Motion Picture Herald (Mar-Apr 1947)

Republic Holds Sales Meetings On New Product Plans for the release and promotion of forthcoming productions and exhibitor reaction to Trucolor were subjects of discussion at Republic's first and second regional sales meetings in New York and Chicago. The New York meeting was held at the New York Athletic Club Wednesday and Thursday, April 2 and 3, and the Chicago meeting was conducted at the Hotel Blackstone Tuesday and Wednesday of this week. Sees Big Role for Color At the New York meeting Herbert J. Yates, Republic president, reported enthusiastic exhibitor reaction to the company's Trucolor process and said that this confirmed his prediction that the industry would go all-out for color as soon as laboratories are in a position to meet the demand. He promised to fulfill this demand by special installation of equipment at both the Fort Lee, N. J., and the Hollywood laboratories, and said he expects to deliver the majority of Republic pictures in Trucolor by the end of the year. James R. Grainger, executive vice-president in charge of sales and distribution, told the delegates of the Easter Week opening of Frank Borzage's production "That's My Man," at the Globe theatre in New York, and outlined plans for the Nelson EddyIlona Massey picture, "End of the Rainbow," and the next Roy Rogers Trucolor pictures, "The Bells of San Angelo." At the New York meeting Babe Ruth confirmed that Republic was negotiating for the motion picture rights to the story of his life. District Managers Attend Attending the New York meeting were William Martin Saal, executive assistant to Mr. Yates, Steve Edwards, Albert Schiller, John Petrauskas, Jr., John Alexander, John Curtin, Richard Yates, Edward Riester and Fred Franke. Mickey Isman, assistant general manager of Empire Universal Films, Ltd., distributors of Republic product in Canada, joined president and general manager A. W. Perry at the meeting. The Chicago meeting was attended by Mr. Yates, Edward L. Walton, assistant general sales manager and western division manager ; Walter L. Titus, Jr., southern division manager, and James V. O'Gara, eastern division manager. Others attending included Merritt Davis, James Hobbs, J. H. Dillon, Leo V. Seicshnaydre, Harold Laird, Norman J. Colquohun, Thomas Kirk, Nat Wyse, David Hunt, Nat E. Steinberg, J. J. Houlihan, Dave Nelson, Robert F. Withers, Harry Lefholtz, Will Baker, E. H. Brauer, Jack Frackman, Joseph Loeffler and Carl Ponedel. LATE REVIEW Fun on a Weekend United Artists-Stone — Light Comedy Here is one that is good for hearty laughs in any situation. Produced, directed and written by Andrew Stone, "Fun on a Weekend" fulfills many a little man's dream of getting rich quick through sheer nerve and ingenuity. If, at the same time, he manages to take a few pot-shots at society and the all-too-gullible mogols of industry, and if his name just happens to be Eddie Bracken, it's all for the better. Bracken and Priscilla Lane, ably assisted by such seasoned comedians as Arthur Treacher and Allen Jenkins as well as the romantic Tom Conway, make a good team. It's strictly situation comedy, of course, but some of the incidents will really get them and the dialogue is funny and well-paced throughout. Some of the scenes, such as the one showing the hungry Eddie in hot competition with a dog for some bits of meat on a bone, are Bracken at his best. The story deals with a boy and a girl, both hungry and broke, who meet on a Florida beach and decide to go "for the big money" with nothing more to start with than some beach attire. Liberally using society's respect for money and distinguished-sounding names, they manage to crash into several homes, pretending they are in the market for an estate. Eventually, although still penniless, they get to live at the best hotel in town, throw lavish parties and mingle with high society. When Bracken thinks Priscilla loves playboy Conway, he is ready to give up, but the girl convinces him it's he whom she wants to marry. Previewed at the Pix theatre, New York. The audience liked it. Reviewer's Rating : Good. — Fred Hift. Release date, May 14, 1947. Running time, 93 min. PCA No. 11927. General audience classification. Peterson Price Porterhouse III Eddie Bracken Nancy Crane Priscilla Lane Van Tom Conway Joe Morgan Allen Jenkins Arthur Treacher, Clarence Kolb, Alma Kruger, Russell Hicks, Fritz Feld, Richard Hageman, Lester Allen, Bill Kennedy Monogram Holding Two Regional Meetings Eastern sales personnel of Monogram were to convene Saturday and Sunday at the Hotel Warwick, New York, with Morey Goldstein, general sales manager, in charge. The staffs will discuss merchandising of "It Happened on Fifth Avenue,'' and other product. Midwestern branch personnel were to convene the same days at the Blackstone Hotel, Chicago, with Jack Schlaifer presiding. Atlantic Section of SMPE To Meet in New York The Atlantic Coast Section of the Society of Motion Picture Engineers will meet at the Hotel Pennsylvania in New York Wednesday, April 16. Maxwell F. Coplan will speak on "Shooting Foreign Travel Films in Color." "Land of the Incas" and "Playground of the Americas," recently completed by Mr. Coplan, will be shown. Build New Mexican House; Will Open with "Duel" A new 3,000-seat house is being built in San Louis Potosi, a city midway between Mexico City and the United States border. The house, to be called The Potosi, will open some time in May with David O. Selznick's "Duel in the Sun" as the featured attraction, according to exhibitor Lesso de Lavega. Narrow Gauge to Engage SMPE At Chicago Meet A record number of technical papers — 69 of them — had been submitted by the first of the week for delivery at the sixty-first semi-annual convention of the Society of Motion Picture Engineers to be held April 21-25 at the Drake Hotel in Chicago. Many new developments in photography, sound recording, laboratory processing, sound reproduction, projection, television, and other subjects will be described at the technical sessions, according to Gordon A. Chambers, chairman of the papers committee. About half of the papers relate to production and use of 8mm and 16mm films. Among new sound recording equipment to be introduced by convention papers will be a variable-area recorder optical system permitting the recording of either negative or direct-positive sound track, to be described by J. L. Pettus and L. T. Sachtleben of the RCA Film Recording Section; a portable 16mm sound recording system, by John G. Frayne, of Western Electric Company, and a line of compact lightweight recorders for both 35mm and 16mm films, by M. E. Collins, of RCA's Hollywood engineering staff. Other papers on the tentative schedule include "My First Fifty Years in Motion Pictures," by Oscar B. Depue, of Chicago; "Television Studio Lighting," by Capt. W. C. Eddy, director of television of Station WBKB, Chicago, and "Television Remote Operation," by A. H. Brolly, chief engineer of WBKB. Universal Promotion Staff Holds Two-Day Meeting Executives of Universal-International, members of the company's home office advertising, publicity and promotion departments and field promotion personnel of U-I's eastern division held a two-day meeting at the Hotel Astor in New York this week. Presided over by Maurice A. Bergman, eastern advertising and publicity head, the discussions centered around campaign plans for the company's present and forthcoming productions. In the future a series of three similar conventions a year has been planned, with the second set for September, 1947. The meetings follow up the idea of augmenting the company's field staff with flying squadrons of exploitation representatives ' from the home office. Special plans for this project were discussed at this week's session. Among those who addressed the gathering were William A. Scully, vice-president and general sales manager ; Matthew Fox, vicepresident of U-I and board chairman of United World Films ; Henry A. Linet, eastern advertising manager; Al Horwitz, eastern publicity manager, and William Heineman, sales manager for the Rank division of U-I. 23 MOTION PICTURE HERALD, APRIL 12, 1947