The Film Daily (1944)

" ttimate in Charpf^ter iternatioa.alQa-'ScefiJd idep»ti^« ii^ftiought The Daily Newspaper Of Motion Pictures Twenty-Six Years Old FDAILY C 86, NO. 44 NEW YORK, FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 1944 TEN CENTS EE OVER-COUNTER BUYING UNDER DECREE 7,806 Feature Prints Given to Armed Forces Editorial Be a Team . . . on the field = By CHESTER B. BAHN = BVIOUSLY, and of course, admittedly, as a result of World War II more sands of Americans than ever before motion picture-minded. The magnifi accomplishments of the industry in ilf of the war effort in a large measure responsible for that. Another im ant contributing factor has been the rtainment role played by the screen, on the home and battle fronts. Sev millions have been added to the al y imposing national film audience; at <e, because of increased earning power; -he war theaters, because the motion jre has been the principal source of sement for the fabled G. I. Joe as well he armed forces' rank. follows, then, that the motion pic and the industry which produces, dis ites and exhibits it must, in the years id, expect to find the film-conscious ic displaying an extremely lively in st in "the movies." If it has been in the past (and it still is) that every on has two businesses — his own and movies" — consider the assured situa tomorrow. And the day after. o CH public interest, being candid about it, is not exactly an unmixed blessing, it means, among other things, that at w a considerable segment will be inied by more than what it sees on screen and the pseudo "private lives" ralent. The attention given to such gs as trade practices and business ties will be magnified many, many ■s. And so will be the corresponding and for industry statesmanship in which ic relations counsel will have a major onfrcnted with such a condition, there d be no better advice to all in the stry — large or small, affiliated or filiated, than that voiced by Charles cis Coe of MPPDA before the NAB war iference in Chicago this week. "Socker," pointing out that lie relations begin at home: o ASK you to put on your uniforms in the dressing room and when you playing ball on the diamond, appear team. One of you may hit 200 and her 300. That will ever be so until (Continued on Page 2) Industry Also Has Contributed 22,229 Shorts Prints Since Feb., 1942 As of Aug. 12, the American motion picture companies have supplied 17,806 16 mm. prints of features to the armed forces overseas, it was reported yesterday. In addition, the industry has contributed 22,229 short subject prints. Free distribution to the armed forces started in February, 1942. Of the features, 16,359 prints were in black and white and 599 in Tech(Continued on Page 4) Nazis Exhibited Few Confiscated U. S. Pix Unofficial reports from Paris indicate that the Nazis showed very few of the American films confiscated by the Germans from the companies' Paris offices. Some estimates place the figure at 15 per cent of the to(Continued on Page 4) Report Jules Fields May Succeed Jack Goldstein Although no choice of a successor to Jack Goldstein, 20th-Fox publicity manager, has been made yet, Jules Fields, the company's assistant exploitation manager, was reported in trade circles last night as being in line for the post. Rank Has Eight Kid Films in Production London (By Cable) — J. Arthur Rank's scheme to produce special films for children has developed to the point where eight experimental pictures are now being made, Mary Field, in charge of the project, reports. She estimated an audience of 200,000 children weekly at Saturday matinees. Large scale production is contemplated by Rank. Reels Get Footage On Paris Uprising Washington Bureau of THE FILM DAILY Washington — The most dramatic story of the war has been released to the five newsreels, it was learned last night, with the turning over of nearly 10,000 feet of film on the Parisian insurrection and the entry of Allied troops into the city. About 1,400 feet had been released Wed(Continued on Page 8) SLRB Orders Managers' Election in 41 RKO Houses The right of managers and assistant managers in 41 RKO houses in the metropolitan area to organize has been recognized by the State Labor Relations Board on a petition filed by the Motion Picture Operat(Continued on Page 8) Earlier Television tor Public May Cover 46% of Market Sooner— Joyce Ask 30 Six-Megacycle Channels for Television A three-point resolution, designed to guide its representative on the Radio Technical Planning Board, was passed last week in Schenectady by the Television Broadcasters Association board of directors. Resolution called for the allocation to television of 30 six-megacycle chan( Continued on Page 5) Chicago — Forty-six per cent of the potential television market may be covered within 18 months to two years after the end of the war, rather than in three to four years as originally estimated by RCA, Thomas F. Joyce, general manager of the RCA radio, phonograph and television department of RCA Victor Division, told the NAB war conference yesterday. Basing his forecast on the 63 ap( Continued on Page 5) Elimination of Salesmen Possibility if Modified Decree is Put in Force Elimination of a majority of film salesmen and a trend toward over-the-counter buying are two possibilities if the Government's proposals for a modified New York consent decree become effective, according to a consensus of distributors' opinions. Such moves would be necessitated by a policy of selling one picture at a time, a policy that appears to be certain under the Government's recommendations. Two reasons were advanced for (Continued on Page 5) Sign Exchange Pay Tilt Pleas to WLB Seven more applications seeking to improve the living standard of exchange workers of the nation were signed yesterday by Joseph Basson of the IATSE and exchange operation heads of the film companies preparatory to their being filed with the regional War Labor Boards. Involved were six front-office loc(Continued on Page 4) Rodgers and Three Sales Heads to Meet in Chi. William F. Rodgers, vice-president and general sales manager of Loew's, will hold a two-day meeting with three M-G-M sales managers at the (Continued on Page 8) Step Up School Use Of Pix in Illinois Chicago — Illinois schools will use more films for visual education this coming school year than ever before in their history, Vernon Nickell, state superintendent of schools, reports. He is recemmending greater use of films for educational purposes, citing the success of the Army forces in using films to instruct personnel in record time.