Motion Picture Daily (Jul-Sep 1956)

may, August 31, 1958 Motion Picture Daily PEOPLE lax Bercutt, West Coast field rep■ntative for Warner Bros., has Mri appointed coordinator between tK sales, advertising and publicity ■artment in behalf of the George Svens production of "Giant." □ jlric Johnston, MPAA president, Stressing the annual convention of Kto Chi Delta, national collegiate Frernity, in Seattle, Washington, Bied on the taxpayer and the corpo ■ and private benefactor to conlute an additional $3,250,000,000 aiually for the support of universiji| and colleges, claiming that higher Btcational institutions, both public ■ private, had suffered from a Pjneration of public neglect." □ Leo Pillot, Special Events manager l! national magazine contact for 2 h Century-Fox, has resigned his Bies effective Sept. 14. □ ohn Boulting, director of "Price's Progress," met Boston film Bics and radio and tv folk at a fecheon at the Boston Club yesterday. IX Extends Deadline hr Filing Comments From THE DAILY Bureau WASHINGTON, Aug. 30.-The ijieral Communications Commission I: extended for two months the cidline for filing comments on its f>posed channel reallocation plan in I major areas. In June, the Commission proposed {Intermixture in 13 areas as part of i! proposed solution to the over-all if allocation problem. The original (Midline for comments on the reallocaifii proposed in these 13 areas was |pt. 10, but the Commission today Witponed that date until Nov. 15. Irhe Commission had also asked for (inments on a gradual shift to exclude use of the UHF frequencies as t: long range solution. .rnall, Lamont Confer n European Conditions From THE DAILY Bureau HOLLYWOOD, Aug. 30-SIMPP ;sident Ellis Arnall will arrive here norrow, and will spend Monday in lference with Jack Lamont, MPP's overseas observer, who will lort to SIMPP executive commit• Tuesday on results of his Euroan tour of film centers investigating oditions affecting independent procer interests. Electron karri Ready for Hollywood 'Attack oew's Ltd. Dividend Special to THE DAILY OTTAWA, Aug. 30-Marcus Loew's leatres Limited declared divind of $1 quarterly on the common )ck payable on Sept. 28 to sharej'lders of record on Sept. 7. ON THE SCENE yesterday, explaining to newsmen the demonstration he helped arrange— of DuMont's mobile Electronicam film system: Benjamin C. Bowker, public relations manager. The equipment, in two functional, modernly designed trailers, on the weekend starts for Hollywood, for which it is designed to facilitate production. News and trade writers inspected it at the Movietone studios, and over refreshments solid and liquid received more information from Mr. Bowker and an array of vice-presidents. Donald Fink SMPTi Journal Award Goes to Philco Engineer The 1956 Journal Award of the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers has been won by Donald G. Fink, director of research of the Philco Corp., it was announced by S M P T E President John G. Frayne. Fink will receive the award, which is given to "the author of the most outstanding paper originally published in the Journal of the Society during the preceding calendar year," for his paper "Color Television vs. Color Motion Pictures" in June 1955 Journal. Presentation of the award will be made on Tuesday evening, Oct. 9, during the Society's 80th convention at the Los Angeles Ambassador. Honorable mention was accorded J. F. Carroll and John M. Calhoun of Eastman Kodak for "Effect of Nitrogen Oxide Gases on Processed Acetate Film," published Sept. 1955; Otto H. Schade of the Radio Corp. of America for "Image Analysis in Photographic and Television Systems," Nov. 1955, and Edward W. Kellogg, consulting engineer, for his three-part "History of Sound Motion Pictures," June-Aug. 1955. Weekly Studio Earnings From THE DAILY Bureau HOLLYWOOD, Aug. 30.-Craft union workers in the production branch of the industry averaged $125.96 weekly earnings during July, for an average 39.1-hour work week, the State Division of industrial relations reported. U. S. Documentary Wins Film Prize in Venice Special to THE DAILY VENICE, Italy, Aug. 30 The American documentary produced by Lionel Rogosin, "On The Bowery," has won the Great Prize in the Shorts and Documentaries classification of the Venice Film Festival here, it was announced by Aw, Vittorino Veronese, here of the festival jury. The jury said that Rogosin's documentary "is a splendid describing page where the most authentic and severe sincerity was served by an artistic style of rare composedness and of social admonishing documentation." The awarding of the Great Prize took place in the presence of American envoy Mrs. Clare Booth Luce. AIP Product Not to Be Sold to Television From THE DAILY Bureau HOLLYWOOD, Aug. 30-President James H. Nicholson of American International Pictures and Sunset Productions announced his companies will not sell their pictures to television, but will "stick with exhibitors" without variation. At the same time Nicholson expressed regret that his first two features had to be committed to television use "due to a financial shortage in establishing the new companies" and that this commitment has to be served despite a policy of limiting subsequent product to theatres only. Asserting exhibitors' acceptance of independent product during the current product shortage "has made it unnecessary to sell to tv in order to profit," Nicholson said, "We are in the business of making theatrical pictures for release only to motion picture theatres. As the new streamlined operation already is showing a profit because our pictures are needed, we do not find it necessary to make up losses by sale of capital assets." ( Continued from page 1 ) refusing to cooperate in the making of the picture. "The attitude of the Defense Department in this matter is indefensible," Price, a member of the House Armed Services Committee declared. "I consider it a shameful attempt to impose censorship on a film because it dares to represent an officer whose character is marred by the human failings of weakness and cowardice. I commend producers Robert Aldrich and his associates for having refused to bow to this threat and to have gone ahead and completed the film without military cooperation." This is the second time in two days that "Attack" has figured in the news. Only yesterday U. S. Ambassador to Italy CI are Booth Luce left the Venice Film Festival in a huff because "Attack" had been entered as one of the U. S. films there. Rep. Price in his statement said he was not at all surprised to have learned that the film was one of two American motion pictures representing the U. S. at the Venice Film Festival because it was an outstanding film. He said the Defense Department's refusal to cooperate in the making of the film was obviously because the character involved was an officer, and cooperation would have been given if the film had instead involved an enlisted man. The Illinois Democrat said the net effect of the film actually was to create a heightened admiration for both officers and enlisted men on the part of the film's audience. He said he hoped the Defense Department would reconsider its opposition to the film adding that "it would be especially distressing if the Department refused to show this film to our armed forces at military posts here and abroad." Fox Sales Drive ( Continued from page 1 ) a new high during the drive, which will take in the four weeks preceding and following the special drive week. Normal weekly gross for the 20th-Fox foreign department is $1,000,000, and expectations are that every territory will exceed its normal billings quota during the drive, setting a new, alltime record for the international organization. Special prizes will be posted for drive winners. 'Seed' Opens ( Continued from page 1 ) ing day figures of "A Star Is Born," it was announced. Grosses reported were: Mastbaum, Philadelphia, $7,534; Orpheum, New Orleans, $4,244; Stanley, Pittsburgh, $3,784; Orpheum, Minneapolis, $3,065; Orpheum, St. Paul, $2,138; Brandeis, Omaha, $2,200; Orpheum, Des Moines, $1,746; Orpheum, Sioux City, $1,506; Warner, Memphis, $2,504; Casinos, Wildwood, New Jersey, $2,541; Keith's, Syracuse, $2,667; and Palace, Cincinnati, $3,346.