Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1909-01-06
Closing Of One Amusement House
Is Announced This
Morning.
BLAME SUNDAY PERFORMANCE
ono Result Win De Introduction OF
Bill In Legislature Closing show
Houses ON the sabbath


result. SUNDAY performances are ad-
mitted 10 have brought this condition
about in great measure. In almost
every amusement house in the city
where Sunday performance have been
given, including even the great number
OF motion picture shows. capacity
audiences have been the rule at the
Sunday evening shows. For the re-
naming six days OF the week, except
ia the salt Lake Theater. whore no
! Sunday performances have been given,
| both night and matinee attractions
| have drawn only medium crOwds-an
exception being made for the offering
| of The Devil" at the Colonial when
| each performance was given before an
! audience which practically hned the
/ house. In this case, which ranks strict
/ ~ as an exception TO the rule, the fur
/ ore which the offering created In New
/ York and its consequent fame which
/ preceded il 10 this city, were probably
] more responsible for the big audiences
than would be- the case with any 81
/ the ordinary bookings
/ But in catering TO the amusement
/ loving people Of this city, the managers
/ have overdone NATTER This Is brought
/ to light today In Q statement made by
| Manager Grant of the Colonial ana l-y-
| ceum theaters. both new amusement
] NWNNEN NIfNAtN ~ AAN' ItANHtf H+-H
Gently.
WILL CLOSE IN THREE WEEKS
.The I.yceum WIN be closed Ia about
three weeks MI. Grant said this
morning.
That brief sentence says that the
businefs done az the house has not
been satisfactory; that there are TOO
many tbeaters running in the city .
that sunday performance. instead y
| adding to the box onice revenue. nave
hurt the theatrical business In this CITY
A count 81 the theater running az
present IN Salt Lake shows that there
Are ave large houses and nine SINAI T
| ones OF the former there are the SAT-
Lake Theater. Orpheum Coionial,
| Grand and Lyceum. OF the mouol
picture shows and liustfa teo so ...
llvric. isis Hmplfe. Elite, biectite' i't
jou and Majestic.
,rh. average number OF performance
nor week Ia the motion picture mousse
Il 3i5. and in the larger houses ~ o.,
s6s performances per week for tne ~
houses in the city.
A state street motion picture ns1i-
ager said this morning
'.The business IL not what ~ Vas
even a few months ago. When
opened this house, there were propapy
MOI more than four or hve other houses
in the citv and the returns on my IN
yestment were so large that ! was
even surprised myself, though kne"
Al the time that there was good money
IN the business. our ciass OF
always runs sundays. and so 90
moi know whether we would make any
more money or not II we showed only
six days a week. ] hardly think we
would our house now on sunday
nights Is 80 crowded that We have 10
turn people away, and presume they
20 TO other houses, but In all or them
they have all the business they can
handle on Sunday nights
CANNOT STAND PRESSURE.
The manager OF one OF the five
larger houses said this morning.
we expect TO make our business
nav a. IL always has done TO an eN-
tent The last few months have
showed a ateady falling on however,
and TO make things go. II means that
somebody has got 70 quit or tha'
something unexpected turns up. our
house is going 20 cut down It's adNer-
Using simply because IL cannot stand
the pressure / know that 10 qult
advertising when business Is bad Is
poor policy, for then, II at any time
advertising is certainly the real me-
line of all business. When business
is good tere is not so much need OF
advertising but when II is poor a
manager should do all IN his power Ia
get the business, and ] don't know OF
anything better than advertising ana
especially In a newspaper. sthl' we
| have ,rot 10 do a. That's all there ts
40 1t. The business is perhaps worse
right now thar IL has ever been be-
fore IN this city. There are too many
houses here and IL Is a good Trims
I HU1IGnn
| high but what Il comes down some
A MINISTER'S COMMENT.
II don't believe a minister should
appear ia the public press" said one Of
the city's prominent churchmen today
but N necessary. or course, We wil
| have 10 put that feeling aside n we
can accomplish our end I'm ~ other
way Are the ministers opposed 10
Sunday amusementsf Why Of course
they are. The opposition does not an
| center among the ministers, either fol
among the best people Of this city, if a
class distinction Is az an proper. and in
. some cases AZ appears 10 be, Will ne
found when the next legislature con-
vonea those who stand champions of
legislative action that win seek 10 do
away with such ao-called amusementa
Generally speaking. the class VI
good The shows are OF "a class that af.
fofds pleasure when properly sought
but there are some exceptions. re-
Gently took "a sunday night on from
my church duties FOR the purpose of
Inspecting these theatofs. Wal
APPALLED, to see the number ~ people
whose membership is with my church
. in attendance. Then ] knew why wor
ship service sunday evenings WAS NOT
20 well attended as before sunday
4 amuscmonts came into vogue. Nat
aet0unded when ono set ~ pictures De-.
( piCted the various stages of mos'
. horrible murder following the ruinauor
81 German peasant SRI by a galis
. | clad uohlcman. VIII not doacrihe
the pictures They were too degrading
b ana debasing 20 even remember. Try
5 as j have. 90 fnr get them n han been
impossible when realize what al,
q effect of the pictures ON young Flrli
4 and boys must be- m cases OF this Kind
{ J think tho Law should be- taken intl
the hands ~ the people and such man.
{ agers as provide this sort of amusc.
/. ment driven ouf of the huslness
SUNDAY REST MEASURE.
Il believe. aud / Az Neu slluol L. j