Variety (Aug 1940)

WecUi^sday* August 7, 1940 PICTURES m RcgitUred in p. Washington, Aug. 6. UFA, Inc., American distributing outflt for. rjaii-made iftlms; Which Ka^ stiri-ed considerable pcesa; in- terest since 'ftftli Golumh' became a household phrase in the Unitied States, ' fegigte^ with the State DepaHment on May 15, 1840, unde;r laws goyernirig ^ 'representativeis oiE foreign; principals,' search last we^k revealed,''; '.■ •;■ / Purpdsie and activity Of the ,c6mi-; •pany, which has offices in Rpckefelr ler Center; N. Y., are given lii the State . Depai'tment , papers .. as /pro- duction, distribution, release and ex^ hibition' of motion pictuires, Its in-, come.is siaid to derivi chiefly fromi distribution of foreign-maide films in .the'-U;}Si' anS;'Canada.; '•. . Cpmpariies which UFA represents are listed as:. UniversUni Film Ak- tienges^Ilschaft, Beriirir Tobis Cine- ma Film G; mb.H. (Gesellischaf t mit beschraehktier .Haftungi iequiva- lent to the English •Liiiiited'); Itala Film G;m.hlH. and Itala Filni S.A, All; a re ; 1 isted as. Gerimau but the ;.lasti-which is-Italian,^ President anrf treasurer of Amer- icaii UFA is listed as George Nitze; : V.p~.,, Ernest Eisele;, Jr., -and secre- tary, Frederick' Fasse; all of New ■ York.-. statement is - supplementeid i with, about 50 pages Of by-laws,.articles of Incorpprationl copies;' of ! co'ntracts and. i;eproductions of correspond- ence^ These show that. 7Q % ■.: the gross .revenue pf ; UiFA^ from dis- tri'bution of Engliish version's ot. jot- - eign ' films goes .to UFA of Berliii uiitil 70% of the. negiatiye cost is paid aiid' that ,70%. of the gross for Genha n pi jc. goes to' Berlin until 5 %■, of the. negative cost; iff :reached>:' ■ . .N.; Y.v fcharter. Ih' 192i '\;-.•■■ .• : Albany^ IST;-Y.,:;Aug. 6. .UFA Films, Inc./ was.; chartered Sept., 18,; 1924, according to records at the office of the Secretary.' of State of New York. Albert H. T. Banjihalf, of New Yorkj Aled the papers, .Capital stock: was listed at $20,000, ^2p0 shares having a par value of $10p. each, birectors until the first, annual meeting were M. L, JJuerr, ,L. C. Wells,. B. Millman, Clay' Littick arid G. D. Murphy, all of 130 W. 42nd street, N. Y. Wells, .and . Murphy ^subscribed i tQ t\V6 shares each; Millman-to one. Pur- pose of. the; corporatipn, as stated in thev papers, was to /engage in : business. of theatre piroprietors and managers, to; import and; export and .generally trade in moving picture films; to sell,, exhibit; rent s»nd lease films, motion picture cameras, pro- jebtion machines, etc' According to customary require- ments, the; :papers; declare that' at least two-thirds of the stbck sub- scribers are citizens of the United States and thiat at .least one .directpr i.t / citizen of New. York State. (Only amendment filed, in: the N; Y. County Clerk's, office in N. Y. City t'o the' incorporatioh papers of UFA /was an ihcrease in t^ of di- rectors from five to seven. Change was made July 20,M934* and filed by .Attorney Robert C.v JRichter. .'The two hew nameis; not listed.) Nitze; Dehie^. ... .Despite-.thei; wide scope of . pur- po.ses and activities of UIfA li.sted in . ;state Department. 'registration and . N.; Y. Slate incorporation papers,. . compsiny has-;limited:; Itself to ;disT iribution of ;Gerrnah-made. filrns. , ; ; Geo rge ■ Nitze, UFA • prez,.' denied :.ln New ; York last week that the company; is k 'representative of a foreign priiiciibal,'; as State :Depart- i\ ment, registration indicates. He de- clared' a; morjt!;. accurate .descriptioh ■ v/ould fae that his. cpmparty; has disr ■.tributipii ■ coiitracts . with\ -.(ierman '..^■flrmi;.. / •'■,;■■.■;;•.'■ ;;;;.! . x . ■ Nitze; and Eisele,. 'wh'p'- is -'listed, is. ' V.p.; are; ■. acti vely engaged ^n opera- tion of_ ;UFA.;. Company's: p|resident ■ ■was reticent abovit: providing Infor- •mation concerning, Frederick ,Fasse, secretary ot; the corpbration, e.xcept to say that: he did not take an ac- tive; parlMn its',affairs/ ■■;".■.,; Despite contracts With' the- regis- tration statement showing that 10% MUland, Colbeii H Team for l>ar / , ; Hollywppd, Aug. C.; 'Ray Milland and; Claudetta Colbert aire slated to co-star again ;in.Para-. mourit's 'Skyiairk,' to be produced, and directed by Mark .Saiiidrich. . .Gurrehtly . they ; ; teamied in 'Arise My Love' on the same, lot. Hollywood, Aug. 6. Screen Publicists .Guild is prepar- ing; .Strike call against ; Republic which has broken off hegptiations fPir contract covering its :flacks after long shadpw^boxirig;with Guild riegotia- tbrs. heiaded' by Bill .Edwards; 'While; SPCx, was willing. tO: make a speciiai deal cn a Scale lower than that en- fprced; ;6h,: rnajPr lots, anjr compro- misei / is now pff arid blurbers will :battre;it out. for the iuU pi-ice.' ; .; . Compromise would have cost iFtep oiily an;. added./$55; ■weekly. , Guild meeting has been .set ;fcT. Thui'sday (8) night when ;in6mbership wilt be; asked to okay strike '.prderv . Mean-* while committee is.; cpnitacting all studio uhions: and Guilds seeking support in case . walkout .goes through. Backing of Holly wood Guild -Council, consistirig cf Screen ■VVriters, ■ Interior. Decpratprs, Script Clerks arid Set Designers:, becomes ;autOmatic should a .strike; occur. Blurbei?s;als6 would have the back- ih^; of Moving Picture Painters Lpcal 644, which refuses .to;:crpss;any picket; line., ■■ '•■ ^' • V. . ^ N. t. SPG Adds 4« New York division; of the /Screen Publicists Guild, .consistirig of, erii- ;ployes. of- homeoiffice piib^ de^ partments, ha*; been .bolstered by 46 tiew merribers. duririg the liait' two weeks, it was said at an SPG jrieeting last ;Thursday (1).. Guild i|' also: making plans loir; a divisiori of free- lance press aigents ;working for ma- jor and indie cbmpianies byt nbt oh refilular payrolls. Included will be part-time exploitation riien, theatre p.y.s arid persons working lor but- side Organizations handling film pub- licity on a contract, basis.; SPG will toss a diaince at the Hotel Pierre, Ni Y . on Friday (9) to raise funds to send three delegates to the brganization'i. convention - on ; the Coast. . ■ HOOFING IN HAM F0«5HEWI^N, I^FT ' Hollyv/bod.'Aiig.-fl:.;-v V Ann Sheridan teams up again; with George Raft as . a, rPmantic; duo in 'Maid ■ Havana.' a tale of two American hoofers iri,Cuba. ■ . 'Warriei-s has- -: a.ssigried Richard IVlaca.ulay and Jerry Wald to the sci-jpt, ',,.;,-/.■• ..;.;• GARFIEU) SUBS CAGNEY : Hollywood, Aug. 6. John . Gaffidd; has ; been -■. set : by. Warners, for the top: sbot in; 'The Fabulpus' Thirties.' ■ James Cagriey was briginaUy mentioned for the role. ■■ :■■'■ ■■■.:;.■■•.' ■. ■• - ' ; Edmund Goulding will- direct irom Mark Hellinger's script; of ■ gro.ss revenue' from ^.distribution of English ve'r.sions of foreign films goes to- UFA of Berlin until 70% of the negative, cost is: paid, Nitze said it bad been many years .; 'Eng- lish versions' of German pictures ' had been released in this country... Way Sbught to Lop Anothjer 3,000 Without Incurring Legail DifFiculties Limit of 800 Daily Jobs Behind Move><^Fight to Control ■:■ A t m.p s p h e r e .Players ;; ;Reaches Climaxc in.ElMtion COLLARITES GET AID ; Hollywood, Aug. 6. :' . Apprdxinriately 2,000 extras were dropped; from membership; iri the Screen Actors Guild this- week;:.^ith the possibility that- 2,000 to 3,000 : nio're. will be. dropped as soon as the. Guild. devises a means .of doing so without incurring legal responsibil- ity. The Froducer-SAG Standing Committee, which; has just com- pleted a survey, of the extra situa- tion, feels that all casual .players should be ' eliminated to provide riiore jobs for the regulars, but the big; question; apparently. is. how the elimination should be- carried but. The paid-up Class B membership is now approximately 6,500. With less than 800 jobs available daily, officials believe th^ available extra list should be_ slashed to around 4,000, The extras""who have riot been earning as much as $500 per year would be ikept on an. emergenby: list, to be given work only when regular extras cannot be secured. : The 2,035 dropped by the SAG this week were suspended .for being 90 days in arreas in . dues. ; They' may ,be reinstated only by permission of the SAG board of; directors.. It is certain,; however, that leniency will be extended only to oldtimers who, because of financial reverses and lack of work, have been unable to maintain their dues. Eleetion Climaxes .Fisht Fight .for: control of, the extras will reach a climax Sunday: (11) when the winners of ; 15 council seats, will- be announced at the annual Class' B membership meeting. Two tickets aire in the field. One was selected by the SAG Council nominating : cbrri- mittee,: and the other by a group of extras who: have been caimpaigning for autonomy for atmosphere plsiyers. ,. The Hollywood Guild Council has voted, full support to the Screen Ol- fice Einployes Guild .in its' fight to; repel an invasion by the American Federation of Labor. This means that white collar workers will have the support of the Screen Writers Guild, Screen; Set Designers, Screen Readers Guild, Society of Motion Picture Interior Decorators. and Screen Publicists Guild. Tlie SQEG is now awaiting action by the Na- tional Labor Relations Board on its petition asking certification as cplf jective bargaining representative for all studio clerical employes. In the meantime the SQEG has drafted contract proposal calling for a 25% wage bpnus fpr workers employed pri the graveyard' shift. The clause; states: / .'Employes whose work period reg^ ularly :is completed after 9 a. m. or. commences after 9 p. m,; and before 7 a. m. shall be paid fpr-the entire work period 25% more; thart the regular^ or pyerscale, rate.' This: does not apply to persons reg.ularly em'-- ployed " durjng daylight hours ;.and \yhO might bccasioally be required to work ;pvertime,. and for which they would be entitled to the ovei-- time scale at the rate of time and a half.; ;. .'--.;;;■ :^ '; . The Producer assessriient for main-; tenahce of Central Casting Corp. has been increased from 5% tio 6%. Based on an average, annual expen- diture of $3;00d,000 for extras, the tilV wil^ jproyide Centiral; w poo additi6rial^ The amount will be pro-rated ; among major : companies holding membership in the Assofciar. tion of Motion iPicture Producers, which operates Central. :The execu- tives stated this was not ia; permanecU (Continued on page 19) ; Warners Push Lenses As Backlosf Mounts '■■ Hollywood; Aug. 6. :- : Heaviest fall production in the history of the Warner studio swings into action with six features before the canrieras, three, in the ■editing stage arid a dozen ready, for diistribu- tion.;.-; ■ •-': - -.. -^ .. -,.: ■.'•■ ; Shorts prograrii for the next month calls for five pictures under super- vision of Gordon Hollingshead. Minneapolis, Aug. 6;: Fre'd Strom, newly: elected North- west Allied executive. Secretary, has. sent. out. an appeal to independent eJchibitors iri the territory to refer to. him proposed film deals now being submitted so that -he can compare cwhat's being offered in the Various situations ;and then info.irm and isid- :Vise the ihdividual.theatre owner be- fore the latter makes a; decision or signs a: contract. . > ' ' 'Since the association's primary purpose is to obtain and dispense trade information upon which you may base your decisions in making contracts for filrn,; and the >many other proble;ms ->vhich^.confront the exhibitor, we urge you to write, phone or telegraph for trade facts, as well as. to send us data which will be of value to your fellow; exhibi- tors,' said Strom in ;;a ;b.ulletin issued; from the body's new headquarters; ■ . At a North Dakota regional meet- ;ing, . UniVers?il and 20th-Fox were assailed—;the; - formeir for jerking Dunne and; Durbiri jpictures from current contracts, arid 2pth for al- legedly 'unfair' trade practices. Some of those; present declared they'd rer fuse to buy 20th-Fox 'until it would writ* contracts and initiate trade practices which are uniform as to like situations and fair and equitable as to rental terms, allpcjations, clear• ances, etc' .;- . •:■„ ■■ y -■}. ■:::. YEIDT SUES DUTCH MNKINNEW^ Conrad Veidt filed suit last wfeek in N, Y, supreme court against the Bankierskantoor Albert Graef, N.V., seeking dariiages of $52,998.. The actor claims to; have given the Hol- land bank numerous bars of gold and bonds to keep for him in 1939, arid to be returned on demand. It is claimed that on Aprir 20, 1940, the demand was made, but the bank re-, fused to turn over the value of the. securities or the ;:securities. . . Among the -iterns French bonds, British ;War loans, Australian bends, N. Y. City;bonds and bars of gold, ■ I Too; Much Night Driyiiig; I . ; Hollywood, Aug; e. ; . Geoige Raft is so bu.sy with per- ! .'?onai;appearanc'e.s iri connection with ! 'They Drive by Night' that the: start I r>f his next picture, 'South of Suez,' [ has . been postponed. i New getaway is dated for Aug. 22 ' on the Warner ipt;.; with 'llaft and Geraldine: -.Fitzgerald- teamed. '■ HITCHCOCK'S 21) RKO Hollywood, Aug. 6.; . .'Before the Fact' is Alfred Hitch- .cock'.s . second job under ; ibis . two- picture deal vyith RKO. , ; . r First of the British director's pair is .'Mj-. and Mrsi Smith/ starring j Carole Lombard. ; Providing its: riiember exhibitors with a resume of the 1940-41 selling terms of all the .distributors, the in- > dependent "rheatre Owners of Ohio is asking hoW the figures . shown ;:. compare with the deals; being of- fered. It; also goes; into questions: cpncerriih^ buying this season, and at the same time the Iridependerit Theatre Owners Assn. of New York; advises the subsequent run theatres not to be in any hurry to sign up. While the ITO of Ohio publishes: theL sales terms of the various com- ■ panics, the ITOA of N. Y;> not in any way affiliated, has made a resume 6t the programs of each major, adding . ; •: that 'sales pbiieies of the distributing companies are for the most part so v flexible, as to be -existent.' Position taken is that sales poli-. cies change with each situation and \' with each run, thus there is no na- —f-tibnal sales policy for subsequent runs and so far a^ fli'st runs are cOn- cefned the announced policy is sub- ject to great change; In other words, what might be a. .35% picture in Nashville! might be only a 20 %;; pic- ture .'ih::benvei:,---- The ITOA of N. Y.. headed by Harry Brandt, notes that .a'.- deep knowledge. of each territory, corii- ■ bined .with the cost of production and the worth of the. pictures for sale enter into/ each deal, with ad- vice being . that 'exhibitors should not be.led astray by what they might read concerning the saliis policies ojf ' the distributing cbmp'ariies.'; Flexible Prices Although rerriinding that bracket- ing has been determined -'- as to. the' : nunibef bf pictures in each group, '-.- the ITOA insists prices to be paid are flexible: in- each case, .-determined by the ability of "each theaitre to pay. While the distribs are asserted to be maintaining a flexible policy, some ;. of them are defirii tely asking for more money. This demand for increased rentals ' is partly oii the ground that pictures, Will; be . of a higher quality. . Ex- . hibitors, however, must rely bri past performances and their own box- office receipts, the ITOA; cautions,. ^ adding that promises in the past have -.' too miany .times not been kept and the mere statement by a distributor ;- that product will be better ' not ' enough-, to ; warrant an iricrease. ITOA takes the stand that if in- ..- creases, also to make up for foreign losses,. must be had by the .distribs, it should come from the first runs which it has been claimed provide 85% of the total film rental revenue. . - 'Brackels Metro and Warner Bros, are re- , . maining at the same bracketing and percentages as. last year (1939^40), while others are increasing. The policie.s are a* fblloVs: ' COLUMBIA (44 features and 18 westerns): Two at 40%, six at 35%, 10 at 30%,. remainder outright. METRO (44 to 52 pictures): Four ; at 40%, 10 at 35%, 10 at 30%, balance 20% or flat. . PARAMOUNT (38; features arid . six westerns): Two at 40%, eight at ; 35%, 12 :at 30%, remainder flat, .;;' RKO (46' features and six we.st-. erns):'rwo at 40%, six ,at.;35,%.; eight . at 30%, balance outright. ; REPUBLIC (58 pictures, including the westerns): ;;Four at ; 25%, 12 at 20%. balance flat. 20TH-FOX (.52 features): Two at 40%, ;eight at. 35%, 14 ;:at; 3p%,';re. - mainder flat. ' •■ - •;' -. UNITED ARTISTS (22 pictures or; more). Deals are made individually for each producer's product. David Selznick will sell either one or all he makes arid will not tolerate hav- ing his pictures tied up With the;' product of■any• other producer or . even one-of his pictures with ^others he turns but.; Accounts will receive, Selznick pictures:whether they buy '„,:' anything else'fi'om UA or ribt. , . .- ;'. UNIVERSAL '■ <A5: features; and 16 -westerns): Fo;ur'.at 4b.'i',;eight :at 35%, ^ .'eight at 30':?.. the rest flat.. WB (48;t5jctui-ii and two specials): Four..;nf.'40%, eijjl.it at. 35''i, eight at 30%, balance out rig lit e.Kcept Mr two. specialf; on winch terms .will be; set as tb.cy'ie-ready for selling. . ■