Variety (December 1958)

VIDEO TV FILMS RADIO MUSIC STAGE TAIR LAPr RADIANT $10>000,000 ^st Show Biz in New Anti-Rel^on | ||[|,-J|||||[ [{[CORD Have So Few Made So Many Russo Drive; Part of'Sober 7-Yr.Plan| R||||||[|i||Y RRnRSl I^^r So Much as Hollywood Stars By IRVING R. LEVINE (Moscow Correspondent, NBC) Moscow, Dec. 2. Managers of state-owned radio and television stations in Russia are being urged by Soviet Ministry Performers Tax-Liable On Theatre Deals: Gov’t Washington, Dec. 2. The Internal Revenue Service of Culture authorities to step up j has issued a ruling on responsibility for Federal admission taxes in cases where performers lease a theatre, but do not lease its box- office. The decree is that the performers are liable for the tax collection in such instances. The responsibility. I IRS says, goes wMth the lease of I the theatre, even though actual I ticket sales may be handled by an¬ other agent of the lessee. “their struggle against religion.” The appeal on behalf of atheism appeared on the pages of Soviet Culture, the newspaper published by the Ministrj- of Culture, and it blamed religion for encouraging, of all things, drunkenness. The article entitled “The Battle Against Religious Survivals" claim¬ ed the religious holidays have long provided an excuse for paying hom¬ age to the “green snake,” an old Russian expre.ssion for describ¬ ing alcoholic drink. What's more, stated the newspaper, in a final clincher argument, there are quo¬ tations in the Bible that encourage drunkenness. Such expressions are quoted as “Give wine to those distressed in soul,” and “let him drink and forget his poverty and not recall his suffering.” It was claimed that one village near the railroad centre city of Kursk has the tradition of celebrat¬ ing Easter in the churchyard. This is accompanied by much vodka Book Co., AuAor Sue RCA, Warren On 'Lolita Dish G. P. Putman & Sons doesn’t like the idea of a diskery cashing drinking and inevitably winds up , in on its bestselling novel, “Lolita.” The Broadway production of “My Fair Lady” will hit the $10,000,000 gross mark New Year’s Eve week. The Herman Levin pro¬ duction, believed to be the top- grosser in Broadway history, will be in its i47th week at the Hel- linger Theatre at that time. Running behind “Lady” in Broadway gross tallies are the Rodgers & Hammerstein musicals. “South Pacific” and “Oklahoma,” with respective takes of around $9,000,000 and $7,000,000 at lower scales. The figures for all three show's represent New' York totals, exclusive of touring income. “Lady” is also figured likely to wind up as the biggest grosser in the original cast album field. The Columbia Records package, costar¬ ring Rex Harrison and Julie An¬ drew's, has thus far racked up around 1,500,000 LP sales for an estimated $7,500,000 take on the basis of an average of $5 an album. It’s just about edging out Colum¬ bia’s original cast set of “Pacific.” which was released in 1948 and is believed to be the top-selling pack- (Continued on page 92) Red Skelton’s First Chi Cafe Date in 2 Decades Chicago. Dec. 2. Red Skelton has been set for his first Chi nitery date in over 20 \ ears. Comic will likely open May 29 at the Chez Paree. where he ap¬ peared long ago, for an engage¬ ment just short of three weeks. Chez firmed up more stars for 1959 bills, signing Tony Bennett and Count Basie for a late April stand (following Dean Martin', and Johnny Mathis, who'll pre¬ cede Skelton. It’ll be the first Chez date for MathLs, heretofore a Black Orchid regular, and due at the latter spot Dec. 4. ^ More and more Hollywood is I playing footsie w ith that old but too-often accurate cliche anent famiiiarit\ breeding neglect. The ticket-bus er hardly meets a s^fanger anymore on the screen; and how long will it be before the ■'old Iriend^’’ remain welcome? .N'eser in recent t.mes have so few .siaib ajtpeared in so many pic¬ tures. The avalanche of Brigitte Bardot i-, to be ignored, for this is a special situation involving dis¬ covery of a s.-'r.-ational import com¬ modity and the du-t ng olf of more of the same irom out of the vaults. ' Priority con'- deration for the purpor.e at hand centers on the old handv ol c nematic-- -tho'e “vali¬ ant" and relai vc'.> few who are in a quarrel. It Is up to radio, television, pix and the theatre to join in a more concerted propaganda campaign, demanded Soviet Culture, to dis- (Continued on page 95) Bourbon St Having A (High)BaU With Names Vs. R^ar (Girl) Acts New Orleans, Dec. 2. Bourbon St., boulevard of the striptease and dixieland jazz, has begun to take on a new look with the start of the racing season at the Fair-Grounds course here. The past w^eeks have seen two spots drop girl shows and replace them with name entertainers such as the Four Aces, the Gaylords, the Cor¬ nell Sisters, A1 Kibbler, the DeJoh® Sisters, Dinah Washington and others. While the cost of bringing in this type of entertainment is con¬ siderably higher than that of for¬ mer shows, the operators feel that it will pay off in the long run, al¬ though none of the spots have hung out the SRO sign as yet. Starting the new policy along (Continued on page 95) Publishing firm has filed suit in N.Y. Supreme Court against RCA Victor and Robert Warren asking for a temporary Injunction and to enjoin defendants from publish¬ ing. advertising and selling its “Lolita” disk. Novelist Vladimir Nabokov joined his publishers in in the action. The complaint claims that be¬ cause of the secondary meaning of the title, “Lolita,’\the right to use the title in activities outside the book business has become a valuable property right. Suit charges that with full knowledge of the rights of the plaintiff and with intention to take advantage and trading on the gaod w'ill, RCA and Warren used the title as a song. In addition, complaint claims, in writing the song Warren has drawn upon the material in the book and tried to capture the mood of it and to capitalize on its suc¬ cess. Book is about the love of 40-year-old man for a 12-year-old girl. Tuae was recorded by Tony Martin. ^ The suit further charges that the defendants have engaged in a pro¬ motional scheme calculated to mis¬ lead the public into believing that a connection exists between the book and the song. SD,M.fiOIITVSets Abroad by 1%2 Washington, Dec. 2. There’ll be more than 50.000.000 , tv sets in foreign lands, with over 1200,000,000 people watching them I by 1962, U. S. Information Agency television chief Romney Wheeler predicts. I What with prospects for an inter- ' American tv network by 1960 and a trans-Atlantic one by 1962, Wheeler said the growth of tv abroad will provide the U. S. with a fine^ opportunity to tell the world about the American way via video. But the official said the “hard sell” will be avoided in this effort. "We only want them to get to know us—^to understand us a little better —and to see for themselves that we don’t resemble, even remotely, the Communist-inspired image of America.” Wheeler’s prediction of 50,000.- 000 overseas tv sets within four years compares with an estimated 21,585,000 now In use. Meanwhile, USIA reported that tv stations outside the U. S. and Canada are expected to top 700 by the end of 1958. Senate Springing Quiz of Hoodlums In Jukekx Field Washington. Dec. 2. The Senate rackets committee raises the curtain Thursday (4> on wh.^t is expected to be a sen¬ sational expose of shady shenani¬ gans in the coin-machine industry. Prime emphasis will be on the huge jukebox biz. but alleged gang¬ ster links with slots, pinball and other entertainment devices are also slated for airing. Chairman John L. McClellan (D.-Ark. • said the key question to be resolved is whether labor unions in the field were organized for legitimate aims or as an “en¬ forcement arm for managemeni. acting in collusion, to allegedly monopolize the industry.” About TOO witnesses are on tap for the hearings, expected to run about three weeks. They will in¬ clude, according to Sen. McClellan, some of the nation’s “top hood¬ lums.” Committee aides said activities in some 15 or 18 cities will be probed. Effort will be made to find out how and why certain “shady” characters became distributors and the methods they used in placing jukes and other machines. Initial phase will cover Newark. Cleve¬ land, New Orleans, Los Angeles, Providence and Denver. Show opens after more than a year of staff investigations by the committee. croppine up ji ; <productio.i-v\ i i some n:: : could c.-(.;.pe ITonyCuri .\i ! Brynncr. .SopM r’ o-^l oi the big pi.tu:c< Take r '’.doni and who Hu.-t Lancaster, ( Hepburn, ul Loren. Gregory Peck. John \Va>nc, William Hol- jden. Alter "Ten Cnm;nandments” land. now. “To i Hur.” liow can Charlton He ton he overlooked in a Bibl e. I .'.jx-c ai? The slapstick type of c-o:ned> almost ha.s got to ha\e bMiw Lew.:;, and for a mati¬ nee idol tlKMc'-; Eock Hudson. Tlie.'-c ai e ; mong the names that dominate te ■ picture busine.ss of late—llicrc a.e others, of course, but not loo many. Mi'^.s Loren is now on view in Paramount's “Houseboat " and for 'Continued on patze 14' Tropicana Flirts With Paris’ Folies Bergere; Can It Afford 20G Tag? The Troptcana. Las Vegas, is eye¬ ing the siiow I urrent at the Folies Bergere. Pari.s. But before any¬ thing concrete can happen, the Folies Bergere’s asking fee of $20.- 000 weekly for the title alone ana royalties on the production will have to be negotiated. It’s hardly likely that the Tropicana, still not out of the financial woods, will go ’ for this kind of coin for a title alone. Meanwhile, pending negotiations, , the Tropicana has inked Leon Leonidoff to become producer as ! of Feb. 1, when the present show • produced by Monte Proser winds : up its run. Leonidoff produced the : show at the Deauville Hotel, Miami i Beach, for part of last season, j In addition to the royalties, j there are the usual costs of talent, i (Continued on page 80) Television Network Talent Cost Chart (Staris on Page 28)