The Film Daily (1934)

Intimate in Character International in Scope Independent in Thought VOL. LXV. NO. 12 NEW yCCr, MONDAY, JANlACy 15, 1934 <5 CCNTJ Reopenings Spurt in N. W. .Pennsylvania, Oklahoma 2,500 THEATERS CHANGED HANDS IN m YEAR 160 More Nominations Are Made for Code Board Posts The Cinema . . . on-a-string — By JACK ALICOATE = KJO one is BETTER copy for the boys ' ^ than SAM goldwyn ... If you think the paying customers are TIRED of going places you should have seen the crowd at the pro tennis matches at the GARDEN . . . An official HIGH in government circles just told us that NO industry was more CONSTRUCTIVE in its NRA cooperation than motion pictures . . . LITTLE WOMEN can't miss making the TEN BEST of 1934 . . . And speaking of the TEN BEST of 1933 the amount of interest created in the NEWSPAPERS of the country in this year's ballot was a record breaker . . . All is well with ARTHUR loew and MRS. on that round-the-world jaunt . . . SID kent is planning a month with the SUNSHINE in Florida. THAT fan dance of FANNY brice in the Follies is a TORNADO ... ED schiller who knows tells us that biz is on the UPcurve . . . The COMEBACK of Paramount can well be hailed as a MAJOR achievement . . . NICK schenck is coming along nicely after being a pretty sick man . . . Repeal has NOT hurt pictures . . . COURTLAND smith has a new lens that does everything but TALK . . . That LOWELL thomas personality SHOULD be in pictures . . . ENGLAND is having OVERSEATING indigestion ... J. J. McCarthy is doing a swell job over on 44th Street . . . that SAM katz person is about ready to TALK . . . TOM moore, Washington exhib, has circuit aspirations. IT is 1 the i BREAKING the hearts of some of CHRONIC monkey-wrenchers to find that this code business is ON-THE-LEVEL . . . BIZ-Barometer — Florida is having the best season since the big CRACK-UP . . . Looks like another THEATER cycle is on the way . . . BROADWAY looks more like Coney Island every day . . . We MISS the Embassy as a REGULAR visitor to the NEWS flickers . . . Just a wee bit MORE prosperity and you'll see several important industry MOVES under way . . . Have you a little SALARY questionnaire in your home? Additional Names Proposed for Members and Secretaries One hundred and sixty more nominations for members and secretaries of local clearance and zoning boards were announced Saturday by the Code Authority in New York. The latest list of recommendations follows: Albany — William Raynor, Morris Shulman, Harry Hellman, Jacob Rosenthal, B. H. Mills, {Continued on Page 4) 1 1 NEW RKO FILMS SLATED TO START West Coast Bureau of THE FILM DAILY Hollywood — In addition to pictures now in work, RKO has preparations under way on 11 other productions. They include "Strictly {Continued on Page 4) Hal Roach Completes Half of '33-34 Lineup West Coast Bureau of THE FILM DAILY Hollywood — Hal Roach has completed approximately half of his 1933-34 short subject program for M-G-M, with 20 out of 52 pictures now finished. The second of his scheduled two features entitled "Babes in Toyland" is currently in production. Roach begins work on his 1934-35 program in June. "10 Best" Dramatized The Ten Best Pictures of 1933, as determined by The Film Daily's nationwide poll of critics, were impressively dramatized by "Time Magazine" in its March of Time program Friday night over a national WABC network. A descriptive bit was presented on each picture. Lowell Thomas, the ace news commentator of the air, also spoke on the poll over WJZ's nationwide hookup. $300,000 NEGATIVE ON KORDA'S NEXT 6 London — Following completion of "Kongo Raid" and "Exit Don Juan," London Films, under the direction of Alexander Korda and producing for United Artists release, plans six more quality pictures costing not less than $300,000 each, according to Korda. This was the cost of "Henry VIII," which Korda says could not have been made in Hollywood for less than $750,000. London Films also has another completed picture, "Catherine the Great," with Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. Exhibitor Wins Action Involving Theater Lease A theater lease which begins at the expiration of a prior lease is an extension of the first agreement and can be terminated by breach of the first lease, according to a decision (Continued on Page 7) Northwest, Penn. and Okla. Report Spurt in Reopenings "Moulin Rouge" Caravan Starting from Capital Due to a change in plans, the 20th Century-S\ocony Vacuum "Moulin Rouge Caravan" originally scheduled to start its cross-country tour from New York will shift its starting point to Washington where ar(Continued on Page 4) Reopening of 18 theaters, against only one closing, in the Northwest territory was the highlight of theater activities for December as reported by the Film Boards of Trade. In Pennsylvania there were 17 reopenings and four closings for the month, while the Oklahoma Film Board reported nine openings and only one closing. Changes in Ownership of Theaters Averaged 200 a Month Approximately 2,500 theaters, about one-fifth of the active houses in the U. S., underwent a change of ownership in 1933, it is shown in a recapitulation of the monthly reports of theater changes published in The Film Daily. High mark for transfers occurred in September, which had 264 houses shifting to new owners, while in April there were 262. Low month was August, with 149. For the year as a whole, the average was a little more than 200 a month. CREAM OF NEW FACES ON COAST-GRIFFITH West Coast Bureau of THE FILM DAILY Hollywood — After a four-week fruitless seai'ch in the east for new faces to cast in "Alien Corn," Ann Harding vehicle which he is to direct for RKO, Edward H. Griffith returned here convinced that the cream of new faces as well as acting talent is right here in Hollywood. Even artists' representatives in New York admitted this, Griffith says. He urged less hesitancy on the part of producers in choosing from the extra ranks. Reductions Expected In Shorts Programs Substantial reductions in the total number of short subjects to be produced for the 1934-35 season are indicated owing to the fact that the motion picture code generally (Continued on Page 4) Two Houses Split Time Middlebury, Vt. — Two houses here are working for their mutual benefit with the Opera House staying dark Mondays and Fridays and the Hardwick closing its doors Wednesdays and Thursdays.