Motion Picture News (Oct 1913 - Jan 1914)

3§ THE MOTION PICTURE NEWS A Statement from Cleveland Exhibitors' Press Committee ON THE ROAD {Continued from page 31) Yet with all the above mentioned drawbacks, the Bijou Dream is the refined motion picture theatre of Boston, with a constant regular patronage. The success of the Bijou Dream is due to the able management and good common sense of its manager, Mrs. J. Clement. Mrs. Clement has the courage of her opinions. She does not believe In posters, as with her good taste she claims that posters cheapen the appearance of a theatre, so she has banished posters from her theatre. The programme is advertised by means of neat card signs and a few photographs occasionally. While Mrs. Clement is a good musician herself, she claims that a pipeorgan or a full orchestra cannot follow the picture in all the quick and constant jumps, and to her the only appropriate music is a single pianist who can play the picture. To this effect, Mrs. Clement pays a high salary to a very competent pianist; she changes her piano twice a year and has same tuned every week. The results are that Mrs. Clement has the reputation of having the picture played correctly, and even the great lovers of music of Boston prefer the single piano of the Bijou Dream to a full orchestra or pipe-organ to accompany the pictures. Mrs. Clement is very particular on the selection of the pictures, and because she always offers a well-balanced programme she has made the reputation of the Bijou Dream, and made of this theatre the refined motion picture show of Boston. J. M. B. Last Monday the Indianapolis News held a free exhibition of "Quo Vadis" for the students and inmates of the various state schools and benevolent institutions of Indianapolis. Among the hundreds of interested visitors were three hundred children of the State School for the Deaf. A curious phase of the affair was the presence of one hundred blind children, who listened interestedly to the incidental music and the description of the picture by their teachers. Miss Helen Gardner and her company of feature players will hereafter release their three-part productions through the program of Warner's Features, Inc. Miss Billie West, formerly with the American Film Co., has joined the Majestic Co. to play leads under the direction of Mr. Albert W. Hale, and she is doing some excellent work in a coming Majestic release called "The Wedding Write-Up," WE regret the necessity of this statement, which we submit to our fellow exhibitors in explanation of our action since the New York convention, and up to present date of writing. As the strongest local in Ohio we have supported Mr. Neff to a man in all things, at all times, except on the censorship question. Upon that question we have differed with him at all times as a matter of principle only. It is conceded by Mr. Neff's best friends that the loyalty of Cleveland delegates saved him from defeat for re-election for president at the last National Convention, for with a divided state delegation he would have had no chance. Since then the Ohio State Censor law has gone into effect and as a result our loyal members, while submitting to the law's decree, have been desirous of making a friendly test of the constitutionality of said law. Upon this we are a unit, the result of two special meetings recently held. We were in hopes that whatever the outcome we should naturally be a harmonious unit after the courts' final decree, but we regret to report that our fellow members on the State Board of Censors have shown no desire to act impartially, but on the contrary have stirred up a newspaper controversy which has been unpleasant for local exhibitors. THE Eclectic Film Company has disposed of the state rights for "Les Miserables" for the territory comprising the entire State of New York to the Gordon Olympia Company, 658 Washington street, Boston, Mass. The Gordon Olympia Company is the biggest exhibitor operating in New England and upper New York. When seen recently, Mr. N. H. Gordon stated that the company had purchased a ten-thousand-dollar organ which is to be used in connection with the presentation of "Les Miserables." This adjunct, for which a suitable musical program has been compiled, should prove a salient feature. The resources of the purchasing company guarantee that the proper exploitation of this film will be given in the territory just acquired. The state rights for "Les Miserables" for Western Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma have been purchased by Mr. William Sievers, of the New Grand Central Theatre, St. Louis, The climax came when Mr. Neff caused to be published an article in which he condemned and ridiculed our entire 'local membership. Our most conservative members consider this extremely humiliating and uncalled for, and they resented this action on the part of Mr. Neff by voting at our meeting on October 1st to return our charter and withdraw from the M. P. E. L. of America. The matter was again brought up for final action at a special meeting to-day which resulted in our withdrawal as a League local. The best of feeling prevailed at the meeting and after dissolving as a League local all present unanimously voted to reorganize temporarily as the Cleveland Exhibitors' Association. We are perfecting plans for a solid local organization wherein every motion picture theatre will be represented upon our roster, and as Cleveland has been the central battleground of attack from "cranks" of all kinds, we shall be well prepared to meet all comers this winter as usual. Fraternally yours, A. MAHVER, SAM BULLOCK, W. J. GLIMMS. Press Committee, Cleveland Local No. 1, M. P. E. L. of A. October 8, 1913. Mo., who already controls the rights for this production in Illinois and East Missouri. At the presentation of "Les Miserables" at Mr. Sievers' theatre in St. Louis, the film created such a sensation that people were turned away by the score. At Orchestra Hall, in Chicago, 111., where "Les Miserables" had been showing for some time past, it met with the same reception. The entire country has now been sold out for "Les Miserables," with the exception of Western Canada, west of Port Arthur and Fort Williams, and three territories in the States, namely, Nebraska and Iowa, Texas, Minnesota, and North and South Dakota. The Eclectic Film Company has decided not to sell the state rights for "Les Miserables" or any other of their features in the territory consisting of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North and South Carolina. The Eclectic Film Co. and "Les Miserables"