Showmen's Trade Review (Jul-Sep 1942)

July 4, 1942 SHOWMEN'S TRADE REVIEW 29 nOLL Y WOOD STUDIO ROUXD-UP Curtailment of motion picture entertainment seems unlikely, judging from the number of productions which went into production this week. Cameras started rolling on a baker's dozen (thirteen) : COLUMBIA DARING YOUNG MAN— Principals : Joe E. Brown, Marguerite Chapman, Claire Dodd. Director, Frank Strayer. LAW OF THE BAD MAN— Principals : Russell Hayden, Bob Wills, Lucille Lambert. Director, William Berke. DESPERADOES — Principals: Randolph Scott, Glenn Ford, Evelyn Keyes, Claire Trevor, Edgar Buchanan. Director, Charles Vidor. MGM GAMBLER'S CHOICE — Principals: James Craig, William Lundigan, Patricia Dane. Director, Joseph Newman. MONOGRAM POLICE BULLETS— Principals: John Archer, Joan Marsh, Warren Hymer. Director, Jean Yarbrough, PARAMOUNT F;0R WHOM THE BELL TOLLS (Tech.)— Principals ; Gary Cooper, Akim TamirotT, Kapina Paxinou, Joseph Calleia. Producer-director, Sam Wood. PRODUCERS A NIGHT FOR CRIME— Principals : Glenda Farrell, Lyle Talbot. Director, Alex Thurn-Taxis. I'LL BE THERE (t.t.)— Principals : Jean Parker, Ricardo Cortez. Director, Edgar Ulmer. REPUBLIC CHATTERBOX— Principals: Martha O'Driscoll, John Hubbard, Tom Brown, Ruth Terry. Director, Albert S. Rogell. 20th CENTURY-FOX OX BOW INCIDENT— Principals: Henry Fonda, Mary Beth Hughes, Dana Andrews. Director, William A. Wellman. UNIVERSAL ARABIAN NIGHTS (Tech.) — Principals: Maria Montez, Jon Hall, Sabu. Director, John Rawlins. MUG TOWN— Principals: Bill Halop, Huntz Hall, Bernard Punsley, Gabriel Dell. Director, Lewis D. Collins. TITLE CHANGES "Lazybones" (Rep.) now JOAN OF OZARK. "Twelve Men In A Box" (Fox) now JUST OFF BROADWAY. "Deep In The Heart Of Texas" (Univ.) now BAD MEN OF TEXAS. "Love & Kisses, Caroline" (Univ.) now BETWEEN US GIRLS. Even Movie Planes In Demand When Republic laid plans for production 'of "The Flying Tigers," the studio mill was assigned the task of building six P-40 planes from wood, canvas, plywood, etc. It took a large staff six weeks to build the planes exactly the size of real ones, with obsolete motors installed so the planes did everything but take off. Since the planes were built, limits have been set on new sets and props. Therefore Republic's war planes have become valuable in Hollywood and seven studios have made requests for the rental of the planes. That's as good a sideline as any ! Completes 'Eyes in the Night' Director Fred Zinnemann has wound up MGM's "Eyes in the Night," which was produced by Jack Chertok. The mystery thriller about a blind detective was adapted from the novel, "Odor of Violets," and co-stars Ann Harding and Edward Arnold. Runyon Signs Contract With 20th Century-Fox Damon Runyon, newspaper columnist and widely-read short story writer, has signed a long-term contract as a 20th Century-Fox producer, it was announced this week by Col. Darryl F. Zanuck. Runyon has just completed his contract as producer at a another major studio where he filmed his own stories. His contract with 20thFox is effective August 1. He will soon leave for Washington and New York to get material for his first production, which will have a military background and is scheduled for release next season. 'Quota GirP Selected as Next Sonja Henie Vehicle Twentieth Century-Fox announced this week that the next story selected for Sonja Henie, who finished scenes in "Iceland" prior to starting on a New York vacation this week-end, would be "Quota Girl." Producer William LeBaron has signed Walter Bullock to write the screenplay. The general theme of "Quota Girl" concerns the efforts of a Norwegian girl, following the Nazi occupation of Norway, to obtain a quota in Lisbon permitting her to continue her flight. RKO Gets New Studio Manager Sid Rogell returned to RKO studios as studio manager by appointment of Charles Koerner. The present manager, William Holman, will be Rogell's assistant. Dear Mr. Exhibitor's Wife: Deanna Durbin, the young lady who started out in pictures because of her beautiful singing voice, is set to do a very dramatic scene for her new Universal picture "Forever Yours" this afternoon, so let's go and see it. To reach the set we have to plow through a crowd of Chinese and Japanese extras (the "Japs" are Chinese made up) and finally get to where the scene is set up. Deanna is portraying an American-born girl who has spent her entire life in China with an uncle who had charge of a mission. Japs have just bombed the place and her uncle has been killed. Seated at a desk is a Jap soldier, and standing next to him is Deanna — her face tear-stained, her hair mussed, and she's stroking a violin which belonged to her uncle. She's wearing a pair of dark blue silk Chinese pajamas, the jacket, long and fitted, is buttoned down the right side. Director Jean Renoir shouts "camera," and the Jap begins to talk, giving Deanna instructions about how to get herself and her nine little Chinese charges out of town. With tears streaming down her face, she walks over to the bed and falls sobbing to the floor. The camera crane shoots past her to pick up the balance of the room ... an old Chinese seated in a corner and a Jap soldier hanging a bamboo shade over the window to hide out the curious youngsters. When this is taken, the camera comes back and the scene is finished. This is the opening of the picture . . . the balance is comedy. Deanna sings eight songs, and in her role of "fake" widow of a rich captain drowned at sea, gets a chance to wear plenty of good-looking clothes. The widow pose is to bring the Chinese children into this country as her own. Wonder what happens next . . . must be plenty of complications . . . but we'll just have to hold our horses and wait until we see the picture. They're setting the stage for another scene as we start to leave. Outside we see most of the Chinese youngsters crying — proof conclusive, if such were needed after seeing her act the scene, of Deanna's ability as a dramatic actress. Got work to do, so I'll have to rush, but I'll see you again next week. ANN LEWIS AROUXD HOLLYWOOD Diana Barrymore, in a scene of "Between Us Girls" wears a suit of armor. To make it easy, special effects head Willis R. Cook, cooked up ... a zipper up the back. A suit of armor . . . that zipper . . . and we screamed at the line we made up . . . only we can't print it. We zmtch the "Watch on the Rhine" and Geraldiiie Fitsgerald and George Coulouris are so good it is exciting. When they finish, George Coulouris zmlks our imy and one of the prop men kids him : "You so-and-so, what do you mean by talking to a ivoman that way?" Mart Stein, our guide, tells us that Director Herman Shumlin rehearses the players as much as he did for the Broadivay play, then shoots the scene ivith no retakes. Still at Warners, we watch them straighten out the "Casablanca" set, with Michael Curtiz directing under Jerry Wald's production. Just offstage are Claude Rains, Humphrey Bogart, Conrad Veidt, and Paul Henreid. We're joined by Henry Rowland, who's playing a Gestapo agent, and Mort Stein says, "Let's kill the Gestapo." We're joined by Philip Sleeman, character actor. Our gaze zvanders to a familiar figure we can't immediately place, and Sleeman identifies him as Paul Panzer, famous in the Pearl White "Pearls of Pauline" days. Sleeman in those days was a leading man with Olive Thomas and Norma Shearer. He shoivs us a picture of himself with Norma Shearer, when he zvas her leading man. Meanwhile the most varied assortment of characters cast in this colorful picture of French Morocco keep wandering about, and we watch Claude Rains again and remember that we knew his wife when she was Frances Propper, and we wonder whether she is still as beautiful. "Lady" Merle Oberon has been signed by Producer Lester Cowan for "Heart of a City." Does that mean that Sir Alexander Korda, the Lady's husband, is not going to produce this year? Exhibitors to Vote on Ending With Columbia's George Stevens production "The Talk of the Town" having to be finally edited and scored in time to met early August release, the still unsettled problem of which two endings to use will be left to exhibitor polls to be conducted sectionally. To Film All-Negro Musical "Cabin in the Sky," stage success from Broadway, which also toured the country, will be filmed by MGM. Ethel Waters, the original star, will fill the principal role as she did on the stage. This will be the screen's first allNegro musical. AlC to Issue Emblems An emblem has been prepared by the Amusement Industries Committee of Los Angeles for issuance to theatre owners for display in the lobby or on the screen, showing the approval of the Police and Fire Departments, and the First Aid and Warden services.