Variety (Jan 1935)

Tuesdayt January 15» 1935 P I C ¥ ES VASIETY 25 a S, After Films'Scalp? (Continued from page I) wishes to put a prominent Demo- crat Into the post ol president of the Motion Picture Producers & Distributors of America, Inc. The national Capital was abuzz with these reports Saturday (12) .following- the , Initial Government (victory at St. Louis In a crusade to coTivlct fllm Industry leaders of conspiracy to evade and vlolate_tho natlon'sS^tl-trustrTaws, " X While N^tif^^^^y • General \C^un](^ mlngs viewed the Indlctnient of iO companies and six first-rank execu- tives as 'all in the day's work,' other well-lnfortned sources said ' that the St. Louis action was mere- ly the first step In an audacious campaign to pester and goad the Industry Into launching a new and far more drastic housecleaning that will affect companies and Individ- uals from top to bottom. This outlook was strengthened by reports that a Federal Grand Jury Investigation In Los Angeles Is the liext move In the clean-up program. This probe, aimed at Fox-West Coast, may result In supplanting of the consent decree under which the F-WC chain has been operating for the past few years. The Ud was on tight In Groyern- ment quarters, but Industry repre- sentatives heard from numerous sources that a whole series of anti- trust actions Is to be expected. Gov- ernment sleuths have been study- ing complaints of unfair competl- 'tlon from more than a dozen cities and the Justice Department la sup- posedly contemplating action in several additional exchange centers. The seriousness of the St. Louis action was emphasized when it was learned that the Justice Department was given orders to go ahead by President Roosevelt. According to persons claiming'to know, there are several motives be- hind the anti-trust crusade. Tfcey explain that the Administration is bent upon showing other industries, like steel, oil, aluminum, etc., that a vigorous enforcement campaign on a broad front will be forthcom- 'ing unless Industry generally be- haves more according to the Gov- ernment's desires and co-operates better with the NRA. These indlv- tfiiinlH see In the fllm drive a move Discounted Repeated reports from Wash- ington of proposed candidates to. supplant Will Hays are heavily discounted within the trade. Implications of the stories that Nick Schenck (Loew) and Harry Warner are heading concerted agitation against Hays is also known to be without foundation. Hays' 10-yfear contract, as head of the MPPDA, holds un- til March, 1936. He is currently on the Coast. has been established authoritative- ly that evidence Is In Justice De- partment hands from a number of Cities. Much of the Information Is said to have been obtained from Allied States Association, which has been fighting doggedly for the past 18 months for 'the right to buy' and for wider composition of the code authority. Abram F. Myers, Allied head, and Russell Hardy, D. J. special assist- ant, worked together-last year in complaining to the Darrow board; Myers' wife and another relative have worked, or at present are em- ployed. In the anti-trust division of the Justice Department. St. Loul* The selection of St. Louis as a cti-rtlng place for the crusade has not been explained, however, Fan- chon & Marco Is known to have ap- pealed for aid from the NRA, but when informed that there Is noth- ing which can be done under the code wiant to the Justice Depart- ment with its squawk. That the St Louis probia is. not a., isolated Incident Is Indicated in the attitude of Senators Borah and Nye, outspoken NRA and fllm critics, toward the whole situation. Both Nye and Borah had been ex- pected to open up with their ora- torical batteries as soon as Con- gress convened, but so far neither has made a peep about the film sit- uation. On the contrary,- both have explained that they are deliberately waiting to see how 'certain things' shape up before making any move, The 'certain things' are believed to divert attention from the disap- pointing results of the steel, oil, aluminum and other codes and to silence critics who have been charg- ing that the Roosevelt administra- tion has permitted big Industries'to independent competition. i Block Booking Again Neither block booking nor the Hays organization Is directly Im- plicated In the St. Louis action, but It Is understood that both are among the ultimate objectives of the Government. It is suggested that the Government desires to force the industry to loosen up In saler practices and to dump Hays overboard by Indirect methods which will embarrass principal companies and Influential Industry ...H'eureff. - - ' The Hays angle Involves renewed reports that the Administration would like to see Joseph P. Ken- nedy, chairman of the Securities Commission; Frank C. Walker, for- mer Democratic national committee treasurer, or Herbert Bayard Swope, old N. T. World editor, in the driver's seat. All have a film background. • In connection with the specula- tion on Hays, however, his friends maintain stubbornly that all Is peace and quiet, both within the fllm family and between Hays and the White House. They cite the fact that the Hays group obtained virtually everything it wanted In the film code and has survived a barrage of criticism during the past two years. Persons close! to the MPPDA prexy Insist that the cordial relations exist with the White House and the Democratic high command. Such a complacent view of the situation is challenged, however, by individuals who point out tha.t the iiecent hiring of John Boettigfer, former Chicago Tribune newshawk, was a move to better the associa- tion's standing down here. Reports of the possible future marriage of - Boottlger and Anna Dall,-the Presi- dent's daughter, are mentioned in. this speculation. Similarly, sources close to the .White House relate tliat Hays re- cently paid a quiet call on the President and was reassured that everything is Jake. Just what the Government's plan Is in connection with additional In- vestigations is still a secret, but It to Be the anti-t rual inveatlBationtf under way and contemplated. The Administration's interest In the crusade was clearly demon- strated Friday night (11) when the Justice Department, following an issued the text of the indictments through its usual channels. Rarely does the department take such a step in a routine Investigation. The only ofilcial comment came from Attorney General Cummlngs, who said that.: fhe charges _were 'Just one of those things that come along In the day's work*. The cab- inet member was evidently trying to minimize the Importance of the probe and to Indicate that' the ac- tion was more or less normal, Rosenblatt Declining to" be "^rawh~liTt<5"tlre situation. Divisional Administrator Sol A, Rosenblatt had no comment for publication beyond saying that no code violation were involved to the best of his knowledge. Possibility that the code may be drastically revised was seen, never- theless, in the past hostility be- tween Rosenblatt and Hardy. When the Darrow investigation was going on Rosy refused to take the wit- ness L'-and because he had not been consulted about the hearings and in turn was sharply criticised by Hardy for refusal to co-operate in writing into the code a clause pro- hibiting block booking. Rosy then offered to turn over any of his rec- ords or to work in any way with either the Darrow board. or the NRA. His offer was not taken up by either outfit. Various quarters within the Gov- ernment desire to outlaw block booking despite that previous court decisions uphold -t^ie practice. They feel that the NRA passed, up a golden opportunity to trade with tlie nduatry when the code was be- ing di-afted and want to make use of every possible means to force the Industry to drop the systoi.i cf Its own accord rathoi" than risk re- verses In the courts, Fear that a law oxpresscly banning the prac- tice would, bo dei;lared unconstitu- tional in tlie long run Is one of the reasons, reports say, a. roundabout -means is being used to achieve this end. Vigorous continuation of the Gov- ernment's film monopoly drive was demanded today br Senator Nye, leading industry opponent in Con- gress. Expressing pleasure at last week's indictments. North Dakotan said the campaign should be pushed and hoped it would bring eventual relief to small exhibitors from major domination. 'I am watching this situation very closely and wondering whether it Is the first step, toward breaking the so-called movie trust and giving the small exhibitor a better chance;' solon said. 'I don't think there will be general freedom from the control of major producers and satisfaction for the Independents until block booking has been abandoned and the exhibitor given a wider, choice In buying pictures.' Promising to pay respects to the film industry In a spieech some time In the near future. Nye said he was still undecided whether to push legislation banning block selling. Action may depend upon Govern- ment attitude and consequences of the St. Louis accusations. Nye voiced hope that although block booking was not directly Involved in the Indlctme!nts, he will Induce dis- rlbs to loosen up and possibly aban- don practice. Reliably reported that the Gov- ernment is aiming at block booking by Indirection, since it Is unable to challenge' legally the system In view of previous court decisions uphold- ing the practice. Nye seemed skep- tical, however, that even a deter- mined anti-trust campaign would luring the desired results but indi- cated he'd like to give the Industry a chance to show its reaction. Mayer Will Again Have the Rebuilt Rialto on B'way The Rialto, N. T.i will be removed as first riin competition for probably six months or longer this coming Nov. 1, when the building goes under the hammer for the construe tlon of a new building which Is also to have a theatre. While it has been agreed between the owners of the proposed new striicture and Ar- thur Mayer that latter will again have the lease on the theatre por tlon, it has not been negotiated for signatures because terms will be -pred i cate d on th e numb e r of. s eat-s: Inside Stuff-Pictures (Continued from page. 6) that net each day hits around $10,000, It Is freely estimated that the profit for the meet will pass the $1,000,000 mark. Everything beyond $800,000 will be velvet. "i^Tc-rlcn Into many rainy days but daily attend- ance stayed above B.OOO^lth Sath|-day mob around 15,000. No Sunday racing, •/ The tinted newsreel of the recent Tournament of Roses parade at Pasadena, rushed to' Grauman's Chinese, L. A>^nly -eight-hours after shooting. Is not the first newsreel clip in color. Pathe challenges Hearst on this distinction, claiming that In 192^ Pathe covered the Mardi Gras (New Orleans) In natural hues and also did something at Miami Beach in color. Importance of the Hearst Tournament of Roses experinient in color, however, was that long strides have been made by laboratories in getting out tinted prints as fast as accomplished for Hearst In this case. Coast sees indications of future friendly • relations between IATSB locals and the unions, now in the basic studio agreement, In the request from local 40 IBEW for electricians from the lATSE for studio Jobs. Men were given temporary IBEW cards without charge. This is the first time since the lATSB strike In the summer of 1933 that IBEW has made such concessions to members of a rival union, not recognized by the producers. Picture's fight for the honor of entertaining titles continues. Lord and Lady Byng were the center of a two-way fight on the Coast between Metro and Paramount. Former wanted to entertain them last Wednes- day, later show them,'David Copperfleld' and get their comments, Para- mount had a similar idea for 'Bengal Lancer.' Meanwhile, Warners which wanted to photograph the titled .pair with Warner stars, stepped in and got the shots without much ado. Anonymous letter writers are again annoying one of t h e major com- panles and suspicion is that the mail Is being inspired from Inside quarters. Anonymous attack, this time, Is against one of the subordinate theatre chieftains In the home ofllce. Fanchon & Marco celebrates second anniversary in the exhibition field on Jan. 27, rounding out two years of operation of the Roxy, New York. On March 2, F&M wind up two years of operation of the Paramount. L. A. Metro owns the fllm i-Ights of Franz Wlerfel's novel, 'Forty Days of Musa Dagh', released by Viking Press, in the U. S. six weeks ago. M-G bought it about a year ago, basing the purchase on reading of the original In German. Estelle Taylor claims report of her heading the first American Federa- tion of Actors straight vaude show Is Just one of those things. For one thing, her stage salary is $1,500 and not $1,000, and another thing, she has not been,approached by the AFA. The story of P. T. Barnum came close to being made by Paramount. For some years Par considered doing this showman's life on the. screen. Par bought the rights to M. L. Werner's biography of Barnum. The big birthday cake Alfred E. Smith cuts oh his^61"St birthday, while newsreel cameras are grinding was bought and paid for by Paramount News. _^ Although the theatre will prob- ably be of about the same size as the present Rialto, the number of seats has not yet been figured. Rent will be figured in line with the ca- Agent Sics Law on rCTC HHIH CfW withjgggjFffr^ $3^JP* Kill JI ImUlJmA^ elated with John Goring In the op- eration of the Criterion, from whlbh he recently planned pulling out so that Goring would have the house entirely on his own. WB TO SHOOT VALLEE PICTURE AT ANNAPOUS Hollywood, .Tan. 14. Bill Guthrie, location manager for WarnerSjJs. en iw to confer with Navy bfincials for a permit to shoot a picture on the Annapolis grounds. Picture will be a Rudy Vallee starrer and patterned after 'Flir- tation Walk.' Due to go some time in the spring. Chesterfield Resumes After Hofiday Layoff Hollywood, Jan. 14. Chesterfield-Invincible shutdown, which has been on since the holi- days, ended tod<ty with production of 'A Shot in the Dark' ordered by George Bacheller, who returned from the < ast yesterday (13). Story, from the College Humor serial, ' A Dartmouth Murder,' was scripted by Charles Belden. Direc- tion is in hands of Charles Lamont, who began casting today (Monday). Ambassador, affiliate of Chester- field, starts production next W.eek on 'Public Opinion,' from screen play by Karen deMayo* ic lio di- rected by Frank Strayer. FADIMAN JOINS GOLDWYN • "William J. Fadlman' re.slf;n.s a.s hoad of the screen material dcpart- 'nient of Leland Hayward, Inc.. .Ian. 21 to become chief of the N'ew York story department for Samuel CJold- wyn. He was formerly story editor for Columbia Pictures before Joining the ITnyw.ird a.gency. *"*^^' •■ Los Angeles, Jan. 14. Grant Withers is being-lawed by Jerry G. Mayer for commissions al- leged to be due the agent for the actor's picture engagements with UnlversaJ, under. a promissory note arrangement. Note pledged weekly installments ■on 5 % on salary below $500 .per week, and 10% for all over that fig- ure, according to the complaint, with .the whole amount, $3,000, Im- mediately payable, in case of weekly default. Additional $300 attorney fee is asked STROMBERG STARTING IITH YEAR AT METRO Hollywood, Jan. 14. Hunt Stromberg, veteran producer on the Metro lot, signed a new con- tract to continue with that studio for another stretch. He Joined Louis B. Mayer, Irving Thalberg and Harry Rapf, original trio at Metro, a few months after the merger In 1924. Stromberg has several produc- tions readying for early shooting, including, 'After the Thin Man,' 'Ah, Wilderness,' 'Wife vs. Secre- tary' and an original for Joan Craw- ford. Prime Trisco' Musical Hollywood, Jan. 14. Flr.st of the four Bernle Hyman productions for Metro, 'San Fran- cisco," a musical,. Is being readied for the cameras. Herman J. and Joe Manklewicz .'iro preparing the script. 16 Wks. for 'Diggers' Hollywood, Jan. 1-1. 'C!olddiK;,'ors of 1935' finished i^nt- urilay night (12) at Warner.s aftf-r 16 week..' production. This is the longest shooting schediile at that studio In several years. FOR TAX CUTS ' . Columbus, Jan. 14. As gesture of appreciation for slashing'amu.sement ta'x as 'ln Ohio, and other official favors, Columbus Variety club Tuesday (8) gave Gov. George White of Ohio a banquet in the Deshler Wallick hotiel. Eighty local and out-of-town members turned out for the spread. . —Chl.ef speaker.., .Qf,...evening ..._was^ Martin G. Smith, Toledo, president of Independent Theater "Owners -of Ohio. Honor guests were Allen Moritz, president Cincinnati Variety club; Nat Holt, Cleveland Variety club; Harry Goldstein, former pres- ident Pittsburgh organization; State Education Director and Chief Cen- sor B. O. Sl.'Aner, and Carleton S. Dargusch, head of Ohio tax com- mission. MM ROACH FEATURE MINUS LAUREL-HARDY Hollywood, Jan. 14. Hal Roach first non-Laurel and Hardy feature, 'Girl of My Dreams,' goes into production Wednesday (16) with Sam Taylor directing. Story is an original by Frank Butler. Complete cast Includes Robert Young, Jean Arthur, Joe Cawthorn, Berton Churchill, Reginald Denny, Ferdinand Gottschalk and Forrester Harvey. Metro will release. Biberman at Columbia Hollywood, Jan. 14. . • Ilcrticrt J. Biberman, .New Yorli Tlu'.'itre CfuiUl director, is at Co- lumbia, with probability he'll direct a picture. Biberman, however, will lie kept as an observer for .several weeks before being given an assignment.