Boxoffice-November.28.1966

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I
A
General Cinema Corp.
Opens Brainiree Twin
BOS ION— Ciciur.il C iiKiiia Corp.. nou
opcraiing 122 unils in 24 suites, opened
C incma 1 and Cinema II al the South Shore
|Shopping Plaza in Braintrec Wednesday
(16). Designed by Boston architect Wil-
'liam Riseman. the two theatres are equipped
'with projection and sound facilities incorpo-
'raling the latest developments in electronic
'research and engineering.
Jackie N'ernon. night cluh and television
comedian, was brought in to cut the ribbon
opening the twin auditoriums. The premiere
;iilm in Cinema I was "The Liquidator" and
|in Cinema II, "Not With My Wife. You
Boston Globe Recommends
,'Is
Paris Burning?' Film
BOSTON In .in iinprcccdcnicd move.
the Boston Cilobe has primed an editorial
recommendation for Paramount's "Is Paris
Burning?" The editorial was run in the influential
newspaper with "Globe Critic
Recommends" as the headline.
The complete Globe comment follows:
" is Paris Burning?" will probably he
shown on the screens of the world for some
years to come. It has the same brilliancy
md documentary vitality of that previous
picture of World War II. titled 'The I.ongest
Day.'
"In "Is Paris Burning?' at the Circle Theatre
in Brookline there are so many stars
they sizzle all over the screen— the best
actors and actresses Europe has to offer.
"But it is beautiful, enslaved Paris which
is the great star and her triumphant liberation
furnishes the authentic plot. Hitler is
foiled and Paris gleams through the darkness
with every light in the city aglow lo
welcome the Americans."
ROUNDABOUT NEW ENGLAND
-By
ALLEN WIDEMf^eneral
business prosperity and continuing
shortages of skilled labor will make it
easier for affected communities to adjust to
U.S. Defense Department phase-outs, according
to the regional Federal Reserve
Bank news sources.
The latest issue of "The New England
Business Review." distributed to this sixstate
area, reports on a study of five major
closings announced since 1961.
The quintet is comprised of Presque Isle
and Dow Air Force bases in Maine, the
Portsmouth Naval shipyard in New Hampshire
and the Watertown arsenal and the
IJon't."
Springfield armory in Massachusetts.
unique ticket-selling arrangement is Understandably, the closings have affected,
to varying degree, both hardtop and
employed in the new theatres, dispensing
with any bo.xoffice lines. Thousands of drive-in theatre boxoffice response in these
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parking spaces are available and the most towns' general periphery.
remote space is within a stone's throw of The report added: "Of the five New England
installations scheduled for I the theatres.
phase-out.
Don Critchley to Operate
Palace, Manchester, N.H.
DERRY, N.H.—Don Critchley. ownermanager
of the local Plaza Cinema, assumed
control of the 1,000-seat downtown
Palace in Manchester on November I.
Critchley plans to reopen the Palace, after
extensive refurbishing, on December I or
as soon thereafter as practical. M the present
lime, three other theatres are operating
the downtown area of Manchester.
Critchley is a recipient of a BOXOFFICI:
citation for his meritorious showmandisini;.
Waltham Embassy Fashion Show
WAI.THAM. MASS.—A fashion show
was presented on the Embassy Theatre's
stage in conjunction with the Warren Millernarrated
"Ski on the Wild Side" program.
the bank's study indicated that the closing of
the Portsmouth Na\\ \ard might prove to
be the only one seriously likely to disrupt
the community's economy. Fully one-fifth
of the Portsmouth-southern Maine area's
economic base can be traced to the yard's
operation."
Significantly, although new manufacturing
job opportunities have begun to emerge
in the area, most of the recent growth in
manufacturing employment has been concentrated
in industries which pay considerably
lower wage scales than shipbuilding
offers.
If workers choose to hold their civil service
benefits and accept department jobs outside
the area—or. for that matter, find employment
elsewhere themselves—about six
civilian jobs could disappear with every ten
yard workers who migrate.
Portland Cinemas Adopt
Reserved-Seat Policy
I'ORTI.AND In .i M.iine exhibition
"first. " the Cinema I and II complex in the
Westbrook Shopping Pla/a has announced
a reservation service for patrons, to facilitate
seating arrangements for both reserved
seat and general admission attractions.
"This policy." a theatre announcement
said, "is being introduced as a service to our
patrons, many of whom travel long distances
to attend the cinemas, and are often turned
away because of capacity business or forced
to stand outside in the cold or rain for some
time to buy tickets."
Shop Center for Attleboro
AITLEBORO. MASS.—A SIO million
shopping complex will be built on 75 acres
of swampland near the Rhode Island state
line b\ the Prudential Development Corp.
Mrs. Dennis Rich Dies
BRISTOL. CONN— Mrs. Dennis Rich,
wife of the Stanley Warner Bristol Theatre
manager, died.
.•\n esiimalcd 2.1)00 shoppers and oflice
workers a day are taking advantage of a
newly-instituted dime-a-ride shuttle-bus
service in Hartford. The service takes Connecticut
company (bus transportation firm)
riders from perimeter parking lots to downtown
sections.
Chris George and I.inda Day, stars of
Comet Films' "The Gentle Rain," concluded
an extensive appearance schedule at both
hardtops and drive-ins in eastern and southeastern
Massachusetts and in Rhode Island.
Another Comet release, "The Poppy Is
Also a Flower," has emerged as one of
I966's truly "sleeper" attractions, piling up
strong grosses in just about every opening
engagement in this six-state territory.
* * •
The .Mbee. downtown Providence theatre,
is providing a 2.>-cent parking charge for
cars at adjacent central lots in that city.
Exhibition interests note that only a few
newspapers across these New England
states are aware of a motion picture theatre's
impact on a local community. These
progressive-minded dailies are using such
amusement page promotion lines as "Go
to the Movies!" In the main, however,
there's little cooperative action in this particular
sphere.
American International had a fine playoff
of "La Dolce Vita. " Italian import reissue
dubbed for the American market,
throughout New England, in recent weeks.
The Marcello .Mastroianni starrer has been
playing to holdover business in numerous
cities, many on a multiple-theatre engagement,
with cooperative advertising prevail-
NEW HAVEN
Ctaiilc> Warner New England zone manager
James M. Totman, pleased with
the public response to a series of six consecutive
Tuesday programs, labeled "Film
Classics Series," at the College Theatre.
Slorrs (home town for the University of
Connecticut), said a similar plan will i^c put
into effect in a minimum of three Connecticut
cities, among them New Haven. Danbury
and New London, after the first of the
The Capitol. Milford. playing a
year . . .
reissue bixiking of UA's "Goldfinger " and
"Dr. No. " proudly advertised. "Both in Big
Theatre Color! " . . . James M. Totman was
a New York visitor.
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BOXOFFICE November 28, 1966 NE-1