| Show Shoestring Brothers Left Army Anny Broke Now Rich and Successful as Builders 5 Cents Grows Into Chain of Theatres Theatres' By HORTENSE SAUNDERS SAUl NEA Service Writer NEW JEW YORK July 19 ThIs This intro Intro- introduces Introduces I duces the original Shoestring Sh brothers brothers Irwin In S. S and Henry I Chanin These two ex service s ex-s men came carne home from Irons the war without much more than a nickel between them To To- Today Today Today day they are sitting on top of the world From the windows of their offices offices with wrought iron doors and heavy vy velvet vel carpets they carpets they watch their buildings going up in all directions changing and adding to the wonder I of the Manhattan skyline They can go down Broadway and ana see the seven theatres they built that ushered in a new type of stadium seating which allow greater elbow elbowroom elbowroom room oom and more freedom of or the knees to the tired businessman businessman and and also allowed more s sats They can walk down second Forty-second street and see excavators at work ork on the foundation of an office building of 50 or more stories towering 65 feet skyward which Is to bear their name 50 STORY OFFICE BUILDING G They The can walk almost anywhere in New York and be hailed as wizards geniuses miracle men men and the like When their first theatre was erected In n the early part of 1925 no one knew much about the Today with worth of or construction going on in their name they arc be becoming be- be becoming becoming coming as well identified with sky sky- skyscrapers skyscrapers skyscrapers scrapers and theatres as the Smith brothers with cough drops Neither Is yet 35 years y ars of age though Irwin will reach that mark fn In October Henry Is two years younger Irwin attends to the engineering and the designing and Henry to the busi busl business business ness end of the firm Its like a dream come corne true said ald Irwin telling of the phenomenal growth groth of their construction business When I look back on the first two houses we built with borrowed capi capi- capital capitel tel tal tal In In a Brooklyn suburb they look like toys tos to me I have the same ume ten ten- tenderness tenderness tenderness for them I X I feel for the first engine I ever er played laed with as us as a child child- RODE nODI ON O DIKE BIKE Eight years ago when we e e storied started those houses I didn't have hue so much muchas as an office to io say nothing of a car carI I I used to ride over on my bicycle to o watch the work vork We w finished those two sold them and had capital capitol enough to erect four then then eight eight and and finally we had built everything in that suburb from the garages to the motion picture the the- theatre atre sire We moved Into Brooklyn and built an office building where we expected to have our offices but we sold It before we had a II chance to occupy It So we Just went across the bridge to Manhattan Here they established a world orld record when they opened four theatres on Broadway in 77 days one of these the new Roxy theatre the largest In the world The built the Roxy on contract they contract they dont don't own It liE HE JUST CANT CAN'T QUIT However they do own seven the the- theatres theatres atres aires five of which they operate themselves They are arc now tearing down a warehouse at second Forty-second street and Lexington avenue to make room for the new story 50 office building The will have a private theatre at the top of this structure structure- and two floors will be given given given en to engineering research I I used to say Irwin Chanin went on that If I ever could get together I would retire and devote myself m self to research in engineering Id I'd still like to do It It But somehow I cant can't stop I used to love lo to go to symphony concerts concerts and and did Today I have hae no notime notime time to read or to hear music music ox ex except x- x that of steel rivets and and bricks I laid upon bricks The business has grown so big that there is nothing I Ito to do but grow grow- and expand with It I As long as I can keep pace with It I shall ONE O E IS MARRIED Irwin Chanin likes nothing better than to climb up scaffolding and ac actually ac- ac actually actually watch the construction of his buildings His office suggests a drawing room The walls are panelled with walnut There Is an Italian bench upholstered in antique red velvet before fore the black marble fireplace There arc are brocaded elvet curtains and a mellow oriental rug Irwin Is married and has two chil chil- children dren His brother Is 13 a bachelor Jf t 11 1 1 I 4 THE ill 4 r h NEXT iI v ji t N d. d l'- l' J I I tH L' L A II I j j ri II t 11 f Wj t 14 11 I 11 I j j 1 lu i I. I I. I I f II 11 r. r J 1 tf i j J Ii p n 1 l I H f. f t t rt JiT p r tl t 1 IW A JI ll I i CHANIN I I fi I l j I Ii A c 4 f 1 tJ I f I 0 t j I Ii i 11 I IIi I t. t t 1 Ii J r HI i lit t ti i- i i tt rr 1 t tOW II t. r 1 r CHANIN BROTHERS I. I CHANIN 16 SOME |
