Boxoffice-November.24.1951

Thanksgiving Boosts Grosses;
Vadis and 'Detective Stay Big
NEW YORK—The long Thanksgiving weekend
boosted business at the majority of Broadway
first runs, particularly for the half-dozen
newer films, with Friday grosses better than
Thanksgiving, always an "at home" day for
many New Yorkers.
"Quo Vadis" continued its smash business
di'ring its second week at the continuous run
Capitol and near-capacity at the two-a-day
Aster. "Detective Story" again did terrific
business in its second week at the Mayfair,
and "The Lavender Hill Mob" still packed in
the customers in its fifth week at the tiny
Fine Arts Theatre.
Two long-run pictures, which closed to good
returns, were "An American in Paris," which
completed seven weeks at the Radio City
Music Hall at close to $1,000,000 total gro.ss,
and "David and Bath.sheba," which finished
a 14-week run at the Rivoli and took in close
to $750,000, a record for the 36-year history of
the theatre. Both houses brought in new pictures
for Thanksgiving day, the Music Hall
with another MGM film. "Too Young to
Kiss," and the Rivoli with "Fixed Bayonets."
The ninth and last week of "A Streetcar
Named Desire" at the Warner, and the second
and final weeks of "Let's Make It Legal"
at the Roxy and "Behave Yourself!" at the
Paramount were just fair, and all three houses
brought in new films for the holiday. The
pictures were "Come Fill the Cup," "Golden
Girl" and "Two Tickets to Broadway," the
last two Technicolor musicals. "Warpath"
also followed "The Desert Fox" at the Globe.
(Average Is lOO)
Astor—Quo Vadis (MGM). 2nd wk. of two-a-day 110
Bijou—Tales of Hoffmann (Lopert), 33rd wk. of
two-a-day 80
Capitol—Quo Vadis (MGM), 2nd wk. of coninuous
run 140
Criterion—Tlie Blue Veil (RKO), 4th wk 115
Fine Art:—The Lavender Hill Mob (U-1), 5th wk. 110
Globe—The Desert Fox (20th-Fox), 5th wk 95
Loew's Stale Across the Wide Missouri (MGM),
2nd v/k - 105
Mayfcir Detective Story (Para), 2nd wk 150
Paramount Behave Yourselfl (RKO), plus stage
show, 2nd wk 100
Paris—The River (UA), 10th wk. of two-a-day 105
Park Ave—The Clouded Yellow (Col) 115
Radio City Music Hall An American in Paris
(MGM), plus stage show, 7th wk 105
fiialto IJnknown World (Lippert) 110
Rivoli—David and Bathsheba (20th-Fox), 14th wk. 85
Roxy—Let's Make It Legal (20th-Fox), plus stage
show, 2nd wk SO
Sutton—The Browning Version (U-1), 3rd wk ICO
Trans-Lux 52nd Street Red Badge ol Courage
(MGM), 5th wk 95
Trans-Lux 6th Street Laughter in Paradise
(Stratford) 105
Trans-Lux 72nd Street—The tjnlmown Man (MGM) 105
Victoria—Ten Tall Men (Col), 4th wk 105
Warner-A Streetcar Named Desire (WB), 9th wk. 100
Tv7o Holdovers Score
Highest in Buffalo
BUFFALO — Business continued on an
even keel, nothing sensational happening
along first run row in the pre-Thanksgiving
week. "Streetcar" did very well in a third,
advanced price week and "The Tanks Ai'e
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BOXOFFICE November 24, 1951
Coming" turned in an average week aided by
a good exploitation campaign featuring a
mammoth army tank in front of the Paramount.
The other leaders were "American
in Paris," which—in its third week at that
was in second place, and "Two Tickets to
Broadway."
Buffalo—Anne oi the Indies (20th-rox) 95
Center—A Streetcar Named Desire (WB), 3rd wk...l20
Century—Two Tickets to Broadway (RKO) 100
Cinema The Emperor's Nightingale (Rembrandt).. 90
Lcfayette-Cave of Outlaws (U-I) 95
Paramount— The Tanks Are Coming (WB) 100
Teck—An American in Paris (MGM), 3rd d. t, wk.llS
Centreville, Md., Suits
Settled Out of Court
WASHINGTON—Countersuits between the
Center Theatre in Centreville, Md., and two
film company salesmen who operate theatres
in nearby Church Hill and Chestertown, were
settled out of court Friday (16).
The lengthy litigation started when the
Center sued Paramount, Columbia, RKO and
20th Century-Fox, and the two salesmen,
Charles Wingfield and F. B. Klein, who
worked for Columbia and 20th-Fox respectively,
for an injunction and triple damages
amounting to $150,000. The Center charged
that the distributors were violating the antitrust
laws by conspiring to give Wingfield and
Klein a monopoly of first run product. This
suit was settled with the film companies when
they agreed in February 1950 to give five towns
in the disputed area equal availability.
The Center, however, continued its suit
against Wingfield and Klein, who countered
with a suit for $90,000 and an injunction
against it and Fox, RKO and Paramount, on
the grounds that the agreement was illegal.
Under the new agreement, these two suits
have been dismissed, and that of Wingfield
and Klein against the distributors is expected
to be settled shortly by negotiation.
Movietime Tours Planned
For Four More Areas
NEW YORK—The Ass'n of Motion Picture
Producers and Council of Motion Picture Organizations
have lined up Hollywood person-
for a second series of Movietime U.S.A.
alities
tours, as follows:
Louisiana and Mississippi, starting in New
Orleans December 2—Anthony Dexter, Julia
Adams, Charlton Heston, Lydia Clarke, Frank
Faylen, Bruce Bennett, Robert Stack, Jesse
White, Margaret Sheridan, Hope Emerson,
players: Maxwell Shane. Robert Fellows, Irving
Asher, producers: Fred De Cordova.
George Sidney, Lillian Burns, directors:
Leonard Stern, Dorothy Hughes, writers.
New York, starting in Buffalo November 25
and including Albany—Lloyd Bridges, Arleen
Whelan, players; Andrew Selt, writer.
Rocky Mountain area, covering Utah, Idaho
and Montana, starting in Salt Lake City November
25—Keenan Wynn, Dean Jagger,
Marshall Thompson, players: Mary McCall
jr.,
writer.
Western Pennsylvania, arriving in Pittsburgh
November 25—Jody Lawrance, Jack
Paar, Mel Ferrer, David Brian.
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