Movie Age (1927)

PAGE 6 MOVIE AGE Strict Adherence to Film Boards of Trade Rulings Are Foreseen Strictly disciplinary measures against branch managers who do not adhere to the ruling of Film Boards of Trade will be enforced, it has been announced, ef¬ fective immediately. It is reported that the sales managers of the leading pro¬ ducers have voiced their approval of the new order, although the branch man¬ agers have not. Under the new system, a first offense against a Film Board ruling will be pun¬ ished by a fine of $25, the second by a fine of $50 and the third by permanent expulsion from the organization. The last step would have the effect of mak¬ ing the offending branch manager prac¬ tically ineligible to retain his position with any company affiliated with any of the Film Boards. The chief reasons for the drastic new rule is the practice of some managers in selling films to exhibitors who had not been given clearance by credit com¬ mittees, or who had failed to pay a de¬ posit after defaulting on an arbitration award. “Two Hot Yanks” Re-Title of “Two Arabian Knights” “Two Arabian Knights” has become “Two Hot Yanks.” A1 Lichtman, Unit¬ ed Artists’ domestic sales head, has an¬ nounced that the name of the post-war comedy had been changed in accordance with requests from exhibitors, who said the “Arabian Knights” in the title had misled filmgoers into thinking the story was a fantasy. “ ‘Two Hot Yanks’,” Lichtman said, “certainly ought to prove there isn’t anything fantastic about the story in which William Boyd, Mary Astor and Louis Wolheim are featured. In fact it’s a comedy drama of two typical doughboys but the war’s left out, the laughs left in, and the thrills piled on.” Joan Crawford Gets Lead Joan Crawford, who recently played two feminine leads opposite William Haines and is now appearing in the titlerole of “Rose Marie,” has won the fea¬ tured feminine role of Cosmopolitan’s “Tide of the Empire,” which MetroGoldwyn-Mayer will produce on a lavish scale, it is announced by Irving G. Thalberg, studio executive. The pictur# is being adapted from the Peter B. Kyne story of early California days, now run¬ ning serially in the Cosmopolitan maga¬ zine. New Process Gives Color To Black and White Film By Use of Special Lens By use of a special lens attachment for any standard motion picture camera, films tinted and colored in any shade that the eye can perceive can be pro¬ duced. A demonstration of the new pro¬ cess was given last week in New York by the inventor, Harold N. Cox, of Pitts¬ burgh, formerly connected with the Edison research laboratories. The pictures taken, according to the inventor, can be “developed in any laboratory fitted to turn out the ordi¬ nary motion picture, printed on black and white stock, neither tinted nor toned, nor in any way artificially colored, and projected on any projector by again using a similar lens attachment and shown on any screen.” In a statement Mr. Cox declared that with his invention films with all of their natural coloring can be produced with no increase in cost over the present black and white method of motion pho¬ tography. F B O 1927-28 Schedule is 90 Per Cent Ready; 43 Features Included With twenty stories already selected for the 1928-29 program, Williarh Le Baron, vice-president of FBO pictures in charge of production, is busily super¬ vising the completion of filming of the 1927-28 product. Mr. Le Baron advises that to date, more than 90 per cent of the 1927-28 schedule has been com¬ pleted, while the remaining 10 per cent will be finished within the next four weeks. Work on the 1928-29 program is scheduled to start before the first of the year. An announcement concern¬ ing the details of the new program will be made in a few days. Forty-three features and 74 reels of short subjects on the 1927-28 program are ready for exhibitors. Two weeks ago 75 per cent of the schedule was an¬ nounced as being ready. Advance Date Denny Picture Such enthusiastic reports have come to New York via the Los Angeles pre¬ view route that Universal has decided to release Reginald Denny’s current pic¬ ture, “On Your Toes,” directed by Fred Newmeyer, on November 26 instead of on January 1, as scheduled. The cast includes Barbara Worth, Hayden Stev¬ enson, Frank Hagney, Mary Carr and Gertrude Howard, Archainbaud and Claire Windsor Under Tiffany Banner for Long Period On the completion of Director George Archainbaud’s first Tiffany-Stahl pro¬ duction “Night Life,” he was asked to jump on a day’s notice to relieve Di¬ rector Phil Rosen who was taken sud¬ denly ill while directing “A Woman Against the World.” John M. Stahl, vice-president super¬ vising productions, after seeing Mr. Archainbaud’s work in the rushes at the end of the first week, was so highly elated over the director’s work, that he immediately placed Archainbaud under a long term contract. Mr. Stahl plans to have Mr. Archainbaud direct several super-specials for the company sche¬ duled for release in 1928. Tiffany-Stahl Productions also an¬ nounce that they have signed Claire Windsor on a long term contract. Miss Windsor has made an enviable name for herself as a screen actress of no mean ability and has been the featured player in many of the outstanding productions released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Miss Windsor is considered one of the most beautiful women appearing on the screen. One of her outstanding roles was in the Tiffany production “Souls for Sables,” one of the leading film productions of last year. First National Elects Four Vice-Presidents First National has announced the election of four new vice-presidents, bringing the total number of officials rating that title up to five, as Richard A. Rowland continues as vice-president in charge of production and general manager. The four men to be elected vice-presi¬ dents and their duties are: Sam Spring, treasurer and finances; Ned Depinet, distribution; E. Bruce Johnson, foreign business; Robert Perkins, secretary and legal matters. Albert L. Smith, of the E. B. Smith Co., was elected a director; W. C. Boothby, assistant treasurer, and Robert W. Brown, assistant secretary. Harold Lloyd will release two pic¬ tures during the coming year, if he maintains his present production plans. With the filming of his current opus, “Speedy” proceeding on scheduled time, Lloyd expects to have it finished short¬ ly after the new year, and set in for issuance some time early in the spring. Everything hinges, however, on the breaks he gets in the weather, for vir¬ tually the entire remainder of the pic¬ ture is slated to be shot outdoors.