Variety (May 1946)

Wednesday,-M»y 22, 1946 PICTURES 27 Animal Casting Is No Cinch in If wood; They'll Probably Want Unicorns Next Hollywood, May 21. Hollywood casting directors have their work cut out for them these days and dark days they are, what willi producers not satisfied with writing in difficult types but going in 'for animals in a big way. Take the boys, in the Paramount casting office. Charley Brackett and Billy Wilder, who are putting out "The Emperor Waltz," decided that a slag would be nice as companion for Bing Crosby and Joan Fontaine, so tossed this assignment in their respective laps. What did the boys do'.' Went nuts, that's all: They called in the prop depart- ment head, who in turn got in touch with all the animal men in Holly- wood, those, chaps who never fall down on producing whatever species of wild life a studio desires. But they did, this time, and the casting boy.s had to look farther afield. They looUed so far afield that their search took them to a certain game farm in the Cntskills in.New York, where Oscar, a doe-eyed but hugely mascu- line buck in his tastes, hung out. Star Party Oscar now has arrived in Holly- wood, after a sendoff in New York as he started his trek westward which included a smacker kiss by Olivia de Havilland and newsreel men covering the event. Already he's the envy of Hollywood wolves— every pretty gal on the lot goes for him in a terrific manner and he's a social lion, a success. Only one thing—he kicks whenever Der Bingle conies near him, which is going to complicate matters since he and the Croaner are supposed to love each oilier in the picture. Not too long ago, two kangaroos- Joey and Harris—arrived from Au- stralia, consigned to one William Cagney, who will produce "The Stray Lamb." They came over from the Mariposa, along with a few hun- dred war brides. When the ship pulled into San Francisco, plenty of GOING...! To Pay 40 la*tQda iilh QUARTER Thanks, LOU WALTERS- Them's Kind Words '•rioiial Manager: HEM RUBIN looked Through FREDERICK BROS. newsreel men were present to lens all the brides, but they ended up by training their finders on Joey and Harris, who are stiil in the growing stage. Joey and Harris were beauty con- test winners, or something, in their native land, which led to their coming to Hollywood. Cagney needed a mighty kangaroo, but his casting director couldn't locate a suitable one here, so his p. a. hit upon the idea of the contest in Australia. So now Cagney has two kangaroos on his hands, who require' a special diet and tender care, and the picture has been postponed un- til August. Donkey Serenade A pair of burrbs, impolite crea- tures who hee-haw upon the slight- est provocation—only they don't need any provocation at all— are making life miserable for producer Edward Small, director Irving Pichcl and stars Merle Oberon and Charles Korvin out at Universal, where International is filming "Bella Donna." Not to speak of three camels, who try to take tasty nips out. of everyone who passes. Pichel had to have a couple of Rocky Mountain canaries with just the right tones, so it was up to cast- ing to find them. Mr. Pichel now is sorry he didn't have, casting gel him a brace with no voices at all. For "Bob, Son of Battle/' at 20th- Fox, producer Robert Bossier must find two sheepdogs which resemble strikingly the two canine stars of the film. Practically every sheep ranee in western America has been contacted thus far, with casting ho farther along than the day it started. Bassler, though, is' a stickler when it comes to casting'just the animal he wants, so the casting boys prob- ably will grow old before their time. Some of them did, locating the hoss for "Smoky," and, before that, the steed for little role in "Thundcihead, Son of Flicka." Trained fleas are the casting troubles for "Bel Ami," which Loew-Lewin are turning out for United Artists release. You know fleas, they are like humans, pretty and homely, talented and untal- ented—if you can see 'em. These fleas which director Lewin wanted were to be just right, so the poor casting lads had to locate just what he wanted. You try it, sometime. A charging wild buffalo is what producers Benedict Bogeaus and Casey Robinson need for The Short Happy Life of Frances. Ma- comber." The camera unit which left London for Central Africa last January, to film special wild ani- mal footage for picture, had orders to get such a shot if possible, but it returned to England without. Now such an animal, ferocious, ill-tempered, is the quest here, and those casting boys being what they are, they'll probably find one. Jessel MC'ing Kirsch's Allied States Shindig Chicago, May 21. With George Jessel skedded for emcee duties, inaugural weekend for Jack . Kirsch as new president of Allied States Theatres takes on all j the aspects of a big production. I.Spyros Skouras, Ed Raftery, and I Chi Mayor Ed Kelly have accepted j positions on the committee for the i dinner Friday (24), while the formal i inauguration Saturday (25). will be attended by a long list of stage and screen people. Dinner and ceremony will take place in the Palmer House. Carole Landis is latest to accept invitation to attend. ffwood Moves Info Commercial Film Field for Industrial Mother Lode BLOOM TAKES 'MUSIC Hollywood, May 21. Switch in Columbia's shooting schedule hands William Bloom pro- duction chores on "Say It With Mu- sic," originally assigned to Ted Richmond. ■ Joe Besser draws lop role in the musical. Richmond instead draws Chester Morris' next in the "Boston Blackic" series, titled The Clue That Talked." It's for June. Hollywood, May 21. With more and more industrial concerns becoming cognizant of the potentialities of films as a medium for greater selling power, as a train- ing course for salesmen, as institu- tional showcases, the commercial picture is coming into its own. and Hollywood is quick to grasp at its possibilities. Latest entry into this field is James A. FitzPatrick, who only re- cently added series of musical shorts, tagged Famous Music Masters to his production program. Number of years ago, producer turned out a 30- mlnute picture in Technicolor for Weyerhaeuser interests, titled Trees and Homes." which was shown throughout country under auspices of .Variety Club, and. also . played over full Fox West Coast circuit.. FitzPatrick, at the time, did not con- tinue with industrials, due to fact he was too busy roving the world for his Metro "Travcltalks." Charles (Buddy) Rogers, too. Ins', i week announced formation of Comet Associated Film Producers, Inc., a new company separate from his Comet Productions. This new con- cern was organized for production of higher budget commercial films, and will draw on executive and pro- duction personnel of Comet, which turns out six films annually for United Artists release. Mo.rey and Sutherland, who re- lease their cartoons through United Artists, < also are embarking upon career in the industrial and institu- tional field. They have their own studio setup, and expect to start- building another sound stage within next eight or nine weeks. Shell Oil Co. last week retained them to turn out a 15-minute'film to be used for. training of new sales personnel. They also are making reel for American Cancer Society, to make public aware of the disease, and an- other for National Carbon Co. SPG'S 30% INCREASE OPPOSED BY N.Y. COS. Eastern film companies which among, themselves have been mulling over drastic demands under a hew contract from the Screen Publicisls Guild have indicated that an early date will be set for what is expected to .be a severe and possibly pro- tracted battle. During the past week the home- offices notified the SPG that pend- ing settlement on a new contract, the old one which expired May 4 Will remain in force and thai any deal ultimately reached will be re- troactive on wage benefits to that date. SPG, which lakes in publicists, ad- vertising personnel and artists, is asking a 30/;J general increase. Guild includes four different classifica- tions, minimums of which under the old contract were $30 to $50 for ap- prentices, $50 to $70 for associates, $70 to $90 for publicists and $100 for senior publicists. In addition to the staff demand on wage boosts, the SPG will seek an increase in severance pay from the present maximum of 12 weeks to as much as 52 afler 25 years of serv- ice. Also sought is a three-week vacation with pay instead of two as under the old agreement. One-year deal is proposed. the, story of **) e Sir Alexander Korda, a distinguished doodler, also makes motion pictures. His doodles, while not as widely circu- lated, are every bit as challenging as his movies. This latest production, thoughtfully worked out on a recent Paris-New York Constellation flight, fea- tures an outstanding cast including a remarkably dreary character in the lower left-hand corner. -a4> *t A man on a recent coast-to-coast Con- stellation flight startled several people by saying,'4 make more money than anybody." This turned out to be Al Jeffries whose Jeffries Banknote Com- pany is currently printing bales of for- eign $20 and $100 bills. So far they've made 167 million "pieces," as they say in the trade, and they've been ordered to keep the presses rolling until the cx- 1>ressly unnamed government calls a lalt. Jeffries got the order because he owns one of twelve existing geometric lathes (machines responsible for the complicated curlicues on paper money). The Treasury Department owns two of six in the U.S. and the rest are scattered around Europe. Literally. ^ 3*. Barbara Sutro is probably the only well- known New York photographer whose grandfather's cousin drained the inside. of a mountain. The man was Adolpli . Sutro, the time was about 1875 and the place was the Comstock Lode in Nevada. Adolpli saved a number, of flooded mines by digging a four-mile tunnel to reach under them and drain the water. What he did with part of the money lie made can be seen today in Sutro Gardens in San Francisco. He bought up tons of statuary and had it shipped around the Horn. Which brings us back to . Barbara, a Constellation passenger on Flight 3 from New York to Los Angeles —easily the fastest and silkiest way in history to by-pass die Horn. Mrs. Carveth Wells and her talking mynah bird, Raffles, went to consider- able lengths the other day to get aboard an eastbound Cohstellatwn in Los An- geles. The bird hates altitude, just like people, and in ordinary planes he cracks his ears by yawning. Mrs. Wells wanted Raffles to take a whirl at the Normalair cabin, which keeps pressures at a rela- tively normal altitude. The airline was sorry, but birds and beasts aren't allow- ed on the Constellation. When Raffles found this out, his language, according to Mrs. Weils, was something fierce. The airage has come to Carmen Miranda, or maybe it's the other way arouixLTen days ago,on Hollywood-bound Flight 3, she letloose widi a commercial—said she wouldn't go back home to her native Rio de Janeiro (it's been six years now) until she gets a Constellation to ride in. The accompanying photograph is offered as . proof that six years in the United States haven't done her appreciable harm. 1$ Cruising regularly coast-to-coast and overseas, Lockheed Constellations offer these and other interesting people greater speed, comfort and safely. Make reservations through a travel agent or one of the Consultation airlines.