Boxoffice-July.01/1950

. . Jack
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Steamhoat
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VANCOUVER
/^ordon Harris, who recently resigned as
assistant manager of the Strand Theatre,
was married to Marjory Richards of the
Strand staff . . . Dave Gilfillan of MGM was
married to Ahce Home here . . . Jack Lucas
of the Windsor Theatre joined the Canadian
Picture Pioneers recently. The State Theatre,
only local film-vaudeville house, has been
closed. A l.OOO-seater. it formerly was the
Pantages Theatre . . . Carman Gentile, manager
of the Odeon in North Vancouver, will
take over the Odeon-Hastings. and Bob
Fraser of the Hastings will succeed Gentile
at the North Vancouver house.
Leslie Plottel, former manager of EMipire-
Universal Films here, is the new manager of
the Chilliwack Drive-In located 50 miles from
here in the Fraser valley. Plottel will be in
full charge of the new outdoor theatre, which
is owned by Tisman & Mcintosh of Chilliw-ack
. . . Margaret Rushworth has replaced
Marge Stevenson at the General Theatre
Supply Co. . . . Howard Fletcher has opened
his Kingcrest Theatre here. It was formerly
the Music Box. a 450-seater in South Vancouver
. . . Jack Fitzgibbons, head of Theatre
Confections, a Famous Players subsidiary,
was here from Toronto looking over its new
and larger quarters near Filmrow. The manager
is Frank Troy, formerly of Toronto.
John Jaclison, MGM head booker, returned
from the Toronto sales meeting . . . The
Odeon-Park, completely renovated after a
fire a month ago w hich did considerable damage,
has been reopened ... It was reported
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Hughes,
chief film censor for British Columbia who
has been ill. is back at work . David.son
of the Odeon Victoria was on vacation . . .
Harry Wolffe. UA manager, has returned from
a California vacation
ereign Films manager, was in the B. C.
interior
on a selling trip.
North Vancouver soon will have an outdoor
theatre with a capacity of 1,000 cars. Located
adjacent to Capilano and Marine one
mile from West Vancouver, it will draw from
both towns. J. T. FuUerton. who will operate
the new drive-in. said it will be available
for benefit shows and concerts. The plans
were drawn by C. B. K. Van Norman of Vancouver,
who designed several British Columbia
drive-ins. The project is expected to be
completed before the end of this summer .
. .
The Chinook outdoor theatre near Calgary,
Alberta, is the site each Sunday of services
sponsored by the various religious denominations,
which take turns in using the drive-in.
. . .
The four projectionists at the Odeon-Hastings
have had a total of about 150 years of
service in the theatre business. They are Bill
Myers, Lloyd Pantages, Johnny Roberts and
Joe Lowden There has not been any
change in film distribution by Film Classics
and Eagle Lion here. Managers of the two
exchanges have not received any word of
consolidation such as has been effected in
the United States.
Canadian Indian Girl
Will Get Screen Test
MONTREAL—Three Hollywood talent
scouts, who combed the States for weeks
in search of the typical North American
Indian girl to play opposite Clark Gable in
his next film, believe they have found her
in the Laurentian village of Ste. Marguerite,
56 miles north of here.
But the girl doesn't know whether she
wants to go to the film capital or stay home,
get married and raise a family. Target of
the talent scouts' enthusiasm is 25-year-old
Dorothy Beauvals, an Iroquois maiden and
the village postmistress, who would rather
be a tomboy in the Laurentian wilds than
a glamor girl in Hollywood.
Anyway, the film scouts want a look at
Dorothy and the brown-eyed girl is going
to give them just that by appearing for a
screen test in Toronto. Dorothy received a
telegram from one of the scouts. It was
brief but enough to make any girl's heart
flutter. It said: "We believe you are the
girl we have been looking for to play opposite
Clark Gable in his next picture. Please
meet us in Toronto for a screen test."
Ft. Erie, Ont., Ozoner Opens
TORONTO—The new 500-car drive-in at
Fort Erie, Ont.. has been opened by Gordon
Chechick. Plans for the theatre were drawn
by Kaplan & Sprachman. Toronto architects.
Fort Erie is a summer resort town on the
Ontario side of the Niagara river opposite
Buffalo. N. Y. The drive-in is expected to
.secure considerable patronage from Buffalonians
who cross over to Canada on outings.
Humid Weather Hits
Grosses in Toronto
TORONTO—Half of the leading Toronto
theatres held over cool-week features for a
second stanza, then ran into hot. humid
weather in which boxoffices withered. Top
performers were "In a Lonely Place," opening
at the Imperial, and "Kind Hearts and Coronets,"
a holdover at the Hyland. The list
contained some reissues. One oldtimer was
"Steamboat "Round the Bend."
(Average Is 100)
rillmore Things to Come (UA). The Daltons Ride
Again (UA), reissue- 90
Fairlawn A Woman of Distinction (Col), 2nd wk. 90
Hyland—Kind Hearts and CoroneU (ELC), 2nd
wk _ 110
Imperial In a Lonely Place (Col) 110
Loews—The Asphalt Jungle (MGM), 2nd wk 100
Odeon—The Astonished Heart (U-I) 100
Tivoli and Capit&i Alter Midnight (Para), 2nd
d. t. wk
; Round the Bend (20lh-
Fox), reissue 90
Sheas—The Damned DonI Cry (WB), 2nd wk 90
University and Nortown Love That Brute (20th-
Fox), 2nd wk 90
Uptown—Curtain Call at Cactus Creek (U-I) 90
Victoria and Eghnton The Lives oi a Bengal
Lancer (Para); Beau Geste (Para), reissues 85
Reissues Are Top Grosses
In Two Winnipeg Houses
WINNIPEG — Generally low grosses continued
in greater Winnipeg, with exhibitors
blaming circuses and general economic conditions.
Three programs held up well. "Tight
Little Island" was making Tom Pacey happy
at the Odeon, Mesho Triller was well pleased
'
with "Back to Bataan "Marine Raiders"
at the Dominion, and Albert Cohen was all
smiles with "Goodbye, Mr. Chips" at the
Valour.
Capitcl No Man oi Her Own (Para) Good
Dominion Back to fiataon (RKO); Marine
Raiders (RKO), reissues, 2nd wk Very good
Gclieiy Please Believe Me (MGM) _ Good
Garrick—The Kid From Texas (U-I) __ Good
Lyceum-Colt .45 (WB) Good
Mel—The Damned Don't Cry (WB) Good
Odeon—Tight Little Island lELC), 2nd wk._Very good
Valour Goodhye. Mr. Chips (MGM), reissue,
3rd wk - „...Very good
Trade Coniinues at Low Ebb
At First Runs in Vancouver
VANCOtrVER^Grosses at local houses in
general have been unusually low. While a
seasonal slump is to be expected, the current
drop is worrying theatremen. Hot weather
has lured many persons to beaches and resorts.
"Wabash Avenue" at the Dominion
and "Comanche Territory"' at the Vogue were
the holdovers.
Capitol—Love That Brute !20th-Fox) Moderate
Dominion—Wabash Avenue (20th-Fox), 2nd d. t.
wk _ _ Fair
Orpheum Wagoiunaster (RKO) Fair
Paradise—Story oi Molly X (U-I) _ _ ...Fair
PlazcJ, Dunbar and fraser The Nevadom (Col);
Military Academy (Col) Fair
Strand Kill the Umpire (Col) _ Fair
Studio The Inlormer ( RKO ) Fair
Vogue Comanche Territory (U-I), 2nd wk Fcdr
Holiday Shows Okayed
TORONTO—The Toronto Board of Police
Commissioners granted permission for local
theatres to conduct midnight shows in conjunction
with the Dominion day holiday Saturday
(1). Not many exhibitors took advantage
of the opportunity, however, because
it meant that late performances had to be
held at 12:05 Saturday morning.
Assignment
For First
The sagebrusher, "Sun Scarred," has been
handed to Irving Starr as his first production
assignment for RKO.
104 BOXOFFICE :: July 1, 1950