Moving Picture World (Jul 1916)

July 15, 1916 THE MOVING PICTURE WORLD 405 Pittsburgh, Pa., Has a Record Date for "Store Shows Harry Davis Was a Real Pioneer and Set a Rapid Pace-Rowland and Clark Big Factors. » Harry Davis. A REVIEW of the history of the exhibiting business in Pittsburgh must logically begin with the discussion of one man. the father of the moving picture theater, Harry Davis. The name of Harry Davis stands forth more conspicuously in this field than that of probably any other individual, not because of his extensive interests at the present time but because he was the first to see the limitless possibilities of the screen. Mr. Davis opened the first moving picture theater in the city on Smithneld street, two doors from Diamond street, Pittsburgh, in the year 1903. He named the house The Nickelodeon, and thus coined the title that has clung to the picture theater through all the steps in its development. The last part of the word Nickelodeon Mr. Davis derived from the Greek "odeum," meaning theater, and combined it with the word "nickel," which was the admission price charged. The Nickelodeon seated 200 people and, despite the small capacity, was considered a veritable "gold mine" from the very beginning. The house was open from 8 o'clock till midnight and the shows lasted only fifteen minutes to half an hour, in which manner entertainment was provided for from three to four thousand people daily. One of the most notable features of The Nickelodeon was its music. Not that a symphony orchestra, or even a pipe organ, was as yet even dreamed of by Mr. Davis as a possibility for moving picture accompaniment. The musical setting was supplied by a lone pianist — who was none other than the well-known composer of popular melodies of to-day, Harry Carroll. Mr. Carroll, who had not yet written "Within the Loop" nor his ballads such as "The Trail of the Lonesome Pine," received the staggering salary of $6 per week. It may be noted in passing that Mr. Davis this season paid Mr. Carroll $600 for six days' appearance in vaudeville at the New Davis theater, also located on Smithfield street, Pittsburgh. Davis Promotes Many Nickelodeons. Within a year after The Nickelodeon was opened Mr. Davis had some eight or ten Nickelodeons scattered about in the different sections of the city. While The Nickelodeon was the first moving picture theater in the world, Mr. Davis does not have the distinction of having opened the second, which was established in Warsaw, Poland. A certain Pole, whose name is not recalled here, passed through Pittsburgh shortly after the opening of The Nickelodeon and carried back with him the idea which he immediately put into effect. Another year saw the establishment of Davis picture theaters in Philadelphia, Pa., Rochester, N. Y., Buffalo, N. Y., Detroit, Mich., beside a total of seventeen in the Pittsburgh district alone. Mr. Davis recognized not only the scope of possibility in presenting the moving picture to the public, but saw with equally wide vision the necessity of developing the possibilities of the photodrama itself. In 1906 he launched upon the manufacture of films and opened in Pittsburgh one of the first studios in America. For a time his leading man was Gilbert M. Anderson, of future fame. This project was dropped by Mr. Davis with the entrance of several of the larger producing companies into the field. At the present time he has considerable interest as stockholder in a number of the leading film manufacturing concerns in the country. Within the past few years Mr. Davis has turned his attention to his many big theaters in Pittsburgh and elsewhere for the production of vaudeville and the legitimate drama, and has discontinued all but two of his moving picture theaters. They are the Lyric and the Temple, which are among the best of Pittsburgh's fine array of downtown houses. The Lyric theater, which is now the oldest exclusively picture house in Pittsburgh, was established by Mr. Davis in 1907, in his handsome Grand Opera House building, which had just been completed, on Fifth avenue. The Temple theater, on Federal street, old Sixth street, opposite the Alvin theater, was erected by the Harry Davis Enterprises Company in 1913. Both houses are equipped in an up-todate manner, are well-arranged and handsomely furnished. Feature pictures are shown daily at 10 cents admission. The doors of the Temple and Lyric are open from 9:30 in the morning till 11:30 at night, and being located on the two busiest thoroughfares in the city handle large crowds. The Grand Opera House inaugurated its summer season of high-class pictures in May, thus continuing the policy that has met with tremendous success for two years past. This playhouse is one of the largest and finest in Pittsburgh, seating 2,100 people. The Grand is the home of the Harry Davis Stock Co. during the theatrical season. It was in this house that Mr. Davis introduced for the first time in Pittsburgh the use of a symphony orchestra for moving pictures two years ago. Rowland and Clark Take a Hand. To mention moving pictures and the photoplay house without taking into consideration Rowland & Clark, Richard A. Rowland and James B. Clark, to be exact, would be much like presenting "Hamlet" without the melancholy Dane, as at the present writing the greatest number of large and upto-date theaters in the Smoky City bear the RC monogram and fly the Rowland & Clark banner. The brilliant history of this concern is in itself the history of the picture theater of the higher type. To go back to the inception of the Rowland & Clark "chain" one must visit the very sources of the film business. In April, 1906, the business association between Mr. Rowland and Mr. Clark first came into being, in the form of the Pittsburgh Calcium Light & Film Co. As can be seen from the firm name, calcium, or "spot lights," has an important bearing on the business, in fact it was the successor to thePittsburgh Calcium Light Co. of which James R. Rowland,. Richard A. Rowland's father, was the founder. At his death the son came into charge, and then it was in connection with James B. Clark that the Pittsburgh Calcium Light & Film Co. was formed. Talking about those days, Mr. Clark says it was quantity, not quality with moving pictures when they first came out. "We bought our films outright from firms like Pathe Freres and Melies, and we paid so much a foot for them. We did not have to look over the picture to see what it was all about before taking it. The producers got out a catalogue with the lengths and description of the pictures and we ordered from that, and we ordered the book through several times. Melies were mostly trick pictures. We had no> trouble in renting our purchases. In fact the exhibitor was very glad to get anything he could. Our experience in the exchange end of the business extended from the Pittsburgh Calcium Light & Film Co., to the Pennsylvania Film Exchange, the Columbia Film Exchange and then later to the Independent Film Exchange and the Pittsburgh Photoplay Co" "How did you come to go into the exhibiting business? was asked of Mr. Clark. We had already learned from his business associates that before going into the film game Mr. Clark was in the accounting department of a large wholesale house in Pittsburgh, and his knowledge of figures and what they really mean is wonderful, as is his talent for organizing and assimilating details. He knows every twist of the business and, through his intimate knowledge of men and conditions, is responsible for a large part of the Rowland & Clark "luck," which to those in the business is recognized as resulting from thoroughness and attention to essential details. In reply to our query, Mr. Clark continued, "When we sold our Exchange, the Pittsburgh Calcium, both Rowland and myself had a lot of time on our hands. About this time, in payment of a debt, we acquired the Colonial theater in Wilkinsburg, a suburb of Pittsburgh about eight miles East. Then I secured the Oakland, a 299 seat house on the Oakland.