Variety (July 1949)

THE STRONG ELECTRIC CORP. 'Th« World'* lar 9 etl Mortu focturtr of Projoctien Arc lamp* WrdnralaT, July 6, 1<)49 PICTVRRA t’ottUnued frooi pate 3 to match it in number oi releases : would be Columbia, although com-1 narison would only refer to volume | and not to coin spent on produc- tion. In line with its newly-adopted policy. Metro is already speeding its releasing pace. In the July- through-December slate, compam’ is getting out pix at a Ihree-pe^ month tempo. October is the only| month with two now set and it is understood that a third film will probably be slotted lor that pe- riod. In all. 33 pix plus one reissue will be the total for the year against 29 features and three oldies la.st year. Of these. 19 20 are grooved in the last six months, only 14 in the first. Next vear’s output has already been set at 40. Volume Selling Too Series of meetings, both in N. Y. and on the Coast, are being staged to grapple with one of the most {•oinjilex problems faced lu Metro in many years. The switcli to vol- ume production and distribution means that sales and studio stalls must handle almost double the amount of features of the past seven or eight years. Hence, the changeover will be slow to prevent any major dislocation of the com- pany’s machinery. Volume output by Metro is be- lieved to foreshadow similar action by many of the other large studios. Paramount and RKO are reported | mulhng production step-ups be- cause of their theatre-divorcing de- crees. Metro’s action, on tlie other hand, is aimed at meeting the heightened demand for product cau.sed by a sharp dip in extended runs. For the current year. M-C is shooting at a $65.000.()00-$70,(M)0.- OUO rental take to fete its 25th anniversary. Shooting for at least one domestic date in every U. S. theatre, five branches have already booked at least one feature or short in all flickerics in llieir ter- ritories. lirely to the first-run key city opening. National Allied and other exhib orgs. Lipton continued, have criti- cized distribs on the claim tb.it their concentrated efforts always benefit the first-runs, leaving tli« subsefpients and smalltown situa# lions in limbo. U’s teebinque, Ii4 argued, helps out the smaller fry identically with the big lunises. U’s pattern ignores ordinary ( U'arances to hand out the da> -an(l- dates, Lipton said However. l>ook- ings are not made to competing theatres and the compan.\ lias .not run into any loud squawks Laf- «'si instance of the selling is lli.il of "fal.-unity .lane and Sam bass” vMtIi f»(H) bookings in Oklahoma ;md Texas in a seven-week period. Film easily doubled ordinari gross- es. II found in checking t*re\ious releases. Li|)ton said Practice was first initi.ited wiili ■‘l.ife of Hiley” in tlie t’liuinnall sector in March. before shoving off for the Coast. Lipton announced an autonomous setup of U’s New York Hackery. Henry A. Line!, eastern ad man- ager. will continue .serving in tliat capacity. Philip (lerard lias now been officially tapped for tlie east- ern publicity managerial t>ost to succeed A1 Horwits who has fie- (ome studio publicity chief (ler- ard has been serving in tlie spot for several months. Charles Simonclli has been iijv ped to newly-made spot of execu- tive in charge of national exploita- tion. He will set policy along witli l.ipton, Linet and Horwits Lipton will shuttle between the N Y. and studio offices devoting about ecpial time to each. Universal’s new habit of staging 'regional preems. coordinated with j concerted sales and ball\ ing cam- • paigns, has now proven itself witli “amazing improvements in busi- ness for those areas.” according to David A. Lipton. L’s national ad- . pub director. Because the pattern lias “easily doubled what would be normal grosses" in those sectors. U has revamped its production schedule to turn out a large num- ber of pix |)arliculai l> lilted for this type of selling l.itiloii told X'.MUK l V L ’s lop ;id-pubber. wlm r»Murned to the Coast last week de- clared that a tug piM'centage of the conqian.i's up-and-commg prod- uct would be along regional or topical themes “The\'re h.ised on a good exploitation hook bet.iusi* we now think in terms ot selling." he added Keferring to l"s new method whereby hundreds ot pi.i> (kites .ire amassed in one sei toi on a dav- and-date opening tiasis Lipton said: “'riiere is an inereilible amount of money that shows up when you tnake a conei'i ted elTort, along show inanship lines. t)\ i re.it- ■ ing excitement or stnu ial intert*sl ; in a picture We give x whole ■area ttie benefit of advertising and 1 exploitation rather than a key cit.v "Results have been astounding." I Lipton said. “I don't mean in the i city itself where it is to lie ex- pected. but in the seeondarv. suti- ’ urban and smalltown k<‘vs width I ordinarily could not catiitali/.e on ’ the built-up excitement .Analvzing ' it. we think the much lieitt'r I grosses arise from tlie I eel ing of the people in these communitit's 1 , that they are being let in on firsl- ‘ ' runs. It has also given the disirib - a chance to profit by the conceii- » trated newspaper and radio cover- - ' age." Big l.ocal Spread ^ Lipton pointed out that U now gives a tremendous newspaper I spread in the area with tlie ads listing Hie dozens of houses play- i ing the film. Previously, an eqiii- valent spread would be devoted en- .\rthur. Warner thereupon agreed to have Kass build it another thea- tre on another site or to pay Kasn $100,000. In his decis.on. .Justice McGuire said; “What plaintiffs seek here is to enforce terms of an agreement which is part and parcel of what has been held fi.v the Supreme Court to be an unlawful combina- tion in restraint of trade and illegal, per se. “In such case, the aid of the court is denied, not for the bene- fit of the defendant, hut because public polic.v demands that it should be denied without regard to the interests of the individual parties. “Motion of Kass for summar.v judgment is denied for the same reason and for tlie further reason that, even if the contract in ques- tion were not tainted with the same illegalit.^ as that of the orig- inal one between K-B and Stanley • Stanley Co., WB subsidiary), there i.s no obligation on Kogod under its terms to designate any site, and Stanley is incapable of doing so either alone or in con- junction with Kogod by the oper- ation of the law “All the parties in this case, it appears to me. are hoist by their own petard.” RETEAM METRO STARS Hollywood. .luly ft. Metro bought “Darling." au- thored by Ruth Brooks Flippen. as a co-starrer for Peter Law lord and .lanet Leigh. Two thesps were linked loiiian- tically in “The Red Danube." a Metro production still to be le- lea.sed. Metro Toppers Map Heavier Prog:ram Hollywood. Julv 5. Metro will start 11 picturc-s during July and Augu.st and will maintain an average of three start- ers a month until August. 1950. Heavy program, adopted by Loui.s Los Angeles. July 5. Bobmiek ^ Theatres. Inc., con- trolled by Robert L. Lippert and associates, med suit for $445,000 against Ralph I. Guy for failure to complete a theatre in San Fer- nando Vafley. Complaint declares Guy. a propert.v owner, agreed to build a dual film house, with a total seating capacilv of 1.200 but slopped w'ork on it last September. Bobmiek asserts ii invested $45,- 000 in the project. The other $400.- 000 is based on estimated lo.ss of profit to the plaintiff. the SHOWMAN’S FRIEND i*i Jlai, 500 Modern Rooms with bath and radio "Foremost on Coast" ALEXANDRIA HOTEL Fifth at Sprmg • Lot Angalai frank Walker, General Manager Formerly at Olmsted. Clavelend, O. Sq. Dancers’ U.S. Tour To Plug (loldwyn’s ‘McCoy’ Samuel Goldwyn Productions is ^ budgeting about $25,000 to send, three troupes of square dancers on } a tour of the country on behalf of the .studio’s forthcoming “Roseanna McCoy.” Tours would be set op in emulation of those made hv "The Goldwyn Girls." which tliCi producer figures were one of the most profitable promotional efforts tie ever made, j The trio of square dancing i troupes, which comprise eight peo- ple eacli. plus an orch and caller. i will be routed llirougli fid to 75 key cities Attempt will lie made to tie up in each case with a local newspaper Tour was decided on as a result ot the success ot tlie lerping demonstration pul on by one of Hie troupes under spotisor- sliip of Goldwyn at Central Paik Mall in New York last week in association with Pepsi Cola. TROUPE Rp/ljl U\\m Portable High Intensity ////// 1 ' \' \\\\\ A C. CARBON ARC SPOTLIGHT C ontinued trom page 3 partially, before other deals or ex- tended pacts are inked. The 23 big circuits repped at the Waldorf-Astoria meet several weeks back vvliich gave NKFC its sendoflf. all pledged the maximum of $100,000 stock purchases, it has been learned. Some of these ex- hibs, how'ever, also pledged for other circuit ops wtio could not make the meeting. This accounts for .S3.000.000 pledged for the tills at the present time. Remaining $7,000,000 is expected to be raised by expanding ownership further. Prominently mentioned as possi- ble distribs for .NKFC-liacked pix are Eagle Lion. F'ilin Classics. Monogram and United .\rti.sts. It is believed by NEP’Cers that an.v one of these four companies would t>e eaEfer to work a deal Im an as- iWANTED Produces a steady, sharp, uniformly illuminated snow- white spot. Silvered gloss reflector and two-element variable focal length lens system. Draws only 10 amperes from any 110-volt A.C. conven- ience outlet. Adjustable, self-regulating transformer, an integral part of the base, mokes the use of heavy rotat- ing equipment unnecessary. Easily operated. Automatic arc control maintains con- stant ore gap, free from hiss or flicker. A trim of carbons burns one hour and 20 minutes at 21 volts and 45 am- peres. Horizontal masking control. Con be angled at 45 degrees in each direction. Color boomerang contains six slides and ultraviolet filter holder. Mounted on casters. Easily disassembled for shipping. HOW GOOD? '••■miImt Ilf VMtlonMl K«**l«*« Coniiulf- Mill r<>«’l,>w .*«nir fthii, . I . V . '•"•'V. rfDli,, |>r<iKrHin for II.o, ■.litii* «•"! potrntiitliil,.,, I or reel Ur oiiil roiiHtriii'i )*,. critirUiii. I’lioiir N«Min 1 «,n|* |,( . H.HUd.V. or «ri(r; l«o\ \Hilrli U. ttflli «!., 1. f. St. Louis, Julv 5. ForK-llirce indie exhibs in St. I.oui.s Flastcin Missouri and East- ern Illinois tiave filed a petiti(»n in St. I.ouis county court to officially incorporate as the Mid-Central Al- lied Indepmulent Theatre Owners. The papers indicate that one of the (hiel aims of the organization will he to fight monopolv ’The group, operating in the St. I.ouis ;irca for several month.s. is an affiliate of the .\ I lied Slates .Assn David S. .Nelson rec'^ntly re- signed a.s the Des .Moines branch manager for Republic Pictures to beiome gen. mgr. ot the exhibs’ budv. Hollywood. Jul.v 5. RKO is upping Us two-reel com- edv program 1r<tni six to (*ight pic- tures foi the 1949-5(1 rele,asing .sea- son. Schedule includes four “.New lyw e(l> and f<»iir "comedy special.s.' with .lack Kirkwood, (ul Lanil) and Wall.v Brown as comics. Bob Neill and Suzi Crandall arc featured in “Newlyweds. whuli replaces the shorts made bj Hie late Edgar Kennedy. .Note Specializing jk in Refreshment T Service for DRIVE-IN THEATRES, SPORTSERVICE. Inc. Jacobs bros. ITY A state BUFFALO. N- 'f HURST BLDG