The Exhibitor (1966)

FILM FAMILY ^ ALBUM Arrival Mrs. Stanley A. Shurpin, daughter-in-law of Sol Shurpin, Technikote Corporation, has given birth to a daughter, Bonni Hope, in Long Island Jewish Hospital. Obituaries Richard L. Breen, 47, who won an Academy Award for his motion picture “Titanic” in 1953, and who had been a president of the Screen Writers Guild, died at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Burbank, Calif. He had recently completed the screenplay “Shamus” and was also a nominee for the Academy Award in 1964 for “Captain Newman, M.D.” He wrote the script for “PT-109,” the story of President John F. Kennedy’s wartime experiences. Sur¬ viving are his widow, two sons, two daughters, his mother, and a brother. The father, 83, of Mrs. Ann Hosley, Albany office aide to Alan Iselin, Iselin Drive-in The¬ atres and Futurama Productions, died at the family home in Mechanicville, N.Y. He was a retired railroad man. A niece, Mrs. Judy No¬ land, booker for United Artists in Albany, is among other survivors. Bill Luckwell, 53, producer and one time pub¬ licist, died after a lengthy illness at his home in London. He is survived by his widow and son. Kay, wife of Ben Rose, London film exporter and importer, died in a London hospital. She had been in poor health for some time. John Stafford, 73, film producer, died sud¬ denly in London. He leaves a widow and daughter. Harry Stiefel, Lancaster County exhibitor, died at his home in Ephrata, Pa., at the age of 70. Stiefel was owner-operator of the Main Theatre, Ephrata, since 1929. His family once owned a number of theatres in the Philadel¬ phia territory. Surviving are his wife, two sons, four grandchildren, two brothers, and five sisters. FORMS FOR THIS PACE CLOSED AT 5 P.M. ON MON., FEB. 13 MGM Files Preliminary Design For New Studio NEW YORK — Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc., has filed a preliminary design for a projected new motion picture studio in connection with its application for a rezoning of a 1500 acre site in the Conejo Valley, Ventura County, Calif. The project under consideration is the only such development in more than a generation. It would give MGM the distinction of being the first major motion picture company in the United States to build a completely new facil¬ ity totally designed in terms of function, effi¬ ciency, and operation for the making of feature motion pictures and television. MGM has engaged Albert C. Martin and Associates as master planners, architects and engineers, with Craig R. Strum as project man¬ ager and Mark Bielski as designer. The Martin organization, headquartered in Los Angeles, has prepared the preliminary designs. Theodore Barry & Associates, Los Angeles management consulting firm, has been work¬ ing with MGM and Martin for the past two years on feasibility, economic, conceptual and site selection studies. The property is located in El Rancho Conejo, originally a Spanish land grant, his¬ torically occupied by Chumashan Indians. Approximately 35 minutes from the San Diego Freeway at Sunset Boulevard, the dramatic nature of the land with undulating hills, cliffs and ravines makes it ideal for exterior filming. MGM and the architects plan to preserve as much of the property’s natural beauty as prac¬ tical. Buildings have been designed to enhance the overall site. Levin Loses Injunction Bid NEW YORK — Judge Sylvester Ryan ruled against Philip J. Levin in the Federal District Court for the Southern District of New York. Levin, a dissident stockholder, had brought the action against MGM seeking to enjoin it from using any of the company’s employees, or the expenditure of company funds to defend itself against the attacks by the Levin group. Schwartz Leaving Col. NEW YORK — Sol Schwartz, senior vicepresident of Columbia Pictures, announced he was leaving the company as of March 3. Schwartz stated that mutually amicable ar¬ rangements were made, and that upon his re¬ turn from a trip to California and Europe, he would announce his future plans. Schwartz was president of RKO Theatres from 1950 to 1961, at which time he joined Columbia Pictures. Both A. Schneider, president, and Leo Jaffe, executive vice-president of Columbia Pictures, expressed keen regret on Schwartz’s leaving and wished him well in any future undertaking. The main studio complex, including park¬ ing, is designed to be situated on 120 acres of comparatively level ground. Design of the sev¬ eral buildings is highly contemporary, with extensive use of reinforced concrete, structural steel and solar glass. As planned, Phase I building construction, to provide a total of nearly 1.5 million square feet of interior space, will include a multi-story administration operations center, directly con¬ nected with the artist’s center, MGM theatre, film center and laboratory. Also designed as a part of Phase I is a highbay “crafts center” building containing equip¬ ment for construction and related activities. The property building is adjacent thereto. A large, single story structure to the north will provide ample room for storage. Ultra modern concrete-enclosed sound stages to the east and west, 14 in all, are to have special battered walls, with an inward tilt to reduce the length of overhead spans and enlarge the working area at floor level. Provisions have been made for future growth by designing a 435,000 square foot area for expansion, primarily the addition of sound stages. The network of semi-permanent streets will be especially developed for exterior sets which will recreate towns and cities of an interna¬ tional character. Two open lots, with a combined area of 700,000 square feet, provide necessary areas for on site parking. Final decision on the matter of exercise of option to purchase the Conejo property and the construction of the new studio will be made by the MGM board of directors. Among those attending the American premiere of Columbia's "The Night of the Generals" at Loew's Capitol Theatre, New York, were (l-r) producer Sam Spiegel, Columbia Pictures president A. Schneider, director Anatole Litvak, and Columbia executive vice-president Leo Jaffe. 6 MOTION PICTURE EXHIBITOR February 15, 1967