Canadian Moving Picture Digest (Nov 20, 1954)

Page scan 0003 from Canadian Moving Picture Digest

Record Details:

Title:
Canadian Moving Picture Digest
Date:
Nov 20, 1954
Volume:
Canadian Moving Picture Digest (Nov 20, 1954)
Leaf #:
0003
Language:
English
Subjects:
Motion Pictures, Film Industry Trade Magazine",Canad
Collection:
Canada, Hollywood Studio System, Early Cinema, and Global Cinema
Format:
periodicals
Contributor:
Media History Digital Library, Canadian Picture Pioneers, Paul Moore and Jessica Whitehead
Coordinator:
Media History Digital Library
Description:

Canadian Moving Picture Digest

Editors: Merrick R. Nutting (1917-18), Raymond S. Peck (1918), Ray Lewis (1918-19 and 1920-54), Walter Greene (1919-20), Jay Smith (1954-57)

Canadian Moving Picture Digest (1917-57) was initially a Montréal-based rival of the first film paper in Canada, Toronto-based Canadian Universal Bulletin (1915-18, edited by W.A. Bach 1915-17, J.W. Cambridge 1917-18, Raymond S. Peck 1918). The two periodicals were combined in 1918, keeping the Digest name, but moving production to Toronto with Peck as editor. Canadian Moving Picture Digest assumed The Bulletin’s volume numbering and always claimed 1915 as its year of origin. Ray Lewis (née Rae Levinsky) was a writer and playwright, who spent time in early Hollywood’s publicity departments. She briefly took the Digest helm in 1918, then long-term editor, later owner and publisher, from 1920 until her death in 1954. Under Lewis’s leadership, the trade paper claimed to serve as a voice for independent exhibitors and advocated for a Canadian cultural presence in cinema, particularly emphasizing British films as a way to keep a distance from Hollywood. Lewis's editorials were notable for their advocacy, wit, and critique of American dominance in the Canadian film market. While initially positioning herself as an outsider, she became integrated within the industry and a true insider. She even had an ongoing correspondence with Canadian Prime Minister R. B. Bennett, advocating for the industry as a whole and supporting British film imports. She was well-known at Toronto’s Dundas Square film row as well as in New York and Hollywood. Variety’s Sime Silverman called her “the Girl Friend in Canada,” and she delighted when U.S. writers not “in the know” presumed “Ray” was a man’s name. Lewis was later an inaugural member of the Canadian Picture Pioneers, eventually the group’s first female president and Pioneer of the Year. After she died in 1954, her son Jay Smith took over editorial duties until Canadian Moving Picture Digest was bought by Nat Taylor’s Film Publications of Canada in 1957. Taylor incorporated the legacy journal into a joint masthead for Canadian Film Weekly (1942-70), which subsequently dated its roots back to the 1915 origins of the film press in Canada.

– Jessica Whitehead and Paul Moore, March 2024

Further Reading

  • Whitehead, Jessica, Louis Pelletier and Paul Moore, “‘The Girl Friend in Canada’: Ray Lewis and Canadian Moving Picture Digest (1915–1957).” In Daniel Biltereyst and Lies Van de Vijver, eds., Mapping Movie Magazines: Digitization, Periodicals and Cinema History, 127-52. London: Pagrave-Macmillan, 2021.

Date Added:
May 23, 2024
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Ou the Geam (Continued from Page 1) The three Canadians, who received suitably inscribed silver bowls, were Harvey Harnick, Abe Cass and “Dutch” Leyit. While detailed information of the sales meeting is not available at this writing, it is understood that main topic of discussion at the meetings was sales policy for the new product, and screenings were to be held of the company’s first three CinemaScope productions “The Long Grey Line”, Three For The Show” and “The Violent Men.” Columbia wound: up the 1953-54 sales year with a gross of ever $80,000,000 an all-time high, and company executives including both Harry and Jack Cohn are confident that the 1954-55 season gross will go even higher. The sensational business being racked up by “Caine Mutiny” and “On The Waterfront” so far, lends credibility to their optimism. TELEGRAM (Continued from Page 1) “Starting Monday, November 15, The Telegram will: (1) Expand the entertainment section by several additional columns of news, reviews, photos and features. This space will be used to bring together the movie column; dramatic and music reviews and news now spread through the paper; plus additional pictures and news and feature stories, including a new Hollywood column and a weekly children’s entertainment column. “(2) Terminate the understanding whereby the exhibitors of firstrun films are given a picture in the Saturday entertainment section and pay for the cost of the engrayings. (3) Appoint Ken Johnson, who has been writing the daily Fun Fare column for the last two years, to be responsible for the entertainment section and to work in close co-operation with the advertising department to assure the best possible presentation of both editorial matter and advertising. “The immediate result of this policy will be that film and other entertainment news, features and pictures (in addition to Fun Fare) will be highlighted daily instead of Saturdays only. Pictures to support the opening of first run films will be selected and sized for their eye appeal and will be scheduled for the maximum benefit of the theatres. The films supported will be rotated in the fairest possible ‘Clyde manner to all concerned . . . the readers and the advertisers. “From week to week, The Telegram will be further expanding and brightening its coverage of entertainment. First will be the arrival from Vancouver within ten days of Gilmour, Canada’s best known movie reviewer, to conduct the column currently being written by Ken Johnson. “Other and equally important additions will be made to the entertainment staff within the next few weeks, “We are confident that the improved coverage of entertainment will be reflected in* more readers for The Telegram . . . more circulation naturally reacts to the benefit of the advertisers, who are encouraged to appropriate more dollars to attract more and more of our readers . . . a chain reaction which benefits us all. “You are conscious, of course, of the phenomenal circulation growth of The Telegram during the last few years. In answer to scores of recent inquiries from the entertainment industry, we are taking this opportunity to inform you that our circulation has increased by 51,488 in the last two years to a total of 265,781. This establishes The Telegram as Canada’s second largest daily newspaper. “We look to the day — in the not too distant future — when The Telegram will be pre-eminent as the No. | entertainment guide in the Canadian newspaper field. We know this is not going to be easy, and to attain this objective we are planning regular roundtable discussions with the entertainment industry. We would ap preciate your comments — pro and con — as we proceed to our goal,” EXCITING FARE (Continued from Page 1) Equipments, General Theatre Supply Co., Rogers-Majestic Electronics, Radiant Mfg. Co., Canadian Theatre Chair Co., Perkins Electric, Theatre Poster Services, Sainthill-Levine Co., uniforms, Laval Enterprises, and S, Evans & Sons, stonework and Jandscaping. Among the confectionery and soft drink exhibitors will be CocaCola, Orange Crush, Pepsi-Cola, Borden’s, and York Confections, while giveaways will be featured by Theatre Premiums Limited, The film companies include 20th Century-Fox, Paramount, EmpireUniversal, Peerless, J. Arthur Rank, and Astral, to date, as well as Associated Screen News and Film Art Trailers. “DIGCECT _ NOVEMBER 20, ig:, Myers Appoints Black As Fox’s Canadian Circuit Sales Manager It has been announced by Peter S. Myers, Canadian division manager for Twentieth Century-Fox Corporation, that Cecil Black has been appointed Canadian Circuit Sales Cecil Black comes to Twentieth Century-Fox with several years of experience in the distribution and exhibition fields of the Motion Picture Industry in Canada. He graduated from the University of Manitoba in 1935 and joined the staff of Empire-Universal as b»oker in the Winnipeg and Toronto branches until 1938. Later he was transferred to the Winnipeg branch as salesman. In 1943 he joined the Canadian Active army where he attained the rank of captain. After his discharge in 1946, he returned to Empire-Universal head office as manager of the playdate and contract department. In the same year he was appointed Calgary branch manager. In 1950 he left the distribution field and built and operated the Northmain Drive-In in Winnipeg. The following year, he returned to Empire-Universal as supervisor of the Western Canadian branches leaving his position to join Twentieth Century-Fox. CAPAC And BMI Want Fees From TV In 55 The Composers, Authors and Publishers Association of Canada and Broadcast Music Inc. have both applied for authority to collect performing-right fees from television stations in Canada in 1955, the applications to be dealt with by the Copyright Appeal Board at Ottawa next January. CAPAC has proposed TV program schedules against CBC outlets on a basis of revenue and area population and, for privatelyowned stations, 134 percent of gross revenues only. BMI has asked permission to collect a flat $1,800 a year from each private TV station. No change is proposed in radio-station fees by either society. Romeo and Juliet “Romeo and Juliet,” the J. Arthur Rank presentation, will have its premiere at the Sutton Theatre, New York, Dec. 22nd. FOR SALE OR LEASE 500 SEAT THEATRE TECUMSEH Estate to be settled Contact Horland Rankin O’Brien Real Estate Chathom, Phone 334. Manager. CECIL BLACK 3 Color RKO Features Before End Of Year Five productions, each representing a different form of screen entertainment and all in color will be released nationally by RKO between now and the end of the year, it was announced by Walter Branson, world-wide sales manager. Pictures are being released in an order contrasting the entertainment potentials of.each. Following its. world premiere in Houston Nov. 11, “This Is My Love” will go into immediate release. On Nov. 19, “Cattle Queen of Montana” will be distributed nationally. “Underwater!” in Superscope, will open soon after its debut Dec. 21 at the Fox, St. Louis. For the Christmas holiday, RKO will release Michael Myerberg’s “Hansel and Gretel.” “Passion” went into release at the beginning of this’ month. TV LINKS (Continued from Page 1) for seven decades only in the venerable opera house on Broadway and 39th St. became a festive occasion in such widely separated communities as Philadelphia, Chicago, Indianapolis, St. Louis, Denver, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Thanks to closed-circuit television, the largest paying audience in the opera’s history paid its way in to take part in an inaugural night. There were theatres in the Bronx and Brooklyn as well as in such cities as Albany, Buffalo, Camden, Baltimore, Washington, Richmond, Pittsburgh, Erie, Detroit, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Milwaukee, ete. Te.