TG 'Teddy' Solomon, chairman of the board of Gulf States Theatres, will receivethe 2004 ShoWester of the Year Award at the upcoming ShoWest convention, whichruns in Las Vegas from Mar 22-25.

Solomonwill receive his award at the opening ceremony on Mar 23. He founded GulfStates Theatres in 1948 and quickly established a circuit of drive-in theatresin eight states from Florida to Oklahoma.

Helater moved into shopping centre theatres and in 1996 built the first 20-screenstadium theatre in the New Orleans area. A former member of the NationalAssociation of Theatre owners, Solomon has held numerous public posts includingchairman of the first Louisiana Film and Video Commission, which he set up.

"[Teddy]is one of the true greats in the industry, one who has played an instrumentalrole in the evolution of it over the years, and most importantly, one who istruly revered by his peers throughout the industry," ShoWest co-managingdirector Mitch Neuhauser said in a statement.

Neuhausersaid he was excited to get the spring event underway, adding: "With thechange of our date to late March we are excited to be able to showcase evenmore summer product, something ShoWest has long been successful at.