Motion Picture News (Oct 1913 - Jan 1914)

3° THE MOTION PICTURE NEWS line; they had an accident on the road and the lights went out. As the house was in total darkness the weak ones began to feel uneasy. As the lights did not return at once, children began xo cry, women to scream and a general panic started. The recurrence of such disasters is VON DUPRIN EXIT DOOE rendered absolutely impossible by the operation of the "Von Duprin SelfReleasing Fire Exit Latch." This device takes advantage of the inevitable rush of the panic-stricken crowd, and uses it as the natural means of throwing open the way to escape and safety. A child has the same advantage as a man, no real power required, a mere touch does the work. The main features of the Von Duprin Device are as follows: It combines into one the usual features of all locking devices, the lock and the top and bottom latches. Works in Real Panic On the inside, about waist high, a solid bar stretches across the door. The bar stands way from the wood and connects directly with the mechanism of the latch. Any pressure applied to any part of the bar, instantly and positively releases lock and latches simultaneously. The operation of the Von Duprin Device under actual conditions of a panic is self-evident. The people rush blindly toward the exit doors, the leaders are forced against the bars across the doors, and the said bars under the pressure of the crowd give in, releasing the latches and throwing the doors open. The bar extends across the full width of the door; it is not a device that one has to hunt for, nor a device requiring any special manipulation. A mere child running against the door, will throw open same with no other effort than to press the bar with his little hand or part of his frail body. As the door cannot be opened from the exterior without a key, there is no danger for any one to enter the auditorium through the exit doors, to evade paying admission. While in Cleveland my attention was called to the Artstone as a building material offering some advantages to the builder of a motion picture theatre, wishing to erect a lasting building. Artstone is a manufactured stone composed of the best weather-impervious materials, put together under strong pressure and left to harden under natural conditions. It is a Nicholas Power as a Seer NICHOLAS POWER, president of the company which bears his name and manufactures projection machines, has this to say on the future of the motion picture: "Without a doubt the motion picture business has developed more rapidly within a given period of time than any other industry. To-day, in Greater New York we have over 1200 picture houses, while in the United States there are about 15,000. "The one feature that assures: a future for the motion picture is their versatility, as there is hardly a line of endeavor in which they have not become a factor. One may well wonder what becomes of the vast number of motion picture machines which constitute our daily output, and yet if you consider the many fields in which this industry has become a part, it ceases to be a mystery. . "Our Cameragraph No. 6A is used by nearly all the prominent lecturers, churches, schools, Y. M. C. A.'s and other religious institutions, in commercial houses and factories, where they are used to exploit their wares, as well as surgical operations, and all branches of the arts, etc. "These requirements are enormous, and the vast resources of our factory are working hard to keep up with the demands. "Their value as an exponent of education is already recognized, and I thoroughly believe that time itself is bound to render the motion picture more and more indispensable." AMERICAN ENGAGES CONSULTING DIRECTOR Alix F. Harmer has been engaged by S. S. Hutchinson, president of the stone which will stand the test of time and weather and upon which fire has but little effect. Concrete Superior to Stone As to durability, the manufacturers of Artstone can show a building; erected in the year 1874, in which the Artstone trimmings, after an exposure oi nearly forty years to all sorts oi weather, have been found in perfect condition. This proof of durability should not surprise us, as the buildings of the ancients fully demonstrate the superiority of concrete over natural stone for lasting qualities. Concrete stone, which was used in their buildings in connection with natural stone, is today in an excellent state of preservation. The usl • and necessities of concrete have been thoroughly demonstrated in the building work, and the rapidly increasing demand for this class of material shows that what was formerly considered an experiment and heartily condemned by those less progressive promises to be the greatest factor in building construction for the coming decade. With Artstone on the market, a material of real merit, equal in every way to the natural stone, why pay the high price of cut stone work? Artstone fills a much needed want, saving fully from 30 to 50 per cent of the actual cost of natural cut stone. As Artstone will not absorb the rain and dirt, the ornaments and the trimmings will remain clean and not require a new coat of paint every season, J. M. B. American Film Manufacturing Company, as consulting director. Mr. Harmer has had an extended experience and is an authority on stage settings and costumings. He has already taken up his duties at the new Santa Barbara studios, where all facilities for the carrying out of the minutest details are available and where projects of greatest magnitude can be skillfully and expeditiously handled. LEHIGH ORPHEUM REOPENED The Third Street Theatre Company, of Easton, Pa., on Saturday, November 15, re-opened the Lehigh Orpheum at South Bethlehem, Pa. This company now operates three fine theatres with a seating capacity of 500, 750 an' 800, respectively. In all three theatres the rate is five cents at the matinees and ten cents in the evenings. A program is shown, consisting of five new reels of General Film subjects and one big feature a week.