Motion Picture Daily (Jan-Mar 1957)

iday, March 29, 195' Motion Picture Daily reviews arzan and the bst Safari »l Lesser-MGM A luxury airliner crashes in the Tican jungle, landing on the edge a precipice into which it is albout fall and thereby doom its five pasngers— three men and two women. |st as all seems lost along comes a ilwart looking fellow clad in leopardin shorts and accompanied by a impanzee. Together these two not fly rescue the survivors but save :m from numerous other perils in i jungle— including lions, poisonous iders and unfriendly natives — and ides them safely to civilization. Recognize that plot? It is Tarzan Tmula Number One. Sol Lesser has [w resurrected it and revivified it ith the modern techniques of Tech:olor and wide-screen. He has also fned up a new Tarzan in the peri of Gordon Scott, who is possessed the necessary requirements of a Ige physique and an ability to yell. ]r some reason Jane, his mate, has Jsn left out of this picture. [Exteriors of this film were made in jitish East Africa and the Belgian fpigo. It was produced by John Croy|n and directed by Bruce HumberJne. The screen play was by MontInery Pittman and Lillie Hayward [ased on the character created by [gar Rice Burroughs." Inning time, 84 minutes. General Issification. Release, in May. Richard Gertner far Drums ■Air— United Artists it's the frontiersmen and Indians in, shooting up the scene to the ompaniment of martial musical efts and DeLuxe color. Les Barker vtrong and stalwart as an intrepid ache chief Who takes for wife a xican half-breed, Joan Taylor, 'ch to the chagrin of his proud ic Ben Johnson is a frontiersman b also has an amorous drive toward is Taylor. The predictable Apache-whiteman Br breaks out and Miss Taylor, B'ker and Johnson rotate between p ngle romantic tussles and assorted Kodthirsty activity in a series of b';hed battles. The onrush of the Berican Civil War interrupts the jfian skirmishes and in an indecisive Bang, Johnson, now a Union Army Beer, sends Barker and his new si aw, Miss Taylor, off into the hills. ierald Drayson Adams wrote the abenplay and he makes the doings ite actionful. The over-all profesli'alism of the product also reflects H shrewd direction of Reginald Le Bjg. Aubrey Schenck is executive fducer of this Bel-Air Production lag released through United Artists, ■ward W. Koch produced. Mining time, 75 minutes. General lusification. Release, in April. Lawrence J. Quirk Allied, TOA (Continued from page 1) distribution steering committee on arbitration. The latter includes A. Montague, Columbia; Charlies M. Reagan, Loew's Inc., and George Weltner, Paramount. The meeting will also likely be attended by Eric Johnston, president of the Motion Picture Association of America, who will preside over the MPAA's annual meeting on April 8. The April 8 talks will be exploratory, Gordon said yesterdav adding that the discussions most likely will cover the where and bow to start the new talks on establishment of conciliation and arbitration machinery for the industry, and what representation to include in the subsequent drafting meetings. Gordon said that this coming weekend he will leave Texas for Milwaukee to address the North Central Allied meeting there next week. Fox Income ( Continued from page 1 ) ter (13 weeks) ended December 29, 1956, amounted to $3,016,320 equal to $1.14 per share. This compares with $1,578,188 for the fourth quarter (14 weeks) of 1955 equal to 60 cents per share. Earnings for the first quarter of 1957 are presently expected to total 75 cents a share versus 17 cents in the first quarter of 1956. Income for 1956 totaled $122,251,864. It was divided into film rentals, including television, $112,780,869; dividends, $1,071,844; and other operating income, $8,399,151. This compares with total income in 1955 of $120,807,208. That was divided into film rentals, including television, of $110,494,351; dividends, $932,094, and other operating income, $9,380,763. U. S. and foreign taxes on income in 1956 were $5,075,650 as compared with $5,539,674 in 1955. ASCAP Members Voting On Reclassification ASCAP members will be polled by mail on a change of procedure for classification it was announced at a business meeting of the organization yesterday at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. Change of classification is now effected by a hearing before the executive committee and one neutral outsider agreed upon by the applicant and by the committee. The new method would have reclassification effected by a board of three afbitrators designated by the American Arbitration Association. Four new directors were elected. P. John Marks succeeds Jack Rabbins, Adolph Vogel succeeds Donald Gray, Ned Washington succeeds the late Gene Buck, and Dr. Douglas Moore succeeds A. Walter Kramer. Pinky Herman, praised by Paul Cunningham who presided as "one of the hardest working members of the organization," spoke in support of the new classification procedure. Television Today Canadian TV (.Continued from page 1) board to supervise all broadcasting and telecasting in Canada under the control of Parliament, though CBC would still direct private stations in the use of its national service. Financing Provided for CBC Other proposals include the discontinuing of the present policy of single station TV operations in various areas, though second stations would be firmly supervised on program standards. CBC operations and expansions, mainly TV, would be financed by about $470,000,000 in the next six years and CBC would be financed on a long term basis generally founded on national consumer spending. No license fee for TV or radio set owners would be imposed. Enforcement of regulations on telecasting or broadcasting would be stiffened, even to the cancelling of station licenses for flagrant violations. The commission suggests that CBC's French TV and radio services be extended and more other live Canadian TV programs be encouraged. However, CBC would discontinue its Dominion Radio Network. Limits Non-Canada Ownership Of interest to the United States is the recommendation that in the future regulations should prohibit more than 20 per cent non-Canadian ownership of a large Canadian station and all station licensing should be by the cabinet. The suggested limit on ownership would apply to Canadian subsidiaries of foreign companies and to direct investment for foreign capital. Awards Show Attains 36.9 Trendex Rating The National Broadcasting Company's simulcast of the 29th annual Academy Awards presentations from Hollywood and New York Wednesday night attained a high Trendex rating of 36.9, according to a network representative. The telecast, which started at 10:30 P.M. EST, was viewed by some 45,000,000 people in the U.S. and Canada and heard on radio by millions more, the NBC-TV representative stated. The Trendex rating of 36.9 was taken during the 10:30 to 11:00 P.M. period on Wednesday. CBS Signs Erskine Howard Erskine has been signed by CBS Television to a long-term contract in a producing and creative capacity, it is announced by Hubbell Robinson, Jr., executive vice-president in charge of network programs. Erskine is a former stage producer. IN OUR VIEW AND so this day endeth the month of March, the Ides of March, which is famed in song and story, which is characterized for all and sundry by the "taxation blues" and which, now these several years, is also the month of that annual entertainment malady— Awarditis. For it is in this month that the usual series of awards for all kinds of things entertainment-wise, marking the work of the previous calendar year, comes to full circle in the award of the Emmies of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, and of the Oscars of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. It is well and appropriate that these two affairs should have so much in common. It is equally happy that the young and developing art-industry should have borrowed, or appropriated, so many basic conceptions from the older and also developing art-industry. For there is so much that Television and the Motion Picture have in common, and there are so many ways in which the two are learning each day one from the other. It is indeed fair to say that the teacher, in this instance the motion picture, is learning much from the pupil, in this case television. Last week the motion picture Academy Awards were presented, and it is significantly interesting, but often overlooked, that it has been automatically assumed from the start, practically, that the awards should be presented to a vast, interested, even excited audience across the country— via television, of course. And there need be not the slightest feeling among those in important places in motion pictures that the use of the television medium in this case is invasive, foolish or in any wise bad judgment. Rather is it true that here, perhaps more succinctly than in any other way, the manner in which these two entertainment media complement each other is illustrated. The entertainment-conscious, leisure-laden public of this broad and eager land do not in their own minds for the most part differentiate among types of entertainment nearly so much as some believe. Rather do they seek happy employment of their leisure hours to the best possible advantage. Thus emerges the backbone of progress in whatever field, competition. Also in turn the public becomes more selective, demands better because better is available, and so the wheel spins, honing the edge finer— and that is for the best. —Charles S. Aaronson