Variety (November 1957)

Wednesday, November 13, 1957 P^RIETY PICTURES 15 Par Still Dickers Lease of Taulties [TV SYNDICATORS NOW INVENTORY 7,500] Discussions concerning Paramount’s lease-unloading of its back¬ log to television interests are still going on with no decisions as yet, according to Barney Balaban, president of the film company. lie stated emphatically that Par has no intention of holding on to the back pictures for eventual use on the company’s Telemeter home toll television system..He said the public couldn’t be expected to pay for product that isn’t new. For the refreshment of trade memory, television to date has ac¬ quired about 3,600 feature films out of the Hollywood storage vaults. Over 700 each came from BKO, Warners and Metro, re¬ spectively, about 100 from Universal, 400 from Republic, around 150 each from Columbia and 20th-Fox, 100 from Allied Artists and a scattered 100 more from indie sources. Counting in the large quotas of foreign-made features and mis¬ cellany television syndicators probably purchased residual rights to 7,500 films. Seven-Year Contract & Participation Rpard meeting, at 20th-Fox to¬ morrow (Thurs.) is expected to okay a new seven-year contract for • Buddy Adler, 20th’s production, chief. It’ll give him a profit par¬ ticipation in at least several of ‘the films produced by him and the studio. Adler’s current contract still has two years to run. The new deal] would ‘overlap the remaining two years. . It was the same board ’fhich, some time ago, nixed the Adler con¬ tract as worked out by the -pro¬ ducer nnd 20th prexy Spyros P. Skouras. It’s understood that, since then, some of Adler’s de¬ mands have been modified. Ap¬ proval of the deal as it now stands is said to be assured. Adler was in Gotham last week, huddling on it With Skouras and also discussing production matters. New pact allows Adler to take a capital gains profit. His basic sal¬ ary at 20 th will be reduced in an¬ ticipation of the additional take. EXPECT FIRST YEARDF FRENCH PACT AS IS Though finalization of a French film agreement is still pending, the companies .believe the final deal will see a-status quo for the first year and changes in the second. New pact will run from July 1,1957 for two years. Companies have been operating in France with advance permits issued by the Government in antici¬ pation of an agreement. Though ”a new Government has taken over, it’s not expected that there will bd any I deal for at least two weeks. Distribs in N.Y. say it’d be too late to apply changes for. 1957-58. Also, they maintain, even if partial allocation of permits by the French themselves is agreed on for 1958-j 59, it’ll still have to be done by “mutual consent,’’ Roy Rogers-Dale Evans To Theatre Screens Again Hollywood, Nov. 12. After an absence of more than five years, Roy Rogers and his wife Dale Evans will return to the¬ atrical filming early next year. They’ve lined up a series of oaters, to be made independently for ma¬ jor release, beginning with “San Bernardino.” Scripters also are working on “The Roy Rogers Life Story.” Their last theatrical film was “Spoilers of the Plains*-’ in 1952. AI Stern to NTA Alfred Stem this week resigned from the post of global publicity manager for RKO after an 11-year association with the company to become Hollywood pub head of Na¬ tional Telefilm Associates. Ren Grimm, film company’s ad man¬ ager, has been upped to worldwide manager of advertising and pub-' licity, Given the job of assistant global ad-pub chief is Fred Lutkin, who has been business manager in charge of co-op advertising. Townsend Harris’ Under Way in Japan Village; Camouflage Modernity Tokyo, Nov. 12. With a leading lady still to be named, 20th-Fox started shooting “The Townsend Harris Story” at the tiny fishing, village of Kawana on the southern arm of Tokyo Bay some two hours from here. Opening sequences of the John Wayiie starrer were mostly specta¬ cle stuff, depicting Harris' arrival at"'festival time. Over 300 local people and 270 extras were dressed in the ancient samurai warrior cos¬ tumes to greet the first U.S. con¬ sul here with something less than mixed feelings as director John Huston oversaw in an African bush jacket. Yumeji Tsukioka, a fragile-look¬ ing 34-year-old Nikkatsu actress, was on hand and was expected to be named momentarily for the role of Okichi, a geisha who was as¬ signed to care for Harris’ needs. It was believed that Nikkatsu was holding out for additional conces¬ sions, such as theatre playdates, before a deal could be consum¬ mated. The town of Kawana was trans¬ ported hack in years for the se¬ quences with thatched roofs cover¬ ing the modern tile, telephone poles being camouflaged, tv aerials being temporarily hidden and store fronts altered. A* deal-with the township covers costs - of the switches. The Kaiwa Maru, a four-masted steel baroque used as a Japanese training ship, has been rented to represent the San Jacinto, the U.S. Navy vessel which brought Harris to Japan. A number of houses will be burned at the site as . Harris ar¬ rived during a cholera epidemic. The community represents Shi- moda where Harris actually land¬ ed. Huston judged present-day Shimoda too modern for the scenes. The company is expected to move to Kyoto, in mid-November for an additional 60 days of shoot¬ ing with exteriors at historical sites and interiors at shrines and tem¬ ples and at the Kyoto Eiga studio. Assembled for the film are 300 40 ox carts and 90 samurai [swords. Exclusive of cast, the com¬ pany numbers 237 of^whom but 30 are Americans. Michlo Ito is dance director and Huston is generally using as much Japanese technical talent as possible tp carry out his expressed intention of making “a Japanese picture.” Veteran 'Sam Jaffe is on location to play the Dutchman who acted as Harris’ interpreter and Japa¬ nese vet So Yamamura is playing the Governor of Shimoda who tries to resist the^landing of Harris. Although not a Co-producer, Daiei is co-operating. Muriel O’Brien quit-as associate editor of the Green Sheet on the heels of editor Marjorie Dawson’s bowout. Publication is a com¬ posite of film reviews of 13 na¬ tional (mainly femme) organiza¬ tions. Steve Allen s Impromptu Rib Rank-Yank Cheered As ♦ The major film companies, per¬ haps for the umpteenth time, are reappraising the policy of placing in to j n ■ n* • ! film clips on major television shows brat uB66 Captures Dixie! for exnloitation purposes. Although A r . _ , , TT it’s agreed that the cxnosure on Over 100 Prints m Use network tv show »a quick and inexpensive wav to bung the pic- “Pursuit of the Graf Spee” is ture to the.attention of millions of the first British film to have solidly i peonle. the film companies have broken down the Dixie “line.” Irv-: periodically w ondered if perhaps ing Sochin, general sales manager t} je manner of- presentation can do for Rank 'Film Distributors of move harm than good. America, said last week. The basic problem has been the Picture, according to Sochin, is inability to control the film clip performing on a par with any good : once it gets into the .hands of t|ie American film and doing top busi--. television people. Perhaps the bfst ness in many situations despite the i examole of this is the manner sin depressed b.o. in some sections, i which Stove Allen handled “ifie due to. the flu scare. “Spee” has ; Bridge on the River, Kv.-ai” on a re- been widely booked by United Par- j cent Sunday show. Columbia, amount affiliates in the South and ; which is distributing the film, went Southwest, and also has done en¬ couraging business elsewhere. RFDA is using over 100 prints and all are booked solid. More than 200 dates have been played off. Sochin attributed the success of the “Graf Spee” to a strong ad campaign and the action appeal. Rank Org has April Olrich, British through considerable expense to prepare a filmed interview espe¬ cially for Allen. The interview, filmed in Ceylon, where the pic¬ ture wrs made on location, fea- tured Alec Guinness and William Holden. The interview, a 1. hough handled straight, lost whatever effect it stariet appearing in the film touring | might havc j iad when Allen imme- yrith it. Sochin said there origin¬ ally had been circuit resistance, but that the b.o, performance of the picture had made his sales job easier. He’s been all over the coun¬ try selling “Graf Spee” and the 14-pfcture Rank lineup. STYLISTS FIGURE BIG IN WB lORNINGSTAR’ On the theory that advertising arid promotion of a picture must start at the very conception of the filrii Warner Bros, has replaced the studio designer on “Marjorie Mor- ningstar” with ideas executed by the various fashion houses and manufacturers who will tie in with release of the picture: ' “Morningstar” is skedded for Easter release. The cooperating companies have designed the clothes for Natalie Wood, the star of the film, aiming at the kind of outfits a young N. Y. girl of above- averagq income level might wear. The manufacturers now are copy¬ ing the line for spring and summer release. At the end of the picture, they’ll he given full credit. Large tieup, ranging all the way from clothes fa cosmetics, was ar¬ ranged by Robert Taplinger, WB ad-pub v.p. Campaign is being co¬ ordinated by Harper's Bazaar and one of the keys is the development of Morningstar Blue in conjunc¬ tion with the Color Assn. Harper’s April issue will highlight the vari¬ ous “Morningstar” designs. Miss Wood will tour the country and ap- diately thereafter presented a satir¬ ical version of the same interview. Allen’s “making fun” of the per¬ formers and the picture so in¬ censed Columbia prexy Harry Cohn that he handed down an edict that henceforth clips from Columpia pictures would not be given to television. Col is also question¬ ing the ethics of Allen’s stunt since he“h 3 d never informed the studio that he had intended to follow the filmed interview with a burlesque. (Allen on the air used a phrase like ‘v'ith the kind per¬ mission of—') Periodically, the film companies have suffered from tv takeoffs of films. Usually, however, this Oc¬ curs when the film is already in re¬ lease to a considerable extent and no harm results. However, when an expensive property such as “Kwai” is burlesqued before it has been shown to the public, it’s felt that it sets up a barrier that is difficult to overcome. In the past, Allen and Ed Sulli¬ van. although catered to by the film companies, have been the greatest offenders. There have been nu¬ merous beefs against both on the way film clips have been “mishan¬ dled.” On occasions, the faulty presentation has been accidental. However, these slips, it’s asserted, have resulted in irreparable harm at the boxoffice. Even before Allen’s takeoff on “Kwai,” a number of film compa¬ nies have withheld footage from the videoites. Metro, for example, refused to give Allen a two-minute clip from “Les Girls,” feeling that pear at various department stores . _ _ that tie in with the Harper’s pro-! the small-screen showing would not motion. : fully indicate the scope and enter- “The main® thing is that the 1 tainment value of the picture. Met- styles worn by Miss Wood are be-' ™ was willing to go along with a iievable,” Taplinger noted. “Often, i 30-second bit, hut Allen nixed it. the kind of clothes worn bv our • HJ s argument was that if he spent stars aren’t believable. Here will: money advertising the stars in the be styles which, if they appeal to : clip, he wanted more footage to women, can be bought by them."' show the tv audience. He estimated that the picture was Mam beef of the filmites in deal-^ receiving $1,000,000 in free acTs in S with the videoites is that the via the cooperating group of manu- ? relationship is a one way street facturers. i although the Iv people stand to -:-;— benefit as much. “They give ydu strictive regulations detrimental to ! American producers, but would en-! ‘‘“ B _ > their shows, said one film exec. f „ b J“ At the same time, they want the film naines to bolster their ratings. * And the y s P end considerable Eu n?i??n a territories alone. money in advertising the fact that London Johnston met Government 3S can 'gS t£e personaMes‘1 " ? b ^ through the film clips we give the Free Market negrtiations. and them B After you turn 0 ? er the ft 0 'iATO meetmgm age then)i y0B have no guaran . th of Contmons. The Jee h . they . u present it. round-tables with his own Euro- 1 __ pean annum were mainly con-i Edward onetime head cemed with domestic problems and o[ New Jersey Allied who’s now were in line with the Association t prexy of Carbons Inc., returned policy to maintain regular contact; f rom Europe Sunday tlOi after a with their executives In the field, j 17 -day business trek which took Their last sesh had been held in; him to London, Berlin, Rome and Rome in the spring. "Paris.