Motion Picture Daily (Jul-Sep 1951)

Motion Picture Daily Monday, July 16, 1951 Fight Film (Continued from page 1) New York Daily News. There are about 5,000 feet of the film for a running time of about 45 minutes. The event, held in Earl's Court London, on July 10 proved an electrifying upset as Turpin won a 15round decision over Robinson, to become the first British world middleweight champion since 1894, when Bob Fitzsimmons gave up the title to fight in the heavier class. Robinson, a 4-to-l favorite, suffered the second defeat in his great career of 128 professional bouts, while Turpin registered his 41st victory in 44 contests. The picture is expected to be in strong demand, since the fight has been heralded as a good one, as well as being a dramatic upset. It will be the American public's only opportunity to see the fight, which was put on in England. Exclusive theatre telecasts of prize fights of even lesser interest and import in the sports world have demonstrated recently the wide public demand for slug-fest pictures. Compo Joins Fight (Continued from page 1) MP A A Approves 'Jubilee (Continued from page 1) this week before the Senate Finance Committee to attack the tax exemption provisions. Virtually every exhibitor organization has gone on record against the exemptions. The new tax bill provides for a continuance of the 20 per cent Federal levy on tickets to motion picture and other commercially-operated theatres. Coyne said here that his appearance before the Senate group probably would take place on Wednesday. If he cannot secure a hearing before then, it is expected he will have to postpone from Thursday to Friday his departure for the Coast to attend next week's COMPO seminar on production problems. 20th-Fox Sales Meet (Continued from page 1) being made in the merging of sales and advertising forces to give greater impetus to the merchandising program for the public. Also scheduled during the meet are screenings of three films which the managers did not see during their last Los Angeles convention. These in^ elude "No Highway in the Sky," "Meet Me After the Show," the Technicolor musical starring Betty Grable, and "A Millionaire for Christy," the Bert Friedlob production starring Fred MacMurray, Eleanor Parker and Richard Carlson. tive vice-president, told the MPAA board meeting that on the basis of letters and reports already received from exhibitor groups in various parts of the country, there is "no question that theatres throughout the nation will enthusiastically get behind the concerted, business-building drive. The MPAA board approved the general outlines of a comprehensive advertising, publicity and exploitation plan drawn up by the ad-publicity directors of the member companies and incorporating ideas and suggestions submitted by leading exhibitors and theatre organizations. S. Barret McCormick, RKO director of advertising, and chairman of MPAA's advertising and publicity directors committee, explained general features of the campaign to the board, while Howard Dietz, Loew's director of advertising-publicity-exploitation, and chairman of a special sub-committee on advertising, discussed that aspect of the program. McCormick also covered the ground on publicity and exploitation in the absence of Charles Simonelli, Eastern advertising publicity manager for Universal, who headed a special sub committee in those two areas of activity. . Purpose of the campaign will be to focus attention not only on the array of outstanding motion pictures which will be released during this period, but on the importance of the motion picture theatre as "an integral part of the community's social and economic life." Behind the campaign would be thrown the full weight and resources of the motion picture industry with all its major components — producers, distributors and exhibitors — cooperat ing in the gigantic effort. Present at the meeting, in addition to Dietz, McCormick and Mayer, were: Abe Schneider, Columbia; Joe Vogel and Charles M. Reagan, Loew's; Edward Morey, Monogram; Barney Balaban and Austin Keough, Paramount ; Ned E. Depinet and William H. Clark, RKO; Theodore Black, Republic; Spyros P. Skouras 20th Century-Fox; Seymour Peyser United Artists; John J. O'Connor and Alfred E. Daff, Universal; Sam Schneider, Warner Bros.; and Fred W. DuVall, Sidney Schreiber and Alfred Corwin of the MPAA. Would Seek Aid of News Publishers Mid-South Allied to Meet on Oct. 16-17 Memphis, July 15. — Allied Theatre Owners of the MidSouth has called its annual convention for the Hotel Gayso in Memphis on Oct. 1617. Edward O. Cullins, vicepresident, said several hundred theatre owners from Kentucky, Missouri, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee and Arkansas have been invited. 'Major' to Souvaine The new British comedy, "The Galloping Major" has been acquired for Western hemisphere release by Souvaine Selective Pictures, according to Charles Amory, vice president in charge of sales. The film will be released here nationally about Oct. 1. Balaban Weighs (Continued from page 1) sell M. Moss, executive vice-president of "IA" Motion Picture Home Office Employes Local No. H-63, which has proposed a pay hike of 10 per cent. The company, in rejecting that proposal, offered a straight $4-across-theboard raise, but the union turned it down as insufficient. Moss said on Friday that the local will wait until mid-week for a reply from Israel before it takes further action. When H-63 applied to "IA" international president Richard F. Walsh for permission to strike at Paramount International, Basson was assigned to confer with Israel. Local industry committees, composed of exhibitors and distribution representatives, should visit newspaper publishers in the key cities of their tern tories to point out to them the indus try's problems and to remind them that the industry is a very large advertising customer, in the opinion of Morey Goldstein, general sales man ager of Monogram-Allied Artists. _ This is necessary to correct the influence for which film critics of newspapers are blamed by Goldstein for the general public's feelings that pictures are not good. Goldstein declared that "it must be remembered that a bad review m a metropolitan daily influences not only the reader of that particular paper but hundreds of thousands of others, for the reviews of many big town papers are syndicated throughout the country." Goldstein said, "It is not uncommon for many critics in the country to copy the review of a big town critic — thus making it more important than ever for us to concentrate in correcting this evil at its source the metropolitan city newspaper Goldstein declared that if publishers showed themselves unsympathetic to the industry's problem, they should be warned that the industry will cease display advertisements and merely use the directory type. To support this course of action he noted that the legitimate plays in New York use the directory ad "without any loss in busi ness." . . He compared the newspaper critic s reviews with those of the trade press critics, and remarked: "Even when a trade press representative does not like a particular picture, he may point out to the exhibitor the exploitable angles that may help at the box-office." NEWS in Brief • Production of what is described as the first series of television shorts in color was announced here by Milton Subotsky and Harvey Cort with the creation of 13 15-minute color shorts titled "Junior Science." Produced by Subotsky and Cort in association with Max J. Rosenberg, the films are narrated by Dr. Gerald Wendt, science author and lecturer and organizer of the Science Clubs of America. They are being completed now with all shooting finished. Filming was in New York. Rosenberg will distribute. • Commander Attilio Gatti announced at a reception at the Brussels here plans for his forthcoming 12th expedition to Africa, during which he will film considerable footage which will be made into a feature picture. First bookings of "He Ran All the Way," United Artists release, in Loew's theatres have been set for Wednesday in Providence, Reading, Harrisburg, Memphis, St. Louis, Wilmington, Richmond and Norfolk. During the last week of July, the picture will move into the Palm State in Detroit, the Palace in Cincinnati, Paramount in Palm Beach and the Florida in West Palm Beach. Openings in August include the Weber, Tabor and Aladdin theatres in Denver; State, Houston; State and Orpheum, Boston; State, Syracuse; Loew's, Rochester, N. Y. ; Buffalo in Buffalo, and Shea's Bellevue in Niagara Falls. UPT Heads' Tour Of ABC 'Gratifies' NEW YORK 630 NINTH AV FILMACK TRAILER <X>. CHICAGO S 1 327 S. WABASH AVI. Ida Garretson Resigns Ida H. Garretson, who has for the past 16 years handled all purchasing for the United Artists home office and domestic and Canadian branches, has resigned from that post. 5 New Channels (Continued from page 1) handicap the full attainment of an ade quate nationwide and competitive TV system." As an indication of the continuing interest in television, the Commission said that even though it had discouraged the filing of applications for new stations, over 400 had been received since the start of the current TV proceedings. 'Leathernecks' (Continued from page 1) scribed as a "pet" project of Howard Hughes, is scheduled for a premiere on Labor Day, with nationwide U. S Marine Corps participation. Robert H. O'Brien, United Paramount Theatres secretary-treasurer, who is slated to become executive vicepresident of the American Broadcasting division when the UPT-ABC merger is approved by the Federal Communications Commissions, said here at the weekend that he and Leonard Goldenson, UPT president, "were gratified and pleased" with what they saw on their recent tour of ABC radio and television stations in Chicago, Detroit, San Francisco and Los Angeles. "We liked the physical facilities and personnel we saw," he declared. When asked if any changes in physical facilities or personnel were contemplated, O'Brien hastened to point out that UPT had undertaken no thinking in that direction, nor would it so much as consider doing so until after the FCC acted favorably on the merger petition which has been filed. Goldenson and O'Brien were accompanied on their tour by Robert Kintner, ABC president who is expected to head the new ABC division after the merger. London, Uhr Sign Stark Hollywood, July 15. — Leonard Stark, University of Southern California graduate of the last term, who plays one of the featured roles in the initial three-reeler of a series, "Frank Merriwell At Yale," has been signed to a long term contract by Tony London and Ira Uhr.