The Film Daily (1931)

THE Friday, May 22, 1931 iMH DAILY TIMELY TOPICS A Digest of Current Opinions €) Pro and Con Of Standard Contract TT IS unlikely that a standard contract will be in use in this industry this eason, even though effort is being made by exhibitor organization heads to obtain government approval of such an instrument. The use of a different contract by each distributing company, of course, complicates matters for the exhibitor. It means that he will have a lot more of fine print to read and more clauses to comply with. However, a healthier competitive situation exists through the use of individual contracts by individual firms than is the case where a standard instrument is in use. So the situation may be only as bad as one makes believe it is. When all companies operate under one standard agreement there is no opportunity for any competing distributor to make better terms or agreements than another. Each contract is the same except for price, protection and percentage arrangements. So, perhaps, the exhibitor is the gainer after all, if a free competitive condition exists. There is as much danger in standardization of film selling as there is in producing. If an exhibitor is careful in his buying when he is negotiating for product and does not permit himself to be oversold there will be rare cause for contractual differences to come up. He can always read over a contract before he signs it and, if he doesn't understand it, he can have his lawyer interpret its legal phases to him. In our own experience as an exhibitor we found no cause for contractual tilts as long as we paid for our pictures, settled percentage arrangements properly and returned the film promptly. We made mistakes in buying, of course, but we tried to profit by not repeating them. — Ben Shlyen TEN YEARS AGO TO-DAY Turner and Dahnken still retain Northern California franchise in First National. * * * Cosmopolitan Productions denies seeking new distributing medium. * * * Eastman Kodak earns $92.53 on -.common shares in 1920. I HI: — '"' j JmffOT M\lTOr PHILMMLY • • • THE A.M.P.A's went esthetic at their luncheon yestiddy unadulterated harmony vocal and instrumental contributed by the guests, George Metaxa and Johnny Green Metaxa is the Roumanian gent who has scored a sensational success abroad in "Secrets of a Secretary" and as star of the London engagement of "Bittersweet" now signed with Paramount along with Mister Green, composer of that lilting, teasing "Body and Soul" that will soon have the entire nation humming and when you, put such a composer at a piano while Metaxa opens his throat in song well, you can have all your gabby speakers at A.M. P. A. luncheons so we just closed our eyes dreamily and listened and wondered if Paramount realized what they've got sewed up in the bag for if a team like this can't put Melody in a film musical no combination in these Youessay can these toys are technicians who put Heart and Soul in harmony and song also Showmanship but they'll probably use 'em in a Clara Bow bromide squandering their golden gifts for atmosphere as the star makes sexy sales of stew pans in the five and ten * * * * • • • WHICH REMINDS us that Merit always gets the runaround before Success bumps into it quite by accident and exclaims hypocritically "Why, my dear fellah, I've been looking all over for you!" such was the experience of Johnny Green who two years ago, an unknown composer, played one of his compositions to Gertrude Lawrence. ...... .and she took it with her to Lunnon he being quite willing to let her as every music publisher in New York had turned it down and Gertrude's representative, Dewey Bloom who was sold on the number got Miss Lawrence an engagement to sing it over the air for the first time on the B. B. C. chain and it caught on like a carefully planned accidental fire in a bankrupt clothing shop and spread across the pond back here where it started and all the wise music publishers who turned it down now get an awful headache when they hear "Body and Soul" for that was the number which had to take a trip to England to prove it's composer was A COM P< >SER and they say the British have no musical sense oops • • • HOWARD DIETZ was injected into the conversation by Johnny Green, when we asked him about his trials and tribulations and Johnny cast some interesting sidelights on H. D he claims Howard is the outstanding figure in the American theatrical world today with an uncanny sense of musical values and an unerring ability to appraise the reactions of the audience a Born Showman who combines native genius with a capacity for concentration on anything from a film publicity campaign to a game of ping pong here's a gent who has scored outstandingly in several important fields advertising manager, publicist, lyricist, librettist, playwright, pingpongite and they tell us he's prouder of his ping pong than anything • • • ALSO AT the A.M.l'.A. luncheon was Betty Garde who lias just finished playing opposite Charlie Ruggles in "Girl Habit" another case of Merit just starting to collect its iu^t reward the only blonde on the screen we ever met who could talk technically about stage and screen business it must be a pleasure to play opposite Betty ....... .she is the daughter of a newspaperman, she told us "Tut. tut, we don't hold that against you, Betty," scz we "Don't let that fact worry you it's what you ARE not what your ole man "was that counts for or against a gal nowaday,-." at which Betty sobbed gratefully EXPLOITETTES A Clearing House for Tabloid Exploitation Ideas € Burglar Placards For "Secret Six" A/TAXAGER WILL WIXCH of the Fair theater, Amarillo, Tex., derived excellent advance publicity for "The Secret Six" by posting burglar protection cards on store doors and windows. The placards contained copy, "Burglars Beware! This Store Is Protected by The Secret Six — Six Fearless Men, Sworn to Blot Out Gangsters. Racketeers and Crooks." — Fair, Amarillo, Tex. * * * Handkerchiefs for Sob Angle, "East Lynne" VfANAGER GEORGE B. IR 11 WIX of the Publix-Fargo. Fargo, X. Dak., promoted 750 handkerchiefs to help advertise "East Lynne." The promoting of that handkerchiefs was in keeping with the sob angle of the picture; the handkerchiefs being secured from a leading department store. The kerchiefs were placed in glassine envelopes with appropriate copy on front of envelope. Fargo, Fargo, X'. D. * * * Newspaper Subscriptions On "Connecticut Yankee" LJEXRV SEEL, manager of the Majestic. Jackson. Miss.. effected a tie-up with the local newspaper that resulted in -1? inches of free space. The nature of the tie-up was on the newspaper subscription idea. To the first 151) persons who bring one new subscriber for one month to the Clarion-Ledger was entitled to two guest tickets to sec the Will Rogers' picture. — Majestic, Jackson, Miss, « « « » » » Many Happy Returns Best wishes and congratulations are extended by THE FILM DAILY to the following mem bera of the industry, who are celebrai ing their birthdays: May 22 William Bakewell Gloria Holt Al Nathan