The Film Daily (1934)

Intimate in Character Internationa! in Scope Independent in Thought The Daily Newspaper OMyt otion Pictures Now Sixteen Years Old VOL. LXV. NO. 139 NEWyORI^,fCIDAy, JUNE 1<5, 1934 <S CENT* Educational To Distribute 16 K. B. S. Features MAJOR DISTRIBS SELLINHI EARLY 400JEATURES 14 Appeals Hearings Today Sets New C. A. Record Code Authority . . . and other things = By JACK ALICOATE = I AST week we were happy to look in, l^ socially, at a duly constituted and regularly organized meeting of the Code Authority. Chairmen are rotated and we ('happened to catch the gentlemanly Bob 1 Rubin of M-G-M as master of ceremonies. He is a lawyer and a scholar and the deliberations, therefore, were conducted with Ij.spatch, fairness and decorum. Adminislt/ator Sol Rosenblatt looked on with the watchful solicitation of a schoolmaster. ■These code hearings have a judicial procedure all their own. It happily admits lef short cuts, goes straight to the heart of the controversy and assures all a square shake and right out in the open. We were interested in the psychology of the meeting. IThe new deal must be working. To see ■producer and distributor representatives sitting in judgment on the board, leaning ■toward the cause of the exhibitor and the bitterest of left wing theater owners actually favoring the producer left us nonIplussed, bewildered and slightly balmy. ICodes and politics make strange bed fellows. T T T THERE seems to be no end to the many ' ridiculous ways in which this campaign against the motion picture industry is conducted. Here, for instance is a lulu. We call it Exhibit A. On June 11th in the House, Representative Cannon of Wisconsin introduced the following measure: "That whosoever shall transport or cause to be transported in interstate or foreign commerce any moving-picture film in which (a) any of the persons taking part in the Film have ever been arrested and convicted }f any offense involving moral turpitude; }r (b) the actions of the persons taking >art in the film are suggestive, unwholesome, and/or morally objectionable, shall >e punished by a fine of not more than 55,000 or by imprisonment for not more than five years, or both." This is not legislation but discriminatory ippression of the vilest sort. If the good Mr. Cannon of Washington and Wisconsin will come to New York we will take him {Continued on Page 2) Six Cases to Be Decided From Records, Others Through Testimony Establishing a new record, fourteen appeals will be heard by the Code Authority today. In the morning session, six appeals will be considered from the testimony record of the local boards. In the afternoon eight appeals will be heard with representatives of plaintiffs and respondents appearing. Two morning cases are from the Charlotte, N. C., Clearance and Zoning board. They are the Imperial (.Continued on Page 4) BERMAN QUITS RKO AS EXEC PRODUCER More Wick Evidence Buffalo — Hearing on Edwin Wick's injunction suit instituted against the grievance board has been postponed until June 22 in order to allow the board to listen to new evidence to be submitted by the exhibitor, who claims he complied with its instructions to discontinue price-cutting. He seeks an order to prevent stopping of his supply of film. West Coast Bureau of THE FILM DAILY Hollywood — Pandro Berman yesterday resigned as executive producer at the RKO studio. However, he will continue to handle a unit of pictures, making 13 features next season for RKO. His program will include "The Little Minister" and "Radio City Revels." Mountan Sells Interest In Showmen's Pictures Dave Mountan yesterday completed a deal under which he sells his interest in Showmen's Pictures to Joe Rice Malcolm and Louis A. Solomon, attorney. He has been president of the company. Mountan will announce his new plans within a few days. 47 LOEW-RKO HOUSES IN ON PRODUCT SPLIT Approximately 47 greater New York houses operated by Loew and RKO will be affected by a split of Warner Bros.-First National 193435 product provided under a deal reported consummated yesterday. Deal has been under negotiation for some days. This is the first major new season product deal completed. Other agreements have been generally held up by absence of sales managers from New York owing to sales meetings. Whitney C. A. Counsel At ITOA Suit Hearing William Whitney of the law firm of Cravath, von Gersdorff, Swain and Wood has been engaged by the legal committee of the Code Authority to represent the Code Authority and Local Boards in the injunction action brought by the I.T.O.A. The case comes up this morning before Judge Knox in the U. S. District Court. Milton C. Weisman will represent the I.T.O.A. Independent Output to Substantially Jump This Total Exhibitors getting ready to buy for the new season may exipect close to 400 features from eight major companies. This number will be substantially increased by the output of independent companies. Major company production schedules are approximately as follows: RKO Radio, 50; Fox, 58; United Artists, 24; Warner Bros., 60; MG-M, 48; Paramount, 60; Columbia, 48; Universal, 48, making a total of 396 features. Educational Gets Back 1 6 Former World Wide Releases 30 RKO Men Leaving For Chi. Sales Meeting Thirty RKO home office executives will attend the company's annual sales convention starting Mon (Continued on Page 16) Through an agreement between Fox and E. W. Hammons, 16 features produced by K.B.S. and formerly released by World Wide will be withdrawn from Fox distribution and distributed by Educational (Continued on Page 16) FOX PATENTS UPHELD BY APPEALS COURT The U. S. Circuit Court of Appeals at Philadelphia has unanimously affirmed decision of Judge Johnson of the U. S. District Court, Scranton, finding that flywheel patents controlled by American TriErgon Corp., headed by William Fox, have been infringed by Publix-Altoona and Wilmer & Vincent. Western Electric, which handled the (Continued on Page 4) Hoffberg to Handle 8 Spanish Features Arrangements to distribute eight Spanish features in this country have been concluded by J. H. Hoffberg, he said yesterday on arriving aboard the Manhattan. He is also fmporting an English feature "Two (Continued on Page 4) Col. Posts Still Open West Coast Bur., THE FILM DAILY Hollywood — No successors have so far been appointed for Sam Jaffe and Charles Beahan, both of whom have resigned from Columbia. The former was assistant general manager while the latter was an associate producer. Jaffe is due in New York early next month preliminary to sailing for Europe.