Evening star., 1926-05-23
The Moving Picture
By Robert f. Sherwood

| THERE are fresh rumOrs of huge
mergers I'm the movie business
| mergers which will serve To unite
practically all the tirst-class theaterS
, in the United States and Canada into
| one vast chain.
At least two of these mergers have
come to pass. The Producers Distrib'
uting Corporation. in which Cecil r.
De Mile Is the principal attraction,
recently effected a deal with the United
Booking Offices. controllers of all the
Keith vaudeville theaters. This makes
me Producers Distributing Corpora
tion a significant force, theatrically, In
! the film industry. giving Mr.. DE Mile
and company an extensive outlet for
their pictures.
First National has linked itself with
the Mark Strand theaters in New York
md the vast stanley interests lin
Philadelphia.
Famous Players some time ago alb
sorbed i.alaban & katz. the most
important exhibitors in the Middle
West Bala ban 4 katZ. at the same
time, are allied with First National
producing a strange tangle which has
not as Yet been publicly unraveled.
Now comes suggestion that all
these conflicting interests are to- fcon-
solidate--and all under the triumphant
banner of Famous Players. corpora
tion that is even now undergoing an
expensive investigation as comblna-
ion in restraint Of trade. n
As things stand. there are some
is. coo movie theaters in the country,
IT these. there are fewer thar one
third which are independently owned
he Others being controlled, either par
ally or entirely. by one of the h!e
distributing companies. This limits
he field to such an extent that the
independent producer, who concen-
rates on the production OF pictures
,'a;h her than on the operation of the.
aters finds it extremely difficNlt to Sc
cure a market for his wares
The big producers. on the other
hand. are now more interested In their
theaters than they are in their pic
tures--with the result that their pic.
lures are becoming factory products.
churned out wholesale without regard
- their individual quality.
There is one company that is stand
ing today on basis of merit. and that
company is United Artists. AT no
time has United Artists sought To cor
ner the theater market. but has relied
on the face value of its productions to
demand recognition by the theater
owners and the public alike.
Included in United Artists are Doug
las Fairbanks and Mary Pickford,
Charlie Chaplin. Joseph NJ. Schenck
fwho controls the desyinies OF Rudolph
Valentino. Norma and Constance Tai
madge and Buster keaton) and Sam.
uel Goldwyn.
When a Fairbanks or Charlie Chap
lin picture comes along, the exhibitors
are eager to get II. whether they hap
pen to be AFFILIATED with Famous Play
ers. Metro-C;oldwNn or any one else.
because it's value as an attraction is
too we'll demonstrated to he ignored.
On the other hand, the poor. obscure
producer. who makes a picture on
shoestring. Is totally unable TO reach
the public. His picture may he a mas.
terpiece, ii may possess all the essen
tials Of box Office success; but he cant
obtain theaters in which to show it.
That situation is bad. and it is
bound TO work harm to the movie
industry.
Incidentally. il is revealed in Va
riety that Of 10000 theaters Of all de-
sCrptions in the United States. there
are only 800 that do not show movies.
All the others are either straight
movie houses or combinations of
vaudeville and films.
Theatrical men are wondering how
long these 500 Legitimate" theaters
ing every day, as the all-powerful
movie magnates make fresh inroads
on the spoken drama.
If l were of a poetic turn OF mind,
| would write a verse about this gal
ant 500, with movies to right of them.
movies to left of them. movies in front
of them. volleying and laundering.
Although the outlook is none too
encouraging for the legitimate stage.
rather doubt that the movies will
ever efface the spoken drama II
there were no plays left, what would
the movie stars OF Hollywood do with
their evenings when they visit New
York?
Charlie Chaplin's picture. THE Gold
Rush" Is a flop" in Los Angeles, and
has been withdrawn at the local Mil
lion Dollar Theater. Behe
Daniels next picture has been post
poned. due to a fall by the star from
her horse. Miss Daniels was
once arrested for speeding and spent
II days in Jail. She should
stick TO walking. 1t Ia rumored
that Red Grange will appear in a pic
ture to be produced by Famous Play
ers--possibly The Quarterback" in
which Richard Dix is to star.
Since the success Of THE Freshman"
and Brown of Harvard" a deluge of
foot ball pictures is expected.
Gilda Gray opened at the Rialto The
ater New York. in "Aloma of the
South Seas" performing her cele-
brated Samoan shimmy as a curtain
raiser for the Aim. The whole
towns shaking.
tCopyriEht 1897