Canadian Film Weekly (Aug 18, 1954)

Vol. 19, No. 31 August 18, 1954 CANADIAN FILM WEEKLY Page 3 August 18, 1954 HYE BOSSIN, Managing Editor BEN HALTER, Production Editor Address all communications— The Managing Editor, CANADIAN FILM WEEKLY 175 Bloor St. East, Toronto 5, Canada Entered as Second Class Matter Published by Film Publications of Canada, Limited 175 Bloor St. East, Toronto 5, Ontario, Canada — Phone WAlInut 4-3707 Price $3.00 per year. SOME COOLERS (Continued from Page 1) dean of Canada’s movie press commentators. McLaughlin covered the subject in his column, Twixt Studio, Screen, under the heading: “It’s Warmer Outside.’”” Wrote he: “Air conditioning and cooling systems have contributed greatly to the comfort of moviegoers during the warm Summer months. Properly installed and operated, these gadgets have increased attendances during seasons that used to be called the ‘dog days’ by exhibitors who watched patronage fall with each rise in outdoor temperatures. But air conditioners and cooling systems in many Ottawa theatres are in need of adjustments and better supervision by management in these days of quickly changing weather conditions. Numerous complaints have been received by this department, including a letter to the editors which appeared in The Journal earlier this week protesting against Summer ‘freezing’ in the theatre. And we know from personal experience that these complaints are quite justified. The day was cold and wet when we attended one of our most ‘modern’ movie palaces to review the opening show. A sign in front of the theatre said it was ‘20 degrees cooler inside.’ It was—sending us out again with a chill which took several weeks to shake off. Any theatre manager with a thought for the comfort of his patrons would have shut off his cooling system and turned up the oil-burner on that particularly miserable day.” Aldo Ray To Star In "My Sister Eileen’ Aldo Ray, absent from Columbia for the past several months due to loanouts for two pictures, will return to his home studio to play one of the comedy leads in the musical version of My Sister Hileen, in which Janet Leigh will play the title role. Aldo will be seen as ‘The Wreck,” punchy exfootball player. Blake Edwards and Richard Quine, who will direct, are now doing a final polishing job on the screenplay. Fred Kohlmar is producing. News Notes GOLDSTEIN UA PROGRAM TO GO ON Producer of over 100 pictures in the last six years, Leonard Goldstein died of a cerebral hemorrhage in the Cedars of Lebanon hospital, Los Angeles recently. He was stricken while in conference with Spyros SkKouras and Darryl Zanuck, for whose company, 20th Century-Fox, he had made a series of films. His company, Panoramic Productions, had recently concluded an agreement with United Artists for the release of ten features, two of which, Black Tuesday and Stranger on Horseback, were completed last week. Robert Goldstein, brother of the deceased, and Robert L. Jacks, vice-president, will carry out the program. The late producer made The Egg and I, and the Francis and Maw and Paw Kettle series, as part of the 57 features under his jurisdiction while at Universal-International. BARRON LEADS PARA ANNI DRIVE Gordon Lightstone, general manager for Paramount in Canada, recently announced the appointment of Winston Barron as Dominion captain of Paramount’s 40th Anniversary Sales Drive, which will begin on August 29 and extend for 14 weeks through December 4. The drive slogan is “Paramount’s 40th Anniversary— A Salute to the Future.” Barron, who is in charge of public relations and advertising for Paramount in Canada, also is editor and commentator for Canadian Paramount newsreel. Preparations under way for the drive envisage one of the biggest events of its kind in the company’s 40-year history. “A. W. Schwalberg Anniversary Week,’ August 29-September 4, in tribute to the president of Paramount Film Distributing Corporation, and “Paramount Week,” September 5-11, will highlight the 40th Anniversary Sales Drive. EMPIRE GAMES SHORT VIA NFB Andy O’Brien, Weekend mag’s sports editor, is writing the commentary for the National Film Board’s one-reel black-andwhite report on the British Empire Games in Vancouver, which will be ready August 18. Climax was the Bannister-Landy mile race. Osmond Borradaile, Don Wilder, Jack Long and Felix Lazarus, four of Canada’s top cameramen, are shooting under the direction of Jack Olsen and his assistant, Bill Stephenson. Nick Balla, executive producer of the National Film Board, is editing the footage in Ottawa. CINEMASCOPE DEMONSTRATION Industry and press acclaim was voiced for 20th Century-Fox’ The Advancing Technique of CinemaScope which was demonstrated at the Palace Theatre, Montreal, recently. In attendance for the special showing, hosted by Arthur Silversone, assistant general sales manager of 20th Century-Fox, and Peter Myers, Canadian division head, were representatives from virtually every Canadian circuit, Independent theatre group, Independent exhibitors, radio and TV columnists and members of the press. Ernest Ouimet, who opened the first successful movie house in Montreal on January 1, 1906, called the demonstration “the most wonderful thing I have seen in my life.” Others who praised it were Willie Elman, B. C. Salamis, Bob Berzan, George Ganetakos, A. Capandrites, M. Duhamel, G. H. Theroux, George Champagne, Doris Robert, Mrs. R. Lalonde, Bill Robinson, Harold Walker, G. T. Robert, Armand Allaid, Lucette Robert of Le Petit Journal, and Rene Benoit of the Photo-Journal. "SEVEN BRIDES' PREEMS IN LONDON Canadian premiere of MGM’s Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, held in London, Ontario under the sponsorship of the local Kinsmen’s Club, was a big-scale effort marked by a parade featuring the seven bachelor brothers named House, whom the London Free Press discovered on a nearby farm. MGM _ brought the brothers to the USA, where the newspapers made much of them. Thousands of Londoners lined the streets for the parade, which began at 1.30 p.m. and ended at the theatre. In the parade was Ruta Lee, a former Montrealer, who plays one of the brides in the film. The Kinsmen held a dinner in the evening. Canadian and American MGM executives took in the doings, among them Ernie Emmerling. Our Business lor NEW show seagon is just around the coraer for our business—and an ingesting one it promises to be. TPaditienally, at this time of the year we aren, bombarded with announcements from various distributors outlining plans for super-colossal productions. These make one feel that there are big profits ahead and re-inspire the enthusiasm which is so vital to the conduct of our business. Actually, there doesn’t seem to be the same degree of drumbeating at this time as in former years. Yet the portents are more promising than ever before. For years everyone in our business has been talking about the payoff of big pictures at the boxoffice. Now every company seems to realize that it must deliver its good share of topnotch entertainment in order to compete for the time and money of the moviegoing public. Accordingly, the producers are trying very hard to put more boxoffice value into pictures and to endow them with more production values and more real entertainment. There just doesn’t seem to be any limit to the grosses which can be piled up by pictures which really strike the public’s fancy. The upbeat thinking in our business is becoming infectious and. there is great cause for rejoicing. But— The producers and _ distributors seem determined to get the last possible dollar of film rental for such pictures as meet with public approval. In doing so they are hardly allowing the exhibitor any cushion for bad days, which are inevitable, or for pictures which may be flops. One of the reasons that this business has grown and prospered is because sO many wise showmen ploughed their profits back into expansion with bigger and more luxurious theatres, thereby increasing the potential drawing power and earnings of good pictures. True, this trend has temporarily been halted because of current conditions. But it will be re-activated in due course. Indeed, this must happen if our business is to continue to grow and prosper. Good pictures will earn more money in better theatres than they will in antiquated ones and leaving thx; exhibitor with too little margin scarcely gives him any incentive to rebuild or rekubdilitate and contributes nvthing to the future of ow business. A ay ray ago I sat with another,Aheatre executive at/the screening of a new picture which will Aindoubtedly be one: of the top grossers of the year. We both (Continued on Page 7) © tg 4 ‘~