The Exhibitor (Nov 1941-May 1942)

9 Nick Dean Pleads Guilty Will Be Sentenced On April 7 New York — The campaign of United States Attorney Mathias F. Correa against racketeering in the motion picture indus¬ try took a sudden step forward last week when Nick Dean, alias Circella, walked into Federal Court, and pleaded guilty to a charge of extorting “upward of $1,000,000” from four big film companies. His crime was linked, in the indictment naming him and Louis Kaufman, business agent, Newark Local 244, to that of Browne and Bioff. Racket was the squeez¬ ing of big sums from the picture com¬ panies, under threats of fomenting labor trouble and strikes that would close the film theatres. The penalty may be up to 10 years in prison, and a $10,000 fine. Kaufman pleaded not guilty to the charges immediately after the indictment was handed up on Sept. 29. Dean, how¬ ever, had been missing up to that time, and continued to evade arrest until Dec. 1, when Federal agents discovered him in Chicago. He had been wanted since the previous summer, as a witness against Browne and Bioff. Arraigned here, he pleaded not guilty, but yesterday, accom¬ panied by David Cahill, his counsel, he withdrew his plea, and made his admis¬ sion. Sentencing was set for April 7, and Dean was allowed to remain at liberty under bond of $25,000. Larry Darmour Passes Hollywood — Laurence J. Darmour, film producer, died last week of a heart attack in California Lutheran Hospital. He had been ill for three months, after undergoing an abdominal operation. His age was 47. Darmour came to Hollywood in 1925, and founded the Standard Cinema Com¬ pany. Year later he established the Larry Darmour film studio on Santa Monica Boulevard, where he had produced pic¬ tures ever since. He introduced Mickey Rooney to films in the Mickey McGuire comedies, a series of 72 two-reel shorts made between 1926 and 1932. Sol Siegel Upped Hollywood — Sol C. Siegel, Paramount producer, will in the near future shift to a position as member of the B. G. De Sylva unit at the studio, it was said last week. Siegel’s present duties will be assumed by Walter MacEwen, who joins Paramount on April 3. WAC Comes Through NEW YORK — The War Activities Committee announced on March 17 that 1276 prints of the better produc¬ tions would be supplied to the War Department in 16 mm. film for distri¬ bution at foreign bases. The committee also announced that all pictures would be made available to the Army for exhibition at domestic camps no later than 30 days after national release. MPTOA Units Hit UMPI Cancellation New York — Indication that most MPTOA units find the cancellation portion of the proposed industry selling plan far from satisfactory was given last week in a message from President Ed Kuykendall, who said: “MPTOA units, while wholeheartedly in accord that UMPI has made much pro¬ gress in its attempt to remove many objec¬ tionable trade practices, still insists that the cancellation privileges are far from sat¬ isfactory. First, because the holding out of five pictures of the 12 without cancella¬ tion privileges plus the right to take out any outstanding pictures as specials and the restricted cancellations on the group of seven that will naturally be the weaker pictures will, in fact, nullify the cancella¬ tion to such an extent it will not be much better than the objectionable group of five now forced upon us. This will strengthen rather than restrict the sellers market that now prevails. “A straight 20 per cent cancellation on the entire group in whatever numbers they are sold is the only fair way, and the only way unity can be brought about. “We are sure the distributors are sin¬ cere in their efforts to bring about a hap¬ pier relationship between exhibition and production that we may stay out of the courts and legislative entanglements. This can only be done by all of us doing some giving and taking on a live and let live basis. I am encouraged to believe that in future meetings the unity committee will work out a fair selling plan.” Austrian Leaves For Duty New York — Ralph B. Austrian, assistant vice-president, RCA Manufacturing Com¬ pany, was last week granted a leave of absence to accept a position with the Plan¬ ning Board of the War Production Board in Washington. Austrian has been associated with the RCA Manufacturing Company’s film re¬ cording activities for the past six years. Kirsch Reveals UMPI Background Says Exhibs Had No Plans Minneapolis, Minn. — Some problems facing exhibitor members of the UMPI committee in connection with the new pro¬ posed sales plan were discussed last week by Jack Kirsch, president, Allied Theatres of Illinois, at the convention of the Allied Theatre Owners of the Northwest here. Said Kirsch: “Whatever view you may take of the results to date, I want to say to you that this committee has worked hard to develop a plan that would be acceptable to a majority of the exhibitors. When we entered the work, it was with the un¬ derstanding and in the belief that the exhibitors were overwhelmingly opposed to the blocks-of-five method of selling. At the January board meeting of national Allied, all directors in attendance re¬ ported that their members were overwhelmingly opposed to blocks-of-five. I have reason to believe that the distributors are entirely satisfied with the blocks-of-five. Therefore, the task of exhibitors cn the trade practice committee was to persuade the distributors to give up something that was satisfactory to them in favor of something more to the liking of the exhibitors. The distributors professed to be open-minded on the subject, and, within limits, they were. “The spirit of the negotiations has been fine, and the representatives of the several exhibitor groups have held together remarkably well. But the great weakness on the exhibitors’ side resulted from the fact that, in spite of the efforts of Allied by polls and otherwise to ascertain the views of the exhibitors, the exhibitor representatives on the committee had no plan which they could with as¬ surance present as a plan favored by a clear majority of the exhibitors of the country. There is no such plan today. It seems that every time a group of exhibitors get together, a new selling plan is evolved, although the same group may have favored an entirely different plan only a few weeks before. “The plan for quarterly selling, with the trade showing of five pictures and identification of the rest, and with a cancellation as to the identified pictures where the film rentals do not exceed an average of $200 per picture, was finally submitted by the distributors. It was a compromise of the various suggestions made, and, at the same time, took into account the views of the Department of Justice as outlined by members of its staff. It did not satisfy the views of any exhibitor on the committee. The most that cou’d be said was that it was less objectionable than the blocks-of-five method. The exhibitor representatives did not a°ree to it, they had no authority to do that. They merely said they would submit it to the regional associations, and see what they thought about it. Apparently, they thought plenty. “Since the exhibitor members of the committee were n t committed to the plan, it was a matter of indifference whether the regional associations approved or rejected it. All they expected, and all they had a right to expect, was that it be considered seriously on its merits, and that the regionals report whether, assuming the distrib¬ uters would yield no more, the units would prefer the plan to the existing blocks-of-five method. Ac¬ tually what happened was that each organization sent in counter-proposals which differed widely in substance and in form, and the exhibitor mem¬ bers of the trade practice committee are as much up in the air as ever. As the record stands, it would seem that no regional association will be satisfied with any plan that does not contain its pet ideas. I regret to say this, but the distributors apparently know what they want and the exhibi¬ tors do not.” Kaufman to Warners New York — George S. Kaufman last week confirmed an announcement by Warners that he would go to Hollywood for the studio under a three-way contract as producer, director, and writer. Kauf¬ man will have complete authority over the pictures he makes. Lewton With RKO New York — Val Lewton, for the past eight and a half years story editor and research director for David O. Selznick, was last week signed to an associate pro¬ ducer’s contract by RKO. March 25, 1942 THE EXHIBITOR