Variety (December 1954)

12 IXTEBXATIONAE, 'VARIiTY'r LONDON OSIHCI I tt. Martin's Olac«, Trafaliar Square Paris, Nov. 30. . As seven new legit presentations opened during the last two weeks, . five look set for good to excellent runs on the fine cfix and word-of- mouth to follow. Two shape to be around for only a short time. Play- wrights "scoring are, Moliere -and Corneille, and George Bernard Shaw, Federico Garcia Lorda and Ugo Betti all fairly recently, de- iunct. The Theatre National Populaire has given a rugged resurrection to Corneille’s declamatory- “Cinna” about love, politics and plotting in ancient Rome; Though primarily heavy and Wordy in its dramatics; it benefits from. hearty perfbri anfces by Jean Vilar as , the world- v'eary Augustus and Silvia Monfort as the revengeful Emilie. It is easy to see why this has never been adapted to the. Anglo-Saxon stage, but in France it is classic and has had unanimous salutations from the crix; Another rep company; the Jean- Louis Barrault-Madeleine Renaud troupe, has brought back Moliere’s “Le Misanthrope” to the Marigny for excellent results; This dramatic comedy benefits from ringing per- formances and a full measure of the subtlety and delicacy of verse,. It looks like another SRO addition to the healthy rep of. the company this season, with Jean Giraudoux’s “Pour Lucrece” and Anton Tche- kov’s “The Cherry Orchard,” also of hit proportions. Barrault-Renaud company has another feather in its legit cap with the first Paris rep of the . late Ugo Betti's “Irene Inriocente,” In a fine; adaptation by Maurice Clav- el,. this fascinating tale of love and innocence makes for interesting offbeat theatre. It plumbs the in- ner depths of desire, love, and hate with excellent writing, brilliant staging and fine thesping. This is now at the Petit Marigny, the small experimental, theatre set up by the company last year, which really comes into its proper function and aegis with this offering. Another little theatre, the Hu- chette, also scores a personal tri- umph with Federico Garcia Lorca’s drama ot sterility, “Yerma,” via a faithful adaptation by Jean Camp. Director Guy Shares has performed a veritable tour-de-force in staging this fresco drama on a two-by-four stage. Crix have done handsprings over this, and it restores the little theatre name which sunk of late With the shuttering of its foremost exponent, the Theatre Babylone. Theatre Gramont has a piquant version of. George Bernard Shaw’s “Arms and the Man” (Le Hero Et Le Soldat) which makes for nice entertainment even if if doesn't completely catch the spirit of the original. Rene Dupuy has thesped and directed this with style and wit. It is in for a nice Welcome by legit-goers here. ‘Pampanilla’ Looks Strong New additions, “Ce Cher Abel” (That Dear Abel) by P. Tiglio and E. Morel, and a new operetta; “Pampanilla,” at the municipally, bankrolled Gaite-Lyrique, by Paul Nivoix, Andre Hornez and Jacques- Henry Rys, are of ordinary boule- vard calibre. They look set for fair to moderate runs. “Abel,” at the Monceau, has the telegraphed, fa- miliar situation bit about a joke- stef millionaire who has clauses in his will .stipulating that his three ex-ex-mistresses will have to marry men entirely unsuited to them. All turns out well with the practical joker wittingly bringing happiness in the van of. the carryings-on caused by his testament. This looksrio hold this boulevard house for awhile with its usual clientele ;Who only want some diversion. Piece has not even been presented ■to .the crix here, and this would not have helped it much: “Pampahilla” snapes as the usual Operetta-type spec, still liked by the French in spite of its vintage tint, but which would be anathema for U. S. patrons Who have seen a great evolution in musicals since the turn-of-the-cehtury. This has all the oldhat bits about a mythical South American country, the hero being mistaken for the dictator and the various ^complications before hero and heroine combine, for the happy ending. This is produced d la the Folies-Bergere, and Mayishness puts .this in, .the class ©f.pEobably beingpopularamong-visiting: prov- incials' and ordinary ^theatregoers.- *■ 4 - * —— — - BOT Prexy Won't Name Defaulters of Quota Londori, Nov,. 23. Insisting that information re- ceived. was: confidential, the Board bt Trade prez refused in the House of Commons last week, to divulge the names of picture theatres Which had failed to fulfill tlieir re- quirements. Peter Thorneycroft ex- plained that, on one ..occasion he named 23 out of 770 cinemas which had not reached their first picture commitments. But he considered that was a wrong thing to do an s d lie did not propose to repeat it.. It had never been the practice of the BOT, he added; under this or the previous government to is- sue such a list because failure to achieve the quota did not neces- sarily involve any offense. London, Nov. 23. The lineup of seasonal Christ- mas entertainment is now: taking positive shape: First to open will be the blades panto at the Empress Hall, “Cinderella on Ice;” which preems Dec. 2, With Tommy Trin- der and Sonya Kaye. There will be a second ice panto at Wembley. For the second year running, the only West End pantomime will be Val Parnell's production at the Palladium'. This year he’s staging “Mother Goose,” starring Max By- graves, Richard Hearne and Peter Sellers. Both’ Bertram Mills and Tom Arnold have their annual circuses at Olympia and Harringay, respec- tively. Other seasonal productions include “Peter Pan” at the Scala Theatre, the Shakespearean Me- morial Theatre production of “Toad: of Toad Hall’’ at the Princes, and “Noddy in Toyland” at the Stoll. ■'•: Preem of the latter is being spon- sored by the London tent of the Variety Club and the. management is donating the house to under- pVivileged children. Vera. Lynn is to appear as a guest star in the new Lew & Les- lie Grade pantomime, “Babes in the Wood,” starring Sally Barnes and Hal Monty, set to play three weeks here at Granada Theatres commencing on Boxing Day. Miss Lynn, who has been resting for some months after her U. S. trip and long run i the musical, “Lon- don Laughs,” is to play 12 weeks’ vaude next year.. During Decem- ber she will play a few dates in Holland and Denmark; COL PIX SPENDING ON BRITISH PROD. HEAVY London, Nov. 30. Max Thorpe, managing director of Columbia Pictures in Britain, who returned here from N. Y. last week, reported that a considerable slice of the. Col’s $10,000,000 allo- cated to. finance independent pro- duction will be spent in this coup; try. Apart from releasing all War- wick Productions pix latest, "A Prize of Gold,” is due for . 1955 re- lease), Columbia will also distrib- ute Dayid .il. Rose’s Coronado pro- duction,. “End of the Affair.” . In production are two 1 other pix for Columbia release, One is “The Prisoner,” starring Alec Guinness, and the other, “Deadlock,” a Mike Frankovich production. Two more Warwick pix for Columbia, are scheduled for next year. Both Will be in C’Scope and Technicolor. They are “Safari! Story,” and Cockleshell Heroes." TV Brit’s No. 1‘Enemy'? Glasgow, Nov. 23. Dr. William. Boyd, vet educa- tionist and former lecturer in edu- cation . at Glasgow u:, said here that tv is “enemy No. 1 of the! social life of the British people.’’ •He- described . it as • a * “devil^ which had got -hold of most people and kept* them “gaping at-a screen • instead of < ^meeting -their .. fellows and enjoying social, life.? * Liquor Plugs Banned From Mex Newsreels Mexico City, Nov. 23. All liquor publicity is totally banned from newsreels with the enactment of the new federal sani- tary code. This ban is about the same as that which applies to ra- dio-tv. However; with the latter rum may be ballyhooed on the air. between 10 p. m. and 6; a. m. be- cause the code considers that youngsters don’t get air shows dur- Commercials in newsreels are irig that time; But it feels that the moppets see newsreels all the time, also limited, but not more than i5% of. a reel’s running, time. None can be °n the screen for. longer than 20 seconds. Franco-Italo Confab Keeps Co-Frod. Pacts In Force Till March Paris, Nov. 23. .The ninth Franco-Italo parley on film accords ended after a four day confab between Jacques Flaiid, head of the Centre National De La Cinematographic here, and Eitel Monaco and Nicolas De Pirro, repping the Italo govern- ment and film industry. Meeting decided on a suspension of any. agreement until after the Italian government votes its new Film Aid Laws. Thus, the accords on coproduction have been kept in foi’ce until next: March and the regular film; agreements until Dec. 31, 1955. Uncertainty about coproduction has come about because of changes in the Italian attitude towards the treatment of this type of pic. The Vatican has openly questioned the content of these films, and Italo thesps are beginning to balk at the great number of French actors be- ing used. Some French producers think the aim of the setup, which was primarily to take advantage of double backing and aid for pro- ducing prestige films, has not worked put so well. Too much hy- brid. arid mediocre production is blamed. The coming changes in the Italo Film Aid Laws, still un- known, has kept the accords in abeyance. Meanwhile, doubt prevails with many production companies here as to the outcome of numerous pro- posed .films i the accords are stalemated, Franco-Italo films are still the basis of the big specs, now* enjoying public favor here. Six out of the top 13 .Gallic gross- ers last year were coproductions. So it looks as if the setup would not be curtailed. Restrictions are on the way, however, and there ikely will be an industry self- regulating censorship committee n Italy as has recently been ‘ormed: here by the Syndicat Des Producteurs. Certain difficulties, such as Franco-Italo pix, produced in Italy, getting sheared before they are sent here for dubbing, are also be- ing looked into. Exchange of films, including coproductions, is usually about 50 for each country with Italy in for about 7% of . the French gross on its straight pix and France tapping about 12% of the Italo market. Also discussed, according to Flaud, was the .setup, of IFE as a Gallic distrib outlet in the U. $, This will be the .forerunner of more intense foreign distrib; coopera- tion with each country helping the other in spots where they have the strongest setups; This may go into effect in N. Y. Rossellini Starts On Second Opera in Rome Rome, Nov. 23. Roberto Rossellini began re- hearsals last \veek on his new operatic stint, direction of. Ilde- brando Piszetti’s “La Figlia Di Iorio,” based on a play by Gabriele P’Annurizio. Opera preems Dec. 4 at the Naples’ San Carlo Opera House, Where Rossellini’s previous operatic effort, “Joan at the-Stake, with irigrid Bergman, also opened ate last year. M^ss. Bergman joins her husband from London, Where both have pre- sented “Joan.” . Immediately fol- lowing the Naples preem, the Ros- sellinis embark for Barcelona where .a series of-performances of “Joan’*-are skedded; tlien move on to Sweden and ‘later to Belgium, returning to Rome next April. Lat- est Bergman-Rossellibi pic, “Fear,” is -already being -released in Ger- many .where- it .was made. Brit. Trades Council Asks Less Sex in Pix Stockton-on-Tees, Eng., Nov. 23, The British Trades Union Con- gress will be asked to approach the large cinema circuits with an appeal for more restraint on films of sex, crime and violence. A meet- ing of Trades Council officials and local bodies passed resolution condemning films of sex, crime and violence as “having a degrading.ef- fect on the character of those who see them.” T. A. Westwater, council chair- man; said it was now a more topi- cal issue because of the nationa agitation against horror comics'’ “There is no question thalt these films have an effect on children’s minds,” he said. “We think that when so much money is Spent to try to educate people to a decent standard, others ought hot to bfe allowed to upset that standard.” .Frankfurt, Nov. 23. Warner Bros, in ‘Germany has just setup Warner Bros. GmbH, a German company whose business it will be to prodiice German films and! import films from Italy and France for Warner release in Ger- many. With the limitation set bn the number of U. S. films each major company .can 1 " release ^an- nually, in Germany, Warners has from 20 to 24 of its own pictures set Tor release here on its 1954-55 schedule. . This number can , be considerably increased via new German company, not restricted solely to WB California product. Move emulates Columbia, which has had a success in Germany due to producing German, pix arid im- porting other foreign films for German release.. This is called Columbia GmbH. It has worked out beneficially in relations with the Gennan exhibitors to offer home-made features as Well as those brought in from California. Columbia is planning a 60-40 split on its 1955 schedule of Hollywood and European films, in Germany. VARIETY TENT BACKS- ‘STAR’ LONDON PREEM London, Nov. 23. Ah attempt to emulate the Holly- wood spectacular style preem is to be made next year by the Londori tent of the Variety Club, When it sponsors the first night of Warner Bros.’ “A Star Is Born,” to aid the Actors’ Orphanage. Every available star is being re- cruited for mass personals, A the scene inside arid outside the thea- tre will be described by a; corps of expert commentators, and there will be the familiar showmanship trimmings of searchlights, etc. The premiere is skedded for the end of February or early March at the Warner Theatre. Meantime, James Carreras, Chief Barker of the tent; has accepted art invitation to serve in that ca- pacity in 1955, subject to confirma- tion by the new crew to be chosen at the election night dinner next Wednesday (1). About 20 members of the tent allowed their names tp go forward as potential crew merif- bers at the nomination lunch; in- cluding Ben Henry, Max Thorpe, Kenneth Hargreaves, Tom O’Brien, M.P., and Nat Cohen. ♦ Glasgow, Nov. 23. Two American musicals and the usual routine crop of pantomimes make up the 1954 yearend festival season in Auld Lang Syne theatres. The U, -S’, musicals are “South Pacific,” With Patricia Hartley arid Nevil Whiting, at the Empire The- atre, Edinburgh, and “Guys and Dolls,” which will play both Glas- gow and. Edinburgh- . The one British musical is “Love from Judy,” iri which. Jean Carson, now in the U. S. for Max Liebman ty dates, will star at the. Lyceum, Edinburgh; opening Dec. 14. Empire Theatre, Glasgow; re- turns to revue policy, presenting “Wonderful Time,’’ a twice-nightly show with Dickie Valentine and Bonar Colleano. Supporting vaude acts;will be changed fortnightly. Howard & Wyndhpm, Ariglo- Scottish theatrical group bossed by Stewart Cruikshank, holds almost a monopoly in the pantomime field, with traditional juve shows at Edin- burgh, Aberdeen, Glasgow and elsewhere. H: & W. have also signed up majority of the Scot- comedians, linking them in pairs [ and some unusual teamirigs. For instance, Jimmy Logan, young comedian (nephew of Ella), is shar- ing the lead with Durican Macrae, legit comedy actor, at the Alham- bra, Glasgow, and Alec Finlay makes his debut as a pantomime [ Dame alongside Stanley Baxter at 1 Theatre Royal here. Two senior comedians, Harry Gordon and Jack Radcliffe, are coupled iri “Dick Whittington” at the King's Theatre, Edinburgh, while Dave Willis, bankrupt come- dian making comeback to gai coin, makes his bow as a panto- mime Dame at His Majesty’s The- atre, Aberdeen, where he will share top with Jack Anthoriy, Scot come- dian currently on an Arrierican- Cariadian tour. Robert Wilson, tenor (and also iri U. S. curyeritly), tops at the Tivoli Theatre,- Aber- deen, Where a revue will be staged Oyer Christmas arid New Year, with Johnny Victory as comedian. Fraser Neal, designer-impresario, is putting in . a Christmas panto- mime with Irish corriedian ; Billy Stutt at Gaiety Theatre, Ayr, and another with Glasgow comedian Pete Martin at. Her Majesty’s; Car- lisle. Fred Collins Productions Will stage a pantomime With Denny. Willis arid Don Arrol at the Pavilion, Glasgow. Resident; shows aire set for sirialler theatres, includ- ing, an all-Scotch production at the. Metropole here. Perth Theatre Co. will revive the Brandon Thomas farce, “Charley’s Aunt.” First, arena-style pantomirne on ice in Scotland is set to open at Murray field Rink, Edinburgh, Dec. 17. It is “Humpty Dumpty on Ice,” presented by Holiday On Ice. (Gt. Britain) Ltd. Rattigan Plays to Aussie London^ Nov, 23. An Australian tour of two Ter- ence Rattigan plays, “The -Sleep- ing Prince” and “Separate Ta- bles,?' has been set via a deal closed last week between Garnet Carroll and H.. M. Tennent. The tour opens April 9 With Ralph Richardson an^ Meriel Forbes playing the Olivier-Leigh roles in Prince” and the ' Portman^Leigh- ton parts in “Tables.!’ i-. /.. \ Sybil Thorndike arid Lewlt-Cas* son, Who are already in. Australia, will, join .the. company. HOnS’ NET $710,176 FOR LAST FISCAL YEAR Sydney,'Nov. 23. Major, pix chain, Hoyts, has turned iri an increased, profit for the year ended last June 30. Net adds up to $710,176. Trading profit rose by $44,877 to $897,440, before depreciation. Common shares re- ceive the biggest slice of the profit or $322,875. Accumulated profits of previous years provide a further $225,000. Biggest common shareholding in the Hoyts circuit is reputed 40 be 20th-Fox;' Wilson Barrett Rep Co. Mulls Canadian Tour Edinburgh, Nov. 23. The Wilsori Barrett Co., stock group, is iriullirig a tour to Canada. Wilsori Barrett, actor-manager and head of company, said he Avill Jly to Canada Dec. 10! “I am taking a holiday but will also look aroiind for theatres,” he told Variety. The Barrett group has run sea- sons of repertory at Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen legit the- atres for the last decade. Com- pany has been -a “nursery” for many thespers who have since made names in films and bit thf ■stage. Barrett in a grandson, of -the noted thesper-of -the 'saine name 1 , •creator of “The Silver King” 'and >