Motion Picture Daily (Oct-Dec 1960)

2 Motion Picture Daily Wednesday, November 30, PERSONAL MENTION MARTIN RACKIN, executive in charge of production at the Paramount studio, has returned to Hollywood from New York. • Rob Goodfried, Columbia Pictures studio publicity manager, has returned to Hollywood from Tokyo, where he spent 10 days coordinating the advertising and publicity campaign for the Asian premiere of "Pepe." MGM's Board Lex Benton and W. B. Langston, of Renton Rros. Film Express and Film Forwarding Co., Atlanta, have returned there from New York. Arthur Freed, producer, and Mrs. Freed have arrived in New York from the Coast. Melvin A. Brown, operator of the Peachtree Art Theatre, Atlanta, has returned tiiere from Elizabeth, N. J., where he attended the funeral of his father. o Milton Young, Columbia Pictures exploitation representative in the Philadelphia area, has become a grandfather for the second time, with the birth of a son to his daughter, Mrs. Milton Goldentyer. John Houseman, producer-director-writer, has arrived in New York from the Coast. • Frank and Maurice King, producers, have arrived in New York from Hollywood. • J. H. Thompson, president of Martin & Thompson Theatres and head of Georgia Theatre Owners, has returned to Hawkinsville, Ga., from Atlanta. • Richard D. Zanuck has arrived in New York from Hollywood. ORDERED the Greets NATIONAL SCREEN SERVICE • (Continued from page 1) ment on the new basis of 40 cents per share per quarter. The first payment at the increased rate was made on Oct. 14. Four quarterly dividends at the rate of 30 cents were paid after the resumption of dividend payments in October, 1959. Tri-State Refreshments Operates As ABC Branch Special to THE DAILY ALBANY, Nov. 29.-Tri-State Refreshments, Inc., has been formed to operate as a branch of ABC Vending Company. It continues the activities formerly conducted by Tri-State Automatic Candy Corporation, in which ABC recently acquired a 100 per cent interest. ABC formerly held a 50 per cent interest in Tri-State, which maintains headquarters in Buffalo. Berman Officer, Director Mel Berman, who headed the candy-concession corporation, is now a vice-president and director of ABC. He also guides Tri-State Refreshments. In the new setup, Rerlo Vending's operations here were merged with Tri-State 's. A single manager, George H. Sohenck, was given direction of both. Two theatre towns, Catskill and Rosendale (near Kingston), have been added to the Albany territory. They formerly were serviced from New York. Disney Loss (Continued from page 1) of the company's film library against its income account by nearly $5,000,000. The write-offs cover all product in process or now in release, completed films having already been fully amortized. Disney said that before the writedowns the company would have shown a profit of $1,100,000 for the year. The company is filing for a tax refund which will return approximately $1,600,000 in cash, Disney said. Sees 'Softened' Market The write-down decision, the letter said, was influenced by "a general softening in the theatrical motion picture market in most countries," and by a "considerable leaning on the part of the public towards pictures involving violence, sex, and other such subjects." Disney added: "Our last year's product was a good line-up of pictures, but it disappointed us in its performance at the box office. For example 'Pollyanna' returned a fair profit but not nearly what we expected." TENT TALK Variety Club News DETROIT-Variety Club of Detroit, Tent No. 5 has inaugurated a campaign to populate the club's headquarters each day from 5 P.M. onward. Each day, from now until Christmas, seven barkers and barkerettes have been assigned to act as hostesses and hosts at Merry Monday, Tipsy Tuesday, Wobbly Wednesday, Thirsty Thursday or Fractured Friday. Columbia Mell ( Continued from page 1 ) Columbia stockholders would given rights to subscribe to So Gems stock, now wholly held by lumbia. Such a "spin-off" wa? dicated by Abe Schneider, pres: of Columbia, last summer, an said now to be in work. A story in yesterday's "New Times" said one right would issued for each five or six shan Columbia stock and that the scription price for one share of Screen Gems stock would be e $10 or $11. Para. Sees 'G.I. Blues' Columbia Saks He«fl Heading for Record To Meet fli. Oil 'Pep» Current indications are that "G.I. Blues," Elvis Presley starrer, will run well ahead of Presley's previous record grosser for Hal Wallis, "Loving You," which has registered approximately $3,500,000 domestically, Paramount Pictures, the distributor, said yesterday. Typical of the "G.I. Blues" grosses are: $26,428, first five days, Metropolitan Theatre, Boston; $11,743, first five days, Stanley, Pittsburgh; $9,209, first five days, Paramount, New Haven; $21,157, first five days, Ambassador and Metropolitan, Washington; $8,159, first four days, Strand, Lowell, Mass.; $8,623, first five days, Brockton, Brockton, Mass.; $7,286, first five days, State, Waterbury, Conn. Also, $16,538, first five days, Towne, Milwaukee; $16,683, first five days, Orpheum, Minneapolis; $4,342, opening day, Utah, Salt Lake City; $7,676, first two days, Majestic, Dallas; $3,659, first two days, Oklahoma City; $4,433, opening day, Paramount, Kansas City; $7,719, first two days, St. Louis, St. Louis; $3,983, opening day, Omaha, Omaha; $10,668, first three days, Denver, Denver. 'Journey' to Open Dec. 7 American International Pictures' "Journey to the Lost City" on Dec. 7 will open a multiple first run engagement in the New York metropolitan area. The film is booked for the RKO circuit, Skouras, Century, Randforce, Rrandt and other neighborhood theatres. Continental's "Michael Strogoff" will be the co-feature. A top-level sales meeting of lumbia Pictures' distribution e» tives on "Pepe" has been set Friday, it was announced yeste by Rube Jackter, vice-president general sales manager. Representing the home office af meeting will be Jackter, Milt G man, assistant general sales r ager; Jerome Safron, "Pepe" ^ coordinator; Vincent M. Borrelli, . coordinator; Martin Kutner, sales ecutive; Joseph Freiberg, admini tive assistant to the general manager; and Dan Rothenberg, sistant to Safroh. Regional Heads to Attend Division managers present will elude R. J. Ingram, Southeast; H Rogovin, New England; Ben Lou Chicago; Jack Judd, Southwest; < Shalit, Central; Ben Marcus, Midw Norman Jackter, Southern Califo and Rocky Mountains; Harry Wei. Eastern Pennsylvania and Soutl New Jersey; L. E. Tillman, Northe Sam Galanty, Mideast; and Nat G New York. JET TO BRITAIN aboard BOAC's daily MONARCH ROLLS ROYCE INTERCONTINENTAL 707 (fastest of all big jets) with ' 'Golden Service' $18,531 for 'Rovere' Roberto Rosselini's "General della Rovere," which opened on Nov. 21 at the Paris Theatre here, has registered a first week gross of $18,531, it has been reported by Continental Distributing, Inc., which stated that the figure tops the first-week gross of any Italian film which has played at the Paris. reservations through your Travel Agent BRITISH OVERSEAS AIRWAYS CORPORA! N Jet and/or jet-prop flights from Nf York, Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Honoh San Francisco, Montreal, Toronto. XSaP522S DGAusLH'. ^^^SS^K^^^ ffe ^Sarlef f^o^ News Editor; V. mi Yucca-Vine Building, Samuel D. Berns, Manager; Telephone HOllywood 17-2 145 ■ Washfnetan Vh H^? t^'Tp1 PlS& H^,ma?' Eastern Editor Hollywood Burl Bear ^Leicester Square, W, 2. Hope Williams Burnup, Wi. ^.^^Sg^ ^ ^S^SS^b lapEa.s^f ^ rM Center, New York 20, Circle 7-3 if and Treasurer; Raymond Gallagifi as a section of Motion Picture Herald ;' Television" Today, "published' dkify "m "oart'of ' Motron'piSure' Mn^l ^p"?'' Ket/,esllment Merchandising, each published 13 times a y class matter Sept. 21, 1938, at the Post Office at New York) N. Y., unde'r M of ^ 3^ S^^J^^^^^^^ fe. f^rf