Motion Picture Daily (Apr-Jun 1948)

FIRST IN FILM NEWS MOTION PICTURE DAILY VOJ_4L NO. 72 NEW YORK, U.S.A., WEDNESDAY, APRIL 14, 1948 TEN CENTS Grosses Firm At lst-Runs In Key Cities $15,202 Weekly Average For 168 U.S. Situations Theatre grosses remained firm last month despite inclement weather in many sections, according to reports on some 168 key situations received from Motion Picture Daily field correspondents. Business boomed during Easter holiday week. Weekly average gross per theatre in March was $15,202, a slight rise over the previous month's $15,010. Average for March, 1947, however, was $16,587. Appearing most often as the boxoffice leader in reports for last month was "The Bishop's Wife," followed closely by the Academy Award winning "Gentleman's Agreement." "Call Northside 777" and "Three (Continued on page 4) Bernhard Is Named Cinecolor President Hollywood, April 13. — Cinecolor president William T. Crespinel has resigned, effective May 15, for semiretirement, although remaining as a board member. Film Classics president Joseph Bernhard will succeed Crespinel in the Cinecolor presidency. Crespinel, who established the company in 1932, first indicated a wish to retire one year ago on the 40th anniversary of his entrance into the color field. Film Classics and Cinecolor are affiliated. Variety Clubs 'In Pink' Of Financial Condition By RED KANN Miami Beach, April 13. — Variety Clubs International are in the "finest condition" in their history and on Jan. 1 had not a single delinquent among its 33 widely-flung tents. This was the highlight of the year's review submitted at the first open business session of the annual convention at the Roney Plaza today by William McCraw, executive director. Marc Wolf, who handles financial matters, backed up McCraw by placing total assets at $124,207 and obligations at zero. Assets include $51,500 in Government bonds held in the "Variety Girl" account as part of the benefits accruing to the organization under its deal with Paramount, and an (Continued on page 4) 'Work Right' Law Is Needed: DeMille Eyssell Is Host To J. Arthur Rank J. Arthur Rank was honor guest at a luncheon given by G. S. Eyssell, president and managing director of Radio City Music Hall, in the theatre's studio apartment, here, yesterday. Others present included Hugh S. Robertson, Barton . P. Turnbull, Thomas P. Debevoise, Vanderbilt Webb and Frank Corcoran of Rockefeller Center, Inc. ; Nate J. Blumberg, J. Cheever Cowdin, Matthew Fox, John J. O'Connor and Joseph Seidelman of Universal-International ; Robert Benjamin and Jock Lawrence of the J. Arthur Rank Organization, and Russell V. Downing of the Music Hall. Cecil B. DeMille, scheduled to testify on "the right to work" before the House Labor Committee in Washington on May 11, declared here yesterday that under the American form of government, an individual's right to work is his own and does not belong to private groups. No worker, he maintained, should have to pay a union for "the right to work." DeMille, who is visiting from the Coast, said he will endeavor to persuade the House that there is need for legislation to guarantee the right to work, just as there is need for legislation to guarantee the right to strike. Control of unions over workers, he held, is a matter that needs to be "straightened out" by Congress. Pending before the U. S. Supreme Court is DeMille's appeal for a reversal of a lower court decision upholding the American Federation of Radio Artists' right to expel him for failure to pay a $1 assessment. DeMille said he believes there is (Continued on page 4) Lawson Appeal for New Judge Denied Washington, April 13. — Counsel for screen writer John Howard Lawson failed again today in an attempt to obtain a new judge for his trial on charges of contempt of Congress. The U. S. Court of Appeals ruled unanimously against a petition to disqualify Justice Edward M. Curran on grounds of bias and prejudice. De(Continued on page 4) Connors Into Ad Film Distribution Miami Beach, April 13. — Tom Connors has entered national distribution of advertising reels and already is closing deals with theatremen at the rate of $8.50 to $10 per 1,000 paid admissions on "New Tobacco Land," one-reeler in color produced by Louis De Rochemont. The film traces the planting of tobacco leaf through various stages ending with its packaging. It carries no sponsorship but is understood to show the cigarettes finally packed to be Chesterfields. Connors is endeavoring to develop a program of six or seven shorts annually, covering various industries, and is prepared to pay exhibitors on the basis of guaranteed screen circulation. He will show his first subject to Variety Club members here Thursday and hopes to interest a number of exhibitor members of Variety Interna(Continued on page 2) 20th Plans Broad UK Reorganization London, April 13. — Spyros P. Skouras, 20th Century-Fox president, will fly back to New York on Saturday, and is due to return here in three weeks when what are described as far-reaching decisions will be made in connection with 20th-Fox reorganization and production plans here. Both Skouras and 20th-Fox International president Murray Silverstone, will depart.for Paris tomorrow. The latter will return here for a further review of the company's British set-up. The two have applied for a government license to rebuild the Wembley Studio, damaged by bombs during the war. 20% Tax Hurts Industry and Public: Colmer Congressman Points to Decline in Attendance Washington, 'April 13. — Rep. William M. Colmer (D., Miss.) warned the House today that the high 20 per cent admission tax is not only hurting the taxpayer but "is in a position to destroy the industry furnishing the amusement." Local theatres have shown a steady decline in attendance, Colmer said, and it is conceded by most people who have studied the situation that many of modest means stay away from the movies because they simply cannot bear the extra cost of the tax." Colmer is one of many Congressmen who have introduced bills to return the tax to the pre-war 10 per cent. Action by the Ways and Means Committee to do this, however, is considered most unlikely. The Mississippi Democrat said that by comparison with other excises, the rate of the admission tax is "extreme (Continued on page 4) Charges U. K. Film Critics Are 'Bribed' London, April 13. — The Critics Circle here has demanded a full investigation of charges that bribes from producers have been accepted by certain film critics on national newspapers. The charges were made by R. J. Minney, former newspaper man, now a producer who has been associated with Maurice Ostrer, before the (Continued on page 4) MGM to Extend Its SlidingScale Plan M-G-M sales policy will call for more intensive and extended use of the company's sliding-scale plan, William F. Rodgers, Loew's vice-president and general sales manager, said here yesterdav. The decision was based on a broad study of customer relations recently (Continued on page 4) MGM To Distribute Roach Streamliners M-G-M has concluded a deal for distribution of six Hal Roach streamliners during the next year, William F. Rodgers, Loew vice-president and general sales manager, announced here yesterday. Four of the six will be in color and the first, "The Little Circus," will be released in October. The streamliners will fill a program need occasioned by the increasing number of features of more than average length, Rodgers believes. Bookings of streamliners with such features proved successful on the Loew circuit, it was stated.