The Film Daily (1941)

.. lursday, November 13, 1941 w DAILY 4,200,000 Eastman ''age Dividend Set ntinued from Pane 1 ) in addition to a quarterly dividend of $1.50. J The wage dividend was increased oximately $1,200,000 under the Viany'g profit-sharing formula by ~*ch the wage dividend is depen«nt upon dividends on the common t >ck. The wage dividend will be istributed in March. Stockholders will receive $2,476,00 additional through declaration of lie extra dividend. The regular Wz tr cent dividend on the preferred tock, amounting to $1.50 a share, las also declared. Voting of the $1 xtra dividend on the common rought declarations for the year « $7, an increase of $1 over the Jividends on the company's shares ast year. The wage dividend rate las increased from $12.50 per $1, *00 of wages or salaries received luring the last five years to $17.50. The amount estimated for the .942 wage dividend is more than i million and a half dollars higher ,han the amount paid in March, .941. The increase over the last >vage dividend is due not only to he higher rate of the profit-sharing Jividend but also (1) to an increased lumber of employes eligible, (2) to »n increase in the amount received jy individuals because of increased ength of service and because of overtime pay, and (3) to a wage and salary increase that went into ?tfect in May. .Warner Stockholders Meeting Set for Dec. 8 I (Continued from Page 1) shows that Maj. Albert Warner, ■ice-president and treasurer, owns 59,647 shares of common and 14,884 -hares of preferred stock and $1," 306,000 principal amount of debentures. Prexy Harry M. Warner ,Dwns 62,859 common, 9,884 preferred and $661,000 of debentures, and Jack L. Warner, vice-president in •jharge of production, owns 102,959 :ommon and 14,884 preferred shares and $300,000 of debentures. In addition the above named directors, together with the New York Trust Co., are trustees of a trust nolding 27,533 preferred shares. k REVIEWS Of THE IIEUJ f ILfllS <x ( 'Suspicion" Booking Limits 12 Music Hall Films' Run U Because RKO's "Suspicion" was booked at the Radio City Music Hall Ito open Nov. 20, Warners' "One jFoot in Heaven" and Universal's '"Appointment for Love" received (only one-week pencilling in. "Heaven" opens today. "Appointment for Love" grossed approximately i$93,000 on the week. United Artists' short subject, "A Letter From Home," opens at the Hall on Nov. 27. "Tarzan's Secret Treasure" with Johnny Weissmuller, Maureen O Sullivan John Sheffield M-G-M 81 Mins. TARZAN'S LATEST IS GRAND MAKEBELIEVE; KIND OF PICTURE THAT PROVIDES ENTERTAINMENT AND MAINTAINS GROSSES AT PROFITABLE LEVEL. Best way to sum up Tarzan's latest exploits is that it is grand make-believe. The kind of picture that audiences enjoy watching because of its imaginative invention and exciting adventure. Exhibs. can roll out the plush carpet for patrons from seven to ?U and feel assured they will be entertained. Producer B. P. Fineman can take a bow on the production. Sets have a jungle look about them and are in keeping with the story. There is first-rate direction by Richard Thorpe who handles the details with skill, especially the smashing climax. The Tarzan family consisting of Johnny Weissmuller as Tarzan, his wife, Jane, played by Maureen O Sullivan . and Tarzan's son, John Sheffield, dwell in their own ShangriLa high in some remote jungle mountain. All is serene until Tarzan's boy decides to set out for civilization. He runs across a colored lad, Tumbo, his own age and saves him from a rhinoceros. As the tribe is about to kill Boy, a party of scientists arrives on the scene. It's Tarzan to the rescue of all. Meantime, two of the party find out from Boy there is gold in the mountains where Tarzan lives. When the leader dies from a fever, the two kidnap Jane and Boy and attempt to kill Tarzan. They track back to civilization but are captured by savages. Tarzan saves his wife and son in a spectacular rescue. Climax is the big sequence in picture and has Tarzan using his swimming ability to overturn the canoes of the natives. Adding to the excitement are the crocodiles that attack the capsized natives. Weissmuller has kept in trim and looks the part of a jungle hero, and the monosyllabic dialogue is no strain on his acting ability. Miss O'Sullivan looks as lovely as one would expect in a jungle costume. The lad, Sheffield, is a fine performer. One of the picture s virtues is the presence of Barry Fitzgerald as the photographer in the scientific expedition who remains a friend to the Tarzan family. His Irish brogue is a delight to hear and his sense of comedy is as welcome as a winning three-horse parlay. Cordell Hickman, the colored lad, Reginald Owen, Philip Dorn and Tom Conway are good in supporting roles. Contributing a great deal to the entertainment is Cheetah, a chimpanzee, who Production is photographed with sepia film increasing the visual effectiveness of the camera work which is tops, particularly the underwater work. CAST: Johnny Weissmuller, Maureen O'Sullivan, John Sheffield, Reginald Owen, Barry Fitzgerald, Tom Conway, Philip Dorn, Cordell Hickman. CREDITS: Producer, B. P. Fineman; Director, Richard Thorpe; Original Screenplay, Myles Connolly and Paul Gangelin; Cameraman, Clyde DeVinna; Special Effects, Warren Newcombe; Film Editor, Gene Ruggiero; Characters Created by Edgar Rice Burroughs. DIRECTION, First-Rate. PHOTOGRAPHY, Excellent. "H. M. Pulham, Esq." with Hedy Lamarr, Robert Young M-G-M 120 Mins. ACE ROMANTIC DRAMA WITH POWERFUL PATRON APPEAL, TOP-NOTCH DIRECTION AND ACTING. Elbowing its way powerfully, and deservedly, into the ranks of the year's top-notch films comes Metro's finely-wrought screen version of John P. Marquand's highly popular novel to give audiences of both keys and subsequents a solid two-hour feast of rousing romantic entertainment, and exhibitors a powerful box-office property. In point of direction, "H. M. Pulham, Esq." imparts further lustre to the already shining name of King Vidor. Without exception, the sequences have that rhythmic flow which spells mastery in handling both story values and cast talent, to the extent, indeed, that the attraction seems much shorter than its running time indicates. The genius of Vidor is likewise prominent in the manner in which he has developed the retrospective character of the screenplay into a tight, swift-moving, and enthralling entity. Robert Young, in the title role, and the exciting Hedy Lamarr, in the stellar femme assignment, contribute more than their spiendid performances. Additionally they give showmen two rousing money names for their marquees. So expertly is this picture cast that it is difficult, after viewing it, to visualize any substitutions which might have made for better acting-strength. Ruth Hussey, Charles Coburn, Van Heflin, Fay Holden and Bonita Granville have prominent roles, each finely handled, as are the jobs allotted to the other key players. The saga of "H. M. Pulham, Esq." is toid in cut-back episodes, — all but the epilogue— , in the technique of "Citizen Kane" and "Power and the Glory." It is a story of the interference of environment, family scn.iment, habit, and stuffy social existence shattering the desired romantic destinies of both Hedy Lamarr and Robert Young. The latter is the scion of an aristocratic, cleaving-to-convention Boston family; the former a plain but beautiful and talented young woman who is making her way in the world as an advertising copy writer and later an executive. They meet after Young returns from World War No. 1 and is given a job in the same ad agency. Falling irresistibly in love, they plan to wed, but a visit to his family builds in the Lamarr breast an aversion to his kin, the life they and her fiance lead, and fill her with the realization that she can never become a part of it. After they sever their engagement, Young goes home to head the family, there to take the place of his deceased father. Following upper-crust convention and the wishes of his invalid mother, he weds a childhood "sweetheart," while Hedy marries a wealthy man and "swims" in the luxury she would gladly have foregone for wedlock with Young. The tragic end is tempered a great deal by the injection of reason. When the Fates spin their estimation of 1941-42 big pictures, this one will gain high rank. Ray June's photography is splendid, and the recording by Douglas Shearer, particularly of the off-screen voices which are beautifully used by Vidor to tell what is going on in the minds of the principal characters, is tip-top. CAST: Hedy Lamarr, Robert Young, Ruth * SHORTS * "Flying Bear" (An M-G-M Cartoon) M-G-M 9 mins. Fairly Amusing Aside from the effectiveness achieved as a result of being made in color, and the adroitness of the animating, "Flying Bear" is not an unusual short, merely recounting the adventures of a bear in a comedy airplane flight. Among his experiences are an aerial tilt with a pelican, and a wild and icy ride into the stratosphere which ends up with the bear in the hospital, along with his humanized original plane. An interesting touch is given to the footage by its action taking place at an Army flying field, in travesty, of course. "The Inside Passage" (FitzPatrick Traveltalk) M-G-M 9 Mins. Widely Appealing Along the picturesque inland waterway from Seattle to Alaska, FitzPatrick has filmed this Traveltalk, which, as usual, he narrates himself. There are expertly photographed views of the Ketchikan salmon fisheries and the relatively nearby Indian village where the art of Totem Pole carving is still practiced, and the artisans honored by their fellow natives. Bulk of the remaining sequences comprises scenes of Annette Island and the salmon port of Cordova. The producer has selected his locales carefully, both with an eye to the novel and the pleasing. One of the constant assets of the reel is the capturing of Alaska's overpowering grandeur in the snow-capped mountains seen as frequent backgrounds. Like others in this series, "The Inside Passage" is an eye-filling color. "In the Zoo" Paramount 10 mins. Amusing Whereby the animals speak through some unique animation and trick photography. Lines are rather amusing with the payoff coming at the finish. An unusual large variety of animals are photographed. Shots of the animals are interesting and make this a worthwhile program subject. Hussey, Charles Coburn, Van Heflin, Fa°y Holden, Bonita Granville, Douglas Wood, Charles Halton, Leif Erikson, Phil Brown, David Clyde, Sara Haden. CREDITS: Director, King Vidor; Screenplay, Elizabeth Hill, King Vidor; Author, John P. Marquand; Director of Photography, Ray June; Musical Score, Bronislau Kaper; Musical Direction, Lennie Hayton; Recording Director, Douglas Shearer; Art Director, Cedric Gibbons; Associate, Malcolm Brown; Film Editor, Harold F. Kress. DIRECTION, Aces. PHOTOGRAPHY, Splendid.