The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-09-10
Crawford Theaters Fight Strike
by Modern Method.
Women To Be Used for First
Time in the United States.
ALL SHOWS STILL RUNNING
Manager Crawford Himself Ran
Reels at the Majestic.
No Settlement Between Union
and Owners in Sight Today.

ators in all the Crawford theaters out
on a strike for higher wages, the pro-
grams at the Novelty and Majestic
were carried out Monday night with
Roy Crawford, manager and owner of
the houses, himself operating NOV
ing picture machine at the Majestic
Today Crawford announced that the
strike has not reached stage where
Indications of a conference are visible,
and declared that women stage hands
would be employed at the Grand, Ma
jestic and Novelty theaters.
The women will be employed imme-
diately. Crawford said. They will be
on duty at the Grand in time to han
die the work for Twin Beds" which
plays at that house Thursday. Friday
and Saturday. Until the women are
| trained for the work at the Novelty
and Majestic, Crawford will continue
to operate the machines at the Ma
| jestic, he said today.
i New in Q. S. Theatrical World.
! scenes" theater work thruout the
| United States will be broken by
! Crawford's employment of women. 1t
( will be the first time that women have
been employed for stage hands and
| operators in the history of the United
| States.
There is no prospect of settle
! ment with the striking employees
Crawford said today. There has been
no conference in view of settlement,
and none is planned"
The movie" operators are demand
| ing an increase of from SIT to $2S a
week. The stage hands want a
| bringing in wage of rs cents an
| hour.
Union men of the city are not sup
posed to patroniZe the Crawford
| theaters while the strike is on.
'Lixe Old Times''-Crawford.
'It brought back memories of old
times, and was clear fun for me-
Roy Crawford said this morning,
speaking of his experience in operat-
! ing moving picture machine. His
! operators went out on strike for more
money. They were close to the doors
of the houses conducted by Crawford
| waiting to be called in at the last
minute on their terms, about time foI
| the show to open last night, according
to Mr.. Crawford. But the show went
on at the regular time and finished
on schedule, and<the man in the pro-
lection booth was no other than the
of string of theaters in the middle
west
'In the old days." Roy Crawford
said, operating a picture machine
was my regular job had the second
moving picture machine in Kansas
c. H Matthews, now laundry mar
of Topeka, had the first one. 1t was
my job then to operate the machine
which was very different in some re-
spects from the present day motor
driven engine. But the principle OF
the thing was the same, except fol
the modern improvements, whereby
one now moves lever to get a picture
in frame and some other improve
ments. whereas then, we stopped the
machine and kept the crowd waiting
JTT1fJ df11- +(1
process"
Crawford surveyed his suit Of TX
overalls which lay on the &c O.
his office. with more pride an HI
was ever known to display the i'm
maculate, freshly pressed suits tha
of the best dressed men in Topeka.
He Did 1t All Once.
'When put on my overalls last nigh
to go into the booth, it made me thinI
of the days when 1 ran a machine t.
get enough money to take my stool
company around the country and pu
on the shows. Those were the time
when 1 did about anything about tn,
theater that needed doing. I played
the piano or 1 sang the illustrates
. songs or sold tickets and at othe
times I operated the machine. I wa
made the subject of an editorial in tn
. old Topeka Herald one time because
I unframed singer fell down on it in tn
7 midst of the most sensational and ap
I pealing portion of the film
' What the union operators will d.
about coming back to his house, Craw
: ford has no notion. He asserts tina
: he can manage the operation of on
l of his machines himself until he cal
fill the jobs at what he considers rea
= sonable pay. 'I have no kick on tn
: union," Crawford said, "and can ge
along with the union men very well
L / can get along with them as far a
: anybody could. But their demand
Y seem to be pretty heavy, considerin
! that they ask more than the operator
4 are getting in such towns as .Kansa
: City"
: Meanwhile. the Crawford shows G
|, on by schedule, and the versatil
D manager, by the use of a suit of KHAKI
: overalls. a warmed over knowledge G
: an old time practice of the mechanics
end of the picture business, and by tn
n simple device of adding a few hour
e to his working day, continues to d
: | business at the old stand