Motion Picture Daily (Jan-Mar 1951)

2 Motion Picture Daily Tuesday, January 30, 1951 Personal Mention 'IT Profit Up (Continued from page 1) GEORGE D. BURROWS, executive vice-president and treasurer of Monogram and Allied Artists has returned to Hollywood from New York. • Hai Wallis, producer, has been awarded the Citation of Merit of the Hollywood Foreign Correspondents Association, for "promoting friendly relations between the United States and foreign countries through the production of outstanding pictures abroad." • P. W. Mahon, partner of Famous Players Canadian Corp. in the Strand and Orpheum theatres at Prince Albert, Sask., was in Toronto recently for conferences at the circuit's headquarters. Foster M. Blake, Universal Pictures Western sales manager, has returned to New York following a tour of Western exchanges. o Alan F. Cummings, in charge of M-G-M exchange operations, and his assistant Harold Postman, are due to return here today from Cincinnati. • Matty Polon, in charge of film buying and booking for RKO's out-oftown theatres, left here last night for Chicago, Kansas City and Omaha. • Ted Irwin, manager for Commonwealth Theatres at Harington, Kan., has been elected president of the Harington Chamber of Commerce, o Jerry Fairbanks has flown from Hollywood to Chicago and Dayton, O., for conferences with Eastern network and agency video executives. • Pietro Bullio, president of Scalera Film Distributing Corp., is slated to return here from Italy on the S\.S\ Liberie on Friday. Martin G. Smith, president of Independent Theatre Owners of Ohio, and Mrs. Smith are vacationing in Florida. • Robert Howard has been named assistant manager of the Warner Art Theatre at Springfield, Mass. • Irving Rubine, vice-president of Robert Stillman Productions, is in New York from the Coast. etc aggregating $26,839,773 last year, compared with $24,782,891 for the preceding year. In his report to stockholders, Nate J. Blumberg, Universal president, reveals that the company's bank indebtedness was reduced by $2,446,000 last year ; that the company purchased $1,035,000 principal amount of its debentures and 2,500 shares of its preferred stock at an average cost of $59.61 per share during the year. The latter are being held for sinking fund purposes. Blumberg also refers to the company's new bank credit agreement, reported earlier, which runs to June 1, 1954, providing a maximum of $7,900,000, of which there is a revolvingportion secured by the pledge of some of the company's pictures. The new credit agreement replaces an earlier one which would have expired on May 1, 1952. Indebtedness under the new agreement at the end of the fiscal year amounted to $5,054,000, compared with $7,500,000 in the previous year. Blumberg' s report reveals that there is a balance of $1,074,259 from excess profits tax refunds granted the company earlier, which is being carried as a contingency reserve pendingcompletion of audits for the 1944-45 tax years. He reports that the Universal studio has set up a special unit to study problems involved in production of films for television which, Blumberg says, the company believes may become "a major source of revenue." His stockholders' letter also expresses the view that government defense spending "ought to be of benefit to the motion picture industry." The company's domestic distribution revenue last year was down to $36,815,050, from $37,365,304 in the previous year, and its foreign revenue was down to $18,776,035 from $19,373,031. Domestic selling and branch expenses were fairly constant at $10,042,426 last year, compared with $10,373,477 in the preceding year. General and administrative expenses rose from $2,199,626 in 1949 to $2,457,632 last year. Credit Curbs (Continued from page 1) berg, R. W. Lea, J. J. O'Connor, J. Arthur Rank, Budd Rogers, Daniel. M. Sheaffer and G. I. WoodhamSmith. Eidell was elected a director last year in a surprise move by cumulating approximately 63,000 votes which be controlled either personally or by proxy, although he was not a declared candidate in advance. The company's proxy statement reveals that directors and officers as a group received fees and salaries last year aggregating $609,995, of which $78,000 was paid to Blumberg; $63,115 to J. Cheever Cowdin, who resigned as chairnian of the board on Jan. 3, 1950, for severance pay, compensation for continuing in a consultative capacity and for remuneration up to the time of his resignation. William A. Scully, who resigned last Dec. 6 and is now on a four-year consultative basis, received $65,000 ; O'Connor,' vice-president, $44,200 ; Benjamin, $34,800, including $33,550 paid for legal services to Phillips, Nizer, Benjamin and Krim, of which he is a partner, and to Goldberg, vicepresident and treasurer, $32,250. Blumberg's contract, reported earlier, calls for $1,500 weekly for five years, plus expenses, and $1,000 per week for five years thereafter in a consultative and non-exclusive capacity, rn the event of his death, the latter payment is to be made to his heirs, partly in consideration of past, voluntary reductions of his salary. Failure of the stockholders to approve the proposed employment contract will make it necessary for the board to negotiate a new employment agreement with Blumberg as company president, the proxy statement asserts. $38,000 3-Day Take For 'Tomahawk' Chicago, Jan. 29. — Universal-International's "Tomahawk," in Technicolor, which had it world premiere at the Chicago Theatre here on Friday, is claimed to have rolled up a record gross of $38,000 over the weekend, despite snowstorms. The opening was backed by an intensive promotional campaign and is serving to kick-off a series of bows. Sam Briskin Still In Post, Para. Says No decision on the request of Sam Briskin to be released as an executive assistant to Y. Frank Freeman, Paramount studio vice president, was reached at the Paramount home office yesterday. A company spokesman emphasized that Briskin is still under contract to Paramount and that he has not quit his job. Freeman is here from the Coast for conferences with Barney Balaban, president. NLRB Fails to Curb AFM on House Bands Washington, Jan. 29. — In a two to one decision, the National Labor Relations Board has ruled that the Taft-Hartley Law ban on "featherbedding" does not prohibit the American Federation of Musicians from seeking actual work for a local orchestra any time a motion picture theatre plans to use a "name band" — even though the theatre does not want the local musicians. NEW YORK THEATRES New Taxes Threaten (Continued from page 1) son said it represents a slight increase in film industry taxes, since there is now a tax that amounts to a two per cent admission tax on all tickets costing over 50 cents. Bryson also reported that a two per cent sales tax has been proposed in New Hampshire and that a bill in North Dakota would authorize cities and villages to levy taxes and collect license fees from "theatres and other amusement enterprises. the National Production Authority on construction materials. The curbs might, however^ affect new film exchanges or office buildings, in addition to some of the theatre building now allowed. The Board is considering issuing an order requiring any firm doing any commercial construction, whether new or remodeling, to put up a very large percentage of the cost itself, and cutting back the amount of borrowing that can be done to finance such construction. To Confer on TV Washington, Jan. 29.— A public conference on "The Problems of Television" was announced by the Federal Communications Commission today. The exact date of the conference and the agenda will be announced later: RADIO CITY MUSIC HALL Rockefeller Center 'The MAGNIFICENT YANKEE" starring Louis CALHERN Ann HARDING A Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Picture plus SPECTACULAR STAGE PRESENTATION pew Atlas 2nd Largest Disney Stockholder Atlas Corp. is now the second largest stockholder in Walt Disney Productions, next to Walt and Roy Disney, it is pointed out by Floyd B. Odium, Atlas president, in the company's annual report. The Disney holdings amount to 93,050 shares of common, valued on Dec. 30, 1950 at $767,662, and series "A" bonds totaling $308,500. Other motion picture industry securities listed in the Atlas portfolio are : 25,000 shares of Paramount Pictures stock, valued at $540,625 ; 25,000 share of United Paramount Theatres, valued at $462,500, and 750 shares of $5 preferred and 150 shares of common in the Motion Picture Capital Corp., valued at a total of $125,000. Martin Ws AT MM WITH LIZABETH SCOTT JANE GREER DENNIS O'KEEFE %*The Company She Keeps" • CRITERION Broadway at 45th Street Including Tax, to One P. M. 3"C EXC. Saturday, Sunday. Holidays MOTION PICTURE DAILY. Martin Quigley, Editor-in-Chief and Publisher; Sherwin Kane, Editor; Terry Ramsave, Consulting Editor. Published daily, except Saturdays, Sundays' and-hoiidays, bTQuigley ^Publishing' Company, Inc., li« "Sixth Av^ue Rockefeller Renter New York ^^i^.^^i New York. ■ Martin Quigley, I^Ulfrt^eSe^Ad^fe^^^' t'^ A^^^ S^ Bureau, Hc^-Vme Building. William R. Weaver, James P Cunningham, New* Editor; Herbert V ^eck^ Advertising Man a < u ;; FI 6_jj,74. Washington, J. A. Otten, National Press Club, Washington D. C. London Bureau, foSS^ Sq. " London^ Wl! Ho^'b™, Mana^'erf Peter W Editor; cable address, "Quigpubco, London." 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