The Film Daily (1942)

Wednesday, December 16, 1942 Industry Plans Big Bonus Distribution (Continued from Page 1) handed out Christmas checks yesterday. The Yuletide bonus amounted to as much as a week's salary for employes receiving up to $50 a week. Those in higher salary brackets were given $50. Former Warner employes now in the armed services will receive $10, contributed equally by .the company and the Warner Club, in addition to useful gifts from the club. Paramount will give a week's salary to employes earning up to $50 a week. Paramount's theater affiliates are planning to give cash ranging from $10 up to a week's salary to former employes now in the services. Other major circuits are preparing to make similar gifts to former and present employes. Twentieth Century-Fox this week dispatched final shipments of Christmas packages to former employes in Army, Navy and Marine posts. Overseas shipments were made a month ago. Of the total shipment of 609 packages, 83 went to Africa, Australia and Solomon Islands. President Spyros Skouras, in addition, sent each soldier, sailor and Marine a personal letter and a $10 money order. A fitted leather kit, including cigarettes, peanuts and candy, went to the service men. The 20th-Fox unit of the SPG also sent a gift package to each member of the advertising and publicity staffs in the service. Universal is giving a week's salary to those earning up to $40 a week. M-G-M-Loew's is giving two weeks' salary to those whose salaries do not exceed $40 a week, the total not to exceed $50, for those employed since prior to Jan. 1, 1942. A week's salary and not exceeding $25 will go to those employed between Jan. 1 and July 1. Other companies may announce similar bonuses. Reopening Cohoes Rialto Albany— Morse & Rothenberg, indie ops with headquarters in Boston, will reopen the Rialto Theater, Cohoes, Christmas Day. The Rialto was formerly operated by Fabian, but the latter opened a new house, the Cohoes, last Summer, and also operate the Regent in that city. Muhe "Army" Gross Biggest, WB's Goal Under its setup for special handling of "This is the Army," Warners is shooting for the biggest gross in film history on the screen version of the Irving Berlin all-soldier revue. Charles Einfeld believes it possible to top even GWTW because of "This is the Army's" unprecedented audience potential, the big marquee names — including a reading femme star — and the fact that all profits will go to the Army Emergency Relief Fund. T ▼ ▼ • • • AMONG the real gifts which filmland will enjoy this Xmas season is scheduled for formal delivery at 1 p.m. on Dec. 29, the venue being the Blue Room of the local Hotel Brevoort We mean the luncheon which will signalize the inauguration of the Foreign Language Press Film Critics' Circle, an organization paralleling that excellent functional body formed some few years ago by the pic appraisers of our metropolitan press, and now known far and wide as the New York Film Critics' Circle Aim of the new group is, like its model, to further the interests of motion picture entertainment, and to encourage high standards in film fare How important the advent of the Foreign Language Press Film Critics' Circle is to our trade can be gleaned first-off by citing that the daily and weely newspapers published in languages other than English, right in Pa Knickerbocker's borders, have more than 1,000,000 subscribers .Of this 1,000,000, you can wager your bottom dollar that the vast majority, like their fellow Americans. are film fans, — for that is the American way in diversion-seeking If the announcement were suddenly to outcrop to the effect that a single new newspaper with a readership of over a million New Yorkers was dedicating itself to promotion of motion pictures, the trade would be understandably electrified Well, that is precisely the significance of the news that the Foreign Language Press Film Critics' Circle is coming into being, officially via the luncheon on Dec. 29 Accordingly, you can look for the presence of important representatives of both the administrative and promotional branches of filmland thereat We of this little ole trade paper are honored by the notification that the new Circle has listed on its agenda of early business the casting of its ballots in the famed FILM DAILY Ten Best Pictures Poll now in process for 1942 V ▼ V • • • THINGS We Like Dept The spirit manifested in the season's greetings with which the Embassy Newsreel Theater accompanies its 1943 season pass It parallels perfectly the "always welcome" inscription on the pass itself Who was it who said, "The gift without the giver is bare"? ... • Walter Wanger's thoughtful discourse, "Hollywood and the Intellectuals," in the Christmas number of the Saturday Review of Literature W anger is eminently correct in stressing the necessity for closing the gap between intellectuals and Hollywood And as correct when he pens "The American motion picture is the medium through which the relationship of goodwill among men can be established The intellectual should orient himself to that fact". ... * Further in the literary side Paul Hunter's corking editorial, "The Movies in Wartime," in the Dec. 19 issue of Liberty Magazine An impressive summary of the industry's war program, Hunter's tagline packs this wallop "Yes! There are many less essential activities, even in Washington itself, than the motion picture industry". ... • The retort courteous provided by the Motion Picture Research Bureau's report on Metro's "Journey for Margaret" to those critics challenging the value of audience research to film biz • The cheery greeting that always results when your path crosses that of Irving Chidnoff whose Chidnoff Studio has been visited by so many of the film's leaders Little wonder that Chidnoff is synonymous with "Portraiture to the Industry" ▼ T T • • • AVENGE PEARL HARBOR! Raw Stock Cut Seen Set At Present 25% (Continued from Page 1) by Government agencies particularly the Army and the Navy would force a cut in the film allotted to the industry, there is no evidence yet that such will be the case. Fridav^kto'der will go through as schedulel*Lnd WPB authorities see no reason yet to expect a drop in the allotment for the next quarter. While the Army's request for film Washington Bur., THE FILM DAILY Washington — Sources close to the Government said last night that a raw stock cut would probably be ordered for still and motion picture camera use by amateurs amounting to 50 per cent reduction below '41 level; also 24 per cent below '41 in manufacture of 35 mm. for all uses; and 24 per cent below '41 in other film for professional uses. is admittedly large, it is doubtful that the total request was nearly as great as rumor has had it. Considerable scaling down of all film requests has been done by WPB in order to insure equitable distribution to all users. Seven separate general allocations will be announced Friday with film going to the Army, the Navy, LendLease, the Maritime Commission, the Canadian Government, the Board of Economic Warfare and to civilian users, including the Federal Government, the motion picture industry, and all amateur and professional users of film. F & M Suit Over Stock Under Court Advisement (Continued from Page 1) Straus, as members of the Central Properties first mortgage bondholders, the Ambassador Investment Corp., and the Ambassador Building Corp. Committee, to compel specific performance under an option claimed to have been given in July, 1936, under which F & M could have purchased an additional 52 per cent of the stock in the St. Louis Amusement Co., consisting of 12,431 shares of Class C and 13,929 shares of Class B. Harry C. Arthur, head of F & M in the local area was the chief plaintiff witness, and for the defense Dysart; C. M. Turley, secretary of St. Louis Amusement Co.; and Thomas L. Farrington and William T. Nardin, the latter's dh-ectors. Navy League Sponsors "Action" The Navy League of the United States will sponsor the Washington premiere showing of M-G-M's "Stand By For Action" the night of December 30, at Loew's Palace Theater, it was announced yesterday.