Canadian Film Weekly (Apr 13, 1955)

April 13, 1955 Vol. 20, No. 15 April 13, 1955 HYE BOSSIN, Managing Editor Assistant Editor Ben Halter Office Manager Esther Silver CANADIAN FILM WEEKLY 175 Bloor St. East, Toronte 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. FPCC REPORT (Continued from Page 1) were favorably received by the public, required substantial investments in equipment. The company’s’ shareholders went up to 8,700, of which 8,560 are Canadian residents, after Paramount International Films Inc. reduced its holdings to 51 per cent by selling all its shares above that amount. Famous Players paid $5,587,000 in amusement taxes and the report noted that llc of each boxoffice dollar ended as such. The company is expanding its drive-in interests and now has an interest in four of the five near Toronto, as well as those nearing completion in Port Alberni, BC, Dartmouth, NS and Amherst, NS. It opened a theatre in Kamloops, BC to replace an outmoded one and is building one in Murdochville, Quebec, while it is a partner in the one opened by Premier in Atikokan. Other matters in the report: Better quality of films has led to a decrease in the number produced. This is hard on small neighborhood houses, which need more program changes. Television hurts theatre business most at the beginning but is proving a strong means of exploiting new pictures and developing new stars. Since March, 1946, 5,314 individual claims of employees have been settled under the Hospital and Surgical Plan, expenditures now being $531,058, of which the company provided 70 per cent —$460,000. Up to 1954 full-time employees got $669,000 under Group Life Insurance plans. “Famous Players and associate conipanies have 7,000 employees. FOR SALE $1,000. F.O.B. WINDSOR 2 Rear shutter Simplex projectors; 2 Rosskote lenses; 2 Northern Elec. R-206 sound heads; 2 Strong are lamps; Double Northern Elec, R-4000 amplifiers; 2 72 H.P. generators; Dominion non-pores screen & frame; baffle board, two back stage speakers; film cabinet, reels and Griswald splicer. Contact F. P. HANNAN, ROYAL THEATRE, WINDSOR, ONT. 316 Chippawa St. CLearwater 2-8753 —————_$ CANADIAN FILM WEEKLY Telemeter Sits Back (Continued from Page 1) ently heard not a word on the subject, while it didn’t even come up during the hearings of the House of Commons special committee. Yet the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation sent some of its experts to Chicago to study the Phonevision method several years ago and Canada. right now has a number of community antennae setups in different communities that can handle it. USA exhibitors have organized strongly against pay-as-yousee TV and will continue to make representations against it, for they have come to fear it more than free TV. Meanwhile the “Organizations for Free TV” has been established in New York to co-ordinated citizens’ groups actively opposing any attempt to divert present gratis channels into pay ones. Its supporters maintain that the introduction of toll TV will cause free channels to disappear eventually. There are differences of opinion among the networks about the merits of toll-TV, NBC’s David Sarnoff being quite cool. Some believe that the cost of color TV may make it necessary to use toll-TV and sponsors together. Another question is whether toll-TV, being restricted, constitutes “broadcasting” and is within FCC authority. The pay-as-you-see_ situation in Canada is a curious one. Whereas USA _ exhibitors are almost unanimously opposed to it, in Canada the largest exhibition firm established Trans Canada Telemeter Limited, with W. C. Thornton Cran as president and J. A. Pouliot as executive engineer, to exploit it. How will it be exploited? No one quite knows, although Fitzgibbons has suggested that zone exhibitor participation is possible as one of the methods. Another interesting thing is that the CBC, through its senior government body, the Department of Transport, has the final say as to how it should be employed. Famous Players is strongly interested in TV and owns a half interest in CEFCM-TV, Quebec City, and CKCO-TV, Kitchener, Ontario. It will also control the Canadian sale of the glass single-gun color tubes developed by the Chromatic Television Laboratories Inc. of the USA, which can be produced at an economic price. “A patent position has been established that protects your Company’s interest in this development in Canada,” states the report. “We are collaborating with the Canadian tube manufacturers and have supplied them with sample tubes.” ‘CANADIAN SHOW BUSINESS’ Judging from information contained on its mailing pieces, Canadian Show Business, to come out weekly beginning on August 6, will be a sort of domestic Variety. It describes itself as “Canada’s only weekly newspaper devoted exclusively to Canadian and International Theatrical and Entertainment activities” and promises this about motion pictures: “Reviews, Reports from the Film Theatres across the country. General News of the Artists and the Film Colony. News of the Film Industry throughout the world. Canadian Progress in the Film Industry.” To be published by Marten and Rolands Enterprises of Aurora, Gntario, it names Ronald Rolands as editor-in-chief and Louis Marten as business manager. The first issue of the publication was originally scheduled to appear on June 4. NEXT SIX MONTHS IMPORTANT—Y ATES The coming six months will probably establish the destiny of the film for the next two years, Herbert J. Yates, president of Republic Pictures, told a sales meeting at the company’s studios in Hollywood recently. Republic’s production policy will be determined by the business of the next six months, Yates said, and although he was optimistic, “producers and exhibitors must join hands now in a common cause to increase theatre attendance or both face an economic readjustment.” He urged the strengthening of producer-exhibitor relations to maintain the present standards and suggested that an effort be made to raise movie attendance in the USA from the present low figure of 45,000,000 weekly. Meanwhile the greatest production boom in the history of Republic is under way, with the March-to-May shooting schedule calling for ten features. Among these are The Gunman, which Ray Milland will direct and star in; Come Next Spring, with Steve Cochran; two Mickey Rooney-Maurice Wells features; and Texas Legionnaire, with Sterling Hayden, Anna Maria Alberghetti, Richard Carlson, Arthur Hunnicutt, Ernest Borgnine and J. Carrol Naish, Page 3 Our Business by A Taylor "THE Motion Picture Industry Council of Canada, through the various provincial exhibitor organizations, has recently forwarded to motion picture exhibitors throughout the country pledge forms for financial support to the proposed Public Relations Committee, which the firstnamed organization is fostering. The plan has been approved, in principle, by exhibitor associations and only awaits pledges for operating costs to the extent which will make it practical to institute such a project. Many exhibitors have made instant and enthusiastic response but many more are yet to be heard from. It is difficult to understand why any exhibitor faced with current conditions in our business, such as they are, would hesitate for even a moment to grasp, without second thought, the opportunity to help increase his boxoffice attendance. There never was a time when it was more important to attempt to reinstill in the public the moviegoing habit. There are more really good pictures available then ever and, accordingly, we have more to shout about, but we seem to fail in so doing. This plan is designed to do that and to make the public more movieconscious. Of course, it is not a cure-all for our economic ills. Nor will it help keep in business exhibitors whose situations are hopeless because of the trend of events. However, if it only helps Increase attendance a little in every motion picture theatre it will pay dividends to each individual many times more than its cost. Traditionally, when business is bad the exhibitor seeks to obtain films reductions. Many are in need of such reductions and will undoubtedly get them. They will seek further to decrease whatever overhead they can. Tax reductions will also help. But all these things cumulatively, will not overcome a drastic drop in attendance. Indeed, we must strive strenuously to reverse such trend. Undoubtedly, some exhibitors have not responded because of sheer lethargy. The same attitude in the operation of his theatre will scarcely help him stay in business. Some exhibitors will argue that things are so bad they can’t afford the cost. A man who thinks he cannot afford to gamble the price of one or two admission tickets per week is scarcely displaying good business acumen. Never before has our business had an opportunity for such concerted action, and never (Continued on Page 4)