Independent Exhibitors Film Bulletin (1951)

Short Subjects By B A R h "WHEN YOU GO to the movies over here, you get out of Korea for a couple of hours." It's doubtful if Hollywood ever received a more stirring tribute than this statement by an infantryman fighting with the United Nations forces. Nor has the importance of movies to our fighting forces overseas been pointed up more than in a story in the Pacific edition of Stars and Stripes which calls movies "one of the principle contributing factors to continued high morale" among UN forces in Korea. Movies, the article says, "have played as much a key role in building a great fighting force as have hot chow, letters from home, top battle equipment and tobacco rations." It goes on to say how soldiers have sat on open ground through drenching summer downpours to see a movie to the end, how they crowded into seatless, unheated, bombsplintered buildings last Winter in 28-belowzero temperatures to view a film, or walked for miles for the opportunity. "There is no such thing as a 'bad picture' in Korea. They are good pictures, terrific pictures and pictures-you-don't-want-to-miss . . . Most of them have been the newest and best turned out by Hollywood." Movie-knockers, please copy. THOSE DIE-CUT accessories, distributed by National Screen Service in an arrangement with 20th Century-Fox whereby they are sold below actual manufacturer cost, are catching on in a big way with exhibitors. Starting with the "David and Bathsheba" counter cards, followed by "Mr. Belvedere Rings the Hell" lobby hangers and the •'People Will Talk" door hangers, latest in the group seems to be getting quite a play. It's a counter card and a striking mask for "The Day the Earth Stood Still", with the card sporting a chilling photograph of the nine-foot metal robot who deals death rays from his Cyclopean eye, and the mask, modeled after the head of the mechanical monster, making a big hit with the youngsters as a giveaway piece. THAT--WAS quite a ribbing Paramount ad manager Sid Blumcnstock took following his initial appearance on, if you'll pardon the expression, television. Plugging the new Crosby film for Paramount, "Here Comes the Groom," Sid appeared on the "What's Playing" TV show, which features film episodes from new pictures. Immediately after the show, ABC received a flood of wires commenting on the appearance. Some sample^ : "More appearances like yours and motion pictures will have nothing to fear from TV. Keep up the good work." — Paramount Employees Club. "Regret TV set functioning improperly. Could only see one of your heads." — Bob Kaufman. "Regret TV set Functioning properly, Saw vour show." — Carl Clausen, PARAMOUNT'S BLUMENSTOCK TV Star "Are you available for further TV appear-; ances? Have never seen such natural distortion before. Please advise." — TV Service and Repair Co. "Are you available for modeling?" — Charles Addams (New Yorker magazine artist specializing in ghouls and creeps). NO. ONE BOOSTER of movies in the multi-million circulation publication field, Look Magazine will carry its powerful weight into the "Movietime-' campaign with a seven-page article, "Who Says Hollywood Is Dying?", in its issue out Oct. 9th, which will review the best films for 1951. An honored guest at the recent TOA convention, Woodrow Wirsig, executive editor of Look, reiterated his confidence in the motion picture industry with an inspiring detailing of Look's long months of research for the article — in direct contract to another national magazine's recent attack on the industry in a garbled report that could hardly be called factual. According to Wirsig, when the editors of Look saw the "tremendous list of exceptionally fine films coming up", they felt that special arrangements must be made to report them properly to the mag's 18^2 million readers. "I tell you frankly," said the editor, "that never have I seen such an overpowering number of fine films come out of Hollywood." The magazine, from its first issue 14 years ago, has backed the nioyics with a constructive coverage of films, devoting a higher proportion of its editorial content to movies and movie people than any other top circulation periodical. In 1951, Look will have devoted 21.2% of its editorial pages to movies and amusements, more than ever before in its history. With the preponderance of publications that think it's smart to knock movies — and know that they'll grab reader interest with the subject — Look stands out even more boldly as a consistent champion of the country's princi pal entertainment medium — and the movi industry is grateful. BOB SAYTNI has acquired a pair c Edward Gross productions, both based o the King Features comic strip, "Barne Google and Snuffy Smith", for re-releas by his Astor Pictures Corp. They ai "Hillbilly Blitzkrieg" and "Private Snuff Smith", originally released by Monogran starring Bud Dunra l and Edgar Kennedv Astor has slated tl e pair for immediate na tional release with a new line of ads an accessories. OF MEN AND THINGS: Monograij president Steve Broidy has closed a dea for the company to take over the Cincinna^ franchise, heretofore owned jointly by A\1 Ray Johnston and George West. Miltoi Gurian heads the branch for Monogram The passing of David Palfreyman, forme head of the MPAA Theatre dept., was keen ly felt by the many theatremen who kne\ the personable industry executive. Funeral services were held in his home town, Angola! Ind., Sept. 26. . . . Nicholas J. Matsuokas national campaign director for the Wil Rogers Memorial Hospital for the past yeaB assumes the top ad-publicity post fo Skouras Theatres Corp. . . . Tom W. Bridgd former special sales representative in Paraj mount's Dallas exchange, has been promoter to branch manager in that city, replacinf Heywood Simmons, who resigned to go int(' exhibition. . . . Harold Rand is the nev'J 20th-Fox assistant trade paper contact. . . Mort Nathanson, former Paramount publi city manager, is now Eastern publicity di rector for Sam Spiegel's Horizon ProducJ tions and starts right in on the campaigil for "The African Queen", the BogarM Hepburn starrer to be released througB United Artists. . . . Irving Rubine, ad veteraii most recently associated with Robert Still! man productions, has been named assistant! to president of Dougfair Productions, head! ed by Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. COMPO, NOT SEADLER Si Seadler's popular article, "Speak 1 Up, Movie Folk, It's Vour Industry I They're Knocking", is very much in ( demand, particularly these days of I "Movietime" campaigning. It seems, however, that theatremen have flooded the M-G-M advertising chief's desk with requests for reprints of the article instead of writing to COMPO where the reprints are stocked. Seadlet would like it known, therefore, that the pamphlets are available in quantity, j BUT make sure you address your re I quest to COMPO. 1501 Broadway, New York, and NO T to the harried Mr. Seadler, who i> doing double duty these days as ad executive for both Metro and the "Movietime" campaign. 12 FILM BULLETI