Motion Picture News (Nov-Dec 1925)

JV o v e m her 14, 1925 2249 Zukor Honor Guest of A.M. P. A. Tells Ad Men Industry Is Too Large For Domination By Small Group of Individuals Film Men Win Appeal In Connecticut CIRCUIT JUDGE HENRY WADE ROGERS has granted an appeal in New Haven, Connecticut to the United States Supreme Court from the decision of the Federal Constitutional Court in the matter of the film taxing law, handed down last week. Judge Rogers was one of the judges in the special court which declared the law constitutional both as a revenue and police measure. The court had denied a petition for right to appeal. Documents for perfecting an appeal have been filed and a bond deposited by Former Attorney General G. W. Wickersham and E. P. Grosvenor for the film companies which were in the action. Appeal will be taken by the American Feature Film Company of Boston. Paramount Fall Convention on in Chicago The annual Fall convention of district .and branch managers of Paramount is being' held Thursday, Friday and Saturday of this week in Chicago. A special car attached to the Century leaving New York Wednesday carried the following home office executives to the convention city: Adolph Zukor, Jesse L. Lasky, Sidney R. Kent, Eugene Zukor, Mel Shatter, A." M. Botsford, Charles E. McCarthy, Walter Wanger, Harold B. Franklin, Bogart Rogers, Claud Saunders, Russell Holman, Phil Reisman, John D Clark, G. M. Spidell, G. B. J. Frawley, B. P. Schulberg, Mike Lewis, A. 0. Dillenbeck, Henry Salsbury,Edwin C. King, William Le Baron, John Butler, Joseph Seidelman, John Ragland and Leslie Whelan. Sales plans for the new season's product are under discussion and on Sunday the assembled managers will view a number of the Spring and Summer pictures which have been completed. Charles Bird Critically 111 At Home Charles Bird, former general manager of the Shubert theatrical interests in New York and later manager of the William Fox Pacific Coast film studio, is critically ill in the Bethseda hospital in his home town, Hornell, N. Y. Mr. Bird has been a patient there for several weeks but of late his condition has been getting steadily worse. Mr. Bird was a native of Hornelf and for years managed the Shattuck theatre. Ingram to Retire After Making 3 More Pictures ACCORDING to a story published in New York, Rex Ingram will make three more productions, all to be released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, at his studio in La Victorine, France, will then retire. The pictures are to be made at the rate of one a year, the first of which will be "The Magician," by Somerset Maugham. This will be followed, in 1927, by an Arabian story and m 1928 he will film Wasserman's "The World's Illusion." An international cast will be presented in "The Magician," in which Paul Wegener, Gemier, Alice Terry and Jack Salvatori will appear. ADOLPH ZUKOR, president of Famous Players-Lasky, was the honor guest of the A.M.P.A. at the organization's luncheon in New York last week. Mr. Zukor, whom members of the A.M.P.A. voted the first on the list of the picture industry's twelve greatest men, said that the welfare of the motion picture1 "is nearer and dearer to my heart than any financial gain," in an address which he made following the luncheon, held at the Hofbrau Hans. In answer to a question of Jacques Kopstein regarding control of the industry by a small group of individual interests, Mr. Zukor replied that the Film industry is too large and too powerful for any five or six individuals to dominate it. In addressing the assemblage Mr. Zukor said : "A good many tilings have been said and printed about me individually, some by men who do pot know me, lots of it by men who do, but I am satisfied that some may be present here who will agree on one thing at least to their knowledge — that I have never deliberately done anything that would hamper the progress of the motion picture. "When I first entered the picture business as an exhibitor, my family had a circle of friends. When these friends of ours found out I was in the picture business, we would see little by little that these friends dropped away, and we did not receive their invitations to call on them, and that they stopped calling on us. We did not know the reason, WLLIAM R. FRASER, general manger of the Harold Lloyd Corp. is back at his desk at the Metropolitan studio in Hollywood following a ten week's stay in New York, and confident that the west coast is on the brink of one of its greatest picture production booms. Fraser, a keen observer of conditions bases his prediction regarding the coming boom on general industrial conditions throughout the country and the consequent return to normalcy of the motion picture theatres. During his stay in the east Fraser was in conference almost continually with Sidney R. Kent, general manager of Famous Pla yers-Lasky Corporation and with Elmer Pearson, general manager of Pathe Exchanges, Inc. Among the statements made by Fraser on his return to the -west coast was one denying the rumor that has persisted for months that Harold Llovd wou'd move his production unit to New York. He declared Lloyd had no intention of deseYtrng Hollywood. "Throughout the East there is in progress a great commercial boom, which i almost certain to be felt in Southern California this coming winter," asserted Mr. Fraser. "Wall street is now reflecting this activity with a tremendous total of sales. Motion picture exhibitors are profiting greatly by this industrial movement but it except we scented if was because I had entered the moving picture business, which fifteen years ago, was somewhat degrading. 1 then remarked to Mrs. Zukor, 'Do not worry, moving pictures are all right — and some day these very people who give us the go-by may be very glad to accept us.' And 1 am very thankful that moving pictures have made such strides, that I and my family, and all of us here, can hold our heads up and be proud to be identified with screen entertainment. "I have tried to analyze just what elements were responsible for bringing the moving picture before the public in the right light, and I cannot help but acknowledge that the men who have been in charge of the publicity and advertising of this industry, are responsible for its prestige about 50-50 with the producers who have tried to make worth-while pictures. "I think the future success of the motion picture — and not one of us here can tell to what degree it will develop, though we may think and dream — depends upon how ably you men place before the public, truthfully and honestly, the things that your respective companies are undertaking to do. ".My thoughts, my methods and my desires are no different today than they were the day I undertook to make pictures. I rejoice with each individual in the industry, and with every corporation that succeeds in making a creditable contribution to our business." really is the better grade of pictures being turned out by Hollywood producers that is directly responsible for the improved conditions in the exhibition field. Chadwick Schedule Is Near Completion CHADWICK PICTURES CORPORATION is in the enviable position at this stage of the year, of having released nine of its scheduled features, with two others in production and the others lined up to be completed on scheduled time. Having completed the remaining preliminary details incidental to production, I. E. Chadwick, president of the Corporation, is returning to New York. With him President Chadwick is bringing a print of the latest completed production, "The Count of Luxembourg," which has a cast headed by George Walsh and Helen Lee Worthing. At present the west coast forces are working on "The Transcontinental Limited," a railroad romance with a cast headed by Johnnie Walker, Mary Carr, Eugenie Gilbert and Alec Francis. "The Bells," starring Lionel Barrymore, "Winning the Futurity," and the remainder of the George Walsh series will round out the Chadwick product. Fraser Sees Production Boom Says Industrial Prosperity Will be Followed by Great Activity on Coast