Motion Picture Daily (Jan-Mar 1955)

VOL. 77. NO. 18 MOTION PICTURE DAILY NEW YORK, U. S. A., WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 26, 1955 Concise To Ttifi Point TEN CENTS Commons Told New UK Firm To Take Over British Lion British Lion Pacts with Exhibitors to Continue By PETER BURNUP LONDON, Jan. 25.— Approval by the British Government of National Film Finance Corp.'s proposals for the formation of a new distribution organization to succeed British Lion was announced here today in the House of Commons. The new distribution organization, it was stated, will continue British Lion's films and service contracts with exhibitors. The new company, it was explained, acquires the goodwill and assets of British Lion, including a shareholding majority interest in Shepperton Studio, property owned by British Lion Studio, Ltd. NFFC, it was pointed out, holds £3,000,000 in debentures in the old British Lion, and has agreed to ex(Continued on page 6) Paramount-Siegel Pact Terminated HOLLYWOOD, Jan. 25. — Paramount studios today issued the following statement: "Y. Frank Freeman, vicepresident in charge of the studio, and Sol Siegel, producer, jointly anounced today that at Mr. Siegel's request, the contract between Mr. Siegel and Paramount Pictures, providing for the production of 10 pictures over a period of five years, had been terminated." Siegel cited 'complexity of clauses' in the contract as reason for termination. In Gov't 16mm. Action Canada May Lower Admissions Tax TORONTO, Jan. 25.— Reports are that the Ontario government has realized the financial predicament of many exhibitors throughout the province and is preparing to grant some form of reduction in the amusement tax which will be made public on the floor of the Provincial Legislature which opens here on Feb. 8. The special Exhibitors Committee for Amusement Tax Relief, headed by Lionel Lester, Toronto independent exhibitor, has not relented, however, in its pressure campaign for substantial tax modification. Theatre owners in many localities have made individual appeals to local members of the Ontario Parliament. It is pointed out that many small theatres have been hard hit by television since the introduction of TV in Canada in 1952. "The tax will be cut — how much, I don't know," was the intimation from a semi-official source. But the exhibitors are still campaigning. Branson Predicts Most Active Year For RKO Pictures With the release of "Underwater !" RKO Radio Pictures embarks on one of the most active years in its history, according to an announcement yesterday by Walter Branson, world wide sales manager. Scheduled for release at this time by RKO are 21 independently made films plus four top-budgeted pictures made by RKO, he said. Among the independents set to release through this company's facilities are Edmund Grainger's Ram Productions, Benedict Bogeaus, David Butler Productions, the King Brothers, Nat Holt Productions. The first two films to be made under the aegis of Ram Productions are "Treasure of Pancho Villa" to be (Continued on page 4) ALLIED WEIGHS BID TO BE DEFENDANT As Co-Conspirators, Theatres Could Take No Part in Trial of the Government Suit Test Mass. Censor Law In Hillside Case To Test Robinson-Patman Act on Films In March Allied States Association officials are weighing whether it would be wise to ask the Los Angeles District Court to make Allied a defendant in the government's 16mm. anti-trust suit, rather than a co-conspirator as sought by the government. This was confirmed by a top Allied official, who said the question is whether it would be worth the "time, money and risk" for Allied to seek to intervene. He indicated there probably wouldn't be a decision for several months. As alleged co-conspirators, Allied and other theatre owner groups named by the Justice Department can't take any part in the trial of the suit. They can't call witnesses, cross-examine witnesses or address the judge or jury. The most they could probably do would be to submit a "friend of the court" brief at the end of the trial. On the other hand, as co-conspirators, they wouldn't be bound by any findings or judgment ultimately entered by the court. The government's idea in making the exhibitor groups co-conspirators is to broaden the field of evidence which the government can introduce in the case. If Allied and other exhibitors became defendants, they could present their own evidence to refute the government's charges. However, the risk involved in seeking to become defendants — in addition (Continued on page 6) BOSTON, Jan. 25.— An appeal was filed today by the Brattle Theatre, Cambridge, from a ruling of the Middlesex Superior Court upholding the validity of the existing Sunday licensing law. The Brattle is contesting the right of the Commissioner of Public Safety to deny a license to show the Swedish film, "Miss Julie," on Sunday on the ground that the law is unconstitutional. Judge Cahill of the Middlesex Superior Court upheld the present regulation of the Department of Public Safety. Under the present law, all motion pictures which are to be shown on Sundays must be licensed by the city or town and by the Department of Public Safety. The department refused the application of Brattle to (Continued on page 6) Application of the Robinson-Patman Act to film terms will be argued here the first week in March in the suit brought by the Hillside Amusement Co., Hillside, N. J., against Warner Theatres. The case will be heard in the N. Y. Circuit Court of Appeals. The action was dismissed in a lower court last year and the plaintiffs filed an appeal. It was charged that the Mayfair Theatre in Hillside was forced to pay higher rentals for product than those asked of Warner and other competitive theatres. The Rob inson-Patman Act prohibits discrimination of prices in commodities and the Hillside company is seeking to prove that the act can be applied to film prices. It is said to be the first test of the act in the history of motion picture litigation. UA to Distribute New Crown Product Formation of Crown Productions, a new independent film-producing organization to release through United Artists, was announced yesterday. The four principals involved in the new company are Robert L. Jacks, Robert Goldstein, Spyros S. Skouras and Plato Skouras. Jacks and Goldstein were both executives associated with the late Leonard Goldstein's Independent Productions. This venture, (Continued on page 6) HERBERT J. YA irtstnts EPUBLIC PICT BERJACK m GALA WORLD PREMIERE in <*5 MONTANA TOWNS starting FEB. 4th