Movie Age (1927)

AUGUST 20, 1 927. PAGE 11 Booth Bros. Improving Nebraska City Theatres; Modern Stage At Empress The three theatres at Nebraska City, owned by Booth Brothers are under¬ going extensive alterations and improve¬ ments, according to Wesley Booth who was in Omaha last week. The Paramount Theatre, which is an exclusive picture house, is to have a Spanish front with a tile roof. New storm doors are also added. Music in the Paramount is furnished by a $10,000 Hilgren-Lane organ. At the Empress Theatre the building has been extended to the alley to make room for a large modern stage with fly room. When completed it will be equip¬ ped for vaudeville or stock shows. At the present it is planned to use the Em¬ press for pictures and tabloid shows. A five piece orchestra is used in this house. The Overland Theatre is being re¬ painted, recarpeted and will have a new stage set and new draperies. In this house the Booth Brothers plan to have pictures and bigger vaudeville acts as well as road shows. A ten piece orches¬ tra furnishes the music at this house. When the work is finished on thenhouses, Booth Brothers wll have three modern theatres in Nebraska City with a total seating capacity of over 1800 seats. They are spending over $15,000 in their remodeling program, and the work is being done by James Welch, con¬ tractor. Plans for the changes were handled by Chas. Steinbaugh, Omaha architect. Ledoux Sells Out Wilfrid Ledoux has sold his interest in the New Empress Theatre Co., to the World Realty Co. of Omaha. This ar¬ rangement will now enable the World Realty Company to proceed as soon as they desire in the erecting of their new Omaha theatre at 16th and Douglas streets in this city. The lease on the Empress, in which Mr. Ledoux was for¬ merly interested, was to expire early in 1928. Considerable work has already been done on the plans for the new Omaha theatre, but before actual work can be started it will be necessary to tear down the Bushman Block as well as the Em¬ press to make room for the new build¬ ing. — Clayton T. Lynch, former manager for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in Omaha has many friends in and around Omaha who will be glad to learn that “Clayt” has been elected president of the St. Louis Film Board of Trade. Mannie Gotleib, former Universal manager at Des Moines was elected vice-president. Harold Lloyd Takes Scenes In Omaha For New Picture Harold Lloyd and a company of 35 persons arrived in Omaha last Tuesday night and stopped off for the purpose of making several shots for his forthcom¬ ing picture. Lloyd is a native of Burchard, Nebr., and until leaving for the West Coast to enter the movies, he lived in Omaha. This was his fix-st visit to the scenes of his boyhood since he became famous. He will also take his party on to Bur¬ chard where several more shots will be made. William Danziger, his advance repre¬ sentative, who has been in Omaha for several days said, “Harold has always had a warm sopt in his heart for Bur¬ chard and Omaha, and some of the shots which were made here are for his private gallery, to remind him of his boyhood, others will be used in the forthcoming picture which has not yet been titled.” As a young man Lloyd held several clerical positions here, and at one time piloted an elevator. He was appearing in small parts with a stock company at the old Burwood Theatre which has since been torn down, when he decided to enter the movies. He was encour¬ aged in this ventui-e by Frank Bacon, later author and star of “Lightning,” at that time a member of the old stock com¬ pany. Lloyd now owns his own producing company, and is considered as one of the “big ten” in movie circles. His company left yesterday for New York where most of the shots for the fox-thcoming picture will be made. Included in the party were his wife, formerly Mildred Davis, and their son Lloyd, jr., 3. Iowan Doubles For Denny In “Fast and Furious” Casto (Happy) Stelck, a Cushing, Iowa boy, has recently popped into the movies, not in the leading roles, but he has doubled for Reginald Denny in his newest picture, “Fast and Furious.” In all the daring auto races Stelck was used instead of Denny and is taking the chances just to furnish the moving pic¬ ture patrons with thrills. Casto is the only son of Mr. and Mrs. P. E. Stelcck of Cushing. New House For Cedar Rapids The new theatre at Cedar Rapids, la., which will be ready for opening about Sept. 1, is to be a 2,000 seat house. It will be the biggest theatre in eastern Iowa and one of the finest in the state. Baird and Monroe are partners in this house. Movie Age Golf Tourney Nearing; All Contestants Should Make Entries Now In less than a month the fourth annual Movie Age Golf Tournament will be a thing of the past as the dates set for the meet are September 12 and 13. Only a few weeks remain for the many golfing exhibitors of Nebraska and Iowa to get their entries in. Sher¬ man Fitch, branch manager of the Omaha F B O offices is chairman of the committee and all entries should be mailed or handed to him at the very earliest moment. It is important that all who wish to play on the above dates get their entry in NOW. Every one who has ever taken part in a tournament realizes there is a lot of detail in mak¬ ing final arrangements, and by waiting till the last minute before making your entry will make it very hard for the com¬ mittee to perfect their plans. There will be a lot of valuable and useful prizes this year, and even with¬ out the prizes the committee guarantees that every player will get more than his money’s worth of fun. The tourna¬ ment will be handled very much the same as last year — a qualifying round for the purpose of placing the players in flights, and then three rounds of match play to decide the winner of each flight. More details about the prizes and plans will be published in Movie Age soon, but don’t wait for them be¬ fore getting your entry in. DO IT NOW. Use the entx-y blank appearing elsewhere in this isssue. Films of Cantril Event H. E. Thoensen, manager of the busi¬ ness office of the Parrot Films Company, visited southeastern Iowa this week to picture some events of historical nature. The town of Cantril, Iowa, celebrating with a fifty year Jubilee, held a revival of historical events of the town, played the games played fifty years ago and di*essed in the costumes of that day. Men and women from all over the nation were present at this celebration and Gov¬ ernor Hammill and Mr. Harlan of the state historical department, were among those who journeyed to Cantril for the event. Thoensen, who started his career in the film trade as a cameraman for the film news weeklies in Chicago, is filming a number of interesting events every week as staff cameraman for the PUBLIX-A. H. Blank staff. The Thelma theatre at Allen, Nebras¬ ka, which has been closed for the sum¬ mer has reopened.