Motion Picture Daily (Oct-Dec 1959)

hursday, October 8, 1959 Motion Picture Daily VIP Schedules ( Continued from page 1 ) he present regional sales managers i the Eastern territories will be suplemented by division managers to be apointed for the West Coast, the lentral states and the Southwest tertory. Each of these territories, in ddition, will have a field exploitation tan assigned to it. National adverting budgets ranging from $500,000 p $1,000,000 are being discussed for fetch production. [ "Goliath and the Barbarians," star'jng Steve Reeves, co-produced by flP and Standard Films in Italy, is et for release in January, 1960. A tocheon to be held on Nov. 12 at the fheatre Owners of America convenon in Chicago will give the exhibitor elegates at that meeting a preview of he advertising and publicity support ilans for this spectacular. Typical of hese plans is a wide distribution of pecially produced teaser trailers to iach exhibitor who books the picture. | The balance of the release schedule pcludes "the Horror of the House of Jlsher," based on the story by Edgar jUIen Poe and starring Vincent Price; tor May, "Aladdin and the Giant," lerman Cohen production in Cinemacope and color; for July, "Circus of lorrors," in CinemaScope with color; Dr September "In the Year 2889," y Jules Verne in CinemaScope and olor. Other productions for 1960 are: jBucket of Blood," a Halloween re ase, which has been sneak-previewed juccessfully in a number of theatres; The Leeches," "The Jailbreakers," Take Me to Your Leader" and "The 'alking Dog." Nicholson reported that the com any's gross film rentals for this year ^ill be 20 per cent above those for jist year. He also, happily, outlined lans for an expansion of foreign sales. 2,000 PMI Shares (Continued from page 1) imeyson, MPI board chairman. Stock purchasers included branch managers, ilm salesman, theatre supply dealers, nembers of the circuits of Frontier [Theatres, Phil Isley Theatres, Trans (Texas Theatres, and many others, j Reade said that the organization pas been formally endorsed by Texas COMPO and that executive director Kyle Rorex has become the official MPI representative in Texas. Motion Picture Investors, Inc. has also received the formal endorsement of :he Texas Drive-in Theatres Association. Rossellini and De Sica To Attend S. F. Fete Special to THE DAILY SAN FRANSISCO, Oct. 7.-Both Roberto Rossellini and Vittorio De Sica, two of Italy's most famous motion picture figures, are coming to San Francisco to take part in the international film festival here next raonth, it was announced today by Irving M. Levin, managing director cf the Festival. The Best of Everything Million Dollars CONTINUED FROM PAGE I ceivable angle. Jean Negulesco, who directed, has a special flair for using such scenery to intensify the sense of time and place. The book concentrated on the careers of five girls, but the film selects three of these for major emphasis. First is a girl from Connecticut who wants to become an editor; she is played by Hope Lange. Second is a starry-eyed and naive youngster from the Midwest whose ambition is to get married; she is played by Diane Baker. Third is a would-be actress who falls disastrously in love with a stage producer; she is played by Suzy Parker. Portraying the men in their lives are Stephen Boyd, Brian Aherne, Robert Evans, Louis Jourdan, and Brett Halsey, among others. And Joan Crawford makes a special appearance in the relatively minor role of a female editor having an affair with a married man. Miss Crawford makes every scene count like the old pro she is. Most absorbing and affecting of the three main stories, which are skillfully woven together by Edith Somner and Mann Rubin in their script, is that of Miss Lange. This is mostly due to her fine performance, which remains sensitive and sincere throughout. At the start she has little interest in a career but when her boy friend (Halsey) jilts her for another she changes her mind, eventually taking over the job of top female editor when Miss Crawford quits. In the end she finds romance, too. After a brief affair with her married boy friend, she turns to Boyd, a nice editor who has been waiting around for her to make up her mind about him. Meanwhile Miss Baker has been having her troubles with Evans, as a wealthy playboy who doesn't want to get married— just have fun. When she becomes pregnant bv him, he insists on an abortion which becomes unnecessary when she falls from a car in Central Park. Finally she weds the young interne (Ted Otis) who nurses her back to health. Miss Baker is a pleasant young actress who photographs extremely well and should go far. These stories at least have a happy ending, but not so the one involving Miss Parker. When her lover-producer dismisses her from his play and then casts her out of his life, too, she goes off her rocker and dies from a fall off the fire escape of his apartment. Miss Parker is as stunning to look at as ever, but the complex role she plays is sometimes beyond her grasp. Woven in and out of these three main story strands are a number of sub-plots which help to give a viewer the impression that something is alwavs happening in "The Best of Everything." Martha Hyer is seen briefly, for instance, as a divorcee beauty editor in love with a married man; Sue Carson is another typist who finally gets married and quits; and Aherne is the editor in chief who likes to flirt with all the young girls in his employ. Running time, 121 minutes. Adult classification. Release, in October. RlCHABD GERTNER (Continued from page 1) million dollars has been offered and it will be the theme of the feature's exploitation campaign. "4-D Man" is being released by Universal, and Phil Gerard, Easter publicity manager, was on hand yesterday to discuss plans for its opening. The film will premiere in Atlanta on October 22. It will then break in fifteen Southern cities, preceded in each case by personal appearances by Lee Meriwether, a former Miss America, who has the leading role in the picture; the producer will tour along with Miss Meriwether, who was also present yesterday. Video spots and teaser trailers heralding the product will underscore the cash prize. Universal has the U.S.-Canadian rights to the picture, but the foreign distribution arrangements have not been settled Harris does his own financing for these features, and considers himself strictly a producer. Working on New Story Questioned about his future activities, Harris said he is currently working on the script for "Dinesaurus," and expects it to go before the cameras by December. It will concern prehistoric monsters in a modern-day locale. Also under consideration is a cinematization of "Jonah and the Whale," which Harris predicts will cost more than all his other features so far combined. . . . It's slated for shooting in January, 1961. He also noted that a previous release, "The Blob" brought Paramount some $2,000,000 on a $200,000 negative. Although Harris still plans to keep his facilities in Pennsylvania, he said that his last picture required location shooting, and that in the future he will probably expand to the coast for filming purposes. From now on, the producer will try to use big-name stars to further enhance his product. 'Best of Everything' ( Continued from page 1 ) come Jerry Wald, producer of the film; Rona Jaffe, author of the book, and Hope Lange and Robert Evans, two of the stars of the picture. Mayor and Mrs. Robert F. Wagner will head the list of city officials and other prominent figures in the social life of New York. A midnight champagne supper-ball will follow the premiere in the grand ballroom of the Astor Hotel, also under the auspices of the Hudson Celebration. "The Best of Everything" w ill begin a dual engagement tomorrow at the Paramount and Trans-Lux Normandie theatres here. Hope Lange, Suzy Parker, and Diane Baker in "The Best of Everything. IS. J. House Reopening MOORESTOWN, N. J., Oct. 7. The old Criterion Theatre here has been acquired by Kingsway Films, Inc., and is being completely remodeled and re-equipped to reopen in mid-October as an art film house. David Grossman will be the manager.