Variety (Sep 1942)

16 WTERNATIONAL •TAUBTS'S' LONDON OFFICE • St. MaitlB'a PUee, TntelaaF Hamm Lack of Transportation Hits U. S. Fnms on Shipment of Pictures; Urge Greater Care on Export Selections HoUywood, Sept. 15. Tt appears definite that lack of transportation during the next year uill make it impossible for the ma- |ors to export to Latin America as many films as they have In the past. It will be a matter of picking and choosing among regular domestic features and shorts to decide which of them should be soundtracked in $.)anish and Portuguese for Latino consumption. Foreseeing this, BKO has quietly ec'.opted a policy, wherever possible, of injecting material which would make its product particularly suit- able for the south of Dixie market. Thus, if there's competition for ship- ping space aboard planes and boats, the studio figures it has a head start Jn getting its pix the nod from Gov- ernment authorities. It's a kind of insurance plan that KKO has adopted and one that will pos.<:ibly pay oS with reasonably good dividends. Although total rentals extracted from the south-of- the-border nations is minor, in com- parison with U. S. income, they are nothing to be overlooked. RKO scheme, as a result, may be found creeping into other lots. S%% or Leas It's uncertain yet just what per- centage of the number of films that formerly went to Latin America will be able to find shipping space in 1942-43. A rough guess might be 90% or less, unless the Latinos miss their Hollywood diversion to such an extent the government puts up a Equawk and breaks down resistance to films of Army men in Washington who dish out shipping priorities. They naturally see military equip- ment, food and many other essen- tials as more vital than entertain- ment, although that's a mistake that's been made before. Selection of which pix shall go to Latin America lies pretty much in the hands of the Office of the Co- ordinator of Inter-American Af- fairs. Under a plan explained to a number of studio people here, dur ing the past week by Francis Al stock, director of the film division of the OCIAA, that agency will work closely with the forei^ man- agers of the majors in making the selection of Min<f Pix which the OCIAA favors for Latino audiences are not necessarily those which have a direct Latin American angle, although they are, of course, favored if the subject is j«i»./.4«»>ft^^»«j)jflijJ/./3K<i»-j»i>i*:4i>-.-. I portant, however, are pictures of an f ideological or war nature. OCIAA aims to have the citizens of the U. S.'s good neighbors shown that the way. of life here is good and T.orth preserving. Conversely, it likes Latins to see that life under the Axis is a nightmare to be avoid- ed at any cost. Likewise, the Rocke- feller office wants shown that the U. S. has an Army and Navy that's plenty strong enough to knock the «uls out of Hitler. Hirohlto & Co., and that it Latins are laying any bcis. here's the side m which to have a mutuel ticket. Responsible for all Latin Amer- ican matters at RKO is William Gordon, who lived and worked in Argentina and other South American countries for a numbers of years It was he who sold to Charles W Koerner, RKO's new studio chief the idea of making and handling nibjects to get maximum attention v hen the OCIAA makes its choice of stuff for plane and boat trans- portation priorities. SQUIERS QUITS M-G POST Leaves as Geni Mgr. In England, Bnt SUys In Another Capacity James Squiers, general manager for Metro in England for more than 30 years, will retire next month, ac- cording to word received in N. Y. from Sam Eckman, managing direc- tor for the corporation in Great Britain. Squiers stays as director of Metro's British companies even though retiring from the active man- ageual post. No new general manager for Eng- land has as yet been selected. Longer Runs Seen Vital In Great Britain London, Sept 1. Longer runs for American pic- tures in all parts of the United King- dom are more than a possibility in the immediate future. Fear of a disastrous shortage of new releases is rapidly reaching the acute stage among renters and exhibitors. News of America's tightening up on production adds to the growing alarm, especially in view of the im- possibiity of American subjects being made in British studios. Army call-up here has thinned the ranks of players and technicians until British production has become hopelessly crimped. As the trade sees it, the only so- lution is for the long-established rule of weekly runs for general releases to be .set aside for the duration, al- lowing boxoflice hits to run in any one house for as long as business warrants. May Stymie Pix J Japs Nipped Wf a Rnc Fihn Hum ^Continued from page i^^sl « W\M •!• • W% ■ t W% 1 In Pniuppmes, Refugee Keveals sofar as it is considered essential to wartime needs. Majority of exhibitors and pro- ducers alike regard the demise of double billing as virtually a fore- gone conclusion. All Government regulation of the film industry, here- tofore by suggestion, points to a de- sire on the part of the authorities for screen programming made up f«r the most part of a single feature, a regular short and one or two shorts dealing with Government activities. The extent to which the regular studio production schedules will em- body war themes would, from ac- counts, figure strongly In the official attitude towards industry activities. Single billing, however, is not con- sidered by any means the. most troublesome problem which exhibi- tors and producers could be faced with, though it would uindoubtedly work a hardship on some of the smaller producing companies and theatre operators. The general trend of Government policy appears to be towards channeling studio man- power into the various branches of the ictvice iu order to provide the armed forces with an adequate reservoir of trained technicians. Limitation of studio production would automatically send many more studio workers into branches of the service which can use tech- nical crews. 'Essential' Industry Though it has been the openly stated policy of the authorities that the picture business is 'essential' and should be maintained, the require- ments of the Army and Navy obviously modify any such broad, general classification. Question now is to what extent the motion picture industry is to be maintained, com- patible with wartime exigencies. In some quarters any drastic r.egulation, such as shuttering of theatres by decree, because of short- ages of fuel, electricity or man- power, is heavily discounted. Sharp curtailment in use of cars, the likely rationing of travel for pleasure pur- poses and increased iitcome taxes make film entertainment more es- sential than ever. Any radical cur- tailment of virtually the sole re- maining source of entertainment available to lower income earners would be considered ill-advised since it would leave large numbers of plant workers and others on the home front with nothing to divert them. In considering the celluloid re- quirements of the armed forces, opinion expressed in the trade Is that the film industry should be represented in Washington prior to the imposition of any far-reaching restrictions. Among other sugges- tions which the authorities could consider is the establishment of a committee, representing the WPB, the Army and Navy and the film in- Albanv <:pn» n dustry to formulate plans whereby ^["^^y-.^lP.^:, ''\--tth»<'Ax-:ed-f«»re.*- would-eet-*U die- film and technical help required without seriously injuring civilian entertainment and so lessening the power of the most influential public morale and informative media at the disposal of the Government Duplication of effort in Army- Navy film production and lack of an efficient distribution system is held largely responsible for the huge quantities of film being requisitioned by the armed forces. Film Theatre Mgrs. In England Unite London, Sept. 1, A national trades union for pic- ture house managers has bieen formed here. By a imanimous vote it was decided to form a Cinema Managers Assn. as an autonomous section of the National Assn. of Theatrical and Kinematograph Em- ployees. Ai^Io-Arg. Deal On Filmed Play A G( EALING, INCORPORATED, TO DO BIZ IN AMERICA faling Studios, Ltd., according to papers filed here by H. William Fitelson, its U. S. counsel, has quali- fied itself to transact business in America. The company is headed by Michael Balcon. Company turns out six pix yearly which are released by United Artists. Meanwhile, proceedings In U. S. District Court against Ealing Studios by Tonia and Ragnhllde Cabot charging plagiarism of "Cuban Heels' in the George Formby pic, 'Let George Do It,* have been discon tinued. Buenos Aires, Sept 8. Signing here of contract by Lumi- ton Studios for Spanish film rights to 'Sixteen,' first English play to be filmed by Argentine company, gives the British the first round in a move long urged by practical-minded ex- perts on developing of better rela- tions with South America. Inking of the contract took place amid much ceremony and was at- tended by Sir Eugen Millington Drake, former Ambassador to Uru- guay, now representative of the British Council for Cultural Rela- tions in South America, British counterpart of Nelson Rockefeller's Committee to Coordinate Inter- american Affairs., Point made by observers is that the British will get across to local- ites a translation of a recognized English success, plus all the idealogy contained in the play, and be paid for it U. S. propagandists in their desire to achieve similar results have often . proposed sending U. S. com- panies here to produce plays or have talked of production of American films in Spanish, which. Is far more costly and hardly as effective as having it done in South America by South Americans. Rights for 'Sixteen,' which has been given legit production here, were sold for a substantial sum by Lawrence Smith, author's' rep. Play, written by Aimee and Philip Stuart, was translated by Jose Alberto Arrieta, who will assist in the adap- tation. Pict will star Pepita Serra- doi and Maria Duval. Production starts at once and pic is expected to be ready by the close of the year and will be preemed in aid of the British Red Cross. Smith reports other Argentine ^•rvducers interested in both U. S. and English plays. Difficulty of some American works is that they have already been done by Hollywood, but authors' rep maintains many old sUents might be sold for redoL- j here, as well as Broadway plays of past seasons. Switch 'Arsenic' Rights Mexico City, Sept. 8. The National Actors and Drama- tists Union has rescinded the award of exclusive rights to present In Mexico a Spanish version of'Arsenic and Old Lace.' which it recently granted actress Maria Teresa Mon- toya. Latter, with her company, is vorking here under a Federal gov- ernment subsidy at the Teatro Fnbregas. Union switched 'Lace' rights to the Blanch sisters for presentation at their Teatro Ideal because it found they had prior rights to the play's adaptation in Spanish. London 'Face It' Hits Snag on Seyeral Counts London, Sept. 1. "Let's Face It,' which is talked of as possibility for I«ndon Palladium, is being held up due to several rea.sons. Main one is George Black is de- sirous of making several changes in the cast, but that is not possible, as most of them have run-of-the-play contracts. Other troubles are salary commitments, with Bobby Howes' contract calling for 10% of the gros.ses, while Pat Kirkwood is down for T/7%. It is understood Howes has agreed to take flat salary of $1,600, with Kirkwood having been offered $500 per instead of her pres- ent contract, but she flatly refuses to forego contract for less than $800. Black's changes in the book, which he contemplates, is another stum- bling block, as this necessitates special sanction from Vinton Freed- ley, now producing the show on Broadway, with Danny Kaye starred. A. K. Chorines ;Continued from pa(c I; engaged for musicals in the future This takes all the s. a. off the stage and puts it in the munitions plants and other war factories, where, Bellemore says, youth and energy are vital necessities at this time. Legit sees the order as turning its musicals into farces via the aged ensembles, eliminating in one fell swoop the bald-headed row, strictly interested in the shapely cuties, and making a mockery of the ballet en- sembles that are features of the local vaudeville revues. Presently there is only one musical playing locally. 'Let's Face If for Willlam- son-Tait and the new order makes it unlikely that there will be many others. Another obstacle in the drive to revive legit has developed over 'To bacco Road.' Alec Coppell, producer for Whitehall Productions, indie legit unit, states that Chief Secre- tary Baddeley had so drastically censored the script that Whitehall har decided to cancel the presenta- tion, listed for Sydney late this month. It is the first known time that a play has been censored be- fore actual presentation here.. Ripest film production plum in the Far East fell to the Japs when they took the Philippines, according to Charlie See, refugee from the 'Happ/ World' in Singapore, who addressed the Publicity Club of New York last Thursday (10). Though he doubted that the Filipino indus- try could thrive imder Nipponese domination. See declared that the Japs are turning regular entertain- ment channels into a propaganda medium. See said that there were more than 100 production companies in the Philippines, approximately. 25 with regular production schedules, the other producing intermittently, prior to the outbreak of the war. See, formerly manager of the 'Happy World' amusement enter- prise, which he describes as the 'Coney Island of Malaya,' employing some 2,000 entertainers in Singapore, was also connected with the Malan-Buoscope Enterprises, oper- ating 43 theatres in Java, and Zucl- lig (Big 7) productions in the Philip- pines. He got out of Singapore and later Java one jump ahead of the Japs, in the latter instance reaching safety in the only vessel which suc- cessfully dodged air and submarine attack. See stated that Philippine films rated first In quality on the Far Eastern market insofar as native production is concerned, cost of some of the major productions be-, ing in the neighborhood of $25,000 and considered of a high standard comparable with the output of some of the smaller American companies such as Monogram. Chinese and British-India films rate second, in the Far East, Japanese third and Malayan films fourth. See said the Japs are also using six or seven studios in the Malay peninsula to turn out propa- ganda pictures. He stated that native product was getting bigger rentals than top U. S. product due to extended playing time, but only outside of the big cities. American pictures, of course, took first place in metropolitan centres. Boys Onl Caraeu Firm's Eqalp. Caracas, Sept. 8. The newly formed Bolivar Films Co. of Venezuela has purchased the equipment of the defunct Avila studios for 33,000 bolivares ($9,900). Company is waiting a shipment of material before producing several documentaries. Schools' War Pix sContlnned Irom pace 1; 56 the second covering 28 of the rural schools. Film contributors include the State University of Iowa; the YMCA, Chicago; the State Health Dept.; the Iowa Tuberculosis Assn.; Army and Navy recruiting departments; Gen- eral Motors, and the Ford Motor Co. Wartime Film Courses al CCNT College of the City of New York has revamped its film technique course to jibe with current wartime conditions. New term, starting Sept. 24, will st;'ess the war angle in foiir of the five courses with one of the Instructors being Richard Ford, fllm officer with the British Press Serv Ice. The students will cover theatres, defense centers and air raid war den meetings to survey the effec- tiveness of training films, end the workshop group will produce a war film short 'ANDREW-STAGE SHOW $6,300 IN BUENOS AIRES Buenos Aires, Sept 8. Good weather over the weekend and bad weather the rest of the time put a damper on B. A. flrst-run t>ox- offlces last week. Only pic to draw 23,000 pesos was 'Remarkable An- drew' (Par), which had a stage show, Ray Ventura, to help with the draw. Nothing else came near it Other.. e«tim4tc*» all given In Argentine peso*, currentlv at about 27c U. S., follows: Ambassador (Lautaret & Cavallo) (x,400; 2.50; 2.00). 'Ringside Maisie' (M-G). Very poor 5,000. Last week, 'Bajo un Angel del Clelo' ('An Angel Came Down From Heaven') (Arg.- made), not bad 9,000 on second week. Ideal (Lococo) (070; 3.00; 2.90). 'Mister V (UA). Fair 14,500 for first week. Did terrific 50,000 week previ- ously at the Opera but had to switch because of previous engagements. Last week, 'SalMteur* (U), n.s.g. 8,500 on third week. Bex (Cordero, Cavallo Si Lautaret) (.1.305; 2.50: 2.00). 'Rio Rita' (M-G). Weak 20,000. Lwt week. 'We Were Dancing' (M-G), o.k. 30,000. Oeeu (Coll. GatU tt Cia.) (2.800; 2.00; 1.50). 'Syncopation' (RKO). An- other low note here with only 15,000. Lest week, 'Rings on Her Fingers' (20th), fairish 18,000. NormaBdle (Lococo) (1,400: 2.00: 1.50). 'In ThU Our Life' (WB). Not bad 14,000 on second nm after preem at top-priced Ideal. Last week, 'Reap the Wild Wind' (Par) nifty 10,000 0.1 second week of pop-priced run. MoBBmental (Coll, Gatti & Cia.) (1,300; 2.00; 1.50). 'Invaders' (Col). Weak 12,000 for first week at pop prices after record-breaking 38,000 on weekend prior to official yanking. Last week, 'Gone With the Wind,' neat 12,000 for closing stanza of sea- son's longest run. Opera (Lococo) (2,400: 2.50; 2.00). 'Remarkable Andrew' (Par) and Ray Ventura Band stage show. Best of the week for 25,000. Last week, 'Mister V (UA), terrific 50.000. Broadway (Lautaret & Cavallo) (2 863; 2.00; 1.50). 'Married Bachelor' (.M-G). Weak 6,000 for pop price Last week, 'How Green Was M}- V£lley' (20tb). not bad- 14,000 cr second week of pop price.