Motion Picture Daily (Jul-Sep 1951)

Record Details:

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Friday, July 13, 1951 Motion Picture Daily 5 TV-Fight (Continued from page 1) tured only the telecast, pulling the film feature. Sell-out crowds were also reported in Fabian's National, Richmond, Va. and RKO's Palace, Cleveland, O. , ., . Following are initial detailed reports from the cities : Baltimore: Terrific thunderstorms just prior to the fight held down crowds at Loew's Century to some extent. However, a capacity house of 3,040 persons, plus standing room, was realized. Tickets were sold to typical fight patronage and not film goers. Regular admission prices were charged. The Regent Theatre, seating 1,600, was scarcely half -filled before fight time. Washington: A capacity audience of over 1,831 persons packed the RKO Keith's 20 minutes before fight time and unlike the Murphy-LaMotta bout the management reported there were no complimentary tickets given out. The theatre continued its previous policy of showing the fight in addition to the regular show, at regular prices, with continuous showing. As at the Murphy-LaMotta fight, there were hawkers in the aisles selling popcorn and ice cream. Chicago: One hour before the opening bell the 3,500-seater Southside Tivoli Theatre was about one-third full for the large-screen telecast of the Layne-Marciano fight. The bal" cony and the mezzanine were virtually empty and the main floor was about three-quarters filled. At the downtown 2,629-seater State Lake, there still was room for 400 people and a sell-out seemed assured, but it was unlikely that there would be enough business to warrant a second showing of the fight with the Paramount film storage equipment. B. and K. executives attributed the drop off from business done by the first two exclusive fight telecasts to weakness of the attraction itself and to the stiff competition offered by the ' White Sox-Boston twilight-night double header, which drew a crowd of over 50,000. Both theatres charged regular evening prices, 74 cents, including tax, at the Tivoli ; 98 cents, including tax, at the State Lake. However, later the State Lake filled to capacity. Albany: The Layne-Marciano telecast did not draw to Fabian's Pal ace the early-capacity audience that the Murphy-LaMotta telecast at tracted, but with 75 per cent of the 3,640 seats occupied at eight o'clock, manager Alex Sayles predicted a sell out by ten, which occurred. Regular adult admission of 74 cents was charged, while children's price was increased from 25 to 50 cents same as the last time. Two pictures were also shown. The sale of tickets for the Murphy-LaMotta fight was stopped at 8:05. Three factors were cited as bearing on tonight's attendance, contestants were not as well known as those in the two previous bouts, weather was threatening and telecast was scheduled for Thursday — downtown shopping night. The doors were opened at six, con trasted with 6:20 two weeks ago. At six there were lines extending in both directions, but they were not as longas for the Murphy-LaMotta video cast. Concession stand business, how ever, boomed. The audience appeared to be younger than for the Murphy-LaMotta video Fair TV Practices Group Advances; Names Alldredge UPT-ABC Washington, July 12. — Progress in the development of the recently established Fair Television Practices Committee is reported here by chairman Jerome W. Marks. Basic policy of the organization is to fight the limitation of audiences only to those paying special fees. At the same time Marks, a member of the local law firm of Husch and Marks, reported the appointment of Charles Alldredge as Washington representative. Alldredge directed some of the pioneer research in the effects of television in social and economic fields. Formerly director of information for a number of Federal agencies, he resigned as assistant to the Secretary of the Interior in 1948 to join the campaign of Alben W. Barkley for the vice-presidency. Since then he has been in private practice as a public relations counsel. The committee was organized not only to oppose captive telecasts requir ing the payment of special fees by viewers, but also other practices which it considers discriminatory against set owners. Cites Investment "American families have invested in excess of three billion dollars in 12,000,000 television sets in. expectation that a whole new world of sports and theatrical entertainment would be opened up to them. This mass audience and its investment will substan tially increase as soon as the Federal Communications Commission permits the building of additional TV stations and it is the purpose of our committee to help establish the rights of these millions of TV families and protect them from discrimination," Marks declared. "Television has grown with such astounding rapidity that many basic decisions regarding it have yet to be made by Congress, the FCC, the Courts." Lippert Cancels Films for Video Hollywood, July 12. — Independent producer Robert L. Lippert has canceled a series of films he had planned to make in association with Hal Roach, Jr., for both theatrical and television distribution. Demands by the Screen Actors Guild, the Screen Writers Guild and the American Federation of Musicians for extra compensation from film shown on video prompted the decision, according to Murray Lerner, vicepresident of the Lippert Company. He said that the extra payments would make it practically impossible for the company to realize a profit on the venture. Two pictures out of a projected program of twelve sixteen-minute features intended for both theatre and TV consumption have been completed. These are "Tales of Robin Hood" and "Present Arms," and they now will be distributed only to theatres. Block Republic, TV (Continued from page 1) (Continued from page 1) cast. Many men were in shirtsleeves. They looked and acted quieter than those similarly costumed a fortnight ago. Pittsburgh: Manager John D. Walsh of the Fulton Theater reverted to the non-reserved seat setup for last night's fight on theater TV. The house seats 1,700 and was filled to capacity with a few standees. The charge was a $1.50 as in the two previous TV fights and the net was $1,625. The federal and city tax -amounts to 35 cents on each ticket. The house was closed following the six o'clock showing of the "Frogmen" and reopened at 9 :30. Shorts were shown until fight time. Cleveland: At an early hour there was a disappointing turnout of 70 per cent of capacity at the Palace, but later the house filled. The same admission prevailed as for the two previous TV presentations. Philadelphia: The Layne-Marciano theatre telecast at the Warners' Stanley Theatre was another sellout, although the record breaking crowds that thronged the house for the LaMotta-Murphy bout were not in evi Robert Guggenheim that all Republic product has been withdrawn from the offer to television pending further negotiations with the American Fed' eration of Musicians. When and if Republic product is again offered to television, KNBH may start again from scratch without being bound by previous agree ments, Guggenheim was told. _ Although Hollywood Television Service executives were not available for comment today, informed sources credit the possibility that the impending action by the talent guilds against another concern which recently consummated the sale of a large number of pictures to television may be influencing Republic to delay closing any deals until the guilds' intentions are clarified. AFM's surprise demand for five per cent of gross of the difference betwe'en the amount paid by the station for product and the amount obtained from the sponsor was cited to Guggenheim as a point requiring further negotiations with the AFM. Martin-Lewis Premiere Paramount will hold the world premiere of the new Dean Martin-Jerry Lewis film, "That's My Boy," on July 20 at the Warner Theatre in Atlantic City. This Hal B. Wallis production is the second starring vehicle for the comedy team which is now making personal appearances at the New York Paramount Theatre. firms have already approved the proposed merger, and stockholder meetings are slated for July 27. The petition will have to be amended to give results of these meetings, and FCC action, even the scheduling of hearings, is not likely before mid-August. The two companies told the Commission that the merger would make funds available to promote the resulting company to a position of equality with other companies now leading in the network field and would "stimulate competition in network broadcasting to a degree heretofore nonexistent." UPT to Bring The Commission was also told that United Paramount would bring to the merger substantial resources and personnel, with an experience and record of accomplishment in. the public entertainment and information field, and that the new company would be able to "function more effectively in the public interest." These twin arguments of better public service and more competition in TV networking are expected to serve as the keystone of the ABCUPT arguments for approval of the proposed merger. Fills 15 Volumes The material filed with the FCC today filled 15 large volumes, with further supporting testimony and exhibits to come tomorrow. The application requested that the new American Broadcasting Paramount Theatres, Inc. get ABC's standard, FM and TV stations in five cities. It asked assignment of licenses to the new company for these stations: WJZ, WJZ-FM and WJZTV in New York City; KECA, KECA-FM and KECA-TV in Los Angeles ; KGO, KGO-FM and KGOTV in San Francisco ; and WENR, WENR-FM, and WENR-TV in Chicago. It requested transfer of control to the new company of WXYZ, WXYZ-FM and WXYZ-TV in Detroit. Petition Asks The petition asked that United Paramount's TV station in Chicago, WBKB, be transferred to Columbia Broadcasting, but that the new company retain the use of the call letters. It also requested that the Commission reissue ABC's authority to transmit in Canada to the merged firm. United Paramount said that if. the merger is approved, it will withdraw pending applications for TV stations in Des Moines, Detroit, Boston and Tampa. It also said it would take off the air its Chicago FM station, WBIK-FM. dence. For this one the Stanley sold out 3,000 seats a few minutes before the fight. The box office closed down at 5:50 p.m. and reopened at 7:45. A $1.25 was charged, an increase of 35 cents over regular admission. The Lincoln Theatre, a 1,300 seats, operated by Theatre Television Enterprises in the Negro section, did not fare so well with less than half of the house sold. The theatre had been closed recently and reopened on short notice for the event. The fight was the only attraction. No film was shown. It was arranged principally by Theatre Television Enterprises to test its equipment. EXCELLENT OPPORTUNITY MIDWEST DIVISION MANAGERSHIP FOR FOREIGN FILMS IS OPEN FOR EXPERIENCED MAN. Sales and Exploitation background required. Contacts with leading circuits and territorial film buyers of Chicago, Kansas City, Omaha, Denver, Minneapolis, Milwaukee and St. Louis essential. Send complete resume and any other pertinent information to Box 460, Motion Picture Daily, 1270 Sixth Ave., New York 20.