Motion Picture Herald (Mar-Apr 1945)

PICTURE CROSSES A statistical compilation and comparison of Box-Office Performance in first-run theatres Figures directly below picture title compare dollar gross with average gross and show relative percentage of all engagements tabulated. Figures opposite theatre names represent percentage of tabulated grosses to average weekly business based on the six months' period ending January 31, 1945. SYMBOLS: (DB) Double Bill— associate feature title; (SA) Stage Attraction; (MO) Move-Over Run; (AA) Advance Admission. INDEX: Over-all performance percentage figures from previously published final reports appear in Service Data section of Product Digest. See last column of Release Chart for Index. MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS (MCM) Final Reports: Total Gross Tabulated $1,465,000 Comparative Average Gross 1,125,400 Over-all Performance 130.1% BALTIMORE— Century, 1st week 133.3% BALTIMORE— Century, 2nd week 111.7% BALTIMORE— Century, 3rd week 85.3% BUFFALO— Great Lakes 142.8% CINCINNATI— RKO Palace, 1st week .... 169.0% CINCINNATI— RKO Palace, 2nd week .... 91.5% CLEVELAND — Loew's State, 1st week .... 175.4% CLEVELAND— Loew's State, 2nd week .... 115.0% CLEVELAND^Loew's Stillman, MO 1st week . 128.5% INDIANAPOLIS— Loew's, 1st week 150.0% INDIANAPOLIS — Loew's, 2nd week 104.1% KANSAS CITY— Midland, 1st week 154.4% KANSAS CITY— Midland, 2nd week 151.6% KANSAS CITY— Midland, 3rd week 146.4% LOS ANGELES— Egyptian, 1st week 176.0% LOS ANGELES— Egyptian, 2nd week 123.3% LOS ANGELES— Egyptian, 3rd week .... 98.7% LOS ANGELES— Egyptian, 4th week 83.3% LOS ANGELES — Egyptian, 5th week 70.0% LOS ANGELES— Los Angeles, 1st week . . . 164.0% LOS ANGELES— Los Angeles, 2nd week . . . 88.0% LOS ANGELES— Los Angeles, 3rd week . . . 104.0% LOS ANGELES— Los Angeles, 4th week . . . 96.0% LOS ANGELES— Los Angeles, 5th week . . . 74.1% LOS ANGELES— Ritz, 1st week 208.0% LOS ANGELES — Ritz, 2nd week 122.4% LOS ANGELES — Ritz, 3rd week 104.0% LOS ANGELES— Ritz, 4th week 91.2% LOS ANGELES— Ritz, 5th week 72.6% MILWAUKEE— Wisconsin, 1st week 137.4% (DB) Main Street After Dark (MGM) MILWAUKEE— Wisconsin, 2nd week 114.5% (DB) Main Street After Dark (MGM) MINNEAPOLIS— State, 1st week 160.3% MINNEAPOLIS— State, 2nd week 113.2% MINNEAPOLIS— State, 3rd week 113.2% NEW YORK— Astor, 1st week 171.7% NEW YORK— Astor, 2nd week 150.0% NEW YORK— Astor, 3rd week 147.4% NEW YORK— Astor, 4th week 138.3% NEW YORK— Astor, 5th week 171.1% NEW YORK— Astor, 6th week 137.9% NEW YORK— Astor, 7th week 136.2% NEW YORK— Astor, 8th week 137.5% NEW YORK— Astor, 9th week 135.7% NEW YORK— Astor, 10th week 130.6% PHILADELPHIA— Aldine, 1st week 190.6% PHILADELPHIA— Aldine, 2nd week 220.5% PHILADELPHIA— Aldine, 3rd week 194.8% PHILADELPHIA— Aldine, 4th week 156.1% PHILADELPHIA— Aldine, 5th week 149.5% PHILADELPHIA— Aldine, 6th week 129.9%, PHILADELPHIA— Aldine, 7th week 152.1% PHILADELPHIA— Aldine, 8th week 141.9% PHILADELPHIA— Aldine, 9th week 134.1% PROVIDENCE— Loew's State, 1st week .... 133.7% PROVIDENCE— Loew's State, 2nd week .... 106.0% PROVIDENCE— Loew's State, 3rd week .... 54.8% SAN FRANCISCO1 — Fox, 1st week 147.6% (DB) Main Street After Dark (MGM) SAN FRANCISCO— Fox, 2nd week 100.7% (DB) Main Street After Dark (MGM) SAN FRANCISCO— State, MO 1st week . . . 137.9% (DB) Main Street After Dark (MGM) ST. LOUIS— Loew's State, 1st week 198.2% ST. LOUIS— Loew's State, 2nd week ...... 130.8% ST. LOUIS— Orpheum, MO 1st week .... 112.5% ST. LOUIS— Orpheum, MO 2nd week .... 117.1% TORONTO— Loew's 118.3% WASHINGTON— Palace. 1st week 144.4% WASHINGTON— Palace, 2nd week ...... 122.2% WASHINGTON— Palace, 3rd week 100.0% • SUNDAY DINNER FOR A SOLDIER (20th CenturyFox) Final Reports: Total Gross Tabulated $467,000 Comparative Average Gross 426,000 Over-all Performance 109.6% BALTIMORE— New, 1st week 105.8% (DB) The Fighting Lady (20th-Fox) BALTIMORE— New, 2nd week . • 71.4% (DB) The Fighting Lady (20th-Fox) BUFFALO— Hippodrome 107.4% (DB) The Fighting Lady (20th-Fox) CINCINNATI— Keith's, 1st week 138.8% (DB) The Fighting Lady (20th-Fox) CINCINNATI— Keith's, 2nd week 92.6% (DB) The Fighting Lady (20th-Fox) DENVER— Paramount 131.3% KANSAS CITY— Esquire 178.5% KANSAS CITY— Uptown 137.9% LOS ANGELES— Cathay Circle 66.0% (DB) The Fighting Lady (20th-Fox) LOS ANGELES— Chinese 70.4% (DB) The Fighting Lady (20th-Fox) LOS ANEGELES— Loew's State 85.3% (DB) The Fighting Lady (20th-Fox) LOS ANGELES— Uptown 73.3% (DB) The Fighting Lady (20th-Fox) MINNEAPOLIS— Orpheum 218.2% (SA) Vaudeville NEW YORK— Roxy, 1st week 122.7% (SA) Cafe Zanzibar Revue NEW YORK— Roxy, 2nd week 108.6% (SA) Cafe Zanzibar Revue PHILADELPHIA— Stanton 117.9% PITTSBURGH— Harris, 1st week 102.5% (DB) The Fighting Lady (20th-Fox) PITTSBURGH— Harris, 2nd week 50.0% (DB) The Fighting Lady (20th-Fox) PITTSBURGH— Senator, MO 1st week .... 100.0% (DB) The Fighting Lady (20th-Fox) SAN FRANCISCO— Warfield 116.4% (SA) Vaudeville SAN FRANCISCO^State, MO1 1st week . . . 124.1% (DB) The Fighting Lady (20th -Fox) SEATTLE^Music Hall 131.9% (DB) The Fighting Lady (20th-Fox) ST. LOUIS— Ambassador 92.8% (DB) The Fighting Lady (20thFox) WASHINGTON— Capitol 94.0% (SA) Vaudeville • TONIGHT AND EVERY NIGHT (Col.) First Reports: Total Gross Tabulated $132,800 Comparative Average Gross 137,100 Over-all Performance 96.8% BALTIMORE— Hippodrome. 1st week 107.7% (SA) Vaudeville BALTIMORE— Hippodrome, 2nd week 93.9%, (SA) Vaudeville CINCINNATI— RKO Albee 92.5% CINCINNATI— RKO Grand, MO 1st week . . 70.0% CLEVELAND— Warner's Hippodrome .... 100.5% DENVER— Denver 88.6% DENVER— Esquire 91.8%, MILWAUKEE— Palace 106.7% (DB) I Love a Mystery (Col.) OMAHA— Brandeis 98.6% (DB) The Missing Juror (Col.) PITTSBURGH-Harris 111.1% NEW BASE LINE Beginning in this issue, the average, or 100 per cent, line of these tabulations is the average weekly business of the theatres concerned for the six months ending January 31, 1945. The previous period ended October 31, 1944. This brings into the new base a recognition of current economic conditions as they affect box office performance. Reginald Barker, Pioneer Film Director, Dies Reginald Barker, 58, pioneer film director a producer who made more than a score of nota silent films, featuring such stars as William ' Hart, Lon Chaney and Geraldine Farrar, died a heart attack February 23 at his Pasadena hor less than a week after his marriage to Katheri McHugh, his third wife. Mr. Barker for ye; was a leading figure in the Academy of Arts a Sciences and was one of the group which in 19 organized the industry's first committee to comt plagiarism. His first wife was the film star Cla Williams, whom he married in 1929. He lat married Nona Claridge Geiger. Besides his wide he leaves a brother, Neil, and a sister, Mrs. Huj Ferry, of Londsay, Cal. Tess Slesinger, Writer, Ten Years on Coast Tess Slesinger, 39, film writer, died Februai 21 in Cedars of Lebanon Hospital, Los Angele She had been ill for six months. Many of h< stories were published in leading magazines, an she was perhaps best known for her novel, "Th Unpossessed," which appeared in 1934. She werj to Hollywood as a writer in 1934 and was mai ried to Frank Davis, producer and writer, in 193( They collaborated recently in adapting "A Tre Grows in Brooklyn" for the screen. Survivin, besides her husband, are a daughter, Jane; a soi Peter; and her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Anthon; Slesinger, and three brothers, Laurence, Stephei and Donald Slesinger, director of the Americai Film Center, educational film unit subsidized by ; Rockefeller grant. 1 t. Judge Davis, Named in Fox Bankruptcy Case John Warren Davis, Sr., 77, retired judge of the Third United States Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia, died February 23 at the Norfolk Hospital, Norfolk, Va. Judge Davis in March 1939, was named in a Federal grand jury indictment with William Fox, film executive, and Morgan S. Kaufman on charges of criminal conspiracy to obstruct justice and defraud the United States on a charge growing out of an action in bankruptcy by William Fox in his court. Abel Cary Thomas Abel Cary Thomas, former secretary and general counsel of Warners, died at his home in New York last Wednesday. He was associated with the late Sam Warner in the commercial development of talking pictures and the establishment of Warner theatres. He also had been legal advisor to the late Henry W. Savage, theatrical producer. Lieut. M. L Hobart Lieut. Morgan Linder Hobart, USNR, formerly manager of Technicolor's New York office, was; killed in an air line crash in Virginia February 23. Lt. Hobart left Technicolor for the War Production Board in 1941 and entered the Navy in 1942. Surviving are his father, Henry Morgan Hobart, former director-producer and now executive assistant to the board chairman of Reeves Sound Laboratories ; his mother, Mrs. F. C. '■ Wright, and a sister, Mrs. Russell Gleason. Burial was in Arlington National Cemetery. Air Express Shipments Rise 35 Per Cent in January The Air Express Division of Railway Express Agency has announced that international air express shipments in January rose 35.2 per cent over the same period last month with a total of 22,147 shipments handled at nine international airport cities. Roy Rogers Will Make Spring Rodeo Tour Roy Rogers, Republic cowboy star, will make personal appearances in four key cities in the United States and one in Canada during April and May on his spring rodeo tour. He will appear in Washington, D. C, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Providence and Toronto. 40 MOTION PICTURE HERALD, MARCH 3, 1945