Variety (Jul 1937)

V«dBe6d*y. JuJr 28,1937 MUSIC VAMIHTY 47 kst Week s IS Best Sellers it Looks hike Rain » Moj-rw &llboat in the Moonlight Crawford Merry-Go-Round Broke Down Harm« ♦sweet Leilani Select you and Me That Used to Be Berhn ♦Where or When .Chappell ♦IKnow Now ...Remick ♦Blue Hawaii : Famous tStrangers in the Dark Crawford ica^eMy Baby Says It's So Remick Caravan, • • • • • Exclusive Miller'* Daughter Jtorianne Shapiro ♦I Hum a. Waltz .Miller Gone With,the Wind Berlin •Was it Bain? - • • • • - • • Santly-Joy, * Itf^i^ates-filmusical sfyng. vindicates stage production song. The oiherM: are pope. iUHBLE ON SALARY ASMC MEN'S I^^ ■ » ■ i ^se Gamble, long active in the mtifllc busineBS, has stepped out of Donaldson, Doiiglas &; Gumble, Inc., ind becopaes the salaried president pi Professional Music Men, Jnc. This js the three-year-ojd organization of the song-plufigers (or 'music contact* men, as they are more ritzily known these days),- which in this period, has built up . a treasury reserve of $18iO00. '' The PMM ' has done con- .siderable intra-oVganlzation, charity work, none of it publicized, and it's ior this purpose that Gumble will tjcclusively devote himself on a sal- uled basis' to the administration of .Ihingis.' - Reported that Gumble will receive iP,500 in his new post. Meantime the DDG firm will be /(datinued by Walter Douglas and ijoe Santly, the professional manager. Douglas thus' remains the sole sur- ■Vivor of the original combination as Walter Donaldson long ago stepped Dut of the firm' to devote himself to Hollywood songwriting.. SHERMAN- CLAY NAME NOTIN MCDEAL Tli« "BagiUh Swing Kovelty Sensatfon 'Cuban Pete' Featured 6n Every Important Vtogtam Released Soon! The All-Hit Miwtcal Soore et 'IIFE BEGINS IN COLLEGE" ♦ 20th Centnry-Fox Picture ^mrtlag the. Bite Brothers HQIiYWOOD SONG S «CA BUIlBlNC-RADIOCnV-NCWYOBKNY. PHItKORNHEUfEll. Cen.Mgr. INC. DUKE'S ^ 'Veo) Smash Hits f<i, KM m orrarjtd 1/ 'OC HAYMES ^ . RECORDED 0 p MASTER AN ( <:Cr_L VARIETY RECO • • RECORDED OM 7' *5>.; MASTER AND VARIETY RECORDS ■-P> ^- '^--7-^^.. ttLLSIVE PUBLICATIONS, Int. AObbins-Metro-FeiBt paid $25,000 for Miller Music, Inc., a couple of months ago, and $75,000 last week for Sherman, Clay of San Francisco, In the trade, the buy-out of any two catalogs at that joint price is deemed a good buy. . Jack Robbins. has been engaging in a systematic expansion program to augn^ent his and Metro's music hold- ings. Thus from Robbins-Metro came the |400,000 buy of Leo Peiijt, Inc., with one of the most valuable cata- logs in the business; then the Olman Music Corp. (which will be expanded in time); next the takepver of.Miller Music, Inc. from Charles Miller and Will Ropkwell (plus a third silent partner) for $25,000. Sherman'Clay's catalog will be merged into the Mil- ler catalog, for the obvious purpose of upping Miller's ASGAP rating and income. Under the deal which Attorney Julian T. Abeles, for Metro-Robbihs' music deals, consummated in San Francisco over the weekend; the S-C name cannot be used by the new owners. That differs from all the .other deals. Sherman-Clay is an old Frisco music house, engaging in piano and musical instrument busi- ness. This deal merely means aban- donment by S-C of its music pub ac- tivities. Among the valuable copyrights which Miller Music thus inherits are 'Whispering,' 'Do You Ever Think of Me?', 'Sleep,' 'Charmaioe,' 'Diane,' 'Wedding of the Painted Doll,' 'Doll Dance,' 'Rose Rooiii,' and others. All of these are already re- vived favorites under the recent vogue of the swing treatment and Robbins will reissue them with new orchestrations. Miller Music may abandon its present offices, and take over Sher- man-Clay's Radio City suite, as part of the merger. WITMARK SETTLES ALVA BARKE SUIT ASCAP's Qtrly. Acqolade For Gordofl and Revel Hollywood, July VJ, Mack Gordon and Harry Revel have been awarded the quarterly prize offered by the American So- ciety of Composers, Authors and Publishers for standout ditties. Champ tunes are 'Never in a Mil- lion Years,' There's a Lull in My Life' and 'It's Swell of You.' Settlement was made last week of the .$500,000 suit which Alva Barke had brought against M. Witniark & Son on the publication of 'Pop Goes Your Heart.' Barke claimed that the latter tune had been lifted from his 'F. D'fl the Man.' Barke filed his action originally in the N. Y. Supreme Court, but on the opposition counsel's mo- tion of lack' of jurisdiction it was tossed out. Barke then filed his in- fringement charge with the federal court. A tWHt mutlcnl score from MCM's proau«tiun fe«.turloic tlie MABX BKOS. "A DAY AT THE RACES" The Bwell score, by Gu8 Kahn. Kiiper mid Jiirmann rullowti: TOMORROW IS ANOTHER DAY AMESSAGE FROM THE MAN IN THE MOON ALL GOD'S CHILLUN GOT RHYTHM DLUE VENETIAN WATERS ROBBING MUSIC CORPORATION • 799 7th Ave., New York JOE MORRIS MUSIC CO. SAYS 'BALI' UNOKAYED Joe Morris Music Co. has become embroiled with Metro-Goldwyn.- Mayer and Harry Fox, gen, mgr. of the Music Publishers' Protective: As- sociation, over what it claims to be an unauthorized use,of,.the tune 'On the Beach at Bali Bali,'' in the Marx Bros, picture, 'A Day at th6 Races.' Morris has returned a check for $180 which Fox relayed ia connection with the^ sync ' rights, and asserts that it will bring stiii for $20,000 against the film com^ pany. Fox states that Morris confirmed the right to use and the fee,^ $2DP, while Archie Fletcher, gen. .mgr. of the Morris firm, rejoins that he was in ' Florida on the date, Dec, 29, 1936, which Fox cites as having re^ ceived the confirmation. Fletcher wrote Metro June 27 declaring' that' 'Bali's' inclusion had never been ap- proved . and demanding that the scenes in which it is used be taken out of the film. Fox holds that re- gardless of Fletcher's resort to technicalities the deal stands sii)ce he (Fox) has always had'a signa- tured order of trusteeship from the Morris firm. Morris had similar dilHculties with Paramount on the use of 'Mem- phis Blues' in 'Belle of the 90's,' with the result that it collected $1,250 for the world rights. Lopez's Permission To Play Own Song Whether Maestro Vincent Lopez is privileged to make use of a song he co-authored in any way he de- sires is a question raised in a suit filed Saturday i'?4) in Federal Court, New York. Robbins Must«» Corp. is seeking an injunction ana' iamages against Warner Bros. Pictt^es and Vita- phone Corp., alleging ^at Lopez did 'Stairways' in a WB short without first getting Bobbins' consent. Plaintiff admits the maestro with Adolph Deutsdh composed the song in 1933 but sold they: rights to the music corp. When Lopez contracted to do a short for Vitaphone he chose his own selections. . Among them was 'Stairways' which, having had a hand in composing, he as- sumed he had the right to do. Jack Milk Sails Aug. 14 Jack Mills will .«;ail for Europe Aug. 14. He has had several offers from abroad for territorial represen tation of his catalog and intends to make firsthand discussion of these propositions the major purpose of his trip. While on the other side he will also get together with Jimmy Camp bell, head of Ci.nephonic Music, with which Mills has an exclusive alli- ance on this side. "This affiliation gives Mills complete call on the scores of all Gaumont-British filmu- slcals. Dismissal for Movietone On Plagiarism Suit Movietone Music Corp. and 20th- Century-Fox Pictures won dismissal in Federal Court, N. Y., la.st we^k as defendants in the $1,000,000 song lifting suit instituted by the Foreign and Domestic Music Corp. and So- cieta Anonima Miisicale Bixie. Judge Murray Hulbert held the evidence insufficient to involve Movietone and Twentieth. He iiliowed plaintiffs 20 days to amend the complaint. Same action i.s expected lo be taken as to remaining deCendant.s, Nino Mnrtini, Herb Magid.-son. Con Conrad and the Sam Fox Publishing Co. Claim by Bixie outfit is (hat its song, 'Passa L'Amore' was lifted. in the making of 'Herts lo Romance' Dreyfus aod WB PnhEsliing Cos. Want More Teeth in Anti-Briliery Clauses Before Joining M.P.P.A. Loafing Value Hollywood, July 27. Under existing studio condi- tions where .SPngsmlths write chiefly 'situation* songs, and with little thought to their com- mercial value, since the pro- ducers insist first that the tunes fit the libretto of the films, the songwriters don't overwork themselves. Hence the following anent a former team. The lyricist came up ior a new contract and in- ■ sisted on $1,250 a week. , 'If Whoozis (his ex-tunewrit- er) is getting $750 a 'week for doin^ nothing, I'm worth $1,250 for doing nothing.' GEO. GERSPflN estah may TOTAL Letters of administration for the estate of the late George Gershwin have been filed with Surrogate Dele- hanty of New York on behalf of his mother, Mrs. Rose G«rshwin. De- spite other reports, the composer did not leave a will, according to the application and under the stale laws Gershwin's entire estate goes to the mother, his father being deceased. Composer's estate is said to top half a million and may approximate $800,000, mostly in cash and securi- ties. In addition, his mother will re- ceive Gershwin's split in ASCAP fpr the balance of her life, also his in- terest in his two music publishing companies, New World (Harms) and Gershwin (Chappell). Gershwin's art collection which includes the works of several masters is in stor- age« said i& have already been given the mother by the composer. Application for papers from the court were filed by former Deputy Attorney General of N, Y. Abraham Rosenthal, who has been the family counsellor for years and attorney Emanuel Alexandre. It is intended to have the composer's brother, Jra Gershwin, act as ancillary adminis- trator fop that part of the deceased's estate in California. Brother applied for temporary administration papers on the Coast which action wi)l prob- ably be revoked. Claim in California was that Gershwin was a citizen there which would make his estate subject to that state's inheritance taxes. New York attorney however, tontends that the deceased resided there But eight mpMhs and although he had a'bibnk account in lios'Angeles," his'legal residence Yi&t always been in New York, He was not married, Pinkard Copyrights Go To Shapiro Bernstein ' Shapiro, Bernstein &e. Co. has ob- tained the renewal of copyrights on all Maceo Pinkard's songs. These include 'Here Comes the Showboat,' 'Mammy o* Mine' and 'Don't Cry, Little Girl, Don't Cry.' Pinkard's tunes were originally published by this firm, Harold FUmmer publishing 'You Hold My Heart,' musie by Robert Enoch and Domenico Savino, lyrics by J. Keirn Brennan and Irving Israel. Conditions uitder which Max Dreyfus and the Warner Bros, pub- lishinjg exoup have agreed to join the Music Publishers Protective As* sociation was made the major topic ol discussion aV a meeting of the association'^; ^ard of directors last week, Dreyfus will come in if the federal government can be induced to administer . A cod^ of .£air. trade practices iov the industry, while the WB group wants a special member- ship rate coverijrig'ite five firms, Dreyfus, vfho 'controls the "Chap- pell Co,, the Crawford Music Co, and the Mario Music Co,, holds that any iantl-bribejry pledge shojdd not be subject to the supervision of TMPPA designees but to the authority of some Government bureau. It Is his opinion that such covenajrit covld not be" otherwise made to work, and until the MPPA pan Induce the Fed- eral Trade <:!ommisslon to take over the administration ' or eftfprpement of an Industry .Dreyfus prefers to stay out of thfe fdld.' ' ' Edwhi H. (Buddy) Morris,.head of the Warner music group, figures that lie shoi?14^*t be expected to* pay a membership "fee /or every one of the combine'? catalogs, He considers the aggregate amount invi)Jved far too excessive for ttie services he might get from the MPPA.' •' Indications are that the fee an;gle will be worked out to' Morris* s^it- isfaction, while the Dreyfus con- tingency has ^rdmpted tfie MPPA. to get busy with the FTC'js authori- ties. • Major Arms stiU outside the MS*^A fold are. Irving ^rlin,' Inc. and Robbins Music Corp. Tops In tffo Musfo Business CABIN OF DREAMS ComiaOf A New RKOMusical 'Life of the Party' With Tht« Great Stic re By ALLIE WRUBEL und HERB MAGID80N Let's Have Another Roses In December Yankee Doodle Band So You Won't Sing Chitv A Mttle Ditty The Life Of The Party Irving Berlin, ine 799 Seventhi Av^., New York HARRY LINK, G«fi. Prof. Mgr. BROWN and FREED'S Greatest Score By Far the Crowning Achievement of the Series M-6-M'S "BROADWAY MELODY OF 1938" With Thee* "Hits to Come": YOURS AND MINE I'M FEEUN' UKE A MILLION YOUR BROADWAY AND MY BROADWAY GOT A PAIR OF NEW SHOES Robbins Music Corporation • 799 7th Ave., New York