Boxoffice-December.20.1952

. . . Pete
. . Sam
. . Lenny
. . Martin
. . Gauggel
;
'
Most Boston Bills
"Plymouth Adventure" played one week
Slip Under Average
BOSTON—A pre-Christmas slump caused
grosses to drop rather sharply in some situations.
and three days and was replaced on Sunday
with "The Thief," which opened well then
slid down to below average. "Tlie Promoter,"
in its fifth week at the Exeter Street was
again tops with 170 per cent.
(Average Is 100)
Astor Hurricone Smith (Poro) 80
Beacon Hill High Treoson (Pacemaker); Last
Holiday (Strotford) 110
Boston The Raiders (U-l); Ladies af the Chorus
(Col), reissue 100
Exeter Street The Promoter (U-l), 5th wk 170
Kenmore The Magic Box (Fine Arts); The Mudlark
(20th-Fox), 5th wk 1 00
Memorial Pony Soldier (20th-Fox); Gambler and
the Lady (LP), 2nd wk 80
Metropoliton The Iron Mistress (WB); No Holds
Barred (AA), 2nd wk 75
Paramount and Fenway The Savage (Poro);
Franchise Affair (Stratford) 115
Stote and Orpheum Plymouth Adventure
(MGM), 2nd wk 85
"Zenda' Rates 120 Per Cent
In Hartiord Opening
HARTFORD—"Prisoner of Zenda" was the
highest grosser here last week with 120 per
cent at the Poll.
Allyn The Steel Trop (20th-Fox); The Blazing
Forest (Para) 100
Art That Hamilton Woman (FC) 90
E. M. Loew Invasion, U.S.A. (Col); Target Hong
Kong (Col) 115
Poll The Prisoner ot Zenda (MGM); Sky Full
of Moon (MGM) 120
Paloce The Mummy (Realart); The Mummy's
Curse (Realart), reissues 80
Strand The Raiders (U-l); Beware, My Lovely
(RKO) 105
First Run Grosses Dip
In Dull New Haven \A^eek
NEW HAVEN—"Plymouth Adventure" and
a horror film reissue program were the
downtown leaders in what was generally a
slow week.
Loew's College The Mummy (Realart); The
Mummy's Curse (Realart), reissues 100
Paramount Bottle Zone (AA); The Blazing
Forest (Poro) 60
Loew's Poll Plymouth Adventure (MGM); Sky Full
of Moon (MGM) 100
Roger Sherman Cattle Town (WB); Something
for the Birds (20th-Fox) 75
LYNN
Slackstone the magician visited the children's
ward at Lynn hospital and entertained
at a football banquet during a threeday
visit here with his entire company at
the Warner Theatre.
Leonard, advance agent of the Hamid-
Bill
Morton circus, is acting as assistant to Manager
Royce Beckman at the Warner, until the
circus starts from Memphis on its annual
tour. Also added to the Warner staff is Eddie
Flynn, former middleweight champion boxer
of New England.
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PLAY SAFE...
NEXT TIME USE
'^nrh^;MJ2I t. WAiASN AVL. OHIOAOO
HARTFORD 'Carmen' TV in Boston
. . Sid
Tay Finn, manager of the Riverdale Drive-In,
is working at the E. M. Loew's in Hartford
and State in Holyoke for the winter .
Zins and Dave Lustig, Columbia, were in
Another visitor
town on "Invasion, U.S.A." . . .
here was Harry Feinstein, zone manager
Edgar Lynch, formerly
of Warner Theatres . . .
with Warner Theatres, is now reported
managing the Warner in Beverly Hills, Calif.
. . George
Joe Spivak. Connecticut Theatre Candy Co.,
was in town from New Haven .
Perlroth has resumed his duties as assistant
manager, Loew's Poll, New Haven, after a
stay at the VA hospital in suburban Newington
. Cornish came in from the Niantic
and Sperie Perakos, New Britain,
visited Vince Capuano, Elm, Elmwood, and
Tom Grace, Eastwood, East Hartford . . . The
Plaza, Stamford, closed December 6 for
alterations, with a Christmas day reopening
planned.
Sam Harris of the State Theatre is planning
a spring vacation trip to Italy . . John
,
McGrail, U-I exploiteer, was in town working
on "Mississippi Gambler." He tied in with
newspaper columnists on the December 16
Bushnell Memorial performance of "John
Brown's Body," featuring Tyrone Power, star
of the U-I release . Harris was in
from New York . Young, brother-inlaw
of Morris Keppner of the Burnside Theatre,
East Hartford, returned from a South
American visit to resume Hartford vaudeville
and night club bookings. He went to
the Latin-American countries as entertainment
director aboard a tourist ship.
NEW HAVEN
Qeraldine Flood, secretary to MGM Manager
Phil Gravitz, was off ill for the first
time in her 20 years at the exchange. The
Another sort of
virus bug was to blame . . .
record borken at the Whalley Theatre, where
"The Quiet Man" became the first picture to
be brought back for a return showing within
ten days after its initial playdate. It played
to standing room only crowds for four days,
so another two-day booking was squeezed
from Republic, hard-pressed for prints.
Frank Ferguson, manager of the theatre, said
that on the basis of grosses, "The Quiet
Man" was the top attraction at the house
since "The Jolson Story."
"The Fifth Season," starring Menasha Skulnik
and Richard Whorf, and directed by
Gregory Ratoff, will have its world premiere
at the Shubert here Christmas night, running
through the 27th, The comedy is set in New
York's dress industry . . . For the first time
in the history of 30-day theatres here, two
chains, Bailey and the Fischman, joined in
sponsoring a cooperative ad plugging Universal's
"Because of You" . Appliance
Co., sponsors of the day-before-
Christmas children's show at the Dixwell
Playhouse, Hamden, has gifts for the mothers
as well as the children. The free tickets have
to be secured by adults applying at the store,
where they were also given free nylon clothes
bags. The youngsters get their gifts when
they .see the show.
Is Viewed by 1,900
BOSTON—The Pilgrim Theatre, an Ameri
can Theatres house, was filled to capacity fo;
the telecast of the Metropolitan Opera's performance
of "Carmen." Every one of thi
1,900 seats was taken, including some of thi.
front boxes which are not ordinarily sole
when motion pictures ai'e shown.
The theatre was in "legitimate theatre" attire.
No popcorn was sold but at the inter
missions the drink machines did a landoffici
business. During the telecast, the audienci
broke out in spontaneous applause after man;
of the arias and at the end of each act,
equalling the applause that came from thi|
Metropolitan patrons themselves.
The sound came through in top shape a
all times and after a few minutes of sligh)
fuzziness, the vision was corrected. Man]
in the audience stated afterwards that tb(
event was a complete success and might bij
the forerunner of many other such presenta^
tions in theatres having large-screen
equipment.
One of the features of the Pilgrim is th^
parking space in the rear, the only theatre i}|
New England which allows its patrons tj
park and enter the theatre under cover wil
out having to step outdoors. This space wi
utilized to the full, as the rains came do)
heavily at curtain time. Abner Pinanskl i{
the manager.
PROVIDENC
TSThen local department and specialty ston
inaugurated their policy of remain"""
open two and three evenings a week, high
lighting the Christmas shopping season,
apparently stimulated business at local
offices. Increased business warranted sever
holdovers, including "The Pi'omoter," "Plyn
outh Adventure" and "Because of You."
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Harold Lancaster, manager of the Pa'
tucket Strand, has been promoting merchant
sponsored kiddy shows on Saturday morning
Through the cooperation of the Salvatio
Army, District Nursing Ass'n and radio stB i'ifiociai
^.'iileois:
tion WPAW, Lancaster is making it possiW teo'the
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for many underprivileged children to enjo
the merriest Christmas in years. Hundreds
beautiful gifts will be distributed to ttj^ir, co;
needy who otherwise might pass through th
Yule season without any recognition at all
The Strand also is presenting a series C
stage shows on Satui'day evenings, topped t
the personal appearance of Theresa Landry
Talented Ai-tists, radio and stage favorites.
Despite the fine casts, excellent acting
moderately scaled prices, the Playhouse
not drawing audiences anticipated by EdwaJi
Gould when he brought back "the living Vat
atre" to this city. So serious is the situatic
that Bradford Swan, reviewer and critic fi
Journal-Bulletin, devoted his entire Sundt
column to an appeal for support of the prc;
gram that Gould is attempting. Such ou
standing performers as Billy Gilbert, Phil
Huston and Everett Marshall head the cas
gracing the boards at the former film houf
but patronage is far from making the ventu
profitable.
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NO NINTH AVENUE. NEW VOIIK
Avcrogc cost per cure is about HALF that of the
notionol overage . . . thonks to management at
WILL ROGERS MEMORIAL HOSPITAL,
The Carlton has scheduled "Brandy for tl
Parson," an out.standing English film, for
Premiere Rhode Island showing.
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02
BOXOFHCE December 20, 19(j