Motion Picture News (Jul - Sep 1930)

20 Motion Picture News July 5, 1930 Inside Stuff on The Five-Fivers' Big Conference Atlantic City. SIDNEY KENT was in the pink, so far as humor was concerned, and got off a number of wisecracks. Once when the argument over unethical advertising was at its height, he warned the boys it still was a meeting and not a dog fight. He and Jack Miller had a number of tilts, all good-natured, of course. * * * Abe Myers presented a summery appearance decked out in the best Palm Beach manner. He remained quite cool throughout the meetings. * * * M. A. Lightman surely put up plenty of battle for the rights of the little fellow. M. A.'s favorite brand is O. P. (Other People's) cigarettes. * * * That matter of advertising by subsequent runs while pictures are playing a prior run proved a hard nut to crack and precipitated an argument between Ed Schiller of Loeis/s and "Big Buck" Steffes of Minneapolis. Up to that time, Al had surprised every one by remaining so quiet. "I believe he's turning out to be a lawyer," was the way one con freree put it. * * * The sessions showed real speed Monday morning, disposing of 17 pages of contract provisions. Monday afternoon, however, a snag was hit on unethical advertising, and after a four-hour discussion Kent suggested the gang cool off and sleep on the subject, bringing it up again Tuesday. * * * Phil (Pathe) Reisman's company hasn't any theatres and certainly would profit if exhibitors won their fight to eliminate all pictures shelved by affiliated theatres. However, he saw the impracticability of it and fought the matter from the standpoint of industry good. * * * Felix Feist was on his toes whenever a controversial point arose, and usually had some really constructive advice to offer for solution of the problem at hand. * * * There was real tension when the argument started over the "trade" made on the standard contract at the Chicago sessions, H. M. (Michigan) Richey and Gabriel L. Hess got into a real argument as to whether exhibitors endorsed arbitration at the time, so much so that it was decided to send to New York for the minutes of the contract meetings to determine who was right. * * * "// we're going to make speeches, Vm going to make one," was Hess' rejoinder when it was suggested that the conference was getting off the subject and feeling becoming bitter. * * * "We'd better be careful or we'll be telling what we think of each other," Kent observed, and Jack Miller called it a "sleigh ride" to get him off the subject of cancellations. "We don't buy pictures with guns in Chicago," was another of Jack's sallies. * * * Allied got big hearted and offered to compromise on a 10 per cent elimination without payment, but this was clowned down. * * * Herman Blum of Baltimore said he wanted a contract fair enough so that exhibitors "won't have to run out on it." Gabriel Hess then asked him to cite what was unfair in the old contract, Maybe She's Right? One of New York's better known film execs, in an attempt to get in touch with someone participating at the 5-5-5 conference at Atlantic City this week, called the Hays office to ascertain the hotel at which the distributor exhibitor representatives were meeting. And imagine his surprise when told that they didn't know "there was a meeting." Exhibs Expected To Show Speed In Ratification but some "Why go into all that?" rejoinders ended that. * * * Jay Emanuel, publisher of "The Exhibitor" and other regionals, attended as an M. P. T. O. A. committee member. Jay had been waiting eight years to demonstrate Atlantic City hospitality. He commutes between the shore resort and Philadelphia. Col. Cole of Texas was late in arriving, but he soon was in the discussions. It was 102 degrees when he left Texas, he said. * * * Aaron Saperstein of Chicago was not a delegate, but he attended all sessions. * * * Al Lichtman's humor was very much in evidence. "Do you want money for your pictures or will you play percentage" he wanted to know from Felix Feist. At another point he suggested a clause protecting distributors in closed situations. * * * "Dick" Biechele drove in from Kansas City. He's enthusiastic over the prospects of relief from the strenuous organization work since his retirement as president of the Kansas and western Missouri exhibitor unit. He'd been president so long that every one figured it as Biechele' s association. * * * Nate Yamins is a real expert on the subject of contracts. And he kept his fingers crossed fearing that any minute he would be called to the phone and be told one of his theatres are on fire. * * * Sam Dcmbow of Publix was an interested observer, but every now and then had a suggestion to make on the contract. * * * Jack Harwood of Cleveland is a new member of the M. P. T. O. A. committee. He replaced Frank Walker, who withdrew when Publix bought the Comerford circuit. Frank arrived Tuesday to serve as advisor to the M. P. T. O. A. group at Lightman's request. * * * Felix Feist's pet expression when he doesn't like a particular contract provisions, "It's just another hat clause." * * * Al Boyd of Philadelphia sat in on the Tuesday afternoon session and appeared to get quite a kick out of it. * * * As a Tom Thumb golfer, .11. Lichtmcm is a great sales manager. Phil Reisman got a big kick out of a game with the United Artists' sales chief. * * * "We still have a lot of exhibitors who aren't the best business men in the world," Jack Miller declared at one point in the discussions. "What are their addresses" was Al Lichtman's quick query. "All Quiet" Openings Universal reports that its war picture, "All Quiet <in the Western Front," opened in three cities Saturday — Toronto, Vancouver and Newark. The Vancouver house did $3,509 on the opening day. (Continued from page 17) The procedure is this : The contract clause is stricken out and initialed by the exhibitor and the application forwarded to the distributor. If the distributor declines arbitration with the particular exhibitor the same procedure is followed. Consists of Two Forms The new contract consists of two forms : a master contract, containing 26 standard provisions, which is to be furnished all exhibitors, and a short form, in which will be incorporated the standard provisions, playing arrangement and other details peculiar to the individual transaction. Cancellation by the distributor of his contract with a defaulting exhibitor or vice versa are the only penalties provided for under the new arbitration system. Rentals 7 Days in Advance The new contract calls for the payment of rentals seven days in advance unless other arrangement is made with the home office, limits to 90 days the time in which a picture may be dated, specifies prior runs if these are made a condition of the sale, bans unethical advertising by subsequent runs and limits them to advertising films before completion of prior run to cases where the playdate is 15 days or less behind the prior run, sets a minimum adult admission of ten cents, permits exhibitors up to schedule to play pictures out of order of release providing they date or pay for the remaining pictures on the contract within 30 days ; defines exhibitors' and distributors' rights as concerns substitutions, prohibits sale, leasing or giving away of accessories, prohibits the exhibitor to cut any films but newsreels and warrants the producer using no advertising in pictures for which compensation has been received. Defaults on Percentage In case of default on percentage runs, the exhibitor must pay liquidated damages equal to the stipulated percentage of his average day's business for the 30 days preceding the run and if an exhibitor pulls off a percentage picture before the end of the stipulated run, he must pay as damages 75 per cent of his receipts on the last day he played the picture. The contract also contains clauses similar to that of the old standard contract covering : warranty as to form, cancellation for religious or racial offense, schedule of licensing and exhibition, provision for percentage payments and personnel and methods of the checking system to be used ; delivery, exhibition, return, loss or dami.;je of prints, system of selecting and designating playdates, warranty on reissues, schedule of protection and run, taxes, roadshows, unreleased pictures, default through causes beyond control and acceptance of application. Fox Buys Halliburton Yarn Hollywood — Richard Halliburton's "Road to Romance" will be filmed by Fox, Halliburton, having just sold talker rights to that company.