONES, of the Colonial, Harrisburg, startled the business section of the city, by turning a gorilla loose on the streets on December 2 and 3. But it proved to be only a man in the guise of the hairy brute, carrying a placard announcing he would be "caught" by two detectives the following -week in the Colonial, where the film play, "The Gorilla," ivas booked for a six-day run. FpRED MEYER, manager of the Alhambra Theatre in Milwaukee, got all the leading department stores to make a silk stocking drive while "Silk Stockings" was running at his theatre. Each store devoted a large window entirely and exclusively to large Laura La Plante cut outs and stills surrounded by artistic silk stocking displays. THE Strand Theatre, York, Pa., is materially increasing its sale of tickets during the Christmas holiday season by offering books of six tickets for $2, making a material reduction in the price of tickets if bought individually. The special holiday offer is extensively advertised in the newspapers. WORD-OF-MOUTH advertising has been found profitable by the Jayhazvk theatre. Topcka, Kas. Each week midnight previeivs of future pictures to be shown at the house are shown to a limited number of patrons. About one month later the picture receives a regular showing and the results of verbal advertising prove a surprise to even the management, it is said. MANAGER GEORGE OLIVE of the Columbus theatre, 58th St., and 8th Ave., New York, attracted attention to his presentation of "Seventh Heaven" by means of a street worker dressed in tha uniform of a French soldier. He carried a rifle with bayonet fixed and marched up and down in front of the theatre. At times he attracted such crowds that Olive was forced to call trim in off the street. Which is just another illustration that the simple stunt often registers as sensationally as the biggest, even in the big cities. Three hundred cadets from West Point visited New York to attend the opening al the Strand thealne of "Dress Parade," in which they saw themselves on the screen. Photo above shows the cadets colmnn-lef ting into the Strand from Broadway. Hyman Stage Shows for Earle And Stanley Theatres EWARD L. EYMAN, managing director of the Brooklyn Mark Strand theatre, will produce stage presentations for the Earle theatre in Washington, 1). C, and the Stanley in Baltimore, both Stanley-Crandall theatres. Hyman will continue his duties as managing director of the Brooklyn Strand, and the stage numbers he product's there will supply the material for the acts lie produces for the two Crandall houses. This new policy, under which presentations Avill replace vaudeville at the Earle theatre, will be introduced at that house on December 24, when the first of the Hyman shows will be presented in Washington. The numbers will then be routed as a unit to the Stanley in Baltimore. It is planned to move the twenty-five piece orchestra from the Metropolitan in Washington to the Earle Theatre. First-run pictures will also be shown in conjunction with this orchestra and with the stage presentations. The Washington and Baltimore shows will be very similar to the ones in Brooklyn insofar as routine goes. Hyman plans to make up a performance of from six to eight diversified incidents, some of these being taken from Brooklyn intact, while some will be made up especially for the two outside theatres. The first program for the Earle in Washington, starting Dec. 24, will be made up as follows: the overture played by the Earle Orchestra, with David Breeskin conductor, will be Liszt's "Second Hungarian Rhapsody" and the Earle Ballett Corps will assist for a flashing finish. The lighting effects will be devised by Hyman as per his Brooklyn custom. The second incident will be Caesar Nesi, tenor and clarinetist, who will step out from the orchestra to sing Toselli's "Serenade" and the Italian folk song, " Al Frangesa. ' ' Incident three will be on the screen "Franz Schubert," one of the Fitzpatrick Music Master Series. This will lie followed by a ballet presentation, "Meditation" from "Thais," in full stage, with Sascha Kindler, concert master, playing the "Meditation" as a violin solo, standing beside his chair in the orchestra. Incident five will be the Earle Topical Review, and the final stage incident preceding the picture will be "The Jazz Carnival, with several star artists including Vale and Stewart, Walter Smith, baritone; Rostivo, accordionist and whistler;" Caesar Nesi, tenor, and the Serova Dancing Girls. The choreography of these numbers will he done by Mme. Serova, as has been her custom in Brooklyn, while the stage setting will be done by Thomas Farrar, the Art Director for the Brooklyn house. College Nights Feature of Show at Hippodrome A series of college nights, at which the leading colleges in New York City were honored, proved effective as an exploitation aid for the run of "The College Hero" at the New York Hippodrome. This special exploitation was arranged by the publicity department of Columbia Pictures, distributors of the picture. The colleges sending representatives were Fordham, Columbia, N. Y. U., and City College. The college glee clubs, bands and cheer leaders appeared on the stage as a prologue to the picture presentation.