The Exhibitor (Aug-Nov 1948)

STUDIO SURVEY SS-3 Woman Of The Month Topping a long and arduous climb to stardom, Jane Wyman has finally come out with one of her greatest roles, the femme lead in Warners’ “Johnny Belinda.” She demonstrates that she is able to por¬ tray deep and warm human emotion as well as sparkling comedy. Coming after a series of failures that might easily have broken any one else’s self-confidence, her latest role is well deserving of a girl who has become, in a relatively short time, one of Hollywood’s leading personalities. We are proud to feature Miss Wyman as our “Woman of the Month,” and are con¬ fident that the Academy award potential in “Johnny Belinda” will be duly appreci¬ ated by her millions of ardent fans and admirers. Man Of The Month If there is anything a Hollywood direc¬ tor could value more than his “Oscars,” it would have to be a fairly valuable pos¬ session. Director Fred Zinneman does value something more than he does the Academy Award he won for his short, “That Mothers Might Live.” He is inordin¬ ately proud of the citations he has re¬ ceived for his work in improving youth conditions, and solving the youth problems of the world. Now this modest and kindly t man has produced another masterpiece, MGM’s classic “The Search.” Taking the view that one must walk before one can run, he first secured an Award for a short, and is now a good bet for another Award, this time for a feature. “Man of the Month,” our hat is off to you! PRODUCTION HIES Lester Cowan’s production for Univer¬ sal-International release, “One Touch Of Venus,” certainly shapes up as one of the most delightful and disarming fantasies of the season. Previev/ed in the Cathay Circle, Hollywood, this correspondent viewed with satisfaction the super criti¬ cal movietown audience leave the theatre wearing smiles as big as old-fashioned griddle cakes. Cunningly fashioned to appeal to every class in any situation, this film adaptation of the Broadway hit musi¬ cal, is perhaps one of the smoothest jobs of its type to date. * * * Hold everything, Brooklyn town! Pro¬ ducer-director Maxwell Shane will soon be headed your way to grind his Uni¬ versal-International cameras on his inde¬ pendent production, “The Amboy Dukes.” Having finally received an official shooting okeh from Judge Edward C. McGuire, New York City’s coordinator for motion pictures, Shane is now swinging his pre¬ pared plans into action, and a camera crew will soon be enroute to the city of the Dodgers. * * * Republic studios western star Bill Elliott is literally itching all over to get his teeth into a role which, according to most of the Hollywood brains and Elliott’s many fans, is right up his alley, or should we say, canyon? This muchly desired role is that of William S. Hart in the filmization of the life story of that famous screen personality of silent western days. Elliott, currently starring in Republic’s high budgeted Trucolor production, “The Missourians,” is regarded by the entire industry as the most logical actor to bring the great William S. back to the screen, as their physical features and personalities are identical. * * * Samuel Bischoff, United Artists’ pro¬ ducer, feeling that it is about time for the screen to handle another of those pic¬ turesque stories concerning the exploits of that famous band of men, the French Foreign Legion, has started full scale pro¬ duction on “Outpost In Morocco,” which will star George Raft, with Akim Tamiroff and Marie Windsor. Working well in advance of Hollywood production. Raft and a camera crew spent several months on actual Moroccan locale last winter gathering many scenes with Raft and the troops of desert tribesmen. Insuring further authenticity, producer Bischoff en¬ gaged as technical advisor Louis Van den Ecker, who acted in a similar capacity in the unforgettable “Beau Geste.” :1s :(! * Humphrey Bogart, the screen’s number one tough guy lover, dips into independent production, shoving off his Santana Pro¬ ductions with their initialler, “Knock On Any Door,” which will be released by Columbia on a one-picture deal. Says Bogie: “We’ve got the organization, the story, the enthusiasm, and the boys prom¬ ise to work me plenty hard!” The Santana organization is headed by producer Robert Lord, formerly with MGM, who has been associated with Bogart on many of his Warner releases, and Bogart makes no bones about stating that he’s out after a few of those bucks he put into Warner coffers. Nick Ray, on loanout from RKO, rounds out their tight little unit. * * * (Continued on next page) THE BELOVED BAMBINO, WHO PROVED HIMSELF THE GREATEST BOXOFFICE ATTRACTION IN THE HISTORY OF BASEBALL, NOW BRINGS HIS FABULOUS POPULARITY TO THE SCREEN I N "THE BABE RUTH STORY' Produced and Directed by ROY DEL RUTH starring WILLIAM BENDIX as The Babe and CLAIRE TREVOR as Mrs. Babe Ruth Technical Director BABE RUTH Screenplay by BOB CONSIDINE Roy Del Ruth Productions, Inc. (Allied Artists Release) In Preparation: "RED LIGHT" JOE KAUFMAN Associate Producer September 1, 1948 THE EXHIBITOR