Motion Picture Daily (Oct-Dec 1948)

t (Friday, October 15, 1948 Motion Picture Daily 5 SMPE Will Stress I Theatre Television ttf Leaders in the field of large-screen if n;elevision development for the motion } loicture industry will reveal .and disi suss major advances in research and i '.equipment engineering during the past If, tew months at the 64th semi-annual (convention of the Society of Motion tiEkture Engineers, to be held at the ~=Vl Statler in Washington, Oct. 25— "it is announced by Loren L. Ryder, SMPE president. )t| Papers on the subject have been I concentrated on the opening session, mext Monday afternoon. They include : "Effects of Television on Motion Picture Theatre Attendance," by Ralph B. Austrian; a report on the showing of television pictures of the LouisWalcott championship fight before a regular paying audience in Philadelphia's Fox Theatre last June, by Roy Wilcox of RCA Victor, and H. J. 'Schafly of 20th Century-Fox; a discussion of Paramount's intermediate film system of theatre television, by Richard Hodgson of Paramount Pictures; "Equipment for Television Photography," by Ralph V. Little, Jr., of RCA Victor; a description of a new television recording camera intermittent, by J. M. Wall, and "New Developments in Cadmium-Mercury Lamps for Motion Picture and Television Studio Lighting," by E. W. Beggs of the Westinghouse Lamp Co. Cowdin Absolved (Continued from page 1) Judge Medina ruled, did not violate Sec. 16-B of the Securities and Exchange Commission Act of_ 1934, as alleged, since the stock which Truncale said Cowdin had acquired illegally was presented by the latter to charitable institutions as gifts and, hence, no profit accrued to Cowdin. Cowdin was the second U-I executive to be absolved of the charges, a previous dismissal having been won by vice-president and general counsel Charles Prutzman. Attorneys for the remaining plaintiffs, Nate Blumberg, William A. Scully and Clifford Work, are reported to be preparing motions for dismissal, for filing shortly. Hugh Pickering of the law firm of Mudge, Stern, Williams and Tucker, was counsel for Cowdin. Youngstein Names 9 To AM PA Committees Max E. Youngstein, president of the Associated Motion Picture Advertisers, here, has appointed chairmen and co-chairmen of six committees for AMPA, as follows : Charles Alicoate, Jack Kopstein, Ray Gallagher, Abe Dash, relief fund committee; Gordon White, delinquents and dues committee ; Harry Blair, publicity ; Chet Friedman, tickets ; Lige Brien, special events, and Herman Schlier, entertainment. 60-Day Extension in SIMPP Detroit Suit Detroit, Oct. 14. — Time for filing answers to the anti-trust action filed some time ago by the Society of Independent Motion Picture Producers against United Detroit Theatres and Cooperative Theatres has been extended 60 days in Federal District Court here. Defense lawyers need that much additional time, they told the court. Eyssell Denounces (Continued from page 1) and in a concluding note took issue with those "prophets of gloom" who predict that the future is grim. Eyssell paid tribute to Frank Newman who gave him his first important position as treasurer of the Newman Theatre, and in a concluding note took issue with those "prophets of gloom" who predict that the future is grim. "The future belongs to those who know their business, who have courage, who do not expect to get something for nothing, and who realize that they must serve their community and their country," he declared. 'Survived Other Crises': Eyssell "We are facing a crisis," Eyssell admitted. "But we have faced crises before. We once had to cope with the transition from silent films to sound. We have had to meet the competition of radio. In their time, these were great challenges and they were accompanied by the same predictions of gloom and pessimism that we keep hearing. I only ask you to remember that we not only survived them but grew bigger and better. "We are fighting for our lives," he continued. "The fact is that under our system of free enterprise every business every day is fighting for its life. It is that competition which gives our economy the vitality that cannot be found in the controlled and planned economies of totalitarianism." Chairman of the dinner committee was Elmer C. Rhoden. Ben Shlyen, Arthur H. Cole and Senn Lawler were co-chairmen. Committee members included Barney Allis, George Baker, R. R. Biechele, Nathan Cohen, M. A. Cohn, James Castle, Bernie Evans, Sy Friedman, Carl Gebert, Barney Joffee, Finton Jones, Landon Laird, James Lewis, Frank Plumlee, Roy Roberts, Clarence Schultz, Felix Snow, William Tr'uog, Don Walker and Robert Withers. Some 250 Reservations Made Approximately 250 reservations had been made. Ed Sullivan, New York columnist and radio commentator, was master-of-ceremonies. Walter Pidgeon, M-G-M star, represented the studios. Among those on the reservation list were the following from New York : Ned E. Depinet, Harry Michalson, William F. Rodgers, Spyros P. Skouras, Herman Robbins, George F. Dembow, John J. O'Connor, E. T. Gomersall, Maurice Bergman, Charles M. Reagan, and from other points : Charles P. Skouras, Los Angeles ; Frank Newman, Seattle ; George A. Smith, Los Angeles ; George P. Giroux, Hollywood ; H. R. Beiersdorf, Dallas ; Pat McGee, Denver ; John Meinardi and Jim Castle, St. Louis ; Ralph Ayers and E. L. Roberts, Lincoln, Neb.; R. J. O'Donnell, Dallas; Tom Edwards, Farmington, Mo., and R. R. Winship, Phillipsburg, Kans. Also present were many executives from Fox Midwest and Durwood and Commonwealth Theatres ; district and branch managers of film companies, prominent Kansas City businessmen, personal friends of Eyssell, and civic officials. Kaye Film Premiere Samuel Goldwyn's "A Star Is Born," starring Danny Kaye and Virginia Mayo, will have its world premiere at the Astor here on Tuesday, with a contingent of stars, headed by Hugh Herbert, on hand. Six Films Rated 'B' As Legion Reviews 11 Eleven more pictures have been •-ated by the National Legion of Decency, with six receiving "B" ratings. In A-I are Columbia's "Rusty Leads the Way," and Republic's "Son of Rusty." In A-II are 20th CenturyFox's "Bungalow 13," UniversalInternational's "Rogues' Regiment" and 20th Century-Fox's "Unfaithfully Yours." Rated "B" are Artkino's "Die Fledermaus," Eagle-Lion's "The Red Shoes," 20th Century-Fox's "Road House," RKO Radio's "A Song Is Born," Films International's "Symphony Pastorale," and M-G-M's "The Three Musketeers." Hit Gov't Order (Continued from page 1) New York three-judge expediting court's approval of postponement to Nov. 8 of the new hearings in the case actually constituted a reversal of a decision by a senior jurist. The defendants' bid for the postponement was rejected on Oct. 7 when they addressed themselves to Circuit Court Judge Learned Hand in accordance with judicial procedure. Industry opinion is that the switch might be attributed to a direct request from the Department of Justice for more time to explore consent decree proposals. It is said that Attorney General Tom Clark sanctioned the new date for the hearing after Judge Learned Hand had decided against the request. New WB-Wyman Pact Boston, Oct. 14. — Jane Wyman has been signed to a 10-year contract by Warner. The actress was here on a personal appearance tour. Five Are Started And Five Finished Hollywood, Oct. 14. — There was no change in the production index, which still remains at 27. Five new films were started while an equal number were completed. Shooting started, on "Hidden Danger," Monogram; "The Clay Pigeon," RKO Radio; "The Beautitul Blonde from Bashful Bend," 20th Century-Fox; "The Amboy Dukes," Universal International ; "Colorado Territory," Warner. Shooting finished on "Make Believe Ballroom" and "Blondie's Big Deal," Columbia; "Reign of Terror" (Wanger), and "An Old Fashioned Girl" (Equity), Eagle-Lion; "Renegades of Sonora," Republic. TOA To Decide (Continued from page 1) bitration Association in the scheme of things. Arbitration was suggested as a final resort if exhibitor-distributor differences could not be settled by an appeal board. Sullivan indicated, however, that feeling among TOA leaders is that the expense that goes with arbitration could be prohibitive ; hence, it is regarded as unlikely that the TOA board will probe very deeply into the arbitration angle. Sullivan said that some TOA leaders have expressed skepticism over the workability of an appeal board, largely on the ground that it could be difficult to find exhibitor and distributor appeal board representatives who would be sufficiently free of bias in favor of their own factions. He said a final decision on that score, however, would have to be worked out by the TOA executive board. And PARAMOUNT Preview Audiences Everywhere Have Elected It "The Funniest Hit In Years"