Motion Picture Daily (Jan-Mar 1957)

tesday, January 8, 1957 Motion Picture Daily 3 PEOPLE The appointment of three co-chair3n to assist in the 1957 campaign the New York Councils of the ry Scouts of America has been anunced by Russell Downing and ibe Jackter, who are serving as airmen of the motion picture instry section of the drive. Named ■re William Gehring of 20th Cen-y-Fox, Frank McCarthy of Unij rsal-International and Max Youngsin of United Artists. □ (Michael Todd is in Europe to scout jl;atre locations for "Around the Wld in 80 Days." Arnold M. Picker, i:e-president in charge of foreign (itribution for United Artists, which | releasing the picture, is accompany II Todd. They are due back in New rk at the end of the week. Elizabeth Lyman has been named ■blic relations director of Bell & l)well Co., Chicago. She succeeds paries K. Preston, Jr., who has Irved in the dual capacity of public fiations director and corporate sectary since his election to the latter lice in 1955, Mrs. Lyman, a member i the Bell & Howell public relations |iff for the past few years, came to §2 company from the advertising Id. Bell & Howell announced at e same time that Whit Hillyer has en named manager of product formation, a newly created position. □ Harold M. Emlein, for the past 10 ars manager of the Indianapolis anufacturing plant of Radio Coriration of America, has been named anager of the theatre and industrial oducts department. q. . Dan Wallace has been appointed i executive officer to Canadian ime Minister St. Laurent. Wallace is held several posts on the NationFilm Board of Canada. He will ork on special projects for the prime inister. □ Norman Kihil has been appointed ureral sales manager of Edward oductions, Ltd., Montreal motion cture producers. He has been asciated with CBS-TV in Toronto, e National Film Board of Canada id Montreal TV stations. 0 "SIDE SEAT SQUINT" fITH THIS J% ALL-THERE" SCREEN 7ICRArlL.ITE3 SCREEN »the screen of optical precision" Write for booklet L. E. CARPENTER A COMPANY VICRA-LITE SCREEN DIVISION Empire Stale Building NewYork 1.N.Y. Canada: General Theatre Supply Co., Ltd. ironto SB A Rejects (Continued from page 1) debtedness, according to officials of the SBA. Last year, the agency announced that for the first time it would receive loan applications from theatre owners needing funds for modernization and repair work. Some weeks ago, it was learned that four applications had been filed for loans, ranging from $15,000 to $20,000. These were in Connecticut, California, Georgia and West Virginia. SBA officials would not say which had been rejected, but did indicate that one had been turned down in the field and two had been turned down in Washington. All three rejected applicants have already been notified, it was stated. Have Right of Appeal All three can, under SBA procedures, appeal and ask SBA to consider their applications again, producing new evidence to back their claims, according to SBA officials. But they added that this is rarely done and even more rarely successful. The SBA rejection of the loan application seeking funds to refinance existing indebtedness is particularly significant in view of the efforts being made by the Theatre Owners of America to get SBA to reverse its long-standing policy against making loans to pay off existing mortgages. SBA officials have long said they would consider such loans ' only where paying off some small amount of existing private indebtedness is incidental to the main purpose of the loan, modernization and improvement. Policy Appears Firm The SBA rejection indicates that as of now the agency is sticking by this policy and refusing to reverse itself and permit loans for mortgage purposes. SBA officials said the agency believes private financing agencies should be willing to carry existing mortgages, and that SBA should be used primarily to supply credit where it is not available from existing agencies. 'Big Fun Carnival Ready for Exhibition "The Big Fun Carnival," a series of 12 variety programs that have been specially produced for children's theatrical performances, is an idea advanced by Artists-Producers Associates, the producers, for luring back the children in the 6 to 12 age group. Martin H. Poll is executive producer of the film program, which runs 95 to 100 minutes and with an intermission runs up to two hours. A Gold Medal production, the film program stars Marian Stafford and Jared Reed and introduces the Bunin Puppets, "Uncle Beamish" and "Hugo." Exhibitors are urged to run the porgram at the rate of one a week, or one every two weeks. The music has been re-recorded and the entire series of programs are available. Artists-Producers has a three-year franchise on the component shorts. It reports that it has run a number of screenings of "The Bis Fun Carnival" across the country, each screening followed by an "open forum" discussion with circuit heads, buyers, bookers, district managers and theatre managers. Gordon to Paramount (Continued from page 1) territory covers all the countries of South and Central America and the Caribbean with the exception of Mexico. Pratchett was honored at a testimonial dinner in Mexico City last month. Gordon was his personal choice as the man to replace him in the "exacting tasks" of the Latin American division, according to Perkins. • Gordon has been a Paramount representative in many Latin American countries during the past 20 years, beginning in Panama in 1936. Recently he has been in New York as general representative, functioning under George Weltner, president of Paramount International. He will leave Friday for Puerto Rico as the first stop on a survey trip to his territory. Charge Midland Firm Owes Theatre Taxes BUFFALO, Jan. 7-A $50,906 delinquent tax suit has been filed by the U.S. Government in Federal Court here against Midland Properties, Inc., of Buffalo. The Government contends Midland is accountable for delinquent corporation income and excess profits taxes owed by Buffalo Twentieth Century, Inc. The suit claims the same stockholders control both firms. The suit charges Twenteith Century, Inc., leased the Twentieth Century Theatre, on Main Street, from Midland, Inc., and subsequently bought new equipment and furnishings for the theatre. In 1951, the Government claims, Twentieth Century returned the lease including all the assets and impfc%ements to the theatre. Since Midland^; acquired the lease and substaniial^Mprovements to the theatre at no cost, it should pay the taxes and interest accrued, the Government contends. Writers Guild Will Vote On Strike Against Two HOLLYWOOD, Jan. 7. The Screen Writers' Branch of the Writers Guild of America, West, will be asked to vote at a special general membership meeting Jan. 24 on a proposed strike action against two independent film companies. The Guild announced the members would be asked to authorize striking against the Hecht-Hill-Lancaster Companies and Michael Todd Productions for refusal to negotiate for collective bargaining agreements. The members will also vote on a proposed contract with C. & C. Super Corp., which has offered to pay $235,000 to writers of 82 post-1948 RKO Radio features to be released for TV exhibition. The Guild members are expected to approve the contract. ..JEWS nunt Fox Regional Meetings Start The first of a series of five 20th Century-Fox divisional meetings will be convened in Toronto tomorrow under the chairmanship of general sales manager Alex Harrison. Assisting Harrison will be C. Glenn Norris, Central-Canadian division manager, and Peter Myers, Canadian district $22,000 Week for 'Great Man' Universal International's "The Great Man" concluded the first week of its world premiere engagement at the Sutton Theatre here with a gross of $22,000, the company reported yesterday. ■ Ten Greek Films Received Greek Motion Pictures, Inc., has received 10 new Greek -language pictures for distribution in the United States. Four have English titles and six are without titles. The company plans to bring 50 additional films to this country in the near future. ■ New Tax Plan in Omaha An ordinance reducing the occupation tax on theatres has been introduced in the City Council of Omaha. A final vote is expected within two weeks. Under the new scale, theatres would pay $15 a year for a seating capacity up to $1,000, and $50 for over 1,000. Finance Commissioner Walter X. Spellman said the tax now produces $1,990 a year in city revenues. The new ordinance would cut it to $585. ■ ' Latin Amer. Likes 'Trapeze' Hecht and Lancaster's "Trapeze" is rolling up all-time records for United Artists releases in Latin America with grosses as much as 240 per cent above previous box office marks set in that area by company product, it was announced yesterday by Arnold M. Picker, vice-president in charge of foreign distribution. New highs for attendance and business were racked up during the first two weeks of the picture's engagements in Mexico, Venezuela, Panama, Costa Rica and Trinidad. ■ 'Baby Doll' Big Abroad "Baby Doll," Elia Kazan's controversial production for Warner Bros., had its initial foreign openings in Paris and London last week with record-breaking business reported by the distributor in both cities. In a fourtheatre day-and-date engagement in Paris at the Ermitage, Images, Max Linder and Vedettes theatres, the picture made a net gross in excess of ten million francs, a house record for American pictures, it was said.