Motion Picture Daily (Apr-Jun 1948)

FIRST MOTION PICTURE MU-UIUlc IN If 4 11 FN AA ana NEWS JLLrVl .LI Impartial VCj^3. NO. 74 NEW YORK, U. S. A., FRIDAY, APRIL 16, 1948 TEN CENTS Foundation Trustees to Meet May 11 Progress of Committees Reported by Richards Program and finance reports stemming from five months of studying and planning by several Motion Picture Foundation committees and sub-committees will be made on May 11 and 12 when the MPF board of trustees holds its second meeting. E. V. Richards, Jr.. Foundation president, yesterday announced that the meeting will be held at the Hotel Astor here. The trustees held their first organizational meeting here early in December. Richards said the MPF finance committee will meet here on May 10 and the program-and-scope committee will meet the following day before general sessions get under way. He {Continued on page 3) Loew's 28-Week Net Down to $3,886,745 Net profit of $3,886,745, or 75 cents per common share, after Federal taxes and payment of minority interests' share, was reported here yesterday by Loew's, Inc., for the 28 weeks ended March 11, 1948. This compares with $8,596,779, or $1.67 per share, for the 28 weeks ended March 13, 1947. Taxes were $2,742,694 and minority iftterests' share was $477,995 for the 28 weeks, against $5,525,016 and $442,008, respectively, for the corresponding period one year ago. For the 16 weeks ended March 11, 1948, gross sales and operating revenues rose to an estimated $59,127,000, over the $56,655,000 in the corresponding period last year. Labor Costs Are Not High: Golden Although Hollywood studio labor costs have risen in recent years, they are but an insignificant part of the over-all rise in production expenses, independent producer Edward A. Golden declared here yesterday. He admitted that his view is quite different from that of almost every other producer, but he cited a few figures to support his contention. Labor, Golden said, does not get (Continued on page 3) 20 Variety Clubs Pledge $994,000 to '48 Charities By RED KANN Miami Beach, April 15. — With Tent No. 17 of Dallas in the vanguard with a $150,000 pledge, 20 Variety Club tents today committed themselves to raise an aggregate of $994,000 for charity this year. Thirteen others will declare themselves tomorrow when international officers, not satisfied with today's progress, are expected to hypo each tent's commitment into a higher bracket. Tent No. 5, Detroit, was hard on Dallas' heels with $130,000. Tent No. 12, Minneapolis, and Tent No. 13, (Continued on page 3) 4 More Percentage Suits Are Filed Paramount, Warner, Big U Film Exchange (Universal) and Columbia have started separate percentage-payment actions in New York Supreme Court against Sidney Cohen, Philip Eisenberg, Rhinehook Theatres and Millerton Amusement Corp. Theatres involved are the Starr, in Rhinebeck ; Lyceum, Red Hook ; Pine Plains, Pine Plains ; Millerton, Millerton, all in New York, and the Stuart, Lakeville, Conn. Paramount claims damages of $25,000; Warner, $15,000; Big U. $5,000, and Columbia, $5,000. Op January 30, Loew's and RKO Radio instituted similar actions in Federal Court against the same defendants. Lawson Loses One More Trial Round Washington, April 15. — Attorneys for screen writer John Howard Lawson today were defeated in effortsto enlist the aid of testimony by motion picture industry executives in his behalf. Justice Edward M. Curran ruled finally that the House Un-American (Continued on page 3) Herzog Elected a Cinecolor Executive Hollywood, April 15. — Karl Herzog, former vice-president and treasurer of Cinecolor and Film Classics, was elected Cinecolor executive vicepresident today at a special meeting of the company's board. The action makes Cinecolor and Film Classics executive personnel identical. Holds Video, Like Juke Box, Tax Free Washington, April 15. — Internal Revenue Bureau ruled today that bars and other public places with television are exempt from the 20 per cent cabaret tax unless they permit dancing, singing or other entertainment. Bars and other places showing motion pictures are subject to the cabaret tax. Officials said, "A line has to be drawn somewhere and television is closer to the radiojuke box class than to the motion picture class." Commons Riled at UK Tax Peace 'Leak' London, April 15. — Resentment seethed in the House of Commons today over what was described as premature, unauthorized disclosure in America of the British film tax agreement details. British Board of Trade president Harold Wilson, who was barraged with questions by opposition members of Commons, admitted that there was a private leak of information to America, but disclaimed responsibility for it. Wilson promised Commons "that the text of the agreement will be published in full immediately upon finalization of details. He refused to comply with an opposition proposal that publication be made now since every (Continued on page 3) French May Relax Film Dubbing Rule Washington, April 15. — An agreement is reported near with French officials on a relaxation of France's "two-year dubbing rule." U. S. Government and film industry officials have insisted that this and other concessions must be made before a French request to reopen the Blum-Byrnes agreement is acceded to. Under the dubbing rule, France has in effect barred the showing of American films older than two years. Americans, it is reported, seek a relaxation of the rule to permit a limited number of older films to be (Continued on page 3) Non-Taxable Divestiture Sales Urged Defendants Ask Congress Pass Protective Measure By CHARLES L. FRANKE The theatre-owning distributors, allowing for possible U. S. Supreme Court affirmation of the lower court's theatre divestiture ruling in the industry anti-trust suit, are sharpening their efforts to persuade Congress that proposed legislation dealing with tax administration should include tax exemption for forced sale of a theatre when a seller reinvests the proceeds in new theatre properties. The New York Federal Court ruled that if a distributor owns less than 95 per cent interest in a theatre and more than five per cent, it must acquire the maximum or dispose of all but five per cent or divest itself of the theatre. The transaction would be taxable on a number of counts. The theatre-owning trust suit de(Continued on page 2) 20th Starts Loop Selling on Bids Chicago, April 15. — As a further step in establishing a new selling policy under the Jackson Park decree, 20th-Fox is offering two films for first-run Loop theatres in open competitive bidding. The pictures are "Sitting Pretty," booked into the B. and K. Chicago Theatre for April 29, and "Fury of Furnace Creek," date not set. It is understood the company has not established a fixed policy on all films under the new' plan. Metro is the only other distributor selling films in the Loop on a bidding basis. Osserman, Havas and Clarke Are Promoted Personnel changes in RKO Radio foreign distribution put Jack Osserman in charge of home office control of Latin American operations, in addition to other duties. He is replaced by Michael Havas as supervisor in Latin America. Also, Ned Clarke, who formerly handled Latin America, will assume similar duties in the Far East. Jack Kennedy is assuming a new post in charge of non-theatrical and transportation bookings, both 35mm and 16mm.