Motion Picture Daily (Apr-Jun 1953)

2 Motion Picture Daily Wednesday, April 29, 1953 Personal Mention pHARLES C. MOSKOWITZ, vJ M-G-M vice-president and treasurer, plans to leave here tomorrow for a Miami vacation. • Sir Michael Balcon, British producer, will leave here for London today aboard the S\J>\ Queen Mary; accompanied by Lady Balcon. • Elmer F. Lux, Elmart circuit head and Buffalo Common Council president, has been recommended by his own 23rd Ward to be the Democratic candidate for Mayor in the next election. Louis B. Mayer, chairman of the board of Cinerama, is in San Francisco from Hollywood. • C. Bruce Newbery, Republic general sales manager, and F. A. Bateman, Western sales manager, are due in San Francisco today. • Joseph I. Breen, Production Code Administrator, is visiting in Philadelphia from Hollywood. He will arrive here Monday and will sail on May 8 for a stay of two months in Europe. Censor Repeal (Continued from page 1) sher's bill. The brief, prepared by Philip J. O'Brien, Jr., of the Motion Picture Association of America's legal staff, was presented by Mosher to the committee. The brief, which summarized the history of censorship and highlighted a 1913 Supreme Court decision in the case of Mutual Films vs. Industrial Commission and Burstyn vs. Wilson (the "Miracle" case in New York), pointed out that sections of the Ohio General Code provide adequate measures of punishment for those with motion pictures which violate them. Both opponents and proponents of the Mosher bill expressed opinions at last night's hearings. Among those favoring repeal were Ralph Good of the Cleveland Civil Liberties Union and Warren Hill of the Ohio Civil Liberties Union. C. J. Bradner, Jr., a teacher of religion at Denison University, read a statement signed by seven ministers urging repeal. The statement said that motion pictures must not become the instrument of ethical, moral and religious control because that is opposed to the constitutional right of religious freedom. Bob Wile, secretary of the Independent Theatre Owners of Ohio, said that 546 films had been shown on TV screens in Ohio which had not been submitted to censor boards nor had had licenses refused. Sees House Group Voting On Mason Bill Next Month Washington, April 28. — Pat McGee, co-chairman of the tax committee of the Council of Motion Picture Organizations, said he was confident of a House Ways and Means Committee vote next month on the Mason Bill for exemption from the 20 per cent tax. McGee remained here after COMPO's presentation to the committee last week and has been at work contacting Congressmen and Senators. He said he was still optimistic over the outlook for action this session. There will not be an any vote during the next couple of weeks in the Ways and Means Committee for two reasons, McGee indicated. In the first place, the Committee has hearings CinemaScope for Century Buffalo, April 28.— United Artists Theatres has placed an order for CinemaScope equipment for the local Century, which the circuit has leased for 10 years. The new Todd-American Optical projection system also will be installed. scheduled every day through May 20 on reciprocal trade legislation. Secondly, Chairman Reed (R., N. Y.) has indicated he will not clear any excise bill until the House Rules Committee clears his own individual income tax reduction bill. However, McGee continued, indications are that the Rules Committee will clear the Reed Bill sometime in mid-May, and "then the Ways and Means Committee will meet right after that and report out the Mason Bill." The Denver exhibitor predicted that the admission tax bill would then be cleared for a House vote under a procedure barring any changes on the House floor. UA to Release 1st 3-D Feature Cartoon The first feature-length animated cartoon in 3-D will go into production this summer under the direction of Hugh Harman. A deal is close to consummation whereby United Artists will distribute the picture. Harman, a partner in the HarmanIsing organization, has been in New York for the past month negotiating for distribution. While United Artists deal has not been actually signed, a spokesman said here yesterday that an oral agreement had been reached. MGM Executives to Coast Tomorrow Nicholas Schenck, president of Loew's-M-G-M, Arthur M. Loew, Loew's International president, Joseph R. Vogel, vice-president in charge of Loew's theatre operations, Charles M. Reagan, M-G-M sales manager, and Howard Dietz, advertising-publicity vice-president, will leave here for the Coast tomorrow for series of meetings with Dore Senary, production vice-president, E. J. Mannix, Louis K. Sidney and Ben Thau, studio executives. The executives will map production plans for 1953-54, preview new films and review the progress made by studio technicians in the past few weeks on a new wide-screen and sound system. They will return early next week. Alperson, Disney (Continued from page 1) events leading up to the annexation of Texas as a state. Disney is planning to produce "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" in the CinemaScope process and also may make a short subject using the widescreen medium. "20,000 Leagues" will be a "live action" production. Disney saw the CinemaScope demonstration at the Roxy Theatre here twice, attending the midnight performance Monday and the showing yesterday morning. Wm. Brandt Heads Foundation Drive William Brandt, president of Brandt Theatres, has been named campaign chairman of the New York Variety Club Foundation to Combat Epilepsy, it was announced by William J. German, board chairman of the Foundation. "Brandt will guide the first campaign in American philanthropy to underwrite a complete, integrated program to assist all phases of the fight against epilepsy," it was stated. Sponsored by the Variety Club of New York, the Foundation will support the Variety Club Clinic for Child ren with Epilepsy at the Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center. Smpte Meet Hears (Continued from page 1) pers by John A. Norling, Raymond J. Spottiswoode and Armin J. Hill on their respective findings in 3-D. Norling stated and documented a history of the development of the camera that bears his name, using stereoscopic slides. He also demonstrated the four other main types of 3-D cameras in current use. Following Norling's address, Carroll Dunning, whose camera uses a fixed inter-axial, echoed Norling's remarks good-naturedly by declaring, "We'll have to get together and decide whether I'll sue you or you'll sue me." Spottiswoode's paper, read by proxy, disclosed that the British inventor is on the point of completing a new camera incorporating recent improvements. Hill, associated with the Motion Picture Research Council, took the topic out of the realm of theory and broke it down to the practical procedures now being followed by Hollywood producers. Mich. Allied Meet (Continued from page 1) that people are getting more drive-in conscious and fussy about drive-in facilities and appearances. A banquet was held in the Tuller Hotel in the evening with Robert Coyne of COMPO as chief speaker. NEWS in Brief ... Philadelphia, April 28. — Spyros P. Skouras, president of 20th CenturyFox, and Al Lichtman, director of distribution, have arrived here from New York for two CinemaScope demonstrations scheduled for tomorrow morning at the Mastbaum Theatre. Skouras and Lichtman will later fly to Chicago for showings on Thursday at the Uptown Theatre, following which the two will fly to Detroit for Friday demonstrations at the Fox Theatre. They are expected to return to New York by plane on Friday. • Washington, April 28. — Federal Communications Commission general counsel Benedict Cottone will resign within the next few weeks to enter private practice. Cottone was top legal man in the Commission during the deliberations on the AB-PT merger and has worked intensively on the industry's theatre television request. • Thomas Slack, attorney for Howard Hughes, board chairman of RKO Radio Pictures, has left here for the Coast following his participation in the depositions taken in connection with a minority stockholders suit. Depositions in the suit, filed by attorney Louis Kipnis, were given by Ned E. Depinet, company consultant, and Miller J. Walker, vice-president, among others. • Chicago, April 28. — Attorney Seymour Simon has filed notice of appeal in U. S. District Court here, asking reversal of a recent opinion handed down by Federal Judge Sam Perry that single damages cannot be collected in anti-trust suits ; that RKO Radio Pictures, Paramount and Balaban and Katz Corp. (a Paramount subsidiary) terminated the suits against them by signing consent decrees; and that the statute of limitations became operative two years after the consent decrees were signed (by RKO in 1948 and by Paramount in 1949). A full page in yesterday's New York Journal American was devoted to a picture lay-out of celebrities and others attending 20th Century-Fox's CinemaScope demonstrations at the Roxy Theatre. • Major distributors have consummated new contracts with exchange employes in seven cities, the new pacts calling for wage increases of $4 per week. Cities in which negotiations have been completed are Denver, Cleveland, New Orleans, Atlanta. Jacksonville, Memphis and Charlotte. In the last named city, the deal covered only front office employes. • Demonstrations of MagicVuers, polarized glasses for 3-D, will be held in the 29 cities in which National Theatre Supply has branches. They will be conducted by William Turnbull, NTS vice-president, and Robert D. Hall, salesmanager for Magic-Vuers, who will confer here on demonstration plans on Friday. MOTION PICTURE DAILY. Martin Quigley, Editor-in-Chief and Publisher; Sherwin Kane, Editor; Terry Ramsaye, Consulting Editor. 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