The Exhibitor (1966)

No Merger, Sale In Disney Future Cinerama Back in Buffalo As Century Refurbishes BUFFALO — The Century theatre is to be¬ come the new home of Cinerama in Buffalo. This has been announced by Carl E. Schaner, managing director of the downtown United Artists Circuit, 2,700-seat, first-run operation which will close for a few weeks near the end of February and will undergo extensive refur¬ bishment, renovation, and the installation of new equipment. The Century seating capacity will be re¬ duced to 1,200 for the new single projector Cinerama process, and the first attraction in the newly remodeled house will be MGM’s “Grand Prix.” The redecoration has started. The theatre is closed in the morning, is re¬ opening for regular shows about 1:45 p.m., and at the end of the month will be shut down completely, reopening with “Grand Prix’' shortly before Easter. One of the Century innovations will be a new semi-circular screen 74 feet wide, approxi¬ mately 33 feet high, with a radius depth of 26 feet. The screen will be erected in front of the present flat screen and will extend through the area now occupied by box seats. The projection booth will be brought down to the main floor; all seats will be reuphol¬ stered; and new draperies and carpeting will be placed. The entire balcony will be draped off, Schaner said, although seats there will be available for certain shows. On specific occa¬ sions, the house could expand to 2,300 seats. Formerly housed in Shea’s Teck, Cinerama has not been seen in Buffalo since the presenta¬ tion of “How the West Was Won” in the spring of 1963 in that theatre. “Our feeling is that there is room for some¬ thing different in downtown Buffalo,” said Schaner. “We believe that the new trend in theatre operation has made it mandatory that we become involved in special projects, and this Cinerama technique is special in every sense of the word. “With our new installations, the Century will be able to present motion pictures in any possible projection process.” A number of special wide screen films have been booked for the Century, and there is a possibility that some of the older Cinerama hits will be brought back to be presented in the single project or process. Joint UJA Drive Set NEW YORK— The initial committee meet¬ ing of the newly formed entertainment and communications division of the United Jewish Appeal of Greater New York was held in the offices of Paramount Pictures Corp., at a luncheon hosted by Paramount’s chairman of the board Barney Balaban, a treasurer and trustee of UJA. The new division is a welding of motion picture and broadcasting groups which func¬ tioned as separate entities in past campaigns. Members of the two industries have been con¬ tributing about $650,000 a year to the UJA which campaigns on behalf of six major wel¬ fare agencies engaged in overseas relief and rehabilitation activities, in resettlement and absorption programs for refugees arriving in Israel, the United States and other lands of freedopi, as well as meeting spiritual needs of Jews in the U.S. armed services. Exhibs Must Be Militant On TV Sales, Says Arkoff DALLAS — Samuel Z. Arkoff, chairman of the board of American International Pictures, and Sherrill C. Corwin, president of the National Association of Theatre Owners, in talks to the Texas D-I Theatre Association which held its 15th annual con¬ vention here at the Statler Hilton Hotel, blasted the “early” sale of motion pictures to television networks. A militant attitude by the exhibitors to¬ ward the sale of motion pictures to the net¬ works was urged by Arkoff. He pointed out that release of the films to the networks is made sometimes less than 15 months after they have been released for first run en¬ gagements. He said that it was up to the exhibitors to stop the early sale of films to television, and that the exhibitors told the distribu¬ tors that they cannot release films for tele¬ vision almost day and date with the the¬ atres. Arkoff stated that five years is a good period of time for distributors to wait be¬ fore they release films for television show¬ ings. Unless a picture is a loser, Arkoff pledged that A IP would not release any of its product for at least five years after the first theatre playdate. Levin Plans Unrealistic, O'Brien Tells Stockholders NEW YORK — MGM president Robert H. O’Brien, responding to dissident stockholder Philip Levin’s announced plans for the com¬ pany’s future, stated: “Mr. Levin and his group have packaged another assemblage of unrealistic promises which once again demonstrates their lack of knowledge and experience in the motion pic¬ ture business. Their plan for a spin-off of our company’s film library is not in the interest of the company, either short term or long range, and is not at all what they claim Columbia Pictures did. Flis suggestion of coupling this spin-off with similar actions in the record division and the foreign theatre operation smacks of liquidation. “Their vague references to real estate de¬ velopment ill-suits people with their reputed knowledge in that form of business, since they know that MGM’s own program for utilization of studio property and the development of a new studio is in progress. “Finally, their suggestion that they will slash salaries ill-becomes this group since it is a matter of record that Messrs. Wilder and Horwitz, upon completing take over of U.S. Smelting, immediately provided themselves with annual salaries substantially in excess of the salaries received by the predecessors they removed.” UA Votes Special Dividend NEW YORK — The board of directors of United Artists Corporation voted a special cash dividend of 25 cents per share on its com¬ mon stock, payable Feb. 28 to stockholders of record at the close of business on Feb. 17. Roy Disney Emphatic On Business-As-Usual Policy; No Plans To Release Film Library For TV BURBANK, CALIF.— Ever since Walt Dis¬ ney died last Dec. 15, there have been rumors that Walt Disney Productions will be up for sale or a merger. There is nothing to the grape¬ vine gossip, and you can take the word of Roy O. Disney, president and board chairman, at the firm’s annual stockholders meeting last week. Walt’s older brother added that the company is approached with merger-sale of¬ fers almost daily. “We have no intentions to merge or sell out in whole or part,” Roy Disney told the stock¬ holders. “We’d be foolish to take a step like that. It would be absurd to let an outside group come in and run the company just because they have money. It would be the company’s ruination.” In an emphatic address, Disney pointed out that the Disney family owns sufficient shares to block any take-over bid. He said the Disneys own in the neighborhood of 34 percent of the company’s two million outstanding shares. Disney and other executives assured shareholders that the company will carry on much in the same manner as it did before Walt Disney’s death. “We’re going to try to proceed on all fronts, as though it had not happened.” Approximately 300 shareholders attended the Burbank meeting, at which it was an¬ nounced that profits in the first quarter of the current fiscal year, the period that ended Dec. 21, amounted to $20,092,000, equal to $1.03 a share on revenues of $20,536,000. This compares with $22,122,000 or $1.10 a share on revenues of $18,750,000 for the year ago period. The Disney cash dividend — considered “skinny” by the financial community — stands little chance of being increased, Donn B. Tatum, vice-president of administration and assistant president, said in answer to a share¬ holder’s question. After the meeting, directors declared the usual quarterly dividend of 10 cents, payable April 1 to stockholders of record of March 15. The company also has been paying a three percent stock dividend. E. Cardon Walker, vice-president of market¬ ing, said in answer to a shareholder’s question that the company has no plans to sell its film library, which some financial sources say is worth more than $100 per Disney share. “There is no intelligent way to put a value on it,” Walker said. “It’s value depends on how you use it.” Walker said Disney might lease a few films to tv for one or two-time showings, but will keep most for reissues in theatres. This June, it plans for the fourth reissue of “Snow White,” and Walker expects it to gross $5 million. On other reissues, the film has grossed a total of $6.1 million. Walker added he expects the big¬ gest year in history for Disney films, which contribute about 50 percent of the company’s revenues. The company will proceed as scheduled with its vast “Disney World” project in Florida and with expansion in Disneyland, Walker said. As to its Mineral King park in California, further development depends on the state’s building entrance roads (partly with federal money). February 15, 1967 MOTION PICTURE EXHIBITOR 7