TO LORD

. . Jud
PITTSBURGH
Qhoniiuui Morris M. Finkcl forwarded
guest passes for Bank Cinema I and
Good Friday (8) was
Bank Cinema II . . .
a school holiday and Cinemette houses held
$1 days to 5 p.m.. downtown sites charging
Area theatres have
$1 to 2:30 p.m. . . .
been featuring "Rocky," "3 Fantastic Supermen."
"Super Stooges vs. The Wonder
Women," "Demon Seed," "Premonition."
"The Littlest Horse Thieves," "Winnie the
Pooh." "At the Earth's Core." etc.
John Lange has joined Plitt Theatres as
assistant ad director. John's father Bill formerly
was a Warner Bros, exchange manager
here; in recent years Bill has owned
and operated a large independent film distributing
company working out of Chicago.
John Lange is a Columbia University
graduate.
Deforest Kelley presented a new film,
"Star Trek: Backstage," at the Syria Mosque
Saturday (16) . . . The Liberty showed
"The Millionairess" . . Minnie Hunter
.
Nixon of the old-time Paramount exchange
is the veteran organist and choir director
at the Delmont U. P. Church. She was a
Wilkinsburg High School graduate classmate
of your correspondent in 1922.
Vince Josask, years ago a film salesman
in this area, tells us in a letter from his
Los Angeles residence that he again is in
"good shape" at 74, after being hospitalized
several months for two major operations,
plus treatments. He retired from the industry
some years ago, after a stroke left him
partially paralyzed. He and his wife extend
best wishes to film industry friends. Vince,
whose brother George (also a film salesman
here) died in Pittsburgh several years ago,
informed us of the death of Kitty Brown,
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SI. last fall. Kitty, whose late husband Dick
managed this city's old Duquesne Theatre
when it was owned by United Artists 55
years ago, had been Vince's neighbor in
Los Angeles for years. Dick Brown also
served with the WBT circuit here; then was
an independent exhibitor at five Pittsburgh
locations. Dick's father was the late Harry
Brown, well-known showman who managed
the original Nixon Theatre in Pittsburgh
for two decades.
Ernie Sands, formerly a Pittsburgh film
salesman and exchange manager and active
nationally in film distribution, has a son
Jay who now is a Columbia representative
in Boston . Spiegle, former local
film salesman and a veteran in this field at
Cleveland, was ill and absent from the business
last year. Jud claims he is semi-retired
but he's still on the go for Cineplex in
Ohio.
Elizabeth Taylor Appears
On Barbara Walters' Show
NEW YORK—Elizabeth Taylor and her
husband John Warner were two of the
guests on "The Barbara Walters Special,"
telecast on ABC-TV Wednesday evening
(6). The actress discussed the present and
future of her recent marriage, as well as
her second marriage to actor Richard Burton.
Regarding Burton, Ms. Taylor said there
were two weddings because she really
wanted to make the marriage work. She
was philosophical about the two failures
and wished Burton, now rewed, the same
happiness that she has now. Admitting
that she is about to turn 45. the actress
said she had no worries about getting older
because she's lived life to the fullest and
enjoyed it enormously, despite her mistakes.
Also interviewed on the special were the
Shah and Empress of Iran and Congresswoman
Barbara Jordan, the South's only
black congresswoman.
Monroeville Pornographic
Law Copied at Penn Hills
PITTSBURGH—Penn Hills Borough
has adopted a civil pornography ordinance
patterned after Monroeville's, which has
been upheld in lower court. While the new
ordinance permits stopping of shows and
removal of materials the borough council
deems pornographic, the ordinance does not
permit incarceration.
Movies, magazines and other publications,
massage parlors, prostitution and
modeling parlors are covered in the Penn
Hills ordinance. Excluded are "works of
art." Court costs will be the burden of the
merchant. Council members are judges:
they determine what is and what isn't obscene
or lewd.
City officials believe the Penn Hills ordinance
will be amended to include "criminal
aspects" of the local
law.
Civic Group in Syracuse
Hopes to Save Showhouse
SYRACUSE—Syracuse Area Landmarl
Theatre, Inc., has launched a membershi|
drive to save historic Loews' Theatre in tb *
downtown area. It hopes to achieve broad ^
,
based community support tor the possibl
preservation and renovation of the mevi I0 l
house.
"Whenever the prospect of demolition.*! •&*
Loews is discussed, there is an outcry o jiW ('
public opposition." said Mrs. Eleanor \ tK ' B"
Shopiro, SALT president. "However, to sa\ isM' 3
Loews, we must have more than moral su) iliM
port. SALT must have the membershj fifa
backing of all people who want this gM| |jl»
theatre saved."
In addition to its importance as a histoi
landmark and performing arts resourc
Mrs. Shopiro said a preserved Loews al
should be viewed as an integral facet in (
forts to revitalize downtown.
The SALT president added that the lrj
of an auditorium with approximately 3,0*
seating capacity would preclude the
appe;
ance of many of the fine roadshows t:
community enjoyed in the past. The capac
of the year-old Civic Center is about 1,0)
less than Loews.
At one time, Salina Street had numeris
theatres, including the Empire, Strand, Pamount
and Keith's. All of them have gin
way to other uses, except Loews. Built'n
the late '20s, Loews features murals, fr
greed brass lamps, majestic staircases, ri-:
hogany paneling and elaborate plaster fl
tails in a Persian fantasy.
Grants totaling $3,500 were obtai'd
"Cltgh
year from the New York State Cou;il
last
on the Arts and the National Trust for Istoric
Preservation to fund an analysisof
operating costs. A request for $35,00Cin
restoration funds was submitted to the f'w
York State Division for Historic Presea- Iwkore
tion.
The theatre portion of the Loews Builug
is for sale and it is hoped that sufficnt faol»
monies will be raised by May 1, 1977. obtain
a purchase option.
'Slap Shot' Has Special
Appeal for Johnstown
JOHNSTOWN, PA.—Universale aul
Newman starrer, "Slap Shot," opened ir
to a less-than-capacity crowd. In fact.the
ile i
|]»
ink'
inio
mil
SiR [{]
700-seat movie house was only half'ull
•3fc;F
because, according to theatre co-owne'Ed
111'!
Troll, "some folks stayed away because iey 'flllloi
thought there would be a crowd."
The feature was of more-than-usua in-
BOXOFFICE :: April 18, 9'