Motion Picture Daily (Jan-Mar 1950)

FYLE COPT 'MOTION PICTURE DAILY NO. 42 NEW YORK, U. S. A., FRIDAY, MARCH 3, 1950 TEN CENTS 1,080,000 Music Trust Suit Names 5 Film Firm Affiliates Said to be a Monopoly Warner, Loew's, Paramount, 20th Century-Fox and Universal are named defendants in a $1,080,000 triple-damage anti-trust suit filed in U. S. District Court here yesterday by Edwin H. Morris Music Co. The charge is violation of the Sherman and Clayton Acts in alleged monopolization of the music publishing industry. The following music companies were cited in the complaint as being affiliates of the defendants in the alleged "combination and conspiracy in restraint of trade:" Leo Feist, Inc., M. Witmark and Sons, Remick Music, Robbins Music, Harms, Inc., Miller Music, Harry Warren Music, New World Music, Atlas Music, Shubert Music Publishing, Advanced Music Corp., Paramount Music Corp., Famous Music and Movietone Music Corp. Separate complaints seek additional judgments of $450,000 from Warners (Continued on page 7) Wolf son to Preside At Forum of 20th Showmanship Meet Mitchell Wolfson of the Wometco Circuit will preside at the open-forum discussions of showmanship problems at next week's 20th Century-Fox showmanship meeting in Chicago. Wolfson will be moderator during the forum, which is scheduled for Thursday, when discussions planning ways and means to attract greater theatre attendance will be held. The day's activities will see the par (Continued on page 10) Arnall Accepts Bid To Anglo-US Parley Hollywood, March 2— Ellis Arnall, president of the Society of Independent Motion Picture Producers, accepted Motion Picture Association of America's president Eric Johnston's invitation to join him in London conferences on the Anglo-U. S. remittance pact today by telephone. TO A Launches Sweeping Theatres TV Exploration Selznick Injunction Vs. Korda Denied Federal Judge Irving Kaufman yesterday denied the David O. Selznick motion for a temporary injunction to restrain Sir Alexander Korda from releasing the latter's" "Gone to Earth," starring Jennifer Jones, in its present form in the Eastern Hemisphere. The stay obtained by Selznick in his running dispute with Korda over distribution arrangements for the picture and Korda's "The Third Man" was vacated by the court and the matter was referred to Robert P. Patterson, as arbitrator of the dispute, for determination along with other issues involved. First Para. Dividend Set First quarterly dividend of the new Paramount Pictures Corp. was declared at a meeting of the board of directors here yesterday in the amount of 50 cents per share on the common stock, payable on March 29 to stockholders of record on March 16. A dividend in the same amount was declared recently by United Paramount Theatres. Paramount Pictures president Barney Balaban disclosed that estimated earnings for the first quarter will be published early in May, that an estimate at this time would be impossible (Continued on page 7) Breen Says Burstyn 'Thief Charge False The statement issued Wednesday by Joseph Burstyn indicating that "The Bicycle Thief" was "banned" by the Production Code Administration as part of an attempt to "sabotage" foreign pictures in the U. S. is "utterly false," Joseph I. Breen, director of the industry's system of self-regulation, has declared, according to a statement issued here yesterday by the Motion Picture Association of America. Breen pointed out that his group (Continued on page 7) Before adjournment yesterday of Theatre Owners of America's twoday executive committee meeting here, the organization's leaders made arrangements for a sweeping exploration of the problems of theatre television. The exploration will entail (1) immediate conferences with producers and distributors for a frank appraisal of the relationship between television and the motion picture industry, (2) broad research into the programming, engineering and economics of theatre video, and (3) coordination and "proper balancing" of the theatre television efforts embodied in the 25 petitions submitted by TOA members (Continued on page 10) CompoOkayed By SIMPP Hollywood, March 2. — The Society of Independent Motion Picture Producers ratified membership in the Council of Motion Picture Organizations this afternoon at a meeting presided over by president Ellis Arnall, who also canvassed the foreign situation,_ particularly the British, in preparation for "exploratory discussions" in London later this month. The resolution on COMPO adopted at today's meeting reads : "Be it resolved that SIMPP affiliates with the newly-formed COMPO and approves the effectuation of the organization with the specific understanding that SIMPP in no way obligates itself for financial support or outlay, and that (Continued on page 10) Hughes' Majority on New RKO Board Hollywood, March 2. — Election of A. D. Simpson and Thomas A. Slack to the RKO board of directors here yesterday, as nominees of Howard Hughes, gives the latter majority representation on the board for the first time since he acquired a controlling interest in the company over a year ago. Simpson and Slack, with Hughes and his associate, Noah Dietrich, now represent four Hughes' votes on a board of seven members. Ned E. Depinet, RKO president, represents a neutral management vote, while L. Lawrence Green and Frederick L. Ehrman, the remaining members of (Continued on page 7) Practice Code Talks Not Due Prior to '51 TOA Convention to Get Proposals for Approval Industry-wide conferences looking to the establishment of a fair trade practices code will be held next December at the earliest, but more likely will not be initiated before 1951, it was brought out yesterday following the final session of the twoday meeting here of the Theatre Owners of America's executive committee. The code proposals being drafted by the TOA distributor-exhibitor relations committee, headed by Walter Reade, Jr., will be submitted to the next TOA annual convention for approval, and will not be subject to approval by the organization's executive committee alone, as was planned originally. The expected magnitude of the proposals and the fact that they will intimately affect the operations of the individual theatre owner have caused the executive committee to decide on convention ratification, it was reported. The convention is slated (Continued on page 10) TOAExpandsPlans For Organization Of New Territories A new Theatre Owners of America organization committee has been set up by the TOA executive committee, it was disclosed here yesterday by executive director Gael Sullivan following adjournment of the two-day meeting of the TOA leaders at the Hotel Astor. The new committee's purpose will be to "strengthen existing units" and establish units in areas that have (Continued on page 10) MGM Selling Away From S hour as Here Unable to agree on film terms, M-G-M is selling away from the Skouras circuit in the Metropolitan area. First picture being sold away from Skouras to subsequent neighborhood runs is "On the Town." The circuit's theatres are filling in with a double bill headed by "Siren of Atlantis."