Independent Exhibitors Film Bulletin (Sep 1935 - Aug 1936)

6 INDEPENDENT EXHIBITORS FILM BULLETIN TENT 13 AFFAIR SCORES TRIUMPH Showmanship . . . Staged as only a group of showmen might do it, Variety Club's Philadelphia Tent 1 3 presented its first annual banquet to an assemblage of more than 900 men from every walk of life at the Bellevue-Stratford Hotel Sunday evening. For variety, brilliance and the scope of its showmanship, the affair was unanimously acclaimed the greatest of its kind in the city's history. The typical movie adjectives of "stupendous," "colossal," "tremendous" that were hurled upon the event in advance by its sponsors proved to be fairly descriptive. While not one of the three governors announced as guests attended, there were present a large group of celebrities from the political, legal, medical and sports, not to mention, of course, the film and theatre worlds. Charity . . . A serious and charitable note was struck in the midst of all the festivities, when Dr. J. Norman Henry, former Philadelphia Director of Public Health, was given a check for $1000 by the Variety Club, with which four infantile paralysis victims are to be rendered aid. The speakers included Mayor Wilson, Jack Kelly, Al Schacht, Louis Nizer, Judge Harry Kalodner, Bob Hall, Earle Sweigart, James Clark, Charles Pettijohn and Senator Frank Harris. George Jessel was toastmaster. Addressing his victorious opponent in the recent Mayoralty race, Kelly said, "If I had been elected Mayor of Philadelphia, I would use this Variety Club organization in every possible way to further the city's interests. There is a tip for you, Mr. Mayor." After the speakers had had their round, N. T. G. staged a huge variety show. UNIVERSAL MAY NOT PASS FROM LAEMMLE Option Still On . . . Lack of capital with which to lift the option on Universal Pictures may prevent Standard Capital Corporation (Chas. Rogers and J. Cheever Cowdin) from taking the company out of the hands of Carl Laemmle and the present Universal setup The three months option, which expires February 1st, provides for substantial cash payments to Laemmle and reliable sources report that Rogers-Cowdin have encountered difficulty in interesting any banks to supply the money. Efforts are reported to have been made to entice the Universal president to accept stock in the new setup in place of cash. Laemmle is said to have refused. DUALS RULING NEAR Momentarily . . . Decision on appeal of the double feature decision in the Philadelphia Circuit Court of Appeals is expected momentarily. A query of the court yesterday (Tuesday) brought the response that "the ruling in the Perelman vs. Warner Bros, et al. case may come down any day now." If upheld ng the District Court's decision against the distributors, the Circuit Court ruling will probably result in immediate lowering of the existent bar against dualling certain major companies' products. Only an appeal to the United States Supreme Court would bring any further delay. Waxman Signs With G-B A. P. Waxman, veteran film ad man, signed a new contract with G-B last week to continue in his post as advertising counsel for the company. Waxman is credited with doing an excellent job of presenting G-B's English-made product to American theatremen and audiences. RECOVERING Showing marked improvement in his fight against pneumonia, Charles Segall, president-elect of the IMPTO, merged body of the former MPTO and IEPA groups, may be ready to return to the organization wars again within the next two weeks. During his illness, Lewen Pizor, president of the old MPTO, has been strenuously active in seeking to upset the consolidation of the two groups, which Segall was largely instrumental in effecting. ALLIED DIRECTORS TO MAP LEGISLATIVE CAMPAIGN FOR YEAR Meet Feb. 4-5 . . . Block booking, copyright law revision, preferred playdates are to be among the subjects slated to occupy the attention of Allied States Ass'n directors at their annual meeting in Washington, February 4 and 5. The confab will be held at the Carlton Hotel and a full attendance is anticipated. Principal among the topics to be considered will be the formulation of plans for furthering enlistment of public support in favor of the Pettengill-Neely bill to abolish compulsory block booking. Allied leaders feel that some steps must be taken to counteract the effect of several anonymous pamphlets issued by the major producers and they are expected to supplement the Allied "White Book" with additional publicity on this subject for public consumption, as well as for exhibitors. Other Problems . . . The Duffy b.'ll, eliminating the arbitrary penalty clause for copyright violations; the Ohio and Wisconsin cases against preferred playing time; Warner-Ascap scrap; taxes; the St. Louis equity suit now in progress; labor's move to industrialize the entire industry, and the consideration of means to combat unfair trade practices and chain theatre aggression are scheduled for discussion. The current Allied bulletin suggests three possible remedies for protecting the independents against major producer tactics, (1) legislation, (2) litigation and (3) marshalling buying power through cooperatives. Elections . . . Officers of the national body for 193 6 will be elected by the Board. Incumbents are: President, Sidney E. Samuelson; Chairman and General Counsel, Abram F. Myers; Secretary and Treasurer, Herman A. Blum; Recording Secretary, H. M. Richey. FILM STOCKS UP Profits . . . Reflecting the prospects of increased profits, the securities of the major film companies have been riding to new highs on the New York stock exchange. RKO, 20th Century-Fox, and Warner Bros, all reached new tops at the end of last week.