Canadian Film Weekly (Sep 29, 1948)

Page 8 Canadian FILM WEEKLY Sketch of Twentieth Century Theatres’ Future Home To be located on the south side of Bloor Street, just east of Church, this building will house Twinex Century Theatres and its asso ciated organizations, Century Theatres, among them ‘Twentieth Inter Theatre Services and Exhibitors Booking Association. It will also hold of next year. Toronto. the head offices of International Film Distributors. It is hoped that it will be ready in May This sketch shows only the front of the building, which will occupy a large area. The company’s present offices are at 21 Dundas Square, Odeon-Danforth Ties In With Army Week An effective tie-up with Canadian Army Week was arranged by Jim Hardiman, manager of the Odeon-Danforth in Toronto, recently, which resulted in tremendously increased grosses. Co-operation of the Canadian Army was secured to attract attention to the run of “Against the Wind,” while spotlighting the army recruiting campaign. The open lobby front of the Danforth was camouflaged with sandbags and an art front designed to represent a battle sector. A six-pounder anti-tank rifle was on display beside the boxoffice and suspended from the roof was a paratrooper in full kit hanging from an open parachute. Inside the lobby was a complete display of the equipment issued to a recruit in the army, as well as field equipment. Campaign followed a week of indoor ballyhoo for the picture previous to and after the trailer of the film in which the theatre was blacked out, sirens screamed and planes roared overhead dropping bombs that shrieked down and exploded with loud concussions and brilliant flashes of light. Autry Signs Pact With Columbia Gene Autry Productions and Columbia Pictures have signed 4 new contract calling for six high-budget outdoor films each year for the next seven years. All will naturally star Gene Autry and all will be shot in a new process called Monochrome. "Highlights Of UN" New Astral Release “Highlights of United WNations,” a film produced by the Department of Information of the United Nations Organization, is being distributed by Astral Films in Canada. A documentary on the work of the Organization, it deals with such matters as the General Assembly in regard to Palestine; a resolution on warmongering; a conference on freedom of information; the Indonesia story; Gandhi’s death; the Polish-Austrian relief agreement; and other matters on the agenda. In issuing the film the aim was to make known to the world what the UNO is doing and is a bid for the support of the people for its aims, for as the film says “We can work it out together, or fight it out alone.” Three of the top circuits in Canada have already booked the film. Three Directors Set For Paramount Pix Three directorial assignments for pictures scheduled to go before the cameras before the end of this year have been made by Paramount, Alexander Hall has been signed to direct the Bob Hope comedy “Easy Does It,” in which Rhonda Fleming will have the feminine stellar role. “The Broadway Story,” Betty ' Hutton’s next starring picture, will be directed by John Farrow. William Dieterle has been signed to direct “Bitter Victory,” which Hal Wallis will produce for Paramount. Argue Tax ‘Unfair" Before City Council Dave Rothstein, owner of the Roxy and York Theatres in York: ton, Saskatchewan, and Alderman W. J. Johnston, manager of both theatres, argued before City Council that the imposition of an amusement tax on admissions to theatres was “unfair” and discriminatory. They contended that the Federal Government had stepped out of the field for that reason and because it had been strictly an emergency war measure and that the city should not try to reapply the tax. They also stated that Yorkton theatre’s admission prices were the lowest of any city in Saskatchewan and they were pledged to hold those prices at that level, but if the city imposed an amuSement tax it would automatically release the theatres from that pledge to the Federal Government and they could raise prices. Council tabled the matter until the return of the alderman who had originally proposed the tax to make up the budget deficit caused by higher costs. Argosy To Produce Film In Africa Argosy Productions, the John Ford-Merian Cooper company, will produce Cyril Hume’s “The Great Adventure” in British East Africa next Spring. The venture will be finance with frozen sterling credits. Film is first of a series of overseas adventure projects that will not be directed by Ford, outside directors being engaged for each one. September 29, 19438 UN Asks Greater Pic Coverage (Continued from Page 1) tion of such films in nations requiring them. The request was in one of several recommendations made by the film sub-commission of UNESCO at its recent meeting in Paris. ‘ Ross McLean, Canada’s government film commissioner, attended the conference as a member. Besides recommending the elimination of taxes and import duties on educational films, UNESCO countries were also urged to establish information and news services on film production, distribution and use and to maintain a film reference library as a sort of “show window.” UNESCO itself was asked to arrange for funds for local language versions of educational motion pictures and scholarships for technicians. The survey found a scarcity of good entertainment films for children. The film sub-commission issued an appeal to countries where feature-length motion pictures were made to produce at least one feature-length children’s entertainment film in 1949 for international circulation, the production to be based on an internationally-known children’s story. It was also urged that action be taken to facilitate the movement of newsreel units, provide the unit personnel with international professional cards, protect them against arbitrary expulsion and promote the widest possible access to news sources both private and official without discrimination between national and accredited foreign newsreel cameramen. The sub-commission believed that UNESCO should promote, in countries with a high proportion of illiteracy, the use of mobile anits fitted with 16 mm. projection equipment as well as, where possible, record players, recording instruments, radio receiving sets, microphones and amplifiers. The sub-commission felt that entertainment films had a cultural mission especially in bringing about mutual understanding between peoples of the world. This presented problems, including the fact that a number of Latin American countries wanted to widen the variety of films and requested more Europeanproduced motion pictures. However, the distribution of Buropean films in those areas was not organized and the variety was small. The sub-commission 38 seeking the co-operation of Euro pean distribution firms in this matter. —