Moving Picture World (Jul 1916)

464 THE MOVING PICTURE WORLD July 15, 1916 Unicorn Spreads Over Country Special Inducements Offered Exchange Managers Bring Good Results — New Names on Board of Directors. WITH a network of exchanges promising efficient distribution through all parts of the country, the Unicorn Film Service Corporation has realized a substantial progress during the past few weeks. There has been the keenest sort of competition for the thousand dollars offered to the exchange doing the most business up to July 1; also an incentive for aggressive methods was provided by General Manager Ike Schlank and Secretary J. A. McKinney in an additional weekly award of $50 going to the exchange showing the greatest increase in rentals. The Unicorn management, confident of the value of the program, is determined that the one and two-reel pictures shall be brought to the attention of every exhibitor. At a recent meeting in the New York offices of Unicorn, at 126 West Forty-sixth street, the following men were placed on the board of directors: Joseph J. O'Donohue, Jr., William V. Creighton, Louis M. Heminway, William H. Baker, George F. Shaver and George Carlton Comstock. They will serve with the officers of the company, Leslie R. Palmer, president; J. A. Coram, vice-president; Ike Schlank, vice-president and general manager; Alwyn Ball, Jr., treasurer; J. A. McKinney, secretary. Speaking on behalf of the board of directors, Mr. Schlank said: "In my long experience with motion picture enterprises I have never seen a proposition accepted more readily than Unicorn Films. Requests have been received for an increase in the weekly program; but, having determined upon twentyone reels, I think the company should stick to that number. Many appreciative letters from exhibitors have commented upon the drawing power of our subjects and the wide variety of the stories." J. A. Eslow, western division manager, in a letter to Mr. Schlank, referred to the remarkable spread of Unicorn films throughout the West. Single and double reels, he reported, are disposed of with equal ease, and in one day he received no less than three requests for return dates on especially popular subjects. The drawing power of players such as Blanche Sweet, Mae Marsh, Henry B. Walthall and the Gish sisters is proving of distinct value to exhibitors using this service. Films" having a direct bearing on current events are another valuable feature of a program designed to meet the requirements of variety and quality. John G. Adolfi Director of Successes JOHN G. ADOLFI, the Fox director, was born in New York City, February J.9, 1885, the son of Gustav Adolfi, a prominent actor. Mr. Adolfi had no royal road to screen direction, because he traveled the long, hard road of the legitimate stage, with Louis Mann and Clara Lipman, both here and abroad, Dustin Farnum, Katherine Ostermann, Julia Marlowe, Ethel Barrymore, Ezra Kendall and many others. It was in 1909 that the screen claimed him as a leading man. He was one of the first actors of international reputation to work for the Vitagraph Company. "The Spy," directed by William V. Ranous, was his first release, and he was so successful that he portrayed the name part in the big feature, "Napoleon." This was followed by "Julius Caesar, in which he played Brutus. Four years ago he began directing after having played many excellent parts at the Griffith Coast studios and among his most successful two-reel productions was "A Woman Scorned." He directed for three years with Reliance, and then came East to the Universal. In November, 1915, he went under the Fox banner, and since then has produced "Merely Mary Ann" and "A Modern Thelma," both featuring Vivian Martin and Harry Hilliard, and he is now engaged in "Caprice of the Mountains," by Clarence J. Harris. Mr. Adolfi adapts all the stories given to him for production because he demands the three cardinal requisites — sympathy, suspense and surprise — in every story he screens. He is one of the few directors who takes full responsibility for his productions, story, the work of his actors, accuracy of detail and atmosphere, and believes that when the picture reaches the screen if anything is wrong the director alone is to blame. In fact, according to Mr. Adolfi, no actor or actress is really to blame if he or she misinterprets a thought or makes a false move. Empire State Delegates to Chicago List of the Men Who Will Represent the Various New York Locals. THE New York state organization is sending the following delegates to Chicago, who will leave on the special train. Manhattan local, Lee A. Ochs, president; Thomas Howard, secretary; Samuel Trigger, national vicepresident. Benjamin Lyons, secretary; Louis F. Blumenthal, treasurer; I. Hartstall, S. L. Rothapfel, Charles Steiner, A. Weiss, M. Needle, Otto Lederer, F. A. Gorman, Henry Haring, Lester Cohen, Aaron Corn. Brooklyn, John Manheimer, president; William Brandt, secretary; L. L. Levine, first vice-president; Ben Title, second vice-president, and H. Clark Mooney. Bronx, H. Coleman, D. Picker, H. Cole. Yonkers, Arthur Weiss. Schenectady, L. A. Buettner. ' Utica, W. H. Linton. Syracuse, G. M. Gibbons. Rochester, A. N. Wolff, president. Albany, S. Suckno. Rome, E. M. Day. The committee announces that sixty rooms have been reserved at the Sherman Hotel for the New York state delegation. It extends to the manufacturers and accessory men the courtesy of the special train to Chicago. Bay State League Joins National Body Massachusetts Exhibitors, Heretofore Independent, Decide to Send Delegate to Chicago. At a business meeting of the Motion Picture Exhibitors' League of Massachusetts, held following its big outing at Hull on Wednesday, June 28, it was decided to affiliate with the national body and to send a delegate to the convention in Chicago. President E. H. Horstmann was chosen to represent the Bay State organization. This action was taken as the result of a spirited discussion. Among those taking part in it were the president, G. F. Washburn, P. F. Lydon, F. J. Howard, Louis Boas, J. Lourie and H. I. Wasserman. The Massachusetts Exhibitors' League, which comprises in its membership some of the most prominent picture men in the country, heretofore has been independent. Its decision to join the national league will have much significance to exhibitors throughout the United States. BERST SUGGESTS CHANGES IN HUGHES BILL. J. A. Berst, vice-president and general manager of Pathe, saw by appointment Dudley M. Hughes, chairman of the House Committee on Education, in Washington, recently, with reference to the bill for Federal censorship. As a result of the conference Mr. Hughes was willing to take up several amendments to the bill, embodying important changes which Mr. Berst had suggested. Mr. Hughes showed great willingness to co-operate with every branch of the moving picture industry in making the bill the best possible, an attitude that greatly pleased Mr. Berst, who, as is known, strongly believes that Federal censorship offers the best argument against local censorship. John G. Adolfi. ANOTHER OPERA SINGER COMES TO SCREEN. Mme. Ganna Walska, the noted Polish grand opera singer, who recentlv lost her singing voice, has arranged to appear in motion pictures while she is undergoing treatment with a throat specialist. She is an excellent type and immediately upon presenting herself at the Metro-Rolfe studio Director William Nigh, then engaging players, arranged for her to appear in his company. Irene Fenwick, who was last seen on Broadway in the successful play, "The Co-respondent," is the star in the new Nigh picture in which Mme. Walska will make her screen debut. It is as yet unnamed.