Showmen's Trade Review (Oct-Dec 1943)

October 2, 1943 SHOWMEN'S TRADE REVIEW 5 40Hour Basic Week Retained for Detroit By WMC Decision The regional War Alanpower Commission handed down a precedent-setting decision this week in granting the plea of Detroit film exchanges for the right to remain on the 40-hour week. Under the decision the 40-hour week was established as the basic time-rule on working hours, but the exchanges still have the option of working at 42, 44, 46 and 48-hour week to suit their own needs. The film exchanges, with representatives of RKO, Paramount, Loew's, and Vitagraph taking the lead into the discussions, convinced Fred G. Palliaer, hearing the cases for the WMC, that putting the exchanges on the 48-hour week would not achieve the purpose of the Government, which is to free workers for war plants. Palliaer said each case was considered individually on its own merits. For those employing under 30 employes an earlier devision permitting them to remain on the 40-hour week was kept in effect. Palliaer said it had never been much of a question that these groups could not help the war effort by adopting the longer work week, inasmuch as they could not free workers. However, he said, the cases of the exchanges employing more than 30 were examined more closely. After studying the facts, he said, he had accepted the following arguments of the larger exchanges as proof that it would be unfeasible for them to go on the 48-hour week : That their employes worked in small specialized groups which could not be merged and co-ordinated so as to reduce the staff as a whole. That the exchanges followed a strict schedule in order to meet deadlines for distribution and that their work was completed by Friday evenings, so that the sixth day of work — Saturdays — would only call for paying of overtime with the workers having nothing to do. That many employes — especially executives and sales personnel — were already working 48 hours and more. That during special drives, which sometimes lasted more than a month, virtually all employes worked a 48-hour week or better. Film circles in Detroit hailed the decision as Government recognition that the industry plays a great part in maintainng morale. Thomas Farrington New Head Of St. Louis Amusement Co. Thomas L. Farrington, vice-president of the Lawton-Byrne-Bruner Insurance Agency Company, the largest general insurance agency in St. Louis, has been elected president of the St. Louis Amusement Company to fill the vacancy that was caused when Thomas N. Dysart, president of the St. Louis Chamber of Commerce, was killed in the crash of an Army glider at Lambert-St. Louis Field in St. Louis County on August 1st. Rhodes E. Cave of the law firm of Bryan, Williams, Cave & McPheeters, takes Mr. Dysart's place on the board of directors. These changes have been anticipated in local motion picture circles since Farrington and Cave were moved into similar spots in the administrative ranks of the companies that own the Ambassador and Missouri theatre and office buildings. Bernhard Opens Jewish Drive Joseph Bernhard, general manager of Warner Theatres in Philadelphia, was guest of honor and principal speaker Monday night at the amusement industry's dinner opening the Allied Jewish Appeal Drive in the Quaker City. Bernhard spoke on the "motion picture contribution to the war." Make Final Try for Goal With more than a thousand bond premieres staged up to Wednesday and free movie day almost certain to produce an additional 500,000 sales, exhibitors around the country made a last minute effort to complete the unofficial goal originally set up fcr the industry of a "bond for every seat." This was revealed by the War Activities Committee Wednesday on advices from the Treasury Department that many more small sales would be needed to supplement the enormcus corporate purchases. Although the campaign was scheduled to terminate the final day of September, it was understood by the WAC that any sales made by exhibitors up to and including October 2nd would be credited to the industry. A spot-check of several situations by the WAC showed that literally hundreds of theatres would reach the mark set, while others had already exceeded it. Arbitrator Looks Over Ground In Herkimer Clearance Case Arbitrator Charles J. Tobin and Tribunal Clerk John Staggs of the Albany district made an inspection tour this week of the theatres named in the complaint brought by Valley Theatre Corp., Herkimer on behalf of the Liberty Theatre, Herkimer, against Metro, Paramount, RKO Radio Pictures and 20 th CenturyFox, due to the 21 -day clearance held by Warner's Stanley and Avon and C. C. Gordon's Olympic, Utica. Arbitrator Tobin, who has concluded testimony on the case, is expected to render his decision next week. Howard M. Antevil, Schine attorney, Gloversville, is attorney of record for complainants, while former Senator Frank Wiswall argued the case for the Valley Theatre Corp. Paramount Denied Injunction To Halt Cooper Stock Sale Paramount Pictures was denied an injunction to restrain Joseph H. Cooper from disposing of Colorado theatre stocks in a decision by Judge Murray Hurlbert this week in New York Federal Court. Paramount is suing to recover one-half the stocks held in Cooper's name on Rialto, Inc., J. H. Cooper Enterprises, Inc., and Interstate Theatres, Iiic. Paramount alleges that a 1922 agreement with Cooper called for half ownersliip in the holding companies formed to take over the Colorado theatre properties then owned by Publix. A motion on Cooper's part to vacate service of process in connection with the three corporations was referred by the court to Special Master F. W. H. Adams. The court also allowed Paramount the right to take depositions of witnesses, with a proviso against delay, and at the same time stayed the defendants' examination of Paramount officials unless the executives permitted delay. Allied Booking 1 Year Old Members of the Allied Buying & Booking Circuit in Chicago are celebrating their first anniversary by giving a dinner in honor of their president, Jack Kirsch, next Monday at the Hotel Blackstone. It is the first such affair put on by the Allied circuit, and has brought large exhibitor response in the form of requests fur places at tables. Femme Sales Influence 20th Century-Fox has 18 women ad sales department heads in its organization, 16 of them officiating in U. S. exchanges and two in Canada. Cleveland Council Forms Committee to Act on Vandalism A study of whether vandalism and other evils of audience behavior can be corrected best by punitive or policing measures will be made by a committee appointed at a panel discussion last week of the Motion Picture Council of Greater Cleveland. The discussion on "Behavior in the Theatre," sponsored by the Council, included the views of Cleveland exhibitors. Moderator of the discussion was Dean Leonard W. Mayo, of the School of . Social Sciences of Western Reserve University. Participants were George W. Erdmann, secretary of the Cleveland Motion Picture Exhibitors Association ; Stuart Cagney, manager of the Broadvue Theatre, representing the exhibitors ; Miss Corda Peck, of Collinswood High School, representing the schools ; and Austin Durn and Raymond Leckner, high school students, representing the younger generation. Leckner, who is a theatre usher as well as a student, listed the offenders as whistlers, talkers, eaters, fighters, neckers and vandals. Whistlers, he said, are hard to catch. Talkers present the greatest problem because adults are the worst offenders. Fighters are easily located and are either placated or ejected. Neckers usually select the less frequented parts of the theatre and can be easily watched. Vandals work silently and in the dark. Seldom are they caught. Leckner suggested punitive measures be directed toward the parents rather than the children. He blames the parents for the bad manners of their offsprings. Mr. Cagney reported that the mere presence of a police officer in the theatre has eliminated much of the juvenile disorder in his theatre. Ray Allison, manager of the Shaker, a first-run house in a select suburban neighborhood, also threw much of the blame of juvenile disorder on the parents. Erdmann expressed gratitude to the Motion Picture Council for bringing together representatives of the educational and entertainment field so that they may know the difficulties of each branch, and work together to eliminate them. Hochstein Indictment Reveals Browne as Capone Intimate As a result of a perjury indictment against Harry Hochstein in New York Federal Court on Tuesday, it was disclosed that George E. Browne, former lATSE chief in Chicago, had connections with the Al Capone gang in 1934 and later. Hochstein, a one-time petty Chicago official, is charged in the indictment with having testified falsely before a Grand Jury during the investigation of racketeering in the film indusrty. During the trial of Browne, the indictment said, Hochstein testified that Browne and three of the Capone mob were not present in a house at Riverside, 111. leased by the defendant. In order to confront Hochstein with an instance of perjury the indictment then offered the testimony of Boris Kostelanetz, special assistant U. S. attorney general in charge of the film extortion case. Kostelanetz declared that Browne and the three gangsters not only were in the house, but that Capone himself and other members of the mob used the house as a meeting place during the years of 1934 and 1935. Bronston to Produce Stage Play Samuel Bronston, United Artists producer currently editing his first independent production, "Jack London" for November release, has branched into stage production. He will produce "Peepshow" on Broadway, in association with Ernest Pascal, author of hte play.