Motion Picture Herald (Oct-Dec 1956)

(Continued jrom preceding page ) MGM, and Wm. I. Levine, his assistant, were in for conferences with Henry Friedel, branch manager. They held a sales meeting here, with salesmen James Micheletti and Jerry Banta in attendance. . . . Frank Smith, Salt Lake City Paramount branch manager, in on selling chore. Des Moines John Loop has purchased the Iowa theatre at Hopkinton and plans to reopen it soon; it has been closed for several months. Originally built by Hopkinton businessmen. the house was owned and managed in recent years by Floyd Wall, now of the Monte theatre. . . . Reinbeck businessmen are sponsoring free Saturday movies for the children. They finance operation of t) theatre and the renting of a film each week. . . . Richard Myers of Mason City has been named manager of the Lake at Clear Lake. The Lake is owned by Central States Theatre Corp. Myers will continue to manage the drive-in theatre between Clear Lake and Mason City. . . . Louis Lepovitz, widely-known former Iowa theatre man, died at his home in McAllen, Tex. He was 48. Lepovitz had been ill since suffering a sun stroke six weeks earlier. He formerly was a Tri-States partner and managed the Eastown and Iowa theatres in Des Moines. He also had owned a theatre in Madrid and had been active in theatres in Onawa, la., and Seward, Neb. He is survived by his widow, two sons an^ his parents. . . . Three personnel changes have been made in the Tri-States Theatre Corp. organization. A. Don Allen, former advertising and publicity manager, has taken over the booking and buying duties. Don Knight, former manager of the Des Moines theatre and city manager in Des Moines for the chain, has become advertising and publicity manager. Tony Abramovich, former manager of the Capitol in Grand Island, Neb., succeeds Knight. . . . Don Beal, Warner head shipper, is on vacation. Hartford The Hartford Operating Company has started a special teen-age price at the Central, West Hartford, and Colonial, Hartford, on weekends. Youngsters up to age 16 are admitted for 60 cents, between 1:30 and 3 p.m., on Saturdays and Sundays. At the same time, the two suburb; theatres have increased daily adult admission from 70 to 75 cents. . . . Stanley Warner theatres, which recently started Children’s Safety Clubs at the Capitol, Willimantic; Palace, Danbury; and Garde, New London, have extended the policy to the State, Manchester, and Palace, Norwich. All situations are in Connecticut. . . . George H. Wilkinson, Jr., president of MPTO of Connecticut, and operator of the Wilkinson theatre, Wallingford, Conn., has been elected president of the Wallingford Savings and Loan Association. He had been serving as a director. . . . Norman Bialek of Sampson-Spodick-Bialek theatres, New Haven, and president of Allied theatres of Connecticut, has returned to Connecticut from a European visit. . . . Sam Rosen of Lockwood & Gordon Connecticut theatres, is vacationing in Florida. Indianapolis The Variety Club, which is holding its annual elections Nov. 19, will precede them with a Las Vegas party Nov. 17. Ted Mendelssohn is entertainment chairman. . . . Hugh McLachlan of Y & W; Dr. M. Sandorf, owner of the Twin drive-in, and Wm. A. Carroll, secretary of ATOI, will attend the Ohio Allied convention at Columbus Nov. 13-14. . . . Preston Stoner has closed his Centerbrook drive-in for the season and will leave Nov. 12 to spend the winter in California. . . . Syndicate theatres has ordered in-car heaters for its Columbus drive-in. Syndicate also is closing the Storm at Oakland City. . . . Jack Safer, owner-manager of Safe Film Distributors, is back at work after a bout with illness. . . . Dal Shuder, manager of the Circle, has booked Fred Waring’s show for two stage performances Nov. 30. . . . State Film Service is in the process of moving to its new building at 429 North Senate Avenue. Jacksonville The Motion Picture Exhibitors of Florida annual gathering here at the Hotel Roosevelt dominated the film scene here during the week. . . . Jesse Marlowe has resigned from the Beach theatre to assume management of a Martin & Thompson house, the Canton, Canton, Ga. . . . Ernest Stellings, TOA president, felt at home here as many of his former Charlotte, N. C., co-workers are now in industry jobs here. . . . The MPEOF meetings were accorded full press coverage by local dailies for the first time in the eight-year history of the group. . . . Here from Columbus, Ga., to take leading parts in the MPEOF conclave were three Martin Theatres executives, Roy Martin, Jr., Ronnie Otwell and Jim Hoover. . . . Special honor guests of the convention were ex-industryites Mr. and Mrs. Bolivar Hyde of Palm Beach. . . . James Cartwright, Florida State district supervisor, Daytona Beach, gave the pitch for the Will Rogers Hospital and did so with eloquence. Kansas City Plug Hat drive-in at Oakley, Kans., is equipped for year-around operation. . . . Drive-ins in Greater Kansas City are continuing operations but some of those in outlying communities have closed for the season. . . . “Trade at Home” campaigns recently were carried on in Liberty, Mo., Bonner Springs. Baldwin and Minneapolis, Kans., to stimulate retail and recreational patronage at local places. . . . Attendance at films shown at Kansas City’s public library has been so. great that two screenings have been scheduled for each show, the current offering including a general-interest film on the American flag. ... A life-size photographic cutout of Elvis Presley was taken from the lobby of the Uptown theatre in Kansas City by three youths who picked up the standard used for the picture and ran with it. . . . WDAF and WDAF-TV, Kansas City’s NBC outlet, was one of four originating points for the reporting of election returns, serving twelve farm belt states. Randall Jessee handled comments on television and Walt Bodine on radio. Memphis Robert M. Kilgore, for six years manager of the Sunset drive-in, West Memphis, has resigned and will leave Nov. 15 for Florida. He expects to make a connection with a drive-in on the Florida coast. . . . Bobby “Dub” McKinney, assistant manager of Sunset, has been promoted to manager to succeed Kilgore. Kilgore formerly was manager of Skyview drive-in in Memphis and prior to World War II was with Loew’s, Inc. . . . Henry Pickens, owner has closed his Lyle theatre, Carlisle, Ark., indefinitely. . . . Slim Arkin, manager, Warner theatre, Memphis, put in a special 75-cent student price during the third week of Paramount’s “War and Peace.” Regular admission was $1.25. . . . Mrs. Robert Bradley, assistant cashier, 20thFox, has resigned to join her husband who is stationed at Fort Ord, Calif. . . . Bern Jackson, Ellis and Joy theatres, Cleveland, Miss., was in Memphis on business. . . . W. F. Ruffin, Sr., and W. F. Ruffin, Jr., who operate a chain of theatres and driveins in Tennessee and Kentucky from Ruffin Amusements Co., Covington, Tenn., were in Memphis on business. . . . Moses Sliman, Lux theatre, Luxora and his sonin-law, William Elias, Murr and Elias drive-in, Osceola, were among Arkansas exhibitors booking in Memphis. Miami December 12 is the official opening date of Cinerama at the Roosevelt theatre on Miami Beach. . . . The Caplans will soon announce the acquisition of a new theatre which they will operate while the Roosevelt is on lease to Cinerama. . . . “Around the World in 80 Days” will have a benefit performance for the Miami Herald’s “Lend A Hand” at the Sheridan theatre November 15. . . . The Variety Club’s Childrens Hospital will receive all the proceeds from a dinner with Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz at the Bay front auditorium November 26. . . . A. F. D’Anna is again operating the Beach drive-in theatre at Riviera Beach which, for the past three years, had been leased to Nat Bernstein of Miami. Improvements are now in progress. . . . The family of Sig Vorzimer of National Screen Service is now operating the Boynton theatre, Boynton Beach, recently acquired from the Claughton Circuit. Milwaukee Oliver and Ray Trampe went to Madison recently to visit F. J. McWilliams, well known theatre exhibitor here. Mr. McWilliams is home now recovering from a recent operation. . . . Lydia Fox, of the Wisconsin Allied office, is reported to be very ill. . . . The cashier at the Republic exchange here, Jackie Sweeney, has returned from a two-week trip to California where she visited the Republic studios and others. . . . The Burleigh theatre, operated by Mrs. Della Langheinrch, closed November 5. . . . Wisconsin Variety Club will hold its annual election of officers November 12 at a luncheon meeting at the Schroeder Hotel. . . . With the public schools closed for the State teachers convention, many neighborhood houses featured matinees. (Continued on opposite page) 26 MOTION PICTURE HERALD, NOVEMBER 10, 1956