Motion Picture Daily (Jul-Sep 1956)

Motion Picture Daily Thursday, July 19, 195( PERSONAL MENTION DAVID O. SELZNICK and Jennifer Jones arrived in New York from Europe yesterday aboard the "Liberte" and will leave here on Saturday for the Coast. • Maurice Silverstein, liaison between M-G-M and independent producers, will leave New York at the weekend for Hollywood. • William R. Weaver, West Coast editor of Quigley Publications, yesterday became a grandfather with the birth of a girl, Deborah Ann, to his daughter, Mrs. Roger Stockton, at Hollywood Presbyterian Hospital. • Ed Sullivan, television star and columnist, left here yesterday by plane for England and the Continent. He will return to New York on July 29. • Sidney Weisner, Warner Brothers attorney, and Mrs. Weisner returned to New York from Europe yesterday aboard the "Liberte." • Otto Preminger will leave New York today for London via B.O.A.C. Monarch. • George Cothram, booker for Allied Artists Southern Exchanges, is the father of a boy born to Mrs. Cothram in Atlanta. • Norman Krasna, writer-producer, will arrive here from the Coast on July 25. SMPTE Meet To Have 43 Equipment Booths Some 43 booths will display the latest equipment developed for use in laboratories and motion picture and television studios at the 80th semiannual convention of the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers, Oct. 8-12 in Los Angeles. John B. Olsson, exhibit chairman, said the booths are to be erected in the Hotel Ambassador. He added that for the first time one entire technical session will be devoted to a program of papers on transistors and their applications to motion pictures and tv. Sessions will also be devoted to motion picture studio practice, projection and exhibition, laboratory practice, general tv subjects, tv film commercials and instrumentation and high-speed photography. Johnston to Meet With MPAA-MPEA Industry matters will be discussed in conferences between Eric Johnston, president of the Motion Picture Association and the Motion Picture Export Association, and executives of the domestic and foreign trade groups here today and tomorrow, it was reported yesterday. Johnston, who arrived in New York yesterday from the West Coast and Washington, is expected to be brought up to date on a number of motion picture industry projects in preparation for the forthcoming company presidents meeting, which, it was indicated, will be held early next week. Will Report on Seaton Meeting The MPAA-MPEA head is scheduled to report to the company presidents on his recent European trip, on an early summer meeting with George Seaton, president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, in regard to industry sponsorship of the 1957 Academy Awards, and other issues. He and the board members will also go over the selfregulation committee's progress and the sales managers committee and advertising and publicity directors committee progress on ways and means of revitalizing the box office. 'Oklahoma' Bookings In Three More Cities Rodgers and Hammerstein's "Oklahoma" produced in Todd-AO will open in Louisville, Indianapolis and Oklahoma City in mid-August, it has been announced by the Magna Theatre Corp., which has set deals with the Lyric Theatre in Indianapolis, the Brown Theatre in Louisville, and the State Theatre in Oklahoma City. D. Irving Long, president of the Fourth Ave. Amusement Co., which operates the Louisville and Indianapolis theatres, signed these agreements, the Indianapolis one calling for an exclusive road show. Writers Guild Head Hits Release of Films to TV HOLLYWOOD, July 18-"The release of M-G-M features to television is a serious blow to both screen and television writers," Edmund Hartfnan, president of the Screen Writers Guild of America, West, declares in the Guild News Bulletin to members. "My personal opinion is these pictures will be absorbed in tremendous tv markets, and that the real damages will be to motion picture theatres and thus, indirectly, to motion picture writers," Hartman declared. Now It's 'Free Movies7 at Municipal Swimming Pool Special to THE DAILY ATLANTA, July 18 The Spring Avenue swimming pool, a municipal operation here, is now showing as an added attraction 16mm motion pictures, including Mickey Mouse cartoons and full-length features. Park Director Roy Grayson says the "pool-side" films are very popular and often "stop the water play of the youngsters as they go to the sidelines to watch them." The cost to his department is small, he said, as only old films are shown. Local theatre exhibitors have been non-committal so far about the situation. 'Boss' Scored (Continued from page 1) said their film has been called in some quarters "a biographical sketch of the late Pendergast in Kansas City." Walter Seltzer, who did most of the talking, emphatically denied this, maintaining that the picture "is fictional and tends to show the link between organized crime and organized politics." Seltzer observed that, following a preview of the picture in Los Angeles, the mayor of Kansas City, who attended the screening, declared he would attempt a "local boycott" of the picture. The producers said that Rep. Melvin Price, (D., 111.) had attacked the film in Congress saying that "this will make the Republicans happy. I would like to see Hollywood turn its cameras on these real political bosses of the present, instead of reviving ghosts from the past." Seltzer said he has contacted Joseph Holt ( R., Calif. ) concerning this political criticism and that the Congressman requested a private showing of the picture before making a reply. The screening will be held in Washington tonight. Code Seal Withheld Commenting on their difficulties with the Production Code Administration, the Seltzer brothers said that a Code seal was not given the picture due to a scene in which machine gun bursts are heard, but not seen. "All that is seen is a law officer getting killed," they stated, adding that there is no intention at this time to change the scene in order to secure a seal. The producers disclosed that UA has not as yet given them a decision as to whether the picture as it is at present will be released by the distribution company. Seltzer said the decision would be made after a UA executive screening. Australians ( Continued from page 1 ) last night in the course of a 'roundJlj the-world business trip. Rydge will continue through Canada en route home without visiting the Unitec States because of lack of time. n An interesting feature of the G. U'L T. annual contest for its manager.' is that the competition is not with1 other theatres but always against then previous record of the same theatre; The contests run for six months eacfil year, during which time company judges make frequent, unscheduled visits to the theatres, grading eacH! * on various showmanship and house-; keeping performances which deter: mine the winners. Grades are givei not only for increases in attendance (judging is on the basis of ticketsi sold rather than grosses attained) but also on service to patrons, clean liness of the house, effectiveness ol advertising, publicity and exploitation, projection standards and othen evidences of good management. In addition, American and other distribution companies in Australia offer prizes at the same time to man', agers who put on the best campaigns and get the best results with thtf distributor's picture during the corS test. Staff members of winning theatres also share in prizes. Watts and King saw television foi the first time during their stay if London and expressed some apprc hension as to effects it may have ol theatre business in Australia when if is introduced there on an extensive scale. During their stay in New York, the two will be entertained by Radk City Music Hall, Cinerama, Columbia RKO Radio, Universal and others fpe jO] 4Walk Proud Land' Set For Hudson, N. Y. Bow HUDSON, N. Y., July 18— "Walltfk-. the Proud Land," Universal-International's CinemaScope and Technicoloi production based on the biography of John Philip Clum, famed Indian.^ agent, will have its world premiere at Walter Reade's Community Theatre here Aug. 1, as part of a statewide celebration paying tribute to the late loth Clum, whose birthplace is located on the outskirts of Hudson at Claverack, N. Y. if In 1 -J! Ill :J itii rs -.it: WHEN IN A RUSH FOR A SPECIAL NEW YORK. N.V. 341 w Ulh ST. ipj la I'ntr MOTION PICTURE DAILY Martin Quigley, Editor-in-Chief and Publisher; Sherwin Kane, Editor; Raymond Levy, Executive Publisher; James D. Ivers, Managing Editor; Richard Oertner^ JNews^h-ditor, iloyd E. ^Stone, Photo_ Editor^ Herbert V Fecke, Advertising Manager; Gus H. Fausel, Production Manager; Hollywood Bureau, Yucca-Vine Building, l\ Ne! fYorkeNeY * under the' art if twi^Ta-?3^' ^ PktUre Almanac' Television Almanac, Fame. Entered as second class matter Sept. 21,^9387 at" "the'Post "Office! at New York, N. Y., under the act of March 3, 18/9. Subscription rates per year, $6 in the Americas and $12 foreign; single copies, 100.