Showmen's Trade Review (Apr-Jun 1939)

Page 6 SHOWMEN'S TRADE REVIEW June 24, 1939 INDUSTRY PACT STYMIED BY NEELY BILL Text of Bill Backed by Allied Reveals Aims of Act for Trade Rule >«> (Continued from page 5) very little study by the rank and file within the industry. Its professed purposes are the elimination of "block-booking and blind seUing." To that end the Neely Bill as introduced by its sponsor and to be voted on by the Senate next week, according to present schedules of that body, sets forth its purposes as follows: S. 280 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES January 4, 1939 A BILL To prohibit and to prevent the trade practices known as "compulsory blockbooking" and "blind selling" in the leasing of motion-picture films in interstate and foreign commerce. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the methods of distribution of motionpicture films in commerce whereby (a) exhibitors are required to lease all or a specified number of an offered group of films in order to obtain any individual desired film or films in the group, a trade practice sometimes known as "compulsory block-booking," and (b) films are leased before they are produced and without opportunity for the exhibitor to ascertain the content of such films, a trade practice sometimes known as "blind selling," are hereby declared to be contrary to public policy in that such practices interfere with the free and informed selection of films on the part of exhibitors and prevent the people of the several States and the local communities thereof from influencing such selection in the best interests of the public, and tend to create a monopoly in the production, distribution, and exhibition of films. The Congress finds and declares that such methods and practices adversely aflrect and constitute a burden upon commerce, and it is the purpose of this Act to prohibit and to prevent such methods and practices in commerce. Sec. 2. For the purposes of this Act, unless the context otherwise requires — (1) The term "motion-picture film" or "film" means all motion-picture films (whether copyrighted or uncopyrighted), including positive and negative prints, and copies or reproductions of such prints, which films contain photoplays or other subjects and are produced for public exhibition : Provided, That the term shall not include films commonly known as "news reels" or other films containing picturizations of news events, or short subjects of two thousand feet or less in length. (2) The term "to lease" includes the making of a license agreement, contract, or any type of agreement whereby a film, the distribution of which is controlled by one of the parties, is to be supplied to and exhibited in a theater owned, controlled, or operated by the other party. (3) The term "person" includes an individual, partnership, association, jointstock company, trust, or corporation. (4) The term "distributor" includes any person who engages or contracts to engage in the distribution of motionpicture films. (5) The term "exhibitor" includes any person who engages or contracts to engage in the exhibition of motion-picture films. (6) The term "commerce" means commerce between any State, Territory, or the District of Columbia, and any place sutside thereof; or between points within the same State, Territory, or the District of Columbia, but through any place out side thereof; or within any Territory or the District of Columbia. For the purposes of this Act (but in no wise limiting the definition of commerce) a transaction in respect of any film shall be considered to be in commerce if the film is part of that current of commerce usual in the motion-picture industry whereby films are produced in one State, leased for exhibition in other States, and distributed to them through local exchanges in the several States, the films circulating from the exchanges and between the various exhibitors. Films normally in such current of commerce shall not be considered out of such commerce through resort being had to any means or device intended to remove transactions in respect thereto from the provisions of this Act. For the purpose of this paragraph, the word "State" includes Territory, the District of Columbia, and foreign country. Sec. 3. (1) It shall be unlawful for any distributor of motjon-picture films in commerce to lease or offer to lease for public exhibition films in a block or group of two or more films at a designated lump-sum price for the entire block or group only and to require the exhibitor to lease all such films or permit him to lease none ; or to lease or offer to lease for public exhibition films in a block or group of two or more at a designated lump-sum price for the entire block or group and at separate and several prices for separate and several films, or for a number or numbers thereof less than the total number, which total or lump-sum price and separate and several prices shall bear to each other such relation (a) as to operate as an unreasonable restraint upon the freedom of an exhibitor to select and lease for use and exhibition only such film or films of such block or group as he may desire and prefer to procure for exhibition, or (b) as tends to require an ex hibitor to lease such entire block or group or forego the lease ot any number or numbers thereof, or (c) that the effect of the lease or ofl^er to lease of such films may be substantially to lessen competition or tend to create a monopoly in the production, distribution, and exhibition of films ; or to lease or offer to lease for public exhibition films in any other manner or by any other means the effect of which would be to defeat the purpose of this Act. (2) It shall be unlawful for any person knowingly to transport or cause to be transported in commerce any motionpicture film which is leased, or intended to be leased, in violation of subdivision (1) of this section. Sec. 4. It shall be unlawful for any distributor of motion-picture films in commerce to lease or offer to lease for public exhibition any motion-picture film over two thousand feet in length unless such distributor shall furnish the exhibitor at or before the time of making such lease or offer to lease a complete and true synopsis of the contents of such film. Such synopsis shall be made a part of the lease and shall include (a) an outline of the story, incidents, and scenes depicted or to be depicted, and (b) a statement describing the manner of treatment of dialogs concerning any scenes depicting vice, crime, or suggestion of sexual passion. It is the purpose of this section to make available to the exhibitor sufficient information concerning the contents of the film and the manner of treatment to enable him to determine whether he desires to select the film for exhibition and later to determine whether the film is fairly described by the synopsis. Sec. 5. (1) Every person who violates section 3, or who fails to furnish the synopsis required by section 4, or knowingly makes any false statement in such synopsis, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and, on conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not exceeding $5,000 or by imprisonment for not exceeding one year, or by both such fine and imprisonment in the discretion of the court. (2) The several district courts of the United States are hereby invested with jurisdiction to prevent and restrain violations of this Act, and it shall be the duty of the several district attorneys of the United States, in their respective districts, under the direction of the Attorney General, to institute proceedings in equity to prevent and restrain such violations. Such proceedings may be by way of petition setting forth the case and praying that such violation shall be enjoined or otherwise prohibited. When the parties complained of shall have been duly notified of such petition, the court shall proceed, as soon as may be, to the hearing and determination of the case ; and pending such petition, and before final decree, the court may at any time make such temporary restraining order or prohibition as shall be deemed just in the premises. Whenever it shall appear to the court before which any such proceeding may be pending that the ends of justice require that other parties should be brought before the court, the court may cause them to be summoned whether they reside in the district in which the court is held or not, and subpoenas to that end may be served in any district by the marshal thereof. Sec. 6. If any provision of this Act is declared unconstitutional or the applicability thereof to any person or circumstances is held invalid, the validity of the remainder of the Act and the applicability of such provision to other persons and circumstances shall not be affected thereby. Sec. 7. This Act shall become effective twelve months after its enactment. SEEN AND HEARD AT THE ALLIED MEET By Bob Wile Arthur Howard took the prize as the handsomest conventioneer. The genial Boston secretary was popular with the ladies as well as the men. Ah there, Arthur. After sitting for three days on the dais without saying anything, Charley Olive of Washington, national secretary of Allied began to excite the curiosity of some of the delegates. He just sat there and didn't say anything. Secretary's prerogative, says Charley. Grad Sears, unusued to the self help style of the smorgasbord luncheon got through his lunch in a hurry. The service was terrible, he thought. Eddie Golden and Ray Johnston seemed to be the Beau Brummels of the convention with their summery looking new outfits. Col. Cole evidently judges the worth of anything by its extent. At 5 :00 oh the second afternoon he said it was a fine convention because the delegates had listened so long. At 6 :00 after Milton Weisman got finished, words almost failed him to express what he thought of it. Although he hails from farther south, Col. Cole's accent isn't nearly as broad as his rival president, Ed Kuykendall. Ed's is considerably "souther" and that's sayin' sumpin', sah. Turner of Pine City was called from the convention floor during the debate on the code to answer the long distance phone. Some wag suggested it might be a film COD. It was James Quinn's first convention since his new California unit was organized. Quinn's slogan now is more and bigger conventions. He thrives on 'em. The Movie Cash girls were the hit of the exhibits in several ways. They were less well covered than MGM's charmers and appeared tn be advertising their "charms" and other things as well as movie cash. Lee Newbury of New Jersey has so long been a consistent speaker at his New Jersey conventions that it seemed strange to see him at this one without saying a word on the floor. Sidney Samuelson of Newton, N. J. and Philadelphia, is reported to have competition threatened. It is reliably reported that Sidney took advantage of the fact that there isn't any code yet to help the other guy. Sally Fisher, Samuelson's secretary, gloated over the fact that there was a dictaphone taking all the notes she would otherwise have to laboriously take and transcribe. That's modern efficiency for you. We thought there wasn't a more efficient secretary than Sally but alas, one has been found. Just to illustrate how much harmony there was after the business sessions were over, we spied Bob O'Donnell fixing a stud in Al Steffe's shirt. It wasn't a good job though for AI displayed his manly bosom on the platform. Abe Montague is congratulating himself all over that he sat down during the convention sessions when he did and let Grad Sears take up the cudgels then. Two of the 20th-Fox's tliree Williams were present — the Sussman and the Gehring. They had plenty of company though — Scully, Rodgers, Flynn and perhaps (who knows?) Ray Johnston and his prefixed "W". Jack Schlaifer was evidently chagrined at being dropped from the major classification. Because his company didn't sign the code, he wasn't invited to speak and didn't. But all references were of course to seven major companies. Neil Agnew will get the quick change prize. We saw him in four different costumes during the day. Ah there, Neil! During the morning there was a vain rush across the street when it was discovered that the hotel was selling the luggage left by its erstwhile guests and deadbeats. All fears were groundless, however I Merle Potter, critic of the Minneapolis Star said there wasn't anything wrong with the business that good pictures wouldn't cure. Seems to us and to Bill Rodgers too, that we heard that one somewhere before. Grad Sears got in a good crack though, when he said he knew Potter didn't like motion pictures. "I've read some of his reviews," cracked Sears. One of the laughs of the convention was the zeal with which one of STR's subscription men solicited one from Pete Harrison. It just goes to show lliat Pele even looks like an exhibitor. One observer said that judging from the collective bay windows of the delegates there didn't seem to be any immediate danger of starvation on the part of the delegates. Herman Robbins and George Dcmbrow were distinguished by having on their doors no number but the name "Nordic Suite". Every time some one entered they brushed their blond locks out of their eyes.