Canadian Film Weekly (Jan 28, 1970)

January 28, 1970 CANADIAN FILM WEEKLY _ Page 3 ITS MY BAG By Ed Hocura A MEMORABLE NIGHT: It would be easy to dismiss what took place this week in Toronto as just another social night, if you didn’t happen to be one of the 500 who gathered at the farewell tribute to Frank Strean as Chief Barker of Variety Club of Ontario Tent 28. But to be there was to see and hear the tributes paid to a man with unselfish feelings for handicapped people, and realize that there is more to life than trying to stay alive in today’s rat race. During his two-year tenure as Chief Barker, Frank Strean gave more of his spare time to fulfill his duties than most men could possibly afford. And without even his closest friends being aware of it, Strean found the time to visit hospitals ae to brighten the lonely hours of the sick who regarded this man as a ray of sunshine in their saddened lives. But this was something Strean enjoyed doing; it was not something to attract attention to himself. No literary character immortalized by the late Damon Runyon comes close to matching Strean’s zeal for life. And _ this was brought out in the stories told about him by close friends from all walks of life. An _ enterprising recording company missed a great opportunity in not putting on tape the remarks of Jim Coleman, Sam Koffman, Mayor Vic Copps of Hamilton, Joey Poster, Harvey Dobbs, Jake Dunlap, Henry Warner and Sam Shopsowitz, the incoming Chief Barker of Tent 28. It would have made for a unique LP that would outsell any record ever made. The recent television show in which Jack Benny was “roasted” by the Friars Club in New York paled in comparison to the Salute To Frank Strean. It was announced that the turnout was one of the largest of its kind in the history of Tent 28, and those in attendance will attest that it was something they will remember for a long time. And when they all stood to give Strean a standing ovation, it was obvious that a rare human being was in their midst. In 25 years of covering numerous tributes to men who had dedicated their lives to helping the less unfortunate, I don’t think any of them were as sincere as this one. Tent 28 will long remember Frank Strean’s unstinting devotion to his job as Chief Barker. And his accomplishments the past two years are reflected in the Variety Club of Ontario’s growth in membership and national recognition. Up until the other night, Frank Strean was just a man I had heard spoken of as being “quite a character.” But now he goes into my diary of unforgettable moments as a man for all seasons; a man who was never too busy to lend a helping hand to people unable to enjoy life as much as he does. May he be with us for a long time to come. The world would be an empty place without him. * * * A REFRESHING CHANGE: Kurt Russell is not the kind of movie actor to cause exhibitors to jump for joy at the thought of playing one of his movies. But his track record shows that for an 18-year-old mini-star he’s pretty much in demand these days, both for movies and television series. Soon to be seen in Walt Disney Productisn’s The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes, Russell came to Toronto this week on a five-city publicity junket. It was a refreshing change for me to meet a Hollywood personality who didn’t regale me with such time-worn cliches as “I’m ready for bigger things, but the studios are holding me back” ... I want to make movies that will identify me with the problems young people face in the U.S. today” ... “I think my studio made a big mistake the way they handled my last picture.” I’m happy to report that Kurt Russell is a quiet, unassuming young man without any hangups who has regarded his eight years as an actor as more fun than work. The day before I had lunch with Russell he was the dinner date for 25 FRANK STREAN Toronto teenagers who won a contest co-sponsored by a radio station and the Toronto Telegram. The paper gave the event a six-column story which must have brought joy to Gerry Collins, who handles publicity for Empire Films and is not used to this kind of treatment from the hardhearted Toronto press. Especially when it’s free. Where other actors might have blanched at the thought of being at the mercy of 25 teenagers for a couple of hours, Russell rose to the occasion like a pro. He didn’t pretend for one minute that he didn’t enjoy what must have been a gigglethon for the Win A Date With Kurt Russell contest winners. Russell’s love for acting is second only to his love for baseball, something he inherited from his actor-father Bing Russell who at one time was a promising pro until he was beaned by a pitched ball. A high school graduate, Kurt Russell would like to further his education by going to college. But this would mean risking the opportunity to continue to work as an actor as long as he is in demand. “I’m going to try to do it on a correspondence course basis, starting next fall. I don’t know if I can do it, and if it doesn’t work out I’ll have to decide which is more important: a college degree or an acting career.” Unlike Diana Rigg, Peter Ustinov and Alfred Hitchcock, who preceded him on publicity junkets, Kurt Russell didn’t have the news media lining up to record his thoughts on the trials and tribulations of being a Hollywood star. Which is all the more a pity. J think even the most hardened of interviewers would have been able to glean something pertinent from a screen veteran of 18 whose sincerity and honesty were remarkable to say the least. It would have at least proved to them that it is possible to meet a young Hollywood star and not count the time wasted in talking to him. To those who passed up the chance to meet Kurt Russell, tough luck. Re OL eo ODDS & ENDS: In an attempt to find out if moviegoers are really interested in reduced admission prices, a Hamilton theatre experimented with cut-rate weekend matinees. Few people bothered to turn out... A subscriber named Laurie Boucher is interested in building a drive-in theatre and would like to hear from someone regarding costs, necessary equipment and pitfalls. He can be contacted at R.R. #3, Bouctouche, N.B.. Can anyone reading this help him out? . . . Old Man Flu really hit people in Windsor theatre circles recently. A total of 18 were laid low in just one week, including Mike Micelli of the Palace and Howard Levis of the Park . . . And speaking of Windsor, a new trend has developed in recent weeks. Where at one time Windsor citizens journeyed across the border to Detroit to see a movie, the situation has reversed. Since Detroit theatres no longer play movies ahead of Windsor, more U.S. money is turning up at Windsor box offices. Especially on Sundays. . . Former CBC producer Eric Till will be flying to Toronto from London next week to attend special screenings of his A Great Big Thing, a film he made in Montreal in 1968. Till directed the widely-acclaamed MGM comedy Hot Millions, and recently finished another film for MGM, The Walking Stick, with David Hemmings and Samantha Eggar . . . With all the talk going around about television showing little interest in buying “Restricted” movies, ABC-TV has had little sponsor resistance to its Love — American Style weekly series. If ever a television show has come close to being strictly adult fare, this show is it. I can think of a dozen so-called “frank” movies that pale in comparison to what comes into my living room on Sunday nights . . . The funniest show on CBC Radio comes on Thursday nights when a group of artsy-craftsy critics take it upon themselves to review movies. They have to be putting listeners on with their pompous critiques . . . Judging by the reviews from New York critics, 20th Century-Fox must have something worth seeing with M-A-S-H. One critic hails it as “The best American war comedy since sound came in.” . . . To the growing list of foreign subscribers to Canadian Film Weekly, add the name of University of Baghdad in Iraq. M.P.T.A.O. meeting Mon., Feb. 9 in Toronto The Motion Picture Theatres Association of Ontario will hold its annual meeting at the Park Plaza Hotel in Toronto on Mon. Feb. 9. Election of officers for the coming year will climax an informative business session, with the following guest speakers: eW. Z. Estey, QC, will deliver a report on copyright fees. e Peter Mandell, vice-president, Famous Players Canadian Corp., will deliver a report on business taxes on theatre properties. e Alex Stewart, of the Motion Picture Institute of Canada, will delivera report on forthcoming projects planned by his organization. Cocktails and luncheon will follow the meeting, hosted by Lloyd Pearson, General Sound and Theatre Equipment Ltd., Bill Pfaff, Mavety Film Delivery Ltd., and Max Candel, Consolidated Theatre Services Ltd.