1^

with
AMARILLO
pame Nature made a personal appearance
here at the opening of "State Fair"
Wednesday i4i. Wouldn't it happen— for
the first time in months it rained? But
Interstate city manager Jack King had
time during the day to finish erecting all
the art and streamer flags in front of the
Paramount and, due to his long-range campaign,
the 8 p.m. performance still received
a near-capacity audience from the strong
advance ticket sales. To further benefit
the coming weeks of the playdate it was
covered by radio and TV news departments
along with the newspapers. "The Eyes of
Texas" was played in advance of Gov. Price
Daniel's taped introduction before the feature
started.
Crossroads got to open "Whistle Down
the Wind " "The Deadly Companions"
at the Tascosa Drive-In and it was
thence moved to the Twin. Carl Benefiel's
Victory also went first run with "Wild
Harvest" and the long-delayed "A Fever
in the Blood." But Interstate rebooted
1950's "King Solomon's Mines" at the
State.
The Amarillo Junior Leagrue presented
1 13 > at
its last play of the season Friday
the Municipal Auditorium with "Fabu-Las
Vegas," according to business agent Jimmy
Cheshire. He also worked the symphony
orchestra, which played there Tuesday . . .
Channel 7 began featm-es on Sunday night
prime time at 7:30 with "Run Silent. Run
Deep," originally released by United Artists
in 1958, to match the 8 p.m. prime
time 20th-Pox product on channel 4 Saturday
nights here. Channel 10 now offers
three features on Saturday at 1 p.m. while
channel 4 runs a top feature at the same
time on Sunday matinees. This is in addition
to late shows on Saturday and Sunday
on 4, a 10 p.m. special Sundays and
fom- other late shows repeated at 4:30 the
following afternoon on 7, five late shows
and thj-ee featm-es on Sunday mornings on
ten with a new feature on Tuesday nights.
This represents 23 different features per
week on the three channels here.
The Parker Square Theatre in Wichita
Palls, opened in 1958 as the largest and
only suburban house in that city, has met
its final doom after having been converted
and reopened last week as a department
store. It has been closed since
last year after a thj-ee-year operation by
its original owners and later by Phil Isley
of Dallas.
Oklahoma City 'Fair' Bow
Draws Almost Capacity
OKLAHOMA CITY—"State Fair," second
remake of what's close to being an
American classic, was unreeled here Wednesday
night i4i in a world premiere run
the Criterion Theatre shared with a number
of Texas film houses, the Daily Oklahoman
reported.
It drew a near-capacity crowd, in large
part because a portion of the pictuie was
made up of racing scenes shot at the Oklahoma
City fairgrounds when 4,500 natives
served as extras. The .story is set at the
Texas state fairgrounds at Dallas.
The premiere here Wednesday was de-
Wallace Walthalh on 81st Birthday,
Honored as Mr, Variety of Dallas
DALLAS—Friends and barkers turned
out at the clubrooms to honor Wallace
Walthall who, as chainnan of the ceremonial
committee, has inducted into membership
practically every member of the
Variety Club since its inception in 1935.
Walthall, who for years was head of the
National Screen Service office and a charter
member of the Variety Club, received
congratulations and best wishes from exhibitors,
distributors and a host of friends
on his 81st birthday.
Born in Alabama in 1881, Walthall began
his career in the motion picture business
with the old Vitagraph Corp. From
there he went to General Film Co. as manager
in New Orleans before affiliating
with National Screen Service. Barkers in
the Dallas area and many on the national
scene view Walthall as the symbol of Variety
in his top hat and barker costume.
Too, they remember his trademark of cordiality—passing
out a stick of chewing gum
to everyone he meets.
Chief Barker Gordon McLendon presented
a handsome calendar clock to Walthall
as a token of appreciation for his
outstanding Variety work.
Paul Short, southeastern divisional manager
for National Screen Service, said:
"This club has been blessed with some
really great men. The late beloved Bob
O'Donnell was known as Mr. Show Business,
Julius Schepp>s is Mr. Dallas, Chill
Wills is Mr. Texas, Sol Sachs is Mr. Filmrow,
Gordon McLendon is Mr. Radio, and
henceforth Wallace Walthall will be known
as Mr. Variety."
Raymond Willie, vice-president and general
manager of Interstate Theatres, expressed
the admiration of theatre exhibitors
when he said, "Wallace Walthall
represents an irreplaceable era of spiritual
greatness and fellowship."
Phil Isley, president of the Phil Isley
Theatres and past chief barker: "You are
indeed one of the pillars of strength of the
Variety Club now, in the past and in the
future."
void of any of the Hollywood stars featm-ed
in the film—they were in Texas—but there
was accompanying fanfare. A searchlight
probed the di-izzly sky overhead before
show time as a calliope tooted and a number
of sports cars used in the movie were
lined up outside the theatre.
Response by the audience to "State
Fair" reflected the film's attractiveness.
Its first version starred the late Will Rogers
in the 1930's, and the second appeared
in the 1940's.
Narration by Fred MacMurray
HOLLYWOOD — Fred MacMurray has
been selected by the United Community
FMnds and Councils of America to appear
in and narrate a new film for the United
F^ind and Community Chest campaigns to
be distributed nationally this fall. The film
will be available for showings in theatres,
on TV and in industrial plants and business
offices in advance of the national
-solicitation funds.
WALLACE WALTHALL
Sol Sachs, soutliwest district representative
for Continental Distributing Co.,
lauded Walthall as "one of the great men
of Variety and one who will alw'ays remain
in the hearts of the men who know him."
As a feature of the celebration Walthall
not only inducted new members, but reaffirmed
all the old members present. This
prompted the suggestion that this procedure
be repeated every year.
Among those in attendance were Morty
Freedman, Gene Welch, Jake Watkins,
Jake Elder, Bill Williams, Norm Levinson,
Walter Steadman. Sam Berry, Joe Love.
Bernard Brager, Lloyd Edwards, Don
Keyes, Meyer Rachofsky, Duke Clark, Fred
Patton, Alfred Sack, Kendall Way, Walter
Penn, Bob Amos, Bill Slaughter, Johnny
Hicks, Ed Gall, Edwin Tobolowsky. Dave
Bloom. Arthur Harris, Clyde Houston, John
Shaffer. Kyle Rorex, and Short, McLendon,
Isley, Sachs and Willie.
Oklahoma City Cooper
Will Close Till July
OKLAHOMA CITY—The Cooper Theatre
in downtown, which shows Cinerama films,
will close April 26, reopening some time
in July. Kenneth E. Anderson, general
manager of Cooper Foundation Theatres,
Lincoln, Neb., said:
"It had been anticipated that one of the
two pictures now in production, "How the
West Was Won' or 'The Brothers Grimm,'
would be available but the magnitude of
producing both pictures simultaneously has
prevented completion of either picture in
time to meet the Cooper deadline."
"Windjammer " will continue to run
through April 26. Anderson pointed out the
closing does not mean business has not
been good in Oklahoma City.
"We have been well satisfied with results
here. Four of the six pictm-es shown
had previously enjoyed fine runs in Oklahoma
City, With the new films we anticipate
a tremendous response," he said.
BOXOFFICE April 16. 1962 SW-1