Motion Picture Herald (Mar-Apr 1940)

26 Pittsburgh Club Sets "Movie Ball" The Pittsburgh Variety Club, Tent No. 1, will stage its first annual "Movie Ball" April 7th in the William Penn Hotel there and contribute any profits to its general charity fund. Featuring a costume parade with all dancers in fancy dress, the ball will present talent from theatres and night clubs and include a midnight supper. The Washington Variety Club will hold a testimonial dinner at the Willard Hotel on March 8th for Andrew R. Kelley, Washington drama critic. Commissioner Melvin C. Hazen is general chairman of the affair. Serving as vice-chairman are Sidney Lust, Carter T. Barron, Richmond B. Keech, Hardie Meakin, John J. Payette, Edmund Plohn and Elwood Seal. The Variety Club of Cincinnati will give a farewell dinner to William Bien on Monday preparatory to his leaving for New York in an executive post with Advertising Accessories, Inc., to which company he recently sold his Theatre Poster Supply Company. The Variety Club of St. Louis is planning a vaudeville show March 30th in the Municipal Auditorium to raise funds to purchase pneumonia serum for city hospitals. A. M. Goodman, Cleveland branch manager for United Artists, is chairman of the Variety Post committee in charge of the Post benefit midnight show at the Circle theatre March 15th. Members of the committee assisting Mr. Goodman are LeRoy Kendis, Howard Roth and Dick Deutsch. Funds collected will be used to send under-privileged boys to camp next Summer. John Himmelein is commander of the Post. An application to destroy five slot machines seized February 16th at the Oklahoma City Variety Club headquarters has been filed in district court there by Lewis R. Morris, county attorney. Mr. Morris also asked that $299.20 found in the machines be turned over to the court fund. J. M. Garrison, manager of the club, and Charles Chastain, charged with being the owner of the devices, face three charges of operating slot machines. Employes of the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer exchange in Albany, N. Y., have formed a "pep club" and elected Sidney Stockton, office manager, their first president. Ralph Pielow, branch manager, is honorary president. Jane Breen is treasurer and Josephine Lasky, secretary. Australia Bans Four U. S. Films Four American films were banned this week from Australia, by the Commonwealth's film censor, Cresswell O'Reilly. The films were "Of Mice and Men," Twentieth Century-Fox ; "A Child Is Born," "Each Dawn I Die" and "Hell's Kitchen," Warners. The stage version of "Of Mice and Men" ran recently in Melbourne. Walter Green Inspecting Walter E. Green, president of the National Theatre Supply, left New York this week for a three-week visit to company branches through the country, and including Hollywood. Shulgold with Fine Art Max Shulgold has become distributor for Fine Art Pictures in Pittsburgh. He formerly managed the Grand National exchange there. MOTION PICTU RE HERALD James O. Bennett, Newspaperman, Dies James O'Donnell Bennett, one of the best known newspaper men in America and retired member of the staff of the Chicago Tribune, died Tuesday in Chicago of coronary thrombosis at the age of 69. He had retired from newspaper work a little over a year ago, but continued other writing activities. Mr. Bennett was born in Jackson, Mich., on May 1, 1870, and by the time he was 10 he was collecting news items for his uncle, James O'Donnell, editor of the Jackson Patriot. He was a reporter, feature writer, war correspondent and drama critic in his long career in newspaper work. His writings long have been considered masterpieces of journalism. Medial Pay $120 Writer Guild Says Fifty per cent of the active writers in Hollywood studios received $120 weekly or less during 1939 and 50 per cent received more than that figure for average employment of 24.4 weeks for the year, according to an economic survey conducted by the Screen Writers Guild. Without comment, the Guild in a copyrighted report of the survey, said that, while the percentage of writers getting high salaries decreased, the percentage of low salaries and unemployment increased. The Guild compiled the figures from 520 replies to 1,000 questionnaires sent out. Medial figures were used instead of averages because of the wide variation in salaries. Radio Policies Are Individual: Kent A blanket agreement by film companies to keep their stars off radio broadcasts is not feasible and might be construed as illegal, Sidney Kent, president of Twentieth Century-Fox, has advised Abram F. Myers, chairman of the board of National Allied States Association. The letter was written after Mr. Kent received copies of resolutions adopted at the annual meeting of the National Allied directors last month in Washington. His company's policy is to bar its stars from radio broadcasts, except in special instances in which such broadcasts help the motion picture industry, Mr. Kent told Mr. Myers. Mr. Kent also said he was in favor of arbitration for industry disputes, and opposed 16 mm. versions of 35 mm. films. National Screen Moves The Pittsburgh office of National Screen Service has been moved to the Paramount Building. Jack Judd, National Screen manager in Pittsburgh, and Perry Nathan are working the Tri-State territory out of the office, until the planned staff of eight is completed. The accessory departments of Paramount and RKO will be taken over in the new setup. March 2 , 1940 N. Y. Dissolves 144 M. P. Firms The Secretary of New York State has dissolved 144 firms connected or related to the motion picture industry for failure to file required reports and pay corporation taxes for three consecutive years. Most of the businesses dissolved had headquarters in New York City. Any corporation dissolved may proceed to annul the dissolution at any time within three months from December 15th, through payment of back taxes, penalties and interest and a fee of $50 for a certificate of reinstatement. If a corporation has been listed through error, it will be reinstated on proper application without any fee. Corporation taxes constitute a lien against any property owned by a corporation. The list of dissolved firms : Ajax Pictures Corp., Alco Theatre, Inc., Aldo Theatres Corp., Alesia Theatres Operating Corp., Alhambra Amusement Co., Inc., American School Film Library, Inc., Apex Films, Inc., Areffgee Amusement Corp., Athena Amusement Corp., Auditorium Theatre Co. B 'N B Film Corp., B & S Amusement Corp.; Barbet Amusement Corp., Batem Amusement Co., Bay West Amusement Corp., Bayview Amusement Corp., Bellaire & Hollis Theatre Corp., Berkof Amusement Corp., Big Three Amusement Holding Corp., Branwin Amusement Corp., Brenda Pictures Corp., Brewster Film Corp., Broadway Amusement Corp., Burger Amusement Co., Inc., Burley Amusement Corp. C & P Amusement Corp., Cameo Theatre, Inc., Canarsie Whip Amusement Co., Channel Amusement Corp., Chasebea Theatre Corp., Choice Films. Inc., Claremont Pictures Corp., Cogen Theatrical Corp., Coliseum Amusement Corp., Coney Island Motion Picture Corp., Consolidated Film Delivery Service, Inc., Corral Amusement Corp., Cousins Theatre Corp., Cumberland Amusement Corp. Devon Film Corporation. East Side Film Delivery Corp., Emmar Amusement Co., Inc., Empire Amusements, Inc., Equity Film Exchanges, Inc., Exploitation Pictures, Inc., F & M Theatre Service Corp., Fayette Theatre Corp., Film Library, Inc. The G H C Amusement Co., Gilmore Amusement Co., Glen Theatre Corp., Gramarley Theatre Co., Inc. Ben Harris Amusement Co., Inc., Harlem Theatre, Inc., Haruth Amusement Corp., Haverstraw Amusement Corp., High Amusement Co., Hollywood Film Exchange, Inc., Hygrade Amusement Co., Inc. Independent Theatre Supply Co., Inc., Instructive Amusements, Inc., Intercontinental Theatre & Cinema, Inc., Interstate Theatre Premiums Corp., Interstate Amusement Supply Corp., The Irish Theatre, Inc., Italian Peoples Theatrical Enterprises, Inc. Jackson Heights Playhouse, Inc., Javee Amusement Corp. K & B Amusement Co., Inc., Kernan Theatres, Inc., Koch Amusement Corp. L & B Amusement Co., Inc., Level Amusement Enterprises, Inc., Leviathan Amusement Corporation, Lewart Theatrical Enterprises, Inc., Lin Vee Amusement Co., Inc., Lincoln Theatre Corp., Lock City Theatres, Inc., London Film Corp. M H & B Pictures Corp., Madison Theatre Company, Major Theatre Operating Corp., Maneros Theatre Corp., Maple Theatre Corp., Mapleton Theatre Corp., Marwhit Theatre Corp., Maxbilt Theatre, Inc., Medal Film Co., Inc., Midway Theatre, Inc., Minrose Amusement Corp., Mirth Theatres, Inc., Monroe Cinema Company, Inc. National Film Library, Inc., of New York, Neversink Amusement Corp., New Hyde Park Amusement Corp., North America Theatre Premium Corp. Omsoc Amusements, Inc., Onondaga Civic Theatre, Inc., Oswego Hippodrome Amusement Co. Palestine Picture Corp., Paramount Distributing Corp., Park-Brook Theatrical Corp., Parwill Amusement Corp., Penquin Pictures Corp., Phoenix Theatre, Inc., Protecto Films, Inc. Quentin Theatre Corp. R T Amusement Corp., Regnald Theatre Corp., Regs Amusement Corp., Riegelwein Amusement Co., Inc., Rivoli Amusement Co., Inc., Rockaways' Playland, Inc., Rollwill Amusement Corp., Rosta Theatres Corp., Rudhalen Amusement Corp. S & F Theatres, Inc., Screen Attractions Corp., Sea Gate Amusement Corp., Shore Amusement Corp., Simmonds Pictures Corp., Sound Theatre, Inc., Sov-Am Film Corp., Stadium Amusement Corp., Standard Film Exchange, Inc., Sutphin Amusement Co., Inc., Sylvan Amusement Corp. T & K Amusement Corp., Techni-Film Advertisers, Inc., Terrace Theatre Corp., Thrillo Amusement Co., Inc., Thumbsup Theatrical Corp., Trebor Theatre Corp., Troy Theatres Corp. Union City Theatrical Corp., Unique Foto Films, Inc. Vanpark Amusement Corp., Variety Theatres Corp. W M Amusement Co., Inc., Washington Irving Playhouse, Inc., Waterford Amusement Corp., Winfield Motion Picture Corp. Second National Pictures, Inc., 743 Grand Street Amusement Corp.