Motion Picture Daily (Jan-Mar 1954)

10 Motion Picture Daily Tuesday, February 9, 1954 Partmar {Continued from page 1) not had its "day in court" and that the case should have been reversed and sent back to the District Court with instructions to the judge there to take evidence on the damage claims. Justice Black joined in this dissent. Justices Jackson and Clark took no part in the case. Most of the opinion and dissent dealt with highly technical, legal questions as to whether a decision on the eviction issue automatically prevented a decision on the claims issue. Paramount rented the Partmar Theatre to Partmar Corp. in 1939, and also had a film franchise with Partmar. The lease agreement provided that the lease could be terminated if the franchise agreement were terminated. Cancelled in 1946 Following" the 1946 New York Statutory Court ruling that franchises were illegal, Paramount cancelled its lease and sued to evict Partmar. Partmar filed counter claims seeking treble damages, alleging that Paramount was part of an industry conspiracy which resulted in Partmar having to pay excessive terms under both the lease and and film franchise agreement. In May, 1951, the Los Angeles District Court ruled against Paramount in the eviction suit, citing the Supreme Court's Paramount decision that not all franchises were illegal. The court declared there was no evidence that this particular franchise resulted from an illegal conspiracy. The court also ruled that, since it had found no conspiracy in setting up the franchise, it felt Partmar could not recover on its damage counterclaims. Partmar did not appeal from the part of the decision validating its lease, but did appeal from the part throwing out the counterclaims. Handing down the majority court opinion today, Justice Reed said: "A separate trial on the counterclaims would have been improper procedure, as the judgment entered on the (Paramount) complaint was a final disposition of the determinative issue on the counterclaims — whether or not the terms of the lease were a product of an illegal conspiracy." Reed also said admission of the final Paramount decree would not have helped Partmar, either, since "the government judgments provide no proof of the indispensable element to Partmar's counterclaims, that the lease and franchise were part of or the result of a conspiracy. From the decree there would have been prima facie evidence of a conspiracy, but no evidence that the Partmar lease was a result of that conspiracy so as to overturn the trial court's finding in this very proceeding that no illegality tainted the lease." Warren Dissents In his dissent, Warren said "the issue of conspiracy was not litigated ; nor did petitioner have a fair opportunity to litigate the issue." During trial of the eviction suit, he said, Paramount was the only party with reason to prove a conspiracy, since that would have given it ground to cancel the lease. But Partmar is penalized on the counterclaims issue because Paramount did not prove conspiracy, Warren said. "The anomalous result is to Reviews 'The Holly and the Ivy" (London-Pacemaker) THIS British import, although slightly marred by a tendency toward "talkiness,'' is perfectly acted by a brilliant cast and should be a "must" for discriminating audiences. It was adapted from the play by Wynyard Browne and tells the story of a family gathering at Christmas time and how their lives are straightened out by understanding and love. Ralph Richardson plays a widowed country parson who is taken care of by his older daughter, Celia Johnson. During the holiday season, his other daughter and son, two of their aunts and a cousin come for a visit. It is then that they learn that Miss Johnson wants to get married and go abroad, but won't leave her father. Her sister, a successful fashion writer in London, refuses to stay with him and the brother is a carefree soldier headed soon for college. They also discover that the younger daughter, Margaret Leighton, had a child born out of wedlock who died at the age of four and that she has taken to drink as a refuge. The reasons for the family secrets become clear to everyone ; because Richardson is a vicar, they feel he cannot be told certain facts. They think his religious background would prevent his understanding their problems other than in a moral way. All their lives they've had this schism between them though none would openly admit it. However, the son blurts out the truth and, to the children's amazement, they discover that the vicar has far more compassion and worldliness than they. Their problems are all resolved to everyone's satisfaction, including the audience's. Though this summary places the emphasis on the drama, there is much warm humor throughout. And the performances are wonderful. In lesser roles, but just as effective, are Denholm Elliott as the son, Hugh Williams as the cousin and two magnificent old ladies, Margaret Halstan and Maureen Delaney, as the aunts. Anatole de Grunwald both wrote and produced while George More O'Ferrall directed. Running time, 80 minutes. General audience classification. For February release. World for Ransom 99 {Allied Artists) E*XCEPT for the changing of some of the characters' names, this is an * 82-minute elongation of a half-hour television film in the "China Smith" series starring Dan Duryea as Smith and Douglas Dumbrille as the police inspector who always is on his trail. In this version, however, Duryea is named Callahan and Dumbrille's name also has undergone a change. But they wear the same garb in the same setting, play their roles in the same way and nresent a script that isn't much different from the TV offerings, except that it's longer. In the screenplay by Lindsay Hardy, there is an ample amount of slugging, killing, conniving, detection, evasion, escape and pursuit and crossing and double-crossing to satisfy, if not satiate, the followers of the "China Smith" television program. In a devious wav, it has to do with the kidnapping of a nuclear scientist who is said to be one of the few men in the world who know how to detonate an H-bomb. Aoart from the conflicts arising from that event, there is a three-cornered situation in which Duryea and Patric Knowles and Marian Carr. a night club singer and wife of Knowles, are involved until Knowles is eliminated and Miss Carr drops Duryea for being of no further usefulness. Robert Aldrich and Bernard Tabakin co-produced, with Aldrich directing. Also in the cast are Gene Lockhart, Reginald Dennv, Nigel Bruce, Arthur Shields. Keye Lukp. I ou Nova. Clarence Lung and Carmen D'Antonio. Running time, 82 minutes. General audience classification. Schneiderman (Continued from page 1) Bovim Heads (Continued from page 1) derman has been a member of the UA executive sales staff in New York. During 1951 and 1952 he served as executive in Japan for Universal, a position which followed domestic sales posts with RKO Radio and an association with Warner Brothers as manager in Panama. K. C. Theatre Robbed KANSAS CITY, Feb. 8. — Two masked men robbed the Vista Theatre, of the Fox Midwest circuit here, early this morning of about a thousand dollars. They had forced Jack T. Steele, theatre manager, to the curb in his car earlier near his home, forced him to lie down in the car and drove around until the theatre had closed, then forced him to open the safe. A similar robbery had occurred in the same part of the city recently. penalize the petitioner for refusing to help Paramount win the eviction suit," he declared. Loew's in St. Louis. His successor is Sam Shubouf, manager of Loew's State, Cleveland. Arnold Gates will move from the Stilhnan to the State, Cleveland. Frank Manente, manager, Esquire, Toledo, will fill the Stillman vacancy. Atlanta and Nashville will be adder1 to the theatres directed by Martin Burnett, who headquarters in Columbus. O. Pittsburgh will be supervised bv Frank Murphy of the Loew Cleveland office. Greenherg's Cosmo Acquired by Brandt The Cosmo Theatre here, formerly owned bv Henry Greenberg, has be<=n acquired by Harry Brandt, president of Brandt Theatres. Brandt in the deal assumed the presidency of Cohere Cinema, Inc., the cornoration which operates the theatre. The Cosmo, it was stated, will show first-run neighborhood attractions. Allied Board (Continued from page 1) Kane of North Central Allied, Minneapolis, recording secretary. Abram Myers continues as chairman and general counsel. The Allied board voted to continue to explore the possibilities of garnering stock in one or more major production-distribution companies from exhibitor stockholders, with the idea of having such stock pooled and voted by a proxy committee, especially in an effort to influence a company to increase its film production schedule. First Suggested by Rembusch The proposal was first advanced by Trueman Rembusch of Indiana at Allied.'s annual convention in Boston last October, primarily as a remedy! for what exhibitors believed to lie an increasing shirtage of product. Since that time, Allied has canvassed its membership and other independenl exhibitors for data on how many shares of major company stocks are owned by them and how many would be willing to increase their holdings, by purchase or exchange of the stock of a particular company, and whether or not such exhibitor stockholders would be willing to assign the proxies to an Allied committee for voting. Apparently, the surveys to date are not conclusive, since the Allied board voted for their continuance and named the following committee to pursue the study : Marcus, Shor, Snaper, Horace Adams, and Benjamin Berger. Approve Drive-ins' Resolution The board also endorsed the resolution adopted here last week by the Allied-sponsored National Drive-in convention which condemned 20th Century-Fox's policy in regard to stereophonic sound requirements for its CinemaScope productions, particularly with reference to the effect of the policy on drive-ins. Copies of the resolution were directed to the U. S. Attorney General with the recommendation that action be brought either under the Paramount decree or, if that did not apply, that new government actions be brought. The Allied board voted its full, cooperation to the current Federal admissions tax repeal campaign being conducted by the Council of Motion Picture Organizations. The board also voted to hold its next meeing in New York in March. St, Louis, St, John? Dallas Top UA Drive The Dallas, St. Louis and St. John (N. B.) exchanges of United Artists are holding first place in their respective groups in UA's 35th anniversary sales drive honoring Arthur B. Krim, president. The second lap of the campaign still has one week to go. William J. Heineman, vice-president in charge of distribution, and B. G. Krauze, general sales manager, are co-captains in the drive. The Dallas exchange is headed by W. C. Hames ; D. J. Edele manages the St. Louis branch and I. J. Davis is in charge of the St. John exchange. The 32 UA branches are competing in three groups of equal grossing potential in the six-month anniversary drive, which ends May 15. The company's 1954 slate of more than 50 releases figures in both the domestic campaign and a year-long overseas sales push in Europe, Africa, Acia, Australia and South America, similarly honoring Krim.