The Film Daily (1934)

THE -z&n DAILY Thursday, May 31, 193' RESUMING PARLEYS ON MUSIC ROYALTY (Continue^ from Page if Han K. Braun, executive secretary of the S. P. A. The S^P." A. seeks for its members jHider contract to studios an agreement which would entitle them to share in royalty, synchronization and other rights if a song written by a composer and used in a motion picture is published. Eastern Exhibs Form Film Buyers' Group {Continued from Pane 1) out of which has come the 'Independent Film Buyers Protective Group.' "A committee of five, consisting of Lou Blumenthal, Chairman, Dr. J. B. Fishmin. Jnhn Benas, Eddie Ansin and David Barrist, was appointed. Cooperating with the committee of five will be Harry Brandt and Sidney Samuelson, acting in an ex-officio capacity. This committee was empowered to work out a three point program. "1 — Explore all possible sources of new product, both American and British with a view of lining up pictures that can be purchased on 'fair-play' terms. "2 — Seek definite tie-ups with certain existing companies whereby additional product will be made available to independent theaters. "3 — Organize and formulate protective measures against unfair rentals, percentages, preferred playing time, etc." Temporary offices have been established at 341 W. 44th St., N. Y., the present office of the I. T. O. A. of New York. Although certain major companies have made overtures to the original committee, according to the announcement, it was decided that some formal plan be adopted and in every case where a major company is agreeable to adopting what the Group feels in a "common-sense" selling plan along fair-play lines, that company's product will be recommended to the large number of exhibitors represented by their various leaders in the Group. National publicity will be given to the campaign. Austrian Industry Improves After being handicapped by lack of capital, the film industry in Austria shows signs of improvement as a result of working agreements with foreign interests, according to a report to the Commerce Department from Commercial Attache T. L. Hughes. There are two modern studios now operating in Austria and 15 features were turned out last year. Out of 217 import permits granted last year, 90 went to the U. S. and 19 to Germany. 75 Summer Stocks With the summer dramatic stock season officially under way, it is expected that the 20 stocks now operating will be swelled to 75 by mid-July. Last summer 81 stocks were operating at the height of the season. Nearly all the stock companies will try out one or more new plays, with some companies being entirely devoted to tryouts. PHIL M. DALY • • • STUDY OF two film writing gents having a helluva lotta furi being Themselves writing as they like and HOW they like and DIRECTING their pix the same way, b'gosh may sound like a Fairy Tale to all you other writers real and alleged but it's a fact saw the demonstration with our own eyes . over at Eastern Service Studios in Astoria where Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur have started their first feature production as Author-DirectorSupervisor-Producers the feature? "Crime Without Passion" written, supervised, directed by Hecht-MacArthur .... a Perfect Demonstration of Authors' Heaven T T T • • • THESE LADS have hit on the secret of film production that is the secret of the Spirit in which films should be produced in the Spirit of Play it isn't work to them wott'ell why should it be? plays should be produced in the same atmosphere what makes so many important productions so heavy, stodgy, mechanical and routiney is the fact that they are produced in the Spirit of Work the very thing folks are trying to get away from when they go to the movies silly, isn't it? Hecht-MacArthur are not silly probably the greatest writing team this biz has ever produced so why can't they be great producers? we rather surmise that their PLAY production is going to blaze a new trail in studio technique ▼ T T • • • HERE'S JUST a sample of how they do things ...... entirely different from that which anybody else has attempted in their private office so private that the door is never closed . the wall is covered with large signs with big black letters on white paper. . . every other day a new sign appears . placed there by either Hecht or MacArthur Hecht will look at the new sign reading "What Is the Audience Doing All That Time?" and say whazzmatter Mac? and Mac will say "That bit you shot yesterday doesn't give the audience a chance to do anything but twiddle their thumbs. It has nothing It's lousey." ...... Ben will think a moment and say "You're right. I see your point. We'll scrap it and do it Right." then another day Mac will look at a new sign reading. . . .,. "Let the Public In On Our Secret" and Ben will explain to hiin that such-and-such a scene is opaque to the customers and needs a chart or diagram to tell 'em what it's all about in this spirit of spoofing they do their work — er — their Play how can you beat guys like that? ....... T ▼ \ ▼ • • • THE CAST of "Crime Without Passion" is 90 per cent amateur actors, of course but actors who have never worked before a camera and mike Ben and Mac feel they want Plastic Material to mould to their ideas they catch the individual player when he or she is Natural when they haven't absorbed Film Consciousness which makes most vet screen players stilted, phoney, unnatural New Players are the only ones who are really natural except really great screen players but how many of those have we? don't answer it will break the hearts of too many film players T ▼ ▼ • • • THIS CASUAL column has been written in the casual spirit of Hecht-MacArthur making their pix it's a sheer delight to watch them wor — er — play everybody catches the Infectious Spirit Lee Garmes, Art Rosson, Walter Strenge, Bill Kelly, Joe Nadel, Harold Godsoe, Jack Shallett, Terry Hogan, Joe Kane, Claude Rains, Whitney Bourne, Margot, Slavko Vorkapich, Leslie Adams, Stanley Ridges, C. N. O'Dell, Ethelyne Holt, Renata Booth we'll tell you more about all these folks in a later column and more about The Lads Who Have Turned Work Into PLAY Hecht-MacArthur one column simply cannot do 'em justice « « « » » » 1,000 WRITERS USED FOR 520 FEATURES gday. (Continued from Pane 1) for the season total about 2,000 while directors number about 235 cameramen 140, recording engineer; 78, film editors 114, songwriters 59 and dance directors 14. a, noil ipli it" Biz in South Up 100%, Ed Kuykendall Reports (Continued from Pane 1) aters are taking in at least 100 per cent more revenue than last yeai at this time. He believes that tht pickun is a permanent one. While in New York Kuykendall will attend a meeting of the Code Authority today and also transact M. P. T. O. A. business. He is considering calling a meeting of the executive committee in New York the middle of next month. Progress in Television Cited at Radio Meeting ,Bt (Continued from Page 1) dio relay station, were described in a symposium of technical papers on television presented by research engineers of RCA Victor Co. before the Institute of Radio Engineers in convention here. The tests were conducted as another stage in the development of television technique by the Camden laboratories to determine the objectives for continued research. The television transmission experiments were made with the Iconoscope, an electrical scanning device having no moving parts and whose operation has been likened to the human eye. The use of the Iconoscope in the experiments provided a new degree of flexibility over former methods in that it made it possible for the first time to successfully transmit outdoor scenes and cover greater areas in the studio. The tests indicated the desirability of utilizing two carrier waves, one for picture and synchronization and the other for the sound associated with the picture. At another session of the radio engineer convention, W. R. G. Baker of RCA Victor said Europe might develop commercial television before the U. S. high cost of providing this entertainment in the home may set it back for five years here, he declared. *, i,Jt im 'IS, till SHOWMAN'S REMINDER Include the starting time of your feature in your newspaper ads. It takes only one line and is worth ten. Sft: n v ,'• i < J \ J ! c