Motion Picture Herald (Oct-Dec 1951)

MOTION PICTURE HERALD November 10, 1951 ARBITRATION wins the support of the Allied States convention Page 12 TERRY RAMSAYE Says — A column of comment on matters cinematic Page 18 DECCA Records acquires controlling stock interest in Universal Page 19 REPUBLIC and Monogram enter TV film production Page 22 ARBITRATION use is urged on exhibitors at St. Louis meeting Page 22 TELEVISION code takes a leaf from film's Production Code book Page 23 BOX OFFICE Champions for the month of October Page 24 BRITAIN'S Conservative Cabinet includes two favorable to films Page 24 DRIVE-IN wins appeal on action asking right to bid on films Page 28 TWO trust suits are filed in Federal Court in Minneapolis Page 28 FRENCH exhibition interests asks end of quota stipulations Page 32 NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT — Notes on industry personnel across country Page 34 RKO THEATRES reports net profit for 9 months of $1,053,844 Page 41 MOVIETIME reported a real success by O'Donnell at Ampa luncheon Page 41 SERVICE DEPARTMENTS Film Buyer's Rating Page 42 Hollywood Scene Page 25 In the Newsreels Page 41 Late Review Page 29 Managers' Round Table Page 45 People in the News Page 29 Short Product at First Runs Page 44 What the Picture Did for Me Page 43 IN PRODUCT DIGEST SECTION Showmen's Reviews Page 1101 Short Subjects Page 1103 The Release Chart Page I 103 Developments and trends that shape the motion picture industry's future. ► It is unlikely that Winston Churchill’s Government in Britain will provide any better treatment for the film industry than the previous Labor Government. Present economic conditions do not favor a decrease in taxation or an increase in remittances to the United States. The government agency used to subsidize producers, the National Film Finance Corporation, may encounter difficulties when it next goes to Parliament for a new appropriation. It is understood the British Treasury already has recommended a possible reduction of film remittances to the U. S. ^ The new U. S. tax law which went into effect November 1 opens the door to wide experimentation with special reduced admissions for students and other special groups. The old regulations requiring the collection of the tax on the “established” adult price made it impractical to have such reduced rates because such a high percent of the amount went to the Government. ► Newsreel companies are hard at work seeking a pattern of operations that will permit them to exploit the television market and at the same time service theatres with reels that will meet with audience satisfaction. Neither job is an easy one. Television newscasts regularly feature the commentator rather than the pictorial material, the exact reverse of theatre practice. No television news program will be completely satisfactory until facilities are available to transmit more rapidly material from the cameras outside the New York areas to the newsreel plants. What is really needed is a telephoto system for motion picture film. ► There will be no solution to the so-called “print shortage” problem until a way is found to cut down on the number of simultaneous runs. and already in many areas the number of theatres theoretically entitled to play a feature on the same date far exceeds the supply of prints. Theatres in outlying areas have also been hit by the fact that in a number of instances they are playing pictures later than ever. In the days of long clearances in the cities prints were available for showing in country areas much earlier than now. ► Should Gene Autry win his suit to prevent Republic from selling pictures in which he appeared to television the case will be a stronger general precedent than Roy Rogers’ recent victory. The Autry suit is based on broader grounds. ► All branches of the film industry will finally get very close together on the technical aspects of their request to the Federal Communications Commission for theatre television frequencies. That is, they’ll be fairly well agreed on the number of frequencies needed, the width of each band, the area in the spectrum to be used, etc. Opportunif-y to Advance Screen Art Discussed Two recent installations of maskless screens, one designed for any existing theatre, the other associated with a complementary treatment of the entire auditorium, offer an immediate start toward motion picture entertainment of greater impressiveness and illusion, says Better Theatres editorially in the l\ovemher issue, with this week’s issue of Motion Picture Herald. The installations are at Framingham, Mass., and Scarsdale, N. Y. Elsewhere in the November issue ( the Fall Buyers Number), a third-dimensional feature picture is urged to test the public’s reaction to polarizing spectacles; however, the editorial on maskless screens points out television might be stereoscopic even sooner than films, advising the fullest development of peripheral modulation” and other extensions of the maskless screen technique. MOTION PICTU RE HERALD, published every Saturday by Cpuigley Publishing Company, Rockefeller Center, New York City 20 Telephone Circle 7-3100; Cable address "Qulgpubco, New York", Martin Quigley, President; Red Kann, Vice-President; Martin Quigley, Jr., Vice-President; Theo J. Sullivan, Vice-President and Treasurer; Raymond Levy, Vice-President; Leo J.^ Brady, Secretary; Martin Quigley, Jr., Editor; Terry Ramsaye, Consulting Editor; James D. Ivers, News Editor; Charles S. Aaronson, Production Editor; Ray Gallagher, Advertising Manager; Gus H. Fausel, Production Manager. Bureaus: Hollywood, William R. Weaver, editor, Yucca-Vine Building, Telephone, GRanite 2145; Chicago. 120 So. LaSalle St., Urban Farley, advertising representative, Telephone, Financial 6-3074; Washington, J. A. Otten, National Press Club; London, Hope V/Illiams Burnup, manager, Peter Burnup, editor, 4 Golden Square. Correspondents in the principal capitals of the world. Member Audit Bureau of Circulations. Other Quigley Publications; Better Theatres, published thirteen times a year as Section II of Motion Picture Herald; Motion Picture Daily, International Motion Picture Almanac and Fame. MOTION PICTURE HERALD, NOVEMBER 10. 1951 9