The Exhibitor (1966)

Movies In Miami Get Shot In Arm From Opening Of New Studio City MIAMI, FLA. — Movies and Miami go to¬ gether, better than ever. In the last 10 years, motion picture produc¬ tion has become a significant factor in Miami’s burgeoning economy, with giant steps taken in the past two years. Another big one was the opening here last week of Studio City, Inc., a 65-acre complex at NE 151st st. and 19th ave., North Miami, representing an in¬ vestment of more than $5 million. Studio City’s three resident producers now give Miami a total of 27 motion picture producers and studios. The three newcomers at Studio City are Video Productions, Inc., William Van Praag, and Colodzin Productions, Inc. All three have New York offices and facilities. Video and Van Praag also produce in Hollywood. Studio City facilities include 30 acres of sound stages, processing labs, set construc¬ tion buildings, and commercial stages. There are two 10,000-square-foot stages, another with a wet pit for water shots, plus smaller stages used for tv commercials and smallscene shooting. Each stage has rear projection facilities, its own executive offices, dressing and make¬ up rooms, bathrooms, camera and projection rooms — nearly all essential production facili¬ ties closely connected. Capital Film Laboratories, on the site, pro¬ vides overnight processing of 35 mm color movie film, the first time such service has been available south of Washington. Studio City has its own truck trailers and other mobile equipment for shooting on lo¬ cation, plus comprehensive wardrobe and construction shops. Plans call for early addition of a 100-room hotel with restaurant; a swimming pool with glass wall; a tunnel for process work; four more stages, each 80 by 125 feet; an 800seat theatre for live and taped television; animation, special effects, title and optical departments; and complete dubbing, editing and interlock screening facilities. Hollywood veteran Sam Segal is director of operations at Studio City. Other officers are Ray Brady, vice-president, and Harry Le Vous, secretary. Oscar-winner Anthony Quinn is here cur¬ rently for filming of “The Innocent.” Dozens of recent films have included Miami back¬ grounds. James Bond fans enjoyed Miami scenes in “Goldfinger,” while “Thunderball” shots were filmed on Biscayne Bay. “Birds Do It,” fea¬ turing Soupy Sales, was made here in its entirely. A large part of “Racing Fever,” released last year, was filmed at Marine Stadium, one-of-a-kind facility owned and operated by the City of Miami. Movie-making is not new to Miami. The south’s oldest and one of the region’s largest production firms has been here since 1946. It is Rainbow Pictures. This big studio and lab in the Miami suburb of Coral Gables, headed by Walter Resce, specializes in con¬ tract production of movies, tv film and com¬ mercials. Among Miami’s 22 other film producers and studios are some specializing in Spanish language production and dubbing, both English-to-Spanish and Spanish-to-English. Several firms offer complete service, from script-writing to releasing prints. Technicolor Promotes Two BEVERLY HILLS, CALIF.— Paul Fassnacht, president of Technicolor, Inc., announced promotion of two members of the corpora¬ tion’s staff. Albert P. Lofquist, Jr., has been named vice-president and general manager of the Motion Picture and Television Division USA. Robert T. Kreiman has been named vice-president and general manager of the Commercial and Educational Division. Self-Regulation Stressed By Censor Foe Bilgrey NEW YORK — Felix J. Bilgrey, counsel for the Independent Film Importers and Dis¬ tributors of America and Times Film Cor¬ poration, in an address to members of the New York Cinema Lodge of B’nai B’rith at a Hotel Astor luncheon, said that “many obscenity laws presently on the books can be attacked.” Bilgrey, a veteran of many censorship battles who fought the Freedman vs Mary¬ land case to a victory in the U.S. Supreme Court last year, continued that “many of our present obscenity laws are extremely anti¬ quated.” He maintained that the decision whether a picture is suitable or not suitable for ex¬ hibition “should be up to the individual dis¬ tributor and individual exhibitor and no one else.” Declaring that motion pictures are faced by a Production Code and obscenity laws that are “antiquated,” Bilgrey contended that “in this respect the industry still has one foot in the Middle Ages.” While he spoke out against censorship, Bilgrey made it a point to impress upon the industry that it “should exercise dis¬ cretion” in what it exhibited on the nation’s screens. “But it should be our own discre¬ tion,” he emphasized. Bilgrey said that he considered classifica¬ tion “a good thing” for the distributor and the exhibitor only in so far as it served as a guide for them. He was for classification “as long as the state doesn’t get into it.” He said that involvement of the state in the classification of films “opens the door to cen¬ sorship.” RKO Incentive Plan NEW YORK — At a business meeting of RKO Theatres managers, division and dis¬ trict managers, and home office executives, an extensive blueprint for future circuit operations was revealed under the banner “1966 — A Year of Opportunity.” This new program revolves around an incentive plan which will allow all managers, division and district managers and home office personnel to share in the profits from many phases of the company’s operations. Harry Mandel, president of RKO Theatres, opened the meeting and introduced Matty Polon, executive vice-president and general manager who discussed all phases of the incentive plan in great detail. He then stated: “With the exciting line-up of product coming from motion picture companies, 1966 will indeed be a year of opportunity.” The meeting was climaxed by an address by Leonard C. Lane, vice-chairman of the board of the McCrory Corporation and a di¬ rector of Glen Alden Corporation (RKO Theatres parent company), who announced that an added prize of all expense paid trip to Europe will be offered to that theatre man¬ ager (and his wife) who has shown the most improvement in every phase of operation. Comet Joins IFIDA NEW YORK — IFIDA announces acceptance of an application for membership from Comet Film Distributors, Inc., New York-based film importer-distributor. Representing Comet on the IFIDA board will be Milton Platt, who also serves on the governing committee, with Sam Fleishman as alternate. Miami's Studio City, a 65-acre complex at North Miami, Florida, opened Feb. 5, and will embrace the eight units shown here when completed. Five sound stages, film lab, and some other facilities are completed and in use. Shown are (1) construction and stage properties; (2) and (3) sound stages; (4) an 800-seat theatre; (5) executive offices; (6) Capital Film Laboratories; (7) a 100-room hotel; (8) small scene stages, special effects, animation, title, optical, editing, dubbing departments. In addition, the new Miami facility includes a 35-acre back lot. 22 MOTION PICTURE EXHIBITOR February 9, 1966