Motion Picture Daily (Oct-Dec 1950)

4 MOTION PICTURE DAILY Thursday, October 5, 1950 Ed Wynn on TV: 'Radio Killed' Films Boston, Oct. 4.— Ed Wynn, appearing on a television program, sponsored by Motorola Television Corp., over the National Broadcasting Co. network tonight, eight P. M. to nine P. M., opened his show with a short skit entitled, "My Nifty Years in Show Business." In the skit, Wynn made the following statement, "Radio killed the motion pictures." This comes right after the Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin incident. Reviews "State Secret" (Columbia) DOUGLAS FAIRBANKS, JR., is back again in a dashing melodrama that happily does not fall into a stereotyped pattern. "State Secret" presents him as an American surgeon who is invited to an anonymous, dictatorcontrolled country to receive a medical award. What follows for Fairbanks is a nightmare of entrapment. It gives the kind of exciting entertainment that registers at the box-office. . When Fairbanks arrives in the police state he finds himself in a strange position of protective custody. After some of the confusion clears, Fairbanks learns that he is to perform an operation on the dictator himself. All this must be kept top secret, for in a land of totalitarianism, a dying leader might encourage dissident movements. Things darken when the dictator finally dies As knowledge of the dictator's death must be kept from the people, there can be only one fate for Fairbanks— liquidation. Fairbanks manages to elude the clutches of his captors. It is at this point that the picture achieves some of its best moments as Fairbanks stumbles about police-filled streets evading his pursuers. At a theatre he meets a half-English entertainer, Glynis Johns, and persuades her to help him. From this juncture it becomes a wild and cagey flight for the two of them, marked by danger and incident. A high dramatic point of the flight is an attempt to scale a perilous mountain top to reach a neutral land. Told in retrospect the nightmarish tale reaches an ironic climax in which Fairbanks and Miss 'Johns win freedom by a happy twist of fate. Performances are good all around with Jack Hawkins playing the police head and Herbert Lorn as a black marketeer who is forced into helping Fairbanks. A Frank Launder and Sidney Gilliat production, the British-made film was written and directed by the latter and presented in association with London Films. , „ . , , Running time,~97 minutes. General audience classification. October release. | Mandel Herbstman "The Miniver Story" (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer) , . „ _ THE adventures and tribulations of the Miniver family after V-H Uay are continued in "The Miniver Story." Once again Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon head the cast and the proceedings are endowed with warmth and conviction. Though it unfolds leisurely, it will leave many with a glow. Since the story primarily recounts the inner struggle of a woman whose ailment leaves her days on earth numbered, the picture might best be dubbed "a women's picture." It is not long after Pidgeon, as Miss Garson's husband, returns from the war that she learns that at best she can live just one year. Keeping the news from the family she goes about her daily chores with calm and dignity. There also are many other problems. Her husband, Pigeon, an architect, wants to leave battle-scarred England as he has his eye on a post in Brazil Meanwhile the daughter, Cathy O'Donnell thinks she has fallen in love with a married and high-strung officer, Leo Genn. With adroitness and discretion, Miss Garson goes about liberating Miss O'Donnell from this infatuation, thus paving the way for her marriage to Richard Gale. The picture reaches emotional heights when Miss Garson finally informs Pidgeon of her sickness. The short span in which the pair spend their remaining time together is marked with touching sentiment. It is to the credit of director H. C. Potter that the film does not fall into any sticky sentimentality or darkened gloom. Other secondary roles are handled by John Hodiak, as an American officer who had fallen in love with the charms of Miss Garson, and Henry Wilcoxon, a vicar. Sidney Franklin produced, from the screenplay by Ronald Millar and George Froeschel. , ,. j.' . , Running time, 104 minutes. General audience classification. October release. M. H. New Restrictions On US Films in Germany Feared Alarm is being expressed in film film export quarters here over an alert from Western Germany that the organized industry of the Reich has been meeting to contrive new restrictions on the importation of American pictures. The report was viewed as heightening the significance of the assertion on Tuesday by Ellis G. Arnall, president of the Society of Independent Motion Picture Producers, that German motion picture interests want to do business with the American industry as a unit, and now it is up to the Americans to agree among themselves as to what shall constitute a unit. It was averred here that German government restrictions could be set up to cover the American, British and French zones, notwithstanding the fact that a peace treaty has not been signed between the Allies and the Reich. The present "quota" arrangement was made by the film industries of the U. S. and Germany. When the Motion Picture Export Association discontinued its German operation last Jan. 1, MPEA member companies commenced independent operations in that country with the agreement to limit themselves to the shipping of IS features each per year. SIMPP producers were to send their films to Germany without regard to a quota, since the MPEA companies' agreement with the German industry covered only their own shipments. _ The Germany industry, like the industries of other European countries, is seeking to hold down the competition which American pictures represent, complaining against what they call 'over-shipping'. Allied Board (Continued from page 1) -electing presidents for two successive terms. (Final convention registration here was 434.) WANTED 16 MM and 35 MM SILENT FILMS FOR EXHIBITION Send Information to Box 445 MOTION PICTURE DAILY Rockefeller Center, N. Y. 20 Carpenter Pickets Quit After 4 Years Hollywood, Oct. 4.— Picketing of major studios by the AFL Carpenters Union, in progress for the past four years, was suspended today pending the outcome of the union's litigation instituted against the National Labor Relations Board. Recent elections held by the NLRB gave IATSE unions jurisdiction claimed by the Carpenters, and the union is contesting the election and its results in a suit before the U. S. Supreme Court. Schwalberg Tribute (Continued from page 1) H. L. Beecroft, Sid Blumenstock, Stanley Chase, Carl Clausen, Arthur Dunne, Martin Friedman, Goodman, G. Knox Haddow, Phil Isaacs, Fred Leroy, Sid Mesibov, Mort Nathanson, Jerry Pickman, Jack Roper, George Schur and Joseph A. Walsh. Para's 'Tripoli' to Bow in Philadelphia "Tripoli," Paramount Technicolor film, will have its world premiere at the Mastbaum Theatre, Philadelphia, on Oct. 13, it was announced by A. W. Schwalberg, president of Paramount Film Distributing Corp. Philadelphia was specifically chosen for the premiere, Schwalberg stated, because of its historic significance as the birthplace of the Marine Corps. Schwalberg Tells (Continued from page 1) conducted in connection with the convention here. Addressing the convention, Schwalberg paid tribute to Allied's "sincerity" in endeavoring to settle industry problems. He said that Allied leaders recognize their responsibilities and promised continued cooperation in discussing and endeavoring to settle problems with independent exhibitors. Mayer to Canada With Compo Story Toronto, Oct. 4. — Arthur L. Mayer, executive vice-president of the Council of Motion Picture Organizations, has been booked as guest speaker at the annual convention of the Motion Picture Theatres Association of Ontario, to be held here on Oct. 31. % '« It will mark the first mal discussion on COMPO before a Canadian industry audience. Exhibitors vs. Quiz (Continued from page 1) cation of a theatre directory. Renewed pledges' of complete cooperation with COMPO were said to have been made at the meeting by TOA officers. The luncheon, held at 21 Club, was attended by Samuel Pinanski, TOA president; Gael Sullivan, executives director; Herman Levy, TOA general counsel; Ned E. Depinet, COMPO president; Arthur L. Mayer, executive vice-president, and Robert Coyne, COMPO special counsel. Speed Organization Both TOA and COMPO representatives agreed that efforts must be made immediately to speed the organization of COMPO committees in all exchange centers, and plans were discussed* for putting this organizational work into effect, COMPO reported. It was reported also that TOA officials advised COMPO heads that the former would begin immediately to enlist participation of TOA members in the COMPO project for periodic seminars, to be held between exhibition and production representatives. These seminars, it was stated after the meeting, will be so arranged so that the time, place and subject matter will be most helpful to industry purposes. Brandt-Hughes Deal (Continued from page 1) Brandt-Trans-Lux interests. Meanwhile, after many long-distance telephone conversations between the East and the West, it was indicated that while Dembow will bring back here a report of the results of his negotiations in behalf of Brandt, Slack would travel Westward with a report of his. Slack said here yesterday that he sees no reason to believe that the deal has progressed, explaining: "There seems to be no meeting of minds." Wiseman in Washington Milton Wiseman, Brandt attorney, was reported yesterday to be in Washington, from New York. In this connection it was pointed out that a deal between the Brandt-Trans-Lux interests need not necessarily be held up by Securities and Exchange Commission investigation, because, it was learned public financing is no longer involved in consummation of the deal. Harry Brandt, in Pittsburgh, yesterday, would not comment whether Kuhn, Loeb & Company is participating in financing the purchase of Hughes' stock.