Variety (January 26, 1955)

PICTURES Wednesday, January 26, 1955 John Huston, Awash in Partners, Confers, Interviews, Cocktails During Arduous Quickie in Manhattan By HY HOLLINGER It was John Huston day in New York Friday <21). The director, who now resides in Kilcock, Ireland, and has confined his picture-making to abroad in recent years, winged in fpr a busy round of business con- ferences, press interviews, and cocktail receptions. He returned to his home in Ireland Monday (24) prior to taking of! for India SUES RUSS BIRDWELL Iranian Actress Says She Got No Action in Fame Quest MARYLAND CENSOR REBUTS PREMINGER Los Angeles, Jan. 25. Paula Verdier, Iranian actress, also known as Laura Sadia and PaVanne, filed suit against Russell . . / u * .Birdwell asking $17,500 damages lurefassiemnen? 8 P f ° r Publicity which she Sihce HusTon's services are much C ‘X n ? as in demand and are currently $1800 rector son of the late Walter Hus- con . hpf ,^ eep name ^ Y u —T'-'Y* ~ VY ton found himself faced with the hJ u P u ^c in as- Council back in the thirties, fol- task of promotins several Projects j i^dulon^hS iShe - * aSSUmed “ $15,000 punitive damages. Editor, Vamett: Will you kindly publish, as a news item, in your next issue, the following reply to Otto Preminger’s article in last week’s Variety. Otto Preminger’s recent tirade against film censorship in general, and the Maryland setup in par- ticular, hits an all-time low in my experience as a movie censor. Preminger asserts that Maryland’s “chief censor is always a politi- cian;’’ that, as “the state’s present governor, Theodore R. McKeldin, is a Republican, so automatically is Sydney Traub;’’ that, “when next a Democrat is elected gov- ernor, Traub will be supplanted by a party-working Democrat.’’ I hardly believe that I can qual- ify for the title of “politician,” particularly in the sense that Preminger attaches to the term. But I admit that I was elected and re-elected to the Baltimore City { New York Sound Track promoting several projects at once. From the point of imme- diacy, “Moby Dick’’ heads the list. The newest screen version of the Herman Melville classic was com- pleted Wednesday <19) in the Canarf Islands alter six months of shooting in Madeira, Ireland, Wales, London, and the Canaries. Including the preparation, the pic- ture took two years to complete. Huston’s multi-connections came to the fore at a tradepress confab at his St. Regis suite Friday morn- ing. The session was called by Warner Bros., which is releasing “Moby Dick.” In addition to the Warner representative, the dram- atis personnae included A1 Crown, president, and Harold Mirisch, partner, of Moulin Productions, the company which made “Moby Dick;’’ Henry Rogers, of Rogers & Cowan, Moulin’s publicity repre- sentative; F.rnie Anderson, who’s been handling the picture’s and Huston’s publicity abroad; Mil f Todd, whose Todd-AO process Huston will use on his next pic- ture; a Warner photographer; a photographer from Magna, the company connected with Todd-AO, and assorted tradepress reporters. British Film Acad Nominates Eight American pictures, nine British and one each from Mexico, Italy. Japan and France have been nominated for the “best of 1954” awards by the British Film Acad- emy, England's counterpart to Hol- lywood's Academy of Motion Pic- ture Arts and Sciences. Two awards are to be voted in this class, one for a pic from any source and the other for a British film. The nominees: from the U. S„ “Caine Mutiny,” “Executive Suite.” “How to Marry' a Millionaire.” “Moon Is Blue.” “On the Water- front,” “Rear Window,” “Riot in Cell Block 11” and “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers”: British. "Car- rington V. C..” "Divided Heart.” “Doctor in the House.” “For Better, for Worse.” “Hobson’s Choice.” public assignment, namely, a four- year tour of duty with the Army Air Forces, first as a captain and finally as lieutenant-colonel. Three years after I returned to the prac- tice of law, Maryland's then Gov- ernor. William Preston Lane Jr., a Democrat, selected me, a Demo- crat, to head the Board of Motion Picture Censors. When my term expired. Governor McKeldin, a Republican, re-appointed me to the office. Concerning Preminger’s further misstatement that “all the subor- dinate jobs are doled out to the (Continued on page 54) Mirisch served in a dual capa- “The Ma££ie.” “Purple city since he's also an executive of Allied Artists with which Huston (Continued on page 18) Plain.” “Young India Censors Worsen; Some American Features Rendered Unintelligible Censorship situation in India is getting worse and prospects of any improvement in the near future ap- pear dim, the film companies in N.Y. are told. Estimates put the number of U S. pix banned in India during 1954 at around 50. A great many others were cut so badly by the local scissor-wielders, they were virtually unintelligible. American imports into India during the year are put at around 300. To make matters worse, the In- dian parliament recently passed a bill agreeing with the suggestion of one of its members that, if any- thing. closer supervision of motion pictures was needed. While this has no direct bearing on the opera- tions of the censor board, it is seen as giving it an added incentive to be tough on western imports. Motion Picture Export Assn, sev- eral months ago retained Sir Clif- ford Agarwala, eminent Indian jur- ist and a former head of the cen- (Continued on page 22) FEB. 6 ‘TOAST’ FOR COLUMBIA PICTURES Columbia Pictures will be toast- ed on Ed Sullivan’s CBS-TV show Feb. 6. Full hour program will fo- cus on the Col “story.” via the ap- pearance of many of the studio's players and the presentation of clips from new and old Col films. Eddie Fisher will present songs from “Jolson Story” and “Jolson Sings Again’’ and Teresa Brewer is sbt to do the tunes from the forthcoming "Three for the Show.” Marge and Gower Champion, starred in the latter film, also will appear on the Sullivan salute along with Maureen O’Hara, Donald Crisp, Dianne Foster. Robert Francis. Glorie Krieger. Jack Lemmon. Bill Leslie. Kim Novak and Betsy Palmer. They’re being flown from the Coast to N. Y., specially to appear. Romeo and Juliet” and Lovers.” Others are “Adventures of Rob- inson Crusoe," Mexico; “Bread. Love and Dreams.” Italy; “Gate of Hell,” Japan, and France. Candidates for the best British actress citation are Brenda de Ban- zie, for "Hobson’s Choice”; Audrey Hepburn, “Sabrina”; Margaret Leighton and Noelle Middleton, “Carrington,” and Yvonne Mitchell, "Divided Heart.” In the running as best British actor: Maurice Denham. “Purple Plain”; Robert Donat, “Lease of Life”; David Niven, “Carrington”; John Mills. “Hobson’s”; Kenneth More, “Doctor in House,” and Don- ■ (Continued on page 54) Joshua Logan hopes to land Rosalind Russell for the schoolteacher part in “Picnic,” which he’ll direct for Columbia. Bill Holden has the male lead . . . William Perlberg on the prowl for a new title of his upcoming picturization of the book, "The Magnificent Bastards'* . . . Production Code has okayed Columbia's ‘Three for the Show.’’ Legion of Decency is withholding its verdict pending possible changes in the bigamy angles in the script . . . Irving Manheimer in Hollywood to finalize arrangements for the Gold Medal Awards Dinner to be staged by Photoplay on Feb. 10 . . . Mr. and Mrs. A. H. Blank are leaving New York City this weekend for a three-months’ world tour. He is president of Tri-States and Central States Theatres in Iowa, Illinois and Nebraska . . . Barbara O’Neil planed to Nassau, Bahamas] Sun. <23) to join the cast of “Rebel Island” which Edward Ludwig 19 directing there for Republic release . . . Dean Allen, the original voice of Donald Duck, recuping in Hospital for Special Surgery, after major operation. Morton A. Spring, Loew’s International v.p., left yesterday (Tues) for a tour of Metro offices and theatres in Latin America. He’ll be joined by Maurice Silverstein, the company’s regional -director for Latin America . . . Metro has acquired the screen rights to “Somebody Up There Likes Me,” the story of Rocky Graziano, to be published in March by Simon & Shuster, and also scheduled as the lead story in the upcoming edition of the Book of the Month Club's “Books Abridged.” Previous condensation recently appeared in Look mag . . . Kitty Kallen signed for Universal’s western musical, “The Second Greatest Sex” . . . Elroy (Crazylegs) Ilirsch, gridiron star turned film actor, arrived in Gotham yesterday <Tues.) to begin a 12-city tour in connection with his latest starring picture, “Unchained.” The Warner Bros, release opens at the Victoria, N Y. tomorrow <Thurs.)~. . . Lowell Thomas back in New York from an around-the-world tour for his new Cinerama picture, “Seven Wonders of the World.” Agent Mitchell Gertz, in Europe on a talent quest, has signed a Dutch cabaret entertainer, Wira Sonneveld on the basis of his first feature film, due for release in Amsterdam Feb. 10 . . . Pittsburgh’s Variety Club (Tent No. 1) banqueting Harold Cohen Feb. 2 on account of his winning Screen Directors’ Guild “best critic of year” accolade. Vet film exec Budd Rogers-and wife celebrate their 35th wedding anni tomorrow iThurs.) . . . Monty Salmon, managing director of the Rivoli, confined fo St. Mary Abbotts Hospital, London, with a com- pound leg fracture. He was struck by an automobile while on a visit with members of his family in the British capital ... As part of this week's newsreel, RKO Theatres has a clip showing the preem of “Underwater!” in Silver Springs, Fla. . . . "Let’s Dance with Marge and Gower Champion 9 by Bob Thomas, on terpery instruction with illustrations, out this month via Grosset 81 Dunlap at $1. Arthur M. Rosen, aide to Nat Lapkin on Cinerama production activi- ties, engaged to Helene Weiss, of Paris. A June wedding in Paris is planned. Senior Rosen is executive v.p. of Stanley Warner. His uncle is SW prexy Si Fabian . . . Irja Jensen, Finnish-born actress, has ex- clusive contract with producer Fred Feldkamp. She’s featured in the H I, H T I current "Operation Manhunt,” United Artists release . . . Recent stories Nat Hnlt inHiY nrnriunor /('(c about Stanley Kramer having hired a man to promote "Not As A closed the formation^ a new part- tonfiThrn^M f * mea " 5 Yni". w' P ‘ C adap,ali0 , n , p .°- nership with Lewis P. Rosen for Y,V* 1 ;„ b ” ught . », n ® t * preasa ?*"* D,ck We f TCT - He wants ,he the production of a number of '™ rld *? k . n ° w ,hat hc dld the J° b - other companies now are copying high-budget films, probably for * 1 ’ lncldentall y- RKO release. Rosen is co-founder of Royal Amusements and Royal Theatres of Hawaii and president of the Civic Auditorium of Hono- lulu. Two films lined up so far for Hawaii’s Lewis P. Rosen Partners With Holt To Produce Hi-Cost Films the new partnership are “Texas Wages of Fear,” j Lady” and “Louisiana Lottery,” one of which is slated to roll late in February or early in March. Holt recently completed “Rage At Dawn,” starring Randolph Scott, for RKO release. Censors Should Be Trained for Jobs N.Y. Head Finds Ontario Report on Methods ‘En- lightening’—Richmond Stresses Positive OSCAR BALLOTS OUT; AIR NOMINEES FEB. 12 Hollywood, Jan. 25. Preliminaries for the 27th Oscar Derby are under way with the mail- ing of 13.438 nomination ballots by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Votes must be returned by midnight Jan. 29, with nominations to be announced on Feb. 12. Those receiving ballots .were 1,600 Academy members; 9.757 members of the Screen Actors Guild; 455 in the Screen Directors Guild; 734 in the Screen Writers Guild; and 892 representatives of technical crafts in the film indus- try. Jack Webb will emcee nomina- tion - announcement ceremonies, first time out on television. Pro- gram, lasting 90 minutes, will be carried coast-to-coast on the entire NBC tv and radio networks. 6-7:30 pm. (PST). Oscar presentations will be made March 30. Miller’s ‘Baker’s Dozen’ Stunt Grabs Free Space Minneapolis, Jan. 25. Universal branch here boasts the distinction of being the first local film exchange to crash the dailies with art for a sales drive. An original and ingenious promo- tion stunt conceived by the branch manager, LeRoy J. Miller, turned the trick. It also created much talk in film circles and publicized the drive in most unusual and ef- fective fashion. Instead of being satisfied with the usual form letters to exhibitors announcing the Charles Feldman sales drive, which extends from Jan. 1 to April 30, and asking sup- port for the campaign back of 13 features, “a baker’s dozen,” Miller togged out two of his salesmen, Charles Bliss and Robert Helmer- son, as bakers. When You Have a Rep Boston, Jan. 25. Exploiteer Terry Turner in Boston last week to ballyhoo the radio-rooted “Gangbusters” feature film took a royal rib- bing from the film row wags and journalistic tribe. They insisted they believe he staged the uprising at the State Prison as a tie-up. N. Y. to L. A. Harry Cohn Ben Gage Helen Gould George Gabby Hayes Janet Leigh Rudolph Mate George Murphy Frank Rosenberg Sylvia Sidney Mike Todd Esther Williams Can t Get Too Much Oats? 9 Minneapolis, Jan. *25. \ast number of oat operas being served up on tv isn’t stop- ping action pictures, including Westerns, from continuing to be exhibitors bread and butter boxofficewise. Even in urban centres like Minneapolis and St. Paul such film fare Is still the most dependable of any at the b.o. and its performance there remains the most consistent. Such seems to he the convinced doctrine of all branch managers, circuit buyers-bookers and exhibitors generally. One Big Year By NORM LOUDEN Sydney, Jan. 25. Riding the wave of the greatest era of population, industrial and economic expansion in the coun- try’s history, the film industry of Australia chalks up 1954 as the best year in its history. Biz was w'ell ahead of previous years—a result attested by Fox- Hoyts topper Ernest Turnbull, and Greater Union loop chief, Norman B. Rydge. Rydge, chairman and managing director of the Greater Union Theatres group, which includes (Continued on page 18) N. Y. to Europe Peter Brook Leslie Caron Wolfe Cohen Chandler Cowles Faith Domerpue Mary K. Frank Fred Harris Sol Hurok John Huston Mai Zetterling Europe to N. Y. Nat Cohen Anton Dolin + Mario del Monaco Film censor jobs in the various states should be filled by Civil Service personnel that is qualified via background and education for these difficult and responsible po- sitions, Hugh M. Flick, the N. Y. censor, declared In N. Y. this week. Flick, who last week attended a two-day powwow of four state cen- sors in Richmond, Va., stressed that he didn’t mean this to be taken in any way as a criticism of |_his colleagues hi other states. How- ever, he added, “if censorship is to be put on an intelligent level, and if it is to survive that way, it must be carried out by qualified people who fully grasp what is involved here.” Appointments v to the censor boards in all states except N. Y. are on a political basis. Flick is a civil service employee. Differ- ence, it’s been pointed out. is that (Continued on page 18) L. A. to N. Y. Van Alexander Polly Bergen Roy M. Brewer Linda Christian George Cukor Gloria De Haven Jane Fischer L. Wolfe Gilbert Lillian Gish Barbara Hale Mitchell Hamilburf Elroy Hirsch Jose Iturbi Joseph Kaufman Betty and Jane Kean Grace Kelly Ray Klune Jesse L. Lasky Hal R. Makelim Abe Olman Wynn Rocamora Cy Roth Victor Saville William Spier William Taub Robert Taylor Ursula Theiss Benay Venuta Edward Wolpin