The Philadelphia Exhibitor (1935)

THE PHILADELPHIA EXHIBITOR Jan 1 ’ 3 5 23 TOURING WITH LAURA LAEDLEIN Easton Transit Theatre made the front page in a big way with preview of "Night Alarm," with official Easton guests of manager H. E. Woehrle. Fire apparatus ballyhoo in front and endorsement by city fire chief. At the Boyd, nurses of three hospitals were guests of the house for opening of "The White Parade." New Peerless Magnarc lamps here at the Boyd Bethlehem houses. Lehigh Valley George Meeser, Broad Street Theatre, Naz¬ areth, doesn’t like the star-rating review system. He adds sadly that Cleopatra dies without the asp in the De Mille film, and that it’s the small town manager who gets stung. Church week-day boycott here put an end to a three-week trial of Sunday movies. Pub¬ lic endorsement by Burgess Frank P. Hahn failed to counteract public sentiment. Mrs. Victor Austin, wife, proprietor, Grand, East Stroudsburg, has returned from sev¬ eral weeks’ visit in Washington. Remodelling of the Grand, East Stroudsburg, with addition of balcony, will increase seat¬ ing capacity from 800 to 1200. Plans call for raising and enlarging present stage. Liberty Theatre, Pen Argyl, has installed RCA High Fidelity sound. Scranton C. Elmer Dietrich, exhibitor-Congressman, Tunkhannock, attended Scranton’s testi¬ monial dinner to Warren Van Dyke, new highway commissioner. J. R. Cadoret, Comerford real estate expert, is pinch-hitting at the Riviera in the man¬ agerial vacancy left there by the recent death of Phil Moore, one of the bestliked of the Comerford managers. Joe Elicker has Strand on the air to a select audience weekly in dramatizations of his bills by the Drama League, Century Club. Grand, S. A. Smith’s South Side house, newly painted inside and out. House twenty-four years old last November and has never been closed. Police were called to help handle the girls and boys who rushed the Manhattan's Christmas "food" show. They shoved them out the backway to make room for the newcomers. Ritz’s "toy" show overflowed to the State. M. E. Ouslander, operating the Pinebrook with Fred H. Winters, was out with the grippe for ten days. J. J. Ryan, Opera House, Susquehanna, back at work after two weeks’ sick leave. He is flirting with the dotted line on wide range sound for this house. L. A. Farrell is re-seating the Irving and the Majestic, Carbondale, with a new marquee at the Majestic. American Seating Com¬ pany on the seats and Joe, A1 and Jimmy Farrell with their father on the job. Miss Tillie Freedman, Comerford manager. Forest City, and sister-in-law of Roxy, took a short vacation in New York. Reform agitation, pre-Christmas slump and idle mines hit the anthracite small town theatres hard this winer. Granada, Olyphant, running Sundays. E. M. Tannenbaum has installed new sound at the Roxy, Olyphant. American Legion and Danny Holland, Com¬ erford manager, Old Forge, joined forces to give children of the community a free Christmas show and candy. Roman Theatre, Pittston, has been operating on full time since August after one year closed and one year three days. Paul Tighe, formerly assistant manager, other Comerford house, American, is manager. Scarlet fever added to exhibitors’ troubles at mountain town of Dallas recently. Wilkes-Barre Strand office still sprucing up from effects of recent fire in Campbell building, which menaced theatre and left a lot of dirt. Fred Hermann, Capitol, busy as member of C. of C.'s Executive Sales Council — busy lunching, anyway. Capitol is still strong on radio ballyhoo. Alhambra will re-seat this month, with a new interior coat of paint and a new screen. Comerford visiting officials complimented Shawnee, Plymouth, on effective Christ¬ mas decorations, the work of Joseph Swipes, assistant manager. Manager William A. Roberts runs a popular free parking system at this house. Cars are timed by patrons’ entrance, and are at the front when they leave. Kingston Theatre broke five years' house record with "The Barretts." Hazleton Capitol had five-act vaudeville preview ex¬ change with Comerford Pottsville house for midnight New Year’s show. Spiritual¬ ist act, "Dr. DiGhilini," did good business here on bi-monthly stage show. Mrs. John Stanziola, wife, pianist and or¬ chestra leader, Capitol, died suddenly last month. Unemployed League co-operated with the Feeley Theatre to give children of the local unemployed a free show day before Christmas. Allentown Dave Murphy had professional dance team doing the Continental in three principal hotels and two dance-halls for "The Gay Divorcee" and the picture went big. Bally¬ hoo included local bakery tie-up with 20,000 heralds distributed with bread, and radio and newspaper plugs. Local Lions’ Club took away two trucks of food during the holidays from this theatre and the Colonial. Lucky Seats for a "Gabby Sundae” at drug¬ store clicked in Guy E. Everett’s exploi¬ tation of "Gift of Gab," with one girl sit¬ ting prett*' each week for passes. D. Ellsworth Knorr, Embassy, who once had Sarah Bernhardt as a patron at the de¬ parted Pergola when she was playing the old Lyric, celebrates his 2 7th year in the show business this winter. Only he won't celebrate — he takes it in his stride. Lyric, closed for a year after last season s flop as vaudeville and picture house, went under the hammer last month, taken over by a local bank. Harry Strohl, manager of house for its last management took over the south side Park Theatre just before Christmas. Elsewhere Tamaqua followed Sunbury’s example in agitating against local parks’ walkathons, with result that Schulkill County D. A. closed the enterprises just before State Health Department stepped in. Tamaqua colliery of Lehigh Navigation Coal Company helped local holiday business by paying off early. Coal country small town theatres hard hit by the reform and wondering what to do about it. Strong Catholic population in most of them and active propaganda. Charles Woodin, manager, Capitol, Mauch Chunk, is home again and improved in health after recent operation at the Palmerton Hospital. Jimmy Humphreys’ assistant manager, John J. Humphreys’ Lansford house, is one of the few showmen with a pilot’s license. Aviation films will get a sky-high exploi¬ tation with his plane. House starting stage shows. Ritz Theatre, Coaledale, has re-seated and re¬ modelled interior. Coaledale High School Alumni body co-operated in successful "College Rhythm" benefit during holidavs. Local Boy Scouts have just started a series of twelve benefits at this house. Lehighton Park has installed new high inten¬ sity lamps. THE SILVER STREAK. The Radio melodrama has Charles Starrett and Sally Blane as the leading players.