PERSONAL AND GENERAL.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 17835, 1 May 1926, Page 20 (Supplement)

PERSONAL AND GENERAL.

(Supplied by the Film Exchange Association of New Zealand.) WELLINGTON, April 2S.

Mr Garnet Saunders, the well-known and popular Xew Plymouth exhibitor, left Wellington on Tuesday by the S. S. Tahiti on a holiday visit to Papeete. Mr Saunders recently underwent a serious operation, and is taking a holiday so that he can thoroughly recuperate before taking up his duties. He expects to be absent from New Zealand for about months. Mr F. S. Savage, exhibitor, of Eastbourne, is at present confined to his bed on account of illness.

Mr T. Donovan, managing director of the De Luxe Theatre, Levin, was a visitor to Wellington during the week. Mr Errol Fuller, manager of Selznick Ltd., returned to Wellington on Monday after a three weeks’ tour of the East Coast. North Auckland, and Main Trunk districts.

The many friends of Mr George Dagnall, manager of Fox Films, and Mrs Dagnall, will be sorry to hear that Mrs Dagnall recently underwent a serious operation in the Lister Private Hospital. Wellington. Mrs Dagnall is processing as well as can be expected, but it will be some time before she will be able to get about again.

Attached to the films shown in the Government Publicity Court Theatre at the DunecHn Exhibition is a filmed notification' to the effect that the Minister in charge of publicity has arranged with the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Corporation for a short .Yew Zealand subject to be released on all Metro-Goldwyn programmes, exhibited at that firm’s vast circuit throughout the six States of the Commonwealth of Australia and New Zealand. Such a splendid advertisement as this country will receive should assist materially in placing the Dominion still more prominently on the map. Mr IV. Bannehr, who recently purchased the Lyric Theatre, Auckland, passed through Wellington on Wednesday last en route for the Queen City. Mr Bannehr, who is associated with Mr V. M. Beebe, late of the Crystal Palace, Christchurch, expects to take over the Lyric early next month. Mr Henry Hayward has secured Merto-Goldwyn-Mayer’s big super special production “Romola,” adapted from the celebrated novel by George Elliot, for the Majestic Theatre, Auckland, in June. The presentation will be upon an unprecedentedly elaborate scale. Lillian Gislz. Dorothy Gish, Ronald Colman, and Henry King are associated with “Romola,” of which Louella Parsons, special picture critic of the “New York American” has written:—“‘Romola’ is perfect—better than “The White Sister.”

Mr \V. R. Kemball, managing director of the De Luxe, King’s, and Queen’s Theatres, Wellington, who recently returned from a visit to Sydney, has now made arrangements to install one of the latest of pipe organs in the De Luxe. Mr Kemball was greatly taken with the music of the organ in the Prince Kdward, Sydney, and is going to this great expense so that the prestige of the De Luxe can be maintained at the highest standard. From reports received picture fans in Wellington will shortly see big pictures presented on the same lavish scale as the biggest theatres in Australia.

Mr Percy Braithwaite, late of the Octogan Theatre, Dunedin, returned from Sydney by the Tahiti on Monday after a holiday visit to Sydney and Melbourne.

The presentation scheme for Metro-Ooldwyn-Mayer’s release, “Never the Twain Shall Meet,” at the Majestic Theatre. Auckland. will embrace a full team of Maori poi and canoe dancers from Rotorua. This prologue should go a long way towards creating the real South Seas atmosphere for Peter 13. Kyne's seductive story.

Mr Laurie Ouinn, manager of United Artists, Ltd., recently sent out invitations to private screening of his firm’s big attraction “Stella Dallas,’’ to be held in the De Luxe Theatre, Wellington, on Sunday May 1, at 8 p.m.

United have received their first advance photographs of Charlie Chaplin’s ■big new production, “The Circus,” and Rudolph Valentino’s next picture, “Son of the Sheik,” which is a sequel to

*'The Sheik. ’ Both these pictures will he released by United Artists in the near future.