Motion Picture Daily (Jan-Mar 1952)

4 Motion Picture Daily Tuesday, March 25, 1952 National Question Kintner on Media {Continued from page 1) TV Theatres' Best Ad Buy: Kintner Washington, March 24. — Television time is "the best advertising buy theatres can make," American Broadcasting Co. president Robert E. Kintner said today. He declared he felt television a better advertising medium for theatres than newspapers or magazines, and that he had told this to United Paramount Theatres president Leonard Goldenson. But Goldenson said he had to be convinced, Kintner reported. Pre-Selling NOT one but two "Pictures-of-theMonth" will be named in the April Rcdhnok. Florence Somers, feature edito, picked "African Queen" as "top grade entertainment for everyone. Hepburn's and Bogart's characterizations are the finest jobs they've ever done." She gives "With A Song in My Heart" equal status and says Susan Hayvvard "is superb in the role of Jane Froman. Her impersonation is flawless and one would think she had been a great singer herself." . . . The April Woman's Home Companion carries Philip T. Hartung's capsule reviews of six pictures, with "Phone Call from A Stranger,'' "Bend of the River" and "Invitation" leading his list. • The current Ladies Home Journal has no editorial mention of movies in 206 pages, but it does have two fine cooperative pages from national advertisers, one from Lux, featuring Maureen O'Hara is "Flame of Araby" and the other from Jergens Lotion, with pictures of Esther Williams in "Skirts Ahoy." . . . The March Mademoiselle has a neat and nice way of handling new things, in Leo Lerman's "Something To Talk About" — two facing pages, devoted to "The Marrying Kind" and "A Month of Sundays," with each getting a layout of a dozen stills as pre-selling for upcoming attractions. « RKO's "Macao," starring Jane Russell and Robert Mitchum, zvill get its scndoff through national advertising beginning zsjith the March 31 issue of Time, utilising a string of magazines and Sunday supplements to reach a combined circulation of 35,000,000. . . . The current Collier's devotes almost its entire issue to the subject, "Man Will Conquer Space Soon," making excellent pre-selling for numerous science fiction movies of space ships and interplanetary communication, past, present and future. I'hcre is a national survey under way to determine the popularity and permanence of this type of film. • There was dancing in the streets of Indinapolis on Friday night with traffic jammed for blocks and more excitement than the city has seen in years, at the Indiana world premiere of Paramount's "Aaron Slick from Punkin Crick," The Indianapolis .Star and good Hoosiers went all out for tile bucolic quality of the picture, which reminded them of the tall corn country. More than 100 couples were s(|uare-dancing in front of the Indiana theatre, and liking it. ... A tieup between the Wayne Howell program and RCA-\'ictor, localized in Chicago only, offered "Aaron Slick" albums as prizes, with more than 10,000 replies in the first 24 hours, which indicates a listening audience of at least one and one-half million potential patrons. • Marlene Dietrich is soaring to new heights as a result of her personal appearance tour and will top all others if she continues the record breaking excitement she created at the State Lake in Chicago. She's now thinking of a "Chautauqua" tour — very unlike the original Chautauqua variety. Wai/iek Bkooks ABC president Robert E. Kintner declared today. Kintner testified as the Federal Communications Commission's Paramount hearings entered their 10th week. He was on the stand all day, under questioning by FCC counsel Frederick Ford. Ford questioned Kintner on what ABC-UPT policy would be under various circumstances, and broug ht objection from ABC attorney James McKenna. But Ford explained there was no historical pattern to question Kintner about, and that his questions had to deal with assumptions and suppositions. Much of Ford's questioning dealt with what the merged company would do about placing features and other programs in theatres or home television or subscriber TV, assuming it owned all three. Kintner maintained he did not want to assume ABC-UPT would have subscriber TV as well as theatres and Home TV, but that if Ford required him to make this assumption, he would also assume ABCUPT had competition in each of the three fields, and in that event, Kintner maintained, the board could not "manipulate" features either into its UA in Market for Key Films for TV United Artists Television is in the market for "new n>ajor television properties" for release to telecasters. For that purpose, John H. Mitchell, director of UA TV, arrived in Hollywood from here yesterday. Mitchell will conclude producerdistributor financing and production agreements with top TV-film producers for the addition of selected program series to the current schedule of UA TV releases. W.B.-ABPC Plan (Continued from page 1) sis on increased American production here for employment of frozen sterling. In anticipation thereof, Warner already has agreed to the production of "Master of Ballentrae," and a second important feature to star Audrey Hepburn. In addition, Warner and ABPC have agreed to joint production at Elstree studios on a larger scale than ever before. Sir Philip said. Four advantages are seen accruing from the new plan, Sir Philip explained: the jointly produced films will be entitled to quota credit, thereby easing the A. B.C. circuit's booking problems; the production costs will be shared with the American company ; the pictures will qualify for Eady Plan aid, and the pictures will add to ABPC's release schedule of important product. In addition. Sir Philip pointed out, Warner will have set its unremittable sterling to working profitably, with a resultant increase in its volume of production available for the American and other markets. ABPC generally will hold the rights to distribution of tlie pictures in the United Kingdom, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand and possibly other territories, but this will be subject to revision in the course of experience, the ruling principle to be which party is likely to do the be.st in any given territory. theatres or its home broadcasting or its subscriber TV, because there would be too much competition from other broadcasters or exhibitors for the films. Anyhow, Kintner said, theatres and home television need different types of programs ; the producers would have lots to say as to which medium showed their films ; the Paramount consent decree required theatre-bytheatre selling for films in theatres, preventing monopolistic control by the merged company ; and the FCC presumably would exercise supervision over use of features on home and subscriber television. Kintner repeated earlier statements of UPT president Leonard Goldenson that the merged company had no plans to engage in production or distribution of theatre TV programs. Even if it did, however, it "would not be incompatible with home television," he declared. Asked what he would do if the major producers released to television many of the features now in their vaults, Kintner said ABC did not have "too real an interest" in feature-length films for television, even should they be available. Final UA Audit Due Around End of Week Price, Waterhouse Company's audit of United Artists' operations for 1951, which during the past week was discussed at frequent intervals between representatives of the accountancy firm and the distributor, now is expected to emerge in final form the latter part of this week. Additional information sought by Price, Waterhouse, was supplied by UA, and will be incorporated in the final audit. Jane Froman Cited At USO Luncheon Jane Froman was presented with a special USO Camp Shows citation "in appreciation of tireless efforts and unceasing devotion to the men and women of the Armed Forces," at a testimonial luncheon at the Waldorf Astoria here yesterday. ASCAP Honors Miss Froman Marking a departure from tradition, the members of ASCAP will honor Jane Froman today at .their annual dinner, saluting her forthcoming film biography, "With a Song in My Heart." No hard-and-fast financing formula is being set, he said. Each picture will be considered on its merits. Warter expressed himself as greatly impressed with the new Warner-Color system. He said the ABPC laboratories will be equipped to handle the new process as soon as possible and the studio will begin using it as rapidly as Kodak can provide the raw stock. ABPC technicians will go to Hollywood at once, he said, to familiarize themselves with the technique and costs of the new color process. He also said the studio will begin using magnetic recording, first for newsreels, to be followed by features in the course of next summer, with RCA supplying the equipment. Hellenic Association Honors Skouras Spyros P. Skouras, 20th CenturyFox president, left last night for California following a Washington banquet tendered in his honor by the American Hellenic and Educational Progressive Association at which he received a scroll naming him the American-Greek who accomplished most in the field of humanitarian and philanthropic endeavor during 19501951. Ed Sullivan, 20th Century-Fox assistant publicity manager, left for the Coast with Skouras. HARRISON'S REPORTS (Reprinted from the famous reviewing service — Harrison's Repcrrts) Waco' starring Wild Bill Elliott Very good from every angle — direction, acting and realism. It has, in fact, been so well produced that one is made to feel as if witnessing a real-life occurrence. A great share of the credit should go to director Lewis Collins. Although the picture has been photographed in a Western locale, it is really not a Western, but an outlaw picture, with a story far different from the ordinary run, for the hero becomes an outlaw without losing the spectator's good will. Later he becomes a sheriff and cleans up a town of the lawless element. Nor are the other outlaws, with the exception of one, presented as vicious men. There is plentiful thrilling action, and the romance is mild but pleasant. The outdoor scenery, enhanced by good photography, is pleasing. Vincent M. Fennelly produced it, and Lewis Collins directed, it from a screen play by Dan Ullman. (Advt.) A Monogram Picture