Motion Picture Daily (Jan-Mar 1959)

2 Motion Picture Daily Tuesday, March 24, li PERSONAL MENTION CHARLES BOASBERG, Warner Brothers general sales manager, has returned to the Burbank studios from New York. • William S. Paley, chairman of the board of CBS, left New York yesterday via B.O.A.C. for Monter*o Bay, B.W.I. • James H. Nicholson and Samuel Z. Arkoff, heads of American International Pictures, have arrived in Rome from New York. • Robert Rich, general sales manager of United Artists Associated, and Don Klauber, national sales manager, have returned to New York from Toronto. • William Osborne, Far Eastern supervisor for Allied Artists International, has arrived in Tokyo from New York. • Bruce Eells, executive vice-president of United Artists Television, left New York at the weekend for Hollywood. • Kenneth Winckles, managing director of the J. Arthur Rank Organization, will return to London today from New York via B.O.A.C. SPG To Meet Tonight On Wage Negotiations The Screen Publicists Cuild will meet tonight to decide whether to notify 20th Century-Fox and Warner Bros, that the union's contracts with the motion picture companies will be terminated April 11 if no agreement in the current labor-management wage dispute is reached by that date. The legal deadline for filing such notification is Friday. The Guild membership will make its decision tonight following reports on the outcome of meetings with Fox and Warner management representatives during the past week. A negotiaating session will be held between union and Fox officials at 10:30 this morning. 'Green' Does $100,000 M-G-M's "Green Mansions" grossed a big $110,000 for its first four days at Radio City Music Hall, the company said yesterday. Saturday business was said to be the best for a first Saturday for an M-G-M film in 3V2 years, excluding a holiday weekend. Levy Arrives (Continued from page 1) directors and who is on his first visit to this country. Clouzot, who shattered U.S. nerves and set new box office records with his "Diabolique" and "The Wages of Fear," will write and direct the first film to be made under Levy's new Columbia deal, "Verite," for which Miss Bardot has been set to star. Although he declined to divulge all the details of the new contract, on the grounds that it was still being negotiated, Levy said it would probably run for three years and call for between one and three films. As in his previous Columbia commitment, which he is just winding up, the U.S. firm is providing a major part of the financing as well as distribution facilities. This earlier deal involved "The Night That Heaven Fell," the soonto-be released "In Case of Emergency," the recently completed "Babette Goes to War," all of which star Miss Bardot, and "San Francisco Regatta." 'Delighted' by Success Here Clouzot told the press that the U.S. success of "Diabolique" and "Wages of Fear" both "surprised" and "delighted" him. He also confessed that he had a property in mind which he would like to shoot in New York. Neither he nor Levy seemed too concerned about any so-called crisis in the current French film industry. The subject of the French government's aid law, which provides a system of subsidies for producers and which will probably be extended beyond its December 30, 1959 expiration date, prompted Levy to comment that its principal function was to provide financing for "a lot of pictures which should not have been made in the first place." Will Seek to Expand Unemployment Benefits From THE DAILY Bureau WASHINGTON, March 23. The Administration will shortly ask Congress to expand the coverage and boost taxes under the unemployment compensation system. Labor Secretary Mitchell reported this at the White House today after President Eisenhower's meeting with state governors. Mitchell said the Administration would ask coverage for all businesses with one or more employes; now only firms with four or more workers are covered. He said the Administration would also seek to have the unemployment tax based on the first $4,200 a year of worker earnings, instead of $3,000 as at present. Four 'Life' Openings Set Universal Records Universal's "Imitation of Life" is off to the greatest business in the history of the company, spokesmen said yesterday, with the first four dates indicating a potential blockbuster matching "The Glenn Miller Story," the company's all-time record grosser, and outdistancing "To Hell and Back," "Magnificent Obsession" and "Written on the Wind," the company's biggest grossing films. The first six days at the Roosevelt Theatre in Chicago totalled $48,200, setting a new all-time high for a Universal picture, and matching the 37year house record set last summer by "The Defiant Ones." The first three days at the Hippodrome Theatre in Cleveland were $23,600, a new alltime high for any picture from any company to play the house. The first three days at the Golden Gate in San Francisco and the Paramount in Los Angeles set new all-time highs for U-I pictures. Former did $14,300; latter, $12,500. Suggests Meetings (Continued from page 1) ginia organization has had "very good attendance at nearly all our conventions or meetings for a good many years," advocates extending its conventions to include exhibitors from Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, District of Columbia and the Carolinas. "It would bring together exhibitors from the big metropolitan centers as well as smaller communities. I believe that a series of such conventions at strategic points throughout the country, sponsored by exhibitor organizations and properly supported by production, distribution and suppliers, would benefit the industry to a great extent," Duffus said. Sees National Meets 'Too Large' He added that he believes national exhibitor conventions "have grown too large for most exhibitors to get much out of them," and the regional meetings sometimes offer too little. The area convention could be the successful, happy medium, he believes. Praught Installed (Continued from page 1) general manager of Tri-States Theatre Corp., Des Moines. Allen has been comanager of that circuit with Praught since 1957. As his first official act Praught met the trade press today, and tomorrow he will meet the daily press at lunch. He will also meet tomorrow with the board of Variety Tent No. 5. Wednesday he will be feted at a lunch to be attended by distribution regional and district managers. Cinema Driv (Continued from page 1) j Uc and managers throughout the cuit have consistently referred to terested comment and praise if; patrons. The slogan, "Don't Take Your V for Granted— Take Her Out to Pictures," has become a house! word. Newspapers throughout country have devoted favourable torial comment to the catchphr;! One newspaper conducted a suf among filmgoers and revealed tha i had evoked new interest in cine:'' going in the very important 30-35 groups. The fact that the campaign c tured the enthusiasm of indepenc exhibitors was revealed some we ago when the Cinematograph Exh tors' Association, with the full sup], of Associated British, adopted campaign by preparing 30,000 pos putting over the slogan. Addition; the CEA, with the assistance of A prepared a special campaign for It newspaper advertising. 1,000 Theatres File (Continued from page 1) motion kits ordered by exhibitors \ have not yet sent in their pie cards, and the extensive promo plans announced by several of large circuits which also have sent in their signed pledges, thi only a small percentage of the ac number of theatres already at w on the promotion," McCarthy sa "While we are naturally more terested in the promotion itself t in the receipt of pledge cards, would appreciate being notified all participating theatres so that may obtain a reasonably accu account of the number of thea: engaged." NEW YORK THEATRI ■ — RADIO CITY MUSIC HALL Rockefeller Center • Ci 6-4600 AUDREY HEPBURN . ANTHONY PERKIN in "GREEN MANSIONS" Co-starring LEE J. COBB SESSUE HAYAKAWA • HENRY SUVA In METROCOLOR and CinemaScope An M-G-M Picture and THE MUSIC HALL'S BREAT EASTEB STA6E SHOW y BEST J SPECIAL TRAILERS! JSwSSS I filmack V iii mm li. 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