The Film Daily (1932)

MPTOA ASSAILS ALLIED FOR 'HOPELESS STAND' (Continued from Page 1) up to tlie Chicago exhibitor mass meeting. "The new incoming administration has repeatedly during the recent campaign expressed hostility to Federal commissions, bureaus and boards and proposes to eliminate as many of them as possible in the interests of economy and efficiency." Supporting the M. P. T. O. A. industry relief program, including a standard exhibition contract, the bulletin! calls upon "organized exhibitors to make a showing of their interest and support in the matter." In a criticism of Allied's part in the Chicago and New York mass meetings, the resume says that "strategy was employed to prevent a vote on acceptance or rejection of the optional contract." Later the bulletin continues: "What is the net result of all of this maneuvering and strategy by Allied? For six years their paid organizers have continuously sponsored and campaigned for the Brookhart-Myers bills. Surely reaffirming their prolonged support of such legislation was meaningless. It has been profitable for them. By falling back on their six-year plan for another six years, it may continue to be profitable. The only immediate result of any importance is the open withdrawal at the last minute of whatever support and help Allied may have been able to deliver in putting over the present plan for removal of abuses within the industry and the practical solution of some of the exhibitors major immediate problems." MPTOA Not Draining Regional Unit Finances Listing the basic principles to which it has adhered, the M. P. T. 0. A., in a bulletin sent yesterday to its directors and regional units, states it refused "to drain the finances out of our regional units to maintain an expensive, high salaried national organization, but rather urged you to spend your own hardto-raise money on activities in your own territory." Reference obviously is to Allied States Ass'n. Among the principles listed 'is that the M.P.T.O.A. has "insisted that an exhibitor organization be run for the sole benefit of theater owners, not to provide well paid jobs for so-called leaders and organizers." w \KNER FILMS ON TRAIN Warner has closed a deal whereby its pictures will be shown on the special Year 'Round Florida train put on by the Pennsylvania Railroad. i^li Jl MITCHELL LEICHTER has arrived in New York from the coast. GEORGE O'BRIEN. F• star is expected in New York next week for a vacation. CHARLES LAUGHTON JOHN VAN DRUTEN. GILBERT MILLER and BASIL DEAN for the other side last nicht on the Europa DAVID KAR5NER. "Silver Dollar" author, has returned to New York from Dtnvi I B. B. KAHANE arrives from the coast Sunday. HELEN TWELVETREES and her husband. FRANK WOODY, and their six weeks' old child sail for the coast Saturday on the Pennsylvania. LILLIE MESSINGER of th. RKO story department leaves for the coast today A W SMITH of Warners returns today from Boston and New Haven z&2£ DAILV Thursday, Dec. 8, 1932 A • • • TO TALK to director Mervyn Le Roy for any length of time is to realize that here is a chap with his feet firmly planted on the ground rather surprising, too for such a young lad just turned 32 most directors are just starting to build themselves around that age he is already a vet. ....... yet talks about his accomplishments as if he had done practically nothing the gent who gave us "Little Caesar" "Five Star Final" "I Am A Fugitive" just to mention a few • • • HE HAS no delusions about a director's importance he's just one side of a triangle to Mister Le Roy there is the author and the star, or the principal players ABOVE all is the story that means you start and finish with the Author and what a plug he registered for the much maligned writer! • • • THIS BUSINESS of mussing up the original author's work by having a half dozen assistant authors horning in is just plain assinine to Le Roy if the story is good enough to consider in the first place then the author, director and star can get together and if they are worthy of their professions they can turn out a PICTURE just plain horse sense but there seem to be so many asses around to inject the nonsense (the latter is our personal thought Mister Le Roy is too sweet a guy to slam anybody we're just putting in a yawp for the countless authors whose work has been doctored, doped, denatured, disorganized, demoralized and debilitated a pleasure we ONCE were an Author.) • • • WE SAID Mister Le Roy was a sweet guy that's the impression that lingers as he bids you a friendly farewell all through his conversation he jumps at a chance to give somebody a boost you've got to prod him to talk about himself he worships at the shrine of another director, Ernst Lubitsch he said some gorgeous things about Paul Muni as a brilliant actor he's forever grateful to director Al Green and Colleen Moore who saw that he got his first directorial job he doesn't know any studio team to beat Jack Warner and Darryl Zanuck for treating a director with intelligence, sympathy and understanding of his problems so we're glad to hand all this to Le Roy the last gent to think of handing anything to himself. • • • OUT OF the ruck of shorts that follow the beaten trail of the years comes the first of the series of "Melody Makers" a really dazzling short eight minutes of joyous entertainment it features Sammy Fain at the piano, singing his own compositions such as "Was That the Human Thing to Do?" "You Brought a New Kind of Love to Me" • • • THAT MAY not sound startlingly original to you but, oh boy it's the Treatment with Norman Brokenshire announcing Evelyn Hoey and the Eton Boys assisting classy sets... gorgeously beau tiful backgrounds natural scenic shots harmonizing 'ad mirably with the song themes it will have everybody singing in your the, hell, it had a bunch of hard d exhibs humming in a projection room and is that SomethhV Master Art Products can feel proud of this heir new scries supplementing their series of Organlogues which are nothing to sneeze at, either *V // </ v> \> » PARA. WINS COURT RULING; NEW ACTION UP MONDAYS (Continued from Page 1) restrain payments to bank creditors, is upheld in a ruling by Supreme Court Justice Wasselvogel. A similar decision was made by the court in a case brought by Max Nathan. Another bondholders' suit, in which Adele F. Goodman and Sumal Operating Corp., through their attorney, Saul E. Rogers, seek removal of Paramount officers and directors, is scheduled for hearing Monday in Supreme Court. V Conferring With Unions On Marco's Legit. Plan (Continued from Page 1) Shows, Inc., recently organized by Harry Arthur and backed by Fanchon & Marco and New York financial interests, will go through with the plan to present legitimate shows at $1 top in 100 or more houses now dark. First story of the plan was published in The Film Daily of Nov. 22. A. C. LINDQUIST TRANSFERRED Kansas City — A. C. Lindquist, district manager of the technical department of the RCA Photophone branch here, has been transferred to Detroit in the same capacity, succeeding the late R. L. Davis. 0. V. Swisher, staff supervisor in western U. S., replaces Lindquist. NEW HOUSE FOR CLAYTON, MO. Clayton, Mo. — James P. Wilson, owner of Shady Oak Filling Station, is expected to award contracts soon for a theater here. Plans have been prepared by John A. Lorenz and C. Alden Scott. SCHINE ADDS ONE Buffalo — The Schine circuit has added the Andrews theater, Salamanca, to its string. The Andrews was operated for many years by Walter J. Travis and later by. James Cranides. BROOKE JOHNS BACK St. Louis — Brooke Johns returns to the Ambassador tomorrow as master of ceremonies. $«,& MANY PAPPY PiTUPNSi Best wishes are extended by THE FILM DAILY to the following members of the Industry, who are celebrating their birthdays: Dec. 8 Bryan Foy Wallace Worsley Paul Cavanaugh Fred Herkowitz William S. Hart