The Exhibitor (1954)

MOTION PICTURE EXHIBITOR NT-3 Star Caravan To Philly Crows Philadelphia — Rita Gam, g’ amorous U-I star; Paul Gregory, produc'r of the recently formed Grego y Go dmau Enterprises; Alfred \V. Schwalberg, president. Paramount Fi’m Distribut¬ ing Corporation, and his wife, f-^rmer silent fi m star, Carmel Myers, signified their intention last week to join the Hollywood caravan to the dedication of the Nickelodeon in Franklin Institute. Participating in ceremonies for the Nickelodeon, a functioning repHca of the earliest movie houses, on Jan. 18 will be top acting, directing, and pro¬ duction personnel from the motion picture capital. Academy Award winner Donna Reed and director George Sidney have also announced their intention of attending the dedication of the “shrine to the motion picture industry.” One of the principal events of the dedication ceremony will be the pre¬ sentation of a medallion to Charles Laughton by S. Wyman Rolph, pres¬ ident of the Institute. Laughton will be the first non-scientist in recent years to be welcomed to life membership in the Institute. In addition, Laughton will be the first celebrity to have his hands and feet impressed in concrete on an area before the enterance to the Nickelodeon, This area, now boarded, will be I’eplaced, slab by slab, by concrete, on which prints will be impressed as ce¬ lebrities visit the Nickelodeon. Two addititional events will be part of the Nickelodeon dedication. They are a luncheon given by the Franklin Institute preceding the Nickelodeon opening, and a dinner by the Motion Picture Asso¬ ciates of Philadelphia that evening at the Bellevue-Stratford Hotel. Also, the entire membership of the Franklin Insti¬ tute, about 7,000 persons, has been invited to attend a special evening at the Nickelodeon on Jan. 21. Donor of the Nickelodeon is William Goldman, head, William Goldman Thea¬ tres and Gregory-Goldman Enterprises, who is also general chairman of the MPA dinner. In keeping with the theme of cinema history, the $25-a-plate MPA dinner will honor four area pioneers of the motion picture business wbo started back in nickelodeon days, according to Sam Diamond, branch manager, 20thFox, and president. Associates. They are A1 Boyd, Ben Amsterdam, Abe Sablosky, and William C. Hunt. Proceeds of the MPA dinner will go to the welfare committee of the group. John Koczak’s Earle, New Cast'e, Pa.; and Dan Cudone’s Edge Moor. . . . The Earle held its annual pre-Christmas matinee for kiddies. . . . The Edge Moor held special matinees daily during the week before Christmas. . . . The recently reopened Park announced plans to install CinemaScope. . . . H. S. Eskin’s Arcadia held a television giveaway. . . . The SW Grand gave away prizes and candy at a Christmas Eve show. . . . Thanks to all in the trade who sent us Christmas cards. — H. L. S. Mrs. Albert Zlatin, president. Variety Guild, Ladies Auxiliary of Tent 19, Variety Club, Baltimore, Md., recently presented to Chief Barker Rodney Collier a check for $1,000 for the Tent’s chari¬ table activities. Maryland Baltimore With an election coming up Jan. 10, the Motion Picture and Television Oper¬ ators Union has nominated the follow¬ ing, John P. Codd, president; Earl Jackson, Jr., and Harry Bauer, first vicepresident; Edward Silver and Leonard Cluster, second vice-president; Edwin Wyatt, recording secretary; Harry Kuszmal, financial secretary; William Holthaus, treasurer; Robert Cramblitt, sergeant at arms; and Charles Reisinger, business agent. Leon Back, president. Allied Motion Picture Theatre Owners of Maryland, spent the past week in Atlantic City, N. J. . . . Edward Kimpel, Sr., manager. Leader, returned to duty last week, hav¬ ing recovered from injuries received in an auto accident early in December. . . . The Rialto, Rome Circuit, was closed the week before Christmas for redecorating. It reopened Christmas Day. Ray Trumble, general manager. New and Keiths, for Jack Fruchtman, had his mother and father in town from Kansas for the holidays. They hadn’t seen their son in several years. . . . Ted Kirwan, manager. New, and Mrs. Kirwan were in New York to see the musical hit, “Kismet.” . . . Rodney Collier, manager, Stanley, with Mrs. Collier and their young daughter, visited Collier’s rel¬ atives in Washington for a Christmas eve family dinner. This attractive music store window dis¬ play was used recently as part of the promotion on Warners’ “A Star Is Born,” Warner. Reading, Pa. Hank Howard, RKO’s Philadelphia office, was in town for advance on “Hansel and Gretel” at the Mayfair. . . . Jack Sidney, head of Loew’s, here, put on a screening for the press and radn of “Deep In My Heart” at the Valencia. . . . Ted Routson, manager. Playhouse, is a patient at Sinai Hospital with pneumonia. ^ „ (jr. L). Hagerstown SW Maryland recently sponsored a bus load of church people who attended a showing of “This Is Cinerama” at the Warner, Washington. City manager George Payette arranged the trip. Leonardtown Over 1,000 happy kids attended the Christmas party staged at the Park, Lexington Park, Md., which had them as guests at a cartoon show and presented them with fruit, candy and popcorn as they left the theatre to see Santa Claus in the person of manager T. L. Harri¬ son, Jr., arriving on the Volunteer Fire Department truck. . . . Ray Trumbule, promotion manager. Jack Fruchtman Southern Maryland Theatres, received a surprise visit on Christmas from his parents, Mr. and Mrs. E. F. Trumbule, Pittsburgh, Kans. Trumbule and his wife are house hunting in and near Balti¬ more, Md., since Fruchtman has taken over the Keith and New there. Mr. and Mrs. Nat A. Hodgdon oper¬ ated the Park and Plaza, Lexington Park, Md., on Christmas day so that Everything for Your Theatre! STEREOPHO]\IC SOEIVD SYSTEMS • BLUMBERG BROS., INC. Office Phone: Emergency Nite Phone: LOmbard Welsh Valley 3-7240 3-7241 4-4920 4-5368 1305-07 Vine Street. Philadelphia 7, Pa. S'tace S^iiTIGS CoVCriUGS pain'll T16 OecolUfmG Murals paramount Qecoratinj (o.,|nc. 311 N. 13 5TRIET IllDMAN PHILADELPHIA 7, PA. BIRNARI JEISMaN PROGRESSIVE ELECTRIC CONSTRUCTION CO., INC. 240 N. 13th STREET • PHILADELPHIA 7. PA. Theatre Installations and Maintenance January/ 5, 1955