Motion Picture Herald (Mar-Apr 1947)

ON THE MARCH by RED ICANN r ■ HE speculation closed out late Tues I day when word was flashed from Washington that Justice Reed had signed the stay, suspending in balance the essentials of the New York consent decree pending determination of appeals by the Supreme Court. Actually and technically, the stay remains in force until only May 20 when appeals must be filed by defense attorneys. This is merely another manoeuvre engineered by the Justice Department to hasten the lodging of appeals. The stop date has no bearing on the effect of the stay because, once appeals are entered, Justice Reed's order remains until the issues are decided by the high court. There is no reason to alter the original forecast that this will mean a year. Perhaps more. Furthermore, there was never serious doubt about the stay itself, despite the opposition of the Justice Department which, by policy, had to contest it. All of the "woulds" and "would be's" that decorated this space with uncertainties last week, consequently, take on definite form. Competitive bidding is now formally suspended. The prohibition against price-fixing is in abeyance. The distributor may sell in blocks of four or five as of yore and several may decide to market full line again. The distributor will not have to assume the burden of establishing the validity of the clearance he establishes, or may insist upon, in the event of exhibitor challenge. But what was indefinite before the stay continues indefinite now. The problem facing the distributor in deciding if he wants to operate under the decree as a method of self-protection or intends taking advantage of the stay pending the final outcome is ticklish, delicate and difficult. In several quarters, there is a new disquiet over the possible attitude of some independents who outstripped major circuits under competitive bidding and to what recourses under the law they may resort if they lose out on future sales. The answer is not yet in sight. What is in sight is a continued state of confusion and uncertainty in distributor ranks, at least. It looks like a hot summer in more ways than one. Journey into the higher altitudes. And pleasant, too. This is Universal reporting with glee the initial drawing power of "The Egg and I" [ . . . "a very neat job of hilarious entertainment," concluded your observer in the Herald, March 29] : Louisville — National theatre. Saturday through Monday — $7,154. Compares with "The Dark Mirror" Thursday through Saturday, including Thanksgiving Day — $2, 949 ; and "Canyon Passage," same days at the Rialto— $6,553. Indianapolis — Keith's. Saturday through Monday— $8,809. "Mirror," same theatre, same days — $5,500. At the Indiana where there are about 800 more seats, "Passage" did $8,000, and "Scarlet Street" grossed $5,800. Detroit — The Fox. Saturday through Monday — $25,459. "Mirror," Friday through Sunday— $20,100; "Scarlet Street"— $21,000. Kansas City — Uptown, Esquire, Fairway. Saturday through Monday — $14,017. Under identical circumstances, "Mirror" grossed $8,000 and "The Killers" $7,000. Toronto — Uptown. Wednesday through Monday [no Sunday shows] — $18,412. "Canyon Passage"— $12,800. Los Angeles — Carthay Circle, United Artists, Ritz, Bruin, Iris and Studio. Business is reported running about 60 per cent ahead of Universal's other pace makers, variously mentioned above. Day-and-date with metropolitan Los Angeles runs are engagements in surrounding towns like Long Beach, Santa Anna and El Centre Extremely well contented with results there. Universal draws its conclusion : "The Egg and I" is demonstrating strength in big and smaller situations thereby making it practically unanimous as far as matters have gone. Easter Week, naturally, proved a boon. There is an interesting companion piece to this. Maurice Bergman, whose job it is to dope out such matters, attributes a major portion of the interest created among theatremen to the extent of his trade paper advertising campaign. "We spent a lot of money, but we never spent any more wisely. It pays oft." Financial Note: Paramount, where the actual figures usually match the estimated, looks for all-time high earnings of $44,040,000 for 1946. This compares with $17,952,432 for '45, or an increase of 145 per cent. Profits for the 14 weeks ending January 4, 1947, are anticipated at $10,163,000 as against the corresponding quarter — only it's 13 weeks — of 1945 when the net was $4,111.000. The gain is a whopping 122 per cent. A few days ago the Wall Street Journal, authoritative newspaper of the financial world, reported 12 amusement and film companies bulked combined earnings of $112,607,548 in 1946 as compared with $81,022,364 in 1945. The percentage of increase turns out to be a handsome 39. MGM to Reissue 'Gone with Wind9 In Full Length "Gone With the Wind," David O. Selznick's Technicolor classic, will be reissued by MGM in the near future, William Zoellner, head of the company's reprint and foreign importation department, said this week. The picture will be MGM's fifth reprint for the year, the others being "Rage in Heaven," "Boom Town," "The Great Waltz," and probably "The Philadelphia Story." To Open in Test Spots MGM executives attended a screening of "Gone With the Wind" recently and decided then that the film still belonged in the topquality class. It was made in 1939. So far no definite decision regarding the picture's handling has been made, Mr. Zoellner said, but if the still tight Technicolor situation permits it, "Gone With the Wind" will open at one or two test spots. If reaction is favorable, "Wind" will be reissued without cuts and will run three hours and 44 minutes. The next reprint to be offered by MGM will be "The Great Waltz," due for June release. Although only a limited number of prints were available, "Rage in Heaven," the first reissue, has so far been sold to 9,000 accounts and, according to Mr. Zoellner, in four months has had more bookings than during the whole year following its original release. Revenue from the film this time has been greater by far than in 1941. Testing Dubbed Versions Loew's is well satisfied with the results of midnight shows of Italian-dubbed Hollywood product in New York houses, Mr. Zoellner said. Spanish-dubbed versions will be tested at the Burland theatre in New York starting April 21. "Angels of the Street," a French picture recently acquired by • Loew's International, has just been dubbed into English, Mr. Zoellner said. The manner of its release will await decision by Arthur Loew, president of Loew's International, who is due back from Europe soon. Century Managers Strive For Candy Promotion The Century Circuit, New York, sales drive centers upon candy and soft drink merchandising. This marks the first such sales drive. The company owns its candy concessions, under Andrews, Inc. Century hopes to have new sales methods in approach to the customer, evolved from the 10-week campaign. Things are bad, are they? Jury Finds Pickets Guilty A jury in Los Angeles Municipal Court last week found all 25 defendants on trial on four counts in connection with mass picketing at Columbia Studios last November 16 guilty on at least one count. Of them, 33 were convicted also on a second count. It took the predominantly feminine jury three and a half days to make its decision. 16 MOTION PICTURE HERALD, APRIL 12, 1947