Motion Picture Daily (July–Sept 1938)

MOTION PICTURE DAILY Tuesday, September 6, ll 4 Purely Personal ► JOHN O'CONNOR, RKO theatre head ; Fred Myers, head film buyer for the circuit, and William Howard of the vaudeville department, are due back at the home office today from a tour of the circuit's midwestern houses. • Joseph Chasin, assistant to Tony Gablik, Warners art director, on Saturday was married to Ro Sarapin. On the same day, Edmund W. Dempsey, of the same department, was wed to Ethel Matlack Sullivan, fashion artist. • Mrs. David Rose arrived here from the coast yesterday, preparatory to sailing for London to join her husband, who is in charge of Paramount's British production office there. • Karen Morley flew out to the coast over the weekend via TWA. Another passenger on the same airline was Joan Perry. • Troy Orr of the 20th Century-Fox West Coast studio publicity department arrived in New York over the weekend. • Anthony Petti, secretary to J. Cheever Cowdin, Universal i board chairman, will return from vacation today. • A. H. McCausland, RKO trustee's representative, is expected back from an annual vacation today. • Helen Mason of General Films, Ltd., Toronto, arrived in town over the weekend on a business trip. • Sonja Henie, at present in London, has delayed her departure for this country until a later date. • Douglas Fairbanks has postponed his sailing from London until Sept. 14. Insiders' Outlook More Prizes Added On 20th-Fox Shorts Movietone and Terry-Toon have offered a total of $2,000 in prize money to cover the domestic organization's revenue returns in the 52-week K-6 seasonal delivery campaign. W. C Michel of Movietone and Paul Terry, producer of the TerryToons, informed Mr. Wobber of their joint offer of $1,000 each. Division of the prize money will be left to the distribution head. The 52week short subjects prize money makes this season the richest in point of awards from that type of films, insofar as this company is concerned. The Movietone-Terry-Toon awards have no relation to Educational's $2,100 in prizes for returns on their unliquidated product or to Movietone's $1,000 prize for News delivery during the drive period. U. A. Circuit Pays $1.25 United Artists Theatre Circuit, Inc. has declared a regular quarterly dividend for stockholders of record Sept. 1, payable Sept. 15, of $1.25 per share at the rate of five per cent on pre ferred stock. D URING the past week en adoption of a program of trade practice regulation were spoken in three significant quarters. Ed Kuykendall vigorously stated the case for immediate action by the distributors' negotiating committee. Twenty-four hours later Charles C. Petti john and W. A. Steffes expressed their belief in the wisdom of, and necessity for, voluntary regulation of trade practices. This week Sidney R. Kent and his committee — Ned E. Depinet, William F. Rodgers and Abe Montague — are scheduled to hear the opinion of major company counsel on the advisability of proceeding with a program of self-regulation during pendency of the Government's equity suit against the major companies. The proximity of last week's expressions to this week's meetings may be merely coincidence. On the other hand, it may be a sounding board for what is to happen. y Executive opinion in the industry, while not unanimous, appears to favor prompt action on a program of self-regulation of distributor-exhibitor relationship. Industry legal opinion is more sharply divided, but the dissenters seem to comprise a minority and, if last week's straws-in-the-wind are all that they seem to be at second glance, the minority is destined to be overruled. The dissenters contend that any feasible plan of self-regulation must, of necessity, entail joint action by distributors, leaving them open to the charge of having violated the Sherman Act. The advocates of self-regulation reply that this is the attitude which has obstructed selfregulation of trade practices for the past three years, and yet it not only failed to prevent the Government proceeding but, possibly, helped to bring it about. It did not prevent numerous minor suits -bv private complainants which charged distributors with conspiracy. It will not prevent similar suits in the future as, surelv, an industry court of selfregulation could. T The standstill attitude will not prevent the introduction of ad verse legislation in Congress and state legislatures, the advocates of voluntary action contend. It is a policy which nourishes trade dissatisfaction — dissatisfaction which gives momentum to agitation for theatre "divorcement," anti-block booking and other regulatory legislation supported by factions unsympathetic and unrelated to the industry. Again, the opposition to advancement of a trade practice program holds that if the industry is to proceed with the step it should be done only with the approval of the U. S. Attorney General and, presumably, only then if conditioned upon a modification of the Government's equity proceeding. The executive and legal majority are of one mind in their reply to this. They point out that the Attorney General's office has made it clear that it will not give advance approval to an interindustry proposal of this kind without formal restrainers, so that such a proposal on the part of the industry would imply a willingness to negotiate a consent decree. Majority opinion, both executive and legal, is strongly averse to a consent decree without abondonment by the Government of its demand for theatre "divorcement." As well to invite Federal legislation for the regulation of trade practices and operate in the future by statute, as to accept a consent decree on the Government's indicated basis, they say. T A voluntary, earnest effort by the industry to solve its sorest problems is hardly likely to furnish grounds for indictment of the participants at a later date, the champions of self-regulation hold. The worst that can happen to the distributors in the way of court proceedings has already happened, they point out. To postpone efforts toward self-regulation now is to aggravate grievances and to perpetuate circumstances which breed private litigation and state and national legislation. To act promptly and favorably is to give immediate relief to a waiting industry and to lessen the probability of new attacks originating from within and without. O'Loghlin Out Fro/1 In 20th-Fox Contel Jim O'Loghlin's Canadians t district leadership in the foi | week's delivery in the 52 -week sonal prize campaign of 20th Centi Fox. The Dominions are now points ahead of the Great Lakes. Canadians can boast of having h first for a longer period than any trict in the company's recent hist< W. C. Gehring's Centrals contin to set the divisional space. The other Central branches up among first 10 in the race include: Edw English's Montreal, J. H. Hub Winnipeg, H. J. Bailey's Toronto M. Podoloff's Minneapolis and V. Skorey's Calgarians. The Western delegations am the leading 10 are C. F. Pow Portland, R. J. Morrison's Der and Jack Dillon's Los Angelesmembers of the coast district. RCA Sets British Deals RCA Photophone has closed deals with two British producers, according to Harry L. Sommerer, division manager. Associated British Pictures Corp. lias contracted for a mobile sound recording svstem at the Bareham Wood studio, and Archibald Nettle-ford Productions has renewed its contract for five years. Davis and Morris Arrive Johnnie Davis and Wayne Morris arrived her from Hollvwood Friday morning and are at the Belmont Plaza. Mr. Davis is here for a personal appearance at the Strand next week, and for staee engagements at Washington. Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Rockwell-O'Keefe, his aeents, are also engaging him for radio appearances. Far on Leaves Ross; Succeeded by Hi W. S. Faron, for the past tl years director of advertising publicity for Ross Federal Serv Inc., and Ross Federal Research Co has resigned to become advertis director of the Glass Container As ciation of America, Inc. Mr. Faron has been succeeded Donovan Hall as advertising and p licity director for the Ross compan Mr. Hall formerly was on the search department of Lever Bros., S'> manufacturers. 'Spawn' Opens Tomom Paramount's "Spawn of the Nor goes into the Paramount tomorr Lynne Overman, who plays an portant role in the film, will att< the premiere. MOTION PICTURE DAILY (Registered U. S. Patent Office) MARTIN QUIGLEY, Editor-in-Chief and I Usher; J. M. JERAULD, Managing Edl JAMES A. CRON, Advertising Manager. £ TORIAL STAFF. Charles S. Aaronson. Jack I ner, Al Fines tone. Thomas Fitzsimmons, Shei A. Kane, Irene Kuhn, Joseph Priore. Published dally except Sunday and holli Sept. to May and daily except Saturday. Sur and holidays June. July and Aug. by Qui Publishing Company, Inc., Martin Qulgley, pr dent; Colvin Brown, vice-president and treasu Publication office: 1270 Sixth Avenue at Rw feller Center, New York. Telephone: Circle 7-3 Cable address: "Quigpubco. New York." contents copyrighted 1938 by Quigley Publisi Company, Inc. Address all correspondence to1 New York office. 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