Canadian Film Weekly (May 29, 1970)

finishing dealerships May 29, 1970 Appoint R. Fraser Neal General Sound manager R. Fraser Neal, 43, formerly general manager of Atlantic Films in Montreal, has been appointed general manager of General Sound and Theatre Equipment in Toronto, it was announced by George P. Destounis, president of General Sound and its parent company, Famous Players Canadian Corp. Ltd. Neal succeeds Lloyd Pearson who recently resigned. Neal had been with Atlantic Films for six years in his native St. John’s, Nfld., New York and Toronto as well as head office in Montreal. Originally a trust company accountant in St. John’s, he . moved into the retail trade in 1951 and in 1955 organized and managed Musical Clock Ltd., engaged in photographic, jewellery and musical sales. Part of his duties was setting up wholesale distribution of photographic and photo throughout Newfoundland. With Atlantic Films, Neal’s experience diversified to include retailing and wholesaling of professional motion picture equipment and systems, communication, educational-industrial and government audio-visual equipment and _ systems, essentially the fields covered by General Sound. Betty Bellamy returned as Toronto WOMPI head The Toronto branch of WOMPI (Women of the Motion Picture Industry) held its annual installation dinner recently, presided over by Mrs. Betty Bellamy of Warner Bros., returned for a second term as president. Other officers installed were: Mrs. Vickie Knight (Century Theatres Management), Ist vice-president; Florence Van Heek (Famous Players), 2nd vice-president; Mrs. Florence Merlina (theatre owner), treasurer; May Levandusky (Famous Players), recording secreatry, and Mrs. Helen Partridge (B & F Theatres), corresponding secretary. Alex Stewart, this year’s winner of the Variety Tent 28, Heart Award, emceed the dinner and the guest speaker was Gerald Pratley, director of the Ontario Science Centre’s film theatre program and CBC broadcaster. _A highlight of the evening was the presentation of the annual Community Service Award to Billie Walker of Warner Bros. for her efforts throughout the year in providing entertainment to the senior citizens of Toronto’s Laughlen Lodge and Second Mile Club. CANADIAN FILM WEEKLY IT'S MY BAG Alex Stewart received a special tribute this past week that everyone who knew him felt was long overdue. This was the Heart Award presented to Stewart by Variety Tent 28 of Toronto. It was given to him for his long and rewarding contribution in making 1969 one of the biggest years in the history of Variety Tent 28, as well as pointing up the fact that he let nothing stand in his way to do any job that other Variety Club members might have shied away from tackling. His record as executive director of the Motion Picture Institute of Canada also proved his capabilities. Too many people in the film industry failed to recognize his achievements in the past months. But whether it was lining up -Academy Award promotions, discussing tie-in promotions with major -manufacturing companies -and dozens of other ideas that would be beneficial to the film in_ dustry, Alex Stewart never worried that he was going after things all by himself. His was a frustrating task since he received little or no cooperation from the people who, in the long run, would reap the benefits from his efforts. But he always believed that you could get something if you went after it long enough, and his unblemished record will back him up. Let no one ever say that Alex Stewart was negligent in his duties. The Motion Picture Institute could not have found a better man to steer it through stormy waters; Wariety Tent 28 could not have found a better man to honor with its Heart Award. WHardly a day ever passed that Stewart didn’t drop into the office to talk to me about the feasibility of an idea he had to raise money to help Variety Tent 28, or a promotion project for the Motion Picture Institute. His many years in the radio and television field saw him more sympathetic to them for promoting movies, than he felt toward newspapers. The latter he always felt did nothing to upgrade an industry that subsidized their entertainment pages in return for cruel, unfair movie reviews. And he always kept on hand a bulging file of entertainment pages from newspapers all over the country to show to anyone that the film industry got next-to-nothing in return from hefty advertising expenditures. It was a proud moment for Alex Stewart and his family when an overflowing crowd rose to their feet when he was presented with the coveted Heart Award. It’s always nice to see a group of people give their unanimous applause to a deserving man receiving a deserved award. I count myself lucky to have known someone like Alex Stewart in my lifetime. The film industry owes him a debt of gratitude for his past accomplishments. They should know only too well that few men have done so much in such a short time. * * * NAMES THAT PASS IN THE NIGHT: Gerald Pratley, looking fresh and relaxed after a couple of busy weeks covering the Cannes Film Festival for the CBC, was a good choice for the Toronto WOMPI as guest speaker at their annual meeting. Pratley paid tribute to the late Hy Bossin for giving him a job years ago when he first started on a freelance career that has seen him become one of the best commentators and reviewers of the film scene in the country. He also managed to make a plug for the Ontario Film Theatre, of which he is the director, come off as a thoughtful, intelligent report on the efforts of his co-workers to bring to Toronto moviegoers the opportunity to see films not ordinarily shown in most theatres. All in all, Pratley came through with what amounted to a refreshing talk at an industry function. IN MEMORIAM: Sympathy is extended to George H. Beeston, treasurer of the Canadian Picture Pioneers Trust Fund, whose wife passed ALEX STEWART away on May 20... Two other film executives suffered tragic losses — with the deaths of their mothers recently. They are Irving Stern, Canadian general manager of Warner Bros., and Ron Emilio, Canadian general manager of MGM. ‘Sa SP, ST BRYAN UPJOHN MGM sales supervisor post for Bryan Upjohn Bryan Upjohn has been appointed sales supervisor for MGM Pictures of Canada Ltd. Upjohn will be working with Canadian general manager Ron Emilio in the co-ordination of sales and bookings with circuits ad independents across the country. Upjohn started his career in the film industry at Seven Arts, later working as a booker at Famous Players and MGM. Just prior to his return to Toronto, he was in charge of the MGM branch in Winnipeg. Marcus Trester who has been with MGM for 41 years replaces Bryan as district sales representative in Winnipeg; Dave Gilfillan remains in Vancouver as does Syd Sniderman in Calgary, Harry Imperial in Toronto, Roger Chartrand in Montreal and Eric Golding in Saint John. To further streamline the Canadian operation, the accounts receivable for the three western provinces has been brought into the Toronto head office and Mary Saski has been transferred from Winnipeg to head up this department. Accounts receivable for the Atlantic provinces previously handled in Saint John are now being handled by the Montreal branch with Belle Corber, resident Montreal staffer heading up this department. ‘Strawberry Statement’ wins Cannes Jury Prize MGM’s The Strawberry Statement won the Jury Prize at the recent Cannes Film Festival. The first film for director Stuart Hagmann, The Strawberry Statement received enthusiastic ovations following its screenings and critical acclaim by reviewers at the Festival. The film will be released in the U.S. and Canada this month.