Harrison's Reports (1950)

144 HARRISON'S REPORTS President. Primary purpose of the meeting, accord' ing to Ned E. Depinet, COMPO president and exofficio chairman of the committee, was to lay the groundwork for active operation of the committee and to develop the opening phases of COMPO's pre gram of cooperation with the Government in the present crisis. Members of the COMPO Committee on Cooperation include Ellis A. Arnall, president of SIMPP; Harry Brandt, president of ITOA; Leo Brecher, president of MMPTA; Roy Brewer, head of the AFL Film Council in Hollywood, and former chairman of the MPIC; Abel Green, of the Trade Press Publishers group; Rotus Harvey, chairman of PCCITO; Robert J. O'Donnell, ringmaster of Variety International; Samuel Pinanski, president of TO A; Ronald Reagan, president of the Screen Actors Guild; and Trueman T. Rembusch, president of National Allied. Arthur L. Mayer, COMPO's executive vice-president, and Francis S. Harmon, secretary of the Cooperation Committee, will also attend the Washington parleys. Pointing out that this will mark the first meeting of COMPO's Committee on Cooperation with the Government, Mr. Mayer said: "We do not yet know the nature or extent of activities which the Government will call upon us to perform for the war effort. But this much is certain. Whatever the requests, the motion picture industry was never more thoroughly mobilized— in organization and in spirit — to fulfill them." To carry out the vast program laid out for it, COMPO this week set in motion the machinery to collect the funds it will need. Beginning with September billings, the distributors will include in their film rental bills to the exhibitor a separate item of "voluntary contribution to COMPO," equal to onetenth of one per cent of his film rental. For example, if an exhibitor receives a film bill in the amount of $100, he will be asked for a voluntary contribution of ten cents, which sum, when collected, will be matched by the distributor and forwarded to COMPO. COMPO, to operate effectively, must have funds, and the plan under which the exhibitors are being asked to contribute financial support is most equitable and should not be a burden on him, whether he be a big or small operator. It is, in fact, an insignificant price to pay for the benefits he stands to gain from the important work that will be handled by this allindustry organization. MYERS' PROPOSAL FOR PRICE HIKE GETS MIXED REACTION As anticipated in these columns, the suggestion by Abram F. Myers, National Allied's general counsel, that exhibitors resort to moderate increases in admission prices wherever necessary has been received with mixed reaction by theatre owners. Generally, those who oppose the suggestion claim that an admission price rise at this time will serve only to antagonize the public, and that it will be inconsistent to raise prices so soon after the highly publicized tax campaign, in which movie-goers were asked to help repeal the 20% tax to bring about lower admission prices. On the other Land, a number of exhibitors throughout the country, particularly in Ohio, have followed through on Mr. Myers' suggestion with in September^9, 1950 creases of from five to ten cents in their admission prices, and none have experienced a decline in attendance as a result of the raise. According to a report in Motion Picture Daily, Mr. Myers said that he has gotten "mostly favorable" reaction to his suggestion but admitted that the ones who agreed with him were more likely to write than those who did not. He feels, however, that he has accomplished his major purpose, which was to start the exhibitors thinking about the matter. NATIONAL FILM CLINIC AT ALLIED CONVENTION A National Film Clinic will be held in conjunction with the national convention of Allied States Association of Motion Picture Exhibitors, to be held October 2, 3 and 4 at the William Penn Hotel in Pittsburgh. Pointing out that film buying is the most important subject to every exhibitor, William Finkel, convention chairman, said that it is planned to hold individual meetings at the convention so that the problems peculiar to different types of theatres can be fully discussed with the exhibitors attending the meeting for an exchange of ideas. Separate meetings are planned for the first-run big-city houses, first-run small-town theatres, subsequent-runs and drive-in theatres. At each of these meetings a "film buyers school" will be conducted by experienced leaders on an open forum basis. Stating that "selective buying" is the greatest victory in the recent Supreme Court decision, Finkel said that methods of securing the benefits of selective buying and all other phases of the decision will be discussed at length during the film clinic. He stated also that a method of dealing with misallocated pictures has been developed and will be explained in detail. The groundwork for this National Film Clinic was laid by Allied leaders last July at their Chicago meeting, which was called as a result of the many complaints from small -town exhibitors that percentage and flat film rentals are much too high. "Exhibitors know that their number one problem is film buying," concluded Finkel. "We guarantee that any exhibitor attending this National Film Clinic will receive enough information to compensate him many times for the cost of coming to Pittsburgh. Allied extends a nationwide invitation to all independent exhibitors to attend the 1950 Convention and take part in this initial National Film Clinic." Among the sales managers who have definitely confirmed their attendance at the convention are William F. Rodgers, of MGM, and Andrew W. Smith, Jr., of 20th Century-Fox. Gene Autry, whose entry into the television field is meeting with considerable opposition from some exhibitors who, in retaliation, are refusing to book his pictures released through Columbia, has been invited to explain his views and has promised to attend if his working schedule permits. That the 1950 Allied Convention is creating considerable excitement in exhibition circles is evidenced by the fact that advance reservations are running more than thirty per cent ahead of last year's recordbreaking convention in Minneapolis. Those who plan to attend are urged by Mr. Finkel to send reservations in by September 13 to assure good accommodations.