The Film Daily (1948)

J?iiesday, September 14, 1948 DAILY lonsent Protest Sent b Clark, Truman (Continued from Page 1) . f protest against any consent decree ^ncjii that action to Attorney General ^'lii cm Clark and President Truman, ;i unter R. Lessing, v.-p. and chair nian '-^the executive committee, '^H| Inde^jcndent producers group beeves any decree the defendants od-.j'ould agree to "is bound to be some»e-.'iing less than the Federal Court lec-'ould order," Lessing said. Latter :3(j'_igned the telegrams, sent Friday .t ight, with publication held up to :(it,nable the President and Attorney estjileneral to receive them first. lam Text of Wire to Clark n-i' Text of the wire to Clark, a copy ;i-:f which was sent to President Truiltijian, was as follows: eVi! "We are informed that negotianesions are in progress whereby the (k-iajor motion pictu]*e company deendants in the anti-trust case Jil. United States v. Paramount, et al.), C rho have been found guilty by the ; i 'ederal District Court of the U. S. NT/.upreme Court of long-continued Jaiolations of the law are now atiempting to avoid the full effect of y I he decision of the Supreme Court by Erocuring the Government's agreement to a so-called 'consent decree.' e:i:'he members of the Society of Indecit.endent Motion Picture Producers M/(nanimously protest any such agreeoeeaent by the Government with these efendants who, in the word of the iupreme Court, 'have shown such aarked proclivity for unlawful conuct.' "This case has been in the courts or over 10 years. One consent decree las already been entered which comHiletely failed to make any correc*-' ion in the monopolistic strangle■ lold of these defendants on motion ^1 picture exhibition in the United •Jtates. The case has been exhaus; ively tried before the District Court ti^ind heard by the Supreme Court and j he Supreme Court has given clear 31! lirections to the District Court as rro what is to be done to remedy the t' bald efforts to substitute monopoly i or competition and to strengthen ttahe hold of the exhibitor-defendants tin the industry.' "It remains only for the Dis D6RTHS s MORRIS ALTON HARRIS, 64, associated ^rrthe operation of the State Theater, Hartl;Ord, Conn. • GEORGE T. BROWN, house electrician, itate Theater, Waterbury, Conn., and vice•resident of the lATSE local there. i BERNARD SPURGEON, 37, Columbia's [ 'ictoria manager, at Melbourne. I RUPERT DOYLY CARTE, 71, owner of , he famed British opera company, in London. ' PAUL WEGENER, 73, German film and tage producer-actor, in Berlin. REVIEWS Of nEUJ films 'Johnny Belinda' with Jane Wyman, Lew Ayres, Charles Bickford, Agnes Moorehead Warners ,02 Mins. RICH, PROFOUNDLY MOVING DRAMA. SHOULD GO TO THE TOP OF THE LIST IN '48 INDUSTRY HONORS. WILL BE A LONG REMEMBERED FILM. MAY PROVE A PHENOMENAL TURNING POINT IN ELIMINATING CURRENT TICKETBUYING LETHARGY. It is rich, profundly moving drama that has been fashioned in "Johnny Belinda." To watch this story unfold is to experience a series of keen emotional impacts. A superior example of the craftsmanship that goes into making fine films, it may be said for this production that the cinematic medium has again proved itself the superior of the theater. It is with consummate taste and execution that Producer Jerry Wald and Director Jean Negulesco have broiight Elmer Harris' stage play to the screen. If there is any sort of justice this production in its entirety goes to the top of the list from which this industry's honors are dealt out. An intense human document that probes deeply into life, the currents of experience and feeling, this offering has a wealth of fine performances delineated with superb artistry by the leaders and all others concerned. Here Jane Wyman, always a top performer, surpasses herself and in so doing she is staunchly supported. Negulesco's direction has the stamp of genius. The basic mechanism of filmmaking, the camera, in the hands of Ted McCord gives photographic brilliancy to the story. In these days of generally superior lensing, when something of this nature is developed, the know how behind the exposure meter must be saluted. It would be a waste of type, space and time about here to even hazard a guess at the box office potential of "Johnny Belinda." It is going to be remembered a long time by both patron and showman. It's going to be brought back again and again, too. This is one picture that can stand many viewings. The big splash you are going to hear around the 23rd of October will be the result of everybody going overboard lauding what most likely will turn out to be a phenomenal turning point in eliminating the current epidemic of ticketbuying lethargy. Told with power, strength and restraint "Johnny Belinda" is the story of a young girl, deaf and mute from birth, how a kindly young doctor opens her eyes and widens her Cape Bretton Island horizon to a point where she is a happy human being completely reborn, once more happy. As she becomes glowingly alive, a brutal note is struck. She is raped. Endeavoring to find a possible cure for her prenatal condition, the doctor is informed by a colleague the girl is pregnant. The girl's father, when he at length is informed of her condition is incensed. But his sister prevails upon him to be sensible. The girl has the baby. The girl's parent is killed later in a cliffside brawl. In time the rapist marries. Small town society decides to take the baby, give it to the newlyweds for adoption. When the pair go to pick up the child, the mute kills the father and is hence arrested and tried. The trial brings out evidence that it was in self defense and the young doctor and the girl prepare to live anew. In its bare outlines the story is simple, yet as sturdy as its island setting off the Canadian coast in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. It is generated into gripping drama woven with a fine tensile quality. In "Johnny Belinda" the industry can take a long, deserved bow for an achievement that comes very near to being triumphant. CAST: Jane Wvman, Lew Avres, Charles Bickford, Agnes Moorehead, Stephen McNally, Jan Sterling, Rosalind Ivan, Dan Sev'mour, Mabel Paige, Ida Moore, Alan Napier, Monte Blue, Douglas Kennedy, James Craven, Richard Taylor, Richard Walsh, Joan Winfield, Ian Wolfe, Holmes Herbert, Jonathan Hale, Ray Montgomery. CREDITS: Producer, Jerrv Wald; Director, Jean Negulesco; Screenplay, Irmgcrd von Cube, Allen Vincent; From the stage play bv Elmer Harris, produced by Harry Wagstaff Gribble; Photography, Ted McCord; Art, Robert Haas," Editor, David Weisbart; Sound, Charles Lang; Sets, William Wallace; Technical advisers, Elizabeth Gesner, Bruce Carruthers: Orchestral arranoements, Murary Cutter; Musical director, Leo F. Forbstein. DIRECTION: Suoerb. PHOTOGRAPHY: Brilliant. trict Court to take the final step of putting into effect the Supreme Court's decision in order that the monopolistic grip of these defendants on motion picture exhibition may be loosened. There is absolutely no reason for the Government of the United States to make any deal with these law violators who, again in the words of the Supreme Court, 'had the genius to conceive the present conspiracy and execute it with the subtlety which this record reveals.' "Such a deal could be regarded only as a betrayal of the interests of the American public which has a vital stake in the maintenance of an open competitive system of decent free enterprise. We cannot conceive that you will agree to any such deal. We urge you, as the chief law enforcement oflScer of this nation, to see to it that the order of the U. S. Supreme Court is vigorously enforced and that the full resources of the Government are thrown behind the completion of this case in open court and not behind closed doors." Tames Ferretti Leaves U. S. Air Conditioning James J. Ferretti, long Eastern divisional manager of U. S. Air Conditioning Corp., announces his resignation. FeiTetti, widely known for his ingenuity in the design of airconditioning systems in theaters, is engaged in developing an economical air-conditioning system for small houses. (Iiildren's Library Starting in Canada (Continued from Page 1) of the MPAA National Children's Film Library Committee, will leave for Toronto on Sept. 20 to attend a meeting at which she will demonstrate procedures established in tJiis country to the heads of major distributors of Canada and representatives of Canadian religious, educational, civic and parents' groups and women's organizations. An actual demonstration of the Wiggle Test, originated by Mrs. Dawson, will be given in the afternoon, when a feature will be shown to a group of children from eight to 12 years old. MPAA made the Library available to Canada at the request of the Toronto Board of Trade's rnotion picture branch. Membership of the branch includes general and branch managers of all major distribs. in Canada, as well as leading circuit and independent exhibitors. Among those who will attend the meeting are John J. Fitzgibbons, president of Famous Players; Edwin H. Wells, secretary of the Canadian Motion Picture Distributors Assn.; Henry L. Nathanson, M-G-M Canadian general sales manager; Arthur Silverstone, 20th-Fox Dominion general sales manager; Haskell Masters, general manager for Warners in Canada; Alfred W. Perry, president and general manager of Empire Universal; Gordon Lightstone, Canadian general manager of Paramount; Harvey Harnick, general sales manager of Columbia of Canada; L. M. Devaney, general manager in Canada for RKO, and Oscar Hansen, Canadian general manager for Allied Artists. Mrs. Dawson will be accompanied to Toronto by her assistant Muriel Ward. Rabbis Board Will Carry Twist' Plea to E-L, JARO New York Board of Rabbis will appeal both to Eagle Lion and to the J. Arthur Rank organization here to keep "Oliver Twist" off American screens. Rabbi Harold H. Gordon, general secretary of the Board, said yesterday. SICK LIST MRS. ROBERT NAS'HICK, wife of a member of Loew's Theaters publicity department, is recovering in Meadowbrook Hospital, Meadowbrook, L. I., from injuries sustained in an auto crash. BOB HARTMAN, of Hollywood Service, theater premiums, is confined to the Deaconess Hospital, Chicago, by a serious illness. JOE FAITH, operator of theaters in Bristol, Collinsville, Terryville, and Unionville, Conn., is recuperating from a long illness. SAL POPOLIZIO, 20th-Fox, New Haven, branch booker, is recovering from an operation.