It was predicted that the cinematograph, like the skating rink, would
have a short life and die in its infancy, but this was a mistaken
idea--the “movies,” like “Liza,” have “come to stay.” They are a force
to be reckoned with. It would not be overstating the fact to say that
more people attend the cinema than all other places of entertainment
massed together.
The returns relative to the cinema industry are immense. Regarding
attendances at these places in this country, it shows no fewer than
1,075,875,000 attendances at cinema exhibitions in the course of
a single year. In the British Isles there are approximately 4,500
theatres with a seating capacity of accommodating one in every
thirty-seven of the population. Upon working out these figures it
shows that the entire population of the United Kingdom visits cinema
exhibitions on an average once a fortnight. About 5,000 new subjects
are issued each year, and some 70,000,000 feet of film are running
through the projectors each week. From 80,000 to 100,000 persons are
directly engaged in the various branches of the trade.
Its increased popularity in the future is assured, and its progress
will depend largely upon what uses the nation makes of this new force
in national education.