Boxoffice (Oct-Dec 1939)

Gene Towne Tells a Story — On an RKO set of “Sioiss Family Robinson,” Producer Gene Towne (center), tells a story while Director Edward Ludwig, Star Thomas Mitchell, Don Fillers <a production assistant) and Graham Baker, Towne’ s associate in The Play’s the Thing Productions, listen in. (2lniinatlc6 Producer Edward T. Lowe’s daughter, Elizabeth Lowe, turned out to be a high flier recently when she married Airline Pilot James Gaskill in Las Vegas. The couple will live in Beverly Hills . . . Wallace Beery said the duck hunting was good at Brigham, Utah. He got the limit before he returned home. ★ George Schneider, Metro’s music research chief, is back in the hospital at Santa Monica. He was rushed there suffering from a relapse following his recent appendectomy . . . E. B. Coleman, who brought Ruth Evelyn Foote, “Queen” of the Texas State Fair, in from Dallas for screen tests, plans an early departure for New Orleans to attend an exhibitor conclave. ★ Funeral services were held last week for Nelda T. Fazenda, mother of Louise Fazenda and mother-in-law of Hal B. Wallis. Mrs. Fazenda died at the age of 81 following a long illness. Funeral services for Fritz Feld’s father, Heinrich Feld, were held last week. The elder Feld died at the age of 72 after a six-month illness. * Temporarily deserting his Lucas, Ohio, farm, Louis Bromfield is to arrive the first of the week for a scripting chore at 20th Century-Fox . . . Bill Pierce, Monogram’s publicity chief, spent the week vacationing ... It was China’s ordy feminine stage producer, Princess Liling Ai, who was guest of honor at the luncheon given by Arthur Lubin at the Universal commissary. ★ Clarence Brown headed for Detroit from San Francisco to have a look at Henry Ford’s museum. ★ A cake with all the trimmings, gifts from the cast and a specially-recorded song by the set workers were features of the surprise birthday party given Director Mark Sandrich on the set at Paramount . . . Paul Sloane, Paramount writer-director, has trained out for San Antonio, Tex., and New York City on vacation. ★ Louis B. Mayer planed to Louisville, Ky., on business in connection with his racing stables . . . Scouting new plays and other material, Kenneth MacKenna. Metro story editor, is spending a few days in New York . . . Also holidaying there is Edward Dmytryk, Paramount megaphonist . . . Lee Boumian, Metro player, planed out for New York for a short vaeation between assigyiments. ■k Director Otto Brower, Sid Bowen, unit man, and a camera troupe are in Utah filming exteriors for 20th Century-Fox’s forthcoming “Brigham Young’’ . . . Mickey Rooney has reported back to M-G-M after acquiring data in Detroit for his role in “Young Tom Edison.” * Kurt Neumann is spending his weekends in Hollywood, and the remainder of his time at June Lake. He no sooner returned from fishing there, than he went back for some duck shooting . . . Mr. and Mrs. William A. Wellman are on a three-week fishing trip in the Shasta Cascade region. * Del Mar will call Pat O’Brien for a brief vacation this week as soon as he winds up his current chore for Warner . . . Producer Jack Coyle told the Rotary Club of Joplin, Mo., all about “Religion and the Screen” in a talk in that city . . . Claude Binyon now is doing his scripting in Palm Springs. ★ Henry Koster and Dan Kelly planed out for New York for a look at some stage Hate Mongers' Moves Reported by Ruben To unmask “native enemies of American democracy,” a special meeting of the Hollywood Anti-Nazi League was convened at the First Unitarian Church on Sunday. Highlight was a detailed account of terroristic anti-Semitic activities allegedly led by Father Coughlin and the “Christian Front,” in New York, given by J. Walter Ruben. H. S. Kraft, screen writer and member of the League’s executive board, presided. Other liberal Hollywood extra-curricular activities were divided between peace efforts and a “Ham and Eggs” discussion. Representatives from most of Hollywood’s liberal organizations attended the round-table peace conference at Occidental College under the sponsorship of the Southern California Union for Concerted Peace Efforts, which numbers W. S. Van Dyke, Melvyn Douglas, Virginia Bruce, and others among its members. “Movies and the War” was discussed at the general meeting of Associated Film Audiences at the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce Sunday evening. Program included a showing of “The Shame of a Nation,” story of the sufferings of the German people following the last World War, and a talk by Screen Writer Martin Berkeley on the manner in which film was used as propaganda during the same conflict. John Howard Lawson, author and screen wi'iter, handled the gavel. Under the aspices of the Motion Picture Democratic Committee, speakers for and against the proposed “Thirty Dollars Every Thursday” amendment to the California state constitution were presented at Hollywood High School auditorium. Screen Writer Dudley Nichols was chairman. Film Two Ritters After filming two Tex Ritter sagebrushers on location near Kanabe, Utah, a Monogram troupe returned to Hollywood the first of the week. Westerns were “Westbound Stage” and “Roll, Wagons, Roll.” Roach 4-Reeler Titled “Two’s Company” has been picked by Hal Roach as the title of the Laurel-Hardy four-reeler now in production. Camera work was expected to be finished this week. shows . . . Spencer Traey and Howard Strickling were to return from that research trip to New York . . . Dave Butler plans to plane out for New York the first of the week, and will make a side trip to the premiere of “That’s Right, You’re Wrong” before returning. ★ Playoff between Madeleine Carroll’s Tigers and Lloyd Nolan’s Hammer Heads topped the Halloween party held by 250 Paramount Studio Club bowlers at the Sunset Bowling Alleys. Y. Frank Freeman’s Juicers, low team in the league, was presented with the booby prize for losing 19 games, winning 5. 22 BOXOFnCE :: November 4, 1939