Variety (December 1954)

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Pec2?‘54p DULLES FAVORS FILMS FOR RUSSIA Mixed Trade Reaction to RCA Plan, ]f\[\] QKAY PUTS H wood Doubles Telefilm Production But Most Agree Disks Overpriced p|]( g|^ g|| gp[]j Budget for ’55 With $80,000,000 Tab With RCA Victor’s dramatic price reductions on its longplay disks sparking as much intra-trade excitement and confusion as did the “battle of the speeds” some five years ago, immediate reaction on the retail level was generally favorable. Other major labels, for the time being at least, are “watch- fully waiting” with expectations that most companies will go along with Victor’s overhauling of the price structure. Ben Kay, Liberty Music Shops (N.Y.) topper, cheered the Victor move while Sam Goody, head of the biggest discount operation in the disk business, was far from en- thusiastic as the price reduction found him with a $400,000 inven- tory of disks. Kay, however, summed up the reactions of “the list price” dealers, both big and small, who envision the Victor price move as knocking the props out of the discounters. Kay, who said “he never felt better in his life” over the Victor announcement, asserted that the price reduction was beginning in the right place—from the top of (Continued on page 40) CBS Can’t See the Fee (20G) for the ’Forest’ In TV Snag on Bogart Humphrey Bogart’s appearance In "The Petrified Forest” on CBS- TV's “Best of Broadway” was to bring him $20,000. He still has the weh on the hook for that amount, but it won’t be in the Robert E. Sherwood work in which the actor played the gangster, Duke Mantee, in the legiter (1935) and film. After inking Bogart, CBS dis- covered that it doesn’t have any hold on the play. “Forest” is in NBC’s corner by virtue of its long- term deal with Sherwood giving the network initial access to his properties in addition, of course, to originals. Bogart has agreed to star in an- other CBS special. NAACP to Powwow On AM-TV Discrimination The N. Y. branch of the National Assn, for the Advancement of Col- ored People will powwow with in- ti ustryites on discrimination in ra- tv on Jan. 18. NAACP’s Ddell Clarke says the meet is to methods and avenues for cre- ation of employment opportunities of qualified Negro and non-white •rtists and personnel.” ge . ttogether with agency and execs, aa well as with union and community or- ganization officials, comes as part of an allout drive to end segrega- f*on in the radio-tv field that be- intensified ‘basis” 0 "’" 8 W “ MCA’s Vegas Office Hollywood, Dec. 28. Music Corp. of America is open- ing a branch office in Las Vegas, first time a talent agency has ever started a branch in the Nevada resort centre. Move is result of Vegas’ boom, and demands for talent from Swank hotels on its strip. Bob Burns was named to head the branch. Metro’s Pic On > Asia’s Buddha Hollwood, Dec. 28. Heralded as “the most important international picture in Metro’s his- tory” is the life story of Gautama Buddha, the Oriental prince turned philosopher whom more than 500 million Asiatic followers hold in reverence as the great holy man of all time. Edwin H. Knopf will produce the film in Cinemascope and color. Associate producer will be Robert Hardy Andrews, who wrote the story and recently returned from a research tour of the Far East. ’Positive’ Americanism, New III. Legion Policy, Follows ’Joan’ Backfire Chicago, Dec. 28. Instead of heresy hunts, the Il- linois American Legion will stress “positive” Americanism. That is indicated in the announcement here last week of a new policy for the state unit of the veterans’ group. Announcement of the state-wide project with its emphasis on the positive angles of patriotism fol- lows by only a few weeks State Commander Irving Breakstone’s disavowal of individuals claiming Legion backing in their charges of “disloyalty” leveled against thea- trical personalities. The new policy statement made no direct references to such finger- pointing activities as backfired last month during the so-called “Saint Joan” incident, when local vigilantes passed out erroneous in- formation about the tourer. But the statement makes clear that the Legion leadership’s desires to steer the group's Americanism activities into more constructive channels. “Our. real to protect American- ism from subversion and un-Amer- ican sets of loyalties has some- times appeared to take the historic form of a fight to extirpate per- (Continued on page 55) Washington, Dec. 28. The American picture industry is on an international hot seat as the result of new Washington con- cern about sending Hollywood product to Russia. Secretary of State John * Foster Dulles and Charles Bohlen, Ambassador to the Soviet, have now quietly conveyed that they’d like to see U. S. fea- tures made available to the Iron Curtain realm. According to highly placed film sources, Dulles and Bohlen ex- pressed this attitude in informal and unofficial fashion. Nonethe- less, it’s the first time in years there has been any State Depart- ment show of feeling one way or another. The Yank industry has main- tained a firm nix on pix to Russia in the absence of specific Washing- ton approval. However, even though this greenlighting appar- ently now has been given, the (Continued on page 55) Papa Had Enough Mambo? Bambuco Next Gringo Hop Hollywood, Dec. 28. Next South American dance to win Norte Americano attention may be the Bambuco. now being featured in the Yma Sumac con- cert program, according to Eliza- beth Waldo, violinist and authority on south-of-the-border rhythms. Miss Waldo is featured fiddler with the Sumac troupe, now on holiday layoff before starting the second half of a nationwide trek. Current American popularity of the tango, samba, rhumba and mambo hasn't even scratched the surface of the dance styles which can be successfully imported. One of these is Bambuco, a pursuit (Continued on page 55) Agented by Blue Cross Chicago, Dec. 28. Emergency bookings pre- dominate on the new show' Tit the Chez Paree which opens here tonight (Tues ). George Jessel substituted for the ail- ing Joe E. Lewis, originally slated for this semester. Peggy Lee, who was to have been the co-headliner, took ill and Joyce Bryant was moved in. How- ever, Eugenie Baird goes on for one show (tonight) only be- cause Miss Bryant couldn’t make it here on time. Jessel, surveying the situa- tion, opened his act with, “This show must have been booked by Blue Cross.” WB’s Remington Pic The murder of William Reming- ton may become the subject of a film by Warner Bros. Film company has registered the titles, “Murder at Lewisburg” and “The Remington Case.” with the Motion Picture Assn, of America. Plan Two-Hour Uncut ‘Peter Pan’ . Mary Martin and NBC are cur- rently involved in negotiations designed to bring to tv a two-hour uncut version of her “Peter Pan” musical, now playing at the Winter Garden. N.Y. If plans are finalized, it will be done sometime in March or April under Ford and RCA sponsorship auspices. Only major stumbling block at the moment is finding the two hours of time, preferably on a late Sunday afternoon. That’s when Miss Martin w'ants to do it. but since it would entail preemptions, NBC isn’t sure it can be arranged. NBC is still trying to persuade the star to permit a 90-minute version for the RCA-Ford-spon- sored Monday Night “Producers Showcase,” but Miss Martin has nixed the idea. She wants maxi- mum exposure for kids and doesn’t think 8 to 9:30 at night will per- mit it. Also, she insists on doing an uncut “Peter Pan.” 6,030,000 Tickets Sold; Music Hall’s 1954 Take 2 % Oyer Previous Year .Reversing the downward trend, after several years of declining pa- tronage, the Radio City Music Hall, N. Y., is winding up 1954 with an anticipated 6,030,000 attendance figure. While not an all-time high, it is one of the bigger yearly fig- ures, and represents an improve- ment of nearly 2% in attedanre over 1953. There were 5,921X^0 patrons to the Hall in ’53 or 110,- 000 fewer than in the current year The Hall regards the reversal of trend as significant since attend- ance has been in a declining cycle since 1946-47. Because of the Improved attend- ance, the Music Hall was able to go through the year with only 10 feature pictures as against 12 pix used in 1953. The low for the Hall in “pictures used” to operate was in 1946 when eight were required. Incidentally, the 10 pictures for 1954 represented the .lowest prod- (Continued on page 55) ► By DAVE KAUFMAN Hollywood, Dec. 28. A staggering $80,000,000—about double the record figure of 1954— has been budgeted by telefilm pro- ducers in Hollywood for 1955. A survey of every Hollywood vidfllm- ery reveals a steady growth in pro- duction, with the solid substance of the year ahead best illustrated by the fact that the preponderance of series to be filmed are in the pre-sponsored classification. Bearing out pas{ predictions that telefilms are facing their best years is the fact 111 series are planned for the coming year, as compared ; to 64 last season. This figure does not include many pilots, only se- ries definitely blueprinted by the various film factories. Of the in upcoming series, 60 are pre-sponsored, as compared to 34 pre-sponsored a year ago. In the syndication bracket there’s also (Continued on page 34) Egyptian Coptic Priest Says U. S. Films Corrupt, Also Misrepresent Yanks Chicago, Dec. 28. Hollywood is being charged by an Egyptian priest with painting a false picture of American life in its efforts to make money over- •seas. Rev. Makary El Souriany of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Egypt told religious education officials of J the National Council of Churches here that the Egyptian, through Hollywood films, knows ti e Amer- ican to be “a vague confusion of gangster, playboy and industrial tycoon. The American is never pic- tured as the hard-working church- going individual he really is.” The priest also blamed American films for “destroying the family i and social life of the Egyptian youth” by giving them ideas about divorce, drinking, and illicit sex. “The East’s cry today is for moral feature-length movies with no of- fensive scenes.” Father Makary is in this country to study social psychology at Princeton U. Grade Fields Sez Radio Builds Stars Too Fast Blackburn, 'Eng., Dec. 28. Gracie Fields, set for U. S. visit early in 1955, believes radio is building up stars too quickly. They are seized too avidly by talent-hun- gry promoters and given star status before they deserve it. They should be allowed to mature naturally, said the English comedienne, and given the practice and rehearsal that the oldtime vaude performers had to undergo. She topped the bill at a capacity house at the 3,000-seat King George’s Hall here.