The Washington herald., 1921-12-27
AMERICAN FILM
LEADS AS CRAZE
HITS JAPANESE
POO Shows Running in
Nippon Land at Prices
AS High as Is Cents.

apan hard according to the report
~ Martin q. Scott. clerk TO the trade
commissioner at Tokyo. received by
the Department of Commerce.
He writes:
The motion picture industry in
apsn has had remarkable de-
selopment in the past few years.
As far back as 1914 or 1915 foreign I
hims. chiefly American. were grow.
ng In favor in Japan. and they have
9ntinued to increase in popularity.
There are in Japan about 900
theaters giving regular perform
ances. and about 1000 more giving
occasional performances. From the
standpoint of imported films, how
ever, only the 500 need be con-
sidered. OF these, Tokyo has about
hfty houses. Osaka thirty, Kobe If
teen, and Ryoto ten. the remainder
being scattered throughout the
country. These theaters seat be-
tween 500 and I.SOO. The term
seating capacity is a misnomer. as
In many houses the lower price Of
admission entities one TO standing
room only. Most houses give one
performance day, although some.
such as the large houses in Akusaka
Park (the Coney Island of Fokyo)
give continuous performances and
appear to be always crowded.
Trust Rules $50 Theaters.
of the 500 theaters. the so-calIed
trust, the Nippon Katsudoshashin
kabushiki Kaisha. owns or controls
about $50. The trust is by far the
largest moving picture company in
Japan. 1t owns or controls ma
1ority of the theaters, in many cities
owning the buildings. 1t rents the
fheaters, supplies films and ma
crimes. usually on a percentage
basis, and sometimes exercises
supervision over the show. Its per-
centage of the profits varies with
the theater. The trust has at pres
ent two studios, one in Kyoto and
one near Tokyo, with a force OF 100
actors and so camera men, dfrec-
tors. etc.
IN addition to the thesters. films
are in demand for Y. NJ c. A. per-
formances. private entertainments.
etc. though il is hard to estimate
the total volume OF this business.
AS an index OF the popularity
of the motion picture. Tokyo's fifty
flm theaters play annually to over
100000 people. while the twenty
legitimate theaters. with much
larger seating capacities. play to
somewhat less than 100000 These
twenty legitimate theaters give al
most exclusively Japanese plays.
Two, however, the Imperial Theater
and the Yurakuza, occasionally
give foreign plays and at times
show motion pictures. These two
theatcrs have seats arranged in
foreign style. There seems to be
no question but that the moving
picture has hurt the regular thea
ter business in Japan to a consid-
cradle extent, but there has been
no such desertion by actors of the
stage for the film as in America,
probably on account. of the intense
pride which the Japanese actor
Sakes in his profession.
Higher Tickets, IS Cents
For the better-class theaters the
admission charge runs from $50 to
$50 yen (25 to rs cents), though
for some performances as high as
ven Cs1.5O) will be charged. The
smaller ones charge from 80 to so
sen us to IS cents), though some
prices are as low as 10 sen Is
cents). The average price for all
will probably be in the neignbor-
hood of so sen (25 cents). Children
under IS Cwhere admitted at alb
and soldiers are usually admitted
AZ half rates.
practically all the cameras used
In the moving-picture business are
imported, as the Japanese have so
far been unable TO turn out a salts
factory article. American cameras
seem TO be very popular. although
tn. trust uses French cameras ex-
, rIusiveIy. SoYr German makes are
also in use The duty on cameras
is 50 per cent. but as there Is no
domestic competition, the market
for American cameras should In
crease with the growth OF the bus
mess.
with regard to machines. the situa-
ton q. different. The majority Of
those in use are OF Japanese make.
the reason being the difference in
mice between the imported and the
domestic product. The japanese ma
chine is cheap In quality and also in
nrice and as most OF the theaters are
cunning on close margins. they state
they cannot afford American makes.
although readily admitting their su-
periority Besides, the majority Of
theaters rent their machines. usually
from one of the large companies.
The trust manufactures its own ma
chimes. furnishing them to its chain
Of theaters, but II IL stated that un-
less the quantity Is improved it may
have to import machines in the future.
A Eoods Japanese machine sells for
about $3.50. One large company
handling machines sold but eight in
the last two years.
The programs are long: those for
the better class theaters will include
two pictures OF about six reels (some-
times both foreign. sometimes one.
while some theaters show exclusively
Japanese filuls), a weekly news letter.
a comedy, and two or three episodes
OF a serial film USUALLY an exciting
melodrama). The trust states that
for a hrst-class foreign film they often