Money behind the screen : a report prepared on behalf of the Film Council (1937)

46 MONEY BEHIND THE SCREEN The ordinary shares alone carry voting rights. Shortly before the details of the scheme were made known it was announced that a new board would be appointed, largely representing the financial interests involved, though C. F. Bemhard would remain Managing Director. Until the new board is announced and particulars of shareholdings registered, it is impossible to state who these interests are. The directors of the old Union Cinema Co., Ltd., were D. Bemhard (Chairman), C. F. Bemhard (Managing), also Chairman of Montague Lyon, Ltd., and Managing Director of Pointer & Co., Ltd., and of 29 cinema . companies), L. J. Clements, with P. J. Davis as alternative for Clements. Apart from the Bemhards, the largest shareholders were bankers' nominee companies (particularly Branch Nominees), although the Equity & Law Life Assurance Society and the Eastern & S. African Telegraph Co. also held 30,000 and 14,500 preference shares respectively. ODEON THEATRES, LTD.— Is a private company registered in October, 1933' with £100 capital. The latter was increased to £200,000 in March, 1935, being divided into 150,000 preference shares of £1 and 100,000 ordinary shares of 10/-. All the ordinary and 50,000 of the preference shares were taken up by June, 1936. Directors : Oscar Deutsch, F. S. Bates and W. G. Elcock (Chartered Accountant). Deutsch holds 99,800 of the issued ordinary and all the issued preference shares. Bates and Elcock holding 100 ordinary shares each. Each of the theatres controlled by the circuit is registered as a separate company, raising capital and taking up loans on its own account. Odeon Trust. Ltd., is also a private company ; its capital is £3,000, and the directors are the same as those of Odeon Theatres, Ltd., ^vith the addition of A. Fletcher (Sohcitor) and C. E. Worthington, Leicester (Provision Merchant). The largest shareholders are C. E. Worthington, I. Polsky (Director, Odeon, S. Harrow, Ltd.) and 0. Deutsch. Neither Odeon Theatres nor Odeon Trust show any indication of a United Artist holding in their Somerset House records, but there can be no doubt of the fact of such a holding in one or other of the Deutsch companies, since it was widely reported as a statement of 0. Deutsch himself in the financial and film press (the Investors' Chronicle of 24.10.30 — leading article on Film Finance — even speaks of a 50 per cent, holding). In November, 1936, the Odeon group of companies was increased by Cinema Ground Rents & Properties, Ltd., a new company with a nominal capital of £5,000,000 in £1 shares. The object of the concern is stated to be primarily that of acquiring new sites for Odeon cinemas. Its commitments in this direction are reported abeady to exceed £1,000,000. No details are as yet available concerning the shareholders of this concern, but its board consists of ; Philip E. Hill, Chairman, also director of: — Armstrong Siddeley Development Co., Ltd. Beechams Pills, Ltd. (Chairman). Co vent Garden Properties Co., Ltd. (Chairman). Eagle, Star and British Dominions Insurance Co., Ltd. Hawker Siddeley Aircraft Co., Ltd. Olympia, Ltd. (Chairman). Philip Hill & Partners, Ltd. (Chairman). Pritchard & Constance (Manufacturing), Ltd. (Chairman). Quadrant Trust, Ltd. R. Hovenden & Sons, Ltd. (Chairman). Scribbans & Co., Ltd. (Chairman). Second Covent Garden Property Co., Ltd. (Chairman). Taylors (Cash Chemists), London, Ltd. (Chairman). Taylors (Cash Chemists) Midland Ltd. (Chairman). Taylors (Cash Chemists) Trust, Ltd. (Chairman).