Boxoffice-July.01/1950

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S O N N E Y
AMUSEMENT ENTERPRISES,
INC. I
1860 Coidova St. Los Angoles 7, Calil.
REpubUc 11780
Oregon Judge Upholds
City Amusement Tax
EUGENE. ORE.—The legality of a 3 per
cent admission tax which has been in effect
here since April 1948 was upheld in an opinion
filed recently by G. F. Skipworth. circuit
judge, after it had been contested by two
theatre corporations in an injunction suit
against the city about one year ago. The levy
will continue in effect unless an appeal by
the theatre interests to the state supreme
court is made and the ruling by the local
judge should be reversed.
An ordinance passed by the local city council
in 1948 provides that a 3 per cent tax
on all public amu.sements shall be collected
and turned over to the city. A $1 license
fee is required under terms of the ordinance.
The McDonald, Rex, Heilig, Lane and Mayflower
theatres here complied with the law
and paid the tax, but under protest. In May
1948, they filed suit against the city to have
the tax declared invalid.
When the case came to trial this year,
the theatre corporations claimed that the
tax was illegal because it discriminated
agamst one class of business, that it was
unreasonable and a hardship on places of
amusements to keep records on such a levy.
The city argued that the tax was not discriminatory
because it was levied against
all business firms in one class, and the
patrons actually paid it.
In his opinion. Judge Skipworth stated
that "the ordinance is general in its application
to theatres and all places of public
amusement, and there is no discrimination
as to the classes of amusement covered
by it. It may be a nuisance, but all taxes
are nuisances. It appears from the evidence
that the tax is not paid by the theatres, but
by their patrons."
SALT LAKE CITY
"Though one Salt Lake City columnist claims
that the question of who will succeed
Charlie Pincus as Mayor of Main Street has
been settled, Pincus claims it hasn't. Dan
Valentine, whose Nothing Serious appears in
the Salt Lake Telegram, printed a letter of
"abdication" from Pincus, designating Bruce
Vanderhoof, Salt Lake disk jockey as the new
Mayor. Pincus now says Vanderhoof will not
be on Main street so he can't have the title.
The necessity for a new Mayor comes because
Charhe is moving over to State street
to manage the Centre. He has temporarily
taken over the title of Baron of State street.
Salt Lake Variety Tent 38 honored C. Clare
Woods and family with a farewell party.
Woods, who has been designated executive
assistant to the manager of Durwood Theatres
in Kansas City, has been manager of the
Centre here and was recently elected doughguy
for the tent.
Tom McKean, national treasurer of the
Colosseum of Motion Picture Salesmen, attended
a meeting of .salesmen at the Variety
Club here last weekend . Jenkins,
whose theatre experience ranges from salesman
to manager and field representative for
20th-Fox, returned from San Francisco, but
which of two jobs he's going to take over was
unanswered early this week.
LOS ANGELES
Couthland visitors included two from foreign
parts. Stopping off here briefly, en
route to his farm in Washington, was Harry
Hunter, who recently resigned as managing
director of Paramount Film Service in Australia.
Hunter, who plans to retire, had
been with the company since 1917. Also here
for a brief stay was Louis EUiman, managing
director of Irish Cinemas, Ltd., and Amalgamated
Cinemas of Ireland. He will leave
shortly for New York en route back to his
headquarters in Dublin . . . Wendell Bjorkman,
formerly with RKO as a salesman In
Minneapolis, has joined that company in the
same position here.
Showmen's Service is the firm name of the
newly organized booking and buying service
in which Jack Sherriff and Norman Bosley
are partners . Pari.seau of Altec
Service returned from an inspection trip
through the Salt Lake City territory ... A
booking and buying visitor was Cliff Ruckel,
operator of a showcase in Placentia.
Co-chairmen J. E. McCarthy and Bill Stahl
are expecting a capacity turnout for the July
7 golf tournament being spon.sored by Tent
25, Variety Club of Southern California. The
event, to be held at Lakeside Country club,
will be preceded by a dinner July 6 in the
Gold room of the Ambassador hotel.
Filmrow went allout with bunting and banners
to welcome the Shriners during their
national convention in Los Angeles. Among
fez-wearers in distribution and exhibition
fields who participated in the doings were
Wade Loudermilk, Arizona exhibitor, from
Buckeye: Jim Schiller and Howard Stubbins,
Monogram; Earl Collins, Republic, and
W. E. Calloway, United Artists.
Irving Epsteen, head of Fox West Coast's
insurance department, acquired the Glendale
Theatre building in Glendale from Adolph
Romish, Inc. The theatre portion of the
building is operated under lease to FWC as
Wan Tho. exhibitor in
a subsidiary .
Singapore, and his bride were southland
visitors, leaving over the weekend for San
Francisco en route back to the orient.
Joe Hartman is back on the job as a National
Screen Service salesman after a vacation
in Las Vegas ... In to do some booking
and buying were Billy Noon, who operates the
Dale in Long Beach in partnership with Harold
Richman, and Lloyd Miller of the 99
Drive-In near Bakersfield.
What have YOU done today to help secure
repeal of the unfair amusement tax?
AND
^er^PROJECTION
SOUND
II^CAI
lUEAL SEATING
SLIDE -BACK
Projection
Equipment & Maintenance Co.
1975 South Vermont Avenue, Phone; REpublic 0711
Los Angeles 7, Californio
58 BOXOFFICE :: July 1, 1950