Inside facts of stage and screen (March 29, 1930)

SATURDAY, MARCH 29, 1930 INSIDE FACTS OF STAGE AND SCREEN PAGE THREE W. B.-FOX BREAK IS DECLARED F ALL WASHED UP Equity Strike Bans Are Lifted AT WILD LIFE FILM Miss Bedford In Satirical Show at Vine r E- TO MATCH W. C. Despite the hit made by Law- rence Tibbett for M-G-M and the arrival here of Mary Lewis for Pathe, the first plan of some of the major studios to produce grand opera is now definitely out. “The Rogue Song” is as close as the screen will ever get to grand opera,” it was stated this week. “The picture fans demand pic- ture stories, and if any of the morbid, all-singing operas were put on the screen, they would be almost certain to flop. “Furthermore it is unlikely that many opera stars will ever become cinema stars. First and foremost, and in an increasing ratio, the film fans are demanding that act- ing ability must back up a glori- ous voice. People who can sing but not act, got away well in the early days of the talkies, but they’re not going so well now. Acting will predominate from now on, and a studio which attempted to film grand operas as presented on the stage would almost cer- tainly, after a certain initial re- sponse from curiosity. Pathe was among the studios which announced plans for filming grand operas in toto about a year ago. But, while not publicly an- nounced as off, it is known that the plans will not be gone through with. The only move in the direction at present are operatic shorts which Warner Brothers are mak- ing, to only medium response, and a feature length production of "I. Pagliacci,” which the Audio- Cinema, an independent company of New York is producing. The cast includes Fernando Bertinin, tenor; Alba Novella, so- prano, and Guiseppe Interrante, Nino Fucile, Mario Valle, bari- tones. The musical direction is under Carlo Peroni. Fortune Gallo, op- era impresario, is on the supervis- ing staff under the direction of Joe Coffman, in charge of produc- tion. PLAN MADGE’S NEXT While the Madge Kennedy ve- hicle, “Perfect Alibi,” is going big at the Biltmore for its limited en- gagement of one week, prepara- tion is being made by Charles Wagner to produce “Paris Bound” for her again, to be launched, ac- cording to plans, for an indefinite engagement in San Francisco. Whether it will be shown in Los Angeles depends upon its impres- sion upon San Francisco audi- ences. NEAR RUN RECORD VANCOUVER, March 27.— When “Elizabeth Sleeps Out” closed at the Empress, completing a run of seven weeks, it was just shy one week of tying the record for stock runs here. In February and March, 1926, “So This Is London” ran for eight weeks, the production being staged by the Allen Players, who were in their second season at the Empress at the time. DANCE TEAM BACK Renoff and Renova, formerly a headliner adagio dancing team over the Publix circuit, have arrived back in Log Angeles and immedi- ately were signed for a choice spot in Cecil B. DeMille’s current M-G-M picture, “Madam Satan.” The duo are the featured dancers in a “mechanical super-ballet” con- sisting of 120 dancers, staged in the ballroom of a Zeppelin, and which sequence will be one of the high points of the picture. PEABODY ON VACATION Eddie Peabody has decided to take a vaaction immediately fol- lowing his current sensational showing in San Diego. The. sixth wedding anniversary of the Pea- bodies will be celebrated during this period. “Ingagi,” the unique gorilla pic- ture produced by Congo Pictures, Inc., and premiered in San Diego recently, is repeating its Coast suc- cess in Chicago, where it grossed $16,000 for its opening week at the Garrick Theatre. On the open- ing Sunday the take was better than $3000, despite the fact that the day was wet and cold. In San Diego the picture drew 40,000 paid admissions, a sensational figure for a town the size of S. D. N. H. Spitzer, president of Congo Pictures, has just returned from San Francisco where he closed a deal granting him exclu- sive rights to a wild animal re- serve on a tropic island. An ex- pedition is to be outfitted at once to take cameras and sound equip- ment for more animal thrillers, in which Congo Pictures are to spe- cialize. Sir Hubert Winstead, who filmed “Ingagi” originally for his private use only, has returned to the go- rilla country with sound equip- ment and cameras in the hope of getting more of his sensational shots of the native tribes whose women are said to consort with the great apes. AYRES SHOW TO OPEN AT L. B. ON MARCH 30 The Dudley Ayres production of “Among the Married” is now set for opening at Long Beach, at the Capitol Theatre, Sunday, March 30, and scheduled to run five days there, moving to San Diego for an eight days engagement at the Balboa, returning here to open at the Curran, beginning May 11. Robert Frazer is to be starred, supported by Alma Tell, lead, Bar- bara Brown, second lead, Dudley Ayres, Howard Russell and Vir- ginia Thornton; Charles King di- recting. Heath Cobb is to handle publicity for the venture. The success of the Edward Ev- erett Horton production of the play here three months ago has encouraged this Ayres venture. SEEKING STAR Next Franklyn Productions’ of- fering at the Mayan is still in doubt, understood to be dependent upon whether a Dorothy Burgess type can be found to play the lead in “Decency.” But whether it is this show or some other one, it is stated opening will be within a month. Franklyn Warner is head of the company, with Sid Algiers, formerly of the Tiffany- Stahl studios, as general manager. EVELYN AT M-G-M Evelyn Hayes, former featured singer and dancer in RKO and Pan vaude, is currently doing a specialty in Cecil B. DeMille’s “Madam Satan” at M-G-M. This is her eighth talking picture, her current release being Warner Brothers' “Contrary Mary.” Evelyn is a daughter of George Hayes, now at the Fox Fifth Avenue, Seattle, and was formerly head of the Evelyn Hayes Dance School of that city. FREE DUCATS The Los Angeles Record and the publicity department of the Or- pheum made a hook-up whereby for two three months’ subscriptions the obtainer of them gets a pair of ducats to “Rio Rita” at the Orph. LLOYD TO START Harold Lloyd’s next picture is due to start at the Metropolitan studios in about two weeks. The lot is comparatively quiet now, with nothing in active shooting except a Colorart-Synchrotone short. NEXT AT CARTHAY Universal’s big war story, “All Quiet on the Western Front,” is set to follow Fox’s “Happy Days” at the Fox-Carthay Circle. Open- ing date has not been set, due to continued good business being done by the Fox picture. Barbara Bedford, whose picture appears on page one of this issue of Inside Facts, was among the Hollywood picture people who found an even better medium for their talents in the talkies than had been the silent pictures. With her first miking experience she at once sprang into big de- mand, and has played one talkie after another, and now she’s to play the feminine lead in “Phila- delphia,” a satirical drama of un- derworld politics which opens at the Vine Street Theatre, Holly- wood, March 30. Miss Bedford was featured in Mack Sennett’s first talking pic- ture, “Brothers,” and also played featured roles in “Smoke Bellew,” and five talkies for First National, the latest two being “Notorious Lady” and “The Desert Lady,” with Lewis Stone. lucilleuTBe PLANS NEW PLAY Lucille La Verne is negotiating to open in a downtown house with a new play by Ramon Romero, the temporary title of which is “The Red Mother.” Certain negotiations looking to- ward the production were to be concluded this week, or else called off, with negotiations in other quarters to follow in the latter event. The play concerns an Indian squaw woman of the Oklahoma oil fields, time the present, and, it is understood, Miss La Verne con- siders it a worthy successor to her perennial “Sun Up.” After the opening here she plans to take it to New York and to make it as im- portant a part of her repertoire as her former best-known vehicle. She has been looking for such a play for some time. JACK HILL REHEARSING “LITTLE SHOW” IN L. A. Jack Hill has finally closed with Brady and Wieman for rights to produQe “The Little Show” on the coast and has begun rehearsals in Hollywood. His arrangement gives him a cut in the picture rights also. Hill is assembling a strong cast of big names but is withholding announcement until contracts are signed. Definite arrangements for a theatre and opening date have not yet been closed. COLEMAN AT W. B. Bruce “Tubby” Coleman has been cast for a role in Warner Brothers’ “Come Easy,” which Michael Curtiz will direct with Lotti Loder. Coleman recently completed a part in Ramon Novar- ro’s latest for M-G-M. MALBON IN PROGRAM Janet Malbon presented a vocal program in Santa Barbara Tues- day night, featuring old-fashioned songs. Amelia Rifkind accom- panied her on the piano. Miss Malbon recently opened a vocal school in Hollywood, at which in- struction is aimed not only to de- velop voice culture, but also the art of expression for talking pic- ture work. GORDON AT VINE ST. Gale Gordon has gone into the part in “Rope’s End” at the Vine Street, formerly played by Hugh Huntley. A picture engagement forced Huntley to leave the cast, as provided in his contract. STEVENS CELEBRATING Leonard Stevens, pianist at the B.B.B. cellar cafe, is celebrating his twentieth wedding anniversary this week. The suspensions by Equity dur- ing the strike in Hollywood last summer were lifted by action of the Council in New York last week, word of the action arriving here last Monday. The order is to go into effect at once. The term of the suspension has been about eight months, and, it is stated, the present action was taken when the local office reported that its representatives, approaching many of its prominent members here who were not on the sus- pended list, found them to be in an overwhelming majority for lifting of the ban. Between 200 and 250 persons were suspended during the strike among the screen credit people, with many more of the Chorus Equity affected. Ban on the latter was lifted shortly after ending of the strike. The order lifting the ban on the remainder provides that if they do not place themselves in good stand- ing again as provided, they will be dropped from E. A. E. member- ship and their cases taken up indi- vidually. PREMIERE OF “HELL'S ANGELS” STILL IN AIR Whereas, a week ago word went out that Howard Hughes’ $3,000,- 000 special, “Hell’s Angels,” was definitely set to follow “The Rogue Song” into the Chinese, this week it was admitted that no definite booking has been obtained as yet. It is understood that the Chinese deal fell through when the house wanted to play the picture on a usual basis of percentage bookings, plus something for the magnitude of the Caddo picture, but that Hughes felt that, because of his excessive production costs, he should draw a larger percentage than that offered. No one in Hollywood expects Hughes to get anything like his in- vestment out of “Hell’s Angels,” the industry being skeptical of that much money coming out of any picture. But, reports are, Hughes doesn’t care for that, he having oil wells which bring him in money so fast he doesn’t know what to do with it, and other busi- ness investments which perform a like service. He can afford to in- dulge his hobbies, even if they cost $3,000,000 more or less. If the picture doesn’t go into the Chinese, it is expected the local, booking will be made for the opening of the new Pantages house in Hollywood, or else will play the Biltmore down town. HALL LEAVING PAR James Hall is leaving Para- mount, with which firm he has been exclusively connected since entering motion pictures four years ago. He starts immediately in the Warner Brothers production, “Pre- cious.” N. Y. COMEDIENNE HERE Elizabeth Murray, musical com- edy comedienne of New York, has arrived in Hollywood for picture work under management of The Blanchards. WYRLEY BIRCH BACK Wyrley Birch has returned from Australia, where he has been play- ing leads. TAKING BOOKINGS The Fanchon and Marco amuse- ment park and fair booking depart- ment, lately reorganized, is receiv- ing bookings for units, feature acts for the coming summer and fall season. IS CAPITOL MANAGER Forrest “Happy” Cornish has been appointed manager of the West Coast Capitol Theatre, Long Beach. Open exhibitor war this week flamed between the Fox West Coast and Warner Brothers on the West Coast. The former “one big family” at- titude suddenly faded out with re- marks over KFWB, the Warner Brothers’ broadcasting station, that positively Warner Brother pic- tures, would not be shown in Fox theatres hereafter. It sounded like a bit of conflict, and follow-up in- vestigation of the story indicated just that. First party to be got on the phone by Inside Facts was a Fox executive, and he handled the sub- ject without gloves. Said he: “Warner Brothers are attempting to obtain better rates for their pictures than we pay for M-G-M and Fox pictures. We won’t pay them that money, and so they’re trying to use their ra- dio station announcements as a coercive measure to force us to accept. But there’s little chance.” Then Warners was got on the phone. Deny Statement Statement was: “That’s a lot of applesauce. We are planning a great chain of the- atres, to match Fox house for house, and our product is going to be shown in our own houses wherever people want to see War- ner Brothers pictures. With this great expansion program under way, why should we let our prod- uct go to competitor houses? “As far as the radio announce- ment is concerned, Warner Bros, have pioneered in everything else, so why shouldn’t they pioneer in telling the truth over the air. We don’t need West Coast Theatres, and with the quality of our prod- uct it is not necessary for us to ‘coerce’ anybody.” See Big War Other sources declared a busi- ness war was brewing between these two organizations which might lead into one of the bitterest struggles since the olden time at- tempt to form a trust,a move which Fox beat. Warners is con- sidered to have all the resources of Western Electric (and the parent company, A. T. T.) back of it, while Fox is currently fighting a battle which he claims was started to force the one outstanding in- dependent out of the field. It has been strongly rumored that War- ners and Paramount are on the verge of a merger, and Fox openly stated in his affidavit in the current suit that an agreement had been reached between those two companies to divide the Fox West Coast houses should they be ac- quired through the outcome of any refinancing which Fox might un- dertake. Silver Here The Warner Theatre building and buying program already is well under way in the East, and a big figure in it, Maurice Silver recently arrived in Hollywood to duplicate the move here. He has theatre-acquiring for W. B. west of Denver, and, ac- cording to those who know him, things may be expected to happen with staccato rapidity. KJERULF AT L. B. Kjerulf’s Versatile Harpists will open a week’s engagement at the State Theatre, Long Beach, March u E’f?lit gi r i harpists comprise the act, which features music, sing- ing and dancing. The house is booked through the local RKO office. BRADY WITH HART Wilbur Mayo, leading man for two years with the Hart Players at Warners’ Egyptian Theatre, Pasadena, has left the organiza- tion, with Jack Brady taking his place. MILDRED AT PATHE Mildred Harris has the femi- nine lead of “Ranch House Blues,” Pathe two-reeler. Don Douglas is opposite.