Motion Picture News (Jul-Aug 1916)

482 ACCESSORYNEWSSECTION Vol. 14. No. 3 Overcoming the Waste in the Operating Room Who Is to Blame? The Exhibitor as Well as the Operator, in Many Cases — A Manager Might Spend Thousands of Dollars in Erecting an Up-to-Date Theatre and Then Spoil Everything by Placing the Equipment in the Hands of an Incompetent Man MUCH has been said and written concerning " waste " in the operating room but no one has taken into consideration just how much waste there really is, or who is to blame for it. The blame, if blame there be, rests upon the shoulders of either the exhibitor or the operator. Which? The manager will undoubtedly say the operator; vvhile the operator will be equally insistent that it is the exhibitor who is to blame, and in many Fi&i F1&.2 LENGTH THffOWN AWAV^ • Fl&. -3 w ■ instances the operator is right. Take for example, an exhibitor who will spend thousands of dollars in erecting and equipping an up-to-date motion picture theatre and then " spill the beans " by placing that equipment in the hands of an unreliable, incompetent, and irresponsible operator, simply because a first-class man would demand a salary commensurate with the labors performed and the results obtained. Let me say right here, that whether you believe it or not, Mr. Manager, the time is not far distant when the motion picture ■operator will not only, demand, but will get the salary to which he is entitled. ** Waste " Often Due to Cheeseparing Methods It is an old and trite saying ; " The cheapest is the dearest in the end." This holds good in the operation of a motion picture theatre as well as in other things, for the success of the motion picture theatre to a great extent depends upon the ability of one man, the operator, for he can make or unmake the most expensive film production ever manufactured, thereby setting at naught the efforts of author, producer, actor, and director. But if he is a careful, competent man, he will by his work, enhance the efforts of all who were instrumental in the making of our present-day fiim productions. Instead of saying that the " waste " is due to the " don't care " attitude of the operator, why not say that it is because of the great desire of the exhibitor to keep expenses down to a minimum, at the greater expense of seeing his patrons gradually draw away and attend those theatres where they are sure to see good projection, and with that it necessarily follows they will also see " good pictures." It is not necessary for a film to be " first run " to qualify as a good picture, for there are numberless pictures; some of them as old as two and three years, and yet they are still good pictures, by reason of the fact that they have received the proper care. It is a sad commentary upon our film exchanges and their " don't care " attitude, that a film scarcely two weeks old will look as though it had been in constant service for several months, but the fact remains that it is so, and one of the greatest evils that exist today is lack of inspection — proper inspection — by the various film exchanges. The exchange managers say that it is impossible for them to properly inspect film in the limited time they have for doing so, owing to the loss of time in shipments, but when we think of the enormous sums of money exhibitors are forced to pay for some of the so-called " features " we wonder why it would not be possible for the exchange to secure a few more prints and thus obviate the complaint; and a just complaint, of those exhibitors who are willing to pay the price and who quite naturally expect to receive the goods. To be honest and impartial, I will admit that there are a number of operators who do maintain a don't care attitude, in that they are not as careful of other people's property as they might be, but heaven be praised, their tribe is fast becoming extinct. Then too, conditions under which some operators are forced to work are not conducive to their best efforts and so afford them an excuse for being less careful than they otherwise might be. Would Displace Projector by Sneezing, Booth so Small I have seen operating rooms (?) that were of such small dimensions that when the operator took his position at the machine he would find it difficult to sneeze without displacing the projector from its position, unless it were securely fastened to the floor of the " room." You may perhaps think I am exaggerating, but I assure you it is the truth, and these places are not more than fifty miles from New York City. Just imagine if you can, an exhibitor who will ask an operator to work under such a handicap, and then expect perfect results, for which he is willing to pay the munificent sum of twelve dollars per week, seven days constituting a week's work. Many writers have said : " Pay operators what they are worth." In the vernacular of the street, " it listens well," but is there any sum of money great enough to compensate the operator who is asked to labor under the conditions as outlined above? It is also true that too little consideration is given by the architect, to the practical location of the operating room, but that too, is to a certain extent being overcome. But to return to the " waste." It is not of the film and its abuse that we are so greatly interested, for we believe that is a matter for the manufacturer and the exchange manager to take up ; it is their property and they should safeguard it. We do not feel constrained to fight the battles of the film exchanges as long as they themselves remain in a comatose state, and we are not going to, but, if they are desirous of overcoming the evil we will co-operate with them to the fullest extent. Recently I visited a theatre where the operator was throwing away as of no further use, carbons that were nearly six inches in length, and with the price of carbons as they are today, you will realize the enormous waste there is in this one particular. This is written in all fairness, but it proves that there is a certain amount of truth in the contention that operators maintain a " don't care " attitude. If the operator had suggested to his employer that he, the employer, purchase a set of carbon economizers as illustrated in pig. 3, and explained to him how necessary it was for him to have