The Moving picture world (May 1922)

258 MOVING PICTURE WORLD May 20, 1922 "You'll come back to New York wiser with the thought that the wise guy is the lobster after all. You'll find that out soon enough. You'll find out, too, that the wiser a fellow from New York thinks he is the bigger the boob he turns out to be. Expects No Sympathy "I'll go back home and will have to stand a lot. My friends, your ex-Governor, are going to have no sympathy for me. They warned me. I'm going back to Albany to be a politician. I'm going to be, not a minority leader, but a majority leader if not something bigger. "You (to Cohen) you're a politician — a motion picture politician. "Here's all I've got to say. I'm going to drink to the hope that the best man wins. You've ripped me up and down and you've panned me. And if you haven't, you've allowed others to do so. I'm not standing for that. And you are not so prosperous that you can lose friends. You'll need all you can get and not until I see special police officers keep away overflow crowds will I believe that you do not need all your friends." He referred to Canon Chase's charge last winter that he (Walker) was employed by the theatre owners, which Walker admitted. "You're going to let that fellow say, 'Well, Walker, those movie folks got you.' But I'll stand it all. You're the ones who will suffer. There'll come a time when we all will meet again, not as employer and employee, but as friends of the motion picture industry. "I'll say goc)(lI)yc. I go to a far, far better rest than I have had during the past three years." Amid applause the Senator concluded. Cohen Speaks Here Sydney Cohen took the floor at the call of Qnairman Pramer. He was loudly received by his supporters. He denied that he had given anybody any assurance that he would not bring up the Walker matter at the Monday meeting. Referring to the letter of April 25 he said that it was dictated by the executive committee of New York State's organization. He discussed the call for a meeting, sent to members of the executive committee, saying that he repeated it by wire when O'Reilly said he did not get his notice. He said that this decision was reached at a meeting at which O'Reilly, True, Cadoret and Fay were also present and that these men agreed with O'Reilly. This message, he said, was sent in a spirit of harmony and "to promote the best for the organization." Regarding the April 22 notice to Walker by the executive committee, Cohen said that that body had on April 15 moved to dismiss the .Senator as counsel, but that he (Cohen) had pleaded with the members to refrain from taking such actions and that because of his pleadings the Senator was not dismissed at that time. He told of the Chamber of Commerce hearing in New York and reiterated the statement that he had been told not to attend and that he had made every effort to "restore harmony." He said that Walker did not read all of the story from The World and that he did. This part of the story stated "that such an arrangement (Walker's election) would bring about lower rentals, cheaper admissions," etc. He denied that he had allowed any reflection to be cast on New York and said that he was "proud to be a New Yorker." "These charges," Cohen said, "are being made by noise makers. They are only a few who are trying to incite trouble within our ranks. "In December of 1921 I personally made 20 appointments with the Senator, but he kept none," he added. "These were appointments for the transaction of business of the organization." To prove Discontinuance of Sunday Shows Asked ^YASHINGTON, D. C— The Washington Presbytery, convening here this week, passed resolutions appealing to the Motion Picture Theatre Owners requesting its members to discontinue llie opening of motion picture houses on Sunday. The communication to the M. P. T. O. A. read, in part, as follows: "We greet these representatives of a wonderful art and industry, wisliing full success to those in the btisiness who are endeavoring to free it from vicious and improper uses. We protest against misrepresentations on the screen of disproved falsehoods about alleged blue laws." The Presbyter}' also urged a congressional investigation to enable Will H. Hays to do what he doubtless has in his heart, but dare not under present conditions even attempt. this contention he read letters addressed to Walker. Relative to the Canon Chase attack on Walker last fall, Cohen said : "I called up the Senator and his brother, George, came to my office. I told him that because of the charge made against Jimmy by Canon Chase that I thought he should be paid. I made out a personal check for three thousand dollars and he endorsed it. I am still holding that check because the organization is without funds. Felt Insulted "A few days later I heard that Walker felt insulted because it was not the organization's check and money. I would not have been offended if he had returned that check and told me he didn't want it. But that was not done. The check was cashed and the money collected. Yet I heard that the Senator was insulted." He denied that the Senator had been associated or worked for the organization since February, 1920, saying that the organization was not formed until June, 1920. He explained the Dodge and Schwartz case, by saying that the checks forwarded them had been given to the auditors and that they were checked up and are contained in the financial report which the executive committee had accepted. He said that Mrs. Dodge not only got the money, but always was given funds by the organization during the period she was not doing business. Said Walker Helped He denied that Walker was responsible for the deposit bill or Sunday opening in New York, saying, however, that Walker induced Senator Walters, the majority leader, to use his influence in passing the deposit bill. He ridiculed the jury notice affair, saying that it was a small thing any body could do and a general practice in New York. He accused the Senator of "threatening to get me," but added that "he will gain nothing by doing that and if it will bring him some satisfaction to do that or try to do that then he can go ahead." "Now about this other charge that I had the investigation of the Federal Trade Commission stopped," said Cohen. "The fact remains that after a meeting held in the offices of Famous Players, Walker, Pramer and I attending, we went to the office of Commissioner Shinn in New York and told him that we had got what we were after. We thanked the commissioner and made it understood to him that we appreciated everything that he had done and that without the pressure brought to bear on Famous Players as a consequence of the action of the commission we probably would not have been so successful. "In the course of our conversation, and, mind you, Walker was there, we told Sliinn we were coming to Washington. Sliinn told us to tell his chief in Washington what we had told him. And when we came to Washington we told his chief that we appreciated everything the commission had done and how we valued the service rendered by Shinn. The chief was pleased at the report. And that's the truth about that situation. Makes a Denial "The Senator also has stated that I am a competitor of Harstn in New York. That isn't so. He said that during 'Independents' Week' I used thirtA' Famous Players' pictures. That isn't so. for I can only get 26 a year from them. He said that I took the Famous Players' franchise from Harstn. That isn't right. I held the Famous Players for three years previous to the Harstn matter Walker referred to. ".And that reference to 'Independents' Week,' really that would make a great subject for a subtitle. It was not the