The Film Daily (1941)

Intimate in Character International in Scope Independent in Thought -1FDAILY The Daily Newspaper Of Motion Pictures Twenty-Two Years Old <j|jL 80, NO. NEW YORK, TUESDAY, JULY 29, 1941 TEN CENTS DISTRIBS. WILL ASK MORE BRITISH COIN More Playing Time, Higher Admissions Urged Charles Skouras Makes Plea in Wire to Sears at Warner Bros. Sales Meet Chicago — Extended playing time and increased admission prices were advocated yesterday by Charles P. Skouras, Pox West Coast Theaters head, in a congratulatory wire to Gradwell Sears, Warner general sales manager, at the Warner sales convention. Skouras urged that "one of the keynotes of the convention be the advocacy of extended playing time and increased admission prices ras this is the only way your com (Continued on Page 7) Nazis Would Close Europe lo U. S. Pix Convened by Nazi propaganda experts in Berlin last week, an "international motion picture congress" paved the way for "a campaign to eliminate American and British motion pictures from European markets," the N. Y. Herald Tribune declared yesterday in a copyrighted London cable. The story asserted London film (Continued on Page 7) Louis C. Hehl Dead at 83; St. Louis Funeral Today St. Louis — Funeral services will be held here today for Louis C. Hehl, 83, for 21 years secretary of the (Continued on Page 7) St. Louis Army MPS Office is Picheted St. Louis — Army Motion Picture Service office here is being picketed by Local 39, Tent and Awning Workers, following the refusal of the Service to remove an awning installed by an allegedly non-union company. Awning had been installed at a cost of $200. Union gave the Service 10 days to remove it or face picketing. Service headquarters advised the local office to ignore the ultimatum. Picket on sentry duty carries an umbrella in lieu of a sandwichboard. Famous Players Canadian to Set Operating Policies at Four-Day Toronto Convention Toronto — A four-day meeting of executives, division and district managers and partners of Famous Players Canadian Corp. has been called by J. J. Fitzgibbons for Aug. 1-4 at the Chateau Frontenac, Quebec. Operating policies for the coming season will be discussed. Convention will be the first since the passing of the N. L. Nathanson regime, and, with the Nathanson interests entering the exhibition field in opposition through Odeon, unusual importance attaches to the Toronto parley. Metro Hikes Shorts Budget 20 Per Cent While not increasing the number of its short subjects, M-G-M will spend 20 per cent more on their production for the new season, according to W. F. Rodgers, general sales manager. The 1941-42 program calls for 78 subjects in 84 reels in addition to 104 issues of News of the Day. Anticipating greater competition in the shorts field, Rodgers said he expected M-G-M would be pressed (Continued on Page 6) Sergt. York to See FDR As Prelude to Premiere Washington Bureau of THE FILM DAILY Washington — An interview arranged for tomorrow at the White House with President Roosevelt is among the highlights of the campaign for "Sergeant York" which opens at the Earle Thursday night. Sergeant York, Gov. Prentiss Coo (Continued on Page 6) Decree lipping Sales Cost by $1,800,000 Five majors affected by the N. Y. consent decree will have additional sales expense of approximately $1,800,000 plus $552,600 for the operation of the arbitration system, according to a N. Y. Journal of Commerce survey. The added direct costs, according to the Journal of Commerce, include $300,000 for tradeshowings, $500,000 for advertising to the trade and (Continued on Page 6) Prosperity Club Decision Stands, Neb. Court Rules Omaha — The State Supreme Court refused to reconsider its previous decision assessing fines against six Omaha independent and circuit exhibs. for conducting Prosperity Club, a weekly giveaway. The fines were $100 each. Prosperity Club, started about a year ago, gave away up to (Continued on Page 6) To Ask Release of lap Pix Coin U. S. Distribs. to Place Case Before Gov't James V. Ritchey Dead; Interment Services Today Interment services for James Ver Planck Ritchey, 67, a founder of Monogram and secretary-treasurer of Ritchey International Corp., will be held today at Kensico Cemetery in Westchester. The veteran film (Continued on Page 7) American film companies, individually or collectively, are expected to appeal to the Government to release the money due them from Japan. Under a previous agreement, the Japanese government, over a period of time, has been depositing revenue derived from rentals in the Yokohama Specie Bank in San Francisco and first payments from an (Continued on Page 6) Full Remittances Will Be Proposed; Attache Sees Only Slight Advance With departure of Alan Steyne, First Secretary of the American Embassy in London over the weekend on the Excambian, went the major companies' request for the full return of approximately $35,000,000 in the third remittance agreement to be negotiated, THE Film Daily learned yesterday. Discussions, it is revealed, will get under way late in August. In (Continued on Page 6) Disney Workers Back Pending Arbitration West Coast Bureau of THE FILM DAILY Hollywood — Four hundred Disney Studio workers have won a closed shop and union recognition and will return to work today, pending arbitration of wages and working conditions. Commissioner Dewey, representing th Government, Walt Disney and Screen Cartoonists Guild representatives will continue to meet on these points. Picket lines will be withdrawn and the boycott on Disney pictures lifted. 200 Attend Paramount's First N'York Tradeshow Paramount yesterday inaugurated its tradeshows with the screening of "Buy Me That Town" and "NothingBut the Truth." In New York, more than 200 independent and circuit film buyers and their guests (Continued on Page 6) Minn. AntU5 Suits Hearings on Aug. 8 Minneapolis — Hearings on five suits by majors to invalidate the Minnesota anti-block-of-five law were deferred in Ramsey County District Court yesterday to Aug. 8. Majors will then seek a temporary injunction to permit sales of new season's product under block-of-five system.