The Exhibitor (Nov 1938-May 1939)

Srrviuction i THE SHORTS PARADE TWO-REEL Color Cartoon ALADDIN AND HIS WONDERFUL LAMP. Paramount — Popeye. 20m. Probably the best of the annual two-reel Popeyes, this should be hilarious entertainment where the Popeye fans dwell. Olive writes her scenario, makes herself the heroine, Popeye the hero, the story opens with Popeye having a junk shop, enraptured of the princess. But an evil man uses Popeye to get the magic lamp, then loses it to Popeye, who discovers the genie (Lew Lehrish sort of person). With all this, Popeye wins the princess but loses the lamp during one of his acrobatic jaunts. The evil one gets it, steals the princess, takes her and the castle away. Popeye, with the aid of his spinach, not only gets her back but overcomes the evil one’s efforts with the lamp, finally winding up with the genie coming out of the spinach can. It’s good fun. EXCELLENT. (EE-81). H. M. Comedy NOW IT CAN BE SOLD. Columbia— Comedy. 17m. Straying just a bit off the beaten Clyde comedy pass, this has its moments of good fun interspersed with some sloppy slapstick. Andy operates a swap shop, but to add to his business woes, his young "junior G-man” nephew drives him nuts. A nearby bank is robbed, Clyde, the youngster aid the police in capturing the crooks. GOOD. (9434). L. S. M. Dramatic THE MARCH OF TIME, No. 9. (JapanMaster of the Orient.) RKO-Radio. 19m. With Japan maintaining an important position in the Berlin-Rome-Tokyo axis during the current world turmoil, this subject comes at an opportune time for the alert exhibitor. Timeliness is not its only asset — it is a thorough document of Japan’s morale-building propaganda during its war in China. The film shows how the China campaign, the failure of Manchukuo as a natural resource producer, etc., are draining the treasury of the Land of the Rising Sun. This latest issue is a first-rate addition to any program. EXCELLENT. (93109) L. S. M. Musical MUSICAL MOMENTS. Alliance. 20m. A mixture of English good, not so good music, with a plot which only serves as a transition from one to the other, this might serve where the folks do not care very much. FAIR. H. M. ROLLIN’ IN RHYTHM. Vitaphone— Broadway Brevity. 19m. Apparently a two-reel free advertisement for roller skate manufacturers, it would have been much better if Warners had rejected the advertisement, because as it stands, this is an inferior Vitaphone product. It is a musical revue in which customers, employees of a department store do their entertainment chores on roller skates. The only asset is a vocal chorus by the Frazee Sisters. The skate routines of a couple of acts were okay in themselves, but there are too many of them. FAIR. (4025). L. S. M, SOMEWHAT SECRET. Metro— Musical. 21m. This is nice musical-making. The prim assistant dean of a girl’s school hates swing, is engaged to the scholarly chemistry professor. But the latter is none other than Barrel House Benny, the swing pianist, whose former cronies in the Syncopators find, force him to enter a swing contest at the Million Dollar Pier in Atlantic City, where his fiiancee finds not only him but the girls who have broken the regulations by swinging. However, when the assistant dean becomes a jitterbug, all is well. GOOD. (R-804). H. M. ONE-REEL Color Cartoon BARS AND STRIPES FOREVER. Vitaphone— Merrie Melodie. 7m. Leon Schlesinger’s cartoonal burlesque of the recent Alcatraz cycle, this is laid in Alcatraz, presided over by a Hugh Herbetian Wanden Paws. The prisoner makes his exit a la grand opera, but the cops bring him back. Technically, this is up to the Schlesinger standard, but not from the standpoint of gags. GOOD. (4515). Cartoon LEAVE WELL ENOUGH ALONE. Paramount-Popeye. 7m. Popeye buys out Olive’s pet shop for $500, leaves all the animals out except a parrot who refuses to go because she wants a roof over her head instead of going out into the world. This makes a nice entrant. GOOD (E 8-7 ) . WANTED NO MASTER. Metro — Cartoon. 8m. Here is just another cartoon. The dog is annoyed, changes the picture of two women, thus tricking Count Screwloose into marrying the wrong one. Although offering a new idea for the series, this fair entrant is no especial credit to cartooning, nor is the entire series one of which Metro should brag. FAIR. (W-884). L. M. W. Comedy MUSCLE MAULERS. 20th Century-Fox— Lew Lehr subject. 10m. After three starts of dubious merit, Movietonews’ Lew Lehr really gets under way in this, the first of the Dribble-Puss Parade series. Dealing, of course, with rasslin’, this presents a review of the country’s better muscle maulers, bone crushers at their most spectacular mayhemic best. The whole is made the more funny and entertaining by typical Lehr commentary (neither too much nor too overdrawn), the sound effects, and the other camera skuldruggeries. Altogether it is fast, hilarious entertainment, which should go especially big with wrestlingminded audiences. GOOD. (9404). W. W. Dramatic THE STORY OF DR. JENNER. Metro— Passing Parade. 10m. Maintaining the standard of excellence set by its two predecessors, here is a short subject which had the customers applauding. It is the story of a respected English country doctor who discovered that vaccination with cow-pox would prevent the dreaded small pox. His neighbors distrusted him; London medics laughed at his "wild fancies” but Doctor Jenner believed in himself. He experimented with a youngster he had vaccinated by injecting small pox germs into the boy’s veins. The picturization of the child’s nine days between life, death is as suspenseful as anything ever put into a onereeler. Doctor Jenner’s "wild fancies” made a famous, but little known, man out of the country doctor. John Nesbitt’s narrative did much to make this a great short. EXCELLENT. (K-924). L. S. M. Musical COMMUNITY SING, No. 7. Columbia. 10m. A sort of musical ghost play is this, for in its 10 minutes there is brought to the screen six songs of the past which were, in their day, murdered through incessant playing. Presented by the four King Sisters, with Danny Webb as master of ceremonies, are "Did You Ever See a Dream Walking?” "Yes, We Have No Bananas,” "The Object of My Affections” with a two-piano interlude, "Tipi Tipi Tin,” "A-Tisket, A-Tasket,” "The Music Goes ’Round and ’Round.” GOOD. (9657). LOVE ON TAP. Metro-Miniature. 11m. Mary Floward, Truman Bradley, the clever Abbott dancers. Howard is chaperone for a dancing troupe, the Abbotts. Her fiance wants her to marry him but headaches with the troupe prevent her. When everything looks set, something else happens, but the Abbott girls finally straighten things out. Included are some good routines. GOOD. (M-877). H. M. Color Novelty SPRING STYLES. 20th Century-Fox — Fashion Forecast. 10m. Again demonstrating that a simonpure fashion subject can be fascinating screen entertainment, even to a mere male, Vyvyan Donner here crashed through for her third successive hit. Here are seen gowns for Daytime, Playtime, Cupidtime, with all embellished (if it be possible with that gorgeous array of feminine pulchritude) by the sparkling description by Ilka Chase, whose side remarks add further zest to the colorful topic. EXCELLENT. (9603). W. W. Novelty PARAMOUNT PICTORIAL No. 9. Paramount. 10m. With clips devoted to the U. S. Coast Guard training school at New London, Connecticut; underwater, night shots of birds, ducks; what to wear, what not to wear (style chat for women), this emerges as a pleasant upto-standard number. The Coast Guard clip is well edited; the bird life sequence interesting, while the observations of a style authority (Colette) on the sort of clothes women should wear should please the femmes. GOOD. (P8-9). H. M. M. SCREEN SNAPSHOTS, No. 8. Columbia. 10m. When Harriet Parsons sets out to develop a single theme, Screen Snapshots is in top form. Here, in the eighth of the 18th series, she devotes the footage to Hollywood’s great, near-great and the present enthusiasm for ice skating. At the Tropical Ice Garden, in Westwood Hills, are seen a flock of skating stars (including small Irene Dare, Phyllis Ann Thompson) as well as the cinema’s luminaries enjoying the new-found sport. Franklyn Pangborn, his beginning (and finish!) as a skater, furnish a running comedy angle. An organ replaces the usual orchestra for the concurrent musical score. EXCELLENT. (9858). Color Travel GLIMPSES OF AUSTRALIA. Metro— Fitzpatrick Traveltalk. 9m. Even the monotony of the Fitzpatrick discourse, the eventual song ac the conclusion fail to dim the beauties of Australia, the gardens, attractive women, mountains, thriving cities, all of which make this an excellent travel entrant. EXCELLENT. (T-859). H. M. Sport DIAMOND MINDS. National Cinema. 10m. Shots of the spring baseball training season, with plugs for the various towns and cities in Florida, this is just filler for the minor houses. The commentator apparently gets tired of it all, too! FAIR. H. M. 299