Variety (Sep 1933)

66 VARIETY MUSIC Tuesday, September 5, Fib Tides Tacked on Unattached Songs May Go to Legal Showdown Robblns Muslo • has served legal notice on E. B. Marks Music -Co, over 'Dinner at Eight' by Abner Silver and Walter Kent. Robblns' publication of the same name is tied in with Metro's film of that title anA is authored by Dorothy Fields and Jimmy McHugh, present- ly, employed' on- the Metro lot. In view of Metro-Robbins' aflfHiations and Metro's purchase of the Ferber- Kaufnian play' for' fllmization, the c6niiJietitive song is deemed a copy- right infringiement; -Silver has' been making a practicev of writing up play and fllm titles as songi9. His 'JF^rewell to Atms' was something , of a-sUocess, although in no'wise affiliated with Paramount-s picture but capitalizing on the e:;:- ploitation which the film company gSLve that title plus,' of. course, the basic element that the song had merit for popular appeal. -Originally 'Dinner at Eight' was placed by Silver with DeSylva but Marks later • took • it over. Marks also published 'I Loved You Wednes- day/ written by Silver, Kent arid Milton Drake, and likewise 'in- spired' as to title from the play and film label although not actually tied in with either. Paramount became so annoyed at this practice it has Instructed its writers, to write a prop song around almost every one of its titles and copyright' and register Tt as a means to circumvent this practice. If Is" said 'that .Harms' 'I Cover the Waterfront' started as a gag * through Henry Splt^er of the niusic firni'fii'iigges'ting it, but'that it be- came a pre'tty good song despite, the bttrlesque idea.: back of it. Berfin's Film Hookup? ;RK;p Pictures* Bl% control of Iryirigf Berlin, Inc., or a deal along those" lines, Is'reported in the "wind of' about to be consummated. If gping. 'through,' It will parallel the Me'tro-'Goldwyn-itayer 51% owner- Bfilp' o'f 'Bobbins Music Corp. ' Ber][iri's'and RKO. Already have a fifih^music hookup. 'D'yer the weekend in New Tork, no. .one was available for informa- tion on the rumor. ^•j; ' Ltfmbardo Back at Dells T''' Chicago, Sept. 4. "Guy -Lombardo comes into the Dells on Wednesday (6), replacing Ted . Lewis, who left today (Mon- day) for a tour of theatre dates, starting- in the midwest. -No; closing date for the Lombar- do engagement at the suburban club, the understanding being that liOmbardo will stay until the end of the season, unless business falls oti. Osborne Charged With Taking Wrong Credit Alleging that Will Osborne has been laying claim publicly, via broadcasts, etc., to the authorship of. 'S'posln',' Paul Denniker, song- writer and himself also an orches- ira leader, has started ' a $60,000 damage suit againist Osborne. In view of the widely publicized Vallee-Osborne feud, the song in question is the more curious in that it was first introduced by Rudy Vallee and has been one of Vallee's theme songs. Denniker composed it and Joe Davis" published. Osborne allegedly had nothifig to do with it, although he is charged .with repre- senting'himself at its author. Jacob Li. Steisel, attorney for Denniker,: also-wants an injunction against Osborne. Latter at One time played the drums in Denniker's band. Denniker now has the orches- tra at Gus Van's Harbor Inn, N. Y. 6 Best Song Sellers Six best sheets music sellers for the week ending Sept. 1, as reported by syndicate counters and distributofs In the east, were as follows: 'Lazy Bones' (Southern). 'Valley of the Moon' (Morris). 'Sweetheart, Darling' (Rob- bins). 'Shadow Waltz' (Remiek). 'Learn,to Croon' (Famous). 'Hold Your Man' (Robbins). icago Mgrs. Circulate Chicago; Sept. 4. Music publishers are switching their local representatives, doing their annual pfilce-cleanlng in preparation for the new show sea- son. ' Harry Reinhold ' takes charge of the local Ager, Yellen & Born- Stein office, .replacing Sid Lorraine, w:ho is heading for the,west coadt. Harold Lee is back to head the Remick-Witmark ofllce ' here In- stead of Bob Mellln, with Mellin moving over to take conxmand of the T. B. Harms Co. catalog. SYNC ROYALTY OFF, BUT UPS EI^EWHERE Inside Stuff—Mnsk Up to Sept 1 mi|sic> royalties from picture synchronizing sources has taken a 60% drop as compared to. the same elg'ht mionths'', period in 1932. Whereas last year the Publishers' Protective Associatioh collected $310,000 from the produc- ers,, the pub' organization' now fig- ures it will, have done well if its income for. 1933 .fcom this Industry Will reach $160,000. Part of the loss is expected to be made up on royalties'garnered froni the broadcasting business. MPPA's income from !recorded programs has been increasing this - year from month to month. Last year it took in around $66,000 and for 1933 it es- timates tKe gross will go over $100,000. The 'SPA Bulletin Quarterly', new house organ of the Songwriters' Protective Ass'n manifests a militancy and progresbiveness in its con- tents, and by the very effort of publication, which neither the MPPa and ASCAP so far has established,. Under the joint editorship of Jav Gorney and Benee Russell, both popular songwriters, the 'SPA Bulletin* Impresses truly as a mouthpiece for the pop Tin Pan AUoyite. Apart from the very evident desire to establish, impress-and perpet- uate the cordiale entente allegedly existing between publisher and song- writer, and between the songwriters and the MPPA and ASCAP which somehow or other, particularly the Society, are still deemed publisher- controlled organizations, the boys make no bpnes about their grievances. There is a constant plea apparent on almost every other page for aii even break in the economic struggle between writer and pub and between both factions united as, against the. radio and other allegedly scavenger interests. Russell Is most practically ii^surgent in an open letter to the presi- . dent of the ASCAP, Gene Buck, suggesting that the pop .songwriter with a back catalog but'not-enough maturity be not handicapped by the ven- erable composers, also with back catalogs; but little contemporaneously or recently creative.. This has always been a sore point among the i Society's writer-members, the classifications. Russell suggests that if needs be a special class 'for 'immortals' such as Victor Herbert's estate be created—and, he opines, there are few who can take their places with ■. him—but there are others seemingly who are enjoying fixed .classification Incomes presumably not commensurate with the present-day vogue. Buck., seemingly liad chandploned the production writer of the past. Russell argues for the pop sbngsmith 'of today who has to wait for years ; before attaining a decent classification. It's in. line, admittedly, with a.' Society rule about a writer serving an apprenticeship, but presumably - that period Is too long for the successful newcomer while the AK's rest on their laucels anid collect. - The first issue contains the usual literary builder-uppering from Buck, Paiiie and other music pub officials. ' MERRY OLD SOULS That's RICHARD COLE and HIS ORCHESTRA Broadcastlns from the Palmer House Id Chicago tIb WGN and proving' a real treat to World's Fair patrbns. Naturally, the; .never mlsa fettturlng: . "HOLD YOUR MAN" "DON'T BLAME ME" "MARCHING ALONG • ■ TOGETHER". "DINNER.AT EIGHT" "I'LL BE FAITHFUL" "YOU'VE GOT EVERYTHING" "LET'B MAKE UP" Most Played on the Air Last Week To familiarize the rest of the country with the tunes most sung and played on the air around New York, the .following is the com- pilation for last week. This tabulation will continue regularly. In answer to inquiries, these plugs are figured on a Saturday- through-Friday week', regularly^ This week, owing to the long weeTe- end holiday, the figures cover only six days, Saturday-Thursday last. Tabulation in turn is broken down into two divisions: Num- ber of plugs oh the major networks (WEAF and WJZ of the NBO chain, and WAJSC, key station of, CBS), along with the total of plugs on New York's two most important independent stations — WOB and WMCA. WEAF WJZ WOR Title WABC WMCA Total 'Don't Blame Me' . 23" 16 39 'Swingy Little Thingy' .." 22 11 33 •Shadows on the Swanee' 19 14 33 'Lazy Bones' 19 13 32 'Marching Along■ Together' 22 10 32 'It Isn't Fair' 21 19 30 •Moonlight Down in Lovers' Lane'... 13 13 26 •Under a Blanket of Blue' 14 12 26 'Bless Your Heart' 17 8 25 •The Night We Met' 16 6 22 •Beloved' 17 5 22 •Trouble In Paradise' 14 7 21 •Blue Prelude' 11 9 20 'Hold Your Man' 13 7 20 ItOBBINS MilS'lC CORPORATION 199'SEVENTH Avenue • « • NEW YORK • • • nil RAT WEST And HIS ORCHESTRA CAFE DE PAREE Los Angeles CBS Nighth Mills Music Strictly Exclusive Foreign Experience Teaches Irving Mills— No Copyright Releases Elxcept by Creators Exclusive Publications, Inc<, is a new publishing compisiny formed by Irving Mills to literally live up to the title—engaged in restricting numbers. The firm is merely for the purpose of complying with the copyright technicalities but other- wise the numbers will not be li- censed for performance, broadcast, or any other purpose, save by the artists and composers creating the numbers. JAY WHIDDEN And His INTERNATIONALLY FAMOUS ORCHESTRA Featuring a great iarray of entertainers, Including LOTCE WHIT- MAN, BILL SECKLER iand others SUMMER SEASON MIRAMAR HOTEL, SANTA MONICA Broadcasi'mg Nightl}f—KFWB Back of this move is, an experi- ence which Mills had' with Duke Ellington whom he recently toured in Europe. Because Ellington's own compositions were licensed via the American Society, the French So ciety stepped In and demanded pro hibitlve fees from Ellington for the privilege of performing his own compositions. If he didn't comply he ^ouldn't have performed. This cost him several hundreds of dollars In Fench music fees needlessly and since Ellington, it is planned, will tour Europe once a year, Mills wants to circumvent any such fur ther 'compllcatibna. Another annoyance Is the ar rangements of Ellington, Calloway, et al., which the bands abroad swipe Off the records and then play. They thought they were flattering Mills and Ellington when they vamped into a pseudo-Ellington arrange- ment or composition. Apart from murdering It, neither deems it any- thing but liarmful competition. The songwriter again comes into his own with the fllm musical ihlng revived once more. In the songwriters' gold rush of 1929 the tunesmiths ' had their innings, but few survived. Notable exceptions are Rodgers and Hart who wound up collecting $104,000 a year between 'em—$1,00Q a week each—for their screen pro- duction music for Chevalier, Jolson, et al. The result was that Hodgers" and Hart have car^d little about, stage production, their original fleld, or even pop songwriting, going so far as to abandon their Rodart. Music Pub Co. subsidiary (Harms) and pernilttlng Par or anybody to place thfelr " songs 'where the fllm company willed. Now, with the screen musical vogue renewed, the capabilities of tho songwriters are figuring Importantly in effecting coalitions between th» publishers and the studibs. Bobby drawford did quite, -v^ell for himself by selling Gordon and Revel. Dubln and Warren of Witmarks (Warner, Bros.) have made, history with their •42d Street', and 'Gold Digger^s' songs. Gils Kahn and Walter Donaldson, Jimmy McHugh and Dorothy, Fields, a possibility for a reunion of -DeSylva, Brown .and Henderson;, (under the aegis of Craw.ford) and similar instances are renewing \h» prestige of the relative music publishers with whom the writers are concerned. Away from Tin Pan Alley, the names that. are magic In Hollywood ; are only those of the'songwriters whose.names adorn the title pages... The music publisher back of the scenes, unlike" around Broadway, is a , relative nonentity and the pub knows that when seeking to effect con- tracts for his firm. An Idea of, 10 representative orchestra leaders such as Whiteman» Waring, Olsen, Bernle, Denny, et al„ getting together having their own music publishing subsidiary has been given up as cold by Julian .T. Abeles, heading the orchestra leaders' interests. This is the frankest offshoot of the cut-in thing yet. It's become no; longer a secret seemingly about the bandmen's cut-ins on tunes. Tho bandmen, when anything like that appears in Varihtt, testily take tho position of defending their attitude on the primary ground of being • vitally instrumental In the making of these hits for the music pub- lishers. The pubs seemingly recognize and have recognized for no little, time that this is a vital contribution from the jazzlsts and a royalty kickback is the usual form of compensation. That this is in direct. violation of the tenets of the MPPA and the ASCAP seems to be dis- regarded. Abeles, meantime, on behalf of the bandman Is worklijg on a code Idea for the • orchestra leaders. This will augment the provisions of tho American Federation of Musicians which, while stipulating minimum wage scales and ethical b.usiness practices, do not embrace the scopo under which the average radio maestro operates" today. Each leader with a commercial these days is in a business. He has an office, staff, publicist, bdsiness manager or personal rep, and flnds that despite all this fancy overhead there are too many commission obligations to sundry interests. It has run tip to 40% with the Music Corp. of America collecting as • much as 20% for 'managerial' services, on top of the booking fees to . the broadcasting studios, the agents for theatre dates, etc. Four simultaneous decisions adverse to George Olsen In his $10,000 damage suit against the Goldman Sachs Trading Corp., Its individual officers and. Price Waterhouse Co., accountants,^ are minimized by J. T. Abeles, Olsen's lawyer, who avers that both sides agreed the matter would' go to' appeal in the highest courts in view of the unusualness of the action. Abeles cbnsented to hold off examination of the officers following Goldniah Sachs' motion to dismiss the complaint which Justice Frankenthaler in the New York supreme court granted last week. Olsen's complaint is predicated On an alleged faulty accounting by Prlce-Waterhouse of GS, alleging false representation and concealment. The'supreme court so. far doesn't hold with the orchestra leader's claim». Olsen's attorney technically analyzes the GS financial statements and ' sets forth that while GS took a loss in 1930, the Price-Waterhouse ac- counting dotfsn't disclose whether GS showed a loss or a profit in 1931 and 1932. Eddie Cantor has. a similar action pending against GS. Plenty of squawks from the band bookers who are surprised at the manner In which one band booking corporation is alleged to have wised up the hotel managers into demanding cut-Ins and kickbacks from the • bands it books. That seems to be the answer, they aver, while this music corporation has been able to build up Its band booking biz. Responsible hotel execu- tives, not just underlings, are asking that the bands they book give,; them a percentage cut on present and future radio commercial work,' on the theory that the present radio wire into the hotel is a worth-while exploitation adjunct for the band. Some bands concede this by modi- fying their salary demands which, allegedly, despite the NRA 'n* every- thing, are getting lower, but for the hotels to also insist upon a cut-in on the commercial radio contracts is a new wrinkle. Decidedly reticent about why he leaves Feist's after 20 years, the Alley can understand- -Rocco "Vocco's reasons for making the change. There were drastic cuts, as much as 60%. The idea of "Vocco being un- able to piclc a song all by himself, but having to submit it to a board, in- cluding some of the downtown bunch is another. ■Being a stockholder in. Feist's is something else again. It formerly (Continued on page 83)