FilmIndia (Feb-Dec 1949)

AT HOME AND ABROAD ROWDY JEWS Berlin, February 21. [(The British picture, " Oliver p ist ", provoked hundreds of Je(v ;h demonstrators to stone armed Krman Police outside the Jurbel iQiema in the British sector of Ber11 on the 21st February. Their temper was aroused, it ms, because the film contained :i-Semitic propaganda. When the lowing of the film was temporarily impended the demonstrators sang tt Israeli national anthem. ROFITABLE PICKPOCKETTING Calcutta, February 16. With deficit budgets and the ever3 creasing spiral of taxation, picregoers in Calcutta will soon have bear the burden of an enhanced itertainment Tax. At the forthcoming session of the est Bengal Legislative Assembly, amending bill seeking the enticement of the existing Amuse;nt Tax on cinema tickets is to be ;roduced. At this rate, the Government will t more profits out of the film instry than the film people themves. NEW FISH Hollywood, February 16. Hollywood star, Esther Williams e mermaid of Indian film fans, is pecting her first baby some time August. PRAYING FOR ACTION Madras, February 10. Mr. T. S. Ramanujam and Mr. K. Natesa Naicker, met Mr. K. Menon, Secretary, Development epartment, on behalf of the South dian Cinema Employees' Associate on Wednesday, the 9th February. They urged him to take early steps see that the award given by the ldustrial Tribunal in respect of serice conditions of cinema employees the city was implemented. It seems to be a case of more .vards and no rewards actually. MICE DERBY. Hollywood, February 24. Hollywood, always notorious for s outlandish approach to life, has egun to get itself interested in white lice racing. This white mice racing is the ;test craze at Hollywood parties. They are run on the same lines as the horses and some of them are named after famous male and female stars. Thousands of dollars change hands on the result of the little events. We saw a mice-Derby when Minister Morarji Desai attended the producers' meeting in November last. And the mice-Derby was also won by Chandulal Shah. GOOD BUSINESS ! Madras, February 16. Reviewing the administration of the Madras Entertainments Tax Act 1939, for the year 1947-1948, the Government of Madras were satisfied with the collection of the tax and its administration. There was no legal or administrative difficulty nor was the assistance of the Police Department sought for. Some of the salient features are as follows: — The total number of entertainments held during the year under review was 3,93,759. 675 entertainments were exempted under Section 8 I 1 I and 84 under Section 8 (2) of the Madras Entertainments Tax Act. Revenue realised during the year was Rs. 72,72,401 in cash and cheques, Rs. 1,42,739 in the form of stamps. The balance at the end of the year was Rs. 53,809 of which Rs. 46,885 was subsequently collected. 1061 offences were compounded. Prosecutions were launched in 94 cases. Other cases were pending at the end of the year. The Commercial Tax officers received 45 appeals and one revision petition during the year and two appeals were pending at the beginning of the year. The increase in revenue as compared to the previous year is attributed to the increase in the rates of tax from January 1948, stray entertainments and exhibition of popular films. NATURAL DEATH ! New York, February 15. Miss Patricia Ryan, a well-known radio actress who had played the lead in a radio play *' Valentine for Sofia " was found dead in her apartment on the night of the 14th February. According to the Police, the death seems to have been due to natural causes. FAST WORK ! Hollywood. February 15. Hollywood star, Jeanne Crain is expecting another visit from the stork. She is already the mother of a twenty-two month old son, Paul Brinkman Junior, though Jeanne herself is hardly 21. Is she by any At Kamini Kaushal's birthday party the star herself wants her pet rabbit to be adopted by Editor Baburao Patel — the rabbit which neither he nor she produced. The editor is too old now to adopt a rabbit as a mascot — and a star's rabbit at that. 59