Motion Picture Daily (Jan-Mar 1934)

MOTION PICTURE DAILY Looking 'Em Over "Murder on the Campus" {Chesterfield) "Murder on the Campus" is another one of those guessing games. And again, as in so many of these mystery films, the prize guesser is a newspaper reporter, with the police just a lot of chumps. This one keeps one guessing pretty furiously as to the identity of the person who killed a college lad, presumably while the latter was playing the chimes in the campanile on the campus. The finger is kept off the murderer until the last few minutes of the film. Edward Van Sloan is the killer. A wealthy professor and criminologist, he turns to murder when he is threatened with blackmail over his friendship for a pretty co-ed. The blackmailer, the chime-playing student, is found shot at the top of the bell tower. How in blazes did the murderer get away without being seen? As it turns out, the blackmailer was already dead when brought there. The sound of the chimes was an electrical transcription, as was the report of the pistol shot, all made in Van Sloan's laboratory and sent out over a loud speaker. Other players include Shirley Grey, Charles Starrett, J. Farrell MacDonald, Ruth Hall and Maurice Black. Richard Thorpe directed. 10 Reviewers Set Varied Talks At 3-Day Meet Two general program divisions will mark the three-day annual conference of the National Board of Review which gets under way tomorrow at the Hotel Pennsylvania. They are : "A Quarter Century of Organized Motion Picture Progress" and "Motion Picture Research and Appreciation." It will be the 25th anniversary of the board. Among the conference speakers will be: Prof. LeRoy E. Bowman of the Child Study Ass'n. of America; Dr. A. A. Brill, psychiatrist ; Mrs. Frances Taylor Patterson, Columbia instructor in photoplay composition ; Dr. Worth M. Tippy, executive secretary. Department of the Church and Social Service, Federal Council of Churches of Christ in America ; William Lewin, chairman of the committee on photoplay appreciation, National Council of Teachers of English; Gretta Palmer, women's page editor of the WorldTelegram; Dr. F. Dean McClusky, National Education Ass'n's department of visual instruction; Isabel Kennedy, secretary, Pittsburgh Federation of Social Agencies. Screen Stars at Luncheon Stage and screen stars are to be invited to a luncheon Friday, at which Dr. George W. Kirchwey, dean of Columbia Law School, will preside. The speakers will include Bishop Francis J. McConnell, Division Administrator Sol A. Rosenblatt, John Collier, commissioner of the Bureau of Indian Affairs ; Elmer Rice, playwright, and Terry Ramsaye, editor of Motion Picture Herald. Specific topics under the program section called "A Quarter Century of Organized Motion Picture Interest" will be : "The National Board of Review— Its Functions. Yesterday and Today"; "The Problems of Motion Picture Review — How It Should Focus In Order to Reflect Public Opinion and Perform the Necessary Critical Function" ; "The Films and the Community— What Has Been, and Can Be Accomplished, and How to Organize a Community for a Specific Purpose" ; "The Supporting Church Interest in Community Motion Picture Organization" and "The Response of the Producer to the Cooperative Public Effort." Other Topics Listed Under the second topic of "Motion Picture Research and Appreciation" there will be addresses on "What Can Research Prove?" "How Research Can Be Related to the Community Effort Pertaining to Motion Pictures," "Motion Picture Appreciation in the High Schools," "A Writer's Viewpoint on Films in Relation to Children" and "The Place of Research in Visual Instruction." Two night showings are to be given. The first will be tomorrow night at the New School for Social Research, 56 W. 12th St. On this program will be "Catherine the Great" and "Grain Race," a three-reeler by Allen J. Villiers, showing sailing ships rounding Cape Horn. The second showing will be at the Fifth Ave. Playhouse — "Love of a Poet," by Jean Coteau, and a tworeeler, "Lot in Sodom," by Dr. Huntley Watson, Jr. Report Soviet Film Party on Way Here Hollywood, Feb. 6. — An unidentified delegation of Soviet film representatives is said to be en route here from Moscow to study production methods at local studios and line up technical talent for Soviet production. Boris Petroff, former stage producer at the New York Paramount and npw under contract at the Paramount studio as a writer, is responsible for the report. He relates, too, that a "prominent woman in the film industry" whom he is unable to identify by name now, is an advance agent in lining up talent here for Soviet production and had come to him with an offer to work in Moscow. Lewis Milestone was also reported to have received a similar offer. The New York office of Ainkino, Soviet film representatives, yesterday denied knowledge of either the approach of the delegation reported en route from Moscow or of any Hollywood agent authorized to make offers for talent to work on Russian productions. Kane Going Abroad Hollywood, Feb. 6. — Robert T. Kane, an associate producer at Fox. plans a trip overseas about May 1 to take a look at the company's foreign production situation. Fox contemplates opening a laboratory in Rome to handle "dubbed" versions, but decision on this score will be reached at New York conferences prior to Kane's sailing. In the meantime, he is busy preparing "Gypsy Holiday" for production around March 15. Erik Charrell will direct. Laemmle Buys Plays Carl Laemmle, Jr., now in New York, closed two story deals by wire yesterday. One was for a play, "Frailty," by Edith and Edward Ellis, and the other was for "Humbug," by Max Marcin. Missouri Tax Must Be in Sale Prices Kansas City, Feb. 6. — Missouri's one-half of one per cent sales tax cannot be passed on as a tax. Under a ruling by Roy McKittrick, attorney general, if theatre owners or other business men do not wish to absorb the levy, it will be necessary to raise the price to that extent. The attorney general's opinion is based on the theory the tax is an occupation or privilege tax and not a sales tax, as it was called by the legislature which enacted it, and therefore, if it is passed on to the consumer, the sale price must include the levy. The selling price and the amount of the tax added cannot be set out separately. Vending machines in theatres are subject to the tax on gross sales. The operator, although not the owner of the machine, is liable for the tax. The attorney general has issued a 50-page manual for use of those liable to tax. Form Cleveland Club, With Fontaine Head Cleveland, Feb. 6. — A Cleveland Variety Club was organized today by John Harris, James G. Balmer and J. T. McGreevey of the national Variety Club at a meeting at the Hotel Statler. Officers were elected as follows : J. E. Fontaine, president; H. M. Addison, first vice-president ; F. D. Drew, second vice-president ; I. J. Schmertz, secretary; M. B. Horwitz, treasurer. Named directors were George Roberts, Nat Holt, Nat Wolf, E. C. Flanigon, Harry Howlett and Fred Meyers. The next meeting will be Monday. The club plans to raise its charter membership to 50. Headquarters will be at the Statler. Portland's Ban on Nazi Film Removed Portland, Feb. 6. — Upholding the reviewers for the censor board who passed "S. A. Mann Brand," first Hitler picture, and reversing the censor board, which revoked the license, the city commissioners voted unanimously to permit the showing of the film at the Taylor Street. Wednesday, February 7, I9J Midwest Gain Now Reaching Into Theatres Theatres in the midwest are begii ning to feel the effects of the gener; business pickup, reports show. In Be troit, one of the hardest hit in th country during most of the depressici it's due to the spurt in the automobil business ; in Cleveland it's an improve ment in the steel trade, and in Akro it's something approaching a boom i rubber plants. Detroit, Feb. 6. — More workers ar back in the automobile plants than a any time during the past three year and exhibitors are beginning to fee more cheerful. Automobile plants have unfilled or ders and more men are back in th plants than any time since 1929. Th Board of Commerce says the total i about 75 per cent of the average tron 1923 to 1925. This is 50 per cent high er than last year, and does not includ CWA workers. Cleveland, Feb. 6. — Steel plant here are now at 69 per cent of capa city, the highest point in nearly fou years. Employment is now 17,36. above the low point of March, 1933 Other industries show gains as fol lows: Textiles, 1.8 per cent; pape: and printing, 5 per cent ; non-ferrou: metals, 2 per cent, and lumber, 7.'.' per cent. Akrox, Feb. 6. — The rubber indus try, which dominates this town, is experiencing an almost unprecedentec mid-winter demand for product. Foui of the major tire companies have jus' granted another sizeable pay increase affecting 40,000 employes, many ol whom now are receiving a higher hourly wage than in the peak year of 1929. This condition is bound to be reflected in materially increased theatre attendance, is the consensus of opinion among local exhibitors. Three in Charge for F. & M, in St. Louis St. Louis, Feb. 6. — Harry Greenman, Charles E. Kurtzman and Harry Koplar are in active control of the Fox and St. Louis under the new deal by which these houses are run for F. & M. through a subsidiary. Greenman has been manager since before the start of the receivership. Delay Rembusch Trial Opening of the trial of Frank Rembusch's anti-trust action against the M. P. P. D. A. and individual member companies was postponed yesterday to Feb. 13 by U. S. District Court Judge Alfred M. Cox at the request of Max D. Steuer, attorney for the defendants. The Rembusch action alleges a conspiracy in restraint of trade and asks for damages aggregating more than $2,000,000. Russo on U. A. Publicity Richard Russo has joined the U.A. publicity staff. He is a former high school and college football player.