The Exhibitor (Jun-Nov 1941)

THE EXHIBITOR 14a UA Entering Theatre Field Kelly Announces Unit's Expansion New York — Arthur W. Kelly, United Artists vice-president, last week an¬ nounced the entrance of United Artists into theatre operation. According to Kelly, it is the plan of UA to acquire interests in established circuits and, in some cases, to build its own the¬ atres. Negotiations are now in work with an unidentified circuit for the acquiring of an interest in 12 theatres. In most cases, deals will call for a controlling and oper¬ ating interest, although ho’dings as low as 25 per cent may be obtained. The theatre enterprises will be headed by Harry Buckley. Kelly said that the founders of the UA company had been aiming at the acquisi¬ tion of theatres for their product since 1919, but that the idea had never mater¬ ialized. The United Artists circuit, he said, was not a UA property but was op¬ erated by executives within the organiza¬ tion. Kelly stated that the investments in theatre properties will be between $5,000,000 and $6,000,000, and will be financed through private sources. The houses will be acquired or built in spots where UA product has not had proper representa¬ tion, with a possibility that some may be acquired later on in South America. The houses will be modern, de-luxe, and suitable for low-cost operation. The average seating capacity will be about 1,000. Kelly said that the first 12 will be for first-run showings, but that secondrun and subsequentrun houses may be acquired later. Kelly contended that UA was not vio¬ lating the Department of Justice’s edict against theatre expansion inasmuch as UA is a distributing, not a producing, com¬ pany. Titles of 18 pictures to be released by UA this season were revealed by Kelly. These do not include pictures by Selznick and Capra who will deliver two each a year if the deal is closed. Product includes: two from Alexander Korda, “Lydia” and “The Jungle Book”; four from Walter Wanger, “Sundown,” “Eagle Squadron,” “To Be or Not to Be” and one western; five from Edward Small, “International Lady,” “Twin Beds,” Shir¬ ley Temple in “Little Annie Rooney,” “Heliotrope,” and “My Official Wife”; one from David Loew-Albert Lewin, “The Mating Call”; one from Richard Rowland, “A Man’s Man”; one from Arnold Pressburger, “Shanghai Gesture”; two from Garbriel Pascal, “Major Barbara” and “The Snow Goose”; one from William Sekely, “New Wine” and a British picture, “Three Cockeyed Sailors.” Hal Roach will deliver 10 streamlined features, two of which are completed. Kelly said that a deal with the Ealing studios in England would bring over three of eight British productions. First will be “Ships With Wings,” based on the exploits of H.M.S. Ark Royal. Sol Lesser is expected to make “Strange Victory.” Allied Leaders Meet NEW YORK — Allied leaders, meet¬ ing here last week, discussed plans for Allied’s survey to determine the public’s tastes in pictures. Survey will be made through ballots distributed in theatres, with all exhibitors welcome to participate in the poll. Attending the sessions were Abram F. Myers, general counsel; Sidney Samuelson, Pete Wood, Don Rossiter, and Arthur Howard. Set Titles Of WB Pictures Canadian Officers Hear Plans Montreal— The titles of 33 Warner films for the new season were announced at the Canadian sales convention of the com¬ pany here last week. Grad Sears, general sales manager, Warners, and president, Canadian subsidi¬ ary, described the 1941-42 product to the assembled conventioneers. List of pictures was announced as fol¬ lows: “The Prime Minister," “Sergeant York.” “Cap¬ tains of the Clouds,” “The Man Who Came to Dinner,” “Flight Patrol,” “Navy Blues,” “One Foot in Heaven,” “The Maltese Falcon,” “They Died With Their Boots On,” “King’s Row,” “Cap¬ tain Horatio Hornblower,” “Yankee Doodle Dandy,” “The Male Animal,” “George Washing¬ ton Slept Here,” “The Widow Wouldn’t Weep,” "Mr. Sheffington,” “Rhapsody in Blue,” “The Gay Sisters,” “Background to Danger,” “Battle of the Atlantic,” and “Man From the FBI,” “Nine Lives Are Not Enough,” “Law of the Tropics,” “The Smiling Ghost,” “The Hard Way,” “Carnival in Rio,” “High Towers,” “The Black Widow,” “Right Shoulder Arms,” “Sing, Baby, Sing,’’ "Manhattan Fury,” “The Great Divide,” and “All Through the Night.” Company meets in Chicago next week for its American sessions. Disney Strikers Aided New York — The New York Disney Strike Committee, formed at the call of the Screen Publicists Guild of New York, met last week to decide on a campaign in active support of the Screen Cartoonists Guild of California in its strike against Walt Disney. As a result of the meeting, six profes¬ sional unions plus prominent labor leaders and consumer organizations, representing more than 50,000 persons, formally joined in a plan to secure city-wide support for the strikers, and to boycott all Disney pro¬ ducts until the strike is settled. “A Defense Film with Every Pro¬ gram.” Readers' Elections Due Washington — It was announced last week by the NLRB that separate elections by secret ballot will be conducted as early as possible within 30 days among all salaried readers employed in story reading departments in the New York offices of Paramount, 20th-Fox, RKO, Universal, Columbia, and Loew’s. The readers will determine whether they de¬ sire to be represented by the Screen Readers Guild of New York for collective bargaining purposes. MPTOA Bulletin Tells of Progress Kuykendall Comments On Post-Meeting Doings New York — From MPTOA President Ed Kuykendall last week came a bulletin pointing to developments following the recent MPTOA convention in Los Angeles. Parts of the message follow: ‘The Motion Picture Theatre Owners of America are following with deep interest the establishment by the producers of the so-called five picture selling policy, and we note with considerable interest the methods of screening one and two pic¬ tures at given dates. We also note where one company is screening five pictures on five different days. This, of course, is just the beginning, and, in reality, a trial. However, it is going to be rather expen¬ sive for the average small town theatre owner to go into an exchange center and have to stay practically a full week to be able to see five pictures screened. There is very little we can do about this at the present except some watchful waiting. “MPTOA is working on a plan, as sug¬ gested by Arthur Lockwood’s committee in Los Angeles, to establish a service that will keep all of us informed about con¬ ditions generally. “Nontheatricals are giving us trouble again. This particularly pertains to 16mm pictures that certain distributors are per¬ mitting to be made from their regular releases. “We believe that the production end of this industry has at last accepted the seriousness of the preview nuisance about which so much was said at the national convention and about which MPTOA is in dead earnest. “Dual bills are still a matter of deep concern to MPTOA. “The matter of so much of our screen time being taken up by propaganda and drives of various kinds is becoming ser¬ ious. Of course, the motion picture in¬ dustry, from production to exhibition, is mindful of its patriotic duty in aiding and abetting our government in keeping the public informed. But this should be done in good taste, and with strict discrimina¬ tion. “The matter of bringing back old pat¬ rons and creating new ones for our the¬ atres is being given much thought.” Schwab On "Bingo" Ticket Buffalo, N. Y. — Former Mayor F. X. Schwab last week announced that he will enter both the Republican and Democratic mayoralty primaries on Sept. 16 on “ ‘Bingo’ for Buffalonians” platform. Schwab is the president of Old Vienna, Inc., which is under indictment in connection with op¬ eration of “Bingo” games in its downtown theatre. “The Tip-Off'’ Gives Dope on Grosses. Disney Conclave Balked Hollywood — The Government’s proposal to arbitrate the strike of the Screen Car¬ toonists Guild at the Walt Disney plant was rejected last week by the Disney Studio. Disney vice-president and gen¬ eral counsel Gunther Lessing charged the NLRB with stalling and meddling, and ex¬ pressed the belief that Communistic influ¬ ences were prevalent in the strike. July 23, 1941 QUAD.