Showmen's Trade Review (Jan-Mar 1947)

42 SHOWMEN'S TRADE REVIEW, February 1, 1947 STR West Coast Offices 6777 Hollywood Blvd. Hollywood 28, Colli Telephone Hollywood 2055 STUDIO ROUNDUP Predictions on Color Films Becoming a Reality Hs Nearly Every Studio Has Technicolor or Cinecolor Features Before Cameras; 20th-Fox in Lead With 3 Color is running rampant these days in Hollywood, making good on the lavish predictions that were made some time ago regarding it. Virtually every studio has either a Technicolor or a Cinecolor picture before the cameras, and Republic only recently completed a Roy Rogers film in Trucolor. With technicians still on strike, the color laboratories are nevertheless apparently able to take care of the renewed onslaught on their facilities. Twentieth-Century Fox, alone, has three Technicolor films in work! This is just about half of its present production schedule. Significant, too, is such an outfit as Pine-Thomas, who for the first time are making a picture in Cinecolor. And Monogram has just put "Black Gold" into editing, which represents that studio's first attempt at color (Cinecolor). 'Saigon' Adds Unit A second production unit of Paramount's "Saigon" has 'gone to work, on location. The first unit is at the studio shooting scenes with Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake. Leslie Fenton is directing. Last week Bernard Nedell was signed for an important role in Clarion Productions' "Albuquerque," which Pine and Thomas are making as their first color project. Nedell is portraying a double-crossing, murdering sheriff. The picture is another Paramount film on location, ■being shot 45 miles from Hollywood. Ray Enright is directing. Pine-Thomas are making this their first big-scale production, and will continue to make six program pictures annually for Paramount releases. 'Ivy' Ends at U-l The "Ivy" that Universal-International is producing is evidently not of the clinging type because the Sam Wood Production finished well ahead of schedule. Producer William Cameron Menzies brought it home in time to spare and it's now being edited. This leaves U-I with one film rolling : "Time Out of Mind," to which James Sample, symphony orchestra director, has been added. He will act as technical advisor on concert sequences and coach Robert Hutton in batonwielding. Hutton is really getting a workout, being simultaneously coached by Jan Jacobson for piano-playing sequences. Columbia Stages Active "Broadway Baby," starring Jean Porter and John Shelton, started Jan. 27, with featured roles going to Ruth Donnelly, Doris Colleen, Ed Gargan and Douglas Wood. Arthur Dreifuss, who authored the original story, is also directing ; and Mel De Lay is associate producer for this Sam Katzman Production. Luis Van Rooten and Tom Tully are the latest additions to "Assigned to Treasury," for which Lt. Lee Jones of the Los Angeles police department has been signed as the fourth technical director. Ralph McCutcheon, Hollywood stockman, is searching for two-humped camels for Nile Valley scenes in the film. These animals are rare in the U. S. Three units are being used by Cavalier Productions to bring in "Three Were Thoroughbreds" ahead of schedule. A new first unit for the Technicolor western is shooting at the Columbia Ranch with Marguerite Chapman, Willard Parker and Mike Mazurki. Miss Chapman, who plays the feminine lead opposite Robert Young, had to forego her scheduled part in Warners' "Unsuspected" because of this commitment. A second unit for the film has been at Sedona, Ariz., and the original unit is shooting in the studio with Robert Young, Barton MacLane and Akim Tamiroff. Irving Starr, former MGM and 20th CenturyFox producer, was signed to a producing con-' tract by Columbia. Ex-GI Gets Break at WB When Donald Crisp decided against taking an assigned role in Michael Curtiz' first independent production for Warner Bros, release, a veteran got a break. He is Fred Clark, 32-yearold ex-doughboy, who is under a long-term contract to Curtiz. Clark will play a big part in "The Unsuspected," which is the initial film for the newly formed Curtiz setup. With no films starting, Warners has two less films going ; "Night Unto Night" and "Dark Passage" have been completed. One Technicolor effort is rolling "My Wild Irish Rose." The briefest romantic leading role in cinematic history is claimed for Paul Bradley, in "The Unfaithful," in which he is the sweetheart of Ann Sheridan. Bradley is seen alive on the screen for two minutes — his only other appearance is as a corpse in still photographs introduced in court ! Warners has signed Karl Freund, one of the industry's lensmen since, early silent days, to a long-termer. 'Tycoon' Starts at RICO "Tycoon" started as scheduled, on Jan. 23, at RKO, despite the marital mix-up of one of its stars, Laraine Day, involved with baseball's Leo Durocher. Miss Day managed to make it, along with John Wayne, Judith Anderson, Sir Cedric Hardwicke, Anthony : Quinn and James Gleason. Ticketed as one of the studio's ace deliveries of the season, "Tycoon" is being produced in Technicolor by Stephen Ames and directed by Richard Wallace. Harry Harvey, Jason Robards and Leza Holland returned from Boston on Jan. 23, where (Continued on Page 44) Olivier Plans Elaborate Production of 'Hamlet' Plans for an elaborate screen production of Shakespeare's "Hamlet" have been announced in London by Laurence Olivier. The picture will go before the cameras under the Two-CitiesJ. Arthur Rank banner early in March and will be filmed in black and white. New technique, perfected by Olivier, will be utilized. Part of the filming will take place in Denmark. While no supporting cast members have yet been announced, it is probable that Olivier's wife, Vivien Leigh, will appear in the role of Ophelia. Wrather Buys 'Guilty' Jack Wrather, Texas millionaire whose initial production, "The Guilty," will be released shortly by Monogram, has purchased "Inside Job," by Raoul Whitfield, published in Simon & Schuster's Hardboiled Omnibus, for his next production. Story has a newspaper background, and will reunite from "The Guilty" Star Don Castle, Director John Reinhardt, Scripter Robert Presnell, Sr., and Cameraman Henry Sharp. No releasing deal has been made on the new venture. Ginger Gets 'Answer' Ginger Rogers has purchased "Great Answer," novel by Margaret Runbeck, for Lincoln Productions to be made as her second film at Enterprise. Plans are now being completed by Wolfgang Reinhardt for the star's first Enterprise picture, "Wild Calendar," from the novel by Libby Block. The picture, a romance set in Denver, will go before the cameras in March. Bolton in Selznick Post Appointment of Whitney Bolton to the Selznick publicity department in charge of publicity and press relations has been announced by Paul MacNamara, publicity director of Selznick Studios. Bolton will be assisted by Joan Lane, former publicity director of Woman's Home Companion. 3 Set for February "The Finger Woman," starring Janet Martin, "Song of the Golden West," Trucolor film starring Roy Rogers, and "After Sundown," starring Gene Autry, have been scheduled for February production by Allen Wilson, Republic's vice-president in charge of production. Video Station Starts More than 500 Hollywood celebrities, local and state civic leaders and many visiting executives from the east attended the ceremonies in connection with the start of commercial operation of television station KTLA on Jan. 22,