Motion Picture Herald (1954)

Sidney C. Bell, head of the contract department of National Screen Service, is transferring to the company’s Hollywood studios where he will represent it in television film commercial sales. Nick Pery, Columbia Pictures International’s managing director for Europe and the Near East, has been elected a vice-president of the company. Harry Mandell, Filmakers vice-president and general sales manager, and Charles Krantz, distribution-production executive, have been named to the board of Filmakers Releasing Organization. Howard Pettengill, home office executive of Florida State Theatres, has been promoted to advertising and publicity manager. Norman Siegel has been named vice-president and a director of International Affiliates, active in the production, financing and distribution of pictures here and abroad. He will continue to represent the Screen Directors Guild, Transcona Enterprises and International Productions. Famous Players Circuit Lauds Old Employees TORONTO: At a dinner here, 26 Ontario employees of Famous Players Canadian Corp., Ltd., were inducted into the company’s 25-Year-Club. Old and new members of the club were praised by a group of company executives and after induction by R. W Bolstad, vice-president, John J. FitzgibbonSk president, presented each with diamondstudded memberships. Speakers included Mr. Bolstad, Norman Robertson, company counsel, Morris Stein, Eastern Division general manager ; and Leonard Bishop, manager, Shea’s, Toronto, expressed the thanks of new members. Testimonial Dinner for Fitzgerald November I I MILWAUKEE : Harold J. Fitzgerald, retiring president of Fox Wisconsin Amusement Corp., will be honored at a testimonial dinner to be held in the Crystal Ballroom of the Schroeder Hotel, Milwaukee, November 11. V. T. Touchett, chairman of the dinner committee, said more than 600 friends and associates of Mr. Fitzgerald would attend. COMPO Ad Quotes Editor Of "American Weekly" The 29th in the series of Council of Motion Picture Organizations’ ads in Editor & Publisher, which appeared Octobebr 23, quotes a letter from James Gediman, executive vice-president of The American Weekly, Al Cohan has been named national magazine contact in the eastern advertising and publicity department of Universal Pictures, replacing Lowell Benedict, resigned. Fanshawe Lindsley has been appointed general sales manager of TNT Tele-Sessions, business and industrial division of Theatre Network Television. He has been with Fortune Magazine for the past 13 years as an advertising executive of that publication. David A. Lipton, vice-president of Universal Pictures, was due in New York from Hollywood this week for 10 days of conferences with home office executives. John Rust has resigned from the staff of United States Steel Corporation’s public relations department to form John Rust Productions, Inc. He is co-producer of the television show, “Justice.” Don Hartman, Paramount executive producer, has been elected to the board of directors of the Southern California Society for Mental Hygiene. in which he states that “movie material goes over big with our audience” and “that’s why we play it up all year round.” Mr. Gediman says further: “We don't know or pretend to know what the producers and exhibitors ought to do or ought not to do. We’re interested and enthusiastic about what’s right and good about the movies. . . . Bright, colorful news and pictures about enjoyable productions, glamorous glimpses of anticipated hits, will excite and activate the American people.” Dr. Mees Is Honored at Franklin Institute Dinner Dr. C. E. Kenneth Mees, vice-president in charge of research of the Eastman Kodak Company, was honored at a dinner given by the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia October 20. He received the Franklin Medal, highest scientific honor of the society, in recognition of his contributions to the advancement of photography. Dr. Mees paid tribute to the importance of scientific research in modern industry. Eleven other scientists also received awards. Nielsen in New York Egon C. Nielsen has returned to New York from Denmark, where he produced “Edge of Tomorrow” starring Jackie Coogan, to arrange for the distribution of the feature. George Coogan, the director, is still in Copenhagen attending to the final details oi music scoring. Denham Laboratories in London are processing the negative. TV Revenue Up a Third , FCC Reports WASHINGTON : The television industry’s total broadcast revenues in 1953 rose 33 per cent over the 1952 total, the Federal Communications Commission has announced in a report. Total television revenues before Federal income tax were $432,700,000 in 1953, as compared with $324,200,000 in 1952. Television broadcast income — net income after deduction of expenses but before payment of Federal income tax — was $68,000,000 in 1953 the FCC reported, a 23 per cent rise over the 1952 figure of $55,500,000. The 1953 figures for television broadcast income cover 4 networks owning and operating 16 stations, 92 pre-freeze stations and 226 post-freeze stations. The 1952 income figures cover 4 networks owning and operating 15 television stations, 93 pre-freeze and 14 post-freeze stations. The 16 network stations reported a total 1953 income of $18,000,000, almost double their 1952 total of $9,900,000 for 15 stations. The 92 pre-freeze stations reporting in 1953 showed a total income of $60,500,000, as compared with a 1952 figure of $45,800,000 for 93 stations. By the end of 1953, the FCC said, 240 post-freeze stations were on the air. Of these, 114 VHF stations reported a total loss of $4,200,000 and 112 UHF stations a loss of $6,300,000. The average post-freeze station had been on the air six months by the end of 1953, the commission said. Oi the country’s 108 pre-freeze stations, 97 reported profitable operations during 1953. Eight of the eleven stations reporting a loss for the year were located in New York City and Los Angeles — the two seven station markets. Most of the 40 pre-freeze stations which were the only station in their market in 1952 reported a substantial increase in 1953 total revenues, the FCC said. Half of these stations continued to be the only outlet in their area for all of 1953. JDA Honors Trade Paper Publishers for Role Motion picture industry trade paper publishers were honored Wednesday, during luncheon in New York, by the Joint Defense Appeal motion picture division and the Cinema Lodge, B’nai B’rith. The men were cited for their support of JDA agencies in the fight against bigotry and for their contributions to “the American ideals of freedom, equal opportunity, and fair play”. The men are Martin Quigley, Jr., Motion Picture Herald; Ben Shlyen, Boxoffice ; Jay Emanuel, The Exhibitor ; Mo Wax, Film Bulletin; Jack Alicoate, Film Daily; Morton Sunshine, Independent Film Journal; Marvin Kirsch, Radio Daily, and Mrs. Margie Lewis, Showmen’s Trade Review. 18 MOTION PICTURE HERALD, OCTOBER 30, 1954