Harrison's Reports (1933)

Entered as second-class matter January 4, 1921, at the post office at New York, New York, under the act of March 3, 1879. Harrison’S Reports Yearly Subscription Rates: United States $15.00 U. S. Insular Possessions. 16.50 Canada 16.50 Mexico, Cuba, Spain 16.50 Great Britain 16.00 Australia, New Zealand, India 17.50 35c a Copy 1440 BROADWAY New York, N. Y. A Motion Picture Reviewing Service Devoted Chiefly to the Interests of the Exhibitors Its Editorial Policy: No Problem Too Big for Its Editorial Columns, if It is to Benefit the Exhibitor. Published Weekly by P. S. HARRISON Editor and Publisher Established July 1, 1919 PEnnsylvania 6-6379 Cable Address : Harreports (Bentley Code) A REVIEWING SERVICE FREE FROM THE INFLUENCE OF FILM ADVERTISING Vol. XV ~ SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 1933 No. 47 BLOOD MONEY “DAY OF RECKONING,” with Richard Dix: The hero steals money from the place he worked for and is arrested and sent to jail. His wife goes to a friend to furnish bail so that he might come out of jail. The friend, who is infatuated with her, makes her believe that he will help her. Instead, he orders his lawyers to frame him. Thus the hero is convicted. Later on the heroine is murdered in the friend’s apartment by his ex-mistress. He is arrested and taken to the same jail. And there is staged one of the most blood-curdling murder fights ever seen in pictures : the hero tries to murder the ex-friend by throwing him from the roof of the jail to the stone pavement below. The hero slips and grasps the eaves. The ex-friend kicks the hero’s knuckles with the heeel of his shoe. One of the hero’s friend-cellmates grabs a crutch and strikes the hero’s exfriend on the head. The ex-friend loses his grip and falls ; he is killed. Everything shown in this picture appeals to the morbid emotions. It really is not entertainment ; it is a drama in which the basest of human emotions are in conflict. “BLOOD MONEY” — with George Bancroft: The hero is a bail bondsman. He exercises powerful influence over the underworld as well as over police and judicial authorities. Because bail bonding is a discredited profession, and a person engaged in such a business cannot awaken any sympathy, the producers tried to create some sympathy for Mr. Bancroft. But the means adopted were low: a mother takes her sixteen-year-old boy to Bancroft and informs him that her boy was threatened with arrest for criminal assault. When Bancroft asks the mother how old is the girl, she answers him : “She is not a girl ; she is a woman.” W’hen he finds out that the boy is sixteen, he tells them both to go home and quit worrying. Later in the picture there is introduced the heroine, daughter of wealthy parents. She is a kleptomaniac and possesses a perverted mind — she wants to meet the bank robber whom Bancroft was trying to save from going to the penitentiary for life. She then drops Bancroft and follows the thief. It is hardly necessary for you to be told that the picture appeals to the basest human emotions. And the pitiful part about it is the fact that George Bancroft has always been popular among young folk, particularly boys ; they idolize him. Imagine then the harm that a picture of this type will do to the young manhood and womanhood. “LOV’^E. HONOR .AND OH BABY” ; The hero frames his fiancee’s employer in an effort to blackmail him ; and he gets away with it. “I LOVED A WOMAN,” with Edward G. Robinson : The hero sells to the government rotten canned beef, which kills many soldiers fighting in Cuba in the Spanish-.American M’ar. “\\ HITE WOMAN” : Laughton’s attitude toward the men that worked for him is iphuman. Severed heads of natives are brought into the picture for “horror” effect, but what they really succeed in doing is to turn the stomachs of sensitive persons. Laughton’s cruelty is such as to treat human life as if it were just so much rubbish; he does not hesitate to feed some unfortunate human to the crocodiles. It is not an entertainment. These are only a few of the pictures in which an appeal is directed to everything there is base and low and ignoble in human nature. How long will the producers of motion pictures disregard the rights of the public? For in producing pictures of this type they are not only disregarding such rights but they trample upon them. The public has no way of compelling the producers to discontinue the production of this sort of pictures except by staying away from the theatres. -And this method is impracticable, for motion picture entertainment is necessary in their lives, and they must return to the theatre sometime, even though many of them do so reluctantly. Money made out of pictures of this type is blood money, for it is obtained by wrecking the happiness of people. In preaching against pictures of this type, Harrison’s Reports is prompted not by religious reasons, nor even by moral reasons ; it is motivated only by reasons of common sense. This sort of pictures do not make any money for the exhibitor, and naturally not for the producer. “Blood Money” played at the Rivoli, in this City, only one week, despite the popularity of Mr. Bancroft. “Day of Reckoning” “died” at the Capitol, despite the expensive presentations that are given with the pictures. “The Story of Temple Drake” died a frightful death, because it proved insulting to people. I could go on giving example after example to convince every reader of this article with the exception of many of those who produce moving pictures that material of this type put into pictures proves unprofitable. But I wonder if it will do any good as long as production is in the hands of people without any sense of moral obligation towards those they are trying to entertain. AGAIN ABOUT UNIVERSAL’S “THE INVISIBLE MAN” The Seventeenth Clause of the Five-Five-Five contract which the NR.A Code makes the official contract reads as follows : “If any of the said motion pictures described in the Schedule, excepting those, if any, which may be roadshown by the Distributor, shall not be generally released in the United States during the period begining and ending , each such motion picture shall be excluded from this license, upon ivritten notice to such effect given to the Exhibitor by the Distributor prior to fifteen (15) days before the end of said period, unless the Exhibitor shall give written notice to the Distributor not later than thirty (30) days after the end of said period that the Exhibitor elects to e.\hibit hereunder all such motion pictures if generally released during the year immediately following the end of said period. If such notice of election is given as aforesaid the Distributor shall deliver and the Exhibitor shall exhibit each of such motion pictures upon the terms and conditions of this license excepting that any thereof which are not so generally released within the said following year shall also be excepted and excluded from this license. In such case the Distributor may exhibit and license for exhibition each such motion picture so excluded when and where desired by the Distributor and all claims of the Exhibitor in respect thereof are hereby expressly waived and the Distributor released and discharged therefrom by the Exhibitor.” Notice the wording, “. . . upon written notice to such effect given to the Exhibitor by the Distributor prior to fifteen (15) days before the end of said period,” which has been italicized by me for greater emphasis : by this provision the Distributor is compelled to notify you at least fifteen days before the date specified in the contract, which date will be the last month of the life of the contract, that a certain number of pictures have not been released, and that these will be excepted and excluded from the license, unless you notify the distributor not later than thirty days after such specified date that you prefer to show all the pictures that were not released during the life of the contract. The contract form that has been in effect since compulsory arbitration was declared by the courts illegal did not contain such a provision. In those forms the exhibitor could {Continued on last page)