Variety (August 22, 1951)

Wednesday* 22, 1951 nquBKS CASH CUES BTfAY SHOWCASINGS Handling on 650G ‘Moviethne’ Fund Is Set Up; ODonneU’s Rosy Report Procedure for collecting the* $(>'>0,000 pledged by distributors for the “Movietime U.S.A." cam- paign. was determined last week a meeting of the board of direc- tors of the Motion Picture Associa- tion of America. Machinery for providing* and disbursing the funds was set up under the supervision of a com- mittee of member comptrollers headed by Dred W. DuVall, MPA A treasurer. Funds will be expend- ed through COMPO. A bout 50% of the funds will be collected from the member com- panies with the same formula ap- plied tc regular due*, based upon the previous year’* billings. The other 50% will be based upon the amount of space each company is given in the national advertising campaign in 1,743 newspaper* throughout the nation Oct. 1. The newspaper ads originally were scheduled to break Oct. 8. In his first official meeting with the MPA A board. Robert J. O’Don- nell. national director of the cam- paign, gave a progress report on the rapidly maturing projects from all parts of the country. Specific- ally he reported on the enthusiasm evinced by exhibitors at his recent ‘Movietirae” meetings in Omaha. Des Moines. Minneapolis, and Detroit. He said that exhibitors in- dividually are preparing to make substantial extra expenditures In support of the campaign, both in (Continued on page 251 Mpls. Exhibs Get Two Sides Of Pix Future, Good & Bad; O’Donnell Isn’t - ‘Afraid’ Minneapolis. Aug. 21. Two contrary predictions re- garding the pix industry’s future, one gloomy and the other bright, made the same day iiT the Twin Cities, have Minneajsolis and St. Paul exhibitors wondering Just what the coming days hold in store for them. Speaking before the St. Paul Ro- tary. Dr. Rodney Luther, of the Los Angeles State College faculty, pre- dicted the film industry will have great difficulty in ever regaining it^ past profits and glory. He prophesied that "at least" 50% of the theatres will shutter within tha next 10 years. Dr. Luther, pro- fessor of marketing, has specialized in the study of motion pictures. On the other hand, addressing * industry meetings and talking with press and radio reps. Bob O'Donnell. “Movietime U.S.A." na- tional director, declared the film industry and exhibition are “the hvest corpses that Life or anybody has ever buried." He asserted "we fear nothing," theatres will font in ue to offer the finest enter- tainment available at the lowest rost, and “with all Industry branches unified for the first time and complete exhibitor coopera- tion, it easily will be possible to (Continued on page 24) Pascal Vs. McEldowney In Gandhi Pic Hassle Battle loooms between Gabriel P‘*cal and Ken McEldowney to be J r *t to make a film on the life of Mahatma Gandhi. Both producers nave indicated plans for a biopic of the late Indian leader. Pascal had a rep in New York t»$t week confabbing with De- '.ad.ts Gandhi, son of the Mahatma. 1 Hey made a preliminary agree- n«*nt for use by Pascal of material .'f»unp. Gandhi either has on hand •■ready or is now In the process of lathering. Pascal’s plan is to start when he Completes “Androcles and the 1 (on • on which he Is currently at ^ ork for RKO. McEldowney has foot well Into the Indian pic- ,ir *| operation via having recently oiade The. River" there for United A, tist» release. COMPO-'Lux’ Tie Hollywood, Aug. 21. Council of Motion Picture . Organizations’ network broad- cast to kick off its “Movietime U. S. A." fall campaign will be tied in with CBS’ “Lux Radio Theatre" and aired as a fqJJ hour feature Sept. 24. Under the plan now being concluded, each major studio will present a portion of Its outstanding picture, with the stars to dramatize their roles. Because many of the topliners are expected to be out of town at broadcast time. It’s likely that the show vu^ll be tape-recorded in advance. It would mark the first time in its 17 years that the “Lux" program was not aired live. Levy Again Raps Distrib Claim Re Compulsory Bids •u Competitive bidding is not compulsory and distributors use the claim that it is to avoid litiga- tion." declared Herman M. Levy, general 'counsel for the Theatre Owners of America, in a statement issued yesterday (Tues.) in New York. Levy pointed out that competi- tive bidding was decreed by the U. S. Statutory Court as an alter- native to divorcement and was subsequently discarded by the U. S. Supreme Court as such al- ternative Claims by distribs that competi- tive bidding li' compulsory and that it is necessary to avoid litiga- tion “constitute distributor ra- tionale in attempting to justify the further nourishment of this Frankenstein monster that threat- ens to drive thfb industry into chaos." Levy stated. Although the Supreme Court discarded competitive bidding as an alternative to divorcement, the distributors did not, he said, and today it has become almost the customary manner of licensing product, in most instances, with- out request from exhibitors and with no set rules to govern it. "Since competitive bidding is not compulsory," Levy declared, “it behooves distributors to terminate its use. except where it is desired and requested by the exhibitors, and to adopt some less chaotic (Continued on page 20) PRESTIGE IDEA Paf-UPT Tiff, Due to Terms Demand, OUSTED FOB B.Q. Now Extends to Fotmer Partners 1 M-u 1 " ' Current scramble of traditional booking practices In firstrun New York theatres results, at least In past, from a switch in emphasis by distribs from Broadway as a show- case to Broadway as a source of revenue. There’s still * plenty of thought given by distributors, of course, to what effect territorially and nation- ally their choice of a New York house will have, but releasing or- ganizations .are showing much more.interest currently in the the- atre’s potential take. In a great* many cases^ in *the past, the Bivadwny run of a pic- ture has meant an actual loss to the 'producer, despite reasonably { lood business. Cause is the adver- ising expenditure required to in- sure b.o. that will reflect well on the pic. Distribs naturally are still plenty cognizant of the value of Broad- way as a showcase, but they are not allowing that to be an overrid- ing factor in making deals. They want financial advances, or they want to go into theatres where the required advertising is not so great as to cost them profits. Unusual Par Deals That’s partially back of, for in- stance, the unusual deals that Paramount has made recently— which have cauaed some bitterness to its former affiliate. United Para- (Continued on page 29> • v •• «'• - i ‘Glove,’ First Benagoss Production, Now in Can; ink Costain ‘Moneyman’ With its Glenn Ford-Geraldine Brooks starrer. “The Green Glove." now completed and in the can. Benagoss Productions hopes to place another yarn before the cameras sometime this fall.. Firm also expects to roll the film version of Thomas Costain’s bestseller, “The Moneyman," on location in France next spring. “Glove," which was budgeted be- tween $800.000-$900,000. repre- sents Benagoss’ first step into film production, according to Germaine Gossler. co-owner of the company. With Rudy Mate directing, the pic- ture was turned out in 58 days at I a studio in Nice, which once was used by Rex Ingram of silent films. Mrs. Gossler. who returned from Paris last week, plans to leave for the Coast shortly to hunt story material for Benagoss’ projected fall film. Her partner, Henry (Continued on page 20) D.C. ‘Movietime’ Pitch Draws 150 Exhibitors Nearly 150 exhibitors, represent- ing every circuit and many one- theatre Indies of Washington, Maryland and Virginia, turned out for the kickoff luncheon meeting of the “Movietime US A." b.o. drive here. Group was addressed by Bob O’Donnell, chairman of the na- tional drive; Arthur Mayer, vice president of COMPO; Abranv Myers, chairman of the Allied States Assn.; and Morton Thal- heimer, for the Virginia theatre owners. O'Donnell announced plans, for the campaign and told the exhibi- tors present that they’d have plenty of opportunity to show en- terprise locally. He won the solid backing of those at the session. He said he had gotten the full support of studio heads, SAG and SWG during his recent visit to Holly- wood, and that between $700,000 and $800,000 would be spent on national advertising to press the drive. O’Donnell explained that six stars would be allotted to each (Continued on page 25) Mpls. Radio City do Be Included b TV Tieup Minneapolis, Aug. 21. Harry H. French. Minnesota Amusement Co. president, has been advised by United Paramount homeofflee that the Radio City Theatre here, with its big-screen TV. will be included in the closed TV circuit, starting with the Saddler-Pep fight to be piped ex- rlusively to theatres Sept. 26. French was simply told “the mechanics" are being worked out and given no details as to how the inclusion is to be accomplished, whether through the arrangement with one of the two Twin Cities TV stations, KSTP and WTCN. for the cable hookup, or otherwise. Inability to obtain a cable hook- up prevented Radio City from get- ting previous exclusive theatre TV fights, despite the fact that it was equipped with big-screen theatre TV at the time. If KSTP or WTCN had turned over its cable hookup, it would have meant foregoing public televising during the time consumed by the scraps. The fact that there is no TV station or theatre television in Des Moines to link up on the cable extending through that city, also was s fac- tor in keeping Radio tMty here out of the closed theatre circuit, French said. Too Rough Cut Hollywood, Aug. 21. RKO film editors did so thorough a job on ’The Half Breed" that it wound up too short for ^an "A” production. So the picture goes back be- fore the cameras for 500 addi- tional feet of drama. 'v Naify Testimony Details Schenck, FWC Dealings San .Francisco, Aug. 21. ' Mike Naify, Golden State %nd T. & D., Jr., circuit chief, last week denied that there were any deals for exclusive rights in territories between his organizations and Fox West Coast. This was brought out during questioning by Joseph - L. Alioto, Goldwyn attorney, at the deposition hearings in connection with Samuel Goldwyn’s $6,750,000 anti-trust suit against Naify’s cir- cuits, Fox West Coast and others. Alioto, however, did establish de- tails of. a pooling arrangement be- tween the circuits. Explaining one such operation of theatres in Visa- lia. Hanford and Tulare (Cal.), Naify said he had been getting the worst of it from distributors until he had set up a working arrange- ment with FWC. Queried on a similar agreement in Reno, Naify said he entered the deal because he could not get sound equipment for his theatre. This was made possible when he had tied up with FWC in that city, because the circuit had equipment available. Pressing the matter of the non- competitiveness of the Bay Area. Alioto questioned Naify on the deal whereby Paul Reynolds and Robert L. Lippert endeavored to acquire his interests in Golden State. The deal was blocked in October, 1947, when Joseph M. Schenck guaranteed Naify’s per- sonal note of $2,300,000 with the Bank of America, in return for an option to buy one-half interest in the chain. Acquisition took place in 1950. The Schenck transaction had the sanction of the U. S. Dept, of Jus- tice, which laid down conditions of approval. Later, when Schenck decided to stay with production at 20th-Fox, his stock in the United Artists Theatre Circuit, which held the Golden State interest, was placed in trusteeship. A sidelight brought out during the day’s questioning saw testi- mony presented to the effect that at one time Goldwyn asked Charles P. Skouras. FWC head, to invite (Continued on page 24) ♦ Hassle which developed between Parimount and United Paramount Theatres over bookings for the Paramount Theatre, N. Y. firstrun, has been extended down the line, covering numerous of the exhibs who were affiliated with the film company prior to divorcement. The erstwhile theatre partners who, for the most part, had first crack at Tar product before the split, and expected this to con- tinue because of the long-estab- lished pattern of booking proce- dures in the various areas, have been burned over Par’s demands on terms. They’re still tak*n£ the Par pix. unless outbid by competitors, but are unhappy over Par’s new sales push. Par. like other distribs. is out for a larger share of the b.o. dollar. The general feeling among the film outfits is that “split figure" deals which worked out well for both distrib and exhib when income was strong, are now working to the disadvantage of the distrib alone. The Par partners' squawks came whep Par became insistent on re- vising percentage arrangements. The revising, Par makes it clear, was to apply to all theatremen and I this included the erstwhile af- filiates. Situation has been changed somewhat from the period prior to A1 Schwalberg’s accession as general salesmanager a couple years ago. All former partners now are taking the Par output— although grudgingly in some cases. (Continued on page 25) Next Hitchcock Stint On Own Transatlantic Alfred Hitchcock’s next direc- torial job will be for his own Transatlantic production unit, Sid- ney Bernstein. Hitchcock’s partner in Transatlantic, disclosed in New •York last week.' Bernstein, British circuit operator. ba<! been in the U. S. for the past several weeks. Hitchcock and Bernstein are now searching for a suitable script. They have several available, but continue to allow for the possibility of switching if something they prefer comes along. Plan is to start work on the pic in October. Hitchcock has a deal with War- ner Bros, whereby he either works for the studio or makes pix inde- pendently via Transatlantic for WB release. Original plan was to alternate between the two proced- ures. Transatlantic, however, has taken a hiatus for the past several years while Hitchcock made two in a row for the studio. They were “Stage Fright" and the current “Strangers On a Train. 1 Strike Threat Vs. Par International On White Collar Wage Beef Unless a favorable break comes in negotiations of the International Assn, of Theatrical Stage Em- ployees’ Motion Picture Home Office Employees, Local H-63 with Paramount International for wage increases within a few days, a strike will be called, it was re- vealed yesterday (Tues.) by Russell Moss, business agent for Local H-63. The union installed pickets Thursday (16> at the main entrance to the Paramount building on Times Square, N. Y.. in protest of Paramount International's refusal to meet the demands for a wage hike. Signs pickets carried asserted that Paramount International, the foreign division of Paramount Pictures, has been "unfair" to workers because it has “refused to sign a tair wage contract." Thus far negotiations have been stale- mated!. Mosa said, and it may be- come necessar? to pull out workers on strike. "The new contract negotiations collapsed several weeks ago. The uniofi had asked for a general increase of $4.50 or 10% weekly, whichever is higher. The company accepted the $4.50 proposal, but rejected the 10% clause. *» O’Donnell Acquires Tembo’ Share; to Preem in Texas Dallas. Aug. 21. R. J. (Bob) O’Donnell, veepee and general manager of the Inter- state circuit, has acquired an in- terest in the U. S. distribution rights to "Tembo." an African ad- ventuse film produced by Howard Hill, Three majors have made pro- posals to take over the picture. But no deal will be made, accord- ing to the theatre topper, until the film has been screened in Texas theatres. Meanwhile. “Tembo" is set to be preemed at the Melba Theatre here Sept. 20. It features Hill, a noted archer, on an African big game hunt. Footage also includes shots of pygmies. Narration is done by Westbrook Van Voorhls. Hill may make p.a.’s with the picture, which has Just been re-edited. New sound track has also been Inserted. i