The Film Daily (1945)

Tuesday, March 20, 1945 DAILY (alls Price Control Free Saeen Menace (Continued from Page 1) emption as being (1) to protect freedom of speech, of the press and of expression and (2) the great difficulty of applying price controls to such y intangible commodity. -^ The reasons for the exemption, he said, were just as valid now as they were in 1940. While it may never be used, he added, price control on pictures could easily place the screen under the thumb of the Government for any propaganda or pressure use it saw fit, and the penalty for resistance could then be economic strangulation and eventual destruction. "If the exemption for movies should be removed by such an amendment as is proposed," Kuykendall wrote, "the OPA could then decide where to fix the ceiling prices on theater admissions, at the present scales Or at some previous date to accomplish a 'roll back' of current prices; also whether to put the ceiling prices on film rentals and terms. These decisions of OPA would be arbitrary, without hearings; and enforceable by the usual penalties." Kuykendall said that the Government should be made to realize, however, that admission prices at film theaters "are always fixed by competitive conditions in a highly competitive business in which several diffei'ent theaters (and even the same theater to some extent) offer exactly the same article at different times for a wide variety of prices." He pointed out that "any theater that charges more than the public is willing to pay has empty seats and sooner or later goes broke." Kuykendall bemoaned the fact that "we are so poorly organized to defend" the industry that once again "we get kicked around in Washington and get a dose of desti-uctive publicity that tears down our badly needed public good-will unnecessarily." — Give to the Red Cross — NAMPI Meets Thursday On Raw Stock Situation (Continued from Page 1) ley of the Industry Advisoi-y Committee with the WPB in Washington on the current raw stock situation. Important developments pertaining to the distribution and allocation of raw stock will be discussed, it was disclosed yesterday by Nat Sanders, NAMPI secretary. SEND BIRTHDAY GREETINGS TO: March 20 Joseph H. Seidelman Edmund Coulding Edgar Buchanan All in the Diiy's iVett?s # # 9 CUFF NOTES: President Roosevelt's special five-minute Red Cross message tonight at 9 p.m., E.W.T., will be "piped-in" to countless theater audiences across the nation Managers are scheduling their shows so that collections can be taken up immedicrtely following the Chief Executive's talk ... • Al Finestone, of Para.'s publicity department, who was loaned to the Fifth War Loan national committee, draws a return engagement for the Seventh War Loan, coming up He'll serve as assistant director of publicity on a full time basis under John Hertz, Jr., at the request of National Chairman Sam Pinanski ... # Twentieth-Fox's 30th anniversary drew a salute over the air on the Lux Radio Theater show last night April is the company's anniverscn-y month ... # Latest issue of LO! the Loew's employes' magazine, reveals that the company has made its second "deposit" in the Loew's Employment Retirement Plan, bringing the total pension fund for the two years of operation to $6,374,000 . . . • Sonford Leavitt, son of Joe Leavitt. -who owns the Independent Screen Room in Cleveland's Film Building, has been upped from assistant to Red Cross field director in the Fifth Service Command area, with headquarters in Columbus ... # Didja know that George Seed, Fabian's city manager in Cohoes, is an avid horseman, riding every morning? And that Blackie, his thoroughbred, has won two trophies, two blues and four pinks in Northern New York horse shows? . . . # The industry boys with the OWI sxire get around Latest postcard from Manny Reiner describes the beauties of Pisa and Florence ... # When OPA Administrator Chester Bowles charged that film admission prices had jumped 38 Vz per cent in the last three years, he would seem to have overlooked the fact that many nobes — in CleveIcmd, for example — have taken a one-cent cut in order to keep the scale to round figures ... # In the last 10 vreeks. Loew's employes have purchased $3,000,000 more insurance under the company's group insurance plan This brings the total policies now in force close to $16,000,000 T ▼ ▼ • • % HOT OFF THE HOLLYWOOD WIRE: Cornel Wilde starts at Columbia on a loan from ZOth-Fox for a third picture It's "The Bandit of Sheiiuood Forest," to be filmed in Technicolor Anita Louise will be opposite ... 9 Deal by which Paramount acquired rights to Irving Stone's best-seller, "Immortal Wife," calls for his collaboration on the writing of the screenplay . . . 9 Paramount is reported near the closing stage in a deal with Fanny Holtzman for Gertrude Lawrence's autobiography, "A Star Danced," which Doubleday-Doran will publish in June ... # Metro will team June Allyson and Robert Walker in Chester Erskin's original, "For Better, for Worse" ... % Columbia has set Janet Blair for the lead in "Tars and Spars" ... % Paramount is loaning Barbara Britton to Jules Levey for his forthcoming UA release, "Homesteaders" ... 0 Danny Kaye's next picture for Samuel Goldwyn will be "The Kid From Brooklyn" "The Kid From Brooklyn" will be the second Kaye picture to use his home town as setting "Wonder Man," now being prepared for Summer release, has most of its scenes laid in Brooklyn "The Kid From Brooklyn" will reveal Danny as a chicken-hearted stripling who becomes a championship fighter through a freak. ... .TJ^e role is based on the character created by Harold Lloyd in "The Milky Way" ... % Donald Barry will star in Republic's "The Crooked Mile," Jerry Sackheim's murder mysteiy ... # Donna Reed draws the feminine lead in Metro's "They Were Expendable" • • WE'RE AVENGING PEARL HARBOR!. Freon Release for Theaters Forecast (Continued from Page 1) provisionally is reported to be neai'ly half a million pounds — which is insufficient to cover all the requests of comfort cooling system operators. It is hoped, however, that most can be taken care of and that even more Freon may yet be made available. Hundreds of appeals pending to the Freon control order, M-28, are now being scrutinized, with every indication being that before the week is up they will be granted. Whether they will be granted in full or whether only a major percentage of the quantity of the gas sought will be permitted is not yet cei-tain. All service establishments will be on an equal footing for the pi'esent, although in the event of a developing shortage of the gas for military or war-supporting purposes the comfort-coolingusers may be graded. Broadcasters, for instance, might be given a preference over some other users because of the soundproofing requirements for their studios. Just how theaters would figure in on such a deal is uncertain although it is pointed here that theater doors must be kept tightly closed in order for the sound to be heard perfectly and the projection to be completely effective. — Give to the Red Cross — WLB Reps. Working On Plan to End Strike (Continued from Page 1) be before some person authorized to enforce any order the board may make we will attend and the strike would end." It is believed James W. Byi'nes, War Mobilization Director, William H. Davis, Director of Economic Stabilization, or President Roosevelt may enter the picture before actual settlement of the strike is accomplished. Sorrell said the sti-ikers are in a stronger position than last week despite the defection of office workers, publicists and story analysts, and declared that they had originally entered the strike of their own volition and without any solicitation. Screen Actors Guild members have begun mail voting on whether to pass picket lines and indications are they will overwhelmingly decide to continue working. TO THE COLORS! * DECORATED * LT. DON TERRY, film star, USN commendatory ribbon for service on volunteer landing boat on May 21, 1944, awarded at Harvard by Admiral R. A. Spruance. CAPT. GENE MARKEY, USNR, former motion picture writer-producer, was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service to the Government In planning military operations against the enemies of the United States.