Motion Picture Daily (Oct-Dec 1951)

4 Motion Picture Daily Tuesday, October 23, 1951 National Pre-Selling LESTER GRADY, editor of J. Fred Henry Publications, reports that the October issue of Silver Screen, featuring RKO's Jane Russell on the cover, is the largest-selling magazine in the publisher's history. Results of the Russell cover have touched off a new demand for color cover shots of the star. Issue which the Russell cover nudged out of first place, oddly enough, was the previous month's issue of Silver Screen, which featured Farley Granger and Shelley Winters on the cover. Fan magazine buyers know what to expect on the inside, so covers constitute the major selling approach. • The arrival of Jean Peters and Louis Jourdan in New Orleans marks the opening of a huge exploitation campaign for 20th Century-Fox's "Anne of the Indies" which has its premiere at Loew's State Theatre, in that city today. A saturation run in 155 theatres over three states will spring from the opening. Mayor Morrison D.deLesseps will be host to the visiting Hollywood stars. Press and radio will pinpoint participating theatre playdates throughout Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. • Ernest V. Heyn has been appointed editor of the American Weekly, oldest and largest of the Sunday newspaper magazine supplements, according to an announcement by William Randolph Hearst, Jr. Heyn was formerly vicepresident and editor-in-chief of MacFadden Publications. He will join the American Weekly at once, relieving Kenneth McCaleb, editor of the Sunday Mirror magazine, who has been holding down both jobs temporarily during the past few months. • Metro's "An American in Paris" is gettnig an exceptional break in current magazines. The October Mademoiselle includes an eight-page fashion layout, the November Redbook gives it top rating in a review with a halfpage color photograph, the November Holiday has high praise for the picture, Seventeen for November selects it as the picture of the month, Woman's Home Companion for November says it's delightful, and the Oct. 15 issue of Quick gives it special handling. With 154,198,164 readers, M-G-M claims for "An American in Paris" the largest national magazine advertising campaign ever attained for a single picture. Magazines included are American, Look, Collier's, Saturday Evening Post, McCaW's True Story, Ladies Home Journal, Modern Screen, Parents' Magazine, Movicland, Screen Guide, Motion Picture, Cosmopolitan, Seventeen, Redbook, Good Housekeeping, and Woman's Home Companion. Majority of the full-page ads are in color. • Some 5,000 blue veils will be given out to those zvho purchase tickets for the world premiere benefit of the RKO picture, "The Blue Veil" at the Criterion Theatre in New^ York Friday evening, in cooperation with the United Hospital Fund, in its 73d annual drive to aid 82 hospitals in Greater New York. Walter P, rooks Wald, Krasna Predict (Continued from page 1) "How this will affect real estate we don't know," continued Wald, who predicted dismal failure for only average films and big money returns and longer runs for the fewer "big" pictures, made without cutting corners for economy. The producers emphasized that people with TV sets are now shopping around and only a film which has something special to offer will attract them to a theatre. In addition, the two pointed out that "big" pictures can be much more readily pre-sold to the public, thus ensuring longer runs at theatres, which they see as profitable both to the exhibitor and the producer. The longerrun film, Wald added, can be exploited much better by the exhibitor. Poorer quality is the result of a too-heavy production schedule, they maintained. "If you want mediocrity you can get it on television," Krasna declared. "There's room for about 100 good pictures coming out of Hollywood a year," Krasna said, adding that the 30 to 40 picture per year schedule of many studios will be cut in the future. Will Run Single Bills The theatre of the future will run single bills, instead of double features, and there will be more first-run houses, according to Wald and Krasna. The producing team, who arrived here for the world premiere of "The Blue Veil" on Friday at the Criterion, said that "television is the second feature of the industry." 'Timidly-Budgeted' Pictures Instead of worrying about "timidly-budgeted" pictures, the industry should join producers such as Cecil B. DeMille and Samuel Goldwyn and make pictures that people feel they cannot miss and cannot see on TV, they maintained. Home television, both stressed, cannot compete with good pictures, with TV's constant demand for new material and new faces already at a shortage. Trailers to Warn NY Patrons of 'Air Raid' Theatres and other amusement places in New York City are being instructed on preparations so the surprise air raid drill late next month will not be too much of a surprise to their customers, Arthur W. Wallander, Civil Defense Director, has reported. When the test actually comes, a trailer will be flashed on theatre screens saying, "An air raid test is now in progress. Remain in your seats and follow instructions of the management." Wallander said the theatres have been instructed to arrange for a film trailer for daily showing reading, "In the event of an air raid warning, remain in your seats and follow the instructions of the management." Brandt to Speak At B'nai B'rith Lodge Harry Brandt, chairman of the Joint Defense Appeal's fund-raising drive, will be the key speaker at the first opening meeting of New York's Cinema Lodge of B'nai B'rith at the Hotel Astor, Tuesday evening, Oct. 30, Martin Levine, president, has disclosed. ATS Meeting Thursday A luncheon-meeting of the American Television Society will be held here Thursday at the Hotel Roosevelt on the subject "To Pay or Not to Pay." Speakers will include Paul Raibourn, vice-president of Paramount Pictures, and Robert H. O'Brien, secretary-treasurer of United Paramount Theatres. 'Streetcar* in Albany Albany, N. Y., Oct. 22— Warner Brothers will make local history with a twin theatre presentation of "A Streetcar Named Desire" at the Strand and the Ritz, beginning Oct. 31, at roadshow scales ($1.20 top). Originally the circuit set the film for the Ritz on a two-week slate, then changed the booking to the Strand and finally decided on a dual showing. Mayer at Florida Convention Today Arthur L. Mayer, executive vicepresident of the Council of Motion Picture Organizations, has accepted the invitation of Bolivar Hyde, president of the Motion Picture Exhibitors of Florida, to address the group's annual convention today at the George Washington Hotel in Jacksonville. Mayer will report on the national success of COMPO's "Movietime U. S. A." campaign to date. Amend Para. Decree (Continued from page 1) acquire the interest of co-owners in the following : the Ritz, Bijou and Roxy theatres in Brunswick; the Royal, Ritz, Roxy and State in Gainesville ; the Grand, Capital, East Macon, Rialto and Ritz in Macon, and the Carver, Ritz, Lyric and Drive-In in Waycross. On the other hand, UPT may acquire the interest of co-owners in the Palace and Ritz, Athens ; Imperial and Rialto, Augusta, and the Bradley or Georgia in Columbus. The company may retain the Columbus Drive-In only if it shall show that such retention shall not unduly restrain competition three months after acquisition. It may acquire in Columbus co-owners' interest in the Springer, Village and Rexview in addition to the Drive-in. In the event UPT shall retain less than two of these, it may upon application to the court, secure an additional theatre in Columbus, contingent on the approval of the U. S. Attorney-General. Should UPT dispose of all its interests in theatres in Macon, the company may acquire an existing theatre in that city with the government's approval. Dipson Appeals (Continued from page 1) Brothers, United Artists and 20th Century-Fox. The high court is not likely to rule on the Dipson appeal for several weeks. MGM Future (Continued from page 1) also stressed that the selling of film is like a chain reaction, beginning with the writer's original idea and continuing on to word-of-mouth by the individual theatre patron. Speaking before 75 M-G-M home office executives, sales managers, district and branch managers, Schary stated that out of 117 films announced by the company during the past 32 months, a record number of productions— 82 — have been delivered, 13 are finished, five are in production now and eight are starting in the near future. As potential box-hits to follow "An American in Paris," Schary named "The Wild North," "Westward the Women," "Callaway Went Thataway," "Belle of New York," "When in Rome," "Singing in the Rain," "The Merry Widow," "Scaramouche," "Lovely to Look At," and "Skirts Ahoy." Schary announced that one of the most important film projects on MG-M's future schedule will be "The Making of a Marine," based on the recent Life Magazine story of U. S. marine training. The picture will be produced by Schary with William A. Wellman directing, the same team that made "Battleground." Films Now in Preparation Among the films now in preparation for an early start, Schary named "The Student Prince," starring Jane Powell and Ricardo Montalban ; "Pat and Mike" starring Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn; "Mr. Congressman" ; "Carbine Williams," starring James Stewart; "Plymouth Adventure," starring Spencer Tracy and Van Johnson, which Schary will also produce ; "Eagle on His Cap" ; "Mexican Village," starring Ava Gardner, Fernando Lamas, Ricardo Montalban and Cyd Charisse ; "Young Bess," starring Stewart Granger and Jean Simmons ; "Mogambo," starring Clark Gable ; "Three Love Stories," starring Fernando Lamas, Pier Angeli and Leslie Caron; "Years Ago," starring Spencer Tracy and Debbie Reynolds ; "Brigadoon," starring Gene Kelly and Kathryn Grayson. Schary left here tonight for New York, where he will address the Allied States Exhibitors convention at the Biltmore Hotel on Oct. 31. On Nov. 4, he will be the principal speaker at the National Jewish Welfare Board convention in Washington. Rodgers, E. M. Saunders, his assistant, Charles M. Reagan, sales executive, and H. M. Richey, exhibitor relations head, welcomed the entire field sales executive force before Schary spoke. M-G-M Will Hold Convention For International Division Chicago, Oct. 22.— M-G-M's International sales force will hold a sales conference of its own next March in Rome, when leading company foreign executives will attend and discuss "Quo Vadis." Rome was selected as the site for the gathering because the film was produced in its entirety just outside the city. The sales policy for worldwide distribution, other than the U. S. and Canada, will be set in Rome. Autry Host to Press Gene Autry gave a cocktail party for the press yesterday in the Hampshire House, here.