Motion Picture Daily (Oct-Dec 1934)

The Leading Iiew^De?j\ Motion^ Picture Industry MOTION PICTURE DAILY Alert, Intelligent the I in All Branches VOL. 36. NO. 148 NEW YORK, MONDAY, DECEMBER 24, 1934 SEC Calls for Bonus, Salary Payment Facts All Sums Over $20,000 To Be Required Washington, Dec. 23. — Under the :erms of the new regulations requiring filing of corporation data with the Securities Exchange Commission, salaries, bonuses and security holdings if higher salaried executives must be Tiade available for the commission's study. All officers and directors receiving &ver $20,000 in the last fiscal year A'ill come under this regulation. Profit-sharing plans are included in |he reports. In addition, all officers and directors receiving $30,000 or over must be identified in the reports. In addition, the same information kvill be required for all persons rereiving more than $20,000, paid directly or indirectly, whether or not they are officers or directors of a corporation, excluding those acting (Continued on page 4) 'Devil Dogs" to Be Warner-Cosmo Start Hollywood, Dec. 23. — "Devil Dogs kf the Air,'' co-starring James Cag|aey and Pat O'Brien, with Margaret tiadsay in the leading feminine role. ias been picked for the first Cosmopolitan picture to be released by War;iers under the new affiliation between llie two companies. National release ,ias been set for Feb. 9. The decision was made during the , ecent conferences here between Harry ;»!., Jack L. and Albert Warner ; Hal Wallis, Warner production executive; A. W. Smith, Jr., eastern and ■Canadian sales manager, and E. B. .-latrick, vice-president of Cosmopolitan. Studio and distribution executives .egard the picture as best adapted to Hearst exploitation possibilities. Reisman Likes New RKO Setup Abroad Expressing himself as completely atisfied with the new executive management setup recently adopted for ladio Pictures. Ltd., Phil Reisman, ead of Radio's foreign distribution, *?turned Saturday from conferences i London. Reisman predicted marked progress or the RKO British subsidiary under ie new management board composed E E. D. Leishman, chairman, Ralph [anbury, general manager ; Frank illey and C. Dawson. TEN CENTS Production Cut Predicted; Films 9 Appeal Seen Wider By NED E. DEPINET President, RKO Dist. Corp. In 1934, for the first time in years, producers made a thorough inventory of the industry. The stocktaking showed them remarkable things. They found a truly remarkable advance in the public taste. They saw mo ^r ^Jm^ t'on pictures ~ , i winning thou Bk £i$W »amU of new tv-v iViends with in Wttf: ' t.-lliment, enter ^^■^ taining screen versions of literary treasures and of stories and (Continued on page 4) By JOSEPH M. SCHENCK President, United Artists The year 1935 will be significant for bringing the producer and public into closer focus of viewpoint. We enter the New Year with a knowledge of what the public demands growing continually more definite and clear. And with that knowledge, the industry moves to shape its course. The producers realize that it will be necessary for them as individuals to make fewer pictures. That, (Continued on page 4) England Gets Restive Over Free Showings By BRUCE ALLAN Loxdox, Dec. 23. ■ — Exhibitors throughout Great Britain have been asked to send to the general secretary of the C. E. A. details of the "free show" evil as it affects their districts. The intention is to accumulate evidence for presentation to the Board of Trade with a request for special regulation of these shows. Assertion is made that safety regulations are disregarded at exhibitions held for advertising and other purposes, and also that the obligation to show a percentage of British films does not apply to "free" shows. Exhibitions of this type are frequently held in halls not licensed under the Cinematograph Act. ♦ 4s ♦ The fall in the profits of the Associated Provincial Picture Houses was ascribed to the competition of new (Continued on page 4) Custom Rebates on Film Set in Canada Toronto, Dec. 23. — The Canadian Department of Customs has made a ruling with regard to the importation of film subjects from British studios whereby the Canadian importer is now (Continued on page 2) Suit Impends In St. Louis On F.N. Film St. Louis, Dec. 23. — That a suit impends over first run rights to First National pictures was made evident here last week during a bankruptcy hearing of Skouras Brothers Enterprises, Inc., before Referee Hope. During the course of testimony by Clarence M. Turley, manager of the Ambassador and Missouri theatre buildings for the bondholders' committee which bought them at foreclosure, it developed that a 23-year contract for First National product had been cancelled in 1932 by Skouras Super Theatres Co. Half the stock of Skouras Super Theatres was owned by Skouras Brothers Enterprises and half by Paramount Publix. The suit, if brought, will be based on the ground that the First National franchise was part of the assets covered by a Central Properties mortgage. This was transferred to (Continued on page 4) New Tax Hits Funds Sent Out of Mexico By JAMES LOCKHART Mexico City, Dec. 23. — Distributors and others who are obliged to send money abroad for the payment of anything but merchandise are now sad (Cantinued on page 2) Make Further Moves to Join Local Unions Revised Pay Scales Also Discussed at Confabs The Greater New York projectionists' unions wall come under an organization having a new name if current efforts to consolidate Local 306, Allied and the Empire State unit are successful, it was learned Saturday after conferences of union offiicials, theatre representatives and Compliance Director Sol A. Rosenblatt at Code Authority headquarters. Conferences on merging the unions and thus bringing about a cessation of picketing, as well as to agree on a revised booth w^age scale for Greater New York, continued over the weekend. Suggestions were considered for basing the wage scale on a point system to be determined by capacity, run and admission price. _ Attending the meeting in addition to Rosenblatt were Charles L. O'Reilly, Harry Brandt, C. C. Moskowitz, Marvin Schenck, George Browne and Leslie E. Thompson. Omaha Houses Stop Ads in Rate Fight Omaha, Dec. 23. — Twenty suburban houses and one downtown split first and second run house, the Town, have withdrawn their advertising from the Omaha Bee-News, Hearst newspaper. _ It is understood a squabble over failure to secure reduced ad rates brought the suburban managers to the decision to withdraw. The Muse, managed by August Hermann, is the lone suburban to stick with the Bee-News and as a consequence it is getting unprecedented publicity play from the newspaper. The boycott started quietly over two weeks ago. Joseph Engel Joins Fox as a Producer Hollywood, Dec. 23. — Joseph Engel, a veteran in production and for years with the old Metro company, has been made an associate producer at Fox His first will be "Ten Dollar Raise," which Lew Seiler will direct. No Paper Tomorrow Motion Picture Daily will not publish on Christmas Day, Tuesday, Dec. 25. !