The Film Daily (1935)

THE Tuesday, June 18,1935 DAILY 17 FILM CODE PERSONNEL MMAINS TEMPORARILY {Continued from Page 1) an announcement by James L. O'Neill, newly appointed NRA administrator. "We are staying by the ship as long as we're needed, said Deputy Administrator William Farnsworth. "Just now we are marking time while the President's plans take shape." British Lion Film Corp. After American Outlet London — Following the lead of GB and BIP, British Lion Film Corp., progressive independent producing and distributing company, is expected to seek an American outlet for its product, it is indicated by the sailing Saturday of S. W. Smith, managing1 director, on the Normandie for New York. Smith also is managing director of AngloCanadian Distributors, which handles British product in Canada. Va. M.P.T.O. Pledges NRA Hours and Wages Roanoke — A resolution pledging members of the M. P. T. 0. of Virginia to uphold the NRA wages and hours for employees was passed at the organization's convention here yesterday. Other resolutions passed opposed the Pettengill Bill and any future Federal control or censorship measures, opposed designation of play dates by distributors, leasing of sound equipment for free exhibitions, and opposed the music tax and the A.S.C.A.P. as being extortionate. Group will also fight walkathons and other non-theatrical exhibitions as unfair competition, will try to stop free movies in schools where films are of an advertising nature, and will try to regulate showing of free first-run pictures at Army and Navy bases when legitimate movie houses are available. A discussion of block booking and blind buying with long arguments on both sides led nowhere. A LITTLE from "LOTS" By RALPH WILK Columbia Re-Signs Capra West Coast Bureau of THE FILM DAILY Hollywood — Columbia has signed Frank Capra to a new contract. Irene Dunne has also joined the company for a series of pictures. Walter Wanger to Dicker Walter Wanger is due East in July to negotiate a new releasing contract with Paramount. His last two pictures for the current season are "Smart Girl" and "Shanghai," both of which will be released next month. "Every Night at Eight," his third production, is for the 1935-36 season Paramount program. LAWRENCE GRAY has been signed by Sam Katzman of Victory Pictures Corp.'s "Danger Ahead," a Peter B. Kyne outdoor action story. This is the first of the eight pictures that the company is making. Included in the cast are Virginia Piene, Monte Blue and Fuzzy Knight. Production will start June 20 at Foy's Studios in Culver City. Al Martin is doing the adaptation. Fay Wray, who was born in Canada, is now a duly naturalized American citizen. It's a new case of "The Cohens and the Kellys." This time it is at Paramount, where Octavius Roy Cohen and Walter C. Kelly have written "The Virginia Judge," which will star Kelly. And, to be shure, 'tis a Murphy, who will direct, first name Ralph. Charles R. Rogers is the producer. Our Passing Show: Buddy DeSylva entertaining a group of his songwriter friends, including Irving Berlin, Leo Robin, Dick Whiting, Jerome Kern, Walter Donaldson, at his Malibu Beach home; Eugene O'Brien, Kitty Carlisle, Howard Estabrook, Patricia Ellis, Nydia Westman, Sam Mirviss at "The Notorious Lady." "Ball of Fire," to be made by Fox, is not a sequel to "Dante's Inferno." Lamar Trotti celebrated his recovery from a major operation by turning out a screenplay for "Ramona," which has elated officials of the Fox Hollywood studio. Charles Bickford has been signed by Paramount for a featured spot with John Boles and Gladys Swarthout in "Rose of the Rancho." Marion Gering will direct. Thelma Todd has been signed by Paramount for a featured role in support of Bing Crosby and Joan Bennett in "Two For Tonight," which Frank Tuttle will direct. Mary Boland and Lynne Overman are other members of the cast. Frank Craven has been signed by Samuel Goldwyn for "Barbary Coast." T ▼ ▼ Robert Taylor has been given the male lead in M-G-M's "Boots and HOLLYWOOD Saddles," an original story by Joe Sherman and Edward Sedgwick. Sedgwick will direct. Lucien Hubbard is producer. Ann Sothern's option has been taken up by Columbia. She is now working in "The Girl Friend." New contracts are announced by M-G-M with Brian Aherne and Louis Hayward. Paramount has lined up the next two pictures for Carl Brisson. The first will be "The Bouncer," set to start July 18, on which Harlan Thompson has written the screen play. The second is "Spring Storm", which has Herbert Fields on the screen play. Lewis Gensler will supervise both. Alice D. G. Miller has been signed by Paramount to write the screen play of Vera Caspary's story, "Easy Living," which Charles R. Rogers will produce for Paramount with Claudette Colbert starred. Dolores Del Rio will star in First National's "Romance in a Glass House," with Everett Marshall, Jane Froman and other stage, screen and radio names. Jerry Wald and Jules Epstein are the authors. Lyle Talbot is flying back from New York for a role in Warner's "Special Agent." Joe E. Brown, First National star, plans an Eastern vacation in the near future. William Dieterle will direct Paul Muni in "Doctor Socrates" for War "Too Many Parents," a story by George "Dink" Templeton, west coast football coach, has been purchased by Paramount. The production is planned to feature David Holt, Virginia Weidler, Baby LeRoy and other child players under contract to the studios in a sympathetic drama of childhood. Julien Josephson is writing the screen play. Paul Cavanagh will be featured in Paramount's "Without Regret," with E'lissa Landi, Kent Taylor and Frances Drake. Harold Young will direct from the play by Roland Pertwee and Harold Deardan and the screen play by Doris Anderson. HOLDS ASGAP MUSIC NECESSARY ON RADIO William J. Benning, program and musical director of Station WTMJ, Milwaukee, which is owned by the Milwaukee Journal, testified yesterday in the trial of the U. S. antitrust action against Ascap and the M.P.P.A. that he was unable to get along without using Ascap music. Benning admitted, however, under cross-examination by Nathan Burkan, Ascap counsel, that though WTMJ had frequently used the music of songwriters who were not Ascap members, it had never paid any of them for the use of their music. Benning testified that WTMJ had 25,572 usable musical numbers in its music library, of which all but 2,801 were controlled by Ascap. He said the public wants the type of music owned by Ascap. He testified hat though the melodies of some foreign popular songs were good and might be used here, the fact that the words of the song were in a foreign language barred their use. Cross-examination of Benning will be completed by Burkan this morning after which it is expected there will be an adjournment for two days to permit records mentioned by Benning on the stand to be brought here from Milwaukee. In the interim Burkan and government counsel will endeavor to get together on the stipulation of facts so that the trial may be speeded. 42 Affiliated Houses Now Using Giveaways Approximtely 42 houses belonging ing to circuits affiliated with national theater groups are now using giveaways, a check-up yesterday disclosed. About 10 Balaban & Katz houses in Chicago are on the policy, as are 20 Mullen-Pinanski nouses in the Boston area and 12 A. H. Blank theaters in the Iowa-Nebraska district. RKO is not considering using giveaways, despite statement of Loew that its circuit will adopt them in the New York zone. Ad Case Postponed Chicago — The case of Vitagraph vs. Great States circuit in connection with alleged misleading advertising of "Let 'Em Have It" has again been postponed, this time to June 20. Hecht-MacArthur to Make 2 Two features will be produced for Paramount distribution by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur under the deal now progressing toward the signatures stage. Financing will be provided by both the distributor and Eastern Service Studios, at whose Astoria plant the pictures will be made for next season release.