Motion Picture Daily (Apr-Jun 1948)

63. NO. 125 MOTION PICTURE DAILY NEW YORK, U.S.A., TUESDAY, JUNE 29, 1948 TEN CENTS 20th-Fox Set To Expand Its Conciliation Smith to Consider All Exhibitor Bids for Plan Twentieth Century-Fox is ready and willing to consider expanding its new conciliation plan, which had its origin in Minneapolis last week in a joint effort with North Central Allied, to any territory which wants it, Andrew W. Smith, Jr., 20thFox general sales manager, declares. At the same time, Smith said he is convinced the program will go a long way toward resolving exhibitor-distributor issues out of court. "It has a good chance of succeeding," he said. Equally optimistic is Benjamin N. Berger, president of the Allied unit, which, in carrying out its part of the program, has appointed a three-man grievance committee to hear com {Continued on page 6) Lippert Succeeds Jones in SGP Post Hollywood, June 28. — Screen Guild Productions president John J. Jones today announced his resignation from that post to devote himself henceforth to his Chicago exhibition interests, retaining the Chicago and Indianapolis SGP franchises and membership on the SGP board. Executive vice-president Robert L. Lippert succeeds Jones in the presidency ; second vice-president Arthur {Continued on page 6) Delaware Clearance Is Under Review In accordance with the practice of the defendants in the Paramount antitrust case, of making clearance adjustment wherever called for under provisions of the U. S. Supreme Court decision, major distributors are reviewing or have reviewed the clearance situation in Wilmington, Del. Up to now the city has enjoyed clear {Continucd on page 6) UJA Testimonial to Mayer Here Tonight Hundreds from all branches of the amusement industry will gather at the Hotel Astor here this evening to pay tribute to Louis B. Mayer, M-G-M production head, in conjunction with the 1948 campaign of the amusement division of the United Jewish Appeal of Greater New York. Co-chairmen of the testimonial are Barney Balaban, S. H. Fabian and Emil Friedlander. Industry attorney Louis Nizer will be toastmaster. lst-Runs Pick Up on B'way A number of Broadway first-runs are enjoying improved business this week. Three factors are said to account for the spurt : rainy weather, an influx of out-of-towners for the Louis-Walcott bout and vacations and school holidays. However, not all first-runs have picked up. The Roxy, with "Give My Regards to Broadway" and a stage bill topped by an ice show, is heading for its biggest gross in weeks. On the basis of $105,000 taken in during the first five days, plus an extra day of the ice show, the new Roxy program's first {Continued on page 6) To Scold, Not Sue, Para, in Video Row The 18-station television pool which shared the expense of covering the Republican convention in Philadelphia last week has decided against taking legal action over Paramount Television Productions' pickup of Gov. Dewey's acceptance speech and reproducing it on the Paramount Theatre screen here without authorization. The Paramount action being "an accomplished fact," National Broad casting's legal department is said to have advised against a suit since damages necessarily would be involved and the likelihood of a favorable decision is not too strong. Lazarus Will Assist Sears Paul N. Lazarus, Jr., director of advertising-publicity of United Artists since 1943, has been named executive assistant to UA president Gradwell L. Sears. The post is a newly created one, to provide a more effective liaison between the UA president and the sales, advertising and administration policies of the company. Lazarus, 35, has been in the industry since 1933, when he joined Warner Brothers following his graduation from Cornell. In 10 years with that company he rose from an assistantship {Continued on page 6) Paul Lazarus, Jr. 20th's 2nd Quarter Seen Ending Deficit The high level of 20th-Fox business recorded in the "Andy Smith Month" campaign during June will result in a second-quarter revenue that will eliminate a deficit in the first three months of the year, it is understood. The showing during the month is said to have made it possible for the company to earn for the second quarter of the year an amount representative of the highest first six months' {Continued on page 6) Paramount Frees 8 In Brandt Action Paramount has asked permission to eliminate eight defendants from its $563,265 percentage action against Brandt Theatres and some 160 other exhibitors and officers of exhibitor corporations and has sought to replace these with eight new defendants.. The distributor's attorneys, Phillips, Nizer, Benjamin and Krim, moved in New York Supreme Court yesterday {Continued on page 6) US Expects a Report on UK QuotaThisWk. Will 'Jiggle' London If None Is Forthcoming Washington, June 28. — The State Department hopes to get its report on the British screen quota revision from its London Embassy sometime this week, but all indications are that quite a bit of time will lapse after that before a decision is made on whether the Department will make a formal protest or ask Great Britain to enter negotiations. . "We hope to get something later this week," one Department official said. "If we don't have a report by Wednesday, we'll probably jiggle London's memory. But after that we'll just let things take their course. When you discuss spiritual violations you move very carefully. It'll be some time before we decide." This official indicated that a formal State Department answer to Motion Picture Association of America president Eric Johnston's protest letter will {Continued on page 8) Cole to Quit Top Texas Allied Post Dallas, June 28. — Allied Theatre Owners of Texas directors were called into special meeting by president H. A. Cole to hear Cole disclose that he would no longer serve as head of the unit following the next annual convention, set for November 1-2. Cole told the directors that the unit has been a one-man affair too long, {Continued on page 6) Exhibitors Told to Claim Video Rights West End, N. J., June 28.— Exhibitors must assert their rights _ to television or they will be breaking their backs, Paul Raibourn, Paramount vice-president in charge of television, told the first day of the 29th annual convention of Allied of New {Continued on page 6) WIPS m VtlM #i