3^

~
Pedro
Para
been a pleasuie
-JUDt jflvsw- Give us
more of these. Played Wed., Thurs.
to in
again have your roar
the Roxy. Leo. Business was 125 per
leissue
cent
for the three days, doubled with Screen
Guild's streamliner, "The Hat Box Mystery."
Played Tues., Wed., Thurs. Weather: Cloudy
and hot.—Jim Dunbar, Roxy Theatre, Wichita,
Kas. Second and third dowijtov^Ti run
patronage. • •
Romance of Rosy Ridge iMGM)—Van
Johnson, Thomas Mitchell, Janet Leigh. Good
old Metro and I had to quit speaking about
the time this came out, so I had to go back
into the boneyard for this. Business wasn't
high, but neither was the rental! However,
the picture has everything—cast, storj-, comedy,
locale, etc. It is a small town natural.
If they had used color on this, it would have
been really big. If you passed it up like I
did, here's one I'd say to go back and pick
up. Played Sun., Mon., Tues. Weather: Hot.
—Robert C. Walker, Uintah Theatre, Fruita,
Colo. Small town and rural patronage. " * *
QStratton Story, The (MGM)—James Stewart,
June Allyson, Frank Morgan. This is
an exceptionally fine production that will
appeal to all, young and old ahke. Also, it
IS a very fine piece of acting. It is a picture
that gets under your skin. Played Wed.
thi-ough Sat. Weather: Splendid.—M. W.
Mattecheck, Mack Theatre, McMinnvilie, Ore.
City and rm-al patronage. * ' *
yXake Me Out to the BaU Game ^MGM)—
Prank Sinatra, Esther Williams, Gene Kelly.
This is really super. Some stayed to see it
over again. I gave away a baseball glove, bat
and ball on opening day and word-of-mouth
advertising took care of the rest. Everybody
loved it. Played Sun., Mon. Weather: Hot.—
Mrs. Pat Murphy, Queen Theatre, HoUiday,
Tex. Oil field patronage. * * *
C-Take Me Out to the Ball Game (MGM)—
Prank Sinatra, Esther Williams, Gene Kelly.
This is good but did not do the business it
should have done. Quite a number of our
people do not like Frank Sinatra. The picture
has a perfect title and a good story combining
baseball and vaudeville. Kelly's songand-dance
numbers were not up to standard
but I believe that the picture is worth preferred
playing time in small towns at a reasonable
flat rental. Played Sun., Mon.
Weather: Pair.—E. A. London, State Theatre,
Olivet, Mich. Rural and small town patronage.
* •
Three Godfathers (MGM1—John Wayne,
Armendariz. Hari-y Carey jr. This was
not too hot and didn't go over so big. The
people seemed divided on this as to their
likes. Played Fri., Sat. — Harland Rankin,
Plaza Theatre, Tilbury, Ont. Small town patronage.
* • •
PARAMOUNT
Accused, The iPara)—Loretta Yoimg, Robert
Cunxmings, Wendell Corey. I knew in advance
what to expect, but it wasn't quite as
bad as I thought it would be. I did make
expenses, but nothing more. Played Wed.,
Thm-s. Weather: Fair.—Mrs. Pat Murphy,
Queen Theatre, HoUiday, Tex. Oil field patronage.
* * *
Alias Nick Beal ( )
— Ray Milland,
Audrey Totter, Thomas Mitchell. This is a
fantasy that did not click. From a production
standpoint, it is satisfactory. From an
Waiting for This Type:
Turned Out for It
MAKE BELIEVE BALLROOM (Col) —
Jerome Courtland, Ruth Warrick, Ron
Randell. This is what they were waiting
Harland Rankin, Plaza Theatre, Tilbury,
Ont. Small town patronage. * « *
entertainment standpoint, it has slight value.
Played Sun. through Tues. Weather: Splendid.—M.
W. Mattecheck, Mack Theatre, Mc-
Minnvilie, Ore. City and rural patronage. * * *
Big Clock, The (Para) — Ray Milland.
Charles Laughton, Maureen O'SuUivan. Now
here is one that fails to click. A few will
like it—the majority won't. Laughton is
hard to understand, but he sure can act!
Prank Sabin, Majestic Theatre, Eureka, Mont.
Small town patronage. • * •
Big Town Scandal (Para) —Philip Reed,
Hillary Brooke, Stanley Clements. This is
not bad for a double bUl, but is strictly B
stuff. It is a far-fetched basketball stoi-y
and the crime angle overshadows the sports
angle, so it gets a cold shoulder at the boxoffice.
You'll never miss anything if you never
play this one. Played Wed., Thurs. Weather:
Hot.—Robert C. Walker, Uintah Theatre,
Pruita, Colo. Small town and rural patronage.
* • »
Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court,
A (Para)—Bing Crosby, Rhonda Fleming, Sir
Cedi'ic Hardwicke. Fantasy supreme, with
Bing crooning his way through in his usually
fine tradition. However, the fantasy was a
bit too far-fetched to please most fans. Between
"The Emperor Waltz" and this, Paramoimt
will start wondering why Bing's draw
is lagging. Most fans are far from happy
about his casting lately. Doubled with "Case
of the 'Baby-Sitter" (LP) to 90 per cent business.
Played Sat. (preview). Sun., Mon.
Weather: Cloudy and sijltry.—Jim Dunbar,
Roxy Theatre, Wichita, Kas. Second and
third downtown run patronage. * *
Dynamite (Para) — William Gargan,- Virginia
Welles, Richai'd Crane. This is okay
and was doubled over the weekend to satisfaction.
Played Fri., Sat. Weather: Warm.—
Harland Rankin, Plaza Theatre, Tilbury, Ont.
Small town patronage. * * •
The Best Free Short
Put Out, He Thinks
SOME OF THE BEST (MGM)—Trade
short. This is the best free short put out
by any film company. I was actually
proud that I had played it. Attendance
was light because of the county fair and
it was played with "Clay Pigeon" (RKO),
which was a weak sister. I think every
theatre should play "Some of the Best."
Played Wed., Thurs. Weather: Fair.
Fred G. Weppler, Colonial Theatre, Colfax,
111. Small town and rural patronage.
*
Wanda
Miss Tatlock's Millions (Para ) —
HendrLx, Barry Fitzgerald, John Lund. We
didn't have much luck with this one and it
didn't draw enough for film rental and house
expenses, so use your own judgment. If you
can buy it right, the picture isn't so bad,
and it does have quite a few laughs. Played
Wed., Thurs. Weather: Fair and hot.—Mayme
P. Musselman, Roach Theatre, Lincoln, Kas.
Small town patronage. • * •
CWelcome Stranger (Para)—Bing Crosby,
Joan Caulfield, Barry Fitzgerald. I played
a return date on this and it did all right.
You can't beat this pair of stars. Played
Wed., Thm-s. Weather: Pair.—Bill Leonard,
Leonard Theatre, Cedarvale, Kas. Small town
and rural patronage.
*
^'^^lispering Smith (Para)—Alan Ladd, Robert
Preston, Brenda Marshall. Customers
were disappointed in this one. Played Fri.,
Sat., but it failed to draw them in. Weather:
Hot and sulti-y.—C. E. McMurchy, Memorial
Hall Theatre Co., Ltd., Reston, Man. Small
town and rural patronage.
*
RKO RADIO
Adventure in Baltimore (RKO) Robert
It
Has Entertainment:
What Patrons Want
MOTHER IS A FRESHMAN (20th-
Fox)—Loretta Young, Van Johnson, Rudy
Vallee. This picture is a "must" for all
small towns. It sure has entertainment,
and that is what my patrons want. Played
Thurs., Fri. W. S. Funk, Star Theatre,
St. Stephen, S. C. Small town and farm
patronage. * » »
Young, Shirley Temple, John Agar. This is
just another picture, neither good nor bad,
but it has some comedy in it. The few who
came were pleased. I took a loss. Played
Wed., Thurs.—E. M. Freiburger, Paramount
Theatre, Dewey, Okla. Small town patronage.
* * *
CBest Years of Our Lives, The (RKO)-
Myrna Loy, Fredric March, Dana Andrews.
This did good business at regular admissions.
Comments all were good on it. I gave them
a 10-minute recess at the end of the sixth
reel. It is tops in entertainment. Played
Tues., Wed.—Prank Sabin, Majestic Theatre,
Eureka, Mont. Small town patronage. * * *
Enchantment (RKO)—David Niven, Evelyn
Keyes, Parley Granger. Our customers' comments
were all to the bad. It was not liked
and we took a splendid licking, as it is just
not the type our patrons want. It can be
used as the lower half of a double bill. Played
Tues. through Wed. Weather: Splendid.—M.
W. Mattecheck, Mack Theatre, McMinnvilie,
Ore. City and rural patronage. ' *
Indian Agent (RKO)—Tim Holt, Nan Leslie,
Noah Beery jr. This is the usual Tim
Holt western, well made and good acting from
all participants. Doubled with "Rusty Leads
the Way" from Columbia to slightly above
average gross. Played Saturday only. Weather:
Pair.—Fred G. Weppler, Colonial Theatre,
Colfax, 111. Small town and rural patronage.
•
Joan of Arc (RKO)—Ingrid Bergman, Jose
Ferrer, Francis L. Sullivan. This is truly a
great film. Wonderful acting and beautiful
color. The advanced price hui't us some, and
the fact that the peso dropped about the time
we played this cut off some of om- acrossthe-border
trade. Still we did okay and have
no complaints, for it is a pleasure to play a
picture hke this. Played Stm., Mon. Weather:
Pair. — Charles Osborne, Presidio Theatre,
Presidio, Tex. Small town
*
patronage.
Melody Time (RKO)—Roy Rogers, Sons of
the Pioneers, and Ethel Smith with Disney
cartoons. I played this one for the kids but
it was away above their heads. We had a lot
of walkouts half way through it. Pass it up
for our money. Weather: Cold and cloudy.
C. E. McMurchy, Memorial Hall Theatre Co.,
Ltd., Reston, Man. Small t-owa and rural patronage.
•
^Pride of the Yankees (RKO)—Reissue.
Gary Cooper, Teresa Wright, Walter Brennan.
Reissuing this splendid picture was good
business for both RKO and the exhibitor.
We've shown a few corny reissues, so it's a
pleasure to get this type. Played Fri., Sat.,
Sun. Weather: Okay.—Frank Sabin, Majestic
Theatre, Eureka, Mont. Small towTi and
rural patronage.
* •
Station West (RKO)— Dick Powell, Jane
Greer, Agnes Moorehead. This played to one
of my lowest Saturday grosses this year—and
in my situation, Saturday night is my life
blood. It was a well-made whodunit western,
which I enjoyed—but then I do not pay to
see my own pictures. Played Saturday only.
Weather: Fair.—Fred G. Weppler, Colonial
Theatre, Colfax, 111. Small tovm and rural
patronage.
•
Tarzan's Magic Fountain (RKO) — Lex
(Continued on page 4)
BOXOFFICE BookinGuide Sept. 17, 1949