The Film Daily (1945)

1W< DAILY Friday, July 6, 194! Over July 4 Holiday (Continued from Page 1) week, is outcrossing its second, boasted the greatest '•Fourth" since the house went into the picture-plusstage-presentation policy eight years ago. The Music Hall, with M-G-M's "Valley of Decision," polished off the last day of a nine-week run with record breaking returns. Opening day grosses for 20th-Fox's "A Bell for Adano" at the M. H. yesterday, .with the line circling the theater to the 51st Street stage entrance, indicated another long-run film for the house. At the Rivoli, Managing Director Montague Salmon said that the holiday business on 20th-Fox's "Junior Miss" more than doubled the tally on any week day of the run, and that receipts were just beginning to climb on this film. Bob Weitman, of Broadway's Paramount, reported a smash $14,000 opening day gross for the Paramount-Wallis "You Came Along." The Capitol, with UA's "Blood on the Sun" in its second week, and the Hollywood, showing Warner's "Rhapsody in Blue" in its first week, also came through with capacity business for this holiday. All opening day records since Darryl F. Zanuck's "Wilson" were reported shattered at the Roxy, with the presentation of 20th-Fox's Technicolor musical "Nob Hill." Despite the lack of circulation of newspaper advertising, due to the current strike of newspaper delivery men, satisfactory grosses are anticipated for this week-end's business. Canton Houses and lATSE Air Vacations Grievance Canton, O. — Decision is awaited from a WLB panel hearing of a dispute between the Valentine and Strand Theaters and the lATSE, in which 18 of the suburban houses' staff's seek paid vacations. Meanwhile the Dueber and McKinely Theaters have signed new contracts granting the concession. Goetz Buys "Up Front" Willie and Joe, doughboy characters created by Pulitzer Prize Winner William Mauldin, are to be filmed by International Pictures, William Goetz has just announced. Paying a top price, Goetz has purchased screen rights to Mauldin's Book-of-theMonth story "Up Front — vdth Mauldin" and Mauldin will go to Hollywood to assist in writing the screenplay. Barasch Leaving Pcora. Lew Barasch has resigned from Paramount's home office publicity depaitment, effective a week from today. He has announced no future plans. Iowa Exhihs. Say Food Is Tops In Glamour, Mahing '^'Screen Fare** a Literal Phrase Note Waterloo, la. — Theater managers here are convinced that food rationing has done something to filmgoers' tastes. It used to be that a pair of good-looking legs, a long romantic kiss, a cute dog or baby, would evoke responsive "ch's" and "ah's ' from the audience. Now, it's food that does it. "Just show 'em eating a steak, porkchops or fried chicken," commented one local manager, "and the patrons will positively drool at the mouth," and added, "You can get more reaction from them over food these days than you ever could in the old days with a pair of graceful gams, or a three-minute kiss." Para. Honors 40 Customers SF Police Chief Halts At Chi. Anniversary Meet (Continued from Page 1) launched a two-day organizational meeting at its exchange here yesterday and climaxed the sessions, at which plans were discussed for formal observance, by honoring the more than 40 veteran showmen of this territory who have been customers of the company for 30 years or more. Presiding at the sessions was M. R. "Duke" Clark, co-captain yith Allen Usher of the forthcoming anniversary drive. Also participating prominently in the conclave, are all local employes, J. J. Donohue, Cential division manager; J. H. Stevens, Chicago branch manager; and William Demarest, Para, star, who will continue to Milwaukee and Minneapolis for other meetings. Following the afternoon session, a cocktail reception was held at the Ambassador East Hotel, with Betty Hutton brought on from the Coast for the meeting, and Demarest joining with Para, officials and personnel, plus trade and daily press reps, in honoring the 40 showmen of this territory who have been company customers for 30 years or longer. The veteran customers attending were Sam Abrahams, Crest Theater, Chicago; Abe Auerbach, New Strand, Chicago; A. Bartelstein, Bartelstein Theaters, Chicago; Louis Brown, California, Chicago; Charles Bugg, Bugg, Chicago; James Coston, Warner Bros. Theater Management Corp., Chicago; Harry Goldson, Plaza, Chicago; S. J. Gregory, Alliance Theater Corp., Chicago; Louis Harrison, Goodman & Harrison Theaters, Chicago; Nate Joseph, States, Chicago; Verne Langdon, Hub and Alvin, Chicago; Harry Lublinger, Four Star, Chicago; Bob Lucas, Lucas Theaters, Chicago; Ed Mager, Allied Theaters, Chicago; Alex Manta, Manta & Rose, Chicago; Sam Meyers, Meyers Theater Circuit, Chicago; William J. Mueller, Alamo, Chicago; Van Nomikos, V. A. Nomikos Theaters, Chicago; Joe Pastor, Co-Ed, Chicago; William Pearl, Alcyon, Highland Park, HI.; Dave Rice, Globe, Chicago; J. J. and M. M. Rubens, Great States Theaters, Chicago; Arthur and Henry Schoenstadt, H. Schoenstadt & Sons, Chicago; Emil Stern, Essaness Theaters, Chicago; H. Tague, Bryn Mawr, Chicago; Ed Trinz, Monroe, Chicago; and M. 0. Wells, M. 0. Wells Theaters, Chicago. Also honored at the reception were All Night Film Shows San Francisco — In a move aimed to combat juvenile delinquency, Chief of Police Dullea has ordered allnight theaters to close their doors at 1 a.m. Order was issued under an old ordinance which prohibits theatrical performances between 1 a.m. and 6 a.m. About 10 all-night stands have been operating on special permits from the chief of police but these permits have now been cancelled. Houses include the -Warfield, St. Francis, Telenews, Embassy, Esquire, State and Portola. Oakland, Calif. — Chief of Police Robert P. Tracy has appealed to local theater operators to close at 1 a.m., following the policy being enforced across the bay in San Franciso. While there is no ordinance setting a theater closing time, Tracy suggested it would be better if the about half dozen all-night stands closed at midnight or 1 a.m. oreign Equip» Peril To U. S» Pic Trade PRC Completes Initial Spanish-Dubbed Film The first dubbed-in-,Spanish film has been completed by PRC, it was disclosed on Tuesday by H. Alban Mestanza, the company's LatinAmerican production supervisor. The film, "Strange Illusion," which features Warren William and Jimmy Lydon, falls into PRC's special group and will be followed by five others to be dubbed for the Latin-American market. Two of the five are "Enchanted Forest," which will be in color, and "White Bongo." The other three in production are still to be titled. Mercier in CBS Tele Post Andrew Mercier has been named assistant supervisor of the television studio technical operations, at Columbia's New York television station, WCBW, Dr. Peter C Goldmark, CBS Director of Engineering Research and Development, announced Tuesday. Mercier will work under Philip A. Goetz, supervisor. an( the two oldest employes of Para.'s local Exchange, Herman Busch, projectionist and head of the film department, and William Hamm, booking manager, both of whom have completed 27 years of service. (Continued from Page 1) "profit position" of the others particularly the United States. This view was also stressed b; Stanton B. Leeds, World-Telegran financial writer, who declared tha the billion dollar gross which U. S motion picture companies hope to pil( up yearly in foreign markets afte: the war is threatened by foreigi scientists and the backing they ma: get from both Britain and Russia. Development of third-dimension ii prominently mentioned by financier!, and industry spokesmen as a majo: international consider-ation, especial ly in light of advances in this fiek by U.S.S.R. scientists. Toward tht end of October, 1944, North Ameri can Newspaper Alliance reportet that a new type of glass screen, saic to give third-dimension effect to ordi nary motion picture images withoui the viewer having to employ stereopticon aids, had been introduced ir Moscow. On Dec. 8, The Filk Daily's Moscow correspondent, declared in a dispatch that 20 stereoscopic film theaters would be openec in various parts of the Soviet Union utilizing the stereoscopic lens screens invented by Semyon Ivanov shortlj before the war, and greatly improvec by him since that time. ' Although our scientists have alsc^ made noteworthy advances along' third-dimension lines, foreigners have a great advantage, Leeds asserts This observation checks closely with film industry opinion that nations overseas are in a better economic position to discard any present equipment in favor of any practical innovations which may arise, since their theater equipment is both scarce and relatively obsolescent, whereas U. S. equipment is on a much higher plane, as well as representing a much greater investment which could not profitably be abandoned. If third-dimension is to be attained via enlargement of film gauges, namely the increase of 35 mm. to 60, 62 and even 70 mm., as Leeds points out, the American industry would face radical adjustments not only at home but in countries abroad. On Monday of this week, Film Daily Equipment News cited the time element which is needed for the U. S. to make possible trade agreements in the post-war period with Britain, of which films and their equipment would certainly play a part, as a prelude to a world trade parley which has now been postponed until 1946. The same issue of Equipment News pointedly called up Hollywood and the other wings of the domestic trade to endow SMPE as a means of guarding the technical and trade position of the U. S. industry after the war. I Herman Garfield Dies Herman Garfield, 57, independent producer and associated with the Hopalong Cassidy series, died here on Wednesday. Interment will be in Cleveland. ■"— !■