Showmen's Trade Review (Apr-Jun 1945)

22 SHOWMEN'S TRADE REVIEW June 30, 1945 COLUMBUS Red Cross collections for 1945 in the Cincinnati exchange area amounted to $157,904 in 466 theatres and in Cleveland, $198,313 in 412 theatres, P. J. Wood, co-chairman for Ohio, announced. Revivals are the order of the day, not only in neighborhood situations, but in downtown first runs. The Broad recently showed "The Sign of the Cross," "Call of the Wild," "Song of Bernadette" and will play "For Whom the Bell Tolls." The Grand is scheduling "Imitation of Life" and "East Side of Heaven." Frank Smith, former Loew's Ohio service stafif member, is in town on furlough after boot training at Great Lakes Naval Training Station. Sgt. Al Block, member of the Variety Club, is back in civics after three years in the Quartermaster Corps of the Army. Al spent many months in the Persian Gulf Command, at the beginning of the work on the supply line to Russia. The Variety Club has a handsome new members' directory, replacing the previous bulletin board in the clubrooms. World premiere headquarters for "Captain Eddie," booked August 1 at the Ohio, has been established at Broad and High. Bernard McGraner, Ohio assistant, is relief manager of the Broad while Manager Carl Rogers tours the vacation relief circuit for Loew in Kansas City and St. Louis. Clyde Sells, known on the screen as Orn Huntington, is one of the 13 "Harvey Boys" in MGM's "The Harvey Girls," starring Judy Garland, he revealed during his vacation with his family here. He also had a part in "The Thin Man Goes Home." Sells formerly was on the Broad service staff. Bill Castellini, United Artists exploiteer, is in town ballyhooing "Blood on the Sun," which had a War Bond Premiere attended by nearly 1000 at the Ohio here. Ice hockey facilities in the proposed new multi-million dollar Franklin County war memorial auditorium are "practically a must," a committee declared after an inspection of auditoriums in St. Louis and Kansas City. The auditorium would be erected in the downtown civic center, adjacent to the first run theatre district, and hence ice hockey, ice carnivals and similar attractions would constitute a direct form of theatre competition. . VANCOUVER Bill Marshall, formerly manager here for 20thFox, was a Vancouver visitor this week. Marshall is now secretary-treasurer of the Plumbing Manufacturers Association (National) with headquarters in Chicago. Howard Boothe, Odeon district manager, was on Vancouver Island this week inspecting his five theatres. Frank Gow, Famous Players B.C. manager, announced that the circuit will reopen the Capitol, Nelson, and the Strand, Kamloops, both dark for a number of years. This will give them two theatres in each spot. The National War Labor Board allowed the appeal of 20th-Fox, and directed that a rate of $75 a week be allowed for the new occupational classification of press agents, instead of the $60 weekly rate decided upon by the regional board. Victoria business is still down, with all theatres reporting lower revenues. With the return of Eddie Newman from the Air Force, Famous Players has made many changes in the Winnipeg set-up. Newman re REGIONAL NEWS INDEX Albany 22 Boston 22 Chicago 26 Cincinnati 27 Cleveland 29 Columbus 22 Des Moines 29 Fort Worth 26 Harrisburg 29 Indianapolis 29 Memphis 26 Milwaukee 26 Montreal 26 New Orleans 28 New York 27 Omaha 23 Philadelphia 28 Pittsburgh 29 Portland 23 St Louis 28 Vancouver 22 Washington 23 turns to the Metropolitan which he previously managed ; Bill Novak, manager of the Metropolitan, moves to the Capitol ; Jack Proudlove returns to the Gayety from the Capitol ; Dave Robertson goes from the Gayety to Tivoli, and Carl Egan, manager of the Tivoli, returns to the Palace, Calgary, as assistant manager. Provisionally promoted three months ago, the managers have reverted to their former positions. All are under Harold Bishop, Winnipeg district manager. The war boom in the Alberni district of British Columbia has subsided, Harold Warren, who controls the three theatres there, reports. Ivan Ackery, manager of the Orpheum, has started work on publicity for the Canadian premiere of "Son of Lassie," which opens July 20. Dorothy Scott, former employe of EmpireUniversal, gave birth to a son this week at St. Paul's Hospital, Vancouver. Joe Altemore of the Palace, Natal, B.C., received his discharge from the Army this week in Vancouver, and will return to Natal to operate his theatre again. Elimination of a number of "controls" by the Canadian Government over various industries, including motion pictures, may be ordered shortly, despite some anticipated opposition by independent exhibitor interests. The "controls" have been in effect since early in the war. It is reported that the motion picture industry will be among the first to be released from wartime regulations. At present, the film exchanges in Canada are restricted to the rental terms or price levels of the 1941 ceiling period and film companies would be restored to their previous privilege of competing in the open market and negotiating for the most desirable terms with any possible account. Mamie Lucas, secretary to Ivan Ackery at the Orpheum, is on the sick list, and Alma Morris, cashier of the Victoria Road, is pinchhitting for her. Jack Droy, Jr., after five years and six months with the Canadian Army in England and Belgium, returned to Vancouver on a 30-day furlough, after which he will return to the Army on a new assignment. Droy, Jr. was in the film business in Vancouver and Calgary before the war. RonaldSheppard, formerly on the Plaza staff, has moved to the Capitol as doorrnan. Sheppard received front page publicity recently for catching a hold-up man whom he chased down Main Street and captured with $360 stolen from the Dominion Theatre. ALBANY Louis Rapp, manager of Fabian's Plaza, Schnectady, who was married June 17 to Dora Lee Penta, is now honeymooning in Atlantic City. Joe Shure, booking manager for Fabian Upstate Theatres, is in New York conferring with B. P. Brooks, Fabian booking executive. Saul J. Ullman, general manager of Fabian Upstate Theatres, visited the Fabian home office, Monday and Tuesday. Phil Rapp, manager of Fabian's State, Schenectady, received a citation from the War Bond Committee of Schenectady County for being the first to sell 10 thousand-dollar E bonds. Commander Larry Cowen, managing director of Fabian's Proctor, Troy, has organized, under the auspices of the American Legion of Troy, a theatre party for orphans each Saturday during July and August. The American Legion will supervise the distribution of 100 free tickets weekly. Free transportation will be provided by the United Traction Company through the cooperation of the General Superintendent of Transportation. The orphan homes that will participate are: St. Vincent's, Van Der Hyden Hall, Guardian Angels, and St. Joseph's. BOSTON James Winn, district manager of United Artists, has taken a temporary leave of absence to recover from a long illness and will spend some time in the Southwest and his old home in Minneapolis. Phil Engel, publicist for United Artists, went on a business trip to Philadelphia last week and on his way home detoured to make business stops at Buffalo, Rochester and Syracuse. Richard and Mrs. Sullivan have returned from a honeymoon spent in New York, Bear Mountain and other points. Dick is the publicist of Film Row night clubs including the Latin Quarter and the Mayfair as well as the Town House. Johnnie Johnston, Newton boy, has signed a long term contract with MGM and will go at once to the Coast. Dan Hickey, executive secretary of tlie Tub Thumpers Club, spent several days this week in Lowell, Lawrence and Lynn organizing local "Tubs." Paul Levi is doing a good job of heading the publicity for the Seventh War Loan drive in this territory and is at the same time filling the shoes of Harry Browning, publicity chief for M. and P. Theatres, during Harry's absence in New York. Sam Haase has under negotiation several postwar deals for new theatre properties in this region and also is negotiating for television rights in parts of this area. Arthur Moger, publicist for Warners, has a new secretary. Sam Berenson of the Boston Record-America)! has been doing good work in cooperation with the motion picture group locally for the Seventh War Loan. Bing Crosby, while here, was told in casual conversation of a boy who had formerly been with the theatres here and who was wounded in action, as a result of which he is blind. Bing said nothing at the time, but this week a sizable check for the boy arrived from one Harry Lillis Crosby. Sherman Fulton is at the Avon Convalescent Farm in Connecticut where he is learning the Braille System and becoming acclimated to the fact that he will be nine-tenths sightless as