Christine Mayo (1918) 🇺🇸

Christine Mayo, Metro’s popular player of adventuress roles, is one of the first women of the stage with the right to wear the button of the Liberty Legion. Miss Mayo is a confirmed seller of Liberty Bonds, and not content to rest upon past laurels is working hard in the present drive. At present she is devoting her energies to the outlying districts, considering that the metropolitan section of New York is already well covered by other workers. Even though she is at present busy in preparation of Metro’s all star production, The House of Mirth, which is being directed by Albert Capellani, she sells bonds after her work for the day is over.

Patriotic service is nothing new to Christine Mayo. Last year she did valuable work in the way of recruiting and selling Liberty Bonds, making a tour under Government auspices. Miss Mayo was formally detailed to the recruiting department of the navy. Arrangements were made to have a detachment of enlisted men travel with her to give all necessary aid.

Christine Mayo is a New York girl. She was first trained as a singer, but went on the stage after losing her singing voice. Her first theatrical experience was in stock companies at Scranton and Wilkes-Barre. She appeared in Excuse Me and Seven Keys to Baldpate.

Miss Mayo’s motion picture experience has included three Metro pictures previous to the present one — The Spell of the Yukon, The Iron Woman and The Snowbird. She played in The Supreme Sacrifice, A Mother’s Confession, The Warning, Who’s Your Neighbor?, Raffles and The Life Mask.

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Theaters Reopening All Over Canada

New picture houses are building and dark ones are brightening the promise of coming prosperity.

A distinct feature of the recent theater developments in Canada is the reopening of many houses after long periods of darkness. No less than twenty theaters can be named right off the list which have been reopened or sold, or for which negotiations are pending. Film distributing companies have taken a number of the theatres and the exchange people have received a fair number of offers to sell theaters from owners which have not yet been really considered.

Brand new theaters are being built in Toronto and Hamilton, the new house in the latter city being the Regent, erected by the MacKay Brothers. In Montreal the Canadian Universal has made a new theater of the Holman and the house has enjoyed marked success since the change. Another exchange company has an option on the Crystal Palace, Montreal, a long established theater. The Comet Theater, Cote St. Paul, Montreal, has been reopened by Mr. Picard, while the Circle Theater, Montreal, has been reopened, after being dark for two whole years, by the management of the DeLuxe Palace, Montreal. A. Lebeau has also acquired a lease of the Maisonneuve Theater, in the suburbs of Montreal.

In Toronto the Idle Hour was recently reopened by William Dineen of the Strand, Toronto, after being dark for a considerable period. The Moss Park Theater, Queen and Sherbourne streets, Toronto, is now doing nicely although it was dark for many months. The Garrick, Toronto, has been secured by A. L. Hall of Montreal. The Beaver, West Toronto, was recently purchased by the Aliens of the Famous Players’ Film Service, while the Garden, one of the oldest theaters in Toronto but yet a good house, was recently acquired by interests closely associated with the Regal Films, Limited. Another recent announcement in this direction was that Mr. Aber had purchased the Brighton Theater from J. A. Barclay.

The Empire Theater, London, Ontario, has changed hands and a big film company has an option on the Majestic, also of London. In Halifax the Orpheus has been bought by L. A. Acker, who owns another large theater in that city. On the other side of the continent, the Pantages Theater of Vancouver, B. C, is being rebuilt by Alexander Clemes, a local hotelkeeper. The old Pantages was closed for a year and when it is reopened it will be called the Regent.

At Hamilton, Ontario, the Savoy, the only burlesque house in the city, is being converted into a moving picture theater temporarily and the Grand Opera House, Hamilton, has also arranged to present special pictures during the summer season. It is also announced that the Aliens, who control the Famous Players’ Film Service and many theaters in the Dominion, are securing the Temple Theater, formerly the largest vaudeville and stock company house of Hamilton. Not long ago the Aliens secured the Regent Theater, one of the large picture theaters of Ottawa, and thousands of dollars are being spent in renovating and remodeling the structure. The Flower Theater, Ottawa, was also secured by Regal Films, Limited, about the same time.

It was only last December that Canadian film interests were agreed that the moving picture business had been shot to pieces by influences of the war, war taxes, elections, Government bond issues, storms, conscription and other details. It was generally felt that the adverse conditions were only temporary, however, and the present situation only proves that belief. There are, apparently, plenty of purchasers for moving picture enterprises and the theaters of many centres are turning them away nightly. Nearly every theater in Toronto did a wonderful business during the week of April 8. Every night at the Regent Theater, for instance, people were lined up four and five deep for a block waiting to see Lest We Forget, starring Rita Jolivet.

These are, apparently, thrilling days for Canadian exhibitors.

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Pope Again Under Arrest.

Charles F. Pope, who on April 6 was arrested on a criminal indictment and admitted to $2,000 bail, was taken into custody again in the afternoon of the same day.

The indictment on which Pope was first arrested was handed town by the Grand Jury of New York County and charged larceny of $1,750 from the Trinity Trading Corporation, a firm engaged in exporting motion pictures to Scandinavia. After the defendant had been released on bond, Chester Beecroft, president of the Trinity Trading Corporation, accompanied by Deputy Sheriff Murphy, again sought Pope at a hotel in West Forty-ninth street. This time he caused his arrest on the execution of a civil judgment for about $1,800 and Pope was taken to Ludlow Street jail.

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Porto Ricans Protest Against Film Tax

Five per cent, on absolute value of pictures is being collected, but under protest.

The end of the first month’s operation of the new revenue tax laws finds the question raised by the film exchanges in Porto Rico concerning the payment of the 5 per cent, tax still unsettled. It may be necessary to submit it to the Attorney General.

The new internal revenue law imposes a tax of 5 per cent. on the value of all films made in Porto Rico or brought or imported into the island. The film men protested that if the government interpreted this as referring to the absolute value of the film it would be not only unfair but ruinous to them since they ordinarily leased pictures for short periods, the value of which sometimes runs into many thousands of dollars. They proposed that the tax be collected on the leased price for Porto Rico. The treasurer, while not acceding to the proposal, was apparently willing to give it his consideration.

Meanwhile the Revenue Bureau has gone ahead collecting the tax, which is paid under protest. Since no shipping invoice accompanies the films the Bureau appraises the value and collects on a bond deposited by the importer.

The picture theaters are doing public work here as elsewhere. At present they are boosting public libraries. One hundred and fifty visitors a day to a library located in a city of 50,000 is in the opinion of the library board of the Carnegie Library so unsatisfactory that it has started a publicity campaign to stimulate the growth of the library habit among the people of the island. It has called on the theaters to help by showing slides and the exhibitors have readily agreed.

Collection: Moving Picture World, May 1918