The Washington times., 1929-06-20
TGLEANINGS
SCREENINGS
AND
By ANHREw R. KELLEY

bye play OF Ine NAIlonaI prayers
because Washingtonians paid
$4,000 in one week to see
Jeanne Eagles do Sadie Thonp-
son." a box-office figure that
still remains as the greatest
seven day receipts given by the
road to any non-musical attrac-
tion. Presented in stock at the
President Theater, it ran six
weeks, with the lowest seven
days gross $4,000. That demon
strates a box-office pulling
power few plays possess. Will
Hays barred it from the movies,
but when United Artists had it
rewritten so that the missionary
became = reformer, Gloria
Swanson became the film "Sadie
Thompson"
When the late Margaret Law
renee played Grain" in Aus
tralia,, she refused to take the
role unless she could strike out
certain naughty words. She won
her point over the strenuous
protests of the director.
Interesting, as affecting the
future Of the darkened Keith
Theater on Fifteenth Street, is
the R-K-O proposal that Para
mount Pictures take over the
operation of all theaters in the
Keith chain under a profit
sharing arrangement.
Negotiations for the Radio
eith-Orpheum m erger with
Paramount have been abandoned
and the counter proposal for the
operation of the theaters is
under consideration. Sam Katz,
president of Publix Theaters a
subsidiary of Paramount), would
become the greatest single fig
ure in the amusement world,
sort of king of the realm of
vaudeville picture theaters should
the deal go through. Katz has
been highly successful in earn
ing dividends for the Paramount
theaters, and R-K-O evidently
feel he could work a similar
magic with that circuit.
R-K-O, besides owning thea
ters, is making Radio Pictures.
Studio production by R-K-O is
not sufficient to supply the
screens of its various theaters
over a fell season. An alliance
with Paramount would make
this product available for the
Keith theaters in due time and
thus solve one of the main
R-K-O problems, a dearth of
good pictures.
1t also is declared that the
tentative proposal would give
Paramount 250,000 shares of
Radio Keith -Orpheum class B
stock now held by Radio Cor
poration in the event the profits
under Paramount supervision
exceed a certain figure to be
agreed upon.
Ride Dudley, dramatic editor
and critic of the New York Eve
ming World, showed his, latest
play to Broadway Monday night.
The consensus on Borrowed
Love" was that Mr.. Dudley was
a swell fellow but Pinero was a
better playwright. One of, his
low-down critics dug up the
Dudley roast on Strange Inter-
lude" and tried to figure out
how the Worlds expert ever
appraised Eugene O'Neill's play
as off-color. Borrowed Love"
is red hot.
William A. Brady, interviewed
in his penthouse apartment
near Fifth Avenue, admitted the
Congressional Record is his fav-
orite literature. 81 read every
issue from cover to cover and
have for years." said w. A. B.
Which probably accounts for the
fact that his speech last year
for the abolition of the amuse-
ment tax, delivered before a
Senate committee, was so effec-
tive his fellow managers made
him a present of $2,500..
Ire weather being what it is
William Hartman Rapley, of
the National Theater, started
yesterday for his summer home
at Spofford Lake, N. H.
Walter Howie, who besides
being Walter Winchell's boss, is
the editor responsible for land
ing his niece, Colleen Moore, her
first job in pictures, was in
our midst yesterday on sundry
journalistic missions.
The society editors are look
ing up the matrimonial status
of Lionel Atwill since Washing
ton gossip connects his name
with an estimable lady whose
fortune is expressed in seven
figures and then some. Well,
Mr.. Atwill was recently di-
vorced. The last Mrs. A. played
in his company-was the femi-
nine lead in fact-when the
actor appeared in ''The Coined
ian." Later she departed these
shores with an English actor
and the divorce followed.
Sam Rubin, publicist for the
Loew theaters, departs tomor-
row for a vacation in New
port, R. I.
And Manager T. D. Bonnie
vile, of Polls, just returned
from a down i'm Virginia re-