The Film Daily (1923)

(e BRADSTREET < FILMDOM jfeRECOCMZEI Authority CXIII No. 17 Thursday, January 18, 1923 Price 5 Cents hio Referendum !e Launched to Test Censorship -Matter Up at Columbvs Convention Special to THE FILM DAILY) tmbiis O. — At the conv ntion M. P. T. O. of Ohio, Mrs. O. ■well, first vice-president of the and Cinema Club, made a ; address, in which she declared the co-operation of women's in Ohio had made censorship essary because of the close coion between the clubs and the r owners. She agret d to bring e question of Sunday closing :ensorship before the C.nema with the ultimate purpose of iting a referendum to th( iture. : meeting is being held in the Chittenden, with about 325 exrs present. At the dinner h Id ay night, the speakers w re President Martin Smith of o, M. J. O'Toole, chairman of National Public Service Corn! of the M. P. T. O.; Sydney (Continued on Page 3) Saenger and Richards Here an Saenger and E. V. Richards the Astor. They are spending days here prior to embarking four months round the world Mrs. Richards will also make ip. Earnings Held Up Famous Players Financial Condition Excellent— $1,C00,000 Note Wiped Out Auditors of Famous Players are now at work on the company's annual statement, which will not be ready for some weeks, in view of the reports yet to be made by a large percentage of the 145 odd subsidiaries operated by the parent company. It is expected that the earnings for 1922 will be about on a par with those of 1921. There is a possibility that the figures may drop below those of 1921 in view of the fact that the business slump extended into the first fix months of the year. The earnings at the end of the third quarter of' 1922 were about $2,800,000 and while this figure would perhaps, ind cate a drop from the approximate 54,000,000 total of 1921, the returns for the last three montl s of 1922 are expected to swell the earnings close *o the 1921 total. (Continued on ('.age 5) BushmanBayne in Series .ncis X. Bushman and Beverly e intend making a number of "es so constructed that in key they can appear in a spoken act id of one reel. In those cities 2 they don't appear, the required vill be included in the feature. rhrough Goldwyn arker Read Making "The Coward"— Arrangement for One Picture Only Parker Read, Jr., is at work on icture tentatively called "The ard." Distribution will be igh Goldwyn under a one picture lgement only. ad and Ralph Ince are coting, and at present are shootexteriors in Miami. The story r Jack Boyle, and in the cast rlenry Hull, Doris Kenyon and 5 Wolheim. See Page 2 or News of the Independent iarket. Important Decision Rendered Relative to Foreign Market— Say Case May Be Appealed A decision of importance, especially fo the foreign market, and foreign buyers, developed yesterday when a Supreme Court jury, before Justice Black, awarded Max Glucksmann a verdict of $5,000 against Gillespie Bros. It is understood the case will be appealed. The case involved the questions of damages that may be recovered by one claiming that his rights had been infringed and made valueless by pirated copies appearing in the territory for which he claimed exclusive rights. It appears that Gillespie purchased from Select Pictures the exclusive right to 10 pictures for the territory of Brazil and that Gillespie Bros, also acted as agents for Cinematografica Sud Americana who purchased the rights to exhibit the same pictures in the territory of Argentine and Chile. It is alleged the royalty provided for in the contract between Select and Cinematografica Sud Americana was not paid and for that reason Select (Continued on Page 6) Variety said of "Secrets of Paris": "It is bound to be a draw for it is the best kind of rugged melodrama that will appeal to all strata of fans. The crowd filled the lobby out to the street box office."— Advt. Selling Points For Production — Ragland on Coast for Asso. Exhibitors John C. Ragland of Associated Exhibitors is en route to Hollywood where he will confer with producers with regard to correspondence that has been passing for several months. It is expected he will remain indefinitely. Ragland will establish headquarters in Hollywood and will devote the bulk of his time to watching productions being made for his organization, primarily with a view of seeing to it that essentials to the sale of a picture be given room in the productions. Associated Exhibitors have several units making pictures for release through that organization, including Douglas McLean, Madge Bellamy, Florence Vidor and Leah Baird. The idea of having a representative at Hollywood for the purpose of having in production such ideas as will aid in selling the picture is being carried out by several companies, notably Famous Players. Paramount to Film Grey Stories The current and future works of Zane Grey are to be produced by Paramount. The first will be "To the Last Man," and will be directed by Victor Fleming, to be followed by "The Heritage of the Desert" and "The Wanderer of the Wasteland." Sailing Jan. 27th Wanda Hawley will sail from New York for London on Jan. 27th. to appear in a picture Tom Terriss will make for Gaumont, Ltd. Plans For 12 Two of Distinctive's Program in Work — No Distribution Set As Yet Distinctive Productions have plans under way for 12 features two of which, "Backbone" and "The Ragged Edge" are now in. While Arthur S. Friend yesterday was non-commital so far as other vehicles are concerned, it is understood he has practically closed for a number of stories. In a few days, distribution may be arranged for. It is understood that at least two important distributors have made bids for the series. Fletcher in Town Benjamin H. Fletcher, publisher of "Movie Age," the regional published in Omaha for Iowa and Nebraska, is in town. Clem's Here Armed with a carpet bag full of mats, unused slides and unopened press books, together with a steamer trunk containing his collection of especially designed one-sheets, Clem Deneker, of Pneumonia, Nev., has arrived in town. He will address the A. M. P. A. weekly lunch today, at the Boulevard.