Motion Picture Daily (Oct-Dec 1954)

6 Motion Picture Daily Tuesday, Novembei 9. 1954 COMPO Ad Scores Growing Threat of Local B.O. Taxes The 3Uth in the series of Council of Motion Picture Organizations' ads in "Editor & PubHsher," calls attention to the threat of new municipal admission taxes and points out to editors a few aspects of such taxes that may not have occurred to them. "When Congress reduced the 20 per cent Federal admission tax last spring it took great care," the ad says, "to make it known why this relief was being voted. The reason was simple : Congress was convinced that the admission tax was destroying the motion picture industry." Cites 'A Few Aspects' Notwithstanding Congress's clear intent, the ad says that the motion picture industry now hears that there is a possibility cities and towns will impose admission taxes of their own. In view of this threat, the ad states that "we would like to alert our newspaper friends to a few aspects of municipal admission faxes which may not have occurred to them." "Since the tax was cut in half last April 1, there has been an, increase of nearly 1,000 theatre operations. All of these newly opened theatres give employment to local residents, stimulate local retail business and pay taxes into their local municipal treasuries. These benefits" would be gravely threatened in every community imposing a municipal admission tax." Drive-ins a Factor Another factor which the ad points out should not be overlooked is the rise of the drive-in theatre. "The drive-in is a comparatively new but most welcome development in the motion picture industry. But if your city puts on an admission tax, it is obvious that the theatres that will have to pay it are those within your city limits. These are the ones that are already paying taxes on real estate, license fees, utility service rates and numerous other local charges." Would End House Un-American Unit WASHIN'GTON, Nov. 8. — Rep. Walter (D., Pa.), who would head the House Un-American Activities committee in the new 84th Congress, said he might ask the House in January to abolish the committee. Walter said he would favor transfering the functions of the special committee to the House Judiciary Committee, of which he is the ranking Democrat. He declared he felt there would be less "abuse of power" if the investigations of subversion were carried on through the Judiciary committee rather than through the special House committee. It's possible, of course, that House Democratic leaders will try to talk Walter out of his idea, or that the House itself will vote to continue the committee despite Walter's feelings. Starts Art Bookings HARTFORD, Nov. 8.— The parttime booking of art films is spreading into small town situations in Connecticut. The independent State theatre in Spring-dale is the latest to set selected European attractions on a twoday-per-week schedule. General admission prices are raised to $1 for the two days. Reviews You Know What Sailors Are 9f (J. Arthur Rank-United Artists) THE light, amusing humor which has so happily characterized many of the British productions during recent years is present in this J. Arthur Rank offering, "You Know What Sailors Are," starring Akim TamirofT in a delightful characterization as a ruler of an Arabian Night-style country. Tamiroff is the sole marquee name which American audiences will recognize but his excellent performance is easily matched by the rest of a talented and well-chosen English cast headed by Donald Sinden, Sarah Lawson and Naunton W ayne. Sinden, a Navy radar expert, had a few drinks too many and for a joke, collected a pawnbroker's sign and a pram, and shaped and welded them to the bridge of a foreign destroyer. Following that old Naval axiom — if it's permanent, paint it, the crew of Tamiroff's vessel paint the contraption, believing it to be the latest radar equipment. Units of the British Navy are in an uproar because they want a secret weapon like the one welded to the bridg? of the foreign vessel. Sinden is assigned to Tamiroff as a radar instructor and, while at sea, tries to explain the joke but is thwarted by the explosion of a sabotaged plane, thus convincing Tamiroff that the pawnbroker's threeball sign is a secret weapon. Tamiroff keeps Sinden under the close guard of 15 lovely girls in his palace in order to learn all he can about the secret weapon in order to fight the threats of a neighboring nation. As the story unfolds, Tamiroff, Sinden and a screwball professor, Martin Miller, keep the chuckles moving right up to the end. Also in the cast are Bill Kerr, Dora Bryan, and Michael Shepley. The picture was written and produced by Peter Rogers and directed by Ken Annakin, all members of the Julian Wintle Production unit. Running time, 85 minutes General audience classification. Release, in November. L. D. Senate Unit Gets SCTOA Complaint Anent Distributors The Golden Mistress (Kay-Rybnick—UA) L'\ NUSUAL scenes of voodoo ceremony and dances, in color, lend an '' eerie emphasis to "The Golden Mistress," a film starring John Agar and Rosemarie Bowe in a standard adventure drama about a treasure hunt in modern Haiti. The picture was filmed entirely in the Caribbean and has considerably more appeal to audiences than the cast names suggest. Agar is pictured as a happy-go-lucky skipper of a broken-down island boat who is continually in search of treasure and in need of cash. Miss Bowe is the daughter of another treasure hunter, a cheat who dies after making off with a voodoo idol. The newly-orphaned Miss Bowe and Agar join forces to search for the treasure of a long lost tribe of slaves in a series of colorful locales, ranging from an idyllic little fishing village on the coral sands of the turquoise sea, to such places of Haitian historical interest as Sans Souci and the Citadel. The climax is a fantastic affair involving a large, but unknown Caribbean island where the protagonists come within an inch of losing their lives in a spectacular voodoo dance of justice. The film was produced by Richard Kay and Harry Rybnick, with Sam X. Abarbanel as executive producer. Joel Judge directed from a screenplay he co-authored with Lew Hewitt, who also wrote the original story. Prominent in the supporting cast are Abner Biberman as Miss Bowe's father ; little Jacques Molant as Agar's 12-year-old first mate; Andre Narcisse as an upright village chief and several members of the National Folklore Theatre of Haiti. Running time, 82 minutes. General audience classification. Released m September. yy Twist of Fate (British Lion-United Artists) While; manipulating melodramatic incident after incident, "Twist of Fate" manages to provide audiences with a good level of excitement and suspense as Ginger Rogers and Jacques Bergerac, in authentic French Riviera atmosphere and locale, turn in able performances. Miss Rogers seems to be in love with an international businessman, Stanley Baker, who actually is the head of a syndicate minting illegal coins for the Continental market. Presently, however. Miss Rogers learns that he has been deceiving her and that his wife would not give him the divorce he pretended was near fulfillment. By chance she meets a potter, Bergerac, and falls in love with him. Coincidence adds its touch when a bracelet that was given to Miss Rogers by Baker is stolen by Herbert Lom, a Continental confidence man, and used to pay an underworld debt. Thus, by a twist of fate, the bracelet is returned to Baker and he immediately assumes that Lom is Miss Rogers' lover. The screenplay by Robert Westerby and Carl Nystrom churns with movement and involvements. In the finale, Lom kills Baker when the latter catches him in another theft. Lom then rearranges circumstances so that it would appear that the lovers actually committed the murder. Despite the highly melodramatic quality of the story, it is to its credit that it does not sink into the routine. When Miss Rogers and Bergerac discover that they are being victimized by false evidence they go about nabbing the real culprit in a whirlwind, bang-up finish. Maxwell Setton and John R. Sloan produced the film and David Miller was the director! Running time! 89 minutes. Adult audience classification. Release in November. HARTFORD, Nov. 8.— The partSouthern California Theatre Owners Association complaint against trade practices of producer-distributors will be studied before any action is taken, a spokesman for the Senate Select Committee on Small Business said here. The SCTOA forwarded to Sen. Andrew F. Schoeppel and, reportedly, to every member of Congress, a list of grievances citing alleged "monopoly" practices by the major companies in .he marketing of motion pictures. Sees New Powers Given The association maintains the consent decree has resulted in giving the distributors new price-control powers which are being used to the detriment of the individual or small circuit theatre owner. SCTOA urged the Senate committee to bring about reforms to help the small theatre owner to "obtain sufficient purchasing power so that he can expect a reasonable profit on his investment." 4 Films Start; 11 Finish; 32 in Work HOLLYWOOD, Nov. 8.— Four pictures started and 11 pictures were com^pleted last week, dropping the overall total of pictures in production to 32. Started were : "Five Aganist the House," (Columbia) ; "No Place to Hide," Joseph Shaftel, Eastmancolor (Independent) ; "The Rose Tatto," VistaVision (Paramount) ; "Kiss of Fire," Technicolor (Universal-International ) . Completed were : "Rider of the Ruby Hills" and "High Society," (Allied Artists) ; "Creature With the Atom Brain," Clover Prods. (Columbia) ; "Hit the Deck," CinemaScope, Eastman ( Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer) ; "The Trouble With Harry," VistaVision, Technicolor (Paramount) ; "The Admiral Hoskins Story," (Republic); "The Seven Year Itch," CinemaScope, color (20th Century-Fox) ; "Big House, U.S.A.", Bel-Air (United Artists) ; "The Shrike" and "To Hell and Back," CinemaScope, Technicolor (Universal-International); "Jump Into Hell," (Warner Brothers.). L of D Takes 'Bread' Out of 'B' Class The National Legion of Decency's rating of "Bread, Love and Dreams'' has been revised as a result of revisions made in the film. Formerly rated as Class B, it has now been placed in Class A, Section 2, this classification being applicable only to prints exhibited in Continental United States. In the same listing the Legion classified 16 other films, placing six in "B" and 10 in "A". In Class B are "Bowery to Bagdad," "The Golden Mistress," "Jessie James' Women," "Phffft," "This Is My Love," and "Track of the Cat." In class A, Section 2 are "Black Widow," "Fire Over Africa," "F'our Ways Out'' and "Sign of the Pagan." In Class A, Section 1 are "Athena," "The Black Knight," "The Bob Mathias Story," "Crest of the Wave," "Romeo and Juliet" and "West of Zanzibar."