Variety (May 1939)

24 VARIETY PICTURES Wednewlay, May 10, 1939 lA'Writer Breakdown (Continued from page 5) able consideration of the problems yi9 attempted to solve.' Following a special meeting of the SWG executive board, Brackett for- warded a reply to Sllverberg in which the producers were accused of trying to foster a company union contract on the Guild. Brackett's let- ter follows: 'In reply to your letter of May 3, may I call your attention to the fol- lowing points: 'When informed of the earlier con- ferences between the producers and the bargaining committee, our mem- bership drew up a list of basic points without which our members felt that any contract between them and the producers would be impossible. 'You will recall that the bargain- Jn«! committee told you of these de- mands at the conference of March 26. making clear that they were the membership's minimum demands. 'Among them was an insistence on. a short term contract When you re- fused to give us a contract for fewer than seven years, we hoped Iboth you and the bargaining committee) that a contract providing for periodic arbitrations might be found to satisfy your objections to a short term con- tract and quiet our fear of a long one. Predicted DIUmate Failure Tor about a month we labored the point and you coAvinced us that you had made your maximuin conces- sions. Let me remind you that we, of the bargaining committee, repeat- edly predicted that these minor con. cessions would never meet with the approval of the executive board and the membership. "True to this prediction, when the results of our negotiations were re- ported to the board. It felt that they did not In any way achieve what our members had asked and that the month of intensive conferences bed proven us irreconciliably apart 'In the opinion of the board, there has been no change In the attitude' of the producers toward the Guild. The best you have offered us is a company union contract and the his- tory of our labor relations in the past is such'that we cannot ask our 'thembers to surrender their freedom of action for seven years in return for such a contract.' The contract offered by the pro- ducers called for 80% GuUd shop effective third year, with 70% the first year and 75% the second year. A^eement was to run seven years and contract writers were prohibited from working during lay off period. Writers had demanded Immediate 80% Guild shop, agreement of not more than three and halt years, and right of the'writer to maUrial pro- duced during layoff periods. The producers are expected to op- pose reopening of the NIKB hearing on the grounds that the SWG has twice broken off negotiations. They also will claim that the unfair labor practice complaint was - eliminated when the producers recognized the SWG as the exclusive bargaining representative for all film writers and agreed to cancel their present contract with the Screen Play- wrights, Inc. as sooh as the SWG agreement was inked. In the meantime the Screen Play- Wrights are continuing to arbitrate disputes over screen play credits. The SF has just handed down a de cision awarding sole credit for screen play for Columbia's 'Good Girls Go to Paris Too' to Gladys Lehman and Ken Englund. Protests filed by Isa- bel- Dawn and Boyce- de Gaw were tossed out The arbitration commit- tee held' the latter two had not con- tributed sufficient script to be en- titled to joint screen play credit Protests are now being considered on Warners' The Old 'Maid,' and Paramount's The Star Maker.' The writers involved include Casey Robinson, Virginia Van Upp, Wanda Tuchock, Lewis Meltzer, Daniel Tara- dash, Sarah Y. Mason, Victor Her- man, Frank Butler, Don Hartman, Arthur Caesar. SP arbitration com- mittee awarded Miss Mason, Heer- man, Meltzer and Taradash joint credits; studio originally only cred- ited the latter two. Fay Tllto SUlled lATSE leaders insist that auton- omy fight Is holding up negotiations with produ(!ers that would be cer- tain to result in pay hikes for elec triclans, property men, grips, labor- ers, technicians, and perhaps paint- ers, teamsters, carpenters, etc. They claim that producers will not resume negotiations until muddle In Local 37 °ii ironed out and bargaining repre- sentatives designated by the mem- bers. lATSE. international representa- tives are now in charge of the local under an emergency declared by George E. Browne, lATSE prexy, but are enjoined from even com- municating with the members. Trial of the issues between the lATSE and Local 37 has been set for May 22, but in the meantime strenuous efforts are being made to reach an agreement without having to air the internal strife in court The lATSE claims it Is ready to restore local^ autonomy to union any time the or-' ganization will divest itself of sub- versive groups that have been agi- tating against the leadership. Kibre Twice Sprang From Jail Jeff Kibre, leader of the autonomy group, went to jail last week rather than pay a $50 fine for contempt of court in publishing a throwaway dur-; Ing recent trial. He was immediately sprung on a writ of habeas corpus, but the writ was recalled the next day when Superior Judge Minor Moore stated he had discovered he was without authority to issue such a writ Kibre coaid not be located, but surrendered the next day and was sprung again on a habeas corpus wrltj this time from District Court. The second (6) arrest order was on stjsplclon of criminal syndicalism. These incidents are understood to' have widened the breach between the lA and No. 37. . Local 37 hos also forced the Inter- national to post $40,000 bond to guar- antee $56,000 in funds collected from the membership. Approximately $100,000 in funds belonging to Local 37 is now tied up by court action. lATSE is reported ready to con- cede demand of Local 37 that Harold V. Smith, Coast head of lA, be taken out of the picture. Kibre Would Step Down Kibre in the following wire to John F. Gatelee and Frank Stickling, lA international representatives, offered to resign if autonomy is im- mediately restored to Iiocal 37: 'I have been accused of being the stumbling block in the way of an immediate restoration of autonomy to Local 37. Since the welfare of thousands of studio technicians whose wages are now- reduced to WPA levels is more Important than any individuals, and since immediate ac- tion is demanded to turn the energy of the lA towards collective bargain- ing, I am making the following pro- posals: 'I will hand hi at once my resigna- tion from the lATSE, the acceptaiice of the resignation to be -based upon the results, of a trial of myself by the members of Local 37^ In accord- ance with the constitution and by- laws. The offer Is made on the fol- lowing conditions. 'That autonomy' be immediately restored to Local 37. That Harold V. Smith and Lew C. G. Bllx also present their resignation to be con- ditional upon the results of a trial in accordance with the constitution and by-laws. That Willie Bioff and the international officers involved in the charges before the National Labor Relations Board answer these charges by affidavit' Offer was promptly nixed by Gatelee and Stickling, who- declined to enter into any negotiations with Kibre. Superior Judge Emmet Wilson tossed out of court injunction se- cured by three extras - to restrain the Screen Actors Guild from order- ing a new election to fill 17 vacancies on the Council.- Special meeting of the SAG. board of directors last night .(Mon.) adopted resolution orr dering election be conducted by mail ballot Ed Heim, minority leader on the council, Eddie Aquilina and Paul F, Cook signed the complaint They claimed the SAG board of directors was without authority to declare void the election held on April 16 and requested that the board be in- structed to seat the 17 high candi- dates. The election was declared illegal because the meeting was not at- tended by a quorum of'20% of the Class B membership as required by the by-laws of the SAG. Only 887 votes-were cast out of a membership of approximately 7,000: Film Eda Okay Scale Society of Motion Picture Film Editors has approved new wage agreement with major film com- panies. Contract calls for time and half for all workers employed on an hourly basis. Time and half agree- ment is retroactive to Oct 24, which will give Society members approxi- mately $30,000 In differential pay. A new classification of recording editors is created for top assistants. Their pay will be hiked from $1,10 an hour to $70 week for 64 hours and $14 per day for those employed on a daily basis. Pay of senior apprentices is hiked from 50c an hour to 70 and 80c, de- pending Upon seniority. Editors and assistants also wiU receive straight time for preview, time away from studios. New officers for Motion Picture Relief Fund will be elected June 27. The . nominating committee, is com- posed of Walter Wanger, Mary Mc- Call, Jr., Lucille Gleason, William Seiter, Frances Goodrich, Ewell D. Moore. Producers have approved new working agreement with the Ameri- 'Am Society of Cinematographers, but company heads are withholding signatures until they can determine whether the lATSE is serious in its demand lor jurisdiction over all em- ployes of photographic departments. The new pact provides for 10-hour rest period for lensers between calls. Screen Publicists Guild has re- newed negotiations with a commit- tee of major studio managers. SPG is demanding minimum of $50 Week for beginners and $150 week for senior flacks. The studios have classified the men according to the importance of their work assign- ments and will Insist that minimum salaries be fixed for each division. Want Code In Inside Stiiff-Pictiires Almost complete washout for Chatham Phenlx ^led Corp.—investment trust created originally by Chatham Phenlx Bank, and later added to the Floyd Odium financial empire—in playing with General Theatres Equip> ment paper. Congress learned in a Securities & Exchange Commission report that out of $1,125,000 sunk In G.T.E., the trust wound up with a $1,056,050 Iossk Discussing Chatham Phenlx Allied operations, the S.E.C. noted the trust acquired 30,000 shares of the bankrupt company's stock and a note for $1,375,000 from Harley Clarke, the Chicago promoter, which bore endorsement of Electrical Research Products, and which later was liquidated. Bank affiliate originally agreed to put up half of $5,000,000 which ERPI was scheduled to loan Clark. Instead of going ahead on this basis, it grabbed the shares at $1,125,000 which turned out in the end to be worth a mere $66,950. (Continued.from page 3) asks, is any exhibitor going to want a 1938-39 contract instead? While Allied of N. Y. assumes no attitude at all directly on the code, leaving it up to its membership, the organization reflects a desire to step forward in any constructive wiay that it can, according to Cohen, and is behind an honest plea for regu- lation from within. He does not believe there is any necessity for incorporating arbitra- tion into the contract or for agree- ment on it because it an exhibitor has a'dispute with a distributor, he can ask that it be conciliated. His contention, however, is that arbitra- tion will have to be elastic and, not seeing eye-to-eye with some leaders who are making many recommenda- tions and demands, says he will be satisfied if the distributors will just be sincere about the whole trade practices situation. '.All the contracts, codes and agree- ments in the world mean nothing unless the distributor behind them is sincere,' Is the way N. Y. AUied's head sums it up. Rodgers, spokesman for the distrib- utor committee on trade practices, is regarded in exhibitor circles gener- ally as championing the cause of self- regulation with more determination than the Industry has ever known In the past and is conscientiously at- tempting to foster an arbitration sys- tem that win be entirely fair. -Suggestions Wanted He Is accepting all suggestions and recommendations for consideration and is keeping distributor attorneys busy going over them for legality, workability, etc. Some proposals that have already been made will come up for discussion with distrib- utors and' lawyers at the meeting Rodgers hopes to schedule before the end of the week, maybe tomorrow (Thurs.) or Friday (12). Neil P, Agnew (Par) and Abe Montague (Col), members of the distrib com- mittee, are out of town, but unless other factors cause a postponement Rodgers will hold the meeting any- way. Concerning arbitration, Rodgers points out that every care is being exercised In setting up arbitration S6 that it will have balance and not be one-sided in any way for either the distributors or the exhibitors. He believes that while awards cannot be forced in a few states there will be no difficulty in using a feasible arbi- tration system in them for the settle ment of controversies that ottierwise might require other action. The Intermountain Theatres Assn. of Utah, which rejected the final draft of the trade practices agree- ment without indicating why, is go- ing to call a meeting for the purpose of providing the si>eclfic reasons, Rodgers revealed. He asked John Rugar, president of Intermountain, for the reasons. On getting them, the distrib committee may be able to iron out the difficulties. There have been no other complete rejections of the code, although Al lied States Assn., a national exhlb body, has refused to either accept or reject the code; In effect doing the latter by taking no action. Allied Independent Theatre Own- Group at a private screening of "The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle' at the Toronto exchange of RKO Included Major Jimmie Suydam and Capt. F. H. Reid, both of whom cut the lifeless body of Vernon Castle from his wrecked plane after he crashed at Fort Worth 21 years ago. Reid later handled the dead filer's estate. Former. Royal Air Force comrades of Castle claimed the film authen- tically captures the spirit of the Castles and the times—but pointed out a few inaccuracies: (a) Irene Castle wasn't at Fort Worth when the crash occurred, (b) Canadian flying cadets never appeared on any New York stage, (c) Irene Castle was never In Europe during her husband's service in France, but was in Cuba, (d) there was no inspection on when the crash occurred, (e) Castle's plane did not nose-dive. Reid and Suydam, who are now in business in Toronto, recalled that Vernon Castle's neck was broken but that his body was hardly marked. The student-flier was unhiirt Newsreels used the visit of the Nlcuaraguan president and his party to Washington last week as a dress rehearsal for the coming visit of England's king and queen to this country next June. Camera stands were spotted In strategic locations.just as they will be when Great Britain's royalty visits. Representatives of the five newsreel companies went , from New York to line up details. The British king and queen land in Quebec, May 15. ' ' At the same time, Claude Collins, in charge of newsreels for the N.Y. World's Fair, was mapping out arrangements for coverage when the royal party visits the expo shortly after their Washington call. England's king and queen will go almost Immediately to Hyde Park for a brief stay with President Roosevelt after inspecting the Fair, Frank E. Woods, who died May 1 in Hollywood, was described by North Carolinian Thomas Dixon as 'one of the great scenario writers of the world.' Woods and Dixon collaborated In the screen version of Dixon's 'The Clansman,' which was produced by D. W. Griffith as The Birth of a Nation.' Mr. Woods was the man who selected ray book as the subject of an epia film,' said Dixon, who now Is clerk of Federal District Court at Raleigh. 'It was through him that the film was projected,' 'The Birth of a Nation,' said-Dixon, grossed approximately $16,000,000. The $50-a-week cashier for Doubleday, Doran ti Co., Joseph Carbone, who is being sought by police on charges of having looted the publishing firm of $100,000 or more, Included a theatre acquisition among his invest- ments. Recently he closed a deal to take over the-Peiham, at Pelham, N. Y., putting up $5,000 to cinch control of the independently-operated house. It will no doubt revert to its former owners, with the $5,000 put up toward purchase among the coin considered recoverable for Doubleday, Doran. For the Latin-American market, Warners' 'Juarez' will be released simultaneously In Mexico, South and Central America, Spain and other Spanish-spealdng countries with superimposed titles in Spanish. About 60 prtaits are being made up for this purpose, the largest num- ber of prints going to the Argentine, with Mexico next Publicity boys are doing a burn over the snooty attitude of a foreign actress now playing leads in B pictures, the best roles she ever had. Flacka gave her breaks a few months ago because she was out of work and could not even pay her Guild- dues. Now, with every new part the high hat grows higher, with'a corresponding decrease in her publicity lineage. New directorial system Is being tried out on The Women' at Metro. Joe Newman, shorts pilot 1» aiding George Cukor.by directing rehearsals and plotting camera setups a week ahead of the actual shooting. Newman'a job is to fix positions of players In every scene and work out problems ot business and dialog. - Sb far, according to the production office] the sys- tem is paying dividends in time saving. Russell Moon, now In a Veteran's hospital in Arizona and bed-ridden, has turned his hand to writing end has submitted his Initial story for publica- tion. Suffering from arthritis, he was recently moved from N. Y. to Arizona. ers ot Iowa and Nebraska, headed by Leo F. Wolcott has just taken a sim- ilar stance by neither accepting nor rejecting the code. This local unit covering two states is not a member of the parent Allied States Assn., however, and the Rodgers committee may be able to induce it to at least indicate its reasons for the present cold shoulder. In Mpls., All the Indies Will Discuss the Code Minneapolis, May 0, When Allied States holds Its na- tional convention here June 13-15, It Is planned to obtain a comprehensive independent exhibitors' expression of opinion relative to adoption or rejection of the proposed Industry code, and whether Independent the- atre owners should lend their sup- port to the Neely anti-block booking bill and other legislation Intended to eliminate allegedly unfair trade practices. A blanket invitation to attend the convention has been extended to pro- ducing and distributing company executives, as well-as all independent exhibitors regardless of whether or not they are affiliated with Allied or any other organization. As a re- sult It Is hoped that there will be a complete threshing out of all pres- ent Industry differences and a final binding decision on the course of ac- tion henceforth to be pursued. W. A. Steffes, convention chairman. states that the entire distributor trade pact committee, including Chairman William F. Rodgers, will be present Ed. Kuykendall, presi- dent of MPTOA, rival organization to Allied States, also has announced he'll be on hand. The open forum, featuring the con- vention, will be.a discussion from the floor in which everybody present will be permitted to participate. It will consist of arguments as to whether or not the proposed new code should be ratified or rejected and whether Independent exhibitors' organizations should abandon .efforts to obtain 'legislative relief' and, in- stead, seelc to settle problems within the industry—preferably at round- table conferences. After the forum a vote will be taken to determine Neb.-Ia. on the Code Omaha, May 9. Members of the Nebraska and Western Iowa MPTO will probably gather late this month to discuss the proposed trade .pact fharles E. Wil- liams, president stated here today. Williams has contacted members of group's board to determine whether a general- gathering or regional ses- sions will be held; He has just recently returned from Washington, where he attended hearings on the Neely bill and per- sonally expre^ed 'alarm for the smaU exhibitor if the Neely bill goes throu^.' If a general meeting Is held-it will probably be in Omaha.