Variety (Jun 1941)

WoAaesdajt Jane 4, 1941 PICTURES 8 CLEAR M DECKS FOR SEPT. How the "Big 5' Stands on Product Silverstone s Own Coin Into Indie Prod. Unit; He WiU Rdease via DA Much of his own coin will go Into the new producing unit being set up by Murray Silverstone. Former United Artists chief, who resigned' last week, is in New York now ar- ranging the financing, which will be supplied partially by personal con- tacts, partially by banks and In lesser part by Mary Plcklord. Setup of the new outfit, to release I rough UA, will somewhat resem- ble that of Mayfair Productions, Jules Levey's organization which re- leases through Universal. Silver- stone, whose greatest experlehca has been in distribution, Just as Levey's was as former salesmanager for RKO, will give his prime attention to the sales and booking of his film, Which is a specialty with Levey that Is said to have resulted In some $200,000 extra gross on his initial production, 'Boys from Syracuse.' Actual production of the Silver' clone output will lie in the hands of a topnotch producer, former UA chieftain declared Monday (2). The nan, he said, Is one whosa contract with another company expires shortly, but whose identity Is known to UA toppers. He will be In the unit on a profit-sharing basis. Only 2 A Tear Silverstone wiU make but two pic- tures a year, and looks upon his venture Into film production as 'building something for myself and family for the future.' Silverstone said his new organi- eation is virtually ready to tee oS end will specialize in product geared to popular public taste with grade-A properties and stars. Three-year tenure of Silverstone as world-wide chief of United Artists—he served the company for a number of years previously as European head—was marked by a sharp upturn In the distributing outfit's income. Silverstone's policy was to increase the number of pix the company released each year, in that way reducing the overhead by spreading It over more product. The setup was there and capable of carrying tte load, the exec dgured, end should be used to its full ex- tent. It was that policy, however, which led some, among the company's In- die producers, to voice objections. With the big profits being turned into the company, they considered the topper an 'owners' man' in con- trast to a "producers' man,' whom they would have preferred In the driver's seat Hey, Not So Fast Hollywood, June 3. Production is so far ahead of schedule at 20th-Fox that two pictures for next season's release have been finished before the first of June. It is the first time anything like that has happened on the Westwood lot. Films are 'Dressed to Kill' and 'Last of the Duanes.' Report Con. Labs lOOGLoantoMono For Pathe s Stock MUST DELIVER ALL •40-41 PIX 'Big S/ Under the Consent Decree, Must- First Get Blanket-Contract Commit- ments Out of the Way Be- fore Starting on 1941-42 ShoMrings HOW THEY STAND UA s Revitalization Aim Right Now: Prestige Producers (Selznick-Capra); KeDy Vice Silverstone Pro Tern More Red Meat With a loan of upwards of $100,- 000 virtually set. Monogram Is ex- pected to pick up more than 66,000 shares formerly held by. Pathe Film Corp., according to reports this week. Deal for new money is reported to have come from another laboratory company, reputedly Consolidated Films, which means Mono will switch its printing business away from Pathe I.aboratories, operating subsid of Pathe Film. Pathe paid about $200,000 for this batch of stock shortly tifter the pres- ent Monogram corporation was launched, obtaining all Mono print- ing biz in return. Trem Carr now heads Monogram production, with Scott Dunlap in charge of turning out the A pic- tures. REEVES ESPY LEAVING GOLDWYN TO PRODUCE Reeves Espy, v.p. and g.m. of Samuel Goldwyn Productions, will quit that organization, it is under- stood, to embark on an Independent producing venture of hU own. He Is now in New York, to set up de- tails of his new outfit. ■ Espy was v.p. of Fox-West Coast before joining the Goldwyn organi- zation as second In command. 2 RKOers Move Up Hollywood, June 8. Two subordinates moved up with the resignation at RKO of J. R. Crone, who has served as production manager for the past 10 years. Walter Daniels, aide to Crone, moves up into his berth and Argyle Nelson, assistant director, assumes Daniels' vacated post Eddie Cantor's UA Pic Unit Deal Sinuners With United Artists in its present unsettled state, Eddie Cantor has de- cided to let his pending production deal with the company simmer. He'll head for the Coast after his final broadcast in New York in about four weeks and hopes by that time that the UA future will be decided to the point where he can go on with ne- gotiations. Reports that Cantor was interested In buying the block of UA stock held by the Fairbanks estate were branded entirely false by the co- median in New York this week. He said he had no such deal under con- sideration. Cantor had been negotiating with UA on a three-year pact by which he would have' produced one pic a year starring himself and another pic each year in which his appearance was optional. He planned to start production on the first, a musical, in July. Seiter's 'Marriage' Next Hollywood, June 3. William A. Seller's next pro- ducer-director job at Universal is 'Marriage of Inconvenience,' starting late this month with Franchot Tone the first choice for the male lead. Picture, based on a mag serial by Hagar Wilde, is the first of two to be produced and directed by Seiter for U's 1941-42 program. Necessity of clearing the release decks of all features promised un- der blanket contracts for the season of 1040-41 Is the requirement facing the five major companies that are parties to the U. S. anti-monopoly consent decree, before new product to be released after Sept. 1 can be shown publicly. The exception is any film presented nationally on a 'roadshow* policy. Such is the concensus of several sales managers and company attor- neys who are struggling with the film distribution difiiculties as the time of transition from old to new methods approaches. Need of completing the current season's contractual obligations has arisen because most cojnpanies' existing license agreements with theatres specify a definite number of pictiures to be released prior to Aug. 30. One of the co'mpanies, 20th-Fox, has held to July 31 for some years as the seasonal closing date. By virtue of the consent decree terms, 20th-F6x beginning this fall will start Its annual releasing season on Sept 1, in line with the other ma- jors. Position of the five major distrib- utors as regards numbers of pic- tures promised for 1940-41, their re- leases up to June 28, '41, and the balance due to exhibitors through July and August is detailed herewith. Study of VARiinrY's Advance Pro- duction Chart, appearing in this is- sue, discloses that most of the Big 9 are in the position to complete all promised deliveries. By studios, completions of current season product some of which re- mains in cutting rooms. In the proc ess of final editing, are: Metro, completed, 43; Paramount, 41; RKO, 44; 20fh-Fox, 60, and War- ner Bros., 50. It was anticipated several months ago that complete deliveries would be finished and nationally released early in August, thus permitting public exhibition of some of the new season's product in the various af- filiated theatres and franchise cir-r cuits prior to Sept 1, on which date new product would be ready for in- dependently or crated theatres. Film booker for one of the largest affili- ated circuits said yesterday that the companies will be fortunate to ful- fill current obligations. Total of 51 pictures must be released by the five majors in July and August to clean the slate. Availability Fear Attorneys of the film companies are advising their sales managers to act cautiously with any plans for publicly releasing new product be- fore the current season's list is out of the way. Apprehension has l>een expressed that to 'beat the gun' may I result in a demand from exhibitors I that any pre-released film must be considered as available under exist- I ing contracts. { August is being regarded as the ' 'M Month,' when private trade- showings will be arranged in every exchange center. How speedily sales will be consummated is strictly a matter of current conjecture. As heretofore, first runs and clearances Hollywood, June 8. Bull fighting In the Hollywood ' edition of 'Blood and Sand' is too skimpy for the Mexican picture fans, so the south-of-the-border reels contain mora toro se- 'quences. Gus Mohme, manager for 20th-Fox In Mexico, is In Hollywood to supervise the in- jection of more toreador stuff Into. the picture for the public down yonder. About 1,000 feet of bull ring action, deleted from the U. S. film, la being restored for the Latin-American version. Mary Pickford Would Remake 'Coquette' Now Mary Pickf ord will go Into .pro- duction on her own, aside and apart from her interest in Murray Silver- stone's proposed unit the former screen star revealed on her arrival in New York, Monday (2). Her hur- ried trip east—she Is skedded to plane out today (Wednesday)—Is be- lieved to be at least partially on the financial setup of her own organiza- tion. Miss Pickford said she hopes her Initial film will be 'Coquette.' Prin- cipal thing delaying It now,'she de- clared Is lack' of a proper star name for It She owns the rights to prop- erty. It was the first all-talking pic- ture in which she appeared, made back in 1929. Her Interest In ^e Indie producing company being set up by the recent- ly- resigned United Artists chieftain. Miss Pickford said, will be 'advisory and financial.' (Latter is believed to be small, and not administrative.) Miss Pickford about a year ago in- dicated that she desired to go into production at that time for release through UA, of which she is a part owner. It Is imderstood she at- tempted to obtain financing, but failed on the terms' which she of- fered. She is said to desire to put only a limited amount of her own capital Into the production, figuring her name on a film should .have con- siderable value. ROTHCHEK SEEKS UA Omm FOR RAF PIC Hollywood, June 8. Anton Rothchek, recently arrived from Europe, is negotiating a re- leasing deal with United Artists for a story of the R.A.F., to be produced in Hollywood. Picture will be based on a novel by Keith ^yling. Rothchek plans early production, with John Beal signed to the male lead. Schaefer's N.Y: Huddles; Breen Due East Later George J. Schaefer came in from the Coast over the weekend for must be n^egotlated ii'efqf^ films actu- • home office^ conferences with RKO ally start through the booking ma ■' - ' - ^ chinery. According to a major sales manager, the effort will be made to ' synchronize release dates after Sept. 1 as closely as possible, in order that films will have the benefit of na- tional publicity. A condition of staggered showings, with certain sec- tions of the country seeing pictures far in advance of others is regarded has something to be avoided. theatre and sales representatives, He arrived Thursday (29) but went directly to his home in Westchester, without coming into N. Y, Originally expected that Joseph I. Breen, new studio head, would ac company him, but Breen Instead will meet RKO personnel for the first time when he comes east for the an- nual sales convention later this month. With selection of- a successor to Murray Silverstone as United Art- ist; head stUl vague,, owners are nevertheless determined to' revitalize the company without delay by offer- ing large-scale Inducements to top- notch producers who can be regarded as potenflal future shareholders in UA. David O. Selznlck and Frank Capra are currently bein^ negotiated with to this purpose. Principal Idea of the owners, as expressed by Mary Pickford in New York Monday (2), Is to get UA back to 'its policy of 2i years ago, with exclusively quality pictures and fewer of them.' Although inmiedi- ate profits to the stockholders fre- quently weren't so great under that policy, according to industry ob- servers, its long-run effect was to give greater stability and more con- tinued earning power than by ab- sorbing overhead by the distribution of a larger number of pictures, some of them necessarily of lesser quality. Appointment in Hollywood by the board last Thursday of Arthur W. Keliy as operating head of UA is a temporary move. Miss Pickford said.. The v.p. and distribution chief will restrict himself to his former ac- tivities after a commanding industry figure is obtained to specialize in the producer end of UA activity. Kelly, meantime, will remain on the Coast until at least this week- end in a final effort to get the prod- uct for 1941-42 in "B sufficiently. Im- pressive state to hold the twice- postponed sales conventions and get the salesmen out in their territories with contract blanks. It's hoped,-of course, to obtain a couple of big name additions tn UA's production stable to give the film peddlers some- thing to throw at exhibs as an In- ducement. Selznlck StalUng? That's the reason, of course, for iht offers to Selznlck and Capra. Selz- nlck has two pIx to make under his current UA deal, but has been stall- ing for various reasons. Owners now want him not only to go to work immediately, but extend his contract and take a stock interest- Whether Selznick would otherwise continue with UA after his two plx are delivered is considered dubious, inasmuch as there have been plenty of offers from other companies. Capra is said to favor an align- ment with UA if certain details can be worked out. He is said to have almost accepted a deal before Sam- uel Goldwyn pulled out of the or- ganization. Company would not only make it possible for the producers to buy stock interests, but would pro- vide financing and underwriting of production costs. « Miss Pickford emphasized, how- ever, that the stock is not to be handed out on any sterling platter, but will have to be 'earned' by the producers. 'No one handed us tha stock when we formed United Art- ists,' she said. 'We had to e^rn It,' She declared it would be distrib- uted in the same manner Alexander Korda obtained his b'ock—by paying for Tt out of earnings over a period of time. Stock available comprise the Gold- wyn shares, which the company re- cently bought from him for about $300,000, and the holdings of the Fairbanks estate. Miss Pickford said the latter would be acquired by -the company by ab-,ut mid-June for $400,000. Deal is set, she said, air though it must be approved by the court Other owners are Miss Pick- ford, Korda and Charles Chaplin- James Mulvey, Goldwyn v.p. and eastern rep, was offered the post of UA topper some wreks ago, but has definitely^ refused it. 'Mr. Mulvey loves Mr.^Goldwyn too much and Mr, CJoldwyn loves fto. Mulvey too much,' Miss P ''-'■>rd commented. Mulvey is also \ '•t the Brooklyn Dodgers and of Ebbets Field, their home.