Motion Picture Daily (Jul-Sep 1937)

MOTION PICTURE DAILY 0 Thursday, July I, 1937 MOTION PICTURE DAILY (KeRistered U. S. Patent Office) Vol. 42 July 1, 1937 No. 1 Martin Quigley Editor-in-Chief and Publisher MAURICE KANN. Editor J. M. JERAULD. Managing Editor JAMES A. CRON. Advertising Manager n Published dally except Sunday and boUdayi by Qulsloy Publishing Company, Inc., Martin Qulgley, presldont, Colvln Brown, vice-president and treasurer. Publication Oftlco: 1270 Sixth Avenue at Rockefeller Center, New York. Telephone Circle 7-3100. Cable address: "Quigpubco. New York." All contents copyrighted 1037 by Qutulcy Publishing Company, Inc. Address all correspondence to the New York office. Other Qulgley pub Mtlons: MOTION PICTURE HEKALD . BETTEB THEATRES. TEATRO AL DIA, INTERNATIONAL MOTION PICTURE ALMANAC and FAME. HOLLYWOOD: Postal Union Life Building, Vino and Yucca Sts. ; lioone Mancall, Manager. CHICAGO: 624 S. Michigan Ave; C. B. O'Neill. Manager. _ _ . WASHINGTON: Albee Building; Bertram F. Llnz. Representative. AMSTERDAM: Zuider Amstellaan 5; Philip de Schaap, Representative. „_ , . . BERLIN: Steulerstrasse 2, Berlin W. 35; Joachim K. Rutcnberg. Representative. BUDAPEST: 3 Ka-pl&r-u, Budapest II; Endre Hevesi. Representative. BUENOS AIRES : Corrlentes 2495; N. Bruski. Representative. HELSINKI: Fredriksgatan 19C; Charlotte Laszio, Representative. _ LONDON: 4 Golden Square. W. 1; Bruce Allan, Representative. Cable address, Quigpubco, London. MELBOURNE: Regent Theatre Buildings. 191 Collins St.; Cliff Holt, Representative. MEXICO CITY: Apartado 269; James Lockhart, Representative. MONTEVIDEO: P. O. Box 664; Paul Bodo, Representative. _ _ MOSCOW: Petrovski Per 8; Beatrice Stern, Representative. _ PARIS: 29 Rue Marsoulan; Pierre Autre. Representative. PRAGUE: Uhelny trh 2, Prague 1; Harry Knopf, Representative. RIO DE JANEIRO: Caixa Postal 3558; L. S. Marinho, Representative. ROME: "Viale Garibia; Vittorio Malpassuti, Rep SANTIAGO ' de CHILE: Calle Estado 260, Oflcina 306; A. Weissmann, Representative. SHANGHAI : Rooms 38-41, Capital Theatre Building, 142 Museum Road; J. P. Koehler, Rep STOCKHOLM: Kungsgatan 36; Ragnar Allberg, Representative. TOKYO: 880 Sasazuka, Ichikawa-shi, Chiba-Ken; H. Tomlnaga, Representative. VIENNA : Neustiftgasse, 54 Vienna VII; Hans Lorant, Representative. Entered as second class matter January 4, 1926, at the Post Office at New York City, N. Y. , under Act of March 3. 1879. Subscription rates per year $6 in the Americas, and foreign $12. Single copies: 10 cents. Conn Consolidates 5 Producing Units Hollywood, June 30. — Having consolidated his five producing units into Ambassador Prod., Maurice Conn, president, plans to distribute 36 pictures planned for next season through franchise holders who will handle the product exclusively. At the present time, Conn's films are being released by independent exchanges which handle other product as well. Under the new system the various franchise holders will have a share in Ambassador. Conn is understood to have presented the plan to SEC. Conn is now in New York lining up franchise holders. «U" Men to Play Golf Universal will hold a golf tournament July 15 at Bonnie Briar Lodge, near New Rochelle. MOTION PICTURE DAILY3 HOLLYWOOD PREVIEW "The Life of Emile Zola" (First National) Hollywood, June 30. — There have been but few films which rank so high in artistry and are so thoroughly classic in cinematic attainment as "The Life of Emile Zola." The picture is a collection of film achievements in every department from acting, direction, production quality, writing and cinematography to musical scoring, all grouped together in a powerfully dramatic and entertaining story of a writer whose cause was justice and whose allegiance was with the downtrodden. Paul Muni rises to his greatest heights as Zola. So high, in fact, that his "Pasteur," which last year won for him the Academy award, and his other performances pale. His portrayal of the writer who as a youth resolved to fling away chicanery for truth and who, aging, persevered in that aim through disgrace until his complete vindication and that of Alfred Dreyfus, the innocent victim of hypocrisy, will in all probability win Muni again the accolade of the industry. The masterful direction of William Dieterle has taken the dramatic material of the famous treason case as written by Norman Reilly Raine, Heinz Herald and Geza Herczeg, from the story by the latter two, and combined it with a stellar performance by Muni and excellent support by a capable cast. It was given expensive production by Hal B. Wallis, executive producer, and Henry Blanke, associate producer, has brought forth a film approaching epic proportions. This reviewer is of the opinion that "The Life of Emile Zola" will not be destined for the limbo of artistic success which, despite their workmanship, have met with failure at the box-office. While the public may not ordinarily be expected to seize upon the story of miscarriage of justice in the Dreyfus case at the close of the last century as a cause celebre at the box-office, so many entertainment values are embodied in the production that it should win out over any presumed lethargy in trade. The only objection to the film is its length. It has a running time of two hours. Judicious cutting to quicken the tempo, no doubt, will make it Warners' supreme effort to garner with one picture virtually all of the next Academy awards. Standouts in the lengthy cast include Gale Sondergaard, Joseph Schildkraut and Vladimir Sokoloff. Production Code Seal No. 3,212. Running time, 125 minutes. "G." Tarzan Pictures Get Long Play in Japan Tarzan pictures get greater playing time than any other American pictures in Japan, David Lewis, former manager for M-G-M in that territory, stated yesterday. Of the 1,600 theatres in the country, there are only 250 possibilities for American films, he added. Because of the popularity of the Tarzan films, exceptions are made in booking arrangements. There is very little theatre building going on at the present time, he said. Jules Berman, formerly of Poland, has taken over Lewis' duties in Japan. Lewis will remain in New York for about three weeks until he is assigned to another territory. ITOA Talks Boat Ride Members of the I.T.O.A., at their meeting yesterday at the Astor, discussed the annual boat ride and outing at Bear Mountain, July 27. No other business came up, although one member brought up the score charge question and was told that action had been started in the courts and papers were now being served. Signs Nuisance Tax Bill Washington, June 30. — President Roosevelt today signed the legislation extending for two years the nuisance taxes designed to raise $625,000,000 annually, and including the Federal tax on theatre admissions. World Has 10 Titles On New Season List World Pictures has set 10 titles on its proposed list of 26 for the new season. The remainder of the program will be announced Aug. 1, according to Irvin Shapiro, general manager. The titles announced are : "La Tendre Enemie," directed by Max Ophuls and starring Simone Borriau; "The Monks," picture of monastic life beng produced in cooperation with Catholic groups; "The Life and Loves of Beethoven," with Harry Bauer and directed by Abel Gance; "The Ski Chase." filmed at St. Arborg, Austria; "Annie Laurie," with Will Fyffe; "Revolt in Morocco," directed by Jean Benoit-Levy and Mario Epstein. "The Secret of Stamboul." with Valerie Hobson and Frank Vesper; "Ninety Degrees South," record of the Scott Antarctic expedition; "My Song of Love." with Tito Schipa; "Street Without a Name," with Pola Hlory and Constant Rony. "Masquerade in Vienna" and "Slalom" also will be on the program. Three shorts already listed are: "Song of Ceylon," "What the Puppy Said" and "What the Parrot Saw."' Seek Fleischer Peace "Progress" toward a settlement of the Commercial Artists' & Designers' Union strike against the Fleischer studio was reported yesterday by Louis Nizer, attorney for Fleischer, following a conference yesterday with William Collins, A. F. of L. vice-president. Another meeting is scheduled for tomorrow. Collins was asked by Mayor LaGuardia to aid in effecting a settlement of the strike last week. 4 Purely Personal ► D11IL KEISMAN and "Deac" *• Aylesworth a luncheon twosome at Jack and Charlie's yesterday. Also there were Ralph Banbury, who returns to London on the Berengaria Saturday ; Billy Wilkerson, who flies Hollywood tomorrow ; Anita Colby, Willard McKay, Herb Yates, Cress Smith, Sam Lyons, Beatrice Kaufman, Irving Hoffman, Lynn Farnol, Bill Morris, Henry Walters. • The Nate Blumbergs are on their own. Louis will be on a ranch in Wyoming by the end of the week and Dodo was on her way to her usual summer camp in Maine by last night. • I. Schmertz, 20th Century-Fox branch manager in Cleveland, was given a silver set and mahogany cabinet at a banquet Monday in honor of his 30th year with the company. • Karl MacDonald, South American sales head for Warners, will return today from a visit to the company's branches in Cuba and Trinidad. • Arnold Schwarzwald, son of Milton of Mentone Prod., sailed on the Roma last night on a 53-day cruise through the Mediterranean. • Joseph Schildkraut, actor, sailed yesterday on the Aquitania for a twomonth vacation in Europe. He was accompanied by his wife. • Ralph Reader, under contract to Herbert Wilcox, arrived on the Aquitania with a print of "The Gang Show." • Jack Shea of Feiber & Shea returned yesterday from Cleveland where he attended the I. Schmertz dinner. • Mollie Prince, secretary to George J. Schaefer at U. A., leaves tomorrow for a coast vacation. • Charles Ford of Universal Newsreel is due in from the coast the end of the week. • Reginald Gardner, who has been signed by M-G-M, left for the studios yesterday. • Dan Greenhouse, Dutch East Indies manager for M-G-M, is due here shortly. Ted Husing and Jimmy Dolan flew to Chicago yesterday via TWA. • Gracie Barrie will leave for Cincinnati over the weekend by plane. Fred Bartow of M-G-M is due to take a plane for Chicago today. • I. J. Wilkinson of RKO will leave for Hollywood by plane today. Leslie E. Thompson returned from the coast yesterday. Jack Doyle left for the coast yesterday by plane. Al Lichtman is planning a coast trip.