Show Trouble Troubles Is s Staying Awake Comfort Critic Reviews Seat Instead of the Picture By Frederick C. C Othman Y WASHINGTON ASHINGTON T The There's Theres h e r I es e's nothing wrong wrong- with the movies the troubles trouble's with the chairs I know about this now for sure Im I'm still still sitting in a dream Usher hand me down another bourbon light me a long cigar and turn on the projecting machine What happened to change my mind about the cinema was being invited to see a new drama of the silver sheet The Third Man featuring Orson Welles Velles and a zither It was a first-class first thriller but even if it hadn't been Id I'd have enjoyed it anyhow This was on account of the seats So I think Id I'd better review the theater instead of the picture This show house was erected here on Eye street by President Eric Johnston of the Association of Motion Picture Producers as asa asa asa a fitting place to display the artistry of Hollywood The artistry's fine but Johnston agrees with me that the chairs chair's important too Rocking Chair Comfort So he has installed great wide rubber foam-rubber seats with arm armrests armrests armrests rests six inches across and springs in the back so that each customer feels as though hes he's spra sprawled lcd in a rocking chair More important still is the fact that four feet of blessed space is between each row and I hope the theater architects of this nation are taking notes Johnston's Johnstons Johnstons Johnston's Johnstons Johnston's John John- ston's is the only movie palace in which I have not rubbed corns on my knees The average theater across the land seems to be built around a popcorn machine This is fine I like popcorn But Johnston Johnston Johnston John John- ston has gone one step further and in his emporium the clients eat sandwiches at their seats sip highballs and smoke che che- roots In the arm of every seat as in an airplane is an ash tray So fine I strolled into Johndon's Johnon's Johnston's Johnstons John John- dons ston's ons on's bijou U with my b bride ide past the growing plants along the walls handed my overcoat and my hat to a had a preliminary drink in the lobby lobby- which 1001 looked ed more like a living room de and and trod the thickly padded carpets to my seat The carpet continued with me so Id I'd have a soft place for formy formy formy my feet Even E Saw Screen Ive I've never been so comfortable comfortable comfortable comfort comfort- able except in bed bcd I had a smoke in one hand a drink in inthe inthe inthe the other A kind of candy butcher de sneaked in with sandwiches and the picture started at once No waiting Then I discovered that the floor was so pitched in relation to the screen that I didn't need to ask the lady in front to remove her hat Welles Joseph Cotten Cotten Cotten Cot- Cot ten et al pursued their melodramatic melodramatic melodramatic melo melo- dramatic villainies on the screen to the accompaniment of the zither music and Ive I've never spent a pleasanter evening If the picture hadn't been good it wouldn't have mattered mattered much Id I'd have taken and rocked myself to sleep Pleads s for Tax Cut Next morning I happened to torun torun torun run into Johnston on Capitol hill where he was pleading with the house ways and means committee committee committee com com- to remove that 20 per percent percent percent cent tax on theater tickets He said this was hurting hurting- business keeping the cash customers at home depriving them of entertainment entertainment entertainment enter enter- and generally playing hob with the morale of the people He also said not to the committee committee com com- but to me that hard seats had something to do with keeping keeping- the fans away from the pictures That's one reason he built his own theater the way he did Most of his clients are theater men themselves and if they see a picture in comfort their hopes they may take the hint Me too All AU I know is that Ill I'll never enjoy a movie again except in Johnstons Johnston's emporium There it wont won't matter if the screen is blank Ill I'll still be happy with my sacroiliac Copyright 1950 United Feature Syndicate |