The Washington herald., 1922-03-07
film EXCHANGE
MANAGERS GET
COURT SUMMONS
Three Charged With Vic,
lating Orders; Twenty
Under Guard.

1hree MIN exchanges were served
with warrants charging violation OF
the District Commissioners' orders
to repair their buildings by Fire
Marshal Seib yesterday. Managers
OF the three exchanges were ordered
TO appear in Police Court at IL
o'clock this morning.
Yesterdays action was the first
legal procedure instituted against
building owners in the District by
the Commissioners in their cam
paign to make all buildings safe
from fire hazards. Although the
order TO the film exchange men to
make their buildings freproof was
issued a year ago, recent activities
OF the Commissioners, resulting
from the Knickerbocker disaster. is
believed to have spurred their ac-
ton against the film men.
Affects Twenty-three Exchanse..
The three film exchanges served
with warrants for their failure 10
comply with the Commissioners or
ders relative to making their build
lngs hreproof are the Goldwyn Dis
ulbutlng Corporation. IA Eleventh
street northwest, william A. Bush,
manager: Fox Film Corporation, 3O5
Ninth street northwest. Joseph F.
Hebrew. manager: Universal Film
Exchange. 307 Ninth street north
west, Manning Click, manager.
twenty other film exchanges af-
fected by the order of the Commits
sioners to install sprinkler systems
IN their rooms. all located in the
Mather Building, were placed under
extra guard of watchmen Yesterday
while owners OF the building pre-
pared to make the installations or
dered by the Commissioners.
Polls Theater was granted a
temporary permit to reopen its
doors last night by the CommIs-
sioners yesterday afternoon. The
permit is good only until April 80.
when the theater will be again
closed by order OF the Commission
ers for completion OF alterations in
the structural work and freproof
equipment of the building. The
season closes April 80.
Engineer Commissioner Keller in
spected the building on SATURDAY.
and pronounced the theater free
from alarming dangers" and I'm
condition to operate again. One of
the upper balconies will be kept
closed. Fire hazards believed BY
the Commissioners to have existed
in the building at the time il was
closed have been entirely eliminat-
ed. Commissioner Keller said. Mi
nor structural alterations will be
made when the building is closed
In April. The license to reopen
granted Polls was a duplicate of
the license to reopen granted TO
the National Theater week ago.
Each will be closed in April for
further repairs.
Three Others Soon to Opeu.
Opening of Polls leaves three of
the seven theaters ordered closed
by the Commissioners on February
Is still shut. Alterations are being
made in the Metropolitan, MARYLAND
and. Foraker, all motion picture
houses, and they are expected to be
running again by the close OF the
week. the Commissioners have in
dicated.
The Revere Theater, ordered
closd by Building Inspector Heaiy
on last Saturday. may be ordered
razed by the building department,
Inspector Healy indicated yester-
day. Further examination of the
walls, reported to be Cracked, will
be made today. The Revere, locat-
ed at 350S Georgia avenue, is prac-
tically new structure, with a
seating capacity of approximately
500.
After prolonged conference
held yesterday at the District
Building by Col. Charles Keller,
Engineer Commissioner, and a dele
cation of high school principals and
teachers, II was decided that fu-
ture school auditoriums shall be
built with a view to meeting the
needs for an assembly hall rather
than as places for theatricals.
Among those present during the
conference were Charles Hart,
principal Of Eastern High School
Allen Davis, principal of Business
High School; Robert Maurer, prin-
cipal of Central High School: Ell
mer S. Newton, principal of West
ern High School and Frank Daniel,
principal of Technical High School.
Criticism that school auditoriums
which :!e unsafe for community
gatherings, are also unsafe for the
children attending school. has
been answered by the District Com
missioners in letter to the
school board In which they call at
tention to the drill that pupils go
through, preparing them for fire
dangers. They further state thai
the pupils have regularly assigned
seats and know which fire exits
they are to use.