Variety (October 1950)

4 PICTURES Wednesday, October 25, 1950 As a means of testing the con-* r— • ■■■■'■ ftitiitionality of all censor boards, m p » rot tv the film industry ^expected to PefaTlllO FlTm 011 5,4 T OF throw its weight behind the ex- hibitor defendant in a casejnvolv-* ing straight violation of a local.; censorship regulation. Court fight ; Hollywood, Oct; 24. in the case already is Well under-; Robert Lippert, who owns 10 w'ay and stands a good chance to Screen Guild pictures made since go up the appeals ladder. to the 1946, found but from James 13 S: Supreme Court, Where tfie Petrillo what musicians’ union, desired ultimate decision will be terms are for use of these films sought on whether censorship is 0 n television.. American Fede.ra- ln violation of the First (Freedom tion of Musicians chief is still of the Press) Amendment. standing firm on payment of. 5 r r Defendant in the suit is W. L. of each station’s Class A rate card Gelling, theatre man of Marshall for time consumed to be paid into Tex., whoplayed“Pinky” despite union’s trust fund. Its disapproval by a new. hastily- Lippert offered to pay the same Organized, -censor board Local scale musicians working in picture magistrate fined the exhib $100 on received but this was nixed. Both a guilty, verdict- which was ap- KTTV and KNBH, which want to pealed to the county criminal buy the films, also balked at court. Latter yesterday Tuesday'royalty payments, preferring not. sustained the decision , and upped to set precedent. the fine to $200. Plan noW is to ^— , - . ~ ~ bring, the case to the. crimi^arap- peal court, of Texas and if the . rul- : ing is again upheld it wifi go to the U. ; S. Supreme Court. ” In the two most recent cases, involving '‘Curley” and “Lost; Boundaries/’ .the fundamental; question of eonstitutioria 1 it-y.■ was; left unanswered. Both suits, which j had been pressed by the industry’ ’ as. “test cases,” were disposed of on . technical procedural grounds by the court. . ' Industry’s position was clarified ; by Eric A. Johnston, president of t the Motion Picture Assn, of Arner- censorship, with' particular refer* ica, who, in a prepared statement, ence to the blue-pencil board es* pledged a “fight to the finish.” tablished in Chicago, was voiced Current thinking now links the by Eric A. Johnston, president of .industry with the American Civil t he Motion Picture Assn, of Amer- Liberties Union, which is on rec- i ca , before the convention luncheon ord pledging its active support to here today (24) of the Island Press restore full freedom of .the screen. Assn. ACLU had suggested the viola-. Before lashing out against the tion of some local censorship entire principle of censorship's in- regulation by a theatre but the roads on the screens freedom, manner in which this was to ma- Johnston put to use his best dra- terialize was not specified. malic know-how in emphasizing a . ■ The maneuvering must be deli- point. He identified himself as cus- cate and planned with the utmost todian of a “suspicious document” • care, it is felt, for the reason which he thereupon unveiled, jurists are known to take a dim -The document was a short film, view of “created” cases. That’s the “The Story That Couldn't Be value of the Gelling case ; The ■ printed,” which depicted the fight movement will have ACLU and for freedom of the press in colonial the industry working together, to. America. Johnston offered this as the final decision, it is understood, pointing up the irony in film cen- Sought by the Industry, as well. sorshiip, for', the story of freedom as the ACLU, is the right of free- of the : press is a “banned docu- dom from censorship under . the ment” until the censor passes on Constitutional guarantees accorded it, he said. the press. The oniy ruling on rec- ’FolloWirig the screening of the ord was handed down 35 years ago film, Johnston drew . attention to (Continued on page 13j \ w. L. Gelling, Marshall, Texas, ex- hibitor, who booked the 20th-Fox film, “Pinky,” and landed in jail ! because it went against the grain CHIT AIPP AP rAITnT with the local censorship board. dUll UU1 Ui* tUURl The board actually had not been ^ | established until the film opened, Chicago, Oct. 24. be said. The authority for its es- Pads Cut ELC Into TV Hollywood, Oct. 24. Eagle Lion classics* wants In on television gravy’, and all contracts with producers will carry clause cutting in distributor on TV rentals. Percentages will vary but William MacMillen, ELC prexy, said its cut. w ould be around 10T, Most contracts by producers with Eagle Lion, carry agree- ments for TV showing of films after 18 months to two years fol- lowing theatrical runs* Chicago,. Oct, 24. Scathing denunciation of film Decision by the Skouras circuit in the New’ York area to boob the ■ 'Italian - made : “Bicycle Thief,” despite the. film's . having beep denied a Production Code seal, is. belieyed to be the most significant break yet in the industry’s ad- , herence to the code. Skoiiras . chain, it’s pointed out, not only is ' the first * major theatre chain to play a film sans the seal but also, has an indirect tieiri with a major production - distribution company,. via 20th-Fox prez Spyros P. Skouras. . Seal was withheld from “Thief” because of tw;o sequences deemed injurious to public morals but, ac- cording to indie distributor Joseph Burstyn, the Skouras circuit will play the film in*.its original uncut version. - Filhi recently . wound . a 1 ong-ruii engagem ent- at the WOriel, N. Y. art house, but has not played either the RKO or Loew’s chains in the territory. Under the N. Y. clearance provisos, the Skouras theatres follow both Loew’s ‘and RKO. Booking of “Thief” con- sequently, means the circuit will bypass one film coming down from the other two major circuits... Only other film to play without the production code seal was Howard Hughes’ “Outlaw.” While Hughes obtained a number, of playdates for the film in indie cir- cuits and theatres, he could not get a booking in’ any major circuit. He compromised with the Motion Picture Assn, of America by re- vising '“Outlaw”, ads in order to ob- tain the necessary seal, conse- quently. when he took over control of RKO. UK Uses Clips of 21 Coming Pix for Hollywood, Oct. 24.. ;.. Metro, is utilizing clips of 21 up- coming pictures for five-reel pro- motional film. “The MG-M Story,” to be initially shown at conven- tion in Houston of Theatre Owners of •America* Print will then • be routed aroun'* country to other exhib meets and for showings to Metro exchange personnel. Picture carries about 80 percent footage in color and includes first clips of “Quo Vadis” to be shown outside of studio/projection rooms. Film opens with Technicolored footage for-irtroductipn of produc- tion chief Pore S eh ary, who de- scribes each picture: on overlay soundtrack as. sequences are flashed on screen. 1st on Agenda In SET FOR ‘ After lying dormant in. U. S. : tablishment was an ordinance 29 district courf for two^ years, the , ^ars old. Johnston related that Indie Tiffin theatre antitrust com- ! Gening was brou g ht V 0 trial, found plaint against' Balabarv Katz arjd g U iity of violating the local edict, the majors culminated Friday (20)..; an( j p a id a fine. He said the case in an out-of-court settlement. Com- b as been taken to a higher court plaint was filed in May, 1948, at on appeal which time- the northside indip;, The MPAA prexy blasted; film sought triple damages of $840,000. censorship. as a “censorship of per-, for allegedly having been deprived ' $onal liberty.. a damnable stupid ef product from 1941 until 1945. Attorney Seymour Simon, repre- senting the Tiffin, declined to state , the terms of the settlement, it is : A believed, however the majors es- n«K caped with considerably less than original, damagea. Case was slated . to be heard before Judge Walter J. LaBuy late this year. iras (Continued on page 18) in Motion Versus NSS Phi^delphia, Oct. 24. A motion for summary judgment of $450,000 against National Screen Service was filed in U. S. district court here F r i d a y. (20) within framework of the monopoly suit brought against the corporation on Twentieth-Fox prez Spyros P. [ behalf of a local independent pos- Skouras has accepted chairman- ter outfit. ship of a worldwide ; committee | : The action here, filed on behalf . established to further the educa- of the Independent Poster. Ex- tional program . of World Brother- | change, owned by Mitchell Pantzer hood. Latter is a new organiza- and Charles Lawlor, charged NSS tion formed at a meeting last j with restraint of trade by not per- June in Paris to promote world mitt ing sale of screen trailers, understanding. Skouras attended posters and other advertising me- that meeting* j dia but confining all such materials Twentieth topper will head a i to its own corporation. Jean Simmons and Rex.Harrison have been set by Gabriel Pascal for the., leads in “Androcles and the Lion.” Producer is planning to send- the’ George Bernard Shaw yarn before the cameras in Rome early in January. Noel Langley has prepared the screenplay. Pascal "will direct and Harry Horner will co-direct, Hor- ner is a Broadway ahd Holljrwood set designer and is making his debut as a megger. He has al- ready prepared the sets for “An- drocles.” Shooting willl be at the Cinecitta studios. Worldwide distribution has not been set, but will be handled in the eastern hemisphere by Pascal’s Italian partner, S. Sola, former am- bassador to the U. S. They have set up New Renaissance Films to produce the pic. New Renaissance has also ac- quired “Lead, Kindly Light/’ Vin- cent Sheean’s biography of Mahat- ma Ghandi, which Pascal plans to make after “Androcles,” He is aiming to shoot part of it in' Rome and part in India. Sheean’s deal calls for a down payment and percentage of picture profits. Pascal is now in New York to confab with his attorney, Irwin Margulies, on a Small quantity of dollar credits heeded in production of “Androcles.” | French government’s efforts to divvy the current; major company import quota among 11 distribs, instead of 10, as originally, is first' item on the European agenda of , John' G. McCarthy, director of. the international. division of the Mo- tion Picture Assn., of America.. , McCarthy left New York yester- day ‘Tuesday) on a. month’s tour that will tak£ him to France, Ger- many, England, and perhaps other countries. j MPAA is planning ho move to ’reopen the present Franco - U. S. .films agreement for a general re-, vision until the current dispute over import licenses is resolved. ; It. Has no desire to see the French < iise the issue as a bargaining point in the. overall negotiations -for a new pact. When the current quota of 110 pix a year for the major companies and 11 for the indies was set in 1948, Eagle T.iqn was not included. When EL asked permission to bring in. pix, the French made a move to throw the company - in with the majors,, which would .mean that instead of divvying the ' 110 licenses among 10 companies (they’d be divided among 11. The original 10 include the Big Eight * plus Monogram and Republic. Companies are still getting • product in under the 10-company ; divvy, but the French are putting ; pressure on to cut it out. They’ve : also ? ,adopted a number of harass- ring measures, including' cut-off - of (Continued on page 18) -—•I worldwide attempt to line .up scientists, artists, educators, labor, management arid religious leaders to build better intercultural rela- tionships, and will also spearhead the establishment of World Broth- erhood chapters in the major cities of all free countries. Move will follow the operation maintained In’ the U. S. for 22 years by the National Conference for Christians •nd Jews. Thirteen Hollywood major film producers are co-defendants with NSS. Pantzer formerly purchased trailers and advertising material from NSS. and in turn sold them to film exhibs. Some time ago NSS closed down on these sales and instead dealt directly with the the- atre ops. The move was monopolis- tic and a violation of the Sherman- Clayton antitrust act, the com- plaint charged* To Become Rogers Aide \ Evelyn Koleman, formerly pub- licity manager for Republic Pic- tures, joined Roy Rogers this week as the hoss opera star’s eastern public relations and merchandising rep. Miss Koleman had been with Republic for 15 years. Company’s existing pub-ad staff will absorb her duties, it’s understood, pending 1 appointment of a successor. N. V. to L. A. Lewis Allen Marina Berti A1 Daff Doris Dowling Gene Fowler Greta Gynt Ben Henry Eustace Holy Gordon Jenkins Dave Kapp ; Harry Maizlich Dr, Harry Martin Harry Morris Charles Morrison Joseph M. Schenck Lloyd Shearer John L. Sinn Morris Stolier Europe to N. Y. Irving Asher Eve Ashley Harold BoxalV Max Chopnick Marquise de Cuevas Jacques de Menasce Maria Eberharth John Gilbert Stokely Gray Patricia Knight Lucile Marsh Herman Milakowski Gar Moore Erich Maria Remarque Roily Rolls Michel Safra Alec Waugh Cornel Wilde . Presence of Noah Dietrich in New* York Monday (23) gave rise to reports that Hairy Brandt’s deal to purchase control of the RKO circuit from Howard Hugh es was close to the inking stage. Whether it was or not seemed to be a case of “you pays your money and you takes your choice.’* It denended on which side you listened to Despite conflicting statements of the Hughes and Brandt spokesmen, the facts of rihe matter appeared to be these: The Brandt Offer has not been formally turned down by Hughes and negotiations are still on. However, the deal is far from the signing stage and the chances do not. look bright—at least for the time being. Dietrich, Hughes* principal busi- ness adviser and board chairman of RKO, asserted he wa9 not in New York in connection with the Brandt deal arid had no comment on it. It is definitely known, however, that he met with Brandt'and Sam Dem- bow, Jr., chief negotiator for the Brandt syndicate, in a lengthy ses- sion Moridayi Source close to Dietrich, asserted that the Brandt negotiations were no farther along than they were a month ago and that it appeared unlikely that they’d progress far- ther. This spokesman declared that Hughes* 1 interests felt Brandt sincere in his efforts to buy, but that he had not been able to come up with the needed coin; No Other Satisfactory Bidders He added that there were* no other satisfactory bidders at the moment, either, and that Hughes fully expects to see his 929.020 shares in the RKO circuit go into the hands of a court-appointed trustee when the Jan. 1 deadline arrives. Hughes is under anti-tihist consent decree obligation to rid himself of his 2497? interest in either the theatre or production- distribution company.bv the end of the year, and has indicated he'll part with his theatre, stockj . . Spokesmen for the Brandt in- terests declared it was untrue that they didn’t have th,e coin to buy Hughes’ sto£k... What they didn’t have, they said, was as much money as Hughes wanted. They, expressed irritation at what they termed the RKO topper’s practice of continuing to throw in new de- mands every time they met his pre- vious terms. Nevertheless, they declared, they felt that the last thing Hughes wanted was to see the stock out of his control arid rin the hands of a. trustee. And since their bid was by far the best that lie had receiv- ed so far, they said that they were! certain of eventually making a deal. The Hughes group’s conception of trusteeship differed measurably from that of the Brandt syndicate’s. (Continued on page 22) L A. to N. Y. Lucinda Ballard George Cukor Frank Cullen Gloria De Haven Anthony Dexter Russell V. Downing Ellen Drew Michael Elkins Helen Ferguson Joan Fontaine Happy Goday Farley Granger Alfred Hitchcock Herman Hoffman Evelyn Keyes Burt McGuire Michael Mindlin Brewster Morgan Claud Morris James A. Mulvey Frederick N. Polangin N. Peter Rathvon Edward G. Robinson Lillian Roth Bernard Smith Roger L, Stevens Jule Styne Bud Thackeray Ernest Turnbull Robert Walker Waiter Wanger Loretta Young. N. Y. to Europe George Brandt Harald Bromley Edward Cooper Lew Grade Lei and Hayward Morris Helprin Jack Hylton Alfred Katz Johri G. McCarthy Haila Stoddard Louise Thoirr^s