Motion Picture Daily (Jul-Sep 1939)

to the Picture Industry tion MOTION PICTURE M.P.P.D.A. OF AMERICA, 28 WEST 44TH ST. , NEW YORK, N . Y. {6 COPIES) First in , 46. NO. 19 NEW YORK, FRIDAY, JULY 28, 1939 TEN CENTS Gov. Horner Vetoes Duals Bill in Illinois Called Unconstitutional; City Law Probable Springfield, 111., July 27. — Gov. Henry Horner today vetoed the Sandquist bill passed by the recent General Assembly which would have limited film shows in Illinois to two hours and 15 minutes and outlawed double features. The Governor called the bill unconstitutional. It was favored by independent exhibitors in Chicago. "In an opinion the Attorney General informs me that this bill is unconstitutional," Gov. Horner said. "He states that our Supreme Court has consistently decided that the power of the General Assembly to regulate a lawful occupation extends only to such measures as are reasonably necessary and appropriate for the accomplishment of a legitimate object within the domain of the police power ; that the police power cannot be invoked unless the purpose to be attained has a rational and clear relationship to the public health, morals, safety or welfare; that this bill contains no reference to the duality or character of motion picture films exhibited, and consequently, was not intended to protect public morals, safety or welfare ; and that, in the absence of competent scientific proof to the contrary, there is no reason to believe that public health will be adversely affected by (Continued on page 6) Manual Is Ready For Golden Jubilee The press book for the industry's golden anniversary observance will go out to exhibitors throughout the country about the middle of next week, according to plans of the committee in charge. About 18,000 copies of the manual will be distributed by mail. The observance is scheduled to begin about Aug. 15, culminating with the anniversary week, Oct. 1 to 7. All material for inclusion in the manual has been completed and is now before the Advertising Advisory Council for approval. The book will have 24 pages and will include numerous suggestions for tie-ups with merchants, products and industries ; a reproduction of a message to be delivered by Will H. Hays on Aug. 12 to 15, formally opening the observance and in(Contimted on pai/c 6) Films Escape Sales Tax in Washington Olympia, July 27. — Motion picture film was exempted by the State tax commission today from Washington's two per cent sales tax. Exchanges had planned to pass the tax along to theatres if the tax commission held that films were subject to the levy. Ask Spain to Modify New Imports Rules American distributors are hopeful of obtaining a modification of the recently announced Spanish import regulations and may seek negotiations with Spanish officials with that as an objective in the near future, it was learned yesterday. Under the present regulations profitable operations in Spain will not be possible, according to representative viewpoints in home office foreign departments. Regarded as particularly drastic are the provisions calling for production of one quota picture in Spain for every 10 imported; the complete money embargo and the specification that revenue on any picture made in Spain, regardless of its origin, must be returned to Spain to be impounded. Home offices received official noti (Continued on page 2) Small Producers Band to Checkmate Bullying by Unions Los Angeles, July 27. — The Hollywood studio labor situation, already marked by inter-union and intramural factional quarrels, today assumed a more muddled hue than ever. Independent producers, it was learned, plan a determined drive to obtain from labor organizations concessions in wage scales and conditions which prevail at the major studios. One of the principal reasons for the dearth of independent production, according to producers, is the rise of labor costs. Independent producers claim that an unfair situation exists in that they are forced by labor organizations to pay the same scales as larger studios. "We are fed up with the bullying tactics of certain labor officials who have come here from Chicago and other places and have threatened to put us out of business," one producer said. "If necessary we shall go to the district attorney's office." The Independent Motion Picture Producers Association, dormant for some time, this week met to re-elect I. E. Chadwick president, and name C. C. Burr, vice-president, and Harry Webb, secretary-treasurer. These and Ben Judell, Sam Katzman and A. (Continued on page 6) More Trust Suits in Fall, U. S. Promise AGVA Seeks to Unionize Vaudeville Performers Organization of motion picture stage presentation performers will be one of the first moves to be made by American Guild of Variety Artists, the union which received the charter of American Federation of Actors. One of the charges against the A.F.A. by Associated Actors and Artistes of America, the parent body, was the alleged A.F.A. failure to unionize such actors. Despite recurrent efforts to revive vaudeville, stage presentations have declined almost to the vanishing point. RKO, one of the pioneer circuits in vaudeville, today has no houses with stage shows. Loew's and Paramount have two each, and National Theatres have only a few. Name bands, where employed, have raised grosses considerably, but the restricted number of top-notchers and constantly rising salary demands have minimized the profits. Harry Brandt, having used name bands in the Flatbush, Brooklyn, for 13 weeks, will resume the policy there when the house reopens in the Fall. Inclusion of the Windsor, Bronx, Audubon, Manhattan, and Carleton, Jamaica, will guarantee four weeks' booking and Brandt is seeking to extend this to 10 weeks by including the Hippodrome, Baltimore ; Rialto, Newark ; State, Hartford, and others. Similar 10-weeks' booking plan is under consideration by the Minnesota Amusement Co. Desire for names has also led to some stage shows which use as their principal feature stars of the screen nr radio. Since such stars are invariably members of either Screen Actors Guild or American Federation of Radio Artists, both 4-A affiliates, it is believed that A.G.V.A. will have considerable aid in organizing the remaining performers on such shows. Threat of refusal of the headliner to appear is used to aid the unionization process. M urphy Probes Income Tax Matters, Too Washington, July 27. — Additional anti-trust suits against the film industry are being prepared by the Department of Justice and will be initiated in the Fall, it was disclosed today by Attorney General Frank Murphy. Discussing the anti-trust activities of the Department, Murphy revealed that in addition to the Los Angeles situation, which will be submitted soon to a grand jury there, other investigations are being conducted in other key cities throughout the country. These investigations will form the basis for other prosecutions. Disclosing that the Treasury Department has referred three cases involving Joseph M. Schenck to the Department of Justice for investigation, Murphy said that several of the principals in the Twentieth-CenturyFox case, which involves Schenck, (Continued on page 4) Oklahoma Trust Details Demanded Oklahoma City, July 27. — At a hearing today Federal Judge Edgar S. Vaught granted the Griffith Amusement Company and affiliated companies until August 20th to file memorandum briefs on their motions filed last week to make more definite certain charges and asking for a bill of particulars in the government's anti-trust suit against the Griffith circuit which asks dissolution of the chain and its reoganization into small independently controlled situations. The Government was given fifteen days after August 20th to file its briefs. The defendants were given five days after the fifteen days to file an answer in rebuttal. Griffith Amusement Company is ioined by Consolidated Theatres, Inc.; R. E. Griffith Theatres, Inc. ; Westex Theatres, Inc., and L. C. Griffith, H. T. Griffith and R. E. Griffith, all codefendants in the suit which alleges they have combined to freeze out independent theatres in Oklahoma, Texas and New Mexico. Judge James Cochran of Ames, Cochran, Monnet, Hayes and Ames represented the defendants.