Variety (Aug 1929)

Wednesday, August 28, 1929 PICTURES VARIETY Lynch Sells pi Weel^ '. s. A. tynch. ha for around $[2,600,q60. cash' to Prudence, Bbnxls. Ills rerhalning term of Ave years un- der a Paramount .contract that nets $7,506 every Weelf, ;as it has since December, ^1919; ; '-. That ISryear.vContract marke^. the first biff theatre deal pr triide or buy in America.: It had bceh worth iCjOOOjOOO to Lynch, who retired, from 'the. show, business with its ex- . ecution. Jle is now llvlngr In France. under the sale tynch turned over io Famous Players (no. Par or Pub- lix in .those days) 150 theatres in the South. Tiiey were operated .under the corporatioh-.title of -Southern Elnterprises, a: c6rppratlpn i-emain-^ incf- existent with Paramount and one of its mpst important current subsidiaries.^ Fromi the orjffinal Lynch purchase by Par have spruiiff chains and cir.^ cults, such as Pubiix. Saehger (out- side of La.), Spirits, Dent's, Rob- bl.h-Rowly's ; and /vyilby-Kinqy's; These were made possible by spiel detachments of the original Lynch .:iist.---;-V--.: ■ : .V :';„-...' •>;'•-' ■■ •' '. .; . Big and Profitable It is estimated hereabouts tha ^Tamous* (Paramount) buy-' of' 10 years : ago, costing it $6,600,000 in 15.Vears, without a dollar put up in cash at the time .of the sale, has. been worth to Paramount to date $;2b,000,000. Not .only is. it the first biff theatre purchase on the recprd of the picture businessi but prie of the most prpfltable. " . sho\yrnen.: cpnsidei-ed Steve Lynch iidd made a great sale. Lynch has \not always agreed with that view.. He .has . stated' that: if . holding on 1 longer he would . have doubled ijis money. Lynch started; in .the film exhibi- tion business; in .1912. Previously he had.been a ball player and more, lattedy the football. and baseball coachi^ , of a natlye college. He drifted into the theatre end and by . 1913 had'-accumulated 18 theatres in this southern section. . By that time Lynch Was out- standing among the big. exhibitors. AdblpR Zukor was taking note of the sbutherner. In 1918 Lynch en- gaged Lpuis CPhen, then yariety^s correspondent in Atlanta, and .placed him in the Lynch realty de- .partment.. Cohen, with sparse knowledge of real estate, but know- ing the territory, started to travel. He secured 80 houses fpr Lynch in the first three months. That started Cohen into a picture career, He is now the general theatre ope- rator fpr Universal. . LynclVs 150. theatres; did a gross ;busi.ness in. 19i9'pf"ii.f,^06,^80^;^ the Lynch, circuit, as it wo.uld be called, and nls far as it could be traced, as included in the PUblix chairi. is doine- a grpss of airourid t25,06o;o60. In 1920, Its ;beSt . year arojitid that time, the circuit netted :.$.80a,0ptt. • • . ; [■ v': Agreed On Flat Suni . . .When Zukor arid Lynch got down to a buying basis the first prbposai was fpr Lynch to ■ take 4 per cent, of the gross inc6nv6 of the theatres, ."With another percentage of the €X- ohange.s. : Much dickoring foliowedt : until it was agreed that Lynch should have 414 per cent, of the errpss income from the- theatres. Finally a flat sum was deemed the ljP!5t by Lynch. The. amount- of $7,oOO weekly was set as a mutually . .satisfactory figure, to run . for 15 years, ' ' Ry Lynch:.«5 sale to. Prudonre his. =iias^eoH n eet i 0 n^wi t hrth"er=shw'"busi^' ne.s.s has been ended.. ^ ^lany .<;howmon ' s.'i y : that hart . ^<leve Lynch remained in pictures jt i.s pps.sil.)le' that there.would have lieen a oonsiclorable- change in the cfenerul oulllne as it now exists, lie WKs among the flr.'^t of the pprson- tility executives, a smart, shrewd, .^h.arp business and .show man. About Reh^arsal^ Holiywpod, Aug; 27. ; On the basis of a 30-day woi^king schedule to make the average program sound picture that rurts 9.6 minutes in its fin- ished- state, the .average\ actual recording tiine Pf okayed scenes Is still between three and six minutes a day. Balance pf the time is. deypted to rehearsals and getting thie. scenes cprrect.^ N^umber of studios are. work- ing, to: establish a; systeiri of cpmplete rehearsals for the en- tire, stpry. before a camera- is. tUrned. Wpuld mean a saving of. film, studio' labor and 'time of actors. ^ ' ' .One majpr studio seldom, if; ' ever,- rehearses, a .scene. 1 SOUND FILMS Feature dialog, productions sphed^ Uled for Paramount's .Long; Isia.nd (Astoria) studlps. include and will go into pwduction. in - the fbllpW.ing order: ■: . ."Laughing Lady," with;. Jeanne Eagel.s. and Cliye Brook, Starting about get>t. 3; Victor. .Schertzinger directing. "The Big [Pond," with Charles Buggies; Hobairt Henley directing.. "Kid Bopts," former Eddie Cantor stage show and silent film, wlir be made with Jack pakie arid Helen .Kane. Director Unassighed. . MaUrice Chevalier picture. iDetalls to be deterhnine.d. A melodrama. Title not , an- nounced. ■.' A musical. There will be actlye production of shorts 'under the direction of Monte Brice. Qne or two a week on an average. Studio has been experimenting with dialog in foreign languages. It has made several shorts in French, Spanjsh and Cerman. ' W; Hearst Repmrteci; Buy- ing m oh Fox-Case Moyie* ^tomcH-rCacK vTura ; Two IssMes Weekly^N Company pp^raiting for J^k^MaVe of 100 Sound Iruekk ^ SEWING op 5 E RVIC E ; Fox's Pt'bdiicersr . : Hollywood, Aug. 27. - Since the addition-of Al Rockett and Tpm, Geraghty to the producr tipn. staff of Sol Wurtzei, all meni-^ bers Pf this board are now identified as tissociate prpdiicers.' :. Line Up consists Pf George .. i\Ii(.Tdletbn, Chandler Sprague, M. Si ■ Eoylani Rockett and .Geraghty, - with Jv K. .Mc.Guinness a<;ting as personal aid to 'Wurtzel..'. ■ v ■■ . LOWE STAYS WITH FOX • ■ ■ "1 . . . Hollywood, Aug. 27. Edmund Lowe has a/new agreer ment with. Fox. At the expiration of his last contract, the' studib did not renew! While Lowe was Work- ing at Pathe.. "The Cock-Eyed AVorld" (Fox). in which Low'e had a featured part,, went ovf-.r with a ^ =bfl ing-=i n-:-^:ew=^'o i^ki=-^Mi'e=^salar J^: queptio'n was then setfif'd. Fox Mbvietbrte N.ewsreel find the Mearst Metrbtono riewsreelr ; of which the first issue is due $ept. 30, are to am^tlflartate tHeir neWs- gathering resburcM into 9 separate .cbrp'oration. •.■ It will - service bbtk , nevysreels/ vvith' each ma!htaini|ig its. wn edi- torial.: departnfient - ahd releasing tbrb.ugli reiaular charinels» _ . U nder the proposition as outlined, but - not . yet . consurniirtated,:. Fox Movietone newsreel will reduce tfia number of its Weekly issues from four , to tvvp with Hearst to also have two issuias a weeik..; ; • Metrotbne Newsreel has. been or-, .s:anized and shpptihg sound stuff for several mPnths, although not due until: the end of September. It has abpiit 12 sound tr.ucks at 'pres-, ent. "These will be jplned With the Fox world-Wide fleiet creating, it Is understood, a fleet of about 100 Movietone trucks all pver the globe. This number. include iriicks yet tp be delivered for servicei Terrific, competition in spund. new'sreeis is behind the amalgama- tipn . pf news staffs. \ Operating co.mpany is cpiripar.able to the U. P. pr A. P., but bwhed by but.two mien^ William Fox and Williairi Randolph Hearst, ; ■; • ■ : Metro; Pathe and Paramount each with, two weekly issues w;lll provide competition in $ound. M-G-M in.; ternational; Newsreel^^^X b.e produced ^as. ajt present; Hearst .Buyinsj.: In It is I^iside understobd ;the deaf Includes, a, buy in pn PPx Movie- tbhe by Hearst; to an unknown ex- tent; .. The FoX:-Case Movietone Sound iNe.ws is a subsidiary borpo- ratloh of Fox Films^ With the buy, it is expected that eventually the Hearst newsreel service will be limited to the Fpx- Hcarst putp.ut, with the idea to sew up as far as possible the sPund news reel output in this country; '. Fox Movietone News is the pion- eer. of the sound news, issues. Fox's start and progress was uninterrupt- ed by competition for. a. Jong, while, comparatively. MeanwiiHe ■^^ . Fpx man.eU vor ed its o vietone News intb a position, where Fbx coUld and did demand ' that. the. chains and circuits gb urtder . contract -for Fox Mpvletbne for' a periPd of five years, with a . reported uniform . rate/for service.', '" I'dthe was Fox's sotin tie.w.s' first bnposition, ; Pathe ..-turning but its initial sound news tAylce . monthly; I more, latterly' extending the service to two .a week. . ■ raramount followed.' idetro pro poses a sound news tp be launched during September (.with Metro a Lpew subsidiary,.- Fox- -cohtrolled), \yiiile 'Uniyersars projected sound news. release In conjunction' with Kinogparha, is.also due to appeiar in I the future.- B.&K,Uses Issue for CARPENTIEIi'S NOSE Los Angeles, Aug;: 27. . y .After telling Georges Gai'pen- . tier it would be a breach of contract W:ith: Warners if he ■revealed ; the: remaking of l\is nose, the tVenchman .isolated himself in his roonris at' the Roosevelt ;hbtiei until all band-, ■gages cpuid; be removed. But.his absence became con- spicuous. Lobbyltes at/, the- Ropseyelt uncoyeried the secret a:nd gav.fe it the ' works, witK, the result the story' copped : plen ty. Of space,:. .■ . k LABPEOPLEiN The sale of the Lynch circuit was ^ rtiially the star of the formation 01 the PubUx Theatres of today. It •was the^ bpginning of the Zukor plan to furni.sh his "own theatre butlVt for Famous:Players product, if-the indcpcndont exhibitors .'.should de- velop too much .power. ' When- the tim'j- period Involved Is looked upon, from 1919 to 1929, a matter of ten years, the swirl of the picture business industry will stand out FUm labbratory employes; on the coast are bein^ organized under a charter of the American Federation of Labbri title of new body .to be !LibPratory Workers' Union, David Lory and- Charles Rogerson of NeVv York, are. cpihductlng the campaign for memberships.. It Is declared by thpse who claim to know;.that 90 per cent; of the 500 men and women, eligible for: ;ihembershlp have signed applicatipns;. } Reitiuest Is made for a FederatiPn chairter, instead of frpm . the Inter-^ natiorial . Alliance - pf. Theatrical Stage lEfriplpyes, because the; lat- ter bbdy is Ipoking fpr no .'added resp^piisibiUtles for the present, . a;; F. of L,' grants charters' pn the application 'pf V seven ' persons emplPyed - in ari "orphaned" trade, one in Which/ there. Is np recognized union. It Is the understariding that if at any time the laboratory em- ployed succeed in building a going; organization the I. A. will request its charter be tran.sferred. to that outfit. ', . / ■ Film laboratories on the- coast. Include; the GbnsPlIdated, Technl- colpr, Bennett, Paraniount War- ners, Fox, Davidge, Horsley, M-G-M;, Fowler and .Chaplin. Both. Sides An ' executive- pf a large .labora- tory., said -vyaires. of Tab empTpyes covered a wide range due to-the character of worki He said a fair average tori those regularly em- ployed through good times . and otherwise,, would be prlntingma- Ghl.ne Pperiator-s, iso to $35; patch- eri?, ghils, $25 to $30;/ negative cut- ters/; sound; $4b; to: $75; ;'silent, - $35 to $40r' develppihg. machines, nega-r tiVeV.$6.0.; positive, ■$4(),. Organizers pf the new ■ynion, have held.out niaterial adyahccs o^n these figures .tP pro.specti-^'e. applicant^. :One executive .declared the quoted figures would put the labs out bf business. He pointed out the dif- ficuity of preparing a schedule of regular hours due to the unccitalnty of the . amount of work that de- livered, to the laboratory Is in the evenings by companies working in "QTrPTrtU" tW -T ftftmnPTT ' ' and ^ on location/Produc:ord^ .SHKJliW. JLM -7,01)0 ±JVLX are always In a hurry fbr the "dall =Hollyw-oGd7=A-u gr/=2=7:.=i4-ieaiii=^=ru .sh:Cfi;.)==and==tla^^ s=-na=tu ua 11 bond :o'y.ery r-ffort-to mf^ct the do- m-and. Inevitable result. f)f ;orgrinl- zation, In tho ovent it. should bf conceded; would, be tho placuig: of many tnon and women on a day to day .scale rather than a wr-r-K-iy a.'? i at . prcs'.'nt, making up the <;r(>w p.Tfh evening. On the other .side employes any no trade in pictures is .so ripe for organization or one in whtfh there are .so many inequities regarding boura. 1/ "Ta.m.fnp of the. ,Shrew," ;Wl,ir, bo '■ rf'lcased with ,a footage of ,a'pproxi- niatoly 7,000 /feet, i Arthur Zcllner leaves here Aug. ' 2fi lor New Yprk to. supervi.'^e; ex;- • ploitation of the first runs.- Zellnor ' will be away three month.s. : ChipagP, Aug. 27.; ;The Paramount-PiiblIx/issue of Variety is being used as - a. basis for: instUutlonal ; advertising by,: Balabari & -KatZ: theatres in Chi- cago. FoUbWlng copy was; repeatr ed .as ' extra advertis ing' in all Chi .- cago."dallies, and run :as a traiier in; the B. Si/iC. theatres: • /A 'Magnificent. Tri|jU^^^ . Variety A foremost thea,trical journal, last week de*. . voted over 200 pages to the. tre- ' mendbu$- achlevem.ent- of ;Par- . . amount-Fairiplis, Lasky pictures' and tp Pubiix tl^eatres, -Avith • , . which Balaban ;&' Katz Theatres are affiliated. ,- ■ // , , In 'T^his issue. Variety Sayst , '. "Publix ;;is the flower Of; the moyin'g ; picture industry.: It .. cprnprises" the most ■ .effective .' . gi'pup/pf theatres In the '.worlds iand is , accdirded the hjgh'eist - / .public acclaim;" . And '.yariety Adds That: ; "BaiaWn .yfe Katz Th^fatfes , are- tiie -; great inspiration .for this ..mighty .chain' of Public .Theatres, .v^fhich igive their pa^ : tronS . the utmost in entertain- ment and ;bring cpmfort, bea;'uty : and healthful atmosphere to over 25,060,000 people / each ■■ ' week.''' ' - ■ :, ... B. & K. once before used a-trailer qubting Variety in all its! theatres, reprir^tlng a story on the circuit's fainbus collectipn of art pbjects. 30 technicolor Cameras '/ , _ Los A.nge\ea, Aug. 27. i)uke Grtien is here; in-charge of all Techhlcolor' cameras on the CVrst. Gompany "ow has 30 cam- eras .in local studios and has con- tracted Avi'!:,' the manufacturer for: 1.00 .more. Pprter** U JpV : / . .. : Hollyw^bod; Aug. 2l • Verne Porter -will replace Fipr- ence Strauss :as studio' and sfpry contact for Universal in New Yprk.. Miss Strauss has .been with Uni- ver.sal since leaving First National about a year ago. Porter recently severed his con- nections' wUh a number of trade papers published in the east. He was at one timti in the story de- partment of Cosmopolitan Prpduc- tions. ^ SEOISET'S ADAPTATIONS Sidney. Skblsky. says he wpn't try to Improve :on*'Q., Henry in the series: of ■ 12 two>reelers he .:li|as been opmmissioned.\by RKO Pictures to adapt for the ailr.dialpg -short sub-^ jects. .First bf the series Iii produc- tlb.n at .RCA Photophone: studlps in Grahiercy i^airlt district Under ..Leo Meehan's - direction, titled "While the Auto ;Waits." v,'" ;'- ■ - .; ■ ■ " ,The O. Henry style of sufprl.se finish: would make any; one o£ his fitoi-les a • satisfactbry / black-oUt./ Skolsky's ta.^k is. to build up and routine ;!the •brlginal text for dra-. matic pfesentatibn, , . / , /: . ; WARNERS' AGENCY IN STUDIO ' Monday "Warners moved its^ talk-^ Ing short casting, agency from the Bond; building to the Brooklyn stu- dios; /N'o roason. for the riiove.: an* nouncc-d. New casting ofnce will',be;-under the direc'.llon of, t>tuart StCAvart and; tiuh aud=-I'.;oy v—. 1 ■ ■ Another Year for Lei'ia. lloUywPod^ Aug. 27. Metro-Goldwn-Mayer has - exef- cl.sed It.s option on Leila Hyams for another year. DUBIN WITH PUBLIX • Chicago,.Au^. 27. J);i.vij Diiliin, braufh manager of 1 lie local lOdinvitional Kxch.ange, has ro.<is'n".fl fiflcr nine Vcar.s with the f (jini){iny to go with Publix in New i'orlf. TJjiibin's now position, while not yet fully determined, probably will Uf in the production end. His sue* cessor at liducatlonal not selected.