Moving Picture World (Sep-Oct 1927)

vlfcOCOH C/)W5Gt3 HOHfl X 150 MOVING PICTURE WORLD September 17, 1927 r* 8 SAMUEL ZIERLER presents Marguerite DE LA MOTTE and DONALD KEITH in Tale of a Broadway madcap who thought a small town would be hell and found it heaven AM C/^PICTURES CORPORATION SAMUEL ZIERLER. fntidenl NEW • V O K. London Film News By Correspondent “The Somme,” the big British war picture, is having a good reception this week at the Marble Arch Pavilion. Producers had access to German war records for this picture and much of the armament used in the actual camI paign was employed. Heroes of i the war took part, together with j hundreds of ex-soldiers. The cost was greater than for any other war picture, and the sum paid for the Dominion rights alone is a record and far in excess of that fetched by “Mons.” Warner’s “White Flannels” is to be released here September 12. Louise Dresser is always a big draw on this side. * * * “Sweeny Todd the Barber” and “Maria Martin,” hoary old English melodramas that will never die, are to be thrown on the screen by a new British film company. * * * Ivan Mosjoukine’s anticipated visit to London is complicated by passport difficulties. He is expected to make a film while in | Germany. * * * Some discussion has been raised over the showing of films at charity performances before their release date at local cinemas. * * * The latest site for the “big London studio” that has been building for the past ten years, is somewhere near Hounslow. Wembley Stadium is going to be exploited | for greyhound racing, for which | the public issue of shares was quickly oversubscribed. * * * “Seventh Heaven” on the stage j at the Strand was given a good j reception. It does not, however, attain the height of perfection of the film version. Texas Theatre News Dallas — The Texas Theatre has been opened at Amarillo, Texas, by Earl Meggs. A new theatre [ will be built by Oscar Korn and ) William Hoefs at Fort Stockton in j the near future. R. H. Hunter j will commence the erection of | a new 800-seat theatre at Uvalve soon. The interest of Bart Moore, Jr., in the Dixie and Arcadia at Kerrville has been purchased by E. H. Patton. The new Lyric Theaj tre at Brownwood has reopened after remodeling. The Palace at Rankin has been purcnased by the I K. & K. Circuit. Texas Incorporation Incorporation : Globe Theatres, Inc., Galveston, Texas, capital stock $7,500. Incorporators, Geo. W. Bell, Jr., Marie Bell and R. | N. Nichols. Missouri Wants Bargain Rentals In Hot Weather Films Now Idle Could Thus Earn Something St. Louis — Why shouldn’t motion pictures be sold to exhibitors at bargain rates during the dog days of summer? That question was heard on the floor of the recent semi-annual convention of the Motion Picture Theatre Owners of Eastern Missouri and Southern Illinois, held at the Elks Club, St. Louis, Mo. The answer then was that the block booking cr "sight-unseen” policy of selling pictures made it impossible to have a winter and summer price schedule for the same pictures. But some exhibitors persist that it would be a good thing for the industry, pointing out that the musicians and others recognize the justice of helping exhibitors over the season of poor business. However, others point out that while the industry collected $500,000 for flood sufferers from their patrons, flood suffering exhibitors received little reel relief from the average distributor of films. The swivel chair jockeys in the big village on the Hudson could well take that lesson to heart, one exhibitor remarked. In Southern Illinois many picture theatres are writing with red ink because the coal operators say that it is folly for the coal diggers to demand a daily wage scale that limits the number of days the mines can employ them in the week. Who makes the most money, at $7 a day miner who works one day per week or the $5 a day miner that is employed four days per week, the operator asks. With the same logic there are some exhibitors in Southern Illinois and Eastern Missouri who reason that with special summer rentals there are many theatres that now close in the summer that could remain open, and cans of films that are now idle in exchange vaults could probably be working to earn something for the distributors of films? New Atmospheric House Universal’s remodelled Gladstone Theatre, Kansas City, has just been reopened, the New York office reports. The house has been equipped with an atmospheric type ceiling giving the impression of an Italian sky. The decorations of the marquee and lobby are carried out in black, green, orange and gold. The foyer decorations are in a Pompeian color scheme. Paris Film News By Correspondent Albert Capellani has returned to film work after long retirement j through illness. He is an old-time ! director who will be best remembered in America for his association with Nazimova and Clara Kimball Young in notable pictures of that day. For the moment he { has resumed his activities in France on a film adapted from a Goethe masterpiece. * * * Joinville Studios are just doing the last of the interiors for “La Maison du Maltais.” * * * “Werther” is the title of a new film soon to be in the making with a star cast. * * * “La Tosca” and “Paris Nights” are two new films in prospect. * * * “The Martyrdom of St. Maxence” is the next film to be directed by M. Donatien, who has lately finished “Florine, the Flower of Valois.” * * * Victor Hugo’s life is to form the subject of a new film in which the grandson of the great poet will appear. The title role will be interpreted by Henry Krauss. * ■* * Abel Gance, the producer of “Napoleon,” is going to surpass even this when he produces “The End of the World.” * * * “Champagne” is a fitting title for a new vehicle for Betty Balfour of “Squibs” fame. * * * In Czechoslovakia the studios all appear to be engaged on historical and scientific educational films. * * * “Confetti,” First National’s new production, is amusing the natives of Nice where the exteriors are now being shot. It is expected to be tradeshown in London this coming season, 1928. Third Week in Albany Albany — For the first time in 3 years a picture is being held over for a second week in Albany, N. Y., after it had broken all attendance records at the Leland Theatre. The picture is “What Price Glory,” now running for its second week at the Leland and with the possibility of a third week. The picture opened at 10 o’clock on Labor Day morning and within 15 minutes the theatre was filled to capacity. Labor Day marks the real opening of the season so far as Albany, Troy and Schenectady are concerned, and houses generally in these three cities reported business as having been most satisfactory last week, with every indication that the coming fall and winter would be banner seasons.