The Exhibitor (Nov 1948-Feb 1949)

EXHIBITOR 17 THE PEOPLE Camden, N. J. — The appointment of John J. Dostal as field sales manager of 16mm. sound motion picture projectors for the RCA Visual Products Group was announed last week by H. V. Somerville, products manager, sound and visual products section, RCA Engineering Prod¬ ucts Department. Hollywood — Columbia vice-president Judge Lester William Roth was last week appointed California chairman. Joint De¬ fense Appeal of the American Jewish Committee and the Anti-Defamation League, B’nai B’rith. New York — Lou Allerhand, with MGM for more than 22 years, has been pro¬ moted to Ntw Jersey branch manager, succeeding Ben Abner, resigned, it was announced last week by John P. Byrne, eastern sales manager. The new appoint¬ ment becomes effective on Nov. 15. Cleveland — Justin Spiepel was named Screen Guild branch manager here last week succeeding Edwin R. Bergman, re¬ signed. Spiegel was formerly a salesman with Eagle Lion. UA Holds Meeting New York — A general sales conference of all United Artists eastern district and branch managers was held last week. Joining Edward M. Schnitzer, eastern and Canadian sales manager, in leading the forthcoming season’s product discus¬ sions was Paul N Lazarus, Jr., executive assistant to the president. Home office executives present included Howard LeSieur, advertising and pub¬ licity director; Mark Silver, assistant east¬ ern sales manager, and Abe Dickstein, assistant to Schnitzer. NCA Defeats Tax Minneapolis — North Central Allied last week succeeded in killing a proposed $1,000 to $1,500 theatre tax based on in¬ dividual levies per seat at Chisholm, Minn., which was being considered by City Council there. Bloomington, Minn., however, levied a $300 tax before NCA could swing into action. Judge Nordbye Signs Minneapolis — Federal Judge Gunnar Nordbye last week signed the findings of fact and conclusions of law in the BergerASCAP case submitted by the defendants Benjamin Berger and Mrs. Jessie Jensen. The plaintiffs have 30 days in which to appeal. Pryor Heads Critics New York — Thomas M. Pryor the New York Times, was named chairman of the New York Film Critics Circle last week. Others named were Wanda Hale, the News, vice-chairman, and Dorothy Mas¬ ters, the News, secretary. More Schine Data Asked Buffalo — Federal Judge John Knight last week ordered Schine Chain Theatres to provide the government anti-trust divi¬ sion with specific information concerning its theatres in six states. Writers' Suit Dismissed By Court New York — Federal Judge Samuel H. Kaufman last week dismissed on techni¬ cal grounds a civil anti-trust suit brought by the Screen Writers Guild that charged the motion picture producers with con¬ spiring to govern the political views and associations of persons engaged in the production of films. The jurist said that the complaint violated the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure by not setting forth a short and plain statement of the claims for relief, and by not being concise and direct as to the charges, but he gave the complainants leave to file an amended complaint. The suit brought last June by the Guild and 30 individual writers named practi¬ cally all the film producers in this country and their trade associations including the Association of Motion Picture Producers, the Motion Picture Association of Amer¬ ica, Inc., and the Society of Independent Motion Picture Producers. Asking an in¬ junction to prevent the producers from furthering the alleged conspiracy said to have started in November, 1947, the writers charged that their civil liberties were en¬ dangered, and that the producers were threatening to destroy the free market for original and creative work. The writers also charged that vague and indefinite standards of social and political affilia¬ tion were set up by the producers, which were to be enforced by their concerted action. The relief the writers sought in¬ cluded an injunction barring the produ¬ cers from any meeting, communication, or collective action or decision respecting the hiring and dismissing of employes, and preventing the associations from taking any action resulting in discharge, refusal to hire, or blacklisting any screen writer, except in collective bargaining. Among the writers were Russel Crouse, Howard Lindsay, John Hersey, Christo¬ pher LaFarge, Oscar Hammerstein, 2d., Arthur Kober, Moss Hart, and Albert Hackett. ITOA Memorandum Filed New York — Federal Judge Vincent Leibell was presented last week with a memorandum by counsel for the plaintiffs asking that an injunction forbidding ASCAP to bring infringement suits against the ITOA in their anti-trust suit against ASCAP be included in the final decree, in connection with the plaintiffs’ proposed judgment. The plaintiffs would prefer to have the injunction included in the decree itself rather than as part of the court’s opinion. The judge was also asked by plaintiffs’ counsel to order ASCAP to return license fees collected from the plaintiffs between March 15, 1948, and July 19, 1948. The de¬ fendants had until November 9 to submit a memorandum on the proposed decree. Judge Leibell is expected to hand down his final decision before the middle of this month. Schreiber Buys Circuit Detroit — Raymond Schreiber, owner. Midwest Theatres Circuit, announced last week the purchase of a 15-year lease on the 10-theatre Harold Bernstein Circuit. November 10, 1948