The Film Daily (1937)

Tuesday, March 23, 1937 THE -3W DAILY « REVIEWS » ## "Waikiki Wedding with Bmg Crosby, Bob Burns, Martha Raye, Shirley Ross, George Barbier, Lief Erickson (HOLLYWOOD PREVIEW Paramount 90 Mins. POTENTIAL BOX-OFFICE WINNER COMBINING COMEDY, ROMANCE, CATCHY TUNES AND STRONG CAST. Against a colorful Hawaiian background the Arthur Hornblow, Jr., production is 3 nice blending of comedy and romance. Frank Tuttle has given the picture a light, breezy touch, and with the names of Crosby, Burns and Martha Raye decorating the marquees, it should be a winner at the box-office. Ralph Rainger and Leo Robin have come through with several catchy songs, with "Blue Hawaii," "Okoleho" and "In A Little Hula Heaven" likely to be the most popular. Boris Morros' musical direction is very good. LeRoy Prinz handles the ensembles, with a native dance performed on drums being the highlight. Shirley Ross is the love interest opposite Bing and is an effective aide in her songs with the star. Lief Erickson has his best part to date as Shirley's stuffy sweetheart and does good work. George Barbier, Anthony Quinn, Granville Bates, Grady Sutton, Nick Lukats, Mitchell Lewis and George Regas are among the principals. The Hawaiian exteriors photographed by Robert C. Bruce are especially beautiful, while Karl Struss' photography of the principals is excellent. Frank Butler and Don Hartman, who wrote the original, collaborated with Walter DeLeon and Francis Martin on the screenplay. Bing is a publicity man for a Hawaiian pineapple company. He staged a pineapple girl popularity contest. Shirley Ross, of Birch Falls, la., wins and comes to Hawaii to write her impressions of the resort. It is a big disappointment to her chiefly because she is lonesome. Bing is drafted to make love to her. He stages a fake kidnaping to impress her. After many complications, he finnally wins her. Cast: Bing Crosby, Bob Burns, Martha Raye, Shirley Ross, George Barbier, Lief Erickson, Grady Sutton, Granville Bates, Anthony Quinn, Mitchell Lewis, George Regas, Nick Lukats, Prince Lei Lani, Maurice Liu, Raquel Echeverria. Producer, Arthur Hornblow, Jr.; Director, Frank Tuttle; Authors, Frank Butler, Don Hartman; Screenplay, Frank Butler, Don Hartman, Walter DeLeon, Francis Martin, Cameraman, Karl Struss; Special Effects, Farciot Edouart; Hawaiian Exteriors, Robert C. Bruce; Art Directors, Hans Dreier, Robert Usher; Editor, Paul Weatherwax; Dance Director, LeRoy Prinz; Musical Director, Boris Morros; Words and Music, Leo Robin, Ralph Rainger; Orchestrations, Victor Young; Arrangements, Al Siegel, Arthur Franklin. Direction, Capable. Photography, Excellent. Theaterphones Installed Montclair, N. J. — Warner's Clairidge Theater has wired 40 seats for the hard of hearings with Dictograph's newest type of Acousticon Theaterphones. It's the first installation in the area. Mission House to Open Mission, Tex.— R. N. Smith's new theater will open April 1, with name to be selected by popular vote. Miami M.P.T.O.A. Hangovers By ARTHUR W. EDDY YW"HEN the Florida Special was heading north from coventiontorn Miami, one exhib in the first section wired to a ditto in the second section, some miles back: "You must come over." E. W. Hammons was a talking example of ivhat the well-dressed conventioneer should wear. He created a sensation when he appeared at the Miami Biltmore attired in blue slacks and shoes (purchased on the Riveria) and a grey sweater (bought at Sulka's, Paris). The train was rushing through Bowie in Maryland when somebody enquired the name of the famous race track there. "Foohey" explained an exhib who had sad and expensive memories of the wrong horses he had picked out there. Ted O'Shea, M-G-M manager at Buffalo, impersonated Tom Connors during part of the convention. Reason: he borrowed some of Tom's wardrobe ivhen the tailor was late in returning his own apparel. The score was about 90 to one for the boys who played roulette and crap in the Miami night spots. Overheard at the Royal Palm one a.m.: "Why, Vm as harmless as an eight-year-old — wolf." Over the Shoulder: Charley Picquet, dean of North and South Carolina exhib affairs, reminiscing about his first visit to a Greenwich Village brawl. H. V. Harvey of Frisco just about made the outstanding exhib talk at the convention. Buddy Harris showed the seagoing-minded conventioneers the nautical ropes via A. Don Alexander's yacht. At the water show staged for the gang at the Miami Biltmore, a sales mgr. enquired the. name of the fellow who was about to dive from a 165 feet-high ladder into a shallow section of the pool. "He's an exhibitor who just played one of your higher bracket pictures," explained a cynical theaterman. Expect Nazis Will Make Fewer Motion Pictures Berlin (By Cable) — Nazification of the German film industry, the culminating step of which was the switch in ownership of Ufa's controlling interest from the Hugenberg group to an unidentified syndicate, is expected to bring a cut in production. With Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels emerging as the Nazi film "fuehrer," it is believed almost certain that he will set a policy for Ufa, Tobis and Bavaria Films, all seen as units in the Nazi film trust, which will reflect his expressed conviction that the German industry is adversely affected by too many mediocre pictures and failure to give pictures sufficient care and production time. Some indication of what may be expected in the instance of Ufa is the action of Tobis' new owners in cutting next year's production schedule by 10 to 50. Tobis' control passed to an anonymous group during the winter, and in some quarters it is asserted that the Nazi government now owns the company outright. Nominally, Tobis is directed by a six-man board, Fritz Main, Ernst Scheffler, Sigmund Jung, Willi Forst, Emil Jannings and Gustaf Gruendgens. Latter three must be consulted on production. Tobis and its. subsidiaries have been "regimented" to the extent that all have single advertising, casting and scenario departments. Between the Goebbels' goal of "artistic and propagandistically valuable films" and its attainment, however, are high financial barriers. 20th-Fox Calls Two Fuller Fla. Theaters "Makeshift' New Orleans — Gaston Dureau, Jr., Saenger Theaters Corp., buyer and booker, and 20th Century-Fox have filed replies to the bills of complaint in the George Fuller "conspiracy" case here. Dureau denied he was an administrative officer of Saenger or that he participated in any conspiracy. 20th Century-Fox denied participation in any conspiracy or monopoly, said it sold Fuller pictures for his theater in Fairhope, Ala., but had refused to sell him for Pensacola Beach and Warrington, Fla., because it "was inimical to the best interests of this defendant to have licensed the exhibition of its pictures to plaintiff's so-called theaters, same being a tent show and an open air theater and not legitimately conducted and equipped theaters, but were equipped and conducted as temporary and makeshift ventures, and that exhibition of its pictures thereat would be injurious to the defendants' business and would diminish the revenue that it would derive from the exhibition of its motion pictures at properly equipped theaters." Further denial that either Harold Wilkes, Saenger assistant treasurer, or Dureau had ordered Fox not to sell Fuller, was entered. Takes G. P. Franchise Mack D. Weinberger, General Sales Manager of General Pictures Corp., announces that Charles Trampe, of Midwest Film Co., has bought the G. P. franchise for Milwaukee territory. SICK REPORT Montezuma, la. — D. D. Darland of Montezuma is convalescing from an appendicitis operation at the Community Hospital in Grinnell. He is manager of the Princess Theater at Montezuma. ^Kansas City, Mo. — W. E. Truog, United Artists' branch manager, has returned to his office after an illness of two weeks. Truog had gone to Hot Springs, Ark., to rest up from a severe throat infection suffered early in the winter, but suffered a relapse and had to return home, two weeks ago. Omaha— Keene Abbott, who has devoted his time to writing fiction since retiring as the Omaha Worldrierald s movie critic, is recovering at his home here after an illness. Detroit — John Krevo, chief of a a F^aKthe, Fox has temporarily aaded the duties of John Passahume^ assistant manager, due to the latter s illness. Hollywood— Bitten on the face by a spider, Kay Francis has been torced out of the cast of FN's "One hour of Romance" for a few days. Hollywood — Marie Wilson, W.-B. comedienne, is recovering from head injuries received in a motor crash and is expected to leave the Hollywood Hospital for home this week. Washington — Lawrence Tibbett, opera and film star, is suffering here from an attack of laryngitis which has caused him to temporarily postpone concert engagements. London — Ann Harding, American stage and film actress, is confined to her country residence with bronchitis. Omana— Mrs. Bill Haarmann, wife of the local Paramount booker, has almost recuperated following a recent major operation. Cincinnati — Warner's Howard Markham, recently in an auto accident, has fully recovered and is back on his territory. Cincinnati — Charles Williams, assistant booker for Paramount, has resigned due to ill health. George Bedinger of the ad sales department, replacing Williams. Harry Donau has been added to the adsales, succeeding Bedinger. Cleveland — Max Young of the McKinley and Mozart theaters, Canton, is laid up at the Statler Hotel with flu. Lexington, Ky. — Mrs. Fon Sexton, the Lyric, Ashland, is in the Good Samaritan Hospital recovering from a tumor operation. Wallrich Austin Wed Denver — Beryl Wallrich, cashier at the State Theater, and Martin Austin, Warner Bros, ad sales clerk, were married here at the bride's home. They will make their home in Denver.