Motion Picture Daily (Oct-Dec 1934)

The Leading of fi r* \ t?r\ \ Motion^ Picture Industry MOTION PICTURE DAILY Alert, Intelligent the I in All Branches VOL. 36. NO. 125 NEW YORK, MONDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 1934 TEN CENTS Pathe Plan Is New Financing Of Production Note Issues to Furnish Capital As Needed Preparation for new and extensive financing of production by Pathe will be advanced by the company in anticipation of approval of its completed plan of financial reorganization at the extraordinary meeting of stockholders, March 4, 1935, as a result of authorization of the meeting by the state supreme court, it was learned Saturday. The reorganization plan provides for the issuance by the new Pathe company of collateral secured notes, of which $4,000,000 may be outstanding at any one time, and which will be convertible into new common stock. This provision is designed to provide new working capital which may be applied to production financing and also to retire all or any part of the $2,027,500 of sinking fund debentures outstanding, maturing in 1937. The plan may be approved by twothirds of the stock represented at the (Continued on page 8) Kansas City's Price War May Set Back Clearance Modernism to Rule Theatres: Buchanan Chicago, Nov. 25. — Theatre construction and remodeling of the future will be almost entirely along modernistic lines, according to B. B. Buchanan, who, as maintenance engineer for B. & K. and Publix Theatres, supervised the construction of over 100 of the present day de luxe spots. The finest aichitectural examples — intrinsically worthy as they may be — are out of line with current requirements for successful theatre operation, Buchanan states. Periodic treatment, such as French renaissance, Tudor, Colonial and similar accepted archi tectural traditions must give way to (Continued on page 7) Garbo May Do Two ForM-G-M This Year Greta Garbo may make two for M-G-M this season instead of one as originally planned. Decision will fol low after arrival of Harry Edington, her manager, on the coast for conferences. Edington and Barbara Kent his wife, left for Hollywood over the week-end. After having talked with the Swedish star over long-distance telephone, (Continued on page 7) Selling of Protection Is Demanded by Schaefer Kansas City's price war indicates another setback for the local clearance and zoning plan. The modified schedule, received by Code Authority Friday and due to come up for discussion tomorrow, will not be approved until the Tower and Loew's Midland in Kansas City definitely determine what price scale will prevail. While admissions are an important factor in setting up clearances, it is conceded by all Campi men that the rental paid for film and its accompanying protection are to be taken into consideration before the price scale is given weight. All clearances will be based on protection after first runs. Whether K. C. subsequents charging 40 cents will get (Continued on page 7) Vaude Changes Call for Six to Hear Charges Establishment of a vaudeville complaints' committee of six, one representing actors, two theatre men, one vaudeville producer, one agent and an impartial member to be representative of the public by Campi highlights the nine amendments, additions and modifications to the vaudeville section of the code adopted by Code Authority at its last meeting, it was disclosed on Saturday. The amendments were unanimously approved by both the vaudeville committee and Campi and sent to Compliance Director Sol A. Rosenblatt for approval. Rosenblatt, before leaving for the coast tomorrow, will set a date for public hearing, which is expected (Continued on page 7) Move to Zone Eastern Penn. Territory On Philadelphia, Nov. 25. — Drafting of a proposed clearance and zoning schedule for the Eastern Pennsylvania, Southern New Jersey and Delaware territory will be undertaken by the Independent Exhibitors Protective Ass'n here following a meeting to be held Tuesday at which all independent exhibitors in the territory have been urged by the organization to submit "fair and reasonable" clearance and zoning recommendations for their own houses. The individual exhibitor recommendations will be utilized by a committee of the I.E. P. A. in drafting a master schedule for the territory which, it is planned, will be submitted, direct (Continued on page 7) California /. T, O. A. Bucks Operator Pay Hollywood, Nov. 25. — The I. T. O. of Southern California is marshalling exhibitors in this territory for a campaign of opposition to operators' wage scales which have been upheld by the local NRA labor compliance board. Contending that the wage scales are exorbitant, the organization is mapping plans for a direct appeal to Washington. Following further insistence by the local board yesterday that scales for (Continued on page 71 Only 6.7% of Wired Canada Houses Dark Toronto, Nov. 25. — According to official figures, less than 10 per cent of the wired theatres in Canada are closed. To be exact, the number of dark theatres is only 6.7 per cent, of the total of 883 houses equipped for sound. Ontario has only one closed theatre out of a total of 288. Quebec, with 146 houses, has 18 on the closed list. On the Pacific Coast, British Columbia also has only one dark theatre (Continued on page 7) Insists Principle Should Be Part of All New Clearance Setups Kansas City, Nov. 25. — Distributors intend to demand that clearance schedules be based on the principle of bargaining for protection, declared George J. Schaefer, Paramount general manager, while here discussing the clearance schedule with local exhibitors. This, he declared, would establish the inherent right of an exhibitor to buy any run he is capable of buying at the rental he is able to pay, to protect himself against competition, unfair or otherwise; and would also establish the right of the distributor to sell protection to whomever he might choose. Explaining the far-reaching effects of protection, or the lack of it, Schaefer said : "Fifty per cent of all producer-distributor revenue is derived from the first runs in the first 400 cities in the United States. If the time ever comes when that revenue is not protected (Continued on page 7) Religious Themes Face Mexican Ban By JAMES LOCKHART Mexico City, Nov. 25. — A sweeping ban on the exhibition in Mexico of films embodying religious themes or practices is reported here to be under consideration by the Federal legislature. The scope of the law, according to report, would cover pictures which refer directly or indirectly in any form to any religion or religious practice or which include roles portraying clergymen or holy people of any denomination. It is also reported that sponsors of the law demand an immediate ban of Fox's "The World Moves On" because of its reference to religious themes and sequences which include picturizations of saints, churches, holy images and vessels. F linn in Hollywood To Patch Code Rift Hollywood, Nov. 25. — John C. Flinn, executive secretary of Campi, arrived here by plane today from New York for a 10-day stay to confer on (Continued on page 7)