PONDERS TAFT-HARTLEY WAL

32 BOXOFFICE :: June 28, I
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FILMIIOWS OF AMERICA (Continued)
(Continued from preceding pagei
1919. Since that year Felder has sold pictures
for Pathe, Republic and Monogram.
Phil Hodes, RKO branch manager, despite
his youthful appearance also has passed the
30-year mark with the film business. From
Universal he went to Film Booking Offices,
and has been with RKO since 1928 when
FBO was ab.sorbed. Hodes also had a brief
side fling as an exhibitor during the 1930s.
He operated the Roosevelt Theatre in Queens.
Jack Ellis. United Artists district manager,
is another FBO alumnus. During the 25
years Jack has been in the business he has
been president of the Motion Picture Associates
five times: he was the first to win
t«ree successive elections. Jack is sometimes
referred to as the Billy Rose of Filmrow.
Like Rose he was a shorthand champion and
songwriter. "I Can Get It for You Wholesale"
Is one of his songwriting achievements.
David A. Levy, Universal district manager,
spent the last 29 years selling film. These
years included tieups with Paramount, Cosmopolitan,
MGM and Educational Films.
At Warners there is a team that has been
united for most of the last three decades. It
consists of Sam Lefkowitz, district manager,
and Joe Vergas.sllch, shorts subjects sales
supervisor. They both worked for First
National during World War I. The two men
were separated from 1942 to 1946 when Sam
joined UA as branch manager, then rising
to district manager, before he rejoined Warners
last year as eastern district manager.
The exchange area covers cities, towns and
villages within a 90-mile radius of Times
Square. Connecticut is exclu-led.
The northern boundary is a line from
Kingston, N. Y., running to Livingston
Manor; the southern, Trenton to Barnegat,
N. J.; the eastern, the Connecticut state line
on the mainland, and the tip of Long Island,
more than 100 miles away. Exhibitors from
these communities can reach 44th street by
automobile in approximately three hours.
CEATING capacity of the 1,150 theatres in
the district is approximately 1,300,000.
Nearly 770.000 of these seats are in the 706
New York City theatres.
Exhibition in the district is primarily a circuit
operation. Approximately 760, or 66 per
cent of the theatres, are operated by circuits.
These houses contain 1,075,000 seats, or 82
per cent of the total. Many independent
theatres operate through booking combines.
Loew's has 77 theatres in the flye New York
boroughs, Jersey City, Newark and Westchester
county. These houses Include the
5,500-seat Loew's Jersey City; the 5,486-seat
Capitol, Broadway showcase, and six other
theatres with more than 3,000 seats each.
Among these Is Loew's State, a haven for
vaudeville as well as films, from the time It
was built in 1921.
Warners, through Its Warner Bros. Circuit
Management Corp., operates the second largest
affiliated chain, consisting of 67 theatres.
Most of these are in New Jersey, and
operational details are handled from a separate
Newark office.
The 4,332-seat Stanley, Jersey City, is the
largest Warner theatre. The best known is
the 2,720-seat, Strand, a Broadway presentation
house and showca.se for Warner product.
Another Warner showcase Is Uie 1,287-
.seat Hollywood, also on Broadway.
Forty of RKO's 48 theatres In the district
are situated in New York City. The remaining
18 are spread through northern New
Jersey and Westchester county.
The RKO showcase on Broadway Is th«
Palace. From 1913 when it was opened, until
1933, the Palace waa the mecoa of vaudeville
artists. During that first year of Franklin
Delano Roosevelt's administration, the Palace
Robert Weitman, under whose management
the Paramount Theatre has become
one of the country's best presentation
houses.
gave up vaudeville and operated as a second
run twin bill house. In 1943 it was rescued
from oblivion when RKO turned it into the
first run showca.se for RKO product it is
today.
Paramount's theatres in the metropolitan
district are limited to 14. These incJude the
3.664-seat Paramount Theatre on Broadway
and the 4,153-seat Paramount in Brooklyn.
Under the dynamic management of Robert
M. Weitman, the Paramount has become one
of the nation's most famous presentation
houses. Shortly after he took over in 1935,
Weitman introduced the "name band" policy
that has been imitated throughout the
country.
The Paramount more recently also has
been the first theatre to reduce prices from
wartime levels. This policy has not been
imitated.
Twentieth-Fox has one theatre in New
York—the 5,886-seat Roxy. When it was
opened in 1927, it was the world's largest.
The spectacular and lavish stage show policy
introduced by the late S. F. "Roxy" Rothafil
made the Roxy world-famous.
He took this policy to the new 6,200-seat
Music Hall, which opened in December 1932,
with Roxy as manager. After four months
as an all-stageshow house, the Music Hall
became a film and presentation theatre. Roxy
resigned, and was succeeded by the late W.
G. Van Schmus, who brought in Gus S. Eyssell
as his assistant.
Eyssell has been managing director since
1942, and is still going strong.
"THE first run situation wouldn't be complete
without mentioning the Astor.
This theatre has passed through varied controls,
including Walter Reade and Loew's,
and today it is owned and operated by City
Investing Corp. along witli the neighboring
Victoria Theatre. Both theatres are sched-
Metropolitan Statistics
Next in Series:
BOSTON
The eleventh in this series
articles about America's distrib'il
tior centers.
uled to b. torn down next year to make
for a pair of 2,000-seat showplaces.
To borrow Jimmy Durante's words, "e
body wants to build a theatre on Broadi
especially the independents.
Harry Brandt owns three
theatres an'
main stem. The Gotham and Globe i(
first runs, the Republic is a subsequent i
hou.se for English-language films, and t
run for foreign films. In addition, Br i
has just taken a five-year lease from L<
on the Mayfair.
i
The acquisition of the Mayfair briiu >
121 the number of theatres now contr j
by Harry and his brother, William.
These houses vary from first run Broa< t
to subsequent run "grind houses" on i
42nd street. They spread through V .
Chester county, and towns of Long Island j
northern New Jersey, but are concen-: 1
largely in Manhattan, Brooklyn and •
Bronx.
The theatrical holdings controlled by .•
liam Fox in 1929 have been absorbet .(
Skouras Theatres, Randforce AmuM! t
Corp., Century Theatres, Prudential ci ;
and the Interboro circuit.
Through partnerships or booking aj.-
ments these circuits now control the -4
theatres formerly operated by the Fox
•
ropolitan Playhouses, Inc., and the t
Theatres Corp., which William Fox so! i
1930.
The Skouras circuit takes in 69 ttif ^
throughout the five boroughs and New J>
Westchester and Long Island. Pride t: ;
organization and its largest operation ; t
3,514-seat Acadomy of Music on 14th s
a former Fox Theatres Corp. house.
During the war Skouras circuit ma. i
lasting impression on the industry thr i
the accomplishments of its Community S -
ice division. It sponsored special radio
•
grams, drives and collections aiding the t
effort.
Today the circuit's Conununlty & >
division is continuing that work for p< •
time rehabilitation projects. Behind •
public relations program are Georgt '
Skouras. president; William A. Wliite.
priisent and general manager, and <
Matsoukas, advertising and publicity dire
Another public relations minded circii '
Century Theatres, with 40 theatres in Br
lyn. Queens and Long Island.
This is the organization that turned '
of its Brooklyn theatres to the boar. I
education for monthly morning screen
There are a number of smaller circuits
All photos excepling those of Robert Wf'JJ'^J
Loew's executives taken (or BOXOFFICE 07 Hf
Kaufman.
New York's exchange area has a population of 12,500,000.
Il has 1,150 theatres, seating 1,300,000 persons.
It
Il
has 650 exchange employes.
has 130 trade accessory workers.
The exchange area fakes in all communities within a radius of 90
miles of Manhattan (except Connecticut).
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