Showmen's Trade Review (Apr-Jun 1939)

May 27. /'^'<^ SHOW A! I". N • S 'I" I< A I) ]•■. U 1''. \' I l'. W Page 37 DIAMOND DUST BEACH PICNIC Prod. I\o. liii-U Very Good Prod. I\o. 94,114 (Te<h.) A Scream Para. Sportlight No. 11 10 mins. Comment: One of the best baseball reels we've seen, so far as interesting the real fans who are keen about "inside" baseball. Narrated by Ted Husing, the reel sho\ys Johnn> Vandemeer, Tommy Bridges, Bill Dickey, Jimmy Foxx, Joe Vosmik and others doing their stuff. There is an introduction in which Judge Landis appears, and a closeup with Joe McCarthy, manager of the Yankees, giving advice on what makes a great ball player. Training camp work and shots of a big league game are included. Exploitation: The local baseball clubs should go strong for this and greatly aid the exploitation. Use banners advertising the reel at ball parks, announcements to the fans at games, big displays by sporting goods dealers, etc. PARAMOUNT PRESENTS HOAGY CARMICHAEL Prod. !So. AH-10 Tuneful Para. Headliner No. 10 10 mins. Comment: Carmichael, author of such hits as "Two Sleepy People", "Small Fry", and others, appears with Jack Teagarden and his band, with Meredith Blake singing. It's an informal sort of jam session with some patter in rhjane and rhj'thm between Carmichael and Teagarden to start it off, and Carmichael introducing his latest composition, "That's Right, I'm Wrong". The swing enthusiasts wnll go for it with enthusiasm. Exploitation: Play up the names: Hoagy Carmichael, Teagarden and his band. If you have contact with a radio station the program director should be interested in working with you on this, particularly if recordings are broadcast, in which case Teagarden's records would be featured as a group. PORKY AND TEABISCUIT Prod. No. 4811 Amusing Vita. Looney Tune No. 11 7 mins Comment: At a horse auction at the fair Porky innocently finds himself the owner of a shagg}' old nag that can hardly stand up. However, he enters the horse in the race, and through a series of amusing sequences, manages to emerge victorious. Children and adults alike will be amused by this cartoon, which was produced hy Leon Schlesinger. Exploitation: Give it regular mention in your newspaper ads, programs, and in your lobby displays. JAVA JOURNEYS Prod. No. T-858 (Tech.) Satisfactory MGM Traveltalk No. 8 9 mins. Comment: Once again Fitzpatrick goes to Java to photograph interesting places and unusual scenes. Many of these scenes have now become too familiar to movie audiences. It looked to us as though some of the scenes had been used in previous Fitzpatrick Traveltalks. The beautiful gardens of Java are shown in full and beautiful Technicolor. Exploitation: Tie up with travel agencies. The school geography classes should be notified of the showing of the subject for its educational value. RKO Disney Cartoon No. 14 8 mins. Comment: Donald Duck goes out for some sport on the water. He has a large inflated rubber horse which throws him for a w'hile. When he sees Pluto asleep he gets an idea to tease him. Pluto, quite exasperated by this horse finally grabs iiim by the air valve which blows Pluto sky-high while deflating the horse. Then Donald returns to camp but in the meantime the ants have made off with much of his picnic. He tries to solve this problem with fly-paper but poor Pluto gets all mixed up with it and finally manages to wrap Donald up with it too. We were weak from laughing at this one and your audience will be too. Exploitation: You can make a tieup with stores which carry fly paper and such things, letting the store emphasize that its fly-paper will not do what Donald's did to him. Tieups with stores carrying rubber horses would also be good. Fair 21 mins. HAPPILY BURIED Prod. No. R-805 MGM Musical No. 5 Comment: The handsome young president of a company which makes square w'affle irons is engaged to the comely president of a company which makes round ones. They can't agree on the future shape of waffle irons and have a falling out. The young man obtains a Hindu slave through saving him from jail and at his suggestion l)uries himself alive in order to regain his love. At the World's Fair he spoils her exhibit but wins her back again. It seemed rather silly to us and not up to MGM standard. There doesn't seem to be much point to a lot of what goes on the picture. There's a good song number to recommend it, however. If you have a show that requires something light with music, this wall fill the bill fairly well. Felix Feist directed. Exploitation: Get displays in house furnishings stores to tie up with the waffle iron angle. Get tieups with music stores on the song, "I'd Rather Have You." WITH BEST DISHES Prod. No. 32S3 Univ. Mentone No. 13 Entertaining 17 mins. Comment: Just what line of business the producers of these musicals will use next as a background for tlieir collection of vaudeville specialties is a question. This time they've gone to a dish store, where owner Charles Kemper is retaliating against the dish-giving theatres by giving his customers a show with every dish. Billy Reyes, clever young juggler and monologist, shows howto handle the chinaware while introducing such star acts as George Roche, j^oung dancer; Toy & Wing, talented Chinese terpsichoreans ; Lillian Roth (remember her in the early screen-musicals?); Pied Pipers, singing group, and the Philharmonicas, who play the instruments their title implies. It's entertaining screen fare for the hinterland folk, who never get to see vaudeville more than once or twice in a decade. Milton Schwarzv^'ald directed. Exploitation: Mention it in j^our regular advertising, being sure to list all the specialties. There's an opportunity to tie up with dinnerware dealers and music shops. ART GALLERY Prod. No. W-886 (Tech.) ExceUenl MGM Cartoon No. 6 8 mins. Comment: Hugh Harman has given MGM and your audiences one of the best cartoons of the season. This one takes place in an art gallery at night when Nero wants the fire to start. The three wise monkeys playing with a cigarette lighter do the trick and Mona Lisa shrieks for help while Venus de Milo gets a hot foot. Winged Victory soars away and some extremely funny things happen to the other paintings. The calibre of MGM's cartoons has greatly improved since Harman returned to the fold and if this is an augury of what will come from the studio we can all say "Hail MGM cartoons." Exploitation: Plug this one on your marquee, in your lobby, programs and newspapers ads. Catchlincs like "See what happens when fire hits the museum" would be good stuff for the lobby. DARK MAGIC Prod. No. F-956 Very Funny MGM Robert Benchley No. 6 9 mins. Comment: This is undoubtedly the best Benchley short to date. He goes into a store to buy his son a present and is treated to a demonstration of a magic set. He takes it home but none of the tricks seem to work. Finally he decides to do the Hindu disappearing act and gets tied up in a sack by his son. He doesn't know where he is going and only finds out vv-hen he is strung up on a telephone wire outside. It's a howl from beginning to end and the end carries a swell punch. This short is highly recommended for entertainment qualities. Roy Rowland directed. Exploitation: Tie up with stores selling magic outfits for kids. Amateur magicians could do their stuff on the stage. BOLA MOLA LAND Prod. No. 3256 Good Satire Univ. Lantz Cartune No. 16 6 mins. Comment: The travel cruises are in for it again as this cartoon satirizes them even to the setting sun, which in this case drops into the ocean with a splash. Several gags help to make the subject highly enjoyable, while an off-screen commentator keeps the audience aware of what is going on. Alex Lovy directed. Exploitation: Advertise it as a cartoon satire on all travel cruises in your ad spots, programs and in your lobby display frames. MONTMARTRE MADNESS Prod. No. Not Set Entertaining Col. Music Hall Vanities 10 mins. Comment: Setting is in a Paris cafe with a lonely .-\merican (Harry Stockwell) seeking sights he's read about. They're not there, but in his vision there is a girl show featuring a chorus and Francois Mazzone in a song and cancan number, and apache dance. The latter is plenty vigorous and whoops things up in an actionful way. Stockwell's singing is good. Exploitation: Use a still display in the lobby with copy featuring the "See Gay Paris" line. Sell it as a snappy song and dance entertainment w'ith a Continental flavor.