Variety (February 1961)

'VAJUJETY'*' LONDON OFFICI 4* ft. James's Strset, Piccadilly PfiSOEfft INTERNATIANAt. U. S. Producers View British Film Prod. Fund as Important, Sez Exhib | p 0 io to Be Cause Of lufraun 1R ^.ni, an^ ILmIVI-i.li Anotherlnvolved Pic Tide Hassle Glasgow, Feb. 7. American pix producers look upon the British Film Production Fund as "very important/* Alfred ; Davis, national prexy of the British; Cinematograph Exhibitors Assn., stated here. “They have made this very clear to me,” he told the annual Scottish CEA meeting. "If the fund were not here, we might, in fact, see American-sponsored production in this country disappear altogether. “In our own interest, we should have this fund. Without it the ef¬ fect might be quite disastrous on production.” “There are hopeful signs that we are beginning to see the end of the decline. Our first need now is for. films, and for that we have to rely on the producers. We must do all we can to help them.*’ Davis said he had been very im¬ pressed by the way his American colleagues were .doing all they eould to boost cinema attendance. They were making cinema seats more comfortable. ^ “If we want the pubilc to leave their homes and tele sets, then we have got to make our cinemas more attractive and more comfortable,** Arts Festival PlanuedFor DJL in 1 London, Jan. 31. A Commonwealth Arts Festival, first of a series to be held once every three years in different coun¬ tries of the Britsih Commonwealth, is planned for the U^L irf 1964. Centered in London and certain key provincial cities, the Fest is intended to attract performers, art¬ istic groups and teachers from all overseas territories linked with Britain. Designated director-general of the affair is impresario Ian Hunter who is one of several show biz per¬ sonalities on a committee which sponsors the proposal, with support from the London County Council.. Committee also includes Alfred Francis, chairman of the Old Vic governors; Sir David Webster, the general administrator of Covent Garden Opera House; violinist Ye¬ hudi Menuhin, and actress Marga¬ ret Rawlings, conductor Sir Mal¬ colm Sargent and the Earl of Hare- wood, who is artistic director of the Edinburgh Festival. Government support is seen as necessary before the 1964 festival can be considered a firm fixture, and discussions have accordingly begun with the Ministry of Com¬ monwealth Relations. Tentative plan is that in London the affair would run 22 days, with the Strat¬ ford Ontario company from Can¬ ada and the Elizabethan Trust Com¬ pany from Australia among those contributing in addition to local outfits such at Sadler’s Wells Opera and the Royal Ballet. ‘ALAMO’ EARLY HIGH GROSSER IN JAPAN Tokyo, Jan. 31. Playing concurrently at five houses (three in Tokyo and two in Osaka), “The Alamo,” (UA) has run up grosses exceeding $302,800 In .'its first three weeks, making It the biggest early earner of any picture in Japan’s history. While its. splash roadshow policy makes statistical comparisons impractical, no matter how examined, the fig¬ ure is impressive, especially con¬ sidering that it does not include sales for future dates, which are also brisk. In trying to explain the film’s boffo biz, Geza Polaty, UA's Japan manager, pointed to strong selling points that make the big click. Firstly, he said, the film itself hit at the heart of the public’s taste. Secondly, the star name of John Wayne was right. He also said the title song and music in gen¬ eral helped. Japan’s Film Exports Climb to $2,327,082 Tokyo, Jan. 31. Japan’s motion picture exports for the 1960 calendar year totalled $2,327,082 as against $2,210,113 for the previous year, according to sta¬ tistics compiled by the Motion Pic¬ ture Producers Assn. here. Figures include both Japanese product and foreign film which on Japan dis r tribs hold area rights. Biggest volume of exports of Ja¬ panese films went to (numbers give features only): Okinawa, 64; U.S., 25; Hong Kong, 21; Thailand, 16; Brazil, 13; Taiwan, 12; Peru, 7; and Vietnam, 6. Carroll in Deal For Aussie House Sydney, Jan. 31. Garnet Carroll, indie' legit pro¬ ducer and .former partner of the late Sir Ben Fuller, is setting a- deal for the lease of the Palace, 800-seater, here, from the Adams’ Estate in association with the Eliz¬ abethan Trust. House has been bn ] long lease to'""Hoyts* film loop, mainly xm second release pix. Deal will give Carroll a' Sydney outlet. Presently he's operating the Princess, Melbourne, and! leases Sydney spots either via J. C. Williamson Ltd. or Tivoli loop. Presently he has “The Music Man” and "West Side Story’* playing Sydney and. Melbourne respective¬ ly. Carroll, with his son, John, has planed abroad to set deals for sev¬ eral new shows for Down Under in¬ cluding “Lock Up Your Daughters” and “Most Happy Fella-” The Elizabethan Trust has been operating for several years in New¬ town, strictly an industrial area, and has been seeking a key city house for a long time. Trust plans to do “A Taste of Honey,” and later “The Glass Menagerie” on house moveover. Fewer U.S Filins Shown In Hong Kong Last Year But Net Returns Climb Hong Kong, Jan. 31. Fewer American films were shown in Hong Kong during 1960 but boxoffice net receipts, incon¬ gruously enough, went up a recent survey discovered. About 200 for¬ eign films shown here in first-runs last year, dominated by 181 Holly¬ wood pix. These netted $2,650,000 as against 1959’s 233 films <213 U.S. product) with net returns of $2,380,000. The spectacle, “Solomon and Sheba” (UA) was the top b.o. hit. Second on the b.o. list for 1960 was a European sleeper, “European Nights.” This French pic was followed by “South Pacific” (20th), “Pillow Talk” (U) and “Can-Can” (20th) in that order at the b.o. ‘ Here are Hong Kong's eight top films of 1960, with their net re¬ turns: “Solomon” (UA), $75,824; “Eu¬ ropean Nights,” $58,571; “South Pacific” (20th), $54,572; “Pillow Talk” (U), $49,113; “Can-Can” (20th), $45,952; “FBI Story” (WB), $44,446; “Operation Petticoat” (U), $44,145; and “The Miracle” (WB), $43,698. 4 Tpdd-AO met its Waterloo here, one critic said. Exhibitors handled it the wrong way, not taking into consideration that although Hong Kong has a swollen population of over 2,500,000, less than 20% of them are first-run patrons. Hence, the cost in setting up an enlarged screen was not justified by the re¬ turns. Incidentally, the reluctance of Hoover and Gala, Which show Metro product, to show “Ben-Hur” In its 70m version has held up the showing of this film. There were some “sick” films here last year. “Suddenly Last Summer” (Col) got nowhere. An¬ other entry in the "sick parade” was “Psycho” (Par) which, despite the. gimmick of compelling the pa¬ tron to adhere strictly to the ad¬ vertised showing time of the film, failed to make top 10. London* Jan. 31. j Britain's teenagers, defined as I between 15 and 25 and unmarried, pay just over 28% of all money collected at cinema boxoffices while their spending on disks and rec¬ ord players represents 42.5%. These are the figures arrived at for ; 1959 by Dr. Mark Abrams, research director of the London Press Ex¬ change Ltd. Total cash spent per year by the 5,000,000 youngsters at the cinema b.o., according to Abrams, is $56,- 000,000, this being 2.4% of their total expenditure after settling family obligations, putting aside money for savings, etc. W. German Actors’ Week 84 Hours? Frankfurt, Jan. 31. j While throughout West Germany many of the factory laborers and j folks employed in industry are now j sweating it out oh tbeir jobs via a shortened 44-hour week, the most overworked and underpaid group in West Germany are 7 the stage ac¬ tors according to a plea . just entered here. It’s quite customary for .the actors and actresses em¬ ployed by the West German city stages to put in a 15-hour day of rehearsals, and ah 84-hour-week is generally part of the regular sched¬ ule, according to an attack by the Socialist Party of Germany. The left-leaning laborers* group has maintained that the actors of the professional stages are simply overworked and underpaid, and it’s possible that this theme may be a small part of the SPD election campaign. While actors on Broadway may starve between jobs, in West Ger¬ many the situation is different. Every town of 10,009 population or more supports at least one city-run stage where the actors are em¬ ployed full-time. They can expect to work constantly and to eanr a salary of from $200 a month on up. Not a luxurious income,-of course, but it is enough to get by one. And the actors so employed are assured of constant stage work and thus plenty of experience. Only trouble is, a full-time actor may be rehearsing for.one role dur¬ ing the day and playing another part the same night. The city stages generally operate with a constant repertoire of about 10 plays for a season, and the nightly performances mean trodding the boards during the day to get the next play into production. Col Wakes Rights To Foreman for ‘40 Days’ London, Feb. 7. Columbia has waived its rights to the exclusive services of Carl Fore¬ man under its multi-picture deal with his Open Road Films to en¬ able him to write the screenplay of Franz Werfel’s novel, “The 40 Days of Musa Dagh.” The pic will be leased next year in Europe as an independent pro¬ duction for release through Metro. Mex, Spain, Argentina In 3-Way Film Fact Mexico City, Feb. 7. The Mexican Association of Film Producers revealed that general manager Hector Fernandez signed Mexico-Spain-Argentina pact at the recent Mar de Plata festival. Proj¬ ect to create a Spanish language film bloc is now definitely under, way, the association explained. While only three initial nations have agreed on the pact, the ulti¬ mate goal is to incorporate all na¬ tions producing Spanish-language films. Provisions of agreement stipu¬ late, aside from coproduction ac¬ tivity, that member nations will push distribution of product of bloc member* in their respective coun¬ tries. SS Men Attack Idbensbom’Pic Frankfurt, Jan. 31. , Of all the people to arise in pro -1 test, it’s the former SS men of] West Germany who are mad at a | new West German film that “sub -1 jects them to scorn and ridicule.” j The pic is “Lebensbom” which means rougbly “source of life.'* It’s been subjected to organized pro¬ tests in Germany, stones have been hurled against show cases in thea¬ tres daring to play the controversial film, and photos have" been ripped i out of the theatre cases. The film, .an Alfa production; based on the popular novel by Will j Berthold, was released by DFG here, with world release rights be¬ ing held by Transocean-Film. The plot concerns Hitler’s '‘master breeding plan” to produce the new pure German-Nordic. master race. Under the organization of Hitler henchman Heinrich Himmler, wlio was chief of the SS corps, girls were assembled in 18 special “lebensbom” hotels to make love to selected “worthy” males, moac of whom were allegedly SS mem¬ bers. Current statistics reveal that this alarming stud farm turned out about 11,000 children. The SS veterans are furious about the film, which opened in 40 West German cinemas Jan. 13. They claim that they they weren’t the fathers, and that about 90% of the Lebensbom children were fathered by army,* air force or navy men who did not belong to the SS troops. They claim, in addi¬ tion, that the movie belittles the excellent role of the Lebensbom program. In Kiel and in Hameln, the SS men charged on the theatre and tossed stones at the photos and “unknown criminals” ripped pho¬ tos out of the cases, according to the West German police reports. Word from * the Munich dis¬ tributors is that the film has kicked up such a fuss that they're releasing an additional 60 prints, and plan to have the picture play¬ ing in 100 West German cinemas by the end of the month. Urge French Govt Help Bally Pix For Home* Market Foreign Field Paris, Feb. 7. .Many film people hesre feel that the government should pay some attention to propagandizing French films for home release as well as in the foreign market. Recently producer George Lourau suggested that a special governmental film commission be created to look into this since there is already one look- seeing foreign propaganda, Uni- france Film. Most observers concur. They point out that if releases and film- going did not fall too much in 1960 (less than in previous years), some¬ thing still has to be done to d’V'w more public attention to the i- ema. France gets 50%, of its own mart but the overall film attend¬ ance has to be hypoed. One plan is to go in for big pub¬ licity campaigns and opening of certain pix simultaneously all over France in the keys and some pro¬ vincial spots. This would give out- of-towners a chance to see “hot” films at the same time as the Pari¬ sians. It’s figured this would pre¬ vent interest cooling as films mark time before subsequent releases. It Is felt that clicking in Paris will also have an effect via newspapers even if the pic opens at the same time around the country. However, others feel this may not be so and that the number of extra copies needed might not be worth the investment in ratio to the‘possible returns on this opera¬ tion. But it is definitely felt that programming has to be stepped up ] here. Some producers have started i making dramatic shorts with stars I to go out with their films. Rome, Jan. 31. Marco Polo looks to be the cause of another one of those title dis¬ putes or production' conflicts, at least on the basis of repeated and conflicting announcements made here recently. Hassle perhaps was triggered by a visit here by French producer Raoul Levy, who lias been contem¬ plating a biopic of the Venetian traveller for some time. Levy, re¬ portedly here to talk with Dino De- Laurentiis, was quoted locally as planning on October start for his “Polo,” . directed by Christian Jacques from a script by Romain Gary and Jacques Remy. Alain Delon would play the title role, with Jean Marais, as his fa¬ ther. Brigitte Bardot, as the Em¬ press of Cathay; Yul Brynner, as the Great Khan, and likely Alberto Sordi (who has an exclusive with DeLaurentiis) in a key feature role. Vides Films* Franco Cristaldi, who likewise has been mulling a “Marco Polo’* for some time, has now revealed that he wlil star another French thesp, Jean Paul Belmondo as his Marco Polo, with the director still unset. Cristaldi’s script is by Italo Calvino. Now a third vehicle has coma into the picture via local announce¬ ments. This would be produced by Gea Films* Rome, together with Film Kontor, Berlin, and Sahara Film, Cairo. It will be shot in Tech¬ nicolor under the direction of Ren- xo Merusi. No other details en this third film are available. Mex Indie Film Prods. Seeking Outside Coin Mexico City, Feb. 7. Mexico's independent producer^ seeing the handwriting on the wall, are getting set to protect their in¬ terests which they feel may b* affected by the new federal dis¬ tribution and exhibition policy within the republic. Independents apparently will seek deals with American distributors for release of their product, and perhaps par¬ tial financing. Private capital will also be approached to finance new pictures. While the independent effort is not a major factor within the Mex¬ ican industry, producers have been turning out six to 12 pictures a year. But one of the stronger out¬ fits. Productora Independiente, financed with money of Venezuelan distributor Carolos'Plaza Izquierda, appears to have been having dif¬ ficulties. Izquierda turned to pro¬ duction since he had trouble obtaining sufficient Mexican films to supply his Venezuelan circuit. Rafael Baledon, director and minority shareholder in Produc- ciones Independientes, said that the firm will not seek federal aid in distribution of its products, with this year’s production report¬ edly to be a minimum of five films. Instead, Baledon is flying to N. Y. to confer with Columbia Pictures execs to handle distribution. Other indepedents, usually pro¬ ducing no more than one film or so, may follow the lead set by Producciones Independientes. There is report, too, that if favor¬ able reactions are received from American distributorships, then there may be greater production activity by the more serious in¬ dependents still in business in Mexico. ‘SOUTH PACIFIC’INTO 3D YEAR IN AUSSIE Sydney, Jan. 31, For the first time in the history of the Aussie film industry, a loop management has repainted the en¬ tire facade of a city theatre to pro¬ claim its current film has entered the third year of an unborken run. This record has been established by “South Pacific” (20th) at May- fair, Sydney, for the Hoyts’ cir¬ cuit. At the end of 1960. the total Aussie attendance for “Pacific” ex¬ ceeded the 2,000,000 mark. Ernest Turnbull, Hoyts' chief, f id the pic was “a phenomenon