Independent Exhibitors Film Bulletin (1956)

'^Carousel99 and ^Picnic" Herald Spring! Exhibitors — to your stations! That sound you hear, gradually swelling in intersity, is the line forming to the right. It's been a hard winter, spare of good things for moviemen, bereft of the comfort only an interested and responsive public can bring to theatres. There has been too little product and far too few outstanding films. But suddenly, last week, the sun burst through the clouds, the red-breasted robin took to wing and, overnight, it seemed that the warmth of Spring was upon us. "Carousel" and "Picnic" opened to the cheering cheers of the critics. What two more likely film titles could our industry ask to herald the thaw, to bring a foretaste of the bright promise that lies ahead than "Carousel" and "Picnic". They literally sing with the fluted sounds of Spring. Let the jolly ladies and gentlemen of the New York fourth estate write the lyrics to the happy tune of the day, and we suggest you sing their words to the rhythm of the feet marching to the theatres showing these two wonderful films. Of "Carousel", they say : "Stunning ... A beautifully turned out film, crisply played and richly sung by a fine cast . . . CinemaScope 55 endows the production with a sharpness of line and color that is well nigh superb . . ." Bosley Crowther. Times. "Everyone will want to see this picture . . . Excellent . . . Best of the giant screen processes to date . . ." ArcheY Winsten, Post. " 'Carousel' stands out as one of the few truly great musical productions ... A brilliant and vastly appealing musical drama . . . CinemaScope 55 is the greatest . . ." Wanda Hale, News. "One of the most beautiful motion pictures ever made . . . Nothing short of terrific . . ." Rose Pelswick, Journal American. " 'Carousel' creates contentment to a degree that verges on ecstatic delirium . . ." Alton Cook, WorldTelegram. And, of "Picnic" : "Has magnetic holding power . . . As American in flavor as apple pie . . . Amazing realism . . ." Kate Cameron, News. "Memorable and moving drama . . . Joshua Logan has made its characters come alive again through his directorial artistry . . ." A. H. Weiler, Times. "A honey of a picture . . . Constantly absorbing, and each of the players gives an impressive performance . . . One of the year's best . . ." Rose Pelswick, Journal American. "Has sequences of both laughter and drama as memorable as anything we are likely to see in the whole movie year . . ." Alton Cook, World-Telegram. "Joshua Logan captures both the fun and the loneliness of small town life, and he does it with deep compassion and a shining honesty . . ." William K. Zinsser, Herald Tribune. And so they go, a song of promise, not alone for these two great films, but acclaiming, too, the big product line-up that is awaiting release. It now becomes incumbent upon BULLETIN Film BULLETIN: Motion Picture Trade Paper published every other Monday by Wax Publications, Inc. Mo Wax, Editor and Publisher. PUBLICATION-EDITORIAL OFFICES: 123? Vine Street, Philadelphia 7, Pa., LOcust 8-0950, 095 1 . Philip R. Ward, Associate Editor; Leonard Coulter, New York Associate Editor; Duncan G. Steck, Business Manager; Robert D. Lauder, Publication Manager; Robert Heath, Circulation Manager. BUSINESS OFFICE: 522 Fifth Avenue, New York 36. N. Y., MUrray Hill 2-3631; Richard Bretstein, Editorial Representative. WEST COAST OFFICE: 4260 Laurel Canyon Blvd., North Hollywood, California. Phone: STanley 7-4718. Vance King, Hollywood Editor. Subscription Rates: ONE YEAR, $3.00 in the U. S.; Canada, $4.00; Europe, $5.00. TWO YEARS: $5.00 in the U. S.; Canada, $7.50; Europe, $9.00. this entire industry to capitalize the opportunities that are coming to hand. Let's make the Spring and Summer, 1956, a great one in the annals of showmanship. 'Richard9 The Thud "Richard III", which Mark Van Doren called "a play about people being boiled in oil", is threatening to bubble-up a new vat of troubles. Through a compact between the film's distributor, the National Broadcasting Company and General Motors, the show's sponsor, the American public will be treated free of charge to "Richard" over a nationwide hook-up, Sunday, March 11. A few hours later, it will open on a reserved seat basis in a New York theatre. Forgetting the boiling oil, "Richard's" backers seem destined to end up — at the very least — in hot water. Like oil and water, TV film premieres and subsequent theatre showings simply do not mix. If the fate of "Constant Husband" is not proof enough, consider, then, that "Richard III" undoubtedly will capture a far wider viewership than the former flub, which it is noted, has failed to gain an American distributor. The American theatre potential of a "Richard III", though not prodigious, was nonetheless considerable, but the TV performance will siphon off the juice and leave only the rind. Exhibitors would betray their deepest interests by entering into commerce with distributor elements who, by their TV dealings, appear to regard theatres as a sort of alternative, sloppy-second market for films. Film sellers, both foreign and domestic, must learn to render unto the theatre that which is the theatre's and unto TV that which is TV's. Film BULLETIN February 20, 1956 Page S