The Washington times., 1914-11-19
= THE BEST
Photoplay Department in
WASHINGTON
Man Who Picked His
Program No7v Has
Pick of Best
Programs.

Some months ago when we sug-
dom on the part Of the neighborhood
exhibitor for him to select his own
program We were told that while
this would be possible for the down.
town feature man, it was not profit
able to the owner of the house with
a more limited clientele. We diff
fered with this view, and have clung
rather closely to our original idea
And since we announced it so loudly
and kept at it so persistently there
were one or two brave exhibitors
who gave it a trial. They threw
out the regular program or con-
tracted for but portion Of it, and
bought special pictures in the open
market. To their surprise the people
kept at it, enlarging their outside
purchases until almost everything
they exhibited at their houses would
come under the head of feature or
semi-feature. And they made money
at It. Sometimes tney would lose
out on a picture that did not come
up to specifications. But in the long
run they did well.
So well was the business done by
one of these exhibitors, the man
ager of the Olympic Theater. that
We are informed that theater starts
today on a purely feature policy,
and that its contracts call for the
production not only Of the famous
Paramount Program-which includes
the Famous Players, Lasky, Bos-
worth, Liebler, Frohman, Belasco.
and OF films, but he will show as
well the Shubert features and the
Alliance program. In one week OF
motion pictures he will give what
is practically the finest of all the
big feature films.
The idea that this exhibitor has IS
the development of what he has
learned during the past six months
plus what ne knew before he tried
our experiment. He has proved that
he can make the nefghborhood house
pay a dividend with the very best
pictures obtainable- And he mas
proved to his own satisfaction that
people will come to see the. best
pictures whenever there are SHOWN:
He has had people waiting outside or
his theater in rain and storm on eve
nings when a big feature was being
shown. Perhaps it should be pointed
out that the use of the three Die
feature services that have been
named was not obtained except
through the signing OF a contract Tor
the entire program of each ana
that. therefore, in getting TINS pro
grams, the exhibitor has done eN-
actiy what We have advised against
In the matter of these feature pro-
grams. however, the situation is not
the same at all. .
The exhibitor knows three months
in advance just what the program
is to contain. 1t is something more
than title. He knows, for instance,
what eyery Famous players picture
viii be up to and including January
"a, He knows the name of the star
And the character of the picture.-ie
car tell in a minute whether IL WIN
he suitable to his house. And IL ne
feels he cannot show 1t with proht'
he knows that he can get pictures
from other sources to fill up the pro-
gram. -,
to turn down any Of the pictures:
iust take a glance at what he VIII
have this month: Dustin Farnum
In "The yirginian," Mary Plck1oro
in "Such a Little Queen Gladys
Hanson in THE Straight Road,
among others from the FAMOUS
PLAYERS; Vivian Martin in Ine
wishing Ring" Clara KimbalI
Young in Lola" Laura Sawyer IN
cone of Millions, from the Shu,
6erts. among others. He Will get an
the Idebler stage plays, the be
lasco stage plays, the FrohmansN
stage plays, the Shuberts stage
niays. the Brady stage piays-ln
fact he takes less of chance OF
rettins poor pictures from the COM
mics with whom he has contrac-
ted 10 buy than a theater manager
does who contracts to show the
attractions Of all these producers on
the stage. Aside from the 1act
mat no theater in the country lS
doing this and that the theatrlcal
manager thinks he Is doing eH
ceedinelv we'll IL he contracts WIN
the hooking department OF only Two
nv three OF these firms. the motlon
nicture exhibitor has the further
Advantage of showing only those
that have scored uh-
ruaIified success on the stage pro-
d,,ced with stars of national repu-
II will be seen, therefore. that
tba success of the plan advocated
in The Times seven months ago mas
been nretty well proved. That the
eTbibitor of the neighborhood house
can nick a big program and MAKE
money AZ II. The Olympic starts lts
paramount features this evening
with the production Of Dustin far-
mum in THE Virginian py tte
7 asLxy Company I- NJ