The Film Daily (1930)

T-J THE HE NEWSPAPER )F FILM DOM All THE NEWS ALL THE TIME /OL. LIII No. 55 Thursday, September 4, 1930 Price 5 Cents Los Angeles Legit. Stage Boom Killed by Talkers 10-YEARBRITISH PROGRAM FOR PARAMOUNT Columbia Has 1 0 Feature Productions Under Way Five Pictures Shooting — Five Preparing — 104 Shorts on List West Coast Bureau, THE FILM DAILY Hollywood — Columbia studios are working practically at capacity, with 10 pictures at present under way, five of then, shooting and five others in preparation. The pictures in work include "Lawless Valley," with Buck Junes, "Dirigible," with Jack Holt and Ralph Graves; "Brothers," with Bert Lytell; "For the Love o' Lil," with Jack Mulhall and "Tol'able David" with Richard Cromwell. In preparation are "Madonna of the treets," "The Criminal Code," "Fifty (Continued on Page 2) S GreenLights? "Sure!" Says Sheehan Hollywood (Special wire to THE FILM DAILY)— More than ever before good talkers will enjoy extended run engagements. Where the silent picture played a week, the talking picture can and does play three or four weeks, provided it is a good talking picture. Instead of half a week, audible films will play a full week. Naturally this means new devotees of talking pictures and weekly patrons recruited from those who formerly were only occasional customers. All depends obviously on the excellence of productions, and I fully believe the studios will give pictures of such worth that they will bring even greater demand for lengthy engagements during the fall and winter.— WINFIELD SHEEHAN. "COMMON CLAY" GROSSES $447,884 IN FOUR WEEKS "Common Clay" grossed $447,884 in its four weeks' run at the Roxy. The take by week follows: first, $107,367; second, $116,233; third, $118,746; fourth, $105,538. 36th Branch Office Opened by Tiffany Des Moines — Tiffany opens a new branch office here next week with L. J. Miller as manager. This gives the company 36 branches in the U. S. and 6 in Canada. Plug "Big Trail" One of the most intensive song-plugging campaigns ever given a picture number is planned by Pat Flaherty of Fox Red Star Music Publishing Co. in connection with "The Big Trail Song," used in the Raoul Walsh special, "The Big Trail." Fox houses will cooperate in putting the song over. 40 P. C. Business Increase Reported By Fox Theaters Producing Company Plans $10,000,000 Outlay for Pictures London (By Cable)— Under the arrangement whereby Paramount Publix is to lease the Elstree studio of British & Dominion Films for the making of pictures here, the American company plans to spend about $10,000,000 on a 10-year production program. The studio lease is said to involve payment of nearly $1,500,000. An increase of more than 40 per cent in business of Fox Theaters throughout the country during the last few weeks over the same period last year is reported by Oscar S. Oldknow, executive vice-president, and Harry Arthur, general manager of Fox Theaters. In 12 houses, reopened in the past fortnight after alterations, attendance has increased 50 per cent over last year, according to the Fox officials, who declare that the outlook for theaters is better now than it has ever been. WEEKLY CABINET MEETINGS Universal has incorporated the "cabinet meeting" idea into its system of operation. Executives of various departments now meet on Tuesdays to pool ideas as to policies and movements. Official report is that the plan is working out okay. Dramatic Houses Give Way To Sound Screen Programs R. F. Woodhull Leaving Gen. Talking Pictures R. 1 (Pete) Woodhull, general sales manager of General Talking Pictures, has resigned Woodhull, formerly president of tin M 1'. T. O. A., will rest a month before announcing his new plans. West Coast Bureau. THE FILM DAILY Los Angeles Conversion of the Majestic, for more than two decades a dramatic and musical comedy the ater. into a talking picture house, nol Only completes the extinction of the spoken drama on the local Broadway, which once had four of these playhouses, hut marks the del. boom, -Luted ome three years ago, that promised to make I.os Am i Continued on Page 2) RKO METROPOLITAN CHAIN BOOKS FIRST NATIONAL 35 First National's entire output of 35 features for 1930-31 has been booked for the R-K-0 Metropolitan houses, it is announced by Ned E. Depinet. Depinet also has closed a deal with Floyd Brown to play F. N.'s 35 pictures in the Rialto and Mary Anderson in Louisville. J. J. McCarthy to Handle Fox Studios' N. Y. Office J. J. McCarthy has succeeded \l Lewis iii charge of the New York office of Fox's coast studios. Lewis has gone West to join the story department at Movietone City. Invoking Magic Vacco Amedeo, formerly with Houdini, has been hired as a lobby attraction at the New York Paramount. Vacco is supposed to be the guy who devised the trick of threading 27 needles in his mouth, so Publix figures it should be simple for him to thread long strings of customers in the theater's big lobby.