The Exhibitor (1956)

MOTION PICTURE EXHIBITOR 23 New Officers Named By Denver Barkers Denver — Variety Club, Tent 37, has named Jack R. Felix, Allied Artists branch manager, chief barker for 1957. Others named include Jim R. Ricketts, Para¬ mount branch manager, first assistant; Robert G. Sweeten, Centre manager, sec¬ ond assistant; Joe B. Stone, National Theatre Supply branch manager, dough guy; and Bruce Marshall, Columbia sales¬ man, property master. The crew includes Duke Dunbar, attorney general of Colo¬ rado; Marvin Goldfarb, Buena Vista dis¬ trict supervisor; Fred Knill, office man¬ ager, Gibraltar Theatres; Jack Wodell, Paramount; Phil Isaacs, Paramount divi¬ sion manager; and Robert Lotito, pub¬ licity man. About 35 members of Variety were en¬ tertained at the University of Denver, which is the location of the University of Denver-Variety Club Child Clinic, the major charity outlet for the Tent. Short talks were made by faculty members, and Variety members were favorably impress¬ ed with the work being done. Granada, West Salem; Home, Oblong, managed by Ben Pennell; and Ritz, Crossville, George Barnett, manager. . . . Jack Kirsch, president, of Allied Theatres of Illinois, reported, as chairman of the theatre and amusement division, Com¬ munity Fund drive, that his workers achieved 105 per cent of quota. . . . Walter Graves, 71, sales manager, Mills Industries, died. . . . The Tower is plan¬ ning an appeal in its $2,000,000 anti-trust suit against all the majors and Balaban and Katz, which it lost after a jury trial in U.S. District Court. . . . Columnist Irv Kupcinet offered two tickets to “My Fair Lady” in New York to the highest con¬ tributor to La Rabida Sanatarium, Variety Club’s main charity. The pair went to adman Sam Perlstein. . . . Henry Porter, National Screen, is better after a hospital stay. . . . Jack Albertson was named Vogue manager, East Chicago. Cincinnati Preparations for an unusually active holiday period are underway along Film Row, with several main office publicity men in to help promote films scheduled into local houses. Among them were A1 Margolin, promoting RKO’s “Bundle Of Joy”; Robert Mochrie, for MGM’s “Guys And Dolls”; and Sandy Weiner, Conti¬ nental Films. Also in was George Schur, head of Paramount branch operations. The local exchange won the first place ship¬ ping award in the second phase of the company’s sales drive, and was running first in the third phase. . . . Distributors Corporation of America has opened an office at 1714 Logan Street for the In¬ dianapolis and local areas. Murray Baker, formerly IFE representative, is branch manager, and William Garner, formerly with Buena Vista, is office manager. . . . James Velde, United Artists’ general sales manager, was honor guest at a luncheon in the Hotel Netherland-Hilton, attended by numerous Film Row executives and area exhibitors. . . . Ray Frisz, Chakeres Circuit, Springfield, O., is recovering from a heart attack suffered while visiting friends in Texas. He was enroute to Jack Fink, Park, Tampa, Fla., recently used this crowd-stopping display to publicize his showing of U-I's “Unguarded Moment. Caracas, Venezuela, to visit his brother. . . . Nelson Burwell has sold the Burwell, Parkersburg, W. Va., to the JUR Circuit. . . . The annual Christmas party for 20th-Fox personnel will be held Dec. 15 in the Hotel Alms. . . . William Canter, assistant manager, Murphy, Wilmington, O., has been promoted to manager, Col¬ ony, Hillsboro, O., replacing William Clifford, resigned. Both are Chakeies houses. COLUMBUS, O., NEWS— Leo Yassenoff, Academy circuit, was reelected vicepresident, Columbus Boys’ Club. Floyd Gooding, carnival operator and head of Zoo Park, was reelected president. . . . Loew’s Ohio and Loew’s Broad are selling Christmas gift books for the first time. RKO Theatres are selling similar books. . . . Barton Cook, Moonlight and Del-Air Auto Theatres, Chillicothe, O., is the new¬ est member of Independent Theatre Own¬ ers of Ohio, secretary Robert Wile an¬ nounced. . . . Ohio exhibitors attending the Dallas National Allied meeting in¬ cluded Louis Wiethe, Cincinnati; Jack Needham, Columbus; Ruben Shor, Cin¬ cinnati; Richard Myers, Chillicothe; Mar¬ vin Frankel, Elyria; Leland Krieg, Nelsonville; George Walker, Woodville; Park Belden, Akron; Robert Morrell, Cincin¬ nati; Vincent Lauter, Barberton; and Horace Adams, Cleveland. Cleveland Republic branch manager Jules Liv¬ ingston has received a letter from Herbert Yates, president, stating categorically that there is no plan to close any of the com¬ pany’s domestic branches and that pro¬ duction at the studios will start in late January. . . . The 27-day newspaper blackout ended last fortnight with con¬ tract agreements signed with all of the affiliated crafts . Harry Rafka, long¬ time member of the Community Circuit, has made a complete change. The former manager of the Lower Mall is now one of the treasurers at the Palace, where Cinerama is playing. . . . Leonard Steffens, veteran member of the Columbia ex¬ change, has just been appointed sales manager and office manager by branch manager Jerome Safron. This is a new combination of activities. . . . August Ilg, former owner, Ohio, Lorain, O., who maintains an interest in show business though retirerd, says that “not since I played ‘Ben Hur’ have I seen such crowds as came to the Ohio to see ‘Friendly Per¬ suasion’.” Manager Dick Klein put on a big promotion campaign for the engage Variety Radio Show Launched In Houston Houston — “Variety,” a new Saturday radio show, is being carried on six of the eight local stations, with the other sta¬ tions broadcasting the show on Sunday. The six stations presenting the Saturday program are KPRC, KXYZ, KTHT, KNUZ, KLBS, and KYOK. Those carrying the show on Sunday are KTRH and KCOH. On the new show, Variety Club, Tent 34, will present a weekly program fea¬ turing performances by top entertainers donating their talents in behalf of the Club. Local chief barker Paul Boesch said that information about the work of Variety and the progress of the Houston Variety Boys’ Club in combating juvenile delinquency will be provided also. Boesch, Dick Gottlieb, and Fred Nahas were the masters of ceremonies for the first airing. “Variety” will be produced by Murray Getz and co-directed by Bob Blase and Ken Bagwell. Fred Gibbons will be musical director. ment including, a popular disc jockey in the theatre looby playing Pat Boone songs. . . . Ted Levy, Buena Vista district man¬ ager, has booked “Secrets Of Life” into the Lower Mall as a special Christmas attraction. M. H. Fritchie, Oliver Theatre Supply manager, is putting new equipment in Louis Ratener’s Montrose Drive-In. This includes new projectors and lenses, neces¬ sitated by placing the projection booth back 100 feet from its former location. Ratener is building an entirely new con¬ cession building at an estimated cost of $50,000. . . . Tony Reinman resigned as Columbia office manager to rejoin United Artists as head booker. His successor at Columbia was to be announced shortly. . . . Louis Eick, Martins Ferry, O., theatre owner and member of the board, Inde¬ pendent Theatre Owners of Ohio, was a patient in the Martins Ferry Hospital. ... It was reported that Herman Kruse closed his Charve, Edgerton, O., until further notice. . . . Marshall Fine, Asso¬ ciated Circuit, reelected chief barker, Variety Club, for a second term, was clearing his desk in anticipation of a sixweek trip to the west coast and Hawaii. . . . Cleveland Motion Picture Exhibitors Association holds its annual general mem¬ bership meeting to elect officers on Jan. 8, time and place to be announced. . . . Irwin Pollard, head, Imperial Pictures, has set his package program, “Tedda” and “Apache Woman,” in seven neighborhood houses for a simultaneous first-run en¬ gagement this week. Dallas Mack Gordon, composer who wrote music and lyrics for RKO’s “Bundle Of Joy,” arrived for a round of personal appearances. . . . Dallas’ 15th annual com¬ munity Thanksgiving service was held in the Majestic, instead of at the Palace. The change in location was made because of a previous commitment Interstate had made for the Palace. ... A circle of Dallas friends, including Karl Hoblitzelle, John Q. Adams, and Bill Mitchell, Inter¬ state; Dave and Jake Lutzer, local film men; oil tycoon Tex Feldman; and Para¬ mount representative Bob Bixler accom December 12, 1956