Motion Picture Daily (Jul-Sep 1948)

2 Motion Picture Daily Tuesday, September 7, 1948 Personal Mention WALTER WANGER returned to the Coast from New York at the weekend. • Harold Marshall, M-G-M exploitation representative in the Indianapolis territory, has resigned, effective Sept. 11. His activities will be absorbed by J. E. Watson, Cincinnati exploiteer. • Louis Blumberg, assistant sales manager of Prestige Pictures, and Fred Meyers, Eastern division sales manager of Universal Pictures, are on a sales trip to Albany, N. Y., and Cooperstown. • Arthur Greenblatt, Screen Guild Eastern sales manager, is in Hollywood for conferences with Robert L. Lippert, president and Francis A. Bateman, general sales manager. He returns to New York this week. • Paul N. Lazarus, Jr., United Artists executive assistant to the president, will return here today from Chicago and Milwaukee. • John Healy, assistant to George Bowser, Fox West Coast general manager, and Mrs. Healy, are the parents of a nine-and-a-half-pound Edward Finney, Screen Guild producer, and Mrs. Finney are the parents of a new six-and-a-half-pound daughter. J. D. Trop left here for Hollywood yesterday for production conferences. AFM, Independents Meet Again Today Hollywood, Sept. 6. — Another negotiating session between representatives of the American Federation of Musicians and independent producers for a new contract to cover studio musicians will be held tomorrow afternoon at Society of Independent Motion Picture Producers headquarters here. The first session was adjourned shortly after it was convened on Friday when it appeared that the talks could not be concluded at the one session. Reade Opens Drive-In After several delays due to adverse weather conditions, the Walter Reade Drive-In Theatre No. 1, near Woodbridge, N. J., was opened last Saturday night. It is the first drive-in in Middlesex County and one of the largest in the East, having an initial capacity of 950 cars. Gets Loew's Boston Post Boston, Sept. 6. — James L. Shanahan has been appointed advertising and publicity director of Loew's Boston theatres by Charles E. Kurtzman, Loew's Northeastern division manager. Shanahan succeeds the late Joe A. Di Pesa. Rathvon Sells Stock {Continued from page 1) versal common in 16 separate transactions during July, dropping his holdings to 5,307 shares. Preston Davie sold 200 shares of Universal common. At Monogram, W. Ray Johnston continued to sell heavily, disposing of 2,000 shares on Aug. 8, leaving him with 2,617 shares. The previous month's report showed Johnston sold 8,000 shares. He still holds options for 12,500 shares. Norton V. Ritchey also sold 2,000 shares, leaving him with 3,954. Albert Warner bought 6,500 shares of his firm's $5 par common, boosting his holdings to 434,500 shares. In another announcement stemming from the acquisition of RKO control by Howard Hughes, it was reported that Dore Schary held no Loew's stock when he became an officer of that company. Loew's picked up another 75 shares of Loew's Boston Theatres, $25 par common, increasing its holdings to 123,179 shares. Harry Brandt bought another 100 shares of Trans Lux Corp. common, increasing his personal holdings to 88,665 shares. His wife owns 14,700 shares. Holdings listed by new Trans Lux directors were as follows : Jay Emanuel, 6,000, Lee Shubert, 3,500, personally, while Lee and J. J. Shubert hold another 3,000, and Jacob Starr, 2,000. Warners Sell (Continued from page 1) Milwaukee houses, Warners recently relinquished the Lake, Cleveland, and proposes to withdraw from operation of the Allen in that city, which it has shared with RKO. It disposed of the Warner, New York ; a suburban theatre in New Jersey and has been reported to be interested in giving up several of its Philadelphia houses. Warner Theatres' home office officials could not be reached for comment at the weekend. N. J. Allied, Smith (Continued from page 1) Jersey Allied board is expected to meet in about two weeks. Formal approval by the board would be followed by the appointment by Jersey Allied president Edward Lachman of a grievance committee of six members. Heads Screening Unit Des Moines, Sept. 6. — J. P. Lannan, exhibitor of West Point, Neb., has been appointed chairman of the Allied Independent Theatre Owners of Iowa and Nebraska screening committee by A. C. Myrick, president of the AITO. Others on the committee are Frank Good of Red Oak, la., and Oscar Hanson, Omaha. Open New Drive-In Philadelphia, Sept. 6. — Theatre of Tomorrow, a new drive-in on the Ridge Pike here, opened at the weekend. Operated by Wintner Brothers of Cleveland, it occupies 40 acres and holds about 1,100 cars. Production Index Down Three to 26 Hollywood, Sept. 6. — The production tally stood at 26, dropping three from last week's index. Three new films were launched while six were completed. Shooting started on "Rough Sketch" (Horizon), Columbia; "A Mask for Lucretia," Paramount ; and "Montana," Warner Brothers. Shooting finished on "The Crime Doctor's Diary," Columbia ; "Caught," Enterprise ; "Gunning for Justice," Monogram ; "Last of the Wild Horses" (Lippert), Screen Guild; "Belle Starr's Daughter" (Alson) (formerly "Rose of Cimarron"), 20th Century-Fox; and "The House Across the Street," Warner Brothers. Dembow Drive Meets In Chicago and L.A. National Screen Service regional sales meetings are to be held today in Chicago and Los Angeles to lay plans for the "George Dembow Tribute" drive which is to begin next Monday. Dembow is vice-president in charge of sales. District and branch managers and salesmen will participate in the sessions today, with William Bein acting as captain of the campaign in the East and Ben Ashe captain in the West. Heineman (Continued from page 1) upgrade, Heineman said, adding that he believes Aug. 15 saw the end of the so-called "summer slump." He hesitated to say whether, in his opinion, there stands a possibility that the 10 to 12 per cent drop-off in grosses, which had been evidenced since last Jan. 1, would be compensated for before the end of the year. He did feel, however, that a good part of that slack would be taken up by Dec. 31. E-L, he said, will lease theatres in New York, Boston, Washington, Philadelphia, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco, for "roadshowing" on a "four-wall deal" basis J. Arthur Rank's Technicolor film, "Red Shoes." Top prices will be $1.20 for matinee and $2.40 evenings, Heineman said, indicating that plans are to show the film nowhere at lower admissions for at least a year. In addition to the 17 "top budget" pictures already announced for the next eight months, Heineman said, there will be one "program" picture a month released by E-L. Tax Receipts (Continued from page 1) $5,000,000, or not quite 2.8 per cent. In two months, in fact, 1948 collections exceeded 1947. These were March and June, reflecting box-office business in February and May. Motion picture theatres are generally considered to account for 80 per cent to 85 per cent of the general admission tax collections. Using the 85 per cent figure, and assuming collections are about 20 per cent of the box-office take, 1948 first half grosses were about $765,093,610, compared with $786,686,360 in the first half of last year. Newsreel Parade -Uueen Gov THE 50th anniversary of Queen Wilhelmina and the spy investigations in Washington are highlighted in the current newsreels. Other items include the Greek fighting, sports, fashion and a baby parade. Complete contents follow : MOVIETONE NEWS, No. 71— Queen Wilhelmina feted at end of 50-year Chief communist in U. S. identified bM mer Red. World events: Greek war,' lin plane crash, Lourdes pilgrimage, ernor Green hails national youth month. Sports: Navy, Notre Dame football training. Gen. Eisenhower fishing. NEWS OF THE DAY, No. 201— Excommunist puts finger on mysterious spy chief. Greek rebels routed in Mt. Gramos battle. Navy's Hawaii-to-Chicago flight sets record. Sports: tennis, football. PARAMOUNT NEWS, No. 4^Ship news: celebrities sail aboard the Queen Mary. Tribute to Queen Wilhelmina. Football. UNIVERSAL NEWS, No. 176 — Shanghai fights inflation. Canadian national exposition. Gen. Eisenhower dedicates hospital. Gala Belgium festival. Asbury Park baby parade. Spanish ax-chopping contest. Tiny swimmer takes bow. WARNER PAT HE NEWS, No. 6— Chambers identifies Red spy boss. Latest news from Berlin. Queen Wilhelmina golden jubilee. Tennis. Coats in the news. Great Americans: Washington's farewell address. NEW YORK THEATRES —RADIO CITY MUSIC HALL — Rockefeller Center "A DATE WITH JUDY" Wallace BEERY . Jane POWELL 'Elizabeth TAYLOR . Carmen MIRANDA! Xavler CUGAT . Robert STACK A Metro-Goldwvn-Mayer Picture SPECTACULAR STAGE PRESENTATION ROY DEI RUTH'S BABE RUTH STORY Coft49eriormooc«»*Pop WILLIAM CLAIM Barbara Stanwyck Burt Lancaster SORRY, WRONG NUMBER A Paramount Release ROSALIND RUSSELL in "THE VELVET TOUCH" A FREDERICK BRISSON PRODUCTION Released through RKO B'way & 49th St. RIV0LI. MOTION PICTURE DAILY, Martin Quigley, Editor-in-Chief and Publisher; Sherwin Kane, Editor; Martin Quigley, Jr., Associate Editor. Published daily, except Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, by Quigley Publishing Company, Inc., 1270 Sixth Avenue, Rockefeller Center, New York 20, N. Y. Telephone Circle 7-3100. Cable address: "Quigpubco, New York." Martin Quigley, President; Red Kann, Vice-President; Martin Quigley, Jr., Vice-President; Theo J. 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