Variety (Jul 1937)

VARIETY LITERATI Wednesday, July 21, 1937 Guild CIO Referendum Appeal from the decision by the Newspaper Guild's national conven- tion in St. Louis ^o affiliate with the CIO has been backed by 16 Guild xmits and the question will be sub- mitted to a referendum. Vote will be taken between Aug. 10 and 15. Befoire that, however, several com- plications in regard to it must be straightened out. First, the original motion initiated by the Columbus, Ohio, Guild myst be reworded in order to submit an appeal and not a question, which has already been decided. Secondly, the International Execu- tive Board must decide whether the business office employees, 2,000 of •whom are already reported admitted as members, may vote on their right to membership. Heywpod Broun, prez, has expressed himself as op- posed to their participating in this vote. Third question facing the Guild's leadership is whether it may con- tihue the expansion program along CIO lines, when its affiliation with that body is, for the time being at least, in abeyance. Vigorous hiember- ship campaign, with ten CIO organi- zers in the field, is about to get under ■way. This Is described by Guild of- ficials as the ^nswer to the secret 'freedom of the press meeting of the publishers in Chicago.' Expansion program is regarded by. Guild execs as vital at this time. In addition to voting on the ques- tion of affiliation with the CIO, the , referendum will sUso coyet policies adopted by the convention concern- ing the Spanish War, the Supreme Court plan, the WPA and political action by the Guild, According to Giiild oSicials, the seconding units tepreseht member- ship of about 1,600, whereas repre- sentatives of 5,300 had notified na- tional headquarters of specific action against the Columbus referendum or had voted down local proposals. . Meanwhile, on external fronts, the Guild is engaged in a number of conflicts. The Seattle imit is fighting attempts to'force the circulation staff of the Star into the Teamsters' Union. Strike for better "conditions at the Decatur (111.) Herald continued last week. Appeals to Labor Boards in At- lanta, Ga., Albany and Troy, N. Y,, are about to be initiated. tain Thomas. Secretary Morgenthau played second. Others included Jack and Westbrook Pegler. Picturemade of the game is reported to have turned out so well it was withheld from newsreels and will .probably be reletiscd as a short after the re- turn game, is played. A third game will be played at Pawling on Aug. 22 and more shots taken. . Broun was okay at bat, but his wife ran the bases. Hip Pocket U To present educational matter In an entertaining way will bo the objedt of PhOto Facts, new monthly pocket size Fawcett mag due out Aug. 1. Frederic Delano will be editor of the 'magazine univer- sity,' with Miary Wagner and. H, K. Smith as. associates. New' Whodunit Mag: Special Detective is the title of a new monthly mag' which will be out Aug. 1, published by Haig- Kostka of Stamford, Conn. New com- Columnist Attacked Mystery still surrounds the attack made early Saturday morning (17) on Charles F. Danver, who conducts Pittsburgh's most widely-read news pany is the successor to the Security paper column, Tittsburghesque, in Publishing Co. Robert E. Haig will the Pittsburgh Post^Gazette. Un- be business manager and WiUiam known assailant waylaid Danver Kostka managing editor. Majg will within a block of his home and left contain both fact and fiction stories, him lying unconscious in the street. Contributors to the first issue in- Radio police car picked up the elude John Hopper, Donald Barr coliunnist and rushed him to hospi- Chidsey Edward S. Sullivan and tal^ where it was feared at first he Jack Heil. I had suffered a fractured skull. X-rays, however, later developed he had a slight brain concussion and severe lacerations. Danver had attended the annual newspiapermen's picnic at West View Park and .came back about 1 a.. m. He took a cab and got off a few blocks from. his home, a praC' Hearst Field: Switches Royal Daniell, Jr., is back in Pitts- burgh again as managing editor of Hearst's Sun-Telegraph, after nine months of m.e. duty on the same publisher's Detroit Times. In the ^^^^^^ ^^^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^^^^^^ ^ same move, Alan Dale who changed ^.^.^ generally follows, since he Lndwig's ISGs For F. D. R. Blog. Emil Ludwig got $.15,000 from Lib erty mag for the first serialization rights on President Roosevelt. Ger man biographer has sailed back and received another $1,000 from the Macfadden. people for expenses bC' fore returning to Europe. Author was propositioned by sev- eral book publishers for the first rights, as result of which Ludwig started to balk a bit with Mac fadden from accounts, hence the extra $1,000 for 'expenses.' posts with DanieU when the latter L^^ ^^^^ ^ j^^^.^ of walking went to Detroit, returns to^his old L,„oss the city's bridges and devotes post. Dale was originally slated to I ^^^^^ columns monthly to early move from Pittsburgh into a Hearst morning scenes. Figured that som,e- spot in New York but scrapping of L ^^.^jy j^^^^^ j^jg ^^^-^ itinerary the American halted that step, was lying in wait. Attacked from be- To Detroit, with Dale, went Wil- L j^^^ his attacker and liam Lampe, for several years pic ture editor of the Sun-^Tele, who takes over a similar post on the Times. couldn't help the "police with a de- sription. LITERATI OBITS. John Thomas Toler, for past 26 years circulation manager of The Atlanta Constitution, died Thursday (15).morning in an Atlanta hospital aftep a brief illness. ' He was oille pf the founders of the international Circulation Managers' Assn, having held every elective office in the or- ganization and serving as its prez in 1932. James A. Coleman, advertising copy writer and -agency executive, died at his home in Philadelphia last Saturday, Prominent in Philly ad- vertising circles until his retirement several years ago. ^ Alfred'J. Jordan, 39, type expert and production manager at various times for two Philadelphia advertis- ing agencies, died in St. Joseph's Hospital, Philadelphia, last Tuesday, following an illness of two weeks^ Jordan first worked for the F. WaUis Armstrong Co. and then the Richard Foley agency. He was in charge of the latter's N. Y. office for three ycjajSi Resigned to enter the direct mail field in Philadelphia and later formed the Advertising Composition Co., typesetters, - Abram Ctfralnik, 54, associate 'edi- tor of the Jewish Day, and a w. k. writer and Zionist leader, died July 16 of a heart ailment in New York after a lengthy illness. Shortly' after the Russian Revolution he was a member of the Kerensky govern- ment's food ministry, Oliver 6. Kuhn, 51, managing editor of the "Washington Star, died on July 18. He was chairman of the executive committee of the Asso- ciated Press Managing Editors' Assn and a director of the National Radio Porum. lie Reliations in a Democracy' at th» session of the Williamstown Insti- tute of Public Relations, from Aug. 29 to Sept, 3. Among those who will participate are Sir Wilmot Lewis Henry R. Luce, Frank Kent, Henry Haskell, Herbert Agar and Wilbur Forrest. Charity Ball-Game Dell lEdltors Shifted Several changes have been made at Dell Publications this month with Philly Guild Spreading: Active drive is being made by the Philadelphia Guild, since the national | West F. Peterson and May Ninomiya, convention broadened the member- both editors of miags out, Peterson, ship base,' to bring employes of all | who arranged as-editor of Foto to departments into the organization. Mass meeting ; was held last night (Tuesday) attended by a large num- ber of guildsmen, each one of whom give a $1,000 reward to the person who found Robert Irwin, is suc- ceeded at Foto by his former as- sistant, John M. Richmond. Peter- was urged to bring an employe of sen also" handled Front Page Detec another department. tive and Iiiside Detective and is suC' Majority of ad staffs at the Phila- ceeded in those posts by Hugh Lane delphia Record and Inquirer have and W. A. Swanburg, already come into the association, May Ninomiya, editor of Screen formerly open only to editorial men. Romances, as succeded by Albert Ad solicitors had a guild of their Delacorte, the publisher's son, and own at these two papers and their Evelyn Van Home, former assistant, org was admitted in totq. At an | They will act as co-editors, exec council meeting laslj Sunday, 35 new members were taken into the local, of whom 21 were business office workers. Among them were reps of all dailies but the Ledger. One application for admittance was temporarily shelved pending a ruling by the Labor Relations Com- mittee, because of a Question of jurisdiction. Guild is moving very Annenbers: Speaks Out Avoiding the usual evasions of 'freedom of the press' and 'unbiased minds,' Moe Annenberg, publisher of the Philadelphia Inquirer, openly told a Guild committee negotiating with him for a contract: 'Guild shop ,„..,,. . 1. I is out. There is no use arguing, carefu ly in taking in new members you'll get Guild shop only when you to avoid confiicts, which have caused \ ^^^^^^ ^^^^^^ ^^^^^ ^ trouble in other cities. APS Elects Board Provisional board of governors has been appointed by the American Press Society. They are John Temple Graves II, columnist oh the Bir mingham Age-Herald; Philip H Love, assistant city editor of the Washington Star; Gault Macgowan, reporter on. the N. Y. Sun; Winifred Mallon, of the N. Y. Times' Wash- ington Bureau and chairman of the Woman's NafJ Pxess Club; Paul Scott Mowrer, editor of the Chicago Daily News; John S. Piper, financial editor of. the San Francisco News, and Dorothy Thompson, columnist on the N. Y. Herald Tribune. Olive Holden pf the N. Y. Times Is organization chairman, and O. S. Donaldson provisional treasurer. Rose F, Eastman, of the N. Y. Times, is handling publicity. ■ The provisional board of governors will select its own chairman and designate one member to malce ar- rangements for election of officers. Membership is open only to editorial employees of daily newspapers and dues are ^10 for those with, four years' experience, $5 for cubs. Esquire-Coronet Stock Information filed with the Securi- ties Exchange Commission in Wash- ington in connection with the Esquire-Coronet stock issue includes unaudited figures for the three months ending June 30 showing a net income of $363,522, as compared with $127,759 for the same quarter last year. Lawrence Stern & Co. will be the principal underwriter. Circulation for Esquire at the be- ginning of this year is reported as 606,610. A teaser ad in the August issue points to 1,000,000 circulation for the Xmas number. Coronet will accept give it to you.' Unit members privately expressed admiration for the publisher's frank- ness, but rejected, 23 to 17, the pro posed contract because it lacked the closed shop clause. Negotiating com mittee was instructed to continue to try to get Guild shop. Unit then voted unanimously to ask its execu- tive council to accept Annenberg's wage and hour offers as a manage ment statement of policy, without signing any contract, beginning in October, and Willi tising beginning in October, and will guarantee 4'00,000 circulation for the six months following. Dougr Lurton's New Mag Douglas Lurton, former managing editor of The Literary Digest, will advertising | start a new pocket size mag of his Literati Ball Teams Number d"f celebs in suburban New Yorlc and lower Connecticut have formed their own soft ball Sunday baseball league. First game was played recently at the Quaker Hill Athletic Field in Pawling, N.Y.. with a return game skedded at Pound Ridge, N. Y., for Aug. 1. Two teams,in the literati league at present are Lowell Thomas' Nine Old Men and George T. Bye's Prehis- toric Sluggers. The Old Men won tbe opening game, 14-6. Slugging along with Bye's team were Gene Tunney, who pitched; Heywood Broun, in right field, and Stanley High at shortstop. Pitchers for Thomas' -Old Men included Bill Donovan, Lanny Ross and Cap- Time and the Post Ativ. At the halfway marx this year. Time mag was for the second year ahead of the Saturday Evening'Post in number of pages of advertising. News-weekly registered 1,774 1/3 pages, against the Post's 1,573 for the first 28 weeks this year. Last year at the same time, the newsmag was one page ahead of the Post. Figures are only for pages, how- ever, as the Post is still ahead in lineage, and volume. Black and white single insertion ad in the Post costs $8,500, nearly three times as much as the price of a similar page in Time, which is $2,475. own next fall. .Among the backers will be Wilfred J. Funk, of Funk and Wagnalls, and former editor of the Digest. First issue will/fcontain 128 pages, with articles by Lowell Thomas, Jim TuUy, Dr. Louis Bisch and others Allan Finn and Jack Campbell, both former Digest men, will contribute to the mag. Campbell will handle drama, music and books. No title for the mag has yet been selected CHATTER Guy Hickok has joined News- week. - John Buchan has finished 'Augus- tus,' his new biography. John Whiting moves in as asso ciate editor of True, Fawcett mag. Charm mag. has moved up its next publication date from Aug. 15 to July 27. (Continued frofn page 5) Add: Quashin? a Rumcr Rumors that Hearst's Atlanta Georgian and Sunday American would be sold were definitely scotched in a message from 'The Chief to Herbert Porter, publisher of the Atlanta properties. Reports had gained ground fol- lowing a 'March of Time' dramatiza- tion and a story in Time which classed the Atlanta papers as money losers. A. & P.'s Giveaway IVJag Stores Publishing Co. is a recently formed firm whioh will publish a giveaway mag to be distributed in A. & P. stores throughout the coun- try. Mag grows out of the demand for the weekly-menus given out by the chain which have at present a circulation of 775,000. Mag will be a large size publication containing one of these menus each month.. It will aim to be a service for women to teach economy of time, money and energy. Don Hanson of the A, & P. is president of the company. Haidee .Yates, formerly with Today and the New York Wonlan, is editor, Title for the mag will be deter- mined in a contest with $1,000 prize award for the winner. Mag will carry ads. OHlcesi are in N. Y. C. Denis Morrison (Variety) sold i football story, 'Say It With Touch downs,' to American Magazine. Irving Newman, vet photographer for the Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph, has resigned to open his own studio, Ernest Hemingway nixed a $50,000 offer to script one picture while in Hollywood. He's heading back to Spain. Pete Ehlers, Hugh Sutherland and Al Roberts, of the Philadelphia Rec ord staff, back from a six-week hegira to Europe. George Seibel, former dramatic critic of the Pittsburgh Sun-Tele- graph, has sold a novel for news- paper serialization. Len Morgan Is editor of new piC' ture magazine. Now and Then, which has editorial offices in New York. Initial issue out last week Havey Boyle, sports editor of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and former state boxing commissioner, running for Pittsburgh City Council on GOP ticket. George Ulman Is serializing his story, 'The White Rajah,' for Cos- mopolitan mag. Story already has been peddled to Warners as an Errol Flynn vehicle. Maxine Allen, former radio com- mentator on KQV, Pittsburgh, has joined the women's staff of the Sun- Telegraph and is doing some book reviewing on the side. Gayeties, annual newspaper men's shebang In Pliiladelphia, netted $470 profit under the chairmanship of Bill Wolfe. Money was turned over to the guild exec council. Damon Runyon is purchasing a summer home in Saratoga Springs, a spot about which he has scripted many tales and in which he has placed many characters. Harold Graves and his wife, the former Alta Judy, back in Washing- ton from their honeymoon. He is associate ed. of Pathfinder. Bride was with the Literary Digest. Dan Mainwaring, Warner p.a,, has peddled 'The Man Who Killed Go- liath,' whodunit, to Cosmo under the monicker of Jeoffrey Homes. Wil- liam Morrow will publish it in book form. Anna Jane Phillips and Harry Kodinsky, both of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette news staff, have sold two more yarns, based on recent Pittsburgh murder cases, to True De- tective Stories. Movie Life, new fan mag, is skeded to bow in August, with Arthur Solo- mon as editor and Morton Barteaux and Al Davis, associates. Ultem Pub- lications, publishers of Modern Mov- ies, is putting it out. Arthur Krock, Washington corre- spondent of the Y. Times, will conduct a daily symposium on 'Pub- ing second by Vince Barhett and 'got up to swing one on Vince's toupee. In the third inning, Jimmy Glea- son, umpiring behind second base, caught a pop fly batted up by Jack Mulhall, retiring the side. Harry Ruby was the pitching star. He had two strikes on Jessel and took pity on him so Jessel pitched the next baU and Rttby socked it .for a triple for which Jessel got credit. There's the Hollywood spirit even in fun. Ritz Bros, challenged Lee Tracy to . a footrace in the fifth inning. Some- Dody . hollered 'Viva Villal' and Tracy jumped over the 12-foot walL Buster Keaton made Barnett cry' when he stole his scooter to get out to left field after a fly ball. Umpire sentenced Barnett to sit on the flag- pole. A foul tip off Benny Baker's bat creased Robert Taylor's pompadour" go the umps gave Baker a two-bag-- ger. ,; Eddie' Cantor used a banjo for a bat and explained that he got his start in the Three-Eye league. The Russian North Pole flyers were there and said afterward they, wouldn't hiave missed seeing a film being made for anything. They' thought the crowd were extras. Leffginir It For S. J. When Sam Briskin came to bat in the seventh, Joe Penner's duck laid, an egg on home plate. Three yesmen ran the bases for him. Spanky McFarland picked a fight with Warren Hymer at second base in the sixth, inning and Hymer called Spanky a big bully and had him ar- rested for disorderly conduct. In the general mer 3e the ball was lost but Pinky Tomlin found it in Joe £. Brown's mouth but not until Joe E. had scored three runs and got out of breath. Game broke up when Lum and Abner went to bat together and started running in opposite directions on the fourth ball pitched. Judge Edward Brand sentenced them to seven years hard labor at the mike. Mt. Sinai Hospital got the gate re- ceipts from folks that ponied up to. $2.50 each for box seats. Carl Wheat (Continued from page 46) much more time before sending a nomination to the Senate, Wheat emerged as a dark horse with strong support of western senators coincidental with reports emanating from sources close to the White House that a Pacific coast man is practically certain to get the job. Latter disclosure doused cold water on other persons figuring most prominently in speculation over the selection, Hampson Gary, F.C.C. gen- eral counsel, and T. A. M. Craven, Commish chief engineer. Several other factors make Wheat a likely winner, despite his nominal Republican affiliation. He is known as an advocate of rigid regulation of all types of communications, has de- livered successfully in his present capacity as director of the F.C.C. inquiry into long-distance telephone rates, and would fill the require- ments for a 'strong figure' to bolster the calibre of F.C.C. personnel. Efforts still are being made to get the job for Gary. Texans in Con- gress insist the berth should go to a man from their state, since Dr. Stewart was a Lone Star native. Conservatives on the Commish have tossed out the idea that Gary should be upped since he was one of the original members and are trying to steer Wheat into the general coun- sel's spot. Latter post does not ap- peal to. the. Californian, whose in- Jimates say he will stick in his pres- ent place in preference to heading the entire legal section. While Wheat's appointment would give Republicans a majority of places, this fact is not regarded as a handicap for him. He has been identified with the progressive wing of the party, reputedly voted for President Roosevelt, and has the backing of Democrats as well as Re- publicans at the Capitol. Pro-New Dealers would continue to dominate the Commish, inasmuch as Commis- sioner George Henry Payne is an enthusiastic advocate of Roosevelt policies and, like Wheat, does not trail with the faction controlling the G,O.P.