Showmen's trade review (Jul-Sep 1942)

42 SHOWMEN'STRADEREVIEW August 8, 1942 SIR West Coast Offices 10424 Bloomfield St. North Hollywood, Calif. Telephone, Sunset 1-6292 PROGRAM NOTES FROM THE STUDIOS Hellinger to Produce Je HavillancI Film; Mark Sandrich Gets 'Epic' Assignmertt/ Huston for 'Edge of Darkness' ►Producer A. W. Hackel's next picture for Monogram will be "Living Ghost," a screenplay by Joseph Hoffman based on Howard Dimsdale's story. yZQth-Fox has announced that Lynn Bari has been given a new contract and her standing lifted to star status. At present Miss Bari is working in "China Girl," which Henry Hathaway is directing. ►Richard Denning, who played opposite Dorothy Lamour in "Beyond the Blue Horizon," has been cast by Paramount for a role in "Calgary Stampede," the studio's next big musical starring Dick Powell, Mary Martin and Victor Moore. The blonde newcomer to stardom is at present on loanout to Republic, playing opposite Ellen Drew in "Ice-Capades." ^Producer-Director Leo McCarey raided Hollywood's pet shops to round up 45 parrots for an aviary scene in "Once Upon a Honeymoon," the RKO film starring Cary Grant and Ginger Rogers. ►Constance Bennett has been signed by Universal to star in "Sin Town," which George Waggner is producing and Ray Enright directing. Brod Crawford, Andy Devine, Leo Carrillo and Anne Gwynne have been cast to support. ^Producer Mark Hellinger zvill make a picture based on "One More Tomorrow," a play property purchased by Warner Bros, for Olivia de Havilland. Dennis Morgan is expected to handle the male starring role under Curtis Bernhardt's direction. ►Michael Gordon, currently directing "Underground Agent" for Columbia, has been signed by that studio to do "Lone Wolf Goes to a Party," starring Warren William. The leading woman is still unnamed. ySam Marx will be the producer of a picture based on the book, "Feast of Reason," by Dorothy Walivorth. Rights have just been bought by MGM. ►Republic has signed Sol Meyer to a contract and expects the lyricist to continue to grind out the material in so much demand for the run of musicals. ^Gloria Faye has been engaged for an important role in "Homicide Squad," now in production at Monogram, with Edith Fellows, Robert Lowery and John Miljan in leading parts. Miss Faye will sing two songs written for the picture by Eddie Kay and Eddie Cherkose. ►Franchot Tone, recently signed to a contract by Paramount, may start by playing the romantic lead in "Bill of Goods," a story being written by the producer and director of the picture jointly, Charles Brackett and Billy Wilder. yjohnny Mack Brown is sporting two silverplated revolvers in Universal's "Tenting Tonight on the Old Camp Ground" which co-stars Brown and Tex Ritter. The silver took the place of nickel, now scarce because of war priorities. ►Walter Huston has been signed for a prominent role in Warner's forthcoming "The Edge of Darkness," with Errol Flynn and Ann Sheridan in the starring roles. The picture, laid in wartorn Norway, will be directed by Lewis Milestone under the producing eyes of Henry Blanke. ^Columbia has cast Ann Miller for the feminine lead in "What's Buzzin Cousin," the picture that will feature Phil Harris and Rochester {Eddie Anderson) . No producer or director have as yet been selected. ►Mark Sandrich, Paramount's producer-director, has received the assignment of "Hands of Mercy," the story of the small band of heroic American Army nurses of Bataan. Sandrich has been interviewing nurses with the permission and cooperation of the U. S. Army, the Red Cross and the Film Coordination group, and will produce the saga on the same scale as "Wake Island" and "Dr. Wassell." yjoseph Pasternak's MGM production, "Presenting Lily Mars," started rolling this week under the direction of Norman Taurog. The picture stars Judy Garland, with a large cast that includes Fay Bainter, Richard Carlson, Spring Byington, Ray MacDonald, Connie Gilchrist and Bob Crosby and his orchestra. ►Scattergood Survives a Murder," fifth in the popular series produced by Jerrold T. Brandt for RKO Radio, and starring Guy Kibbee, is based on a group of eleven Clarence Budington Kelland stories called "The Closed Room." ^Republic has assigned four writers to do the scripting job for its twelve-episode serial, "G-Men vs. the Black Dragon" an original spy yarn dreamed up by William Saal. The writers are Ronald Davidson, Joseph Poland, James McDonald and William Lively. ►William LeBaron has announced that Sonja Henie's next picture for 20th-Fox, which ''^e will produce, will be in Technicolor. "Quota Girl" will be directed by H. Bruce Humberstone, who directed her last two pictures. Monogram in Package Deal Closing its first package deal. Monogram has purchased the radio program of the "Adventures of Cosmo Jones" for two pictures and the option for more. The serial had been heard regularly on the Columbia Broadcasting System for the past three years. The deal includes Frank Graham, who created the radio role ; Walter Gering, the writer, and James Tailing, who has done the Jones Family series at 20th-Fox. It was negotiated with Harry Wurtzel. Lindsley Parsons will produce. New Assignment for Walsh Raoul Walsh, who has just completed "Gentleman Jim," has been assigned by Warner Bros, to start preparation immediately on "Background to Danger," the Eric Ambler novel. George Raft, Peter Lorre and Sydney Greenstreet have been set for the picture. Gregor Rabinovitch (left), noted European producer, joins the ranks of United Artists producers. He is shown here closing the deal with Arthur W. Kelly (right), UA vice-president and chairman of the finance committee, and George Bagnall (center), vice-president and head of the product committee. Rabinovitch's first picture will be "Russian Girl." Dear Mr. Exhibitor's Wife: Today we're off to visit Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy, who are working in a picture called "Keeper of the Flame." After the success of their first "teaming" venture, MGM decided to team them up again and here's a chance to see them work. Once there, we've got to get to the set by bus, for the stage they're shooting on is quite a distance away. This is the bus the people on the lot use to get around. It runs at regular intervals and is an absolute necessity for the employes. We arrive too early for the next "shooting," so sit down to wait. In the meantime, Bill Lyon, our escort, outlines the story and explains the scene they're about to do. Just then Miss Hepburn comes out of her dressing room and walks over to talk to someone. She's in her "relaxing clothes" : white silk pajamas and a white kerchief round her head. We note this while still listening. The main character in the picture is never seen, although MGM hired an actor for the role. His part in the picture is just to have his portrait painted to be hung over the fireplace, and his voice recorded so Miss Hepburn can play these recordings. A snoop around reveals to us the living room, bedroom and dressing room in this man's house. In the bedroom we see Tracy, who is ready for the next scene, relaxing in a big comfortable chair. This bedroom is one of those big elaborate affairs, with a bed that's covered in rust-colored velvet and a canopy to match. A whistle indicates everything is ready, so we go back to watch the proceedings. This takes place in the dressing room, where Tracy, a newspaperman, follows Miss Hepburn in his attempts to interview her about her "national" hero, dead husband. Miss Hepburn is now dressed in a black silk skirt with a black fingertip length alpaca jacket. Her hair is worn long, just as it is in most of her pictures. Director George Cukor makes one or two corrections before he okays the take, for there seems to be a little difficulty about doors and things getting in the way of the players. A glance at our watch tells us it's time to go. We have a hunch, though, from the little we've seen, that we can look forward to another swell picture. So long now . . . till next week. Ann Lewis