Motion Picture Daily (Jan-Mar 1959)

Hay, February 26, 1959 Motion Picture Daily 5 men from Laredo |bia | western drama has action that and furious and bright Columblor scenery to counterbalance me screenplay by Clark E. Rey'|and a cast lacking in familiar hero herein is rancher Robert , whose wife, Jean Moorhead, 1 in a gun battle with saloon Clarence Straight and his two ■s. Walter Coy and Jerry Bari attempting to take revenge on o. Knapp guns down one of :t's men in self-defence, and is y convicted of murder, i eager than ever for vengeance, breaks out of prison and heads i Straight's direction, along the nning into Indian maiden Jana >*ho has been kidnapped by an warrior. He rescues Miss Davi •r captor in a fight which results itter's death, and soon after the ipache's fellow warriors are hot ■uit of the new duo. id storm temporarily separates and Miss Davi from their pur')ut they are soon re-matched napp is captured by sheriff Paul At this point, the Indians re ' on the scene and demand life in return for their dead an's. This ends up in a duel e Indian chief, whom Knapp hus scattering the remaining r ' .. By this time, Knapp has won "ffirifFs sympathy, and is allowed J )ut alone after Straight and his ! , who are held to be a local ! b anyway. Things work out as 'm'i, and Knapp is free to start Ijlfe with Miss Davi. f triced and directed by Wallace ] aid, "Gunmen from Laredo" °|io surprises, but should keep audiences entertained out its relatively short footage. time, 67 minutes. General ttion. Release, in March. Warren C. Harris :to|c „iers and Universal Cleveland Offices aeJf Special to THE DAILY \||l/ELAND, Feb. 25.-March 1 ~il 1 will be moving days for ijor exchanges. On the earlier • Warner exchange leaves the Bldg. where it has been locat1930 and returns to the Film 108 Payne Avenue. On April Universal branch departs from ji Payne Avenue location and I'upy space next door to the " ranch in the Film Bldg. Milder N. Y. Film-Licensing Bill Backed nty9 Hit Here Disney's "Sleeping Beauty" nirama-70 hit a big opening gross of $59,862 at the Criheatre here, it was announced les B. Moss, president of the jjD (corporation. Pacing the gross jew house record of $15,900 1 on Saturday, and a new matik of $10,000 set on Washingbirthday despite inclement ( Continued from page 1 ) has actively supported the licensing fees measure (initially introduced in 1955), it has filed statements and held conferences with budget director T. Norman Hurd and his staff. The Commerce Association has likewise circularized a memorandum to education committee members in both houses. It hopes to have the bill "moved" after budget legislation is adopted. In a letter to Hurd last December, executive vice-president Thomas Jefferson Miley wrote "it was most gratifying to note the emphasis placed by Governor Rockefeller on improving our business climate, to attract and keep business healthy in our state." Pleads for Film Industry Miley continued, "One segment of a national business in recognized dire financial straits, truly a sick industry, having its home management offices centered in New York State, is that of motion picture distribution. It is ironic that in New York, home of these firms, there exists the only instance in the entire nation of a censorship tax which exceeds the cost of operation of the motion picture review board, exceeds that cost more than three times over." "Ostensibly there is no tax, only a license fee," Miley continued, "but year after year the spread between the censorship board's 'take' and its cost of operation is fantastically large. Last year, operation cost approximated $125,000 according to our best information, while the revenues exceeded $450,000. This is a backbreaking load for an industry in drastic financial condition, and the burden is not lightened by the injustice of the heavy fee imposed for distributing every duplicate print of a film which was already reviewed and approved in the original." Miley added that in 1957 he served with Francis W. H. Adams and David Dubinsky on a committee appointed by Mayor Wagner of New York to survey conditions in motion picture exhibition in that city. Following its report, said Miley, "the city completely revised downward its movie admission tax rates, recognizing the industry as a sick one." Copy of Report Included Miley enclosed, for Hurd's information, a copy of this report, also, a memorandum from the Motion Picture Association of America "regarding the overall situation in which its members find themselves." Miley's letter continued that in 1956 and 1957, the legislature "on a wholly non-partisan basis," passed a bill changing the film licensing fees. At the new rate, this would bring "an estimated revenue of approximately $200,000-more than enough to run the motion picture division with a substantial cushion. Averell Harriman, then governor, vetoed both measures, solely on the grounds of revenue loss." "While state revenues are vital," declared Miley, "it appears such a Postpone Action ( Continued from page 1 ) mittee has now tentatively set Wednesday, the day after election, for consideration of the proposed legislation which would bar patrons under 18 from certain movies. Political Overtones Feared Opponents have expressed the view here that the measure could become entangled in the city's election. They prefer to have the censorship bill debated on its merits rather than upon political timeliness. McCarthy Set ( Continued from page 1 ) York joint legislative committee to study the publication and dissemination of offensive and obscene material. Four bills sponsored by the committee provide for licensing of New York theatres, to classify films as to audience suitability and to regulate film advertising. Twelve Listed to Appear A complete listing of witnesses to be heard at the first session was released yesterday. It includes the following: Harry Brandt, Independent Theatre Owners Ass'n.; Professor Paul Tappan, professor of sociology and lecturer in law at New York University: Sidney Schreiber, Margaret Twyman and Gordon White, Motion Picture Ass'n.; Dallas Housewife ( Continued from page 1 ) a Hollywood-type premiere of the picture in her home, Mrs. Hairston also won an automobile, mink coat, diamond bracelet and other valuable prizes by guessing their retail value. Millions entered the contest. The largest room in Mrs. Hairston's new home' in Dallas where the premiere will take place, measures 9 x 12. Projection engineers now are trying to figure where they'll put the CinemaScope screen. 'Tables' Does $38,900 "Separate Tables," United Artists' film, which won seven Academy Award nominations, climbed to a huge tenth week gross of $38,900 at the Astor and Normandie Theatres here. The Hecht-Hill-Lancaster production begins its 11th week at these showcases today. D. John Phillips, Metropolitan Motion Picture Theatres Ass'n. Also, Mrs. Jesse Bader, Protestant Film Council; Mrs. Dean Gray Edwards, General Federation of Women's Clubs; Steve D'Inzillo, east coast council, motion picture studio unions; and Walter Diehl, IATSE. Representing Theatre Owners of America will be Gerald Shea, Jamestown Amusement Co., and Seymour Morris, Schine circuit. view completely disregards the justice of the matter, the industry's desperate situation, and the long-range objective of encouraging business to stay and develop in New York State." Miley "strongly urged" that in preparation of the governor's budget "careful consideration be given to opportunities for revising statutory fees levied by the motion picture division." Rockefeller Estimate $400,000 Governor Rockefeller's recent budget message estimated the film tax would yield $400,000 during the fiscal year ending Mar. 31, and estimated a similar figure for 1959-60. To meet the objection that fee changes would upset the budget, the Marchi-Savarese bill, at the Commerce Association's suggestion, had its effective date delayed to Apr. 1, 1960. This coincides with the start of a new fiscal year. On Jan. 28, the Commerce Association wrote Hurd a letter "supplementing" Miley's and "the conference we had with members of your staff early this month." Enactment of the bill "would go a long way toward removal of this unfavorable economic climate now faced in New York State by this sick industry," adding that it would also help at the exhibitor level, where "a large number are able to stay in business only through saturation bookings," it was pointed out. Action Termed Unwarranted "The most substantial deterrent to saturation booking is the highly unwarranted censorship on each print," the association declared. The letter mentioned that the Adams report, submitted with the first communication, stated, "The greatest sufferers in the hard-pressed motion picture industry, at the exhibitor level, are all four-wall theatres in smaller communities and those showing subsequent run pictures in larger communities. It also has been demonstrated that when these marginal theatres go out of business a drastic, depressing economic effect is clamped on the entire surrounding area." Figures Submitted The independent distributor "operating wholly within die state feels the thrust of the censorship fee with ever greater force than the major firms who can take their prints elsewhere," the Commerce Association said, adding that independents feel it "more and more difficult" to remain in business in New York. License fee figures for prints on multiple bookings were cited here. The adverse effect of present scales on major distributors also was reported. MPAA Quoted The memorandum listed startling figures on die declines in domestic revenue of MPAA member companies, gross income from distribution in New York State, and national weekly picture-theatre attendance.