Motion Picture Herald (Jan-Feb 1948)

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RED ISSUE FLARES IN STRIKE INQUIRY Hartley Overrules Kearns As Leaders of IATSE Blame Communists Washington Bureau The hearings on the Hollywood jurisdictional strikes took a turn to the left Wednesday when the one-man House Labor subcommittee expanded to five and announced that the role of the Communists in the dispute would be investigated. This announcement was a complete reversal of policy. Representative Carroll D. Kearns, during the past week while conducting the hearings alone, has stricken from the record any mention of Communist influence on the ground that he was not empowered to discuss that phase of the matter. Suggested Conference Wednesday morning, Matthew Levy, counsel for the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, took the stand and started talking about Communists. Mr. Kearns again struck his remarks from the record. At that juncture, Representative Jerald Landis, ranking member of the full House Education and Labor Committee, intervened and suggested a conference. He and Mr. Kearns withdrew into executive session, conferred by telephone with Fred A. Hartley, Jr., head of the full committee, then in New York, then came back into the committee room to make the announcement. Mr. Levy, in his opening policy-changing statement, charged that there is a "subversive drive to bring all Hollywood labor under the influence of the Communist Party and those who follow the Communist Party line. This drive centers around the Conference of Studio Unions and Herbert K. Sorrell," CSU president. Sees I A as Bulwark Asserting that "there are at work in this conflict two separate and distinct forces . . . joined in a marriage of convenience for the purpose of destroying the dominant position which the IATSE holds in the industry," Mr. Levy identified these forces as the Communist influence and "the burning ambition" of William L. Hutcheson, head of the Carpenters Union, who wishes "to dominate studio labor." Mr. Levy sees the IATSE as the "bulwark in the studio labor pictures" in opposition to Communism. Should the combined forces of Mr. Hutcheson and the Communist influence destroy the IATSE, Mr. Levy believes, another battle for supremacy would result, since "Mr. Hutcheson would not accept dictation from the Communist Party." Mr. Kearns said that injection of the Communist . issue would not change his opening statement of last week, which was to the effect that the hearing was to deter mine whether there was collusion between the studios and the IATSE leaders. He said also that all persons accused as Communists by the IATSE executives would be given an opportunity to defend themselves at the hearings. The five-man committee, which will continue the hearings, consists of Mr. Kearns, chairman; Mr. Landis (R. Ind.) ; Thomas L. Owens (R. 111.); John S. Wood (D. Ga.), and O. C. Fisher (D. Tex.). Richard F. Walsh's advice to the committee was to forget it. The president of the IATSE, testifying Tuesday, told the committee that if it put out any adverse reports on the jurisdictional strike it would "generate more trouble in Hollywood." He said: "Leave it alone and harmony will reign supreme." The hearings were started February 17 with a presentation of the industry's side of the jurisdictional dispute by an array of company executives. They included Herbert J. Yates, president of Republic ; Robert W. Perkins, vice-president and general counsel of Warner Brothers; Carrol Sax in charge of labor relations for Warners ; John O'Connor, vice-president of Universal International, and Charles Boren, vice-president in charge of industrial relations for the Motion Picture Association of America. PCCITO Trustees Back Lewis-Ascap Bill The trustees of the Pacific Coast Conference of Independent Theatre Owners voted to support the Lewis Bill in Congress aiming at restricting Ascap to dealing with the producers only for theatre music licensing fees. The organization recommended that its units contact their various Congressmen on the issue. At the conclusion of the four -day trustees' meeting, held in Seattle over the weekend, Rotus Harvey was named general chairman of the group's convention to be held in San Francisco April 5-8. At a board meeting of the Allied Rocky Mountain Independent Theatres in Denver Tuesday directors voted to support the Lewis Bill and also voted to support the national Allied stand against affiliating with the Motion Picture Foundation. THE PRODUCT (Continued from page 13) total of 20 is expected for the year, or seven less than last year. UNIVERSAL Univers; 1 — International has set six through February, including the late Mark Hellinger's production, "The Naked City." For the year it is estimated that the company will have about 30 features compared with 27 and five reissues last year. WARNER BROTHERS Warner Brothers has six new pictures and one reissue scheduled through March, including "My Girl Tisa," and the British production, "I Became a Criminal." The company expects to deliver about 24 pictures this year compared with 23 new features and seven reissues last year. Screen Guild to Have 28 Films Chicago Bureau A total of 28 pictures, including three Robert Lippert independent productions, four Edward Small reissues and 12 Hopalong Cassidys for 1948-49 release was announced at the Screen Guild Productions annual board of directors and franchise holders three-day meeting concluded Saturday at the Blackstone Hotel. All board members were reelected for another year, and a considerably increased assessment from each franchise holder for the financing of future productions and purchase of outside product for the coming year was approved. Mr. Lippert will produce "Return of Wildfire", "Last of the Wild Horses" and an untitled dog story. Presiding at the meeting were John J. Jones, president; F. A. Bateman, western sales manager ; Arthur Greenblatt, eastern sales manager, and Robert N. Lippert, vicepresident. Court Rules Georgia Sales To Other States Taxable The Georgia State Court of Appeals ruled last week that motion pictures sold through Atlanta exchanges for exhibition in other states are taxable in Georgia. The ruling was handed down in a test case decision involving all film companies operating in the state. The court upheld Judge Bond Almand of Fulton Superior Court in dismissing affidavits of illegality filed by Twentieth Century-Fox against Glenn Phillips, Revenue Commissioner. WHAT EVERY EXHIBITOR KNOWS GOOD PICTURES ARE ADVERTISED; THE OTHERS ARE SNEAKED OUT 16 MOTION PICTURE HERALD, FEBRUARY 28, 1948