Variety (December 1950)

Wednesday, December 6, 1950 ORCHESTRAS-3I1JSIC CRONWEU IN P. D. aAlM ON TZENA’ Dispute, between Mills Music and Howard Richmond’s Cromwell Mu- sic, over* the origin of “Tzena, Tzena, Tzena,” moved into high gear last week in N. Y. Federal Court when Cromwell filed answers and counterclaims against the Mills infringement suit. Denying that it had violated the tJ. S. copy- rights law, Cromwell asked dismis- sal of the complaint. Richmond firm, according to its answers, contended that Issacher Miron and Julius Grossman were not the original writers of the songs, that the music has been in the public domain for many years. Moreover, it asserts, the same jnelody has been used in a number of other compositions, and . both i^liron and Grossman ‘‘Copied and appropriated” the note structure from these prior works. In its counterclaim, Cromwell tccuses Mills of unfair competition and asks an injunction, an account- ing and damages. Basis of Crom- well’s complaint Is that after it spent a bundle of coin to promote the Gordon Jenkins-Spencer Ross version of “Tzenaj’’ Mills rushed out the Miron-Grossman tune of the same title, which caused “con- fusion’* in the trade. 'The Mills “Tzena,** Cromwell charged, had the effect of mislead- ing others into believing the Mills number was CromwelTs. Not only were the Richmond firm’’s property rights destroyed, the counterclaim avers, but considerable embarrass- ment and damages resulted when Mills allegedly notlfled recording companies of its ciaim to “Tzena.’’ Meanwhile, Miron is scheduled to appear in Federal court tomor- row (Thursday) for a pre-trial ex- amination by Cromwell. He recent- ly arrived from Israel to testify in connection with the suit. Pate, however, is a tentative one and It may be postponed. Goldsen’s New Co. Hollywood, Dec. 5. Mickey Goldsen, head of Capi- tol Criterion Music, is setting up a new publishing firm in partnership with songwriter Sammy Cahni New Arm will be independent of Cri- terion, which is affiliated with Cap- itol Records. Goldsen heads for New York this week on business. The William Morris Agency is again looking into the possibilities •f accumulating a roster of band- leaders. This time the percentery is eyeing the maestri as personalities rather than batoneers. Agency is currently interested in lining up Tommy Dorsey and Sammy Kaye, among others, fgr representation on television shows and other “spe- cialized situations.’* It's been stressed that the Mor- ris office isn’t interested in reviving a band department as such. No provision is being made for book- ing one-nighters, generally re- garded as the backbone of the band business. Newest step is in line with the agency’s policy of the past two years of orienting the Cntii’e office toward video. Most salesmen in the outfit are now doubling between the various departments and video. Some time ago, the percentery started a policy of lining up as many acts and personalities as pos- sible in order to be able to take care ef the needs of most television shows. Policy has paid off inasmuch as the Morris office shares top agency honors with Music Corp, of America in the handlihg of top tee- vee displays. The Morris office gave up its j band department several years ago after Willard Alexander pulled out of the organization and took the Vaughn Monroe band, top money- maker, with him. Most of the ©rchs on its roster were switched to General Artists Corp; ’slnitialer Lee Finburgh, who resigned re- cently as professional manager of Bourne, Inc., and production chief for Bourne and ABiC Music, has gone into business for himself. Finburgh has effected a tie-in with Arthur Murray on. his first song, “Boomp! Pa-Deedle Doddle.” Murray is originating a dance based on the tune, a rhythm item written by Dorothy and Arthur Todd, Ruth and Rex Phalen, and Glenn Hughes. The dance instruc- Holland Takes Charge Of Coral’s Eastern Unit Frank Holland, formerly south- ern division manager for Coral i Records, has been moved up to the ' New York headquarters to take charge Of the eastern division. This area was formerly taken care of by homeoffice execs, but has now been set up as a separate job under Coral’s expansion program. Replacement for Holland’s south- ern post has not been set. SOUTHARD REPLACES HEIN IN COL SHIFT Jack Hein resigned last week as !New York and Newark district tor will introduce the song on his {sales manager for Columbia Rec- DuMont television show in Janu-1 ords, after 12 years with the com- ary.. Records of the song have | pany He’s been replaced by Terry Southard, former New England disr LP Price Structure Shaken As been set for Jan. 15 release. trict manager and son of merchan- dising veepee Paul Southard. Hein was national sales manager’ for Columbia for two years and eastern regional sales manager for one before stepping into the N, Y. X)ost. Moveover of Southard from New .England puts John Trifero, who Now that the American Society had recently joined Columbia after of Composers, Authors and Pub- : acting as Capitors eastern promo- lishers has been stamped by the director, in charge of all of o I New England. When Trifero joined Government, as solely a collection | England terri- agency, the Songwriters Protec-j tory was split in half, with South- tive Assn, is rapidly assuming the | ard handling the western half and role of bfficial spokesman for clef- fers. Fact that ASCAP can no longer speak for the writers leaves SPA the only official organization repping the cleffers. Tracing the 20-year-old history of the writer group, president Sig- mund Romberg pointed out other gains in the past few years. On the question of writer representa- tion, he pointed out that ASCAP attoi’neys, representing both writ- ers and publishers, could only go so far, as there was no conflict be- tween publishers and writers in repping the latter. Now that ASCAP’s role ^has been limited to that of a collection agency, SPA’s lawyers have even a greater stake in repping the cleffers, Romberg! said. Other responsibilities SPA has assumed in the past few years are these, according to Romberg: 1. It stands ready to protect, in any event, the writer’s right to collect money for the performance of his music. ASCAP and BMI have up to now cared for this right, but Should anything happen to these groups, SPA will fight for it. * 2. SPA is the “best Insurance” a writer can have at present, since j over 700,000 shares of outstanding It ties down the publisher to a I stock. It^s the Performer The performer is the thing, according to N. Y. supreme court referee Isidor Wasser- vogel, arbiter in Columbia’s unsuccessful action to invoke the fair trade act against dis-, counting retailers!. He ruled last week that Columbia was not in “fam and open competif tion’’ with other diskeries be- cause it controls exclusively the performances of certain artists. Wasservogel hold that “pho- nograph records are princi- pally purchased because of the performer who recorded the selection rather than for any other reason.” He concluded that a recording company hold- ing exclusive rights to per- formances by an artist is not. in fair and open competition because a competitor cannot supply 'the same selection by the same artist. Trifero the eastern portion. Dynamic, Aristocrat Nixed by AFM on Payoff Local 802, American Federation , of Musicians, placed two small disk ^ , „ . , . j companies on the unfair list l^st j to TV film production is -X- i ^ ^ _ Use of 'music in television pic- tures is due for a tremendous ex- pansion next year with the entry of a large number of producers into the vidpix field, according to Harry Fox, music publishers* agent and trustee just returned to New York from a three-week visit to week for allegedly failing to pay musicians the full amount on wax- ing dates. Dynamic Records, a N. Y. indie, was tagged with failing to pay the Emmett Hobson orch while Aristocrat Records was slapped for not shell i n g out to Leonard Feather. Total involved in both cases was about $800. AFM, meantime, put Jack Small, general manager of the legit musi- cal, “High Button Shoes,” on the “national defaulters list’’ for fail- ing to pay a little over $100 to a musician. Decca’s 12|c Divvy gaining momentuni, with several banks showing interest in the back- ing of such pix. Fox went to the Coast to inform the flock of vidpix producers on the procedure for clearing per- formance rights for music. He did not make any deals but Fox previ- ously indicated that all such pacts would be patterned alfter the agree- ment with Snader Productions. Un- der this deal, music publishers get 2% of the film’s gross revenue. BUSHKIN’S N.Y. DATE Joe Bushkin has been signed as the first headliner in the Ralph Watkins Club, N. Y., Dec. 15’ Spot, formerly known as Bradley’s, Will have a piano and disk jockey Columbia Records last week lost its attempt to enjoin, legally, price- cutting on long-play records by * eight New York retailers. N. Y. Supreme Court referee Isidor Was* servogel ruled that the state Feld- Crawiord fair trades act could not be used by Columbia to prevent discounting of LP’s by Sam Goody, one of the city’s largest discount dealers, and seven others. Columbia president Ted Waller- stein announced immediately fol- lowing the decision that it would be appealed to the N. Y, Appelate division. Decision is almost certain to cause sweeping changes in LP price structures. Already, Macy’s has announced LP price reductions of up to 30%, and a chain of re- „ tailers whose business is one of the city’s largest, has announced cuts of up to 30% in a number of its stores. Other key retailers are considered sure to follow. Besis of the decision was a U. S. Supreme Court ruling to the effect that fair trade statutes were intend- ed not as a means of price-fixing* but as a “method of protecting the trademark, name and goodwill of the producer.” Pointing to the fact that up to Sept* 8 of this year, Goody had sold. Columbia LPs arid other Columbia product at a dis- count, and that the diskery had set no price-fixing agreement on 45s or 78s, Wassei’vogel ruled that Goody’s refusal to maintain Colum- bia’s LP price had no effect on their goodwill or traderiiark, “To permit Colombia to utilize the Feld-Crawford Act after a pe- riod of many years, when its own activities show that its trademark and the property right therein have not been affected by the sale of its product at discounts, would allow Columbia to utilize the stat- ute merely as a device to fix prices, a purpose not within the intend- ment of the legislative edict,” Was- servogel ruled. Distrib Dealings Court referred to Columbia’s ar- gument that all previous .dealings with Goody had been through Its distributor, Times-Columbia, and that the diskery itself had no knowledge of these dealings as “specious.” It pointed out that at least one member of Columbia’s board, Paul Southard, merchandis- ing veepee, is on the board of Times-Columbia and holds a stock interest in that company. It also revealed that Tlmes-Columbia’s business relation to Columbia is subject to termination upon 30 standard contract In which his roy- (Continued on page 48) Decca Records* board of direc-j policy. Bill Williams will do 90 tors last week declared its regular j minute broadcast nightly over i days’notice by the diskery. dividend of 12i/2C per share on j WMCA. | Another basis of the decision lay It’s planned to get other top in the fact Columbia in the past 88ers including ErroU Garner, Art | allegedly discriminated against Tatum, George Shearing and Goody, contrai-y to the Feld-Craw- Melon will be paid Dec. 28 to stockholders of record Dec. 14. others. London Sets Thomas Dick Thomas, vocalist and clef- Jer of “Sioux City Sue,” has been inked by London Records as paxi of the current expansion of the company’s artists’ roster. Thomas formerly etched for Coral Records, 4 ford Act. Wasservogel declared that Goody Was denied allocations from a co-op advertising fund made up of 1% of Columbia sales from each,sales area, while allocations were given Goody’s competitors. Goody was also refused a special offer to • dealers this September giving them a 10% return privilege and special credit arrangements instead of the usual 5%. Plaintiff, by its own acts In dero- gation of its alleged rights under the trademark“Columbia” and by its discriminatory conduct against the defendant Goody, is estopped and precluded from obtaining the injunctive i*ellef it seeks herein,” Wasservogel concluded. The eight separate actions were tried together, with Goody the only defendant introducing evidence. The other defendants either de- faulted or consent to be bound by the court’s ruling in the Goody suit. Consequently, the court found for six defendants* In accordance with its decision in the Goody case, and discontinued Columbia’s action against a seventh. Dancers Rey, Gomoe Prep Four-Month U.S. Tour Spanish dancers Federico Rey and Pilar Gomez are back from Jail. 3. Columbia Artists Mgt is handling. Duo will do 60 dates through April 30, in the U* S. and Canada. They return to Europe next sum- mer. Gass Harrison orch signed by eneral Artists Corp. Band opens 18 .