Variety (Dec 1942)

PICTURES Wednesday, December 30, 1942 Nick Sciienck-MeOett Statement Nicholas M Schcnck. president of Loew's, Inc., issued a statement Monday t2fl) referring to the meeting held In New York last Wednes- day (23) to the effect that the purpose was 'To review the product produced by the industry during the past 12 months relating to the war effort and to discuss the assistance and cooperation made available to the industry by the Bureau of Motion Pictures of the Oflice of War Information. We took occasion to express the industry's thanks and appreciation for the helpful and constructive assistance given to us by Mr Mellett in dealing with the many new and novel problenv<! with which the industry had to contend since Pearl Harbor. [Following italics ours.—Ed.) 'Both the induitry'j cooperotton and the services o/ the Bureau 0/ Motion Pictures have been on a purely roluntary basis. The element of voluntary cooperation u-hich hns charocterized our relationships in the past will continue in the future.' Mellett's letter of conflimation to Schenck read, in part, as follows: •Put on paper, the pertinent part of my statement to you is that our office is not asking the producers of pictures to submit such pic- tures to us at any stage of production—original story, shooting script, long cut or finished picture. We are sueoestine, however, that the purpose of the motion picture Industry to cooperate as fully as possible in the war effort will be best served If pictures or proposed pictures are brought to our attention at each of these stages of pro- duction. Our aim is to simplify the procedures that now prevail. The nearer a picture approaches completion, the more difticiilt and expensive becomes the making of any alteration that in our mutual judgment may seem necessary.' Trade's Alarm Over MeDett-OWI Fi m Censorship Ideas Begins to Abate Industry toppers, following several meetings last week, remained aloof to Lowell Mellett's proposal that scripts on all planned productions be submitted to the Bureau of Motion Pictures for judgment prior to actual filming. Though acutely aware of the cen- sorship Implications in Mellett's re- quest, there appeared to be no un- due alarm over the development be- cause both Elmer Davis, OWI chief, and Mellett had stressed that the Oflice of War Information had 'no right of compulsion over the picture companies' as cuch. A meeting was held last Wednes- day (23) with Nick Schenck, Barney Balaban, N. Peter Rathvon, Joe Hazen and Mellett attending in New York. This conference apparently resulted merely in a statement of views from the producers and reiteration of his previous proposal by Mellett. While in Washington yesterday (Tuesday) on Wage Stabilization matters, company heads planned to drop in on Mellett Brief, fully outlining the difficulties which would face the industry as a result of the proposed censorship, will be left with the OWI for further study The Producers Association previ- ously passed the Mellett develop, ment along to the company presi dents in New York as the fornfer group obviously considered it too hot to handle. For a time there was some thought of issuing an official reply from the industry as a whole to Mellett's proposal. This was later decided against since the subject was distinctly a production matter. Various studios had meantime been advised against making indi- vidual replies to Mellett's letter, pending further study. On the whole, studio and company heads failed to see the need for supplying the Bureai: with scripts on non-war themes, such as musicals and other purely escapist Hlms. Difficulties of production, which of necessity moves quickly, were also empha- sized in discussions. If the effect of every non-war theme -..-as first to be weighed in relation to the effect it might conceivably Bave upon the public at a given time, company heads were of opinion that needless additional hurdles in production would be encountered. Some company execs felt, also, that once even n mild form of Fed- eral cen.sorship is imposed it stands a good chance of remaining after the war and becoming increasingly restrictive. Also recalled was Presi- dent Roo.sevelfs declaration, at the time Mellett was appointed Coor- dinator of Government Films—'I want no censorship of the film.' Opinion was divided last week on the Mellett proposal, some execs not inclined to take It too .<icriou.sly, since it was not a directive, .ond doubting that the Coordinator would seek Government regulation to achieve censorship. Others felt that the request would ultimately become a directive. Stadio Contracts Hollywood, Dec. 29. Frances Ward, Powers model, signed by Metro. Edith Head's designer option lifted by Paramount. Mimi Chandler's player contract with Paramount approved by Su- perior Court. Hermes Pan drew an option lift for one year as dance director at 20th-Fox. Patti \ Brilhante, stage actress, signed by RKO. Anthony Quinn's actor contract renewed by 20th-Fox. Dave Willock inked actor pact at 20th-Fox. Phil Silvers' player option picked up at 20th-Fox. Joseph Santley renewed as direc- tor by Republic. Paramount signed Murray Burnett and Joan Alison, writer. JoryPflots'Ganmaster' Hollywood, Dec. 29. Next high-budget western on Harry Sherman's slate for United Artists release is 'Gunmaster,' ■ pioneer tale written by Norman Houston. Victor Jory makes his debut as a film director in the picture, slated for a Jan. 20 start GAS RATIONING HIS MICHIGAN Detroit, Dec. 29. While gas rationing has hot seri- ously affected Detroit, reports from out-State indicate that it has hit the small towns hard. Film salesmen who contact the up-State towns are gloomily reporting that as high as 50% of them are shuttering for the duration. Towns in the sparsely settled up- State regions of Michigan, former lumber communities or widespread farm settlements, depended greatly on the trade that drove Into town. It's gone and what's more even the State isn't wasting any gas to sweep open snowbound roacls In such sec tions. A few houses are planning to keep open weekends to see It they can make a go of it on the farmers big Saturday nights, but others see the writing on the wall and are ducking out before they take any further loss. • In one small town the exhibitor tried to work out a bus policy of pickups for his patrons but the local rationing board frowned on the pro- posal as 'non-essential.' WB SETS FILM DEAL VU HEARST FOR HOLLE Warners' picture deal with 13- year-old George William Holle, who joined the U. S. Marines at 12 and fought in the South Pacific until military officials discovered his real age, was set largely through the Hearst press. Jack Malloy, editor of the Chicago Herald-American, talked with Jack L. Warner and helped arrange the deal. Warners plan to star Holle in a picture about the Marines. R. McC. Marsh Socceeds Judge Veeder on Board Federal Judge Henry W. Goddard yesterday (Tuesday) in the U. S. District Court, filled the vacaiicy on the three-man Appeal Board of the motion picture arbitration system by naming Robert McC. Marsh, a mem- ber of the board. He will fill the unexpired term of Judge Van Vech- ten Veeder who recently died. Judge Veeder was chairman of the Appeal board and .was appointed on Nov. 20, 1940, for a three-year term. George W. Alger, of the board, was made chairman, the third arbi- ter is Albert W. Putnam, both ap- pointed on Feb. 1. 1941. A hearing was held at the Federal court on Monday (28) on motion of the U. S. Government for the ap- pointment of a new chairman. At- torneys for film companies attended the hearing but made no suggestions as to a successor to the board. N. Y.METRO EMPLOYEE MYSTERIOUSLY SLAIN Herbert Holtz, 34, assistant cashier at the Metro exchange in New York, was mysteriously shot and killed at' ter midnight Saturday (26) in New Y'Ork as he was climbing stone steps leading from Central Park to the street near Columbus Circle. No at tempt was made to rob him. Police, baffled by the apparent lack of motive, were looking for a man and woman seen running from near the place where Holtz was killed just after the shooting. They entered a sedan and drove off, . N. Y. Exhibs Salvaged 9,000 Tons of Copper Exhibs in the metropolitan New York area have salvaged approxi- mately 9,000 pounds of copper, according to a group report issued last week by the War Activities Ccmmittee. Understood that a greater tonnage was salvaged when copper turned, over to local junk dealers is figured. Exhibs have advisee tlje WAC they will stage 'copper' instead of 'scrap matinees' in response to the Govern- ment reqiiest for a copper collection drive. Freeman in N. Y. . Y. Frank Freeman is due in New York tomorrow (Thursday) to con- fer with industry leaders there on getting proper classification for pic- ture people now- in armed forces. Idea is to have film workers in uni- form transferred to branches of serv- ice more adaptable to their talents. He's in Washington currently on wage stabilization. ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦>>»»»♦♦*♦♦»*»♦♦♦»»♦♦»*♦♦*♦**«»♦ Lefty's Noteb By Joe Laurie, Jr. ^♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦> MM «»» Coolacres, Cal., Dec. 29. Dear Joe: I am playing Warners' 'Gentleman Jim' this week, starring Errol Flynn, who does a great job. There's plenty o( action and some swell fight scenes; In tact, the best I've ever seen. The picture brings back plenty of memories of my old pal, Jim, who wasn't the cocky, smart-alecky guy they picture. Jim was one of the sweetest, kindest and loyal men I've ever met. Corbett was the only one, of all the fighters that ever went into show business, who really could act. And that's saying plenty because I guess all the champs and near-champs some time or other appeared in .vaude- ville, burlesque or drama. Jim's monolog was a classic as was his favorite story that has been used and re-used by plenty of actors. I mean the one he used to tell about the guy who met him in a hotel lobby and said. Don't you remember me, Jim?' Jim looked at him and tried to place him, 'Well, I really can't place you right now, but I do know your face. Where was it I met you7' 'Why you remember when you came back to Frisco after you licked John L. Sullivan and a big mob met you at the train?' sez the guy. 'Oh, sure,' sez Corbett. 'Well, I was the guy with the brown derby hat,' the fellow replied. Jim really didn't remember names. He used to greet everybody with 'Kello, Kid,' even his closest pals. One day he came into the Friars Club and started calling the boys by their first names. I ttirned to Bert Hanlon In surprise and said, 'Bert, did you hear Jim calling us all by our first names, instead of hello, kid?' I wonder what's got over him? And Bert said, 'I guess he's just getting over the Fitzsimmons fight!' I can tell you hundreds of stories about Jim around the old Friars Club. He was never known to have picked a winner of any champion- ship fight. The day of the Dempsey-'Tunney fight, Damon Runyon came into the club looking for Jim, to find out who he was picking to win. Jim wasn't around, so Damon sed, 'I'm running an article about all the great fighters and who they are picking to win the fight. I can't wait tor Jim as we are going to press soon, so I think I'll put him down as picking Tunney. Jim has never picked a winner in his lite and I don't want to spoil his score.' When Jim came Into the club later on we told him what Runyon had said. He Immediately tried to get Runyon on the phone to tell him he was picking Dempsey, not Tunney. But it was too late, the paper being on the streets already with Corbett picking Tunney. When Tunney won, Jim came into the club with a broad grin, 'Well, boys, who says I can't pick a winner? I showed 'em; here It is black on white where I picked Tunney.' Never will -I forget the time when he met James Thornton and said, "James, if you kept away from drink you'd be a great actor.' Thornton gave Corbett one look over his glasses (his wearing ones) and said, 'Jim, if you had kept away from JefTries two rounds you'd 'vc been a great fighter.' As I said before, he was always kidded tor not being able to pick a winner, one day he came back with this nifty, 'Well, in my 25-round fight with JefTries I picked Jeffries to win in the second round.' Jim lost in the 23d. Leonard's Aussie Yam Hollywood. Dec. 29. Robert Z. Leonard s next chore at Metro is a two-way job as director and co-producer on the Charles Laughton starrer, 'The Man From Down Under.' Filming starts Jan. 4, with O. O. Dull as the other co-producer. Films' First $1,000,000,000 Production By bSCAR DOOB who glvps UH some palrlntlc lowOown on the pix biz. «n .Added Fenturc In 'Show Business At War' theme of the 37th Anniversary Number of Watson His Tutor In the picture they have Jim as a member of the Olympic club of San Francisco. The truth is that he was Walter Watson's assistant. Watson taught him all he knew about boxing. Jim became amateur champ of Frisco and was later made an honorary member ot the Olympic club. He fought John L. Sullivan three exhibition rounds at Grand Opera House in Frisco. It was Corbett's benefit. John L. and Jim stripped to the waist and fought with their dress pants and shoes on. It was after this ex- hibition that Corbett turned to a friend and said, 'I can lick John L. any- time I want to.' He wasn't bragging, he just knew he could do it. And he did a few years later. After giving the usual 'Hello Kid' to a stranger he would say, 'How's the folks?' I asked him once, 'Why do you say that, you don't know the guy or his folks?' 'Listen kid. everybody has folks,' was his answer. Corbett loved to play checkers and was very good at the game. He was a nut about baseball, and at pinochle he would never let anyone get a bid away from him. He would drive to the old Waldorf-Astoria from his home in Bayside just to get a double portion ot pistachio ice cream. He would raise hell with waiters about his toast. It had to be toasted on one side only. When he owned a saloon, many of the custom- ers who flooded their tonsils a bit too much would hang around to take 'a sock' at the champ. Nearty all champs have that trouble when they become saloonkeepers. The 'smarty' wants to go back to the home town and say he socked the champ. Of course, Jim couldn't take a chance of socking back, so he had his brother Joe looking out tor the 'smarties' and they had a code word between them. When Jim used the word 'sock- ology' in his conversation It meant that Joe was to 'slug the pest.' When the late Flo Zlegfeld handled Sandow the Strong Man, they i.ssued a challenge to Jim, Sandow to wrestle and Jim to fight it out, winner take all. It caused a lot of controversy and plenty newspaper headlines. Could a good fighter lick of good wrestler?' One night Jim was sitting around with his pals in a restaurant in Frisco, his pals consisting of Frank Belcher, the great basso, who was in Jim's show at the time; Pro- fessor Bill Clark, 'Bud' Woodthorpe, Jim's secretary; Manager OIlie Hagnn and the sporting editor pf the 'Frisco Chronicle, when in walked Sandow and Ziggy. There were a few tense moments, but Jiiiii 'incited them to join him in a drink. Corbett and Sandow got to talking about their respective rackets. Sandow about wrestling and feats ot strength and Jim about fighting. 'I can't hold horses on my chest like you do, Sando\v, mine is a different game,' said J'm. IWith all my stren.gth I don't think I can punch as hard as you can, Jim,' said Sandow. Sandow was pleased with Corbett's gentlemanly bearing and they finished up great friends. I believe it was all a press stunt dreamed up by Ziggy to challenge Jim. Jim always did a great vaudeville act, alone or with partners. He fi'st worked with Billy B. Van, then with Jack Norton, Frank Tinncy and finally with little Bobby Barry. Jim was a grand, sweet, gentle .soul. A great fighter and a fine gentleman. I was glad to see Warners make a picture about him. If you see it you'll get a great Kick watching the change in style of fighting years ago and today. They couldn't get any- body to look more like Jim than Errol Flynn. I do hope the Warners will follow it up with a sequel showing the real Jim Corbett, as he really was. There's plenty of good material in his life after the Sullivan fight to make another picture. There's another guy by the name of Charlie Pope who just went up- stairs' to place his last bet. He was a terrific guy whose life would make a plenty interesting picture. And the bloke to write it would be Bill Halligan; they were closer than twelve o'clock. Best to the gang, sez Yours, Le/iy.. Nov. Paychecks Up Hollywood, Dec. 29. Paychecks of studio workers show a slight rise lor November over the preceding month, with weekly earn- ings pegged at $59.47 average, com- pared to $58.15 for October. State labor statistics bulletin on living costs shows an increase of 10.9% over a similar period last year. AUen's Blonde Blowup Hollywood, Dec. 29. First film director job by Lewis Allen, imported from the Broadway stage a year ago by Paramount, will be 'Incendiary Blonde,' based on the career ot Texas Guinan. Betty Button has the title role, with Alan Ladd as co-star. .