| Poster
Distribution in Canada |
Canadian
movie paper came from 4 distribution points, Calgary, Toronto, Montreal
and St. John New Brunswick. These 4 distribution centers were set
up as independent distributors. Let's look at the function of each:
The
Calgary branch was set up as an independent distributor. In 1950 Sol
Candel took over the facility, known then as the Theater Poster Exchange.
The Calgary branch basically would receive their material from National
Screen in the US, make slight modifications and distribute them.
Each
providence had its own censor board so the distributor had to modify
the posters to fit each requirement. This was done through a variety
of ways, such as: snipes, stickers and the infamous..... black magic
marker! This was done quite often over MPAA ratings etc.
In
the early 60's the name was changed to Consolidated Theater Services.
In
1964, the Candel family expanded and took over the Toronto branch
as well.
Everything
basically stayed the same until 1990 when ties to National Screen
Service were severed.
The
facility still exists under Sol's guidance and is located at:
MoviePosterShop.com
112
16th Ave NW
Calgary,
Alberta
T2MOH2 Canada
The
Toronto branch was also run independently very similar to the way
the Calgary Branch was run.
In
1964, the Candel family took over the Toronto branch and Sol's sister
Shelley took control.
Operations
for the Toronto branch were the same except that the Toronto branch
had a printing facility. The majority of material distributed came
directly from National Screen. Then any modifications would be done
to satisfy the censor boards and material distributed.
The
Toronto branch would print programs, stills and movie posters for
independent Canadian studios.
No
specific marks were placed on the material for identification making
it difficult to identify.
In
1990, ties to National Screen were also broken at this branch.
Today,
Shelley stills controls the company and can be reached at:
Movie
Poster Warehouse
1875 Leslie St #17
North York, Ontario
M3B 2M5 Canada
The
Montreal branch was also set up as an independent distributor but
with a lot of differences.
The
Montreal branch had a heavy concentration of French theaters, so a
different system had to be used.
National
Screen sent up 2 different varieties of material. One was the regular
material that was issued everywhere else but the other was usually
sent without credit information or very limited credit information.
It
was the job of the Montreal Branch to supply all the credit and distribution
material in French. Quite often you will find a variety of types from
credits being painted on, stickered on, sniped over etc. It depended
on how much was needed to make the material ready for distribution.
It
appears that the Montreal branch closed with the 1990 dissolution
of relationships with National Screen. We have not been able to find
anyone who has knowledge of the administrative functions of the branch
since.
We
have substantiated that a major portion of the Montreal branch was
brought to the Los Angeles area and has slowly been distributed from
there.
| St,
John, New Brunswick Branch |
Known
as the Maritime Poster Exchange, this exchange was run by Buckley
and handled just like the Calgary branch.
This
branch had no printing facilities and distributed the material from
National Screen with local censor board requirements.
In
1990, when the separation from National Screen came about, Victoria
Films took over.
Everything
basically remained the same as operations before. In 2000, when Technicolor
took over the remaining portions of National Screen, Maritime also
merged with Technicolor.
Maritime
can still be contacted at:
Mgr.
KevinMcDermott
Maritime
Poster Exchange
55 Bentley
St John, New Brunswick
