We use Optical Character Recognition (OCR) during our scanning and processing workflow to make the content of each page searchable. You can view the automatically generated text below as well as copy and paste individual pieces of text to quote in your own work.
Text recognition is never 100% accurate. Many parts of the scanned page may not be reflected in the OCR text output, including: images, page layout, certain fonts or handwriting.
Chain Theater Control <^> <^> <^ <^ <^ 343
Pictures Corporation own more than 300 theaters. Assuming this very generous figure, and asuming further the very conservative estimate of 18,000 motion picture houses in the United States, it would appear that the corporation never controlled more than from 1% to 1 J^ % of the theaters in the United States. These were neighborhood and not key theaters. It is clear, furthermore, that the number of controlled theaters was not, at that time at least, great enough to provide any very substantial outlet for the pictures of such a large producer as this company.
The whole experiment appears to have been inadequately thought out. The net result is that today the Universal Pictures Corporation has disposed of most of its theaters. Of those it still retains, the largest units are a 22% interest in the Schine Circuit in New York State and the Griffith group located chiefly in Texas and Oklahoma.
It were well, however, to turn from any further discussion of these considerations to the problem of management. The status of the national chains today is very difficult to determine since at this point, as at so many others, authentic facts do not seem to be available. One very reliable estimate of the number of theaters in operation in 1932 in this country places the figure at 18,000.3 Others have placed the figure as high as 23,000. Of this number it may well be that from 16,000 to 18,000 operate at least six days a week and can legitimately claim to be classified as theaters. Manufacturers of sound equipment have estimated that approximately 12,000 houses have been wired for sound reproduction. Potentially, the market for sound films should range from 12,000 to approximately 15,000 theaters.4
3 Estimate made by Dr. F. S. Irby, Associate Editor of Electronics. The Film Daily, Year Book, 1932 estimates 18,715 as the total number of theaters in the United States, of which 4,589 are closed.
4 Sidney R. Kent, now president of the Fox Film Corporation, stated in February, 1931, that "each sound picture has a possibility of 10,000 sales in the United States. A picture that is popular at the box office may sell to as many as 7,000 out of the 10,000 accounts. A picture that is not popular will be purchased by 1,200 to 1,400 accounts."
The Motion Picture Herald, April 4, 1931, estimated that exclusive of the