Boxoffice-January.07.1950

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reissues
CHICAGO
/^hicagoans gave a bangup welcome to the
New Year, despite cold rain and drizzle
which failed to put a damper on the thousands
who came to the Loop to whoop it up.
With horns blowing, downtown streets were
a pandemonium. As in previous years, this
was mainly the theatregoing crowd—the boys
and girls who came to the Loop early to
attend shows and then went out on the
streets to celebrate and welcome the New
Year. Admission prices were upped to $1.50
for midnight shows at nearly all downtown
houses. Theatres in the outlying districts
played stage shows as added attractions and
raised prices to $1.50. They did capacity
business.
Variety Club held its annual shindig in the
Congress hotel, and a near capacity crowd
jammed the huge Gold ballroom from 10
p. m. imtil the wee hours. Jack Kirsch, chief
barker: Edward Brunell, Eddie Levin and
fellow barkers greeted members and guests,
including many out-of-towners. Howard Le-
Roy and band provided dance music. Everyone
enjoyed the floor show consisting of
stage and radio stars. A de luxe chicken
dinner was sei-ved at midnight.
Lee Lyles, Jim Merrick and Bill Biu-ke,
MARQUEES
^ATTRACTION
BOARDS
kAD\^S£RVIC€
M-^Rion. inD\^nf\
"Sign and Lighting Spe
cialists for Over
Quarter Century.'
REASONABLE
PRICES
THEATRE CONFECTIONS
LARGEST SELECTION OF ALL
POPULAR BRANDS
CANDY • POPCORN BOXES
GUM
• SEASONINGS
New Low Prices
Write for New Price List. Full Freight
Allowance Radius 300 Miles on Orders
$100 or Over.
KAYLINE CANDY CO.
WE 94643
1220 S. Michigan Chicago 5, 111.
The Marbro Theatre, most successful of
the outlying B&K stage show experiments
over the holidays, is continuing to burn the
footlights for a third week with Jerry Colonna.
Johnnie Johnson will hold forth there after
playing the Uptown, then the Southtown . . .
Bill Hollander, B&K director of advertising
and publicity, returned from a visit with relatives
in New York over the holidays . . .
Eddie Solomon, local 20th-Fox exploiteer, now
is in New York for new product huddle.
David Bradley's new motion pictm-e,
•Julius Caesar," was shown for the first time
at an eggnog party at the Paragon Pictures
studio, Evanston, for those who acted and
took part in producing the film and for the
cast of "Detective Story." Young Bradley,
the producer, fUmed "MacBeth" two years
ago.
Members of operators Local 110 were saddened
by the death of George La Roi sr. . . .
Chicago's newest motion picture theatre, the
Mei-cury, celebrated its opening New Year's
eve with great fanfare. One of the lai-gest
single-floor theatres in the midwest, the Mercury
boasts of free parking space for 800
cars . . After extensive renovation and redecorating,
.
the Towne in Midlothian takes its
place among the de luxe south side theatres.
Improvements include new RCA sound and
projection.
Mono, to Film Hiawatha
On Site in Wisconsin
MILWAUKEE — Monogram plans a fulllength
motion picture about the Hiawatha
legend, documented with scenes from Indian
reservations in Wisconsin. Walter Mirisch of
Monogram was in Milwaukee recently to discuss
technical details of the picture with Robert
Ritzenthaler, curator of Indian lore at
the Milwaukee public museum.
The film company plans to use the Chippewa
tribe as the basis for Indians in the
picture and Ritzenthaler, who is one of the
nation's leading authorities on the tribe, will
serve as technical adviser when production
begins in spring. The Milwaukee man has
loaned Monogram five documentary films he
shot diu-ing studies of the Chippewas.
Story scenes will be made in Hollywood, but
special shots of Indian customs and tribal
dances will be taken at Chippewa reservations
in Wisconsin.
'Lover' and Stage Bill
Pace Trade in Loop
CHICAGO—With the pre-Christmas shopping
spree ended and yule festivities over,
business perked up at all Loop houses. Youngsters
out of school gave matinees a good play
and visitors thronging into town sparked
business in a big way. The Bob Hope opus.
"The Great Lover," plus a stage show headed
Santa Fe club, greeted members of the press,
Filmrow exploiteers and theatre publicists at
the 14th annual buffet supper in the Blackstone
hotel . . . Van A. Nomikos, assisted
by his Delia Galla, was on the Row extending
New Year's greetings to friends with bottles
of imported Metaxa Greek brandy .
Basil Charuhas also was on the Row passing
out cigars . . . Tom Flannery, Wliite Way
by Sonny Tufts and the 3 Sons, gave the
sign man, and his wife celebrated their 26th
Chicago a banner week. "Fame Is the Spur"
wedding anniversary the day after Christmas.
opened briskly at the World Playhouse. "No
Room at the Inn" had a nice first week at
the Carnegie, and "The Pirates of Capri" and
"There's a Girl in My Heart" drew well at
SELL
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ARTHUR LEAK Theatre Specialists
1109 Orchardlane, Dcs Moines, Iowa
4.9087
_^_^_-
CONFIDENTIAL CORRESPONDENCE INVITED
the Roosevelt. "The Nevadian" opened strong
at the United Artists, and "Dangerous Pi'ofession"
was okay at the RKO Grand.
"Pinky," at the Woods, had a good final week.
The Oriental did well with a second week of
"Without Honor" and a stage revue. "The
Red Shoes," in its 55th week at the Selwyn,
had a sellout week.
(Average Is 100)
Carnegie—No Room at the Inn (British Nafl) 105
Chicago—The Great Lover (Pdra), plus stage
s^ow —.-130
Gorrick—Port of New York (EL) jOO
Grand-A Dangerous Prolession (RKO) .-- 103
Crienlai—Without Honor (UA), plus stage show,
"°
v"V
2nd wk
-
Rialto Stormy Weather (20th-Fox); The Little
Colonel (
Girl in
ZOth-Fox)
Roosevelt—The
My Heart
,
100
Pirates of Capri (EL); There s a
(Mono), 2nd wk HO
Seiwyn—The Red Shoes (EL), roadshow,
55th wk - Very good
Surl—The Fallen Idoi (SRO), 6th d- t. wk 105
(WB),
State-Lake—The Lady Takes a Sailor
2nd wk
'"^
Studio—Wild Men of Kalahari (Dezel); Naked Man
Beast (Dezel) ^-- - .^^
United Artists—The Nevadian (Col) 1|U
Woods—Pinky (20th-Fox), 6th wk ._.......... 115
V/orld Playhouse—Fame Is the Spur (Oxford);
Birth of a Ballet (Brill) "S
Rib' Tickles Indianapolis
To Gross 110 Per Cent
INDIANAPOLIS—"Adam's Rib" at Loew's
drew best patronage here, grossing 110 per
cent in its first week. Second place honors
went to "The Great Lover" at the Indiana
with 105.
Circle—The Lady Takes a Sailor (WB); Wolf
Hunters (Mono) -".:• »0
Indiana—The Great Lover (Para); There s a. Girl
in My Heart (Mono) -
v^;-^"^
i,:e,ths—Saludos Amigos (RKO); Dumbo (RKO),
reissues - ;^"',""
Loew's—Adam's Rib (MOM); Chinatown at Midnight
(Col) J-
^ "0
Lyric—Christopher Columbus (U-1); Omoo-Omoo
^"
(LP)
Merchants Give Free Shows
BEAVER DAM, WIS.—A group of local
merchants are cooperating in putting on a
free show each Tuesday at the Fox Odeon
Theatre. The shows begin at 2 p. m.
CHICAGO
1327 S. Wobosh
FROM
on IT
QUICKI
FILMACK
NEW YORK
619 W. 54th St.
48
BOXOFFICE
January 7, 1950