Motion Picture Daily (Oct-Dec 1945)

Tuesday, December 18, 1945 Motion Picture Daily 13 Video Trust (Continued from page 1) Television Productions and GPE enjoying a monopoly in the Western Hemisphere under Scophony patents and inventions. The government further charges that Television Productions and GPE hate failed to make any substantial or serious effort to develop and exploit Scophony patents and inventions or to promote the use and sale of products thereunder while preventing Scophony of America from granting any licenses under the patents to others in the motion picture and electronic fields, and elsewhere. It is also charged that Television Productions, wholly-owned subsidiary of Paramount, has acted at the direction of and for the benefit of its parent company, Paramount. Berge Summary Summarizing the effects of the alleged illegal acts, Berge stated : "In addition to the usual restraints on competition which flow from illegal cartel arrangements, as a result of this conspiracy, commercial development in this country of an important advance in the television art has been postponed and the opening of a new field of public entertainment and education has been unnecessarily delayed." The government asks for an injunction against a continuation or renewal of the conspiracy charged ; that Television Productions, GPE and Scophony, Ltd., be required to divest themselves of their respective interests in Scophony Corp. of America; and that all of the defendants be enjoined from enforcing any alleged rights under present and future patents and inventions relating to Scophony systems of television. According to the Department of Justice, here, Television Productions and GPE acquired their one-third and two-thirds interests, respectively, in Scophony. of America for a total payment originally of $25,000, with an additional $50,000 being paid to guarantee certain patent rights. 'Revolutionary' Systems The complaint alleges that between 1937 and 1939, Scophony, Ltd., obtained basic patents on two "revolutionary" systems of television, known technically as the "supersonic" system and the "skiatron" system. It points out that these systems, through the use of an outside source of light similar to that employed in the projection of motion pictures, permit the projection and enlargement of televised pictures on screens as large as those employed in theatres. According to the complaint, under the ordinary television system commonly in use today, such large-screen projection is impossible without serious loss of light. The complaint indicates that except for large images produced under the Scophony systems, ordinary televised pictures appear on the end of the reception tube and can be enlarged practically only through the use of mirrors. The loss of brilliance involved in this latter optical process has thus far retarded commercial development of large screen television, it was said. "The successful conclusion of this prosecution should remove an important obstacle to the early emergence of large-screen television as a major industry in this country with new opportunities for employment in the Review Frontier Feud (Monogram) STANDARD Western entertainment, replete with the gun play, hard riding and intrigue demanded by customers who are partial to this type of fare, "Frontier Feud" finds Johnny Mack Brown in the role of a two-fisted U. S. marshall (incognito) who restores peace to a ranchers' valley which has been torn by a murderous fight between two cattle raisers. The proceedings get underway when Brown and his aide, played by Raymond Hatton, stumble upon the dead body of a rancher who had been killed by the henchman of a cattleman bent on getting control of the valley. Circumstances are fixed by the murderer so that suspicion centers on peaceloving Dennis Moore who is in love with the daughter of another innocent rancher who subsequently meets death as a result of the valley warfare. Moore, jailed as the final footage rolls around, is rescued by Brown and Hatton in the nick of time as a lynching attempt by the evil-doers is made. Supported by evidence he had dug up meanwhile, Brown sees to it that the heavies receive their just dues. He and Hatton finally ride off into the distance, their mission completed, and the two young lovers are left to live happily in the once-more peaceful valley. Lambert Hillyer directed from a screenplay which Jess Bowers fashioned from a story by Charles N. Heckelmann. Charles J. Bigelow supervised. Others in the cast include Christine Mclntyre, Jack Ingram, Edwin Parker and Frank LaRue. Running time, 54 minutes. General classification. Release date, Nov. 24. Charles L. Franke. manufacturing, marketing, broadcasting, entertaining and educational fields," according to Berge. The Government's complaint was prepared by Joseph Borkin, Mervin C. Pollak and Joseph B. Marker, attorneys of the anti-trust division. The case will be handled through the division's New York office, under the direction of Lawrence S. Apsey. Para., GPE, Levey Not Given Notice of Suit Told about the U. S. Attorney General's plan to file an anti-trust suit against Scophony and others, defendants Arthur Levey, Paramount and General Precision Equipment declined yesterday to comment directly on the suit until they had an opportunity to read the government's complaint. Levey, president of Scophony of America, did say he welcomes clarification of the issues, .if there are any. Robert Rinear, vice-president of General Precision Equipment, explained that the government's move is a complete surprise, since although the Department of Justice has been investigating Scophony for several months, GPE had heard nothing official about a suit. According to Rinear, insofar as the charge of monopoly is concerned, it is "startling." Raibourn Reaction Paul Raibourn, in charge of Paramount's television operations, said that he had not seen the government's complaint but explained that there are no patents held by Scophony which work on American standards. He recalled that the installation of equipment in the Rialto Theatre in New York in 1941 had to be abandoned after a single showing when the Federal Communications Commission altered channels available in New. York for telecasting. Percentage Suit (Continued from page 1) each complaint, because of defendant's alleged failure to complete theatre records for inspection when asked for by each distributor last May. • Charges are made in each complaint that Bezanilla furnished each distributor with false box office reports on percentage pictures allegedly to induce the distributor to take less rental than it was entitled to on certain pic tures and to give lower rental terms on future flat and percentage deals. It is also claimed that checkers were induced to join in the falsification of percentage reports. Each distributor asks the court for an audit of all books and records pertaining to the receipts derived from its percentage pictures, for the loss and damage said to have been suffered by it, as well as for punitive damages, and for injunction against disposition or alteration of theatre records pending an audit. Morehead, Pallot and Smith of Miami are representing each distributor. Rental Agent Hams The problem of getting office space in New York being what it is, Hal Horne and his associates, after many unfruitful attempts, have hit upon the idea of offering a screen role in one of their productions to anyone who can get them a home for their new Story Prod. "Watch out," a friend warned them, "for prospects who will insist upon okaying the script." U. S. Brief (Continued from page 1) trade practices. The defendants will attempt to show that clearance of itself is not illegal without reference to the manner in which it may be used. The summary brief will also probably trace the process of integration of the various companies. Counsel for one of the "Little Three," who had studied the brief, pointed out that he was still of the opinion that the government had failed to make a case against the "Little Three." General comment was that the threejudge statutory court, comprising Judges August N. Hand, Henry W. Goddard and John Bright would not find the government's brief too helpful in enabling them to get to the bottom of the case which they must judge. Details of the government brief were published in Motion Picture Daily yesterday. To the editors of United States and Canada who voted Earle Ferris and Staff, for the third consecutive year, as the INDIVIDUAL PUBLICITY OFFICES GIVING THE BEST PUBLICITY SERVICE IN THE 1945 MOTION PICTURE DAILY POLL OUR SINCEREST THANKS All the folks in the offices of EARLE FERRIS