Variety (Nov 1931)

Tuesday, November 3, 1991 PICTVirEl VARIETY Vandalism and Contract Twists Crop Up in Bidyn Exhib Case; New Way of Choldns (h)positi^ ' A new method of attempting to Eliminate competition has come, to light through litigation In Brooklyn. It uncovers «n Independent exhib- itor's eftortB to put a: theatre out of buslneias b7 taking It under lease, llterail/ tearing It apart, then leas- ing hack after repairs. It's the first case of Its kind to come to the at- tention of the industry.. ■ Substantially the scheme was first the leasing by an exhlb of the oppo- ■ eitlon l\ouse for five years. Imme- diate; physical destruction to the property was followed by dispossess jiroceedlngs by the owner, .who, after the house was again piit In order, found the destroying exhlb. claiming another five-year lease entered Into with a subleasing Rim .which. It Is claimed. In reality Is owned by the same exhibitor taking the original lease. , ■ KItorts to- enforce this second lease, after dispossession under th^ first, resulted In a decision by Judge Podd refusing this and permlslson of Judgment under ^counterclaim of defendant for damages suffered by the theatre. - . • Concerned are Louis Rosen, Brooklyn exhlb, operating the New ililberty, Graham and .Manhattan, and John Chesnlus, owner, of the .Grand. . In 1925 Rosen obtained a five-year lease on the Grand through the . Firsco .Amusement Co. Shortly thereafter and separately, he secured an additional five-year leaise (1930- 35), under the name of the Graham Amusement Co., with Initial lease- hold transferred to -Patty iDemato,. an employee, who was dispossessed after heavy damage to the theatre. Wrecking After Rosen obtained the Grand It .was charged ai systematic program of destruction set In. "The roof was chopped with axes^so that It would leak, fixtures and'projectors were smashed, motors were removed, 'boiler was caved In, seats were torn out of the fioor, shutters were ripped oft walls and ticket booths demol- ished. This resulted In the dispossess notice. Then the owner, Chesnlus, repaired the theatre at a cost of (20,000, according to his attorney, liouls NIzer, and finally brought It 'back to a profitable business basis. /When this occurred, it was charged, Rosen brought suit In an attempt to regain possession under the'sec- ond five-year lease. Going Into the court record was the charged threat of Rosen that 'this time I'll take the guts out of It' (meaning the theatre). Rosen had not made demand for tenancy under the second lease until Chesnlus had restored the theatre to a paying business. An angle brought out In the hear Ing of the suit Infers that the origi- nal leasing of the house from Chea- ■ nlus w%s with a view to removing It as opposition by having the property converted Into stores. NIzer won refusal of the tenancy demand by the plaintiff on legal point which established that the ' second lease was a continuation of the first under law. Following sub- mission of briefs on damages to the theatre. Judge Dodd will determine the judgment award. Chesnlus Is asking for $29,000. Bomb Prevention Oklahoma CJlty, Nov. 2. Manager - Charley Burkey's method of forestalling stench bomb' violence Is six pickets parading around the theatre. With each picket marches a husky citizen whose family is seeing the show. Inside 1(9 another vplunteier waiting for something, to hap- pen-r-and nothing happens. Croze Asks Conrt to Direct He Complete His Tiff Contract Chicago, Nov. 2. James Cruze,. with four pictures yet unproduced of the 10 he con- tracted to deliver to Tlfifany by Nov. 1, has petitioned the l>os An- geles, superior court to declare his right to - complete the Series. He charges Tiffany with deranging his production schedule by delays of four weeks in accepting and pay-' Ing for two of the pictures delivered, and delays .of six to nine weeks In approving stories . of ■ five CJruze productions. Cruze asks the court to confirm his Tight to film 'The Last Mile,' 'Those We ■ I/bve,' and 'Silent Thunder' a,s the last: three In' his Tiffany contract. Tiffany secured the rights to the three stories and had ah . under- standing with Cruze last July to ?rrlte off their costs to his produc-, Ion budget; He alleges that Tiffany now declares he has no rights In the stories, and is arranging with another producer to do them. CABELLERO MOVES UP Next to Arthup in Fo?c Theatr«*— Latter West This Weettr Charies B. Cabellero has been niamed assistant general mahagier of Fox Theatres -under Harry Arthur. This g<ies. with Cabellero's other duties as chief .of the maintenance department. He assumes, office Im- mediately. .Prospect looming from this move are that Harry Arthur may shove off for the Coast this week. Cabellero is from California where he served in an executive capacity for Fox West Coast New Tops fw Loew and Par, Then Setback as Rise Meets Stock; RKQ at New Low on Bad Report ABRESTED FOR THEFT Brattleboro, Vt., Nov. 2. Amos McGee, 28, projectionist, under arrest here accused of break- ing and entering a candy store and stealing J700. According to.police, McGee admitted the money had been taken from the store and that he had burned several checks which were among the cash. The money was returned to the'store owners, METRO'S 3D GANGSTER A third picture In the gangster Patggopy la to be made by Metro. U win be called 'The Cleanup' anJ •>e directed by Charles Biabln. .Story Is to be authored by Bra bln'ana 'W. R. BurnetL Sheffield Smng Colombia Over Exchange Contracts Denver, Nov. 2. J. T. Shefileld, owner, of the Shef- field Exchange System, : Is' suing Columbia Pictures for alleged non- fulfillment of a contract made In 1928, when Columbia opened its own exchanges in Denver and Salt Lake City. In these two cities Shefileld had been operating under the name of Columbia Exchanges and was handling Columbia pic- tures. Following the entry of Columbia a contract was made for the pur- chase by that firm of all Sheffield's Interests In pictures and advertising accessories bearing the Columbia trademark. Deal Involved between $30,000 and $40,000 and provided for payment to Shefileld of a percent age on exhibitor contracts turned over to Columbia and stipulated diligence in enforcing all contracts' In Sheffield's complaint, in which he asks for the balance of $8,200 with Interest for approximately two years, he claims that Columbia handled the exhibitor contracts neg' llgently and that In numerous In- stances they canceled contracts made by him as consideration In a. sale of their own product. Sheffield claims this Is In ^direct violation of the contract and states. Columbia Is liable for -full payment of these agreements. Thamp' in Astor at $2 After viewlhg the first print east of 'The Champ: .vWlth Wallace Beery and Jackie Cooper, Metro set It .on thQ books for the.Astpr, New York I^ goes In there Nov. 9 for a $2 run It win be the second Beery for that house, other having been 'The Dig House.' CAMEO'S FEW WAR FILM 'Heroes AH' (Medelsohn-lfoung) film based on actual war Incidents bQoked Into the RKO-Cameo, New York. . Picture was shown to news papcrmen at a banquet recently. . Film'Is pencilled into the Cameo after the current "Terra Madrc' (Pltlaliiga) Itoli.in lalltcr. lOc TOP HELPS NEGRO-ALIEN CHI GRINDS Chicago, Oct. 28. That there will be a return of the -10-cent houses for certain neigh.^ borhoods is the Indication from the click of certain low-priced spots around town. Houses such as the Grand and the Willard, which had been-starving at higher tariffs, are now doing near capacity at the cheaper admission rates. Cheap prices are being restricted with only certain . districts beliig claimed suitable for them. Houses In the better-class neighborhoods have found that cutting the Tates may jack the patronage, but not enough to reach the former grosses, At present the 5-10 spots-are go- ing In the foreign neighborhoods and the colored belt, where business had been particularly bad before the price chiseling. Short Showa Whole operating scheme in these houses Is .the lowness of the cost Idea Is toi give 'em as little as pos- sible under the force of competition, New operators' union ruling, which permits: one man In the 400-seat houses. Is acting as a stimulus In chipping down the prices, since the necessary budget has been slashed Pictures In nearly all. cases are at least a year old. Any up-to-date material Is strictly discard stuff dragged- off the shelf from the grind showing. Patrons are accepting It, wltit the main Idea in these neigh borhoods that they're going to a show at a price thay can afford rather than whether the show is up to forqier standards. Alger 2-Reelers ' HoUjrwood, No-v. 2. H. Xi. Gumbin, of Liberty Pic tures, has an option on 26 Horatio Alger stories. Purpose Is to turn these rags to riches yarns Into two reelers. Lesser, Zeidman Sue For Tarzan' Rights Hollywood, Nov. 2. Their right to make a Tarzan picture has been put up to the supreme court through petition by Sol Lesser, Mike Rosenberg and Bennle F. Zeldman. Clontract, made by G. Walter Shumway and Jack C. Nelson In January, 1929, with E:dgar Rice Burroughs, Inc., called for $10,000 and 10% of gross to be paid author. Burroughs says deal was defaulted when he was not paid the 10 g's, and also says talker rights were not Included In the agreement Con tract' also said James H. Pierce was to be starred as Tarsan at $2,000 for the picture. Yesterday*! Prices Salu. 100 100 800 3,700 1.000 21,^ '20 81.G0O 800 13,200 C2.'100 8,000 SCO 200 300 100 $12,000 4.000 8,000 B.OOO 3,000 10.000 18.000 Hlgh.L,ow, Cona. Film TK Do p(... 14K Eait K.. Fox A. .'. dvn. Thr, IrfMw's ,. On>h. pt.. Par-P .... Pathe ... RCA .... BKO .... W. B CURB FoiThr/.. Ht Oen. T. pf. 1% .Tech 4 Tm>a-I< .. 2H BONDS* Oen. Thr.. 12 Keltb 00 iMyr .... SO Par-P .... M Paths .... 7« Shub ..... 8M •W. B...:. 4714 .109% 100 . 8H 7T4 . IH IK . 42 40tt . 14% 14H . lOM ISU K H 18% 12M 9A. OK . Net Close.ch'K. . 7Mi- 14 14*- 14 100 —8 , TK- H 114.-1*. 4014- H 1414-2 14 614 -114 6! 114 IK 4 3% lOK so 88 0414 7Sl4 814 4614 im-H BO -1 8» 6» +H 7614 + 14 814-114 47 ■ • Salea and piicea to 2:10 p. m. Fasliion Shows for Two U A. Fifans with Milei Chanel on Hand Fashion show's, as they wlU be dubbed, wlU be staged In many cities in connection with 'Greeks Had a Word for It' and ^Tonight or Never,' both United Artists prodi|C- tlons. These displays are not to be held In any of the theatres in conjunc- tion with this pictures but In fash- Ion salons to be obtained under tie- ups. Mile. Chanel,-who designed the gowns for. both films, -will personally supervise this publicity stunt. French designer will pick mannl- klns with the first exhibit scheduled for New York in conjunction with the opening of 'Tonight-or Never.' U. A.-METRO DEAL ON DISTRIBUTION AGAIN A distribution merger of United Artists with Metro is reported un- der way. Sam Goldwyn and How- ard Hughes are expected in New York within a week to Join others now here, including Douglas Fair- banks and Mary Flckford, with whom details on any distribution deal would have to be talked over. ' The Metro angle, long rumoredi comes up again strongly despite denials. If discussions are under way between U. A. and Metro, their nature is not being admitted any- where in U, A: or Metro. Joseph M.'Schenck, ot-U. A, and Nicholas Schenck, Metro, are brothers and on the friendliest of terms. With the arrival of Gtoldwyn and Hughes In a week or so, all UA owner-members will be In New York excepting Charlie Chaplin and Gloria Swanson who could Join the others on quick .notice. D.'W. Grlf, flth Is still in the east awaiting the opening of his picture. A Metro. deal would mean dls trlbution of UA product through that company, but If with a minor concern it is believed UA would dls tribute the product of the lesser firm as well as Its own. Momentum of late last week car- ried the list higher in the first boor, but realizing came in around noon . and the market closed yesterday (Mon.) with small net losses in th« Industrial leaders. Movements were spectacular . among the amusement stocks.-Loew began the day by climbing to a new top on the recovery at 42 whU» Paramount added to its gains of.: last week, reaching its best price tn more than a month well above 16. These prices were reduced in the. lost half hour on urgent profit tak-. Ing. and both leaders ended the pre- holiday session with fractional net losses. RKO was under pressure from th« second' hour on, -with heavy, dealings and evidences of niervous liquida- tion, touching a new bottom for the entire bear market at 6%, near which price it closed. Turnover here for the day was. In excess of. 60,000 shares which centered special attention upon this conspicuously weak spot in the theatre group. Fox Theatres on the Curb also was in new low ground, as wore the Shu- bert Bonds, latter below 4 on on» sale apparently from out of town. Crash, of RKO followed publica- tion of income statement for the September quarter showing net loss of $688,836, compared with net profit of $1,006,437 for same period of 1930. Operations for the three summer months cut into profits of rest of nine months of this year, ambuntingr to. more than $1,000,000 up to June 30, and, after taxes, left a profit oC . $622 for the nine months of 1981. ' Net profit for same period last year was $2,468,04B. Behavior.of the list was strange to say the least, for the news from ' the Chlcag6 wheat, pit was sensa- tionally bullish, being to the effect that Russia had put an export Imui oh wheat for two ytors and foreign supplies of ^grain were lower than estimated. Price of the distant op- tions on wheat on thiei Board of Trade soared to now tops for the year. Oil prices also advanced with- out bringing a buying movement into that group. News from all quarters was favorable and failure of the bull party to take advantage of the situation was a puzzle. In the theatre shares Loew re- (Continued on page -10) RKO Also Bidding for Fox Houses Upstate--Skouras WiD Probably Cop Latest to enter negotiations for Fox's upstate New York houses Is RKO. Actual' number of bidders doesn't seem to matter any more. From sources close to the situa- tion, however. Indications are that the Skouras Brothers will land, the houses. WhUe Skouras may lead the race, signatures may also depend upon .submission of 'definite plans (or. operation that will find favor with the Fox people. In this >vay Skouras is apt to tack on a couple of Indie partners to operate up state and these may be drawn from present Skouras division manager^ under a localized operation plan, The men assigned will possibly be given a special financial Interest In the houses to be operated and will devote all their time to same. Among the bidders are McGurk and Sablpsky, Myer Schlnc and M PIpsqn, besides RKO, with the bid ding remaining opcii. Special Tax Sessions Called by Many States And Theatres fiivohed Fllmdom has declared an armis- tice, the first In the relations of producers, distributors and indies. ' The Industry as a whole is concen- trating on the tax situation In state and nation. Inner Squabbles such las over contract and arbitral for- mulae are being tabled for the time being so that every effort -will be centered on a single objective. Reporting complete co-operation - in legislative matters from Allied Exhibitors as well as th^ Motion Picture Theatre Owners of Amer- ica, Charles Pettljohn, Hays gen- eral counsel,. Is leaving Thursday (6) for the Initial once-over this season of .16 of the 26 states which are calling special sessions of their legislatures.' One of Pettljohn's first stops will be in Illinois, where Governor Em- erson has called a si>eclal session to meet the unemployment sltua-. tlon through the medium of extra taxes. Tobacco and oil, as well as amusements, are up for considera- tion ' in that state. Pennsylvania, through Governor Pinchot, this week Joined the states giving. consideration to the Jobless through hew tax la-ws. Rhode Island will get Its report from tax commissioners on sug- gested additional state revenue la December. In the meantime film workers are puzzled as to the move. New York State Intends to make. The tax plan being, worked out by the Seabury- Ma.stlck committee Is tightly llddedl so far as knowledge in the film industry Is concerned.