Variety (Nov 1928)

Wednesday, November 28> 1928 PICTURES VARIETY FOX WITH LOEWS 'Ouriireatestlhancein CaiHmaaseat$3JReW Washlnffton, Not. 27. Canon ChAse's sixth annual at- tempt "to censor the movies" got underway here last nigbt at the Mayflower. It was to a paid gate, Including food. Cost $3.50 and it you didn't come across you didn't get in—that included the press, too. Gross ran to about $140. Canon pronounced this the gre^* est chance "w© have had in 10 years." His argument was that the overwhelming victory ot Herbert Hoover gave them that chance. He characterized Mr. Hoover as "the people's answer." This was imparted to a gather tng of about 60 persons including Frank Rembiisch, indie exhibitor of Indiana, among the paying contln- rent. and Charles Pettijohn, of the Hays' organization, behind .i screen It also included Charles W. Pic- ouet North Carolina exhibitor, who, with Rev. William M. MacLeod, from his home city of Pinehurst, almost broke up the conference ■when stating in the open forum that , the real answer was personal appeal, to the exhibitors and not - through federal legislation. Canon Chase experienced difficul- ties in . shutting up Rev MacLeod, but found those in the gathering, .upon whom he called, that let the record show a vast dissagreement With that personal appeal proposl- Uon. ., One wont so far, and he an educa- tor in Tennessee, as to state that it there was any fear that the terookhart or Hudson bills were un- constitutional, then the answer was to get a new constitution. Oh the rostrum, were Senator Smith W. Brookhart, Iowa, and Representative Grant M, Hudson, Mich. Both are Republicans. Both (Continued on page 58) M-G-M off Westerns Catletl*8 Laugh Remedy Taaking about the coast stu- dios employing an expert to time the waits for laughs in dialog fllms» Walter Catlett suggests the only remedy is for. someone to Invent a projection machine with a sense of humor. HIKED IT William Fox Reported Anx- ious and Prepared to Pur- chase Control of Loew*s, Inc. — Would Require Around $70»OdO,000--Nick Schenck Said to Have Re ceived Proposal Without . Shock " BANKERS NAMED OWN STUDIO ON 24TH ST. The old hbrse market at 145 East 24th street, running through to 25th, will bo the scehe of RCA Photo- phone's new studids. Richard Cur- rier will be in charge when produc- tion activity starts after New Y6£LT**3» ' Photophone will produce its own shorts-and features, including edu- catlonals, and also, lease its facil- ities to any outside producers. A $500 per reel charge for ayn- chronizing the average, feature is a working; basis for all talkers, al- though a cost-plus, basis is best pref erred , in view of the newness of the business. I $5 Squeeze and Frank; Camera Test but No ram falldng Books Next and the 12*. Disc; 350 Pages on New Porous Screen N..W sound projection in- smlLUions-" carries , with it a new poio.iis screen.; This is for the purpose of creating real-, istio taiUcr synchronization on diiiVog. The honvs and anvplinors ai e directly behind tlie screen and t,he sound emamitcs in. falth- "fur'iUu^on "as ' Ci-bm: "tlio diu- plininnv ol. the shadow of the screen. , Los Angeles. Nov. 27. , The general depression of the Western n\aiket has determined M- G-M to discontinue its Tim McCoy pictures.. • McCoy is completing his final pic- ture for the company. He sails Cor Europe next month; Striking Art Prizes On Hollywood Bldg. Los Angeles, Nov. 27 Touring schoolmams.and spinsters from the middle west are going to experience a certified Ihrill when they gaze on the examples of statu- ary of the King Tut period adorn- ing 'tiien^w Building, after Jan, 1, the home of the Association of Motion Picture Producers and the Central, Casting Bureau. on the second, third and fourth floor landings are ornamental friezes, duplicates, about 18^ by 72 inches. At the right of the field . stands,, a ilapper of the , 1928 vin- tage. Near her is seated a director ■ in golf clothes, and holding a mega- phone. Then a camera of imagin- ary period is placed, with operator and assistant. Alongside stands a Roman guard with short sword and arnishield. In front of the camera four nude females are struggling against be- ing dragged out of the range of the camera. While an extremely nude mal.' is mercilessly pulling at them. By his side Is another e. n. m. standing by with a ready spear. - ■ The - fric /es .appear_ on Jh_e ,Hpny- wpod houiovard side as well as oh the "VVuvstcrn avenue front. Th6 friezes at the side of the landing descri'be a lion'being stopped in his attack on ' several flappers emerg- ing from a swim. Many smaller bits of stritnary adorn the 200 feet of frontagt' oC the structure. The Imil'linp is owned by Louis B. 'May.'r. Irving Thalberg and IT;i; ! - It, is of ornamontal de- s^^u lour j>tori<'S in height. Los Angeles. Nov. 27. Latest racket in Hollywood is making pictures with players, se- cured as a result of testa before a camera In which no film is used and ; for which appearance candi- dates have paid a fee of $5. The money remains with the West Sales Company, regardless of decision as to availability. .. ■ The charge often has been made that in taking tests of candidates avowed racketeers have used cam- eras without film. In the present instance the sponsors say the can- didate will be informed the camera is empty, but that availability will he determined upon reaction before the empty contrivance and in a lighted room. ' „ v. ' . If it ia. decided the applicant has talent, - advantage will be taken of a contract previously signed whieh gives West Sales Company the ex- clusive right to services without compensation for six months. E. H. Boyd and H. L. Ross form the new concern. They state pro- duction will begin after Jan. 1 and that picturesj will be made__in the; open air. / • Neither- - executive; has,, had,, any picture making experience beyond work as an extra on the part of Ross, according to a statement by Boyd. Back to the Greeks Los Angeles, Nov. .27. Talking, but no dialog, will be used in Douglas Fair bank's "The Iron Mask." The vocal work in the picture will consist of speeches to be a ddrfisjse d.^dlrectiy to tA^ audl- enc6. D'Artagnan, Richelieu and De Rochefort, representing the con-; flictihg elements of the story, will explain the motivation of the char- In handling the film talk In this manner, Fairbanks is using the old- est theatrical 'formula, that of the ancient Greek drama, and adapting it to the newest thin? In th? the- atrical world. What Will amount to an incred- ible report for the show business, but, however, with a substantial background thus far, is the report- ed proposal of WiMiam Fox to pur- chase the control, of Loew's Inc. That proposition is said to have been placed before Nick Schenck, president of Loew's, and Schenck received it without a shock. An- other said to have been at the con- ferences so far between Fox and Schenck was David Bernstein, treasurer of Loew's. Though a deal involving the con- trol of Loew's and its subsidiaries, nrincipally Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, will require about $70,000,000 for the 51 per cent, this amount has not acted as a deterrent to William Fox,, who is reported hopeful that the transaction may be consummated. The report states that the talk has progressed to a point where the bankers to handle the deal havt been mentioned as Halsey Stuart & Company, one of the ^^^"aest^nd most , conservative of the , vyaii Street group. _ ..x. * A report of last week that the present joint trip west of Adolph Zukor and >Iick Schenck, for a pos- sible better understanding between Paramount, Loew's and United Artists, the latter operated by Nick's brother, Joe, la. entirely dwarfed by the Fox story. Happy Days Nick Schcnck's placidness at the Fox suggestion Is said to have been founded upon a not altogether formed. Inclination of Nick to re- tire after many ardous years of ac- tivity on behalf of Loew's. M^. Schenck very happily married about two years ago and his happi- ness was heightened during the summer by the arrival of a daugh- ter in tile Schenck household, Nicks first child. ^. ' For the first time in his busy life Nick Schenck haa found time to play a little with his family, and he is said to enjoy It. That continu- ance may be the extreme induce- ment which would lead him to re- linquish the guiding rein of Loew s, if there is a chance of William Fox consummating his devout wish. William Fox has gro.wn sincerely ambitious since acquiring the West Coast Theatres' circuit. On the Pa- cific Slope and seeing his produc- tion division under Winnie Sheehan step into the fo'refronl"of the indus- try's picture makers. Fox wants more theatres and more theatres after that. Fox's , every more of late has evidenced it Radio In many channels the start of many unexpected and surprising moves in. the film industry, from theatres to production,^ may date from radio's entrance Into the .trade, through Keith's and FBO. R^d/o; Keith-Orpheum has made all of tne big men of the picture busine.ss kii1nk-hard.- RCA MAYBE ; ACMuisilion of Tiffany-Stahl by RCA is now indicated. A- mono,v man in the independent producer. Grant L: Cook, Its secretary and treasurer, and a new man In the film industry, admits that a deal for a merger of hi^ company Is on and may matoriallze within two months; Questioned as to whether it was iRCA on the other, end, Cook refused to furnish details. ^ Tiffany-Stahl contemplates mak- ing . only two all-dialog features. Cobk is of the impression that all- dialog in full length is a novelty that will not last In the big runs and that sound is the .surest betm the ,aninib.tcd. field. Using Foreign Contract Players for Dialog Los Angeles, Nov. 27. Caught between talking picture demand and the presence on the payroll of high-priced foreign ac- tors who can't speak fluent English, Paramount has decided to make the best of the situation and use the foreign players in talkers. Accordingly, John Farrow, of the Par scenario staff, has the flr.st as- signment to write dialog which a foreign player can speak In , an ^orlcan talker. He is to prepare the screen conversation for "The Woman Who Needed Killing," In which Olga Baclanova, Russian ac- tress. v,'ill play the title part.. As i3aclanova'8 English is de- cidedlv broken, her role will, be framed to meet'llils nWd, a foreign woman in an Englifjh-speaking community, who may speak as brokenly, as she pleases. 11IIK -■ ; : 7 William Fox has within the pa.st 60 days capitalized three theatre homing companies for $50,000,00,0, Each isfto take up and over theatre acquirements by For since the summer. All are within a radlu.s of 200 miles from Times Square, Inclu- sive of the Poll Circuit. • It Is related that when the Loew „o.<^.«ibility was put before William Fox he (Usmlnsed It eus the Impossl Greta Garbo's Trip Los Angeles. Nov. 27. Greta Garbo has finished "ITcat" for M-(;-M and leaves here Dec. 1 for New York .to. sail fdr.^Sw.edon. ,: She is to be gone two months. ble, but agreed that the: proposer rriiKlit make the attompt. Bofoi-c Nick .Schenck left for th<' west there had been, from the ac-. count, three meetings between the principals. Nothing more than talk was indulgod in. No one who claims knowl<''lg('. of the prellruinarles Is prepared to say how far Uio deal may )?o. . , Oni' puiut dofided upon is that if Fox does buy tlje control of •Lornv's, that'cHaitr.TntIT>'r<''1 u''rWlM oontiiiMP under Us prr-sciit Identity in .evV-ry rc-^peot.. Fox, if hl.s wish in'leali-zt-d, ha.s no, .desire' to m'-n,'e lx/ew\«with'Fox. even thr)Ut;li that could possibly be agreed to by Ijoew's lartje stofkhol'lors. Amon):? the latter are Mrs. Marcus J^>«-w and her sons. Nick's (Ir.^t tliout.lil is Hjii.l to iKive 'been <>( lh"tu ut.>1 • their jnote'"'ion. Talking books will be the next, development along scicntitlc enter- tainment lines to be offered to the public shortly. . The Micro-Disk Corp;, New York, has been formed for the purpose of publishing rec- ord versions of: books and also , to . license book piibUshers io manufac- ture and use these records and ma- chines. Use of a specially prepared rec- ord which can run 72 minutes is re- ported the means through which talking books will be^ made,. The .: . record is IC-inohos in* diaineter. A . 3u0-page book can bo recorded on the * wo sides o£ the disc. Micro-Disk is reported the ^ sole, owner of the 72-mihute record pat-^ ent rights. It has licensed Sonbra . to use this record In the production of records for hbtne entertainment ' and for. use in production of Soriora- Bristolphone talking pictures.. Micro-Disk machines, it is re- ported, will be placed in circulat- ing libraries; Ofllcials of the com- pany have, outlned- plana for the purchase of recording rights to . popular books on a royalty scale. [ Best sellers will be recorded and placed in circulating libraries and book stores where readera will be enabled to sccurte the record of a book plus the equipment for ,a nom- inal . fee. Records arc such as can be played with most phonograph needles and will be offered for sale at about the .same price as books, ' Talking books are expected to create a new reading-listening pub- lic and to contribute towards the expansion 6'f the book-reading pub:-. 11c. Books win be. recorded with In- cidental music acconipanying to suit. the various pa.ssage3 of the booke as they run off. Originally intended as a means of furnishing reading miatter for hun- dreds of thousands of blind people throughout the world, this new rec- ord is being rapidly adapted for many commercial purposes. One of the uses of the 72-mlnute disc will be, for radio broadcasting records. It is reported that In one of the nation-wide radio hook-ups by the DOdgo Bros., costing over $65,000, approximately $40,000 wa« spent for phone wiring between sta-. -lions. Radio records have, been tried be.tore .but since the most records available for this purpo.se hereto- fore did not run for over 12 min- utes the system was hot considered practical. Through the medium of this 72-mlnute record a whole pro- gram cart be made and then broad- cast via rbcord over 150 radio sta- tions, with blanks left In the rec- ords for local radio announcers to nil in. The saving in phone bills In national hook-ups would be tre- mendous. i« A whole opera, taking up 10 or 12 records of average .size,. can b^ f^- cordcd on one of these discs. The price of the recorded opera, would be approximately 25 per cent of the present cost. This hew pro<^c3« is now. used by Sonora, . ( . Chief executives of the Micro- Disk; Corporation are J, P. Corbett and Al Fair. SHence Tougli on Extras Los Angeles, Nov. 27, The-rigid rule for silence on alt sound stages on. the coast is mak- ing It tough for the gunrt chewing, chattering extras. ' • ■ They while a-vi'ay time In between scenes by playing bridge and cook- ing up a load of gcsflip.. Tl.e old f.'imlliar card gJimca are replaced by individual.'? flndlng remote corn- ers of the not too spacious sound staKf^s where they can play solitaire a^^ri^'sr idTeycon^'ersatlwn. —- ; FILM'S THREE BIEECTORS Los Angeles, Nov, 27, Thv". people are on the direction „f "Til- Missing Man," all-dialog pieiiire,. ptM.lueed by Benjamin <iUr/.<-v. •■ T. • 1 . . '(•. •. ,,, (;; r/.' i. i 'i aiiK. K'-i' ,il;>l li^i-:''!! (;!>'.i''i'i.