Motion Picture Herald (Mar-Apr 1945)

ON THE MARCH Bond Television by red kann Pl^ns Outlined THE Smoky City situation, one of the spearheads of the distributor drive to wipe out allegedly fraudulent box office reports on percentage engagements, is pinpointed by several arresting slants. Perhaps ironic, too. One has to do with exhibitors indulging in the kind of tactic usually charged to distributors— action in concert. The other, a speculation, is whether or not the eight distributors concerned would have broadened the base of this litigation by pressing 148 individual counter-claims embracing 7,000 attractions and 25,000 days of playing time, all sold on percentage. Originally, the eight companies — Loew's, 20th Century-Fox, Paramount, Warners, RKO Radio, Universal, Columbia and UA — launched individual actions against the Carson Amusement Company, operators of the Arcade and Colonial, claiming grosses on percentage dates had been misrepresented and seeking punitive damages. It was the opener of what was designed as a series of such suits in the same area. How many, the future would have determined. Reversing tables, 27 exhibitors in that territory united in pressing litigation of their own against these distributors by seeking to forestall examination of their books through injunctive proceedings declaring percentage contracts in violation of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act. The suing theatremen not only alone lost out on that strategy, but the Federal court granted distributors the right to conduct immediate audits. Now the film companies are maintaining a precedent has been established under which books on all percentage engagements, wherever, are available to them in the event an exhibitor so involved refuses. This, of course, after due application to the courts is made by the distributors. Such an assumption is arrived at by concluding the Pittsburgh ruling will hold outside the district over which the Federal bench there presides. Distributors seem certain it will. Maybe those 27 exhibitors operating 41 theatres got together by accident. Perhaps the fund required to push their injunctive action automatically assembled itself. Could be no information was swapped. Could also be this mass move was not the consequence of concerted action at all but the haphazard coalition of 27 individuals and corporations suddenly confronted with 27 individual, yet curiously identical, ambitions to reach the same goal at the same time against the same common opponents. Worth reflecting is whether the eight distributors would have filed 148 separate law suits against all these exhibitors. Legal preparation and attendant fees would have been formidable to an extent making the answer as dubious, although not impossible. But once the eight distributors became the defendants in one action,, it did become possible for any one of them, or all of them separately, to file counterclaims against any of the plaintiffs. The distributors saw the opportunity to the tune of those 148 counterclaims. Their action reduced itself to a simple matter of procedure and strong typewriter fingers. Thev found the fingers. Welt Gentlemen ? THE Russell J. Birdwell who sought to disenfranchise the brassiere by publicizing Jane Russell nationally without one and who reached a sort of apex, 'way down low, with the premiere of "The Outlaw" in San Francisco several years ago, is press-agenting again. The United Press reports him staging a strip poker game in Hollywood on behalf of the United National Clothing Drive. Male and female reporters, plus willing cameramen, learned about the event with no known difficulty and were conveniently on hand to see "five shapely movie queens" — they're always shapely and they're always movie queens — take 'em off. Described as Birdwell clients all were Toni Seven, Ann Miller, Evelyn Ankers, Nina Foch and Renee De Marco. Being cooperative for sweet publicity's sake, what they did was this, according to the U. P. dispatch : Miss Seven got around to the point where "she sat shivering in pink brassiere and a pair of lace whatchamacallums with pink satin eyes and 'Oh ! La, La ! embroidered across her hips. "Miss Foch peeled down to a pair of white lace panties. She kept her blouse on, she explained, because she didn't have anything on underneath. Miss Miller did ditto. . . . "Miss Ankers shed everything but a black chiffon underslip. She even wiggled out of a brassiere— pink. "But Miss De Marco staged the show of the day. After shedding a demure, high-necked dress, she stood revealed in a pair of green step-ins." Nevertheless, impeccable taste held to the very end. The girls continued to wear their hats. The responsibles know any effort to reduce their industry to the level of the striptease spells a fast route to liquidation. The question, therefore, is how much longer Birdwell, or anyone else, will be permitted to grease the skids ? At Random HE couldn't understand it. As he traveled from place to place in pursuit of his duties as Deputy Commissioner, Pacific Ocean Area, American Red Cross, Arthur L. Mayer ran into far more deference than his post demanded, and beyond anything he had anticipated. "Meet Mr. Mayer of the movies," was the general introduction. They figured he was Louis B. ■ ■ ■ What ! No rebuttal when Willis Vance, the chairman of the Inudignant Exhibitors' Forum of the Greater Cincinnati Independent Exhibitors' Association so sweepingly declared, "The independent exhibitor makes no profit, or sustains a loss, on every percentage picture he plays." B "■ ■ Ezra Goodman, writing about press agents in Hollywood for Editor and Publisher, reports : "There is actually a press agent in Hollywood named Bragg and a writer named Hack." Webster would call this an aptronym. The recently formed Bond-Charteris Enter] will place initial emphasis upon the producti< films for advertisers to be used in televisic sponsor identifications, Anson Bond disclosed luncheon at the Hotel Pierre, New York, Tuc in announcing the company's first contract to duce a one-minute animated film for the C Watch Company, titled "Casey Jones," in coll ation with George Pal, who produces Paramc Puppetoons. The film, which is similar to a "singing mercial," will be delivered to McCann Eric advertising agency handling the Gruen accoui time for the National Jewelers Convention in York in July. It will be in the nature of a novelty providing a visual dramatization of a I using the sponsor's product. Mr. Bond said would be the first of a series to be made in |i wood. Twentieth Century-Fox has leased a telei broadcasting studio from General Television poration of Boston. It will apply for an ex mental license to operate the station and pla experiment in television programming and tb of sound motion pictures for that purpose. Tuesday in New York, Paul B. Mowrey, ager of the Blue Network's television divisior nounced the first commercial sponsorship over network. He said that arrangements had completed for the sponsorship of time breaks tween V-E Day television broadcasts by Waltham Watch Company. Mr. Mowrey said the Waltham Company be charged for production costs only. There be no time charge, as the television prograrr V-E Day will be aired through the faciliti* WABD,'Du Mont outlet in New York City. Bill Regulating Distribution In Puerto Rico Passed A bill to regulate the motion picture ind and restrict discrimination in the distributic films in Puerto Rico was passed last week b.< House of Representatives there. Passage ol the measure by the Senate and approval by' ernor Tugwell were expected shortly. The measure sets up a Board of Regulatk the Motion Picture Business, including 11 bers : five named by distributors, five namei' exhibitors, and the President of the Public Se Commission. Theatres are to be divided into classifications, depending on the importance o municipalities in which they are located, se capacities and accommodations and admission i as of January 1, 1945. Opportunity to rent the same films mus' given to all theatres of the same category ir same zone where the houses of circuits are loc and clearance of more than 15 days after the of a superior category over a theatre of equ; inferior classification in the same zone or mi: pality would be prohibited by the bill's provk Violation by distributor or exhibitor would stitute a misdemeanor, punishable by fine or prisonment, or both. The measure becomes 90 days after signature by the Governor. 46 Newsreel Men To Cover United Nations Meeting Forty-six newsreel men have been accredite the State Department to the San Francisco ference, assuring the nation's exhibitors thor coverage. Nine of the men were accredite Movietone News, seven to News of the Day, Paramount News (including several local), i to Pathe, eight to" Universal, and one to thf American Newsreel. Memphis Censor Board Bans "Dillinger" "The Life of John Dillinger" has been ba in Memphis by Lloyd Binford, chairman of board of censors. Mr. Binford told Baily P ard. Monogram branch manager, that "showii the picture would not be of benefit to the put 22 MOTION PICTURE HERALD, APRIL 7,