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. .<br />
,<br />
BUFFALO<br />
Ta^'k Beresin, chief barker of Variety Internalional,<br />
was the guest at a reception in the<br />
headquarters of Tent 7, with Dave Miller,<br />
present chief barker of the tent, acting as<br />
emcee. The local MGM staff held its Christmas<br />
party in the .same place that evening .<br />
Dr. Mauro Zambuto, world-famous authority<br />
on sound, is coming here for several days in<br />
advance of 'Anna." which opens January 8<br />
at the Center. Zambuto will appear on several<br />
radio stations. A Hollywood type night-before-opening<br />
is being planned by Arthur<br />
Krolick. UPT general manager, to launch the<br />
Silvano Mangano starring vehicle.<br />
Menno Dykstra presented "The Miracle of<br />
Fatima" at his Glen Theatre. Williamsville,<br />
and smashed all attendance records . . . Ira<br />
E. Epstein, city manager for UPT in Rochester,<br />
used some eye-catching ads in the Kodak<br />
town sheets promoting the sale of gift books<br />
of theatre tickets as "the ideal Christmas<br />
gifts" . . . Joe Miller, for many years manager<br />
of the local Columbia office and now part<br />
owner of the Menands Drive-In, wa-s on Filmrow.<br />
His wife Sadie is recuperating from an<br />
eye operation in the Grouse Irving hospital<br />
in Syracuse.<br />
Lewis J. Lieser, head of the local Lieser Film<br />
Distributing Co.. was host at a big Yuletide<br />
party . . . Dave Miller and his U-I office force<br />
held a Christmas party recently . . . Charlie<br />
Mancuso, assistant booker at the Fix excliange,<br />
is back on the job following a<br />
shoulder operation.<br />
Russ Tripi, former shipper at National<br />
Screen, now is assistant shipper at the RKO<br />
branch . . . Ben Joel jr., MGM booker at the<br />
home office, was here for conferences with<br />
Vincent R. McFaul, general manager of the<br />
Loew-Shea circuit in Buffalo and Niagara<br />
Falls . . . Max Miller, UA, was in town working<br />
with Bill Brereton, Basil ad-pub chief,<br />
on "Kansas City Confidential," and with<br />
Eddie Meade at Shea's on "Outpost in Malaya."<br />
The FCC has authorized a second commercial<br />
TV station for Buffalo and a third, now<br />
under consideration, may be on the air within<br />
«3<br />
a year. The Chautauqua Broadcasting Corp.,<br />
a new Buffalo concern, has received authority<br />
to build a new UHF station on channel 17 . .<br />
Newspaperboys of the Buffalo Courier-Express<br />
were guests of General Manager Robert T.<br />
Murphy of the Century Theatre . . . Batavia<br />
Film Laboratories, a complete theatre and TV<br />
trailer service, is about to be estabhshed in<br />
Batavia, N. Y., by Harold Reid. Ted Snell<br />
and Barney Drees. Reid and Drees several<br />
years ago operated the Greyhound Film offices<br />
in Buffalo. Drees now is working at the<br />
Buffalo Evening News as an artist.<br />
Eddie Suess, MGM salesman, was chairman<br />
of the big benefit show staged in the Depew<br />
Theatre December 27 for Harold Hughes, now<br />
at Perrysburg, N. Y., hospital ... A man who<br />
allegedly took bank night at a Jamestown<br />
theatre four years ago too seriously and<br />
walked off with $600 in boxoffice receipts<br />
is in Chautauqua county jaU awaiting<br />
arraignment on a charge of first degree grand<br />
larceny. Criminal Deputy Merle Campaign<br />
returned from Alexandria. Va., with Richard<br />
D. Gillmer, 32. Arkport, former assistant manager<br />
of the Palace Theatre in Jamestown, for<br />
whom a bench warrant has been in existence<br />
since his secret indictment Dec. 6, 1948. The<br />
indictment came after Gillmer, on a night<br />
when the theatre was displaying a huge sign<br />
reading "free cash tonight," disappeared. The<br />
evening's ticket receipts also were missing.<br />
Shortly later he was arrested on another<br />
charge in Virginia and deputies said a detainer<br />
was lodged against the time when he<br />
should be released from detention there.<br />
. .<br />
Mr. and Mrs. Mike Kallet of the Kallet circuit,<br />
Oneida, were on their way to spend the<br />
winter in Miami Beach . The 153 Corp. of<br />
which BiU Dipson is the head, has reopened<br />
the Regent Theatre in Elmira, and Jack H.<br />
Boyd has closed the State in Caledona.<br />
"The most important matter before us, and<br />
it may go a long way in our struggle for<br />
survival, is the elimination of the federal<br />
admission tax," says a bulletin just sent to<br />
members of the MPTO of western New York.<br />
"Our tax problems are about to come up before<br />
Congress, it is imperative that each and<br />
every exhibitor contact his<br />
congressman and<br />
supply him with pertment information that<br />
will point up the absolute urgency of tax relief<br />
The information that will influence<br />
. . . your congressman can only come from you.<br />
Here are a few suggestions that may give you<br />
an idea as to what is needed so that the<br />
legislators may be guided accordingly: Profit<br />
and loss statements covering the last five<br />
years to show the trend of falling grosses and<br />
income and at the same time larger operating<br />
costs; how the tax exceeds profits the<br />
theatre may have made; schedules of equipment<br />
replacements and improvements which<br />
should be made if the house is to remain in<br />
operation; statements from realtors and<br />
other businessmen testifying to the depreciation<br />
of values in the neighborhood where<br />
theatres have had to close."<br />
Kepresentini: Variety Tent 7, Myron Gross<br />
visited the cerebral palsy clinic in the Children's<br />
hospital and distributed candy, cigarets<br />
and pa.>ises to downtown theatres, This was<br />
Myron's annual Yuletide trip to the cUnic<br />
and the gifts were given to employes of the<br />
institution ... It is understood that Robert<br />
T. Murphy, general manager of the Century<br />
has signed up for the showing of "Niagara'<br />
at that first run house. This picture wa;<br />
produced at Niagara Falls last slimmer, whetf;<br />
newspapers gave the filming a lot of pubUcitj<br />
and ai't.<br />
Buffalo marines at<br />
both the recruiting offices<br />
in the post office building and the reserve<br />
base are cooperating 100 per cent witt<br />
Manager Ed Miller of the Paramount in promoting<br />
"Stars and Stripes Forever." Eddie i<br />
is arranging a parade on opening night, with<br />
marines using A-board posters all over westem<br />
New York and the marines reserves posting<br />
special signs on station wagons, which<br />
are continuously moving along the highways<br />
in<br />
the vicinity.<br />
Those who arg:ue that Rochester is culturally<br />
"different" from her sister cities, may<br />
find support in the realm of music and art,<br />
but not in the list of screen boxoffice hits for<br />
1952. Manager of Kodak town theatres, looking<br />
over their boxoffice scores for the year,<br />
report unanimously that Rochesterians went<br />
for the same films in general as did the patrons<br />
of many other cities. Theatre by theatre,<br />
here are the tops for '52 in Rochester:<br />
Cinema— "The River"; Little<br />
— "The Man in<br />
the White Suit"; Loew's— "QuoVadis"; Palace—<br />
"The — Miracle of Fatima," and Paramount<br />
"The Greatest Show on Earth." The<br />
list contains no clue as to what the public<br />
likes about pictures. One has a big name<br />
star and another one, just as successful, does<br />
not. "There is no formula," said Jay Golden,<br />
RKO Theatres district manager. "You just<br />
begin to think you know what's going to be a<br />
sure thing, and then the public fools you.<br />
'"<br />
sanaM<br />
Gross.<br />
Gforje<br />
a'j Buffalo \<br />
iSewsworliei<br />
It's one of the things that makes the business<br />
so interesting." Lester PoUock, manager<br />
of Loew's, says there is nothing like color,<br />
music and adventure to stimulate the boxoffice.<br />
*i Clown," a<br />
a Meade of<br />
"Quo Vadis" had the color, "Ivanhoe"<br />
the adventm'e and "Singin' in the Rain" the<br />
ingsilie<br />
music. Maurice Slotmck, manager of the<br />
Zi mi piiWi<br />
Cinema, which ran "The River" for seven Mnena Ca'<br />
weeks, lists as second best of the year, from^Mi ami foi<br />
a business standpoint, "O. Henry's Pull' Kjityfonhe<br />
House," which ran four and a half weeks. E in Sister;<br />
Mrs. Ben Belinson, manager of the Little, !iB miim<br />
named "The Man in the White Suit," "Ivory Was she i<br />
Hunters," "Les Miserables" and retiurn showto<br />
Remember."<br />
The annual installation and dinner of Variety<br />
Tent 7 will be held Sunday evening dl)<br />
in the Statler. New officers to be installed are<br />
Dewey Michaels, chief bai'ker; BUly Keaton,<br />
first assistant chief barker; Marvin Jacobs,<br />
second assistant chief barker; Robert Hayman,<br />
doughguy, and W. E. Martin, property<br />
master. These new du-ectors also will be installed;<br />
Hai'ry L. Berkson, John G. Chinell,<br />
Albert F. Ryde. Elmer C. Winegar. Max Yellen<br />
and Arthm' Krolick. The committee arranging<br />
the affair hopes to have a prominent industry<br />
figure as speaker of the evening.<br />
Mannie A. Brown, manager of the UA offices<br />
in Buffalo and Albany, threw a tlireeway<br />
Christmas celebration the otlier day. The<br />
unique party started with hor d'oeuvres and<br />
cocktails in the UA exchange in the Film<br />
building, then moved to the La Marque restaurant<br />
and thence to the Sheraton, where<br />
the gang was feted by Moe Dudleson, UA district<br />
chief. Among the guests were Elmer P. Ij^<br />
Lux, general manager, Elmai't Theatres and<br />
president of the Buffalo City council; Constantino<br />
and Gus Basil and Spencer Balser,<br />
BOXOFFICE :: December 27, 1952<br />
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