The Exhibitor (1953)

18 EXHIBITOR Warner , Kalmenson Reveal Plans For WarnerSuperScope Process New York — First reports on the new WB WarnerSuperScope process were made available to the trade this week. In Hollywood, Jack L. Warner, execu¬ tive producer, Warners, released details. ‘WarnerSuperScope will play its full power and beauty on the largest screens in the largest theatres,” Warner said, “or the next to the largest screens, or the screens next in size — any size with the 2.66 to 1 ratio, on which its photographing and projecting lenses are based. This de¬ velopment, perfected to the ultimate of modern scientific know-how, for the closer-to-nature value it gives to WarnsrColor, and for the tonal enhancement of WarnerPhonic Sound, is emphatically not a ‘blown-up’ film but a complete new pho¬ tographing and projecting process, pro¬ duced for us by Zeiss-Opton, famous lens manufacturers.” At the same time, Ben Kalmenson, Warners’ vice-president in charge of dis¬ tribution, announced that an early demon¬ stration of WarnerSuperScope for the press and exhibitors would be set within the first few weeks of production. “In line with our policy of concentrating only on the production and distribution phases of our business,” Kalmenson said, “and with no wish to enter into the sepa¬ rate field of selling theatre equipment, we will make WarnerSuperScope projec¬ tion lenses available to exhibitors with each picture on a very nominal rental basis within the reach of even the smallest theatre operators.” In announcing the new WarnerSuper¬ Scope process, Warner stated that six major forthcoming productions would be photographed in this process by the War¬ ner all media camera, and in 3-D and 2-D as well, “transporting the story to WarnerColor film for projection on every wide-screen installation now in use or con¬ templated for the future.” Pictures about to go into production in WarnerSuperScope are: “A Star Is Born”, starring Judy Garland; “Lucky Me”, starring Doris Day; “Rear Guard”, starring Guy Madison; “Helen Of Troy”; “Mr. Roberts”, and “East Of Eden”, pro¬ duced and directed by Elia Kazan. Labs Elect Keehn New York — The newly-formed Associa¬ tion of Cinema Laboratories at a meeting of the board last week elected Neal Keehn, president, Calvin Company, Kansas City, as president. John Stott, vice-president, Du-Art Laboratories, New York, was elected vice-president; Byron Roudabush, head, Byron, Inc., Washington, secretary, and George Colburn, president, George Colburn, Inc., Chicago, treasurer. Dervin Joins RKO New York — Frank P. Dervin will join the RKO executive organization as assist¬ ant to Edward L. Walton, executive assist¬ ant to the president, on Aug. 3. Dervin, for the past nine years a district and branch manager for Republic in the New England territory, will fill a newly-created position, and will not replace anyone in the RKO organization. Howard Dietz, vice-president and director of advertising, publicity, and exploitation for MGM, in New York recently received the first copy of a letter being sent out by the General Federation of Women's Clubs praising "Julius Caesar" from Mrs. Dean Gray Edwards, organization chairman. AA Production Set For Rest Of 53 Hollywood — Walter Mirisch, Allied Art¬ ists’ executive producer, last week dis¬ closed that his company will produce no less than 20 feature films during the balance of the year. Addressing his remarks at a press ccnference, Mirisch declared: “Our diversified program will include high, medium and small budget pictures. We will film in CinemaScope, in Techni¬ color, in three-dimensions, and in wide¬ screen, as well as in two-dimensions and black and white. Referring to his recent trip to New York, where he and other Allied Artists top executives conferred with Robert Clark, managing director in charge of production, Associated British Pictures Corporation, regarding production of “The Black Prince,” to be jointly made in England, Mirisch said it will be filmed in CinemaScope and in Technicolor. For CinemaScope, arrangements have been completed with 20th-Fox. The studio is also negotiat¬ ing with 20th-Fox for other properties to be filmed in CinemaScope. Other top pictures to be filmed in Tech¬ nicolor , he said, are “Annapolis ’53”, “The Adventures Of Hajji Baba”, and “Wichita.” At the same time, Mirisch disclosed a new property, “Desert Empire”, also to be filmed in color. Other films which will be done in color and their starting dates are “Pride Of The Blue Grass”, to be produced by Hayes Goetz; “Arrow In The Dust”, also to be produced by Goetz; “Bitter Creek”, which Scott R. Dunlap will produce, and “The Green Hills Of Idaho”, to be produced by William Calihan, Jr., starting soon. During the balance of the year, Allied Artists will produce other films in threedimensions: Walter Wanger’s “Riot In Cell Block 11”, William F. Broidy’s “House In The Sea”; “Dragonfly Squadron”, written by John Champion, the producer, and “Hold Back The Night.” On the schedule also is “Ketchikan”, to m SCORt BOARD (Complete reviews of pictures mentioned will appear in The Pink Section. — Ed.) 20TH-FOX “A Blueprint For Murder” — Suspensive program meller. “Dangerous Crossing” — Interesting pro¬ gram melodrama. UA “Fort Algiers” — Foreign Legion meller will fit into the twin bills. “No Escape” — Action drama for the duallers. MGM “Big Leaguer” — Moderate baseball show. COLUMBIA “Mission Over Korea”— Routine Korean war show. “Cruisin’ Down The River”— Pleasant musical. Paramount To Host Trade At Screenings New York — On July 27, Paramount will put on for exhibitors, film buyers, and bookers in all exchange cities a special “Paramount Jubilee Show”, during the course of which there will be screened three of the company’s top-drawer pro¬ ductions, A. W. Schwalberg, president, Paramount Film Distributing Corporation, announced last week. The pictures to be shown, for which special invitations will be sent, are; “The Caddy”, “Little Boy Lost”, and William Wyler’s “Roman Holiday.” In each exchange city, a regular the¬ atre will be selected for the “Paramount Jubilee Show.” Invitations will be sent to members of the press, radio, television, and the trade press, in addition to exhibi¬ tors, buyers, and bookers, who, incident¬ ally, will be permitted to bring members of their families. The tentative schedule screenings dur¬ ing the day is as follows: 10 a. m., “The Caddy”; 12 noon, “Little Boy Lost”, and 3:45 p. m., “Roman Holiday.” be filmed by producer Lindsley Parsons. In addition, the company will continue its production of “The Bowery Boys” series, with “It Happened In Paris” as the next, with Ben Schwalb producing; the Royal Canadian Mounted Police films, sug¬ gested by the James Oliver Curwood stories, with Parsons producing; the “Bomba” series, with “The Golden Idol” set to roll soon, and the two western series, one starring Wild Bill Elliott and the other starring Wayne Morris, which Vincent M. Fennelly will produce. Meanwhile, recent production activity is reflected by the editing now underway on “Slade”, produced by Parsons and his associate, John H. Burrows, and starring Mark Stevens and Dorothy Malcne; “Fighter Attack”, produced by Calihan, and starring Sterling Hayden, with Joy Page; “The Royal African Rifles”, pro¬ duced by Richard Heermance, with Louis Hayward and Veronica Hurst starred; “Bowery Bloodhounds”, a “Bowery Boys” comedy, and “Tabloid”, a Schwalb pro¬ duction starring Stanley Clements, with Gloria Henry. July 22, 1953