Canadian Film Weekly (Mar 10, 1943)

Page 2 Address all communications—The Managing Editor, Canadian Film Weekly, 21 Dundas Square, Toronto, Canada. Published by Film Publications of Canada, Ltd., Sth Floor, 21 Dundas Square, Toronto, Ont., Canada. Phone ADelaide 4310. Price 5 cents each or $2.00 per year. Entered as Second Class Matter Those Best Tens Throughout the pages of this week’s issue you'll find the results of the voting in the various polls of the Best Ten pictures and stars. They show that Canada’s tastes in films are not altogether like those of our neighbors to the South—though mainly so. The choices reflect Canada’s historic position in relation to our USA cousins—a position described by the fellow stuck for words as being “the same but different.” For instance, eight of the ten stars chosen by Canadian exhibitors as their best boxoffice attractions in 1942 were among those picked by American exhibitors in the Motion Picture Herald Poll of The Top Ten Moneymaking Stars. Their ratings, however, were not the same. Gary Cooper, who Jed the Canadian exhib poll, was third in the USA and Abbott & Costello, who led in the USA, were second in Canada, Two of the Herald’s Top Ten, James Cagney and Gene Autry, finished outside the Canadian list, though Cagney led Power, Crosby, Autry and Lamour as the runners-up. Cagney’s failure to place may be in some measure due to the fact that his great picture, “Yankee Doodle Dandy,” hasn’t had a general Canadian release yet. There’s no doubt that his work in it had much to do with his getting sixth place in the Herald Poll. The two stars who scored in Canada’s exhib poll and didn’t in the Herald one were Walter Pidgeon and Bette Davis, the latter an evergreen favorite here. Pidgeon, being a Canadian, which, added to his work in “Mrs. Miniver’ and “How Green Was My Valley,” two pictures understandably closer to Canadian hearts, was a2 cinch His many appearances here for the Victory Loan helped to Vol 8, No. The Critics Too Though Canadian motion picture critics agreed with the American sizer-uppers, who declared themselves through Film Daily’s USA critics’ poll, on the first two pictures—“Mrs. Miniver” and “How Green Was My Valley”’—the Canadian list contained but five of tha ten chosen in the Film Daily poll. For the sake of comparison, here are both lists: CANADA USA Mrs. Miniver Mrs. Miniver How Green Was My Valley King’s Row Wake Island Pride of the Yankees The Man Who Came to Dinner One Foot in Heaven Suspicion Woman of the Year The Pied Piper How Green Was My Valley Sergeant York The Man Who Came to Dinner Suspicion Captains of the Clouds This Above All Pride of the Yankees Bambi Now, Voyager Any number of reasuns, of course, can be found in the difference in tastes, To hark back to the exhibitor poll, though Canadian theatre men voted in goodly numbers and the results can be considered reasonably accurate, it must be remembered that there were certain factors at work, the effect of which were hard to take into account. In some cases the terms may not have been generally popular and in others holdovers and Jong runs of pictures released late in the season may have held back complete distribution within the stipulated period, November 30, 1941, to December 1, 1942. Don't Forget the RED CROSS CAMPAIGN Canadian FILM WEEKLY ‘Miniver, Cagney, Lees Death Brings Garson Win Oscars Many Regrets March 10, 1943° j HYE BOSSIN, Managing dltor Baltor | (Continued from Page 1) The photographer and the writers of “Mrs. Miniver’’ also won awards. Only non-Miniver prize winners among the top-notchers were James Cagney, named best actor for his work in “Yankee Doodle Dandy,” and Van Heflin, who got the statue as the best supporting actor for his role in “Johnny Hager.” Academy President Walter Wanger opened the proceedings ee presentation of a flag indicating that 27,677 men from the movie industry now are in the armed services, Then came messages from President Roosevelt, Madame Chiang Kai-shek, Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox, Secretary of Treasury Henry Morgenthau, and others. | Bob Hope made a number of the | presentations, Walt Disney got a statuette for “Der Fuehrer’s Face,” 1942 onereeler hit. Irving Berlin got a statuette for his song, “I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas.” “Moscow Strikes Back” was voted the best documentary film, and a special certificate for the best foreign picture went to Noel Coward, for the British film “In Which We Serve.” Kent, McLaughlin Score Eight of Ten Closest to calling the critics’ Ten Best in pictures were Irene Kent of the Vancouver NewsHerald and Will McLaughlin of the Ottawa Journal. Both cinema inspectors called eight out of the ten winners. New Theatre Column In Toronto Papers A new theatre advertising. coljumn is appearing in the Toronto daily papers under the head of Allied Theatres. It publicizes attrac| tions in about a dozen houses, all of which are members of the Independent Motion Picture Exhibitors of Ontario, some of which advertised formerly in the Associated column. Nazis Execute Skouras' Nephew George P. Skouras, president of | the Skouras Theatres Corporation , of the USA reports that his nephew, Thanos D. Skouras, 28, has been executed by German Occupation Authorities in Athens, Greece, Skouras was executed “for service performed in the interest of freedom for the subjugated Greek | people,” his uncle said. | March 10, 19438 The death of Arthur Lee, who was well known and highly regarded in Canada, caused many expressions of sorrow in Toronto, home of the Canadian head offices of the film companies. Lee, who was killed in the crash of the Yankee Clipper, was a frequent visitor to Toronto. At the time of his death Lee was a partner with Oscar Hanson, a life-long friend, in the Canadian franchise of Monogram, which they acquired last summer. was 48 years old and leaves a widow, a daughter and a son. Arthur Lee was in the film business since 1912, most of his early activities taking place in Canada. He started out by roadshowing “Oliver Twist’ in Canada, Later he joined the General Film Co. as head of the Montreal office, becoming in time the Dominion manager of its special feature department. He left -Canada to join the Picture Playhouse Film Co., and before he entered the American Army in 1918 was with Gaumont in the USA. In 1940, while vicepresident and general manager, he resigned and formed Artlee Corporation. Lee was responsible for bringing many British films to Canada. Flynn Cast Again Errol Flymn has been assigned to “To the Last Man” by Warners, which will be directed by Raoul Walsh. CONTRACT SALES OFFICE PHOWE TR.1257 G™* FLOOR He ,