'7Kc«t
In the Newsreels Movietone News, No. 35: Newsreels film atom bomb drop in Nevada desert; New Jersey and Michigan jail nots ended, hostages freed; oquo champs show skills ond spills in Florida tourney. News of the Doy, No. 269: Spectacular test of newest atom bomb, Hornman in Presidential race; fire razes Japanese city; Snorkel trucks for army; surprise from Holland; championship oquo thriller. Paromount News, No. 72: Woter ski wizardry; peace on prison front; historic maneuvers— biggest U.S. otomic explosion. Universol News, No. 555: Atom bomb; underwater truck; prison riots in New Jersey; aquatic acrobats, Warner Pothe News, No. 74: Biggest U.S. atom blast; Michigan and New Jersey prison riots end; Japan— fire rozes 5,000 homes; Cypress Gardens, Flo. — Dixie water ski tourney. Movietone News, No. 36: War with Jopan ended, peace treaty in effect; Ridgway succeeds Ike m Europe, C'ark to Japan; 5,000 Reds invade West Berlin; $5,000,000 fire in Vancouver; Bre'r rabbit gets glorified in new California furs; Penn relays; water skis set 135-mile ski mark. News of the Day, No 270: Officiol end of war with Japan; Vancouver's worst fire; Reds riot in Berlin; birthday parade for Elizabeth; Forget-Me-Not-Cerebral Palsy poster children; Penn relays. Paromount News, No. 73: Olympic gymnastics; Penn relays; Queen Eltrobeth's birthday; cerebral palsy drive opens; Japan begins new era of freedom; Ridgway, Clark get new assignments. Universal News, No. 556: Japan free; cerebral palsy; labor strike in Japon; loyalty parade in New York; Miss India; Vancouver fire; bear facts. Worner Pothe News, No. 75: Japan regains independence; Atlanta—rally booms Russell for president; Aberdeen proving grounds— air force tests its own planes under fire; French Morocco— France trains jet pilots in Morocco; Washington— Mrs. Truman meets cerebral palsy poster kids; New York— new wrinkle no wrinkle magic fabric; 135 miles on water skis; Luxembourg exclusive— Ike in Luxembourg on final tour. Telenews Digest, No. 17B: Nevada atom blast; riots rip prisons; Japan— 1,000,000 strike; Italy—how to walk o wall. Telenews Digest, No. 18A: Ridgway succeeds Ike; Washington — newest U.S. sub; Japan— fire levels community; Germany—congressional committee probes the Katyn mossacre; Greece—CARE distributes the 100,000th package for this war-torn country; England— 81 notions honor Shakespeare; tennis—Sedgmon beats Drobny. Odeon Courtesy Awards Greeted Warmly by Press TORONTO—Public reaction to the Odeon Theatres, Ltd.. announcement of plans to distribute courtesy awards to employes has been widespread both in newspapers and from individuals. The announcement was released individually by managers across the Dominion and newspapers gave it considerable space. David Griesdorf, Odeon general manager, says a remarkable number of clippings has been received. "The plan is being accepted with enthusiasm by the press and by our staffs," he states. The award plan enables theatre staffs to earn silver and gold stars for consistent display of courtesy to the public. The receipients are chosen on recommendation of theatre managers and supervisory personnel. The silver star is worn on the employe's uniform. In addition, each winner receives an engraved certificate. Griesdorf predicts greatly improved service to the public and he also expresses the opinion that the awards will impress on employes the value of the service they render. TV to Get 28 Traveltalks NEW YORK—James A. FitzPatrick has released a series of 26 of his older travel films to Sterling Television Co. for use on the air, according to Saul J. Turrell, president of Sterling. CAREFUL ALLOCATION OF PLAYING TIME PAYS Planned, Off-Beat Booking Dps the Take in Detroit DETROIT—Careful allocation of playing time to secure maximum returns from a picture is paying off currently in a way that proves intelligent planning, plus a rea.sonable dose of standard showmanship, can still draw busine.ss, according to the experience of RKO with "Kon-Tiki" in the Detroit metropolitan area. Saturation booking is being achieved in effect, but it is being done the hard way. and over a period of time. The result is that "Kon-Tiki" is outgro.ssing anything the exchange has had here in about two years. The idea was conceived and is being clcsely nourished through the sequence of runs by Murray Devaney, branch manager, who is seeing his brain-child really bring in what is a series of surprising grosses to date for a picture of this special caliber. Breaking away entirely from the traditional pattern of runs as Detroit has known them on practically every successful picture for many years, Devaney is breaking "Kon-Tiki" in a series of waves of bookings. Typical Detroit booking pattern is a first run, followed by half a dozen second runs a month or more later, and then around 20 each of key, subkey, and fifth runs, each group playing day and date, and one group right after the other. This is largely defended on the ground that it enables the subsequent runs to get faster bookings and take advantage of national or other exploitation of the picture while it is still fresh. Instead of this fairly rigid pattern of bookings, "Kon-Tiki" started out with a first run 'Movie Dog' in a Bow; Films Plus Hamburgers PHOENIX. ARIZ.—A roofless motion picture theatre was opened here April 18 by Bill Sale and Bill Coscarelli, partners in the unique venture. The grand opening of the Movie Dog. as it will be known, was held in the location at 5644 S. Central. The entertainment project is a combination drive-in and drive-inn. The drive-inn, which is the fi'ont part of the establishment, features hot dogs, hamburgers and other light foods, with a patio for those who wish to get out of their cars to eat. The drive-in, at the rear, is a departure in theatres—an outdoor affair with no roof, where patrons sit on wooden benches to watch motion pictures. Sale, who is a former manager of the Palms Theatre here, said the roofless theatre will seat about 600. It is equipped with a standard 24-foot screen with builtin speaker. Representing an investment of about $20,000, the Movie Dog was built on what was until recently a vacant lot, Coscarelli, the other partner, who handles the restaurant end, is the former operator of Bill's Drive-Inn. at the ."jOO-.seat Cinema, the normal downtown art film house for special pictures, and precedent wa.s broken from the start, since it is unusual for a Cinema booking to move Into other hou.ses in the Detroit area, except perhaps the few houses that have experimented with an art film policy in the past three years, or a very occasional spot booking. "Kon Tiki" next moved into the new cooperative group of neighborhood art film houses, then in its first tentative week—the Studio. Coronet, and Center, each located In a widely spaced part of the city. Followin? this, the film played third run at the Tower, Tuxedo, and Mack-Uptown—again in scattered parts of the city; while the fourth run is set for the Lincoln, 'Warren, Linwood-La- Salle, and Del-The—four more widely .scattered houses. It is noteworthy that this last group is usually in a third rather than first run cla.ss. Timing is an essential element of the Devaney plan—these bookings are not only selected geographically, so that each house is many miles away from any other playing the film, but each wave of booking.s—and there are only three or four houses allowed to play the film day and date—is spaced about a month apart. Instead of crowding bookings in subsequent runs close together in both space and time. Devaney is reversing this usual objective in both dimensions. The result is successful business, compared to general current theatre conditions locally, in some of the best houses in the city, and a chance to continue the gros.ses of the picture over an unusual period. Both distributor and exhibitors appear well satisfied. The film, having unusual audience appeal, is able to build up a third and fourth group of patrons by the very effective cumulative effect of word-of-mouth publicity. The method would presumably be less effective with runof-the-mine product. RKO is seeking specific playing time on each run. to make this plan feasible, and is also interested in a careful planning of the area. and selection of house for the picture. Realizing that it is a special-appeal film, smaller houses—about 1,000 seats—are preferred— and a standard of operation that includes no such features as giveaways. Dacca Buys More U-I Common and Warrants NEW YORK—Decca Records. Inc.. owner of more than 10 per cent of the common stock of Universal Pictures Co.. bought 1.800 shares of common stock in March, bringing Its direct holdings to 271.800 shares, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Decca also bought 5.000 warrants to purchase common stock, bringing Its direct holdings of warrants to 37.500. The Universal annual report for the year ended Nov. 3. 1951. showed 960.498 shares of common stock outstanding, and warrants for the purchase of 218,809 shares of common at $10 a share on or before April 1, 1956. BOXOFFICE :: May 3, 1952 23
- Page 1 and 2: I !|i # Vorierir Clubt Intcrnoliono
- Page 3 and 4: TRADE FRBSS Cte^ \\ * tYONO ft UtVI
- Page 5 and 6: RUTH I PICERNI RICHARO WEBB • •
- Page 7 and 8: i Wishington I , BEN i lAMES I I Pu
- Page 9 and 10: JOHNSTON SEES INDUSTRY DUE FOR NEW
- Page 11 and 12: DP CITATION WON BY DAYTON TENT /ARI
- Page 13 and 14: j ste&aca^ MAY REtEASE DEADLINE-U.S
- Page 15 and 16: wing ii'me! HE'S GOING PLACES IN CO
- Page 17 and 18: NCA HOLDS UNIQUE FORUM 150 Press Ex
- Page 19 and 20: B FECIAL , e;/ice for xibitors.. TH
- Page 21: Bfetiifeen the Sea and the Sierras
- Page 25 and 26: n^RSi 11! Peak As A 1 T T i 1 D YOU
- Page 27 and 28: YOOR P/CWRBS/ fg^^uT^^^ ^^tk ^ WITH
- Page 29 and 30: The audience walked out! In the las
- Page 31 and 32: CHESTER FRIEDMAN EDITOR HUGH E. FRA
- Page 33 and 34: EYE APPEAL IN LOBBY DISPLAYS DOWN I
- Page 35 and 36: ) Merchants Gel Proof That Theatres
- Page 37 and 38: Brandt, Weisman Keep Trans-Lux Cont
- Page 39 and 40: WB) B. B. Kreisler Heads Foreign Fi
- Page 41 and 42: . . Morris . . Tent PHILADELPHIA Be
- Page 43 and 44: . . Grand . . The WEST VIRGINIA At
- Page 45 and 46: . . . Lewis outdoor rally arranged
- Page 47 and 48: . . The B ALT I MORE Maryland MPTO
- Page 49 and 50: t Hollywood NEWS AND VIEWS THE PROD
- Page 51 and 52: . . . because . Appeal Jarrico Case
- Page 53 and 54: . . . Dorothy . . Gibraltar . . M.
- Page 55 and 56: . . . Nate . . . Mr. . . . Among .
- Page 57 and 58: H 1 hamis, : the i ' I for \ monthl
- Page 59 and 60: I Third Warner Meeting Convenes in
- Page 61 and 62: Convention on Train Plans Under Way
- Page 63 and 64: Film Industry Blood Bank Establishe
- Page 65 and 66: 1,400-Seat Plaza Theatre Opens in M
- Page 67 and 68: Premiere Carbine' Twice for Crowds
- Page 69 and 70: I BOXOFnCE PEEN" YOUR LDQUARTERS T
- Page 71 and 72: HARRY HART By pRED McLENDON and Al
- Page 73 and 74:
U Hoblitzelle to Get Good Citizen H
- Page 75 and 76:
Tent 17 Distributes Tickets for Der
- Page 77 and 78:
. . . Corpus M. J. Mullin Receives
- Page 79 and 80:
'Convertible' Theatre Started at Un
- Page 81 and 82:
NORTH CENTRAL ASS'N INVITES COOPERA
- Page 83 and 84:
. . Arden MILWAUKEE TTnivcrsal and
- Page 85 and 86:
. . Reno MINNEAPOLIS . . Four drive
- Page 87 and 88:
. . . Frank . . Roy . . Sam OMAHA
- Page 89 and 90:
'HOW TO IMPROVE BUSINESS/ THEME OF
- Page 91 and 92:
. . Junior . . Bob . . . . Disney's
- Page 93 and 94:
I light . . Waller Norris Named Bul
- Page 95 and 96:
. . With he came here seven years a
- Page 97 and 98:
LYNN f*lem L. McCann, Lynn's younst
- Page 99 and 100:
. . State . . The . . Rubin . . Mrs
- Page 101 and 102:
Seek Formula for Maritimes Drive-In
- Page 103 and 104:
. . The Only Two Pictures Rejected
- Page 106 and 107:
profit picture! X-.^J," i i Just as
- Page 108 and 109:
Mq\% Any Other (Z^nlea/tUu Consider
- Page 110 and 111:
The Accent is on Comfort at the New
- Page 112 and 113:
LUXURY HOUSE • For Shopping Cente
- Page 114 and 115:
LUXURY HOUSE • For Shopping Cente
- Page 116 and 117:
USE SCREEN TO PROMOTE SALES Continu
- Page 118 and 119:
REFRESHMENT SERVICE Prominence of T
- Page 120 and 121:
REFRESHMENT SERVICE Research Progra
- Page 122 and 123:
MORE POP TO THE POUND Continued hor
- Page 124 and 125:
Like everybody else, he's kept an a
- Page 126 and 127:
REFRESHMENT SERVICE Check the Smoki
- Page 128 and 129:
REFRESHMENT SERVICE Many Theatres M
- Page 130 and 131:
HI AVE a motor directly to the carb
- Page 132 and 133:
The i^onara tu la tionS '9 to HARRY
- Page 134 and 135:
IT'S A PLEASURE TO PLAY A PART IN P
- Page 136 and 137:
32 The MODERN THEATRE SECTION
- Page 138 and 139:
These views 0/ production processes
- Page 140 and 141:
Anniversary of Harry Strong and the
- Page 142 and 143:
j MEMOIRS OF PROGRESS Continued fro
- Page 144 and 145:
j j PROJECTION AND SOUND Change You
- Page 146 and 147:
SNAPIJTB USERS CHECK YOUR OIL? Cont
- Page 148 and 149:
CHECK YOUR OIL? Continued from page
- Page 150 and 151:
A cleanup campaign must precede a g
- Page 152 and 153:
MANUAL OF PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE Co
- Page 154 and 155:
^ Exhibitors Should Strive to Win G
- Page 156 and 157:
You Can't Buy A GOOD Rectifier for
- Page 158 and 159:
A Manual of Drive-In Design and Ope
- Page 160 and 161:
c e i t, BALLANTYNE'S Completely Pr
- Page 162 and 163:
DRAW CROWDS WITH FIREWORKS! DRIVE-I
- Page 164 and 165:
READERS' BUREAU For literature on p
- Page 166 and 167:
RCA'S Comprehensive As on adjunct t
- Page 168 and 169:
ARE YOU COVERED? An Insurance Execu
- Page 170 and 171:
Removable Film Trap Door P-894 Aids
- Page 172 and 173:
KROEHIER Easy ^'"'"^ "^ office! "l^
- Page 174 and 175:
PICTURES UNSTEADY 9 No. E-78L Remov
- Page 176 and 177:
J. Robert Hoff, president of the Th
- Page 178 and 179:
advance was | I The EXHIBITOR HAS H
- Page 180 and 181:
Good; REVIEW DIGEST Very Good; ' '
- Page 182 and 183:
.C. ! Unknown .CD. I Disc ' ' mymi
- Page 184 and 185:
I I Retreat, D. . FEATURE fe I I I
- Page 186 and 187:
' ' Mffuy 6-16.52 10-27-51 . . . '
- Page 188 and 189:
. . He's . . Carrying . . When . .
- Page 190:
Your projectors . . . your sound sy