Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1914-07-21

ttAHHE
picture came into direct competition
with the legitimate. and the boards
~ such standard fhcatcrs a. the
Broadway. the Herald square. and
the savoy in New York and McNlck-
efs IN Chicago. yielded 10 the silent
ACTORS ~ the film Today with
hundred native sources Of supply
this Il the estimate 81 studi0sl.
% say nothing of the considerable i'm
pertasion II foreign films. the bust
ness Is bfistling battle-ground. alive
nth competition. vibrant with many
sided energy. 50 fast is the pace that
( is almost impossible 10 prepare sta
flsiics The records ~ yesterday are
wiped cot today. The field Is wide
open. man with cash and an idea
can take a flyer in a finn and market
ms product. Increasing demand
strains az supply. the mark Of the
dollar Is everywhere In brief. the
whole industry is like a vast cornu-
capia disgorglng golden harvest
The Profit in Production.
There are three distinct agencies
that contribute 10 motion picture pro-
~. The first is the producer. who
makes the film plays the second b.
the exchange or midiieman. who dis
tributes the product The third Is the
exhibitor. who shows u 10 the public.
tnaer the old monopolistic order
The exchanges. then limited IN num-
Der. were owned b the united group
81 Dig producers. fhe exhi0Eors were
arbitrarily restricted ia their supply.
Now Things are changed. The re-
stfaining hd is OF ana the owner Of
a small theater can throw on his
screen The products ~ General, Uni
teFsaf ana Mutual and. in ADDITION. II
he Is wiling 20 pay the price. an ad-
led feature. 80 mucn Tor the
emancipation Of the business.
what then are the finn proflts7 OF
q ufse. ali Igures in such an instance
a. this are estimates. but with certain I
iacis We can arrive az some conclu- I
slons. Let rs begin al the bottom I
and see just how the structure Of mo- I
ton picture income is reared Take
ne producer flfsl and follow the Him
On It's rpan from factory TO screen. T.
The American picture makers con-
sumo aPpfoximateV s2.e0o miles Of 1
uim year. or TINS. ta.pe0 is made I
u tins country and the rest j. i'm
ported THIS unused Him costs an
average 81 - cents foot delivered
10 the studios Roughly speaking,
the outlay for raw material j. tlo.- (
eae.9ae d Yeas
10 tins must be added not less than I
ffH.onu.o0o. which is the eonserva-
tive estimate u the cost Of produc-
ihs photopiass IN this country every /
twelve months The gross total out /
LAY then is sse.9eQ. eco
Right here you encounter one of the
i.
business \ few years ago the average
cost per foot II finished film ranged [
from lifts cents o. one dollar. TINS
Was for the ordinary story told on a
l.eeb-foot reel BUT that Wac when
the scenario 81 such tale cost Sz5 I
and before the hish cost Of produc
tion BEGAN to march shoulder to
shouldef with the nigh cost q living.
With the advent ~ stars big and j
expensive literary material gorgeous
accessqries elaborate equipment. and
ali the rest It the trimmings that the
sophisticated movie fan now demanus.
the price has gone 10 So foot. and
N many Instance notably N SUCH H
promotions as The Prisoner Of
Ienda. which had costly cast, and
Judith of Bethuila." IL is even higher.
TO so into specific details OF the
production end would mean 10 em-
bark on long and complicated mar .
fatiNe--a separate article in itself a
few facts VIII gre 4 hint ~ the cx-
Ienssye expansion The original !
iiimsy Edison studio called the Back ,
Maria" which was moved about on I
4 track 50 a. 70 keep up with the sun 7
ttt was the type 81 the early KIND, 4,
has given way 10 the million dollar ,
STEEL Ind glass plant with accessories
like complete xous ranches and rcgu-
lar ztaffs II scores OF actors ana ae-
tresscs. More than a eCzen compa-
MES haze establishments that repre-
sent more than 81 coo each. out
near Los Angeles in the heart Of the
outdoor motion picture empire there
are concerns with weekly salary lists
Of over $4,000 one owner has
park of $4,000 acres and another
nQga combination the Universal. has
a elsy all its 0Nu.
Salaries have soared. There was
time when the motion picture actor
was glad 10 get S. a day. Now many
get frem SO "a sac day. while sucn
Iavorites as Costello. Baggott kerfi-
gan and various others draw down
sia.eee year costly scenario de-
paftments must Be maintained authors
get royalty instead Of lump sums, the
world IS raekea Tor striking and STIR
ring features Il is no inireuueni
thing Tor manager to spend irom
sfUs0e 10 $4,000 on production
and make no bones of H. Yet few
years ago this would have been sen
satlonal performance. Now you BEGIN
To see why lhe tamera crank must be
kept turning f0r the longer the reel
the fatter the hank roll
The Na1 the Profits Come.
The profit IN motion picture pro-
d0etlon. Ike prelt in ordinary Pho
Biography. depends upon the number
Of prints sou sell The ORIGINAL him
---the so-cNiled aesatixe--ls seldom, 4
ever sold outright II remains IN
stock As a constant Income producer.
The on nef BENDS his energies 10 seii
- many pesltlf LIS the rcprodue-
tons are csiied---as possible
The akerege number OF positivss
made from 4 commercial film Ia the
United States i thirty THIS Is very
low estimate nefause many Of the lar
ger concerns print fifty and some even
turn out eighty or ninety. The foreign
demand helps e. swell the numuer
one concefn makes 49, feet OF neg
atxes week Prom this figure son
get SOME idea - the number u posi-
lives il can let iaos.. A single com
tlans--uaft II fha Motion Picture Pat