Variety (December 1954)

OBITUARIES HORACE L. LOHNES Horace L. Lohnes, 57. partner in Dow Lohnes & Albertson larg- est radio law firm in Washington, d ed there Dec. 23 of eorowry thrombosis.. He was probably the most important figure in Waahing- Sn radio legal circles, his firm act- afeounil before the Feder.l Communications Commission for m,nv of the nation's most proral- S y broadcasters. HI* «tensiv« estate near Vienna, Va., has been fhe locale of the annual outing of the Federal Communications Bar Assn, of which he was a past presi- ^ Born in Donnelsville, O., Lohnes attended Ohio State U. and re- ceived his law degree from George Washington U. Early this year he was named District* area chairman of a $ 4 , 500,000 drive to establish « Law Center at GWU. Surviving are his wife, a daugh- ter. a brother George, of the radio engineering firm of Craven, Lohnes & Culver, his father and two sis- ters. KEN DAVIDSON Kenneth R. Davidson, 49, bad- minton player who had worked the vaude circuits with a variety of partners, was killed in a plane crash at Prestwick, Scotland, Dec. 25 At various times, he was part- nered with Thelma Kingsbury, Don Vaughn and Hugh Forgie. Among the spots he played were the Rainbow Room, N.Y., Roxy and Loew s State Theatres, N. Y., as well as other theatres and cafes. Regarded as one of the leading badminton exhibition players, Dav- idson was returning to the U.S. from an exhibtion tour in Malaya and India. Of late he had been technical adviser for a sporting equipment manufacturer and had been a coach of the American Thomas Cup Team, equivalent of the David Cup in badminton. HARRY SINGER Harry Singer, 73, for years a film house operator in association with his brother, the late Mort Singer, died Dec. 22 in North Hollywood after a long illness. He was being prepared for surgery when the end came. Throughout most of his active years he operated theatres in Chi- cago, He also managed theatres in St. Louis and opened the Hillstreet Theatre in Los Angeles. In his later years he was a realtor in San Fernando Valley. Surviving are his wife, and a brother, Will, who once managed the Brandeis Theatre in Omaha. EDWARD B. HESS Edward B. Hess, longtime Pitts- burgh nitery and restaurant owner who operated several of that city’s bestknowp cafes in the ’20s and early '30s with his wife, the former Freda Pope, died in that city Dec. 21 after a long illness. Hess and Miss Pope flourished as tavern hosts during prohibition and in the mid ’30s became proprietors of one of downtown Pitt’s best-known res- taurants, Eddie Hess’, which they relinquished several years ago when Hess took sick. In addition to his wife, he leaves two daughters, five sisters and a brother. BERNHARD HERZMANSKY Bernhard Herzmansky, 67, dean of European longhair and pop music publishers, died of a heart attack Dec. 13 in Vienna. He was stricken while riding in his chauf- leur-drivcn car en route to his office. Born in Lang Enzersdorf, AU uf ri , a ’ he was * he 8on °* a noted publisher. Hentmansky, whose firm was founded in 1813, published works of franz Lehar and other celebrated composers. He was a former presi- dent of the Austrian Society of Author 5 , Composers and Music Publishers. ARTURO CASIGLIA Artuio Casiglia, 63, founder and " ,( : ct( > r °f the Pacific Opera Co., oied of pneumonia Dec. 21 in San . ' Born in Sicily, he came “ an , Francisco in 1922 and four n,? rs a J, er established the Pacific pera Co. Aside from batoning Pn<- re 5 u,a , r Performances of the ftihn he fre< l ue ntly conducted at c °ncerts in the San Fran- cisco area. inP, siglia ’ ^ ho was noted for aid- in fu 0Un ^ singers seekipg careers bv h?f °P erati c fWld, is survived - his wife and two daughters. llnr, H e R u RY SCHAEFER w.niri^L Scha ? fer ’ 71 • a theatrical In If ob ? assistant for nearly a century’ died Dec 23 ln chi _ c m™ A d , r esser with the touring fataih^V/ u King and 1 ” he was y stricken with a heart at- tack ln the apartment of Harold Goldberg, the show’s company manager. Schaefer had been touring with Goldberg the past 10 years with such plays as ‘’Carmen Jones,’’ “Showboat,” “South Pacific’’ and latterly “King and I.” A sister survives. KATHLEEN KEY Kathleen Key, 48, screen actress for more than 30 years, died Dec. 22 at the Motion Picture Country Hospital In California. Among her early pictures were “The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse” and “Ben Hut,” in which she played a featured role as Ramon Navarro’s sister. After playing in several Austral- ian films, Miss Key signed a Metro contract but in later years became a freelance and appeared in Lon- don and Paris before returning to Hollywood. REUBEN MELCHER Reuben Melcher, 59, theatre supply dealer, died in Kansas City, Mo., Dec. 24. He was president of the Poppers Supply Co. and the Hollywood Servetncnts Co., both located on K.C.’s film row. As one of the concession suppliers, he was associated with the theatre in- dustry for more than 35 years. Surviving are his wife, two sons, two daughters, a brother and two sisters. JOHN E. SCOTT John E. (Joe) Scott, 55, manager of the Omaha office of 20th-Fox for 20 years, died in that city Dec. 17 after suffering a heart attack. He was a past president of the Omaha Variety Club. A native of Baltimore, he was with 20th in St. Louis before coming to Omaha in 1934. Survived by his wife, four daugh- ters and three brothers. ZOFIA NALKOWSKA Zofia Nalkowska, 69, Polish nov- elist and playwright, died in War- saw Dec. 17. She was a deputy to the Polish parliament at the time of her death. Author of many books, most of which were translated abroad, she was probably known best for “The Frontier,’’ a novel, which won the Grand Prize of Poland in 1937. CHARLES E. KESSNICH Charles E. Kessnich, 67, Metro Southern district manager who retired last February, died in At- lanta Dec. 24. He had been with the company since 1918, when he joined it as Atlanta branch man- ager. He was upped to Southern district chief in 1920. Surviving are his wife, a daugh- ter and a sister. WILLIAM WALLACE William Wallace, 54, still photog-* rapher, died of cancer Dec. 22 in Hollywood. He had been a mem- ber of IATSE Cameramen’s Local 659 for 25 years and worked sev- eral years for Edward Small. His wife and daughter survive. ARTHUR W. KELLY Arthur W. Kelly, 64, former exec v.p. of United Artists, died in Nice Dec. 26. Details in film section. Mrs. Marie Celeste Stranahan, 78, who sang professionally in light opera under the name of Marie Celeste before her marriage 50 years ago, died of a heart attack Dec. 17 in Teledo. A past president of the Toledo Symphony Society, she is survived by her husband and a son. Russell H. Edsall, 56, sales man- ager of radio station WTOL, Toledo, died Dec. 19 in that "city after a two-year illness. He had been with WTOL for the past seven years, coming from WXYZ, Detroit. His wife and a daughter survive. Dr. Harry J. Linton, superin- tendent of schools in Schenectady 6ince 1946 and one of the most active educators in the use of radio and television, died Dec. 18. in that city of a heart ailment. John Alexander, 26, leader of the Johnny Ace Orchestra, was shot to death Dec. 25 in Houston. Police said Alexander was playing Russian roulette when the gun he held to his head went off. Mrs. Ellen Frances Phalr, 78, wife of Daily Variety columnist George Phair, died of a stroke Dec. 27 in Los Angeles. She had been in a cama since Christmas Eve. Mrs. Carrie Miller, 76, who as Carrie Hayes was a musical com- edy singer on Broadway and who * n several silent films, died Dec. 22 in Philadelphia. Alexander W. Dannenbaum, for- *ner president of radio station WDAS, Philadelphia, died Dec. 22 in that city. His wife, two sons and a daughter survive. Mother, 78, of Harry Mervis, for- mer legit actor, and of Norman, Charles, Jack and Ralph Mervis, Pittsburgh theatre owners, died Dec. 22 in that city. George B. Kinsey, 75, interior decorator who specialized in the- atres, died Dec. 25 in Columbus. Survived by wife, daughter and sister. Aaron Gershwin, 65, uncle of George, Ira and Arthur Gershwin, died Dec. 24, in New York. He was a retired engineer. Mother, 68, of Marvin Marx, head writer for the Jackie Gleason tv show, died Dec. 27 in Newark, N.J. Father of Sally Kettles Robert- shaw, Pittsburgh radio and little theatre actress, died there Dec. 16. Mother of screen actress Kath- ryn Grayson, died Dec. 23 in Los Angeles. Soviet Propaganda • SS Continued from pant Z lies,” Gerasimov’s report continued. “During the years of the Father- land War, the Soviet film industry, in close cooperation with litera- ture, was capable of responding to the patriotic upsurge of the So- vit people by issuing film news and full length wartime pictures. It helped the front and the man be- hind the front lines to forge the victory over the Hitlerite invaders. “The postwar years have im- posed new important tasks upon Soviet film industry. In their decisions on ideological questions, the Party mapped the way toward the solution of these tasks.’’ Increased output of brainwash- ing pix will make production of the “old fashioned” type of motion picture with romantic themes, suc- cess stories, etc., obsolete. Light comedies, adventures and films for kiddies have almost vanished. Re- port cited the success of novel writing with brainwashing theme as evidence of what can be accom- plished in films. Iron Curtain scripters criticized for “having failed to date to mas- ter the specific features of film making, and showing no particular desire to master them.” To cure errant scripters. Agitprop has set up series of “creative workshops” throughout Iron Curtain countries where writers and producers “are combining their efforts to perfect their art.” Films which “speak for peace, the great friendship of nations, and the happiness of mankind,” will be assigned top priority. Film export to be stepped up also in line with total propaganda crusade. Bambuco Continued from pat* 1 dance with an Afro-Spanish back- ground. “There are many different styles of dancing in South America,” Miss Waldo explains, “and we have seen only a very few here. These have been popularized by enter- tainers who have come north and specialized in one particular dance. But rhythms throughout South America have been strongly in- fluenced from three sources—In- dian, Negro and Spanish. As a re- sult, there are uncounted numbers of dances which could be brought to the U. S. with perhaps as much success as the mambo is enjoying now.” Among the dances are the Huino (pronounced Wino), the Crillio, a waltz with a slight off- beat, the Joropo and the Porro. These dances are largely from Co- lombia, Peru, Ecuador and Chile. A longtime specialist in South American music, Miss Waldo was persuaded by .Miss Sumac to abandon her work with her own ensemble temporarily to travel with the Sumac troupe in a fea- tured spot. In talks with audiences while on tour, she has become convinced of a growing public in- terest in the southern rhythms. Sumac tour heads east after the first of the year and the trek will be highlighted by a N. Y. Car- negie Hall cohcert Feb. 9. After the tour, Miss Waldo will return to the Coast to continue her own work and prep some recordings in which she will Introduce some of the new dance beats she feels have a commercial potency here. ■ Music Hall v SSSS Continued from page 1 uct requirements for the vast the- atre since 1946. There were two eight-week pic- tures, “White Christmas,’’ Para- mount’s first VistaVision subject, and “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers,” Metro’s opus. “Xmas” grossed $1,200,000 while “Brides” did $1,352,000. The Hall upped its scale slightly when the first C’Scope v pic was launched early in the year, and has retained this admission setup be- cause of greatly increased operat- ing costs. It’s figured that the av- erage weekly gross of the house was $149,000, although the weekly gross has dropped to as low as $ 120 , 000 . Illinois Legion SUSS Continued from page 1 sons and ideas deemed heretical and disloyal,” the statement said. "This phase of the Legion’s Amer- icanism program has received an emphasis out of all proportion to its extent and importance when compared with other Legion Amer- icanism activities in the schools and veterans hospitals.” “In concentrating on the nega- tive phase of fighting the enemy,” the announcement continued, “we have neglected the positive phase of Americanism set forth in the preamble of the American Legion . . . We must understand the prin- ciples of justice, freedom and de- mocracy that we are sworn to safe- guard.” Under the new project, “freedom chairmen” will be appointed for the various posts to set up discus- sion and reading programs based on American history. Code Seal S55 Continued from page 5 applied for code okay after sub- mitting their flings to Flick, but that’s the exception rather than the rule. Drop in imports, as gauged by the N. Y. censor’s figures, affected all but one of the eight leading producing countries abroad. France alone showed an increase, with Flick’s staff reviewing 36 French films in the 12-month period end- ing Dec. 1, 1954. This compares with 25 in 1953. Biggest drop was in imports from Britain, which went from 81 last year to 51. Germany went down from 69 to 56; Italy from 77 to 52 and Spain from 30 to 12. MARRIAGES Marie Joy to Ricky Johnson, Manchester, Eng., Dec. 11. Bride is a revue artist; he’s a cabaret singer. c Dorothea H. Reynolds to Wil- liam R. C. Weber, Miami Beach, recently. He’s a musician. Jean B. Seidler to Gregory A. Falls, Burlington, Vt., Dec. 18. Bride was formerly with CBS in New York and Boston; he’s a sum- mer theatre director. Roberta Barbara Epstein -to Sid Golden, Dec. 26, Miami Beach. He’s an announcer at WBNS, Columbus, O. Erna Rubinstein to Martin En- gels, New York, Dec. 25. Bride is. daughter of Edward Ruby, head of Ruby Film Co. Lilli Rose Brunner to Howard A. Kalmenson, New York, Dec. 23. He’s an account exec and mer- chandising manager of WABC-TV, N.Y., and son of Ben Kalmenson, Warner distribution head. Mrs. Julia Schlesinger to F. Stillman Elf red, New York, Dec. 22. Bride is widow of M. A. Schlesinger, of the Schlesinger cir- cuit in South Africa. Penny Rubin to Sol Weinberg, Newark, Dec. 26. Bride is with the Leon Newman Agency. Harriet Gross to Stanley Smer- tenko, New Rochelle. N. Y., Dec. 26. Bride is secretary to Bob Mer- rill and Kelly Camarata, music publishers. Mildred Elaine Michel to John O’Hara, Falls Village, Conn., Dec. 27. Bride is the daughter of Wil- liam C. Michel, 20th-Fox exec veepee. Dalles Favors Contlmied from pas* 1 trade is still not committed to any move. May Hurt Elsewhere Some officials believe that de- spite the State Dept.’s endorse- ment, films sent to the Soviet would take on the stigma of propa- ganda, an objectionable label since the product is fashioned strictly as entertainment and not “mes- sage.” If the pix are thus stigma- tized their circulation in other parts of the world might be Im- paired, it’s suspected. Another major consideration is the home front reaction. There’s some fear among film men that a deal would not sit well with cer- tain American groups opposed to any kind of trade with the Reds. Political antagonism in any form and from any direction to- ward Hollywood heads the list of trouble situations that should be avoided, the industryites maintain. As for actual values in selling Democracy, the Hollywood films are tough to size up. If left un- touched. the pix doubtless would represent a reflection of life on the other side of that Curtain. But, it’s asked, what can be done to prevent distortion of the screen- plays. It’s no great feat to change around meanings through dubbing and sub-titling films in the Russo tongue. Dulles and Bohlen doubtless have this angle figured out to some extent And the mere fact that they’re represented as want- ing the American films in Russia means the matter will be given top priority appraisal by the pic execs. It’s now up to the latter to call the turns. Eric A. Johnston, president of the Motion Picture Assn, of Amer- ica, worked out a deal for the sale of films to Moscow but nothing actually came of this. The Rus- sions were given long lists of titles of available properties but stalled on making their selections to the extent that the project subse- quently was abandoned in 1946. Newsreel Woes ; Continued from pate 2 duction of CinemaScope newsreels for which, like the shorts made in that and other widescreen proc- esses, exhibs may be willing to pay more. However, prospects of a C’Scope reel are dim. Three reasons are cited for this. (1) Such a reel wouldn’t be eco- nomic in the light of theatre op- erators’ apparent determination to do away with the newsreel alto- gether rather than pay higher prices. (2) A C’Scope reel would require two separate crews to shoot. (3) There is a technical problem at the lab, since any C’Scope reel would have to be in color and It’s at the moment not practical to process tint subjects at the speed required of a newsreel. The newsreels are currently Paying anywhere between 2,500 to 3,000 dates on each issue, and there are two such' issues every week, bringing the total to around 5,000. “There’s lots of undercutting go- ing on," one newsreel exec stated last week. “There’s nothing much anyontr can do about It. It’s fool- ish, of course, but not surprising considering the sad economic state of the reels.” •BIRTHS Mr. and Mrs. Dale McMickle, daughter, New York, Dec. 20. Father is trumpeter in Eddie Sa- franski orch on Allyn Edwards’ WRCA show. Mr. and Mrs. Dave Grayson, daughter, Los Angeles, Dec. 18. Father is a makeup man at Co- lumbia; mother is a former actress. Mr. and Mrs. Charles Walton, son, Pittsburgh, Dec. 20. Father’s the son of Herb Walton, ad artist for S-W Theatres in Pitt. Mr. and Mrs. Eddie Meyers, son, Pittsburgh, Dec. 20-. Mother’s Dell Saunders, a singer; father’s a mu- sician. Mr. and Mrs. Vince Boylan Jr., daughter, Pittsburgh, Dec. 21. Father’s a singer. Mr. and Mrs. Charles Dobson, son, New York, Dec. 28. Mother is Carol Reed, WCBS-TV weather- caster; father is a singer. Mr. and Mrs. James Lewis, daughter, Norwalk, Conn.. Dec. 25. Father is a member of The Mari- ners. Mr. 8c Mrs. Walter Ruckersberg, daughter, N. Y., Dec. 27. Father is managing director of Titra Sound Studios Inc.