Boxoffice (Apr-Jun 1962)

DISTRIBUTORS LIST 40 FILMS FOR JULY-AUGUST RELEASE Lineup Is in Addition to 20 Slated in June for Summer Playdates By FRANK LEYENDECKER NEW YORK — Exhibitors will have a choice of 40 new features for release by the nine majors, plus Buena Vista, Continental Distributing and Embassy Pictures, during July and August. These are in addition to the 20 June releases, most of wliich will be playing throughout the summer. The 40 July-August releases for 1962 are exactly the same number as the 40 available dm-ing these two months in 1961 but eight less than the 48 new ones available during this period in 1960. MANY FAmLY FEATURES Among the outstanding pictures aimed at the family trade are “The Music Man,” picturization of the famed Broadway musical hit, which is scheduled to play through the siunmer at the Radio City Music Hall; “Five Weeks in a Balloon,” Irwin Allen comedy-adventm-e film; “Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation,” another ideal family film; “Hatari!” an African adventure film starring John Wayne; “Big Red,” a Walt Disney live-action film about a dog; “Constantine and the Cross,” made in Italy; “Marco Polo,” adventure film made abroad; “Panic in Year Zero,” another adventure film with Frankie Avalon; “Jack the Giant Killer,” ideal for the youngsters; “Tarzan Goes to India,” filmed in that country, and “Damon and Pythias,” made in Rome — the largest number of pictures aimed at the youngsters, teenagers and family groups. All except “Panic” are in color. Comedies designed for adult patrons include “That Touch of Mink,” starring CaiY Grant and Doris Day; “Boys’ Night Out,” starring Kim Novak, James Garner and Tony Randall; “The Notorious Landlady,” another Kim Novak starrer with Jack Lemmon and Fred Astaire; “My Geisha,” fhmed in Japan with Shirley MacLaine and Yves Montand starred, and “Boccaccio ’70,” the three-part picture starring Sophia Loren, Anita Ekberg and Romy Schneider, the last a subtitled film. SOME TOP ADULT FILMS Important dramas for adults include “Hemingway’s Adventures of a Young Man;” “The Spiral Road,” a Rock Hudson starrer; “Poe’s Tales of Terror;” “'The Interns,” from the sensational novel; “Two Weeks in Another Town,” filmed in Rome with Kirk Douglas starred; “I Thank a Pool,” a Susan Hayward picture made in England; “The Counterfeit TVaitor,” starring William Holden, also filmed abroad; “Bird Man of Alcatraz,” starring Burt Lancaster; “The Miracle Worker,” picturization of the stage hit; “Guns of Darkness,” filmed in England, and “Merrill’s Marauders,” made in the Philippines. In addition to the 12 pictures mentioned above that were filmed in Europe or Way Cleared for Merger Of Decca and MCA NEW YORK — The way has been cleared for the merger of Decca Records with MCA, Inc. The Decca stockholders approved by a vote of more than 80 per cent of the stock of the merger proposal, according to the tabulations completed on June 18. MCA shareholders previously had voted in favor of the action. Under the terms of the deal, one share of MCA convertible preferred stock and one-third share of MCA common will be exchanged for each common share of Decca. For many years, MCA has been the largest talent agency and television producer in the nation, but by the end of September the company will have terminated its talent agency activities and will concentrate on television and film production. abroad, “Day of the Triffids,” “The Frightened City,” “Operation Snatch,” “The Hands of Orlac,” “What a Carve Up,” “The Valiant,” and “Information Received” were made in England while the documentai-y, “The Sky Above — ^the Mud Below” was made in Dutch New Guinea. Broken down by companies, the JulyAugust releases will be: ALLIED ARTISTS— July— “The Frightened City,” made in England with Herbert Lorn and John Gregson starred; August — “Day of the Triffids,” made in England in color, starring Howard Keel and Nicole Maurey. AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL— July— “Poe’s Tales of Terror,” in color, starring Vincent Price, Basil Rathbone and Peter Lorre, and “Panic in Year Zero,” starring Ray Milland, Jean Hagen and Frankie Avalon; August — “Marco Polo,” made in Italy in color, starring Rory Calhoun and Yoko Tani. BUENA VISTA— July— “Big Red,” in color, starring Walter Pidgeon. COLUMBIA — July — “The Notorious Landlady,” starring Kim Novak, Jack Lemmon and Fi’ed Astaire, and “Zotz!” starring Tom Poston, Julia Meade and Jim Backus; August — “The Interns,” starring Cliff Robertson, Suzy Parker, Michael Callan, James Mac Arthur and Haya Harareet, and “The Three Stooges in Orbit.” CONTINENTAL — “Operation Snatch,” British comedy starring Terry-Thomas and George Sanders; August — “The Hands of Orlac,” made in England starring Mel Ferrer, Dany Carrel and Felix Aylmer. Also for August is the French film, “A Life” (Une Vie) starring Maria Schell. EMBASSY— July— “The Sky Above— the Mud Below,” documentary in color filmed in Dutch New Guinea; “What a Carve Up,” a British comedy with Kenneth Connor and Shirley Eaton, and “Boccaccio ’70,” three part film made in Italy starring Sophia Loren, Anita Ekberg and Romy Schneider; August — “Strangers in the City,” made in New York City, and “Constantine and the Cross,” filmed in Italy in color, starring Cornel Wilde and Christine Kaufmann. MGM — July — “Boys’ Night Out,” in color, starring Kim Novak, James Gamer, Tony Randall and Janet Blair; “Damon and Pythias,” made in Italy in color, with Grant WilUams and Don Burnett, and “Tarzan Goes to India,” filmed in that country in color, starring Jock Mahoney; August — “Two Weeks in Another Town,” filmed in Rome in color, starring Kirk Douglas, Cyd Charisse, Edward G. Robinson, Claire Trevor and George Hamilton, “I Thank a Fool,” made in England in color, starring Susan Hayward and Peter Finch, and “Savage Guns,” in color, starring Richard Basehart and Alex Nicol. PARAMOUNT — July — “The Counterfeit Traitor,” filmed in Europe in color, starring William Holden and LilU Palmer, and “My Geisha,” filmed in Japan in color, starring Shirley MacLaine, Yves Montand, Edward G. Robinson and Bob Cummings; August — “Hatari!” in color, filmed in Africa, starring John Wayne, Elsa Mai-tineUi, Red Buttons, Hardy Kinxger and Gerard Blain. TWENTIE'TH CENTURY-FOX— July— “Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation,” in color, starring James Stewart, Maureen O’Hara, Fabian and Marie Wilson, and “Air Patrol,” with Willard Parker and Merry Anders; August — “Five Weeks in a Balloon,” in color, starring Red Buttons, Fabian, Barbara Eden, Peter Lorre and Cedric Hardwicke, and “Hemingway’s Adventures of a Young Man,” in color, starring Richard Beymer, Susan Strasberg, Dan Dailey, Eli Wallach, Ricardo Montalban, Arthur Kennedy and Paul Newman as guest star. UNITED ARTISTS— July— ‘“The Miracle Worker,” starring Anne Bancroft and Patty Duke; “Jack the Giant Killer,” in color with Kerwin Mathews and Judi Meredith, and “The Valiant,” British film starring John Mills; August — “Bird Man of Alcatraz,” starring Burt Lancaster, Karl Malden, Thelma Ritter and Betty Field, plus the national release of UA’s two-a-day films, “West Side Story” and “Judgment at Nuremberg.” Also a July reissue package of “’Ti-apeze” and “The Vikings.” UNIVERSAL-INTERNATIONAL — July — “That Touch of Mink,” in color, stari-ing CaiT Grant, Doris Day, Gig Yoimg and Audrey Meadows, and “Information Received,” made in England with William Sylvester and Sabine Sesselman; August — “The Spiral Road,” in color, starring Rock Hudson, Bm'l Ives and Gena Rowlands. WARNER BROS. — July — “The Music Man,” in color, staning Robert Preston, Shirley Jones, Buddy Hackett, Hermione Gingold, and Paul Ford, and “Merrill’s Marauders,” made in the Philippines in color, starring Jeff Chandler and Ty Hardin; August — “Guns of Darkness,” made in England, starring Leslie Caron and David Niven. 4 BOXOFFICE :; June 25, 1962