Motion Picture News (Jul-Aug 1916)

428 MOTION PICTURE NEWS Vol. 14. No. 3 EDWARDS BACK FROM TRIP IN THREE STATES C. S. Edwards, manager of the Pathe Exchange at 3210 Locust street, St. Louis, has just returned from a short trip through iMissoiiri, Tennessee and Arkansas, where he called personally on many small and large town exhibitors, and which resulted in his booking " The Iron Claw " serial in a large number of theatres. Mr. Edwards took occasion to make the trip during the visit of nspector and Auditor L W. Goodfield, of the Pathe Exchanges, who was in St. Louis on a periodical tour. H. P. Wolfberg, manager of the General Film Company, in Film Row, at 3610 Olive street, St. Louis, invited a number of exhibitors to view a film featuring Bert Williams, made by the Biograph Company and brought to St. Louis by Gus jNIohme. The exhibition of the film took place in the projection room of the exchange on July 4, and despite the fact that the day was noisy with patriotic celebrations, a goodly number of interested film and theatre men accepted Mr. Molfberg's invitation. Bob Taylor, assistant manager of the Universal exchange a.t 2116 Locust street, St.. Louis, left for Indianapolis, Indiana, last week to spend his vacation with his folks. DIPPIE MAKES CHANGES IN VANCOUVER MUTUAL OFFICES Manager C. R. Dippie of the Mutual branch in Vancouver, B. C, has just completed the extensive alterations which were undertaken recently, involving the rearrangement of the quarters occupied in the Dominion theatre building. The entire interior of the exchange has been retinted, and the whole establishment has been -greatly improved. C. B. Price, the Mutual general manager for Canada, has departed for the east. The Universal office will shortlj' move from its present location in the Holden Building to a ground floor office on Dunsmuir street, directly across from the Colonial theatre. A move has been under consideration for some time, but it was found impossible to secure a suitable location. The Universal will be the only Vancouver exchange situated on the ground floor. COHN, NOTABLE, ON WYOMING TRIP M. H. Cohn manager of the Notable Feature Film Company of Denver, left Denver the early part of last week for a trip through Wyoming in quest of new business. He is expected to return in about ten days. Jack Scott, roadman for the Notable has just returned from a successful trip through New Mexico and Arizona. After a short rest he will make a trip through the Black Hills for Notable. OVIATT, PATHE IN SAN FRANCISCO, ENTHUSIASTIC OVER FIRST RUN BOOKINGS H. W. Oviatt, manager of the Pathe Exchange at 67 Turk street, San Francisco, states that the exchange is experiencing a condition which has never before been so ' fully realized in that city. With all of the releases that he is receiving now, he finds Dembow Goes to Pennsylvania Encampment and Gets Militia Pictures; Philadelphia Man Adds Title of -' Feature Film Specialist " EORGE DEMBROW, manager of the Philadelphia Fox exchange went up to Mt. Gretna, Penna., with a camera man during the encampment of the State troops at that point, and got about every incident of interest to the public in the activities of the soldiers. These pictures were made into a one-reeler for the Fox Film Corporation and were released in a very few days after filming. Philip S. Greenberg has added to his managership of the New Film Corporation the title of " Feature Film Specialist " under which he is booking a Chaplin film called " Charlie's Stormy Romance." This four-reeler is meeting with a big demand, the exhibitors booking it with avidity. Much of this demand is due to the extensive ad vertising given the release by Air. Greenberg. The Supreme Feature Film Service, of which Harry F. Grelle is manager, has just completed arrangements with Universal .for the state rights in Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska and Oklahoma on " Where Are My Children." This feature will be placed before the public just like a regular theatrical attraction, with advance agents, a complete advertising campaign and the rest. Each and every town will be played. It is expected to open the season at St. Louis and Kansas Citv between September 1st and 15th. The demand for this film is keeping up to the top notch in N«w Jersey in spite of the usually dull summer season. The " Dumb Girl of Portici " is also booking fast in that state. no trouble whatever in securing the first week's run in the big downtown houses. The same is correspondingly true with the big establishments in the interior cities, and he feels that it is an extra test of the quality. BALABAN-HERSHBERG FILM ATTRACTIONS FORMED IN CHICAGO Barney Balaban and \\'illiam Hershberg, owners of the General Feature Film Company, have formed a new alliance, which will be known as the Balaban-Hershberg Film Attractions, with offices in the Mailers Building, Chicago. They will distribute various feature productions. Twelve new roadmen have been added to the staflt, and plans are under contemplation for offices in Milwaukee and Indianapolis. Simeon B. Grevier will be general manager. The Chicago quarters will be materialy enlarged. CANADIAN " U " HOUSE ORGAN MADE NATIONAL PICTURE PAPER The Bulletin, started by the Canadian Universal as a house organ, has been graduated from this class into that of a national picture paper, printing news from all portions of Canada, and in addition current happenings of the producing and exhibiting fields. The Bulletin started as a one-page sheet. It is now eight pages, and has opened its columns to display advertising. Its success is ascribed to W. A. Bach, the Canadian Universal's advertising manager. BASEBALL HOLDS INTEREST OF MONTREAL FILM MEN Baseball still holds a prominent place in the interests of Montreal film men. The Universal team is still champion of the informal league that exists, but the Metro team has been making a splendid showing lately. An odd rule of this league is that members of competing teams must not indulge in practice during daylight hours, as it is contended that this would take the man away from their regular routine of business, and make the competition unfair. OMAHA LEADS FRISCO IN PATHE BUSINESS FOR MAY Omaha jumped over San Francisco in The Pathe News for the month of May. This means the Omaha exchange made a greater gain in distributing this service. Omaha is also far from the bottom in the efficiency of business, in Gold Rooster results and in points on "Who's Guilty?" Des Moines, la., is close beside Omaha in everything but Gold Roosters, where she leads the column, and in efficiency of business, where she stand second. BYRD OF DALLAS WILL GET MEXICAN SUBJECTS FOR FOX "Billy" Byrd, manager of the Dallas office of the Fox Film Corporation, has gone to the Mexican border with a cameraman and several thousand feet of negative, to " shoot " interesting scenes at the front for the William Fox theatres. One of the interesting sidelights will be a reel or so of the New York National Guard, now encamped on the Mexican border. Mr. Byrd visits the Brownsville section first, which is the extreme southern edge of Texas ; and will later " shoot " scenes on the border to Eagle Pass. "GRIP OF EVIL" TAKES HOLD OF MANAGERS An example of how Pathe's " The Grip of Evil " is booking in the West, in advance of release is seen in the following telegram to the Pathe e:xectrtive offices from Manager Quimby of the Pathe Seattle exchange. " Sold ' Grip of Evil ' to Pantages for all his theaters in United States and Canada same as 'Iron Claw.' Pantages says he would not trade any episode of ' Iron Claw ' for any act on his bill. He considers it the best of anything he has ever seen." DRUMM GOES TO SEATTLE FOR WORLD J. W. Drumm, roadman for the World Exchange of Denver, has been transferred to the Seattle office. He will work between Seattle and Salt Lake for the World. G. W. Hinton ' is doing the road work for the Denver office.