Variety (February 1952)

Wednesday* Febnwy 1952 ncruREs Washington, Feb. 3. ■ Allied States’ board of directors today (Tues.) voted to invite the film companies and other “indus- try elements” to appoint commit- tees which would join with AUied reps in the negotiation of an indus- try arbitration system. Thus, the theatre outfit's approach varied but did rtot directly conflict with , the plan for an all-industry meeting to be proposed by Theatre Owners of America (see story in column 5.) Announcement by prexy Abram F. Myers o the Allied idea made it clear'that the two rival exhib as- sociations at least were in agree- ment that all industry outfits inter- ested in arbitration should have a voice in negotiations at the outset. Allied board, at its meeting here, approved in general the proposal for “conciliation machinery as pre- pared by Myers. In outline, it’s a comprehensive plan which includes the full assortment of trade prac- tices plus film rentals. Immediate expectation is that the inclusion of rentals as a subject for arbitration will stir some controversy since it’s known -much distrib sentiment fa- vors excluding them. TOA’s posi- tion on rentals, as expressed so far, is vague. Power to Act: However, the Allied board gave the org’s arbitration committee power to act at its own discretion in the proposed meetings witlj; other groups, The Allied commit- tee was instructed to transmit the plan to the companies "as a: basis for discussion,” said Myers, and (Continued on page 15) Warners Remains Lone Holdout From Macy’s ‘Movie of Month’ Bally Warner Bros, remains the only holdout among the majors of the three companies which originally refused to participate in the Macy’s "Movie-of-the-Month” promotion. With selection of their pix for plugging by the big New York de- partment store, Paramount and 20th Fox have, both succumbed to screening pix in competition for the monthly choice by Macy’ Gimmick to which the trio Ob- jected when the promotion idea was formulated about six months ago was that the distrib must con- tribute part of the cost of the news- paper advertising sponsored by the store. Film company pays for that portion of the space the plug occu- pies, Mort Blumenstock, WB pub-ad topper, remains adamant against any such payment. As a result, he has refused even to show pix to Victor Ratner, Macy’s promotion v.p., who runs the tie-in operation, or to members of Ratner’s staff. Charles Einfeld, 20th’s pub-ad chief, and Jerry Pickman, Par’s pub-ad topper^ originally took a similar attitude, However, with arrangement by which Macy’s last week used 20th's "Phone Call from a Stranger” as its "Movie-of-the Month,” Einfeld’s opposition ap- parently faded. Pickman, principle, still shares Blumehstock’s view on the (Continued on page 16) Geo. Josephs Upped George Josephs, for the tfast five years aide to Abe .Montague, Co- lumbia’s veepee and general sales manager, has been upped to a homeoffice sales exec. In his new Capacity, Josephs joins Louis Astor, Louis Weinberg, Irving Wormser and Maurice Grad as a key mem ber of Col’s sales cabinet. A1 work Under the “supervision o. Rube Jackter, assistant sales chief. Montague has indicated that rto successor will be appointed to fil Joseph’s post for the present. / vet of 24 years with the company, Josephs has worked in various homeoffice departments. Isriael Producer^Exhib Home After RKO Deal M, Yona Friedman, Israeli pro- ducer and exhibitor, planes from New York Sunday (10) for his headquarters in Jerusalem, He has aeen in the U. S. for the past four months, during which he dosed a deal with RKO for distribution of Faithful City,” which he pro- duced in Israel. RKO plans release of the fea- ture, which is in English, in about 60 days. Exhibs are continuing to show a marked tendency to settle up with plaintiff film companies in actions charging theatremen With under-reporting or other discrepan- cies in boxoffice receipts. Settle? ment route usually means a payoff to the companies , in addition to incurring costs of the actions. Within the past few months 31 separate b.o. percentage suits were brought to am end via agreement of the parties involved. In indi- vidual actions brought by eight distribs against John and Werner Lund, who operate a Pennsylvania circuit, the Court of Common Pleas of Greene County, Pa., decided that the Lunds failed to meet the com- promise terms. Judgments were entered against them for $21,064. Upon the filing of a stipulation that the defendants had paid in full the amounts due the plaintiffs, four, actions against Frank Gross and various theatre operating cor- porations in Ohio were Concluded. Complaints had been filed by Warners, 20th-Fox, Loew’s and Paramount. Under similar terms, suits by Universal, Columbia and United Artists against Price Coomer, op- erator of the Harlan Theatre, Harr lan, Ky., were: withdrawn* Signifi- cant aspect of this action was a ruling in Lexington, Ky., by Fed- eral Judge H. Church Ford deny- ing Cobmer’s move for dismissal (Continued on page 15) PENTAGON’S FOLD STILL ECHOING IN COURTS Fold of Pentagon Pictures, indie distributing outfit, some months ago, shocked its franchise-holders at the time and is still echoing in the courts. Formed by Bert Gold- berg and'TL David Frackman, the company acquired a flock of films from J. Arthur Rank for $200,000 plus a percentage of net sales. : Pentagon assertedly paid part pf the $200,000 but reportedly never met a series of notes on the bal- ance. When the payments werq not made Rank stepped in and re* possessed his pictures. But prior to this the indie firm is said to have collected deposits from franchise- holders in various sections of the US. *To their chagrin the franchise- holders later discovered that Pen- tagon was unable to supply them with the Rank product, and some Sought return of their advance payments without , success. Among the latter is Cinema Distributing Corp. of Los Angeles, which is how suing the distrib in N. Y. Supreme Court. Other franchise-holders have .been working out. deals with Sol Edwards’ International Releasing Organization, to which Rank sold 27 of the re-possessed Pentagon pix. International, according to a company Spokesman, has re-edited and facelifted the films in general for reissue. Power of big pix to do big biz, despite wi^ ei5 Prt & d beefs on soft- ness of the b.o., is clearly reflected currently in the plethora of. long runs both on Broadway and in the hinterlands. Extended engage- ments, as matter of fact, are creating booking problem for many keys and subsequents, and forcing distribs to turn to art and offbeat houses to find first-run opening locations. Exhib booking problem, in fact; got so tough in the Philly area last week that a house there filed a petition in Federal Court seek- ing to break the logjam by forcing distribs to make , some of the longier-runners available to it. Suit was instituted by the Sablosky Theatres on . behalf of its Norris Theatre, Norristown, The long-runs on Broadway In- clude "Quo Vadis,” which has com- pleted, its 13th stanza at the Astor and is still , going strong. "De- cision Before Dawn” . completes seven Weeks at the Rlvoli today (Wed.) giving way to "Viva Zapata!’’ tomorrow (Thurs.), “Death of A Salesman;” in its seventh frame at the Victoria, rolls on, while "I Want You” winds up after seven weeks at the Criterion. “The Greatest Show on Earth,” al- though only in its fourth, week at the Radio City Music Hall, ap- pears destined for a solid run. "Detective Story” recently com- pleted a highly successful 12-week engagement at the Mayfair. "A Streetcar Named Desire” fan for bine weeks at the Warner Theatre, setting a run record for the house.. (Continued on page 49) LOGJAM , to Lead Frank McCarthy to Gun 3 Pix for 20th Abroad Hollywood, Feb. 6. Three 20th-Fox features will be produced abroad this year by .Frank McCarthy, who leaves this week on a global topr to scout locations. Pictures are: "Singlehanded,” to be filmed in London and the Medi- terranean . area; "Assignment in Stockholm,” in Sweden, and "India Project,” in that country. BENAGOSS PROVIDES COIN FOR ‘FLAM1NIA’ Benagoss Productions, indie fi- nancing outfit, will provide the en- tire bankrolling for "The Girl on Via Flaminia,” which Anatole Lit- vak Will produce and direct for United Artists release.. First film financing venture by Benagoss, which is headed by Henry Rogers Benjamin and Mrs. Germaine Goss- ler, was "The Green Glove,” Glenn Ford and Geraldine Brooks co-star- rer, which UA is now swinging into release Litvak will lens "Flamihia” in Italy and France next fall with Georges Maurer serving as associ- ate producer. Irwin Shaw will do the screenplay from the novel, a former bestseller, by Alfred Hayes. Litvak, who’s now in Europe, is free to do an outside pic under his contract with 20th-Fox. The film- maker’s next for 20th, due to roll shortly iii Germany* will be "The Steeper Cliff,” an adaptation of the David Davidson novel. Despite exhib of hard times—or perhaps because of them —distribution ex cs claim It is easier, than ever to sell* pix at ex- ceptionally high terms. The catch, they say, is that the films have to be of outstanding b.o. strength. Just as it is easier- to peddle the big ones, it’s tougher than ever to get what are, considered fair rental terms for the medium and small pix, the sales chiefs report. Since these films are having an excep- tionally tough time at the wickets now, it takes no fortitude; on an exhib’s part to withstand the sales- men’s pitch. Bidding on such pix as “Great- est Show on Earth” (Par) and "Quo Vadis” (M-Gi has been so generous that even the distribs are a little surprised. Thcatreirten are said to be Volunteering offers that cduldu’t have been had with blackjacks a few years ago. An easy explanation offers itself for the Willingness to pay such terms in light of b.o, conditions. That is that it is only the big pix that are really drawing—and they are drawing as heavily or heavier than at any previous time in film history. On the other hand, as has been noted, the medium and little pix have no power. Thus it is obviously good biz for an exhib to toss everything into a bid for a biggie. He knows that despite the high terms he must pay, he'll still have a lot more left at the end of the week than if he had licensed couple of cheapies. Generous terms being offered for top pix and the good biz they are doing make percentages and guarantees of secondary import- ance. Distribs primarily are con- centrating bn careful choice of houses to get the best prospect for a long and profitable-run. Los Angeles, Feb. 5. Taking what was apparently its toughest stand so far on trade prac- tice grievances, Theatre Owners of America closed its four-day board meeting at the weekend with a threat of bringing allegedly illegal treatment by the distribs to the attention of the Department of Justice. A committee on illegal practices is to he named by prexy Mitchell Wolfson to present to distrib top- pers a Collection of exhib affidavits charging violations of court de- crees. If no satisfaction is obtained from the film companies the affi- davits will be placed before the D. of J. In other activity the board passed a resolution for a plan to seek relief from "discriminatory” admission taxes. It was declared that unless relief is forthcoming, l the Government will lose a lucra- tive source of revenue and small exhibitors Will be forced out of business. Another resoluti called for Wolfson to appoint a committee on scientific development, to "cover all phases of the film business and serve as a clearing house for ideas, without being limited to exhibition, production and distribution. Tenta- tive proposal called for an initial investment of $1,000,000 to set up a center as a separate community where research work could be carried on. Under consideration is a location near Palo Alto, Among the subjects Would be third di- mensional pictures, television for theatres, titles, trailers, lighting, projection, advertising, publicity, exploitation, development of new talent and labor relations. Demands were made. by. the ex- hibitors for more arid better pic- (Cpntinued on pag* 21) Theatre Owners of America will ask the production-distribution companies to call an all-industry meeting for the purpose of estab- lishing a system of arbitrating in- tra-trade disputes. Move, follows the theatre org’s adoption of a projected plan at its board meeting in L. A. last week. T O A ’ s executive committee; which is headed by, circuit op S. H. Fabian, is expected to ask th board, of the Motion Picture Assn, of America (company presidents) to take the ball in setting up th joint-industry conclave! TO A directorate endorsed broadly-stated arbitration systei which, it was said, would be open to recommendations, arid sugges- tions by all others in the trade. Significantly, TOA’s proposal did not specifically state whether or not exhib-distrib ‘’ differences on rental terms would qualify as an arbitration subject. Allied States Assn, wants rentals included; the film companies do rtot. TOA’s vagueness in its announced pro- posal was seen as designed to avoid any immediate conflict with Allied or the companies Which might, kill off all chances of setting up a mu- tually satisfactory systei at the outset. Plan of inducing the film outfits to call an Industry-wide meeting represents a switch for TO A, T'he organization approached the com- panies some. time ago on the idea of huddling just among themselves on Working out a system of arbitra- tion. Distribution toppers balked at this, however. They said they’d (Continued on page 21) No Overall Eastern Pub-Ad Head for WB As Blumenstock West With Mort Blumenstock, Warner Bros, pub-ad veepee, slated to switch his headquarters to the Coast by Feb. 15, the homeoffice pub-ad activities will operate with- out an overall eastern publicity- advertising chief. Larry Golob continues as eastern publicity top- per and Gil Golden as advertising manager, With both departments functioning under Blumenstock’s. direction. Pub-ad chief is slated to make frequent visits from th^ studio to New York. Except for Blumenstock’s presence, Coast set- up will remain the sarnie, with Alex Evelove continuing as studio publicity director. Reason for move is believed to be tied up with Warners' "flexible” release schedule, making it neces- sary to have the top-level pub-ad exec on hand to (nap promotion campaigns While pictures are still in production. Having its pub-ad chief at the studio is not a new policy for the .company. Blumen- stock’s predecessor,; Charles Ein- feld, currently 20th-Fbx’s pub-ad topper, irioved his headquarters to the Coast during#his tenure with the company. Blumenstock at that time was second in command, and headed the overall eastern 'pub-ad operations. When Blumenstock assumed (Continued on page 2 U Scott R. Dunlap, Allied. Artists producer, sailed from New York, Friday (1) on the Britannic for a combined business-vacation junket in Europe. He is accompanied by his wife. Couple will disembark in Naples for a tour of Italy and will visit Other continental points before returning to the U. S. May. 1 on the Queen Elizabeth. While abroad Dunlap may study possible co-prOductlon deals with several European film firms. Pro- ducer last- turned out “Short Grass,” a Rod Cameron starrer; for AA release in late 1950 and scheduled to put "Cow Country” before the cameras June 1. No cast as yet has been set for the venture.