Publix Opinion (May 16, 1930)

4 4 i ¥ PUBLIX OPINION, WEEK OF MAY i6ru, 1930 BUSY WEEK FOR DISTRICT MANAGERS WHIRL OF ACTIVITY TAKES VISITING FIELD EXECUTIVES TO END OF THEIR SESSION District managers parlicipating in the Second Session wound up their two weeks at activity. the ‘home office in a whirl of Monday and Tuesday of the second week were divided between the maintenance department, functions of which were outlined by Morris Greenberg and J. H. Elder, and sound reproduction ane projection, handled in meetings with Dr. N. M. Laporte and Harry Rubin. On Wednesday, after a demonstration of projection novelties in the Paramount Theatre, the district managers again met with Dr. Laporte, and in the afternoon were addressed by Austin Keough, head of the Legal Department. Latter half of the afternoon was devoted to a trip to Paramount’s Long Is“Jand Studio in Astoria. At Training School Thursday saw a second meeting! ¢ with Henry Anderson, head of the insurance department, at which the district managers discussed ‘fire and accident prevention. In the afternoon, John Carlile pre‘sided at a meeting devoted to Paramount Publix radio activity, and J. A. Walsh discussed weekly letters. Publix Managers’ Trainine School played host to the field executives Friday morning. District managers ‘met the men in attendance, and went over the training schedule with Director Elmer Levine and his associates, Henri Schwartzberg and Al Shear. ‘This was followed by a meeting at which Director of Personnel John F, Barry discussed methods of selecting men for the school, and the preparatory training which men who have not had actual theatre experience must receive prior to entrance. At noon, a buffet luncheon was served in the conference room, with Messrs. Katz, Dembow, Chatkin, Botsford, Barry and other home office executives present. A third session with Dr. Laporte rounded out the afternoon. Hold Theatre Party Friday night the district managers were guests of the company at a theatre party, taking in Ed. Wynn in “Simple Simon,’”’ at the ‘Ziegfeld Theatre. ‘Entire week was punctuated with interesting meetings presided over by John F. Barry, chairman of the session. Lengthy conference with Mr. D. J. Chatkin on Saturday morning! concluded the session. District maangers were closeted with their Divisional Directors for the remainder of the day, and entrained for their respective territories Saturday night. District Managers in attendance on the session were Arthur E. Abelson, Jesse L. Clark, T. Wilson Erwin, Vogel Gettier, Frank Hookailo, C. Warren Irvin, Ricardo Montiel, Armand J. Moreau, Ray Niles and Thos. P. Ronan. New Press Sheets for ‘Paramount On Parade” A special 32 page press book on “Paramount on Parade” has been put out by Russell Holman and Clif Lewis of the Paramount Advertising Department that covers in an exceptionally fine way every angle of merchandising possible. An unusually large number of specimen ads have been prepared, and exploitation ideas have been developed in profusion. A merchant’s co-operative page with a contest has been worked out in detail and should lend itself to promotion. very easily. An elaborate manual along similar lines was also put out by Lem Stewart’s advertising department. ; 9B e-D-9O2-D-9 02-9 O+ D1 Oe D9 Os-D-+ Os SOc DO OSs SO: SO Check Use of Publix Opinion St : t : “You have just as much $ right to check the use of ¢ Publix Opinion in your oper; ation as to check the way s refrigeration is being sold,”’’ ¢ John F. Barry told men at; tending the district manage ers’ session. 9 “Use Publix Opinion as ; you would use a sound exe pert, or an advertising ex: pert, who came into one of } your theatres in the flesh. It ¢ is up to District Managers to $ see. that managers get the 4 fullest advantage ®* merchandising aid.’’ $ Mr. Barry stressed the 4 value of Publix Opinion as a 3 handbook of company policy ® as well as an important aide : in selling activities. He ; urged the district managers ¢« to see that worthwhile, re¢ peatable ideas developed in 4 their territories were for¢ warded to Publix Opinion, so ? that they might be repro¢ duced for the benefit, of the 5 remainder of the circuit. of this BO 2-O-+Be-SBO e-G-+BsOO :-S+O+-S+O:-S O° GOs +6:Se 0-010 +-© 201-018 :-O10+-O-18+ O10 O10" OB O80" 0:0: O80" O10 O18+ So 10+-©+0--0 10+ © +0--O+0--@+0--O-0-O10 00:00 @ 10+ 210+ Field Executives at N. Y. Theatre Meeting District managers wound up the first half of their home office session by attending the weekly New York theatre meeting presided over, by Divisional Director Milton H. Feld. Feld discussed the make-up of the New York meetings and drew an analogy with the usual district meetings. Only difference is that home office department heads are be present in person if. necessary, he said. The general meetings, Feld saia, have proved invaluable in getting the combined mental resources of a group of men. He dwelt on the manpower developed in the metropolitan theatres and brought to light in the meetings. ‘Meetings ean be valueless, or valuable,’ Feld said, “depending on the way the meeting is conducted and organized. A group meeting cannot run itself. The New York meetings are definitely organized; there are no lengthy discussions and everything is brief and to the point. Each subject is finished before going to the next. If merchandising intrudes on program discussion, it is set aside until its turn. “Thinking out plans deinitery in advance makes everyone work in an organized manner. You get more real thinking than you will by depending on the intuitive brilliancy of your managers,” TYPEWRITER WINDOW Initial efforts of Martin H. Noonan as publicity director of the . Denver Theatre were on ‘‘The Girl Said No.’’ Girl in a typewriter shop window rapidly typed the picture title, with passersby invited to estimate the number of times she could do so in a certain time. Noonan also used a classified-ad tie-up. \ e DEPARTMENT CUTS COSTS Functions of the Construction and Maintenance Department were outlined for district managers at the home office by Morris Greenberg, who took up construction, maintenance, sound and research divisions separately. Construction division, berg said, embodies an architecectural service, which makes sketches and estimates based on plots submitted by the Real Estate Department. When a project becomes definite, it’ follows through with and checks on the architects. When plans are completed, the contract branch asks for bids and lets contracts. Project then passes into hands of the field service branch. Field service representatives are present on all new jobs, supervising construction until completed. In the meantime, the office section of the department has purchased equipment, which the field representative checks in. This section keeps costs on all jobs as they progress, checking against estimates. Final branch is the decorative division, which handles everything in connection with selection of carpets, chairs, draperies, lighting fixtures, art objects, etc. Theatre then comes under supervision of the Maintenance Division. Green ' Morris Greenberg Many Specialists Maintenance couples warehousing with actual maintenance of properties. Maintenance divisions in the field follow management division lines in the main. Hach is under a Divisional Maintenance Supervisior. Under him are field men, maintenance specialists in every line. Division Maintenance Supervisors have authority to sanction all routine maintenance work involving reasonable amounts, and emergency work, on their own responsibility. Beyond this, home office approval is necessary, for the reason that many considerations affect approvals on major expenditures. Length of time lease has to run and whether or not it. will be renewed, possibility of theatre being closed or commercialized, etc., must all be checked. Intent of this organizational plan, Greenberg said, is to decentralize and speed all maintenance work. Majority of jobs fall into the category of work which divisional heads can authorize, and can proceed without the delay attendant to routing requests through the ae office. Mass Purchasing Greenberg discussed the recent maintenance survey of the circuit, out of which a ten months’ improvement program has been developed. Mass purchasing of equipment to be installed as a phase of this program, he said, will result in tremendous savings. In addition, the management department is in a position to know definitely just what it is going to get, and when, and to plan accordingly. Advertising accessory branches in each warehouse enable theatres to save in two ways, Greenberg said. Initial savings are effected by lower prices which salvaging of accessories makes possible, and a slight profit is turned in to reduce general overhead. Service men attached to the sound department which has been developed under Dr. N. M. Laporte Tells Field Men About Routine Maintenance routine occupied district managers in a meeting with J. H. Elder, of the Maintenance Department. All maintenance work should be requisitioned, Elder said. Upon receipt of requisition, maintenance department issues a purchase order, sending the ‘‘A’’ or vendor’s copy to the manager, who gives it to the contractor. Blue copy is the manager’s, for entry in account 18 of his weekly report. Pink copy is signed and returned promptly with invoice attached. Emergency jobs must be handled as such and without de lay, Elder said. When completed, invoice should be copied on a requisition, marked ‘‘confirming,”’ with full explanation, Elder urged the district managers to impress managers with importance of returning pink copies of purchase orders promptly, to avoid delay in payment of local bills. Maintenance inspections by managers and district managers were discussed, with importance of equipment upkeep stressed. No equipment should be transferred from one theatre to another, Elder said, without notifying the Main| tenance Department. -As an economy, Elder suggested setting up monthly supply quotas, ordering supplies monthly, and avoidance of overstocking. He asked the district managers to help get all accessories which could possibly be salvaged returned to the warehouse branches. are in addition to and auxiliary to E. R. P. I. service men, according to Greenberg. They are intended to augment, supplement and supervise E. R. P. I. service, and act as protection in case of emergency. While subject to orders of divisional maintenance supervisors as far as division of time is concerned, their efforts are supervised by Dr. Laporte. New Sound Form Greenberg discussed,a new form which will enter use in about three weeks. Headed ‘‘Sound Service Request,’’ it is to be sent to divisional maintenance supervisors by managers, with copies to district managers and Dr. Laporte. Comments of district managers on sound difficulties in weekly letters should be accompanied by date and number of the individual manager’s sound service request, he said. Complaints on sound will not be entertained unless they are specific and handled for prompt service in the manner prescribed. Service reports of sound men will be checked in the home office against service requests, as precaution against delays. In emergencies, Greenberg said, H. R. P. I. service men can also be called, if it will speed relief. Tube-testing equipment being installed in all warehouses, Greenberg said, has resulted to date in salvage of 35 per ‘cent of all supposedly burned out tubes. By concentrating all contacts between Paramount Publix and Electric Research in Dr. Laporte’s hands, tremendous savings have been effected. In the last eight months the plan has enabled Dr. Laporte to get very substantial repair bill reductions. Research division of the department, Greenberg said, centralizes all Paramount and Publix work, permitting development of projects with full knowledge of condi tions and considerations in both theatres and studios. Wide film, color photography and sound improvement mainly occupy research staffs at present. Edward A. Furni is the new manager of the Astor, Minneapolis. ‘Further assignment of John B. Goodwin, former manager, is pending. CONSTRUCTION|Maintenance Head|DETAILS ABOUT FRONT HOUSE OPERATION District managers assembled in New York discussed activities of the Department of Front House Operation with C. L. Stoddard, department head. Stoddard out| lined the organization of his department, which has arepresentative assigned to each division. These men supervise cleaning, ventilation, service and boxoffice, insofar as selection, training and supervision is peueatied. laying out organized procedure for these phases of operation. District itineraries of these representatives are set by the divisional director and the department head, Stoddard — said. Theatre coverage is determined by the representative and the district manager, and subjected to the approval of divisional director and Stoddard. Representatives consider front house operation as it is reflected Cc LL. se pele cig in the box-office, and strive to in still appreciation of this angle into staffs everywhere. Principles Applied Principles of economy, efficiency and quality are applied to front house operation of each theatre in accordance with its particular requirements. The representatives put these principles into effect and demonstrate their workability to managers. Operations are rechecked frequently to supervise the working out of front house set-ups. Representatives are present at openings of new theatres, organizing staffs and setting up procedure. ‘Primary purposes of service organization within a theatre, Stoddard said, is to procure organized crowd movement and _ turnover. Efficiency in this is directly reflected in receipts. . Secondarily, but equally important, a properly organized Front House departmeat is the means of obtaining institutional good will by creation of an atmosphere of quiet, courteous refinement. Stoddard stressed the importance of selecting employees of a stamp suited to development, a training, thorough and complete, and a consistent direct supervision. This will be the means of reducing costly turnover and maintain a standard of efficiency that will reflect itself in the success of the operation. About Fire Drills He urged the district heads to see that managers take an active part in the handling of staffs and not leave it entirely in the hands of an inexperienced junior. Representatives of Stoddard’s department will instruct employees in fire drills, which should be held bi-monthly, he said. He suggested that district managers — ask for reports on these drills, and also for minutes of weekly staff : meetings. Directions for use of all Publix cleaning materials, Stoddard said, have been assembled into a set of © cleaning bulletins. These may be obtained on request from J. H. Elder. Stoddard recommended a follow-up check by district managers of the detailed reports of front house operation representatives. He concluded the meeting by giving the men present a suggested spot-check of front house operation for use in visits to their theatres. es Paul Philips has been appointed city manager of Salisbury, N. C., with direct charge of the Capitol and Strand Theatres, . SE TY ee ae EE Me ERE FE Tn NR Ena ee Ree