The Moving picture world (May 1922)

156 MOVING PICTURE WORLD May 13, 1922 Text of Agreement Between the Detroit F. L L. M Club and Michigan Exhibitors FOR the information of exhibitors the country over, Moving Picture World here presents the text of the agreement between the F. I. L. M. Club of Detroit and the Motion Picture Theatre Owners of Michigan : 1. It is mutually agreed between the F. I. L. M. Club of Detroit, an organization of exchange managers, and the Motion Picture Theatre Owners of Michigan, an organization of exhibitors, that in order to minimize to the lowest possible degree the number of differences between distributors and exhibitors in the State of Michigan, that a Joint Arbitration Board shall be created to hear and determine disputes between exchanges who are members of the F. I. L. M. Club of Detroit and exhibitors who are members in good standing of the Motion Picture Theatre Owners of Michigan. 2. The Joint Arbitration Board shall be composed of seven, three members to be appointed by the Motion Picture Theatre Owners of Michigan and three members and a chairman appointed by the F. I. L. M. Club of Detroit. The Chairman, however, shall have no vote. The first chairman appointed shall serve for three months from the date of this agreement. The Motion Picture Theatre Owners of Michigan shall then appoint a chairman of the Joint Arbitration Board and he shall serve the succeeding three months. The chairman shall then be appointed alternately by the F. I. L. M. Club of Detroit and the Motion Picture Theatre Owners of Michigan for periods of three months each. In the case of a tie vote on any complaint, to a new Joint Arbitration Board, appointed said complaint shall automatically be referred to a new Joint Arbitration Board, appointed as herein above provided. In the event no majority vote is obtainable on such complaint, the second Joint Arbitration Board shall have authority to nominate a disinterested umpire, who shall cast the deciding vote. The Joint Arbitration Board shall meet in Detroit each Friday of each week at 12.30 P. M. unless otherwise unanimously decided by the Board. 3. The following rules and principles shall govern the Joint Board of Arbitration. (a) .Ml complaints against either exhibitors or distributors must be made in writing to the secretaries of either Board upon receipt of the complaint for which an adjustment is desired, the secretaries shall immediately take up the matter with the other party interested in order to secure, if possible, a satisfactory adjustment in this manner. When it is found that this cannot be done, the matter must then be presented to the Arbitration Board representing the class from which the complaint comes and if in their opinion the complaint is a legitimate one, the case is then ready for the Joint Arbitration Board. Before any complaint can be presented to the Joint Board of Arbitration, the person or firm making the complaint must sign an agreement that he will abide by the decision of the Joint Arbitratifl|i Board ; shall appear before the Board in p^W son to present his claim if consistent with hw location or impower the secretary of the Board representing his class to act in his behalf after furnishing him with complete information in writing. (b) The right of the Home Office or office of the exchange to accept or reject any application for a contract or contracts within twenty-one days shall be abridged or denied, bi'* in either case the exhibitor shall be notified within the time specified unless the play date of any individual picture or group of pictures on application or contract is within twenty-one days of date and in that event the exchange must accept or reject the application of contract at least seven days in advance of such specified play date. In the event that no notice of acceptance or rejection is received at least seven days before the play date then the contract shall be considered as accepted and film delivered to the exhibitor in accordance with its terms. (c) The terms of a written contract shall be binding on all parties as to protection and as to price, but oral evidence may be introduced and considered by the Board in all cases where the Board finds that oral evidence is necessary to explain the terms of the contract, but not to change the price or protection, except in case of fraud or duress, and except that the Joint Board of Arbitration may accept the principle that the clause with respect to protection specified in a contract may be deemed to cover any new theatre erected after the date of the contract and which is situated at a distance not further than is the distance of any theatre listed in the protection clause. (d) Requests by an exhibitor for a change in play date must be made in writing and mailed at least fourteen days in advance in which case the exhibitor agrees to play the picture within fourteen days of original play date. In the event the dates supplied by the exhibitor cannot be filled by the exchange the picture in question is to be paid for as of original play date provided the exchange proves to the exhibitor that the exchange is laiable to furnish picture on dates requested. Failure on the part of the exhibitor to give the exchange at least fourteen days' notice entitles the exchange to payment for service as of original play date and the exhibitor' the privilege of playing the picture subsequently without further charge and the exhibitor waives protection to the extent of the number of days, the picture is set back. The exchange must furnish at least fourteen days' notice to the exhibitor of a change in play date, in which case the exhibitor may rebook the production within fourteen days if he has open time and if not at his option cancel the picture. In case the exhibitor does not want to exercise his option of cancelling the picture the exchange must supply the exhibitor with a play date on the picture within fourteen days of original play date except in cases beyond the control of the exchange as provided in contract. In case of failure of the exchange to give exhibitor fourteen days' notice of change in play date the exhibitor is entitled to a further booking on this production gratis. Such change cannot be made by the exchange except in cases beyond the control of such exchange as is provided for in contract. If, however, the exchange should change such play date, as specified in the preceding clause, any damage sustained by the exhibitor will be adjusted by the Joint Arbitration Committee. 4^^^|^HjnJuntary breach of a contract j^[W^H^^cr one picture in a contract for ■Bajl^Rures, shall not be deemed to contrite a breach of the entire contract. 5. The Joint Board of Arbitration shall not deem it a breach of contract for an exchange to fail to deliver a motion picture to any exhibitor in the event said exhibitor has failed to comply with the demands of an exchange made pursuant to the terms of its contract and for additional security not to exceed the sum of $500 to insure the safe return of its film. However, the enforcement of this provision shall only follow a judgment of the Joint Arbitration Board rendered after a hearing of the parties involved or after a default by one of the parties. 6. The exchange shall leave an exact copy of the application with the exhibitor at the time it is signed. 7. When an application for film service is rejected in part or as to several of the pictures by the exchange, the exhibitor may at his option, accept or reject the balance on such individual application. 8. Any application for film service which authorizes the exchange, or its officers as the attorney in fact for an exhibitor, to separate the individual portions of his application into as many applications as there are pictures, shall be deemed for the purpose of this clause, not to be a single application. This reservation is necessary, owing to the clause contained in the contracts of FamousPlayers-Lasky Corporation and Educational Film Exchange of Michigan, to zvhich specific attention of all exhibitors is drawn. 9. No film shall be held by the exhibitor beyond play date as per contract. Any and all damages accruing to an exchange or exhibitor, from such holding of film as a result of the findings of the Joint Arbitration Board shall be born by the exhibitor responsible. 10. This agreement shall be binding on all parties for a period of three months from date hereof, subject to renewal from time to time, as the parties hereto agree. The principles and rules herein recited shall be subject to amendment or addition or elimination when all parties to this agreement, after a hearing, determine to accept any suggested change, and such suggested change be ratified by the respective organizations, signatory hereto. In witness whereof this agreement has been signed and sealed in duplicate this twenty-first day of April, 1922. Motion Picture Theatre Owners OF MicHiG.^N, Inc. Claude E. Cady, President Phil Gleichman J. R. Denniston J. C. Ritter. F. I. L. M. Club of Detroit. Jess Fishman, President Joe Friedman Harlan Starr J. O. Kent. Universal Replies to Alexander Kent's Suit Answer to the suit brought by Alexander W. Kent against the Universal Film Manufacturing Company in the New York Supreme Court was filed May 2. The suit is the result of an alleged contract executed between the plaintiff and one B. Lichtag on behalf of the film company, concerning the joint operation of the Teatro Canpoamor in Havana, Cuba, for which Kent sought an accounting of the profits. The answer of the film company, made in affidavit form by its treasurer, E. H. Goldstein, makes a general denial of Kent's allegations except to admit that a contract was executed, but asserts that the Cuban theatre was destroyed by fire on October 24, 1918, and that from that period to May 10, 1919, the exhibition of motion pictures was discontinued in consequence, no profits accruing during this period.