Moving Picture World (Jan-Feb 1927)

132 MOVING PICTURE WORLD January 8, 1927 Minnesota Moving Picture World Bureau , Minneapolis, Minn Jan. 6. ANNOUNCEMENT that the newly formed Minneapolis Theatre Corporation has leased the northeast corner of LaSalle avenue and Ninth street. A playhouse will be built during the next year at a cost of $2,000,000 and will be the largest theatre west of Chicago and one of the finest’ in the world. The theatre, which has been named The Minneapolis, has been leased for 25 years by the Famous Players-Lasky Corporation of New York for a total rental of $4,000,000, with an option for renewal of the lease for 25 additional years. The seating capacity will be 4,200. The first meeting of the Finance Advisory Board of the Northwest M. P. T. O. was held recently and the time given over to the organization of this special committee and to a review of the past year. Otto Raths, St. Paul, and Theodore Hays, Minneapolis, were chosen chairman and vice-chairman, respectively. W. H. Workman, manager of the Minneapolis branch of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, announces the appointment of O. H. Lambert as office manager. Mr. Lambert was formerly special representative at the Kansas City branch. Christmas Day witnessed the opening of a new suburban theatre in Minneapolis. It is located at Twenty-third avenue and Thirtyeighth street, and operated by the Porter Amusement Company. Metro Goldwyn Mayer employes were guests at a dinner given Christmas week by W. H. Workman, branch manager, at the Hotel Radisson. The dinner was followed by a dance. L H. Coen was toastmaster and Morris Abrams, exploiteer, was a member of the entertainment committee. More than forty guests were present. W. E. Troug, district manager for Universal, visited the Minneapolis branch office recently. Olive Hough of the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer exchange, Minneapolis, won first honors recently in a beauty contest conducted in North Minneapolis, and may leave for Hollywood soon. Gonvick Showing of motion pictures at the W. O. W. Hall, Gonvick, Minn., will be resumed by D. B. Green. This theatre was formerly operated by Mr. John Brummond of Thief River Falls. Duluth P. F. Schwie, manager of the Garrick, Duluth, Minn., put on quite an elaborate prologue to secure the proper atmosphere for the showing of “Tin Hats.” Three scenes, each specially staged, were acted by twelve people. Cloquet “Broken Toy” matinee at the Leb Theatre at Cloquet, Minn., was conducted by the manager, W. R.. Miller, with the assistance of a man dressed as Santa Claus. St. Hilaire The motion picture theatre at St. Hilaire, Minn., has been closed until after the first of the year by Manager J. A. Hansen. Fairmont Hay & Nicholas, owners of the Haynlc Theatre at Fairmont, Minn., are planning to spend $20,000 in the spring to remodel the theatre. Cedar Rapids, la. Cedar Rapids, Iowa, is to have a new theatre featuring pictures and vaudeville and seating 2,500. It will be operated by the Citizens Want Sunday Ban Lifted From Eagle Grove Eagle Grove, Iowa, Jan. 6. — One hundred citizens, including a majority of business men, have presented a petition to |Jhe City Council of Eagle Grove, asking that the present ordinance closing theatres on Sunday be repealed. Business men claim that citizens go to neighboring towns to see pictures and do their buying while there, to |Me detriment of the town holding down the Sunday lid. E. E. Morriss, owner and manager of the Princess Theatre, maintains a neutral stand, and says he will abide by the demands of the majority as expressed in the outcome of the appeal. Frank Amusement Company of Waterloo, Iowa, and the Orpheum Theatre. Construction will begin this month and the theatre will be completed by November 1, 1927. Midland, S. D. B. F. Schimke has sold the Gem Theatre, Midland, S. D. Alexandria, S. D. The Alexandria Theatre, Alexandria, S. D., has been purchased by F. W. Kutil of Forestburg, S. D. Fredericksburg, Iowa Upham Bros, have leased the Burg Theatre at Fredericksburg, Iowa, to F. M. Mertz of Waterloo, Iowa. Colorado Moving Picture World Bureau, Denver, Colo., Jan. 6. T UDGE J. F. SANFORD of the County Court of Colorado Springs has denied a motion for a new trial in the case of the Burns Trading Company, proprietors of the Burns Theatre, wherein the manager of the theatre was fined for operating the theatre on Sunday last summer. The theatre admitted the public free of charge and took up a collection after the patrons were seated. The court rules this a violation of a city ordinance prohibiting Sunday amusements “for pay.” An appeal will be taken to the Supreme Court of the State of Colorado. Interests represented by Homer Ellison, Jr., have bought all the stock of the Federal Theatre Co., thereby assuming the possession and management of the Federal Theatre, the large suburban North Denver Amusement house. The deal was closed with Gordon Ashworth, who held most of the stock and who has managed the theatre up to this time. Mr. Ashworth has not announced his future plans. He was chairman of the Board of Arbitration and an active member of the local M. P. T. O. Late Monday evening a fire started in a film container at the Queen Theatre, a Denver suburban house, destroying a feature film and causing considerable damage to the interior decorations of the theatre. No one was in the theatre at the time. Damage is estimated at $750. Hanna, Wyo. The Hanna Opera House of Hanna, Wyoming, was totally destroyed by fire at midnight Christmas Eve. Besides the theatre the building contained a billiard hall, bowling alley and store, all owned and operated by Tom Love, well known chain theatre owner of Wyoming. Several hundred dollars worth of film was destroyed. Kansas City , M o. Moving Picture World Bureau, Kansas City , Mo., Jan. 6. UNDER the supervision of the West States Amusement Company, the Garden Theatre of Kansas City, a large and comparatively new house which has been dark for some time, opened Saturday afternoon as a first run motion picture and vaudeville house. The company is operated by Dan McCoy and J. F. Lynch. The company plans to operate a chain of theatres which will reach from Kansas City to the West Coast. ‘‘T'he most successful Christmas,” was the manner in which Kansas City newspapers summed up the activities of Kansas City motion picture theatres. At the Newman Theatre a total of 1,000 toys were turned over to the Mayor’s Christmas Tree Association for children, that theatre, through Bruce Fowler, manager, having charged toys for admission on three Monday afternoons. More than 1,000 children were guests of the Liberty Theatre, through Samuel Carver, manager, Christmas morning. Among the out-of-town exhibitors in the Kansas City market this week were: J. R. Burford, Arkansas City, Kas.; Frank Whittan, Bonner Springs, Kas.; Frank Weary, Farris Theatre, Richmond, Mo.; C. A. Rehm, Baxter Springs, Kas.; L. Bruenninger, To. peka, Kas.; S. E. Wilhoit, Springfield, Mo.; Walter Wallace, Orpheum, Leavenworth, Kas. Springfield S. E. Wilhoit, veteran exhibitor of Southwest Missouri, has taken over the management of the Grand Theatre, Springfield, Mo. Mr. Wilhoit formerly was connected with the Jefferson Theatre of Springfield. The Orpheum and Mainstreet Theatres, Kansas City, gave a supper-dance Saturday night for performers, persons attached to the theatres and their friends. Max Stahl, special Educational home office representative, visited the Kansas City exchange this week. A. S. Feinberg, sales man. ager for Nu-Air, also paid the Kansas City office of that company a visit. Miss A, Menagh, secretary of the Kansas City Film Board of Trade, departed for Des Moines, Iowa, for a visit with her parents. J. E. Flynn, district manager for Metro-GoldwynMayer, was a Kansas City visitor. J. A. Masters, F. B. O. office manager, went to Des Moines, Iowa, last week, where he installed a new office s'ystem. Jack Auslet, film veteran, has returned to work for the Pathe exchange, covering northern Kansas on the all-comedy program. D. Sidney, manager for First National Screen Service, left for Chicago, to be gone over the holidays. Joe S’ilverman, president of the Independent Film Corporation, made a Christmas prediction that 1927 would surpass 1926 in film business. John Nolan, Fox branch manager, left for New York, his home, to spend the holidays. B. & K. Entertained Chicago, 111., Dec. 24. — The Rotary Club of Chicago broke precedents when they Invited the executives of the Balaman and Katz circuit to be their guests at their regular weekly dinner at Hotel Sherman. R. J. Lydiatt, director of the Club and manager of the Western Vaudeville circuit introduced the executives to the members of the big organization and Jack T. Knight supervising theatre executive of the Balaban and Katz circuit, told the diners about the B. and K. circuit. Entertainment was supplied by Paul Ash and Paul Whiteman from the theatre circuit. Ellisville Frank Arthurs who has movie theatres at Ellisville and New London Mills, will open another movie theatre at Prairie City, 111., this month.