Variety (Dec 1942)

14 EXPLOITATION Wc^ei^y* DcecMber 16» 1942 hdie Exhibs Not Loadiiig Up On Lesser Film For Fear of Shortage While it appeared Inevitable that numerous independent exhibitors would be hard hit on product avail- ability this year because of the num- ber of holdovers and long extended runs In key spots, paradoxically the Indie distributor, who might figure to benefit from such situation, has not done so. Where last fall Independent dis- tribs obtained numerous product deals (this also was true of certain major distributors not selling m blocks-of-five) because exhibitors wanted to be certain of sufficient product to maintain steady opera- tions, there is no such urge this sea- son. With nothing to prevent exhib- itors from buying blocks before be- ing screened and no cut-and-dried stipulation on buying under decree terms this season, the yen of exhiljs to book up loads of indie product Is lacking. With many indie exhibitors tbis year it is not a matter of deals for pictures but when .such screen prod- uct will be available for them to ■how in their theaUes. This has re-, suited from the huge increase in number of holdovers in flrst-run sit- Warnerites to Coast Charles Einfeld left New York Friday (in for the Coast, accompa- nied by Mitchell Rawson, eastern publicity director, and Whitney Bolton, liaifon publicity representa- tive between studio and homeoflice. Einfeld will return east In January tor the premiere of 'Air Force' at the Hollywood, slated for sometime between Jan. 8 and 15. Hal B. Wallis. who left N. Y. for Cincinnati on Thursday (10) to con- fer with Irving Berlin on filming of ■This Is the Army,' arrived on the Coast over the weekend and will im- mediately .>:tart preparation on pro- duction of "Army." Anyway, Sol Lesser AndChhaGot Of Free Press Space koodoo' Got 'Ed Memphis, Dec. IS. Ben Rogers, student issisUnt man- ager at the Warner, was sllghUy In- jured Saturday night when more than 4,000 people tried to jam their way into the Warner for a special midnight 'Voodoo Show,' supple- menting the regular late feature.^ Pressure from a crowd that ex- tended all the way across Main street broke the glass in the boxofflce win- dow, a piece of it landing In Rogers' eye. An usher also suffered a broken finger. Dimoat Juice Saying Nil Compared to Theatre Loss in Advertising Although it was believed among theatre operators that dimout regu- lations would be relaxed, especially during the winter months when there is less danger of air raids, the retention of the original regula- tions or tightening them, as in New York, still does not effect much sav- ing in costs of juice, according to variable estimates. Operators, as well as engineers, point out that the saving may run from minor amounts to several bun- NotlssentiaL'ExliiihlKstnbUm^ Go Mwe 'd More for Femmes Washington. Dec. 15. _ ..wiinnV anrf'sfrfUl'UrMO.-spojg^I^ .QiJijie^of Economic S^^^^ '^^iZ^:^'^W.Z"^^\a^ir»hAi the length of extended runs m sucT here will noT^To^enio ht Sti^ ^ iTmoTe than offset into Hollywoods controversy con- ■< cerning Chita, the Tarzan chimpan- houses, Attitude of the distributor, espe- cially those with major circuit sub- sids or affiliations, is that he is en- titled to get as much playing time as he can out of the flrst-run key houses. When It is reaUzed that he obtains the bulk of his total film rental from such accounts, it can hardly be considered good business for him to rush a picture out of flrst- nm theatres simply to appease the subsequent-nm house. Stronger product in some instances, coupled with stronger boxoffice, resulting from Increased attendance and freer flow of money, has hiked the num- ber of holdovers and extended runs —and the distributor feels, of course, this is no fault of his. Tbe Time Element In recent months the situation has become so bad that numerous indios have felt fortunate if they had any worthwhile pictures to exhib. With n couple of weeks playing time added 10 first-run accounts before they hit second runs, and additional time pil- ing up all along the line, the subse- quent-run account figuring on get- ling a feature within a month now tliscovers it is nearly two months before it reaches him. Ultimately, the A-1 boxoffice attractions will start getting out to the subsequent Indies but even then these exhibitors ere convinced the pictures will be badly milked. Probably the prize example of what this situation is doing to inde- pendent operations, even in larger ihealres, cropped out in Brooklyn re- cently. A deluxe indie cinema, rath- er well known for the quality of screen fare and its A-1 operation (one house in a circuit which plays split RKO product for one half and split Loew on the other section of the circuit) showed a Russian-made film and a weak indie picture the first half of the week and two re-issues the last half. It is the first time the theatre ever played a foreign-made picture. Another house in that neighbor- hood thus far has shown only two major company boxoffice hits from the 1942-43 lineup this season. ETse- where In Greater New York re-is- sues are cropping out as even major distrib affiliated circuit theatres struggle to make up programs. The slow clearance for subsequent Tuns is producing the expected thing, a concerted demand by these exhibs for lower Sim rentals. Such exhibitors contend that the value of product has been considerably dimin- ished if they have to wait two, thre<> or four weeks longer to play the picture after it has finished flrst-rur accounts. Story from Hollywood is that Sol Lesser, who is making a film starring Chita and Johnny Weismuller, re- fused a salary increase for the tal- ented Chita and the question arose whether Chita is animal or actor. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, owners of Chita, pointed out that their contract stipulated that a raise in pay for Chita was to go into effect Monday. Actors' salaries are frozen. Lesser maintained, but M-G-M countered with the claim that Chita is an animal and not an actor. Lesser announced that he was getting in touch with Economic Stabilization Director James F. Byrne to get a ruling .straight from' Washington. At Byrne's White House office it was said that If the matter is brought to them it would be tossed right back to HoUywood. Hugh Ducker, chief of the salary stabilization office for the area that embraces Holly- .wood, is supposed to know all about actors and animals and their salaries and also about the salary regula tions that affect them. GIVE MARINES'OPENING 48-HOUR RADIO BAUY Confronted with having to rush a complete ad-publicity-exploita- tion campaign before the public, March of Time and 20th-Fox under- took an intensive spot radio bally tor the Dec. 12 New York opening of 'We Are the Marine.',,' second fea- ture made by M. of T. Result was that Hul Home and Albert Sind- linger, of 20th-Fox and March of Time, resjjectively, and Jack Pegler, of Lord & Thomas, lined up some 108 spot announcements on local N. Y. radio stations, all aligned to break within 48 hours. Many of the spot spiels were made by West- brook Van Voorhis, known as the 'March of Time' voice. The radio time that preceded opening of 'Marines' at the Globe theatre included special interviews with well-known radio figures plus Jack Glenn, director of the film. Special break for the picture on the M. of T. network .ihow was spotted Thursday (10) night. by the loss of the advertising value of signs or marquees. Thus, while a theatre might save on electricity and bulbs, it may be losing twice as much in business due to the dim- outs. According to a film engineering source, the reduction in the use of electric power may be averaging around 8% for theatres. Among other things, the amount of power varies in accordance with the number ut daylight hours when marquees or signs may be in opera- tion; also in line with the amount used for cooling systems. Some- times they are required earlier in the summer than in in other years, making comparisons dimcult Also, since the dimout. many theatres arc burning more juice on marquees, outer signs and in lob- bies than prior to the dimout. There is little fear concerning an Increase in electricity rates, though pointed out that where private utilities are supplying the power, the cost is generally higher. In New York City, one-cent and a fraction is the lowest price at which juice can be obtained, cost ranges up to 7c, with result a cutdown in the amount of power Increases the cost per kilowatt hour. In other words, a theatre, now tising less juice than before the dimout, may be paying a cent or more per kilo- watt, thus jazzing up the figures when it comes to making a reliable comparison. In the summer, more power Is used aside from cooling systems, because signs and marquees can be kept on much longer than in De- cember when days are shortest Since the exhibition and film dis- tribution branches of the picture business are not likely to find man- power relief in the category of 'es- sential' industries, under which the War Manpower Commission is likely to place some phases of production, major circuits and dlstribs are pre- paring to meet increased drafting of manpower during the coming months by more general employment of women. All reports from circuit operators indicate that the problem of provid- ing adequate manpower for theatres has reached an acute stage and that it has now become necessary to plant women in executive posts. Apart from the drain on manpower for mil- itary service, film execs also antici- pate additional loss of manpower when the WMC campaign to switch workers from non-e.ssential to essen- tial industries goes into high. Various Government officials have already issued several warnings to employers to arrange tor women to take over jobs as quickly as possible. "The film industry manpower com- mittee, meantime, has drawn up a list of studio workers considered es- sential to the preser\'ation of the in- dustry. Among those included in the survey were technicians, such as cameramen, film cutters, sotmd engi- neers, grins, electricians, and anima- tors.' - - Indteationsr test .w«ak«>...r. Sttpv ported in Variety, were that these classes of studio workers would be declared essential and that the indus- try may also be given a broad 'essen- tial' classification. This latter, how- ever, would not provide for blanket deferments in exhibition, distribution or any other branch of the indu.stry where women or other untrained personnel not eligible for defense plant or military service could be employed as replacements. ant barkers for 1943. Clayton G. Eastman, who was an assistant bark- er, becomes dough guy. Joseph Shure, Fabian division booker, hat been chosen secretary. These offi- cers, together with managers Harry Alexander of 20lh-Fox. Artie New- man of Republic' Paul S. Krumen- acker of Vitagraph. C. A. Smakwitz, assistant zone manager of Warner Bros. Theatre^ and Max Friedman, head booker In the WB zone olBce here, comprise the board of directors. Par Fetes SnIIIvao Paramount associates gave lunch- eon Friday (11) to Ed Sullivan, head of the photographic department, who yesterday (Tuesday) was Inducted by the Army. George Smith, western division sales manager for Paramount, has returned to his desk after a lengthy tour of his territory on flUn deals. WBItes Back from Toronto Warner sales executives returned to the homeofflce Monday (14) after attending a two-day convention in Toronto at which plans were laid for special Canadian selling drive to start Dec. 20, as in the state*. Above the border, a first prize of $1,000 was (Continued on page 19) Firemen Rule Out Lobby Tinsel As Too Hazardous Because of the extreme care in ■afeguarding night clubs, theatres and other places of amusement, as an aftermath of the Boston Cocoa- nut Grove disaster, the elaborate animal' lobby, arranged by United Artists for the opening of 'Jacare' at the Globe, N. Y., was ruled out. N. Y. firemen deemed the stuffed animal array In the theatre lobby too hazardous. Display was lined up at a cost ot ■bout $2,000, Metro's Slick Nag Ads Metros inaugurated an unusually smart slant in its advertising treat- ment of 'Random Harvest' in 13 na- tional magazines. Instead of the un.- vcrsally-accepted i^lyie ot layout, the displays actually simulate a page of the magazine in which the copy ap- pears with the text written by top- flight writers ol those mags, such as Faith Baldwin in Ladies Home Jour- nal. Clarence Biiddington Kelland in Satevepost. Octavus Roy Cohen in Collier's and Rex Stout in the American. Staff arti.>ils of each mag did the art. The magazines felccted have an e.stimuted combined readership of 126,000,000. Pic P.A.'s in Service Retain Guild Rights Hollywood, Dec. 15. Film press agents who have en tcred military service will retain lbeir..fuU..£ightt as members ot tti* Screen Publicists Guild, under a referendum now in the mails. Bal- lot reads: ' 'War service will not Interrupt the active membership of any mem- ber of the Screen Publicist Guild In good standing at the start of such service. There shall be an honorary suspension of dues and assessments during war service. Notices of gen- eral membership meetings shall be sent to all members in war serv- ice.' 'Chappte> ChaplB Dot St Louis, Dec. IS. The sale of the Saunders. Harvard, m., to the B.K. & K. Theatre Co.. saw the passing of E. B. 'Chappie' Chapin who was connected with the house in some capacity for 3S years. In 1907 he began as a prop boy and successively was usher, projectionist, buyer, booker and finally manager. His successor is Louis Simonini. BJC ft B. also owns and operates a house at Hinsdale, HI. Mike Chiaventone has .succeeded Paul Russell as manager of the Val- ley, Spring Valley. 111. Russell Is doing his bit in a defense plant. Pasquale Magnini, manager of the Town, Prophetstown, III., sporting a suit of khaki, succeeded for the diu'a- tion by James Merchesi. Anderson Circuit, headquartered In Morris. 111., relighted the Barge In Seneca, III. 'T. Hedges, formerly manager of the Illinois. Metropolis, 111., succeeded .Pat Meadows as manager of the Roxy, Mounds, 111. Woodrow Poffer. former manager to the Roxy, Ramsey, 111., now with radio dept. of Squadron No. 438 School of the U.S.A. at Lake Charles, 111. M. (Thamness, owner of the Nox, Carrie Mills, III., opened a new house with the same tag at Karnak, 111. The Art. Winona, 111., shuttered for the duration. The Empress, Decatur, 111., 100 facelifting. D. M. Dillenbeck the new manager-- of Rialto, Bushnell, 111., a Plrtle house. He formerly was associated with the State, Sterling, 111., and re cently received a citation for out- .standing theatre management during the third quarter of 1942. McGovem & Arvin giving their Ritz. Oden, HI., facelifting job. 2-for-l't in Roch. Rochester, N. Y., Dec. 15. Rochester theatre men are report- ed stirred up over 2-for-l tickets dis- tributed in neighborhood .stores by Howard Carroll. Strand. The tickets, which may be had for the asking, are good cither afternoon or t-vc- nings Wednesdays and Thursdays for two persons on payment of a single admission price. Rate in the after- noon is 15c.. making actual cost of admi.ssion 7'4c. whereas regular price for children throughout the city is 11c. The Strand has 'Big Bingo' Tues- days and Fridays. Mec .CAM. MM.Usisn . Salt Lake. City. Dec. IS Roxy (Fox), Brigham City, tem- porarily without manager since man- ager Sterling Nelson resigned to be- come mortician. Joe Anstead's Leave Worcester, Dec. 15. Gertrude Tracy, for several months assistant manager of Loew's Poll here, last week replaced Joe Aastead, for many years manager of the Loew Poll Elm St house. Anstead granted leave of absence due to illness. Mary Foley of Worcester promoted to as- sistant manager to Harold Maloney Poll manager, vice Miss Tracy. LatU Heads Albany Vartety Albany, Dec. IS C. J.'Latta; New. York Stete zone manager for Warner Bros. Theatres, is the new Chief Barker of the Al bany Variety Club. Latta, who came here from the post of assistant zone manager in Pittsburgh when Moc Silver, the first Chief Barker under the reorganized setup, was upped to zone head in that city, takes the place of L. R. Golding. Golding, divisional manager of the Fabian circuit, ad- vanced from first a.'isistant to chief when Silver went to Pittsburgh. Herman L. Ripps, Metro branch manager, and Neil Hellman, local independent exhibitor, are the asslst- Give the Switch to UA's OK Bally on Coward Pic Elimination ordered by the Hays office of a few cuss words in tha new Noel Coward fUm, In Which We Serve, lias become a real inter- national incident. It has not only led to a controversy between the Hays- ites and United Artists, the U. S. dis- tributors, on one aide, and the Brit- ish producers on the other, but has drawn attention during the past week from the shortwave broadcasters ot both Italy and Spain. And comment aired by the latter was picked up from a Stockholm dispatch. Rome, as might be expected, got the details somewhat confused and exaggerated the Importance of tha incident Speaking in Italian to the people of the Italian Empire and in English to North America, Radio Roma last Wednesday (9) declared: The New York State Censorship Bureau refused to pass a British liropaganda film Illustrative of the British fleet ruling that it was unac- ceptable from a moral point of view.' The DXer at Malaga, Spain, used a Stefani (Italian news agency) dis- patch datellned from Stockholm . It said that U. S. censors had rejected a film on the British fleet because the dialog Included bad language. SPG ASKING PAY TILTS FOR ADDED SERVICES Because added duties have been assigned to numerous members of the Screen Publicists Guild, largely as result of men going Into the service, the union is preparing to make offi- cial demands up<» the heads of pub- licity-advertising departments in New York for increases in pay in accord- ance with es^tra work performed. sentations to publicity-advertising chiefs, claiming more pay should be given in view of added work, so far no raises have been passed out. As a result, the grievance commit- tee of SPG, of which Lawrence Lip- skin of Colimibja is chairman, has called a meeting for tomorrow night (Thursday) to discuss action. Regardless of its contract covering advertising, publicity and artist work- ers in the homeofflce, under which 10% increases were granted when written, the SPG feels that the tele- scoping of jobs or added duties for other reasons, makes boosts In pay justiflable. Also, under the wage stabilization act employers would not have to go to' the War Labor Board or the Treasury Dept. to ob- tain approval for Increases. Hearings on arbitration of the SPG dispute with Paramount in connec- tion with incrcMsed-cost-of-living bonuses to all employees except its (SPG) members and execs earning over $200 weekly, have been put off until Friday (18), due to Illness of Hyman Glickstein, attorney for SPG. A prior postponement had been made at the request of Austin C. Keough, v.p. and legal head of Par.