Motion Picture Daily (Apr-June 1956)

Tuesday, April 24, 1956 Motion Picture Daily 5 Congressional Action on Toll-TV Is Urged Krasna ( Continued from page 1 ) many factors— audience reactions, the overseas market, merchandising, to jfiame a few, and it is a big gamble," I Krasna stated. ] The different points of view in interpreting comic and gag dialogue is mother important fact which make pomedies, such as "Dear Ruth" and I 'The Ambassador's Daughter," big isks, he said, citing several examples )f how dialogue could be misinterpreted. "Comedy is a lone assign-nent and most difficult to produce mccessfully," Krasna stated, adding :hat he is hopeful that his latest one vvould be "successful and live up to ;xpectations." Favors Production in France , Commenting on production abroad, iliince he produced "The Ambassador's daughter" in France, Krasna said hat the American industry "should encourage overseas production in that /country because the French are great jjraftsmen." Continuing, he said that pertain elements in the U. S. industry should stop yelling about runaway liroduction" when a producer goes ■verseas. In France, he said, there lire no studios, just real estate which 'ft producer rents prior to bringing in 6 (]he equipment necessary to produce. Jacks Backs U.A. on Rejected 'Kiss' Ad Robert L. Jacks, producer of "A Ciss Before Dying," has sharply criticized the Motion Picture Association if America for refusing to approve ds prepared for the film by United Artists because of the use of the word I pregnant" in the copy. . United Artists has rejected the denand by the MPAA that the copy ;ine "I'm pregnant," as spoken by an ■nmarried college girl portrayed by oanne Woodward, be changed to I'm in trouble." .. In backing the firm stand taken by JA and its vice-president Max E. oungstein, Jacks declared: "The motion picture industry too iften has been accused of using mis I jading advertising in publicizing pic"ures. Now we're trying to be com 'letely honest and are told that we "an't be. " A Kiss Before Dying' was a bestelling novel by Ira Levin. The plot 'evolves around a college girl who ecomes pregnant out of wedlock, laturally we used the same theme in 'ansferring it to the screen. Since >e were allowed by the Johnston of ■ ce to use the phrase, 'I'm pregnant' I I the picture, it's ridiculous not to e able to use it in the advertising. "The film has received the Producon Code seal," Jack said. "We have no intention of changing ur ads," he added. jules Bernstein Dies CHICAGO, April 23.-Jules Bem.ein, stage manager and chief elecician for Balaban & Katz for more ian 30 years, died here. ( Continued from page 1 ) James Landis, special counsel fur Skiatron Electronics and Television Corp., made this plea in testimony before the Senate Commerce Committee, which today opened a week of hearings on the toll-television question in relation to the problems of UHF broadcasters. First Such Hearings These are the first Congressional hearings touching on the toll-TV problem. Raibourn asked for "an immediate and forthright declaration" from the committee "that die Commission should take immediate steps to give pay-as-you-see television a chance; that the Commission should place no artificial barriers in its path and place no artificial restrictions on its use." Landis asked the committee to "exert at least its moral influence" with the FCC "in behalf of the formulation of a program now." Both Raibourn and Landis argued that toll-TV would save many hard-pressed broadcasters, especially UHF stations. Landis told Sen. Bible (D., Nev.), who presided in the absence of committee chairman Magnuson ( D., Wash. ) , that Skiatron feared "a delay of four or five or six years" before the Commission acts on subscription TV. Three of 15 Present Only three of the 15 committee members were present during the Raibourn and Landis testimony, and none gave any firm reaction to the plea that Congress pressure the FCC to authorize toll-TV. Sen. Potter (R., Mich.) declared he was somewhat concerned over the fact that subscription television would charge the public for the use of the public's airwaves, and that he wondered whether this was in the public interest. However, he did not express firm opposition to toll-TV. Bible concentrated most of his questioning on the purchase and installation costs for toll-TV decoders, declaring it very important that the public know in advance what these costs would be. Landis, former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission and former dean of Harvard Law School, said that as long as the decision on pay-TV remains pending before the FCC, the economic plight of many UHF and marginal VHF stations would become more serious. He said that the presentations of tollTV programs over UHF stations "will afford a substantial measure of relief" to those stations which are not getting enough programs sponsored by advertisers to survive. Sees a New Audience Landis told the committee that the type of program Skiatron envisaged for toll-TV "might well appeal to a group of people not now watching television," and that he didn't think toll-TV, if authorized, "would weaken the circulation of the networks." He said Skiatron would have no objection if the FCC authorized all three tollTV systems— Skiatron, Telemeter and Pay-TV Would Hurt Theatres: Landis From THE DAILY Bureau WASHINGTON, April 23.-Skiatron special counsel James Landis admitted today that the authorization of subscription television would hurt motion picture theatre revenues. He told the Senate Commerce Committee that toll-TV would "cut into the amusement dollar" and would take its greatest cut out of the share now going to motion picture theatres. Motion pictures, he said, would be toll-TV's "best fare," because they are "always there, always available and a stable source ol program material." Zenith— and that if the Commission should set up standards for toll-TV transmission, all three should be able to meet those standards. Landis estimated it would cost the consumer about $45 to purchase and install a Skiatron decoder on his television set— more if a high UHF antenna were also necessary. He said Skiatron judged its programs would cost the viewer from 25 cents to two dollars a program. He predicted that within nine months after its authorization, Skiatron would have 100,000 viewers, and that "in an area like New York City," it should have up to 2,000,000 viewers within two years after authorization. Decoder and Box, §30 and §50 Raibourn also estimated a $2 top for Telemeter's toll-TV programs, and said he thought installation oi the decoder and coin box would cost between $30 and $50. He also said he thought a program that would run from one to two hours could be seen for $1, and that the viewer could get about 20 viewing hours a week for from $4 to $10 a month. Assuming that 25 per cent of the television households in the country install pay-TV by 1960 and spend an average of $1 a week on programs, Raibourn said, the aggregate revenuewould be about $600,000,000. If 90 per cent of the television households have installed it by that time, he went on, the revenue would be $5,000,000,000. Ignores Mass Audience Raibourn maintained that toll-TV programs would be geared to a specialized audience, and not the mass audience to which commercial television now caters. Toll-TV would bring manv "fine, high-calibre programs," he said, drawing them from new films, stage presentations, opera, sports and educational groups. "Current motion pictures of high quality" would be among the most important types of entertainment which would be used on toll-TV, he said. These could be presented on TV at a price range of from 25 to 40 cents for an average picture, 30 to 60 cents for a Class A feature, and 55 cents to $1.20 for an "exceptionally expensive" picture. Raibourn was accompanied on the stand by another Telemeter official, Paul McNamara, who told the committee that organized baseball management is "all in favor" of subscription television. "Baseball has been crippled by television," McNamara said, pointing out that 22 leagues hadn't started this year. Hits NARTB, Webs, AT&T Raibourn attacked the networks, the National Association of Radio and Television Broadcasters, and the American Telephone and Telegraph Co. "The committee should reaffirm and make clear," he said, "that network organizations are subject to anti-monopoly laws just as other American businesses are." He said he opposed the licensing of networks because this might give "further insulation from competition and give them possibly immunity to continue the present restraints," which he argued must be removed if subscription television is to have a fair opportunity to develop. He declared he could not understand the NARTB's opposition to tollTV7, and accused it of "not representing the best interests of the stations or the public." He asked the committee, in cooperation with the FCC, to "take apppropriate measures" to require A. T. and T. to "expand and improve interconnection transmission facilities and offer them to all seeking their use at tariffs which are reasonable and non-discriminatory." Says More Stations Likely A final witness, Ray Kohn, told the committee that additional television stations could be established if tollTV were authorized. Kohn explained how stations could increase their revenue by using subscription television programs. Kohn was the operator of an Allentown, Pa., UHF television station which went off the air a year ago. Before going off the air it petitioned the FCC to authorize a trial of subscription television in order to show public acceptance of the medium. The Commission turned down the station's request. Michael Barry, 80 KANSAS CITY, April 23.-Michael J. Barry, one-time partner in Blackstone Amusement Co., died here. Kansas City theatres in which he had owned interests were the Uptown, Isis, Warwick, Apollo, Rockhill, Linwood, Gillham and Roanoke. He was 80 years old. 1 YOUR ORDERS FOR 1 SEND US YOUR SPECIAL 1 NEXT SPECIAL 1 TRAILERS 1 TRAILER ORDER! GET FAST SERVICE! 1 PERSONAL 1 QUALITY WORK! 1 ATTENTION 1 CHIC4C o, ax ""^ FROM 1 1127 S. WUASH J Ifilmack r «w Tin. jlt. M 1 Ml W. U>1 ST. X