The 1930s and `40s were the heyday of moviegoing. Movie houses were around every corner. Today many theaters have disappeared from Chicago, and attendance is down. Three major chains remain: M&R Amusement Cos., General Cinema Corp. and Cineplex Odeon Corp. And there are the independents, generally single-screen second-run neighborhood theaters, fighting to survive against the chains as well as VCRs and cable television. The biggest hurdle, says Jim Burrows, owner of the second-run 400 Theater, 6746 N. Sheridan Rd.,
”is the longer periods first-runs hold pictures.”
One of eight children, Burrows, 44, grew up in the Edgewater neighborhood on Chicago`s North Side. His father was a surgeon, his mother an artist-writer, but Burrows wasn`t certain of his own career choice after graduation from high school. He traveled four times to Europe in between jobs and eventually got into the movie business by chance: In 1972 a friend working at the Adelphi Theater, 7074 N. Clark St., learned it was for sale, and Burrows agreed to be his partner. He had been a movie buff since he was a teenager;
his favorites were Spencer Tracy and Humphrey Bogart classics.
In 1973 the two acquired the 400 and the Devon, 6225 N. Broadway, before splitting up several years later. Today he and wife, Jane, run a single-theater ”ma and pa” operation. They live in Rogers Park with their two cats. In his office next to the 400 Burrows told Chicago writer Beatrice Michaels Shapiro, ”Everything I learned about the theater business I taught myself. I really never had any training . . . just common sense.”
This is a two-man operaton. My wife and I do everything we possibly can ourselves. That`s the only way we can make out. My wife does the cashiering and the bookkeeping. I`m the manager–I book the films, pick them up–and I`m part-time usher and janitor.
Second-run theaters can play a film only after the first-runs have had their play. Following a theater that has played a picture for maybe 16 weeks makes you wonder, ”Is there anything left for me?” Except I`m charging $2 instead of $5.50. We have to play a film at the same time other second-run movie houses are playing it. For example, when ”Jewel of the Nile” played in March, it played in 40 other theaters in the Chicago area.
There are about 15 different film companies you deal with in procuring a film. You deal with a booker or salesperson from each company. The film company gets a percentage of your gross sales, generally 35 percent, but it does vary depending on the picture. There is usually a $100 minimum advance. Some companies don`t ask me for an advance. But now that so many of the little independent theaters are going out of business, more and more companies want one. In a way you can`t blame them–they`ve been burned so often.
Sometimes you have to bid against other theaters in your area because theaters in the same area can`t play the same film. The maximum I ever paid for a film on a bid was $35,000 for ”That`s Entertainment.” That was when my partner and I owned the Devon. We probably lost about $15,000 to $20,000. Now (the film companies) don`t necessarily take the theater that offers the most money, rather the one they think will bring them the greatest return.
By the time a second-run theater gets a film, it`s had about 500 showings. The film wears out; it`s chopped up. On the screen you may see lines –the film breaking up. If it`s real bad, you just take it back to the film depot, and they`ll give you another print. It`s always been frustrating to me to get a film in very bad condition on a Friday.
You have to act like a policeman all the time when you`re dealing with the public and trying to protect them. Kids come in, and they`ve had a little too much to drink or they`re on drugs. They cause a disturbance. You ask them to leave, and they resist. So you have to call the police. It`s very hard to satisfy everyone. People are always criticizing. They`ll say, ”Your sound speaker on the left side is out of whack.” Or when you turn up the heat, one person will complain, ”It`s too hot.” If you turn it down, someone will say, ”I`m freezing.” But it makes you feel real good when you do something
–like we put in a new sound system a few years ago–and people compliment you.
I remember going to the movies as a teenager, when you saw 10 cartoons, 3 or 4 shorts and a double feature. Television has certainly cut into a lot of that. Half the time I show double features, depending on the strength and length of the films. But I prefer showing a main feature and a trailer. A trailer is a preview of what we`re going to play the next two to four weeks. I plan my movies according to what`s available and what`s good for the area. We play family films, adventure, science fiction and classier types like ”White Nights” and ”Chorus Line.” We prefer not to play action films. The more violent or action-oriented films you play, the more the audience is likely to be violent after they leave the theater.
The 400 holds 650 people. We have matinees only on the weekends. Adults are charged $2, children and senior citizens $1. About a year ago we instituted ”Dollar Monday. We show midnight features on Fridays and Saturdays that appeal to the college crowd. Although our clientele includes families and senior citizens, the biggest portion of our market is the college kids from Loyola University. Without them, we`d be dead.
The most popular films are the adventure films, like the Steven Spielberg pictures. They appeal to the kids, and the kids are basically 80 percent of the market. The average person over 40 goes to a movie only a couple of times a year. The 15-to-26-year-olds go every two weeks. Kids have so much money today. Take the kids who work for us. When ”Return of the Jedi” came out, the first show was at midnight at all the shopping centers. Tickets cost $5 or $6. These kids had to see it the first night. That`s the ”in” thing for them to do.
We have a concession stand. A lot of people say, ”You`re making all your money from the candy counter.” That`s not true. But it does help your profit. In fact, you would operate with a tremendous loss without your candy counter. And what you sell depends on the picture. The better class the picture, the less sold at the candy counter.
I have certain policies: Children under 6 are not allowed, except when we show a Disney film. One time a fellow in the lobby was swinging his 1-year old kid around like a yo-yo. I told him, ”You can`t do that.” He said, ”You can`t tell me what I can do with my child.” He could have smashed the kid`s head on the ground. That incident and crying babies helped me make my decision. Also, I will not allow 8-to-10-year-olds in at night without a guardian. No child should be out by himself at night.
I don`t think anyone understands the rating system. Basically, it`s a guideline for parents, but most parents don`t care what their children see. It`s very hard to enforce–children will just grab an adult in line and ask him to buy a ticket. The X rating means persons under 18 are not admitted. But what today is rated R (restricted–persons under 17 not admitted without a guardian) was X five years ago. An example: ”Midnight Cowboy” probably would not be rated X today.
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There are half as many first-runs now as when I started in the business. A lot of changes are taking place. I understand that the Carnegie (on Rush Street) is closing (slated for September); the Evanston Theater has been made into five theaters; the Esquire (on Oak Street) is going to be made into two theaters. The reason: The cost of operation is so high. If you have two screens instead of one, instead of attracting 500 customers total, you`ll get 350 per screen with two. It gives the exhibitor more flexibility, the ability to hold pictures longer. I would do it tomorrow if I had the money. But the cost (of renovation) is tremendous, about $100,000.
Sadly the second-run ”ma and pa” operation is becoming a thing of the past. But I believe it serves a purpose. A lot of people are willing to wait for a second-run because they just can`t afford to pay $5.50 for a first-run movie. I think if you took this theater from this neighborhood, it would be missed.