The Film Daily (1948)

Wednesday, March 17, 194 DUE NEHMPDl J3g Ifiralatt Vol. 93, N o. 52 Wed. March 17, 1948 lOCrs. JOHN W ALICOATE : : : Publisher DONALD M. MERSEREAU : Associate Publisher and General Manager CHESTER B. BAHN : : : : Editor Published daily except Saturdays, Sundays and Holidays at 1501 Broadway, New York 18, N. Y., by Wid's Films and Film Folk, Inc. J. W. Alicoate, President; Donald M. Mersereau, Vice President and Treasurer; Patti Alicoate, Vice President and Secretary. Entered as second class matter, Sept. 8, 1938, at the post-office at New York, N. Y., under the act of March 3, 1879. Terms (Postage free) United States outside of Greater New York $10.00 one year; 6 months, $5.00; 3 months, $3.00. Foreign, $15.00. Subscribers should remit with order. Address all communications to THE FILM DAILY, 1501 Broadway, New York 18, N. Y. Phone BRyant 9-7117, 9-7118, 9-7119, 9-7120, 9-7121. Cable address Filmday, New York. WEST COAST OFFICES Ralph Wilk, Manager 6425 Hollywood Blvd. Phnnn: Granite 6G07 WASHINGTON BUREAU Andrew H. Older 6417 Dahlonega Rd. Phone: Wisconsin 3271 CHICAGO BUREAU Joseph Esler, Chief C. L. Esler 6241 N. Oakley Ave. Phone: Briargate 7441 STAFF CORRESPONDENTS LONDON— Ernest W. Fredman, The FilKi Renter. 127-133 Wardour St., W. 1. HAVANA— Mary Louise Blanco, Virtudes 214. BOMBAY — Kam L. Gogtay. Kilab Mahal, WO Hornby Hu.. Fort, Bombay 1. ALGIERS — Paul Saffar, Filmafric, 8 Rue Charras. MONTREAL— Ray Carmichael. Room 9, 464 Francis Xavier St. VANCOUVER — Jack Droy, 411 Lyric Theater Bids. KYIiNKY llmvclcn Fiddler. 19 Moxon Ave., Punchbowl, N. S. Phone. UY 2110. BRUSSELS— Jean Pierre Meys, 110 Rue des Paquerettes. COPENHAGEN — John Lindberg, Jernbanealle No. 3. Copenhagen-Van Loose. ROME— John Perdicari, Via Ludovisl 16. Phone, 42758. MEXICO CITY — Latin American News Service, Humboldt 49. Peak Venezuelan Film Biz Reported by Home Name Blackburn, Wade To Posts in NBC Tele FinAnciAL NEW YORK STOCK MARKET High Low Close Am. Seat 173/8 17Vs 17% Ball & Howell 18Vi 18!4 I8V2 ■ Bell & Howell pfd... 93 Vi 93 Vi 93/2 Columbia Picts. vtc. 113/4 lH/4 m/4 East. Kodak 393/8 39 39 Gen. Prec. Eq 15 1/4 15 15 Loew's, Inc 17% 17 17/8 Paramount 20!/8 19'/2 19Vi RKO 8I/2 8 8 Republic Pict 4 37/8 37/8 Republic Pict. pfd... . 93,4 91/2 9Vi ■ 20fh Century-Fox ... 21% 20% 20% Universal Pict 143/8 13% 13V4 Universal Pict. pfd.. .64 64 64 Warner Bros 11% 11% 11% NEW YORK CURB MARKET Monogram Picts. ... 3 3 3 RKO 17/8 }i/4 13/4 Sonotone Corp 3% 3% 3% Technicolor 12% 12% 12% ■ Trans-Lux 41/2 4% 4l/2 OVER THE COUNTER Bid Cinecolor 4% Pathe 4% "Dawn" Tradeshow Friday "Meet Me At Dawn" will be tradeshown nationally in 20th-Fox exchanges Friday. CANDY AND POPCORN SPACE AVAILABLE IN EIGHT THEATERS. LICENSEE TO PAY GOODWILL OR ADVANCED RENTAL. OTHERS NEED NOT APPLY. CALL BETWEEN 10 A.M. and 5 P.M. ONLY. CIRCLE 5-4247 Peak film business is current in Venezuela today due to the unprecedented boom resulting from exploitation of natural resources, it was reported yesterday by Dave Home, assistant secretary-treasurer of Monogram Int'l, who has just returned from a visit in the Caribbean area. There is no currency restrictions in that country, Home said. High wages are prevalent due to competition by the oil companies for employes. Home was gone three weeks. He also visited Trinidad, B.W.I. He said the British West Indian possession permitted remittances of 65 cents on the dollar. Show business is a leisurely affair on the island, Home added. Theaters open at five in the afternoon and after one show close until nine in the evening. An island law closes business down at four in the afternoon. Hope for Adjustment of Olympic Newsreel Dispute Though the chiefs of the five U. S. newsreels got an opportunity yesterday to discuss their grievances regarding coverage of the Olympic Games this Summer in England, no definite commitment was made by JAR, since he said he was not acquainted with the details of his exclusive rights to the Games' coverage. However, when G. I. WoodhamSmith, JAR's legal adviser, sails on the Queen Mary Saturday, he will take with him the points set forth by the American newsreel committee for discussion with the British Newsreel Association. Newsreel committeemen stated that they felt as a result of this meeting any points at issue would be ironed out. Representing the reels at yesterday's conference were: Albert Richard, chairman, and Theodore Genock of Paramount; Jack Haney of Fox; Michael Clofine of News of the Day; Al Butterfield of Warner Pathe, and Thomas Mead of Universal. Mulvey, Other Goldwyn Execs. Going to Coast James A. Mulvey, president of Samuel Goldwyn Prods., who represented the SIMPP in the negotiations leading up to the Anglo-American film agreement, is expected to leave for Hollywood immediately following his arrival from London tomorrow aboard the S.S. Queen Mary. Arthur Sachson, Goldwyn general sales manager; Alfred W. Crown, foreign sales rep., and Lynn Farnol, Goldwyn ad-publicity director, will entrain for the Coast Friday. Primary purpose is to look at the new Danny Kaye pic, "The Song is Born." Buchanan on "Pitfall" Buchanan & Co. has been named to handle the national newspaper, radio and magazine campaigns for Samuel Bischoff Productions' "Pitfall," released by United Artists. Appointment of Norman Blackburn, formerly vice-president of the J. Walter Thompson Hollywood office, as national program director of NBC Television, was announced yesterday by Noran E. Kersta, NBC director of television operations. Simultaneously Kersta announced the appointment of Warren Wade, of NBC Television, to the post of production manager. Both appointments are effective April 1. Blackburn will be charged with over-all program planning for the rapidly expanding NBC video ■ network. Wade will supervise program production of NBC's owned-and-operated stations. Blackburn entered the film field in 1936, writing and animating short subjects for Walt Disney and later Harmonising Studios. He subsequently handled film writing assignments for Bing Crosby at Paramount and other films at the Hal Roach and M-G-M studios. comma firm come NATE J. BLUMBERG, U-l prexy, and JOSEP SEIDELMAN, head of U-I's foreign departmer are due to arrive tomorrow on the America. WILLIAM J. GERMAN, president of J. Brulatour, Inc., and MRS. GERMAN sail on tl Aquitania today for a fortnight's cruise. SAMUEL N. BURGER, sales manaqesatL Loev Int'l, is scheduled to tly to Oslo tonMBy, fi kg of a three-month tour of MetrWWces Europe. DONALD S. SHARPE, American rep. for At tralian Actors Equity, arrived in New York frc Hollywood to do a series of newspaper sketch for the Aussie press, and also work in Summ stock before returning to Hollywood for a re in an indie production. E. T. GOMERSALL, assistant to William Scully, Universal-lnt'l vice-president and ge cral sales manager, and C. J. FELDMAN, We: ern division sales manager, left New Yc yesterday for Detroit and will return at t end of the week. DAVID D. HORNE, assistant secretary-trc surer of Monogram International, has return by air via San Juan, Puerto Rico, from Latin-American trip. HARRY FEINSTEIN, Warner Bros, film bu) in Pittsburgh, is in New York for a few da Leo Forbstein, Warners Music Head, Dies at 56 West Coast Bureau of THE FILM DAILY Hollywood — Leo Forbstein, 56, died of a heart attack. He was head of Warner Bros, music department for 22 years. NBC Filming Elections In Italy for Tele Here NBC Television is planning fi] coverage of the Italian elections ai expects to have the pix on the s less than 36 hours after they a taken in Italy. Filming will be sup« vised by Henry Cassidy, director European news, and Leon Pearsc roving European reporter. ! John H. Harris president, Harris Amusement Companies, Pittsburgh, Pa., says: "ALTEC ENABLES US TO GET FULLEST VALUE OUT OF WHAT IS ON THE SOUND TRACK fered outside the theatre. The Altec engineer is a real friend of show business because he enables us to get the fullest value out of what is on the sound track. Furthermore, that is his sole job, just as it is the sole job of the entire Altec organization. That means something to us.' W What makes the motion picture theatre business different from many other industries. is, I suppose, that the value we give is measured purely in the emotional satisfaction the customers feel. This makes it necessary for us to deliver every ounce of the value, in drama and emotion, that has been put on the film in the first place. This is more necessary today than it ever was: A/[ec Service, known for its service we have to meet the intensified * competition of entertainment of over and above the contract is a vital ingredient of your theatre's ability to meet successfully the competition of other forms of entertainment. An Altec Service contract is the soundest long term investment an exhibitor can make today. THE SERVICE ORGANIZATION OF THE MOTION PICTURE 1NDUSTR