Motion Picture Daily (Jul-Sep 1951)

VOL. 70. NO. 7 MOTION PICTURE DAILY NEW YORK, U.S.A., WEDNESDAY, JULY 11, 1951 TEN CENTS Says Jubilee Will 'Make or Break' Compo Mayer Contends Agency's Future Hinges on Drive The future of the Council of Motion Picture Organizations will hinge on the box-office jubilee which the all-industry agency has scheduled for the fall, in the opinion of Arthur L. Mayer, COMPO executive vice-president. Taking cognizance of the "show me" attitude which thousands of small theatre operators are said to be taking toward COMPO, Mayer observed here that the outcome of the jubilee will either "make or break" COMPO. If the COMPO box-office drive is big (Continued on page 7) Arthur Mayer G.M. Pay Rise Formula Won by 'Lab' Technicians 11 Houses in Line For Exclusive Bout Telecast Tomorrow Eleven theatres in the East, South and Midwest will be hooked into the exclusive telecasting of the LayneMarciano fight tomorrow night at Madison Square Garden here, and the general expectancy is that they will draw attendances equal to those reported for the two previous theatre TV fight exclusives, the Louis-Savold and LaMotta-Murphy bouts. Except for two substitutions, the theatres which will receive the telecast of the Layne-Marciano contest are :he same as those whose large screens ;arried the simultaneous TV report (Continued on page 4) MPA Ad Unit Sets Jubilee Drive Plan The Motion Picture Association of America advertising-publicity committee, under the chairmanship of S. Barrett McCormick of RKO Radio, yesterday reached agreement on a general outline of an advertising-publicityexploitation program for the proposed industry box-office jubilee drive planned for the fall under auspices of the Council of Motion Picture Organizations. The committee held a (Continued on page 7) UPT ABC Filing With FCC Delayed Washington, July 10.— Officials of United Paramount Theatres said some " 'last minute' language changes" had delayed until tomorrow or Thursday filing with the Federal Communications Commission of the petition for approval of the UPTAmerican Broadcasting radiotelevision merger. ABPC's Improved Position Detailed London, July 10. — The strong liquid position of Associated British Pictures Co. is further emphasized in the company's consolidated balance sheet, just issued, following earlier favorable release of its financial report, which showed an increase in net profit of £120,000 for the year ended March 31, last, over the preceding fiscal year. The balance sheet reveals ABPC's secured indebtedness was reduced by (Continued on page 5) The General Motors formula for keeping wages in .line with cost-ofliving increases has been introduced into the film industry, it was revealed here yesterday. The formula has been applied to the 1,800 members of IATSE Laboratory Technicians Local No. 702 employed in the East. Under a new agreement reached with the management negotiating group headed by Joseph McMahon of Republic's Consolidated Laboratories, the technicians will receive a 10 per cent pay increase with the contract reopenable next April for the purpose of adjusting wages to the New York City Consumers' Price Index sponsored by the Federal government. If the cost-of-living shows a rise on the index next April, the technicians will receive pay increases of one cent for each point of rise. For example, if the index indicates a rise of 10 points at that time the 1,800 labora (Continued on page 7) Krim and Benjamin Bullish on Europe Back from a tour of Europe designed to arouse there the sort of enthusiasm that has marked recent United "Artists operations in the U. S., Arthur B. Krim, company president, and Robert Benjamin, trustee, yesterday reported they are optimistic regarding the future of business on the Continent. The report was voiced by Krim who disclosed also that while in (Continued on page 7) NPA Plans to Issue New Theatre Construction Order Washington, July 10. — Practically all theatre building will remain banned despite a planned changeover in the government's method of controlling construction, National Production Authority officials said today. However, there will be some changes in the exemptions for theatre alteration and repair and in the methods of getting materials for theatre projects finally permitted on appeal by the government. Indications are that the changes will represent a tightening in the controls for some exhibitors and a relaxation for others. The new program was outlined by NPA administrator Manly Fleisch (Continued on page 5) MPEAEnds All Film Shipments to Japan Irving Maas, vice president and general manager of the Motion Pic ture Export Association, reported yes terday to the MPEA board at a meet ing in New York that the Association is withholding shipments of product to Japan pending dissipation of the uncertainty resulting from the expressed intention of the Japanese government to limit the importation of American films to 150 annually. Maas gave a three-hour report on (Continued on page 7) Keller Dorian Settles Color Process Suit Opens Way to All Films In Color, Schaefer Says Settlement of the Keller-Dorian Colorfilm Corp. suits in U. S. District Court here against Eastman Kodak, Technicolor, Inc., and Technicolor Motion Picture Corp., which alleged a conspiracy to keep the K-D process off the market here, was announced here yesterday by George J. Schaefer, president of the plaintiff company. According to trade reports a substantial payment was included in the settlement, but Schafer refused to comment on the reports. Schaefer stated that with the process now becoming available to film manufacturers, and with its attendant economies, the settlement will aid the industry in meeting the demand currently being made for the production of all films in color. Schaefer said the settlement involved termination of the license agreements (Continued on page 7) Divorcement Hit as 'Unfair' by Einfeld Denver, July 10. — Although characterizing divorcement as "unfair" and saying many that agitated for it are now sorry, Charles Einfeld, 20th Century-Fox vice-president, declared today that 20th-Fox would bend every effort to send out more and better pictures. He said the company would put $100,000,000 into production in the coming year in an address before rep (Continued on page 7) 60 Days More for Schine Divestiture Washington, July 10.— The Justice Department has agreed to give Schine Circuit another two months until Sept. 11 to dispose of "about seven" theatres which, under the consent decree, it was to have sold during the second year of its three-year divestiture period. The original deadline was June 30.