Motion Picture Herald (Jul-Aug 1944)

20TH-FOX PRESENTS "WILSON AT TOP-RANK PREMIERE Big Business, Society and Politics Represented at Roxy Opening in N. Y. Twentieth Century-Fox presented "Wilson," its picture of the year, to an invited audience of industry, business, social and political notables Tuesday night at the Roxy Theatre in New York in one of the most elaborate premieres of this or any year. In the audience were presidents, vice-presidents and chairmen of America's heavy industries — big business wanted to look. Heralded by an extensive advertising and exploitation campaign which included 4,000 spot radio announcements, 35,000 lines of newspaper advertising, 1,250 twenty-four sheets, and thousands of one-sheets, snipes and car cards, the picture was opened to the public Wednesday morning. 300 Exhibitors Invited To Attend Premiere In addition to the distribution executives, Hollywood stars, newspaper representatives and prominent persons of society, politics and industry, the distinguished first night audience included 300 exhibitors from all parts of the country invited by the company to attend. Darryl F. Zanuck, 20th-Fox vice-president in charge of production, headed the large delegation of company executives and talent who came from Hollywood including Colonel Jason Joy, Charles Feldman, George Jessel, William Perlberg, Henry King, director of "Wilson," and Lamar Trotti who wrote the screenplay. Mr. Zanuck had personal charge of the production from its inception, and is credited with having supervised every phase of it. George Jessel was master of ceremonies for the radio broadcast of the premiere from the lobby of the theatre over eight stations. West Coast Premiere Set for August 11 The west coast premiere of the picture is scheduled for August 11 at the Carthay Circle and United Artists theatres in Hollywood. Representatives of big business who attended included : Gerard Swope, president of General "Electric; W. B. Bell, chairman of American Cyanamide and Chemical Corp. ; Philip G. G issler; chairman of Columbia Gas & Electric ; Camille Dreyfus, president of Celanese Corp. ; Victor Emanuel, president of The Aviation Corp. and director of Republic Steel ; Thomas Mclnnerney, president of National Dairy Products ; George M. Gillies, Jr., president of Adams Express ; William C. Dickerman, chairman of American Locomotive ; Harry E. Ward, chairman of Irving Trust Co. ; Also, Juan Trippe, president of Pan-American Airways ; Guy W. Vaughan, president of CurtissWright Corporation ; A. C. Abele, vice-president of Guaranty Trust Co. ; Leo J. Fisher, chairman of Thompson-Starrett ; Charles N. Bleakley, president of Fred F. French Co. ; Winthrop Aldrich, chairman of Chase National Bank; Mrs. Ogden Reid, Herald-Tribune owner; Henry Luce and Roy Larsen of Time, Inc. Among those present at the opening were : Spyros Skouras, Tom Connors, Mr. and Mrs. Wendell Willkie, Ned E. Depinet, N. Peter Rathvon, William Scully, Mr. and Mrs. A. W. Smith, Jr., Robert Mochrie, Mort Blumenstock, Jack Cohn. Also, Mrs. Woodrow Wilson, Bernard Baruch, Ray Stannard Baker, Senator A. B. Chandler, Josephus Daniels, Mrs. James Doolittle, Eleanor Wilson McAdoo, Robert Riskin, Mr. and Mrs. Sumner Welles, Dr. H. H. Kung. Also, E. T. Gomersall, Clarence Menser, Major The Newspapers on THE BIOGRAPHY OF A PRESIDEN The New York newspaper critics Wednesday were in almost unanimous agreement on the scope and importance of "Wilson" as a motion picture and as a document. AH emphasized the point that Mr. Zanuck and his co-workers on the picture had stayed as far as was practicable from any appearance of political bias in its presentation. Here are excerpts from their reviews: THE NEW YORK TIMES Bosley Crowther Within the capacious framework of a predominant spectacle-film, Producer Darryl F. Zanuck and Twentieth Century-Fox have managed a commanding screen biography . . . with uncommon dignity and good taste. There are obvious omissions in the story, some forgivable and some less so. A little less time spent on spectacle in this two-hour-andthirty-four-minute film might have allowed for a clearer definition of Wilson's historic battle for the League. NEW YORK HERALD TRIBUNE Howard Barnes A challenging segment of American history has been constructed with great honesty and imagination in "Wilson." The splendid research and deta-chment that have gone into the picture's production make it required seeing by all those who care about democratic ideals and a better world to live in. There is very little attempt to implement the show as a propagandistic tract for the present day. On the other hand the film is factual to a point where members of the younger generation may find it dated. . . . DAILY NEWS Kate Cameron Darryl Zanuck, Henry King and Lamar Trotti .... have combined their exceptional talents to make a remarkably fine film production of "Wilson" ... a film that runs for two hours and a half of absorbing drama. And it is all so well projected that the film does not' seem too long. DAILY MIRROR Lee Mortimer On the screen at the Roxy is a panorama of 12 of the most fateful years in the history of the Republic, from 1909 to 1921, centering about one man, "misunderstood" to his friends, "villanous'Mo his enemies, yet in the bosom of his family one who loved love and song ... the beauty of "Wilson" is that Zanuck does not give way to Zanuck. PM John T. McManus Underlying this distinctly courageous precedential kind of movie-making is the a important fact that "Wilson" is a remark; fine film purely as a cinema production, two hours and a half are absorbed with hur characteristic American family life; ■* tenderness, loyalty and sincerity brimming c in the characterizations, and even with 1 a football game and dashes of song and dz thrown in for honest measure. THE NEW YORK SUN Charles A. Wyer ... it must be said that this lavish Da F. Zanuck production in Technicolor co as close to living up to advance notices as t a picture can. "Wilson" ... is one of the most caref directed pictures of this or any other y It is one of the most handsomely staged costumed. . . . JOURNAL-AMERICAN Rose Pelswick The Technicolor drama that 20th Centt Fox presented last evening at the Roxy brilliance of production, cast, sets and oi technical details, but, chiefly, it has a si that compels attention from the first mom'en the last. It does not take sides and it does not ed rialize. It presents facts. . . . NEW YORK POST Archer Winsten As entertainment, "Wilson," the mamn biographical picture at the Roxy, settles d( massively into the worthwhile category, does not, as its producer, Darryl F. Zam seems fondly to have hoped, mark "a poini departure in the development of the mot picture medium." Those who have feared this picture as pol fourth-term propaganda need no longer agii themselves. WORLD TELEGRAM Alton Cook "Wilson" is a sweeping panorama of an < and full of moments of strong emoti The picture makes no pretense at interpi ing the era or ever attempting anything 1 thorough summary. Its aim is merely to p sent some picturesque and dramatic highlig in the life of one of the era's men, the Pn dent from whom the picture takes its nai Above everything else, Zanuck concentra on cramming entertainment into the pictu :i Monroe Greenthal, Sidney Meyer, Paul Nathanson, Edward Golden, C. C. Moskowitz, Sam Schneider, S. Barret McCormick, Adolph Schimel, George Schaefer, G. Ralph Branton, Martin Quigley, Colvin Brown, Robert O'Donnell, Sidney Samuelson, Ben Geldsaler, Haskell Masters, Harold Mirisch, Edward Alperson, W. Stewart MacDonald, J. Myer Schine, George Carrington, Wil liam and Irving Wheeler, Paul Terry, Mr. ; Mrs. Harry Mandel, Col. H. A. Cole, O Doob, E. C. Grainger, Mr. and Mrs. Mar Smith, Phil Williams, A. H. Blank and Willi Jenkins. The picture is reviewed on page 2029 of Product Digest and a group of pictures , is page 12. 20 MOTION PICTURE HERALD, AUGUST 5, I'