Motion Picture Daily (Jul-Sep 1939)

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Alert, to the Picture Industry tion FILE COPY MOTION PICTURE DAILY ~ 3 First in and Impartial y&L. 46. NO. 54 3= NEW YORK, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 1939 TEN CENTS Knox Delays Setting Trial Of Trust Suit WaitsUntil Interrogatory Issue Is Settled Federal Judge John C. Knox on Friday filed a memorandum in the U. S. District court here in which he agreed not to rule on the Government's motion for a preference on the trial calendar for the New York anti-trust suit until the question of replying to the Government's recent interrogatories has been disposed of. Judge Knox's action grants the defendant film companies' request in respect to procedure in the case which they petitioned in affidavits filed with him last week. The court's memorandum held that, "In view of the comprehensive scope of the interrogatories which the Government has served on the defendants, I think it advisable not to set a date for the beginning of the trial until I can be informed as to when the answers to the interrogatories can be given to the complainant and of the necessity of defendants as regards their further preparation for the trial. When I can be so informed," the memorandum concludes, "let the counsel for the parties then appear before me." The defendant companies, by agreement with the Department of Justice, have until Oct. 7 to answer or make objections to the Government's 68 comprehensive interrogatories relating to the history and trade relations of the defendant corporations and their subsidiaries. Producers, T.M.A.T. Agree on Contract With "stalling" tactics apparently abandoned, the League of New York Theatres, composed of Broadway producers, and the Theatrical, Managers, and Treasurers Union are reported ready to sign a contract this week, probably of three years' duration and covering company managers and press agents. Both sides did not discuss the issue of the treasurers who bolted the T.M.A.T. for the I.A.T.S.E. recently, agreeing that the problem should be settled separately. It is indicated that a contract for the treasurers may be ultimately signed by the I.A.T.S.E., the T.M.A.T. contenting itself with agents and managers. U. S. May Disband Trust Office Here Semi-official reports are that Thurman W. Arnold, assistant U.S. attorney general, may disband the anti-trust office in New York within the next week. The local anti-trust staff, including Buckley W. Henderson, New York chief, and William McGovern, his assistant, and others may be transferred to other points, one or more probably to Chicago where the federal antitrust division may open an office. All anti-trust litigation in the New York area will be handled by John T. Kahili, U. S. district attorney for the southern district of New York under the new setup. Broadcasters Vote Own Music Source Chicago, Sept. 17. — The National Association of Broadcasters, determined to fight what it called the "motion picture-dominated" Ascap, will organize a corporation, Broadcast Music, Inc., to build an alternative source of music for broadcasting purposes. A resolution calling for establishment of this corporation was passed Friday during the N.A.B. convention here. The corporation will issue 100,000 shares of stock at $1 a share. All N.A.B. members are to buy stock in (Continued on page 6) STUDIOS ADOPTING SHARP ECONOMIES New Censor Setup Placed By Britain Over Newsreels London, Sept. 17. — Statements in the House of Commons Friday indicated that newsreels in England are being censored by the British Ministry of Information, instead of bv the British Board of Film Censors, as originally intended. Indications of a change in the operation of newsreel censorship came in Commons Friday when Earl Winterton, spokesman for the Lord Privy Seal, declared in answer to a question by Geoffrey Mander, that the staff of the British Board of Film Censors has been reinforced by representatives of the Ministry of Information. Winterton accepted the responsibility of his department for the security of censorship. Considerable dissatisfaction has existed among the newsreel companies relative to the censor board's censorship, and a demand recently was made for censor operation, with respect to newsreels, by the Ministry of Information. It was the contention of the reels that under the present circumstances newsreels should be treated as news {Continued on page 6) JVew Regulations on Film Shipping Adopted By U. S. Washington, Sept. 17. — New shipping regulations adopted by the U. S. Department of Commerce covering the shipment of all motion pictures and equipment to foreign markets, as well as other goods, have been disclosed here by N. D. Golden, chief, Motion Picture Division. The following amendment to existing shipping regulations provides that all shippers' export declarations shall be filed after Oct. 1, 1939, in advance of clearance : "Any vessel taking on cargo for a foreign port, or a port in non-contiguous territory, and all shippers' export declarations covering cargo laden on board have not been filed, may, by application to the collector of customs on Commerce Form 1378B and the execution of the bond thereon, with security approved by the collector of customs as provided in Section 4200 R.S. as amended, be granted clearance; provided, however, that during any period covered by a proclamation of the President that a state of war exists between foreign nations, no vessel shall be cleared for a foreign port until all shippers' export declarations covering cargo laden thereon have been filed with the collector." The Assistant Collector of the Port of New York issued the following notice Sept. 7 clearing all exports clearing the Port of New York: "Effective immediately Shipper's Ex (Continued on paae 6) Foreign Revenue Losses Cause Production, Staff Slashes Hollywood, Sept. 17. — Some of the major studios are clearing their decks to effect sharp economies designed to balance loss in foreign revenue resulting from the war. Reduced shooting time and less expensive "luxury" items, including sets, are being scheduled, in addition to substantial payroll revisions. All studios seek to avoid salary cuts. More optimistic than most executive voices heard in Hollywood is that of Louis B. Mayer, M-G-M vice-president and production chief, who has held long sessions with M-G-M producers. Production Up to Par After hearing reports of department heads and individual producers, it has been decided at this studio that by maintaining a constant level of production activity, instead of having a dozen films in work and then dropping to one or two, and by increased care in the preparation of product while in the script stage, economies adequate to the requirements of the situation could be effected without reducing the executive personnel or compensation. Meanwhile, reports of M-G-M studio layoffs in lower earning brackets numbering 500 went uncontradicted. While an unofficial count had 300 off the payroll at 20th Century-Fox, 400 dismissed at Warners, 300 at Paramount and a proportionate number at other plants, upper bracket men were being retained practically everywhere. Go Off Fox Payroll An exception to this is 20th Century-Fox where Lou Wertheimer, associate producer ; Robert Fairbanks, construction engineer, and Aiden Roark, member of Darryl F. Zanuck's advisory staff, have gone off the payroll. Nunnally Johnson, writer and producer, has gone on half-pay basis for a six months' vacation period. About half of the reader department staff has been dismissed. Warners, while resuming building of a $400,000 tank stage for sea pictures, have abandoned plans to expand its studio laboratory and will continue to use its eastern facilities for that work. Lowered outlays for elaborate sets in staging spectacles is one of the economies contemplated at all studios. (Continued on page 6)