Harrison's Reports (1949)

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: 1270 AVENUE OF THE AMERICAS Published Weekly by United States $15.00 (Formerly Sixth Avenue) Harrison's Reports, Inc., U. S. Insular Possessions. 16.50 „ v , M v Publisher Canada 16.50 Wew Iork zu' n' x P. S. HARRISON, Editor Mexico, Cuba, Spain 16.50 A Motion Picture Reviewing Service Great Britain 17.50 Devoted Chiefly to the Interests of the Exhibitors Established July 1, 1919 Australia, New Zealand, India. Europe Asia .... 17.50 Ug Editorial policy: No Problem Too Big for Its Editorial Circle 7-4622 35c a Copy Columns, if It is to Benefit the Exhibitor. A REVIEWING SERVICE FREE FROM THE INFLUENCE OF FILM ADVERTISING Vol. XXXI SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 1949 No. 45 A REPORT ON THE ALLIED CONVENTION Last week, at the invitation of Bennie Berger, president of North Central Allied, I attended the National Allied Annual Convention, in Minneapolis, as his guest. Since founding Harrison's Reports, I have attended a large number of independent exhibitor conventions, but never have I seen one so numerously attended and so inspiring. Twenty-eight years previously, I attended the first national convention of the now defunct Motion Picture Theatre Owners of America after its formation, when it was still an independent organization, in the very same city — Minneapolis. Though the 1921 MPTOA convention was attended well, it was more or less a political convention, whereas the Allied convention in the same city last week was a thoroughly business convention, with the delegates and members bent upon making decisions that will benefit the independent exhibitor. There was a difference between the 1921 convention and the present one also in the make-up of the exhibitors in attendance. Last week, there was an intelligent look on the face of every exhibitor, whereas in the 1921 meeting the intelligence was confined chiefly to the leaders, whose efforts consisted mainly of reelecting such persons as would serve the political system then in existence. Much business was transacted by Allied's board of directors prior to the opening of the convention on Monday, October 24. The real business began on Monday. Bennie Berger made the keynote address, and then turned the meeting over to William L. Ainsworth, president of National Allied. Mr. Ainsworth reminded the delegates and members that this was a Victory Convention, citing the fact that the courts had upheld the rights of exhibitors, for which Allied has fought relentlessly from the day it was formed : The right to buy pictures without being compelled to buy unwanted pictures, and the right to charge an admission price that the exhibitor feels his patrons will accept. He cited also theatre divorcement and the court victory over ASCAP as two of the year's outstanding accomplishments. Nathan Yamins, national director of the New England unit, spoke on the efforts of some of the distributors to circumvent the law, and stated that Columbia was employing subterfuges to compel the exhibitors to increase their admission prices on "J0'son Sings Again." After several other speakers voiced opinions to the effect that the terms demanded by Columbia were an attempt to get around the decree, Abram F. Myers, Allied's general counsel and chairman of the board, stated that, before the organization can lodge a complaint with the Department of Justice, it had to have facts upon which to base its action. He suggested that each exhibitor who had been told, or to whom it had been suggested, that he must promise to increase his admission prices before his application for the picture may be considered, must submit an affidavit, sworn to before a notary public. In last week's issue of Harrison's Reports, there was printed the telegram that Allied sent to Abe Montague, Columbia's general sales manager. Since no reply had been received from Montague up to the Tuesday afternoon session, the matter was discussed further. What action Allied took will be discussed later in this report. Earlier in the Monday session, Carey Wilson, MGM producer and famous writer, spoke on the trials and tribulations a producer undergoes in making a picture. His talk was in so humorous a vein, even though he was recounting sober facts, that he gripped the attention of his audience and received prolonged applause at the close of his remarks. After the Monday session, it came to light that the Allied Board had approved the organization's participation in the All-Industry Public Relations Program for one year, with reservations. On Saturday, participation had been voted down, but the question had been reopened on Sunday and, after much heated discussion, had been approved. It was reported that Messrs. Myers, Ainsworth, Edward Lachman, Charles Niles, Trueman Rembusch, Martin Smith and O. F. Sullivan were in favor of the plan, whereas Sidney Samuelson was the leader of the opposition. This paper believes that disapproval of the plan would have brought discredit upon Allied, for many industry people would have thought that Allied is, not a constructive, but a destructive, organization. There can be no harm in cooperating with other factions on a plan designed to benefit the motion picture industry as a whole, particularly when the program is headed by a man in whom producers, distributors and exhibitors alike have faith — Ned Depinet, president of RKO. No one can criticize Allied for having approved participation for only one year. Such a period should give the Allied leaders sufficient time to test the sincerity of the other groups participating in the program, and once they prove their sincerity the Allied Board will undoubtedly approve the plan for another year, or even longer. At the Tuesday afternoon session, Governor Luther W. Youngdahl, of Minnesota, made a fine address and welcomed the delegates. After that, general sales managers Andy Smith, Jr., of 20th Century-Fox, and Al Schwalberg, of Paramount, addressed the delegates, with each presenting the policies of their companies. Following their talks, each was bombarded with questions from the floor by exhibitors on what they felt were grievances, but both answered their questioners satisfactorily. It was after their talks that the Columbia matter was discussed again. Up to that moment, Abe Montague's answer to Allied's telegram had not been received, and the convention passed a resolution condemning the Columbia practice of trying to compel the exhibitors to increase admission prices for "Jolson Sings Again." Discussed also at that session was the matter of reduction of clearances. Jack Kirsch. head of Illinois Allied, took the floor and warned the exhibitors to look out lest they suffer from it. He said that, since the Jackson Park decision, twenty new zones were created in Chicago, resulting in the pictures being milked dry by the time they got to the subsequent-run exhibitors. Sidney Samuelson, too, took the floor and cited the fact that a large number of new zones had been created in the Philadelphia territory, and that the exhibitors there do not like the new system. Leo Brecher, a veteran New York exhibitor, speaking as an individual and not as president of the Metropolitan Motion Picture Theatre Owners Association of New York, paid a fine tribute to the outstanding work Mr. Myers has done for the independent exhibitors. Some exhibitors suggested that the copyright laws be used to fight distributor violations, but Mr. Myers advised that a procedure of this kind would be prolonged and would not benefit the exhibitor when he needed relief. He advised proceeding through the Department of Justice, but with facts. At the Wednesday afternoon session, Maury Goldstein, Monogram's general sales manager, asked the support of the exhibitors on the ground that, without the independent producer-distributor, the lot of the independent exhibitor would be a hard one. Jack Kirsch took the floor and, after urging the exhibitors to encourage companies like Monogram, promised his support in the Illinois territory. (Continued on bac\ page)