Showmen's Trade Review (Oct-Dec 1949)

8 SHOWMEN'S TRADE REVIEW, November 26, 1949 LITIGATION Back in the post-Revolutionary War days, when a new United States was struggling to take shape, the Founding Fathers wrote the Constitution amidst such wrangling and haste that they forgot some very important considerations. As a result 10 Amendments, known as the Bill of Rights, had to be rushed through. The first of these insures freedom of speech. Back in the post-Civil War days, a Congress which had freed the slaves rushed through, against considerable opposition, a fourteenth amendment, which among other things forbids any state to deprive anyone of his property "without due process of law." This week in Atlanta, the two amendments were cited in a suit which marks the first direct attack on censorship of motion pictures to be filed since pictures began to talk. Producer Louis deRochemont, irked over the fact that Censor Christine Smith had banned his "Lost Boundaries," filed suit in federal court asking that the Atlanta censor law be declared unconstitutional because it violated both these constitutional amendments. (Out in Ohio, though not authorized to do so by law, Ohio censors have extended their activities to the ads on a movie, using the censor power to hold up a picture whose advertising is objectionable to the censors.) In the Government suit, the Big 3 — Warner Bros., 20th-Fox, Loew's' (MGM)— filed a rough draft of the decree which is being held confidential by the Justice Department, and RKO got a further amendment of its consent decree until Feb. 16, 1950 to get rid of joint ownerships. Faced by refusal of several of its partners to sell, RKO was said to be considering selling its stockholdings outright to bidders, or to seek through court action to compel its partners to dissolve the corporations and sell the assets. TELEVISION Si Fabian's Brooklyn Fox turned schoolroom last Tuesday when it presented an hour showing of United Nations General Assembly for 4,000 students of Brooklyn's ninth grade. Result: Technically — Not too good; Educationally — Some changes suggested by viewing teachers; older audiences for the subject matter suggested by Fabian Partner Sam Rosen, who wants to try again; Good Will — Tops. The Federal Communications Commission announced this week that there would be no more temporary licensing of theatre television, presumably for special events. This would not affect those now operating under license, presumably. Late this week Fabian's Brooklyn Fox was said to be negotiating with DuMont to telecast the Notre Dame football games, but the price seemed to be the main hurdle. EXHIBITION Smarting under a 30 per cent box-office tax — 20 per cent federal, 10 per cent state —which applies to the bulk of movie tickets sold in Mississippi, exhibitors of that state this week were preparing to do something about it. The "something" is a planned all-out attack on the state admission tax by arousing public resentment through a letter-writing contest. All exhibitors are asked to participate and use their screens to announce to their patrons a contest offering a fii-st prize of $1,000 and a second prize of $500 — both in bonds — for the two best letters on "Should I have to Pay 15 Times More 'Sales Tax' on My Movie Tickets Than I Pay on Most Other Purchases?" The contest is scheduled to run in December (P. 9) . Meanwhile a more cheerful note was sounded in Overland, Mo., where the mayor, in the face of refusal by the Board of Alderman to rezone an area so that Fanchon and Marco could build a 1,000car under-skyer, was planning to take the question to the people through a referendum. And Drive-in Operators, Inc., of Georgia, meeting in Atlanta, reelected R. J. Barnes as president and general manager, while the Motion Picture Theatre Owners of St. Louis, etc., are going to open a film row office with Myra Stroud as managing secretary. In Chicago, jallopy nights and Old Timers' nights are helping boost business during the pre-holiday slump. DISTRIBUTION Both Paramount and 20th Century-Fox this week were reliably reported to have moved towards solving the print shortage. Paramount has raised its print orders from 325 to 375; Fox is said to be working 400 prints on a feature. In the field of change Robert Gillham stepped up to national ad and publicity director for Selznick and Vanguard, replacing, Paul McNamara, resigned, and J. Cheever Cowdin resigned as Universal board chairman, after reported disagreement with the Nate Blumberg interests which were backed by Principal Stockholder J. Arthur Rank. GENERAL First voice to be raised this week in senatorial circles against the excise taxesT was that of Sen. Alexander Wiley (R., Wis.), who said he would seek reduction next term. And switching from the financial to the question of morals. Bishop William A. Scully (Catholic), head of the Episcopal Committee on Motion Pictures found that motion pictures were getting worse, but that the U. S. product was less the sinner than the foreign import. He urged Catholics to "support and patronize the good and decent films in Hollywood and abroad." Meanwhile the Catholic Christophers were offering $10,000 for the best movie script in the Nov. 21, 1949-Nov. 1, 1950 period. Financial: Twentieth Century-Fox, net for 39 weeks ending Sept. 24, 1949, $8,200, 013, or $2.80 a share, comnared with $9,119,613 or $3.12 a share for the same 1948 period. Reason for the drop: Losses taken for devaluation and for the stockholder suit settlement which attacked the bonus deal of Charles Skouras and others in National Theatres. Fox also declared the following dividends $1.12 1/2 a share of Prior Preferred, 37 ¥2 cents a share on Convertible Preferred, 50 cents a share on common, all payable Dec. 1. RKO, net loss for third quarter $287,809 compared to net loss of $2,257,888 for corresponding period, 1948. Net profit first nine months, 1949 $1,919,228, compared to net loss same period 1948 of $356,024. Technicolor, dividend of 40 cents a share on the common, and a special dividend of 40 cents a share — both payable Dec. 20. Fox, Paramount Increase Prints To Solve Shortage Paramount and 20th Century-Fox have both been quietly increasing the number of prints alloted their exchanges for each feature until their print shortage situation — subject of almost universal exhibitor complaint in recent months — has been more or less eliminated in recent months, reliable sources indicated this week. At present Paramount, which once issued 325 prints to a top feature, has run the number up to 37S, a figure which Paramount sources declared would be more or less constant. Up to 400 Twentieth Century-Fox, whose General Sales Manager Andy W. Smith, Jr., months ago had said the company was working out a new print plan, but who declined to discuss it, is reliably reported to be issuing orders for 400 prints on every 20th-Fox feature. Unofficial sources placed the former Fox print order at 275 to 325 a feature. The increase is said to have resulted from the formal complaint made by the Theatre Owners of America, which took up the matter last September at its Los Angeles convention. On Sept. 15, 1949, the distributor-exhibitor relations committee, headed by Ted Gamble, reported on the matter to the floor, recommending that each distributor increase his print allocations to all exchanges it operated. Film Export Business Off With the exception of 16-mm. film business abroad. United States exports of motion picture films and equipment were off during the first nine months of 1949, the Commerce Department revealed this week in Washington. There was a drop of more than 30 million linear feet of raw 35-mm. stock, projector business was off by one-third and booth equipment dropped even more sharply the figures revealed. Sixteen-millimeter positive features, however, went up to 24,340,801 linear feet valued at $683,452 in 1949 compared to 14,969,734 feet valued at $417,621 in the same period last year. Export of 16-mm. negative reached 2,165,321 feet valued at $111,246 compared to 1,513,260 feet worth only $69,081 in the corresponding 1948 period. Cowdin Quits Universal Board Chairmanship J. Cheever Cowdin this week resigned as board chairman of Universal, with his resignation to take effect Dec. 31, 1949. Cowdin, who had been serving without a contract in recent months, will remain as a financial consultant to the company. INDEX TO DEPARTOENTS Advance Data 31 Audience Classifications 22 Box-Off ice Slants 22 feature Booking Guide 26 Feature Guide Title Index 26 Hollywood 24 Newsreel Synopses 25 Pictures Started Last Week 31 Selling the Picture 14 Shorts Booking Guide 33 Theatre Management 19