The Film Daily (1934)

18 DAILY Monday, June 11, 1934 Little Man what now? The Coming Film Daily Production Guide Of Course! Out— in— July « « SHORT SUBJECT REVIEWS » » Ruth Etting in "The Song of Fame" with Eddie Bruce, Arthur Donaldson, Jackson Halliday, Minor & Root, Pat West Vitaphone 19 mins. Good Musical Comedy A generally enjoyable Broadway Brevity. Ruth Etting plays the role of a singing cigarette girl looking for another job. A boy friend promises to get her one through his pretended friendship with a big theatrical agent. But the agent gives him the cold shoulder, so the lad frames it up for the agent to hear Ruth sing while he's in a barber cbair. The Italian barber, played by Charles La Torre, has the wrong man in the chair at the time, however, and the plan seems a fizzle, but it happens that the agent was just outside and heard the singing, so Ruth gets starred at last. A few pleasing vocal numbers by Miss Etting, a good hillbilly specialty by a Judy and Zeke quartette, some nice rallroom dancing by Minor & Root and a bit of ensemble work combine to pack the two reels with a generout amount of entertainment. Joseph Henabery directed. Harry Gribbon in "Corn on the Cop" with Shemp Howard, Mary Doran, Boyd Davis Vitaphone 20 mins. Satisfactory Comedy Harry Gribbon and Shemp Howard, a couple of hobos, get an idea for making dough with a corn remedy. Howard fixes up a gag that makes folks peep into a store window, while he reaches out from a basement window and pounds them on the corns with a hammer, with Gribbon's corn emporium being just next door to give them relief. The stunt gets by for a while, but when a police lieutenant comes along and becomes one of the victims the jig is up. Fairly amusing throughout and should satisfy. "Dumb Champs" (World of Sport Series) Columbia 10 mins. Good Cats, dogs, roosters, apes and even a swimming mountain lion and a boxing kangaroo are the principal performers in this subject. They are shown in comical boxing matches and races, with an off-screen commentator supplying remarks that add to the humorous enjoyment. 9 mins. "Big Timber' Screen Novelties Good Scenic Presentation of the lumbering industry in British Columbia accompanied by excellent narrative explaining the cutting of the timber, hauling to the river, loading on trains, cutting up into lumber, etc. The latter half of the film is devoted to the mechanics of the modern lumber manufacturing plant, the different kind of saws, etc. All of which are run by electricity. The short holds the interest for its information and the shots of the lumbermen felling the trees amid scenery. Well photographed. "Playtime at the Zoo" British Instructional Films 9 mins. Good Entertaining shots of the birds and animals at play in a zoo. Highlights are a pair of laughing jackass birds, marmosets playing hide and seek in and out of their holes, seals doing fancy jumps out of the water, white bears playing with a ball in the water, a pair of lion cubs in a friendly spat over a sucking bag, and a flock of penguins playing follow the leader into and out of a pool. Will interest kids especially though it holds appeal for adults, too. "Hello Everybody" Dist. Not Set 18 mins. Fair A typical British melange of music, dancing, song and general spoofing. Dancing trio from "The Blackbirds" illustrates some fast and furious stepping. A soubrette and chorus from the London Adelphi Revue prance about in long, filmy skirts while the leader sings. Lacks the fire of the American chorus girl numbers. Short ends with a takeoff on Douglas Fairbanks as Petruchio with Anna May Wong as Katherine who proves an expert slinger of custard pies. "Trick Golf" M-G-M 9 mins. Great for Golf Fans Golf fans in particular will get a great kick out of this collection of fancy stunts on the links. With the usually witty comment by Pete Smith, the subject is amusing as well as amazing. It shows a series of clever shots made by a trick golfer wbose precision in landing on the ball in various positions from sand traps to the top of a telegraph pole. B. A. Rolfe in "A Jolly Good Fellow" Vitaphone 10 mins. One of the liveliest and most tuneful of the Melody Masters series. B. A. Rolfe, after partaking of a rarebit, has a nightmare in which members of his orchestra play and sing a repertoire of numbers, accompanied by a kaleidoscope of visions. Some very good process work together with the musical enjoyment combine to make it a good novelty. SHORT SHOTS from EASTERN STUDIOS By CHAS. ALICOATE JACQUELINE LOGAN and MonJ tague Love, both stars in their own right, and both of whom have had striking careers in recent years, have just been signed for important roles in the new Educational comedy, "Love and Babies," starring Ernest Truex, going into production today at the Astoria studios. Al Christie will produce the comedy, based on the stage play of the same title which ran on Broadway last year with Ernest Truex also essaying the starring role. It was adapted by William Watson and Art Jarrett. • Gks Edwards and His Stars of Tomorrow have been signed to make a one-reel short subject at the Brooklyn Vita/phone studio, according to an announcement from Sam Sax, production chief: • Preparations are well under way for starting of production on "Woman in the Dark," Dashiell Hammett story, which will be the first of 12 features to go in work at the Biograph studios when Select Productions, the William Saal and Burt Kelly company, start activity there on June 19. • Hal LeRoy and Dorothy Dare start work today in "Syncopated City," two-reel musical comedy, at the Vitaphone studio. • A two-reel comedy entitled "Smoked Hams," starring Daphne Pollard and Shemp Howard, was finished at the Vitaphone plant last week. Lloyd French directed. Jimmy Harris in St. Louis St. Louis — Jimmy Harris of Minneapolis, formerly with Publix, is here to handle publicity and advertising for Loew's State. French Exhibs Protest U. S. Curb Paris — Protests that proposed drastic restrictions on importation of American films would be ruinous to their business were made here yesterday by 300 theater owners from all parts of France. Supply Dealers Framing Draft A supplementary code to be incorporated in the wholesale basic and distributing code is being drafted by a committee representing the Independent Theater Supply Dealers Inc. and will be ready for delivery to the NRA in two weeks. Disney Expanding West Coast Bur., Tllli FILM DAILY Hollywood — A two-story building is now being erected at the Walt Disnsy studios to give more space for Disney's increased personnel. The building will />ovide 12,000 square feet of space and with its equipment will represent an investment of $65,000. It will be opened in September. Two hundred people are now employed by Disney, whose original personnel numbered 40.