The Film Daily (1930)

THE Timely Topics A Digest of Current Opinion — €— Berlin Reaction to Eisenstein Film AS THE Russian director, Eisenstein, who is now in Hollywood and become one with the third largest American industry, it will probably interest you to hear that his last picture, "Longing," which he finished only a short time ago in France, was almost booed off the screen at the Marmorhaus last week. It hardly deserved that fate; had an unknown director produced it, it would have passed by practically unnoticed as a. collection of beautifully if sentimentally photographed views of nature. It seeks to express the mood created by a melancholy Russian folksong, but the attempt at a "happy end" which concentrated on a cherry tree in full bloom was too gooey for an audience which remembered the Russian's spartan past. On the program was also a synchronized version of the same director's early masterpiece, "Potemkin." It would have been a good idea to synchronize to the film the excellent music score which Meisel wrote, but the producers tried the futile experiment of synchronizing German dialogue to the Russian mouth positions of the original actors. Of course, it never fitted and it tore the structure all to pieces. This proved quite conclusively (if that ever needed proving) that the master works of the pantomimic period should be left untouched — it is hopeless to try to "modernize" them in so superficial a fashion. — N. Y. "Times" TEN YEARS AGO TO-DAY IN :the IK MKSIAItfc Of IHMIOM Municipal Tax Board places property value of five Broadway picture houses at $12,000,000. Geoffrey Nye, returned from Far East, reports placing Goldwyn product at all points. Marcus Loew to act as host to prominent film folk. #&>* DAILY Friday, October 3, 1930 D CHOWMANSHIP in northern Malaya at Penang is slightly ° different from the brand seen in these parts of the world, according to Nathan D. Golden, of the M. P. Division of the Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce the cheaper seats are on the lower floor, with wooden benches.. only boys and men are permitted here side galleries are reserved for native women the main gallery is reserved for Europeans and the better class of Chinese here the top is 85 cents the hard bench seats can be speared for 11 cents and 98 per cent of the pix are from HollerworcL * * * * P. SHEPHERD, manager of the Palace in the Jersey Oranges, has hit on a brilliant idea for getting around the Sunday closing law his theater stands on the dividing line of East Orange and Orange proper the former taboos the Sunday show, while the latter sez it is okay so Shepherd has hit on the scheme of roping off his house so the patrons sit on the Orange side, and everything is jake the only fly in the ointment is that about 1,000 seats are left vacant when he runs a standout, the patrons stand u^ in back of the Orange section, and look longingly at the erbenches in the East Orange side ain't this blue law the knerts? * # # * A/T. E. COMERFORD pays tribute to the pioneer theater man, Dennis A. Harris, who died this week Denny was always in the forefront, fighting for the exhibitors a good fighter, a loyal friend, and above all, a real showman Nellie Ranson, sec of the Film Players' Club, announces a cut from five berries to three for membership fee until Jan. 3 Harrison Carroll tells a good story on Will Rogers, who sent a a suit to the cleaners after a day on location with the "Lightnin' " company as he had to wear the same suit the next day in the pix. and he couldn't remember what cleaners he sent it to, it cost Fox five grand for the delay * * * * j^ARLENE DIETRICH is being built up by Paramount as a mystery lady, the new German star being cast in the role of a girl who doesn't want any publicity so the newspaper boys and the magazine ^irls are politely shooed away from her doorway that's probably the surest way to get publicity so the idea ain't so dumb, after all Ruth Mix. the daughter of the famous Tom, was training her horse on Longisle, when Colonel Lindbergh happened along when Ruth said her nag had no monicker, Lindy sez: "Whazza matter with Lindy?" just like that so the plug is now in the cast just that way * * * * OSCAR HANSON, sales manager for Tiffany, is feeling very genial these davs, with the company product breaking in on the tough spots and the regular accounts yelling for more and what could be sweeter? one of the Chimp series, "The Little Big House," is on the bill with the opening of "Her Man" today at the Globe a wow comedy which knocked 'em for a loop in the cold projection room and that hapr nens about twice a season to our certain knowledge Backgammon, an ancient parlor game, is now all the rage among the society elite of Hollerword next on the list is tiddle dewinks * * * * QLGA BACLANOVA likes house pets, even though they damaped her landlady's furniture and Olga had to shell out a court fine of 300 berries Al Jolson's new song, "Lonelv Mothers on Parade," evidentlv refers to the mammies who failed to get in touch with their sonny boys The N. Y. State Democrats are ballyhooing Governor Roosevelt for reelection with the aid of five sound motor trucks showing a talkie throughout the territory "Africa Sneaks" switches from the Globe to the Cameo today "Screen Romances" is running a letter contest plugging Ruth Roland in "Reno." EXPLCITETTEJ A Clearing House for Tabloid Exploitation Ideas €) Organizes Juvenile Booster Club "W^HEN Charles Amos, manager of the Imperial, Asheville, N. C, wanted to boost attendance of children, he decided to organize the Imperial Juvenile Booster Club. To make it worth while for the children of Asheville to join the club, Amos provided the new members with a membership card, at the bottom of which were ten small squares numbered from one to ten. The idea was to promote the juvenile members into attending the shows at the Imperial more often in the hope of winning a free admission after the ten squares had been punched, registering that the child had paid ten admissions to the Imperial. Amos let the member in free on the eleventh visit. — Publix * * * Local Clowns for "Swing High" J7RED MARCY of Seattle cashed in on the fact that two local fellows played clowns in Pathe's circus thriller, "Swing High" and engaged %.the duo, known as "Silvers and: Mickey" to ballyhoo this attraction in each of the towns under his supervission. The clowns, one tall and slim and the other short and stout, stopped traffic with their antics in an old Ford and they also did a fifteen minute act in the theaters. — Pathe MANY HAPPY RETURNS Best withes and congratulations art extended by THE FILM DAILY to the following members of the industry, who are celebrating their birthdays : Oct. 3 James R. Grainger Tom Wiley Leo McCarey Warner Oland C. S. Franklin Claud Allister