The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1920-01-03
TOPEKA STATE JOURNAL
Information Bureau
FREDERIC j. HAsKIN, Director.
Washington, d. @.
THE PEACE TREATY AND THE
MOVIES.

New York, Dec. 31.-Movie fans all
over the country are now being urged
by the movie industry to write to-
their senator's and ask them, for the
love of Mike. to ratify the peace treaty
and ratify it now.
IF you don't know your senator's
name, ask your neighbor or telephone
your local newspaper" the manager
of a large movie theater told his audi
ence here the other day, but get your
message off right away
Meantime, the supply of white
paper is rapidly becoming exhausted
by members of the industry~in sending
frantic demands to Washington for an
early ratification, and, as for telegraph
blanks. SO many have been devoted
to this purpose recently that there are
scarcely any left for New Year felici-
| tations.
From this you may gather that
there is something important going on
| between the treaty and the movie
| business, but doubtless you are still
wondering how such situation could
affect the movie fan. 1t does in only
| this way: If the treaty is not rati-
fled pretty soon. the moving picture
Industry is going to be so hard hit that
it will have to pass the blow on to the
| movie theaters, and the movie theaters
will have to recover from 1t by charg-
ing higher admission prices. So will
| failure to ratify the treaty take
money out of the pocket of every
body who goes to the movies.
| The price of admission to the
movies, however. the producers say,
] has not rise4f IN proportion to other
prices since the war. Now there are
advance rumors that, If certain condi-
lions are not ameliorated within the
| next couple of months, the movie as
an amusement will be as expensive as
the average theatrical show. 1t is a
| dire threat Surely congress will be
stout-hearted to withstand the motion
picture patrons.
Conditions thus limited at are prin-
cipally in Europe. Europe has stopped
importing films from the United
| States, because it's rate of money ex-
! change is so disturbed that it cannot
afford to do so. Recently, the pound
sterling dropped to a value below four
dollars, while the franc declined To a
! little over half Its normal value. Nat
| Orally, with its purchasing power so
! handicapped. and with, its credit sad
| ly limited, Europe is buying only the.
| direst necessities of life, or the raw
materials from which to manufacture
them. While admitting itself to be
ravenouS for amusement, 1t is stoically
refusing to buy it until the rate of
money exchange assumes its normal
| equilibrium.
This cannot happen until the United
States ratifies the peace treaty, there
| by ending the unrest and uncertainty
existing in Europe, which is keeping
| it poor and causing American bank
ers to be most cautious in the matter
of loans.
| Altho it is not commonly known,
the American film business has, for
several years. been depending upon
Europe for most of its big profits.
When the war started. the established
| producers of motion pictures were re-
I - al NaTare.
auctions in this country, while the
profits came from Europe. Or, as the
movie men themselves describe 1t,
Europe was velvet.
With the war, conditions innrnedi-
ately. became so chaotic and money
so tight in the belligerent countries
| that there was a sudden cessation IN
the purchase Of American films.
which hit many Of our Oldest movie
firms hard.
Later. hovever, the whole of war
ring Europe. went amusement-mad.
| The people who stayed at home had
to have it in order to keep their mental
balance and secure temporary forget
fulness from the awful tragedies en-
quilting them. At the same time. the
amusement industries of Europe soon
ceased production on account OF the
scarcity of man-power and the neces-
sity for converting every factory into
war plant France, Italy, Great
Britain and Germany all stopped
manufacturing films, so that for a
while the only source of supply left
to meet Nthe tremendous demand was
| in America.
The American movie manufacturers
held a virtual monopoly, which
brought them billions OF dollars.
England alone.'' says one movie au
thority. has beer known to pay
100000 for one OF oCr big pictures
Thirty thousand dollars is common
price. The continent is good for
$50, 900 per picture. The total income
Of one concern for one year during
the war. when the European trade was
only half alive, was nearly three mil
lion dollars"
| So. you see, the American movie
industry was unprepared when the
war suddenly ended and the foreign
exchange began to interfere with bust
| ness. The exchange situation makes
American film cost the European
something like twiceh the money it
used to- The price is prohibitive. AL
tho the foreign public is as mad for
amusement as ever and new picture
houses are springing up all over
| Europe, the American product is now
practically barred. in some cases by
| government embargoes Germany and
Italy have both placed strict en-
bargoes on the importation of Ameri-
can film.
| Meantime. the European moving
picture manufacturers are making
| haste to take advantage of this condi-
ton. working hard to recover the
business they lost during the war.
Today. England, for the first time is
not only supplying It's own donlinions
with film. but is shipping films to this
country. British producers are I'M
| porting American stars and American
directors to work in English studios,
in some cases featuring an American
leading woman with a British leading
| man and vice versa London, which
lost its hold upon the expectation of
| film to the British possessions during
the war, is now rapidly regaining it.
NO wonder the American producers
are sore at the senate. The situation