The Film Daily (1930)

THE Sunday, June 8, 1930 Timely Topics A Digest of Current Opinion — O^ Importance of the Hollywood Stenog A/f ANY a cheer has gone up for Hollywood's extra girl, courageous beauty, with a will power of iron, who starves and endures until her big chance comes — if it comes. But what of the Hollywood stenographer and her sister, the script clerk? The average studio stenographer in Hollywood has a more profound knowledge of screen material, production costs and picture making than she is generally credited with. She knows more about camera angles, motivation of plot, holding scene suspense, building interest, subplots and business that means money in the box office than the layman realizes. Stenographers in the major motion picture studios of Hollywood, by the system under which they work, have an opportunity for experience and study in all branches of film making. Each studio has a stenographic department which employs from 15 to 50 girls — typists, shorthand reporters, dictaphone operators, mimeograph stencil cutters, etc. These girls operate on a roving assignment basis. Today they may be working with a front office executive who has had to call in extra help on a seasonal production schedule in which he is fitting stars, directors and writers into their proper niches. Tomorrow morning when she comes to work the head of the department may assign her to help some expert scenarist prepare a story. On Thursday she will be helping a dialogue writer with another script. On Friday she is sent to the office of a director who has called for a girl to help him map out a shooting schedule. N. Y. "Evening Post" Films imported by England during the first quarter of 1930 increased 5,000,000 feet above the same period in 1929. Along The Rialto with PhilM. Daly JACK OAKIE is one of those fortunate guys who seems to have had little trouble in making the grade first he gets himself born in Sedalia, Missouri this was rather a tough start, as nobody brags about being born in Missouri, but he came FROM Missouri, which is an achievement then later he was graduated from the De La Salle High School in New York, got himself a job in Wall Street, then wisecracked his way into some big Broadway shows, and now look at him he is now starring in "The Sap from Syracuse" and if Jack is a sap, we'd be glad to come from Syracuse — and brag about it * * * * ^/TAX SCHMELING has done a Vitaphone short in which he takes on a sparring partner and that sparring partner drew one of the toughest assignments in pictures, for only a little of what Max did to him appears in the fillum a lot was left on the cutting room floor, and the sparring partner was left on the canvas floor Viktor Turin, director of the Russian picture, "Turksib," never got a break when he was an assistant director in Hollywood but he learned how h "yes" the Soviet officials to death, and look at him now Joseph Littau, conductor at the Roxy, claims to be the first to popularize the U. S. Naval Academy humdinger, "Anchors AWeigh" he conducted at the Roxy back in 1(>14 CID DAVIDSON of Warners' New Jersey division wins the plush Panama for his tieup with navy recruiting boards in Newark, where he got photographic enlargements of Clara Bow on the government "A" boards which is SOME stunt — if you have ever tried to get anything on these boards Dr. Frans Alexander, psychiatrist of Berlin, sez that films are a marvellous health-stimulant which gives live showmen a brand new argument if they will only use it * * * * '"pHE BEACON theater inaugurates a series of Sunday afternoon concerts under the leadership of that wiz conductor. Harold Levey Doug Stanbury and Maximilian Pilzer will be among the soloists Mike Glutz, that go-getting and enterprising owner of the Oompah theater, sez his theater is so cool this summer that his two-piece orchestra has to stop in the middle of the overture to blow on their fingers, and an usher was frozen stiff in the aisle atta boy, Mike, and when your screen flickers you can say the film players are shivering from the cold CTANLEY SMITH, Paramount featured player, will sing on the "California Melodies" radio hour June 11 from WABC Since Tommy Culkin of Tom and Nat's cigar store has gone over strong as the big haw-haw man, his manager Charlie Eimer is trying to chisel some jack from those independent producers in 729 Seventh Ave. when Tommy sits in on a pre-view showing if the indies ever get any jack, Charlie may get some Alan Crosland could only spare three days' vacation after filming Al Jolson's "Big Boy," having to start work at once on Romberg's operetta, "Viennese Nights" D. A. Doran, story editor for Columbia, gave a lecture yesterday at Mike Mindlin's Newark theater in conjunction with "Ladies Love Leisure" while Doran was talking, Mike went up and down the aisle of his arty house selling ping-pong balls LJARRY GOLDBERG, of Columbia's New York exchange, sez that Moe Rosenbaum of the record dep't has invented a Lloyd Hamilton Walk that puts the Baltimore Shuffle and the Mississippi Schabble out of the running After having been a circus press agent for several years with the Ringling-Barnum aggregation, Floyd 1.. Bell is now with the "Big One" <>!' the picture field, having joined the Publix publicitj dep't in Boston * * * * A DUMB EXHIB tried to get an office rug on the free mat service. EXPL0ITETTES A Clearing House for Tabloid Exploitation Ideas €) Co-op Ad on "Caught Short" 'P'PIE topical title of the Polly Moran-Marie Dressier comedy, "Caught Short," enabled Manager \V. L. Doudlah of the Fox, Pomona, to get up a snappy double track cooperative ad in the Pomona "Bulletin." All firms and merchants found the two words ideal to get over their messages in everything from groceries to punctured tires. "Caught Short" was at the head of every ad and each one carried a reference that it was playing at the California. —Fox * * * Radio Contest for "Rogue Song" AN interesting contest put over by M. E. Baylis, of the Granada. Santa Barbara, Cal. The Majestic Radio — "Rogue Song" contest was announced in the "Morning Press" five days in advance of the opening and received editorial recognition for ten days. The contest was designed to discover Santa Barbara's leading singer. Entrants were required to sing one of the hits from "The Rogue Song" on the theater stage. A preliminary audition was held to select the six best voices for the contest finals. Three musically competent judges officiated at both hearings. The winner wasawarda Majestic radio. —M-G-M MANY HAPPY RETURNS Best wishes and congratulations are extended by THE FILM DAILY to the following members of the industry who are celebrating their birthdays: June 7-8 Norman Devol Tacob Wilk William F. Rodgers Clarence Badger Dorothy Coburn Joseph Jackson