The Moving picture world (May 1922)

170 MOVING PICTURE WORLD May 13, 1922 In the Independent^Field Big Sales Week Indicates Better Times; At^ow, Burr, Warner Figure in Many Deals; Export-Import Gets ''The Curse of Drink 99 Much cheer came this week in the Hves of State righters when it became evident, from the wholesale buying that took place, that conditions are returning to normal faster than generally is thought. For instance, from Arrow Film Corporation came news of the consummation of several important deals. One involved the purchase of the metropolitan rights to Arrow's "The Innocent Cheat" and the latest Jack Hoxie features by C. R. Seelye of the New York Arrow Exchange, and the other in the form of the sale of the L. Case Russell version of "Ten Nights In A Barroom," "The Innocent Cheat," "Chain Lightning," and the Peter B. Kyne series, for Kentucky and Tennessee to Col. Fred Levy and Lee Goldberg, who own the Big Feature Rights Corporation's exchange in Louisville, Ky. C. C. Burr of Affiliated Distributors, Inc., reported the sale of the Washington, D. C, territory on Edwin Carew's "I Am the Law," a Northwestern melodrama based on a James Oliver Curwood story, to Louis Bache of Associated First National Pictures Exchange of that city. Burr has been making rapid progress on the sale of this picture, the Warners buying the European rights only the other week. With this week's sale the country is about 50 per cent. sold. The Warners, too, came through with an interesting report, confirming the exclusive announcement made in Moving Picture World, a week ago, that the Rapf feature, "School Days," directed by William Nigh, had been sold 100 per cent. This sale constituted a record. The Warners are now concentrating on the Vera Gordon feature, "Your Best Friend," on which this department has received many good reports, testifying to its box office value. Still another interesting announcement emanated from the offices of Export & Import Film Corporation, which has acquired the world rights to "The Curse of Drink," produced by Harry Hoyt. This is the feature for which Equity was negotiating. Although contracts were drawn up at the last moment the deal fell through as Equity was not prepared to market the picture immediately, a stipulation that the producers insisted upon. Export & Import are going after the domestic market in big fashion and are negotiating for a number of other big productions. They have several ready now, but these will not be offered to the trade until after "The Curse of Drink" has been sold. Work on exploiting and distributing this feature will start immediately. As a matter of fact a number of representative exchangemen in New York this week looked at the picture and several deals involving important territories are underway. Export & Import is also handling the Col. Selig serial, "The Jungle Goddess." Joe Weil is handling the publicity and exploitation for this firm. The deal whereby the firm acquired the world rights to "The Curse of Drink" was completed for Export & Import by Ben Blumenthal, president of that concern. Only two weeks ago Louis Auerback announced that that company was prepared to purchase for cash the world rights on negatives of real merit. This company has offices in Paris, London, Copenhagen, Berlin and Budapest. Homer Gets "Enlighten Thy Father" With resignation of Carl Madson comes announcement this week of the reorganization of the Western Classic Sales Company, of which Bob Horner is the head. Len S. Brown will handle the exploitation and supervise sales as well from the Los Angeles office. It was announced, too, this week that Horner had acquired the rights to "Enlighten Thy Father," which he will State right. HERE'S ACTION FOR YOU And it is the critical moment in Warner Brothers' Harry Rapf production, "Your Best Friend," starring Vera Gordon Well-Planned Campaign Backed By Strong Picture Puts Over Wandering Boy'* in Quakerville Producers Security in Big Deal Producer's Security Corporation this week closed a deal with Jack Wells, the independent producer, for a series of feature pictures. Immediately after signing Mr. Wells left for Australia where he will film a number of popular stories.. George H. Davis Has Elaborate Plans George H. Davis, independent producer, arrived in New York this week with news that he intends producing State rights pictures on a big basis. Mr. Davis is associated with Joe Brandt, of C. B. C. Film Sales Corporation, the latter distributing the Davis features. A well-planned campaign brought excellent results at the Philadelphia showing of "Where Is My Wandering Boy," the B. F. Zeidman-Equity picture, which closed a two weeks' run at the Stanton Theatre, in that city, on April 29. The campaign might well be divided into three distinct classes — teaser, opening smash and follow up. Ten thousand quarter sheets, with the teaser line, "Reward — if you find my Wandering Boy" were distributed as part of the teaser campaign. These were posted along all the main automobile highways as far as Atlantic City and Wilmington. Jn addition, "safety first" cards were placed on the windshields of autos parked in the downtown section. Co-operation was obtained in having the cards used to the fullest extent by the motorists. A week before the showing, the second line of attack played a prominent part. Human interest news items easily hooked up with the title of the production, and the editors, fully realizing the timeliness of the picture, played up wherever possible, stories of boys who had left home. One hundred window display paintings, in special frames, were placed in store windows downtown. Differing widely from the ordinary window cards, merchants were easily convinced to prominently display the frames for a period of three weeks. At the time of the opening one hundred and fifty thousand heralds were distributed by carriers from door to door throughout the residential sections of the city. Burr Acquires Two Big Signs Two of the biggest painted signs on Broadway have been taken over by C. C. Burr, president of Affiliated Distributors, Inc., for the purpose of advertising the Edwin Carewe independent special, "I Am the Law." The signs are on both sides of the flatiron shaped building at Broadway and Forty-seventh street, one facing the Strand Theatre and the other facing the Columbia Theatre. They measure 30 by 40 feet, and it will require the services of three painters almost a week to cover them. Two regular distributing companies were after the location, but Burr beat them to it by a nose. This is only part of the big nation wide campaign of publicity and exploitation on the picture which will embrace trade papers and magazines of national circulation.