The Exhibitor (1961)

Nolan has resumed management of the Fernandina Drive-In, Fernandina. . . . Joe Fink has taken over the Palmetto Drive-In, Palmet¬ to, from the former owners, Mr. and Mrs. Roy Jones. . . . Dixie Lee Lyons resigned from the Meti'o staff and has been replaced by Beverly Resnick. . . . Patricia Goin is the new biller at Universal following the resignation of Marjorie Bayer. . . . The Universal staff took over a heavy work load to compete for prize money in the company’s Pete Rosian 20th Anniversary Drive to include saturation bookings for both features and short sub¬ jects. . . . Members of the lATSE projection¬ ists union were observed picketing H. B. Meiselman’s first-run Town and Country ists union were observed picketing H. B. Mieselman’s first-run Town and Country Thea¬ tre on the opening day of “Exodus” in protest against the employment of non-union pro¬ jectionists instead of the unionists who had been previously employed. . . . News of the recent death in Atlanta of Dave Prince, Lopert salesman, was received with regret by his many friends. ... At last count more than 31,000 teachers and students over 12 had purchased 1961 annual identification cards permitting them to attend many of Duval County motion picture theatres at re¬ duced prices midway between adult and child rates. . . . Earl Turbyfill, formerly with the Jack Rigg Booking Service, has opened an independent booking agency here with accounts from several drive-in theatres lo¬ cated in Gainesville, Ft. Lauderdale, Pom¬ pano Beach, and Deerfield Beach. . . . Wayne Chappell, a new booker for Martin Theatres of Atlanta, paid his first visit to local ex¬ changes accompanied by Johnny Harrell, veteran Martin executive. . . . J. E. Bell, form¬ er local exhibitor is now operating the Wash¬ ington Shores Drive-In at Orlando. . . .Walter Hagie, manager, Boynton, Boynton Beach, is now doing his own booking. . . . Henry Kochne, who recently acquired the Citrus Drive-In at Inverness, has renamed it the Sunset Drive-In. . . . Jack Rigg, local booking executive, is reported as a new co-owner, with Ben Cohen and C. H. Kuertz, of the Slappey and Capitol drive-ins at Albany, Ga. . . . Sarah Keller, a booker on Byron Adams’ staff at United Artists, has been elected to the presidency of WOMPI for a term of office that will extend into mid -1962. Mrs. Keller also served as WOMPI president in 1956 when she was a member of Fred Hull’s staff at MGM. The retiring president, Philomena “Phil” Eckert of Columbia, received a vote of thanks for her distinguished record of accomplishments to the WOMPI national and local organizations during the past year. The other new officers of WOMPI include Ann Dillon, Florida State Theatres, as first vicepresident; Edna Nofal, Lake Forest Drive-In, MIAMI, FLA., NEWS— Wometco Enter¬ prises, Inc., announced the reopening of the Parkway, which has been renamed the Park¬ way Theatre and Art Gallery. Harvey Fleischman, Wometco vice-president in charge of art and subsequent run theatres, stated “the tremendous increase in public demand for art and foreign films fostered our decision to make the Parkway a new first-run art theatre.” Remodeling plans nearing comple¬ tion include the conversion of the spacious lobby into an art gallery in which can be exhibited works by artists in all media rather than just paintings, according to Fleischman. Additionally, efforts are being made to use the theatre for other than motion picture ex¬ hibition, whether it be for home decorating classes, lectures, group meetings or perhaps, painting and drawing classes, in an attempt to utilize the theatre for “art in living” in order to integrate it into community life. Art films scheduled for showing at the Park¬ way will not be coincidental with Wometco’s Mayfair and Sunset Art, which are usually booked together. mfAPHlS Sexual behavior pattern in the world is changing and churches, the moral code and censors have not kept pace, a prominent local minister told members of the Memphis Anti-Censorship Group. The Unitarian min¬ ister rapped censors in general, calling for freedom for the artist to show man’s natural expressions. . . . Two religious groups, among other groups, have given formal sup¬ port to the formation of a Judeo-Christian Council for Decency, which aims at halting the showing of objectionable movies and television programs. First Baptist Church, whose minister was active in forming the Council, and The Woman’s Society of Christian Service at Madison Heights Methodist Church were the two groups speaking out for the Council, saying: “We are highly in favor of some form of control through a censorship board, and-or persua¬ sive methods by boycott, publication of ap¬ proval lists, etc., and-or self imposed restric¬ tions by the film industry, such as classifica¬ tion and-or whatever other methods seem advisable.” . . . Carl Wilbanks announces that the Hinz, Walnut, Miss., has closed for a month. . . . G. W. Jones has closed the Oak, Lonoke, Ark. . . . Charles Thurmond has notified Film Transit to resume service for the Melba, Bound Bayou, Miss. NEW HAVEN Smith Management Company shifted Nat Hern, assistant to Alfred Alperin, Meadows Drive-In, Hartford, to managership of the Hollowbrook Drive-In, Peekskill, N.Y. . . . Lockwood & Gordon named Fred Koontz, formerly at the Plaza, Windsor, as manager of the newly reopened Waterford (Conn.) Drive-In, with Ed Gorman replacing him in Windsor. . . . Doug Amos, general man¬ ager of Lockwood and Gordon Enterprises, has announced promotion of Robert Tirrell to Hartford district manager, supervising metropolitan Hartford hard -hops and driveins, plus drive-in operations in the Torrington. Conn., region. Tirrell, who had been tentatively assigned to the post some months ago, was formerly manager of the L&G East Windsor (Conn.) Drive-In. He will work under direct supervision of William Daugherty, who continues as L&G Connecti¬ cut division manager. William F. Murphy, managing director of the Cine Webb, Wethersfield, the circuit’s first-run art situa¬ tion in metropolitan Hartford, will continue to temporarily supervise the Art Theatre, Hartford. . . . Ben Segal, producer of the Oak¬ dale Musical Theatre, summer music tent at Wallingford, Conn., has disclosed long-range plans for a $10 million Oakdale cultural, business and recreational center, on an ex¬ tension of the present Oakdale grounds, to in¬ clude four theatres. One theatre would be an in-the-round type housed in a permanent dome-roofed structure, replacing the present seven-year-old Oakdale tent. This would seat 2,500 and be completed by 1963, the year the lease on the present tent theatre expires. The other three theatres would include a 750seat motion picture house, to show long-run films, such as “Ben-Hur” and “Exodus”; a 2,000-seat theatre for Broadway tryouts; and a 4,000-seat auditorium for large attractions. NEW ORLEANS Reopening was Percy Duplessis’ El Rancho Drive-In, DeRidder, La., which was closed during the winter months. . . . David Bubar purchased the Joy, Melville, La., from NAB AND THE "POSITIVE” APPROACH We have often stated . . . that if film rating services would spend a little more time stressing what is good in motion picture entertainment and a little less time warning their members that a trip to the movies was a short-cut to perdition, they could accomplish a great deal more than they do. It’s nice to learn that someone is doing just that . . . National Audience Board, Inc. ...is a service organization that rates entertainment at the request of producers, broadcasters, etc. They recently entered the field of motion picture entertainment and have been (quizzing the opinion makers, teachers, PTA groups, organization leaders, etc., that comprise their membership on the relative merits of several feature films. NAB has also established an Award of Merit for film features rated particularly high by_ participants in their poll, and the first such honor went to Columbia’s "Hand in Hand’’. . . Here we have an example, if we may borrow a phrase, of the power of positive thinking. NAB is to be commended for doing what it can to turn the focus of public attention to motion pictures in a more positive direction. It seems only sensible to believe that positive support, both vocal and at the nation’s box offices, is the real way to assure production of the kind of pictures the public says it wants . . . /»< Ub kjidj M/yuMlLeL. PRESIDENT NATIONAL AUDIENCE BOARD, INC. ONE.FIFTYTWO east end avenue, NEWYORKZ^.K Y May 17, 1961 MOTION PICTURE EXHIBITOR 19