Motion Picture Daily (Apr-Jun 1940)

2 Motion Picture Daily Monday, June 10, 1940 Para. Sets Staff For Ad Campaigns A field force of eight advertisingconsultants has been organized by Robert M. Gillham. Paramount advertising and publicity director, to handle special campaigns on the company s top-bracket new season product. The new force will begin functioning about July 1, with headquarters in the offices of Paramount' s eight district sales managers. The consultants will cooperate with exhibitors, local advertising men and the company s sales executives, working under the district managers. Their regional activities will be coordinated by Alec Moss, Paramount home office advertising manager. The field men and the territories to which they have been assigned are: Don Chambers, Boston; William Brooker, Philadelphia; J. Maxwell Toice, Cleveland; Clinton Bolton, Atlanta; William Landsburg, Kansas City; Carl Kreuger, Chicago; Jack Daily, Dallas, and Ralph Ravenscroft, Los Angeles. Kuykendall Urges U. S. Defense Aid Approximately 9,000 theatres throughout the country are urged in a letter from Ed Kuykendall, M.P.T.O.A. president, to cooperate with other industry elements and the Government in furthering the national defense plan. "In order that nothing be left undone that will tend to aid in the preparation" of our country for any possible emergency and in order that we mav do our part in keeping the public informed with Governmental plans and activities along this line," the letter to exhibitors states in part, "I earnestly urge that every newsreel containing such information be given a full and complete showing at each performance." A. G. V. A. Threatens Philadelphia Strike Philadelphia, June 9. • — Tom Kelley. executive secretary of the A.G. V. A. local here, set tomorrow as the deadline for agents to accept booking franchises from the actors' union, calling a strike against those agents failing to do so. After that date no A.G.V.A. member will be permitted to work for an agent not franchised, the union also picketing the offices of those agents. ( )fficers of the Entertainment Managers' Association, independent local of agents, said they welcomed the strike, claiming that the A.G. V.A. franchise stipulations are in violation of the Pennsylvania State License law. Testimonial for Bruder CHICAGO, June 9. — Roy Bruder, who resigned as manager of the B. & K. Chicago Theatre to enter the bowliiiR alley and amusement business in East St. Louis. 111., with John Perkins was given a farewell dinner late last week. Basil in Altec Deal Basil Bros. Theatres has renewet Altec service agreements for Basi Theatres in Buffalo and Niagara Falls. A. J. Kademachcr negotiated for Altec. Personal Mention BEN GOETZ and Robert T. Kane, in charge of M-G-M and 20th Century-Fox production in England, respectively, arrived yesterday on the President Roosevelt. • Roger C. Clement, Paramount home office attorney, has returned to his office recovered from a recent illness. Benjamin Miggins, European division manager for 20th Century-Fox, and Mrs. Miggins are in Madrid. • Clarence A. Hill, son of the assistant to William Sussman, Eastern division manager of 20th CenturyFox, will enter the Naval Academy at Annapolis next month. • Sidney Levine of the Warner New Haven exchange is the father of a boy, born late last week to Mrs. Levine at Grace Hospital. Nat Furst, Monogram division manager, Boston, is the baby's grandfather. • Milton L. Wainstein, manager of the Plaza, Northampton, Mass., and Mrs. Wainstein, were visitors here late last week. • Ned S. Seckler sailed on the Quirigua Saturday for San Juan, Puerto Rico, to open a territorial office for RKO. He was formerly representative in Havana. A. J. Cronin is spending the Summer in the East. JOSEPH M. SCHENCK, 20th «J Century-Fox board chairman, is due from the Coast early this week. • Irving Ludwig has resigned as manager of the Eighth Street Playhouse. He formerly was at the Rivoli. • Phil Hirsh, manager of the Spruce, Philadelphia, and Mrs. Hirsh, and David Levin, manager of the Pike there, and his daughter have started a five-week tour of the country. • Blanche Sherman, secretary to Maxwell Gillis, manager of the Republic exchange in Philadelphia, will be married to Dr. Leon Cohen next Sunday. • Elsie Sicer has resigned from the RKO exchange in Philadelphia to accompany her husband to the Coast. • Eugene DuBarry, manager of the Lincoln, New Haven, which has closed for the Summer, and Mrs. DuBarry are New York visitors. • E. S. Young, operator of the Central in Kansas City, made a hole-inone at the Stayton Meadows course. • Shirley Gerell of the RKO New Haven exchange, leaves for a vacation June 16. Hank Linet of Universal has contracted to teach W. J. Heineman the finer points of fishing. Leave Today for Columbia Regional Confirm Davidson as Educational Trustee Appointment of James A. Davidson as trustee of Educational Pictures, Inc., was confirmed on Friday in a decision of Federal Judge Edward A. Conger which denied an application to remove Davidson from office. Judge Conger, in overruling objections to Davidson by a number of creditors, characterized the trustee as "impartial." The application had sought to upset the selection of the trustee by Referee John E. Joyce on the ground that Davidson was a former employe of Grand National Pictures, a subsidiary of Educational. Income Tax Review Sought by Schenck Washington, June 9. — Redetermination of income tax deficiencies of $28.3,082 assessed by the Commissioner of Internal Revenue against his income taxes for 1935 and 1936 has been asked of the Board of Tax Appeals by Joseph M. Schenck, 20th Century-Fox board chairman. The application deals with matters entirely apart from those involved in the charges on which he was indicted in New York last week. John Cohen Dies Atlanta, June 9. — John Sanford Cohen, Jr., 41, film critic for the New York Sun from 1927 to 1933, died here Friday after a long illness. After leaving the Sim because of poor health, he joined NBC in Chicago as a writer but was compelled to resign because of illness a year later. Metro Waives Quota Right on War Shorts London, June 9. — A quick solution of the problem of the Ministry of Information's "security" shorts and their relation to quota has been supplied by Metro, which is distributing them. The company has agreed to waive all quota rights on the films and not count them against their foreign footage. This ends the agitation of the documentary and shorts producers against their registration by the Board of Trade. Concern that other films sponsored by the Government may be counted for quota still remains. Hear English Tax Proposals Today London, June 9. — The executive officers of the Cinematograph Exhibitors Association and Kinematograph Renters Society met Friday to complete and send to the Government a memorandum embodying their suggestion as to the application of the new purchase tax on the industry. Tomorrow, representatives of the two trade bodies will hear the Government's plan. It is expected the trade will ask admission increases equivalent to the amount of the tax as the most practicable method. James Hall Dies James Hall, 39, featured player before the advent of sound films, died at the Jersey City Medical Center Friday. Hall had been working recently as a master of ceremonies in various night clubs in New York and New Jersey. His best known film was "Hell's Angels." Home office executives and the New York exchange staff of Columbia will leave today for Atlantic City to attend the second and final company regional sales convention at the Ritz Carlton Hotel. The meeting, opening tomorrow, will run four days. The men will be given details of the new season product. Executives atttending will inclucjft Jack Cohn, Abe Montague, R Jackter, Abe Schneider, N. B. Spin gold, Louis Astor, Louis Weinberg, Max Weisfeldt, Maurice Bergman, L. Jaffe, M. Grad, M. Wormser, G. Josephs, W. Brennan, V. Borrelli, J. Freiberg, S. Raisler, T. McCue, I. Sherman, L. Malamed, A. Seligman, F. McGrann, Al Sherman, J. Segal, C. Roberts, A. Picker, and foreign representatives, Joseph Friedman, managing director for Great Britain ; A. M. Noyes of Brazil, and H. Prosdocimi of Panama. Delegates from the following 16 branches will be represented at the convention : New York, New Haven, Boston, Albany, Buffalo, Philadelphia, Washington, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Atlanta, Charlotte, Memphis, New Orleans, Dallas and Oklahoma City. MOTION PICTURE DAILY (Registered U. S. Patent Office) Published daily except Saturday, Sunday and holidays by Quigley Publishing Company, Inc., 1270 Sixth Avenue, Rockefeller Center. New York City. Telephone Circle 7-3100. Cable address "Quigpubco, New York." Martin Quigley, Editor-in-Chief and Publisher; Colvin Brown, Vice-President and General Manager; Watterson R. Rothacker, VicePresident; Sam Shain, Editor; Alfred L. Finestone. Managing Editor; James A. Cron, Advertising manager; Chicago Bureau, 624 South Michigan Avenue, C. B. O'Neill, manager; Hollywood Bureau, Postal Union Life Building, Boone Mancall, manager, William R. Weaver, Editor; London Bureau, 4, Golden Square, London Wl, Hope Williams, manager, cable address "Quigpubco, London." All contents copyrighted 1940 by Quigley Publishing Company, Inc. Other Quigley publications: Motion Picture Herald, Better Theatres, International Motion Picture Almanac and Fame. Entered as second class matter, Sept. 23. 1938, at the post office at New York, N. Y., under the act of March 3, 1879. Subscription rates per year $6 in the Americas and $12 foreign. Single copies 10c. Last Republic Meet Opening Tomorrow The fourth and final Republic regional sales meeting will be held at the Park Central Hotel here, tomorrow and Wednesday. James R. Grainger, president, who returned Saturday from the third meeting, in Chicago, will preside. In attendance will be, in addition to home office personnel, franchise holders, branch managers and salesmen from the Eastern branches. Herbert J. Yates, head of Consolidated Film Industries, who attended the first two meetings, at San Francisco and Memphis, returned to the Coast from the Southern city, and will not be present at the sessions here. Among those present in Chicago were : John Balaban of Balaban & )Katz ; Jules Rubens, Great States Theatres and Edward Silverman of the Essaness Circuit. The Republic delegates included managers, salesmen and bookers from Chicago, Milwaukee, Indianapolis, Des Moines, Omaha, St. Louis and Kansas City.