Motion Picture Daily (Jan-Mar 1947)

8 Motion Picture Daily Tuesday, March 4, 1947 QP 'Awards' Function Held QP Photo Some 80 showmen and film company leaders of New York and elsewhere attended the annual judging of the "Quigley Showmanship Awards" held at the Hotel Astor here yesterday. The judging considered 22 top campaigns sent in from most states, Canada and other countries. Pictured above at the dais are, reading from left to right: Robert Mochrie, RKO Radio distribution vicepresident; Sol Schwartz, RKO Service Corp. theatre vice-president, guest spokesman of the day; Martin Quigley, host; Gus Eyssell, head of New York's Music Hall; Malcolm Kingsberg, president of RKO Theatres, and J. J. Fitzgibbons, president of Famous Players Canadian Corp., a visitor from Toronto. (Continued from page 1) Walter Gould Extends Bromberg Territory Osmar Bromberg, general manager for United Artists in Mexico City has been promoted to the post of regional supervisor of the" "Northern tier of Latin American countries, by Walter Gould, VA foreign manager. These comprise Mexico, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Canal Zone, Colombia, Trinidad, Venezuela and the Caribbean area. J. B. Urbina was named Bromberg's successor in Mexico. Urbina rejoins UA after a lapse of 'five years. He resigned in 1942 as the company's manager in Mexico to become sales manager of Clasa-Films Mundiales. Broders Will Open NY Branch Thursday Paul and Jack Broder are due in New York on Thursday from their home city-Xif JDetroit to open the first of at least three branch offices ..of a new company which they have started, to distribute 40 United Artists reissues, rights to which they have already acquired. Among the productions are 13 Hopalong Cassidys. The Broders' company will be known as American Releasing Corp. The other two cities picked so far are Detroit and Los Angeles. DeMille Wins Appeal San Francisco, March 3. — Cecil B. DeMille has won a California Supreme Court hearing on his appeal of a lower court upholding his suspension by the American Federation of Radio Artists, AFL, for refusing to pay a. one-dollar union assessment in 1944. His appeal will be heard in April in Los Angeles. Clearance Survey (Continued from page 1) Chicago, following a meeting of sales executives from all over the country here last week, and with the possibility that at least one. other member of the . legal department . also will make field trips to review clearances. A spokesman for M-G-M said yesterday that his company's clearance check-up still is scheduled to be made through a series of regional meetings, first of which was held in Chicago recently. However, difficulties have been encountered in scheduling the remaining sessions, with the result that attorneys may be dispatched on field survey trips in order to assure^ full —compliance with the court's clearance requirements before the decree becomes effective on April 1. RKO Radio and 20th CenturyFox carried on discussions of the clearance provisions at their recent New York sales meetings but they too are understood, to be extending the survey to the field. MITCHELL MAY, Jr. CO., INC. INSURANCE • Specializing in requirements of the Motion Picture Industry 75 Maiden Lane, New York 510 W. 6th St., Los Angeles the Astor Hotel here following judging of the entries submitted by 22 finalists in the 13th annual competition sponsored by the Managers Round Table of Motion Picture Herald. Announcement of winners of the silver and bronze plaques, as well as a plaque for outstanding showmanship overseas, will be made on Friday. Special tribute was paid by Schwartz to the efforts of second, third and fourth-run theatre managers, whose "ingenuity and enterprise are so important, where there is no publicity department, exploitation director or advertising man close at hand, where the entire campaign has to be planned and executed by the same person." He also commended the Quigley organization for "the high plane on which this competition has been conducted." Martin Quigley, host at the luncheon, referred to screen entertainment and the way m which this entertainment is directed to public attention as "the two principal factors which determine the public relations status of the motion picture." He stressed the importance of keeping both films and selling methods "of the right character." U. S. on Arbitration (Continued from page 1) to voluntary arbitration, as such, provided it is employed only to settle contractual differences rather than to enforce the final judgment of the U.S. Supreme Court. Although the Justice Department has suggested that Congress could establish compulsory arbitration, it does not plan to ask for such legislation. The Department believes, however, that the only way to establish such a system is by Congressional sanction. NOW OPEN FOR BUSINESS C and C FILM EFFECTS 723 7th Ave., N.Y.C. • LA 4-2226 TITLES and TRAILERS, SUPERIMPOSING OPTICAL EFFECTS CUTTING ROOMS.COLOR REPRODUCTIONS The annual awards were characterized by Quigley as "a direct and vital stimulus to that kind of thinking and action which leads to the effective and profitable presentation of motion picture shows" and as "the means of proper and continuing recognition of that quality of distinguished showmanship which is vital to the welfare and prosperity of the industry." Anticipating that the marked prosperity of recent years cannot continue indefinitely, he predicted that the "very real challenge" of the future will be met by the exploitation forces in this country and around the world in a manner which will be "another demonstration of their imagination, ingenuity and energy." Arnold Stoltz and Lige Brien, previous Quigley Grand Award winners, were introduced at the luncheon, as were J. J. Fitzgibbons, president of Famous Players-Canadian, and James B. Nairn, FP-C advertising-publicity director. Others present included : Paul Ackerman, Glendon Allvine, Leon Bamberger, David Blum, Steve Brener, Samuel Cohen, Jerry Dale, Hal Danson, Oscar Doob, Steve Edwards, H. R. Emde, Gus Eyssell, William R. Ferguson, Mel Gold, Lou Goldberg, Leonard Goldenson, Ben Grimm, William J. Heineman, Al Horwitz, Charles Reed Jones, Gerald Keyser, Malcolm Kingsberg, Blanche Livingston, Hank Linet, Lawrence Lipkin, Fred Lynch, F. J. A. McCarthy, Charles B. McDonald, Harry McWilliams, Harry Mandel, Robert Mochrie, Rutgers Neilson, John J. O'Connor, David O'Malley, Lew Preston, Charles M. Reagan, Henderson M. Richey, Sidney Schaefer, Charles Schlaifer, Ed Schreiber, Fred Schwartz, Si Seadler, Ben Serkowich, Milt Silver, Robert Ungerfeld, Victor Volmar, Max Youngstein and Al Zimbalist. Also: Martin Quigley, Jr., Charles Aaronson, Gertrude Merriam Ernstthall, Gus Fausel, Herbert Fecke, Chester Friedman, Ray Gallagher, Ray Gallo, David Harris, James D. Ivers, Sherwin Kane, Red Kann. Ray Lanning, Tom Loy, Paul Mooney, Jr., Terry Ramsaye, Floyd Stone, Theodore J. Sullivan and Sally Walton. Greek Aid Regional Meetings Scheduled Regional meetings on the industry's appeal for the War Orphans of Greece will be held throughout the country during the drive, March 8 through April 8, with film executives attending from New York, it was decided at a meeting here yesterday at the offices of the American Theatres Association. Meetings already are scheduled for New York, Chicago, Boston, Los Angeles, Washington and San Francisco. Si Fabian, co-chairman of the drive with Ned Depinet and Jack 4§^hn> presided at yesterday's session, (V'\h was attended by : Charles Scni-ifer, Ben Serkowich, Fred Schwartz, Robert W. Coyne, Leon J. Bamberger, Harry Takiff, Arthur W. Brilant, Sam Rosen, Peter Levathes, George Skouras, Ed Fabian, Harold Rinzler, Harry Brandt, Sjam Shain, Phillip Hailing and George Xanthaky, the latter executive director of the Greek War Relief Appeal. Snyder Moving Here Cleveland, March 3. — Robert Snyder, Film Classics branch manager here for three years, left for New York at the weekend to become assistant to Albert Dezel, head of Albert Dezel Roadshow Attractions, which is being reorganized. Chicago Interests ( Continued from page 1 ) vested more than $1,000,000 in the company which will "invade" Hollywood as a production unit. Sonja Henie and Dan Duryea have been signed to co-star in one of the company's first pictures, and William A. Wellman has been contracted to direct its initial venture, "Moonrise." Other Chicagoans who have invested in the new company include the following : Maurice A. Horner, Jr., retired head of Durand McNeil, wholesale grocers; David M. Saltiel, banker; Richard Rosenwald, financier; Lee Heiman, head of Heiman and Co., textiles ; David Copeland, director of General Transportation Corp. ; David N. Goldenson, stock broker ; Louis B. Kuppenheimer, clothing manufacturer ; Maxwell Abbell, head of an office building-hotel syndicate ; David Saul Klafter, architect; Peter Torosian, rubber manufacturer ; Harry Hoffman, head of J. S. Hoffman Co., and Henry Hart, head of Hart, Schaffner and Marx. A. Ronald Button, Los Angeles attorney, is secretary of the company, which has been incorporated at Sacramento, Cal. Vladimir Pozner, who wrote "The Dark Mirror," has been signed to write "Moonrise". The new company will also produce "The Loop," an original about Chicago, which is being written by Jay Dratler, and "Gainesville, USA" which will be written by Lynn Riggs. In addition to Wellman, other directors signed include E. H. Griffith, Arthur Lubin and John Rawlins. Production manager for the unit in Hollywood is Ben Hirsch. No releasing arrangements have been made as yet with any distributor, although negotiations are now underway. Abe Lastfogel of the William Morris Agency, is supervising all talent deals being negotiated by the company. Although unconfirmed, it is reported that the Grant organization has offered James Stewart $335,000 to direct and star in "Moonrise," which will be adapted from the book by Chicagoan Theodore Strauss: