Variety (September 1956)

2 miscellany PfimEFr Wednesday, September 5, 1956 UJS.-USSR ‘Swap of Music & Laughter May Ease He Tension-Billy Rose - 4 h--— Canada, 0. S.lift Scot Fests Level; Edinburgh Shooting for 300,0(10 ----- + By GEORGE GILBERT U. S. State Dept, is weighing for¬ mal approval of a major exchange of Soviet and American artists un¬ der a plan sponsored by Billy Rose. Preliminary details have already been worked out by the showman via “agreements in principle” with Russia and four other Communist countries. Prior to leaving for Washington over the weekend for huddles with State Dept, officials. Rose de¬ clared in New York upon his re¬ turn from a seven-week Iron Cur¬ tain tour that a diplomatic green-/ light is all that’s lacking to >set the wheels in motion for a talent movement involving 1,000 artists. , He said he was confident that Sec¬ retary of State John Foster Dulles would okay the proposal. Rose, who referred to the agree¬ ments as a “basis for negotiations, asserted he had previously dis¬ cussed the matter with the State Dept, on various levels and these talks “led me to believe they were sympathetic to the plan.” Target date for getting the venture under¬ way is next New Year’s Eve. While no talent has been selected as yet, he envisons such Soviet ensembles as the Bolshoi Theatre Ballet opening in the U. S. and the N. Y. City Center Ballet touring the five Communist countries. “I’m just hopeful that a swap of music and laughter may ease the tension,” said Rose who launched the project July 4 as a private citizen when he left on a European honeymoon with his bride, the former Joyce Mathews. “In visiting Russia, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Yugoslavia an&Roumania,” he added, “I invariably found the people warm and friendly.” Non-Profit Undertaking * Rose emphasized that the entire talent exchange would be strict^ On a non-profit basis and earnings (if any) would go to a charity of his designation. Showman is waiv¬ ing any personal compensation “because I’m doing this for the sheer fun of it.” While he hasn’t had a chance to discuss the plan | with any American artists, he “is sure of their cooperation; more¬ over we 'shouldn’t do this unless we can afford to send our top people.” As evidence of approval from various other quarters, Rose re¬ vealed that Rep. Francis E. Wal¬ ter (Dem.-Pa.), chairman of the House Committee on Un-American (Continued on page 55) DEAN MARTIN’S PIC DEFERS BRITISH TV’ER London, Sept; 4. Due to a rearrangement of film plans in Italy Dean Martin will not be able to star in ATV’s “Sun¬ day Night at the London. Palla¬ dium” on Sept. 16. ^ Martin starts shooting in Rome on Sept. 4, and it is therefore im¬ possible .for him to commit him¬ self for any specific engagement, but it is hoped he will visit Lon¬ don for two or three days before returning to Hollywood. Russky Vox Pop That vaunted Iron Curtain surrounding Russia and her satellites has failed as a bar¬ rier to much of the American idiom according to impresario Billy Rose. “While in Moscow I heard American music constantly. At one cafe an eight-piece band played what I would call a ‘businessman’s foxtrot.* . . . There’s a certain amount of bootleg American jazz records. When you say Kenton, Good¬ man or Armstrong they’re known better to the average Russian than names of our congressmen or senators. “I had the feeling In a Len¬ ingrad visit that the Voice of America isn’t too effective. One citizen there told me T listen to the British Broadcast- - ing Corp. because we’re so sick and tired of listening to our own propaganda, why should we listen to yours?’ He said the BBC newscasts were much 1 more objective. “Ticket scalpers are still in business in Moscow. Admis¬ sion to the opera or ballet is 40 rubles ($10 at official ex¬ change rate) and pasteboards are scarce. But there was al¬ ways a gentleman who could provide them outside the the¬ atre. For this piece of private initiative, no one seems to have been able to stamp out . . . I saw no experimental theatre. What they have is uniformly excellent but old-fashioned ac¬ cording to my New York stand¬ ards.” ’Birth of Nation,’ Which ’Made’ Lil Gish, ’Ruined’ Screen, Says Guess Who Albany, Sept. 4. “The Birth of a Nation” was the picture which “ruined” the-screen. So Lillian Gish, a star in the D. W. Griffith classic, said in an inter¬ view last week over WPTR at Al¬ bany. Two days later, in a recorded exchange via WGY, Schenectady, her sister, Dorothy, commented, “We think they committed suicide when dialog was added to motion pictures. Silent pictures had a universality which films made in English, a language used by only a small part of the world’s peo¬ ple, lack.” The veteran actresses,' who were appearing in “The Chalk Garden” at the Spa Summer Theatre in Saratoga, dropped these verbal bombs while ranging over a wide field of subjects. Lillian stated, and Dorothy agreed, that, the commercial suc¬ cess of “Birth of a Nation” led to “business taking over motion pic- (Continued on page 55 ) Frances & Sara Goldwyn’s Royal Welcome in London London, Sept, 4 . Samuel Goldwyn, who arrived in London yesterday (Mon.) with Mrs. GoldWyn. for the launching of “Guys and Dolls,” is being feted by the British motion picture in¬ dustry. He’ll be guest of honor at a Savoy dinner on Sept. 13 being sponsored by the four Industry as¬ sociations. Goldwyn is also tp be joint guest of honor with the Lord Mayor of London at a Variety Club lunch next Tuesday (11). “G & D” preems at the Empire, Leicester Square, oh Sept. 19 under Variety Club sponsorship. The pro¬ ceeds will be. split between the Club’s Heart Fund and the British Council for the Welfare of Spas- tics. Bolshoi’s 250G For 3% Weeks, London Sellout London, Sept. 4 . Almost within a matter of min¬ utes the. Bolshoi Theatre Ballet sea¬ son was a complete sellout to the tune of around $250,000 for 25 per¬ formances. The combination of mail applications and queuers more thah'took good care of the 50,000 odd seats available for the three- and-a-half week run. When the b.o. opened for busi¬ ness at 8:30 last Monday morning (27) the theatre staff was con-, fronted with more than 12,000 writ¬ ten applications for seats, the ma¬ jority of which were for the maxi¬ mum allocation of 12 tickets. In addition there was a round-the-the- atre line including many balletoma- niacs who had been waiting for three days and nights. Such was the demand for seats that the Opera House management has slashed its regular press lists. Guest tickets will be available only to na¬ tional press scribes; trades, mags and provincial papers will have to buy their own tickets-£-if they can get them. ' The Bolshoi season, which opens on Oct. 3, is proving to be the big¬ gest postwar b.o. bonanza, despite the considerably upped admission prices. Grand Tier seats have been scaled up to $8.40 and the cheap-, est gallery seats are priced ^at 90c. The bulk of the orchestras are around $8, with boxes upped to $35. The b.o. staff has been re¬ inforced to cope with the demand. The Bolshoi will stage four full- length works during their season— “Romeo and Juliet,” “Swan Lake,” “Giselle” and “The Fountain of Bakhchisarai.” The company, of course, is headed by Galina Ulan¬ ova, but the Bolshoi management is not disclosing the names of the productions in which she’ll be danc¬ ing. ThatsS the Russian custom and they insist on operating it here, too. Brit. Unionists Squawk Vs. Automation Dodge: Lire Maestro With Disks Glasgow, Sept. 4. - Each night the musical director of the Moral Re-Armament Thea¬ tre Group, her6 last May, took up position in orch pit ,tapped lectern with his baton, and launched his “orchestra” into opening number. At end of each performance most of the stubholders left un¬ aware that the conductor was the only person in the orch pit. And that he did not have a real live orch at all. Music came from disks played behind the scenes. Story Was tloid at a confab on automation here, organized by trade unionists. Neil ^itken, Scot organizer of the British Musicians Union, voiced the grouse, saying the music for the MRA plays was recorded by between 30 and 40 musicians in the U.S.A. “At the performances of ’The Vanishing Island’ the conductor had no one to conduct,” he said. “He was merely there to ’co-ordi¬ nate.’.” Musicians’ Union her e has pro¬ tested to the MRA, and the Ameri¬ can Federation of Musicians is re¬ portedly making inquiries. Because of technical progress, music is reaching larger ’ audiences, but -fewer and fewer musicians are being employed, said/Aitken, ",b r ioW sill lo jmbnoW novsS" British Rock V Rollers Just as Rowdy as in U.S. London, Sept. 4: The unpleasanter aspects of the rock ’n’ roll craze became evident in .London last week when a riot broke out during the showing of “Rock Around the Clock” (Col) at a neighborhood theatre. Some 400'youngsters * eft their seats to jive in the aisles and the picture was kept running to avoid further be.dlam. The rowdies were finally quelled by the arrival of about a score of policemen, but not before the theatre manager had been beaten up when he tried to protest. There were also reports of trou¬ ble in other theatres following the showing of the Bill Haley pictufe; during one, a manager who stood up against the mdb was f carried bodily into the foyer. Roxy as Tele Spec Base In Switch of Ownership To Rockefeller Interests With last week’s sale of the Roxy Theatre, N. Y., to the Rocke¬ feller interests and subsequent leaseback to National Theatres, the Roxy will be in a position to move in several directions. Robert C. Rothafel, theatre’s managing di¬ rector, will seek a. level of stage- shows that will invite networks to televise spectaculars from that house. He envisions the possi¬ bility that he’ll have a more flexi¬ ble policy than the current ice- show format. | Format may include the use of I names. He hopes to be ready to move with his new plans around Jan. *1, but since blueprints are still in the formative stage, noth¬ ing is definite as yet. | The Roxy was purchased last week by Westprop Inc., a Rocke¬ feller subsidiary, for $6,200,000. Roxy Theatre Inc., a NT subsid, will continue to operate the house with Rothafel in charge. No change in personnel or operational plans are presently considered, except for the expansion of stageshows. Elmer C. Rhoden, NT prexy, stated the Roxy was a profitable operation, and the realty sale merely carries out a policy of the parent company which seeks to eliminate tremendous investments in one situation. Proceeds of the sale will be used to diversify the company’s investments. The Roxy returned to the ice- show policy less than a year ago, shortly after Rothafel, a nephew of the late. Samuel L. Rothafel, who staged the first shows at that house when it opened in 1927, took over the top post there. Rothafel dusted off the ice stage which had been dormant for some time, and (Continued on page 55) By GORDON IRVING Edinburgh, Sept. 4. This Edinburgh Festival is, in U.S. pailance, “jumping”. And American and Canadian influence is hypoing the standards, both legit and music-wise. Stratford (Ont.) Festival Theatre troupe planed in direct from Mon¬ treal, opened with Shakespeare’s “Henry V”. in the ancient Assem¬ bly Hall apron stage, and is set to launch Sophocles’ “Oedipus Rex,” in the W. B. Yeats version, tomor¬ row (Wed.), Boston Symphony, on another lap of world tour, has also arrived to raise the music level and garner top notices. Rainy conditions have not damp¬ ened b.o. prospects. There’s evefy sign the 1956. event will break records. Visitors to Edinburgh in the entire three weeks’ stint are likely to pass the 300,000 mark, thus beating the 1955 record by over 20,000. The Boston Orch, in from I^iib- liil Eire, after a matinee perform-. ance, spent 32 hectic hours flying or sailing to Scotland and giving their opening of five festival con¬ certs in. the vast 3000-seat Usher Hall. It was a rush job. Customs officers examined instruments and baggage on the backstage while Dame Myra Hess played to a fest¬ ival jaudience in front. Orch’s 85 instruments came di¬ rect 1 by boat to Glasgow, and were rushed through by road to Edin¬ burgh. Operation was so speeded up jthat customs men at Glasgow sealed the crates and cases to al¬ low 1 them to move to Edinburgh, then completed their look-see only a few minutes before a last-minute rehearsal. As G. W. Rector, orch’s assistant manager put it, “We really hus* tied.” Critics Praise Symph The orch got generally good no¬ tices from assembled crix. Noel Goodwin, in Daily Express, said its music was “of an extraordinary (Continued on page 18) Leftish Pic Star Finds Few Roles in Mex City Mexico City, Aug. 28. Evidently, the going here is still too tough for Rosura Revueltas, local film actress, who appeared in a leading role, in the controversial leftish U.S.-made, “Salt of the Earth.” She * returned home to Mexico after a triumphal behind the Iron Curtain tour, evidently expecting plenty of local leftist support in gaining film roles. How¬ ever, in the more than two months since her homecoming little seems to have transpired other than a prospective role in a still untitled future film production. With little to keep her here, other than promises, she now in¬ tends leaving for East Berlin Sept. 18 with plans to do a series of authentic Mex dramas on tv there and possibly in other parts of the Russian occupied zone. PfiffiETY Subscription Order Form 9/5 Enclosed find check for $ Please send VARIETY for 1^® y^s To (Pltease Print Name) Street ... City.. . . . Zone. .., State. Regular Subscription Rates One Year—-$10.00 Two Years—$18.00 Canada and Foreign—$1 Additional Per Year Pfi&IETY Inc. 154 West 46tii Street New /York 36. N. Y. .^niiliyr Jfsn fA'.i Isboft- oOTTsc oiT ~ ,uo iJoTT m'rifci bn* 1 Trade Mark Registered FOUNDED 1905 by SIME SILVERMAN; Published Weekly by VARIETY# INC. Harold Erichs# President 184 West 46th St., Xew York 36, N. 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