Canadian Moving Picture Digest (Jan 21, 1956)

PAGE TWO Ou the Beam (Continued from Page 1) dicted equal success for it in Canada. At the invitation of Gordon Lightstone, Paramount’s genial Canadian G.M., I stole two hours out of a busy schedule one day last week to catch a private screening of Hal Wallis’ latest production, “Rose Tattoo,” co-starring Anna Magnani and Burt Lancaster. Who says “Crime Does Not Pay?” Never have stolen minutes proven so rewarding; for two hours I sat spell-bound watching one of the most magnificent performances by an actress that it has ever been my privilege to see. Now, at last, I know what Lightstone has been raving about these past several months, ever since he saw some of the rushes on the picture. “Magnani the Magnificent,’ they call her, and how magnificent she is, as she gives out with a performance that is in a class by itself. If I were to tell you that a female, well past the blush of youth, not at all beautiful or even pretty in the Hollywood sense of the word, with a figure that screams for the assistance of a girdle, unkempt, untidy, and with a coiffeur that would drive Antoine of Paris to the brink of suicide, could still exude an aura of sex-appeal so powerful that it is almost indecent, you would think me crazy with the cold, and normally you would be right. But go and see Anna Magnani in Paramount’s “Rose Tattoo” and then try and give me an argument, Several weeks ago I attended a private screening of the new Columbia picture, “Picnic,” starring William Holden, Kim Novak and Rosalind Russell, with Betty Field, Susan Strasberg and Cliff Robertson. Filmed in CinemaScope and Technicolor, with superlative production by Fred Kohlmar and outstanding direction by Joshua Logan, “Picnic” is one of the finest pictures ever to come out of the Columbia Studios. Definitely Academy Award material, the picture should prove one of the company’s biggest grossers in several years, exceeding “On the Waterfront” and “Caine Mutiny.” One scene alone, the picnic scene from which the film derives its title, is a classic of entertainment. And just to prove that when they set their minds to it, the British can turn out a comedy equal to Hollywood’s best, JARO have in current release the Technicolor VistaVision production, “Doctor at @ Sea,” starring Dirk Bogarde, Brenda DeBanzie, and James Robertson Justice, and with a new French gal, Brigitte Bardot, that given a series of proper roles, may well prove the “hottest” article to come out of France since the original “Mademoiselle from Armentieres.” These are just a few of the really outstanding motion pictures I, myself, have been able to catch in the past few weeks. There are more, many more, ready for release, or headed our way in the not too distant future. Newsweek Magazine, in its current issue, devotes four pages to a Movies Special Report, including a special article on Director John Huston. The Newsweek article _ lists eleven pictures as being included in the coming year’s best bets. These eleven are “The Ten Commandments” (DeMill-Para.), starring Charlton Heston, Anne Baxter and Yul Brynner, for which Paramount top officials are predicting a world gross of anywhere from $50,000,000 to $100,000,000; Tolstoy’s “War and Peace” (Ponti De Laurentis-Para.), starring Audrey Hepburn, Henry Fonda and Mel Ferrer; Edna Ferber’s “Giant” (Univ.-Int.), starring the late James Dean, Rock Hudson and Elizabeth Taylor, directed by George Stevens; Jules Verne’s “Around the World in Eighty Days” (Mike Todd-U.A.), starring David Niven, Cantinflas, Noel Coward, Martin Carol, Marlene Dietrich and Frank Sinatra; “The Spirit of St. Louis” (W-B), produced by Leland Hayward and directed by Billy Wilder, and starring Jimmy Stewart as Charles Lindbergh; “The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit” (20th-Fox), starring Gregory Peck, Jennifer Jones and Fredric March; Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “The King and I’ (20thFox), starring Deborah Kerr and Yul Brynner; Columbia’s “Picnic” which we have already discussed; “The Benny Goodman _ Story” (Univ.-Int.), starring Steve Allen, one of TV’s hottest personalities, and Donna Reed; “The Swan” (MGM), a headline attraction starring Grace Kelly and Alec Guinness; and “The Conquerors” (Hughes-RKO), starring John Wayne and Susan Hayward. Others not included in the Newsweek list, but which we know are certain to be smash box-office hits, as well as outstanding entertainment pieces include Rodgers & ~“pICECT Hammerstein’s “Carousel” (20thFox), starring Gordon MacRae and Shirley Jones; “Bhowani Junction” (MGM), starring Ava Gardner and Stewart Granger; “Anything Goes” (Para.), starring Bing Crosby, Donald O’Connor, Jean maire, Mitzi Gaynor and Phil Harris; “Helen of Troy” (WB), starring Rossana Podesta and Jack Sernas; the new Lucille BallDezi Arnas film “Forever Darling” (MGM), co-starring James Mason, and many, many more. Looks like 1956 is going to be the BIG year for BIG pictures! NEWTON (Continued from Page 1) fewer and better pictures, calling for less use of the censor’s scissors. Hollywood and British pictures have required little censorship but some continental pictures — notably French and Italian — need changes before being shown in Manitoba, Mr, Newton said. However, the French movie industry is beginning self-censorship too. Sex is not the main target of the snipping. More often, sections of films depicting sadism or brutality are cut. WRIGHT (Continued from Page 1) twenty years, has resigned effective immediately. Mr. G. P. Wright, the announcement continued, formerly of Toronto and branch manager of the Vancouver office, who has been with the company for many years, is returning to Toronto as Toronto Branch Manager. Charlie Backus who has _ been with Empire Universal for many G. P. WRIGHT vears as booker in Vancouver has been appointed Vancouver Branch Manager. It is the policy of Empire Universal that all promotions should be made within the personnel of the organization, the statement concluded. JANUARY 21, 1956 MISS CANADA (Continued from Page 1) ity ever awarded to any Miss Canada winner since the contest’s inception. This year’s Miss Canada could easily be a skyrocket to fame for some lovely, young Canadian girl. The Rank Organization hopes that she will prove to be of the calibre necessary to build a star. Final arrangements on the operation of the contest were completed this week, and it is anticipated that the 1956 Pageant will be the greatest ever. Entry forms and rules will be available at all Odeon Theatres across Canada and local preliminaries will be held at Odeon Theatres in each city and town within the month of May. Winners of local preliminaries will compete in provincial semi-finals on the 12th, 13th and 14th of June. The provincial winners from across the Dominion will then proceed to Hamilton, Ontario, for the Grand finals in July. When Miss Canada appears at the Miss America contest, she will have already been screen tested by The Rank Organization. Drive-Ins Increase Use Of Ad Films The drive-in theatre will pile up more than its former share of ads in 1956, say the commercial film distributors. Drive-ins have increased from six in 1946 to approximately 230 in 1955, reports Fred Stinson, sales manager of Adfilms. “It is a consistent and rapidly expanding market,” he says. TV does not interfere with this boom, according to B. Spero, assistant sales manager, Audio Pictures. “TV is at its poorest in the summer, and people like to get out of the city away from the heat.” Spero explains: “The drive-in is a natural for certain products. It is an excellent market for automotive, oil and gas products because anyone who goes to a drive-in must have a car. Since drive-ins have playgrounds and help solve the baby-sitting problem, they appeal to the family unit.” More manufacturers are becoming aware of the drive-in’s potentiality as an ad medium. One large U.S. agency has produced a slide film to educate its own account executives on the value of the drivein as a market. Latest figures available from the Dominion Bureau of Statistics show that drive-ins were the only motion picture exhibitors to show increased receipts in 1954,