Variety (Sep 1932)

1 Tuesday, September 6, 1932 PICTURE^ VARIETY OF ALL Stage Idea for Smaller R. C. House, Not Set If 2 Theaires Book Thru RKO It hasn't been settled as yet whether S. L. Rothafel will book "attractions for the International , Music Hall, Radio. City, through the RKO booking office with usual , commission deductions, or direct. ".Under revised plans, Rothafel may , also use., stage talent at the smaller ,'R. C. house* to be known, as the Boxy. All along this has been fig- ured as a straight fllmer. ". .Rothafel and other officials have '.discussed the talent and booking situation on Radio City, but in ad- vance of set-up of the actual show no decisions have been reached on information. Rothafel will engage : all the talent himself for both houses; question being whether con- tracts will be issued through the 3KQ Vaudeville Exchange or not. Holding Back New Roxy The big house is tentatively • set to open Its doors Dec. 26, a Mon- day, and the day which will become a holiday for most people through Christmas falling on a Sunday. ' While the smaller house (the Roxy) • will be ready for operation around ' Nov. 1. Rothafel does not want to open it ahead of the music hall, i" Big house will play two-a-day at . $1.50 top mats and $2 nights, shows <to be scheduled for 2:15 and 8:15 p. m. Their proposed length, in spectacle form, is 2% hours. q Under decision to use stage talent Tor the film theatre, which is to be Cl ,operated as a run house, Rothafel Is planning a regular presentation policy. Not much has been set on the film product question for the new r Roxy. While on the Coast, how- ever, Rothafel is. looking over the product being turned out. LPs Spelling Bee . : Hollywood, Sept. 5. . Deciding to film a story un- der the title 'Cagllastro.'. Uni- versal changed the title be- cause no one. on the lot could, spell it. So it was dubbed 'Imhotep.' Now they are looking for still another title. Not. only has 'Imhotep* been .generally misspelled but no two at the studio pronounce it alike. —i'rom Variety's Bollywood Bul- letin. : ■ MO Delays Directors' Meeting; Franklin Back Los Angeles, Sept. 5. H. B.. Franklin arrives in New . York Monday (5), after an RKO theatre survey throughout the country. Left here Wednesday (28) .for Denver and was to visit Omaha, St. Louis and Chicago on the way east. Martin Beck, Phil Reisman,. Rob- ert F. Sisk and Katherlne Brown left Sunday (4) for New York. HKO directors' meeting, In New York, has been set back from Sept. 7 to 14. r J . Chicago, Sept. 5. Receivers for the Fox, St. Louis, "confabbed with Harold Franklin ■here Sunday (4) on the recently proposed pooling arrangement with RKO and Publix. Outcome not .known. Franklin left for New York ac- companied by Phil Reisman and Herschel Stuart. Stuart came on from New York especially to meet Franklin. Claim Hays Code Saves 4 Million Ad #?/iis C uls After three years of the Hays Production Code it is claimed that a summary of statistics reveals that the code has been responsible for bringing approximately 50 books and plays, previously banned, to the screen; that-.It is saving the In- dustry on an average of around $4,000,000 yearly and that it is largely responsible for reducing by 40% cutting activities of six censor states and Chicago. Negative, print and censor fee costs are figured in the yearly sav lng which pertains directly to the censor states. The figures are based on film features produced by Hays members only, or about 400 of the 700 turned out yearly by the total industry. , Today, according to the figure compilers, not more than 3% of screen material produced under the code is being subjected to censorial scissors. In the six censor states eliminations which totalled 11,011 in *28 dwindled to 7,367 for '30 States are New York, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Virginia. Ohio Is the only state in the group to show an increase. That the official eliminations have diminished instead of increasing, along with the introduction of. dia- log, is credited to the workings of the production formula by Its ad vocates: Radio City's 16-Page Monthly Publication Sixteen page monthly magazlms will be published by Radio City titled 'Rockefeller Center/ Figured, to start with a 300,000 printing or- der and will be printed on good paper with four-color photography for pictures. Samuel P. Levy, publisher of sev- eral fashion magazines, has been awarded the publishing contract for the mag. U's Junior Scribes to Seek Stories in News WB's Saga of S. Klein? S. Klein, the New York cut-rate women's outfitter, is the inspira- tion, from inside, for a Warner pic- ture as Edward G. Robinson's next. It will be called 'The Machine' and present Robinson as a hard-headed department store owner. Klein is also understood readying to back a show which will include a scene in his store. Universal City, Sept. 5. A 'story Idea* department, similar to one at Paramount, has been started by Universal to obtain pic turc material from news stories"ap- pearing in' the dailies. "W illiam Losh, formerly United Press manager at Washington, D C, is in charge of the unit. He will have a staff of junior writers to work up the Ideas. ■ •—' ■. \ Par Gets WB Yarn as Possible Sidney Film Hollywood, Sept. 5. Paramount has bought 'Happiness Ahead' from Warners. This ' story previously was filmed under the title, 'Tomorrow,' with Colleen Moore and Edmund Lowe. Script probably will lead off the B. P. Schulberg film group starring Sylvia Sidney. MAY EVOLVE FROM WB TRADE Compared to Auto Event— Screening of New Films from All Companies for Exhibs at Opening of Sea- son—In One City or a Few Keys? POSSIBLE NEXT YEAR A national exhibit, of the earlier releases of every major producer- distributor as a preliminary to the inception of the selling season may be attempted next summer, prob-: ably early in August. i It is likened to an auto show where the new models of every car manufacturer are shown the public and dealers, but would be held mainly for exhibitors. Warner Bros., who this year held trade showings of their new product in leading keys for the benefit of exhibs, is the prime mover looking toward a national film exhibit plan. Grad L. Sears, western sales man- ager for WB, is the father of the idea, and with the sanction of his company, will propose the national exhibit idea to the distribution men of other companies. In order to make the proposal effective, each of the majors would have to agree that their new pictures prior to the start- ing of the sales season would be screened along with those of com- petitors. Encourages Exhibs The group exhibit of new pictures of the majors could be held in one central city with exhibitors and buyers from all over the country in vited, or if expense permitted, the shows could be held in several keys. This would all have to be worked out following agreement by majors on the plan, with plenty of time for details between now and next August. WB states the special trade show Ings It held for exhibs resulted in an increase In contracts the follow- ing week, but of as great import ance, feels WB, was the decision of some exhibs to immediately reopen their houses. In such cases exhibs felt that if . the product of other companies could also be relied upon, they could take a chance to reopen. 14 Start, 14 on Location As Production Climbs F&M May Break from Fox-WC; Loew s and RKO Both Interested As 5i% Partners; Marco to Rapid Fire Hollywood, Sept. 5. Some kind of a record is claimed for the evolution and sale of 'Marathon Dancers' to Universal.. Harry Sauber visited the Santa Monica dan- cathon on a Friday night, had It. written by Monday evening, and sold the script to Carl Lacmmle, Jr., by Wednesday. Hollywood, Sept. 5, With 14 new films scheduled to stait this week, activity in feature production continues bullish. Large number of companies on location Is an unusual slant on the activity, 14 studio outfits now grabbing ex- teriors in spots from Greenland to Arizona and from New Tork to Catalina Island. Of the location companies, four are. close enough to return to the home lot nightly. No Delays Hollywood, Sept.. 5. AH studios are closed today (Labor Day), with non-toiling com- panies having worked yesterday (Sunday), instead; Units on location will disregard the holiday to speed their return. Testing 'Life* Warners is testing 'Life Begins' as a roadshow possibility at the Castle, Long Beach, L. I., and As'-, bury Park may follow. Lou Goldberg went out to handle the Long Beach opening. Radio City Ad Post for Sisk; Also Present Spot Hollywood, Sept. 5. Advertising and publicity depart- ment of Radio City will be headed by Robert P. Sisk.. This is in addition to his present position as publicity, advertising and exploitation head of RKO the- atres and Radio Pictures. G. P. Putnam's Idea for Res Fifty per cent of Paramount's 1932-'33 features will be based on original- stories. Although essen- tially a book publisher, , George Palmer Putnam, new story chief, is introducing in the industry a policy which bends away from the routine of books and plays. Putnam Is advocating 'shock ap- peal* for every screen story. He believes that the industry has,been in a story rut and that if it has overlooked opportunities for devel- oping original slants and plot fod- der. He is against the screen tak- ing advantage of its technical ca- pabilities to the point of picturing situations which are Illogical or. Im- plausible. He is Inculcating Into his own organization the preach- ment that the public doesn't'want to see In pictures, any more than it wants to read in books, things that could not happen in life. ' '• Claiming that he is not looking through colored glasses, Putnam de blares that the writing end has the greatest opportunities of all depart ments in the industry. He, makes the .flat statement, also, that writ- ers are making proportionately more today in pictures than at any other time.. Any tears from the' picture writer of any merit today are false, In the estimation of Putnam, who figures that company executives are eager to preserve the best the au- thor has to offer. While he will keep Paramount's present writing machine intact, Put- nam indicated that he will reach extensively Into the outside field contacting writers there for fresh ideas and thought. With Loew's having come Into the Fanchon & Marco picture by "bid- ding for an equal partnership In, . F. & M., similar to that which is being sought by RKO, all indications point to F. & M. breaking away en- i tlrely from Fox and its affiliated theatre group, Fox West Coast. The split is imminent and may occur this week. Whether F. & M. affiliates witn. Loew's or RKO looks to be entirely, dependent on decision by F. & >M. Itself. Certain interests in Fox, in attempting to stave 6ft a split, are known to have submitted a formal plan that mlghtr result in a three- way partnership .among Fox, Loew's and Fanchon & Marco. Further, con- fabs are aimed for this week among all parties.- Friction between F. & M. and TTox West Coast has been on for some time, practically Bince Skouras took over that circuit. Marco to Head Book Both the Loew offer and the RKO ' bid. are. similar in most respects, each asking for a 60% partnership with Marco and conditioning that Marco becomes the booking head ot the stage and vaude offices. Franklin returned from his Coast trip yesterday (5). Almost immedi- ately he went Into conference with Mike Marco, who is still east rela- tive to completing the RKO negotia- tions which, In all likelihood, will be presented before the RKO board meeting scheduled for Wednesday (14). , , F. & M. has been a big profit maker for the past three years,, av- eraging around 1500,000 net;, annu- ally. U Getting Tough with Players Who Dock Stills Hollywood, Sept. 5. Universal will fine or eyen Are contract, players who fail to show up for 'still' photograph sittings during their 'between pictures' pe- riods. ' This Is a new ruling made by the legal department which which holds that the offense is a breach of contract. Publicity department has been handicapped by non-cooperative players who come late or do not appear for appointments. First player to be penalized was a' new coritractee who lost a day's pay be- cause he sidestepped a photog date. Ince Directing Boyd Hollywood, Sept. 5. Ralph Ince has been signed by Radio to direct Bill Boyd in "Men of America." Replaces J. Walter Ruben who was to have megged 'Yukon' with Boyd. 'Yukon' developed story trouble and called, for too high a budget. It will be discarded temporarily. FINAL DECISION ON LASKY DUE SEPT. 1(T Final decision on Jesse L. Laaky, along with terms under which he will produce independently for Par- amount, If agreeing to such a deal, will be reached, by Saturday (10). That is the deadline allowed Lasky by Paramount on which to give J his answer. Deal now proposed for Laaky Is the production of six pictures dur- ing the 1932-'33 season at the'Para- mount Coast studio, similar to the arrangement, with B. P. Schulberg. No indication that the six . will, in- clude any particular Par star) as with Schulberg, who Is to do all the Sylvia Sidney productions (three). Production plans Take thalberg, Shearer Fast Hollywood, Sept. 5. . Irving Thalberg leaves for New York early this week to stay the balance of the month. Will confer with Nicholas M. Schenck on pro-, ductlon plans and,get home office, slant oh future pictures. Norma Shearer (Mrs, Thalberg) accompanies. Walker-Par Split Hollywood, Sept. 6. Stuart Walker, who directed three pictures for Paramount and had charge of that studio's hew talent department, leaves the company on completition of 'Evenings for Sale' with Sari Marltza. Walker and Par couldn't get to- gether on terms f6r his option re- newal. Kahane to N. Y, Los Angeles, Sept. B. Ben Kahane, president Radio, leaves for New York Wednesday (7) to attend all five directors* meetings of the RKO-Radlo group, These start on or around Sept 14. Kahane will return immediately; following these conferences.