The Exhibitor (1961)

CANADIAN Highlights By Harry Allen, Jr. CANADA’S TEEN-AGERS don’t like the present restrictive censorship laws, according to a teen-age column distributed to 18 Canadian newspapers by The Telegram News Services. Jack Hutton, writer of the column, says the teen crowd feels that the adults are “a wee bit hypocritical about the issue.” Hutton asked his readers to send in their opinion restricting some movies to young people under the age of 18. Hutton intends passing along the com¬ ments to the Provincial Censors of Canada Association which meets in Regina, Sept. 18 to 21. Most of the letters supported the suggestion that a teen-age panel or committee would be of immense help in deciding which movies were suitable to be seen by teen-agers. They supported Manitoba’s idea of allowing younger teen-agers to see restricted movies when ac¬ companied by an adult. Hutton added the comment, “A majority of theatre owners agree with you, by the way.” ALFRED R. TAYLOR, formerly Paramount Chicago manager, has taken over from Gor¬ don Lighstone as Paramount representative with Affiliated Pictures Corp., Ltd. Affiliated is operated by Paramount and Columbia. It is not known whether Taylor will succeed to Lightstone’s positions with Affiliated, where the latter is president and managing director. Harvey Harnick, Columbia of Canada vice-president, is general sales manager of Affiliated. More detailed information will be forthcoming following a meeting of Affiliatsd’s board of directors. FAMOUS PLAYERS is partner in a drive-in which will be the largest west of Toronto. The theatre, to be opened in the spring of 1962, at Coquitlam, near Vancouver, will be op¬ erated by FP and partner in the company, headed by Len B. Johnson. To accommodate 1,000 cars, the drive-in will be built in a worked-out gravel pit between North Road and the new Port Mann freeway on the Lougheed highway. The $1,000,000 project, which is scheduled to get underway shortly, will also have a 32-lane bowling alley, a coffee shop and a laundromat with separate parking for 125 cars. THE 35MM. COLOR printing issue comes up in the news again. Louis Rosenfeld, veteran distribution executive, has written a letter as the result of representations to the Canadian government for an import duty on 35mm. color prints. He states there are three important points in answer to George Mulholland, vice-president of Film Laboratories of Canada, Ltd., who insists that first class 35mm. color prints can be made in Canada. Rosenfeld wonders whether Mulholland’s company is able to print all the different categories of color prints. Mulholland answers, “Technicolor and Eastmancolor are mainly the basic types and European prints are in the same class. In almost every case, processing laboratories use Eastmancolor and the resultant product is known by the name given it by the particular laboratories con¬ cerned.” Film Lab can process them all, with the exception of 70mm., the printing of which is uneconomical in Canada, and an impost is not being sought. Rosenfeld questioned whether Technicolor will permit laboratories other than its own to print any of its pictures. Mul¬ holland said Film Labs had contacted Technicolor, and it had agreed to allow Film Lab to process its prints if the tariff is imposed. Rosenf eld’s third question said he understood that “an ‘answer print’ is required to be first run off from the negative for testing purposes before the regular order of prints is made up.” Would the price of from eight to 12 prints by Film Lab at “below present landed cost” include an “answer print,” provided such an answer print was not of good enough quality to use as a release print? Mulholland said Film Lab had a full-time chemist, a rigid control system and a checkup at a cost of approximately 200 feet of stock to know the exact results of each scene of a feature and make needed changes before printing and processing is started. Trial and error is eliminated by this method. “The fact that an answer print is not involved enables the company to offer a price below the landed costs. Distributors have never before been involved in answer prints. Why now?” Mulholland replied. Brigid Bazlen, young star who plays Salome in the picture and her mother, Maggie Daly with home office executive Morris Lefko, sales manager for "King Of Kings" are seen at a recent Chicago meeting where they chatted with exhibitors present. MGM Carries 'King” Campaign Abroad NEW YORK — Morton A. Spring, president of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer International, fol¬ lowing discussions with Howard Strickling, MGM’s vice-president in charge of advertis¬ ing and publicity, has announced a series of three promotion meetings for “King of Kings” for Latin America, Continental Europe, and the Far East. The world-wide meetings will follow the international “King of Kings” conferences which were held earlier in the year. MGM’s key publicity men and managers will attend the meetings to review the full promotion and sales campaign for the Sam¬ uel Bronston production. After the meetings, they will return to their individual posts throughout the world to con¬ duct similar sessions, in the native languages, with their own top exhibitors. In this way, the “King of Kings” promotion-presentation story will be disseminated on a global basis with maximum personal impact. Every phase of the advertising and publicity campaign will be covered in the meetings with full displays of all materials. Included will be the full range of promotion accessor¬ ies including group sales aids, film strips, book tie-ups, music tie-ups, posters, and the wealth of publicity material geared for all media. Arthur Pincus, MGM International publicity director, will coordinate the meetings in Latin America and Rome. The Rome session will be attended by top MGM men from Con¬ tinental Europe, Great Britain, and the Mid¬ dle East. The site for the Latin American meetings will be announced soon. Morris Frantz, MGM International adver¬ tising manager, will coordinate the Tokyo session which will encompass the company’s Far Eastern publicity personnel. Garner Boosts "Hour" NEW YORK — James Garner, on behalf of his co-starring role with Audrey Hepburn and Shirley MacLaine in William Wyler’s “The Children’s Hour,” has been set for a promotional tour of several east coast cities, to begin here on Sept. 23, just prior to the start of “Boy’s Night Out,” in which Garner co-stars with Kim Novak. Garner will meet with national magazine editors, syndicated and local newspaper edi¬ tors and network radio and television com¬ mentators on his role in the highly-controversial United Artists release. NT&T Toppers Talk Expansion BEVERLY HILLS, CALIF.— Carrying the circuit’s expansion and business-building program to the field, Eugene V. Klein, presi¬ dent of National Theatres and Television, Inc., and Robert W. Selig, vice-president and gen¬ eral manager of theatre operations, launched a series of division meetings Tuesday (Sept. 19), in Salt Lake City with district manager Jack McGee’s managers. They will then pro¬ ceed to Denver with district manager Ray Davis’ men, and Kansas City, with district manager Fred C. Souttar’s forces. Returning to the west coast, Klein and Selig will greet the southern California divi¬ sion headed by William H. Thedford, Pacific Coast division manager. Thedford will also join Klein and Selig in San Francisco at a meeting of district manager John Klee’s men, and in Seattle with district manager Oscar Nyberg’s managers. Theme of the meetings will be “Happy New (Fiscal) Year — the Command is For¬ ward,” marking the start of the new fiscal year for the company. Radio City Books Four NEW YORK— Radio City Music Hall has booked four major films which, with “Break¬ fast at Tiffany’s,” its next attraction, will carry its schedule into the first quarter of 1962, Russell V. Downing, president, an¬ nounced. The new bookings include the Music Hall’s Christmas selection, Walt Disney’s “Babes in Toyland,” starring Ray Bolger, Tommy Sands, Ed Wynn, and Annette; two films from Universal-International, Ross Hunter’s pro¬ duction of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Flower Drum Song,” and a new comedy, “Lover Come Back,” starring Rock Hudson and Doris Day, and the Warner Bros.’ pro¬ duction of “A Majority of One,” starring Rosalind Russell and Alec Guinness. Cohen Heads UA Roadshows NEW YORK — Milton Cohen, United Artists eastern and Canadian manager, has been elevated to the post of UA national director of roadshow sales, effective immediately. September 20, 1961 MOTION PICTURE EXHIBITOR 23