Motion Picture Daily (Jul-Sep 1939)

10 Motion Picture daily Thursday, July 27, 1939 Banner Radio Lines — By JACK BANNER D OYAL'S DEALS . . . John Royal, who never makes a trip, European or i-V otherwise, without signing up personages for NBC's airways, returned from Europe yesterday and make known that this time he had signed up no less than Anthony Eden and Winston Churchill for broadcasts on NBC. He also arranged for Hugh Gibson, former U. S. Ambassador to Brazil and Belgium, now in London, to speak for NBC in a series of six broadcasts. The last time Royal went to Europe he played golf with the Duke of Windsor and volunteered NBC's facilities to the Duke on any occasion. Some months later the Duke found a desire to deliver a peace message. CBS's Hans V. Kaltenborn is scheduled to fly to Europe next week on a mission similar to the one just fulfilled by Royal, and unless he signs a King or two it's hard to see how he will be able to improve on Royal. Eden is scheduled to speak from London to the NBC audience in America twice a month starting the middle of September. Churchill will speak at least once a month. Gibson will travel from country to country and will summarize current conditions and discuss the conditions he finds in his travels. Royal also made offers to Germany and Italy in an effort to present all sides of the European situation. He also revealed that Arturo Toscanini will fly as a Clipper passenger when he returns to America for this season's symphony broadcasts over NBC. Toscanini will leave Lucerne Sept. 14 and will conduct 16 broadcasts for NBC during the Fall and Winter. TENNYSON'S DEBUT . . . Jean Tennyson, who was formerly heard on the air in the Radio City Music Hall broadcasts, will make her debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra tomorrow night, singing in the Robin Hood Dell. NOVA PILBEAM IN TELEVISION . . . From BBC we're told that Nova Pilbeam will make her television debut next week in "Prison Without Bars," which has been filmed both in France and England. GEORGE FISHER DAY AT FAIR. . . George Fisher is heading East and on August 2 his "Hollywood Whispers" program will originate from the New Jersey Building at the World's Fair. The day will be known as his day at the Fair and his guests on the program will be Gary Cooper and Susan Hayward, who will be in town for the premiere of "Beau Geste." PERSONALS AND NOTES . . . Horace Heidt will be out of the hospital on Saturday to conduct his radio series. Heidt was rushed in for an emergency appendectomy. . . . Music Corp. has set Jack Benny's Eddie Rochester, Betty Grable and Frankie Masters' band into a unit for vaudeville. The unit will open Aug. 4 at the Earle Theatre, Washington. Six weeks are set, with other dates to be filled in. . . . Buddy Rogers, who is back in swing with a new orchestra, is breaking it in on the road, and will sit down in a Detroit club Aug. 4. . . . Bob Hope will be Ben Bernie's celebrity guest at the Astor tonight. . . . Bill McCune, booked into the Essex House for a week, will remain over throughout the Summer. . . . Bill Ray, who heads the NBC publicity department in Chicago, in town until the close of the week. Vincent Lopez played to almost 2,500 people in Birmingham Monday night, the biggest crowd collected by an orchestra in that city the past two years. . . . Paul Whiteman's orchestra off on a two-month dance tour and will broadcast en route. . . . Clint Johnson has joined the announcing staff of WHN, coming from WFIL, Philadelphia. . . . Norm Kapham of WHN's publicity department, back from a two-week fishing trip. . . . Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt will "pinch hit" for Dave Elman in the "Hobby Lobby" broadcast Aug 2. TELEVISED STYLE SHOWS . . . Arnold Constable will start a regular series of style shows over NBC television today, and Franklin Simon will do the same starting Aug. 24. Don Cope, who produces the Maxwell House and Joe E. Brown programs in Hollywood for Benton & Bowles, is in town for the week. . . . Tom Revere, director of radio for Benton & Bowles, has returned from a Hollywood trip. WARING BORROWS . . . Fred Waring dropped into the Lincoln the other day, heard Jan Savitt's arrangement of the Raymond Scott tune, "18th Century Drawing Room," and became enthusiastic about it. Accordingly he has borrowed the arrangement, and tonight, when the tune is played during Waring's broadcast, Savitt will conduct the Pennsylvanians for the one number. Trade Chiefs At FP Parley Closing Today (.Continued from page 1) Ted Doney, St. Thomas ; G. W. Martin, Trenton ; R. J. Harrison, St. Catharines ; T. Forhan, Welland ; R. Knevels, H. C. Merritt, J. J. LeFave, E. Lamoureux and S. C. Clayman ; H. V. Neun and A. Scandrett, Woodstock ; W. J. Fawcett, Sarnia ; L. M. Graburn and R. J. McAdam, Halifax, N. S. ; F. W. Winter, Moncton, N. B.; J. Connor, Glace Bay, N. S. ; D. P. MacDonald, Sydney, N. S. ; W. H. Golding, St. John, N. B. ; J. M. Franklin, Halifax ; S. Korman, Rouyn ; R. Maynard, Cartier, Hull, Que.; P. Valliere, Quebec City; G. T. Robert, Three Rivers, Que. ; Frank Willis, Fort William, Ont; P. D. Egan, K. M. Leach and L. C. Straw of Calgary, Alta. ; A. Entwistle and W. Wilson, Edmonton, Alta.; A. W. Shackleford, Lethbridge, Alta.; P. J. Hanifen, Halifax; Donald Gauld and Harold Bishop, Winnipeg, Man. ; R. Micheltree, Calgary; Mel Gow, Nanaimo, B. C. ; J. R. Muir, Vancouver, B. C. ; J. M. Robertson, Victoria, B. C; Cliff Denham and M. Prieswerck, Victoria; D. Borderland, Prince Rupert, B. C. ; William Novak, Regina, Sask., and others. The company proper is represented by President N. L. Nathanson, VicePresident J. J. Fitzgibbons, President Barney Balaban of Paramount, New York, Thomas J. Bragg and R. W. Bolstad, all of whom are directors, while the head office staff is represented by N. G. Barrow, F. J. Justin, B. Geldsaler, J. Nairn, Ben Cronk, J. A. Troyer, W. Kerr, L. G. Geering, M. Perry, R. G. Darby, A. MacCunn, E. Harris, Ben Whitham, C. A. Dentelbeck and J. J. Taylor. Scheduled to be guests of honor at the banquet Thursday evening in the ballroom of the General Brock Hotel are Hon. Mitchell Hepburn, Premier of Ontario; Hon. J. E. Lawson, member of the Dominion Parliament; Major John Bassett, Montreal newspaper publisher and Barney Balaban. At the final noon luncheon on Thursday the speakers include A-Mike Vogel of New York and executive representatives of each of the eight major film exchanges in Canada. Throughout the afternoon business will give way to sports open to all employes of the company, the program of competitions being under the direction of J. A. Troyer, of Famous Players' head office, as chairman of the convention sports committee. A feature of the gathering was the distribution of bonus payments to theatre managers who had earned the cash prizes by increase of business during the past year on a quota system. Added excitement was enjoyed by participation in a substantial raffle which was a side-issue of the convention. Large N. Y. Delegation Goes to Niagara Falls A large New York delegation of film company executives left yesterday to attend the Famous Players Canadian convention at Niagara Falls, Ont., and the banquet tonight. Among those attending are : Barney Balaban, president of Paramount, with J. J. Unger, eastern and southern division manager, Alec Moss and Fred Mohrhart of Paramount; Jack Cohn, Columbia president, and Abe Montague, general sales manager ; Jules Levy, RKO sales chief ; Haskell Masters, general manager of Canadian exchanges for United Artists, and Monroe Greenthal ; Matthew Fox, Universal vice-president, and F. J. A. McCarthy, Eastern division sales manager ; Roy Haines, Eastern and Canadian sales manager for Warners, and Carl Leserman, assistant general sales manager; and James R. Grainger, president of Republic. Program on Newsreels "Americans at Work" series on CBS, will reveal the workings of a newsreel camera crew on the job in the broadcast of Aug. 5. The scene will be a tunnel construction job, covered by a Fox Movietone newsreel crew. John Reed King will give the word picture of how the newsreel crew works, and meanwhile another Movietone newsreel crew will operate in taking pictures of how the radio men work. Central Ticket Agency Plans Draw Scorn (Continued from page 1) ducer has offered to set up such agency and sell tickets at a 25-cent advance. It is believed that a cer/~sj agency conducting business at an advance could gross $250,000 annually. Another plan advanced is a consolidated ticket agency similar to that used by railroads. There is little likelihood, however, that any method will be ready in time for the new season as considerable research and planning would be needed. Gustave A. Gerber, attorney for Associated Theatre Ticket Agencies, yesterday heatedly denounced a central office and stated that he might bring suit to stop it, if the attempt actually were started. Two previous attempts by producers to operate their own agencies have been made. Both failed principally because they could not obtain the cooperation of all producers, who sold to independent agencies. Music Hall Books Next Four Films W. G. Van Schmus, managing director of Radio City Music Hall, yesterday announced four films to follow "Winter Carnival" which opens there today. "In Name Only" will go into the Music Hall Aug. 3, to be followed by "Fifth Avenue Girl," "Nurse Edith Cavell," and "Golden Boy." Second week of "The Man in the Iron Mask" grossed an estimated $78,000 at the Music HalL "Andy Hardy Gets Spring Fever" drew an estimated $33,000 at the Capitol and continues there. "Mr. Wong in Chinatown" will open at the Globe Saturday. "They All Come Out" follows "Of Human Bondage" Wednesday at the Criterion. "The Ware Case" is held over for a second week at the Little Carnegie. The new "Beau Geste," starring Gary Cooper, is scheduled to open at the Paramount here next Wednesday for an extended run. TM AT Charges Hit At Rugoff & Becker Formal hearing before N. Y. State Labor Relations Board on petition of Theatrical Managers, Agents and Treasurers Union for certification as collective bargaining agency in the Rugoff & Becker circuit continued yesterday with Albert L. Greene, manager of the Oceana, Brooklyn, on the stand. Gustave A. Gerber, union counsel, introduced into evidence a series of stationery forms, each bearing the name Rugoff & Becker, in an effort to prove that the 13 houses involved were under one ownership and that all should be included in one bargaining agency. Mitchell Klupt, attorney for the employer, contends that the houses are operated by separate corporations and that each corporation is the proper unit.