Jurisdictional disputes in the motion-picture Industry : hearings before a special subcommittee of the Committee on Education and Labor, House of Representatives, Eightieth Congress, first-session, pursuant to H. Res. 111 (1948)

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MOTION-PICTURE JURISDICTIONAL DISPUTES 665 ]Mr. Work. I am sure they liad meetings. In no way to my knowledge did the meetings have anything to do with onr meetings, I merely kept the president advised as to the progress, because we were in trouble of — we were afraid of what was happening. Further, I doubt if there are many presidents in New York — I say this respectfully— that are acquainted with the problems of production. In fact, there are very few executives in Hollywood that really understand the problems of production. It is a highly complicated business, in which operation is projected over a long period, and you make your commitments and you are confronted with the starting dates of the commitment and to have a strike on your hands or a shut-down, it is a very serious situation. Mr. McCaxn. I am trying to get a more complete picture with respect to the organic set-up of these companies at this critical time in their career. You will agree with me it was a critical time? Mr. Work. Yes. Mr. McCann. I assume from what you have said your sessions ran about 8 hours a day during the time. ]Mr. W^ORK. For a long period. Mr. McCann. From the 11th of September to the 23d? Mr. Work. Prior to that. Mr. McCaxx. Prior to that? ]Mr. Work. You can go back 6 months. Mr. McCaxn. During that period of time we have had testimony by yir. Mannix that he communicated with his president. And I am not sure, I think by others, they communicated with their presidents. The point I want to make is this : I realize that they were not expert on production, as you men are experts on production out here. But they are the final authorities in the moving-picture industry, are they not? Mr. Work. As the heads of their companies. ]Mr. McCaxx. Exactly. Now. did the heads of those companies meet concurrently with you in New York, to get reports from your group day by day, as you were carrying on these negotiations, to determine a production policy? Mr. AVork. No. Mr. McCaxn. They did hold some meetings, though, that you know of. Mr. Work. In the regular conduct — they always do that. Mr. McCaxx. They clid hold some meetings on this issue, you were satisfied of that? Mr. Work. They must have done that. Mr. McCaxx. Didn't your own president tell you what they discussed. Mr. Work. No; because — he would tell me the general discussion. I would inform our president what I thought was good for Universal. I wasn't interested in Mr. McCaxx. I understand that. Let's forget that. Yon were informed by your president that he had discussed these issues with the other presidents in New York on this policy? Mr. Work. Very rarely, because it was too complex to discuss over the telephone.