The Film Daily (1941)

Thursday, August 7, 1941 W^V DAILY Biographical Films Selling New Mark (Continued from Page 1) James J. Corbett as his next assignment. Msn from the Warner lot: just i~*^V for release is "Sergeant York" aria "The Prime Minister" (made in i England, starring John Gielgud and Diana Wynyard and immortalizing the statesman Disraeli). In prep ! aration is "Yankee Doodle Boy" in 1 which James Cagney will portray ' George M. Cohan, "The Life and Songs of George Gershwin," "John I Paul Jones," "Captain Of The I Clouds," which deals greatly with the activities of Air Marshal Billy Bishop, Canada's World War I ace, [ "Bad Men Of Missouri," the lives i and tales of the famous badmen, i the Younger Brothers, "Peary At . The North Pole," "The Man From I The FBI," which is about J. Edgar i Hoover, and "The Life Of Winston Churchill" which will be made by | Warners in England. "One Foot In Heaven," the life ' of the Rev. William Spence as told | by his son Hartzell Spence, is now ' in production as well as "The Man , Who Came To Dinner," which, it is | said, reports a short period in the I life of Alexander Woollcott. 20th-Fox Has Four Twentieth Century-Fox has just , finished "Belle Starr," in which Gene Tierney portrays the famous feminine bandit of the last century. Also ! on the Fox list for next season's : release is "My Gal Sal," the story of Paul Dresser, defter of "On The Banks Of The Wabash" and other tunes. Alice Faye has been pencilled in for the female lead in this. Mark Hellinger is readying, with John O'Hara the script, "My Life and Hard Times" the trials and tribuj lations of James M. Thurber, the 1 New Yorker wit. Fox is also spinning a yarn about John Grumm, America's first lobbyist, to be titled "Yankee Ostrich." Metro is preparing "The Life Of Simon Bolivar" and "The Life Story Of William Allen White," to star Spencer Tracy. On Paramount's Schedule Paramount is readying for the cameras, "Tex Guinan" a tale of the fabulous night club figure, and "Sunrise In My Pocket," a tale of Davey Crockett of Alamo fame. The Harry Sherman unit at Paramount is planning an early shooting date for "Pahaska," the life of Buffalo Bill, to be played by Joel McCrea, and "Tombstone," which is really a yarn about Wyatt Earp. Not biographical but using historical characters is Paramount's "The Remarkable Andrews," in which Andrew Jackson, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and Chief Justice John Marshall are characters. RKO will make "The Life of Sam uel Gompers," under William Die More Comic Strips West Coast Bur., THE FILM DAILY Hollywood — Alfred M. Loewenthal, representative of the Chicago Tribune-N. Y. Daily News comic strip syndicate, who sold motion picture rights to "Don Winslow Of The Navy" to Universal, is negotiating with producers here for the rights to "Little Orphan Annie," "Winnie Winkle" and "Gasoline Alley." He expects to close a deal soon for "Terry Of The Pirates," which would be made as a feature. Oklahoma MPTO in Drive For New Indie Members (Continued from Page 1) Loewenstein, association president. The drive will be carried on through the directors of the various districts of the organization over the state. A new association letterhead which will be used to circularize independent exhibitors now lists the names of all officers and directors, with the name oi tne house operated by that officer or director and tne location of the theater and town in wnicn it is located. New 1941 personnel is as follows: Morris Loewenstein, Majestic, Oklahoma City, president; Max Brock, Lawton, .Lawton, vice-president; L. A. Wflite, Bungalow, Weatherlord, secretary-treasurer. Directors : Oklahoma City district, W. C. Lewellen, Criterion, Oklahoma City; J. L. Groves, Villa, Oklahoma City; Tulsa district, J. C. Hunter, Talbot theaters, Tulsa, and Lou Chatham, Griffith Theaters, Tulsa; Southeast district, William Slepka, Jewel, Okemah, and Ed Holt, Wigwam, Coalgate; Southwest district, Glenn xnompson, Thompson, Tishomingo, and Ed Crews, Empress, Waurika; Northeast district, John Giffin, Coleman, Miami, Okla., Crawford Spearman, Bronco, Edmond, and Gerald Stettmund, H and S, Chandler; Northwest district, Vance Terry, Woodward Theater, Woodward, and Homer Jones, Bison, Alva; Texas district, Kirby Conley, Ellis Theater Perryton, Tex. To New Offices Academic Productions, Inc., and Pictorial Films, Inc., formerly located at 1650 Broadway, have moved to new and larger quarters in the RKO Building, 1270 Sixth Ave. terle's guidance, in 1942. RKO will also have the Herbert Wilcox production based on the life story of Amy Johnson, famed British aviatrix. It will be filmed in England Samuel Goldwyn will begin shooting here on the life of Lou Gehrig in a few months, while he is also producing "Spitfire" in England. Latter is based on the life of the late R. J. Mitchell, plane designer. Goldwyn also has "Seventh Cavalry," which largely concerns General Custer, and "Hans Christian Andersen." Columbia is making "Harmon of Michigan" with Tommy Harmon. Jesse Lasky will produce "The Adventures of Mark Twain." Twelve Saxe Houses Pass to Fox-Wise. (Continued from Page 1) time were aligned with the old FoxMidwesco circuit and more recently with Warners under a booking arrangement. Tneaters included in the new Fox deal are the Tivoli, Parkway, Uptown, Savoy, Modjeska, Princess, Garfield and Mirth in Milwaukee; Jeffris and Apollo, Janesville; Oshkosh, Oshkosh, and Orpheum, Kenosha. Chicago Operators Ask 10 Per Cent Wage Boost (Continued from Page 1) scale and a week's vacation with pay. Present contract expires Aug. 30. A 10 per cent boost in the scale was asked last year when a new pact came up for consideration but an agreement to maintain the old scale for another year was reached. At that time the operators were asking a two-week vacation. McGinnis and Curtis on Way West Coast Bureau of THE FILM DAILY Hollywood — It'll be McGinnis and Curtis of the Marines, not Flagg and Quirt, when Vic McLaglen and Edmund Lowe make "The Marines Are Ready" for RKO. LETTERS Editor, The Film Daily Without hesitation, I can say, with all sincerity, not because I am the publisher of a daily newspaper, but because it should be self-evident to motion picture producers that when you entice people to the movies in the hopes of winning money on Bank Night that you are admitting that the picture is no good. The local movie houses have been running Bank Night with the result that more people see poor pictures than the good ones. Not satisfied with ruining their business with Bank Nights they are now giving away automobiles and other things in the hope of winning audiences back to see the good pictures. If the local movie houses spent just 50 per cent of what they are now throwing away on Bank Nights and automobiles and ice-boxes, they could play to capacity for every good picture which was legitimately and properly advertised through legitimate advertising media, preferably the newspapers and radio. FRED SCHILPLIN, President and Publisher, St. Cloud (Minn.) Times CITADEL OF CRIME ROBERT ARMSTRONG • FRANK ALBERTSON LINDA HAYES RUSSELL SIMPSON SKEETS GALLAGHER Original screen play by Don Ryan GEORGE SHERMAN Director T 3E