The Huron Expositor, 1932-09-02, Page 2Ir.
• THE HURON EXPOSITOR ••. •.
SEPTEMBER 2, 1932.:
�ijth's New _Theatre, Modern
rid up-to-date in every- detail,will
open on Thursday, September 8th
Theatre Will Be Fourth in
Chain Owned By Mr. and
Mrs. H. J. • Sutherland
Others At Goderich, St.
Marys and Cobourg.
OLD CASE BLOCK HAS
BEEN REMODELLED
`When the Regent Theatre opens 0'1
Thursday next, patrons will enter a
building that is as up -to -state and as
modern 'as •it is possible to crake it.
Mr. and Mrs. H. J. Sutherland, the
owners, have spared no expense in
waking the Regent the .best.
Making the, fourth in a chain of
talkie theatres owned by the Suther-
ds, the new Seaforth theatre has
Mittel rthrough lessons ailea.rned in
wilding and nanraging th•e others.
Those in the chain are at Goderich,
• St. Marys and Celbourg.
A special opierring ceremony has
'been arranged for Thursday might
next et 7.30• to which the Mayor and
Council and representatives of the
Lions and Business' Men''s Associa-
tlrave been invited. Jf is cxpaet-
'fed that Mayor •Dialy and others will
speak and that the Mayor will form-
ally declare the ,theatre open.
The opening picture that the man-
agemernt have secured is ".Palmy
;Aaiys," a hilarious Musical comedy,
feataurinug Eddie Cantor. •
LA special matinee will be held on
'Thursday afternoon prior to the of-
feCial opening. .
III
The Regent Theatre
Block was purchas-
ed through
The
Jhn Rankin
.Agency
SEAFORTH. ON T.
Real Estate, Bonds, Insurance
111
Seaforth's Fourth
tri 1907 When the Star
Theatre opened, citizens were
introduced to moving pictures.
The Star, a few years later,
became the Princess, a name
prominent. fifr many years in
town and country. During the
war the' Strand was opened
and ran for some time, and noW
in 1932 Seaforth has the Reg-
ent, the fourth theatre in its
history.
FORERUNNER OF NEW
THEATRE RAN HERE
FOR MANY YEARS.
Old Princess Theatre Open-
ed in 1907 and Ran Until
November of Last Year.
ADMISSION WAS 5 CTS.
From The Huron Expositor of
November 27, 1931.
After en existence of 24 years, the
Princess Theatre will on Saturday of
this week close its doom's. Started
in September, 1907, by Messrs. Dia:
and Cady, it was known as the..•Star
Theatre, and was operated in t1,1e
Carmichael. Block, its -present loca-
tion..
The Exrie i§ for of October 4, 1907.
Gays: "The Imoving picture• show of
Mr. Cady, in theCarmichael Block,
is doing a good business. The *ad n
mission. is only 5 cents, and we are
sure, we 'do not know of any -way in
which a person can get so' •it ch in-
struction and amusement combined
,for little money, and the people seem
to appreciate this fact. The pictures
are' changed twice a week,. Mondays
and Thursdays."
'In `May, 1908., The" 'Star was ,pur-
chased by Messrs. Jahn McKenzie
and Oscar Sproat and rechristened
the Princess, which name it has borne
ever since.. Again we find The Ex-
positor of May 16, 1908 has recorded
the event: "Messrs. John 'McKenzie
and Oscar Sproat havre purchased the
moving picture theatre. from ' Mr.
Cady and are now in possession. They.
are both !bright, clever "young men
popular with the public generally and
should do a good business. They will
maintain the gctod reputation the
theatre has had in the past and will
give their patrons the best that can
be got in the Unloving 'picture line." In
July of that year, Mr. MiaKenzie pur-
chased Mar. iSproa'tfs i'rutenests and
St. Marys Cement Co.
Limited
St. Marys, Ontario
PYRAMID BRAND
Cement
The Cement used in the construction of the new
Theatre at Seaforth, Ont., was manufactured
by the St. Marys Cement Company Limited.
Our agent, Mr. George D. Ferguson, will be
pleased to quote you on cement requirements.
Furnishings and Equipment
in New Theatre the Best
Procurable; Forced. Cir-
culation in Heating and
Ventilating.
AUDITORIUM WILL
HAVE SEATS' FOR ,306
As modern, as convenient, and as
fireproof as time and money . calm
make i't—that is Seaforth's new
theatre.
As one enters the ;building one is
surprised that such a change could
be made in such a short time for
work only conim•enced the last week
of June.. Formerly two stores, with
an antiquated hall above, now an up-
to-date theatre auditorium. - ,•
Included in the ground. flobr is a
;spacious lobby, ticket office, ladies'
rat room and an auditorium seating
300 people. The furnishings and
decorations are simple, hut particu-
larly pleasing. The nails of- the
auditorium are panelled in yellow
an<I the mouldings ere a light green.
Seats are all air cuehioned and are
finished in blue leather.
The stage. about 23 feet by 16 feet,
has been built at the, east end of the
former building an, is of cement
construction throughout. Uedcr-
neath is a cellar, which may in time,
be used for an auxiliary heating,
plant or dressing rooms.
Above the lobby is the proje_tion
room and men's' rest room—all in
cement. An emergency door has
heen ,provided from the projection
room on the south side of the build-
ing.
A large marquee has .been erecter?
over the front entrance. The former
store fronts have been filled in with
cement and will' be stuccoed.
The general contractors for the
buildings vete J. 13. MacKenzie &
'Son, of Georgetown. Mr. S. J. 'Mac-
Kenzie leas been in charge of .the
work here.
The heating is by hot air which
will be circulated' by fans, making
+his the only forced ciircrulation plant
in
Seaforth. The heating and vent-
ilating systems were installed by P.
J. Dorsey and all the sheet metal
work in' connection therewith was
done by Mr. Dorsey.
The plumbing throughout the build
ing was installed by G. A. Silas &
Sons.
The electrical work was. done by
George Muc•kart; of Georgetown, this
being• +the only contract ' that was
handled by other than a�Seaforth
firm.
has carried on time business since.
In the early days the management
booked their' pictures 1>ut did not
know.unrtil they arrived what the sub,
jects were. 'It was a case of trust
the good' taste of the producer. Dur-
ing the week of 'March 12, 1911, Mr.
McKenzie sihowed "The Cowboy
Girls," a big feature picture, full of
dash, vitality and go, as the adver-
tiser nient of that date said. This was
the first time that. the management
knew in advance the title of the pic-
tune-•they were about to show.
'"Incidentally, aMr. McKenzie has
been a consistent advertiser in The
Expositor for over twenty years, the
first ad. appearing pn March 10, 1911.
It Ls peculiar to notice art that time
that no stars were mentioned in the
adc•ertise:ments. It was not until a
number of years later that the stare
assumed their peculiar,innportance,
:During its long run the Princess
has provided entertainment for many
thousands • of persons. l4en and wo-
men, long since :roved from Seaforth,
remember the big thrills they trsedt
to get on seeing the exciting serials
that were shown at the Princess. This
theatre has the unique record of hav-
ing run a picture longer than any
small theatre in Canada. This was
"Abie's Irish Rose," which ran for
nine days with matinees.
Another record in connection with
this theatre is the fact that Mr. J.
B. Thompson has been associated with
it from,the time it opened as the
Star until he suffered a stroke a• few
weeks ago.
Mr. , McKenzie found it necessary
to close because of his inability to
procure silent pictures.
Fixtures and Sound Equipment in Seaforth's
New Theatre were installed by
PUBLIC UTILITIES
C OMMI :•SION, SEAFORTH.
s FIXTURES CHOSEN FROM
S OUR COMPLETE STOCK. • •
GIVE USA CALL WHEN IN NEED
••HozvltWorks ••
(By George Jenner, Manager of the
,Capital .Theatre, Goderieh, )
The erroneous idea that modern
isourud pkctnrre equipmnent consists
mainly of a picture projector and a
synchronized phonograph is .quiekly
corrected by a visit to the up-to-date
projection room in the new Regent
Theatre, Seaforth.
While talking pictures at their in-
ception were mainly reproduced by
synahron'fied discs, this process has
been supplanited by the highly de-
veloped photo -electric eetl method.
The photo, cell is a sensitive ele•
meant consisting of a glass bulb with
an upright terminal in its renter and
a metallic deposit on the' inner side
of the bulb. A direct current is con-
nected Iacteoss .there teunniiinals lbut
does not flow unless an intense beam
of light is ,pr'oj'ected into the veli.
This light beton is supplied by a
high inteneilty exciting lamp and a
minutely facusc d lens assembly. As
the exciting lamp .beam -is interrupt-
ed, a corresponding''riibration is re-
produced in the epealeer element. The
frequency or rapidity of these inter-
ruptions governs the 'pitch of the note
heard from the speaker..- These yi-
.brationns our• oscillations may occue
from 100 _to 10,000 times a second,
according to the tone recorded. A low
bass nate Wight register a frequency
of 100, Whereas a 'whistle might be
as high as 10,000.
In talking ipi'ctua'es tke voice or
music is photographed in a satceession
of m licroseopic lines running lateral-
ly along a 'narrow tbantd en the side
of the film. 'This "sound track" is
brought by the mechanism through a
precise slit or aperture where it in-
tercepts the exciting lamp beam, The
var•iationts, thus superimposed on the
photo cell current are picked up and
taken through an amplifying system
until a correct audibility is reached
art the speaker. This speaker is lo-
cated behind the porous semen, sp
that the illusion of speaking charac-
ters is made more perfect.
The foregoing is but a brief ex-
planation of the modern method of
sound reproduction and does not at-
tempt to elaborate on the means em-
ployed to guarantee a steady, ever
flow of perfectly reproduced speech.
Throughout the equipment, meters
are installed to assure correct cur-
rent values at the essential, points
and the interior of the ,projection
booth is a complete model power
plant in itself.
Dominion Wide Service Staff"
Protects all Sound Systems
Against. Possible Breakdown
• e
Theatre Operation Guaran-
teed as Vast Silent Army
Guards Talkie Mechan-
ism.
"THE SHOW MUST
GO ON" IS MOTTO
'Behind the intricate mechanism
that makes talking" ,pictures talk in
more than 350 theatres equippdd lyitlt
Northern Electric Sound System --
the same is being installed in the
Regent Theatre. Seaforth, is a vast
silent army of which the average -
theatre goes knows nothing. It COP -
sists of , a large number of trained
service engineers=4one otf whom may
inspect the theatre while you are
witnessing the show, without, know-
ing it.
These- mien are located in eleven
service territories across the Doredn-
ion and in Newfoundland. It is this
silent staff whose motto is "The
Show 'Must Go. On," that is respons=
ible for the smooth, unin't'errupted
operation of these equipment after
installation,
Behind this motion -wide servile, is
a story of organization that can rank
among the ds'aln'as of Canadian busi-
nese building. Even before talking
pictures had come to be a popularly
accepted entertaimnerub the execu-
tives of the Northern Electric Sound
Systesn realized that even more than
expert scientific development of
equipment by the .BelI" Telephone
Laboratories and skiilled manufacture
was. necessary,, The equipment had
to be assured of smooth, continuous
operation to realize fully on superior
development and manufacture, and
maintain the interest of the public
in talking pictures beyond the point
of novelty.
Results That Count.
As a result of the policy that "The
Show Must Go On," the nation-wide.
service staff was organized. ft had
two functions to perform:
First, to forestall as far as passible,
equipment trouble by .periodic inspec-
tions, and
Seconrlily, to remedy troulble when
it did occur, in as (brief a space of
time as possible.
How effective the first part of the
programa hal been is evidenced by
statistics. Out of 2,000 performances
given daily throughout Canada, the
program interrurpti,ons at the present
time number less than. one-tenth of
one per cent. In case of emergencies
there ,is a Service -man within a half
hoif1'journey of 'half the Northern
Electric equipped theatres in the
country. Evan the most isolatea
theatre has a service man within
Talkies Have Twenty
Million Theatre Patrons
Talking pictures are estimated to
have added 20,000,000 new patraiiS of
motion picture theatres ,on this con-
tinent.
Rhear them,over the new Northern
Electric Soun�Systemn at the Regent
Theatre.
easy reach by either 'rail; motor or
airplane,
The Regent Theatre, Which is in-
stalling one of these' Sound Systems
will participate in this thorough
servicing, to assure the continuous
operation of the equipment and pro-
tect its Niti•o•trs against possible dis-
appointment because of technycal,..iri-
terruptions.
HEN you step into the
Theatre and you sense the soft
kindly pile of the luxurious
carpeting, remember these car-
r
pets came 'from -
TEWART BROS'
SEAFORTH
The Home of All Good Reasonably Priced 'Floor
Coverings.
Heating and Ventilat-
ing
Equipment and
Sheet Metal Work
SUPPLIED
D INSTALLED BY
P. J. Dorsey
PHONE 23 SEAFORTH
Thursday, Friday .& Saturday, September 8thr9th-10th
Jlnnouncing the Opening of the New
Regen t Theatre Seaforth
Northern Electric Sound System I
The Management, with' the pick of the screen's greatest shows to choose
from, takes pleasure in offering for your eritertainment, one of the
best of all fun felts. -
.and his cast of musical comedy specialists will give you a great
eveningand send you home whistling a merry tune , in
Eddie Cantor
it 9,
PALMY DAYS.
Fun! Music! and a bit of Romance! -
You will also enjoy Paramount Sound News.
A Cartoon Specialty and Other Features.
MATINEES THURSDAY AND _SATURDAY AT 3 P.M.
ADMISSION --OPENING MATINEE AND EVENINGS
Adults 35c, Children 15c.
SATURDAY MATINEE—Adults 25c, Children IOc.
ti
• •
Compliments of
Norther
SOUND
Electric
SYSTEM
WNNm fleet* m 11$A
•
The System in use in the New Regent Theatre
•
J. B. MacKenzie & Son,
Georgetown, Ontario
Designers and General
Contractors for the
Regent Theatre
Extend their congratula-
tions to the management
and wish them every
success
A
i4