Inside facts of stage and screen (September 27, 1930)

NSIDE ACTS ESTABLISHED 1924 EDITED BY JACK JOSEPHS VoL XII Sahirriav ^onfomW 97 1 Qin Published Every Saturdas at 800-801 Warner Bros. Down- »i ,o YOU ./VH office. Los Angeles, Calif., under Act of March 3, 1879. OatUrUay, SeptemOCr Z/, town Building, <101 West Seventh St., Los Angeles, Calif. No. 13 OIL GETS MOVIE CASH HUGHES BUY OF SCHENCK STOCK NOW NEW RUMOR A deal, said to involve $18,- 000,000, is presumed to have been consumated, by which Howard Hughes is reported to have acquired the interest of Joseph Schenck in the Arts Cinema Finance corpora,tionr. As Schenck is in the east, definite information of the deal could not be obtained. How- ever its possibility was not de- nied at ^e studio. Report has it that Hughes has also obtained the Schenck interest in the United Artists corporation, but this also lacks verification, as does the other report that Hughes is to finance the next Pickford and Fairbanks productions. Arts Cinema Finance corpora- tion was organized by members of the United Artists, consisting of Charles Chaplin, Douglas Fair- banks, Mary Pickford, Joseph Schenck and D. W. Griffith, to fi- nance pictures other than their own. It being realized that this founders’ group could not make enough pictures to supply the de- mand of the distributing require- ments of their exchanges they ar- ranged to provide finances for other producers, who would release their product by the U.A. distribution facilities. Most of the outside pictures re- leased by this corporation have been so financed, members of U.A. however, financing their own pro- duct with their own money. Not needing capital, it is not rea- sonable to presume that Hughes is to finance the forthcoming product of Mary and Doug, although it is possible he has bought some of their stock in the Cinema Finance branch of U.A. With acquirement of the Schenck interest, if so, it is possible that Hughes will personally, or by proxy, take the executive helm of that in- stitution. Sol Lesser, present man- agerial head is likely to be elevated to the position left vacant if Schenck retires. Hughes has been releasing his pictures through U.A. BEACH OIL PROSPECTS NEW GAME FOR STARS BOYCOTT THEATRES SACRAMENTO, Sept. 25.—Five theatres here and one each in North Sacramento and Roseville were boycotted by union labor for failure to settle contract renewals between theatres and projectionists. Twenty-nine operators were dis- charged when compromise attempts failed. MURIEL STRYKER Featured in Fanchon dc Marco's ^^New Yorker Idea" Hollywood Pantages ^ « This Week HILLBILLIES FOR PAN Beverly Hillbillies, which re- cently scored a hit during their personal appearance at the Chinese theatre in Hollywood, have been booked to open at the Fox Pan- tages on Oct. 2, for one week. COMPLETING THEATRE The ten-story Warner Building in Milwaukee, now under construc- tion, will be ready for occupancy some time in January. This struc- ture will contain a Warner Broth- ers theatre. GOULDING CLICKS Alf Goulding, who was assigned to the making of shorts for Warner Brothers at their New York studio, is reported to .have completed several during his first four weeks in the big town and has clicked decidedly. He has been signed to a long term contract by H. W. and will make his residence for the next two years in N. Y. His wife leaves to join him this week. MACKAILL ON LINE Dorothy Mackaill has been signed to a new Warner Brothers con- tract in which it is provided that the actress will henceforth be starred. Miss Mackaill, now in Europe, was met by a representa- tive of the firm and induced to sign a new arrangement before her re- turn to this country. The tremend- ous popularity which her late pic- tures has built for her has made her a card for which other pro- ducers were angling. Venice oil ventures are show- ing the motion picture “big shots” another way to spend their dough. Within the last fortnight enough heavy money makers in Hollywood to stage a Griffith mob scene, laid their sugar on the marble slabs of beach oil prospectors. Its a new vogue, Hollywood’s latest spending craze. Oil gags are now the thing for “black outs” at movie star house parties. Dough spent with the beach oil concerns doesn’t go to Caliente any more, and a squawk from the South is expected soon. When Sunday comes, the stars motor out to Venice to look at their oil buys, and Caliente misses ’em. Anyway, there’s a chance of win- ning with oil. Some say odds are better at Venice than at Caliente. Or at Calneva. Just how much has been put into beach grease is a question the oil concerns couldn’t figure, not even if they got together. The petrol- eum prospect boys wouldn’t tell each other too much. But its safe to estimate that plenty has gone into the prospect holes. Now that Venice has caught the loose change in Hollywood, its understood some Texas and Okla- homa firms are about to open opera- tions in a big way on the boulevard. SACKETT AT FRESNO George Sackett, formerly Or- pheum manager here, and more re- cently associated with the booking offices of Lyons and Lyons, has been appointed manager of the Warner Brothers Fresno theatre, taking the place of James Quinn, recently resigned. He entered upon his duties in the valley city last week. SILVERNAIL DIES Clark Silvernail, stormy petrel of the Equity strike, died last Monday at his home in Hollywood. Silvernail has been ailing for about a year. His most recent work was the story of “Hell’s Harbor” and “Eyes of the World,” which he made for Inspiration. He was taken ill during the filming of the former in Florida and an opera- tion was performed. His ill- ness was said to be carcinoma.