Variety (Nov 1946)

MUSIC ?4b)M)(«4 Weekly It 15* Went 46th Street, New Torlc l», N. :Y., by Variety, Iiid: Annual aubscrlption. ilO. Sinile cooies, JS cerite. flnleied u ueoiid-eliiw matter Dooejnber 8a, 1905, at the Post Oftice at New York, N. r., under the act ot March I, 187» COFTRIGITT, 1946, BY VAKIKTY. IMC. At,L RIGHTS ItKSGK VF,U. VOL. 164 No. 9 NEW YORK, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER ,6, 1946 PRICE 25 CENTS TIN PAN STEW ON SAUCY SONGS Literary IJf esavers Tossed at Sinking Radio Pix Shows; Mags May Mar Pitch Hollywood, Novj.B. - t Deatth of suHicient first-rate film scilpts to keep such radio shows as "Academy Award , Theatre," "Lux Radio Theatre," "Screen Guild" and the new Hedda Hopper-Camay lay- out going 39 weeks a year is caus- ing adapters so mUch nail-biting and resulling in such a flood ol drama- ti7.alions of B pix that sponsors are giving tlie agencies fits over their ratings. As a result, the agency guys are scraping the bottom of the bar- rel to find alternative formats in order to keep the ether supplied ■with verbiage. Among substitutes with a diifcrent ; baclcground than that aiforded by the usually surefire, terrifically pre- exploited film plots is thai being peddled around the agencies by Jimmy. Pai'lcs for Paul Radin of the Buchanan agency, with Bill i'adi- man, Metro story editor and brother Of Clifton Fadiman, as kingpin. Fadiman, with approval of Metro brass, has given the go-ahead signal for agency to choose a panel of judges composed of w.k. magazine writers to select "America's Short ■ Story of the Week" frorin such mags as the Satevepost, Collier's, Liberty, Woman's Home Companion, Cosmo- politan, Ladies Home Journal and Country Gentleman for radio drama- tization. Story ed has agreed to act as head of the conitnittee, and has submitted list of 'potehtial candidates with "marqiiee value" to assist him, in- cluding Edna'Ferber, Louis Brom- fleld. Pearl Buck, 'VV. R. Burnett, James Cain, Octavus Roy Cohen, Vina Delmar, William Faulkner, Paul Galileo, Ben Ames Williams, James Hilton, Fannie Hurst, Mackin- lay Kantor, Sinclair Lewis, Clarence Budington Kelland. Somerset Maug- ham, Kathleen Norris, John O'Hara, Damon Runyon and Pliilip Wylie. Judges will be selected from' this ■ list.'- I^ea is that the sliort story as a literary form is more perfectly adaptable to a half-hour radio show .thaii a eondensation of a film or full- length hovel, which many times . must be emasculated in order to (Continued on page 56) /COMEBACK' OFFERS FLOOD JIMMY SAVO Jimmy .SavQ, whose leg was am- putated recently, will make a come- back using an artificial limb. He's .currently mulling olTers from vir- , tually every spot that he's ever worked, which Includes Cafe Society Uptown and the Persian Room, both New York; Lookout House, CoviuK- Ky., and the Bradford roof. ■ Doston;'< Comedian's determination to hit the comeback trial wa.i heishtened avalanche of mail from Army • and Navy amputeci?. Savo, while in |hi> liospitnl, did a guc-it shot on Wo the People" which resuUcd in Shaw and Shaw Duet Like Never Before Hollywood, Nov. 5. Artie.ShaW plays a duet with, him- self in new Musicraft platter "Don't You Believe It, Dear." It's believed first time It's been done on plat- ters. -■ ■, Shaw played leadi clarinet witli his sax section: at the recording date, then donned headpiiones when date was dubbed, playing clary solo over the saxes and bis own clary. mills IC [Worst Caricature of Jews, Catliolics' ULERl SELVES' Charged to UA's'Abie's hish Rose' Played Anti-Nazi in Pic, Unmasked as Storm Trooper, Imprisoned Berlin, Nov. 5. G.ei'mans didn't laugh . this week .when 'Ernst Borchert, star of the Russian-financed, , aritl-Nazi film, •'The Murderers Are Among Us," the first f uU-dre.ss big league talker made since the end ot the war, was absent from the pretjiiere at the Staats- opera., Borchert spent day in jail after being sentenced to 11 months on charges of having fal.=iified an em- ployment questionnaire. He con- cealed fact he had been a Storm Trooper, Curious twist was given story by fact that Borchert woh plaudits of entire press for his portrayal of an anil-Nazi doctor Wlio returns from wars and sets out to avenge murders in conceni ration camps. Signaling! the .revival of the Ger- man film inditslry, "The Murderers Are Among U.'^." was made by the Sox'iel-liccnscd Deutsche Film Corp. British-licen.>!ed studios here liave started shooting a second German pic. ■ . Ameriean-licciised studios.in "Tem- pelhof and Munich are preparing to turji out pix. . but. are hot .so • .far -along, OMGUS ' filpi control ' officers^ said.'" The story of a German dpofpr haunted by the murder of women and .children in a .Polish. .toWh, on Glu-ist|has, 1942. the new film-raises Ih.e question of. .\vhether. G^rmaii people have' the righi; , to take .jusli^ into their own hands. ' . ■ A German gir.l, herself the victim of a Concent ration camp, CQtivihces the doctor tliat revenge is nOt ~;tho (Continued on page .')(!) By ABEL GREEN Tin Pan Alley has been almo.st circumspect in selt-regulating itself, on the theory that millioris ot copies of- sheet mtisio to into the hoWie^, and the tunes are projected likewise for domestic conslimption via radio, records and like. Even if some of the boy-girl lyrics might..: be cpn- sti-ued as having a more ardent con- notation than the usual "kiss'.; lines might indicate,' it's a circumstance beyond , the conti-ol of the song- smiths and publishers. But a recent trend ot saucier pop song wordage, more of a freak rather than a de» liberate nature, has the music, jneii taking stock of the situation. .\ The minor di.slceries have given way to a couple of major recording company iri^tanCcs where the song lyrics might be questioned. Woody Herman's Columbia platter of "No! Don't Stop"';is a matter of trea.tmcntt much :a.<5 Is .-the case of .a Bing tContinued on page 56) Slump Cues Cafe Name Budgets The current business slump, in cafes has hit the medium-priced acts harde.'St. with dance teams suffering most. With declining takes, bonifaces are concentrating more on the high- priced names, hoping they'll bring in a buck, and compensating for greater expenditures, for headliners l)v cutting down on the. rest of the show, ■•■'■}'■ . - ., . As a result, most, calfe^. are ^ using a fairly expensive name plus an ar- ray ol cheaper acts. Medium tagged turns which previously supported the names are niissing from most lineups since the operator must take declining revenue info accotint. First cate-pwiier to . attempt. ■ thiS type of show is Monte Proser of the ' (Continued on page 56J : Harry Jolson To Hit Comeback Highway : : Hollywood, Nov. 5. Al Jolson's brother, Harry, with whom he started in: show business, is returning to the job after 15 years of retirement. Comebaclc is prompted by the publicity he recently received in columnar comment on "The Jol- .son Story." Jolson opens Nov. 8 with a nilery date in JerSey City, to be followed by a scries of bookings in night spots and thoalre."!.: Tops'Nixes $18,750 : Paul Whiteman last week turned dowin $18.7,50 for three days' work- in Canada. He'd been offered that much for an hour and a half of Wav- ing . his wand, each of throe, nights fpr; ai fa.«hioii sliow in London, On- tario.-^'■ OriginaHV;. tlie i!ponsor.« of the s:ii6\v .brrerect- "Pops". .$10,000 for three-"days. He wouldn't budae (icro.'is llie border for lo.i)^ than six. many ollei-sfrom '■'the''.'8ervlc«ificn'! at' $1 "back came the bid at that J<> . toach him how to prop'et'ly ijf'o prii^> tin- only three t'a.vs. Heathen *"e substitute log., : - ; , l-chans!ed.:hiK mind, again.,, D. H. Lawrence's The Man' To Be a Broadway Legiter The origin;il manuscript of D. H. Lawrence's novel "The Man Who Died," including notes and first dia- log draft for, ;a play version, has been boxighl- b.v the iiew legit producing firm of Whitehead and Bea. Firm is now negptiating , with aiithor's wid- ow, Mrs. Frieda Lawrence, who is in Taos, New Mexico, for dramatisia- tion tights.' Book. .<it(jr.y of 'the Man who rose after C'rucillxion to return tb. life, wa.s Tir.-:t publi.slied in 1929. There W(;rc three editions in all, all limited, with about 2.000 copies altogether, in Paris.: Lo'iidrtn and N. Y; Law- rence, who died in, 193L had planned on- dramatii'.ing; the book himself. 'Robert Wliitehcad and Oliver Rea ' (latter is- erne ui' the producer;; ot I (he (.•urrenl : "•.Ni'ii.'ilit.v • Naught") iluiii.' to I'MVp work drauiatized for 'an eta'ly ivrikiuctioiir ;^ ■\ ■ : Don Redman Test Case In Showdown Between Brit.-U.S. Music Unions Don Redman, American Negro bandleader, becomes the central figure in an Anglo-American test case between the Musicians Union of England and the American Feder- ation of Musicians. The British labor organization has tabooed the Amer- ican Negro bandleader's eoncert bookings in London and elsewhere, in delib,crate retaliation to J. C. Petrillo's ban on British bandmen who yen to play in the U. S. Notably these include Geraldo fGerald Bright), Maurice Winnick and (Bert) AmtirOse, among others. . They are all in the U. S.. by coin- cidence, as is Jack Hylton, former No. 1 British bandmaster, excepting thai Hylton today is an important West End impresario. By coincidence, also, Hylton was the one w'ho sought to import Red- man, who has just completed a suc- ccs.sful concert tour in the Norse countries. He figured that Redman, not playing dansapation but appear- ing strictly as a platform attraction, . Would not, expeyience any difficulties ; wi th MU, (Miisiciaiis- Union of Eng- land). Redman was set for Alljert Hall,: London, and other topflight Ettgl).* concert dafes untiT both the Briti.'Sli Labor Ministry and Fred Dambman,. iicad of MU, intervened and stated that so long as Petri Ho- wa,<i nixing the influx ot British musicians into the U. S., the same would apply in England. Ifylton. in New York closing for the rights of sundry legit shows, flies bach Fridaji (8), in advance of Mrs. Fill (Frieda) Hylton, who retiu'ns on the ,Queen Elizabeth, Bing Crosby's production of 'Abie's Irish Rose," set for De- cember release by United Artt.-;ts, : brgught .strenuous • objection tliis week from a reviewing committea made up of various religious groups. They termed the picture "the vv(rr.<it sort of caricature of both Jew.s:iind Catholics'—much worse than the 1923 original—and " film that sets us bad; 20 years in . the . work We have, boon:; •trying to do in bringing the peoplei ,,, of America closer together." Committee which saw the film:at UA Monday (4), following eom- plaints from Other preview groups, consisted of reps of the , American Jevvi.sh Committee, the National : Conference of Christians ^nd Jews, and similar organizations active in fighting recurring racial caricatures in films and radio. They will have their Hollywood reps huddle with Crosby next week in hope of having the picture extensi'veiy revised or: shelved. Similar committee made stiw.; protest recently again-t the . Fanny Brice sequence in Metro's "Zieg'feld Follies," but. M,-G refused to delete or change it. Members of the group questioned after the preview were particularly vehement against tlie depiction ot the Jewish father as interpreting everything in terms of "economy," They pointed out that he is shown, for instance, as buying a suit too: lar.?e because he wants it to fit him later; tries to arrange his dau-'htei's wedding at a "wholesale" price: and . prepares the fruit decorations at the wedding so that they can do doubie'. duty by being eaten later. Despite Crosby's strong .standin,^ . with the Catholic Church as a re- sult ot "Going My Way" and "Bells of St. Mary's," UA itsel. is fearful ; that there might bo objection from that quarter, since Irish Cath^ilic in the film are caricatured almost equally as badly as the Jews, No word, one way or the otlier. has been heard from the Church yet, "Abie.'' an updating.of the nrmi-- nal Anne Nichols play, which was first filmed in 1928, cost l|;(i,50,OOU to produce. ■ ■ - ";■ >: ■' "Abie" was forqpd: • olT the air' about a year ago by bi^ganized lis-, tener protest to Prpcter & Gamble, which was sponsoring the showi Similar: wave ot ■ objection is c.k- peetod to develop from, ftlmgoers, with re.-'ullant unwillingness of ex- hibs to book the picture. (S^;e pa.'i-* : 33 editorial re racial carlcatur. i'l ■radio.): : ..■ Grandma Snooks . Hollywood, Nov, 5. "Baby Snooks," played on the kit' b;' Fanny Bj-ice. ha.s caused, numer- ou. queries about Baby'.s ag'e. The answer is that Miss Brice be- came a rti'andniother lastweek for the second tinie, :A'ilh the birth of a girl to her daughter, Mrs» Raymond Stark. BARUCH-WAIN JOCKEY m. AND MRS. MUSIC With New York radio slat' n-.j con.<it;mlly angling for different com- petitive ideas and names, WMC.\, N. Y., : this Week signed e:;-an;- nounccr Andre Baruch and hi-- wiie,., sin.^'er Bca Wain, to do a "Wr. and Mrs, Music" disk show daily, r:;or\. to 2 p,ni. starting Dec. 2. Pair i'^ dra-:,^in:.! $8.')n weekly. WMCA is also said to be oiv. ;t>i lookout tor an all-night dh'^U.-horde!: to combat WOR's Barry Gray. •