Motion Picture Daily (Apr-Jun 1952)

Monday April 21, 1952 Motion Picture Daily Johnston Cites (Continued from page 1) Review dinner at the Hotel Biltmore here on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of TFC. Company presidents cited were: Barney Balaban, Paramount; Nate J. Blumberg, Universal; Harry Cohn. Columbia: Ned E. Depmet, RKO Pictures; Earle W. Hammons, Educational Films; Nicholas M. Schenck, Loew's ; Spyros P. Skouras, 20th Century-Fox, and Harry M. Warner, Warner Brothers. Acceptance Address Johnston in his acceptance address said "American democracy can continue only so long as it inspires the allegiance of successive generations. The motion picture industry long has recognized this fact. Almost from their infancy our companies have produced pictures designed to foster adherence to American ideals. Some of these films took their_ themes from our history. Others took their texts from the lives of our national heroes, our great statesmen, and the examples they set. "Through the program of Teaching Film Custodians, many of the patriotic, historical and citizenship films have been given renewed life and usefulness. These films once more are bringing to our school children, to new generations, a fuller understanding of our national heritage— an increased measure of dedication to American ideals." Dr. May, who made the presentations, said the directors of TFC regard themselves "as a connecting link between the motion picture industry on the one hand, and American education on the other. We are in this position because the motion picture companies put us there." More than 600 selected short subjects and excerpts from features have been provided for use in grade schools, high schools and colleges through the TFC. The films are supplied by MPAA member companies after the subjects have completed their commercial showings. Over 100 top educators and film officials attended the dinner which was preceded by a reception. Scores of enlarged posters were put on display to illustrate the operations of TFC "from film vaults to classrooms." MPA Unit "Maytime in Mayfair" (Realart) A CAREFREE and leisurely mood is struck in "Maytime in Mayfair," a British importation which Herbert Wilcox produced and directed. It is a mildly diverting film which is best described as a romantic comedy with musical' and dancing interludes. As an added premium the film incorporates into its story a fashion show. Color by Technicolor provides an additional selling asset. . , . , ... A.nna Neagle and Michael Wilding again have the romantic leads.^vitn support coming from Peter Graves and Nicholas Phipps. Miss N eagle portrays the manageress and designer of an exclusive Mayfair dress salon, while 'Wilding plavs a genial, footloose playboy. In an unexpected stroke Wildin° finds that he has inherited the dress salon and thereby becomes Miss Neagle' s boss. What follows is a whirlwind courtship, she playing coy and retreating while he is debonair and persistent. Opposition to Wilding comes from Graves who runs a rival dress shop. Not onlv does Graves conspire to get Miss Neagle to work for him. but he also plans to win her hand in marriage. He almost succeeds too when he learns about Miss Neagle's secret forthcoming fashion designs and releases them to the newspapers. Miss Neagle, thinking the leak came from \\ llding. becomes furious, quits his employ and goes to work for Graves. When matters are cleared up. Miss Neagle is back working tor \\ llding while Graves proves a sorry romantic loser. A Wilcox-Neagle production, it was written by Phipps, who plays a pokerfaced bachelor. . Runnin°' time, 94 minutes. General audience classification. Release date, not set. ° Mandel Herbstman (Continued from page 1) Johnston to Cannes (Continued from page 1) Institutional Ads (Continued from page 1) Goldwyn, RKO (Continued from page 1) association through a total of 15 years — longer than Mr. Goldwyn has ever heretofore continued to distribute his pictures through any one organization. Goldwyn. in a joint statement, commented: "My relations with RKO over that period have been not only pleasant, but have caused me to have great admiration for the outstandingability and integrity of the RKO organization." Goldwyn a month ago was reported to have negotiated with United Artists and other distributors for release of "Andersen." Deny Flood Damage Omaha, April 20.— Reports that the Missouri River floods damaged the Ballantyne Co. plant which manufactures sound and projection equipment were denied here. Bob Hoff, sales manager, said the plan is on high ground and has been in no danger from the flood, Hoff stated. he will leave New York by plane on May 4 for Cannes where he will attend the International Film Festival as well as engage in pre-negotiation talks. McCarthy is in Europe at present. On May 8, the MPAA president will go to Paris where he will remain for a week of official negotiations looking to an agreement to replace the one which will expire on June 30. Johnston has been informed by the U. S. State Department that it will officially conduct the negotiations with the French and that Ambassador Dunne will head the American group. The main points which the Americans will seek to win in the negotiations are a substantial increase oyer the 121 pictures per year now being admitted by the French, maintenance of an unrestricted remittance flow, and a slash in the stiff dubbing tax now prevailing. A shortage of dollars has caused the French in recent months to refrain from remitting amounts which were due the Americans then under the existing pact. Attendance Shortage Cancels MPAA Arbitration Meeting Here The meeting of top officials of 10 distribution companies scheduled for last Friday at the Motion Picture Association of America office here to discuss distribution's preparations for the conference tomorrow in New York with exhibition representatives was called off at the last moment because attendance did not measure up to expectations. Notices for the meeting which was to have taken place Friday were sent out on April 10. Distribution will enter the parley tomorrow equipped with the strategy devised by the sales managers subcommittee headed by William F. Rodgers, it was said. be proposed and acted upon at a meeting in New York tomorrow of the Motion Picture Association of America's advertising-publicity committee, headed by Charles Simonelli of Universal. If the new proposal is adopted, it was said to be doubtful that all companies would follow the plan since the reason the joint effort was eliminated was because the release schedules of certain distributors would not fit in with an institutional advertising effort this spring and summer. Will Report to MPA Whatever decision is reached tomorrow by the Simonelli committee will be reported to the MPAA membership meeting in New York next month. The. MPAA board late last year signified willingness to see as much as $300,000 expended on a joint campaign, which would have the Council of Motion Picture Organizations' imprimatur. It is expected that any new institutional ad plan would have the sponsorship of COMPO. American motion picture market, or help in lining up distributors for their product here again came predominantly from film producers in Italy and France. Growing interest in the revenue potentialities for British and non-English language films in U. S. theatres also brought the Unit visitors from countries in Latin America, Scandinavia, England, Ireland, Belgium. Germany, Austria, Israel, Yugoslavia, Turkey, India, Japan and others. As one of its major services the Advisory Unit in 1951 arranged invitational screenings of 28 foreign pictures for independent and MPAA affiliated distributors. The Unit's trade showings led to the negotiation of American distribution rights for eight of these films. An additional 31 foreign pictures were submitted to and viewed by the Advisory Unit during the year but were deemed by an impartial screening committee to have insufficient commercial merit to warrant the invitational screenings. A number of these films, however, were referred to individual distributors for consideration. The Advisory Unit has encouraged trial of the "Curtain at 8 :40" plan as a possible means of widening the outlets for good foreign films in this country. The plan, patterned after a successful experiment in a Toronto theatre, calls for showing select foreign films on a one-night-a-week basis. The films, single-billed, are exhibited on a legitimate show timing schedule. While the "Curtain at 8:40" experiment is still in its early stages, its test in some of the circuit houses in the East is being closely observed by foreign producers. The Advisory Unit was created in January, 1950, as an activity of MPAA's international division at the direction of MPAA president Eric Johnston and with the approval of the Association's board of directors. Its primary function is to equip foreign producers with the information and merchandising techniques they need to market eligible films with maximum effectiveness in this country. UPT Divests (Continued from page 1) Discina Acquires Another Discina International Films has acquired for American distribution _ a new French film, "Danger Is A Woman," and is readying it for a premiere in New York next month. Produced by Metzger and Woog. it was directed by E. E. Reinert. the corporation disposed of a number of individual theatres and properties. The net proceeds received in these transactions amounted to $1,216,000, consisting of $578,000 in cash and the remainder in notes. Under the terms of the consent decree, UPT is permitted to hold a maximum of 651 theatres, either whollyowned or jointly with investors. In its last report to the New York Statutory Court, made March 10, 1952, UPT reported that it still had to fulfill provisions governing 184 motion picture theatres. Chicago Tent Gave Hospital $67,709 Chicago, April 20. — During 1951 the Yariety Club of Illinois, Tent No. 26, turned over $67,709 to its chief charity project, La Rabida Jackson Park Sanitarium, an institution for the treatment of children afflicted with rheumatic fever, the Tent's heart committee reported. Most of this was raised through collections made in about 150 theatres in the Chicago area through an appeal by June Haver on a three-minute trailer. AFL to Answer Jackson Hollywood, April 20. — AFL Film Council is expected to draft a rejoinder, at a Tuesday meeting, to representative Donald L. Jackson's Wednesday Kiwanis Club address in which Jackson declared unions and guilds should "clean house" of members aligned with communism. Substitutions in 20th Re-release Schedule Two substitutions are being made in the. 20th Century-Fox re-release schedule. "The Black Swan" and "The Rains Came" are now slated for new showings instead of "Home in Indiana" and "Crash Dive." The revised line-up includes three features in color, "The Black Swan." "Leave Her to Heaven," and "To the Shores of Tripoli." In black-andwhite are "The Rains Came." "Laura" and "This Above All."