Boxoffice-March.24.1956

NSS service department to booker, replacing
Billie Arp, resigned.
The East Point Amusement Co. effected a
realignment. The Roosevelt Drive-In, Atlanta,
is now operated by Fred C. Coleman.
Coleman Enterprises, completely independent
of the East Point. The company, headed by
John Stembler, operates the Starlite Drive-In
and the East Point, Fairfax and Fulton theatres.
Stembler is also president of Georgia
"Picnic" went into its fifth
Theatre Co. . . .
week at the Rialto, and "Carousel" was drawing
record crowds at the Fox.
Elvis Presley, the new be-bopping, hillbilly
singer, made his debut on stage at the
Fox Theatre March 14, 15 and drew turnaway
throngs of teenagers and rock-and-roll
fans. Appearing with him and sharing in
the storm of applause were Rod Brasfield
of the Grand Ole Oprey, Uncle Cyp of the
Ozark Jubilee TV show, Mother Maybelle,
June Carter and the Wilburn brothers.
WOMPI news: Vice-president Mrs. Juanita
Elwell spent a week's vacation in West Palm
Beach visiting her daughter, Mrs. Boyd Fink,
and family, and participated in the St. Patrick's
Day birthday celebration of her two
grandchildren, both having March 17 birthdays
. . . The March luncheon meeting of
WOMPI will be held Wednesday the 28th at
WOMPIs the Variety Club . . .
and their
friends are excited over the Sadie Hawkins
Day dance to be held at the Club April 6
when all sorts of surprises are in store . . .
At the board meeting March 10, held at the
home of Betty Whitmire. Mildred Castleberry
and Allene Robbins were elected to the nominating
committee.
H&E Balaban Corp. Unit
Applies for TV Channel
BIRMINGHAM — Birmingham Television
Corp. Tuesday (6) applied to the FCC for a
Channel 42 (UHF) television station here.
The corporation, only applicant for the
channel, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of H&E
Balaban Corp. of Chicago, which operates
motion picture theatres and has diverse television
interests.
Nickel Price Hikes
BIRMINGHAM—At least two Martin theatres
in South Alabama have announced admission
price increases. Mrs. Gladys Barron,
manager of the Pix Theatre at Evergreen,
said that she had raised prices a nickel
—45 cents for white adults and 35 cents for
Negro adults. Children's prices remain 15
cents. M. P. Jones, manager of the Martin
Theatre at Florala, said he had adopted the
same schedule of prices due to increased cost
of operation.
To Build in Leesville
LEESVILLE, LA.—John Luster of W. W.
Page Theatres announces construction will
start soon on a drive-in theatre there.
CHARLOTTE
Cam L. Irvin of the Plaza at Asheville, general
chairman of the membership committee
of Theatre Owners of North and
South Carolina, presided over a special meeting
of the area chairmen in the association
office here recently. Members participating
were R. L. Baker, Webb, Gastonia, western
North Carolina chairman; W. H. Hendrix jr.,
central North Carolina chairman; Harold
Armistead, upper South Carolina chairman,
and Leighton Parker, lower South Carolina
chairman. Present also was Jack Fuller of
Columbia.
During; remodeling of the present office of
the executive secretary of Theatre Owners of
North and South Carolina, the temporary
location will be at 219 West Fourth St. Remodeling
started Monday (19) and is to be
Clyde Carr,
completed around June 1 . . .
stepson of Johnny Kime of Roseboro, N. C,
has assumed duties as manager of the Marine
Drive-in at Jacksonville, N. C. For the past
eight years. Carr has been managing a theatre
in Morehead City.
Seen on the Row during the week: Joe
Accardi, Skyline Drive-in, Morganton; R. L.
Wilburn, Sunset Drive-In, Buffalo; H. Fin
Lee, Duplin Theatres, Warsaw; Bill Harwood,
Willis Drive-In Theatres, Concord; Sam Bogo,
Carolina Theatre, Batesburg; Howard Anderson,
Anderson Theatre Co., Mullins; O. T.
Kirby, Kirby Theatres, Roxboro; J. K. Whitley,
Towel City Theatres, Kannapolis; Eli
Dreylinger, Wellons Drive-In Theatres,
Fayetteville ; Willie Sams, Statesville Theatre
Corp., Statesville; Roy Champion, Champion
Theatres of Rocky Mount and Wilson.
The Columbia exchange has been moved to
a new location in the "hub" of Filmrow on
South Church street. The new building includes
recreation facilities for the employes.
Term for Airer Burglary
SHREVEPORT—Bobby J. Thompson, 17,
Barksdale Air Force Base airman charged
with armed robbery of the Don Drive-In in
Bossier City, was sentenced March 3 to three
years in Angola Prison. The airman pleaded
guilty to the charges at the February 26 sessions
of the court. Approximately $94 of the
$100 taken in the robbery was recovered.
Drive-In Aids Tractor Fund
HERNANDO. FLA.—The Citrus Chapter of
Future Farmers of America will sponsor the
March 27, 28 showing of "Many Rivers to
Cross" at the local Citrus Drive-In. The
boys are aiming at a 600-ticket sale to raise
funds toward a new tractor. J. William Mullins
is manager of the drive-in.
Tom Tryon will star with Charlton Heston
and Anne Baxter in Paramount's "The Maverick."
Tampa Airer for Negroes
Divided in White Section
TAMPA—The Buffalo Drive-In, built several
years ago for Negroes, has been divided
into two parts, one for whites, the other for
Negroes. A tin fence separates the two parts,
and the same kind of division is used in the
snack bar, not equal in size with the larger
section for whites and the smaller for Negroes.
The manager gave as his reason for making
the change inability to meet expenses from
Negro patronage only. "It costs $100 a night
to operate this theatre, and we were only
getting $30 from Negro patrons," he said.
"Competition from another nearby drive-in
and television cut our revenue down to where
we became desperate. We found that a
Miami group who had suffered the same experience
divided its theatre into two sections,
and with success. Because we couldn't
get late pictures if we showed only to Negroes,
our competition had us barred, but we could
get the latest and best if we showed to
whites, too. That's why we decided to try
the Miami idea, and we hope it works. We
didn't want to put up the fence, and knew
we wouldn't have to do it in Ohio where we
came from, but here we had to because of
the law."
In commenting on the situation the editor
of the Florida Sentinal said: "The manager
should realize that Negroes are pushing for
equal opportunity and don't like jim crow
situations which we have to pay for. We can
understand his predicament and have sympathy
for him, but we also ask him to consider
the fact that white citizens have any
number of drive-in theatres and shouldn't be
allowed to confiscate one of the two which
were built for Negroes."
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BOXOFFICE :
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24, 1956 51