Boxoffice-November.24.1951

Two at Milwaukee
In Theatre TV Loop
MILWAUKEE—The Warner and the Riverside
theatres soon will show television programs
on their motion picture screens. A
Warner spokesman said last week (14) the
television installation was complete except for
some focusing work on the projector. He
said he did not know when the first showing
would be.
L. Roy Pierce, manager of the Riverside,
said the installation of the $25,000 television
unit there probably would be completed this
week. Pierce said the televised programs
would generally be features of the theatre's
regular shows. In all instances, he said, they
will be programs which the regular television
stations will not be carrying.
The theatres here will be part of a nationwide
group organized to bid for and show the
exclusive televising of special events and possible
live stage productions. Pierce estimated
that about 75 motion picture houses throughout
the country soon would be hooked up for
these television programs. They will generally
be assessed on a "per set" basis for the exclusive
showings.
The programs will be brought into the theatres
over special coaxial cables from the
telephone company's long lines office here.
In a tJTsical installation such as the one at
the Riverside, a huge projector with a lens
about four feet wide will flash the picture to
the regular motion picture screen.
The projector at the Riverside displaces
a 30-seat area in the theatre's lower balcony.
A special concrete apron was constructed to
carry the projector.
Power for the Riverside projector will come
from an 80,000-volt transformer set up in a
special room of the balcony corridor. To
safeguard against accident, a special breaker
hookup will disconnect the electric power
when the door to the room is opened. The
control panel for the equipment is set up in
the projection booth, where the operator will
be able to control the entire television operation.
Mrs. Lottie Cooper Dead
CHICAGO—Services for Mrs. Lottie Cooper,
widow of a pioneer Chicago motion picture
exhibitor, were held Monday (IQ) in Weinstein's
chapel. She died Thursday. Her husband
Jacob operated the 20th Century Theatre
here in 1913. Her two sons, Moe and
Charles, now operate the Cooper-Kirsch Theatres.
A son-in-law is Jack Kirsch, president
of Allied Theatres of Illinois. Surviving are
two daughters, Mrs. Rose Rubner and Mrs.
Jack Kirsch, and the two sons.
To Build 400-Car Airer
PLATTEVILLE. WIS.—Platteville Theatres
has purchased a 90-acre farm near this city
as a site for a drive-in to be built as soon as
the restrictions on theatre construction are
eased or lifted. It is to be a 400-car theatre
according to John O'Connor, manager of the
company.
Hawkins, Wis., Theatre Reopens
HAWKINS, WIS.—The Hawkins Theatre,
which has been closed since last June, has
been reopened with Henry Zielke as manager.
BOXOFFICE November 24, 1951
Group Discussions Set
For Wis. Allied Confab
MILWAUKEE—Plans for the Movletlme
U.S.A. convention of Allied Independent Theatre
Owners of Wisconsin, December 10-12 at
the Schrocder hotel here, were being finalized
this week by committeemen.
Scheduled to highlight convention business
activities are individual group discussions, the
first of which will be on drive-in theatres,
headed by S. J. Goldberg of Wausau. This
meeting will be held on the .second morning
of the convention Tuesday fU) and will be
the only session of that morning. At the
drive-in session subjects to be discu.s.sed will
include construction of drive-ins, types of
ramps, kind of equipment which has proved
most successful, kinds of films and film prices
for drive-ins, future business outlook and an
open forum for discussion of any question
from exhibitors.
Other group discussions will be held on the
morning of December 12, with times and
places to be announced on the convention
bulletin board. They include discussions of
small town operations, headed by Eric Brown
of Plymouth; large towns, headed by Russell
Leddy, Green Bay, and subsequent run city,
headed by Angelo Provinzano of Milwaukee.
Subjects to be discussed at the meeting will
include film prices, right and wrong allocation
of pictures, film company selling policies
and tactics, competitive bidding and advanced
admissions prices.
Ben Marcus, president of the regional Allied
group, appointed A. M. LaPorte and John Mc-
Kay as convention co-chairmen, and subcommittees
include:
Tickets—Oliver Trampe, Arnold Brumm,
Earl Fischer, Howard Gleason, J. Goderski.
Fred Krueger, Harry Perelewitz, William
Pierce, Joe Strother.
Publicity—A. M. Spheeris, L. Belt, Louis
Boothmans Story
GALVA, ILL.—The work of a projectionist,
who has been flashing scenes on local
screens for 36 years, got front-page space in
the local weekly paper here recently as a
continuance of Galva Theatre Manager Robert
W. Carlson's efforts in behalf of Movietime
U.S.A.
Under the heading "Galva Glimpses," the
story of boothman Ralph Morse was told to
this city's 3,000 people. Excerpts from the
story follow:
"Ralph's work," the story said, "naturally
has covered the growing up era of the movies.
The sound track, color and the mechanical
rewind apparatus are only three of the many
mechanical improvements developed during
the last one-third of a century.
"When he began work Aug. 14, 1915, in the
Star Theatre Ralph operated the projector
by hand ... A couple of months later . . .
a motor was hooked up and not long afterwards
there was still another occasion for
celebration when the Star installed a new
machine.
"Those were the days when the projection
booth had only one machine. At the end of
the reel there was a break in the picture
while another reel was threaded into the
Orlove, Angelo Provinzano, Henry Toilette.
Reservation!*—Russell Leddy, John P. Adler,
Floyd Albert, C. L. Baldwin. Ray Blakeslee.
Eric Brown. F. J. McWilliams, Fred Miner,
Mark Morgan.
Program and arrangements Howard Gleason,
John P. Adler, Arnold Brumm. Angelo
Provinzano. Oliver Trampe.
Women's entertainment — Lucille Fowler.
Donna Borchert, Evelyn Gutenberg, Helene
Hanke, Delia Langheinrich, Mrs. F. Ziehm.
Reception—F. J. McWilliams. D. S. Deakin,
Jake Eskin, John Freuler, Robert Gross, Edward
Johnson.
Drive-ins— S. J. Goldberg, Robert Karatz,
Harry Melcher, Leo Miner, S. J. Papas. John
Schuyler.
Year book and exhibits—Edward John.son.
Registration—William Pierce. Sidney Margoles.
Elmer Schwanke.
Celebrates Anniversary
MIDDLETON, WIS.—The Middleton Theatre,
supposedly the first in this state to be of
quonset construction, celebrated its fifth anniversary
recently. It was established by
Harry Melcher, owner of United Theatres,
Milwaukee, and still is managed by Joseph H.
Rupp, who was named to that position when
the house opened in 1946. The house was
designed by architect Myles Belongia of Milwaukee.
On the anniversary day, every fifth
person was admitted to the show free of
charge from 6:30 to 7:30 p. m. Open house was
held from 6 to 6:30.
Vivien Leigh wore a blond wig in WB's
"A Streetcar Named Desire" because she
thinks blondes "seem gentler creatures than
brunettes."
Spots Movietime
mechanism ... of course there were other unscheduled
interruptions . . . when the film
broke, often at a dramatic point.
"After five or six years at the Star, he
moved to the Princess, then operated by Don
J. Best and 23 years ago he started work in
the fireproof projection booth after the Galva
Theatre was opened in 1927 by A. W. Trevor.
"In June 1928, W. C. Hippler took charge
of the theatre and it was during his management
that Ralph screened the first talking
picture in Galva. The date was October 6.
1929, and the film a Vitaphone product, was
"Drag." starring Richard Barthelmess.
"J. A. Weece operated the theatre for the
longest period during Ralph's service as an
operator—from March 1930 until his death
in September 1945. Weece's son-in-law
Wayne Maxwell then was in charge until the
sale to Marchesi Bros, was effective in Jan-
Robert Carlson has served as man-
uary 1948.
ager since August 1948.
"In 36 years of threading films into projectors
Ralph has seen thousands of films of
every conceivable type. What sort does he
enjoy most? Definitely not historical shows,
he said. Then he explains that it's hard to
beat a good family story."
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