Independent Exhibitors Film Bulletin (1952)

lewpotnts (Continued from Page 3) are generally not successful in th; foreign market and thus you automatically lose a great source of income. I decided to make only musicals that had pre-sold exploitation values, such as John Philip Sousa's "Stars and Stripes Forever," Irving Rerlin's "Call Me Madam," "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" and our great all-star musical "Tonight We Sing". To this list I must also add Irving Berlin's "There's No Business Like Show Business". From time to time we will announce other musicals that can fit into this top category. Your article states that we have been here at the studio in something of a "slump" for the past year. I do not believe the quality of our merchandise has deteriorated — the facts at least speak otherwise. Our total world gross at this point in the year is slightly ahead of our total world gross at this time last year. I am sure we are all aware of what "The Snows of Kilimanjaro" is doing at the box office across the nation. Add to this "My Cousin Rachel," "Niagara," "Stars and Stripes Forever," "Farmer Takes A Wife," "Tonight We Sing," "The President's Lady," "Gobi Outpost," "Man On the Tightrope," "The Desert Rats," "Call Me Madam," "Titanic," "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes," "White Witch Doctor" and "The Robe" and I believe it must be conceded that if we were in a slump or if our luck was bad, then certainly we are out of the slump by a wide margin and our luck has certainly changed for the good. One cannot forget that not so long ago this studio practically singlehanded kept the exhibitors away from the red ink. For three straight years when some of the other major companies were "gasping for breath" Twentieth Century-Fox saved the day. This is not a boastful assertion on my part. It came to me from hundreds of exhibitors all over America. With confidence I predict that the balance of this year and all of next year will clearly reveal when the "take" is counted that our studio will be second to no other studio when it comes to box office hits and to the gross. The credit for this certainly does not belong to me alone. I am not silly enough to believe that. If I am lucky it is because I have been lucky enough to surround myself with a lot of good people. Best always, Darryl F. Zanuck RKO's One Man "RKO Pictures Corp., with new men in charge, may be entering upon the most exciting days of its life." The Wall Street Journal had no idea, we're sure, how prophetic were those words, written one month ago in the first of its series of sensational articles on the Stolkin syndicate, which had just taken over control of the company from Howard Hughes. Well, RKO's days certainly have been exciting, to say the least, since then. Late last week, more excitement, a new RKO melodrama in four (or more) reels. New sequences were being added so fast as the week drew to a close that the RKO story probably will be of epic length by the time this is in print. REEL ONE: From Chicago, home base of the Stolkin group, came word that negotiations were under way for transfer of RKO stock control to a new syndicate headed by Matty Fox. Mr. Fox had participated in the reorganization of United Artists little over a year ago and, of late, he has been active in production of films for television. REEL TWO: Three minority stockholders filed a petition in New York Supreme Court asking a temporary receivership "to protect and preserve the business enterprises from loss and destruction and to prevent it from becoming insolvent." The petition also charges Howard Hughes with having "saddled unfair commitments" on the company and interfering with its "growth and development". The detrimental acts of which Mr. Hughes is accused range from letting Dore Schary go to requiring RKO to pay his Hughes Tool Company $100,000 for the services of Jane Russell ("a waste of corporate funds"). REEL THREE: Last Thursday afternoon, Arnold Grant resigned as chairman of the board and was followed promptly by Arnold Picker, whose resignation preceded by one day his assumption of duties as executive vice-president. Mr. Grant had been trying to organize a board of directors by filling the vacancies left by the withdrawal of Ralph Stolkin, A. L. Koolish and William Gorman. In a lengthy statement, the erstwhile chairman declared that he had nominated two reputable business executives from outside the movie industry to the board, but that they were not acceptable to the other two board members, Sherrill C. Corwin and Edward G. Burke, Jr., who are reputed to be representing, in some degree, at least, the Stolkin group interests. "The action of the board," Grant stated, "manacles my hands. It is evidently impossible to reconstitute the board at this time with persons of sufficient calibre to meet the corporation's problems. This in turn makes it impossible to have within the corporate structure the atmosphere of strength and integrity which is so necessary to attract and hold employees of outstanding calibre; to interest the investing community in acquiring the stock and participating in the future of your corporation; to justify banks in extending or enlarging credit to the corporation, and to obtain and maintain the faith and friendship of the industry in which we work, the theatres that buy our products, and the competitors with whom we are interdependent for friendly business intercourse." REEL FOUR: On Friday, November 14, what must be regarded as an interim board of directors was elected, including Messrs. Corwin and Burke. The three new members, chosen "in accordance with the company's policy of developing its leaders from the ranks", are: Charles Boasberg, general sales manager; William Zimmerman, general counsel, and Ross Hastings, assistant secretary, who is in charge of studio operations. This board, it may be presumed, will sit and await the outcome of the negotiations between Matty Fox and the Stolkin syndicate. Thus far, the RKO story of the past two months has been a tragedy. How sad, for instance, that Mr. Grant, in his search for manpower of "sufficient calibre to meet the corporation's problems" . . . "To attract and hold employees of outstanding calibre" . . . "to maintain the faith and friendship of the industry", failed to look right under his nose. The one man who has these qualifications, the one man who has the knowledge of RKO's problems, the experience and the prestige to conquer them is Ned E. Depinet. Through practically all the years of the company's existence, Ned Depinet has been RKO's bulwark, guiding it through several emergencies, once warding off almost certain bankruptcy. RKO is an important segment of our industry. Resumption of its fullscale operations is vital to the industry at large; certainly to all theatres. We are certain that we speak for an overwhelming majority of America's exhibitors in this plea to those who control RKO's destiny today that they turn to Ned Depinet to set their corporate ship back on the right course. He is the one man who can save RKO now, the one man who can give this tale a happy ending. Paq* II FILM BULLETIN November 17, I9S2