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St K ftet '«^ e ?L»V ork 3 5' N - Y - by Variety. Inc. Annual subscription S10. 'Single copies. IS cents, 
Entercfl as second class matter December 22. 1905* at the Post Office at New York. / N. Y„ under ho act ot March 3. 1879. 

, COPYRIGHT. 1954, BY VARIETY. INC., ALL RIGHTS RESERVED x 


NEW YORK, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 1954 


PRICE 25 CENTS 


WE PLACE & SHOW OF SHOWS 



By JOE LAURIE JR. 

Minstrelsy, which started in about 
1843 and ended in about 1912, was 
one of the two authentic contribu- 
tions of the United States to enter- 
tainment— the other, being the strip- 
tease. But when Neil O’Brien, last 
surviving great of minstrelsy, died 
' the other day he . had so long surr 
' vived the medium of his fame that 
he rated only a stick of type, and 
most newspapers called him “Cor- 
. nelius.” . ^ 

This is a sadness for anybody old 

• enough to recall a minstrel parade 
, down Main Street. The call was 

• always for 11.45, Drunk op sober, 
'Tain or shine, the actors had to 

- strut. Their clothes had to be im- 
vmaculate, or. they .were fined. And 

that parade was the best excuse 
; actors ever had for flirting with 

• the local babes. 

r Two single lines of men, spaced 
wide (the smaller the show .the 
' wider the space) went down each 
; side of the streeet. The band 
would lead the way. There Was no 
band- in the world that sounded 

• like a minstrel band! Most of the 
boys doubled in brass and as per- 
formers they all played to get “cen- 

' ter stage,” or should I say “center 
; street”? The drum major would 
throw his baton in the air, some- 

• times over the trolley wires, and 

- when he caught it he would get a 
' big hand from the natives. 

In the center of the old minstrel 
parade local kids carried banners 
With the name of .the show in large 
(Continued oil page 73) 


, Coffee and Mink 

Beating most official; come- 
dians to the punch, a New 
York furrier has latched on to 
soaring coffee prices by put- 
ting three cans of the java be- 
neath a mink coat with the .leg- 
end: 

“Convenient terms.” 




Inquiry on Homo Issue 

London, Feb. 2. 

Two of London’s leading actor- 
managers, Sir Laurence Olivier 

• r* /°kn Clements, together with 
Gordon Sandison, general secre- 
tary of British Actors Equity, last 
weekend tried to Use personal per- 

, suasion to stop a projected inquiry 
"* t0 deviation among theatre per- 
' “dualities following recent cohvic- 
ll °>ru £or homosexuality. 

’ *he issue was first raised by a 
®*\* c ' an d-file member* of Equity 
a resu ! t » a special meeting 

• uTmu', Council was convened at 
winch he suggested- that, in order 
f Protect the dignity of the pro- 

ssion persons who endangered 

iZ f? od name should be disowned 
“y the union. 

ihJf ^ 6 faction by the Council was 

s, 11 was not the function of 

ihVtrfere in the private 
vii>t S o£ , lts members- and legal ad- 
- . s t» bse< iuently taken, has up- 
view that, under its -.ex-, 
bar”^ rules * the union could not 
hart u m membership persons who 
nn j , b . een So convicted. It was 

t, n ” ted °bt that other organiza- 
t h( . iL Particularly those covering 

/r? lca ! an d legal professions, 
(Continued on page 72) 


When is a Broadway “opening” 
not an opening? That question was 
posed sharply yesterday (Tues ) by 
the N.Y. Times’ publication of an 
“unofficial interim report” on “The 
Immoralist.” After announcing the* 
Ruth and Augustus Goetz play to 
open last Monday (1), producer 
Billy Rose persuaded the critics to 
cover the “official” opening next 
Monday (8). This week’s perform- 
ances were thereby designated as 
“public paid previews.” Then came 
the Times’ “report” yesterday by 
J. P. Shanley, drama department 
staffer. 

Rose’s move, the talk of New 
York managerial and newspaper 
circles, was figured likely to Clarify 
the whole situation of critical cov- 
erage of Broadway openings. Trade 
reaction on the Times’ “report” is 
sharply divided, but there is gen- 
eral agreement that it may . dis- 
courage any further such mixups. 

Pros and cons on the Times piece 
tend to boil down to a matter of 
definition. That is, whether it, con- 
stituted news reporting or" was 
actually a review. Attitude of 
Times staffers was that it was news, 
but it was generally regarded as 
amounting to a critical review in 
parts. 

Rose was not available for direct 
comment, but members of his staff 
expressed angry condemnation, 
arguing that the Times had broken 
its promise to Rose not to cover 
the Andre Gide dramatization until 
next Monday. 

Brooks Atkinson, Times critic, 
could not be reached yesterday! 
Newspaper circles inclined to the 
(Continued on page 72) 


- By GEORGE ROSEN 

The economics of tv being what 
thby are— -and being like nothing 
in show biz before it— it’s a vir- 
tual certainty that, come May- June 
and the ringing down of the ’53-’54 
curtain on regular season program- 
ming, the 90-minute Saturday night 
“Show of Shows” on NBC will be 
calling it quits. The same Will 
probably hold true for the Sunday 
night 8 to 9 star-rotating “Colgate 
Comedy Hour” on the same web. 

In place of the co-starring status 
of Sid Caesar and Imogeiie Coca 
in the hour and a half three-weeks- 
out-of-four marathon performance 
produced by Max Liebman, . it 
seems certain at this , point that the 
two stars will enter the ’54-’55 tv 
sweepstakes with their own half- 
hour shows. 

It’s ail a matter of resolving a 
freakish economic dilemma— part 
and parcel of the whole mounting 
trend of spiraling talent costs — in 
which “Show of Shows,” as it is 
presently geared, can only wind up 
out of the Win-place-show columns 
(Continued on page 46) 


Easy For Hymn 

Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

Abdullah Abbas, Warners 
studio masseur, joined the cast 
of “The. Talisman” as a Ma- 
hommedan reigious leader. 

He was the only man on the 
lot who could chant a Moslem 
hymn in Arabic. 



OF ‘DEAD’ PIX SERIALS 

Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

Sam Kalzman has resumed pro- 
duction of serials at Columbia, al- 
though he cancelled all ciiffhang- 

ers some time ago on the theory 
that the market was dead, Change 
of plans was caused by numerous 
letters from exhibs. 

Filming starts March 30 on 
“Fighing With the Texas Rangers,” 
to be directed by Spencer Bennet. 
Second is still untitled, with Ben- 
net slated to repeat. # 


By JOE COHEN 

“No Exit” is the current Mon- 
day-through-Thursday attraction at 
the Open Door in Greenwich Vil- 
lage, N. Y. This maintains the 
Village’s rep for hep. Avante 
garde existentialist stage play is 
strictly offbeat for a night club. 
It’s Bohemian in the old village 
aura before' the present era of 
whiskey, Kinsey' and touches of 
Krafft-Ebing. Open Door used to 
be hangout for some of the latter 
characters but is catering now to a 
polite and perceptive mob Chat can 
afford up to $2.40 top and compre- 
hend Jean Paul Sartre. 

Is the intellegentsia making a 
comeback in the Village? Just what 
effect “No Exit” will have on boni- 
face thinking can’t be determined I 
yet. Any operator could swing the 
load of filled tables, and- a show 
comprising four characters, three 
of Which are obliged to get the 
Equity off-Broadway minimum, a 
(Continued on page 66) 


Chaplin, In Switzerland, 
Prepares N ew Feature 

Paris, Feb. 2. 

Film industryites returning from 
Switzerland report that Charles 
Chaplin has completed screenplay 
of new project tentatively tagged 
“Monsieur X.” Chaplin hopes to 
put this before cameras in Europe 
before end of 1954. 

Jerry Epstein, former Hollywood 
Little Theatre producer w ho 
worked on “Limelight/’ is func- 
tioning as associate producer on 
new project. 


Columbus, Feb. 2. 

Even stripper Rose La Rose had 
something to saiy on Ohio’s film 
censorship. 

The “Supreme Queen of Bur- 
lesque,” here last week for an en- 
gagement at the Gayety, told a 
reporter that films must be kept 
clean for the children who attend 
them. 

“You must always remember 
yOur audience,” said the eedysiast. 
“My art form is for adults only. 
That’s why only adults are allowed 
in a burlesque theatre. . . . 

“But films are open for everyone. 
And some of their best customers 
are children. I think the censors 
are right in thinking they have to 
protect the morals of the children. 
I’m speaking of such things as 
crime stories and the like. They 
have to be sure the criminal is 
punished." 

Burlesque, too, she said, has a 
code, although she didn’t -say of 
what. Said she: ”1 always tell a 
little story in my performance. It’s 
always a sweet little story and I 
sing it while I dance. In pictures 
they try to create an illusion to 
make the audience feel like they 
are there. That’s What I do— create 
an illusion — as my little yarn un- 
winds.” 


t ' By JERRY WALD 

Exec Producer, Columbia Pictures 

Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

Fu Manchu, through author Sax 
Rohmer, made popular the “Chinese 
Water Drop” as the most fiendish 
torture ever devised by the human 
mind. But even this hellish tor- 
ment which eats away a man’s 
sanity drop by drop, is mild com- 
pared to that cruel and unnatural 
torture to which Hollywood film 
producers are periodically sub- 
jected — something which is called 
the “sneak preview.” 

The sneak preview is supposedly 
a clandestine showing in an out- 
of-the-way theatre of a newly com- 
pleted motion picture for purposes 
of gauging public reaction. The 
“sneak”— mark well that even the 
appellation itself has an evil con- 
notation — has by now become an 
accepted part; of Hollywood film- 
making operations. Actually, how- 
ever, it is a form of self-flagella- 
I tion in which the producing staff 
seeks audience reaction (and ac- 
ceptance) in one or two or a series 
of terrible nights. . 

Recently Harry Cohn and I ar- 
( Continued on page 18) 


Theatre Boycott of Ike’s 


‘ Robert Montgomery’s role in 
White House affairs lias sprouted 
a hassle concerning newsreels and 
labor unions. It stems from an 
8Vfc-minute short the actor made for 
President Eisenhower which was 
designed for private showings at 
Republican Party dinners on Lin- 
coln Day (12) and publicly at 
theatres via the reels. 

In lensing the short, Montgom- 
ery employed a C.I.O. crew and 
this doesn’t sit well with Interna- 
tional Alliance of Theatrical & 
( Continued on page 48) . 


BAKER HOTEL 

DALLAS, TEXAS 
Currently presents 

THE HOUR OF CHARM 

All Girl Orchestra and Choir 

, * 

Featuring EVELYN and her Magic Violin 
under the direction of 

PHIL SPITALNY 




MISCELLANY 



Audition’ 


By HAROLD MYERS 


Heidelberg, Jan. 26, 

The first lini, show blz-wlse, be- 
tween the American and British 
Armed Forces in Europe has been 
successfully forged* Pioneering 
work was done by a British pack- 
age show which is now - touring 
the American Zone of Germany, 
after having played a rtptaff J ° f 
British installations since last No- 
vember. 

The package was headed by 
Tessie O’Shea and was sent round 
the zones as “Tessie’s Big Show.!' 
It is a typical troOp entertainment 
with the boisterous, vivacious per- 
sonality of 'the star giving it ;an 

above-average rating. 

The deal was originally made by 
Fosters Agency in association With 
Don Angel (a regular packager .of 
GI entertainments), after the .de- 
tails had been approved by the 
top brass of the British and. Ameri- 
can services* Original confabs took 
place at the War Office in Lon- 
don and, when the show first en- 
tered the British Zone, U.S. Army 
toppers viewed it at Minden. It 
played British dates for several 
weeks before being taken over as 
a GI entertainment, and is now 
being paid for through the funds 
of the European Armed Forces 
Pr of ess i on al Entertainments 
Branch, which is headquartered in 
Wiesbaden under Major Gerald 
GamerOn. 

So successful has the arrange- 
ment proved that the. U.S. military 
hopes that: it will be the f pre- 
runner of similar dates, particu- 
larly as the entertainment has 
been received with equal enthu- 
siasm in both zones. 

“Tessie’s Big Show” had been 
(Continued, on page 66) 


Shirtsleeve Gentry 

Albany, Feb. 2. - 
Bill which Assemblyman 
Daniel Kelly, Manhattan, will 
introduce today (Tues.) mak- 
ing it unlawful for Y * res- 
taurants to refuse admission 
or refuse service to men “not 
wearing coat or jacket over 
business or sports shirt” ex- 
empts night clubs. There’s a 
clause '’unless music and 
space for dancing is being 
provided at or . about that: 
time.” Act would take effect 
immediately. i 
Kelly told Variety “restau- 
rants are behind the times." 
Measure “seeks to free men 
from burden Of wearing coat 
in ‘dog days, V in order to. ob- 
tain something to eat; or 
drink.” ■, 0 ‘ ' 

Criticizing “medieval prac- 
tice,” ' Kelly claims wearing 
coat is “not necessarily decid- 
ing factor whether he’s a gen- 
tleman.” 



Own Series for New 




Wednesday, February 3 , 195 A 


HORACE HEIDT 

Currently Hotel 8tatler, New York 
Under Personal Management 
WALTER PLANT . t • 
Statler Hotel, New York City, N. Y* 







Hollywood Figures On 



Of the 24 productions currently 
comprising Broadway . and off- 
Broadway legit, 10 contain film 
names. This points up the sharply 
stepped up trend of the past couple 
of 'years. 

Herman Wouk’s “The Caine 
Mutiny Court Martial” has Henry 
Fonda, John. Hodiak and Lloyd 
Nolan. The film influence even 
extends to the direction, with first 
Dick Powell and then Charles 
Laughton handling this assignment. 

Among others with Hollywood 
backgrounds are Robert Preston 
(“His and Hers”), Charles Boyer 
(“Kind Sir”), Franchot Tone (“Oh, 
Men, Oh, Women”), Joseph Cotten 
and Margaret Sullavan (“Sabrina 
Fair”), Deborah Kerr (“Tea and 
Sympathy’’), Rosalind. Russell 
(“Wonderful Town”) Robert Ryan 
(“Coriolanus”), Hurd Hatfield 
(“Bullfight”). Others' of some film 
identification are Celeste Holm. 
Martha Scott, David Wayne. 
Maurice Evans, Josephine Hull. 
Elizabeth Patterson, John Forrest, [ 
Edna Best, Julie Harris, Mary] 
Martin, Judith Anderson and Mil- 
dred Dunnock. 

Hollywood talent Is present fri 
other aspects of the current Broad- 
way theatre. Liam O’Brien, author 
of “The Remarkable Mr, Penny- 
packer,” was a Hollywood writer: 
John Houseman, who staged 
“Coriolanus,” is a producer at 
Metro. 


Pittsburgh, Feb. 2*. 

Cab Calloway, a director of the 
new National "Negro Radio Net- 
work, said here last week while 
in town with “Porgy and Bess,” 
that he’s about to begin a series 
himself for the web. Calloway has 
optioned a lot of old “Inner Sanc- 
tum” scripts and plans haying 
them revised with Calloway in the 
role of the host under a format 
that is strictly aimed at the net’s 
type of audience. 

Calloway has already made an 
audition tape and has already had 
several sponsor nibbles, He’s wait- 
ing until something definite devel- 
ops and then will begin, recording 
in earnest,- transcribing the pro- 
grams In different cities that 
“Porgy and Bess” plays. 


Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

Film production in Europe is so 
active that Hollywood producers 
will have a tough time finding stu- 
dio space over there, That is the 
information brought back by Wil- 
liam Dieterle after an extensive 
tour during which he scouted lo- 
cations for “Joseph and His Breth- 
ren.” 

“England and Germany in par- 
ticular,” he said, “have crowded 
rental lots where films are being 
scheduled as much has eight months 
ahead. Commitments for top tech- 
nicians are being made months 
ahead of actual production.” 

Producer’s Personals To 
Push Deceased Author’s 
Book Into a Bestseller 


’SUMMER AND SMOKE’ 
FETCHES 100G DEAL 

Screen rights to “Summer and 
Smoke,” Tennessee Williams play 
which Margo Jones produced on 
Broadway late in 1948, have been 
purchased by Wallis-Hazen Produc- 
tions at a reported cost of $100,000 
plus 5% of the pic adaptation’s 
profits. 

Miss. Jones first presented thje 
legiter in Dallas, then brought; it 
to N. Y. whpre it proved a flop. 
However, the play later did good 
business on the road. 


In a marked switch from usual 
picture business drumbeating, Hol- 
lywood producer Stanley Kramer 
has mapped a road tour to plug a 
book. It’s “Not As a Stranger by 
the late Morton Thompson. 

“It’s too early to sell the pic- 
ture,” states Kramer. “So we’re 
trying to follow the success pattern, 
of ‘The Caine Mutiny.’ This was 
on the best-seller list for months. 
As a result the public interest in 
the picture tension is tremendous. 
We didn’t plug the ’Caine’ book; 
there was no need to. It caught on 
after a while and stayed on top. 
Our idea is tp keep “Stranger” 
similarly on top. Although in re- 
lease only a couple of weeks the 
book hit the number 2 spot on the 
N. Y. Times list on Sunday (31).” 

Kramer said promotional ap- 
proaches familiar to the pic trade 
(Continued on page 10) 


ESCAPE FROM LUXURY-TAX 

Jorf e» Jrawa Maku Fortune At 
Him Fans' Ferryman 

* . , Copenhagen, Jan. 26. 

The spirit of enterprise, it ap- 
pears, Isn’t restricted to the United. 
States. 

There's a young Danish ferry- 
boat operator in Copenhagen who’s 
a millionaire and credits his good 
fortune to a vivacious young lady 
he’ll never meet— Scarlet . O Hara 
In Metro’s “Gone With, the Wind. 
And he’s currently amassing more 
dough via M-G’s “Quo Vadis.” All 
this because neither film has 
played the Danish capital. 

The operator's name, is Jorgen 
Jensen and a few years ago he 
got an IdeaT He persuaded a thea- 
tre in Landskrona, Sweden, across 
the sound from Denmark, to book 
“GWTW,” chartered an old boat 
and started ferrying eager Danish 
fans across, admission to the film 
being included in the price. 

At Christmas time last year, his 
customers would combine their 
film enjoyment with a shopping 
spree for various items on which 
there'is a 200% luxury tax in Den- 
mark. Jensen has just bought two 
new boats, former German ipine- 
sweepers, and being an apprecia- 
tive sort of fellow, he calls them 
“Hanna Scarlet” and “Lilli Scar- 
let.” 

Viennese Waltz Enjoys 
Comeback With Arrival - 
Of ’54 Carnival Season 

Vienna, Feb! 2. 

The Viennese Waltz Is enjoying 
a considerable comeback in its own 
hometown this 1954. carnival 
(Fasching) season* with a conse- 
quent decline in jitterbugging and 
a considerable drop in the Latin 
style hipswinging which has domi- 
nated the big balls in Johann 
Strauss’ native land Since the end 
of the war. This conclusion is sub- 
stantiated by a professional com- 
mittee of Vienna dancing teachers 
after the first weeks of a Fasching 
season which is expected to at least 
equal last year’s record Of 2,800 
public and private balls. These 
vary in size from the 2,000 to 3,000 
guests Of the Philharmonic Ball to 
small semi-private, rackets with 
only a few score dancers. 



• .N 


ALL-TIME TOP 
GROSSER? 

t . v 

By ELWOOD C. HOFFMAN 

As usual, Variety has come up 
With a batch; of statistics which 
throw into sharp focus, the mores 
and preferences of the U.S. citizen 
who goes to the bOxoff ice with 
money in his hand. I refer lo the 
list enumerating . the 106 films 
which Variety calls the “all-time 
top grossers.” 

These statistics have fascinated 
me for a week, and, after some 
very rough work With a pencil, 
certain facts become apparent, 
about the picture buyer and the 
picture maker as well. , 

First, 40 of the-tbp-grossers are 
dramas. There are four others 
which are very much in the cate- 
gory of the spectacle, but they can 
bo more accurately catalogued as 
spec-dramas. There, are seven full 
scale spectacles on 'the list, five of 
them in the top 10, and three 
ranking 1-2-3 as the top. boxoffice 
films of all time. 

The musical classification’s al- 
most. as powerful as the drama. 
There are 36 musical films, and 
three which I’ve classified as 
comedies lean very heavily on 
music. (“Road to Bali,” “Road to 
Utopia,” and “Paleface”). 

Only 16 comedies make the 
grade. There’s one horror film, 
“House of Wax.” Two films fall 
into the semi-documentary class, 
.(Continued on page 73) 


Joe Louis as Stage Star, 





By HANS HOEHN 


Berlin, Jan. 26. 

The black funeral carriages 
(hearses) with big glass windows 
through which you can see the 
coffin. Some Yanks don’t like this 
sight. Ordinary ambulances would 
do the trick, they say. . . . Berlin’s 
bockwurst (cousin of American .hot 


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dogs) stands will probably linger 
most in the thoughts of many GI’s. 

. . . the city’s most famous bock- 
wurst establishment is “Der dicke 
Heinrich” (Fat Henry), located on 
Kurfeurstendamm. The owner, an 
ex-actor and now a master in the 
fine art of bockwurst making, is 
one of the typical Berlin origi- 
nals. . 

. Still a fascinating sight: The 
Russian War Memorial with an 
Ivan with belly gun in front of it 
near Brandenburg Gate . . . in 
West Berlin’s British Sector. . . . 
Another memorable sight: Berlin, 
at night, as seen from the plane 
dipping and easing into airport 
Templehof, presents an interest- 
ing pattern of lights in geometric 
and plain hit-or-miss fashion. 

The fast reconstruction after the 
Big Krieg. Thank you* Mr. Mar- 
shall and Mr. ERP!-— “Recovery 
and progress of the Berlin people 
are quite remarkable!’’ visitors 
say. ... 

Generosity among Berliners: A 
GI the other day admired a photo 
in a camera shop, a black-and-white 
enlargement showing a cat with 
its head % and neck stretched 
through a picket fence. When he 
tried to order a copy, the shop 

(Continued on page 74) 


Again top point in the revelry 
will be the series of three Saturday 
night “gschnasfests,” These are 
giant costume parties staged by an 
association of artists at the Kun- 
stlerhaus along the lines of the 
famed “Quartz Arts” parties in 
Paris. Unlike . the fashitmable 
Jockey Club and Philharmonic 
Balls at which white ties, Paris 
evening gowns and a maximum of 
diamonds are the rule, the idea at 

(Continued on page 66) 


JAMES ROOSEVELT’S 
TELECAST DEFENSE 

Janies Roosevelt will use tv to 
defend himself against charges of 
infidelity by his wife via this 
week’s Drew Pearson filmed seg- 
ment, which hits the stations Fri- 
day (5) night. Pearson has also 
filmed an interview with former 
New York mayor William F. 
O’Dwyer, for airing two weeks 
from Friday (19). Pearson will 
have Igor Gouzenko in the second 
installment of his interview on 
Feb* 12. 

Understood Pearson has lined up 
a series of top-level and masked 
“secret witnesses’’ who’ll give 
testimony on the vidpix series 
about Communist spy activities. 
He got the idea from the Gou- 
zenko talks, in which the former 
Soviet code clerk wears a mask, 
Witnesses won’t identify them- 
selves. 


‘Limelight’ Mex Topper 

Mexico City, Feb. 2, 
“Limelight” (UA) was the top 
boxoffice champ of 1953 here. 

Chaplin pie grossed $232,000. 
playing six weeks at a 46c top at 
the swanky Cine Roble and then 
eight weeks at the raoveover Cine 
Palacio. 


By JESSE GROSS 

Producer John Wildberg is main- 
taining an active production sched- 
ule, with two plays currently run- 
ning on London’s West End and 
three jnore in the works. At pres- 
ent he’s represented as co-producer 
Of both “Anna Lucasta” at the Hip- 
podrome Theatre and “No Other 
Verdict” at the Duchess Theatre. 
His next production, which he’ll 
begin working on following his re- 
turn to England Feb. 7, will be 
Arnold Ridley and Mary Borer’s 
“Tabitha.” Presentation will be 
a cO-production venture with Her- 
bert Woodward. 

The producer, who’s been head- 
quartering in London during re- 
cent years, left for Europe yester- 
day (Tues.) aboard the S. S. 
United States. He’d been in the 
U. S. in connection with the prob- 
lem of “Dear Charles,” the Richard . 
Aldrich & Richard Myers produc- 
tion in which he and Julius Fleisch- 

mann were associated. Beset by 
casting troubles, play folded dur* 

( Continued on page 72) 

NOTED IN PASSING: 
CZECHS’ PARTY LINE 

Washington, Feb. 2. 
Capitalism takes a kicking 
around in the newest film made 
in- Czechoslovakia, “The Coffee 
House in , Main Street,” which 
opened in Prague on Jan. 22. 

The film, as described over the 
official Czech radio and monitored 
in this country, “depicts the ruth- 
less exploitation of employees by 
a capitalist boss, the fraudulent 
machinations of bourgeois pblwe 
and judiciary, and the struggle b| 
the Czechoslovak Communist 
Party and its press for the rights 
of workers.” 

Lewis in London to Prep 
Brit ‘Teahouse’ Version 

* London, Feb. % 
Robert Lewis, director of the 
Broadway production of “Teahouse 
of the August Moon,” arrived m 
London last week to carry out » 
similar chore on the West End edi- 
tion, which is., due to open in tne 
early spring. Production will be 
under general supervision 
Jerome Whyte, Rodgers & 
merstein's British rep, who na 
just returned to London. _... 

Play is likely to follow UJ®. 
Seven Year Itch” at the Aldwycn, 
which was jointly presented by w - 
liamson Music (R&H) and H. ^ ■ 

Tpnnenl 



: . „ Memphis, Feb. 2. 

In expansive mood, Memphis* SB-year-old censor, Lloyd Binford 
twitted Variety the other day for muffing the story over a year' 
ago of cine of his bannings, “The Woman They Almost Lynched.’* 
Censor went on to disclose why he acted: “I am against pictures 
featuring Jesse James and his brothers and always ban such 
pictures.” 

Binford thinks the recent U. S. Supreme Court decision changes 
nothing in densorship. - His comment : “All the hilarious phonetics 
of Justice Douglas, and Justice Black were simply not approved 
by the other members the court.” 


Trade For sees Possible Opening of Old Features To 
Television as Holdout Motivation 


Fact that RKO is not a party to 
the new agreement with the Amer- 
ican Federation of Musicians has 
stirred new conjecture that the 
company has sights set on pic sales 
to television. It’s pointed out that 
of all film outfits, only RKO is 
operating in the red, and deeply 
so, and consequently would be the 
one most likely to succumb to tv’s 
money lute for its library of pix. 

Republic similarly refrained from 
joinign in the new pact with AFM, 
preferring to negotiate a deal in- 
dependently. Rep already is on 
record as being amenable to tv 
licensing. 

. Musician agreement runs four 
years and, in effect, is an extension 
of the contract Which just expired. 
Only change is a 5% increase in 
salary for musicians employed in 
pic production. 

The deal continues the ban on tv 
sales of pix made after 1947. As 
concerning earlier films, retrack- 
ing charges and 5% of the proceeds 
from tv sales go to the AFM-ites. 

Pact was signed in Miami by 
James C. Petrillo; AFM prez, and 
reps of Metro, 20th-Fox, Columbia, 
Paramount, Warners and Universal. 

Tipoff on RKO’s specific plans 
likely will come shortly as its sep- 
(Continued on page 10) 


Always in Trouble With 
Code, Sam Fuller Praises 
It as Producer’s Friend 

Production code is a producer’s 
best friend, says Samuel Fuller, 
triple-threat indie producer . cur- 
rently repped on Broadway as the 
director of 20th-Fox’s “Hell and 
High Water.” 

Fuller, who frequently scripts 
his own pix, was emphatic on that 
point in N. Y. last week. “Every 
script I ever wrote ran Into trouble 
with the Breen office (administra- 
tors of the Code), but we always 
worked it out and I never had a 
single scene deleted,” he main- 
tained. 

“If you look for trouble, they’ll 
give it to you a-plenty,” he said, 
but the right way to look at it 
Is that the Code people are really 
doing the producer a favor. They 
give a picture a stamp of approval 
that s recognized anywhere. They’re 
Rot only trying to protect the in- 
dustry, but also the people who 
money invested in. films. 

The Breen office is of great 
benefit and of. great advantage. It’s 
^ cinch to violate the Code, but 
1 ve no patience with those who do 
(Continued on page 15) 


NOW AT 


Columbia indebtedne 
ban ks povy ai 
$ .000,000, This outstan 
a total credit fur 
0.000 which Col set up 
National Bank of Boston 

National Trade 
SJr . tbe President, and Di 
me Manhattan Co. 

+U J'? 1 bad been privilege 
30 ^L 1 ^5.000, 000 up>to 
of' J decreases i 

annually : 


DEPORT IRWIN FRANKLIN 


Former Artkiiur Distrib Held Tied 
to CP 


Chicago, Feb. 2. 

Deportation order of the immi- 
gration service against Izoch Fial- 
kin, known here as Irwin Franklin, 
was upheld last week by the Board 
of Immigration Appeals in Wash- 
ington on thte grounds that Frank- 
lin, or Fialkin, has been a member 
of the Communist Party. 

He had been the midwest dis- 
tributor for Artkino Pictures, Inc., 
Soviet film agency. 

SEALED BIDS 
FOR FEATURES 

Williaih C. MacMillen Jr., presi- 
dent of Pathe Industries, has 
placed 10 features on the auction 
block in much the same way gov- 
ernment contracts are let Mac- 
Millen put out a call for sealed bids 
for the product instead of entering 
any negotiations for sales. 

The l(Vpix date back to the time 
Eagle Lion was in existence and 
were independently made. This 
outfit was absorbed by United Art- 
ists a couple of years ago. 

MacMillen’s invitation reportedly 
has brought some bids of over 
$270,000 for the package. Buyer 
will receive all residual rights, in- 
cluding television. 

GEORGE BOWSER SALARY 
IN ’54 BUT $52,000 

George Bowser, longtime key 
exec in the National Theatres up-i 
per echelon, is taking a 50% cut in 1 
salary this year. He’s a v.p. and 
general manager of the NT subsid, 
Fox West Coast Theatres. 

Bowser’s payoff is being reduced 
from $103,850, as in 1953, to $52,000 
in 1954. Reason for the heavy 
salary lopping is kept secret. 

In the past fiscal year, Charles 
P. Skouras, president, led the list 
Of top^-money NT officials. He re- 
ceived $130,000 in salary and 
$160,000 via profits participation. 
F. H. Ricketson Jr., president of 
Fox-Intermountain, Denver sub- 
sid, was paid $52,000 in salary, 
$38,000 in additional compensation 
(profits cut) and $25,000 in retire- 
ment benefits; Elmer Rhoden, Fox 
Midwest prexy, $39,000 in salary, 
$35,800 in added compensation and 
$24,000 in retirement benefits; 
H, C, Cox, NT’s v.p.-treasurer, 
$52,200 in salary, and John Betero, 
v.p.-coUnsel, $52,000 in salary. 

All NT board members are can- 
didates for reelection at the com- 
pany’s annual board meeting Feb. 
16 in L. A. 


Al Lichtman’s Stock Option 

Terms of a stock option deal pre- 
sented by 20th-Fox to distribution 
chief Al Lichtman became known 
this week from official sources. 
Exec was handed options to buy 
25,000 shares of 20th’s common is- 
sue at $18,86 Vi per share. 







f 




By ROBERT McSTAY 

Toronto, Feb; 2. 

The 29 Canadian filmmaking 
firms which comprise the member- 
ship of the Motion Picture Produc- 
ers & Laboratories of Canada have 
been meeting here behind closed 
doors. No direct comparisons can 
be drawn, obviously, with the Hol- 
lywood film industry but it is sig- 
nificant that at least one general 
anxiety haunts both the Canadian 
film producers and their American 
counterparts— -namely television. 

In Canada thus far, tv is a lim- 
ited factor competitively, but it is 
growing and will soon spread be- 
yond Toronto and Montreal. Right 
here lies one issue that disturbs 
the celluloid men. They want to 
be sure that ‘-private enterprise” is 
not frozen out. It is believed that 
this was the meat of a private re- 
port given the convention by C. 
Dean Peterson, head of a film firm 
bearing his name. 

Business vs. Government has a 
particular delicacy here in the 

(Continued on page 66) 


Webb Megs, Stars In 


In a Rut 

Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

Eric Wilton, who claims to 
be the outstanding example of 
typing In Hollywood, will play 
his 459th butler role in “A 
Star Is Born,” at Warners. 

During his 24 yeats as a 
screen actor he has played 
only 10 non-butler parts. 

PAR LINES UP 
TEATURETTES’ 

Film business may be headed in 
still another direction if an experi- 
ment being undertaken by Para- 
mount pans out with upbeat re- 
sults. Par has acquired six 30- 
minute pix which were made in- 
dependently in England and plans 
to sell them in the U. S. In lieu 
of the conventional “second fea- 
ture." The films , are briefly-told 
detective tales centering on Scot- 
land Yard. 


Member companies of the Mo- 
tion Picture Assn, of America, ex- 
cepting RKQ, aren’t budging so far 
as any possible significant changes 
in the Production Code are con- 
cerned. In the case of pressure for 
a major rewrite of the pic stand- 
ards document, key execs of the 
companies, along with MPA A pres- 
ident Eric A. Johnston, made it 
clear at a Miami meeting last week 
that they’re satisfied with the Code 
and will continue to live with it, 
substantially as is. 

There was no resolution adopted 
or formal action taken. The com- 
pany heads merely expressed 
themselves in an informal talk. 
The execs were in Miami last week 
primarily to negotiate a new con- 
tract with the American Federa- 
tion of Musicians; the conversation 
anent the Code came up as an aside 
to this. 

Position of RKO remained un- 
clear this week. Company is fol- 
lowing through on plans to release 
the Code-nixed “French Line.” Un- 
answered questions are whether 
the company will pay the $25,000 
fine assessed by MPA A because of 
(Continued on page 10) 


Disney’s Jules Verne Film 


Technicolor ’Dragnet’ 
For Warner Release 

. Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

Joe Friday will do his stuff in 
the film house as well as in the 
parlor, through a deal closed by 
Mark VII, Ltd., to produce a the- 
atre version of “Dagnet" for War- 
ners release. Filming starts with- 
in 90 days on the Burbank lot with 
Stanley Meyer producing and Jack 
Webb doubling as star and direc- 
tor. Picture will be made in Tech- 
nicolor. 

“Dragnet” will be the first tele- 
vision show produced intact by a 
major studio for showing oh thea- 
tre screens. Metro has produced a 
picture starring Lucille Ball and 
Desi Arnaz titled “The Long, Long 
Trailer,” but it has no connection 
with their video show, “i Love 
Lucy.” Understood five other stu- 
dios tried to buy “Dragnet.” 


With the trend toward long epics 
in “A” production, it’s felt that 
theatre programming time will not 
be sufficient to allow for a bottom- 
half feature. About 70% of the na- 
tion’s exhibitors insist on double- 
feature bills, on the theory that the 
public wants them, but the thea- 
tremen still want to hold down 
their performances time-wise. A 
two-hour kingsize entry and a sec- 
ond feature running 65 to 70 min- 
utes is too much. Consequently, 
the half-hour film could shape as 
the substitute for the latter. 

Par hasn’t set specific plans for 
handling the briefies but likely will 
send the first of them into distri- 
bution within the’next six weeks. 

Question of playing a second film 
with an epic came up some time 
ago, gag style. Puzzled oyer what 
to run with Metro’s “Quo Vadis,” 
an exhibitor was advised that he 
might accompany it with the Brit- 
ish import, “I Know Where I’m 
Going.” 





Key City Biz Spotty ; ‘Knights’ First 4th Week in 
Row, ‘Cinerama’ 2d, ‘Rifles/ ‘Cantor’ Next 


Trade at first-runs of key cities 
currently shapes very spotty, with 
many situations having to contend 
with holdovers. Many of these have 
been overly extended so as to bring 
in strong, fresh fare for Lincoln’s 
‘Birthday and Washington’s Birth- 
day. 

“Knights of Round Table" (M-G) 
still is boxoffice champ for fourth 
week in a row. Playing in 16 keys, 
tnis initial Metro C’Scoper is rang- 
ing from good to terrific in most lo- 
cations. “Cinerama" (Indie) con- 
tinues in second position by a very 
healthy margin, now being out in 
eight key cities covered by Variety. 

“Khyber Rifles” (20th) is wind- 
ing up in third position with good 
to sock takings. “Eddie Cantor 
Story" (WB), just getting around to 
any extent currently, is capturing 
fourth spot. 

“Sadie Thompson" (Col) is hold- 
ing up in fifth place while “12-Mile 
Reef" (20th) is winding up in 
sixth; 

“Majesty O’Keefe” (WB), due at 
N. Y. Paramount this week, is push- 
ing up to seventh spot, being okay 
to fancy in most sites and top new- 
comer in two cities. Eighth money 
is going to "Paratrooper" (Col). 
“Bigamist" (FR) is climbing to 
ninth place, with “Living Desert" 
(Disney) rounding out the Big 10 
list. 

“Escape Ft. Bravo" (M-G), “Wild 
One" (Col) and “Julius Caesar" 
(M-G) are runner-up pix in that 
sequence. 

“The Command" (WB) shapes as 
a potentially big newcomer, being 


loud in Detroit, okay in N. Y. and 
big in Philly. This intitfl C’Scoper 
from Warner's went three weeks at 
N. Y. Paramount despite heaviest 
storm of year. “Taza, Son of Co- 
chise" .(U), also new, is- big in De- 
troit and tali in Louisville. 

“Riders To Stars" (UA) is okay 
on preem L.A. date. “M" (Indie) 
looms trim in Cleveland. “Boy 
From Oklahoma" (WB) shapes good 
in St. Louis and strong in K.C. 
“Forever Female” (Par), also a 
newcomer, is good in Indianapolis 
and okay in L.A. and N. Y. 

“War Arrow" (U) looks socko in 
Pitt and hefty in Buffalo. “Hondo" 

(WB) is nice in Toronto and Seat- 
tle. “Man Between” (UA), wow in 
Toronto, is rated mild in Portland. 

“Captain’s Paradise" (UA), hefty 
in K. C., is robust in N. Y. and 
Philly and good in a couple of 
other: keys. "Should Happen To 
You" (Col) looks smash in third 
week at N. Y. State. 

"Easy To Love" (M-G) shapes 
smart in Cleveland. “3 Sailors and 
a Girl" (WB) looms fast in Chi. 
“Torch Song" (M-G) is fine in St. 
Louis. 

“Walking Baby Home" (U) looks 
big in Pitt and Toronto. “Flight 
Nurse.” (Rep) shapes fast in Den- 
ver and N. Y. “Little Caesar”- 
“Public Enemy,” WB reissue 
ctftnbo, is big in Detroit, fine in 
Frisco and smash in Cleveland. 

I ( Complete Boxoffice Reports on , 
Pages 8-9) 


May Cost $5,000,000; 
Shooting in Nassan 

Film men with close knowledge 
of cost factors believe that Walt 
Disney’s “20,000 Leagues Under 
the Sea” will run up a budget 
of close to $5,000,000. One Holly- 
'wood producer, riot connected with 
Disney in any way* said he had 
read the script, knows the produc- 
tion plotting, and is convinced the 
$5,000,000 mark will be reached In 
negative outlay, 

. This would make “Leagues” one 
of the most expensive pix to be 
turned out in recent years and an 
obviously tremendous risk for Dis- 
ney. It’s figured that the pic, con- 
sidering ad-pub, print and dlstrl- 
(Continued on page 13) 



. Trad* Mark Registered 
FOUNDED BY SIME SILVERMAN 
Published Weekly by VARIETY, INC 
Harold Erichs, President 
154 West 46tb SL New York 36. N Y 

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Vol. 193 No. 9 


INDEX 


Bills 66 

Chatter 74 


Film Reviews 6 

House Reviews 67 

Inside Legit 70 

Inside Music 54 

Inside Pictures . .. 10 

Inside Radio-TV 44 

International 16 

Legitiriiate . . . ; . . 68 

Literati . ........ .... . . , 73 

Music 49 

New Acts 67 

Night Club Reviews 62 

Obituaries 75 

Pictures ............... 3 


Radio-Television .. 

*••••» 25' 

Radio Reviews . . . . 

...... 36 

Record Reviews . 

...... 50 

Frank Scully . . . . , 

...... 73 

Telepix Reviews . . 

...... 24 

Television Reviews 

...... 32 

TV^-Films . 

...... 22 

Vaudeville 

59 


DAILY VARIETY 

(Published In Hollywood by 
Dally Variety, Ltd.) 

•15 a Year. $20 Foreign 








4 


ncnus 


Wfdaewlfy, Fthnmry 9 . 1954 




9 


I 


f 


to 


0 

The nation’s film boxoffice soared* 


Into the new year with all the 
promise of topping 1953, with rec- 
ord bis hung up pver the yearend j 
holiday. This is reflected in grosses | 
over the country for January, ac* 
cording to reports from Variety 
correspondents in some 25 repre- 
sentative key cities. Some idea of 
how trade soared last month is re- 
vealed by the fact that the first 
four biggest grossing pix amassed 
nearly $5,000,000 total. . .v 

First place in Variety’s monthly 
survey goes to “Knights: of. the 
Bound Table’’ <M-G), with $1,564,- 
000 total gross despite^ the fact that 
the bulk of this coin came late in 
January when many key cities, 
were hard hit by winter storms. 
This initial C'Scoper from Metro 
wound up first three times. It is 
stilt playing at the N. Y. Music 
Hall, where it is in its fourth week 
now. 

“Cinerama” (Indie) is capturing 
second place, with several new 
cities added during the. past month, 
It also did more than $1,000,000 
gross. “12-Mile Reef” .( 20th) , also 
topping the $:1 ,000,0b0-marle, is 
only a step behind in third posi- 
tion. 

“How to Marry a Millionaire” 
(20th), like “Reef” a C’Scoper, is 
capturing fourth spot. It was first 
In December. “Sadie Thompson” 
(Col), being shown in 3-D in a ma- 
jority of big key cities, is a strong 
fifth-place winner. “Khyber Rifles” 
(20th), also in CinemaScope, is 
finishing sixth. 

"Hondo” (WB), a 3-D pic, which 
was fourth in December, took 
seventh money. “Here Come Girls” 
(Par), apparently feeling the 3-D 
and C’Scope competition, captured 
eighth; spot, never finishing higher 
than fifth, “Easy to Love” (M-G) 
seemed to be in much the same 
category, but managed to take 
ninth position. 

“Walking Baby. Back Home” (U) 
was lOth-place winner last month. 

(Continued on page 15) 

Vistarama-Made Short 
Denied C’Scope Insignia 
Granted Warner Feature 

. Although it received the okay 
from 20th-Fox. to use the trade-, 
name; CinemaScope, for “The 
Command,” feature film made in 
Carl Dudley’s Vistarama process, 
Warner Bros, did not ; receive a 
similar greenlight for a Dudley 
short which it is currently releas- 
ing. As a result the short, “Aloha 
Nui,” a Hawaiian travelog, is being 
sold as “photographed with and 
for projection with anamorphic 
lenses.” 

Short was one of the demonstra- 
tion films displayed by Dudley ini 
New York several months ago when 
he showed the trade his Vistarama 
process. Pic, however, is being 
billed as WarnerColor, WB’s trade- 
name for the Eastman color process 
employed. Dudley is listed as pro- 
ducer and director. 

20th agreed with some reluctance 
to the dubbing of “The Command” 
as CinemaScope for fear that the 
process might not live up to the 
high quality it had set for C’Scope 
presentations. Final okay \yas part 
of the deal which saw Warners em- 
brace file CinemaScope technique 
for all its anamorphic pictures. As 

(Continued on page 15) 

DICK WALSH DUE WEST 
TO SPEED NEW IA PACT 

Richard F. Walsh. IAtSE proxy, 
leaves for Hollywood at the end of 
February to speed finalizing of 
negotiations with the majors, re- 
portedly stalled by the coin de- 
mands of three locals. It’s under- 
stood that the sound, film editors, 
ci>d lab worker's demands for more 
coin are the stumbling blocks. 

Meanwhile, Walsh inked a pact 
with the newsreel Cameramen up- 
ping the scale from $185 to $200 
per week. Under the contract, com- 
panies must give the lensers 36- 
liour notice when they are to have 
two days off. Pension plan has 
been left open for future discus- 
sion. j 



1. ^Knights Table** IM-G)). 

2. “Cinerama” (Indie). 

3. “12-Mile BeeT* (20th). 

4. “Millionaire** (20th). 

.5. “Sadie Thompson** (Col); 

6 . “Khyber Rifles** (20th). 

7. “Hondo** (WB). 

6 . “Here Come Girls** (Par). 
9. “Easy To Love” '(M-G). 

10. “Walking Baby** <U). 

11. “Kiss Me Kate’* (M-G). 

12. “Julhift Caesar** (M-G). 



Motion Picture Expqrt Assn . is 
maintaining discreet silence re- 
garding the recent assertion by 
Society of Independent Motion 
Pieture Producers prexy Ellis Ar- 
nall that he had Eric Johnston’s 
pledge there would be no subsidy 
clauses in any future international 
film deals. 

Obviously anxious to avoid an 
open clash with . Arnall, MPEA 
execs nevertheless went a step 
further* -this week by stating, un- 
officially, that Johnston hadn’t 
given Arnall any. such unequivocal 
assurances. As the MPEA tells it, 
all the MPEA topper had conveyed 
to Arnall was that he was unalter- 
ably opposed to subsidies in any 
form and that foreign governments 
were aware of his views, but that 
he didn't have the authority to 
make any flat promises. 

A number of foreign department 
execs at the companies have indi- 
cated that they would be very 
much surprised if Johnston had 
taken it on . himself to commit 
MPEA member companies to such 
a fixed policy in the future. Irony 
of the situation is, of course, that 
no one among the majors quarrels 
with the indies over their attitude, 
re subsidies; in fact, it’s heartily 
applauded. ‘ 

Difference seems to come in 
where the two factions are willing 
(Continued on page 18) 

BILL RODGERS STAYS 
AS LOEW DIRECTOR 

Although he is set to retire on 
March 1, William F. Rodgers, for- 
mer sales chief of Metro and cur- 
rently a sales consultant, .will con- 
tinue as a director 6f the company. 
He is listed as one of 11 directors 
up for reelection at Loew’s, Inc., 
annual stockholders’ meeting to be 
held Feb. 25 at tne homeoffice. 

Rodgers’ pact with the company 
originally was set to expire in July, 
1954, but under the company's re- 
tirement plan the normal retire- 
ment date for any employee is 
the March 1 nearest 65th birthday 
or the 10th anni of becoming a 
member of the plan, whichever is 
later. Rodgers voluntarily stepped 
do>vn from his sales post about a 
year ago and was succeeded by 
Charles Reagan. 

Proxy statement discloses that 
total' remuneration paid the top 
officers and directors for the fiscal 
year ending Aug. 31, 1953 totalled 
$1,612,212. Individual coin re- 
ceived was as follows: prexy 
Nicholas M. Schenck, $152,347, 
veepee Joseph R. Vogel, $132,509; 
veepee. Dore Schairy, $146,800; vee- 
pee and counsel J, Robert Rubin, 
$113,888; veepee William F. Rodg- 
ers, $66,486; veepee and treasurer 
Charles C. Moskowitz, *$131,144; 
veepee Edgar J. Mannix, $143,340; 
and veepee, secretary and counsel 
Leopold Friedman, $111,897. 

Ilya Lopert to London 

Ilya Lopert, prexy of Lopert 
Films, left N. Y. for London last 
week (30) to prepare the screen 
version of the Arthur Laurents 
stage hit, “The Time of the Cuc- 
koo.” David Lean will direct. 

Film will be lensed oh location 
in Venice during May with 
Katharine Hepburn in the lead. 
Pic is skedded for United Artists 
release, 


Career-Hiker lor Kids r 
Draws. Jail Sentence 

V Detroit, Feb. 2» 

John Lloyd Taylor, of Lot 
Angeles, general manager of the 
Professional Screen Guild, Inc., 
was sentenced by Federal Judge 
Thomas P. Thornton to five months 
in Federal prison for contempt, of 
court. Taylor bat' appealed to the 
United States Court of Appeals in, 
Cincinnati. Appeal bond was set at 
$ 10 , 000 . 

The contempt charge was based 
on motion filed by Taylor , to quash 
a subpoena ordering him to bring 
his records to Detroit for a grand 
jury hearing in a mail .fraud case 
growing out of Guild’s solicitation 
of. money for printing photographs 
of children, in a book which the 
Guild comeon declared was used 
by Hollywood casting directors. 

Judge Thornton termed Taylor’s 
motion — which said he feared 
someone would kill him. if he came 
to Detroit— “insulting, sCi'idalous 
and , contemptuous.” The judge’s 
ire was further aroused when Tay- 
lor went on a “honeymoon” — 
minus his bride— 4n Mexico in- 
stead of coming to Detroit to an- 
swer charges against his organiza- 
tion. 



Columbus, Feb.; 2. 

Economic ramifications of Ohio’s 
censorship are underlined by the 
fact that Columbia Pictures . or-' 
dered only 10 censor seal leaders 
on “M,” the picture which the U. S. 
Supreme Court forced the state 
censors to approve. This means 
that only 10 prints are available 
for showing in Ohio’s 950 theatres 
(330 of these are driveins). 

Columbia is paying $30 per .print 
in censorship fees ($3 per reel for 
the 10-reel picture) or $300 for the 
10 prints, and apparently feels that 
is all it can afford, even though 
now -is the time to cash in on the 
publicity “M” has garnered through 
its banning and the <i6urt reversal 
of the ban. 

Columbia’s 10-print order is first 
concrete evidence made public that 
film companies and distributors 
distribute fewer prints than the 
traffic calls for because of censor- 
ship costs. 

The shortage of prints will raise 
a real problem on the sub-runs. 
Neighborhood houses in large cities 
such as Cleveland, Cincinnati, Co- 
lumbus, Toledo and Dayton will 
have to form a line and take their 
turn, over such , a long period of 
time that the present publicity div- 
idend will be lost. Some may have 
to wait several months. First runs 
and sUb-runs in smaller cities and 
towns, in some extreme cases, may 
end up playing this 1951 film six 
months from now. 


Graham Greene Novel For 
Deborah Kerr Starring 

Screen rights to Graham Greene’s 
novel, “End of the Affair,” has 
been acquired by indie producer 
David Rose. 

Filmmaker has gigned Deborah 
Kerr for the pic, which Columbia 
will release. 


Russ Emde Exits RKO 

Russ Emde, RKO Theatres zone 
manager and division chief for 
more than 25 years, has resigned 
as of this week (1). At one time or 
another, he had nearly every . RKO 
house in the Greater New York 
area under his supervision. Well- 
known for originating many novel 
theatre promotion ideas; Emde 
served as assistant to Nate J. Blum 
berg in 1931 when the latter was 
general manager of the RKO Cir- 
cuit. Emde plans to continue in 
the theatre biz after a brief vaca- 
tion. 

He was zone manager in charge 
of RKO Theatres in New York City, 
the Bronx, Westchester county arid 
Newark at one 1 time; More re- 
cently', Emde was in charge of the 
district which took in Newark, 
Cleveland arid some upstate New 
York keys as well as Washington, 
D. C. He had headquartered in 
Newark most recently. 



Universal’* annuikl report covering, (be year ended Get 31, 1953 
point* up the fact that the company, has been improving its earn- 
ings for the fourth successive year . 1 Also, for the third suces- 
- slve year, the distrib has shelled out mere in takes than it showed 
as profit on the books. Here’s the U story in figures since 1948 
as told In profits after taxes: *, 

194S— $3,102,812 (loss) - 

1949— $1,125,851 (loss) 

1950— $! ,355,880 (Taxes: $ 950,000) 

1951— $2,267,784 (Taxes: $3,125,000) 

1952— -$2,307,701 (Taxes: $4,290,000) 

; 1953— $2,616,356 (Takes: $3,863,000) 



Treble Damagei of $41,250,000 Asked — Count 
Charges Same at Charges 


er- 


WHITE COLLAR WAGES UP 


U, Republic, Consolidated 
Labs in N. Y. Are Affected 


Wage hikes ranging froin $4 to 
$5.50 weekly were obtained last 
week by white collar homeoffice 
staffers at Universal, Republic and 
Consolidated Laboratories. Com- 
panies involved inked a new two- 
year pact with thes Motion ; Picture 
Homeoffice Employees Union, 
Local H-63, IATSE. Boosts as well 
as a new holiday formula and in- 
creased severance pay follow the 
pattern established with the sign- 
ing of a contract at Paramount. 

Union is currently dickering 
with RKO, Columbia 'and Warner 
Bros, for contract renewals and 
has opened talks with Loew’s for 
a new contract. Local H-63 is rep- 
resenting Loew staffers for the 
first time, having been certified 
as the bargaining agent in a Na- 
tional Labor Relations Board elec- 
tion last August. 


Us Sock Year 



Reflecting the highest sales vol- 
ume in the company’s history, Uni- 
versal last week reported a- net of 
$2,616,356 for the year ended Oct. 
31, 1953. Profit comes after pro- 
viding for $3,863,000 in Federal 
income and excess profits taxes 
and $500,000 in contingent liabili- 
ties and amounts, to $2.35 per share 
on the 1,010,411 shares of common 
stock outstanding. 

Preceding fiscal year showed a 
net of $2,307,701 after provision of 
$4,309,924 in Federal income and 
excess profits taxes and $500,000 in 
contingent liabilities.' The 1952 
earnings , were the equivalent of 
$2.15 per share on the 961,698 
shares of common outstanding 
Nov. 1, ’52. 

Universal is the only one of the 
distributing companies to pay an 
excess profits tax last year. Levy 
is computed on the basis of a 
three year average between 1946 
and 1949. Excess profits tax ended 
Dec. 31, '53. 

This is the fourth straight year 
that U has improved its financial 
'position and the third year that 
the distrib has been shelling out 
heavy tax coin. Big improvement 
came in 1950 when the company 
converted a prior year’s loss of $1,- 
125,851 to a $1,355,866 profit. In 
1951, the net. almost doubled, shoot- 
ing up to $2,267,784. Taxes went 
with it, increasing from $950,000 
in ’50 to $3,125,000. The 1952 net 
(Continued on page 13) 


- N. Y. to L. A. 

Robert S. Benjamin 
Mort Blumenstock 
Herb Golden 
Leland Hayward 
John Houseriian 
Lew Kerner 
Arthur B. Kr-irri 
James Lee 
Mario Lewis 
Mary Loos 
Luigi G. Luraschi 
Richard Sale 
J. Milton Salzburg 
Dan Terrell 

N. Y. to Europe 

Don Ameche 
Abe Ellstein . 

Donald Oenslager 
George Schaefer 
Cecil Tennant 
Mildred Trares 


It’s open warfare between RKO 
Theatres and Gborge. Charles and 
Spyros Skouras on the legalistic 
front. Circuit has filed an action 
against the three brothers p) us 
20th-Fox, Skouras Theatres, headed 
by George Skouras, and the Wil- 
liam White Corp./ which is linked 
With the Skouras chain, asking to- 
tal treble damages of $41,250,000. 

The action was taken in the form 
of cross and counter complaints 
within the framework of a suit 
filed earlier by Skouras Theatres 
against the RKO circuit and the 
distributors, excepting 20th-Fox. 
Loew’s also was indicated as a de- 
fendant but settled out of court be- 
fore the filing. Complaint filed by 
the Skouras theatre company de- 
mands treble awards of $87,690,000^ 

RKQ Theatres’ counter move was 
made a while back but had not 
been publicly revealed. In asking 
the damage Of $41,250,000, the cir- 
cuit charges Skouras Theatres, with 
the same business offenses of 
which Skouras, in its suit, had ac- 
cused RKO. 

The original suit by Skouras as- 
serted that its chain of N, Y. houses 
was denied a fair crack at new pic- 
tures because the Loew’s and RKO 
circuits in Gotham had a secret 
agreement anent sharing the prod- 
uct. The distributors, excepting 
20th, participated in this alleged 
(Continued on page 20) 



Film Company Tactics 
They Like, And Don’t 

Lewis D. and John J. Gilbert,; 
the ubiquitous minority stock- 
holders, make some, observations 
on film companies in their 153- 
page “Fourteenth Annual Report 
of Stockholder Activities at Cor- 
poration ‘Meetings, 1953.” 

Fighting for annual meetings in 
New York, the Gilberts kudo Uni- 
versal . and RKO Theatres for 
switching to Gotham. They lake 
a slap at RKO Pictures for con- 
tinuing to hold confabs in incon- 
( Continued on page 13) 

L. A. to N. Y. 

Milton Berle 
Neville Brand 
Marlon Brando 
Betty Carr 
Madeleine Carroll 
Edward Choate 
Jacques d’Amboise 
Bella Darvi 
Gala Ebin 
Don Fedderson 
James A. Fitzpatrick 
John Ford 
L. Wolfe Gilbert - 
Abel Green 
Moss Hart 
Shirley Herz 
Burl Ives 
Juseph Justman 
Grace Kelly. 

Edwin H. Knopf 
Dorothy Lamour 
Angela Lansbury 
Peter Lawford 
Aleen Leslie 
A. Morgan Maree Jr. 

George Marshall 
Jean Negulesco 
C. Bruce Newbery 
William S. Paley 
Millicent Patrick 
Jerry Pickman 
GCne Raymond 
Thelma Ritter 
Hal Roach Jr. 

Sol Schwartz 
Murray Silyerstone 
John Sinn 
Jack Skirball 
Richard Widmark 
John Williams 





Pending solution of the stereo- ♦ 
phonic sound problem, 20th-Fox 
will not license aiiy drivein theatre 
with Cinemascope pix, according 
to company execs.. 

Policy, if continued for any 
length of time, will hurt 20 th as 
much as its ozoner customers who 
last year Were responsible for 
$8 000,000 in film rental for 20 th- 
alone, However, the company pre- 
fers to take that risk rather than 
modify its stand against the use 
of anything but four-track direc- 
tional sound. 

Behind the distrib's* position is 
the feeling that, Should it make 
an exception for driveins and sup- 
ply them with single-track sound, 
the same concession would have 
to be granted a great many of the 
small houses Which are also 
clamoring for it. 

Engineers of 20th are currently 
working on the problem and are 
confident that they’ll come up with 
a solution by the time the drivein 
season opens, Whatever the final 
answer, it will have to involve 
three speakers in each car. 

There are currently* an esti- 
mated 4,600 ozoners in existence 
and a goodly number of them are 
year ’round operations. Execs at 
20th admit that their policy on 
sound is. bound to play havoc with 
the present system of runs and 
availabilities, but they stick to the 
provisions of the 20th contract 
(Continued on page 18) 


Call Air-Debate an Ad 
For ‘Moon Is Blue’; Code 
Much Kicked Around 

The flow of words for and against 
the Production Code continued last 
week on television. The subject 
was taken up on two editions of 
the Margaret Arlen interview se- 
ries on WCBS-TV, N. Y., and on 
(2 1 ABC-TV’s network forum pro- 
gram, "Answers For Americans.” 
Here are some of those words: 
Otto Preminger, producer of the 
Code-rejected "Moon Is Blue,” in a 
chat with Miss Aylen, "I don’t be- 
lieve, frankly, that anybody, if cen- 
sorship should be completely aban- 
doned. would run out and do im- 
mediately some very dirty, obscene 
pictures because I don’t think from 
the point of view of business that 
this would be so clever. I have 
never seen anybody becoming rich 
by running a ♦burlesque house or 
becoming rich by printing French 
obscene postcards. . . . I think the 
public is much better, and much 
better equipped to take care of 
themselves than the censors want 
to have it.” 

Philip J. O’Brien, consultant at- 
torney for the Motion Picture Assn, 
of America, in a rebuttal appear- 
ance with Miss Arten commented: 
f here has been a series of threats 
to institute federal censorship. As 
ecently as 1948 and ’49 there was 
.threat to institute federal censor- 
hip and that is the Government, 
(Continued on page 20) 

PECCA swap pediod ends 

Phonograph Co. Now Holds 59.6% 
Of Universal Stock 

sh? ecca Records’ offer of 145,842 
rJ?i eS r 0 / its capital stock at the 
Uni,,*; V vo ^ecca shares for one 
der^M-^T share has brought ten- 
all y stock sufficient to cover 
le avai lable Decca shares. 
hated 3086 per * od h as been termi- 

IiomS su ; ap boosts Decca’s U 
(59 * r °m 600,075 shares 

T1W ' t0 672 -"6 shares (65%). 
comm a, ‘ e curre htly 1,006,260 of U 
^nimon outstanding. 

couMvIr °btfit now . theoretically 
U c* * if a , merger with U without 
hounw k • ol , der approval. Move, 
1S held yery unlikely. 


It’s 75 Year* May 3 

Papers relating the film in- 
dustry’s march of technical 
progress over the years will be 
a feature of the Society of Mo- 
tion . Pjicture and .Television 
Engineers’ 75 th semiannual 
convention in Washington 
May 3-7. 

Historic symposium, w'hich 
will see a ' dozen of the indusr 
try’s "old-timers” writing their. 
. memoirs and filling in some of 
the existing holes, will, among 
other things, feature a recount- 
ing of the development of color 
and of the 35m camera. 



How far can and should a distrib 
go in telling exhibs how to run 
their theatres? 

That question came in for con- 
siderable discussion last w r eek in 
the wake of 20th-Fox’s amendment 
of its Cinemascope contracts, speci- 
fying the exact conditions under 
which its pix must be shown. 

Comment ranged all the way 
from an infuriated, "It isn’t legal!” 
to the more moderate opinion that, 
with both distribs and exhibs havr 
ing an equal interest in the success 
of a film, the details of a picture’s 
presentation should be left to the 
■theatre* operator who knows his 
house and is the best judge of 
what’s required to put over prod- 
uct. 

"The public isn’t interested in 
technical refinements,” Russell V. 
Downing, Radio City Music Hall, 
N. Y., prexy, commented last week. 
"All they want is a good. show. 
Here, at the Music Hall, we are 
aiming at the ultimate in presenta- 
tion. We will use whatever is nec- 
essary to achieve that aim. That 
means that, if we find that a flat 
screen gives us what our engineers 
consider the best projection, a flat 
screen is what we shall use.” 

The 20th contract clause, which 
is being rubber-stamped on all con- 
tracts, obliges exhibs to play 20th 
CinemaScopers only if their houses 
are equipped with a Cinemascope 
anamorphic projection attachment, 
(Continued on page 15) 



C’Scope Lens Profits 
Despite Lively Rentals 

Licensing of its Cinemascope 
taking (camera) lenses is* bringing 
20th-Fox some hefty coin but. no 
profit. Company has such a heavy 
investment in its lense that it’s 
doubtful it will ever be able to do 
more than just break even on its 
original expenditures. 

Under present arrangements, 
20th asks $25,000 to rent its lenses 
for a single pic. However, with 
such major producers as Metro and 
Warner Bros., the company has 
long-term agreements providing 
for use of the Cinemascope taking 
lenses for an unspecified number 
of films. There is a cancellation 
clause in each of these contracts. 

Trouble is that, in order to get 
lens production rolling, and to 
mak^ them available in a hurry, 
20th had to splurge heavy coin. It 
invested $650,000 alone as an in- 
ducement for Bausch 85 Lomb to 
do a fast retooling job. Further- 
more, despite the tremendous over- 
head, 20th ordered a good many 
more lenses than. it actually need- 
ed to satisfy the demand. 



Antitrust suits pending against 
the principal film companies and 
major circuits have gone above the 
$400,000,000 mark in terms of 
damages being asked of the de- 
fendants. If the plaintiffs were; 
awarded anything hear that amount 
of coin a large segment of the pic- 
ture business would be In the 
throes of bankruptcy. 

Trade lawyers point up, though, 
legalistic' experience 1 through'' the 
years has been that the heavy ma- 
jority of cases are either dismissed 
or settled at a tiny fraction of al- 
leged damages. Nonetheless, the 
film: Outfits are nicked for plenty 
via employment of a t to.rne y s 
around the country and general 
expenses incurred in defense of the 
suits. 

Actions For U 

As of the close of its 1953 fiscal 
year last November, Universal was 
among the defendants In 171 ac- 
tions which claimed total treble 
damages of $381,000,000. In addi- 
tion, there w'ere 20 other pending 
complaints in which the courts 
were asked to assess damages 
and/or decide bn injunctive relief. 
Further, new actions have been 
started at the rate of two a month. 

Legalite reps of the distribs say 
they figure the peak , has been 
reached, that new filings likely 
Will lessen as time goes on. They 
reckon on the basis that all com- 
panies have long since overhauled 
rub. and clearance situations to the 
( Continued on page 20) 



its Reef In 




RKO’s "French Line,” presented 
“as is” in defiance of the film in- 
dustry's Production Code, ran into 
its first skirmishes with official 
censorship boards this week. Pre- 
viously "condemned” by the Catho- 
lic National Legion of Decency, 
the pic was greenlighted by blue- 
pencil panels in Chicago and Port- 
land. Ore., and halted by state 
boards in New York, Pennsylvania 
and Kansas. 

The three state appraisers re- 
frained from handing dow-n any 
final decisions. Instead, each sug- 
gested certain deletions from 
"Line.” It’s now up to RKO to 
comply or face the prospect of a 
firm taboo. As N. Y. and Pa., rep- 
resent two of the most important 
markets for a Hollywood film a 
lasting ban on "Line” would be 
costly to the distributor. 

However, how N. Y. could square 
a nix on a picture such as "Line” 
with, the recent U. S. Supreme 
Court decision on "La Ronde” was 
a question left unanswered. This 
latter entry was turned dow r n on 
gr.unds of "immorality” at first, 
but the nation’s highest tribunal 
ruled that N. Y.’s statute covering 
this was too "vague.” 

Cuts recommended by the three 
states are similar, focusing on a 
dance executed by Jane Russell in 
the film. It’s substantially the 
same footage which the Production 
Code wanted out as condition for 
its approval but which RICO in- 
sisted upon keeping in. 


Herb Golden Heads West 

Herb Golden, member of the 
amusements industry division of 
Bankers Trust Co., left N. Y. for 
the Coast yesterday (Tues.) for 
three weeks of confabs with thea- 
trical film and telepix producers. 

He timed the trek west to coin- 
cide with the Coast visit of Arthur 
B. Krim, president of United Art- 
ists, and Robert S. Benjamin, UA’s 
board chairman. Number of indie 
filmmakers releasing through UA 
are Bankers Trust accounts. 



3 Girl* oit a Hit 

With a click pic ’on its hands 
in "How to Marry a Million- 
aire,” which stars Betty Gra- 
ble, Marilyn Monroe and Lau- 
ren Bacall, 20th-Fox appears 
readying a sequel; 

Company has registered the 
title, "How Three Girls Be- 
have,” as an original feature. 



To Launch New 



Following a meeting of distrib 
sales managers yesterday (Tues.) 
in New* York, Eric Johnston, prexy 
of the Motion Picture Assn, of 
America, said the sales chiefs had 
asked him to issue an invitation to 
exhibs orgs "to launch a new efr 
fort to agree on an effective arbi- 
tration program.” Johnston said, 
that distribs had agreed to con- 
tinue their efforts to w'ork out a 
system with exhibs; 

Distribs are prepared to proceed 
with the establishment of an arbi- 
tration system that does not in- 
clude Allied States Assn;, Waiter 
Reade Jr., prexy of Theatre 
Owners of America, indicated in a 
report presented to the TOA board 
Monday (1) in Washington. 

While not mentioning Allied by 
name, Reade said the distribs 
"have expressed their willingness” 
to get up an industry arbitration 
system with TO A, and "with such 
other exhibitor organizations as 
cared to join.”. Allied has fre- 
quently reiterated its position that 
it will not become a party to any 
(Continued on page 20) 


By JOE KOLLING 

Cincinnati, Feb. 2. 

More than 500 exhibitors were 
on hand for the opening today of 
the first National Drivein conven- 
tion, under the Allied States Assm 
banner. Sessions in the Nether- 
land Plaza continue through 
Thursday and will be followed by 
a two-day meeting of the parent 
organization's board members 
from 21 units. Most critical issue 
confronting, ozoners is the supply 
of pictures to keep them in busi- 
ness. Wilbur Snaper, Allied prexy, 
said open-air operators are ex- 
pected to take a definite position 
on this issue. Attendance doubled 
what, had been expected. Regis- 
tration exceeded 750, including 
women, suppliers and guests; 

Execs of distributing companies 
were scheduled to put in appear- 
ances. Snaper said they Would be 
w'elcome at the discussions, but 
doubted "if they will have any- 
thing to say they haven’t said so 
far,” 

There is apparently no fear 
among equipment dealers about 
driveins going without screen 
product. Some 60 have exhibits in 
the hotel. 

Alex Harrison. 20th-Fox home 
office rep, is due to arrive Wednes- 
day but there ' w'as no definite 
word abouT reservations for reps 
of other distribs. 

Speakers will include Re?t Carr, 
(Continued on page 13) 


Rodgers Talks to 20th; 

Not Much New in Magna 
Situation Re ’Oklahoma’ 


Although the sense of urgency 
appears to have subsided, negotia- 
tions to bring "Oklahoma” to the 
screen in both the Todd-AC and 
Cinemascope versions are still go- 
ing On. 

Richard Rodgers of the Rodgers 
& Hammerstein team confirmed 
last week that he has had a series 
of meets with 20th-Fox pretty Spy- 
ros P. Skouras, but said that they 
had discussed "theories” father 
than any definite conditions of a 
deal. Rodgers pointed out that he 
'and Oscar Hammerstein had had a 
long and friendly relationship with 
20th and that this naturally re- 
flected in the talks. 

It’s understood that Magna The- 
atre Corp., w'hich holds the screen 
rights to "Oklahoma” and first re- 
fusal rights to other R&H works, 
hasn’t received any new offers 
from 20th. The deal originally, 
proposed would have seen ,20th 
financing "Oklahoma” to the tune 
of $4,500,000. Pic would have been 
CinemaSeoped, with 20th handling 
both that version and the Todd-AO 
roadshow'. Arrangement didn’t 
come off, partly, due to Magna's 
inability to assign rights to R&H 
w'orks and partly as a result of 
opposition from Mike Todd, who 
controls four directors on Magna’s 
eight-men board. 

Even if Rodgers and Hammer- 
stein reach an agreement with 
Skouras, it would still have to be 
approved by the Magna board, 
where it’s likely to run into opposi- 
tion from the Todd group. Observ- 
ers are wondering whether, if R&H 
actively work out and propose a 
j deal with 20th, Todd would con- 
tinue to block it. 


’Don’t Settle on Sound' 
System That Eliminates 
Some Exhibs’ — Barnett 

Cincinnati, Feb. 2. 

Warning to producers not to 
settle on any stereophonic sound 
system which, might be inapplica- 
ble to a section of exhibition is 
voiced here in two separate 
speeches by Herbert Barnett, 
Society of Motion Picture and 
Television Engineers prejty, before 
the National Drivein Theatre con- 
vention sponsored by Allied. 

His comments came at a time 
when the ozoners particularly are 
concerned over their position in 
the sound picture and today’s 
speech, although void of any 
specific suggestions, w’as Teceived 
with considerable attention. 

"It is unfortunate,” Barnett said 
the drivein operators today. (Tues.), 
“that in the interest of proprietary 
rights so little attention has been 
given to ultimate effects oh and 
usefulness to all segments of the 
industry as an essential to long- 
range survival. There is no ele- 
ment of motion picture exhibition 
which can be eliminated without 
detrimental consequences to the 
industry as a whole.” 

In a second speech prepared for 
delivery tomorrow' (Wed.), Barnett 
went a step further. After urging 
that various new sound systems be 
(Continued on page 15) 


FINGER POINT AT 'MALE' 


Censor-Shy Tlieatremen Think 
Magazines Worse’n Any Film 


Reps of an exhibitor group in 
i Indiana have added their voice-^- 
i who hasn’t? — to the censorship hue 
• and cry. The tlieatremen think 
[that local government officials; re- 
I ligious and educational leaders 
[would do well to clean up other 
media instead of giving time and 
effort to policing pix. 

Target of the exhibs’ rap is Male, 
mag, a monthly. "Any child with 
25c can buy this magazine at most 
drugstores and newsstands,” it’s 
pointed up. Causing concern is a 
section of the publication which 
presents a condensation of "Sex 
Questions and Answers,” book pub-. 
- lished by McGraw-Hill. It’s a 
| frankly-slated catechism of male 
and female sexual behavior. 



PAGE’ IN BIG SHIFT 


• 9 


U. S. Foreign Sales, Sez Silverstone 


Ultra-pride in native pix global-; 
lv and particularly in Asia, 
constitutes one Of the grayest 
dangers the American film indus- 
try ever faced in the foreign mar- 
ket Murray Silverstone, 2qth-Fox 
International prexy, declared .in 
NY. yesterday (Hues.) following 
his return from a four-months in- 
spection tour of 20th branches in 

22 countries. .. 

«At a time when we so vitally 
depend on our overseas revenue, 
this wave of insularity is hurt- 
ing us all over,” he said. ^‘It causes 
native product to do fantastic busi- 
ness Iii a Country like India, a lo- 
cal production like ‘Aan/ blown up 
from a 16m negative, can outgross 
all U S, imports combined/' There 
are various other ways in which 
nationalism: affects foreign imports 
in many, areas, he indicated. 

Painting a glowing picture of 
the performance of “The Robe’ 
abroad, where some 600 .theatres 
are now equipped to play Cinema- 
scope, Silverstone credited 20th 
prexy Spyros P. Skouras with re- 
juvenating the industry’s foreign 
market via Cinemascope and urg- 
ed a “big’’ picture export policy 
for the entire industry. This would 
be in line with the pattern being 

set by 20th. > • 

Silverstone, iii estimating a $25,- 
000,000 global gross (after taxes) 
(Continued on page 18) 


Jungle Jills Johnny 

’Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

Sam Katzman has registered 
title of “Jungle Jills/’ Based 
on current news stories of all- 
femme safari led by a single 
man. 

Johnny Weismuller will star 
as lone male in film. 




GreenborO, N. C., Feb. 2. 
Use of the Fifth Amendment for 
fear of self incrimination was em- 
ployed successfully by a Walnut 
Cove theatre operator irt a case in- 
volving the payment of film rentals 
to six distributors. U. S. District 
Judge Johnson J. Haynes upheld 
exhibitor James Jesse Booth in his 
refusal to produce his admissions 
record books. Booth, his attorney 
said in Middle District Court, re- 
frained. from showing bis records 
to the opposing counsel in a suit 
bftiight by six distribs claiming an 
“indefinite amount’’ of royalties 
due them for engagements of cer- 
tain films at Booth’s theatre. 

Robert A. Hovis of Charlotte, at- 
torney for Loew’s, Inc., and the five 
other plaintiffs, maintained that on 
the advice of counsel Booth refused 
to produce the books and stood be- 
hind the Fifths Amendment. In an 
affidavit, Booth contended that 
Hovis and the distribs sought to 
“annoy, embarrass and harass” 
him by the requests. 

A. J. Ellington, Booth’s attorney, 
declared that not onjy did Booth 
object to allowing Hovis to see the | 
books but he also prevented agents 
of the Bureau of Internal Revenue 
from examining them. 

Judge Hayes, in declining to is- 
sue an order demanding that Booth 
show his records, sought to estab- 
lish the scope of Hovis’ inquiry and 
later requested that the attorney 
reach an agreement letting Hovis 
examine the books “to arrive at 
the amount of royalties due but no 
niore.” Ellington and Hovis agreed 
to do so “as long as/’ Ellington 
stipulated, “the evidence cannot be 
used in Federal Court.” 

allied ARTISTS BALLYHOO 

Shooting Bankroll on Promotion 
Uf Wanger’s /Riot In Cell 11’ 

. Hollywood; Feb. 2. 

a j . weekend meeting of Allied 
tii ls . . execs here the newspaper, 
envision arid radio, budget for 
waiter Wanger’s “Riot in Cell 
nn ° ck H” was upped also to $350,- 
v i', orke d • out were plans for 
aturatiQn bookings to follow tee- 

anirr ln New England, Michigan 
ana Texas. " ■ 

Powwow then discussed 
or A^ or “Arrow. In Dust,” “Ghost 
C.nirtu eary ” Messrs. Goldstein, 
cnaf/ 13 !? 10161 ’* Prichard came to 
. Brniri sessions attended by 
Br °idy, Minsch, and Branton. 


Universal up to ’ Oct. 31, 1953, 
earned $6,27#, 000 from old pix as- 
signed to Realart for reissue han- 
dling, it’s revealed in a U prospec- 
tus filed with the. Securities and 
Exchange Commission this week in 
respect to 70,105 shares of U com- 
mon that remained to be exercised 
as of Jan. 24. 

Deal with Realart runs to May 
31, 1957, and covers U pix for the 
period from 1933 to 1946. Under 
its provisions, U gets a minimum 
guarantee of $3,250,000 against 
35% of the gross over $9,714,286. 
Also from 25% to 30% of the gross 
receipts on certain pix. Additional 
U share was $3,128,000* for a total 
of $6,278,000. 

In Britain, where reissue rights 
to U films go to Eros under a long- 
term deal, U collected another $1,- 
363,000 from its Oldies. Eros has 
the rights to U pix from 1937 to 
1942. „ 

Prospectus revealed the salary of 
Charles Feldman, U v.p. and gen- 
eral sales manager* under a new 
five-year contract starting Jan. 1, 
1954. He get s $ 1,350 weekly for 
the first year and $1,450 a week for 
the rest. Eugene F. Walsh, v.p. 
and treasurer, under a three-year 
contract starting Nov. 1, 1953, gets 
$800 weekly up to Oct. 31, 1954, 
$900 weekly to Nov. 1, 1955/ and 
$1,000 weekly for the third year, 

Recounting the number of anti- 
trust suits pending against U, the 
prospectus said there were 199 of 
them. Total of 179 ask; for dam- 
ages accumulating to $388,333,032. 
There are 11 suits asking more 
than $5,500,000 each. 

Breakdown of selling, branch 
and administrative expenses for the 
year ended Oct. 31, 1953, showed 
an increase of morje than $6,000,000 
since 1949 when the figure was 
$17,752,433. The. 1953 expenditure 
(Continued on page 20) 


PRODUCERS GUILD’S 
ZIPPIER 1954 ROLE 

Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

Growing awareness of film in-, 
dustry and producers themselves 
to .importance of group Will cue 
expounded activities of Screen 
Producers Guild in 1954. according 
to 'prexy Carey Wilson. 

Plan is particularly beamed at 
making members more conversant 
with their jobs and for this pur- 
pose Guild embarks immediately 
upon series of monthly member- 
ship meetings at which important 
industry figures will talk. 

Among those who’ve accepted 
are ' Columbia’s Montague. Selz- 
nick, Golderson. and Sarnoff. 

Golf Pros in ‘Par’ 

Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

Joe Kirkwood, Jr., and Russ Les- 
lie organized an indie unit to film 
“Cupid Under Par,” in which hoy 
meets girl on the golf links. Top 
male roles wil) be played by Kirk- 
wood and Johnston, wi|h the 
femme lead still to be signed. 

Four pro golfers,: Sam Snead. 
Cary Middlecoff, A1 Besselink and 
Jackie Burke, Jr., will appear iri 
i the film. 


Do amusements ini general, and 
moving pictures in particular, get 
stepchild treatment from the daily 
press of the United States? This 
impression is strongly prevalent 
among many film men but has ap- 
parently never been “documented.” 
That would be a monumental job. 
A Variety staffer recently checked 
a week’s issues of hut three papers; 
the Chicago Tribune, St. Louis 
Post-Dispatch and the Denver Post, 
and came away with several 
strong impressions in no way. of- 
fered. as scientific proof but at the^ 
same time provocative: 

1) The Food Industry with its 
highpower franchises demands and 
gets much more tiein space than 
amusements. 

2 ) There is a tendency to blur 
and mingle film hews in with 
. women’s pages. 

3) Television gets a better break 
than films. * 

It is Variety’s hunch that the 
film industry would be smart . to 
make an extensive analysis and 
breakdown of the possible break- 
down of newspaper cooperation 
beaxing in mind that the dailies 
continue to collect special high 
rates from theatrical advertisers, in 
carryforward of the old circus 
cash-with-copy practice*. 

Treatment of the film industry 
by the nation's daily newspapers, 
from both the editorial and adver- 
tising standpoint, has, of course, 
long been a subject of debate, the 
major complaints being that news- 
papers ( 1 ) play up unfavorable 
news relating to Hollywood and 
(2) charge theatres a higher ad- 
. (Continued on page 20) 


‘Jiiil Bait r Too Raw 

Columbia has an upcoming 
featare titled “Bait.” 

. Some Col-ites toyed around 
with “Jail Bait” as the handle 
but predominant opinion was 
that , this was too raw. 

Pit, incidentally, is a Hugo 
Haas entry. A previous offer- 
ing from Haas was “Pickup.” 





Tehnicolor has slashed charges 
for its three-strip cameras and 
camera accessories by 50%. Com- 
pany also has reduced rates on 
rush prints and on its successive 
exposure negative. 

New rate sked 'affects only the 
“front end” of the Techni opera- 
tion. Processing charge for prints 
handled in the imbibition, dye- 
trarisfer method continues at 4.98c 
per foot. 

Rate for the Techni cameras now 
is down to $120 a week from the 
former $240 and to $20 a day from 
$40. Camera accessories for “wild” 
shooting are cut to $37.50 per week 
from $75, and for sound shooting, 
including wild shooting if desired, 
to $112.50 per week from $225. 

Price of rush prints from the 
Techni three-strip, successive ex- 
posure or separation' negative is 
cut to 15c per linear foot for color 
(from the former 22.83c) and to 
4.68c for black-and-white (from the 
former 9.6c). The Techni three- 
strip or successive exposure nega- 
(Continued on page 15) 


Radio ‘Pirating’ Tkeatre 
Closed-Circuit Sports 

What to do about unauthorized 
radio broadcasts of .exclusive thea- 
tre tv sports events topped the 
agenda of the first meeting pf the 
newly-qreated theatre tv committee 
of the Theatre Owners of America. 
Confab was held last Friday (29) in 
the N. Y*. office of committee chair- 
man Harry Goldberg, pub-ad. top- 
per of the Stanley watner chain. 

Problem originated with the 
closed-circuit telecast of the Rocky 
Marciano-Roland LaStarza heavy- 
weight championship fight when 
several indie stations “pirated” ac- 
counts of the bout out of N. Y.'s 
Polo Grounds. Under its deal with 
Theatre Network Television; pro- 
moter of the closed-circuit ^vent, 
theatres were assured an exclusiv- 
ity on the bout. Price to TNT, in 
turn, included the radio rights 
! which TNT could peddle or not, as 

i (Continued on page 10) 


London, Jan. 26. 

Eight Hollywood and five British 
pix are on the short list for the 
British Film Academy annual 
awards for the best pictures of 
1953. The remaining six are made 
up of two from France; three from 
Italy and one Franco-Italian co- 
production. 

U. S. films on the list are “Bad 
and the Beautiful*’' (M-G), “Come 
Back, Little Sheba” (Par), “Eterni- 
ty.” (Col), ' and “Julius Caesar,” 
“Lili,” “Mogambo,” all Metro; 
“Roman Holiday,” “Shane,” both 
Par, and “Sun Shines Bright” 
(Indie). 

-Short lists for acting awards 
are divided into five categories. 
For the best British actress the 
contest - will be between Audrey 
Hepburn (“Roman Holiday”) arid 
Celia Johnson of “Captain’s Para- 
dise” (UA). John Gielgud, Jack 
Hawkins, Trevor Howard, Duncan 
Macrae and Kenneth More are in 
the derby for the best British ac- 
tor. The best foreign actress will 
be chosen' from Shirley Booth, 
Leslie "Caron, Mala Powers and 
Maria Schell and the best foreign 
actor from Eddie ♦Albert, Marlon 
Brando, Van Heflin; Claude Laydu, 
Marcel Mouloydji. Gregory Peck 
and Spencer Tracy. Colette 
Marchand and Norman Wisdom 
compete foh the title of the most 
promising newcomer. 

The Academy Council is to give 
certificates of merit to “A Queen 
Is Crowned” and “Elizabeth Is 
Queen” for the exceptional quality 
of Coronation films; to Thomas 
Stobart for his work as director- 
cameraman on the “Conquest of 
Everest” and to Erich von Stro- 
heim for his great services to the 
film industry as director and actor. 


SCREEN PUBLICISTS 




The Screen Publicists Guild, 
representing homeoffice pub-ad 
staffers of five distribs, is for- 
mulating plans to take “economic 
action” against the companies in 
the event current negotiations for 
a new pact breakdown. Union is 
presently dickering with Columbia, 
Warner Bros, and United Artists. 

A union spokesman refused to 
indicate what form the “economic 
action” would take, but dn the 
basis of previous activities of the 
SPG it’s believed it would consist 
of picketing and disti^bution of 
leaflets in front of theatres display- 
ing the distribs' films. As a mem- 
ber of the Distributive, Processing 
and Office Workers of America, a 
national labor outfit, the SPG said 
it is assured of aid from non-film 
unionists outside of the New York 
metropolitan area. 

Up to this point, the SPG has 
threatened no action against, the 
film companies since present con- 
tracts prevent picketing or dis- 
tribution of leaflets. The pacts with 
Col and Warners expire on Friday 
(5), thus, freeing the union of con- 
tractural obligations with these 

(Continued on page 13) 


Under the present system of 
marketing pictures, it’s almost im- 
possible for a smalltown theatre- 
owner to properly exploit the 
films, so declared Wilbur Snaper, 
prexy of Allied States Assn., in an 
address last week to students of 
the Associated Motion Picture Ad- 
vertisers showmanship class iii 
New York, 

Exhib leader denied the accusa- 
tion that., “exhibitors have gotten 
lazy/' and placed the blame for 
the exploitation lag on dlstrib 
selling methods. “The time ele- 
ment is critical,” he, said. Under 
the present selling system, we do 
not know when a particular pic- 
ture will be available for our the- 
atres. So how can we prepare, an 
exploitation campaign? At one 
time we knew definitely what we 
were, going to play six weeks in 
advance. Now we don’t know what 
picture, we’ll have even three 
weeks in advance. Many times a 
booking deal is set only a few days 
before the picture is set to open.” 

: Another deterrent to exhib in- 
terest in pushing a picture, ac- 
cording to Snaper, is that “we do 
not get the proper: money out of a 
picture. He stressed that this was 
the only Industry In Which the buy- 
er had to pay more for his prod- 
uct if he did more business. “We 
have suggested an Incentive: sys- 
tem of selling,” he declared, “but 
it has been ignored by distribution 
although it worked successfully in 
a test.” Under, the plan, isnaper 
(Continued on page 20) 




Okay for Production 


■MW 


What became of those veteran 
producers, writers and directors 
who left 20th-Fox over the past 
year when Cinemascope sharply 
reduced the studio's film output? 
Why, they went into independent 
production.^ Well, at least writer- 
director Richard Sale arid producer 
Robert Bassler did. Both have a 
long string of 20th pix to their 
credit. 

Sale, who returned from Europe 
last week after directing an indie 
picture there, trains to the Coast 
today (Wed.) to pick up directorial 
reins there on a venture that Bass* 
ier is producing for United' Artists 
release. Accompanying Sale is 
his writer-wife Mary Loos whose 
collaboration with him on scripts 
make the screenplays a family af- 
fair. 

Sale’s overseas chore, “Fire 
Over Africa,” was turned out by 
Hemisphere Productions (himself, 
Mrs. Sale and Mike Frankdvich) in 
association with British Lion. Prior,, 
to his departure west, he disclosed 
that the budget on this Maureen 
O'Hara-Macdonald Carey starrer 
was arpund $750,000 of which two- 
thirds represented “mostly pounds 
and a few pesetas.” 

Dollar financing was provided by 
Columbia which retains the west- 
ern hemisphere distribution rights 
while British Lion (a Sir Alexan- 
der Korda firm) has the eastern 
hemisphere. “S o m e 80% of 

(Continued on page 15) 


SCHINE’S CINEMASCOPE 

24 Installations and 21 More on 
Agenda of Circuit 

Albany. Feb. 2. 

The Schine Circuit, of Glovers- 
ville, is erigaged in one of the 
largest coriversion-tO-CinemaScope 
operations among the chains. Some 
24 of its theatres are already 
equipped — including two .in the 
small city of Amsterdam, and 21 
additional are reported to be 
slated for Installations by March. 

Six Schine situations in the Al- 
bany territory are among those 
now preseriting Cinemascope. 



ncrou (emmss 


VeAmiif, Fetniary 3 , 1934 


New Films Boost LA: 



Los Angeles, Feb. 2. 4 

Five newcomers are providing 
some help tips week but an over- 
load of long extended-runs is keep- 
ing the overall total down at a 
modest level. "Majesty O’Keefe 
Is pacing the field of new entrants 
with a brisk $27,000 in two the- 
atres. “Paratroopei 4 " is rated hearty 
$25,000 in three houses. 

“Riders to Stars,” in four situa- 
tions, is okay $17,000. An average 
$13,000 Or close looms for “For- 
ever Female" in two spots, with 
nearly $23,000 more likely in one 
nahe and four driveins. “Dragon- 
fly Squadron" looks mild $11,000 
in two sites plus $29,000 in one 
nabe and five ozoners. 

“Cinerama" belted out another 
great $30,500 in 39th week but 
is one of few holdovers still get- 
ting big coin. Nice $13,000 shapes 
in sixth session for “Knights of 
Round Table." “Living Desert" is 
good in seventh week. 

Estimates for This Week 
Los Angeles, Hollywood Para- 
mounts < ABPT-F&M) *3,300; 1,430; 


Broadway Grosses 

Estimated Total Gross 
This Week v. $482,10$ 

(Based on 24 thea ter t 

Last Year ,. . . $621.70$ 

( Based On 22 theatres) 





Indianapolis, Feb. 2. 
runs here are relatively 
quiet this stanza, with no 
standouts on tap. “Forever Female" 
looks to lead town with a nice fig- 


L’ FAT 146, 

ST.L00; ‘O'KEEFE' 126 


St Louis, Feb. Z- 
Holdovers predominate here this 
session with only two new films on 
deck. Fine weather over the past 
weekend hypoed biz and all hold- 
overs are doing fine. “Paratrooper 
looms very good at the St Louis 
while “His Majesty O’Keefe" fin- 
ished an 6kay week at the Fox. 
“Knights of Hound Table/ still is 
solid in sixth round > at Loew’s. 
Reissue combo of “Little : Caesar 
and “Public ‘Enemy" has rounded 
out a fine week at the Missouri 
and is holding a second stanza. 
Estimates for This Week 
Fox (F&M) (5,000; 60-75)— “Boy 
From Oklahoma" <WB) and "Dia- 
mond Queen" IWB). Opened today 
<Tues.>. Last week; “Majesty 
O’Keefe” (WB) >rid “Chantp for 

Day" ( Rep), fair $12,000. 

Loew’s iLoevv’s) <3,172; 90-$1.24) 
—“Knights Round Table (M-G) 
<6th wk). Solid $12,500 after $13,- 
.. 000 last week. _ ■: 

’ Missouri (F&M) (3,500; 60-75)— 
* “Public Enemy” (WB) and “Little 
I Caesar” (WB) (reissues) : (2d wk). 
[ First week was big $12,000. - 

Orpheum (Loew’s) (1,500; 50-75) 
‘Torch Song" (M-G) and “Steel 
boxoffice . (UA) (2d wk). Fine 

: after $11,000 initial session 




Estimated Total Gross . . ^ 
This Week X .... * $2,433,60$ 
( Based on 2& cities, and 196 
theatres, chiefly fir ft runs, in- 
cluding N. Y.) 

Total Gross Samo Week 
Last Year . . . . . . .$2,306,100 
( Based on 23 cities, and 209 
theatres.) 



$9,500 nifty 


,, lead town with a nice ng- j '"pagiaht (St. L. Amus) (1,000; 90) 
ure at Circle. “Escape From ®Fort | „ T 
Bravo" at Loewis and “His Majesty J „ rl _, Fa _, 

O’Keefe" at Indiana also are oke. 


70-$1.25)— “Majesty O’Keefe" (WB) 
and “Captain Scarface" (Indie), at 
L.A. Par. only. Bright $27,000. Last 
week,. “3 Sailors and Girl" (WB) 
and “Waterfront Women" (Indie), 

L. A. Par. only, 8 days, $17,200. 

Warner Downtown,. Vogue (SW- 
FWC) (1,757; 885; 70-$1.10)— “For- 
ever Female" (Par) with “Shadows 
Tombstone" (Rep), D’town, and 
“Norman ConqUest” (Lip), at 
Vogue; Average $13,000 or near. 
Last week. Vogue and Palace, 
“Cease Fire" (Par), (3-D) (2d wk), 
$6,200. Downtown is another unit. 

LOs Angeles, Iris, Uptown, Loyo- 
la (FWC) (2.097; 814; i:Tl5; 1.24&; 
70-$1.10)— “Riders to Stars" (UA) 
arid “Glory at Sea” (Indie). Okay 
$17,000. Last week, with Globe, 
excluding the L. A., “Go Mari Go" 
(UA) and “Shark River" (UA), $17,- 
000 L. A. ih another unit. 

Loew’s State, Fox - Hollywood 
(UATC-FWC) (2,404; 756; 70-S1.10) 
— “Dragonfly Squadron" (AA) and 
“World For Ransom" (AA). Mild 
$11,000. Last week, plus Wlltem, 

(9 days) "Highway Dragnet" (AA) 
and “Private Eyes" ( AA), $18,200, 
Orpheum, Hawaii, VViltern (Met- 
ropolitan-G&S-SW) (2,213; 980; 

2,344; 70-$L10) — “Paratrooper" 

(Col) and “Charge of Lancers" 
(Co)). Hearty $25,000. Last week, 
excluding Wiltern, “Easy To Love" 
(M-G) arid “Great Diamond Rob- 
bery" (M-G) (3d wk), $8,200. 

Globe (FWC) (782; 70-90)— “Go 
Man Go" (UA) and "Shark River" 
(UA) (2d wk). Okay $2,600. Last 
week, with unit for $6,600: 

Warner Beverly (SW) (1,612; 90- 
$1.50)— “Cantor Story" (WB) (5th 
wk). Mild $4,000. Last week, $4,500 
Egyptian (UATC) (1,538: $1- 

$1.80) — “Knights Round Table" 
(M-G) (6th Wk). Fine $13,000. Last 
week. $15,200. 

Chinese (FWC) (1.905; $1-$1.80) 
—“12-Mile Reef" (20th) (6th wk). 
Light $8,000. Last week, with Los 
Angeles, $14,500. 

. Hillstreet, Pantages ” ( R K O ) 
(2,752; 2,812; 95-$1.50) — “Sadie 
Thompson" (Col) (2-D) (6th wk). 
Slight $9:000 in 5 days. Last week, 
$12,800. 

Ritz, Rialto (FWC-Metropolitan) 
(1,363; 839; 90-$1.50) — “Act of 
Love’’ (UA) (6th wk) and “Decam 
eron Nights" (FtKO) (2d run) (3d 
wk at Rialto). Slow $4,000. Last 
week, $5,800. • ■ v 

Fine Arts (FWC) (631;, §0.-$1.50) 
— “Living Desert" (Disney) (7th 
wk). Good $5,500. Last* week 
$6,000, 

El Rey (FWC) (861; 70-$1.10) — 
“Little Fugitive" (Indie) (7th wk). 
Light $1,800. Last week. $2*400. 

Four Star (UATC) (900; $1.50- 
$2.40) — “Julius Caesar" (M-G) 
(12th wk). Okay $4,400. Last week, 
$5,300. 

WilShire (FWC) (2.296; $l-$2.20) 
— . “Millionaire" (20th) (,13th wk); 
Slow $4,200. Last week, with 
Warner Downtown, $11,000. 

Warner Hollywood (SW) <1,364; 
$1.20-$2;8Q) — “Cinerama" (Indie) 
(40th wk). Just going into 40th 
frame after sock $30,500 last week. 


No holdovers are in view for first 
time since New Year’s, 

Estimates for This Week 

Circle (Cdckriil-Dolle) (2,800; 60- 
85)— “Forever Female" (Par) and 
“Flight- Nurse" (Rep). Good $11,- 
000. Last week, ‘Taza, Son of 
Cochise" <Uj and “Glass Webb" 
(in, $io,50o. 

Indiana (C-D) <3,200; 60-85)— 
“Majesty O’Keefe” (WB). Modest 
$10,000, Last week, “Khyber Rifles" 
(20th), $12,000. 

Loew's (Loew’s) <2.427; 60-85) — 
“Escape £t, Bravo" <M-G) and 
“Marshall’s Daughter” «UA*. Oke 
$10,000. Last week, "Knights 
Round Table" «M-G> (4th wk). 
$7,000 at 95-$ 1:25 scale. 


Fugitive" (Burstyn) (3d 
Fast $3,500 after $4,700 in 
second. 


St. Louis (St. L. Amus) (4,000; 
60-75)-^— “Paratrooper” (Col) and 
“prisoner Casbah” (Col)- Solid $14,- 
090.. Last -Week, “3 Sailors and 
Girl" (WB) and “Flight Nurse” 
(Rep) (2d wk), $10,000. 

Shady Oak (St. L. Amos) (800; 
90 >— “Captain's Paradise" (A) (6th 
wk). Good $2,500 after $3,000 in 
fifth. 


Lyric (C-D) <1,600; 50/76 j — “D ia- ; •_ _ „ 

mond Queen" <WB) and “Down) , j> an Fr^ndsco, Feb. 2. 

aredo Way" (Rep). With All-Star J Market Street here is in the dol- 
Jamboree onstage replacing second drums currently, with a plethora 
feature Sunday only at 95-$1.25 ■< of extended-runs hurting. Eddie 
scale. Slow $5,500. Last week, “Sins 1 Cantor Story" shapes big at the St 



Providence, Feb. 2. ” 
Upped scale and Cinemascope 
are carryirig “Khyber Rifles" to a 
session at RKO Albee. 
Loew’s State also is doing well 
with a holdover of “Sadie Thomp- 
son" in 3-D, Majestic with “Golden 
Blade" is steady. . 

Estimates for This Week 
Albee (RKO) (2,200; 74^$1)— 
Khyber Rifles" (20th). Upped 
scale helping *to smash 
Last week, “War Arrow" 

“Back to God’s Country" 

500. 

Majestic (Fay) (2,200; 

“Golden Blade" (U) and “Meet Dr. 
Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" (U). Five 
day run hit okay $6,500. Last week, 
“Eddie Cantor Story" (WB) and 
Affair Monte Carlo" (A A), $11,000. 
State (Loew) (3,200; 65-90)— 

“Sadie Thompson'’ (Col) and 
Battles Chief Pontiac" (Indie) (2d 
wk). Hot $10,000. First week, $17, 
000 . 

Strand (Silverman) (2,200; 50-70) 
—.“Forever Female" (Par) and 
Gay Adventure” (AA). Opened 
Monday (1). Last week, “The Neb- 
raskan” (Col) and “El Alajnein 
(Col), mild $6,500. 


$15,000 
(U) and 
(U). $8, 

50-70)— 


Cincinnati, Feb. 
Doivntown biz is moderate 
fame. "Paratrooper," shaping 
swell in Palace, tops the new bills 
“M" at Capitol, for 16-year-olds 
and adults is fair. “Escape Fort 
Bravo" at the Grand is rated good 
Miss. Bobin Crusoe" is off to slow 
start at Keith’s. “Knights of 
Round Table " the only holdover 
is Winding a strong third week in 
the Albee. • ** 

Estimates for This Week 
Albee (RKO) (3,100; 75*1.25)— 
“Knights of Round Table" (M-G) 
(3d wk). Solid $12,000 firiale after 
$16,500 second stanza. 

Capitol (RKO) (2,000; 55-85)— 
M” (Indie) and “El Alamein” 
(Col). Fair $7,000. Juves under 
16 not admitted. Last week, “Sea 
of Lost Ships" (Rep) and “Crazy- 
legs" (Rep), $5,500. 

Grand (RKO) (1,400; 55-85)— 
“Escape Fort Bravo" (M-G) and 
Man of Conflict" (AA). Good 
$7,000. Last week, “His Majesty 
O’Keefe" (WB) (m.o ), $6,000 
Keith’s (SHor) (1,500; 55-85 1— 
“Miss Robin Crusoe" (20th). Thin 
$4,000. Last week, “How to Marry 
Millionaire" (3-D) (20th) (5th wk), 
all right $5,500 at 85^$ 1.25 scale. 
Palace (RKO) (2,600; 55-85)— 
Paratrooper" (Col). Swell $12- 
000. Last week, “Here Come Girls” 
(Par), $10,000. 


of Jezebel" (Lip) and “Terror 
Street (U), $8,000 with same setup. 


‘Arrow’ Smash $12,000 In 
‘Cantor’ Fine 11G 
H.O., ‘Baby’ Smooth 8G, 2d 

Pittsburgh, Feb. 2. 

Holdovers everywhere this week 
except at the Harris* where “War 
Arrow" is cashing in " solidly. 
Knights of Round Table" ' was 
held over for sjxth stanza at Penn 
at last ihinute when fifth week 
topped the fourth. “Eddie Cantor 
Story" is okay in second week at 
Stanley. “Walking Baby Back 
Home" at Fulton is yery big in 
holdover. “Cinerama" ' is starting 
to pick up at Warner and advance 
continues encouraging. 

Estimates for This Week 

Fulton (Shea) ' (1,700; 65-$l)— 
“Walking Baby Home" (U) (2d wk). 
Still in chips, big $8,000 or near, 
which may force another stariza. 
Last week, Donald O’Connor star- 
rer went o\or hopes to smash 
$ 12 , 000 . 

Harris (Harris) (2,100; 65-$l) — 
“War Arrow" (U). Getting a^ break 
because it’s the only new picture 
downtown, this week; in 8 days sock 
( Continued on page 13 ) 


Francis for the best showing of 
any new pic. “Paratrooper” also 
looms lofty at United Artists. 
Three Sailors and Girl" is fairish 
at Paramount. “Public Eneiriy’ 
paired with another oldie, “Little 
Caesar,” shapes fine. „at Golden 
Gate. 

Estimates for This Week 

Golden Gate (RKO) (2,850; 65- 
95)-^“Public Enemy" (WB) and 
“Little Caesar" (WB) (reissues) 
Fine 10,500. Last week, “War Ar- 
row” (U) and “Affair Monte Carlo 1 
(Indie), $13,000. 

Bridge (Schwarz-Reade) (399; $1- 
$1.20)— “Living • Desert" (Disney) 
(3d wk). Holding firmly at great 
$9*000 after $9,200 in second.; With 
$9,000 for initial week, this makes 
record gross for three-week run at 
this house. 

Fox (FWC) (4,651; $1,25-$1.50)— 
“12-Mile Reef" (20th) (3d wk). Fair 
$11,500. Last week, $16,000. 

Warfield (Loew’s). (2,656; $1- 
$1.50) — “Knights Round Table" 
(M-G) (5th wk). Okay $11,000. Last 
week, $13,000. 

Paramount (Par) (2,646; 95-$1.25) 
—“3 Sailors and Girl" (WB) and 
“Waterfront Women" (Indie). Fair- 
ish $13,000. Last week, “Hondo" 
(WB) (3d wk), $11,000. 

St. Francis (Par) (1,400; 95-$1.25) 
—"Eddie Cantor Story" (WB). Big 
(Continued on page 13) 







Barney Balaban’s Chore 

Paramount prexy Barney Bala- 
ban has been named New York 
State chairman for the Crusade 
for Freedom by Henry Ford 2d, 
national chairman. 

Film industry leader will direct 
work of county campaign volun- 
teers in enlisting support for Ra- 
dio Free Europe's broadcasts to 
the 70,000,000 people in Soviet 
satellite countries. 


Detroit, Feb. 2. 

“The Command" has taken over 
leadership here this week with' a 
sharp session at , the Michigan. 
“Man in Attic” looks fairly good 
at the Fox. “Taza, Son of Cochise’’ 
shapes big at the Palms- “Biga- 
mist’: is good at the Madison. Re- 
issues of “Public Enemy" anJ 
“Little Caesar" continue to attract 
solid coin in second week at the 
Broadway - Capitol.’ “Cinerama" 
rolls smoothly in 46th week at the 
Music Hall. 

Estimates for This Week 

Fox (Fox-Detroit) (5,000; $1) — 
“Man ih Attic” (20th) and “Man 
Crazy" (20th). Good $30,000. Last 
week, “12-Mile Reef" (20th), (4th 
wk), $21,000. 

Michigan (United Detroit) (4,000; 
$1-$1.25) — “Command” (WB). 
LOud $35,000. Last week, “Eddie 
Cantor Story” (WB) and “Geral- 
dine” (AA), $18,000. 

P$lms (UD) (2,961; 95r$1.15) — 


“Taza" 

(Col). 


“El Alamein” 
Last week* 


(U) (3-D) and 
Big $20,000. 

“Forbidden” (U) and “Charge of 
Lancers" (UA), $10,000. 

Madison (UD) (1,900; 80-$l)— 
“Bigamist” (FR) and “White Fire” 
(Lip). Good $10,000. Last week, 
“Walking Baby Home" (U) and 
“Border Rivef" (U) (2d wk), $6,000 

BroadWayHCapitol (UD) (3,500; 
80-$l)— "Public Enemy” (WB) and 
“Little Caesar” (WB) (reissues) (2d 
wk). Still strong at $14,000. Last 
week, $20,000. 

United Artists (UA) (1,938; 80 
$1)— “Take High Ground” (M-G' 
(2d wk). Down to oke $8,500. Last 
week, $12,500. 

Adanis (Balaban) (l'700; 95- 

$1.25W-"Knights of Round Table” 
(M-G) (6th wk). Oke $7,500. Last 
Week, $10,400. 

Music Hall (Cinerama Produc- 
tions) (1,194; $1.40-$2.80)— “Ciner- 
ama” (46th wk). Solid $20,000. 
Last week, $21,000. 


‘Cinerama’ Big 19G, 5th 

Boston, Feb. 2. 

Biz is just poking along here 
this stanza with the newcomers fail 
ing to create any stir, arid hold- 
overs on the wane. “Eddie Cantor 
Story” at Paramount and Fenway 
shapes okay. “Forbidden” at the 
Memorial looms fair while “For- 
ever Female” at the Met is thin 
Estimates for This Week 
Astor (B&Q) (1,500; 50-$1.10)— 
Annapurna” (E1F) (2d wk). Mild 
$3,500 in 6 days. First week started 
strongly but skidded -to $6,500. 

Beacon Hill (Beacon Hill) (600 
50-$l) — “Fanfan Tulip” (Lopert) 
(18th wk). Set new house record 
for length of run winding with very 
good $3,000. Last week, $3,500; 

Boston (Cinerama Productions) 
(1,354; $1 .20-$2.80) — “Cinerama” 

(Indie) (5th wk). Out-of-state pa- 
tronage stymied by traffic condi- 
tions. Off to aobut $19,000, but 
still big. Last week, $21,000. 

Exeter (Indie) (1,300; 60-$l) — 
“Gilbert & Sullivan” (UA) (2d wk). 
Nifty $8,000 following $9,000 in 
first, 

Fenway (NET) (1,373; 50-90) — 
“Eddie Cantor Story’’ (WB) and 
Topeka" (AA). Fair $4,000. Last 
week, “Bigamist" (FR) and “Monte 
Carlo Baby" (Indie) $3,500. 

Majestic (Shubert) (1,500; $1.20- 
$2.40)— "Julius Caesar" (M-G) (7th 
wk). Fair $5,000. Last week, $6,000. 

Memorial (RKO) (3,000; 50-90)— 
“Forbidden” (U) and “Captain 
Scarlett” (UA). Fair $14,000. Last 
week, “Walking Baby Home” (U) 
“Border liiver’’ (U), $18,500. 

Mertopolltan (NET) (4,367; 50-90) 
—“Forever Female” (Par) and 
“Terror Street" (.Lip). Thin $14,- 
000. Last week, “Cease Fire” (3-D) 
(Par) and “Geraldine" (Rep) (2d 
wk-5 days), $10,500. 

Orpheum (Loew’s) (3*000; 05- 
$1.05)— “Sadie Thompson” (3-D) 
(Col) and “War Paint” (UA) (3d 
wk). Satisfactory $10,000 following 
$17,000 for second. 

Paramount (NET) <1,700; 50-90) 
“Eddie Cantor Story" (WB) and 
“Topeka" (A A). Good $12,00(1. Last 
week, “The Bigamist" (FR) arid 
“Monte Carlo Baby" (Indie), sarric. 

Pilgrim (ATC) (1,800; 60-95)— 
“Wild One" (Col) and “El Ala 
mein" (Col) (3d wk-5 days). Oke 
$7,000 'after $13,000 second week. 

State (Loew’s) (3,500; 50-90)— 
“Escape Ft. Bravo" (M-G) and 
“Paris Mpdel" (Col) (2d wk). Slen- 
der $6,000 following below hopes 
$10,000 in first week. 


‘Reef’ Wow at $22,000 

Toronto, Feb. 2. 
Two-day blizzard dented week’s 
biz badly. With some cessation and 
traffic - cleanup, “12-Mile Reef” 
swung in to top the town for new- 
comers, with, “Walking My Baby 
Back Home" smash. “Man Between" 
in two houses in near-capacity. On 
third frame, “Knights of Round 
Table" still is smash. “Hondo" also 
is a. nice holdover. 

, Estimates for This W’eek 
Downtown, Glendale. Mayfair, 
Scarboro, State (Taylor) (1,095; 955; 
470; 694; 698; 35-60)— “Big Lea- 
guer" (MrG) and “Royal African 
Rifles" (AA). Poor $9,500. Last 
week, "Ambush Tomahawk Creek" 
(Col) and “Sky Commando" (Col), 
$14,500. 

Eglinton, University (FP) <1,080; 
1,558; 40-75)— “Man Between" 

(Indie). Turnaway $14,000. Last 
week, “Littie Boy Lost” (Par) (5th 
wk), $9,000 in 4 days. 

Hyland ' (Rank) (1.250; 60-90)— 
“The Sinner" (Indie) (3d wk). Lusty 
t $8,000. Last week, $9,000. t> 
Imperial (FP) (3,373; 40-75)— “12- 
Mile Reef' (20th), Wham $22,000. 
Last week, “Millionaire" (20th) 
(4th. wk), $11,500. 

Loew’s (Loew’s) (2,096; 90-$1.50) 
—“Knights Round Table" (M-G) 
(3d wk). , Wham $20,000. Last week, 
$19,000. 

Odeon (Rank) (2,390; 50-90)— 
‘Moulin Roiige" (Romulus). For 
first time here at pop prices, okay 
$8,500. Last week, “Dangerous 
Crossing" (20th), $8,000. 

Shea's (FP) (2,386; 40-75)— “Hon- 
do" (3-D) (WB) (2d wk). Nice, $11,- 
000. Last week, $14;Q00. 

Towne (Taylor) (695; $X.25-$1.75) 
— “Julius Caesar" (M-G) (6th wk). 
Neat $6,500. Last week, $.7,500. 

Uptown (Loew) (2,745; 40-75)— 
"Walking Baby Home” (U). Big 
$15,000. Last week, “Kiss Me, 
Kate" (3-D) (M-G) (4th wk), $8,500. 



I H EP 

OMAHA; ‘OKU.’ 0K6G 

Omaha, Feb. 2. 

First-runs here are in a slump 
this session, with few of new bills 
able to pack them in. “Knights of 
Round Table" is holding well at 
the* State in second Week. “Eddie 
Cantor Story” shapes ^good. at the 
Orpheum. 

Estimates for This Week 

■ Braudels (RKO) (1,100; 5a-75'— 
“Paratrooper" (Col) arid “Paris 
Model" (Col). Good $5,500. Last 
week, “Ba'd for Each Other" < Col) 
and “Texas Band Man" (A A), 
$5,000. 

Omaha (Tristates) (2.000; 50-76) 
— “Boy From Oklahoma" (WBland 
“Golden Idol", (AA). Okay, $6,000. 
Last week, “Captain’s Paradise 
(UA) and “Torch” (UA), $6,500. 

■ Orpheum (Tristates ) (2,890; 65- 
85)— “Eddie jpantor Story" (WB). 
Fine $12,000 or near. Last week* 
“12-Mile Reef" (20th) (2d wk), 
$10,000 at 70-90c scale. 

State (Goldberg) (875; 80-$ U— 
“Knights of Round Table” -(M-.G) 
(2d wk). Fast $5,500 after $10,500 
opener. 


Wednegdty, February 3, 1954 . 



Cantor’ Wow $33,000, 'Riles’ Sock 



Chicago, Feb. 2. 

Bow of three new bills,, with a 
cood assist from the mercury, is 
helping most mainStem houses to 
in exceptional session. However, 
biz is anemic for some of holdovers. 
“Eddie Cantor Story" is gathering 
uo a socko $33,000 at the Mc- 
Vickers in the leadoff week While 
“Khyber Rifles” looms great $45,- 
000 at the larger Oriental. ”3 
Sors and Girl” and “War Paint” 
are a fast $20,009 at the Roosevelt. 

In second frame; “Sadie Thomp- 
son” is holding nicely with stage- 
show at the Chicago, as is duo of 
“Wild One” and “Drums of Tahiti” 
at United Artists. Ziegfeld, with 
“Gilbert and Sullivan,” is heading 
for a good second round. : 

“Knights of Round Table” is 
smash at State-Lake in the third 
while “12-Mile Reef” okay at the 
Woods in fourth. “Living Desert” 
looks healthy at the Loop and “Lit- 
tle Fugitive” shapes well at the 
World. Selwyn is holding at pair 
with ‘ Julius Caesar.” At the Pal- 
ace. “Cinerama” continues to sail 
high in 27th week. 

Estimates for This Week . 

Chicago (B&K) 3,900; 98-$l .25)— 
“Sadie Thompson” (Col) (2-D) (2d 
wk) with stageshow. Neat $41 ,000 
after $56,000 last week. 

Grand (RKO) (1^00; 55-98)— 
“Easy to Love” (M-G) And “Dia- 
mond Robbery” (M-G) (6th ' wk). 
Fairish $3,700. Last week, $5,500. 

Loop (Telem’t) (600; 98-$1.25) — 
“Living Desert” (Disney) (6th wk). 
Good $9,800. Last week; $9,000. 

McVickers (JL&S) (2,200; 65- 
$1.25) — “Eddie Cantor Story” 
tWB). Hitting smash $33,000 or 
near. Last week, “Paratrooper” 
(Col) and “El Alamein” (Col) (2d 
wk), $17,000. 

Monroe (Indie) (1,000; 55-98)— 
“Lure of Sila” (IFE) (4th wk). Mild 
$3,700. Last week, $5,000. 

Oriental (Indie) (3,400; 98-$1.25) 
—“Khyber Rifles’* (20th), Promises 
banguD $45,000. Last week “Mil- 
lionaire” (20th) (9th wk), $17,000. 

Palace (Eitel) <1,484- $1.25-$3.60) 
—“Cinerama” (Indie) (27th wk). 
Fat $35,500 after $37,500 last week. 

Roosevelt (B&K) (1,400; 55-98)— 
“3 Sailors and Girl” (WB) and 
“War Paint” (UA). Plump $20,000. 
Last week, “Public Enemy” (WB) 
and “Little Caesar” (WB) (reissues) 
(2d wk), $18,000. 

Selwyn (Shubert) (1,000; . $1.25- 
$2.40)r-“ Julius Caesar” (M-G) (6th 
wk). Par $15,500 on two-a-day after 
$15,000 last week. 

State-Lake (B&K) (2,700; 98- 
$1.80)— “Knights of Round Table” 
(M-G) (3d wk). Lush $42,000. Last 
week, $52,000. 

Surf (H&E Balaban) (685; 98)— 
Folly to Be Wise” (Indie) (m.o:) 

$400Q k ) Tidy $3 ’? 00 * ^ week > 

United .Artists (B&K) (1,700; 55- 
98)— “Wild One” (Col) and “Drums 
of Tahiti” (Col) (2d wk). Brisk $17,- 
000, Last week, $23,000. 

Woods (Essaness) (1,198; 98* 

$1 25)— “12-Mile Reef” (20th) (4th 

$20 000 anCy Last week » 

World (Indie) (587; 98)— “Little 
Fugitive” (Burstyn) (6th wk). Hold- 
ing fine pace with $4,000. Last 
week, $4,000. 

(Lopert) (430; 98)— 
Gilbert and Sullivan” (UA) (2d 

\ .'H- Good $5,000. Last week, 
$0,500. 


Cold Continues to Clip 
Mels; ‘Cantor’ Oke At 
7G, ‘Knights’ 10G, 3d 

Minneapolis, Feb. 2. 
Holdovers occupy the drivers’ 

. , a . s ex t r eme cold continues to 
throttle the boxoffice. Top fresh 
^ re .. ls "^ddie Cantor Story,” okay 
?L the ,. State ' “ Giv e Girl Break” 
JjJ. ks sJ, ,?ht at Century. For the ex- 
Captain’s Paradise” and* 
Round Table,” it’<s the 
i\r U l ■ i jn<d ihJrd weeks, respective- 
in’er" 1 . 1 P ' “12-Mile Reef” is rounds 
L<fop OUt a fortnight’s run in the 

r Estimates for This .Week 
, r V l ? nt ^ ?y ( pa r) (1.600; 65-85)— 
finn T Glr l Br eak” (M-G). Okay $5,- 
week, “Count Hours” 
l «KO), $2,600. 

Country" a <U)*|2^ 0 o® ack to Gods 
^ ( £ at) G.OOO; 65-85)— 
ror n( J, .Queen” (WB) and “Ter- 
Week l <^- (L . ip) ‘ Mild $4,000. Last 
Bigamist”^ (FR), $4,500. 

— ° w ty (p ar) <4,000; 85-$1.20) 
knights of Round Table” (M-G) 
(Continued on page 13) 


Eftimatei Are Net 

Filni gross estimates as re- 
ported herewith from the vari- 
ous key cities, are net; i. e., 
without tbe 20% tax. Distrib- 
utors share *on net take, when 
playing percentage, hence the 
estimated figures are net in- 
come. 

The parenthetic admission 
prices, however, as indicated, 
include the U. S, amusement 
tax. 




Cleve; ¥ $14, 



.. Cleveland, Feb. 2. 
Best showing is being made by 
“Easy to Love,” kicking up a smart 
take for State in spite of icy Lake 
Erie winds. “Jack Slade” looks 

about average for the Palace. “M” 
is rating lively biz for Hipp. Dualed 
reissues, “Public Enemy” and 
“Little Caesar,” shapes socko at 
the Allen. 

Estimates for This Week 
Allen (S-W) (3,000; 55-85)— “Pub- 
lic Enenjy” (WB) and ^‘Little 
Caesar” (WB) (reissues). Socko 
$16,500. Last week, “Eddie Cantor 
Story” (WB), $14,500. 

Hipp (Telemanagement) (3,700; 
55-85)— “M” (Indie). With Ohio ban 
taken off ; this shocker . brought 
plenty of publicity. Shapes trim 
$14,000. Last week, “Bigamist” 
(FR), $10,500. . . , 

Ohio (Loew’s) (1,200; 55-85)— 
“The Actress’* (M-G). Mild $5,000. 
Last week, “Julius Caesar” (M-G) 
(5tl^ wk), same. 

Palace (RKO) (3,300; 55-85)— 
“Jack. Slade’’ ( AA). Fairly good 
$12,000: Last week, “Forbidden” 
(U), $9,000. 

..State (Loew’s) (3,450; 55-85) — 
“Easy to Love” (M-G). Smart $18,- 
000. Last week, “Knights of Round 
Table” (M-G) (5th wk), $10,000. 

Stillman (Loew’s) (2 ; 700; 90- 

$1.25) — “Knights Round Table” 
(M*G) (m.o.). Stout $7,000. Last 
week, “Jivaro” (Par), $5,000. 

‘KNIGHTS’ WHAM 55G, 
DC.; ‘CANTOR’ BIG 9G 

Washington, Feb. 2. 
There's a general upswing of 
first-run biz with even the longruns 
helped. Of three newcomers, 

“Knights of Round Table” at 
Capitol, is well in front with smash 
total. “Eddie Cantor Story” at 
Stanley-Warner’s Metropolitan and 
“The Bigamist” at Loew’s Columbia 
are also solid. 

Estimates for This Week 

Capitol (Loew’s) (3,434; 90-$150) 
— “Knights Of Round Table” (M-G). 
Terrific $55,000, almost equalling 
“Robe” first week record. In for 
longrun. Last Week; “Forever 
Female” (Par)/ (2d wk), $9,000. 

Columbia (Loew's) (1.174; 55-85) 
—“Bigamist” (FR). Solid $10,000 
despite crix pans. Last week, 
“Walking Baby Home” (U) (2d wk), 
$ 6 , 000 . , 

Dupont (LopertV (372; 50-$D — 
“Fanfan Tulip” (UA) (5th-final wk). 
Nice $4,000. Last week, $3,500. 

; . Keith’s (RKO) (1,939; 70-$ 1.25)— 
“Sadie Thompson” (Col) (6th-final 
wk). Sturdy $7,000. Last week, 
$ 8 , 000 . 

- Metropolitan (SW) (1,200; 55-85) 

— “Eddie Cantor Story” (WB). 
Stout $9,000 or close. Last week, 
“Public Enemy” (-WB) and “Little 
Caesar”; (WB) (reissues), $8,400. 

Palace (Loew’s) (2,370; 74-$1.20) 
—“Khyber Rifles” (20th) (2d wk). 
Bright $16,000 after $25,000 last 
week. Stays. 

Playhouse (Lopert) (435; 55-$l) 

— "Living Desert” (Disney) (5th 
wk). Very likely $6,500. Last week, 
$5,500. Holds. 

Warner (SW) (1,300; $1.20-$2.40) 

— “Cinerama” (Indie) (13th wk). 
Heavy advance indicates lively 
$20,000. Last week, $17,000. Stays 
on. 

Trans-Lux (T-L) (600; 90-$1.25) 
—“Eternity” (Col) (23d wk). Still 
going. Fine $6,000r Last week, 
$5,500. Continues. 


‘O’Keefe’ Denver Ace, 
Fast 15G; ‘Flight’ 8G 

■ , , Denver, JFeh. 2. 

Only two films afe getting hold- 
over here this week, some for just 
a c^ple^ of days. “Majesty 
O Keefe” is top newcomer with a 
rousing session at Paramount. 
‘Flight Nurse” also is doing well 
in two spots. Florida weather * is 
tending to keep folks outdoors 1 , and 
is slowing some spots. “Khyber 
Rifles” still is good in second Den- 
ver week. 

Estimates for This Week 
Aladdin (Fox) (1,400; 5Q-85)— 
“Living Desert” (Disney) (6th wk). 
Neat $4,000. Last week, $4,500. 

Broadway (Wolfberg) (1,200; SO- 
BS)— “Quo Vadis” (M-G) (2d wk). 
Fair $6,500. Last week, $7,500. 

Denham (Cockrill) (1,750; 50-85) 
—“Cease Fire” (Par) (3-D) (2d wk). 
Fairish $7,000. Last week, $8,000, 
Denver (Fox) (2,525; 50-85)— 
“Khyber Rifles” (20th) (2d wk). 
Good $13,500. Last week, $19,000. 

Esquire (Fox) (742; 50*85)— “Con- 
quest of Everest” (UA). Fine $4,000. 
Last : week, “12-Mile Reef” (20th) 
(2d wk) after three weeks at Den- 
ver, $2,500. “• 

Paramount (Wolfberg) (2,200; 50- 
85)— “Majesty O’Keefe” (WB) and 
“Hello Frisco” (Indie). Fancy $15,- 
000 or better. Last week, "Hondo” 
(WB) (2d wk), $11,500. 

Tabor (Fox) (1,967; 50-85)— 

“Flight Nurse” (Rep) and “Geral- 
dine” (Rep). Nice $5,500. Last 
week, "Paris Model” (Col) and 
“China Venture" (Col), $6,000. 

Webber (Bailey)., (712; 50-85)— 
“Flight Nurse” (Rep) and "Geral- 
dine” (Rep). Trim $2,500. Last 
week, "Captain’s Paradise” (UA) 
and “Heart Goes Crazy” (UA), 
$2,000. ' . 



Philadelphia, Feb. 2. 

Biz is still on upbeat here this 
session. “Living Desert” opening 
with big promotion during mid- 
term holidays and with recent 
half-price Sunday juvenile policy, 
shapes terrific at Stanton. “The 
Bigamist” is picking up in third 
round at the Midtown, via word- 
of-mouth, with stout take likely. 
“The Command” is rated big at 
the huge Mastbaum, with Guy 
Madison credited for . fast upbeat. 

Estimates for This Week . 

Arcadia (S&S) (625; 85-$1.30)— 
“Mogambo” (M-G) (17th wk). Good 
$5,000 in final 5 days. Last week, 
$5,500. 

Boyd (S-W) (1,459; $1.30-$2.80) 
—“Cinerama” (Indie) (17th wk). 
Socko $23,000, and topping last 
week’s $21,400. 

Fox (20th) (2,250; 74-$1.30) — 
“Three Young Texans” (20th). Fair 
$12,000. Last week, “Man in At- 
tic" (20th) and “Man Crazy” (20th), 
$17,000. 

Goldman (Goldman) (1,200; 50- 
99) — “Thunder Over Plains” (WB). 
Okay $10,000 or over. Last week, 
“Wicked Woman” (UA), $16,000. 

Mastbaum (SW) (4,360; 99-$1.30) 
—“Command” (WB). Big $28,000 
or close. Last week, “Paratrooper” 
(Col) (2d wk), $11,000. 

Midtown (Goldman) (1,000; 74- 
$1 .30)— -“Bigamist” (FR) (3d wk). 
Strong $12,000. Last week, $11,000. 

Randolph (Goldman) (2,500; 74- 
$1.30) — “Sadie Thompson” (Col) 
(3d wk). Fine $22,000 or near. 
Last week, $26,000. 

Stanley (SW) (2.900; 85-$1.25)— 
“Cease Fire” (3*D) (Par) (2d wk). 
Down to light $10,500. Last week, 
$ 20 , 000 . 

Stanton (SW) (1,473; 50-99) — 
“Living Desert” (Disney). Terrific 
$20,000. Last week, “Man from 
Cairo” (Lip) and “Sins of Jezebel” 
(Lip), $8,000. 

Studio (Goldberg) (500; 85-$ 1 .25 ) 
— “Captain’s Paradise” (6th wk). 
Happy $3,800. Last week, ditto. 

Trans-Lux (TL) (500; 99-$1.50) — 
“Moon Is Blue” (UA) (14th wk). 
Rosy $5,000. Last week, $5,400. 


‘Squadron’ Oke $8,000, 
Seattle; ‘Knights’ 10G 

Seattle, Feb. 2. 

Recent snows appear at end 
after worst storm since 1950. But 
biz, as usual, is slow coming back 
“Little Fugitive” looms good at 
Blue Mouse and “Cease Fire” 
shapes okay at Paramount. Else* 
where it’s mainly holdover with 
“Knights of Round Table" great 
in third Music Hall session. “Hon- 
do” also is solid in third week at 
Orpheum. 

Estimates for This Week 

Blue Mouse (Hamrick) (800; 90- 
$1.25)— “Little Fugitive” (Burstyn) 
(2d wk). Good $4,000 after $4,200 
last . week. 

Coliseum (Evergreen) (1,829; 65- 
90)— “Dragonfly Squadron” (AA) 
(Continued on page 13) 


PICTURE GROSSES 9 



Is Too Late” (Burstyn) (reissue) 
due in next but date not set. 


. Despite" only one new film 
launching, aside from the Roxy 
opening yesterday (Tiies.), Broad- 
way picture business is holding 
nicely this stanza. The fact that 
the Regents exams were held last 
week, providing a part-time holi- 
day for juves, was . a contributory 
factor! An- unusually strong week- 
end helped a number of theatres 
to get over the b.o. hump for the 
current round. Additional trade 
from outlying areas helped mate- 
rially as normal driving conditions 
were restored. Severe cold on a 
couple of days was a minus factor. 

The Music Hall, with its initial 
Cinemascope pic,. “Knights of the 
Round Table,” and a big stage- 
show, was aided by a hefty week-! 
end. Current (4th) week! looks to 
hold at great $140,000. and insures 
a fifth stanza. The. Hall continued 
the standout grosser of the street. 

Lone new pic, “Diamond Queen," 
is only fair at 'the. Holiday.. Third 
week of “It Could Happen To 
You” is! pushing to a socko $34,000 
or near at the State, topping sec- 
ond round. “The Command” at 
the Paramount continues fine with 
$27,000 in third • frame. “Majesty 
O'Keefe” opens Friday (5), Also 
in third session, “Forever Female” 
dipped to okay $13,000 at the Vic- 
toria. 

Second round of “Escape From 
Ft. Bravo” continues at fine $17,- 
500 at the Mayfair. 

Among the longrun films, “Sadie 
Thompson” and “Khyber Rifles?’ 
probably are displaying the great- 
est strength. The former at the 
Capitol is holding at good $24,000 
in its sixth frame. ‘‘Rifles” wound 
up its sixth week with a very good 
$17,000 at the. Rivoli. 

The Roxy gave “Hell and High 
Water,” latest C’Scoper, an elabo- 
rate March of Dimes benefit 
preem Monday (1) night; with reg- 
ular run starting yesterday. Final 
four days of seventh week for “12- 
Mile Reef” dipped to $22,500. 

Estimates for This Week 

Astor (City Inv.) (1,300; 80-$1.50) 
—“Bigamist” (FR) (6th wk). This 
session winding up tomorrow 
(Thurs.) looks to dip to around 
$5,500 after $7,500 despite sneak 
previews held nearly .every day. 
“Act of Love” (UA) opens Feb. 11. 

Bijou (City Inv.) (589; $1.80- 
$2.40)— “Gilbert and Sullivan” 
(UA) (15th wk). The 14th stanza 
ended last night (Tues.) held with 
$6,500 after $7,000 for 13th week. 
Advertised as now playing final 
days, but no definite closing date 
set; * 

Baronet (Reade) (430; 90-$1.50) — 
“Final Test” (Indie) (2d wk). First 
frame ended Sunday ($1) hit solid 
$7,700, and looks to stay for a 
while. 

Capitol (Loew’s) (4,820; 70-$2.20) 
—“Sadie Thompson’’ (Col) (6th 
wk). Current round ending today 
(Wed.) looks to hit good $24,000 
after $28,000 in fifth week. "Stays 
a seventh, with “Glenn Miller 
Story” (U) coming in Feb. 10. 

Criterion (Moss) (1,700; 85-$2.20) 
r— “Rob Roy" (RKO), Opens today 
(Wed.). Last week, “Donovan’s 
Brain’’ (UA) (2d wk), slipped to 
light $7,000 after $11,000 opener. 

Fine Arts (Davis) (468; 90-$1.80) 
— “Conquest of Everest’’ (UA) (9th 
wk). Eighth round concluded last 
night (Tues.) held at great $11,800 
after $12,300 for seventh. Stays on 
indef. 

Globe (Brandt) (1,500; $1-$1.80)— 
"Millionaire” (20th) (13th wk). The 
12th stanza ended Monday (1) held 
at fine $20,000 after. $21, 000 in 11th 

Guild (Cfuild) (450; $1-$1.80)— 
“Times Gone By” (IFE) (6th wk). 
The fifth session ended Monday 
(1) was good $6,500 after $7,500 for 
fourth week. "Hamlet" (U) (reissue) 
coines in Feb. 11. 

Holiday (Ros^) (950; 70-$1.80)— 
“Diamond Queen” (WB) (2d-final 
wk). Initial stanza ended Monday 
(1) hit fair $12,000. In ahead, 
“Crime Wave” (WB), $10,000. 

“Queen” stays only two sesions. 
with ‘Duffy of San Quentin” (WB)' 
due in after that. 

Mayfair (Brandt) (1.736; 70-$1.80) 
— ‘Escape Ft. Bravo” (M-G) (2d 
wk). First holdover session ending 
tomorrow (Thurs.) looks to reach 
nice $17,500 after $21,500 for first 
frame. ’ 

Normandie (Normandie Thea- 
tres) (592; $1.50-$2.40)— “Golden 

Coach” (IFE) (2d wk). Current, 
round ending today (Wed.) is hold- 
ing with sock $10,500 after new 
high for two-a-day policy at $14.- 
600 opening week. Stays oh indef. 

New York (Brandt) (598; 55- 
$1.25)— “Lure of Sila” (IFE) (6th 
: wk). Heading for trim $5,200 after. 
I $5,700 for fifth v.eek, “Tomorrow 


Palace (RKO) (1,700; 60-$1,20)— 
"Flight Nurse” (Bep) with 8 acts 
of vaudeville. Present round wind- 
ing tomorrow (Thurs.) looks to hit 
fast $21,000. In ahead; “Forbidden” 
(U) and vaude, $19,000. 

' Paramduilt (Par) (3,664; 70-$1.80) 
—“The Command" (WB) s (3d-flnal 
wk). Current week ending tomor- 
row (Thurs,) is heading for okay 
$27,000 or near. Second week was 
$35,000. “Majesty O’Keefe” (WB) 
opens Friday (5). 

Paris (Indie) (568; 90-$1.80) — 
“Captain’s Paradise" (UA) (19th 
Vk). The present; round opened 
Monday (1). In ahead, this got 
rousing $10,500 in 18th week after 
$9,500 for 17th. 

Rialto (Mage) (60Q; 50-98) — 
“Striporama” (Indie) (18th wk). 
Current frame ending tomorrow 
(Thurs;) looks to hold at $4,700 
after $5,000 for 17th Week.. . 

Rivoli (U AT) (2,092; 95r$2) — 

! “Khyber Rifles" (20th) (7th wk). 
The sixth round ended yesterday 
(Tues.) continued . -very good at 
$17,000 after $18,000rin fifth week. 

Radio City Musio: Hall' (Rocke- 
fellers) (6,200; $l-$2.75)— "Knights 
of Round Table” (M-G) and stage* 
show (4th wk). Present; session 
winding • up today (Wed.) con* 
tinues. with real strength at sock 
$140,000. Had been running ahead 
of initial week until biz tapered 
somewhat Monday and Tuesday. 
Third week was great $146,000, 
same as opening round. Holds a 
fifth and likely longef. Next picture, 
not definitely set. 

Roxy (Nat’l. Th.) (5.717; 65-$2.50) 
—“Hell and High Water" (20th). 
Opened regular run yesterday 
(Tues.) after big March of Dimes 
benefit preem Monday (1) night. 

In ahead, “12-Mile Reef” (20th) 
(7th* wk-4 days), slow $22,500 after 
$37,000 for sixth full week, but 
winding very successful run. 

State (Loew’s) (3,450; 85-$l. 80)— 
“it Could Happen To You” (Col) 
(3d wk). This round ending tomor- 
row (Thurs,) is likely , to climb 
above the second week with fine 
$34,000 in prospect. Second week 
was $28,000. a bit b61ow hopes. 
Stays on, natch! 

Trans-Lux 60th St. (T-L) (453; 
90-$1.50) — “Horse’s Mouth’’ (IFE) 
(2d wk-9 days). Dipping to around 
$4,200 or less in final 9 days after 
fair $6,000 opener. “Holly aDd the 
Ivy” (Indie) opens tomorrow 
(Thurs.).. 

Trans-Lux 52nd St. (T-L) (540; 
90-$1.50) — “Lili” (M-G) (48th wk). 1 
The 47th Week ended Monday (1) 
continued its phenomenal run with 
a socko $8,000' after $8,200 for 46th 
week. Now’ due to stay full year at 
this arty theatre. 

Victoria (City Inv.) (1,060; 95- 
$1.80) — “Forever Female” (Par) 
(4th wk). Third round ended 
yesterday slipped to okay $13,000 
after $18,000 in second W , eek. “Top 
Banana” (UA) due to open Feb. 19. 

Warner (Cinerama Prod.) <1,600; 
;$1.20-$3.60) — “Cinerama” (Indie) 
(35th wk). Current stanza winding 
tomorrow (Thurs.) looks to climb 
to smash $44,000 after $41,000 for 
34th week. Continues on. 



12G, ‘O’Keefe’ 5G for 2d 

Louisville, Feb. 2. 

Holdovers are in the majority 
this week; three of the downtown 
first-runs showing second or third 
week product. Rialto with “Khy- 
ber Rifles” getting a nice assist 
from the weather man in the sec- 
ond stanza, while “Knights Round 
Table” at the State, in its third 
stanza, should wind up run with 
a Dice profit. “Majesty; O’Keefe” 
at the Mary Anderson for second 
week is good. Only fresh bill is 
the Kentucky’s “Taza, Son of Co- 
chise.” which looms tall, 

Estimates for This Week 

Kentucky (S\ritOw) (1,200; 54-75) 
— “Taza, Son of Cochise” (Col) 
and “Donovan’s Brain” (UA. Tall 
$6,000. or close. Last week, 
“Tumbleweed” (U) and “Veils Bag- 
dad” (U). ditto. 

Mary Anderson (People’s) (1,200; 
54-75)— “Majesty O’Keefe" (WB) 
(2d wk). Good $5,000 after last 
Week’s big $8,000. 

Rialto (Fourth Avenue) (3,000; 
75-99)— “Khyber Rifles” (20th) (2d 
wk). Strong $12,000 after last 
w eek's bumper $18,000. . 

State (Loew’s) (3.000: 90-$1.25)— 
“Knights of Round Table” (M-G) 
(3d wk). Oke $8,000, after last 
week’s SO. 000 


Wednesday, Febr uary 3, 1954 




Hollywood, Feb. 2. ( two more: "Athena’^and “The 

y King’s Thief' Victor JSaville 


Charles Lamont signed to direct 
Cl’s “The Matchmakers,” starring 
Mar jorie Main and Chill WHli , , . 
Lewis J. Rachmll draws production 
reins on Columbia’s "The Bandits, 
based on Donald Hamilton’s novel, 
“Smoky Valley” . . .Choreographer 
Dick Barstow returned from N. V. 
to resume work on dances for A, 
Star Is Born” at Warners . . . 20th- 
Fox adding 100 feet to Its first 
Cinemascope short, "Vesuvius Ex- 
press” . . . Ann Morris drew a part 
in "Thri Killer Wore a Badge at 
Columbia . Bart Roberts will 
play male lead opposite Falth_Do- 
mergue in "This Island Earth,” 
science-fiction yarn at UI . . « Janies 
Whitmore snagged a top role in 
Warners’ Marine Corps story, Bat- 
tle Ccy,” to be directed by Raoul 
Walsh . . , Paul Thompson signed 
for a featured role in Panoramic s 
“The Gambler From Natchez.” 

Cubby Broccoli and Irving Allen 
dickering for the service of Robert 
Mitchum as star in "Prize of Gold,” 
to be filmed in Europe . . . Fred 
Metzler, former 20th-Fox studio 
manager, returning to the lot for 
special assignments . . . First of a 
series of western comedies co- 
starring Chill Wills and Marjorie 
Main at UI Will be "The Match- 
makers,” with Robert Arthur pro- 
ducing. 

Paramount is negotiating to bor- 
row Grace Kelly from Metro to co- 
star with Bing Crosby and William 
Holden in “The Country Girl.” . . . 
Metro assigned: Ivan Goff and Ben 
Roberts to script "The Big Sin,” 
based on a yarn by Jack Webb 
(not Joe Friday) . . . Horizon signed 
Rod Steiger for a featured role in 
"Waterfront.” . . Jerry Plckman 

checked in from N.’ Y. to view 
new Paramount product, including 
"Casanova’s Big Night,” "About 
Mrs. Leslie,” "The Naked Jungle,” 
’Elephant Walk,” “Knock on 
Wood” and “Sabrina Fair.” 

John Lttel and Douglas Kennedy 
drew key. roles in W. R. Frank’s 
indie, “Sitting Bull.” ... Columbia 
signed Dorothy Malone for “The 
Killer Wore a Badge.” Allied 
Artists . switched from “John 
Brown’s Raiders” to “John Brown 
of Harper's Ferry. 

Steve Cochran took an option on 
Monte Pittman’s “Come Next 


signed Bill FUiot as male lead in 
Return to Anzlo,” to be filmed in 
Italy . . Cornel Wilde purchased 
The Titans,” a tale of the Argen- 
tine, in which he will double j»s 
star and co-producer . . . Nat Holt’s 
first indie production since leaving 
Paramount will be “The Great 
Louisiana Lottery,” for which he 
paid a reported $100,000 ... Jack 
Cummings drew producer, reins on 
Metro’s “Night in Glengyle.” ; 

Hugh O’Brian , obtained release 
from his exclusive player contract 
with UI . . Michael Ansara signed 
with 20th-FOx for “The Egyptian’ 
and with UI for “Bengal Rifles.” 


RKOft 



.Continued from page 3 


arate deal with the musicians 
negotiated. 


is 


WARNER PRAISES TODD : 

SYSTEM, DOESN'T BUY 

Hollywood, Feb* 2. 

Jack L" Warner expresses high 
regard for the Todd-AO process, 
which he viewed recently in Buffa- 
lo, but declared there is no pos- 
sibility at this time of a deal be- 
tween Warner* Bros. and Magna 

for the production and release of 
“Oklahoma.” His studio, he said, 
is not inclined' to depart from .its 
present production policy. - 

Concerning the company’s future Declaring “complete and unbridled ’ censorship is as indefensible 
production activities, Warner ^ex- and undemocratic as complete, unbridled license,” State Sen. Fred G. 
plained that flexibility rather thap Brooklyn Democrat, will introduce a bill “curtailing” film een- 

standardization will be the watem sors hi Pt similar to a measure he sponsored several years ago to “limit 
word. The subject matter, he add- a nd temper power of bureaucracy, with respect to censorship of legiti- 
ed, will determine whether the pic- mate plays. He believes public protection is in the “traditional Ameri- 
ture Will be filmed in. 2-D, 3-D. or can jury system.” Under Moritt’s proposed bill,, present reviewing 

and licensing* system of the State Education Dept, would continue. 
However, when Regents banned a film, appellant would have the right 
to a Supreme Court judge and juiy trial. Case would have to be 
preferentially trial scheduled within 10 days. Pending adjudication 
the picture could not be exhibited. If Case was not decided in 30 days, 
film could be screened. 


Promoters of European film fete* age acutely awase of Russian sensi- 
tivities, as indie producer and director, Samuel Fuller, can attest. 

In N.Y. last week, he related the stoty of how 20th-F6x’s “Pickup 
on South Street,” which he directed, won the bronze lion award at 
the Venice film festival— with a specially dubbed and prepared version 
that sidestepped mention of the word' “Communist” 

Five of the six judges oh the selection committee saw the picture 
and approved it. (“Pickup” is a melodrama with antl-Red overtones) 
The sixth judge demanded that the film be withdrawn because of antil 
Communist “slurs.” 20th refused. However, it did a re-dubbing job, 
changing the heavy from a Commie to just “a murderer.” 

Even so, at the final showing, when the dialogue would indicate an 
anti-Red slant, the projectionist did a sound fade to be on the safe side. 


Cinemascope, 


Sign 4 - Year Contract I 

Miami, Jan. 30, 

In sharp contrast to long meet- 
ing two years ago, conference here 
between American' Federation of 
Musicians’ leaders headed by J ames 
C. Petrillo arid motion picture stu- 
dio reps ended after two days . with 
signing of a four-year contract 
Thursday - (28) guaranteeing mini- 
mum yearly, wage oL $8,400 for 
AFM members. 

New contract was signed by 
M-G-M, Columbia, Paramount, 20th- 
Fox, Universal and Warners. Terms 
call for guaranteed weekly wage ^f 
$160.70 for at least 50 hours per 
annum whether the same 700 stu- 
dio; musickers work or not. Over- 
all it mriant increase of 5 % to all 
types; regular, costumed or act- 
ing, with .all conditions of pre- 
vious contract to be ^retained. 

Heading the studio delegation 
was Charles'S. Boren with Nicholas 
Schenck (M-G-M-Loew’s); for 20th- 
Fox, William Michel and indus- 
trial relations rep Fred S. Meyer; 
Barney Balaban and Y. Frank 
Freeman for Paramount; U-I’s 
John O’Connor and studio manager 

Kahane for 


Leland Hayward Bullish 

Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

'Leland Hayward, whose upcom- 
ing film* production sked includes 
an adaptation of Charles A. Lind- 
bergh’s “Spirit of St. Louis,” in 
association with Billy Wilder, is 
high on the Todd-AO tensing 
process (he saw it in Buffalo re- 
cently) but is holding off. on 
decisions 'to use that system. 


Minority stockholder suit against Howard Hughes and RKO is ex- 
pected to break out with more legal fireworks as a result of a recent 
N.Y. court decision refusing to take steps to stop the stockholder suit 
in Nevada.. Action, originally filed in N.Y;, was instituted later in Los 
Angeles arid Las Vegas. Other eastern stockholders tried to stay the 
Nevada litigation, based on “collusion” charges by Bernard Reich, 
Wilder hasn’t had a chance to once- Beverly Hills attorney. Reich is now expected to repeat, his demand 
over the widescreen technique, yet, for appointment of a master to investigate the whole situation. Thei i e 

is alsq, a likelihood that Reich will endeavor to vacate a court order 
which qiiashed service of a summons on Hughes. 


— o. Morris Weiner; B. S. 

Spring,” intent on indie production Columbia; Warners Sam Schneider 
by his own company . . . Philo Me- and studio manager Edward De 
Cullough and Post Park signed for Pattie. ' 

roles in “Dawn at SocOrro” at UI Negotiations with other com- 
Angus McPhail checked in panies* are to be handled separate- 
from London to script Metro’s ly, according to Petrillo, who is- 


"Digby’s Highland Fling,” starring 
Spencei Tracy , . . Metro assigned 
Grace Kelly to co-star with Stewart 
Granrer in “Green Fire,” to be 
produced in Colombia . . Allan 
Dowling Pictures and Aries Pro- 
duction Co., Inc., joined the Soci- 
ety of Independent Motion Picture 
Producers . . . Sam Wlesenthal, of 
Olympic Productions, bought FreA 
Gruber’s novel, “Bitter Sage,”, as a 
possible starter for Gregory Peck, 
Sarita Montiel signed as femme 
lead in Hecht-Lancaster’s “Vera 
Cruz,” playing opposite Gary 
Cooper .and Burt Lancaster in 
Mexico ... William Callahan 


sued announcement jointly with 
Schenck, of the pact with the big 
six. : ... ? 



Code Certain 

Continued from page 3 

this Code defiance and whether 
membership in MPA A will be con 
tinued. ’ 

In the absence of official disclo 
sures by RKO, unofficial reports 
were ’ set afloat. Most spectacular 
of these was' the hint that RKO 


being tied up with final, work on 
Sabrina Fair” at Paramount. But 
when he does, he and Hayward 
doubtless will consider it for their 
pic. 

Meanwhile, . Arthur Hornblow 


Darryl F. Zanuck’s “The Egyptian” sets a new record for the number 
of props made especially for a motion picture. Director . Michael Curtiz 
explains; •“ ’The Egyptian,* dated about 1470 B.C., represerits art era 
Jr., -who’s' in charge of production never, before; depicted in a majdr film, Tills means that everything 
of “Oklahoma!” in Todd-AO, is concerning the $4,-000,000 production has had to be made, built or 

sewn, to be specifically created. We could not borrow or rent a single 
prop or costume. We started from scratch and the various departments 
had to make nearly 5,000,000 items.” 


discussing the Cast for the pic with 
Fred Zinnemann, Who’ll direct. 
Casting tests start Monday ( 8 ). 

Screenplay by Sonya Levien and 
William Ludwig has been approved 
by Richard Rodgers and Oscar 
Hammerstein . II, ; Who presented 


Amount of cooperation given by Myrna Loy to help plug the. premiere 
of the reissue of “Best Years Of Our Lives” in Washington has been 
a complete surprise to. D. C. film men. Miss Loy, wife of State De- 
the original legit musical in asso-' I partment official Howland Sargent, has held a press conference and 


ciation with the Theatre Guild. 


Producer’s Personals 


Will 


S Continued from page 2 
be Introduced in the 


has taken invitations to Congressional officials, and will attend the 
special preem. Heretofore, she 'had sidestepped invitations to attend 
motion picture industry, affairs and had almost completely insulated 
herself fronh the press*. 


book 


Nearly half the topics presented in the American newsreels during 
1953. concerned, the foreigri scene, a breakdown-.by the Motion Picture 

Assn, of America shows: Thnt’s. a gain of 204‘ stories over 1952 and 

peddling field via' Ihe" ' tieup. Max indicates the stronger emphasis on coverage abroad. Reels altogether 

E; Youngsteiri, United Artists y.p., offered 3,598 topics in ’53, an increase of 300 Over ’52, with cameras 

’ r * roaming through 78 countries.- Of the 3,598 topics, 1,686 were foreign 

news stories with Britain and Korea the best-covered spots. 


has instructed DA’s full field ex- 
ploitation crew- to push the novel 
Art work and posters will be sup- 
plied all bookstores and other out- 


RKO Theatres, continuing a streamlining program in the interest 


lets and a campaign is on for full of economy, reportedly is planning to unload several -houses in addition 

1 s'- -S* • Aa 4-Ka ' A f 4kKAItA AMMAItnAAtfl . k«r lt/\A nJ ■ nk ftIWfM AM Alhiorf 


to the ’’about six” . originally announced by board chairman Albert 
A. List as headed for divestiture; Exec plans to drop all situations 
which are not operating in the black, it’s said. 

On the personnel front, E. C. Grainger, chain’s assistant v.p. and 
a veteran industry exec, has resigned. 


joined William F. Broidy as asso- ^“‘ 7 . Hmvard U.VehPs mav be 
elate producer on both motion pic- headman Howard , t ^L« t h 

ture and telefilms . . . Richard hoot^t* 

Murphy checked out of 20th-Fox MPAA companies on the allegation 
where h® had been a contract that the Code s disapproval of 
screen writer for eight years 


UI assigned Jeff < Morrow to a top 
role ‘in “This Island Earth” 
Howard Welsch hunting a new title 


that the Code’s disapproval 
“Line”, represented an unfair re- 
straint (it’s, known that a number 
of important circuits will, not play 
the pic). Hughes engaged in a 


for his recently completed “A Bui- legal hassle with MPAA some time 


let Is Waiting,” starring Jean Slm< 
mons . . . Jooe Morales drew a fea 
tured spot in W. R. Frank’s indie, 
"Sitting Bull,” currently shooting 
in Mexico. ... Columbia . signed 
Marion Rosa for a role In “The 
Killer Wore a Badge.” , 

Vincent Mi Fennelly bought Clif 
ton Adams’ novel, “The Despera- 
do,” for production as a Wayne 
Morris starrer at United Artists 
Myra Hansen, “Miss United 
States,” plays a romantic role in 
"The Matchmakers” at UI 
Benny Burt and Ralph Yolkte re- 
porters iri ‘‘A Star Is Born” at War- 
ners . . . Ul’s "Forbidden”' and Co- 
lumbia’s ‘/Bad For Each Other” 
drew "B” ratings from the Nation- 
al League of pocency ,. . . Bob Ca 
son menaces Scott Brady in Colum 
bia’s "The Law and Billy the Kid” 
... Warners assigned Sid Hickox 
as cameraman on "Battle Ciy” 
Constance Smith signed for two 
films, “Rebound” and "Tiger By 
the Tail.” to be produced by Rob- 
ert Goldstein in England. 

Norman Krasna sold his "Speak 
to Me of Love” to Columbia and 
.will handle direction in Paris in 
April, with Jerry Wald producing 
personally . . . John Carradinc 
drew a featured role in "The Egyp- 
tian” at 20th-Fox . . . Edmund Pur 
diim. already assigned to star in 


ago over ."The Outlaw” but this 
finally was settled. Speculation 
now is that he might act against 
the companies individually, rather 
than MPAA as an organization. 


window .displays. 

Kramer said he and his wife, 

Ann, have a key city itinerary set. 

They’ll appear on radio, and tv'pro- 
grams and call on book critics as 
well as film reviewers; 

"In a sense,” said the producer, 

"I’ll be acting as a replacement for 
Thompson, executing duties which 
Would have been hi$ if he were 
here. This, means autographing the 
book and: discussing it at depart- I patronize^ it 
ment stores and the like. 

“The discussions will include National Theatres and the Department, of Internal Revenue have 
some references to the picture, some accounting to settle, centering on how much the circuit owes 
For example, the book is frank in the Government in income taxes. Corporation is holding $1,965,000 
alluding to the fee-splitting prac- iri reserve for contingencies respect to years not examined or 
tice among some physicians. In the settled with the taxing authorities.” Coin reserve also will be used 


Bosley CroWther, film critic of the N.Y. Times, was. accojaded last 
week in Hollywood by the Screen Directors Guild. In reporting the 
^gvent. Variety attributed - to Crowther comments, actually -delivered, 
by another^speaker, Rouben Mamoiilian. Latter developed the thesis 
that a constructive - film critic should be without prejudices, should 
feel a devotion to the art but should not “set himself above it or 


talks I can say I expect that in 
doing the picture I’ll encounter 
some oppostion from the Ameri 


for possible liability in antitrust cases,’ the amount of Which is unde- 
terminable. 


Radio ‘Pirates’ 

* • . . - .. • • 

1 Continued from pace 7 


it saw. fit. However, to assure a 
maximum boxoffice potential, thea- 
tres demanded and received exclu- 
sive rights to the attraction. 

In the scope of the TOA commit- 
tee’s study will be an effort to de- 
termine if radio accounts actually 
hurt attendance for the clbsed- 
circuit events. The extent of the 
radio- broadcasts or its effect on 
the boxoffice could not be deter- 
mined from the Marciano-LaStarza 
fight since a specific survey was 
not made. Theatremen are weigh- 
ing the possibility of forging the 
radio rights and letting the Inter- 
national Boxing Club or other fight 
promoters sell them separately. 
This, it’s figured, would allow thea- 
tres to obtain the exclusive tv 
rights at a lower rate if they can 
be sure that the ether airings do 


Petered Out Before 

Stanley Kramer’s . plan to 
plug the novel, “Not As a 
Strange?" for publicity values 
that eventually will accrue to 
his pic adaptation, is a 'pro- 
motional plot tried once be- 
fore, but with ironic results. 

Some time ago, Story Pro- 
ductions (with which Kramer 
Was associated) undertook Jo 
exploit the Taylor Caldwell 
novel, “This Side of Inno- 
cence.” Idea was to build up 
sales for the book and thus 
create, a ready-iriade audience 
for the film version which the 
Story outfit planned. “Inno- 
cence,” the novel,, was Widely 
publicized, But Story Produc- 
tions Went out of business be- 
fore the film was ever made. 


At the request of the U.S. Department of State the Academy of 
Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will present a oopy of its historical 
paper-film collection to the Brazilian government during the Interna- 
tional Film Festival in Sao Paulo this month. Old pictures, originally 
lensed on paper, have, been transferred to celluloid by . Primrose Pro- 
ductions. Film has .been narrated in Portuguese by Dr. Heitor Monte- 
negro, visiting professor at UCLA. 


Nine-installment blog of Bob Hope biog Will be published by the 
Saturday Evening Post beginning in its Feb. 13 issue. Feature, titled 
"This Is Ori Me,” was authored by Pete Martin, who did the profile 
on Bing Crosby in the same tpag last year. SEP has mapped an ex- 
tensive promotional pitch, including tieins with theatres, playing Hope 
pix. 


Motion Pictures Group of the special gifts committee for the N.Y, 
Catholic Charities 1953 appeal gleaned $32,239. Universal’s John J. 
O’Connor was chairman and vice-chairman was Altec’s L. Douglas 
Netter. George J; Schaefer, treasurer of the Cardinal’s Comiriittee of 
the Laity, also served on the group. 

Nominations for the Oscar Derby closed over the weekend and the 
results will be announced Feb. 16 after tabulation by Pricef Waterhouse 
& Co., certified public accountants. Final voting ballots will be issued 
March 2 , with the deadline set for March 16, allowing nine days for 
tabulation. 


can Medical Assn., just as the Navy pic rights to "Stranger” (at a cost 
Department at first had some com- of $ 75 ; 000 , according to the pro- 
plaints about The Caine’ (sic). But ducer). The author, for example, 


two Metro films will do likewise in ! not hurt the b.o. substantially, 

♦ tv U>'1‘ ini '*•* w a .1/ . j A » / L 4 ^ 


U i ^ 


I convinced the Navy that by show 
ing a little black the white comes ! 
through more forcefully as pure 
white. I believe the AMA will ac- 
cept this reasoning just as the 
Navy did.” 

Kramer relates he came upon 
extensive knowledge of Thompson 
I as a result of his interest the, 


had one of the largest individual- 
owned medical libraries in the 
east. Yet, he was not a doctor. 
Further, Thompson had a photo- 
graphic memory that was phenom- 
ena]. This sort of information will 
be helpful in discussing the novel, 
Kramer.- feels. 

. Thompson, .djqdjast 


March. His widow took her own 
life a week later. 

Kramer, visiting N. Y., leaves to- 
morrow (Thurs.) for a five day rest 
in the Bahamas. He« and Mrs. 
Kramer will cover • the publicity 
rounds (for the book) in Miami 
and Chicago before his arrival 
back on the Coast Feb. 12. They’ll 
remain west for a few weeks be- 
fore embarking on the fullscale 
tour to ji.lug ."/Stranger. 


if ' 

i- • «* 



fJV*TV Stock Exchange) 

For W-eek Ending Tuesday (2) 


1953 

High 

17% 

50% 

.50% 

2214 

12 % 


-54 

low. 

12 % 

38% 

38% 

11% 

77/s 

41% 


Weekly Vol.Weekly 


In 100s 
Am Br-Par Th 101 
CBS. "‘A** .... 

CBS. *%** ... 

Col* P/e. 

Decca ,.V. 

Eastman. Kdk. 208 


78 

<30 

^68 

298 


High 

15% 

45% 

451/4 

21% 

10 % 

50% 


Weekly 

low 

1514 

413/4 

Am 
20 % 
10 ... 
4934 


Tues. 

Close 

1514 
42 
41% 
20 % 
10 % 
50% 


Net 

Change 
for week 

• — .%' 

—3 

^-314 
: — % : 
. — Vs . 


14% 

10% 

Loew’s ... .. 235 

14 ; ■■ 

13% 

137/a 


7% 

. 4%. 

Nat. Thea. . . . 258 

7Va 

,m 

7 

- ' . ' 

30%. 

24V4 

Paramount . . 54 

28% 

27/4 

27% 

— % 

36% 

26% 

Phllco . . . . . 74 

30% 

287/s 

29 

■ — -3/4 

29% 

21 

RCA .1897 

26% 

25/2 

25% 

+ % 

4% 

2%- 

RKO Pipts. . . 386 

3% 

2% 

3/8 

+ % 

5% 

3V4 

RKOThea. ., 102 

5 

AVb 

4% ' 

— % 

4/4 

.23/4 

B^pnbllc .... 44 

3% 

3/8 

3% 


11% 

• 9% 

Rep., p(d. . . . 5 

103/4 

IO/2 

10% 

. + /4 

12% 

87/s 

Stanley. War.. 30 

12% 

11% 

12 

— V2 

22V4 

13% 

20th-Fox ... 371 

.21/* ■ 

1934 

21 

■ — % 

20% 

14 

IJnlv. Pix. . • 67 

197/s 

19% 

197/s 

-f V2 

69 

61 . 

Univ^ pfd.' - i. . *25 

69 

677% 

68 


. 17% 

11% 

Warner Bros. 69 

, 14/8 

137/8 

14 

- - 

84 

62% 

2enith . . . . . -25 

67/4 

65/4 

63% 

— 1% 

American Stock Exchange r 





6 

27/8 

Allied Artists 48 

4% 

' 4^4 

43.4 

- 

■ 17% • 

8% 

.DiT Mont ; . . 183 

10% . 

9^8 

. 10*? 8.. 

+ % 

17/4 

13% 

Technicolor V 142 

14 

123/ 4 

13 

—1 

3% 

23/4 

Trans-Lnx . , . . 5 

3 

27/8 

3 


Over-the-Gounter Securities 

% 

Bid 

Ask 


Color Corp, 

of Amer. , 


%. 

’1% 

. 

Cinerama . 


« 

1% 

234 


Chesapeake Industries 


27% ' 

3% 

— 

Polaroid . 



56 < 

58 

+4% 

U.-A. 

Theatres ; 


11 

12% 

— 3,i 





. • • • • < 




Walt Disney 

* Actual Volume. . . *&•... 

< Quotations furnished by Dreyfus & Co . 1 


1014 11 li + % 




Charles Moot Deplores Constant ; Intra-T rade 
Warfare— Likes tp See Producers Prosper 


By HY HOLLINGER * 

1 ‘ *• 

In an era marked by bitterness 
in distributor-exhibitor .relations, 
Charles Moss is perhaps unique. 
Operator of the Criterion on Broad* 
way and theatres in -Florida, New 
Jersey and Long Island, Moss haS 
no complaints relating to terms for 
pix ("It's just a matter of nego- 
tiating and bargaining 1 ’) or has he 
any objection to trade practices 
concerning new equipment (“You 
have to be sure it can be amortized 
quickly"). ' ' ' 

Moss' view, succinctly and di- 
rectly stated, is that the intra- 
trade warfare is useless. '’Pro- 
ducers, distributors ahd exhibi- 
tors,” he said, ‘‘must get together 
' to get as much as possible out of 
the public rather thah out of eaclv 
other." Another ^Moss eyebrow 
lifter: "Producers must be encour- 
aged. I’d rather make a ^mailer 
profit than have the producers stop 
making pictures. There must be. a 
relationship between the ’producer, 
distributor arid exhibitor. They 
don’t want to put each other out of 
business." Moss’ remarks are all 
the more surprising 4n .light of 
the fact that he can be classified 
as an indie exhib, ihifc total theatre 
holdings consisting of eight houses. 
. Moss - backs, up his seemingly 
heretical remarks with concrete ex- 
amples. Not too long ago, he guar- 
anteed Samuel Boldwyn $200,090 
against a percentage for the Broad- 
way jun of “Hans Christian Ahder- 
; en * in trade circles, deal was 
j e Sar.ded as one of the most fabu- 
"r ls ,., ever set for a Gotham run. 
Uldwyn took $360,000 out of that 
"gagement/’ Moss disclosed, “and 
u-m 1 ed up with *■ good profit. I’m 
♦wii®. to make similar deals if I 
ni hk the picture's worth it.” 

in n? ^stance of the exhib’s faith 
citiA e ^dustry is his theatre acqui- 
h *? n j during the past two year#; a 
niaiw j Wlien naost theatremen cpm- 
add!r d of ^ declining boxoffice. In 
Unit ^ n ^ to acquiring four former 
Ida -d Paramount houses in Flor- 
ann u r !? ndo » Gainesville, Ocala 
a wood ' i “Moss constructed 

sev w hp us e in.Fort Lee, New Jer- 
ODPrnf- the theatres, he said, are 
P !, r h atln S Profitably. - 

e Moss, butlets are all first- 
Continued on page 13) 




Washington, Feb. 2. 

“Premiere” of an oldv picture, 
With Supreme Court justices, diplo- 
mats,’ Congressmen and bon ton 
generally ini attendance occurs to- 
morrow. (Wed.) here. It’s Sam 
Goldwyn’s “Best Years of Our 
Life,” with the White House Corre- 
spondents Assn, serving as aus- 
pices. 

Producer, players Myrna Loy, 
Teresa Wright and Harold Rus- 
sell, director William Wyler will 
also decorate the gala revival. 



Question of sterophonic sound 
has split exhibition into two. camps, 
one going along with 20th-Fox that 
directional sound is a‘ necessary 
and positive ingredient of Cinema- 
Scope and the. other asserting with 
equal vigor that it’s a costly device 
With minor b.o. potential. 

Several facts stood out this week 
as the stereophonic sound contro- 
versy continued to boil: 

(1) There is a divergence of in? 
terest among theatre operators with 
the larger houses generally adopt- 
ing the' theory that multi-channel 
sound, if hot absolutely necessary, 
at least can represent a sizeable 
asset at the b.o. 

(2> Exhibs who already have 
stereophonic sound ordered or in- 
stalled want to protect their in- 
vestment and are therefore in full 
accord with the 20th position, 
which is that four-track magnetic 
sound is a “must” part of Cinema- 
Scope presentation. 

(3) 20th execs, led by prexy Spy- 
ros P. Skouras,' have gone on what 
virtually amounts to a crusade for 
stereophonic sound, With Skouras 
himsblf. contacting a large group 
of top execs in exhibition to put 
across his point Of view. This 
campaign has, in many instances, 
been conspicuously successful. 

(4) There has been an river- 
emphasis on the >rr mixer” employed 
by Walter Reade in his test at the 
Community Theatre, Morristown, 
N, J. Exhihs opposed to multi- 
channel sound want 20th to supply 
them With single soundtrack ver- 
sions of its Cinemascope releases. 

(5) There is practically no chance 
that the four comparative sound 
tests agreed on between Skouras, 
and Reade will come off within the' 
coming month, and- some' doub.t 
that they’ll ever be held since both' 
parties are highly dubious that the 
results can dr will be - convincing 
either way. 

Extent of the rift in exhib ranks 
was emphasized last week with the 
resignation of Indiana Illinois The- 
atres from Theatre ‘Owners of 
America. The Chicago circuit in- 
formed Reade of its withdrawal by 
wire, castigating the TOA prexy at 
(Continued on page 15)- 



Free Will on Equipment; 


Washington, .Feb. 2. 

Publicly reported film industry 
'dividends for 1953 totaled only 
$21,405,000, less than half of the 
figure for the postwar peak years, 
U. S. Commerce Department re- 
ported today (2). The 1952 divi- 
dends aggregated $25,946,000, so 
that the ’53 figure Was a postwar 
low. ‘ 

. There was, however, some pick- 
up last . Deceit) her when the film 
companies cut a melon of $4,886, - 
000 for their stockholders, com- 
pared with $4,437,000 lor Decem- 
ber, 1952. Big dividends in . De- 
cember were Universal, $780,000; 
Loew’s, $1,029,000; Paramount Pic: 
hires, $1,170,000; American Broad- 
casting— Paramount Theatres, $1,- 
129.000; and 20th, $692,000. 

• *• •» 

Dell Robb Egypt-Bound 

Dell Robb; unit manager for 
Cecil B. DeMille’s upcoming “The 
Ten Commandments,” is due in 
N. Y. from, the Coast next week 
and heads for Cairo Feb. 18. 

He’ll make a survey of locations 
in Egypt for lensing the epic. 


, GE, Loew’s Standout in Market; 




By mike WEAR 


Harry Goldsmith, United Artists 
veteran in the foreign department, 
has been appointed sales super- 
visor for Great Britain, the Conti- 
nent, Middle East and South Af- 
rica, Reuben Perlman, for the 
past three years in charge at do- 
mestic contract liquidation,' shifts 
to foreign operations as sales su- 
pervisor of Latin America, Far 
East and Australasia. 

They'll work With Alfred Katz, 
assistant ; foreign Sales manager, 
and tinder the- supervision of Louis 
Lober, general foreign manager. 

In another thange, Joel Hart, for 
eight yeans with the 20th-Fox for- 
eign department, has joined UA 
as manager in Cuba, succeeding 
the late Jose Del Amo. 





Theatre Owners - of America 
board, of directors, meeting in 
Washington y e s t e r d a y (Tues.), 
adopted resolutions expressing “its 
cofitinued approval of the principle 
of a Production Code” and main- 
taining exhibs’ rights to install 
whatever equipment they pleased 
without dictation from distribs. 

1 

Details of the resolutions were 
issued by TOA’s New York . office 
as the exhib org continued ' its 
news blackout at '’Washington’s 
Mayflower Hotel. Statement relat- 
ing to equipment was Ojbviorisly 
aimed at 20th-Fox’s insistence that 
stereophonic sound is a “must” for 
Cinemascope pictures. The com- 
pany, however, was not named. 

“We maintain,” the resolution 
said, “that whether an exhibitor 
installs stereophonic sound or 
other equipment .must, rest on his 
own discretion and choice.” Board 
appointed a committee consisting 
of . Alfred E. Starr, E. B. Martin 
and general counsel Herman M. 
Levy “to do whatever necessary to 
guard these exhibitor prerogatives 
zealously and notably to fight off 
all attempts to invade or encroach 
upon thrive rights to the end that 
the policies of operation of any 
exhibitor shall not be dictated by 
any distributor or by any combina- 
tion of distributors.” 

. On the subject of the Production 
Code, the TOA board said it must 
be preserved “in order to insure 
that the American motion picture 
screen will at all times fulfill its 
obligations and responsibilities to 
the public.” 


Allied States. Assn.’s board Of 
directors, meeting in Cincinnati 
Friday and Saturday (5-6). will 
Weigh exhibitor say-so in a film 
company via the acquisition of suf- 
ficient shares of stock. Board will 
tally the results of a survey of Al- 
lied members to determine how 
many shares exhibs hold ih a par- 
ticular company, and what action 
•to take to 'assure exhib represen- 
tation on the board of a w desig- 
nated company. 

- Move had its origin at Allied’s 
anriual confab in Boston last Oc- 
tober .when keynoter Trueman 
Rembusch said that “ownership of 
10% of any film company's stock 
by-, exhibitors who will guarantee 
playdates at prices comparable to 
the going market, would secure the 
voting. rights of sufficient shares of 
Stock owned by large .investment 
houses in A film company* to secure 
control of the company.” Rem- 
busch suggested that picture-wise 
exhibs Of proven quality could be 
elected to the board of such a com- 
pany ahd that they could “immedi- 
ately lay plans looking toward re- 
lieving to a great extent the short- 
age of. product.. Such a board 
could, eliminate non-productive 
personnel of the company in sales 
ahd production, replacing them 
with men of vision; could put into 
effect incentive selling policies 
and develop new media of effec- 
tive advertising.” 

In addition to determining the 
number of shares - held by Allied 
members, the survey sought to as- 
certain how many additional shares 
such exhibs would be willing tp 
purchase; whether they would be 
Willing to assign their voting rights 
j to 4 an exhib committee; and 
whether they would guarantee 
] piaydates to "a designated company. 

i . • , 

Uchtman Predicts End 
Of CinemaScope Print 


After consolidating its recent 
gains along with backing and fill- 
ing, the stock market again moved 
forward late last week. Advance 
was so ( extensive that it hinted a 
real test of the 1953-^4 highs was 
in the offing and might bring a 
confirmation of a new bull move. 
In any such upward swing, most 
amusement shares appear in a po- 
sition to take an active part,, par- 
ticularly -film stocks. Many of the 
latter have been selling near 1953- 
54 highs recently. Another favor- 
able development for the amuse- 
ment group was the; fact that such 
radio, shares as Radio Corp. Of 
America common and General 
Electric surged upwards. , RCA 
common was the most active stock 
j on the Big Board last week.. 

Both Universal common and pre- 
ferred, which had been holding 
near their old highs, did well last 
week on issuance of an improved 
earnings statement for thri past fis- 
cal year. The preferred went 
ahead into hew high ground. 'Para-, 
mount- Pictures - held very steady 
moqt of the week presumably on 
the basis of solid earnings from 
several nice grossing pix .despite, 
an apparent trend in bigger houses 
towards C’Scope. 

Judging from the 'tape,; 20th-Fox 
appeared a bit tired, dipping about 
two; points at one time from the 
1953-54 high. However, around $20. 
the company' shares appeared to 
hint a boost from the present $1 
annual dividend rate at some time 
in the future, depending on just 
how much of the cost of the Cin- 
emaScope setup the corporation 
plans to write off for <1953. . 

Loew’s Standing 

More and more attention was de- 
voted to Loew’s, regarded as the 
biggest film company by Wall 
Street, and long a leader of the 
amusement group. The fact that 
the company was able W Widen 
the profit margin before taxes to 
5 12% as against 2.41% a year ago 
in the first 12 weeks of the cur- 
rent fiscal year was rated signifi- 
cant by financial observers. Actual 
gross sales and operating revenue 

(Continued on page 13) 



15 


Berger Wants Court Test 
’Meaning Something' On 
Control of Admissions 

' Minneapolis, Feb. 2. 

President Bennie Berber of. North 
Central Allied, left for' Cincinnati 
to attend the Allied board meeting 
and out to have organization com- 
mit itself, to a U. S. Supreme Court 
showdown on film companies' legal 
right to pre-release pictures -and 
specify the minimum admission 
prices for such showings ih the 
manner they’ve been doing. 

In an -opiriipn requested by U. S. 
Senator Andrew Schoeppel, Senate 
small business committee chairman, 
assistant U. S. attorney general S. 
M. Barnes recently upheld rights 
of districts in this regard. 

Sharply critical of the Barnes’ 
opinion and disputing it, Berger 
wants Allied States to start a fed- 
eral court suit “to get a decision 
that really would mean some-. 


With Technicolor turning out 
imbibition prints of CinemaScope 
pix v and DeLuxe Laboratories in 
N.. Y, stepping up its output of 
prints, on Eastman color positive, 
the current bottleneck ih Cinema- 
Scope prints will be broken by 
March 15, A1 Lichtman. 20th-Fox 
director of sales, told a meet of 
homeoflice and field sales heads in 
N. Y. last week. 

Lichtman put the number 6f 
U. S. and Canadian theatres cur- 
rently equipped for CinemaScope 
at 1,500 arid said orders were roll- 
ing in at the rate of approximately 
100 a week. He figured that- the- 
atres Would turn to CinemaScope 
! even faster as more prints become 
I available. 


“It’s ridiculous, to claim that the 
setting of minimum theatre admis- 
sion prices by the distributor as a 
condition of the sale of pictures 
doesn't constitute price fixing ih 
violation of the consent decree,” 
■ claims Berger. 


‘Star’ in Home Stretch 

Hollywood, Fob. 2. 

Warners' lengthy production 
.schedule for “A Star Is Born” 
moves into the home stretch of its 
dramatic sequences this week, 
after Which shooting will halt 
' while two elaborate dance num- 
bers are rehearsed. 

Numbers are “I’m Off the- Down* 
: beat” and “Lose That Long Face,” 
1 requiring from 60 to 100 dancers. 
Rehearsals will be conducted by 
* choreographer Richard BarstoW. 





Wednesday, February 3, 1954 




v./y/z/K// 




It’s loaded with 
boxoffice vitamins / 


W 


V 




.w&m': 


JJd 


V- 


$ 




%'i 


vavs.wMKs'.s* • 


£ 








M 






HOWARD HUGHES r r«septs 

v ROBERT MITCHUM 
- JEAN SIMMONS 
ARTHUR HUNNICUTT 


m 


m 


EDGAR BUCHANAN * WALLACE FORD • RAYMOND WALBURN 


Direct** 


t, LLOYD BACON 


• Screenplay 


t, D. 0. BEAUCHAMP, WILUAM BOWERS RICHARD FLOURNOY • 


Produced 


k, ROBERT SPARKS 


'i ) c/i I ; j //) 1 I .mi n It ri t ' <* ) :v t i >; i o i *i i i ; I 


•m;> ; I i »i' h; jtK i •> .. 


00 L i ) ' 0 ) ),er., -L )' »'-*/ J 1 u l 












SEATTLE 

(Continued from PW« 9) . 
and "World for Banwm" (AA). 
nlav $8,000 or new*. Lust week, 

"Appointment 

.rwi "Fiehty Lawman (AALffl»700. 

* Fifth Avenue (Evergreen) (2,500; 
ti F «i 50 ^-‘‘Khyber Rifles” <20th) 
fi d $ wfc>. Holding at big $9,000 
inpr $12,700 last week; 

,f M08ic BOX (Hamrick) (850; $1.25- 

nkav $6;50O. Last week* “Captain’s 
sSise” (UAi (5th wk). $3,800 in 
ft davs at $1.25 top. >• 

8 Music Hair (Hatitfick) (2, 300r$l- 
*,?0) i-' “Knights Round Table” 
Im-Si (3d. wk). Great $10,000. 

Last week. $11,800. . 

L Orp heum (Hamrick) (2,700; 90- 
$i^5)- M Hondo” (WB) and “Ger- 
a dine” (Rep) (3d wk). Solid $7,- 
500 in 6 days. Last Week; $9,200. 

paramount (Evergreen) (3,039; 
84-$1.09)— “Cease Fire” ..(Par) (3D) 
and ‘‘Mystery Lake” (Indie). Mild 
at $7 000. or near. Last week, “Men 
In Attic” (20th) and; “Man Crazy” 
(20th), $5,700 at 90c top. 

Liberty (Hamrick) (1,650; 65-90) 
__* Go Man Go” (UA>. and ♦‘Dono- 
van’s Brain” (UA). Fairish $6,00(\ 
Last week, “Saadia” (M-G) and 
“California Outpost” (Rep); $3,500, 

‘VALIANT’ SOCK 7^G, 
PORT- ‘BORDE’ $7,000 

Portland/ Ore;, Feb. 2. 

Biz is slowly recovering after 
the snowstorms of last Week. . “All 
Brothers Valiant” -^is tated socko 
at the Liberty wl^ile “Border River” 
shapes fine at Paramount. “Sadie 
Thompson” still looms, good at 
United Artists in third Week. 
Estimates for This Week. 
Broadway (Parker) (1,890; 65-90) 
—“Wild One” (Col) arid “Prisoners 
Casbah” (Col). Tall $9,000. Last 
week, “War Arrow” (U) arid “Glass | 
Web” (U). $8,400. 

Century (Fpster-Breal) (800; 50- 
70)— “Song of Land” (UA). Fair 
$1,800. Last week, “Shark River” 
(UA). $2,200. 

Guild (Foster) (400; $1) — “Mr. 
Potts To Moscow” (Indie). So-so 
$2,000. Last week, “Captain’s 
Paradise’^ (UA) (5th wk), $2,600. 

Liberty (Hamrick) (1,875; 65-90) 

. — “All Brothers Valiant” (M*G) 
and “Fort Algier” (UA) (2d wk). 
Sock $7,500. Last week, $9,400. 

Oriental (Evergreen) (2,000; 75- 
$D-“Man Between” (UA). Mild 
$2,500. Last week, “12-Mile Reef” 
(20th) (4th wk), $3,300. 

Orpheum (Evergreen) (1,600; $ir 
$1.50)— “Khyber Rifles” (20th) (2d 
wk), Nice $9,000. Last week, 
$10,400; • 

Paramount (Port-Par) (3,400; 65- 
90) — “Border River” (U) and 
‘Jennifer” (Indie). Fine $7,000.. 
Last week. “Forever Female” (Par) 

$9000 City Never bleeps” (Rep)/ 

United Artists (Parker) (890; 65- 
90'—' “Sadie Thompson” .(CqI) (3d 
mo G o °d $6,000. Last week, 

vMOO. 


‘Bigamist’ Bright 146, 
K.C4 ’Oklahoma’ Strong 



)VVV) 

. ■; * Kansas City, Feb, 2. 

Picture ’ fare is only so^-so to 
moderate currently, “Bigamist” in 
four Fox Midwest Theatres turn- 
ing in biggest coin total but “Boy 
From Oklahoma” at Paramount, 
with area premier is' comparatively 
stronger. “Torch Song” is slow at 
Midland;; ' . ’ 

Estimates for This Week 

Kimo (Dickinson) (504; $1-$1.80) 
—“Julius Caesar” (M«-G) (3d wk). 
Strong $3,500, and will hold. Last 
week, $3,300. 

Midland (Loew’s) (3,500; 50-75) 
—“Torch Song” (M-G) and “Shoot 
First” (UA). Slow $8,500. Last 
week, “Knights Round Table” 
(M-G) (5th wk), $7,800 with $1.24 
top. 

Missouri (RKO, (2,650; 60-85)— 
“Gun Fury” (Col) and “Nebraskan” 
(Col). Light $5,000. Last week, 
“Public Enemy” (WB) arid “Little 
Caesar” (WB) (reissues), $7,000. - 

Paramount (Tri-States) (1,900; 
65-85) — “Boy From Oklahoma” 
(WB). Heavy opening day bally 
with p.a. of Will Rogers Jr. Strong 
$9,000. Last week, “Eddie Cantor 
Story” (WB) battled frigid temps 
but came out with $10,000. 

Tower, Uptown, Fairway, Gra- 
nada (Fox Midwest) (2,100; 2,043; 
700; 1 ,217; 65-85)— “The Bigamist” 
(FR) and “Man in Attic” (20th). 
Good $14,000. Last week, “Three 
Young Texans” (20th) arid ‘-Keys 
of Kingdom” (20th) (reissue), $13,- 
000. h 

Vogue (Golden) (550; 75-$l)— 
"Captain’s Paradise” (UA) (6th 
wk). Hearty $2,300, and holds. 
Last week, $2,300. 


KRAME’S ‘WILD ONE’ 
NIXED IN ALBETA 

v Edmonton, Alta., Feb. 2. 

Showing of Columbia’s, “The 
Wild One,” starring Marlon 
Brando, has been banned by the 
Alberta censor board. . ' » 

. . Col. P. J. Fleming, Edmonton, 
head censor, labelled the Stanley 
Kramer-produced film a “revolting, 
sadistic story of degeneration.” 
He said it Is full of brutality dis- 
played by an irresponsible €ang of 
hoodlum who flout the law and go 
unpunished. 


Continued from page 4> 


RCA, GE, Loew’s 


Continued from pace 1| 


PITTSBURGH . 

(Continued from' page 8) 

kast week, “Paratrooper”. 
ICol) (2d wk-5 days); $6,500., 

Penn (Loew’s) (3,300; 90-$1.50)— 
Krnghts Round Table”. (M-G) (6th 
fir.i Go1 last-minute reprieve when 
jiitn week topped the fourth; way 
u ,z ls |. holding up may get a seventh. 
Heading for big $11,000 on the 

heels of $12,000 fifth week. 

Squirrel Hill (SW) (900; 50-85)— 
nfif’ n De l lnin g Drives North” (In- 
e t?nnr/ s not so S 0 °d. arid mod- 
fitiF^ 0 , 00 lo °ms. Last week, “Tit- 
l'd Thunderbolt” (U), $2,500. 

“PHHi nIe ^ (SW) (3,800; 65-$l)— 
u S? d J® Cantor Story” (WB) (2d 

fine ?i a i n n°nn bl ?Sraphy heading for 
IU £ * u -000, Last week, $18,000. 
.. r v' arner (SW) (1,200; $1.30-$2.80) 
incr n f iam , a ' (Tridie) . (8th wk). Pick- 
hpcf t:bar Ply and shooting for 
lJ„o S ? ss,0n since' the holidays. 

ton S ioA each smash $25,000, on 
l °P^ 3 24,000 las t week; 

Minneapolis 

eta ^^‘hued from page 9) 

5T5 500* Goiod $10,000. Last week, 

$lf K , G Gr Pbeum (RKO) (2,890; 65- 
H a r;/ 2 ^U e Reef” (20th) (2d wk). 
25-L£ me Uirough nicely in face of 
500 ?^ erb weather. Smash $14,- 
Rkn we ek. $16,500. ' 

“D K dn^.:. Pa . n (RKO) (1,600; 40-76)— 
,; Sh??k U 5- s „ Br ain” (UA) arid' 
Last (UA). Okay $4,500. 

wki 1 nnA Paratrooper^’ (Col) (2d 
Stal'p’ 00 ?^! ,6 5 -B5 c. scale. 

“Eddio r, K ar) < 2 »300; 65-85)— 

$7000 Cant or Story” (WB). Okay 
(t\ S4 B0 r 0 j ast week, “Forbidden” 

,i cKi‘--'? ann) <400; 55-$1.20)— 

<* °Q d 9 n n 3 ^ r d 1 s e ’ * (UA) <4th Wk). 

■ w 200 < Last week, $3,600. 


Buff; ‘Cantor’ Loud 12G 

Buffalo; Feb. 2. 

“Knights of Round Table” is 
standout here this Session with a 
terrific total at the Buffalo. “Eddie 
Cantor Story” looks good at Cen- 
ter. “War Arrow” is rated hefty 
at the Lafayette. 

. Estimates for This Week 

Buffalo (Loew’s) (3,000; 90-$l. 25) 
— ;“Kriights of Round Table” (M-G). 
Terrific $30,000. Last week, “Easy 
To Love” (M-G) (2d wk); $11,000. 

Paramount (Par) (3,000; 55-80) — 
“Majesty O’Keefe” (WB) and 
"Hundred Hour Hunt” (Indie) (2d 
wk). Okay $8,000 v or close. Last 
week, $15,000. 

Center . (Par) (2,000; 55-80)— 

“Eddie Cantor Story” (WB). Good 
$12,000. Last week, “Khyber 
Rifles” (20th) (3d wk), $10,000. 

Lafayette (Basil) (3,000; 50-80)— 
“War Arrow” (U) and -‘Limping 
Man” (U). Hefty' $11,000. Last 
week, “Forbidden” (U) and “Bor- 
der River“ (U), $10,000. 

Century (Buhawk) (3,000; 55-80) 
—“Wild One” (Col) and "El Ala- 
mein” (Col). Modest $10,000. Last 
week, “Bad for Each Other” (Col) 
and “Prisoners Casbah” (Col), 
same. 


SAN FRANCISCO 

(Continued from page 8) 

$13,000. Last week, "Sadie Thomp- 
son” (Col) (3d wk), $10,000. 

Orpheum (No, Coast) (2,538; 
$1.80-$2.80) — “Cinerama” (Indie) 
(5th wk). Big $32,000. Last, week, 
$32,500. 

Esquire (No. Coast) (957; 50-90) 
—“Riders to Stars” (Indie) and 
“Dragon’s Gold” (Indie). Fair 
$4,500, Last week, “Go Mari . Go,” 
(UA), $5,500. 

United Artists (No. Coast) (1,207; 
65-g5)__"Para trooper” (Col) and 
“Drums Tahiti” (Cbl). Lofty $11,- 
000 or near. Last week, “Man Be- 
tween” (UA) and “Heart Goes 
Crazy” (UA) (2d Wk), $4,200. 

Siagedoor (A-R) (370; $1.80- 

$2.40)— “Julius Caesar” (M-G) (6th 
wk). Big $8,500. Last Week, $8,000. 

Clay (Rosener) (400; 65-85)— 
“Titfield Thunderbolt” (U) (2d wk). 
Good $3,800. Last week, $4,000. 

State (Par) (2,3.00; 65-85)— “Roy- 
al African Rifles” (Indie) and 
“Fangs of Arctic” (Indie). Lean 
$2,700. Last w r eek, “Violated” (In- 
die) and “Ringer” (Indie), $3,000. 

Larkin (Rosener) (400; $1)— 

“Seven Deadly Sins” (Indie), Good 
$3,200. Last week, “Murder on 
Monday” (Indie) (3d wk), $2,200. _ 

Vogue (S. F. Theatres) (377; 85- 
$1)— "Leonardo Da Vinci” (Indie) 
(3d wk). Fine $2,800. Last Week, 
$3,200. 


venient Delaware, noting that it 
comes as -no surprise to those who 
have followed the activities of the 
company. .. 

Motion picture meetings, the re- 
port says, were well attended. 
Lauded by the Gilberts 'for their 
conduct of meetings were; Loew’s 
Leopold Friedman and 20th-Fox’s 
Spyros Skouras. Other film com- 
pany meetings are also discussed 
without similar praise for the pre- 
siding officers. 

Advocates of cumulative voting, 
the Gilberts cite the effort of 
Charles Green for* “the splendid 
fight for the principle cumulative 
voting” at 20th which was waged 
unsuccessfully. Experience gained 
at various ^corporation meetings, 
say the Gilberts, offers increasing 
proof that legislation must be ob- 
tained for mandatory cumulative 
voting. 

Loew’s 1952 annual report is 
rapped for failure to include a 
president’s message “telling the 
stockholders of the year’s develop- 
ment in review” and for contain- 
ing an overabundance of film pro- 
duction advertising. “A reason- 
able amount,” says the report, "is 
normal and even good in a film 
company’s Annual Report, but too 
much is too much in what is, after 
all, a financial document.” 

The Gilberts support the idea of 
women members on boards of di- 
rectors, adopted in principle at 
20th at last year’s confab, but as 
yet not put into practice. 


rose to $41,009,887 in the pe- 
riod. ; ' 

Aside from improved theatre at- 
tendance, Loew’s gained from sev- 
eral big grossers in that quarter. 
Thd second quarter ending in Feb- 
ruary now is expected to show 
even greater improvement since 
taking in earnings from* “Knights 
of the Round Table,” top grosser 
last month in Variety’s boxoff ice 
suiwey. This initial. C-Scoper from 
M-G is reported to ; be showing 
earnings exceeding even the most, 
optimistic hopes of the company. 

While RKO Theatres shares ap- 
pear to have levelled off "»round 
$5 or slightly under, improved 
earnings over a year ago are an- 
ticipated in soirie quarters of Wall 
Street. Sharp economies by the 
new setup plus, favorable b.o. re- 
sults as a result. of playing the field 
and playing such pix as “The 
Robe” and other C’Scope and 3-D 
productions has given rise to 
hopes of better earnings. 

While Technicolor has not gone 
forward recently it has held steady 
around 14 which is equal to; $28 
per share on the old stocV prior to 
the splitup of shares. Aside from 
the fact, that stock now is closely 
held, there appears to be evidence 
of accumulation for the longterm 
j— pull. ' 

Steadiness Of National Theatres 
stock around $7 per share during; 
recent trading scssioris Was viewed 
as reflecting favorable reaction to 
the company’s quick writeoff of 
Cinemascope installation costs. 
While cutting Into operating costs 
in recent quarters, it was rated as 
placing the corporation»in a favor- 
able position as to future earning 
possibilities.. 


StiD Tops field 



U’s Sock Year 

Continued f>om page 4 

was $2,307,701 against a tax bite 
of $4,290,000. 

U’s annual report showed film 
rentals up from $64,128,710 in ’52 
to a record $70,490,254 in ’53. Do- 
mestic sales and rentals were 
boosted from $41.215;338 in ’52 to 
$43,630,051 in ’52. Foreign rentals 
took a bigger jump, increasing 
from $22,913,381 in 1952 to $26,- 
860,203 in 1953. Figures indicate a 
rise in selling expenses both in the 
Ui S. and abroad. 

Report pointed out that U was 
keeping pace with technical de- 
velopments but was sicedding 34 
pix (24 of them in Technicolor) so 
as not to hamper sales with a short- 
age of pictures. It stressed the 
need for the company to be in a 
position to serve all the theatres, 
with all its films to be made for 
both wide and conventional-size 
screens. 

Universal annual stockholders 
meet is skedded for March 10 in 
N. Y. at which time 11 directors 
will be elected. That’s one less 
tl.an were on the board in 1953. 
Leon Goldberg, v.p. and treasurer, 
resigned Oct. 17 arid isn’t being 
replaced on the board. Three Dec- 
ca Records reps on the board are — 
and will be — Milton R. Rackmil, 
Decca and U prexy; Harold 1. 
Thorp' and Sarribcl H. Vallance. 
Decca owns 600,075 shares of com- 
mon. representing approximately 
56.5% of the U stock outstanding. 

Proxy statement showed Gold- 
berg ( now United Artists financial 
v.p.) in for. $35,000 in termination 
pay. Total fee of U directors and. 
officers as a group during the 
year came to $663,933 with Rackmil 
drawing $80,000; N. J. Blumberg, 
board chairman, $78,000; Alfred E. 
Daff, exec v.p., $69,340. and John 
J. O’Connor, v.p., $52,000, 


Driveins Probe 

Continued from page 5 


booker for Chicago and Indianap- 
olis ozoners, on the subject of film; 
Marc Wolf, about car heaters for 
winter operation at his Gary, Ind., 
drivein; Herbert E. Sindlinger, 
who furnished figures for the in- 
dustry’s anti-tax fight, last year, on 
advertising rriethods, and Col. 
George Mingle, superintendent. 
Ohio State Highway Patrol, on 
traffic control at ozoners. 

Visitors will travel 15 miles to 
Montgomery, O., Wednesday to 
view a new screen at sunset at one 
of Phil Smith’s driveins. Screen is 
claimed to give driveins an early 
extra hour of operation at dusk. 
On the way back to town the ozon- 
ers will see a demonstration of 
Arvin Heater Co. ear units at 
Shor’s Twin Drivein, a year-around 
operation in suburban Bond Hill. 

^braham F. Meyers, Allied’s 
general counsel, is due on the plat- 
form at all sessions for advice on 
legal questions. He and Snaper 
claim that the present 4,000 or 
more driyeins represent from 15 
to 30%. of the distributors’* current 
revenue. 

George Murphy Talks 

Today (Tues.), Metro goodwill 
ambassador George Murphy re- 
minded the attending exhibitors 
that a system of arbitration must 
be set up to avoid a “waste of 
energy and bickering” on minor 
points. “After all,” he added, we’re 
all in the same industry.” 

Murphy also pointed out that 
"producers arc getting clown to 
earth and are thinking in terms 
of what the public wants.” A 
higher class of film must now be 
made, he declared, for “B” pictures 
aren’t doing business. Industry’s 
technical advances were touched 
upon by the former actor who 
looks upon CinemaScope and ster- 
eophonic sound as a “final answer” 
to problems confronting the biz. 


London, Feb. 2. 

Percentage-wise; Great. Britain 
has the highest picture-going pop- 
ulation in the world, according to 
a survey prepared by two Board of 
Trade executives, in a paper, read 
to the Royal Statistical Society, in 
London , last week. Nearly half of 
paid admissions were by people be- 
low the age of 25 while a fifth were 
by . children under the. age of 16. 
From 1949, admissions have been 
declining at an average rate of 2% 
annually and tv. is estimated to be 
responsible for three-quarters of 
the drop. 

Looking back to 1934, the survey 
recalls that, at the time, admis- 
sions represented 20 visits a year 
for every member of the popula- 
tion. By 1946, however, the figure . 
had soared to 34 but the peak was 
followed by a sharp setback the fol- 
lowing year. By the end of 1952 f 
the figure had dropped to 27 visits 
per patron, a decline which might 
be “viewed with some concern but 
hardly with alarm.” 

The BOT statistical experts fore- 
cast a continued decline, in boxof- 
fice admissions as tele coverage is 
extended and transmission times 
are increased, but rated too soon 
to be sure that the cinema business 
would not recover as the tv novelty 
wears off. 

Confirming that the cinema is 
the cheapest form of mass enter- 
tainment, the report declares that 
four-fifths of the admission duty 
collected by the entertainment in- 
dustry in Great Britain came from 
picture theatres. 


Jules Verne 


Continued from page 3 


bution expense, will require about 
$9,000,000 in rentals to break even. 

“Leagues” is being done in Cine- 
mascope and so far has Kirk Doug- 
las. James Mason and Peter Lorre 
in lead spots. Charles Boyer is be- 
ing eyed for another role but a 
deal is contingent On whether he 
can break loose from his run-of- 
the-play commitment fh the cur- 
rent legiter, "Kind Sir.” 

The. adaptation of the Jules 
Verne classic started shooting Jan. 
11 in Nassau -and is continuing in 
that location. Production shifts to 
Hollywood in March. Indie outfit 
took literally tons of equipment for 
underwater shooting at the Ba- 
hama site. Costly animation and 
special effects work is going into 
the film along with- the straight live 
action. 


Happy Exhib 

Continued from page 11 


-Flick Gets $315 Raise 

Albany, Feb. 2. 

State of N. Y, budget sets $102,- 
423 for Motion Picture Division of 
/Education Dept. That’s the unit 
| with authority over film censorship. 

Dr. Hugh M. Flick, director, who 
currently draws $7,856 gets a $315 
hike. 

! Division examined 1,384 films 
i during last fiscal year. 


Screen Publicists 


Continued from page: 7 


companies. The UA pact, which ex- 
pired several months ago, has been 
extended until the close of the 
present talks r thereby binding the 
union in its relations with UA. 

Meetings With Col and WB nego- 
tiators are scheduled for today 
(Wed,) and tomorrow and the tenor 
of these talks will, to a large 
degree, determine whether or not 
the “economic action” plans will 
be implemented. Talks at Universal 
and .20th-Fox haven't started yet, 
the respective contracts expiring 
on March 2 and April 17. Union 
• is seeking a. 15% wage hike and 
l an 'increase in present rninirnums. 


run situations, a factor he concedes 
is a necessity in the present mar- 
ket. He admits the situation might 
be quite different if the theatres 
were subsequent run houses. “The 
picture business,” he said, “has be- 
come like legit. You either have a 
big hit or a big flop. And the fit st- 
rim situations are the only ones 
geared for this type of operation.” 

While enthusiastic about the new 
film projection techniques, Moss 
feels that they’re a novelty that 
will soon wear off. He says they’ve 
done a great deal to hypo interest 
j in pictures, but once the public be- 
comes accustomed to them it’ll be 
a return to the quality of the prod- 
uct. He feels the field is W'ide 
open now for aggressive independ- 
i ent. producers. Like many exhibs 
j weighing the entry into produc- 
tion, Moss is part of an eastern 
group studying such a project. 
“Our interest,” he said, “will be 
mainly financial, but we want an 
experienced producer who is also 
willing to gamble by investing Ills 
own money.” 

Sideline businesses are becoming 
more common with exhibs, and 
Moss is not an exception, Tearncd 
with Richard Lewis, he’s in the tv- 
_ radio packaging biz. Outfit has a 
: Mickey Spillane series going on 60 
I radio stations and is coming out 
i with a vidpix version shortly. In 
addition, the tv show on ABC, 
“Quick as a Flash,” is a Moss- 
i Lewis property < 






GOLDEN GATE THEATRE, SAN FRANCISCO > FEB. 10 



STACKED ! 








'{yvV A v.'* 








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■>*,♦- a. 




the 


"*? '^1 


PETER GRAVES 
BARBARA BESTAR 


*ST. 








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-3- *.,£<&£ 




^«*^ SSrMMW 


« story by MVLES WILDER 


with a real 
showmcm’s 
campaign in 
San Francisco 
Bay area and 

surrounding 

* • ’ » 

situations 


OAKLAND, Telenews 
SACRAMENTO, Capitol 
VALLEJO, Rita 
BOYES SPRINGS, Boyes Sp. 
SALINAS, Alisa! 
MARYSVILLE, Tower 
CHICO, El Rey 
OROVILLE, Empire 
SANTA CRUZ, Santa Cruz 
LODI, Sunset 
MODESTO, La Loma 
LIVERMORE, State 
EUREKA, Rialto 
ANTIOCH, El Campanil 
BENICIA, State 
RENO, Tower 
STOCKTON, Ritz 
PALO ALTO, Varsity 
SAN JOSE, Padre 
KLAMATH FALLS, Tower 
REDDING, Redding 
SANTA ROSA, Tower 
MONTEREY, Rio 
MERCED, Strand 
WOODLAND, Porter 
SAN MATEO, San Mateo 
NEWMAN, Westside 
REDWOOD CITY, Fox 
EL SOBRANTE, Park 
PETALUMA, State 
—and many more 





vtVdnewUT, g«h«— *y 1054- 





PICTURES 


Knights’ Leads 

continue* frMRfaf* 4 


■ 


■ 


’Don’t SetHe’ 

Continue* from page 5 


■ 


‘‘Steel Helmet" and "Pickup on 
South Street" — most of them 
'stressing brutality to a marked 
degree 1 — said audiences were look* 
li contioued from p««« 4 ssl lng for action. "People like sex, £5= Continue* from pace 5 ■nagj 

,, Kis , Me K»te” <M-G>, Mth In ba hSroV ” he thi^ht kept in tabs until engineering 

D %ber wasllU.^ "J^Cae- 

sar," also ^om Metro, rounds out ^nce has at times brought him into 
the Golden Dozen.- . _ l 4 conflict with the Breen office. 

“Captain’s Paradise - fUA), 3 ‘^There was this scene in ‘Pickup 

■ r m it# /WUI **D»»**« > - . _ « . . . .. i« i.na* mvin Pa imiiiMr KHin* 


the- public's— Interests are safe- 
guarded." 

The most vocal opposition to the 
20th policy Comes from the smaller 
exhibs who feel it deprives them 
of their freedom of action. It's that 
group primarily which has dam- 


Berber was lift, ‘»C.e- ^ 

fear," also fr^JJ 1 Metro, rounds ut ^nce has at times brought him inta [iS co S «f C ferent versions and particularly 

the Golden Doiett.^ I<0 conflict* with the Breen office. with single-channel sound; H 

“Captain’s Paradise^ <UA), 3 ,# There was this scene m 4 Plckup S® 

Sailors and Girl" .( WB ) , « Para- 0l j .sbuth J Street* where one guy The .SMPTE topper said, 
trooper" (Col) and "Living Des- take* the ‘other by his legs and -1 Any proposal which is not 
ert” (Disney) were runner-up pix, drags him- down the stairs. I Want- adaptable to theatre markets of all 
each one topping the $100,000,- e d to show his> chin going bump- ls introducing- possible 

mark. Although largely playing bump-buiiip all the way, making it l^datlons potentially .harmful to 

a _ . MQamaHi pa'* « . .. . . . ... rno - ltrnAl a% Tt ic iiviKaI t Aimnl a Ihdt 



Continued from pace 11 


smaller arty houses, “Paradise” dear that his teeth are being the whole. It is unbelievable that 
grossed $230,000. knocked out. But they wouldn’t let be w P VI! S !i? d 

Fix With Promise" me put that in. WoufcLhave been J g nvf tf filo taken without 20th’s knowledge or 

Several new fllmvpw«»e« near .**-«• «“*«**.; ffiS* 

SoS 'Yet, Fuller doesn't believe In ??“?“« S ’ 


Columbus, Feb. 2. 

In a pastoral letter calling for 
intensified resistance to the. mate- 
rialism of the times, bishops of 


his teeth are being the same time for his Morristown Ohio? six UaUmJT diocS* 

. But they wouldn’t let n S?iv w P experiment, which he had under- tacked the recent it <5 q.. nr am a 

; in. Would- have been ??f:"i®i y taken without 20th’s knowledge or rhL d ri,fi n ri^: 


c^urt ruling onblm «en^hip. 

essed his regret. .'The bishops who Were here for a 

James E. Coston, Indiana Illinois njfetlng of the Catholic Welfare 


; ‘ nf heinc notenUally big gross- ' *«V Fuller doesn’t believe in trr, James E.Coston, Indiana Illinois 

se o£ ‘ FHdle Cantor Story’’- (WB) making pix outside the Code realm. ^ a ( tbe * very Theatres exec, told Reade that SP f ® r 5 n , c ® J! ee * c, , note / 2o i v n x? b ? 

ers : “r i pnn Miller Story” (U) both “It’s the easiest thing in the, world foundation °f the industry. after playing “The Robe” With J® t o te r rel , ea * e fi Thursday (28) that 

91ld Cl lenn JS/llklCr w Jr , x . _ i _■ n : • j- ' n • _ . i . - Tm HHn aa /1 aiiV 0 *\aaaW • . I) awmaII iial' nil .ti. j # til© POIlH .Q HppIclAn UT.IC lAoldif 


} nd 5 ig based on initial returns. to make a shocker and then wind In Tuesday’s speech, Barnett “thrilling” results— and of course I * ie f c ,® ur ,t 8 *{®^il “I 1 was predicated 

l 00 flnv b Kit a michtv total on its up on 42nd Street," he declared, outlined some of the difficulties with stereophonic sound — in a ®M he maturity of the modern 

in three Miami Fla.. "But Who wants to make such inherent in Cinemascope for the number of spots, he was "dumb- view< ? r * 

hrst st n ^ t s han e * as a com- films? They’re fpr morons/’ ' ozoners. “The (Cinemascope) re- founded"' to see the TO A topper “It would be highly desirable," 

houses, ■tjJ; ■■ ■ ■" . .. • .. . . ■■■■-■■ • quirement is somewhat paradox!- “tak^ snrh aptinn that would not they declared, “if the motion nie- 


houses. “Cantor" shapes as a com- 
ing high grosser, being nice to ter- 
rific on first b a tch of dates. “It 
Should Happen to You" (Col), an- 
other new entry, is socko on first 
big engagement in N; Y. 

“Cease Fire" (Par) is Starting 


Sale Found 

Continued from pate T 


founded"' to . see the TOA . topper it would be highly desirable," 
_ “take such action that would not they declared, “if the motion pic- 

cal for’ the driveins, where it is only jeopardize our investment but ture industry itself would attain 
usual practice to provide as large endanger the' only invention and such a degree of maturity in its 
a screen .as can be accommodated the first real technical advance presentations that there would 'be 
with available equipment. Assum- since the advent of sound that, has ni ° need of review or censorship or 
ing this to* be true, a changeiin brought the people back; into _ our a production code for decency.” 


* - - - — ' ” ''7” ‘Africa ’ ” Sale, said “wa« nn ^P^t ratio would result in actual theatres since the big slumpbe- 

out with high promise, playing In Air *c a * & a ie.s a ia, W8S shot on reduction ln picture area. This, Ean /* 

3-D. "Jubilee Trail” (Rep) was location in and around Tangier and surely we can all agree, would be The wire went on: “We believe 
launched in smiSSih style Jf®^( M a l a K a » Spain. The coastal areas undesirable. that such action ;(the “mixer” test) 

Orleans with, gross wnning about there are a ‘smugglers’ - paradise “Efforts to retain present pic- is detrimental Ho the members of 


Warning that the court decision 
pU ees greater responsibility on in- 


The wire went on: “We believe dividuals in selection of entertain- 
that such action (the “mixer” test) ment, the bishops declared: 
is detrimental Ho the members of “That responsibility is given a 


v, ‘ ■ ,. iiA l A i *» on M +j-krtfli<yV|f MlvlC die d blliuggiers *|lardUldC juxivaw sv Avsa*ii io uvvsimviivm>i>v v»«v auviuuwiq Vi ■ m 

even with tjuiei man , lopmgiu a( ^ were a perfect-background for Ture aspect aiid still accommodate your Organization and to theatre new and sharp urgency by: the ap- 
heDublic grosser. u orever * e- »* new aspect ratios would lead to business generally, and we do : ot Parent willingness of civil author- 


RepubUc gfoss^. . ^rever^ oii? melodr^” ^ ™ 

male” (Par), also new, is doing • ■■■■.■. . , . _ 

nicely on $ome »t its initial engage- Gooperation froin Spanish au- 

* ent g thorities, Sale recalled,, was “ex- 

■ '# , rvYoata" twn\ ivhinh cellent.” He rated .technicians In 
“Majesty O Keefe (WB), which S M as ^ omn ^ n t^A nntAH thaf 


our melodrama’’ new aspect, ratios would lead tc 

Gooperation from Spanish au- W. extensive .and expensiv. 
thorities Sale recalled waq “p V . structural modifications in mosi 
aKSK* o* le -f?5 a St theatres. Gurvature of the drive 


very extensive and expensive wish to remain a member any long- Tty tc 
structural' modifications in mdst er.” The resignation and Its im- vilene 
theatres. Gurvature of the drive- plications were discussed early this bient. 


ity to tolerate all indecency and 
vileness in places of entertain- 


eefe” (WB), which c n i| n ac. Pm rm»fAnf"a«d in screen, to comply with certain week by the TOA board in Wash 


seventh 


Week. 


“I got along with my high School 
Spanish much better than I had an- 


shapes as a strong newcomer^. f ni„u proposals, presents even more sefi- ington. THclhrm Prlfflflio of M V 

wound up seventh one Week. Sus problems.” He added it Was If there is a certain unanimity at N. Y. 

"Wicked Woman” XUA) teed off in t d „ Interi * ^ apparent that “true stereo sound among the smaller exhibs regard- Breakfast Defends Code 

Philly in auspicidus style. “For- n1 JJi a* «2i 'Jt cannot be reproduced in the drive- irig stereophonic sounds which is Weakenlnir nf 

jjidden” (U) also n^d surpr£ Present . op e rat,ng pro- 

AJ^} e LSL^l : was: brought in slightly .under the-.; ce ? u *« s .- . . . _ b «?f e Li b !^ guards against degradation of the 


-it vjjpoihsh iiiuui uciiu uutii i uau ail- . 

_Wicked ticipeted.” Interiors for the Tech- 

fSiL.. 1 ^ nicoior picture were iensed at the ?® n , 


ous problems.” He added it Was If there is a certain unanimity 
apparent that “true stereo sound among the smaller exhibs regard- 
cannot be reproduced in the drive- ing stereophonic sound, which is 


ingly well in a 


was ; brought in slightly under the . 


spots.* hitting the top runner-up 

classification in one stanza. ■ ■ sn001 ng scnea uie. 


In his speech for tomorrow, Bar-- ones, execs of the big circuits don’t 


. 1 nett says “some of the mafefial see eye to eye on the question. 
Meantime Bassler expects to L hiflh L, an n M rpH umipr thg “We can’t see where stereo- 


- .“Bigamist” (FR), which started ni A hpfrtrp iha ParKorac which ha ? appeared under U tc t«u.m a .,- 

out rather modestly, did much bet- j? HollvWood^he end o? the ?epk ^h® 1 of stere0 sound has been as phonic sound has added anything nual Communion breakfast for 
ter near the end of the month H is f i rs y tsl nce leavfne 20th wn i harhif « 1 to its acceptance as were so far, said the topper of one of catholic filmites at the Waldorf- 
when it was sold as adult entertain- hl> S iJLw the technically inferior 3-D pro- the leading circuits. Astoria, N. Y., Sunday (31). Total 

ment. “Little Caesar”-“Pubiic En v f®,^®®..^®^ banner ductions to that process. I would Gene Picker’s View of 1,500 persons attended the 


screen by “merchants of exotia 
erotics," the Most Rev. James H. 
Griffiths, warned at the fourth an- 


when it was WJU as awuiv cuicivaui- -J • J j, tj hinnop “ lc tctmiiv-nu/ miciivi y-t, jiiu- 

nient. “Little Caesar"-“Public En v ‘ pa ""^J ductions to that process. I would Gene picker’s view of 1,500 persons attended the 

emy.” two WB reissues playing in ■ like to suggest also that some sit- Opposite note is struck by Gene breakfast, which was preceded by 

combo; has done amazing trade so uations and material may not at Picker, Loew’s exec. “We are Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, 

far, topping biz of newcomers in ? onH nnl ^ ah profit by stereo sound. And, equipping practically all our Bishop Griffiths put it this way: 

some instances. This is found ■ iTA S a ? just as in the case of 3-D, engi- houses,” he disclosed last week “Panderers who, hypocritically in 


ic cuu vi MiG 1UUUU1 t|*_ AAiL :a . :n iiflf in a bix w ns attcpiqiitc as wcic t ■' . — * . ,; r 

sold as adult entertain- L 1 !!! 2 20th * jt wlU the technically inferior 3-D pro- the leading circuits. 


Gene Picker’s View 


Opposite note is struck 1 by Gene breakfast, which was preceded by 
Picker, Loew’s exec. “We are Mass at St.. Patrick’s Cathedral, 
equipping practically all our Bishop Griffiths put it this way : 


money for the distrib; 


to be about $500,000 with UA ar- 


neers and technicians still have <30). “I am a great believer in the name of artistic expression, 
much to learn in the application of stereophonic sound. Once Holly- (would) try to convince libertines 


liuy 1V1 MIC rantfintf fmonninh q.i j. a i auu ^vuiiiviaiio ovui \OV/. .X am a 6 1 '- av uvi*yfv* m 

Quo Vadis M (M-G), now around jfLrl?* ^crIfaV«c & ^Vircf 01 ^ ™uch "to learn in the application of stereophonic sound. Once Holly 

on popscale engagements, is rated Sl-SS* stereophonic sound. wood learns to use it properly w< 

a bit spotty, “Gilbert and Sulli- o-Amerioan venhi re As for 3-D, Barnett urged inves- will hear things we’ve never heart 

” M I i \ ic limna fairlu wall __ wiu De an Angio-Amencan venture i . . , ^ I K a f n r 0 a nH Hnn't kid vnnrsHf— 


wood learns to use it properly >ve that other persons interested in 
will hear things we’ve never heard the mo^al fiber and stability of the 


van” (UA) is doing fairly well on but n, n dP ^tribut ion^eai tigation of single-strip 3-D methods before. And don’t kid yourself-- nation are impinging on their por- 

several spot engagements, playing Kin 5 ' y which are incompatible and com- it’s going to reflect at the box of- cine propensities erroneously 

rvi Ainlir in r> a 1 1 AAalA«*9 hUf'An A i*_ .UtJCIl ' bvl, ‘ a . _ J aL^A A l A I. _ ’ /..a..... A T> Ann •• • I Anil Aii ' 1 1 KAntir i n oln n J Iiaamra 


several spot engagements, playing 
mainly in smallseaters. “War, Ar- 
row” (U) is surprising exhibs who 


With completion of “Suddenly,’ 


which are incompatible and com- it s 
mented that “the future of 3-D fice. 
would appear to rest with produc- W 


While the controversy rageSi the 


called liberty instead of license." 
The prelate added, however, he’s 


felt that had seen too many west- Sale and his wife plan to return ji on policy and acceptance on the driveins continue in a fix. An im- convinced that, responsible indus- 

ern epics. Pic was among the top March 20 to London where they’ll part of the paying audience. Tech- portant test action looms in A u- try leaders, via the Code, will 

12 one week. ready several pictures to be made n ical improvements and the ad- gusta, Ga., where Donald Board- stave off immorality. He said the 

"The Command" (WB), initial under their own Anglo-American. vanC em en t of standard practices man, operator of the Skyview Code could be branded as “old 
C'Scoper. from Warners, opened arrangements.. The Sales have set will continue as long as the ozoner, complains 20th isn’t giving fashioned" or “antiquated” only if 

stoutly at N. Y. Paramount. “Wild U P Voyager Films, ^ Inc. in, the medium has potential value." him a chance to bid on its Cinema- the same obtained with the Ten 

One” (Col) chipped in with several u - S. and Voyager Films* Ltd. in - - - . . Scope pix because, more or less of Commandments, 

nice sessions. “Act of Love" (UA), Britain, Each exclusively repre- " ’" ' """ I . " 11 ■ -■ j necessity, he doesn’t have stereo- Griffiths coupled his defense of 

which comes into the N. Y. Astor sertts the other in their respective >■ *■ phonic sound. the Code with a condemnation of 

soon, was sturdy on some of its territories. R6W UI3IIS8 Boardman said las week that he ; tiie U. S. Supreme Court decision, 

initial date. Already lined up, Sale rdvealed, \ | was always playing second run in ( i n the “M" and "La Ronde’’ cen- 

"All the Brothers Were Valiant" are three films to be Iensed for .Continued from pace 5 Aufeusta and that he had demanded j sorship cases. Latter, he said, was 

(M-G), sixth in December, en- Columbia release in the western o “nrnn^r” wMe putvpH errepn^ ^and The light to bid for ^ 2Qth’s Cinema- ; "so vague that not one of the jus- 


nice sessions. “Act of Love" (UA), Britain, Each exclusively repre- 
■ which comes into the N. Y. Astor sertts the other in their respective 
soon, was sturdy on some of its territories. 


initial date. 


Already lined up, Sale rdvealed, 



"All the Brothers Were Valiant" are three films to be Iensed for f . . Continued from pace 5 - — . f Aufeusta and that he had demanded j sorship cases. Latter, he said, \vas 

(M-G), sixth in December, en- Columbia release in the western a “Droner’’ wide curved screen and The right to bid for 2Qth’s Cinema- ; "so vague that not one of the jus- 

veral big engagements last hemisphere while British Lion will stereODhonic sound involving at Sc °P ers on that basis, iiowcver, | tices was able to make up his mind 

"The Robe" (20th) , initial handle ’em in the eastern global least three speakers behind^ the the company had sold to his indoor . as to what is ‘immoral’ in this great 

i* which Was mainly in sector. First to roll will be an tin- screen competition without giving him a ; American republic.” 

nabes or smaller cities, titled yarn which Korda will pro- ThP ampnded contract eliminate*;^ ^ chance to bid, and the local branch r r 

lenty of additional coin in ducc and Sale direct. If? to start any h possibil t ty d o£ " mlx er" sound tolhe’ ’homeofflee he a«Sed P Thi N- Y- UCENSES 'IA RONDE' 

uuuuidune i. tests such gs the one made by skyview screen is 120 feet wide and — 

Second on Voyagers agenda is Walter Reade in three of his thea- 50 feet wide, he said. Boardnun First Makes Sure It’s The 

a yarn to be filmed in Africa tres. However, it goes further in would have to use a “mixer” to Cut, Not Original, Version 

tagged “Lord of the Elephants.” specifying the precise equipment D i a y Cinemascope films. I 

mL ! h j •••HI L a a rn A .u M ! ,« , a 1 1 a . a 1 . 1 • ^ J *_ I a it. n _ i_ n 


joyed several big engagements last hemisphere while British Lion will 
month. “The Robe” (20th), initial handle ’em in the eastern global 
C’Scoper which was mainly in sector. First to roll will be an iin- 
first-run nabes or smaller cities, titled yarn which Korda will pro- 
added plenty of additional coin in duce and Sale direct. It’s to start 
January. about June 1. 


Praises 


■ 


anout June 1. tests such as the one made by 

Second on Voyager’s agenda is Walter Reade in three of his thea- 


Continued. from page 3 
w -ho then go shedding croco 


tagged “Lord of the Elephants.” specifying the precise equipment 
Third venture will be a Techni- that must be used for the showing 
color musical based upon Anita of 20th pix. 

LOOS ( MrS. Sale S aunt) -Gentle- Cnma nt fVwt avKiK finmmani tAnir 


N Y. LICENSES 'LA RONDE' 

First Makes Sure It’s The 
Cut, Not Original, Version 


at must be used for the showing According to 20th, its engineers 
20th pix. are working on . a solution to the 

Some of the exhib comment took drivein problem re Cinemascope. 


Albany, Feb. 2. 

The Board Qf Regents Friday 
(29) took the expected action in ad- 


under his one-a-year contract for 
^utti pic, which has a mountain- 
ciimbmg expedition as its central 
tneme, will be Iensed in the Hima- 
iayas this fall in Cinemascope. 
..Fuller is trying to get Tenzing Nor- 
!yl e Nepalese Sherpa, who was 
jn the expedition which on May 29 

CAaIa J H VI . v 


dilo tPirc men Marry Brunettes.” This, Sale the tone of “where do they get off Meanwhile it’s reported that the vising Dr. Hugh M. Flick, director 

lost ^?hu?k of tba?r e w!? d th rt ey M Ve said, will have Van Johnson, Jeanne telling us how to run our busi- Ballantine Co. in Omaha, Neb., has of the Motion Picture Division, 

Fillip rof. ? > ? Patronage. Crain and Debbie Reynolds in top ness ?>. one prominent circuit exec, come up with a stereophonic sound State Education Department, to is- 

terdav (Tnac^f C la P + ^ eS i role . s * S ?°° ting wil1 . 4 b ® do , ne j? in taking that line, wondered out system for the ozoners. It involves sue a license for the French film 

touehpc •«, p ^ 1 th « fi, nal Paris and London with Sale di- aloud whether 20th didn’t stand to the installation of three speakers “La Ronde,” after he had reviewed 

“Sab e^ K C m e ^ Play ; rectingl Score will utilize “some lose more than to gain in laying in each car, one on each Window film to insure that “it is in the 

which hell direct old Rodgers & Hart music.” down the law i n this manner. He and the third attached to the wind- same form as heretofore shown to 

1 pointed out that, to his knowledge, shield via a suction cup. System the Regents and to the U.S. Su- 


Vislarama 


* .mu is irying to get Tenzing Nor- Continued from page 4 — J _ iT" II a. . . ^ 

a,: aw- “”•*» -s as. ■.‘a? ke I— —— '™ 


pointed out that, to his knowledge, shield via a suction cup. System 
quite a few theatres are playing would necessarily involve consid- 
CinemaScope pix with a 2:1 ratio, erable rewiring, 
cutting off the sides, since they find — — — — _ 

it impractical to accommodate the 

wider 2.55 to 1 Cinemascope ratio. Plllc 

However, 20th has its supporters, I 0611111 U1II9 


rt the film. 


Pending start of nroH..Minn F.,1 views o£ “ The Command,” how- Wrohg with 20th’s insistence on tive is cut from 6.36c per foot to ! l01 • 
ler will write the Screen nlav for ever, vindicated the VJstarama complete CinemaScope units. “We 4.25c, The old price included yari- { 

fi r\A < wiv OLlCCUilldy llM nPAPftCtt CinPA TYlftQt AriTIPC flP- j iLa.. La..a 4Ua ..am.* a/w^a one bin/lc r\ f Incfifld Qh/1 CA U/ill th© I 


same form as heretofore shown to 
the Regents and to the U.S. Su- 
prpme Court." 

Tliis proviso was made to block 
the possibility . Commercial Pic- 
tures, American distributor of the 
! film, would try to show the original 
' rather than revised version. There 
had been a report here such an 
idea was entertained by distribu- 

'.Al' W 


®nd direct “The Storv of F«tK>r Process since most critics ac- and they have the very same pur- ous kinds of testing and so will the 
Costello" for Rnmi.iiiJ Pwwi.SJS/IJc claimed the picture quality. pose— the best possible presenta- new price until Techni’s present 

tion of pictures," he declared, inventory of this type negative is 


ihD', 0 ' £or Romulus Productions 
Rptt ri i ain : Hes hoping to costar „ 
tha? Davis and Jean Simmons in .£* oba 
uiat one. though 


Reason for not going along with tion of pictures," he declared, inventory 

-wavis. and Jean Simmnn« -in "Aloha Nui" is obscure. It’s "They have a big investment in exhausted. .1, . . , „ n e 

^at one. thought that 20th did not wish to set their productions, which are made Technt*move in. cutting its prices 1 last year showed an increase f 

.Regarding “Hell and' High a Precedent since other producers -for a certain medium. Why reflect the extent to which the.: 25 . 0 ov ®^ 1 “; rharee 

jVater” Fuller commented that^ it might employ other anamorphic shouldn’t 20th have the right to studios are switching to the single- Charles Amo ^r V w P ! rn ast He 

b ^ s once Ynd^?^! mvth Pfocesses . and then seek the protect that investment. When it strip. Eastman color negative which , of Coast, He 

J lla t the scope lens is good ^nlv CinemaScope name. 20th charges comes down to it we’re on the can be threaded into an ordinary - added that the n a P p 'J° 1 c } f r col . 

spectaclttype^ this S 3 Cental. feO for the use of the same team,” camera with minor adaustmen s. | television a «d new outlets for c fl_ 

hiarine story we used the smallest CinemaScope taking lenses, In Downing put it another way. “If Techni is m a position to make ; 01 . film will mean 

sets over used in a GihemaScope The case of a feature film, the everyone wants pictures to be separation negatives and apply its ci ease in 1954, former 

-S2/SS fc ... s swkm fS’.sr.r ’s’Hr. Vo“ ; i 

ss. ,451’Ss « ts JVgssSgJSrs 


Pathe Lab Biz Up 25% 

Hollywood, Feb, 2. 
Business at Pathe Laboratories 


former 
as sales 


put IV Ull MIG U9G VV tilt 

cn and it’ll look great/’ “Aloha Nui” is that Vi 

•<p. ll , r ‘ "ho’s done such pix as the short long after 1 
“‘•k Row," "Fixed Bayonets,” deal, with 20th was set. 


| right to make sure that its — and . in the imbibition 



international 


'VAWiTY'r London *fmc« 

I H. Mirtln'i Niw# TrafalHr Nwra 



By HARRY REGENSBERG 
London, Jan. 28. 
West End legit lias been taking 
it on the chin the last few weeks, 
with business off. in most* theatres, 
In fact, with 40 theatres running 
attractions, less than half are mak- 
ing money, others being pn the red 
side. of the ledger. 

Real moneymakers are ‘‘The 
King and I,” at the Drury Lane; 
“As Long As They Are Happy, 
Garrick; “The Confidential Clerk," 
Lyric; “Cinderella," seasonal pan- 
tomime at the London Palladium; 
“The Sleeping Prince,” Phoenix; 
"Pygmalion,” St. James’s; “The 
Boy Friend ” Wyridhams; “Witness 
For the Prosecution," Winter Gar- 
den; “A Day By the Sea," Haymar- 
ket; “Pardon My French,” Prince 
of Wales, and “Ring Out the Bells,” 
Victoria Palace; 

Several reasons are attributed to 
the sudden falloff-^shortagfe of 
cash, after-Christmas sales, coupled 
with threatened strike and sudden 
. .sold: spell. 

But with all that, the usual show 
biz optimisfh is prevailing, with 
managements getting ready for the 
big tourist influx; with lineup of 
eight new musicals already sked- 
ded for the next couple of months 
or so. They are two by George & 
Alfred Black, “You’ll Be Lucky,” 
at the Aledphi, with radio comic 
At Read starred, and Vera Casperi 
and * Hans May’s “Wedding in 
Paris,” starring Anton Walbrook, 
opening at the London Hippodrome 
May 5. 

Val Parnell .and Bernard Del- 
font’s musical, "Palladium Revue,” 
at the Palladium, with Norman 
Wisdom, supported by a host of 
American talent, is opening May 3. 
Others , .are Jack Hilton’s two 
American hits, “Pal - Joey” and 
“Wonderful Town,” With no thea- 
tres set yet; Bernard Delfont’s new 
revue, expected to go to the Sa- 
ville, but held up due to his sud- 
den illness, and H. M. Tennent’s 
“After the Ball,” the Noel Coward 
musical adaptation from Oscar 
Wilde’s classic “Lady Winder- 
mere's Fan,” With Mary Ellis and 
Vanessa Lee starred. 


’Gails’ (N;Y. Flop) Passes 
" 1,500 Mark in London 

London, Feb. 2, 
“Seagulls Oyer Sorrento,” which 
was one of last season's flop im- 
portations from Britain to Broad- 
way, last Thursday (28) celebrated 
its 1,500th performance at the 
Apollo, Shaftesbury Ave., where it 
is jointly presented by George it 
Alfred Black and H.,M. Tennent. 

The play nOw holds third place 
in London’s longest runs, “Worm’s 
Eye View” being the first, followed 
by “Blithe Spirit.” Three members 
of the original cast, William Hart- 
nell, Nigel Stock and Gerald An- 
derson, are stilMrt the show. Film 
rights were acquired by the Boult- 
ing Brosi, who have lensed. the play 
for Metro under title, “Crest of the 
Wave,” with Gene Kelly in the 
lead.. 


NatT Theatre for India 

New Delhi, Jan. 26. • 
The National Academy of Dance, 
Drama and Music is building its 
own National Theatre* at Delhi, 
starting early this year. It will 
cost $400,600. Half of this amount 
comes from India government sub- 
sidies while balance to be made up 
through concerts and donations. 

’ Simultaneously, the » Academy 
also is planning to build rural thea- 
tres on vast scale with assistance 
from, state governments. 


V 


Yank Acb Tipped TktArg. Taxes, 





Paris, Jan. 26. 

Jean Bauchet, new owner of the 
Bal Tabarin, which is now under- 
going extensive renovation,- says 
that this boite will reopen in either 0 pp 0r tunist who gets his comeup- 
July or October, depending on how p ance Theatre Moneau gets a new 


Paris, Feb. 2. 

Final half of the 1953-54 legit 
season has how started with. • an- 
other batch of plays due befojre 
this father prolific season calls it a 
day. At least 15 more plays Will 
take the boards, and among them 
are pieces by important authors. 
These may. turn out to be the final 
hits : . of the. season which has 
spawned a Notable crop of clicks. 
Among the awaited authors are 
Marcel , Ayme, Julien Green and 
Andre Roussih. : ■ 

Renaissance Theatre takes '“Bel 
Ami,” the Guy De Maupassant 
story, which has been adapted by 
Frederic Dard. This gets full turn 
of-the-century trappings and re- 
counts the story of an unsavory 


lucasta’ Shapes Okay 

On Ite London Revival 

** - London; Feb, 2. 

“Anna Lucasta,” last seen here 
a few months ago, returned to the 
Hippodrome last Tuesday (26) for 
a short season under the joint man- 
agement 1 of Bernard Delfont and 
John Wildberg. The main cast, 
headed by' Isabelle Cooley, is un- 
changed wliile the production re- 
tains its essential quality Of isenti- 
mental humor. - . ■ ; 

, Revival has been set for a lim- 
ited season, and on a twice-nightly 
basis should be a reasonable com- 
mercial proposition. 



rapid y his director, Tierre-Louis £ omedy by RenWolivet, ••The Hair 
Guerin, can whip together the new f ^ Etephant;” which concerns 

mKaki tnfAMilAJ . cam fniM AnnntiAr ■ • .... ” . " 


show intended for this cabaret. 
Guerin wUl co-produce with Rene 
Fraday, and the two have a busy 
sked ahead in parlaying two top 
revues for this year , at their Lido 
and the Tabarin. . 

New Tabarin show will break 
completely with the old baroque- 
type meccano show of other days 
and feature a new lush spec-type 
show. In the offing is a plexiglass 


an almost fantastically lucky hero. 
Vieux Colombier will have the 
comedy, “Leone,” by Marcelle 
Grespolle. Robert Larnoureux 
brings his comic talents to the 
Jbcques Deval play, “The Strong 
Way” at the Athenee. 

Theatre Michel Gets Revue 

Parisys, the manager of Theatre 
Michel, starts a revue this week by 


London, Feb. 2- 
The British film quota for the 
year 1954-55 is likely to remain 
unaltered at 30% for first -features 
and 25% for the supporting pro 
gram.' A recommendation to. this 
effect was made - last week to thp 
president of the Board of Trade by 
the Cinematograph Films Council. 

The votihg at the Films .Council 
was eight to five against an in- 
crease in either quota. /This was 
the closest vote since the quota, 
was reduced to 30% in 1950. *. 

According to the terms of the 
1948 Films Act, the Board of Trade 
president has to give six months’ 
notice to Parliament if there is to 
be any change in the quota. As 
the quota year starts on Oct. 1, 
this calls for a Commons announce- 
ment hot later than March 31. 


tertions by slightly clad lovelies. 
Guerin and Fraday are on their 
bicycles looking for suitable acts 
i for both houses and have just cov- 
Shows expecting to exit shortly i ered England, Germany and Italy, 
from the West End include Henry | Guerin and Fraday leave sqon 
Sherek’s “Escapade” at the Strand, i for the U. S. to wind up their 
where it has been making good j looksee for appropriate acts for the 

two big houses. Reopening of the 


swimming pool for underwater con- young comedians Christian Duval- 


money, but has about exhausted it- 
self, Linnit & Dunfee’s Vaudeville 
hit, “Trial and Error,” quits Feb. 
13 with nothing set to follow. Also, 
Ralph Birch’s Broadway importa- 
tion, “The Big Knife” at Duke of 
York’s; the Black & Tennent’s big 
success, “Seagulls Over Sorrento,” 
and Tennent’s “The Seven Year 
Itch,” at the Aldwych which did 
fair, but didn’t dublicate its Broad- 
way hit. 

New straight shows skedded for 
the West End in the next few 
months after a provincial tryout in- 
clude Peter Satmder’s “The Manor 
or Northstead,” starring A. E. Mat- 
thews; Tom Arnold’s “The Happy 
Prisoner,” from Monica Dicken’s 
book of the same name; Lord Vivi- 
an’s musical by Leslie Julian Jones, 
based on a Noel Coward oldie, 
“The Marquise,” done in the West 
End in 1927, and Bernard Delfont’s 
new Philip King play, “Serious 
Charge,” which he acquired after 
it tried out at a special Sunday 
show at the Adelphi. 

Also, . Margaret Kennedy and 
Basil Dean's “The Constant 
Nymph” revival (which was first 
dene at the Garrick theatre in 
1928) by Jack de Leon at the “Q” 
theatre Feb. 16, with John Greg- 
son and Petular Clark starred. 
Show, if it clicks, goes to Golder’S 
Green and Streatham, with West 
End to follow. Also, Jack Waller’s 
musical adaptation of A, A. Milne’s 
“Ivory Door,” done in London £hd 
New York in 1927. 


Tabarin is eagerly awaited by other 
owners of the Pigalle district, who 
feel that if this goes over again 
with its previous renown, the over- 
flow and after-show coiners will be 
absorbed by the other more nudie 
boites in the vicinity. 


in 


eix and Dairy Cowl, while, the Ca- 
pucines* will have a new musical, 
“Les Chansons De Bilitis,” by Marc 
Cab and Jean Valmy, with music 
by Joseph Kosma. The Theatre 
Porte St. Martin has a musical, 
‘A1 la Jamaique,” by Raymond 
Vincy. and “Francis Lopez in a lush 
tropical setting. 

The indefatigable Jean De Let 
raz will have another boulevard 
sex comedy, “Barbara or the Pleas 
lire” at the Potiniqj-e. Ayme’s 
“The Four Truths” goes into 
the . Atelier. This is a comedy 
of morals and manners as a scien- 
tist unleashes a new foolproof 
truth serum on his family and 
reaps the consequences 

Roussin’s “The Husband, the 
Wife and Death” will move into 

Piv Than in 1 aaih the Ambassadeurs to replace the 
I IA lUUU 111 JJ LUUUI successful “Dial M for Murder” 

Mexico City, Feb. 2. which moves to the Ambigu The 
Despite what was said here in atre, This is a new genre of corn- 
trade circles last fall that Yank: edy for Roussin. Green’s new play 
producers would abandon Mexico will come in at the Bouffes-Paris- 
as a production country because of ians. Called “L’Ennemi,’,’ this will 
high costs. U. S, companies still preem on the eve of the French 
like. Mexico as a pic-making site. Revolution. It will star Maria 
Yanks are -even showing more Casares with direction by Fernand 
interest in local pic-making. That’s Ledoux. 
revealed by Antonio Rodriguez The new Theatre Des Arts pulls 
Granada, secretary of the techni- a switch in putting on “Gigi, 
ca 1-manual workers locals of the adapted from the Anita Loos 
Picture. Production Workers Union Broadway entry which was origi- 
(STPC), which has a definite say nally. adapted from the book by 
about- all film production here. French novelist Colette. The re- 


Film Prod, in Mex, More 


Okay U.S. Oldies for Jans 


Tokyo, Jan. 26. 

The Japan market for U. S. film 
oldies has been opened up with 
the announcement by the Japanese 
Finance Ministry that foreign films 
more than three years old may 
now be used on television. First 
foreign film to be seen on the 


Granada figures Jt least 15 U. Si 
pictures will be made in Mexico 
this year. There were 10 Yank films 
produced down here in 1953; Final 
decision on Yanks’ applications 
can’t be made for a month or two* 
Granada explains, because of the 
priority on rulings which numerous 
Mexican producers have. 

First U. S. pic of 1954 in Mexico 
will be “A Matter of Life and 
Death,” starring Ricardo Montal- 
ban and Ann Bancroft with Harry 
Horner directing. Permit for this 
pic, which will be partly Mexican 
because Televoz is participating, 
was granted last year. 


’Miller Story’ Sock Hit 
In Japan, Neck-N-Neck 
With Sm ash ’R ob e’ Biz 

Tokyo, Jan. 26. 

Surprise boxoffice hit of recent 
weeks in Japan has been “The 
Glenn Miller Story” (U) which was 
close on the heels of the record- 
smashing “The Robe” (20th). ' In 
its first week the Universal mu- 
sical grossed ' $26,700 at Tokyo’s 
Tokeki Theatre, while ‘Robe” in 
its second-sessibn did $30,000 at 
Yurakuza Theatre. “Robe” did 
only $22,500 in its Opening week. 
In Osaka, “The. Miller Story” 
broke the house records in two 
sites its opening day with $8,700. 
On the same day; Sunday (3) 
playing the newly-built Nangai, 
“Robe” hit $30,000 opening week; 

In Yokohama, Kobe and Kyoto, 
where “The Robe” has not yet 
been released, “Miller Story” led 
the. field of imported pix. 

Other foreign film with, big 
grosses during the weeklong holi- 
days were: “Stars Are Singing” 
(Par), Blowing Wild” (WB), “Hell 
Below Zero” (Col) and “Scared 
Stiff” (Par). 


SEES BRIT. TV AS NO 


Ros' Coconut Grove Date 

London. 

In the anniversary issue of VA- 

_ . __ j RiETY, the name of Edmundo Ros’ 

small screen will be the German j club in Regent Street, London, was 
pic, “Der Doppelle Lottchen.” Ex- j incorrectly spelled as The New Co- 
pected to follow the German entry coanut Grove. Correct spelling of 
Is the Gallic, “Les Jeux Sont Fails.” i the club at jvhich Ros appears with’ 
Heretofore telecast of foreign : his own rhythm combo is The New 
pix . was limited to trailers, 1 Coconut Grove. 


■ - I A 


■ % v 4 a ir f 'n 


prise theatre, the Apollo, will bring 
back an early Henri Bernstein 
play, “Felix,” in memory of the 
late author, while the Marc-Gil- 
bert Sauvajon hit, “Treize A 
Table,” moves over to the Come- 
die-Wagram Theatre. There will 
be other new. entries or reprises by 
the state subsidized houses the 
Comedie-Francaise and the Thea- 
tre National Populaire. 


s Hula Nitery 


Honolulu, Jap. 26. 
Ray Andrade, veteran musician 
and nitery operator here, launched 
The Grove last week as his latest 
effort to create a surefire nightclub. 
Ambitious venture is located on 
the site of Club' Blue Lei which 
folded. 

Andrade is utilizing a cast of 25, 
featuring selections from Broad- 
way musicals, with the maestro- 
operator fronting a 12-piece band. 
There also is the inevitable hula 
J dance troupe. 


London, Jan. 26. 

That the effect which TV has had 
on the American picture industry 
would not be reflected in anything 
like the same degree in Britain, 

was the view expressed by Lord 
Mancroft when he moved the sec- 
ond reading of the bill to extend 
the life of the National Film Fi- 
nance Corp. by a further three 
years in the House of Lords last 
week. He wondered whether there 
had* not been created' an unnec- 
essary alarm over the influence of 
TV on British production. 

Although the government con- 
sidered present conditions were 
more; healthy and stable than for 
a long time, Lord Mancroft thought 
it was not yet possible to suppose 
that any considerable amount of 
private finance would be available 
if the activities of the NFFC were 
brought to ah end. It was still the 
policy of the British government 
that the local industry should stand 
on its own feet as soon as pos- 


Buenos Aires, Jan. 26. 
Some eyebrow raising has re. 

stilted here over reports that cer. 
tain American artists spread stor- 
ies of large income tax slices being 
deducted from their earnings in 
Argentina and* of petty chiseling 
by local Impresarios. In actual fact 
tax deductions in . Argentina are . 
infinitesmal compared to the rap 
in the U. S , Europe or even other 
So, American countries. This low 
taxation . and with modest costs 
(lowest in Americas for the finest 
food) make Argentina a fine coun- 
try to accept bookings from. As a 
result, most performers depart 
from Buenos Aires with well-lined 
wallets.: 

However, if an attempt is made 
to gyp the Argentine income tax of- 
fice of its legal slictf, very heavy 
fines are applied, making it foolish 
to try evasion, especially consider* 
ing the low taxation rate. 

:• To clear up some misconceptions, 
here, advice, has been given for 
intended visitors. -^In the first 
place, artists . should make abso- 
lutely certain of dealing with bona 
fide impresarios or agents. The 
State Dept, is the best source of 
advice on this point. The cultural 
dept. Of the U. S. Embassy here is 
cooperative in s m o o t h i n g out 
wrinkles for entertainment folk. 

The season here starts in March 
and runs until late in September 
or mid-October. ^Local show biz. 
people talk of the first week in 
June as the worst in the year, since 
it usually brings the first told 
snap. This, however, is just a pass- 
ing phase, and June and July be- 
ing peak months. 

A reliable agent cuts' the red 
tape involved in getting visas, work 
permits and passages here and cus- 
tomarily deposits a heavy advance, 
of dollars in the U. S. as guarantee 
of fulfillment of contract. It is bet- 
ter to allow the impresario to pur- 
chase the fares, as payment in 
pesos at this end is a big saving. 
Must Travel By Plane in Arg. 
Where Brazil is concerned, art- 
ists must be prepared to travel by 
plane for stops at the cities in the 
interior because other forms of 
transport aren’t , available and the 
distances are enormous. 

Towards the close of last year, a 
Yank performer came here booked 
at around $3,000 per week for 
everything. Although the major 
film circuit that booked the act put 
a smash publicity campaign on her 
behalf and the biz was terrific, the 
gal was always suspicious of the 
wrong people. . On inexpert advice 
and refusing the impresario a,s re- 
tention agent, she made a false 
declaration of only $3,500 instead 
of $23,500 earnings for six weeks, 
on which a tax of around $5,000 
was payable. Income tax officials: 
made a probe, extracted the true 
figures and a heavy fine was ap* 
plied. The impresario’s earnings 
Were around $20,000, a just return 
oh the risks taken and the work 
involved. 

Another top-rank dancer refused 
her agent’s advice and handed her 
earnings to a comparative stranger 
to transfer on the black market* 
thereby kissing $8,000 goodbye. Art- 
ists who make personal appear- 
ances. here get an added source of 
income from the hypo on their 
disk sales or royalties on tunes, so 
taking it all in all, Argentina Is 
worth the long trek south; provided 
no mistakes are made about what 
people to trust. 




Command Film Shows 
Netted Fund 

London, Jan. 26. 

Last year’s Royal Command film 
performance at the : Odeon, Leices- 
ter square, and the two provin- 
cial replicas staged in Bristol and 
Bournemouth, have yielded a total 
of $56,000 for the Cinematograph 
Trade Benevolent Fund. Official 
figures released last week may be 
increased when the set used for 
the London stageshow has been 
sold. 

The bulk of the receipts, natur- 
ally, came from the London gam 
attended by the Queen and the 
Duke of Edinburgh. The provin- 
cial efforts raised $8,400 for the 
fund. 

The Royal Command fim 1 ,; 
Disney’s live-aCtioner “Rob Roy. 
was shown at all three per-* 


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Wednesday, February 3, 1954 




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HOW TO MARRY A MILLIONAIRE, 
BENEATH THE 12-MILE REEF 3nd KING 


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Wednesday, Ffl>nu>«y <3, 1954 


J* PICTURES 


^ » 

Studios’ Blodd, Sweat & Fears 

S^SSSSSSmSS Continued from page 1 SmimmimmmmAm—mSiS S 


ranged to sneak “Miss Sadie 
Thompson.” Being the veteran of 
hundreds of separate sneaks for 
over 100 pictures with which 1 
have been connected, I assumed- 
that by now I was immune to the 
pangs and to the shakes. . But the 
dry mouth, the cold sweat, the 
shaking hand, the glassy eye, and 
the sense of bbliviousness were all 
there— as before. 

The chief victim— there are 
other subordinate victims, like the 
director, the writer, the Stars, and 
the film editor-vis, of course, the 
prod ucer. It is he who reacts to 
the infant’s cry in the next to the 
last row; to the steady trek up and 
down the aisles during his picture 
for popcorn, water, and relief; to 
the couple necking two rows 
•ahead. It all leads up to the aw- 
ful moment when the defiant, hos- 
tile audience files out, dropping off 
its two or three word card com- 
ments. 

Ideal Site 

Hollywood studios: stage an av- 
erage of a dozen sneaks each week. 
Each picture being different*, calls 
for special sneak conditions and 
circumstances. In general, the 
producer will select a certain kind 
Of theatre in a certain kind of com- 
munity to get a certain kind of re- 
action. A light musical, for which 
the producer wants an average 
wage-earner reaction,. Will be 
shown in a community like 'Ingle- 
wood or Glendale. 

Each night, a fleet of black, se- 
■ dans moves stealthily out of studio 
gates into the unknown void of 
"sneak preview” land. The setting 
for what is to come — the theatre — 
is a fairly well kept secret, known 
to only* a few key personnel. 
Since many theatre audiences 
close to metropolitan Los Angeles 
have become jaded by : years of 
"sneak preview” showings, pro-' 
ducers will Often go as far as San 
Francisco or San Diego to corral 
public reaction. One studio ex- 
ecutive, in order to assure total se- 
curity, leaves instructions in sealed 
envelopes Until the caravan starts 
to roll. 

Humor Strictly Forced 

The ride to the "sneak point", is 
spent in forced jocularity and a 
stiffening-of-the-spine process for 
the holocaust to come. In most in- 
stances the eight or ten reels of 
film are deposited on the floor next 
to the producer, so that any move- 
ment of his legs or body will bring 
him into contact with the instru- 
ments of torture. 

The unnatural laws which gov- 
ern behavior and conditions of 
sneak previews seem to dictate that 
nothing should ever go completely 
smoothly. ‘ 

On the day that Columbia was 
. to sneak the Glenn Ford-Gloria 
Grahame melodrama, -'The Big 
Heat,” a well-meaning but unthink- 
ing columnist revealed the location 
of the sneak in his daily chatter 
paragraph, which immediately 
robbed the sneak of its potential 
sneak value. It was inevitable that 
this particular showing would be 
held before a "prepared” audience 
—an audience which no conscien- 
tious producer seeks. 

Ad-libbed wisecracks from t 7 .e 
. audience can occasionally frazzle 
the nerves of the studio coterie. 
^Columnists made merry over the 
fact that at the first screening of 
"Salome,” when the head of John 
the Baptist was carried in on the 
silver charger, some hepcat in the 
balcony yelled out, "Dig that crazy 
dessert.” Despite sUch wisecracks 
the picture went on to roll up the 
biggest gross of the year. 

Some studios are in favor of, 
their stars seeing themselves at 
"s.»eaks,” others prefer that they 
wait to see the picture until final 
editing has been done. The latter 
system can eliminate a lot of in- 
discriminate masterminding on the 
part of the player when cuts or 
retakes may be necessary, but the 
star who is present to see and hear 
an audience's reaction, at least 
knows at first hand what the fans 
have liked or disliked. 

There is no act of terror greater 
than the "missing reel," not an 
uncommon occurrence. The story 
of the missing fourth reel in a 
Mack Sennett production which 
was sneaked in Santa Barbara is 
a classic of its* kind, reported in 
detail in one of the histories of 
the industry. "Madame Curie," at 
its sneak in its time, also suffered 
a similar late. Motion picture re- 


viewers and critics may make of 
the results what they wish; sneak 
preview, of the Sennett comedy and 
of "Madame Curie” were both well 
received by both audiences — de- 
spite the absence of a whole reel. 

Relatival No Good 

For the sake of his own peace of 
mind, a producer probably would 
like to fill the sneak point with 
friends, relatives, and job-seekers, 
so that the reaction is in his favor. 
Yet, the responsible producer 
knowsthat Ultimately he has to get 
the truth about his picture well be- 
fore it is released. For that reason, 
he will not: resort to subterfuge. \ 

The only degree of control which 
one can exercize at a sneak is the 
"fade-ometer,” a gadget which can 
increase Or decrease the volume of 
sound emanating from the loud- 
speakers. The producer may want 
to stir up with a few extra decibels 
in a dramatic fight or chase se- 
quence. But there his .control starts 
and ends. 

Th£ uncontrollable elements of 
a sneak ares, of course, the hardest 
to take: the composition of the bill 
which preceded the sneak and 
which can determine the composi- 
tion of the audienqe, During the 
wdr I attended * sneak out in Bur- 
bank.: Half way through the pic- 
ture almost the ehtire audience got 
lip. and walked but. This is some- 
thing not even the hardest of men 
can endure. We sat in a sweat un- 
til the picture was over, and then 
discovered from the manager dur- 
ing our curb-stone analysis that 
our audience had moved out en 
masse to get to the Lockheed 
swingshift. 

Somewhat similar was an experi- 
ence in Pomona, the heart of the 
9 itrus~bejt. In the middle 'of the 
preview about 300 people got ’ up 
and walked out. Happily the thea- 
tre manager pointed to a glowing 
red light on one side of the stage. 
"That’s the frost warning for citrus 
growers,” he explained. The audi- 
etnee had hurried home to fire 
their smudge pots. 

The decision of who shall and 
who shall not attend a sneak 
preview is One which involves 
all the factors of studio protocol: 
a knowledge of the care and feed- 
ing of studio executives and/or 
stars and/or directors and/or 
writers; and most of all, an 
innate sense of human nature. The 
producer who waqts to lengthen 
the scenes of an outstanding sup- 
porting player, and cut the scenes 
of the star knows that it is torture 
compounded with suicide to take 
along a star, show him the sneak 
preview version, and then' invite 
him to another variety of the same 
picture at a later date. This is a 
simple illustration of an extremely 
complex problem. Generally speak- 
ing, a producer, a director, and a 
film' editor will comprise the per- 
sonnel at 75% of all sneaks. It 
'is a daring and courageous produc- 
er, indeed, who invites anyone else. 

The producer never really knows 
whether ail audience enjoyed or 
disapproved his picture but he 
still values "the sneak preview 
card.” /Audiences approach theSfe 
cards with mixed feelings. Some 
people being flattered that they 
should be asked their opinions, 
tend to flatter. Others, having dis- 
liked the principle feature anyway, 
will take it out on the sneak pre- 
view. 

Sneaks are necessarily multiple 
in character. One sneak cannot tell 
as much as three; and yet a dozen 
sneaks cannot tell as much as half 
a dozen. This paradox arises put 
of the fact that the producer and 
his staff are sensitive to public re- 
action only a few times, and after 
that, they become increasingly 
convinced that the public reaction 
was wrong, and they are right. I 
do not believe in "over-sneaking” 
a picture. Yet/the saturation point 
is hard to determine. ’ 

Tom Ince Started It 

The first sneak of which we have 
any record took place at the Hy- 
mer Theatre, Venice Beach, Cal., 
in Mid-October of 1911. Up to that 
time it was the practice to finish 
the picture and ship it back east 
to the home office without delay. 
Thomas Ince • decided to experi- 
ment with his "Custer’s Last 
Fight,” a three reel epic. Ince had 
employed a group of real Indians 
who were in Venice at the time 
with the 101 Ranch Wild West 
Show. It also happens that Sarah 
Bernhardt Was in Venice during 



one of her celebrated tours, Ince 
invited the actress, members of her 
troupe, and the 30 Indians, 

Now the real-life Indians had 
not worked throughout the ehtire 
picture, and had, in fact, only ap- 
peared in some trick riding se- 
quences. When the picture started 
to unfold a melodrama of ' scalping 
and killing and savage mayhem, 
the Indians in the audience began 
their war .whoops and yelling, 
broke up tHe show in protest and 
stopped the exhibition. Mine, Bern- 
hardt’s observation was- a classic. 
"It was haTd to determine,” she 
said, v which was the better enter- 
tainment.” 

Generally speaking, nine months 
elapse between the light of a pro- 
duction idea and the first sneak 
—about the same time it takes to 
have a baby. ‘Let me assure you 
that the pangs of childbirth are as 
nothing. i 


MPAA on Spot 

sssss. Continued from page 4 — J J 

to draw the line ' between abstract 
principle and economic reality. 
According to Arnall, it’s better to 
resist ahy deifiand for subsidies as 
condition for an agreement even 
if this means not getting a deal at 
all. MPEA, which doesn’t favon 
handouts any more than SIMPP, 
bargains on behaJL of product rep- 
ping a consideraiby larger invest- 
ment and therefore is apt. to make 
concessions in the clinching of a 
deal. . 

Where Arnall’s airing of ihe sub- 
sidy issue has hurt the MPEA on 
one hand, it’s helped it on the 
other. The SIMPP prexy has alert- 
ed both the assn, and the govern- 
ment to the view of his group, 
which is that subsidies are not 
only undesirable but possibly ille- 
gal, and that in granting them in 
any shape, manner or form, MPEA 
may be violating the. Webb-Pom- 
ererie Act from which it draws its 
legality. 

On the positive side, the indies’ 
position obviously strengthens the 
hand of MPEA in negotiating in- 
ternational film pacts. It is a tell- 
ing point for MPEA which can 
thus emphasize at the conference 
table that any subsidy arrange- 
ments could land it in hot water 
not only with the industry at 
home, but also with the govern- 
ment. 

Observers feel that the weight 
of SIMPP’s arguments will be put 
to a test fqr the first time at the 
renegotiation of the Italian deal. 
Preliminary talks are skedded to 
start within another couple of 
months, even though . the agreed 
ment itself, signed in Rome last 
March by Johnston, runs to Aug. 
31, 1954..It involved a 10% sub- 
sidy, but contained a specific pro- 
vision that the coin couldn’t be 
used to distribute Italo pix in the 
U. S. .. 

Meanwhile, the French agree- 
ment appears completely stymied. 
In draft form, it, too, provides for 
a subsidy. Latter originally was 
put -at $400,000 over a two-year pe- 
riod. Now the French want $300,- 
000 and a one-year deal. In view 
of clear warning from SIMPP, 
some observers now doubt that 
MPEA will go head with a deal 
involving subsidies, particularly 
since the indies wouldn’t be a' 
party to it. There have been strong 
intimations that; if the French get 
their coin— even if it’s only to pro- 
mote pix in the U.S.— Arnall will 
question the legality of the agree- 
ment. . 


No CinemaScope 

ssss- Continued from page 5 sss 

which specifies that a theatre must 
be completely equipped for 
CinemaScope — including stereo- 
phonic sound — and that it is im- 
[ pssible for the • driveins to live up 
to 4his requirement at the moment 
since virtually the only way in 
which they could reproduce sound 
on 20th's CinemaScopers is via a 
mixer. 

The 20th policy has a bearing, 
too, on its 16 m operations both 
domestically and foreign. In the 
U. S., its pix in narrow-gauge Ver- 
sion are being handled by Films 
Inc. which does a business worth 
about $1,000,000 annually to 20th. 
Unless there is conversion to 
CinemaScope in this field, too, 
Films 'Inc. is eventually going to 
run out of product. Bell & Howell 
has been working on a 16m 
CinemaScope lens. Here again, 
sound looms as the big problem. 


Film Reviews 

; Continued from page f ; 


Front I*age Story 

of the best pf its type to come from 
a. British studio. .With Jack Haw- 
kins, a local b.o. favorite, 1 as its 
star, it has bright prospects of sub- 
stantial returns. Reaction in Amer- 
ica and elsewhere will be less en- 
thusiastic^ although the film rates 
fairly general booking. Absence of 
names may hurt in the U.S. < 

The .yam is taken from Robert 
Gaines' novel, "Final Night,” and 
has skillfully been adapted by Wil- 
liam Fairchild and Guy Morgan. 
The film purports to present a day 
in the life of a national newspaper 
of which Jack Hawkins is the city 
^editor. „To give the story its dra- 
matic content, the script follows 
through a handful of stories which 
will make 'tomorrow’s news. 

The .mood is set by a short pro- 
log, preceding the credit titles, in 
which Hawkins tells^his wife (Eliza- 
beth Allan) that he has to cancel 
their vacation because he cahnot be 
spared from the office, jp the news 
room the reporters are given their 
assignments. A sob sister is sent 
off to the East End to do a story on 
four kids being evicted from their 
home; a poetical type is sent to the 
Old Bailey .to get exclusive rights 
to the life story of a woman 
charged with a mercy killing; and 
a drunken old reporter is given his 
comeback chance by tracking down 
a distinguished atom scientist who 
flies in from America. 

Treatment of the separate news 
items gives the film a marked epi- 
sodic flavor but the incident blends 
into the general plot structure with 
the final big story of the day, a 
plane crash, in which Elizabeth 
Allan is reported among the pas- 
sengers. At times the action be- 
comes somewhat sluggish and a 
long harangue on the ethics of 
journalism could be trimmed with 
advantage. ; . 

Outside of these observations, 
the film is essentially a taut meller 
and the overall effect is heightened 
by a sterling portrayal by Jack 
Hawkins, who plays, the part WitH* 
honest sincerity. Elizabeth Allan 
has limited opportunities but fills 
her role competently while Eva 
Bartok, as the woman in the dock, 
has a substantial slice of screen 
time which she uses to dramatic 
effect without having a single line 
of dialog. 

Derek Farr admirably portrays 
Hawkins' deplity, a caddish type 
who has had an affau* with the wife 
of her boss. Michael Goodliffe. 
Martin Miller, Walter Fitzgerald 
and Patricia Marmont fill the 
major support- roles with distinc- 
tion. 

Film has been smoothly directed 
by Gordon Parry with a fine tens- 
ing job from Gilbert Taylor, Ar- 
thur Lawson has reproduced an 
authentic newspaper office and 
Old Bailey settings. Myro. 


v iim Dvr^nese 
(ITALIAN) 

. . , ■ .Rome, Jan. 26. 

Astoria. Films rolease of Astoria an< 
Sigma vpg production Stars Vittorii 
DeSica, Equardo De Filippo, Mlchelin< 
Presie. Gerard Phlllpe. Anna Maria Fei 
rcro; features Elolsia Gianni. Leda Gloria 
Luigi Russo, Enzo Turco, Marizlo Arena 
Gugllemo Inglese. Directed by Glann 
Franclollni. Screenplay, Giorgio Bassanl 
Ennio a Fl«lano and Ercole Patti from ai 
Idea by Sergio Amldei; camera, Marti 
Bava; editor, Adriana Novelll. Prevlewei 
in Rome. Running time. fS MINS. 


. Villa Borghese” is the name of 
the Central Park pf Rome. Thus, 
the title of this pic might easily 
be "A Day in the Park,” since that 
is what it is. Film carries on from 
early morning to late night 
through a series of unrelated hap- 
penings, all taking place in the 
Borghese Park. "Villa” is com- 
pletely Italian in flavor, without 
problems, and should prove satis- 
fying entertainment. It cannot 
miss in arty houses. 

A half dozen writers have col- 
laborated on. the story from an 
idea suggested by Sergio Amidei. 
a top Italo scripter. Pace never 
bogs down. There are the flirta- 
tious nursemaids; the serious 
young professor who is aware that 
he is losing his sight, and Vittorio 
DeSica as an oldish Lothario who 
makes a fool of himself over a 
sexy looking seamstress. 

Later, the lights go on, and the 
flash of .automobile! headlights 
pick up the painted faces of the 
ladies of the evening as they 
search for companions. One ends 
W.,® 5 . i beauty contest winner 
while the other one is picked up 
by the police. 

Producer Rudy Solmsen picked 
his cast with care as well as an 
eye for the marquee. DeSica, one 
of Italy s best directors, is excel- 
lent as the elderly Romeo in quest 
of youthful romance while Eduar- 
do De Filippo shows pathos as the 
father who is over-anxious to ar- 
range a good marriage for his 
lame daughter. Micheline Presie 
and Gerard > Philipe are standout 
as the married woman and young 


loven Anna Maria Ferrero does 
well . in her sequence. 

Gianni Franciolini’s direction 
shows real control of all situations 
Mario Bava’s camera work is par- 
ticularly interesting. The musical 
score of Mario Nasdmbene is ori- 
ginal and better than adequate. 

. ’ Tubb* 

Silverstone 

ImS Continued from page 7 

for "The Robe” alone, said he ex- 
pected 5;d00 CinemaScope -instal- 
lations In key foreign situations by 
the end of 1954. He added that he 
expected a greater* gross from 
these houses alone than from the 
18,000 an ordinary film might have 
played before. Silverstone also 
made the following points and dis- 
closures: *\ 

The year 1954 'can be expected 
to be the biggest in the r*nrr»rvgj]y*5 
history. Abroad, the first four 
weeks of '54 are already 10% ahead 
of ’53 and the gain should rise to 
20% by the end of February when 
CinemaScope ‘ pix go into wider 
distribution. 

There is "a decided advantage” 
in branch consolidation and recip- 
rocal film handling in so-called 
one-exchange territories. 20th al- 
ready handles Metro pix in Ecua- 
dor and Trinidad and in turn is 
released by M-G in Austria. 

The company hasn’t received any 
complaint regarding sound in the 
ihstallitfions made so far. How- 
ever, there are qui.te a few small 
houses that just won’t be able to 
afford full CinemaScope equip- 
ment for, a while. 20th is encourag- ’ 
ing the production* of sound, 
screens and len$es in many coun- 
tries. . . - - v ~' 

In South Africa, 20th has a deal 
with the Schlesinger interests un- 
der which it has exclusive call on 
the playing time of 20 theatres. Of 
these, 20th owns 12 outright and 
another eight are to be built by the 
Schlesinger group and tied up by 
20th for a 20-year period. The 20 
situations cover all the" key houses 
in the country. 

20th’s foreign revenue in 1953 
accounted for 39% of the com- 
pany’s total income. Figure isn’t 
very realistic, however, due to the 
release of several high-grossing 
CinemaScopers in the domestic 
market. 

Silverstone said he had found ex- 
hibs willing to build theatres "pro- 
vided we give them franchise bn 
our product.” This was a good 
policy, he thought, since it tied the 
local showmen to the interests of 
20th. "They then have a stake in 
our success,” he commented. "They 
become our ambassadors. They 
have a reason to fight.” 

He reported that, in Italy, 20th 
has signed a contract for the pro- 
duction of cheaper : stereo sound 
’costing $3,000 tops. Five companies 
in Italy are turning out sound. Pro- 
vided local equipment is, used, 
houses abroad can put in Cinema- 
scope for about $5,000, he said. In 
the U. S. the average would be 
around $12,000. France, Germany, 
Sweden,, japan, Britain and Austra- 
lia either are -already making Cine- 
mascope equipment or will do so 
soon. "We like to encourage local 
production because of the pressing 
lack of dollars abroad, .Silverstone 
declared. 

Still on the subject of sound, he 
reported Skouras would leave later 
this week to address the Cinemato- 
graph Exhibitors Assn, in London 
on the subject of stereo £ound. To- 
tal of 12 key situations currently 
playing "The Robe” in Britain have 
so far returned a gross of £99,473 
which compares to a £ 30,869 gross 
for "Snows of Kilimanjaro.” Fig- 
ures take into account the 47% 
cut taken for taxes and the Eady 
plan. 

Silverstone cited grosses pf "The 
Robe” all over to pro^e its sock 
b.o. impact. In Sydney/ Australia, 
for instance, at the Regent theatre, 
"The Robe” has grossed so far 
$200,000 in eight weeks. ‘‘Snows" 
grossed $49,000 in its entire run. 
In Manila, the Philippines, "The 
Robe" has grossed $120,000 in four 
weeks. The comparable "Snows" 
figure was $45,000. 

The 20th foreign topper thought 
the number of U. S; pic exports 
should be cut, not only on a censor- 
ship but on a merit basis. "There 
are a lot of small films being sent 
out that have no chance at all to 
get on the screens,” he observed. 


Wednesday* February S, 1954 


WBmfi 


i» 




« 


SEE FOR YOURSELF" 

TRADE SHOWS 


• FEB. IS* 

RHAPSODY 


0 


(Ted) 


FSB, m 





EXECUTIVE SUITE 


TO MY 
THOUSANDS 
OF JUBILEE 


FRIENDS! 


99 



"As promised 



re 



ina It 




99 








To the thousands of friendly showmen taking part in M-G-M’s 30th Anniversary 
Jubilee we say: "Thanks from the bottom of our hearts!" Imagine! Even theatres 
temporarily elosed, have re-opened to capitalize on the promotional possibilities of 
local Jubilees! It’s not only a sentimental occasion, but it’s a business event in this 
industry! We take the opportunity to urge every showman to attend the "SEE FOR 
YOURSELF” Trade Shows of TWO MORE GREAT Jubilee hits "RHAPSODY” 
( Technicolor ) on Feb. 15th and "EXECUTIVE SUITE” on Feb. 19th. See for Yourself! 
Plan for Yourself! 


' * s * * 



From the Smallest Theatres to the Biggest 
Theatre in the Land— They’re Striking Up 
The Band! Everybody’s Joining M-G-M’s 


ANNIVERSARY 


famed Musk 
Hall, NY. 
seats 6200 





SENSATIONAL DRAMA OF MUSIC AND ROMANCE! 

M-G-M presents In Color by Technicolor" RHAPSOD Y” starring 
Elizabeth Taylor • Vittorio Gassman * John Ericson* Louis Calhern 
Screen Play by Fay and Michael Kanin • Adaptation by Ruth and 
Augustus Goetz • Based on the Novel “Maurice Guest** by Henry 
Handel Richardson •Music Conducted by Johnny Green •Piano Solos 
Played by Claudio Arrau • Violin Solos Played by Michael Rabin 
Directed by Charles Vidor • Produced by Lawrence Weingarten. 


GREATEST CAST EVER ASSEMBLED! 

M-G-M presents “EXECUTIVE, SUITE” starring William Holden 
June Allyson * Barbara Stanwyck •Fredric March • Walter Pidgeon 
SheUey Winters • Paul Douglas • Louis Calhern • with Dean J agger 
Nina Foch • Tim Considine • Screen Play by Ernest Lehman 
Based on the Novel by Cameron Hawley • Directed by Robert Wise 

Produced by John Houseman 


2* 


PICTURES 


Wednesday Febratrj 3, 1954 


Calls 'Moon' Debate An Ad 


Continued from paie 9 


official censorship. I would say that 
the efforts at self-regulation which 
culminated in the Code of 1930 re- 
flected the industry’s concern for 
these problems and it was the in- 
dustry’s alternative, or answer, to 
this Government-imposed censor- 
ship. After all, it’s— well, it’s dem- 
ocratic response, it seems to me — 
the industry's recognition of Its 
duty and responsibility to its pa- 
trons.’’ ' 

Devin Garrity, book publisher, 
president of Devin-Adair, on ’’An- 
swers”— “I would Ijke very much 
to see us have two codes— one for 
the all-family universal film which 
would be so graded . . . and another 
one called ’for adults only* in 
which families would be warned 
hot to let their young children 
attend and which people who 
wouldn’t feel safe in going, or for 
one reason or another 'didn’t want 
to go, could stay away. 1 sincerely 
believe that we are being restricted 
artistically by not . having such a 
double standard come out of Hol- 
lywood. 

Praises Code 

Gen. Frank L. Howley, vicechan- 
cellor of N. Y. U., former U. S. 
Military Commandant in Berlin— 
“1 find that the Code, in my under- 
standing, is still Very mucii in or- 
der. It goes down and defines in all. 
detail. Murder, for example. The 
technique of murder must be pre- 
sented in a way that will not in- 
spire imitation. Is that old-fash- 
ioned? You can go down in all 
these other points, point by point, 
and it looks very much up-to-date 
to me . . . and I feel that Mr. 
Preminger has done a great dis- 
service to the American people in 
defying this Code at a tinie when 
lie was safe from punishment. If 
he were a member of that code, a 
member of the association, he 
might then defy it and take his 
medicine as Hughes did.” This, ref- 
erence Was to the $25,000 fine im- 
posed upon RKO, headed by How- 
ard Hughes, for releasing ’’French 
Line” without a Code okay. 

Preminger: ”. . .. I’m not that 
hard up that I have to ihake dirty 
or obscene pictures and I think 
that everybody who has seen the 
play (the legit original of ‘Moon’) 
has so far told me that it was not 
obscene and not dirty. And that no 
people — adults or young — could 
ever be harmed by seeing it. But 
tell me, why should anybody be 
permitted to see the play and not 
111 3 movie?” 

Prof. John K*. Norton, Coluipbia 
U. Teachers College: “I must say 
that (while) I’m. only one member 
of the panel, I object to this pro- 
gram becoming an advertisement 
for ‘The Moon Is Blue/ I would 
like to—” 

Preminger: “ ‘The Moon Is Blue’ 
has played in N. Y. . . .” 

Norton: “I would like to proceed 
without interruption* In the first 
getting back to the topic. 


The Code is not an aged thing that 
was drafted some 20 or 30 years 
ago. It has been constantly revised 
and is an up-torfate guide, not a 
law, not a government, not a mat- 
ter of censorship; it is a; set of 
rules that responsible people in 
the movie Industry may observe if 
they wish to. Now, I say that, taken 
that way, it is a contribution to the 
development of the medium that 
we call the movies rather than a 
detriment to it.” 

Garrity: “Well, I’m basically for 
Mr. Preminger bn this. 1 saw the 
play and I agree with him. The 
play to me was a very fanciful, 
highly conceived bit of fancy that 
couldn’t offend anybody at all. I 
liked the play. I haven’t seen the 
movie. The problem here is how 
to avoid real censorship and I see 
no way of avoiding a really bad 
censorship, which is destined to 
come in as the public gets fooled, 
unless we. have this double stand- 
ard.” . 



Continued from pare 7 




Hour to Make 
a good Movie 


FILM and the 
OIRKCTOR 

by Don Livingston $4.50 



said, there would be a sliding per- 
centage scale. Following determin- 
ation of a fair percentage for a 
particular film, Snaper said the 
percentage should decrease if by 
the exhib’s efforts he can bring in 
more biz than originally figured. 

The industry, Snaper said, has 
not taken; full realization of the 
power of the smalltown exhibitors 
who make up the membership of 
the. Allied., He cited as an example 
the influence of the smalltown 
theatremen in winning Congres- 
sional support for elimination of 
the 20% Federal admission tax 
which was vetoed by the President. 
“Newspapers talked about a pow- 
erful motion picture . lobby,” 
Snaper said. “That’s a laugh since 
it was all done on the grass roots 
level. My total expenditure for the 
entire campaign was about $38 
and that included several trips to 
Washington. People just don’t 
realize the influence of the small- 
town exhibitor. . The local Repre- 
sentative or Senator is his neigh- 
bor. The exhibitor can knock on 
his door and say, ‘Now look here, 
Charlie, I’m in trouble if you do 
not do something about this tax. 
You can come down to the theatre 
and look at my books. If I don’t 
get some relief, I!|l have to. close 
down.’ That’s the way it was done. 
And . there were no high-priced 
lobbyists in Washington.” 

. The Allied topper emphasized 
that the smalltown theatremen 
‘.‘can influence more people than 
any individual in tne town. He has 
his screen, his lobby, his marquee 
and other means to reach the larg- 
est number of people.” . 

His close contact with the local 
citizens has made the smalltown 
exhib a strong advocate of the 
production code, Snaper said. “He 
is personally responsible for what 
is shown on the screen. He cannot 
offend his neighbor because they 
are his steady trade and he has to 
live With them every , day.” ■ 


RKO Sues 

Continued from page 4 


NEWS BLACKOUT WHILE 
TOA JOUSTS ON SOUND 

With a news blackout surround- 
ing the activities of Theatre Own- 
ers of America board meeting in 
Washington Sunday <31) to yes- 
terday, TOA’s New York headquar- 
ters issued prexy Walter Reade 
Jr.’s report to the exhib brass. Re- 
port contains in the main a rehash 
of Reade’s personal fight with 20th- 
Fox relating to the stereophonic 
sound controversy and Reade’s use 
of a “mixer,” all of which has al- 
ready been thoroughly aired in 
the trade press. • , 

Originally TOA notified the 
tradeprfess that .. board members 
and the executive committee would 
be available for press conference 
following each session. However, a 
few days before the conclave a 
notification from TOA’s N.' Y. of- 
fice said the press meetings had 
been cancelled and reports., of the 
meetings would originate from 
N. Y. : ' 

Change in plans apparently was 
caused by serious dissension in 
TOA’s ranks relating to the, stereo^ 
phonic sound hassle which caused 
the Indiana-Illinois Theatre Corp. 
to withdraw 1 from membership in 
TOA. Before leaving for the Wash- 
ington palaver, Reade declined to 
comment on the withdrawal. 

In his report to the board on the 
stereo sound question, Reade said 
he was addressing the members 
as fellow exhibs and not as TOA 
prexy. Reviewing current e x h i b 
problems— the decrease in the 
number of releases and the steady 
increase in film rental — Reade 
said “there exists among exhibitors 
devastating confusion and indeci- 
sion brought about -primarily by 
he problems ! r e suit i n g from 
the manner and method in which 
Cinemascope pictures were and 
are being distributed by Fox.” 
TOA topper asserted that he felt 
that C’Scope pictures could be just 
as effective with single track 
sound and when 20th delayed in 
making a promised test, he decided 
to make his own test with the 
mixer.” which was “installed at 
the cost of about one-third of that 
for stereophonic sound.” 

Reade reported that 20th ob- 
tained an injunction during a 
very successful but as yet un- 
finished run, and just before we 
were scheduled to play ‘The Robe’ 
in two other theatres where we 
had validly executed contracts.” He 
noted that before the matter went 
to court it was adjusted to the sat- 
isfaction of both parties. ; 

Agreement, he said, ^stipulated 
that Reade would be* permitted to 
play “The Robe” in the three the- 
atres without stereophonic sound 
and that 20th would run tests with- 
in 30 days to determine whether 
it - “should withdraw its require- 
ments of compelling stereophonic 
sound in all situations.” The tfests,. 
he said, would be held in four geo- 
graphical centers. 

In conclusion, Reade stated that 
20th’s position is “basically illogi- 
cal and economically unsound. For 
thousands of theatreowners the ex- 
penditure of the sums necessary 
for the installation of stereophonic 
is not warranted, and, in my opin- 
ion, this must be forcefully brought 
to the attention of Fox. It is my 
hope that the proposed tests will 
doit.” 


Amusement Page Shifts 


than 


5 Continued from page 7 

other local 


Mr. Livingston, an Experienced 
Director of more than 60 films, tells 
you how the professional gets the 
best results from his actors and 
equipment. You’ll learn, for in- 
stance: 


• How to achieve good composi- 
tion and continuity 

• How to coordinate the three 
major elements of movie produc- 
tion 

• How to eliminate unnecessary 
expense atid save valuable pro- 
duction time 

If you want to write, produce, or direct 
better movffs oo any budget for any audi- 
ence, you'll find much practical help in 
this book. For an ON-APPROVALcopy, 
send a postcard to 

Sfike lAfacmiMan 

. Sox 4 40 Fifth Ave., Now York 1 1 . 


conspiracy, said the Skouras com- 
pany. 

The return volley from RKO 
Theatres was that the Skouras 
group of theatres acutally is the 
conspirator, along with 20th. 

The Skouras freres are named 
individually defendants because ull 
three had direct interest in Skouras 
Theatres. This was via a pooled 
income' arrangement whereby 
George Skouras, as head of the 
N. Y. chain, Spyros Skouras, as 
head of 20th, and Charles Skouras, 
as head of National Theatres, de 
posited their remunerations in a 
fund jointly owned by the three. 
This pooling setup was discontin- 
ued a couple of years ago. 

Trial dates for the Skouras suit 
and the RKO Counter action have 
yet to be set although arguments 
on preliminary motions already 
have been heard. If the case does 
go into trial it doubtless will focus 
on the whole history of the N. Y. 
pic licensing and exhibition situa- 
tion. This has been ‘a controversial 
subject within the trade for years 
because of the dominant positions 
held by the RKO and Loew’s cir 
cuits. 


Johnston Invites 


Continued from page 5 


arbitration plan that does not in- 
clude the arbitration of film rent- 
als, a stipulation that distribS 
have vehemently nixed. 

Reade said that actual resump- 
tion of arbitration conferences 
would resume as soon : as agree- 
ment is reached on the mechanics. 
He said theDe would be determined 
shortly at a distrib meeting. 

TOA chieftain noted that TOA’S' 
membership is increasing and that 
all the theatres in the Schine chain 
are becoming associated with TOA. 
He did not mention the withdrawal 
of the Indiana-Illinois Theatre 
Corp., which ankled TOA last week 
because of disagreement with 
Reade’s policy relating to stereo 
sound. 

Oh TOA’s financial status, Reade 
said “it is a source of : great grati- 
fication to know that \Ve are 
financially in the soundest posi- 
tion we ever enjoyed since our 
J inception.” 


vertising rate 
businesses. 

Industry organizations, Individu- 
ally and collectively, have period- 
ically advocated plans to over- 
come the alleged discrimination. 
The Motion Picture Industry Coun- 
cil In Hollywood, tte Council of 
Motion Picture Organizations as 
well as the Motion Picture Assn, of 
America have been the main over- 
all public relations organizations. 
In addition,, local and national ex- 
hibitor outfits have included pub- 
lic relations within the scope of 
their operations. 

Another concern of the industry 
has been the day by day coverage 
of film news. No industry group 
has undertaken a study, but out- 
side research orgs, such as Alfred 
Sindlinger and the Bureau of Ad- 
vertising, have come up with some 
figures which, unfortunately, are 
in conflict as to readership, al- 
though both suggest the same solu- 
tion. Sindlinger, noting a drop of 
readership of the amusement page 
from 40% to 19% from 1949 to 
1953, concludes that picture ads 
placed on other pages than the 
amusement will perhaps draw 
more attention. It is not' recom- 
mended that amusement adver- 
tisers quit the amusemeiti page 
completely. Sindlinger suggests 
that a directory ad there and dis- 
play ads elsewhere -might be more 
effective salesmanship. 

Bureau of Advertising, on the 
other hand, cites, a Starch survey 
which shows that median reader- 
ship of amusement pages was 46% 
by men and 59% by women in 1953 
as compared to 39% and 46% in 
1952. The Bureau suggests that 
the industry should continue ' to 
use the amusement pages . for its 
“bread and butter” business'/ but 
should make use of other pages to 
entice the “infrequent” but never- 
theless important film-goer: 

What Is ’Amusement’.? 

This advice to wander off the 
amusement page led Variety to 
take a looksee at film coverage and 
advertising in three big city news- 
papers chosen at random. Here, 
an interesting point came up. What 
constitutes an amusement page? 
Does it include the page where 
film and other entertainment ads 
are placed or is it the page that 
includes both ads and news relat- 
ing to entertainment? Excepting 
for Sundays, there are no special 
amusement news pages in the Chi- 
cago and St. Louis papers although 
specific pages are devoted to en- 
tertainment advertising. News 
about pictures . do not ' necessarily 
appear on or near the amusement 
advertising. For example, the 
Post-Dispatch, in mid-week edi- 
tion, contains not a line of local 
news pertaining to picture open- 
ings or other film news usually 
placed in the category of publicity. 
On occasions, there’s a press .agent 
feature on a Hollywood person- 
ality, but this is usually on the 
women’s page among columns de- 
voted to food, social problems, ad- 
vice to the lovelorn, etc. Picture 
as well • as play reviews, under a 
regular headline, appear in the 
editorial section. 

In the Chi Tribune., film news, 
consisting of a Hedda Hopper col- 
umn, a picture story on an upcom- 
ing film, is also found on the 
woman’s page. Picture review, op- 
posite the film ad page, was among 
society news. The paper con- 
tained no items concerning picture 
openings or other local picture 
news. 

The Denver Post, on the other 
hand, contains a page that can be 
called the amusement page. News 
about films, music, plays, niteries 
are linked with the entertainment 
advertising. The coverage appears 
thorough, but in comparison to tv 
news, it is sparse. This was alzo 
noticed in the other papers. Video 
news, programming and personal- 
ties, is taking' up considerable more 
space than film news. 

- The amount of space for film ad- 
vertising* however, far exceeds tv 
advertising. During the week cov- 
ered,, there was a minimum of ads 
devoted to tv sets. On the other 
hand, the space for film ads was 
substantial, one Friday issue of the 
Chi Tribune carrying 448 column 
inches. The film advertising in all 
three papers consisted of display 
space for the key downtown 
houses as well as large directory 
listings for the nabe houses. 

The Sunday editions of the three 
papers were kinder spac»*-v.ise to 
films, the Denver Post being the 


most liberal. However, the St. 
Louis and Chi papers;- though ex- 
tremely-conservative on week days 
went out for Hollywood on Sun- 
day. The Post-Dispatch, which 
practically Ignores Hollywood on 
week days, carries a film gossip 
column (Howard Heffernan) and a 
roundup piece by its own critic, 
Myles Standish. 

One things is obvious from the 
casual perusal of the papers. 
Local exhibs, indie* as well as 
chain operators are spending hefty 
advertising coin to let" the public 
know what’s playing at the local 
film emporiums. 


Antitrust Suits 

i Continued from pas e 5 


extent that there hardly could be 
any remaining inequities. Also, 
exhibs who were subjected to in- 
justices prior to this overhaul in 
host cases already have taken their 
beefs to court or obtained desired 
concessions from the distribs via 
negotiation. 

Disturbing to a couple of film 
attorneys, howeyer, is the possible 
of more litigation stemming from 
the trade’s new lensing and pro- 
jection . processes. There already 
have been some vocal squawks by 
exhibs who claim inability to li- 
cense CinmeaScope pix after go- 
ing to the expense of installing the 
C’Scope equipment. 

Here’s a rundown of the more 
outstanding antitrust suits now 
pending, giving title of the case, 
Federal Court district where filed, 
and amount of damages sought: 

Skouras Theatres vs. Radio 
Keith Orpheum, ei ak,-N. Y., $87,- 
690,000. 

Essaness Theatres vs. Balaban & 
Katz, et al.. Chicago, $32,455,000. 

Consolidated Yheatres vs. War- 
ner. Bros. Circuit Management 
Corp, et al., N. Y., $14,324*000. 

Broadway & 96th Street Realty 
Corp. vs. Loew’s, et al., N. Y., $14,- 
382,996. 

. Edward N. Claughton vs. Para- 
mount Film Distributing Corp. et 
al., Miami, $9,540,000. 

Elmwood Amusement vs. RKO 
Rhode Island Corp., et al., Provi- 
dence, $6,000,000. 

Metropolis Theatre Co. vs. Bala- 
ban & Katz, et al., Chicago, $6,- 
000,000. 

Metropolitan Theatre Co. vs. 
Warner Bros. Pictures Co.* et al., 
N. Y., $8,450,000. 

Lewis Sablosky Par Film Dis- 
tributing, et al.. Eastern Pennsyl- 
vania, $5,775,000. 

Allen.. B. Thompson vs. North 
Carolina Theatres, et al., Western 
district of. North Carolina, $7,000,- 
000 . ) 


Reissues Earn 

Continued from page 7 


was $24,029,984. Advertising ex- 
penditure on features for the year 
was $802,048. This is being \vritten 
off over a period of 60 weeks from 
the date of release. 

Regarding the sinking fund 
through which $4*821,000 principal 
amount of debentures had been re- 
tired, the report indicated th.at U 
as of Dec. 31, 1953, had met ils 
requirements up to Sept., 1954. It 
must retire $299,400 principal 
amount of debentures each March 
1 and Sept. 1. Total of $7,500,000 
principal amount of debentures 
.were originally authorized. 



n- RADIO CITY MUSIC HUl- 

Rockefeller Center 

"KNIQI1S «f fe ROUND TABLE" 

In CtMfluSnpt 

Milt IMlH • In IMBHER • Mil FEME! 
Au M-e-M PklwtlnfiOlOR 

me skckiouk slice rnsmtAiioR 


fttmm 


nw command 


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fitly wm 

JIM MINI- Mfiim 


PARAMOUNT 



















Wednetday, February 3 , 1954 



Hollywood, Feb, 2. .■* 

Initial production plans by the 
new American National combine, 
which bought Eagle-Lioh studios, 
reveal company plans the first 
telepix soap operas. First on the 
sked, due to start in 30 days, are 
260 15-miri. soap operas. American 
National (which changed its tag 
from First National) will also film 
39 half-hour “treasury Men in 
Action", vidpix. ' 

Ambitious production plans were 
disclosed here by prexy Bernard 
Prockter, who made it clear other 
deals are presently being negotiat- 
ed, and that plans are to put the 
studio on a 52-week-a-year produc- 
tion basis immediately upon begin- 
ning of the sked. New owners have 
requested all present tenants of 
the Santa Monica boulevard Studio 
to leave, except Frank Wisbar. 
who will remain with his “Fireside 
Theatre." 

Prockter penned the original 
story for “Family. Next Door." the 
soap opera series, while Bob Ei- 
senbach; and Frank Roseriwald will 
script the series. The vidpix will 
be shot on a five-day-a-week basis, 
for an entire year, and they'll be 
offered to local and regional ad- 
vertisers on a syndication basis, 
for daytime and early evening pro- 
gramming. The 260 telepix are 
budgeted at approximately $900,- 
000 . 

Prockter explained, “We feel 
that this type of property is a na? 
tural for the little guy around the 
country. It will cost a,^ local or re 
gional sponsor less money for this 
series each week than if he had 
one half-hour show at night. A sta- 
tion: also can have sponsors per- 
haps twice a week, with other 
sponsors taking the rest of the 
days. This, provides a perfect op- 
portunity for the so-called small 
advertiser to come into, tv with his 
own program. 

"Treasury Men," currently bn 
NBC-TV live from N.Y.. rolls May 
1, for fall telecasting. This being 
Prockter’s own property, Ameri- 
can National is merely furnishing 
the production facilities. : Show 
shifts to ABG-TV, arid is commit- 
ted to that web for the 39 shows 
for next season. Show may con- 
tinue from April until next fall on 
a live basis, if. a sponsor Is found. 
The series budget is approximate- 
ly $980,000. Prockter has not de- 
cided whether he will retain the 
present lead; Walter Greaza, for 
the vidpix version. 

Ed Pauley, oil man who is one 
of the businessmen comprising the 
( Continued, on page 46 ) 


BuzzelTs Vidpix Setup 

Hollywood, Feb. 2. 
Former .Pietro director Edward 
Buzzell has formed his own tele- 
pix production company, and plans 
a vidpix series based on Robert 
Carson's Cosmopolitan mag story, 
"Third Girl From the Right." 

Buzzell plans to launch produc- 
tion the latter part of May. 


Bvs DA. 




‘Hollywood, Feb. 2 r 

Ziv Television Programs, Inc., 
Which acquired all television and 
radio rights to "Mr. District At- 
torney" from Phillips Lordi has 
started/ filming a vidpic series in 
Eastman 35m color with David 
Brian iri the title role. Radio show 
is being planned for the near fu- 
ture.-': 

John Sinn, Ziv prexy, announced 
that the firm had paid Lord, who 
controlled the property for the last 
17 years, $260,000 for complete 
rights!. Telefilm series will, be shot 
largely on location around. Los An- 
geles with the full cooperation of 
law enforcement agencies in, the 
area and only a small percentage 
of the filming will be confined to 
the sound stages. 

“Mr. District? Attorney" is the 
seventh Ziw tele program currently 
in production and distribution. 
Others are “Cisco Kid," “My Favor- 
ite Story;" “I Led Three 
Lives," “The Unexpected," “Boston 
Blackie" and “Times Square Play- 
house.” * 

Initial “Attorney" release is 
slated for April 1. Scripts u r ill be 
purchased from writers who regu 
larly Contribute to the Ziv sched- 
ule and directorial assignments will 
be divided among Eddie Davis, 
Leslie Goodwins, Lepn Benson, 
Lewis Allen, Lew Ladders, Lam- 
bert Hillyer and Henry Kessler. 



Chicago, Feb. 2. 

The New World, official weekly 
newspaper published by the Catho- 
lic archdiocese of Chicago, is prep- 
ping a riew feature to debut in an 
early issue which lists according to 
Legion of Pecency standards the 
current feature films being shown 
by the four Chi tv stations. Since 
ail the oldie films except some of 
the foreign imports have already 
been stamped with the Legion’s 
rating classification during their 
regular theatre run, the weekly 
will cross-check the current tv 
titles against the original Legion 
ratings. ; 

Although Msgr. Thomas A. Mee- 
han, New World editor, told Va- 
riety that the tv listings , are an 
individual project, it’s expected 
they will establish a pattern for 
Catholic, papers elsewhere; A simi- 
lar, feature was launched recently 
by the Universe Bulletin in Cleve- 
land. 

Msgr? Meehan said the new serv- 
ice was prompted by numerous re- 
quests from readers for guidance 
in selecting video fare. He said 
readers have asked for help in pre- 
judging not only celluloid offerings 
. but live shows as well, but that it 
would obviously be an impossibil- 
ity to stamp an advance accept- 
ability or non-acceptability rating 
on live programs. 

The New World has a 153,000 
circulation in the Chi area. It’s ex- 
pected that. the first film listings 
will be available for the upcoming 
issue out Friday (5). 



Claims, Counter-flams m Snader, 



y H 4 4 4 4 4 f I M 4 ♦ ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦ 


WM. KEENE 

"What have I done 
for you recently? 

LE 2-1100 




♦ ♦♦ ♦ > M»4H < H 4 4 4 f t 444+ 


LeVine’s New Chi Post 

Chicago, Feb. 2. 

Alfred LeVine has been upped 
from an account exec berth to mid- 
west sales manager post for Con- 
solidated TV films, succeeding 
Richard Gedney, who’s left the 
firm. 

LeVine is currently pitching 
Cofisolidated’s new “Time for 
Beany” series. He just finalized 
a deal with KOMV-TV, Columbia, 
Mo , for the “Station Starter” bun- 
dle comprised of 258 half-hour vid- 
pix produced by Jerry Fairbanks. 
WTVO, Rockford, has reordered 
the “Starter" series for another 
run. v 


Grievance from stations that 
they are riot getting their vidpix 
on time were answered by the NBC 

Film Division last week after a 
study of distribution . processes; 
The web’s filmery put most of the 
blame on the outlets theiriselves, 
but said also that there may not be 
enough prints to go ’round, terming 
it . "financUilly impossible” to make 
a print for every station buying a 
show. 

In the bicycle prodess, "Badge, 
714" ( ex-“Dragriet” ), for . instance, 
may be running in 100 cities, with 
orily 30 to 40 prints available and 
thus each print must be used by 
two or three stations, which must 
send them on to the next point im- 
mediately after showing. But, says 
the web, directions are not always 
followed. Some stations will send 
the can back to New York, others 
will “just forget" to mail 'em out 
and they lie in the film library 
while other stations send pleading 
wires to the syndicator in Gotham 
or Hollywood. 

Film Division- maintains an 
automatic warning system. When a 
station doesn’t receive film 48 
hours in advance of the playdate, 
the system is to call the exchange 
in N. Y.— or the Coast, depending 
on location. The exchange then 
calls the station that’s supposed to 
do the shipping. There have been 
a number of tracing jobs on lost 

film. 

Although loath to reveal the 
cost of prints, “FD gave this pic- 
ture of growth to show that it is 
unreasonable to make more than 
about 40% in prints against the 
total of stations using a series. 


New York 

Bud Austin, Official Films’ na- 
tional sales chief, in Chicago for 
a week of agency huddles . . . Burt 
Balaban,i Princess Pictures prexy, 
in town briefly from Munich for 
homeoff ice huddles . . . Betty Oakes 
completed role as femme lead in 
a tv-film iri Munich, playing oppo- 
site Richard Nye . . vMartin Jones, 
Henry Olmstead and Gordon Knox, 
TPI toppers, spending the week in 
Quantico recording , the Marine 
Corps Band for their vidpix series 
with a marine background ♦ . . 
Producer Peter Elgar off to Mil- 
waukee to film a feature-length 
color documentary for Pabst Brew- 
ing . V, J. Milton Salzburg, Cornell 
Films prexy, back from Hollywood, 
Fla., yirhere he supervised the up- 
criming series of golf vidpix star- 
ring Jimmy Demaret . , Vitapix 

named William Rambo, ex-KLAC- 
TV, Los Angeles, 1 as its Coast sales 
rep ... Newly formed Dine & 
Kalmus flackery landed Screen 
Gems as one of its first major ac- 
counts. . . William Fi Rodgers Jr. 
named studio manager of Michael 
Myerberg Productions. 




Prod. Nut 



Film syndication has become the 
“logical and effective instrument 
strengthening American market 
aims” by opening up “all areas and : 
all markets and all opportunity in 
all economic brackets’’ for the ad- 
vertiser j Michael M. Sillerman, 
exec v.p. of Television Programs 
of America, declared last week. 

Addressing, a meeting of the Na- 
tional Television Film Council, Sil- 
lerman attacked the “uneconomic, 
limited and . restraining practices of 
live network programming” arid 
characterized live network televis- 
ion as “strangling iri its own um- 
bilical cord because it can’t find 
the hour preferred, the time de- 
sired, and it comes to the market, 
in many cases, at a- prohibitive 
Cost,” 

Sillerman said the networks no 
longer cater to the mass of Ameri- 
can business, but to a giant few, 
while syndication offers opportu- 
nities to small and large business 
to bring their products into the 
home. Network resources are in- 
sufficient, he declared, to resolve 
the. increasing problems of time 
clearance, time differential and 
flexibility for business. Webs are 


trying to solve these problems 
through setting up of their own 
syndication departments, through 
kinnies, through delayed broadcast 
film shows and through co-op 
shows, blit are not proving too suc- 
cessful. 

Syndication, he said, through the 
use of top talent, writers, produc- 
tion facilities and financing, is 
proving the merger of entertain- 
ment and industry through tv. Sil- 
lerman estimated that $50,000,000 
is being sunk into production of 
syndicated shows for 1954, and said 
these shows should attain a, reven- 
ue of $125,000,000. 

Pointing out that the trend of 
national advertisers to syndication 
is growing, he said that “live tele- 
vision is imprisoned by its very 
character to be hemmed in arid 
strait-jacketed just because it is 
live. . . . It interferes with the 
strategic mobility of station man- 
agers. It interferes with the sale 
of local and regional time at the 
, best market price. It obstructs lo- 
; cal and regional business by push- 
j ing aside the needs and require- 
; nients of substantial American re- 
gional and local advertisers." ' 

'■<S* 


. Initial airings, ’of the Princess 
Pictures group of feature pix made 
for television took place in two 
markets over the weekend, with the 
mass of the 36 stations already, 
contracted for . the pix set to be- 
gin airing them between now and 
April 1. Princess, headed by Burt 
Balaban, has delivered five finished 
features to Vitapix, which is distrib- 
uting the Munich-made film in the 
U. S. for television. 

Under the Princess deal with 
Vitapix, Princess is to deliver all 
26 feature-length films by Sept. 1. 
Films are being shot under Bala- 
ban ’s supervision In Munich with 
a shooting schedule of under two 
weeks and a budget of $40,000 for 
each. Films have American names 
in the leads with German support- 
ing casts. Stories are originals by 
American screen and tv writers, 
with Irve Tunick acting as story 
editor in N. Y. 

Vitapix has the series sold, thus 
far in 36 markets, but exec v.p. 
Bob Wormhoudt says sales should 
increase now that the series is tak- 
ing to the air. While several of the 
station stockholders in Vitapix 
have bought the series, there’s no 
discount or price reduction fbr 
stockholder stations, merely a first' 
refusal right. 

Series, being a “first" for tele- 
vision, is priced somewhat higher 
than other feature pix which have 
played the theatrical rounds in 
the U. S. Price is based on the 
Class A hour rate of the stations, 
similar to the new half-hour syn- 
dicated series being offered. Pix 
( Continued on page 24) 


Long-fought and many-faceted 
series of suits and countersuits in 
the Snader Telescriptions and 
Bisno Telescriptions setup finally 
dragged to an end last week when 
arbitratpr Samuel R. Rosenbaum 
announced his final awards. Deci- 
sion, which involves the assump- 
tion of liability by Al Bisno to the 
investors in the firms involved, 
doesn’t become effective until a 
consent decree holding Bisno liable 
is okayed by a Los’ Angeles court. 
This is expected shortly. 

Under the complex final award 
drawn up by Rosenbaum, Bisno has 
volunteered to issue promissory 
notes to all investor^ in BSM ( part- 
nership of Bisno, Lou Snader arid 
Samuel Markovitch) arid Bisno 
Television /Sales, amounting to 
$600,000 plus Interest to be paid 
Over a ldfyear period. Notes rep- 
resent guarantees Of repayment of 
60% of the investment in BSM arid 
80% of that In BTS. Noteholders 
have the option of settling after 
nine months arid before 15 months 
of receipt of the notes for 20% of 
their investment, or a total of 
$ 120 , 000 . 

Because of assumption of liabili- 
ty to Bisno, Rosenbaum ordered 
all the assets of Snader Telescrip- 
tiori Sales and iri BSM and BTS for 
the purpose of sellirig properties 
held by the firms in order to repay ; 
the investors. Among properties 
to be unloaded are the 39-pix 
“Dick, Tracy" series arid 14 Alexan- 
der Korda features. Total assets of 
Snader Telescription Corp., the 
Snader producing outfit, revert to 
Snader. 

Also approved in .the report 
were settlements of clairiis by 
Oliver Unger,, now president of 
Comet Television Films, who got 
$19,000 to drop his suit against STS 
for $24,000 in coin advanced, arid 
Keith Palmer, who transferred his 
rights to the Tracy series for 
$10,000. Additionally, it was ruled 
that no return On their investments 
would be awarded Snader arid 
Markovitch, and they were directed 
tc return a total of $39,250 drawn 
by them and their families as sal- 
aries and consultant fees for a two- 
year period. 

Report characterized Bisno as a 
(Continued on page 24) 


NBC’s ‘Who’s Silent?’ 

■On Beefs of Indie 
Producers Re Tintpix 

Stan Parian, NBC color film con- 
sultant, is hot and bothered over 
recurring beefs from indie pic pro- 
ducers Who claim lack of enough 
color data on tint tv. If NBC is 
part of what the squawkers claim 
is “network .silence" on rainbow 
systems for filrns, it’s news to him. 

Parian says his door is wide open 
—and always has been— to ac- 
credited producers, ad agencies, 
etc., seeking information on proc- 
esses, that he can save them untold 
thousands of dollars in research 
and experimentation, but that his 
office, at the same time, can’t be 
expected to know about complaints 
when they don’t reach him. . 

No. 1 suggestion Parian had last 
week — and he’s been saying it for 
months— is that whatever the sys- 
tem, it won’t make a bad film look 
good. If anyone wants to try him 
qni the proper method for making 
tinted tv film, the threshold is still 
wide open on his virtual around- 
the-clock schedule, he says. 



Screen Gems has tapped, a dozen 
writers to work on material for its 
various vidpix series in an upbeat 
move by the. Columbia Pictures 
subsidiary. For the “Damon Run- 
yon Theatre" skein about to go 
into production, Berne Giler is 
adapting “Let the Eagles Scream”; 
Seymour Robinson, “Lonely Heart”; 
Max Lief, “Dancing Dan’s Xmas”; 
Ruffeil Hughes, "Pick the Winner." 
Parted to handle the camera for 
the series is Gert Andersen. 

Televersion of Robert Youngs 
“Father Knows Best" is getting 
script treatment by Dorothy Coop- 
er, while the new “Adventures of 
Rin-Tin-Tin" will be prepared by 
Douglas Heyes, Fsank Moss and 
Lee Berg. Upcoming in the net- 
worked “Ford Theatre" will be 
plays by Mary C. McCall Jr.. 
Karen De Wolfe, Robert Hardy 
Andrews and Malcolm Stuart Boy- 
lan. 

The heavy scripting assignments 
are part of an expansion move by 
SG which, will be further blue- 
printed tomorrow (Thurs.) when 
general manager Ralph -Cohn, and 
sales chief John Mitchell will dis- 
cuss 1954 plans at a press huddle 
in New York, 



For Wanger’s ‘Riot 


Walter Wanger’s “Riot in Cell 
Block 11" (Allied Artists) has 
bought 59 spots and station breaks , 
on WCBS-TV, N. Y., to plug the 
pic’s Feb. 18 opening at the May- 
fair Theatre. Donahue & Cue is 
placing the. business over eight 
days starting Feb. 12. 

Neville Brand, star of the film, 
arrives iri town Sunday. (7) to help 
in the, exploitation via personal ap- 
pearances. 




TV-FILMS 


Wednesday, February 3, 1954 PfitSIEff 


23 



■ 



Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

Telepix direction is far more satisfying than directing theatrical 
films, it’s a director’s dream come true, in the opinion of Robert 
Florey, winner of the Screen Directors Guild’s first vidpic direc- 
torial award. Florey, regular megger on th6 Loretta Young Series 
but winner for his Four Starrer, '‘The Long Voyage,” has directed 
more than 100 theatrical pix and 50 vidpix. 

lii tv the picture comes out the way I shoot it. There is no 
interference, and it’s-immensely satisfying to see the finished pic- 
ture the way I shot it. In motion pictures, on. the other hand, by 
the time the producers, cutters, and so on, get through with the 
film, 1 don’t recognize it. 

“You can do your best work in tv because there isn’t any inter- 
ference. In the majors, the picture is out of your hands. I find 
tv satisfying, refreshing and a real challenge, You rise— Or fall— 
by what is on the screen, but you know this is your untampered 
work. ' ’ ■ • 

“It’s a tough grind, shooting a picture in two or three days, but 
I like it In motion pictures a director is forced to do things 
whether he wants to or not. 

“We shoot our telepix along the same lines as motion pictures, 
making use of the same techniques. The big difference is you have % 
to do it a lot Quicker,” Florey said. / 

The director has megged 22 “Four Star Playhouse” telepix, and 
26 in the Loretta Young series: 



gether three kines of the “Life 
With Linkletter” telefilms that ap- 
peared on ABC-TV a couple of 
seasons back and* has negotiated a 
deal to play them in theatres 
throughout Great : Britain. Once 
these start making the rounds 
Guedel will ditto on the Groucho 
Marx “You Ifet Your Life” tele- 
pix for similar distribution; 

Newest venture by Guedel, who 
is shaping up as a “one-man show 
business” with 25 half-hour shows 
a week circulating the radio, tv 
and vidpix channels, comprised of 
Groucho Marx and the multiple 
Art Linkletter shows on radio-tv 
and vidfilms, accents the global 
thrusts being made by. the Coast 
prodiicer-packager. The radio ver- 
sion of the Linkletter “People Are 
Funny” is currently playing the 
transcription circuit in Canada, 
England, Australia, New Zealand 
and even Japan. 

Guedel, who was in N.Y. last 
week setting deals for the upcom- 
ing tv version of Linkletter^ ‘‘Peo- 
ple Are Funny, also revealed that 
negotiations are under way for a 
new half-hour telefilm series call- 
ed. “False Step,” which TPA has 
acquired for distribution. It will 
rotate stars (similar to “Four 
Star Playhouse.” and will have a 
dramatig, format based on the first 
offenses 1 that inspired criminal 
careers. TPA has earmarked $30,- 
000 for a. pilot film. 

Guedel’s current vidpix pack- 
age is “Linkletter and Kids” in 
which Bond Bread has the major 
sponsorship stake in multiple 
cities. 



There’s a daytime future in vid- 
pix, acoording to Edgar G. (Ted) 
Sisson, director of the NBC Film 
Division. But it’s at least a couple 
of years, away and will initially 
take the form of reruns. His theory 
is that housewives will be seeing 
“new” product” by virtue of hav- 
ing missed them on the original 
playouts — this also follows the pat- 
tern on the click of the repeats 
over the nighttime circuits. 

Sisson doesn’t believe new tele* 
Pic series will be mushroomed 
over the weep opera stretches un- 
less they’re daytime slanted and 
serve as a complementary compo- 
nent sudsers. The cost of new 
celluloiders will obviate their day- 
time exposure. But there are 
plenty of titles in the can that 
could be judiciously chosen for the 
suntime hours as sponsored seg- 
^nts. Just a thought, says Sisson, 
with nothing blueprinted as yet. 


Guild’s Latino Dubbing 

Guild Films is dubbing Spanish 
soundtracks for two of its vidpix 
series, “Libqrace” and “Joe' Pa- 
looka,” with an eye toward selling 
them throughout Latin America. 
Several episodes of both series are 
currently getting the dubbing 
treatment in Mexico City and Ha- 
vana. These Should be complete in 
a couple of weeks, and a decision 
will then be made whether to ex- 
tend th£ practice to all episodes in 
the series. 

Reub Kaufman, Guild prexy, an- 
ticipates a 40-station market for 
vidpix in Latin America by the end 
of 1954. 



Hollywodd, Feb. 2. 

In time the present pattern of 
vidpix operations, with some 40 
companies sprayed all over Holly- 
wood, will dwindle down to 10 or 
12 huge vidfilmeries, it’s predicted 
by Frank Wisbar, producer-director 
of “Fireside Theatre.” 

Wisbar opined that this mode of 
operation would help considerably 
in keeping costs down, that mass 
production ;is inevitably the best 
and most efficient means of keep- 
ing teevee costs in line. He en- 
visions a large parent company, 
with- perhaps 10 series shooting 
within its framework, each one 
Utilizing the economy of the over- 
all operation to the greatest de- 
gree. 

“I don't JJiink we will lose qual- 
ity in this 'manner; quite to the 
contrary, I think, if anything, the 
quality will be elevated^ by such an 
operation,” Wisbar commented. 
“As I see it, the producer will in 
no sense lose autonomy, he will 
simply be in a better position to 

( Continued on page 24) 

Crohyn, Tandy ‘Marriage’ 
Prepped for TV, Too 

The Hume Cronyn-Jessica Tandy 
(Mrs. Cronyn) “Marriage,” Sunday 
night NBC half-hour radio show 
generally conceded to be one of 
the better properties in the web’s 
“Magic 28” new-programming for^ 
inula, is headed for video. 

NBC-TV program brainstrusters 
are planning a kine audition of the 
situation comedy series, also star- 
ring the duo, as a likely candidate 
for the summer semester. Ernest 
Kinnroy has been set as the writer 
on the show. 



* 

Financing of vidpix by banking 
institutions has reached the point 
where: the amount of coin outstand- 
ing in loans totals about one-third 
of the monies lent independent^ 
theatrical feature, producers. In' 
terms of number of loans made by 
the banks to tv-film outfits, video 
may exceed theatrical films in 
business transacted by the banks. 

Responsible for the upsurge in 
bank interest in vidpix is the fact 
that is rapidly reaching the stage 
of bigness in terms of solidly 
grounded corporate structure; capi- 
tal and clientele. Fact that the 
“shoestringers’’ are being weeded 
out and that the top telepix outfits 
— production and distribution— -can 
back up their loans by station and 
agency contracts plus a strong cor- 
porate capitalization has encour- 
aged the banks in extending alines 
of credit. 

Most of the lending at this point, 
is being done by the same two 
banks that keynote theatrical pic 
financing. Bankers Trust Co. and 
Chemical Bank & Trust, both of 
New York. Careers of both in .vid- 
pix financing are fairly recent; no 
more than two, years old. But in 
that period, both the amount 'and 
frequency of financing have in- 
creased by leaps and bounds. 

Bankers Trust, estimates Herb 
Golden, of the bank’s Amusement 
Industries Division, is currently in- 
volved in financing of some dozen 
telepic properties, with even more 
seen for the future. Goiden esti- 
mates that some $5,000,000 in loans 
to producing companies are current- 
ly outstanding, but points out that as 
the weeding-out process continues 
this amount will be increased 
greatly. 

Additionally, Golden points out, 
a pattern for financing is just be- 
ginning to emerge as the vidpix 
field takes shape and as big new 
outfits spring up and weaker old 
ones die. With no previous experi- 
ence to back them up and a sur- 
prising absence of litigation in 
the vidpix field, the banks have 
been feeling their way in the man- 
ner of making loans and setting 
terms. Currently, a loan is based 
on the presence of adequate sta- 
tion and agency contracts for a se- 
ries, with the banks not stepping in 
Until some production has already 
taken place. Eventually, as. the 
vidpix majors grow . stronger and 
more financially sound, the banks 
will move in at the very . concep- 
tion of a new series, supplying in- 
itial production coin. In the mat- 
ter of security, most of the 
bank loans are set in such a man- 
ner that the banks get the station 
contracts and mortgages on the pic- 
ture^ completed. No bank has had 
to foreclose yet, however, and just 
what would be done with fore- 
closed pix is still a matter of con- 
jecture. 

Another factor lending encour- 
agement to the banks is the grad- 
ual elimination of .‘‘one-man” vid- 
pix outfits. As the companies ex- 
pand, the reliance on a single in- 
dividual has been, converted into 
well-oiled organizations that can 
carry on as usual despite the loss 
or absence of a guiding spirit. 
Risks involved in making loans 
to the one-man outfits consequently 
are greatly reduced. Banks fore- 
see the gradual growth of the in- 
dustry to the point where it will 
consist of a small number dir top 
companies, such as the majors in 
the theatrical film industry, with 
other smaller but healthy firms 
also an integral part of the busi- 
ness. 


36 for Vitapix 

List of member stations of Vita- 
pix Corp., the station-owned vid- 
pix distributing firm, last week 
reached 36, with the addition of 
WABT, Birmingham. Station prexy 
Henry P. Johnson signed as a 
member of the distrib early this 
month. 

Previous station addition was 
KTLA, Los Angeles, which signed 
, up % month ago. 


re 


\. 


So What Elte? 

General . Electric office in 
N. Y. last week still was re- 
. ceiving mail anent the initial 
Bing Crosby vidfilm on which 
stripper Sheree North ap- 
peared. A letter from a wom- 
an in the midwest offered 
these comments: 

"Miss North reminded me 
of Salome in the Bible. I have 
always felt sorry for • Salome 
and 1 feel she would have been 
a better girl if her parents had 
brought her up right. Fur- 
thermore, what are we going 
to do about the A-bomb?” 



New pattern in vidpix selling 
which may provide a limited solu- 
tion to the overlap problem is in 
the process of developing in a cou- 
ple of key markets. Pattern in- 
volves a “satellite" setup, in which 
the major station in the larger 
market lines up a sponsor with 
state-wide distribution and buys a 
show for itself and a number Of 
smaller stations in the. overlap area 
for the bankrolled 

Under the new setup, which was 
reported only last week by a cou- 
ple of distribs who had been sound- 
ed out on such deals, the station 
buys the film for itself and for 
three Or four neighboring stations, 
all of which air the show for the 
Same sponsor. Apparently, all prof- 
it through the fetup— the sponsor 
by having strong coverage in his 
distribution' area, the “mother” 
station by getting a volume dis- 
count on its film and by a commis- 
sion or more in its sales agent 
role for the other stations, the 
satellite stations themselves, via 
sale of commercial time and the 
distributor via. sales to stations that 
would normally be nrohibitive be- 
cause of overlap prd)lems. 

Pattern is being toyed with in 
Philadelphia and Los Angeles thus 
far, and hasn’t become a reality 
yet. It’s not clear yet just how. the 
mother station would get its cut — 
whether it wquld act as a small 
network, grabbing off major por- 
tion of the billings and compensat- 
ing the stations a la the major net- 
works, or collecting simply as a 
sales agent with a 15 r c> fee or the 
like. Presumably, these details are 
being worked out. 

Nonetheless, the scheme shapes 
as a boon to the film distributors. 
Because of the problem of overlap 
they’ve been prevented from sell- 
ing to smaller markets, signals of 
which reach the larger cities. 
Scheme would end such a. problem 
in those markets inaugurating the 
satellite scheme. At the same time 
it would cut off a great deal of 
sales expense for the distribs, with 
the “mother” station acting as a 
central buyer for the other stations 
involved. . 

Moss Exits WABC-TV 
For CBS -TV Film Slot 

Eugene W. Moss has resigned his 
sales promotion post at WABG-TV, 
N. Y. flagship of ABC-TV to join 
CBS-TV Film Sales as assistant 
sales promotion manager under 
Walter Scanlon. Appointment, ac- 
cording to CBS syndication, chief 
Fred J. Mahistedt, is part of a gen- 
eral expansion of client services. • 

Moss came to WABC-TV from 
WOR, N. Y., where he was a pro- 
motion staffer. 


The networks “buy me, buy my 
show” overtones reflect a situa- 
tion that’s a cause of growing con- 
cern to the telepix outfits, largo 
and small. It portends an even 
greater tightening of the webs 
against outside vidpix packages, 
and has forced virtually every ma- 
jor telepix production this season 
into syndication. 

The, extent to which the vidpix 
outfits have been frozen out of 
network deals is pointed up by the 
fact that since the fall, only four 
independently . made and owned 
packages haye bowed on CBS or 
NBC, and in the case of three, 
they were allowed in on grounds 
of expediency, while the fourth 
has since been cancelled. Four are 
Revue’s “Mirror Theatre,” can- 
cancelled on CBS by Revlon, 
which subsequently took a second 
indie vidpix package on NBC, 
“Mr. and Mrs. North,” owned* by 
John Loveton. 

. Another* Loveton package, co- 
produced with Bernard Schubert, 
is “Topper,” which bowed on CBS 
for Camels. In this case, the web 
couldn’t very well turn down 
Camels, one of the biggest bank- 
rollers in tele, on its choice of the 
show. Final film series was Roland 
Reed’s “My Little Margie.” which 
Scott Paper took up on NBC after 
dissatisfaction with its Patti Page- 
starring “Scott Music Hall.” Of 
the four, only two were new prop- 
erties, “North” and “Margie” hav- 
ing been around before. 

While this situation has some of 
the distribs burned, at the same 
time they’re wondering whether 
the networks aren’t tying their 
own noose. With the growing use 
of syndicated shows throughout 
the country, the networks have al- 
ready begun to feel the pinch 
when it comes to station clearance* 
and they’ve also begun to feel the 
competition for sponsors, more 
and more of whom are moving 
into the regional and national spot 
field, With the type of quality 
shows the networks are refusing 
moving into the syndicated field, 
the competition for sponsors and 
the station clearance problem will 
grow much more acute. 

Nonetheless, the " situation has 
reached the point where not one 
national network sale has been 
set by a distributor all season, with 
the exception of the four named 
above. Every major distributor has 
just about given up on the possi- 
bility of such a sale and is concen- 
trating on syndication. Distribs are 
still going through the motions of 
holding a new property for net- 
work sale for the first 30 days, 
but even when the show is accept- 
ed by the client and agency, it gels 
nowhere because of the network’s 
(Continued on page ‘24 ) 



Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

With a production budget of ap- 
proximately $960,000. to. be fi- 
nanced by himself, Brian Don levy 
has set up his own vidfilm outfit 
to gun 39 in a new series, “Log of 
the Silver Shark,” which he will 
produce and topline. No starting 
date has been set pending negotia- 
tions now on for syndication of the 
property. . 

Telepix will be gunned under 
the banner of Brian Donlevy Pro- 
ductions. Jack Patrick is script- 
ing. Interiors will be shot in Hol- 
lywood, and exteriors in the South 
Seas. Adventure series has Don- 
levy in the roll of an eX-Navy de- 
stroyer commander who skippers a m 
threermasted freighter schooner ^ 
around the world. 

William B. White agency repped 
! DonleVy on the deal. 


24 TV-FIOfS 


Wednesday, February 3, 1954 


* # 





BLACK FOREST 

With Peggy Ann Garner, Akim 

Tamiroff, Gordon Howard, Mari- 
anne Wischmann, Wolfgang Butt- 
ner, August Riehl, Hans' KUrin, 

others * 

Producer: Princess Pictures : 
Exec Producer: Burt Balaban 
Producer-director: Gene Martel 
Writers: Joe Llss, Irve Tunick 
72 Mins. 

Distrib: Vitapix Cor p. . 

■‘Black Forest” is one of the first 
of 26 feature films being produced 
expressly for tv by the Burt 
Balaban-tdpped Princess Pictures 
for distribution through . Vitapix. 
As. such, the series should find a 
ready market. The “expressly for 
tv” angle lends itself strongly to 
prestige-type ballyhoo on the part 
of station and sponsor* and its 
effect on the public is not to be 
minimized. 

On the other hand, there are 
limitations. With the price, struc- 
ture of tv-film what it is, certain 
budget limitations had to be 
proscribed, and it’s to the credit 
of Princess that the fijm has a 
thoroughly professional quality 
although it was done on a budget 
bordering $40,000. On the basis of 
the pic . seen, the* Princess series 
stacks up as far better fare than 
the run of features currently on 
video. This, together with the 
promotional attributes of the 
series, would make it appear a 
good bet to garner lots of sales. 

“Black Forest” in particular, 
however, suffered from a couple 
of key troubles— script and direc- 
tion. Story of a sadistic German 
baron (film was shot on location — 
all 26 are being made in Germany) 
has all the elements of suspense 
and action, but in the script, and 
direction, they’re never quite 


brought to at boil. Some of the 
denouements are telegraphed, 
others are made without proper 
exploitation of suspense values 
inherent in > the situations. Here’s 
where both scripters . Joe Liss and 
Irve Tunick and director Gene. 
Martel fell down. 

Akim Tamiroff comes off best , 
in the pic, in the role of the con- 
niving baron. He plays the part to 
the’- hilt, without quite overreach- 
ing. himself. Peggy Ann Garner is 
a victim of some unfortunate cast- 
ing as an illogical character who 
loves Tamiroff and is one of the 
victims of his sadism. She’s just not 
the hardboiled type, nor does she 
impress as a drunkard., Gordon 
Howard, as an American . Gl who 
busts the whole thing up, is ade- 
quate, although a trifle wooden at 
times; Marianne Wishmann is pert 
and convincing as the love interest 
and another victim. Remainder of 
the cast, all English-speaking Gcr* 
mans, are competent. 

- It’s • in the production details, 
though, that the pic finds its best 
values. Camera work is excellent, 
particularly in the forest scenes, 
and with the home screen in mind, 
each scene is uncluttered and 
clearcut. Film is backed by a fine 
score, and the general technical 
Work is of such caliber that it’s 
hard to believe the film Was done 
on so small a budget. 

Obviously, this series isn’t going 
to bring forth any plush Hollywood 
opus. And while undoubtedly each 
film in the. series will vary in 
quality, the group as a whole seems 
art entirely worth wile venture. 
Certainly, it represents a departure 
from the run-of-the-mill “B” fea- 
ture that . currently clutters the 
home screens, and as such, it’s a 
welcome development. Chan . 


ACOUSIKON LIKES 
PEARSON'S TELEPIX 


Drew Pearson telepix series 
which Acousticoii purchased on 
WABD, DuMont key in New York, 
on a four-week trial basis has been 
renewed by the sponsor. Each 
show of the MPT V-owned. property 
has been carried on both Friday 
and Sunday nights since its first 
airing by the outlet. 

Acousticon, which has been ex- 
perimenting With the “double ex- 
posure” setup, claims that the Sun- 
day night repeat has been drawing' 
heavier sales response than the Fri- 
day show. 

WINS, New York radio indie, 
carries an audio edition by Pear- 
son on the Sabbath at 6 p. m., the 
same time vid pix appears* in the 
area on WABD. Baisel Restau- 


rants has been sponsoring the stan- 
za via the radio station since Au- 
gust of ’53, and a clash between 
it and the Acousticon-sponsored 
show seems imminent. . 


Princess < 


to the films outside the U. S. In 
the States, no plan hair been 
worked out /or theatrical showings, 
since it's expected that video cov- 
erage will be so heavy that places 
where the film could be booked 
into theatres will be few and far 
between. < 


L Snader 

Continued from pace 22 

“man of business honor” and de- 
clared that he did “not seek profit 
personally at the expense of those 
he invited to invesf>in television 
film production or distribution,” 
Rosenbaum estimated that. Bisno 
had lost some $250,000 of His own 
money in the setup, and said that, 
losses to Bisno and the investors 
were due to his persistence and 
stubborness in adopting and fol- 
lowing business practices of a 
highly individual and unorthodox 
nature.” He praised Bisno for 
assuming the obligation of settle- 
ment. 

Along With this, a multitude of 
other smaller claims were settled 
or denied. 


Continued from page 22 

are sold bn runs-per-year basis to 
stations, but on Straight 26-week 
deals to sponsors. 

Stations are programming the 
films differently in each case, but 
all are bally ing the pix as the first 
features produced expressly for tv. 
Some stations are programming the 
films in their, regular feature film 
segments, but advertising the fact 
that they’re new. Others are mak- 
ing a series out of the films, play- 
ing every two weeks currently or 
waiting until enough are com- 
pleted to present one each week. 
One station, with ho time current- 
ly available, is holding off till 
Sept. 1. 

. Princess retains theatrical rights 


Hygo, Argyle TV Pix 
Expanding Distrib Setup 

Hy go and Argyle Television 
Films is expanding its distribution 
setup, with the first , step creation 
of a Coast sales office to be headed 
by Louis Goldstein, one of the 
partners and founders Of the firms. 
Coast office will also handle ship- 
ping and prints, \ip to now con- 
fined tathe N. Y. end. 

Also in the works are branch of- 
fices in Chicago and the southwest. 
N. Y. homeoffice - will continue to 
be directed by prexy Jerry Hyams 
and sales chief Bob Seidelman. 
Firtns together handle about 250 
features, westerns and shorts. 


Wisbar 

1 1 Continued from peg# 23 - — !l 

1 

shout a good telepicture at less 
cost,” Wisbar said. 

Wisbar said that growth of vid- 
pix has been rapid, and costs have 
continued to rise, with no one hav- 
ing reached a solution for the sit- 
uation. But a mass production 
company lensing lots of series can 
reduce the all-important cost fac- 
tor just as a major studio can ab- 
sorb overhead via production of 
many pix, he averred. 

Wisbar's home site, the former 
Eagle-Lion lot, has been bought by 
a syndicate Which renamed the stu- 
dio First National, and is planning : 
a heavy production sked. At pres- 
ent the top mass production com- 
pany in town is Ziv TV, with eight 
series set for this year. 


Distf ibs Vs. Webs 

ss Continued from page 23 ■ 

desire to place 'its own show. One 
distrib even reported a network 
demand for a piece 'of a show 
which a sponsor wanted to place 
on the web. 

Distrihs and the clients who can 
afford a high-priced film., show 
want NBC and CBS, but are re- 
luctant to move onto ABC and 
even more so to DuMont. ABC 
situation is improving, in that the 
Web is gaining acceptance as a . 
me'dium for top dents. But the dis- 
tribs are convinced that as ABC’s 
commercial schedule begins to fill 
up, the network will place the 
same restrictions, on outside pack- 
ages as NBC and 'CBS, Overall re- 
sults is a greater zoom for -syndi- 
cation on all fronts. . 



B & R ENT. INC. 

. Motion Picture Center: HO. 9-5981 
Casting: Ruth Burch, King . Deats 
Now shooting "The Ray Bolger Show" 
30 half-hour films for ABC-TV. 

Cost: Ray Bolger, Allyn Joslyn, Richard 
Erdman, Claire. DUbrey, - Frances Karath, 
.Sylvia Lewis, Betty Lynn 
Producer: Jerry Bresler 
Director: Sidney Lanfield *• 

Camera: Lester Shorr 
Writer: William Bowers 
Asst. Director: James Nicholson 
Prod. Mgr.: .Argyle Nelson 
Music: Herbert Spence^, Earle Hagen 
Film Editor: Marsh Hendry 
Art Director: Claudio Guzman 


JACK CHERTOK PRODS. 

General' Service Studios: HO. 3-5106 
Casting: Ruth Burch 
Now shooting "Private Secretary” tele- 
pix series. 

Cast: Ann Southern, Don Porter 

Producer: Jack Chertok 

Director: Christian Nyby 

Camera; Robert Plttack 

Asst, director: Lester Guthrie 

Art director: Howard Campbell 

Supervisor of production: Harry H. Poppe 


BING CROSBY ENTERPRISES 

9028 Sunset Blvd.: BR .2-2771 
Eagle-Lion Studios: HO 2-2286 

Casting: Malory McKay 
Now preparing to. shoot 6 half-hour 
telepix for G E Theatre starting Jan. 
11th. 

Producer-Director: Frank Wisbar 
Assoc. Prod.: Sidney Smith 
Camera: Ben Kline 
Asst. Director.: Murray Vaccarlno 
Film Editor: Holbrook Todd 


JOAN DAVIS PRODUCTIONS 

General Service Studios; HO. 7-3111 
Casting: P. J. Wolfson 
Now shooting VI Married Joan” series 
of half-hour comedy situation telepix. ' 
Cast: Jooan Davis, Jim Backus 
Producer: Pi J. Wolfson 
Associate Producer: A1 Simon 
Director: John 'Rich 
Camera: Hal Mohr 
Film Editor: Bob Stafford 


DENMAC PRODUCTIONS 

General Service Studios . 

HO. 7-3111 

Now shooting 40 half-hour tclplx scries 
of "Dennis Day Show” for RCA Victor. 
Cast: . Dennis. Day, Cliff Arquette, Carol 
Richards, Jeri-Lou 
Producer: Dennis Day 
Assoc. Prod.: John McNulty 
Director: Rod Amateau 
Camera: Ellsworth Fredericks 
Tech. Director: Sherman Harris 


JACK DENOVE PRODUCTIONS, 
■ ■ INC. " 

Goldwyn StuCiios: HO 7-51.11 
Casting:. Talent Assoc. 

Now shooting a series of "Cavalcade 
cf America 1 ' telepix for DuPont. 

Francis L. Sullivan stars in “Margin 
For Victory.” 

Producer: Jack Denove 
Director: Arthur Ripley 
Camera: Harold Stine 
Prod. Mgr.: C. M. Florence 
Writer: Arthur Ripley 
Asst. Director: Eddie Vernohdy 


DESILU PROD., INC. 

Motion Picture Center: HO. 9-5981 

Casting: Mercedes Manzanares 

Now shooting "I Love Lucy.” 39 half- 
hour. films, for Philip Morris. 

Cast: Lucille Ball, Desl Arnas, Vivian 
Vance, William Frawlev 
Producer: Jess Oppenheiiner 
Director: William Asher 
Camera: Karl. Freund 
Film Editor: Bud Molln 
Now shooting 26 half-hour telepix se- 
ries of “Our Miss Brooks” for General 
Foods. 

Cait: Eve Arden, Gale Gordon, Walter 
Grenna, Jane' Morgan, Gloria McMIlan 

Production Exec,: f Larry Berns 
Director: A1 Lewis s 
Camera: Karl Freund 


D.P.L Bnd MARTERTO PRODS. 
INCORPORATED 

Motion Picture Center: HO. 9-5981 

Casting: Ruth Burch, King Deats 
Now Shooting “Make Room For Daddy” - 
series of half-hour telepix. 

Cast: Danny Thomas, Jean Hagen, Sherry 
Jackson, Rustyr Hamer and Corky 
Producer: Louis *F. Edelman 
Assoc. Producer: Paul Jacobs 
Director: Sheldon Leonard 
Asst. Director: Janies Paisley 
Production Manager: Argyle Nelson 
Camera: Robert de Grasse 
Music: Herbert Spencer, Earle Hagen 
Art Director: Ralph Berger 
Film Editor: Dan Gahn 


FILMCRAFT PRODS. 

8451 Melrose: WE. 3-9281 
Now shooting series of 39 “You Bet 
Your Life” half-hour audience-participa- 
tion programs starring Groucho Marx at 
NBC. 

Producer: John Guedcl 

Production Manager: I. Lindenbaum 

Production Supervisor: F. H. Fodor 

Directors: Bob Dwan, Bernie Smith 

Camera: Virgil Miller 

Technical Supervisor: Paul Schmutz, Jr, 

Film Editor: Norman Colbert 


FLYING “A” PRODS. 

692Q Sunset Blvd.: HO. 9-1425 
Now shooting “Annie Oakley”. 13 half- 
hour films for Canada Dry, also 13 for 
syndication. 

Starring: Gail Davis, * Brad Johnson, 
: Jitpmy Hawkins 
Exec, Producer: Louis Grey 
Director:. Robert Walker 
Camosa: .Joe Novak ■ 

Now shooting “Cavalcade of America” 
6 half-hour films for "DuPont. 

Producer: Armand Schaefer 
Prod. Mgr.: Glenn Cook 
Directors: George Archainbaud and Sid- 
ney Salkow 

Film Editor: Tony WollncT 
“Death Valley Days” 13 half-hour films 
for Pacific Coast Borax now in prepara- 
tion. 


GROSS-KRASNE, INC. 

California Studios: HO. 9-8321 
Casting: Lynn Stalmaster 
Will, resume “Rig Town” series oif half- 
hour telepix co-starring Pat MeV.ey as 
Steve Wilson and Beverly Tyler as fiore- 
lei, and "Lone Wolf” series starring 
Louis Hayward In Jan. 

Producers: Jack Gross, Philip Krasne 
Directors: Sidney Salkow, George. . Wagg- . 

ner, Bernard Girard, Jim Whelan 
Assoc. Prod.: Marshall Grant 
Camera: Fred Gately 
| Production Coordinator; Ben Plvar 


JOHN GUEDEL PRODUCTIONS 

8321 -Beverly Blvd. 

YO. 6291 

Shooting 52 15-mln. films of “Link- 
letter and the Kids” at KTTV every Sat- 
urday. 

Starring:. Art Linkletter and five kids' 
Prod,: Maxwell Shane 
Assoc, Prod.: Irvin Atkins 
Camera: George Fox 


LEWISLOR ENTERPRISES, INC. 

RKO Pathe Studio: TE. 0-2931 . 

Casting: Ruth Burch,. Pat Harris' 

Now shooting series of 35 "Letters To 
Loretta” half-hour dramas starring Lo- 
retta Young. . 

Exec. Producer: Tom Lewis 
Producer: Mathew Rapf 
Director: Robert Florey 
Camera: Norbcrt Brodlne 
Story Editor: Ruth Roberts 
Film Editor: Joe Dervin , 

Production Manager: Johnny London 
Asst, Director: John Pommer 
Art Director: Ralph ^Berger 
Music Director: Harry Lubin 


LOVETON-SCHUBERT . PROD. 

Goldwyn Studios: HO. 7-5111 
Casting: Ralph Acton 
Now shooting “Topper” series of half- 
hour telepix. 

Cast: Anne Jeffreys, Robert Sterling, Lee 
Patrick, Leo. G. Carroll 

Producer: John W. Loveton 
Director: Lew Landers 
Camera; Gert Andetson 
Art Director: Arthur Lonergan 
Film Editor: Tholen Gladden 
Asst. Director: Bill Kissel 
Production Manager: Herb Stewart 


JOHN W. LOVETON 
PRODUCTIONS 

HO. 7-5111 

Casting: Ralph Acton 

Now' shooting series of half-hour films 
of “Mr. and Mrs. North” for Revlon 
Products. 

Starring: Barbara Britton and Richard 
Denning 

Producer: John W. Loveton 

Directors: Paul Landres. George Blair 

Asst. Director: Bill Reineck 

Prod. Mgr.: Herb Stewart 

Camera: Stuart Thompson 

Art Director: Arthur Lonergan. 


MARK VII LTD. 

Walt Dishcy Studio: Rockwell 9-2461 
Now shooting “Dragnet” series of half- 
hour. dramas. Jack Webb and Ben Alex- 
ander set leads. 

Executive Producer: Stanley Meyer 
Producer: Michael Meshekoif 
Director: Jack Webb 
Production .Manager: Sam Ruman 
Camera: Edward Colman 
Art Director: .- Feild Gray 
Supervising Film Editor: Robert Leeds 
Music Director: Walter Schumann. 


THE MC CADDEN CORP, 
General Service Studios: HO. 7-3111 
Casting: Dick Fisher 

. “Thi . Burns - And Allen Show” scries 
of half-hour comedy telepix now shoot- 
ing. 

Cast: George Burns and Grade Allen, 
Be* Benadaret, Larry Keating, Harry 
Von Zell 


producer: Fred DeCordova 
Associate Producer: A1 Simon 
Director: Fred DeCordova 
Camera: Philip Tannura 
Writers: Sid Dorfman, Harvey He! 

Keith Fowler, William Burns 
Supervising Film Editor: Stanley Fra: 


“ MERIDIAN PICTURES. INC. 

'Goldwyn Studios: HO. 7-5111 \ 

Casting: Jack Murton 
Will resume shooting series of 26 half- 
hour films for Playhouse of Stars for 
Schlitz lrt Jan. 

Assoc. Prod.: William 1 Self 
Director: Roy Kellino 
Camera: Russ Harlan 
Prod.. Mgr.: ’Ralph W. Nelson 
Art Director: Serge Krizman 
Film Editor: George Amy 
Story: Buck Houghton 


MOTION PICTURES FOR TV 

Hal Roach Studios ■ 

TE. 02761 

Now Shootirig 26 half-hour, comedies 
for “Duffy ? s Tavern” telepix series. 

Cast: - Ed Gardner, Pattee Chapman, Alan 
. Reed, Jimmy Conlin 
;Prod.:, Hal Roach Jr. 

Production Sup,: Manuel Goldstein, 
Director; Harve Foster 
Camera: Lathrop Worth 
Art Director: McClure Capps 
Film Editor: Gene Fowler, Jr. 

AsSt. Directors: Bill Forsyth and Jimmie 
Lane 

Writers: Larry Rhine, Ben Starr, Morriss 
Freedman, Frank Gill Jr. 


REVUE PRODUCTIONS 

Republic Studios: SU. 3-8894 
Casting: Bob Walker 
Producer: Revue Productions 
Production Manager; Carl F. Hiecke 
Art Director: Martin Obzina 
Editorial Supervisor: Richard Currier 
Camera: Clark Ramsey! Gilbert Warren- 
ton 

Asst. Director: Willard Sheldon, James 
Hogan 

Kit Carson, City Detective, Chevron, 
Pride of the Family,, and Pepsi-Cola se- 
ries preparing. 


HAL ROACH PRODUCTIONS 

Hal Roach Studios: TE. 0-2761 
Catting: Ruth Burch, Pat Harris 
Now shooting 26 Hklf-hour films of 
"The Life of Riley” fidr NBC. 

Cast: William Bendlx, Marforle Reynolds, 
Tom D'Androa, Gloria Blondell, Lugene 
Sander* Wesley Morgan. 

Prod.: Tom McKnight 
Director: Abby Berlin 
Prod. Sup.: Sidney S. Van Keuren 
Camera: Lucicn Andrlot 
Art Director: McCfure Capps 
Film Editors: Frank Baldridge, Ed Wil- 
liams 

Asst. Director: Ivan Volkman 


ROLAND REED PROD. 

Hal Roach Studio: TE. 0-2761 
Casting: Bill Tlnsman 
To resume shooting Jan. . II of 26 
"Rocky Jones, Space Ranger” half-hour 
adventure telepix. 

Cast: Richard Crane, Sally Mansfield, 
Scotty BeckeH, Bobby Lyden, Maurice 
Cass, Charles Meredith 

Producer: Roland Reed 
Assoc, Prod.: Guy V. Thayer Jr. 

Director: Hollingsworth . Morse 
Camera: Walter Strenge * 

Art Director: McClure Capps 
Asst. Director: Dick Moder 
Film Editor: Roy Luby 
Prod; Mgr.; Dick L’Estrange 
i Now shooting “My Little Margie,” 52 
half-hour films for Scott Paper Co. 

Cast: Galt Storm, Charles Farrell 
Assoc. Prod.: Guy V. Thayer 
Producer: Hal Roach Jr. 

Director: Hal Yates 
Camera: Walter Strenge 


SCREEN GEMS 

1334 . N. Beachwood Dr.: HO. 2-3111 
Now shooting “Yours For A Dream” 
for Ferd Theatre. 

To start shooting Jan. 28 “Turn Back 
The Clock” for Ford Theatre, 

Cast: Laralne Day, Rlchard.-Cente, 

Prod.: Irving Starr. 

Writer: Martin Berkeley, 

SOVEREIGN PRODUCTIONS 

Eagle Lion Studios: HO. 7-6171 
Casting: Talent Assoc. 

Now shooting (Wo GE Theatre tele- 
films. ' ■ 

Exec. Prod.: Stuart Reynolds 
Assoc. Producer: Joe Sistr om 
Camera: Stu Thompson 
Prod. Mgr.: Dick Johnston 
Story Editor: Les Mitchell 
Directors: Varied 

STAGE FIVE PRODS., INC. 

General Service* Studios: HO. 7-3111 
NoW shooting “The Adventures of 
Ozzle and Harriet" half-hour Comedy 
series. 

Cast: Ozzle Nelson, Harriet Hilliard Nel- 
son, David ..Nelson, Ricky Nelson, Don 
, DeFore 

Producer-Director: Ozzle Nelson 
Writers: Bill Davenport, Don Nelson, Ben 
Gershman. Ozzle Nelson 
Camera: William C. Mellor 
Asst. Director: Dick Bremerkamp 
Film Editor: Gerard Wilson 
Assoc, Producer: Leo Pepin 


STUDIO CITY 
TELEVISION PROD. 

; SU. 3-8807 

(Shooting at Republic Studios’) 

Now shooting, scries of 52 features of 
“Outlaws of the Century” based on tlie 
lives of famous outlaws. 

Starring: Jim Davis and Mary Castle 
Producer: Edward J. White 
Director William Witney 
Camera: Bud Thackery 
6 ■ — . ■ '■ 

TELEMOUNT-MUTUAL 
PROD. INC. 

Fairbanks Studio: CR. 1-1191 
6052 Sunset Blvd. 

Now shooting 13 half-hour “Cowboy 
G-men** .films co-starring Russell Hayden 
and Jackie Coogan. 

Producer: Henry Donovan 
Prod. Sup.: Lonnie D’Orsa 
Director; Don MacDougall « 

Camera: Rill Whitley 
Writers: Buckley Angell, Monroe Man- 
ning 

Asst. Directors: Nate Barragar and Ira 
Webb • 

VIDEO PICTURES INC. 

1515 N. Western: HO, 4-7558 
; Casting: Charles Maxwell 
Now shooting “The Hank McCune 
Show” 39 half-hour films of a situation 
comedy; 

Cast: Hank McCune, .Hanley Stafford' 
Arthur Q. Bryan, Thurston Hall, Wal- 
ter 'Catlett# 'Ellen Corby 
Prod.: Video Piets. 

Asst. Prod.: Charles Maxwell 
Directors: Les Goodwins, Paul Guilfoyle, 
Reginald Le Borg 
1st Afcst. Director: Bruce Fowler 
Camera: Jack MacKenzie 
Editor: Frank Sullivan 


ZIV TV 

5255 Clinton St.: HO. 3-5121 
Casting: Ralph Winters 
Now shooting half-hour Telepix s« ne ? 
of “1 Led Thiee Lives’’ starring Richard 
Carlson and 'Tavorite . Story” with 
Adolphe Menjon. 

Director: Eddie Davis 
Camera: Curt Fetters* ■ 



Wednesday, February 3, 1954 


It AMO-TELE VISION 


25 




KICKS BACK 



Life magazines full-page drumbeating (via. ads in the dailies) 
of its No. X status among magazines and networks as an advertis- 
ing meditiirf, based on the Publishers' Information Bureau figures 
for 1953. is regarded in some broadcasting circles as unrealistic, 
in terms of measuring the full impact of network revenue. 

Top 10 ranking gives Life a $12,000,000 advantage over its 
nearest rival, which is CBS-TV, Life ad revenue totalling $109,- 
708 903, as compared with $97,466,800 for the Columbia tv net- 
Work. CBS wound up the year $800,000 better than NBC-TV, 
which is in the No. 3 spot with $96,658*551. CBS Radio cops 
fifth place with $62^81,207, nearly $17,000,000 betted than NBC 
Radio (in the sixth s^bt), with $45,151,077. ABC Radio shows up 
in eighth position with $29,826,123 billings, while ABC-TV is 
down in the No. 13 spot with $21,110,680, topped by Mutual (in 
ilth position), 'with* $23,158,000. . Aside from Life, Saturday 
Evening Post, Time, Better Homes and 'Gardens and This Week 
are the only other mags getting Top 10 billing. ,/ 

Life ad takes cognizance of the fact that the radio-tv figures 
are for network time only. Thus the tallies make no provisions 
for the vast revenues realized by the tv webs; in the sale of 
shows, particularly In a year when NBC-TV and CBS-TV were 
having outstanding success with their own house-created pro*, 
grams sold to sponsors on a combination time-and-show basis. 
On the other hand, the mags' sqle reliance for revenue is bn 
sale of space, aside from circulation, of course. 

It's estimated that, conservatively, CBSrTV figdres would be 
upped an additional $20,000,000 on that basis, with NBC-TV 
probably even exceeding that amount, thus giving the two webs 
gross revenues far exceeding Life. : Thus the claim that it’s “first 
in advertising," as Life trumpets, would certainly be open to 
question, jin the opinion of some broadcast researchers. „ 



Decision will probably be 4 
reached within the next few days 
as to which agency or agencies will 
fall heir to the $12,000,000 in Radio 
'Corp. of America billings, now that 
RCA is parting company with its 
longtime J. Walter Thompson asso- 
ciation. Committee vested with au- 
thority to make recommendations 
to board chairman David Sarnoff 
and prexy Frank Folsom met on 
Friday (29). Now it’s up to Sar- 
noff and Folsom. Best guess is 
that it will be distributed, among 
several agencies rather than con- 
centrated all in one house. 

Grey » agency currently . handles 
the NBC Film Division < biz. A1 
Paul Lefton ; has the RCA white 
goods billings (stoves, refrigera- 
tors, etc.). The big plum, how- 
ever, including the RCA Victor ac- 
count plus all the radio and tele- 
vision, is the $12,000,000 one that’s 
at stake. ' 0 

Weiritraub agency made an un- 
usual pitch for biz last week, tak- 
ing the back page Of the N. Y. 
Times for a cryptic “teaser” ad 
spelling out RCA in Morse code 
and notifying the executives, and 
management of the corporation 
that “an important message intend- 
ed expressly for your eyes is now 
on its way to each of you by special 
messenger.” Message in question 
detailed Weintraub agency’s quali- 
fications and background for han- 
dling the lucrative biz. 

Whether Weintraub gets the bill- 
ings or any pant of it is in the laps 
of Sarnoff and Folsom. 



As a companion show to the Sat 
urday 90-minute Robert Q. Lewis 
show, now SRO with six clients 
sharing a quarter-hour segment 
each, CBS Radio is embarking on 
another Saturday venture, this one 
starring Peter Lind Hayes. 

Show will go into the 1:30-2 
P- ra. slot Feb. 13 (to be sold simi- 
lai’ly in 15-minute segments). Pro- 
gram will also feature Mary Healy, 
Jerry Vale, Columbia Records art- 
ist; Leslie Uggams, a sepia mop- 
pet off the Godfrey Talent Scouts 
show; a weekly Godfrey winner, 
'yith Norman Leyden’s orch. Teddy 
Wilson will be the weekly piano 

accompanist. 

A 1 Singer will produce the series 
jvith Frank Musiello directing and 
George Bryan announcing, , 

Move is part of an ambitious at- 
by program veepee Lester 
, ottlieb to give Saturday a bigtime 

commercial aura. 



KATHY, LIKE 

ON A TALENT QUEST 

Presumably spurred to action by 
almost universal critical pans, Ry- 
butol and BBD&O this week de-: 
cided on a complete change of 
format for their Kathy Godfrey 
quiz starrer, “On Your Way.” The 
ABC-TV Saturday night airer, 
which bowed two weeks ago, now 
reverts from a quiz show to a tal- 
ent contest, with unknowns com- 
peting for cash prizes and nitery 
contracts. 

Under the change in format, 
Larry White continues to own the 
package, name of which remains 
the same. Mike Dutton takes over 
as producer, with Marty Ames ba- 
toning the segment. Miss Godfrey 
will handle the show on her own, 
with John Reed King now restrict- 
ed to the commercials. Cash prizes 
will be awarded on the basis of a 
graduated applause meter. 


The broadcasting industry Isn't 
taking too well to the poll on tv 
commercials brought out last week 
by Edward Berhays, the v. public re- 
lations counsel, in which repre- 
sentative community leaders, , in- 
cluding. educators, sociologists, 
churchmen and businessmen let 
loose with some vitriolic blasts at 
video plugs. 

Just when some people were be- 
ginning to inquire whether the 
broadcasters, and especially the 
networks, were going to take it 
lying down and hide behind a veil 
of silence, the Television Informa- 
tion * Committee of the National 
Assn, -of RadiorTV Broadcasters 
went into action and, enlisting the 
support of the Network Executive 
Board of the NARTB, called a 
meeting scheduled for late yester- 
day (Tues.), with NARTB prexy 
Harold E. Fellows presiding, to sift 
the Bernays-inspired probings into 
what they call loaded questions. 

One network exec was so in- 
censed over the Bernays survey of 
the top men in their field and the 
manner in which he projected it 
to the public as to conclude: “I 
guess the guy’s anxious to grab off 
a client.” 

The NARTB’s TIC committee is 
not only resentful of the “loaded 
questioning,” but takes the position 
that the leaders polled are far 
from representative of the tv view- 
ing public in America . The com- 
mittee feels that there is something 
suspect in Bernays’ motives in act- 
ing as a crusader on his* own while 
completely bypassing the NARTB, 
especially in a year when the In- 
dustry association has been making 
strides toward putting its self- 
regulating code in order. 'Why this, 
all Of a sudden, they ask, when in- 
dividually or collectively the polled 
leaders had every opportunity to 
take their gripes to the Better Busi- 
ness Bureau, or the NARTB, or to 
give some expression under official 
auspices as to their feelings. 




s j-ir. 


Olds 30QG For 



500G Minimum 



Sportscaster Bill Stern this week 
signed an exclusive, three-year con- 
tract for radio and television with 
ABC that will net him a minimum 
of $500,000 during the term of the 
pact. Stern has been working on 
an exclusive basis at the web since 
the summer, when he exited NBC 
and came over to ABC with a fat 
contract from Anheuser-Busch for 
a cross-the-board radio sports strip, 
but it wasn’t until this week that 
the pact was finalized. 

Back of the deal is the eventual 
setting of a quarter-hour sports 
strip on ABC-TV, bankrolled by 
the brewery and using all the tech- 
niques of a network news show, in- 
cluding live cutins from all over 
the country and film coverage. 
Scope of the show is indicated by 
the fact that program, while start- 
ing sometime next fall on a limited 
network, will be budgeted at $3,- 
500,000 a year. Plan is to have 
Stern announce the Show, using 
newsreel footage supplied by one 
of the indie services, with either 
live cutins or special filni made by 
ABC or freelance crews. 

No details on the tele show have 
been set, not even a starting date, 
but that was the original intention 
of Anheuser-Busch in going for 
the radio segment, which will be 

I (Continued on page 48) 


NBC has wrapped up Oldsmobile 
to lay $300,000 on the line for tele- 
casting the Academy Awards from 
the Coast. It goes into the 10:30 to 
midnight Thursday slot March 25 
with "Foreign Intrigue” pre- 
empted for the plummy one-shot- 
ter. RCA sponsored it last year 

There’ll be a New York cut-in 
should there be some winners 
based in Gotham, as there usually 
is. Whether show will be in color 
j is not yet determined. 

Network has an exclusivity on 
the awards and the entire shindig 
this time up will be geared strictly 
for tv. 


Gleason’s ‘Horizontal’ 




Color TV Schedule 

NBC-TV 

Howdy Doody— Feb. 1-5, 5:30 
p.m. 

Judge For Yourself (Fred 
Allen) — Feb. 9, 10 p.m. 

Meet the Press-— Feb. 14, 6 . 
p.m. 

Camel News — Feb. 16, 7:45 
p.m. 

Hit Parade— Feb. 20, 10:30 
p.m.. 

Circle Theatre— Feb. 23, 9:30 

p.m. 

Excursion — Feb. 28, ,.4 p.m. 

Ding Dong School— March 8, 
10 a m. 

Eddie Fisher— March 10, 7:30 
p.m. 

Name That Tune — March 
15,8 p.m. 

CBS-TV 

New Revue — - Feb. 5, 5:30 
p.m. 

Paul Tripp’s Party — March 
2, 5:30 p.m. . 



If Jackie Gleason is able to 
ankle onto the set of his tv show 
this Saturday (6) on CBS, it may 
be as ‘‘the man who came to din- 
ner” in the couch-reclining, pos- 
ture made famous in that legiter 
of some 14 years ago. Gleason fell 
on the stage in the closing portion 
of his show last Saturday and was 
taken to Doctors Hospital, N.Y., 
suffering from fracture of the right 
leg, tearing of ligament, separa- 
tion of ankle joint andunjuries to 
the tibia. 

In the event Gleason can’t make 
the Saturday show, first in line to 
step In for him is Ed Sullivan, but 
a decision either way was to be 
made today (Wed.) as the "ifs" 
i Sc '‘huts” on format cannot go 
I beyond midweek. Other names that 
were being kicked around are Per- 
• ry Como and Red Skelton, with the 
■ latter fiying from the Coast if he’s 
j tapped as pinchhitter. 


The czars of baseball apparently 
have contained themselves for as 
long as they felt they could, because 
over the weekend; on two different 
occasions in speeches by two dif 
fereiit league luminaries, radio and 
video were accused of throttling 
the sport Unmercifully. . On Satiir 
day (30), in a special meeting be 
fore the two major leagues, George 
M. Trautman, chief of the national 
association of minor leagues, 
claimed that broadcasting was re- 
sponsible for the 26,000,000-person 
loss in attendance at games in the 
last five years, as. well as for kill- 
ing off 22 minor leagues. The next 
day (Sun.), baseball’s overall boss, 
commissioner Ford C. Frick, 
claimed that the audio - visual in- 
dustry was growing “fat on the life 
blood of another.” 

Both men iftsist that when radio 
and tele move into minor league 
towns with major league sports- 
casts local attendance at the parks 
is cut drastically. Frick exhorted 
the majors’ clubs to make restric- 
tions in their radio-tv contracts so 
that baseball will not “eat its own 
young.” He W'as careful to point 
out that Federal regulations 
against monopoly prevent the 
clubs from making mutual agree- 
ments concerning contracts, but he 
did say that individual major 
league teams could draw the limits 
on the broadcasters’ coverage. 

In his speech, Trautman said. 
‘‘What we are asking is that the 
majors quit invading minor league 
territories with their radio net- 
works. Not only has this hit at- 
tendance figures but it has caused 
the minors to suffer other losses. 

‘‘For instance, minor league 
clubs once gained considerable 
revenue from local broadcasts of 
their games. But that market has 
disappeared because sponsors -have 
found it cheaper to buy from the 
major league networks.” 

Solomon Back to Coast 

Leo Solomon, who recently ter- 
minated contractual relations with 
CBS-TV as writer-producer, re- 
turned Monday (1) to the Coast, 
his former home base. While in 
N. Y. Solomon did the Larry 
j Storch show for the network, 
j With NBC-TV currently engaged 
I in hypoing its Coast originations, 
j Solomon may negotiate a similar 
I writer-producer pact with that net- 
1 work. 


Washington* Feb. 2. 
The Supeme Court gave the FCC 
a rough time yesterday (Mon.) at 
arguments On the legality of the 
1949 ban on radio and tv giveaway 
shows. From the questioning of 
the justices, it appeared that the 
court will rule against the Com- 
mission’s interpretation of the 
lottery laws as applying * to pro- 
grams in which the audience is in- 
duced to listen in hope of getting 
a prize. 

Chief Justice Earl Warren and As- 
sociate Justices Felix Frankfurter, 
Robert Jackson and Stanley Reed 
displayed keen interest in the case, 
while Justice William Douglas 
asked an occasional question. 
Justices Hugo Black* Harold Bur- 
ton, Tom Clark and Sherman Min- 
ton sat silent throughout the two- 
hour argument. 

J. Roger Wollenberg, FCC As- 
sistant General Counsel, defended 
the ban on grounds that giveaway 
shows ^re lotteries in that they in- 
volve a “consideration” or “con- 
tribution” by the listener even 
though no money payment is made. 
“When people have to listen to get 
a prize,” he argued, “they are giv- 
ing something: — they are putting 
up their time— which is of enor- 
mous value to the station and th« 
sponsor.” 

Wollenberg added that “some of 
the programs are a kind of come- 
on game which require listening 
from week to week.” 

Justice Frankfurter interrupted: 
“what do you mean by ‘putting up 
time’? do you mean a captive audi- 
ence is all right but a seductive 
audience is all wrong? What 
about the lure of. getting something 
cheaper through a bargain sale?” 

“A line has to be drawn some- 
I'where,” replied Wollenberg. “The 
lottery laws were drawn to pro- 
tect people from themselves and 
we are trying to protect them from 
being lured into trying to get some- 
thing by chance.” 

Justice Jackson entered the 
argument. “I don’t see why we 
should be concerned as to why peo- 
( Continued on page 48) 



“Philip , Morris Playhouse,” CBS- 
TV Thursday night series, is 
headed for the scrap heap, with 
Biow agency currently in a pact 
for a half-hour vidfilm crime 
series as replacement In the 10- 
10:30 p.m. slot. Going in is “Public 
Defender,” Reed Hadley starrer 
produced by Hal Roach, slotted for 
March 1 1 . (Hadley heads up the 
“Racket Squad” skein.) 

CBS. it’s known, has been un- 
happy with the “Playhouse” pro- 
gram and had asked the sponsor 
and Biow to come up With a* more 
solid rating puller. Previously, 
Philip Morris had sponsored the 
CBS-packaged “Pentagon, USA” 
show in the time period, but the 
latter became an early casualty, 
with PM and Biow deciding to take 
program matters into their own 
hands. 


NBC Can’t See Tinting 


"T-Men in Action,” carded by 
NBC-TV for, a color workout in its 
regular series of such exposures, 
won’t get the tint treatment after 
ail. 

The Treasury Department-angled 
thriller is moving over to ABC-TV 
in April, so NBC doesn’t consider 
it worth while to put it on the 
rainbow route, what with the extra 
coin involved and that little mat- 
ter ot focussing attention on a de- 
parting stanza. 


Wednesday^ Febru ary 3, 1934 



‘Ike Won 9 t Let The Cowles Get 
Hurt 9 Written Into 



Washington, Feb. 2. 

Politics at the' water** edge 
reared its ugly head at FC C hear' 
lugs last week on the. hot contest 
lor channel 8*in DesMoines with 
a charge that pressure was exert- 
ed by a Cowles Broadcasting Co, 
Official to force a withdrawal^ by 
the competing applicant by alleg- 
edly telling him that White House 
influence will . protect Cowle •* tv 
Interests. 

In a stormy session In Which 
lawyers wrangled and FCC Exam- 
iner Millard French was put id a 
tough spot, the following state- 
ment allegedly made by Coview 
veepee: Jim Milloy to »Kingsley 
Murphy, Jr., of KSO, rival for the 
channel, was allowed in the record 
but with reservations as to its ad- 
missability: 

“It makes no difference what 
goes on in there ( the FCC hearing 
room). The Cowles have done a 
lot for Ike. The Cowles’ are in 
Ike’s book. John (Cowles) has just 
been called by the White House 
and is going back to Minneapolis 
to try to persuade Dr. Charlie 
Mayo to run against (Sen. Hubert) 
Humphrey. You know that Mike 
(Gardner Cowles) is about to leave 
on a Point Four trip for Ike in the 
Middle East. All this- stuff about 
Ike being pure is all right. But 
you know that when you are in the 
Army you learn politics. You don’t 
get to go from a lieutenant to a 
colonel (sic), and then to Presi- 
dent without knowing about poli- 
tics, Ike won’t let the Cowles’ get 
hurt, He won’t let them lose out 
In tv in Des Moines. I know how 
the wheels turn In Washington, 
and you don’t have one chance in 
10 . ■ 

'Offer of Proof* 

The statement Was presented at 
the hearing by Benito Gaguiiie. of 
the law firm of Fly, Shuebruk, 
Blume A Gaguine, counsel for 
KSO, with an “offer of proof” that 
Murphy, who Was on the stand, 
would so testify if permitted. 
Gaguine’s efforts to elicit testi- 
mony from Murphy on his .conver- 
sation with Milloy last Dec* 21 at 

(Continued on page 42), 


That’s Show Biz 

Footnote to the vagaries of 
tv .programming. 

Lux Video Theatre’s hour- 
long adaptation last Thursday 
(28) of “A Place in the Sun’’ 
had Marylin Erskine featured 
in the role originated by Shel- 
ley Winters in the Paramount 
pic. ' 

... While Miss Erskine was 
busy on CBS taking over in 
tv where MisS Winters had left, 
pff in pix. Miss Winters was 
busy with, some tv of her own, 
opposite Lux' on NBC as star 
of one of Ford Theatre’s filmed 
dramas, “Mantrap." 



Bows on March 2 


Paul Tripp’s returfi to tv will 
set him up in “Paul Tripp’s Party” 
on CBS. This'll also be a color 
show and hence only three eastern 
stations are involved for the time 
being— N. Y., Baltimore and Wash* 
ington. It’s being shaped for a 
March 2 < Tuesday ) start in the 
5:30 to 6 slot, the period Which the 
net earmarks for its regular Friday 
“New Revue” tinter.* 

Tripp has been off the medium 
since his “Mr. ' I. , Magination,” 
which had built a wide kid follow- 
ing before being axed 1 about 18 
months ago. “Party” is- being 
whipped up by exec producer Dick 
Lewine of the web’s color, cadre, 
with Bert Sbevelove and Kirk 
Alexander the , producer-director 
components. Format will revolve 
around Tripp's translucent “Magic 
House” and aim is to open each 
segment with about eight minutes 
of a color cartoon, with the mono 
chrome value to be enhanced via 
a gimmick added to the animation. 

Not dead but indefinitely, post 
poned is Tripp’s “In the Park,” al 
ready kinnied and originally, aimed 
as a Sunday afternoon stanza out 
of Philly (WCAU). 




Various station reps headed by 
Joseph J, Weed and Station Repre- 
sentatives A|sn. are leveling blasts 
at the newspapers Which recently 
cut out free radio-tv logs and those 
which threaten similar action. Dis- 
content began when . two Nashville 
papers last month announced that 
they no longer would carry pro- 
gram listings gratis. 

Attitude among dissenting pe- 
riodicals, says Weed, is that giving 
free listings to stations is like 
“extending aid to an enemy.” The 
papers, on the other hand; have 
indicated that the program logs 
when given away prove very costly 
and that is only reason the proce- 
dure was ended. The Tennessean 
and the Banner, in Nashville, who 
announced their new stand con- 
cerning the logs on Jan, 19 were 
willing to give local stations wbat 
they consider a reasonable ad rate. 
Both publications stated that they 
only,. Wanted broadcasters to help 
defray print expenses. 

"Radio and tv,” Weed said, “have 
proven friends indeed to news- 
papers in terms of being responsi- 
ble for sizable lineage in tune-in 
display ads. And surveys conducted 
by publishers themselves have' con- 
stantly shown that the radio-tv logs 
are among the ’most-read fea- 
tures.’ ” 

"it’s the papers’ prerogative to 
make their own policies and charge 
for whatever they want to charge, 
BUt radio and tv, while enjoying 
definite advantages from the free 
listings, have contributed much to 
newspapers’ prestige and revenue.” 
Weed said. 



HEAR LEE’S 1ST TALK 

o Hartford, Feb. 2. 

Second annual New England 
convention of American Women in 
Radio and Television will be held 
at Hotel Bond here Feb. 13 and 14. 
Robert E. Lee, new member of the 
FCC, will be on the speaker’s ros- 
trum in his first public; talk. 

Moderator for the workshop 
panel will be Jeanne Porter of 
W.ELI, New Haven, and 'WKNB-TV, 
New Britain. Others who will par- 
ticipate are Margaret A rlen, 
WCBS-TV; Mary Jane Jesse, pub- 
licist; Duncan MacDonald, former- 
ly supervisor of women’s ,and re- 
ligious programs for DuMont; Jane 
Shannon, advertising rep, N. Y. 
and Jean Colbert, WTIC, Hartford’ 



II 


On Kate Smith TV Show 

Charles (Bud) Barry, NBC-TV 
veepee, whose now “roving assign- 
ment” for the web channels him 
into both the sales and program 
operations, is currently doing a 
concentrated job on the afternoon 
Kate Smith show. 

With sale of the show'*s segments 
down from the previous year, NBC- 
TV, under Its new daytime push, 
is anxious to restore the billings 
potential of the hour showcase to 
its onetime affluence. 


Chi *4 to Go’ TV’er 


Chicago, Feb. 2. 

In an on-again-off-again byplay 
that cued more than the usual 
speculation in matters of this kind, 
Hal Block bowed off Friday (29) as 
emcee of WGN-TV’s daily “Four to 
Go” quizzer. Although he still had 
a few weeks to go in his WGN-TV 
contract Block was given the word 
early Ijjst week that he Was being 
replaced and was off the first three 
days bitf he was permitted to re- 
turn last Thursday and Friday to 
make his adieus. 

While no official statement Was 
I forthcoming from the station, it’s 
j understood a “series of incidents” 
! led to friction. Ernie Simon has 
taken over the host duties on the 
i show this week. 


TV SETS NOW PUSHING 
28,000,000 MARK 

The country is not only well 
past the 27,000,000 teleset mark 
but pushing the next cipher. As 
of Jan. I the volume stood at 27,- 

660,000 by virtue of December pur- 
chases amounting to 693,000 re- 
ceivers, bringing the year’s figure 
to 6,432,000; Latter marked the 
largest increase per annum on rec- 
ord with the exception of 1950, 
when 6;600, 000 sets were sold. Last 
year’s whopper is credited to the 
post-freeze markets, with 2,626,000 
or better than 40% of the total 
sold in these areas and amounting 
to '32% of saturation as against 
79% pre-freeze. 

According to Hugh M. Beville 
Jr., NBC’s director of research and 
planning who supplies the month- 
by-month statistics, there are now 
12,000,600 non-tv families in areas 
covered by the medium. ‘ 



orC’as 



Fred Allen’s “Judge for Your- 
self” is being terminated by Old 
Gold upon expiration of the 39- 
week cycle latter part of May. 
Old Gold has bought the Ralph Ed- 
wards “Truth or Consequences” 
packages as replacement for Jhe 
Tuesday night 10 to 10:30 period, 
although Edwards will not appear 
on the show since he’s tied down 
by his “This Is Your Life” weekly 
show case for Hazel Bishop. Jack 
Bailey will take , over his chore. 
‘Tv’ is a summer deal with no OG 
commitments^ yet for the NBC-TV 
time in the fall either for Allen’s 
return or anyone, else. 

Allen show, to which OG has 
been committed on a firm 39-week 
deal, never really got off the 
ground, and several weeks ago the 
show’s packagers, Goodson & Todr 
man, overhauled the format in an 
attempt to hypo the stanza. It 
didn’t materially help matters. Rat- 
ing-wise, the program was a disap- 
pointment to the client. 

It represents another miss in the 
career of Allen in an attempt to 
integrate his unique talents into 
tv. WUh probably the largest root- 
ing section ' in show biz annals, 
Allen has Had seVeral, formats and 
sponsors over the. past few seasons, 
but all the shows have come a 
cropper. 


Pore Schary to Co-Host 
’Toast’ Salute to Metro; 
Studio Sets Top Stars 

Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

- P ore Schary will be co-host with 
Ed Sullivan of the “Toast of the 
Town” CBS telecast from the 
Shrine Auditorium Feb; 14 honor- 
ing the Metro’s 30th anni. Show is 
being routined with Schary and 
Sullivan sharing the introductions 
of Metro stars appearing on the 
program and sequences from top 
pix, past and present. 

George Wells, Metro producer, 
was also set to work with SUllivan. 
Latter will bring his shoW here 
from N.Y. for event. \ 
Mario Lewis, of Sullivan \staff, 
also will collab and so will Herman 
Hoffman, Who .will co-superyise 
Metro presentations on program 
with Wells. Hermes Pari will dip 
rect the choreography, Jerry Davis 
scripts and Roger Edens .is prep- 
ping special musical material. 

Studio’s top ; stars are slated to 
JPP®,® 1 ’ on Program, which will 
highhght “Knights of the .Round 
Table,’ Executive Suite,” “Rose 
Marie, ’ “The Long,. Long Trailer” 
and other anni films. Players will 
include Lionel Barrymore, Ann 
Blyth, Howard Keel, Ann Miller 
Jane ^Powell, Debbie Revnolds 1 
Vera-Ellen, Pier Angeli, Louis Cal- 
hern, Van Johnson, Gene Kelly 
and Keenan Wynn. Other thesps 
also will be set. 


Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

Watch it from your living room, and everybody's a critic. The 
public demands a lot more from cuffo entertainment, and that’s 
Why there’s an increased strain on tv performers. That's the opinion 
of Jack Benny. 

'There are millions, of critics in the living rooms of America 
today. But on the other hand, when I put on a stage show in $an 
Francisco last year, the public paid 14*8® tops and each week was 
better than the preceding one during the three-weeks run; Here 
the customers weren’s critical'because they knew from the reviews, 
word.-of-mouth, arid so on, that it would be good. 

•But in tv if you’re on every week it’s tough, because nobody 
can be good every week, and if one show isn’t as good as the last, 
the viewer then compares it unfavorably. It you're on every three 
weeks, as I am, it gets to be quite an event and th* public expects 
a lot. They don’t know about the time I spend on my radio show; 
they just think I’ve had all that time to work on the tv show, so 
it better be a good one. Even so, I come on wih a good show, 
and the living room critics may say it wasn’t as good as the last 
■one.” ' ' - ^ ■' .' . 

Benny opined there, is a possibility too many of the situation 
comedy shows are attempting to . do the same, thing, but added he 
did not feel the situation comedy trend is ending. Success of a 
.show is contingent on its material and performers, and so long as 
those facets are good, the show will be around; if they’re bad, they 
won’t be, he averred. 



.2 


Lowell Thomas Jr. Taking Wife and Camera To 

‘UnKheiy Places’ for Television 

■ . ■ ; * ■ ' v 


Murrow’s O’Seas Ride 

Ed Murrow’s Jan. 22 “Person 
to Person” on CBS-TY will be 
aired by the BBC Feb. 16' via 
hot kine. That’s the stanza on 
which Murrow 'interviewed 
Capt. Donald Sorrel, skipper 
of the Queen Mary. 

Kinnie . includes' Mrs. Elea- 
nqr Roosevelt, the other inter- 
viewee.. ' - 



London, Feb. 2. 

British Broadcasting Corp. is bid- 
ding for some of America’s top tv 
programs, including the Lucille 
Ball series, “I Love Lucy.” News 
was confirmed last. week by Ronald 
Waldman, head of BBCrTV light 
entertainment, who recently re- 
turned from a trip to the U. S. 

During his visit Waldman ini- 
tiated negotiations for kinescoped 
versions of “some of the top drama 
and comedy shows” and he hoped 
these would be completed soori. 
In addition to the “Luey” program 
he revealed he was bidding for the 
“Dragnet” series. • 

Of tv generally in the States, 
Waldman said he expected to find 
new ideas and programs, but in- 
stead found people and the right 
use of people.- His experience had 
forced him to the conclusion that 
British tv needed more writers who 
could create the sort of program 
situations in which comedians 
could be funny. He thought the 
American press was much less 
vicious about television shows than 
the British critics. 

The announcement of the nego- 
tiations was followed by an imme- 
diate protest by the Assn, of Cine 
Technicians, whose general secre- 
tary, George H. Elvin, said he was 
appalled at the news and intended 
to ask the Board of Trade prez to 
refuse import licenses. 

. ACT, said Elvin, had. never ac- 
cepted the attitude of British film 
interests who had resisted compe- 
tition arid cooperation with tv by 
withholding film supplies arid it 
was no solution for the BBC to try 
to overcome those difficulties by 
importation of foreign programs. 

Hagp’sPrivate Wife’ 

Set>r WABC-TV Bow 

•- “Maggi’s/ Private Wire” is set 
to kick off (in the Sunday night II 
P.m. slot on\WABC-TV, NtY., start- 
ing Feb. 2 1,) W'iUx^Colonial Airlines 
PlcHwfr^UOhe^iab. Show features 
, . Sgi MpNellis doing interviews 
with relebs, in addition to show 
bizjarid night life chatter. 

Meanwhile, producers Gross & 
Baer are negotiating for an expan- 
sion of Miss McNellis’ daily half- 
hour WABC show to 60 minutes. 


Last Sunday’s (31) NBC-TV spe- 
cial one-shot filmed presentation 
of the K-2 mountain climbing ex- 
pedition (which, although the ex- 
pedition itself failed, gave the net- 
work an hour of vivid drama), ap-r 
parently is only the first in a series 
of .such adventure sagas on the 
network’s tv agenda. 

It’s been learned that NBC has 
negotiated a deal with Lowell 
Thomas Jr., who departs- soon with 
his wife on a journey from France 
to Australia for several months, 
and which will take them into “un- 
likely places ” penetrating forbid- 
den cities, jungles, powwows with 
pygmies, fierce tribes, etc, It’ll all 
be retarded on film, for exclusive 
use as NBC-TV special events fea- 
tures. 



Although only on the air for a 
month, the NBC-TV “Breakfast In 
Hollywood” show is getting the axe 
after the Feb. 5 telecast. Effective 
Monday, Feb. 8, the wpb is bring- 
ing in a new daytime substitute, 
“The Betty White Show,” Latter is 
regarded as a hot Coast personal- 
ity, with this, her first coast-to-coast 
showcasing. (She’s on the syndi- 
cated “Life with Elizabeth” series.) 

Dropping of “Breakfast Club” is 
Cued to the Tom McAvity-Fred 
lyile-Sam Fuller-Mike Dann tv pro- 
gramming braintrust’s new pattern 
for daytime shows, i.e., knock ’em 
off fast if they don’t shape up as 
click potentials, arid try again. 

Betty White show goes into the 
12:30 to i p.m. segment tinder the 
new daytime schedule (being inau- 
gurated March 1) which reads; 
“One Man’s Family” at 10:30; 
“Three Steps to Heaven” at 10:45; 
the new “Home” show at 11 to 
noon; “Bride and Groom” 12 to 
12:15; “Hawkins Falls” 12:15 to 
12:30 and “Betty White Show’' 
12:30 to 1. 


With the Saturday night Jerry 
Lester-emceed Chock-Full-o’-N uts 
local variety show on WNBT; N. Y.« 
given the heave, sponsor has set a 
new half-hour Ray McKinley stan- 
za , which tees off on Saturday (6)- 
McKinley, in addition-to emceeing, 
will front a musical . combo arid 
move into the various entertain- 
ment segments. 

n terms of a local show, it’ll get 
some fancy budgeting and produc- 
tion trimmings. There’ll be a 
weekly name guest.. Singer Jean 
Martin, the sponsor's wife, goes 
along with the package. 

Show will be spotted 11:30 to 
midnight, with a 15-minute, film se- 
ries going into the 11:15 to 11:30 
time. 




W«liie«d»y. F«b*mur 3, 1954 


m 



KABIO-TKLKVTSIOX 


» V ♦ 


27 



Boston, Feb. 2. 

Color tv’s biggest obstacle — high cost of sets— may be licked 
by development of a. converter, FCC Comr. George Sterling sug* 
tested in an address here last week before the Institute Of Radio 
Engineers. Said «Sterliiig: “While I had thought that the point Of 
•no return* had been passed in converting black-and-white receiv- 
ers I now have a notion that some ’gimmick' not too costly in 
price will be devised which will enable a monochrome receiver to 
receive color programs— in color. It would surely; meet public 
acceptance by those who cannot afford a color receiver until they 
are available at reasonable costs.’’ 

Sterling; an engineer, added that all indications point to faster 
development of color than was “originally anticipated.” Production 
of color tubes with larger viewing surfaces, he said, is moving fast 
and competition betwefen manufacturers has developed to a point 
where price of sets is bound to come down. 

•Remember what happened in monochrome tv,’’ he said; “Who 
would have believed five years ago, that some day you could buy 
a 21 -inch receiver for around $200,” which is what some sets are 
being advertised today.”! . y , 


Washington, Feb. 2. / 

Broadcasters — AM, * FM and TV 
alike— will have to fork over $325 
with every major application filed 
with FCC, if a fee system proposed 
by the agency last week is adopted. 
The plan, ih line with provisions 
of the Independent Offices Ap- 
propriation-; Act of 1952, was of- 
fered In compliance mith a - Budget 
Bureau directive requiring regu- 
latory agencies to charge for 
services. . 

The $325 fee would be applied to 
applications for new AM, FM and 
tv stations, for changes in power, 
channels, studio or transmitter 
location; transfer of ownership, 
licenses to cover new stations, and, 
renewal of licenses (required every 
three years). 

Most tv stations will escape , at 
least a $325 ’assessment for by the 
time the proposal Is adopted they 
will have acquired’ their Construc- 
tion permits. . However, only about 
100 of the 600 plus stations auth- 
orized have received their licenses 
to cover their permits and these, 
will be assessed. 

The- bulk of the 3,200 AM- and 
FM stations have been on - the air 
long enough to have obtained their 
licenses. Feps from this group of 
broadcasters will come largely 
from applications for frequency 
changes, higher poWer, assignment 
of ownership, and ’renewal of 
license. 

Fees ranging from $3 for appli- 
cations for radio operator licenses 
to $1,500 for applications from 
manufacturers seeking approval of 
certain types of electronic equip- 
ment are also provided in the pro 1 
posed schedule. 

Altogether, the fee system would 
( Continued on page 48) 



Where longhair events used to 
be confined to a few spots on tele, 
like the “Firestone Hour,” the clas- 
sical side of show biz has been 
making more and more of a splash 
ln recent seasons, to indicate , a 
regular trend now; Longhair is 
breaking out in all the fop ’ shows. 

Last Sunday (31), George Jessel 
had Met soprano Eleanor Steber 
as well as balladeer JBurl' Ives on 
his ABC. program, : Same night, Ed 
bulhvan ha.d Met tenor Richard 
tucker arid classical guitarist An- 
dies Segovia on his CBS “Toast of 
rDoT— n,M w bile in the afternoon, 
LoS’ “Omnibus” presented a full- 
hour modern opera in Respighi’s 
p eeping Beauty.” Week before, 
iL u . lv f. n had presented the Sad- 
ler s Wells Ballet and Met basso 
rT e ^ r ® . Sie P** ®nd: next Sunday (7) 
the longhair kick a 
vlv! d .w ee k, he’s skedded violinist 
Menuhin, playing Debussy 
ana Kreisler. 

A magnanimous and unusual ges- 
i] 1 L e c . oc , Cui * red in connection with 
e Sadler’s ballet appearance on 

( Continued on page 48) 


' ; •• •' ' 'y. ' . ■ 

Sam Fuller Checks In 

Sam Fuller hit Gotham last week 
to start on "his new job as local 
chief of staff to NBC-TV program 
v.p. Tom McAvity, the latter only, 
recently installed himself in top- 
dog status. 

Fuller has been on the Coast a 
couple of years as exec producer 
of “Comedy Hour,” with Pete Bar- 
hurii stepping in for him. 



The sight and sound editions ; of 
“Lux Theatre” look to b^ moving 
out of the Columbia camp to NBC 
in a coin switch worth some $2,- 
750,000 and an untold amount in 
prestige v^lue. Lever Bros, has 
its eye on the Thursday 10 to 
11 p.m; slot in tv, against current 
half-hour anchorage of 9 to 9:30 
on CBS (last week’s “Place in the 
Sun” was experimental hour).. The j 
aural version, however, longtime.] 
Monday hour at 9, is up in the air;* 
Pitching "Lux Video Theatre” in 
the Thursday slot would call for 
considerable realignment, notably 
for XL S. Tobacco’s 10 o’clock 
“Martin Kane” and Ballantine 
Beeris local “Foreign Intrigue” 
segue spread. There would have 
to be a nbw formation for the seg- 
ments preceding Lux’s new 60- 
minute berthing on a night that’s 
gradually assuming the com- 
plexion of “Hot Thursday” at NBC 
with its Groucho Marx at 8 and 
“Dragnet” at 9 and the middle 
point as yet unresolved in upcom- 
ing moveover of “Treasury Men 
in Action” to ABC-TV. 


MERMAN’S 2D TV’ER 
TO BE BOOK SHOW 

Ethel Mefman’s Feb. 28 appear- 
ance as star of “Comedy Hour — -her 
first one on Jan. 24 marked her 
teledebut in own. session — will set 
her up in a book show. Last 
month’s sketch-and-song workout 
on NBC-TV, with Jimmy Durante 
qnd Gene Nelson as cohorts, was 
riot regarded as playing up to the 
strength of Miss Merman's talents. 

Original intention for Feb. 28 
was to do a condensed version of 
her Broadway starrer, “Annie Get 
Your Gun,” with $75,800 for the 
rights going to Metro which made 
the picture. But a clearance hassle 
developed and the idea has been 
dropped. She’ll do a roundup of 
her Broadway songs. Frank Sina- 
tra will guestar. 

Leland Hayward will take an 
active production role in Miss 
Merman’s No. 2. He’s a consultant 
for the web and is on the Coast 
now. 


$1,000, not ‘Home’ Bally; NBC-TV Sez 



-•f 



Boston, Feb. 2. 

Ultra high tv permit holders 
might be better off if they waited 
for higher power before going 
ahead with construction of sta- 
tions, FCC Comr. George Sterling 
told the Institute of Radio Engi- 
neers here last week. “I am not 
sure,” Sterling said, “but what the 
Commission would be doing UHF 
a favor if it suspended authorizing 
any more 1 kw transmitters.” 

Speaking before the Boston chap-: 
ter of IRE at the Mass. Institute 
of Technology Faculty Club; Ster- 
ling said that lack of high power 
and “insensitive" receivers are two 
of the major problems confronting 
UHF; The manufacturing indus- 
try, he said, has reported to the 
Commission that most UHF trans- 
mitters now being made are 1 kw, 
that the highest power available is 
12 kw, and that 50 kw transmitters, 
are not expected to be in commer- 
cial production until late 1955 or 
early 1956, 

While declaring that “public de- 
mand coupled with the efforts of 
industry are bound to put it (UHF) 
over the top,” Sterling pointed out 
that some UHF broadcasters are 
suffering serious financial losses 
with little or no prospect of imme- 
diate relief. 

Some of the “growing pains” of 
the UHF broadcasters, Sterling sug- 
gested, could be alleviated by pro- 
duction of better receivers and 
converters which could be accom- 
plished by “appropriate” attention 
to design. 

He added that ultra high could 
be further aided if dealers and 
service technicians exercised more 
care in placing antenna for UHF* 
receivers. “Too often,” he said, 
“there is a tendency to attach it 
to the VHF antenna support, 
whereas if a little effort were ex- 
pended in finding a ’hot spot* on 
the roof a much Stronger UHF sig- 
nal would be obtained.”. 

Ultra high station operators 
could also help themselves, he said, 
by locating their transmitter, equip- 
ment where it will cover the “most i 
homes” in the area rather than the 
.largest geographical area. 

A few “over-zealous” broad- 
casters, Sterling said, contributed 
to giving UHF a “black eye” by 
getting on the air prematurely and 
ignoring the receiving problem. 
“Some; too,” he added, "engaged 
in selfish pre-publicity and failed 
to secure the cooperatiori' of set 
distributors and servicemen or to 

(Continued on page 44) 


The KCTY Story 

Boston, Feb. p. 

Failure of ultra high station 
KCTY in Kansas City, Mo., re- 
cently acquired by DuMont 
from Empire Coil, was due to 
three unanticipated develop- 
ments: speedup, in FCC pro- 
cessing of VHF applications, 
agreernents for share-time op- . 
eration and mergers. These 
resulted, FCC Comr. George 
Sterling told the Institute of 
Radio Engineers, in KCTY be- 
ing faced with competition 
from four VHF stations (two 
Sharing one channel) much 
earlier than expected. As re- 
lated by Sterling: 

“It went on the air last June 
after an expenditure of ap- 
proximately $750,000. More 
money was expended in an at- 
tempt. to gain a foothold, but 
the public was not willing to 
convert; when it could obtain 
most Of the top-rated programs 
from the three networks on 
the VHF channels. The sta- 
tion was eventually offered for 
sale for $750,000, then $400,- 
000, finally $300,006, but there 
were no takers. 

“In the interest of the pub- 
lic and the future of UHF, the 
Empire Coil Co., rather than 
turn in this authorization, of- 
fered it to DuMont for $1 and 
the offer was accepted.” 


Arlene the Winnah 

One of the choice tv plums 
of the season— the “editor-in- 
chief” role on “Home,” the 
upcoming “Woman’s magazine 
of the air” cross-the-board 
morning, show on NBC-TV — 
goes to Arlene Francis. Femcee 
role, is comparable to that held 
down by Dave G.arroway on 
the early-morning “Today” 
show. She’s reported in for 
$1,000 a week plus a % deal 
In which she could haul down 
$100,000 a year in the event 
of an SRO status, 

Selection of Miss Francis 
culminated weeks of sifting all 
possible candidates, with some 
of the major names in show 
biz tossed; into the hopper for 
consideration. 



Two divisions of CBS underwent 
sweeping realignment this week as 
far as the top berths are con- 
cerned. Corporation prexy Frank 
Stanton tapped Charles * F. Stro- 
meyer and Dr. Peter C.- Goldmark 
as respective presidents of CBS- 
Hytron, the tube making division, 
and CBS Labs, engineering arid de- 
velopment wing of. the parent out- 
fit. Stromeyer, formerly exec v.p., 
relieves Bruce A. Coffin, foundcr- 
prexy since the company (Hytrori 
Radio Sc Electronics Corp. ) Was 
formed in 1921. Dr. Goldiftark 
moves up from v.p. of • the Labs. 
Coffin retains board membership 
in CBS, Iric., as does Lloyd H. Cof- 
fin, who retires as treasurer. 

The moves came only a week or 
so after General Electric Co. joined 
CBS in a license pact under which 
the former obtained the rights to 
manufacture and distribute Coluiri- 
bla’s Chromacoder equipment for 
Color tv in ari obvious thrust at 
RCA for tint sppreiriacy. 

Stromeyer joined CBS in 1942 as 
chief engineer and assistant, to the 
president, moving. 'up in stages to 
exec veepeeship of Hytrori, a ma- 
jor producer of electronic tubes, 
transistors and germanium diodes, 
with main plant and administrative 
offices in Danvers, Mass., and man- 
ufactories ‘ in Newburyport, Salem 
and Lowell, Mass., and Kalamazoo, 
Mich. The Coffin company was 
merged with CBS in 1951 when it 
became CBS-Hytron. 

Dr. Goldmark’s CBS affiliation 

(Continued on page 46) 


EDDIE DAVIS PREPS 
’CALLING ALL STARS’ 

New show which would bring the 
major film studios into active co- 
operation with video has been 
worked out by scripter Eddie Da- 
vis, who planed in from the Coast 
this week to present it to NBC- 
TV brass. Program, “Calling All 
Stars,’” Would have home audience 
[ calling and speaking to their top 
film stars via phone, with the stars 
plugging their latest pix during 
the. conversation. . 

Program would have a quiz for- 
mat, with film clips from top Hol- 
lywood . productions used as the 
basis of the questions. Contestant 
who answers the questions cor- 
rectly would then be plugged in 
with the filmster for a three-min- 
ute or more conversation. Actual 
camera technique for the phone- 
calls hasn’t been worked out yet. 
Davis said, the project has gotten 
good reaction from the film stu- 
dios. 


Announcement by NBC-TV last 
week that the sales plan on upcom- 
ing “Home”, will be hitched to 
eight one-miriute spots and six 20- 
second product mentions for the 
11 to boon hour brought criticism 
in some quarters ’that such a pat- 
tern, with its 12 minutes of plug- 
ging, is not in line with the NARTB 
Code on commercials. But web 
factotums were quick to point out 
that the 12-minute allowance is 
right on the NARTB nose for par- 
ticipating shows, with one minute 
of blurb for each five of program- 
ming. Apparently the “Homeza- 
poppin” dear was confused with 
the blurb count in non-spot pro 
gramming before 6 p.m. which un- 
der NARTB regulations calls for a 
maximum of three minutes in a 
quarter, four minutes 15 seconds ir 
a half and seven minutes in ar 
hour. (After 6 o’clock) this re 
duces to two and a half, three and 
six minutes.) 

With that point settled, “Home” 
sent a $1,000,000 advance proino 
tion and advertising budget on . the 
way Monday (1) in the first of t 
series of drives throughout Feb 
ruafy to r give the March 1 preenr 
target a thorough exposure to pub 
lie and trade under Jacob A 
Evans, tv web’s ad and promotion 
director. The actual approprlatior 
of $976,029 is credited as the larg* 
est in video history for a single 
program and Will be spread ink 
newspapers, over the air, and for 
gadgets and gimmicks. Along witl 
full pagers in major dailies, to bt 
followed by spreads in trade press, 
went a blueprint of the “Home* 
setup to a limited number of ac 
agencies dramatizing the cross 
board “electronic magazine foi 
women.” 

During the first Week of the 
push, there’ll be 15 chimesbreak^ 
building to saturation on the last 
Week, plus. 30 one-minute promo- 
tion films on tv carrying blurbs by 
web prexy Pat Weaver, exec pro- 
ducer Dick Pinkham, set designer 
Sol. Kornberg and the various sub- 
editors. Plugs will be included on 
“Today,” Kate Smith’s 'show ant 
the “Mom” section of “Ding Dony 
School.” A week before the preen . 
six major markets will be invaded 
for co-op ad treatment with affili- 
ates picking up part of the tab un- 
der prearranged conditions. On 
launching day itself, the N. Y. Cen- 
tral commuter Crowd won’t be able 
to escape from “Home” via end 
(Contlriiied oh page 46) 



The deal to bring Betty Huttori 
into video via CBS is all off, dc 
spite the fact that a month ago it 
looked pretty much like a sum 
thing. Reason: she’s too rich for 
Columbia’s blood, as far as coi’ 1 
demands are concerned. That 
leaves CBS exactly where NBC wa« 
a year ago, when Ihe latter we’t 
tried to negotiate a pact, bui . 
also couldn’t see plunking down 
that kind of coin, 

CBS got hot on Miss Hutton dur- 
ing her second Palace Theatre. 
N. Y., vaude engagement a fee 
months back, when the network’:- 
board chairman, Bill Paley. person- 
ally took commahd of the “get Hut 
tori” overtures. 

Herb Hobler Named 

To Teleprompter Posi 

Herbert W. Hobler this week 
was named general sales manager 
of Teleprompter National Sale- 
Co., effective March 1. He’s resign- 
ing his CBS-TV sales post to take 
oyer Teleprompter sales. 

Hobler’s the son of Benton A 
Bowles executive committee chair- 
mah Atherton W. Hobler. Walter 
Craig, former radio-tv veep at 
agency, is a big stockholder in 
i Teleprompter, Inc. 


Wednesday, February 3, 1954 



TV Shows Against Plagiarism, Etc. 


Costs of insuring television 
shows against legal action for pla- 
giarism, invasion of privacy and 
libel have skyrocketed for the sec- 
ond time within a year. The pleth- 
ora of suits that forced all but one 
major domestic insurance company 
out of the “errors and omissions” 
field, as it’s called, has brought 
about a quasi-monopoly situation 
that’s largely responsible for the 
Increases, according to Bernard W. 
Levmore, insurance specialist and 
consultant on many of the top 
video shows. 

Insurance costs for a typical tv 
network panel show, for example, 
were about $275 a year ago. Same 
show now must spend $647.50 for 
Its insurance, and a completely new 
show being insured for the first 
time must pay $852. So-called 
“minimum limits” of a policy have 
been raised from $100,000 to $200,- 
OOO, accounting for part of the in- 
crease, but for a renewal of a pol- 
icy, premium has still risen 135% 
and for a new policy, it’s gone up 
almost 210%. Reason given for 
higher rate for a new show is that 
it’s more liable to suit than one 
which has been on for some time, 
plus the fact that a previously in- 
sured show has accumulated pre- 
mium payments which Can .offset 
loss owing to lawsuit. 

Reason for. the increases is a 
dual one. Firstly, number of law- 
suits, whether for nuisance value 
or for real claims* has taken On tre- 
mendous proportions, and the mass 
circulation and novelty of video 
has been a factor in. causing suits 
over even the most innocuous tv 
properties. This increase in fre- 
quency and number of lawsuits and 
(Continued on page 42) 


FOLTS IN WINS EXIT 
FOR ABC RADIO JOB 

Harry Folts quit as general man- 
ager of WINS, New York indie, 
for a post as account exec with 
ABC radio last week. The move 
came just a day or two before El- 
roy McCaw and his Gotham Broad- 
casting stepped in officially as new 
owners of the station purchased 
recently from Crosley. 

..' McCaw, Who intends . to., spend 
the next few weeks in New York 
to oversee his new property, de- 
clared of the managerial Vacancy 
that he is “considering several 
men as replacements but that’s as 
far as it’s gone.” 

Folts began at the network on 
Monday (1). 




Maj. Edwin H. Armstrong. 63rl 
pioneer radio inventor and devel- 
oper of the .FM system of broad-, 
casting, died, in a plunge in New 
York Monday <1). J His suicide was 
traced to strained marital relations 
and a mass of litigation with major 
manufacturers over patent rights. 

Maj. Armstrong’s most recent 
development was perfection of the 
“piggy-back” 'method of transmit- 
ting three FM signals on Orte fre- 
quency. This multiplex transmitting 
system is currently being examined 
by the FCC as a possible salvation 
for the FM industry. Multiplex 
system was perfected last spring 
by Maj, Armstrong, the last in a 
series Of inventions that made 
possible tremendous strides in 
commercial radio. 

In 1913, he devised a regener- 
ative circuit that made long-dis- 
tance broadcasting possible. During 
World War I and shortly afterward, 
he perfected the super-heterodyne 
circuit basic to every radio set 
today. In 1920, he perfected a 
super-regeneratjve circuit instru- 
mental in two-way police and 
aircraft communications. 


It was in 1939, however, that lie ; 
Introduced the static - free FM 
system. That and other inventions 
involved him in patent litigation 
with RCA, NBC and other broad- 
casting industries. It’s not known 
whether the suits will continue to 
, be pressed by his estate. Maj. 

■ Armstrong taught electrical engi- 
neering at Columbia U. since 1913. 

Survived by wile. 

A special taped tribute to the 
memory of Maj. Armstrong was 
aired early today (Wed.) on WNYC- 
FM’ N Y. from midnight to 12:10 
a.m. Eulogy Was given by Prof. 


WABD, DuM°nt Gotham flagr 
ship; has reaped heavy profit from 
its lack of. autonomy.; No question 
that the O&o would have been in 
the black regardless of its affilia- 
tion, but the coin intake was in- 
creased because the operation had 
so many ways to Write off costs to 
the network. 

The o&o showed an increase in 
net billings (after discount) for 
December of ’53 over the same 
month the year before of 62% and 
over the whole of ’53 a 24% ascen- 
sion as against ’52. But percentages 
aren’t the best yardstick. If they 
were translated into dollars , it 
would be seen that the sum total 
in profits is- much higher than it 
ever could have been were WABD 
independent of its mother-opera- 
i tion. 

To give an idea of how much of 
the station’s costs are eaten up by 
the network: With the exception 
of the sales staff at WABD, its traf- 
fic, programming, production, en- 
gineering and publicity is done by 
the web. This leads to incidental 
difficulties from time to time, since 
staffers apparently have no clearly 
defined plan for proportioning 
their time and efforts between web 
and station, but the benefits ac- 
crued by the outlet are measure- 
less. 

Naturally, the o&o pays some 
coin to the web, but' outlay would 
be infinitely heavier if the. former 
were autonomous, 

Norman Knight, station boss, has 
kept a careful eye on expenses 
since fie took office in the fall of 
’53. A few popular shows on WABD 
were dropped because they were 
losing money. Now before any new 
vehicles are picked up by the out- 
let, the Knightmen do a cost analy- 
sis on it. 

With the glitter of a network op- 
eration on a local scale as induce- 
ment, WABD was able to attract 
253 advertisers in 1953. The figure 


Conies the pre-planting .season 
among the nation’s domestic horti- 
culturists and Ferry-Morse is id 
there pitching with the seeds) 
Starting Feb. 20 for 14 Saturday 
mornings the outfit will sponsor 
“Garden Gate” on CBS for its 
10th year on) the, skein, with Mac- 
Manus, John & Adams of Detroit 
agenting. ^ . 

Another spender in the CBS 
camp . is Murine, .dowja for a six- 
week saturationer for $150,000 in 
Power Plan and sustained group- 
ings, Galen Drake and “Beulah." 

WABC-TV’s ‘Lucky 7 



Becomes 



The $75, 000-in-prizes “Lucky 7” 
contest designed to bolster the rat- 
ings for WABCtTV, the ABC-TV 
flagship in New York, got under- 
way this week with as complex an 
operation as anything the station 
has seen. The five-week promotion 
will give away. 1,717 cash prizes 
totalling $75,000 via a total of 89,- 
000 phone calls placed by 30 tele- 
phone Operators and by a mail pull 
device. 

Packaging firm of Masterson, 
Reddy & Nelson, which is handling 
the. contest for the station', Will 
flash some 125 pictures per week 
on the screen, while the operators 
make calls at random until, they get 
a viewer who correctly identifies 
the person, place or thing shown in 
the picture. Prizes raqge from $25 
to $1,000, with 611 %uch prizes 
scheduled. ’. 

Mail end of the contest will de- 
liver 1,106 prizes from $10 to $10,- 
000 for the best 25-word-or-less let- 
ter on the writer’s favorite show 
on the station and the reason. Sta- 
tion is airing the picture quizzes 
throughout the day, while one 
quarter-hour session per day is ‘de- 
voted to announcement of the win- 
ners by John Nelson, who’s han- 
dling the talent end of the contest 
as well as. the production with Mas- 
tefson & Reddy. 

Total cost of the campaign, 
which runs from. Feb. 1 to March 
7, is estimated at $300)000, with 
most of the coin going into operat- 
ing expenses and advertising. Sta- 
tion started its ad campaign in the 
N. Y. dailies last week. . On the 
talent end,. Nelson will have Toby 
Dean handling the vocals, with top 
ABC-TV stars lending a hand from 
time to q time. Scheduled to be 
spotted are George Jessel, Paul 
Hartman and Danny Thomas. Staff 
of 50 in all is concentrating on. the 
project. 

Contest is all in the realm of 
audience-building, and is consid- 
ered by ABC toppers as an invest- 
ment. Gotham, ratings have been 
a cause of prime concern to ABC, 
with even the best received of the 
web’s new shows having made lit- 
tle dent in the virtual audience 
monopoly held by WNBT (NBC) 
and „WCBS-TV (CBS) in N. Y. Web 
figures that if the daily papers 
could increase their circulations 
via the “Lucky Bucks” giveaways 
recently run in the Mirror and the 
"Bonanza Bills” contest in the 
News, such a technique is certainly 
worth a -Iry in builfiing audience 
for tv. ' 


Powers that be in the network ‘color planning departments are 
going to have to change their thinking on the timing of colorcasts 
in the near future, if they’re to keep the s^tmakersand retailers 
happy. Gripe aired last week By Abraham & Straus, Brooklyn 
department store which was the first to; put color sets on general 
public sale, will probably be multiplied by the score as more color 
Sets reach the retail shelves, . ■ ; » 

A & S complaint was simply this— all thS tint demonstrations 
thus far (with two exceptions) have taken place when the store is 
closed. New York department stores are open one night only dur- 
ing the week, Thursday, and are closed Sundays. A & S was able 
to carry the colorcast of the Dinah Shore show on NBG a couple 
of weeks ago because it took place on a Thursday night, and last 
Friday afternoon’s Jinx Falkenburg segment, but otherwise, it’s 
been unable to show just what the tint receivers can do. And store 
officials say the demand for demonstrations of the sets is terrific. 

Stores may find some relief in the “Howdy Doody” color strip- 
ping this week, but it’s only half-way relief at that. “Howdy” is 
colorcasting from 5:30-6 p.m., but most department stores close 
at 6, others at 5;30. And A & S said it would, have to start shooing 
the ’customers out at 5:45. And CBS-TV’s slotting of its weekly 
“New Revue” colorcasts on Fridays at 5:30 just duplicates the 
situation. What the store wants, and this will undoubtedly be 
echoed by other outlets, is colorcasts at peak shopping hours. 



1 3-Week Archeological Series Set for CBS Flagship, 

With NYU Assist 



Puerto Rican Problem 


Special Documentary Unit of the 
WNBC, N; Y., news department'' 
will embark on its first major un- 
dertaking soon, in cooperation with 
the station’s Tex & Jinx Unit, 

It will be a six-part documentary 
of the Puerto Rican situation in 
New York— a tape recorded series 
exploring all facets of the crucial 
problem, with Bill Bern? as the 
producer. 

Seffes is being done ifi collabora- 
tion with the New York Univer- 
sity Center .for Human Relations, 
and the Citizens Union. 



is not exceptionally high when 
taken out of context, but when the 
station figures up its low inde- 
pendent costs those 253 sponsors 
equal a healthy profit. 

Pilt Visit No Life 
Of Riley for Bendix; 
Gulf, Y&R in Burn 

Pittsburgh, Feb. 2. 
Gulf Oil people, who played host 
Edward Bowles, a friend and col- here at company headquarters one 


Double D Day 


It 


league of- Maj. Armstrong’s and an 
electrical engineering professor at 
the Massachusetts Institute of 
Technology. Program was taped 
yesterday (Tucs.) at MIT. 


day last week to their “Life of 
Kliey” teeyee star, William Bendix, 
are. still trying to figure out wheth- 
er 
tbrs 
It 


was double D Day in New 
York first week as Dennis Day made 
the rounds as part of his combina- 
tion RCA Victor artW humanitarian 
.lunket. Titlist of the “Dennis Day 
Show” on NBC-TV has been des- 
ignated by Gen. Mark Clark as 
‘‘Heart Ambassador” and in that 
role lie was received by Major Rob- 
ert F. Wagner. Jr., who proclaimed 
February as “Heart Month.” 

Sponsoring RCA tossed a cock- 
tail party for the singing comic at 
the W. 49lli St. Exhibition Hall. In 
addition to an RGA contingent 
lopped by Prexy Frank Folsom, 
attendees included such network 


Charlotte, Feb. 2. 

Construction is under way on a 
new $1,000,000 home for radio sta- 
tion WBT and television station 
WBTV, Charlotte. 

Two-story building will consti- 
tute the “first complete tv build- 
ing in the nation designed specifi- 
cally to accommodate color tele- 
casting,” said Thomas E. Howard, 
engineering director for Jefferson 
Standard. The building will be lo- 
cated on a six-acFe tract on the 
edge of Charlotte’s business dis- 
trict. Construction probably will 
take about 10 months and will pro- 
vide space for expansion. 

Spjgce demands of tv was one 
of the main reasons for the new 
building, Charles If. Crutchfield, 
executive v. p. of the company, 
said. He added, however, the com- 
pany has desired to build its own 
operating headquarters since WBT 
was purchased by Jefferson Stan- 
dard Life Insurance Co. of Greens- 
boro in. 1945. 


u’ this city's three television edi- : brass as Pat Weaver, Manie Sacks, 
brs interviewed the same person Jonv MeAvity, Sam Fuller, Syd 
ft certainly didn’t sound that Wav Elges ( P lus such others of latter’s 

[• At . « . h . • . * nrm;c’ /tnimr nr* lSi/.L 


Schaefer Beer, Luckies 1 l !' 01 * 1 T P ie « s which followed in 
w - , tv j - mTT i t! } e wake °1 the flying visit of Ben- 
Kepact Ubagers tor TV ; thx* Who was accompanied to Pitts- 
Joint sponsorship” for all the hurg by Mrs.. Bendix and Marjorie 
Brooklyn Dodger home game tele- ! Reynolds (Mrs. Riley), 
casts via WOR-TV, General Tele- 1 the interview which particularly 
radio-owned outlet in New York. 1 steamed up Gulf and the Young & 
will be carried by F&M Schacl'cr ! Rubicam crowd was tlvo one in the 
Brewing and American Tobacco. Press written by Fred Remington, 

This makes fifth season the boor "ho recently replaced the veteran 
sponsor is paying fbf the Dodger Sl Steinhauscr as radio-tv editor . i..- hncfttl , • • - 

tilts on the station and the third M the Scripps-Howard after noon tVviuiK * r//.- 'vvivm* at ‘l 

year for Lucky Strike (American which was headed “ Riley s’ '■kmijAtv w’’ dh'i 

Tobacco) p a . fW n t „ L -Compel o n .« W 4 ( «, , , , . * £ 


press corps as Dick Connelly, Don 
Bishop, Mike Horton). Earlier on 
Friday (29), Day. was one of the 
stars of. “Jinx Fa lkcnburg’s Diary” 
in the first' colorcast by WNBT, 
Gotham anchor of the ex web. Qn 
M onday ( 1 ) , Gen. Clark guested 
On Day's tv show. 


Kansas City— Second award in a 
month has been received by Bea 

•t ’i i * • ~ 


An “underground” show will be 
launched on WCBS-TV this month 
in one of the most labyrinthic proc- 
esses known to educational tv. It's 
tagged* VHere Is the Past,” a 13- 
Week archeological series offered 
by the CBS flagship irt N. Y. and 
New York U; with a nod from the 
National Assm* of Educational 
Broadcasters, under a grant from 
the Educational Radio & Televi- 
sion Center, latter founded by the 
Fund for .Adulf Education, which 
was established by the Ford Foun- 
dation. 

N.Y.U. was ope of 14 schools to 
receive a grant from NAEB last. 
December, obtaining $6,500 on sub- 
mission of its program prospectus 
which read? irt part: “Few people 
realize that under the ground upon 
which they walk are the works of 
their ancestors— civilizations, cities, 
homes, artifacts and even their pre- 
decessors themselves. The redis- 
covery of these objects and the 
study of them in order to ascertain 
their significance — this is archeol- 
ogy. These programs will give the 
audience the simple rules by which 
it can understand, appraise, and 
even take part in the ceaseless 
succession of discoveries that is 
archeology.” 

Series will feature Dr. Casper 
Kraemer, professor of archeology 
and. the classics at N.Y.U. (Wash- 
ington Square Collejge of Arts & 
Sciences). Producer is Warren A. 
Kraetzer, director of the school’s 
Office of Radio-TV. Lewis Freed- 
man, station staffer, will direct 
No time has been set, although 
Clarence Worden, director of edu- 
cational, and public service pro- 
grams for the outlet, has mid-after- 
rtoon Saturday in view. 


Cyanamide Buys Video 
to 




Industry; ABC Show Set 

Television is being usefi for the 
first time iis a means of goodwill 
and public relations by one major 
industry, towards another. Ameri- 
can Cyanamide Co., which manu- 
factures chemicals used by the 
paper industry, will air a salute to 
the paper manufacturers during 
their annual meeting in New York 
Feb. 17 and will also provide 
closed-circuit telecasts of the 
meetings of the papermen. 

Cyanamide is airing a live, 
“salute to the paper industry” via 
W ABC-TV, the ABC-TV N Y. flag- 
ship, with the show emanating 
from ABC’s Ritz Theatre. Program, 
slotted for 8 p.m., will be produced 
by Eddie Nugent and v^U repre- 
sent a' cavalcade of the paper 
industry and its value to the con- 
sumer. Additionally, on the. same 
day, Cyanamide will transmit via 
closed-circuit facilities the pro- 
ceedings of the American Paper & 
(Continued on page 48) : } 


$24325,100 In ’53 

Chicago, Feb. 2. 

Needham, Louis & Brorby, one 
of the nation's few ad shops that 
publicly expose their annual bill- 
ings and financial structures, re- 
vealed last week that its 1953 bill- 
ings totaled $24,525,100. New total 
represents a 27% jump, amounting 
to $5,248,000. o,ver the 1952 ad 
placements. Net profit after taxes 
was $221,600. 

Although the agency did not 
break down its billings as to media, 
NL&B with such heavy radio-tv 
users as Johnson Wax and portions 
of the Kraft and Quaker Oats ac- 
counts is figured to place nearly 
fiailf its expenditures in the broad- 
cast fields. 

Agency was launched here in 
1925 when billings totaled just un- 
der $300,000, and it didn’t pass the 
$5,000,000 mark until 1945. 


101-Hour Marathon 

Boston, Feb. 2. 

As a gimmick to. raise funds lor 
the “March of Dimes” drive, 
W COP’s Larry Welch, conducted a 
101-hour on-the-air marathon from 
the, concourse, of the South Station 
last week, breaking his previous 
jjjrecord of 100 hours set last yeafi 




Wednewfay, 8, 1954 



‘CHRONOSCOPING’ WEB CONTROL 



Hollywood, Feb, 2. 

After years of feeding radio affiliates with programs until mid- 
night, NBC on Monday (1) closed down its Coast radio network 
at 10'. 15. Earlier closing cancels band remotes. While not an 
economy move, the shorter nighttime, sided' will effect considerable 
savings. ■ . 

Coast topper John West says the clipped time was advocated by 
the affiliates committee which reasoned the time is sold locally 
. by many stations which reject most of the net’s service after 
‘ Richfield Reporter” at 10:15. 

Earlier closing is also effective in the east. Only occasional local 
programming to be offered after 10:15 will be the Marine Corps 
“Hall Of Bands” and the U.S. Treasury’s ‘‘Parade Of Bands,” both 
public service programs. ' 

Understood one of reasons is the fact many .NBC outlets share 
in Lucky Lager’s “Dance Time” program of two hours of recorded 
music in the Coast market. 



One of the top packagers of live ♦ 
video productions and clearing 
agencies for talent at the commer- 
cial Gotham outlets is the com- 
pletely non-profit New York ”U. 
radio-tele department. By the end 
of the month the paradox will be- 
come sharply defined when the 
school has four of its offerings on 
camera at three of the city’s coin- 
producing stations. In addition, 
almost every tv operation in New 
York has sought out talent fbr one- 
shot and repeat performances for 
both sponsored and sustaining edu- 
cational programs through the of- 
fices of the institution. 

WCBS-TV, flagship for CBS, will 
start a half-hour weekly series on 
Feb. 20. Tentative title for show, 
based oh archaeology, is “Here Is 
the Past.” The university will 
make kines and ship them to com- 
mercial stations, throughout the 
country and abroad. On the 22d, 
WATV. which blankets the city 
from Newark, will begin another 
once-a-weeker called “University.” 
Two other programs, “Our Goodly 
Heritage” via WCBS-TV and “Ani- 
mals Are Fun” on WPIX, N. Y. 
Daily News station, have been air- 
wise for over a year and at least 
seven months respectively. 

In each case the station provides 
facilities and NYU the scripts, 
talent and behind-sceries staff. 
Where the kines for the archa- 
eology stanza are concerned the 
school’s broadcast department will 
supply necessary coin out of a 
$G.500 grant from the National 
Assn, of Educational Broadcasters. 

Several smaller productions have 
been arranged by the school, some 
of which have a decided inter- 
national flavor. Taped interviews 
between English and American 
educators, philosophers and the 
(Continued on page 48) 



Borden’s still has possession of 
the Thursday night 8:30 to 9 slot 
on NBC-TV (between Grouclio 
Marx and “Dragnet’.’) but finding 
a replacement show for “Treasury 
Men In Action” isn’t coming too 
easy. Obviously, because of the 
valuable time segment, it’s got to 
be a show that’ll meet With full 
approval of the network echelon, 
loung & Rubicam is agency on the 
account and is currently mulling a 
successor show, although none has 
been chosen, as yet. * 

It's understood that Borden’s was 
plenty miffed over the manner in 
which “T-Men” had been, pulled 
from u n d er its feet, in a deal 
whereby packager Bernard Prock- 
tor and Music Corp. of America 
maneuvered the switchover of the 
SSim ' *0 ABC-TV with considerably 
more coin involved, although gen- 
ly Borden’s now takes the po- 
.£, n ; ‘Why cry Over spilled milk.” 
. T-Men” has been building 
steadily in the spot With a con- 
sistent Top 20 rating payoff. How- 
i,y el 'v it’s understood a loophole in 
A^ C0 ? tract Paved the Way for the 

deal and the larger coin in- 
take. J 1 1 ■••.uoi ri j> t oo* 


KLBS Fetches 350G 

San Antonio, Jan. 26. 

Howard W. Davis, prez of the 
Howard Broadcasting Corp., has 
announced purchase of KLBS, 
Houston, from the Trinity Broad- 
casting Corp., of Dallas and the es- 
tate of Albert W. Lee of Houston, 
for a consideration in excess of 
$350,000. 

Davis is owner of KMAC and 
KISS-FM here. 





Test case challenging the right 
of networks to control apd pro- 
duce their shows and making time 
sales conditional upon network 
control of the program was filetf 
this week by packager Clark H. 
Getts in N. Y. State Supreme 
Court. Getts charges that CBS-TV 
wrested ownership and control 
over “Chronoscope” away from 
him by cancelling the time on, the 
sponsor, Longines-Wittnauer, at a 
time when they needed the pro- 
gram. > 

According to Getts’. action, which 
will also be filed in federal court 
and with the FCC, the program 
had been produced by him tor two 
years until last June 1 9, when 
CBS-TV cancelled the time on 
Lqngines. Watch outfit was then 
in the middle of its seasonal sales 
effort, and after two weeks agreed 
to terms whereby CBS-TV took 
over ownership and control of the 
show. Web at that time claimed 
that it was network policy to con- 
trol all political commentary pro- 
grams, but the complaint charges 
that since CBS-TV had not exer- 
cised this policy for the two years 
the show was .already on, it had no 
right to do so then; 

Suit seeks $150,000 on breach of 
contract, deprivation of rights to 
the show, deprivation of a liveli- 
hood and on the question of mo- 
nopoly. Action raises the issue 
first whether the networks, as pub- 
lic utilities, should have the right 
to produce and own any programs;, 


Act of Providence 

Providence, Feb. 2. 

Eight stations in this city and 
their respective dee jays consoli- 
dated and staged a d.j. jamboree 
last week for the March of Dimes 
which drew 2,000 juve fans to 
Rhodes-on-the-Pawtuckct. Mowry 
Lowe, chief at - WEAN, conceived 
the promotion idea, and for sev- 
eral days each of the outlets gave 
frequent cross-plugs mentioning 
competing jocks and the jamboree. 

Door prizes were supplied by 
Beacon Record shops here and 
Coca Cola supplied soft drinks at 
a dime a throw for the cause. Dee- 
jays from WPAW, WPRO, WEAN. 
WJAR, WHIM, WRIB, WICE and 
WPJB participated in event. Gross 
is estimated at better than $1,000 
from the affair. 


Accusations that at least one 
agency and one advertiser have 
skipped dealings with station reps 
and instead have gone directly to 
local indies with schemes for rate 
cuts and “special” treatment were 
.made by the, Crusade for Spot 
Radio office (offshoot of the Sta- 
tion Rep Assn.). Reg Rollinson. 
pub .chief for the rep outfit has re- 
ceived reports that four salesmen 
from the Emil Mogul ad agency 
have refused to deal with reps and 
have approached several radio-tv 
stations looking for bargain prices. 
Hair Tonicker Charles Antel has 
had men out too to seek package 
arrangements defying published 
time rates. • 

Rollinson implied that these 
moves were tantamount to pres- 
sure tactics. Antel’s current pro- 
gram is based On one-minute and 
three-minute commercial spots, and 
warning was made by the reps to 
station members that the latter 
type were “detrimental” unless 
coming as part of “an acceptable 
(Continued on page 48) 



Hollywood, Feb. 2, 
“We’re using up what we’ve got 
pretty fast so we’ll have to keep 
building to meet the demands of 
programming in Hollywood. We 
but more important, whether they j are now/ studying plans tor the ex- 

should have the right to make the j pansjon.” ■ 

William S. Pale.y, CBS hoard 
chairman, voiced this note of op- 
timism for Coast tv production and 
declared that while the trend is to i 
the west, the east will always re- 
main important as production and 
origination point for video pro- 
gramming. Many stage craftsmen, 
including writers and producers, 
are getting into tv and that should 
anchor considerable of the pro- 
gramming in the east. 

Paley said that when Television 
City was blueprinted, there was 
provision for 22 stages with facili 


sale of time conditional on the 
purchase of one/ of their shows. 

Action was filed by law firm of 
Dwight, Royal, Harris, Koegel & 
Caskey. 


Anheuser-Busch To 
Drop CommT Plays 
On Sunday Ballcasts 

St. Louis, Feb; 2, 


♦ A. C. Nielsen Co. has bowed to 
the growing importance of spot 
sales biz and the increased prestige 
of local radio and has decided to 
let advertisers, agencies and indie 
outlets know It’s in the market to 
do ratings in a big way on a one- 
city basis. The national program 
rating as service is announcing 
possible entrance into the field 
with its eyes wide open. Arthur 
Nielsen, president of the firm, 
knows the new plan with its ac- 
companying devices will be costly 
to use and he also is aware that. 
With at least four other firms do- 
ing local ratings in radio arid tv, 
bis entry will clutter the competi- 
tion even further. 

Nielsen has no intention of fol- 
lowing through Vvith the proposed 
arrangement for extensive local 
program analysis if he doesn’t get 
sufficient positive response from 
the agencies, and naturally, if they 
like it. it is expected that the in- 
dies who thrive on national spot 
biz, will follow suit. So far, in 
something akin to a sneak preview, 
the complex and highly intensive 
system has been exposed to three 
of the major agencies. 

Greatest hope for success at the 
rating and research outfit, which 
up till now has. devoted most of its 
time in servicing Webs, agencies 
and sponsors alone, is its plan to 
measure the as yet unsurveyed 
secondary and “fringe” audiences 
df local stations. In the main, the 
outlets haven’t beeri credited with 
this portion of the viewing or lis- 
tening public (which lies beyond 
their basic coverage area' by other 
rating services, according to Niel- 
sen. 

If the new plan is generally ac- 
cepted. Nielsen will concentrate 
part, of his staff on tabulating the 
audience response to programrriing 
in 30-40 of the largest markets in 
the country. Each and every one 
of thern will be radio and tele 
cities. 

Nielsen intends to deviate largely 
(Continued on page 48) 


NORTON 
MT. 


JOINS 
TV 


John H. Norton Jr., foririer ABC 
v.p., this week joined ML Washing- 
ton TV Inc. as general manager. 
Firm is engaged in construction of 
a VHF transmitter atop Mt. Wash- 
ington in New Hampshire, with 
studios under construction in Po- 
land. Me. Norton joins the. firm, 
which is headed by John W. 
Guider, onetime War Crimes Coun- 
sel, effective Feb. 1. 

Norton ankled his ABC post as 
v.p. in charge of its central divi- 
sion early last summer following 
policy disagreements with web top- 
pers. He had been in charge of the 
cenjtral division for the five pre- 
vious years, haying moved over to 
ABC vvheft it Was the Blue Net- 
work. He started in radio with 
NBC. 

Construction is now suspended 
on the Mt. Washington transmit- 
ter because of winter weather con- 
ditions but work is proceeding on 
Utudios. 1 *' . 


Commercial plugs will be eliriii- i ties to handle any type or size Of 

AnhPikor Rn^h rinrin<» ! show but declined to speculate on 
nated by Anheusei-Bu^h .dunng when .. sa turatipn would be reached. 

Sunday, broadcasts of all Cardinal , jj. been reported ;that two or 
b.b. games during the forthcoming ! three new stages would be built to 
season, according to John L. WiL augment the present four but he 
son. exec v.p. of the suds maker (Continued on page 46) 

that owns the ball club. Wilson 
said, “While Cardinal games will 
be sponsored by Budweiser, there, 
will be no mention of the product 
on Sunday. Instead, the time usu- 
ally devoted to commercials will 
be turned over to local civic and 
service groups such as the March 
of Dimes, Community Chest, Boy 
Scouts and others. This policy will 
also prevail in all broadcasts of 


On TV Target of Bill 
In N. Y. Legislature 



sa 





Albany, Feb. 2. 

Sen. Thomas E. Desmond, in a 
bill introduced Thursday (28) to 
games of our minor league clubs. \ provide that any person depicting 


Experiments of this kind last year 
proved highly successful. 

Wilson said another experiment 
will be made by broadcasting the 
Cardinal games into Omaha, Hous- 
ton and Columbus, where the brew- 
ery owns and operates minor 
league clubs. 


‘OF 


GETS CHI SPONSOR 

r Chicago, Feb. 2. 

“Of Many Things,” Louis G. 
Cowan package hosted by Bergen.; 
Evans which a couple weeks back 
wound up a 15-week sustaining ride 
on ABC-TV without sparking any 
definite sponsor . interest, has 
snagged a barikroller as a local en- 
try on WBKB. Switch here is that 
while WBKB originated the show 
for the network but did not beam 
it locally, it’ll be seen in its home- 
town for the first time Feb. 16 
When it bows under City National 
Bank auspices. 


a doctor or nurse endorsing or re- 
porting on a product must he a 
licensed physician or nurse, said it 
was aimed at “phony screen sci- 
entists” pitching on television. 

The Newburgh legislator stated 
he had noted a growing practice 
on video of using white-uniformed 
actors (“often with stethoscopes 1 n. .< • I ff r 

hung around their necks." to on- 1 jU-uUUlOIl AlCKOil I ! 0r 
dorse the sponsor’s products. Such i 
employment of actors, Desmond as- j 
serted, is “misrepresentation that j 


CBS Radio picks up a hefty 
chunk of Ford coin with the motor 
company buying the Ed Murrow 
7:45 p.m, cross-the-board news 
commentary, effective March 1. 

Amoco sponsors Murrow on 
about 100 eastern seaboard CBS 
’ stations. Under the deal negotiated 
with Ford, the latter will bankroll 
the program on all the other CBS 
stations throughout the country, 
numbering an additional 120 mar- 
kets. These include the midwest 
outlets which Hamm Brewery has 
been bankrolling. 

Ford, it’s understood, is reenter- 
ing the radio programming sweep- 
stakes in a big way, with the 
Murrow ‘show as the first major 
acquisition. 


Negro Radio Stories’ block of 
four soap opera strips will kick off 
on some 50 stations on March 15, 
according to Douglas Chandler, 
vrp. of the transcription outfit. 
Under the deal with, the stations', 
all four strips will be presented as 
an hour-long block. 

Soapers, which use all-Negro 
casts, are “Romance, of Julie. 
Davis.” ‘‘Ada Grant’s Neighbors.” 

, “My Man” arid “Rebecca Turner’s 
Dallas, Feb; 2. j Front Porch Stories:” Included in 
Fairfax Nisbet, veteran Dallas casts are Maurice Ellis, Emory 
Morning News amUserhents staffer, i Richardson, Rai Tasco. William 
has been named radio-tv editor of i Dillard, John Marriott. Maude Rus- 
the ayem sheet. Miss Nisbet, long- ! sell, Evelyn Ellis. Pauline. Meyer, 
Show features Evans discussing j time movie reviewer for both the ; Terry Carter and Warded Saun- 
with authorities in their particular ; now-defunct Dallas Journal and . ders. Directors of the soapers. all 
fields a .wide range of subjects from the News, for years, has also cov- of whom have been active in net- 
a kickaround of practical jokes i ered the nitery circuit. William work daytime .field, -are 
with H. Allen Smith slated for the Taylor, News staffer, takes over the Wallisef. Ruth Liehan. Steve l uc^ 
•tecoff stanza, 1 J nitery c'cVe^e.’ J ‘ 1 ' ’ ' Land Henry J. {toward. 


tends to discredit the medical, den- 
tal and nursing professions.” 

Violations of his measure would 
be a misdemeanor, punishable by a 
$500 fine for the first offense and 
$1,000 for additional violations. 

Name Femme Radio-TV 
Ed for Dallas Daily 










WednexkV. February 3, 1954 ' p3£ r>T T 'fY ; 

at y 

A-. 



NETWORK TELEVISION is OP. Set circulation is up 

to 28 million . . . viewing time to i32 million hours a day 

. «• 

... .advertising Investment to 227 million dollars-eocfc 
iV ith a year’s gain'af more than 25 per cent! _ 

CBS TELEVISION IS UP. PIB figures, just released, 
confirm that advertisers invested more of their 1953 
budgets on CB.S Television than on any network for any 
year of broadcasting history. 

They expressed this confidence in CBS Television because 

\v > ... * " \ ' 

its program schedule won the greatest network popularity* 
(with a 19 per cent lead at night and a 29 per cent lead 
during the day) . . . because CBS Television brought this 
popularity into more arid more riiarkets i (up jrcm 7b to 15G 
stations in one year) . . . and because they were enabled to 
sell their products in American homes at the lowest cost 
per thousand in all television. CBS TELEVISION 


it TELEVISION BEV1KWS 


Wednesday, February 3, 1954 



"Author Meets the Critics” on 
WABD, N. Y., and the DuMont net- 
work Sunday (31) had as its topic 
Janies Wechsler’s controversial 
“Age of Suspicion/’ written after 
the N. Y. Post editor had appeared 
before Sen. Joe McCarthy’s inves- 
tigating committee, It might have 
been a stimulating discflssion, for 
there is plenty in the . Wechsler 
tome to merit comment and invite 
controversy. 

If. this promise failed to ma- 
terilize, and if the program de- 
teriorated into a personal and un- 
warranted attack on Wechsler, the 
fault lay with William Buckley, 
author of “God and Man at Yale,” 
who appeared in opposition. 

“Author Meets the Critics” gains 
immeasurably .when the author’s 
opponent presents intelligent criti- 
cism i to rouse the Viewer’s curi- 
osity. Buckley’s kind of criticism, 
weakened by his apparent inability 
to make his statements jive 
logically throughout, as well as his 
supercilious attitude, were appar- 
ently designed to insult. 

Speaking in favor of the. Wech- 
sler book Was Arthur Schlessinger 
Jr., a N. Y. Post columnist as well 
as professor, who barely got a 


the Iron Curtain.” The sight of a 
pair of love birds separated by a 
Police State heavy didn’t make for 
humor despite a valiant try by 
the pair, 

A terrif rendition of ’’Lullaby 
of Broadway” was sung; by Tony 
Martin, following which he re- 
ceived a plaque as a “Songwriters 
singer” from L. Wolfe Gilbert, 
coast rep for ASCAP. 

Closer was a clever idea, with 
Martin, la Gabor and Miss Daley 
singing snatches of French songs, 
the latter carboning Eartha Kitt's 
“C’est Si Bon/’ while Gabor seem- 
ingly chirped the song. from. “Mou- 
lin Rouge,”, with it developing 
somebody else dubbed the tune 
for her. In a surprise at the finish, 
Milton Berle, on this Tuesday time 
slot three times a month, came 
on for a . few Words with Hope. 

Jim Jordan’s direction had an 
irregular tempo, slowing up in 
some 'of the skits. Material by. 
Laurence Marks, Mort Lachman, 
Lester White and John Rapp was 
bright in spots, repetitious in 
others. Daku. 


interview with Miss Hayes seemed , ?/«tw«odan£ built on the^sandstf 


the only offish scene.'but ^"few of it contains fcv« hft 
these enactments ever? make any piness. 

realistic" sense in tv. stage and pix man who built this, way fox Mm- 
that this could be considered par 
for the course. Tran. 


word in edgewise. Wechsler him- 
self was on ..hand to refute the. 
Buckley charges, which had preci- 
ous little to do with the books it- 
self! For instance, there . was no 
discussion of the freedom of press 
issue involved in the McCarthy 
hearing, which takes up a third of 
the; book. 

In sharp contrast to Buckley, 
Wechsler presented his case for 
the book calmly and with becom- 
ing dignity. However right or 
wrong his position, he refuted 
Buckley without stooping to his 
opponent’s tactics. 

Yirgilia Peterson, the show’s 
permanent moderator, had things 
under control most of the time. 
But Buckley’s approach rpade her 
task difficult. 

Wechsler started the ball roll- 
ing by pointing out that an Ameri 
can can be equally aggressive to- 
wards Communism and McCarthy- 
ism. He described himself as a 
liberal ■: * anti - Communist, and 
pointed out that, while he had 
been a member Of the Young Com- 
munist League for three years, he 
turned from them at the age of 
22 and had fought Communists for 
15 years since. 

Buckley stressed he didn’t think 
Wechsler . Was disloyal, while de- 
claring that he had “no contempt 
for those who question your 
loyalty.” He accused Wechsler 
of not being an honest man by his 
own standards, the latter being 
gauged by the contents of the N. Y 
Post, for which Buckley said he 
has little respect . You can’t be 
anti-McCarthy and an effective 
anti-Communist at the same time, 
Buckley contended. 

Viewers came away with nary an 
Idea about “The Age of Suspisipn” 
although many must have been left 
with some very definite thoughts 
about Buckley. Hift. 


Eddie Cantor, aided by fi sub- 
stantial part of his family and the 
guesting of Groucho Marx took his 
turn on Sunday’s (31) “Colgate 
Comedy Hour” on NBC-TV. The 
results weren’t too laudable. The 
program seemed to give an indi- 
cation that even Groucho has his 
off moments; The. script seemed 
to be left too much to chance and 
there seemed to be little organiza- 
ion ; add discipline. 

Leaving Groucho to work with- 
out being harnessed by a fullscale 
script has always seemed to be 
an excellent means of exploiting 
this top comic’s individualistic wit. 
However, it’s got. to be done on 
Gropcho’s own terms and he can’t 
be hampered by the other ele- 
ments of the show. The banter be- 
tween Cantor and GjOucho had 
little vitality. The various stunts 
that were pulled similarly didn’t 
elevate the humorous content of 
the program too much. The gim- 
mick upon which the banter was 
pegged was Cantor’s 62d birthday. 
For this occasion his wife Ida 
showed up as *did his daughter 
Marilyn, Latter is now doing an 
act with two boys, Johnny & Bill. 
The trio donned straw hats and 
striped blazers and made like an 
Oldtime vaude act singing “We’re 
the Act that Never Played the 
Palace.” At this stage of their de- 
velopment — no wonder. 

The major bright spots of the 
show were contributed by Ricky 
Vera,- a bright brat, who made 
the best of a few sides of dialog 
with Cantor and bowed off in a 
trip with Cantor and Groucho. The 
production number with Connie 
Russell and Billy Daniel was ex- 
cellently staged and well projected. 
Jesse, James & Cornell al$o did 
well with their spot eayly in the 
show, The “Maxie the Taxi” bit 
with Wally Cox made for a very 
uninteresting trip. Jose. 


self, his wife and two children. 

| Miss Phillips fashioned a Pleasant 
hour’s . entertainment. • W itn a bit 

~ A widely contrasted series^ of prijectton^f^^Me^lW, itxVuld 
turns, ranging from a juggler to a g^ e< J ad ^pre stature. 

CBS°TV a “Toas^of the Town” line- . The production was p^^^^ 

were some lulls but enough high- turns. . The^ were some hi 
lights to make it a solid entertain- eongruitoes as. to wearmg apparel, 
ment package. china and sundry accoutremerfU of 

For the pop tune fans, Patti Page the supposed beachcombers living 
made another stand on this show on the bonanza _ of an occasional 
with one curtain-raising number $10 bHl derived from pulling a 
and two more midway in the hour truck Back on the roaa. Itjvasn t 
session. All were delivered in top- the best Kraft and ft wasnt tne 
flight style. Richard Tucker, top worst. I * 0S - 

Metopera tenor, was superb in pne . .. — 

Israeli marching song ’and a stand? By opera standards, “Sleeping 
ard operatic aria while Andre Se? Beauty, in the Wood” may get a 
goviaV also in the longhair groove* pa ] e rating, but the livingroom is 
delivered some sensitive guitar something else again. Bruno Zira- 
solos. The West Point Glee^ Club to Sr., co-manager of the N. Y. 
was also on hand again with an philharmonic, 1 dug up the Respighi 
ornate arrangement of “Onward, work w hile on a visit in Italy last 
Christian Soldiers.” year and it got to “Omnibus” on 

Judith Anderson was spotted in Sunday (31) when the TV-Radio 
a disappointed sequence. The dis- Workshop of the Ford Foundation 
tinguished actress was given a gave it a warm treatment as a 55- 
tri vial comedy sketch that con- minuter. Considering that the 
tained few laughs and even less CBS-TV show has worked out on 
opportunities to emote. . . such w.k.’s from the opera shelf as 

Two of the top turns on the bill "Fiedermaus” and “La Boheme” 
were the Three Rudells and Rudy %omS nmSe casting. 


fronted with who had something 

a* ■ J - 111. LI i.1 - • ^ 


to do with him in the .past, it 
might be a long-lost relaive, or in 
the case of last, week's show, it 
might. he a lady Un whose head 
dancer Sheree North -once dropped 
a . plate of spaghetti when she 
worked as a waitress. ; 

Whatever the* Case, “Place the 
Face” js strictly a lightweight en- 
try. In the past, it’s devoted a 
large segment to pathos, reuniting 
members of a scattered family, etc. 
This hasn’t proved a good pro- 
gramming practice, what with some 
of those reunions of such an emo- 
tional nature that they're not for 
the television screen. On Cullen’s 
preem, however, most of the show 
was devoted to lighter situations, 
and while the awiteh Was com- 
mendable enough, tt served to 
prove Just how static and strained 
the format is. 

Contestants, besides Miss North, 
included Andy' Devine, recognizing 
a youngster whose life he’d saved 
in an auto accident* and a Holly- 
wood policeman and a waiter from 
the’ Brown Derby, -the. former look- 
ing like President Eisenhower and 
the latter like Harry S. Truman. 
Cullen did his best to liven up the 
session, but it was somewhat on 
the boring side despite his efforts. 

■. Chan.' 


__ _y • - j * .* W ALIA 0VIIIV (iwiiiv *?», 

Horn. Horn opened with some ..g e t y .» sans these marquee mag^ 
fancy juggling tricks and .closed et ; rece i V es credit for gallantry 

n vavei * i a rr imt in- iirni/in net * . i .:'- xi. - 


with a terrific stunt in which he 
balanced a half-dozen cups and 
saucers on his head while riding a 
monocycle. The Three Rudells 
clicked With their standard tram 
poline acts. 

About 
switched 


in. essaying the unknown, since the 
work has been . dormant for about 
30 years and was never popular in 
Italian repertory. 

A new libretto was turned in by 
half -wav the show Arnold Schulman to the English 
to St. Paul for a live lyrics .of William Engyick. The 


pickup of the Winter Carnival 
event being held there. It was a 
colorful soectacle that neatly tied 
into the “Toast” format. Herm. 


Bob Hope was in good form on 
last Tuesday night’s (26) outing, 
and to up the overall quality, some 
better-than-average guestars team- 
ed with the comic to aid and abet 
the proceedings. Hope registered 
with a standup monolog, and 
punched over an entertaining pro- 
gram which held’ the viewer despite 
a coupla lags. The comedian was 
In particularly good form in his 
brittle joshing of Monroe, Cali- 
fornia’s rainshine, Congress, the 
Big Four parley and Liberace. 

Samples: “Marilyn finally mar- 
ried Joe DiMaggio; my calendar 
is at half mast. They promised to 
love, honor and obey till 20th do 


Us part’ 


‘There’s been so 


much mud at Santa Anita they’re 
betting horses to win, place and 
drown.” 

Opening production number was 
themed on sunny California, with 
rain falling on the chorus extolling 
the virtues of the Southland. It 
was well done, arid provided a good 
springboard for the hour. 

Cass Daley as a star-struck wait- 
ress smitten by “Tyrone Hope” 
again proved she’s a Very funny 
gal; she’s not seen often enough 
on the tv circuit. Skit with Hope 
and the comedienne was a good 
one. 

Hillary Brooke and Tony Martin 
joined Hope in “Studio Four,” an 
obvious takeoff, and while the basic 
premise was sound it was stretched 
too long. 

Zsa Zsa Gabor, luscious looker 
wearing a decolette gown, was next 
on, and after a brief exchange of 
patter, with Hope the straight man, 
did a skit tagged “Love Behind 


“Motorola TV Hour” on ABC fias 
shown in . its first seasoii that it 
won’t spare the horses. Apparently 
the budget is wide open for plays 
and players in this Herbert Brod 
kin-reined Tuesday nighter* Last 
week’s (26) William McCleery 
script, “Side By Side,” coupled 
Helen Hayes and Dennis King in 
the leads, and among principals 
were such w.k.’s as Jerome Cowan, 
Addison Richards, Margaret Hamil- 
ton and Anne Seymour. It was no 
more than a one-dimension view 
of women in politics, with Miss 
Hayes the protagonist, hubby King 
the anti, and Richards and Cowan 
behind the scenes as builder-up- 
pers, but polished performances 
and some crisp dialog gave the play 
an aura of importance. 

Even so, there were elements 
here that Hollywood has been 
known to upbeat into A-product 
covering political shenanigans! 
King’s declamations on dames tak- 
ing to the hustings came out as a 
sort of masculine-slanted tract on 
the body politic, and his wife’s 
shrewd defense of her entry into a 
congressional campaign might have 
been a Mr. and Mrs. tangle on any 
other subject of mutual concern 
vis-a-vis the family hearth. 

The stars pulled it off elegantly 
down to the- last cliche and stock 
stance, giving the comedy drama a 
nifty lift for livingroom conversa- 
tion pieces. . Donald Richardson’s 
direction was smooth, the Fred 
Stover sets efficient, and a number 
of supporting players helped the 
action, among them being Michael 
Dreyfuss, Adnia Rice, Virginia 
Low, Sherri Windsor, Ronnie 
Welsh and Hugh Dunne. A news 


“Philco Television Playhouse” 
(NBC-TV) came up with another 
superior, qualitative drama on 
Sunday (31) with a four-character 
play, “The Brownstone,” by J, 
Richard Nash. But if the play was 
short in the dramatic personnac 
departmente-it was long in all 
other values; a deep, moving, hon- 
est vignette of a smalltown plumb- 
er trying desperately to break 
through life’s day-to-day drabness 1 
as he shoots the works in a big 
city fling. How he does it, disrupt- 
ing the lives of a pair of sisters in 
the “brownstone,” was told with 
sensitivity and portrayed brilliant- 
ly by all concerned, notably Kim 
Stanley, Janice Rule and Eli Wal- 
lach. 

One might have hoped for a 
fuller delineation of the unusual 
understanding that was immedi- 
ately generated between Miss 
Stanley, as the older sister (and 
substitute ’-mother” for her 18- 
year-old kid sister), and Wallach 
as the Jaguar-sporting sharpster in 
search of excitement and escape. 
But since this wash ? t possible 
within the hour show’s framework, 
nonetheless the motives brought 
fprth and the hidden fears and de- 
sires of the trio involved were en- 
grossing and understandable. 

Nash has written an intriguing 
play, with fluent and vivid dialog. 
With some amplification, it could 
be turned into • worthy Broadway 
legit story. 

In final another round of salvos 
for Fred Coe & Co. (NBC-TV) for 
bringing to television the most 
consistent mature drama. Rose. 


On the CBS-TV “Person to Per- 
son” last week (29) Edward R. 
Murrow kept pressing James C. 
Hagerty on his official title. Ac- 
cording to traditional Government 
nomenclature, • he . is Presidential 
press secretary, but Murrow had 
set the stage for Hagerty to give 
the position a more sweeping defi- 
nition, since “press” usually is lim- 
ited to the newspaper sense. Hag- 
erty must have been glad to fall 
in with the idea, giving the nod to 
the title "News Secretary/’ encom- 
passing newsreels and radio-tv, 
which latter he specifically men- 
tioned as getting more arid more 
attention from President Eisen- 
hower. Whether the all-inclusive 
title will stick would depend on 
usage. \ , 

Other interviewee was kid actor 
("Jamie” on ABC-TV) Brandon de 
Wilde, along with his parents at 
their Baldwin, L.I., home. Trau. 


book kept within bounds of the 
fable arid the lyrics were some- 
times lost, but not sufficiently to 
impair the playout. The score was 
spotty, but in the key scenes, bore 
elements of intrinsic . merit with 
sweeping passages. A large cast 
was exceptionally well handled in. 
the groupings, notably in the 
dance sequences devised, by Zach- 
ary Solov. In the principal roles, 
the princess of Jo Sullivan and 
the prince of Jim Hawthorne were, 
melodic if a bit impersonal, while 
Nadia Witkowska as the Good 
Fairy stood out. Others who made 
an imprint were Rosemary Kuhl- 
mann and Frank Rogier as queen 
and king, Helen Scott as the nurse, 
Gloria Lane as the high-flying 
witch, and Leon Lischner as the 
ambassador. Other principals 
seemed lost through no fault of 
their own. Maybe it was the small 
tv screeri. 

George Bassman, who adapted 
the music and handled the baton, 
was right on the button, as was the 
choral supervision of Julius Rudel. 
Leslie Renfield’s costumes were 
noteworthy and the show screamed 
out for color. Robert Banner di- 
rected with a good eye for carry- 
ing out the illusion of a mem- 
moth stage, particularly In the 
post-sleep finale, a stunner. 

In contrast, “Omnibus” opened 
with a 20-minute sizeup of the 
conquest of ML Everest, fronted 
by Sir Edmund Hillary, brain 
surgeon Charles Evans, and James 
Morris of the London Times. Each 
supplied a modest, articulate . nar- 
rative ofthe assault on the 29,000- 
foot Himalayan peak punctuated 
by excerpts from Sir Edmund’s 
“The Conquest of Mt. Everest," 
the UA picture. Included in the 
clips were shots of Tenzing the 
Sherpa guide and of Col. Sir John 
Hunt, who described the ascent 
(The principals are on a lecture 
tour in this country, with permis- 
sion for their “Omni” stint having 
come from the Royal Geographical 
Society and the American Mt. 
Everest Committee.) Emcee Alis- 
tair Cooke did brief interviewing 
arid also served as bridge for 
“Beauty.” Trau. 


“Ask WashlnfUn,” NBC’s q&a 
daily news show, returned to the 
web last week after six-month 
hiatus. Conceived -during the ’52 
political campaign, show garnered 
so much interest from a daytime . 
audience, that it was kept on as a 
regular capital news show utilizing 
net’s stable of experts based in 
Washington. 

• Show still largely follows its 
previous . format, using a daily 
quorum of three experts from a ro- 
tating panel of nine, plus modera- 
tor Holley Wright, replacing Ted 
Ayres. Show has gained assur- 
ance and authority since last re- 
viewed, and has lbst none . of its 
fast pace and freshness in its ma- 
turity. At shofa caught, ; NBC 
White House correspondent Joseph 
Harsch, its femme commentator 
Esther Van. Wagor.ner Tufty, and 
Ned Brooks tackled the questions 
mailed in from viewers all over 
the country and did a hep job of 
ad libbing answers on a variety of 
subjects that ranged from how 
Taft might have voted on the con- 
troversial Bricker amendment to 
whether or not Esther “The 
Duchess.” Tufty is a bonafide 
duchess.. Wide geographic range 
from which questions came is an 
indication of widespread interest 
in show, and pace is a compliment 
to Wright’s deftness in moving the 
action along. This is one of few 
news discussion shows which does 
not get bogged in long analyses 
and side issues. 

Three experts at show caught 
are vets of the capital scene and 
showed if in range of subjects 
tackled and ease in answering. 
Styles are happily varied, with la 
Tufty’s blurit and direct approach 
contrasting nicely >vtih Harsh’s 
penerating and rather scholarly 
handling and Brooks .polished per- 
sonality. Mrs. Tufty, blonde, 
buxom and braided, is a unique 
tv personality of whom NBC might 
profitably make wider and more 
intensive use, The “duchess” han- 
dle was fastened en her by Time 
mag several years ago arid has be- 
came a virtual trademark. Show 
is highly sponsorable. Flor. 


The ABC-TV edition of “Kraft 
Television Theatre” last Thursday 
(28) presented a drama by Peggy 
Phillips, who also doubles as a 
Broadway legit pressagent, called 
“The Shining Palace.” The premise 
established was a simple one: that 
a man’s castle can be wrought of 


“Place the Face,” the Toni pack- 
aged CBS-TV entry which Carter 
Products alternately spbnsors with 
Toni, has had a succession of em- 
cees, latest of which, Bill Cullen, 
bowed last Thursday (28). First 
off, Cullen shapes as an excellent 
host, injecting a note of humor 
into the show that’s sometimes bad- 
ly needed. He’s casual and warm 
with the guests and the audience, a 
definite asset to the program. 

But if the switch in emcees is 
intended as a means of pulling the 
show out of the mediocre class, 
then Toni has missed the point en 
tirely. Faults of the show lie in 
conception and format, and if any 
noticeable improvement is to be 
m^de, changes will have to be 
aimed in that direction. Program 
is simple enough— a . contestant 
must identify a person he’s con- 


RING A BELL 
With Lucille Lando, guests 
Producer-Writer: Lucille Lando 
Director: James Baker 
15 Mins., Tiies., 6 p.m. 

BELL CHAIR CO. 

KGO-TV, San Francisco 

This quizzery locked wheels oil 
its preem. Second show (26); pte' 
serited idea that wheels are not 
only locked, but are helplessly 
bogged down in yack, inconsequen- 
tial questions and 15 minutes of 
flurried confusion. 

Quiz gimmick is to run an old- 
time flicker with Lucille Lando 
pressing humorous: comments to 
action in film. Teams, consisting of 
two guests to a side, are asked 
questions about details in film. 

Miss Lando is attractive, well 
dressed, friendly. She’s a pro before 
cameras arid spiels a confident 
commercial. But a heavy load ot 
yack throughout session puts a bur- 
den upon her and viewers J may 
quickly cool to an overdose of hign- 

pitched femme monotone. Miss 

Lando’s dialog over the film is .un- 
funny, frequently inarticulate. Con- 
testants flounder in a shadow oi 
confusion during Q. & A. ^-period. 
As ports commentator Ira Blue pui 
it, when asked a hazy question 
“Oh, I wish I were dead!” Tone. 



ZOO PARADE 

Color tv has now invaded the 
precincts of the animal kingdom. 
Latest entry to come under scru- 
tiny of the NBC-RCA “rainbow 
spectrum’’ was the Sunday * after- 
noon “Zoo Parade/’ and for the 
occasion the Chi-qrjgfhating show- 
case was brought to New York and 
into NEC’s Colonial Theatre “tint 
laboratory,” ' with the . mammals, 
birds and reptiles on display bor- 
rowed from the Bronx Zoo. (Only 
some green frogs were brought on 
from Chi by Marlin Perkins, di- 
rector of Chicago’s Lincoln Park 
Zoo, who conducts the show, and 
his chief aide, 'Jim Hurlbut.) 

Themed to Perkins’ own convic- 
tion that “the whys of animal col- 
oration in the prairie, the desert 
and the. jungles can be demon- 
strated beautifully” via tint, Sun- 
day’s (31) experiment in compati- 
ble programming Was a complete 
revelation. The brilliant hues of 
the white cockatoo, with, its sul- 
phur-crested bill and dark eyes; or 
of the golden pheasant with its 
flashing reds and yellows; or again 
the aggressive talking : crow witn 
its ominous and frightening beak 
that rtvealed a surprising blue- 
black metallic gloss, the brilliantly 
hued males of the tree duck fam- 
ily. or again the patterns of the 
eight-foot boa constrictor coverted 
into a semblance of native habitat 
(lurking under leaves waiting to 
spring) 1 — here were all the usual 
“Zoo Parade’s’’ drama vignettes 
starring animals heightened irre- 
sistibly by the new color dimen- 
sion. 

The most descriptive language 
and the glibbest tongue could not 
hope to vie with nature’s colors . 
therefore it is not surprising that 
“Zoo Parade” would be a natural 
for tint. Yet since Sunday’s pro- 
. gram was getting the compatible 
treatment; Perkins was too often 
remiss in failing to adequately de- 
scribe the various colors of each 
of the birds and animals for the 
vast black-and-white audience. 
And even those- fortunate few 
viewing it in cplor might still hdve 
benefitted, if only for an accurate 
check in “monitofing” the hues 
arid shadings. Rose . 

JINX FALKENBURG’S DIARY 

WNBT put on its first colorcast 
last Friday. (29) and it was a click 
in every way for NBC’s N. Y. flag- 
ship. Station wisely chose the 
“Jinx Falkenburg Diary” from 
1:45 to 2:30 for the tint comer- 
outer seen at the cubicles in the 
Center Theatre and beamed from 
the Colonial. This is a lady that’s 
neat in b&w and a treat in the 
added , values. Already a solid 
drummer in monochrome, the tint 
route ought to give her higher 
status in selling Premier canned 
goods, Gimbels fabrics, Macintosh 
Quality St. Candy, F. W. Wool- 
worth and the Ladies Home Jour- 
nal. She’s also quite a gal at 
modeling those “hot pink” pajamas 
among other vividly . hued gar- 
ments featuring turquoise and 
blues, these setting off her dark 
goodloQks. 

The stanza brought forth a 
crackerjack show in harmonious, 
restful colors, with Jinx and Tex 
McCrary sharing emcee chores on 
the various segments. Show , was 
quick on the takeoff via the N. Y. 
Dress Institute’s Eleanor Lambert 
describing the chichi stuff in a pre- 
view of the March of Dimes fash- 
ion display. Ethel Waters with 
pianist Reginald Beane got a kitch- 
en and porch setting— mostly in 
soft blues and contrasting reds — 
for the star’s chatter and chanting 
that found her at the top of her 
game, it was the best of her tv 
guest showcasers and of sufficient 
. impact, to hint at a show of her 
own under the “Ethel’s Kitchen” 
tag. With Beane chiming in at 
points and skating over the 88, 
Miss Waters drew on her hearty 
songalog in “Bread & Gravy,” a 
deliberately abbreviated “Stormy 
Weather,” then a switch to “Lady 
Be Good” and a socko rendering Of 
song from the title of . her book, 
Dis Eye Is on the SparrOw.”- 
. Dennis Day, in town on his RCA 
junket and as Gen. Mark Clark- 
ordained “Heart Ambassador,” 
came on in walloping Cliff Ar- 
quette oldster makeup, went out of 
his way to kibitz about the oppo- 
sition, including his CBS “Lucy” 
rival, talked relaxedly about thisa 
and thata and had his “Johnny 
Appleseed” record played as he 
mouthed the lyric. He proved him- 
self quite a comedic kid, and here, 

too. the color investiture w'as first- 
rate. 

Finale had Beatrice Kraft, fea- 
L u t< red . dancer in “Kismet” on 
?' ay * in a hoofing session 
'Vitn that old Oriental splendor in 
costume, makeup and decor deliv- 


ering the big color kick. In a pre- 
vious bit, Miss Kraft’s makeup rou- 
tine was shown in sharp qloseup. 
Jinx & Tex kept pressing down on 
“RCA compatible color— they get 
along together.” Although identi- 
fied as a colorcast by the dual 
hosts, show’s monochrome viewers 
could have no idea what they ac- 
tually missed in this rainbow ride. 
McCrary seemed to cover the' situ- 
ation when, announcing the Mr. & 
Mrs. team for a new show to be 
launched Feb. 8 from 11:20 to mid- 
night on the local, said if would be 
in “black and white radio-— 1-D.” 
“Diary’s” regular staff plus the 
web’s color corps worked on this 
preem, with Ted Nathanson di- 
recting. \ , TTau. 


K-2. THE SAVAGE MOUNTAIN 
Producer-Director; Herbert Swope, 
Jr. 

W Mins.; Sun; (31), 2:30 p.m. 
Sustaining 

NBC-TV, from N. Y. 

The assault on K-2, one of the 
remaining unconquercd peaks of 
the Himalayan range, by a domi- 
nantly American team of climbers 

early last- year has been turned 
into a firstrate show . that can be 
used in video’s permanent , reper- 
toire. The timing of the show was 


THE SECRET STORM 
With Peter Hobbs, Haila Stoddard, 
Russell Hicks, Marjorie Gateson, 
Jean Mowry, Dick Trask, Jada 
Rowland, others 
Producer: Richard Dunn 
Director: Gloria Monty . 

Writers: Lillian and Anthony 
Spinner 

1$ Mins.; Mon.-thru-Frl., 4:15 p.m. 
W 11 I T E II A L I PIIAHMACAL, 
BOYLE-MIDWAY . 

CBS-TV. from N Y. 

(Biow; Get ter) 

Just how effective soapers can 


[excellent, in view of the widespread ! ^ n n ni mhMn 
interest in the Annapurna and i 00 _ 0U Sbt *9 be determined by 

Mount Everest expedition, and tge 
quality of the K-2 film was com- 
parable to the other two. 

The initial stage of the . climb, 
i which ended in disaster a few 
thousand feet below the summit 


was given a superlative treatment. 


this Biow-pfoduced stanza. On first 
sight, it appears to have all the 
complex plot and character twists 
of the standard soaper segment. 

I >**. and risk, of originality 52 

Suction^ vah.es f CBS-TV ' **>' »’ W«r. And the deLux 
auction values. If CBS-TV ..wants ! presentation rammed home the 

point that Hollywood studios, via 


lux video Theatre 

(A Place In the Sun) 

With Ann Blyth, John Derek, Mar- 
ilyn Erskine, Regis Toomey, 
Herbert Heyes, Louis Jean 
Heydt, Raymond Burr, Theresa 
Harris. Paul Frees, Paul Maxey 
Producer; Cal Kuhl 
Director: Buz* Kulik . 

Writer: Sandy Barnett 
60 Mins.; Thurs., 9 p.m. 

LEVER BROS. 

CBS-TV, from Hollywood 
(J. Walter Thompson) 
Television’s first time out With i 
remake of a major film production 
—Lux Video Theatre's full-hour 
adaptation . of Paramount’s “A 
Place in the Sun”— made it clear 
that the two media can hit it off 
just fine. Tv can't afford the lux- 


atrial balloon for late afternoon 

Closeups of the native Pakastani ■ drama, this entry is as good a test i , hoir 4 K«n»ri«niW 
porters and the climbers them- ! . as any. and it’s sponsored thrice ^ J* 

selves vyem set against tho .tower- 1 weekly. . Kh£ to Tcle/eri 

ing peaks in an eloquent pictorial , Series is centered around a fairi- ! sionine In return for *the tv 11- 
statement of the expedition's pur, i; ily . (natch!, and^ tho corif lietv^arted cenS e; the picture business gets its 

P°;L e ’ I - big payoff in plugs for new films. 

The final section of the show. I Stoddard violently objecting to her ! this is compatibility. 

, ‘* <L ? ero 1 of **«' i frnm ! Lux and Hollywood have been 

death, was loss . -^uccesrfuHy j SStSJSSS.JUSJt^SS’SL^J^ ! going steady for years with the 


handled. It was understandable 
that the camera crew was unable 
to record the avalanche which 
killed one of the climbers, blit 
the method used to narrate the 


family department store and hand- 


MELODY STREET j 

With Tony Mdttola, emcee; Jack - 
Krueger, Lynn Gibbs, Roberta i 
MacDonald, Dee Clifford, Lou' 

Morelli, Bob Bean, Harrisoii 
Mueller, others 
Producer: Roger Gerry 
Director: Barry . Shear 
Writer; Bill Dalzell 
30 Mins., Fri., 8:30 p.m. 

Sustaining 

DuMont, from New York 

“Melody Street,” on for a num- \ reSnsthUuinr ' *the 1 scri P ters LilUari 

ber of weeks now, is probably the ! - ure .^.constructions, the show c „ ir ,„ ot . 

best of the several offerings built ! 
around actors who synchronize | 
their lip and body movements with ; 
pop disk background. Staging, 1 
camera work and acting are boffo 
and remind in a modest way of the 
“Hit Parade” stanza on NBC-TV. 

A few weeks ago, guitarist Tony 
Mottola stepped to replace Elliot 
Lawrence as. emcee of the pro- 
gram, and in segment seen, he ap- 
peared to have found a comfort- 
able niphe for himself. An easy 
charm, light chatter and sharp 
strumming are his stock in trade, 
and he uses them all well. 

Scripter Bill Dalzell todk a 
handful of favorite tunes as sung 
by top stars and provided imagina- 
tive backgrounds and story lines 
for all. There w-as Dinah Shore’s 
“Pass the Jam, Sam/’ “Secret 
Love” by Doris Day, “I’ve Got You 
Under My Skin” a la Stan Freberg 
and Peggy Lee’s “Where Can I Go 
Without You?” In watching! it’s 
easy to forget, that the music and 
voices heard don't belong to the 
studio actors. 

Top item in the show', however, 
was the finale done to “Love Is A 
Simple Thing.” While every set-, 
ting was fresh, this one— a carni- 
val milieu— proved a genuine lift. 

Music was taken from four or five 
performers in "New Faces” album, 
and for each a DuMont thesp did 
an original turn. There \vas~even 
some fine terping. 

this half-hour proves that high* 
quality network stuff can grow out 
of a low' network budget. 


ing the reins over to his son-in-law, j S u^ P ! ?rj S * 

Peter Hobbs, with whom Miss Stod- ! s ^°' v P u * out last Thursday . (28) 
dard, it seems, had been in love ; was ' -cut from the same format, _ it 
some 20 years before but who mar - ) ' vas ^ ie n sponsor s. first expansion 
incident uac uhniiv inarfpmiatp i ried her sister instead of Miss Stod- : t0 a * u {* hour -and- represents > an 
Instead of ^slne mins and S ; dard - With the conflict all set up, : Mnmistakeable guidepost to similar 
tSrereMnstrSf lions ^ the ■ scripfers Lillian and Anthony P« •>« “eups. 

lanspri Inin a «V?»iaht n ,rr!£ (Spinner managed to interject the : Par’s “Place in Sun” (from the 
Wi% suspense-anxiety angle in the clos- Theodore Dreiser “American Trag- . 

a (ani> s . , ing moments of the first show by edy” original) ran 118 minutes, 

a tape recorder in motion, ! having ,Hobbs learn that his wife • Lopping off more than half of. this 

Another minor flaw in the show ■ had a serious auto accident. demanded judicious appraisal of 

was the repetitive emphasis on the ' An v way, the actin« is good, with ' tbe pictorial and story values. That 
expedition’s motivation. The single : Hicks impressive 'as the father ! k;good part of the dramatic wallop 
explanation, given by one of the 1 Hobbs good as the son-in-law. Mar- j wa s retained in the ty outing at- 
c limbers, that it was the only im- joTie Gateson fitting the role of tested to astute scripting by Sandy 
practical, effort left in a practical the mother nicely and Miss Stod- ‘ Barnett. Wisely enOiigh. Buzz 
world should have been enough, dard injects the necessary' fpalevo- 1 Kulik’s direction was lifted right 
but the idea was almost chewed ! fence into her portrayal. Gloria rout Of the Par pic; despite tv s 
to death. However.-4he-overall nar- i Monty’s direction is precise and ; dimensional limitation, the scenes 
ration by Dr. Charles D. Houston, ; flawless. Chan. I Played out almost exactly as ia 

the expedition’s leader, was point- ! — ^ I the prototype. 

edly effective. 

The climb was sponsored by the 
American Alpine Club with NBC . i 

lending some financial assistance. Sector: L^Darfs " 

■ ncrm - I Writer: Bob Claver 

15 Mins., Sun., 9:15 p.m. 

| ABC-TV, from New York 

John ABC-TV has whipped up a pleas- ; might havfr been commendabio 
Ruth ant quarter-hour series for the ’ had it been done Without flaws, 
.cream spot following the Walter But in the course of shifting 
| Winchell gabfest. It’s quite a around to the many , sets, much 

stretch in mood from Winchell’s . off-camera noise was within ear- 

5 machine - gun delivery to Jane i shot of the home audience. Thii 

; Pickens’ comfortable s o u t h e r n was disconcerting. Further, tho 

i drawl and mellow warbling, but the . cabled images were lost twice. 

xhouaj Luiioiuciauiv tu Jack ^ rus ^ stands up on her own and j n this respect, the program. 
Mabley. a local sportswriter. this ' her m ^netism wiH glue the viewer. ; which was done live, figures as a 
paneler has enough spark-produc- ! This series is Miss Pickens’ first , strong argument for the use of 
ing elements to lift it out of the i but she's no newcomer to the cam- film in such projects. Either that, 

throwawav class The Dundit ‘ era - In the past year she’s been or somehow mute the grips, tech- 

thUtoefs maHtal problems! gut on, eight telethons for Cerebral nfeions. etc _ ' 

as is now standard with the«:e ad- ' Pa I s >' and she s got the tele tech- j Place in Sun leads were han- 
vice-for-AFTBA’mihirnoms I M<p* down pat. died ^by Ann Blyth. John Derek 

it’s the personality of the panel,! Format is simple, consisting, of and Marilyn Erskine. Miss Blyth 
individually and collectively, on some homespun philosophizing Proved a natural as the rich, some- 

which they make or break.’ And (from Bob Clavcr’s script* and a ''hat vapid but unspoiled rich ^ girl 

it’s Mabley with his flair for tilt- 1 few songs tfrom Rodgers & Ham- ; Whose love the previously un- 
ir.g at already partially demolished merstein, P.D., etc.*. On opening derprivileged Derek plots murder 
windmills, including even canards stanza Sunday (31 > Miss Pickens i j W ? s ( a ^T - -.convincing but 

about Mr. and Mrs. America, who warbled “La Vie En Rose.” “You’ll ; |bqwed limited histrionic range. 

provides the sit-up-and-take-notice I Never Walk Alone” and a spiritual . /J ,ss ■ sco ^ d effectively as 

excitements, in an otherwise “or- i tagged “Noah, Built The Ark.” She fn °I her ' to - be whose 

thodox” examination, of the “prob- , gets a neat vocal backing assist , nave Derek marry her 

lems” at hand. ! from The Vikings. I .. d pii®3 er ;. dea ^ h * „ ^ ^ 

1 It’s mostly a solo display, how- p * a oe- is strong, adult fare 

i and, as in the Par film, was pre- 
- sented with good taste throughout. 
Tv has yet to reach the high stand- 
ards set by radio in drama pro- 
gramming but the Lux stanza was 
« giant step in that direction. It 
was a precedent and there will be,, 
or should be, follow-ups. The 
show demonstrated that an abun- 
dance of sock story can be told in 
less than an hour. And with sound- 


HITCHING POST 
With ' Fahey Flynn, Judge 
Sbarbaro, Jack Mabley, 
Crowley, Rhoda Pritzkrr 
Producer: Les Weinrott 
Director: Phil Bondelli 
30 Mins.; Sat., 9:30 p.m. 
LANOLIN PLUS 
WBBM-TV, Chicago 
Thanks . considerably to 


But “Video Theatre” went over- 
| board in production, tripping over 
' its own business. According to a 
CBS-furnished scoreboard, total of 
67 players, 17 sets and two studioi 
were used in the Coast origination, 
j This accent on kingsize mamsd 
] the show. Such ambitious staging 


ADVENTURE WITH WORDS 
Sister Jane^ others 
Producer: Angela McDermott 
30; Mins.; Thurs., 10:30 a.m. 
Sustaining 

WRGB-TV, Schenectady 

Program, varying in pattern and 
subject matter as its presentation 
rotates among parochial institu- 
tions of WRGB primary area, had 
in the seventh telecast, via “TV 
Schooltime” series, an outstanding 
example of video’s contribution to 
and efficacy in the field of educa- 
tion. A sight-saving class, from St. 
Peter’s Academy in Troy, conduct- 
ed an interesting and sometimes 
touching demonstration of “visual 
aids for exceptional children,” un- 
der the able guidance of Sister 
Jane and with the fine support of 
Dorothy Hartigan, member of Ken- 
wood Alumnae Braille Assn, in Al- 
bany. 

Simple, sincere and unadorned, 
the half-hour telecast with four 
eager girls and a boy ranging in 
grades from one to eight had mo- 
ments that gripped the attention 
and tugged at the heart strings al- 
most as tightly as some of video’s 
biggest dramatic shows with the 
greatest stars. The rhythm band 
bit. near the end, Was touching and 
tear-producing as the youngsters, 
including a small girl wearing a 
patch over her right eye and under 
glasses, played two numbers with 
elementary instruments and a spe- 
cial direction sheet. 

Despite some drag and perhaps 
over-preparation of recitation por- 
tions. this origination proved the 
unique advantages possessed, by 
television in spotlighting phases of 
education. Sister Jane, who stud 
reliable estimates placed the num- 
ber of youngsters requiring“special 
visual aids for education’ at 50,000 | 
(some of whom are receiving no 
schooling at all. closed a perfect, 
portrayal of the teacher's role with 
an appropriate comment on “God s 1 
gift of sight” and the need for. its , 


For example, the early portion ; ^ , . .... .. . t 

of the session kibitzed (30) was ; ever * and sbe shines throughout, 
given over to a rebuttal of a pre- 1 oros. 

vious Mabley statement that rural f-. 

America like the “wicked big 
cities” also knows something about 
drinking sprees and shotgun wed- 
dings. He stuck to his guns de- 
spite a disassociation from, the 
charges by the other members of 
the panel that w'ould have done 
justice to the Rock Valley, Iowa, 

Ladies Aid. 


FASHIONS AND EXERCISES 
With Cathy Bauby 
Producers: Ed Graney 
Director: Fred Willis 
10 Mins., Mon.-thru-Fri., 9:30 a.m. 

Participating 

WMCT, Memphis „ 

When it comes to getting the ; n fi 


<. ki ,, « . . , tops in women fashions, model tips : script, the extensive use of 

The/ problem” brought along by j an *d a t the same time enjoy a tv ;. se g can be a tremendous plus, 
the visiting newly-married couple | whirl of daily exercise. Cathy; Program Was liberaMy injected 
was whether the hubby, a dental i Bauby who just “invaded” Mem- /' 11 " Hollywood flavor. Ronald 

student who works four nights a j phis’ Dixieland via WMCT from ! p eag an served as “host,” and in- 

week and spends the fifth night as ; Chicago has already scored aplenty ; troduced Miss Blvth and Para- 
a Scoutmaster, should be permitted j her femme audience down ! mount contractee Pat Crowley in 

by his spouse to go on occasional j here. Miss Bauby, who registers 1 betwe.en-rouh.ds palaver. Reagan 

weekend hikes with his Scout j terrif with poise and personality ; and ; Crowley made with the 

troop. Ruth Crowley, who seem- ! over the lenses, knows her biz in . praisery for Par's upcoming “Red 

ingly has all bases covered with j the fashion, model . and exercise i Garters,” presumably as called for 

4ier Sun-Times Ann Landers advice j circuits— and what’s more pours it ; ,n . -the deal with the film company, 

to the lovelorn column and her : on for her viewers With stellar Wad ^ Nichols, editor of Redbook, 

WBKB “Ail About Babies” show, ! style and topflight voice quality, j announced the mag’s annual cita- 

recommended that wifey green- 1 Gal who performed as a model : tions for outstanding film work 
light, the scouting weekenders on and fashion tipstress for Chicago • a nd on hand to acknowledge them 
the . grounds that she’d known!. tv outlets and agencies, demon- were .Walt Disney. Buddy Adler, 
about Hubby’s ‘peccadillos, before i sirates her showmanship “know- William Wyler, George Stevens 
she married him. Superior Court ; how” in giving the Memphis femme i add Jack Cummings. Stevens di- 
Judge John Sbarbaro said the j fans a well-founded but not too ; reeled “Place” for Par, 
young lady must continue to “sac- i hefty capsule of daily exercises. . Lever Bros, commercials . .for 
rifice” for his career. Rhoda 1 The WMCT personality who . is , Lux soap, a liquid detergent and a 
Pritzker delivered a treatise on the [ sandwiched in during the cross- j soap powder were presented with 

rights and duties of matrimony, the-board. stint here in the “Shop- , good effect and in commendably 

Mabley thought it was a foolish ■ ping at Home” regular stanza earns ; short space. Gene. 

question, [ added spurs with her fashion and 

. * x - I mA/lat rnnf iri/v ' Hp.1VilV 1 

hJielsen llps Two 

Chicago, Jari. 26. 

A. C. Nieisen has upped , two 
. — . . men to account execs in the firm's 

■ T - , [ modeling arc well handled in ex- ra< j io tv j ric j ex service, division, 

care. Miss Hartigan was an un- pert fashion. And wh at s more : AoDointees are Charles W Be- 
usually articulate spokesman for ■ when she goes through her ^cXer- , PP ^jjj m h Quinn who 
the braille group, serving the. blind i cises, she keeps her fans both in- ««« and william M. yumn. n no 
“without distinction of race, creed terested and amused with her win- ; will handle severaLbioadcast ac 
or color.” jaco. Ining smile, voice and style. Matt, i counts in New Yoik. 


With such a glib group, modera- ! m .^ el K r ^ t1 ^ ^ e ,, s l° r Sn X X 

tor Fahej- Flynn had no difficulty • wi : h b ®, tl, ,,, h h e ^ A-l'-al fn front of 

keeping th proceedings moving : ?Pi c L^ d f “ sh ,‘“" Jaftlnn h/r see^e ' 
alnnff at a «?mari Pare Dave i the Cameras, In addition, her segqe , 

along at a smart pace. uaie. ; $egment f rom fashion hints to 

ell handled in ex- 
And what's more i 



home will be the most practical television program 
ever designed for women. True to its name, HOME 
will deal with everything of importance to every 
woman who has Or hopes to have a home (as well as 
to her husband) . Beginning March 1 - from 11 a.m. 
to 12 noon, NYT, every Monday through Friday on 


mechanical arm which can lift and unroll a rug or 
bolt of cloth as easily as you handle a pack of cigar- 
ettes. It will even gently ripple drapes and curtains 
if rippling is in the script. HOME can even make its 
own weather. At will in a special effects area, it can 
produce rain, fog* sleet, snow or hail -perhaps even 


NBC Television, HOME will present the new, the 
good, the useful in fashions, beauty, interior decora- 
tion, architecture, food, family affairs, child care, 
leisure entertainment, gardening and anything else 
that interests women. Just as in “Your Show of 
*. -Shows” and “Today,” NBC has created a totally new 
pattern for television. 


of sub-editors ferreting out and testing HOME’S 
subject matter. HOME’S performing editors make 
up a Who’s Who of women’s service experience. 

o 

POPPY CANNON, HOME’S food editor, has been food 
editor of House Beautiful and Li ring. She wrote “The 
Bride’s Cookbook” and “The Canopener Cookbook.” 
ROSE franzblau, psychologist and human relations 
columnist in th e New York Po$i, will edit the family 
affairs and child care department, eve hunter, 
HOME’s editor of fashion and beauty, comes with 
plentiful radio and television experience in San 
Francisco and New York. For HOME’S department 
of interior decoration, the editor is Sydney smith, 
TV star of the “Swift Home Service Club” and 
“Ask Miss Smith.” ESTELLE PARSONS, a graduate of 
“Today” is roving reporter and “new brides editor.” 
(She was married in December. ) At a later date the 
editor-in-chief will be named. 


sunshine. Some of those gadgets may sound a trifle 
strange, but they are designed to allow HOME’S staff 
the greatest creative latitude for imaginative staging. 

TO ADVERTISERS: 

home's products star in every program- The 
basic concept of HOME is that commercial presenta- 
tion and program content are woven in the same 
fabric. HOME’S spectacular new staging has a very 
special advantage for you. It means that you don’t 
have to have special announcers, film commercials 
or expensive commercial sets. HOME’S facilities are 
at your service. HOME provides the perfect mood 
and setting for selling your product. 

home’s audience will be a screened audience. 
Every woman who watches will watch because she’s 
interested in improving her home, her family life 
and herself. It stands to reason, then, that HOME’S 
audience is made up almost exclusively of prospects. 
And those prospects will see your product at the best 
time, in t jie best setting. 

home’s economy is evident in its sponsorship 
plan. HOME offers eight one-minute participations 
per program. As with “Today” you may buy one 
participation or as many as you want. HOME, then, 
is a perfect place for young products, and for limited 
budget advertisers who want big time television. 


home’s editors are outstanding authorities in 
their fields. And behind the scenes will be batteries. 


home’s home is a machine for selling. It’s a 60- 
foot rotunda surrounded on its perimeter by a trans- 
lucent plastic skin for front and rear projection or 
special lighting and color effects. In its center are 
two concentric, revolving turntables. In its various 
stages are a kitchen, a testing laboratory, a how-to- 
do-it workshop which can accommodate everything 
from a crochet hook to a compound lathe, a small 
garden (with the richest earth in television.) On 
the floor will be three regular television cameras, but 
, high in the ceiling, is NBC’s aerial camera, a remote 
control camera mounted on a telescoping arm which 
can cover any position in the rotunda, giving camera 
flexibility never seen before in television. , 


home’s charter client plan gives you a 
full hour program without extra cost. This special 
“merchandising program” can be scheduled to cor- 
respond with the launching of a new product, a new 
line or a new promotion. All eight commercials on 
the Charter Client’s “merchandising program” are 
devoted to his product. Charter Clients also receive 
two more invaluable assets : (1» exclusivity in their 
product category in all HOME programs for the rest 
of the year (2) a color franchise in HOME. To be- 
come a HOME Charter Client, you buy 52 participa- 
tions, non-cancellable, between March 1 and Decem- 
ber 31, 1954. 

Your NBC representative has all the details of spon- 
sorship including the participation price. He can also 


For displaying HOME’S editorial matter and adver- tell you more about HOME’S plans. Suggest you call 
tiser’s products in new ways, some new devices ahe him today, 
needed ; like the “tumbler.” The “tumbler” is a mech- 
anism for handling heavy objects . foi example, to 
show the construction of an easy chair, the “tumbler” 
will whip it upside down, tilt it or spin it effortlessly 

and quickly. Then there is a “picker-upper,” a a service Of Radio Corporation of America 



IK AMO REVIEWS 


THE GAMBLERS 
With Den Hollenbeck, Ted Hanna, 
Hon Kellerman, Art Paterson, 
others 

Supervisor: Stuart Novins 
Producer: Jay McMullen 
68 Mins.; Sun. (31), 5 pjn. 

CBS, from N. Y, 


| A BOY'S EYE VIEW 
! Producer: Henrtette Harrison 
} Director. Jeanne Harrison 
Writer: Max Evlieh 
15 Mins.; Thursday (28), 18:15 p.m. 

ABC, from N. ¥. j 

j Presented ptrer the ABC net last j Thnrs. (28), 9 p.m. 

v Thursday i28) in line with National i aBC, from N. Y, 

* - & • • r 


PARADE OF MUSIC 
W’ith Don Ameehe, France* Lane- 
ford, Bussell Nype, Lanny R***» 
Three Suns* Robert Merrill, 
Mindy Carson 
Producer: Ed Franck 


The Stuart Novins-speared Fea- j yMCA week, -* A Boy’s Eye View 
tuire Project division at CBS ap-j Avas g eared raore f or j U ve listening 
pears to have predilection for beat- 1 than the adu it ears at which it was 
ing its oyvn track record, Unit has j tsrget ^ d Based on Clarence G. 
scored again in its ambitious series ? Moser’s book, “Understanding 
of radio exposes, this time with a t Boys,” program was pegged on 
searching study of the affect of? alerting parents to the needs of 


As. its contribution toward the 
March of Dimes, ABC Radio staged 
this half-hour musical starring 
some of the top names in the busi- 
ness. It made for fine radio lis- 
tening, and should help raise some 
coin against polio as part of the 
: overall radio campaign of the Na- 


approach to the past 16 years, 
since the establishment of the 
foundation. Michigan Kroll’s ex- 
cellent script weaved the land- 
marks in the fight against polio in 


gambling on the morals and the their male offspring. Dramatiza-f g^*^ ^ ^idM o£ lor InfantUe 
outlook of the community. V ! lion, which ran for 15 minutes, ap-j pJJalvsis® ' 

Studv, compiled by producer Jay j parently followed the line that the . with Don Ameehe narrating, 
McMullen from reports by some 30 , best way to get across a point over \ shQW used a ‘booking backward” 

field correspondents from the Fea- [ the air would he to draw audio pic- ■ - -- 

ture Project staff and from CBS tures. Over-simplicity _ impressed 
affiliates, centered chiefly around as being too condescending, 
two areas, northern Kentucky and | Brief yam had a kid carrying the 

New Orleans., In both areas, the [ major acting assignment. Boy re- 

CBS reporters went out with tape ; f erred to occurrences in his youth !' w ^th some of *the show biz and 
recorders to get both sides of the j that reflected on a poor parent-son [ other events of those years, with 
story— the views of honest official- [ relationship; Incidents noted were f guest stars plucking some of 
dom (and some from the less iricor- j enacted via brief sketches. Show | tn e choice tunes of those years as 
ruptible lav/ officers! and the gam- ' wound up with the performers who ■ their efforts, 
biers’ sometimes brutally frank i portrayed lad’s parents remaining 
outlook. ! in character to discuss the proper 

The northern Kentucky study [ handling of their son with Moser, 
traced the methods of the gam- > YMCA. which is sponsoring 
biers— moving in as local business- j Moser's book, was given a windup 
men, gaining a name as philan- j plug. Jess. 

thropists, doing their purchases 


locally and otherwise ingratiating y Tri hi<>tOrv 

themselves with the community lOOTNOTESTOHISTORY 

Then came the false “prosperity,” ■; 

with lots of out-of-town trade <and 19 .„ n _ 

along with it decisions by big An? J, Mqn.thru-F>i., ^12.55 p.m. 

dustry to stay out of the area >, Mutual, from New York 
then the noticeable effect on teen- } John Scott's monologs about les- 
agers, violence, corruption. And : ser-known historical events makes 

finally reform. All this was elabc^ ; a ^i ea§an t but, at times, incoherent 
rated via the taped reports of the : r .: / ... \.r, — 

city manager, a crusading news-j fiver in an. afternoons listening. 

paperman. a local businessman and i Narrator has a deep voice with a 
the gamblers’ spokesman. j humorous lilt and that, perhaps, is 

Even more of a penetrating in- ; the only deep thing about the 
quiry into corruption ’was pre- 
sented in the New Orleans story. 

Here as a starter, the supervisor of 
state police in Louisiana told of 
bribe 
within 


show 

Stories for the day concerned 
the fabulous, much-too-often-dis- 
cussed John McGraw, late man 


offers totalling $600,000 a ger of the baseball Giants, and 
a month after the ; police j his player Bill Terry. Another 

segment? touched on Rabbit Maran- 
ville. Both vaguely lead into the 


had started an anti-gambling cru- 
sade, and then.* following his re- ,_ o 

fusal, murder threats. Then with ; recent electioi^ of^Terry and the 
a tape, the reporters moved into Rabbit to baseball’s Hall of Fame, 
special hearings by a New Orleans [ Though the tales were told neatly. 


city commission on gambling, com- 
plete with testimony of police pay- 
offs and protection. And as a top- 
per, the legmen interviewed sev- 
eral ex-policemen, who gave in de- 
tail the collection and splitting 
methods used by the police in 
every district of the city. 

Not a pretty picture, to be sure. 
But given in - straightforward and 
unflinching manner, directly by 
tape and with a fine commentary 
by Don Hollenbeck. It’s been said 
before, but. this is the type of pro* 
gramming that can lift network 
radio out of the doldrums, can re- 
store it as an attention-getter and 
reaffirm its place as the invaluable 
communications and information 
medium it is; 

It’s obvious that the one hour 
devoted to the topic of gambling 


In equally fine renditions, Fran- 
ces Langford sang ‘’September 
Song," Russell Nype did “It's a 
Lovely Day Tomorrow,” Lanny 
Ross tenored “I’ll Be Seeing You/ 
the Three Suns instrumentalized 
“Laura,” Robert Merrill baritoned 
“I Believe" and Mindy Carson 
sang “Stranger in P a rad i s e.” 
Matching the quality of the music 
was Ameche’s narration. In radio, 
he’s still tops. 

Interspersed with, the narration 
and music were tapes of Franklin 
D. Roosevelt, Eleanor Roosevelt, 
foundation chief Basil O’Connor and 
polio serum developer Dr. jonas 
Salk. Shpw represented a skill- 
ful job of production by Ed Franck 
and direction by Joe Graham. A 
worthwhile contribution by all con- 
cerned. Chan. 


Wcdneadiy, Fcbrni ry 3, 1954 

The Norwalk Story 

As the first ambitious project of the recently-inaugurated Docu- 
mentary Unit of WNBC, the New York flagship of NBC Radio, 
John Wingate, one of the station’s ace newscasters, armed with 
a tape recorder, was sent to Norwalk* Conn., scene of last 'Week’s 
Veterans of Foreign Wars “Red snooping" controversy which has 
split the city of 55,000 population — and subsequently a goodly 
segment of the country. What he came back with, and what* was 
aired as a 25-minute hot-off-the-griddle unfolding of a divided 
citizenry, represented alert programming more suggestive of an 
earlier day in radio when such special events spotlighting was 
taken in its stride. 

Wingate’s treatment of the “hot potato" was intelligent and to 
the point. There was no need to editorialize, for the taped ex- 
pressions spoke,, for themselves. In his Interview with the local 
VFW commander Albert A Beres, for example, he gave him just 
enough rope. Wingate was calm, dispassionate. It only remained 
for Beres to do the rest. Next he went to Mayor Irving C. Freese, 
who was quite voluble in his denunciation of such amateur sleuth- 
ing. And Anally he cornered a representative Segment of the Nor- 
walk populace who were about equally divided in championing or 
blasting the VFW tactics. 

Ordinarily such radio pickups are inclined to be so fence- 
straddling and impartial as to render them worthless. Wingate, 
too, was impartial, but because of his own judicious approach in 
handling the interviewees, and notably Feres, he managed to make 
it speak volumes. Rose. 







it was disconcerting trying to fig- 
ure exactly why McGraw got into 
the script, unless you go by the 
contention he makes good copy re- 
gardless of the context in which he 
appears. 

This may seem a small bone to 
pick, but the show is too short to 
allow for any digression^. All in 
all, “Footnotes" is a fair way in 
which to annotate the listener’s 
spotty historical knowledge, 

PEOPLE 

With W. W. Chaplin, Frank Blair, 
guests 

Producers-directors- writers: Chap- 
lin, Jack Ghilain 
30 Mins., Sat., 6:30 p.m. 

NBC, N Y. 

only scratched the. surface, and I This is an interesting scries that 
several of the other feature proj- ! can nave some pretty fine mo- 


ects could have gone into more de- 
tail or expanded coverage of their 
topics. It might be a good idea 
for CBS to change the pattern of 
the feature broadcasts, to allow 
Novins and his staff to cover their 
topics exhaustively, then arrange 


ments, as last Saturday’s (30) pre- 
miere attested. Ingredients are 

familiar— ^anecdotes . and occur- 
rences to average Americans every- 
where — and format hot too origi- 
nal. But so many nice things can 
come out of it, when collated and 


At about 8:22 p.m. on Monday 
(1) Ethel Merman gave the full 
treatment to “Zing Went the 
Strings of My Heart” on the CBS 
“Suspense” which cast her as a 
nitery !"! singer who got profes* 
sionally mixed up with a honiicidal 
maniac in the 25G-a-week class 
who tried to kill her on the cafe 
floor and was himself taken in tow 
by six men' who put him on a plane 
headed for the hposegow, and if it 
weren’t for “Zing" the half-hour 
would have been a total loss, the 
James Poe script, tagged “Never 
Follow a Banjo Act/’ being quite 
study N in how not to write for 
radio and Miss Merman herself 
sadly miscast in the emoting part 
of a show which made interesting 
hut overplayed attempts at “smart” 
dialog that was encased in a show 
biz atmosphere but came out 
sappy all the way, so much so that 
it was about as empty as one of 
Auto Lite’s batteryless jobs. 

The only thing the power singer 
got out of this deal was money. 

Trau. 


them in several half-hour pro- ed jted as carefully as this one evi- 
grams to form a regularly sched- denC es, that it’s a pleasure land 
ul cd senes for each topic. profit) to listen to. 

This would have Several ad- ; Leading columnists and feature 
vantages over the present method 1 ' renorters in newspaperdom and 
of slotting the one-hour feature at j radio, from all over the U S., are 


random as soon as it’s completed. 
Wth proper publicity and exploita- 
tion. a tremendous audience could 


culled by two NBC reps, W. W. 
Chaplin and Frank Blair, as edi- 
tors-commentators. Duo were 







be attained for a once-weekly show i little patronizing or self-conscious 
of this sort. Using “The Gamblers" ; on the opener, but the field te- 
as an example, the northern Ken- [ porters more than made up for 
tuckv picture couM have taken up i them by the simplicity of their de- 
one half-hour, with an announce- ! livery or the eloquence of their 
ment at the end that “corruption ; messages, 

in New Orleans will be disclosed j A Frisco reporter told " how 
next week.” Properly handled, . whites and Chinese, men and 
such ^ series could generate 1 tre- ’ women, in* their spare time, were 
mendous. local and national excite- >: helping to build a Buddhist church 
ment. And that’s what network j for the Orientals. A Houston scribe 
radio needs. In the field of pub- ■ described a long Texas trek to a 
lie interest, it has let television.; stock show, the chuck wagons, etc. 
take the play away from it hands v An L. A. reporter discussed country 
down, and the feature reports can i editors and their slants on life, 
do much td restore radio's prestige - with direct quotes, 
and audience. But on such an i A Miami newsman discussed , a 
isolated basis as it s been sched* i . polio, hero and his courage. A 
tiled.,' -it's only a drop in the bucket. ! Philly reporter talked about a 


Chan. 


I 


THE DEEMS TAYLOR CONCERT 
30 Minis.:. Sat, , 3 p.m. 

Sustaiiiinc: 

WOR, N.Y. 

Composer - commentator 
Taylor is jockeying a half-hour 
longhair platter show over WOR, 
N.Y., on Saturday afternoons. Pro- 
gram makes for relaxing listening 
and should draw those dialers who 

like theijr music in a classical vein. 
On preem show, Saturday (3), Tay- 
lor accompanied record spins with 
brief notes pertaining to the. com- 
positions and/or composers. In 


philosophical society meeting and 

Ben Franklin. Another scribe re- 
lated the work of a missionary 
Umong the Indians, There was 
humor as well as drama among 
these contribs, and each, though 
brief, was complete in its story or 
People” can be pretty 
interesting. Broil. 


Deems ! message. 


some instances he threw in some 
personal reflections relating to cer- 
tain numbers. 

Turntable play was given to 
Liszt s “Un Sospiro,’’ Brahms’ 
“Academic Festival Overture,” 
Schumanns “Aufsehwuhg” and 
Strauss’ “Blue Danube Waltz.” 

Jess. 


In succeeding weeks Mutual’s 
“The Search That Never Ends” j 
dealt knowledgeably with two in- 
teresting subjects, adult education 
and vocational guidance, Producer 
Sherman Dryer, with the aid of 
Dr. Louis I. Dublin, consultant to 
the Institute of Life Insurance, has 
sought out and explored health and 
Welfare concepts which, due large- 
ly to their depth and range, hadn't 
received much attention as dra- 
matic radio fare before. 

The authoritative material sup- 
plied Dryer’s, writers by Dr. 
Dublin unfortunately did not re- 
ceive the profound treatment it 
was due. The restrictions of a half- 
hour weekly program trying to 
delve into a world of intangibles 
sko\ved their effect. Scripting cov- 
ered the highlights of the subject 
well enough, but characterization 
was often stereotyped and incon- 
gruous. As though racing against 
the 30*minute deadline, the writers 
created an erudite mother with a 
problem son but turned her into a 
simpering woman who in dealing 
with her particular worries showed 
no erudition at all. To build the 
conflict in as short a time as possi- 
ble, she w>as given lines so abound- 
ing in naivete and sheer ignorance 
that thp portrayal was unbeliev- 
able and so ivas the resulting elV 
max. Then, too, in general, the dia- 
log was of a “sticky ” sermonizing 
nature. Something must be done 
abOut the. lack of time. Ideally, the 
show- should be on for an hour. 

For, the people who are unfa- 
miliar with what has and can be 
done in the fields of medicine and 
culture “Search” certainly offered 
a generally satisfactory indoctrina- 
tion course. In that it fulfilled its 
basic purpose — to familiarize-— be- 
cause while there was no profundi- 
ty. elements of each story’s outline 
w ere . graphic enough to stick • in 
the mind. 


By JOHN SAVAGE 

( Freelance announcer) 

A month or so ago, as I was sitting in a southern hotel watch- 
ing a local newscast on TV, I heard a priceless fluff that certainly 
should be in any fluff anthology. “Pictured here at. Washington air- 
port,” the local newscaster said, “are President Eisenhower and 
his wife, ‘Mammy.’ ” 

Somehow this got me to thinking back to my days with WNYC, the 
New York City-owned station. As. you probably know, WNYC has 
served as training ground for a lot of the big names in radio and tele- 
vision. Ted Cott, to pick a name wildly at random, began his pro- 
fessional career as an unsalaried errand boy there! and now, good 
heavens, he must make somewhere in the neighborhood of $40,000 a 
year. While I’m nowhere near that successful, I did put in three solid 
years at the Voice of New York City, as it is; often cleverly referred 
to, mining salt, and the fluff I heard down South got me to thinking 
back to a period during those three years — a period which lasted 
roughly, and I mean roughly, a month and a half— where some truly 
amazing broadcasting went on. 

Now you must know first that announcers at WNYC are civil serv- 
ice employees. And then I must tell you that there are two types— 
“probational” civil service employees, and “certified.” (I’ll never for- 
get the day I got certified; I felt like an all-clear Havana cigar. ) 
Well, during the second World War, employees of any kind were hard 
to get at, so WNYC got a lot of probationals. Then,, after the war, 
while I was there, they fired all those who” weren’t going to be cer- 
tified. Biut somehow they didn't get anyone as replacements right 
away so, for about a month and a half, we had the strangest pro- 
cession of “announcers” come in and go out of that station that you 
have ever seen. I don’t know where most of them come from. 

They were usually started out with a newscast. The first guy 
could not really be judged fairly because he didn't say a word/when 
the cue. was thrown to him, he was so rigor mortised with mike-fright 
he could do nothing but peer sadly at the .engineer, who peered sadly 
back. While this might conceivably have made a moderately inter- 
esting video show, on radio, believe me, it*was nothing. As soon as 
he left, which was immediately after, a couple more showed up to try 
their luck. Almost every day when I came to work I would find at 
least one new face. I always retained an amount of affection for the 
poor fellow who fluffed up the very first words he spoke on the air. 
Instead of “Now, here is the news,” he came up with a classic; “Nu, 
here is the nows.” He left soon after, too. Then there was the chap 
who loused up the chimes bit. You see, at noon, WNYC plays a record 
of the City Hall chimes and at that time you were supposed to read 
voice over, “Twelve noon by the century-old chimes in historic City 
Hall. This is New York, the city of opportunity, where seven and a 
half million people live in peace and harmony and enjoy the benefits 
of democracy.” (WNYC is often humorously referred to as the sta- 
tion without' commercials. ) 

Well, this fellow let the chimes record go (announcers spun their 
own records), and then was horrified to find that he had left the copy 
back in the newsroom. So, it shouldn't be a total loss, he figured he'd 
ad lib it. “Twelve noon,” he began confidently, “by the century-old 
chimes in hysterical City Hall." He paused, groping. It didn’t sound 
right somehow but he went on. “This is New York, the city of oppor- 
tunity, where seven and a half people live in peace .aiid harmony and 
enjoy the benefits of democracy.” 


Doctor in the House? 


WNYC is a wonderful training ground for announcers, as is gen- 
erally known. Of course, they'don’f pay a lot (at that time, we were 
paid in peanut shells, but I understand that now the actual nutmeats 
are provided as wellL But they had all kinds of programming to 
contribute to your experience. News, special events, classical music, 
popular music (one of the new fellows, I remember, introduced a disk 
by a singing pianist he called “Nellie Lecher”)— and of course their 
wonderful niedieal programs of which they’re so justly proud. Twice 
a week, at 10:30 in the morning, we had a different, doctor come 
puttering into the studio to read a script on some fascinating aspect 
of medicine. The doctors wrote their own scripts, which meant that 
they ranged from just awful to simply incredible, and they also wrote 
the! few dozen or so lines they wanted the announcer to read in in- 
troducing them— which included every school the doctor had attended, 
plus most of the courses he took, as well /as every hospital he had 
ever! worked in. or driven Jby, with: his office ' hours and phone num- 
ber* and an alternate in case that one was Busy. These scripts had 
wonderful titles. “WNYC presents, ‘Hardening of the Arteries' ” was 
typical of some of the titles you had to read, and you'd sort of half 
expect music to come up and under. I’ll never forget the day I had 
to read “WNYC presents — ’Bleeding from the Stomach/ ” I'm sure 
that these medical broadcasts were valuable, because the only people 
who would have conceivably listened to them were bed-ridden folks 
who couldn’t get over to shut off -the radio— and of course, these were 
just the people for whom the doctors could do the most good. 

WNYC has changed . since those days, however. Now the entire 
staff is competent, no stream of hopeful would-be announcers comes in 
and goes right out, no magnificent , fluffs occur ofre right after the 
other— even the chimes revolve at the current speed. But it can't be 
nearly as interesting as it was before everybody , got certified, during 
j those fabulous 40 days. 





PSBSUf? 


Wednesday* February 3* 1934 


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The World's Foremost Authority 
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THE MOST EXCITING VOICE 
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«• You have to hear Yma to believe it! 


NEW YORK 




YMA SUMAC, whose voice ranges from the depths 
of the ocean to the heights of the Andes, runs the 
gamut of emotions from love to hate when she sings 
the sensual, primitive music of her people, the 
Incas. 


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The Songs of 

LOVE ■ ■ 9 Love of a child , elusive love of nature, gentle 

love of man . 

FEAR , • . Fear of the Inky blackness of the Jungle , the 

brute force of nature . 

JOY. ■ • Joy at the sound of an Infant's first cry , of the 
sight of the morning sun. 




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SORROW... 


LUST... 


* Deep sorrow at death , silent sorrow for 
the lost causes of the world. 


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NEW DELHI 


HATE... 


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Strong lust for the freedom of the mountains, 
clean lust of the sea , sensuous lust of man . 

Burning hate of evil , passionate hate of injustices , 
outraged hate at the destruction of menl 


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Starring In 

"SECRET OF THE INCAS" 

A Paramount Pidura 

YMA SUMAC ENTERPRISES 

3065 McCONNEL DR., LOS ANGELES 64, CALIFORNIA 






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IN NEW YORK CITY • . . , 

A. M. Martinet, lately veepee of Melchor Guzman Co., named exec 
veepee of Caribbean Network and Of the North American sales offices 
Of several Latin American radio outlets . . . Russ Johnstone, radio-tv 
director for Ward Wheelock, in hospital recovering from mastoid op- 
eration . . . Tom O’Nell, MBS prexy, to receive American Legion radio 
award “for general excellence of national news reporting and coverage” 
on web level . . . John F. Becker will, handle American Cancer Society’s 
broadcast activities during this year's crusade . . . At a party in Toots 
Rhior’s to introduce the WQR radio and tele salesmen to their new 
chiefs, BUI Dix and Charles Philips respectively, station boss Gordon 
Gray handed Jack Mohler a free Week's jaunt to Bermuda as reward 
for the latter surpassing $2,000,000 sales mark. 

Emily Kimbrough, the WCBS’er, among featured speakers at Barnard 
forum Saturday (6) at Waldorf, with "Pitfalls of Freedom” as subject 

. . KSPR, Casper, Wyo., becomes CBS’ 220th affiliate Feb. 15 . . . 
Lowell Thomas Jr. subbing for his father on this week’s newscasts . . 

Lyman W. Clardy, mgr. of WCBS program operations, named to rank 
of full commander in USNR R . . CBS sports >chief John Derr motoring 
back after five weeks south on biz-vacation . . . “Let’s Find Out’’ marks 
first anni Feb! 15 as WCBS public service airer. First guest last year, 
tile late Sen, Tobey, set off the drive to probe N.Y. waterfront condi- 
tions . . CBS appointments: Hope Lawder Ritchie as administrative 

asst, to Helen J. Sioussat, director of talks; Preston Pumphrey, of 
Maxon agency, to business affairs dept, under Henry Howard. Pum- 
phrey ’s out of Ohio Wesleyan, Frank Stanton’s alma mater. 

Carl Eastman, who recently resigned as a director % at Benton & 
Bowles, and Kay , McMahon, former casting director at Ruthrauff & 
Ryan, opening an artists representatives office . . . Robert Meeker 
Associates landed representation of WQAN and WEJL in Scranton . . . 
Radio group of the Special Gifts Committee for the 1953 appeal of 
N.Y, Catholic Charities collected $7,706 . . . Alix Shephard has joined 
the N.Y. radio-tv department of N. W. Ayer as a staff production as- 
sistant and assistant director to Charles W. Christenberry Jr. . . ; Donald 
Buka, doing “Stella Dallas” this week, also starred on “Theatre of 
Today” on CBS Saturday (30). 

IN CHICAGO . . . 

Chi NBC veep Harry Kppf 4 off for a week of. Florida sun . .'.“Ditto 
Chi CBS chief H. Leslie AUass who’s cruising in southern waters aboard 
his yacht, “Sis” ... Don Bresnahan, ex-editor of the Union Leader, 
added to the news writing staff at WMAQ-WNBQ . . . Covey of ABC 
brass which included Leonard Goldenson, Robert O’Brien, Robert Kint- 
ner and Bob Weitman in for the affiliates meetings, met with the local 
press yesterday afternoon (Tues.) . . . Frayn Utley, wife of NBC news- 
man Clifton Utley, who’s recovering from a long illness, debuts a half- 
-hour Saturday commentary via WMAQ . ... . Chi Mutual topper Carroll 
Marts in New York for a round of home office confabs . . . WMAQ last 
week auditioned via closed circuit its “Mission, Secret” serial to other 
NBC o&o’s ... Mark Rogers back with the WBBM announcer stable 
. . . Bill O'Connor, currently the town’s busiest gabber with over 50 
hours of sponsored air time, takes over a Saturday and Sunday morn- 
ing 60-minute disk session on WMAQ . . . With Jack Taylor shifted to 
WBBM-TV, Ed Farron is WBBM’s new weekend announcer supervisor 


. . .' ABC’* “Town Meeting of the Air” comes to Chi Feb. 16 to be 
aired in conjunction with the City Club's 50th anni dinner . . . Carter 
Davidson, ex-Sun-Times newsman now director of the Chi Council on 
Foreign Relations, starts a Id-minute commentary Sunday (7) on WMAQ 
. . . Herman Clebanoff, concertmaster of the Chi NBC orch, guest soloist 
at the Businessman Orchestra concert Friday (5) . .... Adt Hult, Mutual’s 
sales veepee, a Chi stopover visitor last week. 

IN SAN FRANCISCO ... - 

Mary Tierney's “Candlelighters” returns to KGO-TV airing Feb. 16 
. Lea Keiter moved his sportscaster operations to KYA’s sister sta- 
tion WINS, N.Y. Keiter continues to tape shows for Bay area airfng 
. . . Joe E. Brown and localite Lee Giroux co-emceed Reno’s first “March- 
of Dimes” telethon over tv station KZTV (28). City hoped to raise 
$5,000. At end of six-hour period, tote board showed $21,000 ... KROW 
(Oakland) is on a new program format binge . . , KRON-TWs kitchen 
expert Edith Green cited by Zenith Radio .Corp. for “distinguished 
service” . . \ KGO-TV dropped an hour of nighttime programming .. , 
Grats Powers joined KYA as ski newscaster . . . New UHF station 
KSAN-TV presented a daily closed circuit tv show from Macy’s . . . 
Continuity director Phyllis Dlller resigned KROW. (Oakland), to become 
director of fashions for Allison Clark agency in S.F. Station's cowpoke 
"Longhorn” Joe also departed > . .Jim Wlnterowd returned to KRON-. 
TV after 19 months Navy duty. ' ‘ 


Wednesday, February 3, I 954 


Reade’* ‘Cousin Kate’ 

Format for Asbury Park 

UHF Tersonalized’ Sehi 


IN PITTSBURGH . . . 

KQV has just handed station manager Jimmy. Murray new two- 
year contract with a two-year option . . . WLIO in East Liverpool, O., 
has suspended operations after five years of broadcasting . Marian 
Wheatley has been upped to traffic manager at WKJF-TV. She’s a 
sister of Tom Wheatley, of the Press editorial staff . Hank Stohl, 
WDTV announcer, will play the lead in Pleasant Hills Players’ produc- 
tion of “Bell, Book and Candle” . . . Harry Wismer coming here to be 
the toastmaster at the annual Dapper Dan Club banquet at the 'William 
Penn Hotel on Sunday (7) ... Fred Favorite signed as choreographer, 
for the returning “Show Time” tv series; 'Which resumes on WDTV 
for the Duquesne Brewing Co ; once-a-month basis . , . Dr. Baum has 
renewed Ed Wood’s early morning news on WCAE for another year . . . 
George Eisenhauer, WDTV announcer, made his nitery debut as a 
singer at the ABA Club ... Announcer Hilary Bogden is now a 10-year 
man at WJAS . . . Tom Borden named to direct the neW/J‘Amateur 
Show” on WENS. It r s a half-hour program every Wednesday night at 
10 o’clock. 

IN MINNEAPOLIS ... 

Bee Baxter, KSTP-TV personality, who won the McCall’s Mike Award 
in 1952 for outstanding* public service, copped* similar Zenith 1953 tv 
distinguished public service prize for her Monday through Friday after- 
noon show which furthers, interests „of parent and teenage groups, 
United Nations. St, Paul Council of Human Relations, U. of Minnesota 
School of Nursing, etc. . . Sev Widitian, WTCN-TV star, vacationing 

in New York ... Louise Haeberle, WCCO-TV personality, named sec- 
retary-treasurer of new. American Federation of Advertising, covering 
upper Midwest . . . Wes Fesler, who resigned as U. of Minnesota foot- 
ball coach to become WDGY part owner, v.p. - and sports director, 
launching first program Feb. 15. It’ll be six-day-a-week 15-minute 
show, “Heartbeat in Sports,” directed at the family in general and 
women in particular and including daily sermonette . . . Cedric Adams, 
WCCO topper, started new 30-minute Sunday afternoon tv show, 
‘‘Cedric’s Music Mart,” comprising his interviews of amateur composers 

(Continued on page 44) 


Network affiliations or competu 
tion for national advertisers will 
be avoided like the plague by 

WRTV, the Walter Reade theatre 

circuit's UHF'er which began op. 
eratiftg from Asbury Park. N, j 
Jan, 22. Pitch will be strictiv' for 
local originations and local spon* 
sors in the rich Jersey seaside mar- 
ket which is already saturated by 
the seven VHF units in New York 
It is felt the station couldn’t sur- 
vive if it moved in this competitive 
circle. . 

WRTV, which has the wealth of 
the Reade circuit behind it, began 
an intensive promotion-pub cam- 
paign long before it went on the 

air to garner the support of the 

three counties where it has pri- 
mary coverage. Over 50 local or- 
ganizations, embracing a total 
membership of 137,000 (in a mar- 
ket which has.rin the vicinity of 
400,000 citizens) were approached 
and given air tithe to present pro- 
grams of local interest. Angle will 
be "oh, there’s cousin Kate” or 
“Ma, come quick, Johnny from 
next door is on tv!” ,Even Tommy 
Tuckeft local resident and band-, 
leader, has been signed to do a 
local show, and the mayor of Long 
Branch, Alexander Viheberg, will 
do a weekly report, it’s this kind 
of programming that the station 
looks to for salvation, Attitude 
there is no UHF’er can compete 
with the big coin stanzas out of 
Gotham’s web flagships, so WRTVV 
approach will have to be more per- 
sonalized. 

Veep in charge of the UHF oper- 
ation, Harold C; Burke, has “no 
illusion of joining a network or 
Of competing for. big national ad- 
vertisers. Instead, WRTV will func- 
tion strictly as a community-run tv 
station, utilizing local talent in 
community-interest programs spon- 
sored by local industry and mer- 
chants.’’ 


Plattsburg — WEAV, Plattsburg, 
N. Y., will celebrate 19 years of 
broadcasting Feb. 3. 






Nothing succeeds like results -- and results are one of the outstanding characteristics of 
this organization's output. 25 years of experience, unsurpassed facilities and the highest 
standards of service equip us to create anything, produce anything, package, publicize 
and promote anything; Make us prove it! We are at your SERVICE! 


1 1 50 AVENUE of the AMERICAS, New York 36, N. Y. 


OXfoi'd 7-3322 


a 

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She never missed. And now the frontier's First Lady is 
sure-fire as television’s first cowgirl star ; Played by 
Gail Davis (Gene Autry’s “perfect Western heroine”) and 
filmed by the same top-caliber production team as Gene 


arid the Range Rider , Annie mixes hair-trigger action and 
romantic interest to score with all the family. 


With Annie Oakley, you cant miss. She’s available for 

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99 


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Distributor in Canada: S. W. Caldwell. Ltd., Toronto 


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RADIO-TELEVISION 


Wednesday, February 3 , 1954 


Ike-Cowles 

Continued from pace 28 


the Carlton Hotel in Washington 
were vigorously opposed by Paul 
Segal (of Segal, Smith & Hennes- 
sey), counsel for Cowles, Examiner 
French sided with Segal on the 
question of materiality but agreed, 
at Gaguine’s suggestion, that it 
should not be “physically” strickcii 
from the record because of its 
possible later use at oral argu- 
ments before the Commission or 
in court. 

Prior to the examiner’s ruling, 
Gaguine argued that “when an ef- 
fort is made to secure a compro- 
mise by, in effect, bluntly .stating 
that the fix is in, then I think 
that the Commission ought to 
know about it.” Gaguine had been 
trying to ask Murphy whether he 
had been offered a job with the 
Cowles organization. Segal object- 
ed to this “preliminary” question, 
declaring: “We are opening a can 
of worms if we are going into the 
discussion leading to the possible 
settlement of this controversy.” 

Gaguine replied that the "whole 
conversation” between Murphy 
and Milloy “has to be taken as one 
item” to permit .the examiner, the 
Commission, “and perhaps a 
court” to evaluate it properly for 
its bearing on the qualifications of 
Cowles as a broadcast licensee. 

Examiner French sustained Se- 


gal’s objection on the ground . of 
immateriality. Gaguine then made 
“an offer of proof” that if Murphy 

were permitted to answer he would 
say that Milloy told him there 
were “openings” in the Cowles or- 
ganization for young men in Des 
Moines and New York and that 
such men were urgently needed 
in Des Moines “as many of the 
top-rank officials were reaching 
an older age and possible retire- 
ment age.” 

Lee Issue Up 

The appointment of new FCC 
Comr. Robert E. Lee also came 
into the argument when Gaguine 
attempted ; to ask Murphy what 
Milloy told him as to his chances 
of winning the channel contest. 
Again, the Examiner sustained 
Segal’s objection, . whereupon Ga- 
guine asserted: 

“I would like to make an offer 
of proof. If Mr. Murphy were per- 
mitted to testify under oath, he 
would testify that Mr. Milloy stat- 
ed that things have changed at the 
Commission; that there have been 
many changes in the Commission 
staff; that before this case would 
be decided there would probably 
be a further ohange in the Com- 
mission; that the lawyers usually 
like to argue; however, they are 


operating under the theory , . . 
that Murphy didn’t have one 
chance in 10.” 

Murphy is the heir to an appli- 
cation filed by his late father who 
was a director of the Minneapolis 
Star & Tribune, published by the 
Cowles’ interests. He is only 24 
years old. 

The Cowles’ own KRNT in Des 
Moines, KVTV (tv) in Sioux City, 
Iowa, and WNAX in Yankton, S.D. 
Besides the Minneapolis papers, 
they own the Des Moines Register 
and Tribune and Look Mag. 

The hearings are due to wind 
up this week. * 

■ . * 

Ernest Stern Named As 
ABC Publicity Manager 

Ernest E. Stern last week was 
named publicity manager of ABC, 
succeeding Arthur B. Donegan, who 
died Jan. 22. Stern had been- acting 
publicity manager Of the wetrsince 
September, when Donegan assumed" 
the post of publicity-promotion 
manager of IV ABC, its N. Y. radio 
flag. Stern was trade editor pre- 
viously. 

Stern joined the web in 1950 as 
copy chief, after four years with a 
broadcasting tradepaper. He be- 
came trade editor in 1951. He’ll 
continue to report to Jack Pacey, 

I ABC director of public relations. 


TV Insurance Costs 

_ — Continued from pace 28 — 


the greater potential tv offers for 

such suits has not only forced most 
Of the insurance companies out of 
the field, but is directly responsible 
for increased rates. But now with 
only one major domestic company, 
Seaboard Surety, In the field, a 
monopoly situation that’s relieved 
only by the activity of Lloyds 
of London in American tv has tend- 
ed to raise rates even higher. 

Rate increases over the past year 
have i occurred twice, once last 
spring and again in the fall. 
Strangely enough, rates for filmed 
shows haven’t increased in propor- 
tion to live tv’ers in the second in- 
crease, according to Levmore. 
Rates for vidpix shot up sharply 
in the .initial increase, when it was 
realized that reruns Of telepix 
might leave producers open to suit 
years from now, when some films 
got around to playing/less popu- 
later^eSs^on-^w^nr The cumu- 
'isiffie. danger of suit that occurred 
simply because the shows are per- 
manently recorded On film and can 
be shown again and again were re- 
sponsible for the increase. 

But now that that danger has 
been provided for via the first rate 
increase, the insurance moguls 
have taken a kindlier view toward 
film; the second increase, in Octo- 
ber, was not as high as that for 



bi 
to ad 
and 


boo 
rti 



Jive shows. Reason given is that a 
film; show must go through many 
more hands and much more super- 
vision than a live segment, thereby 
lessening the chances of the in- 
clusion of offensive or previously 
used material. Fact that a film 
segment goes first through script 
editing ahd revision, then through 
actual shooting, then again through 
film editing and revision, has con- 
vinced the insurance people that 
the chances of legal action are 
greatly diminished. 

Peculiar situation exists in cov- 
erage of ad agencies. Here the 
errors and omissions coverage rate 
is determined by billings volume, 
and the rates have gone Up sharply 
for the smaller agencies, while 
some of the larger-sized outfits 
have found their, rates reduced. 
Policies, which cover every phase 
of agendy activity in the broadcast- 
ing and print fields, were upped 
/from $250 to $350 a year for the 
$1-2, 000,000-yearly-billings groups, 
while the $40,000,000 and oyer 
agency group found their rates 
dropped from $1,540 to $1,400. Ex- 
planation, according to . Levmore, 
is that the larger agencies are more 
apt to supervise their activities, 
more carefully, or at least they’ve 
been less liable to lawsuit than the 
smaller percentaries. 

Final twist is the method of 
computing insurance for public re- 
lations outfits. Rates are based on 
a total billings table like the agen- 
cies, but the rub is that the p.r. 
yearly fees are considered 15% 
of an arbitrary billings figure. Fact 
that p.r. clients don’t spend much 
more than their fees plus some 
expenses is ignored, with the re- 
sult that a public relations outfit 
doing a yearly business of $100,- 
000 finds its’ rate based on an im- 
aginary billings figure of $666,000. 


agencies 


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New reporting service now moni- 
toring radio and tv stations in five 
cities and soon to expand its serv- 
ice! to 14 markets will give the in- 
dustry its first regular check on 
expenditures in the spot broadcast- 
ing field by national spot and local 
advertisers. Service is Broadcast 
Advertiser Reports, set up last May 
by Philadelphia packagers Phil Ed- 
wards and Bob Morris. I 

In what’s probably the first regu- 
lar reporting service on spot radio 
and video buys in specific markets,, 
the service Will also bring out a 
bi-monthly multi-market report 
late next month. Report will be a 
10-market listing of every com- 
mercial announcement on every 
key station in each market. As the 
BAR coverage expands beyond the 
14-market service, as Edwards ex- 
pects it to do, a second 10-market 
survey will be launched. 

Service, with headquarters in 
Darby, Pa., moves into each city 
for one week every other month 
and via tape recorders monitors all 
network affiliates and leading in- 
dies in the market. Tapes are then 
shipped back to the homeofflee, 
where listings are compiled*^ and 
published 10 days to two weeks 
later. Report lists advertisers al- 
phabetically with the stations they 
use, then takes up eadh station in- 
dividually and lists In alphabetical 
order epch advertiser, the number, 
frequency and types of announce- 
ments or time he buys, including 
day and time. There’s also a station 
log for each day, enabling agencies 
to figure cost-per-thousand for 
each spot buy via reference to 
ratings. 

Reports currently cover N. Y., 
Chicago, Philadelphia (where it 
started), St. Louis and Wafffiington. 
By Feb. 20, BAR wilFmonitor- Bos- 
ton, Baltimore, Cleveland, Cincin- 
nati, Buffalo, Minneapolis, Detroit, 
Pittsburgh and Kansas City. Other 
markets will be added in the 
spring, with the Coast soon to be 
included. 

Edwards reported excellent reac- 
tion to the service from stations, 
their reps and from agencies. He 
said that station reps especially 
were using it to keep running ac- 
counts of * expenditures and cam-? 
paigns in the spot field, while 
agencies who in tne past have sent 
questionnaires to stations seeking 
account information now can ctfen 
use the actual tape for their own 
monitoring. 



Wefraday* February 3, 1954 




' 4 


How Businessmen Ranked 

)naf Advertising Media in J 


Ranking off 
National 
Media 


10 * 


Medium 


LIFE 


CBS-TV 


NBC-TV 


Saturday Evening Post 


CBS-Radio 


NBC-Radio 


Time 


ABC-Radio 


Advertising 
Revenue 
(Jan.-Pec, 1953) 


$109,708,903 


,658,551 


80,865,877 


45451,077 


35,391,178 


29,826,123 


Better Homes & Gardens 27^240,924 


This Week 


The next ten media rank as follows. . . llth:MBS-Radio,$23,158,000 
— i2th: Look, $22,971 ,144 - 13th: ABC-TV, $21,110,680 — 14th : 
Ladies* Home Journal, $19,660,979 — 15th: Good Housekeeping, 
$16,324*132— 16th : Collier’s,* $16,310,942— 17th: American Weekly, 
$15,904,772— 18th : Newsweek, $15,205,490— 19th: McCall’s, $13,- 
165,666— 20th: Business Week, $13,150,555. 

Source: Publisher’s Information Bureau (gross figures). Radio 
and television figures are for network time only. 

♦Collier’s became a bi-weekly in August, 1953. 






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LIFE 


f Rock*f*lltr Ptoia, Ntw Yotk 20, N. Y. 


























RADIO-TELEVISION 



Sterling: 'Sit on UHF Permits’ 


Continued from p a*e 21 


properly educate the public in their 
areas/' Such things must be done, 
he said, "when one tees off in this 
new tv band/’ 

• * 

Some Get Good Results 
Sterling said that not all UHF 
converters and tuners are "inef- 
ficient/’ Several,, he asserted, pro- 
duce "good results. Nevertheless, 
he added, "there exists a crying 
need for tubes that will meet the 
requirements of operation as os- 
cillators and UIJF amplifiers.” 

Sterling said that he has found 
some "heartening” developments 


on recent visits to UHF stations. 
At WGLV-TV in Easton, Pa., which 
employs a 12 kw transmitter, he 
said, he saw pictures 20 miles from 
the station which were "clean, and 
sharp, free from ignition and other 
noises that effect VHF. receptioh.” 

The ’’toughest” struggle of UHF, 

said Sterling, is obviously in mar- 
kets with high VHF set Saturation, 
where the conversion problem 
must be licked. What must be 
overcome in 'breaking down resist- 
ance of existing set owners, he said, 
are inertia, expense (as high as $70 




where another antenna is needed), 
and skepticism of converters. 

"What seems to happen/* he 
said, "is that when UHF first comes 
to town a number of people will 
go out and buy converters. Then, 
stories will gain currency that the 
converter works only a short while, 
then goes dead; The UHF stations 
find themselves in an uphill strug- ' 
gle to overcome this bad publicity. 

"Gradually, the UHF audience 
does grow, but the critical ques- 
tion for the broadcaster in a mar- 
ket with high VHF set saturation 
is whether UHF will grow rapidly 
enough to keep present advertisers 
interested and attract new adver- 
tisers in the face of the much 
larger ready-made market for VHF 
stations.” 


S’ " 

**/r 


: -'V 

- 












n"’i- 



A 


BASIC CBS 

television 

AFFILIATE 




When the spotlight swings on the 
favorite stars of Kansas City’s vast TV 
audience — those stars are on Channel 
9. A full schedule of top-rated CBS 
Network TV programs and a wide' 
variety of talent-packed local shows 
provide top entertainment. The Stars 
Shine On Channel 9 in the nation’s 
rich 17th market, and that’s why your 
message makes a greater impression — 
and makes more sales per advertising 


dollar — when you let . WHB-TV sell 
this billion dollar retail trade area 
with 365,480* TV homes. 

1,079 feet above average terrain— the 
height of WHB-TV’s new tower 
( jointly owned by KMBC-TV ) . Max- 
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visual, 158 kw audio. 

Write, wire or call your nearest Blair- 
TV representative for availabilities! 


Wednesday, February 3, 1954 v 


Inside Stuff— Radio-TV 

• % . 

Robert Montgomery is now permanently installed as President Eisen- 
hower’s advisor on the technical details of White House radio-tv appear- 
ances, it was disclosed last wee by James Hagerty* the President’s 

press secretary. Hagerty said he chose Montgomery as "the best man" 
for the job. 

" In response to questions by newsmen, Hagerty said Montgomery will 
continue at the job "as long as we ask him and we will ask him any 
time we have a broadcast or a telecast.” 

The actor-tv producer has been informally attached to the White 
House staff in a non-paying job and has been, down there a number of 
times. ' ». . 



^ 'Dec. )I report of Kansas City Electric Assn 

I 1922 1954 ' ! ? ?*£** * V.* 


Don Davis, President . 

John T. .Schilling, GciicVal Manager 



I Here's a good strip story . . . 

1 Now that (he headline has gotten ypu into this 
| paragraph, we have to confess that we’re talking 

2 about key strips from Butter-Nut Coffee cans/ During: 

■ Butter-Nut’s 1953 Christmas Club campaign, the 
* coffee people used WHB-TV’s popular weatherman, 
| Shelby Storck, to request key strip mailings from. 

■ viewers. WHB-TV promotion ana: merchandising 

I brought in a total of 106,470 key strips — snore than 
I three times the ampUnt received from the previous 
| year’s campaign oh another Kansas City TV station 
| . . , at that time the only television outlet in the 

■ market. Talent and format were unchanged for the 

■ *52 and ’53 Campaigns. ‘ 




WH B 

710 KC. 10,000 WATTS 
• . MUTUAL .NETWORK ! 

^SMttTV,’ ' 

Oldest , , 

CAULErrfK jown etAiit t co. 


Chicago Television Crohcil,. which is rapidly outgrowing the mere 
social club status and is striving to serve as a clearing house for local 
Industry problems, has set up a' special committee to attempt to work 
out a set of uniform standards for the out-of-rate card tv production 
charges. Group, chaired by Charlie Zeller, Guenther & Bradford ad 
agency veepee, will meet with the managers of the four Chi tv stations 
to discuss the problems of the below-the-line tele costs tacked on as 
extras to the time charges. 

An attempt to cut down excessive administrative costs incurred in 
national spot and video sales is being made by the Station Representa- 
tives Assn, which is investigating the possibility oL establishing a 
clearing house for such biz. As spot sales increase a definite need for 
a cut-down in paper work has become evident. 

The clearing house, if set up, would facilitate ordering, billing, 
collections and disbursements for all national spot biz. In addition, 
the new arrangement would also supply covering statistics on spot 
sales.. ’ 

WCBSrTV pitched public service programs during 1953 that would 
have drawn $1,683,434 in billings if the N. Y. flagship of CBS had 
collected the gross card rates; Included in the cuffo time, marking a 
record 1 for the station were charity, : governmental and nonprofit 
organizations, 

Breakdown by Clarence Worden, station’s director of public service . 
and educational programs, shows that charity and welfare groups 
received $949,123, with governmental units, coming, in for $590:877 
and miscellaneous organizations for $143,434. The 1952 largesse to 
such groups was $1 ,095,638. 

Pall Mall and Sullivan, Stauffer, Colwell 8c Bayles, its agency, are 
launching an industrywide contest among radio and tv promotion 
managers on behalf of their "Big Story.” With a vacation for two in 
Bermuda as the prize, contest seeks the promotion chief doing the 
best, most original, unique and effective job on either or both the radio 
and tv versions of the show during the first quarter of 1954. Contest, 
announced via an NBC closed circuit by Pall Mall ad manager Alan 
C. Garratt and SSC&B veep William M. Spire, runs from Jan. 6 through 
March 21, with deadline for entries April 9. 

To solidify its Negro programming block during the evening, WOV, 
New York, started six continuous hours of shows from a Harlem 
nightspot on Monday (1). Previously the nighttime offerings from 
125th St. were broken into by an hour and a half of hillbilly music. 

Two femme dee jays, Evelyn Robinson and Georgia Carr, who worked 
shows with other personalities until, the changeover now hold down 
half-hour nightly segments by themselves. 

United Nations agency heads yesterday (Tues.) began a coordinated 
effort with WQXR, New York Times radio outlet, to air 17 weekly 
programs explaining UN accomplishments abroad. Scheme is*o have 
reps from the main UN agencies discuss work on "Other People’s 
Business” series every Tuesday until conclusion. 

Once a month Thomas J. Hamilton, head of the Times’ UN bureau, 
will run through the major happenings at the General Assembly and 
the Security Council. 


from The Production Centers 

Continued from page 40 

and playing and singing of their compositions by an orohestra and 
vocal group , , . Stu Mann, WTCN radio and tv sportscaster, celebrating 
14 years on radio with' same Conoco sponsor for his nightly "In the 
Bleachers” show. 

IN BOSTON ... ' 

John Kelly, who spent five years in submarine service during World 
War II and recently concluded a twa-year stint as Commander of Naval 
and Marine Training v Centre at Cleveland, has returned to his old post 
as WEEI studio engineer . . . Jim Mcknight, formerly WT AG and 
WPRO salesman, and John H. Fitzpatrick, ex-advertising salesman for 
Boston Herald, have joined the sales staff of WBZ, WBZA . . . Local 
indie, WBMS carrying Juanita Hall’s "Life of Riiby Valentine” . . . 
John Scott, WVDA deejay organizing instrumental trio for club dates 
. Alan Rook* formerly associated with WOTW and WMEX, has joined 
WEEI’s announcing staff . . . Woody Tarlow, owner of W-HIL, has re- 
turned from sojourn in Florida . . . Joe Cook has been named WLYN 
program director . . . Art Smith now conducting WEEI’s ^Food Fair,” 
replacing Ken Ovendon, recently upped to program manager. 


IN PHILADELPHIA . . 


WCAU-TV’s live Western "Action in the Afternoon,”, which would 
have been one-year (Feb. 2), wound up its run of 258 programs Friday 
(29). Charles Vanda, station’s v.p., produced half-hour serial horse 
opera for web consumption, but cost was too high to snag sponsor . . . 
Bob Horn and Lee Stewart* of WFIL-TV’s daytime "Bandstand,” have 
split. Stewart has been assigned other duties by studio ... Allen Pres- 
cott, of ,WFIL-TV’s "Wifesaver” program, has been: cited "man of the 
year’ for his work on behalf of youth and . the Police Athletic League 
H*AL) . , . Don Mcllvaine has joined announcing staff of KYW, Mcll- 
vaine comes here from CBS, Hollywood, where he was member of 
casts of "My Friend Irma” and "Meet Millie” 


Luxurious Manhattan Apt. for Lease 

6 rooms, 3 baths, on Riverside Drive facing Hudson River. 
3 to 5 year lease at ceiling rental, $275* 

$150,000 in brand new furnishings and decor at 

TREMENDOUS SACRIFICE 
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Couplo leaving to liva In Europe. No broken. Substantial principal* 
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Wednesday* FebrunryS, 1954 




* SOLD- FIRST WEEK 

STANDARD Oil. 

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Wedrt^day, Mrairjr 3, 1954 



AD TV Webs Behind FCC on Upping 



Washington, Feb. 2. 

All four tv networks supported 
the FCC proposal to raise the ceil- 
ing on multiple-ownership from 
five to seven stations, provided at 
least two are UHF. Comment filed 
today (Tues.) on proposal shows 
NBC, AB-PT, QB$, DuMont, Storer 
Broadcasting, the UHF Assn, and 
WENS (tv), Pittsburgh, favoring 
it. Today was deadline for filing 
remarks."’ 7 

Only opposition was filed by Gor- 
don Brown, owner of radio station) 
WSAY, Rochester, N. Y. However, 
strong protest against the proposal 
Was made earlier by Edwin C. 
’Johnson (D.-Colo.), a member of 
the Interstate Commerce Commit- 
tee, 

NBC told the commission that 
the tv nets need additional finan- 
cial support and that raising of the 
ceiling will provide it. “If the eco- 
nomics of tv broadcasting ever 
should become such as to make un- 
profitable for networks to con- 
tinue in business/* NBC said, “the 
result would be disastrous/* 

The network told the FCC that 
the operation of all four tv webs 
from 1949 through 1952 show a 
loss of $1,200,000, and that this 
includes the 15 o&o stations; “Ob- 
viously,” NBC asserted, “the oper- 
ating loss of the networks would 
be much greater if the profits 
earned by the o&O's were not in- 
cluded in the network figures,** 

CBS said that “no undue concen- 
tration of control of ttr broadcast- 



ing would result from limiting 
maximum ownership to 10 tv sta 


tlons, no more than, live of which L % }£j> v "ft* Mo„dav 


may be in the VHF band/’ The 
network added that its obligation 
to stockholders requires it to seek 
the maximum number of VHF sta- 
tions. Moreover, the web contin- 
ued, its “position of leadership in 
the industry, willingness to invest 
in and to operate UHF stations will 
provide an inducement to others to 
do so.’’ 

ABC told the commission that 
“the successful development of 
UHF will' greatly assist AB-PT in 
achieving fully competitive status 
as a national tv network.” The 
company said, however, it has not 
yet determined whether it would 
seek to acquire additional tv sta- 
tions. nor in what markets they 
would be sought. , 

In supporting the proposal, Du- 
Mont pointed out .that the seven 
station maximum, if used by the 
webs, Would represent less than 
2 % of the present number of tv 
outlets. The network also stated 
that the number of stations owned 
is not as important as the con- 
centration of stations in major 
markets. 


gramming patterns and trends 
have not changed, he said, ana 
“we’re trying to turn out the best 
entertainment in every category.” 
He added that should an outside 
program packaged independently 
have better quality than one of 
their own, time would be found for 
it on the network, should a spon- 
sor place the order. 


Palm Springs, returning Monday 
to pass the day here before re- 
turning to N.Y. 


‘Home’ 


Continued from page 27 


Win, Place ft Show 


Continued from page 1 





Continued from page 27 


Eileen BARTON 

February 8th 

“Red Buttons Shew” 

COS-TV 

Corol Record* 

- . Dir.; William Morris Agency 


dates from 1936. He’s former chief 
tv engineer of the network and 
since ’50 has been veep of the 
Labs. Under his supervision, the 
Labs developed the field ^sequential 
system, first approved and ; then 
nixed by the FCC on its non-com- 
patibility feature. He brought Out 
the Chromacpder camera, which in- 
cludes the spin-disk in modified 
form, and the Chroinacoder/'Vhich 
produces tint ’as per the FCC nod 
under the NTSC system. 



COLGATE COMEDY HOUR 



Mat.: William Morris Agancy 



Continued from page 29 


said no decision' would be reached 
until the plans were studied to 
meet future needs. The Beverly- 
Fairfax corner site is being re 
served for a height-limit office 
building but be offered no guess 
as when this would be erected. 

Paley still prefers live telecast 
ing'over films because of “that ex 
tra dimension that you can feel.” 
He concedes that film has its 
points for certain types but come- 
dies, variety and dramatic shows 
come through better live because 
of spontaneity and timeliness. He 
believes that magnetic tape will 
have the quality of live program- 
ming. 

Paley finds no fault with com- 
mercials on tv and says that criti- 
cism is no.t levelled at the length 
but at the nature of some of them 
He -believes they serve a public 
need in , that they dispense in 
formation . about consumer prod; 
ucts. The standards of good taste 
are being maintained in tv and 
there has been no clamor for self- 
discipline, declared Paley. Pro 


position posters spotted iir each 
cdP* 

Among gimmicks on the “Weaver 
brainchild” will be a gadgetry de- 
partment tagged “Find of the 
Month Club,” a live baby (on film) 
to serve as a' trademark as a sort 
of opposite number to /mascot 
chimp J. Fred Muggs pn “Today,” 
and whole families flown in for a" 
stanza covering ; such items as 
plumbing problems and how these 
are solved. 

All this and a femcee too (Arlene 
Francis) are calculated to stir 
up sufficient interest to swing into 
line the spot spenders at roughly 
$5,500 per (not $3,500 ais typo- 
graphically erraiumed), with the 
20-second shares going at around 
$2,000. Show’s latest acquisition 
is a director, With Garth Dietrich 
tapper for the post. . Soap opera 
writer Manya Starr is set on script 
Integration. 


Sunbeam’s 300 G Buyrln 

Chicago, Feb. 2. 

Honors for signaturing the first 
charter client on' NBC-TV’s 
‘Home” show goes to Ed Hitz’s Chi 
sales crew who last week closed 
With Sunbeam Corp. for a partici- 
pation ride on .the femme-angled 
day timer. Under the charter plan 
bought , by Sunbeam, the adver- 
tiser, for an expenditure of some 
$300,000, stakes out product exclu- 
sively on the hour-long show Which 
starts March 1 ; Participation iden- 
ities include 60 one-minute “inser- 
;ions” plus a special bonus 
merchandising day. 

Also wrapped up by the Chi sales 
section last week wqs the network 
tv debut of the Maytag wash ma- 
chine firm out in Iowa, which 
ordered 52 participations ' on the 
web’s crossboard “Today” to start 
some time after Feb. 15. (Other 
Today” clients wrapped up. in 
N.Y. last week were Mutual of 
Omaha, for 39 plugs; Bissell Car- 
pet Sw’eeper, for 11; C. F. Church 
plastic wall tile, for four, and 
Brown & Haley Candy; for a sin- 
gle.) 

The Sunbeam wrapup is part of 
an $800,000 pre-preem windfall, 
with a couple of other sponsors on 
the verge of hopping the band-< 
wagon. They are Lees Carpets and 
Alcoa, the former for 13 weeks with 
“rights” to become a charter client, 
and the aluminum outfit for a 
shorter term. Two other spenders 
are about to be pacted. 


whep the final coin returns are in, 
even in maintaining its SRO status.; 

$161,000 A Week 

As a 90-minute attraction with 
all its plushy elements, “Show of 
Shows” is now costing from $100,- 
000 to $120,000 a week to bring in. 
Sid Caesar gets $25,000 a week. 
Imogene Coca gets $10,000. That’s 
$35,000 (comparable to the highest 
priced half-hour tv show) even be- 
fore any of the other costly com- 
ponents are blueprinted. Over a 
full season’s span it represents a 
$4,000,000 production-salary nut 
for all concerned. Not to mention 
the multiple headaqhes and the 
hazards attending such multiple 
sponsorship. For even a single 
cancellation, where such kind ' of 
coin is involved, can throw the 
show into the red. /While the 
show’s . been a bonanza ’for Lieb- 
man, Caesar, Coca & Co., in terms 
of the network it’s somethiiig~else 


the people SEE 

WDEL-TV 


ARC-ITs Five Web 

A * • .« «1 



ized 


Prockter Soapers 


Continued from page 22 


Also; the “law of diminishing re- 
turns” factor has provoked a rating 
situation that’s causing Borne N&C 
anxieties— as witness the fact that 
even the modestly^budgeted' Herb 
Shrlner “Two for the Money” CBS- 
TV show in the opposition 9 to 
9:30 slot has been running ahead 
of “Show of Shows” on the Tren- 
dex returns.. 

, Apparently -tampering with the 
format to get off the season-after- 
season “sameness” hook isn’t the 
answer. A year ago, it’s recalled, 
there . were some grave misgivings 
as to perpetuating “Show of 
Shows” within its established J 
framework (even then there was 
talk that both Caesar and Miss 
Coca would' go their own sepairate 
ways), but after a single week’s 
fling with a revised format with 
which he opened the present sea- 
son, Liebman reverted back to the 
usual format. 

Star Alone: $25,000 
Miss Coca is already giving se- 
rious consideration to starring on 
her own next season. Obviously, 
as one of the more talented come- 
diennes in tv, she could probably 
command better than her present 
10G on a weekly basis. Caesar’s 
situation is something else again. 
It’ll take a lot of sponsorship coin 
to meet a star’s $25,000 salary ''for 
a half-hour show. It’s known that 
Ed Belvin is currently prepping a 
half-hour audition script for her. 

No decision on the Colgate show 
will be forthcoming, for some time 
but already they’re laying odds that 
“Comedy Hour” won’t be checking 
in for the '54-/55 ride. The full 
hour display is costing' Colgate 
$6,000,000 a year (despite the fact 
that NBC is still picking up somp 
of the talent-product jon nut). 
That’s unprecedented coin in terms 
of a single show,- and the fact that 
Ed Sullivan’s far more moderately- 
priced “Toast of the Town” has 
consistently been outpullihg “Com 
edy Hour” on the Trendex ratings 
has sparked more than one council 
of war at Colgate’s Jersey City 
hqst 


ABC-TV this week instituted a 
new rate card for facilities, per- 
sonnel and production services for 
network shows, standardizing rates 
for all originations from New 
Ycipk, Chicago, Los Angeles, De- 
troit and San Francisco. New 
card, titled Manual No. 3, doesn’t 
differentiate in charges from each 
aV its o&o’s — all are the same. 
Card went Into effect Monday (1), 
with six months protection to ex- 
isting sponsors. 

Under the new card, camera re- 
hearsal charges vary with number 
of cameras used, with $270* rate 
per hour for one- caipera up to $420 
for four. Minimum charge is for 
one hour. Dry rehearsal on set, 
provided it’s scheduled immediate- 
ly prior to camera rehearsal, is 
$100 an hour for a one-hour mini- 
mum. Additionally, web is charg- 
ing over and above normal re- 
hearsal charges, $450 gross per day 
for use of ABC-TV theatre studios 
and $400 for its IV. Y. studio tv-l. 

Also set Was a remote charge 
schedule, with a $1,250 gross per 
day for up to an eight-hour day. 
Eleven-page- manual lists charges 
for all other personnel and serv- 
ices, including scene design, art 
work, makeup, balops and telops, 
etc. 


Wilmington, Delaware 


Channel 12 


the people 





WDEI-TV advertised products 

Write for information about your 
profit opportunity in WD El -TV's 
large, rich market. 

WD E L AM TV FM 

A Sfe.inmdn Station 

Sales Representative 

MEEKER 


New York ♦ Chicago * lot Angeles • San Francisco 



syndicate, is taking an active in- 
terest in the telefilm company, and 
currently is negotiating produc- 
tion and distribution deals. There 
will be no exclusive distribution 
deal. The' company is now talking 
distrib deals with MCA-TV, Ltd., 
ABC-TV, Television Programs of 
America, National Television and 
Associates, and Motion Pictures for 
Television, and it’s likely all five 
firms will wind up handling vari- 
ous American National properties, 
Prockter said. 

Soap opera series fits into the 
previously announced policy of 
producing vidpix of “A” and “B” 
categories. Prockter feels there is 
a definite need in daytime pro- 
gramming for Class B telefilms of 
the soap opera type. 

Other series are now being ne 
gotialcd. “Reader’s Digest,” pro- 
duced by Chester Erskine, is up 
for national sale, while a deal is 
pending for sponsorship of “In 
ternational Police,” a Prockter 
series. Prockter live shows which 
will eventually be converted to 
film include “Big Story,” “Man 
Behind the Badge,” and “Quick as 
a Flash/’ 


Schenectady — WTRI-TV, Sche- 
nectady UHFer on Channel 35, will 
commence operations about Feb. 
15, following an FCC okay to use 
Us transmitter site as a temporary 
studio location. . 


Columbus — Jim Hubert has 
taken over the late evening disk 
jockey spot on WHKC. Hubert 
formerly worked at WATH, Athens; 
AVKOV, Wellston, and WEOL, 
Elyria, O. 


Omaha-r-Manager Owen Saddler 
of KMTV last week announced the 
appointments of Eugene Kingman 
and Kendrick Wilson as color con- 
sultants. Local color production 
isn’t expected until latter part of 
1955. 



BOB CARROLL 

Currently 

Fred Allen Show 

N6C-TV, Tuesdays, 1 0 P.M. 

• DERBY RECORDS • 
Management: VAL IRVING 
Direction: WILLIAM MORRIS AGENCY 




at thfc 



Currently 
“SUSPENSE 
“MAMA” 
'WINKY DINK 
AND 



BILLY NALLE 


to increase 



tee 


ecenomicatty reach 

Channel 8-land 


I 


Steinman Station 
Clair M?Cbllough 
President 


Represented by 

M E E K E R T V, I n c. 

NEW YORK LOS ANGELES 

CHICAGO SAN FRANCISCO 









Wednesday, February &» 1954 


t'Shisfr 


47 



warmest thanks to the ladies and, gentlemen of the press for their friendly interest , their many 
stories and especwUy for these very kind words on my network television debut** 

* HARRIET VAN HORNE 

New York World-Telegram & Sun 

Miss Godfrey could become a TV personality of no small magnitude. She has good 
features, a nice smile and glossy dark hair worn in loose bangs. Like her celebrated 
brother, Miss Godfrey's best asset is her voice. If is low, husky and unaffected. Lis- 
tening to her, you're reminded of Jean Arthur, Margaret Sullavan, with just a hint of 
Loretta Young. That's quite a trip, I realize, and the plain truth is that Miss Godfrey 
lacks the professional finish of an actress. But she has a candor, a soft charm uniquely 
her own." 

V - JACK O'BRIAN 

New York Journal- American 

"Kathy Godfrey in her Channel 7 network debut Saturday quite plainly was a’ nice, 
easy, sympathetic and attractive personality, better than conventional lady chatter- 
. . . she has a cheerful, onstage naturalness." 


JOHN CROSBY 

New Y ork H erald T ribune 

"She has warmth and an air of intelligence." 

DANTON WALKER 

New York Daily News 

"Kathy has the family charm . , ." 

jay Nelson tuck 

New York Post 

"Kathy Godfrey, the 'little sister of you know who, made her network TV debut Satur- 
day night in 'ON YQUR WAY' (Channel 7, 7 P.M.). She showed a strong facial 
resemblance to her brother and a pleasant personality." 

JOHN LESTER 

The New bouse Chain 

"Miss Godfrey has a lot of the Godfrey charm. She also has an easy, disarming, re- 
laxed style. I think you will like her." 

PftRIETY 

"Miss Godfrey impresses as a potentially strong video personality.— She's a pleasant 
looking girl with an appealing voice and an ingratiating personality." Chan , 

BILLBOARD 

"Kathy Godfrey handled her first network TV assignment with an aplomb worthy of her 

famous kinsman." June Bundy, 

* 

TV STAR PARADE 

"Sister Kathy is winning 'em over With a style that’s all her own." 




deepest gratitude to Mr, Morton Ed ell, president of the Vitamin Corporation of 
America, his executives and staff for presenting me on the American Broadcasting Company 
television network. And my sincerest appreciation to all the nice people at Batten, Barton, 

Durstine and Osborne, ABC, Lawrence White Productions and my managers for their con- 
fidence in, and their patience with me. 

Effective with this Saturday’s show, “ON YOUR WAY” will be a talent program, 




Personal Management 


EDWARD JOY, Pres. 
161? Broadway, New York 19, N, ,Y« . •. 


Circle 7-4860 




Supreme Court on 





Continued IrtflfT page 25 


pie listen or why they put on pro- 
grams. The question is the in- 
terpretation of the word ‘lottery/ 

“Would you call it a lottery if an 
automobile show gives you a 
chance for a prize with your ad- 
mission ticket?” 

“Yes/' • said Wollenberg. 

When Wollenberg referred to 
the telephone giveaways as “the 
worst type of lottery lure,” Justice 
Douglas asked why it is less a 
lottery “when Dr.. I. Q. picks an- 
other lady in the balcony.” 
‘^jiestion of Degree* 

Wollenberg replied that studio 
audience shows are exempt from 
the Commission’s ban but they 
also could be regarded as lottries. 
•‘It’s a question of degree of evil,” 
lie said. 

What about programs like “Quiz 
Kids?” asked Justice Frankfurter. 

Wollenberg said “skill” is in- 
volved rather than chance. 

Alfred McCormack, counsel for 
ABC, said the Justice Department 
has refused to recommend that, the 
lottery laws be amended to cover 
giveaways. 

Paul Williams* counsel for NBC, 
said that former FCC Chairman 
J anies L. Fly refused to, prosecute 
licensees in 1943 for conducting 
givaway shows and recommended 
that the lottery laws be broad- 
ened. “The Commission,” he said, 
“is walking in the shadowland of 
personal judgment” in its inter- 
pretation of the law. 

.. Max Freund, counsel for CBS, 
told the court that some giveaway 
shows were dropped after the ban 
was imposed because sponsors 
were unwilling to risk investments; 

Although the ban was stayed five 
years ago pending the determina- 
tion of the courts, networks and 
stations have drastically /revised 
their giveaway formats to conform. 


The type of show? outlawed b^ the 
ban has largely disappeared. 

It is understood, however, that 
NBC has a mass-audience type 
giveaway ready for the air in the 
event of a favorable Supreme Court 
ruling. Other nets are expected to 
follow. 


Bill Stern 


Continued from page ZS.ss 

....... 

continued when the tele series 
starts. When Anheuser decided on 
taking the radio segment (which 
has the largest station lineup, 310, 
Of any web sports strip) , Stern 
moved over with the show to ABC, 
sitting out the contract negotia- 
tions till now. 

Under; his new pact with the 
web, Stern will continue to do out- 
side projects, such as personal ap- 
pearances and filmed shorts, but 
w ith ABC getting all the coin less 
10% until its guaranteed yearly 
payment to Stern is covered, He 
then gets the overflow. His staff 
is paid by the brewery. Besides 
his current radio segment, the up- 
coming tv’er, his local (WABC- 
TV) late, night capsule strip and 
his panel show appearances, he’ll 
also do sports specials for the web, 
such as bowl games, etc, Deal was 
negotiated by the William Morris 
office’s Wally Jordan and John 
Moses, Stern’s manager. 


yesterday (Tues.) is multi-faceted, 
Not cHfily doe? Nielsen Intend to 
measure the secondary coverage 
areas of the -stations involved, but 
be, as ARB has already done with 
tv, expects -to offer a breakdown 
of ‘‘audience composition” ‘(sex of 
listener or viewer and age). Fur- 
thermore, intention is to supply 
every radio set in each home (no 
matter what the number of where) 
with one of the new gadgets. At- 
titude in this matter is that sta- 
tions and webs alike have been, 
“shortchanged” in failing to re- 
ceive information concerning the 
out-of-living room, out-of-kitchen 
audience. 

Before the new plan was dis- 
closed, Nielsen had only done local 
ratings in five radio towns and the 
niixed-set New York market. 



Continued from page 29 


Ike Newsrsel 

. 0 • •“ * 

Continued from page 1 


"IN THE MAILROOM 
EVERYTHING IS 
MAGICAL", 

says 

PANCAKE 

THE 

MAGICIAN 

"The Adventure* of Danny Dee" 
(Ch. 5, 4:45-5:00, Mon.-Fri.) 

RECEIVED 6,642 LETTERS 

Last Week ON WABD ALONE I 

Starring ROY DOTY 

An Irwin H. Reset Production 
5 M) Madison Avenue. New Yerk 22. N. Y. 
PLni 3-4153 




Continued from page 28 


Pulp Assn, and the Technical Assn, 
of the Paper & Pulp Industries.. 
Meetings will be piped into- and 
between; the Commodore and Wal- 
dorf hotels, using ABC-TV facili- 
ties. 

Entire program, for which 
Cyanamide is picking up the tab, 
is the first time video has been 
used in such a manner. Cyanamide 
is currently manufacturing . water- 
proofing coatings for paper, and 
one feature of the show will be 
demonstration of a new bathing 
suit made of paper. Cyanamide has 
also built a miniature model of a 
complex paper machine for demon- 
stration purposes during the show. 
While the program will be. pitched 
at the consumer and will be strictly 
documentary in approach, it takes 
the form of a goodwill message 
from Cyanamide to the paper out- 
fits. 


audience building program (lfi- 
min. daytime) produced by the sta- 
tion and charged to the advertiser, 
or furnished by the advertiser.” 

Speaking of Mogul’s cut-rates 
and cut-out-the-middle-man, atti- 
tude, Rollinson said, “It seems to 
us it is highly desirable that time 
buyers and representatives, of the 
advertising agencies visit local 
markets, visit the stations, learn 
about the United States by ■ trav- 
eling through the . States. But not 
for the purpose of pressuring sta- 
tions into rate cuts, and not for- the 
purpose of avoiding the Tegular 
practices of the advertising busi- 
ness, including the practice of plac- 
ing their national spot business 
through station representatives. 

“The advertiser and the agency 
top brass should be alerted to the 
fact that the representative serves 
them, reduces the cost of handling 
national, spot advertising, and 
makes available to agency and ad- 
vertiser information which en 
hances the probability of the ad 
vertising campaign becoming sue 
cessful * 


Stage Employees (A.F. of L.). As 
a result, I A is refusing to handle 
the film, or any part of it, for in- 
sertion in upcoming issues of the 
reels. . , 

The pic was done in 35m (so 
the reels could use it) and 16m 
prints are being supplied the Re- 
publican get-togethers around* the 
country. It presents Eisenhower 
delivering a special Lincoln Day 
message. Each Rep unit will pay 
Mr its print, to cover costs. 

' Unless the differences with IA 
are resolved, it appears' that the 
union will be barring the President 
from theatre screens, A solution 
is being sought, though, with a 
N. Y. I A rep to call on Montgom- 
ery at his office in the executive 
wing of the White House today 
(Wed. ) ; The producer-director- 
star, incidentally, seems to spend 
more time at the Presidential resi- 
dence than in N. Y. where he pro- 
duces his . weekly program for 
NBC-TV. :. 


4 

VediiMJiy^ February R, 1954 

NBC-TV or Coast to Hit 
Peak Output in March; 
10 Hours of Feed a Week 

Hollywood, Feb. 2 , 
Maximum capacity of NBC’s tele- 
vision facilities will be 'reached by 
March 1 * wheh 10 hours of pro- 


SPECIAL OPTICAL EFFECTS 
AND TITLES 

On FIRESIDE THEATER 
Television Show 

by 

RAY MERCER & COMPANY 

4241 Normal Ave.-, H'wood 29, Cal. 

Send lot Free Optical Effects Chart 


Nielsen 

Continued from page 29 


No Life of Riley 


Continued from page 28 


FOG Fee Formula 


Continued from page 27 


ap- 


in these areas from his present au- 
dimeters (completely automatic 
measuring devices) and employ the 
diary method (“audilogs”), plus 
the addition of a “recordimeter’*1 
which is to provide sight and 
sound reminders to individual 
members of the family to write, in 
the periodic entries.. As usual, the 
home participants will receive 
some kind of a premium foi; their 
efforts. 

• The new proposition that was 
pitched publicly for the first time 




KSTP AND KSTP-TV HAVE THE GREATEST 
AND FINEST FACILITIES OF ANY RADIO AND 
TELEVISION STATION IN THE NATION AT 
ITS EXPANDED TELEVISION CITY SITE WHERE 
THE TWIN CITIES MEET. 


NSW -W 


Life Dull Without His Writers” and 
described Bendix in part as a close 
approximation of the character he 
plays on television. Remington in- 
timated it was one. of the dullest 
press interviews that he had ever 
satTin on, saying that Bendix had 
absolutely nothing to contribute ex- 
cept a few scattered irrelevancies. 
At one point in the story, Reming- 
ton reff erred to himself as “this 
once-admiring viewer (of Riley)/' 

Wilbur Clark in the Sun-Tele- 
graph apparently found Bendix al- 
most as hard to talk to as Reming- 
ton, but didn’t make so much of an 
issue of it. Clark turned tef Mrs. 
Bendix, who Was present, and got 
material for nis column from her. 

On the other hand, Win Fanning, 
of the Post-Gazette came away with 
an altogether favorable impression 
of Bendix and gave the actor a first- 
class sendoff, both as an actor and 
as a personality, in his pillar. The 
fact that Fanning raw him alone 
may have had something to do with 
this. Inasmuch as he’s on an a.m. 
paper and has to get in early, it 
was arranged for Fanning to see 
Bendix In his hotel suite almost the 
first thing after latter had arrived 
in town from Indianapolis. Reming- 
ton and Clark were in on a regular 
press conference later in the after- 
noon after the “Riley” actor had 
put in a pretty busy day. 

Both Clark and Fanning used the 
Bendix piece as part of their col- 
umns while Remington carried the 
interview as a separate news sec- 
tion story away from his daily pil- 
lar. 


bring in about $3,000,000 or 
proximately 45% of the Commis- 
sion’s current budget. 

The proposed schedule will 
probably be opposed by small sta- 
tions on grounds they should hot 
be required to .pay the same fees 
as large metropolitan outlets. Some 
may also claim it will prove a hard- 
ship. Interested parties: have un- 
til 1 April, i to file comments. 

Comr. Frieda Henriock objected 
to the uniform, fee formula, de- 
claring it applies equally to “a 
struggling FM operator” and a 
“prosperous” tv licensee. 

Comr. Kbbert Bartley concurred 
in proposing “some system of fees” 
but thought that charges based on 
station card rates would be more 
in line* with the Budget Bureau’s 
directive. ■ * . 

Under the proposed system, the 
Commission would establish a 
cashier’s office to accept applica- 
tion fees submitted in person or 
through the mails. Fees collected 
would be turned over to the U. §. 
Treasury. 1 


gramming weekly will be fed the 
network from Hollywood. Repre- 
senting the heaviest production 
lo^n In the net’s Coast history, the 
■scheduling of nine shows in three 
studios will be accomplished 
through airtight timing by John K. 
West, division veepee. 

On the network feed will be the 
Pinky .Lee show, ‘‘One Man’s Fam- 
ily,” Betty White show, Ralph Ed- 
wards, Dinah. Shore, . Groucho 
Marx, Spike Jones, Hallmark Play- 
house andr Comedy Hour. Total 
does hot include such “occasionals” 
as “Mr. Peepers,” “Howdy Doody.’’ 
Bob Hope and All Star Revue. Also 
excluded are the filmed programs. 

Mpls. Gets in Innings 
On Web Originations 

- Minneapolis, Feb. 2. 

Two of the four local tv stations, 
WCCO and KSTP, are getting in- 
creasingly into the limelight as 
originating centers for network 
shows. 

Although WCCO-TV is CBS, Du- 
Mont as well as CBS had shows 
originate through it last Week. Du- 
Mont contribution was the Minne- 
apolis Lakers-Milwaukee Saturday 
afternoon NBA basketball game of 
the week, played in the -Auditorium 
here. Having ;nQ local station or af- 
filiate, DuMont spots some of its 
network programs on all four sta- 
tions here. 

On Sunday (31), Ed Sullivan 
originated the St. Paul Winter Car- 
nival portion of his “Toast of the 
Town,” a direct; pickup, through 
WCCO-TV. A month ago that sta- 
tion was the origin point for the 
Pabst Blue Ribbon Flanagan-Saxon 
fight on the CBS network. The 
bout was held in the Armory here. 

Last November NBC’s NCAA U. 
of Minnesota-Pittsburgh football 
tv “game Of the week,” played 
here, originated from KSTP-TV, lo- 
cal NBC affiliate. 


NYU 


Continued front page 29 ; 


like (already heard on BBC) will 
now go to local stations. WNYC, 
N. Y. educational outlet, will air 
one between Britisher ■ Bertrand 
Russell and Dr. Sidney Hook, 
American philosopher, as well as 
two other programs. 

Talent supplied by the school has 
appeared on approximately 50 com-' 
mercial programs since June of 
’52. The range varies from a 
student editor on the Kate Smith 
Video stanza and three coeds for a 
quiz show to a college dean on the 
“Johns Hopkins Science Review.” 

The radio-tele department at 
N.Y.U. also supplies program ideas 
and information to out-of-town 
schools which have been Offered air 
time on local video outlets. 


Detroit — Donald W. Walton' has 
been appointed supervisor of a 
new creative group in the Detroit 
office of Ross Roy; Inc., ad agency. 


Detroit — Veterans of Foreign 
Wars have presented WXYZ disk 
jockey Ed McKenzie the Ernie 
Pyle award for outstanding public 
service in campaigns which have 
raised an annual $30,000 for three 
consecutive years for Michigan’s 
hospitalized war veterans/ 


GARRY 
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on TV 


Continued from page 27 


55 




A NEWER 


“Toast” the week before. Both Sol 
Hurok, who booked the troupe’s 
recent U. S. tour, and Covent Gar- 
den, which ■'manages the company, 
waived their video fees, so that the 
J full sum went to the dancers, not 
only those who appeared on 
“Toast” but to every member of 
Sadler’s. Margot Fonteyn and 
Michael Somes, who did a separate 
pas de-deux, received $2,500 and 
$1;000, respectively, for their stint. 
About $5,000 was divided among 
other dancers, in .connection With 
the 12-minute “Skaters” . balleT 
presentation* *1 ins ">941 H 






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3, 1954 


ir 




49 





The gross retail take from sheet | 
music sales is currently set at 
$30 000,000 annually, or about 15% 
of the disk industry’s annual sales. 
The $30,000,000 figure for sheets 
\vas derived from an extensive sur- 
vey of dealers by the Music Pub- 
lishers Assn, and represents the 
first time that an accurate estimate 
has been made of this end of the 

music business. ... ■ 

Of the total, popular sheet mu- 
sic accounts for about $4,800,000 
annually, or 16%. The remaining 
84% is divided among longhair, 
educational arid religious music. Of 
the sales in retail stores, pops show 
iip with a 21% slice: but in direct 
mail sales, the other music cate- 
gories weigh down the pop total. 

Although the precise figures 
were heretofore not available, the 
potential of the educational and 
religious market for copies has long 
been exploited by the major pub- 
lishing firms. In recent years, an 
increasing number of music firms, 
heretofore 'predominantly in the 
pop field, have been moving into 
the other market with books and 
folios designed for school use. 

Pop sheet music, meantime, has 

been holding its own. At the pres- 
ent time, pop copy sales are run- 
ning ahead of last year due to the 
fact that four hits are running corj- 
currently and all strongly. They 
are "Oh My Papa,” "Changing 
Partners,” "Stranger In Paradise” 
and "That’s Ampre.” 

MPA, an organization repping 
standard publishing-firms, has com- 
piled the sales figures on sheet mu- 
sic as part of a survey designed for 
submission to a Congressional 
committee studying the question of 
postal rates. The MPA and other 
organization want sheets to have 
the same mailing rates as books 
and other periodicals. 



Hollywood, Feb; 2. 
Now there’s another Crosby in 
the music biz— this time behind 
the scenes. 

jack Crosby, son of Larry Cros- 
by, has joined Eureka Records to 
handle publicity and art work. The 
Groaner’s nephew has been han- 
dling public relations for Crosby 
Enterprises. 


A major price war was touched 
off in the longplay disk market this 
week as RCA Victor slashed its list 
|_on classical disks by 30%, Victor 
move was cued by a nationwide; 
promotion by Columbia Records to 
sell one longplay disk at half of 
list for every platter bought at full 
price. ■ . 

Columbia, which devised itslner- 
chandise plan as a way of Relieving 
dealer inventory problems, will run 
the two-for-one-and-a-half promo- 
tion throughput February. It was 
originally’, tested in Buffalo for the 
past two weeks with considerable 
success, ancT it was decided to ex- 
tend the plan nationally.; Col sales 
chief Paul Wexjer stated that Co- 
lumbia plans to hold the line on 
its $6 list aftgr the February “sale” 
is over. 

Victor, on the other hand, has 
come out with a flat reduction "for 
an indefinite period” on its Red 
Seal catalog plus some showtune 
albums. Prices on its 12-inch LPs 
Under jts stepped-up European j tumbled from $5.72 to $3.99, while 
sales program, RCA Victor disks] the 10-inches fell from $4.67 to 

will be manufactured and distribu-] $3.25, If s understOiwTthat Victor's 
■. t „ . j hand was forced by Cols merchan- 

ted Under the RCA label in Bel- j Rising scheme and there’s a possi- 

gium, France and Holland by | bility that the price cut may be re- 



Bard’s Pop Workover 

Shakespeare has boon dis- 
covered by the pop wax mar- 
ket. Two versions of the Bard’s 
"Romeo and Juliet’* yarn were 
distributed last week by Capi- 
tol and Jubilee Records. 

Cap gave "R. & J.” a hill- 
billy workover via an Andy 
Griffith narration and Jubilee 
gave the romance a Yiddish 
flavor via Happy Lewis* Lewis, 
incidentally, previously gave a 
similar treatment to "Drag- 
net.” 



three companies set up for this 
purpose, The companies are being 
headed by E. W. Pelgrims de Bi- 
gard of Brussels, vet disk exec in 
Europe. 

According to Meade Brunet, RCA j 
vice-prexy and managing director ! 
of the RCA International division, j 
disks by the French, Belgian and i 
Dutch artists will be handled in 
the U.S. and the other Americas 
by Victor, The three new com- 
panies are AREA (Les Applica- 
tions et Realisations Electroniques 
et Acoustiques)- in France; DIESEL 
(Disques et Electroniques) in Bel- 
gium, and DURECO (Dutch Record 
Co.) in Holland. 

The three new companies will 
become part . of RCA’s rapidly- 
growing European network of com- 
panies. In recent months, RCA 
launched plants in Italy, under Joe 
Biondi, ■and in Spain, under Ga- 
briel Soria. Meantime, affiliates of 
the Gramophone Co. in France, 
Chappell Music was forced into j Belgium and Holland will continue | 
a tune title switch last week under handle existing Victor platters; 
threatened suit by Republic Pic- j j n those countries. 


Cha 



Title After Rep Threat; 


voked when Col returns to a nor 
mal selling pattern. 

Cut May Continue 
Another likelihood is that Victor 
may continue with its new price 
structure permanently if retail 
sales show a sharp spurt in the 
next month. Fpr the industry to 
make a profit at a $4 price for 
classical wax, it’s estimated that a 
100% jump in sales is required. A 
small boost in turnover would !■ 
throw the biz into the red. 

Many retailers have felt that a 
lower price would be a great stimu- 
lant to bringing in a vast new audi- 
ence for classical music. At this 
point, however, the discount stores 
(Continued on page 58) 




tures. Title under fire was "John- 
ny Guitar,” a Chappell copyright 

Mercury Records. ■ MERC ACCENTS HI-FI 

Republics. >beef stemmed fto’m ! 
the fact that it is releasing a Joan 
Cvawford pic soon with the same Chicago, Feb. 2 

tag. Rather than buck Republic's Mercury Records currently 



Bell Records, lowprice label 
launched about six months ago, is 
I prepping a movcin on the longplay 
[ album field. Bell's LP set will be 
[ cut by the Dorsey Bros. orch. Band 
i joined Bell last month, 
j Tunes to be waxed for the LP 

• disk have not yet been selected, 

: but it’s understood it will not du- 

• plicate the Dorsey Bros.’ re per-- 
1 toire on Bell’s single releases. The 


threat, Chappell changed, the title layin g out two unusual disk promo- ; toir 
to "My Restless Lover.” Merc, too, ; t j ons f or February, the most un : ; 10-inch LPs will be peddled at 

will switch the monicker on future ; usya ] . 0 f which these days is a 14- j $2.90. 

pressings. It’s estimated, however, j ni i nu t e etching on 45 RPMs that re- 1 Meantime, Bell is planning ex- 

that about 100,000 disks with the 1 tails at 10c . Cheapie disk, a pot- tensive jukebox coverage on its 

Guitar” tag already have been . D0Ui:r i 0 f classical selections, is ! single platters. Diskery has lined 

1 ! • - i k , 4 ^ nyr Q ..o>e m.fi nrn. up 8.50 coinbox distributors around 

; the country and is peddling its sill 

. • « > 1 1 1. a JlnlrAMar'r Hrtrt 


After dusting the hayseed out 
ol its hair following a binge of hill- 
billy songs, the pop music biz is 
reversing the field on the biggest 
pizza kick since "Funiculi Funjcu- 
la.’’ So many hits .'ire turning up 
with, Italo lyrics that the N. Y, 
BrilKBldg. set is now stampeding 
the Berlitz School to get back In 
the swim. 

Legitimate Italian melodies with 
a chorus in native tongue have al- 
ways been in vogue, but now the 
trend is' towards giving everything 
a ravioli flavor. Lou Monte’s Ital- 
ian version of "Darktown Strutters 
Ball” opened the way lor more of 
the same on other pop standards. 
Buddy Greco has come up with an 
Italian fracture of "Sheik of Ara- 
by,” while Alan Dale, also on Coral 
Records, is doing ditto on "Honey, 
Honey, Honey.” 

.Meantime, "Darktown” is getting 
addit ; onal covering translations by 
Phil Brito for M-G-M Records and 
by Lawrence Welk for Coral. Evpn 
stranger than the Italo workover 
of the 1917 Shelton Brooks, stand- 
ard is the foray of the Mediter- 
ranean idiom into the rhy.htm.& 
blues field where Pat Terry for 
Jubilee Records has inserted nn 
Italian chorus in her latest side, 
"I’ll Always Remember.” 

Julius La Rosa’s click with the 
novelty, “Eh, Cumpari.” added 
steam to the cycle, as did Perry 
Como’s Italo chorus to "You 
Aione,” the first one he ever did on 
wax. "That’s A more,” another 
Italo item, has in the last few 
weeks climbed to the lop of the hit 
lists via Dean Martin’s version for 
Capitol. 


The American Federation of Mu- 
sicians and the major radio-tv webs 
are girding for a showdown fight 
on Feb. 15 when the extension of 
the pact, which expired on Feb. 1, 
runs out. AFM leaders have al- 
ready Indicated that they Will 
grant no more extensions, while 
the radio-tv webs are showing no 
inclination to yield to the union’s 
proposals for live music for live 
shows, increases in scales and 
other improvements for themselves. 

Local 802 proxy A1 Manuti, who 
is active in the negotiations. Is 
prepping the New York member- 
ship lor any future battle at a 
meeting scheduled today (Wed.) f 
Manuti plans to review the course 
of the negotiations to date and get 
a vote of confidence in the union’s 
strategy. Three years ago, when 
the last pact was negotiated, a 
similar niembersliip meeting au- 
thorized the local to walk out if 
necessary, but AFM proxy Jamies 
C. Petrillo intervened and settled- 
At this time, it’s understood that 
Petriilo feels lie made a mistake, 
in not blocking the use of canned 
music on radip-tv dramatic shows. 

Minor Cleavage 

On .the industry side, a minor 
cleaVage has developed between 
NBC and CBS, on one side, and the 
Mutual network and ABC on the 
other. NBC and CBS have of- 
fered to negotiate a new agree- 
ment with a clause that would set 
a minimum quota of staff musi- 
cijins,- while Mutual and ABC are 
adamantly nixing any such con- 
cession. The union has offered to 
negotiate separately with each 
group on the basis of these differ- 
ences, but it’s not likely that the 
AFM will crack the industry front. 

Although talks have been con- 
ducted up to now on a friendly ba- 
sis, union leaders are 'beginning to 
grumble about alleged “stalling 
tactics’’ on the part of the , webs. 
That may be an indication of the 
union’s psychological preparation 
of the membership lor drastic ac- 
tion. 

No meeting between the indus- 
try and the webs has been fixed 
lor this week, but both sides are 
expected to set a date shortly. 


shipped, ■ designed to accent Merc’s hi-fi pro-’ up 8.50 coinbox distributors around 

,,, 1 <lm nmmfrv nn H ic nertHlinP its si.1- 

Chappell picked up the tune last ■ gram. 

October from composer Pern Dav 

1 __ i i. _ « PCa ^4- «vi ■ /-l a m nnt ll i6 9 

marks Bell’s initial entry into the . . , 

juke fold. Diskery is a subsid of ! legit musical. Kismet 

Pocket Books. 


enport. Davenport, at . the time, 
showed the pubbery letters from ; half-price sale on the diskery’s reg 
Miss Crawford giving him the go ! u ] ar line of both pops add classics, 
ahead on the title. However, Re- . with each record purchased at nor- 



COL ON ‘KISMET’ KICK 


Columbia; Records is going, all- 
out on the musical score of the 

with sev- 


German, French Platter 
Fields for U.S. Releases 

London Records is tapping the 
French and German disk field as a 
source of new recording material 
for U.S. release. In the past couple 
of weeks diskery tied up L’Oiseau- 
lyre, French label, and Telefunken, 
German company, for representa- 
tion in this country and England. 

The French disks, which will be 
pressed in England by London's 
parent company, English Decea, 
will be labelled Edicions de 
L’Oiseau-lyre — London. The plat- 
ters will be cut in Paris, Initial 
L’Oiscau-lyre releases will hit the 
U. S. market in about two weeks. 


public contends that Miss Craw- ; m al price, customer is permitted 
ford has no interest in the motion ; t 0 make off with another Mercury 


picture other than as an actress, 
and claimed that use of the title 
violated the motion picture rights 
which it owned in the Roy Chan- LC lln 
slor novel of the same title. The • ullC 
studio added that, if t^he song were 
published and exploited under the 
‘‘Johnny Guitar” tag, the value of 
its pic would be lessened. ' 

Tradesters were .surprised by 


to 

etching at 50% rakeoff. 



Canadian Concerts 


LARRY ELGART ORCH 
PACTED BY 

Orchster Larry Elgart has been 
pacted by Dccca Records. Diskery 


will wax the orch on instrumental \ 
' Hollywood, Feb, 2. ; albums and modern jazz ballet ; 

Celebrity Concert Series, Ltd., compositions. Elgart will head up! 
T ” - v Canadian promoters, filed suit in i5_piec* e string orch. ' 

Republics action because .its. been ; superior Court yesterday (Mon.), ■ n ... ad h __ e tehed an al- 1 
demonstrated in the. past. yepr that i for $9,700, charging Osear Levant | • DecCa and a single culled 

line ticup between pix and tunes ' failed t0 show for concerts north ^ I 

has been a promotion hypo to both ! of the bo’rder last April. They ask l! 0 ' n 15 . EigarCs brother Les is : 

media. Republic has . assigned Vic- ,. $9 600 they spent promoting the f e . b ’ ^ hi.n/inn 

tor Young to pen a "Johnny. Gui- " w cfiinn thpv fieure being preppedjor an Qich buildup 

tar” tune for the pic: 


■ would have been profit if he’d ap 
peared. They said pact was inked | 

. . ■: ' 4 « i ■ /S^vl if rM Vi ■ ft A rf ici c • 


by Columbia Records. 


Coral’s Weinstroer West ,ast '^ arch ". ^ ith Columbia Artists ; Atlantic Ups Roster 


oral more ;al burns based on the -.The recordings will be in the off- 
show in the works, Col already has beat classical groove., 
released the original cast album | London’s Telefunken disks are 
and has a single bestseller wsi Tony . being readied for release in 'early- 
Bennett’s side, "Stranger in Para- j spring. The Telefunken schedule 
dise.” New albums will feature consist s’ of new waxings. which 
Percy Faith’s orch in a set of. in-jhaye never before been issued in 
strumentals on the Borodin-hasod ; the U.S. In the past couple of 
tunes. : years Capitol Records had been re- 

On€ Faith album will contain 3 2 ; leasing' some TClefimken niasters, 

showtunes and will be packaged oil ! = — 

a 12-inch LP. Sonic of the sainc ; ^ R Wlr 

sides will be put on a 10-inch LP (larner hetS P*WK. U heaS 

and a 45 ipm ep set. Albums win . I.oaf: Bandsmen Idling 

be rele ased early in Ecbrua .-.v. i Kew Orleans. Feb. 2. 

j Jan Garber will take a six-week 
vacation to tour Europe with his 
, wife Dorothy when he closes his 

Radio-TV Fluffs Book "* 

Kerrnit Schafer’s collection of • Sidcmtn will likewise take sab- 
radio - and tv fluffs will be put on batical with pay. ‘Garber will re- 
wax bv jubilee Records, Collet- > unite with crew in Texas on return 


to 


Weinstroer, Coral Recoi 
sales chief, heads to the. Coast 
week for a looksee at. the label 
distribution setup in Seattle and i 
San Francisco. 

.jio’U be on 
^teks. 


( ^;..rM«t.,: Levant^ Jtgfeiits. Atlantic Records has added two ’ tion was recently put out in book ; from abroad. 

f Levant- had. to apoloelje to, the two gospel groups to form under the title ••Your Slip Is — 

American Federation ot Musicians i .,'' talcnt ros t ct . Vocalists are Showing.” Boners .recorded 'off the |>hil Hacha of Sehuj 
aD 5‘ i the time for the runout. muiip Rnsman and Rose Marie MO- air by Schaifer will be issued on a week was named prexy ol 


uyler last 

Millie Bosnian and Rose Marie MC- air by Schafer will be issued on a I week was named prexy of the Ne- 
. T- , rnv u also a sonewrtier. : series of 10-inch long playing disks, f braska Ballroom Operators Assn. 
! Mood Records, Boston ^indie la-; t/)oups "are the Jackson ; First of the series is skedded for ^ at ihe meeting m 

the road ior two -beE ^/JJ^Ed^rd^S. Barsfcy . BookefiSirtgC^^ ;«i 






Wednesday, Febrtutry 3, 1954 


By MIKE GROSS 


June Valli: “The Gypsy Was 
Wrong”-“01d Shoes And A Bag 
of Rice” (Victor). June Valli has 
a runaway slice in “The Gypsy Was 
Wrong.” -It's -a strong tune and she 
delivers with moire power and emo- 
tion than she's .shown on wax pre- 
viously. Joe Reisman's orch back- 
ing helps, too, Flip is a sentimen- 
tal entry with plenty of appeal, 
but it’ll have a tough fight getting 
the spins away from the top side. 

Ella Fitzgerald: “Somebody Bad 
Stole De Wedding BeIl”-“Melan- 
cholv Me” (Decca). This version of 
the calypsohg. “Somebody Bad 
Stole De Wedding Bell,” makes it 
a tight threeways race (Georgia 
Gibbs-Mercury: Eartha Kitt, Vic- 
tor) „f or top honors. Ella Fitzger- 
ald has the performance edge and 
although she’s a little late out on 
the market, she should win her 
share of spins. Platter has added 
insurance on the reverse in “Mel- 
ancholy Me.” A topdrawer tune, 
excellently handled. 

The Ames Bros.; “Man, Man Is 
For The Woman Made”-“The Man 
With A Banjo” (Victor). It’s open 
season on calypsb and the Ames 
Bros, arc in the running with a 
standout cut that’ll pick up spins 


Desmond and The McGuire Sisters, 
are a happy blending - but the . end 
product is nothing more than just 
cute wax. Both sides are similarly 
styled. Jocks will, probably spin 
♦pm occasionally* but they won’t get 

f ar . . . \ . . 

Juiie Winters: “Seventeen”- 
“Isn’t It A Shame” (Mercury). 
June Winters makes an attractive 
impression on this pairing of pleas- 
ant ballads. She gives both sides 
a sensitive styling that’s easy on 
the ear. “Seventeen” is the top 
slice here and the jocks are sure 
to be partial to it. “ 

Dolores Hawkins: “Anything Can 
Happen, Mambb”-“Stars On The 
Ceiling” (Epic). The spicy beat of 
the “Anything Can Happen, Mam- 
bo” should get Dolores Hawkins 
on the jock and juke parade. The 
heat Latino rhythm is plussed by 
a topdrawer rendition. Change of 
pace on the ballad on the bottom 
deck is okay, “ . _ „ 

Bob Carroll: “Be True To Me - 
“There Is Danger” (Derby). Bob 
Carroll hits hard, on the pulsating 
beat of “Be True To Me” and he’ll 
attract spinning attention with it. 
It’s not strong enough, however, to 
stand up for a long push. He ban-: 






LA WHENCE WELK 

and his 

CHAMPAGNE MU81C 
127th Consecutive Week, Aragon 
Ballroom* Santa Monica, Calif, 

Newest Coral Record Album 
PICK A POLKA 
Recently Released ; 
NIMBLE FINGERS Album 


JUNE VALLI THE GYPSY WAS WRONG 

(Victor) . . • Old Shoes and a Bag of Rice 

ELLA FITZGERALD . , SOMEBODY STOLE DE WEDDING BELL 
(Decca) .... ...... . . . . . . ...... .Melancholy Me 

THE AMES BROS. . . MAN, MAN IS FOR THE WOMAN MADE 
(Victor) .. . . . . The Man With a Banjo 


all the way. It’s a lively tune with 
a clever lyric and the boys send it 
off appropriately. “The. Man With 
A Banjo,” is a pleasant piece but 
it’s going to get lost in the shuffle. 

Giony Gibson: “Baton Rouge”- 
“Don’t Stop - Kissing Me Good- 
night” (M-G-M). Ginny : Gibson 
takes off on a hillbilly kick on this 
coupling, but it’s doubtful if either 
side will get far off the ground. 
“Baton Rouge,” a twangy novelty 
Hem, could attract some attention.' 
. Reverse, however, is too reminis- 
cent of last year’s crop of corn to 
get anywhere. \ . 

The Charioteers: “Sleepy River 
Moon’*-“Forget If You Can” (Tux- 
edo). The Charioteers’ harmony 
perfection gets a topflight show- 
casing in “Sleepy River Moon." 
It’s a lilting melody and they de- 
liver with style. Rate spins. Bot- 
tom deck is a mild ballad .entry 
given a fine reading. ■■■ 

The Johnston Bros.: “The 
Creep”-“Crystal Ball” (London). 
The Johnston Bros.’ version of 
“The Creep” could be the money 
cut of the tune, despite the dozen 
others that preceded it to the wax 
market. It’s a jaunty side rhythmi- 
cally, lyrically and vocally. “Crys- 
tal Ball,” another bouncy tune, has 
good takfeoff chances, too. 

Eileen Barton-Johnny Desmond- 
McGuIre -Sisters: “Pine Tree, Pine 
Over Me”-“Cling To Me” (Coral). 
There’s more talent on this cour 
pling than material. Three Coral 
stalwarts,' Eileen Barton, Johnny 


dies “There. Is Danger,” a tango 
styled entry, but it, too, has slim 

rhunpBQ • 

Eileen Parker: “An Evening 
Prayer”-“God Understands” (Ca- 
dence). The religiose kick which 
dominated the pop market about 
six months ago shows up again in 
this Eileen Parker coupling. Neith- 
er side has much chance for com-? 
mercial success but they pack lots 
of sincerity and warmth.. Miss 
Parker delivers each with proper 
feeling and Archie Bleyer offers a 
fitting orch hacking. 

Bill Heyer: “Blue Hdm”-“The 
'Girl” (Epic). “Blue Horn” gives 
Bill Heyer a chance to display his 
crooning and tooting virtuosity. 
He’s good in both departments. 
Side, however, doesn’t have enough 
to- catch on. “The Girl,'” 1 a iridd? 
erate ballad entry/ won’t' raise Hey- 
er’s stock. • - • > 

Dennis. Lotis: ; “Take A " Little 
Walk Around The Block’V’I Was 
In The Mood” (London). Dennis 
Lotis will increase his U.S. fan fol- 
lowing with “Walk Around The 
Block.” It’s a pleasant side that 
rates mid-hit chances because of 
his effective vocalling. "Mood,” a 
tidy tune, also Shows him off to 
advantage. 

Platter Pointers 

. Wyoma Winters shapes up as an 
okay disk bet with her Victor cou- 
pling of “Where Can I Go Without 
You” and “Repeat Performance” 


. . .Russ Morgan has a neat version 
of “Darktown Strutters’ Ball” 
(Decca) . . Ben Light’s waxing of 
“Ida, Sweet As Apple Cider” on 
Capitol rates spins ... David . Car- 
roll orch will pick up jock'and juke 
spins for “By Heck” (Mercury) ... 
Teddy Phillips orch has a spright- 
ly workover of “Ridin’’ To Tennes- 
see” (Derby) . Loren Becker’s 
“My Valentine” oil the indie Pre- 
Vue label could catch on. . .Eo- 
mundo Ros gets a catchy . Latino 
heat into “Chivi-Rico” (London). 
Jack Plies orch has a socko ar- 
rangement of “St. Louis Blues” in 
“Frenchman In St. Louis” (Coral). 




on 


1ST DEEJAY STANZA 

Tokyo, Jan. 26. 

The first disk jockey of the air- 
ways in Japan is Ryuji Kohno who 
features swing tunes and has a 
weekly ' half hour over; station 
JOAB under the monicker of 
“Swing Tune Club.” His following 
is large and Is equivalent to Amer- 
ican platter" spinners. With every 
platter he gives a running com- 
mentary as to its popularity in the 
States, the style of the vocalist, the 
background of the leader apd his 
orchestra. 

Kohno has, been spinning plat- 
ters since 1948, though he ’was. ip 
charge of the recording depart- 
ment of the Nippon Victor Co. Re- 
cently he left Victor and Dixieland 
music got lntohhis veins. This was 
followed by western music. Con- 
sequently he organized a hillbilly 
band, called them the Western 
Ramblers, and made many record- 
ings with them. ' At the same time 
they have been appearing on radio 
and tv. With the many Japanese 
hillbilly bands around, this one has 
the edge because of their record- 
ings. However, salaries here are 
low; 





1. THAT’S AMORE (10) . . . . Dean Martin ... Capitol 

2. OH. MY PAPA (7) Eddie Fisher Victor 

3. RAGS TO RICHES (15) . . Tony Bennett .Columbia 

4* STRANGER IN PARADISE (1) Tony Martin Victor 

5. I GET SO LONELY (1) Four Knights Capitol 

6 . MAKE LOVE TO ME (1) Jo Stafford Columbia 

7; CHANGING PARTNERS (10) . Patti Page Mercury 

8 . STRANGER IN PARADISE (3) . . Tony Bennett ........ Columbia 

9. RICOCHET (15) ^ Teresa Brewer ........ . .Coral 

10. SECRET LOVE (1) . . . . Doris Day .......... .Columbia 


Second Group 




HEART OF MY HEART 

STRANGER IN PARADISE . . . . . . . . . . .... . . . 

TILL WE TWO ARE ONE 

CHANGING PARTNERS 

JONES BOY . . ... 

OH,- MEIN PAPA ; . ... 

FROM THE VINE CAME THE GRAPE 

EBB TIDE 

MARIE ... . \ . 

FROM THE VINE CAME THE GRAPE .......... . . . . . 

DARKTOWN STRUTTERS BALL . . . . 

MANY TIMES . 

woman /. ‘ * [ 

BELL BOTTOM BLUES ].].!!! . . ] ! ! . ’ * * 

TILL THEN , , . . .... . , . . ... . . ........ v - ....... . . 

f Figures in parentheses indicate number of weeks song 




• • ♦ ♦ ••<•*»««•» • ' 


Four Aces .............. Decca 

... Four Aces . ............ , Decca 

Georgie Shaw ........... Decca 

Kay Starr ............ . Capitol 

Mills Bros .DecCa 

Eddie Calvert .Essex 

Gaylords Mercury 

Frank Chacksfield .....London 

Four Tunes Jubilee 

Hilltoppers . Dot 

Lou Monte ...... v .... . . Victor 

Eddie Fisher ... . . ..... . Victor 

Johnny Desmond ........ . Coral 1 

Teresa Brewer .... ; . .Coral 

Hilltoppers . . ...... .... ... . ..Dot 

has been in the Top 101 


Kapell In Memoriam (RCA-Vic- 
tor; $5.45). Here Is a choice musi- 
cal album as well as fine tribute 
to William Kapell/ 31, killed last 
fall in a plane crash. Last record- 
ings of the late, topflight pianist 
show his fiery temperament and 
impressive technique* Hr the cool, 
clean playing of a Bach partita, or 
the delicate, tasteful handling of 
the Schubert Landler group and 
A-Flat Impromptu. Liszt’s Me- 
phlsto Waltz and a Hungarian 
Rhapsody get the virtuoso, treat- 
ment. . ■ 

Mendelssohn Sc . Bruch Violin 
Concertos (Capitol; $5.72). Expres- 
sive, warm readings of the two 
w.k. romantic warhorses of the fid- 
dle by Nathan Milstein, who brings 
an' authoritative • presence and fine 
"singing tone to the job. The Bruch 
is especially vibrant. Pitt 1 Sym- 
phony under Steinberg gives top 
assist. Excellent coupling. 

Strauss: Don Quixote (London; 
$5.95), Strauss’ satiric tonepoem 
on the screwball knight gets a rich, 
flavorsome reading by cellist 
Pierre Pournier, with violist Ernst 
Mdraweg a good assist, and the Vi- 


enna Philharmonic under Krauss 
adding fine support. 

Jolivet: Concerto for Piano & 
Concerto for Piano* Trumpet 
(Westminster; $5.95). Two inter- 
esting modern works for piano and 
orch in romantic vein, with dis- 
sonant orchestration for added fil- 
lip. Lucette Descaves is an ac- 
complfthed pianist In the first 
work. Trumpeter Roger del Motte 
and pianist Serge Baudo are a ’good 
team on the reverse. Champs Ely- 
sees orch backs both. 

' Tchaikovsky; Symphony No. 5 
(RCA Victor; $5.45). Richly-sound- 
ing, dramatic reading of the fa- 
miliar work, by Leopold Stokowski 
arid his orch. Performance is 
forthright and clearly accented, 
with few of the frHls or exagger- 
ations Stoky is frequently prone to. 
Result is a vivid disk, full of color 
and tonal splash. ' . 

Gilbert & Sullivan: Ruddigore & 
Yeoman of the Guard Highlights 
(London; $5,95). Charming, author- 
itative renditions of the main parts 
of the two operettas by the D’Oyly 
Carte Opera Co. under Isidore 
.Godfrey. Broh. 


The top 30 songs of week (more in case of ties); .based on 
copyrighted Audience Coverage Index & Audience Trend Index. 
Published by Office of Research, Inc., Dr. John Gray Peatman, 
Director, alphabetically listed. 

Survey Week of January 21-27, 1954 

(Iiisted Alphabetically ) ‘ 

Baubles Bangles And Beads— ♦“Kismet” .... . . .. . .Frank 

. Bimbo ....... i .. Fairway 

Changing .Partners^ . . ■• . . ... . . . . . , . . . . • • . ■» -Porgie 

. .Creep 1 '. • . . . . . . * . . ... . . . • . •: . . . • . * . . . * ** . . * • — • hliller 

. Don’t Forget To Write ... ....... ... ........... . . Advanced 

Ebb Tide ’ . . ... . . . .... . . . . . . ........ . . . Robbins 

Face To Face . ; .............. . . ..... ; Wltmark 

From Here To Eternity — 1 “From Here To Eternity” . Barton 

Granada ... ... ... ... ... . . . . . . . /Peer 

Heart Of My Heart .. Robbins 

Hold Me ... Robbins 

Jones Boy , . . . Pincus 

I Love Paris-— *“Can-Can” . . ... ..... ..... ..... ... Chappell 

Mane ... ..i.... \ ^3erlin 

No Other Love — ♦“Me And Juliet” ..... ... .... ... Williamson 

Oh My Papa . % . ... . . Shapiro-B 

Poppa Piccolino .... . .... . . . . . , ..... ... .......... .Chappell ^ 

Rags To Riches .Saunders 

Ricochet ; . , . ...... . ... .... .Sheldon,: 

Sadie Thompson’s Song— t“Miss Sadie Thompson”. . Mills 
, Secret Love . . . ........... . . ........ . . . . , Remick 

Somebody Bad Stole The Wedding Bell ....../Morris 

South Of The Border . . . . Shapiro-B 

' Stranger, In Paradise — ‘♦'“Kismet” . . ... . . , . . . . . . Frank 

That*s Amore— 1*“Tlie Caddy” Paramount 

That’s What A Rainy Day Is For ............ . . , . . Robbins 

Woman (Man) ...... Studio 

Y’All Come . . Starrite 

You Made Me Love You . ..... . . Broadway 

You’re My Everything Harms 

Second Group 

Answer Me My Love Bourne 

Baby Baby Baby ... Famous 

Breeze. And I r. ..... . . . . . Marks 

Darktown Strutters Ball . Feist 

. Down By The Riverside Spier ‘ 

Hi-Lili Hi-Lo— -^“Lili” .Robbins • 

I Couldn’t Stay Away From You ............. Johnstone-M 

I See The Moon . . ....... ? ........... Plymouth 

Make Love To Me Morris 

* Many Times ................... . Broadcast ' 

Our Heartbreaking Waltz . Village 

Pa-Paya Mama ; Sheldon 

Tennessee Church Bells Goday 

Think Joy 

'Til We Two Are. One . . ^ . Shapiro-B 

Till Then .Leeds. 

Vaya v Con Dios Ardmore 

Why Does It Have To Be Me Feist 

You Alone Roncom 

You You You / v . Mellln / 

Young At Heart Sunbeam 


on TV 


(More In Case of Ties) 


A Letter And A Ring . . . . 
Baubles Bangles And Beads . 
Can Can . ; . .......... 

C’est Magnifiqtie 

C'est Si Bon ; . . , . . . . . . , . . . . 

Changing ... Partners ......... 

Creep ■ * » . • . < .• > * •,...... 

Darktown Strutter’s Ball ..... 

Ebb Tide ... .............. 

Heart Of My Heart 

I Love Paris . . . ' 

May I Sing To You 

Oh My Papa 

Rags T j Riches 

Secret Love ... . . .... . . . . . . . 

Song From Moulin Rouge .... 

Stranger In Paradise ........ 

That’s Amore ... 

Woman (Man) . 

You You You * 


...... . Meridian 

.Frank 

. Chappell 
. . , . . ... Chappell 

..... . . Leeds 

... ...j. Porgie 
. . . . ... Miller 
. . /. .* . . Feist 
.......Robbins 

.. .. . . . Robbins 

Chappell 

Blackstone 

. . . ... . . Shapiro-B 

.. . . : . . Saunders 

. . ..... Remick 

.... . . .Broadcast 

. . . 4 . . .Frank 
, .... .. .. .Paramount 

.......Studio 

, . . . . . . . Mellin 


t Filmusical. * Legit musical. 


Wednesday? * February 3, 1954 


MSbtETf 


music 


51 



r ure of an in-person looksee at+~ .. ...... 

5nno Bostm! > ans‘‘ r int t o n*w Y^“k Ellington Changes' Mind; 


if°' 3 «oSnS to mm I Du * B** fa San Anion’ 

jnvesun “ hich felled out $27.50 


?er person to cover major expenses «Duke Ellington and his band will 
nf the Gotham visit, were brought be here-' for a concert' at the Munic- 
into town by Boston deejays Norm ipal Auditorium some '"time 
"'phescott arid AlanDary.;- \ ... .. . April. 

Promoted by the platter spin- 
ners via their WORL, Boston, disk 
chows jaunt was billed as a 
"Weekend in New York With the 
Stars " Package deal, which in- 
cluded sleeping quarters and three 
K at the Hotel New Yorker, 
transportation, entertainment and 
a tour of Radio City, was handled 
by Prescott via his Jiminy Cricket 
Travel Agency. 

Tourist contingent came into 
town Saturday afternoon via two 
special trains. Shortly after their 
arrival, the Grand Ballroom 6f the 

New Yorker was thrown ORpn to own orch for Capitol ‘ Records, has 

oTdisSers, sifdrt W 400,000 sales mark in 

spiels. Visitors were given an op- 
portunity to get a closeiip qf such 
performers as Monica Lewis, Jerry 
Vale, Jaye P. Morgan, Bob Carroll, 

Bobby Wayne, Four Lads, ’ Fred 
Lowery, Dolores Hawkins, Jill 
Corey, Beachcombers, Jill Whit- 
ney, Eydie Gorme, Steve Lawrence 
and Wendy Waye. . 

Two Highspots 

Afternoon, had two highspots as 
far as the crowd was concerned. 

Appearance of Mark Stevens of 
the "Martin Kane” video series 
caused an unexpected commotion, 
which was followed . by a near riot 
when Eddie Fisher took over the 
stage. Although’ most of the visi- 
tors were teenage girls, there Was 
a fair turnout of elderly women, 
some of whom were Serving as 
chaperones. . * • 

After a break of several hours, 
the entertainment segment, of the 
package got underway at the 
Grand Ballroom of the Hotel 
Roosevelt at about 9 p;m. and fan 
for approximately three hours. 

Staging of the program, which 
spotlighted around 15 pop record- 
ing artists, was handled by Buddy 
Basch. 

Performing to an' overflow 
crowd, some sitting on chairs and 
others parked bn the floor, were. 

Vale, Miss Whitney, Rusty Dtaper, 

Janet Brace, Pat Terry, Miss 
Corey, Sandy Solo,. Miss; Haw’kins, 

Bob Manning, Eileen Bartpn, Rich- 
ard Haymen, the Four Lads, Char- 
lie Applewhite, Ruth Casey and 
Lou Monte. Practically all the per- 
formers delivered a minimum of 
two tunes each. Only, switch from 
vocalling was Norm Crosby’s com- 
. edics. 

■■■., Singers were backed by a small 
combo. All the artists drew, solid 
mittiiig, with top: reception go! 
to Miss Barton for a takeoff on 
Johnnie Ray, and the Four Lads, 
who had the audience join in on 
some of their renditions. Seat- 
holders were exceptionally orderly. 


San Antonio, Feb. 2. 


in 


When Ellington was hejre several 
years ago he was embarrassed in 
some sort of an after-hours raid 
and, at that time, vowed he’d never 
play in the city again. 


GLEASON WAX MOVEIN 
PAYS OFF; 3 HOT SETS 

Tele comedian Jackie Gleason’s 
movein on the wax market is pay- 
ing off. Gleason, who conducts his 


three album releases. 

The Gleason sets, which are sell- 
ing at a hot. pace, are “Music for 
Lovers Only,” “Dover’s Rhapsody” 
and “Music to Make You Misty.” 
Latest Gleason album release, 
Which hit the/market last week, is 
his own : . 'ballet composition, 
Tawny/’ 


Atlantic Pacts Sims 

To Etch Pop Singles 

Nitery warbler Sylvia Sims has 
been pacted to etch pop singles 
for the indie Atlantic label. 
Thrush previously waxed a special 
longplay album , for the diskery. 

Miss Sims’ initial single slicing 
will be a coupling of “Imagination” 
and “Don’t Wait Up For Me.” 
“Imagination” was culled from her 
LP set. It’ll be released in about 
10 days. 



Eckstine In for 1st Brit 
Vauder, at PaBadnun; 

To Do Nine-Week Tour 

London, Feb, 2. 

Singer Billy Eckstine, almost the 
only U. S. name recording singer 
who has not so far played variety 
in England, is repairing the omis- 
sion on April 19, when he is sched- 
uled to play two weeks at the Lon- 
don Palladium. 

Fosters Agency, bringing him 
over, intends to keep him here 
for nine weeks; during which time 
he will carry out provinicial dates 
in variety, as well as Sunday con- 
certs. Towns tentatively scheduled 
includes Newcastle, Birmingham, 
Liverpool, Manchester, Glasgow, 
etc. 

. Lew and Leslie Grade are also 
expecting this week to okay John- 
nie Ray’s stint at the London Pal- 
( Continued on page 58) 


Herth Holds at Roney; 
Then Touring Till June 

Milt Herth Trio, which has. been 
at the Roney Plaza, Miami Beach, 
for the past six weeks, has now 
been held over for the rest of the 
season, ending March 15* . 

Following this stand, Herth will 
take his combo to Ngw Orleans, 
Houston and Las Vegas. He will 
return to the Park Sheraton Hotel, 
N. Y./ around the middle of June. 


SCORE FOR MUSIC FIRM 

Fran]f LoessCr has. picked up his 
third legituner score of the season 
for his Frank Music firm with the 
acquisition of “Pajama Game.” 
Score for the show, which is slated 
for a Broadway opening in May, is 
being penned by Dick Adler and 
Jerry Ross. 

' Loesser’s Arm also is publishing 
the score from “Kismet” and the 
majority of the tunes in “John 
Murray Anderson’s Almanac.” Ad- 
ler and Ross, incidentally, wrote 
most of the “Almanac" score. 



OF 


TOP TALENT AND TUNES 


^Compiled from Statistical Reports of Distribution 
Encompassing the Three' Major Outlets 

Coin Machines Retail Disks Retail Sheet Music 

as Published in the Current Issue 


NOTE: The current comparative sales etrength of the Artists and Tunes listed hereunder is 
arrived- at under a statistical system comprising each of the thre# major aalen outlete ehu- 
merated above. These findings are correlated with data from wider sources, which are exclusive 
with Variety. The positions resulting from these findings denote- thf' OVERALL IMPACT de- 
veloped. from the ratio Of points scored: two ways in the case of talent (disks, coin machines), 
and three ways in the case of tunes (disks, coin machines, sheet music). 


TALENT 


POSITIONS 
This Last 
Week Week 


ARTIST AND LABEL 

•• , , 4 * 

EDDIE FISHER (Victor) . 




2 DEAN MARTIN (Capitol) 




TUN* 
(Oh, My Papa 
) Many Times 

That’s Amore 


TONY BENNETT (Columbia) . . . . . jstranjer^n^radise 


BERGMAN IN PACT CLAIM 

Jack H. Bergman filed a suit for 
$40,000 against Allen Records in 
N. Y. Supreme Court last week. 
Bergman claims to have represent- 
ed Alien in a sales and promotion 
5Sro C ty * or ®ne yeair' from Dec. 16, 
i»52, but was fired in November 
°r the following year. 

A r ergman a Re«es that Allen 
•hipped more than 1,000,000 rec- 
ords, for which he wars. to receive 
' as per his deal with the 

s ^y. He charges that, the de- 
fendant wrongfully breached the 
contract, failing to pay for services 
rendered. • 

Justice Henry Clay. Greenberg 
granted examination of the defend- 
nt and production of books and 
records: 


5 

6 

' 7 
8 

9 

10 


5 

9 


FOUR ACES (Decca) — 

PATTI PAGE (Mercury) 
DORIS DAY (Columbia) 
FOUR KNIGHTS (Capitol) 

TERESA- BREWER (Coral) 












• • e « • 


10 


TONY MARTIN (Victor) 
GEORGIE SHAW (Decca) . . . . 


( Stranger In Paradise 
• * j Heart Of My Heart 

Changing Partners 

Secret Love 

I Get So Lonely 

(Ricochet _ 

j Bell Bottom Blues 

Stranger in Paradise 
Till We Two Are One 








POSITIONS 



ts Richards To 
Chi to Aid 1-Niter Dept 

u Richards; for many years 
?* ad of the Music Corp. of Amer- 
v^ ne J nIghter department in New 
■ ’ has been shifted to Chicago 


j— -. ~ «****VV U‘ IV Chicago 

thuf jhove 'designed to strengthen 
thfu di y i . sion ’ Move necessitated a 
in r u h lc h brought Alan Bregman 
from Cleveland to head the N.Y. 
on e-mghter department. 

Coburn was hired to suc- 
cee d Bregman in Cleveland. 


This 

Week 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 
9 

♦ 

10 


Last 

Week 

' 1 ' 

2 

3 

4 
9 

5 
8 

6 
10 

7 


• ••••«•«# v 






TUNES 

(-ASCAP. fBMI) 

. TUNE 

*OH, MY PAPA . 

-STRANGER IN PARADISE 
-THAT’S AMORS . 

(•CHANGING .PARTNERS 
-SECRET LOVE 
-RAGS TO RICHES , 

-HEART OF MY HEART 
-EBB TIDE . >• 

-TILL WE TWO ABE ONE 
(RICOCHET 




• « • • • • 












» E • • • •• 


• • • • 


























PUBLISHER 

, . Shapiro-B 

Frank 

. .Paramount 
.... . ; Porgie 
. . Remick 
Saunders 
, Robbins 
. . Robbins 
Shapiro-B 
Sheldon 


Teenage record buyers Spend as 
much as $15 a month on platter 
purchases. Of approximately 200 
fan club prexies polled at a recent 
convention held in New York, 20% 
claimed thpir monthly coin layout 
for records ran from $10 to $15. 
Remaining 80% put their, monthly 
disk buying tab at $5 ahd under. 

Kids were surveyed i,t- a get- 
together held by disk jockey Art 
Ford at Carnegie Recital Hall, Jan. 
23. Quiz sheets distributed at the 
meet by a trio of diskerles, Audi- 
vqx, Epic and Trend, resulted in a 
number of percentage breakdowns 
relating to various aspects of the 
record business. 

Of the attendees at the gather- 
ing, all “claimed to be members of 
two or three fan clubs, while some 
belonged to as many as 12 and 15. 
Youths, who, incidentally, were 
practically all girls, were unani- 
mous in noting,, that they buy rec- ; 
ords of. the artists represented by 
their fan clubs, with 67% claiming, 
they automatically buy all new re- 
leases by their favorite diskers. A 
rundown of taste in records result- . 
ed in an 85% vote for pop platters. 
While jazz, rhythm & blues, folk & 
western and classical drew a Com- 
bined total of 15%. An additional 
breakdown in this vein showed 
80% of the kids preferring ballads, 
13% in favor of novelties and 7% 
going for both types of disks. 

Dance Disks High 
Dance band recordings drew a 
53% nod over 33% for full orches- 
tra and 5% for small groups in the 
instrumental category. Of the re- 
maining 9%, instrumentals were 
out: of the picture with 6%, while 
3% dug the terp dispensers, full 
orchs and small combos. Dance rec- 
ords also rated third in the type of 
record preferred, with male vocal- 
ists and chirps holding down the 
one and two positions iii that or- 
der. Vocal groups garnered fourth 
place with jazz combos following. 

Information requested . on the ; 
type of record player . owned 
showed the standard speed player 
still being used by 60%. Second 
biggest percentage went to 45 rpm 
machines, with 25% of the group 
claiming ownership of that speed 
machine. - 

Radio and tv, in some instances, 
kept 00% of the kids up-to-date 
on the latest releases, while 70% 
noted that radio and tv affected 
their record purchases. The foxtrot 
came out on top as the’ dance music 
lave with 51% of the votes. Rhum- 
ba addicts numbered 18%, .while 
other types of terp tunes, drew 31% 
of the balloting. 

Promotional gimmicks such as 
advertising material In record 
booths and floor displays in stores 
failed to influence the buying of 
60% of those quizzed. Almost all 
of the kids claimed they knew the 
label for Which a specific artist 
they were interested in recorded. 
Also, half the crew noted that the 
artist was the important factor in 
prompting a record purchase. Hear- 
ing the record was responsible for 
the purchases of another 25% of 
the turnout, while the remaining 
25% cited both the artist and heap- 
ing the tune as important factors 
behind their buying. 

EPIC NAMES SCHICKE - 
GEN’L SALES MANAGER 

Charles A Schicke has been 
named, general sales manager for 
Epic Records. He’ll report to Wil- 
liam S. Nielsen, dlskery's general 
sales manager, 

Schicke, who’ll headquarter in 
Bridgeport, formerly was general 
sales .manager for Urania Records. 
The Epic label, is a Cqlumbia Rec- 
ords siibsid. 


Col Couples Stafford 
With British Crooner 

Hollywood, Feb; 2. 

Columbia will introduce its Brit- 
ish warbler, David Hughes, in a 
• special platter pairing with Jo Staf- 
ford. Disk probably will be cut 
next weekf 

Reaction to the Introductory rec- 
ord probably will determine label’s 
U. S. plans for Hughes, who has 
been recording oh British Colunv 
i bia. If he looks like a possibility, 
he’ll cut four solo sides before re- 
1 1 turning to England. 










Vedoeiday, Fchrnary 3 , I 954 



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THE MAN WITH THE BANJO 
MAN, MAN IS FOR THE WOMAN MADE 

with Hugo Winterhalter's Orchestra and Chorus 


By the writer of 
“Come On *A My House" 


HEY BROTHER, 
POUR THE WINE 

and 

TULAROSA 

Orchestra and Chorus 
directed by Bud Dant 


A new artist to watch! 


PUT YOUR HAND IN MINE 


TEARDROP AVENUE 

with Henri Rene 
and his Orchestra 


RCA V K TOR 

P I R J T ■ N i' K O » '■ f r : *.■ J 





Tops for listening 
and dancing 


and his Orchestra 


and 

. TIME ALONE 

Harpsichord solo 
by Dave Leonard 


mnihiiim 




I 


MUSIC 


Wednesday, February 3 , I954 


Inside Stuff— Music 


Latest of unusual requests sent to Jim Walsh, Variety musicologist 
5f WSLS, Roanoke, Vh., as a sort of clearing house for infp about old 
records, came from Elliott Shapiro of Shapiro-Bernstein Music. Shapiro 
was looking for copy of 1908 Nat Wills record whose title he believed 
was “What’s New?" at the request of May Singhi Breen, who ■wanted 
to present it to an 85-year-old man. Octogenarian had heard Wills 
comic monologue many years ago and wanted to hear it again before 
he died. Walsh recognized platter as “No News; or What Killed the 
Dog" and sent a spare copy to Shapiro. ' A 

Incidentally, musicologist’s . Story on automobile songs (Jam, 20 

Variety) has brought shower of fan mail mentioning numbers not 
included in write-up. Sophie Salpeter of Harry Von Tilzer firm in- 
stanced two 1921 Von Tilzer numbers, “The Scandal of Little Lizzie 
Ford,” written with Billy Curtis, and “You’ve Been a Good Old Car 
(But You Can’t Take Those Hills),” with Ed P. Moran. James Melton 
planned to use “Lizzie Ford” number on his program last year, but 
was given pause; by “spicy" nature of lyrics. Because of space limita- 
tions, many auto songs of the “New Ford” era, around 1927, .were 
deleted from story. 

Mrs. Joseph Schillinger, widow of the music teacher who devised 
a mathematical approach to composition and arranging, was granted , 
an injunction in Boston Federal Court blocking a Boston music school 
from using the name of “Schillinger House." The plaintiff contended 
that the school was benefiting from the use of the Schillinger name 
while engaging in injurious commercial activities. Mrs; Schillinger 
(now married to Arnold Shaw, Vice-prexy of Hill & Range Music) is ; 
currently licensing schools for the use of Jier late husband’s name. 
The first licensee now operates, in Cleveland and another school is 
expected to be named shortly for the Boston' area. 

Present-day dance orchestras are “far ahead" of those in the 1930’s, 
Art Lartdy said in an interview Friday (29) on ‘^Celebrity Comment” 
via WABY, Albany. The retired maestro, who reported that his band 
made 2,000 records, “under every conceivable name,” said: “You have 
only to listen to current recordings. Today’s bands have class, they 
are sharp, they are cool.” Landy, now living with his wife, Ann Butler 
(former Ziegfeld Follies performer), in Ticonderoga, N.Y., and doing 
a daily man-and-frau remote broadcast over a Rutland, Vt., station, 
pointed out that one of his platters, a dream number,* “sold 1,500,000,. 
although you seldom hear it mentioned' now.” % 

The Freed family is now rivalling ‘the Tobias family as the most 
numerous cleffing clan in ASCAP’s ranks. Arthur, $alph and Walter 
Freed have now been joined in the ASCAP roster by their sister, Ruth, 
who is one of the writers of “Rendezvous," latest for Billy Eckstine 
on M-G-M Records. Incidentally, Harry Akst, another vet ASCAPer 
and currently Eddie Fisher’s accompanist, is Miss Freed’s brother- 
in-law. Publishers of “Rendezvous" are Ben Blue and Sid Fields 
through their firm, Dorchester Music. 

The Tobias family numbers Henry, Harry. and Charles in addition 
to a couple of the latter’s sons. 

Following a tour of the Pacific Northwest, which included a sell-out 
concert at the University of Washington in Seattlfe, Woody Herman 
and the Third Herd rang up attendance figures of 1,200 and 1,100 in 
a pair pf one-nighters in the San Francisco Bay area at the end of 
January. They drew 1,200 to Sweet’s Ballroom in Oakland on a Tues- 
day night, Jan. 26. and on the next eve drew 1,100 to El Patio Ball- 
room in San Francisco. This was considered strong in view of the 
recent successful 10-day stand of the Herd at the Diamond Knee in 
San Francisco Only two weeks prior to the one-nighters. 

Vet Cleffer Henry I. Marshall of Scotch Plains. N.J., believes “Be 
My Little Baby Bumble Bee,” tune written in 1912 by Henry I. Mar- 
shall to words of late Stanley Murphy, has established some kind of 
a record for the number of sound movies it has been used in. 

Introduction of “Bumble Bee” song in “The Eddie Cantor Story" 
brings the total to eight. Others are *yvir. Bug Goes to Town," “Shine 
On, Harvest Moon," “When Irish Eyes Are Smiling,” “Sunset on the 
Eldorado,” “Curtain Call at Cactus Creek,” “Big Trees” and “By the 
Light of the Silvery Moon.” ^ 

In a promotional push for its recently-released longplay package of 
Kurt Weill's “Three-Penny Opera Suite,” M-G-M Records is tieing in 
with the upcoming production of the German musical at the Theatre 
De Lys, N.Y. Diskery is setting up a display in the lobby and making 
arrangements with local dealers to sell albums at the theatre. Pro- 
duction, which was adapted by Marc Blitzstein, bo\ys next month. 

'■ .ii . 

A new tone-processing instrument called . the “Tonal Deliberator” 
may revolutionize presentation of musical sound on filhi, according to 


Best British Sheet Sellers 

( Week ending Jan . 23) 
London, Jan. 26. 

Oh My Papa . . .... ... Maurice 

Answer Me ; . .Bourne 

Swedish Rhapsody ; . Connelly 

Rags to Riches .Chappell 

If You Love Me. .World Wide 

Ricochet Victoria 

Cloud Lucky Seven. .Robbins 
Poppa Piccolino .....Sterling - 
Istanbul . . . ... .... Aberbacn 

Big Ben . . .' Box & Cox 

Chicka Boom .....* — Dash 
Golden Tango ....... . Wright 

Second 12 

Blowing Wild , Harms-Connelly 
That’s Amore . . ... . . Victoria 

Vaya Con Dios . . . . Maddox . 

Tennessee Walk. . , .F. D. & H, 
Ebb Tide . . . . • Robbins 

You You You. . .... . ; Mellin 

The Creep. . Robbins 

Wish You Were Here Chappell 
Here to Eternity . Dash. • 
Moulin Rouge ..... Connelly .> 
Limelight . . Bourne 

Doh’t Ever Leave Me Bluebird 

CAP COAST BRASS IN N.Y. 


On The Upbeat 


Capitol Records' Coast brass ' is 
in New York this' week, huddfthg 
with Gotham execs on upcoming 
sales, promotion and release plans. 

In from the Coast are Alan Liv- 
ingston, v.p. and artists & reper- 
toire topper; Lloyd Dunn, sales 
veepee, and promotion chief Bud 
Frazier. They’re meeting with Bill 
Fowler and Hal Cook of the N. Y. 
office. 

EPIC INKS DE JOHN SjSTERS 

' Epic Records, Columbia subsid, 
has tagged a new vocal combo, 
The De John Sisters, to a long- 
term pact. 

Group is managed by Mifchael 
Stewart, who also handles The 
Four Lads, Columbia pactees. 


New York 

The Four'Tunes, Jubilee Records 
combo, Into Cafe Society, N.Y., 
Feb. 15. Pee Wee Hunt will be on 
March 12 . . . Colony Club gets 
a two-week stand at the Latin Ca- 
sino, Philadelphia, Thursday (28) 

. . .Eileen Colson, secretary at 
Chappell Music, to wed Victor Jul- 
iano. . .The Crew Cuts, vocal com- 
bo, pacted by Mercury Records. . . 
Henry Okun handling sales and 
disk promotion for Original Rec- 
ords. . . Johnny. Brown's Spotlight 
Attractions inked Lou . Monte to 
a personal management deal. . 
Disk jockey Bd McKenzie (WXYZ, 
Detroit) Will demonstrate and ex- 
plain Columbia’s 360. phonograph 
player on a series of films .over 
station's tv outlet. 

Crooner Eddie Wright pacted to 
the indie Accent Records ... Bill 
Hewey .and Hal Stanton, Jackson- 
ville record dealer and pic exhibi- 
tor, respectively, . split the $200 
first prize in M-G-M Records’ 
“Band Wagon" contest. 

London 

Jill Allan, 25-year-old -chirp, is 
fronting her own band at the Don 
Juan nitery. She was singing with 
■ the Frank Weir combo there, who 
are leaving to open at the Copaca- 
bana, .succeeding Harry Roy . 
Cyril Stapleton, maestro of the 
BBC's Sh^W Band, was presented 
with boy twins by his wife . . . Ted 
Heath has signed 21year-old Berk- 
shire painter and decorator, Bob- 
bie Britton, to sing with his orch 
when Dickie Valentine leaves in 
March to go Solo . . . Drummer 
Harry Lewis'.boOked in ait Church- 
ill’s nitery. leading a five-piece 
combo . . . Vogue Records here has 
tied up with the U. S. Pacific Jazz 
label, and will Swap disks of Brit- 
ish jazz stars for Gerry Mulligan 
and Chet Baker planters , . . Tan- 
ner Sisters, vocal duo, currently in 
cabaret at the Colony Restaurant, 
play a fortnight in Iceland com- 
mencing March 3 . . . Deejay Neal 


its inventor, composer Raoul Kraushaar, who recently completed com- 
posing and scoring the Cinemascope version of the legit revue, “New 
Faces." Kraushaar contends’the instrument's value lies in its pre-flxed 
ability to increase, diminish and rotate desired effects in. a musical 
composition bn an action-synchronized basis. Invention, her declares, 
will enable' conductors to get a foolproof rendition from^ their mu- 
sicians. 

A trio of Raymond Scott compositions were picked up during recent 
weeks as theme songs for three disk jockey airers. Numbers are 
“Huckleberry Duck," “Honest Injun” and “Bird Life in the Brpnx." 
Don Tibbets, WKBR, Manchester, N.H;, is using “DuCk," while the 
»team of Bob Snyder and Marty Ross, WABY, Albany, have latched 
on to “Injun." Remaining number is spotted on Gene Rayburn’s show, 
WNBT, N.Y. Both “Injun" and “Bird Life” were, recorded by Scott 
for his Audivox label, while “Duck” is a Columbia etching. . 

Liberace has become such a hot property in the last year on the 
concert and tv circuit , that Decca has dusted; off a couple of sides made 
by the pianist a couple of years ago for redistribution. One of the 
sides, “Velvet Moon," has already shown strong sales reaction. Liberace 
now cuts for Columbia Records where his album sales have been con- 
sistently in the bestseller bracket. 

General Artists Cprp. is getting behind its talent on wax via the 
reestablishment of a monthly fact bulletin targeted at about 1,000 disk 
jockeys throughout the country. Sheet, being edited by GAC flack Ira 
Okun, will contain items relating to performers on agency’s roster. 


Arden going out in variety 
Maxine Sullivan arrived here fh* 
day (29) for tour . . . ReA-v£ 
tor invited HMV singer Franki. 
Vaughan for a 12-day goodwill trin 
to the States in April. lp 

Hollywood 

Sauter-Finegan orch plays two 
Southern California one-nighters 
this week before trekking back to 
Chicago; the Rendezvous Ballroom 
Balboa, Thursday (4) and a concert 
at the Embassy Auditorium, Los 
Angeles, Friday <[5>, latter with the 
George Shearing Quintet as a fea- 
tured attraction. Gene Norman 
promotes both ... David Forester 
set as conductor of the Hollywood 
“Pops" Symphony, which debuts 
March 25 in Las Vegas with an all- 
Gershwin program and Amparo 
Iturbl as guest soloist . . . Jimmie 
Maddin combo opened at the Mur- 
al room . . . Frank DeVol returned 
from N,Y. after huddles with Der- 
by Record execs to set up a 1954 

{ irogram for the label for which he 
s Coast recording director. : .Law- 
rence Welk received more than 
42,000 Christmas cards from tele- 
viewers in this area. . .June Chris- 
tie rejoined Stan Kenton for a 
four-week tour ... April Ames 
joined the Billy May band led by 
Sam Donahue, as vocalist . . . Lau- 
rindo Almeida, former Stan Ken- 
ton guitarist, makes his film bow 
in “A Star* is Bom" at Warners, 
where his work previously was 
heard, though he wasn’t seen, as 
part of the score of “Blowing 
wild." ' 

Chicago 

Mutual Artists Corp. pacted new 
Barrett Deems Trio, formed since 
the drummer ankled Muggsy Span- 
ier unit. . .Vic Damone in town 
last weekend for Mercury record- 
ing sessions . . . RCA’s new Label X 
Inked A1 Morgan, Dinah Kaye and 
Bea Gardy in Chi last week . , A1 
Morgan opens Preview Lounge for 
12 weeks beginning Feb. 3. . .Ted 
Lewis set for Lake. Club, Spring- 
field, March 12 for 10 days... 
Harmonicats headed for Detroit 
Auto Show Feb. 19 for a 10-day 
stint. 


Pittsburgh 

Baron Elliott band signed for a 
series of 12 Saturday night dances 
at the Pittsburgh Athletic Assn.. . 
Jack Purcell, bandleader, and Betty 
Langfitt have opened a booking 
agency here in the Werner Bldg, 
and will be the Pittsburgh reps of 
George A. Hamid & Son. . .Claire 
McClintock, drummer with Herman 
Middleman orch at Carousel, broke 
his arm in a fall in his home . . 
Tommy Carlyn plays for West- 
moreland County’s annual March 
of Dimes Ball in Greensburg on 
Sunday (7) . . . Del Monaco Quartet 
into Blue Moon for an indefinite 
run. A substitute combo fills in for 
them every Thursday night when 
the foursome is featured on Thrift 
Drug Co.’s television show, 
Rhythm Rendezvous," over WDTV 
. , Beraie Cummins and Tony Pas- 
tor. bands set for week engage- 
( Continued on page 58) 






N 







Both from the 
Vittorio DeSica Film, 

"Indiscretion of an American Wife" 
starring 

, Jennifer Jones and Montgomery Clift 

Released by Columbia Pictures 



4 

. \ 

LEGAL NOTICE 

m • 

PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that the title of our current composition 

RECORDED BY 

PATTI PAGE 

FOR 

MERCURY RECORD CORP. 

‘V * " 

HAS BEEN CHANGED FROM 

“JOHNNY GUITAR” 

TO 

“MY RESTLESS LOVER” 

(MERCURY RECORD No. 70302) 

NO CHANGE OF ANY KIND HAS BEEN MADE IN THE WORDS 
OR MUSIC -ONLY THE TITLE HAS BEEN CHANGED 

t 

CHAPPELL & CO, INC. 

• - 


56 


mrrsic 


PSstfflFr 


Wednesday, • February 3, J^54 


* 

4$ 



With the slitting of Bud. Gately 
In the general 'manager’s post at 
George M. Cohan Music last week, 
pubbery is prepping a push in the 
pop and educational field. Firm 
had been inactive until the take- 
over of the Cohan copyrights from 
Jerry Vogel a couple of months 
ago. 

Pubbery plans to concentrate on 
the Cohan material" fat 1 the time 
being and will not acquire any new 
times. According to Gately,, there 
are about 200 unknown Cohan 
compositions on which he is prep- 
ping a pop campaign. George M. 
Cohan Jr. will take an active part 
in the firm’s operation; George 
Ronkin will head Bp the education- 
al department. 

Gately previously had been asso- 
ciated with Bourne Music and 
Frank Loesser. 


Bourne Fi 
Suit Vs. Missouri Tavern 

Bourne Music has filed suit for 
copyright infringement against 
Mack’s Tavern, Hannibal, Mo. 
Bourne alleged that “Steel Guitar 
Rag’’ was performed without au- 
thorization. 

Action asks that the court re- 
strain defendant from publicly per- 
forming the song in the future and 
to award statutory, damages of not 
less than $50. Suit was filed in 
U. S District Court for the District 
of Missouri, Northern Division. 


Stan Kenton band into the West-? 
Chester County Auditorium, N. Y., 
for « one-niter Feb. 10. 


WILL 

OSBORNE 

V. 

And His Orchestra 

Booked Solid 1954 

Thanks To: 

H.H. "ANDY" ANDERSON 
MILTON DEUTSCH 
BILL GRAHAM 

Available Jan. 15th, 1955 


RETAIL 



BEST SELLERS 







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and last week. ■ 


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EDDIE FISHER (Victor) 

••Oh, My Papa”. . .... 


1 

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DEAN MARTIN (Capitol) 
“Thai’s Amore”, , 


5 

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64 

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PATTI PAGE (Mercury) 
'•Changing Partners” . . 


3 

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57" 

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FOUR ACES (Decca) 
“Stranger in Paradise” . . 


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DORIS DAY (Columbia) 

8\ “Secret Love” 


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TONY BENNETT (Columbia) 
••Rags to Riches” . . 


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GEORGIE SHAW (Decca) 
“Till We Two Are One”. . . . . 


7 

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28 

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TONY BENNETT 
“Stranger in Paradise”. 


9 

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27 

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FOUR KNIGHTS (Capitol) 

“I Get So Lonely”. . V. 


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TERESA BREWER 
“Ricochet” . . . . . . . . 


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TOUR ACES (Decca) 

“Heart of My Heart’’ . . . 


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GAYLORDS (Mercury) 

“From the Vine Came the Grape”. . . 

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FOUR TUNES (Jubilee) 
“Marie” . 


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TONY MARTIN (Victor) 
“Stranger in Paradise”. . .... 


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2 


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15 

15 

MILLS BROS- (Decca) 

“Jones Boy” .... 


4 

5 


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8 







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JO STAFFORD (Columbia) 
“Make Love to Me”. ... 


• • 

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8 

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5 

8 

12 

17 


RONNIE GAYLORD (Mercury) 

. “Cuddle Me, . . , . . 

• • 

• • 

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1 

10 

18 


THREE SUNS (Victor) 

“The Creep”. . . 


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3 


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FRANK CHACKSFIELD (London) 
“Ebb Tide”. . . 

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“You Alone” . ...... ... .... 


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RECORDS 

JOSE FERRER. 
ROSEMARY CLOONEY 

aL ■ ■ a > _ _ 


JOHNNY DESMOND 

©UY LOMBARDO 
Published by STUDIO MUSIC 


Colu rtibia 
• • . . Corol 

'***•”•• Decca 

CO. 


Cuts 8 Sides In Frisco For Sol 
Weiss of Fantasy 


San Francisco, Feb. 2. 

. Eight members of the Woody 
Herman orchestra recorded an LP 
for Fantasy records here on Jan. 
27 featuring Dick Collins, young 
local trumpeter who joined the 
band that day. He replaced Normie 
Faye in the brass section, coming 
in from Dave Brubeck Octet. 

Nat Pierce, Herman’s pianist, 
conducted the Herdsmen on the 
date and eight sides were Cut in- 
cluding an original, “Honey Baby,” 
by Pierce. Other Herman Herds- 
men on the date included trumpet- 
er Jphnny Howell, tenor sax men 
Dick Hafer 'and Jerry Coker, bass 
trumpeter Cy Touff, bassist Red 
Kelley and baritone sax Jack 


Nimitz. Drummer was a local man, 
Gus Gustafson. 

' Fantasy a&r chief Sol Weiss 
plans released irt early spring be- 
fore Herd takes off for Europe. 



..•fla*,***** wriu * x P a »<* ns 

distribution coverage via Deer? 
outlets in Birmingham, Miami 
Memphis and Oklahoma 
Coral, a Decca subsid, has been 
operating via separate distrih 
branches. In addition to the Decta 
Une, these distribs will now handle 
Coral and Brunswick releases. 

The territory now being serv- 
iced by .the Coral Atlanta branch 
will be covered by three offices-- 
Atlanta, Birmingham and Miami 
The new arrangement will give 
Coral a total of 36 outlets around 
the country. Decca factory 
branches in Atlanta* New Orleans 
and Richmond will also handle the 
Coral line. The distrib reshuffling 
went into effect Feb. 1. * 




Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

It begins to appear that Coast 
disk jockeys are the people to talk 

to if you Want to hit with a Japa- 
nese tune. Several months ago it 
was “Gomeri Nasai,” which broke 
here after a platter was spun by 
Ralph Story qn CBS. 

Now it’s “Sayonara,” introed by 
Ira Cdok on KMPC. Tune was 
written in Japan by Tom Oliver, 
son of local batoneer. Eddie Oliver! 
and his Air Corps buddy Stan 
Saget. While overseas they had it 
Waxed on RCA Victor by Nancy 
Unieki, the “Doris Day of Japan.’’ 

Oliver Was discharged last week 
and promptly gave the only avail- 
able platter' to Cook who has been 
Spinning it several times a day. 
•After the initial spinning on the 
station, tune was grabbed by Paul 
Mills for Mills Music. 


DORAINE EXITS ALLEN 

Peter Doraine resigned last week 
as general manager of Allen Rec- 
ords, a N.Y. indie label. 

Doraine fprmerly headed the 
Abbey diskery. 


Th e New 
Dance Sensation! 


THE 


V 


CREEP 


MILLER MUSIC CORPORATION 


Elliot Lawrence orch will play 
for the New York Publicists i 
Guild’s, second annual Ballyhoo 
Ball at the Hotel Astror, N. Y., 
March 30. 


MUSICAL DIRECTOR 

Now employed, wither to secure 
another petition. Hat large experi- 
ence in a|l fields of music busi- 
ness. Best references. 

Bex V-4928, Variety, 154 W. 46th St., 
New York 34, N. Y. 



America's Fastest 
~Selling:Records! 



F 


THE CREEP 

(vocal) 

A TWO SIDED SMASH 


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Backed 



CRYSTAL BALL 


V 


45-1423 


BY THE 


Johnston Brothers 



awo\ 


RECORDS 







ffAw.to., F«bnuBfy 8 , 1954 




MUSIC 


57 



Chicago, Feb. 2* • 

That well-directed personal ap- 
nJrances pay 6tl 3^°^ Proved it- 
J*B *S. lit week when 2.5(H) 
Srfischool girlr went on a record- 
j S spree, following their intro- 
Kion to 10 new disk personali- 
-.ffifat the Fair, Loop department 
Sc Gals comprise the Fair 
Teen* Club, « coke ?et organization' 
whose prime, concern.. -is popular 
tn sic and whose enrollment tops 
7 000 Program, called Disk Jockey 
Tamboree, had the tyro diskers ex- 
ecuting lip synch while their wak- 
ings were played by local deejay 
jay Trompeter, who emceed. 

New vocalists who received a 
promotional hypo were Georgie 
chaw Bill Darnel, Tommy Leon- 
etti Buddy De Vito, David Carroll, 
Pearl Eddy, Roccp Greco,- Lou 
Douglas, Dan Belloc, Jane Kelly 
and Bill Bailey. Fair Teen director 
Jan Aaron said she would follow 
this session with a regular series 
of smaller programs spotlighting 
one. or two artists- at .a time. 



AGENCIES IN MERGER 


Omaha, Feb. 2. 
National Orchestra Service and 
Music Management Service, agents 
for orchs a nd niteries, have merged 
under the National name. Local 
office for firm, which operates in 
20 states, is in City National Bank 

Bldg. " 

President of National, a 24-year- 
old org, is Seri Hutton. Royce 
Stoenner and David Wenrich, who 
formed Music Management, are 
now in the National office. 


RETAIL SHEET BEST SELLERS 


May Orch Signs Ames 

April Ames has been signed as 
band thrush for the Billy May orch, 
which is being fronted by Sam 
Donahue. 

Songstress made her bow several 
months ago with the Harry James 
orch. .. 




> . . 


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Boston, Mosher Music £o. 

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Survey of retail ihtet musle 
tales bated on reportM obtained 
from teadlny itorti In 12 cities 
and shouting comparative sales 
rating for this and last week. 
♦ASCAP 4BM1 


National 

Bating 

This Last 
wk. vk. 

Title and Publisher 


1 

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"'Stranger in Paradise (Frank) 

. . 4 * 

1 

1 

1 

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2 

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109 

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♦Oh, My Papa (Shapiro-B) . 

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2 

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102 

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tChanging Partners (Porgie) . 

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3 

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♦That's Amore (Paramount) . . 

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79 

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♦Secret Love (Remick) . . 

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♦Ebb Tide (Robbins) . . 

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♦Heart of My Heart (Robbins) 

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♦Rags to Riches (Saunders) . . 

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4 


Centralia Gets $128,510 
Bandshell Via Bequest 

St. Louis, Feb. 2. 

Through a bequest by George W. 
Pittengeer, wealthy hotel owner in 
Centralia, 111., 68 miles from here, 
that city will have a bandshell that 
will cost $128,810. Pittengeer, who 
died Jan. 5, 1952, left $45,000 to 
the city for the construction of the 
bandshell in Library Park, across 
the street from his home in center 
of town. 

However, the $45,000 bequest 
grew to about $150,000 because of 
a residuary clause in the will. The 


bandshell, on which- work began 
last week, will be of concrete with 
a 70-foot stage,; plus dressing 
rooms, etc. About 1 ,700 persons 
can be seated. Pittengeer’s estate 
amounted to $7 50,000 and he made 
bequests totaling less than $200,000. 


*. . Reading Joins Hampton 

Bertice Reading, RCA Victor 
songstress, has taken over the 
chirping assignment with Lionel 
Hampton’s band. 

. Hampton crew, currently on tour, 
begins a one-week engagement at 
the Seville Theatre, Montreal, to- 
morrow (Thurs.). 



Mass. Eatery Sued On 

Copyright Infringe 

Four ASCAP members have 
slapped a copyright infringement 
suit against Carl’s Duck Farm, 
Saugus, Mass., alleging that their 
copyrighted songs were performed 
without authorization. Members 
filing were Richard Rodgers; Oscar 
Hammerstein 2d, Cole Porter and 
Bourne,. Inc. 

The tunes Involved are “No 
Other Love” (Rodgers-Hammer- 
stein); “Wunderbar” (Porter) and 
“All of Me” (Bourne). Suit asks for 
a minimum . $250 rap for each in- 
fringement. 


Dave Kapp is getting his indie 
record company operation under 
way this week. Diskcry, tagged 
Fapp Records, will preem with a 
longplay: album in about a month. 

Kapp’s plans for the label include 
release of 12 special LP platters 
a year. Single disks will be culled 
from the album packages occasion- 
ally for deejay and other prompt 
tion purposes. 

Initial Kapp album will be an 
adaptation of the tome “One God 
(The Ways, We Worship Him)” by 
Florence May Fitch. Book was 
published by Lothrop in 1944 and 
has passed the 300,000 sales mark, 
Kapp. owns exclusive world rights 
to the book. 

: Adaptation for the waxing was 
penned by Jerry Lawrence and 
Bob Lee. : Eddie Albert has been 
set for the key narrator’s spot. 
He’ll be supported by a choir. 
Kapp’s future releases will be 
geared along similar offbeat, and 
original waxing lines. 

Meantime, Kapp’s publishing 
firm, Garland Music, was launched 
last week with “Man, Man Is For 
The Woman Made,” which RCA 
Victor cut with The Ames Bros. 


WITH NINE FIELDS' IP’S 

The indie Oceanic Records label 
is expanding into the pop field. 

| Diskery, heretofore, had confined 
. its releases to longplay classical 
■platters. First in its pop series 
! will be nine LPs by Irving Fields. 

Fields, meantime, Wound up a 
five-month engagement at the Park 
Sheraton Hotel, N. Y., Saturday 
(30). He moves into the Thunder- 
bird, Las Vegas, for five weeks 
beginning Feb. 4. A sixmonth stand 
at the Sahara Hotel, Las Vegas, 
beginning March 16, follows. He’s 
slated to return to the Park Sherar 
ton Sept, 7 for a run until January, 
1955. . 


"SEE YOU IN MIAMI, 
ANGELES AND SAN 
I'M 'GOING PLACES' WITH 
THE GM MOTORAMA OF 


• • • 


// 


VINCENT TRAVERS 






***** .«»*«*'•% •***£■ 
^ V#* % Tor# 

•S0» 4 *. W H 






*'.»s <>,•«. I Nl 




□ 




■*? 


Thunks 


MYRON 



GM Motorama "Going Places / 1 
choreographed, produced and directed by 
Richard Barstow. 

Music Composed and Conducted by VINCENT TRAVERS* 





wmerr 


Wednesday, February 3 , 1954 



On The Upbeat 




S= Continued from page $4 


ments each it Vogue' Terrace in 
May. . .Lection* Cuban Boys had 
option picked up at .Horizon Boom 
through Feb. 13..\Morry Allen's 
band, with Rosemary Belan on 
vocals, has two new sides out on 
the Belle label ...Joanne L.lppert, 
Steubenville girl who was picked 
as Football Queen from contestants 
in 20 Ohio Valley high schools last 
fall, has joined Russ Carlyle band 
at Peabody Hotel in Memphis, as 
vocalist. She’s the fourth person 
from Steubenville to go with Car- 
lyle. Harry Bush combo at Point 
View Hotel includes Bush, Bobby 
Negri, Jimmy Morgan and Dick 
Brosky. 

Omaha 

Charles A. Hayden, director of 
the Creston, la., Municipal Band 
since it was formed in 1921, retired 
last week ... . Organist Lou Holtz 
in at the Mallard Club, Terrytown, 
Neb. . . ; Henry Busse orch booked 
for Terrytown Arena in Scottsbluff 
tonight (3) . . . Skippy Anderson 
one-nighted at Lincoln’s pia-Mor 
last Wednesday (27) . . . Bobby 
Layne opened at Lincoln’s Sun-Set 
Saturday (30) while Dick Brown 
was playing Turnpike in same city. 

Kansas City 

Mae Williams opens at the West- 
ward Ho, Phoenix, Feb. 16, after 
a stopover in L.A., with dates later 
to follow in Cincinnati, Denver, 
Dallas and Houston . . . Happy 
Jesters (3) and McQuaig Twins 
follow Bobby Winters and Felicia 


Sanders into Eddys’ here, opening 
Feb. 5 . , . Eddie Clark rounding 
up bands for the Jazznocracy con- 
certs in Town Hall Ballroom, with 
Bob Wilson sextet playing £eb. 7 
and 14, and Archie Martin Quintet 
Feb. 21 . . . McConkey Orchestra 
Service has set Don Roth Trio to 
return to the Kansas City Club 
March 1 after three weeks at Silver 
Congo Room, LaSalle, 111 . . . Ym* 
Sumac date was a sellout Feb. 1 
in the Music Hall on the Ruth 
Seufert series . . . Henry Busse 
and oren in a pne-nigHter Jan. 30 
at Pla-Mor Ballroom. 


in 


DON’T ASK 
ME WHY 

recorded by 

EILEEN BARTON 

CORAL #61109 

HARMS, Inc. 


Dallas 

Mary Meade and Joseph Sudy 
orch open Monday (8) in the Baker 
Hotel’s Mural Room, where Dor- 
othy Shay has a fortnight Feb. 27- 
the same bill . . . Johnnie Ray began 
Billy Gilbert for two weeks, Feb. 
12, with. Betty Clooney dated for 
March 19..;Nat (King) Cole and 
acts spend one night, Feb. 15, at 
the Plantation . . .Dot Franey’s new 
icer, “Name the Show,” bows Feb. 
18 in Century Room of Hotel Adol- 
phus, where Valerie Bettis brings 
her dancing act March 12 . . Jose 
Greco and troupe dance April 2 at 
State Fair Auditorium, with Artie 
Shaw’s Gramercy Five, the George 
Shearing Quintet and other acts 
set for an April one-nighter also 
. . Stan Kenton rehearsed here for 
his one-nighter tour, with June 
Christy, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie 
Parker, Lee Konitz and the Earl 
Garner Trio on hand for junket of 
“Jazz Festival of Modern Ameri- 
can Music.” 


4H 


Weiss, Cap European Rep* 
Resumes at Paris Post 

Bobby Weiss, Capitol Records 
European rep, planed back to 
Paris the past weekend to resume 
overseas coverage for the diskery. 

Weiss, who was injured in a 
freak fall in Germany, was on a 
convalescent leave in the U.S. and 
shuttled between N.Y. and L.A. 
huddling with Cap execs. 


Disk Companies' test Sellers 


2 . 

3. 

4. 

5. 


t 1 * 
2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 


. . . . . . Tony Bennett 

Jo Stafford 




CAPITOL . 

1, THAT’S AMOBE .Dean Martin ■ - 

YOU’RE THE RIGHT ONE 

I GET SO LONELY . .... , . ....... .Four Knights J 

I COULDN’T STAY AWAY FROM YOU . . 

ANSWER ME, MY LOVE ....... . v ...... Nat (Kmg) Cole 

WHY 

WKtAT IT WAS, WAS FOOTBALL (PARTI) ..Andy Griffith 
WHAT IT iW AS, WAS FOOTBALL (PART II) . 

YOUNG AT HEART .... • • Frank Sinatra 

TAKE A CHANCE 
t COLUMBIA 

STRANGER IN PARADISE .... 

WHY DOES IT HAVE TO BE ME? 

MAKE LOVE TO ME . . . . . 

ADI, ADIOS AMIGO . ■ 

SECRET LOVE . ..Y. -Doris Day 

DEADWOOD STAGE 

MAN . . . . . • Rosemary Clooney 

WOMAN . - . ...... . . v. . , Jose Ferrer 

BELLA. BELLA, DONNA MIA . . . . ........ , . ^Sammy Kaye 

Y (THAT’S WHY) 

CORAL 

I 1. BELL BOTTOM BLUES . . . ...... Teresa Brewer 

OUR HEARTBREAKING WALTZ 
? 2. A SALUTE TO GLENN MILLER (PART I) . Modernaires 
A SALUTE TO GLENN MILLER (PART II) 

3. WOMAN . Johnny Desmond 

THE RIVER SEINE 

4. HEART OF MY HEART .......... . Cornell, Dale, Desmond 

I THINK I’LL FALL IN LOVE TODAY 

l 5. JOYFUL NOIES UNTO LORD (PART I) ... . . All Star Cast 
JOYFUL NOIES UNTO LORD (PART II) 




Four Aces 


DECCA 

X 1. STRANGER IN PARADISE 
HEART OF MY HEART 

2. TILL WK TWO ARE ONE Georgie Shaw 

HONEYCOMB 

3. Y’ALli COME Bing Crosby 

CHANGING PARTNERS 

4. THE JONES BOY Mills Bros. 

SHE WAS FIVE AND HE WAS TEN 

5. ARE YOU LOOKING FOR A SWEETHEART . Kitty Kallen 
A LITTLE LIE 

t LONDON 

1. THE CREEP .... 

CRYSTAL BALL 

2. EBB TIDE Frank Chacksfield 

WALTZING BUGLE BOY 

3. GOLDEN TANGO Frank Chacksfield 

DANCING PRINCESS 

4. SUDDENLY Mantovani 

BEAUTIFUL DREAMER 

5. STARLIGHT SERENADE .Stanley Black 

FROM HERE TO ETERNITY 




. Johnston Bros. 


S v ms < / 5 ! / v 4 £ 

s ' s . y.v v 

■•-•-•vw"*' < 

% v sss ' / s 



LEW DOUGLAS 

AND HIS ORCHESTRA 






MGM 11654 
K 11654 


78 RPM 
45 RPM 


G M RECORDS 


THE GREATEST NAME IN ENTERTAINMENT 


G’ SEVENTH AVE NEW YORK 36 N 


Wee War 

S Continued from page 49 — 

are unclear bn their future poliev 
One big N. Y. discounter said that 
be could not afford to give his reg- 
ular 30% cut on the cheaper price 
since he must , worjc on a given 
markhP per disk. In that event the 
discount on the low-priced disks 
would have to be reduced or elimi- ■ 
nated altogether. 

Meantime, other small compa- 
nies, headed by Westminster, are 
offering fat deals to retailers via 
heavy discounts. The list prices 
therefore, are being used a5 a peg 
for big retail sales. For every West- 
minster bought at list, the custom- 
er can buy any other disk for $1. 

Capitol and London announce 
that they’re- holding their price line 
for the present. 

The developing . price war is 
symptomatic of an unhealthy situa- 
tion on the retail level. Many stores 
are stocked up to the limit on mer- 
chandise that . isn’t moving and 
their credit is extended to the 
breaking point. Columbia, for in- 
stance* is hoping that its plan cre- 
ates enough store traffic to get the 
retailers off the hook. 

At this point the price cuts and 
promotion schemes are limited to 
the LP field. There’s ncr sign of 
any cuts on the 45 rpm disks or 
EPs or the single pops. 

jubilee Repacts Orioles 

The indie Jubilee label has re- 
pacted The Orioles to a new five- 
year pact. 

Combo has been with the label 
for the past six years. 


Gaylords 

Georgia Gibbs 


MERCURY 

1. FROM THE VINE CAME THE GRAPE .... 

STOLEN MOMENTS 

2. SOMEBODY STOLE DE WEDDING BELL 
BAUBLES, BANGLES AND BEADS 

3. CUDDLE ME . .Ronnie Gaylord 

OH AM'I LONELY 

4. CHANGING PARTNERS . , Patti Page X 

WHERE DID THE SNOWMAN GO? 

5. THE CREEP . ... . . . . .Ralph Marterie 

LOVE THEME FROM “THE GLENN MILLER STORY” 

M-G-M 

1. TURN AROUND BOY Lew Douglas X 

CAESAR’S BOOGIE 

f 2. YOU’RE MY EVERYTHING Joni James X 

YOU’RE NEARER 

X 3. RENDEZVOUS ...... .. .Billy Eckstine 

I’M IN A MOOD 

X 4. POPPA PICCOLINO . . Nocturnes 

FOR THE FIRST TIME IN A LONG TIME 

5. SOLFEGGIO . Robert Maxwell 

THE DOLL DANCE 

RCA VICTOR 

1. DARKTOWN STRUTTERS BALL .Lou Monte 

I KNOW HOW YOU FEEL 

2. SOMEBODY STOLE DE WEDDING BELL ..... Eartha Kitt 
LOVIN’ SPREE 

3. OH, MY PAPA .Eddie Fisher 

UNTIL YOU’VE SAID GOODBYE 

4. THE CREEP .Three Suns 

JUST ONE MORE CHANCE 

X 5. YOU ALONE Perry Como 

PA-PAYA MAMA 


— — Continued from page 51 - — - 

ladium. April 5 is the reported 
date. 

The Palladium’s announcement 
that they would be staging a sum- 
mer revue starring comedian Nor- 
man Wisdom for a five months’ 
season from May 3, has squashed 
the idea of another top-of-the-hill 
“invasion” by U. S; recording stars, 
as has been the case there for the 
past couple of years, during the 
summer and autumn. Nat (King) 
Cole is already skedded for March 
there so, what with Eckstine and 
Ray, it looks as if the spring is 
going to be the fans’ paradise this 
year. 


Hansen Sets Educ’l Field 
Entry With Sales Talks 

Mike Cimino, ex-Edwin H. Mor- 
ris Music sales topper, joined the 
‘Hansen Publications’ sales and ed- 
ucational staff. 

Firm’s entry into the educational 
field will, be sparked by a series of 
sales confabs this week, with the 


national staff converging on the 
New York homeoffice. Production, 
sales plans and schedule of educa- 
tional exhibits and meets will be 
discussed. 


GOING STRAIGHT to the TOP! 

“Our 


Waltz" 


Recorded by 


TERESA BREWER Coral 

GUY LOMBARDO Dacca 

PINETOPPERS ... Coral 

CLYDE MOODY Dacca 


VILLAGE MUSIC CO. 


THOMPSON 

SONG 



& 




From tha 
Columbia 
Tochnkolor 
Pictunji 

MISS SADIE 1 
THOMPSON; 



PROGRAM: 

Th« 

JIMMY McHUGH 

Standard 

“YOU’RE 

A 

SWEETHEART” 

ROBBINS 


GENE KRUPA 

TRIO 

Currently RENDEZVOUS ROOM, Phila. 

Starting Fob. 5 

GAY HAVEN, DEARBORN. MICH. 

Fab. 20— RUSTIC CABIN. N. J. 

Fob. 21— GEORGE JESSEL TV Show 
Opontng Fob. 22— HI HAT, BOSTON 


Exclusive Management 

ASSOCIATED BOOKING CORPORATION 

JOE GLASER, Pres. 

New York j Chicago 8 Hollywood 


-5 j> f 1 1 Aviv P!. 0.4600 I 203 No. Wabath | 8610 Sunjrt B I vd 



ifodnca&ffy F^frnwy 3, 1954 



Miami, Feb. 2. 

Fla. State Beverage Dept, Friday 
( 29 ) sftspended licenses of Five 
o’clock Club and Clover Club for 
10 days after finding -them guilty 
of selling liqutf to ndnors. Vaga- 
bonds Club redlved*pune penalty; 
but was put on. prpbSdion with, sen- 
tence suspended. • » 

Clover Club is appealing the rul- 
i ng and remains in operation ; Five 
O’CloCk Club has been closed for 
some time. Violation charges were 
brought *f ter a teenager’s spend- 
ing sprgfe last summer which saw 
frontpage Rories played by local 
press after it was learned he had 
forged his mother’s name to checks 
in amount of $525. 

Other minors involved are being 
prosecuted under ; an ordinance 
which calls for their arrest if found 
in a bar or night club dispensing 
liquors. Although club reps tes- 
tified that the juves°were asked to, 
and produced Identification show- 
ing them to be of age, they denied 

1 11 Hearing brought out difficulties 
faced by nitery ops in this area in 
weeding out minors who come into 
their places. Many produce phony 
licenses or other papers showing 
them to be of age. In recent 
months signs have been posted by 
members of the Florida Supper 
Club Assn, warning of prosecution 
under the law for teenagers want- 
ing in. . , ; 

With small lobby entrances in 
most spots and the milling about 
that comes on crowded nights, it’s 
a headache for the maitre d’s and 
others at the door. 

Beverage Dept, agents in recent 
months have been casing small and 
large bistros in a drive to force 
all clubs to comply with the law, 
by any means, 




Los Angeles, Feb. 2. 

" William Morris office will handle 
the; L. A. Police Show this year, 
on a switch, from MCA, Which has 
been running, it for a number of 
years. Shift was engineered by 
Hershey Martin, who handled the 
show for MCA years ago, but is 
now associated with the Morris 
agency. « 

Martin starts rounding up talent 
this week for the two- week pro- 
gram, starting early in May. 



BIZ OFF IN OMAHA; 
NITERY PREPS REPEATS 

Omaha, Feb. 2. 

Biz is offish at the Seven Seas, 
Omaha’s top downtown nitery, thus 
far this year and Owner Don Ham- 
mond can, offer no explanation. 
"We had' our expected capacity 
houses over New Ye'ar’s with the 
Polly Possum hillbilly group in* 
but since then takes have dropped 
off alarmingly,’* Hammond reported 
last week. 

Hanimond hopes repeat engage- 
ments on acts that have gone over 
big here will prove the. needed 
medicine, and has Paul Gilbert 
booked for three . weeks starting 
Feb. 19 and Shecky Greene earn- 
ing in April 2. Greene proved one 
of the top “sleepers” Hammond has 
had at the Seven Seas, playing to 
SRO crowds for his entire two- 
week stint last April. 

Hammond is mulling a cover for 
the Gilbert show, which will cost 
$1,250 per week. Seven Seas can 
only accommodate 150. Other 
Seven Seas dates upcoming are the 
Vicki Leigh Trio Friday (5) and 
Joe Maize Trio March 12. 


Palace’s Lombardi Set To 




Jo Lombardi, who batons the 
Palace Theatre, N. Y.,. house band, 
will conduct for Danny Kaye when 
the comic starts an engagement at 
the Shubert Theatre, Philadelphia, 
Feb. 22. Association started, dur- 
ing Kaye’s engagement at the Pal- 
acj, and continued with Lom- 
bardi going to Washington last 
year to maestro the of ch for Kaye. 

Myron Homan, Who conducted 
several RKO vaude units on the 
road, will, take over during 'Lom- 
bardi’s leave. RKO Theatres prexy 
Sol a. Schwartz and house booker 
Danny Friendly okayed Lombardi’s 
sabbatical from the Palate. 


Pittsburgh, Feb. 2. 

Winners on the Dennis James 
teeveer, “Chance of a Lifetime,” 
are finding a very happy and profit- 
able time here at Lenny Litman’s 
downtown nitery, the Copa. On 
the other hand* Litman is turning 
up a bonanza in the “Chance” per- 
sonalities and doing much to solve 
his increasingly difficult booking 
.problems. 

Right after Andre Philippe had 
copped the $1,000 award five weeks 
running, Copa signed him for a 
fortnight and it paid off in spades 
last week, the first of the two, 
when Philippe gave the club its 
biggest trade since Christine Jor- 
gensen- last summer. Second 
“Chance” winner for Copa will be 
Diahann Carroll, who comes in 
Feb. 22, followed a week later, 
March 1, by Leonard Sues, like 
Philippe another five-time Winner. 

Popularity of the “Chance” peo- 
ple can be traced to the fact that 
the Dennis James teeveer is one 
of the highest-rated shows here on 
WDTV, the town’s only VHF chan- 
nel. - Whether Litman will be able 
to run out the string, however, 
is problematical since it’s under- 
stood that Jackie Heller, who op- 
erates the Carousel across the 
street, is negotiating for a run-of- 
the-winner deal with “Chance of a 
Lifetime” and. there may be a local 
race for these personalities. 


PHILLY OP SUES MAG ON 
BYLINE; SEZ BIZ HURT 

Philadelphia, Feb. 2. 

Manuel S. Jenkins, owner of the 
Black Cat cafe, has filed suit p in 
U. S. District Court against Male 
magazine (Male Publishing Corp.) 
for $150,000, through his attorneys, 
the Jerome J. Katz office in this 
city. 

Jenkins alleges Male magazine 
printed the story “If He Hollers, 
Let Him Have It,” under his sig- 
nature and that he knew nothing 
about it. The article, which ap- 
peared in the September issue, was 
harmful to his business due to mis- 
leading captions, pictures and 
statements and made his cafe seem 
nke a “blood pit,” Jenkins averred. 




Tokyo, Jan. 2tf. 

The Ink. Spots arrived here over 
the weekend from Hong Kong for 
a two-week date at the Latin Quar- 
ter, opening tomorrow (Wed.). The 
quartet will also go to Korea for a 
week of Shows for United Nations 
troops. 

Current personnel of the group 
are Charlie Fuqua, Jimmie Holmes; 
Harold Jackson and Antoine Leon. 

Myron Cohen set ftfr the Latin 
Casino, Philadelphia, April 23. 


Nebraska State Fair Id 



‘Follies’ Husky $352*500 
In 15 Cleveland Shows 

Cleveland, Feb. 2. 

“Ice Follies” pulled a husky 
$352,500 in 15 performances at the 
Arena during 10-day ; stay ending 
last week at a $3.75 top. . 

Although there was no window 
sale to speak _ of, with $2 seats 
moving slowly, gross came nearly 
within 4% of last year’s figures lor 
revue here. 



Pittsburgh, Feb. 2. 

Alerted via underground sources 
to a contemplated series of raids on 
small : local spots using peelers in 
their floorshows, strip, acts decided 
to forestall police action by polic- 
ing their own profession. 

Most of the girls in town who 
make a" living • by disrobing met 
I' over the Weekend iii the office' of 
Dixie Wong, agent who books a 
great many of them, with Nat Na-.. 
zarro Jr'.,- head of the Pittsburgh 
unit of AGVA, to set a code that 
would keep tavern owners out of 
the clutches of the law. 

The meeting Was admittedly 
partly inspired by knowledge of 
what happened in Calumet City, 
111., and New Orleans, where the 
bluecoats cracked dbwn and drove 
disrobers out pf town. Some 16 
spots in Pittsburgh area have’been 
employing the girls, and Miss Wong 
said it had been getting so that 
these. roPms would take no other 
t^pe of performer. 

Another thing giris decided on 
was that there would henceforth 
be “no mixing/’ Although that is 
outlawed by the Pennsylvania State 
Liquor Control Board, in the strip 
spots that hasn’t been very actively 
enforced. 


Omaha, Feb. 2. 

Nebraska’s State Fair is in the 
best financial and physical condi- 
tion in its history, it was revealed 
at the annual Board of Agriculture 
meeting in Lincoln last week. 

Secretary Ed Schultz’s report 
shows a sinking fund of more than 
$40,000 and a bank balance of $80,- 
000, most of which is earmarked 
for grounds improvement and run- 
ning expenses. 

The expo’s success Is due to the 
bosses— -and mutuels. Of the $200,- 
000 profit shown last year, $142,- 
000 came from the 17-day race 
meeting that is held prior to the 
Fair.' 

Henry F. Brandt Sr., Beatrice, 
was reelected prexy of the Fair 
Board, along with Schultz; Ed Bau- 
mann, West Point, first, v.p.; 
Charles Warner, Waverly, second 
v.p.; E. S. Schiefelbein, Wahoo, 
treasurer, and Clare Clement, Ord.; 
Fred Rehmeiert Weeping Water; 
Alvin Olson, York, and Irving Mc- 
Ardle, Elk City, board of managers. 


Hub Femme Censor Backs 
Down on Christine Date; 
Now Admits Act Is a Lady 

Boston, Feb. 2. 

Ignited by Mary Driscoll of 
Hub’s Licensing Board, a week- 
long furore Centering on whether 
Christine Jorgensen, opening at the 
Latin- Quarter Friday (5), is a fe- 
male impersonator, therefore pro- 
hibited by city law to appear pro- 
fessionally in a Hub nitery, or a 
femme, finally subsided when Miss 
Driscoll reluctantly a c c e p t e d 
Christine’s claim that “she was a 
lady.” - • 

Miss Driscoll’s announcement 
that “as far as I’m concerned 
Christine is a man” and she’d 
“fight to the last ditch” the pro- 
posed engagement, resulted in 1 the 
challenge from Christine (in N. Y.) 
to “prove I’m not a lady.” Miss 
Driscoll finally relented when it 
was reported that Christine’s pass- 
port labels her “female,” retreat- 
ing with “if it’s good enough for 
the Government, it’s good enough 
for me.” 


FIRST CINCY VAUDER IN 
YEARS AS KIDS’ BENEFIT 

First vaude show in several years 
to be held at the Taft/Theatre, Cin- 
cinnati, will be held for three days 
Starting Feb. 18. Bill will be given 
under auspices of the Shriners for 
the benefit of stricken children. 
Program will comprise acts that 
have played the Palace Theatre, 
N. Y. The Cincinnati Er.quirer is 
aiding in the promotion. 

Booker Dan Friendly has. set Hal 
LeRoy, Jackie Bright, Visionaires, 
Chris; Cross, Antoinettes,. Honey 
Girls and the Three Arnauts. 


Dared in Mgt Switch 
From Ventura to Trend 

George W. Scrimshaw, who re- 
cently came into the personal man- 
agement field, has bought the man- 
agement contract of DCnise Darcel 
from Marcel Ventura, who . has 
been handling her for many years. 
Scrimshaw is operating under the 
name of Trend Artists. 

Ventura will continue to manage 
Helene Francoisc, Miss Darcel’s 
sister. 




MCA Gets Iceshow Into 
New Yorker in New Setup 

The Hotel New Yorker, N. Y., 
will get a. land and Ice show pack- 
age froifn Music Corp, of America, 
starting Feb. 18. For many yeajes 
General Artists Corp. had been 
doing the bulk of the booking here. 
New iceshow will be headed by 
Ed & Wilma Leary, and has been 
working hotel 'spots around the 
country, Jo Barnum and Ben Deva 
are also ini the lineup. The Nick 
Kisley band also comes in on that 
dateV 

The New Yorker was recently 
taken over by the Hilton Hotel 
chain. Apparently ice shows will 
continue for the time being. 



Hairy Romm, who headed the 
Music Corp. of America theatre 
department for four years before 
going, into the MCA tele, sector, 
resigned that firm last week fol- 
lowing a series of “upper echelon 
disagreements.” Parting was ami- 
cable on both sides. According to 
Romm, disagreements centered 
around “economic matters.” 

Romni felt that the fact that he 
had persuaded several top acts to 
go With MCA should have had 
more recognition. He had been in- 
stvuniental in getting such acts as 
the Andrews Sisters, Connee Bos- 
well, Teresa Brewer, Martha 
Wright, Dorothy Sarnoff, Joan Ed- 
wards, June Hutton and others on. 
the MCA lists. 

Folowiqg his tenure in the the- 
atre department, Romm worked on 
the Eddie Fisher video show and 
“Orchid Award.” Previously, he 
had been with his own agency, and 
prior to that for many years was 
the act department head at Gen- 
eral Artists Corp. 

Romm said his plans weren’t 
definite. He’ll tpke off for the 
Coast and Arizona for a rest and 
then make a decision as to What 
he’ll do. While on the Coast, he’ll 
look into picture: possibilities. He 
produced two films several years 
ago, 


CLOVER, OLDEST NITERY 
IN PORTLAND, SHUTTERS 

Portland, Ore., Feb. 2. 

The Clover Club, Portland’s old- 
est theatre restaurant, shuttered 
Jan. I for a remodeling job. Last 
week, the nitery hod gone broke. 
Harry (Swede) Ferguson, presi- 
dent, filed a voluntary bankruptcy 
petition and it was adjudicated by 
U. S. District Judge Gus J, Solo- 
mon. 

Ferguson, declared . assets of the 
corporation at*$5,482 and liabilities 
at $45,63<L. Principar&sset is listed 
as NSF checks With a total face 
value of $3,080. Chief liability is 
$17,569 owed to the U. S. in taxes. 
Of this sum* $13,313 is for cabaret 
taxes and $3,517 for withholding 
taxes. 

Ferguson owns 24 shares of the 
outfit and his wife pne share. Fifty 
shares are “held in escrow on a 
purchase agreement from William 
Taub.” Night spot had a floorshow 
fpr many years. 


Ann Sothern .Gets 20G 



: ■ Hollywood, Feb. 2. . 

Aim Sothern is putting together 
a nitery package in which she’ll 
make her supperclub debut at El 
Rancho Vegas, Las Vegas, starting 
June 30. Deal with hostelry own- 
er Beldon Katleman Calls for her 
to receive a flat $20,000 per week, 
out of which she will pay all talent 
in her revue. 

Actress now is setting the for- 
mat and dickering with Robert Al- 
ton, who will probably - direct. 
House probably will retain, and 
consequently pay for, its own line 
of girls and band, but Miss Soth- 
ern will furnish the rest of the 
show. 


VAU DEVILLE 

. Grades 
as 

One of the most drastic actions 
ever taken against a major agency 
has been taken by the American 
Guild of Variety Artists at tha . • 
Lew Sc Leslie Grade Agency. 
Union, at a hearing in which the 
percentery wasn’t represented, re- 
voked the agency franchise last 
week. 

: Union charged that the Grade 
office, in relations with the Amin 
Bros,, an alien aero act, Had placed 
the initials of One of the members 
to a series of clauses in contracts. 

; Hearing came when Eddie Elkort, 
agency veepee, who heads the 
Grades* American operations, was 
on a trip to the Coast, He claims 
that he got only 24 hours’ notice * 
before the confab. Elkort stated 
that he had been attempting to gel 
an arbitration on the matter foi 
four months. The case had been 
placed with the Artists Representa- 
tives Assn., which would have rep- 
resented the agency before AGVA. 
Jack Katz, ARA attorney, was also 
on the Coast. Latter is expected 
bpek next week, Elkort’s attorney, 

J. Robert Broden will confer with 
AGVA counsel, Silyerstone & 
Rosenthal today (Wed ). 

Contrary to Rules? 

Elkort stated in regard to thr 
hearing, “We are disregarding th« 
unilateral and arbitrary action, 
since it is contrary ‘ to the rules 
agreed to between AGVA and 
ARA. And just as AGVA expects 
the agents to live up to their obli- 
gations, we expect AGVA to livi 
up to their agreement.” 

AGVA spokesman stated that 11 
was established that the initials 
on the contracts weren’t genuine. 

A police handwriting expert re- 
ported on the matter. 

The Grades’ homeoffice is is 
London. They established New 
York offices some years ago with 
Elkort at the head. They also have 
a Hollywood office currently head- 
ed by Henry Dunn, who resigned 
as national administrative secre-*-. 
tary of AGVA three years ago to 
join the Grade office. 

* Elkort returned early this week 
from the Coast, Where he had been 
conferring with Dunn. Dunn’s con- 
tract is being renewed on a short- 
term basis. 

. Elkort stated that en route from 
the Coast, he stopped off in Chi- 
cago to confer with the Amin Bros., 
who are current at the Palmer 
House. Elkort said that the Amins 
were aghast at the action taken on 
their behalf. Elkort said that the 
charges were brought to AGVA by 
Tony Azzis, who acts as the team’s 
personal manager when in the U. S. 
Original contract between the 
Amins and the Grades was execut- 
ed in Paris with Roger Bernheim, 
their European personal manager, 
and the Grade office. AGVA didn’t 
say who affixed the Initiation the 
contract, except that it wasn’t by 
any of the Amin Bros. 

MEL TORME TO TOPLINE 
NEW ATLANTA NITERY 

Atlanta, Feb. 2. 

A new nitery is being readied 
for a March 1 preem with Mel 
Torme toplining. Spot, labeled 
Ferry Tower, will be part of an 
apartment hotel operation headed 
by Courtney Wynn. 

ft’s the second recent addition " 
to Atlanta nightlife. Sans Souci, 
which bowed recently, had Dwight 
Fiske in the top spot. He’s been 
re-signed for a December date. 


Hazej Scott With Pitt Orch 
In Concert Season Start 

Hazel Scott, who concertized in 
Europe during the fall and then 
visited Haiti, will begin her U. S. 
concert season Saturday (6) with 
an appearance with the Pittsburgh 
Symphony. Pianist has a string of 
solo dates through February and 
March, with a few symphony shots 
included, such as the Toronto Sym- 
phony Feb. 12. 

In some dates she’ll add a bass 
fiddle and drum for an “after-con- 
cert” feature, in which she also Will 
sing. Miss Scott did this feature 

in Paris last fall with success. Pian- 
ist is being managed by the Coppi- 
! cus, Schang Sc Brown division of 
j Columbia Artists Mgt 




THE NATION’S GREAT NE\ 



Two Engagements in Bosto 

(The huge METROPOLITAN Theati 

r 

and LAST WEEK Played to Over 9 4 

(Januarv 25th) ■! 





men'* re ° 3a M Q**?.. 

^aod 2>«^f 


Thanks tor 

history of 't' e \ove yon* 

Jh^ AU !'T u 

W<M ** 



Personal Management 
FRANK P. BARONE 


Public Relations 
HARRY SOBOL 





WIDE VI I AE 


Vedaefldqr f Fthraify . & . 1954 



Statler Hotel, It. V* 

Horace Heidt "American Wav 
Revue ” with \ Johnny Standley, 
Richard Kerr, Ralph Sigwald, Al- 
len Brenncman, Russ Budd, Jimmy 
Shelton, Lyzabeth Lynch/ Chorus 
(8) and Orch (13). 

Horace .Heidt, who calls the 
present Semester his 30th anniver- 
sary in show business* whiclr might 
seem to make him prematurely 
competitive to Paul “Pops” White- 
man, is making his first N; Y. cafe 
appearance in 14 years. The com- 
parison to Whiteman can carry 
one step further in that both show- 
men now , specialize in “discover- 
ing” young talent. In Heidt's case, 
he may be closer to Major Bowes 
and Ted Mack. But a Bowes 1 who 
has kept his figure and his sex- 
appeal, and who tosses off a neat 
goftshoe essence 'without drawing 
a single bead of perspiration. 

First and last during his 30-year 
span in entertainment, Heidt, the 
whilom cadet from the Culver Mil- 
itary Afcadeniy, has shown an ap- 
preciation of “gimmicks.” When 
he first hit the old Palate during 
the stage band craze, he had many 
a novel stunt, including a remark- 
able, trained German shepherd 
dog. Later in radio. Heidt bought 
th8 franchise to Haydn Evans’ 
“Pot O' Gold” gimmick, early fore- 
runner of many another radio par- 
ticipation .com eon. In more recent 
years, Heidt lias been the globe- 
trotting Combo. BarnUm-Columbus 
of the young gloryhunters. 

The Dreseiit Statler engagement 
Is plainly a showcasing for the 
Heidt group, and may well be 

{ >layed at a net loss to Ileidt who 
s east stalking a new sponsor. His 
last was American Tobacco, for 
which he produced “The American 
Way.” which is the theme sdng 
which opens and closes this Cafe 
Rouge venture. 

Heidt is vastly show-wise and 
that fact gives scheme and cohe- 
sion to a revue that is more all- 
American ti e: broadcasting) in fla- 
vor than bigtime New York floor 
showy. Heidt sticks in several ser- 
monet s on American opportunity. 
He “personalizes” his introduc- 
tions, puts great store by the per- 
I former's town of origin. Heidt’s 
announcements are an integral 
part of his showmanship formula 
and he handles them, and himself, 
with much urbanity and authority. 
The authority, in short, of 30 years 
before the masters. 

The show is very fast and be- 
speaks intensive rehearsing— some- 
thing that cannot be repeated with 
respect to his Musical Knights 
when . they fill in for dancing. 
That’s extremely tepid and unex- 
citing dansapation although allow- 
ance should perhaps be made for 
opening night miscues and fatigue. 
Dancers were left standing on the 
floor at one point for a good three 


minutes while the orchestra mem- 
bers conferred by sign language 
on whether, to fake their break. or 
go on. No sighal of any sort was 
given the public, it was not the 
public the men were, just then 
thinking of, but themselves, 

The sharp contrast between the 
dancing style and the show style 
prompted extra scrutiny when the 
performance first got under way 
around 8:30, It didn’t seem like 
the two brands of music, the one 
so limp and the other so driving, 
could come from the same bunch. 

Opening night may account for 
a number of technical details. 
After nearly a generation without 
a floor show the big terminal-like 
Cafe . Rouge was not well setup to 
handle the lighting. A single spot 
on a raised platform followed the 
performers around the floor, blintfc 
ing different tables at different 
moments. The loudspeaker behind 
the orchestra stand was also some- 
thing of an ordeal for those un- 
fortunately nearby. Such patrons 
got blare, blind and the chorus be- 
hind. 

But the show built. It was minus 
in humor and occasionally the in- 
dividual talents were higher in 
promise than payoff. Still the au- 
dience which filled* the 700-capac- 
ity room for the dinner show last 
Friday (29) warmed up as the hour 
divertissement unfolded. The net 
impression is that the Heidt offer- 
ing will draw its o\yn class of pa- 
tronage and more than gratify 
them. It is cleancut and snappy 
throughout. It is never subtle. 
Neither is the Cafe Rouge. . 

Richard Kerr, who uses a high 
baby voice for his talk, whams 
across a number of applause-evok- 
ing impersonations of heavy -toned 
established .pop singers. Kerr has 
variety and an air of. promise. that 
he’ll mark his own 30th anniv in 
show biz one day. Johnny “In The 
Book” Standley exhibits less vari- 
ety and more topical immediacy 
but his single specialty is a tour 
de theatre (and disk) with plenty 
of fisssionable smack. 

Booming-voiced Ralph Sigwald 
comes close to the close as Heidt 
sequences his talents for crescen- 
do. Allen Brenneman, a singer; 
Russ Budd, a hoofer; Lyzabeth 
Lynch, a tube-blowing shouter 
(good for a few giggles), and 
others. A considerable novelty 
early in the lineup is. a boy, Jim- 
my Sheldoif, announced s as aged 
12, and looking younger, who 
comes at a set of snare drums with 
the sustained fury of a hurricane. 

Heidt show biz has nothing, but 
nothing, in common with Le Rl»- 
ban Bleu or Copa. But he un- 
doubtedly has lots of contact with, 
following among, and money’s- 
worth satisfaction for the rank and 
file of amusement seekers, who 
may be identified as those who 
register, at the Statler. Land. 


Mocfipbo, PqIIjwooiI 

Hollywood* Jan., 28. 

■ Amalia; Paul HeberP Qrch C7); 
$3, coper* ... • 


An Old Smoothie'*' and "Wizard Of 
,Ozf* get recognition and Haley 
(loosens up in' this tamiliarniche. 

’ A- circus arrangement ' follows 
Haley as the last phase of the show. 
The Moro-Landis. line 4s so , won- 
derful with its introduction to 
Gautier's Steeplechase, that the 
chase is not up to it. The ponies 
trot around the stage and the dogs 


Vie En Bose 
in New Ybrfc and Had a long run 
in Mexico City. 

Warbler looks like 1 a good bet 
here, though her boxofflee chances 
rest largely on word-of-mouth. It’s 
■ the type of singing act that fits 
neatly into the entertainment de- 
mands of the Mocambo regulars 
and would mesh with the policy of 
perhaps half-a-dozen rooms around 
the country. She’d probably ho 
lost, however, in the larger, more 
strictly commercial niteries. 

Working with a pair of Portu- 
guese guitarists ana relying only 
slightly on the orchestra backing' 
of the Paul Hebert crew, she makes 
a striking impression in a 20- 
minute stint. Its weakness, how- 
ever, stems from the fact that only 
two of her : Portuguese numbers, 
“Baion” ’ and the original version 
of ‘‘April in Portugal,” are famil- 
iar, and she does* only one in 
English, “Hi Lili.” Another Yankee 
tune wouldn’t hurt, particularly 
since the accent is easy to take. 

Dark-featured and with a com- 
pelling appearance, Amalia gains 
added visual impact through her 
caparisoning — a simple black shawl 
caught up at the shoulder with a 
jeweled clip. Vocally it’s the ma- 
terial more than the actual voice 
that .registers, since her warbling 
is only average, Guitarists work 
on stage Witn her, 

"Hebert crew continues to handle 
the dance chores with aplomb, . 

Kap. 


The Mocambo apparently is be- 
coming the* (Scotch and) water-ing 
place of the west, with an en- 
tertainment policy leaning toward 

one to the other. One. 

Amalia, the Portuguese fado singer ) P u ® steals the act 0 n his hlnd legs, 
who has played La ~ ~ 


Riverside, Reno 

Reno, Jan. 26. 

Jack Haley, Gautier's Steeple- 
chase, Marvin Roy, Riverside Star- 
lets , Bill Clifford Orch; no cover 
or minimum. 


Jack Haley, with his quiet, wide- 
eyed, stick-to-the-script delivery, is 
a little lost at first to Riverside- 
liners, who have just had the loud, 
adlibbing, fasWalking Paul Gilbert. 
Haley is well equipped with mate- 
rial but it doesn’t, seem to fit him. 
His jokes aren’t bad. His chatter 
moves along, and his songs are fine. 
But hardly anything comes of 
these things at first. 

Life begins to flow when Haley 
trots out many of the musicomedy 
hits he launched. He himself looks 
revived and plaudits become en- 
thusiastic instead of polite. “Button 
Up Your Overcoat,” Did You Ever 
See a Dream . Walking,” “You’re 


Sensational 




i 


With Their "FLYING SAUCERS" 
and " 

‘ORIGINAL BALLOON CARTOONS" 
Currently on Tour with 

BM ‘Motprama Show’ of 1 954 

Just Concluded 

Waldorf-Astoria, New York 

Followed by 

MIAMI, Florida 
LOS ANGLES, California 
SAN FRANCISCO, California 


February 22 - 28, "FERIA 1954" — Havana, Cuba 
Thanks EDDIE ELKORT 

Direction: LEON NEWMAN and MARK J. LEDDY 
48 West 48th Street, New York 


Jlidsoit 6-2760 




I ' l 1 ' t I ■ l (! ■ ■ » ' i t i i , / > ■■ ■ I f 1 1 • | t 1 1 i H 


pup 

dressed in tails end a false face. 
Enough bplbs are produced dur- 
ing the stanza of Marvin Roy to 
light the theatre restaurant. The 
blackgloved magician produces 
various wattage from all over, 
pours liquid from 'the bulbs,. and in 
a' Houdioi-like finale, pulls a string 
of a dozen vari-colored lights out 
of his mouth, v v.. 

Bill Clifford’s band gives flawless 
support to all acts. They’re a “teal 
credit to the nitery. Mark. 

Balinese Rni., Galveston 

Galveston, Jan. 28. 
Joe E. Lewis, Lois Ray , Bob 
Glass with Connie Kane ; $3-$5 
Sat. minimum. 


. With more than 10Q Houstonians 
making the long drive, the Joe E, 
Lewis opening in the spacious 
Balinese Room was only marred by 
one thing — there? weren’t enough 
seats to go around. The rafter- 
packing gathering came early and 
stayed late to watch and listen 
to Lewis. 

His ability to make comedy lines 
out of current happenings, na- 
tional, state and local, defies ex- 
planation, but there’s a howl in 
every line. With an original format 
that is supposed to . spread itself 
to 15 minutes on the outside, it 
stretched for almost an hour and 
a half and rocked the big room 
from one side to the other. The 
guy’s terrific, 

Lewis was preceded by shapely 
little Lois Ray, who tips a mean 
tap, with her several mimics of 
Bill Robinson well received. She 
serves as a perfect Joe E. foil, 
and made more than a few friends 
on opening night. 

The show and dance time — what 
was left after Joe E. was through 
—was well handled by Bob Glass 
and his orchestra, with Connie 
Kane proving a solid favorite on 
the vocals. . Jcdo. 


- r \ 


Bliiiirub^. Bouton 

v . Doston* Jan, $8,- 

Julius LttRon (2), Tim Herbert 
it Don Saxon, Three Parks, The Ar- 
tiauts (3). Pavo & Mai, Phil Law- 
rence it -Mitx ijt Michael Gaylord's 
Orch (13), Lou Weir, organist; 
$4.60 minimum. 


Chateau Madrid, IV. Y. 

Alfredo Sadel, Tanya Reyes, 
Line (5), Pupi Campo & Freddy 
Alonso Orchs; $3.50 minimum. 


Thip is Julius LaKosa’s second 
Hub appearance (his first was at 
the Metropolitan Theatre shortly 
after the Godfrey affair) and Judg- 
ing from the reaction 'of open* 
ing nighters, thb guy’s popularity 
hasn’t dwindled a bit. As further' 
substantiation, owner Stanley Blin- 
strub, basing Jiis crystal-gazing on 
the flock of reservations, figures 
he’ll smash the record set by 
Frankid Laine here last season. At 
any rate, 4t appears he’ll come 
close. . 

P e r f.o r m a n c e-w 1 s e, LaRosa 
showed to good advantage in this 
vast bistro* his boyish naivete cou- 
pled with his apparent good-nature 
and bashfulness clicking strongly 
with his fans, which at opener con- 
sisted mainly of femmes ranging 
from teenagers to middleagers. 
The guy Was “home’’ from the mo- 
ment, he ambled onstage and 
launched Into “Sitting on Top of 
World” and continuing throughout 
his songbag, which includes sev- 
eral ballads; "No' Biz Like Show 
Biz,” genuflecting to Godfrey, 
winding with "The Big Bell . Went 
Bang,” also anent A.G. Spotted 
also was his w.k. “Eh, Cumpari,” 
which he slyly introed with a few 
bars of “Wild Irish Rose,” singing 
it replete with Italian asides, much 
to the amusement of his many ad- 
mirers who understand the lan- 
guage. His betweeh-number chat- 
ter is not exactly inspiring or 
sophisticated, while his occasional 
groping for the proper words is en- 
tirely within character. . 

The surrounding lineup is typi- 
cal Blinstrub fare-slick sight acts. 
Bill opens with Phil Lawrence and 
Mitzi, two attractive youngsters 
who cavort gracefully through a 
series of nifty terp steps to nice 
customer reaction. Payo & Mai 
also hit paydirt via the male mem- 
ber’s adeptness at juggling hats, 
balls, etc., while lurching around 
stage perched on a 10-foot uni- 
cycle. In addition to adding eye- 
lure, femme tosses paraphernalia 
to her partner. ' 

The Amauts, two unties and , a 
femme, nab a neat shafte of yocks 
with, their trick fiddling and bird- 
talk'gimmick, and the Three Parks, 
also two guys and a femme, regis- 
ter solidly with a sock sesh of bal- 
ancing and aero tricks, Traveling 

(Continued on page 64) 


This east side . Latin spot may 
not have any powerhouse layouts 
but it has a payoff formula. The 
decor Is tasteful, the cuisine even 
more so and- the floor shows, while 
modestly budgeted, have enough 
pace and flash to register as pleas- 
ing entertainment packages. 

For the current lineup, Alfredo 
S&del, a South American tenor, re-; 
turns to this room with an effec- 1 
tive repertory of songs. Sadel, a 1 
handsome lad, sticks mostly to I 
south-of-the-border numbers, pro- 
jecting them with the Spanish 
equivalent of commercial schmaltz. 
On one current U. S. bestseller, 
Rags to Riches,” he handles the 
lyrics lutfidly to rate a strong hand. 

In the flamenco groove, Tanya 
Reyes taps through a standard 
terping routine with plenty of heel 
and castanet clicking. She’s adept 
this native dancing style, but 
should cut out the gumchewing 
while performing. It makes her 
appear more like a stenographer 
than a senorita. 

, The line of three girls and two 
boys shapes up nicely in a couple 
of production numbers, perform- 
ing ^ verve and precision. 
Freddy Alonso’s orch backs up the 
show^ competently and alternates 
on the bandstand with Pupi 
Campo s combo for customer 
dansapation in a Variety of chile 
rhythms. Herm. 


"Solid Entertainment " 

VARIETY. 



RED CAPS 

with 

DAMITA JO 

Currently: 

CIRO'S, Miami Beach 

Direction: MCA 


BUD and CECE 

ROBINSON 

Currently 

CHICAGO THEATRE 

Chicago 


Direction— M.C. A. 


RALPH and LORRAINE 


(Tin toy 

H ELD OVER 


"Ralph and Lorrain*, 
a dancG tiam, do a 
wonderfully (magi- 
native bit on a man- 
nequin. They wilt 
be heard frbti i," 

-LEO OUIID, 
Hollywood 
Reporter. 

Direction: M.C.A. 


V, a ,-v 




and the Manneqntn . . .) 

Statler Hotel, Lot Angeles, California 


"Ralph and Lorraine 
pulled out all the 
etope in epecial 
dance routinef. The 
Calypso and Manne- 
quin' numbers' were; 
especially etrikinfl* 
They were an im- 
mediate hit." 

—RAY HEWITT 
lot Angeles News . 

AvaVabl* March 15th 

i tHkJ ti % 



Wednesday, February 3, 1954 



Walters 


One of the longest nitery routes 
in the world is currently being of- 
fered acts by Lou Walters, operator 
of the Latin Quarters in New York 
and Miami Beach. Walters is able 
to offer talent more than a year’s 
work. ...... 

Walters recently signed the 
Weire Bros, to a contract With suf- 
ficient options to carry the act for 
a year. As it works out, a per- 
former can play the act a full sea- 
son in Florida, thence to Las Vegas, 
where Walters has in arrangement 
with the Desert Inn to show his 
units. Following that, come dates 
in Reno and St. Louis, and then 
to the Latin Quarter, N. Y„ where 
an act can stay for six months or 
more. <. 

This arrangement makes the 
Walters route one of the lengthiest 
in the field* Among the turns that 
have gone the entire . route with 
Walters are Les Charlivels, and the 
Ashtons are likely to ditto. 

Sometimes this arrangement can 
he a handicap to the acts. Should 
Walters sign a performer to .this 
arrangement it sometimes commits 
the turn to a specific nitery in Las 
Vegas, even though he could get 
a better deal elsewhere in the 
greenfelt country. . However, the 
advantages far outweigh the disad- 
vantages. A year’s consecutive 
work is one of the rarest commodi- 
ties in the field. 



New York 

Henny Youngman has been 
signed for the Palladium, London, 
March 22 . . . Chico & Harpo Marx 
teaming for a stand at the Desert 
Inn, Las Vegas, in June . ■; . Vincent 
Travers to tour with General Mo- 
tors Motorama . . . De Marco Sisters 

# signed for La Vie en Rose,. N. Y. t 
March 11 . . . Joey Bishop pacted 
for the Copacabana, N. Y., on the 
Helen Traubel show, Feb. 25 . . . 
Toni Arden inked for the Nautilus, 
Miami Beach, Feb. 24. 

Publicists Guild to hold' their 
annual Ballyhoo Ball, March 30, at 
the Hotel Astor. Co-chairmen of 
the event are Richard Mardus, Ivan 
Black and John O’Malley . . . Leon- 
ard Conner, along with Ted Henni- 
gaii and Lillian Lindeman, elected 
to the board of National Variety 
Artists . . . Billy Shepard opened 
at the Chateau, Rochester, Monday 
(1) . . . Signed for the Balinese 
Room, Galveston, are Beatrice.Kay, 
March 21, and Jackie Kannon, 

• June 4. 


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Date; Wants More Time 

J eannette MacDonald has begged 
out of the Hotel Pierre, N. Y.y 
stand, which was to have started 
March 23. She’s current at the 
Hotel Ambassador’s. Cocoanut 
Grove, Los Angeles, and presum- 
ably wants to give her turn more 
polishing before hitting New York* 
.Nelson Eddy, who worked with 
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tillion Room, Feb. 23. 








Vet trouper Fred Allen came to 
the rescue of a vaude unit, that 
was in Canada without any funds. 
Allen advanced sufficient coin to 
a group of performers headed by 
Francis Renault to come back to 
New York. 

According to Renault, agents 
named Lawrence Leon and Sam 
Young booked them for a promo- 
tion at the Pitt Memorial Hall, St, 
Johns, Newfoundland, under au- 
spices of the Veterans Legion. 
Troupe, said Renault, came to the 
city at their own expense and 
upon arrival found that no such 
arrangements had been made by 
the promoters. Renault declared 
that members of his troupe, which 
had exhausted their available capi- 
tal for fares to St. Johns, were left 
with no means of getting money 
and facing big hotel bills. . 

Renault appealed to the Ameri- 
can Guild of Variety Artists in 
Boston, but was told they couldn’t 
help him because he was behind 
in his dues. He then appealed to 
Allen, a friend of many years, for 
help in getting him and his troupe 
out of Canada. 

With Renault in the unit were 
Pablo, a magico; Harry Watkins, 
Negro singer-dancer; Nellie Wright; 
pianist; Amelia Gilmore, dancer; 
Frank Wade, singer, and Nellisa, 
singer. 


CAVALLARO SIGNED FOR 
B.A., 

Carmen Cavallaro has been 
signed to do a series of theatre and 
radio dates in Buenos Aires and 
Montevideo. He’ll start the South 
American jaunt March 2. 

Following this trip, he’ll work 
the Radio Centre Theatre, Havana, 
before returning to the U. S. 


Saranac take 

v By Happy Benway 

Saranac Lake, N. Y., Feb. 2. 

Arthur Mayer, Ned Shugrue and 
Murray Weiss, Variety Club Hos- 
pital exectives. in from N. Y. and 
Boston for the regular institution 
inspection and to supervise instal- 
lation of the new 3-D equipment 
being installed in the main lounge 
room. 

Murray (& Burns) Kissen emeiv 
gencied into the general hospital 
for a major overhauling, now back 
at th^ Will Rogers recuperating in 
solid comfort. 

James Stewart, of Lubliner-Tring 
circuit and former manager of 
Clark Theatre, off to Chicago after 
hitting the medical good clinic 
jackpot; rated 10-day. . furlough, 
first out of the sanitarium. 

Eric Cederberg, former film pho- 
tographer for Metro and recently 
with Esquire, flashing his first nifty 
clinic report but strictly a bed pa- 
tient. 

John (IATSE) Streeper, Atlantic 
City technician, beat a four-week 
bed . siege and now in circulation 
for bi-weekly pictures and dining 
room privileges. 

Ruth Cockrill, of Theatre Supply 
and Film Exchange, Charlotte, 
N. C., skedded for a major opera- 
tion; her improvement since her 
first operation is a special mention; 

Eugqne (Dippy) piers, of the 
Murphy Aqua Show, doing nip-ups, 
on. receipt of another top medical 
clinic report; now a full-fledged 
member of ambulatory, gang. 

'“ to wheete-iHr---* 


iiitflll 


Greco on Concert Tour 
With B’way Run Skedded 

Jose Greco and his dance troupe 
of 27, currently on a concert tour, 
are slated for a Broadway engage* 
ment April 26 to May 15. House 
has not been set as yet. Tour, 
jvhich opened in Richmond Jan. 14, 
following Greco’s nitery run with a 
smaller group at the Empire Room 
of the Waldorf-Astoria, N. Y., 
winds up with the N. Y. stand. 
Greco’s itinerary also includes two 4 
weeks at the Curran Theatre, 
Frisco, beginning March >1. 

_ Greco also has a summer date at 
Lewisohn Stadium, N. Y., July 5 
and a week at the Greek Theatre, 
L. A., beginning Aug- 16. While 
in Hollywood, Greco will also fill 
a film commitment. 



Toronto, Feb. 2. 

In his second year as general 

manager of the Canadian National 
Exhibition here, Hiram McCallum, 
ex-mayor of Toronto, has turned in 
$379,897 as surplus earnings to the 
city coffers. This despite a heat- 
wave which saw last fall’s annual 
fortnightly show in a drop of $162,- 
000 on previous year’s revenue for 
over 150,000 drop in attendance, 
though some 1,300,000 people 
clicked the turnstiles at 50c a head 
to rack up the second highest sur- 


plus in the CNE’s 75-year history. 
(Mark was set previous year when, 
after a civic cleanup of CNE oper- 
ations, McCallum was appointed 
g.m.). 

Financial statement for the ’53 
operation shows that admissions 
for the fortnight totalled $738;650; 
the 24,000-seater grandstand show 
grossed $499,773; exhibitors’ space 
fees, $475,255; concessionaires* 
CNE share, $302,306; midway 

(Continued on page 65) 



• I i \ i fill li l 1 1 1 I t | » IV/. 1 1 I • I • 1 1 1 1 [ih h £ 



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THERE ARE NO PEOPLE 
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If you can 




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greatest singles has been running a very successful ladies ap- 
parel shop for us for the last 20 years. This signal success can 
be paralleled many times. 

We want top "guys and gals" of showbusiness extraction to 
run women's high fashion dress stores. No selling experience 
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be the STAR of your own store. 


Call or write for appointment: 

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c/o Personnel 
225 West 34th Street 
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64 


VAiMmill 


Wednesday^ Ffbnmry 1954 



Bliifstrub’s, Ronton 

with, but hot part of LaRosa's act, 
is the comedy duo, Tim Herbert 
and Don Saxon, who serve nicely 
as warmer-uppers for the vocalist. 
Guys give out with zany impreshes 
and a general tfesh of tomfoolery 
that earns them solid yocks. 

Michael Gaylord's orch, upped to 
13 for this engagement, ana aided 
by LaRosa’s personal pianist dur- 
ing his stint, cuts the show in work- 
manlike. fashion, also setting cus- 
tomer terping tempos. Lou Weir 
fills in the lulls on the Hammond. 


i 'asiililnnca, Miami B’cli 

Miami Beach, Jan. 30. 
Billy Daniels with Benny Payne, 
Gene Baylos, June Taylor Line, 
(7), David Tyler Orch; $6 & $5 
food or bcv. minimum. 


Largest 


hotel-cafe among the 
ocean front swankeries is the Club 
Morocco (550). Limited on running 
hours and local ordinance which 
enforces a 1 . A.M. stop on enter- 
tainment and dancing, the owners 
have found difficulty in striking on 
a show policy which will enable 
them to make the room a profitable 
operation'. Several seasons ago a 
. bigname policy was . tried with in- 
and-out results. Past year found 
.summer' legit installed with good’ 
start, then fadeout once season 
crowd arrived. They're trying 
again, this time adding first chorus 
group to play a hostel, plus Billy 
Daniels and Gene Baylos. 

The draw of Daniels in this area 
was evidenced opening night with 
turnaways for first show and solid 
house for second. Added was the 
group of pub-crawlers who make 
every preem. Despite the big till- 
take, operators aren't predicting 
solution of their patronage prob- 
lem until they see what happens 
come post-weekend. 

Daniels comes up with his stand- 
ard catalog that features adroit 
mixture of torch, ballad and 
bounce tunes. A bit more subdued 
than when seen on previous occa- 
sions, he injects a soft touch to 
such pops, as “I Love Paris" and 
“Stranger In Paradise" to garner 
rapt attention from the distaffers. 
The blend-in of a drive-rliythm. 
duet mg with ace accompanist 
Benny Payne 'on medleys and 
encore toppers “Black Magic" and 
“Yiddishe Momma" tote him wham 
boWofT. Always, there is the sexy 
touch and occasional mobile man- 
ner around mike to hold’ attention 
throughout. 

Baylos has played most bistros 
in town— 7 hotel or night club — 
through the past six or seven years. 
The regular return has made him 
a well-known face to the cafegoers. 
Material, in that time, hasn't 
changed qiuch, although new biz 
Interwoven brightens his routines. 

.1 une Taylor has brought in one 


of the handsomest set of chorines 
seen in these parts in many a 
month. Long stemmed eye-fillers, 
in brief, smart costumes, set tip a 
brace of precision heel-and-toe 
designings that gathers heavy mitts 
from the viewers. The intricate 
patterns are handled with assur- 
ance, Group almost stole the show 
on opening night. 

David Tyler and his orch set up 
the backgrounds superbly. 

v Lary. 


Hotel CTuise, St* Louis 

St. Louis, Jan, 29. 

Aiiics Bros. ( 4), Harry Mimmo, 
Rafael and Parisienne Models (3>, 
Art Lowry Orch (11 ); $1-$1.50. 

A layout of new faces headlined 
by the’ Ames Bros, is drawing 
near-capacity mobs to this west 
end spot, and the spenders are get- 
ting plenty in the 70-minute ses- 
sion that is brimming over with a 
neat variety of entertainment. Half 
of the session is. consumed by the 
Ames group, whose repertoire runs 
the gamut from pop ditties to old- 
ies, with impressions and some 
comedy tossed in, all of which 
scores heavily. 

Their interp of “Clancy Lowers 
the Boom,” with the boys revert- 
ing to Irish brogue, is but one of 
the numbers that ..cops a resound- 
ing hand: Their impressions of 
Frankie Lane, Billy Eckstine, Nat 
(King) Cole. Ezio Pinza and John- 
nie Ray with a wet towel being 
wrung dry before the mike, are 
sockeroo. 

Sessions opens with Rafael and 
his two shapely blonde lookers, 
who wear dresses he fashions, and 
with a gal joining him for some 
aero bits. 

Harry Mimmo. diminutive comic, 
wins chuckles for his pantomime. 
His running gab With ringsiders 
cops a heavy mitt. Art Lowry’s 
lads liave a big job On their hands 
for this session but turn in a neat 
stint. Sahu. 


Horizon Room, PIU 

Pittsburgh, Jan. 26. 
Lecuona Cuban Boys, Nelle Cas- 
tell, Rafael Hernan; no cover or 
minimum. . 


LEW 


BLACK 

. and 
PAT 

DUNDEE 

(Beauty end 
the least) 

A new note In 
Clamor Comedy 

Stigerf by 
Mervyn NELSON 

— mit.— 

CASS FRANKLIN 
Lou Walter* Ent 
1776 Broadway 
New York 



First time in Pittsburgh for the 
Lecuona Cuban Boys. It won’t be 
the last. They're slightly terrific, 
musiewise. showwise, and virtually 
everything elsewise; ■»"; 

Besides dishing out the dance 
music here, in all kinds of rhythms, 
they step out with a floor revue 
that goes like a blue streak. The 
emphasis here, of course, is Latin-r 
American flavored arid that’s where 
they shine. Handsomely outfitted 
in flashy, native costumes, Cuban 
Boys drive from one crack number 
to another and . three quarters of 
an hour passes in nothing flat. 

Organization, which still has six 
members of the original troupe 
founded in 193(T by Ernesto Lecu- 
ona, composer of “Siboney" and 
“Malaguena," has showcases for 
individuals and group combinations 
and they’re all compact and showy, 
vital and tasty. 

Featured are Nelle Castell, a 
bundle of Cuban dynamite -whose 
shakes practically send the Horizon 
Room into convulsions, particularly 
when she ties a string of maracas 
around her hips and lets go, and 
Rafael Hernan, good-looking singer 
who 1 ' has a fine set of pipes and 
puts them to good use in several 
tunes, particularly “Granada.” All 
makes for capital entertainment. 

Cohen. 


Chec F«re», CM 

Chicago. Jan. 29. 

Helen Traubel (with Burton 
Farber), Buddy Hackett , Du Free 
Tii&,~ Brian Famon Orch <10); 
$3.50 minimum, $1.10 coper . 

Hefty advance resections for 
this show augur lush business for 
the coming three weeks, as Helen 
Traubel develops into something 
of a nitery sensation in this terri- 
tory. This is her second appear- 
ance at the Chez, the first being 
her debut nitery date, and it s 
clear this time that she is nicely 
acclimatized to the cafe environs. 
As a result, some of the excite- 
ment of experiment that marked 
her first visit is gone, but this is 
amply replaced by the comfortable 
confidence that bespeaks a real 
trouper, • 

Through her segment -Miss 
TraubeTs accolades range from 
salvos to a standing ovation, as she 
sells everything her voice issues. 
This mighty voice, underscored by 
robust friendliness, needs no ex- 
traneous hues or larynx acrobatics 
to distinguish it either in the pops, 
blues or classical idioms. If she 
proves anything, it mas* be that 
“Bill Bailey" is not so far a cry 
from Wagner as supposed.. 

Song spread resembles that of 
her kickoff show with same opera 
medley (not written originally for 
soprano -voice), essayed midway, 
“St. Louis Blues’’ and her Jimmy 
Durante specialties held for wrap- 
up punch. and her pop offerings 
updated. Opening pieces, saccha- 
rine operetta choices, are the least 
exciting of her output. Burton 
Farber is expert in piano accom- 
paniment and contributes pleasant- 
ly to the patter. . 

Sleeper act on the card is ro- 
bust comic Buddy Hackett, whose 
only previous appearance in Chi 
was on the legit shelf with "Call 
Me Mister" in 1947. Even funny 
to look at, he rouses the house 
from walkout, and rocks it in par- 
oxysms with his Brooklynesque 
monology that involves a Mickey 
Spillane spoof, assorted army and 
household gags, and a* Chinese 
waiter bit that wins a begoff. More 
than his material, the essence of 
his comedy is side - of -mouth 
speech, brassy naivete and devas- 
tating timing. He scores at every 
table. 

The two charmers and lead guy 
who make up . the Du Pree Trio 
tee off in exuberant terpology 
that sets the buoyant mood. Male 
member takes the fore in a few 
brief tap solos that are firstrate, 
and the assisting femmes are 
pleasant diversion. Brian Famon 
orch is customarily good on back- 
ing and divides interim dance 
chores with Chamaco Rhumba 
Band. Les. 


from then on it’s all in the same 
genre. However, her stage sayVy 
and delivery .win an encorrturnf. 

Griffith, who got the nod ftbm 
bonifaces Max Gordon and Herbert 
Jacoby because of his discliCks on 
Capitol, “What It Was* Was Foot- 
ball" and “Romeo and Juliet," is 
under New Acts. ' . 

Miss Remes remains a potent de- 
stroyer. She tears apart blues 
singers, Slavic songstresses and 
phone conversationalists. It’s 
punchy satire delivered with deft 
strokes. She also scores with her 
own version of “Can’t Help Lovin’ 
Dat Man" and a tickling : special 
material bit tagged. “It’s Better To 
Be The Other Woman.’’ * 

Krai and Miss Cain bring a 
fresh, exuberant touch to tlieir ma- 
terial. 'Styling is slightly in the 
progressive music vein but It’s 
easy to take. They Come off nicely 
in a session that includes such 
numbers as “Se'ason In The Sun,” 
“I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles,’’ 
“The Party Was A Big Success" 
and “Bargain Day." . 

The Jimmy Lyons Trio and Bart 
Howard’s keyboard supply top in- 
termish music, as usual. Gros. 


Eilgewater Beach, f’hl 

Chicago, Jan. 29. 
Rosalind Courtright, Johnny 
O’Brien , The Belmonts, Bob Kirk 
Orch (10); $3.50 minimum, $1 
cover. 


Blue Angel. X* Y. 

(FOLLOWUP) 
i The Blue Angel’s system of re- 
• volving bills brought in warbler 
[Josephine Premice and hillbilly 
| comic Andy Griffith last week for 
! the exiting Charles Trenet and Or- 
| son Bean. Holding over were mad- 
i cap songstress Jorie Remes and 
: the fresh young singing duo, Roy 
: Krai and Jackie Cain. In all, this 
is a tidy package that’ll please the 
Angela patronage. 

At show caught Friday (29), Miss 
Premice drew, rapt aud attention 
but failed to come; lip with any- 
thing of sock proportion: She 
handles her medley of calypsos and 
rhythm tunes with zest, but simil- 
arity of, style lessens overall im- 
pact. The interjection of a few 
more ballad numbers would be a 
neat ehange-pacer and bring her 
home a surefire winner. 

She starts off breezily with “Pull 
Your Shade Down, Marie," slows 
up for a nifty workover of “There’S 
Honey In The Honeycomb’’ and 
regular 12-minute stint. Jedo. 


This is another of the Marine 
Room’s patented someth ing-for- 
everyone spreads — a * femme 
thrush, a standup comedian arid a 
terp duo. Combination tradition- 
ally does well at this hostel with 
its family and conventioneer pa- 
tronage. Current revue should be 
no exception, with pleasing repre- 
sentation in each of the depart- 
ments 

Although the bill’s topper, Rosa- 
lind Courtright, is not too familiar 
hereabouts, having been here last 
five years ago at the Palmer House, 
she bridges the gap easily and 
quickly with a neatly-tooled col- 
lection of songs that show off a 
pleasant voice and plenty of poise. 
Her*cheerful deportment captured 
the dinner crowd on show caught 
| as she unspooled TO numbers, 
ranging from several special mate- 
rial ditties to such well-knowns as 
“Great Day" and the “Income Tax 
Song" from “New Faces." It’s 
assumed she’s subsequently 
scratched the fairy tale about little 
boys, which is definitely out of 
place in this room. 

Comedies are handled by John- 
ny O’Brien, who seemingly delib- 
j erately handicaps himself with 
; vintage gags; But he keeps piling 
j them on so fast that he builds re- 
sponse despite the familiarity of 
His routines. When he gets to his 
harmonica choochoo train special- 
ty, he has the payees with him for 
a solid climax. 

The Dancing Belmonts launch 
the proceedings with some fine 
terping that captures immediate 
i attention. Their timing is top- 
notch in all their moves and they 
Spice their routine with Sort) e good 
comic overtones. “The Lady Is A 
Tramp" goes over especially well. 

, . Bob Kirk and his band backstop 
! in okay fashion. Dave. 

Oasis Club, Houston 

Houston, Jan. 25. 

Paddy Wing, Day Dreamers, Al 
Pliyier Orch; $2.50-$3.50 Sat. mini- 
'.mum. 




KEN BARRY 


>■ 

tV o'*V iv 


SEVILLE THEATRE, 

Montreal 

BRADFORD HOTEL, 

Boston, Matt, 

LAKE CLUB, 

Springfield, III, 

Currently at GIRO'S, Philo. 




Phil- Web Attr. r- » — — — — ■ ■ - ■ ■ 

4. w. 48, h. N. Y. c. Don't You Want to Try a Comedian With a Record Like This? 

• PL 7-2280 ■ ■ 1 - ••■■■■ • .*■ 


Endorsed by Men Who Know Talent Best 

OEOROI BOURKE. Miami Hftrald 
PAUL . BRUUN. Florida Sun 
HXROLO V. COHEN. Plttsburth Qaittta 
FRANK BROOKHOUSER. Philadelphia Bulletin 
ffEOROr TAYLOR, Montre»l Herald 
JERRY QAQHAN, Philadelphia Newt 


At least temporarily getting 
away from “bellyrinas," the Oasis 
Club has introduced a different 
type of entertainment; It’s a tossup 
which has top billing. 

The Day Dreamers, a singing 
group composed of Charles Kloer, 
Willard Reese and personable and 
peppy Jan Partridge, have devised 
a series of routines that make them 
topdrawer entertainment. 

They vary their spots to cover 
all tastes and do a fine job on all 
Only weak spot may be a bit of 
overacting in their “cute" routines, 
but that’s overlooked when they 
really get solid with their harmon- 
and special effect numbers. 

Paddy Wing, a Chinese boy, spins 
a m <; an tapping hoof. He has an 
affable charm that goes along with 
hls youthful appearance and his 
most difficult routines seem too 
easy the way he does them. He 
a polished style in keeping 
with immaculate dress and gathers 
Plenty of handpatting during his 


BfliteoreBotrVLA. 

1 Lo» Angeles, Jan. 21 

♦ Aifce Ty*e« *6* pick Winslow 
Ladd Lyon, Artie James, Morro- 
Landi* Starlets (IB) ; Hal Derwin 
BiU Black, Derwin’s Orch (14)* 
$1-$1.50 eouef. ’ 

• • ' . r, • 

There’s Nothing distinguished in 
this layorit floored by Joe Faber 
for .the next six weeks, so the Bilt- 
more Bowl will have to draw on its 
other attributes. On the downtown 
nitery beat it's a favorite haunt 
of transients and middleagers for 
vlttles, entertainment and the 
dance. ... 

Toplined are Alice Tyrell and 
Dick Winslow, their second time 
around, in songs, mimicry and com- 
edy 1 of a sort. She carries the act 
with impressions of Judy Garland, 
Lena Home, Lily Pons and the 
Ozark version of Dorothy Shay. 
For a closer they should have come 
up With something , more original 
and less shopworn than “Baby It’s 
Cold Outside." He’s mostly a piano 
sitter and horseteeth massager and 
lets her do the fronting. She’s a 
talented comedienne with a strong 
set of pipes and perhaps should 
have done one number straight. 
Act needs tightening and livening 
and some new material wouldn't 
be unwelcome to the ringsiders. 

Other two frames in “Fun Frol- 
ics of ’54," billed as “the season's 
most lavish revue," which it isn’t, 
lean to novelty. Artie James is a 
streak on rollers, taking 100 turns 
in 20 seconds, and Ladd Lyon, 
from the London’s Palladium, 
chuckles his way through a bal- 
ancing turn with a girl lured from 
a table. It’s too obvious so he ups 
and admits she’s a plant. Perched 
on chairs legged in beer bottles, 
they prove skilled equilibrists if 
not provocative clowns. 

Line of 12 MorrO-Landis girls is 
brightly costumed and well-drilled 
if short on eye-feasting gifts. Hal 
Derwin knows this clientele so 
Well that the lift of his hand brings 
the -leg-shakers swarming to the 
floor. He and Bill Black take care 
of the vocals in good style. Helm. 

Alan Gale’s* Miami BTcli 

Miami Beach, Jan. 30. 

Alan Gale, Freddie Stewart, 
Larry Foster, The Williams (2), 
Teddy King Orch; $6 food or bev. 
minimum. 


Latest entry on the nitery belt 
is Alan Gale’s new location for his 
Celebrity Club, the former Copa 
City.. There’s been plenty of pro 
and con gab among the trade here 
on how he will 1 make out in the 
huge room, running on a one-show 
nightly policy with a limited 
budget that is a far cry from the 
cascades, of cash poured out for 
name talent bv 'former operators 
such as Bill Miller, Ned Schuyler 
and. the man who built the place, 
Murray Weinger. 

If opening night mob was any 
indication, the frenetic Gale may 
have hit a jackpot. But again, as 
in the case of the Casablanca’s 
Club Morocco, which opened same 
(Continued on page 65) 




CHICAGO HAIR GOODS COMPANY 
428 So. Wabash Ave. Chicago 5, ll 



NEW DANCE SENSATION 

^ B1 ■ ■ . _ ' J«* Concluded 

CHI CHI CLUD, Palm Springs 

Featured in Show with CARMEN MIRANDA' 

. Direction: TOY AND WING* 

Contact: HAY LYTE AGCY.. 205 5 . lovorly Dr.. Devorty Hills. Calif. 



Wednesday* February 3, 1954 


V A VJDKWI J,R 


65 


Night Club Reviews 


Continued from page €4 


4lan tiale’s, Miami HtU 

nieht— also to capacity crowds— 
!h5 skeptics have adopted a wait- 
ind-see position, albeit Gale has 
Utilized the same policy* in smaller 
cpttings with great success and, on 
f larger scale, in. Manhattan’s for- 
mer La Martinique. 

Gale literally knocks himself 
out in a show running over tyvo 
hours which has him onstage al- 
most throughout. The accent is 
on Yiddish humor, the entertainer 
informing those few not of the 
nee who are in the audience, that 
he concentrates on running a club 
for “my people.” It makes for 
a running gag in which he interps 
the language for these few. 

The admixture he compounds is 
adroitly angled for the almost 
fanatic following that comes to see 
him regularly, ranging from 
family, growing-up days, through 
interchanges with ringsiders, wait- 
ers, sometimes serious approach 
that verges or} the evangelistic. He 
keeps the moods changing, the 
howls hearty and the demands for 
more mounting, 

Freddie Stewaft purveys a 
well-blended set of oldies and 
pops. Lad works out his songaiog 
in easy, assured pattern to earn 
himself' ■' warm reception. Joins 
with Gale on bits that show flair 
for straighting. 

Larry Foster is a well-versed 
singing mimic. His rundown of 
the toppers in the ranks runs the 
gamut of styles and names with 
standouts the *Tony Martiq-Pinza- 
Johnnie Ray carbons. Gale inter- 
jects a funny piece of biz in the 
Ray segment to add more hilarity. 
Young dance duo; the Williams, 
are lithe, adept terpers with a 
modern slant to their tappings. 
Routines reveal imagination arid a 
fresh, touch. 

But it is Gale who is the show- 
singing, gagging, ‘‘preaching,’’, ad 
libbing and in general creating the 
atmosphere of a house party in 
what was, before, one of the 
colder rooms around. Lary. 

4L— : 

Eiltlys’, K. r. 

Kansas City, Jan. 27. 

Felicia Sanders, Bobby Winters, 
Tony DiPardo Orch (8); $1 cover. 

Songstress Felicia Sanders is 


coupled on this show with comedy 
juggler Bobby Winters, With the 
usual firm support from fony Di- 
Pardo and orch, the show covers a 
well-paced 35 minutes and is more 
than satisfactory on its entertain- 
ment ingredient. 

Winters, as th% juggling nitwit, 
has the opening portion to run 
through his retinue of tossing trio 
of balls, Indian clubs and tam- 
bourines, wtih comedy maneuvers 
and asides for a lively turn 
throughout. It’s his initial appear- 
ance in this spot,* as it is for Miss 
Sanders. . 

Chirp takes over for the second 
half; warbling a list of songs much 
in the Romantic and dramatic 
tenure of her recent “Moulin 
Rouge” platter. Her contribution 
is entirely singing, with little em- 
bellishment in the way of variety 
of numbers, lighting or presenta- 
tion. Albeit her warbling is firsts 
class, on the heavy ballad, a string 
61 seven such numbers gets to be 
a large portion for nightclub 
payees. 

She kej^s the proceedings by 
opening with “Moulin Rouge” and 
follows through a list including 
“Lucky to Be Me,” “They Didn’t 
Believe Me,” “Billy Game Home” 
(an original), “While We’re Voung,” 
“Music, Maestro, Please,” and 
“Come Rain, Come Shine,” Quin: 


Tliuntlerbiril, Las Vegas 

Las Vegas, Jan. 26. 
Sauter-Finegan Orch (25), Helen 
Gallagher, Pepper Davis . & Tony 
Reese, Salty Swectland, Andy Rob- 
erts, Kathryn Duffy Dansations 
(8); no cover or-iniminum. 


Mars Lluli, Paris 

Paris, Jan. 30. 

Ronnie Grahame, Art Simmons; 
minimum, $1,25. 


WHEN IN BOSTON 

It's the 




The Home of Show Folk 

Av.ry I Waihlngtoa Sit. 


Special Material by 
VISK ' . . . the signature that 
lends prestige to. your act. 

For; information write 

A; GUY VISK 
Writing Enterprises 
'•Creators of Special.Comedy Material" 
M Hill Street Troy, N. Y. 

(The Mlrthplaco of Show Bis) 


Latest Comedy Material 

for MC’i, Mieleleni, Enter- 
{•inert, ote. Send tor our 
latest prise list of (root 
ORIGINAL •■gfllei. mono- 
•oil, dialogi, parodies, 
k skits; ote. Written by show 
)biz top gagmen. Or tttd 
$10 for $50 .worth of above, 
Money batfc If not satisfltd. 

<a LAUGHS UNLIMITED > 

10* W. 45 St., N. Y., N. Y. JU 2 0373 



This int.-me spot is one of the 
most stable of the American-owned 
Clubs here. Featuring a singer 
and piano, club also shapes as a 
neat windup spot with hot pas- 
trami, chile con carne and ham- 
burgers a comeon for the nostal- 
gic. Open every night till dawn, 
club also has a reasonable tag. 

Ronnie Grahame is a slim Eng- 
lish gal Who chortles a group of the 
sophisto ballads in a smart, stylized 
manner. Seated at the. piano, she 
sustains a mood of engaging malice 
and smooth warbling for. mitts. 
When she solos with accomp she 
has a tendency to slide off into 
standards that break the mood of 
her style. Art Siminons plays his 
fine piano and adds good back- 
ground color to the hum or fine 
listening in his more pointed jazz 
renditions. 

Club gets the U. S. and French 
younger set. Mbsk. 



Hotel Monteleone, X. O. 

New Orleans, Jan. 26. 
Louise ..Martell, Danny Deane 
Orch (7); $2.50 minimum and 
cover. 


A big orchestra that can project 
sounds to tingle a spine, the Sau- 
ter-Finegan band is making a two- 
week stand that is clicking the 
turnstiles. The 25 musicians, led 
in turn by pair of maestros, offer 
the .story of an amazing band, and 
with Helen Gallagher and Pepper 
Davis and Tony Reese on hand for 
nonsense and vocals, a good bill of 
fare is assured. 

New directions in ’ music are 
easily, discernible to ■ ' listeriers 
charmed by chimes, celester, glock- 
enspiels and the like as “Now That 
I'm In Love,” actually the “Wil- 
liam Tell” overture, opens show. 
Bespectacled Ed Sauter and hand- 
some Joe Finegan are good show- 
men as well as conductors in pre- 
miere western engagement pre- 
sented by Hal Brandis. 

“Honey Jump” impels full orch 
to its feet to play kazoos enmasse 
as Kathryn Duffy Dansations per- 
form slick line number. Andy Rob- 
erts does okay warbling of “With 
These Hands.” . -Another musical 
niche is achieved by group with 
“Yankee Doodle Town,” brass 
lending a rousing impetus. Sally 
Sweritland, band vocalist, renders 
a touching“Autumn Leaves.” Orch* 
socks with “Doodle Town Fifers.” 
A full-bodied musical gem is un- 
covered in “Midnight Sleigh Ride,” 
with versatility of band members 
getting strong play.; “April In 
Paris” and “Holiday” are good, 
while “Harlem Nocturne,” featur- 
ing ballerina Christine Carson, 
completes unusual repertoire dur- 
ing the 70-minute show. 

Miss Gallagher, on a trifle long, 
could shuffle numbers around a 
bit for smoother presentation. Ef- 
fervescent personality * is good in 
“Fancy Free,” and “Love Isn’t 
Born— It’s Made.” In long scarlet 
slacks with evening gown top and 
flowing sash, Miss Gallagher pipes 
and terps “Story of My Pal Joey” 
(her Broadway starrer) which 
would be terrific finale. From 
“Hazel Flagg” (most recent Gal- 
lagher opus) she performs “The 
World Is Beautiful Today” with 
fine sensitivity. “That’s Entertain- 
ment,” a diverting number, is 
nonetheless anti - climactic after 
previous pair. 

In first local showing; Davis & 
Reese are good crowd-pleasers in 
comedy, songs and dances.. Impres- 
sions of Frank Sinatra, Ted Lewis 
and Four Aces are solid. They’re 
tops in taps and topper, of all is 
an hiiafious radio interview in the 
dressing room of a punchdrunk 
prizefighter. Kettledrums are in 
for terrific beating by pair to con- 
clude a wild session. Fade. 


“ * London, Feb. 2. 

A cdmplete stopper on indecent 
shows at U, S. service installations 
in Great Britain has been enforced 
by the swift action of the Amer- 
ican Embassy, following an ex- 
pose in the British press. Alle- 
gations that nude shows were be- 
ing bootlegged into American 
camps were made the subject of an 
immediate protest by tlie Variety 
Artists Federation. Latter now lias 
negotiated a satisfactory arrange- 
ment with the U. S. Embassy here. 

A ruling went” out from Grosve- 
nor Square last week forbidding 
the holding of stag shows in the 
future. At the same time, camp 
commanders who book their own 
shows were given a list of reputa- 



Is 

Home From O’Seas Fiasco 

Laredo,, Tex., Feb. 2. 

A group of 22 Mexican folklore 
artists who were stranded without 
funds or passage in Belgium last 
month have crossed into* Mexico 
here on the last lap of a long trip 
home. Mexican government bailed 
them out in Belgium and arranged 
for passage home. 

Manuel Llerena,-iri charge of the 
group, accused the show’s contract: 
irig agent of defrauding the gr-up 
out of a month’s salary and passage 
back to Mexico. 


ble agents from whom future pro- 
grams were to be negotiated. 

. A joint committee set up by the 
Embassy in conjunction with the 
VAF and the Agents Assn.; held 
its first meeting in Grosvenor 
Square last week. The Agents 
Assn, supplied a complete list of 
reputable agents and this is being 
circulated to all GI installations in 
Britain. 

The allegations, which first broke 
in the Empire News, claimed that 
performers with little or no talent 
were bpirig hired at U. S. service 
camps to appear in the nude. Their 
performances were a complete vio- 
lation of British theatre regula- 
tions, which demand that nude per- 
formers should always remain sta- 
tionary on the stage. Eye-witnesses 
described incidents where the girls 
walked right through the theatre 
in close proximity to the audience. 


Louise Martell. redheaded^ war- 
bler with a Kate Smith silhouet, 
has something for nitery patrons. 

Her song delivery brings pleas- 
ure dividends as she socks over 
tunes that veer from novelties like 
“Tourista” and “Making Room For 
Little Louise” to change of pace 
ballads like “There Is No You” 
and “September Song.” Contralto 
impressesiin practically all tempos. 

1 She handles her material adroit- 
ly and displays a spirit jypf cama- 
raderie that’s easily comrriunicated 
to tableholders, from whom she 
grabs maximum response. 

Besides backing Miss Martell’s 
singing neatly, Danny Deane and 
his society crew continue to de- 
liver expertly for the dance sets. 
His smooth, melodic rhythms keep 
floor well-filled. Liuz. 


Cogert Reelected Head 
Of New England Agents 

Henry M. Cogert has been re- 
elected for the fifth consecutive 
term to the presidency of the The- 
atrical Agents Inc. of New Eng- 
land. Others chosen were Harry 
Drake, veepee, and Jacy Collier, 
secretary : treasurer. 

New board includes Frank Soper, 
Jimmy Kennedy, Danny White, 
Fred Mack and Ray Mullin. Lat- 
ter is president of the Rhode Is- 
land Theatrical Agents Assn., 
which is affiliated with TAINE. 


Toronto 

Continued from page. 63 


share, *$122,301; plus $40,354 on 
catalogs and souvenir books. 

Jack Arthur’s nightly grandstand 
show, at $3 top plus" 50c grounds 
admission, on that $499,773 gross, 
cost $616,752 to produce but was 
the big nightly draw, with Victor 
Borge headlining for a 15-minute 
stint, and surrounding spectacle of 
60 line girls, 40 show girls, 30 boy 
dancers, mixed chorus of 68 and 
60-picce orchestra^ setting an all- 
time CNE record on closing night 
for a $38,800 take, with a.l^st-min- 
ute 2;000-bleacher seats- setup. 

Permanent buildings on the 374- 
acre site are carried on the balance 
sheet at $2,168,932 but replace- 
ment value, on present-day con- 
struction costs, is set at some $50,- 
000,000, with the CNE debt-free 
except for $124,000 on electric 
light installations which, on deben- 
tures, will be' paid off in ’58.. 


Hotel Roosevelt- X. O. 

New Orleans, Jan. 26, 
Jan Garber Orch (15), Evers Sc 
Dolorez, Rex Owens, DeSantos Trio, 
Thelma Gracen, Ted Stanford ; no 
cover or minimum- 


Seymour Weiss has come up 
with another layout that should 
mark hefty results with return en- 
gagement of diminutive Jan Gar- 
ber and his musical crew, estab- 
lished faves here.. Garber outfit is 
one of the classier crews with its 
rhythms and melodies, plus en- 
tertainment values to boot. 

Though heavy on the sweet side, 
the orchestra has no compunction 
about swinging out when neces- 
sity dictates. Leader carries a big 
library of tunes. From this he 
calls up a varied selection of pops, ■ Ing. 


novelties. Dixieland, .Latin rhythms 
and medleys. 

Garber gives featured play to 
vocals, dividing the assignment be- 
tween Thelma Gracen, attractive 
thrush; Ted Stanford, handsome 
young baritone; and a trio com- 
posed of Bill Kleebj Frank Betten- 
court and -Stanford. Miss Gracen 
adds a good deal to the orch with 
her looks and. pipes. Diminutive 
leader seems content to iritroduce 
the acts and let his sidemen and 
singers take the spotlight. 

Teeing off the acts, Evers St Do- 
lorez, tightwire artists, win plenty 
of palmpoundirig for their 'danc- 
ing, splits and balancing. 

Rex Owens generates plenty of 
laughs with his ‘‘mouthings” of 
recordings, hip swinging and. pan- 
tomime. His best impression is 
that of Lawrence Tibbett singing 
Figaro’s aria from “Barber of 
Seville.” 

The DeSantos Trio— two gau- 
chjos and a gal with a nifty chassis 
— keeps patrons at high pitch with 
exciting gymnastics, plus intri- 
cate dance steps. Men fly through 
air with daring flips and tricks to 
win vigorous applause. 

Garber does neat job of emcee- 

; Liuz. 


“Hllarioiiily talented youngster 
with lock routine.” —VARIETY 



WILL JORDAN 

DETROIT 

ATHLETIC 

CLUB 

February 9th 

i 

Partonal Management: 
MILTON H. BLACKSTONE 
565 5«h Av*., New York II 5-1540 
Direction: MCA 



America’s Most Versatile Dancing Star 

BETTY LUSTER 

Currently Appearing and 

HELD OVER 

CLOVER CLUB, MIAMI 

Opening in the Spring. PALLADIUM. London; SAVOY HOTEL. 
London; MOULIN ROUGE. Pori*, and . an axfontive Euro- 
poan Tour. * . , 

Direction: GENERAL ARTISTS CORP. 



66 


Wednesday, * February 3 , 1954 


VARIETY BILLS 

WEEK OF FEBRUARY 3, 1954 
Numeral! In cennactlon with bills baiow Indicate opening day of show 
whether full or split week 

Letter In parentheses Indicates circuit. (!) Independent; <L) Loew; (fAL Moss; 
(P) Paramount/ (Hi RKQ; (S) Stoll; <T) Tivoli; (W) Warner 


NEW YORK CITY 
Music Hall (I) 4 
Marilyn Murphy 
4 Step Bros 
Eric Hutson 
Janet Gaylord 
Victor Moreno 
Anthony Makas 
Rockettes 
Corps de Ballet 
Sym Ore 

Palace <R> S 
Berk & Hallow 
Phil Ramone 
Burton & Janet 
Renald & Rudy 
Hyde & March 
Facunda Rivero 5 
Hon Cummings 
3 D's 

BROOKLYN 
Par (P) 4 only 


Festival Modern 
American Jazz 
Stan Kenton Ore ' 
Dizzy Gillespie 
Earl Garner 3 
June Christy 
Charlie Parker 
Lee Konitz ; 
Candldo: 

CHICAGO 
Chicago <P) S 

Jay Lawrence 
B St C Robinson 
Cathy Barr 
Norv-Elites 

MIAMI 

Olympia (P) J 
W Hoveler Girls 
Papa & Renee 
Rusty Draper 
Lowe Hite & S 


AUSTRALIA 


MELBOURNE 
Tivoli IT) 1 
John Blythe 
Balcoitibcs . 
O’Hagan & Stead 
Muracs 

Skating Merenos 


Guus Brox 
Dawn A Cleary 
Babs McKinnon 
Betty Meddings 
Ballet Boys 
Ballet Girls 


BRITAIN 


BLACKPOOL 
Palace (I) 1 
Peter Cavanagh 
Y vonne Pre$t Ige 
Betty Brayne 
Bayers Do;:$ 

H Vaddeu Girls 
Kovno Tp • 

Eve J: Toots 
Bill Waddinglon „ - 
A1 Carthy 

BRIXTON 
Empress (1) 1 
John Regan 
Fayne & Evans 
Jimmy Wheeler 
Rey Overbury St S 
Peter Raynor 
David Hurst 
Trots Poupees 

3 Nadine* 

CHELSEA 
Palace (I) 1' 
Frasers Harm Co 
Harold Berens . 

Bill Maynard * 

Flack A Lucas 
Hill Billy Ranchers 
Don Cameron 
June 

French A Lake 
CHISWICK 
'Vmplro (SI I 
Billy- Cotton Bd 
Evy A Everto 
Len Marten 
•Terry Scott 
L Sharpe A Iris 
'N Mongadors A A 
Rey A Roniy 
EAST HAM 
Oranada (I) | 
Vicki Bums 3 
Yvonne Prestige 
Mongadors 
Devine A Kin? 

. Metropolitan (I) 1 
Jimmy James Co 
Gwen Liddle 
Sirdani 

Le Hine A Gcrhardt 
Lye 

Guy A Pierre 
Ronnie Collins 
Chrissle Martell 
Shane A Lamar 
HACKNEY 
Emprise <S) 1 
Anne Shelton 
5 Skyllners. 

Stan .' White' A Ann 
Peter Dulay 

4 Kelroys 

K A P Lewington 
Bruce Forsyth 


Joan A Ernest 

NORWICH 
Hippodrome (I) 1 
Vic Oliver 
George Meaton 
Sylvia Camptfell 
Clifton Stanton 
.loan Hyde 
terry -James. 
Walthon A Dorralne 
BRIGHTON 
Hippodrome <M)‘i 
Renee Dvmott 
E A. D Waters • 

Kay Koriz A Gene 
Dawn White Co 
Iris Sadler. 

H Norman A Ladd. 
Ganjoti Bros A J 
Leslie Randall 
EDINBURGH 
Empire (Ml 1 
Carroll Levis Co 
Violet Pretty 
Teen Agers 
Rayros 

FINSBURY PARK 
■mplr* • (Mi 1. 
Laurel A Hardy 
t Bundons 
Alan Rowe ", ' 
Newman Twins 
Arthur Wbrsley 
Victor Jiiliah ‘ 

Paul Areatis 
Charmo’ny 3 
Krandon A Kama 
GLASGOW 
Empire . (M) 1 
Clarkson A Leslie 
Dorothy Squires 
Laurie Watson 
Tony A Ruby 
Johnny Lockwood 
Joe Church 
Wondertones 'v 
Rex Roper A Pat 
NOTTINGHAM 
Empire (Mi 1 
Ddn Ph'llppe A M 
Roy Belles 
Derek Roy 
Hylda ' Baker 
Dr. Crock Co 
Peplnoo Circus 
PORTSMOUTH 
„ . Royal (Mi 1 
Hal Monty 
Merle A Marie: 

3 Lesters 
Penny Nioholls 
Nico A Alex 
Larry Macari 9 
2 Angelos - 



NEW YORK CITY 


BIUO Angel 
Anita Ellis 
Josephine Premico 
Andy Griffith 
Dore Remes 
Bart Howard 
Jimmy - Lyons Trio 
Bon Soir * 
Jimmie Daniels 
Madtnoisellcs 
Oliver Wakefield ' 
Kaye Ballard 
Three Flames 
Mae . Barnes 

Celebrity Club 
Emil Cohei* 

Marty Gumty . 

Ed Schaefer. 

Stuart Harris 
Alfred & Lcnore 
Roger Steel Ore 
Chateau Madrid 
Alfredo Sadel 
Tanya Reyes 
Pupi Carapo Ore 
Freddie Alonso 
Sarlta Herrera 
Chpacabuno 
Tony Bennett 
Mayo Bros 
Jonathan Lucas 
Herb Fields 
M Durso Ore 
Frank Marti Ore 
Hotel Ambassador 
Jules Lanrie Ore ■ 

La Vie . En Rose 
Dorothy Dandridge 
George De Witt . 
Van Smith Ore 
No. I Fifth Avt 
Nancy Andrews 
Jeff. Warren 
Bob Downey 
Harold Fonvllle 
Hazel Webster 
Old Roumanian - 
Sadie Banks 
Billy Vine 
Joe LaPorte Ore 
D‘ Achilla Ore 
Two Guitars 
. Vladimir Rozhcn 
Lubov ; Hamshay 
. Misha Uzdanbff 
Senia Karavaeff 
Misha Markoff 
Hotel Now Yorker 
Arnold Slioda 
Joan. Walden 
Dru A Dijon 
Ernie Rudy Ore . 

A Rollini Trio 


. Hotel Plorro 

Denise DarceV 
Mata A Hava 
Stanley Melba Ore 
Chico Relli Ore 
Hotel Plata 
K Thompson 
Ted Straeter Ore 
Monte Ore 

Hotel Roosevelt 
Guy Lombardo Ore 
Hotel St, Regia 
Russell Nype 
Milt Shaw ore 
Horace Diaz Ore r 
Hotel Sherry* 
Nothortand 
Alexander Bros.* * ' 
Lester Lanin Ore 
Jan Bruneseo Ore 
Hotel flatter 
Horace Heldt 
Hotel Taft 
Vincent .. Lopez Ore. 

Latin Quarter 
Boodles A Skeeter 
L A M Murray 
Mon Toy 
Darvas A Julia 
Lee Sharon 
Rob Murray . 

7. Ashtons 
Ruby Richards 
Art Waher Ore 
B Harlow* ; Ore . 

LeRubanBleu • 
Julius Monk 
Jonathan Winters 
Isabelle ■ Robins 
Artie Johnson r 
Jackson Sisters 
N Parris Trio 
Versailles'' 
'Nice To. See You' 
Fay DeWitt 
Don Llberto 
Al Norman 
Lou Nelson 
Doxothy Keller 
Patti Ross 
Linda Lombard 
Bavbara Stewart 
Carol Ohinart 
, Salvatore Gioe Ore 
f Panchlto Ore 
Village Bern 
Rachel Ellen 
Jack Malone 
Carell A Carlyle 
Larry MacMahon 
Joe Furst' . 

Hal . Graham Ore 


Village Vanguard 

Enid Mobier 
Will Holt 
Trtrde Adams 
C Williams Trio 


Waldorf-Astoria 

Dolores Gray 
N Brand wynne Ore 
Mtscha Borr Ore 


CHICAGO 


Blue Angel 

Tariy Roman 
Neville Black 
„Val Navard 
Grace Nichole 
Bob WeDyck Trio 

Black Orchid 

Josh White 
Lurlene Hunter 
Ann Russell 
Ken Sweet Trio 
Chez Parea 
Helen Traiibcl 
Buddy Hackett 
Du Pree Trio . 
Brian Farnon Ore 
,Chamaco Band 
Conrad Hilton Hot'l 
Margie Lee 
Capek 

Lippe A - Balisch 
Bobby May 
Bob Bromley 


Bill Griffin 
N A J Waldo 
Boulevar-Dears Cl) 
Boulevar-Dons (6) 

F Masters Ore . 

Crossroads 

Buddy. De Vito . 
Dorothy Langdon 
Gloria Brooks 
Edgewater Beach 
Rosalind Cqurttight 
Johnny O'Bneft 
Dancing ' Belmonts 
Bob Kirk Ore 
. Encore 
Artie Shaw 
Gramercy 5 
.Palmer House 
PElnchcu 
Amin Bros (2) 
Francis Brunn 
Empire Eight 
Emil Coleman Ore 


lOS ANGELES 


Ambassador Hotel 

Gordon MacRae 
A. Allyn X A Hodges 
Benny Strong Ore 
Band Bex 
Billy Gray 
Alobre A Lcssy 
Larry Green Trio 
.. Bor of Music 
Arthur. Blake 
Jayne. : Manners 
E Rndford Ore 
Blltmore Hotel 
Tyrrell A Winslow 
Ladd Lyon 
Artie James 
Hal Derwln Ore 
ClrVs 

Nat “Kind* Cole 
Dick Stabile 'Ore 
Bobby Ramos Ore 
Charley Fey's 
Weir Broe . 


Marion . Smith 
A Browne: Ore 
Mocambo 
Amalia 

Paul Hebert Ore 
Moulin Rouge 
B Minevitch H R, . 
De Castro Sis <3) 
Dominique. . 
Chiquita A Johnson 
Louise Hoff 
|-Barbettes (5) 

Gina Genardi 
Tom Canyon: 

Fluff Charlton 
Bob Snyder Ore 
D Arden Dancers 
.Stetter Hotel 
Continentals . (5) . 
Clifford Guest 
Ralph A Lorraine 
Frahkle Carle Ore 
Ron Perry Ore 


Ml AMI-MIAMi BEACH 


Atlantis Hotel 

Henry- Tobias. 

Sid Lewis Ore 
Pepe A Susie 
. Algiers Hotel 
Buddy Walker 1 
Mai Malkfti Ore 
Tony A Renea 
Bar of Music 
Bill. Jordan 
Guy . Rennie 
Harvey Bell 
Beth ChalUs 
Gina Valenta 
Ethel Davis 
Fred Thompson 
. Blrdland 
C Hawkins Ore 
Art Tatem . 

Shoromodo- 
Preacher Rollo S 
Ray Mambo Ore 
Lynita 

Beachcomber 

Sophie Tucker ' 
Betty Hutton 
C Kaly Dancers 
Harry Richman 
The Romalnes 
Leo Dawson Ore 
Casablanca 
Billy Daniels 
Gene Baylos 
June Taylor Girls 
Dave Tyler Ore 
Celebrity club 
Alan Gale 
Freddie Stewart 
Larry Foster 
The Williams (2) • 
Teddy King Ore 
■ Ciro's 
Frances Faye 
The Red Caps 

The Treniers 
Clover Club 
Lena Horne 
Paul Gray 
Betty Luster 
Tony Lopez Ore 
Selma Marlowe Line 
Woody Woodbury • 
Di Lido Hotel 
Joyce Bryant . 

Zlg Si Vivian Baker 
Freddie Cglo Ore 
- Empress Hotel 
Hal Edwards Oi'c 
M Darby Dancers 
„ L’Alglon 
Chuy Reyes Ore . 


L'Aiglen Strings - 
CharlieFarrell 

Latin Quarter 

Jane Morgan 
Bernard Bros 
The Szonys ' 
Veronica Bell 
Ruth. Costello 
Ralph Young 
Piroska 
Ernie Amato 
Cortez Ore 
Campo Ore 
Antone A Ina 
Sid Stanley Oro 
Allan' Drake 

Lord Tarloton 

Jack Stuart Ore 
Jeannie Moore 

. Loon A Eddie's 

Myra Davis 
Chuck Fontaine 
Acres O'Reilly . .. 
Jackie. Gordon 
Billy Austin 
Nancy Kent 
Charlotte Waters 
Bill Gray 
ltalph Gilbert 
Nautilus Hotel 
Larry Storch 
Antone . A Ina . 

Sid Stanley Ore 
Allan Drake . 

Ratio 

H Stern Strings 
Sans Seuct Hotel 
Minii Benzell 
Eddie Snyder 
Sacaras ore 
Ann Herman Dcrs 
La Rue's 

Carmen Cavallaro 
Louis Adler Ore 

.... R 5if #v R, *“ 
Milt Herth Trio 

George Hines Orb 
Saxony Hotel 
Los Cha vales 
Trlni Reyes 
Val Olman Ore 
Helene 

Tony De La Cruz 
Vagabonds. 
Vagabonds (4) 

Maria Neglia 
Condos A Brahdow 
Mary Ann Bentley 
Frank Linale Ore 


RENO 


Mapes Skyroom 
Jack Marshall 
Murray Arnold 
Mapes Sk.vlettes 
E Fitzpatrick Ore 
Now Golden 

L Carter A His 4 
Ted Smith 


Barbara Perry 
Sterling Young Ore 
Riverside 
Jack Haley 
Steeplechase 
, Marvin Roy 
Riverside Starlets 
Bill -Clifford Ore 


HAVANA 


* Montmartre 

M de . Paris' Orq 
Michelle . Due 
Pedro Vargas 
Rosendo Roscll 
Monsigneur Orq 
E Antunez Orq 
C de la Playa Orq 
Sans Soucl/ 

Olga Chavlano 
Waiter Nicks 
Juliet A Sandor 
Ray Carson 
Tondelayo 


Dominldks 
■ Helena A Hector 
CachiS 

Fernando Valencia 
R Ortega Orq 
C Rodriguez Orq 
Troplcana 
, S de Espana Orq 
1 Celia Cruz • : 

' Mano Lopez 
Marta A . Alexander 
Paulina Alvarez 
Kiko Gonsalves 
A Romeu Orq 
Senen Suarez Orq 


Greenwich Village 


Continued from page 1 

troupe of Haitian dancers as ail af- 
terpiece and a four-piece dance 
band to keep customers interested 
when the talent recesses. All this, 
with a play that didn’t pass muster 
on Broadway. . 

On the othef hand, a Village 
boniface could further meditate. 
The vast amounts of talk in this 
jilay isn’t conducive to liquor buy- 


ing. The only time the waiters can 
circulate is during the brief . in- 
termissions between acts. 

But the net result is a virtually 
loaded house where 1 there weren't 
a handful of customers on weekday 
nights before the play opened. Each 
skull passing the gate counts as a 
minimum of $1.20 (ringside* table 
minimum is $2.40) with drinks and 
food extra. This kind of return 
isn’t munificient, but. ‘ it’s a com- 
parative. fortune in relation to pre- 
vious grosses. The operators of 
the club retain the bar priveleges, 
but Cabaret Theatre unit headed 
by Jack Rosenberg gets gate . re- 
ceipts. 

However, somebody doesn’t have 
too much . faith in this venture. 
Theatre has the place only four 
nights weekly front Monday : to 
Thursday. On Friday, the regular 
policy takes over. The large room 
offers a band concert and on Satur- 
days a regulation nitery show 
comes it. The weekends, appar- 
ently, a^e something too; precious 
to the regular management to give 
up. The bar holds remnants of the 
Village type characters even dur- 
ing the periods when the highbrow 
stuff prevails. 

The Cabaret Theatre gives the 
Sartre opus a laudable rendition. 
In this theatre-in-rthe-round setup 
the play gains a great deal of in- 
timacy that it didn’t have on Broad- 
way and achieves some action 
despite its essentially talky quality. 
Theodore Hoffman’s direction and 
the single set by Peter Levitz and 
Naomi Carellis are on the plus 
side. 

The plot which concerns three 
characters who find themselves oc- 
cupying a ; single chamber in hell 
and find themselves unable to stop 
torturing each other. That’s some- 
ing for a drinking joint! 

The major characters John Scan- 
lan as Cradeau, the collaboration- 
ist editor; Patricia Newhall as the 
avaricious lesbian and Fanchon 
Miller as the stained beauty con- 
tribute perceptive performances, 
even though thefe’s some over- 
acting at times. A further bit of 
color is by Kenneth Rosen as the 
bellhop. 

The Haitian. Dancers comprise. 
Michelle NewtoU, Louis Naylor and 
Ned Williams with, drum accomps 
by Cyril Jack and Cyril Jackson. 
This Negro turn is lithe and lively 
and provide ; a well-plotted group 
of terps that frequently look like 
concert offerings. The Randy 
Weston band (4) plays for the 
dancing. 


SSS Continued from piee 2 ~ 

the gschnasfest is to undress as far 
as a liberal Austrian standard al- 
lows— and that’s plenty. 

The postwar influence of GI’s 
Resulted in a considerable local 
vogue for jitterbugging, but the 
dance teachers now announce with 
satisfaction that this has virtually 
disappeared.. Some places politei 
ly ask jitterbuggers to quit or 
leave the floor. Likewise the -mam- 
bo, rhumba and conga which at- 
tracted a lot of followers fight 
through last year have dropped 
way off. Now it’s the “Wiener 
Waltz,’’ gracefully whirled by peo- 
ple to whom its gracious rhythm 
seems to come naturally for* at 
least a third of the total dances at 
the' big parties. 

The cue is given at the season's 
opening when; the Philharmonic 
4 Ball, under direct patrpnage of the 
Federal Chancellor 'and top social 
figures, sets the pace. This ball 
opens with the full 110-man 
strength -of one of the world’s great 
symphony orchestras on the stage. 

As one of top conduetors (this 
year Wilhelm Furtwangler ) drops 
the baton on Strauss’ : “Emperor 
Waltz” and “Blue Danube’’ several 
hundred couples. ladies in bouffant 
white gowns, and white-tied gentle- 
men swing and whirl unrehearsed 
counterclockwise around the big 
dance floor in a scene few film di- 
rectors could duplicate. Later a 
smaller dance orch takes over as 
the Philharmonic longhairs step 
down to enjoy ■ their own evening. 
But the abiding picture of a for- 
mal Viennese ball is that preem 
waltz. 

The dance teachers closed their 
survey by placing the “English 
waltz’’ in second place for 1954 
with the conventional - foxtrot, 
third. A note of apprehension is to 
be detected in their report that the 
English “Creep” has not yet in- 
vaded Austria. 


Canadian Studio T G - Anxiety 


Continued from page 3 


Dominion as f regards entertainment 
for Ottawa is a dominating force 
both in radio and video, via the 
Canadian ’Broadcasting Corp., and 
in motion pictuffe matters, via the 
National Film Board. The oyer r 
powering influence of . Ottawa is 
dramatically evident fight now be- 
cause of two pending expansion^: 

(1) The Film Board's new studios 
expected to cost from $7,000,000 to 
$12,000,000 and (2) A new Cross- 
Canada tv network to which 25 
privately-licensed local stations are 
hoping to hookup/ 

The new film studio, undef Gov- 
ernment control, and the tv net- 
work, ditto, thfow open the broad 
question of f iliifis* role in Canadian 
video, . The private, and small, Ca- 
nadian film studios want to. share 
the lucrative kinescope ajid telepix 
business, as and when it develops. 

Issues are necessarily somewhat 
vague right now and no member of 
the private trade association would 
comment to this fepbrter for di-» 
feet quotation — a typically Cana- 
dian behaviour pattern, There is, 
howeVer, no open feud with the 
Government officials who appar- 
ently will declare the private film 
studios, “in.” 

The annual convention has, from 
indications, pondered the implica- 
tions of the proviso written into 
contracts by the Canadian Broad- 
casting ' Corp. as a ; prerequisite of 
local station affiliation. The CBC 
commits itself to supply 12 hours 
weekly of ready-to-run material. 

This; presumably means film. At 
the Same time, no local telecaster' 
has. any option. ,De must carry the 
full 12 hours as a condition of his 
license. 

Board as Landlord 

Dominion filmmakers are also 
conscious that the new elaborate 
studios of the National Film Board 
will take it out of the category of 
a spacC-user in .commercial studios 
and convert 1 the Board itself into 
a ^landlord with floor space, for 
rent, plus laboratory facilities. 

None of this bodes profits for the 
cause of private enterprise. 

One important beef known to 
have been passed on to the Film 
Board ^concerns ' the latter’s cur- 
rent practice of suppliupg news- 
reel coverage to American compa- 
nies free of. charge, thus encroach- 
ing on the field of .the private en- 
terprise who are on a retaining- 
fee-plus-acceptance-of clips basis 
with 'major American newsreels.. 
Trying to sell .service against gratis 
service is “extremely difficult” and 
Canadian producers feel situation 
ought to be swiftly, rectified. 

On CBC’s kinescope . cQmmit- 
menls for its owii tv network and 
the needs, of the affiliated private 
tv stations, it’s pointed out by 
AMPPL that CBC is nownot only 
in the; laboratories business and 
printing services but also in the 
booking business. However, it’s 
declared that CBC officials wish to 
encourage him production in Can- 
ada. A tentative commercial pro- 
posal is that CBC script-writing de- 
partment submit its film needs to 
open bid from the private produc- 
ers across Canada. It, is understood 
this is being considered by the 
CBC. 

Tax Advantages? 

Another contentious subject is 
the sales tax whereby the (1) Film 
Board and (2) CBC, as Crown com- 
panies, pay only on film while the 
Canadian "film producers are levied 
10% on materials and all produc- 
tion costs. On kinescope and trail- 
er costs, for instance, the sales tax 
to the Government departments is 
negligible; to the commercial film 
producers, that additional 10% 
sales tax is a terrific item in deal- 
ing with advertisers on a $20,000- 
$30,000 production. 

AMPPL also decided at this an- 
nual meeting that there must be 
closer ties established With the Ca- 
nadian Association of Advertising 
Agencies, who, in certain instances, 
are sending their scripts to the U S. 
for production. Against this, 1 how- 
ever, Ford of Canada, . .various oil 
and mining companies, Canadian 
Industries Ltd., Brazilian Traction 
and. a number of big construction 
companies, are having their com- 
mercial films made in Canada he- 
cause, apart from patriotism and 
satisfactory workmanship, produc- 
tion costs are lower. 

New officers of the Motion Pic- 
ture Producers and Laboratories: 
President, W. J. Singleton, presi- 
dent of Associated Screen News 
Montreal; Vice-President, Pierrd 
Harwood, managing director. Ome- , , 

® a ft°W<*ions Inc., Mont^ji gec- 1 


retary-Treasurer, Gordon Sparling 
director of production; Associated 
Screen News, Montreal. Directors 
are: 'Wallace Hamilton, general 
manager, Trfms-Canada Films Ltd 
Vancouver; J. Fr At Ross, secre- 
tary-treasurer, Graphic Associates 
Toronto; A. H. Simmons, sales 
manager, Gaevert (Canada) Ltd 
Toronto; Michael J. , Sim, president! 
Sim Studies, Winnipeg. W 


Continued from page 2 — 

skedded to play a series of camp 
and hospital dates in the Berlin 
environs, but the entire, schedule 
had to .be revised owing to the 
Four-Power talks in the German 
capital. A complete stopper was 
put on non-essential travel ,and, 
as a result, the show was switched 
to the Heidelberg area, where it 
was caught fqr : review. 

Audience reaction was undivid- 
ed and AHss O’Shea, who billed 
as “Two-Ton Tessie,” made an ap- 
propriate big impression on the 
servicemen and .women. 

In Class by Themselves 

The package entertainments, 
which are channelled into GI in- 
stallations via the Professional En- 
tertainments Brcgnch, are in a class 
by themselves and. should not be 
confused with individual acts 
which mAke up the floor shows at 
service clubs. These are booked 
and paid for. by the chibs them- 
selves through, the machinery of 
the local entertainment officer. 
The normal procedure is for an 
act to . play a free audition at a 
service club before a regular audi- 
ence to which the Club bookers are 
invited. The number of bookings 
depends on the reaction of the 
official viewers. There have been 
isolated cases where no one has 
liked a particular act and; as a re- 
sult, it received no play dates. 

The policy of; free auditions is 
repeated in> every district through- 
out the zone, with the result that 
it has become a talking point with 
a number of performers, particu- 
larly those who are in the higher 
name and pay bracket. Currently 
in Heidelberg, for ' example, are 
the; Merry. Macs, w.k. harmony 
quartet, who have to undergo the 
same, procedure as' they move from 
district to district. To acts of that 
calibre, which arc generally book- 
ed on reputation, the cuffo. audi- 
tions may only have irritation 
value as substantial engagements 
follow. 

Fair Pay Seale 

But to others, the outcome of 
the free audition to a group of in- 
expert bookers is a vital matter 
of extreme importance; Unless 
•their earnings have 'been guaran- 
teed by the agent Who sponsored 
them into the. zone, they have to 
fall back on their resources, move 
into another town and start audi- 
tioning all over again. 

Even an /act which is heavily 
booked cannot expect much more 
than a week's work in one district 
from club dates, although some- 
times playing two or three engage- 
ments in a night. The average 
works out at .arpund nine perform- 
ances a week. Payment is on a per- 
formance basis and a class “A" 
single act would receive a ceiling 
of $25 per show. With an . average ■ 
income of over $200 weekly; the 
performer could live in some de- 
gree of comfort, bearing in mindi 
that U.S. 'coiitrotled hotel accom- 
modation is made available at 
no'minal charges. A good second- 
class hotel ' bedroom can be ob- 
tained for as little as 50c a night. 

Rates of payment, ' however, 
fluctuate considerably even in the 
same area. While ihe Merry Macs 
are computed to be earning at>* 
proxiraately $1,000 weekly in 
Heidelberg, a five-piece • Dutch 
combo, playing a club: date- in the 
same city, gets only v $1,100 for a 
full month. This works out at $55 
per week per musician. . a figure 
which is apparently adequate to 
live on. 

From the point of view of the 
military authorities, the addition 
system remains the only satisfac- 
.tory way of filling the need of dif- 
ferent type club entertainments, 
although it is realized that it can 
be a sore point with artists. The 
entire policy is, to be reviewed at 
a high level at a conference of en- 
tertainment officers which is be- 
ing convened in. Nuremberg Feb. 


r 


>W«dae«l*y» February 3, 1954 


HOUSE 


67 


PtUee, N. ¥• 

Atomics (5), Frank Paris, Pat 
RooneuJr., Alphowe, Berec. Mu 

OTes«wxi‘r« (,2), R«loVo «> J«n- 

mta. Marty May, Bobby Whaling k 


Yvette Jo Lombardi flfptfse-Orch; 

* Flight Nurse-* (Rep), reviewed in 
Variety Nov. 4, ’53. 

i— ’N. 

It's old home week for tarns_on 
the Palace’s current semester. For 
virtually every act on the bill has 
played the house one or more 
times in the past. Veteran roster 
is a well-balanced one, with come- 
dy, dancing, acrobatics and novel- 
ties liberally seasoning the eight- 
act layout. 

Marty May, who’s; been around 
vaude arid mujicomedy for some 25 
vears, sails through the next-to- 
closing groove with a smooth rou- 
tine of okay banter arid songs. Lat- 
ter, primarily in the satiric vein, 

; broadly caricature “over-arranged” 
baritones, tenors and prime don- 
nas. It’s good for ample mittipg. 

Pat Rooney Jr., now in another 
field, takes a vaude date now arid 
then to “keep in practice/’ After 
a so-so try at warbling “My Blue 
Heaven,” followed by a few tepid 
gags, he shifts to hoofing to reaf- 
firm what ’most everyone knows— 
dancing is his forte. Some snappy 
waltzing to strains of “Daughter of 
Rosie O’Grady” nets him neat re- 
turns for his stint in the trey. 

Longtime puppeteer Frank Paris 
scores handily in the deuce, manip- 
ulating a quintet, of marionets 
about the stage,. Bringing ’em on 
individuallyiJie deftly guides such 
characters as a goose, femriie ice 
skater and a boy-girl dance team, 
Realistic arid lifelike, movements 
win warm reception. 

Brisk opener are The Atomics. 
Three gals arid : two men dish out 
a plethora of tumbling, collectively 
and individually, to earn okay 
salvos. Alphonse Berge, almost an 
institution by now, still evokes 
gasps Atom femme patrons via his 
rapid dressing of three live models 
in chic attire with nothing more, 
than a few pins and silken fabrics. 
There’s plenty here for the mas- 
culine eye as well. 

The Impressionaires, youthful 
male harmony trio, was minus one 
member, at show caught (29). De- 
spite his absence, the turn remains 
basically the same, with rellafi'ce 
upon impersonations of top vocal- 
ists arid radio-tv personalities. 
Takeoffs register nicely but! the 
boys’ . newly-added off-color gags 
could be eliminated, especially for 
the matinee trade here. 

Flamenco dancers Rodolfo St 
Juanita dish out lively heel-and- 
toe work amid rhythmic clicks of 
the castanets. Colorfully costumed, 
they: reap rousing .applause. Finale 
turn is that of vet cyclist Bobby 
Whaling St Yvette. Working with 
a trick bike (which collapses .at 
will, he rides (?) it for laughs. Best 
of his routines, however, is his uni- 
cycling. Capably assisting him is 
his pert daughter. Gilb. 

Casino, Toronto 

Toronto, Jan. 29. . 

Tirza, Bent Blue St Yvonne, Bruce 
Howard, Dinah Kaye. St. Claires 
<2), Archie Stone House Orch; 
"Captain's Paradise” (UA), 


vaude. Some warmth is lent to 
the proceedings by Dinah Kaye, 
self*announced ts a Scots singer. 

Comely brunet opens with “Sit- 
ting on Top of the World” for 
raucous delivery, a ballad arrange- 
ment of “Loch Lomond” before 
going into her' swing version, a 
shout rendition of “Ain’t It a 
Grand and Glorious Feeling,” her 
blues-haliad of “Strike a Match” 
and a finish with “Nobody’s Sweet- 
heart Now.” Miss Kaye has an 
alternate shout aqd sob style, plus 
too much of the Billy Daniels’ 
finger-snapping delivery, and gets 
over mainly on her sexy appear- 
ance. 

^ Archie Stone’s pit orch! lends 
valiant support, to ail . trie acts ; blit, 
apart from the dance team and 
the cyclists, it’s a sad customer 
session. •' Ale Stay, 


^Bobino, Paris 

Paris, Jan. 27. 

Eighth Musichall Fcst until To- 
hama, Jean Rigaux, Les ■ Bogadis 
14), Tih Boult, Koren St Kraber, 
Souris, Minerva k Caracolillo, 
Herta' Frankel, Rayne, Les 4 As- 
toris, • Louise Loyal & . Mickey, 
Maurice Boulais Orch (12), Si- 
mone Moriii ; $1.30 top. 


A comedy bicycle act takes top 
applause honors in the current 70- 
minute stage package at the Casino. 
Opening-night ! audience apathy 
caused mid-act walkouts. 

- Headlinerjs Tirza, a blond strip- 
teaser, marqueed as taking a bath 
in wine, with eedysiast on for those 
pldtime cross-stage costume, dives- 
tures before stepping on a plat- 
form, before triple mirrors, for 
further bumps and grinds— in com- 
bo red and blue lighting— to an 
offstage, ill-adjusted phonograph- 
recorded narrative of how Bacchus 
seduced a maiden". Finale has Tirza 
taking her wine bath in a minia- 
ture “Dancing Waters” effect* com- 
plete with rumbling ^plumbing, 
when caught. Sad to report that 
the novelty spec saw the bored 
customers walking out and that 
the splashing finale was greeted 
by only sporadic applause. ! 

. With BrucC Howard as lackadaisi- 
cal emcee, The St, Clairs open 
briskly: for 'their youthful waltz- 
taps, complete with full-stage 
spins and pirouettes'; a drumstick 
routine by the maid on chair and 
stage floor, and another tap finish 
by the pair to a. polite audience 
reception, Top applause went to 
Bent Blue k Yvonne, latter an eye- 
filling blond, for their comedy 
cycling on Various heights of bikes, 
plus club and plate juggling, hat 
tosses arid work with the rings; 
and a finish with the male catch- 
ing six-tiered teacups on his head, 
with misses and then recoveries, 
when caught, act got the biggest 
applause ori the bill. 

_ Bruce Howard follows with an 
Irish traffic cop bit, some inept 
Hollywood star impressions, a weak 


Robino keeps up its standard of 
selected shows. The big find is Les 
Bogadis (4), a solid, bouncy aero- 
tumbling act that is fresh and fine. 
Off beater . that engenders interest, 
if not cheers, is the doll dance of 
Tih Boult who, on hands and feet, 
plies a male and p female dancer 
who dance and cavort in an , eerie 
manner that makes for mitting 
when he shows up under the two 
mannequins. 

In the puppet stage is Herta 
Frankel, a striking looking frau, 
who manipulates some stringed 
members to- records for a pleasing 
stint. Koren & Kraber supply an 
ordinary aero -dance act , with 
enough high flops and turns: for 
goOd mitting, and Minerva & Cara- 
colillo fill out the terp part of the 
bill with a standard carioca turn 
helped by a: comic interlude of 
talking castanets .that makes for 
mitts. . 

Les 4 Astoris do a tumbling-in- 
net turn that is okay for going into 
the second half and Rayne does a 
good contortion act in the guise 
of a sUribather. Louise Loyal & 
Mickey show that you are as old 
as you feel as this Oldtimes gal does 
some solid .juggling, abetted by a 
partner in a Mickey outfit for comic 
asides. 

Topliners . are for the steady 
clientele and Jean Rigaux, one of 
the top. chansohrtiers here, delivers 
a virtuoso turn on politics with a 
searing looksee at Its practitioners 
with the nothing-sacred attitude 
that makes this a top laughgetter. 

< Tohama is a buxom, sparkling 
singer who has a catching gurgle 
and sprightliness in her big voice 
that makes her , songs . bright and 
engaging. Another comic vocal 
stint by a cute little doll caljed 
Souris, which means mouse, is a 
nice salty offering and her cuteness 
helps her get. away with the blue 
innuendos in her material. She 
parodies the moan and throb chant 
corps for tellirig effect and ends 
on big palms. Mosk. 


Apollo, N. Y. 

The Ravetw (4), Tito Puente 
Orch (16) with Gilberto Manroy, 
Three Leggers (2), Al Hibbler, 
Ramona k Leon, Butterbeans k 
Susie; “Jeopardy” (M-G). 

The Apollo* With this, bill, has 
reached out for the Latin trade, 
since many of the Hispanos are in 
the area. According to attendance, 
Frank Schiffman has hit upon 
something with this move. The 
Latin elements seem to be attract- 
ed by the Tito Puente band, com- 
prising a group of expert mambo 
practitioners, and the * flamenco 
team of Ramona & Leon. 

Another unusual aspect of the 
current layout in this Harlem 
vaude flagship, lies in the fact that 
Schiffman is apparently marking 
“Be Kind to the Handicapped 
Week.” Singer Al Hibbler a fave 
at this spot, is blind, arid the Three 
Leggers (New Acts) contains a 
monopede. 

The combination of Harlem with 
a Latin beat proves to be a pleas- 
ing bit of divertissement. The va- 
rious elements fuse into a good 
show. The Puente mob dishes out 
some exciting Latino stuff. Their 
mambos hit a Strong rhythm that 
pays off and the one note of com- 
parative quiet, Puente’s marimba 
solo of “My Funny Valentine,” pro- 
vides a good change of pace. His 
instrumentation, comprising four 
each of brtfss and reeds, three 
kinds of drums, bass and piano, in- 
dicates the accent on rhythm. Vo- 
calist Gilberto Monroy helps 
Puente’s: cause . with his ' rhythm 
numbers. 

The Ravens, who have tenanted 
the best-selling disk lists, do a fine 
session of songs. The bass, using 
the separate mike, is able to give 
solidity and novelty to the entire 
outfit. The tenor is also used for 
novelty effects. They run through 
“September Song,” “Without a 
Song” arid “Crying in the Chapel” 
to achieve a top response. 

Hibbler, with a tremendous vocal 
range,, hits a top score with a set 
of numbers, including .“Old Man 
River” and “Trees.” 

Ramona Sc Leon do well with a 
series of fast flamenco terps. Their 
work has the air of authenticity, 
costuming is colorful and the 
dances have vigor arid vividness. 

Butterbeans & Susie, vet comedy 
team, get screams with their lines. 
This man-and-woman pair work in 
the oldtiirie tradition; . Nothing is 
left to chance, every word and ges- 
ture is belted out and they walk 
off a hit. Jgse. 

Opera 9 Santiago 

Siantiago, Jan. 30. 

Rosita Lara, Manolo Gonzalez, 
Los Caporales, Eugenio Retes, Iris 
del Valle, Gabriel Araya, Eduardo 
Gamboa, Elvira Mayo; Lubi Mar- 
tin, Nancy Lexica, Lilian Montes, 
Sussy Moytrey, Lily Morel, Nedda 
Rivie, Yoly Montrey, Lucy Castro, 
Cyhtia Rivi&, B. D'Arcy. 



ANDY GRIFFITH 
Comedy 
14 Mins. 

Biue Angel, N. Y. 

One disclick is all you need to- 
day to get into the bigtime. It’s 
been a common occurrence with 
singers and now it’s happened to 
a hillbilly monologist. Out of 
Chapel Hill, N. . O, via Capitol 
Records, Andy Griffith (he dropped 
the Preacher appellation When he 
hit Gotham) is sticking to his disk 
style in his nitery approach. He’s 
not too far from wrong in doing it 
but some . expansion and broaden- 
ing are needed to make it well- 
rounded turn. 

As it stands now, the act consists 
of two dissertations with a running 
time of. close to Seven minute's 
each.. His hillbilly twang and sly- 
ly innocent Interpretation of such 
stories as “Romeo and Juliet” arid 
“Swan Lake” ballet are loaded 
with laugh-getters, but it’s a tough 
chore, to keep the crowd with . him 
all the way. The yarns would* be 
helped by some scissoring, and the 
interspersion of a couple of short/ 
ies would give him a morel solid 
footing bn the nitery floor. 

Griffith’s a likable chap and 
demonstrates vet savvy throughout 
his stint. His poise and timing be- 
lie his tyro standing. A good bet 
for riiteries and tele guest stints — 
as he demonstrated on Ed .Sulli- 
van’s CBS-TV show a couple of 
weeks ago. Gros. 


Olympia. Miami 

Miami, Jan. 29. 

Bobby Van, Paulette Sisters, Joe 
“ Fingers ” Carr, Paul Benson, Wong 
Sisters, Les Rhode House Orch; 
Man of Conflict ” (Indie). 


Bookers for house' departed from 
the past two weeks’ policy, which 
featured a full scale Latin revue, 
returning to basic* variety pattern 
for fair results. 

Topliner spot is held down in 
nimble fashion by Bobby Van, the 
“Kiss Me Kate” terper. Personable 
lad win? them quickly with his 
imaginatively devised soft-shoe 
sequence for a solid palm-rouser. 
He works out his routines deftly 
with feathery delineation adding to 
class touchr . 

Pianistics of Joe VFingers” Carr 
make for a showmanly turn. Ivory- 
pounder blends in special, arrange- 
ments to show Versatility on light 
arid tricky tinklings, to garner 
hearty reaction. 

Acro-danclng of the Wong Sisters 
tees off matters at a fast clip. 
Stunts earn them requisite round 
of gasps.; 

Paul Benson returns with his 
auctioneer act, the giveaway gim- 
mick always welcomed by the 
vaude addicts here, with Benson 
adding to overall satisfaction via 
fast, giggle-raising patter. 

Paulette Sisters round out layout 
with harfnony blendings that would 
come off better on a radio show or 
recording. Staging of the act 
nullifies the harmonic ideas with 
the eve appeal almost nil, gals con- 
stantly looking ill at ease. Les 


i 


_ , D ___ at ease. 

. Dragnet” satire, *and some inane j Rhode and house orch shmvback 
Jokes on tv’s competish with,! satisfactorily. Lary. 


THREE LEGGERS (2) 

Dance 
9 Mins, 

Apollo, N. Y. 

Three Leggers, despite its name, 
comprises a two-man team, with 
one of the* lads being an amputee. 
The boy working with crutches is 
an extremely capable, athletic gent,, 
who frequently eschews the walk- 
ing aid for long periods of time and 
does a variety of steps that would 
even do credit to his two-legged 
contemporaries. 

Early part of tills turn is taken 
up with challenge terps and after- 
ward they settle down into a series 
of applause-winning routines. This 
Negro duo could sharpen up their 
gab to some extent, but otherwise 
they’re okay for theatre and cafe 
work. Jose. 


1 Buddy Day put an idea on the 
boards a year ago and it r has paid 
off handsomely. He put together 
a potpourri of vaudeville, comics 
arid a line of lookers, titled "Bim 
Bam Bum,” set admissions at pop 
prices enabling him to compete 
with pic houses, skedded three 
shows a day, and hit. His troupe 
is celebrating its first birthday 
with “Caravan of Successes,” a 
medley of the blackouts and num 
bers that got the biggest mitts dur- 
ing the company’s first year. 
Others have paid tribute to Day’s 
sock record by trying to imitate his 
spirited attraction, but no go. 

One of the mainstays is versatile 
Eugenia Retes, who writes comedy 
sketches besides . figuring in them. 
Other topflight numbers in the an- 
niversary. program are Los Capo- 
rales, a pair qf comedy singers; 
Rosita Lara, shapely thrush who 
warbles pleasantly in Spanish and 
French, and Manolo Gonzalez, who 
dishes out plerity of bellylaughs 
with his inonology. 

Eugene D’Arcy’s ballet troupe 
doesn’t have the Rockettes’ pre- 
cision but the terpers are attrac- 
ftive. Day Uses a succession of them 
to introduce each new act or num- 
ber and the chorines, poured into 
slinky gowns, draw this wolf calls. 
> Ziff • 


New Nitery Charge Acct. 
Service Set Up in N. Y. 

A new nitery charge account 
service has been formed. Trip 
Charge, with a setup similar to the 
Diners Club, is now lining cafe and 
restaurant accounts. Kurt Hoff- 
irian, cafe pressagent, and Milton 
Ward rep the new service in New 
York. ' 

Trip Charge will also apply to 
other services such as theatre tick- 
let agencies and florists. 


MICKY ANDREWS 

Songs 

20 Mins, 

Embassy. Club, London 

Micky' Andrews, youthful new- 
comer to .British vocal ranks, has 
all the potentials of a headliner al- 
though he is, at the moment, an ob- 
vious raw recruit with a lot to 
learn in showmanship technique, 
Short and stocky, his appearance is 
a minus quality and he .igill need 
to develop a powerful platform 
technique to win an audience. But 
he has the basic essential of a fine 
volbe, which will make him a safe 
bet for recordings. 

In his current stint, jiis engage- 
ment has already been twice ex- 
tended arid an option has been 
taken for a return date later in the 
year, indicating the management’s 
confidence in his ability and pro- 
fessional progression. Meantime, 
he has waxed for Columbia and 
both sides of his first platter, “The 
Cuff of My Shirt” and “Lonely,” 
are included in his songaglog! An- 
drews has a distinctive way with 
ballads and reveals a pleasant ap- 
proach to : lighter nurnbers, but 
there’s no justification for inclu- 
sion of an impression of Billy Dan- 
iels, singing “Black Magic,” ; in his 
routine, 

Astute . directorial guidance is 
needed to smooth the rough edges 
and give the act greater, visual ap- 
peal. , Myrg. 

LES BOGADIS (4) 

Acro-tumbling 
15 Mins. 

Bobino, Paris 

Four Egyptian youths have a 
bouncy tumbling act with verve, 
precision and excellence. Two put 
their backs to tables and whirl the 
others with their feet in eyecatch- 
ing feats. Rhythm is sustained 
throughout and they are good 
enough to salt this with comic 
strutting and hamming that comes 
off, due to the pet’s sparkle. Two 
make for a mock . feud that has 
them outdoing each other in the 
tumbling of the others with the 
pedal extremities. Act ends on a 
solid turn by all four and. a cross- 
over and exchange of partners that 
ends this on big mitts. 

This would be a natural for U.S, 
revues arid vaude spots for that 
offbeat aero slotting. Boys are un- 
der Lew and Leslie Grade option 
for a year. Mosk * 


JACK ANTHONY 
Comedy 
9 Mins. 

Alhambra, Glasgow; . 

Blonde cheerful-looking Scotch 
comedian has asset of effervescence 
plus naturally happy face of a 
clowning comic. With backing of 
show biz experience (his father 
was comic before him), he has 
good sense of timing in gags, and 
has particular appeal to moppets, 
which makes him suited to panto- 
mime roles. Scot accent doesri t 
limit him dialectically, enunciat- 
ing clearly, despite occasional na- 
tive lapses into Auld, Lang Syne 
colloquialisms. Gimmick is his 
travesty of a kilted Scot dancing 
the old-fashioned Lancers. 

Good booking for U. K. comedy 
slottings and for Commonwealth 
engagements, particularly in cen- 
ters favored by Scot emigrants. 

Cord. 


AITKEN & GORDON 
Songs 
7 Mins. 

Empress, Glasgow 

This Mr. & Mrs. duo possesses 
strong sets of pipes and thejr give 
out to excellent effect in the song 
slotting. Garbed in yellow ana 
green kilts, they are particularly 
expert in renditions of Scottish 
tunes, although no strangers to 
more cosmopolitan run of melo- 
dies, and have confident sense of 
grouping in song presentation. She 
is blonde with . pleasing appear- 
ance, he a sallow-faced, black* 
haired type with resemblance U 
Italian singers. Pair gives impres- 
sion of being thoroughly at homo 
and enjoying their singing chores. 

Good bet for radio bookings! and 
also for general run of vaude 
shows. 


Gord. 


solid offbeat 


LES GAMBYg (2) 

Acro-perch 
19 Mins. 

Medrano, Paris 
Les Gambys are a 
act. One man unders and puts a 
brace on his arm which support! 
a 20-foot pole. The other ups and 
fcavorts at the top of the pole. The 
poles get long and the mitting get! 
heavier as a 30-foot job has thri 
top man spinning as the other bal- 
ances and works the rod from be- 
low. This Is a fine show of co* 
ordination and makes this a gpod 
act for music hall and vaude spot- 
ting. 

7 This would be okay for bigscale 
nitery revues in high-domed 
rooms. Mosk. 


TOHAMA 
Songs 
30 Mins. 

Bobino, Paris 

Tohama is a ‘ cute, hefty, Betty 
Boop-phizzed singer with an in- 
gratiating gurgle in a huge voice 
that makes for aud captivation arid 
response. She has a flock of light 
numbers that fit in with her tem- 
perament and happy-voiced ap- 
peal. She can also throat out a 
nice slow job with good showman- 
ship. 

Femme might have possibilities 
for U.S. cabaret slotting with an 
exploitation peg of a different type 
Gallic chantoosie who sings >of joy 
instead of the wistful city blues. 
She is ably backed by the organ 
tactics of David MacRensie. 

Mosk. 


ALEX DON TRIO 
Musical 
8 Mins. 

Emprew, Glasgow 

Trio of youngish males com- 
prises a likable act that shapes up 
pleasantly for vauders. Two play 
accordions while third member sits 
at the ivories, and they give out in 
lively fashion in songalog of cur- 
rent pops. Recently formed, trio . 
shows fairly good possibilities In 
tne instrumental department, and 
has bright pace. At show caught, 
they concentrated On medley of 
Jolson hits, and were off to a good 

mitt. , v 

Okay for general run of vauder- 
ies once rough edges are polished 
off. Gord. 

London Colony’s Chief 

On U.S. Talent Prowl 

London, Feb. 2. 

Harry Morris, who runs the Col- 
ony restaurant in Berkeley Square, 
planes out to. New York today 
(Tues.) on the prowl for cabaret 
talent for the coming season. He 
expects to.be away about six weeks. 

The Colony is one of the few 
West End nightspot? Where Ameri- 
can acts continue to predominate. 
Many others have been reducing 
their overhead by hiring moderate- 
l ly-priced local artists. 


68 


LECITIMATB 


Wdnegday, February 3, I954. 



Divan-type theatre seats are ap- 
parently going to remain a “monop- 
oly” of City Playhouses, Inc. Al- 
though the Innovation is proving 
satisfactory at the Corpnet, N. Y., 
and is being repeated at the Moroc- 
co and 46th Street, also owned by 
City Play rouses, other theatre man- 
agements have no intention of 
‘'plagiarizing” the idea. 

Shuberts. who operate 1# of the 
3i legit houses in town, are not 
considering the installation of dir 
van-type ■ seats. Primarily, the 
Shubert attitude stems from the 
stiff expense involved in the pur- 
chase of the luxurious chairs. How- 
ever, an additional factor is that 
the divan-type seats are larger and 
therefore permit fewer rows in the 
safe space. Also, the necessarily 
higher ticket price for the seats 
presumably allows less flexible b.o. 
scale. 

Outside of the Shuberts and City 
Playhouses (the latter has four the- 
atres, of which the Morosco and 
Coronet are under lease to Pro- 
ducers Theatre, Inc.), no other man- 
agement operates more than one 
. Broadway, house. With a couple of 
possible exceptions, they have too 
tough a time "making expenses 
these days to consider a large in- 
vestment in an experimental policy 
of luxury seats. 

. Thus far, the divan-seat policy, 
with a $7.80 price for those loca- 
tions, seems to be working out well 
at the Coronet, where “Remarkable 
Mr. Pennypacker” has been , con- 
sistently building since a moderate 
start. There has been no spectac- 
ular demand for the luxury seats, 
nor any undue resistance. Mail or- 
ders for “Confidential Clerk,” T .S. 

(Continued on page 71) 


Off-B’way Concessions 
Depend on Location; 




Concessions given to off-Broad 
way operations by the various the- 
atrical unions apparently depend 
on the location of the theatre. 
Scales at the President Theatre, 
located in the Times Square area, 
for instance, are much higher than 
those established at the Theatre 
de Lys in Greenwich Village, Both 
houses have a seating capacity of 
less than 300. 

“Stockade,” which bows at the 
President tomorrow (Thurs.), will 
function under agreements where- 
by Equity members receive $55 per 
week and $30 for rehearsal time. 
In addition, three stagehands will 
be employed at weekly stipends of 
$145 each, including payment for 
Sunday performances. Other per- 
sonnel include one boxoffice man 
at about $20 a day and a company 
manager and pressagent at $100 a 
week each. 

Setup at the Theatre de Lys, 
where . “Bullfight" is currently 
playing, calls for Equity members 
to receive $25 a week and $5 for 
rehearsal time. Job of company 
manager and flack is handled by 
one individual at $125 a week, 
while the b. 0. attendee pulls down 
$90 per week. 

Production tab on “Stockade” 
Is around $11,000. Show can ■•pull 
in a weekly capacity gross of 
$5,000, but needs about $2,400 a 
week to break even. Play is slated 
for a four-week engagement. Based 
on James Jones’ novel, “From 
Here to Eternity,” work was 
penned by Mark J. Appleman, Pro- 
ducers are Diana Green and Paul 
Butler. Robert H. Gordon, director 
of the Pittsburgh Civic Light 
Opera, is staging the play. 


Fleischmann Felled By 
Heart Attack in Fla. 

Miami Beach, Feb! 2. 

Julius Fleischmann, producer- 
backer of Broadway shows and bal- 
lets, suffered a heart attack here last 
week and is a patient at the Heart 
Institute. Condition is_ described 
as satisfactory, bufTie will prob- 
ably be hospitalized for several 
weeks. 

The 52-year-old Cincinnati resi- 
dent was vacationing at his winter 
home at Naples, on the Florida 
west coast, when he was taken ill. 
Besides being associated with 
Richard Aldrich and Richard 
Myers in a number of Broadway 
shows, Fleischmann has for some 
years been the principal backer of 
the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, 


Fair Exchange 

Chicago, Feb. ?. 

Steve Morrow* stage man- 
ager for the Chi company of 
“Wish You Were Here,” is 
bartering some of his Stage- 
craft for couple of courses 
at the U. of,Chicago. 

He's signing up the next 
quarter for psychology and 
play writing courses — tuition 
free. ■ In return he’s to direct 
some of the university’s plays. 



British rights to “Wonderful 
Town” are about to be acquired by 
London producer Jack Hylton. 
Deal reportedly calls for a down 
payment of $15,000, plus royalties 
of 10% for the authors, 2% for di- 
rector George Abbott and 3 4% for 
choreographer Jerome Robbins, 
plus 25% of the profits. Robert 
Fryer, producer, of the original 
Broadway edition of the musical, 
will get 25% of the advance, au- 
thor royalties and share of the 
profits. 

Show, based on Ruth McKeft- 
ney’s series of New York mag 
sketches, . was adapted by Joseph 
Fields and Jerbme Chodorov (who 
previously did a straightway ver- 
sion of the same material, titled 
“My Sister Eileen”), with music 
by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics 
by Betty Comden and Adolph 
Green. It’s currently in its 49th 
week a^ the Winter Garden, N. Y., 
with Rosalind Russell as star. 

Hylton has made something of a 
specialty of London productions of 
Broadway hits. He currently has 
“Wish You Were Here” and “Paint 
Your Wagon”, running in the West 
End, with “Pal Joey” due this 
spring. Former Such transfers in- 
clude “High Button Shoes,” “Call 
Me Madam” and “Moon Is Blue,” 
the latter a straight play. 

MORRIS PLAN SUES ON 
'51 LA. GREEK FOLDO 

Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

Morris Plan of California sued 
Internal Revenue director Robert 
A. Riddell; Greek Theatre Produc- 
tions, Inc., and prexy A. 4. Peren- 
cliio, veepees Maurice H. Friedman 
and Donald L. Rose, trying to re- 
cover on a $30,000 loan made in 
1951 when the ozone operetta out- 
fit folded after a bad season. It 
advanced coin to cover Equity 
bonds, the - firm says, and had 
promissory note and stock as col- 
lateral. When outfit folded, stock 
was worthless, /and note wasn’t 
paid. 

Riddell got into the act by -filing 
tax liens totaling $201,979. Plain- 
tiffs ask to be declared prior pos* 
sessor of promissory note or get a 
judgment for $30,000 plus interest 
of $996. 


Current London Shows 

London, Feb. 2. 

(Flgw-es denote premiere dates) 
Affairs of State/ Cambridge (8-21-52). 
Airs Shoestring/ Royal Ct. (4-22-53) 
Anna Lucasta, Hippodrome (1-26-54). 

As Lon* As Happy, Garrick (7-8-53). 

Big Knife, Duke York's (1-1-54). 
Birthday Honours, (Criterion 00-6-53). 
Boy Friend, Wyndham's (12-1-53). 
Boychlk, Embassy (1-13-54). 

Confidential Clerk, Lyric (0-16-53). 
Crlmr Punishment, Arts (1-13-54). - 

nfT- B J. S **' Haymarket (11-26-53). 
Dear Charles, New (12-18-52). 

Down Came Blackbird, Savoy (12-22-53). 
Escapade, Strand (1-20-53). 

Folles Bergere, Pr. Wales (9-24-53). 

For Better W.orse, Comedy (12-17-52): 
Guys and Dolls, Colliscum (5-28-53). 
Housomastor, St. Martin's (M9-54). 

-King and I, Drury Lane (10-8-53). 
London Laughs, Adelphl (4-12-52). 

Love Frpm Judy, Saville (9-25-52). 

Love Match, Palace (11-10-53).- 
Mousetrap, Ambas. (11-25-52). 

'KP, v «r«Hct, Duchess (1-21-54). 

0!d Vlc Repertory, old Vic (9-14-53). 

nt X eur W«aon, Majesty’s (2-11-53). 
. Pygmalion, St. James* (11-19-53). 
Question of Fact, Piccadilly (12-10-53). 
Reluctant Heroes, Whitehall (9-12-50). 
Ring Out Bells, Vic. Pal. (11-12-52). 
Seagulls Sorrento, Aj>oUo (6-14-50). 


Seven Year Itch 
Sleeping Prince, 


wych (5-14-52). 

Phoenix (10-5-53). 


Someone Waiting, Globe (11-25-53). 
Trial & Error, Vaude (9-17-53). 

Wish You Were Here, Casino (10-10-53). 
Witness Prosecution, W. Gard. (10-28-53). 


SCHEDULED OPENINGS 
Alice Looking Glass, Princes (2-9-54), 
Angels imLove, Savoy (2-11-54); 

Fifth. Season, Cambridge (2-25-54). 
Private Secretary, Arts (2-3-54). 
Tropicana, New Watergate (2-10-54). 


Joan Evans May Make 
BVay Bow in Musical 

Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

Deal U being dickered for Joan 
Evans to make her Broadway debut 
next fall In a new musical comedy. 

Score has already been turned 
out by Mack David $nd Jerry Liv- 
ingston and plans .are now in prog- 
ress to fit a book to the music. Film 
actress has made an occasional 
legit appearance in stock but has 
not previously appeared on Broad- 
way,' /. 


Fonda, Nolan to Raise 
'Caine’ at Least a 
Seek Hodhk for fie 

“Caine Mutiny Court Martial,” 
newest straight-play smash on 
Broadway, is a prospect to continue 
indefinitely f Costars Henry Fonda 
and Lloyd Nolan, playing the two 
standout parts, are available to 
stay with the Paul Gregory produc- 
tion for at least a year.- John Ko- 
diak, also starred, is reportedly 
being sought for a film assignment. 
However, his role in the Herman 
Wouk drama is not quite so vital, 
so he could presumably be replaced 
for a limited period. . 

Fonda’s only commitment, ver- 
bal, but presumably binding, is to 
star in a musical adaptation^being 
prepared by Richard Rodgers and 
Oscar Hammerstein 2d from John 
Steinbeck’s not-yet-published se- 
quel to his “Cannery Row.” Stage 
treatment is only in the__ prelimi- 
nary . phase, however, and prob- 
ably won’t be ready for production 
for a year or more. Property was 
originally held by Cy Feuer and 
Ernest H. Martin, hut ,they recent- 
ly turned it over to R & H. 

Nolan, whose portrayal of the 
tragically despotic Capt. Queeg in 
“Caine” drew critical raves, plans 
to remain with the Wouk play in- 
definitely. 


'SHOW BOAT’ AS OPERA 
INTO N.Y. REPERTORY 

Unusual lineup will mark the 
spring season of the N. Y. City 
Opera Co., which will present a 
six-week engagement at City Cen- 
ter, N. Y., starting March 25. Plans 
include a world premiere April 1 
in Aaron Copland’s “The Tender- 
Land.” 

The Jerome Kern-Oscar Ham- 
merstein Broadway musical, “Show 
Boat,” will be staged* by the troupe 
April 8, marking first time that the 
musical has been performed by a 
major opera company as part of its 
regular repertory. 

Other new N. Y. City Opera 
work will be Verdi’s “Falstaff,” to 
be sung in English, debuting April' 
15. Company will also do a re- 
vival of Strauss’ “Salome,” which 
Will tee the season off March 25. 



Area Year-Round Stock 


Chicago, Feb. 2. 

Showcase Theatre in suburban 
Evanston, the Chi area’s sole year- 
round professional stock company, 
is shuttering Sunday (7) with a 
loss estimated at $45,000. Producer 
Hope Summers and her backers, 
who launched the project in No- 
vember, 1952, decided to call it 
quits last week in the face of stead- 
ily dwindling business. 

Miss Summers blames the clos- 
ing on “tv, widescreen motion pic- 
tures, bars and lethargy.” She 
pointed out that when “The Robe” 
film arrived, in Evanston three 
weeks ago, Showcase -biz dropped 
overnight to less than half. 

In an attempt to spark inrerest, 
the theatre last December shifted 
from a straight stock company to 
a name policy, but even that failed 
to catch on, despite generally fa- 
vorable critical response to th* 
various two-weekers. The 1,350- 
seat house was scaled to a $2.40 
weeknight top, with a $3 top Satur- 
day nights. . 

Current and final Showcase pro- 
duction is “Gigi,” Which starred 
Estelle Winwood last week until 
she withdrew to keep a New York 
tv date. Slated to open next Tues- 
day (9> was “You Can’t Take It 
With You,” starring Gene Lock- 
hart. 

Although definitely discouraged 
by the lack of interest evidenced in 
the project by the North Shore 
-set In and around Evanston; Miss 
Summers expressed an interest in 
continuing, should the closing an- 
nouncement stir up any last-minute 
response. 



/ 3-D Play* Now 

Pittsburgh, Feb. 2. 

During, f ngagement of “Sta- 
lag 17” at the Nixon Theatre 
in Pittsburgh, one of the 
characters during > midweek . 
performance bumped against 
a table in the barracks room 
set and two cans went flying 
out towards the audience. ; 

A woman customer, instinc- 
tively ducking, turned to her 
companion and said audibly: 
“Good heavens, they even have 
3-D plays now.” 





Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

Nine one-act radio plays by: Nor- 
man Corwin will be presented on 
Broadway next fall in an unusual 
packaging of shorties; The Paula 
Stone-Mike Sloane production, ten- 
tatively tagged “Three By Three,” 
calls for presentation of three one- 
acters each night for three suc- 
cessive nights,, then beginning all 
over; again: v .. 

Method of presentation is rem- 
iniscent of “Tonight at 8:30” but 
marks the first time that radio 
plays will be used as the basis; 
Corwin: is currently ’adapting se- 
lected scripts from three of his 
books, “Thirteen By Corwin*” 
“More By Corwin” and “Untitled 
And Other Plays:” He’ll also direct. 

Rehearsals are slated to start in 
August. Sloane is now here, dis- 
cussing possibility of Keenan 
Wynn being one of the stars. He’s 
also understood to be talking to 
Harvey Lembeck for a featured 
role. None of Corwin’s scripts have 
ever been done on Broadway be- 
fore. 

Corwin recently completed a 
dramatization of Eric Knight’s 
novel, “The Flying Yorkshireman,” 
as vehicle for Hume Cronyn, but 
the latter has no immediate plans 
for its production. * 


♦ By ARTHUR BRONSON 
While ballet troupes have 
taking the .limelight lately i n P the 
press and at the boxoffice. an un. 
usual battle of ballet bookings for 
next season has been going on 
strongly behind the scenes. 

Booking and routing activity for 
’54-’55/ has been accompanied by 
charges , of sharp practices, claims 
of pressure of block-booking to get 
dates and reports of double-dealing 
in relations between out-of-town lo- 
cal managers and N. Y. execs 
Touring plans of certain companies 
have been altered or cancelled duf- 
ing the scuffles, and one N. ,Y. man- 
agement topper recently remarked* 

“I’ve already been done out of 
some dates promised me* by a 
fierce competitor who runs rough- 
shod over you.” 

The battle for bookings is going 
on merrily, with a ballet-full of 
dance and fireworks in prospect 
But meantime, it presents a giant 
problem. 

For the first time in concert his- 
tory, four major ballet companies 
will be available in ’54-’55 — Ballet 
Theatre, Ballet Russe de Monte 
Carlo, London Festival Ballet and 
N, Y. City Ballet. In addition, there 

will be smaller troupes, like a 
Danilova company and a Ruthanna 
Boris group. Even the Old Vic Co., 
which Sol Hurok will present next 
season in “Midsummer Night's 
Dream,” with Moira Shearer and 
Robert Helpmann, for a 13-week 
run, will include a ballet group. 

There’s a possibility of the re- 
turn of Roland Petit's Ballets de 
Paris, now in N- Y., and the Jose 
Greco troupe, now eoncCrtizing, 
may continue next season instead 
of doing niteries or films. -Sadler’s 
Wells Ballet, which recently fin- 

(Continued on page 72) 


Szell’s Powder Is Mitrop 


FOUNDATION TO BUILD 


La Jolla, Feb. 2. v 

First step toward building a the- 
atre for the La Jolla Playhouse 
group was taken this week with 
the formation of the La Jolla-San 
Diego County Theatre and Arts 
Foundation, a non-profit corpora- 
tion, Organization, whose charter 
provides for conducting a “Centre 
for theatre, music, lectures and 
other similar arts,” has a total of 
30 incorporators. 

. Articles of incorporation were 
signed by Gregory Peck, in Paris, 
and by Mel Ferrer, Dorothy Mc- 
Guire and John Swope of the Play- 
house organization. 

Winter Stock Plans For 
Atlantic City Siloers 

Atlantic City, Feb. 2; 

, ,i ,? layhouse ’ located at Pleas- 
ant Mills, some '30 miles from the 
resort and midway to Philadelphia, 
opens its winter stock season to- 
morrow night (3) with Benn W 
Le yy s Springtime for Henry.” 

Ada Fenno and Gianni Pitale, 
who have been producing plays 
there the past three summer sea- 
sons, closing with Labor Day, plan 
a series of eight plays for the late 

Tw e1 ^ a X. d e j* rly spring months. 
Apis is the first time they have 
endeavored to produce winter 
shows at the spot, where a modern 
heating^ plant has been installed 
in what was once an old mill, and 
a comfortable lounge constructed. 

Flans of the producers call for 
tours to nearby points where plays 

vi ill be ° ff e red - Nearby Pleasant- 
fl'JS’ ,?Jammonton-..and Haddon- 
field will be visited. 

.“Springtime for Henry” will be 

I nf, i Cd ™ Cb * 2‘ 4 wlth Gubi Mann, 
Louis Edmonds, A. N. Driscoll and 

G. Wopd. Bell, Book and Candle” 
follows Feb, 5-6. 

Plays will be directed by Law- 
rence Carra, while Barney Ricci 
will be production and house man- 
ager and Walt Thompson stage 
manager. 6 



Maestro as Guest Leader 

Met Opera general manager Ru- 
dolf Bing, who has a happy faculty 
of coming up with novel solutions 
to a crisis — such as a televised 
opening night in theatres (recently 
consummated) to offset financial 
deficits-— hit a ’10-strike last week 
with the signing of N. Y. Philhar- 
monic Dimitri Mitropoulos to be a 
guest conductor next season. 

Move follows directly upon the 
recent Met walkout of conductor 
George Szell after a clash with 
Bing, and probably wouldn't have 
eventuated hadn’t Szell .powdered. 
But it will go a long way to soothe 
those opera-lovers who felt that, 
artistically, Szell was completely in 
the right. 

Appointment is a feather in 
Bing’s cap— grabbing the conductor 
of America’s oldest and best- 
known (via its radio broadcasts) 
symphony for his American oper- 
atic bow. It’s also a. boost for the 
Philharmonic and Mitropoulos, 
both of whom need a little prestige 
at the moment after attacks in the 
press and, music circles on both 
maestro and the orchestra for art- 
istic reasons. 

Mitropoulos, who only, last week 
got a new one-year’s contract with 
the Philharmonic (he’s been regu- 
lar conductor since ’49 and musical 
director since ’51), has been anxious 
for years to conduct opera in this 
(Continued on page 72) 



. London, Jan. 26. 

Bernard Delfont departed for 
South of France suddenly on his 
doctor’s orders. Will he away for 
three weeks . . . Beverly Nichols’ 
new play, “Shadow of the Vine,’’ 
\vill have its tryout at a special 
Sunday night showing at the 
Wyndham’s Theatre Feb. 14. Eric 
Portman will 1 star ••• Bernard 
Grun has been given okay by the 
late Oscar Straus’ family to do a 
biography of the composer . 

Celestial City,” new Charlotte 
Frances play, is having its debut 
in Copenhagen and Stockholm 
prior to English , production. 

Robertson Hare and Ralph Lynn 
will be teamed' in a new farce, 
“Liberty Bill,” opening at Black- 
pool, Eng. Support cast includes 
v era Pearce. Comedy is set in the 
British House of . Commons ; . • 
John Slater, British tv personality- 
actor, will tour northern England 
in the long-running farce “Re* 
luctant Heroes.” 



1 


XTedneadafr Febrnary 3, 1954 


LEGITIMATE 


69 



j J Shubert’s demand that Mil- 4- 
♦on R. Weir he dropped attorney 
r the League of N. Y. Theatres 
, win probably be turned down by 
the organization’s board- of gover- 
nors However, it’s hoped that 
Shubert may be persuaded to with- 
draw his ultimatum. 

Board discussed the matter at a 
meeting last Friday (29), but it’s 
understood no final action was 
taken. Instead; members v spent 
most of the session .considering a 
proposal for staggered curtain 
times for matinees at Broadway 
theatres, as,a possible step to avoid 
traffic tieups for ho'mebound play- 


g If the League board refuses to 
give Weir the axe and Shubert 
carries out his threat to resign 
from the organization in conse- 
quence, it’s generally conceded the 
organization could hardly survive, 
at least as an effective force. How- 
ever, every board member ques- 
tioned has said that it would be 
better for. the Leagile to fold than 
to knuckle under to what is re- 
garded as high-handed and Unrea- 
sonable pressure. Giving in on the 
matter would brand the League as 
a mere Shubert puppet, board 
members say; 

Shubert has still given ho rea- 
son, at least to board members, for 
his fire-Weir demand. At the time, 
he said merely that his reasons are 
his own business, and refused to 
discuss it further. Among board 
members, it’s felt that the situation 
reflects the feud that existed for 
. many years between' Shubert and 
his brother, the late Lee Shubert. 

(Continued on page 72) 







Deal for a British production of 
“Can-Can” is on the verge' of com- 
pletion. Agreement may be reached 
in London in the next day or so 
between Cy FeUer, co-producer of 
the musical; Arthur Lewis, his pro- 
duction assistant, and Prince Lit- 
tler, West End theatre owner-pro- 
ducer associated with FeUer and 
Ernest H. Martin in the current 
London edition of “Guys and 
Dolls.” . ' 

Martin planed back to the U.S. 
last week after setting a deal for 
a Broadway production by Feuer 
and him next fall of. “The Boy 
Friend,” hew musical comedy click 
in London. Feuer is due to return 
next week, but Lewis will probably 
remain for another month or so. 

Preceding the British show on 
the F & M schedule is “Silk Stock- 
ings,” a musical version of the old 
satirical comedy film, “Nindtchka,” 
with songs by Cole Porter and 
book by George Kaufman and 
Leueen MacGrath (Mrs. Kaufman). 
It is slatecKfo go into rehearsal 
Aug. 15 uijderKaufman’s direction, 
with Don Ameche' and Hildegarde 
Neff as stars. 


$90,000 Tknic’ Earns 
Profit to Date 



CARSON, KRAKEUR TALK 



Las Vegas, Feb. 2. 

Jack Carson, while doing a two- 
week engagement at El Rancho 
Vegas, was talking a deal with 
Broadway producer Richard Kra- 
keur regarding starring in a stage 
Production of ''Burlesque,” first 
touring and then taking it into 
N. Y. 

Comic wound in Las Vegas on 
Monday (1) and flew to the Coast 
to continue discussions with Kra- 
keur. 



to 

B. U.’s Gershwin Shop 

Boston, Feb. 2. 

Sherwood Keith, owner-producer 
and director of the Boothbay Play- 
house, Boothbay, Me., and Deer- 
trees Theatre, Harrison, Me., has 
been appointed coordinator for the 
boston U, George Gershwin Thea- 
tre Workshop. 

Established several years ago as 
a centre for student training in the- 
atre arts, flie Workshop is conduct- 
e r at the Esquire Theatre, a former 
Pic house which B. U. acquired 
from the American Theatre Corp. 
last fall. 


“Picnic,” William Inge’s Pulitzer 
and Critics Circle award winner at 
the Music Box, N. Y., has earned a 
net $168,307 profit thus far on its 
$90,000 Investment, With the re- 
cent payment of another $25,000 
dividend, the total Distributed prof- 
it was $140,000; On the basis of the 
standard 50-50 split between man- 
agement and backers, that repre- 
sents a 78% profit for the latter. 

For the five weeks ended Jan. 2, 
the Theatre Guild-Joshua Logan 
production, staged by the latter, 
grossed $110,336 for an operating 
profit of $22,670. After distribu- 
tions, the remaining assets includ- 
ed $20,000 cash, reserve and $8,307 
balance. 

Play is in its 50th week on 
Broadway. 



Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

“Tea and Sympathy,’ ’previously 
slated to interrupt its sellout 
Broadway run for a summer layoff, 
may ■' now play through the hot 
weather without a break. However, 
that depends oh whether the pro-, 
ducers, Playwrights; Co. and Mary 
K. Frank, can obtain a suitable 
name actress to stand in for Debo- 
rah Kerr, star of the show. 

Miss Kerr takes a leave from the 
Robert Anderson drama June 5 to 
go to England to appear in a film 
adaptation of Graham Greene’s 
“The End of the Affair,” for Co- 
lumbia release. She’s due back to 
the legit about Labor Day and is 
under contract for a 30-week road 
tour starting in October. Her 
agent, Bert Allenberg, returned 
here last week after setting the 
latter deal. 

John Kerr (no relation), featured 
juve lead in “Tea and Sympathy,” 
may also leave the show early in 
June, with no further contractual 
commitment beyond then. He’s 
being sought by Leland Hayward 
and Billy Wilder to portray the 
young Charles A. Lindbergh in 
“Spirit of St. Louis,” their forth- 
coming screen edition of the fa- 
mous flyer’s bestseller. Whether, 
the actor would return to the 
Broadway show after the film stint 
is at the moment completely in the 
air. 


ELLIS, PATTERSON TEAM 
IN DECORATING BIZ 

Michael Ellis, co-producer with 
James Russo on several events, has 
formed a partnership with illustra- 
tor-designer Russell Patterson in a 
decorating and design business. 
Firm, called Russell Patterson As- 
sociates, will specialize in hotel, 
nitery and private club decor. Pat- 
terson will be in charge of the 
artistic end and Ellis will handle 
the business affairs. 

Besides producing such Broad- 
way shows as “Two's Company,” a 
revival of “The Play’s the Thing” 
and “Jenny Kissed Me,” the Russo- 
Ellis team operated a stock com- 
pany last fall at Syracuse, N., Y„ 
and took over the lease,, effective 
next summer, on the Bucks County 
Playhouse, New . Hope, Pa., previ- 
ously operated for many years by 
the late Theron Bamberger. They 
are now Understood seeking to dis- 
pose of the deal for the strawhat. 

Guild Dickers Palance 
For ‘Measure’ Revival 

Hollywood, Feb. 2. 

Theatre Guild is dickering with 
jack Palance to star as Angelo in 
the projected Shakespearian re- 
vival of “Measure for Measure.” 
Show is slated to go into rehearsal 
early next month with Herbert Rat- 
ner directing. 

Palance is stalling a definite an- 
swer until UI notifies him of a stop 
date on “Sign of the Pagan.” 


Had* Enough 

Pittsburgh, Feb. 2. 

George Alabama Florida, out 
ahead of “Oklahoma” again 
this year, told old newspaper 
friends ih Pittsburgh last week 
that he’s definitely retiring 
from show business at the end 
of Rodgers & Hammerstein 
musical's current tour. 

Florida, /one of the* most 
colorful of the legit pressagent- 
ry, has been on the road now 
since right before the turn of 
the century and feels he’s had 
enough. The . p.a. is 73, and 
still halb and hearty, but 
friends believe that the vet’s 
failing eyesight has hastened 
his decision to quit when 
spring rolls around. * 



To ‘Dance Angels 

If suggesting pieces of a show 
as Christmas presents did not 
work, maybe a Money-back prom- 
ise Will. That’s the latest offer 
from Elizabeth Miele to prospec- 
tive investors in her proposed mur 
sical _ production, “Cart You 
Dance?” Show is to star Irra Pe- 
tina. / 

With three-quarters of the neces- 
sary $225,000 financing raised, Miss 
Miele last week sent a circular 
letter saying she is ready, to guar- 
antee against loss all limited part- 
ners who put up the remainder. 
She explained she Will give them 
a personal, note, payable: nine 
months after the show closes, cov- 
ering the amount of the invest- 
ment not- returned. 

“tfo theatre investment has ever 
been offered with a guarantee be- 
fore,” she* wrote (Joshua Logan 
and Leland Hayward gave such a 
guarantee to backers of “Wisteria 
Trees” in .1949-50, and paid off 
on it), “but I have tremendous 
faith in this musical.” She en- 
closed copies of letters of personal 
reference from the late Lee Shu- 
bert, the late Frank Gillmore; at 
that time president of Actors 
Equity, and from a bank in Arme- 
nia, N. Y. 

Last fall Miss Miele sent a circu- 
lar letter urging prospective in- 
vestors to give shares in “Cari You 
Dance?” as Christmas presents. 
Since she still needs coin, the 
proposition presumably failed to 
fill the Yuletide stocking. 





,Setup After Court Tiff 

Hyannis, Mass.; Feb. 2, 
Cape Cod Melody Tent will be 
the name next summer of the can- 
vas-top musical theatre here for- 
merly known as the Cape Cod Mu^ 
sic Circus. New tag was chosen 
after a survey of local residents. 
Change is necessary under an out- 
of-court settlement of a breach of 
contract suit brought last year by 
St. John Terrell, who operates the 
Lambertville (N. J. ) Music Circus. 
Local spot is operated by a group 
headed by Broadway produce*; 
Richard Aldrich, who also has thb 
Cape Playhouse, Dennis, and the 
Falmouth Playhouse, at Coonames- 
sett, also on the Cape. , 

South Shore Music Circus, of 
which Aldrich’s attorney, '"’David 
Marshall Holtzmann, is managing 
director, will retain its present 
name. It is located at Cohasset, 
Mass. 



To 'Tights’ N, Haven Date; 
Click Stahis Indicated 

New Haven, Feb, 2. 

After a full week of playing, 
“Girl In Pink Tights” left here 
Saturday (30) as a definite candi- 
date for click status when it hits 
Broadway Feb. 25. Running-time 
has "been cut (but still requires an- 
other 20 minutes of snipping, with 
first act more than 90 minutes be- 
ing a long stretch). Re-routining of 
opening stanza still is in experi- 
mental stage. Presently, no new 
songs are contemplated but show’s 
opening tune, “We Bid You A Fond 
Adieu,” will probably be axed. 

Week’s stand at the Shubert in- 
volved a series of untoward inci- 
dents, partly due to necessity of 
hanging numerous drops with only 
four inches clearance. This meant 
fouled and damaged curtains and in 
one instance an episode that could 
have had disastrous results, when a 
ripped drop released a leadpipe 
bottomweight which crashed down 
on stage. No injuries, however. 

Saturday night finale was an un- 
scheduled Keystone corned#’. Cos- 
tumes of two singing-marching girls 
became tangled, causing them to 
do a Siamese twin exit. Comedy 
business of a Chinese cook peeling 
a potato ih a western stockade melo 
scene so broke up David Brooks 
and Brenda Lewis they had to hold 
up the scene. Jinx hit Brooks again 
in later scene when his wig flew 
off in a duel bit. 

Queries as to how much of the 
“Tights” -score was prepared by 
Sigmund Romberg prior to his 
death, brought forth the info that 
the major portion of the cleffing 
was either completed by the com- 
poser or left in the form of sketch- 
es which have, subsequently been 
developed to their present status. 
Among the completed tunes are 
“Lost In Loveliness,” “When I Am 
Free To Love,” “My Heart Won’t 
Say Goodbye” and “Elevated Rail- 
way.” From sketches came "You’ve 

(Continued on page 72) 


Hartford, Feb. 2. 

Scheme for the presentation of 
12 shows over a 25-city circuit has 
.been unveiled here by Charles. 
Bowden, one of the three opera- 
tors of the New Parsons. Project 
is skedded for 1954-55 season, 
Bowden and his two associates in 
the Hartford venture, Nancy Stern 
and Philip Langner, will tour at 
least that number of presentations, 
several of which will be pre-Broad- 
way tryout*. 

Announcement of Bowden em- 
phasizes .that the trio will main- 
tain their Hartford project, operat- 
ing it in absentia. This is a com- 
plete field reversal. Two weeks ago 
Bowden announced that the New 
Parsons was on the verge of being 
abandoned at the end of this sea- 
son because of a lack of public 
support. 

Bowden said that plans are still 
in the formative stage. The 25-city 
circuit will consist of 16 key towns 
and nine smaller units where pres- 
entations could be produced on a 
split-week basis. 

Several musicals are planned. 
However, because of stage limi- 
tations of the New Parsons, that 
house will be bypassed by the mu- 
sicals. The stage of the local house 
is 28 feet deep. In the announce 


4 New York flacks have finally 
caught up, with the bustling off- 
Broadway legit activity. Checking 
into their constitution, Assn, of 
Theatrical Press Agents & Mgrs. 
drumbeaters found that they can’t 
service both Main Stem attractions 
and off-Broadway offerings. 

Constitution permits a press- 
agent to handle a total of six shotfs 
in conjunction with three asso- 
ciates. These offerings, however; 
must either be Broadway presenta- 
tions or pre-Broadway productions. 
Such ventures as off-Broadway and 
stock operations don’t come under 
this multiplicity ruling. 

Matter was recently brought to 
the attention of the ATPAM board 
of governors and was then referred 
to the union’s flacking contingent. 
As a result, Sol Jacobson, who’s 
handling “Teahouse of the August 
Moon” and ‘‘John Murray Ander- 
son’s Almanac,” bowed out as flack 
for the Phoenix Theatre, an off- 
Broadway stock venture. Sam J. 
Friedman has succeeded Jacobson. 

As ruling presently stands, a 
flack working on an off-Broadway 
show gannot take on any other legit 
attractions. However, a pressagent 
handling a Main Stem show can 
function as general press repre- 
sentative in an advisory capacity 
for an off-Broadway attraction. Ac- 
tual servicing of the off-Broadway 
production would tewe to be han- 
dled by another drunobeater. 

. If a pressagent on/ a Broadway 
show, is contracted' fbr an off- 
Broadway presentation he has to 
assign his obligation to another 
flack two .weeks before show’s 
opening. However, if the Broad- 
way production he’s handling folds, 
he’s entitled .to take over as flack 
for the off-Broadway project after 
the pressagent to. whom he turned 
oyer the job has been on tlie pay- 
roll for a minimum of two weeks. 


New Parsons. Bowden pointed out 
that the Court Square Theatre in 
Springfield was a strong possibility 
for future operations. An . upturn 
of public support is responsible for 
the house - about - face, Bowden 
claims. 

In addition to his function as a 
partner in the local enterpriser 
Bowden is also co-prpducer of the 
Ruth Draper presentation at the 
Vanderbilt Theatre in New York. 

Under the new proposed setup, 
general .manager Allen Stewart, of 
the New, Parsons, would supervise 
all house operations. 


Hull, Gordon to Speak As 
Equity Honoris 1st Prez 

Josephine Hull, star of “Solid 
Gold Cadillac,” and Richard Gor- 
don, a member of the Actors 
Equity council, will be the princi- 
pal speakers next Tuesday after- 
noon (9) at ceremonies at the 
Equity headquarters; N. Y., mark- 
ing the 100th anniversary of the 
birth of Francis Wilson, the union’s 
first president. Miss Hull will 
reminisce about Wilson as a coun- 
cil member at- the time she served 
in a similar capacity, arid Gordon 
will recall when he was a mem- 
ber of Wilson’s stock company. 

Feature of the occasion will be 
the placing of a memorial plaque 
on the wall of the Equity office. 
Wilson’s actual birthday will be 
next Sunday ( 7 ) , but the ceremony 
is being held two days later to 
coincide with the scheduled coun- 
cil meeting. 



With the recent payment of an- 
other .$70,000 dividend, the dis- 
tributed profit on “Guys and Dolls” 
is $1,658,192, split between the 
management and backers. As of 
Jan. 9, the total net earned profit 
was $2,168,761. Since then, the Cy 
Feuer-Ernest H. Martin production 
has been playing a mopup engage- 
ment in Boston and the film rights 
have been sold to William Goetz 
for Columbia release. 

For the five weeks ended Jan. 2, 
the Frank Loesser-Jo Swerling- 
Abe Burrows musical adaptation of 
Damon Runyon characters and 
stories grossed $220,337. Operating 
profit for the five weeks was $42,- 


ment of the possible closing of th(n Additional- income included 


$635 from Swedish royalties and 
$825 share of souvenir program 
sales. 

Musical comedy is scheduled to 
tour through the 1954-55 season 
and a production is a dick at the 
Coliseum, London. 


COSTLY 66G TRIP FOR 
'BOUNTIFUL’ BACKERS 

“Trip to Bountiful,” Theatre 
Guild-Fred Coe production star- 
ring Lillian Gish, represented a 
loss of $66,300 of its $70,000 in- 
vestment. Show played a 39-per- 
formance run at the Henry Miller, 
N. Y„ closing last Dec. 5. 

: Backers of the HOrton Foote 
drama have received $3,500 return 
on their investment and there is a 
$200: balance available. 


ID 



“His; and Hers,” the Albert Sel- 
den-Morton Gottlieb production 
currently in its 5th week at the 
48th Street Theatre, N. Y., was 
brought in for $43,608, including 
$6,470 loss on sr $53,828 gross for 
its three-week (plus three perform- 
ances) tryout tour. The Fay and 
Michael Kanin comedy was capital- 
ized at $60,000. 

With Celeste Holm and Robert 
Preston costarred, the show, de- 
spite the mixed notices, has earned 
a weekly operating,profit on Broad- 
way thus far. It has theatre party 
bookings through February. 



Wednesday, February 3, 1954, 



'* Ondine 

Boston, Jan. 29. 

Playwrights Co. production of drama 
in three acts by Jean Giraudoux. adapted 
"by Maurice Valency. Stars Audrey Hep* 
burn, Mel Ferrer. Directed by. Alfred 
Lunt, Sets and lights, Peter Larfclnr cos- 
tumes, Richard Whorf;_ music, Virgil 
Thompson. At Colonial, Boston, Jan. 29, 

• »j4 

Auguste .; J ohn Alexander 

Eugenie • ■ Edith King 

Hans ............. Mel Ferrer 

Ondine .. ....... ■ Audrey Hepburn 

Three Ondlnes . . Tani Seitz, Dran Seitz, 

Sonia Torgeson 

Old One Robert Middleton 

Lord Chamberlain ... Alan Hewitt 

Superintendent Lloyd Gough 

Trainer of Seals James Lanphier 

Bertha ; Marian SeldCs 

Bertram Peter Brandon 

Vlolante ................ Anne Meacham 

Angellque Gaye Jordan 

Venus Jan Shehvood 

King . ........... William Podmore 

Matho Barry OrHar*- 

Salamthbo ......... . . ... LllyPaget 

Lord .. -William Le Missena 

Lady Stacey Graham 

Executioner . . . .. ..... Robert Crawley 

After a fortnight’s workout here 
“Ondlne” should have little trou- 
ble contending as one of the finest 
fantasies to appear in the. theatre 
In many seasons. But the workout 
had better be good. As it stood 
here on opening night, practically 
without a first act arid, anything 
but perfectly realized, it provided 
a mere sketch of its fullest possi- 
bilities. 

Drawn from a romantic legend 
written by Baron Fouque in 1811, 
this fairy tale is the story* of an 
ephemeral water sprite who, in the 
guise of the 16-year-old daughter 
of a peasant family liviifg on the 
edge of an enchanted forest, falls 
In love with a knight errant. 
Sweeping him off his feet (for he, 
is betrothed to the king's daugh- 
ter), she marries him, but a sor- 
cerer reserves the condition that 
she can receive her soul only if the 
knight errant remains faithful to 
her. 

The knight doesn’t, and Ondine 
Is forced back to the watery realms 
from which she came; On the day 
of her husband’s wedding she al- 
lows herself to be captured by a 
fisherman and stands trial as a 
supernatural being. She is con- 
demned to death, but instead con- 
trives the love-death of her hus- 
band, and slips back into her be- 
loved waters. 

It is -a theme that has caught the 
fancy of many, having appeared in 
three different operatic versions as 
well as a ballet, but Jean Girau- 
doux’s treatment (as adapted by 
Maurice Valency), is a not Wholly 
successful realization due to a mix- 
ture . of styles. The symbolism, is 
elaborate and often obscure, the 
dialog only occasionally witty and 
sometimes pretentious, the atmos- 
phere now rich in fantasy and 
again heavy with the fantastic. 

. The first act. as indicated, is very 
much below the quality of the en- 
suing two and, as played at the 
opener, verging on the bizarre. The 
second act. however, introduces a 
quite different . atmosphere, in 
which, the dialog is more sharply 
etched, the movement more plastic 
and inventive. The third act, with 
one of the high points of the whole 
play in the trial scene, drags out 
to the fintfl beautiful curtain, and 
suggests the need of. sharp 
cutting and pointing. The material 
is there, in terms of the poetic fan- 
tasy, but what seems to guarantee 
the play now is the enormous at- 
tention Audrey Hepburn achieves 
from beginning to end. 

At. opener she still had a long 
way to go to capture just the right 
quality, for she was sometimes 
shrill, sometimes stylized. But so 
too was Mel Ferrer, whose looks 
and deportment, as well as his vo- 
cal qualities, are not a little out of 
key with this particular role, which 
would seem to require a romantic 
flaifcin the highest degree. Indeed, 
It might weir have been his play- 
ing of the knight as a comic in the 
first act that threw that unhappy 
half-ho^r out of the running. 

With the appearance in the sec- 
ond act of some superbly stylish 
acting as well as some enchanting 
magical effects (Venus rising out 
of the floor, a dog hastening— on 
strings— across the stage, etc.) and 
a series of touching and amusing 
scenes, one involving a delightful 
ini person at ion of the king by Wil- 
liam Podmore, everything comes 
, alive. The true mood appears for 
the first time. 

If it sags again in the last, it still 
remains in the Vein, and the trial 
scene involving Alan Hewitt and 
William Le Messena remains mem- 
orable. The flaws, in short, are 
nearly all correctable, and if they 
are, this will emerge as a great 
adornment to the Broadway sea- 
son; 

It goes without saying that Miss 
Hepburn is the focal point of all 
eyes here, but she is given first- 
class support by such standout per- 
formers as Hewitt. as the chamber- 
lain, Marian Seldes as Bertha, and 
Robert Middleton as the sorcerer. 


support by the costumes, and the 
deepr, which create an impact the 
text ifself ofteii does not.' Not 
least of the superior fancies, 
either, Is the musical atmosphere 
created by Virgil Thomson’s brief 
but telling passages, many of them 
of an almost unidentifiable char- 
acter. And a word must be said, 
incidentally, of the three ondines 
of Tani and Drani Seitz and«Sonia 
Torgeson. 

It is clear Alfred Lunt has his 
hands full with this one, but his 
initial blocking out of the play, as 
well as the general deployment of 
his forces, is handsome and imag- 
inative; But there’s little doubt of 
success in this if all goes well 
here. Elie. 


The Winner 

Buffalo, Jan. 28. 

Playwright* Co. production of comedy- 
drama by Elmer Bice in two acts (four 

S ienes). Stars Joan Tetzel, Tom Helmore. 

irected by Rice. Settings and costumes, 
Lester PolakoV;. At Erlanger. Buffalo, Jan.. 
28, '34; $3.60 top. 

Eve Harold Joan Tetzel 

Martin Carcw . ......... . Tom Helmore 

David Browning ...... Whitfield Connor 

Newscaster ............ P. Jay Sidney 

Arnold Mahler Lothar Rewalt 

Irma . Mahler Jane Buchanan' 

Haggerty . . Philip Pruneau 

Dr, Clinton Ward ....... Charles Cooper 

Miss Dpdd Lily Brentano 

Stenotypist ..... David Balfour 

Judge Samuel Addison. .Frederick O'Neal 
Hllde Kranzeck .... . , ...... Vilma Kurer . 


Elmer Rice’s new play begins 
with some good comedy lines, but 
the first scene suffers from talki- 
ness and lack of vitality. In the 
second, act, the play begins to pep 
up remarkably and things go along 
in great shape, 

Theme, which is a little old hat, 
concerns the problems of Eva 
Harold, attractive, broadminded 
working girl who gets a surprise 
legacy and who manages in the 
end to prove by the developments 
which follow that she is a much 
better character than anyone 
thought possible. Play opens with 
Miss Harold coming home with 
Martin Carew from a gay evening*] 
on the town. Eva’s drab furnished 
room is then visited by David 
Browning, her lawyer-fiance; whom 
she will marry when he can break 
a few matrimonial bonds and clean 
up some debts. 

Near the end of the first scene, 
wealthy, elderly Arnold Mahler 
shows up. Before he has a fatal 
heart attack on her bed under 
seemingly compromising circum- 
stances, he manages to give her 
a copy of his brand new will; leav- 
ing, everything to her. The com- 
plications resulting involve a court 
scene, as a battle over the will 
ensues, and a switch in romantic 
interest before the play’s windup. 

Joan Tetzel is personable and 
adequate as Miss Harold and Tom 
Helmore (Carew) easily held the 
audience' with his debonair deliv- 
ery of some very, clever lines. 
Whitfield Connor, ^s -the original 
fiance, holds to a properly dull and 
drab characterization. He does 
show .dramatic flair in proper 
places in the trial scene. 

Lothar Rewalt is effective, in his 
short bit as the elderly man and 
Jane Buchanan is reasonably be- 
lievable as his unfaithful wife. 
LFrederick O’Neal does an excellent 
"oh as Judge Addison and draws 
deserved applause on a fine speech 
with laudable moral overtones. 
Vilma Kurer turns in an outstand- 
ing bit in the trial scene as the 
former righthand femme of Mah- 
ler. 

The direction, also by Rice, is 
careful and wdrkmanlike. The two 
sets are reasonably authentic and 
both the scene and costume 
changes are handled with excep- 
tional adroitness and speed. 

More. 


Tlie Heel 

Dallas, Jan. 


23. 


■ Theatre *54 production of comcdv in 
L fou . r Scenes) by Samson 
Raphaelson. Features James Field. Di- 
rected by Margo Jones. Technical direc- 
tion. James Pringle. At Theatre '54. Dal- 
las. Jan. 22. <54; $3 top. 

Nellie MacDuffy .... 

Maxim G. Rosenblatt 
Ma MacDuffy 


stage fare; with slight pruning, 
“Heel” can be fine film fodder. 
Miss Jones uses to advantage her 
entire company, plus supplemen- 
tary assists, in a boff directorial 
job. Plot details the machinations 
of an egomaniac, Boolie MacDuffy, 
who. deserts wife, . child and a 
widowed mother for show biz. With 
his faithful pal, Henchy, he scores 
on Bro'adway. After falling from 
grace, he shunts from, swank hotel 
suites to a shabby hotel room, sur- 
viving by leftover breakfasts pro- 
vided by a play writing bellboy. J 
Likable rascal’s pretended tu* 
berculosis brings his Well-Used 
relatives, friends, ex-girl friends' 
and others to his bedside. Though 
he’s stolen a song and a k play, and 
misused all comers, his victims 
have . fared . well despite the 
wounds, and rally to his cause. 
New pronouncements of jfaith, and 
financial backing, get 'the heel 
again oh his feet for further plot- 
tings as the play ends" 

James Field gives a sock per- 
formance throughout as the scoun- 
drel. His curtain soliloquies in two 
are top histrionic bits as he 
imagines headline acts, .including 
the murder of his deserted wife. 

Sharing acting honors are 
Charles Braswell; who betters his 
previous efforts as Henchy, the 
conniving pal. Michael Dolan does 
his best role to date as a lovable 
haberdasher and Joan Croydon 
scores as the stern, upright mother 
of the heel. Stage queen is easily 
done by. Louise Noblq, arid Lillian 
Prather, as a bed-sharing chorine 
friend, has vivid scenes with Field 
and Braswell. As a swishy ex- 
chorus boy, Guy Spaull does a slick 
impersonation, while' Richard Shep- 
ard^ registers as the playwrighting 
bellboy; \ Bark. 

- - “ ~ ! — . 



to 

Dana; Co. for Columbia 

Ruthanna Boris, former Ballet 
ffusse de Monte Carlo star, will 
take a small dance group on tour 
next, season for the Coppicus, 
Scharig & Brown division of Colum- 
bia Artists Mgt. Miss Boris has 
been busy in recent seasons as an 
independent choreoprapher-dancer, 
her “Cakewalk” being one of the 
N. Y. City Ballet’s current hits. 

Troupe will include Miss Boris; 
Frank Hobi, currently a principal 
with the N. Y. City Ballet, .another 
male dancer and a pianist. Dancer 
will create new choreographies. 
Troupe will primarily play Colum- 
bia’s Community Concerts circuit. 


Current Road Shows 

(Feb, 1,13) 


Boolie MacDuffy 
Evangeline Dray 
Henchy ........ 

Mirabel Sweet . 
Waiter- 
JEiellhob . 

Julia Hayward . 
Francis Larve . 
Osgood Stillwater 
Lila ............. 








Nancy Marshall 
>. Michael Dolan 
. .. . Joan Crovdon 
. .-. .James Field, 
... Sadie French 
Charles Braswell 
. Lillian Prather 
. . Gilbert Milton 
, Darrell. Stewart 
. . Louise Noble 

Guy . Spaull 

Richard' Shepard 
. Virginia Young 


With four new tryouts on the 
plus side in her new season. Margo 
Jones seems destined for the best 
in her eighth year of local arena 
productions. Fifth new script of 
eight skedded. Samson Raphael- 
son’s “The Heel,” looms as the 
finest manuscript Miss Jones has 
handled since embarking here 
June 3, 1947. Seasoned playwright 
Raphaelson’s slick offering keeps 
chuckles building into bellies 

OI . .... . — , throughout, sans excess verbiage. 

She is also given extraordinary Not a line can be spared for topi 


Burning , Glass (Cedric Hard- 
wicke) (tryout)— Parsons, Hartford 
(11-13). 

Confidential Clerk (Ina Claire, 
Claude Rains, Joan Greenwood) 
(tryout)— National, Wash. (1-6) (Re- 
vieded in Variety. Jan. 13, ’54). 

Evening With Beatrice Lillie 
(Beatrice Lillie)—Blackstone, Chi. 
(1-13). ■ ■ 

Girl in Pink Tights (Renee Jeain- 
maire, Charles Goldner) (tryout)— 
Shubert, Phila. (1-13) (Reviewed in 
Variety, Jan. 27, *54). 

Good Nite, Ladie» — Great North- 
ern, Chi: (1-13). 

Guys and Dolls— Shubert, Bos- 
ton (1-13). ' 

- Misalliance — Royal Alexandra, 
Toronto (1-6); Erlanger, Buffalo 

(otIO). 

Moon Is Blue — Nixon. Pitt. (1-6); 
Colonial, Akron (8-10); Paramount, 
Toledo (11-13), 

,My 3 Angels (Walter Slezak)— 
Playhouse, Wilmington (4-6); 
Ford's Balto. (8-13). 

New Faces— Curran, S. F. (1-13). 

Oklahoma— Forrest, Phila. (1-6). 

Ondine (Audrey Hepburn, Mel 
lerrer) (tryout)— Colonial, Boston 
(1-13) (Reviewed in Variety this 
week). 

Porgy & Bess— Taft Aud., Cin- 
cinnati (1-6); American, St. L. 
(S-13). 

Seven Year Itch (Eddie Bracken) 
—Erlanger, Chi. (1-13), 

South Pacific (Jeanne Bal, Webb 
Tilton)— Music Hall, Houston (1-6); 
Civic Aud., New Orleans (8-13)., 

' ■ Stalag 17 — Court Square, Spring- 
Shubert, New. Haven 
o'S ’ st * Worcester, Mass. 
(8-9); Metropolitan, Providence, 
R. I. (10-13). 

Time Out for Ginger (Melvyn 
Douglas)— Harris, Chi. ( 1-13). 

Twin Beds — Davidson, Milwau- 
ke «»[ 1 ‘ 6) ' Cass ' Detroit (8-13). 
i <tryout)--Hanna, Cleve- 

land (1^); Nixon, Pitt (8-13). Re- 
vi ewed m Variety this week). 

^ Wish You Were Here— Shubert, 
Chi. (1-13). ’ 


InsideStuff— Legit 


Harold Clurman, who staged “Mile. Cplombe” (Longacre, N v ) 
also doubles as reviewer for The Nation mag. Disclaiming any criti’ 
cism (Robert Hatch caught it for the Weekly the issue before) ciur 
mail had sfome general remarks to make last week in connection u-itb 
the play. * .. U1 

“If there is a general tendency to be noted in our theatre at thu 
moment,” he wrote, “it is an unconscious drift on the part of the 
public and the reviewers who reflect its taste toward the sweet the 
pleasant, the * untroubled, the undisturbing, above all, the safe ’ • 
This season our most ‘advanced’ play is ‘Tea and Sympathy,’ the norm’ 
’Sabrina Fair,’ and the unusual, ‘The Teahouse of the August Moon* 
. . , ‘Mademoiselle ColombeV-needless to say I do not intend my re. 
marks as- a critical estimate of it — is a. play of. contemporary meaning* 
its essential theme is the conflict or interplay^of reality and illusion 
the world and love seen as Ideal or mirage and 'complex fact presented 
in nearly commedia dell^arte terms. The^leading' French playwrights 
of the past quarter of a century write in the ‘extravagant’ vein of 
Giraudoux, Achard. Romains, -Cocteau, Ayme, Anouilh. All of them 
try, with . a certain irony, to make life look like theatre rather than 
as with most Americans, theatre look like life;” ’ 


William Jonson became associate conductor, with Alexander Smal- 
lens, of “Porgy and Bess” with engagement last week at Nixon Theatre 
in Pittsburgh. Johnson made his debut ip the pit for the show there 
Irving Barnes, a Pittsburgher who alternates as Porgy with La Vern 
Hutcherson and Leslie Scott, got to sing one performances in his home- 
town, on the Saturday (30) matinee. Irene Williams' sang Bess at an 
opening night for the first time in Pitt; daughter of songwriter 
Clarence Williams, she’s a new Bess in the company, alternating with 
Leontyne Price and Elizabeth Foster, Miss Williams had sung the 
role only five times before the Nixon opener, and got a big hand 
from the critics. 

Mary Morris, Broadway actress and for the last several years a mem- 
ber of the Carnegie Tech Drama School ..faculty in Pittsburgh, is 
staging a special production of Europides’ “The Trojan Women” in that 
city Sunday (6) at the Unitarian Church as a benefit for its building 
fund. A year ago, while on a leave of absence from Tech, Miss Mor- 
ris directed the same show at New York’s ■Community Chhrqh as a 
benefit for the church and the Actor’s Fuifd. At that time, she used 
mostly Tech graduates working in New. York. This time, she’s also us- 
ing a number of Tech people although the production has no connection 
with the school. '• - 


Sam Lurie, former promotion 
manager with Ballet Theatre, open- 
ing publicity office in N. Y., do- 
ing personal representation in all 
show biz fields. 



d . 


i * 


■Legit pressagent Jack ’ Tbohey 
has a short story, “Mother^in-Law,” 
in the current (February) Cosmo- 
politan mag . . . Feuer & Martin 
expect to budget their Broadway 
production of “Boy Friend,” the 
current London musical hit, for 
about $140,000 and . use . the Actors 
Equity limit of British players ... 
Instead of closing last Saturday 
night (30) in Los Angeles, “Har- 
vey” is continuing there with 
Frank Fay as star, and may ulti- 
mately work east for a returoL en- 
gagement on Broadway, 

“Affairs of State” closes Saturday 
night (6) at the Cambridge, Lon- 
don. and the original production of 
“Escapade” folds Feb. 20 at the 
Strand, Loudon . . Michael Drey- 
fuss takes over this week as as- 
sistant stage manager of the 
Broadway edition of “Seven Year 
Itch,” succeeding James Lee, who 
goes to the Coast for an acting- 
writing assignment with the “One 
Man’s Family” tele series ... 
H. Clay Blaney and Simon and 
Robert Metrick have formed The- 
atrical Productions, Inc., to ar- 
range and post bonds and guaran- 
tees for legit shows, and produce 
plays On its own. 

Eddie Hyans and Wynn Dinion 
announce plans for a Broadway 
production next season of Romeo 
Muller’s comedy-fantasy, . . With 
Drum and Colors,” which Was tried 
out last year at the Rochester 
'Arena . Theatre and the Corning 
(N. Y.) Summer Theatre . . . Ella 
• ' D ?£S;! S ? Possibility for the lead 
in Dilly,’ the Vernon Duke-Jerry 
Lawrence-Robert E. Lee musical 
based °n Theodore Pratt’s novel 
Miss Dilly Says No” . . . Leon 
Lischner and Gerald Price set for 
the cast of the off-Broadway re- 
vival. of /‘Threepenny Opera.” 

»J 4< i» ud Nine,” comedy 

!?g Allen Boretz, who co-authored 
. R oom Service” with John Murray, 
is slated for production next sea- 
son by pressagent George Ross . . . 
Lester Lockwood announces plans 
for a production season of “Angel- 
icav a comedy by Ronald Alexan- 

r aut !X or of the touring “Time 
Out for eager" ... . chef* Craw- 

PnhS’S w the Production 
ot Oh Men, Oh Women” is Ander- 

rpn Wr* Cant °r is general press 
E? rL^f rmen ^ Capalbo and Stan- 
ley Lnase, producers of “Three- 
P®nny Opera,’ opening- the week 
of March 8 at the. Theatre de Lys, 

a L we J as p a - for the Albert 
Selden-Morton Gottlieb produc- 

streef i\r Hl v and at the 48th 
-V ^ jL * * Virginia Vincent 
W, lU be standby for Kay Medford 

W^d rS la rt, y * _ opeuing tonight 
(Wed.) at the Lyceum. N Y 

Helii^p n i and 11611 haughtier* 
wlU Ptay Peter Pan and 
% e 2£ y l respectively, i n a revival 
Pan _ on the Coast next 
summer . . ... Jay Julien, copro- 
^weer with Robert L. Joseph of 
Mademoiselle Colpmbe,” has op- 


tioned ’’Faster, Faster,” by William 
Marchant, for production next sea- 
son. 

Jules Pfeiffer, in Chi with his 
“Good Nite: Ladies,” says he has 
signed comic Jackie Kannon to a 
six-week pact for a production to. 
play the Cass Theatre in Detroit 
next July. . Pfeiffer is negotiating 
for one of three plays as the ve- 
hicle . . . Peter Douglas visiting his 
dad, Melvyn Douglas, currently 
starring in “Time Out for Ginger” 
at Chi’s Harris . . . .Danny Newman 
press-agenting “The World of Sho- 
lom Aleichem” due in Feb. 13 at 
the Eleventh St, Theatre in Chi- 
cago. 

Current Stages,' off-Broadway 
operation, is boasting several 
alumni who’ve made the jump to 
Main Stem employment. List in- 
cludes Paulette'* Girard (“Seven 
Year Itch”), John Reese (“Remark- 
able Mr. Pennypacker”). Bill Gunn 
(“The Immoralist”), John Con* 
noughton (recent City Center re- 
vival of. “Richard III”) and Eva 
Stern (understudying Audrey Hep- 
burn in Ondiiie;” currently trying 
out at the Colonial, Boston). 

Theatre Guild has acquired for 
production next season “Child of 
Fortune,” adapted by ..Guy Bolton 
from Henry James’ novel, “Wings 
of the Dove.” Firm has postponed 
until next season Walter Macken’s 
“Home ^Js the Hero” and Charles 
Morgan’s “River Line.” Set as 
Guild subscription offerings this 
season are the forthcoming Play- 
wrights Co. productions of “On- 
dine,” costarring Audrey Hepburn 
and Mel Ferrer, and “The Winner,” 
with Joan Tetzel*. . . Arthur 
Schwartz has withdrawn as com- 
poser* of the musical adaptation 
of “L’il Abner” to concentrate on 
the tunes for the forthcoming “By 
the Beautiful Sea,” with Burton 
Lane taking over as lyricist Alan 
Jay LeTner’s collaborator on the 
A1 CaPp comic strip tranformation, 
which Herman- Levin is now set to 
produce. Meanwhile, Levin is serv- 
ing as deputy-producer of “Kis- 
met,” while the show’s producer- 
librettist Charles Liederer is on the 
Coast . . . Horton Foote arid Fred 
Coe, respective author and produc- 
er of the recent “Trip to Bounti- 
ful,” Will be similarly associated 

next season with “Travelin’ Lady,” 
for \vhich ’ Kim Stanley is set as 
femme lead. 


Hollywood, Feb. 2. 
“Once Upon a Tailor,” Baruch 
Lumet’s folk comedy now in its 
premiere engagement at the Circle 
Theatre here, will be brought to 
Broadway either the end of this 
season or begfnnlng of next under 
a deal signed by producer George 
Boroff, Nat Goldstone and I van 
Tors Films, Inc. Trio shares pro- 
duction billings. 

Opening will be determined by 
theatre availabilities. 



life MOM, ‘Wish’ $29 » 


Chicago, Feb. 2. 4- 
Loop biz held steady last week 
v ith no marked swings either way. 

•'Seven Year Itch,” the town’s old- 
est tenant among the current crop, 
continues to roll along at a neat 
clip that looks to carry it through 
the summer. Although doing 
strong business, “An Evening With 
Beatrice Lillie” ends \ its eight- 
week stay at the Blackstone Feb. 

20 to fulfill other road commit- 
ments. 

Estimates for Last Week ’• 
Evening With Beatrice Lillie, 

Blackstone (5th wk) ($4.40; 1,358). 
Topping $26,000. ^ 

Good Nite Ladies, Great North- 
ern (5th wk) ($4.20; 1,500). Nearly 
$13,500. 

Seven Year Itch, Erlanger (19th 
wk) ($5; 1,334) . (Eddie Bracken). 
Almost $22,300. 

Tinie Out for Ginger, Harris (3d 
wk) ($4; 1,000) (Melvyn Douglas). 

/ Edging $17,700. 

Wish You Were Here, Shubert 
(8th. wk) ($5; 2,100). Over $29,300 


N.Y. Co. Up to $46,350; 


Ballet boxbffices, in N. Y. and 
on the road, are humming. The 
N. Y. City Ballet, now in its fourth 
week of a 10-week stay at City 
Center, N. Y., is running away 

ahead of last season. In the first 
week of its run it took ih $32,800. 
Second week, it garnered $38,800. 
Last week it jumped to $46,350, at 
regular $3.60 top, one of the best 
weeks the troupe has had at its 
home base. Interest in last night's 
(Tues.) preem of the full-evening 
“Nutcracker,” with eight skedded 
showings reported practically sold 
out, indicates continued good biz 
on the troupe’s winter engagement. 

Roland Petit’s Ballets de Paris,.] 
after an opening : week of $37,200 
for six shows at the Broadway, 
N. Y., grossed: a near $42,000 at $6 
top on its first full stanza last 
week 

On the road, Ballet Theatre 
is continuing, big takes. 


Shuberts 


Continued from pace 68 



Eliot comedy due Feb. 11 at the 
Morosco, have been heavy, ap- 
parently on the names of the au- 
thor and Ina Claire, Claude Rains 
and Joan Greenwood rather than 
the newly installed divan seats, al- 
so at $7.80. 

Advance indications are that vir- 
tually the same situation will apply 
at the 46th Street, another City 
Playhouses theatre, w here 
“Ondine” opens Feb. 18 with 
Audrey Hepburn and Mel Ferrer 
as stars. Matter isn’t a factor at the 
fourth City Playhouses spot, the 
Pulton, where “Seven Year Itch” 
rolls along to near-sellout trade 
with no change in seats or b.o. 
scale. 

Shubertsf like the one-theatre 
indie managements, are watching 
the effect of the $7.80 top at the 
Coronet, Morosco and 46th Street. 
With constantly rising production 
and operating costs , and no way of 
increasing turnover, theatre man- 
agements are intensely interested 
in any scheme that might boost 
gross revenue. Upped ticket prices 
appear to be the only such pos- 
sibility, 

If the $7.80 top succeeds at the 
Coronet, Morosco and 46th Street, 
therefore, other theatres Will be in- 
clined to experiment with «a split- 
scale lower floor, perhaps with a 
$6 top week night and $7.20 week- 
ends for the down-front locations 
and a straight $4.80 for maybe a $6 
" eekend) for the rest of the down- 
stairs. Offhand, it’s figured unr 
likely that a $7,20 top would be ac- 
ceptable without, the divan seats. 

At any rate. City Playhouses has 
an undisputed corner on the divan- 
seat policy *for the present and im- 
mediate future. 



In Buffalo Premiere 

Buffalo, Feb. 2. 

Elmer Rice’s new play, “The 
Winner” took in around $7,600 for 
the first four performances of its 
out-of-town tryout at. the Erlanger 
here last week, Thursday (28) to 
Saturday (30). 

Presentation is current at the 
Hanna, Cleveland. 


'Body’ Ends 2-Season Run 


$686,228 Take for Tour 

El Paso,. Feb. 2. 
Winding up a two-season run, 
Paul Gregory’s production Qf 
J ohn Brown’s Body,” starring Ty- 
rone Power, Anne Baxter and Ray- 
mond Massey, grossed a smashing 
$47,300 for eight, performances 
closing Sunday night (31) at Lib- 
erty Hall here. Total take for the 
tour was $686,228. 

Last week’s single-night . receipts 
included $7,200 Sunday (24) at 
Municipal Auditorium, Shreveport; 
$3,500 Monday (25) at the Audito- 
rium, Grambling; La ; $4,100 Tues- 
day (26) at Gregory Gymnasium, 
Austin; $7,000 Wednesday (27) at 
Baylor U., Waco; $8,000 Thursday 
night (28) at the Music Hall; Hous- 
ton; $8,600 Friday night (29) at 
Municipal Auditorium, San An- 
tonio; $3,500 Saturday night (30) 
at College Auditorium. San An- 
gelo, and $5,400 on the Sunday 
night finale here. 

Troupe broke up immediately 
after the closing, with Power and 
Miss Baxter returning to Holly- 
wood and Massey heading for New 
York. Company manager Les 
Thomas also left, to take over 
Gregory’s production of “Caine 
Mutiny Court Martial,” a newly- 
installed smash at the -Plymouth, 
N. Y. 


‘Moon’ 15G, Cincy 

Cincinnati, Feb. 2. 

“Moon Is Blue” wound up a fort- 
night in the’ 1,300-seat Cox last 
week with close to $15,000 at a 

$3,69 top on two-for-one bargain 
deal. It was nearly $2,500 better 
than opening week. * , t 

“Porgy and Bess” is in the 2,500- 
seat Albee this week. Top is $4.31, 
upped to $4.92 Friday and Satur- 
day nights. 



Philadelphia, Feb. 2. 

Trying an experimental $3 top, 
with $3.50 for Saturday night, 
“Oklahoma” cleaned up in its. first 
week’s stand at the Forrest. Mon- 
day and;. Tuesday nights were off 
slightly during the initial week, 
but. show is expected to go clean 
for. second stanZa. “Lullaby,” com- 
edy at the Walnut, picked up dur- 
ing second sesh. 

Musical-starved town gets an- 
other tuner tonight (Tues.) with 
arrival of “The Girl in Pink 
Tights,” starring Jeanmaire and 
Charles Goldner. Although names 
are relatively new for marquee 
strength, advance has been terrific 
and racks almost emptied Satur- 
day night (30) for all but matinees, 
through the entire three-week run. 

Estimates for Last Week 

Oklahoma, Forrest (1st wk) 
(M-1,760; $4.55). Rodgers & Ham- 
merstein hit back for sixth time 
still showing plenty strength, near- 
ly $30,500: 

Lullaby, Walnut (2d wk) (C-1,340; 
$3.90) (Mary Boland). Four-char- 
acter comedy about an overly pos- 
sessive mother upper first week’s 
biz, $12,000. 



‘Kismet’ $51890, ‘ 



Helen Hayes went to the White 
House last week to name Mamie 
Eisenhower . “First Lady oh the 
Mothers’ March cji Polio.” The 

Aft Pnr*« m - J - a. l_ .* i 4. - am 


Tights’ Topples N. Haven 
Record With $40,300 

New Haven, Feb. 2. 

Shubert boxoffice staff is still 
groggy from the ducat assault by 
local showgoers last week (25-30), 
When preem t>f ‘‘Girl In Pink 
Tights” played to eight solid SRO 
performances. At $5.40 top, house 
Record toppled to the tune of. a 
Smash $40,300. 

Current is three-day stand of 
“Stalag 17” for Feb. 4-6, Next 
week is dark for final rehearsals 
of “By The Beautiful Sea,” which, 
gets a full-week run Feb. 15-20, at 
a new top ($6) here. 

Fay-'Harvey’ $11,800, L.A. ; 
Carradine $3,300 in Five 

Los Angeles, Feb. 2. 

“Harvey;” starring Frank Fay, 
grabbed $11,800 for a' one-week 
stand at the 1,636-seat Biltmore 
last week, about 50% capacity but 
just over the operating level. Show 
stays on, although originally 
planned to vamp. „“Great to be 
Alive” hit $3,400 in its final week 
at the 400-seat Las Palmas Theatre, 
giviftg it a total of $17,700 for a 
production loss of around $15,000. 

“Tobacco Road,” : with John 
Carradine opened Tuesday (26) and 
got off to a -good start on the basis 
of okay notices, with about $3,3.00 
in the till for the initial five per- 
formances. 

‘Faces’ 28G, Frisco 

San Francisco, Feb. 2. 

“New Faces” reopened Tuesday 
(26) to a warm press. While ad- 
vance is strong, sudden announce- 
ment following opening that Ear- 
tha Kitt would be out for eight 
days starting Sunday (31) to fulfill 
a nitery date previously set in 
Buffalo, will undoubtedly affect 
grosses. 

In seven performances the first 
week, show had. a strong $28,000. 

‘State' $16,000, St. Louis 

St. Louis, Feb. 2. 

Grix were divided in their re- 
views of “Twin Beds , 1 which 
■ wound up a week’s frame at the 
I American Theatre Saturday <30;. 
' scaled to $3.05, and show gassed 
a mild $6,000. “Porgy and Bess 
moves into the American Monday 

June Lockhart copped plaudits 
in “Affairs .of State” at the Em- 
nress. and show finished -first of a 


IN FIRST D.C. STANZA 

Washington, Feb. 2. 

T. S. Eliot’s "Confidential Clerk” 
drew a sock $33,100 through the 
wickets for its initial, week at the 
National Theatre and, on the. basis 
of drumbeating by the local drama 
critics, appears certain to surpass 
that figure this week. 

The Royal Winnipeg Ballet opens 
next Monday (8). at the National 
for a single week. Blackstone the 
Magician comes to the Shubert 
Theatre same time for one week. 


’Misalliance’ Neat 16G 
For Cleveland Week 

Cleveland, Feb. 2. 

George Bernard Shaw’s “Mis- 
alliance,” with Martyn Green, went 
away over expectations bn visit to 
1,500-capacity Hanna last week. 
Gross of $16,000 for eight preform- 
anccs at $3.75 top was one of the 
best racked lip by comedy on its 
midwestern tour. 

A big . advance sale was regis- 
tered by Elmer Rice’s newly-mint- 
ed drama, "The Winner,” the Han- 
na’s current attraction. 

About the only concrete things 
in sight in way of stageshows are 
“My Three Angels,” week of March 
15, and Maurice Evans in “Dial M 
for Murder,” April 5. 

Can. National Ballet 
Hot $27,500 in Toronto 

Toronto, Feb. 2. , 

With’ a $20,000 advance at $3.50 
top, National Ballet of Canada 
scored a sensational $27,500 at the 
Royal Alexandra, 1,525-seater, for 
sellouts and turnaway business on 
four of the eight performances. A 
midweek blizzard dented grosses, 
but latter part of week again was 
turnaway, Faves were the new 
“Dark of the Moon,” with choreog- 
raphy by Joey Harris, plus “Lilac 
Garden," with Anthony Tudor com- 
ing up to coach. 

After Ontario dates in London 
and Hamilton, Canadian troupe 
officially invades the U.S. for the 
first time, with a two-night Feb, 
12-13) stand at the Erlanger, Buf- 
falo; and week of Feb. 14 at the 
Cass, Detroit. Then Minneapolis 
and a cross-U.S. swing to Seattle, 
With company reentering Canada 
at Vancouver for eastward trek to 
Toronto for a repeat Royal Alex- 
andra engagement. 


jH’tress made Jthe presentation on. ! , . 

he naif of 2,000,000 mothers who i iwo-week stand Sunday (81) witn 
ai ’ e fund-raising in the polio drive. 1 a fine $16,000. 


II 

Detective Story — Lenox Hill 
. Playhouse, N. Y. < 3-7); s DeWitt 
I Clinton Highschool, Bronx, N. Y. 
i U2-13). 


Broadway remained generally 
steady last week, with only a quin- 
tet of shows going under previous 
session’s takes. Hikes of more than 
1,000 over previous stanza’s re- 
ceipts were registered by three 
$1,000 over previous stanza’s re- 
presentations. “Kismet” continued 
as the towh’s top grosser with 
$57,800 in the till. 

Only opening last week was Ruth 
Draper’s one-woman . show at the 
Vanderbilt Theatre. Lone preem 
this week is “Lullaby,” which bows 
tonight (Wed.) at the Lyceum The- 
atre. 

Estimates for Last Week 

Keys: C (Comedy), D (Drama), 
CD (Comedy Drama) , R (Revue), 
MC (Musical Comedy), MD ( Musi • 
cal Drama ), O (Opera). 

Other parenthetic designations , 
refer, respectively, to top prices; 
number of scats, capacity gross and, 
stars. Price includes 20% amuse- 
ment tax, but grosses are net: i.e., 
exclusive of tax. 

Caine Mutiny Court Martial, 
Plymouth (2nd wk) (D-$6-$4.80.; 
1,062; $33,000) (Henry Fonda, John 
Hodiak, Lloyd Nolan). Almost 32,- 
800 (previous week, $29,400 for 
first five performances and two 
previews). 

Can-Can, Shubert (39th wk) 
(MC-S7.20; 1,361; $50,160). Held 
at $50,600. •' * 

Dial M for Murder, Booth (65th 
wk) (D-$4.80; 766; $20,801) Maurice 
Evans). Almost $16,200 (previous 
week, $16,000); closes Feb. 27 to 
tour. • 

Fifth Season, Cort (54th wk) (Cr 
$4.80; 1,056; $25,227) (Menasha 

Skulnik, Richard Whorf). Nearly 
$24,300 (previous week, $24,000). 

His and Hers. 48th Street (4th 
wk) (C-$4.80! 925: $22,927) (Celeste 
Holm. Robert Preston). Almost 
$20 400 (previous week. $19,700). 

In the Summer House. Play- 
house (5th wk) (D-$6-$4.80; 999; 
$23,500) (Judith 'Anderson). Un- 
der $15,000 (previous week, $14,- 
900). • . 

John Murray Anderson’ Alma- 
nac. Imberiol (8th wk) (R-$7.20: 
1,400; $50,300). Nearly $42,900 
(previous week. $44,600)). 

Kind Sir. Alvin (13th wk) (C- 
$6-$4.80; 1,311; $39,460) (Mary 

Mart’n, Charles Boyer). Over 
$31,200 (previous week, $31,400). 

Kiner and I. St. James (149th wk) 
(MD-$7.20; 1.571; $51,717) (Yul 

Brynner). A'mnst $35,700 (previ- 
ous week, $33,000); tentatively 
scheduled to close " April 10. 

Kismet, Ziegfe'd (9th wk) (MD- 
$7.20; 1 .628; $57:908) (Alfred 

Drake). Approached $57,800 (pre- 
vious week. $57,700). 

Mile. Co’ombe (4th wk) (CD-$6- 
$4.80; 1.048; $26:817) (Julie Harris, 
Edna Best). Over $22,700 (previ- 
ous week. $21,300). ■ . 

Me and Juliet. Majestic (36th 
wk) (MC-$7.20: 1,510; $58,000). Al- 
most $42,200 (previous week, $43,- 
100 ). 

Oh, Men, OH. Women, Miller 
(7th wk) (C-$6-$4.80; 920; $23,248) 
(Franchot Tone). Nearly $23,200 
(previous week; $23,000). 

Picnic. Music Box (49th wk) 
(CD-$6-$4.80; 997; . $27,534). Over 
$20,300 (Drevious week, $19,500), 
Prescott Pronosa’s. Broadhurst 
(7th wk) (CD-$6-$4.80; 1,160: $29.- 
500) '(Katharine Cornell). Tonped 
$22,200 (previous week, $23,400). 

Remarkable Mr. Pennvpacker, 
Coronet (5th wk) <C-$7.80; 1 027; 
$28,262) (Burgess Meredith. Mar- 
tha Scott). Nearly $23,900, with 
Theatre Guild subscription dent- 
ing lake (previous week. $22,800). 

Sabrina Fa f r. National (1 1th wk) 
(C-$6-$4.80; 1,172; $31,300) (Mar- 
garet Sullnvan. Joseph Cotten). 
Almost $31,300 (previous week, 
$31,200). 

Seven Year Itch. Fulton (63»'d 
wk) (C-$6-04.80; 1.063: $24,400) 

(Tom Ewell). Over $24,QQ0 (previ- 
ous week, $23,700). 

Solid Go’d Cadillas. Belas^o 
(13th Wk) (C-$6-$4.80; 1,077; $28.- 
300) (Josephine Hull). Almost $28,- 
4Q0. (previous week, $28,300)). 

Tea and Symnathv, Barrymore 
(18th wk) (Dr$6-$4.80; 1,060; $28.- 
300) (Deborah Kerr). Same as last 
week, almost $28,700. 

Teahouse o* t ; *e August Mnnn, 
Beck (16th wk) (C-$6-$4.30; 1 214; 
$31,681) (David Wavne. John For- 
sythe). Nearly $32,200 (previous 
week, $31 900). 

Wonderful Town, Winter Garden 
(48th wk) (MC-$7,20; 1.510: $54.- 
173) (Rosalind Russell). Nearly 
$51,600 (previous week, $53,900). 

Miscellaneous 

CoriQ^auM*^ phn'p>x (2nd wkl 
(D-3; 1.150; "S15.000). ' Almost 


$13,100 (previous week, $11 ,200 for 
first eight performances). 

Ruth Draper, Vanderbilt (1st 
wk) (CD-$3.60; 720; $13,000). Ruth 
Draper in a one-woman show 
opened Jan, 25 to generally favor- 
able notices. Presentation, put oil 
by Charles; Bowden &; Richard 
Barr is in for a limited three-week 
run. 

Opening This Week 

Lullaby, Lyceum (C-$4.80; 995; 
$22,845) (Mary Boland). Jerome 
Mayer & Irl Mowery production 
in association with Toby Ruby of a 
comedy by Don Appel 1; opens to- 
night (Wed.). 



Boston. Feb. 2. 

“Ondine,” which opened to fa- 
vorable reception by local crix at 
the Colonial Friday (29); was a 
complete sellout for the first three 
performances. Audrey Hepburn’s 
presence in the play is proving a 
staunch lure, and the show is : ex- 
pected to sell out during its two- 
week stands “Guys and Dolls," in 
fifth week at the Shubert, contin- 
ues brisk. 

; Sole entry slated for the near 
future is “My Three Angels” due 
at the Plymouth Feb. 15 for a two- 
weeker. 

Estimates for Last Week 

* Guys and Dolls, Shubert ( 1 ,700; 
$6 Fri.-Sat., $4.80 other nights) 
(5th wk). Holding up strong to 
over $41,800 for fifth frame. Show 
Train from South Shore last week 
helped, with similar . excursion 
from Providence being planned. 

Ondine, Colontal (1,500; $4.80) 
(Audrey Hepburn, Mel Ferrer). 
First three performances went 
clean with slick $12,900. 


‘PORGY’ STRONG IN PITT; 
WEEK’S TAKE $36,600 

Pittsburgh, Feb. 2. 

“Porgy and Bess” played the 
final three performances at the 
Nixon last week to SRO and 
wound up the engagement with a 
big $36,600. It could have stayed, 
since they were clamoring for 
tickets down the stretch. Reviews 
again were ecstatic, just as they 
were two years ago. Gross in- 
cludes 20% tax, which the non- 
profit venture retains. 

• House currently has “Moon Is 
Blue” on a return, then pets, the 
new Elmer Rice play, “The Win- 
ner,” on Monday (9), followed by 
“Oklahoma” and Blackstone to fill 
out the month. 


‘Pacific’ Breaks Memphis 
Records with $54,594 

Memphis, Feb. 2. 

“South Pacific” cracked all local 
boxoffice records last week with a 
terrific $54,594 gross for eight per- 
formances at the South Hall of the 
Auditorium . here. Rodgers-Ham- 
merstein musical costarring Jeanne 
Bal and Webb Tilton drew a ca- 
pacity attendance of 17,411 at a 
$4.80 top in the 2,200-seat house; 

Memphis promoters Early Max- 
well Associates and Charles Mc- 
Elray Attractions booked the en- 
gagement. Company manager Har- 
old Goldberg paid public compli- 
ments to the work of Dave Rosen- 
thal’s stage crew. 


‘Stalag Grabs $12 255 

In Week at Hartford 

Hartford. Feb: 2 
Touring edition o.f “Stalag 17” 
taped up $12,255 here at the New 
Parsons in six days (eight perfs) 
Tuesday through Sunday (26-31). 
Despite a flooding of the -city of 
special reduced-rate ducats ($1 off 
boxoffice), more than 20% of 
ducats sold were at the window at 
regular prices. Marked also the 
first time in house operation that 
the top of $4.20 was dropped, $3.60 
being set for this show. 

House is now dark until Feb. H 
when the sixth seasonal subscrip- 
tion play, “The Burning Glass,” is- 
presented for a three-day (four- 
show) stand. Drama by Charles 
Morgan stars Cedric Hardwicke 
and LuciJe Watson. 


tr , ^ 

Vcdncylay, Fdbrnary- 3, 1954 



tfo Other Verdict 

>• London, Jan. 23. 

Jack de Leon *»» 9 clation with .iohn 
Wildberg) production of dram* In ^*5 
.eta by. Jack B«»ey. Dl r ectcr- b^Hugh 


Job. A friend takes him into news- 
paper work and some .pals engi- 
neer the idea of finding the scarab 
to give himJjack his faith. A. gang- 
ster holes up in h|s room but un- 
der the new charm he faces him 
down, cohorts the story of his life 
and after a rooftop chasje becomes 
a hero. lie also r ow has faith in 
himself sans scarabs. _ . - 

Director Cdrlo Rim has directed 
in a slow manner which leaves no 
surprise moments to . merit atten- 
tion. Robert Lamoureux walks 
through this with orlv Yves Robert 
registering as the cok/d-uo bandit. 
. , Technical credits are good but cast 
From the pen of an official at | i s only adequate. 1 Mosk. 


Crwttwell. At Duchess Theatre. 
Jan. 21. ’54. $2.20 top 
Susan Barclay ...... 

Paul Barclay 

Joanna Winter' 

John Wilding ...... 

Tom Harris ... : . . . 

Bichard Beraford 


Elsie Randolph 
Richard Leech 
Barbara Murray 
John Arnatt 
Robert Raglan 
Stuart Llndsell 


SSfSSXa '. willoagiijiy OoMarS J 

Defending Counsel. ... • V, hn ,• 

Gibson ........ Charles ^Lloyd PacK 

Judge Ey^yn Bekerts 

Dr. Thompson . John Gill 

Dr. Anderson ^Andiew^Lclglii 

Mr. Chapman . . . . Alastair Hunter 


jthe Central Criminal Court comes 
a well-contrived murder mystery 
that holds interest and catsrs on 
the whole satisfactorily to the 
modern taste for thrillers. Being 
an unknown author, he is unlikely 
to attract the same attention as 
the popular Agatha Christie; On 
its merits, this provides good en- 
tertainment arid would make good 
icrecn material. 

Play follows the modern trend ! 
towards flashback technique, start- 
ing with a vignette of a judge’s 
box, arid depicting the events con- 
cerning the . crime in lieu of oral ; 
evidence by witnesses. Its fading 
back and forth is disconcerting, 
arid breaks the continuity of the 
action, marring its realism. 

Chief interest centers on the for- 
mer musical staT, Elsie Randolph, 
after eight years’ absence from the 
stage, in her first straight role. It 
is only a minor one, but she han- 
dles. it with graceful aplomb. 
There arc no legit toprankers in 
the cast, but all give model per- 
formances of untheatrical natural- 
ness. ■ '. ■ 

An old mill house is occupied by 
a young Explorer-writer and his 
sister, who. are entertaining his 
fiancee. Returning from a dance, 
they are visited by a police inspec 
tor who reports a mysterious tele- 
phone call. A dead man is found 
on the balcony. The young mart 
has been bl ackmailed, has incrimin- 
ating letters and can give no alibi 
for a lengthy, absence from the 
party. ;He is arrested and circum- 
stantial evidence brings him al- 
most to the gallows. 

The inspector, a local man and 
old friend of the family, cannot be- 
lieve he is guilty and after various 
red herrings and shrewd deduction 
it is revealed the manservant is 
the blackmailer who killed another 
man he had lured to the spot to 
get his master hanged. His motive 
is reyenge, because five years ear- 
lier his Only daughter had been 
drowned in a yachting, accident 
with the explorer, whom he. felt 
could have saved her life. 

Hugh Cruttwell has directed the 
play with discreet restraint which 
enhances rather than minimizes its 
dramatic force. John Arnatt makes 
an outstanding contribution as the 
friendly, but purposeful investigat- 
ing detective while Richard Leech 
gives a convincing performance of 
the suspected man, Barbara Mur- 
ray is attractive as his. girl friend 
and . Charles Lloyd Pack blends ih-oj 
science with an unctuous demean- 
or as the murderer. The smaller 
roles are all equally well depicted 
by carefully selected players. 

Clem. 


Ballet 


Continued from page 68 


ished a sock U. S. tour, won’t be 
back next season. Neither will the 
! Agnes De' Mille Dance Theatre 
now out on tour. 

Best Tours Least 
Of the four major ballet com- 
panies, the strongest and the one 
with the finest rep— ^the N. Y. City 


Continued from pace 1 

view, however,, that the incident 
probably was not his doing and had 
put him .in an embarrassing .spot. 
He was understood to have made, 
the .promise hot to ‘‘review” last 
Monday’s initial performance some- 
what reluctantly. Moreover, |he 
decision to assign Shanley to do a 
news report Of the Monday show 
is believed to .have stemmed from 
editorial superiors. 

Although critics of the other 
New York dailies were unwilling 
to be qupted, virtually all ex- 
pressed «i resentment over the 
Times action in what they regard 
as breaking tjrie mutually-accepted 
policy of waiting until next week 
to review the show.. All were sym- 
pathetic to Atkinson’s positioh, 
however,, feeling that his official 
critieal coverage of the play in 
next Tue§day-s paper will tend to 
be merely a followup as far as the 
Times is concerned. 

It was suggested, in some, quar- 
ters that the critical nature of 
Shaniey’s “interim report” in yes- 
terday’s issue may have been the 
result of a misunderstanding rath- 
er than an intentional action* On 


My pipe"is out, the fire hunts tow. 
My dreams drift back to long ago; 
The curtain’s up, ’ the play begins, 
1 sec a youth who always tains, . 

w ■ 

Life’s so charming, life’s so gay — 

• ■ iiL I* aai 


same — 

Oh, what a wonderful, 


game. 


But somehow, ’tween act two arid 
■ three. 

The Gods reversed their first de- 

CT€6* 

The curtain’s down, the play is 
done— 

The youth’s lost more than he ever 
won, 

Tom Weatherly. 


Ballet— will ironically enough tour 
the least. Group is the most safely the other hand, since he was on 
heeled because, unlike the others, assignment it was reasoned that 
it has its own theatre, the N. Y. 

City Center. House is too big and 
not' on Broadway proper, but it 
furnishes a foundation and home 


his piece was approved by the 
editor?. 

Herald Tribune, the only other 
daily to cover the opening in yes- 


base. Troupe is currently pic* terday’s issue, confined itself to a 
seriting a 12*week home season, af- brief straight - reportorial piece, 
ter a sock five-month European Walter F. Kerr, critic of that sheet, 
tour. T a and the other first-stringers re- 

ft played last summer in L. A. portedly^ plan to cover the play 
and Frisco, _ in non-competitive officially next Monday, as previ- 
time, successfully, and is due back dUs iy arranged, 
for four weeks each at both spots. ■ -enerallv felt among the 

^d^^eaTUr/ai'esToTnex'? erltlcs thTt the whole situation re- 
up by complications. . Lincoln. Kir? 


stern’s management has been sin- 
gled out by rival producers as 
clever and imaginative, although 
at the same time his troupe has 
been called Worthless to the con- 
cert field, because he won’t go out 
on terms? that are feasible. 

Of the* three troupes which will 
tour the heaviest next season, each 

management asserts itself to be in , . . it . , . _ ... _ . 

strongest position. Ballet Russe de ances because the star, Bette Davis, 
Monte Carlo, headed by Serge. Den- had been ill. Cancellation, of the 
ham, is being reactivated after a shows would have been prohibitive, 


ago of new shows was confused by 
Rose’s postponement of the “offi- 
cial” opening. However, it’s fig- 
ured that the Times’ review-report 
of “The Immoralist” may clear 
the air and prevent a repetition of 
such incidents. 

Situation recalls the case of 
last season’s “Ttvo’s Company,” in 
which critics were asked not to 
cover the first two weeks’ perform- 


country and > would have welcomed 
a Met guest bid earlier. All his 

- . great successes with the Philhar- 

Hey nonny, nonny, with a hey, hey, monic have been concert versions 
heyi of theatre or opera works. He has* 

The second act goes* much the a flair for the theatre that’s gen- 
erally recognized. ’ 

Maestro conducted opera in his 
native Athens and early in his 
career was an assistant. conductor 
at the Berlin State Opera. In re- 
cent seasons he’s been conducting 
opera ip Italy, and has several such 
dates this spring. He’s done RaveL 
Schonberg, Berg and Milhaud op- 
eras in concert form with the Phil- 
harmonic, His “Wozzek and “Elek- 
tra”*were highpoints of their sea- 
sons. 

Mitropoulos will lead the Phil- 
harmonic for six weeks next fall, 
then work at the Met in December 
and January before returning to 
... the symph. He will conduct “Salo* 
Weir was on friendly terms with me” at the Met, and one or two 
the latter. . other operas, probably : including 

It has been stated, apparently “The Masked Bali” 

with authority, that the Jrm of Szell, incidentally, who is regu- 
Kiein & # Weir ■ lar conductor of the Cleveland Or- 

torneys for the Shuhert^interest ^ djestra* has been reengaged by the 
regardless oL J. J. s animosity to- philharmonic as one of its guest 
ward Weir. Thar is presumable O p mae stros for next season, others 
the assumption, that senior partner, hoing Bruno Walter and PhiHa 
W illiam Klein, an old friend of the c a nt e lli and Guido 

Shubert family, would be able to 
handle the assignment personally* 

He is no longer in active legal 
practice. 

If the League can get by the 
Shubert-Weir hurdle,, it will short- 
ly be in order to elect a successor 
to Lee as first vice-president arid 
board member. Since the Shiiberts 


Continued from page 89 




Continued from, page 69 


(Got To Be A Little Crazy” and 

“We’re All In The Same Boat,” 

Operate *1*9* of * the 31~ legit theatres which have been fitted to story de- 
in New York, they should obviously velopment. 


be represented on the board and 
perhaps by, an officer. - Shubert 
himself, or his designee, would ap- 
pear to be the logical choice. 

With League president Lelarid 
Hayward on the Coast, the situa- 


Philadelphia Revise 
Philadelphia, Feb. 2. 
“Girl in Pink Tights,” doing 
standee business on its pre-Broad- 
was tryout tour, is undergoing 


tion Will probably remain in abey- considerable revision. Principal 
ance until his return in a couple change so far is the elimination of 
of weeks. one ballet arid the substitution of 

another. New number, b eing 
| worked out by choreographer-mu- 
sical stager Agnes 'de Mille, will 
be the show-opener, concentrating 
on story. 

Chief fault with the production 



Continued from page;: 2. 


couple seasons’ layoff, under spon-’ 
sorship of the CoppicuSi Schartg & 
Brown division of Coluriibia Artists 
Mgt 

Columbia, which claims it was 


because they were sold to benefit 
party groups. But it apparently 
didn’t occur to the management 
to designate the first two weeks' 
shows as “paid previews,” so the 


booking for ’54-’55 two months be- critiqg considered them public-per 


fore anyone else, says it has a con 
secutive 30-week route booked, 
froiri N. Y. to California and ( back, 
from Oct. 1 to the end of 'April. 

Prima Ballerina Draw 
Management is seeking a prima 
ballerina as a star draw. Denham 


formances ariji insisted on covering 
them. 

As one critic remarked yester- 
day, “We were all pretty gullible 
and shouldn’t have fallen, for 
Rose’s persuasive blandishments. ] 
If Rose’s show Wasn’t ready to 


is under contract to produce three open he should' have kept it out 


Virgile 

(FRENCH) 

Paris, Jan. 26. 

Disci Film release of Jules Borkon pro-, 
duction. Stars Robert Lamojureuxi Di- 
rected by Carlo -Rim.. Screenplay. Carlo 
Rim. Jean Levitte: camera. Robert Juil- 
lard; editor, Monique. Kirsonoff. At Bal- 
zac. Paris. Running time, 90 MINS. 

Virgile .• Robert LamoUreux 

Esposito : . . . Yves Robert 

Jackie Genevieve . Kervine 

n ist ion Albert Hemy 

: Lea Rosy Varte 

Editor ’. Fernand Sardou 

Minister Saturnin Febre 


The old gimmick about the timid 
soul who turns and becomes a hero 
due to faith in some sort of amulet 
does not get enough rapid and orig 
inal treatment to take this out of 
the ordinary groove. Here it has 
the. Robert Lamoureux. name for 
fair returns in general situations, 
but for the U.S. this> is only of 
dualer calibre which means next 
to nothing. 

Story has an ineffectual hero 
living . under a cloud of bad luck 
due to a scarab lost by one of his 
ancestors. Everything he does is 
wrong, and he goes from job to 


new ballets, to add to 11 old ones 
in his repertoire. Tour will in- 
clude eight-day stops in Chi, L. A. 
and Frisco; 15 weekends in large 
cities, with four shows, each, and 
the remainder orie-nighters,. 

London Festival Ballet, ' which 
will be presented in its U. S, bow 
by Sol Hurok, is reported as vir- 
tually all booked for a 22 to 24- 
week tour. It will open in Que- 
bec Oct. 11, work west in the U. S. 
to the Coast, then east via Texas 
and the south. 

Ballet Theatre seems to be more 
concerned at the moment with this 
season’s tour than next year. .Cur- 
rent trek is going great guns (there 
being no competition currently), 
with troupe getting some of the 
best grosses it’s had in its 14 years 
arid breaking b.o. and attendance 
records. It returned from eight 
months overseas to start its cur- 
rent season Dec. 27, and a late start 
in booking for next season because 
of contractual matters has. created 
Complications. 

Many availabilities are already 
optioned for next season, while lo- 
cal managers are averse to booking 
a second ballet troupe within 60 
days of another’s visit. But Ballet 
Theatre is going right ahead, prep- 
ping next year as a gala 15th anni 
season. 


of town until it was ready. No 
show is ever ‘ready’ to the satis- 
faction of those who created it. 

“Producers have been protesting 
for years that the critics should 
wait a week or so after the open- 
ing to cover a show— and maybe 
there’s something to that argu- 
ment. But the newspapers are riot 
promotion agents. . They treat the 
theatre as news, and a show is 
news when it opens. Rose should 
be bound by the same conditioris 
as are other producers in that re- 
gard. 

“The Times’ action is perhaps 
regrettable. I certainly feel that 
it takes an unfair advantage of the 
other papers. But I think it may 
clear up this whole muddled ques- 
tion. There may not be any more 
of these now-you-see-it-now-you- 
don’t openings!” 

Although not personally involved 
in the mixup, Jean x Kerr, wife of 
the Herald Tribune critic, and au- 
thor * of the incoming comedy 
“King of Hearts,” was an interest- 
ed observer. “I’ve decided one 
thing,” she remarked. “For my 
next play, I want to have a year 
of paid public previews.” 


ing its out-of-town tryoyt but is at' present, according to producer- 
slated for production next season, director Shepard Traube, is its 
with producers currently angling slow opening. Insertion of the new 
for a name femme to handle the ballet arid the cutting 0 f about 20 
starring assignment. minutes from the first-act book, 

Also on Wildberg’s future sked is are ejected to correct that, 
an American production of “The Having played to standees at 
Square Ring,” whiQh had been of- every performance last week at the 
fered in England on an alternating Shubert, New Haven, for a new 


basis with “Lucasta,” prior to lat 
ter show’s West End engagement. 
Lucasta,” a Wildberg and. Bernard 


house record nf almost $41,000, the 
Sigmund Romberg-Joseph^ Fields- 
Jerome Chodorov-Leo Robin musi- 


Delfont co-production effort, will cal moved to the Shubert, here, for 


follow its indefinite run at the Hip- 
podrome With a tour of the prov- 
inces to be succeeded by engage- 
ments in western Germany and 
several other countries. All Negro 
cast will continue to offer the pres- 
entation in English outside of Brit- 
ain. 

Incidentally, current stand of 
“Lucasta” is its third on the West 
End. It had been previously of- 
fered at His Majesty’s and the 
Prince of Wales. Show was origi- 
nally produced on Broadway, by 
Wildberg in 1944. Contemplated 
tour of the show, however, will be 
cut short as soon as Wildberg’s 
ready to go ahead with the tj. S. 
production of “Ring,” which he fig- 
ures will be around next October. 
Cast appearing in “Lucasta” will 
handle the acting assignments in 
“Ring.” Play, which deals with 
boxing, will have former heavy- 
weight champion Joe Louis as star, 
according to Wildberg. Another 
name possibility is Mrs. Sugar Ray 
Robinsbn. 

Wildberg’s plan calls for. Louis 
to rehearse his role in London with 


a three-week stand. It had an ad- 
vance of almost $140,000 here, \vitli 
Only a few matinee seats unsold as 
of Monday morning (1). Advance 
is said to be nearly $400,000 thus 
far, including theatre parties, for 
the engagement „at the Hellinger, 
N.Y., opening Feb. 25. 


Continued from page 1 


1- ■ « 


ill 

CAB CALLOWAY 

EIGHTY-SIXTH WEEK « Sporrin' U(« 

“Porgy and Bess” 

Currently 

TAFT tHEAtRE* Cincinnati 

Feb. 8, Amdrican Theatrd, St. Louis 

Mgt.: BILL MITTLER,1619 Broadway, New York . . 


could take action only on issues of 
professional misconduct. 

Apparently dissatisfied with this 
ruling, the member who originally 
raised the question has, reportedly, 
been endeavoring to obtain the nec- 
essary number of signatures under 
union rule to convene a special 
general meeting of Equity mem: 
bers. Support from a minimum of 
60 members is required for this. 

It was in an endeavor to halt 
this move that last weekend’s meet- 
ing took place.: The whole inquiry 
has been blanketed with secrecy 


h^cast of €ucaSa” KinoHliS by Equity and all officials have re- 
me cast °f_ Lucasta. Since exiting C e ive d strict instructions not to dis- 


the. ring, Louis has been playing 
vaude dates. 


in 

Keys: C (Comedy) , D (Drama), 
CD ( Comedy -Drama ); R (Revue), 
MC ( Musical Comedy ) , MD ( Musi- 
cal Drama ), O ( Operetta ) . 


Burning Glass (D) — Theatre 
Guild &; John! C. Wilson, prods.; 
Luther Kennett. dir.; Sir Cedric 
Hardwick, Lucille Watson, stars. 

By the Beautiful Sea (M) — Rob- 
ert Fryer & Lawrence Carr, prods.; 
Charles Walters, dir.; Shirley 
Booth, star. 

World of Sholom AlelChem (CD) 
(2d Co.) — Rachel Productions, 
prod.; Howard j. Silva, dir. 


Cuss this matter, with any press 
representatives. 


Future B’way Schedule 

(Theatre indicated if booked) 


Stockade, President, Feb, 4. 
Confidential Clerk, Morosco, 
Feb. 11. . 

Whiner, Feb. ”17. 

Ondine, 46th St., Feb. 18. 

Girl Pink Tights, Hell’ng’r, Feb. 
25. . 

Burning Glass, week March 1. 
Golden Apple, Phoenix, March 
11 . / 

Child of Grace, March 18. 

By Beautiful Sea, March 25. 
King of Hearts, March 30. 
Anniversary Waltz, April 7. 

Year Around, April 19. 

Pajama Game, May 12. 


BROADWAY ANGELS, 
INC. 

CommoR Stock 

Pric« 50c a Shard 


Write or 


phone for hit 
circular to 


offering 


BROADWAY ANGELS, INC. 

29 W. 65th St., Now York 23 
TRafdlgor 4-1 81 S 


w<dwa»r, F«*wM«r*t 195* 


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umun 


7» 



Badio-TV N. New» Thrtit 

That old nev»W»P«r bujaboo— 
ihat Bret radio, now television la 
murdering newspaper circulation 
been proved erroneous 
Itfain And this time by the new* 
Supers’ own trade journal. Editor 

& Publisher. 

The weekly* in a statement cov- 
arS iteMM' international Year 
Sock claims newspaper circula- 
rs’ reached new hi«C lartjyear. 
lad this despite the claimed im- 
pact of radio and tv. The new fig- 
,i?e close to 54,500,000 papers sold, 
Ts i% greater than that for ’52. 
The Year Book is being prepared 
for publication late this month. 
There was, however,, a V6% drop 
in Sunday circulations. 

A state-by-state E&P breakdown 
discloses most daily and Sunday 
papers showed increases in circur 
lation, with losses confined to rel- 
atively few areas. Strange part of 
the checkup discloses that Califor- 
nia for one, lost ayera circulation, 
but found evening papers with 
hypoed figures, p.m. papers, pri- 
marily are providing editorial 
space and doing promotional jobs 
on radio-tv listing* and personal- 
ities. ' • 

Among the four major radio 
networks, Mutual , leads the pack 
with newspaper-owned or news- 
paper-connected affiliates, with 
approximately 150 having such 
connections at this time. The net- 
work is currently checking its ros- 
ters along this line. 

Time’s Sports Mag Readies 

Time, Inc., is reported readying 
to augment its current mag publi- 
cations (Life, Fortune, Time and 
Architectural Forum) With a peri- 
odical devoted exclusively to 
sports. New . mag, a 25c weekly, 
should hit the stands in August. 
Publication will include sports 
news and photos, features and spe- 
cial columns and departments! 

Weekly, it’s understood, will run 
off 450,000 copies initially. Sid 
James, former assistant managing 
editor of Life, will be editor. 

Two Tynan Tomes 

London’s most controversial dra- 
ma critic, Kenneth Tynan, who 
will soon be moving over from the 
Daily Sketch to the Observer, has 
had a brace of books just pub- 
lished. The first, a straightforward 
biography of Alec Guinness (Rock- 
liffe; $1.75); is written with under- 
standing and erudition. The vol- 
ume, adequately illustrated with 
scenes from the star’s plays and 
films, is a searching analysis of an 
actor who has risen to’ the front 
rank in a short while. Tynan was 
a member of the cast of the ill- 
fated Guinness production of 
“Hamlet” during the' Festival of 
Britain. Of this episode the author 
writes: “He (Guinness), to my per- 
turbed amusement, invited mo to 
make, my first and only appearance 
on the professional stage as the 
Player King. And' I am risking the 
charge of ingratitude, not to men- 
tion schadenfreude, when I call 
the finished production a failure. 
But so it was. More precisely, it 
was a failure born of indecision 
and fostered by the cancer of 
Guinness’ humility.” 

The second Tynan 'book, “Per- 
sona Grata” (Wingate; $3) has 
been done in association with Cecil 
Beaton. It is an editorial and pho- 
tographic record of 100 people 
whom they both admire. The por- 
trait gallery comprises mainly in- 
ternational show biz names with a 
large sprinkling of Broadway and 
Hollywood personalities. It is an 
elegant, tasteful production. The 
editorial contents are typical of 
the author’s incisive style, and 
photographically It is a topflight 
effort. Among American person- 
alities included are Sophie Tucker, 
vole Porter, Abe Burrows, Gary 
Cooper, Judy Garland, Greta Gar- 
bo, Orson. Welles. Kay Thompson 
and Tennessee Williams. 

. CHATTER 

Bernard Sobel, author and pub- 
hcist. , sailed recently for several 
months oh the Riviera. 

Jphn FarroW completed his biog- 
raphy of Sir Thomas More for pub- 
heation early next autumn. 

Michael Jackson, longtime fan 
mag Writer, appointed editor of 
Laguna Beach (Cal.) Post. 
„*.hilip Purser . penning new 

show Folk” Saturday column in 
Scottish Daily Mail, Edinburgh. 

Olga Fabain, associate editor on 
Hob (fay, i € ff Monday (1) to be 
sfyrrst with, the Hewitt, Ogilvy 
agency. 

Theodore H. White, formerly 
European correspondent for The 
Reporter, appointed chief national 
vonespondent for the mag. 

. Legit pressagent Lenny Traube 
a Tticle on N, Y. Daily News’ 
acn Gross in the March issue of 


Maf aiine Digest, titled “Dean of 
TV Editors.” | 

Arthur Marx’s biography of his 
father, “Groucho Marx," will ap- 
pear As a serial in Sateyepost prior 
to its book publication by Simon 
k Schuster. 

Dr. Bruno Furst, memory-train- 
ing expert, will have a byline piece 
in the March-April issue of -the 
Harvard Business Review on his 
system in business and industry. 

Hermitage House bringing out 
an English translation of the best- 
selling Japanese novel, “Anata- 
han,” in ApriL Tome is basis of a 
new film by Josef von Sternberg. 

. Yseulte Warre Simone, formerly 
associated: with several cosmetic 
Arms,, named beauty editor of 
Screeniland, Silver Screen and 
True Life Stories, all mags in 
Pines Women’s Group. 

Mary Chase, author of “Harvey” 
and “Mrs. McThing,” is the sub- 
ject of a personality profile by 
Eleanor Harris in the current 
(February) Cosmopolitan mag. 
Piece skips at least one dramatic 
phase of the playwright’s life, but 
represents her as a screwball prac- 
tical joker. 

A Gotham dance-literati contin- 
gent is going to Washington next 
Monday ; (8) for the p. C. bow of 
the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, and 
reception by the Canadian Ambas- 
sador that follows. Group will in- 
clude the N. Y, Times’ John Mar- 
tin, Herald Trib’s Walter Terry 
and Dance News’ Anatole Chujoy. 

. H. W. Heinsheimer will do a reg- 
ular column, Edward Tatnall Can- 
by will edit a record section, 
Harold C. Schonberg will do book 
reviews, and Ralph Kirkpatrick add 
occasional features to the Musical 
Courier, which recently changed 
hands. Warren Cox is m e., Gid 
W. Waldrop editor and Roy E. 
Gainsbiirg publisher. 

A new novel by Shirland Quin, 
American: playwright, titled “Deli- 
cate Gypsy," is being published in 
London by Hutchinson on Feb. 8, 
with a foreword by Dame Sybil 
Thorndike. Miss Quin first turned 
to writing as a young actress in 
repertory and her first novel, 
“Dark Heritage,” won the Atlantic 
Monthly prize contest. 

Sydney A. Mosley, vet British 
radio-tele journalist, is author of 
two ’ . recent books, one, “John 
Baird” (Odhams, $2.30), a biog- 
raphy of his friend and colleague, 
John Logie Baird, television pio- 
neer, and the other, “God Help 
America” (St. Catherine’s Press; 
$3.50), a record of his wartime ex- 
periences as a self-appointed 
broadcaster for Britain in America 
during the last war. 


Last of Minstrelsy 


|S : Continued' from page ,1 = 

letters (it was tough on the kids in 
windy weather . . . but they were 
well paid . . . they got a PASS 
for the show). 

I once watched (from the window 
of a very warm room) the A1 Fields 
show parade in Portland, Maine, 
when it was 10 below zero and the 
old man was riding in an open 
barouche! It was tough on the band. 
Ever blow a horn in zero weather? 
They had to loosen their instru- 
ments with alcohol . ». . and you 
couldn’t blame ’em for swallowing 
some ... by accident! 

Nothing Subtle 

The minstrel show (Vas never 
subtle. No problem play. No tears. 
Just laughs, dancing, songs. arid old, 
familiar music. It was this same- 
ness that ultimately killed min- 
strelsy, and it survived about as 
long as vaudeville. 

Once there were hundreds of 
minstrel shows all over the coun- 
try and they made millions of peo- 
ple happy and also brought mil- 
lions Of dollars over the boxoffice 
till. The medium also cradled many 
great entertainers— -Nat Goodwin, 
Eddie Leonard, Frank Tinney. 
Jerry Cohan (father of the great 
George M.) was a tambourine play- 
er and dancer. Paul Dresser wrote 
songs and sang them in Billy Rice’s 
Minstrels in 1885. A1 G. Fields was 
the first to build and carry his own 
.stage settings and first to operate 
a special train for his troupe. Tony 
Hart (of the famous Harrigan & 
Hart) as Master Anthony Cannon 
was with the Arlington, Cotton & 
Kemble’s Minstrels. 

The Frohmans, Dan, Gus and 
Charles, who were the tops of the 
legit managers, were old minstrel 
men in the management end. Bieh- 
man of the Hyde & Bellman Min- 
strels was a pioneer manufacturer 
of chewing gum. Nat Goodwin, he 
of the over five beautiful wives, 
started in minstrelsy as a mimic 


and ended up as a great star of 
Shakespeare stuff. Percy G, Wil- 
liams. became a, great vaude. mag- 
nate. A1 Jolson — well, you know. 

To get back to Neil O’Brien. He 
knew and worked with them all. 
He knew minstrelsy when the end 
men used the jaw bone of a hone 
for bones, they rattled a rib-bone 
between its forks and produced 
rolls and single and double clacks. 
Huber : & Gilden, played a fiddle 
and banjo made out of oyster cans. 
(Oysters were packed those days 
in tins about the slue of a two- 
pound box of candy.) They Were 
billed as “The Oyster Can Mokes.” 
While Gilden played a banjo Huber { 
played a whisk broom obbligato over 
his banjo and the chair that Gilden 
sat in. Neil O’Brien saw Carncross 
& Dlxey’s minstrels start in ri tiny 
theatre at 11th Street below Mar- 
ket Street in Philadelphia, and 
stayed there 40 years, (Dumont 
took it over.) Carncross was the 
interlocutor and tenor. Dixey was 
the “bone” man, he did barber 
imitations, but his best “take off” 
Was the race between Dexter & 
Goldsmith Maid,: who were two 
famous trotters of that time. Du- 
mont’s was the last minstrel house 
in U. S. A. 

Volumes have been written about 
minstrelsy . . . but they have never 
captured the personalities of the 
minstrel groats. Neil O’Brien was 
not only one of them, but the last 
one of them. He was a fine gentle- 
man and a great comedian. He. out- 
lived minstrelsy; arid played vaude 
with many partners, but the h-st 
one he had was the old champ, 
James J. Corbett. Neil has now 
gone on his last parade to join the 
Golden Circle “Upstairs” . . . Honey 
Boy Evans, Bert Swor, Hugh 
Dougherty, Bill Sweatman, Ed Rice, 
Carncross, Frank • Dumont, Lew 
Dockstader, A1 G1 Fields, George 
Primrose, Barney Fagan, Eddie 
Leonard, George Thatcher, Press 
Eldridge, Fields & HansOn, Gor- 
man Bros ... and so many, many 
more. 

Happy parading, Neil, it is much 
easier to answer ,11:15 up there 
where you will kick golden cobble 
stories. ; . . I’d like to carry the 
drum for you guys! SEZ 


All-time Grosser; 


SSS Continued from page '2 'sss 

“30 Seconds Over Tokyo” arid “The 
Sands of Iwo-Jima.” 

A predominating background is 
some phase of man’s preoccupation 
with killing his own kind, 18 stories 
dealing with this material, some 
grim; others outright comedies and 
several ore musicals; 12 films deal 
directly with warfare, four with 
military life, and two with post- 
war readjustment. 

Six are western, and ten are ad- 
venture stories with a variety . of 
locales, Africa being the scene of 
three. Showbusiness is also a popu- 
lar background, showing up 13 
times. 

The major story type is the love- 
marriage relationship. Some 18 
films treat this relationship, rang- 
ing from the neurotic passions of 
“SnOws of Kiliirianjaro” to the 
spoofing of “I Was a Male War 
Bride.” 

Perhaps of some significance, 
there are only 10 films in which 
the boy-meets-girl story dominates. 
Also, the Horatio Alger Story 
shows up only six times, primarily 
in the musical show-biz" biog- 
raphies. 

Curiously, considering their ra- 
dio arid tv popularity, there’s not a 
single film that may be classified as 
a criine story, detective yarn, or 
suspense story. These element's 
appear in some of the films but 
they’re not dominant. 

There are nine distinctly recog- 
nizable hero and heroine types, 
which appear Over and over.' They 
range from Delilah, representing' 
the ancient notion of woman as 
both good and evil, all the way to 
Shane, the hero come from no- 
where to right a wrong. These 
figures are classic and, as shown 
by Jung, lie at the deepest levels 
of human instinct. 

Perhaps most significant of all, 
there is only one character ih all 
of these films who can be described 
as truly courageous and self-suffi- 
cient, a woman, and she’s British 
—Mrs. Miniver. 

Also interesting are the sources 
from which the film-makers derive 
their big boxoffice hits. Some 47 
top grosses are from books and of 
these 25 are, or were, bestsellers. 
Only 13 of these* boxoffice win- 
jners were taken from the legit, 

The foregoing is what happens 
when a guy' sits around with a pen- 
cil and absolutely refuses to do the 
crossword puzzle. 



* ’ Hollywood. 

If lereenwriters worried half as much about their future as we do, 
tiie. present crop of pictures would he better. But since Hhey won’t, 
the ordeal is up to us. 

Since they have no money, not even enough to pay back income 
taxes, the only sensible thing to do is to throw the profit motive right 
down the Communist drain and give the screenwriters these plots for 
nothing. All we ask is that they spread the riches around. In brief, 
don’t take more than you can use. Give others a chance, too. 

Old Titte New Title 

THE QUARTZITE SAGA WOMEN NEVER CHANGE 

This is a picture dealing with four generations of pioneers in Quartz- 
ite, Ariz. They all seem to have women-trouble. Just when .they’re 
striking it r(f h, they suspect their women are not faithful. This goes 
on for 100 years. Well, not 100, really, but for two hours. It Just seems 
like 100 years. 

The last generation breaks the monotony by turning Quartzite from 
a ghost town to a place where hot-rod addicts can hold rodeos using 
their hopped-up jallopies instead of steers and wild, horses. This results 
in all. the men getting killed. After that the women suspect each other, 
which is at least a switch. 

Old Title New Title 

20,000 OPEN TOES ALEC IN WONDERLAND 

This is a dog act involving 1,000 trained dogs that howl at piano 
riiusic and even at the sight of pianos. Herr Prof. Spitz is determined 
to make them love Chopin. He starts out getting them used to spinets 
and works up to grands. Haris, the dog of Alec Tempest, a next-door 
neighbor’s child, is his special objective. He figures through free 
lessons to the dog arid her son Alec he will get Mis. Trilby Tempest 
under his spell. Harry Rightman, the milknian, who is in love with 
Mrs. T., dreads this turn of affairs. 

The milkman is particularly fond of Alec because the moppet has 
never seen a movie or a TV situation-comedy and is therefore com- 
pletely bereft of the sort of fresh talk that comedy writers believe 
enhances the charm of childhood. He likes the dog too, because the 
dog, fed on skimmed milk, wouldn’t bite even a milkman. 

Alec, while reading “Alice in Wonderland” one afternoon when he 
was supposed to be tutoring hi6 dog in Chopin, falls asleep and dreams 
he is With Alice; sharing her delightful experiences. ,, 

They come upon a castle which they had never seen before. It seems 
to be made of coal. ‘‘Let’s call it Newcastle!,” cries Alec. “Yes, let’s,” 
says Alice; 

Their joy is short-lived, however; when inside the castle, which is 
diamond-studded, they come upon Herr Prof. Spitz and his 1,000 piano- 
playing mutts, The black dogs are on the white keys, the white dogs 
are on black keys. 

: Alec runs to his mother when he sees the Herr Prof, approaching 
with a bull whip. Instead of helping the lad escape, she betrays him 
on account she’s bewitched. 

Alec; his mother, his dog and Alice finally escape when the milkman; 
ordered: to fix Up a milk bath for Mrs. T. by the Herr Prof., equips, 
his friends with life-preservers arid, then floods the castle, dungeon, 
moat and countryside with skimmed milk. 

They all float back to Texas where the river of milk dries up. 

All except the Herr Prof. He gets drowned as the milk route crosses 
the wide Missouri. 

So the milkman marries Mrs. T. After that they all have cream. 
Even Hans. The organ plays an original composition of the milkman’s 
entitled, “The Melting Ice Cream Waltz.” 

Old Title New Title 

■PUSHOVER THE HOT ROD NEXT DOOR 

Mitzi Minor used tq hate Rex Imperator who lived next door. ^She 
called him “Imp” for short arid she called him that a long time. He 
made more noise as a kid than the fire department. His toys rattled, 
his bike squeaked and it seemed everything he owned sounded like 
scratching a fingernail over glass. It drove Mitzi’s mother crazy., Then 
her father married a widow with a boy about Mitzi’s age, chiefly because 
the kid was a bookworm and moved around as quietly as one. His 
name was Cedric -‘Marsh. Imp always called him “Mush.” . 

When they grew up (arid the mystery remains as to how Imp escaped 
being killed by his contraptions and how .Mush escaped being killed 
by Imp) they became rivals for Mitzi’s hand! It was a wonderful hand. 
In poker, canasta, 21 and eveti hearts, Mitzi’s harid always won. Mush 
tried to win her over to books to show his superiority in his field; 
while Imp ran her around town in the noisiest contraptions. But at 
least they could go. 

She often wished one would break down and bring down Imp’s 
conceit with it. One day it did. They were on a high hill. Imp made 
no effort to repair it. He just sat there. The sun was setting. “Aren’t 
you going to fix it?” she asked. “Thought you liked it quiet ” he said. 
She told him they should get moving. He told her they were. “The 
earth right now is moving in three directions at once. Scared?’* He 
put his arm around her, “Oh boy, what an approach,” she said. “Good, 
eh?” he asked. “Terrifique,” she replied. 

Mush and her parents got worried and when she didn't come home 
by midnight started to search for her. But by then Imp had started 
the car. The drove to Vegas and got married; 

This is a picture for people who like to see brats triumph over virtue. 
Old Title New Title 

MURDER FOR FUN THE CORPSE COULDN'T SING 

This is a picture for a goodie-goodie girl (Ann Blyth) who would 
like a fling at something different. Her name is . Cueti Malone. She 
sublets a Park Ave. apartment for the summer and hires a teacher 
to vulgarize her lovely voice so she can get $20,000 a week in class 
clipperies at Vegas. Her. teacher turns out to be Trigga O’Toole, a 
gravel-voiced thug who had to give up his swank apartment because 
Murder, Inc., ran out of partners. He takas her to New York niteries 
to see what she can swipe from Sophie Tucker, Martha Raye and Pearl 

Bailey. ■ '■ ■ 

One night she goes out alone and when she comes home she finds 
h'er tutor dead on her bed. She calls the cops. They suspect her. 
Then they run into one of the . house-hops and recognize him as No 
Hands McGroin. He used to drive getaway cars and shoot with both 
hands at the same time. His alibi always was, “How could I a-done 
it when I was drivin’?” . „ . . „ 

The dick says, “Well, you wasn’t drivin’ this tunc, No Hands. 

“No, I wuz sleepin’ in thie cella,” says McGroin. 

The cops hop on this and check on the dumbwaiter. They find the 

gun there. #' , , , . ... 

Daniel Marshall, attorney for Cueti Malone, rushes Into the apart- 
ment with a writ of habeas corpus. ■ ' ' • . ■ 

“Habeas corpus?” says the dick in charge of the case, why she 

ain’t even booked yet;’’ r ■ , . 

Marshall pulls Out a Vegas contract. Is she booked or Is she 

booked?” he asks. ‘ ■ ' . , ^ „ 

They sill laugh and so does the corpse. And doht forget my -IO /c t 

he $ays* 

The dick glares at all of them. “You know I could clink all of you 

for turnin’ in a false alarm.” . . .. 

“I’ll tell you what I’ll do, officer,” offers Cueti. I ll sing at your 
police benefit, and give you W.o "of my Vegas deal as well. Ill even 
sing you a special number.” 

“Okay,” says the dick, “what’ll it be?” . ■ a 

“The ‘Birth of the Blues,’ flatfoot. What else?’ demands Tiigga. 
“Shoot,” commands the copper. 


Walter Wanger and Joan Ben* 
nett relumed to the Coast. 

/ Phil Harris Jr., is taking basic 
training at Lackland Air Force 
Base, Texas, 

Georges Rouvler, United Artists' 
managing director in France, in 
town to onceover the stateside sit- 
uation. 

; William Pine (& Thomas) came 
In from the Coast yesterday (Tues.) 
to confab with Paramount homeof- 
fice execs. 

‘ The Dr. A. J. Cronins (he’s the 
novelist), off on the Mauretania 
Friday (29) for ah 18-day Carib- 
bean cruise. 

Reg Connelly, head of Campbell- 
Connelly Music in England, arrives 
in New York (Wed.) on one of his 
regular business trips. 

Mr. and Mrs. S. A. Temple, par- 
ents of Shirley Temple, sailed Fri- 
day (29) on a 66-day Mediterranean 
cruise aboard the Britannic. 

Metro top p e r Nicholas M. 

. Schenck, international chief Arthur 
Loew and sales manager Charles 
Reagan back from studio confabs. 

Howard M. Squadron, formerly 
with Phillips, Nizer, Benjamin & 
Krim, joined with tax attorney 
David Alter to form new law firm 
of Squadron & Alter. 

Jack L. Warner, WB production 
chief, returned to the Coast fol- 
lowing homeoffice talks. While 
east, Warner visited Buffalo for a 
gander at the Todd-AO process. 

Paul Draper, out of the bigtime 
nitery-concert field for some seaf 5 - 
sons, who returned to N. Y. recent- 
ly from abroad to give a concert at 
the YM&YWHA, has now joined 
the Chester Hale Studio in N. Y! to 
teach classes in tap technique. 


with ''Glenn Miller Story" next 
Friday (12). 

Hazel Scott and Andre Philippe 
topping entertainment at * Page 
One Ball in William Penn Hotel 
Saturday (6). 

Jeffrey March, 10-year-old son 
of - Stan March, public delations 
head of Carnegie Tech, wrote an 
original play and presented it for 
polio fund. 



A1 Slavin joined Leo Salkin 
booking office here. 

Marshall Migatz, summer thea- 
tre producer, now handling theatre 
parties in advance of “Porgy and 
Bess," due to open Opera House 
March 2. 

Joyce Taylor here plugging new 
Mercury, disk, "Take My Love," 
and then planed to Coast for ohe- 
week booking into the . Flamingo, 
beginning last Sunday (31). 

James Stewart in town last week 
for appearances at dee jay cocktail 
parties and screenings of "Glenn 
Miller Story," mutually plugged by 
Decca Records and Universal. 

Dennis Day, flown in for March 
of Dimes ballyhoo, doubled on pro- 
motional parties for his own RCA 
Victor disks. • 

Silver Palm has abandoned , its 
exotic policy and bringing back its 
Dixieland jazz. - 


Paris 


Sidney Bechet opened at the 
Alhambra Jan. 29. 

Olivia De Havilland to England 
for confabs on a future film. 

Pierre Brasseur to have top role 
in Jean Giraudoux’s film, “Sieg- 
fried." - 

n Jean Bretonniere into Bobino for 
f-weet stint on same bill with Co- 
lette Mars. 

., T ®®riC Clair's next film will be 
L’Opfimiste,” with Gerard, Phil- 
ipe. It starts in July/ 

Jean Marais off on a three-month 
tour With the old Jean Cocteau 
play, “La Machine Infernale." 

# Jean Giraudoux’s play, “Sieg- 

rl>pman WI ^ a Franco- 

G^man i>ic with Pierre Brasseur. 

Bob Cinader here to looksee 
coming Sheldon Reynold's produc- 
tion of "Sherlock Holmes" vidpix 
senes to be made here. 

Theatre National Populaire re- 
opening at Theatre Chailiot house 
this week with Gerard Philippe 
taking over title role of Shakes- 
peare’s “Richard II." ^ 

Gor d?n" (U) a full 
length pic, made by splicing to- 
gether a few episodes of the orig- 
inal 1 2. follows “Superman" (Rep) 

h h - got , t I 1 ^ 1 8ame treatment. 

Spiegel taking over here as 

Swi £ tal - u ep for MPAA while 
ESf .Gromch goes in as German 


By Lary Sollovfay 

Betty Hutton held over extra 
week at Beachcomber. 

Carmen Cavallaro's two Week 
date at La Rue’s is With options. 

Since preem of “Glenn Miller 
Story" here about two weeks ago, 
sales of his records are topping 
other disks in greater Miami. 

Ritz Brothers in town prepping 
series of shindigs celebrating 25th 
year in show biz; play return date 
at Di Lido Hotel beginning Feb. 1. 

MPAA’s Eric Johnston in town 
but didn't participate in AFM-pro- 
ducers discussions on studio mu- 
sician’s pay scale; just a vacation.. 


Berlin Peculiarities 


Continued from page t 


f?PAA rep. Ted Smith heads for 
U.S. to take up new duties as as- 
sistant to the foreign rep. 

ivx C l c } ] ‘ e Aubry.who wus a pic star 
In her first fUm, “Manon,” and 
then disappeared until working in 
a bad play this year, now shows up 

S,ii 0 fr Cer ou tb * ne w Jean Guelis 
BaHet Co. She dances the lead in 
the ballet, “The Third Girl." 

? iIm Actor’s Syndicate 
refused to issue, a permit to Yvon- 
Carlo for her forthcoming 
jjm stint here in Franco-Italo pic, 
La Castiglione. Syndicate claims 
role could have been done'by local 
artist, but permit was obtained 
from Italy due to coproduction 
status of the pic. 



By Hal. V. Cohen 

“New Faces" will stay at the 

a x ®. n r- f° r two . weeks starting 
April 5. 

Carol Eger opened studios here 
and in nearby Greensburg, Lat- 
robe and New Alexandria. 

_ Dean Martin gave $5,000 to ex- 
pansion fund of College of Steu- 
^r»’i borne town. 

N . lX0 . n ffian'ager,- went 
_belp his parents 
c ®ppJ at ® thei r 65th wedding anni. 
" m erson accompanied here 

fnr h pm h u Sba ^ d ’ r . SkltchH enderson. 
fori Pittsburgh Symphony’s annual 

Pl?vi 1 r C T a a A ar ’ f la yb°use and Pitt 
frftm er ?h act A r ’ bas been discharged 

town. thC Army aftd is back 

^] e ber, assistant contact 

cifit ag nnn/°+ r , stan ley- Warner cir- 

Hosbital. : ed ° n at 

fttPi a ? ley ^ a tt. who just gradu- 
ated from the Carnegie Tech dra- 

3Jau h t J|:' J0ined Kaybouse tech- 

. . Loc ?j juggler Bobby Jule com 
into the Chicago Theatre? Cht 


owner gave him the original free 
of charge. . , . 

Musician note: Wilhelm Furt- 
waengler, the Babe Ruth of Euro- 
pean conductors, is packing ’em in 
whenever he. appears with Berlin 
Philharmonics. SRO crowd always 
goes wild and cheers him dozens 
of times after the final number. . . . 

When a teen-ager is whistling, 
it’s dead-sure to be an Ami song 
. . . it can’t be emphasized enough: 
The three most popular contribu- 
tions the Yanks have brought to 
postwar Berlin are jazz, jazz and 
jazz. . . 

Little fat gypsy violin maestro 
Barnabas Bakos at Haus Wien oh 
Kurfuerstendamm who tramped all 
the way from his native Budapest 
to West Berlin at the end of the 
war accompanied by his Wife plus 
dog and a priceless Amati violin 
on his back. ... 

Five colored GI’s— called “Die 
Berliners”— have won numerous 
fans here. Their harmonizing and 
arrangements Have scored many 
times. The boys have been so 
pleased by their success that they 
have decided to go into show biz 
after rotation. As for their names, 
“the Berliners” just became natu- 
rally because meeting here. . . , 

Synchronized American pictures. 
You may have a chance to hear 
Doris Day or Danny Kaye singing 
in German, some. Miss or Mister 
Schulz substituting their singing 
voices) . . . and everywhere the 
signs of a “Berliner Kindi," big 
local beer outfit. ; . . 

What GIs miss in Berlin: Their 
home, of course, and— natch — 
money, naturally. . . 

The shaking hands among na- 
tives which is still something un- 
usual and funny for newcoming 
Amis. Sometimes it goes like that: 
Guten Tag, Herr Schulz!" (shake 
hands)— “Wie geht’s?”— “Auf Wie- 
dersehn, Herr Schulz!" (again 
shake hands). ... 

The little watchmen in black uni- 
forms pacing up and down through 
the night in front of U. S. family 
and bachelor quarters. ... 

Almost a daily , sight locally : 
Group of some dozen bustling and 
hustling youngsters, ages around 
six or seven, being controlled on 
all sides by thin ropes. Kids on 
the edge of the group hold onto 
the rope While the ones on the in- 
side move with the crowd. 

Pfennigs (German pennies) 
which are very much needed in 
Berlin, particularly in shopping 
centres. Too many local piggy 
OsnlcSi • • • 


Jill Allan wielding the baton at 
the Don Juan. . 

Alicia Markova returned here 
this week for ballet dates at the 
Stoll, and for BBC-TV, 

First play by 22-year-old Laura 
Common of Cleveland, Ohio, “A 
Present for Jenny,’’ was aired last 
weekend via BBC radio. 

Dick Shawn inked for first Pal- 
ladium bill of the season, opening 
March 8, which is being topped by 
.Ted Heath and His Music. 

Lillian Heilman’s “Another Part 
of the Forest' will be America's 
second contribution to the BBC 
radio series/ “20th-Century Thea- 
tre.” 

The vacant post of general secre- 
tary to thp British Film Producers 
Assn, has been filled from outside 
the industry, with P. E. Taylor, an 
accountant. 

Robert Donat this week started 
his first film role since he com- 
pleted “The Magic Box" in 1951, 
He is starring in Ealing’s produc- 
tion, “Lease of Life." 

J. Arthur Rank Organization of- 
fered^ night on the .town with a 
famous star as a prize for a letter- 
writing contest in connection with 
the preem of “Love Lottery." . 

. Jack Hylton is to be nominated 
Showman of the Year at a Variety 
Club luncheon at the^Savoy tomor- 
row (Thurs.). Dorothy Tutin will 
be named Actress of the'Year. 

In from New York: C. J. Latta, 
Jerome Whyte and Joseph A. 
McConvjlle. Returning to New 
York: Richard Arlen, Alec. Waugh, 
Alan and Blanche Lund, Julius 
Ehrlich and Patricia Medina. 

Amy Jeffries, formerly house- 
keeper at the London Palladium, 
planed to Hollywood last week to 
play in the Danny Thomas series, 
“Make Room for Daddy." During 
his vaude season here last year, 
the comic said she reminded him 
of his mother. 

David Kingsley, who was the 
first secretary of the National Film 
Finance Corp. when ; the state film 
bank was set up by the govern- 
ment ip 1948, has now returned 
as managing director, succeeding 
James H. Lawrie. He assumed his 
new post Monday (1). 


dans Union (Local 77). conval- 
escing at home after hospital siege. 

Bam Burd, local hosiery manu- 
facturer, bought half Interest in 
Milton Kellem’s New York music 
publishing firm. 

Jack Fields, Blue Note cafe own- 
er, sponsoring Stan Kenton orch 
appearance at suburban Tower 
Theatre Feb. 8. 

Joey Bishop, current at Latin 
Casino, honored by Jewish Basket- 
ball League last week. Bishop at 
one time played in league. 



gery. 
Hat 



, By Florence S. Lowe 

The Ice-Capades into Uline’s 
Arena for a two-week stand. 

Baritone William Warfield due . in 
Feb, 7 for a Constitution Hall con- 
cert under the Patrick . Hayes- 
Amerlcan U aegis. 

Stan Kenton and his Festival of 
Modern American Jazz booked into 
the 6, 000-seat Armory for a one- 
night stand Feb. 7 by Super-Music. 

MARRIAGES 

Catherine P. Maas to Edwin H. 
Gooding, New York, Jan. 28. Bride 
is a radio , writer for Associated 
Press; he’s assistant general news 
editor for: AP in New York. 1 

Toby Nelson to Edward^ Scrup- 
ski; New Jersey, Jan. 16. Bride is 
member of the dance team of 
Royce & Nelson. 

Louise. Studley to Bryan S. 
Ryan; Dublin, Jan. 22. Bride .is 
musical comedy singer. 

Joan Donovan to Lowell Cordier, 
Jan. 31, N. Y.- Bride is an actress, 
currently in the Broadway produc. 
tion of “Seven Year Itch." 

Margaret Swagler to Ted Haner, 
Pittsburgh, Jan. 30. Bride is Nixon 
Theatre secretary. 

Elizabeth Head to John William- 
son, Glasgow, Scot., Jan. 21. Both 
are members of Tom Arnold's “Old 
King Cole" company at Empire, 
Glasgow. 

Ann Slater to Robert Anderson, 
San Bernardino, Cal., Jan. 29. 
Bride is a member of the KNBH 
press staff; he’s with an ad agency. 


teo Spitz recovering from sur- 

mJ$ST ® WWl * y with 

mhior sfc rec “P“»‘‘h8 aft er 

mtoS? 8^?" recoverta « *»■» 

Mickey Roone> back on the ink 
after a siege of virus: ne 3ob 

Elizabeth Risdon hospital 
with coronary thrombosis. ?ahz d 
. Y * Fwnk Freeman returned 
from Par homeoffice huddles ' 
Johnny Grant to Washington 
D.C.; to entertain wounded vet- 

crsnSi 

/ Frank Scully elected to the De? 
ert Springs Chamber of Coml 
merce. / “ 

B HT t 11 ^ ancastei: ‘ Presented with 
the Rolling Stone Trophy by Glo- 
bal Travel Service. P y ' 10 
Harry Peale, member of RKO’s 
casting staff for 24 years, resigned 
to enter realty biz, 

Virginia Van Upp leaves for Ber- 
lin this week to produce “The Riff 
Whisper” for Republic. 8 

. Arthur Krim and Robert Ben- 
jamin in town to discuss release 
deals with, indie "producers. 

Paul Gregory in from N.Y. to 
round up a cast for a road com- 
pany of “Caine Mutiny Trial.’’ 

RKO.’s Latin American super- 
visor, Michael Havas, in from Mex- 
ico City for confabs with studio 
toppers. 

Stanley Goldsmith checked in at 
Metro after traveling more than 
100,000 miles as unit manager on 
three pictures. 

Masquers Club tossing a show for 
members of the Motion Picture 
Chapter of the Purple Heart, with 
John Ford as chairman. 

Jerry Pickman checked in at 
Paramount for ad-pub huddles. 

Wayne Morris headlined the 
March of Dimes show at El Centro. 

Jack Carp, William Meiklejohn, 
Ellsworth Hoagland and Irving 
Talbot presented with plaques for 
their work in behalf of the United 
Jewish Appeal. 


Rome 


By Helen McGill Tubbs 

Henri Vidal .here from Paris to 
play the role of Ezie in “Attila.” 

Dennis O’Keefe to Capri for 
shooting of first of his tv series 
with Telefilm, Inc. 

Frank Gervasi is scripting fm* 
Anthony Quinn on “Attila” at 
Ponti DeLaurentis Studios. 

Olga San Juan (Mrs. Edmond 
O’Brien) here while her husband 
films “Barefoot Contessa.” 

Luciano Emmer, director, is com- 
pleting a feature length pic on life 
of Spanish painter, Pablo Picasso. 

Actor Aldo Fabrizi' has turned 
director for “Tight Frock Coat,” 
from short story by Luigi Piran- 
rello. 

Gian Gaspare Napolitano, who 
made prize-winning film,. “Green 
Magic,” working on details for 
“Tam Tam Mafumbe” set for loca- 
tion in Belgian Congo. . 

Portland, Ore. 

By Ray Feves 

Art Peters at E» Rancho Village 
as emcee. 

The Carroll Wallace Revue 
opened at The Tropics. 

Carroll Wallace Revue held for 
a second stanza at the Tropics. 

The Clover Club shuttered Jan. 
1, and last Week went into volun- 
tary bankruptcy. 

Ben Blue and his revue playing 
the 1954 Motor Show for nine daiys 
starting last Saturday (30). 

Louis Armstrong and His All- 
Star Revue inked for week at the 
Paramount starting Feb: 5. 

Louis Armstrong and His All- 
Star Revue Inked for a week’s 
vaude-film date at the 3, 400-seat 
Paramount starting Friday (5). 

“The Big Package” with Stan 
Kenton orch, George Shearing 
Quintet and others set for a one- 
nighter here the middle of Feb- 
ruary. 

Clary & Hamilton, Ben Berl, Jat 
Herod and Manhattan Cocktail Re- 
vue held over second Week at 
Anuto’s Supper Club. Harmoni- 
cats are due in following. 


BIRTHS 

Mr. and Mrs. Paul Schneider, 
son, Los Angeles, Jan. 26. Father 
is a screen and television writer. 

Mr. and Mrs. ^Russell Naughton, 
son, Hartford, .Conn., Jan. 26. 
Father is chief announcer of 
WDRC in that city. 

Mr. and Mrs. Tom Henry, daugh- 
ter, Chicago, recently. Father is a. 
Mutual network salesman there. 

Mr. and Mrs. John Hix, daugh- 
ter, New York, Jan. 20. Father is 
ABC-Paramount production exec; 
mother is Jane Bennett, former 
actress. 

^Mr. and Mrs. John Smith 
Matthews, . daughter, New York, 
Jan. 25. Mother, former Collette 
Crawford, and father are both stage 
players.^ 

-t Mr - and Mrs. Fred Hebert, son, 
New York, Jan. 29. Father is pro- 
duction manager for Paula Stone; 
mother is a former dancer. 

xr Mr, ^” d Mrs - Ricbard Adler, son, 
New York, Jan. 18. Mother is 
sqngwriter Marion Hart; father 
also is a tunesmith. 

■ Mr and Mrs. Murray Deutch, 
daughter, Jan. 27, New York. Fa- 
ther is contactman with Peer In- 
ternational. 

and Mrs, Raymond Neuman, 
son, Mineola, L. I., Jan. 28. Father 
is */r n en S*neer with WQXR, N. Y. 

Golman M. Conroy, 
son, Dublin, Jan. 14. Father is 
a ?sjstant g.m. for Odeon (Ireland) 

v ^ ^ ^ s * Jack Jaglon, son, 
N. Y., Dec. 23. Mother is a legit 

Itch 6 " 5 ' reeently ^ “Seven Year 

a an » ^ Irs * Irving Gitlin 
daughter, New York, Feb. 1. Fa- 
ther is a CBS-TV director. 


Vienna 


By Emil W. Maass 

Fire caused $2,000 damage to the 
Vienna Ice Revue. 

Austria is sending “April 2", 000" 
to Sao Paulo film festival. 

Theo Lingen to play in German 
language theatres of Argentine. 

Dancer Harald Kreuzberg on 
world tour appeared in Konzert- 
haus. 

Metro’s oldie, “Anna Karenina,” 
(Greta Garbo) drawing full houses 
here. 

State Opera singer Julius Pa tzak 
inked for Joseph Krips concerts in 
Cincinnatti. 

About 14 newsreel companies 
sent crews to Austria during 
“avalanche time." 

Schoenbrunn Films preparing 
folkplay, “Bruder Martin," with 
Ernst Marischka directing. 

Telephone service introduced 
Platter of the Week system, by 
which one may dial and hear the 
latest song hits. 




By Jerry Gaghan 

. F. a t Dennis is the new bandsman 
at the Little Rathskeller. 

Steve Strohman is new branch 
manager for Capitol Records. 

Bobby Branson, pianist at the 
Fl * a ra - ^Club, just back from Korea. 

M,?J!r Ck f ey . Sllau &hnes$y, playing 
clubdates here# signed by Para- 
mount. 

^? anCe J/ an ^ ynn is in Fitzgerald 
Mercy Hospital as a result of an 
auto crash. 

Frank Liuzzl, president of Musi- 


Obituaries 

■■ Continue^ from page 75 

‘own Jan, 15. A former 
vocalist, he was connected with the 
entertainment industry all his life. 

Herbert G. Moorehouse, 59 
screen actor, died Jan. 26 in HoL 

wifi ivr after a long illn ess His 
wife, Mary, survives. 

i I*- R°PP» 71, former violin- 

I ist with Chicago Symphony Orches- 

Ja a n a 2? f n et Rh? f , or 38 years, died 
Jan. 25 in Rhinelander, Wise. 

Mary Lane Davis, musician 
died m Bellows Falls, Vt., Jan 22' 
after a long illness. * — ’ 

• of Bob Sennett, record- 

i^ artmt on the Jubilee label 
died Jan. 25 in Atlantic City, N. j] 

Mother of actress Gypsy Rose 
N?y! Jan. U 28 Havocdied ^ Nyack, 


By Les Rees 

Ralph Flanagan into Prom Bail- 
room. 

National Canadian Ballet set for 
Lyceum March 1-3. 

Duke Ellington played St. Paul 
Auditorium one nighter. 

Vic’s holding over Red Allen 
and his Royal Court of Jazz. 

Vocalist Eddie Fisher here for 
St. Paul Winter Carnival appear- 
ance. - 

“Ge o r g e Washington Slept 
Here" is current Edyth Bush Little 
Theatre bill. 

Combdian George Gobel into 
Hotel Radisson Flame Room for 
annual engagement. 

Starlight club . has comic Jack 
LeMaire, Bob & Diane, songstress 
Jodi and Ray Kamin band, 

“Ice Cycle of 1954" set for St. 
Paul Auditorium Feb. 18-22, mak- 
ing second such show there in two 
months. 

Northwest Variety club honor- 
ing retiring chief broker Bennie 
Berger with testimonial dinner 
Feb. 15. 

Gene Autry and his Big Show 
of 1954 started 45-day tour with 
two “March of Dimes” benefits at 
Auditorium here. 

Aerialist Ingrid Meredith arid 
exotic dancers Lynn Sherwood 
and Irene and emcee Jane Ruby 
at Persian Palms. 

Singing trio Lind Bros., here for 
B nai B’rith concerts, “A Night in 
Israel,", at Adath Jeshurun syna- 
gogue, previously played a number 
of local nitery engagements. 

The 10-day 1953 Minnesota State 
Fair attracted 865,523 paid admis- 
sions* a gain of 46,508 over previ- 
ous year, despite unfavorable 
weather and polio outbreak, net- 
ting $66,552 nrofit. 



Wednefdaf, FebnmgyS, 1954 



ISf* ” StesagSfgve S>-«S!»SJ 8 


spKSss 

S S Sia&tt fenag ass ,&%.■-«»«•«• hls & 


max EDWIN 1L ARMSTRONG Theatre, and was completing' ar- inmzVh^enmStk $Ll££ „ husbkrid, direc 

Maj. Edwin H. Armstrong^ 63, rangementsfor his next summer arated from NBC He subsequent- nrndfiriLn' % a J s ®i active -In the died last year, 
.iAnper radio Inventor credited ‘‘Concerts Under" th« Stars” when i v tirdlc n o m aA nnKI (nlti* «m n«* I L..i. 1 $01111(1. flllilS I 


husband, director John Reinhardt# 

flier! ln&f vent? ' . 


Details 


feat of bringing in the New York his WABC position. 

Metropolitan Opera company on Educated at Virginia Military 
his personal guarantee, and not by Institute. Princeton and the IT of 


vive. 


v ■ NICHOLAS BAKER 
Nicholas Baker, 70, veteran actor 
who appeared in' such Broadway 
productions as “Abie's Irish Rose” 
and “Sons O’ Guns,” died Jam 23 
in Lincoln Park, N.J., after a long 
illness.. He retired in 1946. 


JOHN MURRAY ANDERSON his personal guarantee, and not by Institute, Princeton and the U. of Mnv . WITrpMW and “Sons O’ Guns,” died Jam 23 

j ohn Murray* Anderson, 67, legit resorting to asking others to uri- Chicago, where he got a Ph.D., Mova .Jffi %S G S N ?. , , ?R Lincoln Park, N.J., after a long 

producer-director, died Jan. 30 in derwnte the, expenses. He staged Donegan also received an A.M. de- m«H 52 f ? r oc S ! 1 c } mv ~ ,Ul } css --' He- retired in. 1946. 

New York of a heart attack. He is his productions not only in Den- gree from Trinity. College- in Dub- dd„ dm- nl ’ » ^ ^ # A, native of Chicago, he trouped 

currently represented on Broad- ver, but in several other cities iff lin. He started his newspaper ca- l £|} e »rsa\ of . All in Europe and at one time was, a 

way as director and stager of “John the region. He was vice-president reer with the Chicago Daily News colIa P sed 0I } cameraman. -for Rathe News. Sur- 

Murray Anderson’s Almanac” at of the National Local Concert Man- in 1934; was assistant city editor of nnH i!rf L£!l ng over her part yiving are liis wire and a daughter. 


Murray Anaersons Almanac ai 
the Imperial Theatre. 

Born in St. John’s, Newfourid- 


.... uwtm vwuicu mau- m laot, was usiisiaui iiiy euiiur oi n _j Jia/i C 

agers Assn.; president of Associ- the New Orleans Item in 1938 and J? t d i d ® d beiore reach ing a hos- 
ated. Artists Bureau; president of also worked on the San Francisco p \n ion tv/h c ; m. 

LegiUmate Theatre Corp. of Amer- Chronicle^ •. / • v •:* 


la rid, Anderson came, to the U. S. * ne 1 i tre W of Amer- Chronicle,; . ; gent had Derformed In I nnVion Al Hocgler, 30. former base 

n 1910 as an antique dealer. In Jp®? 1 */ ° f ^JATSE; Survived by wife, mother and Edmburgh P BelfasTand^New Yo?k’ ? nil0 V“ cer and statistician, ■ 

i qi . 9 . he Presented his first Broad- member of the Lotus Club, Vane- sister. found dead Jan. 28 in the baseir 


1919, he presented his first Broad- memoer ot tne Lotus Club, Varie- sister. ShraDDlaied ^ found dead Jan. 28 in the basem 

way offering “Greenwich Village ty» and. various other organizations. — in an?*l^r -M-Iite .e-Ievtqlanci home. He ' waii 

lollies.” He subsequently put out f ® u #™ vi P J Ll r ® his y U . e ' a da ugh- MICHAEL J. CULLEN in “Tonight and latei sowated with Jimmy Dudler 

six editions of the show. During brother^ ai^. four sisters. Michael J. Cullen, southern and Miss Nugent was first seen as a ^ ac ^ Graney at the WERE 

the years following 1919, Ander- f T ^ e ? held 'tomorrow Western division manager for child actrefs"i Teh t^rks S ‘wS ga !7 ® u • , , 

son was involved either as a pro- tThurs.) in Denver. Loew’s Theatres, died of coronary Van Winkle” and “Peter Pan ” Unman led, he is survi\cd by his 

ducer, director, writer or creator ' / . . ' thrombosis Jan. 26 at Tucson, Among the plays in which she later parcnls and a sister. 


AL 1IOEGLER 

Al Hocgler, 30, former baseball 
announcer and statistician, was 
found. dead Jan. 28 in the basement 
of his Cleveland home. He was as- ; 
sociated with Jimmy Dudler and 
Jack Graney at the WERE ball 


in the production of 34 musicals, of 
which 29 were presented on Broad- 
way and five in London. 


FLORENCE BATES . Ariz., where he Was convalescing 1 had roles was “George arid Mar- 
Florence Bates, 52, character ac- a " d vacationing with his wife. Al- garef.” 
tress, died Jan, 31 in Hollywood* suffering from a virus in- - 


Anderson was active in the pres- of a«heart ailment. She began her fe Pt ion * he continued at his work 
entation of seven circuses for professional career in 1940 when' until two weeks prior to his death. 

r> - D MAM HAVIMIMM 'Ja D A«1 A«r ^ « • A « AS -a*^L . . .TniVllnrf T AAIiJm IM 1 HOO AM- M A M 


ALLEN C. HINCKLEY 


MME, CAMILLE DE VERNET 
Madame Camille Feher de Ver- 
net, ,86, former actress; died Jan; 


A ii P n r Hinolw v 91 .i [21 in San Francisco. She had per- 

A11 ®n. c : .-Hinckley,: 76, bass-bari- f i n Hoht nnoin a nH 


Ringling Bros., rfarnum & Bailey ia the fil^ %^c- Joining Loew’s iri 1928 as fma n : t o^ Bi^ ^ ^’in tlm B^x ? or ??f d in. light ‘ opera jmd cohiedy 

and was credited with str£amlin- ca.” She was signed for a role i n nger of Loew’s State Theatre in N Y A MetroDolitan 0 D era sineer in A Y ionna< Paris and Berlin, 
ing the circuk productions along the picture following appearances Providence, R. I., Cullen subse- -through 1908-1911 he had recently ^Lne de Vernet was the heroine 
theatrical lines. His pther endeav- at the P,sadeni C “mmunit"p"a^ managed houses in Wash- b °° K HU "' 


ors included 11 pageants, 61 film- house. " ^ Jngtbn and Pittsburgh. During Opera Group N ' Y wnfth Dre 

house vaude sho.ws and 24 nitery since her 1940 bow* Miss Bates "® rl< iZ ar c 1, h f a ma ^ or ! n sented Gilbert & Sullivan oper 
presentations. Hedirectedthe first had appeared in numerous pix in- it® / #u Sp ? ciallsts Corps v in ettas. He also appeared *at th« 

all-color film. “The King of Jazz,” eluding “The Tuttles of Tahiti ” f ha f6 e of theatre procurement as Met during the 1913-14 season. 

which starred Paul miteman, In “The Time, The Place and the o£ .v H ^yy90- d «»*. Hinckley appeared with the Chi- New York aft^r a hmc illne^^ He 

1930 - Girl," ‘'^histle Stop,” “The Diary ^ r " cago Opers Co. and had toured nSh JaeL^with* thS®Phi l /aHe’lnhla 


V low# of Bertita Hardin’s book, 
-S" 1 garlan Rhapsody.” 


‘Hun- 


MAURICE H. KIRK 
Maurice H. Kirk, 72, former 
concert, violinist, died Jan. : 30 in 


Among the Broadway produc- of a Chambermaid , .” “San An- Austria and France. 

• l_ f _ _ _ i.A. • I.. . i 1 A # » . A' A *i. I MllllAM («lU A 1 m. n# IMaoIaoA J 


many, Austria ana r rance. , Europe and the U S Earl v in his *}® d . -Playpd with the^ Philadelphia 

Cullen who is survived by his career seen in oDeras In Oroh and other symphony groups. 

a? ^ in ^t S .‘7 i Ca T r gSSSiw • add 8 Engmid. PP In 1931 pearahc^tout^V v4rs P «o “ * P * 
?Lt h * age . of *2 as ^* Uc . k ? t - seIle «' he toured the U. S/with a German P e -»anceabout_30j ears ago. 


Kirk made his last, public ap- 
pearance about 30 years ago. 


T ; , 7 — • .r. - .7 a/. . ■ "Al. "“.3.0 wiim. vrwv v* ft v&au*. , „ •ii. _ , . . *t . « v ivuivu uiv w* • u. vyuu a vrci mail 

feld Follies, Jumbo, One for Among other films In which she a - w ^ on later was opera company. He also was a 

flip .TVIftnftv ^ ■ I*Twa Yap fho ~ na»fni«mAA hiaka -^CnMAfAffM ^r«*ti*%ir I prCS$dg€Ilt flllu fluVEllC6in3n . I0£* VoiC6~ t6dCll6r ' 


the Money,” “Two for the. Show,” I performed were “Saratoga- Trunk, 


Klaw & Erlanger, Barmnn & 
Bailey’s Circus and the “101 
Ranch . Wild West Show.” • 

Also surviving is a brother, Ben. 

YVONNE DE TREVILLE 


Wife and a son survive. 

MORRIS BRAUN 


Geneyieve McSwlgan, member 
of the women’s department of the 
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette since 1944 
and a sister of Ai Brady McSwi- 
gan, owner of Kenny wood Park in 


Morris Brauri, 60, concert violin- that city, died in Pittsburgh Jan. 
1st, died Jan. 28 s in Philadelphia. 27 of . cancer. A sister is Marie 
He was concertmaster of the Phila- McSwigan, short - story writer and 


Yvonne de Treville 72 nee Fdvfh ne was conceremasier ox tne ^nna- Mcawigan, snort - story wr 

delphia LaScala Opera Co., and author oi cKlldren-s, tales. 


JOHN MURRAY ANDERSON 


Le Gierse, coloratura soprano, died _• 

Jon. 25 in New York. Born in Gal- rfeei. 

veston. Tex., of French and Ameri- rw.ri 
can parentage, she sang in operas i^r. 

arid concerts throughout Europe PriPny uren. ; 


was also a soloist with the Phila- ' • ’ • - • 

delphia Orchestra at Robin Hood Maria Trapaga, 86, actress and 
Dell and the Pennsylvania Sym- widow of -Ladron : de Guevara , 
phony Orch. . noted actor of pre-World War I 


and the U S following her dehlit Braun studied in Europe under days, died recently in Madrid. Sur- 
at the age of 16 With the Castle S^_? e Y ci ? « nd toured Z™ ^.^resario. Pedro 


Sauare ifoera To in NY* V/aaMC Germany and Austria, later. giving Ladron de Guevara; a daughter. 
Miss do Treville sang at the «g^_tW#uAo«t, the. Hiitted, 

Opera Comique,. Paris, with the and 


Rest In Peace 


We'll all miss you. 


Stockholm Royal Opera and was 
a soloist at . Petrograd Symphony 
concerts in 1903 and 1904. In Pet- 
rograd she. also performed in the 
Imperial Opera. Among her other 


member of 'Local 77, A.F.M. 

His widow. a daughter and sister 
survive, 

FERN CHANDLER 
Mrs. Arthur Blake, retired ac- 


stage actress Amparo RiVellcs. 

Isobelle E. Rook, 41, former pi- 
anist who once appeared with thq 
okl Fred Allen radio show, died 
Jan. 18 at the Raybrook, N. Y., 


Ruth and Milton Barit 


pnffappmentc were with the Bu- mrs - Aruiqr mane, reurea ac- io «u uie nayuruos, i.p 

rharMt National Onera Berlin ^ tre ss known professionally as Fern Slate Hospital where she had been 
El oS and the BudS Chandler, died in Manchester, a patient for the last five years. 
Ro?al Oner a* ^ B — N.H., Jan. 20, A native of Man- Prior to that she was a patient for 

' ne«irte« extensive Continental Chester, she was a member of the nearly 10 years at the Will Rogers 
engagements, Mis$ de Treville Stanley James ^Stock Company^ at Hospital, Saranac Lake, N.Y. 9 

tmirerl the IT q in 1912 arid 1913 the old Park theatre there. She — — 

and during World War I Her last also operated her own stock com- Conn Grable, 70, father of Betty 

u q nerformance was in 1933 It Party in Philadelphia and at one Grable, died of uremic poisoning 

U.!). penorinance was in ai time-' en^tarred with Frantic V Jan 2 fi in San Fernando Cal Onee 


a memorial concert at the Brook- 
lyn Museum. oLArt. 


time co-starred with Francis 
Bushman and Fritz Scheff. 


Jan. 25 in San Fernando, Cal. Once 
a stock broker in St. Louis, he 


BERNARD H. MILLS Y 

Bernard ft. Mills, 68, president ntec ®?- 
of the Equity Film Exchange, 
Washington, D. C., and veepee of w 
ScreenCraft Pictures, N. Y., died D .“5" 


Besides her husband; she is sur- spent recent years as manager of 
vived by several nephews and his daughter’s ranch. 


HENRY W. GAUDING 


Jack McCloud, 68, vet banjo 
player who started his career on 


Henry W. Gauding, 86, one of San Francisco’s Barbary Coast in 


Pph 1 in Wa<hlm?ton after a short Pittsburgh’s earliest exhibs, died 1907. died Jan. 25 of lung cancer 
“Three to Make Ready” and the “Slightly Darigerous” and “The illness He had- been associated L n ,J h ?i c T ^ y ? n ^ T , an v 10 i San Francisco Hospital, 

last edition of the ’’Music Box Re- Secret Life of Walter Mitty.” - ‘ ' with Biograph Films in 1912 " arid ' - in , i b 5 w . # « # c 

v ue.” Miss Bates had planned a career the Famous Players Studio in i 914. Washington district m 1914 Wife, 55, of Gilbert Seldes, 

During 1926-29, Anderson was as a pianist but later switched to in^ 1915 hi j p?odSced^ ^a series of ?2 d . °K rat ! d , ? J™ .{utho.r-columnistr^ 

director inrehief -of stage produc- law and was admitted to the Texas one-reel comedies for Mutual Film J!® ais be ran a local " eek y nevs " ^/ hTichJnd fjSTi' 
tions for Paramount-Publix The- bar in 1941. Besides her film roles, Co P a P ei lv „ ,, sides her husband, are a son, a 

atres. In 19M, h^directed fl t the she also ap pea red on radio, tv and Mills entered the indie distribu- seifted The AlHe^MPTO^fVest- sfster^’ tW ° brolhcrs and a 

^ tion 5 eI .s 'a i 9 } 7 a „ nd ln . l 947 ■' stcr - ___ 

ai«n *».« tbiee years *8°- opened the Buffalo office ^of ^Pro- gavel used by ; the first exhibitor * George L. Rubens, 54. part own- 

World’s Fair AduMade at Flushing HENRY qOUVAINE ducers ReleasingCorp Inl940, organization in Pittsburgh. Besides er of the Royal Theatre, Philadel- 

Meadow ? T q N V .^H «V 5 n rfi g H.nr. “ «o '^n.nnc.r ''® pa ?* d W th f • Equlty*^ Fi ilm EX. ■ his wife, he leaves two sons and a phla, died In that city Jan. 29. He 

^ueaaow, L, .1., N. Y., ana also cu- Henry Souvaine, 59, composer change in Washington, He also be- s < s ter umc « 9 nwt#rtf KMmcn Tnr film 

r£ ted ir an a HV aca ? e S t th ^ Golden and producer, died Jan. 30 in came' Screencraft veepee that year. . exhib?Une^ eomDanv^ ^ H?s wife and 

P J ate ^Exposition In San Francisco New York, For the past 14 years, During his career, Mills also man- GUSTAV UCHTMAN fon survfve P y ‘ ” . ° 


paper, 

A few jrears ago Gauding pre- 
sented the Allied MPTO of West- 
ern Pennsylvania with the original' 
gavel Used by ; the first exhibitor 


sides her husband, are a son, a 
daughter, two brothers and a 
sister. 


_■ , _ m | m< | _ «iu a viuaojAT <uuu imu wiv vi igium 1 ■. i ■ 

opened the Buffalo office^of Pro- gavel used by ; the first exhibitor ‘ George L. Rubens, 54, part own- 
ducers Bejeasmg Corp. In 1MU, organization in Pittsburgh. Besides er of the Royal Theatre, Philadel- 
he opened ^ the Equity Film Lx- his wife, he leaves two sons and a phla, died in that city Jan. 29. He 

nnanffA In Wacninffrnn HP AICO hP* r V • i _ e *r. /. » . 


in 1940. 

Surviving is a brother, Hugh A 


he was in charge of the Metropoli- 
tan Opera broadcasts and its inter- 


aged various theatres. 

Wife and a son, Myron, associ- 


Ancierson, a professional associate mission features. “Opera News on a ted with* Equity, survive. 

of the deceased for 33 years. the Air” and “Opera Quiz.” He 

_ — : began his radio career , in 1931 as ERNEST SCIIWAR1 

ARTHUR M. OBERFELDER producer of the “Cadillac Con- Ernest Schwartz. 70. het 


ERNEST SCHWARTZ 


was secretary of Keamco, Inc., film 

exhibiting company. His wife and 

GUSTAV UCHTMAN son survive. . 

Gustav Uchtman, 83, veteran , — 

stage carpenter and former magi- Richard A. Gourley, 48, son-in- 
ciqn, died Jan. 26 in Cincinnati, law of Jane Gibson, women’s com- 
where he was a charter member nientator at WKJF-TV in Pitts- 
of Local 5, IATSE-AFL. He en- burgh and before that with radio 


Ernest Schwartz, 70. head of the tered show business in 1898 and station KQV, died of tuberculosis 

_ X . _ _ .A - A' f _ ’ ' _ L - — A — A * « ■ . a J ■ .a ■ * _ — * * . . * . _ 


ag /vi. 7 i\ 1”"” L , 7. m i. , * Z. . *-#. »vgv ICICU I/U3UICM IU A. OvU OUU MailUll IYW V a UlCU U1 IUUCI 

Arthur M. Oberfelder, 63, Den- certs” of the hour-long General Cleveland Motion Picture Assn., did a magic act with the late Carl Jan. 27 in Ann Arbor, Mich, 
't-i impresario for the past 40 Motors broadcasts. i «u«j r>i«iuii«rwi io« w ® i « — t — vhi.j — tt»,. •_ n«.*« 


died in Cleveland Jan. 30 after a Fortune, billed as Unia & Porto, 


John Clifton Lc«* 50. founder of 


Lenoard A. Strauss, 55, whp had Station KFXM, Los Angeles, died 
been active in Indianapolis music Jan. .24 in San -Bernardino, Cah, 

' i .« .• « « .* •«# / '■ m A.'t ' m a ‘ _ i _ ’ _ • 1 1 ■_ TTf ^ - ! -» -i.' 


J® lr f» died in his New York apart- As a radio producer, Souvaine heart attack. His death came only before settling In Cincinnati as a ; Bert Moorhouse, 59. screen actor, 
30 - He had just about sponsored the broadcasting debuts a week after he had been elected stagehand and builder of magic was found dead Jan. 26 in the 

completed his bookings for the of Arturo Toscanini, Jascha Hei- for the 20th time to presidency of apparatus. garage of his Hollywood home with 

coming jear when he was stricken fetz, Yehudi Menuhin; Marian An- the exhibitors’ group. His training His wife, a son, a daughter and a bullet wound in his head, Police 

'\un a heart attack; He was plan- derson, Artur Rubinstein and oth- as an attorney was highly valued a sister survive. called it suicide. His wife survives. 

ning to return to Denver in a few rers. At the age of nine, he made in helping the organization negoti- — ^ — 

in 3s b ® there for his next offer- his professional bow as a violinist ate labor contracts, and campaign LEONARD A. STRAUSS John Clifton L««* 50. founder of 

jcg, the Agnes . De Mllle Dance with a symphony orch in San, against the local theatre admission Lenoard A. Strauss, 55, whp had Station KFXM, Los Angeles, died 

ineatre, next Sat. (6). Francisco. He later switched from tax. been active in Indianapolis music Jan. 24 in San Bernardino, Cah, 

^ graduiitlon from College, violin to piano recitals. During A graduate of Western Reserve circles and had established the after a long illness. Ills wife, son 

unerrelder became private secre- World War I, he organized a group U. law school. Schwartz became in- Indianapolis Symphony Orch in and daughter survive. 

p y to the tete William Jennings of entertainers to perform over- terested in filriis when they were. 1930 with Ferdinand Schaefer, was — — - — • 

«‘7an, then went with the Redpath seas. iri their infancy. At various times found dead in an Indianapolis ho- Dolores Diez Ruiz, 76. prominent 

i-yceum Bureau. Later he 1 was As a composer his collaborators he owned arid operated three of tel Jan. 30. A deputy coroner actress of yesteryear, died recent- 

made manager of the Denver of- included E. Y. (Yip) Harburg and Cleveland’s earliest film houses, called his death a suicide and at- ly in Madrid. Two sons, play- 

nce, which he bought out in 1913. Morrie Ryskind. With J. P. McEvoy the old Erie, Marvel arid Broad- tributed it to an overdose of sleep- Wright Jose Diez and cafe owner- 

tn tenure a s an impresario, he wrote “Comic Supplement,”, view. ing pills. Strauss left a letter in- Impresario Luis F. Diez, survive, 

vjoerf elder brought most of the which was produced by Florenz Surviving are his wife, a son and dicating that he had taken his own — — — 

f. rea is m the theatre and concert Ziegfeld. a daughter. life. Edward A. Crane, theatre man- 

vorio to Denver. . He booked Wife, a son and two sisters sui’- — — Wife, a daughter, his mother, a ager of Daytona, Florida, and 

snows throughout his area in asso- vive. ; MYER LESSER sister and two brothers survive. recently a Deputy Hotel Commis- 

ciation with Fortune Gallo. Myer Lesser, 79, prexy of the — — - . sioner of that state, died Jan. 18 

Oberfelder was the major renter ARTHUR B. DONEGAN . Blaine-Thompson ad agency, N. Y., ELIZABETH REINHARDT after a six weeks’ hospitalization. 
‘5^ municipal auditorium, where Arthur B, Donegan, 44. former died Jan. 28 in Miami Beach, Fla. Elizabeth Reinhardt, screen- , 


Wife, a son and two sisters sur- 
vive.:- ; ' 

ARTHUR B. DONEGAN 


a daughter. 

MYER LESSER 
Myer Lesser, 79, prexy of the 
Blaine-Thompson ad agency, N. Y., 


Arthur B, Donegan, 44, former died Jan. 28 in Miami Beach, Fla. 


life. Edward A. Crane, theatre man- 

Wife, a daughter, his mother, a ager of Daytona, Florida, and 
sister and two brothers survive. recently a Deputy Hotel Corhmis- 
— — - . sioner of that state, died Jan. 18 

ELIZABETH REINHARDT after a six weeks’ hospitalization. 
Elizabeth Reinhardt, screen- ■ — , 


jnost of his shows Were staged. He publicity manager of the ABC net- He joined Blaine-Thompson in writer, died Jan. 21 in Hollywood Alfred Jtpson, manager ot tne 
it? P ut on the first concert at work and most recently publicity- 1913 when the agency was located after a long illness. A member of Victory Theatre, -Oidbam. Eng.; 
me Denver outdoor Red Rocks promotion manager of WABC, its in Cincinnati. During the 1920s, i the Screen Writers Guild for 13' (Continued on page /4) 



> 


The DE CASTRO SISTERS 

with HERBIE DELL at the piano 


"DE CASTRO SISTERS BOMBSHELL THE CHEZ" - Pffitltftr (Chicago, '53) 


"De Castro Sisters as headliners 
in their Chez Paree debut Have 
climbed info the hearts of Chi- 
cago club-goers — real big 
timers/ 1 

— KUP, Chicago Sun-Timer. 

"The, De Castro. Sisters, three 
girls who look like Merman, 
sing like the Andrews Sisters 
(with a dash of Martha Raye 
and Martin & Lewis), provide 
a riotous twenty minutes/' 

-HY^pARDNER, 

N.Y. Herald Tribunt. . 


Held Over Indefinitely— FRANK SENNES' SENSATIONAL 
MOULIN ROUGE REVUE IN HOLLYWOOD 
Future Bookings: DESERT INN, LAS VEGAS -CHEZ PAREE, Chicago 




1953 DATES 


Latin Quarter, Miami 
Chase Hofei, St. Louis 
Mapes Hotel, Reno 
Latin Casino, Philadelphia 
Clover Club, Miami - 
Chez Paree, Chicago 


Desert Inn, Las Vegas 
Latin Quarter, New York 
Versailles, New York 
Town Casino, Buffalo 
Wolhurst Country Club, Denver 
Mouliif Rouge, Hollywood 


-TELEVISION APPEARANCES- 


Ed SullivOn's Toast of the Town Bob Hope's Colgate Comedy Hour 
Milton Berle Show Kate Smith Show Jackie Gleason Show 

Direction: WILLIAM MQRRIS AGENCY 


"Orchids and more, orchids . y# 
sure bet showstoppers." 

-WALTER WINCHEU. 

"The zaniest sister trio in the 
business—the De Castros— pro- 
vide the best distaff comedy 
I've ever seen." 

-LEE MORTIMER, N.Y. Mirror. 

"Biggest ovation at the Latin 
Quarter on opening night went 
to the De Castro Sisters whose 
comedy antics stopped the 
show." 

> 

-BILLBOARD. 



VOL; 193 No. iO 


Published Weekly at 154 West 48th Street, New York 38, N. Y., by Variety, Inc. Annual subscription tlO. Single copies, 25 cents. 
Entered as second class matter December 22i 1905, at the Post Office at New York. N. Y., under he act of March 3, 1879. 

COPYRIGHT, 1954, BY VARIETY. INC.. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 


NEW YORK, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 1954 


PRICE 25 CENTS 


CHI SHOW BIZ HAVING A ‘PICNIC 




J. 


By ART WOODSTONE 


Quality, not coverage, makes or 
breaks a sport. 

While the baseball magnates stir 
Uncomfortably about the inroads 
tv- has made on their sport, the 
men in and close, to the profes- 
sional National Basketball Assn. 
8re lauding video as “a key to 
prosperity.” It’s increasingly hard 
to figure . in some circles,, but the 
medium is stimulating attendance 
at the pro court frays, whether 
they be in the top or satellite 
leagues. And if all the baseballers 
say is true— and they have hard 
figures to back themselves up- 
baseball has atrophied considerably 
since the advent of tv and the 
coaxial. The same holds for box- 
ing, 

Boxing should be discounted 
however, since the International 
Boxing Club and its kinsmen pro- 
moting units took a frightened look 
at television while it was still in 
its infancy and yelled foul before 
the first blow was even thrown. 
They’ve been yelping the same way 
about AM for years. Still, some- 
where along the line, the ^ pugs’ 
braintrust deviated sufficiently to 
permit, in addition to things like 
the fight of the week (Which is 
rarely bigtime stuff), a few cham- 
pionship matches to be televised. 
What they claim they lost in gate 
Receipts was assuredly made up 
by the nut paid out by sponsors for 
video rights. Some critics and in- 
the-know writers along sports row 
insist that if the boffem-and-belt- 
ern game has fallen off in popular- 
ity, not video or any other extrane- 
ous media are to blame — boxing 
has simply degenerated over the 
years and it’s only coincidental 
that the pallor first became evi- 
dent with the birth of tv. 

Though there aren’t many pugs 

(Continued on page 48) 

Sandburg in TV Reading 
Of His Old Lincoln Ms. 

Carl Sandburg will make one of 
his rare tv appearances and do 
possibly the first tele reading of 
one of his works on. ABC-TV 
Friday (12), when he stars in a 
special Lincoln Day telecast read- 
ing a manuscript on Lincoln which 
he wrote some 30 years ago and 
recently, unearthed. He’ll devote 
the entire 9:30-10 period to the 
3,000-word manuscript, which is be- 
jng printed in newspapers all over 
the country on Friday. 

Program’s a one-shot prepped by 
the ABC-TV news and special 
events department. Web still has 
to find a show to fill the time slot 
•tor the following week, to replace 
the departed “Comeback Story,” 
Wiich had its last outing last Fri- 
da y (£>). Sealy Mattress, which 
sponsored “Comeback,” a Liou 
t-owan package, let its sponsorship 
t^pire on. the show. Web hasn’t 
{node up its mind yet on a re- 
Piocement. 


Moon Y the Limit— On TV 

It . all depends on who calls 
the tune. 

In Saturday's (6) NBC-TV 
broadcast of the classic Mozart 
opera, “Marriage of Figaro,” 
done in English, a countess 
and her maid openly discuss 
plans the lady’s husband, the 
count, has for seducing the 
maid. Lines aren’t sung, but 
spoken, and the word “seduce” 
occurs several times.- 

What’s apparently good for 
homes, via . tv, isn’t okay for 
film theatres, via “Moon Is 
Blue.” . ; 



Of ‘Immoralist’ 


Billy Rose was taking no chances 
this week on critical reception of - 
his production of “The Immoral- 
ist” which opened Monday (8) at 
the Royale Theatre. Producer 
has bought an across-the:boafd 
midnight quarter-hour on WNBT, 
N; V., and surrounded the program 
vith sundry names to boost the 
stock of the Andre Gide opus. It’s 
the third such WNBT closeup as a 
Broadway-to-tv package. The 
others were half-hours. Initial try 
at video “reviews” was by “Kis- 
met,” followed a few weeks later 
by “John Murray Anderson’s Al- 
manac.” The “Kismet” package 
was a natural in that it was pre- 
sented right after the preem dur- 
ing the newspaper strike. 

“The. Immoralist” is in its second 
“opening.” First performance was 
last Monday (1) under arrange- 
ments made by Rose whereby the 
drama critics wouldn’t attend, the 
first week being previews. (The 

(Continued on page 48) 

Under Revised Code No 
‘Notorious Hoodlum’Gets 
Biography on Film 

Unusual situation has developed 
concerning the Production Code 
and. Allied Artists' plans for sum- 
mer production of a film based on 
the Crime career of the late Waxey 
Gordon. Lindsley Parsons is to pro- 
duce the film for A A and it’s to be 
adapted from a Saturday Evening 
Post story, “I Put the Finger on 
Waxey Gordon. v 

Code, as it now stands, permits a 
film to focus on a criminal on con- 
dition that the subject character 
receives proper punishment. Thus, 
the pic on Gordon would seem to 
(Continued on page 66) 


By LES BROWN 

Chicago, Feb. 9. 

Chicago started radio soap op- 
era's, arid lost ’em to N.Y. Chicago 
originated the stagehand policy, 
and who remembers? Chicago built 
the mostest of the firstest ginger- 
bread film palaces, and is still auc- 
tioning off the lobby bricabrac. 
But if show biz languishes in the 
Windy City, and tv originations 
are so few that civic pride is em- 
barrassed, there is at least one 
form of entertainment which is 
still big here — “the club; date, ’ the 
last surviving orphaned half-broth- 
er of vaudeville. 

. What makes the club date so 
numerous and so profitable here- 
abouts are not lodge meetings and 
smokers but what may' be called 
the modern sales director’s office 
picnic — indoors in winter, often 
literally outdoors in summer. Some 
“picnics” build their own scenery, 
employ 25 stagehands and have a 
talent budget as high as $25,000. 

Showmen best qualified to judge 
estimate that Chicago club dates, 
mostly thanks tq industrial bally- 
hoo’s growth, are up 100% since 
1947. What this means locally is 
put this way by one booker, Tweet 
Hogan, “There's no other show 
business today in Chicago.” 

Chicago’s preeminence in “club 
bookings” (the term though old is 
still employed) is commonly at- 
tributed to the city’s continuing 
popularity as a convention site and 
its favorable geography in the cen- 
(Continued on page 66) [ 


A Record ?■ No Audience 

London, February 9. 

When the curtain was ready 
to go up for the first perform- 
ance recently of “Stars You 
Know,” featuring Frank Form- 
by, at the Kemble Thea- 
tre, Hereford, it was realized 
that not a single member of 
the public had turned up to 
see the show. 

It’s believed this establishes 
a new alltime low for any pro- 
duction in this country. 


Parades in Color 


Iliupflvu IVl VlV# 

Washington, Feb. 9. 

The nation’s capital will get a 
complete amusement and recrea- 
tion centre in the southwest section 
Of the city. William Zeckendorf, 
topper of Webb & Knapp, New 
York realtors, will erect a develop- 
ment which will call for a. theatre, 
music hall and convention hall as 
well as space for shops. Location 
hasn’t yet been disclosed, but com- 
plete plans will be unveiled at a 
dinner Monday (15) for several 
members of Congress. A press con- 
ference the following day will be 
held at the Lafayette Bldg, at 
which all details will be divulged. 

Zeckendorf has already acquired 
the necessary land, Which is Said 
to be located in a badly rundown 
section of Washington, yet a short 
distance from the centre of town. 
The project will be part of a plan 
to revive that section of the city. 

The construction of an entertain- 
ment centre in Washington’s south- 
west area will provide serious com- 
petition to the Auditorium owned 
by the Daughters of the American 
Revolution, now used foT many 
show biz events. 


The two \)\g Fifth Ave. (N. Y.) 
parades of the' year — Easter Sun- 
day and St Patrick’s Day— will be 
picked up in color this year by 
NBC-TV, utilizing for the first time 
the web’s remote color camera 
crews in the east. 

In fact, NBC has become so 
“parade . conscious” in terms of 
rainbow telecasting (as result of 
the successful transmission of the 
Tournament of Roses at Pasadena 
on New Year’s Day ) that it had also 
initiated plans to do a colorcast of 
the New Orleans Mardi Gras this 
year. Latter plans, however, ran 
into some telephone company 
snafus^ with result that the idea 
was abandoned— at least for ’54. 

Both the St. Patrick’s Day and 
Easter Sunday parades are now <5n 
the sponsorship block. Under the 
NBC-RCA system of compatibility, 
of course, both spectacles will be 
viewed as regular black-and-white 
attractions, with the doubling-into- 
tint as an added client bonus. 


Feud between Lee and J. J. Shu- 
bert was no minor tiff, but a bitter- 
to-the-death matter. That is re- 
vealed in the terms of the late 
theatre operator’s will, due for 
probate today (Wed.)-. 

Although the document reveals 
nothing of the actual cause of the 
quarrel, it indicates that the occa- 
sion was sometime between Jan- 
uary, 1949, and October, 1952, ap- 
parently the climax of a lifelong 
series of disagreements. Otherwise, 
the will substantiates Lee’s reputa- 
tion as- an intensely farrilly- 
conscious man who, although he 
made relatively -small bequests to 
longtime •'employees, also made 
provision for veteran subordinates 
discharged by his brother. 

Lee’s attorneys, using the con- 
ventional legal prose, wrote in the 
original will of 1949: “I make no 
provision in this will for my broth- 
er Jacob J. Shubprt, for the reason 
that he has ample means of his 
own and requires no financial as- 
sistance from me. My love and re- 
spect for him, and my utmost faith 
(Continued on page 70) 


Hardwicke Calls N.Y. Crix 
Too Rough, Kiitir? Le»it 

Pittsburgh, Feb. 9. 

The open season on legit critics 
broke out on a new front last week 
when Sir Cedric Hardwicke, who 
was in Pittsburgh for a day to 
speak at an advance gifts brunch 
of the Women’s Division of the 
United Jewish Fund, told news- 
paper interviewers that the aisle- 
sitlers were destroying the thea- 
tre. He added that theatregoers 
are inclined to let Critics influence 
them too much and insisted that a 
lot of plays would enjoy profitable 
runs if they went unreviewed. 

Audiences, Sir Cedric told the 
Pitt press, are about the seme in 
every city — orily the crit cs differ. 
And in New York particularly, he 
said', they’re much too severe. 


Roosevelt Hotel 


NEW 

Currently presents 

• • t 

The Hour of Chant* 

Atl Uirl Orchestra and Chair 

Featuring EVELYN and her Magic Violin 

under the direction of 


PHIL 


.NY 






2 MISCEIAAXY 




Wednesday^ February 10, 19^ 





By ABEL GREEN » ♦ . ♦ + ♦♦+♦♦♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ * > ♦♦♦ 


Vidpix’s Crystal Ball 
A swing of the Hollywood vidpix 
studios secs telepix producers 
grinding out celluloid by the bale, 
Hal Roach Sr., just' returned from 
the National Assn, of Radio & Tel* 
evlsion Broadcasters’ board meet- 1 
Ing in Phoenix, is pushing a film 
plan of vidpix programing that will 
“insure tv not pricing itself out 
of business.” Roach and George B 


ous to a new realty development, 
and generally active anew. 

Incidentally, Wilder, Rubicam, 
deejay Dick Gilbert (KTYL), and 
others are prominent, in a safety 
driving campaign. Arizona has the 
worst fatality record because of its 
legal 60-mlle speed on the open 
roads. Highway patrols' have taken 
to marking the scenes of fatal acciW 
• dents with wooden crosses. They 


Storcr, veteran station owner, have j seem to occur Chiefly on narrowing 
been discussing a 50-50 cd*packag- | bridges. Sometimes as many as 
ing deal, making the station, like 


the theatre exhibitor, a participant 
In the vidpix revenue, after costs. 
Hal Roach Jr. is loaded with his 
own indie packages (for Matty 
Fox’s MPTV, ’and with ABC-TV, 
among others); ditto Roland Reed 
Productions, et al.. 

Incidentally, Preston Foster is 
living in a frailer on the Roach 
lot while making the “Waterfront” 
vidpix ^series, with Lois Moran for 
Reed. 


Farrell and Boyd on TV ‘Intimacy* 

Charles Farrell, former Mayor 
of Palm Springs and major do mo 
of his Racquet Club, commutes to 
Los Angeles for his. “My Little 
Margie” radio-tv Shows. Former 
film star of “7th Heaven” (Janet 
Gaynor) is another who attests to 
the extraordinary power of the 
video medium. Never in his heyday 
did he get the attention “that the 
man-in-thc-street in L. A. gives 
you,” he observes. “There is ap- 
parently something about the in- 
timacy of anybody coming, in visu- 
alization, into, your home that cre- 
ates a . greater intimacy, to the 
degree they look upon you as one 
of the family.” 

Bill Boyd observed the same 
thing. “Not only with the kids, be- 
cause of ‘Hopalong’,” says the star, 
“but in my case I’m. known to three 
generations! some of my mid-1920s 
theatre fans are young grandpar- 
ents today.” Cowboy star, it is i 
“Mr. Cassidy. His Wife, the former 
Grace Bradley, . who acts as his 
partner and personal yep in every 
department, gets the „ “Mrs. C” , 
treatment. . j 

The Boyds hand out dollar-size j 
coins, with Hopalong’s . likeness. It ! 
costs him 1.8c. each in 100,000 lots, 
and he has distributed over 1,000, - 
000 to elate. i 


four crosses on the same spot indi- 
cate a multiple tragedy. It has 
shocked many into soberer driving, 
although these wooden reminders 
have been noted as also scaring 
some drivers as to work in reverse 
— make themselves unsure at the 
wheel, ’ 


(Cantor Just Must Rest 

Eddie Cantor must take it easy; 
knocked himself out again barn- 
storming for his WB biopic, “The 
Eddie Cantor Story,” and hence 
may not even be able to make the 
Feb. 21 date for the N. Y. Friars’ 
dinner to Georgie Jessel. Jack 
Benny will toastmaster it, and Bob 
Hope, Danny Kaye and Tony Mar- 
tin will be among other ^.Coasties 
easting for the event. 

Keefe Brasselle who catapulted 
into nitery stardom, with, a $15,000 
package deal at the Flamingo, Las 
Vegas, as the “Eddie Cantor” of 
the film version, is clicking on 
his own in cafes. The 15G is a 
special deal but Brasselle paid for 
Gene Wesson, the King Sisters & 
A 1 vino Rey, and the . rest of the 
show, 


A Break for Larry Parks 

Larry Parks (“Al Jolson’’) is 
due lor spotlighting anew — this 
time favorably again — when Co- 
lumbia reissues “The Jolson 
Story.” and later, “Jolson Sings 
Again” with widescreen, stereo- 
phonic sound.. First pic is being 
aimed to land a. Radio City Mu- 
sic Hall ..booking, in itself a de- 
( Continued on page 18) 





HORACE HEIDT 

Currently Hotel Statler, New York 
Under Personal Management 
WALTER 'PLANT 
Statler Hotel, New York City, N. Y. 






This Is Retirement? 

The concurrent residence, of Col. 
Harry C. Wilder in Scottsdale, 
near Phoenix, cued a conclave of 
the 1945 Radio Mission (to Europe) 
turning up for an annual reunion. 
A bare quorum of 8 of the 15, and 
with Col. Ed Kirby himself absent, 
were sumptiously hosted by Wild- 


Binford Cites New Orleans 
Of 60 Years Ago, States 
‘French Line’ Dance Worst 

Memphis, Feb. 9. 
Lloyd T. Binford, Memphis’ 88- 
vear-old censor leveled . off on 
“The French Line,” and told Bob 
Reagin, Memphis RKO manager, to 
hang his “linen on another line” 
by banning the 3-D musical star- 
ring Jane Russell. 

“This is a vile and filthy pic- 
ture,” Binford blasted, “it’s the 
worst I ever saw. I lived in New 


er at. his swank ranchhouse, arid at ) Orleans some .60 years ago when 
the Chichi Kiva Club atop the ; that great city was a wild town 
Westward Ho Hotel, with its com- ; and Royal Street was the rendez- 


manding sweep of the city. The 
NARTB board sessions in Phoenix 
made it feasible for Judge Justin 
Miller, Bob Swezey, Clair McCul- 
lough, John E. Fetzer, Morris S. 
Novik, Sol Taishoff and Abel Green 
to attend. It was voted that that 
“last man club” idea — with its 


Paris, Feb. 2. 

One of the two big yearly com- 
petitive film festivals, the Cannes 
fete, has been scheduled to unreel 
from March 25 to April 9. More 
than 16 countries have already 
accepted invitations, arid Rtftsia 
may participate this year. Russo 
made its last appearance in 1950. 
Budget for fest is $51,000. 

Already entered are U.S., Ger- 
many. Austria, Denmark; Spain, 
Hungary; Italy, Japan, Mexico, 
Norway, Holland, Poland, Sarret, 
Sweden, Switzerland, and Yugo- 
slavia. A record turnout is expect- 
ed this year. A CinemaScope 
screen already has been installed 
and Metro has announced that its 
first C’Scoper, “Knights of Round 
Table,” is already entered. Screen 
will be all purpose to embrace all 
the new techniques 

Stereophonic sound has been in- 
stalled at the film palace with 12 
mikes. A special editing . room is 
also being built for any cutting 
that may be rieeded. 


cous for gamblers, robbers and 
filth. ’French Line’ and Miss Rus- 
sell's dance scene was worse than 
thaLi’ 

Three women members of the i carnival. 
Memphis Boiard of Censor along 
with Binford screened the pic at 
the downtown Malco Theatre. 


Corkery to ‘Chaperon’ 
Pixites at Brazil Fete 

Robert L. Corkery, Motion Pic- 
ture Export Assn, assistant v.p., 
left N.Y. last week (6) for the 
Coast to arrange filial details for 
the American participation in the 
Sao Paulo,; Brazil, film fete. 

. Corkery tyill chaperon the Holly- 
wood contingent to the affair, leav- 
ing the .Coast for Brazil Feb. 18. 
The Sao Paulo fete actually starts 
Feb. 12. However, the Americans, 
headed by MPEA prexy Eric John- 
stori, aren’t due there until the 
19th and will remain until the 
26th. They are then due to go to 
Rio de Janeiro to participate in the 


commemorative bottle of cham- i Avery Blakeney, the fifth member 
pagne from the Rheims caves of j who has been at “odds” with cen- 
Pommery-Grerio— be scrapped as a ! sor boss Binford did not attend, 
needlessly macabre footnote to the : Binford informed Variety that the 
1945 junket. The grape will be bro- three women voted against the pic 
ken in terrestial conviviality in- and Ihs vote wasn’t necessary be- 
stead. i cause of the majority. 

• Wilder, like Raymond Rubicam j “However, I certainly would vote 
(Young ■&), who also “retired,” is j against the picture,” he empha- 
iri Arizona realty, the president of I sized,” and I want to go on record 
a new golf club which is contigu- j in banning this, dirty picture;” 


2/ 10 


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Russians In Buenos Aires 
Washington, Feb. 9. 

Word from Buenos Aires is that 
the Russians plan to enter %’ieir 
best features and shorts in the 
Argentine Film Festival. 

This follows the Brazilian Film 
Festival. 


Ziffren’s New Job 

Santiago, Feb. 9. 

Lester Ziffren, First Secretary of 
the American Embassy and Pub- 
lic Affairs Officer, has resigned to 
accept an executive spot with the 
Braden Copper Co., Chilean sub- 
sidiary of Kennecott Copper. Zif- 
fren, a former Hollywood writer 
and UP foreign correspondent, was 
formerly stationed in Bogota, Co- 
lumbia. He will assume his new 
duties with Braden in March. 

Mrs. Ziffren is the former 
Ed j the Wurtzel, daughter of film 
producer Sol Wurtzel. 


LILIAN ROTH'S BIOPIC? 

FiUity are in the works fc 
the forthcoming Lillian Roth aut< 
biography, -*111 Cry Tomorrow,” t 
be publisher in. May by Frederic 
Fell. Sipger, nqUr on a comebac 
trail, has been 're-signed to Moni 
Proser’s La Vie .en Rose, N. Y., fc 
some timje in April, She playe 
that spot last December. 

. Miss Roth had been in obscurit 
for several years and started sin^ 
irig following AA rehabilitation. 


By J. S. SEIDMAN, C.P.A.' 

Show people are entitled to many income tax deductions. The 
following is a list of some of the items.. However, it’s orie thine 
to ciaim the deductions, and another to 'get them allowed. The 
government wants proof of two things— (1) the amounts spent • 
(2) that the items are professional expenses and not personal living 
costs. Mere say-so or “guesstimate” is npt enough. * 

Preparation expenses— research , cost of material, dialog, gags 
^music; special coaching lessons; theatre tickets; costumes, wigs’ 
shoes, inake-up; repair, pressing; cleaning, dyeing, and rental of 
professional wardrobe; wardrobe valet; beautifying, physical cul- 
ture; studio rentals, tips tb studio Employees; recording of voice 
or program; screen tests, auditions. 

Booking expenses— scouting for engagements, -agent and per- 
sonal management commissions, legal expenses on contracts. 

Traveling jexpenses — transportation, board and. lodging away 
from home; automobile upkeep and depreciation; cabs from one 
engagement to another; expenses on trips taken to get material, 
'background, or ideas for professional work. 

Public relations expenses— development of public following; 
handling of fan iriail; photographs; complimentary tickets; enter- 
taining press, playwrights, critics, backers, agents, directors, etc.; 
‘ dub membership dues; advertising and publicity; press agent's 
■ fees.' ' • , '•> 

Miscellaneous expenses— Variety and other trade papers; Equity 
and other union dues; telephone exchange; accompanist, account- 
’ ants* fees; bodyguard; rent, secretary, and office expense; house- 
hold expenses, like rent, maid service, utilities, telephone, insur- 
ance, etc., to the extent household is used actively for conferences 
with authors, writers, agents, or other professional matters; income 
taxes paid, abroad on foreign bookings. > 




By SYD SILVERMAN 


Herb Shriner’s International Mo- 
tor Sports Show opened in New 
York Friday (5) exhibiting some 
of the best of the foreign car 
manufacturers. Show is presented 
in the 7th Regiment Armory amidst 
a tasteful decor and to the strains 
of music. Novel feature is a com- 
bination fashion sJiow and auto 
spotlighting; 'models are posed in 
cars in latest fashions, cortimenta- 
tor then explains the dress and 
the car to the public. Preem of 
the show; was covered by DuMont 
and featured Herb Shriner 1 greet- 
ing the guests as they arrived at 
the Park Ave. entrance to the Ar- 
mory. CBS-TV had the show for a 
half hour Sunday (7), 3 p.m. 

This is* the third major auto 
show for Ne\V York this season. 
The World Motor Sports Show and 
the General Motors Show both 
pjayed to Gotham crowds, touted 
their wares well and did good b.o. 
Shriner’s exhibition is the best of 
the foreign stuff and offered the 
most interesting machinery. 

Probably the most interesting 
cars on the floor were the Mer- 
cedes-Benz 30QSL (super light) and 
the new Triumph T.R. 2. The 
Mercedes is the latest effort of 
the Stuttgart firm for dominance 
in the competition field. The car 
has a three Litre motor mounted 
at a 45-degree angle to keep the 
hood line low, fuel injection arid 
240 H.P. The factory claims i5- 
170 m.p.h. in top gear for this 
'auto which should . make it one 
of the most potent sport cars in 
the world. Price for this bomb is 
$6,820 in New^ York, very reason- 
able for a car in the Ferrari class. 
The new Triumph is the latest 
English product in the low priced 
sports field. This car looks not 
unlike the Jaguar XK-120 although 
considerably smaller. Car features 

Helen Hayes Lone Femme 
On Friars’ Jessel Dais 

Helen Hayes will be the only 
femme on the dais of the Friars 
Club dinner to George Jessel in 
New York on Feb. 21 at the 
Waldorf-Astoria. Because of the 
Jackson Day dinner, there is a 
likelihood former President Har- 
ry ,S. Truman bay not be present, 
but it's very likely ex-Veep Alben 
W. Barkley will attend. Sens. War- 
ren G. Magnuson and Stuart Sym- 
ington will be.. on the dais along 
with New York’s Mayor Robert F. 
Wagner Jr., Fred Allen, Bob Hope, 
Jack Benny, Tony Martin, Danny 
Kaye, Spyros Skouras, David Sar- 
noff, Frank M. Folsom, William S. 
Pa, ley, Eric Johnston, Leonard H. 
Goldenson, Oscar Hammerstein 2d 
Ezio Pinza, Robert E. Kintner, Ted 
Lewis, Jesse Block, Harry Delf and 
Milton Berle, dean emeritus of the 
Friars. Abbott Joe E. Lewis will 
have opened the same night at the 
Latin Quarter, Miami Beach, hence 
unable to attend. 

„ Benny will be toastmaster. Eddie 
| Cantor’s trip east is problematical, 
comedian having been told by his 
doctor to take it easy following his 
recently intensive radio-tv barn- 
storming pitc for “The Eddie Can- 
tor Story,” LB biopic. 


the two Litro Standard Vanguard 
engine boosted Xo 90 H P. and 
top speed of 108'm.p.h. in touring 
trim. At $2,448 this car will un- 
doubtedly cut into the MG market 
which has so far been relatively 
safe. 

The Ferrari booth displayed one 
of the new Grand Prix cars with 
the fuel tanks mounted amidships. 
It is said that this characteristic . 
has . made these' monsters very 
tricky to handle as the weight bal- 
ance keeps ^shifting as the car uses 
up the ■ fuel. The new Maserati 
sport model looked very fast but is 
overpriced ($9,000) and should not 
be as popular as some of the other 
foreign makes. 

Jaguar continued to use the best 
showmanship of the export manu- 
facturers, displaying an XK-120 

• with goldplated trim against a dead 
white paint job. Models have not 
changed for this breed and con- 
tinue to be the Convertible, Super 
Sports, Coupe, arid Mark VII Se- 
dan. Biggest news from Coventry 
was the price cut last fall, drop- 

* ping some models almost $800, The 
modified roadster now goes for less 
than $4,000 in New York, which 
makes it one of the best buys in 
the market. 

Probably the most overlooked 
booth in the show was the Porsche. 
The public evidently has riot come 
to accept the different styling and 
rear engine of this little car; loo 

(Continued on page 66) 


Home-Theme Tmmoralist’ 
‘Embarrasses’ Chapman; 
Jinx’s ‘Slay Away’ Pilch 

Despite Freud being a household 
word and two “Kinsey Reports’’ 
bestseller publications, plays deal- 
ing with homosexuality are still 
drawing a blush from some critics 
and commentators. Opening of 
Billy Rose’s “Iiriinoralist” Monday 
(8) resulted in a brief notice from 
N.Y. Daily News drama critic John 
Chapriian, in which he noted play’s 
content “embarrassed” him. “Im- 
moralist” deals with a married 
homosexual. 

Also siding with Chapman was 
Jinx (Tex &) Falkenburg, who ad- 
vised her WNBC, N.Y., morning 
listening audience to stay a\vay 
from the production because of its 
subject matter; In contrast, how- 
ever, four of the daily iegit crix 
made special note of the tastelul 
treatirient given play’s theme. They 
were Brobks Atkinson (Times!, 
Walter Ken*. (Herald Tribune), 
Robert Coleman (Mirror) and Rich- 
ard Watts Jr. (Post). Of the remain- 
ing two daily reviewers, William 
Hawkins (World-Telegram) cited 
work as being “ . . . a delicate, 
tender tragedy ...” and John Mc- 
Clain opined that “ ... . the de- 
ments of good drama are there; 
the quality of Andre Gide’s novel 
appears to have been faithfully, 
translated to the stage - . . ” 

Incidentally, one of Broadway s 

biggest hits, “Tea and Sympathy. 

also deals with the homosexual 
probierii, although not as intently 
as does Rose’s production. 



tTi»dn<*<Uy» February 10, 1954 


PfiRlETr 


PICTURES ■ 8 





Auxiliary Bishop Joseph F. Plannelly, administrator of St, 
Patrick’s Cathedral, in a letter to parishioners made public this 
week in The Cathedral Bulletin, questions whether the recent 
u s Supreme Court decision on motion picture censorship cases 
had not “exploded a moral atomic bomb.” The Roman Catholic 
prelate fears it may wreck the moral standards of the country. 

Such fears ought to have been automatically put to rest within 
recent weeks, despite the “M” and “La Eonde” test cases, by re- 
peated public rededication to the “Breen office” on the part of 
practically all the major figures of the industry. 

Desire of producers .to hold the mirror up to life with some 
greater degree of realism than heretofore implies no breakdown. 
Vast majority of responsible film production executives think 
that this stilt can be done, without offense, as it. has been 
achieved even with such virile subjects as “From Here To Eter- 
nity.” The intent is to keep the code, give or take some minor 
compromises of detail as to the original “Hays office” code. To- 
day some of the 19jJ5 taboos are ridiculous. For example, scenes 
of drinking, where such scenes are part of the cinematurgy, 
hence necessary. Or consider the once-tabOo subject of segrega- 
tion. In recent years, American citizens, of all races, colors and 
creeds fought side by side, hence it becomes obviously antiquated 
when barracks or kindred scenes between Negro and Caucasian 
GIs are not picturized. 

Bishop' Flannelly should have no concern about any “filthy 
avalanche” of celluloid being loosed on the U.S. public because 
of curbed censorship. Ivory’s classic 99 4/100% purity will not be 
far off in relation to good taste and moral standards. The. Legion 
of Decency’s own data in this issue makes the point very neatly. 

Abel. 




Industry Feeds on Innovation But Currently 
Selection Is Very Repetitive 


Flood of forthcoming costumers 
has some .observers in the biz Wor- 
rying whether the technical inno- 
vations coupled with the cut in 
production have doused the “ex- 
perimental” spirit on the major 
lots. 

A number of exhibs, and partic- 
ularly the artie coterie, are scan- 
ning release skeds with concern. 
They profess to see a tendency on 
the part of the majors to toe the 
. “tried and true” line and to stick 
without variation to a success 
formula which on occasion tends 
to forego quality for bigness. 

There's no Unanimity on the 
subject, of course, but those who 
are. concerned over the current 
( trend point to the new releases 
and planned projects to support 
their argument that Hollywood 
can’t afford to become the. servant 
of the wideangle lens rather than 
its master. „ 

Goodly majority of new films 
rated in the top category have 
Biblical backgrounds or else are 
laid against the pageantry back- 
ground of the middle ages. 20th- 
Fox started it off with “The Robe” 
and then Metro nailed down the 
trend with “Knights of the Round 
Table.” 

Among the 20th pix coming 
along will be such spectacles as 
‘‘The Egyptian,” “Prince Valiant,” 
‘Demetrius and the Gladiators,” 
. Desiree,” “Broken Lance,” and 
(Continued on page i 5) 



Boston, Feb. 9. 

Extensive contributions to hu- 
manitarian causes by motion pic- 
tures, radio, tv and the press were 
cited by Leonard Goldenson, 
American Broadcasting-Paramount 
•theatres president, in Brookline, 
Mass, today (Tues.). In a ceremony 
attended by close to 1,000 persons, 
the exec was presented with the 
*Jst Annual Goodwill Citation of 
Went from the Brotherhood 
tenipie Ohabel Shalom for his ef- 
10 c. s * n behalf of brotherhood. 

„ n As one Who has worked practl- 
^liy all his adult life in the field 
mass communications and en- 
tertainments,” stated Goldenson, 
Fmmproud that these fields have 
contributed so much to so many 
humanitarian causes. It has been 
n ever heartwarming experience 
(Continued on page 75) 


Romance and Rabbits 

Public likely will do a 
double-take when the title for 
an upcoming Metro film 
flashes on theatre marquees. 

Feature is being called 
“Moonlight and Carrots.” This, 
presumably, . would appeal to 
both romance addicts and 
vegetarians (or rabbits). 






By ABEL GREEN 

Hollywood, Feb. 9, 
Hollywood, Beverly Hills; Las 
Vegas, Palm Springs and way sta- 
tions are populated this winter by 
millionaires anxious to make good 
in the uncertain future of show 
business. In this era of widescreens, 
closed-circuits, taperecordings, col- 
or video and electronic wonders to 
come , there are more questing and 
questioning big shots than at any 
time to which the memory of 
trade observers runneth back. 
Never before have so many ty- 
coons contemplated their own 
navels in between soliciting all and 
sundry, “and what do you think?” 

A nr\ob of Paramount Pictures 
execs came to Palm Springs to 
study Telemeter, a new method 
and a new threat. William S. Paley 
of CBS arrived in Hollywood to 
hold the line and get a line. 
Spokesmen were around for 
Cinemascope, Polaroid spectacles, 
a stricter production code, an 
easier production code, live tv or- 
iginations, tv on film, fewer but 
better quality features and the op- 
posite philosophy. In all sorts of 
ways among all sorts of people this 
has been the winter of the rewrite 
on Kipling^-the twain of east and 
West were definitely meeting, mind 
to mind, worry to worry. 

Realistically, the drawing to- 
gether of the Hollywood film do- 
main and the east’s stage-tv-radio 
influences are more and more ap- 
parent. Television and the ramifi- 
cations of electronic variations of 
the celluloid theme are the com- 
mon denominator. 

Not that pix is giving in to 
video. Not by a long shot. . Holly- 
wood is bouncing ’more than has 
been the case in the past two or 
three years. Cinemascope is part- 
answer. Also, there is the evi- 
dence that third-dimension is not 
dead; if the film is good, the al- 
leged nuisance with the polaroids 
is more than offset by. the recent 
strong grosses. And yet good prod- 
uct in conventional 2-t) snares biz, 
vide, “Here to Eternity.” 

But therdfcis no gainsaying the 
weather-eye to the future, which 
has to do ( 1 ) with closed-circuit, 
(Continued on page 18). 



Uncut Coffee 

Chicago, Feb, 9. 

Latest nationwide uproar 
against coffee prices hasn’t di- 
luted the free jaya dispensed 
at the Surf Theatre here. It’s 
still served to patrons . in the 
foyer, with an attractive 
femme doing the honors from 
a silver urn, has for years 
been a part of the class appeal 
of the small Gold Coast de- 
luxer. 

“Cut our coffee?” says the 
house. “We’d sooner cut our 
prices: Puieeze!” 






Motion Picture Assn, of America 
must act pronto anent the Pro- 
duction Code situation with How- 
ard Hughes and “French Line” or 
will find itself losing stature in the 
eyes of both the public and the 

industry. This is the opinion of 
trade execs, including i. couple 
close to the Code operation. 

MPAA has yet to press the issue, 
preferring, instead, to await 
Hughes’ next move. However, 
Hughes hasn’t taken any action at 
all and there’s no indication of his 
plans. It’s felt that the longer 
MPAA permits this “up in the air” 
nature of things to continue, the 
weaker its position will be. The 
Code can remain effective only as 
long as it is properly enforced 
and/or non-conformists, are penal- 
ized, it’s pointed out. 

RKO, headed by Hughes, has yet 
to pay the $25,000 fine imposed by 
MPAA because “Line” was re- 
leased in defiance of the Code. And 
MPAA hasn't made any effort to 
collect. 

Further, an MPAA board meet- 
ing has yet to be called to take 
up the matter, although such a 
board session had been anticipated 
last month. 


Stanley Warner Corp., holder of 
the exhibition and production 
rights to Cinerama, has temporar- 
ily abandoned plans for embarking 
on an extensive film-making pro- 
gram. With Louis de Rochemont 
currently filming “The Thrill of 
Your Life,” set for release in May, 
company tappers reportedly feel 
that the new entry will be able to. 
run in Cinerama-equipped theatres 
for at least a year. Immediate need, 
therefore,, of hefty coin expen- 
ditures for additional product is 
deemed unnecessary. 

Change in SW’s thinking, it’s 
believed, was brought about by ob- 
servations of the TOdd-AO process 
which reportedly impressed SW 
topper S. H. (Si) Fabian. How- 
ever, it was noted, that Cinerama 
still maintained its superiority in 
overall effect. 

Another reason for the produc- 
tion delay is that the current pic- 
ture, “This Is Cinerama,” initial 

(Continued on page 20) 





Trade Generally Offish; ‘Knight*’ Again Tops Field, 
‘Cinerama’ 2d, ‘Rifles’ 3d, ‘Command’ 4th 


Hyman, Levy Head West 

Edward L. Hyman, United Para- 
mount Theatres v.p.* left for the 
Coast Sunday (7), accompanied by 
Bernard Levy. 

Hyman, who headed first . for 
San Francisco, will inspect theatres 
there as well as in Los Angeles, 
Phoenix and Tucson. He expects to 
return to his N.Y. headquarters 
within about three weekSi 


First-run business is generally 
o'ffish this session as numerous the- 
atres mark time awaiting the ar- 
rival oft Lincoln’s Birthday (12). 
Many already have launched new 
fare or will bring in fresh, stronger 
product to take advantage of this 
holiday and Washington’s Birth- 
day (22). Most key cities covered 
1 by Variety currently were helped 
by favorable weather. 

For the fifth -week in succession, 
“Knights of Round Table” (M-G) 
is easily holding onto first place 
although pressed for top honors 
by “Cinerama” (Indie). Former, 
first M-G Cinemascope pic, is play- 
ing in some 14 keys and stout to 
great in most of them. “Cinerama” 
amazingly is pushing ahead of a 
week ago in many locations. It is 
easy second-place winner. 

Third money goes to “Khyber 
Rifles”. (20th), another . C’Scoper, 
as a result of additional playd.ates, 
majority Of them big to robust. 
“The Command,” first C’Scope film 
from WB, is capturing fourth posi- 
tion although out on release for 
first time to any extent. 

“Majesty O’Keefe,” also from 
Warners, is a close fifth by dint of 
■some more extra strong playdates. 
“Sadie Thompson” (Col) is finish- 
ing Sixth as compared with fifth a 
week ago. “Eddie Cantor Story” 
iWB) is winding up seventh, 
“Julius Caesar” (M-G) is landing 
eighth position. 

“Forever Female” (Par) is 
climbing to ninth spot, with “Liv- 
ing Desert” (Disney) in 10th. “Ft 
Bravo” (M-G) and “12-Mile Reef” 


(20th) round out the top 12 in that 
order. “Taza, Son of Cochise” 
(U), “Walking Baby Home” (U) and 
“Paratrooper” (Col) are the runner- 
up films. 

“Mpney From Home” (Par), latest 
Martin-Lewis comedy, shapes as 
standout newcomer.. It is great in 
Chi (top new pic)/stout in India- 
napolis, good in Seattle, big in Buf- 
falo and socko in Denver. “Hell 
and High Water” (20th) new 
C Scoper, shapes nice in N. Y. and 
great in Philly. “Wicked Woman” 
(UA) big in Detroit and Cleveland, 
is mild in Boston and Seattle. 

"Should Happen to You” (Col), 
also new, is repeating current 
N. Y. sock at Loew’s State, with 
big session in Philly. “Best Years 
of Lives” (RKO), out on reissue, 
shapes nifty in Boston, smash in 
Washington and good in Denver. 
“Man in Attic” (20th), okay in 
N. Y.„ is solid in Detroit. “Rob 
Roy” (RKO) looms nice on preem 
date in N. Y. , 

“Cease Fire” (Par) augurs robust 
in Minneapolis, fair in Balto and 
sharp in Detroit. “Little Fugitive” 
(Burstyn) is continuing brisk in 
some five' keys currently. 

, “Bigamist” (FR) looks nice in 
Washington and Philly. “Man Be- 
tween” (UA) is big in Toronto, 
j “Hell’s Half-Acre” (Rep) looms 
neat in Buffalo, 

“War Arrow” (UH not so big in 
Omaha, is fine in Denver. “Cap- 
tain’s Paradise^ (UA), big in St. 
Louis and Philly, is nice in K.C. 

( Complete Boxoffice Reports on 
Pages 8-9) 


, Nobody will talk openly, but In- 
ternational Alliance of Theatrical 
and Stage Employees appears to 
be moving to block exhibition of 
the film “Salt of the Earth,” pro- 
duced by the International Union 
of Mine, Mill and Smelter Work- 
ers. Pic is alleged to be full of 
Communist propaganda and has 
worried both the I A and the State 
Dept, ever since it was lensed on 
location in Silver City, N.M. > 

IA has notified all unions and 
projectionist unions to contact I A. 
headquarters in N, Y. before han- 
dling or projecting the film. IA 
spokesman in N.Y. last week 
wouldn’t confirm or deny that the 
alert meant IA members would re- 
fuse to have anything to do with 
the production. 

I A prexy Richard F. Walsh has 
denied a report the I A was ready 
to take similar action on pix lensed 
abroad by Hollywoodites who were 
either members of the Unfriendly 
Ten or who had refused to testify 
before Congressional investigating 
committees. Story was that the IA 
had its eye on two United Artists 
releases — “Luxury Girls” and 

v (Continued on page 75) 



Cincinnati, Feb, 9. 

Ben D. Marcus, head of. Marcus 
Theatres Management Co., Wiscon- 
sin chain with headquarters in 
Milwaukee, has been named, the 
new prexy of Allied States Assn. 
Marcus . was selected for the post 
over the weekend at Allied’)* mid- 
winter hoard meeting here. He 
succeeds Wiibur Snaper who steps 
down after a two-year term. 

Rube Shor, the C.incy exhib who 
(Continued on page 23) 



Trade Mark Registered 
FOUNDED BY SIME SILVERMAN 
Published Weekly by VARIETY, INC 
Harold Erichs, President 
154 West 40th St. New York 30. N.Y 

Hollywood 21 
6311 Yucca . Street 
Washington 4 

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London WC2. 

8 St. Martin's Pl.| Trafalgar Sq. 
SUBSCRIPTION 

Annua) $10 Foreign $11 

Single Copies 25 Cents 

ABEL C.REEN. Editor 


Vol. 193 


uo 


No. 10 


INDEX 


i • » « 


Bills 

Chatter 

Film Reviews 
House Reviews 
Inside Legit .. 
Inside Music 
Inside Pictures 

Inside Radio-TV 
International ...... 

Legitimate ........ 

Literati ...... 

Music . . 

New. Acts . . 

Night Club Reviews 

Obituaries 

Pictures 

Radio-Television . . 
Radio Reviews 
Record Reviews . . . 
Frank Scully 
Television Reviews 
TV-Films ......... 

Vaudeville 






66 

74 

6 

67 

68 
54 
22 

44 

12 

68 

73 

49 
65 
64 
75. 

3 

28 

40 

50 
73 
37 
26 
60 


DAILY VARIETY 

(Published in Hollywood b> 
Dally Variety, Ltd.) 

$15 a Year. $20 Foreign 


i 






4 


PICTUHES 


■ W^nwJayj February IQ, 19-^ 


v- 





9 


Group which acquired the Amer- 
ican rights to the German UFA 
pic, “Baron Muenchhausen,” from 
the Office of Alien Property in 
Washington is headed for the 
Coast for huddles with Harry Pop- 
kin who has a dubbed version of 
the film. 

Popkin, yi'ho maintains that he 
has invested $75,000 in preparing 
the Agfa color production for re- 
lease, and who in the past has 
elated that lie controls all distri- 
bution rights, said last Week that 
“we may be able to work put a 
deal without litigation.'' 

Rights to the**' film, which Hitler 
visualized as the epic to end all 
epics and which tells of, a fantas- 
tic journey to the ihooh, Were Jit, 
censed by thp Alien Property Of- 
fice to Skelus, Inc. in which Sid- 
ney Kaufman, Moritz Hamburger 
and Emil Lustig are partnered. 
Outfit got the rights, for $17,500 
which, according to Dallas S. 
Townsend, assistant attorney gen-, 
era! and director of the Office of. 
Alien Property, “was the highest 
bid received Which was satisfactory, 
in all respects." 

The licensing of Skelus created 
unhappiness Among other parties 
who had bids ; in for the picture, 
They’re now wondering what 
would happen if the Congress au- 
thorizes the return, pf confiscated 
alien property to the original own- 
ers. 

Prodded by Sen. Everett Dirk- 
gen iR., 111.), the Senate Judiciary 
subcommittee r ec e nt 1 y recom- 
mended the return of $200,000,- 
000 worth of confiscated alien 
property to owners who were not 
convicted of any war crimes. The 
government contracts for pix con- 
tain cancellation clauses. 

However, it’s understood that, 
should the U. S. return German 
piix to their owners, they'd still be 
subject to the leases . and terms 
(Continued on page 18) 


Hollywood, Feb, 9. 

. Personnel in departments not 
directly concerned with prepping 
production slated to stalrt in April 
have been asked by Metro to take 
two weeks off without pay in addi- 
tion to their annual 1954 paid va- 
cation. Several hundred of the 
studio’s present employment ros- 
ter of 1,400 persons, notably in 
publicity, . production, c a s t i n g, 
makeup, hairdressing, set decora- 
tion departments, would come un- 
der the temporary layoff. Studio 
last fall similarly laid off person- 
nel due to production slowdown 
but a much greater number of em- 
ployees are affected this time. 

Studio's only production activity 
at this time is on “Brigadoon,’' 
book of which was wound up Mon- 
day 18) with director Vincent Min- 
nelli -now spending two weeks re- 
hearsing the final dance number. 
Three pix are slated to start in 
April, five others to start rehears- 
ing then for later start. 


4 


Cheep Stuff 

Hollywood, Feb. 9. 

After 15 years as a Holly- 
wood talent agent, Ed Lynn 
has retired from showbiz and 
opened a shop called Parakeet 
Haven, 

Although he is selling birds 
Instead of thesps, he says he is 
still getting back-talk. 


Small Burgs’ Future Sans 
Theatres, Knowing Films 


n__l~ UL TIT* 


Minneapolis, Feb. 9. 

Bennie Berger, North Central 
Allied president, latest comment: 
“Film companies are making the 
biggest money in their* history 
while destroying small-town ex- 
hibitors on a wholesale scale.’’. He 
declares hundreds of houses “still 
trying to navigate," are “on the 
ragged edge" and are “on the verge 
of tossing in the sponge." 

It’s all because of current devel- 
opments within and without the 
industry and it’ll leave hundreds', 
if not thousands, of small towns 
without .any theatres and depend- 
ent entirely on tv for their future 
acquaintance with films, he points 
out. 

The only theatres in Winthrop, 
Halstead and Kenyon, Minn., have 
just closed permanently and nu- 
iqerous houses in many other 
towns are in serious trouble, ac- 
cording to - advices reaching North 
Central Allied. 


Republic Sues DuMont 

Infringement action involving 
six pix on tv was filed in N. Y. 
Federal Court last week by Repub- 
lic against DuMont and Sutton Tel- 
evision. The company also sued 
Ideal Television Co. in connection 
with 12 films. Republic asked an 
injunction to keep DuMont from 
infringing on its rights to the films, 
as well as for damages, an account-, 
ing and return of the negatives. 

The pix; according to Republic, 
were made by Liberty Films in 
1933. In 1939 they became the 
property of Consolidated Film In- 
dustries and in 1945; with the mer- 
ger of Consolidated and Republic, 
they became the latter’s property. 
Company claims the defendants 
were notified of the Republic claim 
but the showing of the pictures 
continued/ 

Among the titles involved are 
“Once Every Bachelor,’’ “Sweep- 
stake Annie," “Dizzy Dames" and 
“Born to Gamble." I 


General skepticism greeted the 
suggestion of Allied States Assn, 
board chairman Abram F. Myers 
that the industry embark on a gi-. 


Jane Russell Into ‘Dolls’; 
Clark Gable Deal Pends 

Hollywood, Feb. 9. 

Under an involved deal with the 
star's Russfield Corp., Jane. Russell 
goes into “Guys and Dolls" as 
femme star with indications that 
■Clark Gable will be , confirmed 
this week as male lead. Russfield 
along with William Goetz Produc- 
tions owns small piece of film 
rights to “Doll"- and will coproduce 
film version with Goetz for Co- 
lombia release. 

Ownership deal includes provi- 
sion that Russfield will supply 
services of a fortune stair which 
inevitable: will be Miss Russell. 

Russfield, in which Miss Russell 
Is partnered with husband Boh 
Waterfield. will make other pix this 
year, some alone, and some as co- 
producer, as in case of “Dolls’’ but 
not necessarily ill with her in- 
volved in cast. 


gantic institutional campaign 'to 
win the so-called lost audience 
back to the theatre.” Myers' pitch, 
contained in a 28-page annual re- 
port covering the activities of Al- 
lied during 1953, found film com- 
pany pub-ad toppers this week in 
a completely unreceptive mood, the 
consensus being that it has been 
tried before. 

Although all the publicity and • 
advertising chiefs ^queried were 
willing to comment On Myers’ idea, 
only Si Seadler, Metro advertising 
manager, would permit the use of 
his name. Said Seadler: “Previous 
industry hypo campaigns of the 
‘Pictures Are Your Best . Friend’ 
type didn't prove themselves Suf- 
ficiently potent to warrant the ex- 
penditure of time, effort and money 
now. There is. a big motor , show 
currently running in New York. 
They ■ arc not ballyhoo ing the gen- 
eral idea of automobiles but are 
showing specific models. In my j 


Owen Crump s Turkish Pic 

•' . Hollywdfa, Feb. 9. 

Owen Crump, who wrote end di- 
rected "Cease Fire” for Hal-WalUs, 
has been inked to- longterm pro-* 
ducer-director-writer pact by Wal- 
lis. . - ... • ■ 'v. 

He will continue to turn out same 
type of films as “Fire," initialler 
being a film with' Turkish back- 
ground with both Turkish and 
United; States governments coop- 
erating. , ' • 



Promoters of closed-circuit the- 
atre television were heartened last 
week when five circuits purchased 
additional closed-circuit equipment 
from RCA. Units cost between 
$10,000 and $12,000 per. 

Chains making 'the buys were 
Walter Reade Theatre, Century, 
Fabian, Stanley Warner and 
Wometeo. Nine out of 17 available 
units were bought, with commit- 
ments made for the rest. RCA, 
which needed the space, dropped 
its price to Tockbottom. Sets 
formerly sold for $15,800. 

Buys mark an end to a long lull 
in activity relating to theatre tv 
equipment. Heretofore there have 
been about 100 theatres, with 
closed-circuit installations. The in- 
crease in this number was delayed 
when exhibs earmarked coin for 
the purchase of equipment for 
showing of films in the pew pro- 
jection techniques. It’s apparent, 
that many of the big. chains have 
completed, their “new era" instal- 
lations and are now moving toward 
having their houses ready for ev- 
ery possible boxoffice use. 

Both SW and Century, it’s un- 
derstood, are not immediately plac- 
ing their new closed-circuit units 
in theatres but are putting them in 
storage pending developments in 
the use of the medium. Outfits act- 
ed following renewed activity in 
theatre tv which saw three closed- 
circuit commercial meetings— Seal- 
test, Dodge and Ford— staged with- 
in a period of a week. 

Althpugh there is no immediate 
event set for theatres, Box Office 
Television, Inc., which presented 
the Ford show; will produce, direct 
and transmit a closed-circuit con- 
ference for the American Manage- 
ment Assn, at the Hotel Astor 
(N.Y.) On Feb. 26. Telecast will 
be beamed via specially-designed, 
p.rtable projection equipment to 
two theatre ; size screens from an 
upper , floor of the Astor to the 
convened AMA registrants in the 
grand ballroom. 



Paramount board yesterday 
(Tues.) declared a regular quarter- 
ly dividend of 50c per share on 
the Par common stock, thus con- 
tinuing the. $2 annual rate. 

New divvy is payable March 29 
to stockholders of record on 
March 15. 



I 


Mushrooming, featherbedding and padding practices by theiaw 
unions, officially and on the q.t„ which have spiraled cost fieu^. 
ip all phases of show business sky-high, came in* for Pace fin 
attention, from the N.Y. Times Monday (8) in the Unit of a two-naiJ 
series on the situation by staffer Murray Schumach; p 1 

With the stagehand situation in legit and tv, and the “gratuilv” 
practice in the, latter end its sister radio medium reachine nm* 
-highs, Times story turned the searchlight on Whf»t it described a. 
“featherbedding,” “padding^ and “shmearing.*” It took stage union! 
to task, particularly Local 1 of the Theatrical Protective Union 
for what it termed "millions of dollars” drained off annually from 
the city’s entertainment industry.- Schumach pointed up feather 
bedding via the example of requirement of four- stagehands for a 
one-man show in legit, and the “shmear" payment of as much at 
$150 per performance of a tv show to stagehands, cameramen and 
other technicians. 

In the field of radio and tv, incidentally, the situation his 
worsened at an accelerated pace. The technical aspects of the 
electronic show biz have reached the point where even a radio 
disk jockey has to shell out for fear a twist of the knob will foul 
his broadcast up. In tv, it’s much Worse, with as much as $100 000 
of a sponsor’s coin riding on each show— a fluke could put that 
coin down the drain. And so the byword of the technicians this 
past Christmas Was “send cash.” 



Uncut ‘Line* 

Hollywood, Feb. 9. 

Second playdate for RKO’s 
controversial .film, “The 
French Line," will be Feb. 17 
at the Broadway theatre, 
Denver. 

Picture will be shown as is — 
without a single cut. 



As Rating ’Benefits’ In 
Howard Hughes’ Offer 

Assuming: that minority stock- 
holder spits against RKO manage- 
ment are dismissed, in view of the 
Howard Hughes offer of $6 per 
share to all investors in the cor- 
poration, Hughes might still be 
left with a legal migraine. Louis 
Kipnis, attorney for dissident 
stockholders in three separate ac- 
tions, reportedly has taken the po- 
sition that the court actions he in- 
stituted have had the effect of 
“creating the benefit" of the $6 
offer for all stockholders. 

Kipnis, according to sources in 
the minority stockholder camp, 
,:1 ■’ will ask the courts to fix a 
(Continued on page 20) 


N. Y. to L. A. 

Ruth Erickson 
Lynn Farnol 
Edward L. Hyman 
Edwin H. Knopf 
Jerry Lewis 
Dean Martin 
Arnold Moss 
Merle Obdron 
Robert Palmer 
Ed Sullivan 
Edward A. Wolpin 



opinion (for what it is worth) the' 
best way to get people into theatres 
is not by a general campaign about 
the movies, whether in contest 
form or newspaper ads listing a lot 
of pictures.’ Hard work cooperative- 
ly between exhibitors, and distribu- 
tors on good pictures will do more 
to awaken public interest than gen- 
eralizations.” 

‘We’re Pikers’ 

A pub-ad chief who had been ac- 
tively involved in previous insti- 
tutional campaigns put it this way: 
“We have to talk in terms of a 
consistent rather than a spasmodic 
campaign. As long as COMPO 
(Council of Motion Picture Organi- 
zations) operates on a shoestring, 
we might as well forget the whole 
thing. We’re actually pikers com- 
pared to the cigaret, - trucking or 
beer industry. W.c only think in 
terms of an institutional campaign 
when we face a crisis. We do 
nothing to prevent it. We should 
do. something to maintain a favor- 
able climate all the time. 

“Everybody is vocal. about a cam- : 
paign until '.the time. comes, to raise ! 
money. The only way it can be ( 


done properly is for COMPO to 
have a war chest of $2,000,000 
That sum shouldn’t be difficult to 
raise by an industry like ours." 

Other distrib execs were even 
more curt in their opinions. In an 
off-the-cuff comment, one declared: 

It s a good thought if the exhib- 
it 01 * ‘ carne ? bis load." He suggests 
that contributions be made on a 
percentage basis similar to film 
rental arrangements. Another exec 
stated flatly that pictures can’t be 
sold on a general basis. “You can’t 
tell the public about pictures. You 
must show them. It always winds 
up as ‘what’s playing’.” 

Noting that 1953 marked the 
turning point after seven years of 
declining film boxoffice, Myers, in 
his report, said this was an oppor- 
tune time for an overall institution- 
al drive since all the publicity re- 
lating to the new techniques Vhas 
served to reawaken interest." My- 
ers prescribes “a great united push, 
hot for any particular medium or 
pictures, but for motion picture 
entertainment distinct from and 
superior to all other forms of en- 
tertainment." 


By GENE ARNEEL 

Howard Hughes’ maneuver to 
convert RKO into d one-man show 
via his $23,489,478 proposal to buy 
out all other stockholders at $0 
per share appears a preliminary to 
integration of the film corporation 
with the airman’s privately-owned 
Hughes Tool Co, 

Consolidation probably will b? 
via Hughes Productions, which now 
is a Tool Co. subsid. This would 
satisfy tax authorities who nor- 
mally object to merging two unre- 
lated businesses solely for the tax 
gains which accrue. Hughes Prod, 
is the indie filmmaking unit, 

For Hughes, there would be 
these advantages accruing from U) 
the sole ownership of RKO, and 
(2) having the outfit merged with, 
or otherwise absorbed for book- 
keeping purposes by, Hughes Tool: 

Minority stockholder suits pend* 
ing in • N. Y., L. A. and Nevada- 
against Hughes’ RKO management 
will cease , to carry much weight 
and probably would be dropped; 
lawyers feel that the. $6 per share 
payoff will be regarded by any 
court as sufficient to square things 
with the plaintiff dissidents. . 

Tax Benefits * 
Consolidation of RKO with 
Hughes Tool could be worked out 
so that RKO’s financial losses, for 
tax purposes, could be a carry- 
forward against the multimillion 
dollar profits of Hughes Tool for 
as long a period as four years un- 
der the Internal Revenue pro- 
visions. 

Further, there are the obvious 

(Continued on page 10) 

L. A. to N. Y. 

Eddie Albert 
Robert S. Benjamin 
Jack Benny 
Neville Brand 
Macdonald Carey 
Paul Douglas 
Bonar Dyer 
Margaret Ettinger 
Marvin Fafis 
Glenn Ford 
Peggy Ann Garner 
L. Wolfe Gilbert 
Don Gillin 
June Havoc 
Kay Harrison 
Arthur B. Krim 
Bill Landmark 
Diana Lynn 
James Neilson 
Robert Palmer 
Lindsley Parsons 
Sam Rosen 
Frank Sinatra 
Clifton Webb 
John Williams 
Rhys Williams 
Teresa Wright 

N. Y. to Europe 

Art Buchwald . 

Jack Cummings 
Jean Dalrymple 
Arthur F. Driscoll 
. Faye Emerson 
James A. Fitzpatrick 
Jack Hawkins 
Skitch Henderson 
Griffith Johnson . 

Murray Silverstone 
Earl J. Sponable 
Aldos Sylvani 

Europe to N. Y. 

Sir Thomas Beecliam 
Gardner Cowles 
Tom Curtis 
Patricia Medina 
German Severn 
Robert S. Wolff 



WpJnewbTi February IP, 19S4 


t . ^ 


■ • »«< , 

PICTURES 



Foreign producers by far outdis-4 
tance Hollywood in terms of mak- 
ing films regarded as morally unfit 
by the Catholic National Legion 
of Decency. Cbnsistfently over the 

years the percentage of imports 

which are “condemned” by the Le- 
gion is greater than obtains with 
domestic films. 

In 1953, however, the percentage 
of foreign imports rating a VC” 
classification dropped sharply to 
6 38f-o from a high 17.11%* in 1952. 
Th is is seem as a possible increase 
lri"a wareness by producers abroad 
of the requirements of the U. S. 
Code. 

Here’s a breakdown on foreign 
pix reviewed by the Legion and 
given the “C” rating. 


Total No. . ’ e«r- 

of Fllmt Class "C" centaga 


1948 

1949 

1950 

1951 

1952 

1953 




84 

79 

57 

77 

76 

47 


6 

10 

6 , 

13 

13 

3 


7.14 

12.66 

10.53 

16.88 

17.11 

6.38 


Breakdown re domestic produc- 
tions reveal that less than 1% in 
any single year got the “C-exual” 
rating: Here’s the American data: 


Total No. 


Par- 

of FUmt Clast 

"C 

cantaga 

1948 .. .. 367 

1 

.27 

1949 ......... 388 

3 

• .78 

1950 . ..! 402 

2 

,50 

1951 365 

1 

.27 

1952 370 

1 

.27 

1953 336 

1 

.30 

United Artists’ release 

of “The 


Old Shoe Unsafe Deposit 

U.S. Treasury Dept, is pre- 
senting citations fo exhibitors 
for playing a Metro two-reeler. 

Short is Pete Smith's “Cash 
Stashers,” made in cooperai- 
tioh with the Treasury Dept. 
Film, aiming' to boost the sale 
of Government bonds, shows 
the millions lost annually by 
those who hide money in old 
shoes, etc. instead of ; invest- 
ing it in Defense Bonds?* 


Lewis Milestone Back; 
Mild on New Systems 
But Likes Par’s '* 



• Lewis Milestone, veteran direc- 
tor who achieved prominence via 
“All Quiet on the Western Front” 
(1930), among other entries, states 
he’s not too impressed : with the 
new ; screen techniques* Cinema- 
scope, according to the turn-caller, 
“is perhaps a little ton wide and 
too low but would be all. right with 
certain types of films. 3-D is an 
-Open secret’ (meaning about run. 
its course) and Todd-AQ ’ and Cin- 
erama are not the motion picture 
business.” Milestone feels that the 
last two are more roadshow thea- 
tre than the film trade. 

Vet, however, might go for. the 
“Lazy 8” lensing system now being 
utilized by Paramount in “White 
Christmas.” In this, two frames of 
film! are exposed at one time and 
run through the camera ■ horizon- 
tally instead of vertically. The 
Moon Is Blue” was the one domes- l- print iC optically processed on 


tic pic “C-ed” by the Legion last 
year. 

Columbia led the list of Ameri- 
can distribs handling “B” films — 

. morally objectionable in part— 
during 1953. Col had 13 features 
that fell into this category. Others: 
Allied Artists, 2; Metro, 7; Para- 
mount, 2;. Realart, 3; Republic, 2; 
RKO. 8; 20th-Fox, 11; UA, 9; Uni- 
versal, 7, and Warners, 7. 

There’s a vast difference be- 
tween the “B” and *‘C” ratings so 
far as marketing of the films is 
concerned. As the Legion explains 
it “B” pix are “considered to con- 
tain certain elements dangerous to 
Christian morals or moral stand- 
ards.” But active campaigns are 
not undertaken against these fea- 
tures by Catholic groups. The “C” 
pic. though, often means trouble 
for theatremen, in the form of 
picketing, blasts from church pul- 
pits, etc. 


standard 35m and allows for wide 
projection with no loss of defini- 
tion. 

Milestone figures on trying the 
process with his next pic, an adap- 
tation of the Jan de Hartog novel, 
“Distant Shore.” Director was in 
N. Y. this week after 19 months 
abroad. He brought with him a 
print of his recently-completed 
“They Who Dare,” made in asso- 
ciation with the Mayflower Co. 
(Max Setton and Aubrey Baring). 

Film, done in Technicolor, fo- 
cuses on an early phase of World 
War II on the island of Rhodes. 
Milestone said he has the Ameri- 
can rights and is awaiting the 
N. Y. arrival of Charles K. Feld- 
man, head of Famous Artists, to 
join him in negotiating a distribu- 
tion deal. Feldman is due in Goth- 
am from the Coast around next 
Monday (8). 


Reduction in production sched- 
ules at the various U. S. studios 
has hypoed- discussions among dis- 
tributors of . film for consolidation 
of Operations in the foreign mar- 
ket. Emphasis is on the majors tak- 
ing on one another’s, or the small- 
er companies’ product for handling 
in the various • bverseas * sales ter- 
ritories. 

Latest such deal to be consum- 
mated is one under which Colum- 
bia distributes Allied Artists pix in 
France and North Africa. Allied 
isn’t making any bones about, the 
fact that it’s eager for similar ar- 
rangements elsewhere, and United 
Artists, too, has been discussing 
possible deals in areas where the 
company now has franchise hold- 
ers. VA, incidentally, is handling 
A A product in Australia under a 
recently concluded agreement. 

In the very small, One-branch 
countries, the companies are re- 
evaluating their policy of inde- 
pendent operation since it’s figured 
that here’s the logical place to start 
operational mergers and cut down 
on expenses. Execs are split on the 
Wisdom of consolidation, with some 
claiming that the resultant savings 
aren’t overwhelming, 

However, this attitude, too, is 
seen affected by the reduction in 
the number of. films. Murray, Sil- 
verstone, 20th-Fox International 
prexy; in N. Y. last week. comment- 
qji on his return from a glohe- 
'circling. tour that it’s “a decided 
advantage” to pool facilities in. the 
smaller territories 

Metro and 20th have had a long- 
standing arrangement under which 
20th releases the Metro product in 
(Continued on page 66) 


‘CINERAMA HOLIDAY’ 

DE ROCHEMONT TAG 

“Cinerama Holiday” is the new 
title of the Cinerama production 
Louis de Rochemont is currently 
shooting in the United States and 
Europe. It was originally known as 
. ‘The Thrill of Your Life.” New 
title maintains the widescreen 
process tradename as identifica- 
tion, the initial entry now playing 
ln 10 theatres being “This Is Cin- 
erama,”. ., 

. Pe. Rochemont’s European crew 
is now enroute to St. MoWtz, Switz- 
erland, where one of the major 
episodes will be filmed. The U.S. 
crew,, under the supervision of 
Otis Carney, is presently on Idea 
tion in the Apache country of 
Arizona, 


Flying Garters 

Hollywood, Feb. 9. 

Formal opening of Para- 
mount’s “Red Garters” at the 
Fok Wilshire theatre was not 
quite formal in a literal sense. 
Three gals who appeared in 
the picture tossed red garters 
to fans in the b^pachers out- 
side the film house. Garter 
tossers were Pat Drake, Betty 
Thomas and Marley Sander- 
son. ' ♦ . 

Each garter catcher was en- 
titled to two Annie Oakleys. 


Producers With Same Tale 
Of How British Hoodwinked 



Lancaster Films to UA 

. Hollywood, Feb. 9. 
United Artists will release all 
Ben HechUBurt Lancaster features, 
Pending and planned, for the next 
Uvo years. Deal was consUi&hated 
aver the weekend by «group com- 
prising Lancaster,; Arthur Krim, 
Benjamin, Robert Blumofe 
and Lew Washerman of the Music 
to rp. of America. 

^atures (some seven) will star 
ueh names as -Gary Cooper, Jean 
tens and Lancaster himself. 


Par Can’t Yet Answer 
Martin & Lewis Queries 

Recent story in Variety on 
Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis 
planning to appear in theatres on 
opening day of the run of. their 
new pic, “Money from Home,” has 
brought a flood of exhib inquiries 
to the Paramount homeoffice, The 
p.a.’s by M & L will be gratis to 
exhibs in up to 40 situations. 

Theatremen want to know terms 
for the film and availability. Par 
can’t answer yet since the M & L 
itinerary hasn’t been set. 

Fete Oldtimer Joe Walsh, 
With Par, N.Y., Since ’20 

Joseph A. Walsh has resigned as 
head of Paramount’s branch opera- 
tions, effective at the end of this 
week. He has been associated with 
Par since 1920, having started with 
the old Famous Players-Lasky out- 
fit and over the years«has had exec 
positions in the financial, exhibi- 
tion and distribution branches of 
the company's operations. 

Walsh is bowing out to take up 
residence oh the Coast where his 
family has been residing the past 

few years. . 

Sendoff luncheon was held in 
his honor at the Par homeoffice 
yesterdav (Tues.) with Par prez 
Barney Balaban acting hs host Of- 
ficers of the company, department 
heads and numerous other execs 
attended. 


BRIT. PRODUCERS GET 
$2,217,000 FROM EADY 

London, Feb. 9. 

In the first five months of the 
current Eady Fund year, from 
August to' last December, the in- 
come from distribution among Brit- 
ish producers totalled $2,217,000. 
The share out is equivalent to 
34% of the distributors’ gross and 
monthly checks are paid to eligi- 
ble producers. 

According to, figures released 
last week by the British Film Pro- 
ducers Assn., more than 500 Brit- 
ish pix are participating in the 
shareout, v but by far the majority 
qualify for only minor returns. The 
bulk of the Eady revenue is di- 
vided among the top current fea- 
tures, particularly . those which 
get circuit and national bookings. 

The current Eady plan scheme 
expires in July. The new arrange- 
ment, which starts, next August, 
for a three-year period, will be bn 
a lower scale unless there is some 
substantial remission in admission 
tax. 


♦ Although he endorses the Holly- 
wood Production Code, New York 
importer Arthur Mayer feels it 
“unbearable” that the medium 
of motion pictures is constantly 
bobbed by the mental standards 
of children. He adds: “Television . 
has made a shambles of the idea 
of protecting* the kiddies. If any 
manager were to show in his thea- 
tre some of the. things that go on 
tv, he’d immediately be flooded 
with protests.” . \ 

Mayer’s coniment were made to 
the showmanship school of the 
Assn, of Motion Picture Adver- 
tisers last \\;eek. He declared that 
exhibitors are the retft backbone of 
the production code and every ef- 
fort should be made to bring them 
within tlie framework Of the code 
authority so as to hold the line 
against unwanted pix. 

..The yet exhib, former COMPO 
exec v.p. and now prexy of the In- 
dependent Motion Picture Distribu- 
tors Assn. had as his theme “The 
Story of the art theatre and how 
the MPAA Code applies to the art 
theatre,” but he confined his re- 
marks°mostly to censorship and the 
Code as they apply to all houses. 

Mayer made a big pitch for an 
updating of the code “to bring it 
in line With the customs of the 
present day” but at the same time 
declared himself a stout supporter 
of self-regulation because “un- 
fortunately, some measure of con- 
trol is necessary. There are some 
people w r ho simply like to peddle 
filth and we have to protect our- 
selves against them.” 

The Code administration had 
made a mistake in refusing a seal 
to “The Moon Is Blue;” he" thought, 
adding that exhibs obviously 
thought so since the film has been 
booked widely. “l am fearful that 
a substantial number of exhibitors 
may play ‘The French ‘ Line,*” 
Mayer commented. . “If ‘they do, 
(Continued on page 18) 


Conviction that it can get the 
cooperation of the British Ad- 
miralty was a factor in 20th-Fox’s 
purchase of Ewen Montagu’s “The 
Man Who Never Was” despite the 
fact that the exact same story, 
titled “Operation Heartbreak,” has 
been acqfluired by Hecht-Lancaster 
Productions. 

Situation is reminiscent of the 
one that came up a couple of 

•months back when Metro acquired 
“Panther SquadFon 8” and Para- 
mount latched on to “The Bridges 
of Toko-Ri.” Both stories were 
scripted by James A. Michener and 
the common theme of an airstrike 
against Korea. 

20th feels that it’s got one strike 
in its favor with “The Man Who 
Never Was” because the Montagu 
book— he’s Judge Advocate of the 
British fleet— is the official ver- 
sion of this fantastic wartime 
tale. The book, published by Lip- 
pincott, was bought by 20th for i 
$25,000. 

"Operation Heartbreak,” on the 
other hand, written by Viscount 
Norwich and published in novel 
form by Viking in 1951, didn’t have 

official sanction. , TT „ „ ^ 4 ■ L . 

a ^uccessKl 0 aWempt°on ? th^pa’ri i day ‘upheld the*rlght of°Paramojjnt 
of British naval intelligence to fool 
the Nazis into thinking that the 
Allied invasion .would come via 


RIGHT TO EVICT F&M 
IN L.A. IS UPHELD 

Washington, Feb. 9. 


Greece and Sardinia instead of 
Sicily The project was eminently 
successful. It was accomplished by 
flying the body of a man from 
naval vessel in the 


Pictures to force out Fanchon & 
Marco and .Partmar Corp.as oper- 
ators of the Paramount Downtown 
theatre in Los Angeles. Vote Was 
5-2. Chief Justice Earl Warren and 
Justice Hugo L. Black dissented. 
Justices Robert Jackson and Tom 
Clark took no part in the case. 


Britain to a — _ , . . 

Mediterranean. Dressed in an offi- Paramount had won in both the 
cer’s uniform, and with "secret” in- ! U.S. District Court and the Cir- 
vasion plans in its pockets, the 
corpse was permitted to drift 


cuit Court of Appeals. The majority 
opinion, by Justice Stanley Reed, 


ashore in Spain in the hope that agreed that Paramount because of 

a '• -A I X I _ _ I ‘ .. _ _ _ 4? A . 1 J :* * A. 


the documents would be trans- 
mitted to the Germans. Franco’s 
agents did their job, and Hitler 
was fooled. 







This is one of those “at last it 

can be told” stories, related last 
wfeek in N. Y. by Arthur Mayer 
before the AMP A showmanship 
class. It’s about the controversial 
film, “Blockade,” which Walter 
Wanger made in 1938 and which 
concerned the Spanish civil war. 
The popular assumption has been 


that Spain's Generalissimo Franco 
not only banned the picture, but 
all films handled by its distributor. 

United Artists, after he had had a ; Justice Warren wrote— “The evic- 
ldok at “Blockade.” ] tion suit and counter-claims have 

Not so, said Mayer. Here's how ■ been severed for trial purposes. 


the big antitrust decree against 
the majors, had to vacate its lease 
to Partmar. 

The lease was first sighed in 
1939 and was for 10 years. It was 
subsequently amended and extend- 
ed to 1952. Lease included a film 
franchise agreement under which 
Partmar was to exhibit Paramount 
product no fewer than 46 weeks 
per year under a scale of license 
fees in the lease. Paramount noti- 
fied of cancellation in March 1947. 
When Partmar refused to get out, 
Paramount sued in May 1947. 

In his vigorous dissent. Chief 


Wanger told him the story 
Wanger and his publicity . man 
saw “Blockade” in a screening 


During the trial of the eviction 
suit. Paramount was the only party 
| with any reason or justification for 


Some Dye-et 

Hollywood, Feb* 8* 
Raymond Burr is beginning 
to feel like a chameleon above 
the ears. In the last six weeks ^ 
of movie and video acting he* 
has changed the color of his 
hair from brown to gray to 
brown to gray to brown to 
gray to brown and back again 
to gray. 

It’s suggested he shave his 
skull and wear toupees. 


room and the producer wasn't too ] proving that the franchise was part 
happy about it. “Don’t worry, boss,” , of a conspiracy. Because of Para- 
said the plugger. ‘Til fix it.” The j mount’s failure to present such 


next day the papers blossomed out 
with stories of how Franco had 


banned the film. The U. S. State L judgment against petitioner on. his 


Dept., then under Cordell Hull, 
chimed in with protests. Editorials 
were written on the subject. The 
production became a cause celebre. 

In ’Madrid, meanwhile, Franco 
hadn’t even seen the picture, nor 
had he banned it. W10n the ruckus 
came to his attention eventually he 
did the logical thing-*he blocked 


proof, the court held the lease to 
be valid, but at the same time gave 


counterclaims because of the same 
shortcoming of Paramount’s proof. 
The anomolous result is to pen- 
alize petitioner for refusing to help 
Paramount Win the eviction suit. 
I believe the petitioner has been 
denied his day in court and that 
the case should be reversed with 

j instructions to the trial jury to 

J _ ... » _ t _ ; 


‘Blockade” and all UA pix with it. I hear the counterclaims. 




c 

Wednesday, Fdbrgaiy IQ, X954 


WUmt <■ 11 

Well-made, topical %rl*#n 
drama that atatos* articulately, 
prof, eena of Hating. , 

Hollywood, Feb/ 8> 

Allied Artllt* release ' of Walter 
Wanger production. Feature*. Neville 
Brand, Emile Meyer, Prank Faylen, Leo 
Gordon. Robert Osterloh, Pali Free*. Di- 
rected by Don Siegel. Written by Richard 
Collins; camera, Hutfell Harlan; editor. 
Bruce B, • pierce: music composetTand 
conducted by . Herscbel Burke . Gilbert. 
Previewed Feb. 4, '54. Running time, IQ: 
MINS. : . 

Dunn . . . , . .. ... .... Neville- Brand 

The Warden > . , < . — Emile Meyer 
Haskell .... . .... Frank-* Faylen 

Carnle . . Leo Gordon 

The Colonel ,... ; Robert Oiterloh 

-Monroe \ Paul Frees 

Reporter . .......... . . .. .... Don Keefer 

Gator Alvy Moore 

Schuyler ............. .Dabbs Greer 

Snader ... ..... . . . . . Whit Bissell 

Acton ... .......... /. James Anderson 

Capt. Barrett ... v ... . . .Carleton Young 
Reporter . ..... .. ..Hsiald J. Kennedy 

Reporter . . rr. « . . . .„. . ...William Schallcrt 

RucscU Jonathan Hale 

Frank ................... Robert Patton 

Mickey .William Phipps 

A1 ; Joel FlueUen 

;Delinar ............ ...... Roy Glenn 

Mac ■ ^ . ». . . .. Joe lCerr- 
Manuel' ..... .... ....... .John Tarangelo 

Ambrose .Robert Burton 




“Riot in Cell Block 11’?. Is a hard- 
hitting, suspenseful prison thriller 
With plenty of exploitation box- 
office. chances. It should be a 
strong grosser for -Allied Artists 
and a profitable booking for those 
situations that take advantage of 
the ticket-selling opportunities in 
the ballyhoo angles. It has been: 
some time since the market has 
had a real good prison melodrama 
of this voltage. 

The pros and cons of prison riots 
are stated articulately in the Rich- 
ard Collins screen story, and pro- 
ducer Walter Wanger uses a real- 
istic, almost documentary, style to 
make, his point for needed reforms 
in the operation . of penal institu- 
tions. Don Siegel’s taut direction 
puts these social facets on display 
effectively, but never minimizes the 
requirements for gutty, meller-ac- 
tion entertainment that will sustain 
regular audience attention. 

The picture doesn't use formula 
prison plot. There’s no inmate re-, 
formed by love or fair treatment, 
nor unbelieve, able boy-meets-girl, 
gets-same angle. Nor are there any 
heroes and heavies of standard 
pattern. Instead, it deals, with a 
riot, how ;it started and why, what 
was done to halt it, the capitula- 
tions on both sides. Finally, it runs 
it.-* course and subsides, with neith- 
er side having won* -or lost very 
much, other than to bring prison 
conditions to public attention. . 

The points for reform made in 
the Wanger production cover over- 
crowding housing, poor food, the 
mingling; of mentally well and 
mentally sick prisoners, the char- 
acterHiorroding idleness of men 
caged in cell blocks. These points 
are brought up in the riot, a thing 
of desperate violence led by Nev^ 
ille . Brand and in which, either 
willingly or unwillingly, are in- 
volved Leo Gordon, Robert Oster- 
loh, Dabbs Greer, Joel Flue lien, 
Alvy Moore, Frank Hagney and 
other inmates. Brand, - Gordon and 
the others deliver forcefully and in" 
character. - _ • 

A standout performance is given 
by Emile Meyer, the warden who 
understands the prisoners’ prob- 
lems because he has long called for 
reform. Also good are Frank Fay- 
len, politician; Paul Frees, Whit 
Bissell and James Anderson, who 
are among the guards held hos- 
tages; Carleton Young, guard cap- 
tain, and each of the” other cast 
members who contribute to the 
melodramatic punch of the footage, 

Russell Harlan’s, photography 
counts strongly and the editing -by 
Bruce B. Pierce also is good. Her- 
schCl Burke - Gilbert composed a 
good score, but it is used in a 
formula manner to back the foot- 
®6e. Brog. 


Hell's Half Acre 

(SONGS) 


Murder melodrama located 
and lensed In Honolulu. So-so 
program entertainment with 
mild chances. 


posiHdlitki In ft# feneral market 
are about average, nowever, alnce 
famUUr name* Ikad the cast to 
give an exhibitor Something for 
the marquees in booking a double 
bill. i 

Title derives fippm a Honolulu 
skid row section, where much of 
the action 'takes place. The Steve 
Fisher story is a murder meller 
with some rather Involved compli- 
cations, Wfbich aren’t helped by the 
spotty direction of John H. Auer, 
-who also produced, or by the lack 
of smoothness in the editing. The 
players are competent and do what 
they^can, but aren’t able to add 
much punch to' the presentation.- 

Wendell Corey plays an island 
racketeer gone respectable. When 
his ex-partners try blackmail, his 
girl friend. Nancy Gates, bumps 
one off and Corey takes the rap, 
figuring he can beat it. Into this 
meller setup comes Evelyn Keyes, 
searching for a clue that will, tab 
Corey as the husband she believes 
she lost at Pearl Harbor 10 years 
before. -While she tries to get ah 
admission from him, Miss Gates 
is murdered. . . Corey escapes jail 
on several occasions to find the 
killer and everything is contrived 
confusion. ’ At the final, Corey 
displays his nobleness by fixing 
things so the killer, Philip Ahn, 
will gun him down, freeing Miss 
Keyes for a new marriage and 
leaving their son to believe his dad 
died a hero’.s death at Pearl 
Harbor. 

Elsa Lanchester co-stars with 
Corey and Miss Keyes, playing a 
Honolulu taxi-driver who befriends 
the girl from the mainland. Like 
most of* the others in thb cast, 
nothing much is made of her pres- 
ence. Miss Gates comes off well 
as the Chinese girl friend of Corey 
and others are assorted meller 
character studies by Ahn, Leonard 
Strong, Jesse White, Marie Wind- 
sor and Keye Luke, the latter good 
as the Honolulu police chief. 

John L. Russell, Jr., handled the 
cameras satisfactorily, using the 
island settings as a backdrop for 
the melodramatics, rather than as 
as Cook’s tour travelog. Two grass- 
skirt tunes are. heard, “Polynesian 
Rhapsody” and “Lani.” Fisher and 
Jack Pitman collaborated on the 
first and Pitfnan did the second 

solo. ~ Brog . 

* - - 

The Holly and the Ivy 

(BRITISH) 

An example of . fine British 
filmaking. Strong names; help 
give it lock appeal for the 
arties. 


Pacemaker Pictures release of a Lon* 
don Films Production. Stars Ralph Rich- 
ardson.. Celia Johnson, Margaret Leigh- 
ton, Denholm Elliott; features Hugh Wil- 
liams, John Gregson, Margaret Hals tan. 
Maureen Delaney, William Hartnell, Rob- 
ert^Fiemyng. Roland Culver, Sally Owen. 
Produced .by Anatole de Grunwald. Di- 
rected by George More O'Ferrall from a 
screenplay by Grunwald based on the 
Wynyard Browne play: camera, Edward 
Scatfe; music. Malcolm Arnold. Previewed 
Feb. 3. '54 in N.Y. Running time, SO 
MINS. 




Rev. Gregory . 

Jenny Gregory 
Margaret Gregory . . . 

Mick Gregory 

Richard Wyndham .. 
David Paterson .... 

Aunt Lydia 

Aunt Bridget I 

Company Sgt./ Major 

Major . 

Lof d B 

Young Girl 


Ralph Richardson 
. . . . Celia Johnson 
. Margaret Leighton 
... Denholm. Elliott 
.... Hugh W Ulianas 

John Gregson 

. . Margaret Halstan 
. . Maureen Delaney 
. ... William Hartnell 
. . . Robert Flemyng 
. . . . . Roland Culver 
Sally OWOn 


Hollywood, Feb. 5. 

. Republic release of John -H. Auer pro* 
duction. Stars Wendell Coley, Evelyn 
Keves. Elsa Lanchester; Directed by Auer. 
Written by Steve Fisher; camera, John 
L. Riissell, Jr.; editor, Fred AUen; music,. 
5;„. DaI £, Butts*, songs, ..Jack. Pitman airid 
Steve Fisher, Previewed Feb. 3; '54. Run- 
ning time, 90 MINS, 

^Chester Wendell Corey 

t i°Jl a Evelyn Keyes 

Lida O Reilly . . Elsa Lanchester 

c-?nT, r Marie Windsor 

r/I.y I ' ee Nancy Gates 

iPfiX, ’ Leonard Strong 

Pnf^r K ° ng - Philip Alin 

Frank . . Robert Shield 

*h I 2?v S k! Y , Clair Weldcnaar 

Slim Novak Robert Costa 


. The Hawaiian location sites in 
: Hell’s Half Acre” are more in- 
teresting than the Routine melo- 
dramatics in its plot; The film’s 


“The Holly and the Ivy” is the 
kind of quiet and yet expertly 
fashioned picture which, if there 
were more of them, would have 
the American arties happy and 
flourishing; Simplicity itself, it is 
acted and directed with skill and 
fthe attention to detail and charac- 
ter study that has endeared other: 
British Imports in the past. 

If the Wynyard Browne play on 
which the film is based was only a 
moderate success on either side of 
the Atlantic, the film has vastly 
improved on the stage offering. 
It is tender, completely believable 
and, in its critical moments, touch- 
ing and revealing. It also has a 
kind of wry sense of humor which 
only the British know how to poke 
at themselves. 

Much of the credit obviously 
goes to the cast which reads like 
a who’s who of British stars. Sir 
Ralph Richardson, in the. lead role 
of the elderly vicar, delivers a dis- 
tinctive arid captivating perform- 
ance that is restrained and yet ef- 
fective. Celia Johnson, as his de- 
voted daughter, imparts to her role 
all her great talents, creating a 
character that is uniquely British 
and at the same time immensely 
1 ikea ble, Margaret Leighton etches 
a fine portrayal as the second 
daughter, the black sheep of the 
family, who needs security but can- 
not confide in her father. 

Denholm Elliot is fresh and 
wholly competent in the difficult 
part of the son who finally con- 
fronts his father with . the bitter 
truth that ms being a parson has 
created a wall of pretense between 
him and the family. There are 


many fine bits uf acting to fill 
put Hie thin story line. John Grjei- 
son, who wants to marry Mils 
Johnson* is an * insistent suitor 
without being annoying* Hugh 
Williams registers as the quiet ob- 
server, and Margaret Halstan and 
Maureen Delaney; as the aunts; 
are a critic’s delight and examples 
of expert type-casting. 

Anatole de Grunwald. who both 
produced and scripted the screen- 
play, deserves kudos - for creating 
nis climaxes without overstating 
them, His characters act, move 
and -talk with complete conviction 
and their quarrels, set against the 
stillness of a snowy Christmas Eve 
and the. bells of Christmas Day, re- 
solve into depth rather than sur- 
face 'shrillness. If. anything, -the 
film suffers a little from the over- 
abundance of thoughtful dialogue 
which is a hangover from the stage 
version. . 

The story has the vicar’s family, 
assembling for the Christmas holi- 
day. ,, No one has a good time ex- 
cept Richardson ■ who is unawares 
of the tension and doesn’t even 
know that one of • his daughters 
wants to get married and the other 
is on the way to becoming a drunk- 
ard- Eventually, some frank talk 
clears the air, particularly in a 
poignant scene between Richard- 
son and Miss Leighton. 

There is much praise owing 
George More 0’Ferrell’s direction 
which : creates a fluidity of action 
despite limited sets. “The Holly 
and the Ivy” should be a favorite 
among artie audiences. . Hift. 

■ . . " 1 ' 

The Love tottery 

(BRITISH-COLOR) 

David Niven -In satirical, yarn 
of Hollywood’s star system; 
over Imaginative treatment . 
With spotty b.o.. prospects. 

London, Feb. 2. 

.General Film Distributor* release o£ 
Ealing StudioE-Michaei Balcon production. 
Stars David Niven, Peggy Cummins. Anne 
Vernon, Herbert Lom, Directed by Charles 
Crichton. Screenplay, Harry Kurnltz from 
story . by Charles Neilsorf Gattey and 
Zelma Bramley : Moore; camera. Douglas 
Sloconibe; edltpr, Seth Holt; music. Ben- 
jamin Frankel. At Gaumont, London, Jan. 
26. '54. Running time, tf MINS. 

Rex AUerton ...... . , i . . . David Mven 

SaUy Peggy Cummins 

Jane ............. ... ...... . Anne Vernon 

Amlco. Herbert Lom 

Jennings ................ Charles Victor 

Ralph Gordon Jackson 

Wlnant . . Felix Aylmer 

Rodney Wheeler .Hugh McDermott 

Stanton '...v Stanley Maxted 

Viola . June , Clyde 

GiiUiver Kee John Chandos 

Parsimonious Theodore Bikel 

Suarez Sebastian Cabot 

Fbdor Andrea Malandrinos 


Ealing Studios, which had a run 
of major boxoffice hits, via a string 
of outstanding comedies, lately has 
been trying its hand at satire with 
less conspicuous results. . This 
time it is a try at satirizing Hol- 
lywood’s star system. But this 
basically amusiqg idea gets bogged 
down by super-clever treatment 
w'hich will probably misfire with 
most types of audience. Boxoffice 
prospects must be rated as spotty. 

The yarn, scripted by Harry 
Kurnitz, opens in .Hollywood, 
moves to London and finishes in 
an Italian lakeside resort. In earli- 
er sequences, it has a few satirical 
shafts at the picture ifidustry 
which would evoke yoeks from a 
pro audience, but the entire sub- 
ject is overloaded with a series of 
dream sequences which delay the 
plot and restrict the action. 

David Niven is cast as a toprank- 
ing star at , a Hollywood studio 
where he is No. 2 onfy to the unit’s 
wonder dog* As a publicity sunt, 
a columnist dreams up the idea of 
a lottery with the first prize being 
a Week with the star. In satirical 
vein,' Niven suggests a week is 
not adequate and says he’ll take 
the winner for life. While the idea 
is being ridiculed by press and 
radio, the star flies to London but 
once again finds himself besieged 
by unruly fans. So finally, almost 
in desperation, he takes a boat to 
Italy, hoping to find peace and 
quiet. But he did not reckon with 
the computation, business run by 
Herbert Lom, who traps, him into 
keeping his love, lottery promise. 

The general theme is dressed in 
highly imaginative style With the 
dream sequences intruding when- 
ever the plot shows signs of sag- 
ging.. These are aimed to portray 
the state of mind of a star harassed 
by howling fans and by an ardent 
female bobbysoxer : Who reenacts 
some of the romantic scenes, from 
the films in which her hero starred. 
It: is this girl who picks the win- 
ning ticket. 

Film has a quality look and is 
expensively mounted, while the 
Lake Como locations are attractive 
in the Technicolor hues The act- 
ing standard is more than adequate 
for the yarn. Niyen gives a typi- 
cally smooth portrayal as the 
harassed star while Peggy Cum- 
mins sparkles as the adoring fan. 
Anne Vernon blends sophistication 
and charm as the beguiling statis- 
tician. Lom turps 4n a reliable 


study as the sinister and shave 
head of toe- computation. Setup, 
with ’Theodore Bikel as one of bis 
assistants. Charles Victor does a 
flawless job as thg star’s valet and 
Felix Aylmer, in a little more than 
a bit. stands out as an impresario. 
Other roles have been filled with. 
obvious, care. 

White Fire 


British-filmed meller mystery 
with Scott Brady, Mary Castle; 
for programmer bookings*.. 

Hollywood,^ Feb. 4.. 

Lippert Picture* release •£ Robert . $. 
Baker, Monty Berman (Tempean Films) 
production. s Stars . Scott Brady, Mary Cas- 
tle; features Gabrielle Brune. Ferdy 
Mayne, Colin Tapley, John Blythe. Di- 
rected by John Gilling, Screenplay, Paul 
Erickson and John Gillins: from a story 
by Erickson; camera, Monty Berman: edi- 
tor, Marjprle Saunders; music, Stanley 
Black; song. Black and Barbara Killalee. 
Previewed Feb. 2 , '54. Running time, SI 
MINS. .. 

Gregor Stevens Scott Brady 

Yvonne Durante .......... Mary Castle 

Lorna ... Gabrielle Brune 

Sartago ................. Ferdy Mayne 

Winston ..... .... . Colin Tapley 

Darr ... ... . . . . v. . John Blythe 

James. Smith ... .. . ......... Lloyd Lamble 

John Durante Julian Somers 

Inspector Haley ...... Ballard Berkeley 

Crawsoii , . . . . Honan O’Casey 

Charley . .... ...... . John Schofield 

Larlrry .............. ... . Paul Erickson 


A passably fair 81 minutes of 
melodramatic complications are 
unspooled in “White Fire,” a Brit- 
ish-made programmer which Lip- 
pert Pictures is distributing domes- 
tically. A lively pace, stepped up 
quite a bit from the usual British 
tempo, helps^to carry it off and it 
has Scott Brady's name for ®the 
marquees in the lesser market. 

Labeled a Tempean Kims pro- 
duction, produced by Robert S. 
Baker and Monty Berman, the 
presentation has a highly contrived 
plot about a U.S. Merchant 
Marine officer (Brady) who comes 
to London to visit his brother, finds 
him three 1 days away from execu- 
tion for murder and, in the short 
span of time that his ship’s in har- 
bor, solves the killing, unmasks a 
diamond-smuggling gang and gets 
himself a girl. Suspects turn up in 
every alley, where Brady spends 
quite a lot of time getting badly 
beaten by the gang T s strongarm 
guys. The police: aid him, in a 
round-about manner, get the goods 
on Colin Tapley, the gang's master- 
mind who is also the attorney who 
defended the brother, and - when 
his ship sails! Mary Castle, saloon 
singer and unwilling tool of the 
crooks, is aboard for the finale 
clinch. 

John Gilling’s direction keeps 
the script moving, but he can’t do 
much to make it believable. Per- 
formances by Brady, Miss Castle, 
Tapley, and the others in. the cast 
are adequate, considering the light 
demands of the screenplay by Paul 
Erickson and John Gilling. Techni- 
cal credits are about average for 
this type, of budget feature. Score 
includes a tune, “No Way Out,” 
written by Stanley Black and Bar- 
bara Killalee. Brog. 

Creature From the 
Black Xagoon 

(3-D) 


Well-done science-fiction hor- 
ror feature guaranteed to 
spook the chiller fan, amuse 
others. Good exploitation pos- 
sibilities. 


Hollywood, Feb. 9. 

Universal release of William Alland 
production. Stars. Richard Carlson, Julia 
Adams.. Directed by Jack Arnold. Screen- 
play, Harry Essex. Arthur Ross; storv by. 
Maurice Zimm; . camera. William . E. Sny- 
der; special photography,. Charles S. Wel- 
bourne; underwater sequences directed 
by James C. Havens: editor, Ted J. Kent; 
musical direction. Joseph GershtJ.ison; 
makeup. Bud Wcstmore. Previewed Feb. 
2, *54. Running time, 7* MINS. 

David Reed Richard Carlson 

Julia Adams 

Mark Wiillams Richard Denhbtg 

Carl Mala. Antonio Moreno 

* Nestor Paiva 

Dr. Thompson 'Whit Bissell 

Bernie Gozier 

Chlco - Henry Escalante 

Monsters from out of space have 
been getting a film' ride of late in 
science-fiction, offerings, but in this 
3-D hackle-raiser Universal reverts 
to the prehistoric. It’s horror guar- 
anteed to spook the chiller fan and 
amuse others. Excellent exploita- 
tion possibilities. 

After the discovery of a Web- 
fingered skeleton hand in the Ama^ 
zon region, a scientific, expedition 
heads into the steaming tropics to 
hunt more fossils. In the back- 
washes of the Amazon they come 
across a still living Gill Man, half- 
fish, half-human. While trying to 
study and photograph the monster, 
several members of the expedition 
lose their lives and the Creature, 
with a human canniness, tries to 
prevent the party’s leaving. He has 
become interested in the femme 
member of the party, even captures 
her at the finale, but the windup 
finds her freed and the monster, 
mortally wounded, sinking into the 
depths of the black lagoon to die. 

The. 3-D lensing adds to the eerie 
effects of the underwater footage, 
as well as to the monster’s several 


appeWJcq«,qp Jtoiid, The below, 
water xcraps akin dive™ 

and the prqrlUitorle thing aJl 
tbrillingand WWjwp gobs I p gJ' 
pies op the susceptible fan, as 
the. closeup scenes of the scaii 
g U*e d ^creaturo, Jack Arnold? 
rection has done a ftrstrate job 
developing chills and suspense 
and James C. Havens rates a sorS 
credit for hte direction of the 8 un 
derwater sequences. The frighten, 
ing monster makeup was devei. 
opecl by Bud Westmore and Jack 
Kevan. • 

Richard Carlson, whose name is 
becoming ahnost synonymous with 
science-fiction films, and j u jii 
Adams co-star in the William Al 
land production and carry off the 
thriller very well. Topnotch as- 
sists are supplied by Richard Den* 
ning, Antonio Moreno, Nestor 
Paiva; Whit Bissell and other cast 
members; including the . assorted 
unnamed performers who enact 
the monster in various scenes in 
the footage. As befitting the Ama- 
zonian setting, Miss Adams ap- 
pears mostly in brief shorts or 
swim suits, and the maids will like 
what she displays. 

Harry Essex and Arthur Ross 
put together a good chiller script 
from Maurice Zimin's story. Rating 
a nod, for the 3-D lensing is Wil- 
liam E. Snyder, plus the special 
photography c ont r i hut e d by 
Charles S. Welbourne. Editing and 
other technical credits are expertly 
handled. Brog. 

World Without End 

(DOCUMENTARY) 

. Produced by BacU Wright for th« 
United Nation* Educational, Scientific 
and Cultural Organization. Directors, 
Paul Rotha. BasU Wright; narration Writ- 
ten by Rex Warner, spoken by Michael 
Gough; camera, . Jose Carlos ' Carbajal, 
Adrian. Jeaklns. Music, Elizabeth Luy tens. 
Running time, M MINS. 


Hollywood. Feb. 8. 

Since the inception of the United 
Nations Educational, Scientific and 
Cultural Organization 1UNESCO) 
several years ago, films have played 
an increasingly Important part in 
making the Work of the organiza- 
tion understandable to the peoples 
of the w ; orld. UN cameras have 
ptered and pried »intn many sec- 
tions of the globe, explaining what 
UNESCO is trying to do to better 
living conditions and raise stand- 
ards in undeveloped areas. 

Latest in the Series of UNESCO 
documents that relate the progress 
in this direction is “World Without 
End,” a skillful, professional job 
of story-telling Which weaves to- 
gether activities at opposite ends 
of the world to explain the func- 
tions of various branches of the 
world organization, The camera 
follows UN workers in Mexico and 
in’ Thailand, capturing their labors 
and their successes in the fields of 
agriculture, medicine, etc. The 
“one world” concept is underlined 
through intercutting from one part 
of the _globe to another so that the 
similarity between the basic prob- 
lems to be faced in Mexico and 
those to be faced in Thailand is 
readily apparent. 

This intercutting is at once the 
strength and the weakness of the 
documentary. It serves its purpose 
well for the most part but is occa- 
sionally overdone, or so a bru pt. 
that the transition is ragged and 
the comnarison therefore seems 
forced. Film is made up of several 
incidents, among the most com- 
pelling being the triumph of UN 
medical workers over such diseases 
as yaws. 

Film boasts some excellent cam- 
era work by Jose Carlos Carbajal, 
whose. Mexican footage had an 
almost third-dimensional quality, 
and by Adrian Jeakins whose black- 
and-white work in Thailand fre- 
quently had the impact of color. 
Rex Warner’s fine narrat'on is 
well-voiced by Michael Gou^h. 
Elizabeth Luy tens’ score is fre- 
quently too busy. Kap. 


Overland Pacific 

(COFOR) 

Jack Mahone' r , tv’s “Ran?* 
Rider J’ heading regulation 
feature western for the pro- 
gram action market. 


Hollywood, Feb. 8. 
United Artists release, of a Worla 
fEddie Small) production. Star' • ^ 
Mahoney, Peggie Castle. Adele Jc -ens. . 
Directed by Fred F. Sears. Screen- 1 ' v- :’* 
Robert Bren, Gladys Atwater, MarUa 
Goldsmith; ; story, Frederic I onis i;oxs 
camera tcolor-by Color Corp. . of A m'er •*;»'*■••• 
Lester White; editor, Bernard Sm-ill. Pre- 
viewed Feb. 2, '54. Running lime. 73 
MINS. 

Rose Granger Jack Mahoney 

Ann Dennison Pegric Castie. 

Jessie Lorraine .......... Adcle .Jcigens 

Del Stewart ............. WUli-.m 

Mr, Dennison Wsltci; ! £ 

Sheriff FTaney Chubby Johnson 

Dark Thunder PJt 

Jason,!,, Chris Alcnide.. 

Week* • Phil Clmnibcrs- 

Broden George Eldred. e 

Saber v ‘ D'-'t Kioh 

Perkins House Tctors Jr* 


Regulation western action is run 
off in this feature . oater ard 11 
should prove an okay cnti’. v lor 
program, bookings, mostly bccau.-.e 

( Continued oh page 20 ) 


Wedneftday, February 10, 1954 



Distribs* Right to See Exhib Books and Submit 

Evidence Is Upheld 


In a* decision that could have 
far-reaqhlng significance, the Cir- 
cuit Court of Appeals, in New Or- 
leans has ruled that a lower court 
cannot dismiss a distributor action 
against exhibitors on boxoffice 
fraud grounds until the distribs 
have been given opportunity to 
present evidence. 

Federal Court in the Northern 
district of Mississippi threw out 
complaints by Loew’s, Warners, 
Columbia and Universal. They had 
charged L. B. Bays and associates, 
operating the Grenada and Pix 
Theatres, Grenada, Miss., with un- 
der-reporting of grosses. Motion 
for a summary judgment dismissing 
the action was made by the de- 
fendants. 

Circuit Court reinstated the case, 
noting that the distribs should 
have been given the privilege of 
inspecting the defendants’ books 
and presenting its version of the 
issues in court. Circuit tribunal 
also found that the defendants, via 
a series of motions and other 
maneuvers, tried to keep the plain- 
tiffs “off balance 0 and made the 
“attacker appear as the attacked.” 

Repping the distribs were Earl 
T. Thomas and L. O. Smith of 
Jackson, Miss., and Edward A. 
Sargoy and John F. Whichler, of 
Sargoy & Stein, N. Y. Walter P. 
Armstrong of Memphis and Philip 
Stone of Oxford, Miss., were coun- 
sel for the exhib defendahts. 


Lantz Cites Economics 



Up 165%, Rentals 15% 

Hollywood, Feb. 9. 

Cartoon rentals have risen 15% 
in the last 10 years while costs 
have gone up approximately 165%. 
That was the statement of Walter 
Lantz, cartoon producer, who de- 
clared his fellow producers can’t 
stand . another salary raise. Car- 
toonists are currently asking pay 
hikes ranging from 55% to 94%, 
he said. 1 

Lantz pointed out that cartoon 
producers 30 years ago received 
more for their product than they 
do today. He added that an aver- 
age for four years is required to 
get back the negative cost of a car- 
toon. 


ALL-FEMME VA. CENSORS 


Widow of State Judge Gets $5,264 
In Taking Over on Board 

Richmond, Va., Feb. 9. 

Mrs. Herbert B. Gregory of Roa- 
noke has been appointed to the 
Virginia Division of Motion Pic- 
ture Censorship to fill the post 
vacated by the death of J. B. Ben- 
erley, former head of the board. 
Other two members of the board 
are Mrs. Lollie Whithead of Am- 
herst and. Mrs. Russell F. Wagers 
of Appomattox. 

Appointment was made by At- 
torney-General Lindsay Almond, 
Jr., head of the state’s Department 
of Law under which the Censor- 
ship Board operates. Mrs. Gregory 
is the widow of. State Supreme 
Court Justice Herbert B. Gregory, 
and currently is a fraternity house 
mother at Washington & Lee Uni- 
versity. 

Positions on board are budgeted 
the next fiscal year at a salary 
of $5,264 and for the year following 
at $5,600. 


Texans Attend Mexican 
Union Convention Feb. 11 

; . San Antonio, Feb. 9. 

A delegation from the Motion 
^^ ture Operators Union, Local 
407, has been invited to attend the 
Mexican Unions’ national conven- 
tion scheduled to be held in Tam- 
pico Feb; 11-13. 

Among the members of the local 
group to go are Benno Kusejiburg- 
or, prez; W. B, Keeler, biz manager; 
Alfredo Pena and Manuel Ayala. 


Art Is As Art Poes 

ColUhvbus, Feb. 9. 

Every year the Motipn Pic- 
ture Council, a group dedi- 
cated ; to “better films,” holds 
an afternoon meeting at the 
World Theatre, city’s only art 
house. Last week an elderly 
lady called Charles Sugarman, 
World manager, to schedule 
the Council’s meeting late in 
January.. They settled on. a 
date and Sugarman told her he 
would screfen the picture that 
would be current then, or his 
nejet attraction, if a print was 
available. All this for free. 

“Now, young man,” said the 
lady to Sugarman, “just where 
is your theatre and ho\v do we 
reach it?” 



Exhibitors pursuing the idea of 
financing production to balance 
against any shortage of films from 
the distributors must think in 
terms of a. full lineup of pix, ac- 
cording to Julius M. Gordon, Tex- 
as circuit qperator. Swinging into 
production on a one-shot basis 
simply serves no purpose at all, 
he states. 

Gordon explains it this way: 
“Unequivocally, the need of this 
industry is for more production of 
good motion pictures. It is the 
only long-pull salvation for the- 
atre exhibitors throughout the 
U. S. 

“The previously-tried method of 
financing a single producer in the 
making of a single picture , has 
proved inadequate due to the > fact 
that the major distributing com- 
pany, distributing such a picture, 
merely cuts one picture from his- 
own proposed schedule and leaves 
the industry just as short as be- 
fore. 

“Thus, it seems to me ... it is 
up to a group of exhibitors to, in 
some method, finance and encour- 
age a scheduled number of re- 
leases per year, distributed inde- 
pendently of the major distribu- 
tors.” 

Gordon is among the key mem- 
bers of Theatre Owners of. Ameri- 
ca. who have been endorsing the 
exhibs-into-production idea. Spe- 
cific plans have yet to be mapped, 
however. 


Avert Strike of Carriers 
Affecting 800 Theatres 

Intervention of the State Medi- 
ation Board averted a strike of 
film carriers in the New York met- 
ropolitan area which threatened to 
close 800 theatres. Settlement was 
reached late Friday (5) when Jay 
Kramer, of the State agency, re- 
ported that an agreement had been 
reached between Local 817 of the 
AFL teamsters and the Film De- 
livers Group, Inc., which repre- 
sents 14 film carrier companies. 

New two-year pact, expiring Dec. 
31, 1955, provides for “substantial” 
wage hikes for. carriers and help- 
ers, ^increases the number of paid 
holidays from nine to 11, and in- 
cludes an employer-paid family 
health insurance plan and $2,000 
life insurance protection. 

According to Kramer, pact also 
stipulates there will be no lay- 
offs unless there is a “significant” 
loss in business; If there is a dis- 
pute relating to a “significant” 
loss, the matter will go to an arbi- 
trator* 


Amalgamated Buying Service of 
New Haven and New York, which 
services some 20 theatres, has* be- 
gun to handle film buying for a 
group of four exhib-oWned tv sta- 
tions and expects to add others on 
an individual basis. 

Action of Amalgamated, which 
is headed by Lew Ginsburg, fol- 
lows the collapse of plans for an 
organization of theatre operators 
who either own stations or have 
applied for them.. Group had: gone 
as far as querying the Justice 
Dept, in Washington and getting 
a tentative okay provided no ex- 
clusivity was involved. 

There are currently 27 exhib- 
operated tv stations bn the air; 
seven have construction permits 
and .25 have applied. 

Ginsburg plans to buy for as 
many theatre-owned tv outlets as 
possible and expects to service a 
dozen or so within the near future. 
Original plan had exhibs getting 
together and setting up an office 
of their own to do the buying. 
Now, everything’s to be done on 
an individual basis. 

Currently on the Amalgamated 
customer list are WRTV, the Wal- 
ter Reade station in Asbury Park, 
N. J ; KCRI-TV; Des Moines (My- 
ron Blank); WDAK-TV, Columbus, 
Ga., and WJBF-TV, Augusta, Ga., 
both E.D. Martin outlets. 


U Reissuing ‘EggV 

Universal has set “The Egg 
and I” as a. reissue in May, 

The 1947 release, which 
marked the upturn in U’s fi- 
nancial fortunes, is the com- 
pany’s first reissue since it 
made its deal with Realart 
Which handles the U oldies 
from: 1933 to 1946. 

However, U is also doing a 
repeat on “Hamlet,” a J. Ar- 
thur Rank pic. 


D Sees 'Miller 



Los Angeles, Feb. 9. 

Bernard Reich, Beverly Hills at- 
torney, will appear in Federal 
Judge Ben Harrison's court on Feb. 
15 to apply for leave to take a 
deposition from Howard Hughes 
in connection with the complicated 
RKO minority stockholders’ suit 
brought by Eli and Marion Castle- 
man. Complaint is that Hughes’ 
control of the company has cost 
approximately $38,000,000. 

Reich also served notice that the 
case will be reopened in all its 
aspects, and that he will ask the 
court to set aside a motion quash- 
ing service on Hughes, or else to 
secure the appointment. of a Master 
to investigate charges of collusion 
in connection with the switching 
of the suit to Las Vegas. 

In a new 32-page affidavit sup- 
porting his latest moves* Reich de- 
clared that the case, originally 
filed here, was moved to Nevada 
as a result of a “plan and scheme 
on the part of the plaintiffs’ N. Y. 
attorneys and the defendants to de- 
prive” the Federal Court here o’f 
jurisdiction. 

“The State Court in Nevada,” 
Reich declared, “was chosen by the 
defendant Hughes contrary to the 
interests of the corporations which 
do no business in Nevada and the 
other defendants, directors of the 
corporations, who do not reside in 
Nevada, It is clear also that plain- 
tiffs’. N, Y. attorneys acquiesced in 
the Nevada action in the hope of 
obtaining a settlement far below 
what stockholders were entitled to 
from Hughes but which would pro- 
vide a substantial counsel fee to 
plaintiff’s N. Y. lawyers.” 

Affidavit recited a long series of 
events which Reich contends indi- 
cate the framework of collusion in 
the case. 


Universal’s hopes for -the year 
are riding oh “The Glenn Miller 
Story” which opens today (Wed.) 
at the Capitol Theatre, N. Y. Late 
bandleader’s biography is being 
given whopping promotional push 
via both a $70,000 local ad budget 
and an extensive record tieup with 
Decca. 

Encouraged by the response to 
the pic in its three-theatre Miami 
premiere, U execs are looking for 
“Glenn Miller Story” to outgross 
any prior U release, including 
“The .Egg and I” which grossed 
$5,500,000 domestically and “Fran- 
cis” whiph did in the neighborhood 
of $3,000,000. 

Pic has given U its first chance 
for close and effective cooperation 
with its parent company, Decca, 
which has issued a long-playing 
disk taken from the soundtrack. 
However, Decca is getting plenty 
of competition from RCA Victor 
which also has a disk out. But 
where the Decca record fea- 
tures the U studio orch, the RCA 
platter has th£ original Glenn 
Miller orch waxings. Furthermore, 
it’s , got almost the same numbers 
as the Decca disk. 

U has. had advance men out 
from every exchange and has 
given the production an extensive 
tv buildup via special footage. Odd 
angle i6 that James Stewart, Who 
stars as Gleniv Miller, refuses to 
go on tv. However, he’s being seen 
anyway via clips from the pic. 


+ Chicago, Feb. 9. 

Alleged attempts by Metro and 
20th-Fox to. keep CinemaScopers 
playing on single feature basis 
were cited. Hist week by Melbro 
Amusement Co. (Rockne. Theatre) 
is asking the Chicago Federal Dis- 
trict Court for an immediate action 
prohibiting the distribs from plac- 
ng special restrictions on their pic- 
tures, Denying the request for a 
preliminary injunction, Judge Sam 
Perry said he would hear the case 
at a later date, presumably to 
study the evidence further. 

Melbro, repped by attorney Rich- 
ard Orlikoff, told court that Metro 
would not permit doubling with 
“Knights of the Round Table” and 
that 20th was allowing no deduc- 
tion for second features with “How 
to Marry a Millionaire” and others. 
This, the theatre company argued, 
was crimping the indies’ competi- 
tion with Balaban & Katz, which 
so far has booked all As Cinema- 
Scope features singly. 

Melbro ’s Rockne had slated “Mil- 
lionaire” for two weeks, teamed 
the first frame With “Easy to Love” 
and the second with “Sadie Thomp- 
son.’-,;. . 

Judge Perry did not set a date 
for the hearing. Metro is being 
counseled by Miles Seeley and 
20th fry. Robert Bergstrom, 1 


Aldine Now Viking; Cut 
To 950 Seats for C’Scope 

Philadelphia, Feb. 9. 
Aldine, former Stanley-Warner 
first-run, has been renovated at a 
cost of $200,000 by Harry Sley, 
parking systeiti mogul who original- 
ly bought house to convert into a 
parkade and was balked in this 
plan by city zoning regulations. 

Sley’s new plans call for 
CinemaScope size screen, in inti- 
mate type theatre. * Seating ca- 
pacity will cut from .1,300 to 950 
seats. Air-conditioning has been 
installed; as Aidine was previously 
closed during summer. 

House will be called the Viking 
Theatre under Sley regime, and 
William J. J. Manning, who man- 
ages Locust Theatre, West Philly 
n^be .also owned by parking man, 
has been named general manager. 
Viking Will play first-run pics and 
kickoff is skedded for next month. 



Hollywood, Feb. 9. 

Citing the need of a “poor man’s CinemaScope,” Steve Broidy, 
Allied Artists prexy, urged industry leaders to form a pool for 
research and development of a medium available for smaller the- 
atres. This medium would encompass the features of CinemaScope 
and supplement it for smaller situations. 

Broidy declared the current bickering oVer playing Cinema- 
Scope in smaller houses with a single track instead of stereophonic 
sound is bad for the industry and that a constructive approach 
should be made to; solve the problem. He added; “We should 
seek to maintain and improve the standards set by , CinemaScope 
to insure a future at the boxoffice.” 



lith in From Paris; 
MPEA Post to Spiegel; 
Hetzel Free for ’Policy’ 

Ted Smith, former Paris man- 
ager for the Motion Picture Export 
Assn., arrived in N.Y. last Week 
to take over his duties as head of 
the MPEA’s European section at 
the N. Y. homeoffice. 

Smith is being replaced in Paris 
by Marc Spiegel, the MPEA form- 
er German rep, who will have the 
title of continental manager for 
the assn. In N.Y., Smith will take 
over many of the duties formerly 
carried by Ralph Hetzel, MPEA 
exee v.p., who will be thus free to 
devote himself to the broad policy 
issues since he heads the entire 
MPEA foreign setup under MPEA 
prexy Eric Johnston. 

Sniith was in Paris for the MPEA 
for two years. Late last year he 
helped negotiate the French film 
agreement which the French now 
refuse to implement. 


NEVER MENTION THE WORD 


Praise Ben Dargush for Cool 
Handling; of Fire; 


Rochester, N. Y., Feb, 9. 

Benjamin Dargush, supervisor of 
the Rochester Schine neighborhood 
theatres, has been “saluted” by the 
local evening daily in a special edi- 
torial page feature for his psycho- 
logically smart action when fire 
broke out during a recent Sunday 
matinee at the Riveria Theatre, 
which he manages. 

Dargush, after he had been in- 
formed a room off the rear of the 
balcony was ablaze, stepped on to 
the stage and without mentioning 
the fire, announced to the crowd of 
400 — mostly kids — that there had 
been some trouble and would 
everyone please clear the theatre, 
using the side exits. Less than two 
minutes later the theatre had been 
cleared sarts panic. 

Damage from fire: $8,000. All 
Riviera ticket stubs that day were 
good for admission to another local 
Schine theatre, which was running 
the same bill. 


Makelim Acquires Four 
Made by Pickford-Rogers 

Hollywood, Feb. 9. 

Hal R. Makelim’s Atlas Pictures 
has acquired rights to four pix 
made by company headed by Mary 
Pickford, Buddy Rogers, Ralph 
Cohn for United Artists release 
seven years ago. 

“Sleep My Love,” made under 
Triangle banner; “Adventures of 
Don Coyote,” “Stork Bites man,” 
and “Susie Steps Gut,” made under 
Comet tag, are the features. 






Wednesday* Ftkirf 10, 19S4 




PICTURE GROSSES 


Chi Healthy; looey’ Great 




Chicago, Feb. 9. 

Biz is dipping slightly In most 
soots this round, largely^ because 
nf an inclement weekend. How- 
Svef the overall pace remains 
healthy. Three new entries all are 
Setting off to fast starts, with 
"Money From Home” racking tip 
a great $28,000 at the Grand: ‘‘For- 
ever Female” looks nice $10,000 
nt the Monroe. The United Artists 
should pick up fancy $21,000 with 
"Escape from Ft. Bravo.” 

Second week of “Eddie Cantor 
Story” at McYickers is torrid. 
"Khyber Rifles” at Oriental looks 
very good while Roosevelt heads 
for a strong frame with ‘‘3 Sailors 

^Third rodtid of “Miss Sadie 
Thompson” is pulling nicely at 
Chicago with' stageshow^ helping. 
“Knights of Round Table” is brisk 
In fourth at the State-Lake while 
“12 Mile Reef” is ditto in fifth 
at the Woods. In 28th week at 
the Palace, “Cinerama” continues 
socko. 

Estimates for This Week 

Chicago (B&K) (3,900; 98-$1.25) 
—“Sadie Thompson” (Col) (2-D) 
with stageshow (3d wk). Fast $32,- 
000; Last week, $40,000. 

Grand (RKO) (1,200; 55-98)— 
“Money From Home” (Par) (2-D) 
and “Jivaro” (Par) (2-D). Great 
$28,000 or near.- Last week, ‘‘Easy 
to Love” (M-G) and" “Diamond 
Robbery” (M-G) (6th wk), $3,700. 

Loop (Telem’t) (600; 98-$1.25)— 
“Living Desert” (Disney) (7th wk). 
Nice $9,200. Last week, $9,800. 

McVickers (JL&S) (2,200; 65- 
$1.25)— “Eddie Cantor Story” (WB) 
(2d wk). Hot $20,000. Last week, 
$33,000. 

Monroe (Indie) (1,000; 55-98)— 
“Forever Female” (Par). Fine $10,- 
.000 or close. Last week, “Lure of 
Sila” (IFE) (4th wk), • $3,700. 

Oriental (Indie) (3;400; 98-$1.25) 
—“Khyber Rifles” (20th) (2d Wk). 
Way off but good $26,000. Last 
week, $45,000. 

Palace (Eitel) (1.484; $1.25-$3.60) 
—“Cinerama” (Indie) (28th). Still 
great at $41;000. Last week, $35,- 
500. 

Roosevelt (B&K) (1,400; 55-98)— 
“3 Sailors and Girl” (WB) and 
“War Paint” (UA)' (2d wk). Hold- 
ing up stoutly at $16,000. Last 
week, $20,000. . 

Selwyn (Shubert) (1,000; $1.25- 
$2.40)— “Julius Caesar” (M-G) (7th 
wk). Okay $12,500. Last week, $15,- 
500. 

State-Lake (B&K) (2,700; 98- 
1.80)— “Knights Round Table” 
M-G) (4tlr wk). Torrid $37,000. 
Last week, $42,000. 

Surf (H&E Balaban) (685; 98)— 
“Folly To Be Wise” (Indie) (m.o.) 
(3d wk). Fairish $2,700. Last week, 
$3,200 

a United Artists (B&K) (1,700; 55- 
98)— “Ft, Bravo” (M-G) and “Three 
Young Texans” (20th). Potent $21.- 
000. Last week. “Wild One” (Col) 
and “Drums of Tahiti” (Col) (2d 
wk). $17,000. 

.Woods (Essaness) (1,198; 98- 
$1 25)— “12-Mile Reef” (20th) (5th 
^-•Goodly $16,000. Last week, 
$18,000. 

World (Indie) (587; 98)— “Little 
Fugitive” (Burstyn) (7th wk). 

$3,600. Last week, $4;000. 
..^•, 1 u fffeld (Lopert) (430; 98)— 

Gilbert and Sullivan” (UA) (3d 
wk). Nice $4,600. Last week, $5,000. 


Estimate# Are Net 

Film gross estimates as re- 
ported herewith from the vari- 
ous key cities, are net;L e., 
without the 20% tax. Distrib- 
utors, share on net take, when 
playing percentage, hence the 
estimated figures are net in- 
come; 

The parenthetic admission 
prices; however, as indicated, 
inelude the U. S. amusement 
tax. . « 



?> 


Del; Tire’ Sharp 14G, 
I' Lively at 16G 


tj. Detroit, Feb. 9. 

af ~, lz ls generally good this week 
at downtowners. “Wicked Woman” 
tv°n>v 0C r at the Madison. “Mpjes- 
is solid at the Palms. 
Uv^ a ^ Flre ’ shapes sharp at the 
S a ° ad :Gapitol. “Man In Attic” is 
IJKay in second week at the Fox. 
Unerama” looks great again in 
47th week at the MOsic Hall. 
Estimates for This Week 
*°x (Fox-Detroit) (5,000; $1)— 
c ^ a an „ l n Atti c » (20th) arid “Man 

Sn y f 2 ? th - ) (2d wk). Solid $21 ,- 

• t ast week; $32,000. 

(United Detroit) (4,000; 
Wirt • 2 e'^ COmmand ” .(WB) (2d 

$25 000 SOCk $ 12 »°<^ Last week, 

^PaJrns (UD) (2,961; 80-$D— 

O’Keefe” (WB) and 


Omaha, Feb. 9: 

General first-run pace continues 
offish despite unusually mild 
weather. “King Khyber Rifles” 
looms big at Orpheum. “War Ar- 
row” and “Wild One” are rated be- 
low par. “Knights Round Table” 
still is sturdy in third stanza at the 
State. 

Estimates for This Week 

Brandeis (RKO) (1,100; 50-75)— 
“Wild One” (Col) and “El Alamein” 
(Col), Oke $6,500. Last week, 
“Paratrooper” (Col) arid “Paris 
Model” (Col), $7,500. 

Omaha (Tristates) (2,000; 50-76) 
—“War Arrow” (U) and “Yukon 
Vengeance” (AA). Fair $6,000. 
Last week, “Boy From Oklahoma” 
(WB) and “Golden Idol” (AA), 
$7,000. . 

Orpheum (Tristates) (2,890; 70- 
$1)— “Khyber Rifles? (20th). Big 
$17,000. Last week, “Eddie Can- 
tor Story” (WB), $10,500 at 65-85c 
scale • •• 

State (Goldberg) (875; 80-$l)— 
‘Knights Round Table” (M-G) (3d 
wk). Sturdy $5,000 after $8,500 in 
second round. 


‘MONEY’ BRISK 14|G, 
WLS; ‘CANTOR’ IOC 

Indianapolis, Feb. 9. 

^Biz bs steady but not spectacular 
at most first-run. situations here 
this stanza, “Money From Home” 
at Indiana is standout Playing 
3-D version, it is stout. “Easy to 
Love” at Loew’s shapes nice while 
“Eddie Cantor Story”' at Circle 
shapes lively. 

Estimates for This Week 

Circle (Cockrill-Dolle) (2,800; 60- 
85)— r“Eddie Cantor Story” (WB) 
and “Texas Badman” (AA). Nice 
$10,000. Last week, “Forever 
Female” (Par) and “Flight Nurse” 
(Rep), $11,000. 

Indiana (C-D) (3,200; 95-$L25) 
— “Money From Home” (Par) (3-D). 
Stout $14,500. Last week, “Majes- 
ty O’Keefe” (WB), $10,000 at 60- 
85c scale. 

Keith’s (C-D) (1,300; 60-86)— 
‘‘Nebraska” (Col) and “Singing in. 
Corn” (Indie) (3-D). Tepid $4,000. 
Last week, subsequent-run. 

Loew’s (Loew’s) (2,427;60-85) — 
“Easy to Love” (M-G) arid “Mis- 
sion Over Korea” (Col). Nice 
$11^000. Last week, “Escape Ft. 
Bravo” (M-G) and “Marshall’s 
Daughter" (UA), $10,000. 

Lyric (C-D) (1,500; 50-76)— 

“Miss Robin Crusoe” (20th) and 
‘‘Yukon Vengeance” (AA). Mild 
$5,500, with All-Star Jamboree on 
stage replacing second feature 4 
Sunday only. Last week; “Dia- 
mond Queen” (WB) and “Down 
Laredo Way” (Rep), $6,000, same 
setup. 


‘Helf High MO, 




Ooo'°‘V N f urse , (Rep). Solid $18,- 
week - “Taza” (U) (3-D) 
Alamein” (Col), $16,000. 
(UD) <1*900 * 804D- 
Aw, m Woman” (UA) and “Fort 
Algiers (U). Big $16,000. La$t 
i Continued on page. 20) 


‘Cantor’ Sockeroo 14G, 
Denver; ‘Money’ $12,000 

~ • Denver, Feb. 9. 

“War Arrow” at the Denver and 
“Eddie Cantor Story” at the Para- 
mount are top grossers currently, 
“Money From Home” also is smash 
at Denham and is holding. 
“Saadia” is getting a few. extra 
days after fair week at the Broad- 
way. “Taza” looks trim in two 
houses. . 

Estimates for This Week 

Aladdin (Fox) (1,400; 50-85) — 
“Little Fugitive” (Burstyn). Nice 
$5,000 or near. Last week, “Living 
Desert’’ (Disney) (6th wk), $4,000. 

Broadway (Wolfberg) (1,200; 50- 
85)— “Saadia” (M-G). Fair $5,500. 
Holding. Last week, “Quo Vadis” 
(M-G) (2d wk), $6,500. 

Denham (Cockrill) (1,750; 50-85) 
—“Money From Home” (Par) (3- 
D). Qreat $12,000 or better. Stays 
on. Last week, “Cease Fire” (Par) 
(2d wk), $0,500. 

Denver (Fox) (2,525; 5045) — 
“War Arrow” (U) and “Jennifer” 
(indie). Fine $15,000. Last week, 
“Khyber Rifles” (20th) (2d wk), 
$13,500. 

Esquire (Fox) (742; 50-85) — 
“Little World Don Camillo” (IFE) 
and “Secret Conclave” (IFE). Fair 
$2,000. Last week, “Conquest of 
Everest” (UA), $4,000. 

Orpheum (RKO) (2,600; 50-85) — 
“Best Years Lives” (RKO) (re- 
issue). Good $11,000. Last week, 
on reissues. 

Paramount (Wolfberg) (2,200; 
50 - 85 )— ‘‘Eddie Cantor Story” 
(WB). Fancy $14,000 or close. 
Last week, “His Majesty O’Keefe” 
(WB> and “Hello Frisco” (Indie), 
$15,000. ' 

Tabor (Fox) (1,967; 50-85) — 
“Taza, Son of Cohise” (U) (3d) and 
Yellow Balloon” (AA). Trim 
35,000, Last week, “Flight Nurse” 
(Rep) and “Geraldine” (Rep), 

$5,500. ^ 

Webber (Bailey) (712; 50-85) — 
“Taza” (U) and “Balloon” (AA). 
Gdod $2,500. Last week, “Flight 
Nurse” (Rep) and “Geraldine” 
(Rep), same. 

Jack Labow Promoted 

Jack Labow has been upped 
from RKO branch manager in To- 
ronto to Canadian district man- 
ager. 

Labow, an RKQ-ite since 1947, 
succeeds Carl Peppercorn, who re- 
signed last month t<r enter another 
business. 


* Philadelphia, Feb. 9. 

New product and good weather 
are pushing biz here this session to 
much higher levels. . Biggest coin 
likely will go to “Hell and High 
Water,” with whopping $40,000 at 
the Fox. “Julius Caesar" shapes 
very potent at the Arcadia. “Majes- 
ty O’Keefe” packed a wallop from 
kickoff and will land a mighty total 
at the Goldman; Judy Holliday 
sparked opening of “Should Hap- 
pen To You,” with Stanley having 
a big session in prospect. “Cine- 
rama” is getting a nice shot in arm 
at Boyd via half price for juves on 
Sunday. 

Estimates for This Week 

Arcadia (S&S) (625; 99-$1.50) — 
“Julius Caesar” (M-G). Terrific 
$25,000. Last week, “Mogambo” 
(M-G) (17th wk), $5,000 in 5 days. 

Boyd (SW) (1,459; $1.30-$2.80)— 
“Cinerama” (Indie) (18th wk). 
Great $24,700. Last week, $23,000. 

Fox (20th) (2,250: 74-$1.50)— 

“Hell and High Water” (20th). 
Giant $40,000 or close. Last week, 
“Three Young Texans” (20th), 
$ 12 , 000 . 

Goldman (Goldman) (1,200; 50- 
99) — “Majesty O’Keefe” (WB). 
Mighty $24,000. Last week, “Thun- 
der Over Plains” (WB). $10,500. 

Mastbaum (SW) (4,360; 99-$1.30) 
—“Command” (WB) (2d wk). Fell 
off to lean $13,500. Last week, 
$28,000. 

Midtown (Goldman) (1,000; .74- 
$1.30)— ^“Bigamist” (FR) (4th wk). 
Fine $8,500. Last week, $12,000. 

Randolph (Goldman) (2,500; 74- 
$1:30) — - “Sadie Thompson” (Col) 
(4th wk). Fair $14,500. Last week, 
$ 22 , 000 . 

Stanley (SW) (2,900; 74-31.25)— 
“Should HapDen to You” (Col). Big 
$27,000. for Judy Holliday starrer. 
Last week. “Cease Fire” (Par) CO- 
D') (2d wk), 310,000. 

Stanton (SW) (1,473; 50-99) — 
“Living Desert” (Disney) (2d wk). 
Staunch $12,700. last week. $20,000. 

Studio (Goldberg) (500; 85-$1.25) 
— “Caotain’s Paradise” (UA) (7th 
<vk). Big $4,800, Last Week, $5,000. 
which has been figure for several 
weeks 

Trans-Lux (T-L) (500; 99-$1.20) 
—“Moon Is Blue” (UA) (15th wk). 
Neat $4,600. Last week, $5,000. 

‘COMMAND’ SOCK 20G 
IN CLEVE; ‘BABY’ 12G 

Cleveland, Feb. 9. 

“The Command” is sockeroo 
newcomer here this week at the 
Allen. “Walking My Baby Home” 
looks fine at the Palace while 
“Wicked Woman” shapes fast at 
the State. “Knights of Round Ta- 
ble” still is stout in seventh week 
at the Stillman. 

. Estimates for This Week 

Allen (S-W) (3,000; 55-85)— 

“Command” (WB). Sock $20,000; 
Last week, “Public Enemy” (WB) 
and “Little Caesair” (WB) (reis- 
sues),. $16,000. 

Hipp (Telemanagement) (3,700; 
55-85)— “Miss Robin Crusoe” (20th) 
and “Three Young Texans” (20th). 
(Contiriued ori page 20) 


Bway Sloping; ‘O’Keefe’ Nice 50G, 



Although helped by five 'new 
bills, Broadway first-runs currently 
show signs of fatigue, with many 
holdovers and overly-extended 
longriins contributing to the down- 
beat. Rain on one night proved 
the only adverse weather factor. 
The fact that a week preceding 
a holiday (Feb. 12) traditionally is 
offish naturally is iriaklng itself! 
felt. _ i 

Probably the .best newcomer is 
“Majesty O’Keefe,” which looks to 
hit a nice $50,000 opening session 
at the paramount. “Hell and High 
Water” did a good $75,500 in its 
first week at the Roxy but is not 
showing enough promise to hold 
long. It is set to stay only three 
days past the second week. “Rob 
Roy” looms fairly good $21,000 at 
the Criterion; “Man in Attic” with 
eight acts of vaudeville is headed 
for a fine $20,000 or near at the 
Palace. “Holly and the Ivy” looks 
to grab a big $9,000 opening week 
at the Trans-Lux 60th St. 

Still money champ, “Knights of 
the Round Table” with stageshow, 
also was hurt by the downbeat, 
particularly on weekdays. It is 
Winding up the fifth stanza at the 
Music Hall with a very good $120,- 
000, -and stays a sixth. “Long, Long 
Trailer” comes in FOb. 18. 

“It Should -Happen To You” con- 
tinues its big longrun at the State 
with a sock $25,000 in prospect 
for the current (4th) week: Pic 
stays on. “Millionaire” also is hold- 
ing very well with . $15,000 in its 
13th frame at the Globe. It starts 
its 14th week yesterday. (Tues.). 

“Sadie Thompson” is sagging to 
a mild $13,000 in 6-day seventh 
round ended last night (Tues.) at 
the Capitol. “Glenn Miller Story” 
opens today (Wed.)., “Khyber 
Rifles” slipped to a fair $10,000 
in its seventh week at the Rivoli. 

“Escape From Ft. BraVo” is. dip- 
ping to a slow $9,000 in its third 
session at th^ Mayfair. The Astor 
is bringing in “Act of Love” to- 
morrow (Thurs.) night, with regu- 
lar run openipg Friday (12). “Con 
quest of Everest” coritinues solid 
in its ninth frame at the Fine 
Arts while “Golden Coaqh” is do- 
ing likewis'e in third week at the 
Normandie. 

Estimates for This Weelc 

Astor (City Inv.) (1,300; 80-$1.80) 
—“Bigamist” (FR) (7th-final wk). 
Current week ending today (Wed.) 
is down to $4,000 for 6-day session 
after $6,000 for full sixth round. 
“Act of Love” (UA) opens tomor- 
row (Thurs.) night. Regular run 
starts Feb. 12. 

Bijou (City Inv.) (589; $1.80- 
$2.40) : — “Gilbert and Sullivan” 
(UA) (15th wk-5 days). Wound up 
abbreviated session and run here 
Sunday at okay $4,000 after $5,500 
for 1 4th week. House now Closed. 

Baronet (Reade) (430; 90-$1.50) 
—“Final Test” (Indie) (3d wk). 
Initial holdover stanza ended Sun- 
day (7) was fine $5,500 after $7,700 
for opening week._Stays three or 
four more weeks. 

Capitol (Loew’s) (4,820; 70-$2.20) 
—“Glenn Miller Story” (U). Opens 
today (Wed.). In ahead, “Sadie 
Thompson” (Col) (7th wk-6 days), 
dipped to mild $13,000 after $24,- 
000 fo*r sixth full week, to wind up 
very solid run. 

Criterion (Moss) (1,700; 85-$2.20) 
—“Rob Roy” (RKO) (2d wk). First 
session ended yesterday '(tries.) 
was good $21,000 or near. In ahead, 
“Donovan’s Brain” (U A) (2d wk), 
$6,500. 

Fine Arts (Davis) (468; 90-$1.80) 
— “Conquest of Everest” (UA) 
(10th Me). Ninth round ended last 
night (Tues.) held at solid $8,300 
after $11,800 for eighth week. Con 
tinues on. 

Globe (Brandt) (1,500; $1-31.80) 
— “Millionaire” (20th) (14th Wk). 
The 13th week ended Monday (8) 
was fine $15,000 after $20,000 for 
12th frame. Continues. 

Guild (Guild) (450; $1-$1.80) — 
“Times Gone By” (IFE) (6th wk-9 
days). Current 9-day. stanza ending 
today (Wed.) looks like fair $6,Q00. 
“Hamlet” (U) (reissue) opens to- 
morrow (Thurs.). 

Holiday (Rose) (950; 70-31.80)— 
“Duffy of San Quentin” (WB). 
Opened yesterday (Tues.). In ahead, 
“Diamond Queen” (WB) (2d wk), 
was fair $8,000 after $12,000 
opener. 

Mayfair (Brandt) (1,736; 70-$1.80) 
— “Escape. Ft. Bravo” (M-G) (3d 
wk). Current session ending tomor- 
row (Thurs.) is slumping to mild 
$9,000 after $17,000 for second 
week. 

Normandie (Normandie Theatres) 
(592; $1.50-$2,40)— "Golden Coach” 
(IFE) (3d wk). Present round end- 
ing today (Wed.) is heading for 


solid $9,000 after $10,300 for sec- 
ond*. 

New York (Brandt) (598; 55- 
$1.25)— “Lure of Sila" (IFE) (7th 
wk). Holding at $5,000 after $5,400 
for sixth week. “Tomorrow Too 
LateV (Burstyn) (reissue) opens 
Feb. 13. 

Palace (RKO) (1,700; 60-$l. 201- 
Man in Attic” (20th) with 8 acts 
of vaudeville; Current frame end- 
ing tomorrow (Thurs.) looks to hit 
fine $20,000. In ahead, “Flight 
Nurse” (Rep) and vaude, $21,500. 

Paramount (Par) (3,664; 80-$1.80) 
—“Majesty O’Keefe” (WB); Initial 
session winding up tomorrow 
(Thurs.) looks to hit nice $50,000. 
Holds. In ahead; “The Command” 
(WB) (3d wk), $27,000, to round out 
very solid three-week run for this 
initial Warner C’Scoper. 

Paris (Indie) (568; 90-$1.80)— 
Captain’s : Paradise” (UA) (20th 
wk). The 19th frame ended Sunday 
(7) ; held with sturdy $9,000 after 
$10,500 for 18th week. 

Rialto (Mirge) (600; 50-98)— 

“Striporama” (Indie) (lDth wk). 
Current stanza ending ; tomorrow 
(Thurs.) looks like good $4,200 
after $4,600 in 18th week. Holds 
for a couple more weeks. 

RiVoll (UAT) (2,092; 95-$2)— 
Khyber Rifles” (20th) (8th wk). 
The seventh week ended yesterday 
(Tries.) slipped to fair $10,000 after 
$18,500 for sixth. 

Radio City Music Hall (Rocke- 
fellers) (6,200; $l-$2.75)— “Knights 
of Round Table” (M-G) and stage- 
show (5th wk). Holding with good 
$120,000 in current session eriding 
today (Wed.). Stays a sixth, and 
final week. Fourth week was big 
$136,000, albeit a bit below hqpes. 
Long, Long Trailer”(M-G) opens 
Feb. 18. “Rhapsody” (M-G) wlU 
follow prior to opening Easter, 
show. 

Roxy (Nat’i. Th.) (5,717; 65-$2.50) 
—“Hell arid High Water” (20th) 
(2d wk). First round (ended Mon- 
day) for this fifth C’Scope pic from 
20th-FoX looks to hit nice $75,500. 
In ahead. “12-Mile Reef” (20th) 
(7th wk-4 days), $22,500. “Hell” 
will go only two weeks and three 
days, with “New Faces" (20th) due 
in Feb. 19. 

State (Loew’s) (3,450; 85-31.80) 
—“It Should Happen To You” 
(Col) (4th wk). This stanza ending 
tomorrow (Thurs.) is heading for 
a sock $25;Q00 after $33,000 in 
third week. Stays on indef. 

Trans-Lux 60th St. (T-L) (453; 
90-$l;50)— “Holly and the Ivy” (In- 
die). Initial frame ending today 
(Wed.) looks to hit big $9,000 or 
close. Holding. In ahead, “Horse’s 
Mouth” (IFE) (2d wk-9 days), $4,- 
000 . 

Trans-Lux 52nd St. (T-L) (540; 
90-$1.50)— “Lili” (M-G) (49th wk). 
The 48th week ended Monday (8) 
held with fancy $7,400 after $8,000 
for 47th round. Continues on to 
make it a full year here in a few 

mnpp WAiplfC 

Victoria (City Inv.) (1,060; 95- 
$1.80)— ‘Forever Female” (Par) 
(5th wk). Fourth session ended yes- 
terday (Tues.) dipped to mild $10,- 
000. Third week was $13,500. “Top 
Banana” (UA) opens Feb. 19. 

Warner (Cinerama Prod.) (1,600; 
$1.20-$3.60) — “Cinerama" (Indie) 
(36th wit). Present stanza^ ending 
tomorrow (Thurs.) looks* to hit 
great $42,000 after $44,000 for 35th 
week. Stays on indef. 

‘Command’ Paces Hub, 

Loud 25G, ‘Best Years’ 
Big 18G, ‘Desert’ 11G 

Boston, Feb. .9; 

“The Command” at the Met 
shapes as best of the newcomers 
here this frame although the oldie, 
“Best Years of Lives” also appears 
nifty at the Astor. “Living Desert” 
looms big at the Beacon Hill while 
"Saadie” is rated fair at the Pil- 
grim, “Cinerama” shapes stout in 
sixth week at the Boston. 

Estimates for This Week 

Astor (B&Q) <1,500; 60-$1.10)r- 
“Best Years Of Lives” (RKO) (re* 
issue). Should hit nifty $18,000 or 
near. Last week, “Annapurna” 
(IFE) (2d wk-6 days), $3,000. 

Beacon Hill (Beacon Hill) (800; 
50 -$l) — “Living Desert” (Disney). 
Big $11,000. Last week, “Fanfan 
Tulip” (Lopert), wound record- 
breaking 18th week with $3,000. 

Boston (Cinerama Productions) 
(1,354; $1.20-32.40) — “Cinerama” 

(Indie) (6th wk). Stout $22,000, 
Fifth week built to $24,000. 

Exeter (Indie) (1,300; 60-$l) — - 
“Gilbert & Sullivan” (UA) (3d Wk). 
(Continued on page 20) 


10 riCTURES .... t4!snppf Wcdnaritfr, FebnUry 10, 1934 



Twentieth Century-Fox and Wal- 
ter Reade, who buried their hatch- 
ets in the stereophonic sound fight 
Jan. 20 via an agreement to con- 
duct a series of comparative tests, 
are on the warpath again. Issug^ 
now appears definitely headed for 
the courts. 

Tests were called off by' Reade 
when he was told by 20th that, 
whatever their outcome, the com- 
paign had, no intention of budging 
from its original sound policy, i.e., 
not to release its Cinemascope pix 
with anything but four-track direc- 
tional sound. 

This came as a shock to Reade, 
Myron Blank and other Theatre 
Owners of America members who 
had been under , the impression 
that it was the purpose of the 
demonstration runs to determine 
whether Substitution of a “mixer" 
in small theatres was satisfactory 
a nd should, be okayed by 20th. 

The company had its own sur- 
prise in mid-January when Reade 
ran “The Robe" with a mixer at 
his Community Theatre in Morris- 
town, N. J. without the "knowledge 
or prior consent of 20th. Latter 
subsequently tightened its contract 
provision to nix use of any mixing 
device for its films. 

Whatever the misunderstanding 
last week, .each side stuck to their 
guns and fired written Salvos at 
each other. At first there had been 
an attempt to either, get together 
on a statement, or else to approve 
the individual releases, but, it was 
doomed to failure.. 

Reade was in an angry mood. He 
outlined the 20th position as put 
to him and Blank by/Al Lichtman, 
20th director of distribution, that 
"even though exhibitors might sit 
at the tests, their judgments On the 
requirement of stereophonic sound 
wOUld not be respected or consid- , 
ered in Fox's decision." 

The TOA prexy went on: “in 
view of Mr. Lichtman’s statement, 
20th Century-Fox and Mr. Spyros 
P. Skouras, have obviously aban- 
doned the agreement which I made 
with Mr. Skouras on January 20, 
1954. 

“Inasmuch as the results of the 
tests will be disregarded, and in- 
asmuch as Mr. Skouras has already > 
prejudged these results and pre- 
determined what his comany’s po- 
sition will be, and inasmuch as I 
have already appointed committees, 
representing exhibition for these 
tests, on whom I do not wish to 
Impose for an Utterly futile cause, 
and inasmuch as no useful purpose 
could be served by pursuing the 
matter further, we have both de- 
termined to abandon the whole 
Idea of tests and consider our 
agreement as having no. force or 
effect.” 

The 20th statement, signed by 
Lichtman, in a much more concilia- 
tory mood, saw the Reade decision 
to cancel the tests as “a forerun- 
ner for greater cooperation be- 
tween exhibition and distribution 
In regard to the futher establish- 
ment of the succeSs of Cinema- 
Scope.” 

Lichtman went on to" say that 
Reade and Blank agreed with him 
on the superiority of stereophonic 
sound and maintained . “it was 
never the intention of the Sefrion- 
strations to determine whether 
20th Century-Fox would abandon 
Its stated policy of not permitting 
showings Of Cinemascope pictures 
without full stereophonic sound. 
Rather, they were scheduled to 
demonstrate the superiority of the 
complete stereophonic installation. 
, over ordinary or 'mixed’ sound. We 
are at all times willing to hold 
theatre sound tests in order to 
prove this superiority." 

He referred, to 20th’s announced 
willingness to intercede with the 
equipment dealers to obtain long- 
term credits for exhibs and ob- 
served that “it is obvious that both 
of our aims are identical, They 
are, to assist the exhibitor to take 
advantage of Cinemascope.” 

The Reade group doesn’t see it 
that way. It maintains that it 
would be foolish to assume that 
either it or 20th would have been 
willing at the outset to undertake 
the costly and involved tests had.it 
not been understood that the re- 
sults would be conclusive in some 
fashion. 

“What 20th-Fox wants is like 
holding an elec.tiorf with a single 
ballot and a marking that says; 
Sign here!’’, one exhib observed. 
“That may be fine for the one can- 
) r \ M ‘i i-fcas f J'M 


didate , in the running, but it’s not 
the democratic way of .handling 
things." If Reade takes the issue 
to court it'll be a reversal of the 
situation that existed in January 
when 20th moved to sue Reade and 
restrain him from using the mixer. 

Meanwhile, there were defections 
in the exhib ranks. Harry Brandt 
wrote a letter to Skouras, uphold- 
ing exhibs’ right to “run their the- 
atres as they see fit," but urging 
him “with all the persuasion at my 
command, to remain steadfast in 
your conviction and uphold the 
high, standards that you have es- 
tablished for Cinemascope pres- 
entations." He said; he had stereo- 
phonic sound in some 20 installa- 
tions because he was “convinced 
that stereophonic sound is . es- 
sential to our future welfare.” : 

RCA, noting an acceleration of 
stereophonic sound orders coming 
|dn, said the company had skeddeti 
200 additional installations of the 
RCA Stereosoope sound systems. 
Many are in small towns. 

• 

Allied Treated Harrison 
‘Shabbily’— AI Lichtman 

A1 Lichtman, 20th-Fox director 
of distribution, was kept busy last 
week fencing off exhibs’ verbal 
brickbats re Cinemascope gener- 
ally and stereophonic . sound in par- 
ticular. 

To the Theatre Owners of Amer- 
ica board, which had met in Wash- 
ington and had passed a resolution 
to the effect that every exhib 
should have the right to Choose for 
himself what equipment he wants 
to use, Lichtman said: 

“The resolution . . . is in my 
opinion completely proper. How- 
ever, on behalf of Twentieth Cen- 
tury-Fox, I wish to make it clear 
that this corporation will also con- 
tinue to exercise its own preroga- 
tive to produce and market its pic- 
tures in such a manner that will 
continue to serve the best, inter- 
ests of the public, the industry 
and ourselves.” . 

'On the practical side, Lichtman 
disclosed that 20th has asked the 
manufacturers and suppliers of 
stereophonic sound to extend long- 
term credit to such exhibitors (as 
do pot have the cash to lay' but 
for stereophonic sound). 

Addressing himself to the Na- 
tional Allied drivein convention in 
Cincinnati, which had been vocal 
in opposing the 20th position re 
sound in the ozoners, Lichtman 
sounded off in a different key: 

“I think their attitude, hooting 
at Mr. Skouras, is reprehensible,” 
he said. “Instead of applauding Mr. 
Skouras, the drivein convention 
vilified and threatened legal action. 

I was similarly attacked when 
(over the past 30 years) I proj- 
ected a new thought for the bene- 
fit of the industiy as a whole. I 
am confident, on the basis of past 
experience, that all; those men who 
vilified Mr. Skouras will eventually 
applaud' him. I, for one, feel they 
owe Mr. Skouras an apolpgy.” 

Lichtman added he felt the con- 
vention treated the 20th rep there 
—Alex Harrison— “very shabbily!’. 
He added: “This certainly is not 
the American way.” 

He. told the TOA that there are 
now about 1,600. theatres equipped 
to play Cinemascope and that 100 
new ones are installing it every 
week. 20th, he said, sympathizes 
with the small exhibs “whose sole 
opposition to stereophonic sound 
is the immediate, financial one." 

Lichtman assured theatres 20th 
would intercede for them with the • 
equipment , houses to give them 
credit and repeated that it was the 
company’s policy that exhibitors 
playing .Cinemascope must make 
a profit since “anything short of 
a profit for the theatre would con- 
stitute <a failure for the medium 
and therefore of great concern to 
us." 


« . 

Lollier Retires 

Hollywood, Feb. 9. 
After more than 30 years with 
Fox West Coast, W. H. (Bud) Lol- 
lier retired from active duty as | 
chief of the company’s real estate 
department. Jess Elliott will take 
over the realty chores.. 

Meanwhile Lollier will continue 
to handle the circuit’s legislative 
and tax problems. 


‘INSIDERS' STOCK TRADINGS 

Warner, List, Montague Acquisi- 
tions Spelled Out 


< Washington, Feb. 9 . 

Biggest “insider" motion picture 
Stock purchase during the period 
Pec, 11 to Jan. 10 was made by 
Jack L. Warnejr, Securities and Ex- 
change Commission discloses in its 
latest monthly report. ‘ He pur- 
chased 18,300 shares of WB com- 
mon, to up his total to 247,299 
Shares. He owns another 12,750 ' 
shares in a trust account. : ^ 

Other trading disclosed that Al- 
bert A. List purchased 11,796 
shares of common .stock in RKO 
Theatres. He now has 929,338. Wil- 
lard W. Keith bought 500 shares 
of National Theatres common, 
which boosted his holding to 2,000. 
G. Rowland Collins acquired his 
first 100 shares of Loew's Inc.' com- 
mon. ; ‘ 

Preston Davie, member of the. 
board of .Universal Pictures, sold 
600 shares of the studious common, 
but still retains 709, Maurice A. 
Silber picked up 300 shares of 
Stanley Warner common. 

Abraham Montague, of Colum- 
bia Pictures, acquired 10,506 
shares of . the studio’s common, 
whjch gives him a total' of 16,739. 
Joseph A. McConyille bought 5,384 
Columbia common; this gave him 
6,620. Robert L. Huffines, Jr., sold 
out his 1,000 shares of American 
Broadcasting - United Paramount 
Theatres. 



A compromise Cinemascope so- 
lution for dri veins— two-channel 
sonnd — was tested and approved 
by 20th-Fox last week. Tabbed 
generally as “too costly" by the 
ozoners, it also intensified specula- 
tion on the motives behind the 
Company’s grim determination to 
enforce its stereophonic sound dic- 
tum. 

The two-channel sound system was 
demonstrated- by National- The- 
atre Supply at Bloomfield, N. J., 
to the complete satisfaction of 20th 
prexy Spyros P. Skouras and other 
20th execs who said it: resulted in 
binaural sound that greatly en- 
hanced enjoyment of the show. 

The system involves installing 
two speakers in each cat". At the 
projector, the four magnetic 
Cinemascope tracks are “mixed" 
into two, with each fed. to one of 
the speakers. The estimated cost, 
according to National Theatre 
Supply, of wiring a 750-car ozoner 
for the additional sound is $20,000 
or more. . While 20th. maintains it 
can be done cheaper in some of 
the more mpderri' installations, 
drivein operators and equipment 
dealers consider $20,000 a most 
conservative estimate. Cost of the 
large screen must be added to 
the sound work. 

What has many observers won- 
dering are the real reasons be- 
hind the 20th insistence on stereo 
sound. They can see the merit 
of the argument for equipping in- 
door houses, but they hold this 
same reasoning doesn’t apply to 
the ozoners since even 20th admits 
that directional sound in a car 
isn’t practicable. 

There’s plenty of guessing going, 
on why Skouras won’t budge on 
the drivein issue. One theory is 
th.at letting the ozoners go . ahead' 
with single-track would put 20th 
in a position where it couldn't re- 
fuse to service the same print to 
the smaller indoor houses. 

Others believe that the policy 
is tied up the very considerable 
20th: commitments to equipment 
manufacturers. And then there are 
those who take the view that it’s 
largely a personal matter, with 
Skouras and Al Lichtman, 20th di- 
rector of distribution, unwilling to 
back down from a stand they have 
taken so decisively. 

Whatever the reason— and some 
pretty fancy ones are currently 
suggested by exhibs— 20th has said; 
and Skouras repeated again last 
week, that it will not license its 
CinemaScopers to ozoners unless 
they install the two-channel sound. 
There are at present an estimated 
4,600 to 4,800 driveins in the U. S. 


Last year, they netted 20th $8,000, 
. 1000 in film rental. 

. > 1 U 1 U ' i y i'.; 12 i turnip 


/ 




Here are the significant dates in the RKQ-Howard Hughes re- 
lationship: . • • - 

May 16; 1948— Hughes buys control of the corporation from 
Atlas Corp.,' headed by Floyd Odium, vat price of $8,825,500. 
Total of 929,020 shares changed hafids, representing 24% of the 
total. Price per share was 49.50. 

Jan. 1,! 1951 — RKO divorcement, with Hughes deciding to remain 
at management helm of the picture company and trusteeing . his 
stock in the theatre outfit. Stock was split ;on the basis of one 
share , in each of tjie two . new companies for each share In the 
previous parent corporation. >■ / 

Sept. 20, 1952— -Hughes enters deal to unload Jhis picture com- 
pany stock (now totaling 1,014,000 shares) at $7 per share. Buying - 
. group, headed by Chicago's Ralph Stolkin, presents downpayment 
check for $l,250,p0Q to Hughes, and agrees to produce the balance 
on aii installment basis. ^Syndicate subsequently fails to hand over 
the. next payment, forfeits first payment of $1,250,000 to Hughes, 
latter takes over the stock again. 

Nov, 10, 1953 — Hughes sells RKO Theatres stock to* Albert A. 
List and David J. Greene; List paid $3,372,000 in cash and handed 
over 198,500 shares of the picture company • stock to Hughes in 
exchange for voting control of the circuit. 

. Feb. 7, 1954 — Hughes (now owning 1,262,12.0 shares of RKO 
Pictures! proposes to buy out company’s total assets via .deal giving 
other stockholders^ $8 per share for their holdings. 


Howard Hughes’ RKO Buyout Bid 

M aas Continued from page 4 assssas^sssss 


benefits which outright ownership 
of RKO will mean to Hughes. It 
will preclude any other stock- 
holder hassling in the future, And 
the . private ownership will free 
Hughes and officers of RKO from 
the necessity of filiriig periodic re- 
ports on the status of the com- 
pany’s finances and legalistics with 
the Securities & Exchange Com- 
mission. Such filings are required 
only of companies which have a 
public stock issue. Privacy is. 
cherished by Hughes, 

Another factor seen motivating 
the bid is Hughes’ Own personal 
pride. It sterns clear that the 
multi-millionaire wants to erase 
from his slate any evidence show- 
ing that his business behavior has 
meant, losses for others. ” 

Hughes Tool is. a mammoth op- 
eration, engaging in the manufac- 
ture and leasing of oil— drilling 
equipment, aircraft and aircraft 
apparatus. Alleged insiders vary 
on the dollar worth of this enter- 
prise, but most estimates run well 
over $150,000,000. RKO lost 
$10,000,000 in 1952 and, it’s esti- 
mated, about $7,000,000 in 1953. 

The stocktender announcement 
was made in N. Y, and L. A. simul- 
taneously Sunday night (7) and 


Matty Fox’s Bid 

Proposed deal by which How- 
ard Hughes is aiming for 100% 
Ownership of RKO is substan- 
tially thq same type of transac- 
tion which had been offered to 
Hughes by Matty Fox, pard in 
the United Artists operation, 
six months ago. 

Fox was a member of a syn- 
dicate offering to buy the film 
company’s assets at the equiva- 
lent of $6 per share. The group 
had raised $8,0OO,OOO in cash 
and had established bank cred- 
it in the same amount. Hughes, 
though, was asked to take a 
deferment on payment of 
$8,000,000 for his block of 
RKO .stock. Hughes was “in- 
terested” but ‘a deal, of course, 
never jelled. 

Fox felt, and still feels, that 
the company can be placed in 
a money-making position, par- 
tially via branching into tv at 
some future date. 


was followed by the heaviest de- 
mand for RKO. shares in history. 
Trading on the N. Y. Stock -Ex- 
change had’ to be suspended early 
Monday until noon in order to 
straighten out the extremely heavy 
flow of orders. 

Total of 487,200 shares ex- 
changed hands on Monday, the 
first block of 200,000 shares going 
at $5, 3 7 V£. The issue closed the' 
day at $5.12V6, representing a gain 
of $2.25. It closed yesterday 
(Tues.) at the same price. 

Actually, Hughes for some time 
has been in the market for a com- 
plete buy up of RKO. Variety 
first broke the story on Aug. 12, 
195^, at which , time it was related 
that Hughes would offer the . same 
$6 per share. While he wanted 
RKO in its entirety, it was* said 
then that he would accept the 90 
or 95% which would give him the 
same rights as 100% ownership. 

The deal, as now Worked out, 
has as its basis Hughes’ offer to 
purchase from RKO Pictures Corp. 
all of its assets at the $23,489,478 
price, in cash. t This^ is e<^ualto$6 


per share on the 3,914,913 shares 
outstanding. 

The total price includes $7,572,- 
720, which covers Hughes’ own 
stock. This obviously would re- 
vert to him along with all other 
assets. ■ ' 

Hughes communicated the pro- 
posal in a letter to the corporation. 

In this he directs that an RKO 
officer, with authority given him 
by the board; shall notify Hughes 
of acceptance of the offer by 6 p m. 
on Feb. 15. . Deal is then subject 
to an affirmative Vote of a major- 
ity of the RKO stockholders, other 
than Hughes, by March 31. 

As for the actual payment to 
other stockholders, Hughes states: 
“In order to permit each RKO 
stockholder (otherlhan me) to re- 
ceive promptly his pro rata por- 
tion of the $23,489,478 which will 
be paid to RKO upon compliance 
with the terms hereof, I agree that 
at the said stockholders’ meeting 
convened not later than March 30, 
1954, I will vote all my stock in 
favor of a resolution to accomplish 
the following: 

“ ‘RKO Pictures Corp. will, in 
reduction of its capital, pay $6 in 
cash per share for all shares (other 
than the 1,262,120 shares . owned 
by me) tendered for redemption 
during the 60-day period follow- 
ing the. adoption of this resolution, 
or during such. longer period as 
may be considered desirable by 
the company’s attorneys. ”’ 

Now Selling At $2.87 
That the transaction will go 
through without a hitch is re- 
garded as a strong likelihood by * 
Wall Streeters. “I don’t see why 
anyone would turn down $6 for 
a stock that only last Friday was 
selling at $2.87," commented one 
prominent broker. 

Ijf there’s a “joker" in the pro- 
jected deal, Hughes and his advi- 
sors have succeeded so far in keep- 
ing it under wraps. Some trade 
skeptics saw as possibly meaning- 
ful a clause in the Hughes letter 
stipulating that the company, as he 
takes it over, .must be free from 
“liens" and “encumbrances." They 
point to RKO’s bank indebtedness 
of Several million dollars and the 
fact that the outfit is hardly likely 
to be in a position to repay this. 

This was answered by banking 
sources, who underlined that the 
loans are guaranteed by Hughes 
personally , and cannot be construed 
as “lien" or “encumbrance" against 
the corporation. The clause was in- 
serted as a matter of legalistic rou- 
tine. according to experienced 
money men. 


Lawyer in the Act 

Hollywood, F.eb. 9. 
Beverly Hills attorney. Bernard 
Reich warned that a Coast stocks 
holder suit against Howard Hughes 
seeks recovery of $38,000,000 and 
“as long as a single share of stock 
remains in the hands of a person 
other than Hughes I intend to bring 
Hughes to account." 

Legal circles here pointed out 
that Hughes had set next Monday 
(15) as the deadline for the RKO 
corporation’s acceptance of his 
buyout offer. That’s the . date on 
which Reich intends to take 
Hughes’ deposition in the stock- 
holder action. Conjecture is that 
RKO attorneys will seek to block 
this on the grounds that tho 
Hughes Offer paves the waj for 
dismissal of the legal contest. 

I l J 't'» 


RADIO CITY BOOKINGS 


flo Production* Pending But 12 Features Are : In 
Rclea»e— Spec Firm*’ Views 


what’s happened to 2E*D? 

5." the midst of 20th-Fox4 ag- 
ive moves to ’Win wide ae- 
gll nee for CU>em*Sc0pe and Ute 

Sous controversy, anent' the in- 
Siation of stereophttalc sound, 
the industry has^^aU' htrt stopped 
discussing the ♦original -depth me- 
dium. 1 ... V_ V' ; 

A Variety; cheek; Or the hiajor 
ctiidios reveals that not 'd; single 
one is currently maklng a; 3-D film 
or do any of theft contemplate put- 
ting one in the works. As of the 
ore^ent, there , are 5 a total of 12 
films not currently ’in release, C£ 
2 of boing prpjwted lrt_«.e 3-D 
Lees The fact that these pier 
tures can be shown fh 3-D does not 
mean they will be. . ■■/•/■ • 

Lineup of available 3-D product 
rot yet in release hr as: follows: 
Warner Bros. (2),: “Phantom of the 
Rue Morgue* and “DM M . for 
Minder”; RKO (3), “French Line,* 
••Son of Sinbad/’ and “Dangefous 
Mission ” ; United Artists (3), “Cam- 
els West,” “The Diamond * and 
“Ring Around Saturn*; Universal 
(2) “Creature From Black. Lagoon* 
and “Tam, Son of Cochise”; Co- 
lumbia (1) “Mad Magician,* and 
Paramount (1) “Moiiey From 
Home.’’ Par, Col, and U.have in- 
dicated that their films will he 
available in both versions. RKO is 
trade-showing “Dangerous Mis- 
sion” in 2-D and will, probably give 
exhibs a choice on thje other two. 
Warners has set no policy as yet 
on its productions. 

Spec Co. Slants 

Despite the downbeat attitude of 
the production companies, the 
specs manufacturers ieel the medi- 
um remains a potent tool for spe- 
cific types of yarns. They acknowl- 
edge that the novelty has Worn off 
but point out that the same thing 
applies to widescreen projection 
generally. They stress, however, 
that new techniques have an im- 
portant place in the industry for 
particular types of pictures to give 
them an extra measure of attrac- 
tiveness which will bring about 
more than normal excitement in 
the presentations. The 3-D pro- 
ponents cite the tremendous finan- 
cial stake in the medium, with ap- 
proximately 4,500 theatres equipped 
to project the deepies. 

They use as an argument a state- 
ment made by Herbert Barnett, 
president of the Society of Motion 
Picture and Television Engineers. 
Said Barnett: “By drawing on 
technical sources long waiting to be 
used the industry has brought 
about a reawakening which shows 
promise, of restoring motion pic- 
tures to an important economic, 
position. The new techniques— 
3-D, widescreen, light surround 
and stereophonic sound^are fruits 
of years of research and* huge fi- 
nancial investments and no indus- 
try on earth is. rich enough to 
Avaste them on selling otherwise 
unsalable merchandise.” 

The Polaroid Go., for example, 
feels both in and put of the in- 
dustry crisis. It points out that it 
does not produce pictures, but it 
emphasizes that “the creative and 
dramatic uses of this third dimen- 
sion, depth, to create the illusion 
of reality” is a potential tool ‘in 
the hands of the. picture makers 
and it is up to Hollywood to make 
proper use of it. The company 
stresses that it is continuing to 
niake improvements and cites its 
single-strip Veetograph system. 


LAB WORKERS FAVE 
COLOR: GREEN STUFF 

« ,S th increasing swing to- 

HVoJor, laboratory technicians 
; Y - ai 'e pressing for a reevalu- 
^n of earnings. 

r *7^- Laboratory Technicians 
f 0ca * ^°* some time ago asked 
t le a PP°lntment .of a labora- 
nna ^ 0rke . r s’ committee to watch 
nivS^u ns in each plant. This was 
mos? A^ y ^ he labs f however, since 
tvna them didn’t care for this 
ih ^spection by men working 

competitive outfits. 

ne or two of the labs actually 
0Derati aised rates on certain . color 
color ■ t !,? ns i* ., La hs argue that the 
manrti " ° rlc l£ anything is less de- 
5k ng IT i than , black-and-white 
isn’t cr, Umon maintains that this 


REVISE ST. PAUL'S REP 

* j 

Downtown Holdovers Have Grown 
Fairly Commonplace ' 

Minneapolis, Feb. 0. 

The other Twin City, St. Paul, 
used to be- considered a poor film 
town where holdovers were. Con- 
spicuous by their absence. But it 
has taken these tv times— likewise, 
undoubtedly, 3-D, CineihaScope, 
wide screens and outstanding prod- 
uct— to reverse the condition. . 

As a matter of fact,; dpwntown 
St. Paul theatres now are enjoying 
their greatest boom, despite . ithe 
fact that this area is supposed to 
be suffering a mild business reces- 
sion. Also, there’s a full quota of 
loop first-run. houses with, the re- 
opening of two that had been 
shuttered a couple of years, mak- 
ing a total of six. * 

During the past year St, Paul ' 
grosses for a number of pictures 
have hit recordbreaking levels and 
there have been more and longer 
holdovers than at any other time 
in the city’s history. 

An all-time long-run record has 
been established by “The Rohe* 
which is in its 13th week at the 
World. 

✓ Both “Knights of the Round 
Table* ahd “Beneath the 12-Mile 
Reef” went into their third- week 
at the large-seaters Paramount and 
RKO-Orpheum. 

A number of other pictures have 
recently chalked up runs of from 
two to five weeks, 

’54 Seen Crucial Year 
For Arg. Film Prods. 
With Flood of Yank Fix 

Buenos Air es^, Feb. 2. 

Activity is intense at film studios 
here, as various units struggle to 
complete current productions be- 
fore the customary summer hiatus 
in February. All are eager to pro- 
duce something which might win 
acclaim at the forthcoming Mar del 
Plata Film Festival 

There is something feverish 
about this- year’s production plans 
because the producers, ark- appre- 
hensive for the future, knowing* the 
government has promised Ameri- 
can film distributors relaxation of 
import restrictions. Hence, they 
are ready to oppose any slackening 
of the protectionist policies. How- 
ever, they recognize that 1954 will 
be a crucial year for them' and that 
they must crash international mar- 
kets and increase earnings if they 
are to survive. The alternative is 
to make very low budget pictures 
for the domestic market only. 

Great stress is being laid on the 
need to make tinters for the inter- 
national market and there is also 
vague talk of producing widescreen 
material. Production of color pix 
is somewhat hampered by the cli- 
mate because the special lighting 
required makes the atmosphere 
altogether intolerable. Hence, pro- 
ducers here will use the Italian 
Ferraniacolor stock mainly on pix 
calling for 90% exterior shots. 

The raw stock problem is still 
producers’ biggest snag. They are 
the' prey of dishonest black-mar- 
keteers and recently one studio has 
had to undertake costly, retakes of 
whole sequences because the stock 
was of such poor* quality nothing 
registered on the celluloid. 

Altogether 40 pictures are 
planned or already started for this 
year. This makes it look this will 
be a record production year. 


‘Trailer’ and ‘Rapsody’ - Then 
'Rom Marie* for Easter / 

The Radio City Music Hall has K AtT-Vtaflll 

lined up product which will carry ~ 1 111 U1CU1U 

it through until spring, with open- 
ing dates more or. less set for the — - — — — ■ ■ - ■ ■ 

next three pictures. Current run of i....... 

“Knights of Round Table* initial 5TH HOUSE RELIGHTS 
. CinamaScope pic, is now scheduled ' - — * — * 

to wind up next week, with “Long, Break From Projectionist’s Union 
Long Trailer, another Metro film, . Credited For Aster, Minneapolis 


on 


4 Exhibs with. Cinemascope equip- 
ment who think that each wide- 
screen picture solves their booking 
problem from four to 12 weeks 
“are due for a rude awakening,” 
according * to Allied States Assn, 
board chairman Abram F, Myers. 
The exhib leader maintains, that 


Long Trailer, % another Metro film, Credited For Aster, Minneapolis according to Allied States Assn. 

to come in Feb. 18. After that board chairman Abram F, Myers. 

4U V Minneapolis, Feb. 9. The exhib leader maintains that 

fit!! ^ ,.® stl,nated these two Another Minneanolis shuttered °nce the novelty of Cinemascope 

the Hall through theatre th e 800-sea^^^ wears off “the public will pick and 

until the Easter pic opens a week theatre, tne_«uu seat wop Asier. . is c i. oose amon2 * nirtures in that 

W two tjfor* ^Aprll ,18 (Easier Jffmjg. 5?! 

Sunday ) . *' Rose Marie/’ the second jP* total recent reiignung oi , ven ej ona i pictures ” 

Metro CinemaScoper, has been houses that had been considered tv 1 

nicked as fhe/.F.nctpr nrnrf.iMUn casualties. .._? e _ n °t es that the grosses on 


Another Minneapolis shuttered 


picked as the -Eastec production 



casualties He notes that the grosses on 

United Paramount’s decision to 
reopen the Aster was contingent 

upon making a satisfactory deal °a 

mifk hmianfinnictc' nninn nnri giadually descending scale. And 


Aster is owned by Bennie Ber- 


ger, but the Paramount circuit’s two weeks’” 


find replacements for the pictures 
that will hold up for only one or 


lease has several years to run. 
Chain sold the lease three 1 years 


Myers’ comments are contained 


.. Cincinnati, Feb. 9. due, it was stated, to excessive 
The Allied-sponsored convention booth operation costs. 

of Drivein .Theatre Operators at , - — — 

the Netherlands-Plaza Hotel last 

week came to a dramatic climax Tolnvicinn RovanilAC TlUl 
when" Alex Harrison of 20th Cen- IwVIhlUfl lYCVCUUCh 1UV 

Ar e umfheduted k Meagr^ Goldwyn Reissues 

bate followed with Abram F* My- , vi*- TL l ' D 

ers, Allied counsel. When this sub- Rill Hit luCfttTC K6 B 1\UDS 

sided, president Wilbur Snaper de- _ ... . 

clared “we shall now go back to Initial program of eight old 
a conducted meeting.*' Samuel Goldwyn releases has been 

Representatives of some 300 out- selected for reissue via states 
dope film theatres expressed op : rights distributors across the coun- 


^ V* £ in a voluminous annual report of 

hfrt t p 5 d h a 1 n nth f 1 a ter Allled ’ s activities during the past 

y ear < In a comprehensive analysis 

due i^ w^s stated S excessive of industry problems, particularly 
AnlSuiT JSSc as they affect exhibitors, he singles 

booth operation costs. out 20th-Fox and prexy Spyros P. 


Skouras for a blistering attack re- 
T I • • n w T lating to the company’s policy, in 

lelevision Keveflues lOO the release of Cinemascope pic- 

MsHTCi Goldwyn RoiSSUOS Cinemascope, he maintains, has 

Will Hit Theatre ^ 

Initial program of eight old played into the hands of the film-' 
Samuel Goldwyn releases has been companies in their determination 
selected for reissue via states to exact stilt more onerous terms 

fh. and conditions for such -films as 


uuui. mill uieaues cxpicsscu op- ngnis aisiriDUluis acru»s ■ u«c wuh- arp nv „:i_ui p >, ir. a . 

td bU X Mrs. Frances Goldwyn, the t^ ^ ^ in ^tffid^ pS 

a? U » >r bpetp Producer’s wife, holds deed to from iridie sub-runs and smalltown 

emaScooe releases 1 Charges 8 wfre total of about 40 such dated fea- theatres Vis calamitous,” and ht 

tures, and is understood to be se- accuses the company of attempting 
V ? -nnin. . ili“ Century-Fox had , ectln ' g others {rom this total for 'to make the disaster complete b* 

o. the rerun market. seeking to persuade supposedly 

Spiros SkouLs. head Of 20?h ™pr^ At flrst. Mrs. Goldwya had con- competine «lm 
testing “obstinate and arbitrary sidered licensing the vintage prod- ' C i“'S*?Vh! 

stand'' which confronted Blm parte uct to W 1 *®* 8 **”' However^ the me l*um but also to r «**g c Mha 
with nrocbpptivp nutlav nf nnn revenue potential proved .♦ substan- licensing of their films to theatres 
ta W.Sre^qu"pme y nt ^ lesLthan exacted and the havmg^plete sterophonlc in- 
not necessary.” idea was dropped for the time be- stauauons. 

Operators contended that drive- ! n S* FV'esumably a deal ^with tv He asserts that 20th ‘.‘is making 
ins cannot “plough up their interests will be mulled again headway with its design,” since 

r ■ n Cl M *a ilndh . *MAV«lmr . I f* A V_ HAP i<V«MMA«l A llasnal 


grounds” for speakers which can aftei : i he tissue market is 'ex-, . Metro, has. ignored .fr^uent AUied 
be installed at much less expense hausted. *“ _ 1I *^“ l *’^ es I1 as Jp^Ki9f r • 

in indoor theatres, and that “sev- The first eight to make the the- °f the Round Table would bf 
eral speakers going .into each auto- atrical rounds again date back made available with conventional 
mobile would not be satisfactory.” more than 15 years. They are to single-track sound. _ In this connec- 
Ben Marcus of Milwaukee, as- be sold in packages of two. as fol- tion, Myers said the first Inquiry 
serted that “Skouras could have lows: “Dead End” and “The West, was- to-- M^tr°,ita L ;0<‘tobe*‘. and 

made himself the saviour of our erner”; “Adventures of Marco brought the .reply that M-G had 
industry and the hope of every Polo” and “Nana”; "Come r and set Polipjr since U. had 

exhibitor, but our hopes were shat- Got it” and “Barbary Coast ; Kid no Cinema-Scope pfctures. Myers 
tered by his subsequent demands.” from Spain” and “Cowboy and the notes that although Knights is 


Metro has. ignored frequent Allied 
inquiries as to whether “Knights 
of the Round Tabled would br 


tered by his subsequent demands.” from spain''’ ana "vownoy ana me 
Skouras, said Myers, “is holding Lady.” 
tight to Jjis conditions and ;exhib- Films were gifted to Mrs. Gold- 
itors will have to buy the complete, wyn by her husband on the occa- 
hall of wax to show future-made sion of their 25th wedding anni- 


20th pictures.’ 


versary last year. 


mm 


flV. V, Stock Exchange) 

For Week Ending T uesday (9 ) 



For Half of ’54 Slate 

Hollywood, Feb. 9. 
Columbia is hopping aboard the 
Cinemascope bandwagon, with at 
least half its 1954 program slated 
for production in that medium. 
Every story property will be closely 
inspected to determine its suitabil- 
ity for the anamorphic process, 
Definitely set for Cinemascope 
thus far are “The Pleasure Is All 
Mine ” “Speak to Me -of L'ove,“ 
“West Point,-' “Joseph and His 
Brethren,* “My Sister Eileen/' 
“Pal Joey,* “River of the: Sun” and 
i “Richard the Lion Hearted.” 


1953-54 

Weekly Vol 

.Weekly Weekly 

Tues. 

Change 

High 

Low 

In 100s . 

High 

Low 

Close 

for week 

1714 

12% 

AmBr-ParTh 164 

1574 

15% 

1574 

-f % • 

50Vi 

38 Vi 

CBS, “A” ... 

79 

44%. ' 

-41% 

4474 

+274 

50Vk 

38% 

CBS, “B” ... 

57 

44% 

41% 

44% 

4-3 

2214 

11% 

Got. Pic 

45 

20*i 

20% 

207 a 

— % 

12H 

7% 

Decca 

201 

10% 

974 

10 

— Vs 

5174 

41% 

Eastman Kdk. 

275 

"5174 

50% 

51% 

+ 1 

14*8 

10% 

Loew’s 

368 

14% 

13% 

1374 

— 

7*i 

"AW 

Nat. Thea. . . . 

153 

7 

6% 

67/8 

•+ % 

30% 

24% 

Paramount . . 

58 

28 

27 

2774 

+ % 

361/2 

26% 

Philco 

80 

29*8 

28% 

29% 

+ % 

29% 

21 

RCA- 

497 

26% 

25% 

25Vi 

— % 

5% 

2% 

RKO Piets. . 5644 

5% 

274 

5% 

+ 2 

51/8 

3V4 

RKO Thea. . . 

194 

5 

47 k 

474 

— 

4V4 

2% 

Republic ■ . . 

43 

3% 

3Vk 

3*4 

+ % 

11% - 

9*/i 

Rep., pfd. . . 

8 

1074 

10% 

1074 

. — ■ 

12*% 

874 

Stanley War., 

347 

12% 

1174 

12% 

+ % 

22 Vi 

13% 

26th-Fox . . 

203 

21 

20 

20% 

+ 74 

20Va 

14 

Univ. Pig. ... 

20 

19*i 

19V4 

19% 

. — Vi. 

69 

61 

Univ., pfd. .. . 

+41 

69 

68% 

6874 

+ 74 

171/8' 

11% 

Warner Bros. 

42 . 

14% " . 

14 

14 


84 

62% 

Zenith ..... 

17 

66 % 

65% 

65 V4 

— Vi 



American Stt 

ock Exchange 



6 

2 % 

AlUed Artists 

21 

4*/4 . 

4% 

4*8 

— % " 

17*4 

8% - 

Du Mont . 

103 

10*7 a 

10 

1014 

/— 1/4 

17 Vi 

1.3% 

Technicolor . 

3.7J 

> 13 

12% 

13 

' 

3% 

2*/i 

Trans-Lux . . 

4 

3% 

274 

•3% 

+ V4 




Over-the-Counter Securities 

- Bid 

Capitol Records 9H l 1 

Chesapeake Industries 27k i 

Cinerama . . .................. 1% J 

Color Corp. of Amer. % 1 

Polaroid 56 51 

.U. A. ■ Theatres . . . . . . ». ,. . . ... ,. ... . . . . . . 11 1^ 

Walt Disney .,. 9V 2 1( 

* Actual Volume. 

i Quotations furnished by Dreyfus & Co,) 












9.V4 

27k 

m 

% 

56 

11V4 

91/2 


Ask 
10V4 
3% 
2 % ■ 
m 

58 

12% 


currently in release, Metro “still 
‘s Gold- Professes not to have an answer 
he occa- t0 pur question.” M-G’s attitude, 
ng anni- says Myers, “forces many exhibi- 
6 tors who have admired and patron- 

. — : ized Metro for many years to the 

unhappy conclusion that it is go- 
ing to celebrate its 30th anniver- 
sary by dissipating the good will 
it has built up as 'the friendly 
company.’” 

As for Skouras, Myers says “he 
has made it plain that he will em- 
Net Ploy every procurable means to 

Change punish, undermine, embarrass and 
for week harrass all who oppose his ‘all or 
-f As nothing’ policy.” The Allied 

4-274 leader stresses that there can be 

4-3 “no legitimate criticism of any 

— 14 exhibitor for installing stereo- 

— 14 phonic sound if he can afford and 

-fl feels that it will enhance the en- 

— tertainment offered his patrons.’.' 

+ 14 However, he maintains t that Al- 

4 - 5-r lied’s efforts have been directe'6 

4- V 4 “against the policy of one com- 

— 14 pany, which may develop into a 

42 conspiracy with others, to force 

— exhibitors to install equipment and 

4. 14 otherwise operate their theatres 

. — as dictated by the film companies.” 

4- Covering other aspects of indus- 

4- Vn try problems, Myers condemned 

— V4 efforts to alter the Sherman anti- 

4” trust ect. Any threat to the act, he 

^ said, is of deep concern to indie 

— Vi exhibs. He charges that the At- 

torney General has appointed 0 

4^ — committee of lawyers “heavily 

i, 4 weighted in favor of big business 

' to recommend amendments to the 

^ i/ B antitrust laws.” 

Myers terms the results of the 
Senate Small Business Committee 
hearings a “fiasco/ and also slaps 
___ the Antitrust Division of the Dept. 

of Justice for “apparent bias in 
favor of the film companies.” 


■+■ Vi 
— IVi 


Alliance Theatre, Corp. of Chi- 
cago has issued courtesy and serv- 
ice manual, full of “do’s” and 
“don’ts” for cashiers, doormen, 
ushers and vending attendants. 


It 


'VAwrrv'r j.ondon owici 
l it Martin's Man* Trafalgar HM>» 



Sydney, Feb* 2. 4 

Aussie exhibitors in the tough 
local spots Say that their top box- 
office pix are Hollywood's ridtn’- 
shootin'-flghtin' films. These cine- 
mamen give the thumbs-down sign 
to love epics and “message'' fare 
when buying product from the dis- 
tributors here. Those Hollywood 
Outdoor and western pix cost only 
a nominal rental Down. Under; but 
their b.o. draw is tops. > 

In Cairns, a . far northern 
•Queensland Hey town-populated by 
rough-and-ready workers engaged 
in the canefields, patrons ^yill only 
buy action fare with the Hollywood 
tag. The tougher the picture the 
better they like it. Give them sen- 
timental stuff and they hand the 
pic a real heckling and pass, the 
word around among their friends 
so quickly that the theatre . plays 
only to the ushers on the second 
night. This not only happens in 
Cairns but right through other 
like areas. 

The late Charles- Munro built up 
a huge cinema chain and -a major 
fortune in the Queensland zone 
via keen buying of the so-called 
tough Hollywood product. Munro’s 
successors, headed by ... son-in-law 
Tim Osborne, will follow the same 
blueprint. 

At Thursday Island, hub of the 
Aussie ? pearling industry, action 
pix— the tougher the -better ir- 
respective of vintage, spell boxof- 
ifice; Anything-etee results *ih bad 
biz'. Roy Rogers -.and Gene Autry 
are tops with the folks there. Even 
an old Tom Mix pic will pafck the 
house. Love stuff or sophisticated 
comedy prompts patrons to leave 
the. theatre en-masse. The story 
is told ini T.I. of a native who of- 
fered the theatre management $4 
for a poster showing Roy 'Rogers 
with two guns in his hand. 

In key Aussie industrial com- 
munities, it’s the same story, ac- 
cording to exhibs finger-pulsing 
the local payee. Illghclass fare 
which pulls socko carriage trade 
in city spots is a b.o. zero in these 
spots, which also takes in country 
-centers Where they still take their 
fare in the raw. 


Roy Rogers’ Glasgow 

Debut Full Sellout 

Glasgow, Feb. 2. , 
The Roy. Rogers! westernshow, 
making its Great ' Britain bow at 
the Empire vaude house here, will 
play tb SRO biz dhring the week 
of Feb. 15. Similar conditionsjare 
likely to .apply at the Empire The- 
atre, Edinburgh, the week of Feb- 
22. : .■ 

Long lines of mothers lined up 
for tickets here, and within tWo 
days ..all circle and balcony Seats 
were sold. Prices are hypoed by 
50% for the week, maximum ^be- 
ing $1 instead of ‘the normal 75c. 
Jiive element in audiences caused 
heavy demand on first perform- 
ances. The 41-year-old cowboy star 
and his unit arrive- by plane Feb. 
7. : ■ • ' ; ■ • 



Hit Par ia *53 


'Robe' Biz Soars After 
Adihish Slash in Rome; 
100G Gross in 23 Days 

, Rome,, Feb; 2. 

While the Titanus; production, 
“Bread, Love and Fantasy,” con- 
tinues to lead the :cinema boxof- 
f ice here, 20th-Fox CinemaScoper, 
“The Robe,” is making a .very 
strong comeback for first place. 
Upbeat started after -admission 
prices were cut two > weeks ago 
from $1.60 to $1. 

While doing only around $900 
daily over a month ago, “Robe” 
daily gross climbed to $1,077 late 
in December and on January 25 
it hit $1,430 per day. In 23 days, 
the C’Scoper at the 2,000-seat Capi- 
tol ’ alone 1 has grossed almost 
$ 100 , 000 . 

‘‘Fantasy,” w;hlch stars Gina Lol- 
lobrigida and Vittorio De Sica, 
continues to be the top b.o. film in 
Italy. It preemed Dec* 23 in 12 
major Italian cities^and has broken 
all. boxoffice records. In 34 days 
at. the Barberini and 23 days at the 
Metropolitan here, the pic has reg- 
istered over $94,000. Comparably 
impressive returns have been re- 
corded in ’ other cities. 

Other films doing well in Rome 
are the United s Artists thriller, 
“Homicide Squad.” Playing the 
2,000-seat Metropolitan, in five days 
did $12,393. '“Julius Caesar” (M-G) 
has been running for the past 10 
days at the small Ariston (600-seat- 
er) and Fiamma (880-seater). It has 
grossed $21,554 in that time. 

Universal’s “Mississippi Gam- 
bler” is doing about as big biz 
here as in the U. S. It grossed 
$18,296 in its first five days in 
four Rome theatres. 


Paris, Feb. 2. 

French film production hit par 
last year, as figures show that 114 
films, either completely French or 
on a co-pboduction basis, were fin- 
ished or begun in 1953. This is at 
healthy score for Gallic produc- 
tion. . 1 

' There were 67 com p le tel y 
Frehch productions; 38 Franco*? 
Italo pix with 19 made entirely in 
France* two . partially made in 
France and 17 made entirely in 
Italy; five Franco-Spanish produc- 
tions; one -Franco-German pic 
made in France; one Franco-Anglo 
film made entirely in England; otfe 
Franco- American filrn ; made ; in 
France; and one Franco-Mexican 
pic made partly . here. 

Of the above production- total, 
30 films were tinters which is a 
big rise for the color process here. 
There were 13 pix in Gevacolor, 
nine in Eastmancolor, foiir in the 
Italo Ferranicolor, one in Techni- 
color, ’one in Diacolor and two in 
Kodachrome.* 

Three full-length documentaries 
were made, all on exploration, and 
one full-length montage film on 
the Indo-Chinese situation. Out of 
this number, the Frehch made -an 
impressive show on world film fes- 
tivals and. copped a great number 
of top kudos in comparison to pro- 
duction capacity here. They copped 
13 prizes ;for full-length pix and 
the same : number for short sub- 
jects. They were entered in six 
international fetes and also scored 
on special type kudos. 


Drama in Brit Church; 
3 


Dunlap Quits IMLArg. Post 

Buenos Aires, Feb. 2. 

Stuart B. Dunlap* for over 17 
years . Metro’s • chief executive in 
Argentina, will be retiring; March 
20, to live in California, after. 28 
years spent outside his native U.S. 
His last chore here will be to at- 
tend the forthcoming International 
Film Festival in' Mar dej t> Plata, 
and also preside Over a party which 
the American distributors will 
throw for the -'Argentine ‘ 'organi- 
zers and their ^fficdal guests^ ^ 

Robert L. Graham’, Paramount’s 
local manager,* is slated to- take 
over Dunlap's rriantle as dean of 
the American distributors ..and 
president of their assocl^ion, . 


t: ■ 





. Tokyo, Feb. . 2. 
Japanese longhairs willvnot get 
the same array of foreign; talent in 
'54 as in ’53, unless government 
controls on -expenditure' of foreign 
coin -are* related. A- Variety poll 
of organizations which usually 
sponsor, tours of foreign artists re» 
veals that plans jare, nebulous for 
1954, wjth no falent booked; of the 
stature of last year’s visitors* such 
as violinist Isaac Stern, ballerinas 
Alexandra Danilova and ; Nora 
Kaye, pianists Solomon and Wal- 
ter Cieseking or singer Marian An- 
derson. ■ 

-Japan Broadcasting COrp. (NHK) 
has booked only , two- attractions so 
far. They are 'the Budapest String 
Quartet, which returns in Febru- 
ary' for Its second visit to Japan, 
and- Austrian conductor 1 Herbert 
vanKarajan, who will -lead the 
NHK -orchestra in a 'series’ of . con- 
certs in April, 

Mainichi Newspjaper,- which 
brought in some Of . 1953 's top 
talent, . so far has booked only two 
artists, French pianist Germaine 
Leroux* who arrived this week for 
a month of recitals ; in the larger 
cities, and German pianist Wilhelm 
Backhaus, who arrives in April. . 

Asahi Newspaper, another im- 
porter of longhair performers, will 
sponsor a tour of the De Paur. In- 
fantry Choir, U. S; Negro - vocal 
group. The choristers open in To- 
kyo Jan. 25 and do some concerts 
in other large cities. 

Yomiuri Newspaper, third of the 
Big Three triumvirate of daily 
newspapers in Japan; told Variety 
it had plans fpr 1954. Last year ft 
stuck pretty much to importation 
of athletes such as the All ' Stars 
baseball team, but also brought in 
several longhair names. > 


1st Mex Tinier in Work 

City, Feb. 2. 

> Mexico’s first feature tlnter, 
“With the Devil In the Body” i$‘ in 
work at the Azteca studios here. 
Raul dc Anda and Luis Aguilar 
are producing. Pic stars Aguilar, 
Domingo Solcr and Linda Cristal, 
Argentinian actress. 

De Anda and Aguilar plan to 
^produce two -other color pix in the 
near future. 

‘iCiil O.r 1 3 I f 


HI 

London, Feb. 9. 

A dramatization of Atari Paton’s 
“Cry the Beloved Country,” with' 
three members of the original film 
version in the cast, is currently 
being played for a short season at 
the church of St. Martin-in-the- 
Fields, Trafalgar Square. The en- 
tire pro company is working at 
Equity's minimum rates and the 
production' budget of $1,400 is be 
ing met by the church. No charge 
is being made for admission, but 
audiences are invitfcd to contribute 
to a collection in an endeavor to 
defray part of the cost. 

The stage adaptation by Felicia 
Komai, in' collaboration with 
Josephine Douglas, who also di- 
rected, follows the main theme of 
the novel and film, and uses two 
narrators, one W'hite and one col- 
ored, to fill in story gaps and main- 
tain a continuity link. The treat- 
ment Is necessarily episodic, but 
retains the powerful dramatic situ- 
ations which were the essence of 
the novel. It is staged as a three- 
aeter With a Prolog preceding each 
act and is being played through 
without intermission. 

Charles Carson is the only mem- 
ber of the gast repeating his orig- 
inal film role as the white farmer 
whose son. w>as murdered by a. col-, 
ored boy, Edric Connor and Lionel 
Nrakane, who were also in the 
film, take frCsh ‘ parts. ' 

A single, all -ptiv.*n«c utility s.e.tj 
is intelligently used with sharp 

lighting .effects. 

• ? i ‘ r t'.j f y i 


NEGRO EX-GI CHORUS 
IN SOCK JAPAN TEEOFF 

> ■ ■ ■ i ■ • . 

.Tokyo, Feb. .2. 

The De Paur Infantry Chorus 
opened its 21-concert tour of Japan 
here last week^with an SRO per- 
formance at Hfoiya -Hall. The 30- 
voice Negro troupe is sponsored 
In Japan by Asahi Newspaper, in 
arrangement with A. Strok- After 
six Tokyo appearances the group 
goes to Osaka, Nagoya/ Fukuoka,' 
Sendai and other large cities for 
a series of one-night stands before 
returning to the U.S. end of Feb- 
ruary. 

Press notices were raves, with 
soloists Luther Saxon and George 
Marshall getting heavy mitting 
from audiences. Three different 
programs, are presented alternately, 
with each including folksongs from 
around the world, Bach chorales, 
World War II songs, music by con- 
temporary composers and the in- 
evitable Negro spirituals and work 
songs* 


BOT Sees Rank Cinema 




Actors, Musicians Win 
Fight Vs. 3 Mex Stas. 

.Mexico City, Feb. 2„ . 

Players, performers -end mu- 
sicians, members, qf the national 
actors and musicians unions, with 
strike threats this . month, won: 
their fight against local radio sta- 
tions XEW and XEQ gnd tele sUri 
tion XEW-TV for stations' perma- 
neht staff status and a pay hike. 
These^arfe Emillb Azcarraga syndi- 
cate operatldns: 

Unionists and the stations pacted 
near the deadline for the strike 
set for Jan. 21. Players, perform- 
ers grid musicians won a 10%- 
35% jpay tilt and guarantee that 
senior staff members will always 
have top preference in the choos- 
ing of program personnel.. 



London, Feb. 2. 

The J. Arthur Rank Organiza- 
tion has not contravened the Films 
Act by booking pix for both their 
circuits <Odeon and Gaumont Brit- 
ish) through a single agency, CMA. 
This was the. ruling of . Board of 
Trade prexy Peter Thorrieycroft in 
reply to questions from the Labor 
opposition in the House of Com- 
mons. 

Stephen . Swingler suggested to 
the BOX prexy tliat he should get 
some, independent, person to In- 
vestigate .tlie situation “instead of 
always taking his. information from 
the .very people against whom the 
accusation ” 

V'c. •( )>[ ’ 


Munich, Feb. 2. 1 
• One of the longest carnivals in. 
history is mjlk.ing the lyest Ger- 
man cinema biz. This city, capital 
of Faschings-loying Bavaria and 
the top amusement and tourists 
center of the Country, for example, 
is gearing itself for the highlights 
of the “narrische zeit” (folly sea- 
son) -which began Jan. 9 and runs 
to March 3. ' 

This eight-week period is dread- 
ed by local exhibs; since it’s prob- 
ably .the year’s worst. The Fasch- 
ing got off to a slow start, but now 
there is hardly an evening without 
several major events. Every organ- 
ization and group, all the profes- 
sional associations, the t r a d e 
unions, newspapers, clubs and all 
niteries are * staging their own 
dances and masquerades. A real 
“Munchner” simply doesn’t find 
time to go to the cinema. Apart 
from the time .angle, his financial 
situation is bed for film entertain- 
ment. * • 

Most distribs shy away fropi re- 
leasing top product during Fasch- 
ings time. 

Among the 1954 Fasching vic- 
tims here are the German version 
of “Moon Is Blue” (UA) with only 
16 daj’S at the arty Film-Casino, 
“Lili” (M-G), “The Man Between” 
(UA) and a string of German pix. 
They all failed to round out their 
third stanzas in their preenri 
hbuses. Only victor W’as “Lucretia 
Borgia,” which ran over three 
Weeks in t\vo big theatres. 

However, German firms made 
good- use of the Fasching publicity- 
wise. Gloria films feted 400 film 
people Jan. 16. Three top maga- 
zines and. all the newspapers cov- 
ered the ball extensively. The rival 
Herzog Films organized a “Star 
Parade” as climax of the tradir 
tional “Chrysaothemen” Charity 
Ball. Both times many German 
stars appeared and the ballrooms 
were besieged by fans. 


On-Spot Pix Censoring 
Starts in Mex Studios 

Mexico City, Feb. 2. 

On the spot during production 
film censoring has started here. 
The Ministry of Public Education 
has told the Mexico Producers 
Assn, that it will assign an in- 
spector to view pix in the making 
at studios and on other locations 
in order to^nip anything from be- 
ing lensed which .‘‘can harm the 
public’s culture.” Inspectors are 
to specially watch out for costum- 
ing and reference to* Mexican his- 
tory and customs. 

Differing from the usual official 
custom of making film people and 
other amusement biz impresarios 
pay these inspectors, the ministry 
is to foot the bill for these in- 
spectors. 


Chile Radio Back 

x. > Santiago, Feb. 2. 

ffAdio Chilena, formerly owned 
by W. R. Grace & Co;, is back on 
the^ air after six-months 1 ’ silence, 
undeivhti spices of the Cardinal 
Caro Foundation, Catholfc institu- 
tion. • - 

Eaul Aicardi, wcllknown radio 


„ Vienna, Feb. 9. 

Current crisis and black outlook 
for 1954 Austrian film production 
have resulted In industry-govern- 
ment meetings, to .again explore 
possibilities of some form of state 
fund to underwrite producers 
Such a project dins repeatedly been 
proposed in Vienna* but until now 
industry has staggered along on 
its own at. a*pace of 13 to 23 full- 
length' pix a year. But lack of local 
credit or private Capital for films 
has made the native industry whol- 
ly dependent on west German dis- 
tribs fpr production financing. Now 
the Germans, mostly with sizeable 
studio investments of their own 
to worry about* . are less ahd less 
anxious to spend their, money in 
Austria despite substantially lower 
shooting* costs, here. 

As of Feb. 1 only One Austrian 
studio (the Russian operated 
Rosenhugel) had* any definite film 
on sbboting schedule. • And the 
Wien* Film eoinbo which controls 
all west zone studios reported no 
definite commitments'.Avhatever for 
the current yqar. Russkis are 
finishing a plctUrd based on life 
of old-time Vienna comedian Alex- 
ander Girardi ahd- are planning a 
'‘progressive” version of Mozart’s 
“Don. Giovanni.” Their work is 
financed from Kremlin sources 
without reference to commercial 
income. With one 'exception 
(indie: Mort Briskin) . U. S. pro- 
ducers r have shown no interest in 
Austrian studios despite shooting 
costs 50% less than on the Coast; 

It is known that informal meet- 
ings have been held in last few 
days with reps from ' Commerce 
Ministry, studio ops .. arid producers 
as well as labor uniOns participat- 
ing. . Also known that both the 
banks, and government - are re- 
luctant to ante up a production 
fund after sad experiences in the 
past. The government produced 
pic, “AprUL. 2,000 costing some 
$40Q,000 ana ai worldw-ide floppo 
since its 1952 release, is a case in 
point. 

Austria's 1952 production was 
23 full-length pics; this fell in 1953 
to 13. This is, incidentally the 
total number allowed into West 
Germany under Austro-German 
exchange agreement* A side result 
of this situation has been mass 
migration of. Austrian acting, 
directing and technical talent to 
the Reich. Salaries there run 
about the same in D-marks as they 
do here, in schillings or six times 
better, and so far Germans have 
not discriminated against foreign 
talent. - • 

U. S. distribs here fear this 
crisis may add Impetus to r desire 
long dormant in some branches of 
Austrian government to institute a 
film import quota system -directed 
against American product and de- 
signed to create artificial playing 
time for Austrian features. 


Of ’Voice of Argentina’; 
Plan Appeal to Peron 

Montevideo, Feb. 2. 

The axe fell this month on the 
entire personnel of S.I.R. A., the 
official “Voice of Argentina” short- 
wave’ broadcasting service, which 
latterly operated under the Min- 
istry of Foreign Affairs in Buenos 
Aires. 

. All members of the staff, num- 
bering several hundred, were dis- 
missed without an hour’s notice, 
severance pay, annual bonuses, or 
other compensation, beyond their 
regular wage for December, 1953. 

The staff, which mostly included 
foreign translators, announcers 
and technicians, plans making an 
appeal to Pres. Peron* in view of 
the hardship entailed in facing un- 
employment ort the first day of. 
the year, after three or more years 
of exacting work. 

Discontinuance of the Argentine 
shortwave broadcasts is only part 
of the elaborate reorientation of 
the Peronist propaganda line, fol- 
lowing the switch , towards amity 
with the U. S. resulting from Dr. 
Milton EMnnhower’s visit. 

- At the final sessions of Argen- 
tine Congress last year a State- 
drafted law Ayas passed which r«g- 
ulatdb commercial radio and video 
services. These may remain under 
the control of the. Ministry of Com- 
munications; jas *far- rs general au- 
pervision is concei’nefLi.-, n-' •*' • i 


»VA1U*TY'r LONOdN OPFICi ' 

I ’M. MiMN'r Ptac* Tr*f attar Iquiri 



KVTER^ilTVOm 


13 


Paris, Feb. 9. 4 

The mercury ^jWedlw wMch has 
„„ the freeze oS Paris to over a 
week now is also Mata# tag to cut 
S show Bi^ rf£«|>ts here. This 
" one of the worsi cold waves in 
the last lO .year? wiOi the tempera- 
lure stay ms weU, Below zero on 
some days, L?glt-wto, thetop hits 
Ire setting out the frozen denirens, 
but the medium en^flds arewlaylng 
to virtually empty JouSes. Hence. it 
is tough launching, tjid, new i batch 

5 legit . eii£rie& K(u^e , halls ind 

cabarets are taking a beating, % with 
hie caps prevalent in most spots. 
First-ruri theatres are also affected, 
although nabq ^ou^ Jvaye shown 

a rise .in biz* . •;,/.»,«/ o; .... . . ■ 

, Directprs ,ar* : taking this hard 
because this is a slow. time ,o£ year 
anyway. ^Liis final; cut making it 
seem disastrous.. Folies-Bergereand 
Casino De Paris trade Also is.. off. 

• Legit hits; like “The j Lark” at the 
^Montparnasse, .*. ;Keap” at Sarah 
.fiernhardt, Pirandello's “La Vo- 
liipte De L'Hodneur’ at the . St; 
.Georges, the Jeafl-Louls Bprriuilt 
‘rep shows and the more pop, boule- 
vard offerings arp. doing top trade, 
put the ordinary -plays and many 
. of the state-subsidized houses are 
taking a beating; 

Hard hit has been the nether 
side of show biz,, with sidewalk 
buskers- having horns ■ Ireeze to 
their lips. Their Clientele is not 
•spending much - time on the side- 
. walks these days. The dames . of 
the sidewalk ; .are ■ *. still sticking 
stoutly to their jbbs.. 

Two NeW Miislcar Hits, 

Three of the week^k arrivals got 
a lukewarm welcome. Frederic 
Dard’s adaptation of' the Guy; de 
-Maupassant novel;. “Bel,- Aipi,” 
opening at the Renaissance Feb. 1, 
was generally dismissed by . the 
crix as a static, tableaux version of 
the famous original, handsomely 
staged and costumed but lacking in 
life. 

Jean-Louis Barrault’s studio 
project, Petit Theatre Marigny, 
got off on a wrong foot (4) With a 
dull, muddled philosophical drama, 
“Evening of Proverbs,”' by Georges 
Schehade.’ Marcel Ayme’s new 
comedy. “Four Truths*/’ at the Ate- 
lier, a farce about a physician Who 
injects his family with a truth "drug 
to discover whether his wife is Un- 
faithful, is in need of some dra- 
matic injections, though, the 'au- 
thor’s name may. keep the play on 
the boards for balance of the. sea- 
son. 

; Two new musicals cheered both 
crix and paying customers, making 
them forget frosty nights, and both 
look sot to. build into longrun hits. 
First is the new Francis Lopez- 
Bay mond Vincy show, “To. Ja- 
maica, ’’ a pleasant, and tuneful es 
cape to the tropics, at the Porte 
Saint-Martin. Second is the Milty 
Goldin production of the Jean 
Valmy-Marc Cate operetta; ‘‘Songs 
of Bilitis,” with score by Joseph 
, Kosma, at the Capucines. Taste- 
fully mounted, slightly risque and 
containing, a chorus br outstanding 
lookers and pretty music, “Bilitis" 

is certain of; strong patronage. 

. ' **' 

‘No Pix? KidsPose Social 
Problem, Sez Scot Exbib 

Glasgow, Feb. 2. • 
Critics of the cinema as a bad 
influence on juve audiences were 
. answered by George Singleton, a 
leading Scot exhibitor, who told a 
gathering here that the influence 
of films had given happiness* to 
countless millions. 

People, he said, had seen on the 
screen a standard , of living they 
had never experienced or known, 
and they gave ideas in dress and 
other matters not criminal even to 
the dullest imagination. In certain 
city areas, it was better for the 
children . to be inside a cinema 
than walking the -streets. 

If they stopped children from 
attending the cinema; particularly 
jn working-class areas; they-w'ould 
rv®.y e ^°. fi nd an alternative interest, 
otherwise, they would have a : far 
greater social problem than at 
present on their hands, 

Exhib said the real trouble was 
that parents send their children 
[? the film theatre to get rid of 
rhcm for a couple Qf hours. In 
^ words, they 1 were passing 
them over td the cinema manage- 
?. em to take care of tljem. Chil- 
01 en came week after Week 


*53 Paris Legit Winners 

Paris, Feb. 2. 

Winners in Paris legit gross 
stakes for 1953: 

“Flowering Path" (390 per- 
formances), Raymond; .Vincy V 
Francis Lopez operetta, star- 
ring Georges Guetary and pop 
pix comic Bourvil, at the ABC 
Theatre, $696,525. 

“Dazzling Hour" (295 per- 
formances), .Italian sex cpjn- 
edy adapted by Henri' Jean- 
son, at Antoine, $454,075. 

“Late M. Marcy," light corifr- 
edy Spoofing of spiritualism , 
$366,407. for 372 performances, 
at Porte Saint-Martin. 

“Dial M For Murder” (243 . 
’ performances); at Ambassa- ' 
deurs-Henri Bernstein; $274,- 
■285.- "\ 

“What Wonderful Revels,” 
(199 performances); miniature, 
musical revue .of “Hellzapop- 
piri” design, at Daunouj $104,- 
980. 

.“13 at Table” (251 perform- 
ances), Marc Sauvajojp . cbm- 
edy, at Capuzines, $14fli498i 

'.‘Seven Year Itch”(90 per- 
formances), at Edouard VII, 
$64,400. 


EdithPiaf ShowToars 
Key, Swiss Italian Cities 

Borne, Feb. 2 ~ 

French songstress Edith Piaf 
wound up a five-day , personal ap- 
pearance stint at . the Nuovo The- 
atre in Milan Sunday (31) and is 
now headed for a brief ' concert 
tour in Switzerland. Chantoose re- 
turns to Italy this weekend to do 
a national tour of the leading cit- 
ies and concludes her trek with a 
five-day show here from Feb. 10- 

i4. : ■ 

Piaf’s show in addition to * her- 
self features husband, George Pills, 
who accompanies her On the piano, 
a 14-piece 'band and a choral group. 




Buenos Aires; Feb, 2. . 
Cinema H>iz has held, .strong dur-’ 
ing the Decenjber-Japuary period. 
‘.‘King Solomon’s Mines” (M^G) 
broke all records at the Opera, 
Premier and Roca theatres when 
released day date Deb. 25, and in 
the first nine weeks the picture 
grossed $83,295. “The Blue Veil” 
(RKO) held for three weeks at the 
Gran Rex, and grossed $39,491. 

“On the Riviera” (20th) took sec- 
ond place in the boxoffice stakes 
for December-January, holding five 
weeks at the Ocean for’ a gross of 
$69,437. Third place Went, to 
“Tea for Two” (WB), which* did 
$633,963 in five weeks at the same 
house. An. Italian picture, “Altri 
Tempi” (Italsud) at the Ambassa- 
dor, was the most discussed picture 
of the period. It held for eight 
weeks, doing $58,960 ifi the first 
six. 

' On the appeal of Alec Guinness 
(U) “The Lavender Hill Mob” has 
done sock business at the Ideal, 
and is now past its fifth week. The 
first week’s gross was $1*5,076. 
A Spanish tinter. “Violeta' im- 
periales” (Suevia Films, ^ which had 
a good first-run at the Ocean last 
September, has been reissued at 
the* small central Radar Theatre. 


London, Feb. 2. 

The government * is continually 
providing the British film industry 
;with fresh ammunition in support 
of its own claim for ; relief, from 
the admission tax; Latest Board 
. of Trade returns show a further de- 
cline’ in Admissions'- and gross .re- 
ceipts in the third quarter of 1953. 
From June 28 to Sept. -'26' last! the 
total number of admissions at 
326,722,000 were '2.5'"? down com- 
pared to the corresponding quarter 
of 1952.' 

During the quarter, gross boXof- 
'fiee takings dipped by 1.4% to $77,- 
.252,000. Admission tax accounted 
for $26,523,000' and payments to 
the Eady fund sliced off a further 
$1,954,400. . Exhihs were left with 
$31,687,606 after paying $17,096,- 
800 for film hire. 

Exhib net takings' of $48,784,400 
before film hire charges were ac- 
counted for, showed a decline of 
1.1% over the corresponding quar- 
ter of 1952. 

The BOT survey shows that third 
quarter admissions were roughly 
1% above the preceding three 
months, -but this was below the 
usual seasonal increase which was 
2:2% in 1951 and 2.7% in 1952. 
Holiday areas showed an increase 
of 21.6% but ’industrial districts 
had a downward tendency. 

The current BOT analysis de- 
votes a special section to children’s 
shows, indicating that Saturday 
matinees represent 3.9% of the to- 
tak of paid admissions. Gross re- 
ceipts were just Over $902,000, of 
which the exliibs retained $614,880. 


''licthcr they were’ bored With the 
nuns or not? 1 


U.S. BALLET TROUPE 
SCORES HIT IN MADRID 

Madrid, Feb. 2. 

An American ballet ; troupe, Les 
Ballet de la Ville des Anges, from 
Los Angeles, has won kudos here. 
David Lichine, Tatiana Riabduchin- 
ska, Oleg Tupine, Natalie Clare, 
Wilda Taylor and >baby . ballerina 
ftlary Gelder have become piopular 
in Madrid in a few days after their 
presentation at the Teatro Alvarez 
Quintero, booked by impresario 
Oonrado Blanco. Troupe has beOn 
doing SRO biz at this 1 ,500-seat 
house. 

Repertory is new, scenery and 
costumes are on deluxe and in 
good taste. Principals and corps de 
ballet dance well arid in earnest, 
and the Madrilenos are agreeably 
surprised at seeing such a small 
ballet, company presenting so mariy 
interesting and new works. 

Plaudits of crix also go to 
maestro Pierre Kolpikoff and pian- 
ist Aridre Brun. 

ABPC Iterim Melon 

London, JEeb. 2. 

Associated British Picture Corp. 
again has declared an interirii divi- 
derid of 7^%, less tax, on the com- 
mon stock for thfe year ending next 
March 31. The distribution Will be 
*made % as of Feb. 20. 

In recent years, thb ‘ABPC diVvy 
has been 20%, and the financial 
district anticipates this level will 

1 hA 



Mer ffow ll^G; Tront tige 




yvvv^ 

Tokyo, Feb. 2. 

A third TV antenna will rise 
above Tokyo’s skyline soon as con- 
struction gets under- Way on the 
television studios of Radio TOky'o, 
skedded to begin operations Sept. 
1. Radio Tokyo will compete with 
the two already established nets, 
NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corp;) 
arid NTV (Japan Television ’ Net- 
work). The former is the semi- 
governmcntal controlled skein, the 
latter is the first commercial. TV 
netwprk in the country. / 

Radio. Tokyo* which now - oper- 
ates a radio broadcasting station, 
is spending approximately $2,500,- 
000 on its Video Tokyo, erecting a 
600-foot tower and. a studio build- 
ing- ; • [■■■ 

The big question noW : ih the 
bistros and tea shops around Hi- 
biya, Tokyo’s counterpart -of New 
York TV’s MadisonF » Avenue, is 
where Will the revenii^ come from 
with two nets competing for the 
advertisers’ yen. 



Ma^tanr^ Gassmann Busy 
; Iii 

Tours After Milan SRO 

Rome, Feb. 2.. 

Musical ;comedy producer Rem- 
igio Paone’s plunge info, straight 
legit seems to be paying off. Re- 
ports. from- Milan indicate that, his 
production of .Rostand’s “Cyrano 
de Bergerac” is playing; to SRO. 
The play, , which had been pre- 
sented at .the Nuovo Theatre in 
Milan, closed Feb. 23 to start 
a tour of the leading cities of 
Italy. Film star Gino Cervi plays 
the lead. 

Edda Albertini is Roxanne. 
Frenchman Raymond Rouleau di- 
rected. Company will be on tour 
until June 15. alternating the Ros- 
tand opus with “Cardinal Lamber- 
tirii,” by Alfred Testoni. 

Another legit hit in Milan is Vit- 
torio Gassmann’s 3*. 2 hour version 
bf “Hamlet,” which preemed at the 
Lyric Theatre on Jan. 8 after a 
successful run at Genoa. Show is 
basically, the same one which en- 
joyed such a phenomenal success 
in Rome. last year at the ValLi The : 
atre; 

Luigi Squarzina. who also di- 
rected the play, translated the text. 
Anna Proclemer, who portrayed 
Ophelia last year, has taken over 
the Queen’s role in the 1954 pro- 
duction. This year’s Ophelia is the 
teenage film actress. Anna Maria 
Ferrero, who is making her first 
stab at legit. / 

Arina Magnani Is doing good box- 
office with her riew musical revue, 
“Who’s On Stage?” which opened 
Jan. .9 in Turin. Although Magnani 
Herself scored a persqpal success 
With the crix and public alike, the 
show' did nbt* get top .warm, a wel- 
come. Consensus of bpinibn. is that 
It is slow, oeed^ 
plenty of prumiTff. 


Tokyo, Fqb. 2. 

I 

Irving Maas, MPEA veepee, here 
for. preliminary talks , with Japa- 
nese and American film men and 
Japanese government officials on 
the next fiscal year’s quotas for 
imported films, huddled last week 
with reps of the Japan Exhibitor 
Assn. First talks ended With agree- 
ment on two vital points which will 

be considered in the final decision 
of the Japanese Finance Ministry’s 
allocation of licenses for next year. 

Maas and Giichi. Koono. JEA 
chairman, said they- were opposed 
to any cuts in the total number oi 
films to be imported this . coming 
year on the basis of deteriorating 
foreign currency and the slow con- ' Stays one more week. 

" . 1 'i« _ *.!_*■ _ • A L. 


London, Feb. 2. 

London’s biggest freeze in seven 
years has" affected returns .at first- 
riins jicre but not hs ‘much as ex- 
pected. Actually some new entries 
have been doing surprising biz. De- 
spite the extreme cold spell, linbs 
have been daily at a number bf 
tlieatres. 

; i . ■ - -. 1 . '. 

The most - impressive new entry 
last week was Universal-Interna- 
tional's ; “Glenn Miller Story” at 
tlie Leicester Square ... Theatre, 
Grossing a smash $7,000 in its ini- 
tial four days, the, full week lpoks 
bpffo $f 1,500. British Lion’s “Front 
Page Story” .. was . a - little below 
hopes, first, week at the Warner 
being a mere steady $7,800, with 
•the second only $6,500. 

In thel holdover Category the two 
C’Scopers are still In the big mo- 
ney, “T^e Robe” doing fine $10,700 
,ih its 11th week at the Odebn Lei- 
cester Square;*; “Millionaire” is 
winding its third frame at the Ode- 
on, Marble Arch * at over $11,000. 
“The Moon Is Blue” (UA); is still 
big af the London Pavilion, WiUi 
$9,000 in its fourth frame. 

' ' Estimates for La^t Week 

- Carlton' (Par) (1,128; 55-$1.70)— 
“Julius Caesa^*” (M-G) (13th . wkk 
Finish ing. run at,fair : $4,^00 after 
$4,900 for; 12th week. .'They Who 
Dare”.,(3L) preems Feb. 5. 

' Empire (M-G) (3,099; >55-$l. 70)— 
“Band Wagon‘d (M-G) .(4th-final 
wk*). Heading- for oke $9,200. after 
$10,600 in third, “Weak and the 
Wicked” (AB-Pathe) opens Feb. 4. 
: Gaiimodt (CMA) (1,500;. 5O-$1.70) 
— “Love Lottery” (GFD i. Below 
average with around .$4,800 open- 
ing week. 

Leicester Square Theatre (CMA) 
(1,753; 50-$1.70 — “Glenn Miller 
Story” (U). Doing standout biz and 
attracting long lines nightly. This 
Universal, production looks. wo\y at 
$11,5QQ in first stanza,. 

London Pavilion (UA) (1.217; 50- 
$1.70)— “Moon Is Blue” (UA) (4th 
wk). Proving a major attraction 
here, ;flpf $9,000 ; Jhi$; week; after 
boff $9,566 in thirds Stays indef. 

Oteoiii' Leicester- 'Square ACM A) 
(2:200;" A 50-$l.t6)’ — ‘ThC ' Robe” 
(20th) (11th wk). Still doing fine at 
! $10,700 afteh $11,200 In 10th week. 


sumption of imported films in the 
current year. (Som.e 50*of the 1953- 
’54 quota of 208 films have not yet 
been released.) They also stood 
.firm against the bonus quota plan 
whereby 30% of the total quota al- 
located for the year would be given 
to those countries showing par 


Odeon, Marble Arch (CMA) (2.- 
200; 50-$L70) — ^‘HoW to Marry, Mil- 
lionaire” (20th) (3d wki. Holding 
strongly with over $11,000- after 
$12;60.0 in second. 

: Plaza < Par) (1,092; 70-$1.70) — 
“Hell Below Zero” -(Col) (3d wk>. 
Heading for $5,500 or over .after 


tiality to the import to their own ; $6,000 in second week, Holds a 
theatres of Japanese product, Koo- i fourth.. - 

no asserted that the exhibs were ’ Rialto (LFP) (592; 50-SI. 30 » ,-r- 
against this suggestipn by the ! “Arena”. (M-G) (2d wki. This 3rDer 
Finance Ministry becahse excess | looks .to .hit okay $2,800 after $3,- 
import of pix from Southeast TAsia 300 opener, Stays on. 
countries wolild be '-an- inevitable - Ritz - (M-G) (432; 30r$2.15» — 

result. “Trouble- in Store” (GFt>). Average 

Koono also requested , support $2,400 for opening frame, 
from the U. S. majors, in the Japa- 1 Warner (WB) (1,735: 50-$1.70> — ' 
nese exhib’s fight against a . pro- j “Front Page Story” (BL) 1 2d wk>. 
posed transfer of admission tax ■ Only $6,500. this week after steady 
jurisdiction to the National Tax , $7,800 opener. “Calamity Jane” 


Office from local tax agencies, 

Later Maas huddled with U. S. 
major reps.. It is expected that con- 
crete positions will be taken after 
Takeo Tojo, head bf the Foreign 
Exchange Bureau of the Finance 
Ministry, returns to Tokyo abcut 
Feb. 10. - 


METRO’S 30TH ANNI IN BRIT. 


Big Week of New Films Opens 
In London Feb. 22 


London, Feb. 2. 

Metros’ 30th anni world wide film 
festival will be celebrated in Lon- 
don by a week of screenings at the 
Empire, Leicester Square, opening 
Feb. 22. New productions will be 
screened daily. 

The* festival will open with the 
3-D version of ‘‘Kiss Me, Kate.” On 
the following day, M-G will show 
“Executive Suite.” The Wednes- 
day feature will be “Long, Lorig 
Trailer” followed by “Easy To 
Love” and “Escape from Ft. 
Bravo.” . 

“Kate” will return to the Em- 
pire Feb. 27, to start its regular 
iruh.. -Others will be held, in the 


(WB) opens' Feb. 4. 


C’SCOPE’S HIGH COST 

Sydney, Feb. 2. 

Australian independent exhibi- 
tors are still sitting on the fence 
with Cinemascope. They have indi- 
cated they won’t buy costly equip- 
ment until there is pore proof that 
the patrons want this type of fare 
on a cbast-to-coast basis and not 
just in the keys. Success of “The 
Robe” (20th) here, biggest in Aus- 
sie show business, has not wilted 
the indies’ determination to lay 
off C’Scope buys. 

Understood that the indies’ pres- 
ent qaldnegs towtirtis the new. me- 
dium is a headache to the special 
C’Scbpe.dlvision of 20th-Fox here. 
Understood that not one indie ex- 
hib has signed a contract for 
C’Scope presently. - 

Hoyts is" the only circuit pow 
with. C’Scope, two houses hete and 
one each' in Melbourne. Brisbane, 
Adelaide and Perth. Metro is 
readying to bring C’Scope into St- 


‘ vauiis to await theur t regular, en- ; James here with “^Knights qf 
1 gagements. : ‘ ’ ' ‘ Round Table.” 


i frA 


> ? 




f 


HU\ 




SM 


*> x 


' 

ok < 


W 


(.' .» 


n 


starring 

Rosemary Clooney • Jack Carson 
Guy Mitchell ♦ Pat-Crowley • Gene Barry 
Cass Daley • Color by Technicolor 


-J& 


r 




Daring love, set in_ outdoor 
spectacle — and topped by a 
startling, spectacular climax 
by Producer George Pal. 






TH E NAKED 


FROM HOME 

starring 

Dean Martin and Jerty Lewis 
Color by Technicolor 


This adventure in the farthest 
outposts of the frozen north will 
be plenty hot alt your boxoffice. V>. 










r& 


s 


starring 

Ryan . Jan 




GREAT PARAMOUNT NEWS AND SHORTS 


O 



















ednesday, February 10, . 1954 








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W.v.*ov.v.v.v. 


Rocking audiences everywhere ; 

two women fight for one 4 
man, pitting instinct against *| 
experience. /> 


Adventure in the Amazon headhunting 
country — with four men battling for 
gold and a golden-haired woman. 


.S 


*? 


> 


/iff. 


>** 




»*■ V'dP/l 

r-~> 

' ■* v 


starring 

Ginger Rogers . William Holden 
Paul Douglas * James Gleason 


,m 


starring 

Fernando Lamas • Rhonda 
Color by Technicolo 


For Easter 1 Bob Hope 
surrounded by produc- 
tion splendor and strong 
star support in a big 
song -and - laugh show. 


A trio of magnetic stars in a 
thrilling and spectacular picture 
filmed in fabulous Ceylon. 


CASANOVA*! 

BIG NIGHT 


SN 



& 




ELEPHANT 




Bob Hope 


starring 

. Joan 


starring 


HAVE YOU PLAYED “POPEYE”AND “CASPER” IN 3-D? 





























riCTTRRS 


Wednesday, Febrfiaiy 10, .1954 



Cut* Old 90-100 Minute Feature Pix to 

Dual Market 


60-70 for 


To meet the demands of the dou- 
ble feature market, hard hit by a 
product shortage as studios con- 
tinue to cut their production, 
Republic is selling “re-edited’’ 
versions of its former “deluxers/ 
Pictures, extending back to as far 
as 1941, are being cut to 60 or 70 
minutes to serve frankly as “sup- 
porting”, features. . According to a 
Republic spokesman, the films 
which previously had a running 
time of 90 to 100. minutes, were 
high budgeters (for Rep). . 

The spokesman > said Rep spent 
$15,000 each on the re-editing job, 
providing ■ completely, new sound 
tracks and, in some cases, new 
music.' Each' cutdown reissue, has 
been completely re-titled, giving 
.many of the films an aspect of new- 
ness. All. advertising, however, spe- 
cifically indicates the entry is a 
“re-edited” vci-sion of a previous y- 
lssiied picture, it's pointed out. 
Examples of the re-titling include: 
“Earl Carroll’s Sketchbook” is. now 
known as. “Stars and Guitare,'’ 
“The Hit Parade” has turned into 
“I’ll Reach for a Star” "The Red 
Menace” has become an “Under- 
ground Spy,” and “that Brennan 
Girl” turns into “Tough Girl/ etc. 

Rep’s pitch to exhibs is here’s 
“the tonic you need for your day- 
to-day program.” Rep openly statesj 
that the attractions are mainly lor 
smalltown situations which are acr 
cepting them “willingly and hope- 
fully.” For many situations, the pix 
represent product that has never 

played the theatres before. It’s 
stressed that none of these offer- 
ings have been released to tv, 
Rep’s policy being to withdraw a 1 
prints , of pix sold to Video. 

Rep, perhaps,, is a prime example 
of the changing complexion of the 
film industry. Qnc.e a top source 
for pix in the programmer cate- 
gory, the company is Undergoing a 
major policy change, gearing its 
operation to turn Out less but big- 
ger productions. Its slate .. of 60 
films a year has been drastically I 
reduced to 22 for the upcoming 
stanza. 



EXHIB WINS $50,000 


Judge Tru lfr Dlitrlbe VioUtod 
Previous Clearance Fledge .... 


Mrs. 

Brings 10,006 Feet Of 
Film Back from Trip 

Feature rl ength documentary, 
called “Peoples of the World/’ is 
planned by Mrs. Dorothy Silver- 
stone, the wife of Murray Silver- 
stone, 20t\-Fox International 
prexy. . 

Footage was lensed by Mrs. Silr 
verstene when she accompanied 
her husband on his recent globe- 
circling trip which took tl.e couple 
to 22 countries in more than four 
months, Film, running to about 
10,000 feet, is in 16m. KOdachrome. 
Documentary, which is to be nar- 
rated by a prominent actor, is 
aimed primarily at non-theatrical 

showings. • 

Proceeds from it will go to the 
International Children’s Cultural 
Center which Mrs. Silverstone es- 
tablished in Israel. She previously 
made “The Magnetic Tide,” which 
tells about Israel. > Eventual cost 
of “Peoples of the World” is esti- 
mated at $20,000 to $25,000 and 
will be borne by Mrs. Silverstone. 


SCREEN PUBLICISTS’ 


Terming the progress: of nego- 
tiations lor a new contract with 
Columbia and Warner. Bros, as “un- 
satisfactory,” the Screen Publicists 
Guild, repping homeoffice pub-ad 

will meet 


-EXPECTED ON CODE 

Friend and foe of the . film in- 
dustry’s Production Code clashed 
this week (8) in a radio discussion 
that pitted Morris Ernst, attorney 
and longtime foe of censorship, 
against Martin Quigley, tradepaper 
publisher, who was one 1 of the 
originators of the' Code. 

Ernst maintained that the Code 
should be abolished altogether; 
that it may be illegal and that the 
question of morals and ' tastes 
should be left to the individual 
producers and, if necessary, the 
courts. 

Short of achieving this aim, he 
suggested that the; Code adminis- 
tration be made to publicize each 
cut. and script deletion so that the 
public could bring direct criticism 
to bear on it. 

Quigley defended the Code in- 
strument as a “sensible and work- 
able” application of morality and 
decency in pix and he disagreed 
with Ernst down the line.. .“It has 


Kansas City, Feb. 9. 

A controversy over bidding on, 
films for subsequent runs ended 
in an award of $50,000 damages to 
owners of the Oak Park Theatre 
to be paid by five distributors and 
one circuit. The sum Was ordered 
in a declaratory judgment handed 
down by Judge Albert L, ‘Beeves 
in U. S. District Court on a peti- 
tion by J. Means, Mrs. Wilma 
Means and their son,. Ronald F. 
Means, partners in the theatre, a 
southeast nabe, ■ 

Named in the suit were Para- 
mount, BKO, Warner Brothers, 
Universal and Columbia distribut- 
ing -firms and/lFox Midwest Thea- 
tres, Inc., division of National The- 
atres. Suit resulted . from a con- 
tract of April 12, 1951, wherein 
the OSk Park was granted the right 
to show pictures second run in its 
zone without having .to hid for pic- 
tures against the Fox circuit. 

‘ This contract resulted from a 
notification by Means: early in 1951 
that, he planned a suit charging 
violationof federal anti-trust laws. 
That hassle was settled when the 
plaintiff agreed ]to accept $100,000 
if the Oak Park was given second 
run rights without bidding. The 
April agreement put that situation 
into effect, 

.Judge Reeves ruled the defend- 
ants have violated this contract by 
forcing the Means partnership to 
bid against the Fox Midwest Lin- 
wood Theatre at 31st and Prospect 
Avenue. The Oak Park is at 40th 
and Prospect. The defendants are 
enjoined from further Violation of 
the April, 1952, contract and: the 
plaintiff given the right to recover 
$50,000 damages suffered in the 
case. 


Marlon Brando’s Analyst 




staffers of five distribs, 
today (Wed.), to map further s - lat " . not been found that . the safe- 

e 8y* _ . ■ V .. .^ . 1Kr , [guards people have a right to ex- 

SPG, which is requesting a 15 /o i p 0C t °£ pictures can be found in 

^ age £ . 1 S e r n m! courts,” he declared. “Where 

fer.of 4 v4/o from Columbia. Co n- ma tt e rs are left to a magis- 

pany . also agreed to a union shop | trate the public may not be as- 
Whicb SPG claims .lt already h«*d j SI)rp fl that t.h#» has the 

in fact, but was not part of previ- 
ous contracts. Main battle being 


waged by the SPG is for’ “auto- 
matic progression” of staffers, a 
system employed by Coast pub-ad 
staffers and by the Newspaper 
Guild. Under this plan, art ap- 
prentii^p would start at $60 a week 
and automatically advance to $130 
in four and a half years. Present 
setup provides for a $40 start for 
apprentices and an automatic raise 
to $62:50 after the first year. How- 
ever, after the first year, the pre- 
vious agreements did not provide 
for automatic hikes. SPG is a^so 
seeking a $150 minimum for senior 
publicists. 

Another dispute relates .to the 
present method of arbitrating d;s- | tory 
agreements. Un’on is seeking V s [day. 
have “economic layoffs” within the 
scope of matters that can come up 
for arbitration: In addition to Col 
and WB, SFG represents staffers 
at United Artists, 20th-Fox and 
Universal. Negotiations with U 
open today (Wed.) and talks with 
UA-iare' continuing. 20th’s present 
pact expires on April 17 and con- 
fabs will probably begin late til's 
month. 


j sured that the magistrate has the 
necessary experience.” 

These contradictory opinions re 
the Code were voiced on “Report to 
the People,” over WMCA, N. Y, 
Dorothy Bromley was the modera- 
tor. 

Ernst, who said he’d be opposed 
to a Code even if there were no 
seal, quarreled with the competen- 
cy of the Code administration to^sit 
in judgment ort the moral accepta- 
bility of films. “It’s too much of a 
responsibility even for a group,” 
he declared. “Leave it to the 
judgment of the individual pro- 
ducers.” To which Quigley re- 
plied that this had been tried and 
that, had it. been found satisfac- 
there Would be no Code to- 


Columbia is making available 40 
to 50 prints of “M” in Ohio as a 
means of swinging the picture into 
wide circulation within the state. 
Col’s angle, obviously, is to cash 
in on publicity values accruing 
from the "M” censorship spotlight- 
ing and the green light given the 
pic by the U. S. Supreme Court. 

Col originally ordered only 10 
censor seal leaders for “M” in 
Ohio but these were to cover only 
firstrun engagements. 


Hollywood, Feb. 9. 

With only 13 pictures currently 
before the cameras on the major 
lots, five belong to Universal-inter- 
national. They are “Sign of the 
Pagan,” “Dawn' at Socorro,” “This 
Island Earth,” “The Matchmakers” 
and ’.‘Bengal Rifles.” 

* The work on other lots are Co- 
lumbia’s “The Killer Wore a 
Badge” and “Three Hours to Kill;” 
Metro's “Brigadoon;” Paramount’s 
“The Bridges at TokO-Ri;” RKO/s 
“The Big Rainbow,” and Warner’s 
“Lucky Me,” “The Talisman” and 
“A Star Is Born.” Five of the 13 
are in CinemaSeope. 


20th Will Sue Actor 

Los Angeles, Feb. 9. 

Suit will be filed against Marlon 
Brando by 2(Jth-Fox for losses sus- 
tained-through the actor’s walkout 
on “The Egyptian,” according to 
Darryl F. Zanuck, production chief. 
Impending action will seek recov- 
ery of “the amount our auditors 
determine the studio has lost 
through the delay he has. caused to 
the production.” . . ^ 

Zanuck declared that he had 
come to expect a certain amount 
of temperament ; from actors but 
had rieVer before concurred in in- 
stituting a suit against a film play- 
fir. " 

Studio spokesman said Brando’s 
walkout has nothing to do With 
dissatisfaction over the story, the 
script or his role In the picture. He 
added that The actor, in a private 
conference with Zanuck, had ex- 
plained that he had every Inten- 
tion of respecting his contract. 

Studio said it received a wire oh 
Feb, 2. from psychiatrist Dr. Bela 
Mittelmann explaining that Brando 
was under his care in N.Y. and 
would be unable to work for. at 
least 10 weeks, In reply, 20th*Fox 
offered to pay the dbetor’s expenses 
for a trip to California to be with 
Brando during the making of the 
film,* but the offer Was turned 
down. Studio then proposed that 
another physician be permitted to 
examine Brando ; and his case his- 
tory. No reply. 

BEST WRITER AWARDS 
PRESENTATION FEB. 25 

Hollywood, Feb' §. 

Metro, with five films represent- 
ed, garnered most of the scripting 
nominations for the annual Screen 
Writers Guild awards, which will 
be presented Feb. 25 at the Bev- 
erly Hills Hotel, Paramount and 
20th-Fox, each with three pix, tied 
for runner-up position. 

Total of 38 writers are compet- 
ing for the “best written” Ameri- 
can comedy, drama and musical of 
1953. Also, an award for the best 
teleplay will be given this year for 
the first time. 

Nominees for comedy: “The Ac- 
tress,” M-G, Ruth Gordon; “How 
to Marry a Millionaire,” 20th ‘ Nun- 
nally Johnson; “Moon Is Blue,” 
United Artists, F. Hugh Herbert; 
“Roman Holiday,” Par, Ian Hunter 
and John Dighton, and “Stalag 17,” 
Par, Billy Wilder and Edwin Blum, 

Drama: “Above and Beyond,” 
[ M-G, Melvin Frank, Norman Pan- 
ama and Beirne Lay Jr.; “From 
Here to Eternity,” Columbia, Dan- 
ial Taradasfi; “Little Fitgitive,” in- 
die, Ray Ashley; “Martin Luther,” 
indie, Allan Sloane and Lothar 
Wolff; ‘‘Shane,” Par, A. B. Guthrie 
Jr. (screenplay) and Jack Sher (ad- 
ditional dialog). 

Musical: “Band Wagon,” MrG, 
Betty Comden and Adolph Green; 
“Call Me Madam/’ 20th, Arthur 
Sheekman; “Gentlemen Prefer 
Blondes,” 20th, Charles Lederer; 
“Kiss Me Kate,” M-G, Dorothy 
Kingsley, and “Lili,” M-G, Helen 
Deutsch. 



^Arbiters Wouldn’t Afbite, 
Marco Wolff Co. Sues 

Hollywood, Feb. 9. 
Southsicle Theatres lias filed ap- 
plication in Superior Court seeking. 
io vacate decision dismissing de- 


mand'- for arbitration in beef with 

projectionists. Local .150 . over -,pay _ 

;,°L ‘’dditlonal men when showing-! now unclear, find been running 


Fellerman Joins Lopert 

' Max Fellerman, United Para- 
mount Theatres administration 
exec since 1944, ankles .UPT at the 
end of this month to take a key 
role in both the exhibition and 
distribution ends of Lopert Films. 

At the same time, the Lopert 
outfit will take over management 
of the Asfor, ; Victoria and Bijou 
Theatres, N. Y. firstruns which arc 
owned , by City Investing Co. 
Maurice. Maurer, whose status is 


I 


Schneiderman to Japan 

Milton M. Schneiderman wings 
to Tokyo Sunday (14) to take over 


)-D film without additional sound 
.rack. 

j Company headed by Marco Wolff 
[ charged . Superior Judge Stanley 


as United .Artists managing di- ! i io k, attorney Robert W. Gilbert, 


rector in Japan. He succeeds Rob- 
ert M. Lury, resigned? . 

Schheiderman has been a mem- 
ber of the UA, exec sales staff in 
N. Y. the last year . and a. half. 
Previously he was with Universal 
in Japan and with other companies 
in the U. S. 


arbitrarily exceeded their power,” 
and were “guilty of misconduct” 
when, as majority members of ar- 
bitration board they ruled there 
was nothing to arbitrate, despite 
payment of $548 to union for extra 
■ men, since contract didn't cover 
~-D operations. 


the houses for City. 

Fellerman’s two-fold job will be, 
(T) booking product for these three 
situations as well as Loperl’s Zieg- 
feld . Theatre, Chicago,, and the 
Playhouse and DuPont, Washing- 
ton, and . (2) supervising the dis- 
tributing .of Lopert pix. which are 
distributed through United Artists. 
Current such releases ate “The 
Captain's Paradise,” “Man Be- 
tween,” “Gilbert and Sullivan” 
and “Fanfan the Tulip.” 


West German "Biz Booms 
With 5,000 Houses Open 

Hollywood, Feb. 9. 

Intense competition between 
Hollywood and native film product 
in West Germany was desefibed by 
Leo Horster, German representa- 
tive of Walt Disney Productions, 
at . a meeting of the studiois Euro- 
pean sales agents. 

West Germany, he said, now has 
over 5,000 film theatres, more than 
it had before the war. Eight of 
them are equipped for Cinema- 
Scope and the number is increas- 
ing; while the popularity of 3-D is 
fading. 

As to England, film situation is 
improving, with a total of 150 the- 
atres equipped for CinemaSeope. 

Actors Skifi Meetings 

Hollywood,, Feb. 9. 

Because of slim attendance, the 
Screen Actors^ Guild’s executive 
board nixed a move to hold rnem- 
bership meetings every quarter in- 
stead of once a year. At the last 
meeting less then 400, members 
showed up, although 961 were re- 
quired to make a quorum. 

Board explained that meetings 
involve expenditure of time and 
money. It will stick to its annual 
meeting with additional meetings 
in cases of emergency. 


• ». ... 

Itew tersfey theatretJWners were 
represented ^i thd opening hearing 
here . yesterday.; BVfoii.) before a 
joint Senate andiAMontbly- judici- 
ary committee whij^h Is weighing 
the formation df a-laW relating to 
regulation of' Blhgo .fd; th$ state 
for church, char ity /and .patriotic 
organizations. Purpp^- tfie pro- 
posed statute for 
the cbntrol of feingo/ffi accordance 
with a maridate 'from ' the voters 
who approved a constitutional 
amendment in last November’s 
election legalizingf the. playing of 
the game in I 

Although reps bf the Federation 
of New Jersey Theatres, an exhib 
Organization devbted- - to 'legislative 
matters, did not testify, outfit will 
file a statement with the Senate 
committee voicing its. .'Opinion on 
the laws proposed. Feeling that 
Bingo, run by church and charity 
groups,; .can serve as hefty competi- 
tion for theatres, exhibs are mainly 
concerned with the size of the 
stakes .that will - be allowed,* Specif- 
ically excluded’ in the! constitution- 
al amendment, theatres are ex- 
pressly shutout in one of the pro- 
posed laws. This bill stipulates that 
approved organizations cannot rent ' 
theatres for the running of Bingo 
games. Exhibs are .opposed to this 
regulation, since'it even eliminates 
a source of rental revenue from 
church and charity groups. 

One bill being; studied by the 
judiciary . committee sets . a limita- 
tion of $2$ for each prize and $756 
for the night. Another raises the 
ante to $250 for each prize .and 
$1,000 for the* night. ; 

Passage of any of The proposed 
bills' by fhe legislature does not 
automatically permit the playing of 
Bingp in each municipality; Under 
the constitutional amendment the 
statute must , be approved at the 
next , primary or regular election 
by the voters of each r community. 
Theatremen, however, see little 
hope that it will be banned in any 
municipality in the state, since 
church groups, which derive hefty 
coin from Bingo, are placing strong 
pressure on their parishioners. 


WB 2D QUARTER NET, 
$592,000, TOPS 1953 

Warner Bros.; on the basis of 
operations during the months of 
December and January, anticipates 
that the net profit for the second 
quarter, ending Feb. 28, will sur- 
pass that of the same period of a 
year ago when the company 
chalked up a profit of $592,000. 
However, WB does not engage in 
any • crystal-balling relating to a 
profit comparison between the first 
and second quarters of the current 
fiscal year. First, quarter, covering 
the three months ending Nov, 28, 
saw the company run up a net 
profit of $765,000 after provision 
of $825,000 . for Federal Income 
taxes and $75,000 for contingent 
liabilities. 

Corresponding operation of the 
old Warner Bros. Pictures prior to 
divorcement in March, 1953, and 
after eliminating of net^ profit on 
domestic theatre operations, re- 
sulted in a net profit of $741,000 
for the thfee months ending Nov., 
1952, after provision of $1,055,000 
for Federal income taxes and $50,- 
000 for contingent liabilities. 

Film rentals, sales, etc. for the 
most recent quarter hrnn**H in 
$15,825,000. Net is equivalent to 30 
cents per share on 2[474,363 shares 
of common stock outstanding or re- 
served for exchange on ;Nqv. 28. 

First annuaLmeeting of the com- 
pany since its reorganization last 
March was held iri Wilmington, 
Delaware, Wednesday (3), with 
more than 80% of the outstanding 
stock repped in person or. by proxy. 
Stanleigh P. E,riedman, -Samuel 
Carlisle and Samuel Schneider 

were elected to the board of direc- 
tors for terms of two years; Re- 
mainder of the board consists of 
Harry, Albert and Jack L. Warner, 
Waddill (Catchings arid Robert Per- 
kins, whose terms expire in 1955. 

Board of directors declared a 
dividend of 30 cents per. share pay- 
able Feb. 5 to all stockholders of 
record on Jan. 15. . 



3 











PICTURES 


Wednesday, February 10, 1934 



Millionaires Wanna Make Good 


Continued from page 3 


bigscreeii, theatre television, and 
(20 pay-as-you-see home tv, . 

Leonard H« Goldenson, riding 
two horses, as head, of both- the 
largest theatre circuit in the 
world (United . Paramount The- 
atres) and as head of the Ameri- 
can Broadcasting-Paramount The- 
atres combine, more than ever is 
bullish on the phi biz from the 
orthodox theatre * boxoffice end. 
So is Sol "A. Schwartz, prez of 
RKO Theatres, who was out here 
gander! ng new product. , 

. Goldenson, while presiding with 
Robert E. Kintner, Robert M. 
Weitman and Walter 'Gross, over 
an ABC radio-tv network affiliate 
conclave at ' the BevHills Hot/' 1 , 
was also making the studio rounds 
and much impressed with iii'o in- 
duction upbeat. He cited to Vari- 
ety his confidence in the produc- 
tion flow of film being bolstered by 
renewed major activity, and not 
leaving it to the indies and the off- 
spring appurtenances like 2'Jtnr 
Fox’s Panoramic Pictures. Golden : 
son cited how Eddie Small has de- 
c i ded not to hold back now, as was 
his first intention; how Howard 
Hughes is willing to bankroll Ed- 
mund Grainger in 20 more RKO 
pix, for up to 60%, and that that 
lie ( Goldenson ) , with other thea- 
tre men, will enable enterprising 
producers to get that remaining 
end-money. . 

‘Paley Planning Visits' 

On another front, CBS board 
chairman Williain S. Paley thinks 
liidio is by rid means through, and 
urges Jack Benny not to switch 
over too quickly to the video me- 
dium. With Harry Ackerman and 
Guy della Cioppa, CBS’ west coast 
tv and radio programming toppers, 
Paley staged a cocktallery to meet 
the CBS artists— Benny, Lucille 
Ball and Desi Arnaz, Ed Wynn, Ed- 
gar Bergen, Correll dc Gosden, et 
al. Paley believes he himself 
should visit ' the Coast more than 
once a year. In turn, pixters like 
the Sam Goldwyns and Darryl 
Zanucks partied and houseguested 
the Paleys (latter in Palm Springs), 
as further evidence of the closer 
liaison between the tycoons of the 
mass media. Canny Sam Gold- 
wyn snagged a terrific plug on 
Jack Benny’% radio fifltow* built 
a round “going to the opening of 
*Th e Best Year? of Our Lives’,” 
and, incidentally, the film producer 
pot as many yocks as the star, read- 
ing his lines with gusto arid au- j 
thority, and ringing the bell every j 
time. | 

100 % Behind Code ] 

This reporter’s discussions with 
Do re Schary, Jack L. Warner, Don 
Hartman, Harry Cohn and William 
Goetz (his new ; indie affiliate). 
Jerry Wald who is Cohn’s chief 
production aide at Columbia, ' 
Darryl F .Zanuck, Milton R. Rack- 
mil and A1 Daff, Herb Yates and 
Bill Saal, Arthur B. Krim and Rob- 
ert S. Benjamin, give evidence of 
a marked production upbeat and 
renewed verve and bounce to pic- 
ture producing. 

With news pf the U. S. Supreme 
Court decision on “M” and “La 
Ronde” it was generally agreed 
tiiat some minor modifications in 
t he code will eventuate but 'Holly- 
wood is conservative. Every re- 
sponsible studio head is committed 
to the Breen Code as" “the best 
thing that ever happened to the 
business.” 

Studio officials heard with inter- 
est a letter from Jay Mallin, who 
represents Variety in Havana, 
Cuba, and nodded sympathetically 
at the foreign reaction to American 
censorship. Mallin had written, in 
part; 

“I was interested in reading 
Variety’s heavy coverage of Holly- 
wood's uncertainty regarding its 
morals code. From this distance it 
looks like Hollywood better hurry 
up and realize that its code is a 
bit ancient. AVith the best techni- 
cal knowhow and facilities in the 
■vorld. the U. S. film niakers are 
straight jacketed by prudism. 

‘‘Losing the U. S. market to tv. 
Hollywood is rapidly losing the 
Latin American market to the Eu- 
ropeans. Up to two. or three years 
a^o. one or two French pictures 
played in Havana in a year. This 
"vek.. of 30 pictures playing at 16 
el the more important Havana 
houses, 30 1, o are French. 

Cubans .^opreciate the. fact that 
the \ reneh treat adults as adults. 
:\\ hi I e Hollywood worries about us- 
ing the word ‘adultery,’ the French 
go ahead and make entire pictures 
about it. 


“Thus it is understandable that 
when, Marilyn. Monroe displayed 
her so-called sultry sexiness, audi- 
ences roated with laughter from 
Mexico City to Rio de Janeiro. 

“Hollywood is like a great artist 
who hasn’t been taught the facts 
of life. They ought to read the 
Kinsey report.” 

Zanuck’* View* * 

Says’ Zanuck, “Our greater re- 
sponsibility is to the American 
public and, above all, good taste.” 
His studio has as much grief, if 
not more, than any with* the Breeri 
office, but he’d be the last to want 
any watering down of the code. 
The N. Y. Times’ Bosley Crowther, 
who came west to accept the 
^Screen Directors Guild’s first 
award to a film critic for “distin- 
guished film criticism,” had ad- 
vanced the hypothesis that if, per- 
chance, no theatre playdated a 
film because it didn’t get the Eric 
Johnson seal, woudn’t the MPAA 
and its member-producers possibly 
be subject to restraint of trade, 
since the seal seemed tantamount 
to a licerise for public exhibition? 

Producers, however, know that 
“if an exhibitor smells a buck,” 
to quote one, “they’ll play any- 
thing,” -with result that “The 
Miracle”, “M”,. “French Line”, “La 
Ronde”, “Moon Is Blue”, et al., will 
always find a market. Some pro- 
ducers parenthetically think that, 
as in the case of “Moon Is Blue”, 
this kind of implied bluenoseing is 
the greatest pitch “for putting a 
picture in the black”. 

All studio toppers concede that 
intelligent application can project 
realistic values, citing ’’From Here 
To Eternity”. Others, of course, 
point to the same studios' water- 
ing-down of “Sadie Thompson” 
(nee “Rain”), making the Reverend 
Davidson” .character a plain “Mis- 
ter” Davidson, and “Sadie” almost 
;Elsie Dinsmore, looking for a sing- 
ing job instead of her earthier 
calling. . 

But despite this, the Code is 
looked upon, because of its self- 
regulation; as Hollywood’s one line 
of protection against political in- 
terference, self-appointed censor- 
ial groups, and other harassments. 

Zanuck pointed to the trouble 
that the 20th-Fox affiliated Pan- 
oramic Pictures (Leonard Gold- 
stein’s unit) is having with the 
Breen office on a concurrent pro- 
duction, but he fayors this sort of 
inlra-induslry monitoring rather 
Ilian have local city police, state 
censorial, and other do-gooders 
starting to mess anew in the busi- 
ness. 


-Par, meantime, is said to have 


almost $ 1 , 000,000 tied up in the 
Palm Springs experiment and tfrere 
now looms the problem Of moving 
forward, or else. 

While Cmdr. McDonald talks 
bulljshly about the expanded _ b.o. 
potentials of films on a subscriber- 
vision hookup, the pix biz Itself is 
not so, sanguine about the pay-as- 
you-see hookup between Hollywood 
and tv. For one thing, showmen 
like Zanuck look askance, “Why 
should they pay for films when 
they can get more than their share 
for free on tv* : as is, And it there 
is a quality picture (1), it’s not 
going to be turned over just like 
that to any of the metered video 
mediums for reasqns that are ob- 
vious, arid ..(2),. people still wanna 
get out of the house.. That goes 
also for the World Series, the Rose 
Bowl, a legit opening or whatever 
they are thinking about putting 
on closed-circuit.” 

Frank Leahy Into Television? 

Before the just resigned Notre 
Dame coach Frank Leahy left for 
the Coast, McDonald says he had 
a long talk with him and went into 
the proposition of priy.-as-you-see 
sports on tv, be it football or any 
other mass appealing sports event. 
McDonald hints that he would be 
surprised if«Leahy doesn’t segue 
into tollvision on the sports end, 
despite the health tabu causing him 
to resign as head coach of the 
South Bend campus. 

Actually, the Palm Springs ex- 
periment, with Telemeter, right in 
Hollywood’s backyard, is no barom- 
eter; there has been nothing con- 
clusive to satisfy the skeptics. 
There are still only 131 installa- 
tions, and while it is claimed that 
most of them live up to the cove- 
nanted $3-per-month minimum„the 
frequency ratio of pay-as-ydu-see 
$l-in-the-slots seems to be a vague 
statistic. It is said by some that it is 
purposely being kept vague.. Even 
the homeoffice Paramounteers, 
who inspected the results to date, 
are uncertain. One Par studio of- 
ficial was everi surprised that “they 
paid $1 in the slot to see ‘Road to 
Bali’” (an old Crosby-Hope musi- 
cal), although agreeing that the 
January nights were cold on the 
desert and itV one means of di- 
verting the children. Showings are 
"at 7:30 and 9 p!m. Incidentally, if 
one of the kids should switch away 
from Channel 6— which is the des- 
ignated Telemeter slot — . it’s like 
"walking out of the . theatre” and 
calls for a second $1 1 in silver) :‘n- 
sertion. However, there is a keyed 
sealed* box. system which would in- 
dicate two. payments that same eve- 
ning, and a credit would be re- 
funded at the end of the month. 


Rest (?) Cure 

Continued from pace 2 




Continued from page 5 


Chicago, Feb. 9. 

“Boxoffice in the parlor” is the I 
key to tomorrow. Such remains the 
conviction of Commander Eugene 
F. McDonald, Jr., head of Zenith 
and pioneer of Phonevision, first 
of the pay^as-you-see home-circuit 
tv media. McDonald argues that 
the charm of going out of an eve- ; 
ning is exaggerated. With the 
growing parking problem, traffic 
jams, inclement weather and re- 
lated nuisances, McDonald sees 
citizens of the future content to 
go home at close of vfrork and stay 
there. 

McDonald focuses on certain ex- 
clusive attractions— Rose Bowl, 
Army-Navy, l)ig Notre Dame grid- 
casts, a Broadway legit preem of 
a Rodgers & Hammerstein event, 
the Met. a Robin Hood Dell con- 
cert ami kindred plush events. 
They have to be “something spe- 
cial” for which the public will pay 
if stripped of allegedly interfering 
commercials. 

Commarider McDonald is more 
realistic in regards to film enter- 
tainment. He has been assiduously 
clocking pix grosses, from “The 
Kobe” down, for comparison pur- 
poses when and if he gets the Fed- 
eral Communications Commission 
nod^ His pitch of course is that 
through the metered “boxoffice in 
the parlor” he (or any other ap- 
proved technique) can earn more 
income for Hollywood than the 
conventional “going to the movies” 
habits t>f now. 

That’s Carl Leserman’s claim too, 
for the Paramount-controlled Tele- 
meter, getting $l-per-film feature 
in its present testing at Palm 
Springs, Cal. Earl Strebe, Palm 
resort investor, is in on Leserman’s 
Telemeter experimentation, with 
an eye to a hedge for the future. 


this will lead to progressive stages 
of deterioration.” 

At this point he suggested that 
Theatre Owners of America and 
Allied States be included in the 
Code authority “to lend the .weight 
of their authority to its decisions. 
If they are a part of the authority, 
you’ll hold more theatres in line.” 

He observed that, basically, he 
was in agreement with MPAA 
prexy Eric Johnston that the Code 
was “a living document” but added 
that “many of the indies feel 
they’re not given a fair break un- 
der the Code.” It. was important, 
he observed, to make Code de- 
cisions as broad as possible. “This 
must be an ‘industry- regulation in 
the sense of the word ” he declared. 
“It. can’t be something that only 
appeals to the major companies,” 

Mayer made it clear that he was 
opposed to state censorship, but at 
the same time quarreled with those 
who think police powers are pref- 
erable.«. Part of the answer, accord- 
ing to Mayer, is restrictive classi- 
fication of films, but here again he 
indicated he could see difficulties 
for the theatre ops. Where it had 
been tried, the adult label hasn’t 
Worked out so well. 

Mayer ranged quite a bit from 
his subject. Aijjong other things, 
he questioned ' the competency 
of the U. S. Customs Office to pass 
on moral and Esthetic values jn pix 
and accused “government bureau- 
crats” of being “in a way just as 
bad /as the Russians” when they 
insist that American films abroad 
must show this country as a utopia. 

He related ’ that efforts were 
made to keep “From Here to 
Eternity” beipg showri abroad arid 
said: “The greatest thing we can 
show Europeans is that we can say 
what we please. Even uneducated 
Europeans know that we can be 
frank and that the Russians can’t, 
It s just a risk we have to run.” 


parture for the mammoth showcase, 
but the reissue would have ex- 
tra values because of the sound 
techrtiaues and’ to further enhance 
the Jolson voice. Parks, having- told 
his story to the D. C. authorities, 
is being considered for pix, . and 
Harry Cohn (Columbia) may -be 
the first to do it. 

Groucho’s Smart Son 

Groucho Marx is proud ’ of his 
error that “i guessed wrong by 
$40,000 on what thb Satevepost 
paid Arthur,” referring to his son’s 
8-parter on the comedian. Arthur 
Marx got 50G for the SEP story 
which the Hillcrest “comedians’ 
roundtable” voted should just be 
called “Groupho,” although - “Life 
With Father” would have been the 
obvious choice title if Clarence 
Day hadn’t preceded. . Simon & 
Schuster will publish it in book 
form. Groucho says lie was un- 
aware that son Arthur — who is also 
a seeded tennis player— was so, in- 
dustriously taking down biographi- 
cal notes on him. SEP serialization 
starts this summer. > 

Incidentally, Pete Martin, the 
SEP associate editor who did the 
Bing Crosby and Bob Hope biogs 
(latter due soon) is following an- 
other Paramoimteer, Wiliam Hol- 
den, around with ah eye to a pos- 
sible piece. , - 

— And This Is Las Vegas 

In a lighter vein. r'” 7 
disputed champ capital of live 
nitery talent. Las Ve^as. c 
laughed off by any other segment 
of show biz. There are more 
round actors in the form pf un- 
disputed , stellar worth concen- 
trated on the Strip, on Highway 
91.. outside of Las Vegas, than in 
any other key city of the world. 

“Anything that’s a first Will do 
business,” is the trarisplanted Bill 
(Riviera) Miller’s sage observa- 
tion. He’s putting the Sahara 
anew on the map with Kathryn 
Grayson, concurrently succeeding 
Donald O’Connor; arid giving Jack 
( Sands ) Entratter a tussle fori spot 
showmanship. Ezio Pinza’s so-so 
biz repeating at the Sands proved 
the Miller adage. Tallulah Bank- 
head’s return business . will be 
watched with the same perspective. 
However, Lauritz Melchior sur- 
prised by a strong repeat. Of 
course the Gabors; Dietrich, James 
Melton. Jeanette MacDonald, 
Helen Traubel are among the first- 
timers’ b.o. hypos. Sonja Henie arid 
Judy Canova are on the agenda 
next. 

Metro chartered a special plane 
for a studio family group: to at- 
tend the Graysori-Sahara preem. 
The former Metro filmusical 
t h r u s h. Jeanette MacDonald, 
chirped at the Cocoanut Grove 
while hubby Gene Raymond did 
his stuff with Sylvia Sidney at the 
Sombrero Theatre, Phoenix. 


MORITT CENSOR CHANGE 
GIVEN SCANT OUTLOOK 

Bill to revamp the N,Y, State 
censorship statute was introduced 
in Albany last weelc by State Sen. 
Fred Moritt, a Brooklyn , Democrat 
Observers close to the scene in 
N.Y. don’t think it stands’ much of 
a chance of passage. 

Measure' would Jeave Hugh M. 
Flick, the N.Y, censor, with the 
words “obscene, indecent and in- 
human” as a standard to ban pix 
At the saime' time, it would give 
the affected party, the twin choice 
of taking (1) airappeal to the Board 
of Regents or (2) seek a jury trial 
within 30 days. 

Scope of the N.Y. board has 
been narrowed down by two U. S 
Supreme Court decisions in the in- 
stance of “The Miracle” and “La 
Ronde.” The rulings knocked from 
the statute the provisions that a 
film could be banned on the basis 
of sacrilege, inciting to Crime, im- 
morality arid tending, to corrupt 
morals. 


' 

.. 



WB Nixes 1 Vs. 4-Track 
Breakdown on C’Scoper 

Although Warner Bros, has in-, 
dicated that “The Command,” its 
first CinemaScope picture* w r ould 
be available in both stereophonic 
and one-track sound, it has de- 
clined to issue a breakdown of 
the number of current four-track 
versus one-track engagements. A 
WB spokesman merely reiterated 
the company’s earlier announce- 
ment that exhibs could, play it 
either way. The spokesman was 
equally non-committal on ozoner 
bookings, declaring that it Was too 
early to ‘consider these outlets 
since the film had just gone irito 
general release. 

Meanwhile, WB has set the first 
foreign release of “The Com- 
mand,” with stereophonic sound, 
for Manila. Picture will play 
day-and-date at the Lyric and 
States Theatres starting tomorrow 
(Thurs.). A Japanese booking is 
also in the works for April, WB 
having shown it to Nipponese the- 
atrerrien last week. : 


s 16m Commercials 

Pathe Labs is • going into the 
16m commercial field and has ex- 
panded itS'16m Pathecolor process- 
ing operation. Pathe has also sur- 
veyed the possibility of establish- 
ing a branch lab in the midwest, 
but reportedly has given up the 
idea. Two Pathe execs recently 
visited the midwest to Introduce 
16m Pathecolor to producers there. 

The lab perfected 16m Patfie'- 
color only a couple of months ago. 
It’s been processing 35m features 
and shorts in Pathecolor for over, 
a year. Pathecolor is the Pathe 
Labs’ trademark for Eastman color. 


Italy's New Newsreel 

nt 

New weekly newsreel, “Italian 
Current Events,” (Attualiia Jtali- 
ana) will roach theatres iri that 
country starting March 1. Reel 
will be produced by Paolo Mar- 
zotto, Giarini Barassi arid Giovanni 
Bonazzi. 

Unique feature is that the reel 
Will have a monthly color supple- 
ment. . • . 


W. K. Dow to Indochina 

Wolford K. Dow has been named 
Metro manager in Indochina, re- 
placing Al Kahans, resigned. 

A New Yorker, Dow, joined Met- 
rc last year. He received his train- 
ing in Paris and Algieris. 



S. : Continued from psg;e 4 

drawn up by Alien Property Of- 
fice. 

Difficulty with “Muenchhausen” 
is that, while the government has 
the rights to the film, it has only 
a single, poor pririt. There are, 
however, several subtitled' versions 
Of the pic around. Popkiri, who got 
it via L'evinson-Finney Enterprises, 
Inc., made a negative and proceed- 
ed with the dubbing without worry- 
ing, about what was then the Alien 
Property Custodian. 

According to T o wnse nd , 
“Muenchhausen” licensing has 
been held up for several years due 
to conflicting claims to .the pic, 
Levinson-Finney Enterprises of Los 
Angeles said their rights stemmed 
from an agreement of two persons, 
at the time U. S. Army officers, 
with a German citizen. However, 
the Alien Property Office estab- 
lished that this German had no 
rights to negotiate for the pic. In 
addition, the agreement was a vio- 
lation of military' government law 
in Germany and also, to an extent, 
of the. regulations of the Alien 
Property Office. 

Montreal Claim 

The second group claiming rights 
to “Muenchhausen” was Francital 
Films Ltd. of Montreal, Canada, 
who based them on an agreeiment 
with the Office du Commerce Ex- 
terieur, a French government 
.agency. However, says Townsend, 
this deal was made after Francital 
was informed in Washington that 
rights to the film were vested in 
the U.S. attorney general, 

A Francital spokesman in Mon- 
treal told Variety that the com- 
pany was. “a miriori partner” in 
Skelus. According to Townsend, 
Skelus has on file with his office 
an affidavit “stating, that all of the 
stock in that company is owned by 
United States citizens.” Francital 
is believed to have UFA connec- 
tions and to be in a position to 
obtain clean negatives of “Muench- 
hausen.” 

The film was first offered for 
licensing in the U.S. in 1951 and 
various bids were filed.. When this 
offering didn’t work out, „ the gov- 
ernment decided to withdraw the 
pic.* Study then determined that all 
terms and conditions of the license, 
except those relating to royalty 
rate* advance royalty and mini- 
mum guarantee, should be fixed. 
On this basis the film was reoffered 
early in 1953 and again in the fall 
of last year. Skelus got the license 
as the most satisfactory bidder on 
Dec. 28, 1953. . 



Wednesday, February 10, 1954 


P'SklETr 


\ . 




THE NEXT BIG MILESTONE 
IN MOVIE ANNALS! 


It 



IN MARCH M-G-M BRINGS THE 
WORLD THE FIRST MUSICAL IN 
CINEMASCOPE! IN COLOR GLORY! 

The producer of the industry's greatest musicals is naturally the company to bring the 

world the First Great Musical in CinemaScope. 

* 

Launched by a terrific ad campaign starting with M-G-M’s famed "Picture Of The 
Month" Column reaching more than 93 million people and full pages in all fan maga- 
zines (13 million readership). Followed by Two-page Spreads in 4 -Colors in LIFE and 
LOOK (combined readership of more than 26 million). Plus other big advertising plans. 

"ROSE MARIE" has been acclaimed at every preview East and West as a major mile- 
stone in movie annals. 

Overflowing with love soggs, scenic splendor, brilliant color, this thrilling romance is 
truly worthy of a FIRST! 


M-G-M presents in CinemaScope • Photographed in Eastman Color • “ROSE MARIE” • starring 
; ANN BLYTH • HOWARD KEEL • FERNANDO LAMAS • Bert Lahr • Marjorie Main • with Joan 
Taylor • Ray Collins • A Mervyn LeRoy Production • Screen Play by Ronald Millar and George Froeschel 
Based on the Operetta “Rose Marie” • Book and Lyrics by Otto A, Harbach and Oscar Hammerstein II . 
‘ Music by Rudolf Friml and Herbert Stothart • Directed by Mervyn LeRoy 


20 


PICTURES 


fe 4 nd(ay f February IQ, I954 


Picture Grosses 


ron 




SEATTLE 

(Continued from page 8) 

(AA) and “World for Ran- 
som” (AA), $8,300. 

Fifth Avenue (Evergreen) (2,500; 
$i.25-$1.50) — “Khyber Rifles" 
(20th) (3d wk).; Okay $7,000 or 
near. Last week, $9,400. 

Liberty (Hamrick) (1,650; 65-90) 
—"Wicked Woman” (UA) and 
"Stranger on Prowl” (UA). Mild 
$5,000. Last week, "Saadia” (M-G) 
and "California Outpost" (Rep), 
$4,800. . 

Music Box (Hamrick) (850; $1.25- 
$1,50)— "Julius Caesar” (M-G;).' (2d 
wk). Okay $5,000 after $5,700 
opener. 

Music Hall (Hamrick) (2,300; $1- 
$1:50)— "Knights Round Table” 
(M-G) (4th wk). Good $6,000. Last 
week, $9,700, 

Orpheum (Hamrick) (2,700; 65- 
90 1 — "Majesty O'Keefe” (WB) and 
"Red River Shore” (Rep). Good 
$7,000, Last week, "Hondo” (WB) 
and "Geraldine" (Rep) (3d wk-6 
days), $7,500 at $1.25 top. 

Paramount (Evergreen) (3,039; 
84-$1.09)— "Money 'From Home” 
(Par) (3-D) and "Texas Bad Man" 
(AA). Good $11,000 for Martin- 
Lewis comedy. Last week, "Cease 
Fire" (Par) (3-D) and "Mystery 
Lake" (Indie), $4,50Q in 6 days. 


‘Command’ Robust 16G, 

St. Loo; ‘Knights’ 11G 

St. Louis, Feb. 9. 

. "The Command," initial Warner 
C’Scoper,. is doing heavy turnstile 
activity here this session with only 
one other new film as competition. 
It shapes sturdy at the St. Louis. 
"Majesty . O'Keefe/’ other new- 
comer, is rated fair at the Missouri. 
"Knights of Round Table" still is 
a fine draw at Loew’s in seventh 
week. 

Estimates for This Week 

Fox (F&M) (5,000; 60-75)— "War 
Arrow" (U) and “Forbidden" (U). 
Opened today (Tues.). Last week,. 
"Boy From Oklahoma” (WB) and 
"Diamond Queen” (WB), nice 
$14,000. 

Loew’s (Loew’s) (3,172; 90-$1.24) 
— "Knights Round Table" (M-G) 
(7th wk). Fancy $11,000 after $13,- 
000 last v r eek. 

Missouri (F&M) (3,500; 60-75)— 
"Majesty O’Keefe” (WB) and 
"Paratrooper” (Col). Fair $9,000 or 
near. Last week, "Public Enemy” 
(WB) and "Uttle Caesar/ (WB) 
(reissues) (2d wh), $8,500. 

Orpheum (Loew’s (1,500; 60-75) 
—“Torch Sbng" (M-G) and "Steel 
Lady” (UA) (3d Wk). Fair $5,500 
alter $7,500 for second week. 

Pageant (St. L. Amus.) (1,000; 90) 
— "Little Fugitive" (Burstyn) (4th 
wk). Fine $4,000 after $4,500 last 
week. 

St. Louis ' (St. L. Amus.) (4.000; 
60-75)— "The Command" iWB)^ 
Sturdy $16,000. looms for this first 
WB C’Scoper. Last week, . "Para- 
trooper" (Col) and "Prisoners Cas- 
bah” (Col), $14,000. 

Shady Oak (St. L. Amus.) (800; 
90)— "Captain’s Paradise” (UA) 
(7th wk). Hot $2,500 after $3,000 
last week. 


in 


BOSTON 

(Continued from page 9) 

Good $7,500 following $9,000 
second. 

Fenway (NET) (1.374; 50-90)— 
"Public Enemy" (WB) and "Little 
Caesa^ (WB). (reissues). Opens to- 
day: (TUes.). Last week. "Eddie-1 
Cantor Story" (WB) and "Topeka” 
(AA) (2d wk-6 days), oke $3,000. 

Majestic (Shubert) (1,500; $1.20- 
$2.40)— "Julius Caesar’’ (M-G) (8th 
wk). Neat $5,000 following $6,000 
in seventh. 

Memorial (RKO) (3,000; 50-90)— 
"War Arrow” (U) and "Desperate 
Moment" (U). Fair $15,000. Last 
week, "Forbidden” (U) and*"Capt, 
Scarlett" (UA), $13,000. 

Metropolitan (NET) <4.367; 60- 
$1 >— "The Command" (WB). Nifty 
$25,000. Last week. "Forever Fe- 
male’’ (Par) and "Terror Street" 
(Lip), $13,500. 

Orpheum (Loew’s) <3.000; . 65- 
$1,05)— “Sadie Thompson” 1 C 0 I) 
(3-D) and "War Paint" (UA) (4th 
wk). Fair $8,500 following $10,000 
for third. 

Paramount (NET) (1.700; 50-90)— 
"Public Enemy" (WB) and "Little 
Caesar” (WB) (reissues). Open to- 
day (Tues.). ■; Last week. “Eddie 
Cantor Story" (WB) and "Topeka” 
(AA) (2d wk-6 days), okay $9,000. 

Pilgrim <ATC) (1,800; 60-95)— 
"Saadia”. (M-G) and "Drums Ta- 
hiti;’ (Col), Fair $10,500. Last Week, 

• ( 1/1 flnn ' 1 lenll r.n .1 111?! *1_ 


‘Jivaro’-Satcbmo Hot 17G, 
Port.; ‘O’Keefe’ Big 10G 

. Portland, Ore., Feb* 9. 
Winter weather has gone and biz 
is slowly improving at first-runs 
currently, "Julius Caesar” is near- 
capacity at'thp Guild. .Louis Arm- 
strong All-Star Revue is boosting 
‘•Jivaro" to a big week at th§ Par- 
amount. "Majesty O’Keefe" also 
is lofty at the Liberty. 

. Estimates for This Week 
Broadway (Parker) (1,890; 65-90) 
—"Forbidden" (U) and "Tumble- 
weed" (U). Fine $8,000 or near. 
Last week, “Wild One" ; (Col) and 
“Prisoners Casbah” (Col),. $9,700. 

Century ( Foster-Breal) (800; 50- 
70)— "Donovan’s Brain" (UA). Dull 
$1,200. Last week, "Song of Land" 
(UA), $1,800. 

Guild (Foster) (400; $1.25-$2.40) 
"Julius Caesar” (M-G), near- 
capacity $6,000. Last week, "Mr.; 
Potts To Moscow" (Indie), $2,200* 
Liberty (Hamrick) (1,875; 65-90) 
—"Majesty O’Keefe” (WB) arid 
“Hannah Lee" (Indie). Tall $10,- 
000 or close. Last • week; "All 
Brothers Valiant" (M-G) and "Fort 
Algier" (UA) (2d wk), $7,400. 

Oriental (Evergreen) (2,000; 65- 
90)— “Keys of Kingdom” (20th) 
and “Male War Bride" (20th) (re- 
issues). Slim $2,200 in 5 days. 
Last week, “Man Between” (UA) 
$2,400. 

Orpheum (Evergreen) (1,600; $1- 
$1.50) — “Khyber Rifles” (20th) (3d 
wk). Warm $7,700. Last week, 
$8,900. 

Paramount (Port-Par) (3,400; 90- 
$1:25) — “Jivaro” (Par) and Louis 
Armstrong All-Star Revue onstage. 
Hep $17,000. Last- week, . /Border 
River’’ (U) and ‘‘Jennifer” (Indie), 
$4,900. 

United Artists (Parker) (890; 65- 
90) — “Paratrooper” (Col). Okay 
$6,500. Last week, “Sadie Thomp- 
son” (Col) (3d wk), $6,000. 

• ' * ... . • 

‘Money’ Crisp $19,000, 

Buff ; ‘Half-Acre’ lO'/zG 

Buffalo, Feb. 9. 
“Moriey From Home,” new 
Martin-Lewis comedy, is getting 
the real play here currently. It is 
big at Paramount. “Knights of 
Round Table” continues very 
sturdy in second round at the Buf- 
falo while “Eddie Cantor Story" 
still is good in second Center week. 
"Hell’s Half -Acre" is rated neat at 
Lafayette. 

Estimates for This Week 
Buffalo (Loew’s) (3.000; 90-$ 1.25) 
—"Knights of Round Table" (M-G) 
(2d wk).. Dandy $18,000 or over. 
Last week, $30;000. 

Paramount (Par) (3.000; 55-80)-*- 
Money From Home’*- (Par) and 
"Golden Idol” (AA). Big $19,000. 
Last week, "Majesty O’Keefe” 
(WB) and "Hundred-Hour Hunt" 
(Iridie) (2d wk-4 days), $6,500. 

Center (Par) (2,000; 55-80) — 
"Eddie Cantor Story" (WB) (2d 
wk). Good $8,000. Last week, 
$ 12 , 000 . 

Lafayette (Basil) (3,000; 30-80) 
— “Hell’s Half- Acre" (Rep) and 
“Geraldine" (Rep). Neat $10,500, 
Last week, "War Arrow” (U) and 
"Limping Man" (Lip), same, 
Century (Buhawk) (3,000; 55-80) 
— “Queen of Sheba" (Indie) and 
"Terror Street” (Lip). Fairish 
$7,500. Last week, “Wild One" 
(Col) and “El Alamein” (Col), 
$ 10 , 000 . 


DETROIT 


9) 

’White 


(Continued from page 

week, “Bigamist” (FR) and 
Fire” (Lip), $10,000. 

Broadway-Capitol (UD) (3,500; 
80-$l) — “Cease Fire” (Par) and 
“Shark River” (Lip). Sham $14,- 
000. Last week, .Public Enemy” 
(WB) and “Little Caesar’* (WB) 
(reissue) (2d wk), $12,000. . 

United ArtirttMUAh (1,938;* 80- 
$1)— “Escape Ft. Bravo” (M-G) 
and “Great Diamond Robbery” 
(M-G). So-so $12,000. .Last week, 
“Take High Ground/ (M-G) (2d 
wk),- $8,700, 

Adams (Balaban) (1,700; 95- 

$1,25)— “Knights, of Round Table’* 
(M-G) (7th Wk). Sturdy $6,500. 
Last week, $7, 50Q* 

Music Hall (Cinerama Produc- 
tions) (1,194; $1.40-$2.80)— “Cine- 
rama" (Indie) (47th wk). Great 
$21,000. Last week, same. 


TORONTO 

( Continued from page 8) 

(4th wk). Still big at $15,000. Last 
week, $16,000. 

Odcon (Rank) (2,390; 50-90)— 
“Sadie Thompson” (Col). Wham 
$17,000. Last week, “Moulin 
Rouge” (Romulus), $9,500 at pop 
prices. ' 

Shea’s (FP) (2,386; 40-75)— “3 
Sailors arid Girl” (WB). Big $12,- 
000. Last week, “Hondo” )WB), 
(3-D), $10,000. 

Towrte (Taylor) (695; $1.25-$1.75) 
—“Julius Caesar” (M-G) (7th wk). 
Oke $5,000. Last week, $6,500. 

Uptown (Loew) (2;745; 40-75)— 
“Walking Baby Home” (U) (2d wk). 
Still big at $11,000. Last week, 
$15,000. 

CLEVELAND 

(Continued from page 9) 

Fair $12,000. Last week, “M” (In- 
die). $14,500. 

Ohio (Loew’s) (1,200; 55-85)— 
“Easy To Love” (M-G) (m.o.). Good 
$7,000. Last week, “The Actress" 
(M-G), $4,000. 

Palace (RKO) (3,300; 55-85)— 
“Walking Baby Back Home” (U-I). 
Fine $12,000 or close. Last week, 
“Jack Slade” (AA), $11,500. 

State (Loew’s) (3,450; 55-85)— 
“Wicked Woman” (UA). Fast $15,- 
000. Last week “Easy to Love” 
(M-G). $15,500. 

Stillman (Loew’s) (2,700; 55-85) 
—"Knights Round Table" (M-G) 
(7th wk). Stout $7,000. . Last week, 
$7,200. 


Film Reviews 


Continued from page 9 


Overland Paeiffc 

of’ the presence* of. tv’s “Range 
Rid$r" Jack Mahoney as the male 
star, andthe use of color. 

A. World (Eddie Small) produc- 
tion for United Artists release and 
directed by Fred F, Sears, the of- 
fering lays enough stress on action 
to keep - the outdoor fan satisfied. 
The Frederic Louis Fox story, which 
J. Robert Bren, Gladys Atwater 
and Martin Goldsmith scripted; 

: puts together standard ingredients 
and the . formula is tried and true. 
Only iricongruous note is the fancy 
phraseology the principals are 
giveri to speak* Otherwise, every- 
thing is to formula arid delivered 
acceptably. 

Mahoney . plays . an undercover 
agent for the railroad, sent to-Oak- 
town to find out what is causing 
trouble with the Indians and de- 
laying the laying of the new road. 
When the shooting’s all over, it is 
revealed that William Bishop, 
saloon owner, wants the right-ofr 
way to swing through Oaktown, 
where he owns valuable property, 
and to that end he gives the In- 
dians rifles and keeps them .stirred 
up. Mahoney has authority in his. 
heroics and gives the picture an 
action-plus touch in settling the 
trouble and winning the love of 
Peggie Castle, She, too, does well 
by her assignment, and Bishop is 
a good heavy. 

Adele Jergens, saloon enter- 
tainer, divides femme interest as 
a Bishop castoff: while he tries to. 
make time with Miss Castle. Wal- 
ter Sande, railroad construction 
man and father of Miss Castle; 
Chubby, Johnson, crooked sheriff; 
Pat Hogan, Indian chief; Chris 
Alcaide, guflman, and Phil Cham- 
bers, hotel proprietor, mortician 
and doctor for the town, are among 
others offering a variety of types 
to the western plot. 

Color Corp. of America fur- 
nished the tints for Lester White’s 
lensing and the hues are not always 
true* but do add to the outdoor 
values. Editing and other technical 
assists are okay. ' Btog. 


Japan Tags ‘Lili’ Best; 
Metro’s Over-Quota Break 

Metro won a bonus import per- 
mit; over and above its regular 
import quota last week when its 
picture, "Lili," was picked as the 
best film shown in Japan in 1953. 

The prize is given by a govern- 
ment-appointed committee consist- 
ing of Japanese newspapermen, 
film producers and government 


Doslinces 

(FRENCH-ITALIAN) 

Paris, Feb. 2. 

. Cihedis release of Franco-Lontfon pro- 
duction. Stars Claudette Colbert, Martine 
Carol, Michele Morgan,’ Eleannra Rossi- 
Drago, Raf Vallone. Directed by Marcel 
Pagliero, Jean Delaniioy, Christiaii-Jaque. 
Camera, Robert Lefevbre, Christian 
Matras; editor, James Cuenet; screenplay, 
Jean Aurenche, Pierre Bost. Jean Ferry, 
Henri Jeanson, Carlo Rim; Andre Tabot. 
At Marignan, Paris. Running time, 105 
MINS. 

Elisabeth Claudette Colbert 

Angela Elea nor a Rossi-Drago 

Jeanne Michele Morgan 

Lysistrata ; Martino,. Carol 

Cassias Raf.Vallope 

Barata Daniel Ivernel 

Senator Paola Stoppa 


officials. Voting for 
animous. 


‘Lili’’ w r as un- 


•Wild 
mein” 

State iLocw's) 
“Wicked Woirian" 
Gir 


. SAN FRANCISCO 

( Continued from page 8) 

(6th wk). Climbed to great $33,000 
after $32,000 last week. 

Esquire (No. Coast) (957; 50-90) 
*— “Highway Dragnet” (Indie) and 
"Yellow Balloon” (Indie). Mild 
$4,500, Last week, "Riders to 
Stars" (Indie) and "Dragon’s Gold” 
(Indie), same. 

United Artists (No. Coast) (1,207; 
65-95)— "Paratrooper” (Col) and 
"Drums Tahiti" (Col) (2d wk). Nice 
$7,000 or near. Last week, $11- 
500. 

Stagedoor (A-R) (370; $1.80- 

$2.40)— "Julius Caesar" (M-G) (7th 
w'k). . Solid $8,000. Last week, 
$8,300. 

Clay (Rosener) <400; 

"Titficld Thunderbolt.” (U) (3rd 
wk). Big $3,600. Last week, 
$3,800. 

Larkin (RosnerV (400; 65-85) *— 
"Sevcn Deadly Sins" (Indie) (2nd 
wk): Strong $3,400. Last week, 
$3,200. 


Fred Lutkin Business Mgr. 
Qf RKO Pub-Ad Sector 

Fred Lutkin, with RKO since 
1930, last week was named business 
manager of the firm’s advertising, 
publicity and exploitation depart- 
ments. He succeeds Lou Gaudreaii, 
who resigned to join the Walt Dis- 
ney organization. 

Formerly Gaudreau's assistant, 
Lutkin joined RKO’s purchasing 
department in 1930. He’s held vari- 
ous posts on the business side of 
the company since then w>ith ex- 
ception of wartime . service with 
the Army. 


to 


Hollywood, Feb. 9. 
Floyd B. Odium, head of Atlas 
Corp., and Edward H. Wadewitz, 
board chairman of the Western 
Printing and Lithographing Co., 
were elected to the board of di- 
rectors of Walt Disney Produc- 
tions, 

Incumbent members re-elected 
were Walter E. Disney, Roy O. 
65-85) — ! Disney, Gunther R. Lessing, Paul 
L. Pease and. Gordon E. .Young- 
man. 


Bill Trambukis To Providence 

William Trambukis, manager of 
Loew’s Theatre, Harrisburg, Pa., 


$1.20' — "Living 
• 4th w'k). Still 
in 


socko 

third. 


with $8,400 
Stays on. 


One” i Col) and "El Ala 
(Col) (3d w'k-5 days). $9,000. 

• 3.500; 50-90)— kafter $9,000 
,,, * UAV and “Give j natch. 

t ^ Bleak (M-G 1 . Thin $9,000. Vogue (S F Theatres) f377‘ fls 

Last week. "Escape From Ft. I $1 •-••Leonardo 1 -i iea ? , - esl - ,377 ’ 85 ' 
<M-G) and "Paris Model" , (4th wk'. 

•Col) >2d wk), $9,000. J after 


Bridge (Sch W'ai7.-Reade > (399; $1-1 Jl as l J een assi fined to Loew’s State 
!. Desert" (Disnev) ' ^h ea l r G. Providence. He succeeds" 


Da Vinci" (Indie 
Holding at big $2,800 
same last w‘eek. 


j Larry Levy, who has resigned to 
j accej^a public relations post in 
i anotlier industry. 

! William;. Riding assistant man- 
ager of Loew s Ciipitol, Washing* 
ton, has been named manager of 
j Loew’s Harrisburg. 


Three of the top commercial di- 
rectors here have put together a 
three-sketch pic with a bundle of 
femme names which should in- 
sure nice returns here. This 
primarily distaff-appeal pic has the 
theme of woman and war, with one 
section dealing with a victim of 
the last war; another, with Joan 
of Arc, using war to fulfill her 
destiny,* and third, sketch, built 
around the ancient Greek comedy, 
"Lysistrata," used to tell the tale 
of the love strike that ended a 
wto. Though two of the sketches 
seem part of a full-length pic, re- 
moved from context, this has 
names of femmes Claudette Col- 
bert, Michele Morgan and Martine 
Carol for U. S. marquee appeal. 
This subject could make a good 
bet fbr.special spotting in America. 

Film isn’t as varied and insou- 
ciant as predecessor, "Seven Dead- 
ly Sins/* and the sketch type 
mounting robs the two serious ones 
of dramatic depth with the char- 
acters thrown into dramatic deci- 
sion before they can be properly 
prepared. However, the racy Greek 
opus gives this a , word-of-mouth 
appeal. 

First sketch concerns the almost 
necrophilic voyage of a U S. wife 
to Italy to retrieve the body of 
her husband buried there. She has 
practically abandoned life since his 
death. She finds her husband had 
been harbored by an Italo family 
before he was killed and that the 
girl of the family bore him a 
child. Next sketch has a moment 
in the life of Joan of Arc when . 
she has been deserted by her king ! 
and soldiers. 

Last section is a bawdy takeoff. 

Lysistrata"' in which the 'wives 
of Athens, tired of war, go on a 
oye strike to bring their men to 
their senses. This is played as 
outright farce and though it loses 
some high comedy potential, it 
gives the film its racy moments 
as the sex-hurigry /men finally 
capitulate to the enticing blandish- 
ments of their spouses. 

Miss Colbert is adequately re- 
served as the returning wife, and 
Mai cel Paglicro’s unobtrusive di- 


rection plays out this sudsy drama 
without letting it get too thick 
Miss Morgan lends a radiant face 
to the Joan of Arc role which” is 
primarily what is called for, Chris- 
tian-Jaque has blandly let the fe- 
male have her way in his Greek 
farce section arid he allows. Miss 
Carol to play the supposedly wilv 
ringleader ih an addlepated fash- 
ion which Is made up for by her 
obvious physical attributes. Men 
are in the backgronud in this 
though Paola Stoppa etches a nice 
bit as a wily senator. However 
Raf Vallone is not up to the comic 
handling of the harassed general 
Lensing and editing are in keeping 
with the intelligent handling of 
these stories. Properly handled arid 
hypoed this may do well in the 
U. S. Mosk. 

Alert© Au Sud 
(Alert In the South) 
(FRENCH-COLOR) 

, Paris, Feb. 2 

Sirius release of Nttune-Slrius-Fono- 
rama production. Stars Erie Von 
helm, Glana Marla Canale, Jean-Cliucie 
Pascal. Directed by Jean Devnivre 
Screenplay. Jean Devaivre from novel by 
Pierre Nord: camera, Luclen Joulin; edi- 
tor, Louis . Devaivre. At Lutctia. Parii 
Running' time, 11) MINS. “ - 1,s * 

V°i 1 /' ad ”•’•••••• • Eric Von Stroheim 

jKEiu. * * ’ ^fi‘i 1 ; C J aude Pascal 

HnwirH ’ * * • • • Glana Maria. Canale 

Peter Van Eyck 

Colonel * ’ ’ “ ” L / a Amanda 

This is a tinter adventure film 
set in French Africa with shades 
of escionage and science fiction. 
Scripting and action is much too 
reminiscent and old hat to make 
this of any U, S. interest except 
possibly for dualers. . It has Eric 
Von Stroheim name/is a tinter and 
the action needed for general situ- 
ations. 

Jean-Claude Pascal, a voung 
lieutenant, sees a friend of liis die 
a f j tell him. of some 

skullduggery. All he has are a few 
to the guilty. The avenger 
starts out to get the guys who 
killed his pal. . Into his snooping 
comes a French secret service man 
masquerading as an Arab rug mer- 
chant, a mysterious German gam- 
b €r ’_, a . s ?, x y heff y ballerina and 
assorted - thugs. He gets in with 
the German’s gang and gets en- 
tangled romantically with the bal- 
lerina. Feigning expulsion from 
the army, he is sent bv the mob lo 
. a desert outpost presided over by 
•fa half-mad German general, who 
has Defused to call off the war. 
Last-named is Eric Von Stroheim. ■ 
After the usual tussels, sacrifice 
and torture, the cavalry, on cam- 
els, arrives in time. 

. color and, Morocco lensing 
add production dress. The direc- 
tipn gets in its. quota of movement 
and mayhem in neat commercial 
lmes. Von Stroheim manages to 
get some malice and depth into, his 
silly role as the half-crazy prof es- 
sional. soldier while Giana Maria 
Canale adds Italo lushriess to the 
part of not-so-bad girl* Lensing is 
good as is the editing. Mosk. 



on 

Continued from page 4 



fee for him “in proportion to the 
overall benefit." 

It’s generally felt that the suits 
themselves! 'will be ultimately dis- 
continued because the $6 per share 
proposal made by Hughes compen- 
sates for any losses incurred by 
other stockholders. 

Kipnis, it’s related, makes the 
point that hi6 suits w r ere the first 
to complain of Hughes’ alleged 
mismanagement and he therefore 
should receive a cut of the "bene- 
fits.’’ Attorneyr-as counsel for Eli 
B. Castleman, Marian V. Castle- 
man and Louis Feuerman, filed his 
first complaint in N. Y. in Novem- 
ber of 1952 and his; second and 
third in California and Nevada the 
“bl lowing month. 



SS Continued from page 3 sss: 

e.itry in tiie process, is still cl i s- 
playing potent boxoffice power in 
the nine cities where it is cur- 
rently showing. In addition, Cin- 
erama is in a position to . make 
changes in the current film. Made 
up of separate travelog footage, a 
portion can be yanked and at least 
a half-hour of new footage can be 
inserted: Latter consists of material 
shot by Merian C. Cooper for the 
shelved "Seven Wonders of Hie 
World.’’ 





Wednesday, Fgbmiry 10, 1954 


21 


☆ ☆☆☆☆*☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆☆ * * .*'* ☆☆☆☆☆☆ ☆ ☆☆ ☆ ☆☆☆☆☆☆ ☆ 

☆ ■MSB <‘My name’s Friday.. ☆ 

☆ 


☆ 

☆ 

☆ 

☆ 

☆ 

☆ 

☆ 



I'm a cop? 


☆ 

☆ 

☆ 

☆ 

☆ 

☆ 


☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ TwT ■& ☆ ☆☆ ☆☆☆☆☆☆ ☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆ 

All you need are the facts, Mr. Business Man, 



are, 



arrangements were concluded tnat made tne 

show news of 








Pradlmd by STANLEY MEYER— A MARK VII LTD. Production 



Wednesday, 






NEW YORK 

Altec set ; hew hospitalization 
plan for all employees. 

William Trambukis, manager of 
Loew’s Theatre, Harrisburgh, Pa., 
assigned to Loew’s State in Provi- 
dence replacing Larry Levy, re- 
signed. William Biding, assistant 
manager, of Loews Capitol . in 
"Washington, moves into TrambuKis 
old post in Harrisburg. 

Cosmo Theatre, on upper east- 
side, newest link in Brandt chain. 
House was acquired by C £orrS 
Cinema, Inc., of which Harry 
Brandt is prez. . 

Allen (“Candid Camera”) Funt 
completed his 29th “Candid Micro- 
phone” short for Columbia release. 

Altec Service Corp. wound up 
two-day division managers meet 
yesterday (Tues.) at Park Sheraton 
Hotel 

Lawrence Seidelman n a m e d 
branch manager Of Republics 
Omaha exchange, ^o^inr resig- 
nation of Harry Lefholtz. Former 
moved over from salesman at Mil- 
waukee branch, according.to u 
Bruce Newberry, sales chief. 

MINNEAPOLIS 

Italian films getting break in St. 
Paul currently, with two indie nabe 
houses playing them simultaneous- 

^ Don Swarz and Don O’Neill Co- 
chairmen of committee .arranging 
Fiddlers club of film folks ball-. 

Paramount circuit used ^‘Knights 
of Round Table” trailers on all of 
its local theatre screens advertis- 
ing Radio City date. 

Stu Murphy, vet National Screen 
Service salesman, resigned because 
of ill health. ’ • ... 

Cinerama expected to close with 
Paramount for Century Theatre 
here this week. . 

Northwest Variety club s testi- 
monial dinner for retiring Chief 
Barker Bennie Berger Feb. 15 also 
will be a 20th anni celebration. 

Paramount circuit’s deal with 
projectionists to permit reopening 
of shuttered loop Aster near com- 
pletion. 


Levy, Columbia, veepee; Helen 
Hudak, Universal, secretary;, Mary 
Monahan, United Artists, treasurer; 
George Evans, Universal, business 
agent; and Miriam Gill, Universal,! 
sergeant-at-arms. ■ • 

Frank X. JCelly, 20th-Fox booker, 
retired on pension after 20 years 
with the company. . ■ 

The Aldine, former Stanley 
Warner first-run, being renovated 
at a cost of $200,000 and will re- 
open next month as a Cinemascope 
house. New name will be Viking 
Theatre: 

Roy Siillender, formerly head of 
Allied’s booking and buying serv- 
ice; opened his own biz, National 
Service Corp. 

KANSAS CITY 

Stan Durwood, general manager 
of Durwood Theatres, is new head 
of the Motion Picture Assn., being 
elected recently at meeting of the 
directors. Lou Patz, National 
Screen Service, and Bob Shelton, 
Commonwealth Theatres, are vee- 
pees; Bill Gaddoni, secretary, and 


was first CinemgScoper shown here 
at pop prices, 'V ‘ . .. 

Victor Klarsfeld, manager of the 
Rialto, G*Pe Girardeau, Mo., recov- 
ering from heart attack. The house 
owner, Edward Rosecan, Harmjbal, 
Mo., postponed a trip to California 
to sub for Klarsfeld/ . : 

Dr Sam S. Marshall, mayor of 
Tamaroa, 111., and 'owner, of an 
ozoner near there, turned over its 
operation to Mike Edell, and Cliff 
Mantle, while he campaigns for 
Democratic nomination as state 
representative. ■ f . 

• Fox Midwest Amus. Corp,, which 
has been operating the- Majestic in 
Jacksonville, HI., under lease fpr a 
number of years, purchased the 
building. The Illinois, 1,100-Sbater, 
also iii Jacksonville, Is under the 
Fox Midwest banner. . 

Elmer Questell .and. Henry Ab- 
sher took over the Nox in New 
Haven, 111.; when J. C. Davenport, 
Eldorado, 111., dropped an option 
on the house. • 

Fox Midwest closed its Orpheum, 
ai 669-seater, Cape Girardeau, Mo. 
It Will continue to operate the 
Broadway, bigger house in town. 

Russ Bovim, LoeW’s State man- 
ager in St. Loiiis, named division 
manager of a group of Loew’s mid- 
western ' houses to fill vacancy cre- 
ated. by’ the sudden death of Mike 
Cullen two weeks ago. John Mur- 
phy, general manager of Loew’s 
out-of-town . theatres, also an 


^arambSSt^rid mWwest preem »onnc«d 

Theatre, Manhattan, Kans.. *rd come city 

the Colonial Theatre, Junction Successor 

City, Kans;, Jan. 27. Both cities fer ?l frnn?thP 

are near Ft. Riley, Kans., and cam- Arno Jd G ?j;® s >i?J? P th ®Frank 

paign featured a display of Korean Tol- 

equipment, t a dinrier for vets of Manente.-^nager of Esyji e. 

First CinemaScoDe release to ' assistant -to Louis Ki Sidney at the 
nl^bSSMs doinl it at Aldine, Pittsburgh. He elso was 
advanced ^ SLSs here 8 Fox manager for Loew’s in Columbus, 
Midwest opened “How to Marry a Wilmington and Canton. 



m 1954 


Millionaire” in its deluxe Plaza at] 
scale -of 75c for matinees and 85c 
for nights. Regular top admission 
in first-runs here is 85c. 


BOSTON 


DALLAS 

Mrs, Mabel Guinan, head booker 
for Tower Pictures here for the 
last six -years, resigned post for 
complete rest. . _ , 

p, w. Humphries elected to 
serve another term as prexy of the 
Local 249 of the projectionist 

union; „ . 

Fred 7 Jack, formerly western di- 
vision sales manager for United 
Artists, assumed ownership and 
management of the Granada, Tivoli 
and Lobo Drive-In at Alpine. 

William H. Lewis, manager of 
Gapitan Theatre, resigned after be- 
ing manager of house for nearly 
six years. 

Alvie Smith, formerly manager 
of the Rialto, at Crowell, took over 
management of Leon Theatre at 
Graham. , r 

New Gem Theatre opened for 
Negro patronage’ at Waco. It re- 
places the old Gem which was de- 
stroyed. in the Waco tornado. 

PHILADELPHIA 

Elmer L. Hirth, film buyer and 
booker with the William Goldman 
Theatres here for last 14 years, has 
resigned. , 

' Realignment of bookers at Metro 
has Dave Titleman handling city 
a n d suburban a n d first-runs; 
Charles Kaselman, Stanley Warner 
circuit and New Jersey; Jack 
Smith, up - state and up - state 
circuits, and Max Bronow, up-state 
Pennsylvania. 

New • officers elected by Local 
F-7, front office film employes, are 
Max Bronow, Metro, prexy; Jerry 


While here tubthumping “Glenn 
Miller Story,” Jimmy Stewart pre- 
sented a plaque to the widow of 
Cy Shribman, former operator of 
the Roseland-State Ballroom which _ 

played an important role in ^the bounce, while most indies are dual- 
late maestro’s career. . iiig wltfi it 

Leonard H. Goldenson, prez of Harris, former head of 

American Broadcasting-Paramount spec ial trailers for NationalScreen 
Theatres, here to get the 1954 Co , joined Filmack Trailers last 


Loew’s has announced .that At- 
lanta and Nashville will be added 
to theatres directed by Martin 
Burnett, who headquarters in Co- 
lumbus, O. Pittsburgh will be su- 
pervised by Frank _ Murphy of 
Loew’s Cleveland office. 

CHICAGO 

‘How to Marry Millionaire” run- 
ning solo in eight B&K houses this 
coming weekend on its “ A ” 


RKO Theatres' counter antitrust suit against 20th-Fox and others, 
alleging damages of $41,250,000, is in violation of an agreement which 
the circuit entered on June 4, 1951, 20tli told the N.Y. Federal Court 
this week. 1 Film company charged that the RKO chain and Skouras 
Theatres, on that date, signed a pact relieving 20th from any liability 
in the complex legal entanglement that since has. developed. 

Skouras outfit was first to court, slapping RKO. Theatres and the 
distributors, excepting 20th, with a suit asking total treble, damages 
of $87,690,000. Various trade restraints and conspiracy were- charged. 
RKO Theatres countered with its suit against SkOUras Theatres, 20th 
and Charles, George and Spyros Skouras. : • * »s v 

Also this week, 20th asked for dismissal of RKO’s cross and counter 
complaints. Either that, or a trial by jury of the issue?. Film company 
made a general denial of the RKO charges which, .basically, are the 

same as those made by Skouras against RKO/ 

Despite failure^ of the Eisenhower Adirfinistration * to take a positive 
stand ; for reduction of the 20% admissions tax and ether excises, feel* 
ing continues to mount in Congress that there should be cuts this year. 
Most significant action was that, of Hopse Speaker Joseph W. Martin, 
of Massachusetts. He went on record in, favor of a 10% Ceiling on 
the consumer excises. This means he favors cutting the 20% admissions 
nick and also the 20% bite on nitery. tabs to only 10%. Following day, 
Rep. Charles 'Halleck, of Indiana, Republican leader of the House, fell 
in line as favoring a cut in the consumer excises; Two other important 
figures-r-both members of the tax writing House, Ways and Means 
committee— also declared themselves for excise tax reductions, includ- 
ing the admissions tax. They are Richard M. Simpson and Herman P. 
Eberharter. 

Harry Pimstein, longtime RKO Pictures executive who exited the 
company following the Ralph Stolkin fiasco, is. burned at Albert A. 
List, RKO Theatres board chairman and controlling stockholder, over 
alleged reneging for services rendered. As an attorney, Pimstein re- 
portedly supervised the behind-the-sceneS maneuvering which saw 
List, a heavy investor in textiles, assume Control of the theatre, chain. 

Pimstein was a. member of RKO Pictures top echelon during the 
short-lived Stolkin regime under, which Arnold Grant was chairman" 
of the board. He ankled the company when Howard Hughes regained 
control and reinstated, many of the former top brass. : 

While distributors have been hopeful of an early end to the flood 
of antitrust suits, they’re being crossed up by courtroom-inclined ex- 
hibs. Newest action is by a Bronx, N Y. .theatre outfit and real estate 
affiliate asking total treble damages of $5,250,000. 

Plaintiffs, who are the owners and operators of the Allerton Theatre, 
Bronx, in a Federal Court suit, complain that the eight principal dis- 
tribs and the operators of six other Bronx houses engaged in a con- 
spiracy to deprive the Allerton Of a fair crack at film product. 

In a three-way-stretch situation,, the Saturday Evening Post, is using 
a motion picture to “sell” the values of mag advertising vis-a-vis 
television, SEP has had a 20-minute pic made to order (by Trans* 
films, N.Y.) which will be presented at sales, meetings held by compa* 
nies which advertise in the weekly. Stuart Erwin has the key role, 
that of a salesman who convinces the boss that it’s best to advertise 
in mag print 


week to helm theatre trailer de- 
partment; succeeds Joseph Mack, 
transferred to tv department.- 
B&K houses have raised $10,000 
for March of Dimes in lobby col- 


Goodwill Brotherhood Award by 
Brotherhood ; Temple Ohabei 
Shalom. Award is in recognition 
of his outstanding efforts for the 
United Cerebral Palsy Foundation. 

Recent election of officers by Al- 1 lprtinWs 
lied Theatres of N. E. (not affili- 1 

ated with any national .exhib or- v /\c n vr cT PC 

ganizauon) named Martin J. Mul- LUj AINuLLliD 

lin, prexy; Sam Pinanski; Charles - Roadshow Productions hooking 
Kurtzman, Ben Domingo and up w ith United Fruit Co. for key 

m ** ' m . /liirind 


Harry Feinstein, yeepees; Stanley 
Sumner, treasurer; Frank Lydon, 
secretary and John J. Ford, chair- 
man of board. 


PITTSBURGH 


John Johns, formerly with WB 
theatre department here, back in 

town as Metro’s exploitation man - , . , , _ . .. 

in this territory, having been trans- treasurer, and Jack Goldberg, Bei> 
ferred from Indianapolis. He re- man Theatres, sergeant-at-arms. 


opening of “Top Banana” during 
National Banana Week, starting 
Feb: 22. 

Film Row Club elected Frank 
Prince prexy for next year. Other 
new officers are; Rev Kniffin, 20th- 
Fox; Bill Watmough, WB; and Izzy 
Berman, Berman Theatres, vee 
pees; Jeanette Banks, 20th-Fox, 
secretary; Bernard Cobb, RKO, 


United Artists will release five 
Edward Small productions between 
now and June at the rate of one 
per month 


places Al Golin, who has resigned 
to work in furniture biz. 

George Baldwin appointed union 
house manager at the Warner for 
Cinerama. He’s under Bob Suits, 

managing director. Doris Robertsu« I?„hp Qhnr PaiktHpiI 
is the new boxoff ice girl for Cine-|P^y s KUDC Onor liOUgnea 

rama, succeeding Jacques Rion, 
promoted to assistant treasurer for 
Cinerama operation in Washing- 
ton, D. C. 

Catharine Predmore resigned 
from RKO to join booking depart- 
ment at Co-Operative Theatres, 



MDIO CITY MUSIC HIU 

RockcfcUcc Ccg^et . 

“KNIGHTS tl die 10UHD TABLE 

'■ hi CtaMStopi • - 
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An M-S-M Wctow In COtOt 
tnd SVBUCilLMI STAGE fBESBTATWB 



BURT LANCASTER^ 
HIS MAJESTY 
O'KEEFE' Ttatetrcouja . 

-4 


PARAMOUNT 


Him Up, Asks 250G , s 

Cincinnati, Feb. 9. 
Rube Shor, Allied National di- 
rector for West Virginia, who. was 
a plaintiff in suits against distribu 
tors seeking restraint damages, to 
where a vacancy was created when the tune of boxcar figures, was 
Gus pavis quit to return to Stan- named defendant in a $250,000 
ley-Warner booking office. damage suit filed in Common Pleas 

George Josack, former local Court last week, 
theatre manager _ and film sales- Petitioner, David D. Wolf, real 

ment “b'wHh^thl GSvernS” 6 ' ^ 

Harry. Batastini, Punyautawney Tv 


exhib, been elected to his sixth 
term as president of Punxsutawney 
Country Club. 

Meade Theatre in Meadville 
closing shortly, and will be dis- 
mantled. 


Styled after the N.Y. Daily News, Metro has issued a four-page 
newspaper known as the “Daily Chariot,” Rome’s picture newspaper. 
It’s a promotion piece for “Julius Caesar,” and in journalistic fashion 
it reports the events in Shakespeare’s classic. Front page headline 
reads: “Caesar Slain! Brutus, Cassius Head Plot In Stabbing of Dic- 
tator; Mobs Loot City, Many Die.”. 


General Motors’ 1-Reeler 
Accents Showmanship 

General Motors’ accent on show- 
business in selliiig automobiles, via 
the many theatrical touches given 
its “Motorama^’ show in N. Y., 
again is in evidence. , GM is now 
swinging into the field of motion 
■pictures. 

'Corporation has signed Fred 
Frank to scrip 1-reel film. .In this, 
to script 1-reel film. In this, 
GM’s line of cars and other mer- 
chandise will be spotlighted along 
with an assortment of vaude acts. 
It’s to be lensed in Miami by 
Sound Masters, Inc;, in Eastman 
color. 

The plugs for GM will be kept 
to a minimum. A background sign 
will identify an automobile as a 
Buick, for example, but there will 
be ^ione of the usual commercial 
material. 4 

GM will circulate the-film among 
exhibs gratis. If it has entertain- 
ment value, they’ll show it as part 
of the regular screen program but 
also on condition that there’s no 
obvious advertising. ( 


ST. LOUIS 


Gaylord Fox, who managed the pi aza 
State, W,est Frankfort, 111., before 
iiis induction into the* Army re 
turned to be head man of Fox Mid- 
west’s Roxy in same city. 

Bobby Gene Reed, a juve, fined 
$113 for creating a disturbance in 
the Orpheum, Harrisburg, 111. 1 
William Waring, Jr., has sold his 


shows, alleged that Shor cursed 
and shoved him around last Nov. 8 
before a holdout crowd at Keith’s 
Theatre, a Shor operation. Wolf 
charged that later the same ' night 
Shor again cursed him and threw 
him out of a. gathering at -Variety 
Club’s Tent 3; in the Netherland 


Studio Worker’s Earnings 


Hollywood, Feb. 9. 
Average weekly : earnings of 
hourly film workers increased in 
ia ii mu * • t v tii . i December to $120.28, according to 

i EaJl W L^glT a" banTeyic ‘° t I California Labor Statistics biilleUn. 


Anna, 111. 

“The Robe,” in Its extended-run 
at the St. Louis theatre, a Fanchon 
& Marco-St. Louis Amus, Co. unit, 
played to 271,000 customers and a 
gross of approximately $175,000. It 


November average was $118.83 
while, the previous December’s 
averaged $112.13. Workers aver* 
aged 42 hours at $2.87. In De- 
cember, same hours at $2.83 per 
hour, • 


Ohio TOA Elects Slate 

Columbus, Feb, 9. 
Independent Theatre Owners of 
Ohio elected the Tollp.wing officers 
at its annuaL convention last week 
in Cincinnati. 

Horace. Adams, Cleveland, presi- 
dent; F. W. Huss* Jr., Cincinnati, 
first vice president; Horace §chock, 
Lima, second . vice president; 
C h a r 1 e s Sugarman, Columbus, 
treasurer; pnd Robert A. Wile, ex- 
ecutive secretary. 

Board of directors re-eiected are: 
Myer g. Fine, Cleveland; Hoy L. 
Russell, MillCrsburg; Louise 
Wiethe, Cincinnati; Roy E. Wells, 
Dayton; Marvin Frankel, Elyria; J. 
Real Neth, Columbus; Martin G. 
Smith; Toledo; C. F. Pfistej, Troy; 
Paul Vogel, Wellsviile; Peter M. 
Wellman, Girard; Henry Green*, 
berger, Cleveland; Park Belden, 
Akron; and Louis F. Eick, Martins 
Ferry. 


INDIE DISTRIB’S 250G 
SUIT VS. LOEW/S INT L 

Alleged failure of Loew’s Inter- 
national Corp. to make prompt de- 
livery, of 15 pi6tures to Two World 
Trading Corp. under a 1949 deal 
forms the basis of *a $250,000 
breach of contract . suit leveled 
against Loew’s by Two World in 
N. Y. Supreme Court. Action came 
to light last week when Justice 
Samuel Hofstadter granted the 
plaintiff’s motion, to examine two 
Loew’s officers before trial in con- 
nection with the transaction. 

Scheduled to be quizzed are 
Loew’s sales manager Samuel Bur- 
ger and his assistant, Ronald Car- 
roll. Books and records relating to 
the deal are also to be produced 
at the hearing. Two World, accord- 
ing, to the complaint, charged that 
it suffered “great damages” when 
Loew’s “defaulted” on delivery of 
the pix which were td be distribu- 
ted in . Italy over . a four-year pe- 
riod. ' 

Under the 1949 agreement Two 
World was to pay Loew’s $212,500 
for the films, Some $80,000 was 
paid in cash while the balance was 
to have been disposed of via 
monthly installments of $28,333 
each. Plaintiff, which Claims Loew’s 
knew there’d be a delay in deliver- 
ing the pix, charges that this tardi- 
ness put them on a spot since they 
had assigned five of the pictures 
to an Italn distributor" who was 
clamoring for delivery. 

Loew’s made a general deitial to 
the complaint contending that it 
wasn't liable for any. delay in turn- 
ing over the pictures. These, in- 
cidentally, were- not otherwise 
identified in the papers. 

- Fitpatrick’s Quartet 

James A. FitzPatrick, whose 
TravelTalks have long been re- 
leased by Miitro# has delivered his 
final four , subjects to the com- 
pany. He starts out on a new en- 
deavor, official cruis<> lecturer oi 
the Swedish American Lines. 

He left New York Saturday on 
the Kungsholm to start the first 
of 10 lectures and returns to 
Gotham on April 2. 


Wcdne*!*?? February 10, 1954 


PSSdBff 


PICTURES 


Briefs From the Lots 


Hollywood, Feb. 9. 
George Shenpz* enters the indie 
production' field xWtii "Geronimo,” 
based 6n J]ds own script ... Mgtro 
assigned Walter Pldgeon to play 
Elizabeth Taylor's father in the 
jack Cummings production, “Bab- 
ylon Revisited” . . . W. R. Frank 
borrowed Mary Murphy as ferime 
lead opposite J. Carrol Nalsh in 
“Sitting Bull” ; . . Kay Rlehl shifts 
from video to movies for a role in 
“A Star Is Born” at Warners . l . . 
Duke Fishman, lifeguard, plays 
one in Paramount^ “The Bridges 
at Toko-Ri.” , . Superior Qourt 
approved Columbia’s minor con- 
tract with , Katherine Case ... 
Wayne MofrSaTsfgned to star in 
“Operation North Star,” an Anglo- 
American co-production to be 
made in England. 

Aaron Rosenberg assigned to 
produce “They Stole $2,500,000,” 
Collier’s mag story of the Brink 
robbery, at UI . . . Ruth Hampton 
plays a key role in , UI’s “The 
Matchmakers” ... . Paul Bradley 
and Suzanne Ridgeway signed for 
roles in Panoramic’s “The Gambler 
From Natchez’’ . . Paul PJcerni 
drew a top^spot im -The Killer 
Wore a Badge” at Columbia . . . 
Enterprise Cinema cast Jeanette 
Bordeaux as femme lead in . Cal- 
liope” . Fred Quimby producing 
Metro’s fourth Cinemascope car- 
toon, “The Solid Brass Band” . 
Charlotte Austin's minor contract 
with 20th-Fox okayed by Superior 
National Legion of Decency . . . 
Court . . . United Artists* “Act of 
Love” got a >“B” rating from the 
Eve McVeagh to Mexico City to 
play femme lead opposite Ricardo 
Montalban in “Green Shadows.’ 

William Rendix obtained release 
from his RKO contract which had 
two years to run . .. . J. J. Milstein 
resigned as liaison agent, for Her- 
bert J. Yates on indie productions 
at Republic . . . Irene Ryan joined 
the cast of “The Matchmakers” at 
UI . . . Camertm Mitchell assigned 
to narrate “The Haydn Sym- 
phony,” CinemaScope orchestral 
short, at 20th-Fox . . . Darryl F 
Zanuck added Peter Ustinov 
George Melford and Carmen de 
Lavallade to the linkup for “The 
Egyptian.” . v . Charles Horvath 
to Mexico for a role in Hecht- Laa 
caster’s &“ Very Cruz.” 

Jack Lemmon, currently in “Tlie 
Pleasure’s All Mine^’ at Columbia, 
into Judy Holliday's “Phfft,” . . - 
Robert Bassler’s second indie pro-? 
duction will be “Kirsty,” based on 
Robert Louis Stevenson’s unfin- 
ished novel, “The Weir of Hermis- 
tan.” . . Borden Chase signed a 

Writer contract with UI, starting 
with the Robert Arthur produc- 
tion, “Pillars of the Sky.” . . . Max- 
Well Anderson returning to Holly- 
wood to script Columbia’s “Rich- 
ard the Lion-Hearted,” ^vhich Fred 
Kohlmar will produce . . . Lisa 
Gaye, originally assigned as femme 
lead in UI’s “Francis Joins the 
WACS,” will be shifted to another 
film to he produced by Ted Rich- 
mond. 

Otto ,Lang to produce special 
%hort. “The Miracle of Stereo- 
phonic Sound,” at 20th-Fox . . . 
Sam Wiesenthal’s Olympic Pro- 
ductions is readying “Salt River” 
as a possible starrer for Montgom- 
ery Clift .. . Benny Venuta drew 

role in “The Matchmakers” at UI 
. . . Vincent M. Fennelly will pro- 
duce "The Desperado” as the sec- 
ond starrer for Wayne Morris this 
year at Allied Artists . . . Philip 
Van Zandt added to cast of “Gam- 


bler from Natchez” at Panoramic 
. . . Frank P, Rosenberg added 
“The Far Command,” a novel by 
Elinor Chamberlin, to his Fhdie 
production program . . . Ralph 
Dletrleh, former Ul and 20th-Fox 
producer, setting up his own ipdie 
production company. . 

Zsa Zsa Gabor will be femme 
opposite Dean Martin and Jerry 
Lewis in W all is-Par a mount’s cir- 
cus picture, “The Big Top.” . . . 
Wallace Ford will play the circus 
manager in the same picture . . . 
Hanover Pictures bought screen 
rights to Irwin Shaw's novel, “The 
Young Lions.” . . . Paramount 
signed four Japanese thesps, Yoneo 
Iguchi, Koichl, Annabelle Kai and 
Kakulki Madaji, for roles in “The 
Bridges of Toko-Ri.” . . Benedict 

Bogeaus dickering with Llzabeth 
Scott as femme lead in ‘‘The Black 
Pearl and the Woman” which he 
will produce for RKO release . . . 
Lindsley Parsons bought “I Put 
the Finger on Waxey Gordon,” 
Satevepost story, as a starrer for 
Mark Stevens at Allied Artists. 


London. Feb. 9. 

.. At the Variety Club luncheon 
last Thursday (4) at which lie .was 
nominated Showman of the Year, 
it was announced' that Jafck Hylton 
had offered to give free- admission 
at any of his theatres to holders of 
the Victoria Cross or the George 
Cross. r 

Dorothy Tutin, who had been 
selected Actress of the Year by 
London crix, Was presented with; a 
scroll of honor by Dame Sybil 
Thorndike.: 


Honor (Circus Owners 

Mexico City, Feb. 2. 

The four Atayde brothers and 
their sister, owners-operators of 
Latin America’s oldest circus, Cir- 
Co Atayde, currently playing to big 
biz here, were banquetted by the 
Mexico Variety Club on the show’s 
65th anni. Circus was founded by 
Mexicans. It has played here an- 
nually for many years. 

Atayde circus has a new admis- 
sion high for a big top here; $1.16. 


Reynolds New Dallas Barker 

^ Dallas. 

Albert H. Reynolds elected chief 
barker of; Variety Club’s Tent 17 
for 1954, durihg which year the 
local showmen’s org will be host 

at the International Convention, 
March 22-25. Other officers named 
are Kendall Way and Charles E. 
Darden,: first and second assistant 
barkers; Meyer Rachof sky, dough- 
guy and Harold Schwarz, property 
master. Directors are Robert J. 
O’Donnell, Claude : C. Ezell, Phil 
Isley, Edward H. Rowley, Paul 
Short and Clyde Rembert. John 
H. Rowley, Variety . Clubs’ inter- 
national exec, presided, and an- 
nounced plans for upcoming con- 
vention. 

Brandon Again Memphis Barker 

Memphis. 

M- H. Brandon, prexy of Film 
Transit here, reelected . Chief 
Barker of the Memphis Variety 
Club Tent No. 20 last week. Other 


officers named are Ben Bluestein, 
former vaude performer, first as- 
sistant barker; Gil Brandon, sec- 
ond assistant barker; Jack Sawyer, 
of the Malco theatre chain, treas- 
urer,- 1 and Howard Nicholson, of 
Par, secretary. Variety Club’s big 
project here is the construction of 
a new hospital for convalescent 
children. 

Sharkey Named Del. Barker 

Detroit, 

Detroit Tent of 'Variety Club In- 
ternational elected James P. 
Sharkey of Co-Operative Theatres 
of Mlphigah, to serve as Chief 
Barker in its 21st year.* Others 
named were Harold H. Brown, 
United Detroit Theatres, first as- 
sistant barker; H. E, Stuckey, of 
Butterfield Theatres (Mich ), sec- 
ond assistant barkerf Ben Rosen, 
doughguy;. Ernest T. Conlon, sec- 
retary of Allied Theatres of Michi- 
gan, property master and Jack 
Zide, international canvasman. 


Ben Marcus 

■ ii i . Continued from page 3 

challenged RKO’s pre-release de- 
mands on “Hans Christian Ander- 
sen” and “Peter Pan” was elected 
treasurer, Abram F. Myers, board 
chairman and. general counsel, will 
continue in both posts; Leon Back, 
Baltimore, and Stanley D. Kane, 
Minneapolis, were named secre- 
tary and recording secretary, re- 
spectively. 

That serious problems relating 
to industry trade practices still 
confront Allied is indicated in the 
fact that the exhib org’s board 
will hold a special meeting in New 
York in March. Confab will take 
care of unfinished business, mainly 
relating to the stereophonic sound 
controversy and Allied’s plan to get 
®n exhibitor rep or reps on the 
board of a major film company via 
the acquisition of sufficient shares 
of stock. . 









24 



Wednesday* Febntpry 10, 1954 




TV Review 



Monday, February 1, 1954 


(Colgato Comedy Hour 9 
Sun., 8-9 p.m. e KNBH 

All the gala trimming* of a birthday party to 
mark Eddie Cantor's 62nd lighted up. the NBC- 
TV Network lost night with all candles blazing. 
A stellar array of talent, smartly staged and in- 
tegrated, made it Mr. Cs seasonal best. It 
sprinted through the hour with ceremonial glit- 
ter, with Cantor ant * Groucho Marx keeping the 
laughs popping like balloons on New Year's 
Eve. ; . 

The show opened with a howl when a Brink 
armored truck drove up. with a can of coffee as 
a birthday gift by NBC guarded by three bol- 
stered huskies. Cantor sneaked in an ad lib for 
his old sponsor, Chase & Sanborn, after closely 
guarding it at the dress rehearsal. But it was 
another ad lib by Grouchp that shocked the NBC 
production staff and incidentally set off what 
was probably the first of the Jimmy Roosevelt 
jokes to come. Taking a doll by the arm he 
cracked, "We're going up to Mulholland Drive, 
I'm double dating with Jimmy Roosevelt." Pete 
Barnum, executive producer, of the Comedy 
Hour, winced when it came over the set in his 
office.. 

For constancy and spirited tempo the show 
moved through a series of highspots with the 
only noticeable lag in the Maxie the Taxi bit 
with Wally ("Mr. Peepers") Cox. Filmed in 
N.Y., the dubbed laugh track over-rode the lines 
and made it sound twice as funny as it was. It 
had its moments even though the audio failed 
to bring Up Cox's voice to unstrained ears. 

To make it a Cantor family night, daughter 
Marilyn did a bit from her nitery act with her 
dancing partners, Johnny and Bill, and Ida 
(Mrs. Cantor) yva* brought out near the finish 
as Groucho's life-time gift to the show's star. 
Eddie then in high glee- sang the song he has 
long associated with her, that great old stand- 
ard tune, "Ida." Marilyn proved on able song* 
and -dancer with a strbng voice and know-how 
in stepping around the stage. She's a skilled 
line reader and a pleasant personality, swap- 
ping gags with Eddie to lively acclaim. 

Groucho came on stage as an emissary of the 
gang at Hillcrest and remained to filter through 
the show to its ceremonial windup. His brother 
Harpo allowed the best present they could give 
to Cantor was a*1nuch needed rest so Groucho 
took over whije Eddie *af it out on the stage 
bleachers. Groucho humorously touched on 
Cantor's life and raised his voice in; song with 
Cantor and Ricky Vera, d 10-year-old Mexican 
lad, who proved a scene-stealer like he was 
With Hoagy Carmichael on fast summer's Saturn 
day Night Revue. • He's a bright-eyed young- 
ster With a good knack for getting his shard of 
the laughs even in such fast company. 

"County Fair" production number with Con- 
nie Russell and Bill Daniel was a fast-paced 
j^edown, with solo dance spots by the two 
bringing whopping applause. These two fin- 
ished artists, by now fixtures with Cantor, never 
fail to make their terpsichore a standout add 
Miss Russell's vocals are equally impressive. 
Jesse, James and Cornell burned up the stage 
With, their fast taps; leaping splits and fancy 
leather work. They're among the best ever seen 
on the Comedy Hour. _ ’ 

.Credits for the punch-packed hour were also 
shared by Manning Qstroff, producer; Les White 
and Johnny Rapp, scripters; Sid Smith's camera 
direction and the music of Al Goodman. 

Helm. 



■V 


TV Review 

IWtfctoomi 

Tuesday. February 2, 1954 
$ 


TV Review 







COLGATE COMEDY HOUR 
The Eddie Cantor Show 
(LIVE TV, KINESCOPE HERE) 

KNBH, NBC-TV. Sun., 8-9 P.M. 

Eddie Cantor's 62nd birthday celebration was 
fine fun ajl the way with a sharpening of the 
usual nostalgia by Groucho Marx. "All your 
friends got together the other night — in a tele- 
phone booth," said Groucho. 

Cqntor, in top form, did a hilarious Maxie the 
Taxi with Wally Cox arid a song and dance with 
daughter Marilyn. Dancers Jesse, James and 
Cornell and jittle Ricky Vera, and Connie Russell 
and Billy Daniels helped make it a big hour,: 

Colgate-Palmolive was effective with its cus- 
tomary singing, animated and lecture commer- 
cials. Production was by Pete Barnum and 
Manning Ostroff, with Sid : Smith directing. 
Writers were Les White .and Johnny Rapp. Al 
Goodman was the musical director. 

' ' T • -B. B. 

THIS IS THE 

EDDIE GAHTOR STORY, TOO! 

Cantor Burns 'Toast' 


Eddie Cantor gave "Toast of the Town" one 
of the most decisive trouncings of any NBC-TV 
Comedy Hour in recent months on thei f rendex 
rating of last Sunday night. 

Ten-city coincidental wrap-up clocked Cantor 
at 35.1 against Ed Sullivan's 24.3, Cantor's 
over-all average since he has been a rotating 
star on the Colgate series has topped the 40 
mark. 

Daily P^RlEfr 

Tuesday, February 2, 1954 




EDDIE CANTOR SHOW 

Producer: Archie Stout 
Writer-director: Cantor 
30 Mins.; Sun., 9:30 p.m. 

NBC, from Hollywood 

Eddie Cantor has been fighting for this per- 
sonality reminisconce type of show for almost 
three years and ; twice before something, hap- 
pened to snafu the deal until NBC, under his ex- 
clusive AM-TV package deal, finally okayed it. 
.The rest was up to Cantor. He more than de- 
livered on his first time at bat. 

Thjs might be broadly called a disk jockey 
show* but the platters are incidental, and no- 
body on . the American show business scene 
could make this type of nostalgic cavalcado 
come off as did Cantor. 'With the passing of 
Jolson, Cantor is the heir apparent to the royal 
purple of intra-trade standing, and thus it is 
fitting that he cull from the vast experience of 
q broad panorama m dll phases of show biz to 
chitchat about Fannie Brice, Will Rogers, Al Jol- 
son, Sophie Tucker, Ted Lewis, Sidney Skolsky 
(whom he kudosed for persevering to make 
"The Jolson Story" idea become a reality), Joe 
Laurie, Jr. (for an anecdote), Clayton, Jackson 
& Durante. 

Nobody but Cantor could recall, the intimacy 
of Miss Brice's deliberate ginrummy game; the 
stuff about Soph and Adah Lewis; the "mono- 
log" and "catalog" anecdote about Will Rogers, 
and the rest. 

Nobody biit Cantor, also, could have gripped 
the interest, working as he did solo, sans any 
musical background. There were almost un- 
natural voids when studio laughs were lacking, 
such -has been the conditioning of radio audi- 
ences over the years, and it is a tribute to tho' 
comedian that the home-listener spontaneously 
supplied his own risibility reactions or otherwise 
was gripped by Cantor's a necdota on this taped 
show. 

The oldie records were a plus for all their 
needle-noise and/or the untimeliness of the 
gags, such as Rogers' references to bootleggers. 

In the Sunday-at-9:30 slot the star bps a per- 
fect, dear, and fast track for his half-hbur stint 
that augurs high listene'rship. 

Abet. 


Neiman-Marcus 

poi xit of view 


eddie cantor looks back 

We've been listening, over the past three Sunday nights, to Eddie Cantor's new radio program, 
which comes on at 8:30. It's kind of a modified disk jockey show and rather an unusual thing for a 
big name like Cantor tobe doing. He starts off by simply introducing himself; no theme, no fanfare. 
Then, he tells a few anecdotes about somebody from the history of show business, maybe Helen Mor- 
gan. Then he plays a Irecord by Helen Morgan. > 

Through the whole show, the only voice you hear is that of Eddie Cantor and the people on his rec- 
ords, There is no announcer, no studio audience. Nobody laughs at Cantor's jokes, audibly, at least, 
except Cantor, and he tells no jokes simply to be funny^they're all stories about the people of show 
business, air relate to his general theme which is the story of show business from Sir Harry Lauder to 
Judy Garland. 

Mr. Cantor's show, we think, is a most refreshing half hour in radio, lacking, as it does, some of the 
noise and studied hoopla of other shows. But the main thing that makes Mr. Cantor's show such a 
delight is the fact that he has the most unbeatable cast of any radio show, ever. You can't go awfully 
Wrong on a radio show if you have the good sense to sign up Al Jolson, Belle Baker, the' Two Black 
Crows, Helen Morgan, Judy Garland, Sir Harry Lauder, Van and Schenck, Cab Calloway, John Barry- 
more, Rudy Vallee and so on; This Mr. Cantor has done by the simple expedient of having a large 
record collection and a fund of stories about practically anyone who ever put on grease paint. 

Another thing that helps make the Cantor show f un is his selection of records. We have now heard 
Al Jolson sing Mammy and Swanee so many times that another rendition of it over Mr. Cantor's show 
would hold small interest for us. But instead. Cantor played a less well-known record of Jolson sing- 
ing something Called The Cantor, in Hebrew. It killed 'em, to lapse into the vernacular. Judy Gar- 
land did not sing Over^the Rainbow; she.sang Dear Mr; Gable, and this, too, was a good idea. Rudy 
Vallee did not sing My Time is Your Time; instead, he sang something that struck him as so funny 
that he collapsed with helpless laughter, and the record was never released, except to special people 
like Eddie Cantor. 

So, for these rather special treats in show business. We have to thank the selectivity of Mr. Cantor, 
who, by long training, knows what is worth hearing and rehearing in the world of lights and grease 
paint. . ^ —WALES— Dallas News 

Personal Management: JACK CRANDALL, 140 South Lasky Drive, Beverly Hills, California 


. i • * 


TV-FILMS 


Telepix Way Out in Front in LA. 



Ziv s ‘Cisco/ Wadde Tops in Chi 


Los Angeles continues as one of f 
the most fertile markets for syn- 
dicated pix, with the top telepix 
beating out all network opposition 

resoundingly, roundup of rating re- 
ports from key cities shows. Tops in 
L A. is “Badge 714,” the “Dragnet” 
reruns, with a whopping 34.8 on 
KTTV/ With its closest network 
competitor “Ethel Sc Albert" on 
KNBH showing a 4.9. Closest show 
is the local Hometown Jamboree" 
on KCOP^TV with a 9.7. 

Other reports show /‘Cisco Kid" 
first in Chicago, followed by 
another Ziv property, “Boston 
Blackie.’’ In New York, •’Foreign 
Intrigue’’ beads the list, with -'Hop- 
along Cassidy" and “I Led Three 
Lives" following. “Intrigue,” With 
a 20.4 on WNBT, beats out all op- 
position, with the next highest be- 
ing CBS’ “Place the Face" on 
WCBS-TV with a 16.6. 

Los Angel e s— Second top- 
rated vidfpix series after “Badge 
714" is “Amos & Andy," which 
With a 24.2 on KNXT more than 
doubles Milton Berle’s 11.5 on 
KNBH, with “Favorite Story," 
another vidpix series close behind 
Berle with a 10.5 on KTTV. Third 
place is held by “Wild Bill Hick- 
ock," whose 20.5 on KTLA whacks 
KNXT’s network “You Are There" 
(6.3), KNBH’s network “Meet the 
Press” (5.4) and the KTTV web- 
cast “20 Questions" (8.0). 

Other toprated shows in L.A. 
are “Annie Oakley” 16.9 (KTTV); 
“Liberace" 16.7 (KCOP); “Cisco 
Kid” 14.5 (KTLA); “Foreign In- 
trigue” 13.7 /KNBH) ; “Inner 
Sanctum" 11.4 (KTTV) and Doug- 
las Fairbanks Presents" 11.1 
(KNBH). All ARB ratings. 

Chicago— Latest survey of the 
Windy City vidpix parade finds the 
toppers in practically the same 
relative position as the last report. 
“Cisco Kid" (WBKB) continued to 
lead all contenders with a 20 as 
the highest rated show in its Sun- 
day afternoon slot. Same film ser- 
ies knocked off a 10.8 on the ABC 
station as the 1 rating leader as a 
Saturday afternoon repeat entry. 

“Boston Blackie” (WGN-TV) 
fetched an even 16, coming in sec- 
ond Thursday nights to CBS-TV’s 
“Place the Facet” “Famous Play- 
house” ( WNBQ) logged in with a 
15.2 and “Wild Bill Hickok” regis 
tered a 13.2, “Inner Sanctum" 
(WNBQ) hit a 12 its opening week; 
Same score was racked up by 
“Badge 7 14" ' < WGN-TV ) . “Liber- 
ace” (WGN-TV) followed close be- 
hind with 11.6. All Pulse ratings. 

New York— “Foreign Intrigue" 
again tops the list of Gotham vid- 
pix entries with a 20.4 on WNBT, 
topping all shows in the Thursday 
10:30 time slot. In second place is 

(Continued on page 48) 



Within a week after his start as 
WORtTV’s new sales head, Charles 
Philips netted two deals. Both 
came from* Petri for its line, of Ital* 
ian Swiss Colony wines. Cbih went 
into purchase of half-sponsorship 
in the “Captured" series on 
Wednesday nights and into half of 
the “Paragon Playhouse" on Satur- 
days. Both are vidpix shows. 

The two inkings take effect on 
Feb. 17 and 20 respectively. Agency 
Is Honig-Cooper in San Francisco. 



‘Victory’ Nut 


Jay Wiffinns to OF 

Jay Williams this week joined 
Official Film* ln\ an exec sales 
capacity, with his duties to include 
supervision' of All foreign sales. 
Williams resigned from TV Ex- 
ploitations, where- he, was, sales 
manager, to take the mew post. 

Prior to joining TV , Exploita-r 
tions, he was Jwith Station Dis- 
tributors and Stewart Productions 
in a similar post.* He started in vid- 
pix with Official nearly four years 
ago. • • 



W Ciuivpuajs n viHMMT AVa A7UV 

t < ■■ Tr .. ■ 1 1 1 ia ■ t ii ■ • , .s 

♦ ♦ f ♦ ♦»♦♦♦♦♦♦ » »»+♦ » ♦ » > ♦ • » » 



> f;. • < 



It now looks like NBC Film Di- 
vision’s $500,000 outlay for its 26- 
week “Victory At Sea" series will 
finally be recouped in its entirety, 
although it may take another year 
to accomplish the feat. Initially 
the network had despaired of ever 
retrieving the* coin, although more 
than happy' to have made the in- 
vestment because of the enormous 
prestige (and salvos) accruing to 
,the w$b. 

However,' in its current 'reruns, 
sold locally to stations throughout 
the country, the “Victory" series is 
going great guns, with ratings sur- 
passing the first-time tallies and 
the films playing choice time seg- 
ments. Sales have been perking 
at an accelerated clip and the 26- 
week series looks good for at least 
another, time around. 

Meanwhile, the planned theatri- 
cal release of the re-edited clips 
(with a complete rescoring job on 
the Richard Rodgers music) nears 
the finalization stage. Distribution 
deal is now being discusssed. 


Bill Broidy Co., radio-tv packag- 
ing and sales outfit housed on the 
Coast, is expanding its vidpix 
schedule, with three new series 
currently in initial stages of pro- 
duction. A1 Gannaway, partner in 
the outfit, is currently making the 
network rounds in N.Y. with pilots 
of a Broderick Crawford starrer 
and a Richard Conte whodunit 
Third segment is a vidaptation of 
Broidy’s radio “Starr of Space." 

Crawford series is based on the 
files of a government agency and 
is still untitled. Conte pix are titled 
“Johnny Cuba." Pilots have been 
completed oif both, but if no net- 
work or' national spot deal ^con- 
summated, they will go into syn- 
dication on a regular basis. 

Broidy outfit is also repping the 
newly-formed Gerald Mohr Produc- 
tions on the sales end. Mohr, a vet- 
eran actor, recently formed his 
own radio-tv packaging operation, 
and Gannaway is currently pedr 
dling two radio series. One is a 
15-minute dramatic strip, “There 
s a Time,” created and directed 
by Joseph T. Ainley. Other prop- 
erty is a half-hour drama series 
starring Mohr and titled “Largo.” 




> 


Bridgeport, Feb. 9. 

VVSJL, Bridgeport's second' UHF 
station, which has been sitting on 
its construction permit, has lost the 
participation of the New York film 
group, including Matty Fox, Lewis 
F. Blumberg and Basil Estreich, 
which had intended to take over 
operation from Harry Lif tig of An- 
sonia, holder of the FCC grant. 

A series of extensions, the latest 
of which runs to April 1, pointed 
up the fading of interest in the 
Channel 49 project. Bridgeport’s 
present telecaster, W ICC-TV, has 
found it tough enough to buck the 
area’s established VHF habit, al- 
though by persistent campaigning 
it has been building an audience 
which General Manager Philip 
Merrynian expects will attain 90% 
of the potential by 1957. 

Liftig, a scrap metal dealer, had 
intended to stay in WSJL picture 
■as director, with Fox, president of 
Motion Pictures for- Television, as 
chairman of board; Blumberg, son 
of U-I head Nate J. Blumberg, top- 
ping the station’s production; and 
Estreich, lawyer associated with 
Fox, as resident manager. 


KROLIK EXITS LIFE.-TV 
TO REP JOHN NASHT 

Richard Krolik resigned as tv 
manager of Life mag last week to 
join telepix producer John Nasht 
as New York manager of N*sht In- 
ternational Productions. He’ll act 
as script editor and liaison with 
agencies and distribs for Nasht, 
who spends most of his time on 
location with the firm’s various 
productions. 

Firm is currently filming a fea- 
ture, “Cartouche,” in Turin, upon 
completion of which it will itiove 
down to. Rome for a weekly tele- 
pix series, “Assignment Europe."' 
Firm's o’seas production# credits 
include “Orient Express,” “Cafe 
Continental” and “Holiday in 
Paris.” 

During his more than three years 
at Life, Krolik headed up the 
“Life in Our Cities," “Inside Our 
Schools" and “We the People" 
Series produced by the mag for 
video. He also produced and di 
vected “March of Time Through 
the Y'ears" for the sister MOT 
company while that was still alive 


Fedderson’s ‘Unknown' 
Supernatural Vidpix 

Hollywood, Feb. ' 9. 

Don Fedderson and /producer- 
writer Arnold Marquis have 
formed a new teevee company, to 
produce a series labeled “The Un- 
known," dealing with documented 
supernatural happenings. 

Dr. Here ward Carringtop has 
been signed as technical adviser, 
and he will also furnish, case his- 
tories for dramatization. Vivian 
Cosby is scripting the series. Fed- 
derson has not yet decided whether 
the series will be live or film. 


Fuat's ‘Great Day’ 

Allen Funt is prepping a new 
vidpix scries, /The Great Day,” 
with shooting on the first three 
half-hours slated to start next week 
in New York 

Series will coveV by camera and 


! sound key moments in the lives o_ 
So far Liftig’s intention is to “ordinary people.” Funt’s crews 
keep the cp alive and attempt to en- will film the show in various parts 
list new ,<parlieipatioik iu>./ * i A of. the country* . / y 



E. G. Robinson’s ‘Defense’ 

Hollywood, Feb. 9. 

Scripters have, been set for the 
new- “For the Defense” vidpix ser- 
ies, starring Edward G. Robinson. 
Telepix will be shot by a company 
formed by Robinson and Sam 
Bischoff. 

. David Dortort, Donii Mullally, 
and George Bricker . each have 
penned a teleplay for the upcoming 
series, in which Robinson will be 
seen as a legal defender of the 
poor. 


Vidpix Chatter 

»♦♦♦♦+♦♦+♦♦♦♦ f ♦*♦♦♦♦♦♦ »t 


New York 

Rockhill Productions added Pat 
Knowles, Tab Hunter and Lucille 
Vance to the cast of its upcoming 
Claudette Colbert’ vidpix series and 
tapped Watson Webb, ex-20th-Fox, 
to direct ... Animated Productions 
filming the - first of a series of 50- 
second spots for Botany Brand, 
With Lefi Hall supervising .. Na 
tional Television . Film Council will 
honor Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz 
on Feb. 26 for their “major con 
tribution to films in television”. . 
Marty Ross and Dave Wolper, exec 
veep and sales v.p. of National 
Telefilm Associates, back from the 
Coast after production and dis- 
tribution huddles . . . A1 Horwitz, 
former sales supervisor for Holly- 
wood Television Service, joined 
Motion Pictures for Television’s 
feature film division on the Coast 
as a sales staffer . . .Guild Films 
prexy Reub Kaufman and Don 
Fedderson (associated with, him in 
production of “Life With Eliza- 
beth” and “Liberace") leave for 
Cuba Saturday (1(3) for huddles 
with tv toppers there. 

Hollywood 

Tony Ellis; producer-writer, has 
scripted a new tv series, 1 “Fear,” 
and may seek Frejdric. March for 
the host-narrator role. Series may 
be on film . . . Bob 'Paige inked 
as moderator of “Scoop the 
Writers” panel show ... Lew Kar- 
ner, production chief for Motion 
Pictures for Television, has re 
turned from “^confabs in London 
and, Paris . . . Newly-formed Ham- 
Let Productions plans series o 
13 vidpix, a fantasy-satire on pri 
vatc eyes in pix, tv and radio . 
Desilu will film a pilot' on CBS 
TV’s “December Bride," latter part 
of the month, with Jerry Thorpe 
directing. Spring Byington has the 
Meade m -- 


?M + M ♦♦♦♦♦♦»♦»♦♦ ♦ +♦♦♦ ♦ ♦ > ♦ M \ H » M > 

FORD THEATRE 
(Mantrap) . 

Shelley Winters makes her vid- 
pix bow in a delightful comedy, 

“Mantrap, " essaying the role of a. 
fefrime who with great calcination 
baits the trap and gets her man. 

While the plot itself is a frothy 
one, the vidpic nevertheless has ^ a 
good deal Of charm, due mainly 
to excellent scripting by Lou Bres- 
low, and Miss Winters makes the 
most of the amusing situations and 
dialog. ■ 

Comedy in a half-hour vidpic is 
.he most difficult form to achieve, 
it’s generally conceded, but pro- 
ducer Irving Starr has fashioned 
together just the right combination 
to make this Ford travel at a fast, 
exhilarating pace. Director James 
Neilson’s expert touch is apparent 
throughout and is one of the more 
important plus factors contributing 
to the overall success of this entry, 

Miss Winters gambles her last 
$300 in renting a veddy nice home, 
planning to use this as bait to 
entrap a male into marriage. Thd 
andlord (William Bishop) falls 
Jor her and finally proposes after 
she’s just about exhausted all her 
wiles and strategy. Situations 
where she has- him thinking there 
are all kinds of males wanting to 
wed her are good for lotsa yocks. 

Performance by Miss Winters is 
a very good one, overshadowing 
the rest of the cast. William Bish- 
op’s contribution as the man she 
ropes is well played, for a maxi- 
mum of laughs. Jerry Paris as 
Bishop’s pal is good in the only 
supporting role with any substance. 

Daku. 


plays like something out of la pipe 
dream with all the electrical gadg- 
ets and Axel Greenberg’s direction 
makes good use of the weird props. 
Special effOets are well managed. 

Helm, 

~ . \-‘V. W 

FOUR STAR PLAYHOUSE 
(Indian Taker) - 

A nonsensical piece of mish- 
mash, “Indian Taker" is a sad 
comedy which dissipates the tal- 
ents of Ida Lupino and a conglom- 
eration of supporting thesps. Blake 
Edwards', teleplay was contrived 
from start to ' finish, and made 
very little sense. 

Miss Lupino is pictured as the 
spouse of a go-getting young biz 
man, and she’s bored with the so- 
cial v life she must ' keep.up with- 
in his league. At one party -she 
gets loaded, and tells a fella she’s 
met she’ll swipe all th» gems the 
rich, rich people are wearing. This 
she does with surprising ease. She 
comes out of her hangover the 
next ayem to read all about the 
big jewel robbery. Her playmates . 
of the night before connive' with 
her so that they » toss ..another 
party, at which a coupla pickpock- 
et friends return the ice.. 

Miss Ltipino, Gerald Mohr and 
William Ching struggle bravely 
against an. impossible, script but 
they , lose the battle. Blake Ed- 
wards’ direction was, like his 
script, n.s.g. •-> Daku. 


PEPSI-COLA PLAYHOUSE 
(Brain Wave) 

This is stretching science-fiction 
to the snapping point. Nothing 
could be more fantastically bizarre, 
et’s get into this fast. 

A lady scientist comes up with 
a drug that can send a wave from 
dog’s brain into a human’s. So 
she proceeds to do it with the 
head of the foundation she . works 
for,. 'who is more interested in his 
own financial advancement than 
that of science. It works so well 
that the. mean, old irascible charla- 
tan purrs like a dog, gets down 
on all fours and is all for chasms 
cats down, alleys. The lady scientist 
is so overwrought by her discov- 
ery that she destroys ,it. The drug 
was intended to turn the bad into 
the good and work for the benefit 
of mankind. 

Ann Tyrell is the poker-faced 
lab worker, and plays it with com- 
pelling sincerity. Ted Osborn as 
the racketeering tyrant projects 
the changing emotions with the 
proper shadings, and Peter BroccO 
and William Andrews are adequate- 
ly helpful. Howard Young's script 



Invasion in ‘Letter’ Vidpic 


Los Angeles, Feb. 9. 

Paul and Katherine MacGrath 
filed suit for $800,000 in Superior 
Court, charging infringement of 
their privacy by the < “Letter to 
Loretta" video series. Defendants 
are NBC, Procter & Gamble, LeW- 
islor Enterprises, Inc., and Gabri- 
elle Upton, writer. 

Paul MacGrath, an iron lung pa 
tient who encountered difficulties 
during the 1952 earthquake, con- 
tends that .a similar story was de 
picted in one of the “Loretta" tele- 
films, thereby robbing him of “the 
benefits of public respect.’’ 

RybutoFs ‘Movie of Week’ 

In its first major move into local 
sponsorship of film shows, Rybutol, 
via BBD&O, has picked up the tab 
on a weekly feature on WABC-TV, 
N.Y. Drug firm will sponsor "Best 
Movie of the Week” Saturday 
nights on the ABC-TV flagship 
from 11 p.tn. to conclusion* 

Films come from various feature 
film distributors, with the station 
doing the booking. 

' V 

Screen Gems- Cleve. Office 

Screen Gems is opening a Cleve- 
land office with William T, Croley 
in charge as the firm’s new central 
sales manager. He’s the former 
district merchandising chief for 
NBC in the Cleveland area, and 
prior to that was with the Ameri- 
can Weekly in a merchandising ca- 
pacity* 

He’ll service the Ohio, Michi 
gan, Indiana, Kentucky and W 
^Virginia states. - » 


DEATH VALLEY DAYS 
(Little Papeete) ‘ 

She’s a slick trick with a' shiny 
nose, but she’s a* doll and all the 
boys in Columbia,' up in the 
mother lode country, are mad 
about her < If you think Papeete 
is a papoose you’re staking the 
wrong claim. The little one is a 
fire 'engine and just about wrecks 
a . romance. A . factual story of the 
old west, it’s dressed Up with in- 
cidental dramatics to make it 
pleasant viewing/ 

When flames twice gut the little 
mining town, the boys all chip in 
to buy an engine and it just hap- 
pens that there’s one sitting 
around in Frisco that had been 
originally consigned to the Tahi- 
tian metropolis. Arrival of the ap- 
paratus calls for a celebration; and 
Emily Heath just doesn’t like 
playing second string for a cele- 
bration and Emily Heath just 
doesn’t like playing second string ' 
to the affections of Richard Avon- 
de, who is determined to become 
the firp. chief. 

The trial haviqg.Jbteen run, the 
volunteers get busy on a few kegs 
of ceremonial beer. Emily is in- 
tent on getting her rival out of 
the way and kick's away the stone 
stopper to send Papeete careening 
down the hill. Avonde nearly loses, 
his life in the chase but gains 
a wife in the triumph. Emily con- 
fesses her vengeful deed but is 
forgiven When she gets the town 
femmes to embroider a banner to 
commemorate the event and kudos 
the heroes. There you’ve had it. 

Miss Heath and Avonde carry 
the tale with a fair measure of 
conviction and are well abetted 
by Regina Gleason, Hal Smith, 
Bruce Payne, Kay Stewart, Leo 
McMahon and Heenan Elliott. . Di- 
rection of Stuart McGowan is in 
the western tradition of heartbeats 
and heroics. v- Helm. 


FIRESIDE THEATRE 
(The Old Order Changeth) 

Frank Wisbar swings into situa- 
tion comedy with fair success in 
this rather amusing unfoldment 
of a grandmother who saves her 
marriage ’from the poaching of a 
young femme, romanticist. Yarn 
flows along at bright pace, and 
Wisbar draws fresh performances 
out of his capable cast; ** 

Oi$the day she becomes a grand- 
mother, Ann Doran learns that the 
husband she adores; Hayden 
Rorke, has become infatuated with 
the daughter of her best friend. A 
woman of rare understanding, she 
realizes, her mate is making one 
last desperate effort to regain his 
youth, Through femme guile she 
finally gets the gal to give up the 
husband, on the theory she is be- 
ing noble. 

Teleplay by Herbert Little and 
David Victor enables Miss Doran 
to register decisively, and a new- 
comer whom Wisbar found, Peggy 
O Connor, flashes into prominence 
as the gal who nearly Wins her 
iman. Rorke 1 , in this latter role, 
is persuasive and smooth. Frieda 
Inescort as young vamp’s mother 
and James Dobson and Claudia 
Barrett as the son and daughter 
of the house lend slick support. 
Gene Raymond combines a pitch 
for Ivory Soap with his hosting of 
j-program. - Whit. 





—4 


Following are the 10 top-rated syndicated or national spot vid- 
nix series; according to the January Videodex report, based on all 
cities during the i period Jan, 3-9. Films playing in less than 20 
markets are not included; 


■I \ 




Program 

Kit Carson 
Annie Oakley ... . . 

Douglas Fairbanks . 

Foreign Intrigue .. 

I Led Three Lives v 
Liberace^ . • • •. •. • • • 

Wnd 0 BBLHickofi vK^K&logg 
Victory At Sea’ . ,'f.v NBC 'Film Div. 
Death Valley pays .... *Borax 


Distrib 
MCA-TV 
CBS Film Sales 
NBC Film Div. 
*Ballantine' 

Ziv > • 

Guild 
Ziv 


% TV 
Homes 
16.9 

16.7 

15.7 
15.6 

15.5 
15.3 

14.6 
14.6 
14.1 
14.0 


No. 

Cities 

59 

40 

30 

50 

84 

92 

84 

54 

30 

25 


TV 

Homes 

( 000 ) 

3,635 

3,505 

1,241 

3,949 

4,199 

4,088 

4,046 

4,000 

2,262 

1,207 


♦Indicates n^tidnaT spot; sponsor 



Hollywood, Feb. 9, 4 

Joan Crawford, working in her 
Initial vidpix series, "The World 
and I,” sharply differs with Bing 
Crosby’s assertion! that a name star 
should not do more* than six or 
seven tv shows ;;* year lest he 
jeopardize his theatrical b.o. Miss. 
Crawford, one of the first top 
dramatic names to enter telepix 
with her own company, says in her 
opinion a 39-week series plus one 
motion picture makes for* an ideal 
combination for any name. . 

“I doift think Bing’s idea ap- 
plies to everyone. . I don’t 'mean 
to be critical of Bing, for Whom I 
have the greatest respect,? but his 
is a different situation. Aside from 
pictures, he’s also in tv, radio, does 
records, and orange juice commer- 
cials. With all these activities, 
what he says may well apply to 
him, but not necessarily to others,", 
she commented. - 

Miss Crawford, who plays a 
femme roving correspondent in her 
series, "the World and I,” opined 
she does not feel that because: she 
will be seen on tv weekly this will 
incline viewers to stay away from 
her motion pictures. ”A good pic- 
ture, given the proper exploitation, 
cannot fail to make money,” she 
declared. 

Release of the pix is an Im- 
portant factor, too, she; added, 
pointing out "Torch Song;” which 
she did for Metro is now . in sec- 
ond run, and that "Johnny Guitar,” 
her upcoming Republic release, 
will be out this spring, long be- 
fore her vidpix series goes on the 
air next October. 

“My only competition will be 
from others on tv* and I don’t think 
I have to concern myself about 
competing in both media” she 
(Continued on page 48) 



ABC Film Syhdication Division 
is reportedly close to a deal to take 
over the 104 quarter-hour “John 
Kieran’s Kaleidoscope” vidpix 
hom United Artists TV, which is 
currently distribbing the series. 
Takeover of the films from the rao- 
i on picture company’s vidpix Sub- 
iV vhlch is folding, Is expected 
o be consummated in a week or 
vo. abg Syndication would then 
; th J ee vidpix properties, 
Racket Squad” and “Schlitz Play- 
reruns being the others. 
L.^i^^ates the previously-held 
behef that UA wouW sell out all 

In,f^2 pe ^ ies in a Package deal. 
2 d ( '. firm is peddling its 

DrnS,? tles . one b y one* with the 
on *L Cers involved presumably in 
for sa ! es huddles.- Understood, 
cln«!PH an ? p e * f hat , a deal is virtually 

GMen‘' f0 ! : T A > ake 4 0Ver o£ “CoWboy 
Jampf'u s top show, by the 

Harris group, which would 

tlonal n tlf n e d , the films over to Na * 
trihnlr Associates for dis- 

the U Ti l S n * Gther major UA series, 

•mi w 4 ^r men ‘ 4 '***• is 


VIDPIC 'WORLD PREMIERE' 


Typical H’wood Bally Now Expands 
To Vidfilms In ’Waterfront’ Splash 


Initial "world premiere” shindig 
for a telefilm series will be held 
tonight (Tues.) on the coast When 
RLTTV audiences get an advance 
peak at the “Waterfront” series 
starring Preston Foster. Station 
Will present the initial half-hour 
vidfilm and then follow it with a 
half-hour program of typical 
"premiere” content featuring inter- 
views With stars, etc. 

Regular series tees Feb. 16 with 
Standard Oil of California spon- 
soring in the seven western states. 



Holly vflbod, Feb. 9. 

"Mr. District Attorney,” Ziv 
TV’s; hew series which just began 
shooting this week, has already 
been sold in the 40 top markets in 
the country tb two sponsors, Ziv 
TV T>rexy John Sinn reported. 
Carter Products, for Rise and 
Arrid, will co-sponsor the show 
with Schwayder Bros., manufac- 
turers of Saihsonite Luggage, tak- 
ing alternate weeks in each market. 

Carter-Schwayder deal is one of 
the largest ever made for a syndi- 
cated telefilm show. Ziv acquired 
the "P..A.” property from Phillips 
Lord for $250,000, and is now lens- 
ink the series at California stu- 
dios, with David Brian in the title 
role. 

Another Ziv entry, "I Led Three 
Lives,” is being seen in 147 mar- 
kets. Sinn predicted ”D.A.” would 
ultimately reach 165 markets. • 

, Property goes on the air April 
1, and cities where it has already 
been sold include L.A., NY, Chi- 
cago, Philadelphia, Baltimore, 
Washington, Cincinnati, Minneapo- 
lis, K.C., Detroit, Cleveland, Fris- 
co, Fort Worth-Dallas, Houston, 
Seattle, Binghamton, Toledo, San 
Antonio, NeW Haven, Huntington, 
W. Va.i Denver, Buffalo, Ames- 
Des Moines, Dayton, Salt Lake 
City; Omaha, Charlotte, Atlanta, 
Columbus, Oklahoma City and 
Memphis. 



John J. Bergen Jr,, ex-tradepa- 
per exec, has joined Michael My- 
erberg Productions as v.p. in 
charge of industrial and commer- 
cial films, Firm, headed by Arthur 
Gray, is currently producing a pup- 
pet feature in color in N. Y. and 
is servicing several ad agencies. 

Bergen continues in his present 
post as v.p. of John J. Bergen Co. 
Ltd., investment house. He’s also 
a veep of the National Television 
Council. 



•Py BOB CHANDLER V 

Rapidly expanding foreign tv 
market is beginning to capture 
more and more attention from the 
top vidpix distributors here. With 
tv stations and networks rapidly 
opening up in Latin America, Can- 
ada and Europe, the telepix syndi- 
cators are turning more of their 
time over to ways and means of 
cashing in overseas. 

. In the past couple of weeks, for 
example, three distribs announced 
exploratory plans for o’seas sales 
setups. Official Films announced 
the appointment of Jay Williams 
to an exec post, duties of which 
will include supervision of film ex- 
port. Guild Filtns’ Reub Kaufman 
leaves for talks in Cuba next week- 
end, and Guild already has two 
films being' dubbed into Spanish. 
And Screen Gems, at a press con- 
ference last week, announced that 
plans, for exploitation of oversea A 
markets were already in the works. 

As the market now. stands, 
there’s some eight stations on the 
air in Canada, two in Alaska, the 
BBC network in Great Britain, out- 
lets in Puerto Rico and Cuba* sta- 
tions in Mexico, Brazil, Ecuador, 
Argentina and other Latino coun- 
tries. In Europe there are outlets 
in France, Germany, Italy, Belgium 
and the Scandinavian countries. 
This already existing market is ex? 
pected to expand tremendously 
over the next couple of years. 

By the end of this year Canada 
is expected to have one or more 
stations in every major city. Latin 
American market alone is expected 
to exceed 40 stations. And, barring 
politics, the privately-owned com- 
mercial stations in England should 
begin to be organized: All of which 
means the top syndicators will find 
an increasing area of sales activity 
in the months to come, and they’re 
beginning to prepare for it now. 

In the case of Official, it’s yet 
to be determined whether the firm 
will send men into the field over- 
seas or will set up exchange deals 
for distribution. Official execs are 
currently , talking with a few over- 

(Continued on page 42) 


'HOW-TO' VIDPIX PAYOFF 


Garage-Built Chi Series Racks Up 
Good Selling Record 


Chicago, Feb. 9. 

Indications that there’s a big 
future for offbeat how-to-do-it for- 
matted; vidpix, especially those 
built dround, live shows with a 
good selling history, Is seen in the 
fast record being racked up on the 
syndication route /by John O'tt’s 
"How Does Your Garden Grow?” 
In a unique deal. which should as- 
sure immediate sales for the cel- 
luloid version of the show. Swift 
last week signed for a 60-second 
participation in the film in 13 
markets and will up the ride to 25 
stations should that many buy it 
in the near future. 

Half-hour film, featuring Gtt's 
time lapse photography and based 
on a live version that’s in its third 
year on WNBQ, is being priced on 
a percentage of the individual sta- 
tion’s rate cards. It’s being filmed 
by Ott’s own crew in his garage 
which he’s converted into a studio. 

Even before the Swift buy-in the 
shoiv had been sold in recent 
weeks to KPTV* Portland, KACY, 
St. Louis and WLWA, Atlanta. 
Harold Bluhm has been hired by 
Ott to handle the selling. 



Vagaries of Tint 

When the John /Cameron 
Swayze "Camel Newsreel” 
show on NBC-TV. gets the tint 
treatment on Feb. 16, the pro- 
gram will contain two specially 
made film features. 

, One was made in Formosa 
by the network’s roving Jones 
brothers. Despite the make- 
shift equipment, web execs re- 
port it’s a near perfect color 
pic. ( ■■ ‘ 

The other film feature 
planned for. the show was a 
fashion display, done at consid- 
erable expense in M. Y., with 
all the. latest gadgetfy. It bad 
to be tossed in the ashcan. 
That; gives them one to go. 



Bread Dough for ‘Kids’ 

Bond Bread has been signed to 
a firm pact for "Art Linkletter and 
the Kids,” an all-film Saturday 
stanza starting Feb. 27, on WCBS- 
TV, N.Y. It’s slotted for 6:45-7 p.m. 

Another of the station’s pic ses- 
sions, "Paul Killiam Show” (run- 
ning satire on vintage pix), will bo 
reskedded for the quarter Imme 
diately preceding With two par- 
i»tMp|pations set. 


Of “We, People’ 

Gabriel Heatter, Mutual com- 
mentator* and ’’Bobby Benson and 
the BBar-B Riders,” one of the 
web’s hot audio properties* are 
slated for vidpix treatment., Be- 
fore the year is out, General Tele- 
radio, the parent organization to 
MBS and the recent purchaser of 
a fistful of video film packages 
from Phillips H. Lord* intends 
Contracting Heatter as the emcee 
of "We the People,” a job the 
newshawk handled when the show 
began on radio over.;* decade ago. 

Word came from Herb Rice, 
MBS chief of programming and 
advisor without .portfolio to the 
General Teleradio Vidpix outfit/ 
No definite date for the start of 
production on the "People” series 
has been set, but the format and 
the Heatter entry are expected to 
be Ironed out within the next sev- 
eral months. Rice figures Heatter 
is a natural for the job as emcee 
of the show since it was the latter 
who helped build the radio por- 
tion of the stanza ( which had al- 
ways been a Lord property ) to Its 
high national rating shortly- after 
it was incepted; Show (sans Heat- 
ter) had short tv- life as a live 
production under the aegis of 
Young & Rubicam. 

"Bobby Benson” deal will be cut 
for video in a series of 39 pix, 
though no definite plans concern- 
ing cast or production date were 
disclosed by Rice. The radio edi- 
tion of the juve show has been an 
afternoon money-maker at Mutual 
for years now. 

No immediate move to dissolve 
the Lord company name and bring 
th- properties directly under Gen-, 
eral Teleradio title has been made. 
For. the time being at any rate Ac- 
cording to Teleradio execs, the 

(Continued on page 48). 

REAR-SCREEN’S BOON 
TO TELEPIX COMM’LS 

Rear-screen projection ; is cur- 
rently being used as a means of in- 
tegrating commercials on syndl 
cated vidpix . series. For those lo? 
cal s tensors who use . live blurbs 
on syndicated shows* the vidpix 
distribs are supplying stills of the 
main set of the pix which, after 
being made into slides, are used in 
rear-screen projection, with the 
announcer standing in front of the 
simulated' and mantaining contin- 
uity with the pix. 

Idea is a new one, and it can be 
Used only with those vidpix which 
use a central or continuous set 
Guild Films is supplying stations 
and sponsors with stills on the 
"Liberace” set* which consists 
mainly of drapes. Vnder the setup, 
the live announcer appears to be 
spieling right on the, set that’s 
jusqddq the pix, ./ ... 





Screen Gems, the Columbia Pic- 
tures telepix subsidiary which for 
the past two years has been operat- 
ing on a limited though profitable 
scale, last week threw its hat into 
the bigtime ring with the an- 
nouncement that it was budgeting 
$5,000,000 in new vidpix produc- 
tion in 1954, Announcement 
marked the firm’s first big expan- 
sion in the syndication field, and 
served also to upbeat the growing 
trend toward ‘'’vertical” structure 
in vidpix operations production 
and distribution under the same 
corporate roof. 

Record coin will go into five 
series and four, pilots, latter for 
national sale only. Screen Gems al- 
ready has "Ford Theatre” on 
NBC-TV, and the firm Will produce 
39 more of these. Additionally; 
firm is in production on three 
mpre series, the Robert . Young- 
starring "Father Knows Best,” un- 
der the ■ Cavalier Productions ban- 
ner with Gene- Rodney (Young’s 
partner) supervising; "Adventures 
of Rin-Tin-Tin,” locationing in 
California with Herbert B, Leon- 
ard producing; and the "Damoit* 
Runyon Theatre,” with Screen 
Gems’ Michael Kraike and Howard 
Welcii producing under Fred 
Brisk! n’s supervision for Norman- 
die Television Pictures, Inc. Three 
new series Will first be put up for 

( Continued on page 44) 


A hot prospect has developed 
for the Mickey Rooney vidpix pe- 
nes, but disagreement on a 'start- 
ing date may delay exposure of 
the $40,000-a-week NBC package 
until the fall. Leo Burnett, the Chi- 
cago agency, is dickering with NBC 
to grab the Rooney skein for a 
client understood to be Green 
Giant Canning Co. 

The show would go into the Sat- 
urday 'at 8 p.m. slot now riding 
with the Spike Johes Show/ NBC 
is pushing an April 1 teeoff, but 
Burnett is* holding out for a later 
date, probably. the fall. Jones would 
probably continue 1 opposite CBS* 
Jackie Gleason should NBC decide 
to stay with Burnett on the re- 
quested delay. 

DICKER SPONSOR DEALS 
FOR ‘MAIGRET’ TELEPIX- 

First three segments of the "In- 
spector Maigret” series based on 
the Georges Simenon stories have 
been flown to the U/S., and Pathe- 
Cinema, which is coproducing, the 
series with its parent French com- 
pany, Societe Nouvelle Pathe-Cine- 
ma, is currently in the midst or 
negotiations with potential spon- 
sors and distributors, the latter in 
case it’s necessary to syndicate the 
series. 

Plan is to get production rolling 
again in Paris on the series by the 
end of February, and Pathe-Cine- 
ma here expects to make a deal by 
then. While only three films have 
been completed, script adaptations 
on the morcTthan 50 Simenon stories 
are proceeding. Series, which stars 
Maurice Manson, is being directed 
by Jean Lenaeur, with original mu- 
sic by Joseph Kosman (best krtown 
here for his "Autumn* Leaves”). 

Geo. Burns Coin For 
Buzzell’s Telepix Series 

Hollywood, Feb; 9; 

Deal is being negotiated where- 
by George Burns may finance and , 
telefilm Eddie Buzzell’s "Third 
Girl From the Right,” with Burns’ 
McFadden Corp. shooting the vidr 
pix series. 

Burns has been hunting for a 
second series for his company, cur- 
rently Jensing the Burns Bp Allen 
. show at the General' Service* lot- 



28 


RAMO-TELEVISIOtt 


Wedattday ? :Miniry 10 , I954, 





Chicago, Feb. 9. 4 

Victojr Sholis, general manager 
of WHAS, Louisville, one of the 11 
Henry L. Christal-repped radio sta- 
tions that financed the Alfred P07 

litz study on AM’s status in- tv 
areas, tossed out a firm .'challenge 
here last week to Broadcast Adver- 
tising Bureau to launch a follow 
through analysis on radio’s role in 
the current scene. ; 

Speaking before the Chi Broad- 
cast Executives Club, Sholis 
punched over the thesis that tradi- 
tionally radio has done a sad job 
of telling Its story* akid that BAB, 
as the medium’s exploitation arm, 
would be “dferelict” if it fails to 
pick up the ball along the lines 
of the Politz report. IJe said BAB 
is doing a good job spotlighting 
specific case, histories and promo- 
tions but it should devote^ome at- 
tention to selling the medium in 
general via the. extension of a 
broad-based study which could use 
the PolKz research as a starting 
' point. 

-Sholis pointed out that the Politz 
report was one of the few signifi- 
cant examinations of radio, de- 
signed to give a qualitative depth 
picture of the medium’s impact on 
American society -7- in this case 
areas .with an average of 62% tv 
saturation. He stated that radio 
down through the years has been 
notorious for its bad research prac- 
tices^ “We broadcasters have spent 
more money, for more statistics that 
left us more confused than any 
other AnrieVican industry,” he said. 

Radio’s reliance on ratings dur- 
ing the lush pre-tv days proved to 
. be a big handicap .when the sight- 
medium emerged, as a glamorous 
conr.petitor, Sholis pointed out. 
Nose-counting was a simple ex- 
pedient that made it easy to sell 
and easy to buy radio when it was 
the top dog electronic medium. 
But, Sholis charged,, ratings failed 
to really say anything about .radio 
as an advertising medium. 

As a result, when tv came down 
(Continued on page 42) 


New TV Cycle? 

Jan. Murray, a h . Jackie 
Glekson, fell (on camera) dur- 
ing • a telecast of “Dollar a 
Second” via DuMont Sunday 
(7) night, and sprained a verte- 
bra. The quiz master sllrped 
on some baby breakfast cereal 
which was being used to simu- 
late cement in a prop mixer 
that was onstage. 

Murray finished the pro- 
gram, quipping about the acci- 
dent. Though his back is taped 
up he Will be back for next 
week’s performance, 


KPTV’s 14G Telethon 

Portland, Ore.,FCb. 9. 
KPTV Raised ovgr 114,000 for 
the March* of Dimes in a 12-hour 
telbthoh with a dutch auction. /• 
Grind started at '11:1.3 p.in. Sat. 
and wound up at 11:15 a.m; Sun., 
with over 4,000 In the studio and 
lined Up Outside. A long list ; of 
merchandise with different values 
were offered foi: auction. 




* • ■ ^ • k , » « . • . 

Four “Generals” and their various divisions have been descend- 
ing on “Today’’ in a series* of maneuvers worth some" $1,000,000 
to the five-a-week formation of the Dave Garrpway-emceed 7 to 
9 ayemer on NBOTV. The four-way campaign ift either lii progress 
or recently executed. Each thrust; costs roughly $3,500. Take 
General Mills, for instance: 

Participations Gross 

$154,000 
364,000 
91,000 

$609,000 

$273,000 
. 73,000 


Crocker Appliance 
Cake Mix 
O-Cello-O 


a • • 


M • ♦ • • ,* • \ *.• > • ♦ * V 






44 

104 

26 


Now add General Electric: 

Telechron ........... 

Tv Tube 






t • • • 4. 


78 

21 




NBC-TV thinks it’s time to take 
ballet out of its limited audience 
confines and give it some major 
treatment on video, to convince 
millions of viewers that today it’s 
popular entertainment. 

With that in mind, network ex- 
ecs have already approached Lin- 
coln Kirsteiii, general director of 
the New York City Ballet Co. and 
of the parent N, Y. City Center of 

S iusic fc Drama, with the idea of 
oing at least one full-length pro- 
duction. Should that click, NBC 
would then be interested in doing 
several a season. It would involve 
direct pickups from the. City 
Center. 

Only snag thus far is. Kirstein’s 
own reluctance to embark oh any 
such video venture. It’s his feel- 
ing that. perhaps two, three or four 
dancers Would show up to advant- 
age on tv, but that the camera 
range Wouldn’t do justice to a full- 
scale number involving the entire 
corps de ballet. NBC is still try- 
ing, however. 

A couple weeks back the Sad- 
ie r^Wells Ballet did 17 minutes of 
presentations on Ed Sullivan’s 
“Toa^t of the Town" as the show’s 
major attraction. It was on the 
same Sunday when the opposition 
“Colgate Comedy Hour” co-starred 
Ethel Merman and Jimmy Durante, 
but Sadler’s Wells copped the 
highest Trendex rating. 


Concentrated efforts by ABC-TV 
toppers tb get the tv end of the 
“Breakfast Club” simulcast off the 
ground on a commercial basis 
came to naught this week when 
Swift & Co., orie of the sponsors 
of the' radio segment and the' tv 
web’s hottest bankrolier prospect, 
adopted a wait-and-see attitude. 
Thus, the ' mbrning tv’er, ABC’s 
first early-bird network entry, will 
,start as a. sifstainer unless the Web 
can pull a sale out' of the hat be- 
tween now and Feb. 22, the pre- 
miere date*. 

Strangely enough, the radio end 
of the simulcast, remains SBO de- 
spite the addition of tv. Radio web 
had fearejd that the launching of 
the tv’er might make inroads bn 
AM sponsors or might scare a 
couple of them off. because of a 
possible audience split. Nonethe- 
less, the 20 quarter-hours-per-week 
on radio are sold out, while 20 
per week on tv are available. And 
it’s those same radio sponsors 
which turned the tv web down cold 
Swift is waiting; ditto Philco 
Quaker bats expressed interest in 
the tv end but because of budge- 
tary problems won’t, be able to 
sj come in till next fall at the earli 
est. 

Sustaining service stands to cost 
the Web more than $30,000 a week 
in program cost. Program sells for 
$2,500 per quarter-hour, commis- 
sionable. Besides .that, the time 
charges would amount to nearly 
$150,000 weekly in the event of an 
SRO, what with a time rate of $22,- 
000 for three quarter-hours per 
week for a . 75-station lineup. 
There’s a new studio the' web built 
in Chicago’s Hotel Morrison for 
the show to take into considera- 
tion too. As a result, it’s pretty 
obvious to the trade that the web 
must sell something soon if it’s go 
ing to stay out of the deep red 
Web . certainly doesn’t want to re- 
peat the failure it experienced last 
fall ilk its first attempt at daytime, 
when an hour of afternoon pro- 
gramming rode sustaining for the 
full 13 T week cycle and then was 
unceremoniously dropped in favor 
of the Don MacNeill segment. 


Ad agency chief Emil Mogul has 
*takeii a pointed stand' against the 
statement made by Reg Rollinson, 
press chief of Crusade for Spot 
Radio, which noted that; iatter re- 
ceived reports that the agency had 
skipped dealings wi^h station reps, 
and gone directly to the outlets to 
seek special arrangements. Mogul 

demanded of Rolliftsoi) that he 
either make a -public, apology or 
prove, his contentions. 

'Rollinson had written in a. mime- 
ographed letter .to his confreres 
about the report he received con- 
cerning four- Mogul fpien who had 
gone directly to stations tp deal. 
He . noted, “It seems to us it is 
.highly, desirable that time buyers 
and representatives .of -the Adver- 
tising agencies visit! local markets, 
visit the j stations, learn about the 
U. S. by traveling through the 
States. . But . not for the purpose 
of pressuring' stations into rate 
cuts,; and not for the purpose of 
avoiding the regular practices of 
the advertising business, including 
the practice of placing . their na- 
tional spot business through sta- 
tion representatives.” , 

Mogul asserted that the state- 
ment was false and, in pointing to 
specifics, he demanded proof of ac- 
cusations. Among these denied by 
Mogul were: use of pressure tac- 
tics; the trips his men made to the 
stations were for the purpose of 
pressuring stations into rate cuts, 
and that they avoided the regular 
practice of the advertising busi- 
ness, including placing national 
Spot biz through station reps. 

Rollinson was advised in a let- 
ter from the -agency head that 
“Instead of rushing into print: 
with false accusations, maybe you 
and your organization ought to 
take a little inventory of yourselves 
and put' your own house in order.’’ 

Reg Rollinson, when asked for a 
statement concerning the . Mogul 
note, reported that he has received 
no such communication as yet. 


$346,000 
$ 98,000 


Then mix with General Foods: 

Baker’s Coconut . ...... . .. ...;. • . ... . ; 29 . 

(increased to 78 spots come next fall) 

And General Motors (for the auto oufit’s January Mbtorania 
buildup): . . . ' 

All divisions ..... . v. .......... . , v ; . 1<$ $ 35,000 

; ^ ' grand total— $1,088,000 



STANTQN^ SARTORIAL NOD 

CBS Proxy Chosen Among World’s 
10 Best. Groomed Men 


February issue of Barber’s Jour- 
nal, the “voice of the. nation’s bar- 
bers,” chooses “The World’s, 10 
Best Groomed, Men” Characterizing 
them- as “BaTberings’ Own Men Of 
Distinction.” * 

. In the leadoff spot of, the 10 
photos is CBS prexy Frank Stan- 
ton. Others include John D. Rocke- 
feller Jr,, Guy Lombardo, .Henry 
Ford 2d, Adolphe Menjou, Thomas 
Mann, Gen. Hoyt Vandenberg, Hen- 
ry Cabot Lodge Jr,, Porfirio Rubi? 
rosa and Anthony Eden. ' 
Selection of .Stanton makes it a 
clean sweep for CRS, both among 
the men and women, with Colum- 
bia board chairman William S. 
Paleiy’s wife (ex-Barbara Cushing) 
designated by the fashion experts 
recently for the No. 1 spot among 
the best dressed women. 



Wally Cox’s ‘3 Men’ 

; Steel 




! J 


London, Feb. 9. 

Maurice Winnick leaves for New 
York next Sunday (14) for a three* 
weeks’ visit, during which he will 
gander radio and tv properties, suit- 
able for Britain and also negotiate 
for locally-produced features with 
the American \vcbs. 

Winnick holds; the British rights 
of a number of top tv and radio 
programs, including “Wh;:t\s My 
Line?” and “Twenty Questions.” 
The former, has a peak .Sunday 


m a 

Faces at ABC-TV were an apple- 
sauce red this week when the web 
had a sponsorship deal cancelled 
before it ever commenced. Worst 
part of it was that the web’s pub- 
licity department had sent out re- 
leases, not only on the deal, Init 
on a Pulse survey that explained 
why it was a good buy. 

Show in question was “Jamie." 
which Duff y-Mott has carried ort 
alternate weeks since its inception 
last fall. Web had ’ a deal for 
Clapp’s Baby Foods, a Duff y-Mott 
subsid, to sponsor the other week 
for four programs (release from 
publicity didn’t mention length of 
■the contract), blit suddenly it was 
notified that the deal was off. But 
not before ABC publicity had re- 
leased the results of a survey 
showing incidence' of - purchase of 
Duffy-Mott products among “Jam- 
ie” viewers as compared with non* 


.Wally Cox may reprise his suc- 
cessful summer stock stint of last 
season in “Three Men on a Horse” 
on U. fi. Steel’s hour-long ABC-TV 
dramatic segment Aug. 3. Theatre 
Guild has scheduled the John 
Cecil Holm-George Abbott, farce 
for that date and is currently in 
the midst of negotiations with Cox 
to take the leading role. The tour- 
ing stock version last summer was 
one of the more successful of the' 
barnyard entries. 

Guild is also dickering with 
Helen Hayes, who starred on the 
alternate-week “Motorola TV 
Hour” a couple of weeks ago, to 
take the lead of an original, “Wel- 
come Home,” by N. Richard Nash, 
on March 16. Also on tap are 
Gertrude Berg for Arthur Arent’s 

(Continued on page 46) 


Continuing an Upward trend 
that’s been in force since last Sep- 
tember, ABC-TV racked up total 
video billings in January of. $2,694, - 
391, representing a 71% increase 
over January of 1952, it’s the fifth 
| straight month in which the web’s 
billings have increased, and also 
the fifth straight month the’ve 
topped the previous year's take for 
that period. 

On the basis of current billings, 
the network, which totaled only 
slightly over $21,000,000 in 1953, 
should go well over the $30,00,000 
mark in, '54. The low figure of the 
’53 take was due to the fact that 
the web didn’t get its new pro- 
gramming off the ground until the 
fall, and those autumn months rep- 
resented new highs for the net. 

Web’s billings in the fall started 
I inauspiclously enough, with $1,- 
230,616 in September, only a 7% 
increase over the. year . before. But 
_inOctober, they jumped to $2,226, - 
(Continued on page 46 ) 

B.B.Pen, Gemex Renew 


N, Y. City Welfare Commissioner 
Henry L. McCarthy has thrown the 
ball to the. state hi; an investigation 
of . the charity features of the 
VStrike It Rich” program (CBS-TV 
and. NBC-Radio). Probe would fall 
within the , jurisdiction of state 
Senator ^ Bernard Tompkins, who 
heads up a legislative panel looking 
into public solicitation of funds 
and particularly “charity rackets.? 

Walt Framer, producer of 
“Strike It Rich,” hasn’t heard bf- 
Rcially frpm .. McCarthy since last 
Monday ( 1) when, h$ received a let- 
ter stating that thb Colgate-Palm- 
olive show must . be licensed be- 
cause it solicits contributions from 
the public , via its “Heart Line” 
gimmick. * Since then the contro- 
versy has been’ back-and-forthed ic 
the newspapers and has spread 
across the country. If the show 
drops the “Heart Line” telephone 
pitch, it may, fall out of any bu- 
reau’s jurisdiction and Framer’s 
threatened litigation won ’t be nec- 
essary. ■ > 

McCarthy had put . “Strike It 
Rich” in the ilk of “misery” shows 
which bring people to the city and 
make them relief cases when they 
don’t come in for a payoff. He 
struck .out at the giveaway, and 
heartthrob stanzas a few months 
ago, and there the matter lay until 
Walter Winchell in his N. Y; Mir- 
ror column last Monday wrote this 
paragraph: “N. Y. City and state 
officials will very shortly confirm 
this. They are going after the 
‘Strike It Rich’ radio-video show, 
CBS people (and the producers’ 
(Continued on page 48) 



Ratmg TV Dramas 


Viewers; 


f, V 


American Research Bureau’s 
January ratings on the one-hour tv 
dramas put he Sunday night NBC- 
TV “Philco Television Playhouse” 
in top position With 38.8. 

ARB’s rundown follows: 

Philco (NBC) . .’ 38.8 

Kraft (NBC) , 37.9 

Robert Montgomery (NBC) 33.4 

Studio* One (CBS) 28.0 

, Kraft (ABC) ............. 18.5 

Motorola (ABC) 15.8 

ARB .repoi t doesn’t ' ^ist U. S, 

Sjeei (Vw-j 1 , f 


I')"- i,< 'r ■ 


B.B. Pen Co. and Gemex Watch- 
bands renewed George Jessel’s 
Sunday night telecast on ABC-TV 
for another cycle, making a total 
of 39 weeks the show will be un- 
der their joint sponsorship. Jessel 
meanwhile has abandoned plans to 
originate his tv’er frohv the Coast 
until spring, when he goes into El 
Rancho Vegas for his first Vegas 
nitery date: At that time, he wants 
to dcr Vegas a Coast origination so 
that he can fly between Hollywood 
and Vegas -'for the- teleshow and 
the nitery stint. But if the spon- 
sors balk he l U defer the dates. 

" slated for El Rancho May 19 
,fou Uu^ee weeks .at $18,500 per 
i week. ' ‘.mi 1 r oi« 


Those media pundits who’ve 
been basing their, radio buys on 
the; fact that early morhing is tele- 
vision’s poorest viewing time may 
soon have to change their minds. 
The early, morning sets-in-use pe- 
riod for television is undergoing 
a swift upward transformation, ac- 
cording to an ABC-TV research 
study based on Nielsen sets-in-use 
figures. 

Study shows early morning tele 
has registered as high as a: 31.8% 
increase over the past year in. sets- 
in-use during the mbrning, with 
the high spot in the 9-10 slot. Same 
study, however, shows that after- 
noon tv sets-in-use have declined, 
but that afternoon still shows the 
highest level of viewing. 

Sets-in-use for 9-10 a.m. rose 
31.8% in November over the pre- 
vious year, to an 8.3 level. A 20.4% 
increase was registered for 10-1 1 , 
with sets-in-use for that time at 
13.0. The 11-12 period shows a 14.7 
sets-in-use level, an increase of 
5.0%. , • 

Noon to 1 p.m. has dropped 5.7% 
to 16.5. A 14.5% decrease is shown 
for 1-2, with a 13.6 vibwirtg level. 
Similar decrease holds for . 2-3, a 
13.3 sets-in-use figure represent-. , 
lhg a 14,7% drop. The 3-4 viewing 
decrease is .14:9%, with a 16.0 view- 
ing figure, Decrease for the 4-6 
-period is. less! sharp, ’.with, a ’.14:3% 
drop for 4-5’s 21.0 level and' only 
an 11.4% decline for 5=6, which 
has a: 30.4 sets-in-use' level; 0 ( > < 



Wednesday, February 1 ft, 1954 


RADIO-TELEVISION 



■ i t ■ n il k 1 1 «■ k v i i h ■ u 1/ i if ■ ■ ra w 




«** 


T 


•«*/ 



t 




The showdown on whether the tv networks or the agencies have 
the right to designate what show goes into a time slot may be 
coming sooner than anticipated. The current negotiations designed 
to bring. about a afiift of the “Lux Video Theatre'* and “Luxfilidio 
Theatre’' 1 from CBS to NBC could well** the spark to precipitate 
the network vs. agency battle to resolve the issue once and for all. 
Since nearly $3,000,000 in billings is at stake in the acquisition 
of the tux (Lever Bros.) business, NBC is; anxious to grab it off. 
It has- offered Lujc the Thursday night 10 to 11 period for the 
tv showcase (which is expanding from Its present half-hour format). 
That means yanking the. U.S. TObacco-sponsored “Martin Kane” 
out of the 10-10:30 niche. “Martin Kane” contract for the time 
slot expires in August and NBC intends to shift it to another 
period r-i.vv-: , 

B.utjhe ^Kudft0r,agency, _ which handles the. show, wants no part 
of the deal. In fact, a major agency spokesman said if necessary 
the whole thijfg will be talten to court and even' to the FCC if 
necessary. l|tere^^how £he;igency spokesman put it: • 
v “The show’s beeh’ in the~ spot since August of 1949, The rating 
has climbed to 36 on the Nielsen. We’ve spent millions of dollars 
with the network. ; Now, wflidri the tobacco companies , in general 
are in heed ’til sut>poij*ti titan networks, to counteract the un- 
pleasant' publicity ipf\ the ^ past’ few months, we’re getting evicted 
to make room for somebody else. We’re not going to take it lying 
down, In fact, we’ll- fight if right up the line.” (Meantime, “Lux 
Video” has been renewed for a- cycle, as has the radio edition). 

Network execs, in their desire to strengthen their time segments, 
know they’ve got a sensitive problem on their hands. On the one 
hand they can’t afford to antagonize^ clients, no matter what the 
billings, while at the same time they recognize all too well the 
■ need to bolster their rosters. In terms of Lux, they concede that’ 
a Thursday night hour drama stanza would ‘ register as a major 

_ I i . * .■ ... i oT • • • . ■ i* • * • : . ■ 


SayS Kudn'ert Why pick on Thursday, where 1 NBC is "top dog 
with ‘‘Dragnet*’ and Grbucho : Mari? Wliat about Monday, with ’ 
Us weak entries, or. again Saturday night? 



> 


Lotsa Sponsors Around; for Wooing of Gotham’s 
Big Puerto Rican Audience 


The 500,000 Latins in New York 
are getting top- radio programming 
dining the best Video hours 
through the Offices of the national 
sponsors. Chief , example is 
WHOM 1 , Gotham indie, where the 
big advertisers are paying a size- 
able mi tto reach, this virtually un- 
tapped minority. 

Television competition doesn’t 
frighten the sponsors who have 
bought into audio time largely, be- 1 
tween 6-ii p.m. Either the Span- 
ish-speaking audience, mostly from 
Puerto Rico, cannot afford the 
price tag for a video receiver, or, 
in the instances Where they can, it f* 
has been noted that they will turn 
on the set, watch the picture- and 
listen to the sound of a. radio pro- 
gram. So far there haVe been no 
shows for the Latino* market, much 
less for^ any other minority group, 
on Gotham video outlets. 1 ■ - 

In January WHOM, owned by 
(Continued on page 46) 



A deal whereby Borden- would 
fill the Thursday at 8:30 on NBC- 
1 V void, created by the April 
moveover of “T-Men In Action" 
to ABC; with a dramatic series ex- 
tended from a one-shotter, looked 
as 6°°d as wrapped up early this 
week. Property under considera- 
tion is “Justice,” originally shown 
as part of the “Album” series on 
,,I e . same network that’s inheriting 
T-Men.” Story by Halsted Welles 
and starring; Paul Douglas was 
based on material in the files of 
the Legal Aid Society, but whether 
he and Ralph Nelson, who directed, 
would go along with the package 
is not yet. known. (Nelson whips 
the “Mama” series which might 
Preclude his availability.) 

Should the deal jell, “Justice” 
a . one °* a group from 11 
Album” programs elongated to a 
tegular • skein. Among the others 
were “Col, Humphrey Flack,” a 
duMont’ show with Alan MoWbray 
seined, arid “Jamie,” with Bran- 
Wilde in the title role on. 
ABC-TV. “Justice”, was displayed 
last -April, and thus if it meets 


NBC’s Tinted Religioso 

NBC-T.V’s experimentation in 
tint programming is also extend- 
ing to its religious segments. 

The web’s “Frontiers of Faith” 
Sabbath show will undergo the 
rainbow test on Easter Sunday. 



^'eb specifications would rdturn in 
^mhology form just a year later: 
ialenl Associates is the packager 
With “Jamie” included in’ its list 
01 propci^faefij- '‘Ji » rs (| 


Gotham major league baseball 
announcers have been playing a 
game of musical chairs while lin- 
ing lip for the coming season. The 
Giants, Yankees and Dodgers have 
the say in who does the mike work 
and not the radio and video sta- 
tions involved. Each club has 
made a major change in the vocal 
lineup. The big and most surpris- 
ing one, however, came from, the 
Dodgers 'and BBD&O, who decided 
to put Aiidre Baruch into its 
sportscasting picture. 

Baruch was always the straight 
announcer, but now in the Brook- 
lyn frays to be heard on WMGM 
and seen on WOR-TV, he report- 
edly will do some of the game 
color in addition to the announce- 
ments for both Schaefer Beer and 
Lucky Strike ciggies. A number 
of others were surveyed before 
Baruch’s name was picked out of 
the hat. Connie Desmond and 
Vince Scully remain with the 
Dodgers to round out the partisan 
trio. 

It’s common knowledge that Red 
; ( Continued on page 46 ) 


Phi! Dean Exits NBC 

Phil Dean has come to a parting 
Of the ways with WNBC-WNBT, 
flagships in N. Y. of NBC, and he 
steps out as publicity director to 
be replaced by Bob Blake. Latter 
will double over from . the web- 
bery’s o&o and Spot Sales and 
Will have a manager under him for 
the local post, ' 

Dean, whose plans are to be 
made known shortly, has been p.d. 
of the twin’ outlets for about two 
yea*rs and before that put in thtee 
semesters on NBC prfess and ex- 
ploitation. 




By GEQRGE ROSEN 

Two widely-divergent philoso- 
phies as to wliat should constitute 
daytime television programming 
offer an interesting and significant 
sidelight being watched closely by 
the trade — - and particularly by 
the affiliate stations of the two 
major television networks— in es- 
tablishing the eventual pattern of 
daytime video. 

On the one hand there’s CBS- 
TV, whose leadership in the day- 
time tv sweepstakes is unquestion- 
ed as the network moves into a 
near SRO status both morning and 
afternoori. Under the Hub Robin- 
son “let’s give ’em a good enter- 
taining show, with lots of the old 
reliable soapers as the base; grab 
in the bucks, and clinch the lead- 
ership” operational pattern, CBS- 
TV has, as of the moment, attain- 
ed a formula that’s contributed 
largely toward Bill Paley’s coin- 
happy status and which enabled 
CBS-TV to. close out the ’53 semes- 
ter with an $860,000 billings ad- 
vantage over its major rival. .... 

In sharp contrast to Robinson. & 
Co.’s reliance on tested and ac- 
cepted patterns, NBC’s Pat Weaver 
is shooting in an entirely different 
direction. Soap operas, blocks of 
Which are pouring some fancy 
bucks into the Columbia coffers, 
are riot his dish of . tea. Weaver’s 
concept for daytime television 
programming is wrapped up for 
the most part in the word “serv- 
ice”— and it’s his conviction that 
“service” shows, not weepers, will 
be the ultimate answer — if not to- 
morrow then perhaps the next day 
—when, the final daytime score is 
tallied. 

There’s a lot at stake in Weav- 
er’s thinking for, while CBS and 
its . affiliates are enjoying the 
sponsor fruits of the soaps and 
the other accepted entertainment 
components (rariging from Arthur 
Godfrey, Garry Moore, Art Link- 
letter, Bob Crosby to “Big Payoff” 
and “Strike It Rich”), Weaver, 
still faced with the burden of 
translating the daytime rosters 
into a commercial success, is. stak- 
ing his all on the “unorthodox” in 
terms of daytime tv programming. 
Weaver’s convinced he’ll make it 
• — and apparently so do Boss Man 
David Sarrioff’ and the affiliates.’ 

Only .one soaper Is riding the 
NBC video JAnes .(“Thfee Steps To 
Heaven,” , backed, , by Procter & 
Gamble coin) -arid Weaver could 
have inserted a flock of others. 
But he doesn’t Want them. To him 
the “tv of tomorrow” lies in the 
more revolutionary patterns • of 
“Today” and the upcoming 
“Home” 11 to noon show. If the 
latter clicks there will be more 
and still more of the “variations 
on a theme by Weaver.” True, just 
as CBS has its variegated patterns 
for daytime along with the soaps, 
NBC is also peppering its sched- 
ules with the tried-and-true Kate 
Smith, “Hawkins Falls.” “Bride 
and Groom,” ‘Welcome Travelers” 
arid other items somewhat less 
formidable than the potent CBS 
lineup. But there’s no concealing 
the fact that NBC-TV daytime will 
rise or fall on the “Weaver con- 
cept.” Everyfhing’s riding on it. 


Domestic Intrigue 

The NBC-TV proposal to in- 
. stall “Lux . Video Theatre” in 
the Thursday night 10 to 11 
time next season, aside from 
the Kudncr agency’s unhap- 
piness of the threatened yank- 
ing of its U.S. Tobacco-spon- 
sored “Martin Karte” show 
from thq ' 10 . to 10: 30 slot, 
poses a q^hcate situation for 
J. Walter . Thompson agency. 

JWT handles the Lux 
(Lever Bros, ) biz. It also han- 
dles (and has a major financial 
stake in) the Ballantine Beer- - 
sponsored “Foreign Intrigue” 
'syndicated - Series which is 
-berthed in the ’Thursday 16:30 
to 11 p m. ’segment on a num- 
ber of NBC-TV stations, in- 
cluding N.Y, 

On the one hand it’s ob- 
ligated to charapiop the Lux 
acquisition; on the other the 
move jeopardizes its “Intri- 
gue” pix., 



BBD&O agency has grabbed off 
the lucrative Campbell Soup bill- 
ings, totalling in excess of $8,000,- 
000 (with about $4,000,000 of that 
amount siphoned into radio-tv). 
Billings were thrown on the Open 
market in a sudden move last week 
when the account was yanked 
from Ward Wheelock, with whose 
agency, the name Campbell has 
been synonymous for more than 
30 -years. 

PJo sooner had word leaked but 
that the Campbell-Wheelock long- 
time marriage had blown up than 
all . the agencies went to work 
pitching for the biz. Ben Duffy, 
prexy of BBD&O, won put, clinch- 
ing the agency’s topdog status in 
the radio-tv sweepstakes. 

Duffy plans no immediate 
changes in the Campbell Soup 
program roster, which includes. 
Friday night NBC-TV “Sound- 
stage” half-hour dramatic show; 
the cross-the-board “Grand Cen- 
tral Station” on ABC Radio and 
the "Double Or Nothing” tv show 
on CBS. 

While Wheelock still has Whit- 
man Chocolates" and a few other 
accounts, the loss of Campbell, his 
mainstay, will probably cue a 
streamlining of the Philadelphia- 
berthed agency; 

Another bundle of Camderi, 
N. J., manufacturing coiti is await- 
ing agency disposition RCA ’s 
$12,000,000 billings being divorced 
from J. Walter Thompson. It’s ex- 
pected that the new agency repre- 
sentation will be made x known in 
the next few days. 


vyvnv;iu^ in , MlU-YVlllg 

near, with all the tv networks In 
the running, for acquisition of the 
year’s grid plum — - the- NatlonM 
Collegiate Athletic Assn.’s ■‘Game 
pf the Week” football telecast. 
NBC : TV has had it for the last 
three seasons, with General 
Motors picking up the approximate 
$4,000,000 tab for the ’53 Saturday 
afternoon schedule. 

When the HCAA V tv committee 
meets within the next few Avceks, 
the customary solicitatiriri . for ' 
sealed bids Will go out to the net- 
works. NBC would like it for a 
fourth straight semester ( whether. ’ 
GM will ride with it again, in syteh 
an eventuality, is still . unknown i, 
but the other networks, and par- ' 
ticularly CBS, Wouldn’t be averse 
to grabbing it off this time, (ABC, 
it’s recalled, came near getting it 
last year.) " 

.Opposition to perpetuating the 
national . “gariie of the week” pat- 
tern still ebritiriues in some col- 
legiate quarters, with the Big Ten, 
for one, advocating regional setup: 

Big 10 Still Pushing 

Chicago, Feb. 9. 

Despite the 'lopsided endorse- *, 
ment of the National Collegian 
Athletic Assn. Is national ganie- 
of-the-week football tv, program 
by delegates at the groups recent 
conVentiori, the Big 10 is continu- 
ing -its push for regional control 
of grid telecasts. 

Key midwest conference plarii 
to make detailed pitch for its re- 
gional ambitions to the new NCAA 
tv Committee which is being or- 
ganized to handle the 1954 pro- • 
gram. Strategy of big 10 reps wai 
not to formally . plug for confer- 
ence tv jurisdiction at the Cincin- 
nati national session last month 
but tp save thgir fire fqiv.t he small* , 
er video committee. ’ . ’ 

Meanwhile, Big 10 Toppers tfr« * 
quietly lining up support from 
other’ important NCAA member 
conferences, especially fi;om those 
largely comprised of state ihstitu- 
. lions which have been subjected 
to. f mounting grassroots pressure to 
liberalize and localize collegiate 
gridcasts. 

Big 10 admittedly has lough 
selling job ahead. 



Ted Mills is renegotiating a new 
deal with NBC-TV. with an ambi- 
tious project lined up for him. 
Mills’ contract with the network 
expired at the close of ’53, shortly 
after be vacated the production 
reins in blueprinting the upcoming 
“Home” show. Since then, how- 
ever, he’s been retained on a week 
to week basis. 

For the past few weeks Mills has 
been preparing for Public Affairs 
Director Davidson Taylor (to whom 
he’ll report in his newest venture) 
an elaborate presentation involv- 
ing programming dealing with the 
realities and bringing the world 
to the people, encompassing “ex- 
ploitative shows.” news shows, etc. 

Project is in line with one of 
Taylor’s major objectives — to bring 
unconventional things to tv. 



The most recent Nielsen ratings on daytime television Offer . some 
reveailing data ori the emergence of the -video soap opera as a hot 
commercial commodity. A breakdown of the Nielsen Index span- 
ning the 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. periods Monday through Friday, shows 
that, in relation to audience participation and personality-variety 
shows, the daytime serial accounts for only 19% of the program- 
ming. The personality-variety stanza accounts for 49 quarter- 
hours; aud participation 50 quarter-hours and the soapers 24 
quarter-hours. 

Yet within that framework, the Nielsen Index shows the soap 
operas grabbing off an average rating of 12.1, while the other type 
shows trail with a 10.5 average. 

Indicative of the trend is what’s been happening irt the case 
of CBS-TV’s “Search' for Tomorrow” suds saga, slotted in the 
12:30-12:45 segment. Rack-in Dec., ' ’51, ‘shortly after it went on 
the air, “Search" was getting.a 9.2 rating as against 1G:2 for Kate 
Smith’s afternoon show on NBC-TV. On the' last Ni'else 
“Sea rch” had a^ #1.4;' KMrsMitfi ‘7.3. 


A&A’s Top Brass Fiesta 


Ni'elsen study, 


The 26ih anniversary program 
of “Amos ’n Andy” on CBS Radio 
next Sunday (14) will hear tributes 
to Freeman Gosdien and Cliarlcs 
Correll from CBS board chairman . 
William S. Paley and his opposite 
number in NBC-RCA, Brig. Grin. 
David Sarnoff, Airing will drama- 
tize the careers of A&A. 

Others skedded arc Jack Benny. 
Bing Crosby, Edward R. Murrow 
Matter as narrator j and Lowell 
( Thomas.. ’ Bil.l Hay, longtime an- 
*1 nouricer of the duo,, will come oil t 
♦■'of retiremeiTt idr’i^e 


Wednesday, February 10, 1954 









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On January 4th THE PINKY LEE SHOW 
made its debut in the 5:15 to 5:30 p.m., EST, 
time spot on NBC Television. Four weeks later 
it had increased its rating 71 % to a 13.0 Trendex 
with a 45.8% share of audience. It is the fastest 
growing show in television . 


me TV show 


— TRENDEX 


?*V 

* ' 

k.V' , 




•. ^ 
*&*% 
& 



THE PINKY LEE SHOW began as a fifteen 
minute show, but because of its promise, it was 
expanded in its third week to thirty minutes — 
from 5:00 to 5:30. 


FOURTH WEEK 


13.0 


* The first is Howdy Doody, 

Pinky Lee*s following adjacency . 
Source: Trendex , January 4-29 , 1954 


Here’s what THE PINKY LEE SHOW offers you 
as an advertiser: 


An estimated 3U million viewing homes with 

\ 

an audience breakdown of over 2L million adults 
and over 5 million children. In other words, 
a big audience. 


THE PINKY LEE SHOW has four one-minute 
participations available for each broadcast. 

i> s 

You may buy one or as many as you wan|. 
The low participation price Is approximately 
$6,000 gross time and talent (depending on 
station lineup. With THE PINKY LEE SHOW'S 
big audience, your cost per thousand per 
commercial minute will be about $1.88. 

This Is certainly one of the best buys you can 
make in daytime television. For additional 
details call your NBC representative. 



television 


a service of Radio Corporation of America 


RAMO-TELEVISION 


WejnetJiy, Febrnfy 10, 1954 




Washington, Feb, 8. 4 

Color tv for the masses Is now 
virtually assured as the result of 
the development of the first con- 
verter for the NTSC system* the 
Invention ‘of a 24-year-old ' junior 
engineer employed • at Airtronic 
Research, Inc:, at nearby Bethesda, 
Md. It is expected that the de- 
vice, to sell for $50 to $100, <vill be 
on the market within iwo months. 
Several manufacturers, it is under- 
stood, are already negotiating with 
Aiftforic for licenses. 

It’s likely that the converter will 
also be built into new color re- 
vivers to permit their being ; mar- 
keted for $300 to $400 in contrast to 
the $800 to $1,000 for new sets in- 
corporating the tri-color tubes. 

The invention of Robert P. 
Benjamin, who received his engi- 
neering training at a trade school 
in Washington’s Capital Radio En- 
gineering ■ Iristitute, the converter 
employs a whirling disk which is 
placed in front of the tv screen. 
Size • of the Co’ or picture is thus 
restricted to 16 inches, regardless 
of the screen dimensions of the 
black and white. set. However, use 
of a filter drum, which had been 
demonstrated. by CBS several years 
ago to produce a 17-inch picture? 
would make possible larger images. 

Although the converter Used at 
the Airtronic demonstration Thurs- 
day (?) was in a crude form, it pro- 
duced color reception comparable 
to that provided by expensive con- 
sole color sets exhibited here. Ac- 
tually. on the color program picked 
up (NEC’s “Howdy Doody”), flesh 
tints appeared to be truer than that 
seen with the tri-color tube. Only 
one defect was observed — lack of 
brightspots, but company engineers 
said this problem can be easily 
licked and that a picture as bright 
as that received by the tri-cOlor 
tube can be obtained. An im- 
proved model of the converter has 
already been developed for use at 
demonstrations this week and next 
to officials of the FCC and tv man- 
ufacturers. 

Ironically, the use of the disk to 
“pull out” the colors from the 
black and white tube is made pos- 
sible by a system of circuitry which 

(Continued on page 46) 


Pinky & Betty 

Indicative of the sweeping 
changes in' daytime sales pat- 
terns at NBC-TV, modeled af- 
ter “Today” and projected 
“Home” show* is the extension 
of the policy into regular non- 
orthodox shows that until now 
have been, sold in quarter-hour 
Segments. 

As result of the move, the 
network now is bracketing 
both the Pinky Lee and Betty 
White half-hour shows (latter 
preemed this week) for “maga- 
zine concept” sponsorship. 
Four one-minute participa- 
tions on the shows are avail- 
able to clients. 


Grabbers Exits Brener 


; If was a short haul for Murray 
Grabhorn as sales director for 
WA’AT and WATV, Bremer Bpofd; 
. casting' radio . and video outlets In 
[jNevark, NJ. He went in around 1 
Dec. X, 1053, and announced his 
retirement Monday (8). 

He plans to leave for the £oast 
for “personal * reasons.” There was 
no mention of a post there, but 
he did explain that the. Coast was 
his original home. His job and the 
two Bremer stations was to handle 
national accounts. 


With $2,509,009 






Ed and Pegeen Fitzgerald have 
signed for their 15th year with 
ABC. A new five-year term was 
just inked, even though their 10th 
year doesn’t expire until April. 

The pioneer Mr. & Mrs. team 
now have outside tv privileges with 
exception that, as a Mr. ; & Mrs. 
feam on video, they must give first 
refusal to ABC. Otherwise they are 
free agents for video, singly or as 
a team. 


After 23 years of harmonious 
relationships between Tydol (Tide 
Water), and the Lennen & Newell 
ex-Lennen & Mitchell) ad agency, 
the sponsor has decided on a 
change; An. (estimated $1,500,000 
is involved in the biz switch. 

L & N, in a statement to em- 
ployees, said the only reason that 
he oil firm is going elsewhere is 
because latter’s top exec eschelon 
has moved from New York to the 
West Coast. (L. & N has a coast 
office, too). Buchanan agency, 
with big offices in New York and 
on the Coast, is expected to take 
over the billings in the near future. 

Buchanan has been handling As- 
sociated Oil, division of Tide 
Water, in 11 western states for 
some time. 


ABC-TV DICKERS ‘JUDY’ 
RETURN AS ‘FLASH’ SUB 

ABC-TV is reportedly close to a 
deal which will bring “Date With 
Judy” back on the network. Web 
is dickering With a couple of spon- 
sors on the show as a replacement 
foi’ “Quick as a Flash,” which Thor 
is dropping after the Feb. 25 tele- 
cast in the Thursday at 8 slot. 
ABC-TV won’t carry “Flash” as a 
susfainer. 

“Judy” was on the web as a 
Wednesday night feature until 
early last summer, when American 
Chicle decided to drop the family 
comedy. Web didn’t want to stand 
the cost of sustaining it, and when 
Sterling Drug moved into the 
time with “Mystery Theatre,” < the 
net decided to let “Judy !i drop. 


Radio Listening Up, 

TV Viewing Down, It 
Sez in ABC Report 

Radio listening in the last quar- 
ter of 1953 rose while television 
viewing fell, according to an ABC 
research report based on Nielsen 
data. Report showed that tv view- 
ing during the last quarter was 
4^98 hours per day, or 4% less 
than the 5.19 hours average for 
the last quarter of 1952, 

"Significant facet of the study is 
the fact that radio listening in tv 
homes rose 6%, even higher than 
listening in non-tv homes. Hours- 
per-day listening in tv homes was 
1.77 for 1953. as opposed to 1.67 in 
’52, while hours-per-day in radio 
only homes was 4.22, compared to 
4.01 in 1952, an increase of 5%. 

As tv stations go on the air in 
markets previously untouched by 
video, radio-only homes will de- 
crease and so will the amount of 
radio listening. Hence, broadcast- 
ers are finding the increase in 
radio use in tv homes particularly 
heartening, since in a short time 
there will be very few radio-only 
homes. 


Sharp alteration of WNBT’s day- 
time pattern will be applied March 
1 to give, strength and conformance, 
to the N.Y. end as parent NBC-TV 
brings, forth the much bally hooed 
“Home” in the 11 to noon spot. 
It’s a new deal right down the line 
for the flagship with every current 
stanza involved as program v.p. 
Dick Pack, goes to bat in a breakup 
of a one-hour period into segments, 
plus shifting of slots. 

With webbed “Today” riding 
from 7 to 9, the segueing Morey 
Amsterdam Show to 10 is being 
whipped into a half hour and 
spotted at 1 o’clock when the local 
starts a two-hour bloc that anchors 
at Kate Smith’s 3' p.m. berth. The 
9 to 10 time will consist of a com- 
bination of Herb Sheldon and 
Josie’s Kitchen,” the former from 
9 to 9: 20 with the first section of 
his adult-slanted session, followed 
by . the Josephine McCarthy cook- 
ery to 9:40 and concluding with 
the second phase of the Sheldon 
show back-to-back with “Ding 
Dong School.” Latter picks Up the 
network processional that goes to 
o’clock. 

Amsterdam’s talent setup will in- 
clude singer Francey Lane and 
maestro-vocalist Ray McKinley, 
who replaces Milton DeLugg’s 
group. Gene Rayburn, currently in 
the follow quarter with “Bright 
Ideas,” will give way to 30 minutes 
of the Richard Willis “Here’s Look- 
ing At Ybu” to 2 p.m. (now 2:30 to 
3). A Saturday half-hour daytimer 
is being planned for Rayburn, with 
his capsule “Bright Ideas” retained 
as a Tegular local satellite of “To- 
day.” The 2 to 3 slot, expanded 
from current 1:45 to 2:30, will 
change from the Jinx Falkenburg 
“Diary” to the Jinx and Tex Mc- 
Crary pairing with more emphasis 
on entertainment facets, these in- 
cluding three-a-week for the piano- 
loggings of Stan Freeman and a 
daily newsreel aimed at the femme 
audience. 


FM Taken far Ride? 

Pittsburgh, Feb. 9. 

Mrs. Agnes J. Reeves Greer, 
owner of WKJF-TV, UHF Channel 
53 here, filed a . writ here last Week 
against the Harmony Short Lines 
Bus Co., asking for the return of 
43 FM radio units valued at 
$ 10 , 000 . 

This is the second action 
brought by Mrs. Green in connec- 
tion with the music-for-transit 
which her FM radio station, WKJF, 
provided the bus outfit. 


On A Up With Danny 

Hopes of ABC TV execs and 
sponsors of the Dapny Thomas 
stanza, “Mike Room fot Pad- 
dy,” that the situation comedy 
would emerge * s a major tv 
entry, appear to becortiihg par- 
tially justified. Latest Nielsen 
shows the stanza Witjb a solid 
22.5, after months of dangling 
around the 16 mark. 

The first December Nielsen 
gave the Tuesday night entry 
a 16.6, while the second De- 
cember report showed the vid- 
pix series With a 20.3. First . 
January, due out this week, 

^ gives it the high mark of 22.5. 
*Show ranks secqnd, with the 
NBC post-Berle “Fireside The- 
atre” still holding a command- 
ing lead and the CBS -depart- 
ing “This Is Show Business” 
a poor third. . • • ' : 



Washington, Feb. 9. 
Richard P. Doherty, veepee in 
charge of labor relations for the 
National Assn, of Radio and TV 
Broadcasters, resigned last week to 
form his own consultant firm in 
Washington to be known as Rich- 
ard P. Doherty Television-Radio 
Management Co. His resignation 
takes effect March 1. , 

Doherty was released from a con- 
tract which had two years to go 
after a referendum poll of the As- 
sociation’s board of directors. 
NARTB prexy Harold E. Fellows 
said his departure will mean no 
diminution of service of the Em- 
ployer-Relations Department, res- 
ponsibility for which will be as- 
signed temporarily to Charles H. 
Tower, who has been Doherty’s as- 
sistant. 

In his. letter of resignation, 
Doherty said that the need for a 
“competent and professional man- 
agement advisory service” in the 
broadcast industry has been im- 
pressed on him increasingly during 
the past year. He plans, he said, 
“a company which can integrate it- 
self into the operating structure 
of individual stations and thus 
service the specific needs of the 
ownership and management of in- 
dividual stations.” . 

Doherty has been with NARTB 
since 1946. Previously, he was pro- 
ducer and moderator of the CBS 
forum series, “Labor-Management 
Round Table”. He was also a mar- 
ket researcher for networks and 
ad agencies and wrote numerous 
books and articles on labor rela- 
tions. 


* General Teleradio chain, which 
controls Mutual and owns -the Don 
Lee and Yankee n^wq^s t k «xpand- 
ed Its broadcasting (empire this 
we^ek with the acquisition *ofWHBQ 
and WHBQ-TV ip Memphis for a 
flat $2,500,000. Purchase- of the sta- 
tions, from Harding College and 
the Church of Christ oof Searcy, 
Ark., is subject to #CC approval 
and forces Tderadiq .prexy and 
board chairman Tom QTfeil to dis- 
pose of one of his neven radio 
stations. •; • 

Purchase, which ^011 be paid off 
by a $800*000 cash -payment at the 
time of FCC approval plus«$l,900 r 
000 over a 10-year period with 3% 
interest, gives O’Neil, and Tele- 
radio four on-the-artr tv nutlets 
plus a grant for’ a .fifth jointly 
owned by The . Hartford .Times; Tel- 
eradio owns WOR-TV, N.i Y.; KHJ- 
TV, Los Angeles; WNAC-TV, Bos- 
ton and^WGHT-TV, Hartford, the 
latter jointly with the Times. Hart- 
ford outlet is the only UHFer. 

O’Neil said he would put either 
KGB in San Diego or WEAN in 
Providence up for Sale. Teleradio 
also owns KFRC in San Francisco; 
WONS, Hartford; WLAW, Boston- 
Lawrencej. WOR and , KHJ. Deal 
gives Mutual ..the first ;o$o for any 
network in the south. VFHBQ is al- 
ready a Mutual-affiliate, and John 
Cleghorn, who headed Mutual’s Af- 
filiates Advisory Committee last 
year, will probably Temain as gen- 
eral manager. WHBQ-TV; which 
Went on the air four months ago on 
Channel 13 as a CBS basic, will 
probably retain that affiliation. 

Properties, 'which the’ifcqllege and 
church were unable to manage . on 
a longrange basis, had been Sought 

(Continued on pdfee 46) 




Manbtton Soap, Toni Ax 
‘Skeleton’ for Tenn, Ernie 

“Family Skeleton,” nighttime 
CBS soap strip with Mercedes Me- 
Cambridge, has been axed by Man- 
hattan Soap and Toni after several 
months in the 7-7:15 slot. Effec- 
tive date is March 5. 

Sponsors hold on to the time, 
however, and • on March 8 will 
preem a musical series with Ten- 
nessee Ernie and Helen O’Connell. 



President’s Cabinet Lacks His Blessing When 
Appearing on ‘Meet the Press’ 


President Eisenhower hasn’t 
tried to dissuade^ any of his official 
family from appearing on NBC- 
TV ’s “Meet the Press” but it’s un- 
derstood* they’re examined by the 
quartet of scribes without his 
blessing. When the President, at 
the convention which nominated 
him, laughingly changed ‘j; Like 
Ike” to “I Like Everyone,” that 
apparently did not extend to Law- 
rence Spivak, packager-moderator 
of the Sunday panel click. It prob- 
ably isn’t personal, but the Presi- 
dent is known to put a lot of DDT 
into the phrasing when he tells 
“Press”-booked Cabinet mernbars 
to “watch out for that Spivak fel- 
low.” 

Ike is understood to believe that 
Spivak is inclined to put public 
officials (et al.) on the hot seat the 
way he pitches his questions, 


As Chief Aide to Gray 

Seymour (Sy) Handy has been 

* . 

named executive, assistant to Gor- 
don Gray, v.p. of General Teleradio 
and chief of the outfit’s WOR and 
WOR-TV in New York. The video 
arm particularly has been put on a 
Tight budget, and Handy, who for 

13 years has been with Mutual’s 
financial offices, will be the man 
to. keep check on the coin. 

It was announced he will cover 
budget control, purchasing and 
personnel, for the two stations. 
Just before taking the new post, 
Handy acted as assistant comptrol- 
ler of MBS and chief accountant 
of the WOR division. 


‘Carousel’ Gets a Ride At 
A.C. Educ’I TV Powwow 

Joint Committee on Educational 
TV, for its convention in Atlantic 
City next week in • conjunction 
with the American Assn, of School 
Administrators, has selected 
WCBS-TV’s “On the Carousel” as 
one of the components to be shown 
on closed circuit Feb. 17, CBS’ 
flagship in N. Y. presents “Carou- 
sel” jointly with N. Y. City Board 
of Eduction, with Hall Thompson 
producing and Ned Cramer direct- 
ing. They’ll go to the r.esort to 
set up three displays that day, with 
one kinnie and two live stanzas. 

Some 20,000 delegates are ex- 
pected in Convention Hall there, 
with tv.’ers to be followed by a 
question and answer session. 


NBC is determined' to give day- 
time radio sponsors, some juicy 
“Rate Bait” to swing them into 
double duty on the nightime lanes. 
Under a two-pronged plan set forth 
at last week’s NBC Affiliates meet- 
ing and approved by the executive 
council, a new contiguous rate 
structure reduces the number of 
quarter-hour daytime segments a 
sponsor must buy from five to two 
days a week, and second blueprint 
allows a daytime advertiser to 
qualify for nocturnal exposure by 
buying equal time at fractional cost 
determined by the rate of the 
nighttime program. Thus a 15-min- 
ute stanza would go at exactly a 
fourth of the hourly rate, whereas 
the current fee is 40% of the hour. 

An ' amendment to the running 
contract has been mailed to the 
211 affiliates bearing the nod from 
the exec council, Web was not ex- 
pected to have any trouble getting 
approval of the setup since the 
structure, while actually reducing 
the rates, might bring in sufficient 
extr^ billings to square the bar- 
gain pattern. , 


WP1X Ballcast Coin 

WPIX, N. Y„ is rounding out the 
sponsorship for the coverage of 
the N.Y. Giant and Yankee base- 
ball games. Half of the 20-second 
spot adjacencies and half of the 
pre-game Frankie Frish sessions 
have been sold. 

Old Spice a.nd Paper Mate have 
each bought a quarter of the time 
available. Within two days after 
the sked of the home games for 
both clubs was announced by the 
stations the deals were pacted. Col- 
gate inked lor one-half the warm- 
up stanza by Frisch. 


Secor’s Suit Vs. NBC 
On ‘Road Show’ Airing 

P. Howard Sec-or, who is 
pressing an infringement suit 
against NBC in N.Y. Supreme 
Court, lost a preliminary round 
this week when Justice Carroll G. 
Walter denied him a temporary 
injunction to restrain the net from 
airing the program “Road Shovfr.” 

, Issues in the case, Justice Walter 
held, can best be determined at a 
trial. Basis of the action dates back 
to July, 1952, according to the 
complaint, when Secor • submitted 
an “unique and original” idea to 
NBC designed to encourage safe 
driving. It was accepted, he as- 
serts, but on Jan. 9, 1954, NBC- 
Radio used the idea without per- 
mission. 



Philadelphia, Feb* 9. 

Murray Arnold, program man- 
ager at WIP since 1941, made a 
surprise announcement of his res-, 
ignation yesterday (Mon.). Arnold, 
who has been with the station 21 
years, leaves Feb. 19." 

Varner Paulsen, assistant, takes 
over the post. 




Wedneftdfty? February 10 , 1954 


RADIO-TELEVISION 


33 


TV'S FIRST REPERTORY THEATRE 



Just what NBC prexy Pat Weaver has up his sleeve iiK.over- 
hauling the network's radio structure is something that’s creating 
no little curiosity— and anxiety— in the trade. Over at 'CBS, for 
example, one of the major items on the day-to-day agenda is 
alerting everybody to keep their ears open in an effort to find out 
“what gives across the street.” 

Thus far the plan for the “NBC Radio of the future” is very 
much of a hush-hush proposition with only the top echelon “in 
the know.”' The project is an ambitious one, still in the stages 
of formulation, involving both new sales and programming con- 
cepts. Whether it’ll be ready for unveiling this year or next is 
still undetermined. 

The NBG Radio affiliates met with network brass, last week in 
N.Y., with only some preliminary aspects of “Operations Future” 

touched upon. ' 




Toronto, Feb. 9, f 

Blacklisting Don . Hudson, pro- 
ducer of four weekly revue pro- 
grams on the television network of 
the Canadian Broadcasting Corp., 
members of the Association of Can- 
adian Radio and Television Artists 
( AFL ) , with some '500 in the Tor- 
onto chapter, will go on strike 
Feb. 14 to blackout CBC tv per- 
formances — unless Hudson, on 
charges of . “unprofessional con- 
duct,” surrenders his production 
jobs. In addition to the. personality 
clash, the Canadian union also 
wants an upped scale for acteirs, 
singers, announcers and stage- 
hands (musicians are: clear)* but 
are prepared to let this latter de- 
mand coast temporarily On discus- 
sion get-togethers with CBC offi- 
cials but want an instant .de- 
cision on the Hudson issue. 

As CBC-TV topper of light en- 
tertainment, Hudson is producer 
of “The Big Revue,” “Music Hall,” 
“Showtime” and “Holiday Ranch,” 
which are televised in Toronto and 
seen also in Montreal, Ottawa and 
Vancouver. Justifiably, on their job 
continuance, ACRTA performers 
will not comment for publication 
but the “non-professional conduct” 
charge includes instances of abus- 
ive and insulting directorial scenes 
giving embarrassment to cast mem- 
bers of the four revues. Hudson’s 
peremptory budgeting of cost al- 
locations also saw the resignation 
of Ted Kneeland, director, of “The 
Big Revue,” when he was given 

* (Continued on page 44) 


Pinky’s No. 2 Spot 



Despite the fact that he’s been 
on the air only a montli, holding 
down the 5:00 to 5:30 pm. cross- 
the-board spot on NBC-TV, Pinky 
Lee has moved into the No. 2 slot 
on Trendex ratings on daytime 
programming for the Jan. 25-29 
period, coming up from T.6 at Jan. 
4 preem. He’s topped only by 
“Howdy Doody,” who follows Lee 
in the 5:30 to 6 slot. Interesting 
to note is that Only six shows in 
the Top 25 are soap operas. 

Top 25 Trendex ratings for the 
Period show the following batting 
order. 


1 . 

2 . 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6 . 

7 . 

8 . 
9. 

10 . 

11 . 

12 . 

13. 

14. 

15. 

16. 

17. 

18. 

19. 

20 . 
21 . 
22 . 

23. 

24. 

25 . 


Howdy Doody ........ 

Pinky Lee ........... 

Arthur Godfrey ...... 

Strike It Rich ........ 

House Party ......... 

Big Payoff .......... 

Guiding Light . . ...... 

Search for Tomorrow . 
Valiant Lady 
On Your Account 
Love of Life . 

Bob Crosby ... 

Garry Moore 

Double or Nothing 

Garry Moore ..... M ... , 

Kate Smith 

Atom Squad . t ...... 

Bride and Groom ..'... 
Ding Dpng School . ... . . 
Welcome Travelers . , . . 

Today 

Hawkins Falls ......... 

Three Steps to Heaven . . 
The Bennetts 
Kate Smith . 


• • • • • 






. 15.8 
. 13.0 
.*10.3 
. 9.8 

. 8.9 

. 8.1 
. 7.9 

. 7.5 

. 7.2 

. 7.0 

. 6.8 
. 6.7 

. 6.6 
, 6.5 

. 6.3 

. 5.4 

. 5.1 

. 5.0 

. 5.0 

. 4.8 

. 3 2 

. 3.0 

. 2.8 
. 2.3 

. 2.4 


1 st Tint Conflict 

Color tv ran into its first 
programming conflict last Fri- 
day (5), the CBS ‘‘New Rev- 
ue” coinciding with NBC’s 
“Howdy Doody” at 5:30. 
“Doody” was on the last leg of 
its crossboard tint exposure* 
the web’s first strip to get that 
treatment. “New Revue” is a 
continuing series emceed by 
Mike Wallace and including 
guest talent in its makeup. 
Having been on the regular 
sked since the fall the Colum- 
bia show has a “priority” on 
the time. . 

There’s been an unwritten 
agreement between the two 
nets not to card color against 
each other. NBC has only to 
avoid the 5:30 period, Colum- 
bia’s Sole color spot so far 
(“Paul Tripp’s Party” comes 
up March 2 for a run but 
there may be another tinter 
before, that, probably a one- 
shotter). 


Television’s first permanent rep- 
ertory theatre may become a real- 
ity this year under NBC-TV aus- 
pices. Thuk far it’s a strictly hush- 
hush project, still in the blueprint 
stage, and still awaiting prexy Pat 
Weaver’s nod, but the preliminary 
discussion has excited considerable 
enthusiasm. 

Project is so ambitious in scope 
that it would entail the acquisition 
of a Broadway legit house as a 
permanent home. Also involved 
are one of the nation’s major 
foundations (identity undisclosed) 
and one of the top N. Y. drama 
schools. 

It’s planned as a Saturday after- 
noon series, on an alternate week 
basis, with a full, three hours of 
time devoted to each one. How- 
ever, should NBC again acquire 
the NCAA-incepted “Game of the 
Week” football series, the theatre 
project would be bypassed during 
that 13-week fall period. 

Because the various components 
halve yet to be tied together and 
deals negotiated, NBC is reluctant 
to reveal further plans fOr the rep- 
ertory theatre, although admitting 
it’s on the upcoming agenda. 

There has been some prelimi- 
nary discussion anent a Rodgers 
& Hamraerstein video .series, but 
web execs characterize it as strictly 
a nebulous thing and “veVy iffy.” 









London, Feb. 9. 

Sir Alexander Korda, London 
Films boss who is also on the board 
of Associated Broadcasting Devel- 
opment Corp., a company which is 
in the vanguard of the campaign for 
sponsored tv, has taken a swipe at 
the BBC’s recent program prowl in 
America and used the incident as 
a weapon in favor of subscription 
tv in which he is actively inter- 
ested. 

Korda argues that, to get the 
best British tv programs, more 
money is needed than the BBC can 

find from license fees or than ad- 
vertising will, in his View, spend on 
commercial programs. He urges 
the government to “escape from 
the blind alley” of these two sys- 
tems tp a wider field where people 
can pay directly -for whatever 
programs they want. “We are not 
only following slowly behind the 
American commercial system which 
many people believe to be already 
outworn,” Korda writes, “but are 
apparently so bankrupt in imagina- 
tion about harnessing our pWn 
great resources in the British film 
and theatrical industries, that we 
are reduced to using old American 
material— and not even any Of the 
good programs which do exist but 
the cheaper and more mediocre 
productions.” 

Toll tv, Korda contended, could, 
if imaginatively used, play the 
same revolutionary part in the dis- 
tribution of entertainment as the 
rotary press played in the distribu- 
tion of books and newspapers. If 
the government allocated an ex- 
perimental waveband, he was sure 
there would be an immediate re- 
sponse by the entertainment in- 
dustry. 


Washington, Feb. 9. 

President Eisenhower was given 
a half-hour “fill-in” last Saturday 
morning (6) on the economic as- 
pects of color television, by David 
Sarnoff, RCA board chairman; Syl- 
vester Weaver, new NBC presi- 
dent; and Robert Sarnoff, NBG 
executive veepee. 

They called at the White House 
and, in response to questions, ex- 
plained that color video will be a 
strong force this year and next in 
making employment and keeping 
money in circulation as a counter- 
force to any recession. The Presi- 
dent is understood to have been 
much interested in all phases of 
the new color system. 

On Friday night, more than 500 
guests, including, members of the 
Cabinet, Congress, Diplomatic; 
corps, and others attended a re- 
ception and cocktail party in hon- 
or of Weaver and Robert Sarnoff. 
Hosting the affair at the Carlton 
Hotel was Frank M. Russell, 
NBC’s D. C. vice president. 

Party was one of the best at- 
tended this season, drawing a ca- 
pacity house of Federal brass and 
radio and tv figures. 



Color TV Schedule 

NBC-TV ■ * 

Meet the Press— Feb. 14, 6 
p.m. 

Camel News — Feb. 16, 7;45 
p.m. 

. Circle Theatre — Feb. 23, 9:30 
P.m.' 

Excursion — Feb. 28, 4 p.m. 

Diiig Dong School— March 

8, 10 h.m. 

Eddie Fisher — March 10, 7:30 
p.m. 

Opera (“Taming of the 
Shrew”)— March 13, 4 p.m. 

Name That Tune — March 
15, 8 p.m. 

CBS— TV 

New Revue — Feb. 12, 5:30 
p.m. 

Paul Tripp’s Party — March 
2, 5:30 p.m. 




FCC: In a WORD 



Washington, Feb. 9; 

Sen. Edwin C. Johnson (D.- 
Colo.), member of the Interstate 
Commerce Commitee, got after the 
FCC again last week, this time for 
issuing an authorization which he 
said may kill off four ultra high 
tv stations. In a letter to Com- 
mission Chairman Rosel Hyde, 
Johnson asserted the agency’s ac- 
tion in authorizing WORD in Spar- 
tanburg, S. C.. to change its VHF 
transmitter site may force two 
UHF stations to go off the air and 
permit holders to drop their au- 
thorizations. 

“It is a fact,” said Johnson, “that 
the two operating stations. (WAIM- 
TV in Anderson and WGVL in 
Greenville) have already suffered 
irreparable damage and the two 
stations not yet on the air (WSCV 
in Spartanburg and WCRS-TV in 
Greenwood) are very likely for that 
reason not to go on the air.” 

The Senator said the FCC is en- 
( Continued on page 42) 


Teleprompter, which started out 


_ s more or less of a gimmick a few 
years : back, has parlayed itself into 
a $1,000,000 a year billings opera- 
tion. CBS-TV last week negotiated 
a long-term deal giving the prompt- 
ing device outfit a several hundred 
thousand dollar potential alone for 
the web’s access to the all-elec- 
tronic machine on all its daytime . 
and nighttime programming. CBS 
deal is the largest yet made by the 
company involving blanket use of 
the prompters, although individu- 
ally a number of the network’s 
shows, as. ; with NBC, ABC and 
DuMont, have been using the de- 
vice in the past. 

Actually, the Teleprompter as- ; 
sist is not confined to tv or vid- 
films, where it is also . in wide- 
spread use. It’s no secret that it’s 
long been on President Eisen- 
hower’s rostrum agenda (he’s even 
kidded about it in speeches), and 
ex-Presidents Herbert Hoover and 
Harry S.- Truman also “speechify” 
from the prompters. (It’s recalled 
that it was Hoover who, during the 
last Republican National .Conven- 
tion in Chicago, startled his tv 
viewers by talking back to the 
Teleprompter and telling it to “get 
going”). 

The electrically’ - controlled 
prompting device (more than 300 
units are now in circulation, with a 
number of tv stations around the 
country also using them on a 
straight $60 a week rental' basis) 
is also becoming standard equip- 
ment in the public speaking cir- 
cuits for. conventions, sales meet- 
ings, etc., with top industrial, busi- 
ness- and governmental leaders by-? 
passing the memorizing routine and 
relying on the prompter. David 
Sarnoff; the two Charles E. Wil- 
sons (Sec. of Defense and GE’s ex- 
prexy); IBM’s Thomas J. Watson, 
NAM prexy, Charles Sligh, etc., 
have been Teleprompter users. 

Jack Webb makes It a “must” 
for “Dragnet” performers; says it 
(Continued on page 44) 




Blasters Whoop It Up 
For Ike, Cabinet, Other 
Brass on D.C. Banquet 

Washingtori, Feb. 9. 

One of the smoothest shows ever 
offered by a correspondents’ asso- 
ciation for the entertainment of a 
President of the United States was 
spread before Ike Eiherihower 
and 700 others past Saturday night. 
(6). . ' 

Affair, the 10th annual dinner of 
the Radio and Television Corre- 
spondents Assn., brought out 
the Prexy and Vice President Rich 
ard Nixon, the Military Chiefs of 
Staff, six Supreme Court justices, 
all but one member Of the Cabinet, 
all FCC Commissioners, and other 
top figures, in Government arid 
Congress. Place was packed with 
broadcast industry toppers includ- 
ing Gen. David Sarnoff, Frank 
Stanton, J, L. Van Volkenburg, 
Ted Bergmann, Harold Fellows, 
Robert E. Kintner, Justin Miller, 
Adrian Murphy, Edward J. Noble, 
( Continued on page 44 ) 


Merman, Sinatra In 
’Anything Goes’ Revival 
For ‘Comedy Hour’ TV’er 

Hollywood, Feb. 9. 
For the first time on NBC’s 
“Comedy Hour” a book show will 
be telecast when Ethel Merman is 
starred in her onetime stage suc- 
cess, “Anything Goes,” Feb. 28. 
Frank Sinatra will essay the role 
portrayed by Billy Gaxton 25 years 
portrayed by Billy Gaxton in the 
’30s. The Victor Moore part is ex- 
pected to be set today by Pete 
Barnum, NBC executive producer 
on “Comedy Hour.” 

At the suggestion of Leland Hay- 
ward, Broadway stage producer, 
who will take an active part in the 
production, the original story by 
P. G. Wodehouse with inusic and 
lyrics by Cole Porter will be pre- 
sented in its original concept as “a 
period piece.” 


McCray Runs KNBH 

Hollywood, Feb. 9. 

Tom McCray, head of radio pro- 
gramming in Hollywood for NBC, 
has been named manager, of KNBH 
to succeed Don Norman,: who 
moves to Frisco to manage Ed 
Pauley’s new tv station. McCray 
formerly headed up both radio and 
tv programming here for the net- 
work* relinquishing the latter to 
Fred Wile, veepee, who moved 1 
here from N.Y. 

Karel Pearson, who recently fol- 
lowed Harry Bubeck into the NBC 
program post after the latter’s 
resignation, is slated to take over 
McCray’s duties. 


. Since returning from his recent 
visit to the Coast, where he prac- 
tically did hand flips over the stu- 
dio setup at CBS-TV City, Jackie 
Gleason has apparently had a 
change of heart about moving his 
Saturday night hour show to L A. 
In fact, on the day before he had 
his accident. Gleason let it be 
known that the switch is off and 
he’s gonna stay berthed in New 
York. 

However, nobody could quite 
make up their mind why Gleason 
reversed himself. CBS had already 
publicized the, fact that the comic 
was shifting. Scheduled for April, 
the N. Y.-to-L. A. switch would 
have meant the uprooting of the 
entire unit, families, homes and all, 
and some were already making the 
preparations when Gleason, it's re- 
ported, called off the whole thing. 

Two Sets of Writers? 

Possibility exists that Gleason 
may employ two sets of writers 
for his show. First . step in the 
probable transformation has been 
the addition this week of Arnie 
Rosen and Coleman Jacoby to the 
already large staff. ■ Included in 
Gleason’s penner-parade are Mar- 
vin Marx, Walter Stone, Leonard 
Stern, Sid Zelenka, Bill Hackett 
and. Bill Shelley. 

Just how the division of duties 
will take place isn’t known yet 
and probably won’t be decided un- 
til the comic is ready to resume 
work. The double shift of writers 
will present some interestirig possi- 
bilities including intra-mural com- 
petition on scripts. It’s akin to 
the company idea introduced re- 
cently by Fred Coe, Philco and 
Goodyear Show producer, who has 
assembled a stock company of 
writers to provide scripts at stated 
l intervals. 




0 



l 


4- 


Now on television 

• r 

r .. v • * - 

one of the 


great salesmen 


Mark down Monday, February 22 , as an important 
date in daytime television. On that day, ABC turns 
its TV cameras on radio’s most remarkable daytime 
program— Don McNeill’s Breakfast Club— adding a 
new dimension to Don McNeill’s warm personality 
arid artful sales appeal. 

The Breakfast Club has been — and still is — • 
one of the great programs in radio * . . a success for over 
twenty years. During some 6,000 performances, 

Don McNeill has made* fond friends of millions of 
women for some of America’s best-known 
advertisers. Year after year, broadcast season after 
season* the vitality and magic of his salesmanship have 
worked wonders, for such astute marketers as Swift & 
Company, Philco, General Mills, Toni and Quaker Oats. 

Proof is the fact that The Breakfast Club is “sold out- 
on radio, as it has been almost continually since it 

first went on the air. One advertiser — Swift & Company 
— has been a sponsor for thirteen years . . . clear 
testimony to the success of McNeill’s ability. 


Now his salesmanship takes on added strength 
and persuasiveness through television. To an advertiser 
selling to Women- > , . to an advertiser searching for a 
television personality to spearhead sales and 
merchandising strategy, The Breakfast Club is the * 
unequaled opportunity in daytime TV today. If you are 
that advertiser, you will want to contact 
your ABC-TV salesman today. 



W>diie»d»y» Fefrro«y 10, 1954 









<>*£%** 











M TELEVISION FOLLOWUPS 


* ' - . VedneiJaj,. February 10, 1954 

■ ii 1 ' 1 1 ' ” 1 " ' 1 ' - 



On* of the major disappoint- 
ments in the 5^BC-TV fineup this 
season has been the inability of 
the Ray Bolger show, ‘‘Where’s 
Raymond,” to gain a mass aujJi- 
eilte appeal. The show has been 
greeted for the most part joyfully 
by the critics, but in terms of 
translating these kudos to any- 
where near satisfactory ratings 
and acceptance, the program’s 
been a failure. . 

Just what makes one show click 
while others fail will always be a 
matter for conjecture, but there 
are a couple of distinct angles to 
the Bplger show which can be pin- 
-pointed. One, the most* obvious, is 
the formidable r NBC" opposition, 
competition when it moves to ABC 
Men” (which will be eliminated- as 
. competitiri when it moves to ABC 
this spring) but the entire NBO 
Thursday night lineup, With its 
holdover audience. ^ 

A second, and just as important, 
is the premise of the Bolger show 
itself. Story and format angle has 
rested on the whimsical facet of 
Bolger’s personality— and the tele- 
pix series follows that line s with 
its ficticious Raymond Wallace. 
J ust how strong a pull whimsy and 
personality exert these days , isn’t 
known, but in this premise has left 
the show strictly lightweight On 
the scripting end- : 

Situation comedy’s basic in- 
» gredicnt must be solidly funny 
scripts, and here’s one of the key 
failures of the Bolger segment. In- 
stead of being funny, it’s amusing, 
and all the eflervescense of Bol- 
ger’s personality arid extraordinary 
dancing haven’t been able to pull 
the segment out of that “take-it- 
or-leave-it” groove. 

With the start of the second cy- 
cle of 13 telepix, there’s a notice- 
able improvement in the scripting 
end, and if it keeps up to any ex- 
tent, it may prove the solution. 
Sidney Lanfield has moved in as 
director to replace Marc Daniels 
(who went into indie production), 
and Paul Henriing has been set on 
the scripting end. Perhaps a new 
aproach may do some good. 

At any rate, the Bolger segment 
last Thursday (4) was meatier^than 
any in the past, and if a steady 
improvement continues, the pro- 
gram may eventually project itself 
into the top of the tv pile. Plot 
was a simple affair in which a high 
school girl has a crush on Bolger 
and deserts her boyfriend, who 
Bolger then proceeds to instruct 
in dancing to the point where he’s 
almost as good as Bolger himself. 
Theri there’s the customary end- 
ing. Bolger had a talented young- 
ster in Robert Ellis as the boy- 
friend and Eleanor Donahue Was 
good as the bobby soxer. Allyn 
Joslyn was excellent, as always, as 
Bolger’s business-minded brother, 
and Dick Erdman scored as the 
morose pal. Betty Lynn surprised 
wtih some good dancing (some- 
thing she hasn’t done before in her 
role as Bolger’s girlfriend). Chan. 


Jack Benny’s battery of writers 
must have reasoned that things at 
home aren’t as hectic as when the 
headman is off to the comedy wars 
and resultantly the bofflines of his 
previous sorties into breakups 
aren’t as abundant in this “family 
style” wrap-up. Albeit, there is a 
pleasant drift of warm humor with 
occasional volleys of Benny-type 
laughs. 

. On this roll of film, Joan has 
her tv coming-out and Mary Living- 
stone her second look into the 
cameras. En famille, the Bennys 
project a family portrait of well- 
groomed, well-heeled citizens of 
'Bey-hills until the breadwinner 
lapses into a mid-day reverie' and 
Mary appears as a beat Salesgirl 
in the May Co. basement and 
Joanie" is bobby-.sexed for a date 
at home with her boy friend. Back 
to glad rags for the curtain call, 
they look like a page out of Vogue’s 
fashion salon. Benny never looked 
more 39’ish approaching 40, which 
Rochester said was “quite an 
approach, as they say in golf;” 

Peg for the family show was 
Rochester’s diary, to show what 
happens in real life. Jack awaits a 
call from Mary, who has something 
important to tell him. H?’s sure 
it’s an acceptance of his marriage 
proposal but he’s beaten when she 
only wahts to dress him down for 
being so cheap. Rochester calls it 
“snug.” He then goes into his day- 
dream and envisions 21 vears of 
marriage to Mary. He does the 
cooking, the boy friend. LeOn Tvler, 
a brisk youngster, pulls up a chair 


at the groaning board and Benny 
proceeds to fill his plate when he 
learns the father of Joan’s suitor 
works in a bank. When Tyler tells 
him he’s the janitor, Benny scoops 
back most of the stew for the 
show’s biggest yock. The dream 
device, as in flashbacks, becomes 0 . at 
times slightly confusing. 

Novel Integration of the com- 
mercial had Jack and Mary, during 
the dream sequence, taking the 
vows from Don Wilson to smoke 
and enjoy Luckies. Ear better than 
any agency copy. Mel Blanc’s voice 
of the parrot added to the laugh 
quotient. Ralph Levy and Hilliard 
Marks rate high marks for the 
production od CBS-TV last Sunday 
(7). Helm. 


“Philco Playhouse” on NBC-TV 
came up with a rare treat for its 
audience last Sunday (7) in the 
form of a play called “Hide and 
Seek,” starring Mildred Dunnock 
and Betty Field. It was an occasion 
of ty drama at its level best and 
a show to be long and fondly re- 
membered by those who saw it. 

There w < nary a flaw in the 
entire pr< / ction. from the per- 
formances of the* smail cast and 
J. P. Miller’s perceptive script 
down to the lighting and the mu- 
sical background. Everything fitted 
in perfectly, and the overall re- 
sults reflected the interplay of 
great talent. 

It was a story about two sisters, 
long separated, who lived together 
in a small Southern town as cliil-. 
dren. Now one is blind and resent- 
ful when she gets a letter announc- 
ing the return of. her sister. When 
the two meet they play the game 
of hide and seek until the older 
woman realizes' that her sister has 
come home after a life of hard- 
ships and disappointments. 

The Playhouse seems to have a 
predilection for Southern folk. In 
“Hide and Seek” it captured an 
elusive mood . that added greatly 
to the impact of the show. Miss 
Dunnock as Bella, the blind sister 
who lives with her grandson, gave 
a performance that was nothing 
short of magnificent. Her tempo- 
rary defiance of what she. believes 
to be her. rich and happy jnarried 
sister coming home in triumph, 
and b er subsequent compassion 
when she understands that she is 
mistaken, were alternately touch- 
ing and deeply moving. 

Miss Field did ’herself proud as 
Annalee, the sister, who comes 
home weary and disspirited, unable 
to explain her long silence until, 
in the fiqpl climax, the truth burst 
out of her in a torrent of emotion 
that far 4 engulfed the • viewer. 
This was ... difficult part, and Miss 
Field managed it beautifully and 
with much tenderness. 

The rest of the cast lived up to 
the high standards of the princi- 
pals. . Sandy Campbell impressed 
with a fine turn as the grandson, 
particularly in a memorable scene 
when he told how he had gone 
on a spree with his “college 
money.” Gaye Huston was cute a^. 
the little girl who befriends the 
sistersjjmd Michael Marin did well 
in a -Small part. 

Arthur Penn handled the direc- 
torial chores with ingenuity and a 
good feel for movement and un- 
doubtedly deserves part of the 
credit for Miss Dunnock’s uncanny 
portrayal of a blind person amidst 
fammar surroundings. The Miller 
script provided a strong and in- 
telligent vehicle that made few 
compromises and carried through 
to as logical and powerful end. Pro- 
ducer Fred Coe deserves kudos for 
dishing up such a rare slice of 
adult drama. Hilt 


with very tangible assets in the 
persons . of the kittenish-voiced 
Caro Channing and the cornu 
gated-toned Tallulah Bankhead, 
Jimniy Durante’s Colgate spread 
last Sunday (7) proved a lively and 
diverting session. There’s one 
thing to be said for the orice-a- 
month Durante stints on the Col- 
gate NBC marathon— if in spots 
they re not amusing, they're never 
dull either, And While several of 
the segments of Sunday’s show 
wore on the unintentionally un- 
funny side, there was never a lack 
of animation. 

Most of the show was pegged 
around a Durante date at the San 
Francisco Motor Show, with the 
Schnoz getting Tallu and Miss 
Channing as part of 'Iris. act. A good 
lead in for a funny Shakespearean 
reading by Durante and Miss Bank- 
head and a n.'s.g. flashlight bit be- 
tween them. Likewise, it provided 
a tunny skit with Miss Channing, 
via a theremin that gave off sounds 
as they gestured to each other 
across the instrument’s electronic 


field, and led them to believe it 
must be love. Here Miss Channing 
also got in her only substantial 
solo of the evening, a rollicking 
version of “Hard-Hearted Hannah.” 

High spot of the evening, though, 
was the entire Motor Show seg- 
ment, with Durante, outfitted with 
a black wig and looking like a full- 
dressed version of a “Last of the 
Mohicans” character, conducted an 
all-girl orchestra with Tallu and 
Miss Channing as the vocalists. 
Trio of Durante, Bankhead & Chan- 
ning provided some ribtickling mo- 
ments. with “Ricochet Romance” 
and a number about the supremacy 
of the fairer sex. No mean asset to 
the comedies was Miss Bankhead’s 
near-basso tones. 

Sandwiched among these and a 
closing production number tabbed 
“Show Train” Was' a solid straight 
version of “September Song” by 
Durante (one of his few serious 
tries), a lively essayal of “Shine” 
by Durante and Eddie. Jackson, 
with some solid stutting by four 
unbilled Negro youngsters, and of 
course the bevy of beauts that only 
the Schnoz can seem to assemble. 
Final “Show Train” number was 
an offbeat production scene that 
offered some good ensemble sing- 
ing and provided Durante & Jack- 
son an opportunity to rock out “Bill 
Bailey.” Not a dull spot in the en- 
tire hour, which is a pretty good 
I’pcovd for tv comedy segments 
these days. Chan. 


Carl Roch can sit back now and 
wait for the orders to come in. 
He’s selling $14,000 horiies and the 
“breaks” in the magazine section 
of the N. Y. Times and NBC-TV’s 
“Excursion” last Sunday (7) were 
important shills for him. The tele 
slot, which is divided’ into two 
parts (second section, next week), 
was interesting viewing, especially 
if you’ve got $14,000 to spend on 
a house. 

“Excursion” focused its cameras 
on Koch’s architectural firm at 
work. In the 15 minutes allotted, it 
covered the mapping of the new 
home on the land selected; The, 
building of a new home is visually 
interesting but dialers whose tastes 
aren’t in the modern groove would 
lose Interest. It’s a special ho’use, 
commissioned by the show, and it 
costs 14 Gs not counting the' price 
of the property. If your tastes runs 
to colonial or renaissance, the 
Koch home is not your’ '.buy and 
neither is the tele show. 

Preceding the Koch plug was a 
briefie film on the day of a tug 
in New York harbor. There were 
;some good spots here but it seemed 
to dwell on the • non-essentials 
which made it a rather tiresome 
sequence; Burgess Meredith was a 
pleasant guide through both se- 
quences. Qros. 


__ wuhuw duuusi are 

Harvard prexy Dr. Nathan P 
Pusey into, the hot potato area c 
his CBStTV “Person to Persoi 
last Friday (5) but got only as ii 
as a discussion of academic fre 
dom at the U. Dr. Pusey (who i; 
cidentally prefers to be called M 
to contradistinguish between Ph,] 
and M.D., and Murrow fed him 
line to clarify the personal dema 
cation) has been under attack l 
Republican Sen. Joseph McCartl 
as harboring Commies on the f 
culty. But Murrow will rarely us 
“P to P” as a controversial or so! 
debating medium, reserving th 
largely for “See It Now.” 

So aside from an innocuous vie 
of educational matters, this se; 
rivent was a family affair remote 
at the traditional presidential res 
dence in Cambridge as the 4[6-yea 
old “Mr.” Pusey was surrounde 
by Mrs. Pusey and their two soi 
and a daughter, Nathan Jr. ( 1 C 
James (13) and* , Rosemary (11 
Mbs. Pusey put in a couple < 
words and each of the broodl mac 
with a briefie, James toppirig wit 
a bagpipe oTfering. 

Three hundred years of Harvai 
culture doesn’t make a prograr 
but that was only the half of 
since the opening “picture-wii 
dowed” Metopera coloratura Lil 
Pons. She’s quite a kid and wit 
husband-batonist Andre Kostelai 
etz away in Florida this was stric 
ly for. the stratospheric chirpc 
from upper eastside apartmen 
Miss Pons is still some distant 
away from mastering English, bi 
when she. talks it's a study in cai 
dor and cuteness and false modest 
ain’t for her, She responded d 
rectly and to the point, sans tli 
longwinded introductory passage 
hitting out on snuff boxes, he 
painting collection, getting ini 
trim before an opera, (others nee 
only a couple months to learn 
new part, but while she’s a quic 
' " J ". *he prefers about si 


months), i n te ri or decoration, 
length of the hemline (she* ignores 
Fath, Dior and whoever else it is 
that orders those drop dimen- 
sions), design of their new home 
in Palm Springs and a load of 
other interesting chjtchat. ’ 

.Miss Pons seemed delighted at 
being often mistaken for Imogene 
Coca— this being first brought 
home vividly when she did a stint 
with Miss Coca oh “Show of 
Shows,” a few months beck. AL 
together a winning session that- 
sets “Person to Person” apart as 
an intimate . closeup stanza when 
the subjects are right. Trau. 

/‘The U. S. Steel Hour” on ABC- 
TV last week (2) presented a good 
cast in a mediocre play and came 
up with entertainment that clearly 
reflected these ingredients. ‘“Papa 
Is All,” produced on tv by the 
Theatre Guild, was -a success on 
Broadway in the early ’40’s. On tv, 
perhaps as- the result of some over- 
playing on the part of Walter 
Slezak, both its humor and its dra- 
ma seemed somewhat obvious and 
its situation forced. Nevertheless, 
it was an enjoyable show. 

“‘Papa Is All” tells of a family 
in the Pennsylvania Dutch area 
where a religious sect still holds \ 
out ; against the mechanized in- 
roads of modern civilization. It is 
about a tyrannical father who 
wants his wife and children to live 
in the shadow of tradition,' i.e., 
without telephone, running water, 
dates, movies, etc. Eventually, 
with the family conspiring against 
him, his son dispatches him to 
“foreign” parts via a coal train. 
He returns but quickly gels his 
comeuppance. 

This is pretty meaty stuff, par- 
ticularly if played with tongue-in- 
cheek as in the case of Jessie 
Royce Landis who took the part 
of the wife and mother: on the 
stage and had it again on tv last 
week. What spoiled the effect 
somewhat was Slezak’s massive, 
dominating performance which 
left no room whatever for even a 
smidgen of sympathy. He made 
the father a monster, never even 
hinting at the dilemma of a deeply 
religious man in an era which he 
doesn’t understand and from 
which he wants to keep his family 
isolated. 

Erik Barnouw adapted the Pat- 
terson Greene play to tv and did 
a good job. Miss Landis as the de- 
voted if not loyal wife brought to 
the part a delightful sense of hu- 
mor. Betsy Palmer was pretty and 
accomplished in the role of the 
daughter who wants to live the 
normal life of a young girl. John- 
ny Stewart came across with sock 
impact as the impetuous son who 
decides he can’t stand papa any 
longer. Dorothy Sands overplayed 
her part as the gossipy neighbor 
and Edmond Ryan handled the 
role of the state trooper in ade- 
quate fashion. Ray Boyle ap- 
peared briefly as Miss Prflmer’s 
sweetheart. 

Alex Segal’s direction provided 
the production with the usual im- 
aginative/touches — there were 
even real cows in the stable. There 
were plenty of laughs but, whether 
by design or not. the dramatic ele- 
ment overshadowed them and, in 
the condensation necessary for tv, 
the proper relationship between 
the two was lost. The ending, par- 
ticularly, was a letdown and; 
should have been handled differ- 
ently. Those U. S. Steel film plugs 
are still tops. Hift. 


ure to the show with his rendition* 
of “Stranger in Paradise” ™d 
“There’ll Be Ho Teardrops.” other 
singing was by the De Marco Sis- 
ters who provided vigorous and 
pleasant harmonics in a trio of 
tunes. T. 

The novelty acts .were. Rudy Car- 
denas who provides same of the 
most expert juggling m the busi- 
ness and Elsa & Waldo, whose sat- 
ire on ballet is a bigtime bit. 

One of the line numbers was in- 
terrupted so that Gle&son could be 
presented from Doctors . Hospital 
N,Y. Comic’s presence ipust have’ 
heen reassuring to hik followers 
He seemed to be in good spirits 
and anxious tp get back. 

Of course, it might have been 
desirable -to get Art ’ Carney in 
front Of the cameras a little more 
than was shown and' perhaps a 
few sides of dialog from Audrey 
Meadows might have helped to pre- 
serve more of the Gleason flavor 
to the proceedings. But it was Sul- 
livan’s show and Sullivan’s format 
prevailed. Jose. 


Considering ihe number of 
themes . that are unconscionably 
lifted from newspapers, magazines 
and books- to form the basis of tv 
thriller-diUers and other treat- 
ments, “Suspense” is entitled to a 
good report card * for “The Man 
Who Wouldn’t Talk’Lon CBS-TV 
last Tuesday (2T;;/rhat’s the title of 
the Quentin Reynolds ^ book (Ran- 
dom- House) and . Readers Digest 
article of la§t Novemiber which 
created quite a stir when the story 
was proved a hoax. J-he hoaxter is 
the Canadian, . George DuPre, 
whose claimed adventures as a 
French underground . agent for 
British Intelligence in World War 
II were thrown overboard by Cal- 
gary -newspaperman Douglas Col- 
liris in a piece of sleuthing that 
might well <ea#n him the 1 Canadian 
equivalent of the Pulitzer Prize. 

Reynolds himself . emerged with 
a clean^-slate since his work as a 
reporter speaks for itself and he 
expressed himself with engaging 
candor about the story— without 
bitterness or - rancor— when the 
true facts became known. Reader’s 
Digest carried a correction in its 
January issue and Random House 
made some changes in later edi- 
tions. 

But however fascinating a cloak- 
and-dagger yarn this may be in 
print,, there was hardly any hint 
of it in the vidversion by Paul 
Moriaah. A tasteless torture scene, 
yes, and typical “Suspense” she- 
nanigans, but little sustained, con- 
tinuity in a hippity-hop hocus- 
opus. The unmasking occurred in a 
brie| scene at the end. Reynolds 
appeared as “explainer” at opening 
and near . the finish, whereas the 
playout cried out for documentary 
styled narration covering the ac- 
tion. 

Harry Townes drew the DuPre 
roje and played it capably, espe- 
cially in guise of a French village 
idiot who Wouldn’t knuckle down 
to the 'Gestapo, and other principal 
parts, were filled by Stefan Schna- 
bel, always a deft villain, Peter Ca- 
pell and Karen Price. Trau. 


Ed Sullivan, in subbing for Jack- 
ie Gleason during the period in 
which the latter is mending from 
his well-publicized accident, took 
on an assignment that is far from 
easy. Naturally, there’s the prob- 
lem of whether Sullivan should 
carry on in the manner of Gleason 
who specializes in sketches, or 
whether Sullivan should superim- 
pose his own format on this show. 
Latter course, in Sullivan’s case, 
is safer, but it also would bring up 
the problem of how the N.Y. Daily 
News syndicated Columnist would 
fare by presenting two similarly 
gaited shows two nights in suc- 
cession. 

Sullivan on the Saturday (6) ses- 
sion made only one atteflipt along 
sketch lines by playing the inquir- 
ing reporter to restauranteur Toots 
Shor and to Art Carney. Sullivan, 
is at his best as an. emcee. ^The ma«J 
jority of the show was a presenta^l 
tion of vaude acts, and the usual 
June Taylor production, which 
shows up the terpahility of the 
linegirls. 

Sullivan presented* a batch of 
talent, none of which- was stran- 
gers to, Sullivan or to vid audences. 
Jony Bennett, doubling from the 
Copacabana, gave name stat- 


Ed Sullivan’s “Toast of the 
Town” show on CBS-TV dished up 
an uneven show Sunday night (7). 
There w # ere a couple of solid high- 
spots but not enough of them to 
carry the show at a sock pace for 
the full 60 minutes. 

Dorothy Lamour Opened with a 
weak rendition of the oldie, “AVhat 
Is This Thing Called Love,” but 
she recovered with a snappy work- 
over of one of her picture tunes, 
“Let’s Take the Road to Bali,” a 
cute item which she knows how to 
sell. From the legit stage. Ruth 
Draper turned in the best bit on 
the whole stanza with her charming 
and subtle monologist sequence 
about a visit to an art gallery by a 
couple of elderly women and a 
child. 

Sullivan reverted back to his 
policy of trailerizing films and made 
a good choice in his sequence from 
the upcoming UA release of “Top 
Banana,” with Phil. Silvers. Silvers, 
in the studio audience, was acco- 
laded by Sullivan with a stalk of 
bananas. Film actress Merle Oberon 
also received an award for going 
into video in its infancy, but her 
thank-you speech added up to lame 
attempt at comedy. Also on the 
straight and serious gab side were 
a Couple of brief pitches By Henry 
Ford 2d and Vice-President Rich- 
ard Nixon for Radio Free Europe s 
crusade against Communism. 

Longhair violinist Yehudi Menu- 
hin. contributed a couple of pol- 
ished numbers while the U. or 
Oklahoma’s- Glee Club closed the 
session with a brace of college and 
patriotic numbers. Hcrm. 


/ 


fcdaMdafi F«bnwy 10, 1034 


Gary 



_.rULL OWJTI 
IT, New Y«Ht x ■■ 
(Frederick Clinton ) 

In the exit of Jany Lester from 
IT Saturday night aerlet, Chock 
ft OTuta has set up a new deal 
uit on initiator shapes well in the 
uislc and comedy^ groove. The 
ew ringmaster Is Gary Morton, a 
elaxed comic who, on his versatil- 
ity and way with: a one-liner, 
teems- headed for a dent-making 
excursion on the tv lanes. Morton 
was sent in for Gene Rayburn 
when CFO’N ground coffee discov- 
that Rayburn already was pitching 
for instant' java Nescafe oh the 
local segment of “Today.” Morton, 
doubling as plugger and very nift- 
ily too, immediately started a pitch 
versus the instant type, but so 
gracefully as to set him apart from 

orthodox announcers. - 

Other solid commodity is Ray 
McKinley i batonist and singer who 
also worisS a slick, drum. Maestro 
has a small unit, but as the cliche 
has it, they- make a lot of music. 
He also pays obeisance to the side- 
men, including' Hank. D’Amico, Ed- 
die Hubbell and Bttsy Mullins, 
each being permitted to get in 
solo licks? Band's workout on 
“When the Saints Gome Marching 
In,” with vocal slipped Was a 
real register, as $as JdOtinley’s 
Dixie skinbeatpr.: v ; > 

Inclusioii of Jean Martin *as the 
femme chirp is a matter of par- 
tisan taste. She showed Very little 
in her fir^ try, ^IPapef Moon,’ 
and in a crosstalk- ditty with Mc- 
Kinley, the maestro helped her out 
of the woods.'Morton had wrapped 
the stanfamp With zingo 'vik trum- 
pet shenanigans while tomfooling 
with “Stardust” when Miss Martin 
reversed the going in-a finale song. 
But first judgment on “Showcase” 
is that it has sufficient pro ele- 
ments to -.overcome an occasional 
lapse. ^ Tran. 

» 

CUPPA . J0.H 

With Ralph Mariza, -Jack Fleming 
Producer: Chan Meloy 
Director: Jim Aikens 
Writer: Marsha Cramer 
15 Mins., Wed., 10:45 p.m. 

KPIX, San Francisco 

This comedy-situation stanza 
floats in a maze of flippant dialog, 
incongruous theatrics arid over- 
reaching plots. Format revolves 
around Ralph Manza (“joe”), op- 
erator of a five stool diner. There’s 
hot coffee .in the urn and limpid 
commonday philosophy on Joe’s 
mind. Even though Joe’s coffee is 
only 6c a cup, his/constant yack is 
hard to swallow along With the 
java. 

On last time bloc viewed (3),‘ Joe 
read a newspaper account of a rob- 
ber who’s prime income was de- 
rived from holding up a small busi- 
ness--such as his diner. Obvious 

happened in the form of Jack 

Fleming. Armed with' a snarl, trig- 
ger-happy finger and inevitable 
trench coat. Jack attempted to re- 
lieve Joe of his money. But ole 
Joe was safe— -he Waved hello to a 
passing cop and Mr. Fleming 

dropped his gun, admitted he was 
ashamed and Joe said he would 
try to find him a job With his 
brother-in-law. 

Show could be a ringer. Pro- 
duction is good, set eye appealing 
and Manza is believable as a diner 
operator. The lack of glitter is 
.stamped on show by its contorted 
scripting. Tone. 


SPOTLIGHT 

With Stewart Bradley, Miriam 

Wolfe, Clifford Cethren 
Producer: Lawrence Menkin 
Dlreeton: Jack Manning, Robert 

Eberle 

Writer: William Attaway 
55 Mins., Men.thrn-Fri. (repeats) 
... $. pjn. 

Sustaining 
WOR-TV, NX 

“Joseph the Mari,” second show 
In the new “Spotlight” three-man 
drama series on WOR-TVi exceed- 
ed the stanza’s preem the previous 
week in many ways. Larry Menkin, 
who gave birth to this infarit out of 
necessity of budget and space, 
learned a great deal in seven days, 
and came up with intimacy and 
promise that was almost entirely 
lacking in the initial “Wuthering 
Heights,” : * 

.. The acting in the second offer- 
ing, the writing, the directing were 
all acceptable, though riot excep- 
tional. In “Heights” everything— - 
short of the premise for existence 
—was a failure. In “Joseph” Wil- 
liam Attaway avoided as much as 
possible the expository, while Jay 
Bennett in the first was all exposi- 
tion. Robert Eberle co-directed the 
preem with Guy Bolte, .out in the 
second attempt on “Spotlight” 
Bolte was dropped and replaced by 
Jack Manning. It’s hard to tell 
whether the subtler direction was 
due to the personnel change, but 
the actors were credible in the 
latest, while it seemed they were 
costumed narrators before. 

The story of Joseph is as well- 
known as the Ten Commandments, 
but scripter Attaway deviated from 
the original account. : The Bible 
story is both an epic and a per- 
sonal story. In dealing with it as 
a vehicle for three actors and two 
cameras (all the WOR-TV budget 
and studio: space will allow), the 
epic part had to be discarded, but 
Attaway emphasized the closeup of 
a noble man well. Script fell way 
short' of exceptional drama though 
in that Joseph was made a static 
character — he lacked expansion. 
What he was at the outset he was 
at the end. Still, in that respect, 
he differed in no way from the ma- 
jority of video protagonists; 

Thesping by Stewart Bradley, as 
Jdsfeph, and by Miriam Wolfe and 
Clifford Cothren (in all the other 
roles necessary to round out the 
story) was done with understand- 
ing. This too after so limited a re- 
hearsal period. Incidentally, Men- 
kjri had to wing most of the show 
because of the dearth of live cam- 
era rehearsal time allotted. 

Each new script receives five air- 
ings a week, but in “Heights” the 
third performance was little better 
than the first. In the second go 
around, the kickoff ; showing of 
“Joseph the Man” manifested a 
confidence and grasp that was be- 
fore invisible. 

For years, tv’s critics have been 
caterwauling for something that is 
exclusively video’s. Three - man 
drariia, which has been done with 
marked success on the New York 
stage in the past, is not solely tele- 
vision’s, but there it can achieve 
full maturity. There's something 
unobtrusive and personal about 
three actors doing their chores in 
a small, warm space that heightens 
the comforts of home. 


SHARI AND HER FRIENDS 
With Shari Lewis; Joe Kahn, musi- 
cal director ' 

Producer-Director: .Mike Neltzer 
Writer: Les Waller 
15 Mins.; Sat., 5:15 p.m. 

WPIX, New York 

Shari Lewis is a pretty, wide- 
eyed doll who lias an abundance of 
talent and definite appeal for the 
juves. Formula for her show is a 
compact 15 minutes that is only 
mildly educational but always in- 
teresting arid entertaining. 

On Saturday (6) Miss Lewis, with 
the aid of a f uturistically attired 
puppet, took her audience on an 
imaginary trip to the North Pole. 
Authentic film shots of seals, an 
eskimo child and an igloo, as well 
as stills of the frozen northlahd, 
were neatly interspersed with her 
singing (which is forceful and 
hielodic) arid her ventriloquism. She 
sang with about a dozen kids, who 
\yere casually arranged in the 
studio, and from them she managed 
to elicit very active and accurate 
vocal arid physical response. The 
V’ arrn and well-timed invitation for 
the kids at home to join in surely 
drew positive reaction from that 
Quarter. 

Miss Lewis is one of the better 
and personally more talented 
leaders in the juve groove. Her 
Puppets, her chatter, her facile 
handling of the kiddies and the 
general tone of the program merit 
attention. 


WE LOVE DOGS 
With Susan O’Meara, Milo Pear- 
sall, Mort Lawrence, announcer; 
others 

Director: Ed O’Brien 
30 Mins,; Sat., 6:30 p.m. 

KASCO MILLS 
WABD, NX 

( Clark & Bohertz) 
Following of “We Love Dogs” 
will obviously be limited almost 
exclusively to canine owners and, 
as the title indicates, dog lovers. 
And, for that segment of the view- 
ing audience it’s an okay entry. 
Program actually can be classed as 
educational tv since it offers oglers 
a course in the training and care 
of “man’s best friend;” Instruction 
in putting the four-legged animals 
through their paces is offered by 
trainer Milo Pearsall. 

A trio of untrained pups were 
utilized by Pearsall on opener, 
Saturday (6), to demonstrate the 
proper technique to be used in get- 
ing the pets to respond obediently 
to various commands. Each week 
Pearsall is slated to introduce two 
new commands for canine con- 
sumption. Abetting Pearsall in his 
training program is Susan O’Meara. 
Femme, who’s an attractive addi- 
tion to the proceedings, functions 
as a student, putting her newly- 
acquired pup through the paces 
suggested by Pearsall. Also serving 
as students are a man and boy Who 
handle the remaining two pups. 

Emphasis, however, is put on the 
training of Miss O’Meara’s pet. On 
preem, distaffer displayed a pleas- 
ant personality in her chit-chat 
with Pearsall. Program also puts 
the spotlight on a guest dog owner 
each week. Kasco dog food was 
given some heavy * plugging by 
Mort Lawrence. Windup commer- 
cial, though, was in a lighter vein 
with animated pix used to plug the 
product. v. Jess. 



TELEVISION REVIEWS 


37 


HOWDY DOODY 

In the process of retooling for 
the rainbow spectrum. NBC-TV is 
gradually expanding its tint pro- 
gramming experimentation to en- 
compass all shows on the network 
rosters. The “let’s-give-everybody- 
a-whack-at-it” idea will of neces- 
sity entail coloring up shows that 
are hardly calculated to benefit 
from the prismatic showcasing. 
Such a one, for example, is 
“Howdy Doody,” the moppets’ de- 
light, which was given a cross-the- 
board tint reincarnation last week. 

It’s one thing to. expose a “Hit 
Parade,” a “Show of Shows” or a 
“Carnival of Roses'’ spectacle to 
the color cameras. By the very 
nature of their forrivat they be- 
come “naturals.” But “Howdy” is 
another story. Naturally, when 
you put a white nose on Clarabell 
and lend color to . the traditional 
clown regalia, the immediate ef- 
fect may be more interesting. 
Same thing holds true for the pup- 
pets. The kids that watch them 
daily know their special charac- 
teristics and they’re not at all 
changed or heightened by the 
color. To the particular parents 
more concerned with ogling their 
offspring in the jury box, Jimmy’s 
plaid shirt was just as. recognizable 
in black and white as it was in yel- 
low and blue. As for that matter 
Mary was just as cute to them 
when her dress didn’t show tip red! 

Intrinsically, shows like “Howdy” 
and their ilk are dependent on the 
personality projected and the 
warmth conveyed to the moppets.; 
Since “Howdy” is primarily for 
the younger generation of juve- 
niles, color won’t matter much. 

There wasn’t much opportunity 
to evaluate NBC-TV tint either in 
the subtleties of the color or the 
intensity of the hue. On “Howdy” 
it was just a case of utilizing: the 
primary colors in as simple a 
form as a crepe paper decoration. 

/ Rose. 


INDOOR SOCCER 
With Jack Brickhouse, Bill O’Con- 
• nor ■ 

Producer: Chris Erskine 
Director: Don Cook 
60 Mins.; Sun., 2 p.m. 

MARTIN J. KELLY INC. 

WGN-TV, Chicago 

Another in WGN-TV’s growing 
list of sports telecasts, this remote 
pickup of the Sunday .afternoon 
soccer games from the Chicago 
Armory is a natural of course for 
the beanball aficianados. But the 
sport, lacking the precisioned skill 
of baseball and the rugged, con- 
stant body contact of football, is 
pretty offbeat for the average mus- 
cle lover. Also, it’s a tough game to 
bring into tv focus with its playing 
area only slightly smaller than a 
gridiron. Its fine points are hard 
to capture with the cameras so for 
the unschooled its just 14 guys 
dashing around bouncing a white 
ball off their noggins, knees and 
other anatomical hard spots. 

During the contests watched (7) 
caster Jack Brickhouse spent con- 
siderable time telling what an 
exciting and historically popular 
game soccer is and has been, but 
very little time explaining why to 
the uninitiated. But since this is 
the second season WGN-TV has 
carried the games sponsored there 
apparently are enough initiated 
viewers to make the project worth- 
while. 

Between-halfs commercials are 
punched Oyer by Bill O’Connor 
with the hesitant assistance of the 
car dealer bankroller, Martin J, 
Kelly. Dave. 

CAPTAIN II 
With Jim Lang 

Producer - director - writer: Oscar 

Backlun 
Participating 
WMIN-TV, Minneapolis 

Aimed entirely at kid viewers, 
this show effectively uses a new 
gimmick in connection with the 
showing of installments of such 
film serials as “Don Winslow of the 
Navy” and “Flash Gordon.” 

Jim Lang, a young and person- 
able announcer, should find favor 
with the youngsters, Wearing the 
sort of uniform associated with the 
captains of such futuristic, imagi- 
nary creations as rocket ships, he 
sits behind a complicated set of 
switches while directing the pro- 
ceedings. 

Depending upon, the movie 
scheduled for the program, Lang 
carries his audience of small fry 
into the past or future when he 
turns the control that brings on 
the film. Before doing so, he re- 
views the last previous installment 
in a kind of narrator role assumed 
by him. 

It’s a little different twist.- and 
switch for this , type of show, em- 
bellishing what otherwise would be 
straight filrn fare with futuristic 
trimmings, and it should catch on. 

Rees. 


NBC TELEVISION OPERA 
THEATRE 
(Marriage of Figaro) 

With Virginia Haskins, Ralph Her- 
bert, Ann Crowley, William 
Shriner, Laurel Hurley, . Ruth. 
Kobart, Emile Renan, John Me-' 
Colliim, Paul Ukena, others; 
Peter Herman Adler, conductor 
Producer: Samuel Chotilnoff 
Associate Producer: Charles Pola- 
tfieck 

Director: Kirk Browning 
Writer: Edward Eager 
90 Mins;, Sat. (6), 4 p.m. 

NBC-TV, N. Y. 

NBC-TV gave opera fans and 
music-lovers generally a treat last 
Saturday afternoon (6), with a 90- 
mlriute presentation . of the first 
two acts of Mozart’s -“Marriage of 
Figaro." . (Final two acts will be 
given this Saturday). 

It was a lively, entertaining as 
well as faithful version of the 
comic opera, with the work in all 
departments topgrade. it was a 
very well cast show, with hand- 
some or lovely participants who 
could act 'convincingly and sing 
superbly. Opus was in English, in 
a haindy, intelligible and racy trans- 
lation by Edward Eager, and prin- 
cipals in the main enunciated 
Xjleariy to give tlve glorified farce 
of antic intrigue and amour more 
meaning and plausibility than ever 
at the Met. 

■ The two acts moved smoothly 
and swiftly, unmarred by commer- 
cials. There was constant flowing 
melody, lovely arias, amusing re- 
citatives, bubbling . on in concert 
with or oblivious to the goings-on 
onstage. Peter' Herman Adler and 
his orchestra Worked magic. 

Adler, director Kirk Browning 
arid producer. Samuel Chotzinoff 
rate ribbons for judicious casting 
and handling' Virginia Haskins 
made a dainty, pert and lyrical 
Susanna arid Ralph Herbert a 
manly, resounding Figaro. Laurel 
Hurley was an imposing countess, 
dramatically as well as vocally, 
and Wi Hi aril Shriner was a strik- 
ing, resonant count. Ann Crowley 
(far too lovely to play a mere boy) 
sang and acted beautifully, as 
young Cherubino, and there was 
gbod support in smaller roles from 
Emile Renan, as Bartolo; Ruth 
Kobart, as Mareellina; John Mc- 
Collum,. as Basillio, and Paul 
Ukena, as Antonio. 

•If there were any fault to find, 
it lay in the almost constant close- 
ups in the first act. with very 
few long shots or full-page pano- 
rama views for contrast. This 
opera, of course, is essentially an 
intimate one, so that' closeups are 
of prime importance. But a full 
view of the peasant group in act 
one, for. instance, would have 
helped. Act two had better va- 
riety, as well as some outstanding 
camera work and shots. Bron. 


JO STAFFORD SHOW 

With The SUrllghterp (4), Paul 

Weston’s Orch 

Producer-writers: Paul Harrison, 

Bernl Gould 

Executive producer: Ben Felner 
Director: Ed HUllo 
15 Mins., Tues, 7:45 p.m. 

GOLD SEAL CO. 

CBS-TV, from Hollywood 
( CampbelUMithun ) . 

How many gold records (for a 
million sale) Jo Stafford has been 
gifted by Columbia is not imme- 
diately at hand but it does cue the 
size of response she will attract on 
her new quarter hour. This gives 
her a built-in audience arid from 
the looks of the opener she’ll 
prosper in the idiom as has Perry 
Como and Dihah Shore.., 

Chirp crowded four tunes into 
the brief space of time not con- 
sumed by two mid-commercials for 
Snowy Bleach. To demonstrate her 
diversified style with a song, she 
rollicked through “It’s a Lovely 
Day,” bounced along with “Make 
Love To Me,” softly intoned the 
ballad. “My Secret Love,” and 
topped it all off with the- .blue .notes 
of “Basin Street.” Only the latter 
was given a ^production backup 
with an impressive New Orleans 
setting. “Make Love” . a rid “Basi n” 
are two of Miss Stafford’s current- 
ly strong-selling Columbia discs. 

There were only mild attempts 
at providing atmosphere for her 
other lilting songs, the opener 
bringing a parade of flower bear- 
ers and “Make Love” brightly car- 
oled in a record shop with ail the 
characters eavesdropping. In all 
numbers Miss Stafford was in fine 
voice and moved with ease through 
the changing tempos. The Star- 
lighters and Paul Weston’s crew 
gave her good backstopping and it 
all wrapped up as a pleasant early 
evening interlude of , refreshing 
melodies. 

Producers Paul Harrison and 
Berni Gould invested the show 
with tasteful mounting but were 
off on their timing. Network moved 
in to sign off before Miss Stafford 
could finish her invite to next 
week’s show. Helm. 


BETTY WHITE SHOW 

With Frank DeVol, 4 Jokers, Del 

Sharbutt: Jack Carson, guest 
Producer: Fred Henry . . 

Director: Bill Bennington 
30 Mins., Mon.-thru-Fri.y 10:30 a.m. 
NBC-TV, from H’woOd 

Betty White has been set up in 
her own show as a replacement 
for “Glamor Girl” (and subse- 
quently “Breakfast in Hollywood”) 
in NBC’s attempted strengthening 
of its morning block hitched to the 
upcoming “Home.” It’s a variety 
styled kinnie klatch from the 
Coast segueing from Chi's contrast- 
ing “Ding Dong School.” Miss 
White is an. ingratiating, whole- 
some looking gal Who can handle 
a song but does not seem too sure 
of herself on the chitchat chores. 
Her spotting here is based on the 
rep she’s been making with the 
“Life With Elizabeth” syndicated 
vidpix. 

Whether a musical and banter 
format fits the mid-morning 
scheme Is something that the haus- 
frau will decide. It could be a 
hit too early for the deadpan fol- 
derol tossed by Frank DeVol, Who 
batons a small unit, and the over- 
bubbling instrumental-vocal combo 
of the Four Jokers. The material 
which passed as jokes on the 
preem was very hungry even if 
judged wthin the mock context. 

First guestai* was Jack Carson. 
He’s a relaxed gent, so why should 
Miss White give off that mien of 
being awed at. his presence and 
“Mistering” him to death? Car- 
son’s stint was mainly one of .-. be- 
ing interviewed on the sofa regard- 
ing his film roles although he did 
participate on the lyrics of a 
Hawaiian hokcry number fronting 
the Jokers; so did the rest of 
troupe. Incidentally, the sofa got 
a real workout all during the 
stretch. 

Miss White showed good feeling 
in delivering “Getting to Know 
You” and “The Boy Next Door” 
and DeVol’s orch provided click 
hacking. If the rest of the show 
measured up to her vocals, the web 
could have a good property .for 
the national feedbox. This is a 
Bandy Production package in asso- 
ciation with exec producer Don 
Fedderson, Trau. 


CEDRIC’S MUSIC MART 
With Cedric Adams, others 
Producer-director: George Ander- 

■ .-'son 

Writer: Jack Huston 
30 Mins.: Sun., 3:30 p.m. 

POWERS DEPARTMENT STORE 
WCCO-TV, Minneapolis 

Any new Cedric Adams’ show is 
a tv or radio event in these parts 
where he’s king of the airwaves. In 
launching “Cedric’s Music Mart,” 
WCCO-TV starts with a leading 
department store sponsor which 
has the assurance of a large begin- 
ning audience because of the 
Adams’ popularity and following. 
Aforementioned sponsor also has 
the guarantee of skilled handling 
of the entertainment and advertis- 
ing material because the urbane, 
personable and smooth video and 
audio ace has proved himself a past 
master at these tasks. Like his 
other 30 weekly sponsored tv and 
radio shows, not to mention a flock 
of spot announcements, this con- 
tribution accordingly got off to a 
head start. 

Judging by what the opener 
brought forth in novelty embroi- 
dered entertainment and visual and 
other assets. “MiisiC Mart’’ should 
have no difficulty in holding its 
initial viewers and building the 
audience , to even more sizable 
proportions and, thus, prove a 
success. While its basic components 
are usually surefire song and ihusic, 
there’s the added interest from a 
competition that brings before the 
camera local amateur song com- 
posers and permits the public to 
hear their unpublished composi- 
tions played and sung by WCCO 
favorite vocalists Jcannie Arlen 
and Tony Grize and Willy Peter- 
son’s orchestra. 

On each show, three local ama- 
teur composers are brought before 
the camera to be interviewed by 
Adams prior to the rendition of 
their unpublished numbers. A 
panel of three qualified judges 
decides the winning composition 
which carries over 1o a fourth 
week competition for the preceding 
three winners. The number then 
selected as the champ gets publish- 
ed by BMI and also wins a valuable 
prize for its composer. 

Inasmuch as there are innumer- 
able amateur composers who never 
have been able to crash the riiusie 
business or get any of their nuh> 
hers publicly heard arid crave the 
chance and inasmuch as they un- 
doubtedly boast many relatives and 
friends, the show stacks up as hav- 
ing other lures besides Adams. In 
addition to the human interest 
angles and the competitive fea- 
tures, audience Interest is stimu- 
lated by an invitation to viewers 
to inform the station by mail their, 
.winner choices. The tune drawing 
the most mail during the entire 13- 
week period receives a special 
award. It’s all calculated to stim- 
ulate setowner discussion, argu- 
ments and interest. Rees. 


Wednesday* Febroary 10, 1954 




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THE WHITEMAN VARIETIES 
With PavlWhi texun and •rcbeotra, 
Shirley Harmer, Bob MaiBttf, 
others 

Producer-Director: Martin An- 

drews 

Writers: Don Witty, Bernard Deu- 
fall 

(I Mins.; Than., t p.m. 

ABC, from New York 
This hour-long Paul Whiteman 
stanza which preemed last Thurs- 
day (4) was a quick-paced and 
diversified showcase for talented 
young pros and the established 
alike. “Pops" did a good job at 
’ handling the emceeing chores with 
light but abbreviated banter, and 
he wisely, devoted most of- the air 
time to sharp performances by his 
. orch and his string of guests. 

He lined up four different acta, 
composed of promising young pros, 
another with singer Bob' Manning, 
others with show's regular thrush, 
Shirley Harmer, and his orch of 
symphonic proportions, and stirred 
well. Opener was with his group of 
. 802’ers who offered a distinctive 
Whiteman arrangement called 
“Beat Out That Rhythm on . the 
Drums.” Shirley Harmer, who sang 
three before conclusion, followed 
with a. stylized “Come Rain or 
Come Shine." She has a modest 
. voice which she handles well. . 

Elsewhere on the program there 
were the aspirants — a boy with a 
fine trumpet; the Quintories, teen- 
agers iii five-part harmony; 18-year 
old Phyllis Sedoya, a sensitive 
effective pianist, and 11-yeari-old 
Annette Swinson, who recently 
made? such a socko appearance ; at 
Gotham’s Harlem vauder, the ApoL 
lo. Each and everyone of them was 
outstanding. Only possible error 
. made by Whiteman during course of 
the preem was giving the young 
performers a Sima Watch each. 
Gave the impression that • these 
were promising amateurs. Instead 
they were promising pros. 

Baritone Bob Manning was 
. guestar. He, a Capitol recording 
dater, gave off with two pleasant 
numbers. But big stars of . night 
were Whiteman and his boys. If 
show continues to meet standards 
of first, it will draw big. . 


HOLLYWOOD AIRPORT 

With Joe Helgeseh, Aim Pitoniak, 

. Vera Allen. Grant Richards; 

Dorian St. George, announcer 
Producer-director: Joe Graham 
Writer: Ira Marion 
30 Mins.; Wed., 9 p.m. 

Sustaining 
ABC, from N. Y. 

“Hollywood Airport" shapes as 
only a modestly promising replace- 
ment for the recently Cancelled 
“Philco Radio Playhouse" in the 
Wednesday night spot. The Wil- 
bur Stark-Jerry Layton package 
has too many angles, for one thing. 
There’s a tiein with Photoplay, "the 
fan mag. and with its columnist, 
Cal York, under which the mag’s 
stories are used with York as the 
central character. Secondly, there’s 
the angle of the airport tieing in 
each separate episode, plus the 
necessity for making, each story 
deal with Hollywood. 

Combination of these factors 
made the initial segment, scripted 
by Ira Marion, pretty much on the 
insipid side. Story concerned a 
budding starlet who has her face 
cut up in a mild plane crash, dis- 
appears and is found by York but 
refuses to. come home. Apparently, 
she’s fallen in with a bad charac- 
ter., but everything happens for the 
best when it turns out she’s mar- 
ried the guy, who’s not so bad at 
all. Pretty tame stuff, dramatically. 

Preem was enhanced by a highly 
competent cast including Joe Hel- 
gesen as York, Ann Pitoniak as the 
girl, Vera Allen as her mother and 
Grant Richards as the boyfriend. 
Joe Graham's direction kept the 
story moving rapidly, but that 
wasn’t much help as it unfolded. 
Dorian St. George did a nice an- 
nouncing job. Chan. 


TEENAGERS UNLIMITED 
With Jim Kirkwood, Loo Good- 
man, guests 

Producer-Director: Ernie Ricca 
55 Mins.; Sat., 5:93 pjn. 

Sustaining 
MBS, from N.Y. 

Jim Kirkwood and Lee Goodman 
are back on the air with a Satur- 
day afternoon disk jockey airer 
that should get hefty listenership 
from the teenage audience at 
winch it’s targeted. Comedy duo. 
Who have developed a fairly large 
nitery following, will probably .get 
dialer, attention from more adult 
listeners also. Program, however, 
is aimed primarily at the. kidt and 
puts emphasis on the, theory that 
teenagers have unlimited, abilities' 
and are not .as menacing as news- 
paper headlines indicate. 

Besides spinning records on 

opener, Saturday (6), Kirkwood & 
Goodman saluted a group of teen- 
agers who had done outstanding 
work in their community. In addi- 
tion. a segment of the program is 
devoted to comments relative to 
teenage problems. This portion of 
the airer is handled by Rhoda - 
Lachar, exec director of the Edu- 
cation Research Center, Detroit. 
Miss Lachar confined her spiel on 
preem show to asking the young- 
sters to send jn suggestions as to 
what they would like her to dis- 
cuss. ■ 

Kirkwood & Goodman handled 
program, in a breezy manner, gag- 
ging up their chit-chat for some 
okay chuckles. Guesting on the 
initiaier were Charlie Applewhite 
and Eileen Barton. Singers -en- 
tered into some banter with the 
dee jay duo. which cued the playing 
of their recent releases. Also spun 
on the show were three records 
Chosen by the studio audience as 
being the top trio among the 
week's releases; In line* with the 
spinning of the studio audience’s 
selections, teenagers were brought 
up to the mike to explain the rea- 
sons for choosing the various disks 
played. 

Kids were also given an oppor- 
tunity to take part in a quiz ses- 
sion, with prizes awarded for the 
correct answers. Queries were gen- 
erally simple and hints to the cor- 
rect answers were given those kids 
who were having trouble in solv- 
ing the problems presented to 
them. 

Prizes' awarded the kids are con- 
tributed by various manufacturers. 
Incidentally, the Education Re- 
search Center is cooperating in the 
presentation of the airer. Jess. 


CRIME PHOTOGRAPHER 
With Staata Cotaworth, Job Miner, 
Abby Lewis, John GIbaaa, Ber- 
nard Lenrow, Lew White* ergan- 
iat; Teddy Wilson, pianist 
Producer-Director: John Diets 
Writer: Alonzo Dean Cole 
3t Mins., Wed., 9 pjn. 

Sustaining 

CBS. from New York. 

Casey of the cornball returns 
after a two-year hiatus as “Crime 
Photographer," and this show, 
which had lbs Ups and downs, ins 
and outs at CBS since ’45, still has 
whodunit appeal. Casey, his side- 
kick Annie Williams and Ethelbert, 
the homey barkeep at ’ the homey 
Blue’ Note Gafe, and the piano 
playing, of Teddy Wilson are the 
manistays of the stanza. 

Scripting by Alonzo Dean Cole in 
episode caught, wasn’t quite up to 
the old standards. He got a little 
hazy about the psychiatry involved 
in analyzing- “The Inhibited Killer, 
but he managed to. bring out the 
same wiseacre habits of the hero, 
the same friendly opposition sup- 
plied by his gal . Friday, and the 
same pleasant stupidity of Ethel- 
bert. Cast hasn’t changed either — 
lead still handled; by Staats Cots- 
worth commendably. Only Wilson 
replaced Herman Chittison at 
piano; and does as well as prede- 
cessor; 

In this one, Casey,, in tracing 
down a *killer who let a gal go 
when she promised not to identify 
him, blunders (as usual) through 
the first 20. minutes on the wrong 
tack, then .by applying a little .psy- 
chology ‘(most of which is about 
women) he arrives at a solution. 
The plot didn’t run too logically, 
put Casey did catch the crook and 
probably a good bit of his old and 
faithful radio audience. 


Wedne*dMT 0 Fehnury 10, If 54 



RUBY MERCER 

10 Mins.: Moii.-thru-Sat.; 11:20 p.m. 
LIBERTY RECORD SHOPS 
WOR, N. Y. 

Ruby Mercer, who’s got a 25- 
minute show on WOR, N; Y., Satur- 
day afternoons, is now being heard 
over that station via a nightly airer 
six times a week. Program runs 
10 minutes Monday-Friday starting 
at 11:20 p. m, and 15 minutes 
Saturday eves beginning at 11:15 
p, m. Segment should - satisfy 
those tuned in to the station 
but isn’t likley to draw special 
dialer attention. 

Program is essentially a pitch 
for Liberty Record Shops and 
various phono items. Show is 
presented by Liberty in coopera- 
tion with nightly co-sponsors; 
Opener last week, was devoted 
to chatter relating to the needle 
used in playing disks and how 
needle’s potency could be checked 
via a special appliance available at 
the Liberty shops. 

Interspersed with the gab was 
the spinning of one light classical 
item and some snatches uf the 
music from “Kismet." Jess. 


COFFEE CALL 

With Jim Walton, m.c.; Herbie 

Koch, Bud Abbott, announcer 
Producer-director: Jerry Bottofft 
30 Mins.; Mon.-tliruTFri., 10:30 a.m. 
Participating 
WHAS, Louisville 

One of . the town’s vet radio 
shows, this audience participation- 
er was first aired in 1948. Format 
hasn’t changed much, although 
initial origination was from a local 
department store. Jim Walton is 
still whooping it up with the 
femme audience, with community 
singing, word games, and all the 
usual fun gimmicks which have 
been surefire for over five years. 

At show caught, audience, and 
performers were anticipating the 
arrival into the studio of the 
100,000th visitor. When she walked 
in, talent and audience joined in 
the greeting, and she was pre- 
sented with a case of sardines and 
other items, and promised a re- 
cording of the show to be given 
later. Community singing feature 
had the femmes joining in the 
warbling of such w.k. tunes as 
“Y’all Come,” “My Bonnie Lies 
Over the Ocean.” and other stand- 
ards. Walton had the gals stumped 
with his quizzer anent the third 
word in trios— example, Liberty, 
Equality, Fraternity. Response on 
these puzzlers was flat, as the, ques- 
tioner evidently was pitching over 
the ladies’ heads. 

Herbie Koch, who has presided 
at the 'console of the studio organ 
since its inception, supplied the 
musical interludes, and his show- 
manly timing of: the fanfares and 
song accompaniments was sharp 
shovvbacking all the way. Staff 
baritone Bill Pickett and Randy 
Atelier and the Red River Ram- 
blers perform on alternate days at 
the vocal stand. Every Monday, 
“Coffee Call” leaves the studios to 
play remote performances at 
church, civic and social clubs, as 
part of the station’s public re- 
lations plan to meet as well as 
reach its audience. It all adds up 
to much goodwill - for the program 
and the station. 

Bud Abbott, staff announcer, 
handles the commercials, which in- 
clude mostly food items, shampoos, 
and merchandise - with a femine ap 
peal. His pitches registered in 
okay style. Wied. 


UNITED NATIONS PROGRAM 
With Dr. Karl Smidt, others 
30 Mins.; Tues., 7 p.m. 

Sustaining 
WGY, Schenectady 

A group of Schenectady organ- 
izations join to present a discus- 
sion program highlighting the 
structure, operation, aims, achieve- 
ments and , possibly desirable 
changes in the United Nations, it 
is a high level half-hour, ably mod- 
erated by Dr. Karl Smidt, of the 
Union College faculty, and present- 
ing intelligent, Informed and lofty 
minded men and women/ Panels 
change weekly. , Last origination 
heard dealt with suggested revi- 
sions in the UN charter. The next 
one was to feature a roundable on 
the Security Council. 

League of Women Voters and 
other participating units (a CIO 
union is included) deserve credit 
for a fine educational and public 
service show; General Electric Co. 
and WGY, for making valuable 
evening time available. Dr. Smidt, 
who has appeared on other local 
broadcasts and telecasts, is of net- 
work calibre, in background, voice 
and technique. > Jaeo, 



Perhaps the dream captive audi- 
ence of any radio network is CBS’ 
Palm Springs (Calif.) affiliate 
KCMJ, operated by Joe and Ted 
Gamble (Gamble Theatres), with 
the former as g.m. For the same 
reason that a community antenna 
for the Sail Jacinto Mts. enclosed 
desert resort necessitates a $150 
down payment and a $5 service fee 
for the master tv antenna, so is 
radio a hazardous reception propo- 
sition here. Except for KCMJ, of 
course, which is on the scene. 
Thus, the CBS soapers, Arthur 
Godfrey, Jack Benny on Sundays, 
and the rest have the best signal. 
Otherwise, even With the .powerful 
overseas sets which, most show biz 
homes have— and it’s easier to get 
Yuma, Denver and San Francisco 
than the Hollywood signals for 
some reason— the static is a trying 
thing. Daytime shows give over to 
realtors and local merchants cater- 
ing to the winter trade. Among 
the land vendors are Isabel and 
Don Cameron, doing, a chatty rou- 
tine for the latter's realty develop- 
ments. Isabel is apparently an ex- 
sister-in-law of comedian Jack 
Durant, of whom she spoke as hav 
ing seen yvith Frankie- Laine at 
Las Vegas. There is chitchat of 
this nature, including a superlative 
salute to Rudolf Friml. apparently 
among the winter visitors. “And 
we will now play one of his big 
gest hits,” concluded Miss Camer- 
on. So wha’ hoppened?— out came 
a “Student Prince” excerpt, “Deep 
in My Heart.” and the phones 
started jumping to tell the loca 
deejay that he didn’t need the 
“Variety Music Cavalcade” to tel 
him it was by Sigmund Romberg 
The long-delayed buildup was such 
as to make this desert radio vagary 
about as non seqnitur as building 
jnip a Berlin medley and oiit comes 
a Nick Kenny “Patty poem.” 

Abel. 


IN NEW YORK CITY . » . 

Mri. Wendell Willkle/on CBS’ “Make Up Your Mind” panel Friday 
(12) . . . Art Llnkletter’a “House Party” celebrating ninth year this 
week . . . Lowell Thomat currently airing CBS newscasts from Salt 
Lake City ... Lee De Forest, “Father of Radio/* saluted on Columbia's 
“Hallmark Hall of Fame" Sunday (7) . . . Playwright Arthur Arent will 
conduct a six-week workshop on rad.io-ty-niotion pictures scripting at 
NYU this summer ... Bobbs-Merrill bringing out Elmer Davis’ first 
book in four years, “But We Were Bom Free/’ next week . . . Mai Boyd, 
formerly Mary Pickford’s partner in radio-tv and now a divinity stu- 
dent in California, has a feature piece in the Feb. 21 Issue of Episcopal 
Churchman entitled “O Ye Television, Press, Movies ind Radio, Bless 
Ye the Lord" . . . Dick Hodkin promoted to program director of WPAC. 
Patehogue, L.I. ... CBS’ Feature Project personnel hitting the road 
this week. Public Affairs chief Stuart Novins and staffer Fred Garrigus 
headed for D.C. and producer A1 Morgan to Phijjly > . Ed Feldman 

named boss of production, programming and' cominbrqials of Biow’s 
Hollywood Office. : V>; " 

Allen Churchill’s biog of Goodman Ace, tabbed “The Ace of Boffs,” 
in current* Esquire .... . CBS board chairman- W*MIam S. ?aley, back 
from Coast look-see, shoving off again, this i time, fo* Jamaica vaca- . 
tion . . . Oscar Brand on a singing date in Canadas; .*; * Everett-McKin- 
ney, Inc., has joined Station Reps Assn. . . v WMGM 

deejay, has been reelected president of the NegrO-^ctoW’ Guild of 
America . . . Rita Elkin, Syracuse U. product. hasT^ecpme. pub assis- 
tant to Ruth Thompson at WOV ... WOR has six-week series 

in cooperation with the local end of the Internal; Revenue department 
,on “tax tips.” •" 

IN CHICAGO . . . 

Chi NBC newsman Clifton Utley easing backipto-the harness after 
a lengthy ihliess is producing WMAQ’s newSunday^temdon “Our 
World Today" series featuring Carter Davidioft, director., of the Chi 
Council on Foreign Relations . . . One of radfa’s joldest network-client 
marriages starts another span Saturday (13) . When Mutu«il , | “Man on 
the Farm" goes into Its 16th year under the Quafc#'Oats banner . . 
Zenith veep and director of sales Henry C. Bonfig slated as the 
Broadcast Executives Club speaker at its March meeting . . . Con- 
tinuity acceptance editors of NBC’s o&o’s due in next week for a ses- 
sion hosted by Chi continuity chief Harry Ward. Attending will be 
Stockton Helffrich/ New York; ; Don Honrath, Hollywood; Burton 
Bridges, Washington; Gene Walz, Cleveland; Byron Mills; Frisco, and 
Joseph Baker, the web’s consultant on Negro relations . . . Bob Atelier 
notched his fifth anni on WLS’s National Barn Dance last week . . . 
WGN deejay Saxle Dowell preemed a new 55-minute evening record 
session built around the top 10 tunes picked by the fans of the sta- 
tion’s. 10 jockeys . . . Judith Waller, Chi NBC - educational director, 
attends the Democracy Workshop at •Williamsburg, Va., Feb. 20 and 
21 and then departs for a three-Wfeek Florida vacation. 

IN SAN FRANCISCO . . . 

Set census ; for San Francisco-Oakland Bay area now totals 829,400 
... Top flight writer-producer Samuel Dickson retired from KNBC. . 
He continues to Write and produce station’s “San Francisco Hour" on 
freelance basis .. . . Producer Jaime del Valle in briefly for further 
discussion with police dept, on his “Line-Up" teleseries , . . Evangeline 
Baker and Fred Jorgensen revived their KGO-TV “Mailbag of Tricks” 
under new title “You Can Do It” (6) ... . Local tv academy award 
presentations skedded for 20th . . . Jerry Leeds preemed a kiddie show, 
Uncle Jerry’s Bunkhouse Story Time,” on KVSM (San Mateo). And 
Eddie Kirk was signed as station’s new western songster . . . Norma 
Hughes and Madeleine Lavery were the two local lookers chosen to 
participate in CBS’ “Panorama Pacific.” new, f emcee contest . . . Dorothy 
Shay radio visiting during Fairmont Hotel engagement . . . Tulare 
County’s KCOK-TV changed call letters to KWG-TV. Bakersfield 
radio-tv station KAFY changed over to KBAK. 

IN MINNEAPOLIS . . . 

Bill Dlehl, St. Paul Dispatch columnist, caljgd attention to fact that 
radio station WDGY’s newspaper ads still carry photos of five person- 
alities no longer with it . . . Minneapolis public schools teaching milli- 
nery designing, sketching, pattern designing and other skills directly 
in KSTP-TV series . . . Dr. Donald Grey Barnhouse’s Sunday “Bible 
Study Hour’’ starting 18th consecutive year oh WTCN radio ... WMIN- 
TV’s Steve Cannon cowpoke show claims to be pulling 1,000 letters 
a week. He’s also a WMIN radio disk jockey ... . Irving Smith, WCCO 
producer, and wife celebrating arrival of their first child, a boy . . . 
WCCQ staff tossed farewell party for Jim Beloungy, chief engineer, 
who has been shifted by CBS to Chicago where he’ll boss technical 
operations . . . Announcer Harry Zimmerman resigned from WLOL 
to join WTCN radio . . . Curtis Edwards, formerly of WTCN, joining 
WCCO radio as parttime announcer . . . Minneapolis Brewing Co. spon- 
soring new Jack Huston five-days-a-week WCCO radio show. 

IN WASHINGTON ... 

Earl H. Gammons, CBS veepee, and Robert Sarnoff, NBC veepee, . 
have been named to the Business Group of the White House Confer- 
ence on Highway Safety, which meets here next week (17-19), and 
Doris Corwith, NBC, president of American Women in Radio and 
Television, and MBS commentator Hazel Market are members of the 
Women’s Group for powwow . . . Dorese Bell, WMAL-ABC tv person- 
ality, is now trekking to New York twice weekly for her own web 
show, a Tuesday and Thursday twice-a-day five minute women’s news 
report . . . George L. Griesbauer lias left N.Y. office of Paul H. Raymer 
to take post as sales manager of WTTG-DuMont . . . Sen. Paul Douglas 
I (D., 111.), who visited studios of WNBW-NBC to guest on web’s “Today” 
show, stayed over as surprise participant in station’s cooking show, 
The Kitchen Cupboard,” emceed by Phyllis Weaver . . , Anita Chester 
Lyons, C§S staffer who came to capital via web posts in Los Angeles 
arid New York, is now producer of “Washington, U.S.A.” and will 
also work on other public affairs radio shows* 

IN PITTSBURGH . . . 

Wally Dickson taking over the 11 o’clock night news on WJ AS with 
departure of Ken Hildebrand to do the same thing ‘ On tv over WENS 
for Duquesne Brewing Co. ; . . Joe Deane, KQV deejay, down with 
V/® f or a week. Jim Shannon did the pinch-hitting . . . Bill Badger, 
general- manager, threw a party for his mother on her 70th 
w-n?-v, ay * V* Gene J ® hns on and his wife, Abbbie Neal, who has a girls’ 
tit* > u 0l ^ ? n Channel 16, are building a new ranch home in the 
^ Lebanon district . , . Mary Berger Worstall, formerly of the edi- 
torial staff of the Steubenville, O., Herald Star, has been named pub- 
licity director for WSTV-TV in that city . . . Sportscaster Bob Prince's 
mother here for a visit from Los Angeles following a vacation in Hono-- 
1U u * j ‘ Troynor, the baseball great, just started his ninth year 
as head of W QV sports department . ; . Ted Oczypok, WJAS engineer, 
and his wife have a later winter date with the stork ... Disk jockey 

(Continued on page 42) 


Wednesday, February 10, 1954 





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42 


BABIO-TBXJEV1SION 


Wednesday, February 10, 1954 


Eye Telepix O'Seas 


ContlivM from 17 


seas producers abQjjt mutual rep- 
resentation, under which the o’seas 
outfits would peddle 0 Official prod- 
uct there while Official would* sell 
their vidpix here. Talks are only 
exploratory, however, and mean- 
while, Official has been carefuly 
examining costs of dubbing, sub- 
titling, etc. ' 

Latino ‘Liberace,* Talooka’ 

In the case* of Guild, firm already 
Is dubbing “Liberace” and “Joe. 
Palooka” series into Spanish.. 
Kaufman, who with Don Fedderson 
has :been invited , to Cuba by the 
government there to o.o. their pro- 
duction setup, may come back with 
some kind of deal for coproduction 
and distribution setup. , 

Screen Gems, which has been 
moving slowly up to now with the 
“Ford Theatre*' its only major en- 
try, figures to expand now, that 
it’s propping major entries for syn- 
dication, Sfiles V.p. John Mitchell 
. said last week that a Canadian 
office will soon be set up, and that 
the entire problem of Latin Amer- 
ica is currently under careful scru- 
tiny. Other outfits, like Motion Pic- 
tures' for Television, United Tele- 
vision Programs, et al, already 
have Canadian offices or reps. 

Up to now all the action in the 
Latino market has come out of 
New York. Sales have been made 
either to agencies of the overseas 
stations and networks, or directly 
to y visiting broadcasting execs 
themselves; Many of the. officials 
have; come directly, to. the vidpix 
outfits in search of product. This 
situation; of course, will change 
as the market expands. 

Product-wise, the tmain types of 
film series that have been sold to 
non-English speaking broadcasters 
have been musicals, cartoons and 
Sports subjects. Most musical li- 
braries, such as Studio’s Telescrip- 
tions, Official’s “Music Hall Varie- 
ties’* and Screen Gems’ 1 5-minute 
musicals and disk jockey films' have 
received wide distribution. Now, 
however, questions Of both demand 
and supply will force a situation 
under which dramatic and other 
types ^of yidpix will undergo the 


dubbing or subtitling method lor 
wider distribution. 

A final facet of the overseas 
question is that of commercials. 
Screen Gems has been doing a 
healthy business in blurbs origi- 
nally shot in Spanish,, on order 
from agencies. As the market ex- 
pands, both ad agencies of foreign 
manufacturers and those of Amer- 
ican business with overseas dis- 
tribution will be approaching ,the 
blurbmakers for vastly , increased 
schedules of foreign-language com-, 
mercials. ■ * . * 


Sen. Johsson 

SS Continued from page n — — 

titled to “generous commendation” 
for its interest in promoting UHF. 
“But it would --seem to me," die 
said, that an authorization which 
“may destroy” four UHF stations 
“is travelling in the opposite di- 
rection.” ■ The Commission, he 
added, “should not put on ; techhi- 
cal ‘blinders’ and Overlook the e£- 
feet this authorization will have on 
the current and proposed UHF op- 
erations” in the. area. 

.'Johnson recently issued a hot 
blast at the Commission for its pro- 
posal to relax, its multiple owner- 
ship rules to allow networks rand 
others to own seven instead of five 
tv stations, providing at least two 
are UHF. In his letter to' Hyde 
last week, he pointed out that “the 
question of promoting UHF‘ serv- 
ice” was the key do the proposal.. 

Since his protest' against the pro- 
posal,* the Commission 'has au- 
thorized a new survey to determine 
how post-freeze tv stations are 
doing financially. This study ^ will 
cover operations from last August 
through next March. 

Johnson had challenged the 
agency to prove with facts and fig- 
ures how a raising of the .five-sta- 
tion ceiling will help UHF. 


Houston — Jack Healy has been 
named local sales manage#* for 
KPRC, in an announcement. made < -r— 
by Jack Harris, veepee in charge eluded 


Trie Story’ to TV 

ABC-TV has completed a kine 
of Its longtime radio soaper, “My 
True Stbry,” and is currently ped- 
dling the pilot as an inexpensive 
three-way ty entry, Jor sale as an 
evening or daytime half-hour or 
as a morning soaper -strip. Tele- 
version Stems from ABC’s agree- 
ment with McFadden Publications 
under which the web promised to 
give the True Story mag proper- 
ties a try at tele. 

Pilot was produced by Chuck 
Holden, directed by Fred Carr. 
Herbert Rudley is starred. 


Cpntlnued from page 28 555 

the pike "broadcasters were speech- 
loss-— they Bad no effective rebuttal 
Wfcenr thdr ratings npsdived under 
video’s impact. It wks the set manu- 
facturers, grinding out clock, porta- 
ble and car-radios by the millions, 
who for several years furnished 
the most effective argument that 
AM dialing was still a potent fac- 
tor in American living. 

Shpjtis . reminded his listeners 
that' AM had weak spots even be- 
fore tv. VA new medium usually ex- 
poses the bad practices, shoddy 
techniques in an old medium that 
were good/ enough to get by with 
when there was no competition,” 
he asserted. 

Because radio had failed to de- 
velop its case prior to tv, the lat- 
ter’s arrival- set off near panic 
which accelerated the tailspin. 
During this period “shoddy prac- 
tices and cut rate deals” were the 
ouder of the day. “How could we 
expect the advertisers to treat ra- 
dio- with respect when we treated 
it with disrespect,” was Sholi$’ 
sum-up query. 

- He pointed out that radio has 
two unique advantages over any 
other advertising medium — and 
neither are measured by ratings. 
Radio is mobile and people can be 
doing other things while listening. 

I Since the public, as indicated by 
their continuing purchases of sets, 
has ignored AM’s* obituaries, it’s 
time for the industry itself to re- 
search, organize and exploit its own 
story, the station manager con- 


From the ProducHoii Centres 


'Condoned 'f prat pafi <• 


Barry Kaye had a close call when his car was wrecked in a skid while 
coming back, from a record hop in (Charleroi. He and his fiancee, 
Eleanor Schano, escaped unhurt. 

IN CLEVELAND . , . 

Tqdd Purse, WJW dlsker, now has six fan' clubs . * . WGAR’s. disker 
Bill Mayer is performing in “Be Your Age” at Avon Lake Little Thea- 
tre . . . Among those* Florida bound are Ellen Eggleston, of McCann- 
Erickson, and Mr. and Mrs. Tom Manning; he’s NBC sports director 
while Manning’s away Skip Ward goes ty sports stint’ on WNBK, and 
Joe MnlvlhiU, takes over WTAM sports ... Carl Reese is doing WERE 
morning disk spot and hight-side trick for WTAM . .... . Nort Golub 
exited WERE flack spot . . . Cleveland' Tool and Supply Co. pacted 
hour-long WNBK “Bowlers’ Jackpot” Saturday 5 p.m. starring Sammy 
Levine and Paul Bedford . . . WJW proxy BlU O’Neil back from Florida 
and station executive Veep Bill Lerinpon back from Chicago ... TV set 
sales now over 834,286 . . . Betty Cope producing WEWS daily salute to 
cities in viewing area. 

IV PHILADELPHIA , . . . . 

Bud Brees, singing disk jockey, at WPEN, has been elected to ASCAP 
membership on the strength of 10 compositions * . Ed McMahon, 

WCAU-TV staffer, has discontinued his early morning segment, ‘‘Here’s 
That McMahon Again” ... . Gerald W* 'Tasker* v.p. of Cunningham & 
Walsh ad agency, addressed. Television Assn, ef Philadelphia on “Tv’s 
Impact on American Family Life,” at the Poor Richard Club (3) V 
Ed Murray, film director at WPTZ,. has swung deal ipr 30 Italian pics 
from Fortune Features*. Series began Saturday night (6) ; . . William 
H. Sylk, president of WPEN, has been reelected chairman of board of 
United Israel Appeal . . V WKDN, Camden* N.X.,.has been given FCC 
okay to construct and operate a UHF tv station, via Channel 17 . , 
Jim Learning, WIP sports director, leaves Feb. 26 for six-weeks tour 
of Florida Baseball camps . ... Benedict Gimbel, Jr., president of WIP, 
will head radio and tv division for 27th Educational Week for the 
Blind, starting March 29. v . \ _ 


WVEC-TV Addition* 

Norfolk, Feb. 9. 

Flock of personnel additions, 
headed by the appointment of Al 
Brown as sales manager, were 
made last week at WVEC-TV, the 

NBC basic here. Brown joins the 
station from the. Chicago office of 
William Rambeau station reps. 

Other appointments are Jane 
Ann Waters, to the fulltime post 
of director of children’s programs; 
Frank Berry, former engineer for 
WIT V, Jasper, Ind., to the engi- 
neering staff; William Henry Eacho 
to the production department arid 
Melvin Tennis to the script de? 
partment. 


Prockter’s AM-TV lUghts 
To Travelers Aid Files 

Prockter Television Enterprises 
this week secured, all radio and 
television rights to the files of the 
National Travelers j Aid Assn., 
which* maintains .branches in some 
200 cities. Deal was consummated 
by PTE v.p. Jerome Robinson; 

. Robinson is currently huddling 
with Bernard Prockter, PTE prexy, 
as to format, producers, scripters 
and the question of whether the 
series would be* live or film. If it’s 
to go on 'film, it would probably be 
done at American National Studios, 
cl which Prockter is prez. 




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FROLICS 

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Wttorfft Titronr 10, 1954 



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ARENA STARS, INC, 366 NORTH CAMDEN DRIVE, BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA 


RALPH WONDERS, President 


BADIO-TEIJB VISION 



Screen Gems 


| L— — COHtil»II*d from pa ft V jmmmmm+mmhmn ' 

nation#; sale, but if none is forth- tion of “Ford" has provided the 
coming;, they’re definite to go into ii a with a solid footing on which 


syndication, . „ w . ally, he said, the deals and proper- 

A„ fourth new series, What u es f or new productions were 
Makes a Champion," a 15-mlriute right, and he predicted a wide and 
sports presentation tO be filmed in expanding market for good syndi- 
New York, has already been sold cated product, 
on a national spot basis, but name 

of the sponsor wasn’t disclosed ■ ■. : ■■ 

pending finalizing of contracts. Panaila Til ClvilrA 

This will serve more or less as a UiUlfllKi I W Vlf IHO 

replacement for "The Big Play- _. C(nmilue , „6^vw w 
back, ’ which Screen Gems pro- . 

duced last year with Telenews for $2,00,0 to meet the weekly talent 
Ethyl sponsorship in 46 markets payroll when the CBC nut was 
and which has since been- discon- $8,500. (Before being lured up 
tlnued. here by the CBC, Kneeland had 

On the boards for pilots are produced a' variety of NBC and 
“Johnny Nighthawk," an adventure ABC tv series including the Lar- 
series starring Howard Duff; “Sis- raine Da y Show,’ the “Arthur Mur- 
ter Veronica,’’ starring Irene ray Party’’ and “Hold that Cam- 


to base future operations. Addition- 


f&V&LtkiL 


on a 120m shelling casing, for his 
farm to Gettyburg. Martin Agron- 
sky, of ABC, outgoing president of 
the organization, turned the gavel 
of office over to Richard Harkness, 
NBC, his successor. Chairman of 
the. dinner was Bill Henry, air- 
waves commentator and newspaper 
columnist. 


Wednesday, February- 10, - 1954 


WLS, 



Canada TV Strike 

•i . ; 

— Continued from page 33 s 


Dunne and based on Vivian Cros- 
by’s Ladies Home J ournal story; 


era.’’) 

On the definition of “unprofes- 


“Classifled,*’ based .on personal siona 1 behavior," Fergus .Mutrie, 
ads and narrated by Quentin Key- director of CBL1, Toronto, 

nojds; and “Navy Diary," about, the ® a y® be has received a letter to 
adventures of a Navy officer, lead this effect from the artists union 
not cast as yet. These 5 will be but with no specified instances; 
strictly pilots, and if no national ditto Hudson, who professes not to 


sale is effected, production will' be understand the term. Contention of 
discontinued, vfrith the pilots prOb- Neil Leroy, V v.p. of ACRTA is that 
ably going into the “Ford Theatre" th ? unibn does not want Hudson 
aeries. - fired but simply to step out of 

a iinn.. nM > m ^ iu ~ production of the four CBC-TV 

neW pro “ musical revues; that the union will 
f«h at th* v t res i COn ’ have n0 dealings with Hudson; with 

ters las? week Both ’ Raloh “m the union havin * "P argument with 
r«hn v „ An-.oi M ; the quality of Hudson^ produc- 

Johrt’ ti P '* g nT|fphiii ma ” a 6 er * a fid tions. Leroy claims that quoting 

• oi direct instances of "unprofes- 
stressed the need for “vertical" sional hehavinr ” hn tho nart of 

bSef U ^ e ha a t nd th a i SO nM? rC?Sed i thei f Hudson, would endanger individual' 
'SSSkS&iJS the CBC. 

the vidpix field to perhaps a half- ■ ■ ■ =■'• • - ' g 

dozen major producers-dlstributors. I n . _ __ ga 
It’s not economically feasible, they I BCaSl6rS WHOOD 
pointed out, to act as a straight I * 9 11 IBVW r 

distributor on a fee basis anymore. Continued from page 33 —— 

tr^hn h U K Ur t Scr f en Gei h s J. Glenn Taylor, Sylvester Weaver, 

niptA J 1,6 bas ®d °n com- Frank M. Folsom and many others. 

0f the The show, handsomely mounted 


B’casters Whoop 

m Continued from page 33 s 


properties involved. 


and fitted together by Irving Mans- 


Mitchell also disclosed that the field and Lester Gottlieb, of CBS, 
gales operation has been expanded included: Jane Froman; Raymond 
with some 20 men already in the Massey doing the platform speech 
field. Most of the expansion has from Robert Sherwood’s “Abe Lin- 
taken place over the past' year, coin in Illinois”; Sam Levenson, 
with the syndication in non-net- Julius La Rosa, Phil Silvers and 
Work markets and on a rerun ba- Mary McCarthy, with Art Link- 
sis of ‘Ford’’ largely responsible, letter as emcee. 

He envisioned -an eventual field Linkletter wowed ’em early with 
staff of 30 to 35 salesmen. Another the crack; “With this Administra- 
expanded phase of the operation is tion in for a year, I feel it’s safe to 
production , facilities for commer- come back to Washington for a 
cials, with production setups in man whose business is giving. away 
both N. Y. and on the. Coast, refrigerators.’’ 
with live-action and animation fa- Phil Silvers rang the bell when 
cihties on each Coast. Cohn dis- he stepped up to the footlights and 
closed, Incidentally, that Koda- announced: “There’s a long dis- 
chrome and Technicolor were be- tance call just come in. He’ll talk 
ing tested for clients on a closed to anybody; it’s a Mr. Dulles on the 
circuit, and that few difficulties phone." ' That one nearly laid the 
Were anticipated. Republican biggies — including Ike 

Cohn said that the vast upbeat ’• — to the aisles. Dulles, in Berlin 
In production represented no policy for the Foreign Ministers’ confer- 
decision on the part of Columbia, ence, was the only member of the 
but actually was the result of plan- Cabinet absent from the dinner, 
ning and timing. Backlog of coin The Correspondents presented 
coming in each week on syndica- Ike with with a sundial, mounted, 


/ Chicago, Feb. 9. 

Merger of WLS and WENR from 
their share-time basis into one full- 
time operation was, finally achieved 
last week after years of trying, via 
a merger of the two stations into 
WLS, Inc;, with control of the hew 
company resting in hands of 
Agricultural Broadcasting Co., li- 
censees of WLS. Merger has long 
been sought by ABC, since the 
share-time arrangement limited opv 
erations of WENR, its o&o radio 
outlet- in Chi. 

Under terms of the merger, 
which is subject to FCC approval, 
call letters of the new fulltimer 
would be WLS, and station would 
become an ABC affiliate, presuma- 
bly under a* longterm agreement. 
New setup gives ABC a 50,000-watt 
clear channel outlet on 960 kc fre- 
quency. Both stations have in the 
past used the same transmitter, 
and studio operations of the new 
station will be centered in the WLS 
headquarters. 

Officers of the new firm, are 
James E. Edwards, WLS prexy, 
president; Glenn Snyder, WLS v.p.- 
g.m., first viCepresident and gen- 
eral manager; Arthur M. Harre, 
WENR . manager, second- v.p. and 
assistant general manager; George 
R. Cook, WLS treasurer, treasurer; 
and Matthew Vieracker, ABC cen- 
tral division treasurer, secretary. 
Board of directors will consist of 
Edwards, Snyder, Cook, Robert H. 
O’Brien, ABC exec v.p., and Vie- 
racker. • Agricultural will ’ hold 
10,000 of the 18,000 shares in the 
new company, making a 55-45 split 
in ownership. 

Deal offers no complications 
from the ABC standpoint insofar 
as FCC regulations governing own- 
ership are concerned. Web . owns 
only four stations plus its partial 
control of the new WLS. Web has 
been dickering for such a merger 
or purchase of WLS for several 
years, and only last fall was re- 
ported close to a deal. Negotiations 
failed at that time, but were re- 
sumed, shortly afterward. 

Gilmore’s CBC Post 

Toronto, Feb. 9. 

’ J. P. Gilmore has been appointed 
co-ordinator of television for the 
Canadian Broadcasting Corp., ac- 
cording to J. A. Ouimet, CBC g.m. 

For the past year, these duties 
had been assumed by Ernest L. 
Bushnell, CBS assistant g.m„ who 
now unloads the task on Gilmore, 
his former assistant. 


Deal whereby Arlene Francis takes over the emcee chores as “editor- 
in-chief" of the upcoming daytime “Home" (woman’s magazine of the 
air) show on NBC-TV is unique. Despite the*top coin involved, with 
Miss Francis drawing down $2,000 a week guarantee with a $3,500 
potential depending on the show’s billings status, it does not exclude 
her from participation in panel shows on other networks. Thus she’ll 
continue as a regular on the CBS-TV Sunday night “What’s My Line." 

HoweveT, there’s a restriction on the type of shows in which Miss 
Francis will be permitted to appear on other webs as the initial step 
toward eventually establishing an exclusivity- on her services. 

A half-hour situation comedy is currently being prepped with Miss 
Francis in mind, With NBC-TV having first option on it. 

Variety’s story on the Television Writers of America factional split 
that cued the walkout of eastern prexy Irve T,unick and 10 exec board 
members was inserted in full into the Congressional Record last week 
(5). Story was inserted by Sen. John Butler of Maryland, chairman of 
the Senate Internal Subcommittee, in connection with an investigation 
by a “task force" of tljp unit into the question of communism in labor 
unions':- .. ' 

WPIX, N.Y. Daiiy News Video outlet, scored one of the season’s hot 
scoops last week. Its studibs^are located in the {fame building' as the 
newspaper. Within TO mintites after fire broke out in the plant, an- 
nouncers Jack McCarthy, Kevin Kennedy and John Tillman were on 
hand, along with the remote cameras, to bring viewers, at that very 
minute, coverage of the costly and damaging conflagration. 

Smoke was. so heavy that a camera had to be moved to another part 
of the floor where the blaze occurred. Still the boys managed to get 
exciting sounds and shots of the firemen at work. Smoke wasn’t the 
only reason the WPIX’ers got all choked up. As one r^|rtorial wag 
commented, “I’d be choked up too if it cost me that much to ’ make 
a beat.’’ 

. . i 

Edward Barry Roberts, script editor of “Armstrong Circle Theatre," 
has written an invaluable guide to the aspiring television writer, “Tele- 
vision Writing and Selling" (The Writer, Inc.;. $5,75). It’s a firsthand 
description of the needs and desires of a ty script department, along 
with basic (and some of the. more complex) techniques of video script- 
ing. There are sample plays (by top authors) for . live and film, for 
quarter-hour, half-hour and full-hour lengths, there are sections on 
commercials, special effects, camera directions, time and virtually 
every other phase of video the budding scripter must know about. 
Most important,- Roberts tells how to go about selling a script, plus 
rights of the author. There's an excellent introduction by producer 
Ira Avery and A section of fine photographs of studio and sCenic tech- 
niques supplied by CBS-TV. 

Albert K Perki{^, who is managing editor of American Magazine, is 
also a longtime instructor in radio-tv writing at NYU and has been 
publishing an annual script market list for about 10 years. He’s now 
converted this into a commercial venture in collaboration with Linda 
Greenwald. List sells for $2. A supplement by Perkins alone, “Prac- 
tical Hints of TV Writing” also sells for $2. Perkins operates these 
side businesses from a N.Y. postoffice box. 

Second annual National Television News Seminar will be held May 
18-21 in Evanston, 111. Conference, sponsored jointly by. the Radio- 
Television News Directors Assn, and Northwestern U.’s Medill School 
-of Journalism and is restricted to an attendance of 40. This year's 
conference will feature lectures, discussions and demonstrations by 
tv newsmen on such items as departmental budgets, production costs 
and sponsor charges, new programming developments, challenge of 
color to tv news,, setting up a newsfilm operation, tv news law, news 
scheduling and video tape’s future. 

Having concluded a nine-month sizeup of prehistoric and western 
European man through the 17th century, the WCBS-TV “Camera 
Three” begins a new -series Saturday (13) in “The American Experience.’’ 
First subject in the public service skein of the N.Y. flagship of CBS 
will be Abraham Lincoln. v 



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Continued from page 33 


permits unrehearsed spontaneity. 
Other vidpix outfits lease the serv- 
ice. 

Major tv personalities and shows 
that work with the prompter: Ar- 
thur Godfrey, Milton Berle, Red 
Buttons, Red Skelton, Ed Sullivan, 
Sarah Churchill, Ralph Edwards, 
“Omnibus,” “Studio One," Garry 
Moore, “Voice of Firestone" and 
“Colgate Comedy Hour” comics. 

Teleprompter now has offices in 
New York, Hollywood, Chicago, 
Philadelphia and Washington. Thd 
service is being used in Canada, 
Mexico and Cuba, with negotia- 
tions now under way for extending 
the service fo countries abroad. 

Within the past few weeks board 
chairman Irving B. Kahn has ex^ 
panded the setup, bringing in Don 
Riddell as sales manager; Bart 
Swift as assistant sales manager; 
Bill Marsh as manager of the Pub- 
lic Speaking Division, and Herbert 
W. Hobler as general sales man- 
ager of the National Sales Divi- 
sion. 


Chewy Rides on Mutual 

Chevrolet Dealers of America 
has purchased air time on MBS* 
five-a-week “multwnessage” setup, 
starting Feb. 15. Programs, all 
evening stanzas, include “Thfe Ad- 
ventures of the Falcon," “Mickey 
Spillane," “Squad Room," “Official 
Detective” and “Starlight Theatre," 
The shows range from Monday- 
thru-Friday, respectively, and all 
rest in the 8-8:30 p.m. time slot. 

Over 450 stations will carry the 
Chevvy ads for its dealers red 
OK tag used cars and trucks, Agen- 
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Wednesday, February 10, 1954 



TV Converters 


Continued from past It 


converts the NTSC transmissions 
into a field sequential system of 
529-line definition, wKh the result 
that there is ho degradation or loss 
of detail in the color picture. What 
young Benjamin has done, in effect, 
is to reverse the iTCC process. His 
converter accepts the NTSC system 
of color transmission— to a point, 
but uses the rejected CBS field se- 
quential system (stepped up to 525. 
lines) at the receiving end to per- 
mit the use of the disk. The disk, 
it's recalled, was the heart of the 
CBS incompatible color system 
which RCA and others condemned 
as “mechanical" in their battle for 
an “electronic" and compatible 
color system. 

Airtronic prexy Joseph E. Butler, 
said he does not expect the con- 
verter to replace the tri-color 
tube, manufacture of which is just 
gettiiig under way by RCA, CBS- 
Columbia, and a number of other 
companies. But. the converter, 
Butler believes, can provide an eco- 
nomic and reliable interim method 
of obtaining color pending the de- 
velopment of moderately price tri- 
color tube sets arid the broadcasts 
ing of more color programs. 

Significantly, FCC Comr. George 
Sterling had indicated in a 
speech in Boston a week before the 
Airtronic demonstration that a 
•‘gimmick" would be developed fori 
v color at “not too costly in price” 
and that it would “surely meet pub- 
lic acceptance" by those unable to 
afford a new color set. It turned 
out that Sterling was the only per- 
son outside the Airtronic organiza- 
tion who had seen the converter 
prior to last week's, press showing.- 
, Airtronic, an organization which 
does technical Work for the gov- 
ernment, is not equipped to manu- 
facture converters or receivers. But 
Butler said his company will li- 
cense Benjamin’s invention to any 
manufacturer, who wants to make 
it. Immediately following news of 
the converter, he said, the phonefc 
in his office rang continually. A 
number of calls were from manu- 
facturers asking to witness demon- 
strations. Many, he said, came 
from individuals wanting to buy 
one. 

Benjamin is one of a group of 


young engineers employed by Air- 
tronic for their creative talent, He 
started work on the converter less 
than a year ago and had it devel- 
oped to the point where he was 
able to receive the. Orange Bowl 
football colorcast from Miami on 
New Year’s Day. .. 




BARTON 


Latest C&ral Release 

“Don’t Ask Mo Why’’ 
“Away Up There” 

. Dir.: William Morris Agency 


Continued from page 32 


after by other interests, including 
Plough, Inc,, owners of WMPS in 
Memphis, and Helen Alvarez, who 
operates tv’ers in Sari Diego arid 
Tulsa, peal was consummated by 
O’Neil and Dr. George S. Benson, 
president of Harding College, with 
details handled by Richard Crisler, 
Cincinnati station broker. 

Deal would appear to dispell re- 
cant reports that O’Neil personally 
was bowing out of the Mutual- 
General Teleradio setup to devote 
more time to General Tire & Rub- 
ber (of which Teleradio is a whol- 
ly-owned subside interests headed 
up by his father, William O’Neil. 
Tom O’Neil is a v.p. of General 
Tire and of various of the firm’s 
industrial subsidiaries, He’s also 
been active in Teleradio’s . upcom- 
ing vidpix operation, lending cre- 
dence to the belief that his per- 
sonal attention to Mutual would be 
on the wane, Deal for the Memphis 
outlets, however, tends to indicate 
that he’s in broadcasting to stay. 


TV Scoreboard 


UHF Stations authorized. 641 
VHF stations authorized,. 331 
UHF stations authorized* 310 
Stations oil Air... ... . . .> 371 

VHF stations on air , , . . . ... 245 

1 UHF stations on air. , .... 126 

Applications pending > . • • 330 
Applications In hearing,.. 190 
VHF permits caricelled.. '9 
UHF permits cancelled. . . 37 



The General Teleradio division 
of the extensive O’Neil enterprise 
is now coming under the scrutinizai- 
tion of a group of management 
consultants hired by Tom O’Neill 
Sr. to look into his burgeoning 
business interests. R. A. Lasley, 
Inc., will shortly move its experts 
into the Mutual and WOR offices 
for a look around. 

The scheme was instituted last 
year to keep tab on the ever-ex- 
panding interests of General Tire 
& Rubber and to seek improve- 
ment of the administrative funcr- 
tions between its various sub- 
sidiaries, Of which General Tele- 
radio is one. Special attention will 
be given . the sUbsid’s recent 
$1,000,000 entry into the vidpix 
field. 


U0-YV7I% Hu 

55 ContlBVCi from pace 2* 55 

631; a 53.5% increase over the pre- 
vious October; in November, they 
jumped 70% over the previous 
year, with $2,396,203; and Decem- 
ber estimates showed billings of 
$2,460,393, a 92% jump over the 
previous December. • 

January billings total includes 
income from eight new accounts 
and four renewed sponsors. New- 
comers are R. J. Reynolds, for Its 
Sugar Bowl sponsorship; Nestle, 
alternate weeks on “Space Patrol;" 
Emerol Manufacturing, for “Tom- 
my Henrich Show;” Hazel: Bishop, 
for “Dr. I. Q."; Vitamin -Corp. of 
America, for “On Your Wdy’; Bel- 
torie for Friday co-sponsorship of 
John Daly; and Dodge, for alter- 
nate weeks on Danny Thomas and 
full bankrolling of “Break the 
Ban/’ Renewed were Faith for 
Today Inc., for show of the same 
name; Kellogg, for half-sponsorship 
of **Super Circus”; Gruen for 
Walter Winchell co-sponsorship 
arid Bayuk Cigars for “Saturday 
Night Fights." 




Continued from page 29 


the Italian language paper II Pro- 
gresso, upped its Spanish air time 
to eight hours. Late in 1952 the 
station only had three hours daily 
in that tongue. Feb. 1 saw Wrig- 
ley’s Chewing Gum contract for 26 
one-minute spots weekly. Cali- 
fornia Rice Growers Assn, sponsors 
a Puerto Rican comedy transcrip- 
tion import three times weekly, 
While Italian Swiss Colony. Wine 
picks up the tab the other two 
times on the 15-minute offering. 
Knickerbocker Beer handles , a 
news strip via. WHOM also. On 
Saturday night, Coca-Cola has con- 
tracted for a dee jay stanza featur- 
ing RCA Victor’s Tito Rodriguez. 
All in all, the indie carries exten- 
sive advertising in Spanish by 18 
national sponsors. 

The majority of the Latin mar- 
ket is clustered in Harlem, and 
the areas above midtown Manhat- 
tan and there are sporadic settle- 
ments elsewhere in the city. Most 
of them are recent emigres from 
Puerto Rico, some from Mexico, 
and they have not given up their 
cultural habits or language; There 
are few places besides the radio set 
they can turn for information arid 
entertainment. 



Continued from page 29 


Salt Lake City — Henry Boren, 
former merchandising . coordinator 
for KSL and KSL-TV, local CBS 
outlets, has been named fulltime 
merchandising director for the 
video station. 






MPLS. READS A LOT 
MORE, DESPITE TV 

. Minneapolis, Feb. 9. 

Minneapolis public library ab- 
solves tv of charges leveled against 
it that they’re causing the rising 
generation to ignore literature by 
getting it out of the reading habit. 

Figures supplied by the library 
department show that in 1953 Min- 
neapolis readers took home 149,000 
more books than they did the pre- 
vious year when there were only 
two instead of three video’ chan- 
nels here. Significance of the sta- 
tistics is enhanced by the fact that 
the 1952 showing had been the best 
in 10 years. 

Moreover, juvenile readers in- 
creased their proportion of the to- 
tal circulation, borrowing 54.2% of 
the books circulated in 1,953, as 
compared to 52.3% the previous 
year. 

Chi Likes Its Late-Nite 
TV Shows od Live Basis 

Chicago, Feb. 10 

On the basis of the success of 
its two current late night live 
shows, WNBQ, the Chi NBC-TV 
flag, is casting about for other for- 
real offerings to do away as much 
as possible with the 11 p.m, feature 
films; Already definitely logged in 
for the spring , is a repeat on the 
remotes from the MayWood harn- 
ess race track, tentatively set for 
Thursday nights, and a second 
night of bowling telecasts planned 
for next season. 

There’s a possibility, too, for a 
second 11 o’clock WNBQ spread for 
deejay Howard Mjller, whose pres- 
ent Friday night two-hour show is 
knocking off top ratings. The latest 
ARB. had Miller getting a 17.1 the 
first quarter-hour and holding a 
12.5 as late as 12:30 a,m. That last 
figure looms even bigger when com- 
pared to the 14.2 sets in use at 
that time slot; 


Barber, who was as iriuch a Brook- 
lyn fixture as . Ebbets Field, left 
that team for reasons of health, 
Rather than travel out of town 
with the Bums he took up with 
the Yankees to do their pre-and- 
post home game intervals via 
WINS and WPIX, but it was not 
expected that he would handle any 
of the Yankee play-by-play, .. and 
now the latest report is he will to 
some extent; Jim Woods was 
called up^from the bush leagues 
last year'" to help regular Mel, 
Allen do the Yank reports. This' 
coverage is for Ballantine Beer 
and White Owl cigars, 

Heaviest shifting has come from 
the Giants come;. Ernie Harwell 
was evicted and goes to Baltimore 
this year to cover the Orioles. Bob 
Delaney was brought in from the 
Boston Red Sox to replace him, 
and agency for Chesterfield spon- 
sor, Cunningham & Walsh, has 
given the Beantown organization a 
substitute for Delaney. Giants are 
heard and seen on WMCA and 
WPIX respectively. 



Fred Coe’s Mnsical, 

Studio 1 ‘Side Street’ 

enda 

Two of the leading hour-lone 
vidramatic series have come up 
with some interesting facets for 
their schedules in the next few 
weeks. Fred Coe's \ “Television 
Playhouse” on NBC Will essay the 
musical form for the first time 
with N, Richard Nash, of CoeV 
scripting stable (he’s one of the 
six in the producer’s Playwrights 
*54 setup), doing the book. Com- 
poser arid lyricist are not yet set 
for, this early April stanza. 

“Studio One" also is “firsting” l n 
Nathanial Benchley’s conversion to 
tv via "Side Street," based on his 
New .Yorker stories and the recent 
Broadway play “The Frogs of 
Spring.." It’s a March 1 stanza on 
CBS with Peter Lind Hayes and 
Mary Healy starring. Hayes, inci- 
dentally, will actually start his 
extra-added chores the week of 
Feb, 22 under his new Columbia 
pact which gives jhim Arthur God- 
frey pinchhitter status plus his own 
show. With Godfrey vacationing, 
Hayes will step into the ayem stan- 
zas and will be joined by Miss 
Healy on "AG & Friends" (Garry 
Moore taking "Talent Scouts”). 

Next Monday’s. (15) "Studio One’’ 
will debut novelist Gore Vidal’s 
"Dark Possession." Vidal is writing 
another play for the Westinghouse 
show which will get an April ex- 
posure. 

Judy Holliday’s appearance on 
"TV Playhouse" (Goodyear) next 
Sunday (14) will be in a dramatic 
role specially written for the film 
star by David Shaw; who has set 
her iri a Las Vegas background 

under tag of "The Huntress.” 

■ ■ t ■ ' ' ' ■ " " ' ' •' 

Ruth Crane's Citation 

Washington, Feb. 9. 

Ruth Crane, director of Women’s 
Activities for WMAL-ABC, radio 
and tv, has copped the Zenith Tele- 
vision Award for ’53, according to 
an announcement made by the Chi- 
cago company. 

Miss Crane, station’s top femme 
personality, received award for the 
public service and community in- 
terest on her "Modern Woman” tv 
show. 



Continued from pace 28 


WGAL 

AM TV FM 


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Lancaster, Pa. 

Of market prosperity . . . loyal 
viewing audience. Write for 
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MEEKER 


adaptation of Sylvia (“Fifth Sea- 
son’’) Reagan’s “Mornjng Star,” 
scheduled for March 2, On the 
still-tentative slate are Richard 
Widmark and Montgomery Clift or 
Van Heflin for “The Last Notch," 
by Frank G. Gilroy, slated to air 
March 30. 

Other properties set by the 
Guild for the tv’er are John P, 
Marquand’s “Haven’s End," adapt- 
ed by David Davidson (who did the 
premiere show original, “P.O.W."), 
set- for April 13; and Robert Wal- 
sten’s adaptation of William Dean 
Howells’ “The Laphams of Boston," 
slated for June. 22. Casts haven’t 
been aet on these. 


' S‘i..n»on 

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Cleve. Heart Fund Telecast. 

Cleveland, Feb. 9. 

Aji-star cast will do Heart Fund 
telecast (13) with WNBK, WEWS 
and WXEL carrying' starting at 
midnight. 

Co-chairman Flo Roth, WJW 
flack, arid Milt Widder, Cleveland 
Press columnist, have lined up 
Henry Morgan, Charlie Applewhite 
as emcees, and guestars Mel Tor* 
me, The Lancers, Artie Shaw. 
Chris Martin, Henry Levine, Buddy 
Greco, Teddi King & Ellie Frankel 
trio, A1 Ru§s trio, etc. 

Phoenix— Howard Stalnaker, as- 
sistant to the radio and television 
director of the Meredith Publish- 
ing Co., Des Moines, has been 
named commercial manager of 
KPHO-AM and TV (ABC network) 
Phoenix. His duties Will include 
sales and programming. Richard 
Rawls is general manager of the 
PhPf piVAUttop, ... 


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Wednesday, February 10, 1954 



WHO SHOT PRES. EISENHOWER?? 


WE DID 


...ADTFC 

So he could be seen by you on the 


on the screen of your motion 

s Lincoln Day Address 

: • .* 

a excerpt from Variety, Feb. 3:) 



Wednesday. February 3, 1954 


been made against ADTFC before 


but they hbve never succeeded 


Robert Montgomery’s role in White House 
affairs has sprouted a hassle concerning news- 
reels and labor unions. It stems from an 8V6-' 
minute short the actor made for President Ei- 
senhower which was designed for private show- 
ings at Republican Party dinners on Lincoln 
Day (12) and publicly at theatres via the' Teels. 

In lensing the short, Montgomery employed 
a C.I.O. crew and this doesn’t sit well with 
International Alliance of Theatrical & Stage 
Employees (A.F. of L). As a result, I A is re- 
fusing to handle the film, or any part of it, for 
insertion in upcoming issues of the reels. 

The pic was done in 35m (so the reels could 
use it) and 16m prints are being supplied the 
Republican get-togethers around the country. It 
presents Eisenhower delivering a special Lincoln 
Day message. Each Rep unit will pay for its 
print, to cover costs. 

. Unless the differences with I A are resolved, 
it appears that the union will be barring the 
President from theatre screens. A solution is 
being sought, though, with a N.Y. I A rep to call 
on Montgomery at his office in the executive 
wing of the White House today (Wed.). The 
producer-director -star, incidentally, seems to 
spend more time at the Presidential residence 
than in N.Y. where he produces his weekly 
program for NBC-TV. 


THEREFORE, 


WE URGE YOU TO ATTEND IKE S LINCOLN DAY 
ADDRESS AT YOUR LOCAL THEATRE 


BY THE WAY 


fpr those of you who don't know u$, ADTFC is and 
means the Association of Documentary and' Tele- 
vision Film Craftsman. ADTFC is an affiliate of 
CIO, and its jurisdiction covers all phases of film 


ion. 


We 


active since 1945. 


ADTFC IS 100% UNION ! 


We are a vertical organization containing all cate- 
gories in film production including: Cameramen, 
Soundmen, Electricians, Unit Managers, Props, Grips, 


Carpenters, Painters, Scenic Designers, Puppet Tech- 
nicians, Writers, Editors, Make-up Artists; Etc. 


ONE TELEPHONE CALL WILL GET THE PRODUCER A COMPLETE CREW 

Wage scales in accordance with the highest industry standards 
Efficient well trained crews • Law initiation fees 

* Abreast of all the latest technological developments • Opportunities for advancement 

• Young and aggressive membership • Constant organizing program 

• Full equality regardless of sex, race or religion • Apprentice category 


THE ADFTC IS WILLING TO CONTINUE WORKING WITH OTHER EXISTING FILM UNIONS AND ORGANIZATIONS 
PROVIDING THAT NO UNION OR ORGANIZATION ATTEMPTS TO LIMIT OR DESTROY OUR UNION. 

BELOW IS A PARTIAL LIST OF PRODUCTIONS WHICH ADTFC MEMBERS HAVE WORKED ON 


AWARD WINNING FILMS 

LOUISIANA STORY (Voted one of ten best films ever produced) 

THE QUIET ONE (Critics 1 prize at Venice Festival, Etc.) 

FIRST STEPS (Academy Award Winner) 

ABSTRACT IN CONCRETE (First Prize. Venice Festival) 

DREAMS THAT MONEY CAN BUY (Venice Film Festival) 

SHORTS AND 

SmaH Town Editor, State Dept.; Earthquake in Ecuador, United Nations; Ready for Action, United 
States Army Paratroopers; Air Science in Action, U. S. Air Force; Basic Air Gunnery, U. S. Navy; 
Target Recruit, National Guard; Inside Story, Eastman Kodak:. Co.; - The Return, Documentary . on . 
Israel; Works of Colder; Wings to the World, Protestant Film Commission; The Troupe Grows, 
Boy Scouts of America; Destination, The Future, Girl Scouts of America; The Life of Albert 
Schweitzer; Appalachian Trail, State Dept.; Iran, State Dept.; Haiti, Warher-Pathe; Several Health 
Shorts, . Squibbs; Stomach Cancer, American Cancer Society; Story of ACTH, Arniour Labs; Navy 


SHIPBUILDERS OF ESSEX (Venice Film Festival) 

ALL MY BABIES 

and many more mentioned elsewhere on this page. 

FEATURES 

SON OF THE NORTH — CRANE'S CAFE — FAITHFUL* SONS 
FEATURETTES 

Film, U. S. Navy; Unsuspected, National Tuberculosis Assn.; How the German’s Live, U. S. Signal 
Corp.; Trailer 201; United Nations Screen Magazine, U. N.; Handicrafts of North Carolina, State 
Dept.; A Close Shave, Remington Rand; Life Can Be Portable, Underwood Typewriter Corp.; 
Painting the Town, Sarpofin Paint Corp.; The Edison Phone Story, Thomas A. Edispn Co.; Zipper 
Machinery, Anchor Slide Corp.; RX Movie, Cancer Research; U. S, Kedettes, U. S. Rubber; Out 
of the North, Documentary; Human Beginnings, Documentary; Pennsylvania R. R.; Psychotherapy 
of a Child; Reynolds . Aluminum. 


TV COMMERCIALS 

Ford, Bulova Watch Co., Camel Cigarettes, -Lincoln, Chesterfield, Chrysler, General Motors, Rinso, 
Rheingold, Palmolive, Medo Watches, Pepsi-Cola. Parliament Cigarettes, Lucky Strike, N.B.C. Station 
Breaks, National City Bank of New York, Premier Foods, General Electric, W?stinghouse, Boy Scouts 
of America, Dumont, Westclox, Philip Morris, Ruppert, RCA, Borden s, B.atz, Quaker Oats, Maxwell 
House, Mobile Gas, Kaiser-Frazer. 


TV FEATURES 

CBS T.V. News, Somerset Maughan Show, One Man’s Family, Gay- 
lord Hauser Programs, Poor Charlie, Subway (Ford T.V. Theatre), 
On Stage with. Monty Woolley,. Film . Sequences of Shew of Shows. 
Colgate Comedy Hour, Junior Science, Bobo The Hobo. 


ASSOCIATION OF DOCUMENTARY AND TELEVISION FILM CRAFTSMEN 
AN AFFILIATE OF CONGRESS OF INDUSTRIAL ORGANIZATIONS— 

CANADIAN CONGRESS OF LABOR 
NEW TORK OFFICE: 48 W. 48W STREET— JU 2-5171 






Wednesday, ' Febnuiy 10, 1054 




New York ; 

Notice those ‘‘live from -N.Y.’’ 
tags on NBC shows? . . . Martin 
Manulis and Peggy Wood. the. re- 
spective Feb. 17 and 24 'guests at 
Ezra Stone’s; American Theatre 
Wing tv acting class* others re- 
cently having been Eleanor KIL- 
gatlan, Tad Mosel, %eo Morgan, 
Burt Shevelove •• and Elizabeth 
Mears . . Earl Rettig gets NBC vee- 
pee stripes and only a short time 
after transferring to here from the 
Cqast. He’s the web’s 24th veep . . 
Ne>v office of up^oming^'Home” is 
at the Dauphin. Hotel, convenient 
to the: W. 67th St. studio . . Mar- 
garet Arlen show, WCBS-TV morn- 
ing stanza, gets Zenith Corp.’s 1953 
tv award for “excellence in local 
programming.*' 

Al Hartman resigned as an ac- 
couht exec at’ Headley-Reed tv 
station repS 'to join a mhjor film 
studio, name of which, won’t l be 
disclosed till after a- short Bermuda 
vacation . . . Ruth' Gilbert, formerly 
production assistant on . ABC-TV’s 
“Tootsie ■ . Hippodrome,” ; joined 
Stark-Layton Productions as. ex- 
ecutive assistant tp Jerry Laytpn 
... Veteran NEA .feature writer 
Dick Kleiner starting a new show 
biz column for the. news service, 
with emphasis on video. 

Gene McHugh, - night, managing 
editor of the N.Y. Daily IJews, was 
guest Monday (B) on Columbia U.’s 
“News-O-Rama” via WPIX where, 
he aired his views on the /‘press 
gag” resolution now pehding be- 
fore the State Bar Assn. . Tony 
Ford exits the Walt Framer offices 
on' Feb; 15 to join' Gerry : Gross and 
Normah Baer Productions as their 
sales chief. He is - now exec pro- 
'dueer and sales manager- for 
Framer . . .WABD's .Claire Mann 
snared Ironware : Ho.siery for her 
video stanza . . Jan Murray, emcee 
of “Dollar a Second;”' leaves for 
shortie at Miami Beach after his 
program of Feb. 14 . Bob Alda 
made his last appearance on “Pan- 
tomime Quiz” last night (Tues.) be- 
fore heading for Europe td make 
'tv films for the next six months . . 
Johnnie Ray will sub for Kathryn 
Murray on the “Arthur Murray TV 
Show’’ Feb. 15, He’llr give $2,500 
of his salary to the March of Dimes 
and a like sum to his Hard Of Hear- 
ing Foundation . Dennis James 
leaves for Florida and. a 10-day 
respite following Saturday’s (13) 
“Two for. the MOney” stanza.^.: . ! 

Dwight Wefst will be starring 6n 
WOR-TV’s “The Doll’s House” .the 
week of Feb.\.15 ;> -V . JuveVthesp 
Richard Trask doihg a “Mama” 
CBS-TV repeat, • Also 'into CBS- 
TV’s new “‘Secret Storm” sdaper. 


Marion Nobel into , “Colonel 
Flack” on DuMont Saturday (13) 

. . . Michael Drey fuss, .understudy- 
in g in “Seven Year Itch” on. Broad- 
way, into “Robert Montgomery 
Presents” Monday (15) . . . Grant 
Sullivan subbing in the male lead 
of “Search for Tomorrow” three 
days this week Harold J. Stone 
into a kine of “Twenty-first Pre- 
cinct” being shot at CBS today 
(Wed.). • •:■:;• , 


luloid he is not yet certain 
whether the O'Neil group intends 
to sell it to a national sponsor or 
syndicate it. If syndicated- it will 
unquestionably pe handled through 
one of the Established', houses, 
since the plana fpr the company’s 
own distribution setup .are well; 
in the distta|iod. ^ 

Another big: item - that : will be 
pushed in, the Hear futdre is the 
“Gangbuster^ show Which O’Neil 
purchased fr om • Lord. - : . . 


‘Strike It Rich’ 

Continued from page. 28 


representatives) were summoned 
before the authorities to explain. 
Though millions of dollars were 
contributed by listeners-viewers to 
a special fund — no account has al- 
legedly been kept. No receipts, sent 
donors, .no ope seems to . ’know 
where the money went, etp, City 
editors can get the rest of it from 
the Dept. of Welfare.” 

That did it. McCarthy then is- 
sued his license ukase. But ■ Fram- 
er’s office says it has been very 
meticuloys about keeping an ac- 
count of the “Heart Fund.” The 
collections; to. Dec. . 31 » 1953, 

amounted to some $42,000, with 
$4,099 ^contributed from April 
1951 (when show teed off), to the 
end of that year; $14,47,5 in 1952, 
and $23,835 last year. As of Dec. 
31, there was an undistributed 
kitty of $1,281.83 which went over 
to . the ; current year’s accounts. 
There are riq administrative - ex- 
penses, according to! Framer, and 
the account books. sho.w the . name 
of every : contributor in , amounts 
from 25c up. The books are open 
but . have, not , yet been examined 
•by the Welfare -Dept. 

Emcee Warren Hall .said on last 
Wednesday's program that the 
Heart Fund “was started by you 
folks as a spontaneous gesture and 
we have never asked for any con- 
tributions whatever.” 

Meantime, interested parties are 
awaiting the March issue of Pag- 
eant mag in which McCarthy has 
an “as- told to” . article attacking 
'the' “misery”, shows. > 


55. €ontiiiued ; from pate 27 as 

said. 'Miss Crawford; who- will, con- 
trol and. own the Negatives .after 
the Art t rim, .amplified -that if she 
has a new motion picture due at 
time when - the -vidpix series 
would normally be re-run, she’ll 
mere! y withhold' the • re-runs from 
the market until such time that her 
elepix will not be iri the secondary 
area the same time her first run 
pic is. 

The star says her chief reason 
for entering vidpix is that it will 
assure her permanent annuities. 
1 began to earn- top money only 
after the big taxes came in, and 
the Government last . year took 
83% of my ? earnings. ’I This year* 
it will be more, and as a result I 
have barely enough left for living 
expenses,” she contends. . But that 
re-run coin ' via yidpix provides a 
form of income spread ouf over 
the; years, instead of the big bite 
per. annum, abreak for anyone in 
that ‘big tax class, $he points out. 




COLGATE COMEDY HOUR 

. , • • t 

Sundays 

Mot.i William Morris Agtncy 


OPTICAL EFFECTS 
For KLING STUDIOS 
Chicago and Hollywood 
by RAY MERCER A CO. 

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Sand for fra • Optical Efforts Chart 


Don’t Blame TV 


Contiaupd from pact 1 



552 Continued from page 2S .ssa 

“Hopalong Cassidy,” also WNBT 
with 17.6 against non-network com 
petition. Third place is held by “ 
Led Three Lives,” agaiifftVNBT 
scoring a 17.1 against the' formid 
able opposition of “What^s My 
Line?” on WCBS-TV with a 36.4. 

Other- Gotham toppers are “Vic- 
tory at Sea” 16.3 (WNBT); “Amos 
& Andy” 14.3 (WCBS-TV); “Ori- 
ent Express” 13.5 t WCBS-TV); 
“Ba'dgd 714,” 13.2 (WOR-TV); 

“Favorite Story” 13.2 (WNBT); 
“Cisco Kid” 11.7 (WNBT); “Ramar 
of the Jungle” 9,9 (WPIX). All 
ARB ratings 

' Omaha — “Cisco Kid” 26.0; 
“Wild Bill Hickok” 22.5; “City 
Detective” 20.5. All on WQW-XV. 


tteatter 


Continued from page 27 


Vidpix unit will remain a subsidi- 
ary outfit. Eventually' General 
Teleradio hopes to do its own dis- 
tribution on many of its shows, but 
Rice has explained that when the 
Heatter stanza is cut on the ceJ- 


WAAT, Newark, N.* J., radio sta- 
tion, has been having difficulty 
competing for the Negro . market 
against some of the more powerful 
metropolitan area AM outlets, so 
owner, Bremer Broadcasting, has 
brought the other half of the cor- 
porate operation, WATV (tv) in 
this Jersey town, into play in order 
to . offer prospective sponsors a 
more attractive buy. Last week a 
weekly variety stanza' called “Club 
Caravan,” pitched to. the newly- 
discovered wealth in that special- 
ized market, began video opera 
tion, : the object apparently being 
to offer Bremer as the only outfit 
which tail offer both radio and 
Video to’ that group. 

Show, a half-hour offering, is 
among the first, in Jtfew York to 
attempt to reach the Negro popu- 
lace through' the visual medium. 
WOR-TV, General Teleradio sta- 
tion, recently dropped a dramatic 
vehicle, “Harlem’ Detective” geared 
for them, but there haven’t been 
many other shows of that genre. 

Bill Cook, Negro d, j M who has 
done a regular stint on WAAT for 
the last , six .years acts as emcee of 
the new program, Bremer has 
made an outlay' for a handful of 
other colored performers, includ- 
ing singer Roy ’ Hamilton, the 
Larks (which When' it switched 
from religioso 1 melodies to pops 
changed its name from Golden 
Gate Quartet), thrush Florence 
Wright and a four-piece combo un- 
der Billy Ford. 

Three years ago, WATV tried a 
similar show with Cook, but the 
video market wasn’t as well devel- 
oped as it is now. 


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Greensboro, N. C., Feb. 9. 

South Carolina radio and televi- 
sion broadcasters jheld a two-day 
convention at Clemson, S. C., and. 
elected Wallace Martin of WMSC, 
Columbia, president; Martin suc- 
ceeds Walter Brown of WORD, 
Spartanburg. 

Frank Best of WDIX, Orange- 
burg, was elected vice president. 
Dudley Saumineg of WIS, Colum- 
bia, and Ed Osborn, WBCU, Union, 
were named directors to succeed 
Joseph Martin, WDSC, Dillon, and 
Milton Scarboro, WLCM, Lancas- 
ter. 


worthy of a championship name, 
and hence don’t draw wide public 
attention, the same does not hold 
true for the diamondeers. The lat- 
ter sport only had a short relapse 
brought on chiefly during the war 
years when most of the best mate- 
rial was in uniform- fr regained 
its major stature in the first year 
after World War II. Yet only last 
week both Ford, C, Frick, baseball 
commissatY and minor league chief- 
tain, George M. Trautman fell upon 
broadcasters as bloodsuckers, men 
who were growing “fat on the life 
blood of another.” 

Trautman pointed accurately, it 
.appears, to a pattern that has been 
manifested wherever radio and/or 
video sportscasts moved into a 
minor league area— the media 
killed 22 minor leagues, the train- 
ing- grounds for the bigtime, and, 
moreover, minor league club own- 
ers have lost the revenue that once 
came from national advertisers who 
paid for coverage of minor league 
games and who now "prefer to stick 
to offering the bigtime stuff alone. 

National basketball is a new- 
comer to Web tv. - There’s no doubt-) 
that it has a tremendous home au- 
dience. A ,onoe-a-week . audience 
of 7,500,000 fans in a 60-station 
market watch the court game.; This 
figure is based on on. Nielseri; rat-, 
ings of four encounters covered .by 
DuMont from Dec. J26 of last year 
through Jan. 9. It has been. evi- 
denced that at-court attendance is 
exceptionally high to boot, In- 
cidentally, pro football has ,bene- 
fitted in the same fashion. The,; last 
was never more popular in the 
home arid - at the field' . than last 
season. 

Grid Gate Up ^ 

College football was still way 
up in attendance at the ’53 count, 
and college basketball way, do.wn, 
Court games arranged by the col- 
leges today are a faded gray com- 
pared to shades of ’46-49 and ’50 
when great names , still trod .the 
hardwood. In these instances, for 
that matter in all cases with the 
probable exception of baseball 
which is hard to trace, no amount 
of , broadcast-telecast coverage 
made a measurable . dent either 
way on gate coin, Only the quality 
of performance has been a decid- 
ing factor. College football still 
has the color, punch and moving 
competition of old. College basket- 
ball, in the wake of scandals and 
poorer quality playing, plus the 
new competition from the more 
perfect pro game; has wilted some- 
what. 

Madison Square Garden bosses 
have manifested a fear concerning 
tv coverage of many of its sports 
events this last year. Why? Just 
think of the type sports to be seen 
there. College basketball with two 
of the teams on each bill always 
from New York where the schools 
no longer can boast names like 
Boykoff, McGuire and the rest, 
and where the Garden can only 
occasionally catch a worthy out- 
of-town opponent for its second- 
raters. Claims have been made 
that WPIX, Gotham tv indie, jpould 
once again have returned to the 
halls on 50th St., but the station 
preferred paying less fo cover 
games by no name schools with 
athletes at least equal in ability to 
those* of NYU, St. Johns (Gar- 
den regulars). The Garden has 
been charged with demanding ex- 
horbitant nuts from the telecasters 
—and for what? 

Boxing’s in the same boat at the 
Garden. Nothing to offer, -and the 
officials there know that, so nat- 
urally they fear coverage by the 
media. Few fans want to pay for 
low-grade material when they can 
casually turn it on and off for free 
from the confines of the living 
room. 


czars of the game and the execs at 
the networks about bow much 
broadcasting of major league' games 
should be done to minor* league 
districts/ For the . very srime rea- 
son here that . individual sports 
thrive or thresh elsewhere, no one 
can expect low quality to draw 
against better ■ standards of the 
game, minor leagues against 
majors . } . 

Radio and television, the inno- 
cent, have been damned, but these 
media, in a great sense,: are merely 
offering good , news coverage when 
they move into a ballpark, stadium 
or colliseum and bring, the event 
4o the home. ' Sports, whatever 
they may be, can be expected to 
live or die by their own merits. 


Billy Rose 

Continued from page 1 1 


Times sent staffer .Joseph. P. Shap- 
ley, however,, and he did . a com- 
binatibn' “report’'’ knd evaluation; 
the bthefr. 'j^hde'ts' stayed away until 
past JWpnday.) , ’ ' ! 

Monday’s midnighter consisted 
of .Ilka Chase, Richard Rodgers and 
Charles Boyer, with Ben Grauer 
emceejng; all week. Last night's 
talent consisted of Milton . Heile, 
Paul Lukas, Ruth and Augustus 
.Goptz (adaptors pf the Gide novel), 
and Justin O’Briern . an authority 
on Gide. Billed, for jtojnight (Wed.) 
are Dave Garroway : and Arlene 
Frhncis, Herald ’ Tribune 1 ; radio-tv 
■columnist John Crosby, arid' Post 
pillarist Max LGrner. Tomorrow’s 
ivory is headed by George Jessel, 
Cornelia \Otis Skinner, Otto Prem- 
inger and ' Dr; Rose Franzblaii, 
health columnist of the Post, The 
Friday troupe. Was to be set. Jim 
Elson Is producing arid the locale 
is a simulated Oak Room of the 
Plaza Hotel 


San Dlego^-Jnlian M. Kaufman 
resigned as commercial manager at 
KPHO-TV in Phoenix to take over 
as general manager of XETV, the 
TiajuanarSan Diego Mexican tv-er. 
Before joining KPHO-TV in 1930, 
he was ^ari account exec with ABC 
San FianciscOii ^ w I 


Pro basketball and baseball don’t 
have to fear. They’re good stand- 
ing alone. Crowds will go to see 
them play, and video has only 

helped accentuate^ healthy situa- 
tion. ' 

The enigma is baseball on the 
pro level. Accusations by Frick & 
Co. are not entirely unfounded. 
V iflco, has stifled minor league at- 
tendance and revenue. .Still it has 
not hurt the majors to ahy meas- 
urable degree, but the satchmos, 
trying to be consistent in their ob- 
jections, make no such ready ad- 
mission. Allowing that the game 
loses at the gate slightly, broad- 
cast rights bring the coin, 'Of why 
else would the clubs permit it? 
Spme equitable arrangement will 

jinquestionably her awteediat bjrthe 


Pittsburgh- — Harris Breth, Sun- 
Telegraph’s hunting and .fishing 
expert who does radio' (KDKA) 
and tv (WDTV) radio programs 
here for Duquesne Brewing Co., is 
being boomed by Clearfield Coun- 
ty Democrats for a high but still 
unannounced place On the Demo- 
cratic State; ticket this year in the 
spring primaries. 


at the 


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Wcdncadar) Fcbralry 10, 1954 




49 



James C/ Petrillo, American 
Federation of Musicians prexy, is 
now the key to the outcome of the 
current hassle between the musi- 
c ans union' and the radio-tv webs 
over terms of a new pick Negotia- 
tions broke down temporarily last 
week in New York, where Local 
802 prexy Al Manuti is carrying 
the ball in the bargaining pro- 
cedure, but the networks have in- 
dicated that they'll call another 
session sometime later this week 
before the Feb. 15 expiration date 
of the current pact. $ 

Petrillo is due back today (Wed.) 
from Miami, where he inked a new 
pact with the major film compa- 
nies and will Intervene actively In 
the talks -with the broadcasters. 
The webs are counting on Petrillo. 
to settle the outstanding differ- 
ences in an amicable way, while 
Local 802 execs are 'confident that 
Petrillo Will back then* down the 
line on their demands. _ . 

Possibility of a walkout against 
the webs in N.Y. grew in the wake 
of the deadlock and an affirmative 
strike vote taken by.' Local 802‘s 
membership last week. There is, 
however, plenty of ' maneuvering 
space open for a settlement*, and 
it was pointed out that the recent 
AFM negotiations with the major 
disk companies also ‘‘broke down 
temporarily’’ before the final ink- 
ing. ' : , . 

Tempers Flaring 

Local 802 tempers are flaring 
because of the networks’ Insistence 
that the quota system for staff mu- 
sicians be dropped as a prelim- 
inary to further 1 talks. -In addition, 
the networks have given- a flat ! 'no” 
to Local ,802’s demand for live 
music for live Shows. • 

Local 802 'execs have indicated 
that if they can get d ■ favorable 
deal on the live musjc demand, 
they would be open to compromise 
on the quota setup: : The union 
chieftains, however, ate not will- 
ing to give up the qiiota without 
anything in hand and, at’ the mo- 
ment, they have failed to extract 
a single concession from the broad- 
casters. 

The. networks are banking on the 
(Continued on page 58) 


Somethin 9 Suspicious 

' Epic Records, Columbia Re- 
cords’ subsid, is searching for 
a character named Sonfcthin’ 
Smith fOr a big promotion. Ac- 
cording to the advance build- 
up, Smith walked into the 
office of Epic’s a&r man, Marv 
Holtzman, tossed a hot au- 
dition disk. on his desk and 
then disappeared after sign- 
ing an Epic pact. 

Smith did manage to make 
a couple of sides which will 
be released shortly. \ 



Sid Feller is ankling his post as 
Capitol Records pcip artists & rep* 
ertoire chief in. the east at- end of 
this mouth. He’ll stay on in thie 
disk biz, however, as a freelance 
arranger-conductor. 

Alan Livingston, Cap v.p. and 
a&r topper headquartering on the 
Coast, left for home last week 
without setting a replacement. It’s 
expected that Livingston will fill 
the vacapcy in the near future. Ma- 
jor a&r decisions will continue to 
emanate from . the Coast head- 
quarters. 

Feller took pver the a&r spot 
in Gotham about a year ago W'hen 
Dave Cavaniaugh was shifted to the 
Coast office in the capacity of mu- 
sical director. Feller had been with 
the label three years assisting Cav- 
anaugh and Dick Jones, a&r topper 
in N. Y. Feller is winding up his 
Cap tenure prepping a new Benny 
Goodman album. Goodman moved 
to Cap from Columbia a couple of 
months ago. 


Wiring NX,. LA. Locals As 
Backing in Network Tiff 

The American Guild .of -Variety 
Artists has made a bid to secure 
rank and file support from the 
American Federation of Musicians, 
AGVA, tiffing With the • AFM on 
the jurisdiction of acts that play 
a musical instrument' during- their 
turn, has sent a wire to : the New 
York and Los Angeles locals -of 
the AFM assuring them * of • their 
support in their , current* hassle 
with the networks. No -wire • was. 
sent to Chicago where ^AFM prexy 
James C. Petrillo heads the local. 

Wire to the Coast union stated, 
“According to press reports* your 
local may be involved -in a- network 
strike. AGVA offers you its sup* 
port. We sympathize with you in 
your desires to encourage the use 
of live music wherever possible, 
and regret that in some - instances 
in the variety field, our- members 
are forced to use recorded accom- 
paniment due to circumstances 
(Continued on page 58) • 

2 Music Firms Launched 



Ken Greengrass has • -launched 
two new music firms with- pub top- 
per Larry Spier. Firms havo been 
Iabelled\ G. fc, G. Music- and For- 
tune Music. '"Spier will continue to 
operate his own pubbery under his 
name. 

_ Greengrass, . who manages Coral 
Records chirp Eydie Gorme, has 
taken over the management -chores 
for pianist Jackie Lee.- r Coral re- 
cently pacted Lee. 

CONNELLY TO SAIL 

. Keg Connelly, head -of Campbell- 
Connelly Music in England,- sails* 
home next Friday (18) -on the 
Qn*en Elizabeth. . . . . 

• i < T onnell y arrived iri New York 
week after a trip to Nassau in 


NEW $5,0000,000 DISK 
CO. INTO JAP HELD 

■ J Tokyo, Feb. 2. 

New record company here is ex- 
pected to cause quite a splash in 
disk circles. The new company, 
Nippon Gramophone Co,, is capital- 
ized at approximately $5,000,000 
and backed by the giant Toshiba 
Electric . Co. It will press ; and dis- 
tribute Angel and British Victor 
(HMV) records. ... 

The company likely to feel the 
new (competition most is Japan Vic- 
tor, which was recently taken over 
by another large electric firm, 
Matsuchita Denki. 

NGC operations are expected to 
begin this month and a large new 
plant will be completed in Kaw- 
asaki, between Tokyo and Yoko- 
hama, in the fall. 




X ** '•Ns 



LAWRENCE, WELK 


.and bio 
CHAMPAGNE MUSIC 
128th Conaaeutiva Week, Aragon 
Ballroom, Santa Monica, Calif. 

Newest Coral Record- Album 
PICK A* POLKA * 
Recently Released 
NIMBLE FINGERS Album 




to 




The nation’s jukebox operators 
have put the pending McCarran 
bill (S. 11061 at the top of the 
agenda of their npdoming three- 
day convention in Chicago, March 
8-10. The juke ops are aiming to 
block passage of the McCarran 
amendment to the Copyright Act,, 
which ! would remove the present 
royalty exemption, from coin ma- 
chines. 

At the present time, the bill has 
not been reported out of a sub- 
committee of the Senate Judiciary 
Committee, whose decision will be 
crucial to the fate of the proposed 
amendment. The juke ops would 
like to see. the bill killed in com- 
mittee while the songwriter and 
publishers organizations, support- 
ing the bill, are confident they 
can pass the McCarran bill if it; 
gets to the floor. 

It’s known that the juke ops are 
shelling out to finance the fight 
against' the McCarran legislation. 
They claim it would break them, 
since their margin of profit is now 
alleged to be at an irreducible 
minimum. At Sepate hearings last 
fall, ^he juke ops claimed that they 
were Already supporting the song- 
writers by buying records. 

The hill’s protagonists, headed 
(Continued on page 56) 


Of Band Woes on Coast, 
This Bus ( t ) Was the Most 

Los Angeles, Feb. 9. 

Suit *over a busted bus was filed 
in Superior Court by Gene Nor- 
man, deejay-jazz impresario, who 
demands $4,834 from the Crown 
Body and Sign Coach Corp. 

On a trip with a band to Seattle, 
Norman declares, the bus' broke 
down at Long View, Wash., with 
the following costs: $2,363 to get 
it working again; $1,221 to hire a 
plane and another bus to fill the 
date; $200 to rent instruments; 
$800 in lost profits on programs 
that were left behind and $250 to 
pay the driver for hanging around 
while the bus was fixed. Original 
cost of the bus, purchased last 
October, was $3,829. 


Fox to Coast for Disker 
Royalty, Vidpix Talks 

Harry' Fox, publishers’ agent and 
trustee, planed to Hollywood last 
weekend for talks with Coast disk- 
evies about their royalty payments. 
He . also plans to Set deals with 
vidpix . producers for the use- of 
musie in their productions. Since 
his -last trip westwards, numerous 
new telepix outfits have' entered 
the market. 

, Fox Will be back in Nevf'York 
I endj of t hits' months ■ * i- » >'*( ‘ " 1 


Field Day for Consiuners in Disk 
Price War; Battle Ends March 1 


What’* HU Wife Think? 

Omaha, Feb. 9. 

Frank Serpan, first oboist 
and soloist with the Omaha 
Symphony, is a versatile guy. 

.He’s a postal inspector by 
day; also plays for the Lincoln 
(Neb.) Symphony, and spends 
mapy evenings as a sax side- 
sman for a local jazz combo. 



BOSTON POPS SOCK 9C 
IN SRO DATE AT TROY 

Troy, N.Y., Feb. 8. 

The Boston Pops Orchestra, 
drawing a standee audience of 
5.400 in the R.P.I. Field House last 
Tuesday (3), grossed over $9,000, 
at $3.50 top. It’s believed to be the 
largest crowd drawn to a concert 
in the five years of the col lege 
arena’s operation, , and certainly 
the first time standing room was 
sold. The Arthur Fiedler-conduc- 
ted unit hit a boxoffice figure sur- 
passed only by the Boston Sym- 
phony Orchestra at the House’s 
opening in 1949. Then the scale 
was higher. 

Locale date was second of todr, 
opening being in- Springfield, Mass. 
Two nights will be played at. Chi- 
cago Civic Opera House. Kukla. 
Fran and Oliie will appear with 
Boston Pops there. H. L. Garren. 
managing director of the Field 
House, hopes to bring the orches- 
tra batik next year. 


Songwriters Protective Assn, is 
snapping the whip on publishers 
who are refusing to have their 
books audited by SPA accountants, 
SPA is particularly aiming at firms 
which haye not been paying off 
writers’ royalties on lyric books 
prior to the 1947 contract. 

The hassle over lyric book pay- 
offs, due to some ambiguity in the 
pre-1947 SPA pack was settled last 
year in in agreement between the 
cleffers organization and the pub- 
Protectiye Assn. '‘The agreement 
specified the amounts due writers 
on the lyric book publications, but 
was only: a recom mendatlon to 
MPPA members and did not bind 
them to observe it. All of top 
MPPA publishers have okayed the 
procedure but •some of the smaller 
firms, and some non -MPPA pubs, 
are throwing blocks at SPA’s at- 
tempts to check their books. 

SPA is also getting tough with 
pubs who are stalling on their reg- 
ular royalty payments on sheet mu- 
sic sales. SPA has always been flex- 
ible in dealing with firms w'hich 
have been short of cash and unable 
to pay off on time. However, firms 
consistently lagging in their pay- 
ments without making any effort to 
shell out are facing the SPA crack- 
down. 

The biggest weapon in SPA’s 
arsenal is the right of the cleffer 
to get his copyrights back if the 
basic agreement is violated. Siich 
a move would involve a court ac- 
tion if the publisher resisted, but 
SPA is ready to stand behind its 
members if they decide to take this 
action. 


The disk price war, which was 
.touched off by in “accident” last 
week, Is due to come to in abrupt 
end by March 1, Both Columbia 
Records and RCA Victor have al- 
ready notified the trade that the 
’’sale” on their longplay classical 
catalogs will be over at the end 
o( this month, when prices will re- 
vert back to normal. 

In the meantime, however, it’s 
a field day for consumers. In New 
York, the sales tempo did not move 
sharply upwards, due to the fact 
that the discount houses had al- 
ready accustomed buyers to low 
prices even before the trade war 
opened. Out of town, the turn- 
over has been speeded up enor- 
mously on Columbia and Victor 
disks, as retail outlets have been 
capitalizing on the marked drop in 
prices. \ ' ... 

Sales have, been so strong that 
distributors have been unable to 
fill orders from retailers in the last 
few days. In some cases, retail 
outlets and the discount houses 
have beed trying to stock up on 
Columbia sind Victor disks at the 
low prices, but have been Unable to 
get Jhe merchandise. 'One Coast 
distributor for' Victor quadrupled 
his orders last -week to : ipeet the 
demand from-retailers. 

• The discount boused in N. Y. 
have been abetting- the price war 
by giving additional discounts over 
the Columbia add Victor price cuts. 
Some discount operators are sell- 
ing the $3.99 Victor records for 
$3.50 .and Columbia disks for . $3.89. 

Columbia accidentally set off the 
war last Monday (1) when it 
launched its nationwide promotion 
of selling one disk at half price for 
every disk bought at list, Victor 
execs were irked by this mer- 
chandising technique and made a 
straight 30% ^|ash on .the list 
prices of their ' classical catalog, 
even threatening to cut more if the 
competition warranted it. 

. Columbia, which has bpen hurt 
slightly by Victor’s lower prices, is 
still attaining its objectives of 
clearing up the retailer inventory 
picture: Columbia made its ges- 
< Continued on page 54) 


BRITISH DECCA NET 
TO $3,660,000 PEAK 

London, Feb. 9. 

British Decca Records’ profit for 
the year ended March 31 last, 
reached a new all-time high of 
$3,668*000, an increase of $308,- 
000 on the previous year. With the 
improved results the dividend is 
upped by five percent to 35% and 
the company is introducing a cap- 
ital reorganization. 

Under the new capital scheme, 
the present five shilling (70c) or- 
dinary shares are to be converted 
into four shilling (56c) shares. The 
difference will be given back to 
stockholders as a free 25% pref- 
erence share. Further, each one 
shilling preference share will be 
lumped together into one at five 
shillings. 

E. R. Lewis, the Decca boss, re- 
ports an increased turnover in the 
current fiscal year, 10 months 6f 
which have already passed. 

Katims, Ex-NBC, Named 
Head of Seattle 



Otto A. Harbach, former ASCAP 
prexy. gifted his alma mater., Knox 
College (Galesburg, 111 ), with a 
$50,000 gnnt last week. Donation 
was made “for any purpose which 
shall best promote the object and 
welfare of the college.’’ 

Harbach is a class of 1895 grad. 

Group of Rochesterites, headed 
by. Mayor Samuel B, Dicker, .staged 
a stag testimonial dinner for Mort 
Kusbaum, WHAM disk Jockey, at 
the Hotel Triton there Sunday 
i night <7). NUfibaura is to be mar- 
j ried late this week. ,; iV 1 li,, ‘ ' 


Milton Katims, NBC staff con- 
ductor, has been named musical 
director and conductor of the Seat- 
tle Symphony Orchestra for 1954- 
55. A regular guest conductor of 
the NBC Symphony ,*inee 1947, 
Katims has also made guest ap- 
pearances in Seattle the past two 
st a so ns. 

Ka’ims h'is ji'so been signed by 
i he Houston Symphony for four 
weeks of guest conducting in Hous- 
ton ard. a tour with its prcliestra 
during January and February Of 
1955. His contract With Seattle 
gives hint leave of absence to fill 
the Houston-engagements. For the 
1054-55 season the Seattle Sym- 
phony has a schedule of 60 con- 
certs. “ *• 


Titles, Preps 20th Anni, 
Show Biz Talent Helping 

In 20 years of- operation, the 
American Foundation for the 
Blind’s Talking Books division has 
amassed a total of 2,000 titles and 
distributed cuffo close to 3,000,000 
disk sets. Talking Books’ 20th artni- 
will be. celebrated in April. 

Talking Books, which are disk- 
mgs of tomes, ranging from the 
Bible to current-day whodunits, 
has enlisted the aid of show biz 
celebs and authors for the etchings. 
Among the names w.ho’ve contrib- 
uted their services are Robert E. 
Sherw ood. John MaSon Brown, Wil- 
liam L. Shirer, Evil LeGallienne, 
Alfred Drake, Wesley Addy, Bren- 
da Forbes, Jose Ferrer. Cornelia 
Otis Skinner, Walter Hampden. 
Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt and Rhys 
Williams. 

Talking Books uses longplay 
plotters to wax the books: An aver- 
age length tome runs to 18 12-inch 
I.Ps. Some books, however, go over 
that mark. -The Bible, for example, 
was recorded on 169 platters and 
Tolstoy’s “War and Peace” used 
up 119 disks. 

This year the Federal Govern- 
ment has appropriated nearly SI ,- 
125,000 for Talking Books. The 
operation is pegged at the 314,000 
blind people in this country. 


It’s Official-59,371 
Songs Filed Last Year 

Washington, Feb! 9. 

No fewer than 59,371 musical 
compositions were copyrighted dur- 
ing the Federal fiscal year ending 
! June 30, 1953, Library of Congress 
‘ reports. Musical copyrights were 
second in number only to periodi- 
cals. 

The year’s copyrights included 
sued? new material as the first 3-D 
and widescreen motion pictures. 


Gene Krupa Trio, booked into 
the Gay haven in Dearborn, Mich., 
for 10 4ays and follows with a one- 
. niter at the Rustic Cabin, Engle- 
i wodd, N.J., Feb. 20.’ 



50 


MUSIC 


fcJiiwUy, February 10, 1954 



>fcj HEBM ECHOENFELD 


Tony Bennett: -‘‘There’ll Be No 
Teardrops • Tonight”-“My Heart; 
Won’t Say Goodbye” (Columbia). 
The hottest male vocalist current- 
ly, Tony Bennett keeps laying it 
on with these • two sides. . ‘‘Tear- 
drops,” one of ' the late Hank Wil- 
liams’ numbers, is a solid rhythm 
number which Bennett belts to a 
Percy Faith* arrangement that has 
a touch of the ‘‘Bags To Riches” 
beat. “My Heart, 1 ” a sentimental 
ballad from the legiter, “The Girl 
In The Pink Tights,”, also has. top 
potential. >• 

Perry Como: “Wanted” - “Look 
Out The Window” (Victor). “Want- 
ed” is a slow rhythm tune, with a 
clever lyric that lifts it out of the 
Ordinary. Perry Como, with back- 
ing from a choral ensemble, pro- 
ects it easily and effectively for 
>ig commercial impact. “Window,” 
n the Latin genre that Como has 
ieen clicking with recently, is a 
bright number, colorfully handled 
for jock and juke spins, v 
Bill Darnel: “That’s The Way 


a good piece of material in “Moun- 
tains,” a tune with a country qual- 
ity and some unusual lyrics. It s in 
Mitchell's groove and could de- 
velop into a big one. Flip is happy- 
styled tune from , the Paramount 
pic, ‘‘Red Garters,” also tailormade 
for Mitchell’s freewheeling piping. 

Connie Russell: “The Sky Is Ex- 
tra Blue”-“Come Over And - Say 
Hello” (Capitol). Connie Russell 
has a lovely song in “Sky” Which 
Could be the kind of material she 
needs to break through into the hit 
lists. This is a class ballad Skill- 
fully projected by. Miss RusselU 
against a fine background, by Har- 
•old Mooney. Flip is a more con- 
ventional number with okay 
chanees. ’ 

David Rose Orch: “I Live* For 
You”-*‘Migrairte Melody” (M-G-M). 
Another one of David Rose’s stand- 
out sides is “I Live For You,” a 
lilting ballad lushly produced in 
a symphonic arrangement. Rush 
Adams contributed a' fine vocal. 
This side rates plenty of jock spins. 




TONY BENNETT 
( Columbia ) 

PE RRY^COMO . . 

(Victory 
BILL DARNEL 
(X) .... 








THERE'LL BE NO TEARDROP^ TONIGHT 

. . .My . Heart Won’t Say Goodbye ■ 
..... . . WANTED 

. . , . . , . . . Look Out the Window 

. . THAT’S THE WAY LOVE GOES 
..... . . . . . , . . .... . . .... .For You 






Love Goes”-“For You” (X). Label 
X, RCA’s newly launched quasi- 
indie disk operation, gets off to a 
flying start with its initial release 
by Bill Darnel. “Love Goes” . is 
bounced for maximum impact by 
the singer and it could be his big- 
gest in many years. “For You” is 
another tune with a driving beat 
on which Darnel seems to be work- 
ing too hard; Danny. Mendelsohn 
batons the , ^orch and., chorus ex- 
cellently. 

Phil Brito: “The Darktown Strut- 
ters’ BaH”-"Memories of Sorren- 
to” (M-G-M). Phil Brito’s Italian 
workover of the old Shelton Brooks’ 
Standard is a straight hitchhike on 
Lou Monte’s click for RCA Victor. 
This version adds little to the 
Monte side by way of novelty. Also 
in . the same groove* Is Buddy 
Greco’s Italo workover of “The 
Shiek of , Araby” for . Coral. This 
is a type of gag that can grow 
tiresome very quickly. The Greco 
side is saved by a firstrate instru- 
mental background by Don COsta. 
On the . M-G-M flip, Brito nicely 
handles a legit Italian melody. 

Brucie Well: “Watch Over 
Daddy”-” When The Red, White 
and Blue Goes Marching By” (Vic- 
tor). This is one of those embar- 
rassingly bad disks by a diaper-set 
vocalist, eight - year - old Brucie 
Weil, who sounds like a revival of 
the Horn & Hardart amateur hour. 
“Daddy” is a synthetic tear jerker 
while the flip, is a patriotic item 
with, phrases from assorted p.d. 
tunes. 

Guy Mitchell: “Tear Down The 
Mountains”-" A Dime and A Dol- 
lar” (Columbia).. Guy Mitchell has 


“Migraine Melody” Is a fair side. 
It’s a good melody but those “oh 
my head” interpolation's have no 
point. '. . 

Ray Bloch Orch: “Vicki”-“Don- 
Rey Tango” (Coral). Although pic- 
ture themes have cooled on wax 
recently, “Vicki,” title song of the 
20th-Fox film, has solid chances 
via this Ray Bloch interpretation. 
A whistle solo ^by Fred Lowery 
lends an arresting quality. “Don- 
key Serenade” could be a sleeper; 
it’s a Latin-styled melody with a 
narrated story by Leon Janney. 

The Mariners: “Sentimental 
Eyes’VThey Don’t Play The Pi- 
ano Anymore” (Columbia). The 
Mariners quartet; which has been 
having some impact recently In the 
POP field, comes up with a' pleasing 
item in “Sentimental Eyes,” It’s 
a relaxed number which stands up 
under repeated spins. Flip is a 
rousing, knockdown barrelhouse 
piece socked over with verve, 

Leo De Lyon: “Say It Isn’t So”- 
“The Band Played On” (M-G-M). 
Leo De Lyon, nitery performer 
with trick pipes, doesn’t register 
strongly on wax. He does all the 
vocals and instrumental . imitations 
on these two sides, but it’s only a 
stunt with little musical' value. 
Visually, this sort of thing gets 
laughs; .on wax, it means nothing. 

Album Reviews 

Jackie. Gleason "Orch: “Tawny” 
(Capitol). Jackie Gleason’s instru- 
mentals for Capitol Records have 
developed into a solid commercial 
property and this package contin- 
ues the pattern. “Tawny.” a tele- 
vision ballet sequence with music 


Best British Sheet Sellers 

( Week " ending Jan 30) 

- London, Feb, 2. 

Ob My Papa . • /. . .Mdurice 
Swedish Rhapsody . . Connelly 
Answer Me . . , v . . . . .. Bourne 

Rags' to Riches'. - . . -r Chappell 
If You LoVfe Me. .World Wide 
Cloud Lucky Seven Robbins 
Tennessee^ Walk .. . . . F. D. & H. 

Ricochet , , . , , , ; . . . . Victoria 

Poppa* Piccolino . , . . Sterling 
That’s Amore... ^ . . ,, Victoria 
Golden Tango .. v.lVright 
Istanbul ...... : . .. . . . Aberbach . 

Second! 2 


Big Ben ,..,V.., Box & Cox 
Ebb Tide*v . , '**■ % *. .tftbbWns' ; 
Blowing. Wfld ; Harms-Connelly 
. The Creeps .. . . . Robbins 
Chicka Boom'. . / . . .Dash 
. Here to Eternity* • . . , .Dash 
> Wish You Were Here Chappell 
Vaya Con Dios . .. ..Maddox 
You You jY-ou : , . . . Mellin 

Heart Belongs to^You Kassner 
Moulin Rouge w ..... Connelly 
Flirtation ' Wgltz . . . . .Bourne 

/' ■ .N 


by Gleason, makes an arrestingly 
atmospheric wax side in a variety 
of moods, Flip of this LP package 
consists of four . standards with 
Bobby Hackett’s -trumpet solos set 
against fiddle arrangements. 

Dave Brubeck Quartet: “Jazz At 
Oberlin” (Fantasy). One of the top- 
ranking figures in the ayantgarde 
of modern jazz, Dave Brubeck'has 
, been turning out consistently fine 
music without any extremist af- 
fections. This eet was culled from 
a concert giyen by the Briibeck 
quartet at Oberlin College in' Ohio 
and shows this combo in its most 
polished form. Combo consists of 
Brubeck on sax. Paul Desmond on 
piano, Lloyd Davis on drums and 
Ron Grotty on bass.. This set con- 
tains four .standards, “Stardust,” 
“Perdido,” “Foolish Things” and 
“The Way You Look Tonight,” all 
played with, distinction. 

Bobby Byrne & Kai - Winding 
Orchs: “Dixieland Vs. Birdland” 
(M-G-M). This is an interestingly 
conceived album showcasing the 
difference between the traditional 
and cool schools ; of jazz. Bobby 
Byrne’s crew is the Dixieland pro- 
tagonist while Kai Winding’s com- 
bo delivers the progressive idiom. 
Each group takes a . whack at the 
same number and for the finale 
joins for a stylistic clambake which 
is ;an oddity; to say the most for it. 

Artie Shaw 5 in Cleve, ' 
Spot for 1 Wk. at 5G 

Cleveland, Feb. 9. 

Artie Shaw and his Gramercy 
Five opened a one-week run Mon- 
day (8) at Herman Plrchner’s Al- 
pine. ^Village which is 'paying clari- 
net-maestra $5,000 for the stand? 
the Shaw date is the first name 
bandmaster the 580-$eat room 

has booked in a half-dozen years, 
starting policy of larger-budgeted 
shows. * 

'Pirchner decided to place bnly 
a $1 cover on shows to build up 
attendance. Four Lancers are also 
in show. 


PAnrefr 

♦ 



■ A A | |1 AttttM 44 " 


1. OH, MY PAPA (8) Eddie Fisher Victor I 

2. THAT’S AMORE (11) Dean Martin Capitol J 

3. CHANGING. PARTNERS (U) .......... Patti Page . Mercury 

4. STRANGER IN PARADISE (2) Tony Martin ... Victor £ 

5. MAKE LOVE TO ME ($) Jo Stafford .......... Columbia J 

6. SECRET LOVE. (2) . . Doris Day Columbia 

7. TILL WE TWO ARE ONE (i). ^ , Georgia Shaw .... Decca 

8. RAGS TO RICHES (16) Tony Bennett ....... .Columbia 

9. I GET SO LONELY 12) Four Knights ...... . . . . Capitol .< | 

10. HEART OF MY HEART (4) Four Aces . . ...... .. ... .Decca 


Second Croup 






; STRANGER IN PARADISE 

« l ricochet . . V V : . ; ... . ; 

* : SOMEBODY BAD STOLE DE WEDDING BELL ..... . . 
; ; DARKTOWN STRUTTERS BAtL . . 
t STRANGER IN PARADISE ... . 

FROM THE VINE CAME THE GRAPE 
ANSWER ME, MY LOVE 
YOUNG AT HEART 
J EBB TIDE ...... 

' y CHANGING PARTNERS 

^ JONES BOY , . ... 

OH, MEIN PAPA . 

^ CROSS OVER THE BRIDGE 
LOVIN’ SPREE , . 






























* i » M » 


• i » 




















Tony Bennett ...... . .Columbia 

Teresa Brewer . . ....... . Coral 

Eartha Kitt ............ .Victor 

Lou Monte ............. Victor 

Four Aces ..... . . . . . . . . . Decca 

Gaylords .Mercury 

Nat (King) Cole Capitol 

Frank Sinatra .-. ....... Capitol 

Frank Chacksfield .... .London 

Kay Starr ............ . Capitol 

Mills Bros. Decca 

Eddie Calvert . . . . ... . . . . Essex 

Patti Page ............ Mercury 

Eartha Kitt .Victor 

Teresa Brewer Coral 


t BELL BOTTOM BLUES , 

^ r fiffures in parentheses indicate number of weeks song has been in the Top 101 ^ 

» m > o ♦ ♦ ♦ - t 1 All! i ? 



Gounod: Faust , (RCA Victor, 4. 
LP; $21.80). Rousing yet artistic 
version of the w.k. opera.. Victoria 
de los Angeles makes a lovely} 
lyric heroine, ^and Nicolai Gedda 
a sturdy Faust, Bpris Christoff’s 
bass, though light, is expressive, 
and he makes an imposing devil. 
Support is uniformly good for an 
excellent album. 

Schumann: Symphony No. 2 in C 
(Columbia; $5.95). Dramatic^ surg- 
ing reading by the Cleveland Orch 
Under George Szell for a sonorous, 
rhythmic job. Sometimes Szell is 
a little too driving, as in the scher- 
zo. 

Chopin: Sonatas No. 2 ft 3 (An- 
gel; $4.96). Pianist Witold Mal- 
cuzynski in a choice, vigorous per- 
formance of the B Flat Minor (with 
its stately Funeral March), and ih 
a good job on the more refined, 
less interesting B Minor (No. 3). 

Copland: -Billy the Kid: & Win. 
Schuman: Undertow (Capitol; 

$5.72). Flavorsome, attractive read- 
ing by the Ballet Theatre Orch 


under Joseph Levine of the folksy 
melodious Copland work, redolent 
of the old West. Schuman ’s piece 
is modern mood music, dramatic 
but a little cold and lean. 

Liszt: - Sonata In B Minor,, Valso 
Impromptu, Mephlsto Waltz (West- 
minster; $5.95).. Pianist Edith Far- 
nadi brings .a* vigorous approach 
and mannish touch and tone to 
these pieces. The sonata has force, 
vitality 'and understanding of 
mood. Strong rhythms mark the 
Mephisto, while the Valse is a 
pleasant, dreamy work, done deft- 
ly.;- • v ; ' ; 

Graduation BalMLondon: $5.95). 
Gay ballet store, collected, from 
various Johann Strauss tunes, giv- 
en a charming, light^heaited- ren- 
dition by the New Symphony Orch-. 
estra under Anatole . Fistoulari, 

Cherubini:’ . Requiiem ( Angel • 
$4.95), Careful, devout rendition by 
the Santa .Cecilia Oych and Chorus, 
impressive in , its simplicity and 
beauty; This ish’t one of the great 
requiems, bu£‘> good pne, melodi- 
ous,, sonorous and' colorful. 

; - . •' Bron. 



* > The top 30 songs of week (more in ease of ties), based on 
copyrighted Audience Coverage index & Audience Trend Index. 
Ptiblished by Office of Research, Inc., Dr: John Gray Peatman , 
Director, alphabetically listed. ^ V 

Survey Weck of January 29— February 4,1954 

(Listed Alphabetically) • 


Breeze And I , . . .-. ...... .. . . . . .... . . . . 

Changing Partners . . . . . ...... . ... . 

Creep; . . . ................... 

Don’t Forget To Write ; 

Don’tcha. Hear Them Bells ........... 

Down By The Riverside ............ . . . 

Ebb Tide ..... ................ 

Face To Face . ; . . ... . ; ....... 

From The Vine Came The Grape . . , . 

Granada . 

Heart Of My Heart 

Hold Me 

I Can’t Believe That You’re In Love With 
. Istanbul .......................... 

It’s Easy To Remember 

Jones- Boy . . . . ; . > . ... ... . . .... ......... 

Make Love To Me . 

Many Times . . . , . ... .... ........ 

Marie 

Oh My Papa 

Ricochet 

Secret Love — t “Calamity Jane” ........ 

Somebody Bad Stole De Wedding Bell . . 
Stranger In Paradise— *“Kismet” . . . . . 
That’s Amore — t “The Caddy” . , . . . ... . . 

That’s What A Rainy Day Is For — t“Easy 
Woman (Man) . . . . . . . . , ....... ........ 

Y’All Come 

You Alone .... ... .... ... . . . .......... 

Young At Heart 


. . . , . . . , Marks 
.......... Porgie 

.Miller 

. .... ..... Advanced 

.......... Iris-T 

. • , , « . r . Spier 
. , . ....... Robbins 

...... .v. . Witmark 

.......... Randy-S . 

. . . . . . . . Peer 

. . . . . . . . Robbins 

........ ..Robbins 

Me ...... Mills 

. Alamo 

. . . .... . . .Famous 

........ . . . Pincu.s 

.......... Morris 

. . . . . . . . . . Broadcast 

. ...... Berlin 

. . . . . : . . . . Shapiro-B 

....... . . . Sheldon 

Remick 

.....Morris 

. . . ... .Frank \ 

......... .Paramount 

To Love” . Robbins 
.......... Studio 

... ., .... . . Starrite 

..Roncoih 

......... ..Sunbeam 




Second Group 

And This Is My Beloved ... ... . 

Baby Baby Baby 

Baubles Bangles And Beads— ♦“Kismet” ..... . . . 

Bell Bottom Blues 

Bimbo . < ■ . , . , 

Darktown 1 Strutters’ Ball 

Don’t Ask Me Why .......... 

I Love Parish— *“Can-Can” 

Little Miss One Going On Two 

Love Walked In ............. 

No Other Love — ♦"Me And Juliet” 

Our Heartbreaking Waltz 

Pass The Jam Bam 

Poppa Piccolino . . . . . ’ 

Sadie Thompson’s Song— 1 “Miss Sadie Thompson” 

Till Then 

Till We Two Are One 

Vaya Con Dios 

. You Made Me Love You 

* You You You 

You’re My Everything .. r 


..Frank 
. . Famous 
..Frank 
. . Shapiro-B ' 
. . Fairway 
..Feist 
. . Harms 
. .Chappell 
. . Weiss-B 
. . Chappell 
. . Williamson 
. . Village 
.•.Chappell 
. . Chappell 
..Mills 
. * Leeds 
. . Shapiro-B 
. . Ardmore 
. . Broadway 
. . Mellin 
. . Harms 


Top 20 Songs on TV 

( More In Case of Ties ) 




i • • a. 


Bandera 

Changing Partners .’ 

Creep............. I . .1“ ’I; 

Cross Over The Bridge 

Don’t Forget To Write 

Ebb Tide 

From The Vine Came The Grape . . . ..... . . 

Heart Of My Heart 

Here's Charlie 

Ida Sweet As Apple Cider 

Istanbul 1 

I’ve Got The World On A String 

KoepUGw;*.;--.. 

My Baby Rocks Me 

Oh My Papa ....!!**** 

Rags To Riches 

Secret Love ,..!!!!*!*!!;*’ * * ’ 

Stranger In Paradise ...... 

That s Amore ............. 



Until You Said Goodbye .................. 

Wall Of Ice 






t Filmusical. 


Legit musical. 


irw 




. . ; , * . .Blue Grass 

• • • ... . . Porgie . 

. . . . . .. Miller 

• * *. . Valan^o 

Advanced 
...... .Robbins 

....... Randy-S 

....^..Robbins 

. . . . . . .SongSmiths 

Marks 
...... ; Alamo 

.......Mills 

. *•..<» Williamson 

• .* ....Mills 

. . . * . . Shapiro-B 
....... Saunders 

.... ; . ; Remick 

.......Frank 

....... Paramount 

....... Shapiio-B 

h* * hi • •. Biackstone 

... .. .. Weiss-B 







Move of rhythm & blues output. 
„tn the pop market is continuing 
if gain momentum. Numerous , jo- 
kers who’ve been eoncentrat ng 
fJoP records art augmenting 
$eir stocks with r&b *sks. ac- 
ting to reports from dlstribs, 
Mditional reports also jmnMjM* 
upbeat in the use of r&b platters 
2 various deejays who've been 
devoting their spins to pop re- 
leases. • V . ' ... ' ' ■ . . 

Several recording groups that 
were previously confined to the 
Sb market have broken out with 
♦lines that have made both the 
r&b and pop listings. Among these 
are The Orioles and The Four 
Times Former group expanded 
into the pop field with their etch- 
ing of "Crying in the Chapel - and 
have since been selling in both the 
pap and r&b markets, while latter 
combo is currently riding high 
pop-wise with “Marie.” 

Another outfit making a strong 
bid for pop acceptance is The 
Dominoes, who’ve recorded several 
standards including "These Fool- 
ish Things” and "Till the Real 
Thing Comes Along.” Also falling 
in line with the r&b inroads into 
the pop field was Buddy Morris’ 

• recent acquisition of the " time, 
“Gee.” Number vras picked up by 
the pubbery following its record- 
ing by The Crows on the Rama 
label. . 

Disk jockey swingover to r&b 
programming is pointed up by 
such platter spinners as Alan 
Freed ("Moondog”), in’ Cleveland; 
Ken Elliott ("Jack the Cat”) in 
New Orleans, and Symphony Sid 
in Boston. Freed and Elliott had 
previously concentrated on pop 
items, while Sid spun in the jazz 
groove. Other deejays? have been 
increasing, the spotting of r&b 
tunes on their shows. It’s also been 
( Continued on page 58) 


Tapa’ Heads Scot Hits / 

Glasgow, Feb. 2. 
Eddie Calvert's waxing on Co- 
lumbia of "O Mein Papa” leads the 
jjtt tunes here, with Mantovani’s 
Swedish Rhapsody” in second 
place. ■ David Whitefield’s "Answer 
Me” is No. 3, followed by the same 
singer in "Rags to Riches.” 

Sydney MacEwan’s version of 
"Scotland the Brave,” also on the 
Columbia label, leads the native 
product. ' 



74G in Coast Concert 

Hollywood, Feb. 9. 

.Sauter-Finegan orch grossed 
$7,415 here Friday night <5) at a 
two-performance concert staged by 
Gene Norman at the 1,786-seat 
Embassy Auditorium. Previous 
night, orch drew 7550 payees to the 
Rendezvous Ballroom at Balboa, 
. do wncoast resort town which is 
currently . ih the off-season dol- 
drums, 

Norman had only ' five days ih 
which to promote the two dates 
for which he booked the Sauter- 
Finegan outfit on a flat fee basis. 


Kosher Pizza 

That Italo-lyric kick launched 
by Lou Monte’s etching of 
"Darktown Strutters Ball” for 
RCA Victor keeps right on 
rolling, Latest is Louis Prlma’s 
version of the same song fop 
the Indie Equity label with one 
chorus, in Italian and another 
in Yiddish, which gets the 
jump on Mickey Katz. 

Feist Music, of the Big Three, 
which publishes the Shelton 
Brooks oldie,; is now Selling 
Copies of the standard with the 
Italian lyric Used by Monte. 





Without a Scorecard As 
Stewart Meets Stewart 

Cleveland, Feb. 9. 

Two singing Bob Stewarts, one 
a M-G-M Records recording bari- 
tone and the other a phony mas- 
querading as him, created one of 
the most confusing situations ever 
seen here when both appeared In 
the same show at the Cabin Club 
last Friday (5). The expose was 
supposed to be a dramatic secret, 
but only all of Cleveland’s news- 
papermen and disk jockeys, who 
became suspicious of the faker, 
were in on the kill. They were 
rather disappointed wheii the ex- 
citement didn’t quite come off as 
expected. . 

Stewart No. 2, a singer from 
West Virginia, never had a chance 
(Continued on page 56) 


Weekend Gotham Dance Dates Still 




s 



• 4 * 

/•{ 


Nat (King) Cole will be birth- 
day-partied and bon-voyaged by 
reps of show biz and civic groups 
at the Savoy Ballroom,' N.Y., March 
18. Proceeds' from the affair will 
go to the Harlem branch of the 
YMCA. 

Cole planes to England March 20 
for a London** Palladium date be- 
ginning two days, later. 





Oil 

Tokyo, Feb. 2. 

Diidley Manners, nonn de clef 
of Major D. D. . Krupp, retired 
medical Army officer, sailed back 
to the U. S. last week after o.o.ing 
the Nipponese disk picture. While 
serving here: in the ;U. S. Army, 
Manners had several numbers cut 
by the Japanese diskersV 
Manners will stop over in Holly- 
wood for confabs with U. S. .pub- 
lishers there and then head for 
England where he aims to place 
some songs with English disk com-, 
panies for eventual export to Ja- 
pan, . He was stationed . in England 
during the last war. 




Attorneys for Decca Records, 
which dropped a $46,000 suit in 
Nashville to the Republic Record- 
ing Co. last week in Federal Court 
there over a contractual suit in- 
volving pianist Del Wood, are ap- 
pealing the district court's opinion 
to the FederaF Circuit Court of 
Appeals in Cincinnati. Henry 
Cohen, Decca attorney, said that, 
while he has not seen Federal 
Judge Elmer D; Davies’ opinion, 
"we understand that it contains an 
unprecedentedly violent attack 
upon a reputable witness.” 

Republic had charged that D£cca 
pacted Miss Wood to make, some 
disks while knowing that she was 
under contract to the Tennessee 
Record Co.,, which was later ab- 
sorbed by Republic. The judge 
awarded Republic $40,000 in puni- 
tive damages, in addition to grant- 
ing actual damages of $6,000. 

Decca claims that it was free to 
use Miss Wood, since her pact with 
Tennessee Records had been termi- 
nated because of violation of Amer- 
ican Federation of Musicians’ 
regulations. 


Brit looters’ Union 
in Middle 




London, Feb. 9. 
The Musicians’ Union, which is 
* ; P^sent involved in litigation. 

aittem Pt to stop British 
ami s from playing certain dates 
A Irela pd, has 'another legal ae- 
on on its plate. In the Chancery 
nS s - on ' last week, the Artistes' 


rnokmg Agency and the Wilcox 
,zatlotl » Ltd., asked for an in- 
e T ct ; on restraining officials of the 
forbidding its members 
conflt from entering into. anj? 
, vi K r J5 tual relations or dealiftg 
'vith the plaintiffs. 

davc* e case arises out of a two- 
lanrt ■ , en eagemeht played in Hol- 
Bann Daniels’ Dixieland 

no n J a ? Dec ^mber. Alleging that 
ini, tu evi P us consultations regard-* 
tw-PPn e Vt tour ha d taken place be- 
. Wilcox Agency (who 
♦ lontintied .on. pag&54L— . . 



OF 


TOP TALENT AND TUNES 


Compiled from Statistical Reports of Distribution 
Encompassing the Three Major Outlets 

Coin Machines Retail Disks Retail Sheet Music 

as Published in the Current Issue 


NOTE; The current comparative sales strength of the Artists and Tunes listed hereunder is 
arrived at* under a statistical system comprising each of the three major sales outlets enu- 
metaled above. These findings are correlated with data from wider sources, which are exclusive 
with Variety. The positions resulting from these findings denote the OVERALL IMPACT de- 
veloped from the ratio of points scored*, two ways in the case of talent {disks, coin machines), 
and three ways in the case of tunes (disks, coin machines, sheet music)* 


TALENT 


POSITIONS 
This Last 
Week Week 


ARTIST AND LABEL 


TUNE 


2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 


2 

3 


EDDIE FISHER (Victor) ................ j 

DEAN MARTIN (Capitol) That’s Amore 

TONY BENNETT (Columbia) j I*™ 1 ja Rk*eJ adlSe 

5 PATTI PAGE (Mercury, j&o^The Bridge 

6 DORIS DAY (Columbia).. Secret Love 

. v (Stranger In Paradise 

4 FOUR ACES (Decca) >) Heart Of My Heart 

9 TONY MARTIN (Victor) Stranger in Paradise 

GEORGIE SHAW (Decca) Till We Two Are One 

JO STAFFORD (Columbia) Make Love To Me 

FOUR KNIGHTS (Capitol) ............... I Get So Lonely ' 


10 


POSITIONS 
This Last 
Week Week 


1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 
,7 
8 

9 

in 


2 

1 

3 

4 

5 

7 
9 

8 

6 
10 


TUNES 

(•ASCAP. fBMI) 

TUNE PUBLISHER 

•!* STRANGER IN PARADISE. .■ . • ..... ...... .... » . • Fiank 

*OH, MY PAPA. ..... Shapiro-B 

^THAT’S AMORE . * * • • • Paramount 

fCHANGING PARTNERS . . . •••» • Porgie 

^SECRET LOVE ( . . . . . , . • . • ■ ....... . * * . ..* Rernick 

*HEART OF MY HEART . ... . * ; • Robbins 

*TILL WE TWO ARE ONE . . »••«•••• Shapirp-B 

*EBB TIDE ... . .»*•••*•. •• Robbins 

DRAG'S TO RICHES. .......... . . ..... • ... i • Saunders 

•(“RICOCHET • • • • • • • * * ■ Sheldon 


Dance dates are still a top me- 
dium for getting the sexes to- 
gether. 

But, Unlike the pre-Wo.rld War 
II period .-of top band activity, it 
doesn’t blatter who's dishing out 
the two-step beat . and Latino 
rhythms. It’s all music to the. ears 
of the teenagers, undergrads and 
post-grads who find themselves do- 
ing a solo on their going-to-town 
night. 

Prime draw, .judging by the large 
number of weekend dances* con- 
ducted in New York and its En- 
virons, is not who’s fronting orch 
or who’s on horn or sax, but 
rather what the chances are of 
striking up an acquaintance with 
a likeable party at the various 
spots holding the terp sessions. 
Most of these soirees are sponsored 
by community orgs and friendship 
clubs and don’t include such regu- 
lar ballroom operations as Broad- 
way’s Roseland arid the Palladium. 

Outlets for these dance stands 
include such New York hotels as 
the Ansoiiia, Diplomat, : McAlpin, 
Peter Stuyvesant and the River- 
side Plaza. . Also, such eastside 
spots as the -Hotel Roosevelt and 
Vanderbilt. Former location, which 
features Guy Lombardo’s orch In 
the Grill Room; holds these; spe- 
cial sessions in its Grand Ball- 
room. 

These weekend dance get-to- 
gethers also run from the St 
George Hotel, Brooklyn, to spots 
in Forest Hills, L., I, Number of 
dances held from the Friday- 
through-Sunday period usually to^ 
tals around 50. Tab in most In- 
stances runs around $1.50, with 
tax. Entrance fee in certain loca- 
tions also includes free snacks. 

Biz at such regular outlets for 
name bands as the' Roosevelt Grill 
and the Cafe Rouge of the Hotel 
Statler isn’t dented by the large 
number of weekend dance dates. 

(Continued ori page 56) 




The Les Paul-Mary Ford etching 
of "Vaya Con Dios” is shaping up 
as Capitol Records’ alltime best- 
seller. Platter passed the 2,000,- 
000 sales mark last week and is 
edging toward the figure hit by 
Pee Wee Hunt’s "12th Street Rag.” 
"Rag” is Cap’s leader with 2,400,- 
000 disk sales racked up. 

"Vaya Con Dios” moved into the 
2,000,000 sales bracket in six ' 
months, and, according to Bill 
Fowler* Cap v.p., the current pace 
of foreign sales on the Pau 1-Ford 
waxing puts it in a strong position 
to top "Rag.” 

Alan Livingston, diskery’s artists 
& repertoire chief, presented Paul 
and Miss Ford with their Second 
gold disk for the slice on Dave 
Garroway’s NBC-TV show recently. 

N.Y. Embers on Longhair 
Kick With Ex-Hatcheck 
Femme Turned Pianist 

The Embers, New: York eastside 
dining spot which has been dishing 
up swing keyboard names for the 
past few years, is now on, a longhair 
kick. Ralph Watkins, Embers op 
who also runs the Birdland jivery 
oh Broadway, hit the Beethoven 
trail when he discovered that his 
hatcheck girl, Suezenne Fordham, 

! was a concert, pianist With a paid- 
j .up dues book in Local 802, N. Y. 

Watkins is currently showcasing 
the 19-year-old Miss Fordham, -in a 
t four-hour stand nightly, from 5 
! to 9 p.m., when she’s accomping 
| the hoi's d’oeuvres to strains of 
Shostakovich and Paganini and 
other classical plug songs. Like 
the jazz names at this spot, Miss 
Fordham plays for kicks without 
any. commercial gloss and she 
shows considerable savvy with the 
complex fingering and tempi de- 
manded by the old masters. She 
also assists the squares by intro- 
ducing each number with its title. 

Miss Fordham, incidentally, is 
continuing with her hatcheck 
chores after finishing her nightly 
roncerttzing. 



Wednesday fdbnwurf 10, 1954 





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W«dnead»y» February 10, 1954 







W cdnesdiy, ' Ftbnmry 10j 1954 


Inside Stuff— Music 


♦ 6* 


Disk Companies’ Best Sellers 


RCA Victor Bisk execs threw an off-to-eollege party at the Essex 
Housig, N..Y, last Friday (5) for Larry Kanaga, disk division’s sales 
chief Who is bound. for Harvard U, next week a 13-week course 
at the Graduate School of Business Administration. It's been a regular 
policy of RCA to Send some of its execs to Harvard prior to advancing 
them to higher echelon posts. Bill Bullock, merchandise manager, is 
taking over' Kanaga’s sales duties while the latter is away. Robert M. 
MacRae, New England sales manager for Victor products* has also 
been enrolled for the intensive Harvard course. 

Former pianist-trombonist with old Babe Egan Hollywood Redheads 
act has just had a serious operation ori the Coast and. asks Variety to; 
spread the word to old friends* from whom she. would like to hear. 
The femme is the former Mrs. Charles Besse, now Mrs. Charles Hart- 
man, 1201 W. 76, Los Angeles 44, Cal. * v 

The widening of the extended 7 play market in recent months has 
stimulated a new. demand for the late Hank Williams’ platters. Ift 
response to dealer requests, M-G-M Records this week is releasing a 
“flank Williams Memorial Album” as a two-pocket EP1 The. set pre- 
viously had been issued on a longplay platter and oh 78 rpm. The 
hillbilly, crooner-composer died Jan. 1, 1953. 

Barry Gray set aside his radiocast on WMCA, N.Y,,- Sunday night 
(6) /to a salute to Mercury Records. Gray gave a rundown of Merc’s 
history in the record biz with spins of label’s top artists interspersed. 


3fll 


Price War To End March 1 


Continued from page 49 


ture to help retailers move their 
dormant stocks and get enough 
cash for purchase of new mer- 
chandise. From this viewpoint, 
the promotion is a success. 

No, Permanent Cut 

The possibility, however, of a 
permanent reduction in price has 
been ruled out. Execs of the ma- 
jor companies point out that pro- 
duction costs make it impossible 
to reduce' prices and still net a 
profit. If anything, it’s believed 
that lists may be set at slightly 
higher levels once the price war 
is terminated. At the present, 
time, Columbia and Victor 'plan to 
return to their former list price' 
schedules. 

Both Decca Records and Capitol 
Records are standing aloof from 
the price war. In order to allay 
any suspicion among retailers that 


the two companies would jump, in- 
to the fray with bigger discounts, 
both labels ..informed their outlets 
that their prices would absolutely 
not be changed this spring. Decca 
has guaranteed retailers on this 
point awhile Capitol has reiterated 
its slogan that “you only profit on 
what you sell at a fair markup.” 
M-G-M Recortls and London Rec- 
ords have also retained theft list 
Y>rice setup. 

Independent labels in the long- 
hair field have been hit the hardest 
by the price war. Retailers with 
spare cash have been investing it 
In standard Columbia land Victor 
catalog merchandise and have been 
brushing off the smaller labels. 
Some of .the indies, such as West- 
minister and x Urania, have been 
compelled to offer substantial ad- 
ditional discounts to retailers in 
order to move their product. 


CAPITOL ARTIST ; 

< I 1. THAT’S AMORE . . . Dean Martin < 

YOU’RE THE RIGHT ONE . . . < 

o 2. I GET SO LONELY Four Knights < 

- •• I COULDN’T STAY AWAY FROM YOU 

3. WHAT IT WAS, WAS FOOTBALL (PART I) ..Andy Griffith , 
o WHAT IT WAS, WAS FOOTBALL (PART II) 

* ’ 4. ANSWER ME, MY LOVE ...... . .... . . .Nat (King) Coie ; 

,, ■ WHY. ■ . < 

- * 5; YOUNG AT HEART , ,. ..Frank Sinatra ; 

: : TAKE A CHANCE N . 

:: Columbia : 

4 ’ 1, STRANGER IN PARADISE ......... . . . . .Tony Bennett ; 

!> . WHY DOES IT HAVE TO BE ME? 

« • 2. SECRET LOVE ... • . • Doris Day « 

J DEADWOOD STAGE 

- 3. MAKE LOVE TO ME ... . .Jo Stafford v 

” ADI, ADIOS AMIGO " \ 

0 4. MAN . , ; ... ; .Rosemary Clooney , 

WOMAN . . v ... . . . . . . . . , > . . i . . . . • .. , Jose Ferrer * 

;; 5. RAGS TO RICHES ... . . Tony Bennett ; 

HERE COMES THAT HEARTACHE AGAIN 

- CORAL ■ ■ 

" 1. BELL BOTTOM BLUES ... . Teresa Brewer , 

OUR HEARTBREAKING WALTZ 

J 2. A SALUTE TO GLENN MILLER (PART I) . . . Modernaires ; 

1 A SALUTE TO GLENN MILLER (PART II) 

3. THE SHEIK OF ARABY . . ...... Buddy Greco ; 

UP THE CHIMNEY IN SMOKE , 

4. WOMAN . . . . . . Johnrty Desmond < 

THE RIVER SEINE ! 

5. HOLD ME . . V. , . .Don Cornell < 

si2;e 12 ■ 

DECCA 

1. STRANGER IN PARADISE . Four Aces < 

HEART OF MY HEART 

2. TILL WE TWO ARE ONE . JL . . Georgie Shaw . 

HONEYCOMB 

3. Y’ALL COME . . . Bing Crosby ; 

CHANGING PARTNERS / < 

4. THE JONES BOY . . . ....... .Mills Bros. '< 

SHE WAS FIVE AND HE WAS TEN \ 

5. ARE YOU LOOKING FOR A SWEETHEART , . Kitty Kallen < 

A LITTLE LIE < 



TOMMY EDWARDS 


sings 


There Was 


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/ ... 

.Frank Chacksfield 
.Mantovani 
.Frank Chacksfield 
.... .Stanley. Black 


. .Ronnie Gaylord 


> DANCING PRINCESS 

3. SUDDENLY : . Mantovani 

. BEAUTIFUL DREAMER 

4. EBB TIDE ....... Frank Chacksfield 

WALTZING BUGLE, BOY 

5. STARLIGHT SERENADE Stanley. Black 

FROM HERE TO ETERNITY 

MERCURY 

1. FROM THE VINE CAME THE GRAPE . ... . Gaylords 

STOLEN MOMENTS 

2. \ CUDDLE ME . . . . ... .‘ . Ronnie Gaylord 

OH AM I LONELY x 

3. SOMEBODY STOLE DE WEDDING BELL r . Georgia Gibbs 
BAUBLES, BANGLES AND BEADS 

4. CHANGING PARTNERS . .Patti Page 

. WHERE DID THE SNOWMAN GO? 

5. FANCY PANTS . . A David Carroll 

BY HECK 

M-G-M 

L TURN AROUND BOY Lew Douglas 

CAESAR’S BOOGIE. 

2. YOU’RE MY EVERYTHING Joni James 

YOU’RE NEARER * 

3. RENDEZVOUS . Billy Eckstine 

I’M IN A MOOD 

4. SOLFEGGIO Robert Maxwell 

THE, DOLL DANCE 

5. DON’T STOP KISSING ME GOODNIGHT .... Sheb Wooley 
KNEW I .HAD LOST 

RCA - VICTOR 

1. DARKTOWN STRUTTERS BALL .Lpu Monte 

I KNOW HOW YOU FEEL 

2. MAN WITH THE BANJO ..Ames Bros, 

MAN* MAN IS FOR THE WOMAN MADE 

3. SOMEBODY STOLE DE WEDDING BELL . . Eartha Kitt 
LOVIN’ SPREE 

4. OH, MY PAPA . Eddie Fisher 

UNTIL YOU’VE* SAID GOODBYE 

5. HOLD ’EM, JOE Harry Belafonte 

I’M JUST A COUNTRY BOY 


Schuller Quits St Louis 
To Manage Tulsa Orch 




p * St. Louis, Feb. 9. 

Kenneth G. Schuller, associate 
musical director of the Municipal 
Operd Assh., sponsor of alfresco 
entertainment in the Forest Park 
Playhouse for four years, has left 
to become manager of the Tulsa^ 
Okla., Philharmonic Society. 

Schuller was managing director 
of the St. Louis Light Opera Guild 
for 10 years, former conductor of 
the local Grand. Opera Guild; 
choral director of the St. Louis 
Symphony, and conducted the 
s^mph's series of pre-symphony 
lectures at Washington U. 


Kahl’s ASCAP -Gypsy’ 

Pub topper Phil Kahl teed off 
his ASCAP firm, Planetary Music, 
last week. Kahl, who went into 
indie pubbery operation about a 
year ago after ankling the Disney 
Music setup, launched Kahl Music 
with a BMI affiliation. 

Initial tune in the Planetary cat- 
alog is “The Gypsy Was Wrong.” 


Brit. Tooiers 

Continued from page 51 


I 


Band Review 


CHARLE& DRAKE ORCH (4) 
Hotel President, Kansas City 

Perjcy biz In the fancy Drum Room 
of the Hotel President is due S 
Charles Drake’s crew in a return 
engagement on the bandstand 
there. Drake played the room 
which lately has featured some of 
the niftier small combos, for the 
first time last summer; 

This fime' his setup is changed 
somewhat with Jack Camden han- 
dling the amplified bass instead of 
the former string bass Drake car- 
ried. Ace fiddler Archie Gioia 
also doubling on reeds, and drum- 
mer Joe Fayren complete the 
Drake crews as they did in previ- 
ous turn here. 

Stylings are much on the sweet 
side, with piano work of leader 
featured 'throughout. Portfolio 
keeps well up on very new hits as 
well as established standards and 
rhythm specials. Outfit also deliv- 
ers a very, effective rhumba and 
offefs ^it’s sambas in slightly re- 
tarded tempo favored by dancers 
ln^this area. Vocally Jack Camden 
contributes on some ballads and 
up tunes, with all four doing uni- 
son work St times. Basically, its 
the fine piano work by Drake that 
sets this band apart, but music is 
well rounded by surrounding crew. 

Quin. 

Gol Doubling Artists 
\ On Its Next Release 

Columbia Records is doubling 
lip on its.artists in its next release, 
With six names; spotted on three 
disks. Jo Stafford and Liberace, Jill 
Corey and the Four Lads, and Lily 
Pons with the Norman Paris trio 
have been coupled on the three 
pop singles. 

Miss. Pons, incidentally; is mak- 
ing one of her infrequent entries 
in the pop field with a couple of 
French tunes which she picked up 
while recently in Paris. 


booked the dates) and the Dutch 
and British unions, the MU; black- 
listed the Wilcox Organization and 
expelled Mike Daniels. 

In the meantime, the Irish situ- 
ation is in abeyance pending the 
hearing of the action brought by 
promoter James Carr, of Dublin, 
against the Irish Federation of Mu- 
sicians and the British Musicians’ 
Union. In this case, owing to an 
alleged dispute between the IFM 
and Carr, the British MU sided 
yrith the Irish Union and informed 
its members that they should not 
carry out their impending tours 
for him. As a result of several in- 
junctions pressed by Carr in Lon- 
don and Dublin, the unions, were 
restrained from preventing the 
bands from honoring their con- 
tracts. 

Ronnie Scott and his combo have 
already played their fortnight in 
Ireland for James Carr, and two 
more bands are scheduled, Ken 
Mackintosh and the Stanley Black 
orch. 


Attention!! 

Producer!, Recorders and Singers, 

If ; interested, the Author of the 
following verse will be glad to 
hoar f tom you.- 

Garrett Hitxert 
Fenton, Mo. 

Phono Davis 60016 
RR Box 112 

LA-MAi 

I rode the South Pacific 
with the devils all around 
And men. with guts beside me 
going down, down, dowii . 

I had no fear of dying 
nor of living too 
For there was none 
tod miss me 
I had not met you. 

But I returned to find you 
in a happy moment dear 
And all my dreams 
were answered 
In your anxious stare. 

Your heart has spoken 
thru your eyes 
And changed my drab life 
into paradise: . 

Altho your lips the 
tvoras conceal 
Your eya^the lovelight 
, does reveal 
whisper to me dear 
whisper sweet and low 
Tell me you love, nie • 
say twas at ways so 
Whisper to me dear 
whisper sweet and low 



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- Chorus and orchestra directed by • 
Danny Mendelsohn .... S 

78 rpm cat. nos. X-0001 . ! 

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MELANCHOLY ME 
IT WAS WORTH IT 

Orchestra directed by Roy Ross 
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MARKS THE HITS! 




New York 

Karen Chandler guesting on 
“Showroom," ABC-TV shqw, Fri- 
day (12) . . .*!ack Pleis, musical 
director at Decca, back in New 
York after a midwest disk jockey 
trek for his waxing of “French- 
man In St. Louis" . . . Bob Rosen, 
Seeco Records artists & repertoire 
chief, on a d.j. plugging trek in 
New England over the past week- 
end for Seeco subsid, Dawn Rec- 
ords . . Johnnie Ray topped the 
male vocalist poll conducted by 
Jack Downey, WONS, Hartford . . . 
Eddie White will head Mercury 
Artists Corp.'s new record depart- 
ment. 

Jo Ann Tolley, M-G-M Records 
thrush,^ opened at the Casino 
Regal, Washington,. Monday (8) . . . 
Tommy. Edwards begins a five-day 
dale at the Holiday Club, Leo- 
minster, Mass., Feb.; 18 . ■» . Joni 
James will appear at the Detroit 
Auto Show. Feb. 19-28 . . . George 
Shearing Quintet pencilled in for 
a three-week stand at the Black- 
hawk, San Francisco, beginning 
Feb. 16 . . Sunny : Gale, manager 

Jerry Field and pubber Jack Gold 
return to New York today (10) af- 
ter a dee jay trek through the east 
and midwest promoting the Victor 
release, "Just in Case You Change 
Your Mind’’ ... . . Ken Remo, 
M-G-M Records pactee, returns to 
the legit musical, "The King and 
I," end of this month. - 

London 

finger Billie Holiday, at present 
touring the Continent With the 
“Jazz Club, USA" package, arrived 
In London Monday (8) prior to a 
three-days’ concert trip . . . Billy 
Eckstine, who opens at the London 
Palladium on April 19 for a fort- 
night, will play variety weeks at 
Liverpool (May 3); Newcastle (1.0); 
Manchester (17); Brighton (24); 
Finsbury Park, London (31), also 
Leeds, Glasgow and Edinburgh. He 
will undertake Sunday concerts in 
between his Variety dates . . . 
Johnnie Ray will play the London 
Palladium for two weeks commenc- 
ing April 5, followed by a variety 
tour round the country , . . 
Australian singer Georgia Lee has 
joined the Geraldo Orch . . . Don 
Rendell, modern tenor - player, 
signed contract with Decca to cut 
sides with his . Quintet. . 

Hollywood 

AFM Local 47 nixed a CBS pitch 
for a temporary reduction in the 
minimum number of staff sidemen 
. . . Warren Baker's "Baker’s Doz- 
en" recording orch had six of its 
first eight independently pressed 
sides snapped up by Oroco Records 
, . Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey set 

to play the Home Show at the Pan 
Pacific Auditorium here June 10- 
21 ... Sauter-Finegan will play 
the Palladium Ballroom for two 
weeks starting MaV 14 . . . Harry 
Geller, RCA Victor Coast record- 
ing director, can listen to his early 


DON’T ASK 
ME WHY 

recorded by 

EILEEN BARTON 

CORAL #61109 
HARMS, Inc. 


day jazz work with no difficulty 
now that the Little Dog ha& reis- 
sued albums by Glenn . Miller, 
Benny Goodman °and Artie Shaw, 
with all of whom Geller was a 
sideman ... Ken, Hanna's new 
orch etched an LP album for 
Trend . . , Rex Kofiry band starting 
to play casual dates in addition, to 
the ABC cinema music program. 

Chicago 

Holiday Club, new Chi dine-and- 
danCery, opening On far southside 
Feb. 12 with Tommy and Jimmy 
Dorsey set* for kickoff and' with, 
Dan Belloc taking oyer the follow- 
ing night for five weeks. Belloc 
currently is playing the Coliseum 
for a week at Junior Achievement 
Trade Fair . . . Jazz at Rainbo stag- 
ing "Festival of American Ja^z" 
with Stan Kenton, Dizzy Gillespie, 
June Christy and Conte Candoli 
on Feb. 14 after two-week layoff 
. . . Teddy Phillips opening Aragon; 
Chi, March 2 for .two weeks . • 

Scotland 

Ken Macintosh orch playings to 
solid biz at Playhouse, Glasgow 

. Buddy Logan, ex-Gjeraldo orch 
vocalist, into vaude stint at Her 
Majesty's, Carlisle . , . Frank Moy 
orch at New Cavendish, Edinburgh 
. . . Maurice Little group playing 
for diners at George Hotel, Edin- 
burgh . . . Monty Norman .singing 
in "This Was The Army" *af Em- 
pire, Edinburgh . . . Dorothy 
Squires toplining at Empire, Glas- 
gow- . . . Archie Lewis, West Indies 
singer, heading new company at 
PalaCe Theatre, Kilmarnock. 


Omaha 

Billy May orch, led . by Bob 
Dawes, played Sioux City’s Tomba 
Ballroom Sunday (7) ; . . Eddy 
Haddad orch handled Tech High’s 
annual junior-senior prom from at 
Peony Park . . . Bobby Mills one- 
nighted at Belgrade,. Neb., Aud 
Thursday (4 > . . . Llberace’set for 
concert at Ak-Sar-Ben May 19 . . . 
Boston Pops orch, batoned by Ar- 
thur Fiedler, slated for Feb. 15 con- 
cert at Tech High Aud. . . In at Joe 
Malec’s Peony Park this month 
are Skippy Anderson (6-7), Tony 
Bradley (13-14), Mai Dunn (20-21) 
and Bobby Lihdeman (27-28). 


BET1UL SHEET BEST SELLERS 


'VAhiety 


Survey of retail sheet music 
sale*, based on reports obtained 
from leading stores in 12 cities 
and sHowing- comparative sates . 
rating for this and Iasi week, . 

ASCAP t BM1 


National 

Rating 

This Last 
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2 *Oh, My Papa (Shapir o-B) 

~3 ^ Changing Partners (Porgie) . . 


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• ■ • 


10 


10 . , . Stan Conrad^ organist, has 
checked in at the Vogue Terrace 
for a run . . Charlie Russell, 
trombonist, back after 18-morith 
strech with the army in Germany. 
He’s married to Norma Russell, 
Jack Purcell’s vocalist . . . A1 Mar- 
sico orch signed to supply the 
music for the annual Auto Show, 
which opens at Hunt Armory Feb. 
20 . . . Piccolo Pete DeLuca combo 
into Gastle Inn after six months at 
Center Avenue Cafe. 


Pittsburgh 

Bill Shannon, an original mem- 
ber of the band, is back. With 
Tommy Carlyn’s outfit on trom- 
bone, replacing Ed Rmutto, who 
has gone into the service. Carlyn 
also - lias a new drummer, Bud 
Elrick, staking over from Dick 
Maser. Latter quit to go into busi- 
ness . . . Hy Edwards filling in on 
drums with Herman Middleman 
crew at Carousel until Claire Mc- 
Clintbck's broken arm mends , . . 
Baron Elliott’s clarinetist, Nestor 
Koval ,<a graduate of the Paris Con- 
servatoire, is taking a three : mOrith 
leave of absence to tour with the 
Southern Symphony . . . Alice Ger- 
ber (Mrs. Jimmy Eisner, wife of 
the saxrhan) is retiring shortly as 
Art Farrar’s singer to await the 
stork ... . . Nino Nanni returns to the 
Monte Carlo on Monday (15) for a 
four-week stay. 

Frank RTpepi, bassist with the 
Topnotchers, went into the Mercy 
Hospital for an operation on his 
vocal chords following the turn’s 
fortnight stand at Jackie Heller’s 
aiid they’ll have to lay off until 
he’s fully recovered . . . Jack Blosi, 
banjoist, into the Horseshoe Music 
Bar for a run . . . Joe Lescak, pian- 
ist who leads the Latinaires at the 
Carnival Lounge, picked to back 
the acts on new amateur show over 
WENS every Wednesday night at 


THE GAYLORDS 

Currently COPA, Pittibarqli 
Feb. 15— ESQUIRE, Doyten, O. 

Mar. 3— PERRY COMO TV SHOW 
Mar. 5-GAY HAVEN, Dearborn, Mich.; Mari'. 1 9— FALCON, De- 
troit; Apr. 2-HOLlYWOOD CAFE, Akron, 6.; Apr. 19-lATlN 
CASINO, Phila. 

Current MERCURY Recordings 
STRINGS OF MY HEART 
FROM THE WINE CAME THE GRAPE 


Exclusive Management 

ASSOCIATED BOOKING CORPORATION 


New Y or k 
I b j.' 1 : Avc PL 9 4600 




JOE GLASER. Pres. 

| Chicago 
600 | 2 0 3 No Wabash 


Hollywood 

86'9 Su dm- t Blvd 


Bob Stewart 


Continued from page 51 


to get going. As soon as he 
stepped out on the floor, Stewart 
No. 1 jumped up from a ringside 
table and shouted: "You’re noth- 
ing but an imposter, for I am the 
one and only Bobby Stewart of 
M-G-M Records!" 

Looking pale and shaky, the 
phony tearfully explained he 
didn’t mean any harm by posing 
as the disk vocalist. He only did it 
in a half-dozen other cities; he ad- 
mitted, to cadge jobs from gulli- 
ble club owners. Come to think of 
it, he added as he gained more 
composure, he thought he was 
helping the real Stewart by plug- 
ging the latter’s new disk songs, 
“Did I Remember” and "Care- 
less.” 

For a clinching bit of irony, the 
masquerader boldly stated he 
could officially prove his real 
name was Bobby. Stewart. That 
was slightly embarrassing to the 
M-G-M singer, who had to admit 
he had been baptized Stuart Burke 
but had been working profession- 
ally under the stage monicker of 
Bobby Stewart for eight years. 

The showdown was a bit of a 
letdown since Stewart No. 1 re- 
fused to prosecute the pretender 
cashing in on his reputation He 
was not sure, in fact, whether he 
had grounds for a lawsuit. 

Blackie London, local AGVA 
representative, said he severely 
reprimanded Stewart No, 2 and no- 
tified the national AGVA head- 
quarters of the masquerade but 
had not taken away his union card. 


‘Hot Lips’ Levine Opens 
Band Booking Bureau 

Cleveland, Feb. 9. 

Henry (Hot. Lips) Levine, stiff 
bandmaster of WTAM-WNBK, has 
formed a dance band booking bu- 
reau with Ted King as his office 
manager. Latter is a former 
maestro who recently became an 
associate member, of Merle Ja- 
cobs’ talent-booking agency. 

Levine, who once conducted his 
own NBC network programs of 
Dixie music tagged "Chamber Mu- 
sic Society of Lower Basin Street,"* 
plans to use his 17-piece radio-tv 
unit as the nucleus of his new out- 
fits for society dance dates. His 
station’s morning "Bandwagon'' 
troupe, with Johnny Andrews and 
Jackie Lynn as vocalists, will also 
$tart a series of spring tours at 
Aragon Ballroom April 4. 


McCarran 

Continued. from pace 49 


by the .American Society of Com- 
posers, Authors & Publishers, con- 
tend that the bill would correct an 
absolute provision in the Copy- 
right Act. In 1909, coin machines 
were only penny arcade novelties, 
but currently it’s, big business, and 
ASCAP contends that since the 
coin machines use music' for a 
profit, they should pay 'royalties. 

Among the organizations sup- 
porting the bill are the American 
Bar Assn., National Federation of- 
Music Clubs, National Music Coun- 
cil, American, Patent Law Assn., 
Authors League of America, Song- 
writers Protective Assn., Music 
Publishers Protective Assn, and 
Broadcast Music, Inc. The State 
Dept., which is trying to correct 
antf straighten out international 
copyright protection, is also sup- 
porting passage 6f the McCarran 
bill. 


Continued front page 51 


Name band situations cater pri- 
marily to couples, whereas patron- 
age at the other operations is com- 
prised mostly of unattached males 
and distaffers. 

Musicians employed on these 
weekend dates reportedly are paid 
union scale. In some cases, dance 
sponsors front a band with a semi- 
name batoner, but for the most 
part, it’s understood, such a move 
hasn’t resulted in too much vari- 
ance in attendance. 

Roberts Named Detroit 
Branch Mgr. for Decca 

Gil Roberts has been named 
Detroit branch manager for Decca 
Records by Bill Glasemaii, north- 
eastern division chief. 

Roberts has been in the com-, 
pany’s sales force for the past eight 
years. 


Bobrow, Seattle Jock, 



ion 

Seattle, Feb. 9. 

Norm Bobrow, local disk jockey, 
is extending his concert promotion 
activities this month with George 
Shearing Quintet set for one- 
nighter at Metropolitan Theatre 

Feb. 12, and Stan Kenton’s "Fes* 
tival of Modern American Jazz” at 
Civic Auditorium, Feb. 24. Kenton 
troupe will include the Erroll Gar- 
ner Trio with June Christy, Char- 
lie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Lee 
Konitz and Candjdo featured. 

Last month Bobrow brought in 
Louis Armstrong’s crew for a suc- 
cessful bash in the Civic Auditori- 
um, followed by appearance of the 
Univ. Of California Glee Club at 
Meany Hall last week. 

Decca Adds Hillbillies 

Decca Recordst increased its 
rbster of hillbilly artists last week 
with the inking of singers Dick 
Dyson and Red Sovine. 

Paul Cohen, Decca’s country & 
wiestern chief, haiidled the sign- 
ings. 


Singer Bob Anthony inked by 
Eagle Records, N.Y. indie, to a two- 
year pact. He heads for a Korean 
USO tour Feb. 20. 


SADIE 

THOMPSON’ 

SONG 




From the 
Columbia 
Tochnicolor 
Picture 

MISS SADIE! 
THOMPSONS 



'in Up* Hit 


Records 

Teresa brewer 

EINETOPPERS * * ‘ . Co nil 

guy Lombardo ’ * • c * ral 

CLYDE MOODY . Decca 

***** VlUAOE MUSIC °* Ce * 


CO. 












nr„lnf«d»T, February 10, 1954 




Granz Formng 



• ■ ■» v 

Norman Grata, impresario of the 
♦'Jazz At The Philharmonic" troupe 
and a key factor in the promotion 
of progressive jazz since the end 
of the last war, is expanding his 
disk operation with the. formation 
of a new Norgran label. Granz 
also will continue with his Clef 
Records outfit in an overall jazz 
production of 100 longplay albums, 
150 extendedplay sets and 150 sin- 
gles during this year. 

Granz is splitting his artists’ ros- 
ter between the Clef and . Norgran 
labels. Oscar Peterson, Billy Holi- 
day, Anita O’Day and others will re- 
main with Clef while Dizzy Gilles- 
pie, Stan Getz, Buddy DeFranco, 
Lester Yoiing, Buddy Rich, Slim 
Gaillard, Johnny Hodges and others 
will move over to Norgran. Clef 
will also handle distribution of 
some Artie Shaw albums. 

Norgran will have a completely 
Independent distribution setup 
which • Granz is prepping. Clef la- 
bel is being handled through Mer- 
cury’s distributors, Merc having 
formerly pressed Granz’ jazz artists 
under its label until Clef Records 
entered the field. 


AS CBS MUSICOLOGIST 

Dr: Julius Mattfeld, chief musi- 
cologist for the Columbia Broad- 
casting System, pulled a switch 
when celebrating his quarter-of-a- 
century association with the net- 
work by gifting associates with 
$10 copies of the "Variety Music 
Cavalcade," which he authored 
first as a Variety serial until 
P entice-Hall published it in book 
form. 

To some, who already had the 
book, Dr. Mattfeld gifted cham- 
pagne. This was a deliberate 
switch in appreciation of pleasant 
longtime associations, refusing to 
accept personal gifts. 


Petrillo 

Continued from page 49 


hope that Petrillo will duplicate 
his performance of three years ago, 
when similar strike talk was in the 
air. At that time, he virtually dis- 
missed the local unions from the 
negotiations and reached agree- 
ment with the webs without put- 
ting any restraints on the use of 
canned music on the air. 

It’s understood, however, that 
Petrillo row feels that he might 
have made a mistake and will 
throw his support behind Local 
802’s demands for more employ- 
ment of musicians by the radio-tv 
webs. • ' 


■•.V 

Fricsay to Head Houston 
Orch Vice Kurtz Next Fall 

Houston, Feb. 9. - 
Ferenc Fricsay has been named 
new principal conductor of the 
Houston Symphony Orchestra . for 
the 1954-55 season. Fricsay, cur 
rently conductor of the RIAS Or- 
chestra, Berlin, succeeds Efrem 
Kurtz. 

This represents the first direc- 
torial change in a major Texas or- 
chestra since Victor Alessandro 
took over as director of the San 
Antonio Symphony Orchestra in 
the spring of 1951. 


RETAIL DISK BEST SELLEHS 


* Survey of retail disk beet 
sellers based on reports ob- 
tained from leading stores in 
10 cities and showing com- 
parative sales rating for this: 
and last week. 


fft 


National 
Rating 
Thli Last 
wk. wk. 


Artist, Label, Title 


2 

CO 

9 

S3 

§ 

3 


s 

I 


s 

0 
« 

1 

T3 

9 

X 

w 

t 

m . 

9 

3 

u 


& 

■a . 

l 

te 

•o 

3 

1 

1 

•a . 
cn 


0 
a 
m 

A 

.-O' 

1 

a 

1 

e 

■■ m 

V) 


£ 

% 

.9 

« 


9 

■A 

tO 

' w- 

1 

- 01 


Cl 

•9* ' 

. (O . 

3 

s 

a 

1 

i 


M 

M 

» 

s 


o 

O 


w 

9 

2 

Ol 

a> 

9 

0) 

p 

I 

9 

9 

i 

I 


t: 

c« 

S 

t 

0 

1 

I 

s 

l 

9 


T 

O 

T 

A 

L 

P 

0 

1 

A 

T 

S 


EDDIE FISHER (Victor) 
1 “Oh, My Papa" . 


»»*••« • • 


5-' 75 


DEAN AfARTIN (Capitol) 
2 “That’s Amore" . . . . 




2 8 


60 


PATTI PAGE (Mercury) 
3 3 “Changing Partners" . . 


-»c- — r ■ ■ 


9 6 


6 


6 49 


DORIS DAY (Columbia) 

4 5 “Secret Love". . , . v 2' 10 


4 10 


TONY BENNETT (Columbia) 
5 8 “Stranger. In Paradise" . . 




_44 

35 


6 


FOUR KNIGHTS (Capitol) 
9 “I Get So Lonely" .... 


10 


TERESA BREWER (Coral) 
7 10 “Ricochet" ... 


V • k * • 


6 5 4 8 


8 


TONY BENNETT (Columbia) 
“Rags to Riches" . . . 




4 .. 


6 10 ... 


8 


TONY MARTIN (Victor) 
9 . 14 “Stranger in. Paradise" . 


• • t • 


3 .. 


10 


FOUR ACES (Decca) 
“Stranger in Paradise" . . 


2 3 


GAYLORDS (Mercury) 

11 12 “From the Vine Came the Grape" . . 


8 8 


10 3 


FRANK CHACKSFIELD (London) 

12 A 19 “Ebb Tide" . . . . . \ ... 


5 . 


8 9 


8 


_26 

■21 

_18 

_17 

jd 

14 


GEORGIE SHAW (Decca) 
12B 7 “Till We Two Are One" . . 


/ 

9 4 


10 


14 


12C 13 


FOUR TUNES (Jubilee) 
“Marie" :. . ..... 


3 


7 9 .. 


14 


FOUR ACES (Decca) 
15 11 “Heart of My Heart" 


9 ...... 6 


9 13 


JO STAFFORD (Columbia) 
16 16 ’’Make Love to Me" . . 


6 


7 , 8 12 


RONNIE GAYLORD (Mercury) 
17A 17 “Cuddle Me". . 


10 


FRANK SINATRA (Capitol) 
17B . . “Young at Heart” . . . 


10 


19 A 


E ARTH A KITT (Victor) 
“Lovin’ Spree" . . . . 


10 


LOU MONTE (Victor) 

19B . . "Darktown Strutters Ball". 

4 .... 9 . . 


. . . 9 

MILLS BROS. (Decca) 

21 15 “Jones Boy". . 

- / 

7 .. 

.. 10 .. 

9 .. 7 

' - ' ■ ■! 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

FIVE TOP 

KISMET 

v*. 

THAT BAD EARTHA 

SHOW BIZ 

CONCERTOS FOR 
YOU 

liberace-Weston 

Columbia. 

GLENN MILLER 

ALBUMS 

Broadway Cast 

Columbia 

Earthd Kitt 

Victor 

AH. Star Cd*t 

Victor 

Limited Edition 

Victor 


ML 4850 

LPM 3187 

LOC 1011 

ML 4784 

LPT 6700 


3 Cleffers.Get 

... 4 - 

Award From Crestview 

Three sqngwriters who are press- 
ing a $50,000.' suit in N.Y. Supreme 
Court against Crestview Music 
this week were awarded a total of 
$4,513 covering royalties due them 
from the pub to date on their tune, 
‘That’s My Girl." In granting the 
trio partial summary judgment, 
Justice Eugene L. Brisach ruled 
that their action will continue as 
to the balance allegedly owed un- 
der a 1950 deal with Crestview. 

Plaintiffs Ray Ellington, Barbara 
Tobias and Dick Katz; whose roy- 
alty splits on "Girl" are said to be 
fixed at 50%, 35% and 15%, re- 
spectively, were awarded $2,548, 
$1,684 and $281 in the same order. 



Please take notice that we awn all rights la the follow- 
ing songs for the territory of the United States. Canada, 
England and their Colonies, territories and possessions: 

USERS JAHR, WENN DIE KORNBLUMEN BLUHEN 

(Cyprys-Bader) 

WIR SEHN UNS WIEDER (Mihm-Woezel) 

MEIN HERZ GiEHT AUF DIE REISE (Mihm-Woeiel) 

HILL and RANGE SONGS, INC. 

H50 Broadway New York 19. N. Y. 



Continued from page 51 


reported that r&b jockey airers are 
getting an upbeat in listenership. 

Along with this r&b spread, 
package shows spotlighting r&b 
performers are reportedly doing 
good biz. 


Surprising Hub Upsurge 

Boston, Feb. 9. 

During the past few months, 
rhythm & blues records have 
shown a surprising upsurge in 
popularity hereabouts, according 
to Jerry Flatto, owner of the Bos- 
ton Record Distributors, which 
services a large segment of juke- 
box operators. Rhythm platter§ 
currently comprise about 10% of 
his ,sales, compared to less than 
2% a year ago. His overall sales 
(in this category) show a jump of 
about 80%, and continue to build 
as jukebox operators install the 
disks in locations that previously 
catered to strictly pop trade. 

Among those that have created a 
stir here recently are "Gee," 
etched by the Crows on the Rama 
label , and Roy Hamilton’s "You’ll 
Never Walk Alone," release by 
Epic. Each sold over-T^OOO in a 
very short space of /time and Flat- 
to claims that UntiVrpefently dis- 
tribution of 25 of any single r&b 
platter would have been consid- 
ered a feat. 

Credit for awakened Interest In 
this type disk is three-fold— the 
airshows of deejays Symphony Sid 
and Art Tacker, the all-out ped- 
aling job of Cecil Steen, whose 
company handies the majority of 
r&b labels, and Flatto’s staff, who 
plug the records to jukebox oper-^ 
ators. 


Kelton Shakes Up Sales 
Staff; Lynch New Veepee 

Kelton Co., high-fidelity phono- 
graph manufacturer, reshuffled its 
sales staff last Week, upping James 
H. Lynch to veepee in charge of 
sales. Lynch had been national 
sales manager for the firm. Before 
joining Kelton, he had been New 
England sales manager for Decca 
Records. 

In other appointments at Kelton, 
James B. Bray was named western 
sales manager- Robert E. Evensen 
midwest sales manager and Wil- 

Atlantic City Symph 
Seeks 16G , 54- , 55 Grant 

Atlantic City, Feb. 9, 

With three concerts to go on its 
1953-54 schedule, the Atlantic City 
Symphony Assn, has asked the city 
for a $16,000 grant for its 1954-55 
program. Group wants this Sum 
included in its budget for this 
year, which will be adopted some- 
tune in February. Chances are 
good that it will be included' be- 

?n=o\ 4 0rganizati0n Sot grant for 
iaoo-54. . 

Orchestra has scheduled its next 
concert for Feb: 21. 



To Tee in Oslo 

The Woody Herman orch will 
head for Oslo, Norway, April l 
oh thelfirst stop of its 30rday tour 
of Europe. Trek is being guided by 
British promoter Harold Davidson. 

Following the open date in Oslo 
April 3, orch will swing through 
the major Scandinavian cities, play 
concerts in Germany and appear 
In Brussels on April 11 in a special 
date under the sponsorship of the 
Belgian Hot Club. Orch will . break 
up its junket on the Continent to 
go to England for two days to ap- 
pear at U. S. camps. British Musi- 
cians Union restrictions will pre- 
vent the band from appearing nuh. 
licly in England. 

Tour will wind in Dublin May 2 
The Herman band has been ex- 
panded to, 18 for the trip. Vocalist 
Dolly Houston will accomp the 
orch. While : Herman was on the 
Coast in January, he added trum- 
peter Dick Collins, formerly with 
the Dave Brubeck Octet; trumpeter 
Bill Castagnino, replacing Norman 
Faye, and former Stan Kenton 
trombonist Keith Moon, replacing 
Jinr. Hewitt. 


Under its new . licensing deal 
With Broadcast Music, Inc., Capitol 
Records has cut its prices on its 
Q Library of recorded cue and 
mood music used by radio-tv out- 
lets for dramatic shows. In place 
of the previous $40 per month 
charge, Capitol is now making the 
transcriptions available at $1.50 per 
disk for the next four years. 

The library conists of 100 disks 
with another 70 to be added by 
next month. Repertory consists of 
original instrumentals and public 
domain items adapted for cue and 
mood music purposes. 


AGVA-AFM 

Continued from page 49 

over which we nor you thus far 
have had any control. 

“Variety performers on network 
shows are under the jurisdiction of 
our sister, union, the American 
Federation of Television and Radio 
Artists, but insofar as they are 
members of our union and attend 
our- meetings and read our pub- 
lications, you may be sure they 
will be informed of the justice of 
your, position and we urge you to 
call on us for any other assistance 
that you believe we can give." ’ 

In some cases, various locals of 
the AFM have been refusing to 
play for AGVA acts. In Boston, 
the AFiyi was enjoined from doing 
so in ah out-of-court settlement, 
which stipulated that all disputes 
between both unions be settled on 
a * local level without interference 
from the national offices of either 
union, and that musicians continue 
to play for "AGVA acts. 

In Montreal, the courts refused 
to issue a temporary injunction 
against tlje AFM apd case will go 
to trial. 


Repeat Plays 
Across The 
Country! 

MOV 
GUBIN 

AU THE 
LIVELONG DAY 

on COLUMBIA RECORDS 

ESSEX 




America's- Fastest 
^Selling "Records! 











FebrnmT 10, 1954 


59 


The Ball Began to Roll with a — 

500,000 RECORD SALE ! 


“WHAT IT WAS, WAS FOOTBALL” 

(Capitol — Parts 1 and 2) 


Introduced by FRED ROBBINS on "BIG REVIEW" Over NBC 


THREE 

ADDITIONAL 

APPEARANCES 


Ed Sullivan’s 
“TOAST OF THE TOWN” 
CBS -TV 



\ 


Messrs. HERBERT JACOBY and MAX GORDON of the 

BLUE ANGEL s 


ff) 

/ • 


CV. ... 

*mtei*0* 



nf Record Release: 

Romeo and Juliet 

'Parts 1 and 2) 

Action: WILLIAM MORRIS AGENCY 


"The most refreshing and unusual comedy find of the year 
(Continuing at the BLUE ANGEL until FEB. 

Exclusively 


// 




1 V AUBE VILLB 


ill] i 



T&rstoini 


Wednesday, February IQ, 1954 


i The American Guild of Variety 
Artists is considering- making 
Canada off-limits for AQVA per- 
formers as a consequence of the 

Union's tiff with the American Fed- 
eration, of Musicians] The situa- 
tion, from AGVA’s viewpoint, Was 
aggravated last week, when the 
Montreal court denied AGVA's 
petition for a temporary injunction 
to prevent musickers from refus- 
ing to play for AGVA acts. Issue 
yvill now come to trial, but date 
isn’t set yet. 

Union, from New York, is at- 
tempting to determine the extent 
of the contractual relations. AGVA 
is now making a survey as to which 
spots in Canada have contracts 
With AFM. Under the normal 
AFM contract, musicians would 
have to play for any performer 
signed to the spot, otherwise union 
would have breached its contract 
with the operator. If AGVA has 
a minimum basic agreement with 
a spot, AGVA performers ■ are 
protected, since all contracts are 
pay or play. 

, Indie Groups. Expand 

At this point, the Canadian Assn, 
of Variety Artists, an independent, 
actor organization centering around 
Montreal, is trying to expand be- 
. cause of the jurisdictional squab- 
ble. At the same time, the AFM in 
Toronto is forcing many perform- 
ers into an auxiliary union which 
it has organized. This branch of 
the AFM is getting a $10 initiation 
fee from AGVA performers. Oth- 
erwise the union musicians won’t 
play for them. 

There is an instance in Toronto 
where a dance team wasn’t backed 
by the AFM on a tele show on the 
Canadian Broadcasting Co. Chain, 

(Continued on page 67) . 


'Hilariously talented youngster 
with sock routine." —VARIETY 


Camp Shows Probing U.S. 


For Acts; Mi 


USO-Camp Shows will make a 
pitch to get'talent from all parts 
of the country. Organization is 
slated to hold special talent audi- 
tions in Detroit, Feb. 10-1.1, and Chir 
cago, the following two days, in 
an effort to tap an act supply that 
cannot get to New York, to be au- 
ditioned. 

Bert Wishnew, head of the USOV 
Camp Shows production depart- 
ment, will view the talent. He’ll 
be at the Sheraton Cadillac in De- 
troit and at the Palmer House, 
Chi. Auditions will be at the De- 
troit Leland Hotel and the Chi’s 
Moose Hall. 

Accpetable acts will be booked 
for tours of overseas military bases 
from four to 17 weeks. 


fcht h 



WILL JORDAN 

Currently 

DETROIT 
ATHLETIC CLUB 

February 26th 

STEVE ALLEN SHOW 

NBC-TV 

Personal Management: 
MILTON H. BLACKSTONE 
565 5th Ave., New York EL 5-1540 
Direction: MCA . 


TmWJT 


Awarded $15,400 in Pitt 

Pittsburgh, Feb, 9. 

Julia Tsangarakis, Greek folk 
dancer, and her husband, George 
Tsangarakis, were awarded $15,400 
damages last week by a jury in 
Common Pleas Court for injuries 
growing -out of an automobile acci- 
dent in May,. 1951. ' Mrs; Tsanga- 
rakis testified that she received an 
ankle injury which forced her to 
give up her folk-dancing career. 

She won ,a_ $12,000 verdict and 
that for her husband came to 
$3,300. 



ROY 


(and "Eddi* Echo") 
Current . ; Engagement: 

STATLER HOTEL 

BUFFALO, N. Y. 

Perscn-I Management 
KEN GRAYSON — TR' 4-1485 
50 Riverside Drive New York, N. Y. 


, When in Buffalo Stop at tha 

ROANOKE 

APARTMENT HOTEL 

An Apartment for the price of a Room 
Complete Coofc.'ng Facilitiea 

M. Lenchner, Mgr., 206 So. Elmwood Av. 


• Toronto, Feb. 9, 

With Cahadian . Broadcasting. 
Corp. musicians refusing to play 
for The ReVue Dancers, three men 
and a girl, oji . “The Big Revue," 
CBC’s top-budgeted weekly tele- 
vised musical, dance troupe will 
sue the musicians as a test case in 
the current fight between the 
American Federation of Musicians 
and the American Guild of Variety 
Artists (both AFL affiliates). Court 
battle is sparked by presence here 
of Jackie Bright, AGVA president, 
up from New York to take personal 
command of the two-union fight, 
together with Lou Smoleve, AGVA 
head of Canadian activities, who 
has taken over the AGVA office 
headquarters here following the 
resignation of Robin Logan, former 
topper of the AGVA Canadian 
chapter. 

Knockdown fight between the 
two unions buckled down to 
tougher tactics over the weekend, 
when the CBC was forced to cancel 
the guest appearances on “The Big 
Revue” of Jacqueline James and 
Shirley Harmer, singers. Musicians 
union also tossed out opening night 
performance (Friday) of Ernest 
Corley and his puppets, appearing 
in the International Hobby Show 
at the Canadian National Exhibi- 
tion, this on threat of musicians 
that they would not appear with 
the show’s other acts. In these in- 
stances of banned appearances, 
artists named refused to turn in 

(Continued on page 67) 


DANDRIDGE SEEKS OUT 
FROM MCA CONTRACT 

Dorothy Dandridge is seeking to 
divorce herself from Music Corp. of 
America, to whom she is now un- 
dec contract. 

A preliminary hearing was held 
at the America Guild of Variety 
Artists last week, and an arbitra- 
tion panel will be assembled to 
hear this matter on Feb. 26. 


Abramson Renamed Prez 
Of Entertainment Mgrs. 

Nat Abramson, head of the WOR 
Artists Bureau, has been reelected 
prexy of the Entertainment Man- 
agers Assn., N. Y. Max Wolff was 
named vice-president; Tom Kelly, 
secretary, and Ed Newman, treas- 
urer. 

Named to the board of governors 
for a three-year term are Jack 
Segal, Rudy Feiman and Benn 
Paust. Elected for two years are 
Charles Peterson, Sid Hall and 
Gordon Skea. Howard Oliver, Mary 
Allen and Carlton Hub were 
tapped for one year. 


DUQUAINE and DANICE 

1 .'! 7 !STRf IN BANC" INTERPRETATIONS 

Currently— RICE HOTEL— Houston, Texas 

Vhan!;s: MI55 MA7JE HART 

LEW AND LESLIE GRADE, LTD., NEW YORK 


Franchise has been restored to 
the Lew & Leslie Grade Agency 
by the American Guild, of Variety 
Artists. Meeting of the AGVA ar- 
bitration board , ruled that there 
was no issue involved, inasmuch as 
the act in question, the Amin Bros., 
had been released by the agency 
as. of Dec. 1. Board also ruled that 
any monies held in escrow for the 
Amin Bros, be returned to the act. 

Dispute came about last week 
when AGVA held a hearing, which 
was not attended by Grade reps, 
and confab ruled on the franchise 
revocation. However, prior to sub- 
sequent hearing, the additional in- 
fo was brought out. 

AGVA originally charged that 
the original Amin Bros, contract 
had the initials of the team on 
clauses extending! the pact. AGVA 
stated these initials had been il : 
legally added. Prior to the hearing, 
The Grade agency had . been at- 
tempting to get an arbitration, but 
initial confab took place at a time 
when Artists Representatives Assn, 
counsel Jack Katz was out of town, 
and therefore the agency felt that 
it wasn’t fair to hold proceedings 
at that time. 


Unusual Court Order 
Ends 5-Year Pickets 
At Philly Anchorage 

Philadelphia, Feb. 9. 

A precedent-setting court order 
ended five years of picketing of 
the Anchorage Cafe by members 
of Local 301, Waiters & . Waitresses 
Union (AFL). Anticipating an ap- 
peal, Judge Edwin O. Lewis, who 
issued the injunctive order, said 
if his decision was sustained in 
Supreme Court “it will have wide- 
spread effect on labor disputes.”- 

Local 301 has been attempting 
to organize the Anchorage since 
March 18, 1949, and has main- 
tained a picket line around the 
East River Drive spot since. Judge 
Lewis ruled “there is no right in a 
labor union to maintain organiza- 
tional picketing for an indefinite 
time; and that such picketing can 
be continued for only such a pe- 
riod as is reasonable and consistent 
with the avowed purposes of the 
undertaking.” 

“When a reasonable time has 
elapsed, persuation becomes in- 
timidation, fofee supplants argu- 
ment and the employer is irrepar- 
ably damaged, or ruined,” Judge 
Lewis held. The failure of the 
Union to persuade a majority of 
the Anchorage employees had been 
“demonstrated years ago and the 
union persisted.” 

The jurist held that' a reasonable 
length of time for picketing small 
business establishments, employing 
small numbers of workers, should 
be two or three weeks, for larger 
enterprises employing hundreds- of 
workers, two to three months. Fail- 
ing in that time, Judge Lewis 
stated, “the burden is then upon 
the union to justify further inter- 
ference With the employer and his 
employees.” 

Workers who do not wish to join 
unions are entitled to the protec- 
tion of the court against the type 
of solicitation that runs into perse- 
cution; and owners of business en- 
terprises whose workers desire, to 
remain non-union are not to be 
picketed into bankruptcy in the 
name of free speech, Judge Lewis 
held. 

Danny White, booker for Sam 
Snyder’s “Water Follies” sails on 
the Queen Mary today (Wed.) for 
a month’s tour of England and 
Europe on a talent quest for the 
next edition of the “Follies.” 


DeMarcos Out of Final 
Mpls. Flame Room Week 

Minneapolis, Feb. 9. 

Tony and Sally DeMarco were 
out of the Hotel Radisson’s Flame 
Room for the entire final stanza of 
their .three-week • engagement, 
when management permitted their 
ankling after the sudden death bf 
Mrs. DeMarco’s father ih Los An- 
geles; ; '. 

With the room unable to obtain 
a last-minute filler-in, entire en- 
tertainment chore fell on the shoul- 
ders of Don McGrane and his or- 
chestra, who improvised a special 
show. 



Pittsburgh, Feb. 9. ; 

With business continuing to de- 
cline, Casino Theatre has folded, 
at least for a few months, marking 
the first time within memory that 
the town has been without bur- 
lesque at this time of the year. 
There have been . summer shut- 
downs and occasional layoffs 
around holidays, but; never any 
shuttering at height of the season. 
House recently went on a stock ba- 
sis to cut down expenses, but it 
didn’t • help much, with manage- 
ment blapiing it on three-month de- 
partment store strike, which has 
cut down traffic in Golden Triangle 
considerably, and Industrial condi- 
tions generally in this area. 

Casino, which had been, down 
for three weeks before Christmas, 

| reopened Dec. 26 on a stock pol- 
icy, but the six weeks since then : 
have been bad and decisioii to 
close Saturday night (6) came 
suddenly. Operators say they may 
try again in the spring when con- 
tions are* more settled. George 
Murray, longtime burlesk comic 
who had been managing the house 
for the Hirst enterprises "and then 
put on baggy -pants and greasepaint 
again under the stock policy, will 
hit the road again with his wife, . 
Eileen Hubert, straightwoman, un- 
til the house gets going again, if 
it does. There are some who be- 
lieve this may mean the end of 
burlesque for keeps in Pittsburgh. 

MORITT RESUMES FIGHT 
ON CHECKING ‘RACKET’ 

Albany, Feb. 9. 

Sen. Fred G. Moritt, of Brook- 
lyn, has resumed the fight against 
the coat-hat checking concession 
“racket” (his word) by introducing 
a bill amending the general city 
law to permit the imposition by 
municipalities of a tax of not more 
than “50%” of the amounts of 
rentals, payments, gratuities and 
other income from such privileges. 
This would be "in addition to any 
and all other taxes imposed” upon 
such rentals, etc. * 

Senator Moritt, whose measure 
has passed the Upper House for 
several years, only to die in the 
Assembly Ways and Means Com- 
mittee, attributes this defeat to a 

lobby.” He calls the concession 
business a “racket,” . grossing $25,- 
000,000 annually in New York 
State and $250,000,000 nationally. 


0 ^ • Albany, Feb. g 

Sen.- Fred G. Moritt, Brooklyn 
Democrat, last Thursday (4) JnS? 
dimed a bill amending the general 
business law to fix the maximum 
fees to licensed agencies by be? 
formers at not more than 
the “first $200 of the "veeklv- 
wages or salary of the engagement 
and at not more than "io% of th* 
weekly wages or salary of the en 
gagement in excess of $200 ’’ 

• The- bill, which would take effect 
Jiily 1 Is aimed, Senator Moritt 
told Variety, “at legitimatizing 
large and respectable theatrical 
agents and. agencies’ customs of 
charging 10% which the enter, 
tainment world has accepted and 
thus legally remove from ■ saM 
agents and agencies the taint of 
the crime of committing a misde- 
meanor.” 

■ j VRy habit, tradition and even in 
the Joe Miller joke books,” Sena- 
tor. Moritt continued, “agents are 
commonly understood by the pub- 
lie. to be legitimate 10 percenters. 
By New York Law-Section 185/. 
Subdivision — however, 5% j s 
the statutory fee in most cases ’’ 
Senator Moritt, former profes- 
sional singer, an ASCAP composer 
and partner in McDonald Pictures 
(currently releasing “Paris Ex- 
press” and “So Little Time”), said 
that several agents suggested he 
sponsor a bill to make legitimate 
the present practice of charging 
_ ; (Continued on page 67) 



LENNY COLYER 

"Mr. Spcci Himself" 
Currently: 

Jimmy Hegg's 

STARLIGHT CASINO 
Minneapolis 
Per Mgt. AL BORDE 
203 N. Wabash, Chicago . 


RED CAPS 

with 

DAMITA JO 

Currently: 

CIRO'S, Miami Beach 
Direction: MCA 


HARBERS 


Held Oyer 

SHAMROCK HOTEL 

HOUSTON, TEXAS 


inso In 


and 


DALE 


April for His ‘Revels’ 

TT London, Feb. 2. 

Harry Foster, head of Foster’s 
Agency, is^going over to Las Vegas, 
April 15, for the opening of “Picca- 
dilly Revels,” the floor show at 
the Flamingo, which he packaged. 

Show, which is in for five . week’s 
guarantee with further options, 
wnl be headed by Vera Lynn and 
Tommy Copper, and ' will feature 
EWdie Vitch, Alan & Blanche Lund 
(Australian dancers, who have al- 
ready established themselves in 
London), Patricia D’Or and a big 
line of femme and male dancers. 

Ron Fletcher is to stage the 
show. 


, 41 - 



fftotoi Febnwy, 10, 1954 






} y * i, 


T 


I 


t , . * 1 , 

• > • * • 

PmpMieuti Mei&aqe . . . 

ALL PERFORMERS 


* • < '■ * i/i *\\'T**' 


DO NOT APPEAR ON ANY BENEFIT OR TELETHON OF ANY DESCRIPTION WHEREVER 
HELD WITHOUT FIRST MAKING SURE IT HAS BEEN CLEARED BY THEATRE AUTHORITY ! 

I 

Actors' hearts are big. They are ready at all times to contribute their services freely 
for charitable, patriotic and other worthwhile causes. But to achieve the greatest 
good for the greatest number— and to protect the public —there must be sensible 
regulation of benefits and telethons which seek free performances by professional 
actors. This is the responsibiiity of 

Theatre Authority, Inc., a non-profit organization, composed 
ot all talent Guilds, Unions, various charitable Guild and other 
important groups of the amusement industry. 

Theatre Authority, Inc., guards against (1) exploitation of 
performers' free appearances for private gain and unworthy 
causes (2) overabundance of benefits (3) overabundance of 
talent used at benefits; and in addition (4) receives a per- 
centage of monies raised at benefits which it distributes to 
performers' charities. 

-9' 

Performers aid their own when they appear at a cleared benefit or telethon. All 
monies received from these performances by Theatre Authority, Inc., are allocated 
to the charitable guilds and relief funds of the performers^ Own unions and guilds- 
In the past years, Theatre Authority, fhc., has distributed over $1,000,000.00 to its 
member guild and union relief funds. 

If You Are Called to Appear At or Sponsor a Benefit or Tele- 
thon of any kind east of Omaha, refer the caller tp Theatre 
Authority in New York, 545 Fifth Avenue, telephone number 
MUrray Hill 2-4215, and you are to advise this office also. 

If it is for a Benefit or Telethon west of Omaha refer the caller 
to Theatre Authority in Los Angeles, 6331 Hollywood Boule- 
vard, telephone number HOIlywood 2-5761, and you are to 
advise this office also. 

If you are on the West Coast you already have received from your guild or union a 
more complete exposition of this message. If you are on the East Coast you will soon 
receive such information. READ IT AND BE GUIDED — FOR YOUR OWN PROTEC- 
TION AND FOR THE BENEFIT OF WORTHY CHARITIES. 


THEATRE AUTHORITY, INC. 


MEMBER ORGANIZATIONS: , • . . 

Actors Equity Association • American Federation of Television and Radio Artists • American Guild of Musical Art.sts • Andean 
Guild of Variety Artists • Screen Actors Guild • Actors Fund of America • Authors League • Episcopal Actors Guild • Jew- 
ish Theatrical Guild * Negro Actors Guild • League of New York Theatres. 

HAROLD M. HOFFMAN. 

Executive Secretary. 

545 Fifth Ave., New York, 41. Y. 

. MUrray Hill 2-4215. 

Wesiern Theatre Authority: Actors Equity Association # American Federation of Television and Radio Artists 
American Guild of Musical Artists • American Guild of Variety Artists • Artists Managers Guild • Association of Motion Picture 
Producers • Chorus Equity Association • Screen Actors Guild • Hollywood Coord.natmg Comm.ttee. 

I. B. KORNBLUM. 

Executive Secretary. 

6331 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, Col. 
Hollywood 2-5761. 


VAUDEVILLE 


ffwlaeiiay, Fctnui? 10 , 1934 


Babes ioBako Land Get Rude Shock; iMfc'jEiS 




Operators 
Baltimore* which hasn’t had floor- 
■hows in several years* feel like 
strangers to the fold. The : bonl- 
faces, in buying talent for their 
first floorshow tomorrow * ( Thurs. ) * 
find themselves, they say, in a com- 
pletely new world. 

Partners Harry (Curly) Miller, v| 
Tom Averse and Mike Golden re- 
call that when they were last in 
the business around; six years ago, 
the .top name cost in the neighbor- 
hood of $4,000 and the surrounding 
talent and band stood another 
$1,500. For that. they, could wage 
war with the other Baltimore 
niteries then in operation, the Club 
Charles and the 21. The name war 
ultimately got them all down, and 
for some time the city of Baltimore 
has been without any nightclubs 
whatsoever, although c O c k t a i 1 
lounges abound.' Today, the same 
bill, they find, costs them $15,000 
or more. 

The Chanticleer ops, after spend- 
ing $120,000 to refurbish the spot 
In order to change over to nitery 
operation, came to New York pre- 
pared to buy a show with names 
like Tony Martin, Danny Thomas 
and others in that category, for ap- 
proximately the same price that 
they would have previously paid. 

New Singers, Comics 

Dick Henry, who had booked the 
spot when he was with the William 
Mortis Agency, Was called upon to 
(Continued on page 67) . 


"Gal rtally scores wlh sock flash terp 
tloff . . , and her twirling* boffo." 

VARIETY. 



MISS 

BILLIE MAHONEY 

Currently on tour' with Lionel Hampton 

Now SEVILLE THEATRE 
Montreal 

February 12 

i APOLLO THEATRE, New York 
February 19 

HOWARD THEATRE, Wash.. D. C. 
Personal Management 

MILTON H. BLACKSTONE 
565 Fifth Ave., New York, EL 5-1 540 


COMEDY MATERIAL 

For All Branches of Theatrical* * 

FUN-MASTER 

THE ORIGINAL SHOW-BIZ GAG FILE 
. (The Service of the. STARS) 

First of 15 flies *7.00— All 35 Issue* *23 
Singly: *1.05 Each IN SEQUENCE ONLY 
Beginning with No. 1— No Sklpplngl 

• 3 Bk*. PARODIES, per book. . *10 e 

• MINSTREL BUDGET, . . ... *25 # 

• .4 BLACKOUT BKS., ea. bk.. .*25 a 

• BLUE BOOK (Gags for Stags) *50 • 
HOW TO MASTER THB CEREMONIES 

■ . . ' *3.00 t . 

GIANT CLASSIFIED ENCYCLOPEDIA 
OP GAGS, *300. Worth ovor a thousand 
No C O D '* 

BILLY GLASON 

200 W. 54th St., Now York 19— Dopt. V 
Circle 7-1130 


LEW 


BLACK 

end 

FAT 

DUNDEE 

(Beauty and, 
the Least) ■ 
A n*w note In 
Glamor Comedy 

Staged by 
Merv>n Nelson 

—mot — • 

Cass Franklin 
Lou Walters Ent. 
I57S Broadway 
New York 



Hamid-Morton Circus 
For K.C. Police Event 

Kansas City,' Feb. 9, 
Annual Police Circus has been 
set for March 2-7 in the Municipal 
Auditorium, with matinees daily 
except opening day. Flatfoots are 
bringing in the Hamid-Morton cir- 
cus for the event, with a program 
much as it has been ip recent 
years. '.7; 

, Two new acts to be seen here 
this year are the Moulton Troupe- 
daredevil motorcyclists, and the 
Yokoi Troupe, Jap balancers. 



Wins License in Court 


N 


The Colony Theatre, Union City, 
j„ won its battle with city of- 
ficials to get a burlesque license 
for that house. The Appellate Di- 
vision of the New Jersey Superior 
Court ruled that the city grant the 
permit as Soon as the house elim- 
inates health «and fire hazards. 

Harry W. Doniger, head of the 
D.B.M. Amusement Corp., was op- 
posed on his application because 
the city objected to a second hur- 
ley showcase. (The Hudson Thea 
tre is nearby). It* was also stated 
that a playground is contemplated 
adjacent to the theatre. City also 
alleged that Doniger wasn’t fit to 
obtain a burlesque license, due to 
the fact that he had : shown ob- 
jectionable films in 1946 and 1950. 

It’s recalled that the Adams The- 
atre, Newark, .similarly was op- 
posed in the granting of a burles- 
que license. However, . operator 
Harold Minsky took the battle to 
the higher courts 'and ultimately 
was permitted to run that form of 
entertainment. 

With the opening of the Colony 
Theatre, the Northern New Jersey 
area would have the heaviest con- 
centrations of burlesqueries in the 
country. Newark already has the 
Adams, and the Empire, and near- 
by Hudson City would have an- 
other pair. 


Openas 

Indianapolis, Feb. 9. 
Open bidding for lease on the 
Coliseum at the Indiana State 
Fairgrounds here will be held 
when the present contract with 
Arthur Wirtz and associate* ex- 
pires, Gilman C. Stewart, board 
president, announced. 

Board will entertain propositions 
made in person or by letter at 
fairgrounds administration build- 
ing Feb. 12, he said. Bids will be 
received by Kenneth F. '31ackwell, 
fair board’s secretary-manager. 

Known bidders to date are 
Wirtz associates, who have leased' 
the Coliseum for the past 15 years, 
and Mel Ross, president of Theatri- 
cal Productions, Inc , which oper- 
ates the Murat, Indianapolis legit 
house. New lease will not be 
made for longer than five years, 
Stewart indicated. Under present 
arrangement board takes a per- 
centage of Coliseum receipts. 

Board, which retains control of 
Coliseum itself during State Fair 
Labor pay week, announced book- 
ing of Julius LaRosa as Sept. .2-3 
headliner at $7,000 fee. Eddie Fish- 
er/following Sept. 4-5, will get 
$8,000. Mills Bros, and Jan Garber 
will be on bill all four days, Gar- 
ber remaining to play for horse 
show which follows in Coliseum for 
rest of fair. Board approved cost 
of $28,500 for Coliseum shows, 
which grossed more than $50,000 
last year. . 




r 

% 

s. 




IN 2 PITTSBURGH SHOWS 

Pittsburgh, Feb. 9. 

Gene Autry’s one-day stand last 
Thursday (4) at the Gardens was- 
n’t up to expectations, cowboy 
star getting just under $8,000 on 
the two performances. That’s about 
the same as he did. last time 
around, but management figured 
on an increase this year because 
of the terrific campaign. 

Autry made all the front pages 
for days ahead of his appearance 
when the Dubin-Feldman agency, 
handling promotion, cooked, up the 
idea of having the star present a 
horse to a local youngster who 
tried in vain, With his life’s sav- 
ings, to buy one of the. police nags 
city is discarding with abandon- 
ment of its mounted force. 

Top was scaled to $2.75, with 
kiddies getting in at half price in 
the afternoon and evening. 


Hollywood, Feb, 9. 

Danny Kaye will make a four or 
five-week tour of South Africa at 
$30,000 weekly starting May 3, 
shortly after completion of his 
stand at the Shubert Theatre, Phil- 
adelphia, which starts Feb. 22. Al- 
though final details are still to be 
ironed out, it’s understood that the 
comic will get the highest guaran- 
tee plus a percentage ever to be 
given a performer in that part of 
the, world. Still to be worked, out 
are the portions of the contract 
relating to the disposition of the 
coin that Kaye will not be per- 
mitted to take out of that country. 

Kaye - will tour Schlesinger 
houses in Johannesburg, Capetown 
and Durban. He’ll play two or 
three weeks in Johannesburg and 
one week in each of the other cit- 
ies. Ed Dukoff,. Kay’s personal 
manager, and Abe Lastfogel, Wil- 
liam 'Morris Agency general man- 
ager, worked out the deal. 

It’s estimated that Kaye will 
play to 140,000 persons during this 
jaunt. Three acts, to be paid for 
by Kaye, will tour with him. 


Chicago, Feb. 9, 
Unkindest cut dealt to the nitery 
circuit here is that delivered by 
the acts themselves who* as far as 
the bonifaces are concerned, are 
overpricing themselves above any 
regard for the nightclub’s profit- 
making problems. Especially, this 
is felt by the new cafes trying to 
kick off in a big way, which cannot 
afford heavy losses they might ac- 
crue on highprice talent that does- 
n’t deliver at the door. ■ 

Spots like the recently-establish- 




m 


Over 


, Chicago, ,Feb. 9. 

Chicago Federation of Labor 
pledged support hy resolution _ to 
American Guild of Variety Artists 
here to obtain “the best possible 
trade union conditions” for its per- 
formers through written agree- 
ments. Endorsement was solicited 
from the city central labor body 
by Ernie Fast, midwest AGVA rep, 
last week, and in effect it means, 
that AGVA may expect full moral 
and financial support from Chi 
AFL chapter, within its limitations. 

In this case its limitations are 
local, which means that the Chi 
Federation Cannot pass approval or 
disapproval on AGVA’s controver- 
sial welfare fund, as that is a mat- 
ter of international concern. How- 
ever, all other AFL affiliates here 
were rallied to support AGVA’S 
program locally and to encourage 
all variety performers in AGVA’s 
jurisdiction to join the union and 
participate in its work. 

Fast, who has been meeting stiff 
resistance from nightclub owners 
here in his attempt to enforce the 
welfare plan, told Variety his next 
offensive move would be ,to recom- 
mend to the national office of 
AGVA that union cards be taken 
away from clubs that are on the 
unfair list. 


ed Encore Room, and even the 
year^old Black Orchid and Blue 
Angel, find acts boastful of being 
great drawing cards but not so 
sure of their pulling power that 
they’d chance a percentage deal 
The new rdoms especially indicate 
they would feel safer in their 
booking practices with percentage 
situations. 

What’s happening is that these 
nitery acts are pricing themselves 
right out of the market, at “least 
such a market as the tyro night- 
spots . afford. Chirpers and comics 
who have made „good in Gotham, 
working for a , pittance, apparently 
assume they’ve established them- 
selves nationally and come into 
these hinterlands asking a pretty 
fat price, considering they haven’t 
proven themselves in this territory. 
Qr so goes the complaint of ne\v- 
ciub operators like Ralph Mitchell 
and Milt Schwartz. . 

Tv, Vegas and the lush industrial 
shows, paying very fancy prices for 
talent, have thrown the wage scale 
completely out' of proportion to 
the average nitery’s working nut. 
Small wonder shows are being 
carded here a day in advance of 
their openings. Small wonder, too, 
that the tendency to book attrac- 
tions for longer periods of time is 
growing. 


Motorama To Be Filmed 
For Commercial Pix Use 

The General Motors Motorama, 
which opened its second engage- 
ment of the season in Miami, Sat- 
urday (6), will be filmed for pres- 
entation in pix houses. It’ll be a 
commercial picture for which GM 
will pay the exhibs for Tunning. 

Picture will be made in full color 
by Sound Mastets in . Miami. 
Landre &' Verna and Lolo (& Lita) 
are currently with the troupe 1 and 
a third act will be signed in time 
for the Florida bow. 


Jean Fardulli, Chi Blue Angel 
bonifaee, touring the Caribbean 
for a month in search of new tal- 
ent and ideas for future Calypso 
revues. 


THE SATISFIERS 

Popular Recording, Radio and TV Quartette 

PALACE - Feb. 12-19 


Mgr.: EDDIE HELLMAN 


151 E. S3rd St. — PL 8-0677 


Long Queues Start 
Johannesburg, Feb. 9. 

Following release of news that 
Danny Kaye Would appear here, 
queues formed at the boxoffice im- 
mediately, starting before lunch- 
time on Saturday and getting big- 
ger right through the weekend. 
Schlesinger management was 
forced to serve hot dogs and coffee 
to those .waiting for ducats. 

Reception to the news is .report- 
ed to be the greatest ever ac- 
corded a theatrical personality, 
consequently a three-week stand in 
Johannesburg may be worked nut. 


TCE’ BOWS IN DENMARK 
TO RECORD ADVANCE 

Copenhagen, Feb. 9. 

Never before in the history of 
Danish show biz has there been 
an advance sale like that of “Holi- 
day On Ice,” \vhich> opens at Den- 
mark’s biggest hall, K. B. Hallen 
(4,000 seats), tonight (Tues.). A 
week before the opening, every 
seat was sold out for the first 
eight performances. The : ice show 
Visited Denmark last year at Forum 
and was a surprise hit then. This 
time Danes from all over are mak- 
ing sure of getting seats. There 
are special bus services from many 
towns* 

This “Holiday On Ice” show Is 
managed by Richard Stangerup, 
who also arranged the last Danish 
tour. It is the No. 2 troupe of the 
several “Holiday On Ice” shows 
that are touring the globe this 
season. It is expected that the 
show v/ill play K. B. Hallen at 
least one month, with nine shows 
weekly. • 



BILLY GILBERT 

Opening Feb. 12 

COLONY CLUB 

Dallas. Texas 

Personal Mgt.:— -DAVID L. SHAPIRO 
1774 Broadway, N. Y. Cl 5-5368 


Just Embarrassed 

Lansing, Mich., Feb. 9. 

In referring to her 35-foot 
fall, Marga Nicholas, 29-year- 
old aerialist who is a member 
of the Flying Wallendas with 
the Hospitaler Circus, said: “I 
was so embarrassed.” Karl 
“Papa” Wallenda snorted: 
“Embarrassed— hah! I am glad 

she is so lucky to be alive.” 

. , » 

Miss Nicholas was doing a 
foot-in-strap swing in the 
opening number of the circus’ 
first matinee here Wednesday 
(3) when her foot slipped and 
she plunged to the ground. 
She landed on her back in the 
center ring where roustabouts 
were erecting a. lion’s cage, 
i Miraculously, she suffered 
only an injured left leg, which 
is in a cast, and bruises. She 
came to this country from Ger- 
many, three years ago, Her 
husband is ringmaster of the 
Ringling Bros, circus. 


Booked Solid with Polack Bros. 
Shrine Circus till Dee. 1954 



HURLEY 

Poetry In Technicolor 

Contact me c/o Joe Hiller Agency 
Century Bldg., Pittsburgh, Pa. 

Par. Mgt.— -BERT COLLI NS 



Paris Moulin Rouge Fold 

_ Paris, Feb. 9. 

The Moulin Rouge was forced 
to close yesterday (Mon.) because 
of water damage resulting from a 
broken water main in the theatre 
above the music hall. 

The break sent a terrific amount 
of water cascading through the 
hall, causing damage which neces- 
sitated its shuttering, probably un- 
til the spring. 



Joe Higgins, who has been with 
the General Artists Corp. act and 
band department for about eight 
years, has resigned to go into 
the personal management field. 
Among others, he’ll handle Dol- 
ores Martell, Alan Dean, and 
Mark Stevens, latter in the east 
only. 

Prior to joining GAC, Higgins 
was with the Gale Agency. 


WHEN IN BOSTON 

It's the 




The Home of Show Folk 

Avory I' WoshluqtoB St*. 



Magician Paul Duke currently 
touring the West Indies with his 
“One-Man Show.” 


Mr. Sam Robarts wishes to thank Ms 
many frlands for their good wlsnei 
for his. speedy recovery. He sincerely 
appreciates the kind thoughts con 
tallied In the numerous telegrams 
cards, and messages which he a*’ 

received while In Chicago's Wes'ev 
Memorial Hospital. Thanks a million 
from Sam Roberts. 






Wednesday, Fehrnary 10, 1954 


VAUDEVILLE 63 



By LARY SOLLOWAY 4 


' Miami, Feb. 9. 


Greater Miami is experiencing 
its worst season in postwar history. 
Most operators are keeping lingers 
crossed that the tourists will start 
coming this week, much as they 
did last yea*. Wheji they puiled 
into a late-season finish that had 
most hostels and some of the cafes 
winding up in the black. This 
time out, the percentage is some 
15 % off— in scattered cases as 
high as 40%. Anomaly is fact that 
Hialeah racetrack is having its 
best meeting, patronage and mu- 


tuels-wise. , 

Nitery biz pattern is a hair-pull- 
ing one for the majority of own- 
ers In the major spots, dinner 
crowds have been satisfactory, but. 
the late patronage just ain’t. Of 
the group, the Beachcomber is far 
ahead in returns, thanks to the big 

name combos such as the just- 

( Continued on page 67) 


New JL#ngdon Iceshow, 
Inn/ Follows ‘Sinbad’ 

London, Feb. 9. 

Claude Langdon’s next ice show 
at the Empress Hall, to follow his 
current hit “Sinbad On Ice, will 
be “White Horse Inn,” This spec- 
tacle by Eric Charrell and Rudolph 
Benatzki, with music by Robert 
Stoltz, was first staged at the Lon- 
don Coliseum in 1931 and ran for 
two years. 

It was revived in 1940 when it 
went for a year. 

Applewhite Launched In 
Cafes With $1,250 Fee 

Charlie Applewhite, singer, who’s 
been showcased on the Milton 
Berle show, will play his first 
nitery date at the Town Casino, 

Buffalo, March 8. He’s reported 
getting $1,250 on this deal, with 
other dates now in the works for 
the various spots in the east and 
one in Las Vegas. 

Applewhite, who has been able 
to launch his cafe career on a 
higher than usual salary, is signed 
for six more dates with Berle, The 
21-year-old singer has been parted 
by Decca. Lad is currently per- 
sonally managed by Wynn Lassner, 
but hadn’t been signed to an 
agency.’ ^ . 


Vaude, Cafe Dates 



Hollywood 

r Dick Contino opens at the Cave', 
Vancouver, next Monday 115) and 
will practice a little warbling along 
with his accordion work for his 
next date, the Mocambo here, 
starting March 2 . . . Buddy Lester 
set to return to the Last Frontier- 
Las Vegas, next month ... Murvyn 
Vye readying a nitery act . . . 
Mindy Carson set for a fortnight at 
the Cocoanut Grove here, starting 
March 17. Gordon MacRae, the in- 
cumbent, Will be followed Feb. 17 
by Martha Wright, who’ll be re- 
placed March 3 by James Melton 
. Eddie O’Neal replaced Russ 
Black as accompanist for. Dorothy 
Shay when Black opened his own 
pubbery and decided against tra- 
veling so much ... Pat Patrick and 
the Dewey Sisters set for the Home 
Show at Pan Pacific Auditorium, 
June 10-21.. 


Chicago 

• Gerry Breen new addition to 
Blue Angels “Monday Nite Sing- 
Along’’ as sole distaffer . . . Guy 
Cherney headlining Black Orchid 
Feb. 16 with Ross & West support- 
ing and with Lurlene Hunter held 
bver ... Jo Ann Jordan in for 
two weeks at Otto’s, Albany, be- 
ginning Feb. 16 . ... . Charley Chan- 
ey set for Golden Hotel, Reno, 
Feb. 24 for fortnight . . . Bob 
Williams to Winnipeg, Canada, 
March 12 for eight-day Sport & 
Boat show. . . , Novei-ites playing 
Food Show, Grand Rapids, March 
8 for six days . , . Harvey Stone 
to Gay Haven, Detroit, Feb. .15 for 
two frames ... Deep River Boys 
pegged for Don Carlos, Winnipeg, 
Feb. 18 for two weeks; 


Lloyds of London is running the 
American Guild of Variety Artists 
insurance program at a loss, it was 
disclosed last Week at a conference 
to review the first 14 months of 
the AGVA Welfare Trust Fund. 
Insurance firm has shelled out 
nearly as . much in accident and 
death claims as has been paid in 
premiums, it was announced that 
$139,582.90 had been collected in 
premiums, and according to Gab- 
riel Galef, Lloyds’ . attorney, near- 
ly as much has been paid out in 
claims. 

Insurance men have declared 
that claims paid out on any insur- 
ance program must not exceed 
60% of the premiums paid in, if 
the insurance underwriter is to 
come out even on the deal. Out of 
the residue, broker’s commission 
plus administration expenses must 
be. paid out. 

It was , disclosed at the press 
conference that a total of 128 
claims by injured AGVA members 
has . been closed as being paid in 
full. One death claim lias been 
paid and another is being proc- 
essed. And 93 injury claims are 
now in the works. 

The AGVA Welfare Trust Fund 
has been taken out of the realm 
of union politics by the plan put 
into operation by law firm of Sil- 
verstone & Rosenthal, AGVA at- 
torneys. An independent setup 
was started with a group of admin- 
istrators to rep the union and an- 
other to look after employer inter- 


ests. Union reps are former Con- 
gressman William F. Brunner; 
Rabbi Bernard Blrstein, of Actors' 
Temple, N. Y., and David Fergu- 
son, executive secretary of the Jew* 
ish Theatrical Guild. Representing 
the employers are Nick Prounis, 
co-owner of the Versailles, N.Y.; 
Nat Abramson, he^d of the WOR 
Artists Bureau, and David Katz, 
former managing director of the 
Roxy Theatre, N. Y. 

Employers pay to the fund $1 
per performer for every one-night- . 
er; $2.50 for weekly indoor en- 
gagements and $3.50 weekly out- 
door dates for every, performer. 
In return, the fund insures the 
actor at a cost of 40c for every 
one-nighter, and $2.40 for every 
weekly stand. Fund handles the 
other AGVA welfare work as well. 
Policy pays out $7,500 for death 
claims; $1,000 medical and hospi- 
tal bills, and $50 weekly for a 
maximum of 150 weeks for in- 
juries. : 


4 Aces’ 1st Vegas Date 

. Toronto, Feb. 9. 

Subsequent to Casino date here 
ending Friday (12), Four Aces will 
have their first Las Vegas engage- 
ment when they go into The Thun- 
derbird for three weeks, commenc- 
ing Feb. 18. 

They will then move on to Holly- 
wood to do two shorts for Univer- 
sal-International, followed by a 
four-months’ Schedule of one-night 
1 stands, 


Boston, Feb. 9. 

License of the - Latin Quarter, 
here, was restored Monday (7) at 6 
p m., with city authorities giving 
no reason either for its suspension 
last Friday (5) or of its return. Too 
late to advertise In the papers, and 
too late to get any kind of show 
going, operator Rocky Palladino 
staged a show with the Gerardos, 
and phoned virtually every agency 
in New York and elsewhere in an 
attempt to get a bigleague pro- 
gram. 

Palladino said that he. didn’t 
know Why the license was lifted. 
He declared that a violation was 
never chalked up against his spot, 
and the only possible reason that 
could be advanced was in the fact 
that city authorities frowned on 
the appearance of Christine 
Jorgensen, who had been okayed 
to appear previously. 

Just as it appeared certain that 
Christine’s furore-arousing appear- 
ance at the Latin Quarter would 
begin as scheduled Friday (5), the 
Hub’s Licensing Board pulled the 
rug from Under. Palladino’s feet by 
suspending the spot’s license for 
an indefinite period. Suspension 
went into effect at 8 a.m. the day 
Christine was slated to appear. 

Surprise action came after the 
licensing board’s topper, Mary E. 
Driscoll, had withdrawn her pre- 
vious objections to Christine, ac- 
cepting the report that the per- 
former is actually a female and not 
a femme impersonator. The lat- 
ter tribe has been ruled out of Hub 
niteries since 1949, following a 
cleanup drive instigated by Arch- 
bishop Cushing. 

Furore was rekindled when May- 
or Hynes, whose office has juris- 
diction over Sunday entertainment, 
ruled Christine unacceptable for 
Sunday performances and .refused 
to grant her a license. Hassle 
picked up momentum when Dist._ 
A tty. Garret Byrnes entered the 
Picture, claiming the booking, here 
would encourage juvenile delin- 
quency, a hot subject hereabouts 
lately. 

. On basis of the fact the suspen- 
sion would affect nearly 100. em- 
ployees, plus the AGVA ruling that 
Christine should be paid’ whether 
she worked or not, Paljidino of- 
fered to cancel the engagement and 
bring in a substitute show. How- 
ever, the Licensing Board failed to 
act on his offer last Friday with 
the result that the spot, with the 
exception of the downstairs lounge 
bar, was out of action over the 
weekend. 

An offer by a Lowell nitery op- 
erator to take over Christine’s 
contract, at a reduced rate, also I 
biet with frustration when that 
dty’s manager quickly nixed the 
ceal. Episode resulted in Chris- 
tine’s aiikling the Hub With the 
Sw ag, while Pallidino was left high 
and dry with $1,000,000 worth of 
unrealized publicity. 



Booked Exclusively by 

MILT DEUTSCH Agency 

JOE ROLLO — Management Act Dept. 


NICK 

LUCAS 


And His Guitar 


OPENING FEB. 1 1 

(FOR 2 WEEKS! 

EL CORTEZ 

Las Vegas 


OPENING MARCH 3 

(FOR 2 WEEKS I 

>V • 

ITALIAN VILLAGE 

13 rd Return Engagement I 

San Francisco 


1300 26th Avenue, San Francisco 


9157 Sunset Blvd. 


Hollywood 46 







MGHT CLUB REVIEWS 


Vednenliy^ February IQ, 1954 


€opaeak«B « 9 W. V# 

Jules Podell presentation with 
Tony Bennett ( and Chuck Wdyne), 
Myron Cohen, The Ccmeys (2), 
Betty Lorraine & Chuck Brunner. 
Sandy Evans, Line <8), Michael 
Durso k, Frank Marti Orchs. 
Staged by Doug Coudy; lyrics and 
music , Bob Hilliard & Dave Mann; 
costumes, Michi : orchestrations j 
Phil Lang; $5 minimum. 


After two frantic weeks of Mar- 
tjn & Lewis, anything that follows 
at the Copacabana ; would conceiv- 
ably be anticlimatic. Even the 
lush opening nights must seem 
like a respite for the harried crew 
of the Jules Podell hospice. How- 
ever, the present show should 
maintain a good level of business 
with Myron Cohen for the mature 
cal'egoers and Tony Bennett as an 
inducement -.for- the younger trade. 

It’s a well-playing combination 
ih a l pleases all elements in the 
audiences. Coupled with the pic- 
turesque production, the proceed- 
ings have a fullbodied, quality. 

, Cohen, who’s been at this spot 
previously, is an extremely pleas- 
ant performer. His stories of the 
Seventh Ave. set are hovflers. In 
fact, Dean Martin, one of the per- 
formers from the previous show 
who presumably forgot to go home, 
was broken up frequently during 
Cohen’s opening show. He has 
added some pew yarns and brings 
in some of the faves that hold up 
excellently. Cohen stayed On for 
a little more than 30 minutes, dur- 
ing which time he delivered a 
brand of entertainment that. was a 
contrast to the- frantic character 
of the previous show, but never- 
theless was completely satisfying 
to the Copa celebrants. . , 
Bennett presents , a remarkable 
case of a singer whose fortunes 
rise and fall with the flip of a disk. 

A couple of months ago, if anyone 
thought about it, it might , have 
been noted that Bennett was sink- 
ing into comparative obscurity, 
but then came his, Columbia plat- 
tcrings of “Rags to Riches” and 
"Stranger in Paradise” and he 
again becomes eligible for the tall 
coin of the major showcases. 

. Similarly, as the bestselling lists 
go, ;so goes Bennett’s audience re- 
ceptivity, which reached an apex 
on his preem display. An obvious 
fault, such as some of the over- 
schmaltzy tones coming from this 
singer, were overlooked and he 
walked , off a big hit. It’s to his 
credit that he didn’t , mention the 
fact that he became a papa the 
evening before the Copa opening. 
It’s apparently a golden period in 
his life,, at this point. , 

. Bennett, with Chuck Wayne at 
the guitar, finds smooth sailing 
with' a tune selection that includes 
“Since My Love Has Gone,” a tune 
based on ah aria from “La Travi- 
ata.” The delicacy inherent in this 
melody eludes Bennett, but never- 
theless it’s sufficiently touching to 
hit the audience. He also ' scores 
with “Boulevard of Broken 
Dreams,” “Cheek to Cheek” arid of 
course, his currently riding pops. 

The major dance item here are 
the Cerneys, a nicely-appearing 
twosome who find favor with the 
Gopa customers. They’ve played 
this spot previously. Pony-sized 
team has a fine assortment of lifts 
and spins as well as a pleasing set 
of . straight terps. Their dance se- 
lection is nicely paced and rou- 
tines are colorful and interesting. 

, They’re off to ‘ a hot mitt. 

The production scores with the 
terping of Betty Lorraine. & Chuck 
Brunner, cleancut twosome who 
provide vitality to the line rou- 
tines; The. pair seem strong 
enough to rate slotting of their 
own in. cafe work. Sandy Evans 
gives’ the routines vocal backing 
of a fine calibre. 

Bob Hilliard & Dave Mann have 
contributed a sprightly score for 
this 'presentation. 

The Mike Durso orch does the 
usually fine job of showbaekirig 
and Frank Marti’s band brings out 
the Latin in the Copa customers. 

Jose. 


out any of the usual cloying jnon- , 
key business of so many of his 
contemporaries. 

He mixes them up well, too, hit- 
ting the catalog at its peaks, from 
the more familiar French tunes* to 
match the name (Philippe studied 
in France but isn’t French), to a 
couple of ballads in Italian. ?nd 
then into the current pops, like 
“My Papa,’’ on which be rings the 
bell. But then Philippe rings the 
bell all the way, and then finally 
when the tie comes off, the collar 
opens and he gets down to busi- 
ness for the windup, therms no. 
holding' the gals; They practically 
bring the house down, Pittsburgh 
chicks are no different, than, they 
are anywhere else, which, means 
Philippe’s destined to kick up 
quite a storm just as soon as he 
gets around. , . 

Dave Gardner, a comic, new to 
these parts, is an offbeat, enter- 
tainer who needs a lot of; work and 
some direction. It was impossible 
to tell here which way , he vvas go- 
ing or should go; a little hillbilly, 
a little southern dialect, a few 
mountain songs; some oKc™ 0 * 
yarns and* finally, lyhep . he . saw 
what was happening out front, into 
a desperate A1 Jolson finish. . 

Copa line is currently down to 
four girls, and : this may be the nhal 
stanza for them after, a stay of 
several months. It’s an okay group 
technically but lacks flash. Tiny 
Wolfe, bandleader, does a good 309 
of m.c.’ing and his small Combo is 
solid musically . both for danciilg 
and for shows. Cohen. 


- Hefei Plazg, 

Mindy Canon (with Sherman 
Edwards), Ted Straeter and 
Mark Monte Orchs ; $242.50 cover. 


Encore Room, CUI 

' Chicago, Feb. 4. 
Leo '■ De . Lyon, Arthur Walsh 
(with Johnny Ferguson ), Sheila 
Arnold; $3 minimum. 


This new room, whioh kicked off 
solidly with a month of Artie Shaw, 
follows with three weeks of tnree- 
deep vaude that strikes a frigid 
anticlimax' ' at the • gate; albeit the. 
card is firstrate entertainment. 
For one thing, the bill wasnt set 
until two days before opening, pro- 
hibiting any anticipation for it via 
the newspapers. For another, the 
lineup is shorten name value in 
this territory, with a, not-too-fa- 
mous headliner arid with the two 
supporting acts making their night- 
club debut with this show. Addi- 
tionally, it’s doldrums season for 
most cafes hereabouts. 

On the. topline, Leo, De Lyon 
rates hearty guffaws and zealous 
tablerthumpirig for a slapdash ad- 
mixture of song satire, impressions, 
vocal acrobatics, . sillyisms and 
sheer nonsense that make up his 
comedies. His is a. fresh, engaging 
kind of humor that pleases con- 
stantly. 

De Lyon’s deceptive facial so- 
briety is part of the fray, as he 
contorts his .countenance absurdly 
through slapsticky versions of sen 
ti mental ballads. These he sings in 
quick-changing registers, from so- 
prano to. basso, interjecting ^s.ound 
effects a la Spike Jones in the 
course. Medley of nonsense leads 
to his most amazing stunt, that of 
concurrent humming and whistling 
in counterpoint which eventually 
has him doing two songs at once. 
For capper; he simulates an entire 
orchestra on “Allez Vous-En,” imi- 
tating a variety of solo instruments 
against his own piano accomp 
Begoff is sure. 

Layout is overweight in bois- 
terous comedy, as Arthur Walsh 
(New Acts)' follows De Lyon in 
sock 30-minute session of solo 
knockabout antics, but it’s such ex- 
uberant divertissement that the 
weight isn’t Severely felt. Sheila 
Arnold, also reviewed in New Acts, 
leads off the show as femme and 
musical relief, She’s backed by Don 
Davis at piano and Rye Hoffman 
at bass. Les. 

Seven §eas 9 Oinalia 

Omaha, Feb. 5. 

Joanne and Stanley Kayne; Dave 
Kavich Trio; no cover or minimum. 


: 9 Pitt 

Pittsburgh, Feb. 3. 
Andre Philippe, Dave Gardner, 
Copadblls (5), Tiny Wolf Orch 
(5); $1;75 minimum. 


Mindy Carson is as winning a 
cha'ntoosey as there is around. 
Nothing fiery or “stylistic” about 
the. blonde lass with, the whole- 
some mieri— and she won’t en- 
danger the rafters-r-but she’s a 
fine bundle with a. modest attack 
arid a .relaxed mariner that’s a 
click piqkteruipper. 

Fbr her Persian Rohm * return 
(meantime going through a tv six- 
months giving, music publisher Ed- 
die Joy a second daughter and 
playing a few theatres and cafes), 
Misr Carson virtually throws the 
current pops out the window with- 
out any loss of • prestige. 

At opening, show after a cheery 
fiello-song she got rid of “Stranger 
in Paradise” fast arid worked her- 
self into a patter 1 niood to intro 
“Boutonniere.” Since this was her 
juicy jukebox and radio number 
of a few years ago, it could pass 
unnoticed now except that the 
singer gives it a showy comple- 
ment via tossing out the posies as 
she circles ringside. “Ebb Tide” 
is a- quickie with -*a tough lyric and 
the comparison with Frank Chacks* 
field’s London • label bestseller 
with its instrumental gimmicking 
might seem to disfavor inclusion 
as an entry. Nevertheless,, it shows 
she can handle a mood tune.. 

Smartly coutoured chirper with 
that newly scrubbed appearance 
is strictly on the hooray side in 
the gayer stuff; such as ‘‘Lady’s 
n Love With You,” “Got A Crush 
On- You” and ‘-Funny Valentine.’ 
She’s a cracker jack showman, too, 
as per her roving • assignment in 
the effortless.. “Getting To Know 
Y ou” where she grabs a customer 
-7— it doesn’t matter whether the 
red-cravated middleager is a plant 
— andphenagles him into a vin- 
tage waltz and other bits produc- 
tive of laughs mated to audience 
rapport. It’s a wrapup on the reg- 
istry, but Miss Carson knows she’s 
gonna Jbe brought hack for her es- 
sayship of personations. 

At this show she Was a straw- 
hatted Eddie Leonard, circa 1908, 
and working out on “Roly Bdly” 
and “Ida.” If she’s on the button 
nnly the oldtimers would know, 
but the elongated bit is a change 
of the pace and stands by itself 
sans the pointer-outers who are 
familiar with the' minstrel’s stage 
deportment. She also knows how 
to take her gams into terping 
channels; (Thrush makes the cos- 
tume change while pianist Sher- 
man ^Edwards, who receives ® a 
buildup from her, synopsizes the 
era preceding stardom of jthe A1 
Jolsoos, Eddie Cantors, Sophie 
Tuckers, et ai.) 

Another in Miss Carson’s going- 
baek-when bag — as the basis for 
her recently found ‘ handiness in 
the imitation department— is a 
workout covering Bert Williams, 
but apparently, she saved this for 
Second show.. . Singer’s half-hour 
windup’ takes her into “De-lovely” 
for lotsa rriitting. Edwards leads 
the orch from the 88 miring the 
Carson cavalcade and Ted Straeter 
takes over for the hoofing and vo- 
cal. sessionc. relieved by Mark 
Monte’s Continentals. Trau. 


act, good for plenty of talk around. 

town, ’ . , . ' 

1 Starlets again reach- both end of 
the spectrum in the colorful dance 
routines. Beautiful costuming com- 

S lete with hearts and parasols, 
Tightens the room for wonderful 
ending. , * 

Bill Clifford orch makes the 
Mills Bros, arrangements sound 
like the finest recording session. 

Mark, 


f Viennn 

Vienna; Feb. 2, 
“Yes and AmenV ’ revue by Karl 
Fartcas and Hugo Wiener, music 
by Trojan Welisch. Directed by 
Features Farkas, Wiener, 


JjMfraiMitor OLfttel* L. 

„ ■ Xos. Angeles, Feb. 3 . 

. Gordon MacRae; Anthony, Ah 
lyn & Hodges ; Bendy Strong Orch 
(15); Tico Robbins Rhumbaijci 
15); 82 cover. 

r Singers do well at the Coconut 
Grove here, so Gordon MacRpe’s 
prospects are good for the current 
fortnight. They might be even 
better is he’d just sing his reper- 
toire and eschew a wordy and 
sometimes fatuous “This Is Your 
Life”: format he uses as a bridge 
between numbers. 

. MacRae has what is Unquestion- 
ably one of the better .voices now 
available on the , nitery circuit; it 


Farkas. ,, - , - 

Cissy Kraner, Gerti Rathner, Her- has depth; range and quality. And 
bert Lenobel, Heinz Conrads, Peter he knows how to use it. Thus 
Gerhard, Fritz Muliar, Fritz Heller, something like. the. ‘‘Carousel” 
Hanni Schall, Erika Fischer, Mary soliloquy, an offbeat , nitery item 
Snyders; $1.25 minimum. at best, becomes a stirring, socko 

— tion. Similarly, "his “Old Man 
“Cabaret” in the Viennese sense River/’ as. arranged and con- 
has a very different connotation ducted by Van Alexander, restores 
from the U. S. version. Simpl is that piece to its rightful position 
the last survivor of a tradition in as an American classic. With these 
theatre restaurants presenting sa 1 and other numbers, including such 
tirical, tropical revues almost de- pop items as: “Stranger in Para- 
finable as “burlesque” in its clas- dise" and “C’Est Magnifique” for 
sic meaning (sansv stripping). And change of paipe, he doesn’t, need 
Simpl continues to get ; a heavy gimmicks of wordy introductions 
play from a regular public willing fogenerate peak appeal, 
to come, back four or five times ,a . Layout boasts a comedic start 
year for changing versions of with-. the ffunny footwork of An- 
much the same show, embellished thony, Allyn & Hodges, whd seem 
th new gags, : ■ * . to be a- little slower these days get- 

Present edition,, titled Yes and ting into thefr. collision comedy. 
Amen!,” is authored as usual by jt still draws chuckles, however, 
Karl Farkas and Hugo. , Wiener, particularly the tangled hands rou- 
Wiener is also responsible for mu- tine. i. Benny Strong band, continues 
sic and. text of the chansons , his to play an excellent show and keep 
wife, Cissy Krrnier.^uses to nigh- the’ dance floor crowded with 
spot the show. The Wiener-Krancr a bout the best dance beat the- hotel 
combo, (which; works also in Eng- j^g j, a( j purveyed in some time, 
lish) has definite international po- Qj c j|*g show participation is 
tentialities and really sterling ma- limited to a “Night of June. 3” no v- 
tei^al- ' . , . „ elty that has its moments but isn’t 

Show kicks off with a parody 6n up to what the outfit used for the 
ancient Athens featuring a lineup previous layout. - Tico Robbins, 
of locally surefire comics. Girts r h U mband fills in between sets. 


throughout arC no more/ than 
straight figures for the male play- 
ers and only mildly decorative. 
Sketches range from hilarious to 
boring and iq general suffer from 
a Teutonic tendency to hammer 


Kap* 


Lust Frontier, Ijis Vc^iis 

Las Vegas, Feb. 2. 
Marilyn r Maxwell:, {with. Sul 


the tar out of any gag or situation Herbert ) , Kirby Quartet. 


that would have plenty of point if 
played off in five minutes instead 
of 20. Result is a program run- 
ning over three hours and leaving 
audience tired, when a half-hour’s 
cut would have sent them home 
refreshed. 

As is usual in Vienna, the sub- 
ject of Austria’s four-power occu- 
pation comes in for kidding — a 
theme long worn out here, 
time it’s a Scene at “Hotel Inter- 
national,” with East and West al- 
ternating loveinakiiig and fighting 
on’ a UN organized honeymoon. 
Not very funny. 

Comedy high points arc con- 
ferenci.er bits by Farkas, who was 
a refugee in the U.S. long endugh 


(4), Three Houcs; Bob Peoples, 
Adordbelles (10), Garwood Van 
Orch (11); no cover or minimum, 

Marilyn Maxwell heads current 
two-framer that features Kirby 
Stone Quartet and the Three 
Houcs. Entertainment sparkles in 
spots, is innocuous most of the way, 
and may have difficult time weath- 
This| €ring bigname opposition appear- 


Rlvcrsidc Hotel, Iteno 

Reno, Feb. 4. 

Mills Bros., Janik & Arnaut, 
Riverside Starlets, Bill Clifford 
Orch; no cover or minimum. 


irig on the Strip. Platinum blonde 
songstress is personable arid star- 
dust Underlines vocal talents dis- 
played best when backed by the 
quartet 

Miss. MaxwelL’s buildup to special 
material . number is good. Decided 
letdown comes with special stuff 
to have brought back a library of when lines turn a little sour. Gags 


internationally . surefire material 
well aged in the gag files; and ai 
hilarious comedy cafe scene be- 
tween Farkas and* Heinz Conrads, 
latter as the local version of a 
smartalec zootsuiter. 

. Kraner-Wiener (latter at the 
piano) do two spots, both for sock 
returns. Ballads, presented with 
wit and charm by the very blonde 
Miss Kraner, concern memories of 
childhood, mostly bitter and- sar- 
donic; a classically pointed bit 
about the contents of a lady’s 
handbag and the old lament of the 
wife whose husband doesn’t under- 
stand her. Expressive song sales- 
manship of this pair will be a find 
fbr tv when it’s eventually avail- 


I 


No question about it after his 
first nitery engagement since win- 
ning the “Chance of a Lifetime” 
teeveer. five times in a row, Andre 
Philippe shapes up as the next 
guy in the vocal sweepstakes who’s 
going to run the dames ragged. 
C row d s here, predominantly 
femme, can’t get enough of him; 
they so ream, sigh, squeal and line 
up a dozen deep waiting for his 
autograph, when he’s through. 

Philippe should go to the top 
without too much trouble, espe- 


Joanne and Stanley Kayne are 
a couple of refreshing youngsters 
who will bear watching in the 
song, dance and mimic ranks. Boy 
is a product of the borscht circuit 
and has one of the more pliable 
muggs in the biz. His wife, daugh- 
ter of old time . dance orch leader 
Johnny Johnson, provides blonde 
beauty and a capable voice. 

The kids knock themselves out 
trying to please and, in fact, at 
times try too hard. Stanley is 
“falling” off stage at every show 
but gets his top mitts mimicking 
Jan Peerce, Mario Lanza .and 
Spike Jones records and leading 
trio a la Gil Lamb. 

With some sharper patter, a 
littlle more polish that will come 
with experience, the Kaynes will 
be read^ for any kind of visual 


A full house ifi a gambling night- 
club does not always mean good 
business. Big gambling does not 
necessarily follow big name acts. 
But the Sight of a packed room 
again is certainly good for the 
morale — business or no. However, 
the tables will enjoy plenty of 
play, too, while the Mills Bros, 
keep -the dinner crowds happy. 

There’s nothing much to add to 
tne tributes which have been paid 
these perennial favorites. It’s still 
astonishing the response they get 
from so little effort! And therein 
probably lies the tale. Nobody gets 
real excitbd about the Mills Bros, 
until it appears the quartet is 
really serious about leaving the 
stage. Then the relaxed, peaceful, 
happy throng is forced to snap out 
of its tranquil enjoyment, and 
applaud like mad. Then, once more 
assured of song, they settle back to 
lap up more of the easy-to-take 
harmonizing. 

Numbers consist of everything 
you’d expect, plus the current di$- 
click, “The Jones Boy” and “She 
Was Five And He Was Ten.” 
“Jones Boy” is best for their 
smooth rhythm. 

New here, Janik & Arnaut are 
the most original duo to play Reno 
ip many seasons. Femme comes 
into the act by slithering down a 


are okay but get no reaction, 
pooled in a song that does not jell 
with audience: “It’s Love” proves 
an agreeable opener. “I’ve Got a 
Right to Sing the Blues,” “Forty 
Cups of Coffee” rind “Let There 
Be Love” all score well for star. 
A captivating gal, Marilyn winds 
with Stone. Quartet in pair of fast 
numbers for good finish. 

Quartet, formerly the Kirby 
Stone Quintet, undoubtedly misses 
the services of Cow Eyes, who was 
a sock comedy member. Rhythm 
and harmony rather than yock stuff 
now keynote the combo. “Ballin’ 
■the Jack,” “I’ve Got Rhythm” and 
“Sugar Foot Rag” send group 
winging to good start into the 


able here. They are already, stand- 

ard radio atlrarHnnQ fa miiiar Kirby Stone British take 


cially with this kind of adulation . ... 

from the weaker sex. He’s got the ! ouUet - .... ___ o 

pipes, a big smile, a warm person- Dave Kavich Trio (piano, trump- 1 rope as homme plays flute. ’ in a 
ality and considerable style, too. ! et and drums), a local outfit, does j skintight snake suit, she wraps 
. Watching him communicate.' with ; an A-l job. backing the Kaynes , around him, curls fetchingly, and 
the audience is .a. le.^.ru «■!•> ’•’•- and providing, between-sliows nm- at the same time repulsive! v; .and 


ard radio attractions. 

It’s all very much to the Vienna 
taste and will probably .; continue 
to be so as long as Farkas & Co. 
can find even small variations for 
new editions. Isra. 


WWrartiK i* "'“‘‘i s /»‘ --.vi 


Xaitlilns, Miami Beach 

Miami Beach, Feb. 4. 

Larry ,Storch; Antone & Ina, Syd 
Stanley Orch; $2-$3 bev. minimum. 

Larry Storch reaffirms fact that 
the Driftwood Room in. this big 
hostel is this season’s haven for 
comedians. He started the run at 
Christmas time, with solid biz at- 
tracted leading to bookings of 
others in the youriger laughmakers’ 
ranks. Now, in a quick return date, 
he is again drawing them in: 

Intelligent approach to his char- 
acter spoofs, sharp timing, and in- 
tuitive sense of aud’s moods mark 
his strong comedies. He warms 
them quickly to his style, with 
spinning out of a Japanese lover- 
boy, British fight announcer, 
femme inebriate and confused Ital- 
ian waiter the big yoek-raisers. He 
interweaves clowning with, orch 
members and asides to ringsiders 
that add to. the hilarity engendered 
through the 35 minute stint to wind 
into a begoff. 

Antone & Ina, house dancers, 
eschew the mambo rhythms, con- 
centrating on ' lifts and spins 
pattern to garner warm returns. 
Syd Stanley and his orch accomp 


off in “OF Man River,” One thing 
proven is that nq . longer are Yid- 
aishisms witticisms- in Las Vegas. 

Fast show pace is set by Juggling 
act, the Three Houcs, two gals and 
a guy, who toss hoops and 1 Indian 
club about in merriesVabandonr 

The Adorabelles, choreographed 
now by Louis Da Pron* have come 
to life, Pair of numbers sparkle 

with movement and illusion that is 
credit to the new choreo chief. Cos- 
tumes! and lighting show belles to 
real alvantage, backed by cleffing 
of capable Garwood Van orch and 
production vocals ably, handled by 
Bob Peoples. Bob. 


Rlackslone, Omaha 

Omaha; Feb. 5. 

The Heilmans <2 ) ; no, cover or 
minimum. 


» l-rrWt-a •!.: fights, c^l tt’svfiiflassti in., tk^ manner. oriLWry. V 


Vet duo pianists Bertie and Bob 
Heilman are back for another win- 
ter’s stand at' the plush Cottonwood 
•Room of. Blackstorie Hotel- 

While the husband-wife team has 
what simmers down to. just another 
88er routine, . they’re .unusually 
popular here and keep the intimate 
room, seating about 75, packed. 

At night caught (4), the balding 
Bob jumped down from the stand 
at one time to dance with a femrne, 
to the payees’ . delight, probably 
proving -this isn’t a* hard spot to 
pleasei despite a hightoned rep. 
Highballs. are okay at 50c per and 
vefwbfe i^ikdequtrttU >■ TrdnTflJ 


February 10, 1954 


REVIEWS 



Hotel R*4liiM« 9 MpH 

Minneapolis,' Fete. 6. 
George Gobel, Don McGrane 
Orch \ 8)r$2.50jmnimum. 

An annual visitor and one- of the 
nooular ' performers, in the 
Same P Room over the ,past_ five 
George Gobel is no Johnny- 
^^p’latelvhere because of tv’s re-. 
c !IIf ‘discovery” of him. However, 

■ SSn-i this «n>« with added pres- 
£2 hi undoubtedly will lure ad- 
ditional trade, A packed room for 
the opening night’s supper show so 
indicated. , • 

Whereas, initially, gabbing was, 
just incidental in Gobi’s act and 
much of it was consumed by hiil- 
billv and other comedic vocalizing 
to his guitar strumming, the per- 
formance over the years, gradually 
evolved by degrees into its present 
nattern of humorous descriptive 
verbal recitals and story telling 
y,jth little resort to warbling. Ip 
fact, at show caught, he. essayed 
: 0 nly one* song, a rib-tickling hiLl- 
billy lampoon. 

In spinning amusing yarns like 
tlA one about the man on the train 
trying to keep three wild children 
in check and handle a lot of bag- 
gage, or tellipg Of such of his pa- 
ternal experiences as. those with a 
child whose recalcitrance drove him 
to a specialist fdr advice. • Gobel’s 
wry, dry humor and . serious man- 
ner wring all possible: laughs out 
0 i the fun-loaded material and pro- 
voke a constant accompaniment of 
customer guffaws. 

It would seem; however, that Go- 
bel does err in attempting dialect 
(Jewish).; on one occasion, Top- 
d rawer story-teller • when he sticks 
to his own individual and effective 
style, his effort in this particular 
instance is so inadequate that it’s 
likely to prove embarrassing, if- not 
offensive; to some guests of the 
caricatured race. 

Don McGrane and his orchestra 
fill the bill flawlessly as usual in 
providing ■ customer dance music 
and backing up. Gob*'* • Rees. 

.Sahara*, Am Vegas 

Las Vegas* Fete.' 2. 
Kathryn Grayson .( with Ernest 
Gold ) , Jack Carter, Sujata & Aso- 
led (with Naji ) (6), Saharein 

Dancers ( 12 ) ," Cee Davidson Orch 
(17) ; no cover or minimum. 


but once during their 25-minute 
stint, are winning the customers. 
X4ng, a warbler: with swell pipes 
and perfect diction and in genuine 
Chinese garb, scores from the tee^ 
off with his ’’Orange Colored Sky,” 
ahd right down to the finale, a 
whammo interp of A1 Jolson and 
his “April Showers.” His “Eili Eili” 
in Hebrew also clicks solidly. 

Ming, in a “combo of Chinese 
and hillbilly garb, is the comic, 
but some* of his gags are pretty 
limp. However, his lack of surefire 
chatter is partly overcome when 
he does a hillbilly bit that even 
the Ozark mountaineers would ap- 
prove.- ■ 

Lottie Brunn, a shapely, short 
brunet looker, is the first 1 femme 
juggler to visit this room, arid her 
dexterity and varied,, routine are 
socko. 

Johnson & Madill, a couple of 
young guys, ’fiave a nifty routine 
that includes tap, aero and some 
terrif splits. In huge, loud-check- 
ered coats the lads get away to 
a slow start, but wind up with a 
whirlwind tap routine while spin- 
ning a round and beating, on two 
huge drums Of the ( bongo type! 

Hal Havird’s tooters do a neat 
job in . keeping the 50-minute ses- 
sion moving at a nice: pace; 

• '■ Sdhu. : 


El R«bcIi « 9 Lag Vegas 

Las Vegas, Fete 3, 
Harry James and Music Makers 
(12), 'Marilyn Cantor (3), Sonny 
Sands, Paula Gilbert, Dot Dee 
Dancers (10); no cover or . mini. 
mum. 


New Acts 


To the disappointment of ,his fol- 
lowers, Harry James doesn't take 
over the stage Until the 45-minute 
vaude show has been, presented. 


KATHRYN GRAYSON (2) 

Songs 

25 Mins. . , 

Sahara, Las Vegas 

Kathryn Grayson, an outstanding 


Desert Iiiii 9 Las Vegas 

Las Vegas, Feb.' 2. 

’■ Jackie Miles, ‘ Charlivel Trio, 
Betty: Reilly, Carol Lynne, Art 
Johnson, ' Donn . Arden Dancers 
(16 ) , Carlton . Hayes ’ Orch (12) ; 
no cover or minimum . . 


A young soprano" voice, long 
identfied with the screen; is now 
vested in the nightclub firmament 
with a welcome . niche assured. 
Kathryn Grayson has the pipes, 
personality and winsome, gracious- 
ness to obtain gratifying turnstile 
results in three-framer. As big -as 
the Congo Room is, when essaying 
notes away from mike, Miss: Gray- 
son’s clear tones reach recesses of 
room with surprising ease. 

Interesting repertoire consumed 
in. 25 minutes— all too briefly— is 
sung and trilled in wide soprano 
range lyrically and sure by head- 
liner, who is striking in a Helen 
Rose form-fitting, white sequined 
gown. In authentic upper register, 
star opens with “Jealousy” . and 
wrapup comes with a pair of op- 
eratic arias; “Sempre Libera,” 
from “La Traviata,” and special 
Earl Brent material to “Laughing 
Song” from “Die Fledermaus.” 
Pounding palms reward the gal 
who proves an -exciting new nitery 
entry (see New Acts). Ernest Gold 
directs music tef shaky start at 
Opener, not conducive to con- 
-fidence in a neophyte. Work to 
gether should improve the har- 
mony, however. 

Jack Carter is back with im- 
pressions and his world tour and 
newsreel. Takes a bit to warm up 
but by the time comic gets through 
gambling jokes that follow an in- 
terminable time of telling how 
‘‘wonderful it is to be back” in 
Vegas, audience gets hep to stuff 
okay. Impressions are boffo and 
his fave, an Ai Jolson medley, 
proves socko windup. 

Hindu dancp exponents Sujala 
& Asoka make thrilling western 
debut in exotic presentations. 
Aided by narrator Naji and three 
percussionists, team’s dance un- 
fold ment of cobra king and queen 
gets vociferous audience reaction. 
Symbolic “Temple of Fire” dance, 
rites of the gods at play, are 
vividly depicted by the pair han- 
dling small platters bearing live 
■flames', with- ease. In both dances, 
Le.orge Mbro’s Saharem line ac- 
quits self notably, led by Donna 
Jtaybold and Arland Le Crone. 

- Cee Davidson; Orch, augmented 
»y seven strings for Miss Grayson, 
does the musical .backstopping 
with usual savvy. Bob. 


Current Desert Inn show might 
do better as fortbighter father 
than. Its current four-week stand, 
considering rival action on the 
Strip, and not : being as talent- 
laden as customary Frank Serines 
packages. As, it is, entertainment 
is pleasantly diverting; however, 
and with this inn’s rep as mecca 
for tourists,* should do okay. Jackie 
Miles, f personable raconteur, gets 
assists from the Charlivel Trio, 
Betty Reilly and holdover Carol 
Lynne. 

.Miles proves good showman, 
weaving familiar stories so they 
always seem fresh. Forty-minute 
stint has to do mainly with gaming 
material that rates yocks all the. 
way, and racetrack stuff, as al- 
ways, is hilarious: 

Charlivel . Trio, sensational Pa- 
risian . freres, make a return ap- 
pearance to somersault, spin and 
clown, proving equally adept on 
conglomeration of musical instru- 
ments, including pi^no, sax, guitar, 
violin and clarinet. Act is a show- 
stopper. 

Singing comedienne Betty Reilly 
is bouncy and brassy from “Mag- 
dalena” to “MacNamara’s Band,” 
which comes out well enough with 
kosher lyrics. BrogUish “Danny 
Boy” is okay and; topper is “Begi 
the Begat,” comic Adam and Eve 
sketch. . Performer uses guitar 
most of the way. 

Miss Lynne is a scintillating 
holdover, ice skating in spectacular 
fashion that calls for encores. Gal 
executes figures and whirls across 
ice on revolving stage to tingle the 
spine. 

Pair of Donn Arden line num- 
bers, held over from previous 
show, are worthy of repeat. Winter 
dance moves fast in beauty and 
grace, while jurigle number is ef- 
fective choreo in primeval setting. 
Art Johnson is able production 
Warbler and the Carlton Hayes 
orch racks up a solid musical chore. 

Bob. 


Only in the last 25 minutes does singing^succcss in is up 

the old James stuff scintillatingly ]e?s in her. mghjt club ' <i*buti Pcov- 
emerge. Fortnight of • Music * n : f. exciting 
Makers should have no trouble fill- with soclr appeal in ^otb vocal and 
ing the new theatre-restaurant visual departments 
here. But James’ portion is much Outfitted in a Helen Rose opigl 
too curtailed, with result that com- nal gown, a white sequin creation, 
plaints are voiced at swift concltl? moulded to set off fine figure, Miss 
sion . : Heretofore, . maestro . has Graysfln proves lyric soprano of 

opened with strong James .medley, versatility, when putting over 
intro’d an act or two, but in he- repertoire that runs cycle- iromi’o- 
tween there \yas always more mantlc_ to opera and 
James with typical horn-tooting £ er , 25-minute . c h®re opens 
finish to satiate his patrons. Jealousy, -to 

t Base player Buddy . Hayes opens t flight of listeners. Singing 

l™*? c ,r th y 0 ^? 1 ^ ingenue? on her own from Holly- 

“C’est Si Bon,” with comic French successfully accomplishes 

accent. ; He . follows with prop “My Bill,” in blues departure from 
trumpet, emulating instrument Grayson-type songs. Arias from pair 
with mouth for good applause. 0 f operas are wows, Avith sustained 
Harry leads socko jam session that applause. Whether setting is nitery, 
brings show to life; as Buddy Rich, sound stage or theatre, star is con- 
featured on drums, rocks ahd socks fidently at home in opera and here 
the skins and cymbals. Then } s where she wraps up all the gro-. 
James and Buddy pull a switch, ceries, purveying "Sempre Libera” 
Harry takes to drums while Rich from “La Traviata,” and the spe- 
performs fast tap dance to “Whis- oial Earl Brent material in the 
peririg.” to roll up a big score. ‘‘Laughing Song” from “D'e 
Columbia recording Of “Trumpet Fledermaus.” Bits of Americana 
Blues,” featuring five brass includ- prove strong followup, •especially 
ing maestro is solid as he hits “Smoke Gets . in Your Eyes,” find 
trumpet stratosphere for revue. “You Are Love/’ Surprise finale is 
Altogether too little of James on a musically coy “I Wish I Could 
his fave instrument gives pause Shimmy Like My Sister Kate. ’ 
to .wonder if the musician is inter- Opening night jitters will be 
ested at all anymore. erased, naturally, and, although 

With all the femme counterpart Voice of star carries well off-mike 
characteristics of her famed dad, • in large room, a couple of jpara- 
Marilvn Cantor, proves somewhat bolic mikes could be placed ad- 
of disappointment in her song-and- vantageously to assist augmenteu. 
dance set with Johnny & Bill. Of orch led by Ernest Gold to blond 
nice personality, Miss Cantor’s act more, snug y behind Miss Grayson, 
is too long. Kids work very hard 
but routines cannot be considered 


commercial for big league supper SHEILA ARNOLD 
club— at, least not vet “We’re The gongs 
Act That Never Played The io Mins. 

Palace” is a good try but falls Encore Room. Chi 
short Fresh off Broadway, this mush 

Sonny Sands, satirical story- comedy warbler is betting her 
teller, is an interesting comic with pipes on the cafe boards and Will 
good double entendres. With the have to put together more than 
constant flow of comics pouring what she shows at her debut to 
into the Seven Strip hastetrils, succeed. Present routine pegs her 
they can no longer be blamed for just as another standard, though 
not coming up with new stuff, there’s promise of better things in 
They’re proving that most subjects her healthy voice, sleek frame and 
seem to be pretty thoroughly ex- bold stage deportment, With some 
hausted. New formats, new gim- hep arrangements, special mate- 
micks would seem to be in order, rial and a more particularized se- 
But in keeping with current lection of numbers she might de- 
trends, Sands is a smooth worker velop her potential, 
all the way. . As it stands, however, her out- 

Blonde Paula Gilbert is big put is very little more than a hash- 
looker with little Voice, who ing over of pops and legit tunes, 
thrushes with James band to some of them Oversold at that. 
“Lover,” “Man I Love,” and others. She’s most successful on the slow, 
Undoubtedly decorative asset in straight stuff like “But Not Bor 
front Of crew, some sound amplify- Me” and a loosely-styled ‘Love, 
ing would aid voice immeasurably essayed In two tempos. Other 
to a more appreciated register, offerings are “Shopping Around. 

Gal’s charm pleases all the way. “I Love Paris” and “* lorn This 
• • ” * ” Les. 


ALEXANDER BROS. (2) 

Son^g 
45 Mins. 

Sherry-Netherland. N. Y. 

Making their .first appearance in 
New York, the Alexander Bros. 
(George and Nicholas) score solidly 
in their opening engagement at the 
Sherry - Nederland’s Carnavai 
Room. Lads are versatile singers 
whose cleverly-arranged songalog 
encompasses standards, westerns, 
show tungs and foreign lingo songs. 
They switch easily and have a 
knack of being convincing no mat- 
ter the origin of each particular 
number. They should go places. 

Brothers Ayork with and with- 
out' their own accompaniment, ref- 
sorting to guitars (which they 
strum expertly) for the - more off- 
beat renditions. Their harmoniz- 
ing is firstclass and each shares the 
spotlight equally for solos. They 
take turns on the intrbs and han- 
dle them casually and warmly. 
Overall impression on the first- 
night audience was Socko, the lads 
having to beg off after a 45-minute 
stint. 

Two opening numbers, “Frdm 
Thfs Moment On” and “I Love 
Paris,” are the; only weak sisters 
in their repertoire. Moving Into 
an A/ro-Cuban number, however, 
the lads perk up the aud and 
eliminate the knlfe-and-vvork com- 
petition. The rest of the way is : 
smooth sailing. 

They Win strong mlttings for a 
comedy sagebrush, saga, ’’One Hour 
Before the Posse,” a dramatig 
Spanish gypsy tune, and their ih- 
terpretation . of characters from 
“Guys and Dolls:” The, home- 
stretch is on the foreign side, start- ; 
ing quietly with the Spanish “Vaya 
Con Dios,” building with a spirited 
Russian drinking song, and closing 
with several rousing ?.lexican tunes 
lor which they gain audience sup-: 
port. 

Orchs of Lester Lanin and Jail 
Brunesco alternate for customer 
dansapation. Ho 11. 


Moment On.’ 


Dot Dee Dancers are good in 
pair of numbers choreod on the 
new large stage, with fresh cos- 
tumes: and good lighting a solid,., M , n 
aid. Tom Douglas presentation JR' v 
shows good staging, with the Music Apollo, i 


ROY HAMILTON 
Songs 


Makers set up on tiered section 
onstage that makes for good visual 
effect. Bob. 


EddysS K. C. 

Kansas City, Feb. 5. 
Happy Jcstevs (3), McQxiaig 
Twins, Tony DiPardo Orch (8); $1 
cover. 


Hotel Jefferson, .St. I- 

... St. Louis, Feb. 3. 

Ming lc Ling, Lottie Btunn, 
Johnson :& Madill, Hal Havird 
Orch (8); 

A pair of talented “Orientals are 
successfully meeting the Occideri- 
[*! challenge and- Ming A Ling, 
lf v«L'tmg to theiri ffative Aoirguei 


Some months ago the three Hap- 
py Jesters played the Eddys’- room 
for the first time, showing their 
wackv brand of comedy and music. 
For the current fortnight they’re 
combined with the McQuaig Twins, 
making their first stop here. Bill is, 
heavy with comedy and music, but 
proves a very entertaining 40 min-; 

utes. ' . . , 

On first, the McQuaig sisters 
prove, a pair of lookers, and slick 
with a song. Blonde Jonell and 
brunet Glenell work in a variety 
of iiurtibers, well-paced and pre- 
sented with polish. They swing on 
with "Two Little Girls from Holly- 
wood” (via Waycross, Ga.k give a 
full-voiced treatment to “Are You 
Teasing Me?” (on a Decca plattn ), 
and go folksy on “Ricochet Ro- 
mance.” _ : . . . 

The three Happy Jesters show 
considerable gain in timing and co- 
ordination since their last visit, 
albeit having to go a bit to bring 
a fine edge to their comedy. Most 
of the way it’s broad clowning, 
with center man Ken Cornell pull- 
ini many of the comedy antics 
and vocal effects- while • straight 
man Jerry Prez aids and guitarist 
Sal; Tino abets. . i > i “t • J '< QlPw-it. 1 


Saranac 


By Happy Benway 

Saranac Lake, N.Y., Feb. 9 
Highlights of the Saranac Lake looking 
Winter Carnival wilL be held at make him fair bobbysoxer bait. 


Roy Hamilton’s a goodlooking 
Negro youngster who ought to 
move quickly up the ranks of the 
Harlem favorites for he has the 
potentialities for projecting him- 
self as a singer of some dimension. 
He’s got a powerful but yet undis- 
ciplined voice, a cleancut appear- 
ance and the type of. innocent 
personality that could 


the Schines’ Pontiac theatre here 
on Feb. 12 when the Rotary Club 
will hold its annual musical “Va- 
rieties of 1954,” produced by Eddie 
Vogt. 

Birthday greetings due to Mar- 
lene Bronstein of Maine Theatre. 
Portland, and Elise Rivera of 
Major Film Lab. Their progress is 
a special birthday item. 

Ivan Annenberg, circulation di- 
rector of the N. Y. Daily News, 
winged in from N. Y. accompanied 
by Doris Kornisb, Eugenie (Reed) 
Hayman and Mae Sullivan for bed- 
side visit for Murray (& Burns) 
Kissen, who recently beat a serious 
major operation at the local gen- 
eral hospital; he’s now recuperating 
at the Will Rogers. 

Norma Cloos. forrtierly with 
Ziegfeld’s “Sally” Co., sporting ex- 
cellent clinic report. Ditto Elaine 
Slipper of National Theatre Supply 
Co. of L. A. 

Shirley (IATSE) Houff, here to 
recuperate from an emergency 
operation, received full discharge 
papers. . . ' * 

Phillip Klein happy his latest 
clinic report which upped him and 
allowed him to join the ambulatory 
gang; ' 

Dorothy Kendarich, former 
staffer with the SKuhert Theatres, 
left her observation routine » to 
attend funeral of her mother who 
died in Brooklyn. 

- WrRe tlfesd afd 111: 


At the same time he har much 
to learn. For one thing, lie’s tak- 
ing advantage of the current tastes 
in Harlem to display a few vocal 
tricks (such as breaking in the 
middle of a high note) that go 
strongly uptown, but . would leave 
’em cold in general situations. For 
another, he has a tendency to 
oversell a song, and here’s where 
most of the discipline is needed. 
Finall^. Hamilton should learn 
some stage business, especially on 
the rhythm numbers. He tends lo 
be somewhat stiff, 

. Nonetheless, he’s a minor sensa- 
tion at the Apollo. Excellent bet 
for the Negro houses, for televi- 
sion, and eventually* lor all situa- 
tions. Chan. 


ARTHUR WALSH 
Comedy 
50 Mins. 

Encore, Chi 

This vitaminized, versatile fellow 
unreels a variety-era in med act so 
mottled that it’s difficult to classi- 
ly simply as comedy. Whatever It 
actually is, it packs a real wallop.,, 
as nitery entertainment and rouses 
a goodly gale , of laughter on Its 
way. As unsophisticated hlghly- 
gadgeted f unmaking, It’s paced ro 
a bustle and comes off with such 
robust animation that it takes a 
.good deal of stamina even to watch. 

Still a youth, Arthur Walsh is a 
familiar face, having made some 36 
Hollywood pix in a spcar-carrying 
capacity and having toured several 
times with Olsen & Johnson, whose 
influence on his present work is . 
obvious. Literally, he comes on 
like Gang Busters with sirens 
wailing, colored lights flickering, 
fireworks exploding and a smokc- 
: screen emanating from, nowhere, 
j Thenceforth his routine becomes 
an unpredictable, hcadwhirling, 
frenzied, illogical and wholly en- 
grossing hubbub. 

Walsh’s accoutrements are as in- 
finite as his variety. His strawhat 
has no top, his cane wags a lizard’s 
tall, his cameras explode, his bal- 
ancing stunts are admitted canards 
—and all his hoaxes are heavily 
lauded. As Johnnie Ray, his eyes 
pour water, and he rips apart one 
shirt per show in the stress mo- 
ments of “Cry.” As a drunk with 
the DT’s he smokes his finger tips 
and issues smoke.. As a dancer, he 
executes old and new steps by re- 
quest, climaxing In a mockery of 
the strip. And in his “Show Biz” 
close, he rides a pogo stick, jug- 
gles, ventriloquizes and eats fire, 
all against an insane,, disjointed 
musical backstop led by his capable 
drummer-assistant, Johnny Fergu- 
son. 

Act can be clipped almost any- 
where without being harmed;: and 
there’s no question that its possi- 
bilities are vast. Les. 


f; i 


PHIL RAMONE 
Violinist 
12 Mins. 

Palace, N. Y. 

Phil Ramone doesn’t come up 
with anything new in the way of a 
fiddle repertoire for. his vaude turn 
but he’s an expert with the bow, 
and scores on the familiar numbers. 
He also is abetted by good looks 
and an ingratiating manner. 

Ramone : showcases the usual 
speed'and-achmaltz technique on 
some gypsy music and registers 
best with his jived -up version bf 
“Humoresque” after * conp'e “ of 
striifcti t Choruses. ' He rm. ‘ ' 


ANTAL KOCI (5) 

Gypsy Violinist 
Morisigneur, Vienna 

By general agreement of the 
Magyar colony here just on /the 
bright side o-f.. the Iron Curtain, 
A ntal Koci is accepted as the No. 1 
“primas” or top gypsy fiddler of 
the present day. He scrammed here 
from Budapest after the Commie 
regime in Hungary decided gypsy 
fiddling was only for the decadent 
aristocrats they intended , to ,'vipe 
out. Act is no more than Koci and 
fiddle, backed by cymbalom and 
small string ensemble playing 
Hungarian, Rumanian. Polish and 
Balkan tunes, alternating with sets 
of light western classics; Viennese 
waltzes and present day pops for 
■* ' • ledritt riiietf 6n page 671 ‘ “ ‘ 


Wednesday, Febrpgiy IQ, 1954 





WEEK OF FEBRUARY 10, 1954 
Nvmiriti In connection wlfh bill* below Indicate opening dayol show 
whothor full or- opllt week '■ ' 

Letter in parenthem Indicates circuit. (I) Independent; (L) Loow; <M> Moss; 
(P) Paramount; (R> RKO; <f) Stoll; (T) Tivoli; .(W) Warnar • ; 


NEW V>RK CITY 
Music Hall (!) .11 
Marilyn Murphy 
4 St?p -Bros 
Eric Hutson 
Janet Gaylord 
Victor Moreno 
Anthony Makes 
Rockettes 
Corps de Ballet 
8ym Ore 

Palace (R) IS 
Canton Bros. 
Martin & Florenz 
Chocolateers 
Satlslflers 
A1 Gordon . 


FAS Barry 
Benny Meroff 
Marcellt & Janls . 

CHICAGO, 

. Chicago <P) ( 1S 
Gilbert it Russell . 
Bobby Jttle 
Larry Best 
L Armstrong All S 

MIAMI 

Olympia (P) 10 
Novellos 
Baron Buika 
Joey Forman . 
Wanda It Amand 
Gene Nelson 


AUSTRALIA 


AUCKLAND 
St. James (T) 8 
Walton St O’Rourke 

Charly Wood Co 
. Lowe & Ladd 
Cook & Jeans 
Daresco 3 
Guy -Nelson 
Chevalier Bros 
B Vaughan 
Renita Kramer 
Bouna 

Bert Duke Sc Joy 
Sonya Corbeau 
Dorothy . Hall 
Show Girls 
Nudes 


Dancing Boys 
Ballet 

MELBOURNE 

Tivoli (T) 8 
Guus Brox 
O'Hagan St Stead 
John Blythe 
Balcombes 
Gloria Dawn 
Merenos 
Muracs 
Max Blake. 

Seyler Heylen 
Betty Meddings 
Frank Cleary 
John Bluthal 
Male Ballet 
Ballet Girls 


BRITAIN 


BLACKPOOL 
Palace (I) • 

Tommy Fields 
VogelbelnS Bears 
Arthur Worsley . 
George A Lydia 
Dave King 
Evy Sc Everto 
Barbour Bros St J 
Wallace & Bingham 
Margaret A Maurice 
BRIGHTON ■ 
Hippodrome (M) I 
Laurel St Hardy 
Harry Worth . 

D Rosalre Sc. T 
3 Jills * • 

Alan Rowe _ 

Ursula Sc Gus - 
Roy St Ray 
B Kayes. Pek.es . 
Paul Arland 
BRIXTON 
Empress (I) • 
jimmy Young 
Michael Bentlne 
Benny Hill 
Joan Hinde 

E aker & Douglas 
es Spanglers 
Marettas 
Merle St Marie 
CHELSEA 
Palace <0 S 
Max Miller 
Roy Stevens 
E -A Collins 
Terry Scott 
Lois Bard Co 
Alton Puppets 

S Warehan it B 
arbara - Statson 
CHISWICK 
Empire (S) B 
Kamon Andrews 
Monty Norman : 
Mavis Whyte 
Victor Seaforth 
Musical Elliotts 
3 Mazurs 

K Sc P Lewlngton . 
J - St S Lamonte 
CAST HAM 
Granada (I); I 
Kenton & Keen 
Swan Sc Leigh 
Stan Jay St Joan 
Speedacs . 
Metropolitan Cl) I 
Eddie’ Gray . 
Arthur Englash 
Clarkson St Leslie 
Lynn St , Mergot 
Maggie Fltxgibbon 
David Hurst ~ 
Peppinos Circus 
Seaton O'Dell 
EDINBURGH 
Empire ;(Mi • 
Peter Brough 
Ronald Chesney 
Ossie Noble- 
Peter Madden 
Les Raynor A B 
D Dandles Sc E 
Edward Victor 
Michael Mitchell 
Jimmy Gilmore 
FINSBURY PARK 
Empire '(M> ■ 
Roy Belles 
Frankie Vaughn 
Keefe Br # Sc A 
Dawn Whn.e Co 
W . St Cooper 
Ganjou Bros St J 
Joe Church .. 
David Hurst 
Fayne Sc Evans 


GLASGOW 
Empire (M) • 
Lee Lawrence 
Hylda Baker . 

C Willoughby Co . 

Montons 

Terry Hall . 

Rey Overbury Sc S 
Shipway Twins 
GRIMSBY 
Palace Cl) • 

Eric Williams 
Mary Harkness 
Jack Sherwln 
Harry Allen 
Mavis Groom 
3. Lees 
Ken Baker 
Les Watson 
Jean Peters 
E Sc G Noack 
Skating Maids 
HACKNEY 
Empire (Ml • 
Leo Fuld. 

Joan Turner 
Johnny Lockwood 
Tanner Sis 
Pharos & Marina 
Nelson Bros 
J Jeff & June 
3 Sterlings 

NORWICH 
Hippodrome (I) I 
Ronnie Ronaldo 
O'Nell Sc Haig 
Nat Hope 
Tony Sc Ruby 
Rexanos 
Les. Traversos 

2 Lions 
NOTTINGHAM 
Empire (M) I. 

Hutch 

Philip Harben 
Suzette Tarrl 
Mongadors 
Peter Raynor 

3 Hellos 
Ronnie Collls 
Bill Giles 

L Trots Poupee 
PORTSMOUTH 
Royal (M) B 
El Granadas St P 
Jimmy James 
Rita Martell 
Donald Peers 
Donald B Stuart 
Rayes Osborne St S 
B St B Adams 
SCUNTHORPE 
Savoy (I) • 

Eve Boswell 
Kirby & Hayes 
D St J De-Mott 
P St J Yullle 
Billy O’Sullivan 
Skating Vogues 
Julie - A Marie 
Sheba 

SOUTHAMPTON 
Grand (I) B 

Prince Zahoor 
Joe Stein 
Noon Bros 
Josie 

Jack Grieve 
Marsh A Lorraine 
Billy Gay 
M Rouge Girls 
SUNDERLAND 
Empire (M) 8 
NAN Grant 
Nitwits 

Jeffrey Lenner 
Diana Decker 
3 Robertls 
Kirk Stevens 
Woods A Jarrett 
1 Austral 


Cabaret Bills 


NEW YORK CITY 




Blue Angfl ■ 
Anita Ellis ■ ■ ’ 

Josephine Preinlce 
Andy Griffith 
Jorie Remes 
Bart Howard 
Jimmy Lyons Trio 
Boh Soir 
Jimmie Daniels 
Madmoiselles ' 
Oliver Wakefield 
Kaye Ballard 
Three Flames 
Dolores Brown 
.Cafe Society 
Coofers 
4 Tunes 
Jimmy Lewis 
Anthony Roberts 
Celebrity Club- 
Emil Cohen 
.Marty Gumty 
Ed Schaefer 
Stuart Harris 
Alfred A Lenore 
Roger Steel Ore - 
Chateau Madrid . 
Alfredo Sadel 
Tanya Reyes 
Pupl Caihpa Oro 




Lubov Hamsbay- 
-Mlsba Uzdanoff 
Senlq Karavaeff 
Misha Markoff . 
Hotel New Yorker 
Arnold Shoda 
Joan Walden 
Dru It Dijon 
Ernie Rudy Oro 
A Rolllni Trio 
Hotel Plorro 
Denise Darcel 
Mata A Kara 
Stanley Melba Oro 
Chico RelU Ore 
Hotel Plaxa 
Mindy Carson 
Ted Straeter Ore 
Monte Ore ' 

Hotel Roosevelt 
Guy Lombardo Ore 
Hotel St. Regis 
Russell Nype 
Milt Shaw Opr 
Horace Dlar Ore 
1 " Motel Sherry* 

. ... Netherland 

Alexander Bros 
Lester Lanin Ore 
Jan Brunesco Ore 
Hotel Statler 
Horace Heldt 
Hotel Taft 
Vlneent Lopez Orr 
- Latin Quarter 
Doodles A Skeeter 
L A M Murray 
Mon Toy 
Darvas A Julia 
Lee Sharon 
Rob Murray 
7 Ashtqjis 


Ruby Richards 
Art Wane; Ore 
B Harlowe ore 
Le Ruban Bleu 
Julius Monk 
Jonathan . Winters 
Isabelle Robins 
Artie Johnson 
Jackson Slsterfe 
N Parris Trio 
' Versailles'- 
'Nice To -See You' 
Fay DeWitt 
Don Llberto 
Al Norman 
Leu - Nelson 
Dorothy Keller 
Patti Ross 
Linda Lombard 
Margy Duncan 
Paula Stewart 
Carol Ohinart 
Salvatore Gioe Otr 
Panchito Ore 
Village BBrn 
Rachel Ellen 
Jack Malone 
Carcll A Carlyle* 
Larry MaoMahon 
Joe Furst 
Hal Graham Ore 
Village . Vanguard 
Enid Mosler 
Will Holt 
Trude Adame 
C Williams Trio 
Waldorf-Astoria 
Connie Russell 
Hamilton Trio . 

N Brandwynne Ore 
Mischa Burr Oro 


CHICAGO 


Bluo Angot 

Tahy Roman. 
Neville Black 
Val Navaro 
Grace Nichols 
Bob WeDyck ..Trio 

. Black Orchid. 
Josh White 
Lurlene Hunter 
-Ann Russell 
Ken Sweet . Trio 
Chez Pares 
Helen Traubel 
Buddy Hackett 
Du Pree Trio 
Brian. Farnon Ore 
Chamaco Band 

Conrad Hilton Hot'l 
Margie Lee 

PaDAlf 

Lippe A Balisch 
Bobby May 
Bob Bromley 
Bill Griffin 


N A J Waldo 
Boiilevar-Dears (7) 
Boulevar-Dona (6) 

F Masters Ore 

Crossroads 

Buddy De Vito .. 
Dorothy Langdon 
Gloria Brooks 
Bdgawator Beach 
Rosalind Courtright 
Johnny O'Brien 
Dancing Belmonts 
Bob Kirk Ore 
-Encore 
Arthur Walsh 
Leo DeLyoii 
Sheila Arnold 
Palmer House 
Romo. Vincent 
Robert Maxwell" 
Federico Rey 
Pilar . Gomez 
Empire Eight 
Emil Coleman Ore 


ICS ANGELES 


Ambassador Hotel 

Gordon MacRae 
A, Allyn A Hodges 
Benny Strong Ore 
Band Box. 
Billy Gray. 

Moore A Lessy - 
Larry Green Trio 
Bar of Music 
Arthur Blake 
Jayne Manners 
E Bradford Ore 
Blltmore- Hotol 
Tyrrell A Winslow 
Ladd Lyon 
Artie James 
Hal Derwin Ore 
Clro's 
Nat “King" Cole 
Dick Stabile Ord 
Bobby Ramos Ore 
Charley: Fov's 
Weir Bros 


Manon Smith 
A Browne Ore 
Mocambo 
Amalia 

Paul Hebert Ore 
- Moulin Rbbgo 
B Minevitcli H R 
De Castro Sis (3) 
Dominique 
Chlqulta. A Johnson 
Louise Hoff 
Barbettes. (5) 

Gina Genardi 
Tom Canyon 
Fluff Charlton 
Bob Snyder Ore 
D Arden Dancers 
Statler Hotol 
Continentals (5) . 
Clifford Guest 
Ralph A Lorraine 
Frankie Carle Oro : 
Ron Perry Ore .. 


MIAMI-MIAMI BEACH 


.Freddie Alonso 
iarlta Herrera 
Copa cabana 
Tony Bennett 
Myron Cohen 
CerneyS 

Lorraine A Brunner 
Sandy Evans 
M Durso Oro 
Frank. Marti Ore 
Hotel Ambassador 
Jules Lande Ore 
La Vie Eh Rose 
Vic Damons 
Lenny Kent 
Rose Marie 
Van Smith Ore 
No. 1 Fifth Avo 
Jimmy Komack 
Charmonizers 
Bob Downey 
Harold Fon villa 
Hazel Webster 
Old Roumanian 
Sadie Banks 
Billy Vine, 

Joe La Porte Ore 
P’Aquila Ore 
l Two Guitars 
i Vladimir Rozhen 


Atlantis Hotel 

Henry Tobias 
Sid Lewis Ore 
Pepe A Susie 
Algiers Hotel 
Buddy Walker 
Mai Malkin Ore 
Tony A Renea 
Bar of Music 
Bill Jordan 
Guy Rennie 
Harvey Bell 
Beth Challis 
Gina Valenta 
Ethel Davis 
Fred Thompson 
Blrdtand 
C Hawkins Ore 
Art Tatem 

Shoremede 
Preacher Rollo 9 
Ray Mambo Ore 
Lynlta 

Beachcomber 

Frank Sinatra 
Dick Shawn . 

The Dunhills 
Harry Richman 
The Romaines 
Len Dawson Ore 
Casablanca 
Betty A Jane Kean 
June Taylor Girls 
Dave Tyler Ore 
Celebrity Club 
Alan Gale 
Freddie Stewart 
Larry Foster 
The Williams (2) 
Teddy King Ore 
Clro's 
Frances Faye 
The Red Caps 
The Treniers 
Clover Club 
Lena Horne 
Paul Gray 
Betty Luster 
Tony Lopez Ore 
Sohna Marlowe Line 
Woody Wbodbury 
Di Lido Hotel 
Ritz Bros 
Zlg A Vivian Baker 
Freddie Calo Ore 
Empress Hotel 
Hnl Edwards Orq 
M Darby DanceiB 
L'Alglon 
Chuy Reyes Ore 
L’Aiglon Strings 


•BflEs 

Tallulah Bankhead 
■I Rancho Vaga* 
Harry James Ore 
Marilyn Canter 

Sahara 

Kathryn Grayson 
Jack Carter 
Sujata A Aaoka 
Cee Davidson Ore 
Sliver Slipper •- 
Maxie Rosenbloom 


Hank Henry 
Sparky Kayo*. 
Nicholas Trio 
BUI WUlard 
Jimmie Cavanaugh 
Virginia Dew ' 
BiR Willard 
Joan White 
G Redman's Ore 
Thunderbird 
Diosa Costello . 
Slate Bros 
Al Jahns Ore 


RENO 


Charlie Farrell 
Latin Quarter 
Jane Morgan 
Bernard Bros 
The Szonys . 
Veronica Bell 
Ruth Costello 
Ralph .Young 
Plroska 
Ernie Amato 
Cortez Ore 
Campo Ore 
Antone A Ina 
Sid Stanley Ore 
Allan Drake 

Lord Tarloten 

Jack Stuart Ore - 
Jeannie Moore 

Loon A Eddie's 

Myra PaVis 
Chuck Fontaine 
Acres. O'ReUly 
Jackie Gordon 
Billy Austin 
Nancy. Kent 
Charlotte Waters 
Bill- Gray 
Ralph Gilbert 

Nautilus Hotol 

Jean Carroll 
Antone A Ina 
Sid Stanley Ore 
Allan Drake ' 

Patio 

H Stern Strings 
Sans Souci Note; 
Carl Brisson 
Eddie Snyder 
Sacaras. Ore 
Ann . Herman Dcrs 
LaRue's 

Carmen Cavallaro 
Louis Adler Ore 

Ronov Plaza 

Milt Herth Trio 
George Hines Ore 
Saxony Hotel 
Los Chavales 
Trini Reyes 
Val Olraan Ore 
Helene 

Tony De. La Cru* 
Vagabonds 
Vagabonds (4) 

Maria Neglia 
Condos A Brandow 
Mary Ann Bentley 
Frank Linale Ore 


LAS VEGAS, NEVADA 


Mopes Skyroom 

B A R Goman's 
Naughty 90's Rev 
Mapes Skylettes 
E Fitzpatrick’s Ore 
Mow. Golden- 
Four Lads 
Joy Jayson 


Tony. Wing 
£ Young Ore 
Riverside 
MUls Bros . 

-Tanlk A Avnaut. 
Riverside Starlets 
DU1 Clifford Ore 


HAVANA 


MoRtmartro 

M dr Paris Orq 
Michelle Due 
Pedro Vargas 
Bergaza A- Terraza 
Rosendo Rosell 
Monsjgneur Orq 
E Antunez Orq- _ 

C de la Playa Orq 
Sons Souci 

Olga Chaviano 
Walter Nicks 
JuUet A Sandor 
Ray CarSon 
TondeMyo 


Dominicks . 

Helejna A Hector 
Cacnia ' . , . 

Fernando Valencia 
R Ortega Orq 
C Rodriguez Orq 
. Troplcana • 

S de Espana Orq . 
Celia Cruz _ , . 
Rene A C Delaine 
Mano Lopez .- 

Marta A Alexander 
PauUna Alvarez^ 
Kiko Gonsalves 
A Romeu Orq a 
S enen Suarez Orq 


Overseas Distribs 

Continued from page 5 55 

Trinidad and Ecuador. Metro, in 
turn, has the 20th slate m Austria. 
It's thought likely that, with a*}.?* 
the 20th pix in Cinemascope, this 
deal may undergo some Changes 
since the split in the past has been 
based on accumulated b.o. experi- 
ences in a given area and Cinema- 
Scope appears to have outdated 
these figures. In South Africa, 20th 
handles the RK0- and Republic pix 
in addition to its own. 

it’s expected that, as 20th uses* 
up its backlog of 2-D pix abroad, 
the- company may go in even more 
for taking on the releases of other 
distribs, particularly, in areas 
where it has exclusive call on the 
playing time of a theatre, and inay 
not be in a position to fill it com- 
pletely. Furthermore, there are the 
many subsequent^ abroad that 
won’t be equipped for Cinema- 
Scope for a good while: If 20th 
wants to keep these accounts with- 
out going off the Cinemascope 
standard, it will need additional 
product. 

5,000 Foreign C’Scopers? 

— According to Silverstone, 20th 
expects to have 5,000 foreign 
houses equipped for CinemaScope 
by the end of this year. That still 
leaves about twice as many to be 
serviced. 20th’s foreign releases are 
anywhere between six months , and 
a year, behind the domestic sked. 

An Allied Artists spokesman this 
week said his company wasn’t con- 
cerned over possible kicks from in- 
die producers in deals where A A 
pix are handled by another com- 
pany. “We promise them the best 
possible b.o. performance,” he said, 
“and they just have to trust in 
us.” One of the objections to re- 
ciprocal releasing in the past has 
been that it might not give a fair 
shake to the indies releasing 
through a major outfit. This has 
been a particular concern to RKO. 
Latter, however, now is also* said 
to be scouting possibilities for re- 
leasing deals as an economy meas- 
ure. 


Chi Show Biz 


Continued from page 1 


Ring & Piston 

Continued from page 2 


Desert Inn 

Jackie Miles 
Les Charlivels 
Betty Reilly 
El Corlez 
Wild B Davis Trio 
Royal Guards 
E Skrivanek Ore. 
Flaming# 

Freddy- Martin Ore 


Last Frontier 
Marilyn Maxwell 
K Stone Quartette 
Three Holies 
Gariyood Van Ore 
Golden Nugget 
La- Marr A -Poppy 
Jimmy Vey 
Johnnie Turner 
Joe Venuti Ord 


had, because it is one of the best 
designed cars in the world. 

Real Plush *Jobs 

Rolls Royce and Bentley lent 
their elegance to the show with 
the Continental Bentley stealing 
the prize as best looking in the 
booth— at $17,320 it should be. 

A new 8-V Fiat Two Litre was 
a good example of the Italian 
school of design. There fire iiot 
many of these over here and they 
have yet to be proved in competi- 
tion, but should do very well in 
their class once they get started. 

American and Europeans alike 
haye their experimental cars and 
these were in evidence. The Alfa- 
ROmeo B.A.T. with Berton body 
was, as outlandish as any seen; 
the Kaiser-Darrin and Hudson 
-Italia are in better taste and may 
even be slated for production, The 
Hudson is the best bet of any of 
these jobs, and' may even prove 
suitable for competition wjth some 
modification. 

First day attendance of 20,000 
was good and should improve as 
the word gets around. 


tre of the country. It is partly be- 
cause of the decline of the legiti- 
mate theatfe and night clubs here 
that entertkinment-hungry business 
gatherings have been forced to 
seek acts from, club agents. 

HoWever, in the process’ of be- 
coming experts : at this type, ot 
booking, a number of Chicago 

showmen have been able to attract 

lucrative contracts in other cities. 
Significantly, of four recent con- 
ventions in Atlantic City, three 
were “bpoked” from Chicago by, 
respectively, Marvin . Himmel, Mar- 
cus Glaser and Leo Salkin. Only 
one Atlantic City convention sec- 
ured its talent from nearby Man- 
hattan. ' ' ' / 

Shew budgets vary from $500 to 
$10,000 normally, though a talent 
nut of $25,000 occasions no sur- 
prise. The sales directors of; big 
American corporations don’t stint 
when they want to make an impres- 
sion. A good year for most' indus- 
tries is cause for celebration at 
the convention while a . bad year 
creates . a psychological need for 
intense sales meetings and bally- 
hoo banquets. In either mood, pro- 
fessional talent is summoned forth 
to enterfain. Fact that this has 
been found to pay off consistently 
is the chief reason for the phe- 
nomanal growth of the club date 
field in the past decade. 

All Kinds of Talent 

Conventions use every idnd of 
act, from singers and comics -to 
:>trippers, aerialists, trampolines, 
clowns and every sort 4 of circus 
act. Few shows actually require 
name 'attractions, and a good club 
date act will be working as reg- 
ularly as it had in the early days 
when there were plenty of vaude- 
ville outlets. As a result, much tal- 
ent locates here to work the mid- 
west clubdate circuit : exclusively. 

From the. acts’ standpoint, club 
dates can afford as much security 
as the nitery circuit and . better 
working conditions to boot. Club 
date talent is less itinerant than 
the straight cafe turns. Its audi- 
ences are invariably easier - to 
please. An increasing volume of 
dates are for luncheon shows. 

. Some acts in the height of the con- 
vention season manage as many as 
three or four shows per .day. Case 
in point is Johnny Coons, a local 
ty favorite of kids, who worked 
five jobs for the towheads on Dec. 
20 . 

Also, performers working three 
days at a convention frequently 
earn as much as they would in a 
full week in a regulation night 
club. 

Chicago bookings spread into De- 
troit, Minneapolis, Milwaukee, St. 
Louis and some of the smaller in- 
iervening towns, which has the ad- 
ditional effect of keeping transpor- 
tation costs down. 

Picnics As a Business 
Minimum pay per act is about 
$75 per one-time-shot and ranges 
upwards to the thousands. Off- 
season, in the summertime, talent 
picks up more than random coin 
playing company picnics and in- 
dustrial fairs, with the lower 
bracket performers chiefly working 
the smaller outings. Al Slavin, a 
local booker who handles the 
Olivia Country Club, so far this 
year has booked 43 pidnic dates for 
the upcoming summer — and the 
pay isn’t just peanuts either. 

On the music end, too, club dates 
have become a specialized field 
with several units, like that of the 
late Lou Diamond, never leaving 
the city limits. Lou Breese, who 
has multiple units bearing his 
name, has become the Meyer Davis 
of the midwest. Currently, he’s 
prepping a 10-man vocal group 
backed by a 17-piece orch as an ex- 
clusive Club date package. Ensem- 
ble as yet hasn’t been fully formed 
but already has a goodly number 
of bookings. 

- Bookers here are all members of 
the convention bureau which 
sends out advance lists periodically 
of upcoming conclaves. New ones 
are immediately bid for. by club 
date agents and special depart- 
ments of the larger agencies, but 
in the main the agents rely ujton 
their steady cpnv.ention and indus- 
trial accounts which they’ve built 
up through the years. Independ- 
ents are able to compete against 
the major offices because they have 
more cheap acts to offer to low 
budgets than do the large bureaus. 

The entertainment budget, or 
nut for the show, in most 'cases is 
turned oyer to agents like Art 
Goldsmith, Doris Hurtig, Jim Rob- 
erts, Mannie -Gotthelf, and Sid 


Tage who put. the shows together 
teaming their own jtalent with that 
secured from bookers like Harry 
Greben, Danny Qraham, Larry Lux 
Marcus Glaser, Al Botde and any 
number of others who locate them- 
selves in Chi. Larger offices like 
MCA, GAC, Morris, Associated 

Booking Corp., and McConkey Art- 
ists Corp offer package deals to 
.their club date, accounts, but 
there’s little Interchanging with 
the indies owing tb the- fact that 
most of the smaller, agents are 
pegged unfair by ' the American 
Guild of Variety Artists. 

This latter situation arose about 
a year ago when some 60 or 70 
local agents ankled AGVA in a 
body to form - the Entertainment 
Managers Association in refusal to 
pay a welfare fee of $1 par per . 
former per club date, after Artists 
Representative Association, their 
parent organization in New York, 
agreed to pay it. Theoretically, all 
performers working for . th^se 
agents are. unfair to AGVA, too, 
but the union so far has done 
nothing to alter the situation. Big 
agencies, unwilling to risk drawing 
AGVA’s retaliation, virtually re- 
frain from- submitting their talent 
to the club date agents. 

Still, some performers, presuma- 
bly without their booking agency’s 
knowing, offer themselves inde- 
pendently 1 to certain local talent 
reps for the club date placement. 

Mo§t of Chi’s present bookers 
were operative in the prosperous 
years before the small niteries and 
presentation houses began shutter- 
ing in a. wave. At the time most 
of them had exclusive booking- ar- 
rangements with small clubs on the 
outskirts, trading, talent amongst 
themselves and splitting , commis- 
sions at a time when acts were 
still cheap and abundant. Paul 
Marr was booking the Vine Gar- 
dens,. the Pastime in Des Moines, 
and the Lake Club in Springfield, 
which he -still has. Larry Lux and 
Bert Peck had the Cuban Village, 
Tweet Hogan the Isbells-Helsings 
chain, and Charles Hogan the 
Oriental Theatre. 

Oriental meant a good deal more 
to local Chicago agents than did 
the Chicago Theatre because the 
latter was being booked, and still 
is, in New York. Additionally, the 
Stratford and Englewood Theatres 
were running weekend shows, and 
bookers were reaching into clubs 
in such towns as Terre Haute, Dan- 
ville, Cairo, Wichita, and East St. 
Louis. . 

Chicago itself had, in addition to 
present niteries and supper clubs, 
the Rag Doll, 5100 Club, Rio Caba- 
na, Latin Quarter, Silver Frolics 
on the West Side, Bismarck, Black- 
stone and Sherman Hotels, arid any 
number of smaller clubs in the 
lesser neighborhoods. When all 
these began to go by the boards, 
circe 1950, night club booking be- 
came too competitive for the indie 
agents, and most of them ceritred 
on club dates which coincidentally 
began to flourish at .the time. Now 
the one-time-shots have become 
their mainstay. 

A rather unique operation in 
town is that of Harry Greben, who 
calls himself a “talent broker” for 
club dates and claims to be the 
first booker in town to swing ex- 
clusively to securing talent for the 
one-nighters. This .he did nine 
years ago when the niteries were 
going kaput. Greben handles about 
35 acts, keeping some 25 in action 
steadily. With doubling and trip- 
ling, he set 40 club dates over a 
single weekend during the Christ- 
irias season, yet out-of-town biz 
comprises the bulk of his opera- 
tion,. “If I had to live on dates in 
Chicago alone,” he says, “I'd have 
been out of business long ago,” 


Revised Coife 

ss Continued from page I s 

be in line for a Code ■ okay. How- 
ever, a rewrite job on the Code, 
which has yet to be announced and 
consequently is not official, changes 
matters. The revisions include a 
firm nix on arty film dealing with 
a notorious criminal of current or 
recent times. 

Announcement of the Code 
changes ' expectedly will be made 
before AA’s film is produced. 
Question now is whether there Will 
be Code acceptance in view: of the 
fact that the film company revealed 
its intentions uf making a pic on 
Gordon before the Code rewrite 
takes oit “official*’ status. 


Wednesday* February 10, 1954 


HOUSE REVIEWS 


67 


Palace, N* V. 

nork k Hallow. Phil Ramona, 
B.frton k Janet, Repaid Jk. Rudy, 
tiudek March, Rivero <fintette t 
pon Cummings, d ^tJoUmbardt 
umise Orch; "Man In the Attic 
*?Sfox\, reviewed in Variety 
pec, 23. 1953. x 

rurrent bill is a fast-moving 
r^rkatze that spells above-average 

entertainment values for this sole 
remaining vauder on ^Broadway, 
weekend turnouts at the Palace 
continue big, with standup .crowds 
ininc for this show strongly, 
g Vet turns, many of which have 
beeii playing this house regularly 
since the eight-act policy has come 
into effect, dominate the layout, 
in the next-to-closing • slot, Don 
Cummings clicks Again with his 
Straight gags and his w.k. takeoff 
on video commercials. Latter bit 
is a sock closer that stands up 

after repeated viewings. 

Rivero Quintette, a sepia act 
with a mambo flavor, is a colorful 
turn from the Hispano field. Two 
men and- two gals, with a piano ac- 
companist, harmonize on some na- 
tive south-of-the-border melodies 
and break it up with their flashy 

hoofing: ' ^ ... 

Vocalistics are adequate but not 
their strong point and their piping 
weakness is revealed on the rela* 
tively slow “Siboney.” Combo hits 
its natural pace ph the fast rhythm 
items with the gals supplying plen- 
tv of sex appeal with their body- 
shaking dance bits. . . 

Berk & Hallow open the show 
with some nifty hoofing routines 
for a good house warmup. Boy 
and girl work some flashy steps 
with smooth precision. In the 
deuce, Phil Ramone scores with a 
violin act reviewed under . New 
Acts along with the Rivero Quin- 
tette. • 

One of the show’s top highlights 
is furnished by. Burton & Janet 
with their gallery of impressions. 
Best is Burton’s takeoff on°Charlie 
Chaplin, a five-minute pantomime 
bit that captures some of the com- 
edy, and pathos of the original 
Chariot. Closer is a nifty medley 
of Mae West and Groucho Marx. 

In the No. 5 post, Rehald & 
Rudy score with their slow-motion 
hand-to-hand balancing, Both lads 
are garbed in strikingly brief 
bikini-type shorts that are apropos 
for the ballet-like aero routines. 
Act earns a hefty mitt. 

Next, another vet vaude duo, 
Hyde & March, hit with another 
comedy turn based on zanily con- 
structed musical instruments. 
Femme provides some fine straight 
warbling to Hyde’s fractured, ac- 
compaiment on assorted violins, 
harps and flutes. 

For the closer, the 3 D’s, two 
men and a- girl; come up with some 
okay stunts on a high bars. It’s 
a variation on a trapeze act which 
starts slowly due to some misfiring 
comedy, but it gathers speed when 
the two males launch their fancy 
spins on the bars. 

Jo Lombardi’s house orch, per 
usual, cuts the show expertly. 

Herm. , 


phone work* notably with the four 
mallets, and then such novelty ef- 
fects as his “Firefly Rag” in a dark 
stage with' his flashlight, mallets, a 
dancing puppet effect with the 
little figure’s feet attached to the 
sticks for “Turkey in the Straw/- 
and a socko “Honeysuckle^ Rose” 
finish, complete with unmuffed 
stick-tosses, when caught, and act 
is over strong. 

Next to closing are Edna & Leon 
for a graceful ballroom acrobatic 
opening and then, into their one- 
hand balancing, head and foot 
stands and catches. Whole bill is 
notable on novelty and diversity 
appeal, with Archie Stone and pit 
band giving solid backgrounding. 

McStay. 


Four 
Scotty 
Bobby 
House 
( WB ). 


Casino, Toronto 

Toronto, Feb. 5. 
Aces, Ted k.. Flo Vail ett, 
Burbank, Edna k Leon, 
Monahan, Archie Stone 
Orch ; “ Sins of Jezebel ” 


With the Four Aces as topliners, 
plus a hefty surrounding bill on 
diversity, Casino is back in its tra- 
ciition after previous fortnight’s 
b.o. sloughoff. For their trader 
marked harmonics, Four Aces i'Al 
Alberts, baritone lead; Dave Ma- 
lioncy, tenor; Lou Silvestri, bass; 

Vaccaro, baritone) are jam- 
ming the customers in for a four- 
stint, with standees down 
noth side aisles when caught. 
Quartet alternates its modulated 
ana allout deliveries of several of 
tneir disclicks. There’s the usual 
uown-front repeaters in the jeans 
set for squealed requests and re- 
sponse, but Four Aqes are over big 
too with the adults to applause 
salvos for every number. 

_ Aces have also added Bobby 
Monahan to the act, with, portly 
comic also emceeing throughout 
me whole” 75-minute stage pack- 

Caught by the Aces in a small 
nitery^ in Dayton, they signed up 
the gabber 5hd this marks his first 
theatre date. Monahan Opens pro- 
ceedmgs with his comedy Warbling 
Nobody Loves a Fat Man,” this 
interspersed with agreeable patter, 
to hefty customer warmup. Then a 
jaughing jag bit that also 'con-. 
V u / se d the audience, this leading 
into his drunk bit and self-kidding 
Hollywood film star impersona- 
tions, these fortunately kept short, 
and a begoff to his introduction of 
Ted & Flo Vallett. 

- Coed-looking pair present, their 
me ange of silk flag manipulations 
and crossstage tosses, some nifty 


^ C \'°batics, and a session of baton- 
ringing transfers and catches, all 
m tops reception. Scotty Blirbank 
ls brisk in the deucejor xylOi , 


Portland 

Portland, Ore., Feb. 6. 

Louis Armstrong & His 41 1 Stars 
( 6) , with Barney Bigard, Trummy 
Young, Milton Hinton, Billy Kyle 
and Kenny John, Velhia Middleton; 
Reggie Rymal; “ Jivaro ” ( Par ) . 

This is the first stage-film deal 
to play this town in many years. 
Manager Dick Newton will book 
•periodic packages on. similar basis 
into the 3,400-seat ace Paramount 
spot. Years ago, this showcase was 
the home of the famous Fanchon 
& Marco lavish revues. Newton 
has upped the adhiish from 90c to 
$1.25 tops for the week. If top at- 
tractions and good pix are avail- 
able, it looks as though Newton 
has a good thing on his hands. 

Louis (Satchmo) Armstrong and 
his jazz specialists put oh a 70- 
minute ball and jam session com- 
bination opening night (5), with a 
couple , of acts .to break the shindig 
up. Layout gets off to a slow start, 
with the sextette opening on stage 
with a slow tune, followed by an- 
other slow one. The gravel-voiced 
master chirps his recorded tunes 
while the guys knock out some of 
their stuff. 

Barney Bigard does some nifty 
clarineting. Trummy Young stops 
the show cold with his tromboning 
of “Margie.’’ Milton Hinton dis- 
plays classy bass picking. Billy 
Kyle at the 88 also proves himself 
a solid showstopper. Junior mem- 
ber of the outfit, Kenny John, 
Winds up the solo stints by beating 
the skins to cheering of the cus- 
tomers. 

Velma Middleton sings couple of 
tunes and then does a duo with 
Satchmo for “Baby It’s Cold Out- 
side.” Reggie Rymal gets plenty 
of palm-wacking for a skillful pad- 
dle-ball routine. Entire layout is 
very . informal throughout and a 
treat for jazz enthusiasts. Feve. 

Apollo, X. Y. 

Ruth Brown, Roy Hamilton, 
Whirlwinds (4), Leonard Reed k 
Spo-DeeODee, Dyerettes (5), 
Benny Green Orch ( 121. . 

This is a small bill in terms of 
number of acts for this Harlem 
house, but it’s a potent one inso- 
far as the tastes of the patrons go. 
There are two singers, Ruth Brown 
and Roy Hamilton, oh the bill, 
along with Benny Green’s new 
band and combo. Musics the 
mainstay, and it’s right in the 
Apollo groove. 

Miss Brown, a Harlem fave, gives 
out chiefly in the rhythm & blues 
vein, with such items as “Love 
Contest,” “If you Don’t Want Me, 
“Oh But I Would* and “Mama, 
giving lots of lung power and drive 
to the slightly bluish lyrics. She 
essays one ballad; “Secret Love, 
and demonstrates that she can sing 
’em sweet, too. It’s her rhythm 
numbers, however, that get. the big 
mitts. Hamilton is reviewed under 
New Acts. ■ — . 

‘ Whirlwinds, the only ofay act on 
the bill, score strongly with their 
rollerskating stint, particularly the 
segments employing leg and neck 
halters in which the gals do those 
flying twists. Leonard Reed & Spo- 
Dee-O-Dee are the new comedy act 
at the house,, and they score nicely 
in a couple of quickie blackouts, 
although the subject matter Isn’t 
very fresh. Reed does an okay em- 
ceeing job. , 

Dyerettes are a sepia dance 
troupe, showing a great deal of ver- 
satility (they do taps, modern and 
aero) but indicating the need for 
lots more rehearsal in tjieir pre 
cisioning. They’re on as openers 
and in next-to-closing and dress up 
the bill nicely. . 

Benny Green orch comes in for 
a lot of attention, via the , big band- 
and a five^man combo that’s oh 
for three numbers. Green, who 
plays quite a trombone, has as 
sembled a group of fine musicians 
for their first public appearance 
and they employ an aggressive, 
clean-sounding style that’s a re- 
freshing change of pace at this 
house. Combo purveys excellent 
jazz and musicianship, going to 
town on such standards as “Pen- 
nies From Heaven” and “Body and 
Soul” and topping their stint off 
with a tricky original, “Blow Your 
Horn.” Band cuts a good show, 

/ t. L , .. V 1 <• u „'Cll$tJ. | 


Olympia, Miami 

Miami, Feb. 5. 

busty Draper, Lowe, Hite k 
Stanley, Pape k Rene, Winnie 
Hoveler Dancers (8), Les Rhode 
House Orch; “The Steel Lady” 
< UA ) . 


Components of this week’s lay- 
out jell into a pleasing variety, 
with bouse returning the Winnie 
Hoveler line to add production an- 
gle the regulars go for. 

Topliner Rusty Draper marks up 
a warm reception from the aud via 
a well-balanced array of tunes plus 
an amiable approach that wins 
them from walkon. Purveys solid 
series of pops with his recording 
hits stressed, biggest mitt-raisers 
being: “Lazy River” and “No Help 
Wanted.” Stint is projected in 
shpwmanly manner to add to im- 
pact* . 

Lowe; Hite & Stanley garner 
goodly portion of giggles with their 
knockabout comedy. The contrast 
in size adds to sight values, with 
the panto biz raising the laugh- 
quotient. 

The Hoveler group are an eye- 
catching set who have been pro- 
vided with sprightly routines to 
keep them interested. Patterns 
are imaginatively devised and cos- 
tuming is colorful. 

In teeoff spot, Pape & Rene 
show, a well-trained set of canines 
who go through a series Of stand- 
ard acro-tricks that earn them fair 
aud reaction. Les Rhode and house 
orch play the backgrounds in usual 
capable manner. Lary 


Continued from page 15 


dancing. In latter case, Koci 
disdains to play personally for the 
terpers. He starts the sets and 
walks off for a rest. 

There’s no greater tribute to the 
artistry of Koci than his ability to 
silence and hold enthralled a room- 
ful of customers, often including 
drinkers who arrived with little 
liking or respect for straight 
fiddling and remained to worship 
at the gypsy shrine And it’s done 
entirely with : the fiddle and .. a 
minimum of . histrionics of the 
playing-in-your-ear kind popular- 
ized in Paris, 

Koci is sixtyish, fat and with an 
expressive face reminiscent of 
the late Szoke (S. Z.) Sakall, his 
countryman. 

His handling of 20-minute set of 
numbers ranging from the familiar 
“Gypsy Airs” of Sarasate through 
a Strauss waltz or two and on to 
wild Rumanian and “Koruts” 
melodies leaves attentive hearers 
breathless. It’s unquestionably the 
sexiest music . anywhere. And 
Koci demands attention, sometiihes 
stalking off the floor or bawling out 
a noisy guest rather than fight in- 
terruptions. When an appreciative 
crowd’s on hand, he and his Cym- 
balist will do some Bach, Ravel or 
Liszt that’s out of the world. 

Koci would be a great aSset in 
any U. S. “Champagne Room” 
setting. Isra. 


Can-AFM 

Continued from page 60 


with the CBC, with H weeks to go 1 
and, under contract, will be paid 
whether or not they appear on 
CBC tv.) 

On the International Hobby 
Show dispute at the CNE, August 
Bolte, manager, stated * that If 
Ernest Corley and his puppet oper- 
ators appeared, all musicians would 
be withdrawn from other stage 
units lit the show. (Corley also re- 
fused to switch unioh membership.) 
Bolte said he got a wire from. Mur- 
doch reading: “We are advising 
you that AFM members will not 
play with or support on the same 
show a member of AGVA. We 
trust that you will make appro- 
priate arrangements.” 


Babesia 


.Can. Unfair 

Continued from page 60 


their AGVA cards and accept tem- 
porary auxiliary affiliation with 
the Canadian musicians union, this 
offered by the latter until vaude 
and nitery artists set up their own 
organization, as divorced from 
AGVA. (Some 400 former members 
of the Toronto branch of AGVA 
have broken away from the AGVA 
setup and plan to form their own 
Canadian union.) 

Phoned Bids Turned Down 

Shirley Harmer, Toronto singer 
now a member of the DaVe Garro- 
way tv cast, turned down the 
phoned request to New York from 
here by Walter Murdoch, head of 
the Canadian musicians union, that 
she join -the latter organization and 
turn in her AGVA card, Ditto deci- 
sion was made . by Jacqueline 
James, .singing topiiner twice- 
nightly oh the National Motor Boat 
Show at Arena Gardens here, who 
refused to surrender future U.S, 
theatre or nitery dates for a one- 
night tv appearance for the CBC. 

On the two girl singers’ amicable 
withdrawal from “The Big Revue,” 
the Revue Dancers ran into harsher 
treatment. When they appeared on 
the CBC studio stage for rehearsal, 
the members of Samuel Hersen- 
horen’s orch refused to play until 
the dance quartet left the studio. 
Oh Friday night 15) performance, 
costumed dancers were required to 
stay out in the CBC corridors dur- 
ing the run of “The Big Revue.” 
I (They have a 26-week, contract 


^.Continued from page 62 

perform similarly. Henry told them 
those names, if available, com- 
mandeered sums up to; $12,500.’ 
Singers that the ops hadn't heard 
of had come up and were getting 
four figures and the comics that 
brought in money just couldn’t be 
had at prices which this 300-seater 
could afford. 

What’s more, most of the boni* 
face trio couldn’t envision the fact 
that the . newcomers had to have 
special treatment. The trio had re- 
garded their, room as one that 
would be built primarily for com- 
edic lures, so didn’t make too much 
provision for musicians. They 
learned that modern singers have 
arrangements that call for fairly 
big orchestras, plus a batch of fid- 
dles that a club couldn’t normally 
afford. Thus Under the graphs' they 
had made they Wouldn’t be eligible 
for the record names. Consequent- 
ly, they found that expanded budg- 
ets w’ere necessary, in both the 
music and the talent departments. 

Budgets, consequently, will have 
to be more flexible than Originally 
envisioned. They booked for the 
initial layout A1 Martino, Joey 
Bishop, Frederick & Tanya and the 
Lee Henderson Girls. 

The other major problem facing 
the operators lies in the fact .that 
they and the city of Baltimore 
start off even— as the Chandelier 
will be the first big league cafe 
operation the city has had in"years. 
They’re keeping their fingers cross- 
ed until they know how the city 
will play host to a big nitery after 
a long absence of major live talent. 


however, paid the. team as per con- 
tract. There are several similar 
instances v here operators have 
had to pay acts who couldn’t per- 
form because of the refusal of 
musicians to work With them. 

. Qne of the hoped-for byproducts 
of the AGVA. bail in Canada is the 
possibility of operators starting 
court suits against the AFM. Op- 
erators who have been hit could 
go to court for punitive damages, 
claiming they have been injured, 

Onoj^of the possibilities under a 
ban is the closing of the Seville 
Theatre, Montreal, and the Casino, 
Toronto, two important stops on 
the Wailing vaude circuit. Another' 
consequence is the possibility that 
Roy. Rogers may not be able to 
open at the Canadian National Ex- 
hibition. However, that event 
doesn’t take place until August. 
Rogers is an AFM member, bejhg 
a guitar player, but should he be 
declared unfair by AGVA, the af- 
filiates Of. the Associated. Actors & 
Artistes of America would act sim- 
ilarly, and his video and screen 
work would be endangered. 

AGVA’s national administrator 
Jack Irving is conferring with 
Canadian bookers today iWed.). 
Course of action may be deter- 
mined by results of this confer- 
ence. Issue will then go to the 
national board for referendum. 


Continued from pa ke 63 


N. Y. Solon Preps 


Continued from page 60 


10%. To protect “the little fel- 
low,” he kept the 5% maximum 
on the first $200 of salary. 

After Supreime Court Justice J. 
Harry Schirlck ruled here ill. favoir 
of Haven Johnson, pianist, who 
had been playing qt an Albai$ 
niglrt club and who rebelled 
against continued payment of a 
10% commission to a leading New 
York agency, Sen. William F. Con- 
don, Yonkers Republican, intro- 
duced on Feb. 17, 1953, legislation 
eliminating the 5% proviso and 
substituting a requirement that 
the gross fees could not "in any 
case” exceed the amount set forth 
in a schedule of- maximum fees. 

The . bill, which would have taken 
effect immediately, encountered 
certain opposition in the amuse- 
ment field and it was not moved 
for passage. 

4A’s Opposition Likely 

Associated Actors k Artistes of 
America is likely to oppose the 
Moritt fee-limit bill as they have 
all similar legislation in the past. 
Presently, the law limiting agency 
commissions to 5% is honored 
more in the breach than in the 
observance, and the percenteries 

have been able; to charge the usual 
10% fee because of the consent of 
the various 4A unions. 

On the other hand, agencies 
have always supported the. various 
bills introduced in the past by 
Sen, Condon, but the legislation 
folded when the unions stepped 
in. The agencies jn the past have 
attempted to justify their position 
in getting 10%, claiming that they 
managed the acts as well as pro- 
vided employment for them. How- 
ever, this contention has always 
run into a snag from the unions, 
which prohibit the same office 
from acting as agents and as per- 
sonal managers, „ 


closed Betty Hutton-Sophie Tuck- 
er* The 900-seater has been hit- 
ting peak grosses, despite the fact 
that there have been several sec- 
ond shows that were off. First 
sessions are ahvays jammed. 

Latin Quarter is doing okay with 
its early shows, hut midnight 
affairs are spotty. Again, Lou Wal- 
ter^ figures to average out, thanks 
to capacity and ensuing advent of 
Joe E. Lewis, who arrives at end 
of month for a. four-week stay. 
Last season he brought them in 
for those important : late stagings. 

Cloyer Club, beset by headaches 
through early winter, is pulling 
ahead with Lena Horne, but here 
again the supper biz has been 
spotty. The Vagabonds, always 
strong thanks to tremendous fol- 
lowing and tv buildups on the 
Godfrey programs, are also en- 
countering aye ni blues for the 
first time. Alan Gale, with his one 
performance nightly policy at ex- 
Copa City, keeps a steady flow of 
followers, with results. .still to be 
determined after a late-season 
opening. It was easy for him to 
pack his former location with a 
300 capacity. In this hugery, how- 
ever, he needs more than double 
that number to fill. 

Hotel Cafes Off 

Hotel cafes arc definitely off, 
only one spot making it each week 
among the group. Seems the cafe- 
goers are more cagey in their 
choice of places to go, waiting to 
see who is going to feature the 
"hot” act of the week. In that run, 
the Nautilus has been most con- 
sistent, with a- comedy - name 
change every week. Sans Souci is 
now in the off-and-on category 
with bookings of varied acts not 
seen here, such as Mimi Benzell, 
who was followed, this week by 
Carl Brisson. Joel Grey drew 
heavily for them, to illustrate the 
potency of an act well known in 
the area. 

' Other hostels, such as Saxony 
and Di Lido, also going in . for 
“new” faces, found the same offish 
biz. Casablanca’s expansion of 
budget, to set Billy Daniels, Gene 
Baylos and a June Taylor line, 
saw good weekends but only fair 
biz weeknights. Among the late 
spots, Ciro’s with a jazz policy has 
been holding the line among the 
till-dawn pubs. 

This week brings in heavy 
change in attractions. Latin Quar- 
ter, Clover, Vagabonds and Giro’s 
hold their. -shows. It can be marked 
as the w'eiPk that will indicate the 
state of things to come with the 
Beachcomber offering Frank Sin- 
atra, Dick Shawn and the Dun- 
hills; Casablanca, the Kean Sisters; 
Saxony returning Los Chavales de 
Espana imd Trini Reyes; the Di 
[ Lido bringing back the Ritz Bros.; 
Carl Brisson at lire Sans Souci; 

' Jean Carroll, then Phil Foster at 
.1 the Nautilus. 




IXGITIMATB 






No Glamor Subs for Flagstad, Pons 


By ARTHUR BRONSON 
The N Y. Metropolitan Opera has 
been racking up some impressive 
'grosses lately to belie recurrent 
rumors that biz Is off this season. 
The “Rigoletto” of Jan. 30, for in- 
stance, brought in $19,611— biggest 
gross at regular prices that the 
house has ever had. (Fact, that 
Opera Guild and Opera Club seats, 
usually taken up during the week, 
were available for public sale that 
Saturday night, as well as increas- 
ed orchestra seating this year, ex- 
plains the new record). 

The ‘‘Lucia’* matinee that day 
was a capacity $19,323. “Boris,” 
night before, was $19,269. “Travi- 
ata” Jan. 27 hit $19,301. “La Bo- 
heme” Feb. 1 grossed $19,400, 
capacity-plus. The season’s first 
“Rake’s Progress,** however, the 
week before, was a sad under-$14,- 
000 . 

What’s given rise to reports that 
biz has dropped from .5% to 1Q% 
this season are such items as single 
ticket sales admittedly being off; 
standee lines smaller, and grosses 
not consistently as high as they 
should be with the increased seat- 
age. (Last summer, 155 more seats 
were added to the orchestra ). This 
represents $1,000 better potential 
nightly th&n last year, which had- 
n’t regularly been reached. Week- 
ends have been good to excellent 
but weekdays have varied. 

Part of fault, it’s felt, lies in 
the price structure, there being a 
wide gap between the. $7.50 and $8 
top seats and the next range; which 
Is $4.75. Management is said to be 
aware of this matter, with a $6.50 
ticket probable for rear orchestra 
next year. 

Despite the $8 top, there have 
been few open complaints on that 
score. But increasing criticism has 
been heard about the Met's reper- 
tory, and especially its talent ros- 
ter. Much of the criticism is valid, 
but some of the conditions are un 
avoidable. The Met can’t do much 
about them. 

The Met this season, for instance, 
is shy four top Italian tenors from 
last year’s roster. Illness prevented 
one’s return, money the others’. 
The Met, reportedly, has a self- 
imposed salary ceiling of $1,000 a 
performance to top stars. Only one 
singer — Lily Pons — is reported to 
be getting that, although seven or 
eight other singers are near it 

The Met now can’t compete in 
the European market for talent. 
Singers can do better overseas 
/The Government withholds 30% 
of an alien’s fee. There are other 
taxes. He Has expenses. Although 
not many singers pay commission 
to managers for opera dates, some 
do. A top artist has a take-home 
pay well under $700. Lack of reper- 
toire, in the Italian chiefly, is also 
a factor, there being an insufficient 
number of performances weekly 
for an artist to sing. 

To offer more coin to a singer 
would only stir up trouble among 
others. The world market, too, has 
few names important enough to 
woo with extra coin. The top Ital 
lan names, for instance, aren’t that 
good. 

Unfortunately, at the momen 
there isn’t any big voice to replace 
the glamor names of old, and stir 
up a boxoffice frenzy. The last one 
was Kirsten Flagstad, and she 
hasn’t been replaced. The one be 
fore that was Pons (still singing 
though infrequently), and there’s 
no glamor sub in sight for lier 
There seems little chance for 
star replacement at present be 
cause the potential in Europe 
gone. 


U. of Minn. May Merge 
Legiter With Fine Arts 

Minneapolis, Feb. 9. 

Citizens executive . committee for 
the U. of Minnesota Theatre is tak- 
ng a vote to decide whether to 
merge its new $700,000 .campus 
heatre project with a university 
fine arts centre. 

If the committee vote approves 
the proposed , merger, the matter 
will be discussed by fund trustees 
and th^ir approval would carry the 
matter to the board of regents, 

It Was pointed out at ‘a recent 
committee meeting that the univer- 
sity’s theatre operations are now 
spread out among seven buildings. 

Plans for a combined theatre and banded together for the purpose l‘; n ~rz "flMt varimra exploits on the road, 
fine arts building go back as far of increasing touring presenta- stories of their various expipns ^ommeroau. 

l h ii 1 ■ • m m4 4 m mm 2 <ik << - ut*Ai 4 ii/ta 


So Now We Know 

Jeanmaire, star of the in- 
coming musical, “Girl in Pink 
Tights,” was interviewed re- 
cently on Ed Murrow’s “Per- 
son to Person” CBS-TV show. 
Murrow asked the French 
terper, “What makes a good, 
ballet dancer?,” and she re- 
plied: . 

“Well listen, to have a good 
line, to know how to work witb 
the buddy (she meant body), to 
have good arms, to be very 
adore — I mean open, and to 
dance well, that’s all. . I don’t 
know.” 


„ Chicago legit scene is smoldering over a blind item that appeared 
lart week in Irv Kupcinet’s Sun-Times gossip column. Item referred 
to a legit personality identified only as “one of the theatre’s best-known 
stars currently in town; who’s hitting the bottle with a vengeance.” 
With five shows in the Windy City, featuring several performers who 
might fit the “best-known star*’ classification, at least in the eyes of 
the lav public, Kup’s squib set off the usual guessing game by the 
mongers as to who’s “it.’* As a result, several innocent names have 
figured in the speculation. 

Reynolds News which, in commonjSvith several other London papers, 
has been spotlighting the current slump in legit* last week published 
several readers’ letters on the subject in which they explained why 
thev staved away from theatres. One reader suggested the mam cause 
was the “exorbitant prices” charged in West End theatres (the ^normal 
ceiling is around $2.25, with top musicals going. Up to $2.80). Another 
correspondent blamed the poor choice of entertainment and petty 
annoyances, such as no smoking rules, while a third said audiences 
could not be blamed for “kicking against the same old shows put on 
time and time again by Mead’ managers. The theatre is not dead, 
only the machinery is rusty,” he averred. 

Lack of interest on pari of the membership b as _ brought about ^the 

A hypo in rood 
imminently, A 

Broadway's newer producers have , * wlriVh"aU thi oldttaiers to the legit . Held told tall 




as 1941. 

U. of Minnesota Theatre not only 
presents a number of plays on the 
campus every year, but also sends 
out a company to tour the upper 
midwest’s smaller towns, affording 
most of the latter their only chance 
to see the spoken drama in the 
flesh. 


tions. Functioning as the Produc 
ers League, the group will . work 


Producers of an upcoming Broadway show approached Edward R. 



KtoerSS?“o««tagr which wlU 

hesentlrat nnde? g thebannerof a factor in advance sales off the incoming “Girl in Pink Tights.’ .Last 
!w Producers LeSmb wiMe pro- Season’s “Top Banana” appeared in tab version on Ed Sullivan’s “Toast 

the org and financed by the but- management maintains that in. the next we e krit got in a $12,000 extra 
of-town theatre managers as. they biz in advance tour , sales on the strength of th tv . 
crop up. Members of the League 
will select their own projects and 
after getting a go-ahead from the 
org and theatre managers, will 
then get the production wheels 
rolling. All shows sent out on tour 
will be coordinated wherever pos- 
sible with the Theatre Guild 
-American Theatre Society’s sub 
scription series in 19 cities. 

League plans to begin produc 
tions this season, with contem 
plated presentations to include re 
vivals. and recent Broadway offer- 
ings. Members of the League are 
Lyn Austin, Richard Barr, Charles 


Canada’s Two Pro Ballet 
Cos. Kick Heels at Each 
Other; Paid Ad Blasts 

. Ottawa, Feb. b. 

Friction between Canada’s two 
pro ballet companies struck sparks 
last week when the Royal Winni- 
peg Ballet interpreted as a slur a 
public^ statement by National Bal- 
let of Canada’s director Celia 
Franca. Latter said that If her com- 
pany had to fold through lack, of 

contribs “the cause of Canadian | Langner, Charles Mooney, Thomas 
l«ballet will be set back 10 years.” 

This brought a blast from 15- 
year-old' RWB’s director Gweneth 
Lloyd, in paid ads in Toronto and 



Yu! Brynner. returhed to his 
starring role in “The King and I” 
last night (Tues.) after a brief va- 
cation which began Jan. 30. Leon- 
ard Graves subbed during Bryn- 
ner’s 'absence . . Nils Asther 
booked by the . Arena Guild of 
America for a week’s engagement 
beginning Monday (15) at the Cap- 
itol Theatre', St. Petersburg, in 
“The Happy Time.” Claire Luce 


ujii AU9VUI, iuuiaiu Udu, vuat ica . - L : - -v V A 

Bowdin, Morton Gottlieb, Philip £®f s £££ Circuit hous 


Noyes, George Schaefer, Albert 
Selden, Richard Skinner and Ar- 
thur Waxman. Jesse Skolkin will 
function as attorney for the org. 

„ . t . ... ■■ ... . , | Formation of the League 

Montreal dailies, asserting that her stemmed from a me et held in New 


company, the Canadian Ballet Fes- 
tival Assn., video and commercial 
musical enterprises like Toronto’s 
Melody Fair, offered plenty of 
scope for the dancer. 

Neither company is government- 
subsidized. Both pay their fulltime 
dancers for eight months of the 


York last December in which the 
out - of - town theatre operators, 
Council of the Living Theatre, 
League of New York Theatres and 
other legit groups met to map out 
plans for increasing touring pro- 
ductions. Financing of travelling 
shows by road theatre owners has 


the following week in “Time of 
the Cuckoo.” 

With Drums and Colors,” 
skedded for Broadway production 
next season, was tried out last 
year at the Theatre-in'-the-Round, 
Virginia Beach, . and not at the 
Rochester Arena Theatre and the 
Corning (N. Y.) Summer Theatre, 
as erratumed . . . Lucile Watson 
Has relinquished her role in “The 
Burning Glass,” which opens in 
Hartford tomorrow (Thurs.) night, 
and will be replaced by Isabel El- 
som, who’s : currently on tour with 
‘Misalliance.” Miss Elsom, how- 


year, and both are directed by Eng- been tried in the past by individ- ever, wiil not be able to join the 


line. 


lishwomep. The newer one, NB of 
C, lost $30,000 oh a five-week west- 
ern tour last year,- while RWB 
made a little profit- during it's sea- 
son. Both are artistically high 
standard, and NB of C has an **op 
tional attraction” arrangement with 
the l^Y. Theatre Guild which will 
take it to several* U.S. cities this 
season 
meanwhile 

(halved from the original figure) 
in contribs. and its company is 
chipping with whpt amounts to 
voluntary pay cuts. 

. Meantime, both troupes are in 
the U.S. this week on their first 
official American visits, Winnipeg 

opening a week’s run in Washing- 1 tre, N. Y., due to backstage mis 
ton yesterday (Mbn.), and National ' - - — 

due in Buffalo Friday (12). 


ual producers, such as Kermit “Glass” company until Monday 
Bloomgarden and George . Brandt. (15), when it begins a two-week 
In both instances the experiments stand in Washington. In the in 
failed. However, this time the pro- terim, her role will be handled by 
diicers and house managers are * ,0,a , 5 oac " c • ,• Rockefeller 
malung a united eitort along that 


to several* u.s. cities this _ _ . 

&*iS" aX„g e woo |kon Curtain Escapees 

Hypo Petit Ballet B.O.; 

S. America Seeks Caron 

To hypo interest in Ballets de 
Paris, which got off to a rocky crit- 
ical start at the Broadway Thea- 


is 


Siegmeister Opera Set 
For Long Island Preem 

Elie Siegmeister, who arranged 
the music and conducted the orch 
and chorus for the. 1946 Broadway 
production of the tuner “Sing Out 
Sweet Land,” will have a new 
American opera preemed at Hof- 
stra College, Hempstead, L. I., 
Feb. 18-19. The opera, written by 
Siegmeister and Lewis Allen, is 
tagged “Darling Corie.” Presenta- 
tion will be offered at college’s 
Calkin’s Hall. 

Besides Hofstra music students, 
cast will include such guest per- 
formers as Dorothy' MacNeil, Rob- 
ert Goss and Norman Atkins. 
Opera is . based on an American 
legend. Leading student role will 
be handled by Nancy. Thomas. 


London Legit Bits 

London, Feb. 2. 

Linnit & Dunfee have three 
shows in the sticks which are due 
for London. These are “Fifth Sea-; 
son,” due at the Cambridge Feb. 

24; “Liberty Bill,” starring Ralph 
Robertson Hare and Vera 
Pearce, at the Strand Theatre Feb. 

25, and Dodie Smith’s “I Captured 
a Castle,” which marks return of 
Richard Greene to the West End, 
opening at the Aldwych Theatre 
early March ... . Jack Hylton’s “Pal 
Joey” is going into rehearsal with 

Carol Bruce and Harold Lang n ^ j • c< x 
starred. Show gets preliminary. KUtu (jrOrdOIt in oCOl 

tryout at Oxford March 15 for two FpfpV ‘MntrlimalrPi'’ 

weeks and comes to the Princes A clc a luaiuiiutmei 

first week in April. . London, Feb. 2. 

Jeff Warren has been signed by Ruth Gordon is to head a pre- 
George & Alfred Black for singing dominantly American cast when 
lead for their latest musical, “Wed- “The Matchmaker,” by Thornton 


grant of $200,000 to. the American 
Shakespeare Festival Theatre & 
Academy to be used towards estab- 
lishment of. a theatre and academy 
in Connecticut for the production 
of Shakespearean plays and the 
training of Shakespearean actors 
Ruth Draper’s one-woman show 
at the Vanderbilt theatre, original 
ly slated to wind up Saturday (13) 
after a limited three-week engage- 
ment, has been extended until 
March 13 . . . Jerry Arlen engaged 
as musical director for “House of 
FloNvefs,” new tuner by. his broth- 
er, Harold Arlen, and Truman 
Capote ... Jackie Cooper signed 
as one of the two male leads for 


haps, the Sol Hurok management 
added Nora Kovach and Istvan 
Rabovsky to the outfit last night 
(Tues.), for the remaining three “The King of Hearts/’’ which "goes 
weeks of the Gotham run. Hun- into rehearsal Monday (15) . . . 
garian dUo, trained in Moscow, hit Tony fiavaar added to the cast of 
headlines last year when they fled "John Murray Anderson’s Alma- 
through the Iron Curtain to Ber- hac” . . . Opening of “Threepenny 
lin. They made their U. S. debut Opera” at the Theatre de Lys in 
recently ori the “Toast of the Greenwich Village put .back from 
Town” tv show. March 2 to March 9. 

! For their stage debut, duo will Noble Sissle reelected prexy of 
do a specialty, the pas de deux the Negro Actors Guild of Amer- 
from “Don Quixote,” which will be ^ a , while Leigh. Whipper and Ethel 
added to the current bill of three Wa * ers were named first and seo 


ballets. Roland Petit, Colette 
Marchand . and Leslie Caron are 
(Continued on page 71) 


ond veepees, respiectively. W. C. 
Handy remains as treasurer and 
Dr. Ralph Bunche. has agreed to 
serve on the advisory board pf the 
Guild . : . Roslyn Laks replaced 
Eva Stern, who’s been cast as 
Audrey .Hepburn’s understudy in 
‘Ondine,” in the. off Broadway pro- 
duction of “The Climate of Eden,” 
while Robert McQueeney also left 
the show to tour , with the road 
company of “Dial M For Murder. 
“Praise of Folly,” new play by 


ding in .Paris, with Evelyn Laye Wilder, is presented during the John McQuire, will be preemed by 

viars^nn q f ’ t ho^Inni i n 6 ^ c o c Edinburgh Festival next summer. Blackfrair’s Guild Feb. 23 . . . 

Over Sin/nto^ &£■ Gm™ A A1 The >s set for the first two 5'H « s K'. n § 

uver aorrento, tne Geprge ac Al- weG i- s .the fete and Tvrnne °f the N. Y. Junior League s third 

fred.Black and H. M Tennent’s (juShrie Will direct’ d Ty annualMardi GrasBallat the As- 

hit.is transferring fo the Duchess «u«ine wiu uirecu tor Hotel, N. Y.. March 2 with 

Theatre Feb. 15 for a limited riin ^. urin 8 * he third week of the proceeds from the ball going to 

and being replaced at the Apollo festival, the Comedie Francaise the League’s Welfare Trust Fund 

With H. M. Tennent’s “Burning will stage IVloliere’s “Le Bourgeois / Martin Gabel and Henry A 
Glass” by Charles Morgan, Feb. 18. GenUlhomme.” Margolis have put off their pro 


duction of ’‘Reclining Figure’* un- 
it early August . . . .Eldon Elder 
will be the visiting critic in scene 
design at Yale for the second 
semester. 

Carol Stone began a month-lpng 
stand as guest lecturer at the U. 
of Texas in Austin (Monday (8) . . . 
Andrew McCullough’s “The Back- 
bone” will be preemed by * The 
Lambs Sunday (14). Richard. W. 
Krakeur has skedded Leo Lieber- 
man’s play, “Blaze of Glory,” for 
Broadway production next fall. 

An exhibition of original paint- 
ings by Jose Ferrer has been ar- 
ranged by Richard .Skinner, gen- 
eral manager of McCarter Theatre, 
Princeton, in connection with en- 
gagement of "Stalag 17” there Feb. 
18-20. “Stalag” was originally pro- 
duced and directed on. Broadway 
by Ferrer, who’s a Princeton grad, 
uate. 

Terese Hayden will direct the 
Equity Library Theatre production 
of Ibsen’s “The Master Builder,” 
at the Lenox Hill Theatre, N.Y., 
March 24. 

Uta Hagen and Herbert Berghof 
left New York Sunday (7) for Nas- 
sau, Bahamas, where they will star 
in Christopher Fry’s “The Lady’s 
Not for Burning” at the British 
Colonial Playhouse week Of Feb, 
15. Clarke Gordon will direct. 

.“Right Royal,” due for produc- 
tion at Glasgow Citizens Theatre 
May 3, will be largely a musical 
play. Written by Alexander Scott, 
it tells how* in time of the Druids, 
King Dod of Fife managed by nu- 
merous funny fuses to keep his 
kingdom’s; head above water when 
in danger of being invaded . . 

Perth (Scotland) Theatre staging 
Ibsen’s “The Lady from the Sea” 
March 1 . . . Program of Scot songs 
and dances skedded for Assembly 
Hall, Edinburgh, during Interna- 
tional Festival, following on Old 
Vic’s fortnight Of “A Midsummer 
Night’s. Dream.” . 

Albert Selden and Morton Gott- 
lieb, producers of “His and Hers,” 
at the 48th Street, N. Y.* will dis- 
tribute a second 10% return to 
investors in the Fay and Michael 
Kanin play today. (Wed.). 

Sheldon Stark’s “Time Of Storm” 
will preem at the Greenwich Mews 
Theatre, N. Y., Feb. 18 . . 

Josephine Premice set for the 
Harold Arlen-Truman Capote mu- 
sical, “House of Flowers” ... 
Robinson Stone, casting director 
for Jose Ferrer and more recently 
for the New York City _ Center 
drama season* back in town after 
appearing opposite Billie Biirke in 
“Life With Mother” at the Park- 
way Theatre, Baltimore. 

Vet . legit pressagent Freddie 
Schader, who has settled in De- 
troit, will handle the 1954 Aviation 
Exposition for the Aero Club of 
Michigan. Also their 1954 Aviation 
Directory. 

Michael Higgins back in N. Y- 
after a month of repertory in 
Puerto Rico with Group 20 Flayers. 

Mabel Baer, wardrobe mistress 
of national company of . “Guys and 
Dolls,” has joined the company at 
the Shubert, Boston, following a 
month’s vacation. Augusta Ocker 
had been subbing during her so- 
journ. 


WedneicUy, Fckrnary 10,' 1954 


LEGITIMATE 



Hit Shows; Theatre Parties Rapped 


Broadway offers ample theatre-* 
going without tears this season, ac- 
cording to two of the leading New 
York drama critics. Allowing for 
minor differences of opinion, that 
was the theme of columns by 
Brooks Atkinson, of the Times, and 
Walter F. Kerr, of the Herald Trib- 
une, in their drama section last 
Sunday (7). 

Both critics mentioned the 
amount of enjoyable playfare 
available, with Kens-dting Vahix- 
tv’s boxoffice grosses to show that 
tickets are available for last-minute 


drop-in patrons for ail but a few. 
of the top sellouts. Incidentally, 
pretty much the reverse attitude 
was expressed by John Chapman, 
critic of the N. Y. News, in his 
drama page column of Jan. 31. 

Atkinson's piece related more to 
the qualify of shows rather than 
the ease or difficulty of actual at- 
tendance. He particularly praised 
“Teahouse of the August Moon/’ 
“Tea and Sympathy?’ and 
“Caine Mutiny Court Martial” as 
“original, skillfully written plays 
that are splendidly acted.” 

Among other shows cited by the 
critic for various reasons were 
“Sabrina Fair,” “Take a Giant 
Step,” “In the Summer House,” 
“Prescott Proposals,” “Mademoi- 
selle Colombe,” “Solid Gold Cafiil 
lac,” “Remarkable Mr. Pennypack- 
er,” "Oil Men, Oh Women,” John 
Murray Anderson’s “Almanac” and 
even “Kind Sir.” Times aisle-sit- 
ter also mentioned various worth 
while off-Broadway offerings, nota- 
bly the Phoenix Theatre produc- 
tions of “Madame, Will You Walk” 
and “Coriolanus,” 

Referring to the difficulties of 
pi ay going on Broadway, he wrote, 
“To judge by the mail that crimes 
( Continued on page 72 ) 


‘Okla.’ to Tee Cokssset 
Music Circus Season 

Cohasset', Mass., Feb. 9. 

Season at the South Shore Music 
Circus, Cohasset, is set to get un 
der way June 25 with ''Oklahoma” 
as opening bill. Hans Busch has 
been reappointed stage director of 
the tent operation, while Julius 
Rudel and Gene Bayliss will func- 
tion as musical director and chore- 
ographer, respectively. Managing 
director of the tent is David Mar- 
shall Holtzman. 

Rodgers & Hammerstein musical 
will also be offered at the Cape 
Cod Melody Tent, Hyannis, Mass., 
the last week in July and first week 
in August. Bob Roberts, incidental 
ly, has been reappointed general 
manager of the Hyannis setup. 


Latest N.Y. Hit Is Kid Stuff; 
70G 'Nutcracker' Ballet 



What was regarded, as a hazard- 
ous experiment by both manage- 
ment and outsiders has proved a 
smash Gritham success, artistically 
and boxoffice- wise, with the preem 
last Tuesday (2) at City Center, 
N. Y.,* of the Balanchine-Tchaikov- 
sky “Nutcracker” by the N. Y. City 
Ballet. 

This is the first full-evening bal- 
let to be produced by a major U. S. 
company, and the initial profes- 
sional production of this particular 
work in its entirety in America. 
There had been speculation that 
this revival or restaging of an old 
classic might prove dated or old- 
hat.^. It was also feared that such 
factors as the children, who mo- 
nopolize the first act, and the lack 
of big dancing until towards the 
close of Act 1, would be b.o. de- 
terrents. 

Instead, the production played 
three shows last week to SRO 
houses, press seats holding Tues- 
day’s take to $7,344, aqd Wednes- 
day’s and Thursday's gross hitting 
$7,600 — at a $3.60 top — for a new 
evening’s high in ballet history at 
the Center. Fourteen presentations 
have been set this month, with 
more to follow in March. Consid- 
eration for the kids (about two 
dozen are used) has caused man- 
agement to s limit showings to four 
a week, including matinees. (One 
mother is allowed backstage at 
each performance as sort of an 
overall chaperone.) 

Production— most lavish in the 
company’s history— cost just above 
$70,000 to stage (instead of the 
originally-budgeted $40,000), and 
smce the company doesn’t amortize 
(Continued on page 72) 

New Gielgud -Charley* 
Production in London 

London, Feb. 9. 

A new production by John Giel- 
gud of “Charley’s Aunt,” with John 
Mills and Gwen Ffrancon Davies in 
tire leads, opens at the New 
Theatre tonight (Tues.) following 
P e ^r Charles” which, owing to 
the illness of its star, Yvonne Ar- 
naud, folded last Saturday (6) af- 
ter a run of nearly 14 months. 

“Charley’s Aunt” will have to 
vacate the New within a month to 
make room for “I Am a Camera,” 
which preems March 12 with Dor- 
othy Tutin as star. It will transfer 
to another' available theatre. 



Chicago, Feb. 9. 

Leland Hayward and Joshua Lo- 
gan are folding up “Wish . You 
Were Here” at the Shubert Satur- 
day (13) after a 10-week run. Cost- 
ly musical, which came directly to 
Chi after a 75-week Broadway stay, 
figures to have approximately bro- 
ken even on a week-to-week basis 
but failed to earq back much of 
the $75,090 moying nut, Most of 
this tab was earmarked for the in- 
stallation of the show’s swimming 
pool and a complete re-costuming. 

Had the play caught on in Chi, 
the producers planned to send it 
elsewhere on the road, using porta- 
ble swiftiming pools. But when 
“Wish” failed to stay much above 
its $31,000 weekly nut in the Windy 
City, road hopes were quickly 
junked. 


OVER 'MUTINY’ CREDIT 

Los Angeles, Feb. 9. 

Dick Powell filed suit in Superior 
Court last week, demanding a con- 
tinuation of his pfogram credit as 
director of Paul Gregory’s stage 
production, “Caine Mutiny Court 
Martial,” now on Broadway. Action 
also asks an accounting of the 
profits. 

Powell declares his contract calls 
for 2% of the gross of the Broad- 
way show and 1% of the gross of 
additional, companies. He adds that 
he received a wire from Gregory 
as late as Jan. 11 telling him that 
his name had been removed from 
the program. 


‘DoUs’ Cast in Hub Hosp 
Benefit for Second Time 

Boston, Feb. 9. 

The cast of “Guys and Dolls,” 
plus musical director Stanley 
Lubowski, a pianist, drummer and 
stage crew, trekked to the Murphy 
General Hospital, in suburban 
Waltham, last week to stage a 90- 
minute variety show for Hie hos- 
pitalized vets. 

Production; especially Scripted 
for the patients, was emceed by 
Julie Oschin and included nitery 
bits by fi. S. Pulley and Bell Mar- 
kel, and vocalizing of a couple of 
songs from the musical by Jack 
Prince and Iva Withers,, who also 
led the boys in community singing. 

This is the second such benefit 
and the cast members figure jwith 
a little polishing they^can success- 
fully hit the hospital circuit, when 
and if “Dolls” folds. 









Too Much Ad Libbing 

Houston, Feb. 9. 

Actor Onslow Stevens was let 
out by co-producer Joanna Albus 
during the Sunday matinee (7) 
performance of “The Country 
Girl” at the Playhouse Theatre 
here. Reason given was Stevens’ 
physical condition and his exten- 
sive ad libbing. % 

-Miss Albus stated that the actor 
stretched a normal three-minute 
scene into 40 minutes, and she 
made a show-terminating and mon- 
ey-refunding announcement over 
the theatre’s public address system. 
Actors Equity in N. Y. was notified. 
Miss Albus said Stevens would be 
paid his salary in full, plus trans- 
portation to California. Understudy 
Henry Wadsworth will assume the 
role tomorrow (Wed.) 


Two Youmans Timers 
Readied for Stock Use 

“Through the Years” and “Great 
Day,” two. Vincent Youmans musi- 
cals, may be available, for stock 
and amateur production soon via 
the , Tams-Witmark catalog. Mate- 
rial to the tuners had been tied up 
for years, and as a result, stock 
and amateur rights to the works 
had never been leased. 

Renewal copyrights to all the 
Youmans works have been picked 
up by his children Cecily and Vin- 
cent Jr. 


Equity, AGMA’ Concur On 
in 

And Operetta Seasons 

Distinguishing line between opera 
and operetta is growing thinner. 
In the case of two shows skedded 
for. the upcoming opera and oper- 
etta seasons at the New York City 
Center, the line has been complete- 
ly erased. 

Among the offerings skedded for 
the Center’s operetta season are 
“Show Boat” and “Die Fleder- 
maus.” Former show, however, is 
also slated for presentation by the 
N. Y. City Opera Co. during its 
spring stand at the Center, The 
Jerome Kern-Oscar Hammerstein 
2d Broadway musical therefore will 
be presented as both opera and 
operetta. Operetta season follows 
directly after the opera engage- 
ment. 

Although “Fledermaus” isn’t on 
the opera company’s sked this sea- 
son, it’s in Che org’s repertoire al- 
ready. Another company presenta- 
tion is “Regina,” which bowed 
originally as a Main Stem musical. 
“Fledermaus” , was also done on 
Broadway about a dozen years ago 
under the tag “Rosalinda.” 

All three works, “Show Boat,” 
“Fledermaus” and “Regina,” come 
under Actor Equity jurisdiction. 
However, when produced as part of j 
the opera season the shows will be 
under administration of the Ameri- 
can Guild of Musical Artists, which 
has jurisdiction over . the opera 
field. Equity takes over ,when the 
tuners are done as part of the 
operetta season. The two unions 
have an understanding that when 
a show that falls under Equity su- 
pervision is done in the opera 
series, the performers can be cov- 
ered by an AGMA contract. 

At one time AGMA had “Fleder- 
maus,” but after much hassling the 
work finally fell under Equity’s 
jurisdiction. "According to an 
Equity rep, the only musicals done 
on Broadway that have fallen un- 
der the AGMA banner have been 
the . Gian-Carlo Mehotti works, 
“The Medium,” “The Telephone” 
and “The Consul.” 

Center opera season begins 
March 25 and runs for six weeks, 
with the operetta season following. 


This P.A.V Full of ‘Ginge 

Chicago, Feb. 9. 

When word circulated the’ 
Loop that “An Evening With 
Beatrice Lillie” would not have 
a performance at the Black- 
stone last Thursday night (5) 
due to Miss Lillie’s illness, 
Arthur Levy, pressagent for 
“Time Out For Ginger,” at the 
Harris, went into fast action 
and hired two buses for a cur- 
tain-time shuttle service to 
pick up the Blackstone turn- 
aways. 

Project, suggested by Ray 
Ilirsch, Harris boxoffice man, 
resulted in two busloads of 
patrons who exchanged their 
Lillie ducats for Thursday 
night ?‘Ginger” tickets. 





Fields-Chodorov Clan’s 
Field Day in New Haven 

New Haven, Feb. 9. 

What is virtually a Fields day for 
that trip (Dorothy, Herbert and 
Joseph Fields) and the scrivening 
ChndorPv boys has been in process 
at the Shubert Theatre here. 

, Starting with last season’s click 
musical, “Wonderful Town,” (book 
by Jerome Chodorov and Joseph 
Fields), house has offered, and has 
in prospect, a series of Chodorov- 
Fields premieres pointing up the 
prolific writing propensities of 
these two families. 

Following “Town,” came this sea- 
son’s breakin of “Oh, Men, Oh, 
Women,” brainchild of Edward 
Chodorov, now- a solid Broadway 
hit, Next on the agenda was the 
recent promising preem of the 
musical “Girl In Pink Tighte,” an- 
other Jerome Chodorov- Joseph 
Fields book creation. 

Feb. 15 unfurls initial curtain of 
“By The Beautiful Sea” and brings 
the Herbert and Dorothy Fields 
combo into the picture as book 
writers, plus Dorothy’s double as- 
signment on lyrics. Swinging back 
to the Jerome Chpdprqv-Joseph 
Fields duo, the cycle will be tem- 
porarily completed on March 16 
when their “Anniversary Waltz” 
spreads its wings here. 


“Dial M for Murder” •will only 
go out on tour for a limited 13- 
week stand when it winds up its 
longrun Broadway engagement at 
the Booth The.atre Feb. 27. Show 
is slated to finish its road trek May 
31 in Los Angeles. Windup of the 
tour, will be followed immediately 
by the release of the Warner Bros, 
film version of “Dial,” which un- 
der an arrangement between 
play’s producers anp the film com- 
pany will be let out of the cans 
June 1. In limiting the road run' 
meller will also avoid bucking the 
summer doldrums, *• 

Although show’s management 
definitely doesn’t intend to release 
the property for strawhat presen- 
tation this year, there’s a possibil- 
ity a production of the work Will 
play New York’s subway circuit. 
Charles Harrow, who operated the 
circuit last year, expects to reDeal 
again this summer, with a June 
opening contemplated. 

MACRAE, PAIGE MULLED 
FOR 'PAJAMA’ LEAD 

Gordon MacRae and Janice 
Paige are being considered for 
leads in “The Pajama Game,” new 
musical being produced by Fred 
Brisson, Robert Griffith and Hal 
Prince, Julie Wilson, formerly a 
prospect for the femme lead, is 
reportedly no longer in the run- 
ning. 

George Abbott will stage the mu- 
sical, which is due May 12 at an 
undisclosed Broadway theatre. Carl 
Fisher is general manager of the 
production. 


♦ New releases for strawhat pro- 
duction this summer aren't caus- 
ing too much excitement among 
barn impresarios. General feeling 
among the ops, who aro beginning 
to eye availabilities for the coming 
season, is that the shows slated for 
their initial warm- weather outing 
this year aren’t top b.o. lures. At 
least, they’re not considered to be 
of. the hit stature of last summer’s 

Moon Is Blue” and “Mister 
Roberts.” 

However, “Oklahoma” will be 
leased to major summer theatre 
operations on a limited basis this 
coming season, marking the first 1 
time since' musical’s bow in 1943 
that its been available for stock 

* production on the strawhat circuit. 
Tuner is already skedded for such 
tent operations as the South Shore 
Music Circus, Cohasset. Mass., and 
the Cape Cod Melody Tent, Hyan- 
ms, Mass. It’s also slated for out- 
door performance^ at the St. Louis 
Municipal Opera and Kansas City’s 
Starlight Theatre. 

Although it’s still too far in ad- 
vance for an actual count of recent 
Broadway Offerings that will be 
making the rounds of rustic • thea- 
tres this summer, possibility of 
some strong contenders entering 
the picture isn’t, too bright. Among 
the shows that will definitely be 
available for strawhat production 
are . such Samuel French' releases 
'f* ^geon,” “Gently Does 

It, Emperor’s Clothes,” “Late 

o °nf’ VT. r0g f, of s Pring,” “Take 
a Giant Step,” “Climate of Eden,” 
Strong Are Lonely” and “Love of 
Four Colonels.” 

Of the shows named, all lost 
money during their brief Broad- 
( Continued on page 72) 




Blaney Grabs ‘Poster’ 

For Tour This Season 

II. Clay Blaney has acquired the 
touring rights to “Fourposter,” 
which fie intends to. send out on 
the road this season. Difficulty in 

obtaining stars for the show, how- 
ever, is holding back production 
plans. 

Two-character play originally 
went out on tour July 25, 1952 with 
Jessica Tandy arid Hume Croriyn 
in the roles they originated on 
Broadway. Duo continued in the 
road production until its windup 
June 3, 1953. 


Stage Ban on Schnitzler’s 
‘Merry* Despite Book Hit 

London, Feb. 2. 
“Merry-Go-Round” is the title 
of the new translation of Arthur 
Schnitzler’s “Reigen,” which has 
just been published by Weidepfield 
& Nicolsop, Book is a bestseller 
and the subject is the one upon 
which the French film, “La Ronde,” 
was based. 

Several prominent West End 
managers are bidding for' the 
rights, but agent Eric Glass, who 
handles all Schriitzler’s works, told 
Variety that the estate will not 
permit public •. stage presentations 
of thij work. This was the wish of 1 
the author before he died. 


An amateur touring route on the 
strawhat circuit may eventually 
materialize for little theatre 
groups. The Hampton; Playhouse, 
Westhampton, L. I,, plans to devote 
the coming season to the showcas- 
ing of productions put on by com- 
munity theatre groups from New 
Tork. This would mean the elimin- 
ation of resident company offerings 
at the barn and is patterned along 
the lines established last year by 
Sherwood Keith at his Boothbay 
(Me.) Playhouse,. 

After functioning for 16 years 
with a professional resident com- 
pany, Keith, who was faced with 
shuttering his operation,- decided 
to book ip attractions rather than 
put on his own productions. In line 
with this move he brought in 10 
New England repertory companies 
to play his theatre, guaranteeing 
expenses and offering a percentage 
split of the b.o, take. Idea proved 
successful, with Keith purchasing 
the Deertrees Theatre, Harrison, 
Me., where he intends to duplicate 
the Boothbay operation this sum- 
mer. 

Hampton Playhouse, a 600-seatcr, 
plans to bring in eight community 
groups. Season is slated to open 
July 5 and run until Aug. 28, with 
presentations offered on a Tues- 
day eve-thru-Salurday eve basis. 
Casts and crews of the community 
groups showcased will have to pro- 
vide their own transportation, but 
movement of sets, props and bag- 
gage will be handled by the the- 
atre. Groups utilized will only 
permitted to send 12 members. 

Hampton producers will under- 
write stage production and mai*. 
agement, advertising, transportar 
tion of sets, royalties and all othee 
expenses, including a refund room 
and board, which must be under- 
written by the cast in advance. 
Profits after the deduction of the 
20% Federal tax, will be divided 
equally between the community 
org, theatre owner and producers. 

Graham Opens European 
Tour in London March 1 

Martha Graham will begin her 
tour pf Europe with a three-week 
run, beginning March 1, at the Sa- 
ville Theatre, London. West End 
engagement launches a three- 
month tour of England, Norway, 
Sweden, . Denmark, Netherlands, 
Switzerland, Italy and France. 

The company of 15 dancers is 
due to sail for London in two 
weeks. 



70 LEGITIMATE 

* - 



on 


The Immoral!#* 

Billy Boie production ol drama in 
three acts (eight scene#) by Ruth -and 
Auguatua Goetz* baaed -on Andre OWe 
novel. Stars Geraldine Page* Louis Jour- 
dan: features Charles Dingle. David J. 
Stewart* James Dean, John Heldabrand. 
Paul Huber, Adelaide Klein. Bill Gunn, 
Directed by Daniel Mann. Sets, George 
Jenkins: costumes. Motley; lighting, Abe 
Feder. At Royale, N.Y.. Feb. 8. 'M; $4.00 
top. , 

Marcelline Geraldlrie Page 

Dr. Robert John Heldabrand 

Bocage Charles Dingle 

Michel Louis Jourdan 

BaChir .................. James Dean 

Dr. Garrin Paul Huber 

Sldma . Adelaide Klein 

Moktir David J. Stewart 

Dolit Bill Gunn 


Andre Gide, who was one of the 
great literary geniuses of this cen- 
tury and the winner of the Nobel 

: Prize, was self-cQnfessedly a homor 
sexual and he wrote' about it w'.th 
the utmost candor. Fiercely honest, 
scorning hypocrisy, including the 
kind practiced by deviates who use 
women as protective coloring, 
Gide’s novel, “The Immoralist,” 
has now been made into a stage 
play. It is adapted, directed and 
acted with great theatrical iiisight, 
is dramatically charged with sev- 
eral powerful scenes and a tremen- 
dous second-act curtain. If there is 
doubt as to the boxoffice fate of 
the venture, the. question arises 
from the nature of the story and its 
uncompromising realism. This will 
be -hard for a lot of people to take, 
and not just the prudes. 

A generation ago Mae West 
crudely exploited homosexuality in 
“The Pleasure Men." Other plays 
dealing with the subject have been 
“The Captive.” “The Green Bay 
Tree” and “Trio.” More recently 
.there has been “Tea and Sym- 
pathy,” and it is only natural to 
think of the Deborah Kerr hit in 
connection with “The Immoralist.” 
The facts are these: compared to 
the Gide story, the Story of “Tea 
and Sympathy” is a pretty valen- 
tine which leaves most people feel- 
ing a sentimental g.’ow that coura- 
geous clean-mindedness has tri- 
umphed over nasty rumor. Gide is 
not dealing with rumor. This hero 
is guilty as charged. 

Gide does not explain, nobody 
could, how it is that certain men 
become fixated upon their own sex 
and cannot love women. He does 
make piteously clear the suffering 
which being “different” inflicts 
upon the individual. The sneers of 
the holier-than thous, the black- 
mailings of tramp-nances are only 
passing sidelights. The terrible 
hurt laid bare in this play is 
deeper than mere social ostracism. 
Here is a husband who loves and 
needs his wife for her sweetness 
and warmth yet cannot emotionally 
or physically consummate his mar- 
riage. Here is an idealistic bride, 
the epitome of feminine tender- 
ness, trying desperately to under- 
stand, finally guessing and herself 
going to pieces under the impact of 
her knowledge. 

The couple spends a dreadful 
year in North Africa. Nearby is a 
date grove where live a band of 
homosexual Arabs. Gradually the 
husband drops all pretense. He out- 
wardly thrives in the sun and in 
his male sweetheart, loses his 
cough, resumes his Writing. But the 
wife’s womanly pride disintegrates 
under her rejection and she turns 
to wine. 

The play ends, as it begins 
(around 1900), in the man’s family 
home in Normandy. By this time 
each has known the best and the 
bitterest experiences of life in the 
brief, warped, impossible marriage. 
The acids of disillusionment have 
seared both and as a final compli- 
cation the wife is expecting a baby. 

* The curtain Comes down, without 
sentiment, without any hint of cure 
or change in the man, but with the 
couple reconciled in their own vast 
misery and the hope that their 
child shall know happiness. 

In bringing this story to the 
stage the adaptors, Ruth and Au- 
gustus Goetz, have displayed ex- 
ceptional ingenuity, taste and scene 
. construction. The script is lean 
from start to finish, despite the 
delay of one week in admitting the 
New York critics, an arrangement 
Broadway skeptics have attributed 
to Billy Rose’s flair for. publicity. 
What the delay was all about now 
seems distinctly minor in the face 
of the large charge of dramatic 
explosive Rose has detonated, 

Let the technicians debate 
whether to apportion the second 
largest credits to the director, Dan- 
iel Mann, or the two stars. Say it 
was a good combined effort. The 
audience sympathy will go to Geral-. 
dine Page as the wife. It is an 
actress’s dream role — the gamut 
from aches to zags— and the lady 
capitolizes. Not easy is the role of 
the homosexual, because his com- 
pulsions can only be suggested in 
the play, not rendered as in the 
novel. Making his debut on Broad- 
way, screen actor Louis Jourdan is 





sure of new stature, Both leads are 
truly exhausting roles, 

' The smaller parts have been cast 
and directed cannily. Charles Din- 
gle is the most familiar figure and 
gives a rich reading of a loyal 'fam- 
ily retainer who cannot compre- 
hend the deviation but can still 
love the boy. Much depends , upon 
the plausibility of the two Arabs. 
One, a house-boy, is a completely 
corrupt he-slut with a . hundred 
itchibay tricks. He's played with 
much imagination by James Dean, 
In contrast is the dignified and 
intellectual ex-schoolteacher who 

E rovides the “philosophy’- of the 
omosexuals— “man cannot live 
true to two worlds.” He’s a differ- 
ent kind of Arab, although there 
are hints , that he also exploits his 
European clientele for financial 
advantage. He’s impersonated by 
David J. Stewart.. If there’s a 
Chamber of Commerce in North 
Africa; they won’t like the picture 
of what goes on under the dates. 

Actually the play owes a lot of 
its pace and contrast to the sup? 
port. Adelaide Klein is enormously 
competent in the role of a kindly 
Arab serving woman, to whom, the 
distraught and uriwordly wife turns 
for understanding and companion- 
ship during her ordeal waiting for 
her husband to come home from 
down among the sheltering palms. 
Paul Huber is.’ excellent as the 
French garrison doctor from whom 
the wife ultimately learns of her 
pregnancy; the fruit of the one 
time her husband, ; in headlong 
flight from his own wayward de- 
sires, has taken her in his arms. 

George Jenkins’ .French estate 
parlor and North African sunbaked 
cottage are both as convincing as 
the playing, and Motley’s dressing 
is in keeping. Abe Feder created 
the lighting, one desert twilight 
being especially memorable. 

Having checked the inventory of 
strong points and found the under- 
taking tasteful and powerful 
throughout, the question remains 
as to general public acceptance of 
so depressing a story. So the report 
ends as ambivolent as the hero; 
“The Immoralist’’ . is fine theatre 
but uncertain boxoffice, or what 
has been wittily described as “a 
nervous hit.” Land. 



Tlie Fifth Season 
(Cort Theatre. N. Y.) 

The fifth season, which in gar-, 
ment industry jargon is the tag 
given to an offish biz period, 
hasn’t hit this show as yet. Haying 
passed the one-year mark last 
month, “Fifth Season” is still go- 
ing strong, with receipts continu- 
ally nearing the capacity mark. 
And, it’s obvious why the Sylvia 
Regan comedy, has held up as a 
strong b.o. attraction. 

Offering dishes out a heavy 
dosage of laugh lines that get 
hearty audience reception. Miss 
Regan has gotten some funny lines 
and situations out of the trials and 
tribulations of a couple of dress 
manufacturers trying to establish 
a going firm on New York’s 7th 
Ave. in the heart of the garment 
centre. 

Production also fills the bill in 
eye-appeal vein, with the sequence 
where a group of dress models 
showcase a new line, a good bet 
to satisfy male oglers. Cast has 
only undergone three changes 
since show’s boW. Bill Penn has 
replaced Dick Kallman and turns 
in a likeable performance as the 
young son of one of the bosses, 
while Helen Alexander and Teddy 
Tavenner are now modeli ng with 
Midge Ware in place of Dorian 
Leigh and Carolyn Block. 

Menasha Skulnick milks Miss 
Regan’s material dry, with a char- 
acterization that’s both sincere and 
comical. Galloping pace at which 
Richard Whorf travels in portray- 
ing an ambitious businessman is a 
little too frantic in spots. John 
Griggs gives a convincing per- 
formance as a conniving depart- 
ment store owner. Major femme 
assignments are handled smoothly 
by Augusta Roeland, Nita Talbot, 
Phyllis Hill and Lois Wheeler. Re- 
raining cast assignments are given 
okay essaying by John Kullers and 
Norman Rose. Jess. 


Raphaelson’s New Play 

Hollywood; Feb. 9. 

Reece Halsey of the William 
Morris office planed to Dallas to 
discuss possible Broadway and film 
production of Samson Raphael- 
son’s ‘-Heel.” 

Margo Jones is presenting play 
at Theatre ’54 until Feb. 13. 


CANADIAN BALLEt IN 
LIVELY US. BOW IN D.C. 

Washington, Feb. 9. 

A lively and extremely promising 
young dance company was un- 
veiled for U. S. audiences last 
night ( Mon. ) as the Royal Winni- 
peg Ballet opened a five-week tour 
of this country, its first tour out- 
side of Canada. 

A colorful but uneven quarter of 
numbers comprised the initial bill. 
It featured the troupe’s gay special- 
ty, half ballet half, burlesque, “The , 
Shooting of Dan McGrew.” Robert 
Service’s poem of the double kill- 
ing in the Maleriiute saloon may 
not be fine dancing, but it has. all 
the zest of ari “Oklahoma” laid in 
the frozen Yukon country, and it is 
a<r brightly costumed as Joseph’s 
coat of many ’colors;' Eva Von 
Gencsy, dancing the role of the 
“Lady That’s Known as Lou,” 
walks off with this one in a sock, 
sexy dancing presentation. Roger 
Fisher as McGrew and Arnold 
Soohr as the stranger handle the 
other leads well. The entire com- 
pany, as dance hall girls, miners, 
etc,, keep “Dan McGrew” moving 
vividly from start to finish! 

The company’s finest exhibition 
of pure movement is a “Ballet 
Premiere,” with Jean Stoneham 
and Spohr dancing the leads of a 
fine precision number which shows 
the troupe’s virtuosity at its best. 

An oboe Concerto, with the lead 
parts by Miss Stoneham, Spohr 
and Miss Von Gencsy, proves a 
strikingly costumed ! and handled 
arabesque. Thfe Royal Winnipeg’s 
new ballet, “Shadow On the 
Prairie,” is the weakest number. 
Reaching ^for high drama, in the 
dance, it turns out to be Some- 
thing with plenty of ham diced 
large throughout it. 

Alice Markova, guest artist for 
the U. S. engagement, doesn’t join 
the company until tomorrow 
(Wed.). * . Loire. 


Off-B’ way Show 


Stockade 

(President, N.Y.) 

It’s open season in legit -on 
adaptations from bestselling war 
novels. A couple of weeks ago 
Herman Wouk hit a gusher with 
the dramatization of the Navy 
court martial sequence from ' his 
tome, “The Caine Mutiny,”’ and 
now Mark J. Appleman has gone 
to the stockade sequence in James^ 
Jones’ novel of the pre-Pearl Har- 
bor Army, “From Here To Eter- 
nity,” for his dramatic material. As 
far as Broadway is concerned, the 
smart money is on the Navy, 

In three acts (nine scenes), Ap- 
pleman has managed to picture a 
lot of the brutality that Jones 
etched so passionately, but he’s 
done it in a disjointed, wordy man- 
ner. There are some scenes that 
project theatrical Vitality, but on 
-the whole it's a long, tiresome 
three-act hitch. 

Last year’s successful pic ver- 
sion of the novel only alluded, to 
the prison section. All Of Apple- 
man’s guns are Centered here, how- 
ver, but he fails to hit the bulls- 
eye. 

It stands up as an entity in itself 
with few references to what pre- 
ceded in the sprawling novel. As 
a separate dramatic piece, it misses 
Jones’ shadings and presents an 
overall horrible picture, of the reg- 
ular Army at work. It’s unrelent- 
ing in its picturizatiori of stockade 
brutality, and yet it misses stirring, 
up aud feeling. The drama re- 
mains something apart and cold 
despite the heat of the body lash- 
ings, knife duel and shootings. 

The production is excellently 
mounted, considering the confines 
of the President Theatre’s stage. 
Robert H. Gordon has mastered a 
difficult directorial chore but at 
times, he, too, loses out to the dis- 
organized nature of the play. 

Murray Hamilton presents a sen- 
sitive picture of the lead character, 
soldier Robert E. Lee Prewitt, 
while Rusty Lane is ponderous as 
the sagacious Malloy. Don Gordon 
is flashy as Angelo Maggio and Jay 
Barney is especially effective as 
the stockade commandant. Gerald 
Milton is properly sadistic as Staff 
Sergeant Judson apd Norman 
Keats turns in a fine job as an MP. 

Incidentally, Hamilton’s Prewitt 
and Gordon’s Maggio seem like 
road company versions of Mont-; 
gomery Clift and Frank Sinatra, 
who essayed the same roles on the 
screen. Gros. 


Wednesday, February 10, 1954 


Lee Shubert’s Will 

sssssm . Continued from page 1 aaai 


in his honesty and integrity, are 
evidenced in the fact that I am 
naming him as an executor and 
trustee of my estate, content- in the’ 
knowledge that he will do all with- 
in his power ; to conserve and ad- 
minister by estate ■ for the benefit 
of my beneficiaries as herein pro- 
vided.” * 

In the codicil (No. 3) of October, 
1952, the original Article 17 is re- 
written in the following curt-to- 
cryptic language: “I make no pro- 
vision in this will for my brother 
Jacob J. §hubert for the reason 
that he has ample means of his 
own and requires no financial as- 
sistance from me.” Another arti- 
cle iii the original will, naming 
J. J. as one of the executors, was, 
also revised in the third codicil, 
That was that. 

Lee Shubert’s will as first drawn 
named the following employees as 
beneficiaries, providing they con- 
tinued at the time of his death as 
employees 

Joe Peters, $10,000 in cash 
and $100 a week for a period 


of two years. 


Frank Baker ......... 

. $5,000 

John F. Waters ...... 

..7,500 

Elias Weinstock . . . . . 

. . 10,000 

Ray Whittaker . .... . 

. .10,000 

Gertrude Hauser .... 

.. 5,000 

Jack Morris 

.. 5,000 

Joseph H. Mandel . . 

.. 5,000 

Sam P. Gerson 

..5,000 

Ben Mallam 

... . 2,500 

Howard Milley . . . . . . 

. . 2,500 

Gladys C. David . . . . 

. . 2,000 

Lillian Duffy ... 

., 2,000 

E. Romayne Simmons 

.. 1,000 

John M. Johnstone . . 

.. 1,000 

Loretta Gorman . . 

.. 1,000 

Fred Meyer . 

. 500 


Codicil Revises 


In the third codicil, of 1952, the 
bequest to Joe Peters was limited 
to $10,000, without the $100 a week 
proviso. Frank Baker’s $5,000 was 
revised to include $50 a week for 
two years. Whittaker was cut from 
$10!000 to $7,500, Gertrude Hauser 
raised from $5,000 to $7,500. Ditto 
Joe Mandel. ^ 

Jack. Small’s name was inserted 
in the codicil for the sum. of $5,- 
000. Ross Stewart was inserted 
for $2,500. Bequests of $1,000 each 
•were specified to Fred Meyer (pre- 
viously $500) f apd, to the added 
beneficiaries, Katherine Hall, Edna 
Cosgriff, Florence Baker, Laura. 
Trope, Irene O’Neill, Irene Trim- 
pen. 

Beginning " with the traditional 
phrase, “In The Name of God. 
Amen!” the Shubert Will is in the 
form of a main document and a 
series of four supplemental codi- 
cils. There are 24 articles . to the 
will proper which is dated* Jan. 27, 
1949. The first codicil, Or modifica- 
tion, Was signed on May 16 of the 
same year. The second came on 
June 7, 1951. And the most ex- 
tensive-codicil was dated Oct. 3, 
1952. Fourth and final codicil came 
May 18, 1953, only a few months 
before the theatre operator’s death. 

Significant clauses in the will in- 
clude these: 


3): I give and bequeath to 
sister Dora Shubert Wolf and 
niece Sylvia Wolf Golde, join 
my library, all my works of , 
automobiles, household furniti 
plate and plated ware, linen, chi 
household stores, utensils, all p 
sonal and household effects 
every name and nature in my n 
dence in New York and where 
ever elsewhere located, whicl 
may oyvn at the time of my dea 
In the codicil this was 


cancelled with the words “my 
ter, being now deceased, and 
niece having ample household 
fects.” Personal effects, art, fu 
ture, motor cars were beque 
to Shubert’s widow. 

Bldg. Employees 
Shubert was divorced from U 
cella Swanson Shubert at the v 
mg of the main will, which t 
her $100,000, plus $7,200 a year 
life. First codicil, made after 
couple were remarried, raised 
cash payment to $200,000, tax-i 
Second codicil added $150,000, ] 

■a n in 10 annual installments 
All employees at the Shu 
Theatre Bldg, in N. Y. on the 

rp !‘ 12 years or more, automatic 
get $500 each unless a special 
quest is provided by name. 

In the fourth codicil, Shubi 
niece, Mrs, Golde, is given $] 
000. Lawrence Shubert Lawn 
and Milton Shubert, both neph 
also get $100,000 each. A gr; 
nephew, Lawrence Shubert I 
rence Jr., gets $50,000. The $; 


000 bequests had been doubled 
from tne sums provided in the 
main document, Lawrence Sr., is 
Shubert head man in Philadelphia 
Lawrence Jr. is a N. Y. Shubert 
house manager. 

Of John Shubert, J. j.’s son, Ar- 
ticle 8 of the will, which stands 
reads: “I give and bequeath to my 
nephew John Shubert the sum of 
$50,000. This is in the nature of 
a remembrance. I feel there is no 
necessity of making any additional 
bequests or legacies to him, be- 
cause his father is of sufficient < 
means to fully and properly pro- 
vide for him,” 

William Klein’s bequest of $100,- 
000 is explained: “Because for up- 
wards of 40 years he has been my 
personal friend and lawyer and has 
handled all my affairs to my_ satis- 
faction.” 

Milton R. Weir; another attorney, 
received $12,500 in the main docu- 
ment, but this was increased to 
$25,000 in the second codicil. Since 
the death of Lee Shubert, his sur- 
viving ;• brother J. J., with full 
authority . as sole remaining part- 
ner in the Shubert firm, has been 
reported as feuding openly with 
Wejr. 7 



Shubert employees and former 
employees given bequests in Lee 
Shubert' s will: 

•Joe Peters; Lee Shubert’s valet 
for many years. 

Frank Baker, Lee Shtibert'S 
chauffeur for many years. 

John F. Waters, controller ap- 
pointed by the banks at the time 
of the Shubert bankruptcy and re- 
organization; currently gravely ill 
with a heart condition. 

Elias Weinstock, former theatre 
bboker in New York; died several 
years ago, 

Ray Whittaker, in charge of real 
estate. 

Gertrude B. Hauser, handled Lee 
Shubert’s personal investments. 

Jack Morris, Lee Shubert’s per- 
sonal secretary. 

Joseph H. Mandel. an assistant 
to Waters in the accounting depart- 
ment. * 

Sam P. Gerson, general manager 
of the Shubert theatres in Chicago. 

Ben Mallam, in charge of box- 
office personnel.; 

Howard M. Milley, assistant to 
Waters in the accounting depart- 
ment, 

:■ Gladys Cooperman David, ac- 
counting department employee. 

Lillian Duffy, receptionist and 
supervisor of ushers. 

E. Romayne. Simmons, former 
casting director of musical shows ; 
discharged by J. J. Shubert, but 
kept on the payroll by Lee; has 
been hospitalized at Lee’s expense 
for last year or so. 

John M- Johnstone, former 
house manager of Winter Garden, 
N.Y.; deceased. 

Loretta Gorman, office employee. 

Fred Meyer, doorman of Slni- 
bert Thpatre, N.Y. 

Katherine Hall, telephone oper- 
ator. 

Edna Cosgriff, telephone oper- 
ator. 

Florence Baker, telephone oper- 
ator. 

Irene O’Neill, telephone oper- * 
ator. 

Irene Trimpen, telephone oper- 
ator. 

Bernard Friedman, accounting 
department employee. ' 

Laura Trope, office employee. 

Jack Small, successor to Elias 
Weinstock as theatre booker in 
New York. 

Milton Kaufman, assistant to Ray 
Whittaker in the real estate de- 
partment. * 

. Ross Stewart, secretary to Whit- 
taker and house manager of the 
Golden, N.Y. ' 

Emanuel Rosenfeld, former su- 
pervisor of theatre upholstering 
and furnishings; discharged some 
time . ago by J. J. Shubert. 

Pitt Store Exec-Angel 
Named Civic Opera Prez 

Pittsburgh, Feb. 9. 

I. D. Wolf, local department store 
exec and an occasional investor in 
Broadway shows, was elected presi- 
dent last week of the Pittsburgh 
Civic Light Opera, which presents 
an outdoor season of musicals every 
summer at Pitt Stadium. He’s been 
active with the organization for 
several years. 



Wednesday February 10, 1954 




WWM He $19,800 


Chicago, Feb, 9. 

With no major conventions in 
town. Loop biz was dented at some 
of the locations last week. "Wish 
You Were Here” folds and dis- 
bands end of the week, after a 10- 
week stay at the Shubert. "Time 
Out For Ginger” continues well at 
the Harris. "Good Nite , Ladies” 
seemingly is well-entrenched at the 
Great Northern via a twofer satura- 
tion and plenty of promotional 
highjinks. 

Estimates for Last Week 

Evening With Beatrice Lillie, 
Blackstone . (6th wk) ($4.40; 1,358). 
$19,800. No Thursday-Friday shows 
as Miss Lillie was ill with a virus. 

Good Nite Ladies, Great North- 
ern (6th wk) ($4,20; 1,500). Almost 
$14,000. . 

Seven Tear Itch, Erlanger. (20th 
wk) ($5; 1,334) (Eddie Bracken). 
Nearly $21,000. 

Time Out For Ginger, Harris 
(4th wk) ($4; 1,000) (Melvyn 

Douglas). Approached $18,200. 

Wish You Were Here* Shubert 
(9th Wfc) ($5; 2,100). Almost 

$27,800. 

‘WINNER’ NABS $17,500 
IN CLEVELAND WEEK 

Cleveland, Feb. 9. 

Elmer : Rice's new Broadway- 
bound drama, "The Winner,” play- 
ing the second stand on its breakin 
tour, nabbed $17,500 in eight per- 
formances at Hanna last week at 
$3.75 top. 

Author, who also directed it for 
the Playwrights Co., was in for 
several days making script revi- 
sions and tightening action of play, 
featuring Joan Tetzel, Tom 
Helmore . and Whitfield. Connor. 
General audience and critics reac- 
tions were favorable, although 
piece didn’t draw rave notices. 
“ Winner 1 ’ is currently playing 
Pittsburgh before going to New 
York. 


N.Y.C; Ballet Hits Record 
52G Week at $3.60 Top, 



Greco Good $5,000 In 

Two Louisville Dates 

Louisville, Feb. 9. 

Jose Greco and his Spanish 
dance company, played two per- 
formances at Memorial Auditorium, 
Friday and Saturday (5^), grossing 
a good $5,000. Troupe played date 
at the same stand last November 
to light biz, but critics’ and local 
patrons reactions were enthusiastic. 

William G. Meyer, local impre- 
. sario who booked the troupe in last 
fall, being offered the attraction, 
which had a couple open dates, 
grabbed them for the Feb. 5-6 
dates, to nice results. 


‘Porgy’ $43,110, Cincy 

Cincinnati, Feb. 9. 

"Porgy and Bess” picked up 
after a slow first half last week in 
the 2,500-seat Taft to gross a fine 
$43,110, tax included. Top was 
$4.31 and upped to $4.92 Friday 
and Saturday nights. Company 
keep tax because it’s non-profit. 

"Oklahoma” returns for a week 
in the Taft at $4.31 top, on Feb. 22. 


The N. Y. City, Ballet, with its 
new hit, "The Nutcracker,” a sell- 
out for three performances, racked 
up a sock $52,075 in eight perform- 
ances at a $3.60 top at City Center, 
N. Y., last week, in the fourth 
stanza of a 10-week < winter run. 
Gross marks a new high, for the 
company, which has never gone 
above the 50G mark before. Week 
previous, it had garnered a hand- 
some $46,350. Second stanza’s take 
had been $38,800 and opening 
Week, $32,800. 

Subsequent "Nutcracker” show- 
ings are practically sellouts, insur- 
ing^ healthy grosses the remainder 
of the troupe’s run. A new work, 
Jerome Robbins’ "Quartet," makes 
its bow next Thursday (18) to 
heighten b.o. interest. , 

Ballet Theatre racked up a neat 
$41,500 in seven performances on 
tour last week (31-61), spread over 
four stands. A Shreveport single 
brought $5,500; three shows in 
Dallas, $20,200; an Oklahoma City 
single, $7,200, and two in Tulsa, 
$8,600. Week previous, also in split 
stands 'through the south, troupe 
grossed $29,900 in eight showings. 
This week, it’s still doing splits, aU 
irt Texas. 


‘Affairs’ Fine $20,000 
In 2d SL Louis Stanza 

, ■ St. Lpuis, Feb. 9, 

"Affairs of State,” with June 
Lockhart in the' top role, wound up 
the second of a two-week frame at 
the Empress Theatre Sunday (7) 
with approximately $20,000 at $2,50 
top. Miss Lockhart is being held 
over for the lead role in “The 
Philadelphia Story,” which tees off 
a: one-week session at the Empress 
tonight (Tues.). It is Miss Lock- 
hart’s sixth p.a. in the; past 15 
months at this house. 

The American Theatre, dark 
last week, relighted Monday (8) 
with "Pofgy and. Bess.’’ It will 
remain for two weeks. 





Pittsburgh, Feb. 9. 

Nixon got another pleasant sur- 
prise last week when “Moon Is 
Blue” turned in $15,000. F. Hugh 
Herbert comedy was scaled to $2.5Q 
($3.25 with taxes) for weeknights, 
going to $3 on Friday and Satur- 
day. It was thought “Blue” might 
have trouble since show had played 
multiple engagements last summer 
at most of the districts strawhats, 
and this with the pic version and 
a $45,000 fortnight two seasons ago 
figured to slim down show’s 
chances. 

However, touring production (Ed- 
ward Andrews, Jacqueline Holt and 
Michael Liptori) got off to. a fast 
start, and kept on pounding away 
right down the stretch, to turn a 
new profit for both house and man- 
agement. Nixon currently has 
Elmer Rice’s new- one, “The Win- 
ner,” on subscription, then gets 
“Oklahoma” again and Blackstone 
week of Feb. 22. 


Iron Curtain 

=5 Continued from page 68 ss 

stars of the Parisian troupe. The 
Hungarian dancers (man and wife) 
appeared with the Petit troupe in 
their specialty in Paris last fall. 

Team has a Las Vegas riitery 
date in March, for two weeks, and 
negotiations are now going on for 
the. two to appear with the Petit 
troupe part time during the six- 
week road tour that follows the 
N. Y. run. They’re regarded as 
hot property. There were rumors 
that they were sought as guest 
artists with the Ballet Theatre this 
season. * Also, that Hurok would 
like them to return to the U. S. 
next season as guests with the 
London Festival Ballet, when the 
latter company makes its U. S. 
bow. » 

Meantime, negotiations are also 
on for a South American appear- 
ance of the Petit troupe in May, 
the Irriberri concert setup in Ar- 
gentina making such overtures. 
Latin org, however, wants them 
only if Miss Caron is included. 
Latter is on leave from Metro 
which may cause a snag* 


Current Road Shows 

(Feb. 8-20) 

Burning Glass (Cedric Hard- 
wicke) (tryout) — Parsons, Hartford 
(11-13); National, Wash. (15-20). 

By the Beautiful Sea— Shubert, 
New Haven (15-20). 

Evening With Beatrice Lillie 
(Beatrice Lillie). — Blackstone, Chi 
(8-20). 

Girl in Pihk Tights (Jeanmaire, 
Charles Goldner) (tryout) — Shu- 
bert, Phila (8-20) (Reviewed in 
Variety, Jan. 27, ’54). 

Good Nite, Ladies — Great North- 
ern, Qhi (8-20). 

Guys and Dolls — Shubert, Bos- 
ton. (8-20).' 

Moon Is Blue — Colonial, Akron 
(8-10); Paramount, Toledo (11-13); 
Shubert, Det. (15-20). . 

My 3 Angels (Walter Slezak) — 
Ford’s, Balto (8-13); Plymouth, 
Boston (15-20). 

New Faces — Curran, S. F. ( 8- 

20 ). 

Oklahoma— Nixon, Pitt (15-20). 

Ondine (Audrey Hepburn, Mel 
Ferrer) (tryout)— -Colonial, Boston 
(8-13) (Reviwed in Variety Feb. 
3, ’54), 

Porgy & Bess — American, St. L. 
( 8 - 20 ). 

Seven Year Itch. (Eddie Bracken) 
— Erlanger, Chi (8-20). 

South Pacific (Jeanne Bal, Webb 
Tilton)— Civic Aud., New Orleans 
(8-13) (Reviewed in Variety Feb. 
Lanier Aud., Montgomery (18-20). 

Stalag 17 — Elm St., Worcester 
(8-9); Metropolitan, Providence 
(10-13); Lyric, Allentown (15-17); 
McCarter, Princeton (18-20). 

Time Out for Ginger (Melvyn 
Douglas)— Harris, , Chi (8-20). 

Twin Beds— Cass, Detroit (8-13); 
Locust St., Phila. (15-20). 

Winner (tryout) — Nixon, Pitt (8- 
13) (Reviewed in Variety Feb. 3, ! 
’54). 

Wish You Were Here— Shubert; : 
( 8 - 20 ). ‘ 


Philadelphia, Feb. 9. 

Musical-minded town hung up 
SRO signs at two lighted play- 
houses last week, with “Oklahoma” 
at the Forrest, and “The Girl in 
Pink Tights,” at the, Shubert, both 
going 'clean. Only scalpers had 
ducats for latter attraction at open- 
ing of run (2). “Oklahoma” is 
slated to be brought back for a re- 
turn engagement. 

“Girl in Pink Tights,” which got* 
far from rave notices, is only attrac- 
tion on local boards this frame. 
Locust goes into a semi-stock policy 
next week (15) with opening of 
“Twin Beds,” to be followed by 
“Stalag 17,” March 1. and “The 
Moon is Blue,” April 5. Locust will 
adopt policy of two Evening shows, 
Friday and Saturday nights, instead 
of the customary brace of matinees. 

Estimates for Last . Week 

Oklahoma, Forrest (2d wk) (M- 
1,760: '$4155). Popular-price top of 
$3, plus taxes, all week excepting 
Saturday, proved strong hypo for 
revival. $34,200. 

The Girl in Pink Tights, Shubert 
(1st wk) (M-1,870; $6.50). Although 
reception, press and public, was 
mixed at opener, tickets still at a 
premium for tryout run, Terrific 
$44,000. 

‘Harvey’ Meek 4G, L A.; , 



i23G,lsn 



. Los Angeles, Feb, 9. 

, Frank Fay’s ego cost him plenty 
last week. 

Actor decided to reopen ‘‘Har- 
vey” after it had shuttered follow- 
ing a one-week run at the Biltmore 
Theatre here. It was too late for 
any real advertising or promotion 
and the gtos's* for the week hit 
$4,000, probably an alltime low for 
the 1,636-seat house. Tally repre- 
sents a weekly operating loss to 
“Harvey" of around $4,500 but 
Fay has insisted on holding the 
show through the current frame. 

Only other offering last week, 
“Tobacco Road," registered a fine 
$5,000 for the first full frame at 
the 386-seat Civic Playhouse. 

Harout's Ivar Theatre, dark for 
several months, relights Thursday 
(11) with the world premiere of 
"Come and Play," a new revue. 

Shows in Rehearsal 

Keys: C (Comedy), D (Drama), 
CD (Comedy-Drama), R (Revue), 
MC (Musical Comedy), MD (Musi- 
cal Drama), O (Operetta). 

Anniversary Waltz (C) — Joseph 
M. Hyman & Bernard Hart, prods.; 
Moss Harti dir.; Macdonald Carey, 
Kitty Carlisle, stars: 

Burning Glass (D) — Theatre 
Guild & John C. Wilson, prods.; 
Luther Kennett, dir.; Sir Cedric 
Hardwick, Lucille Watson, stars. 

By the Beautiful Sea (M)— Rob- 
ert Fryer & Lawrence Carr, prod?.; 
Charles Walters,, dir.; Shirley 
Booth, star. 

Golden Apple (M) — Norris 
Houghton & T. Edward Hambleton 
(Phoenix Theatre), prods.; Hugh 
Ross, dir. 

Mister Roberts (C) (Stock) — 
Bernie Ferber, prod. 

World of Sholom Aleichem (CD) 
(2d Co.) — Rachel Productions, 
prod.; Howard J. Silva, dir. 

‘Stalag’ 9 % in 4, N. H. 

New Haven, Feb. 9. 

"Stalag 17" hit Shubert’ for a 
last half (4-6) last week and cavort- 
ed off with a substantial take. In 
view of Its low scale ($3 top), four- 
performance gross of $9,500 meant 
good money. 

House is dark currently. Next 
week gets full-week preent of “By 
The Beautiful Sea” (15-20). An- 
other breakih cracks its shell here 
when “Anniversary Waltz" comes 
in March 3-6. 


Broadway took a general slide 
last week. Practically all but the. 
smash entries fell off, with receipts 
for 10 shows dipping from $1,000 
to $5,000 from previous stanza’s 
takes. 

Street has two new additions this 
week. "Immoralist” bowed official- 
ly Monday (8) night, after eight 
preview performances, and "Con- 
fidential Clerk” preems tomorrow 
(Thurs.). ‘ Last week’s sole opener 
was ‘‘Lullaby;” Slated to close 
Saturday (13) is “In The Summer 
House,” while Ruth Draper’s one- 
woman show, originally slated for 
a limited three-Week>engagement, 
has been extended four weks. 

Estimates Yor^Last Week 

Keys: C (Comedy), D (Drama), 
CD (Comedy -Drama), R (Revue), 
MC (Musical Comedy), MD (Musi- 
cal Drama)', O (Opera). 

Other parenthetic designations 
refer, respectively, to top prices; 
number of seats, capacity gross and 
stars. Price includes 20% amuse- 
ment tax, but grosses are net: i.e., 
exclusive of tax. 

Caine Mutiny Court Martial; 
Plymouth (3rd wk) (D-$6-$4.80; 
1,062; $33,000) (Henry Fonda, John 
Hodiak, Lloyd Nolan). Over $33,- 
400, with standees at all perform- 
ances, but take held down because 
of theatre party commissions (last 
week, $32,800, with take cut by 
theatre party commissions). 

Can-Can, Shubert (40th wk) 
(MC-$7.20; * 1 ,361 ; $50,1 60). Same as 
last week, $50,600. 

Diill M for Murder, Booth (66th 
wk) (D-$4.80; 766; $20,801 ) (Mau- 
rice Evans). Almost $15,300 (pre- 
vious week, $16,200); closes Feb. 
27 to tour. 

Fifth Season, Cort (55th wk) (C- 
$4.80; 1,056; $25,227) (Menasha* 

Skulnik, Richard Whorf). Nearly 
$23,200 (previous week, $24,300). 

His and Hers, 48th Street (5th 
Wk) (C-$4.80; 925; $22,927) (Celeste 
Holm, Robert Preston). Almost 
$19,700 (previous week, $20,400). 

In the Summer House, 1 Playhouse 
(6th wk) (D-$6-$4.80; 999; $23,500) 
(Judith Anderson). Under $12,500 
(previous week, $15,000); closes 
Saturday (13). , 

John Murray Anderson’s Alma- 
nac, Imperial ( 9th wk ) ( R-$7.20; 
1,400: $50,300. Just under $41,000 
(previous week, $42,900). 

Kind Sir, Alvin (14th wk) (C-$6- 
$4.80; 1,31 1 ; $39,460) (Mary Martin, 
Charles Boyer). Over $27,600 (pre- 
vious week. $31,200). 

King and I, St. James (150th wk) 
(MD-$7.20; 1.571; $51,717) (Yul 

Brynner). Just under $33,500 (pre- 
vious week. $35,700); closes March 
20 to tour. 

Kismet, Ziegfeld (10th wk) (MD- 
$7.20; 1,628; $57,908) (Alfred 

Drake); Almost $57,900 (previous 
week, $57,800). 

Lullaby, Lyceum (1st wk) (C- 
$4.80; 995: $22,845) (Mary Boland). 
Opened Wednesday (3) to three 
favorable notices (Atkinson, Times: 
Chapman, News; Coleman, Mirror) 
and. four unfavorable reviews 
(Hawkins, World-Telegram; Kerr, 
Herald Tribune; McClain, Journal- 
American: Watts, Post); grossed 
nearly $7,800 for first five perform- 
ances. 

Mile. Colombe, Longacre (5th 
wk) (CD-$6-$4,80; 1,048; $26,817) 
(Julie. Harris, Edna Best). Over 
$18,700 (previous week, $22,700). 

Me and Juliet, Majestic (37th 
wk) (MC-$7.20; 1,510; $58,000) 

Nearly $37,200 (previous week, 
$42,200). 

Oh, Men, Oh, Women, Miller 
(8th wk) (C-$6-$4.80r 920; $23,248) 
(Franchot Tone). Almost $23,000 
(previous week, $23,200). 

Picnic, Music Box (50th wk) (CD- 
$6-$4.80; 997; $27,534). Nearly $19,- 
300 (previous week, $20,300). 

Prescott Proposals, Broadhurst 
(8th wk) (CD-$6-$4.80; 1,160; $29,- 
500) (Katharine Cornel 1 ). Almost 
$19,000 (Previous week, $22,200). 

Remarkable Mr. Pennypacker, 
Coronet (6th wk) (C-$7.80; 1,027; 
$28,262) (Burgess Meredith, Martha 
Scott). Nearly $22,600 . (previous 
week, $23,900). \ 

Sabrina. Fair, National (12th wk) 
(C-$6-$4.80; 1,172; $31,300) (Marga- 
ret Sullavan, Joseph Gotten). Al- 
most $31,200 (previous week, $31,- 
300). 

Seven Year Itch, Fulton (64th 
wk) (C-$6-$4.80; 1,063; $24,400) 

(Tom Ewell). Nearly $23,600 (pre- 
vious week, $24,000), 

Solid Gold Cadillac, Belasco 
(14th wk) (C-$6-$4.80; 1.077; $28,- 
300) (Josephine Hull). Over $28,-1 
300 (previous week, $28,400). 

Tea and Sympathy, Barrymore 
(19th wk) (D-$6-$4.80; 1,060; $28,- 


300) (Deborah Kerr). Almost $28,- 
600 (previous week, $28,700). 

Teahouse of the August Moon, 
Beck (17th wk) (C-$6-$4.80; 1,214; 
$31,681) (David Wayne, John Fof 1 
sythe). Held at nearly $32,200. 

Wonderful Town* Winter Garden 
(49th wk) (MC-$7.20; 1,510; $54,173) 
(Rosalind Russell).. Just under 
$48,000 (previous week, $51,600). 

Miscellaneous 

Coriolanus, Phoenix (3rd wk) (D- 
$3; 1,150; $15,000). Almost $11,200 
(previous week, $11,200). ; 

Ruth Draper, Vanderbilt (2nd 
wk) (CD-$3.60; 720; $13,000). Orig- 
inally slated for a three-week 
limited engagement,: show’s run has 
been extended four weeks. 

Opening This Week 

Immoralist, Royale (D-$6-$4.80; 
L035; $31,000) (Louis Jourdan, 
Geraldine Page). Billy Rose pro- 
duction of drama, by Ruth and 
Augusta Goetz, based on Andre 
Gide’s novel-opened officially 
Monday night (8) after eight pre- 
view performances which grossed 
nearly $25,400; drew one favorable 
notice (Atkinson, Times)) and six 
pans.- .. ■■ . c , : 

Confidential Clerk, Morosco, 
C-$7.80; 935; $30,200) (Ina Claire. 
Claude Rains, Joan Greenwood), 
Henry Sherek and Producers Thea- 
tre production of comedy by T. S. 
Eliot; opens tomorrow (Thurs.) 
night. 



Boston, Feb, 9: 

Hub’s two legit entries, ‘‘Ondine’* 
(in first full week) at the Colonial 
and “Guys and Dolls,” in sixth 
week at the Shubert, continued 
strong . )iere last week. Musical 
will wind its skedded eight-week 
rim at the Shubert Feb. 20 and 
then movgs into the Colonial for 
an additional two weeks. 

Estimates for Last Week 

Guys and Dolls, Shubert (1,700; 
$6 Fri -Sat. $4.80 other nights). (6th 
wk). Still very big at $41,500. Mu- 
sical is now advertising in dailies 
of 14 New England cities, with re- 
sult mail order biz is 70% out-of- 
town and 30% local. 

Ondine, Colonial f 1.500; $4.80) 
(1st wk) (Audrey Hepburn, Mel 
Ferrer). First full week Went clean 
with a hefty $36,1Q0. 

‘CLERK’ SMASH $37,800 
IN SECOND D.C. WEEK 

Washington, Feb. 9. 

A smash $37,800 figure at the 
boxoffice marked the second and 
last week of T. S. Eliot's “Con- 
fidential Clerk” at the National 
Theatre. Gross was $4,700 above 
the fine total for the initial stanza. 

The Royal Winnipeg Ballet 
opened at the National for a single 
week last night (Mon,), marking 
its first official appearance in the 
U. S. Advance sale for this was 
nearly $20,000, based largely on 
the draw of Alicia Markova, guest 
prima ballerina. Blackstone the 
Magician opened a two-hour magic 
show at the Shubert Theatre last 
night. 


‘Faces’ Off to $21,000 

With Kitt on Leave 

San Francisco, Feb. 9. 

"New Faces” skidded to $21,600 
for its second week of a return run 
at the Curran, with patrons, moving 
reservations over to this week <8), 
when Eartha Kitt returns to show 
following dropping for eight days 
to fvilfill a Buffalo nitery date. 

However, sub Ann Henry rated 
warm crix reviews for her stint. 

‘Misalliance’ 8G, Toronto 

Toronto, Feb. 9: 

Revival of Bernard Shaw's "Mis- 
alliance,” starring Marty n Green, 
brodied to $8,000 on week’s en- 
gagement at the Royal Alexandra 
for lowest gross in the 18 weeks’ 
road tour, with 1,525-seater scaled, 
at $3.50 top. 

Play folds after a three-day date 
/Feb. 8-10) at the Erlanger, Buffalo. 

‘Angels’ $11*100 (4), Wilmingt 

Wilmington, Feb. 9, 

"My 3 Angels” opened its road 
tour here before enthusiastic audi- 
ences last week, drawing $11,100 in 
four performances Feb. 4-6 at $4,20 
top. 


LEGITIMATE 


Wednesday, Fehrnary 10, 1954 


Plays 




Future B’way Schedule 

( Theatre indicated if boohed) 


Crix Differ On Tix 


he Boydilk performa^ Confidential Clerk, Morosco, V continue# from pare ft I 

London. Feb. 1. Denise Grey Ca tl d PP tomorrow (Thurs.). to this office, theatregoinL for pDead Hero' published by Rinehart 

oS£ 46 th SU Feb. 18. .. People Who are not wealthy, are ,* ln t ernatu , nj|1 fo#t . 

nh^ At an Em°: in on a kind, innocent widow as Girl | rt pink Tights, Hellinger, not oh expense accounts and have note Henry Sherek. co-Drodurir 

boarders, using her home for P «£ ; 25 . , • • no personal influence is an exhaust- JJJ- ^dU&s^The^l^' 

Arnold Marie their nefarious meetings. A for- Burning Glass, week March 1. ing ordeal that affronts a man's (j» 0 be r t Whitehead and Ropp^t'’ 

i merty upright clttefen agrees to aid Golden Apple, Phoenix, March pr f de> devasU tes his pocketbook ggJS, of SShfe 

JREW SSs to aid Wt “is, Beautlfal S«., March 25.- £££*> »P“tog ®r “C*nM e ntial 

*■ Fender ‘ " Arnnid A1 nilmond manners. In the end the crooks Year Around, April 19. wreck, by the time he beats his way Flop in the U. S.” The conclud- 

?, a J\ t ] ! ng ^Martin 0 Friend make their getaway, leaving their p a j a ma Game, May 12. into the theatre. ing paragraph read, “In short, 

cie ‘ ••••• double-crossing accomplice and — - - * - ■■■ - - 


In a comparatively short time, the sentimental widow very sur- 


wreck by the time he beats his way Flop in the U. S.” The conclud- 
into the theatre." ing paragraph read, “In short. 

Fishy Alibis? therefore, the only chance an Eng- 

Kerr focused his Herald Tribune lish play has here is when the 


all fl tuni|/M»uvuvij . J wr A Y7« 1 !• t A i _ a • Tk iverr lOUUScU ilia ncuiiu inyuuc L” ’ rj-v. — 

Wolf Mankowitz has shown signs prised. ™„ c fr,.rtPd and Vet Yiddish Actor tO Be column on the “alibi" Of professed London producer has absolute con- 

of becoming one of Britain's most Ssn*. ™ KMVt Ann! theatre iove?s that it’s impossible trol. That is why I am staying in 

Dromisiog writers and his Cited On 50th btage Amu «•* York until the production of 


promising writers ana .ms. mri «nH itnirptc tn.anvthina hut lions -now i one unui me production of 

fnii-ipnpth nlav “The Bovchik.” show, thanks to deft direction anu ■. , , , . T . . . tn get tickets to anytnmg Dur nops. ■ pKnt’c ‘tvip p/uifijaBr i 

If the suburban' Em bsissv' Theatre wise casting, offers an agreeable Michael Michalesko, vet Jewish He remarked that “the elaborate £ 8. f l10 * s . The Confidential 

Hampstead! has attracted more evening Carette, as a theatre star, will be honored at a explanations they whip up often dft !® ars Britai^* — ' 

than usual attention. With the who tu an d Miss testimonial show sponsored by the have a fine ^fishy air of unreality ^ i— . — __ 

two-actej there is also a curtain- hilarious^ P er f® rr JJ t * ered j ady Hebrew actors union at Downtown about them. Citing Variety s re* || . 

rajser. “The Bespoke Overcoat. Grey, as a sweet-temp r.y jg a tj ona i Theatre NY Feb 24 in ports of Broadway grosses for a I . ■ ..m ■ p-. ■ 

Writing exclusively in the Jew- o f _ f m , ld T d i® celebration of/ Michalesko’s 50th recent week (“an especially good I NO SOCK DfdWS 


ivnuns exclusively .-in me is a Wave gang? celebration of/ Michalesko’s 50th recent weeK ran especially s«uu i nvVVMUiail) I 

tsh idiom, Mankowitz and hi$ hu- Darnel Lecouriois Michel vear on the Yiddish sta-e * week at the boxoffice, not a dull I I 

mor may have only a limited com- ster and Anre Bervil, Micnei year on me xiaaisn sta 0 e. one- T'm not trvine to stack the U— Continued from page 69 =^=J 

mercial appeal in Britain but the Salina, Jean-Henrl Chambois and Menasha Skulnik, Molly Picon, notid that of the 25 wav ctandQ ’“rninnoic *» u 

ground. This would apply more Meyer is tops and set by Jean Se v mour Re chtzeit. will take selling out. tour, had been m the Mack at one 


tour, had been in the black at one 


particularly if “The Boychir Pierre Dux is a good one. par t in a concert, which will follow Explaining that Variety, reveals ft™ ™ 

(“The Little Boy") had achieved curc - a cavalcade of excerDts from out- each show's possible gross and ac- but went into the red during its ; 

a higher degree of theatrical pro- ■ ^ ■ r standing hits of the Yiddish the- tual gross, so “you can tell at H2“ , i? t, r? r -ch e£ “if*' 

fessionalism. . Anllinlo Spani»1i Ballet atre done by an acting group. glance approximately how. many (availability will be R. C. Shernff s 

The story,*, such as it is,, of a Paris,- Feb. 2. seats went unsold in any given' Miss Mabel. ■■ 

bankrupt actor-manager waiting Jean Bouchei-Ysaye presentation, in ; 1 . . =?l V vP«k “ he Dointed out that of the There’s a possibility that “My 

for his son to return from. Ame.r- two parts, with Antonio, Rosita Segovia. .. . . . .. 1ft n’nn-cellnut«5 for the' week in Three Angels” and “Time Out for 

lea . and thus revive the family nQj[® n / A Do“jt| n oru*. ^craeieiia vasquez, BsIIaI ” auestion only four were reasonably Ginger” might be added to the 

fortunes, by- a joint production,, p aco Ruiz, Corps de Ballet. -Choreography -DllllOi ft , ' .--..ti,,-. ««- fv,A-re were 14 list ■ Both shows are currently 

c .», tM , d i!mHn ® oth are current,y 

>. ; « banet;^ ^ W iU have to be wr men. ^ th ? r e iin^ dog in thR^ 

curtain. Its strength lies in its Antonio, who broke with partner 0 ff this season. And $16,100 of this “Anyone who’d had a suddeh, Ye ar Itch" being offered the 


.ica.-and, .'ibu?'- -'revive - .The. xanrmy . -BQii 3 ui, •Dc5! , itS 1,, Qrti2T* oracicii# •' vasniie*. If; R^llgl auestion only four were reasonably Ginger” might be added to the 

fortunes, by- a joint production,, pa C o Ruiz, corps de 1 Ballet. -Choreography II -DhIIOI ft . 1 . ■ ,, ■. ■ . were 14 list ■ Both shows are currently 

juslf fades ll away P leRvhfg C t’hR a situ- IL— G» ==*. 'S3Si^v.fl»ble,: to™**-'".., fc , 

^ >. ; a ballet, will have to be written, “»®4 th^re isn’t^a dog in the lot.”. 

curtain. Its strength lies in its An tonlo, who broke with partner 0 ff this season. And $16,100 of this “Anyone who’d had i a sudden Ye ar Itch” being offered the W 

gentle a " d ..°^^ va ^ 1 .^ lia J ,a ^ r Rosario some months ago, now cos ^ however, will be taken care lunatic impulse to put °n a coat t ic operators this summer are 

* nf^hi^^the °Aiitho^ co me « to Paris with a , shiny new bf from last season’s Rockefeller and dart off to a show might have t . j. nil considering the 

has* an tl otwibus^y'-ddRp ' Kndwled^ brlskfng ^in^herc ”t«ff ore ^hdading 

Principal parts are warmly por- foi . s ou ?h America and the U. S. works. And if the .company as 8-40, been greeted w tations are currently travelling on 

trayed by Arnold Marie, David t 0 ', report^^^^ holds to its present high weekly dinary courtesy nnd P^haP s .eyen Broadway. Only other longrun , 

Kossoff and Miriam Karlin. Ghloe f n Dl tn „^ n g the troune in the U S. posses it may even come out in a pat on the back, and trundled stra i g ht plays presently on the 

Gibson's direction reveals a pa- A11 t the p^i^ting rhythms are in- the black on its 10- week season. down center aisle fi *witl^ n a b6ards besides these two are 
tne "i,u Un( lf rstaI ? din ^ ,,, • herent in this fine dance spectacle Company, With its regular crew bright, fresh stub in his fist. Ana “Dial M for Murder” and “Picnic.’’ 

The Bespoke Overcoat is a and the outstanding, intense terp- of 24, put on the production (With ~ t° harp on . P°J"t r Former entry is' definitely not 

supenpr piece of the theatrical j n g 0 f Antonio is sure to make this its six changes) in a day and a bad half of Broadway to pick sla ^ ed for release to strawhats this 

U.rl!r W'i?h d a S rf if^minhr n«We a -fihe bet in special- dgnee situa- half, when it would take a com- from. . . . summer, according to a rep of the 

K ^ 2L t LS iW TM^fc P ^ parably Broadway show four to five “It would, be nice /if we. could product ' 

hearted fantasy of Rep is composed of an 18th-cenr days to setup. Original thought was kill off that damaging legend which in the musical idiom,. Tams-Wit- 

house clerk who lonas for° a new tury suite, a marinette, a ^ folk to c i 0S e down house for a week insists that all Broadway^ box- mark i s re-releasing “Pal Joey” 

topcoat, but dies before it is fin- hcarorL^^^randHl host 1 ^^ for t hi s p VJPOse, but the ^manage- offices jre trimmed with^ barbed for summer theatre production, 

ished. The principal characters ^ groui ment decided against it. “Nut- wire. Most Broadway boxoffices-- Tuner had been put under wraps 

,inn>rAiu a lfia Uoco flamenco specialties ana group ppopirpr'’ marks thp firKi timp an more, than half of them- — throb. Kpoonco nf itc . n i 


(Trust Me) 

Paris, Feb. 1. 


solos draw tremendous mitting the show’s size, and the difficulties of bucks in his hand,” 
here. The costumes are eyefilling and. expense involved in striking Too Much Bother? ' 

_ 1 — ' • * _ • . .a a > • _ 1 i • .1_A_ 


French is adding “Three Wishes 
for Jamie” to its available musi- 
cals and a new modern version of 


jSSSSX at ana the decor adequate to the fine sets each night after a perform- chapman’s. column in the News cals and a new modern version of 
Jean Meyer. Set by Jean Pierre Dux; groupings of the company. Rpsita* ance. „ th previous Sunday used an en- Merry Widow,” with hook and 

pSsT ^ b 3 y to> uisuy - At Gymnase Theatre - Segovia and Flora Albaican second Scenic Triumph thusiastic followup of his original l^ics bf Charles George. Last 

Fonsine '....* Denise Grey Antonio admirably. This looks to There were 80 people on stage rave for “Caine Mutiny Court Mar- year’s big releases in the musical 

SlShip Br,gnou Mar fiti l « e ip P ^?^ be one of the mpst likely canoca at the final curtain, while the or- tial” to complain that because of vein were “Gentlemen Prefer 

uJu... companies to. come out _of Spain «v,o C f ra - a i c x mi.ac MiamanfaH Dm. ,.i , k/,nv;nrto . Blondes” and “Annie Get Yniii* 


Helene '. ! ! ! ! ! ! ^ ! i ! ! ! *. . picofette SJith Pa g 0 * 5 d - possiSlIties 1 for stated chestra also was augmented. Pro- the heavy theatre party bookings, blondes" and “Annie Get Your 

?Kr r .. A r^^^ duetion was a seenie and costuming no weeknight tiejets. are avail- ««"• 

Mai nn Jean-Henri Chambois fK P mmintinff and the talent of the triumph as well as a dancing one, able for months ahead, and seats ± ~ — — 

indivMmb L the ensemble. Jean with.Horace Armistead's sets. Mme. for Friday and Saturday nights j®*™ Elder. Broadway : »eene.de-. . 

Boucliel-Ysave, direotor of the Karinska s .. costumes, and Jean a re sold out “for a long tune in • • .Y 1S1 ^ v 1 ? 

Michel Duran, talented boule- Empire Theatre, is personally han- Rosenthal’s lighting all terrific, advan'ce.” He offered the column S a '5 n f I5 r-ir^IVo. 

vardist whose “Ode to Liberty” Iding the troup in its world book- Settings alone constantly brought s p ac e to producer Paul Gregory m v k^’ 

got a Broadway production in ings. Mqsk. bravos from opening night’s audi- n any time he ^ants to explain.” ^Pj^cing uonaia uensiager, wiio s 


Michel Duran, talented boiile- Empire Theatre, is 
vardist whose : “Ode to Liberty” Iding the troup in 
got a Broadway production in ings. 

1934. has written a score of light, — 

sophisticated comedies. Present a if 

effort has clicked to nice returns LUrrCIlt LOB 
here, but export seems unlikely. - 

.“Trust Me” recalls American L 

crook plays of 40 years ago and .i (F1 s“ r ^ s . d . cnot ® 
-chief draw are smooth, winning Aike S Kokin? 9 Gias” 


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to transfer and haul anywhere in 


U. S I 

• RATES ON REQUEST I 

Atlantic Transfer Company 

GEORGE CONANT 
.1100 East 5th Street 
Los Angeles. 13, Calif. 

MUtual 8121 or OXford 9-4764 


— — — " ence, in such scenic magic as the Critic concluded the column, “I 

fill-rant I nnJnn ^linwc snowflakes scene,' the Xmas tree think the play and the per f 0 rm- 

turrent Lonoon MOWS that grew.to enormous size onstage, ances are worth - waitin g for-but 

London, Feb: 9. r 1 am not sure that a11 the public 

(Figures denote premiere dates) SliS?' AfibtViHc 0 ^ ^ Irt that con " is going to wait. Already, many 

Airs shoestring, ( Royai ct. <4-22-53). cealed eight kids, etc. people have told me, ‘Aw, the 

a"S 2 i* n? ilS%, stv<^ (2-ii*54>? “Nutcracker” is a charming bal- hell with it. It’s too much bother.’ 

Anna Lucasta, Hippodrome d-26-54). let and a worthy success. First act This is an old complaint of mine 

b ffl L K n e? * d u k e P Yo rif ’ s" ‘fi^i - * 5 4 ) . 5 ^ of th ® two-act production may and you may be tired of my harp- 

Birthday Honours, icriterion (in.6-53). seem tame or slow to fast-paced ing on it, but I do think that char- 

BoycHikf Emb^ s y sv d (i a -E54 < )! 2 ' lT53) ' N * Y ‘ audiences. But the plenteous ity and religious benefits, no mat- 

confideniiai clerk, Lyric " 0,16-53). pantomime, and excessive use Of ter how high their purpose is, 'are 

e s «n B .d. T, str!Sd n. 20 . 53 a ) rket (11 - 26 !53) * children is an integral part of the doing as much damage ta the liv- 

fi#hv Season, Cambridge ' (2-25-54). original work, as is the adult danc- ing theatre as tv or tfie movies.” 

Folios Bergere, Pr. Wales (9-24-53). ing highlighted in the second act, ofhor 

For Belter W<p-se, Comedy (12-17-32). an( i havp in hp arp#»ntprt nn that Other critical opinion and com- 

Goys and Dells, coiiiseum (5-28-53). ana nave 10 De accepted on that men t during the week involved 

Housemaster, St. Martin’s (1-19-54). score. intoro C tin« n lL,i 

King end I, Drury Lane ( 10 - 8 - 53 ). , . interesting personal slants, and 

Love From Judy, Saviiie (9-25-52). Balanchine s beautiful dance in- revelations. Richard Watts Jr. 

mSSU"™?,' aiS'sf: ^ s ; "‘ ote , ! n the Pos ‘. to/ example, 

No other Verdict, Duchess G-21-54). peclBlly in the gorgeous first-act Speaking of Coriolanus,’ I’ve al- 
ow VIC Repertory, ^ old Vic (9-14-53).: snowflake scene and the grand Das wavs wn imdor tho 



Fifth Season, Cambridge (2-25-54). original work, as is the adult danc- mg theatre as tv or tfie movies.” 

Folios Bergere, Pr. Wales (9-24-53). ing highlighted in the second act, nthoi- j 

For Better W<p-se, Comedy (12-17-32). an( j havp in hp arppntprt nn that Other critical opinion and com- 

Buys and Dolls, coiiiseum (5-28-53). ana nave 10 De accepted on that men t during the week involved 

Housemaster, St. Martin’s (1-19-54). score. intoro C tin« n lL,i 

King end I, Drury Lane ( 10 - 8 - 53 ). , , interesting personal slants, and 

Love From Judy, Saviiie (9-25-52). Balanchine s beautiful dance in- revelations. Richard Watts Jr. 

mSSU"™?,' aiS'sf: ' s ; "‘ ote , ! n the Pos ‘. to/ example, 

No other Verdict, Duchess G-21-54). peclBlly in the gorgeous first-act Speaking of Coriolanus,’ I’ve al- 

Private secretary, Arts <2-3-5/|). . - a vUX oi tne second frame. The that Shakespeare wrote his oddly 

S F.ct a Piccadin^'fi^io..^) Ja r et Re , e J d f nd Tanaquil LeClerq snobbish drama in collaboratioM 

Reluctant Heroes' Whitehall (9-12-50). ‘ roles could stand more dance mven- with Lucius Beebe.” He ended the 

isk ^f..‘‘^ ndom M e h s «• «s»J 

Seven Year itch, Aidwych (5-14-52). oe aaaea to^HODeri uarnett s candy That piece with the remark, I 

sleeping Prince, Phoenix (10-5-53). cane role. But Maria Tallchief and seem to be the onlv local column- 

Someone Welting, Globe (11-25-53). Nicholas Maeallanes dan op py ;of,.,K^ L * Luiuinn 

Trial A Error, Vaude (9-17-53). t - aance ex- ist who isn t an intimate pal of 

wish You were Here, Casino (10-10-53). ftuisitely, and Misses Reed and Hemingway” 

Witness Prosecution, w. Card. (10 28-53). LeClerq are lovely in their roles. Wolcott Gihh«; ,‘n thP Np«> VnrV 

v , SCHR.un^RH.N*, 

“ute y e **P U “ ie ’- th0Ugl1 observers suggested might be eh 
Burning Glass, Apollo (2-18-34). _ explanation for his almost invari- 

s Overall, the imagination, style, able dislike of Shakespearean re- 
dancing, decor and devised for vivals. He confessed, “Once, in 
Nutcracker make this a stunning the dark backyard and abyss of 
adaition to N. Y. City Ballet repel- my youth, I played a member of 

* aire * Bron. the rabble. n SPhatnr a cnl/ilar 


Burning GleSs> : Apollo (2-18-34). 


EIGHTY-SEVENTH WEEK m Sportin' Ufa 

“Porgy and Bess 91 

Currently 

AMERICAN THEATRE. St. Louis 
FOR TWO WEEKS 

Mgt.: DILI MITTLER, 1619 Broadway, Now York 


iaire# . Bron. the rabble, a senator, a soldier, 

.• • r and assorted offstage vocal effects 

, PacificV28 1 / 2 G, Houston S a a n usV ?plboy pr ° auction of ‘ Co ^ 

Houston, Feb. 9. Henry Hewes, in the Saturday 
“South Pacific” grossed over Review, coupled a favorable po- 
$28,500 at the Music Hall here lice with an ingenious explana- 
last week. tion: “ ‘The Starcross Story’ closed 


BROADWAY ANGELS, 
INC. 

Common Stock 

Price 50c a Share 

Write or phone for an offering 
circular to 

BROADWAY ANGELS, INC. 

29 W. 65Hi St., Haw York 23 
TRofolgar 4-1 81 5 ' 


New Modern Theatre 

FOR SALE, RENT 

Pocono Mountains, 79 miles from Now 
York, whero 50,000 Vacation weekly 
during summer', 550 seating capacity, 
large stage, fully equipped motion 
sicturo projection room. Ample parking. 
Also on property, 8— four-room cot* 
tages, old pHst Mill, id«al summer 
theatre or for . theatrical school. 

H. AUTEN. BushkIII. Pa. 
Phene Bmhkill 51 


EXCESS WARDROBE 

of throe top' flight models (4 Seasons) 
suits, . coats, drosses, separates (per- 
fect for stock) hats, shoes (site 6 to 0) 


Jeanne Bal-Webb Tilton starrer after one performance because of • P >ZSmtrtr * to 

is current at the t:ivic Auditorium, a plagiarism spit by Stanley Jauff- ia __ 

New Orleans. man, author of a novel titled ‘The’ 10 • * < q » W* 4 - 


fedneaday, February. .10, 1954 




X. if. News* Own Hot Story 

The $300,000 third floor press- 
room fire, which hospitalized eight 
at the N* Y. Daily News last Friday 
< 5 ) couldn't be scooped by anybody 
else on tv — all the WPIX camera 
had to do was lean out from the 
11th floor of the News' Bldg, on 
East 42nd St The indie video sta- 
tion is a News property. 

Steve White's ‘Hughes. Story* 

Stephen White, recently resigned 
associate editor , of Look mag arid 
now a 20th-Fox Film scripter irt 
Hollywood, is . expanding his 
concurrent, three-parter in Look, 
“The Howard Hughes Story” in- 
fo book form for Ballantine. 
It will be published simultane- 
ously in paperback and hard 
cover, as Ballantine did with “Ex- 
ecutive Suite,” pic version of which 
Metro is readying for release this 
.month. 

While the Hughes story was 
White’s valedictory with the 
Cowles mag, the Look management 
will have a 50% cut in the book 
which will run 75,000 words. He 
wrote 30,000 originally for Look 
but it was cut to 12, 000.. because of 
size, following ^conferences with 
Hughes, who had approval only on 
controversial aspects — privileging 
him to discuss and debate but not 
censor. 

Incidentally, Hughes . doesn’t 
come off nearly as Well in the cur- 
rent Fortune mag piece. 

Bill Raney to Dutton’s 

William Raney, who resigned in 
a policy tiff as . editor-in-chief of 
Henry Holt & Co., joined E. P. Dut- 
ton & Co. this week as one of three 
senior editors under. Nicholas 
Wreden, veep in charge of the edi- 
torial board. The other two senior 
editors are Harry Shaw and Wil- 
liam Doerflinger. All operate; of 
course, under . Elliott . B. Macrae^ 
president of the company. 

When Ted AmusSen exited Holt 
about a year ago to rejoin Rinehart 
& Co, as veepee and editor-in-chief 
of the trade book dept., his long- 
time colleague, Raney, stayed on 
and was upped from executive edi- 
tor. However, it is understood that 
William E. Buckley, vice-president 
of the trade department of Holt, 
had other ideas, whereupon Raney 
quit summarily. Buckley has been 
talking to several book editors on 
joining Holt in the top spot. 


Hemingway’s ‘Obits* 

Even as it appeared that Ernest 
Hemingway.- would survive the 
African plane crashes, the column- 
ists and press unloosed sentimen- 
tal eloseups on “Papa.” A writer’s 
writer, the Havana-beached novel- 
ist has long endeared himself to 
visiting scribes by ^providing' good 
copy whenever , a newsmen ap- 
peared on the Cuban scene, and 
the encomiums were' automatic 
payoffs to a writer who has al- 
ready become a legend within bis 
own time. 

Hemingway’s familiarity in pubs 
find clubs the world over, of 
course, has constantly thrown him 
into proximity with byliners in 
every key city, with result that bis 
contacts with fellow toilers in the 
news vineyards give him a strong 
personal press liaison that results 
m nothing but affectionate anec- 
dotal barrage. It surprised news- 
men how each had a different 
tack on the writer. 


Norman Anthony’s New ‘Imp* 

Norman Anthony, who has satir- 
ized wit and humor over the years, 
nas a new bimonthly, Imp, which 
is subtitled “impudent and impo- 
lite. Other “imp”isms are on im- 
probable news, implausible conver- 
sations, . impressionists, improper 
stories, impious poetry. “Imp in- 
tends to be impudent . and impolite 
to people impressed with their own 
importance” is the editorial credo 
or ‘‘impresario” Norman Anthony. 

Beacon, Canton, O., is the pub- 
lisher; editorial and exec offices in 
Jamaica, N.Y.; Samuel Scheuer; 
proz; s. Braveraman, sec; J. 
I'crtsch, treas,. 


Stuff.” It will be divided into sec- 
tions, Broadway Ballads, Broadway 
Biographies, Canyon ' Characters, 
Metropolitan Movies and Minor 
Moods, • brought out by Library 
Publishers about mid-April. 

Martin L. Wolfe, president of 
Library Publishers, will specialize, 
in theatrical publications. In ad- 
dition to “Main Stem Stuff,” LP 
also has “The Bishop of Broad- 
way” (David Belasco) by Craig 
Timberlake, scheduled for April 
publication, and John Murray An- 
derson’s, memoirs (no title set yet) 
scheduled for next fall. . 


Little, Brown’s Canuck Tie 

Little, Brown & Co. has teamed 
with the Canadian book firm of 
McClelland & Stewart, Ltd., to 
form Little, Brown & Co. (Canada) 
Ltd. New company, with head- 
quarters in Toronto, will handle 
all of Little, Brown’s books in 
Canada, and will publish some 
titles for Canadian distribution 
only. It will also distribute some 
books of The Atlantic Monthly 
Press and Durill, Sloan & Pierce, 
publishers associated with Little, 
Brown in the U. S. 

Officers of the new Company are 
Stanley Salem* prez; John McClel- 
land, veepee; John McClelland Jr., 
secretary-treasurer. These officers, 
together with Arthur H. Thornhill 
and James W. Sherman, will com 
stitute the directorship of the 
Canadian company, * 


200 Years From Now 

Prompted by observance of Co- 
lumbia U.’s bicentennial celebra- 
tion this year, Columbia U. Press is 
running a contest to determine 
which of the living artists,, writers, 
scientists, etc., will still be known 
and revered 200 years . hence, in 
2154. Idea was prompted by a re- 
flection back to 1754, date of the 
founding of the college, and the 
names, of men living then whose 
works are still significant today. 

There . .are 18 classifications: 
poetry, drama, the novel, satire, 
music, painting, architecture, math- 
ematics, physics, chemistry, medi- 
cine, psychology, philosophy* edu- 
cation, history, political science, 
economics and sociology. Publish- 
ing house is giving as 12 prizes one 
of the books to be released this 
year in the series of a dozen Co- 
lumbia Bicentennial Editions and 
Studies. Ballots must be in Feb. 28, 


British 3-D. Tome 

The first British book td deal ex- 
clusively with 3-D motion pictures, 
bv Raymond and Nigel Spottis- 
woode, is due for publication in 
London by Faber & Faber at $6. 
'plume will be titled, ‘‘The Theory 
ot Stereoscopic . Transmission and 
4 ,,s Application to the Motion Pic- 
ture.” 

The book will analyze the trans- j 
mission of the image from scene to j 
‘■(Teen, studio and location prob- 
lems. and camera aspects and pro- 
jector design. 

More Show Biz Books 

J om Weatherly’s forthcoming 
mook bf light verse (mainly about I 
Broadway and show business in ■ 
general) will be called “Main Stem 


Sothern On Marlowe 

Fairfax Downey : has edited 
“Julia Marlowe’s Story” by E. H. 
Sothern (Rinehart; $3.50), and the 
book makes sprightly reading 
about a great actress in the golden 
era of American legit. 

Sothern died in 1933; Miss Mar- 
lowe in 1950. Publication of this 
manuscript was delayed by pro- 
visions in Miss Marlowe’s will. Pre- 
vious works dealing with the cele- 
brated husband-arid-wife ‘acting 
team include Sothern’s “The Mel- 
ancholy Tale of Me” (Scribner, 
1916), and “Julia Marlowe: Her 
Life and Art” by Charles Edward 
Russell (Appleton, 1926). The cur- 
rent volume carries ari undated 
dedication to Russell over Miss 
Marlowe’s signature; but Downey 
points out that there is much ma- 
terial is Sothern’s account of his 
wife’s career that has not hitherto 
been printed. 

One cannot but respect the self- 
less struggle of Miss Marlowe — her 
determination to rnake managers 
arid public alike accept her as a 
classical stage heroine despite all 
odds. Praise also belongs to Ada 
Dow, the actress’ longtime coach 
and mentor. 

Yet evert in this naturally-biased 
volume, the reader often gains an 
impression of Miss Marlowe that 
reveals a coldly-calculating, beau- 
tiful, gifted superwoman; some- 
what terrifying in her ambition 
and drive. 

The book has several good illus- 
trations, but it needs proofreading. 
Lawrence Barrett’s name is repeats 
edly mispelled. James Herne is 
entered incorrectly. James O’Neill 
receives but one “1” for his sur- 
name. And the composer of our 
National Anthem is Jorgensened j 
into Francis Scott Key. i 

Robert Downing. 


his expose on rent gouging; Jim 
Lucas, Scripps-Howard correspon- 
dent, for his Korea dispatches; 
Newsday, fdr the series by Made- 
line Ryttenberg on the shortage of 
adequate medical facilities on Long 
Island; Life, for Peter Stackpole’s 
picture of a diving attempt taken 
100 feet under water; NBC, Tor its 
“Weekend" program; Business 
Week, for translating business 
news to “popular, broad appeal”; 
John Crosby, N. Y. Herald Tribune 
tv, columnist, and Leonard Engel, 
freelancer* for his science articles. 
Last four prizes were “special 
awards.” 


SCULLY’S SCRAPBOOK 


By Frank Scully 


: London Reviewer Switches 
. Logan Gourlay, show columnist 
of the London Sunday Express for 
the past five years, has resigned 
and Derek Monscy, a staffer, is 
subbing for him uritil a successor 
is found. 

Harold Conway is leaving the 
London Evening Standard, where 
he has been covering show biz for 
many years, to join the Daily 
Sketch as film arid drama critic and 
columnist. 


Polk Memorial Awards 

Nine George Polk Memorial 
Awards, including two firsts, one 
to a weekly magazine and the other 
to a freelance: writer, were an- 
nounced this week by Long Island 
U. president Adm. Richard L. 
Conolly. Awards; for “outstand- 
ing contributions by metropolitan 
newspapermen during 1953,” will 
be tendered April 8 at the Hotel 
Roosevelt; 

Winners are’: James (Scotty) Res- 
ton, N. Y. Times Washington chief, , 
for his articles on government arid | 
diplomacy: William Longgood. 

N. Y. World-Telegram & Sun. for i 


CHATTER 

Good piece by Jack. Benny in 
current Collier’s, “After 39 Years 
—I’m Turning 40.” 

Tony Gray, former editor of Pho- 
toplay, named editor of Screen! and 
and Silver Screen. 

« First hovel by Will Hays Jr., 
titled “Dragon Watch,” will be 
published this spring by. Double- 
day. ■ 

Omnibpok will reprint a portion 
of Horace Sutton’s tome on the 
Waldorf-Astoria, “Confessions of a 
Grand Hotel" 

Robert Carson's latest novel, 
"The Quality of Mercy,” with a Los 
Angeles background, will be pub- 
lished in May, 

Beverly (ex-Ringling Circus) Kel- 
ley’s book on Emmett Kelly, the 
Ringling clown, due via Prentice- 
Hall March 31. 

Les Savage, Jr., film scripter, 
turned out his first novel. Tagged 
"Silver Street Woman,” it’s slated 
for publication Feb, 24 via Han- 
over House. • ' 

CHicagq American columnist 
Nate Gross is on the first leg of a 
round-the-world junket. He’ll start 
filing his first overseas dispatches' 
around March 1. 

Arnold Shaw (“The Money 
Song”), veepee of Hill & Range 
Music, has a piece on “The Cool 
Generation” (hot vs. cool jazz) due 
in May Esquire. 

Time mag drama critic Louis 
Kronenberger’s “Company Mari- 
ners: A Cultural Inquiry Into 
American Life" to be published by 
Bobbs-Merrill March 1. 

Ruth Erickson, editorial director 
of Stearn Publications (Movie Play, 
Movie \ Spotlight, Movie Time), 
leaving for the Coast Sunday (14) 
for a two-week gander at the . stu- 
dios. 

Lee Graham, who runs the “Let- 
ters To Lee Graham” show on 
video and is an instructor at the 
City College of N. Y. ; has authored 
a non-fiction book. “If You Are A 
Woman,” to be published by Cro- 
well. . 1 

Edward J. Becker, who gained 
some publicity while iri the New 
Jersey State Prison writing for top 
magazines, a$ well as having his 
first novel, “Coble Hill,” published, 
has completed an autobiography, 
“The Angry Search.” 

Ralph Kettering, vet theatrical 
pressagent and historian, is prep- 
ping a new scries on Chicago legit 
producers of yesteryear which 
wilL run this spring in the Pictorial 
Arts section of the Chicago Ameri- 
can. He currently has a series of 
21 pieces titled "Stardust by Gas- 
light” running in the American. 

Author Beth Brown for many 
years Occupied her own town house 
on Riverside Drive, New York, arid 
so when she moved into a 6-room, 
3-bath apartment on West End 
Ave. it was a bit of a do as “what 
to do with 5,000 books; 50 barrels 
of China; 13 rooms of chairs, ta- 
bles, knickriacks, rugs, dogs, para- 
keets, stationery, radios, one baby 
and one author.” She finally sent ! 
one truckload of antiques to the ! 
Greenwich Village Gu man Society 
thrift shop; gave the stairearpet- 
ing to a church for 'funerals and' 
weddings. • 


Weil, What Next? 

Chicago, Feb, 9. 

Fairy tales of Hans Christian 
Andersen have been stamped 
“for adults only” in Illinois 
libraries by Sec. of State 
Charles 5. Carpentier. The 
slate, it was explained, does 
not want to place unreasonable 
restrictions on adult literature, j 

“but will make it impossible ' 

for school children to obtain i 

smut or objectionable mate- j 

rials” from public libraries. 

Classified likewise was Jules 
Verne’s "20,000 Leagues Under : 
the Sea.” I 


r . . j , . .. Hollywood. 

. In wisdom, and foresight; experts in the field of public relations 
acclaim me in the syndrome of Old Testament prophets. At least 
they do to my face, But privately they rate me, so my counter-intelli- 
gence staff reports, as the most starryeyed chump among Variety’s 
farflung mqggs. They feel it would be far better for all concerned 
if I were sold down the river to the fan mags. '* 

It seems several of them heard me arguing that producers should 
stop dissembling their love and', should instead pile' their adjectives 
and advertising dough on the fanmade hits. The trouble starts when 
veepees in charge of production decree long before the pictures are 
made what must be hits. All they succeed in doing is to drive their 
flacks to frenzied fatigue from trying to make old turks taste like 
tenderized terrapins. 

In racing, I have been overheard to say, horsemen don’t tout every 
spavined , mare in their stables as a surefire Kentucky Derby -winner. 
They breed; horses, sure, but most of the stable gets its feed from 
the purses that Futurity winners bring home as they Climb upward 
toward the top. 

Book publishers long agb decided that when one book heads toward 
the bestseller lists, the advertising and publicity should go almost 
completely thataway too. 

Junkets For Junk — Terrifique! 

But Hollywood still seems to feel it can butter a baddie into a goodie. 
They still toss junkets for junk. They still decree that a big-budget 
picture must be a hit arid if the public makes no pretense of its dis- 
appointment, thb publiri is wrong. The thing to do is to take the flacks 
to the woodshed and whack them till they recant. - - 

The old idea of cutting up turks for mandolin picks or selling the 
silver deposit to Navajo silversmiths no longer is accepted by the 
front office. “Make ’em like it. bludgeon them into liking it,” is cur- ’ 
rent directive on all product, v 

That fewer pictures cannot guarantee better pictures is a bitter 
pill to swallow. But if producers can’t stand the gamble that is part 
of their biz, why don’t they transfer their skill to painting traffic 
lanes where the economic hazards are small? 

On one occasion a v.p. in charge of public relations said he had 
missed uS at a preview. 

“We didn’t get tickets for it,” replied Mine. Scully. “I think we 
must be on your B list.” > 

In well-spaced words, taking a long time for the reply to sink in, 
he replied, “We have no B pictures.” I guess they don’t read their 
pan mail. 

Recently we were lured to join a junket. We were assured some 
fun and, to end the day, a good picture. Most of our contemporaries 
must have been touted off this one, because few of the byliners were 
aboard the plane. 

We were strapped in our seats and our first surprise came when 
we were informed that all of us would ride backward. If this had 
been a conditioning for a picture that was going to be run backward, 
that might have been fun. In this instance it would have helped the 
picture a lot. 

So many thirigs happened on that junket that were pleasant, that 
it is sad on reflection to realize we were going to get pickles ort cole- 
slaw for dessert. 

We were taken on a tour of a zoo in the afternoon. That was fun. 
The bus driver was a genius in his field. He knew all about the animals 
and birds and had so many good jokes connected with them that it 
was like studying zoology under a younger Chaplin. 

To his pets (and he had many) he would, talk, get them to do tricks 
for us, even wave us goodbye, and then* toss them slices of bread 
from a loaf he had near his steering wheel His skill in this was on 
par with an Olympic discus-thrower’s. 

• The Film Switch 

Had I been the producer on this junket and knowing the awful 
mess I had in the cans, 1 would have tossed the cans to the mountain 
goats, installed a tape recorder in the bus, grabbed a newsreel camera, 
and shot this tour and the driver’s spiel and used it to replace the 
dismal epic that was in store for my friends. 

Studios turn these things out awfully fast on the documentary level 
where the slogan is: “Nuts to quality! Make it lively!” But 1 wasn’t 

the producer and the man who was, walked his last mile, chin up, ‘ 

playing a doomed man, but with dignity, to the end. 

After the world preem of his epic, which was a wake as far as the 

crix werj» concerned, we were herded back to the plane for the long 
voyage' home, This, if anything, was a worse ordeal than seeing the 
picture. More embarrassing, too, because it is no fun feigning .good- 
fellowship and conviviality when the corpse seems to be aboard the 
same plane with you* Besides; members of the press can’t act for nuts, 
and this required acting at its best. 

In a taxi on the way back to the airfield we heard over the two-way 
communications system that the driver was to take us anywhere we 
wanted to go and charge it to the theatre. The temptation was terrific 
to tell the driver to bypass the airfield and drive us all the way to 
Hollywood instead.' Anything than face the producer, director and 
stars on that plane trip. • 

But that switch certainly would have had repercussions. So we got 
out of the cab at the airport and joined the phony conviviality. 

The director, who looked down on . us as if we were untouchables 
on the outgoing voyage, was all smiles and carnaraderie on the way 
home. He trotted out his best scotch but this was no miracle of Cana. 

It tasted like bathtub gin. It was drunk sparingly. Who wants to get 
arrested for drunk-driving as a payoff to a day like this? Everybody 
remained as sober as judges. 

Soberer. 

Midwives Not Mothers, He Says 

The next day I asked one of the flacks if he knew who was respon- 
sible for this depressing interlude? He said this was not one of their 
current crop of pictures. It had been made two years ago. “Tw.o 
years ago?” I cried. “Fifty years ago! This is the sort of picture that 
gave radio a chance and guaranteed tv a bright and prosperous future. 
This one in technique, story, treatment and direction is so old 1 suspect 
it killed Cock Robin.” , 

All he felt like saying at the time was, “We’re midwives, not mothers, 
you know. We don’t produce these things.” 

“But why not reserve junkets for pictures all of you agree are good? 
Then friends and foes can come out of the theatre in a happy mood 
and -slap^each other on the back, instead of on the puss, on the way 
home?” 

“Good idea,” he said, “I’ll take ’that up with the boss.” 

But he won’t. I got the same answer from Desi Arnaz when I sug- 
gested that in Lucy’s commercials he stop plugging his snipes as “king’s 
size and regular size,” I informed this Cuban who owed his indepen- 
dence, like Us, to heaving but a king, that kings were’ a dime-a-dozen 
these days, and most of them are out of jobs. “But there is a Queen 
who is not only beautiful but has a job. So . why don’t you call, (he 
small ciggies ‘Queen’s size?’ She might be flattered All your femme 
viewers certainly would be.” 

He was smoking a little cigar at the time. “Good idea,” he said. 
“I’ll take it up with the boz." 

He may be an $8,000,000 star but I doubt if he will do anything 
of the sort. What will likely happen is that some rival peddler of 
coal-tar derivatives will grab it from here and send me a carton instead 
of a fat check. 

Life is like that. 



Wednesday, February 10, 1954 


Broadway 


Fred Waller, inventor of Cine- 
rama. hospitalized. 

‘ James A. (Traveltalks) FitzPat- 
rlck in from the Coast. . . 

M-G pub-ad chief Howard. Dietz 
left Friday (5) for a West Indies 
vacation. 

Arnold Moss planes to the Coast 
today (Wed.) for a top role in U-I’s 
"Bengal Rifles." . ■■ 

Metro producer Edwin H. Knopf 
returned to the Coast following 
homeoffice talks. 

Rhys Williams, veteran character 
actor, in from the Coast for tv and 
recording dates. 

Jerry Sager, pub-ad topper of 
B. S. Moss Theatres, in Mt. Sinai 
Hospital for surgery. 

S. H. (SU Fabian, Stanley War- 
ner and Fabian Theatres topper, 
vacationing in Miami. 

Vidpix producer Emerson Yorke 
In Harkness Pavilion, Medical Cen- 
ter, for a. week’s checkup: 

Bandleader-showman Abe Ly- 
man writing Broadway pals that 
he’s feeling much better now. 

Nancy Walker has completed 
her role in Warner Bros.’ ■‘Lucky 
Me," and returned to Gotham. 

Arthur F. Driscoll (O’Brien, Dris- 
coll & Raftery) sailed yesterday 
(Tues.) on the Flandre for a 34-day 
Atlantic Cruise. 

; John Houseman, who staged the 
off - Broadway "Coriqlanus,” re- 
turned to the Coast to resume his. 
production duties at Metro. 

Joe Roberts, executive Veepee of 
Sport Films, subsid of Interna- 
tional Boxing Club, to Havana and 
Miami oh fight pix business. 

Phil Silvers back in Gotham 
after seven months in Hollywood 
where he completed "Top Banana" 
(UA) and "Lucky Me” (WB). He’s 
balfying "Banana.” 

The Frank Polans, parents of 
Mrs. Jerry (Connie) Wald and 
agent Barron Polan, celebrated 
their 40th anni at the Walds’ Bev 
Hills home recently. 

Gordon V. Comer, clerk of the 
First Church of Christ, Scientist, 
Boston, is attempting to locate Mrs. 
Lura Olafsson, who Was known 
professionally as Lura Bennett 

Irma Lerna, Variety advertis- 
ing sales staffer, had her arm dis- 
located in a mugging Saturday 
night (6) on 86th St. She’s recup- 
ing at home after treatment at St. 
Luke’s Hospital. 

Hebrew Actors Union honoring 
Michal Michalesko on his 50th anni 
as Yiddish legit performer with a 
testimonial entertainment program 
to be held at the. lower . eastside 
National Theatre Feb. 24. 

Meyer Davis to Florida, Monday 
(15), to visit his orchestras at St. 
Augustine, Miami Beach and Palm 
Beach. While; in Palm Beach he’ll 
conduct his band at the Everglades 
Club for annual . Washington’s 
Birthday ball. 

Tom Curtiss, legit critic for the 
Paris edition of the N. Y. Herald 
Tribune, who doubles in that capa- 
city for Variety, planes' into 
Gotham Saturday (13) for a 3-week 
looksee at the current crop of 
Broadway legiters. 

Julius Colby, Variety’s adver- 
tising manager, and his wife, 
Ethel, drama and film critic of the 
N; Y. Journal of Commerce j sail 
tomorrow (Thurs.) on the S. S. 
Nieuw Amsterdam on a West In- 
dies and South America cruise. 

Jayne and Addison Fowler, who 
now Operate the Arthur Murray 
studio in Providence, named their 
first child Florenz Tamara Fowler, 
after the first Mrs. Fowler (& 
Tamara), top ballroom team of .the 
1930s. Florenz Tamara died several 
years ago, v 

Robert S. Wolff, RKO topper in 
Britain, in from London’ Monday 
(8) on the Queen Mary for home- 
office huddles. Also arriving were 
conductor Sir Thomas Beecham 
and some 17 members of the Stutt 
gart Kamera Orchestra under di- 
rection of Prof. K, Munchinger. 

Milton R. Rackmil, Decca Rec- 
ords prexy, presented the Rackmil 
Gold Record Award for the best 
sales performance of the year to 
the company’s Philadelphia branch 
last Friday (5). Party at the Blair 
House, N.Y., was attended by most 
of the execs of the eastern division. 


with stands in Cannes, Cairo and 
South America, 

Raymond Asso, one of top pop 
songwriters here, starting a chant 
stint of his own works at the 
L’Ecluse nitery here. . 

Claude Autant-Lara will make a 
pic version of Stendhal’s "The Red 
and the Black” in April with Ger- 
ard Philipe and Daniele Darrieyx, 

George Ulmer getting his first 
important pic role in Jean Sacha’s 
"I’m Number 1000” to be shot here 
and in Spain as a Franco-Hispano 
production, 

"Seven Year Itch” and Thierrey 
Maulnier’s "House in the Night” 
enter into the hit category in 
passing their hundredth perform- 
ances, this Week. 

Bob Weiss, Capitol Records Con- 
tinental rep, back on job after U. S. 
sojourn to recuperate ’from a 
broken leg and arm plus confabs 
with Cap officials. 

Jean Martinelli replacing Ber- 
nard Bller in lead role of "Dial M 
for Murder” when play moves 
from Ambassadeurs to Ambigu to 
make way for new Andre Roussin 
comedy, "Husband, Wife and 
Death,” in which Blier is to star. 


London 


By Lary Solloway 

Former Hollywoodite Mona Bar- 
rie how a partner in swank new 
Patio restaurant. 

Carl Brisson playing his first 
date: here, 10-day run in Blue Sails 
Room of Sans Souci opening Feb. 
9. 

Bill Miller at the "Casablanca 
gandering shows before returning 
to his chores at the Sahara in Las 
Vegas. 

Betty and Jane Kean into Club 
Morocco of the Casablanca this 
week; Christine Jorgensen pacted 
o follow. 

Jack E. Leonard set for D1 
Lido’s Moulin Rouge following 
wo-week return date of the Ritz 
Brothers. 

Frank Sinatra, Dick Shawn, the 
Dunhills and Harry Richman in 
new show at the Beachcomber. 
Sophie Tucker taking 10-day rest. 


In its sevenrweek run at two big 
houses here "The Robe” (20th) 
grossed $484,500. 

Patrica Neway to sing top role in 
Alfa no opera of Tolstoi’s "Resur- 
rection” at Opera-Comique. * 

Gilbert Becaud, new pop radio 
nitery vocalist, inked for Olympia 
Music Hall; opening Feb. 12. 

Arletty into the film version of 
JeamPaul Sartre’s "No Exit” to be 
directed by Jacqueline Audry. 

Charles Holland, American tenor 
repp3d the U. S. at the Interna 
tional Festival of Song in Nice. 

Madeleine Sologne returning to 
legit in Frederic Dard adaptation 
of Francis Carco novel, "Trapped 
Mart.” 

Marquis de Cuevas ballet troupe 
to follow present London stint 


Roy Rogers due today (Wed.) 
for a provincial vaude tour. . 

Helene Cordet opened a return 
cabaret date at the Colony this 
week.. 

Dany Dauberson, French nitery 
star, signed by Harry Foster for 
he Pigalle, opening May 10,* Date 
s for four weeks With option. 

Lynda Gloria made her London 
cabaret debut at Quaglinos and 
the Allegro room where she 
opened a two-week run on Mon- 
day. - 

British dress designer, Roger 
Furse, has been signed by WB to 
do the costumes for "Helen of 
Troy,” which is due for early film- 
ing in Rome. 

Sonny Zahl, brother of Hyman 
Zahl and also attached to the Fos- 
ter's agency, ordered by his doc- 
or to stay home because of severe 
attack of tonsllitis, 

Cecil Landeau casting a new re- 
vue for early spring production, his 
first since "Sauce Tartare” and 
Sauce Piquante” which gave Au- 
drey Hepburn" her first West End 
chance. 

Richard Hearne, British comic 
billed as “Mf. Pastry,” who is cur- 
rently appearing in the Palladium 
pantomime, planes to N. Y. next 
month to appear on the Ed SUilir 
van program, / 

Elsie bod Doris Waters arid 
Turner Layton heading a British 
company, which planes to Malta to- 
morrow (Thurs.) for eight-week 
tour of the Middle East to enter- 
tain! British servicemen; 

The new George and Alfred 
Black musical, "Wedding in Paris/’ 
irioves . into the .London. Hippo- 
drome April 3, after a Blackpool 
tryout.. It stars Anton Walbrock 
and Evelyn Laye. Book is by Vera 
C/ispary. 

Katharine Hepburn arrived last 
week to star in a screen version of 
"The Millionairess,” which will be 
directed by Preston Sturges with 
Lester Cowan producing. She 
starred in the original London 
Stage, version which subsequently 
moved to Broadtoay. 


By Glehn C. Pullen. 

Mitch Plotkin,. theatrical press 
agent, circulatirig again after long 
illness. . 

Orrin Ide’s crew baptized Club 
Madrid ballroom, . first new dance 
spot Cleveland has had in a dozen 
years. 

Jack Mills, Cleveland co-owner 
of Mills Bros. Circus, awarded gold 
Watch by 1,500 members of Circus 
Fans Assn. Of America for "devo- 
tion to tanbark traditions.” 

Mel Torme doing his first down 
town club here, a two-weeker at 
Vogue: Room, while Leo Diamond 
is playing initial local harmonica 
date at Statler Terrace Room. 

Sautet-Finegan orch set for Feb. 
23 at Aragori Ballroom. It is lining 
up Teddy Phillips for Feb. 14, fol- 
lowed by Tex Beneke, Wayne King, 
Russ Morgan arid Louis Prima. 


By Florence S. Lowe 

Ice Capadestbuilt to SRQ in final 
stanza of its two-week stand at 
Uline Arena. 

Baritone William Warfield, of 
“Porgy and Bess” fame, gave Con- 
stitution Hall concert last Sunday 
(7). 

Stan Kenton and Festival of Jazz 
due into National Guard Armory 
under Super-Music aegis Sunday 
(7) night. 

French . actress Dany Robin in 
to beat drums for UA’s "Act of 
Love” and for dinner in her honor 
at the French Embassy. 

• Wolfe Kaufman, prexy of Assn 
Theatrical Press Agents and Man- 
agers, chalked up a record num- 
ber Of radio appearances to beat 
the drums for Royal Winnipeg Bal 
let, whose tour he is managing; 


By Hal V. Cohen 

Shirley Jones is a local girl in 
“King and I.” 

"Oklahoma” comes back to the 
Nixori for 10th time next week on 
Feb. 15. 

Phil Richards' ice revu$ returns 
to Ankara March 22 after three 
month layoff. 

Ruth Nirella elected prexy 0 . 
Playhouse Guild, first woman ever 
to hold that office. 

Byron F. (Dinty) Moore, Stanley 
Warner district manager, , and his 
wife took off for Florida. 

Evans Family into the Carouse 
for their engagement since re 
turning from USQ tour of Far East. 

Benny _ Amdur celebrating his 
35th anni this month as operator 
of the Garden Theatre on North- 
side. „ ; 

Run of "Time of the Cuckoo” at 
Playhouse, Its biggest hit since 
"Peg O’ My Heart,” has been ex- 
tended an extra week. 



By. Matty Brescia 

Russ Carlyle orch to Peabody’s 
Skyway for two weeks. Ray Pearl 
follows on Feb. 23 for another two- 
week stand. 

John Poor, attorney for General 
Teleradio, Inc., here for powwow 
with WHBQ-TV owners, and put 
the finishing touches on Tom 
O’Neil’s purchase of both radio and 
tv properties. . 

Col. Charles McElravy, Memphis’ 
vet showtnan, to , Kansas City Feb. 
25 to help skipper annual Interna- 
tional Assn, of Auditorium Man- 
agers' Convention skedded for July 
in Long Beach, Calif. McElravy; is 
sec-treas. of org. 

Perry Sheehan,. Metro starlet, in 
town this week! td hypo "Long, 
Long Trailer.” .Kathryn Reed, an- 
other Metro player, also along. 
Both femmes traveling in Redman 
New Moon trailer arid headquar- 
tered in front of Loew’s Palace 
during Memphis stint. 


dancers and singers from the Crow 
Reservation in Montana were ac- 
claimed. 

"Deadline for Danny” is the 
name of a comedy just completed! 
by the Israel Film Studios in Herz- 1 
lia. Directed by Baruch Diener, 
the film stars 10-year-old Abraham 
Tene of Tel Aviv and professionals 
from various Hebrew theatres. 


Hollywood 


Ireland 

By Maxwell Sweeney 

Cyril Cusack named head of 
Catholic Stage Guild. 

“Robe” (20th) opened to big biz 
at Hippodrome. Belfast. 

Belfast Arts Theatre Co; iriulling 
English tour this spring. 

"Little Boy Lost” (Par) currently 
doing top biz at Capitol, Dublin. 

Liam Gannon bowing out of 
Dublin Gate Co., off to U. S. soon. 

Irish playwright Lord Dunsany 
named new prexy of Poetry So^ 
ciety. 

Jack Aronson currently staging 
legit season at Players Theatre, 
Dublin University. 

Dr. Patrick A. McNally, an ex- 
hibitor leader, elected Chief Barker 
of Variety Club of Ireland. 

Pianists Joan a nd Valerie 
Trimble in for' longhair concert 
with Radio Eireann Symphony 
orch./ 

Gerard Victory’s: Irish language 
opera, "The Man Who Married a 
Dumb Wife,” broadcast from Radio 
Eireann. 

John O’Donovan’s comedy, "The 
Half -Millionaire,” slated as next 
production for Abbey. Ria Mooney 
will direct. 

Dublin Gate Theatre will start 
Irish tour of current production of 
Shaw’s “Saint Joan,” starring Siob- 
han : McKenna in March/ 

George Lodge, mariaging direc- 
tor of Opera House, Belfast, and 
other northern Ireland spots, head- 
ing for U. S. biz trip in February; 
he will take in Variety Interna- 
tional Convention at Dallas. 


*3r .. 

By Gordon Irving 

Singer Dickie Valentine set for 
vaude in Glasgow in May. 

Big advance moppet interest in 
Roy Rogers’ week at Empire, Glas- 
gow, Feb. 15. 

Eddie Fraser, Scot vaude pro- 
ducer on BBC, praised for his pro- 
duction of tv show from Glasgow. 

Dari Williams, vet Scot comedi- 
an, in show biz since 1900, advised 
by ipedicos to give up stage work. 

George Daniels and his Irish 
vaude-drama company set for Scot 
seasons at Paisley, Greenock and 
Glasgow. 

Mary Lou Williams and Taps 
Miller will be in "Jazz Wagon,” 
with the Jack Parnell orch, set for 
Empire Theatre, Glasgow, March 8. 

Edinburgh to have world preem 
March 1 of, new Bridget Boland 
play, “The Prisoner,” starring Alec 
Guinness, With Peter Glenville do- 
ing megging chores. 


Regular, exhibition set for 12 In- 
dian films over period of six 
months in London.;. 

Progress on 3-D front is so slow 
and many exhibitors have a posi- 
tive dislike for the new system. 

Turkish Producer M./H. Egeli in 
Bombay with German actress Eri 
ka ‘Roemberg and unit for taking 
exterior shots for the pic, "Nilgun/' 

Mysore state government ap- 
proached the India government for 
a loan of $6,000,000 for setting up 
raw film manufacturing plant un- 
der the five-year plan. 

As result of Motion Picture Assn, 
delegation visit to Kairachi, Pakis- 
tan customs authorities agreed to 
release 57 of the Indian films held 
up until recently. Release of other 
films under consideration. 

Receipts from the entertainment 
tax showed decline of nearly 10% 
in Madras State. Decline partly 
caused by reduction in number of 
cinema performances due to lack 
of power in summer months. 

. Movement started to amalga- 
mate talent arid studio facilities 
available in Calcutta and Bombay 
so the joint effort can be made to 
overcome financial and other diffi- 
culties via one giant production 
unit. 


Israel 

The last two theatre, successes 
in Tel Aviv are Tolstoy’s "Living 
Corpse” (Habimah) and Shaw’s 
"Pygmalion” at the Chamber The- 
atre. 

Walter $uesskirid, presently con- 
ducting a series of concerts of the 
Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, is 
now preparing Mahler’s "Ninth," 
hitherto not played here. 

Among leading , composers ex- 
pected at the 28th Congress of the 
International Society for Contem- 
porary Music in Haifa this spring 
are Villa-Lobos, A. Tansman and 
Darius Milhaud. 

The American Row Wow Folk- 
lore Ensemble, now touring Israel, 
is the first group of Red Indians 
ever ' to visit this country. The 


By Geeno Garr 

The Conty Girls and Ben Ali at 
the York Club. 

Josephine Baker at the Casa- 
blanca nitery- for a week. 

Argentine charitoosie Raquel 
Daina under contract to La Latina 
theatre for a provincial tour. 

Comedienne Maria Teresa Klein 
off to Lima (Peru) to start a 12- 
month tour of Latino countries' 

Dario Moreno, featured in "Sa- 
laire de la Peur,” working in 
Spain’s niteries to nice returns. 

Mario. Moreno (Cantinflas) will 
do part of his new pic, "A Mexican 
in Paris,” in Madrid some' time 
next spring. 

Hungarian actress Lili Murati 
has a hit in "The Glass: Curtain” 
by Jose Janues at the Teatro Reina 
Victoria. 

"Love of 4 Colonels” presented 
on tour by Luis Arroyo, Rosario 
Benito and Rosita Sabatirii legit 
rep troupe, 

Director Alejandre Perla took 
over the direction of "Three Girls” 
to the East” which Elorieta had al- 
most finished. 

Argentine actors Aida Ollivier 
and Arturo Garcia again at the 
Lara; Theatre with their “We Two” 
by Michel Dulud. 

Revue company of Comedians 
Zon, Santos and Codeso with Carr 
men Alvarado as femme lead at 
the Fuencaral Theatre. 

. "The Living Room,” by Graham 
Greene, and produced by Alfredo 
Marquerie (starring Gaspar Cam- 
pos and Maria Jesus Valdes) is the 
present hit at the Teatro Maria 
Guerrero doing SRO in its third 
week. 


Eugene Pallette seriously ill 
Della and Andy Russell divorced 
Sam Wiesenthal bedded by virus* 
George Fisher filed suit for di- 
vorce. 

'Dany Robin in from Paris to nlue 
"Act of LoVe.” • 

Julius Tannens celebrated their 
54th wedding anni. 

Kirk Douglas bought a house in 
Beverly Hills for $70,000. 

Hal Roach, Jr., in town after 
business huddles in' N. Y. 

Bob Hope made special trailer 
for National Boys Club Week. 

Inga Weire broke her right arm 
during a nitery dance routine with 
Igor Dega. 1 

Archie Savage and his dance 
group entertained Marines at Camp 
Pendleton. 

John Farrow planed tb Jamaica 
to scout locations for Warner’s 
"Sea Chase.” - 
Charlotte Sager joined Helen 
Ainsworth’s agency as head of 
story department. ’ 

Pep Lee succeeded William 
Cowitt as president of the Para- 
mount Studio * Club. 

Y. Frank Freeman and Cecil B. 
DeMille co-hosted Syed Aril jad Ali, 
Pakistan ambassador. 

Wild Bill Elliott bought the Lazy 
J. Ranch, formerly owned by 
Harry James and Betty Grable. 

Arthur Cowan in from N. Y. to 
represent author: Andre Maurois 
in a deal for production of "Lelia.” 
' Aaron Rosenberg drew special 
achievement award from Parents 
Magazine for "Glenn Miller Story/’ 
Teet Carle became the first stu- 
dio publicity chief elected as a pro- 
fessional member of Sigma Delta 
Chi. \ 



By Jferry Gaghan 

Songstress Ruth Price signed by 
Joe Glazer Agency. 

Big Bill’s put in chorus line, 
produced by Lee Hepderson, its 
first in three years. 

Baro & Rogers, local comedy 
dance duo, made screen tests for 
Paramount in New York. 

Bobby Sheldon (of husband and 
wife team Sheldbn & Burnett) is 
working solo at Chubby’s. 

Songtress Joan Dexter left Em- 
bassy Club show, Dodie O’Neill 
subbing for remainder of run. 

Danny Kaye booked for Shubert 
Theatre with Washington’s Birth- 
day matinee to launch run of four 
weeks. . 

Jack Curtis, singing emcee at 
Latin Casino, is ailing and Danqy 
Crystal, comedian, has taken over 
chores. 



. By. Les Rees 

Eddie Fisher topped a St. Paul 
Winter CarnivaJ show. : 

Hotel Radisson Flame Room has 
comedian George Gobel, 

Ten Twin Cities bands partici- 
pating in annual Musicians’ bflll at 
Prom Ballroom. 

Sedgman, Gonzales, Segura and 
Budge tenriis troupe set for Audi- 
torium here May 8. 

Charles Laughton gave readings 
before Woman’s Club and at Uni- 
versity of Minnesota. 

Bill Kelsey and his new Korn 
Rribbers, featuring Chief .McElroy, 
opening at Midway Gardens. 

Annual Zuhra Shrine indoor 
winter circus at Auditorium here 
scheduled for Feb. 25-March 6. 

Gideori Seymour, Minneapolis 
Star-Tribune veepee and executive 
editor, in St: Barnabas Hospital re- 
covering from heart attack. 


Dallas 

By Bill Barker 

Stan Kenton one-nighter drew 
2,300 at the Plantation. 

Phil Spitalny’s rirch did week at 
Baker Hotel’s Terrace Room. 

Lynn Hoyt, WF A A vocalist, quits 
to wed bandleader Teddy Phillips 
Feb. 22. 

■Joe E. Lewis in for his second 
10-night date at Hotel Adolphus’ 
Century Room. 

Charles R. Meeker, Jr., State 
Fair Musicals’ head, and Eddie 
Greene, MCA branch mariager, dn 
Coast trip for confabs with pix 
names anent the new summer 
musicals. 


Houston 

By Jetfry Doyle 

Johnny Long did one-nighter at 
the Congo Jungle Club recently. 

Onslow Stevens and Lynn Carver 
smasheroos in Clifford Odets’ play, 
"The Country Girl.” 

. Betsy Ross Hightower carrying 
on with her high perch back bends 
despite severely strained knee. 
Hightower acrobatic duo due to 'be- 
come trio soon with sister Marilyn 
Hightower working into the rou- 
tines. ' 



MAXWELL BODENHEIM 

Maxwell Bodenheim, 63, poet- 
nnveast/ whose avant garde wrlt- 
£ raised him to ^ prominence 
dunng the 1920s aod early '30s. 
££ found murdered witf his wife 
Jfb 7 in a furnished room on New 
vnrk’s lower eastside. According 
to police reports, he was shot in 
fhA rliest and his wife* the former 
Ruth Kagan, 35, had been stabbed. 

Bodenheim had been active in 
Chicago literary circles during the 
Ss along with such writers as Carl 
landburg, Ezra Pound arid Edgar 
t pe Masters. He was associated 
JrJth . Ben Hecht in founding the 
Chicago Literary Times and wrote 
verse for such publications, as 
Harriet Monroe’s Poetry inag ’and 
Margaret Anderson’s Little Review / 

■ -r ater in the ’20s, Bodenheim 
moved to Greenwhich Village, N.V.; 
Shere lie exemplified the Bohemia 
of that locale. He was the author 
of several hovels, one of which, 
'■Replenishing Jessica.” .was. a be$1> 
seller of 1925. .The publisher and 
author of the book, were charged 
with selling obscene and indecent 
literature, but . Bodenheim was 
acquitted when he showed he had 
never received any royalties from 
the publication. . . . . ... 

Bodenheim ranked high in lit- 
erary circles during his prime. 
However, when his books stopped 
selling in the 1930s, he hit a period 
of poverty from which he- never 
recovered. In recerit years he took 
to selling poems, in Village bars to 
raise funds. 

YVONNE DE BRAY 

Yvonne De Bray, 65, one of the 
last of the “grand-dame’’ actresses 
of the turn-of-the-ceritiiry height 
of Gallic popular legit* died in 
Paris Feb. 1. She had just scored 
a personal success in the Jean 
Giraudoux play, “pour Lucrece,” 
.being plaved at the Mari*my The- 
atre' by the Jeari-Louis Barrault- 
Madeleine Renaud G om p a n y. 

■ Though she had only one speech it 
was a crucial bit arid earned her 
criticaT plaudits. She left the cast 
Mondav (31) feeling ill, and was 
found dead of a heart ailment la- 
ter in the day. ’ . 

: Miss De Bray started her theat- 
rical career at the ^ge of nine with 
Sarah Bernhardt and Re jane. In 
1912 she appeared in a play of 
Henri Bataille and was frequently 
■ seen in other of: his works until: the 
playwright’s death in 1922. A role 
in Jean Cocteau’s 1944 film,’ “The 
Eternal Return,’’ . started a new 
career for her and* she worked 
steadily until her demise. 

LOUIS ZLOTKY 

Louis (Loo) Zlotky, 53, Memphis 
. and mid-south radio salesman and 
music leader, died Jan. -31 of - a 
heart attack in Memphis. One of 
Memphis’ top radio salesmen, he 
served as Commercial manager of 
WHHM and WDIA, Memphis in- 
dies. He. also was & member of 
the WMPS sales staff, Memphis 
ABC affiliate. 

Born in Fremont, Nebr., Zlotky 
Mas an accomplished violinist and 
. a supporter of Memphis music at- 
tractions. His wife, known profes- 
sionally as Jil Bishop, is ; musical 
director and pianist of WHBQ and 
WHBQ-TV here. He was an uncle 
of Harold Krelstein, prexy of 
■WMPS. and Plough, Inc., veepee. 

Surviving are his wife, a daugh- 
ter, a son. 

CHARLES F. THIELE 

Charles F. Thiele, 70, composer 
fnd music publisher, died Feb., 3, 
in Waterloo, Ontario. At one time 
he headed the Thiele Concert 
1 arty, which also included his Wife 
as cornetist and daughter on saxo- 
phone. during its tours of the U. S: 
and Canada. 

Over the last 30 years, Thiele 
had organized the Band Festival 
at the Canadian National Exhibi- 
tion. Toronto. As Canada’s largest 
annual band event, it attracted 
many American groups for cash 
and plaque awards, with some 60 
bands participating., He also 
founded the Canadian Bandmasters 
Assn, ini 1926 arid Was president 
when; he died. 

Survived by son and daughter. | 

FELIX EDWARDS 

. Felix Edwards* . 83, vet mu- 
mcomedy producer, died Feb. 6 in 
London.. Starting his career as an 
'K-tor in the British provinces, he 
later produced musical comedies in 
London arid New York, In 1903 he 
rame to New York where he pro- 
Sliced several plays for Lily Lang- 
try and Maxine Elliott. 

.Edwards returned to London in 
inn’. Prior to his< retirement in 
li 34. he produced “The Land of 
j™ 11 es” and “The DuBarry.” Other 
01 his London presentations in- 


cluded “Lady, Be Good’* and “Show 
Boat.” 

Wife, Phyllis Beadon, a former 
actress, survives. ,* 

LAWRENCE TRIMBLE 

Lawrence Trimble, 69, veteran 
silent film director, died Feb. 8 at 
Motion Picture Country House, 
Hollywood. Part owner of police 
dog Strongheart, he ' directed the 
canine’s films in the early 1920s. 
He entered the industry in 1910 
with Vitagraph, Later set up his 
own British company, and was 
with Samuel; Goldwyn before 
retiring. Among pix megg'ed were 
“My Old Dutch,” “Doorsteps," 
“East Is East.” 

Survived by < , widow, Marion 
Blackton Trimble, daughter, of. 
the late J. Stuart Blackton. 

DORIS WQODALL 
Doris Woodall, 76, former British 
operatic and. concert performer, 
died Feb. 7 in Iver, England. In 
1905, she joined the Carl Rosa 
Opera Co. and was a member of 
that English company for 25 years. 
She also performed in Concerts 
under Sir Henry Wood and Sir 
Thomas Beecham, British conduc- 
tors. 

Miss Woodall; retired 20 years 
•ago but . during the wfer returned 
to the Carl Rosa Co. as artistic di- 
rector. 

BILLY JENKINS 
Billy Jenkins, 69, German circus 
artist and known in Germany as 
“King of the Cowboys,” died Jan. 
21 in Cologne from injuries suf- 
fered during the war when he 
tried to rescue his eagles from a 
burning house. 

Bom in/Berlin as Willy Fischer, 
Jenkins was said to be the world’s 
first dompteur who succeeded in 
taming, and training the condor, 
the earth’s biggest bird of prey. 
This act has long been the main 
attraction of circuses in and out- 
side Germany. 

JAMES O’KEEFE 
James O’Keefe, 70, retired vet- 
eran of the film industry in Pitts- 
burgh, died Jan. 25 in his trailer 
at Tampa, Fla., where he had lived 
for several years. A film salesman 
in Pitt in the early days of. silent 
pictures, he also Managed several 
theatres. . 

In later years O’Keefe repre- 
sented manufacturers of theatre 
supplies and equipment, and for a 
decade, until his retirement, dis- 
tributed marquee letters and sign 
displays. 

A sister survives. 

ANTONIO JO AO SILVA 
Antonio Joao Silva, 84, veteran 
actor and impresario, died Jan. 31 
in a Lisbon hospital following a 
fall in a street. Long a favorite in 
the Portuguese theatre, he scored 
his first success at the Teatro Rato 
(now razed) in 1890. 

In. the last half century, Silva 
appeared in top theatres of Por- 
tugal, Africa and Brazil. Since 1930 
he worked in films as a character 
actor. 

Surviving are his wife and a son, 
Joao, an actor presently on tour 
in Brazil. 

FERNANDO GRA VINA 
Fernando Gravina, 55, composer 
and orchestra conductor, died in 
Madrid Jan. 26; Born in Turkey 
of Spanish parents, he lived in 
Egypt and France for many years 
before coming to Madrid, where 
some of . his operettas were hits 
before and after the Spanish Civil 
War. 

Many of Gravina’s songs, pub- 
lished in Paris and Cairo, are still 
popular especially in the Near 
East. 

HARRY O. PARKS 
Harry O. Parks, 74, former 
bandsman who was head of De- 
troit’s Local 20, A*.F.M., in the 
early 1920s, died in Cleveland Feb. 
3. He w*as clarinetist in pit orches- 
tras at the Hanna* State and Ohio 
theatres and was prominent in 
Cleveland's Local 4, A.F.M., until 
he retired to ' become teacher of 
woodwind instruments at Baldwin 
College Conservatory. 

Survived by wife, son, two broth- 
ers and sister. ' 

‘ ENRIQUE ROLDAN 
Andres Garcia, 53, Argentine 
film actor, professionally known as 
Enrique Roldan, was killed Feb. 4 
in Buenos Aires when he slipped 
while trying to catch a train and 
fell beneath the wheels. 

He was a vet legit and film actor ■ 
and usually portrayed villains. | 
' — — - ' 1 ; l 

RENE WILLIAM 
Rene Williams. 50, television 
’producer, died Feb. 3 in Holly- 
wood, following a heart attack. 


Formerly in tv distribution, he 
produced “Invitation Playhouse,” 
a video series . and also served as 
a telefilm producer with Revue. 

At the time of his death Wil- 
liams was preparing a picture for 
theatrical showing. He came from 
Europe to Hollywood 10 years ago. 
His wife and son survive. 

ALBERT C. CARDWELL 

Albert C. (James) Cardwell, 33,. 
screen actor, died of a bullet 
wound, apparently a suicide, Feb. 
4 in Hollywood. He made his 
screen bow as one of the brothers 
in “The Sullivans” at 20th-Fox in 
1945, Later he appeared in “Sweet 
and Low Down,* “Shanghai Co- 
bra,” “Voice of the Whistler,” 
“Fear" and “A Walk in the Sun.” 

Survivors are his parents in 
Camden, N.J. 

GEORGE F PANCAKE 

George F. Pancake, 58. pioneer 
exhibitor jn Columbus, died Feb. 
3 in Dayton Veteran’s Hospital. 
With his brother, William, he oper- 
ated the downtown Knickerbocker 
Theatre Jin Columbus on a vaude- 
ville and then vaude-film basis for 
25 years. 

The brothers lately have been 
operating the Roxy Night Club, lo- 
cated next to the old Knick, which 
is now the Gayety burlesque house. 
Three brothers and two sisters sur- 
vive. 

FREDERIC NEATE 

Frederic Neate, 51, manager of 
the Empire Theatre, Sheffield, 
Engi, died Jan. 26 in that city. A 
popular figure in British vaude 
circles, he held managerial posts 
in several London theatres and 
stage managed many productions 
at the Hippodrome and Duke of- 
York’s Theatres, London. 

Neate had also been house man- 
ager at the Empire, Glasgow. 

■ . • 

SAMUEL VARBALOW * 

Samuel Varbalow, 62, operator 
of a chain of film theatres* died 
Jan. 31 in Caftiden* N, J. He was 
president of the Savar Corp. which 
owns and operates film houses in 
Camden. 

A daughter, a brother and five 
sisters survive. 

Father, 87. of Bert Pichel, rep*of 
American Guild of Variety . Art- 
ists’ Cincinnati office, died Feb. 6 
in New York. Elder Pichel retired 
in 1944 after 55 years as reporter 
and editor for the Cincinnati En- 
quirer,. Commercial Tribune and 
Times-Star. 

Joseph Simard, 80, former hotel 
and nitery operator, died in. Ayl- 
mer, Que., Feb; 4. At one time he 
owned and operated the St. Louis 
Hotel and Standishall, dine-and- 
dance spots in Hull, . Que, Two 
sons, three daughters and a broth- 
er survive. 

Father, 69, of Si Bloom, head of 
KDKA continuity department . in 
Pittsburgh, died Feb. 4 in Palm 
Springs, Cal., while on vacation. 
Body was flown back to New York 
for burial. 

John A. Petrie, 83, former in- 
ventor of magician equipment, 
died in New Haven, Feb. 2. Magi- 
cos Houdini, Powell, Thurston, 
Hardeen were among those he 
served in show biz. 

William F. Ruescher, 60, pur- 
chasing agent for the Motion Pic- 
ture Center, died Jan. 31 in Hol- 
lywood. His wife, son and three 
grandchildren survive. 

Mrs. Josef Stransky, widow of 
former conductor of the New York 
Philharmonic Orchestra, died Feb. 
2 in Germantown, Pa. Two sisters 
and a brother survive. 

Keith S. Rogers, president and 
manager of the Island Broadcast- 
ing Co., operator of station CFCY, 
Charlottetown, Prince Edward Is- 
land, died in that town Jan. 28. 

George B. Scaplen, 80, an em- 
ploye of the Spencer theatre chain 
in St. John, N.B., for some 15 
years, died Jan. 23 in that city, His 
wife, five daughters and two sons 
survive. 

William E. Best, who played pi- 
ano in the pit orchestra at the old 
Capitol >ini Albany during the road 
show era died in Albany Feb. 6 
after a five-month illness. His wife 
and two sisters survive. 

Bertha Dunlap Stockdall, 73, 
former secretary to John Philip 
Sousa who booked engagements 
for the bandleader in the 1920s, 
died Feb. 7 in Atlanta. 

Tedor Roglaski, 53, a Rumanian 
composer and conductor of the 
I Rumanian Philharmonic Orch, died 
I in Bucharest Feb. 6, according to 
a Bucharest Radio report. 

Alfred E. Lee, 58, stage and 
screen actor known professionally 


as Lee Powell, died Feb. 3 Jn Holly- 
; wood. His wife, a son and a daugh- 
ter survive; - 

.Robert J. Unruh, 49, veepee. of 
Filn\ Qroup, In-, died Jan. 30 in 
Hollywood following a heart at- 
tack, His wife survives. 

Mother, 73, of .George Marck, 
RCA Victor artists & repertoire 
chief, died in Mt. Sinai Hospital, 
N. Y., ijan. 29. 

. ■ Leona Roberts, 74, retired screen 
actress* died Jan. 30 in Santa 
Monica, Cal. She leaves a daugh- 
ter. . 

* 

Dr, William Mark Endllc.lt, retir- 
ed dentist and a magician, died 
Jan. 28 in Philadelphia, Pa. 

George D’.‘ Callarman, 55, film 
studio technician, died Feb. 1 in 
Hollywood. 

Mother, 76, of screen producer 
George Bilson, died of heart trou- 
ble Feb, 1 in Hollywood. 

Mother (Mrs. Ernest Eastwood ) 
of singer Anne Ziegler died in 
Liverpool, Eng., Jan. 23. 

M inpie Codona,. 69, Scot amuse- 
ment proprietrix, died in Glasgow 
Jan. 27. 

Son, 26, of Mort Green, veteran 
theatre manager and songwriter, 
died in Chicago Feb. ST’ -- 

Wife of Simon Bucharoff, film 
scorer at Warners, died Feb. 4 in 
Hollywood. 

BIRTHS 

Mr. and Mrs. Malvin Wald, 
daughter. North Hollywood, Feb. 1, 
Father is a screenwriter. 

Mr. and Mrs. Tony Bennett, son, 
New York, Feb. 3. Father is a 
singer. - • 

Mr, and Mrs. Hector Nicbl,- son, 
Glasgow, Jan. 23. Father is pro- 
ducer and stooge ' in Scot vaude 
shows. 

Mr. and Mrs. Edward Schellhorn, 
son, Biirbank, Cal , Feb. 5. Father 
is chief of the Paramount studio 
foreign department. . 

Mr. and Mrs. John Baker, son, 
Delano, Cal., Feb. 2. Mother is Jane 
Nigh, screen and tv actress. 

Dr. and Mrs. Raymond Bethel, 
son, Columbus, Feb. 3. Mother is 
hostess for “Nila’s Guest Book” on 
WTVN in that city. 

Mr. and Mrs. Robert W. Coburn 
Jr., son, San Fernando, Cal., Feb. 
1. Father is a color technician at 
Columbia. 

Mr. and Mrs. William Bangser 
Jr., son, New York, Feb. 2. Mother, 
former Janet Rutstein, is a story 
analyst for Metro and daughter of 
Radio City Music Hall’s Esther 
Klar Rutstein. 

Mr. .and Mrs. Craig (Porky) 
Chedwick, daughter, Pittsburgh, 
Feb. 1. Father’s on WHOD staff. 

Mr. 1 and Mrs. Maurice Segal, 
daughter, Feb. 7, Kew Gardens, 
N. Y. Father is publicist with Nor- 
ton & Condon, 


Costume Films 

^SmSSm Continued from page 3 SSSSmm 

“Vanity Prince.” Metro will have 
“The Prodigal,” “The Kings 
Thief,” “Valley of the Kings,” etc. 
Warner Bros, is lensing “Helen of 
Troy” in Italy and also will have 
“The Talesman,” and Columbia 
has among its projects “Joseph 
and His Brethren” and “The Story 
Of Mary Magdalene.” Universal’s 
two CinemaScopers also have me- 
dieval backgrounds. 

Many think that, in view of the 
increased risk inherent in fewer 
pix and higher budgets, whatever 
“off-beat” films there will be in 
the future will largely come from 
the indies who are operating with 
a lower overhead. One of them, 
Stanley Kramer, has his own views 
on the subject. 

“In this new era of films, quality 
counts more than ever. Just look 
what happened to 3-D because the 
pictures weren’t any good,” he 
commented in N. Y. last week. “I 
think our day of experimentation 
is still really ahead of us, As I 
see it, experimentation is just 
starting. We may yet see produc- 
ers matching their screen tech- 
nique to the purely technical end 
of the art. One day, .we may see a 
screen blacked out like a staee, 
with the action ‘"highlighted in the 
center. Right now, they may be 
glorying in their bigness, but the 
‘off-beat’ picture will be back. It 
has to. This is a dramatic medium 
and it can’t live without constant 
exploration and experimentation. 

“The biggest fallacy is to keep 
saying: Give ’em what they want. 
That’s not enough. It’s got to he 
good. And before very long, it'll 
have to he different, too.” 


Good Gausds 

SmmSi* COntlnqed from pace 3 ssJ 

to.see how countless men and wom- 
en in these fields have, given free*? 
ly of their time, energy ar\d money 
toward the health and welfare of 
our nation.” 

The prez paid tribute to the Va- 
riety Clubs, film exhibs, entertain- 
ers and the baseball industry for 
their role in advancing the Boston 
drive to aid children suffering from 
cancer, known as the Jimmy Fund. 

He continued: “. . , the role of 
communications media in educat- 
ing people and creating public 
awareness of existing problems is 
riot restricted to tho health field. 
They ore just as effective and just 
a*, useful in dealing with other 
social problems, such as racial and 
religious discrimination and politi- 
cal and economic situations; As 
1 see it these media are making a 
valuable contribution, in promoting 
better understanding among people 
and making us more conscious of 
human values. Television, particu- 
larly, has. an important role to play 
in broadening our horizons because 
oi. its vast audience potential and 
its tremendous dramatic impact of 
sight and sound. 

“Nor is. the role of mass commu- 
nications media limited to bur own 
country. They can also break 
down barriers of misunderstanding 
and hostility between nations. In 
this respect the motion picture in- 
dustry is doing a great job. De- 
spite criticism that American 
movies present a distorted picture 
ol our way of life, it is still un- 
doubtedly true that because of 
them : millions of people all over 
the world have some conception of 
the high standards of living in the 
U. S. Similarly, I believe it is 
piobable that those Americans who 
have been unable to travel abroad 
but who have seen foreign movies 
have some fairly good notions of 
life in Ehgland* France, Italy and 
other places.” 


‘Salt of the Eartb’ 

Continued from pace 3 

“Stranger on the Prowl," a Paul 
Muni film lensed in Italy and 
formerly titled “Encounter.” 

“Salt”, which was processed In 
Mexico after running into plenty 
of location difficulties at Silver 
City, has recently been shown in 
N.Y. The IA, while flatly opposed, 
to the picture, nevertheless is said 
to be moving with extreme caution 
since it doesn't want to run afoul 
of the antitrust laws or leave itself 
open to a restraint-of-trarfe charge. 

Earlier Action 

As a sequel to the “Salt” lensing, 
Roy M. Brewer, then IA interna- 
tional rep on the Coast and chair- 
man of the AFL Filin Council* 
caine out in opposition to films 
made by American expatriates 
abroad. Last March, he, Howard 
Hughes and the U. S. State and 
Commerce Depts. replied to a 
q.uei'y lronv Rep. D. Jackson (R., 
Cal.) on what could be done to 
keep “Salt” from being shown and 
from being exported. 

Brewer at that time replied that 
“The film council will solicit its 
fellow members in the theatre to 
assist in the prevention of showing 
of this picture in any American 
theatres. But the extent to which 
‘we can, as a union, take action in 
such a matter is limited by reason 
of the restrictive features of the 
Taft-Hartley Act.” 

MARRIAGES 

Barbara Sims to Jack J. Brown, 
Chicago, Jan. 28. Bride is a WBBM 
singer; he’s an indie tv producer 
in Chi. 

Jessie Podgorsky to Eddie Mil- 
ler, New York, Feb. 7.. He’s a vocal 
coach. • . 

Patricia Bowyer to David Kelly, 
Kilmarnock. Scot., Jan. 21. , Both 
are opera singers with Carl Rosa 
Opera Co. 

Madeleine Bornford to Cecil 
Smith. London. Jan. 29. He’s music 
critic for the London Daily Express 
and a former drama critic of the 
Chicago Tribune. 

Mildred Trares to George Schae- 
fer. New York, Feb. 5. Bride is a 
musieomedy actress; .lie’s co-pro- 
ducer of the Broadway production, 
“Teahouse ‘of the August Moon:” 

Mercedes M. Bergmann to Gus- 
tav S. Evssell, New York, Jan; 30. 
He’s president of Rockefeller Cen- 
ter. I nc. 

Barbara Jean Powers to Ralph 
Nelson, Indianapolis, Feb. 6. He's 
a playwright and tv director. 

Mild red. -Evans to - James- E. Allen, 
Indianapolis. Nov. 21. He’s tv pro- 
motion director for Crosley Broad- 
i casting Corp., Cincinnati. 


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"® ^^ 9^9 Sensation of Two Continents 

ASSISTED BY BENNY PAYNE 

CURRENT MERCURY RECORD "GAME OF LOVE" 

Personal Management ‘ ^ , . 

CHAUNCEY OLMAN WHIUAM MORRIS ACiENCY 


• COPACABANA, NEW YORK CITY . LATIN QUARTER, NEW YORK CITY . ED SULLIVAN T.V. 


SHOW • CHEZ PAREE, 


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VOL. 193 No. 11 


Published Weekly- ftt 154 West 48th Street, New York 36, N.'Y., by Variety, Inc. Annual subscription $10. Single copies, 25 cents; 
Entered as second class matter December 22, 1905, at the Post Offlce at New York. N. Y„ under btf act o( March 3. 1079. 

COPYRIGHT. 1954, BY VARIETY, INC.. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 


NEW YORK, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 1954 


PRICE 25 CENTS 




NEW HUMILITY 


on 


Screen Versions of stage musM 
cals using the original Broadway 
casts will one day* replace “the 
road” for legit producers. So pre- 
dicts Edward L. Alperson, indie 
producer whose “New Faces” bows 
at the Roxy, N. Y., Feb.‘ 19. An- 
other screened stage revue, “Top 
Banana,” is mearitime opening at 
the Victoria, N. Y. 

Alperson sees hjs CmenviScope 
pic going a l<mg way in bringing 
about a change in pattern Of legit 
operation, but admitted that the 
system was good only for certain 
types of stage attractions. These 
must have the potential for both 
sight and sound appeal. “In a legit 
. house you really only need sound, 
hut for the. screen, you’ve got tcf 
have both.” Alperson added that 
thfe practice of filming-plays or 
revues, with original casts would 
bring them to millions who other- 
wise wouldn’t have a chance to see 
them. 

He laughed at the notion that 
“New Faces,’’ whlBh employs its 
original Broadway acts, was lensed 
right Off the stage. “We may give 
that impression in the finished pic- 
ture, and it’s intentional,” , he com- 
mented, “but don’t be fooled into 
thinking that we just put a camera 
there and started grinding away. 
Done that way, you’d make a ter- 
rible film.” 

“New Faces” took about 15 days 
to shoot, “about three-quarters the 
time it would have taken if we 
hadn’t had people who knew what 
they were to do and how to do it.” 
Nevertheless, Alperson didn’t 
think the reduction in the shooting 
sked resulted in any real budget 
cuts. All performers in the pic got 
a flat salary against a percentage 
of the profits. 

Alperson, who’s pacted with 20th 
to deliver a minimum of one pic 
a year and a maximum of two, 
praised Cinemascope as “the great- 
est thing ever” and said it opened 
an avenue for a new and basic type 
of screen material. “My picture 
defeats the cynics who have 
claimed that you can’t get: intimacy 
with that wide screen,” he ob- 
served. Right now Alperson is 
working on a new film about the 
U. S. Marines. 

He’s also a partner in Transcona 
with Sidney Liift. Transcona has 
(Continued on page 15) 


IKE ADDED STARTER 
ON TEEPERS’ TV’ER 

A pitch by President Eisenhower 
for the American Red Cross March 
drive will be integrated .into the 
Feb; 28 script of “Mister Peepers,” 
the Sunday nighter starring Wally 
Cox on NBC-TV. 

Ike’s appeal will be in the form 
°f a film running four and a half 
minutes arid presumably spotted 
op other shows, although the 
Peepers” stanza is understood the 
°nly pne with an, iit the-story gim- 
mick. 


Disillusionment 

A legit producer at the open- 
ing night of Billy Rose’s pro- 
duction of “The Immdralist,” 
based on Andre Gide’s novel, 
cracked: . 

“Gee, they make it seem like 
no fun at all.” 



love Ad Art 


Benagoss Productions, which Is 
presenting “Act of Love,” and the 
Advertising Code Administration 
have patched up their differences 
oyer acceptable newspaper com- 
mercials for the picture. But what 
effect this compromise has had in 
toning down the ad copy is got 
apparent to trade observers^ 

Benagoss agreed to delete the 
line, “There is a thin line between 
an act of sin and an act of love.” 
The substitute which the Ad Code 
has approved is this: “There is 
a wdrld of difference between an 
act of love and an act of sin.” 
Code also okayed this copy: “Their 
amour was branded shameless.” 

Permitted to go through also is 
art work showing a group of pros- 
titutes. A slight variation of this 
had been frowned upon by the 
Code initially. Ads which broke 
in N. Y. dailies over the past week 
also featured likenesses of Kirk 
Douglas and Dany Robin, stars of 
the film; 

The most startling feature of the 
campaign, though, had been re- 
garded as okay by the Ad Code 
from the start. This depicts in 
heavily shadowed outline a male 
arid female nude locked in an em- 
brace. It’s a reproduction of the 
(Continued on page 63) 

Pfeiffer’s Dime Matinee 
Stunt With Chi ‘Ladies’ 

• Chicago, Feb. 16. 

Jules Pfeiffer, owner-producer 
of the “Good Nite Ladies” farce 
currently at . the Great Northern, 
is propping another contribution 
to Windy City culture. He reports 
he has completed negotiations with 
authors Erskine Caldwell and Jack 
Kirkland for a revival of “Tobacco 
Road,” which he plans to bring in 
later this spring. 

Pfeiffer, who bills himself as 
“America’s most controversial 
producer,” has set a 10c matinee 
this week as his latest stunt. All 
seats at tomorrow .afternoon's 
( Wed.) performance go for a dime 
each, with the proceeds being 
turned over to the March of 
Dimes. 


By KOBE MORRISON 

This must be the . millenium. 
New York drama critics have taken 
to welcoming the “revolt of theatre 
audiences.” The aisle-sitters,, in 
other words, are implying that 
readers should ignore their re- 
views in deciding what shows to 
see. 

In the opinion of thoughtful ob- 
servers in the trade, this isn’t self- 
cannibalism. It’s merely a reflec- 
tion* of uneasiness, shared by 
critics as well as the legit profes- 
sion itself, over the apparently un- 
healthy state of the Broadway 
theatre. The critics’ self-depreca- 
tion, according to this view, is 
sincere and therefore tending to 
be slightly schizophrenic. 

Any review is by nature a form 
of argument intended to persuade 
the reader, it’s argued. Thus, a 
critic who enjoys, oris moved or 
impressed by a show, tries his ut- 
most to convey his reaction to his 
readers. Implicit in this is the 
attempt to persuade the reader to 
share his attitude. In effect, then, 
every definite opinion notice 
amounts to a behest for the reader 
to go see the show or a warning 
to stay away. 

According to this theory, when 
a critic advocates reader “revolt” 
against reviews he’s being im- 
plicity Jekyll-and-Hyde, for he’s 
(Continued on page 60) 


'Neutrals’ Nix 


Cherchez La Femme 

Dublin, Feb. 16. 

Assignment sheet for an Irish 
radio newsman, covering a re- 
cent preview of Metro’s “Juli- 
us Caesar” read: 

10:30 a.m. - P r i view 
“Julia’s Caesar." . 


Difficulty In which 20th-Fox’s 
“Hell and Hjgh Water” finds itself 
abroad even before it’s been seen 
there reflects the sensitivity of 
some foreign countries to the 
“Red.” theme. 

“Hell and High Water,” which 
purports to tell the behind-the- 
scenes story of the atom bomb 
explosion reported somewhere in 
or near Russia in 1952, is certain 
to run into trouble in such areas 
as India, the Middle East, the Neth- 
erlands and other places which 
value; their neutrality in the east- 
west struggle. 

Oddly enough, some of the New 
York critics also took exception to 
the story line which has Red agents 
trying to drop a bomb somewhere 
in the Far East and blaming it on 
the U. S. Bosley Crowther, the 
N. Y. Times film critic,, commented 
that “the idea that such a foreign 
intrigue would be manipulated as 
shown here is mad,” 

Film plots involving Russia and 
the Communists, particularly if 
laid against an international back- 
ground, are always a risky export 
item and quite a few of them have 
resulted in the banning of pix . by 
countries that are anxious to avoid 
the ill will of the Russiaris. In most 
(Continued on page 20) 


In 'Dieppe Raid’ 

Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

Fledgling producers have come 
up against all manner of stumbling 
blocks in Hollywood’s checkered 
history, but it remained for the 
town’s newest indies, , Earle Lyon 
and Richard Bartlett, to run into 
the spectre of an international in- 
cident on their very first venture, 
an opus heretofore known as 
“Dieppe Raid.” The film now has 
a new title and some new dialog 
at a cost of several thousand dol- 
lars— but Lyon and Bartlett figure 
it’s cheap if it furthers the cause 
of international goodwill. The 
Breen office has assured them that 
it does. 

The tension started when Lyon 
and Bartlett showed up at the 
Breen office with “Raid,” their ini- 
tial venture under the production 
banner of Enterprise Cinema Pro- 
ductions. They anticipated no trou- 
ble and they encountered none as 
far as the filmland watchdogs of 
American morals are concerned. 
But attached to the Breen office 
now is ari outfit which works under 
the laborious title of the Canadian 
Cooperation Project. Its purpose 
is to maintain the atmosphere of 
(Continued on page 15) 


New blowup of the Nicholas M. 
Schenck-Louis B. Mayer vendetta, 
which has been the subject of much 
intra-trade ya-ta-ta and split Opin- 
ion over the past several years, this 
week was beamed into full public 
View via the non-partisan medium 
of television. Touching off the has- 
sle was Sunday’s (14) telecast of 
Ed Sullivan’s “Toast of the Town” 
(CBS) show in which Metro was 
given a coaxial cable salute on oc- 
casion of its 30th anniversary. . 

Mayer, the late Irving Thalberg, 
Paul Bern, Bernie Hyman, as well 
as David O. Selznick and others 
linked prominently with M-G over 
the years were given the brush on 
the airer; only present-day produc- 
tion chief Dore Schary was in the 
Spotlight. At least that is Selz- 
nick’s squawk. 

Mayer and Selznick are plenty 
burned and unhesitaritly saying *o 
out in public. Fact that Selznick 
was not given full and clearly- 
stated credit for production Of 
“Gone With the Wind,” and that 
Mayer appeared never to have ex- 
isted, so far as the Sullivan pro- 
gram was concerned, has had both 
(Continued on page 15) 

DANCING ON ICE SCORES 
WITH CINCY PUCK FANS 

Cincinnati, Feb. 16. 

Dancing on ice, new treat here 
for hockey fans, drew season’s top 
turnout of 9,479 for that, sport at 
Cincinnati Garden on its first trial. 
Tom Gracq; executive veepee, said 
the stunt will . be repeated before 
end of season and again next sea- 
son. 

Fans stuck around after a Sat- 
urday night International Hockey 
League game and about 2,000 of 
them at a time danced to the mu- 
sic of Smitty’s band. Tables and 
chairs were used at one end of 
the ice rink, cabaret style, for pa- 
trons who carried their own drinks 
and hot dogs from refreshment 
stands. 


Roosevelt Hotel 


SEW OIH.E.WS. LA. 

Currently . presents 

The Hour of 

Ail Girt Orchcnira and Choir 
Featuring EVELYN ami her Magic Violin 

under the direction of 

PHIL SPIT ALW 







Wednesday, February 17* 1954 



Two Harlan Films Stir Up Fresh 

• i t * * 

Protests, Incidents in W. Berlin 


Berlin, Feb, 9. * 

The local Showing of the Veit 
Harlan films, “Sterne ueber Co- 
lombo” and “Hanna Amon,” both 
starring Kristina Soederbaum (Har- 
lan’s wife) , have stirred up numer- 
ous protests and incidents among 
West Berliners. Protests are based 
on the fact that Harlan, director of 
both pix, was closely connected-r- 
he’s the creator of the anti-Semit- 
ic film, “Jud Suess” (“The Jew 
guess”)— with the unholy German 
past. Local trade unions, political 
parties (except one), the church 
and other groups urged authorities 
to prohibit Harlan films in West 
Berlin. Senate officials also openly 
disapproved the exhibition of these 
films, blit indicated that there is 
no law with Which to bin them. 

Harlan was cleared by a denazi- 
fication board some years ago and 
. shortly thereafter made his first 
German postwar pic, “Die Unster- 
bliche Geliebte,” Which was also 
due to run in Berlin but withdrawn 
from local Circulation upon pro- 
tests by various groups. This film 
was then only shown in those West 
German cities which allowed a free 

rim., * „ , , 

Gloria, distributor Of Harlan s 
'‘Colombo,” apparently thought 
that the time is now more favor- 
able for the invasion of Harlan pix 
into Berlin, and wisely picked the 
period of the Big Four conference. 
But there are just too many Ber- 
liners, particularly the victims of 
the Nazi regime, who can’t forget 
so easily. ’ ■ 

It is interesting to note that the 
Harlan name was not mentioned 
in previews, while oh posters arid 
other advertisements it was pasted 
over with a piece of paper, actur 
(Continued on page 18) 


.Garroway Hort in Crash 

Miami, Feb. 16 . 

Dave 1 Garroway, who’s on a two- 
week vacation here, was injured in 
an auto accident yesterday (Mon.) 
and treated for lacerations and 
bruises in Jackson Memorial Hos- 
pital. Another car crashed into the 
one he was driving while making 
a film for* his NBC-TV night spon- 
sor, POntlac. 

Injuries were not serious and 
Garroway is expected back in New 
York Friday (19) for the Pontiac 
stanza, His official return to his 
morning “Today” program oh the 
web will be March 1; 




MORE H t WOOD PICKIN’ S 


Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

House Un-American Activities 
Committee will be bach in Los 
Angeles this year. Rep. Donald L. 
Jackson <R., Cal.) told a press con- 
ference, with some iriore show biz 
people to be interrogated. Total of 
100 witnesses will be heard, but 
probe will cover education arid la- 
bor as well as show biz. 

Committee also plans hearings 
in Portland, Seattle, San, Diego and 
Frisco. 



More $ for Debbie 

Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

Debbie Reynolds’ player con- 
tract, which still had three years 
to run, was tom up by Metro and 
replaced by a new seven-year pact j 
calling for a substantial salary 
boost. 

Studio lias two pictures lined up 
for the young star. She will join 
Jane Powell and Edmund Purdum 
in “Athena,” and star later in ’’Hit 
the Deck.” 


London Longhair Hall 

London, Feb, 9. 

Royal Festival Hall, built as the 
only permanent feature of the Fes- 
tival of Britain South Bank exhibi- 
tion, haFbecoirie a leading centre 
for longhair attractions. 

It was announced last week that 
the hall is fully booked for the 
current year and advance dates ex- 
tend to 1957. Although mainly 
used for classical concerts, it has 
housed several ballet seasons. 


Topper for Hilton Hotels 


John Joseph, ex-Universal and 
Metro publicity exec, takes over as 
top Hilton Hotels Corp. pir, topper 
on March 1. He will headquarter 
in New York, as wiil Fred Joyce, 
longtime Hilton ; associate in Chi- 
cago, whose title will be publicity 
director, as distinguished from Jo- 
seph’s fancier tag of “director of 
public relations.” 

Joseph was last pub-ad head of 
Cinerama, and dates back his 
show biz career to the Chicago 
Herald-American where he was 
film and drama editor before join- 
ing RKO Theatres, and from there 
t o the national pub-ad spot at Uni- 
versal, ■ ; ' 

20th’s $2,000,000 Damage 
Suit Vs. Marlon Brando 

Charging that the actor “con- 
templates rendering his services to 
someone else,” 20th-Fox in N. Y . 
Federal Court yesterday (Tues.) 
filed a $2,000,000 damage suit 
against Marlon Brai do. Action 
also seeks to enjoin him from do- 
ing other film or legit work. 

The 20th suit maintains that 
Brando got an exclusive service 
contract from 20th in 1951 and 
that it was understood at that time 
he would do “The Egyptian.” In 
December, 1953, he refused to ap- 
pear in the picture, advising the 
studio that he was under the care 
of a psychiatrist in N. Y. 

20th-Rank Tiff Continues 

Lori don, Feb.‘ 16. 

After the local press had 
splashed the news that Dirk Bo- 
garde had been inked to replace 
Marlon Brando in the 20th-Fox 
Cinemascope production of “The 
Egyptian,” the announcement from 
,f. Arthur Rank’s office last Thurs- 
day night (11) that the deal was off 
came as a big surprise. It was the 
second time within 24 hours' that 
a major difference had developed 
between the Rank Organization 
and 20lh-Fox. A day earlier, 
Spyros P. Skouras had announced 
that Rank would limit his C’Scope 
installations. 

According to the Rank view, it 
was made, clear at the outset when 
20Ut-Fox was pressing for Bogarde 
that Rank could not agree to op- 
tions. 

20th-Fox is reported to have 
stood firm on its demand for op- 
tions and the deal was dropped 
with Bogarde’s complete consent. 
The British star is already com- 
mitted for three local pix, “For 
Better, For Worse”; “The Sea Shall 
Have Them,” for producer Daniel 
Angel, and a third for Rank. 


2/17 

Stibseription Order Form 

Enclosed find check for $ 

Please send VARIETY for ?wo Years 
To ...... 

(Pleaau Print Nam«) 

Street 

City Zone .... State 


Regular Subscription Rates 
One Year— $1 0.00 Two Years— $18.00 

Canada and Foreign— $1 Additional per Year 


154 West 46th Street 


Inc. 

New York 36. N. Y. 


HORACE HEIDT 

Currently Hotel Sutler, New York 
•tJnder Personal Management 
- WALTER PLANT s 
Statler Hotel, New York City,. N. Y. 



By LUCETTE CARON 


By HANS HOEHN 

Berlin, Feb. 9. 

In these days, as the Big Four is 
meeting here with thousands of 
journalists and visitors from^ all 
over the world present, authorities 
in the other sector are obviously 
trying hard to convince Western 
curio-seekers (Whom they certainly 
expected to come over), that there 
is also joyful and entertaining 
night life in East Berlin. Propa- 
ganda booklets were issued, listing 
the recommendable spots. And, of 
course, Western visitors came Over, 
finding out that the world’s friend- 
liest cops, -nfficials arid information 
gals are currently those in Berlin’s 
Soviet Sector. (They have appar- 
ently been told: One never loses 
anything by being polite). “Night 
spots in the. Soviet Sector?” “Cer- 
tainly, Sir!” says the information 
(Continued on page 54) 



Tour (j)ar Show 

The Herb Shriner International 
Motor Sports Show will be. booked 
on a series of dates in spots con- 
trolled by the Arena Managers 
Assn. Show will go into the Boston 
Garden, Boston, Easter week, and 
will follow with stands in Pitts- 
burgh and Cleveland under AMA 
auspices. Show, will also go into a 
batch of fair dates under the aegis 
bf George A. Hamid. 

Comedian’s motor layout wound 
up a 10-day stand at the 107th 
Infantry Armory, N. Y., with 150,- 
000 admissions, going ahead of last 
year’s showing at the Grand 'Cen- 
tral Palace, when 125,000 passed 
through the wickets. It’s estimated 
that the cost of staging the event 
at the Armory exceeded $75,000. 
Cost included ArmOrV rerital, ex- 
pense of carpeting and draping the 
exhibition space and extra help. 
The drapes artd carpets cannot be 
used again because both were fit- 
ted to this specific showcase. It\ 
unlikely that either will be used 
next year because of a necessary 
Change in color scheme. Officials 
claimed that the auto show could 
not exist on admissions alone. 
Fees for exhibitors make up the 
loss as well as provide the margin 
of profit. 

There had been reports that this 
would be the final year of this dis- 
play, since the foreign auto manu- 
facturers had been planning to 
pool resources to make their Own 
showing. However, show exec 
pointed out that 75% of this year’s 
exhibs had requested space for 
next year's display. It was also re- 
called that the foreign manufac- 
turers attempted to put on an auto 
show by themselves in 1947, but 
squabbles on favored display space 
and locations forced the breakup of 
a cooperative show, and also in- 
dicated that a firm, impartial hand 
was needed to put on this kind of 
shindig. 


■ ' , Paris, Feb. 16. 

The reappearance of “Coco” 
Chanel (No. .5), after an absence of 
15 years, dominated the entire 
Paris Coutpre world this season. 
The mere fact, that . the ex-fashion 
queen of the ’30s was about to show 
a collection was enough to keep 
postwar couturiers in a state for 
weeks, trying to guess what sort 
of thing she was up to. Some^of 
them* out of awesoirie regard for 
this tiny, despotic woman who 
stampea her name upon an epoch, 
imitated— unconsciously, perhaps 
—in 1 their own collections, the 
shorthaired woman in sweaters of 
that time: her shirtwaist dresses, 
middy blouses, pleated skirts, bow- 
ties and sailor colors. • ••••.• • 

Christian Dior, abandoning for 
once his extreme styles, outdid in 
simplicity the former Chanel treat- 
ment, and created a version of 
what “Coco” herself might easily 
haye envisioned 15L years back as 
“The Chanel Woman of 1954.” He 
designed casual belted shirtwaist 
dresses, often pleated, with bloused 
tops and variations of sailor col- 
lars; skirts not ariy shorter; He 
says goodbye to . the Princess line 
and gives women breathing space. 
“Everything at Dior’s is too wear- 
able; that’s the trouble,” complain 
the buyers in search of sensation. 

Jacques Faih claims-hehas re- 
captured women’s femininity with 
corsets, lace-cuffed stockings tied 
with diamond garters, and fluffy 
petticoats. Mannequins in Stark 
black tights— as a background for 
accessories — gave a Folies-Bergere 
touch to his Boutique show. Fath 
says; “Away with nonchalance.” 
The figure is moulded from bust 
to hips; skirts are 15V£ inches from 
the floor. He launches black-dotted 
and leopard stockings; a “divinely 
feminine” perfume: Fath de Fath; 
ana for. men, a cologne named 
“Oh” . . . ! 

Schiaparelli, always ready for 
fun, invented the Abracadabra skirt 
and dress: no hooks, no buttons, no 
zips, no : belts — they slip, on and 
off in a second. The “Opti-Mystic" 
cut of the bodice moulds the body 
comfortably. Her “Singing Fool 
Charles Trent’ ’hats are worn at 
the back Of the head. 

Hubert De Givenctiy embroiders 
symbols of good luck throughout 
his collection: Four-leaf clovers, 
fish, lilies of ’the valley and tor- 
toises. Hil collection is young and 
effervescent. 

Chanel, still having faith in the 
nuriiber 5, opened on Feb. 5. 
While people usually well-in- 
formed whispered that she was re- 
opening her couture house to help 
publicize her perfumes, “Coco” 
hastened to deny it, claiming that 
it was only, her “revolt” against the 
“bad taste” of the contemporary 
Parisian Couturiers which had 
compelled her to come out of her 
happy retiremerit. The rush for 
invitations, the stampede at the 
entrance on Rue Cambon, bore a 
stronger resemblance to a' bullfight 
than to a fashion opening, and the 
dishevelled but triumphant look of 
those who finally managed to crash 
the barriers, bore witness to the 
importance of the event. The air 
was charged with expectancy, as 
the excited onlookers gradually 
quited down, awaiting the mira- 
cle. VIPs squatting on the stair- 
cases, on the floor, perched on 


bannisters and standing on chairs 
craned their necks to find out. 
What would "Coco” do to women? 
We were going to see. We saw. The 
parade of models commenced . ... 
the great moment was at hand! 
Alas * . . there was no ihiracle. In 
15 years Chanel had forgotten 
nqthing. and. had learned nothing. 
Meantime, life Rad moved on. The 
couture has progressed; today 
there are new techniques. Chanel 
completely ignored these: her un-* 
glariiorous , mannequins in simple, 
shapeless clothes— -pale ghosts of 
the departed splendors of 1 930- 
parade up arid down, bewildered 
by the silence of the audience. 

“How could she do that to us?” 
cried the outraged Fashion Press. 
‘Not even a good revival ... 
‘Coco’? ro-Coco Chanel. you 
mean!” Arid excited cables were 
dispatched in all directions. 

“Coco” read her press* no- 
tices and laughed — and why 
shouldn’t she? Her entire collec- 
tion had been hbught sight unseen 
in advance for the mere magic of 
the Chanel name; Oarmel Snow, 
the Dictator of Fashion, is on her 
side;; Vogue is already taking pic- 
tures. 

But . . . the buyers flocked back 
to Dior. “Coco, should have re- 
gained a legend. 

CHARLTON HESTON 
AS REMAKE ‘MOSES’ 

Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

Cecil B. DeMille has cast Charl- 
ton Hestori as ‘Moses in his upcom- 
ing “Ten Commandments” because 
of actor’s remarkable reseriiblance 
in makeup to artists’ traditional- 
ized concept of Moses, Actor pre- 
viously co-starred in DeMille. ’s 
“Greatest Show.” 

“Cornmandmehts” is slated to 
roll in Egypt in October. Late 
Theodore Roberts < enacted role in 
previous “Commandments,” made 
in 1923 when Moses was shown 
only as a bearded old man. 


Flo Desmond Uses Video 
For Brit. Stage Farewell 

Loridbn, Feb. 9. 

Florence Desmond, who has now 
retired from the stage, made her 
farewell to the British, public via 
tv. This was the first time the 
medium has been used here for an 
occasion of thj£ kind. 

Appearing in the Vie Oliver pro- 
gram, Miss Desmond did her fa- 
miliar Hollywood impressions and 
then said: “I do want to stop before 
I get too old in the tooth. I have 
been 38 years in ,the business — I 
started when I was 10 years old.” 
After a hug and a kiss for Oliver 
she said: “Goodbye; God bless 
you” and made her exit. She left 
for Australia with her husband last 
weekend. 


Aleman To: Study C’Scope Prod. 

Mexico City, Feb. 9. 

Miguel Aleman, Jr., the ex- 
President’s son, who heads the 
frontline pic-radio-tv producer, 
Televoz, off to Hollywood to set 
details on Cinemascope film pro- 
duction down here. 

Ilis trade friends tossed him a 
farewell banquet. 





In Variety’s review last issue of the Andre Gide homosexual 
study, “The Immoralist.” Land recalled a number of plays dealing 
with, the swish theme. Of these Mae West’s “The Pleasure Man,” 
which opened at the Bronx Opera House, never got downtown to 
Broadway. The theatrical cognoscenti, however, moved eri masse 
to the uptown, tryout and the play was covered, with a news head, 
by the late Jack Conway in Variety’s issue of Sept. 19, 1928. 

The differerice between the horiky took approach of Mae West 
and the present literary, not to say highbrow', approach is the differ- 
ence in Broadway sophistication wrought by 25 years of time. Coii 
treated “The Pleasure Man” on its owi^.1928 terms: 

“Oh, my dear, you must throw on a shawl and run over . . . It’s 
the queerest show you've ever seen. All the Queens are in it. 
Lester Sheehan will kill you in drag in the last act , . . They all do 
specialties and make whoopee until the tragedy occurs. Arid, dearie, 
it’s some tragedy . . . Those Queens will sell the show if nothing 
else does . . . Everytime one of the impersonators Opens his mouth 
the house shrieks. So much so it was crabbing lines arid laughs 
for the others ... ” 

About the third and sexsatiorial act, Con wrote: “The party is 
the payoff, If you see those hussies being introduced to do their 
specialties, you’d pass out. One, Sylvari Repetti, was just too too 
adorable as a shake dancer, and stopped the show. The host sang 
a couple of parodies; one going, ‘When I Go Out and Look For 
the Moon.' Now I ask you! Another guest very appropriately sang 
‘Balls, Parties and Banquets.”’ 

Con’s final advice: “GO early, for some of the lipqs can’t, last.” 

: , 1 .. : ..'.If- 1. 4 V . . 1 I . y J 



Wedne$dmy 9 Tebrmurr 17, 1954 


PICTURES 







Tentative plan for 20th-Fox to <f 
release "The Grapes of Wrath” in 
V a pan is likely to be junked follow- 
ins Indications that agitation to 
have the film shown may have been 
Commie inspired/ • 

It all started when 20th was ap- 
proached by a prominent Tokyo 
Circuit with the proposition to re- 
lease the pic as an example of 
democratic self criticism, Distrib 
was offered extremely favorable 
terms and discussed the possibility 
of showing "Grapes” with a fore- 
word explaining that it represented 
a special situation and that the 
film was instrumental in effecting 
a solution of the problem, Pic made 
in the thirties, shows the plight of 
the "oakies” in the Oklahoma dust- 
bowl. 

At that point 20th got word that 
Jap reds were lurking behind the 
whole idea, as well as the favor- 
able rental terms, and the com- 
pany now is inclined to call off the 
entire scheme. 

"Grapes” hals been a Contmie 
favorite ever since it was produced 
since they made it out to be repre- 
sentative of "the real America.” 
Film was shown in both Czecho- 
slovakia and Yugoslavia after the 
war and other bootleg prints of it 
also are said to have been screened 
in Russia. 

Story goes that the Communists 
haven’t always been too happy 
with "Grapes” as a propaganda pic 
favoring their line. Audiences have 
commented in the fact that there 
must be a great deal of freedom in 
the U.S. for Hollywood to be able 
to produce such a picture. 

HOTELS ALSO IN 
ON CIRCUIT-TV 

Hotels are actively getting into 
the big screen tv act, thereby pos- 
ing a threat to theatres with closed- 
circuit installations, particularly as 
competition for commercial meet- 
ings. The Sheraton chain is 
building up a network of closed- 
circuit units in 12 cities. The hotel 
outfit has purchased four sets for 
Installation at the Park Sheraton, 
New York; Sheraton Plaza, Boston; 
Sheraton/ Chicago, and Sheraton 
Cadillac, Detroit. Sets will be set 
up in the main ballrooms'. 

In addition, the Sheraton com- 
pany will have portable units, via 
Box Office Television, in hotels in 
Baltimore, Washington, Rochester, 
Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, 
Toronto and Montreal. 

BOTV, according to executive 
Veepee William Rosensohn, has a 
working arrangement with the 
hotel chain to produce the shows 
and handle the production facili- 
ties. 

Hotel advantage, from the stand- 
pomt of presenting commercial 
shows, is that there is no inter- 
ference with the regular picture 
policy, making it . unnecessary for 
promoters to shell out premium 
rentals for the use of theatres dur- 
ing late afternoon or evening time. 





Decision was reserved last Week 
In the three-month trial in N. Y, 
Mate Supreme Court of the deriva- 
tive stockholder suit against the 
directors of Trans-Lux Corp. Jus- 
tice S. Samuel Di Falco gave the 
Plaintiffs 45 days and the de- 
fendants 30 days in which to sub- 
*nit briefs summing . up their ar- 
guments following the conclusion 
of the trial . last Tuesday (11). 
Hearing ended at midnight, Justice 
p Falco requiring . the. janusually. 
fate session in order to bring to 
®n end the long lawsuit. A final 
rf Cls l° n is . not expected until late 
ln _the Spring. 

Tlle lengthy trial had been in- 
terrupted by the death of Lee Shu- 
(Continued bn page 16) 


Jack Warner Still Buying 

Jack L. Warner is continuing on 
his WB stock buying rampage. 
Within the last couple of weeks 
he picked up an additional 15,500 
shares. ■ 

This brings his total ownership 
to 262,799 shares.. 



Deal Aids The 



Mexico City, Feb. 16. 

Mexican film producers are ex- 
pected to profit at least $1,160,000 
yearly, with consequent loss to 
U. S; and other foreign film com- 
panies as a result of the biggest 
cinema shuffle in years here. This 
is the sale, for a reported $700,000, 
by the Oscar and Samuel Granat 
of their lease on the Cines Florida, 
Coloso, Colonial, Opera, and Ermi- 
ta, secondary first and subsequent- 
run houses, with a combined seat- 
age of 25,000 to three top local 
circuits, including the one in which 
Gen. Abelardo . L. Rodriguez, ex- 
President of Mexico and a big film- 
ite, is top man. Houses are valued 
at $3,000,000. Deal expands the re- 
cent one the Granats made with 
Gen. Rodriguez for control of the 
Florida and Coloso, the two largest 
cinemas here, seating 5,500 and 
6,500 respectively. 

The rounded-out sale was to 
Ernesto and Manuel Espinosa Igle- 
sias, Gabriel Alarcon and Luis Cas- 
tro Vazquez. The Florida and Ermi- 
ta join the Iglesias’ and Vazquez’s 
Operadora de Teatros chain, while 
the Colonial, Coloso and Opera go 
to Alarcon’s Cadena de Oro circuit. 
He said the three additions fo his 
circuit will play Mexican pix ex- 
clusively, an arrangement which he 
thinks will profit Mexican produ- 
cers by at least $1,160,000 yearly. 

The Granats stressed that this 
sale doesn't mean they’re quitting 
as exhibitors, a biz they have been 
in for more than 30 years. They in- 
dicate their intention of building 
one or more cinemas. 

Anent this shuffle, official figures 
Show there are currently 125 active 
cinemas in this city of more than 
3,500,000. 'Of these cinemas, 61 are 
independently operated. 

WALL ST. CONTINUES 
CHEERY ON PICTURES 

Wall Street interests are contin- 
uing bullish on the picture busi- 
ness, citing greater economy in op- 
eration, improved product, the lift 
via new screen processes and the 
marked drop in’ competition from 
television. The latest appraisal has 
been made by Arnold Bernhard & 
Co., investment advisers, via its 
Value Line survey. 

Outfit is particularly high on 
American BroadcastingiParamount 
Theatres. Value Line cites continu- 
ing improvement in theatre opera- 
tions and feels the broadcasting 
end of AB-PT Will show gains. 

Strong recommendation is given 
Loew’s, National: Theatres, Para- 
mount, Stanley Warriei\ Technicol- 
or, 20th-Fox, Universal and War- 
ners. 


Skpble at Yale Center 

New Haven, Feb. 15. 

Herbert Skoble, former director 
of films at the U. of Southern Cali- 
fornia, has been named supervisor 
of motion picture production at 
Yale’s Audio-Visual Center. 

Skoble has been active in the 
educational film field. Ho recently 
completed a short for the Ameri- 
can Heart Assn., 



Paramount, which is the only 
film outfit to remain aloof from the 
20th-Fox Cinemascope process, Is 
now readying a king-size bid for 
exhib attention, in competition 
with C’Scope, with its widescreen 
system that gives theatremen their 
choice of anamorphic (squeeze) or 
conventional pic prints; 

It’s an open secret that some Par 
execs have felt that 20th did a 
steamroller job in pushing C’Scope 
upon the industry. The Par-ites 
now believe the, timp is ripe for 
what will amount to open combat 
with 20th. Par clearly is out for 
the industry spotlight, which has 
been focused on 20th since C’Scope 
was unveiled. 

Par system combines "lazy 8” 
photography — in which the "tak- 
ing” film runs horizontally through 
the camera, with two frames ex- 
posed as operand the so-called 
Tuschinsky projection process. 
This is said to accommodate 
screens measuring as much as 
three to one in width-height re- 
lationship. 

Only extra cost involved for ex- 
hibs will be a variable prism to 
(Continued on page 18) 









Universal's Warrants 

• 

Total pf 14,389 warrants for Uni- 
versal stock were exchanged for 
common stock during last month, 
the company has disclosed. Each 
warrant entities the holder to buy 
U shares at $10 each. 

Now outstanding are 99,658 war- 
rants, following the January trans- 
actions. 


Seek to Hypo 



f Herbert Biberman, director and 
coproducer of -the controversial 
"Salt of the Earth,” said this week 
(15) that the International Union 
of Mine, Mill and Smelter Workers 
"doesn’t have a penny” in the fea- 
ture even though it gets credit as 
coproducer. Film was produced 
by Independent Productions Corp. 
and was privately financed, he 
added. He declines to explain who 
that means. 

Meanwhile, Biberman and his 
associates are mulling a legal move 
against the International Alliance 
of Theatrical and Stage Employees, 
charging that the union is blocking 
. effective release of the picture 
which, according to some who have 
seen it, follows the Communist 
party line in both dialog and 
treatment. 


Market in U.S. 

Move to tap and develop the 
limited but potentially important 
Italian-language market in the U.S. 
is under way at Italian Films Ex- 
port which has a special division 
devoted to the Italo-American 
audience. 


Biberman had no comment, but 
it’s understood that one of the 
attorneys approached Was Morris 
Ernst and that he is not taking the 
(Continued on page 16) 



STAR-MAKER 
FOR FIX 

Specific deal under which tele- 
vision would help build new stars 
for Hollywood film studios has 
been proposed by American Broad- 
casting-Paramount Theatres. The 
Coast filmmakers are high on the 
idea, .which is now being imple- 
mented by Robert M. Weitman and 
Earl Hudson, v.p.’s on the video 
end of AB-PT.' 

Scheme was presented to key 
pic producers by AB-PT toppers 
Leonard Goldenson, Robert J. 
O’Donnell and John Balaban dur- 
ing the trio’s recent inspection 
tour of the film colony. They called 
on the brass at all major studios, 
plus an assortment of indie opera- 
tors. 

Broadly, the plan is designed to 
work out this way: A studio singles 
out an unknown who shows prom- 
ise. The "new face” is brought to 
(Continued on page 18) 


According to Phil Levine, gen- 
eral sales topper for what IFE 
calls its "quality films” group, the 
job of reaching this specialized 
audience has been made both 
easier and more difficult since 
Americans of Italian extraction are 
no longer concentrated in the cities 
but have spread throughout the 
country. 

"A good many exhibitors would 
like to play ‘Italian films at least 
occasionally, but they haven’t 
known In the past where to go 
for product,” he explained. "Now 
we offer a group of 30 subtitled 
films, each supported by a press- 
book, mats, stills and trailers. A 
lot of houses are showing interest.” 

Levine figured there are at pres- 
ent about 100 theatres in the U.S. 
that can and do make a go with 
Italian features on a full time or 
part-time basis. Some 24 are in 
N. Y. Connecticut : has about 15, 
California five, with more being 
added. New Jersey has five, Massa- 
chusetts 10, Illinois two or three 
and Pennsylvania four. There are 
some houses also around New Or- 
leans, 

IFE of late has begun approach- 
(Continued on page 18) 


National Boxoffice Survey 

Holiday Weekend Boosts Biz; ‘Knights’ 1st Again, 
Cinerama’ 2d, /Glenn Miller Story’ 3d 


Many key cities are being helped 
in the current session by the long 
Lincoln’s Birthday weekend plus 
more favorable weather in some 
spots. New product, most of it 
very strong, also is helping to 
boost business. 

For the sixth successive week, 
"Knights* of Round Table” (M-G) 
is capturing first place by a healthy 
margin. Again in second spot, 
"Cinerama” (Indie) is being 
boosted by the fact that it was 
launched to great returns in St. 
Louis. 

‘‘Glenn Miller Story” (UK opt 
for the first time this Session, is 
showing enough to cop third 
money. It is pacing K. C. with a 
smash session in four houses and 
is terrific in Chi. Pic is socko at 
the N. Y. Capitol, being the best 
newcomer in the city. 

“Money From Home” (Par), in 
first week out, has landed in fourth 
position, "The Command,” War- 
ner Bros.’ first CinemaScoper, 
dropped to fifth spot after fourth 
last week. "Majesty O’Keefe,” an- 
other Warner entry, is capturing 
the sixth spot as compared to fifth 
a week ago. "Khyber Rifles,” 20th 
C’Scoper, dropped to seventh after 
holding the third position last 
week. “12 Mile Reef” (20th), an- 
other C’Scoper, at the tail end of 


the top 12 last week, moves into 
the eighth spot. "Easy to Love” 
(M-G), unnoticed last week, takes 
the ninth spot, with "Julius Caes- 
ar,” also from Metro, winding up 
1 Oth, registering from fair to ter-, 
rif biz in special engagements, 

"Forever Female” (Par), ninth a 
week ago, and "Sadie Thompson” 
(Col), formerly sixth, round out the 
golden dozen in that order. "Liv- 
ing Desert” (Disney), 10th a week 
ago, and "Cease Fire” (Par) are the 
runner-up films. 

Of the newcomers, . "Creature 
From Black Lagoon" (U) and "Hell 
and High Water,” 20th’s newest 
C’Scoper, are showing the most 
promise, "Creature,” showing in 
3-D in Detroit, is terrif in the Mo- 
tor City and fine as 2-D’er in Den- 
ver. "Hell” is strong in Cleveland, 
mild in N. Y., big in Denver, and 
huge in Philly. 

"Rob Roy" (RKO) is soft in Buf- 
falo, mild in N. Y., slow in Philly, 
and fair in L. A. "Best Years of 
Lives" (RKO), Samuel. Goldwyn’s 
reissue launched with a big bally 
campaign, is good in K. C. and 
Boston, solid in D, C. "Act of j 
Love” (UA). is Sock in its N. Y. 
preem. "Wicked Woman” (UA) is , 
uneven to light in dates played. 

(Complete Boxoffice Reports Qn 
Pages 8-9) 



A hassle relating to an addi- 
tional percentage cut has devel- 
oped between private investors 
and Edward L. Alperson, producer 
of the Cinemascope "New Faces” 
which 20th-Fox will release. Pro- 
ducer is seeking an extra 2096 of 
the profits for putting up an ad- 
ditional $50,000, which represents 
an amount over the original budget 
required to complete the picture. 
Alperson’s specific request is for 
1% of. each $2,500 he provided. 

. According to investors, Alperson 
was required to put up the extra 
coin if the picture went over the 
budget, but there was no provision 
for an increased profit slice. AL- 
( Continued on page 61 ) 



Trade Mark Registered 
FOUNDED BY SIME SILVERMAN 
Published Weekly by VARIETY, INC 
Harold Erichs, President 
194 West 46th St. New York 36. N.Y 

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Vol. 193 No. 11 


INDEX 

© 

Bills 

54 

Chatter 

62 

Filip Reviews 

6 

House Reviews 

55 

Inside Legit 

56 

Inside Music ...... v ... 

47 

Inside Pictures 

18 

Inside Radio-TV . . . . . . . 

40 

International ........... 

10 

Legitimate .... 

56 

Literati 

61 

Music 

■41 

New Acts ............. 

54 

Night Club Reviews 

50 

Obituaries ............. 

63 

Pictures .....: 

3 

Radio-Television . . ... . . . 

22 

Radio Reviews ........ . 

31 

Record Reviews 

42 

Frank Scully — 

61 

Television Reviews . . ; . . . 

26 

TV-Films 

35 

Vaudeville 

49 


DAILY VARIETY 
(Published In Hollywood by 
Daily Variety, Ltd.) 

815 a Year. 830. Foreign 






A 


PICTURES 


' Wednesday, February -17, -1954 



v » -f » ♦ > ♦♦+ > MM 

| OSCAR DERBY 
I NOMINATIONS 


Proposal by Howard Hughes to > 
take over full ownership of RKO, 
has served to spotlight the fact 
that a substantial part of the pic- 
ture business is controlled by a 
relatively, few individuals. And 
several of these same persons in 
the driver’s seat are strengthening 
their Voting power through 
stepped-up buying of stock in their 
respective outfits. 

Hughes already has close to one- 
third of the RKO common stock 
issue, owning 1,262,120 of the 
3,914,913 outstanding shares. Even 
If his projected purchase of all 
RKO assets doesn’t somehow go 
through, Hughes' one-third hold- 
ings still will continue him at the 
helm via the stock proxy roundup 
routine which is common to all 
corporations. In effect, RKO has- 
been a one-man show ever since 
Hughes bought it in 1948. 

RKO Theatres has Albert A. List 
indisputably at the helm. His 
25% ownership ( which he bought 
from Hughes) gives him the privi- 
lege of calling the turns virtually 
as he sees fit. : 

If the Hughes proposition goes 
through as expected, the airman 
would be. the only individual ever 
to have as his personal property 
a major film corporation. But 
these following outfits are for all 
practical purposes spniewhat simi- 
larly subject to the rule of in- 
dividuals via partial, but nonethe- 
less, overpowering stock port- 
folios t 

Columbia Closely Held 

Columbia Pictures— Harry Cohn, 
president; Jack Cohn, exec v.p., 
and, members of the immediate 
. families of each have combined 
total Ownership of over 30% of 
the common stock. Col and Cohn 
are synonymous, 

• Stanley Warner — S. H. Fabian 
and Samuel Rosen, Via their pri- 
vately; owned Fabian Enterprises, 
hold 26% of the common stock, 
which is tantamount to full voting 
control. 

United Artists — 50% of the stock 
' Is owned outright by the Arthur 
B. Krim-Robert S'. Benjamin, et al., 
alliance. Same group has the sole 
voice in management, Mary Pick- 
ford and Charles Chaplin, each 
owning 25%, being “silent” part- 
ners. 

UA Theatre Circuit — Joseph M, 
Schenck, chief stockholder, has 
(Continued on page 21) 

Obscure Tiny Peruvian 


Sacramento, tfeb. 16. 

Incorporation papers ; for Theo- 
dora Productions were signed here 
with Cornel Wilde as president and 
treasurer and Jean Wallace as vee- 
pee and secretary. Company will 
produce motion pictures and tv 
films. 

Two pictures starring Wilde 
have been lined- up,* They are 
“Byron” and “The Assassins.” For- 
mer will be made in England and 
Italy. 






Of Foreign Earnings 

Hollywood, Feb. 16. , 

Ellis Arnall, president Of Inde- 
pendent Motion Picture Producers, 
warned the American film indus- 
try that the time has come to re- 
frame its foreign policies in the 
light of new conditions abroad. 
Speaking before the Motion Pic- 
ture Industry Council, he declared 
that “the full convertibility of 
American film earnings abroad and 
the complete elimination of trade 
barriers . must be our attainable 
goal.” 

Referring to unreasonable edicts 
against American pictures by for- 
eign governments, Arnall asserted 
that the industry has a right to 
rely on the assistance of the U.S. 
Government in overcoming these 
obstacles. 

“The basic problem which now 
confronts the American motion pic 
.ture industry in its foreign nego- 
tiations transcends personalities, 
trade associations and export 
groups,” he said. “A fundamental 
and vital principle is involved. A 
principle of right and wrong is at 
stake. No longer must the Amer- 
ican industry be required to pay 
tribute as the price for doing busi- 
ness abroad,” . 

"When restrictions, quotas and 
other trade barriers are eliminated 
and film earnings fully converted,” 
he added, “these will no longer 
serve as inducements for American 
production abroad, and fewer 
American films will be made out- 
side the U.S.” 

Later, at a meeting of SIMPP, 
Arnall declared that indie produc- 
tion is oh the upbeat, “Major com- 
panies are recognizing the advan- 
tages of independent production 
and are decentralizing their op- 
erations so as to utilize more in- 
die units.” 


Factor that may have been over- 
looked as an influence in interna- 
tional relations is the motion pic- 
ture publicist in the opinion of 
Charlton Heston. The actor, who 
stars in Paramount’s Peruvian- 
made locationer, “Secret of the 
Incas,” told the annual meeting of 
the Chicago Cinema Society re- 
cently that “movie news has pene- 
trated to every area of the world, 
no matter how obscure.” 

In Peru, Heston said, “we found 
Spanish language fan magazines in 
villages populated by no more than 
100 people.” These fan mags, he 
recalled, “seemed to wield ah un- 
believably important influence bn 
the South American’s attitude to- 
ward American life.” He urged 
that pix flacks hold huddles with 
State Dept, officials to explore ad- 
ditional avenues that would aid the 
Government in spreading its mes- 
sage overseas. 


*M,M M f f M M M M f M MMV 

Hollywod, Feb. 16. 

. Metro outstripped Its competi- 
tors in the trial; heat .of the . 26th 
anual Oscar derby, capturing a 
total of- 32 nominations based on 
17 pictures, Charles B. Brackett, 
Academy prexy, revealed last night 
(Mon,). Most honored feature, how- 
ever, was Columbia’s “From Here 
to Eternity,” which grabbed a to- 
tal Of '13 nominations. . . 

In studio battle 20th-Fbx was 
second with 18 nominations for 11 
pix and Paramount was third, its 
total of 23 nominations coming 
from only six pix. One of these, 
of course, was “Roman Holiday,” 
which grabbed ten nominations to 
be second most honored picture 
in Derby. Approximately 1,600 
members of Academy will receive 
ballots March 3, with voting clos- 
ing on March 16. Awards presen- 
tation occurs March 25 at Pan- 
tages Theatre on Hollywood Blvd. 
Following are nominations in key 
categories: - 

Best Picture: “Here to Eternity,” 
Columbia, Buddy Adler, producer; 
“Caesar,” Metro, John Houseman; 
"The Robe,” 20th, Frank Ross; 
“Roman Holiday,” Paramount, Wil- 
liam Wyler; “Shane,” Paramount, 
George Stevens. 

Best Actor: Marlon Brando, 
“Caesar”; Richard Burton, “The 
Robe”; Montgomery Clift, “Eterni- 
( Continued on page 16) 






Allied’s Hoodlum Reissues 

Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

Allied Artists is pairing two of 
firm’s (formerly monogram) top 
grossers, “Dillinger,” and “Gang- 
ster” for reissue package. 

Opens special engagement at 
Esquire, San Francisco, Thursday 
08).. , 


The Federal Trade Commission 
was told this week that Italian 
Films Export, which promotes and 
distributes Italo . imports in the 
U.S., is interfering With “free and 
fair competition” in the handling 
of Italian pix in America “to the 
extent that a monopoly in the dis 
tribution of such films is threat- 
ened.” 

The complaint came from the 
Independent Motion Picture Dis 
tributors Assn, of America, a group 
of indie distribs, in a letter to the 
newly-established export division 
of the FTC. It urged the agency tb 
“take steps to prevent IFE from 
continuing in the business of dis 
tributing films in the United 
States.” 

This is the second such move 
against IFE on the part of the in 
dies.; Last year, they sparked an 
FTC 'investigation of the whole re 
latiohship between the Motion Pic 
ture Export Assn, and the Italo 
outfit. This quiz, which has now 
been concluded, was conducted by 
an agent in the FTC’s New York 
office. Since* then, the export divi- 
sion has been established to spe- 
cialize in Just such matters. 

The indies’ letter, Written by 
Ephraim London, the org's attor- 
ney, went a step further and 
charged that “the manner in which 
( Continued on page 2 1 ) 


LIST’S RKO SHARES 


TO FAMILY 


Albert A. List, who recently 
bought control of RKO Theatres 
from Howard Hughes, appeared to 
be engaging in a quick stock turn- 
over late last week. N. Y. Stock 
Exchange, in an official notice, 
listed List as having “sold” 400,- 
000 shares of the circuit’s issue, 
leaving him with 529i953 shares. 

this turned out to be an error, 
however. List parted with 400,000 
shares but this Was via gifts spread 
among members of his fahiilv. 
He'd* continue to control these for 
Voting purposes. 



Chesapeake Industries on Mon- 
day (15) closed the bidding for 
theatrical reissue and television 
rights to 10 features which the 
company his reacquired from 
United Artists. Chesapeake, in the 
unique situation, invited sealed 
bids (each accompanied by a check 
for $10,000 to be applied against 
the sales price). The Offers now are 
being weighed. 

Deal gives the buyer the 0. S. 
and Canadian rights for theatres 
and tv (excepting 16m outlets) for 
five years. Included in the sale are 
to be some prints, press books and 
unplayed exhibition contracts. That 
last item is rare but Chesapeake 
doesn’t guarantee that the un- 
played exhibitor pacts will yield 
either theatre playing time or reve- 
nue. 

Chesapeake, headed by William 
C. MacMillcn Jr., has within its 
i, corporate structure Pathe -Indus- 



• r ■■ j ■ 

Want to go to a theatre and be completely surtounded by the 
picture? A University of Illinois professor say* he's got the solu- 
tion and hell do it with standard lenses and film and a single 
projector. 

According to Prof. Jozef Cohen, who has applied for a patent 
on the idea, his image would be twice as wide ns that procured by 
present three-projector Systems. Picture height would be. increased 
by running the film/lerigthwise through the pMjeptoif. 

Actually, Prof. Cohen will be. satisfied with just a half-circle 
picture because, he says, * f no one would be interested in a picture 
behind himself.” - • 



Cesar Aboaf Joins U 

Cesar Aboaf, former general 
manager for Warner Bros, in 
Argentina, has joined Universal as 
special field rep for U’s J. Arthur 
Rank releases in Latin America. 

Aboaf, who is a brother, of Amer- 
ico Aboaf, U’s foreign sales topper, 
will headquarter in Buenos Aires 
for the time being. 


17 Names to Brazil Fete 




tries, Pathe, in turn, had been the 
parent of Eagle Lion Classics. The, 
10 films had been the property of 
ELC; were switched to United Art- 
ists as part of UA’s buyout of ELC, 
were reacquired by Chesapeake 
when UA’s rights ran out, and now 
are On the auction block. 

Not Licensed For TV 

The 10 pix, which are about five 
years old, have yet to be licensed 
for any telecasting. These are the 
titles: “Tulsa” (Technicolor), “Big 
Cat” (Techni), “Man From Texas,” 
“Port of New York,” “Trapped,” 
“Black Book,” “Mickey” (Cinecol- 
or), “Lost Honeymoon,” “The 
Spiritualist” and “Down Memory 
Lane.” “Tulsa” was a Walter Wang- 
er production starring Susan Hay- 
ward and Robert Preston. 

Conditions imposed by Chesa- 
peake arc that any lab work must 
be given to Pathe, 


Hollywood, Feb.- 16. 

Some 1 7 film names, the largest 
delegation ever to attend a foreign 
motion picture fete, will leave 
Thursday (18) by, plane for Sab 
Paulo as guests of Brazil’s first In- 
ternational festival. Following the 
Sao Paulo event, a number of the 
players will continue tb Buenos 
Aires for the Argentine film fair. 

Lineup of names consists of Gil- 
bert Adrian, Robert Cummings, 
Irene Dunne, Rhonda Fleming, 
Joan Fontaine, Janet Gaynor, June 
Haver, Jeffrey Hunter, Jeanette 
MacDonald, Fred . MacMurray, Al 
Miller, Walter Pidgeon/ Jane Pow- 
ell, Gene : Raymond, Edward G. 
Robinson, Barbara ' Rush and Col- 
lier Young. Eric Johnston and 
his wife will plane from Houston 
to Sao Paulo where Mervyn LeRoy 
has already arrived. Tyrone Power 
and Linda Christian called off the 
trip because of a picture commit- 
ment. 

Robert Corkery, Latin American 
director for the Motion Picture As- 
sociation of America, Clarke H. 
Wales, representing the AMPP, 
Luigi Luraschi, head of Para- 
mpunt studio’s foreign depart- 
ment, will escort the delegation. - 
Corkery said the American film in- 
dustry is lending hearty support 
to South American film fetes this, 
year becaiise of< ; the growing im- 
portance of market for Hollywood 
pictures on that continent. Last 
year American product returned 
$16,000,000 from Brazil. 

Five Hollywood films slated for 
showing at the Brazilian festival 
(Continued on page 21) 


N. Y. to L. A. 

Stanley Adams 
David Alexander 
Barney Balkan 
Saul Bourne 
Edward .Choate 
Ralph Cohn 
Mack David 
L. Wolfe Gilbert 
Lew Grade 
. Stewart Granger 
Leland Rayward 
George Hoffman 
Alfred Katz 
Elkan Kaufman 
Bert Lahr 
Myron McCormick 
Cesar Romero 
John U- Sinn 
Frank Stanton «- 

. • c> ' 

N. Y. to Europe 

Alden S. Blodgett 
Carol Bruce' 

Jack Cummings 
Rose Franken 
Neil Hartley 
Harold Lang 
Anatole Litvak ( 

Wm. Brown Meloney 
George Martin 
Cornelia Otis Skinner 
Leslie Stevens 

Europe to N. Y* 

Tom Curtiss 
Mat.lw.ilda Dobbs 
Maurice Winnick 


If theatremen can live with tv 
long enough, they’ll find this com- 
petition eventually losing its sting. 
John Balaban (& Katz) this week 
illustrated the point with pic b o. 
performances in two Illinois towns. 

He related that a recent Dean 
Martin- Jerry Lewis film made 
more money in Joliet than in Pe- 
oria despite the fact that Peoria 
nearly doubles Joliet in population. 
The key point is that Joliet has 
had tv for some time and its novel- 
ty values iave worn thin. On the 
other hand, tv is new to Peoria and 
competitive impact is severe. 

In Chicago, the B & K experi- 
ence was that tv cut the theatre 
gate for - about two and a half 
years. Chi was among the first key 
cities to be saturated with the new 
medium, reaching full-spread pro- 
portions by 1949. As it developed, 
B & K business finally improved 
in 1952 over. 1951 and again in 
1953 over 1952. 

Theatremen around the country 
have found their b.o. ups arid, 
downs generally fitting the same 
pattern. . 


An Income Tax Break 
Favors Some Owners Of 


Anyone who has owned stock in 
20th-Fox over . the past several 
years this week received sorne 
good news from the company. That 
is, if they paid income tax on their 
dividends. 

Notice went out from the home- 
office that over a three year span 
20th’s divvies exceeded earnings, 
consequently at least a portion of 
the payments were not subject to 
income taxation, if the divvy loot 
had been reported as taxable in 
full, the stockholder is advised 
that an Internal Revenue refund 
claim is in order. 

Portions of the divvies not sub- 
ject to tax, said 20th, are as fol- 
lows: 1950* 43.66%; 1951,. 56%; 
1952 (March and June), 100%; 
1952 (October and December), 
15.66%. - 

Divvy checks had been 50c quar- 
terly except in October and De- 
cember of 1952 jvhen they were 
each 25c per share. 


L. A. to n. Y. 

Harry Ackerman 
Eddie Anderson 
Desi Arnaz 
Lucille Ball 
Jack Benny 
Mel Blanc 
George Boroff 
Frederick Brisson 
Virginia Bruce 
Carol Channing 
Russel Crouse 
Xavier Cugat 
Walt Disney 
Vernon Duke 
Frank Ferrin 
Paul Gregory 
Jill Jamyn 
Danny. Kaye 
Nancy Kelly 
Arthur Kennedy 
Abbe Lane 
Mara Lane 
Cy Langlois 
Jerry Lawrence 
Martin Leonard 
Charles Levy 
Ralph Levy 
Howard Lindsay 
.Diana Lynn 
Osa Massen 
Charles Buggies 
Don Sharpe 
Dan Terrell 
Ivan Tors 
Pat Weaver 
Meredith Willson 
Envard A. Wolpin 










f 








Tirade Speculate* r— Sees Economic^ Advantage To 
Reade Houses Too Great 


Walter Reade capitulated last 
weeic to 20th-Fox and the product 

shortage. • 

Circuit op, who’s also Theatre 
Owners of America prez, informed 
20th that he intends installing full 
stereophonic sound equipment in 
the three houses where he had 
been using a “mixing” device to 
play ‘•The Robe.” Two additional 
Reade situations always have had 
stereo sound. 

The Reade; move, which still 
'doesn’t eliminate the possibility of 
court action against 20th at a fu- 
ture date, was made primarily 
upon the evaluation of some hard 
business facts, i.e. that 20th and 
Metro at the moment are the only 
volume Suppliers of Cinemascope 
pix and that there is a genuine 
shortage, of product for the “A” 
houses as far as standard films are 
concerned!" 

Both 20th and M-G have made 
It clear that they will not book 
their CinemaScopers into any 
house that doesn't have directional 
sound reproduction gear. Warner 
Oros. follows the opposite policy, 
making available its first Cinema- 
scope film, “The Command,” in 
two versions - single-track and 
multi-channel sound. Reade has 
been playing “The Command” with 
his mixer. 

Last week, he signed a contract 
for 20th’s “How to Marry a Mil- 
lionaire” at the Community Thea- 
tre, Morristown, N. J. The house 
has already been, converted to full 
(Continued on page 15) 

Ball-Arnaz Require Own 
City Desk for Powered 
Ballyhoo Raid on N.Y. 

One of the biggest bally whirls 
accorded Coast personalities, re- 
plete with cocktail parties, lunches, 
dinners, personal appearances and 
newspaper interviews, has been set 
for the nine-day New York visit of 
Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. Fair 
arrive early- tomorrow (Thurs.) and 
are scheduled for a round of 
Gotham activity, until Feb;. 27. 

Since team’s efforts are divided 
between tv and pictures, demand 
for their services has been over- 
whelming, necessitating the setting 
Up of a clearing house to coordi- 
nate all appearances. It’s being 
handled by the Ben Sonnenberg 
organization, public relations out- 
fit for Philip Morris, sponsors of 
‘I Love Lucy.” Also in on the act 
are Metro, who have been allotted 
foroe time for the plugging of 
/The Long, Long Trailer”;, CBS- 
TV, the “I Love Lucy” network; 
the Biow Co., ad agency for Philip 
Morris, and Kenyon & Eckhardt, 
ad agency for Mercury cars which 
has a tie-in promotion with M-G 
on the picture. 

.—Arriving at 8 a.m. tomorrow 
(Thurs.), pair will make their first 
personal at a Times Square Heart 
rund^ rally. In the afternoon, 
tliere’s a Metro-sponsored press 
party at the W aldorf -Astoria , and 
in the evening a personal appear- 
ance from the stage of the Radio 
City Music Hall. Other activities 
during the week include a Desilu 
cocktail party, lunch with Gov. 
Thomas E. Dewey and other state 
end city dignataries, a Brooklyn 
Red Cross kick-off rally, a Circus 
baints & Sinners luncheon, etc. 

ANTI-CIGARET SHORT 
ROLLING IN MARCH 

Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

Increasing public awareness of 
tne lung cancer-cigaret problem 
following articles in Reader’s Di- 
& est > Christian Herald, Consumer 
Reports, New Leader and other pe- 
riodicals, has drawn an echo in 
Hollywood, Frank Ferrin will pro- 
duce a half-hour documentary film 
tor theatre use under the telltale 
title, “Slow Suicide”. 

Short rolls in March. No release 
deal set as yet. 


Sturdiest Scribe 

Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

With Oscars, Emmys and 
other awards being handed out 
in all directions, 'the Screen 
Writers Guild bulletin sug- 
gests a “longevity award” for 
Bill Ludwig,. Metro scripter, 
who has been with the studio 
continuously for 17 years. . 

That is longer than any 
other writer - has been On one 
company’s payroll. In his en- 
tire career he has had only two 
loanouts. ' . 



Opposition by Britain's Cine- 
matograph Exhibitors Assn, to 
20th-Fox’s stereophonic sound dic- 
tum has highlighted the fact that 
20th is in for a tough time trying 
to sell its four-track magnetic 
sound to theatres abroad! 

Problem is intensified for sev- 
eral reasons. (1) Where other dis- 
tribs, like Metro, may follow 20th’s 
lead on sound in the U.S., it’s 
already clear that they don’t in- 
tend to keep the harmony pitch in 
the foreign market, (2) Exhibs 
abroad have their local as well as 
Hollywood product to draw on. (3) 
The foreign field has fess money 
to spehd, and (4) With hardly any 
tv competition yet, exhibs abroad 
don’t have the same sense of 
urgency as their U.S. confreres. 

It’s already obvious that, abroad 
at; least, the distribs intend to go 
their separate ways on sound. In 
the case of Metro, at least, the com- 
pany’s foreign pitch is very much 
at odds with its domestic policy. 
Where, in the U.S'., M-G will not 
Sell its CinemaScopers; to anyone 
without full stereophonic sound, 
abroad it is plugging for Perspecta- 
Sound, which involves an ordinary 
(Continued on page .15) 

WITH SAM MARX, U-I 
HAS 10 PRODUCERS 

Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

Sam Marx has signed a producer 
contract at Universal-International, 
making a total of 10 producers on 
that lot. Others are William Alland, 
Robert Arthur, Howard Christie, 
Albert J. Cohen, Ross Hunter; 
Howard Pine, Ted Richmond, 
Aaron Rosenberg and Stanley Ru- 
bin. 

Marx was a producer for 10 years 
at Metro and recently produced 
“Assignment — Paris” for Colum- 
bia. He will start work for U-I 
Feb.' 22. ‘ 


Jack Connolly’s New U.S. 
Film Spot; HQ in D.C. 

Washington, Feb. 16. 

Jack S. Connolly, veteran news- 
reel exec who’s been in Govern- 
ment service in recent years, has 
been namd Chief of the -Domestic 
Production Division of the U.S. 
Information Agency's Motion pic- 
ture Service. He previously was 
Acting Chief of the group’s New 
York office as well as head of the 
Gotham division’s Newsreel and 
Special Events, branch. 

Connolly, whose appointment 
was disclosed by Motion Picture 
Service Chief Andrew W. Smith 
Jr., Was the first European direc- 
tor* of Fox Movietone News and 
later general manager of Pa the 
News. . In World War II he was 
Newsreel Director and Coordinator 
of Inter-American Affairs under 
Nelson Rockefeller. His new chores, 
will require him to live in Wash- 
ington. i 




By FRED H1FT 

It’s been a long, hard pull, but 
execs at 20th-I^ox now. feel that 
their big . gamble has paid off and 
that the “battle, for CinenVaSCope” 
has ended in victory. 

In a progress report on its 
achievements- since that day, almost 
10 months ago, when Cinema- 
Scope was first privately unveiled 
at the Roxy Theatre, N. Y., the 
company pridefully points out that, 
despite a multitude of problems, I 
it's been living up to the original 
timetable. In fact, It’s farther 
ahead than even the most rabid 
optimists in 20th had hoped, for. 

There are at present 1,800 thea- 
tres equipped to show Cinema- 
Scope which, according to 20th 
execs, represents 75% of all the 
firstruns in the United States. 
Tendency of these houses has 
been to play Cinemascope, and 
keep playing it whenever possible, 
i.e. when pix and prints are avail- 
able. / 

A total of 23. CinemaScope fea- 
tures, including 11 at 20th alone, 
have been completed, representing 
an estimated .investment of close 
to $100,000,000 Which includes tiki 
high cost of prints, dubbing, etc! 
Increasingly,; the other studios are 
(Continued on page 21) 



Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

Motion picture screen is “one. of 
most powerful” mediums of adver- 
tising ever created, Dore Schary 
told the Los Angeles Ad Club 
luncheon today (Tues. ) in speech 
tying Metro’s 30th anni with ad 
recognition week. Films can “win 
friends, influence enemies.” It qan 
start a fashion, stop a crime. It can • 
preach and reach without seeming 
to. • 

Like, all other businesses, it has 
grown in last generation, depends 
heavily upon advertising. In 1924, 
industry annual payroll was $75,- 
000,000: In 1954 this reaches close 
to $500,000,000. In same period 
advertising bill jumped from $12,- 
000,000 to more than $70,000,000.” 

Hollywood has in many ways. 

(Continued on page 15) 


By HAROLD MYERS 

London, Feb. 16. 
They were like two irresistible 
forces. At one end of the confer- 
ence hall sat Spyros P. Skouras, 
the 20th-Fox topper, and his close 
advisers; at the other were hun- 
dreds of independent exhibitors 
who’d come to town from all parts 
Of Great Britain to argue the case 
.against stereophonic sound. 

There was no victory for either 
side and, after a session lasting 
more than two hours, the stalemate 
that had existed before the meet- 
ing opened, remained unchanged. 
Neither side appeared to be in. the 
mood for compromise, and, by the 
time the meeting broke up, Skou- 
ras was still insisting that the 
CinemaScope package could not be 
sold without stereophonic sound, 
and the indie theatremen were 
equally insistent that they should^ 
be given a trial run. 

However much exhibitors may 
have been critical of the Skouras 
policy, they acclaimed his honesty 
of purpose and particularly the 
surprise announcement that his 


A Renaissance? 

Leonard H. Goldenson, pres- 
ident of American Broad- 
casting - Paramount Theatres, 
wrapped up 'in one sentence 
his reaction to the production 
upbeat, wave bf optimism and 
high morale which he found 
on a recent tour of. Hollywood.. 

“You get the feeling you’re 
at the beginning of a renais- 
sance,” observed thb exec. 



Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

National Theatres’ first annual 
stockholders meeting (Tues.) since 
divorcement from 20th-Eox told of 
Up ped first quarter! net income.' 
Coj^Deaciied $655,582 or 24c a 
sh^^Amipared with $544,697 or 
20c share for same quarter last 
year. 

While passing on the news of 
income gain, Proxy Charles 
Skouras also painted picture of in- 
dustry conditions that present con- 
tinuing problems for circuit. He 
foresaw day when his circuit will 
not be operating many more than 
220 houses. Chain now runs ap- 
proximately 385 theatres but he’s 
not optimistic about survival of 
any but deluxe showcases and first- 
runs. Day of “program” picture 
has passed. 

Shortage* together with in- 
creased film cost, creates problems 
for exhibs regarding * rentals! 
Skouras informed stockholders 
his circiut paid out $1,635.00 more 
for films during last three months 
than in any comparable quarter. 

. Initial impact of television into 
Rocky Mountain and Pacific North- 
west areas is blamed for $550,000 
lag. there - behind first 1952 
quarter. 

Still high on CinemaScope for 
wooing audiences back. Skouras 
has equipped 148 houses at cost 
or better than $3,000,000. Close to 
$50,000,000 will have been spent 
When total 220 cinemascope instal- 
lations completed within year. 


two closest associates in this coun- 
try, # J. Arthur Rank and John 
Davis, had the previous night, 
given him a thumbs down on stereo 
installations. The Rank organiza- 
tion was committed for 70. Cine- 
maScope sets and would stand by 
that contract. They would not up 
the total, however, while 20th-Fox 
continued to apply the stereophonic 
condition. 

John W. Davies, national prez of 
the Cinematograph Exhibs’ Assn, 
explained that the meeting had 
been called because the 20th-Fox 
sales policy had “aroused deepest 
indignation among exhibitors!” 
They’d advised Skouras of this 
feeling when they met last Decem- 
ber and the 20th topper volun- 
teered to return and outline his 
policy to British theatreowners. 

‘As a Theatreman' 

• Flanked by Murray Silverstone, 
Earl, Sponable, William J. Kupper 
and James Pattison, Skouras said 
he wanted to speak as a theatre- 
man. He recalled that he’d started 
in the business with his brother 
as a very small exhib and they’d 
\ (Continued on page 18) i 


By GENE ARNEEL 

Nicholas M. Schenck, president 
of Loew’s-Metro, revealed this 
week that Metro will license its 
CinemaScope product only to the- 
atres which are fully equipped 
with C’Scope screens and stereo- 
phonic sound. This policy, said the 
prez, is for. the present, at least. 

As championed by 20th-Fox, 
C’Scope has developed into one of 
the most controversial subjects to 
crpp up. in the picture business in 
recent years. Many exhibitors 
agree that its widescreen pictorial 
values are strong but the plusses 
of stereosound, vis-a-vis the extra 
thousands of dollars in cost, are 
sharply disputed. 

“CinemaScope is great and 
stereophonic sound is a part of its 
greatness, ’’ stated Schenck. He 
represented the four-track audio as 
important to souud similarly as ad- 
vancements in photography have 
been meaningful to the Industry. 

Reached by Variety at his win- 
ter headquarters in Miami via tele- 
phone, Schenck characterized as 
“shortsighted” those theatremen 
who are now balking at wiring for 
stereo. The publicity-shy industry 
leader made one qualifying point * 
in praising C’Scope. . "The picture 
must be good, too,” he observed, 
in underlining that technical prog- 
ress is not enough to impress the 
public. 

M-G’s policy for the future re 
peddling its C’Scopers has yet to 
be decided, although Schenck hint- 
ed at some possible relaxation of 
the company's licensing require- 
ments later on. “It may be,” he 
(Continued on page 13) 


I 

Academy Lampoon On 
Toast’ Cues a Hassle 



Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

A sketch! takeoff on a pix star 
receiving . the Academy Oscar, 
originally penned for the Screen 
Writers Guild's annual awards 
dinner five years ago, and used 
on "Toast of the Town” Feb. 7, is 
the center of a controversy involv- 
ing four scribblers, with two of 
them claiming it was used without: 
their authority. “Toast” emcee 
Ed Sullivan is an innocent victim 
of the entire, hassle, it was made 
clear. 

Merle Oberon told Sullivan she 
wanted to do the skit, which was 
also presented last year, with 
Devery Freeman adding a few 
touches. Sullivan contacted L. K. 
Sidney about it, and the Metro 
exec told him to get in touch with 
the Screen Writers Guild, 

Writers contend that Everett' 
Freeman, entertainment chairman 
at SWG’s dinner last year, author- 
ized use of the skit and told him to 
give the coin to SWG’s kitty; Un- 
derstood SWG didn’t want any part 
of this, and finally Sullivan paid 
$500 for the skit. But it came oh 
wilh George Oppenheimer . and 
Devery Freeman being credited, 
whereas Oppenheimer and Decla 
Dunning had authored the original 
skit, and Oppenheimer had never 
been contacted regarding use of 
the material. 

Sulivan; here to prep his “Toast” 
last Sunday, was contacted by the 
original writers, and said he knew 
nothing of the complexities in- 
volved, that he had asked Freeman 
ft* authorization to use the skit 
and it was granted. 

Oppenheimer and Miss Dunning, 
unhappy over the fact the skit 
was used without their consent, as 
well as the fact that the coin in- 
volved was not sufficient in their 
opinion, are now discussing the 
matter with the Freemans. 

Asked about the situation, SWG 
merely commented tersely: “The 
four writers involved are now in 
the process of arbitrating the mat- 
ter. The guild has nothing to do 
i with this.” 



Blunt Questions Put — 20th* Flatly Denies Any 
Equipment Interest— -No Compromise 



^VctoJiy» February 17, W54 


HhipMd^ 

(MUSIC— COLOR) 


Roaantffl Ma» opera, with 
claaalcal aufc background. 
More (or the ntdoleaged 
femme matinee lane than for 
males or younger aet. Will 
have Its selling problems. 


Hollywood. Feb. 16; 

MctrorclcaM ol Lawrence We in* ar tan 
production. Start Elizabeth Taylor. Vit- 
torio Gauman. John Erlcton. Loiiii Cal- 
hern; feature* Michael .ChehhoV, Barbara 
Bates, Richard Hageman. Directed by 
Charles Vidor. Screenplay. Fay. and 
Michael Kanin; adaptation. Ruth and 
Augustus ' Goetz; based on the novel 
•‘Maurice Guest” by Henry Handel Rich- 
ardson; camera (Technicolor), Robert 
Planck; editor, John Dunning; musical 
adaptation, Bronislau Kaper; music con- 
ducted by Johnny Green; piano solos 
played by Claudio Arrau; violin solos 
played by Michael Rabin, previewed Feb, 
11 , '94. Running time, IIS MINS. . 

Louise Durant .... Elizabeth Taylor 

Paul Bronte .......... Vittorio Gasaman 

James Guest .......... ... . . John Erlcson 

Nicholas Durant ......... Loula Calhern 

Prof, Schuman Michael Chekhov 

Effle Cahill ............. Barbara Bates 

Bruno Furst .......... Richard Hageman 

Otto Krafft ............ Richard Lupino 

Frau Sigerlst Celia Lovsky 

Dove Stuart Whitman 

Mrs. Cahill Madge Blake 

Edmund •Streller Jack Ralne 

Madeleine Wirglt Nielsen 

Yvonne . . . . Jacqueline . Duval 

. Student-Pianist Norma Nevens 


Tht Nftkotf liuigl# 

( COLOR ) : 

Intereetinf *fJSwBile irtma 
with J«Mgla a|v«Btwe aspects 
and Eleanor Parker, Charlton 
Heston. / * ; 

Hollywood, Feb. 9. 

Paramount release of George Pal pro- 
duction. Stars Eleanor Parker, Qiarlton 
Heston. Directed by Byron Heskln. 
Screenplay, Philip YordaO, Ranald. Mac- 
Do ugall; based on '*Lelningen Versus the 
Ants” by Ctrl Stephehson; camera (Tech- 
nicolor). Ernest Laaxlo; editor, Everett 
Douglas; ipectal photographtc effects, 
John P. Fulton; process photography, 
Farclot Edouart; music, .Danlele Amfl- 
theatrof. Previewed Feb. S. '94. Running 
time, 91 MIMS, 

Joanna Lelningen ...... Eleanor Parker 

Christopher Lelningen. . .Charlton Heston 

Incacha Abraham Sofaer 

Commissioner .......... William Conrad 

PMt Captain .. .......... Romo Vincent 

Medicine Man Douglas Fowley 

Gruber John Dlerkes 

Kutlna.. ............... Leonard Strong 

Zala ................... Norma Calderon 


“Rhapsody” is the kind of ro- 
mantic soap opera set to classical 
music that should lure the middle- 
aged femme matinee trade. Also, 
it is the type of tears-and-tormertt 
drama that has little appeal for 
the younger set or the male ticket 
buyer. Thus, despite a lavish 
presentation in Technicolor, the 
enduring music of Rachmaninoff 
and Tschaikowsky, plus a good cast, 
the picture has its selling problems 
and will hot find the boxoffice- 
going easy. 

.The property was acquired from 
Paramount by Metro for Aiming, 
along with Charles Vidor to direct. 
The Culver City lot has given it 
the “A” treatment in casting and 
production budget so that visually 
the presentation has an .outstand- 
ing quality. As entertainment, 
however, it falters often, through 
stretching its pot-boiler plot over 
an unnecessarily long one hour and 
55 . minutes. The story and the 
. characters in it haven’t the depth 
to sustain that much running time. 

The picture is based on the novel, 
“Maurice Gest,” by Henry Han- 
del Richardson. Fay and Michael 
Kanin wrote the screenplay from 
an adaptation by Ruth and Augus- 
tus Goetz. The writing is slick, 
but shallow, and rather Obviously, 
plotted along standard romantic 
conflict lines, Within these limits, 
Vidor’s direction achieves good 
performances from the players. 
Music, of Course, is standout as 
played by Claudio Arrau on Sergei 
Rachmaninoffs “Concerto No. 2 
in C Mirior” and Michael Rabin on 
Peter Ilyitch Tschaikowsky’s “Con- 
certo in D Major.’’ Their piano 
arid .violin solo stints, respectively, 
are high artistry. 

Considerable emotional anguish 
is stirred up in the story behind 
the music. Miss Taylor is a spoiled 
rich girl who falls in love with 
Vittorio Gassman,. a self-sufficient 
violin student. This romance takes 
the expected turn and they split 
because she plays second fiddle to 
his fiddle. Stepping into the breach 
is John Ericson, selfsacrif icing 
piano student, who gives up his 
career to devote himself to her and 
becomes a society drunk doing it. 
Meanwhile, Gassman has become a 
great success and Miss Taylor tries 
to get him back. To achieve this 
goal, she decides to push Ericson 
back into music ana he scores. 
Finale has Miss Taylor realizing 
that Ericson is what she has wanted 
all along. 

The fourth star in all this is 
Louis Calhern, but he is only in 
and out on several occasions as 
Miss Taylor’s indulgent father, too 
busy with his own playing to give 
her much time. Michael Chekhov, 
as a professor at* the Zurich con- 
servatory; Richard Hageman, a 
conductor; Barbara Bates, a play- 
girl musical' student; Celia Lovsky 
and the others come through with 
satisfactory type performances. 

Lawrence Weingarten’s produc- 
tion supervision has mustered a 
number of outstanding technical 
aids, to give the picture high volt- 
age, visual impact. Starring here 
Robert Planck’s photography, 
the settings arid the ' costume de- 
signs by Helen Rose. The latter are 
unusually becoming to the unbe- 
lieveable beauty of Miss Taylor. 
High on the list of credits are the 
musical adaptation by Bronislau 
Kaper and Johnny Green’s con- 
ducting. Also of note is the Simula- 
uon of actual playing by Gassman 
on violin and Ericson on piano. 

Brog. 

Myron* Karlin named Metro’s 
manager in Argentina, succeeding 
Stuart Dunlap. Now in Germany, 
KarliiL_j)nce managed the M-G 
branch in • Venezuela, 


There’s a lot of the tried-and- 
found-true romantic drama for- 
mula in “The Naked Jungle,” an 
interesting feature that mixes in 
jungle adventure with a science- 
flction touch dealing : with an in- 
vading army of ants that think. 

Man-against-ant fight Was de- 
scribed in December, 1938, issue of 
Esquire. (Carl Stephenson’s 
“Lelningen versus the Ants.”) 

The familiar names of Eleanor 
Parker and Charlton Heston oc- 
cupy the star spots in the well 
adapted script by Philip Yordan 
and Ranald MacDougall. For 
Miss Parker it is a particularly 
good characterization, warm and 
human. Heston hits his Stride 
about the halfway mark after his 
character opens up and becomes 
more human and understandable 
to the ticket-buyer. Up to that 
time he plays the part with a som- 
bre heaviness that is too forbid- 
ding. This is the only mistake in 
Byron Haskin’s otherwise smart, 
suspense-building =' and actionful 
direction. 

. From a rather straightforward 
romantic drama, the sto ryjge ts into 
its thriller moments. A4gMLorder 
bride comes from New^BgPms to 
bed with a man, without femme ex- 
perience, who lias spent 15 years 
hewing a profitable plantation and 
palatial home out of the jungles of 
South America. She finds he 
doesn’t like her matter-of-fact ap- 
proach to her marital obligations. 
The marriage situation takes a fur- 
ther turn for the worse when he 
realizes she has been married be- 
fore. 

As the conflict of this marital sit- 
uation moves forward to a not un- 
expected climax, the threat of the 
ant invasion takes over; The dread 
soldier ants of South America- or- 
ganize; in a purposeful march and 
descend on the plantation, putting 
a gripping tag on the romantic 
story as the austere plantation 
owner finds love and the will from 
an untouched bride to fight off suc- 
cessfully an insect enemy that con- 
sumes completely plant and human 
life as it moves across the land 
relentlessly. 

Supporting two stars are a num- 
ber of impressive featured per- 
formances. Abraham . Sofaer 
scores as the plantation owner’s 
chief servant, as does William Con- 
rad, jungle-wise commissioner; 
Douglas Fowley, medicine man; 
Leonard Strong, a native; Norma 
Calderon, very appealing as the 
native girl assigned to care for the 
bride; Romo Vincent and John 
Dierkes. 

Putting wallop into the interest- 
holding unfoldment is Ernest 
Laszlo’s lensing, the special photo- 
graphic effects by John P. Fulton 
and Farciot Edouart’s process 
photography. Edith Head clothes 
Miss Parker most attractively, and 
Daniele Amfltheatrof’s scove is a 
fitting background. Brog . 

Duffy of Sian Quentin 

Formula Prison melodrama for 

programmer playdates. 


•ntly by Berman Swarttz and Wal- 
ter Doniger, with Warner Brof, 
taking it over fob distribution. In 
addition to teaming at producers, 
Swarttz and Doniger handled the 
other principal .functions, but none 
with distinction. Doniger scripted 
and directed from a atory on which 
he collaborated with Swarttz. 
Basis for the offering is* “The San 
Quentin Story’? by Clinton T. 
Duffy, long warden of San Quen- 
tin, and Dead Jennings. 

Plot deals with Duffy’s, start as 
warden, the -reforms he introduced 
and the reaction of a few of the 
prison inmates at that time. The 
unfoldment is tediously paced and 
there are few action spots of any 
validity to interest wavers con- 
stantly. Such commonplace types 
as the man framed by a conviction- 
crazy prosecutor, the brutal guard, 
the shiv.-happy inmatq, the snivel- 
ing stoolie and the beautiful nurse 
are mixed together in the script for 
minor results. 

Paul Kelly appears as- Duffy and 
Maureen O’Sullivan as his under- 
standing wife. He is competent as 
far as script and direction permit, 
as are Miss O’Sullivan, Louis Hay- 
ward, the bitter railroaded prison- 
er; Joanne Dru, the beautiful 
nurse with whom Hayward falls in 
love ; Horace MacMahon, the brutal 
guard; George Macready, the 
prosecutor, and Peter Brocqo, the 
stoolie; Playing other prison types 
are Irving Bacon, Joel Fluellen 
and Joseph Turkel, 

Technical support of the produc- 
tion is okay. Brog. 


Tcnnefisoe 

(COLOR) 

Entertaining comedy on prize- 
fighting and. religion; above 
average programmer. 


Hollywood, Feb. 9. 

Warner Bros, release of Berman 
Swarttz and Walter Doniger production. 
Stars Louis Hayward. Joanne Dru,. Paul 
Kelly; co-stors Maureen' O'Sullivan. Direc- 
tion and screenplay by Doniger; from a 
story by Swarttz and Doniger; based on 
the book "The San. Quentin Story” by 
Clinton T.. Duffy and Dean Jennings; 
camera, John: Alton; editor, Edward Samp-, 
son Jr.; music, Paul Dunlap. Previewed 
Feb. 5, '54. Running time. 76 MINS. 

Edward Harper ......... Louis Hayward 

Anne Halsey. Joanne Dru 

Warden Clintoh T, Duffy... . Paul Kelly 

Gladys. Duffy Maureen O’Sullivan 

Winant George Macready 

Pierson Horace . McMahon 

Doc Irving^ Bacon 

Rill Joel Fluellen 

Frank Joseph Turkel 

Boyd Jonathan Hale 

Pinto Michael McH&le 

Nealy Peter Brocco 


The programmer market will 
find “Duffy of San Quentin” just a 
passable dual bill booking. It’s a 
slow-moving prison melodrama, de- 
veloped in ordinary fashion, and 
there is very little of interest, even 
for undiscriminating audiences, in 
its 76 minutes. ■ 

Picture was produced irideperid- 




Htifo Haas fat another eariky; 
metier; exploitable for tbo , 
program market. : 4 

Columbia releasa of Hugo Haas (Robert 
JCrlik) production. Stars CIso Moors, Hugo 
Haas. John Agar. Directed by ^ Haaa. 
Screenplay and story. Samuel W. Taylor; 
additional, dialog, Haas; camera, Edward 
P. Fitzgerald; editor. Robert S. Blsen; 
music. Vaclav Dlvina. Tradeihown, N.Y., 
Feb. <4, '94. Running time. It MINg. 

Marko V." Hugo Haas 

Ray Brighton John Agar 

Foley ... ................ Emmett Lynn 

Webb . ... .... Bruno Ve Sota 

Waitress v.,,.. J*n Iriigluod 

Chuck .... George Keymas 

Prologue Sir Cedric Hardwlcke 


- Hollywood, Feb. 15, 

Metro release of Sol Baer Fielding pro- 
duction, Stars Shelley Winters, Keenan 
Wynn, Dewey Martin. Directed by Fred 
M.' Wilcox. Screenplay, Art Cohn; from 
“The Lord In His Corner" and other 
stories by Eustace Cockrell; camera 
(Aiisco Color),, George Folsey; editor, Bhn 
Lewis; music, Conrad' Salinger; theme 
"Weary Blues" by Harry . Warren and 
Ralph Blanc. Previewed Feb. 10, '54. Run- 
ning time,. 72 M|N$. 

Sarah Wurble .......... Shelley Winters 

Willy Wurble Keenan Wynn 

Daniel Norson Dewey Martin 

Happy Jackfleld Earl Holliman 

Luke MacWade Dave O'Brien 

Sixty Jubel Charles Buchlnsky 

Blossom Yvette Dugay 

J. B. Backett Frank Richards 

Andrews :..... Jack Kruschen 


Prizefighting and religion get an 
entertaining comedy mix in “Ten- 
nessee Champ,” an above-average 
prograriimer that should draw 
favorable comment from its play- 
dates in the general market. The 
chuckles are constant in the fast 
72 minutes^ the trouping is nifty 
and the Ansco color adds visual 
values for the bookings. 

The title hardly goes with a 
Shelley Winters starrer, being 
more suited to masculine toppers 
Keenan Wynn and Dewey Martin, 
but since story emphasis is on 
them it’s a fitting handle for the 
entertainment aims. Besides tlte 
playing of these three stars and 
Earl ' Holliman, heading the fea- 
tured list, the picture scores in the 
scripting and direction. Producer 
Sol Baer Fielding’s overseeing is 
excellent, permitting the Art Cohn 
screenplay to play off naturally 
under Fred M. Wilcox’s neatly 
valued direction. The flavor of 
Eustace Cockrell’s “The Lord In 
His Corner” and other stories by 
the author is maintained, even 
though the hero has been switched 
from a Negro prizefighter with 
religion to a white character. 

Wynn portrays a fast-buck fight 
manager who finds a new boy to 
fleece when he pulls Martin out 
of the river. With Wynn’s smart 
management and by having the 
Lord fn his corner, Martin comes 
along fast until Wynn tries tq 
promote a crooked match and his 
fighter finds out about the deal and 
leaves the manager flat. The reli- 
gious philosophy of Martin finally 
gets through to Wynn, he turns a 
new leaf and stages an honest bout 
between Martin and Charles Bu- 
chinsky, a man the hero believed 
he had killed in an early-footage 
scrap. The new Wynn pleases Miss 
Winters, his wif^, and the film ends 
on uplift note. 

Little touches of character and 
comedy prevail in most * of ~ the 
scenes to make the picture better 
entertainment than its normal 
booking slot. The. three stars come 
over excellently and Holliman 
scores as a punchy fighter con- 
tinually blowing a tiny, concealed 
harnionica.' Buchinsky, Dave 
O’Brien, Yvette Dugay, as Martin’s 
sweetie, Frank Richards, Jack 
Kruschen and others do their share 
towards helping the amusement. 

Theme melody, “Weary Blues*’ 
by Harry Warren and Ralph Blade, 
is featured : in the background 
throughout arid has appeal. Conrad 
Salinger did the, good, score and 
George Folsey the topnotch color 
lensing.: Other credits are com- 
petent, too* Brog. 


“Bait” is the fourth in a series 
of low-budgeters that writer-pro- 
ducer-director-actor Hugo Haas 
has turned out since his “Pickup” 
for Columbia release started the 
cycle in the summer of 1951. In 
keeping w.ith previous entries, his 
latest effort contains a generous 
helping of sex and melodrama. 

While such time-tested ingredi- 
ents obviously hold audience inter- - 
est, the story of which they’re com- 
ponents is too familiar and evident 
to command more than average re- 
turns from the program market. 
Subject, however, is an exploitable 
one and strong selling on this as- 
pect may help offset the lack of 
marquee names in the cast. 

Screenplayed by Samuel : W. 
Taylor from his own yarn, the 
script is. localed in the northern 
California mountains where eccen- 
tric prospector Haas has been seek- 
ing a “lost” gold mine for almost 
20 years. Suffice to note that he 
locates the lode with aid Of John 
Agar with whom he previously 
agreed to split 50-50 on the 
proceeds. 

. But with the glint of ' the gold 
to goad him on, Haas conceives of 
a diabolical scheme to murder Agar 
and appropriate the latter’s share. 
He baits the trap With his (Haas’) 
waitress-wife, Cleo. Moore, arid at- 
tempts to lead the younger couple 
into a compromising spot' so Agar 
could be slain as “justifiable homir 
cide.” Plan backfires into his own 
death! 

Haas, who usually collaborates 
on the scripting, contributed addi- 
tiorial dialog on this one. But more 
than ektra conversation is needed 
to make the Taylor story ring with 
realism and plausibility. In what 
amounts to virtually a nne-man af- 
fair, Haas makes good use of his 
limited^ production values but his 
direction falls short of making the 
subject an absorbing one. His por- 
trayal. of . the prospector ris fair. 

. Agar acquits himself favorably 
as Haas’ husky partner who for the 
most part restrains his instincts 
when femininity in the buxom 
shape’ of Miss Moore pervades the 
trio’s One-room mountain cabin. 
She capably fills the moderate de- 
mands of her role and under some 
interesting camera angles shows 
that she can wear lingerie with the 
best of her contemporaries. Ade- 
quate support is provided by Em- 
mett Lynn and Bruno Ve Sota, 
among others. 

There’s brief prologue to the film 
in which Sir Cedrick Hardwicke 
more or less does a “monodrama” 
as the devil. It’s intended as some 
“stage-setting’- for Haas’ machina- 
tions and as such probably attains 
its objective. Camerawork of Ed- 
ward P. Fitzgerald represents com- 
petent lensing especially in his 
shots of mountain vistas. Vaclav 
Divina’s score blends nicely with 
the general mood. Gilb. 


You Know What Sailors 
. Ar© 

(BRITISH — COLOR) 


Amusing British comedy about 
a naval hoax; Okay for gen- 
eral exhibition in U.S. 


London, Feb. 9. 

General Film Distributor* release of 
Julian Wintle production. Stars Akim 
Tamiroff. Donald Sinden, Sarah Lawson. 
Naunton Wayne. Directed by Ken Anna- 
kin. Screenplay, Peter . Rogers; camera. 
Reginald Wyer; editor. Alfred. Roome; 
music; Malcolm Arnold, At Odeon. Lei-, 
cester Square, London, Feb. 9. ‘54. Run- 
ning time, 19 MINS. 

President of Agraria Akim Taihiroff 

LL Green ..... .......... Donald Sinden 

Betty Sarah Lawson 

Capt. Owbrldge Naunton Wayne 

Lt. Smart . . . ; . .... ; . , . . Bill Kerr 

Gladys_ Dora Bryan 

Prof. Pfumbaum Martin Miller 

Admiral Michael Shepley 

Capt. Hamilton /Michael Hordern 

Vontz Ferdy Mayne 

Commander Voles ....... Bryan Coleman 

Stores Officer Cyril Chamberlain 

Patty Officer .............. Hal Osmond 

Ahmed Peter Arne 

Jasmin Shirley Lorrimcr 

Almyra Janet Richards 

Hepzibah Eileen Sands 

ri- Marianne Stone 

Lt. Andrews Peter Dyneley 

Lt. Ross Peter Martyn 

. Lush Technicolor, luscious girls 
in an eastern harem ^ and a neatly 
sustained joke about a naval hoax 
are the main boxoffice ingredients 
of this new British comedy which 
looks set for healthy returns in the 
home market. As pure escapist en- 
tertainment it also deserves, gen- 
eral, showing overseas, including 


America; wfleae they appreciate 

' or 1,ughin ‘ 

The ;tltte>f the" film, does not 
give a fair impression of its stori 
content although it may have mar. 
quee lure, parflcularly if exploited 
alongside some scenes of the beau 
ties who decorate the picture. 

The plot shows three navaf offi- 
cers, who have been taking on 
plenty of liquor, wending their 
way back to their ship arid collect- 
ing an old perambulator frame and 
a pawnbroker’s sign. Still in their 
cups, they, rig these on to a visit- 
ing naval, vessel. The following 
morning a shamefaced officer sud- 
gests that It might be a new type 
of radar equipment known as 
“998.” This starts a: top brass 
clamor for priority installation of 
the equipment on a British ship 
While the mystery is being probed 
in England/ the offending officer 
has been seconded to the foreign 
ship as a radar instructor and gets 
highly involved. 

By far the best part of this is 
during the earlier; sequences of 
bright quips. But tt is in the latter 
half that the . film has its main 
visual appeal. The screen is fre- 
quently filled by a bunch of eye- 
filling girls who keep the young 
officer a prisoner in the president’s 
palace.’ 

Participating in the comedy is a 
team of fine British performers. 
Akim Tamiroff’s robust portrayal 
of the president is in sharp con- 
trast to Donald Sinden’s apprehen- 
sion as the young naval officer. 
Sarah Lawson fills the romantic 
lead with charm While Naunton 
Wayne is good for many chuckles 
as a harassed senior naval officer. 
Dora Bryan, as the president's Eng/ 
lish wife, and Martin Miller, play- 
ing the foreign scientist, are at the 
head of a slick supporting cast. 

Pic has been- adroitly directed 
by Ken Annakin. George Provis 
has done an effective job with the 
se : ts, particularly those of -*ie pres- 
ident’s palace. Myro. 

Weak and the Wicked 

(BRITISH) 

• ■ • ! .s' 

Authentic story of irisida 

femme prison without bars. 

Suitable as dualer in U.S. 


. London, Feb. 9. 

Associated British release of Marble 
Arch production. - Stars Glynis Johns. Di- 
rected by J. Lee-Thompson. Screenplay, 
J, Lee-Thompson Sc Anne Burnaby . in col- 
laboration with Joan Henry; camera, Gil- 
bert Taylor; editor, Richard Best, At 
Ritz. London, starting Feb. 2, ’,54. Run- 
ning time, •• MINS.. 

Jean Glynis Johns 

Michael John Gregson 

Betty .Diana Dors. 

Babs . ............. . . . i Jane Hylton 

Syd Baden. .Sidney James 

Nellie. Baden Olive Sloane - 

Grandad Eliot Makeham 

Harry Wicks ,..A. E, Matthews 

Millie Athlene Scyler • 

Mabel.. Sybil Thorndike 

Tina. ...................... Simone Silva 

Joe'T. ...‘Paul Carpenter 

This new British film is based 
on the first-hand experience of 
Joan Henry of life in a women’s 
prison and a reformatory without 
bars. The subject matter, which is 
taken from her novel and adapted 
for the screen by J. Lee-Thompson 
and Anne Burnaby, is a safe for- 
mula for .a boxoffice meller. lt will 
register best in situations here 
where the quota seal is an addi- 
tional inducement/ In the U.S. 
and other overseas markets it will 
serve as a dualer. 

The incident"" and backgrounds 
are undoubtedly authentic but to 
encompass the experience of eight 
months in 88 minutes screen time 
leads to some scrappiness in the 
treatment. There is obviously no 
time to depict the boredom and 
isolation suffered by the femme in- 
mates. 

The focal point of the script is 
Glynis Johns, \yho plays a young 
girl of good family and education 
who is framed on a fraud charge 
after being unable to meet her 
gambling debts. Among the in- 
mates are Diana Dors, who takes a 
two-year rap for her boy friend; 
Jane Hylton, whose baby was suf- 
focated; Olive Sloane, ain inveter- 
ate shoplifter and Sybil Thorndike, 
a would-be poisorier who gels 
nabbed for blackmail. The inci- 
dents which led to their conviction 
are told in' short concise flasn- 
backs. 

Of particular interest to British 
audiences will be the scenes witmn 
the prison Without bars, a country 
mansion takeri over to give gooa 
conduct first offenders a chance to 
rehabilitate themselves and pre- 
pare for return . to normal lue. 
After the grim atmosphere of tne 
conventional prison, there is an air 
of comparative freedom 
plenty of hard work to keep the in- 
mates busy. Script maintains, an 
interesting narrative theme ana 
pinpoints sortie of the harder reg- 
ulations. J. Lee-Thompson has m* 
rected the piece vigorously and nas 
been ably supported by a fine cast 

of British name performers. 

Myro. 


ffednewUy, Febrmry 17 , 1054 



Albany, Feb; 16. +* 

Arresting allegations and state- 
ments were made here Monday 

aJamaI TiiiIhA T^mAe 


15) before Federal Judge James 
T Foley in . a motion by Schine 
Chain Theatres, Inc. and other 
Schine defendants, plus eight ma- 
jor distributing companies. Dis- 
missal is sought from a $3,000,000 
antitrust suit brought by the 
Charles E. Dickinson estate, alleg- 
ing damage to defendant’s one- 
third stock interest in Reliance 
Theatres, Inc., operator of the 
Palace Theatre, Lockport, from 
1933 to 1936. 

Russell Hardy, of Washington, 
counsel for the plaintiff, declared, 
"This business had been 'combina- 
tion-ridden for a! generation. That’s 
why we have treble damage suits 
running into the millions of - dpi-, 

^Havdy, who repeatedly referred 
to the Government’s antitrust 
cases against the Schine interests 
(the Lockport situation included) 
and against Paramount, sub- 
mitted for the record a number of 
documents, among them the con- 
sent decree, in the first-named. 
This was in reply to Frank G. 
Raichle/ of Buffalo, counsel for 
the defendants, who asserted that 
treble damages running into ‘‘mil- 
lions, and millions and millions of 
dollars” constituted a deterrent to 
the settlement and adjustment of 
cases where, a settlement and ad- 
justment should be made. The 
total of damages' claimed were al- 
most beyond “comprehension,’’ 
Raichle commented: 

If a suit like the one in question 
could be “resurrected • 13 or 14 
years later,” when . could “any de 
fendant or group of defendants 
make a settlement and expect to 
find surcease from claims being 
made later” by stockholders, em- 
ployees and others*? Raichle con- 
tended that the plaintiff had “ho 
standing,” that the complaint 
should be dismissed, with’ sum- 
mary judgment.' because (1) a 
(Continued on page 18) 


MAY GET CINERAMA 

London, 'Feb. 16. 
Deal for a Cinerama theatre in 
ondon is expected to be closed 
within a month, Joseph Bernhard, 
Stanley : Warner executive, re- 
urnedto New York last week after 
a two-week survey of houses here 
and confabs with theatre opera- 
ors. He is expected to return 
shortly to wrap up a deal. 

Under consideration are Prince 
ittler’s Stoll Theatre in Kingsway 
And Tom Arnold’s Casino. The 
Stoll built as an opera house by 
Oscar Hammerstein, with a seating 
capacity of 2,000, has in addition 
o the orchestra seats a grand cir- 
cle, a family circle and a balcony. 
Tilm-men who have seen Cinerama 
n the U. S. consider it the most 
suitable house for the medium. 
The Casino has a seating capacity 
Of 1,600. 

Associated - British Cinemas, it’s 
understood, was also interested in 
talking a deal, but outfit has no 
firstrun house in the West End and 
the best it could offer was a large 
suburban theatre. 



No ‘Waxey Gordon’ Clash 

Producer Lindsley Parsons, who 
plans to roll “I Put the Finger on 
Waxey Gordon” early in July, feels 
that the jftoperty will present no 
more difficulty under Production 
Code requirements that any Other 
provocative subject. Code report- 
edly is being revised so that, in 
future, any picture concerning a 
notorious criminal either present 
or past would be barred. 

Although Gordon’s name is spot- 
lighted in. the title, Parsons , points 
out that the late racketeer is only 
one of a number of characters in 
the magazine documentary au- 
thored by Morris Lipsius. Story’s 
emphasis, he said in New York last 
week, would be on undercover 
work in tracking down criminals 
Thus, even if the Code w ere 
changed, the plot would not far 
within the new verboten provi- 
sions. 

Moreover, Parsons added, the 
film would be done with “integrity 
Snd good taste” while the narcotics 
sngle would be “softpedaled.” 
Meantime, Warren Douglas has 
been assigned to 'screenplay the 
Lipsius story; Mark Stevens, as 
previously announced* will star in 
the Allied Artists release, while 
■Harold Schuster may direct. 

Parsons, who trained to the Coast 
Thur, (li) after a five-day Gotham 
stay, made the junket primarily to 
confer with A A sales chief Morey 
Loldstein on merchandising plans 
tor his upcoming Barry Sullivan 
Dorothy Malone starrer, “Loop 
hole;” Producer’s current filmmak- 
ln .f slate calls for several more pix 
with Stevens and Sullivan in sepa 
rate ventures, 

Nathan D. Golden/ director o* 
“ le motion picture division of the 
D e Pt. of Commerce, today (Tues. 
received from Commerce Secre 
lar y Sinclair Weeks the depart- 
ment’s Silver Medal for Meritor! 
°us Service. 




HUGHES 


Hollywood, Feb. 16. 
Court decision in tangled RKO 
minority stockholder suit is still 
further delated pending decision 
of . stockholders anent Howard 
Hughes’- offer to purchase all of 
firm’s assets for price equivalent 
to $6 per. share. Federal Judge 
Ben Harrison has set March 29 for 
hearing motions- by Bevhills at- 
torney Bernard Reich who has long 
sought to have set aside earlier 
quashing of service on Hughes. 
Attorney has wanted permission to 
take, deposition from Hughes. 

Local hearing date is one week 
after scheduled ^ hearing in Las 
Vegas Superior " Court which in 
turn is four days. after stockholders 
meeting March 18. Las Vegas ses- 
sion is for purpose of hearing mo 
tion to dismiss, based on Hughes 
Offer. 

In Federal Court here, Judge 
Harrison asked what effect 
Hughes offer had on case. Reich 
contended it had no legal effect 
although its practical effect is 
$12,000,000 counter-offer in 
$38,000,000 suit.” 

New angle in the case cropped 
up when two stockholders, Julius 
and Eleanor . November, who had 
previously been barred from the 
action in Nevada, indicated their 
intention to carry the legal battle 
to a higher court. Their counse 
Tom Foley, filed notice of an ap- 
(Continued on page 15) 


American exhibitors to • date 
have staked approximately $35,- 
000,000 on 3-D and other wide 
screen equipment? On top of this, 
it is likely that if no new innova- 
ions complicate the outlook still 
urther, U/S. exhibs face a stag- 
gering $200,000,000 Outlay /for new 
gear in the two years ahead. 

That total is based on the con- 
servative estimate of 10,000 regu- 
ar houses and 2,000 driveins toe* 
ng . the Cinemascope line, com- 
plete with full sound regalia. The 
estimates takes in labor, * but not 
any possible and even likely varia- 
tions in the present price of equip- 
ment. 

Coin will go primarily to six 
major equipment outfits— RCA, 
National Theatre Supply, Century,: 
Ballantine, Motiograph and Am- 
pex. Benefitting, too, will be the 
equipment servicing firms like 
Altec and RCA. ‘ 

Argument of exhibs who claim 
they are being saddled with an un- 
reasonably heavy expense in the 
face of economic uncertainties Is 
countered with the thought that 
the new systems have the poten- 
tial of bringing back a good seg- 
ment of the “lOst” audience. Ex- 
hibs who order their installations 
now / stand a good chance of. re- 
couping their investment in com- 
paratively short order, as the op- 
timists reason. 

Assumption here is that the 
wide screen will give the film biz 
a permanent lift. Which still 
leaves open the question of what 
will happen to the Johnny-come- 
latelies who get their equipment 
when Cinemascope has lost its 
novelty value. 

Breakdown so far shows exhibs 
out about $10,500,000 for 3-D 
( Continued on page 21 ) 


“a 

a 



FAR EAST SALES HEAD 


•f Five major newsreels since the 
end of the war have gradually, tap- 
ered off their - sports / coverage, 
presumably on account of tv coin- 
petish, a Motion Picture Assn, of 
America analysis of newsreel con- 
tent over the past 14 years shows. 

Also showing a steady decrease 
in the 1940-1953 period were labor 


RKO BOARD IN 



Morey Marcus, with Republic 
since 1951, this week was named 

veepee of Republic Pictures Inter- 

national COrp, in charge of sales coverage and clips having to do 
for the Far East. His election to with aviation. Korean war footage, 
the long vacant post, was disclosed which made up 10.49$ of the reels 
by company prexy Richard W. Alt- i n 1951, slipped to 5.7% and 4.3%, 
schuler. respectively, in 1952 and 1953. 

Formerly Rep’s general manager The pattern on political and gov- 
in Japan, Marcus headed Metro s ernment news Coincides with elec-* 
Far East offices before joining tion tension?, Eisenhower-Steven- 
Rep in 1951. At one time^ he son campaign took up an unprec- 
also supervised Paramount Inter- edent ed 9.5% in 1952 whereas in 
national’s operations in southeast 1948 the ratio was 6,19$ and in 
Asia. . 1944 only 5%. 

In any year following an elec- 
tion, the reels paid intensified at- 
tention to government news. In 
1945 it was 11.7%. By 1948 it had 
dropped to 6% only to rise to 
12% in 1949. In 1953, the count 
jumped to 10.1% from the prior 
year's 5.9%. 

Sports before the war took up as 
much as a. full quarter or mote of 
the. newsreels’ footage. DuHng the 
war, it diminished; rising to the 
bid height in 1946 and 1947; Then, 

Newly-constituted RKO board, at ft 

its Atlanta meeting over the past ft ™nft Pe ftr!nlH 

weekend penciled in Feb. 24 as the w ft h 

likely date to approach stockhold- \ 1 v th ?rnm P 99 5 fn 8 f 040 d ?^ P i P 7 ? 

erS with Howard Hughes’ offer to from 22.5 in 1949 to 17.3 

buy out the company at the equiva- ln 

lent of $6 per common share. Labor Coverage Down 

Proxy statements will go out at 

that time. Stockholders’ meeting is deal of reel attention in the imihe- 

slated for April 18. diate po f o?? r yea . rs ’ dr ° PI 5 ed 

Atlanta session had strange *2% in 1951, went up to 1% in 
angles but there were some seem- .!*p2 and diminished to .1 ,0 in 
ingly logical explanations. Reason 1953. Religious news also isn’t get- 

f or Choosing the Dixie site was that Dng much of a break in recent 

J Miller Walker’s presence was years although it was covered pret- 
required for a board quorum since ty well during the war and riglit 
neither Hughes nor Noah Dietrich, after it. In 1946, the newsreels 
the airman’s closest business asso- gave as much as 2.39$ of their time 
■ elate, felt they were legally en- to it. During the past three years, 
titled to a board voice on anything not even 1% of the filmed news 
relating to the buyout propojsl. was of a religious nature. 

Walker, Who has been inactive Foreign hews, which started to 
since last Christmas due to reasons slip in 1949 until, in 1951 it rated 
of. health, has been resting in only 18.4% of the reel’s time, went 
Georgia and the other board mem- up to 23,59$ in 1952 and 27.1% in 



Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

Six scripters, three of whom 
worked on one screenplay, were 
nominated for the $1,000 Heritage 
Press Award, which will be pre- 
sented by prexy George Macy Of 
the publishing house on Feb. 25 at 
the sixth annual awards dinner of 
the Screen Writers Guild. Award 
is for “The best written script of a 
picture adapted from a recognized' 
classic/' ^ 

Nominees and their pictures are: 
Talbot Jennings, Jan Lustig and 
-Noel Langley, for Metro’s “Knights 
of the Bound Table"; Herb .Mead- 
ow, Wartters’ “Master of Ballan- 
trae”; Lawrence Edward Watkin, 
Disney’S “The Sword and the 
Rose,” and Barre Lindon, Para- 
[ mount’s “War of the Worlds.” 


Determined to break 20th-Fox’s 
“all or nothing” stereophonic 
sound policy, Allied States Assn, 
is planning an appeal to the Dept, 
of Justice. A complete report of 
the sound controversy is currently 
begin prepared by general counsel 
and board chairman Abram F. My- 
ers and will be submitted to the 
D, of J! shortly. 

Exact basis of Allied’s complaint 
has not been revealed, but it’s be- 
lieved it will be charged that 20th's 
policy has the effect of restricting 
films to key houses that customar- 
ily play on pre-releases. A state- 
ment by Myers to Allied’s board 
recently charged “that these early 
showings are at increased admis- 
sion prices and, of course, expend- 
ed clearances are implicit in this 
method of doing business.” An- 
other angle that Allied may at- 
tempt to pursue, based on state- 
ments by its leaders, is that 20th 
is. seeking to persuade competing 
companies not only to make 
C’Seope pictures but^also to re- 
strict the films to houses with full 
stereo sound installations. Allied 
claims that 20th is making progress 
(Continued on page 16) 


‘New Faces’ Into Oriental ; 

Legit Version Ran 6 Mos. 

Chicago, Feb. 16. 

Sudden booking of “New Faces 
of 1952” film version was made 
last week by Oriental Theatre, for 
Feb. 25 opening. Originally, “Night 
People” had been set for that date, 
but house booker Charles Hogan 
said the quick substitution was 
made because a print for the other 
CinemaScoper Wasn’t available: 
“New Faces” is in for an extended 
run. 

Legit edition of the revue had a 
very successful six month run in 
the Windy City last year. 


bers had to go to him. 

A? the board convened, Miller 
and A D. Simpson resigned, the 
RKO byiaws were amended to pro- 
vide for an enlarged directorate of 
seven members and four new. ap- 
pointments were made. They were 
E. L. Walton, exec assistant to 
president James R. Grainger; Wil- 
liam H. Clark, treasurer; Garrett 
Van Wagner, comptroller, and 


1953.; United Nations news has 
(Continued on page 16) 


Canada Promise? Ail Aid 
To Prods. Lensiiag There 


Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

Canada is making a pitch for 

Charles Boasberg, general sales Jnore film production north of the 
manager. border. At a meeting of the Screen 

Motivating the personnel shifts Producers Guild, Don Henshavv, 
was the fact that both Walker ‘and re presenting the Canadian Cooper- 
Sifnpson are parties to stockhold- ative Project, promised full use of 
ers suits against management and facilities and elimination of gov- 
it Was felt they also should have no ernmental red tape to Hollywood 
part in a vote on the Hughes pep- producers who want to make films 
posal. The four new board mem- in the Dominion. He added that 
bers, who are not directly linked Canada had grossed $20,000,000 on 
with the stockholder actions, went U. S. productions last year, 
through the motions of accepting “Canada,” Henshaw said, “has 
the Hughes deal in behalf of the never forgotten the tremendous 
company but subject to majority help, offered us by the motion pic- 
approval of the stockholders. ture industry during World War II. 

In addition to the four new ap- At the end of the last conflict, we 

pointees, the board membership estimated that Hollywood had 

includes Hughes, Dietrich .and made us a gift of $15,000,000 in 
Grainger. time r talent, facilities and material, 

in addition to more than 100 top 
1AM Ell II DI7 1ID 007 stars who traveled the length and 

JAIL rlLIlft DIL Ul (J/o breadth of our land helping the 

Victory Loan and Red Cross and 


IN CHICAGO TAX DATA S 


Analole Litvak Off 20th 

Anotole Litvak and 20th-Fox 
have called off their multiple-pic 


Chicago, Feb. 16. 

While other amusements slipped 
approximately 99$ last month un- 
der January of 1953, motion pic 
ture biz went up 39$ for the ses- 
sion. These statistics are based on deal. The producer-director, who 
revenue paid to City Tax Collector, left N. Y. for Europe over |he past 
which showed theatres paying weekend, balked at doing “De- 
$89,500 in taxes last iflonth against siree,” adaptation of the bestseller, 
$86,500 for the same month last for 20th and this disagreement led 
year. Upbeat on the film scene has to dissolution of hjs pact: 
been consistent each month since Company had insisted that Lit- 
last Spring, with the improvement vak lens “Desiree” on the Coast 
running as high as 12% for one and in Cinemascope. Litvak wanted 
summer month. to shoot the film abroad and in 

Tax paid by all amusements, in- standard format. The differences 
eluding theatres, last month- reg- could not be resolved. „ 

istered $148,507. In January a year Litvak s -last, was ^ Act of Love^ 
ago amusements had shelled put for release by United Artjsts. This 
$151,487. I was produced in France* 




Have you seen the grosses, 
in theatres large and small, 

on THE ROBE, HOW TO MARRY 
A MILLIONAIRE, BENEATH THE 
12-MILE REEF, KING OF THE 
KHYBER RIFLES and HELL AND 
HIGH WATER! 


Wednesday* February ,17; 1954^ 

Chi RO. Paring; IHilb’-Satchmo 


1VIIU V* VJVVV) V UVVIV \JI VIII 



Chicago, Feb, 16. 

Biz is perklng.this session, along 
the mainstem, as four new bills are 
helping traffic to thicken. “Glenn 
Miller Story” is sounding off a 
mighty $76,000 with Louis Arm- 
strong combo helping onstage at 
the Chicago, Roosevelt is landing 
ereat 5524,000 for “His, Majesty 
O’Keefe.” The World is brisk at 
$7 300 with “Rome 11 O’Cloqk.” 
Reissue of “Hamlet” is grabbing a 
fast $6,000 at the Surf. 

Grand is still dealing in big 
chips with second round of “Money 
From Home,” having dropped the 
second feature for faster turnover. 
United Artists is sluggish with “Ft. 
Bravo” and “Three Young Texans” 
while the Monroe with “Forever 
Female” looms brisk, 

State-Lake is hitting a good pace 
in fifth with “Knights of Round 
Table.” “12-Mile Reef” continues 
sturdy in sixth at the Woods. “Juli- 
us Caesar 1 ’ is weakening at the Sel- 
wyn. “Cinerama” is still mammoth 
in 29th frame at Palace wickets, 
Estimates for This Week 

Chicago (B&K) (3,900; 98-$1.25) 
—“Glenn Miller Story” (U) with 
Louis Armstrong topping stage 
show. Giant; $76,000. Last week, 
“Sadie Thompson” (Col) (2-D) with 
stageshow (3d wk), $32,000. 

Grand (RKO) (1,200; 55-98)— 
“Money, From. Home” (Par) (2-D) 
(2d wk). Wow $22,000 after $28,000 
ldst week. 

Loop (Telem’t) (600; 98-$1.25) — 
“Living Desert” (Disney) (8th w r k). 
Good 558.700. Last week; $9,200. 

Me Vickers (JL&S) (2,200; 65- 
$1.25)— ‘Eddie Cantor Story” (WB) 
(3d wk. Holding stoutly at $15,000.- 
Last week, 1 $20,000. 

Monroe (Indie) (1.000; 55-98)— 
“Forever Female” (Par) (2d wk). 
Brisk $7,300. Last week.’ $10, 000. 

Oriental (Indie) (3,400; 98-$1.25) 
—“Khyber Rifles” (20th) (3d wk). 
Hefty $21,000. Last week, $26,000. 

Palace (Eitel) (1,484; $1.25-$3.60) 
—“Cinerama” . (Indie) (29th wk). 
Terrific $42,500. Last week, 
$41,000. . 

Roosevelt (B&K) (1,400; 55-98) — 
“Majesty O’Keefe” (WB) and “Gun 
Belt” (UA)). Looks lively $24,000. 
Last week, “3 Sailors and Girl” 
(WB) arid “War Paint” (UA) (2d 
wk), $16,000. 

Selwyn (Shubert) (1,000; $1.25- 
$2.40)— “Julius Caesar” (M-G) (8th 
wk). Nice but unexciting $10,500. 
Last week, $12,500. 

State-Lake (B&K) (2,700; 98- 
$1.25)— “Knights Round Table” 
(M-G) (5th wk). Very good $28,000. 
or near. Last Week, $37,000. 

Surf (H&E Balaban) 685; 98)^ 
“Hamlet” (Indie) "(reissue). Sturdy 
$6,000. Last week, “Folly To Be 
Wise” (Indie) (rij.o.) (3d wk), $2,700. 

United Artists (B&K) (1.700; 55- 
98— “Ft. Bfavo” (M-G) and “Three 
Young Texans” (20th)) (2d wk). 
Slow $13,000. Last Week, $21,000. 

Woods (Essaness) (1,198; 98- 
$1.25)— “12-Mile Reef” (20th) (6th 
wk). Bright $13,000. Last week, 
$16,000. . > ■ 

World (Indie) (687; 98)— “Rome 
11 O’clock” (Indie). Sock $7,300. 
Last week, “Little Fugitive” (Bur- 
styn) (7th wk), $3,700. 

Ziegfeld (Lopert) (430; 98) — 

“Gilbert and Sullivan” (UA) (4th 
wk). Trim $2,700. Last week, 
$4,600. 


. 2d, ‘Cantor’ 15G, 3d 


Estimates Are Net 

Film gross estimates as re- N 
ported herewith from the vari- 
ous key cities, are net; I. e., 
without the 20% tax. Distrib- 
utors share on net take, when 
playing percentage, hence the 
estimated figures are net in- 
come. 

. The parenthetic admission 
prices, however, as indicated, 
include the U. S. amusement 
tax. 


‘Command’ Loud $15,000, 
Omaha; ‘Fire’ Brisk 10G, 
‘Enemy’-’Caesar’ Big 7G 

Omaha, Feb 16. • 
An influx of newcomers is boost- 
ing biz here this week, with “Easy 
to Love” and “Command” pacing 
the new entries. “Public Enemy”- 
“Little Caesar,” oldie combo is 
solid at Brandeis. Weather contin- 
ues mildish for February, which 
helps. * ■ _ 

Estimates, for This Week 
Brandeis (RKO) (1,100; 50-75)— 
Public Enemy” (WB) and “Little 
Caesar” (reissues). Solid $7,000. . 
Last week. “Wild One” (Col) andl 
‘El Alamein” (Col), same. 

Omaha (Tristatesi (2,000; 65-90) 
—“Cease Fire” (Par) and “Outlaw 
Territory” (Broder). Bright $10,- 
000. Last week, “War Arrow” (U) 
and “Yukon Vengeance” (AA), 
$7,000 at 50-76c scale. 

Orpheum (Tristates) (2,890; 70- 
90)— “Command” (WB). Robust 
$15,000. Last week, “Khjiber 
Rifles” (20th), $13,000, below hopes. 
State (Goldberg) (875; 50-80 W 
Easy To Love” (M-G). Hearty $6,- , 
500. Last week. “Knights of Round ] 

Table” (M-G) (3d Wk), $5,000 at 80- ^ 
vl scale. 



Toronto, Feb, 16. 

Of the newcomers, “Botany Bay” 
and “Forever Female” are neck- 

and neck to top the town on neat 
returns. Holdovers are topped by 
“Knights of Round Table” in fifth 
stanza and “12-Mile Reef” in third. 
“Miss Sadie Thompson” in second 
frame also is lusty. 

Estimates for This Week 

Downtown, Glendale, Mayfair, 
Scarboro, State (Taylor) (1,085; 955; 
470; 694; 698; 35-60)— “Wicked 
Woman”. (UA) and “Steel Lady” 
(UA). Sock $17,000, sparked by 

visit of Beverly Michaels of cast, 
Last week, “Tumbleweed” (U) and 
“Combat Squad” (Col), $14,500. 

Eglinton, University (FP) (1,080; 
1,558; 40-75)— “Forever Female” 
(Par). Big $14,000; Last week, 

“Man Between” (UA) (2d wk), 

$ 11 , 000 . 

Hyland (Rank) (1,250; 60-90)— 
“The Sinner” (Indie) (5th wk). 
Satisfactory $5,500. Last week, 
$7,000. ^ 

Imperial (FP) (3,373; 60-$l)— 
“12-Mile Reef” (20th) (3d wk). Oke 
$11,000. Last week, $15,000. 

Loew’s (Loew) (2,096; 90-$1.50) — 
“Knights Round Table” (M-G) (5th 
wk). Neat $12,000. Last week, 

$15,000, 

Odeon (Rank) (2,390; 50-90)— 
“Sadie Thompson” (2-D) (Col) (2d 
wk). Fine $12,000. Last week, 

$16,000. 

Shea’s (FP) (2,386; 40-75)— 

“Botany Bay* (Par). Lusty $14,000. 
Last week, “3 Sailors and Girl” 
(WB), $11,000. 

Towne (Taylor) (695); $1.25-$1.75) 
^“Julius Caesar” (M-G) (8th wk). 
Final week looks fine $5,000. Last 
week, same. 

Uptown (Loew’s) 72,745; 65-$l)— 
‘‘Quo Vadis” (M-G) (reissue). Nice 
$14,000. Last week, “Walking Baby 
Home” (U) (2d wk), $9,000. 


‘SADIE’ INDPLS ACE, 
SOCKO 13G; ‘FIRE’ 8G 

Indianapolis, Feb. 16. 

Biz is good at most first-runs 
here this stanza. “Sadie Thomp- 
son” at Loew’s looks to lead town 
With nice figure, but “The Com- 
mand” at the Indiana is close. 
“Money From Home,” playing 2-D 
on moveover, at Keith’s after 3-D 
session at Indiana, is strong. “Cease 
Fire”, at Circle is fair* 

Estimates for This Week 

Circle (Cockrill-Dolle) (2,800; 60- 
86)— “Cease Fire” (Par) (3-D) and 
“Marry Me' Again” (RKO). Fair 
$8,000. Last week, “Eddie Cantor 
Story” (WB) and “Texas Badman” 
(AA), $10,000. 

Indiana (C-D) (3,200; 60-85)— 
“The Command” (WB). Trim $12,- 
000. Last week, “Money From 
Home” (Par) (3-D), $14,000. 

Keith’s (C-D) (1,300; 60-86)-^ 
“Money From Home” (Par) (2-D) 
(m.o.). Very good $6,500. Last week, 
“Nebraskan” (Col) and “Singing, in 
Corn” (Indie) (3-D), $4,000, 

• Loew’s (Loew’s) (2,427; 60-85) — 
“Sadie Thompson* (Col) (2-D) and 
“Prisoner of Casbah” v (Col). Sock 
$13,000. May stay. Last week, 
”Easy To Love” (M-G) and “Mis- 
sion Over Korea” (Col). $11,000. . 

Lyric (C-D) (1,600; 50-76)— 

“Border River” (U) and ‘‘Under- 
cover Agent” (Lip). Fairish $5,500, 
with 1 All-Star Jamboree onstage re- 
placing second feature Sunday only 
at 95c-$l. 25 scale. Last week, “Miss 
Robin Crusoe” (20th) and "Yukon 
Vengeance” (AA), $6,000. 





‘KNIGHTS’ WHAM 26G, 
PR0V; ‘SLADE’ $7,500 

Providence, Feb. 16. 

Upped scale and CinembScope 
will tilt “Knights of the Round 
Table” to socko returns at Loew’s 
State. Majestic is still hot with 
second week of .“Command," Aver- 
age biz is being rung up by RKO 
Albee’s “Man in Attic.” Metropol- 
itan opened Sunday with “The 
Moon Is Blue” and two strikes 
against it because the bishop of 
Providence appealed for Catholics 
to remain away from 'it. State is 
very heavily Catholic. Strand 
opened Monday with “Jivaro.” 

Estimates for This Week 

Albee (RKO) (2,200; 50-70)— 
“Man In Attic” (20th) and “Yank 
In R.A.F.” (20th) (reissue). Average 
$7,000. Last week, “Khyber Rifles” 
(20th) (2d wk), $9,000. 

Majestic (Fay) (2,200; 80-$l)— 
“Command” (WB) (2d wk). Solid 
$11,000. First week, $16,000. 

Metropolitan (Snider) (3,100; 50- 
70)— “Moon Is Blue” (UA) and 
“Shark River” (UA). Opened Sun- 
day (14)* Catholic Bishop McVin- 
ney appealed to 'all . Catholics, 
through : the diocesan newspaper 
and at all masses Sunday, to stay 
away, from the theatre because of 
the “Condemned” listing. Last 
week, house dark. 

State (Loew) (3,200; 90-$1.25)— 
“Knights Round Table” (M-G). 
Socko $26,000. Last week* “Bad 
for Each Other” (Col) and “Man 
Crazy” (UA), $14,000. 

Strand (Silverman) (2,200; 50-70) 
—“Jivaro” (Par) ahd “Alaska Seas” 
(Par). Opened Monday (15). Last 
week, “Jack Slade” (AA) and “Pri- 
vate Eyes” ( AAlj, okay $7,500. 


iti* 9 



St. Louis, Feb. 16. 

St. Louis patrons and those from 
surrounding states are giving “Cin- 
erama” a terrific initial week at 
the 1,400-seat Ambassador. Spring- 
like weather over the past week- 
end is credited with giving biz a 
hypo all over town. “Easy To 
Love” shapes solid at Loew’s while 
“Stranger Wore Gun” looms good 
at Orpheum in 3-D. “The Com- 
mand” shapes fancy in second ses- 
sion at the St. Louis. “War Arrow” 
Wound up a nice round at the big 
Fox Monday (15). 

Estimates for This Week i 

Ambassador (Indie) (1,400; $1.20- 
$2.40)— “Cinerama” (Indie). ■ Wow 
$33,000. Last week, not open. 

Fox (P&M) (5,000; 60-75)— “Bot- 
any Bay” (Par) and “War of 
Worlds” (Par). . Opened today 
(Tues.). Last week, “War Arrow” 
(U) and “Forbidden City” (U), nice 
$12,0d0. 

Loew’s (Loew’s) (3,172; 50-75)— 
“Easy To Love” (M-G). Swell $18,- 
000. Last week, “Knights Round 
Table” (M-G) (7th wk), $10,000, 

Missouri (F&M) (3,500; 60-75)— 
“Treasure Sierra Madre” (WB) 
and “Kiss of Death” (20th) (reis- 
sues). Mild $8,500. Last week, 
“Majesty O’Keefe” (WB) and 
“Paratrooper” (Col), $8,000. 

Orpheum (Loew’s) (1,500; 60-75) 
— '“Stranger Wore Gun" (Col) 
(3-D) and “Slaves Babylon” (Cob. 
Good $8,000. Last week, “Torch 
Song” (M-G) and “Steel Lady’ 
(UA) (3d wk), $5,500. 

Pageant (St.‘ L. Amus.) (1,000; 90) 
—“Little Fugitive” (Burstyn) (5th 
wk). Fast $3,000 after $3,500 in 
fourth round. 

St. Louis (St. L. Amus.) (4,000; 
60-75)— “The Command” (WB) (2d 
wk). Fancy $9,500 after $14,000 
opening stanza. 

Shady Oak (St. L. Amus.) (800- 
90) — “Tonight At 8:30” (Indie), 
Oke $2,000. Last week, “Captain’s 
Paradise” (UA) (7th wk), $2,500. 


‘Hell’ 23G, lagoon’ 7£G, 


VVIIUIIHUU IVU VVIITl 


Denver, Feb. 16. 

Highest money-getter here this 
round is “Hell and High Water,” 
which is packing the Denver to a 
holdover. “The Command” did the 


same at the Paramount with a 
sturdy' total, and will stay the 
same as “Hell.” “Creature From 
Black Lagoon” shapes lively in two 
smaller houses. “Money From 
Home” is doing well enough in sec- 
ond Denham week, and holds over 


again. 

Estimates for This Week 
Aladdin (Fox) (1,400; 50-85 — 
“Little Fugitive” (Burstyn) (2d 
wk). Fine $6,000. Stays bn. Last 
Week, $5,000. 

Broadway (Wolfberg) (1,200; 50- 
85)— “High Noon” and “African 
Queen” (UA) (reissues). Fair $4,- 
( Continued bn page 16) 


PICTURE GROSSES 



i 


With four new bills to help and 
the Lincoln’s Birthday long week- 
end also assisting. Broadway thea- 
tre business is holding a fairly 
steady pace in ‘the current stanza. 
Threat of Very cold weather 
futther held trade hack somewhat 
last Saturday^ Mild, almost spring- 
like temperature Monday (15) 
sloughed the boxoffice generally on 
that day. 

“Glenn Miller Story” is easily, the 
champ newcomer, With . a teriffic 
$95,000 likely in first week at the 
Capitol. Pic opened strongly and 
got a. further boost from near-rave 
reviews. An excellent campaign 
helped give the production a big 
opening. 

“Act of Love” shapes to get a 
sock $24,000 or close . in initial 
week at the Astor after an inten- 
sive, sex-slanted newspaper ad 
campaign; “Jivaro” with the usual 
vaudeville looks fine $21,000 at the. 
Palace. “Duffy of San Quentin” 
landed a fair $12,000 at the Holi- 
day Opening week, and stays only 
two sessions, 

Biggest coin again is going to 
the Music Hall with sixth week 
of “Knights of Round Table” and 
stageshow. In this current and final 
round, this combo likely will hit 
fine $123,000; “Long, Long Trailer” 
opens tomorrow (Thurs.) with new 
stageshow. “Majesty ■ O’Keefe” 
looms good $37,000 in second Week 
at the Paramount, and stays a 
third. " 

“Hell and High Water" i£ off 
to mild $68,000 or less in 10-day 
second frame at the Roxy. “New 
Faces” replaces Friday (19). “Rob 
Roy” Is sagging to modest $14,000 
in second round at the Criterion. 

“Should Happen To You” still 
is big with $22,000 likely, in fifth 
session . at the State. “Millionaire” 
is holding at fine $14,000 in 14th 
week at the Globe but ends its 
run on Feb. 26. 

“Golden Coach” is doing much 
better with continuous-run. policy 
at the Normandie with a big $9,500 
likely in its' fourth week and first 
with such setup. “Holly and the 
Ivy,” which had a big opening 
round, still is solid at $8,500 in 
second frame at the Trans-Lux 

Besides the new bills at the Mu- 
sic Hall, Roxy, Mayfair, and the 
Sutton, the Victoria brings in “Top 
Banana” this week, Friday (19). 
60th Street. 

Estimates for This Week 

Astor (City Inv.) (1,300; 80-$1.80) 
— ^“Act of Love (UA). Initial week 
winding up tomorrow (Thurs.) 
looks to hit. sock $24,000 or. near, 
this including Thursday (11) night 
trade when only a limited number 
of seats were sold. Holds, natch! 
In ahead, “Bigamists” (FR) (7th 
wk-6 days), $5,000 although initial 
weeks were okay. 

Baronet (Reade) (430; 90-$1.50)— 
“Final, Test” (Indie) (4th-final wk). 
Third round ended Sunday (14) 
held with good $4,300 after $5,500 
for second week. “Intimate Rela- 
tions” (Indie) opens Saturday (20). 

Capitol (Loew’s) (4,820; 70-$2.20) 
—“Glenn Miller Story 1 (U) (2d 
wk). Great $95,000 or near for first 
session ended last night (Tues.). 
Big from opening day, and fine crix 
appraisal generally keeping this 
rolling. In ahead, “Sadie Thomp- 
son” (7th wk r 6 days), $12,000. “Mil- 
ler” looks in for a longrun. . 

Criterion (Moss) (1,700; 85-$2.20) 
—“Rob Roy” (RKO) (3d wk). Ini- 
tial holdover round ended yester- 
day (Tues.) slipped to around $14,- 
OOD, moderate. First week was 
$ 20 , 000 . 

Fine Arts (Davis) (468; 90-$1.80) 
— “Conquest of Everest” (UA) 
(llth_wk). The 10th stanza ended 
last night (Tues.) held nicely with 
$7,300 after $8,300 for ninth. No 
windup of run in sight just yet. 

Globe (Brandt) (1,500; $1-$1.80) 
—“Millionaire” (20th> . (15th wk.) 
The 14th week ended Monday (15) 
held with nice $14,000 after $15,- 
000 for 13th week. “The Robe” 
(20th), first C’ScOpe pic to be re- 
leased, opens here Feb. 27 for sec- 
ojid-run bn Broadway. 

Guild (Guild) (450; $1-$1.80)— 
“Hamlet” (U) (reissue). Initial 
stanza ending today (Wed.) looks 
to hit $10,500. Holds. In ahead, 
“Times Gone By” (IFE) (6th wk-9 
days), $6,000. - 

Holiday Rose) (950; 70-$1.80)— 
“Duffy of San Quentin” (WB) (2d- 
flnalwk). Initial frame ended Mon- 
day (15) was fair $12,000. In ahead, 
“Diamond Queen” (WB) (2d wk), 
$8,000. “Bait” (Col) opens Feb. 23. 

Mayfair (Brandt) (1,736; 70-$1.80) 
—“Escape Ft. Bravo” (M-G) (4th 
wk-6 days). Fourth stanza ending 
today (Wed.) looks to reach good 
$9,500 after $9,000 for third full 


ide 2IG, ■ Daffy’ 12G 

week. “Riot in Cell Block IT’ (AA) 
opens tomorrow (Thurs.). 

Normandie (Normandie Theatres) 
(592; 95-$ 1.80)— “Golden Coach” 

(IFE) (4tli wk). Current round end- 
ing today (Wed.) looks like big 
$9,500, being first week on Con- 
tinuous-run and present scale. 
Third week, with $1.50-$240 scale 
and on two-a-day, was $9,000. Con- 
tinuous-run policy with $1.80 top 
looks like it would build this into 
a real longrun pic; 

Palace (RKO) (1,700; 60-$1.20)— . 
“Jivaro” (Par) with 8 acts of vaude- 
ville. Current round ending, to- 
morrow (Thurs.) is heading for 
nice $21,000. In ahead, “Man in 
Attic” (20th) and vaude, $19,500. 

Paramount (Par (3,664; 70-$1.80) 
—“Majesty O’Keefe” (WB) (2d wk). 
Initial holdover session ending to- 
morrow (Thurs.) looks like good 
$37,000. Stays a third week. First 
week was $49,000. “Money From 
Home” (Par) opens next, 

Paris (Indie) (568; 90-$1.80)— 
“Captain’s Paradise” (UA) (21st 
wk). The 20th week ended Sunday 
(14 held at big $9,000 same figure 
as in 19th frame. 

Rialto (Mage) (600; 50-98)— 

“Striporama” (indie) (20th . wk). 
Current fram ending tomorrow 
(Thurs.) is heading for fine $4,200. 
The 19th week was $4,000. Stays on. 

Rlvoll (UAT) (2,092; 95-$2) — 
"Khyber Rifles” (20th) (9th wk). 
The eighth stanza ended yesterday 
(Tues.) held at light $9,500 after 
$10,000 for seventh. 

Radio City Music Hail (Rocke- 
fellers) (6,200;$l-$2.75)— “Knights 
of Round Table” (M-G) and stage- 
show (6th-final wk). Looks to fin- 
ish longrun here with nice $123,000 
after $119,500 in fifth week, Initial 
C’Scope pic looks to hit $809,000 
in its six-week run. “Long, Long 
Trailer” (M-G), Desi Arnaz-Lucille 
Ball comedy, with stageshow, 
opens tomorrow (Thurs.).' 

Roxy (Nat’l. Th. (5.717; 65-$2.50) 
— “Hell and High Water" (20th) 
(2d wk-10 days). Looks to finish 10- 
day final week ending tomorrow 
(Thurs.) with mild $68,000. First 
week was $75,000. “New Faces” 
(20th) opens Friday (19). 

State (Loew’s) (3,450; 85-$1.80)- — 
“Should Happen To You” (Col) 
(5th wk). Current round ending to- 
morrow (Thurs.) looks to hold with 
big $22,000 after $26,000 in fourth 
week. Stays on. . ^ 

Trans-Lux 60th St. (T-L) (453: 
90-$ 1.50 ) — “Holly and the Ivy” 
(Pace) (2d wk). Present frame 
ending today (Wed.) is shaping to 
hit solid $8,500 after $10,000 in 
opener, over hopes.. Continues. 

‘Trans-Lux 52iid St. (T-L). (540; 
90-$1.50) — “Lill” (M-G) (50th 

wk). The 49th week ended Mon- 
day (15) pushed up to solid $7,- 
800 after $7,400 for 48th stanza. 
Continues to make it at least a 
full year at this house. 

Victoria (City Inv.) (1,060; 95- 
$1,80) — “Forever Female” (Par) 
(6th wk). Climbing to okay $10.- 
000 in week ended yesterday 
(Tues.). Stays two extra days to 
bring in “Top Banana” (UA) on 
Friday (19). “Female” hit $9,500 
,lh fifth week. . _ 

Warner (Cinerama Prod.) (1,600; 
$1.20-$3.60 ) — ’‘Cinerama” ( Indie ) 
(37th wk). Present session end- 
ing tomorrow (Thurs.) is holding 
at sock $42,000 after $41,500 in 
36th week. Continues on. 


Sub-Zero Weather Back 
In Mpls, Biz on Skids; 
‘Money’ Mildish $8,000 

Minneapolis, Feb. 16. 

* Unwelcome - return of sub-zero 
temperatures and some moderate 
newcomers are hurting the boXof-* 
fice currently. Topper is “Money 
From Home” and this is coming 
through in. the usual sock Martin 
& Lewis grosser, The well-liked 
“3 Sailors and a Girl” also 
looks only modest. Two hold- 
overs, “Khyber Rifles” and “Cruel 
Sea,” both in second weeks, are not 
faring too well. 

Estimates for This Week 
Century (Par) (1,600; 65-85) — 
“Jeniffer” (Indie). Poor $3,000. 
Last week, “Forever Female” (Par), 
$5,000. . 

Gopher (Berger) (1,000; 65-85) — 
“Hell’s Half Acre” (Rep). Mild $4.- 
000. Last week, “Jivaro” (Par), 
$3,200. 

Lyric (Par) (1,000; 65-85)— 

“Take Me to Town” (U) and “Veils 
Bagdad” (U). Upper half , of this 
tw'in bill well received. Modest $4,- 
( Continued on page 16) 


10 


MfaJEtt WtiutdMr, Febnury 17, 1954 



'SPEAKING OF SCOPE 

ASK US FOR ANYTHING!" 


M-G-M’s got product for every type of operation in this business! 

While the spectacular CinemaScope sensation "KNIGHTS OF THE ROUND 
TABLE' ' (in color magnificence— Robert. Taylor, Ava Gardner, Mel Ferrer, Anne Crawford) 
is packing theatres from Coast to Coast . 

And the world’s first CinemaScope Musical ’’ROSE MARIE” (in color glory— Ann 
Blytb, Howard Keel, Fernando Lamas) will thrill the public in March . , . 

M-G-M points proudly to a wealth of entertainment for all theatre needs. 

"RHAPSODY” 

Technicolor — Elizabeth Taylor , Vittorio Gassman, y John Ericson* 

"GYPSY COLT” 

In color — Donna Corcoran, Ward Bond, Frances Dee, and Gypsy. 

"TENNESSEE CHAMP” 

In color— Shelley Winters. 

"FLAME AND THE FLESH” 

Technicolor — Lana Turner , Pier Angela Carlos Thompson. 


THE LON©, LONG TRAILER” 

In color— Lucille Ball, Desi A rnaz. 

"EXECUTIVE SUITE 1 

William Holden, June Allyson, Barbara Stanwyck, Fredric 
March , Walter Pidgeon, Shelley Winters, Paul Douglas, 
Louis Calhem . 

"JULIUS CAESAR” 

Marlon Brando, James Mason, John Gielgud, Louis Calhem, 
Edmond &Brien, Greer Gar son, Deborah Kerr . 




business 

. >*» 

across the land 

♦- 

for Warners' 

new big 




WarnerColor .«o Stereophonic sound 


*T MIRIM* 


“THE COMMAND" GUY MADISON joan weldon -james whumore 


co***wa nuiiat itoMu* 


OHODUCIDftV PiACCltDOV 

DAVID WlttlANT • DAVID BUT lit 





*VA*l«TY'r LONOON OPPICI 
• M. Xtarfhi’i Mm* Trafalfir'fcwuar* 
" ■— X 11 


rVTKRXATIOXAI. 


13 



Net; Would Reach Germany, France 


B r JOSEF ISflAELS n 

Vienna, Feb. 9. 

There is talk among the military 
personnel stationed In Europe (al- 
though without official substantia- 
tion $o tar) of the possible con- 
struction of U.S.-operated television 
stations to serve localities support- 
ing heavy troop and dependent 
family concentrations. Incidentally, 
this would start feeding a video pic- 
ture of U.S. life to the slowly in- 
creasing number of native set own- 
ers in Germany and France. There 
are areas in Germany, France and 
Austria where a normal tv transmit- 
ter range would cover from 10,000 
to 100,000 troops plus some thou- 
sands of family members. 

It is reasoned that with state- 
side tv now the rule rather than 
the exception, why shouldn't the 
Armed Forces Network prepare to 
serve overseas Yanks with kines or 
tape-recorded tele as they long have 
done through AM shows mostly 
taped or disked in the U.S. Mili- 
tary and diplomat families, living 
generally at a better standard than 
their income allows at home could 
efi'ord receivers distributed through 
PX facilities, ahd eventually taken 
home at the end of overseas tours. 

On the propaganda side, it is rec- 
ognized that the Army AM pro- 
grams have gathered a . large audi- 
ence among natives; of countries 
where Americans are stationed. 
Even those „ understanding little 
English often find Yank music 
more to then? taste than the. local 
brand. Disk jocks and request 
shows in Germany and Austria are 
receiving, (and answering) an in- 
creasing number of responses from 
native listeners. Even certain U.S. 
comics (Red Skelton and Jack 
Benny especially), heard through 
delayed transcriptions, have a solid 
following outside the Army camps. 
It is reasoned that tv could have an 
even greater effect, especially if 
the U.S. Information Agency co- 
operated by making viewing avail- 
able in the “America House” info 
centers, or maybe in key picture 
houses. On the budget side, the 
AFRS operation would absorb the 
transmitting cost from already size- 
able Army welfare funds replen- 
ished from profits of the PX; Stars 
and Stripes newspaper and sport- 
ing events. Thus, the info agency 
would have only comparatively mi- 
nor receiver costs to. bear. It’s fig- 
ured U.S. sponsors and networks 
would continue to make programs 
available (sans commercials) free. 

Politico Pressure on State Dept. 

Here in Austria, political pres- 
sure on the U.S. State Department 
to relinquish its operation of the 
Red- White-Red network (three sta- 
tions) is increasing. . The British 
have just announced a return to 
Austrians of all stations in their 
occupation zone, and recently the 
Russians lightened their censorship 
and requisitioned time demands on 
Ravag, the basic Austrian network. 
In returning stations in Carinthia 
and _ Slyi’ia to local operation the 
British specified they must; con- 
tinue to relay BBC programs as 
long as programs of other occupa- 
tion powers are heard on other 
transmitters. 

-• Fred Taylor, RWR director for 
the USIA, points out our situation 
is somewhat different from that of 
British or Russians since, most of 
RWR facilities were built from 
scratch by. the U.S. while others, 
simply grabbed existing sations at 
the end of the war. That means an 
American investment of several 
million dollars which Austrian au- 
thorities have shown no signs of 
willingness, to pay. 


Moore Exits Canada TV 
For Stratford Festival 

Toronto, Feb. 16. 

Mavor Moore* top television pro- 
ducer for the Canadian. Broadcast- 
ing Corp. for the past three years, 
has resigned, effective March 1, to 
return to theatrical directing and 
acting. A close associate of Tyrone 
Guthrie in last season’s launching 
of the Shakespearean Festival at 
Stratford, Ontario, starring Alec 
Guinness, Moore , will play leading 
roles in this summer’s forthcoming 
festival, starring James Mason. 

He will , also write and produce 
the annual , edition of “Spring 
Thaw,” a musical, revue, presented 
the last three seasons here at the 
Museum Theatre by his mother, 
Dora Mayor Moore, founder-direc- 
tress of the New Play Society, 



. ■ Lisbon, Feb. 9. 

Carnival time, which should he 
the best period of the year for the- 
atres in this Roman Catholic, coun- 
try, is not as it should be this year. 
The changeable weather, a small 
epidemic? of flu and quality of the 
shows are the reasons given for 
the mildish boxoffice. 

The Maria Victoria- continues 
with its revue, “Short Skirts,” now 
in its fifth .month. Actor-manager 
Eugenio Salvador, his comedians 
Max and Correia ; Umberto Ma- 
deira, Camillo Oliveira and Teresa 
Gomez -plus' tenor Tome Barros, 
fado singer Fernanda Baptista, and 
the acro-dancers Catherine and 
Orly fill the house nightly. 

Another house doing good biz is 
the Monumental with “Braziliana,” 
with the dancers, singers and play- 
ers from .Brazil, Joao Villaret re- 
ports fairly good biz with his one- 
man show at the Teatro Avenida. 
Since overhead is low the show is 
able to continue on moderate 
grosses. 

Teatro Nacional has Bernstein’s 
“Israel” for SRO biz at matinees; 
everybody agrees the play is out- 
dated but becaue the femme lead 
is by the doyenne of the Portu- 
guese theatre, Palmira Basto, with 
Raul Carvalho and Luiz Felipe, the 
play comes over. Same theatre is 
doing poor biz at night with "The 
Prodigal Son,” by Isabel Nobrega. 

Teatro Apolo has a new revue 
starring Herminia Silva, comedian 
Alvaro Pereira, and songstress Ju- 
lia Barroso. Biz is very spotty, and 
it won’t last long after Carnival 
time. 


C ol, Metro Win Bonus 
Film Awards in Japan 

Tokyo, Feb. 9. 

‘ Bonus quotas” have been award- 
ed to Metro, Columbia and Itali- 
an. entitling them to import one 
extra film above their quota for 
1 9,13-54. Japanese Finance Ministry 
liiacle the awards after screening 
1 2 candidate , films released last 
yvar. The Winning films were. “Lili” 
( M-G i, “Here To Eternity” (Col) 
and “Olden Days” (Italifilm)-. 

Films selected by the companies 
for release under the extra quota 
aie: “Mogambo” (M-G), “5,000 
“infers of Dr. T” .(Coir- and the 
Ralifilm, “Umberto . D.” Paramount 
W“h a bonus previously with 
‘ c °me Back Little Sheba.” 


BRITISH LAB UNION 
LAUNCHES ‘SLOW-DOWN’ 

London; Feb, 9. 

On orders from their union boss- 
es, several hundred processing 
workers started a “go-slow” in Lon- 
don film laboratories following re- 
jection of their claim for a wage 
hike by the Film Laboratory Assn. 
Under the union edict, the workers 
have slapped on an overtime ban, 
and are adopting the recognized la- 
bor technique here of working to 
rule. 

Immediate result of the overtime 
stoppage has been to compel the 
five British newsreels . to go to 
press at least 12 hours ahead of 
normal schedule. The situation 
may become worse if the dispute 
is prolonged. 

There will also be delay in the 
processing of daily rushes at all 
studios. These will be held up by 
at least 24 hours but w ; ll only hit 
producers who are about to stride 
a set. 


20th-Fox Gets London 
Spot for C’Scope Pix 

London, Feb. 9. 

Twentieth-Fox has leased the 
Carlton Theatre, Haymarket, from 
Paramount. Deal was signed here 
last week and the takeover be* 
edmes effective Feb. 26. 

Theatre will be used as a show- 
window for the company’s Cinema- 
Scope output. 


Galt Syndicate After 
Aberdeen Vaude House 

Glasgow, Feb. 9. 

' William R, Galt Syndicate, Glas- 
gow theatre owners, have offered 
$150,000 for purchase of the Tivoli, 
leading Aberdeen vaudery. Deal- is 
likely to go through, acceptance of 
offer having been recommended to 
shareholders. 

Galt syndicate and its associates 
already control the Palace, Dun- 
dee, Palladium, Edinburgh; Gaiety, 
Leith, and Paisley Theatre near 
here. Company is headed by Wil- 
liam Galt. 



London, Feb. 16. 

All workers in British film stu- 
dios have beert- sent a copy of the 
British film producers’ reply to 
their claim for a wage increase; 
The original application, made on 
behalf of the three studio unions, 
claims that wages have net been 
kept. up. with the rising cost of 
living, and seeks a substantial in- 
crease in basic rates. 

. The producers contend that ex- 
isting wages. . are pegged to those >J 
established during the boom period 
of 1947, and that they are sub- 
stantially above the average for in- 
dustrial Workers. They empha- 
size that it is impossible to pass on 
increased costs to consumers and 
they charge the unions with over- 
estimating the financial and psy- 
chological stability of the industry. 

A further wage increase, they as- 
sert, could threaten the industry’s 
future prospects. ' 

Explaining that all production 
costs are continually increasing, 
the British Film Producers Assn, 
reply declares that a film which 
cost $336,000 in 1951 would now 
absorb a budget of $364,000. 

Pointing' out that increased for- 
eign competition necessitates an 
increase in color production, the 
BFPA answer also stresses the de- 
velopments of new screen tech- 
niques, claiming this may force 
them to make two negatives, one 
for widescreen and the. other for 
2-D. If higher costs are imposed 
on British studios at this point, it 
would lead to making of fewer 
films, less work and lower wages. 


Paal Sets 




Studio; 
to 


Munich, Feb.. 9. 

* Indie producer Alexander Paal, 
who recently completed “Three 
Cases of Murder” for Sir Alexan- 
der Korda’s London Films, has'set 
a coproduction wuh Real-Film of 
Hamburg as his next venture. Ti- 
tled “Columbus Discovers Kraeh- 
winkel,” the project is scheduled 
to, go before the color cameras May 
3 as a locationer in the Bavarian 
village of Michelstadt. 

Sydney Chaplin will star in the 
comedy which Axel von Amhesser 
will script from Paal’s original 
story. Picture, whose interiors arc 
to be lensed in Real-Film’s Ham- 
burg studios, will be made in both 
American and German versions. 
Owners and operators of Real-Film 
are Walter Koppel and J. G. Tre- 
bitscli. 

In Munich to cast “Kraeh- 
winkel.’’ Paal plans to return to his 
Hamburg headquarters tills week, j 
Next on his production slate is 
the previously announced Techni- 
color musical, “Gypsy King,” which, 
will star Eva Bartok. This also will 
be filmed in Real-Film’s studios. 
Still a third Paal project this year 
is “Flight 108.” Based upon a Cana- 
dian airliner crash, it’s to be made, 
in Canada next September. 

Trenet Big Mex City Bow 

Mexico City, Feb. 9. 

Charles Trenet bowed on an 
eight-week booking at El Patio, pi- 
oneer swank local nitery here. He 
planed in from. Montreal with' his 
pianist. Opening two shows did 
tUrnaway trade. 

Jorge Miranda, El Patio boss, in- 
sisted that Trenet get an okay to 
play TadiO and tv, and work in a 
pic. 


French Pix Production at Low Ebb 



Jau.Fi 



Ahead of ’52 in Japan 

Tokyo, Feb. 9; 

The new year began with a bang 
for Japanese film distributors, with 
the iqonth of January bringing a 
chopping $75,000,000 in filnv gross- 
es from foreign and domestic films. 
Figure is nearly $2,000,000 more 
than in January, last year, 

Top house in the land was 
Tokyo’s Yurakuza where . “The 
Robe” (20th) did $100,000. So big 
is the first C’Scope film to be 
screened here that 20th-Fox has 
extended its ruh for two more 
weeks postponing preem of “How 
to Marry a Millionaire.” Latter 
was set . to open at Yurakuza Feb. 
20 and could have cashed in well 
o:v the current visit here of : MarR 
lyn Monroe, one of femme stars of 
the film. 


0 




Copenhagen, Feb. 9. 
Hollywood again dominates pan-* 
isfNcihemas after several months 
when local product was played at 
rfiore film houses here than ever 
before “Here to Eternity” (Col) 
brojfce. the house record at the Pal- 
ladium (1,347-seater) in its first 
two ; weeks and is expected to ru n 
three months. “Lili” (M-G). played 
Copenhagen’s biggest cinema, the 
Pal^ds, for eight fine weeks and is 
being followed by another Metro 
pic, “Story of Three Loves.” 

“Limelight,” distributed here by 
F.C.P., became the season’s top 
moneymaker by playing the. World 
Cinema since last October at capac- 
ity houses arid raised prices. The 
theatre has to take “Limelight” oil 
within a few. weeks to fulfill other 
film commitments. 

“The Moon Is Blud” (UA) got a 
good reception at the Dagmar. 
“Young Bess” (M-G) is going into 
its third week at Kino-Palaet. Re- 
markably few French and Italian 
pix are showing just now. but 
Great Britain has three films at 
first-runs. 

All five Danish film producing 
companies are wmiking at top 
speed, turning out a greater num- 
ber of local pix than ever before. 
Danish pix dominated the nation’s 
cinemas from August until Janu- 
ary. 


Paris; Feb. 16. 

Film production here is at a low 
mark for this time of year, which 
saw over 12 films in production 
last year. Only six are in work this 
year. Production is expected to 
pick up again in March when all 
the studios will be humming again. 
The . reason for the decline has 
nothing to do with the state of the 
industry, which' is fairly balanced, 
but was artificially caused by the 
wait for the completion Of the Film 
Aid Law. 

This' law, which goes into effect 
this month, has i stipulation that 
no fdnds can go to a producer until 
all back debts arc cleared up. This 
applies to all producers except the 
very top large-budgeted companies, 
which have too great an overhead 
to be abler to comply with this edict 
immediately. Bulk Of small produ- 
cers consequently have gone into a 
month of checking of books and 
straightening accounts. 

The aid funds, which are doled 
out as loans on the receipts of the 
last filth and its prestige Value to 
French pictures abroad, probably 
will have a leavening influence on 
French pix this year. The so- 
called quickie is slowly dying Out 
and the Film ; Aid law may set a 
higher quality standard, with a big* 
ger dosage of the pop spectacles. 

Coproduction, with its more- af- 
fluent funds and the use of coior, 
big stars' and directors, will be in 
ascendancy this year. Such top di- 
rectors asv Retie Clair, Jacques 
Becker, Jeajn Renoir, H. G. Clouzqt, 
Rend Clement, ' Andre Cayatte, 
Marcel Carne, Claudo-Autant-Lara 
and G. W. Pabst all have projects 
to be made this year with Cinerpa- 
Bcope, and tinters predominant: 
among the films. 



Brings Banker 'Beefs 

Mexico City. Feb. 9. 

. Dip in tourist trade, officially ad- 
mitted to be but io °b from record- 
high of 1952, is worrying local 
bankers. Private talks they have 
been holding brand as “non-pro- 
ductive” the issuance of permits to 
tourists. The bankers opine that 
th price of these is too high ($3 
per), and boomerangs since it in- 
duces many potential visitors, 
mostly Americans, to go elsewhere 
on vacations. 

The government’s take from 
these permits is insignificant com- 
pared to what it can garner from a 
big. healthy tourist trade, the bank- 
ers say. They claim that abolishing 
Ute permits or charging a nominal 
fee of a few cents would hypo tour- 
ist trade and go far towards re- 
storing generally good times. They 
recommend allowing all visitors in 
for-free for periods of not more 
than 15 days, a liberal average for 
most tourists. 


Sam Levene Leaving 
London Cast of ‘Dolls’ 

London, Feb. 9. 
The second major change in the 
cast of the London production of 
“Guys and -Dolls” takes place next 
week when Sam Levene exits the 
role of. Nathan Detroit. He will 
be replaced by Sidney James, 

The previous top casting switch 
was in the latter part of last year ! 
when Edmund Iiockridge sue- 1 
cecded Jerry Wayne as Sky Master: j 
son. I 


Mexico’s Lower Admish 
At Cinemas Cuts Into 
Exbib, Govt. Revenues 

Mexico City, Feb. 9. 
Ceilinged admission prices of 
34c. -46c., enacted for the local 
cinemas in December, 1952, defi- 
nitely do mean less coin for ex- 
hibitors and the city’s treasury. 
The treasury department figures 
on local cinema gross for 1953 
prove that frequent beefs of ex- 
hibitors that the new, lower prices 
produce much less revenue were 
not just idle talk. 

The 1953 gross was $13,991,583, 
while in 1952 it was $14,041,955. 
The department 'admits that the 
$50,372 less last year resulted di- 
rectly from the ceilinged admission 
prices. The old top price was 58c. 
The report reveals that the depart- 
ment got $69,770 less in tax money 
from cinemas last year than in 
1952. The local cinema nick is 
16.20 r o on the gross. November 
was the top month last year. 

ExJi ibs are not optimistic about, 
abolition^ of the lower admission 
minimum, at least during 1954. 
They have abandoned Hie efforts 
they made last year to attain that 
abolition because they were con- 
vinced about the uselessness of 
trying again with the current city 
government. 


‘CAMILLE’ NAMED TOP 
ARC. PICTURE FOR ’53 

Buenos'Aires, Feb. 9. 

Argentina’s Academy of Motion 
Picture Art and Sciences has voted 
annual awards for the host pictures 
of 1953. Argentina Sono Film’s 
"Camille” was voted best film of 
1953. “Caballito Criollo” (“C’riollo 
Pony") (Emelco) took second 
place • and “Del Olio Lado del 
Puente” < AAA ) , third. 

In addition . to the best-picture 
aw&'rd, “Camille” won. the best di-. 
■rector Condor for Ernesto Aran* 
cJbia, best actress for Zully Mo? 
re no, best photography for Antonio 
Merayo. and third prize in the tops 
story adaptation class for W. Eisen 
and Ernesto Arancibia. 


’Madam X/ for Mexican Film 

Mexico City. Feb. 9, 
“Madame X,” pie rights. to w-hich 
he brought for Mexico from Metro, 
is to be made into a film here soon 
by Gregorio Wallerstcin, a front** 
line producer. 

He has inked Liberlad Lamarque, 
Argentinian actress and singer, to 
star. 








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Wedoeflday, Febnuuy 17, 1954 



MINNEAPOLIS 

(Continued from page 9) 

000.. Last week, "Go Man Go” 
(UA), $5,000. 

Radio City (Par) <4,000; 85-$l) 
—"Khyber Rifles" (20th) (2d wk). 
Far from setting town on fire but 
okay $10,000. Last week, $15,000. 

RKO-Orpheum (RKO) (2,890; 
65-85)— ”3 Sailors and Girl” 
(WB). Meeting with much favor, 
but bringing, no rush of patrons, 
Moderate $8,000. Last week, “12- 
Mile Reef” (20th) (3d wk), $9,000 
at 85c-$l scale. - . 

RKO-Pan (RKQ) (1,600; 40-76) 
—“O'- v/eb” (U) arid "Tumble- 
weed” (U). Fair $5,000; Last week, 
■'Nebraskan” (Col) and "Drums of 
Tahiti” (Col), $4,500. 

State (Par) (2,300; 85-$U— 

•‘Money From Home” (3-D) (Par). 
A single da^’s advance showing 
New Year’s eve as 2-D at Radio 
City chalked up big coin but this 
regular elate is pushing to giant 
$16,000. Last week, "Ceaee Fire” 
(3-D) (Par). $8,000. 

World (Mann) (400; 55-$1.70)— 
"Cruel Sea” (U) (2d wk). Okry 
$3,000. Last Week, $4,000. 


Burf; ‘Rob Roy’ NSG 8G 

Buffalo, Feb. : 16. 

"The Command” is standout 
newcomer in session With fe!w new 
pix around, being terrific at the 
Center. “Rob Roy” is very disap- 
pointing at the Century. “Money 
From Home” shapes sturdy in sec- 
ond week at the Paramount, 
"Knights Round Table” shapes big 
In third round at the Buffalo. 

Estimates for This Week 

Buffalo (Loew) (3,000; 90-$ 1.25) 
“-•"Knights of Round Table” (M-G) 
(3d wk). Big $14,000. Last week, 
$18,000. 

Paramount (Par) (3,000; 55-80W 
"Money From Home” (Par) and 
"Golden Idol” (AA) (2d wk). Po- 
tent $13,000. Last Week, $19,000. 

Center (Par) (2,000; .55-80) — 
"The Command” (WB), Wow at 
$17,000, for C’Scope preem here. 
Last week, "Eddie Cantor Story’’’ 
(WB) (2d wk), $8,500. 

Lafayette (Basil) (3,000; 50-80)-^ 
"Paratrooper” (Col) and “Killer 
Ape” (IncPe). Heading for lofty 
$15,000. Last week, “Hell’s Haif 
Acre” (Rep) and “Geraldine” (Rep), 
$ 10 , 000 . 

Century (Buhawk) (3,000; 55-80) 
—“Rob Roy” (RKO) arid “Below 
Sahara” (Indie). Soft $8,000. Last 
week, “Queen of Sheba” (Indie) 
and “Terror Street’’ (Lip), same. 

‘Female’ Lively $7,000, 
L’ville; ‘Bay’ Fair 9G 

Louisville, Feb. 16. 

The Kentucky , .is the one bright 
spot in local first-run picture this 
week, “Forever Female” had long 
lines over the weekend, and a 
bright session is likely. “Botany 
Bay” at Rialto is passable but “All 
Brothers Valiant” at State is mild. 
Second round of “Command” at 
the Mary Anderson is off from 
opening week but still big. 

Estimates/for This Week 

Kentucky (Switow) (1,200; 54-75) 
—“Forever Female” (Par) and 
"Private Eyes” (AA). Lively $7,- 
000. Last week, “Jesse Janies vs. 
Daltons” (Col) and “Drums Tahiti” 
(Col), both 3-D, $5,500. 

Mary Anderson (People’s) (1.200; 
75-99)— “Command” (WB) (2d wk). 
Pace has slackened on h o. but still 
big at $7,000, after last week’s 
$ 10 , 000 . 

Rialto (Fourth Avenue) (3,000: 
54-75) — “Botany Bay” (Par) and 
“Fighting Lawman” (AA). Fairish 
$9.000. Last week, "Caddy” (Par), 
$18,000, and m.o. to Brown. 

State (Loew’s) (3,000; 54-75) — 
"All Brothers Valiant” (M-G) and 
"Conquest Cochise” (Col). - Mild 
$7,000. Last week, “Escape Ft. 
Bravo” (M-G) and "Phantom From 
Space” (UA), same, 


WASHINGTON 

(Continued from page 11) 

— "The Command” (WB). Great 
$15,000. Last week, "Paratrooper” 
(Col), $9,000. 

Palace (Loew’s) (2,370; 85-$1.00) 

-r- “Money from Home” (Par). 
Smash . $25,000 for this Martin- 
Lewis starrer. Last week, "Khvbcr 
Rifles” (20th), (3d wk), $15,000; 

4 Playhouse (Lopert) (435; 55-$l)— 
'Living Desert” (Disney) (7th wk). 
Nice $4,500. Last week, $5,100. 

Warner (SW) (1,300; $1.20-$2.40) 
-- "Cinerama” (Indie) (15th wk>. 
Looks big $i9,000. Last week, 
$18,000. 

Translqx (T-L) (600; 90^$ 1.25) — 
"Here to Eternity” (Col). This 
record-breaking long run appears 
set for $4,500 in 25th week. Last 
Week, $5,000. 


‘Creature’ Huge $25,000, 
Deb ‘Money’ Mighty 26G, 
‘O’Keefe’ Torrid 14G, 2d 

. Detroit,. Feb. 16. 

"Money From Home” is grab- 
bing great coin at the Michigan 
with this Martin and Lewis pic. 
"Creature from Black Lagoon” is 
doing tremendous biz at the Broad- 
way-Capitol. Ditto for "Cinerama” 
in its 48th week at the Music Hall. 
Others are mostly averagfe or slow; 
"Three Young Texans” shapes only 
fair at the Fox. "Give Girl Break” 
is weak at the United Artists. 

Estimates for This Week 

Fox (Fox-Detroit) (5,000; $1) — 
"Three Young Texans” (20th) arid 
"Miss .Robin Crusoe” (20th). Slow 
$18,000. Last week, "Man in Attic” 
(20th) and “Man Crazy” (20th) (2d 
Wk), $20,000.’ 

Michigan (United Detroit) (4,000; 
80-$l) — "Money From Home” (Par) 
and "Redheads Seattle” (Par). 
Great $26,000. Last week, "Com- 
mand” (WB) (2d wk), $12,000. - 

Palms (UD) (2,931;. 80-$D— 
“Majesty O’Keefe” (WB) and 
“Flight Nurse” (Rep) (2d wk). 
Hotsy $14,000. Last week, $18,000. 

Madison (UD) (1,900; 80-$l)— 
"Wicked Woman” (UA) and “Fort 
Algiers” (U) (2d wk). Oke $9,000. 
Last week, $16,000. 

Broadway-Capitol (Up) (3,500; 
$1-$1. 15)— “Creature from Black 
Lagoon” (U) (3-D) and “Texas Bad- 
man” (AA). Tremendous $25,000. 
Last week, “Cease Fire” (Par) and 
“Shark River” (UA), $14,000. 

United Artists (UA ) ( 1,938; 80- 
$1)— "Give Girl Break” (M-G) and 
"Donovan’s Brain” (M-G). Disap- 
pointing $7,000. Last week, “Es- 
cape Ft. Bravo” (M-G) and "Great 
Diamond Robbery” (M-G), $12,000. 

Adams (Balaban) (1,700; 95-$ 1.25) 
^‘‘Knights Round Table” (M-G) 
(8th wk). Okay $6,000. Last week, 
$6,600. 

Music Hall (Cinerama Produc- 
tions) (1,194; $1.40-$2.80)— “Cine- 
rama” (Indie) (48th wk). Solid $21,- 
000. Last week, $$1,600. 

‘HELL’ HIGH $25,000, 
CLCVE; ‘FEMALE’ 9iG 

Cleveland, Feb. 16. 

“Hell and High. Water” shapes 
as standout here this round, with 
strong takings at the Hipp, . It is 
holding. “The Command,” the 
other C'Scoper in town currently, 
still is fancy in five days of sec- 
ond week at the Allen. Elsewhere 
results are desultory although 
“Easy to Love” is nice on move- 
over to the Ohio. "Forever Fe- 
male” looms only fair at the State. 
Estimates for This Week 

Allen (S-W) (3,0p0; 55-85)— 

“The Command” (WB) . (2d* wk). 
Fancy $10,000 in 5 days. Last week, 
smash $21,000. 

Hipp (Telemanagement) (3,700; 
55-85)— “Hell and, High Water” 
(20th). Strong $25,000. Holding. 
Last week, “Miss Robinson Cru- 
soe” (20th) and “Three Young Tex- 
ans” (2Qth), $12,000. 

Ohio (Loew’s) (1,200; 55-85)— 
"Easy to Love” (M-G) (m.o.). Nice 
$5,000 for third downtown lap. 
Last week, same. 

Palace (RKO) (3,300: 55-85)— 
“Bad foi> Each Other” (Col). Thin 
$8,500. Last week, “Walking Baby 
Back Home” (U), $10,000. 

State (Loew’s) (3,450; .55-85)— 
“Forever Female” (Par). Fair $9,- 
500. list week, “Wicked Woman” 
(UA). $1.3,000. 

Stillman (Loew’s) (2,700; 55-85) 
— “Cease Fire” (Par). Light $5,000. 
Last week, “Knights Round Table” 
(M-G (m.o.) (7th wk), $6,000. 

SEATTLE 

(Continued from page 11) 

and “El Alamein” (Col). Moderate 
$6,500, Last week, “Khyber Rifles” 
(20th) (3d wk), $6,800. 

Liberty (Hamrick (1,650; 65-90) 
—“Hell’s. Half Acre” (Rep) and 
“Sun Shines Bright” (Rep). Fair 
$5,000. Last week, “Wicked Wom- 
an” (RCp) and “Stranger on Prowl” 
(UA), $5,300. 

Music Box (Hamrick) (850; $1.25- 
$1.50)— "Ceasar” (M-G). (3d wk). 
Good $3,800. Last week, $4,700. 

Mu$ic Hall (Hamrick) (2.300; $1- 
$1.50 — “Caesar” (M-G). (3d wk). 
NSH $7,000. Last week, “knights 
Round Table” (M-G) (4th wk), $6,- 
500 in 8 days, 

Orpheum (Hamrick) (2,700; 65- 
90)— "Majesty O’Keefe” (WB) and 
“Red River Shore” (Rep) (2d wk- 
5 days). Off to $4,000. Last week, 
good $7,000. 

Paramount (Evergreen) (3,039: 
84-$l .09)— “Money from Home!’ 
fPar) (3-D) (2d wk). Okay $8,000 
alter $10,600 opener, 


‘Command’ Lofty, 10G, 
Port ; ‘Money* Hot 11G 

' Portland, Ore., Feb. 16. 

Big news here currently is socko 
money being rolled up by “The 
Command,” first WB C’Scoper, at 
the Liberty. “Money From Home” 
also shapes lively at the Para- 
mount. “Julius Caesar” is holding 
big in second round at the Guild. 

Estimates for This Week 

Broadtray (Parker) (1,890; .65- 
90)-~“Bad For Each Other” (Col) 
and ‘.-Paris Model” (Col). Modest 
$5,500. * Last week, "Forbidden” 
(U) and "Tumbleweed” (U), $7,300. 

Guild (Indie) (400; $1.25-$2.40) 
—"Julius Caesar” (M-G) (2d wk). 
•Giant $6,000. Last webk; $6,300. 

Liberty (Hamrick) ( 1,875; 75-$ 1) 
— "Tlifc Command* (WB). Socko 
$10,000 or near. Last week, “Maj- 
esty O'Keefe” (WB) and "Hannah 
Lee” (Indie), $9,600. 

Oriental (Evergreen) (2,000; $1- 
$1.50)— "Khyber Rifles” (20th) (4th 
wk). So-so • $3,400. Last week, 
"Keys of Kingdom” (20th) and 
"Male War War Bride” (20th) (reis- 
sues) ‘ (5 days), $2,100. 

Orpheum (Evergreen) (1,600; 65- 
90)— "Man In Attic” (20th) arid 
"Man Crazy” (20th). Okay $5,500. 
Last week, "khyber Rifles” (20th) 
(3d wk). $7,780. 

Paramount (Port-Par). (3,400; 65- 
90) — "Money From Home”. (Par) 
and “Monte Carlo Baby” (Indie). 
Lively $11,000 or close, Last week, 
“Jivaro’’ (Par) and Louis Arm- 
strong unit onstage, $16,500. 

United. Artists (Parker) (890; 65- 
90) — "Paratrooper” (Col) (2d wk). 
Mild $3,500. Last week, $6,400. 

DENVER 

(Continued from page 9) 

500 in 5 days. Last week, "Saadia” 
(M-G), $5,500. ; 

Denham (Cockrill) (1 ,750; 50-85) 
— “Money From Horiie” (Par) (2d 
wk). Fairish $7,000. Stays over 
again. Last week, $12,500. 

: Denver (Fox) (2*525; 50-85)— 
“Hell arid High Water” (20th). Big 
$23,000. Holding. Last week, “War 
Arrow” (U) and " Jennifer” (Indie)/ 
$15,000. . 

Esquire (Fox) (742; 50-85)— "Don 
Camillo” (IFE) and "Secret Con- 
clave” (IFE) (2d wk). Fine $3,500. 
Holds. Last week, $7,000. 

OrpheUm (RKO) (2,600; 50-85)— 
"Killers from Space” (RKO) and 
“Vigilante Terror” (AA). Fair $8,- 
000 or near. Last week, "Best 
Years of Lives” (RKO) (reissue), 
$ 11 , 000 . 

Paramount (Wolf berg) (2,200; 50- 
85) — "Command” (WB). Fancy 
$15,000. Stays on. Last week, 
^'Cantor Story” (WB), $13,500. 

Tabor (Fox) (1,967; 50-85)— 

"Creature from Black Lagoon” (U) 
(3d) and "Fangs Arctic” (U). Head- 
ing for *fine $5,000, Last week, 
"Taza, Son of Cochise” (U) (3-D) 
and “Yellow Balloon” (AA), $5,- 
000 . 

Vogue (Pike) (442; 60-90)— "Pro- 
moter” (U), Nice $2,500. Stays on. 
Last week, “Brandy for Parson” 
(Indie), $1,80Q. 

Webber (Bailey) (712; 50-85)— 
"Creature from Black Lagoon” (U) 
and “Fangs of Arctic” (U). Good 
$2,500. Last week, "Taza, Son of 
Cochise'’ (U) and “Yellow Balloon” 
(AA), $2,000. 



Continued from page 3 


bert, a former director of Trans- 
Lux and one of the defendants. 
Shubert’s executors were substi- 
tuted as defendants. 

In the main, the trial was de- 
voted to an attack on the practices 
of Harry Brandt in the buying arid 
booking of pictures for Trans-Lux 
theatres and the activities of the 
Brandt office in relation to certain 
theatre acquisitions by T-L. 

On a motion to dismiss the com- 
plaint — brought by Jerome Ross, 
George B. Mason and Walter 
Siemers — Abraham L. Pomerantz, 
attorney for Brandt, called upon 
Gardner Ingraham, attorney for 
the plaintiffs, to "concede there 
is no proof in this record that Mr. 
Brandt, in the course of buying 
and booking films for Trans-Lux, 
withheld or kept ten cents of 
money that he got from Trans-Lux 
for transmittal to a distributor.” 
Ingraham, according to the tran- 
script, said: "I will say that . . . 
we have put In rio eviderice which 
we claim shows that a particular 
film which had been paid for (by 
Trans-Lux to Brandt) . . . was not 
paid for in full” by Brandt to the 
distributor. 

Ingraham said an accountant had, 
pursuant ,to court order, inspected 
the records of the Brandt booking 
office for the period covering Aug. 
1, 1948, to Aug. 1, 1950. 

Iri support of his motion to dis- 
miss the case, Pomerantz argued : 
"I do not believe that ever iri the 


history of this court has an action 
been brought with more wanton 
charges against . more ’ reputable 
citizens and with more irresponsi- 
bility and less substance arid with 
more malice and * vengeance, than 
the case Of Ross . vs. Brandt, At 
the. appropriate time I will prove 
to .your.. Honor that .this . is -and ha£ 
been* litigation' dishonest in con- 
ception, dishonest in prosecution 
arid one Of largest hoaxes ever per- 
petrated Upon the Supreme Court 
of the State' of- New York.” 

Ross was at one' time a stock- 
holder of Trans-Lux, and accord- 
ing to: the defense counsel, the ac- 
tion was instigated and carried for- 
ward ' as a , "vendetta” against 
Brandt. Four other groups of. stock- 
holders, not connected with Ross, 
requested; and received: permission 
from Justice Di Falco to. drop out 
of the- case. 

.Plaintiffs are represented by 
McLanahan, Merritt & Ingraham; 
Brandt , is represented by Pome- 
rantz, Levy & Haudek, and the re- 
maining directors of T-L by Satter- 
lee, Warfield & Stephens. During 
the trial, Francis W. H. Adams, of 
the latter firm, was appointed 
Police Commissioner of New York 
City. . He was replaced by William 
Scott and Joseph Crowley of the 
Satterlee firm. . 



Contliiued from page 4 


ty”; . William Holden, "Stalag”; 

Burt Lancaster, "Eternity.” 

Best Actress: Leslie Caron; 
"Lili”; Aya Gardner, "Mogambo”; 
Audrey Hepburn, '‘Holiday”; Debo- 
rah Kerr, "Eternity”; Maggi Mc- 
Namara, "Moon Is Blue,” (Prem- 
inger, United Artists), 

Best Supporting Actor: -Eddie 
Albert, "Holiday”; Brandon De- 
Wilde, "Shane”; Jack Palance, 
"Shane”; Frank Sinatra, "Eterni- 
ty”; Robert Strauss, "Stalag.” 

Best Supporting Actress: Grace 
Kelly, "Mogambo”; Geraldine 
Page, "Hondo”; (Wayne-Fellows, 
Warners); Marjorie Rambeau, 
"Torch Song”; Donna Reed, 
“Eternity”; Thelma Ritter, "Pickup 
on South Street.” 

Best Director: Fred Zinneniann, 
"Eternity,” Columbia; C h a r I e s 
Walters, "Lili,” Metro; William 
Wyler, “Roman Holiday,” Para- 
mount; George Stevens, "Shane,” 
Paramount; Billy Wilder, “Stalag 
17,” Paramount. 

Best Motion ^ Picture Story: 
“Above and Beyond,” Beirne Lay 
Jr:, Metro; "Captain’s Paradise,” 
Alec Coppel, London Films (Lo- 
pert-UA); "Hondo,” Louis L’ Amour, 
Wayne-Fellows-Warners; "Little 
Fugitive/’. Ray Ashley, Morris 
Engel and Ruth Orkiri, for late 
Joseph Bursty n; "Roman Holiday,” 
Iain Mclellen Hunter. 

Best Screenplay: "Cruel Sea,” 
Eric Ambler, Rank-Ealing studios 
(British); "Eternity,” Daniel Tara- 
dash; “Lili,” Helen Deutsche "Holi- 
day,” Hunter and John Dighton. 
"Shane,” A. B. Guthrie Jr. 

Best Story and Screenplay: 
"Band Wagon,” Betty Comden, 
Adolph Green, Metro; “Desert 
Rats,” Richard Murphy, 20th; 
"Naked Spur,” Sam Rolohe, Harold 
Jack Bloom, Metro; “Take High 
Ground,” Millard Kaufman, Metro; 
"Titanic,” Charles Brackett, Walter 
Reisch, Richard Breen, 20th. 

Best Song: "Moon Is Blue,” title 
tune, Herschel Burke Gilbert, 
Sylvia Fine; "My Flaming Heart,” 
from “Small Town Girl,” Nicholas 
Brodszky, Leo Robin, Metro; 
"Sadie Thompson Song” (Blue 
Pacific Blues) from "Thompson”; 
"Secret Love” from "Calamity 
Jane,” Sammy Fain, Paul Francis 
Webster, Warners; "That’s Amore,” 
from "Caddy,” Harry Warren, Jack 
Brooks, Paramount. 


Newsreels 

Continued from page 7 


been in something of a slump since 
1950. 

Newsreels on the whole have 
been having a rough time of it over 
the past five years with many ex- 
hibs cancelling out for economy 
reasons. Also, while costs have 
risen, the theatres have been gen- 
erally unwilling to come across 
with higher rentals despite efforts 
on the parts of the reels to prove 
that the public wants them iri the 
theatres. 

It’s hoped that, With Cinema- 
scope possibly heralding a trend 
towards single feature billing, the 
reels may be given a new lease on 
life via the wide screen. 


‘tfalt of Earth’ 

Continued from page 3 — 

case. This ' is considered signifi. 
cant since those dose to Ernst say 
hie was willing to ;acf pfoyided he 
was given' a completely free hand 
on -the? defense. This - the "Salt* 
producers apparently' were riot will- 
ing to do. 

The IA has never: flatly come 
out against the picture. However, 
the union has - ofticially notified 
its projectionist meinbers to get in 
touch with N. Y/ headquarters be- 
fore handling or projecting the 
film. Privately, it’s said, the I A 
position has been expressed* much 
more positively. • 

Reaction to last, week's Variety 
disclosure of the I A dictum regard- 
ing "Sait” was divided with mariy 
in the induftry expressing dislike 
of a Red-line propaganda picture 
while at the same time voicing 
equal distaste for any union action 
predicated ; on film content. Fre- 
quent comment was that, even if 
the IA were * justified in stopping 
circulation of "Salt,” the implica- 
tions of such action went beyond 
this single instance and in fact 
constituted a worrisome precedent 

Oddly enough, though "Salt’* 
still lacks introductory titles and 
a rough work print is : being used 
for very-private-indeed< N. Y, 
screenings, the filnr already has 
begun to stir international reper-, 
cussions with Commie elements 
abroad charging "suppression” of 
the film by Hollywood and the 
S^ate Dept. 

Observers fear that fuel may be 
added ' to this controversy if and 
when international film festival au- 
thorities abroad begin asking for 
the picture, Which some believe 
they are very likely to do. There 
is some doubt that the government 
will allow "Salt” to he exported 
arid concern that, in such a case, 
foes of the U. S. abroad will be 
handed valuable ammunition. 

Npt Ready 

Biberman turned down a re- 
quest of Variety to see his pic 
with the explanation that "we 
aren’t ready yet.” Film doesn’t 
have a distributor so far* but it’s 
the producers’ final aim to get 
theatre, dates even if it should be- 
come necessary to rent houses. 

Film, which was lensed on lo- 
cation at Silver City, N. M., and 
completed on the Coast, tells of a 
strike by Mexican. Workers at a 
U. S. mine. Company hires strike- 
breakers. Eventuallv, the women 
take over the picketing to. circuits 
verit an injunction. Police try to 
evict the workers, but is stopped 
in the face of iriass opposition. 

Several persons who have seen 
the picture have commented that 
it is an out-and-out propaganda ef- 
fort. "Everything is black, or 
white,” one of those in the; audi- 
ence said. "The bosses, or their 
representative, are terrible; the 
police brutal, and all the workers 
noble and brave.” According to 
someone else/ "Salt” contains 
some extremely effective lerising 
but news to a none-too-subtle prop- 
aganda line. "If they’d edit out 
some of those barbed comments 
and red-line speeches it wouldn’t 
be a bad picture. In fact, editing 
would improve it,” he declared. 
Film has a couple of. brutal beat- 
ing sequences, including one where 
a miner is beaten up by thugs 
brought in by the company to 
break the strike. 


Allied May Sue 

Continued from page 7 ss 

"With its design” since Metro has 
refused to indicate a sales policy 
for C’Scope pix although Allied 
officials have asked for a clarifica- 
tion several times. 

Meanwhile, Alliedites were 
elated by the firm stand token by 
exhibitors in England in opposing 
20th’S: insistence on stereo sound. 
Referring to 20th sales topper A! 
Lichtman’s statement terming Al- 
lied’.s reception of 20th rep Alex 
Harrison as "reprehensible,” an 
Allied leader said: "What will 
Lichtman say about the way the 
English treated Skouras? I dare 
him to say anything about them. 
He said our treatment of Harrison 
was reprehensible, Look what the 
English exhibitors did to Skouras.” 
1 There were indicatioris that Al- 
lied in U. S< and CEA in Britain 
may get together for the purpose 
of exchanging views on strategy in 
the anti-sterophpnic sound, fight. 


Wednesday, February 17, 1954 


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* Translation: Judy means that business for Columbia’s "It Should Happen to You” has been sensational 

at Loew’s State,. New York and at the Stanley, Philadelphia, 


* , 


COLUMBIA PICTURES presents 

JUDY HOLLIDAY 


in 


IT SHOULD HAPPEN TO YOU! 

co-starring PETER LAWFORD with MICHAEL, O’SHEA 

and introducing JACK LEMMON 

Story and Screen Pfay by GARSON KANIN 
Produced by FRED KOHLMAR - Directed by. GEORGE CUKOR 







Vcdnoday, February 17 , I954 



Push TV As Screen Star-Maker 


Continued from page 3 


blood” ^ In Hollywood,- including 
players'ahd directors: . 

Balaban also commented on the 
point that lesser-scale pix, find not 
alone the ' epics, can cut- a neat 
caper at the b.oV “Even ‘Little 
Caesar" and ‘Public Enemy' are do- 
ing firie,” be said, noting- that the 
reissue combo, proved stronger 
than most new “A" product in Chi. 

Goldenson suggested that per- 
haps tv is partly responsible for 
this situation^ .He ' figures ‘■Drag- 
net," ‘‘The Web" and other such 
videb programs might have 
whetted the : public’s appetite for 
such themes “but in the form of 
a seven-course dinner at the thea- 
tre rather than a snack at home 
(via tv)." 

While elated anent the quality 
of pix, Goldenson feels the numeri- 
cal output is inadequate and ex- 
hibitors “should keep alert to the 
possibility of encouraging more 
production." He, Balaban and 
O’Donnell plan a swing of the stu- 
dios every four or five months “to 
keep'an eye on production.’’ Bala- 
ban interjects that exhibs and pro- 
ducers should huddle more often 
to swap notes. “We (exhibs) have 
information which they (produc- 
ers) need and should have," he 
remarked. 

Goldenson is a booster of 
Cinemascope— he figures 250 to 
300 UP houses now have it— -hnd 
regards stereophonic sound as an 
“added plus." He related he dis- 
cussed with . 20th production boss 
Darryl F. Zanuck the possibility of 
using four sound tracks with cer- 
tain scenes and an electronic cut- 
off to two or only one track with 
other scenes. Zanuck agreed that 
streospund has such possibilities 
which have yet to be worked out, 
the AB-PT topkick relayed. 

Another Goldenson observation: 
“Each new stereophonic film wjll 
improve; ypu can’t start off With 
perfection.’* 


the ABC network and will be 
given the second lead in, perhaps, 
a dramatic airer at the first op- 
portunity. On-camera competence 
and public reaction will be closely 
measured. One or two more tv ex- 
posures, possibly in a full-lead as- 
signment, will be considered. 

Is He/She Ready? 

Overall results will determine 
whether the thespian is v ready" 
for pix. Assuming that sajd player 
has caught on via tv, a key role in 
a Hollywood feature follows. Maj- 
or point is/ that by this time the 
performer win have been seen by 
a vast ^udience and will have some 
marquee value at theatres. 

If, though, initial tv reaction is 
downbeat, the player is simply 
dropped. 

As AB-PT prez, Goldenson sees 
a multi-faceted - set of advantages 
in this unique idea of using tv 
as the testing ground for Holly- 
wood newcomers. It - makes avail- 
able to tv personnel whose talent 
is .at least worthy of experiment. 

As star m ate rial develops it doubt- 
less will be shared by Hollywood 
and the telecasters, and ABC 
would be first among the latter on 
tile inside track. 

For Hollywood, the plan removes 
Important . risks/ A star is born 
only out of key roles and this, of 
course, . means that in some . in- 
stances the profit or loss on a fea- 
ture production is at stake. It’s 
great when public reception is 
Marilyn Monroesey. But what 
about the producer who has $500,- 
000 in negative costs riding on an 
inlroducee whb gets an audience 
chill? 

Valuable Tleups 
Balaban, Who, is head of the; 

Balaban & Katz chain in Chicago 
(a UPT subsid) and brother of 
Paramount president Barney Bala- 
ban, notes that fewer newcomers 
are given stardom opportunities 
because of the -numerical cutback 
in production. Theatremeri through 
the years have clamored for more 
big names in pix. Balaban opines 
that the tv tieup can’t help but 
encourage the development of new 
luminaries. ' 

A strong point accented by Gold- 
enson is that the tv exposures for 
a given player would be the equiv- 
alent of appearances in three pix 
in terms of public “penetration.” 

This means, in other words, that 
exhibs would not be called upon 
to ballyhoo total strangers. 

In any event, the plan repre- 
sents the first major effort of the 
type in which the pix and tv in- 
dustries would work together to 
mutual advantage. Other harmoni- 
ous operation has been via appear-, 
ances of Hollywood personalities 
on tv, . often for film promotion 
purposes, and a tv “remake"’ of a 
theatrically played-out pic. The 
latter has been only one shot, so 
far — “Lux Video Theatre’s" adap- 
tation of Paramount’s “A Place in 
the Sun"— but this “first" doubt- 
less will be followed with similar 
tleins. 

Speaking generally, Goldenson 
insists that the three allied media 
-pix, tv and radio— “can stand 
side by side; each a good business.” 

He adds: “Each has its own vital- 
ity." He characterized tv as the 
“home group" entertainment, that 
is. watched by the entire family 
at one time. 

Radio, lie states, “is personal- 
ized." After a couple of hours of 
television, each person, even the 
maid, go to a separate room and 
individually-owned sets. . There’s 
now a set for everyone, including, 
if you have one, the maid, 

“But there are certain timer 
when the wife wants to -take the 
family out of the home environ-, 
ment. This means theatre busi- 
ness. 

On another subject, the widely- 
held theory that “only the hie 
pix make money" was disputed by 
G oldenson. “Offbeat angles, ac- 
tion types, themes you can sell — 
these are good business, too," he 
commented. To prove his point 
he cited the Edward Small and 
Leonard Goldstein non-major en- 
tries which have been successful. 

The exec evinced considerable 
optimism in relating the “tremen- 
dous” morale lift he found on the 
Coast. He said “The production 
decline which started in 1947 — in 

terms of picture quality— has j Raichle vigorously challenged 
levelled off and now is on the way this and certain other statements 
back up. ’ All major lots and the | by Hardy, whom he pictured as 
indies are showing new. vigor, ac- 1 new to the current case. Dipson. 

/»/it*rlmrt l/i Mia aoma T.T-*. • ~ 1. .1 * . . r . ’ 


was "a sophisticated and solvent 
/bidder"; he owned* many theatres, 
And could hardly be charged with 
poOr business judgment in buying 
the pickinson estate’s stock. 

There was no allegation in .the 
complaint, '••Raichle pointed out, of 
“collusion" by-. Dipson, or of taint 
in the aiictipn sale— -approved t by 
the Surrogate’s Court, . . The com- 
plaint' should be dismissed and 
summary judgment granted, the 
attorney reiterated. 

Judge' Foley gave plaintiff per- 
mission to file c an answering brief, 
and defendants a memorandum. 
He will then take the case, under 
consideration. An appeal from 
Judge Foley’s decision; however it 
goes, is certain. 


== Continued from page 7 

stockholder could not bring ' a 
"derivative" action under the 
Sherman ontitrust law and (2), Re- 
liance Theatres, Inc., the corpora- 
tion operating the Palace, had ac- 
cepted settlement of an antitrust 
suit which it brought against the 
defendants in 1935. The case had 
been officially closed, in the U, S. 
District Court for Western New 
York, in October, 1936. 

Hardy explained that the estate 
had. not prosecuted the action 
while the Government antitrust 
suit against the Schines was in 
progress. He asserted that the 
plaintiff, while alive, his estate, 
and Reliance Theatres, Inc., would 
have made large earnings, but for 
the “conspiracy” of defendants to 
“suppress competition" and bring 
“the small corporation to its eco- 
nomic knees." 

The Washington attorney 
charged, in effect, that J. Myer 
Schine and Nikitas Dipson, of 
Batavia, who had held a one-third* 
interest in Reliance, made an 
agreement, during a recess at a 
1936 auction sale of Dickinson’s 
one-third interest and certain 
other assets. 

Under it, John Osborn repre- 
sented Dipson at the auction, a 
hid of $36,700 was accepted, and 
Schine later acquired the stock, 
Hardy declared. Schine, he con- 
tinued, was the only one who 
could profit from the purchase— 
because he was “the only, one who 
could get the pictures." 

The Schines and Paramount 
(then not divorced from theatre 
operation) had the top product 
while they operated the Palace in 
a “pool” before 1933, Hardy al- 
leged. After they “defaulted on 
the lease, in the depression" and 
Reliance entered the picture as 
operator, Schines’ Rialto and Hi- 
Art — neither, according to Hardy, 
comparable to the Palace in mod 
ernity and appointment — grabbed 
the . cream of releases. Reliance 
could obtain virtually nothing 
good. Dickinson built the Palace 
“cbout 1925." 

The release in the Reliance anti 
trust suit against the defendants 
was “by Schine for Schine," Hardy 
charged. 



Continued . from page 3 


ing Italian. societies, telling them 
of the availability of its product 
and urging them to contact exhibs 
to book these films regularly or at 
least for special: occasions. It’s, es- 
timated that there are some 2,000, - 
000 Americans of Italian extraction 
in the U.S., but only a fraction— 
about 70,000— are really- drawn by 
the appeal of native Italo pix. 
“They all want to become Ameri- 
canized as soon as they come here," 
Levin^ complained. 

However, he figures, that his 
isn’t a diminishing audience since 
Italian immigration will continue 
if anything on a larger scale. “The 
one thing no one today can sell 
is an Italian film without sub- 
titles," Levihe asserted. “The old 
folk yvhq’d go to see such a pic- 
ture are dying out, and the young- 
er ones want the subtitles." Titles 
also are a draw since the Italo 
trade is primarily a family trade 
and * everyone’s satisfied that way. 

The. Italians are'-the second .larg- 
est foreign language group in the 
U. S. There is a very large mar- 
ket for Spanish pix,. most of which 
come from Mexico and are shown 
without subtitles. There are also 
much smaller markets for Polish 
and German imports. 

Levine’s department, while in ex- 
istence on paper for a year, has 
been functioning really only since 
last September; At that time, he 
said, “there just wasn’t such a 
thing as an Italian-language market 
in America. • We’re trying to revive 
it and bring some order into it.” 

“Quality" group entries are 
picked on the basis of what the 
Italo audiences in Italy would like 
or have liked. That’s in contrast 
to IFE’s other releases which are 
dubbed or handled with titles. In 
that category are pix that may have 
done mediocre biz in Italy but are 
judged to have sock appeal in the 
U.S. 

Every once in a while, one of 
the “quality" films will get favor- 
able Crix reaction in the Italo- 
language house. Then it’s yanked 
and shifted to the arties for a 
potentially wider circulation. Last 
film to show such surprise strength 
was “The White Line,” Levine said. 


Par to Exhibs 

Continued ffom page 3 


condense and expand the screen 
aspect ratio from 1:1 to 3:1. The 
prism setup will be made available 
to theatres at $750 per pair. 

Par has placed a nix on stereo- 
phonic sound for the avowed rea- 
son that its inclusion in any system 
automatically would cut the num- 
ber of its theatre accounts. In line 
with this it’s noted that many ex- 
hibs are opposed to the new stereo- 
sound because of its expense. A 

Par policy on sound hasn’t been 
fully set blit sentiment at this time 
favors a single-track process which 
is optically cued to send the audio 
in two directions. 

In production, the double-frame 
negative is processed on to stand- 
ard-size release prints. The print 
can be either anamorphic or regu- 
lar. Either way, the widened pic- 
ture is achieved without any loss 
of definition, it’s' said. 

As explained by a technician 
source, “sensitivity and definition 
oppose each other in the ‘taking’ 
film. High sensitivity is desired to 
save lighting costs. By increasing 
the size of picture in the taking 
film (using two frames instead of 
one) the definition goes up in pro- 
portion." 

Par’s first pic in the process is 
‘ White Christmas," Bing Crosby- 
Danny Kaye costarrer. Par reps 
who have seen screenings on the 


Group of six three-reelers to be released by Paramount during March 
and April represents a pet project on the part of A, W. Bcfiwalberg, 
Par’s distribution topkick. It was at his insistence .^that the company 
acquired the so-called “featurettes” from the Danziger Brothers, who 
had made them independently in England. : 

’ Thieatremen operating on a double-feature policy haye;4i .turnover 
problem on their hands when one of the two pix on the program is a 
long-running epic. This ’struck home with Schwalberg/qt the time 
Par first placed “Greatest Show on Earth" in wide release. -- Ever since, 
the exec has been on the prowl for a substitute for .that second fea- 
ture when the “A" film on the bill Is kingsize in length; He figures 
he has it in ihe three-reel briefles, more of which will be forthcom- 
ing if the first six click. The, pix are under the one series title of 
“Calling Scotland Yard." Paul Douglas appears in them as narrator. 

Parakeets, instead of aejors, played leading • roles in a suspense 
drama that was revealed by a L. A. Federal Grand Jury indictment 
of George R. Emerson, Metro’s wildlife departmet manager; charged 
with smuggling 600 bf the birds into this country. Suspense is caused 
by the discovery that 200 of the parakeets have , died of psittacosis, a 
deadly parrot fever. The other 400 have been destroyed but all the, 
agents who took part in the seizure of the birds are being rounded 
up by federal and civic authorities for innoeulation.'' Psittacosis is 
35% fatal to humans. They are also trying to get in touch with agent 
Walter E, O’Brien, now on hifc way to Singapore, to warn him of the 
danger. Thus far he has not answered cables advising him to be in- 
noculated immediately, ' 

Lionel Barrymore, appearing on. the “Toast of the Town" tv show 
Sunday (14), had a salient comment to contribute: “After ^30 years of 
living and working with the Metro family, I’m still going strong. So 
don’t any of you gentlemen offer me. a gold watch." 


Skouras Faces British Exhibs 


Continued from page 5 




w v __ — -.7 — Coast claim that the pic has high 

coichng to the excc. ITc was -par- .-he emphasized, -.was and is a “bit- definition even when viewed a few 
trculaily impressed With the “new ter” competitor of Schine. Dipson feet from the screen. 


experienced the j oys and reverses 
that, beset the business. In recent 
years the industry had been rav- 
aged by the /encroachment of tv, 
forcing 6,000 American theatres to 
go dark. With attendances down 
by 48%, the motion picture indus- 
try became completely demoral- 
ized. It was at that timei they’d 
started developing the Eidopho.r 
system of big screen tv, but while 
the development was in progress, 
Cinerama made its appearance in 
New York and created the. “great- 
est possible furore.": That inspired 
his company to think in terms of a 
system . which would involve only 
one projection booth instead of 
three, ana only one screen instead 
of three. From that time they’d 
sunk $15,000,000 into the process 
and had taken a chance with the 
entire structure of their company. 
They’d gambled all their invest- 
ments and assets and made the 
process available to others for al- 
most nothing in order to serve ’the 
industry in the best possible way. 

Skouras claimed it would be dis- 
honest on his part to claim that a 
Cinemascope picture would be as 
good, without stereophonic sound, 
although it would be easy for him 
to abandon his conviction and make 
the medium available for every- 
one, He insisted that they received 
no cut from manufacturers of 
stereophonic sound sets and when 
they’d been offered a 10% royalty, 
they asked the manufacturers to 
cut their prices and extend credit 
terms instead. 

After Skouras had completed his 
introductory remarks, Earl Spon- 
able, head of the studio’s research 
and development department, gave 
some technical background and a 
history of technical developments 
in the studios over a period of 
years. To show a Cinemascope 
film without magnetic sound (he 
thought) would be comparable to 
having the Sadlers Wells ballet ac- 
companied only by a piano or a 
musical backgrounded by a phono- 
graph. 

Indies' Quiz 

The. leading questions came 
mainly from small independents 
but the opening qifeties were ad- 
dressed to the platform by Sir 
Alexander B. King, who heads a ma- 
jor chain of Scottish theatres. He 
started with a three-pronged query 
to Skouras: ( 1 ) Did he have any fi- 
nancial interest in stereophonic 
sound?; (2) why were anamorphic 
lenses 50% cheaper on the Conti- 
nent?; and (3 ) why the insistence 
on miracle mirror screens? The an- 
swers boiled down to .this: No, 
there was no rakeoff on sound 
equipment but prices would surely 
come down as demand increased; 
the price of lenses, over which they 
had no control, was also expected 
to come down ‘later; the miracle 
mirror screen would be a must in 
major first-run theatres, but smaller 
subsequent runs would be (per- 
mitted to use either the Stableford 
or Harkness British made screens. 

Jack X. Prencergast bluntly as- 
serted that, at a time- when exhibi- 
tors were going to the Chancellor 
fpr admission tax relief to keep 
their theatres open, they could not 
possibly afford this equipment. He 


accused Skouras of having sold ex 
hibitors . down the river to the 
electri^l industries who were pro- 
tected by the 20th-Fox policy. He 
suggested Skouras was adopting a 
monopolistic attitude and hoped 
exhibitors would not be driven to 
higher authorities but would be 
able to resolve the matter within 
the industry. Resisting the mon- 
opoly charges, Skouras said he'd 
placed himself on the block to be 
crucified and all this because he 
believed in the welfare of the small 
exhibitor . ' 

And so it went on with questioa 
after question. Could there be a 
British experiment of two competi- 
tive theatres playing the same film, 
one with and the other without 
stereo sound? No. Would Skouras 
back his faith -by allowing exhibs 
to use a single soundhead because 
of . his conviction they’d come back 
for the stereo equipment? No. 
Finally, as the lunch hour ap- 
proached, the CEA prez brought 
the session to ariose by summing 
up the results. And' these? Nil, 
apart from a lot of plain speaking. 


Harlan Fix 

Continued from page 2 


ally a good proof that the distribs 
expected or feared controversy. 
Colombo," as well as the other 
Harlan pic suddenly released here, 
incidentally came in through the 
backdoor, both pix avoiding preems 
at big houses, but day-dating in 
several (mostly neighborhood) cin- 
emas. Distribs also did not invite 
the press to review them. 

Students Demand Pic Be Jerked 

First incident occurred in a cin- 
ema' in the British sector, where 
“Colombo" was shown. Demon- 
strators, mostly students, had min- 
gled with the audience and loudly 
demanded the film, be taken off. 
There were six interruptions and 
several demonstrators Were arrest- 
ed by the police. Here several pa- 
trons showed a clear anti-Semitic 
attitude. A number of local groups 
are reportedly going to join the 
anti-Harlanites and plan organized 
demonstrations. 

Most local papers are obviously 
on the side of the demonstrators. 
Others advised authorities to pro- 
hibit the film to insure public or- 
der. Friedrich Luft, ace film critic, 
saids^The showing of the Harlan 
pix badly hurts Berlin’s reputation. 
It reopens old sores, and insults 
those Whose relations were ! killed 
in Nazi gas chambers." 

Also the showing of “Five Min- 
utes Past 12," German docu- 
mentary on the Hither regime, cre- 
ated further * incidents. Demon- 
strators threw stench bombs- at the 
screen, and demanded to take off 
this “Fascist” film. Papers held 
that COmmieS; kicked up the 
ruckus; This, however, sounds rath- 
er strange since this film shows an 
obvious anti-Hitler /attitude (Ger- 
hard Grihde, film’s author, is him- 
self an acknowledged victim of the 
Nazi regime). 'Actually, only one 
group could dislike this film/ name- 
ly the Nazi adherents themselves. 


Wednesday, February 17, 1954 





iLlLUt. 



r^rfm 




p 


ALLIED ARTISTS’ NATIONWIDE CAMPAIGN 
OF GIANT SATURATIONS ADDS MICHIGA 


(FED. 


TO TEXAS AND NEW ENGLAND! 



DETROIT BROADWAY-CAPITOL 

SAGINAW ............ .. . . . V . . . . FRANKLIN 

KALAMAZOO .CAPITOL 

BATTLE CREEK MICHIGAN 

MONROE ................ . . . . . . . ..FAMILY 

TRAVERSE CITY . . .STATE 

ADRIAN .CROSWELL 

NILES .. ......READY 

GRAND HAVEN ...GRAND 

MT. PLEASANT BROADWAY 

HILLSDALE ...DAWN 

GREENVILLE . .SILVER 

PLYMOUTH T& A 

MASON .. FOX 

PAW PAW STRAND 

MORENCE REX 

FLUSHING .....DAWN 

VASSAR ...VASSAR 

LINDEN ..LINDEN 

LAKEVIEW ..... .... .:. LAKE 

COLON -.AVOLON 

OVID .... . . ,\ ... ....... . ...... .OVID 

LAINSBURG ... ... ...ELITE 

TINCONNING .WHYTE 


GRAND RARIDS . . .MIDTOWN 

LANSING ............... . . .... . .GLADMER 

JACKSON ........ ... .CAPITOL 

PORT HURON .. *....... DESMOND 

BENTON HARBOR LIBERTY 

HOLLAND CENTER 

ALPENA MALTZ 

CADILLAC ...............LYRIC 

LUDINGTON LYRIC 

ALMA .STRAND 

IONA .IONA 

CHARLOTTE EATON 

ALLEGAN REGENT 

EATON RAPIDS RAPIDS 

PORTLAND ..SUN 

HART .HART 

HUDSON HUDSON 

S. HAVEN .MICHIGAN 

ELSIE . . . . .ELSIE 

MARCELLUS .MARCELLUS 

DAVIDSON . ................ . . r. .MIDWAY 

LAKE ORION STATE 

WHITMORE LAKE . LEE 


FLINT .CAPITOL 

PONTIAC ........... ... ....... . . .STRAND 

MUSKEGON STATE 

ANN ARBOR STATE 

MT. CLEMENS JEWELL 

OWOSSO CAPITOL ’si 

YPSILANTI . ...... .MARTHA WASHINGTON 

midland .... ... ..... ..... . . . . . .midland 

MANISTEE ..VOGUE 

THREE RIVERS RIVIERA* 

BIGRAPIDS .BIG RAPIDS 

DOWAGIAC .CENTURY 

ST. JOHNS .CLINTON 

BRONSON ..........BRONSON 

Willow run ................ . . . ..center . * 

ITHACA IDEAL 

MANCELONA .IONA 

INLAY CITY ........DELUXE 

RENTON .... ROWENA j 

BERRlAN SPRINGS .BERRY j 

UTICA .DELUX J 

DEXTER ................. DEXTER; Jp 

SO. LYON LYON f 


Backed by a 


TV and RADIO CAMPAIGN! 












I 

I 


I 







.. /«. - '-V W// 









Ml 










20 FICTCKBS 


PAkieTt 


8 Co. Presidents(&ceptio&: RKO) 


The presidents of eight film’4 
companies, in a personally-signed 
statement released by the Motion 
Picture Assn, of America, in ef- 
fect have served official notice 
that agitation for a major rewrite 
of the Production Code is futile. 

Signatories to the press handout 
pledged anew their faith in the 
Code, insisted that its fundamen- 
tal principles are not subject to 
change at any time and- declared 
that it embodies no restraint on 
artistic ' endeavor within the bounds 
of good taste. 

Chief execs also were united In 
unequivocal opposition to govern- 
mental censorship at- any level. 

For eight company heads to Join 
in a statement of almost any kind 
is rare* But seen as more sig- 
nificant is the fact that RKO is 
not a party to it. Neither is United 
Artists but UA is not a member 
of MPA A— RKO is— so the ab- 
sence of this indie distrib Is not 
regarded as meaningful. 

RKO has been at odds with 
MPA A and the Code over “The 
French Line” but nothing before 
has so forcefully brought into focus 
the breach between the Howard 
Hughes outfit and the producer- 
distributor organisation. 

The statement, in its entirety, 
follows: 

“We believe that the motion pic- 
ture, as a medium of information 
and entertainment, is entitled to 
the freedom of expression guar- 
anteed by the Constitution of the 
United States. 

V “We abhor and oppose govern- 
mental censorship. Such censor- 
ship is alien to our basic Ameri- 
can traditions of freedom. 

“As producers and distributors 
of motion pictures for a mass pub- 
lic, we have a continuing respon- 
sibility to the people we serve. 

“It is the responsibility to see 
that what appears in our pictures 
is decent and moral — fit for the 
families of all the world. 

“It is the responsibility to see 
that within these principles, artis- 
tic and dramatic and dramatic, in- 
tegrity is maintained, that the 
screen may deal honestly and faith- 
fully with life, and that the free- 
dom under law 'which we claim 
shall not by its abuse descend into 
license. 

“The Motion Picture Production 
Code and the Advertising Code 
are effective means for discharg- 
ing these responsibilities. This 
voluntary system of self-regulation 
was adopted in our industry nearly 
a~ quarter of a century ago. 

“The fundamental principles of 
the Production Code, are not sub- 
ject to change with the passage of 
time. 

“Rules and regulations accom- 
panying the Code and dealing with 
customs and conventions have 
been Changed from time to time 
In the light of experience. 

“The Code is a living instrument 
for our guidance. 

"We believe in its principles. We 
haye adhered to them. We shall 
continue to live u$ to them. . 

"Nothing in the Code has ever 
prevented the making of superla- 
tive, artistic and dramatic enter- 
tainment within the normal stand- 
ards of decency and morality. 

“No sweeping changes or re- 
visions are necessary to maintain 
this objective. 

"Decent entertainment continues 
to be the best entertainment. 

Signatures were : Steve Broidy, 
Allied Artists; Harry Cohn, Colum- 
bia; Nicholas M. Schehck, Loew’s; 
Barney Balaban, Paramount; Her- 
bert J. Yates, Republic; Spyros P. 
Skouras, 20th-Fox ; Milton R. Rack- 
mil, Universal, and Albert Warner, 
Warners. 

Among the . most vocal intra- 
industry champions of Code “mod- 
ernization” has been indie film- 
maker Samuel Goldwyn. His an- 
swer to the new proxies’ pledge is 
now awaited. 


Martina Corp. Plead* To 
' Reopen Versus Schihe 

■ • ' v Buffalo, Feb. 16, 
An amended complaint filed In 
U. S, Federal Court here by Mar- 
tina Theatres Corp. of Albion seeks 
permission to reopen a $841,500 
case against ScKine Chain Thea- 
tres and. 17 motion picture film 
producing and distributing com- 
panies. • 

The complaint seeks to vacate an 
order dismissing a former com- 
plaint in the action on the grounds 
that a settlement, agreement which 
was part of thd stipulation on the 
original dismissal was procured by 
fraud and hence is illegal; 



' . With flammable nitrocellulose 
filtii almost completely replaced by 
fireproof acetate film, ' Theatre 
Owners of America has joined Al- 
lied States Assn, in appointing a 
committee “to investigate this sub- 
ject to the end that lower fire in- 
surance rates would be possible.” 
A similar, committee was named by 
Allied last October following its 
annual, convention in Boston. 

According to a survey made by 
TO A in Oct., 1952, it was revealed 
that about 20% of the films were 
still on nitrate-stock. It was es- 
timated at that time it would take 
from 18 months to three years to 
exhaust completely this stock. It 
was noted that a complete switch 
to safety film would result in 
definite reductioh in insurance 
rates. 

The point has now been reached, 
it’s believed, that a specific pitch 
be made to fire i ns urance 
companies for rate cuts. Henry An- 
derson, chairman of TOA’s build- 
ing and safety codes committee, 
told the exhib org at its November 
convention "we are confronted 
with the argument that nitrocel- 
lulose film is nevertheless still in 
use, ,and they (insurance com- 
panies) cannot therefore iower 
their standards until its use has 
been discontinued.”. He noted that 
the argument cannot be entirely 
discounted, since the insurance 
companies are unable to police 
every theatre to determine what 
kind of film is being used. 

Anderson’s suggestion that “def- 
inite and possibly drastic action to 
stop the use of nitrocellulose film” 
on new productions, newsreels, im- 
portations and rereleases, apparent- 
ly has been followed since exhib- 
itors are prepared to present their 
case to the fire insurance compa- 
nies. 


Curved, Panoramic, Cyclo 
Screen for Dallas Drivein 

Dallas, Feb. i6. 

Buckner Blvd. Drivein Theatre 
has installed a screen 40 feet high 
by 80 feet wide made of fiber-glass, 
the first time this material has 
been used for film screens. Con- 
struction time: four months. 

President C. C. Ezell thinks new 
screen -will- be ; sensational for 
driveins. Versatility is unlimited, 
he believes, for new processes, in- 
cluding Cinemascope. Screen is 
curved, panoramic, cycloramic and 
pitched forward at the top. First 
use due Feb. 4* with showing of 
"Escape From Fort Bravo.” J 


20tb Shifts Koster 

Hollywood, Feb. 16. 
Henry Koster was assigned to 
direct “Desiree,” starring Jean 
Simmons at 20th-Fox, indicating 
that the studio has shelved “Pink 
Tights” until later in the year, 

; •Koster waa ready to start shoot- 
ing “Tights” when Marilyn Monroe 
ankled the lot. His new assignment 
calls for an early start. 

FEB. OPENINGS 
OF OUTDOOR 


Chicago, Feb. 16. 

: Chicago area ozoners, trying to 
extend the length of the outdoor 
season, are planning to start at 
least a month in advance of last 
year. Meanwhile, one outdoor the- 
atre, the Starlite Drivein, hasn't 
closed yet; 

Essaness circuit is lighting up its 
Harlem Drivein on Feb. . 19, ‘six 
weeks ; earlier than last year, and 
the indie operated Twin Drivein 
likewise kicks off the same day. 

Owing to the union’s .demands 
last season that four operators be 
employed at Essaness Four-Screen 
Drive-In, the circuit is remodelling 
the ozoner along more standard 
lines and will rename it the Hal- 
sted Outdoor Theatre. 


Checked By Memphis Cops 
As Trench Line’ Aftermath 

Memphis, Feb. 16, 

Censor Lloyd T. Binford has not 
only banned . RKO’s “The French 
Line” here but he stepped in when 
RKO proposed to give a private 
showing of the film for invited 
guests . (mostly exhibitors of the 
area). At Binford’s insistence two 
plainclothesmen of the police force, 
Capt. O. D. Lewis and Lt, J. E. 
Chenault were at the front door of 
the Malco Theatre to check all who 
entered, and their credentials. 

Binford was alarmed, lest RKO 
would, as a social' gesture, exhibit 
a film officially not for showing. 
A big verbal exchange by phone 
took place between the censor and 
Reginald Reagin, Memphis branch 
manager of RKO. Afterwards 
when he met Reagin, the censor 
said he found him “a real gentle- 
man” and regretted the sharp 
words used earlier. 

Binford has visualized an “in- 
vited” audience of 500 but RKO 
apparently had invited only around 
25. 


Censor Fees: $400,000 . 

Albany, Feb. 16. 
Governor Thos. E. Dewey, in 
budget message to state legislature 
estimated that license fees on films, 
exhibited in New York State (via 
charges of Education Department 
for reviewing and sealing) would 
amount to $400,000 in 1954-55, 
same as current* fiscal year, 
Dewey revealed state’s receipts 
first 10 months 1953-54 were $339,- 
000. In 1952-53, this revenue 
amounted to $414,000. 


Chicago Police Censorship 
Chicago, Feb. 16. 

Of 105 pictures reviewed last 
monthi the Chicago Police Censor 
Board waved through all but one— 
that a French product, which, as 
usual, censors wouldn’t identify. 

As in other recent months, im- 
port films were on the upgrade 
with 21 overseas products in the 
January lot. ‘Board made 13 cuts 
in some 527,000 feet of film. 


•Line’ Set for L.A. 

Los Angeles, Feb. 16. 

Local film fans will get their 
first look at RKO's controversial 
“French Line” on Feb. 24 when it 
opens at the Hawaii and Orpheum 
theatres. 

Coincidentally, tile Hawaii made 
a lot of coin when it exhibited 
“The Outlaw,” another Jane Rus- 
sell starrer that snooted at the 
Production Code. " . ' ' . 

• ^ *• k • - » 4 > 


• 1* I 


i * *. . . . , ivieuipnis, reo. 10. 

Of his latest banning, that of "The Wicked Woman” (UA). Mem 
plus censor, Lloyd T. Binford, comments: "This woman (the hero 
me) is just a crook. She sets a bad example. The film suggest: 
more thanvit . actually shows. She is not overtly seen with any man 
but the implications are obvious." 

Robert Koigore immediately booked "The Wicked Woman” t< 
play his Sunset drivein in West Memphis, following RKO‘s"Th< 
■french. Line. • , 


Wednesday, February 17 , 1954 



Code Fine and Could Be. Eased If All Productions 

Had To Carry Seal 


Chi Circuits May Flaydate 
Indie Sleeper, ‘U1 Fugitive’ 

Chicago,' Feb. 16. 

General dating is seen in this 
exchange area for outlying run of 
“Little Fugitive,” independently 
made shoestringer debuting now 
at World Playhouse, an arty. Teitel 
Film Co., which is handling the 
picture in the midwest, discloses 
that Warner Theatres, Balaban 4t 
Katz, Essaness, and Schoenstadt 
circuits all have shown interest for 
neighborhood exhibition. 

Pic is slated to go outlying about 
March 5. 


Censorship of motion picture is 
here to stay on a state level, and 
probably on municipal levels ae 
cording to Mrs, Frances Vaughn" 
Bonner Springs,. Kins., published 
and chairman Of the three-man 
(all-woman) Kansas Censor Board 
Mrs. Vaughn covered the stand 
of the Kansas board thoroughly m 
an interview with Jim Burke di- 
rector of special events, on KMRr. 
TV last Tuesday (9). 


As long as Hollywood produc- 
tions are only partly covered bv 
the code and the Breen office 
there still is need for the censor 
outside the industry. She charac- 
terized releases outside the code 
as including “everything under the 
sun trying to gather boxoffice 
dollars*" 




Of a Studio 

Allied States Assn, dream of hav- 
ing a “voice” in the production de- 
cisions of at least one film studio 
is the theme of a special meeting 
due for New York Feb. 24-25. An 
attempt will be made to (1) crysta- 
lize Allied’s purposes and (2) focus 
on a given company. Allied has 
been canvassing its membership in 
the belief that exhibitors may al- 
ready own shares of sufficient 
number in any one film-producing 

company as to constitute a* lever, 
assuming the shares could be and. 
would be voted en bloc. 

Exact number of shares held by 
Alliedites is undisclosed, but re- 
cent Cincinnati board meeting re- 
vealed substantial holdings. Addi- 
tionally Allied reportedly has 
received pledges from many exhibs 
who indicate a willingness to put 
up coin when and if exhibitors 
need additional 'stock for an all-out 
move on a particular company. The 
fund pledged is reportedly in the 
neighborhood of $1,500,000. Invita- 
tion to other exhibitor organiza- 
tions and to theatremen in unor- 
ganized areas to participate in 
, Allied’s plan will up the holdings 
and coin pledges considerably, it’s 
believed. 

Ben Marcus, new Allied prexy, 
reached by telephone in Milwau- 
kee, declared Allied’s membership 
was 100% behind the stock buy 
idea. He said they considered the 
plan a good method to counteract 
cyrrent distrib practices and “are 
willing to go all out to alleviate 
the product shortage and to fight 
the arbitrary stand taken by . Spyros 
Skouras on stereophonic sound.” 

Special committee named by the 
Allied board to weigh the stock 
plan consists of Marcus, former 
prexy Wilbur Snaper, C* E. Nolte, 
Trueman Rembusch, Rube Shor, 
Horace Adams and Bennie Berger. 
Meeting, slated for the Hotel War- 
wick, will be followed by a board 
session on Feb. 26-27. 


Neutrals Nix 

Lmm Continued from page 1 . 

cases they apply the same’ rigid 
rule to imports from Moscow. 

Hollywood during the past two 
to three years, has stayed away 
from the Commie angle and, for 
that matter, has avoided political 
controversy, domestic or other-, 
wise. There has also been a marked 
decline in pix tackling any contro- 
versial matter. 

Explanation, it’s said, is that 
Audiences have given a dear in- 
dication of their preference for 
straight entertainment over prob- 
lem films. Somewhat contrary to 
logic, several anti-Communist en- 
tries haven’t done well in the U.S., 
the biog of Cardinal Mindszenty 
being a s case in point. 


Wendell Bjorkraan has been set 
as Coast sales rep for Buena Vista 
Film Distribution Co., recently- 
formed subsid of Walt Disney Pro- 
ductions. 


Within recent months Mrs 
Vaughn reoalled only one feat uri 

of a major film company was se- 
riously challenged, * deleted or 
banned by the Kansas board. There 
have been a far greater number of 
noncode feature and independent 
productions that, have failed to 
earn the Kansas approval. 

The code of the Breen office 
could very Well be liberalized in 
keeping with today’s customs and 
standards if all films were re- 
quired to carry this seal. Other- 
wise the matter of liberalization is 
going to find tough sledding. 

■ The Kansas board considers it- 
self liberal, with only five ques- 
tionable features being extracted 
from a list of 381 features and 500 
short subjects reviewed in 1953. 

. The matter of constitutional 
freedom being sought by film pro- 
dUfters is not as applicable to mo- 
tion picture productions as it is to 
the press, radio and television. Her- 
self publisher of the Bonner 
Springs newspaper, Mrs. Vaughn 
said that press, radio and tele- 
vision have the basic responsibility 
of distributing news and matters 
of public interest while . motion 
pictures' function is to e'ntertain. 

The current flurry over censor- 
ship will serve to strengthen the 
position of censor boards, at least 
oh the state level, regardless of 
the recent U. S. Supreme Court 
rulings. The situation has attract- 
ed widespread attention to the 
work of censors, aroused groups of 
many viewpoints, and serves to il- 
lustrate the lack of uniformity in 
the industry’s own sifting, she de- 
clared. 

ARTHUR MAYER REPLIES 
TO BISHOP FLANNELLY 

Auxiliary 'Bishop Joseph F. Flan- 
nelly, administrator of St. Pat- 
rick’s Cathedral, was reminded last 
vveek that “there are a variety of 
government agencies designed to 
protect the American people from 
the exhibition of films offensive to 
accepted standards of decency and 
morality.” 

In a letter to the Bishop, Arthur 
Mayer, as prexy of the Independent 
Distributors* Assn, of America, 
protested the churchman’s recent 
warning that the U.S. Supreme 
Court decisions on censorship had 
opened the wAy for “the descent 
of a filthy avalanche upon this na- 
tion.” The Bishop foresaw an op- 
portunity for “unconscientious, 
immoral and un-American purvey- 
ors of filth” to flood the nation 
with a “a flood of poisonous pic- 
tures” harmful to both adults and 
young people. 

Contradicting this view, Mayer 
said that “if, M>y ‘loathsome,’ you 
'are referring to pictures dealing 
with reasonable candor with some 
of the problems of modern life, 
we must protest that it is possible 
to regard such films as praise- 
worthy without thereby becoming 
‘immoral, un-American purveyors 
of filth.” On the other hand, he 
stated, there was no danger of the 
door being opened to pornographic 
or obscene .films. 

Mayer pointed out the various 
government agencies that function 
to screen out offensive imports and 
that reminded the Bishop that “it 
is still your privilege Under our 
great American tradition of, free 
speech to denounce such pictures 
and urge your parishioners as well 
as those of other faiths not to at- 
tend them. I have greater con- 
fidence in the high moral Standards 

of the American people." 



Wednesday, February 17, 1954 


PICTURES 


21 



Philip X O’Brien, Motion Picture Assn, of America consultant 
attorney, puts it this way: “The difference between Government 
censorship and self-regulation is the difference of ‘can’t’ and 

‘won’t/ " • •: ' , . 

Inofficial censorship the Government: tells the motion picture 
industry, ‘you won’t’; in self -Regulation, the members of the indus- 
try agree among themselves, ‘we won’t.”’ 

Code Remarkable Document 

On the subject ^of censorship, Mrs. Dean Gray Edwards* motion 
picture chairman of the General Federation of Women’s Clubs, 
has recently said: /‘We think that the experiences of the Produc- 
tion Code administrators with the complaints of the public back 
in the 1920’s is far more to be depended upon than the judgment 
of the producers in the field who could not possibly know all the 
pitfalls of public objections. When the purpose is quick money- 
making, it can lead to all sorts of abuses. , It may be an infringe- 
ment of bur liberties that we have a police force* but I think no 
one will question its necessity . . . it is one of the most reiriarkable 
documents in the history of our country.” 

'Pandering’ Is Unprofitable 

Quoting Mike Simons, Metro’s director of exhibitor relations: “I 
think I can safely say on behalf of our exhibitor customers that 
with few exceptions, they want no part of pandering to the lowest 
tastes in their communities, for the simple reason that, historically, 
they know there is no profit in wrong doing. Most of us don’t 
want to be associated with that kind of business. Therefore, we 
have a pattern that defines wrong doing. We call it a Code.” 

‘Subsidiaries Have Been Told 

United Paramount Theatres is firm in its taboo against booking 
any films which have been rejected as moral misfits by the Pro- 
duction Code. The Code is “sound in principle” and will be ad- 
hered to by the kingsize chain, stated its president, Leonard Gold- 
enson. UPT’s subsidiary chains in the field operate autonomously 
but, added Goldenson, “we (at the homeoffice) have conveyed to 
them how we feel.” 


C’Scope Even With Timetable 


Continued from pace' 9 


adopting the 20th system. There 
are reports that Metro, which is 
following the 20th pattern on 
stereophonic sound, may switch to 
Cinemascope completely following 
the current production hiatus on 
the Culver City lot. 

As for 20th; which has an obvious 
advantage in cashing in on the 
novelty appeal of Cinemascope, 
the company is estimated to have 
a minimum investment of $50,000,- 
000 in pix and equipment. Figure 
only partially includes its heavy 
commitments to lens, screen . and 
sound manufacturers. It’s figured 
that, if present grosses on Cinema- 
Scope entries continue, 20th stands 
to recoup this investment within 
five years. 

Big Grosses 

The five Cinemascope releases 
from 20th so far have lived up to 
expectations in varying degrees, 
each setting highly satisfactory 
b.o. standards. “The Robe,” in 923 
engagements to Feb. 8, has gar- 
nered a distribution gross of 
$13*000,000. It’s followed by a 
$3,500,000 distribution gross for 
“How to Marry a Millionaire” in 
332 dates. The 1 only other Cinema- 
Scope. entry that has had any dis- 
tribution so far is Metro’s “Knights 
of the Round Table” which has 
been a heavy grosser. 20th puts 
the distribution gross from all its 
CinemaScopers so far at about 
$ 20 , 000 , 000 . 

Lens situation is deemed satis- 
factory despite the comparatively 
short time Bausch & Lomb has 
had to turn out the prisms. 20th 
at the moment has 250 sets of 
camera lenses available, which is 
sufficient to meet requirements. 
There are some 4,000 ; pro jection 
lenses around and 20th has what’s 
described as “an unlimited supply” 
of them. There are no indications, 
however that the price may come 
down on them. 

Rate at which the theatres are 
equipping for Cinemascope is 

better than anticipated,” accord- 
ing to a 20th spokesman. He 


recalled that, in April, 1953, A1 
Lichtman, 20th director of distri- 
bution, predicted 1,500 houses 
equipped by the end p£-i953 and 
some 12,000 by 1955. Considering 
some of the difficulties— and some 
of the opposition— encountered by 
20th in putting across Cinema- 
Scope, the company feels it’s well 
ihead of the game. It now figures 
there will be anywhere between 
7,500 and 10,000 theatres able to 
show Cinemascope by the end of 
the year. 

Foreign Side 

Abroad, where sledding has been 
tough, some 600 houses now have 
Cinemascope and some 5,000 are 
expected to have it by the end of 
1954 even though it’s doubted by 
observers that 20th will manage to 
get that many equipped. 

20th feels that it has largely 
overcome opposition from ops of 
indoor houses against stereophonic 
sound. Biggest roadblock at the 
moment is the shortage of prints. 
This is expected to resolve itself by 
mid-March. Mortality rate of prints 
is still very high and they run 12c 
a foot (including sound) which 
makes them .extremely expensive. 
There appears little prospect to 
reduce this cost. 

Company is also spending a lot 
more on plugging its Cinemascope 
films. Estimate puts the increase 
in the ad-pub budget of the com- 
pany at about 50%. Part of the 
coin has been spent to sell Cinema- 
Scope as a trademark of quality to 
the public. 


$200,000,000 Gear 

555 Continued from page 1 55 

equipment which averaged $1,000 
per theatre without sound and 
$7,000 for. the sound which came 
on a separate film. There are ap- 
proximately 4,500 houses In the 
country which installed 3-D, .but 
only 1,000 bothered with direc- 
tional sound. Total therefore 
breaks down into about $3,500,000 
for new screens, interlocks, maga- 
zines, filters, etc*, and another 
$7,000,000 for soufid equipment, 
part of which can be used in a 
switchover to the four-track single- 
film system employed in Cinema^ 
Scope. . 

: According to 20th-Fox, Cinema- 
Scope orders are coming in at the 
rate of 100 a week, and 1,600 
theatres are currently equipped. 
It’s estimated that of the 1,600 
(mostly the keys), some 900 are 
larger houses which must shell out 
an average $15,000 for the screen- 
lens-sound combo. Around 400 are 
paying $10,000 a piece and the 
rest $8,000. This doesn’t take into 
account a lot of hidden expenses 
and some outright ones such as 
new lamps, side-speakers, pedes- 
tals, etc. 

Conservative estimate of the 
Cinemascope exhibition bill so far 
runs to more than $20,000,000 and 
probably as high as $25*000,000 on 
the basis of 1,600 . houses. 

Breakdown 

Providing the distribs actually 
force the driveins to go through 
with installing two^speaker sound, 
exhibition’s eventual contribution 
to the widescreen era will total 
around $200,000,000. It breaks 
down something like this : 

. Figuring that there will be 10,- 
000 houses with Cinemascope, 
their bill will come to around $121,- 
000,000 on the basis of current 
prices. If no more than 2,000 of 
the nation’s 4,600 ozoriers go 
through with the sound-improve- 
ment program, they’ll pour about 
$60,000,000 into* the equipment 
dealers’ pockets. It’s estimated 
that the average drivein Cinema- 
Scope installation for a 750-car op- 
eration will run • to about $20,000 
minimum and very likely to an 
average $30,000. 

Not taken into consideration at 
all, but a definite . expense on the 
horizon, is theatre television. Some 
100 theatres now have largescreen 
tv equipment at an average cost 
of $18,000 (ihcl. installation). If 
only 1,000 houses decide to throw 
in their lot with theatre video, 
their bill would run close to $20,- 
000,000. With color tv in the off- 
ing, this estimate is likely to. be on 
the conservative side*. 



One-Man Rule 


Continued from page 


i 

» I 





•MDIO CUT MUSIC Hill- 

Rockefeller Center 

LUCIILE BALL > DESI ARNAZ i. 
“THE LONG. LONG TRAILER” 

Photographed In Amco Color . 

. Print by Technicolor :. An M-G-M Plcture 
and SfICMCWUI STMt PKIOITATtM 


i 



BURT LANCASTER*!' 

MAJESTY 

HeS® 5 ® 10 * 


PARAMOUNT 


piloted the operation since he dis- 
associated from 20th-Fox a couple 
of years ago. 

Yates’ Vest Pocket 

Republic. Pictures — Herbert J . 
Yates, prez, «has Rep neatly 
wrapped up with his own per- 
sonally-held stock, associates’ in- 
vestments and indirect participa- 
tion through other companies. 
Yates’ percentage of Rep owner- 
ship is hard to figure but his con- 
trol is absolute. 

Universal— No individual has 
enough stock to corral stock con- 
trol; 60% of U is owned by Decca 
Records. 

Warner Bros. — Harry, Jack and 
Albert Warner now have immedi- 
ate control of close to 30% with 
direct, family and trusteed shares. 
So don’t feud with the family of 
Wdrn6rst 

As . for other outfits, there’s 
little chance of an outsider wrest- 
ing control despite the absence of 
individuals with sizeable stock 
blocks. Business is good and this 
almost automatically means most 
investors would rally around in- 
cumbent managements in the un- 
likely event that a proxy fight 
would be undertaken. 


Arguing that distributors are 
“willing to arbitrate only what 
they want* to arbitrate, ’’an Allied 
official , stated this week that the 
exhib organization will decline the 
invitation for a new arbitration 
conference that will start from 
scratch. Invite was issued on be- 
half of the distribs last week by 
Motion Pictures Assn, of America 
prexy Eric Johnston and was ad- 
dressed to the leaders of Allied, 
Theatre Owners of America, Inde- 
pendent Theatre Owners Assn., 
Metropolitan Motion Picture The- 
atres Assn., and Southern Cali- 
fornia Theatres Assn. 

Johnston’s invitation: makes it 
clear (“to avoid misunderstand- 
ing”) that the arbitration of film 
rentals will not be within the scope 
of . discussions. This omission, 
said the Allied source, is sufficient 
grounds for the indie exhibitor 
organization to boycott the pro- 
posed. meeting. Subject of the ar- 
bitration of film rentals has been 
long advocated by Allied arid its 
turndown of the 1952 arbitration 




Continued from page 4 


Brazil Festival 

; Continued from page 4 ; 


are: Metro’s “Julius Caesar,”. 
ParamOunt’s . “Roman Holiday,” 
20th-Fox’s ‘How to Marry a Mil- 
lionaire,” UI’s ‘The Glenn Miller 
Story” and Warners' ‘Hondo.” 
Films to be shown in Buenos Aires 
are: Pararriount’s “Shane,” 20th-' 
Fox’s “The Robe,” RKO’s “Sudden 
Fear,” Metro’s ‘Story of Three 
Loves” and Warners’ “House of 
Wax” or ‘So Big,” deperiding on 
the availability of 3-D equipment. 

Other ' countries slated to show 
their product at the two festivals 
are: Argentina, Austria, Canada, 
.Chile, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, 
France, Germany, England, India, 
Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, 
Peru, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, 
Switzerland, Uruguay and Vene- 
zuela. 

Brazil’s festival runs from Feb. 
12 through March 2, and Argen- 
tina’s from March 8 through 
March 18. 


Global Johnston 

Washington, Feb. 16. 

Eric Johnston is being named of- 
ficial U. S. Government repre- 
sentative to the Argentine film 
festival and will attend that event 
immediately after the Brazilian 
Film Festival. Plans call for him 
to leave Washington Thursday 
morning (18), with Mrs. Johriston 
and Leo Hornstetter of the MPA A 
staff. At Houston they will join 
the contingent from Hollywood. 

Upon his return to Washington, 
Johnston will remain about 10 
days and then proceed to the mid- 
dle east as President Eisenhower’s 
Ambassador, to further explore 
settlement of the Arab-Israel dif- 
ficulties. 


IFE has been subsidized is also, in 
the opinion of IMPDAA, a viola- 
tion of law.” It explained that 
“substantial” funds were paid or 
loaned by MPEA to an organiza- 
tion of Italian film producers and 
that part of those furids v^ere In 
turn,' directly or indirectly, trans- 
ferred to IFE. . ■ 

“Thus, funds derived from a 
United States export .association 
were utilized to lessen competition 
Within the United States,” LondOri 
stated. 

The indie group went to some 
length to absolve MPEA from 
blame, declaring that it wished to 
make it clear that “IMPDAA does 
not contend that MPEA intended 
or even suspected that its funds 
would be utilized by IFE to sub- 
sidize the distribution of films in 
the U:S.” MPEA has always held 
that, while it agreed to the orig- 
inal Italian subsidy, . It was at that 
time not aware that the Italians 
would go into distribution but only 
that the coin was to be used to pro- 
mote pix in this country. 

In this the. indie distribs differ 
from the position taken by Ellis 
Arnall* Society Of- Independent 
Motion Picture Producers prexy, 
who is dead set against any and all 
kinds of subsidy payments, regard- 
less of their eventual use. Arnall 
has claimed he has assurances 
from MPEA prexy Eric Johnston 
that MPEA would enter in no fur- 
ther agreements involving sub- 
sidies. However, Johnston has let 
it be known since then that he bad 
not intended to make such a prom- 
ise. Arnall has discussed SIMPP’s 
concern over future subsidies with 
the FTC. 

The importers maintain that, 
after their protests to the MPEA, 
they had been advised that “an at- 
tempt would be made to preventj 
such use of additional funds there- 
after paid or ‘loaned’ to Italian 
film producers. However, the 
moneys previously paid by MPEA, 
and still available to IFE, place it 
in a position, to destroy any com 
petition from independent, unsub 
sidized distributors.” 

The original MPEA pact with 
Italy, signed in 1951, provided for 
the Americans to hand over 12% 
of their Italo revenue as a subsidy 
In renegotiating the deal last year, 
Johnston got the figure reduced to 
10% with the understanding that 
none of the money was to be chan- 
neled into IFE distribution. The 
original 1244 % reportedly amount- 
ed to around $2,000,000. It is adr 
mittedly difficult for MPEA to 
keep track of how the 10% slice 
is spent. 

Like the Arnall blast, the indies’ 
current appeal to the FTC is seen 
stiffening the Italian attitude in 
forthcoming negotiations of a new 
deal. Griffith Johnson, MPEA v.p. 
and chief troubleshooter, is now in 
Europe and expects to hold pre- 
liminary discussions in Rome on a 
new agreement* There have been 
various indications that the Italians 
intend to drive a hard bargain un- 
less the subsidy is continued in 
som# fashion* 


draft was based in part on the ab- 
sence of stipulations pertaining to 
this subject. 

Allied’s objection to taking part 
in a ne>y arbitration meeting is 
also , based on current beefs 
against distribs, particularly in re- 
lation to ‘ 20th-Fox’s policy on 
C i n e m a S c o p e. “Will ,Spyros 
Skouras be willing to arbitrate 
stereophonic sound?,” gsked one 
Alliedlte. “The silence of out* 
hoard on the subject of arbitration 
Is an indication of how we. s feel 
about it,” he said. “We’ll prob- 
ably discuss Johnston’s invitation 
at our board meeting later this 
month, but it’s very unlikely that 
we’ll do anything about it.” Ben 
Marcus, new Allied prexy, said the 
subject was not at present on the 
board’s agenda. 

Johnston, in his letter to exhib 
leaders, said “the purpose of the 
meeting is to make a fresh en- 
deavor to agree upon a system of 
arbitration of disputes Involving 
exhibitors and distributors of mo- 
tion pictures in the United States. 
The distributors propose that, since 
neither the exhibitors ncir the dis- 
tributors were bound; by the drafts 
submitted in 1952, the present con- 
ferees start from scratch.” 

MPA A asked that the gxhib orgs 
each send two officers •• or mem- 
bers and their general counsels to 
meet with distrlb general sales 
managers and film company at- 
torneys. He proposed that the 
meeting take place in New York 
“as soon as it can be conveniently 
arranged and in any event within 
60 days from the date of this let- 
ter.” Johnston noted that a copy 
of the letter was being sent to the 
Attorney General of the U. S. and 
to the chairman of the Senate 
Sub-Committee of the Select Com- 
mittee on Small Business “whose 
committee expressed great interest 
in arbitration.” 

Going Ahead Anyhow 
Although many quarters in the 
piist- have said that an arbitration 
plan without Allied participation 
would be unworkable, it appears 
now that distribs and nori-Allied 
theatremen tnay attempt to see up 
an arbitration system sans Allied. 
However, it will be noted that the 
plan can be employed by any and 
or all exhibs whether members of 
organized groups or not, 

The distrlb committee consists 
of the following sales toppers : 
Charles J. Feldman, Universal; Abe 
Montague, Columbia; Alfred 
Schwalberg, Paramount, and Al 
Lichtman, 20th-Fox. Film company 
lawyers designated to the arbi- 
tration committee include Austin 
Keough, Paramount; Robert Perk- 
ins, Warner Bros., and Adolph 
Schimel, Universal. 



ROBERT BERNARD 
GREEN 

If you recognize or know tho 
whereabouts of this man 
ploast writ# * Box V-2T654. 

VARIETY 

1 54 Waft 44* St.. New Yorfu N. Y. 



mAMO-TEMWIilOlV 


Wednesday, Febnmy 17, 1954 



Robt E Lee Plays ll Safe m hidal • 
Soondoff on Rafo-TV ProUems 


Hartford, Feb. 16. 

Fearful lest he put his foot in It 
by saying anything of a contro- 
versial nature, the newest com- 
missioner of the FCC, Robert E. 
Lee, played it safe in an address 
before the second annual conven- 
tion of the New England Chapter 
of the American Women in Radio 
and Television here Saturday ( 13 ) i 
For the commissioner, whose ap- 
pointment aroused a storm of con- 
troversy, it was his maiden pub- 
lic talk. He chose as his topic the 
safe subject of -The Future of Ra- 
dio and Television." 

Speaking in generalities, Lee 
said that the future of radio and 
television has never been better. 
Anticipating the growth, of both 
radio and tv, Lee said the “color 
tv will not toll the bell, for black 
and white tv.” 

Commissioner Lee emphasized 
that lie was concerned with any 
possibility of censorship in radio 
and tv. A strong believer in the 
free enterprise system, he pointed 
out that free speech is an integral 
part of free enterprise. Said he: 
“I shall defend with: all the power 
of my office, the right to speak.” J 

The Commissioner said that in 
regards to freedom of speech, there 
Is another side of the picture, that 
freedom of speech mustn’t be used 
against the public interest. “We 
could not of course, tolerate inde- 
cent; profane or subversive com- 
ment and there are safeguards in 
the law for the protection of the 
public Interest.” 

Continuing; Lee pointed out that 
he had complete, confidence in the 
ability of the industry to regulate 
itself. “Self regulation in the 
form of ethical, standards are far 
superior to government standards,” 
Lee continued. 

One of the .obligations of the 
. FCC, Commissioner Lee pointed 
out, is to see that monopoly 
doesn’t exist. The proposal to in- 
crease the maximum number of sta- 
tions by one owner from five to 
seven of which “two : could be 
UHF” is due for a commission 
decish within 30 days.- He ex- 
pressed the hope that, in the 
event the maximum was uplifted, 
it would help UHF. 

Although network radio sales 
are off, he said, local radio is very 
strong. The commissioner also 
spoke on education tv and hoped 
that a way. would be found for 
financing those stations. 



With the TV-Radio Workshop’s 
appropriation from' the Ford Foun- 
dation officially exhausted after 
six-months, the Robert Saudek-di- 
rected out At will wind up its 
“Omnibus” after the March 28 
show on CBS-TV; The web will 
move right in on the following 
Sabbath with a brace of stanzas, 
expanding “Adventure” to an hour 
in the .4:30 slot and backing, it 
with Eric Sevareid’s “The Ameri- 
can Week,” a news and com- 
mentary show from 5:30 to 6, for 
which the Washington CBS’er has 
long been overdue. Still to be re- 
solved is the 6 to. 6:30 slot, which 
the web may prime for strength 
against NBC’s rt Meet the Press.” 

There’s no premature cancella- 
tion involved in the. exit of “Omni- 
bus” after two seasons since the 
show has been gaited to a given 
budget from the Ford Foundation. 
On the Other hand, there’s been 
no inkling as to whether the 90- 
minuter will return in the fall. 
Also coming under the same coin 
ax is the Workshop’s “Excursion” 
on NBC, with the budgetary factor 
also geared to a 26-Week ride and 
expiring early in the spring. 

“Omnibus” , has numbered as 
many as four sponsors but has a 
trio now in Kelvinator, Greyhound 
Corp, and Scott Paper Co., which 
will probably be shopping around 
for other shows. The departure 
will free emcee Alistair Cocke for 
other spots on which he has been 
sought. His opposite number on , 
“Excursion;” Burgess Meredith, ! 
wih likewise be turned loose to ply 
bis regular acting trade. I 


FAT FAY, NO WORK 

Gobel’s 'Do-Nothing’ Salary as He 
Walt# For TV Show 


Minneapolis, Feb. 16. 

Despite the fact that he’s absent 
from tv now, except for an occa- 
sional guest appearance “on 30 
days’ advance notice,”: comedian 
George Gobel, at the Hotel Radis- 
son Flame Room, here, said he has 
been bn the NBC payroll since last 
summer; drawing a handsome 
Weekly salary that augments his 
supper club stipends. 

It’s all because NBC sighed him 
after his appearances on the Hoagy 
Carmichael show last summer, but 
has no progran) for him at this 
time. - 

.Gobel says the network will con- 
tinue paying him “for doing noth- 
ing” although he won’t get his own 
show until next fall.' Under, the 
agreement he's permitted to accept 
all the supper club engagements 
he wishes. 



Washington, Feb. 16. 

Lifting of the television . freeze 
less than two years ago means that 
747 video stations are now in the 
offing on the basis of authoriza- 
tions issued by the FCC and appli- 
cations awaiting action. This is the 
substance of a report by the agency 
last week on tv applications and 
grants up to Feb. 1. 

. Report reflects the meteoric rise 
in tv broadcasting since the agency 
resumed processing of applications 
In July of 1952, During the 19 
months which followed, number of 
stations one the air has grown from 
108 to 352 (there are now 375) and 
the number authorized from 108 
to 590 (not counting the .45 per- 
mits surrendered). 

. With the increase in authoriza- 
tions there has been a correspond- 
ing geographic spread in tv service. 
Instead of . 65 communities with 
stations on the air. two years ■ ago 
there are now 223. When all. sta- 
tions so far authorized have been 
built there will be 324 and the fig- 
ure will be 369 when authorizations 
from pending applications are car- 
ried out. 

That ultra high tv has developed 
a market of its Own, free from VHF 
competition, is evidenced ; in the re- 
port. Of the 223 communities with 
tv stations, 71 have UHF only. In 
32 communities there are both 
VHF and UHF Stations. The re- 
maining 120 markets have VHF 
only. 

However, when all .stations au- 
tnorized and to be authorized are 
built the picture will be quite dif- 
ferent. There will then be 105 in- 
termixed markets (UHF and VHF), 
114 communities with UHF only 
and 150 cities with VHF only. 

The effect of mergers to avoid 
contests for channels is reflected 
in the large number of applications 
(Continued on page 40) 


Blake Sets Reshuffle In 



• In the exit of Phil Dean as pub- 
licity boss of NBC's N Y. stations 
( WNBT-WNBC ) , a new personnel 
deal shapes ( under Bob Blake, 
who’s doubling over from the 
owned 8t operated division. Bill 
Anderson has been drafted from 
WOR-TV to . manage the new pub- 
licity setup, handling both trade 
and consumer press. He starts 
March 1. 

Pat Richer (she’s a she) has 
been culled from the, program 
dept. to. work as a writer for the 
outlets, with John O'Keefe re- 
tained in that sector, and possibly 
also Barbara Mulligan as publicity 
secretary. However, Blake is 
bringing in Marilyn Rosenberg 
from the pip to be the secretarial 
aide. The tv and radio duties will 
be split for a better working sys- 
tem. 


Eric Hatch Boys WBIS 


Hartford, Feb. 16 , 
TV ahri radio writer Eric Hatch, 
ot New York* is the head of a new 
corporation that will purchase 
WBIS of nearby Bristol from the 
Bristol Broadcasting Corp. 

An ex- Aim scrivener, Hatch heads 
the Hatch Broadcasting Corp,, with 
headquarters in Torrington, Conn. 
WBIS is an indie daytimer. 

CBS-TV Sets March 15 

Bow for Web’s Answer 
To NBC Today! Show 

CBS-TV’s answer to pave Gang- 
way's “Today” makes Its debut 
March 15, with Walter Cronkite, 
former web White House corre- 
spondent, handling emcee chores 
and Paul Levitan executive produ- 
cer. Unlike the. NBC competitor, 
the accent on the hew show, pre- 
viously titled “Eye Opener,” will 
be on n£ws and information,, rather 
than entertainment. Cue to the for- 
mat of show is fact that it is ' a 
project of web’s news and special 
events division, while “Today” 
originates with NBC’s program de- 
partment. 

After eight or nine trial kines, 
show is apparently in Anal; shape 
now and ready for a ‘.’dry run” 
week of March 8, with a complete 
schedule of simulated runs in prep- 
aration for hitting the channels. A 
sales reel of show is going to the 
sales division this week for screen- 
ing on the agency circuit. Show 
will be offered in 15-minute seg- 
ments for national sponsorship, 
with five-minute cutaways for local 
sponsorship every, half hour. It will 
be packaged as a two-hour show, 
8 to 10 a.m. for eastern stations, 
and 7 to 9 for midwest. There is 
some speculation that web may try 
a “hot” kine for use on the west 
coast,: but this is still in talk stage. 

Competing with Garroway’s 
chimp, Muggs, “Eye Opener” will 
have the Baird fmppets strictly for 
entertainment, with possibly sev- 
eral stock characters to be built 
as show; progresses. 

CBS correspondent Charles Col- 
lingwood will handle news, while 
Cronkite will handle interviews 
and probably kick the news around 
with Collingwood, in addition to 
his emcee chores. Present plan 
calls for a newsworthy guest each 
mornifig, plus the usual comple- 
ment of Aim clips, news flashes, 
etc. Set will actually be a work- 
ing press room, complete with wire 
tickers, etc. 


GLEASON IN NO. 3 


Jackie Gleason’s show rated 44.5 
to . take the third spot in the Feb, 
1-7 Trendex. This fell into the Sat- 
urday (6) stanza on CBS-TV in 
which Ed Sullivan stepped in for 
the comic, who took a fall the week 
previous, with Gleason making 
only a flash appearance in his hos- 
pital wheelchair at the Anale Of 
the Feb. 6 program. 

It’s figured that a lot of curiosity 
attached to a Gleason-without- 
Gleason outing to give the show 
its lofty score (behind “Lucy” and 
“Talent Scouts” and ahead of 
“Dragnet” and Groueho Marx). 


Natch 

Pittsburgh, Feb. 16. 

Peter Thornton, a native of 
England who is publicity di- 
rector of WENS, was Agured 
by the Naturalization Depart- 
ment here as a natural to get 
its blurbs, telling aliens they 
had to register again before 
Jan, 31, on the local television 
station. Thornton took care of 
the campaign, arranging for 
regular spots for the. announce- 
ments all through, the month. 
Obviously he forgot to listen,: 
however. Deadline passed and 
among those who neglected to 
register was Peter Thornton. 

He . eventually got straight- 
ened out and applied for his 
American citizenship last week. 
Thornton married an Ameri- 
can girl in London with “Ice 
Cycles” and came to this coun- 
try with her three years ago 
as a publicity man for. Harris 
Amusement Go., headed by, 
John H. Harris, producer of 
“Cycles." Thornton left Harris 
last year to take the WENS 
post. 


‘Bank Night’ On TV 


There's increasing disturbing evidence of how, the “free dishes” 
hangover from the film house era Is moving Into television, with 
resultant cheapening of the medium. It all started when the 
ABC network high command, in a bid to woo viewers to Channel 
7 on its New York WABC-TV flagship, inaugurated its “name- 
?the-face” contest, with superimposed pictures cutting into all 
programs. It was only natural to presume that; just as the 
“Lucky Bux” shill sparked a circulation war among the N.Y. tab- 
loids, other stations would Join in the degrading spectacle, with 
WNBT now providing its own late night variation on a “bank 
night” theme. 

It’ll be interesting to note, when the final tallies are in, 
whether ABC hasn’t actually alienated its Viewers, rather than 
increased them. .- - 

Last week, as a Lincoln’s Birthday public service feature, ABC 
went to the trouble to book Carl Sandburg for a half-hour read- 
ing of a recently-resurrected manuscript of his on Lincoln. It 
was a notable program, treated with taste and dignity. But 
smack in the middle of it came the superimposed contest pic- 
ture, virtually blanking out Sandburg’s face. It was a new low 
In shoddiness, destroying the beauty- and flow of .Sandburg’s 
recital. 

' Recently U.S. Steel registered a howl when the infringing con- 
test photo reared its head into the sponsor’s dramatic showcase. 
ABC’s retort, iii effect, was that, since the clients were clamoring 
for bigger audiences, ABC was determined to deliver them. 

But getting them this way is a poor excuse for ,promotion, 
showing a complete lack of respect for the’ finer things tv has 
achieved and for the sensitivities of its audience. 



Brass In New Sales Approach 



Frederic W. Ziv’s “Red Skelton 
Show” has hit the 250-market, 
mark in sales, with two large re- 
gional cteais in the Works that may 
bring it to the 450-station mark 
within the two months it’s been 
available. 

Ziv reports sales are particularly 
strong in Canada, with the five-a- 
week . series . set In most of the 
Canuck major markets. 



DuM ‘Panorama; 



“Panorama,” half-hour educa- 
tional feature on DuMont’s WABD, 
N.Y., was yanked off the air last 
week by perturbed Joseph B. Ca- 
vallaro, chairman of the Board of 
Higher Education in New York, 
who charged that on several occa- 
sions the network either cut into 
the time of the program or cut it 
out completely to make room for 
commercial productions. And all of 
this was done without any previous 
notice to the Board and the person- 
alities Who put in so much time 
preparing for each show. 

DuMont offered time for a 26- 
week series to the Board of Higher 
Education, last June, but no more 
than 12 of the slots were used be- 
fore Cavallaro announced the 
show’s finish. Chief problem faced 
by the web were overtime basket- 
ball and football frays which dent- 
ed the 5 p.m., Saturday, slot that 
“Panorama” held: Since they were 
network commercial programs they 
Commanded precedence over the 
strictly local sustainer. 

When Cavallaro finally called 
the affair to a halt last Thursday, 
he .wrote letters of explanation to 
(Continued on page 30) 


To Get NBC 0&0 Ride 

. Jackie Robinson is being set for 
a sports quiz on the NBC o&o sta- 
tions with an eye toward expan- 
sion as a syndicated series. It’ll be 
titled “Ask Jackie Robinson” and 
format calls for a panel of experts. 
Kagran Corp. is auditioning the 
stanza Friday (19) with the 
Brooklyn Dodger’s guests includ- 
ing Cas Adams, of the N. Y. 
Journal-American; Carl Braun, 
basketball star; of the N. Y. 
Knicks, and a teenager conversant 
with sports. Kevin Kennedy will 
moderate. Waxed excerpts of ma- 
jor sports events will be included. 

Kagran’s Murray Behson is pro- 
ducing. 


Mutual is planning to make a 
new kind of . bid for the extra- 
plentiful dealer-manufacturer co- 
op advertising coin which until 
now has gone mostly into the cof- 
fers of the. printed media. The net 
has recently brought in one of the 
top cooperative ad consultants in 
the country, Mosher Story. Hut- 
chins, to help it make the neces- 
sary changes in sales approach. 

Idea, if consummated, is to 
switch the emphasis from the local 
advertiser, who is approached by 
the local ''affiliate station salesmen, 
to the top brass at the manufac- 
turing firm. 

As things stand noW, the station 
makes a play to the neighborhood 
lamp dealer, for example, who be- 
fore he can: buy radio time must 
first get clearance from the lamp 
manufacturer who is sharing ad- 
vertising .costs 50-56. However, if 
Mutual can iron out the weak ends 
in the plan with Hutchins, the bid 
will be made directly to the heads 
of the manufacturing Arms for 
complete general okays to dealers 
to use web affiliate air time. 

This will facilitate a number of 
important facets in the time sales 
biz. If the web affiliates have offi- 
cial sanction from the manufac- 
turer it will help rule out the 
necessity for a big selling job by 
the indies. Moreover, contracts can 
be expedited more rapidly if there 
is no need to refer again and again 
to the top. brass for a go-ahead 
signal. And last, and probably most 
important for radio generally will 
be the public relations angle in 
that top web salesmen can con- 
stantly reaffirm the value of audio 
to the guys who count. 

The proposed scheme to garner 
the dealer-co-op dollar was Arst 
outlined briefly by Bert Hauser, 
co-op radio programming chief at 
MBS, before the Mutual affiliates 
(Continued on page 30) 



Honolulu, Feb. 16. 
NBC prexy Pat Weaver gave the 
Honolulu Chamber of Commerce 
a peek into thd electronics world 
of tomorrow at a special luncheon 
honoring the network head. 

Of prime significance to. Island- 
ers was his prediction that live tv 
shows will span the 2,400 miles be- 
tween Hawaii and the Mainland in 
“only a matter of years/’ 

Weaver indicated that tremend- 
ous progress has been made with 
magnetic tape techniques and said 
people will be able to tape pro- 
grams received^ by their home sets, 
even while they are away. 

Weaver, in Hawaii at the in- 
vitation of .Lorriri Thurston, presi- 
dent of The Advertiser Publishing 
Co. (KGU), will visit directors of 
KMVI on Matii~island and KIPA. 
Hawaii island, before returning to 
N.Y. Thursday (18). 



Wednesday* Fchruwy 17, 1954 


RADIO -T ELK VY SION 


23 



< 


NO TIME FOR WEARIES 


* 



Now that NBC has bagged the radio and tv versions of the-Lux 
dramatics, effective in August, in the first major “Pat Sc Bob" 
offensive, it’s considered strictly within the realm of possibility 
that the network will, next train its guns and strategy on effecting 
the switchover of other names and properties from its major CBS 
competition. It's reported in reliable quarters that Ed Sullivan 
(“Toast of the^Town" impresario) is Target No. 1 on the NBC 
agenda. 

Acquisition of “Lux Radio Theatre" and “Lux Video Theatre" 
doesn’t necessarily constitute a raid on the part of NBC. Lux 
(Lever Bros.) wanted a full hour time for an expansion of its video 
showcase arid CBS was in no position to deliver. NBC offered 
the 10 to 11 Thursday night segments and Lux grabbed it. With 
It went the lorig-ffstablished radio edition which, even today, after 
nearly a score of years, is still near the top of the rating heap 
and gives the depleted NBC radio roster one of its most potent 
•54-’55 properties. . ♦ 

It’s not exactly a secret that NBC wouldn’t be averse to grabbing 
off some of the more valuable Columbia program Components— if 
only in retaliation for the “Year of Paley’s Comet" which depleted 
NBC's star-studded roster. Some time hack even such valuable 
CBS properties as “l Love Lucy" and Ed Murrow (even though 
the latter is on the Columbia directorate) figured in unofficial 
discussion anent NBC’s aspirations for the future. The Lux coup, 
some anticipate, may spark new efforts on the part of the network 
to expedite some CBS-to-NBC shifts. Thus far on the Lux shift 
it adds up to $4,000,000 annually in gross tv time billings; and an 
additional $1,300,000 for the radio edition. 




Prefer* Competing With B & K for Chi Channel, 

But CBS Owns It 


Washington, Feb. 16. 

Something quite unique in the 
way of FCC hearings may soon 
take place if Zenith Radio Corp. 
decides to battle CBS for the right 
to channel 2 in Chicago, now oc- 
cupied by WBBM-TV, for which 
the network paid $0,600,000 when 
the merger of ABC and United 
Paramount Theatres forced divesti- 
ture of UPT’s former Chi outlet 
WBKB (now the call letters for the 
ABC o&o. station). 

Zenith, it’s understood, would 
prefer to compete with Balaban Sc 
Katz, former licensee of WBKB, 
for. the channel but B&K sold the 
station to CBS and has no pro- 
prietary interest in. it. Neverthe- 
less, in upholding Zenith’s right to 
compete for the channel by virtue 
of a pre-freeze application, the 
U. S. Court of . Appeals held that 
the hearing “should have been*' 
between B&K and Zenith. But, the 
Court said it could ‘not “ignore” the 
fact that CBS now occupies the 
channel. 

In a battle with CBS, Zenith 
would Undoubtedly emphasize its 
pioneering work With Phonevision 
on channel 2 on which it had an 
experimental authorization during 
the tv freeze. Company would have 
to stack this contribution, to broad- 
casting plus its manufacturing 
roots in the Chicago community, 
against the formidable record of 
CBS in the radio and tv media 

(Continued on page 34) 




Robert Q. Lewis is gradually as- 
suming the status of a one-man 
network, not unlike Arthur God- 
frey. With six quarter-hour seg 
ments already sold for his expand- 
ed 90-minute Saturday morning ra- 
dio show, CBS is. now reasoning 
that if he’s that good in the morn- 
ing there’s no reason why a full 
hour of Robert Q. at night can’t 
turn the same trick. This, too, is 
quite apart from his afternoon 
cross-the-board tv show on the 
same web, not to mention his cap- 
sule afternoon cross-the-board ra- 
dio stint for General Foods. All of 
Which gives him weekly exposure 
second only to Godfrey, for whom 
he formerly pinchhitted. 

. CBS Radio program department 
is currently blueprinting the night- 
time hour show, which it plans to 
sell in segments. Once that’s final- 
ized, the network plans to do the 
same thing with Peter Lind Hayes, 
Whose new half-hour Saturday 
afternoon AM show preemed last 
week. 


Color TV Schedule 

NBC-TV 

Circle Theatre — Feb. 23, 9:30 

P.m. 

Excursion — Feb, 28, 4 p.m. 
Ding Dong School — March 
8-9. 10 a.ih. 

Opera (“Taming of the 
Sjirew") — March 13, 4 p.m, 
Name That Tune — March 
15, 8 p.m. 

On .Your Account — March 
19, 4.30. p.m. 

Eddie Fisher — March 31, 
7:30 p.m. . 

* CBS— TV 

New Revue — Feb. 19, 5:30 
p.m. 

Paul Tripp's Party — March 
2, 5:30 p.m. 



Gate Down, 'But 



Edward S. (Ned) Irish, exec v.p. 
of Madison Square Garden Corp., 
which owns Gotham’s largest in- 
door sports arena, told members 
of the Radio and Television Execu- 
tive Society at last week’s lunch 
eon meeting in N Y, that the tota 
income of the Garden is down 
even after combination of gate and 
broadcasting take, “but we don’ 
hate radio and tv, we love it." Irish 
conceded that video coverage has 
strong publicity value. 

Irish admitted that biggest loss 
at the gate comes simply from the 
general competition of video and 
riot necessarily, from televising the 
athletic encounter itself. 

“People go to see tv shows, or 
sit at home watching them," he ob- 
served. He implied this heavy por 
tion of the market is what is sorely 
needed by sports promoters. 

Still he wasn’t too happy abou 
video coverage of Garden offerings 
The Ranger hockey games on Sun 
day nights are presented without 
being carried on tv. The Ranger 
club has for the first time in years 
come up with a popular, winnirig 
outfit, and Irish pointed to a 40% 
increase in attendance on Sunday 
nights as against only a 10% rise 
on any of the other nights (covered 
by tv) this last season. He Used a 
four month measuring period to ar 
rive at the figures,. 

“That would clearly indicate tha 
there is a loss at the gate through 
tv," Irish said.. 

However he said, “Unlike mos 
of the tenants of our building, we 
(Continued on page 40) 


By GEORGE ROSEN 
On the basis of strategy already 
being, blueprinted, the ushering in 
of the ’54-’55 season in September 
will bring in its wake perhaps the 
most drastic overhauling of night- 
time commercial segments, partlcu- 
ariy on NBC and CBS, since tv 
became the big noise in show* biz. 

The two major networks are de- 
ermined to plug every weak hole 
in the Sunday-thru-Saturday sched- 
ules, even at the risk of making 
many a sponsor unhappy. For 
while the client may be contented 
with his entry, the networks, 
ockeying for preeminent position 
as the rivalry grows hotter, are 
convinced that the non-pulling at- 
tractions must go. 

That the unprecedented program 
reschedulings will invite some net- 
work vs. agency tempests is ac- 
cepted as inevitable. Already NfiC-. 
T having negotiated for acquisi- 
ion of “Lux Video Theatre” for 
a full hour , dramatic showcase to 
further strengthen its Thursday 
night , lineup, is threatened with 
litigation and squawks to the Fed- 
eral Communications Commission 
over the dispossessing of the U.S. 
Tobacco-sponsored “Martin Kane" 
series, with the Kudner agency, 
handling the account, doing the 
“burn of the season" over the 
ouster upon expiration of “Kane’s" 
time contract in August. Kudner 
exec this week reiterated “we’ll 
fight this to the hilt.’’ 

With acquisition of the expanded 
Lux dramatics from its present 30- 
minute CBS-TV format, Thursday 
night on NBC-TV Will approximate 
a dream parlay comprising Groucho 
Marx, “Dragnet," two of the top- 
rated shows in tv, with Borden, 
having lost “T-Men” in the 8:30 
period, on the lookout for a major 
replacement entry. (In the mean- 
while it has acquired the “Justice" 
drama series as a filler.) 

Lotsa Thursday Trouble ' 

In contrast to NBC, CBS has at 
least 120 minutes of Thursday 
trouble facing remedial steps by 
the fall. Status of the brace of vid- 
film entries from 8 to 9 (“Mr. 
McNulty" and “Four Star Play- 
house") is in doubt. The Lux 9 to 
9:30 time has to be filled. Philip 
Morris (10 to 10:30) has already 
yanked the “Playhouse" series and 
will try its luck with the newly- 
acquired “Public Defender" vidfilm 
series starting next month. 

Once having set its Thursday 
house in order, NBC Is going to 
work on Moriday, the web’s weak- 
est night (and by far CBS’ strong- 
est). The entire 8 to 9130 Monday 
strip, including “Name That Tune," 
“Voice of Firestone” and the Den- 
nis Day show for RCA will appear 
to be in jeopardy in terms of next 
fall, each one taking a trouncing 
from the formidable Burns Sc Al- 
len, “Godfrey Talent Scouts" and 
“Lucy" lineup . on Columbia. Out 
of loyalty to Firestone, NBC lias 
allowed millions of dollars to go 
down the drain (far more, it’s con- 
ceded, than the amount of coin the 
network has realized from the tire 
company), and on the upcoming 
agenda is “let’s do something about 
Firestone." 

NBC is strong on Tuesday, with 
the exception of 10 o’clock. Old 
Gold has the time, with Fred Al- 
len’s “Judge For Yourself" going 
off in May. There’s little likelihood 

(Continued on page 40) 




Vice ABC-TV ’Comeback 


ABC-TV has picked up a Lester 
Lewis v panel-quiz package, “Who’s 
the Boss?" as a replacement for 
the departed “Comeback Story ” in 
the Friday at 9:30 ‘slot. Walter 
Kieman emcees the new show, 
which has a panel quizzing the sec- 
retaries of famous people in an 
effort to identify them. Show 
preems this week (19). 

Program was on ABC-Radio last 
spring as a one-shot in the web’s 
“Playhouse" radio counterpart to 
the tv “Album." 


Long Lever Battle 

NBC’s copping of the Lux 
biz climaxes one of the most 
bitter and recurring battles in 
broadcasting annals. It’s a 
story that goes back many 
years, when “Lux Radio Thea- 
tre" ranked with the most 
treasured AM properties. 

Both the CBS and NBC 
echelon engaged in periodic 
commuting to Cambridg e, 
Mass, (then the home of Lever 
Bros,) as CBS fought (always 
successfully) to retain the Lux 
biz and NBC tried to convince 
the Lever hierarchy to make 
a change in networks. Seldom 
has the inter-network rivalry 
occasioned such ill feeling as 
did the battle for the Lever 
biz over the years. 



With CBS Radio stripped of its 
major dramatic plum— ‘Lux Radio 
Theatre"'— which NBC Inherits in 
August along with its acquisition 
of the hour-long “Lux Video Thea- 
tre,” Columbia program chief Les- 
ter Gottlieb will move into the Lux 
Monday 9 to 10 time period with 
another 60-minute drama entry. 

CBS Radio makes no bories over 
its loss. The Lux entry for years 
has been the anchor*' show in the 
network’s powerful Monday night 
status, with the adaptation of top 
film properties (along with the pix 
stars) giving it a year-in-year-out 
rating that’s been the envy of all 
dramatic stanzas. 

Whether or not CBS* will have 
access to the same type of prop* 
erties and stars for its own home- 
built replacement show remains to 
be seen, but the network makes 
it emphatic that it will spare no 
expense, and budget just as much 
coin as for the Lux drarhatics in a 
bid. to retain the Monday night 
audience. 

NBC has yet to decide where it 
will slot “Lux Radio Theatre” but 
it isn’t* likely that it will stay put 
Monday at 9 (to capitalize on the 
Monday habit) since it would mean 
yanking “Telephone Hour" out of 
that time segment. 


NBC-TV having put its “Home" 
and weekday morning roster in . 
order, With all in readiriess for a 
March 1 preem, has now em- 
barked on its newest major ex- 
ploration — “Operation Saturday." 
It’s a multiple-pronged effort, de- 
signed chiefly for kid appeal, en- 
compassing a variety of program- 
ming spanning the four hours from 
8 a m; to noon. In terms of . mop- 
pet-slanted programming, it’s one 
of the most ambitious projects un- 
dertaken by a Web, with the exten- 
sion of both the early morning “To- 
day” show and the 11 to noon 
“Home" program into the Saturday 
operation as the opening (8 to 9) 
and closing attractions of the al- 
ready-blueprinted roster* 

As a sixth-day entrant* the “To- 
day’’ show will be geared; of 
course, for kid appeal. Another 
emcee, still to be determined, will 
'substitute on Saturdays for Dave 
Garroway. Basically it will fol- 
low the same pattern as the Mon- 
day-through-Frlday showcase, but 
containing exclusive elements ap- 
pealing to the younger generation. 

From 9 to 10 NBC is prepping 
an ambitious “Down on the Farm" 
show, to be tempted from an actual 
working farm near Chicago, Chi 
NBC-TV program chief Ben Park 
will cut a kine of the program this 
week with Eddy Arnold as the top 
prospect for hosting the duties. Don 
Herbert, conductor of the net- 
work’s Chi-originating “Mr,. Wiz- 
ard," and John Ott, botanical time- 
lapse photographer, are logged in 
for the rural Spread. Marlin 
Perkins, of “Zoo Parade," is also 
being considered. 

The 10 to 10:30 segment is still 
under consideration, arid it’* prob- 
able that the network will fill it 
with a show providing college 
credits. This one as such, will 
be adult-slanted. 

In the 10:30 to 11 period, NBC 
will do a news show for kids with 
Frank Blair hosting the segment. 
Idea for the novel program was 
originated by Mary Marik, wife' of 
an engineer pn the network's Wash- 
ing, D. C., station. 

Extension of the upcoming 
“Home" show to the Saturday 
time will also include features 
directed at the juvenile audience, 
as well as at the show’s regular 
viewers. 




Brig. Gen. David Sarnoff will be 
interviewed by Edward R. Murrow 
on the CBS-TV “Person to Person" 
March 12. RCA-NBC board chair- 
man will be “picture windowed" 
from his New York residence. 

This will make Sarnoff ’s second 
appearance within a month on the 
rival web. Last Sunday (14) he 
joined CBS board chairman Wil- 
liam S. Paley as well as M urrow 
and’ Other Columbia performers in 
a tribute to Freeman Gosden and 
Charles Correll, the Amos ’ri' Andy 
pair, on radio. 

Y&R Up* Leva the* 

Peter G. Levathes has been 
made director of media at Young 
Sc Rubicam, ad agency, to replace 
Anthony V. B. Geoghegan. Leva- 
thes is also a veepee at the agency, 
while Geoghegari, remains chair- 
man of the plans board and a mem 
ber of the exec committee. 

The announcement of the exec 
switch came from S. S. Larmon, 

i. 





The CBS Radio windfall on Ford 
Motor billings will be even more 
extensive than was initially pacted 
for, with the motor company’s 
sponsorship of Ed Murrow also be- 
ing expanded to include Bob Trout. 

Ford bought MurrOw’s 7:45 to 8 
p.m. cross-the-board news com- 
mentary for all iriarkets in the 
country except those in the east 
bankrolled by Amoco. However, 
Ford>also wanted coverage in the 
Amoco cities and bought Trout on 
a three times a week basis. Latter 
will do a five-minute 8:25 to 8:30 
Wednesday-ThursdayrFriday com- 
mentary for Ford. CBS will co-op 
the Trout program in the re- 
mainder of the country. 


‘Medallion’ in Doubt 

Status of the Saturday night 
CBS-TV “Medallion Theatre," spon- 
sored by Chrysler, is up in the air. 
The network will know by Week’s 
end whether the auto company will 
pick up the option and keep the 
show or time. Thus far it hasn’t 
committed itself, although CBS ad- 
mits it is “alerted" to a possible 
bowout. 

This is second season round for 
l “Medallion." 




24 iAMMBUIVMHW PfijSIEfr 

SWG Plans to Test Jurisdiction 
Of TWA in Network TV Field 

Screen Writer's Guild is consld-4 


ering filing with NLRB for an elec* 
tion in June, contesting Television 
Writers of America’s jurisdiction 
in the network tv field, it’s been 
learned. TWA originally whipped 
SWG in an NLRB vote, but SWG 
now feels its rival organization is 
considerably weakened by intra- 
mural battles involving political 
ideologies. 

In addition, SWG has never 
made it a secret that it felt the 
original loss was due to failure by 
the Authors League of America to 
campaign properly in N, Y. Coast 
vote for SWG was good, but n.s.g. 
in Gotham. 

TWA is sharply Split within, 
with a number of its members, in- 
cluding some of its founders/ hav- 
ing left because of fights on an 
anti-Gommunist resolution, plus 
the retention of exec secretary 
Joan La Cour after she defied the 
House Un-American Activities com- 
mittee. 

TWA’s political imbroglios have 
stiffened stand of the webs in nego- 
tiations for a contract, and one 
union source said he saw no sign 
of a settlement being reached. , 

The TWA source said that his 
union had learned before negotia- 
tions began last fall that the Webs 
told their negotiators to avoid pro- 
longed negotiations, to sign a con- 
tract. and get it Over with; But 
when TWA got involved in its own 
turmoils, the webs reversed their 
stand, the source said. He. added 
web spokesmen had mentioned 
Miss La Cour in the talks, but; 
TWA sharply refused to discuss 
her, saying that case had nothing 
to do. with negotiations. 

Observed the ' TWAite: '-Origin- 
ally the networks thought they 
were dealing With a strong, clean 
writers’ group. But we gave them 
a club, and they’re using it to good 
advantage. Frankly, I see no 
chance of an agreement! the. w r ay 
it looks now.” 



Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

Emmy, symbol of the best In 
television as judged by 500 mem- 
bers of Academy of Television Arts 
& Sciences, had that look in her 
eye that one sees at every CBS-TV 
signbff. Her gaze was more fast- 
ened than wandering and of the 21 
baubles passed out last Thursday 
night in the Palladium, her win- 
ning smile was for CBS and its lo- 
cally-Owned station, KNXT, 11 
times. NBC was second with five 
and ABC collected three times. 

Two ties occurred, a rarity in the 
Acad’s six years of presentation, 
and three entries were double win- 
ners. Dr. Frank Baxter, USC Eng- 
lish literature prof, and his Satur- 
day morning program on KNXT, 
Shakespeare on Television, were 
twice honored, as ABC’s U.S. Steel 
Hour and “I Love Lucy,” both a s 
the best situation comedy, and 
Vivian Vance as supporting ac- 
tress. 

This year’s awards, for the first 
time, were partitioned off into two 
sections— national and local, so 
(Continued on page 28) 

CHESTERFIELD BUYS 
SPIKE FOR 7 WEEKS 

Chesterfield’s seven-week pact 
for the NBC-TV Saturday night 
Spike Jones show represents the 
initial lump of smoke money for 
the web since the ciggie outfit de- 
parted Arthur Godfrey's stanzas; 
It’s also the first separate network 
buy for Liggett & Myers following 
the CBS axing. Seven-weeker rides 
out the first cycle for Jones but 
whether the next go-round option 
will be taken up will depend partly 
on the screwball maestro’s ratings. 
Latter have risen of late. Also, 
Jones buy gives ciggie company a 
first option, on Mickey Rooney 
series being reserved for the Sat. 
at 8 slot. 

Chi’s Leo Burnett agency had 
the Green Giant Canning Co. Set to 
underwrite the skein but wanted a 
fall teeoff. 

Cig company will plug both 
Chesterfield and its L&M filter tip, 


Dick Clemmer to Produce 
NBC-TV’s 1 Man's Family ’ 

Dick Clemmer has been tapped 
to produce the Coast-originating 
"One Man’s Family” for NBC-TV 
and planed out from N.Y. this Week 
to take over the chores for the 
Carlton E. Morse soaper, which 
preems March 1. Clemmer handled 
the production reins on the show 
when it was a once-weekly tv’er 
three years ago. Morse is listed as . 
supervisor on the program. 

On the cast end, Theodore Von 
Eltz has been set as Father Bar- 
bour, with Mary Adams as mother. 



Washington, Feb. 16. 

Because of the “critical” situa- 
tion facing KPTV in Portland, 
Ore., the “bell-cow” of UHF serv- 
ice, Storer Broadcasting Co. ap- 
pealed to the FCC last week to 
hurry up with approval of its $8,r 
500,000 purchase of the Empire 
Coil Co. 

With one VHF in operation and 
two V’s to come, KPTV is facing 
a difficult period in Portland, said 
Storer/ and any substantial decline 
in its fortunes “may well consti- 
tute serious discouragement in the 
future growth and development of 
the UHF service.” 

Company said it is prepared to 
sell one of its five VHF stations 
(Detroit, Atlanta, Toledo, San An- 
tonio, Birmingham) in order to 
take over. Empire’s WXEL in 
Cleveland and stay within the five- 
station .ceiling on tv ownership. It 
also asked that transfer of KPTV 
be permitted, conditional on FCC 
action on a proposal to raise the 
five-station limit to seven, provide 
.ing two are UHF. 

Storer ; purchase includes Em- 
pire’s transformer manufacturing 
plant in New Rochelle, N. Y. 

BOSTON CANCELS OUT 
TV ON CELTICS GAMES 

Boston, Feb. 16. 

Placing the blame for the dwind- 
ling attendance at the Sunday 
home games of the Boston Celtics 
squarely on tv, Walter Brown, own- 
er of the pro-basketball team can-r 
celled the deal with WNAC-TV last 
week. Decision was reached at a 
meeting between Brown and Linus 
Travers, WNAC-TV exec veepee 
when Brown ^produced figures 
showing that while the Celtics at- 
tendance on non-tv’s week-night 
games is about 40% above last 
year’s the Sunday games are off 
so much that the overall pickup is 
or.ly about 20%, 

Although legally protected, the 
contract was for the balance of the 
season, Travers agreed to cancel 
the telecasts stating “we don’t 
want to put any Boston sports pro- 
motion out of business, therefore 
we are happy to go along with. 
Brown in his effort to find the rea- 
son or reasons for disappointing 
business.” 

Mutual Repacts Heifer 
To Forestall Craboff 

To forestall outside bids for the 
services of A1 Heifer, Mutual’s 
sports chief Paul Jonas inked the 
sportscaster to another long-term 
contract Monday (15). Heifer, who 
is. top play-by-player at the radio 
we h,- still has a year to go under 
his present five-year inking. 

Other webs have been using 
Heifer more frequently lately than 
ever before. Most recently he did 
the Rose Bowl fray for NBC. In 
addition, he has done regular 
chores for MBS on its “Game of 
the Day” (baseball) aitid “Game of 
the Week” (football). Heifer will 
again do these under the new 
agreement, with the daily baseball 
games skedded to Begin on March 
28 during the training season. 


Roger Price Show Set 

Rogeir Price, cartoonist 'and 
“Droodles” originator, who’-s been 
a steady guestar on most of the 
daytime showcases around New 
York, gets a local show of his qivn 
starting: March 1, via WABC-TV, 
the ABC Gotham ilagship. 

He’ll move inta the 7:10-7:15 
p.m. strip following Monica Lewis’ 
segment, under sponsorship of the 
I Mutual Assn; of Savings Ranks. 



Hot on Spot Tele 

* Use of spot television by insur- 
ance companies is steadily expand- 
ing, With the total of 16 companies 
using the medium last summer 
numbering twice as many as those 
in the field during the first quarter 
of 1952. That’s one of the findings 
of the Petry Co.’s study on the in- 
surance firms, part of a continuing, 
series on the activities of various 
industries in video advertising. 

Findings show not only the num- 
ber of insurance . companies using 
spot video doubled, but their actual 
^number of spot announcements and 
participations up 500% over the 
1 8-month . period. Survey shows 
that of the total number of pro- 
grams sponsored by the surety 
outfits, almost half are locally-pro- 
duced’ programs. 

Program preferences are chang- 
ing too, with a marked trend to- 
ward use of daytime Video. Main, 
preference continues to be night- 
time news programs, but. while two 
years ago sponsorship of nighttime 
programs outnumbered daytime by 
seven to one, in September the 
margin had decreased to less than 
two to one. During the entire first 
quarter of 1952, no daytime an- 
nouncements or participations were 
used by Insurance advertisers; in 
the third quarter of ’53, 27% of all 
announcements were made during 
the daytime. 

Toast’ M-G Salute In 
Walloping 40.7 Against 
O’Connor (Colgate) 19.3 

Ed Sullivan’s “Toast of the 
Tpwn” walloped “Comedy Hour” 
on 'Sunday (14) with Trendex giv- 
ing the CBS’er a 40.7 against 19.3 
for NBC. In a 30th anniversary 
M-G dazzler Sullivan pitched a 
flock of film stars from the Metros 
stable (live/ clips from current re- 
leases, and quickies from the stu- 
dio’s all-time pix greats), while the 
Colgate show Slotted Donald 
O’Connor, with Beatrice Kay the 
No. 1 guest, in what turned out to 
be one of his best workouts. 

" There wete some viewer beefs 
that newspaper ads on the Sullivan 
show listed the stairs without in- 
dicating the clip route format on 
many of them (all of them took 
opening bows, followed by the pic 
sequences). 

SEVERAL TV SHOWS 
MULLED BY HAYWARD 

Leland Hayward, who is pro- 
ducing the Ethel . Merman “Any- 
thing Goes” vidmusical for the 
“Colgate Comedy Hour” Feb. 28, 
will probably do- several more 
shows for NBC-TV on the Coast. 
The producer shuttled in from 
Hollywood over the weekend to 
discuss several video ideas with 
NBC’s Bobby Sarnoff and Manie 
Sacks. He aired west Monday (15). 

Hayward has “Mr. Roberts” and 
the Charles Lindbergh biog slated 
for immediate film production, as 
independent packages on the Coast, 
and since his Will be' a protracted 
sojourn west he favors also being 
active on Vid production in Holly- 
wood. .. 


Jack Sobel to Chi 

Jack Sobel, of the television de- 
partment 3of General Artists Corp. 
New York office, has been trans- 
ferred to GAC’s Chi setup. He’ll 
service Cincinnati, Dallas areas as 
well. 

Part of Sobel ’s duties will in- 
volve sales of filmed te.eveers as 
GAC is . the sales rep of Screen 
Gems, Columbia pix tele subsidi- 
ary. 


Wednesday, February 17, 1954 



Paper-Mate Pen Sets 
$1,600,000 AM-TV Spots 

T. J. Welch, v.p. of the Paper- 
Mate Pen Co., has announced that 
the firm plans to spend $1,600,000 
in television and radio spot an- 
nouncements this^year. 

Plans are under way to bank- 
roll a web program during the 
year, but this would be in addition 
to the one-minute and" 29-second 
spot campaign. Welch said de- 
cision on spot drive was made fol- 
lowing a survey by Foote, Cone & 
fielding, which indicated advan- 
tages of spot advertising in ex- 
tensive coverage of the national 
market, in frequency, and in mar- 
| ket flexibility. 



Atlantic City, Feb. 16. 

Educators were advised to en- 
courage the fullest possible use of 
educational television as Blanche 
Crippen, assistant director, public 
information. Joint Committee on 
Educational Television, spoke to a 
discussion group of the American 
Assn, of School Administrators 
here in Convention hall yesterday 

us). ■ ■ ■ 

Mrs. Crippen pointed out that 
only 20% of the total population 
is in school which means that the 
audience to be served by informal 
education is 80% of the total 
population. 

She said that educational televi- 
sion station can serve the pre- 
school child by means, of programs 
which provide suggestions for con- 
structive activities and helpful 
hints to parents. 

It cart present courses in child 
development, improvement of 
.health, habits, disease prevention, 
child psychology, etc. 

“It can provide general educa- 
tional and cultural prograims for 
the adult population,” she said?“lt 
can serve important groups of lim- 
ited numbers such as doctors, law- 
yers, engineers and teachers, nec- 
essarily neglected by the commer r 
cial station. Indirectly it. can aid 
in raising the standards of teach- 
ers. 

“It can provide good programs 
which are not planned as formal 
lessons for students of all age$.” ; . 

Educators were advised to plan 
an effective approach to the public, 
encouraging free discussion among 
all groups concerning the >role of 
educational television in the com- 
munity. They should strike a bal- 
ance of interest with many groups 
of diverse purposes. 

McCAW CHANGES MIND 
ON TRIMMING WINS 

J. Elroy McCaw, who has con- 
trolling share in Gotham Broad- 
casting, the new owner of WINS, 
Gotham indie, has evidently chang- 
ed his mind about cutting the size 
of the operation. Shortly before 
Gotham officially took over from 
Crosley on Jan. 27, it was reported 
that McCaw intended cutting down 
staff and size of plant operation, 
but now he’s made at least a par- 
tial switch in plans. 

He has announced the addition 
of two new sales account execs and 
has upped Henry G. Kirwan from 
the post of statioh biz manager to 
that of secretary-treasurer of the 
.outlet. Jack D. Barnes and Graham. 
L. Wh ite were last week named to 
the sales staff. Barnes was former- 
ly with White/Berk & Barnes/and 
also with Gunn-Mears, both ad 
agencies. White was at one time 
with Ruthrauff & Ryan agency and 
most recently with Dan River Mills 
as a salesman. 


Mdndeville a V. P. 

Robert Mandeville, Chicago man- 
ager of Everett-McKinney station 
reps, has been named a v.p. of the 
firm and moves into N.Y. to head 
up eastern sales. 

Robert Meskill, formerly with 
O; L. Taylor and United Television 
Programs in the midwest, 
him as Chi manager. 


Sen. Edwin C. Johnson id 
C olo.)* who keeps an eagle eve 
on the operations of the FCC 
doesn’t like the agency’s plan for 
charging fees to broadcasters and 
common carriers for licensing and 
other services. Besides/ the Sena- 
tor feels the whole question strikes 
at the roots of American communi- 
cations policy and is something for 
Congress to look into. He intro- 
duced a bill last week to accom- 
plish that purpose and hopes the 
Interstate Commerce Committee, of 
which he is ranking Democratic 
member, will soon hold hearings. 

Johnson wrote FCC Chairman 
Rosel Hyde that the proposed fee 
schedule, which imposes a $325 
charge on every major broadcast 
application, may “merely create a 
monstrosity” and defeat the pur. 
pose for which it is intended— to 
meet expenses of the. - -Agency, 
Among other things; Johnson asked 
how much it’s going to cost FCC 
to' collect the fees. 

But the Senator’s greatest con- 
cern is whether the imposition of 
fees might, threaten the peoples’ 
ownership; of the radio spectrum. 
“The Communications Act,” he 
told Hyde, “specifically declares 
that the. granting of a license does 
not give the licensee a proprietary 
interest in a frequency. Nothing 
should be done to encourage a li- 
censee to believe, directly or in* 
directly, that he may be purchas* 
ing an equity, no matter how slight 
it may be, in a particular fre* 
quency.” 

The question of fees, he said, is 
so “fundamental” to the principles 
behind the . Communications . Act 
as to require consideration by the 
lawmakers. “The Congress may 
Very well find he said, “that the 
imposition of fees for licenses and 
related activities is reasonable; and 

. (Continued on page 34) 



Over $500,000 of a $1,300,000 
total budget for next year is to be 
invested by the nation’s toy manu- 
facturers, dealers and distribs 
(through the Toy Guidance Coun- 
cil) in tv alone, and an undisclosed 
additional sum. in radio advertis- 
ing. As far as video is concerned, 
the Council will buy one suitable 
local program in each of the top 
40 tv markets once a ‘Week for a 
13-week Cycle just preceding Xmas 
to come. 

There will be 104 commercials 
filmed, covering products from 75 
toy manufacturers, for presentation 
on the segments purchased. None 
of these will be used for spot com- 
mercials. 

Agency Friend, Reese & Mo 
Clone and Council bo£s, Melvin 
Freud, don’t expect to clear the 
necessary 40 stations this early, 
but they are putting out feelers for 
satisfactory shows. It is expected 
that most of the programs will be 
juve or housefrau stanzas in the 
(Continued on page 30) 

NEGRO MUSIC, DRAMA 
FESTIVAL FOR WLIB 

WLIB, Gotham radio indie, is 
going to step off its new transmit* 
ter in the middle of the East River 
with a week-long festival of Negro 
music and. drama. Gn Sunday next 
(21), New York Mayor Robert F. 
Wagner, from his Grade Mansion 
home, will throw the switch on the 
new power setup, which insures an. 
increased listening potential for 
the outlet among the city’s Negro 
populace. 

All programs on the Morris and 
Harry No Vlk-pwned station will be 
devoted to this minority group 
throughout the Week. At 7 a.m, 
on the 21st, WLIB will bring a 
three and a half hour live Gospel 
program from Harlem’s Savoy Ball- 
room. ■;* On the closing day of the 
festival, Saturday, Feb. 27, outlet 
will air another long program, this 
time featuring nanrie performers 
including Duke Ellington, Lionel 
Hampton and Ella Fitzgerald. 

Further guests during the week 
will be Josh White, William Mar- 
shall and Harry Belafonte* among 


replaces 

others 


Wednesday* February 17, 1954 


RABIO-TELB VISION 


25 




Time, Inc., has quietly dropped out of the television picture. 
X couple of years back the mag publishing dynasty was bullish 
over its future In the programming sweepstakes. Almost weekly 
there were interchanges of communiques between the mag and 
its agency, Young & Rubicam, envisioning a bigtime program splash 
in video. While it never came off, Time-Life, did participate in 
live, programming, taking over, among other things, the production 
reins for 13 weeks on the erstwhile “We the People” tv show. 

In addition, Time had a big stake in viddlms. Its “Crusade in 
the Pacific” got a network showcasing and subsequent runs. It 
readapted its old March of Time theatrical, pix for video, with 
supplementary John Daly commentary, and even brought out an 
original tv “March of Time” series. It also made a deal with 
Marion Parsonriet for an “American Wit and Humor’' film series, 
which never got Off the ground. 

But in those days the Time-Life boys were concerned over tv’s 
ascendancy as a potential threat to mag circulation, and it didn’t 
want to be caught short. Apparently, however, there’s been a 
change in the thinking as 'to tv’s inroads (only a couple weeks back 
Life made much,, of its topdog billings status vs. the tv networks, 
taking full page ads to drumbeat its leadership). 

Today, however. Time TV, has gradually passed out of the pic- 
ture, as far as programming is concerned. A cutter and a Salesman 
are still around for what residual values are to be gotten, and Art 
Murphy, who formerly masterminded the March of Time tv opera- 
tion, has shifted over to Life. 

Time has an ownership Stake in two. tv stations, in Salt Lake 
City and Albuquerque, but these are run strictly as business oper- 
ations with no relation, editorial or otherwise, to the mag empire. 



EXPOSURE 




Claims Excessive Cowcatchers, Hitchhikers Harmful 

To Major Sponsors 


Ben Duffy was put through the 
wringer on CBS-TV’s “Man of the s 
Week’’ last Sunday (14) but the 
panelists didn’t quite pierce the 
BBD&O prexy’s 15% armor. First 
they tried to hotseat him with a 
question on tv commercials. Duffy 
turned it into a complaint against 
stations, with their excessive coWr 
catchers and hitchhikers hurting 
sponsors of regular programs. He 
wouldn’t sit still on the relation- 
ship between cigaret smoking and 
lung cancer, saying research on the 
subject is “sketchy” and that 
“there’s no evidence to indicate a 
tieup that would stand scrutiny.” 
On extravagant and misleading 
claims, he asserted that the estab- 
lished ad agencies have a good rec- 
ord, but again threw the ball to 
the stations. He thought the Brit- 
ish proposal for quasi-sponsored 
tv would work “to a degree” and 
that American companies would 
hop the bandwagon to expose their 
products in England, 

. Duffy didn’t think that talk of a 
Recession would penetrate against 
the fact of high employment but 
that if there is a aeclins, adveris- 
ing, as part of the distribution 
process, would be better prepared 
to meet... it than during the depres- 
sion of the '30s because of what it 
has learned from the past. He 
said that while tv has made great 
inroads on radio, “we will always 

(Continued on page 30) 


-House of Glass’ Axed 

. Gertrude Berg’s “House of 
Glass” was axed by NBC with the 
airing of last Friday (12) after a 
few months’ sustaining run, Mrs. 
Berg had returned to New York 
after convalescing in Key West, 
Fla,, from a serious illness during 
which she had undergone multiple, 
transfusions. 

Web had no replacement set for 
the 9:35 to 10 p.m. slot as of early 
this week. 



Quits on K.C. UHF 




UHF Network 


Washington, Feb. 16. 

Sarkes Tarzian, Indiana’s “Mr. 
Television,” is planning a' network 
of ultra high stations to serve as 
satellites for his WTTV in. Bloom- 
ington. Tarzian petitioned the FCC 
last week to assign UHF channels 
In Huntington, Anderson and Lo- 
gansport to bring tv service . to 
north -central Indiana. He told the 
Commission, the project would 
stimulate UHF development. 

Tarziarii, who manufactures elec- 
tronic equipment, plans \to build 
his own transmitters and install 
microwave relay facilities to carry 
WTTV programs to the three sta- 
tions. He how has relays from 
Bloomington to Indianapolis and 
Lafayette where programs are fed 
ny Purdue U. 

It’s understood that Tarzian has 
forked out a lowcost operation 
which, if successful, may pave the 
way for U s e 0 f UHF stations as 
X”F branches in other parts of 
the country. 


Kansas City, Feb. 16. 
The* issue of pitting ultra high 
frquency as a commercial 'opera- 
tion against very high frequency 
telecasting fades from the picture 
here as of Feb. 28. DuMont an- 
nounced here last Friday (12)) that 
it would fold Station KCTY Chan- 
nel 25 as of that date. 

Allen B. DuMont Laboratories 
took over .operation of KCTY from 
Empire Coil Co., Jan, 1, for the 
nominal going price of $1, and 
brought in Don Stewart, one of its 
top execs, to. give a major try at 
UHF operation in a VHF territory. 
Empire had the station on the air 
since last June and found it a los 
ing proposition. 

When Empire definitely made up 
its mind to Sell just before the turn 
of the year, it approached DuMont 
with the “nothing for nothing” 
deal, and it is understood that the 
w , eb had to make a hasty decision 
to take it up. The KC company, 
by giving the UHF’er away, saved a 
considrable nut in Federal, taxes. 

When it took to the air in June 
KCTY was the only station at the 
time, long-established WDAF-TV 
being off the air temporarily ber 

(Continued on page 30) 


First network application- of 
the “multiple exposure” technique 
T-reaching larger audiences and 
lowering cost-per-thousand by re 
peats of filmed shows to a live 
network airer on a national scale 
is being mapped by ABC-TV, which 
will feed the hour-long Sunday 
night meller, “The Mask,” to its 
network three nights a week, the 
latter two on kinescope. Plan is 
to present the George Stevens- 
Halsted Welles production live in 
its present Sunday night slot, then 
present kinnies of previous shows 
in the Tuesday 8-9 slot opposite.' 
Milton Berle, and again feed an- 
other kinnie Wednesdays at 8. - 
Move will fill three Weak spots 
in the ABC schedule, supply net- 
work service for one hour that pre- 
viously. was strictly local and at. the 
same time give “The Mask,” a $25,- 
000 weekly program investment, a 
wider exposure, bigger buildup 
and better sponsorship chances. 
Web is currently in the process of 
working out a program-and-time ! 
rate for the repeats for any spon- 
sor who cares to move into the live 
segment, which is being sold on the 
basis of a quarter-hour up. 

Currently, show is being offered 
at a program cost of $25,000 per 
hour, $13,000 for a half-hour and 
$6,500 for a quarter-hour, with 
time rate for the quarter-hour be- 
ing 25% of the hour rate instead 
of the customary 40%. Web esti- 
mates that repayment to talent 
and other production personnel 
for use of the kinnie would amount 
to some 20% of the original pro- 
gram cost.. This, together with a 
greatly reduced time charge for 
the second and third showings 
(third less than the second) Would 
give the bankroller an unparalleled 
buy, it’s figured. 

New setup is due to kick off 
March 2, with the live segment that 
week being aired Feb.. 28. First 
kinnie on March 2 would go to 
many of the same stations as car- 
ried the Feb. 28 live segment. 
Third airer, the following night, 
would go to stations not carrying 
the live airer, but a few stations, 
mostly UHFers, would carry the 
program all three nights. By the 
time the repeats start, web will 
have kinnies of some seven of the 
programs. For the first three or 
four months, the Wednesday re- 
peat would be the same as the 
Tuesday kinnie,* until enough 
shows are in the can to vary the 
routine. Tuesday show, however, 
won’t be the same as the previous. 
Sunday. 

Program is currently carried 
live on 31 stations, delayed broad- 
cast on five more. Web is now 
clearing stations for the Tuesday 
segment, in a time slot where there 
was no previous network service, 
and for Wednesday, which is all 
sustaining. New York (WABC-TV) 
will carry the Tuesday kinnie. 
Web has also renegotiated its deal 
with Gary Merrill, with the star 
getting a meatier part in the series, 
which concerns the activities of 
two lawyer brothers (William 
Prince is the other). 

Currently in its fifth week, show 

(Continued on page 34) 


Benny : No Fiddlin' 

CBS press boys had. it all 
planned to line up the mem- 
bership of the N. Y. Violinists 
Guild to serenade Jack Benny 
when he arrived at Grand 
Central Station in New York 
from the Coast on Monday 
(15), 

Benny,; who came east to 
toastmaster, the Friars dinner 
to George Jessel next Sunday 
(21), got Wind of the string- 
reception and nixed it. 



‘Masquerade’ as Sub 



“Masquerade Party” will sub for 
Red Buttons When the CBS-TV 
comic takes a second week’s vaca- 
tion March 1. Quizzer was Button’s 
summer replacement last year and 
did a one-shot during his Xmas 
Week holiday. 

“Masquerade” panel consists of 
Ilka Chase, Peter Donald, Ogden 
Nash and Buff Cobb, with Douglas 
Edwards presiding. 


. . . Into the Fire 

There were some lifted eye- 
brows in the trade a couple of 
months ago when ABC-TV 
decided to pour some $25,^00 
a week into “The Mask,” peg- 
ging the mellftr stanza opposite 
Ed Sullivan’s “Toast of the 
Town” and NBC’s “Colgate 
Comedy Hour,” 

That’s nothing compared to 
the new plans for repeating it 
via kinnie each Tuesday and 
Wednesday night. On Wednes- 
day, it faces Arthur Godfrey 
on CBS and the situation com- 
edy combo of “I Married Joan” 
and "My Little Margie” on 
NBC. Tuesdays, it’s up against 
Milton Berle, with Bishop Ful- 
ton J. Sheen providing some 
extra competish in the first 
half hour on DuMont and Gene 
Autry and Red Skelton taking 
care of the excess on CBS. 


Chicago, Feb. 16. 

Although Swift and Philco, long- 
time radio sponsors of ABC’s 
“Breakfast Club,” have decided to 
“wait and see” on the tv version, 
they and their agencies will be 
watching the simulcast which 
bows Monday (22) with more than 
usual interest. With multi-million 
dollar investments in the AM 
show, extending over 13 years in 
Swift’s case and eight years for 
Philco, the two clients have warned , 
the network they’ll stand for no 
tampering with the radio format in 
favor of the tele exposure. 

Since Toni and Quaker Oats, the 
other two bankrollers of the SRO 
radio portion, have also nixed the 
simulcast, the web salesmen are 
out in force beating the bushes for 
new prospects for the tv treatment 
which represents ABC’s first big 
venture into the morning video 
derby. The web’s problem has ad- 
mittedly been made more difficult 
by the cross-the-board turndown 
by the AM sponsors, . at least for 
the time being, because of their au- 
tomatic protection against compet- 
ing products which considerably 
limits the field. 

While the network, of course, 
to avoid jeopardizing in any way 
the radio property, the fact that 
the tv version has a billing poten- 
tial in excess' of $10,000,000 per 
year naturally focuses attention 
on the new entry. The 52-week 
price for the tele show comes to 
$2,526,88 for five quarter-hour seg- 
ments weekly, based on $12,500 
gross production costs and $36,094 
net time hhaiges for a 74-station 
hookup. Yearly tab for the mini- 
mum two 15-minute segments per 
week comes to $1,060,800, repre- 
senting $5,000 gross for production 
and $15,400 net fpr time. 

That ABC is gambling on the 
success of the simulcast, despite 
the defection of the present radio 
bankrollers, is seen in the stipula- 
tion that tv-only advertisers will 
have to also take on the opposite 
radio portion should it become 
available. The radio program costs 
for the tv bankroller expanding In- 
(Continued on page 34) 


Amer. Home Products 



The Empire State Bldg, wants 
a new five-year deal with the seven 
tv stations whose transmitters are 
atop the Gotham edifice.. Syndi- 
cate headed by Roger L. Stevens, 
who bought the Empire only a lit- 
tle while back, is seeking $200,000 
per year from each, up from the. 
current $75,000. Contract would 
begin April 1 and the stations, 
formed into a group for the pur- 
pose, are in the midst of negotia- 
tions to knock down the price sub- 
stantially. . ; 

Imbroglio comes at a time when 
a couple of stations are fairly new 
to the Empire mast.* WATV, New- 
ark, for example, put its equip- 
ment up there . last November, and 
WOR-TV dates from early January. 
The other stations have been' on 
the tower two or more years, these 
including WNBT (NBC), WCBS- 
TV (CBS), WABD (DuMont), 
WPIX (Daily News) and WABC- 
TV (ABC); 

WATV and WOR can least afford 
the 200G tap, but the building is 
making no concession at the mo- 
ment ill the way of graduated 
rentals based on hours of opera- 
tion. Outlets are understood will- 
ing to stand for a rise of about 
15%, but one counter-offer by the 
syndicate is that the seven take 
over the tower, which includes of- 
fice tenants. The stations don’t 
want to become la ndlords, . ho\y- 
ever, and at one point there was 
talk of their putting up their own 
structure as a group. Building also 
has been griping at negotiating 
with a group, preferring to deal 
with each one independently. 


American Home Products An- 
kling the John Daly news strip on 
ABC-TV, effective March 5. Drug 
outfit got the show rolling a few 
months back with half-sponsorship 
of each hewcast; but now is letting 
its pact lapse, reportedly because 
of clearance difficulties (show is 
in statioh time). 

Cancellation leaves the show 
just half sponsored, since it had 
achieved SRO status a . couple of 
weeks ago. Web, however, doesn’t 
anticipate too much difficulty in 
selling the stanza, since it’s ex- 
perienced a; steady rating rise and 
has expanded its network consid^ 
erably since its start. 





Ward Whoelock, having lost the 
approximate $8,000,000 Campbell’s 
Soup account to BBD&O, after . a 
nearly 40-year relationship, has no 
intention of folding up shop, even 
though loss of the lucrative bill- 
ings has cued a wholesale stream- 
lining of his Philly-berthed agency. 
Wheelock is now reduced to $2,- 
000,000 in biz. with Whitman’s 
Chocolates and Scheldt Brewery 
(Valley Forge Beer) as his major 
accounts. But Wheelock has served 
notice he’s very much in business 
and in the market for new ac- 
counts. 

Practically every major veepee 
exec , has vamped the, agency, in- 
cluding Russ Johnston, the radio- 
tv director. In the reorganization, 
Walter Stockland has become exec 
vice-president. 

Loss of the account came while 
Wheelock was in Europe on a vol- 
untary mission for the Elsenhower 
Foudation. He hurried back when 
it became a certainty that Camp- 
bell was pulling out. 


SCHILDKRAUT RETURN 
MULLED BY DU MONT 

DuMont isn’t giving up on the 
Joseph Schildkraut dramatic series. 
The show was dropped two weeks 
ago after a sustaining 13-week 
cycle with no takers but it’s under- 
stood the network boys are now 
going out to exhibit the kines as 
a come-on. 

Show was the dramatic pride of 
Jim Caddigan, web . programming 
chief, but it apparently was a step- 
child among the agencies. Now the 
net is stepping carefully with ho 
immediate plans for another actual 
production of a live dramatic 
series of similar dimensions. Evi- 
dently DuMont execs feel that the 
Schildkraut airing was the best 
and they’re going to play, on Its 
potential until it shows definite 
signs of flourishing or fading. The 
network just has so much coin to 
experiment with, otherwise stanza 
might have gone around for an- 
other cycle. 

At last showing series was car- 
ried on six affiliates; 


Wednesday, February 17, 1954 



‘Inmoralist’ Kickaround Gives TV 
Stature in Controversial Sonndod 


By LEONARD TRAUBE 

Billy Rose may sell a lot of 
those balcony seats at the Royale 
Theatre, N; Y., where his produc- 
tion of “The Immoralist” is still 
berthed after a 6 to 1 beating by 
the N. Y. drama critics. Producer 
figures television will pull in the 
lower-priced customers by virtue 
of a midnight quarter-hour discus- 
sion of the play all last week <8- 
12) on WNBT for which he bought 
the time. 

Rose may have sensed downbeat 
reception since he had contracted 
for the periods the week before 
when he was giving the Ruth and 
Augustus play — based on the An- 
dre Gide novel— a series of paid 
previews to clock about $24,000. 
The critics turned up officially on 
Monday night (8) although the 
N.Y. Times’ J. P. Shanley covered 
it the previous Monday and did' a 
combination “report” and evalua- 
tion which seemed to be resented 
since Rose had understood there 
would be no sizeup until the Feb. 
8 post-preview preem. As it turned 
out, the Times’ regular caller, 
Brooks Atkinson, did a near-rave 


About the Immoralist 

Billv Rose presents roundtable discus- 
glbn of his production of “The Immoral- 
ly." by Ruth and Augustus Goetl, based 
on Andre Gide novel. With Ilka Chase, 
Richard Rodgers, Charles Ewyer, Abe Bur- 
rows, Dr. AbraWam Stone (Feb. 8); MUtpn 
Berle. Deems Taylor, Ruth and Augustus 
Coetz. Justin O'Brien (Feb. »); Dave Gar* 
roway. Arlene Francis. John Crosby, Max 
Lerner (Feb. 10 ): George Jessel, Cornelia 
Otis Skinner. Otto Preminger, Dr. Rose 
Franzblau (Feb. 11): Jessie Royce Landis, 
Gypsy Rose Lee, Howard Whitman, BlUy 
Rose (Feb. 12). Ben Grauer, moderator. 
Jim Elson, producer-director: Ana Keeley, 
assistant. WNBT, N.Y.. midnight to 12:15, 
five days storting Feb. 8, '54. 

a 

on the play in the only positive 
clipping for Rose’s scrapbook and 
followed it up on Sunday (14) with 
another handspring. Thus Rose was 
left with Atkinson’s prestige and 
five tv exposures with which to 
try to make a run of it. 

The telecast-forum may prove to 
be a potent instrument since it 
brought together a flock of Broad- 
way, tv and newspaper names who 
kicked the subject around four or 
five at a time, with Ben Grauer 
moderating amid a studio setting 
plugged as a replica of the Oak 
Room of the Plaza Hotel. This was 
in the “adult” realm and an unus- 
ual package for the medium con- 
sidering that “Immoralist” is 
pegged on a homosexual theme. 
Grauer’s nightly intro merely said 
it was.about a man “phychological- 
ly unfit for marriage” and it 
wasn’t until the Wednesday ses- 
sion that the world homosexual 
got a play. Max Lerner, of the 
N.Y. Post, used it, and Dave Garro- 
way quickly latched on by men- 
tioning that “syphilis” also \vas a 
nasty word until progress dictated 
its universal use. Slightly at cross- 
purposes in that session were 
Arlene Francis and Herald Tri- 
bune videoracle John Crosby, who 
argued on interpretation of the 
principal roles (Geraldine Page 
and Louis Jourdan). 

’Friendship, / Friendship* 

There were otlier differences of 
opinion on this and other nights, 
a fact' which put the skein a bit 
outside the area of partisanship 
though no volunteer guest was in 
there to slam the production. Rose 
denied, incidentally, that the 20- 
odd roundtablers were “rounded 
up” out of friendship for him. 
“Friendship for the play” was the 
way he put it. 

The only one who could be con- 
sidered critical was Ilka Chase, 
who opened the series with Rich- 
ard Rodgers, Charles Boyer and 
Abe Burrows, plus marriage coun- 
sellor Dr. Abraham Stone. On the 
following night, the authors , (the 
Goetzes) turned up, along with 
Milton Berle. Deems Taylor and a 
Gide protagonist, Justin O’Brien. 
Augustus Goetz read part of At- 
kinson’s notice with obviously un- 
mixed delight and Rose dittoed On 
Friday in the finale when he was 
grouped with Gypsy Rose Lee, 
Jessie Royce Landis and lecturer 
Howard Whitman in what was, 
curiously, ’ least worthy of the 
five panels although Rose himself 
showed that he could be objective 
and unobtrusive vis-a-vis his own 
property. It’s probable, however, 
that the producer’s presence put 
the stanza in the outright partisan 
class. Thursday’s quartet was one 


tnger and Dr, Rose Franzblau, 
psycho-columnist of the N.Y, Post. 

Rose said on the air that his 
second week’s take would be $20,- 
000. Off the air, he thought the 
teleshow would produce plenty of 
buyers particularly for the balcony 
seats, as noted. More important, 
“About ‘The Immoralist’” (title- of 
the telecast) gave tv a grownup 
stature And produced a lively, 
sometimes crisp discussion that 
could not help but focus attention 
on the boxoffice. 

WNBT w'as bought twice before 
to plug iegiters — by “Kismet” dur- 
ing the newspaper strike and a 
few weeks later by “John Murray 
Anderson’s Almanac” both being 
half-hour one-shotters. Neither of 
these compared with last w'eek’s 
cross-the-boarder in interest and 
evaluation. It was also a nifty pro- 
duction with Jim Elson serving on 
that end, assisted by Ann Keeley. 
If there’s a payoff at the Royale, 
the town’s critics may be “em- 
barrassed.” But ftose told Variety 
that click teleshows “reviewing” 
openings would hardly endanger 
the position of the aisle-sitters. For 
one thing, not every production 
lends itself to the treatment it got 
on the station. What makes “The 
Immoralist” appropriate for tv is 
its offbeat controversial aspect, he 
said. 


YOU CAN DO IT 
With Evangeline Baker,. Freddy 

Jorgensen, Chuck Millikan 
Producer-Director: Russ Baker 
30 MINS.; Sat., 10 a.m. 

KGO-TV, San Francisco 

Practical tips . for homemakers 
adapted for television from a news- 
paper column, KGO-TV and the 
S.F. Call Bulletin base this series 
on latter’s “You Can Do It” column. 
It features "Evangeline Baker and 
Freddy Jorgensen as a typical hus- 
hand and wife team confronted by 
everyday household problems. Jor- 
gensen, cast as the know-it-all 
husband, makes his mistakes, ac- 
complishes tasks in a round-about 
way, is a confused bungler about 
the house. 

On preem (6), Miss Baker in- 
structed hubby to make a spice 
rack. True to type, he miffed the 
assignment. She then paged a next 
door neighbor .who solved the 
problem with a handful of Rey- 
nold’s Aluminum stripes and 
headful of bright ideas. Neighbor 
(played by Chuck Millikan) made 
the spice rack in jig time, also 
showed Jorgensen how to construct 
an aluminum cookie tin, a mail box 
and a drip tray for leaky auto. 

Series is similar to pair’s former 
“Mailbag of Tricks.” Miss Baker 
gracious and attractive, is one of 
town’s best tele femmes. Jorgensen. 
KGO-TV anchor man, is well cast 
as fumbling hubby. But he would 
do well to simmer down acting bits 
and habit of stomping on another’s 
conversation. 

Set dressing is good, camera 
work adequate. Show may gain 
popularity with dust and mop set 

Tone. 


WAAM THEATRE 
(In 75 Words Or Less) 

With Lu Calfee, Elaine Swann, 
Earl Simmons, Walter Lee Terry, 
Harqr Lusher, Ted Jaffee 
Producer-Director; Tad Danielew- 
ski 

Writer: Edith Rothbauer 
30 Mins.; Thurs., 9 p.m. 

WAAM, Baltimore 
The WAAM-TV fellowship is of- 
ered each year to a pro video 
worker who submits the best pro- 
gram of study combining the fa- 
cilities of Johns Hopkins U. and 
the local station. This year it is 
held by Tad Danielewski, a studio 
supervisor now on leave of absence 
from NBC. 

For a number of years, Daniel- 
ewski has been working on a tv 
production and direction method 
that would streamline and solidify 
present uncertain techniques of 
production on dramatic shows. Be- 
fore coming to NBC in 1951, he 
began working on his ideas at Iowa 
U. and while at Hopkins has fur- 
thered his work along definite 

lines* „ - 

Danielewski’s method calls for 
the minute pre-planning of video 
drama. Each camera shot is mathe- 
matically recorded along with the 
dialog and set up before the first 
rehearsal. The cameraman receives 
his script and is able to make his 
cue sheet before the first meeting 
with the director. Actors are asked 
to know tne script by memory be- 
fore the first meeting with the 
director. In addition, they are 
asked to 1 memorize movements 
which are given precisely in the 
script. Under these conditions, 
Danielewski feels that actors and 
technicians feel more assured and 
can deliver better performances. 
The dire.ctor can devote added time 
to problems of interpretation. 

“WAAM Theatre” was set up to 
provide an experimental outlet for 
Danielewski’s efforts. Though work- 
ing with actors with little video ex- 
perience, Danielewski and the tech- 
nical staff at WAAM were able to 
deliver their, finished production 
with only one technical runthrough. 
WAAM technicians are enthusias- 
tic over the* pre-planning. 

Top echelon at NBC has evi- 
denced interest in Danielewski’s 
scheme as a possible way to cut 
excess overtime and improve stand- 
ards on the dramatic shows. The 
net has financed a kinnie of the 
experimental show at WAAM and 
will continue to look at anything 
Danielewski turns out here. 

Unfortunately, the first script 
did not allow for much opportunity 
to examine the effects of Daniel- 
ewski’s method. It was penned by 
a member of the public relations 
staff at Johns Hopkins U. and was 
strongly reminiscent stuff. A 
wacky, man - hungry government 
girl in Washington enters her 
roommate’s name in a contest that 
gives the winner the services of a 
man. Naturally, romantic entangle- 
ments result along with some heavy 
handed satire of big business and 
[.merchandise giveaways. Pro actors 
would have found the going rough 
with such bankrupt material. 

WAAM has scheduled three more 
exposures for Danielewski and 
company. With the initial try under 
his belt, it is hoped that he will 
look for a more worthwhile peg to 
hang his potentially important 
scheme for better video drama. 

Bum. 



THE NEW REVUE (CBS) 

The CBS Friday afternoon tint 
displays (web does a regularly 
scheduled weekly variety show 
from 5:30 to 6 called “The New 
Revue”) is being aimed these days 
at department store viewers, now 
that color sets are on display, and 
since CBS alone has a regular day- 
time segment set aside for “rain- 
bow shows.” 

Unfortunately, last Friday after- 
noon’s (12) installment, which> fea- 
tured ballerina Maria Tallchief and 
singer Janis Paige, was hardly cal- 
culated to invite a mad rush of pa- 
trons to the sales order desk. It 
was, indeed, fairly apparent that 
Columbia is still having its trou- 
bles achieving qualitative . tint 
standards. The program itself, as 
vaudeo attractions go, and despite 
the appearance of Miss Tallchief, 
was pretty routine stuff, no matter 
how you shade it. (NBC experimen- 
tation with its regular program- 
ming rosters, giving all shows in 
all categories a whack at the color 
showcasing appears to be much 
sounder not only in terms of con- 
verting programs for the future 
but in attaining the unpredictable;) 

It was apparent that, the CBS 
j tint impresarios were encountering 


. . 4 . n , mu, wnc cuctHinierinK 

cir 1 - 1 Geo J5f Jessel ’ i sonic difficulties in the camera 
Cornelia Otis Skinner, Otto Prem- • pickups, for the color hues were 


not constant and except where the 
camera was directly on the subject 
up and center stage neither the 
color nor the form was perfect. 

Primarily CBS seems more con- 
cerned over accenting color with- 
out much regard for making it a 
complement to the show itself. In 
the case of Miss Tallchief’s ex- 
quisite and delicate dance, the 
background columns of color were 
put there for the sake of color, 
rather than to capture the mood 
and feeling of the dance. Thus it 
distracted from rather than en- 
hanced tile choreography. The song 
number that was set up before a 
railroad gate only managed to dis- 
play varicolored luggage. Certainly 
a good potentfal as a luggage com- 
mercial, but hardly contributing to 
the show itself. 

Miss Paige looks good in pris- 
matic version, a distinct asset in 
her case. 

Of the moment is the fact that 
the CBS set designer, costuming 
dept., director of lighting and pro- 
ducer must integrate the new color 
dimension with some regard for 
show values. 

“New' Revue” is'emceed by Mike 
Wallace, with Toni Southern and 
the Honeydreatners, music by the 
Norman -Paris Trio and dance turns 
by Helene Ellis and Harrison Mul- 
ler as regular features. Rose. 


Toasting’ Metro s 30th Anni 


The best of Metro and high-gear tv showmanship combined to 
make Ed Sullivan’s Lincoln-Mercury outing Sunday (14) a striking 
entertainment. Show was a full-hour Cujver City commercial— a 
long, long trailer for the film company. Tieup peg was M-G’s 
current 30th anniversary. The pic plugs were belted out in pro- 
fusion, to be sure, but they were an inherent part of the program 
package and the accent was on audience enjoyables. 

Producing on the M-G side was George Wells. Studio boss Dore 
Schary gave him the assignment. Hermes Pan, from the same lot, 
did special choreography. “Toast of the Town” coproducers Mario 
Lewis and Sullivan handled the tv end. There’s no breakdown on 
who specifically handled what, hut no matter; it .was an expert 
collaboration. 

A more loaded cast could hardly be figured. M-G chipped in its 
near-monopolistic stable of' stars, past and present. The roster 
reads like a then-ahd-now Beverly Hills directory. Excerpts from 
M-G’s pix flowed through the show: “Ben Hur,” “Min and Bill,” 
“Dinner at 8,” “Mutiny on the Bounty,” “Grand Hotel,” “Philadel- 
phia Story,” “Gone, With the Wind,” etc. & etc. This vintage mate- 
rial came through with strong, sometimes stirring, effect. . £ach 
clip was wisely selected for independent values and had punch. 

At this point a broad-view aside note might be interjected. This 
Sullivan stanza doubtless has, or should have, stirred greater public 
recognition of Hollywood’s-^M-G’s, in this instance — record of gen- 
uine achievement. Who could imagine any of those forementioned 
classics as gratis at-home tv originals? 

“Toast” installment had “live” images, too. Sullivan and Schary 
engaged in between-acts palaver, Howard Keel vocaled the “Sobbin* 
Women” number from “Seven Wives for Seven Brothers,” Edmund 
Purdon piped a “Student Prince” item, Jane Powell did the Jewel 
Song from “Faust” and Debbie Reynolds provided a song-dance 
bit billed “Applause.” Others did walkons. Filmed especially for 
the show was Lana. Turner in a remake of the interview comedic- 
musical scene which Judy Garland did in “Ziegfeld Follies.” Turns 
by Misses Reynolds and Turner were slow spots. 

Among the more recent M-G films briefly on view were Gene 
Kelly’s “Singing in the Rain,” Betty Hutton’s “Annie Get Your 
Gun,” Mario Lanza’s “Because You’re Mine” and Lucille Ball and 
Desi Arnaz in the yet-to-be-released “Long, Long Trailer.” That 
last named segued smoothly and amusingly into a Mercury com- 
mercial. This and other considerations of the sponsor, incidentally, 
had class. Puff stuff, natch, but interestingly presented. 

To capsule the show, it was a consistently well paced> and deft 
exposure tff topnotch program material. Sullivan, the bankroller, 
M-G and the audience came out on top. Gene. 


MARS PATROL 

With Wink Martindale 

Producer-Director: Mark Forrester 

Writer: Forrester 

30 Mins.; Mon.-thru-Fri., 5:30 p.m. 

Participating 

WHBQ-TV, 1 Memphis 

With winsome Wink Martindale 
at the “controls” this well paced 
30-minute package over WHBQ-TV 
in Memphis ranks as the best of 
local kid shows ever flashed across 
the lenses in this sector. This 
handsome and “child winning” 
Martindale is simply terrif not only 
with the young ones but he also 
scores with the mommies and dads 
who visit the studios during the 

week to view their children on the 
show. 

Martindale’s flashy eyes are con- 
tagious to young and old alike 
down here in Dixieland. The 20- 
year-old tv personality hails from 
nearby Jackson, Tenn., also clicks 
with the kiddies and the entire 
family with his winning smile and 
sock-selling voice quality. . To say 
that WHBQ-TV skipper Johnny 
Cleghorn tabbed him as the “per- 
fect one” for the 30-minute role is 
putting it mildly/ The boy’s got 
it and with room to spare: 

Martindale usually has six 
youngsters oil the show with him 
during the 30-minute stint which 
is highlighted with a mythical trip 
for the kiddies to the “outer- 
space.” The stage setting of a 
space ship before the lenses and 
the production-direction of Mark 
Forrester also rate raves. Barbara 
Facquin who serves as the station’s 
hostess for the youngsters and 
parents also registers plenty in the 
good will and public relations cir- 
cuits for WHBQ-TV. 

Highlight of 30-minute stint is 
Martindale’s down-to-earth inter- 
views with the kiddies, who range 
in ages from five to 10. He talks 
their language. He’s personality 
plus and is a cincheroo to win 
added spurs as the show continues. 

Two camera men turn in an okay 
job in seguing from set to set. 

Matt. 


WTHT Calls It Quits 

Hartford, Feb. 16. 

After 18 years of operation, 
WTHT here has turned in its 
license to the FCC. Station went 
off the air Saturday night (13). 
AM's is a casualty of the duopoly 
ruling of the FCC which does not 
permit the grantee of a television 
station to own more than one radio 
station in a city. - 

The death of WTHT became 
mandatory last October when the 
station merged with WONS here 
to establish the General-Times 
Television Corp. As a result of 
the amalgamation, WONS Sunday 
1 14) changed its call letters to 
WGTH. Station is now th outlet 
for three nets, Yankee, Mutual and 
ABC. acquiring the latter from 
WTHT. 


PANTOMIME HIT PARADE 
With Dottle Mack, Bob Braun* 

Colin Male __ 

Producer: Jack Launer 

Director: Abe Cowan 

60 Mins., Mon.-thru-Fri., 11:10 p.m. 

Participating 

WCPO-TV, Cincinnati 

First anniversary of this series 
was celebrated with a repeat of 
its opening night program. Very 
noticeable was the advancement of 
professional poise by the three 
young and talented music panto- 
mimists. 

A replacement for late-night 
movies, “Pantomime Hit Parade” 
rating has jumped ahead of the 
other two Cincy tv stations, which 
are sticking to film in that slot. 
Too, Dottie Mack, Bob Braun and 
Colin Male have vaulted, to popu- 
larity on the ABC-TV web with a 
similar Saturday evening half-hour 
presentation bearing the Dottie 
Mack Show label. 

Improvement also is apparent in 
the camera treatment and scenic 
settings for the solo, double and 
trio takeoffs of vocal and instru- 
mental recordings. Same goes for 
the wardrobe of fiery and wiry 
brunette beaut and that of- her as- 
sistants. 

Threesome does a neat job of 
crediting the artists and orchestras 
that are mimicked and the trade 
names of their platters. 

Anni program had generous 
trimmings of one-candle cakes, 
flowers and messages of congratu- 
lations from names in the music 
business varied branches, Ohio’s 
Governor Lausche and a Dottie 
Mack Day proclamation by Cincy’s 
Mayor Waldvogel. Brought into 
the act for exchanges of well 
wishes were some of the sponsors. 

Repeating a line from Variety's 
review of the kickoff program, it’s 
a just-right youthful threesome 
for this type entertainment. Koll 

BANDSTAND 

With Barbara Page, Phil MacLean 
Director: Earl Keyes 
120 Mins.; Saturday, X p.m. 
MILMAR, INC. 

WEWS, Cleveland 

First major pitch for Saturday 
afternoon teenagers appears head- 
ed for strong upbeat in local tv cir- 
cles. Format as evidenced by 
opener (13) had Phil MacLean, in 
tv debut, spinning shellacs assisted 
by Barbara Page who does lip 
syncs and some sketching. Guest 
interview was with Mel Torme who 
proved a decided asset in his brief 
appearance. Invited teenagers are 
urged to dance to disks, thus giv- 
ing cameras a chance to pick up 
action shots. 

Both Miss Page and MacLean 
turned in neat performances with 
Miss Page probably doing best 
career tv job to date. MacLean, 
with a background of radio disking, 
showed potentiality of moving to 
the video top. 

Program, however, failed to 
move with anticipated sparkle, and 
teenagers all seemed squares until 
well into the stanza. More stimu- 
lating pre-show warmup might be 
i the answer. Mark. 


February 17^ 1954 


27 


.4 1 


DON 


For doing suck an outstanding Job on the Colgate Comedy Hour 
this season ... our thanks . 

Because your picture commitments won't allow you to do 
any more shows this season ... our regrets. 

* *. 

For being named the Most Outstanding Male Performer of 1953 by the 
Television Academy of Arts and Sciences ... our congratulations. 

And we're looking forward to having you with us next season. 




Wednesday, February 17, 1954 





There's only one Judy Holliday, 
and last Sunday (14) the come- 
dienne proyed It again to pleasur- 
able satisfaction in her tv debut on 
NBC-TV’s. “Goodyear TV Play- 
house." Play Mas called “The 
Huntress,’- and . it turned ou4 one 
of the most completely delightful 
shows fashioned by producer Fred 
Coe. 

. There is, of course, no denying 
that Miss Holliday made the play 
what it was, TV becomes her; it 
accentuates .her charms in its inti- 
macy, highlights her great talent 
and brings out her perfect sense of 
timing. 

In "The Huntress,” playing a 
part that has. become almost a 
stereotype with her, she managed 
to put fair substance, and a lot of 
hearty laughs, into an essentially 
thin comedy plot that nevertheless 
suited her line. It M'as a happy 
occasion both for tv and for Miss 
Holliday. 

Story by 1 David Shaw Avas. -corny.- 
but expertly handled for sock com- 
edy effects. It M’as about a gold- 
digger M’ho gets “dug" M'hen her 
heart gets into the way of her 
ambition, .Avliieh is to. marry a rich 
gent. She runs into a millionaire’s 
son Mho doesn't M'ant his pop’s 
money. Father tries to break up 
the marriage via an anonymous 
$1,000,000 gift to Miss Holliday, 
figuring that, if he disinherits his 
son, she’ll no longer be interested. 
He's almost right, but everything 
turns out well in the . end via an 
assist from the U<S. tax collector 
and Miss: Holliday's natural roman- 
tic inclinations. 

Script introed Miss Holliday in 
stages and through the eyes of a 
number of people, such as her boy- 
friend, a travel agent, a bank clerk 
and a charmsehool. instructor. By 
that time, her aims and ambitions 
were clearly established, and the 
story ready to roll. 

Playing opposite Miss Holliday, 
Tony Randall, w.k. regular on the 
"Mr. Peepers” show,: did a stand- 
out job- as the boy running away 
from his father’s money.. Randall 
Mas a natural for the part and he 
handled it intelligently 'arid '.-with 
great aplomb. He’s an actor with a. 
rare knack for comedy^ and ought 
to be seen a lot more often. 

Scene between v him and Miss 
Holliday in the bus was a classic. 
Camera held them in virtual close- 
up for minutes in what turned out 
to be a triumph not only for the 

E erformers but also for director 
iclbert Mann M’ho deserves plenty 
kudos for keeping proceedings 
from going overboard. 

Minor parts all contributed to 
the excellency of the shoM' which 
Shaw stacked M’ith an abundance 
Of clever and funny punch lines. 
Bert Thorn came across M’ith a 
great hit as the confused room 
clerk who has a healthy respect for 
people M'ith money. Norman Feld 
as the boyfriend With the bank 
books impressed very; favorably 
and so did Harry Sheppard as the 
travel agent and Rita Vale as the 
charm school lady. Raymond Bram- 
"Iey-h.it the right note. as the grpmpy 
and scheming multi-millionaire. 

LightM’eight story didn’t seem to 
bother Miss Holliday whore film 
vehicles are made of similar stuff. 
She M'as completely at ease before 
the cameras and never even fluffed 
a line. What’s more, she looked 
like a million dollars. Given the 
proper stories, Miss Holliday 
should desert HollyM'Opd more 
often to spread the joy of real 
comedy among tv viewers.. They 
deserve the break. Hift. 


silhouette did the alter ego, O’Con- 
nor's variations on this theme 
made it almost as funny a bit as 
Marx Bros.’ standard mirror bit. 

O’Connor also excelled in the 
production finale with Scatman 
Crothers doirig a small vocal. The 
opening standup bit which M'ound 
up with a satire of the terping 
tMenties was also on a high level. 

The end of the show was somer 
M’hat marred, though, when O'Con- 
nor rushed through some an- 
nouncement to enable RCA veepee 
John West to. give O’Connor the 
Tele Academy Enrcmy a\vard \yhich 
West received earlier in the Meek 
as O’Gonnor’s proxy. The produc- 
tion by Ernest D. Glueckman was 
outstanding. 

Jose. 


Robert Q. Lewis did a little kid- 
ding-on-the-square Saturday night 
(13) on CBS-TV when he filled in 
for the recuperating Jackie Gleas- 
’oii about how his tv Career seems 
to be just one. long round of sub- 
stitutions. But he can take some 
pride . in that fact too; there arc 
few performers M'ho can step into 
the type of spots that Lewis is 
called into and do a job. He in- 
variably comes through. 

Lewis M’isely eschewed trying to 
imitate Gleason, bringing iri in- 
stead his own daytime troupe and 
blended them in nicely with the 
Gleason regulars, delivering a 
show which, while not iri any M'.ay 
memorable, riiaintained good val- 
ues throughput. Less, of a stress 
on comedy and more on variety, 
but 'Lewis kept things moving at a 
good pace and introduced to the 
nighttime audience some fine tal- 
ent from his daytimer. 

Lewis did permit, hiihself a cou- 
pie Of liberties— an opening song- 
and-dance M'ith the June Taylor 
Dancers, . some dancing on a solid 
finale arid an in-between lampoon 
of Ed Murrow’s “Person ’ to Per- 
son,’’, called; “People to People,*' 
•with- LeM’is taking Murrow’s spot 
and Art. Carney appearing as the 
interviewee, a sewer cleaner, or as 
he preferred to be called, a seM'agc 
engineer. While Lewis managed 
to capture Murrow’s manner and 
inflection, he overdid the chain- 
smoking bit to a point where it 
Mas on the disconcerting side. Ac- 
tually, the sketch was held togeth- 
er by Carriey’s fine talent of char- 
acterization— he built a really fun- 
ny old coot out of the sewer- 
cleaner. 

Frorri his own” show, LeMis 
brought over some talent and per- 
sonable youngsters in the persons 
of Jan Arden, Jaye P. Morgan 
and Don Liberto. Former, brother 
of Toni Arden, scored with a sock 
version of “I’m a Fool to Want 
You.” Miss Morgan’s a lively 
blonde M'ho shoM’ed a ’ good set of 
pipes in “Life, Is Just a Bow-l of, 
Cherries.” And Liberto demon- 
strated some good singing ability 
and some topflight terping M'ith 
“Happy Feet.” Additionally, Lewis 
had the vets Lois Hunt and Earl 
Wrightson ably duetting "This Is- 
My Beloved.” 

Taylor dancers are raoidly Shap- 
ing up as the best-drilled chore- 
graphic team on' tele. They’re 
Staying away from the ballet and 
modern dance influences, and stick- 
ing to straight tap precisioning 
and formations, with Mhich they 
achieve some highly spectacular 
results. Opening number M'as ex- 
cellent, and a next-to-closing stint 


which had them playing xylo- 
phones jn chorus and tapping at 
the same time was socko. Ray 
Bloch's orchestral accompaniment 
M'as, per usual, razor-sharp. 

Chan. 


Writing for television must be a 
particularly trying task for novelist 
William Faulkner. His first,. “The 
Brooch,” M'ritten some* months ago 
for CBS-TV’s “Lux Video Theatre” 
was greeted with something less 
than enthusiasm. His second at- 
tempt, “Shall Not Perish,” present- 
ed last Thursday (11) on the same 
Lux showcase, Will provoke even 
less in the M’ay of cheers. ' - 

Painful fact is that Faulkner, iri 
a fiagwaving. effort, came up with 
a story that would be more suited 
io the fanciful fields of the soap 
opera than to an adult drama seg- 
ment like “Lux.” His picture of 
the reactions of parents to the 
neM's of the death of -thpir sons in 
Korea was fuzzy in cnaracteriza- 
tion, incredible in motivation and 
cliche-ridden in the playing. 

Tm’o boys from Jefferson, the lo- 
cale Of most of Faulkner’s stories, 
die in Korea. One is the son of 
Fay Bainter, wife- of a tenant farm- 
er. The other is the offspring, of 
Raymond Burr, a gentleman who 
10 years before had foreclosed on 
Miss Baipter’s farm and who still 
believes in the glories of the con- 
federacy; Miss Bainter receives 
the news M'ith equilibrium and res- 
ignation, hardly batting an eyelash 
but telling her husband and young- 
er son that they must go on as usu- 
al. Burr, on receiving the news, 
loses all sense of balancp; locks 
himself up in his mansion and pre- 
pares to blow his brains out. He’s 
{.prevented from doing so by Miss 
Bainter, M'ho comes to fetch him to 
a iriemofial service for the two 
boys, and who: delivers a long 
speech on M’hy the boys died, the. 
glories of America, etc., that brings 
him to his senses. 

The, play was very well acted, 
Miss Bainter lending as much 
credulity *to her role as the writ- 
ing alloM'ed, and Burr managing to 
give a good picture of intense sor- 
row and bitterness. Tommy Ret- 
tig, -with featured billing, had lit- 
tle to do but cry somewhat on 
hearing of the death of his brother. 
Supporting cast was uniformly 
good. # Cal Kuhl's production trap- 
pings were expansive arid well pre- 
sented; Buzz Kulik’s direction was 
lucid. And in all fairness to Faulk- 
ner, it should be stated that the 
play M’as an honest attehipt to find 
justification for the loss of life 
in Korea. But honest, apparently, 
isn’t enough in the writing of good 
drama. Chan. 


What may well be a new tech- 
nique in television dramatics, a 
sort of “documentary drama,” was 
attempted with admirable success 
on “Kraft Television Theatre’s” 
Thursday night ABC-TV segment 
last week. A personalized sketch 
of Lincoln’s life, employing scat- 
tered but chronological vignettes; 
M'ith a multiplicity of sets and a 
huge cast, emerged as refreshing 
and intelligent tv fare, endowed 
M'ith what was the most fluid pro- 
duction the J. Walter Thompson 
agency crew has brought forth on 
the three-months-old ABC segment. 

Cornerstones of this topnotch 
layout M’ere a highly literary arid 
fluent script by George H. Faulk- 


ner and a solidly etched perform- 
ance b.v Andrew Duggan as Lin-' 
coin. The complexities of the pro- 
duction were secondary to the 
script rind the central portrayal, 
and iri fact, were necessitated' by 
the very format of the script itself 
—the various vignettes showing 
Lincoln at different times ■ and 
places. Actually, it’s a? credit to 
the script, the dynamic perform- 
ance by Duggan end the produc- 
tion know-how of the agency boys 
that the many sets and extras 
didn’t clutter the screen or detract 
from thg impact of the production. 

Script, an authoritative job in 
historical fact and dramatic con- 
tent, carried Lincoln through his 
general store days On into the pres- 
idency and his assassination in a. 
series of sketches, some light, some 
serious; but all designed to give 
insight into Lincoln’s background, 
his personality and his intensity. 
Bridging the actual dramatics was 
a narration based 6ri the M'orks of 
the “Lincoln poets” (Sandburg, 
Markham, Whitman, et al)j expert- 
ly delivered off-camera by Anthony 
Ross. Backing this up was a well- 
drilled cast, excellent sets, fine 
camerawork and a generally su- 
perior production job, in large de- 
gree made possible by the expan- 
sive facilities of ABC’s biggest 
•studio. . 

Obviously, this ran M'ay over 
Kraft’s normal budget, and ob- 
viously "this type of production isn’t 
an every-week affair. But it could 
well serve as a model for ambi- 
tious projects for the future, not 
only for Kraft but for other pro- 
grams. .**.. Chan. 

Ernie Simon has added emcee- 
ing duties on WGN-TV’s morning 
"Four to Go” quizzer to his grow- 
ing list of Chi assignments. A fa- 
cile ad libber with an easy,-going 
style, Simon fits neatly into the 
show's freewheeling format. Show 
has been considerably streamlined 
since last caught M'ith some of the 
complicated clues eliminated. 

Studio contestants, M'ith the aid' 
of at-home participants reached by 
phone, vie for a string of prizes 
plus a cunning jackpot. Most of 
the hints on segment seen (11) were 
in the fornc ‘of musical clues pro- 
vided 'by chirp Jackie Van and 
pianist Bob Trendler working with 
the Starnoters instrumental combo. 

Pic actor Pat O’Brien paid the 
show a quickie visit and delivered a 
sincere pitch about HollyM'oOd’s 
“nicer side.” It M'as a good touch 
for the morning audience. Dave. 


Donald O'Connor’s turn ori “Col- 
gale Comedy Hour” Sunday (14) 
over NBC-TV resulted in a spirited, 
Mell-gaited and Vastly entertaining 
session. The card Mas one in Mhich 
every factor seemed to jell with 
sock amusement returns contrib- 
uted by George Prentice, Beatrice 
Kay and the regular cast as mcII as 
the production. 

As always, the top' spot is the 
songwriting bit with Sidney Miller. 
Their lampoons of various person- 
alities were lirstrate arid the Mril- 
ing had a high laugh content. Duo 
is probably one of the most articu- 
late in video. Their percentage Of 
grade- A appearances must be near 
the 100 r h mark.. 

Beatrice Kay also, hit it off’ 'well 
with her luslv chanties. Her. spe- 
cialty. the oldies, hit the mark and 
her burlesque -of a. hopstOr set Tier 
out far ahead. Prentice provided a 
lively puneh-and-judy turn that 
fitted m e 1 1 with the rest ol the pro- 
ceedings. 

However, flic most potent por- 
tion of the shoM’ was O'Connor. It 
. seemed to. be one of those shows in 
Which he could do no w rong. The re 
was one clever tap bit to “Me ;.ntf 
My Shadow” in-. Which a dance in 




Poet-historian Carl Sandburg was hear^ in a special ABC simul- 
cast last Friday (12)— Lincoln’s Birthday— in something of a literary 
as well as historical event. Thirty years ago, Sandburg wrote a 
preface to part of his great. Lincoln biography, “Prairie Years,” 
which introduction he subsequently discarded. It M’as dug up 
recently, and ABC asked the distinguished writer to read it as a 
Lincoln Day tribute. 

What might have been anticipated as a slow half-hour of read- 
ing proved to be an affecting as well as noteM’orthy session. Sit- 
ting quietly in. his F.vingroom chair.'' with gaunt face, straggling 
while- forelocks and deep-set eyes, M’ith loose shirtcollar and old- 
fashioned bow tie., the aged Sandburg looked almost a part of 
history himself, arid strikingly like Honest Abe. There M'as no age 
in the voice, which was virile, audible and clear, arid the resonant 
voice and quiet demeanor made an eloquent document out of what 
Mas essentially a set of colloquial reminiscences of Lincoln's White 
House arid. Civil War days. 

The occasional singsong Sandburg broke into gave these anec- 
dotes, and the simple historical facts M'ith which they were inter- 
larded, an added dramatic impact. There Mas a further terrific 
- wallop, at 'the close, 'when Sandburg added Lincoln’s address to 
Congress, in which the great President grew eloquent about the 
American heritage. To at least one vieM'er, the half-hour tUrried' 
prose into poetry, a tv show into an occasion and a simple scribe 
into a saint. 

Occasion made therefore doubly inexcusable a bit of cheap pro- 
motion )n id way in the program, when ABC momentarily flashed 
onscreen, surcrimposcd on Sandburg, a S50 pic entrant in its Lucky 
7 contest, it Mils « shocking bit Of bad taste, Bron. 


"Omnibus,” video’s top bid for 
the highbrow element, came up 
with a full menu for the intelli- 
gentsia On CBS-TV Sunday (14). 
The show consisted of some T. S. 
Eliot dramaturgy, classical Japa- 
nese ballet and a doleful one-acter 
by Budd Schulberg. The only con- 
cession to the mythical average 
dialer M;as , a brief cartoon se- 
quence about a whale which want- 
ed to become a submarine M'ith 
narration by Orson Bean. This bit 
turned out to be show’s M'eakest 
spot. 

Schulberg’s play M’as a poignant 
drama about a young Mexican 
bullfighter M’ho was forced into the 
sport by his father to meet his 
death. The clash of Mexican and 
American attitudes on the ques- 
tions of love and death were de- 
lineated in firstrate performances 
by John Cassavettes,. as the mata- 
dor; Kim Stanley and Arthur 
Franz as an American couple; and 
Jacques Aubuchon. as the father. 

The Japanese Kabuki Theatre 
Dancers, Mho are opening a stand 
on Broadway this M'eek, gave some 
brief samples of their exotically 
mannered repertoire. It was an 
effective, offbeat sequence that 
could have used color cameras to 
capture the strange costuming 
effects. 

From the current Broadway pro- 
duction of Eliot’s "The Confiden- 
tial Clerk.” Claude Rains and 
Douglas Watson presented orie of 
the play’s opening . scenes. This 
portion; M'as talkily philosophical 
but Rains’ eloquence made it fas- 
cinatjng. The Eliot scene M’as in- 
troduced by some explanatory 
comments by poet W. H. Auden, 
M'hiclv heeded its .own- explanation, 
and some t*eminisccnccs by pro- 
ducer Henry Sherek about Eliot. 

Herm. 


Bitters” ever finds a Broadway 
niche in the same approximate 
version to which tv viewers Mere 
treated, it stands precious little 
chance ; with crix and audience. 

From the tv play it was difficult 
to tell whether, in the process of 
condensation, the production suf- 
fered jr whether it is simply a 
hodge-podge of confused charac- 
ters acting out an unreal and un- 
convincing situation which has the 
onlooker: knowing all the ahgles 
long before the cast begins to sus- 
pect them. While the germ of an 
idea is certainly there, the show 
never: exploited it advantageously* 

The fault largely was that of the 
script, which failed to establish 
proper motivation arid never built 
up the kind of suspense for M’hich 
this kind dl story obviously aims. 
It’s all about ' an old M'oman with 
homicidal inclinations M'ho likes to 
kill things in order to be able to 
draw them. Shi? ends up practi- 
cing her art on her nephew, a dub- 
ious character with a prison rec- 
ord, Who blows in from South 
America, determined to leave with 
her money. This doesn’t bother 
auntie as much as the fact that he 
wants to go off With her niece 
whom she dislikes. So she feeds 
him a poisoned drink for the fade- 
out. 

Performances, which might have 
rescued this „ bit of insignificance, 
were surprisingly spotty. With Es- 
telle Winwood being the onlv one 
to bring a certain distinction ft the 
part of the weird old lady. At least 
there was never a question that 
she was out of her mind, and Miss 
Winwood exploited this fact M’ith- 
out going overboard. 

Zachary Scott was saddled M’ith 
a difficult part which never did 
make up its mind whether he Mas 
villain or hero. Fluctuating be- 
tween the two, he delivered a per- 
formance that seemed mechanical 
and without much merit. 

Joan* Lorring, who seems to spe- 
cialize in parts of tense young 
ladies, seemed miscast as the niece. 
There was a studied quality in her 
delivery that seemed to overem- 
phasize the part without infusing 
it with real conviction. One sus- 
pects that,, even within the limited 
scope of the script, she could have 
done a lot better. The same held 
true of Richard Waring M’ho was 
stiff arid uncomfortable. 

Denham directed with minimum 
imagination and with only occa- 
sional concessions to the needs of 
a tv chiller-diller. There were 
moments — such as the one when 
Scott discovered the goldfish his 
aunt had put into the freezer com- 
partment— when the play had 
shock impact, but they didn’t come 
often eriohgh arid were inter- 
spersed between a lot of dialog. 
Overall production still made 
pretty dull tv fare. Hift. 



Continued, from pact 24 


“A Dash of Bitters,” described 
as a still-to-be-produced legiter by 
Reginald Dcnharii and Conrad Sut- 
ton Smith, was adapted bv its au- 
thors forJ'Motorola TV' Hour” on 
ABC-TV last week (.9), If this M’as 
meant as a kind of trial run for 
the production, it served the pur- 
nose Melt. There is now no oues- 
tion whatever that,, if “A Dash of 


that honie-growns wouldn’t have to 
compete against high-budgeted net- 
work shows. Ed Sullivan, here for 
the first Coast origination of “Toast 
of the Town,” .emceed. The Man- 
ners: 

National. Best dramatLc program, 
“U. S. Steel Hour,” ABC; most 
outstanding personality, Edward R. 
Murrow, CBS; best situation com- 
edy, “I Love Lucy,” CBS; best 
variety program, “Omnibus,” CBS; 
best female star of regular series. 
Eve Arden, CBS; best male star of 
regular series, Donald O’Connor, 
NBC; best series supporting actor. 
Art Carney, CBS; best program of 
news or sports, “See It Now,” CBS; 
best mystery, action or adveriture 
program, “Dragnet,” NBC; best 
public affairs program, “Victory at 
Sea,” NBC; best children's pro- 
gram, “Kukla, Fran & Ollie,” NBC; 
best audience participation, quiz- 
01 panei program (tie), “This Is 
Your Life,” NBC, and "What’s My 
Line?” CBS; best new program 
(tie), “Make Room for Daddy,” and 
“US. Steel Hour,” both ABC; best 
series supporting actress, Vivian 
Vance (“I Love Lucy”), CBS. 

Local, (Los Angeles): Best enter- 
tainment, “Juke Box Jury,” KNXT; 
best public affairs, “Shakespeare 
on TV,” KNXT; most outstanding 
male performer, Dr. Frank C. Bax- 
ter, KNXT; best childreri’s pro- 
glim, “Sheriff John,” KTTV; best 
female performer, Roberta Linn, 
KTLA; distinguished conlribul.'On 
award. National Television System 
Committee, accepted, by Les Hoff- 
man. 


Wednesday February 17 , 1954 



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BAMO-TEUBYISION 



Vtdntriay, February 17, 1954 


Television Chatter 


New York 


Carol Irwin, "Mama" producer, 
In St. Luke’s Hospital for a nose 
operation . . . Ernie Harwell, who’s 

taking over radio-tv chores for the 
Baltimore Orioles, flew to Yuma 
last week for start of spring train- 
ing . . . Natalie Core signed as 
hostess of. “A & P Playhouse,” 
the “Schlitz Playhouse” neruns on 
WABC-TV , . . Henry Calvin 
doubling over from “Kismet” to 
rejoin “Howdy Doody” as Big Ben 
. . . Ruth Gilbert, the “Max of the 
Milton Berle segment, did her first 
Outside guest shot Monday (15), 
on “Name That Tune,” with fee 
going to March of Dimes . . . 
Memory expert . Dr. Bruno Furst 
flies to the Coast next week for 
an appearance : oh ABC’s “You 
Asked for It.'*' 

Dave and Judy Clark, video 
hucksters of long standing, moved 
to WAAT, Newark, Monday (15) for 
a two-hour nightly radio strip. It’s 
a deejay stanza ... The National 
Committee for Labor Israel is go- 
ing to sponsor a hew variety stanza 
via WABD called- “Echoes of Is- 
rael” come .next Sunday (21), Show 
is to have both American and Is- 
raeli performers ... Shirley Eggle- 
ston into “Road of Life” today 
(W.ed.) . . . Dr. Bruno Furst flies 
to Hollywood to do his memory 


routine Friday (19) on “You Asked 
For It” , . . Herb Shriner to sub- 
stitute for vacationing Dennis 
James on Friday’s (19) telecast of 
“Chance of a Lifetime” . . . Fred 
Sayles, sports director at WATV, 
in Florida for the week ... Legit 
actress Peggy Nelson this week’s 
“Miss Nemo” on WOR-'tV’s 
“Weather Report.” ( 

Judson Laire, the Papa of CBS- 
TV’s “Mama,” going to the Ba- 
hamas for a week and missing ah 
airing (Feb. 26) for the first time 
Since he took over the role more 
than four years ago . John Raitt 
and Betty Grove to pinchhit for 
Jane Froman (Feb. 25) as singer 
and husband John Burn take a 
European quickie . Robert 
(Shad) Northfield; science reporter 
for CBS-TV’s “Adventure,” left for 
Ilopi Indian Reservation in Ari- 
zona to huddle with Pulitzer Prize- 
winner Oliver LaFarge on an up- 
coming stanza in the series . . . 
Tom Reddy, m.c. of WCBS-TV’s 
“JourndV Through Life,” takes over 
Old Gold plugging during Dennis 
, James’ week’s vacation. 


CHicago 


Hollis Burke in town for live and 
film tv assignments . . . Oliver J. 
Dragon of NBC-TV’s “Kukla, Eran 
& Ollie” named honorary bat boy 
for the Boston Red Sox by man- 


1 THE OKLAHOMA PUBLISHING CO. • The Doily Oklahoman • Oklahoma City Timet 
Tho Formtr-Sreckmoii • WKY Radio • Pepretented by KAT2 AGENCY, INC 


ager Lea Bendreau . . . WNBQ wgl 
carry the Anils of the Daily News 
Spelling Bee Feb. 27 and March 6 
, . . Fox PeLuxe Beer failed to re- 
new WBBM-TV’s weekend news 
roundup and it's been dropped by 
the station . , Jack Drees and 

Chuck Hearn set to do the play-by- 
play of the state basketball finals 
March 20 which Illinois Bell will 
bankroll on WBKB and eight down- 
state stations . . . Agency c.hief 
Emil Mogul addressing the ■ Chi 
Television Council today (Wed.) 
. . . Although it’s been knocking 
off a respectable 6 rating in its 
Saturday, afternoon slot,; WNBQ 
program director George Heine- 
mann is dropping his “Jet Pilot 
series due to failure to spark any 
sponsorship interest , . . DeMet 
Pontiac and Oklahoma Oil have 
sighed for daily segments on 
WBKB’s early morning “Chicago 
Parade” Which goes in next week 
ahead of the “Breakfast Club” 
simulcast ... Keith Connes joins 
Kling Studios as a continuity 
writer ... Jewel Food. Stores has 
renewed Johnny Coon’s WNBQ 
“Noontime Comics” for another 
lap ... Austin Kiplinger starting 
an aftefnoon news show on WBKB 
tailored for the homemakers. 


day w« went on it 5:21*” Cavallaro 

noted. . ' . . . 

“There were about- 40 people 
there, and we don’t think, it’s fair.” 
The chairman of .the educational 
group closed by saying that “We 
wouldn’t have minded if it happen- 
ed once, but it happened too fre- 
quently.” Show was prepared and 
presented by staffers from four 
New York City colleges. ; 

A, network spokesman said, They 
have put in a lot of time and 
money, but that’s one side. What 
he (Cavallaro) fails to mention is 
that we have put in a lot _of money 
and time too.” 

Cross purposes resulted when- 
the commercially sponsored ath- 
letic- events on the DuMont web 
and its Gotham key ran past their 
usual 5 p.m. end because of unman- 
agable overtime periods. Time for 
the show was donated by the net- 
work. ' /'-■ 


MAGNAVOX IN RECORD 
$35,921,000 SALES 


Toy Council 

Continued from page 24 



late afternoon, but others are be- 
ing considered also. The nut being 
broken down to cover better than 
500 individual Stanzas. 


Magnavox Co. oet a sales record 
of $35,921,000 for the six months 
ended Dec. 31 despite an increased 
tendency on the part of the public 
to defer purchases of television 
sets pending the arrival of color, 
according to prexy' Frank Frie- 
mann. Freimann said buyer re- 
sistance will fade as the pubic real- 
izes mass color production is still 
Some time away. Magnavox has no 
tint set in production, but is de- 
veloping a larger color tube, which 
it expects to be available by the 
end of the year. 

Firm’s sales record exceeded by 
37.5% the $26,126,000 figure for 
the same period in 1952. Net earn- 
ings after taxes Were $1,702,000 
for the six months, compared to 
$1,546,000 the year before. Net per 
share was $2.24, as against $2.02. 
Increase was reflected in all divi- 
sions of the firm, with one of the 
largest gains in sales of hi-fi equip- 
ment. 


Continued from page 25 



have “the aural medium. Sponsors 
won’t find colorvision too costly, 
although ..it appears that way now, 
Duffy declared. 

As to ad agencies “replacing” 
political candidates, “you can al- 
ways get good seats to a bum 
show” — his way of saying that the 
man in the arena will still be the 
principal figure. Asked about the 
“huckster administration’! in Wash- 
ington, Duffy said he disliked the 
term, that Ike & Co. (for which 
BBD&O handles the account) 
couldn’t possibly point to “accom- 
plishment by annbuncement” be- 
cause the American public “is a 
pretty "Smart group,” particularly 
the housewife, who can always spot 
a better product. 

Prodded on whether his com- 
pany had “rehearsed” last year’s 
“Report from the White % House” 
with President Eisenhower Sur- 
rounded by Cabinet members, 
Duffy said there was a run-through 
to get the session down pat on the 
time element, admitted that video 
is changing the pattern of political 
campaigns, praised Ike and his 
improving tv stance but denied that 
his agency suggests subject mat- 
ter or the manner of styling, mere- 
ly helping on the technical phases 
(lighting, etc.). Questioners con- 
sisted of Ed James (Broadcasting- 
Telecasting), William H. Lawrence 
(N. Y. Times) and Sylvia Porter 
(N. Y. Post and syndicate), with 
Roq Cochrane moderating. 

Trau. 


. Until now the 16-year-old Toy 
Guidance Council has been sup- 
ported by dues from 1,600 toy re- 
tailers (one franchised per geo-, 
graphical area), but now all 10,000 
dealers are to be included in the 
plans. To bring in the new mem- 
bership of 75 toy makers, the Coun- 
cil has had to guarantee, that every 
member dealer must carry $18 
wort^h of each \ item shown on the 
Video ; commercials, and that its 
distrib members must stock $288 
worth. Heavy promotion coin is ex- 
pected to come from dues of in- 
creased membership. 

It's understood that this is the 
first year the Toy Guidance Coun- 
cil will throw any of its money into 
tv. 


E. J. (Manny) Rosenberg has 
been appointed director of sales 
development for DuMont. 

Rosenberg, longtime package 
producer, first with TransAmerican 
Broadcasting and most recently as 
an independent, is responsible for 
Maisie,” “Sam Spade,” “The Fat 
Man,” “Life Can Be Beautiful,” 
“Texaco Star Playhouse” and 
others. Before this he was associat- 
ed with SESAC. 


■ 




Continued from page 22 


"IN THE MAILROOM 
A EVERYTHING IS 


MAGICAL", 


says 


met in Biloxi, Miss., last month. 

Broadcast Advertising Bureau 
has, since its inception a few years 
back, serviced member radio sta- 
tions by sending them detailed in- 
formation on the Co-op advertising 
plans (between dealers and manu- 
facturers) that the individual man- 
ufacturers had established. ‘ 

In many instances local dealers 
aren’t aware of advertising bene- 
fits to be reaped from the manu- 
facturer. If the local station sales- 
men can approach the dealer with 
an official sanction from the manu- 
facturer, he will in turn, be mak- 
ing available for the first time (in 
a surprising number of cases), de- 
tailed info about the existing plans. 




PANCAKE 

. ; THE 

MAGICIAN 


“The Adventure of Danny Dee" 
(Ch. 5, 4:45-5:OOr. Mon.-fri.) 


RECEIVED 6,642 LETTERS 


last Week ON WABD ALONE I 


Starring ROY DOTY 



DuM Exits K.C, 


Continued from page 25 


■ 


cause of a strike. KCTY gained 
some momentum for a few weeks 
in getting viewers to convert re- 
ceivers, but faced rough competi- 
tion when WDAF-TV returned to 
the air and Channel 5 (KCMO-TV) 
and Channel 9 (KMBC-TV sharing 
with WHB-TV) soon were opened. 

Three live VHF outlets, each, 
with a major net, has made the go- 
ing too rough for KCTY, accord- 
ing to word from DnMont. Esti- 
mates as to the maximum number 
of UHF receivers here ran As high 
as 70,000, in a market of over 
300,000 total tv receivers, but some 
industry execs estimated 40,000 
sets would be nearer actuality. 

About 35 employes are involved 
in the closing, notice being given 
last Friday after Stewart returned 
from confabs .with net officials in 
New York, Stewart will return to 
DuMont as an administrative exec. 


Waddell to WTAM 

Cleveland, Feb. 16. 

Hall Waddell, WJW veep, is 
stepping out* to become WTAM 
sales manager. Appointment of 
Waddell, effective Feb. 22, rounds 
out the local NBC sales depart- 
ment under Wiliam N. Davidson, 
sales director and assistant general 
manager. 

Theodore Walworth, Jr., was re^ 
cently named WNBK sales mana- 


An Irwn N. fiosee Production . 
510 Madison Avo., .New York 22, N. Y. 
PLaza 3-4153 


COUNTRY LIVING 
IN THE CITY 


25 MINUTES TO RADIO CITY 

In hilly Rlyerdalie— near Hudson River. 
Quiet, wooded, zone-protected area. 
Ideal for raising children. English 
architecture set in 1/3 acre of land- 
scaped grounds. Tall hedges, old trees. 
Large centre hall, fireplace living 
room, library, screened-in veranda, 
dining room, pantry, science-kitchen, 
laundry. 2nd FLOOR: 4 rooms, 3 bath- 
rooms, sundeck. 

Sealed attic, :dry basement and. work- 
shop. Solid brick and hollow tile con- 
struction. Slate roof, brass plumbing, 
oil heat, separate 1-car garage. 


BARGAIN-PRICED FOR 
IMMEDIATE SALE BY OWNER 
714 West 231 Street, New York 
. Kt 8-0510 mornings 


. . . completely re-styled and 
excitingly decored with | 
extravagant simplicity. . \ 
Dancing, Entertainment, Television 
. . . arid a superlative, cuisine 

" ( modified American plan, if desired). 




^ ''/A* 
•v- 


‘Panorama’ 


Continued from page 22 


I 


CQfiPimiY 

AIR-CONDITIONED 


Your Hosts, The Family Jacobs 

A ^ MIAMI RRACH 


the FCC and to Gov. Thomas E. 
Dewey and the N Y. State Board of 
Regents. Cavallaro had spoken to 
web publicity chief, Gerry Lyons, 
about the matter three days before 
cancellation. “We told him we want 
some assurances, but none were 
given,” Cavallaro said. 

Four times, Cavallaro pointed 
out, the show was pre-empted com- 
pletely by commercial shows. Two 
Other times the show went on late 
for the same reason. “Last Satur- 


Blpckfront Ocean Privacy 


For Reservations, Please.. , Walter Jacob* 
> ' N. Y. Office: TR 4-3193 

^Summertime," SKY HIGH lake Torlefon Cfub, Pike, New Hampshire 




FIRST TIME ON NEW YORK STAGE 
TOWN HALL, February 28, Sunday Evening, B:30 


FOLK SONGS of the PHILIPPINES 

CATALINA ZANDUETA, Soprano 




AIBETRTO VALDES BLAIN, Guitarist — 5 Authentic Costum* Changes 
Pers. Rep.: JOLYON WYRZYKOWSKI, 331 t. 23d Street Tel, MUrrsy HiU I-2W3 






Wednesday, February 17, 1954 


>, **■*- r * ■ 



RADIO REVIEWS 




X 





IN NEW YORK CITY . . . 

All ABC brass back at their desks today (Wed.) after winding up 
the series pf* four affiliate greetings held during th6 past couple of 
months with a two-day session Monday (15) and yesterday (Tues.) in 
'New Orleans . . . WVNJ, Newark, cut its schedule from 21 hours daily 
to 19. with the Hal Tunis show cutting down to an hour and Big Joe 
Bosenfield holding down the midnight-to-2 spot with a 'remote from 
the New Amsterdam* Theatre in Gotham . . . New York U.’s Radio-Club 
Workshop doing a once-a-week dramatized news show, "This Week— - 
A Year Ago,” on WFUV-FM . . .. Martin Jones and Henry Olmsted 
opening their private recording studio to commercial use. 

Elsa Latzko, formerly with CBS, currently asst, to program activities 
chief of Radio Free Europe in Munich and anticipates returning home 
within the next twelve ihonths ... MBS!s junior-sized fictitious cow- 
puncher, “Bobby Benson" was named “hobby boy of America” by 
Hobby Show execs at a conclave yesterday (Tues.) ... Joseph Fuchs 
skedded to fiddle on two forthcoming WQXR studio series . . . Walter 
Lewis, WHLI gabber, has beep made new general manager of the Levit- 
town, L.I., Symphony orch.. 

John Karol, v.p. of CBS" network sales? to Arizona for vacation . 
WCBS’ Joan Edwards on a twd-weeker in Puerto Rico after taping her 
sessions . . . Mr, and Mrs. Jack (Barbara) Sterling expect a family 
addition in April- * , . Martin Weldon, reporter for “Port of New York” 
(WCBS), toastmastering tomorrow (Thurs.) at N. Y. Times dining room 
for Rebecca N. Rankin who retired recently as municipal librarian . . . 
A son to. Bill Schwarz, director of John Henry Faulk and Bob Haymes 
shows . . . CBS sports chief John Derr, just back from Miami, returns 
there, this week for Wideher and Flamingo Stakes at Hialeah. Inci- 
dentally, Red Barber is in good shape after his ear operation and 
leaves for St. Pete training camp of the Yankees next Tuesday (23) 

. . . Ted Osborn new to “Our Gal Sunday” . Mary Orr- substituting 
for Andree Wallace on “Backstage Wife” . . . in the new “Front Page 
Farrell” sequence are Kenneth Lynch, David Gothard, Pat Peardon, 
Anita Anton, Jimmy Monks, Sarah Burtoil and Mary Jane Higby. 

/iV CHICAGO . . . ' 

WBBM jiewsman Hugh Hill named special events director vice pub- 
lic relations chief Chuck Wiley Who’s to devote fulltime to his flackery 
duties , . . Tom Brittingham shifted from Needham, Louis & Brorby’s 
Chi radio-tv department to the agency’s Hollywood office . . . Marty 
Sheridan ankled the Steve Hannagan public relations firm to join 
Admiral Corp. as p.r. director . , . WMAQ to give the AM-FM stereo- 
phonic treatment to Dicken’s “Cricket on the Hearth” tomorrow night 
(Thurs.) Don Marcotte will produce with the script adapted by Morgan 
Perron . . . Joe Matthews, who’s been heading up Nielsen’s San Fran- 
cisco office, has returned to the Chi headquarters and elevated tp 
veepee status in charge of sales activity for the Nielsen Station Index 
• . . Art Berg, ex-WNBQ salesman, added to the WB^M selling 
crew ... ABC newscaster. Paul Harvey filling speaking engagements 
in Texas this week . . Eloise Kummer missed her first thesping call 
in nearly 15 years when smitten with the virus last week . . . Radio-tv 
packager Walt Schwinuher turned his hand to disk jockeying briefly 
last week When he took over a portion- of Fred Reynold’s WGN Satur- 
day afternoon record session to spin a bundle of disks from his per- 
sonal collection . . WLS traffic manager Grace Cassidy vacationing 
in Florida . ..Jim Halloran added to the Chi ABC public relations, 
staff . . . Columnist Sig Sakowicz preems a daily platter-chatter strip 
on WAIT next week . . . WMAQ dee jay Norman Ross Jr., on a quickie 
air visit to Europe. 

IN SAN FRANCISCO . . . 

Teevee manufacturer Les Hoffman received FCC approval (11) to 
begin construction on his Stockton tv Channel 13. Hoffman hopes 
station will be telecasting by midsummer . . . Milt Samuel, Young & 
Rubicam’s Hollywood publicity, chief, in for KGO Radio aiiniv. . . . 
And tomorrow KCBS (local CBS outlet) celebrates its fifth birthday. 
Gen. mgr. Arthur Hull Hayes and staff rate kudos for their consistent 
high calibre programming . . . Mary Tierney's teleshow returned to air- 
ing via KRON-TV (13) . . . New local UHF station KSAN-TV signed 
to riin racing films from Bay Meadows . . . Former KPIX chirper 
Peggy Mann returned from the east . . , Art Linkletter planed in for 
kickoff of his Lever Bros. “Sweepstakes” contest . . . KNBC signed 
their woman commentator Marjorie King to an exclusive term con- 
tract and expanded her weekday sesh t£> full 60 minutes. In addi- 
tion, Miss King was elected moderator of station's new weekly pub- 
lic service program, “Spotlight .On Service” (14) . . . KGO hopes 
to move into new hdqs. by May . . . Folk singer Bash Kennett launched 
her puppet show “Looking Glass Lady” on KRON-TV (12). 

IN CLEVELAND ... 

Jack Beatty exited WNBK to become WOKY film director . . . Max 
Ellis of the Play House takes over for Boyd Heath on WXEL’s “King 
Jack’s Toy Box’* while Heath emcees Pittsburgh Sportsman Show ... 
Northern Ohio Appliance picked up tab for half-hour “Myrus the 
Mentalist” Monday 9:30 f .m. WXEL . . . WJW flack Flo Roth to New 
York for vacation . . . WGAR’s Reg Merridew and WEWS’ Dave Baylor 
head the radio and tv units in upcoming Red Cross drive . . . Milnrtar 
signed for two-hour WEWS Saturday 2 p.m. “Bandstand” show with 
Phil MacLean and Barbara Page entertaining 100 dancing teenagers 
with disks and interviews . . . Henry Levine started hour-long longhair 
shellac stanza WTAM, 5 p.m. Saturday . . , Bill Laner, ex-WKBN, now 
WGAR salesman . . . Only Cinecraft Productions* Inc., and Produc- 
tions on Filip, Inc., are approved by local Screen Actors Guild . . / Rita 
Bates, WTAM, in Lakewood Theatre’s “The Women” ... WGAR’s 
sports director Bill McColgan working with board of local sports lead- 
ers to nominate athlete of the month. 

IN PITTSBURGH ... 

Florence Sando has returned to WDTV for a morning show, five 
days a week, which will have, a woman’s slant on the news' . Ralph 
Petti, who quit announcer’s job at WjAS last summer to become pro- 
gram director of WESC in Greenville, S. C. f has resigned there to 
take assistant manager’s post at WLSH in Lansford, Pa. . . • . Moe 
Woolsey, WDTV director, leaving for chief engineer’s berth at W-NEM- 
TV, new VHF station in Bay City; Mich., and he’s taking two WDTV 
engineers, Lou Purlin and Marty Gannon, with him . . . Alicia Fuller 
of KQV celebrated her 23rd anni. in radio . , . Cameraman John 
Hasson has left Channel 2 for WCMB-TV in Harrisburg; where he’ll 
be program director .. . , Sportscaster Ray Scott named chairman of 
the Variety Club house committee for 1954. 

IN CINCINNATI . . . 

Bill McCluskey, WLW-Television sales service manager, helping plan 
American Cancer Society’s national campaign. He’s veep of Cincin- 
nati Cancer Committee . . . Wendy Barrie on Tri-City tv network and 
originating in Dayton, O., now also picking up some talent and guests 
from WKRC-TV studio in Cincy . ; . John Louis, formerly of WBNS-TV, 

(Continued on page 34) I 


A MAN AND HIS MUSIC 
With Skitch Henderson 
Producer: Steve White 
Writer-Director: Lee Jones " 

ZS Mins.; Mon., Tues., Wed., Fri., 

10:35 p.m. 

Participating , 

WNBC, N.Y. 

Skitch Henderson, who does a 
flock of shows on WNBC, N.Y.. solo 
and with his wife, Faye Emerson, 
is now spotted in another late eve- 
ning musical series. This show is 
divided between live music and 
disk . selections with Henderson 
hafidling the chatter and also sup- 
plying some keyboard interpreta- 
tions with v a string orch accomp. 

Henderson carries the show with 
his gift of gab, with Lee' Jones 
furnishing scripts that read with 
natural easiness. On his kickoff 
stanza (15), Henderson . spotlighted 
some of the great showtunes of the 
past with selections from Noel 
Coward, Cole Porter, Ira & George 
Gershwin and Rodgers & Hart. 
The disk numbers included some 
show cast album selections and one 
vocal by Frank Sinatra on “I Get 
A Kick Out of You.” The whole 
show had a quiet and restful mood 
okay for the hour. Herm. 


AIME GAUVIN SHOW 
Producer-Director: Arlene Vais- 
. siere 

30 Mins.; Mon.-thru-Fri., 1:30 p.m. 
WMGM, N.Y. 

WMGM, N.Y., latched on to. Aime 
Gauvin and a batch of mood music 
waxing to woo the hausfrau of 
an afternoon. The stanza heard had 
a lulling, dreamy effect ; that 
smacked of the , Continental on 
video. 

Gauvin’s romantic rhetoric is 
taken from the popular love poems. 
They are delivered with consider- 
ably more feeling than understand- 
ing by the rich baritoned deejay, 
but they are bound to engender a 
minor heartthrob from the femme 
behind the .apron strings. Gauvin 
oozes sentimentality. In short, the. 
words aren’t always made meaning- 
ful but the mood. is. 

Poetry is read over soft, string 
music, and between renditions 
there are numbers like “You and 
the Night and the Music,” “Beauti- 
ful Dreamer,” etc. Women have 
been known to spend more time 
mooning over the likes of Gauvin 
than they do in preparing supper. 


MY MOST UNFORGETTABLE 
‘ CHILD 

With Bing Crosby, Shirley Booth, 
Kirk Douglas, Greer Garson, 
Audrey Hepburn, Deborah Kerr, 
Brandon de Wilde 
Producer-director: Gerald Kean 
30 Mins.;. Sunday (14), 9:30 p.m, 
ABC, from N.Y. 

The United Nations radio divi- 
sion put the spotlight on the work 
being done by the iriternytion?»l 
org's Children’s Fund (UNICEF) 
(Continued on page .34) 


I ALL NIGHT 
'With Stan Freeman 
Producer: Steve White 
Director: Jim Rubessa 
5 hrs.-45 mins., Mon.-thru-Sat., 

12:05 a.m. 

Participating 
WNBC, N.Y* 

Those tense fans, of James Fleet- 
wood’s “Music Through The Night” 
shouldn’t have too much to com- 
plain about in the Stan Freeman 
series replacement. Even the die- 
hard classicists should have trou- 

'bl'e resisting Freeman’s easygoing 
palaver and taste in pop disik se- 
lections. And the all-out pop fan 
will have to concede that Freeman 
knows how to progranY a disk show 
even though he doesn’t concentrate 
on the fave jukebox items of the 
day. 

The series is geared for the post- 
midnight dialer in patter and plat- 
ter. -Freeman’s affable manner 
blends easily with his spins. His 
keyboard solos, . too, which are 
spread out through the night, add 
up to top listening. 

Freeman is an individualist in 
his' disk programming. On show 
caught Saturday (13), he played a 
Judy Garland waxing which never 
amounted to much in the pop mar- 
ket. “Why do I play it then, vou 
ask,” he queried himself. “Be- 
cause I like it!” And that’s the 
crux of his show. He plays what 
he likes, but the dialers should 
have no fear — it’s a surefire bet 
that .they’ll like it, too. 

Freeman’s on for a long stretch 
—-from five minutes past midnight 
until dawn. But no matter if you 
stick with him all the way Or tune 
in for a Couple of hours during 
the night, you’ll be in for some re- 
warding listening. Gros. 

VARIETY WINNERS 
With Lonny Starr 
55 Mins.: Sun., 5:35 p.m. 
WNEW..N.Y, 

WNEW has augmented its Sun- 
day platter layout with a 55-minute 
deejay airer devoted to the play- 
ing of records culled from the 
weekly Variety; Retail Disk Best 
Sellers chart. Stanza is handled by 
Lonny Starr, whose comments in- 
between spins on opening show, 
were handled authoritatively anil 
reflected informatively on . the 
turntable product. 

Preem show spotlighted the top 
15 platters on the retail poll. Chart 
takes in the selections of retailers 
from approximately 11 cities 
throughout the country, with Starr 
using e the listing in certain in- 
stances tp point up whethef a tunc 
was national or regional in its ap- 
peal. Spot product plugs were in- 
terspersed into the proceedings. 

Jess. 



ABC Radio in ASCAP 


Salute Spans 4 Decades 
With Standout Tunes 

Th§ story of the American So- 
j c.iety of Composers, Authors & 
Publishers can best be told in sbng 
and, to mark ASCAp’s 40th birth- 
day, ABC said it with music on a 
three-hour spread over Saturday 
and Sunday nights (13-141. Both 
salutes were straight productions, 
not mariced by any imaginative 
program mlng ideas, but the caval- 
cade of great hits and standards 
out of the ASCAP repertory spot- 
lighted an impressive four-decade 
achievement by America’s top 
songwriters. (Same was true of Ed 
Sullivan’s “Toast of the Town” 
Tribute to the Society , on CBS-TV . 
last year.) These ASCAP salutes* 

1 incidentally, by the major net-, 
j works have added trade interest 
because of the $150,000,000 anti- 
trust suit recently filed by 33 
ASCAP cleffers against the broad- 
j casters on grounds that the latter 
have been brushing off ASCAP 
tunes in favor of Broadcast Music, 
Inc. The whole acrimonious phase 
between ASCAP and BMI was, un- 
derstandably, not touched upon on 
the ABC salute. 

The two-hour rundown of 
ASCAP hits on ABC’s “Saturday 
Night. Dancing Party was framed 
in an historical continuity by Geor- 
gie Jessel. Jesscl. who did the same 
kind of job for RCA Victor’s “Show 
Biz” album, traced; the hits of yes- 
teryear against a canvas of .social 
and political ^events, proceeding 
from the post World War 1 tune, 
“I Didn’t Raise My Son To Be A 
Soldier” to last year’s inspirational 
“1 Believe.” in between, Jessel pre- 
sented vignettes of the key events 
and personalities against Tin Pan 
Alley’s comments bn the passing 
procession as rendered by. Peggy 
Ann Ellis, Tommy Furtado, the 
Townsmen ensemble and Glenn Os- 
ser’s orch. Stanley Adams, ASCAP 
prexy, closed the show with a 
pledge of continuing service to the 
public and repeated the same senti- 
ments op the following night’s one- 
hour salute on Paul Whitemun’s 
"American Music Hall.” 

The Whiteman show focused on 
• the top ASCAP personalities. The 
j musical repertoire, delivered by 
! songstress Shirley Harmer, the 
. Townsmen and the orch, ran down 
j works by George Gershwin, Leroy 
| Anderson, Cole Porter,. Arthur 
1 Schartz and Howard Dietz, the two 
R&H combos (Rodgers & Hart and 
R& Hammcrstcin) Dorothy Fields 
Si Jimmy McHugh. Jerome Kern, 
Victor Herbert and Kurt Weil. 

Both shows proved an ASCAP 
point: the great standards are in 
its catalog, period. Herm. 


A lot of oldsters must have shed a nostalgic tear dr two as they 
went back to the beginnings of the Freeman Gosden and Charles 
Correll saga, whipped up as a 26th anniversary piece on CBS 
Radio last Sunday (14). It was quite a Valentine Night for “Amos 
’n’ Andy" in the true guise of Gosden & Correll, with posies in 
their direction accented by tributes from their current and former 
boss— William Paley, board chairman of CBS, and David Sarnoff, 
b.c. of RCA-NBC. 

To get the two foremost executives bf the industry (and bitter 
rivals professionally) on the same platform, granting this was on 
the transcribed, route, was a tribute, in itself to the blackface twain 
whose cross-the-board strip at 7 o’clock more than a quarter of 
a century ago forward was the signal for millions to stop dead in 
their tracks and give a listen to what was going on with the Fresh 
Air Taxicab Co. and a “regusted" gentleman. It seems like a 
canard by reflection, but ’tis an established fact that many a picture 
house stopped the show at 7 in those days to pipe in A & A for 
the customers — and advertised that fact— as well they might be- 
cause without it they would have been without much of an audi- 
ence. Those were the days too when, of an early everting in the 
al fresco, amusement parks stopped their gaming and riding devices 
and public address systems were turned on to bring in A Si A. 
doubling as or supported by Lightnin’, Sapphire, Mme. Queen, 
Bro. Crawford, Ruby Taylor and the Kingfish himself. 

As plain Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll, they pitched 
themselves into a dramatization of their career from their meetin’ 
up at a Durham (N;C.) amateur show, their struggles to be some- 
thing in radio, their workouts in New Orleans; their ups and 
downs as performers in Chicago (WEVH at the Edgewatcr Beach 
Hotel, where at least they got a blue plate feed on the house after 
their miserable attempts at jokestering); and six months or so later 
at WGN, where they developed dialects arid the trademarked rasp, 
as Sam. arid Henry, became the top show in that area and got a 
network pact (Gen. Samoff’s speech made note of the fact that 
NBC introduced them to the nation for a period of 15 years, and 
Paley followed as the supplier of the lanes to the present). 

• Bill Hay, their old announcer, came out of retirement to ditto 
for this show; Edward R. Murrow had a few words at beginning 
and end; and Woven into the script as those who saw A & A conic 
up were Bing Crosby (then with Paul Whiteman >, Jack Benny, 
Lowell Thomas (who was proud to introduce the duo at Madison 
Square Garden) plus simulated voices of Vice President Charles 
G. Dawes and George Bernard Shaw (said the latter <>n his-L\S. 
visit; “I shall never forget Niagara Falls, the Rocky Mts, and "Amos 
and Andy”). (The billing was derived from an elevator man with 
a yen for comic versifying; when A Si A heard him refer to “Fa- 
mous Amos” and “Handy Andy,” they knew at once what they 
would call themselves. Moreover, it was a great alphabetical handle 
with which to play benefits, what with their hSiries topping the list*. 

It's a good thing Correli dropped his piano and Gosden his hoof- 
ing of those amateur and post-ant days. They came pretty far 
with other equipment. , Tran. 


PETER LIND HAYES SHOW 
With Mary Healy, Jerry Vale, Les- 
lie Uggams, Norman Leyden or- 
chestra with Teddy Wilson, pian- 
ist; announcer, George Bryan; 
guests, The Mariners 
Producer: Al Singer 
Director: Frank Musiello 
30 Mins.; Sat.* 2 p.m. 

CBS, from New York 
CBS is trying to make a Satur- 
day afternoon Godfrey out of 
Peter Lind Il'ayes; The tieup was 
quite apparent when Hayes rfcad a 
long paternal note from the net- 
work’s big money-maker concern- 
ing the proem on Saturday (13). 
Moreover, Godfrey has even sup- 
plied the amicable PLH with one 
of the “little Godfrey” groups for 
each weekend offering. 

In the first show — a comfortable 
and informal variety format — the 
student was equal to the master. 
Hayes has a genuine modesty and 
an impressively quiet approach to 
humor. He’s able to laugh at him- 
self and make agreeable light of 
others too; An example is spoofing 
manner in which he introed 
spouse: "Miss Healy made many 
motion pictures. Unfortunately 
they kept the pictures and released 
her.” 

Of Mary Healy the best that, can 
be said is that she’s no shakes as a 
thrush, hut she matches her hus- 
band’s wit with a sharp one of her 
own. She’s an ideal foil. 

Jerry Vale rendered his one 
number for the afternoon, "Strang- 
er in Paradise.” in most pleasant 
fashion. lie has cultivated a very 
agreeable tenor and should add 
i much to the half-hour listening. 
Another regular is moppet Leslie 
(Jggams 'OodlYcy “Talent Scout” 
winner of two years ago », who was 
fine in “When You’re Smiling.” 
When she talked (which she does 
ike an old pro) and when she sang 
;he sounded surprisingly older 
than her 10 years. Mariners were 
up to usually good style., and so 
J was rest of cast. 


( 











^e<faeflday, February 17, 1954 


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If you want a picture of the business going on in the front 
of the store, glance at the cartons out back. By and large, 

they’ll be these, the brands you’ve heard about most. 

/ 

They’re all on CBS Radio* And they’ve been there, on the 
average, eight years . . : where America listens most: 




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34 BADIO-TELEVISIOX 

- - -- 1 ■ ■ 


Radio Reviews 


Continued from page 31 


via “My. Most Unforgettable Child/' 
a transcription aired over the ABC 
net Sunday (14V Utilizing an all- 
star cast, program was devoted to 
a number of brief yarns submitted 
by UNICEF workers throughout 
the world relating to an encounter 
with an unforgettable child. Con- 
tinuous stressing of: UNICEF’s role 
in distributing^ food and clothing 
and providing medical care for 
children of all countries lessened 
show’s overall dramatic impact. 

Narratives were given slick es- 
saying by Shirley. Booth, Kirk 
Douglas- Greer Garson, Audrey 
Hepburn; Deborah Kerr and Bran- 
don dcWilde. Bing Crosby, as 
usual, did an affable job of hosting. 

Jess. 


CONCERT TIME 

With Henry Levine; Joe Finan, an- 


nouncer . 

Producer: Charles Hoover 
€0 Mins.*, Saturday, 4 p.m. 

WTAM, Cleveland 

Here’s a welcome hour of pleas- 
ant late afternoon Saturday listen- 


mg, 

Henry Levine, the “hotlips” of 
Dixieland music fame, now has 
taken a turn at the longhair disks. 
Already widely known for his di-. 



Eileen BARTON 

Latest Corel Release 


“Don’t Ask Mo Why" 
“Away Up Thoro" 

Dir.: . William Morris ; Agoncy 



C0LQATE COMEDY HOUR 


Mflt.: William Morris Agoncy 


rection of the WTAM “Band- 
wagon” show, the musical director 
of the NBC o-o outlet chalks up 
another niche with his handling of 
the shellacs; 

In his opening stanza (13). Levine 
showed good taste in the brief in- 
tros to the classics played. He was 
especially effective when, in intro- 
ducing one of Sigmund Romberg's 
pieces, he was able to draw upon 
his own personal experiences with 
the late conductor. 

Throughout the entire stanza, 
Levine maintained a dignified, for- 
mal approach to the selection be- 
ing offered; an approach that 
should not be marred by attempts 
at facetiousness. 

Program breaks, ’as well as intro 
and close were professionally done 
by Joe Finart, Mark. 



Cities Service can be thankful 
that there were so many good songs 
written in 1927. It helped it put 
together a melodic songalog to cel- 
ebrate its 27th broadcasting year 
Monday (15) on NBC. 

From the '27 catalog, the show 
aired such standards as DeSylva, 
Brown & Henderson’s “The Best 
Things in Life Are Free,” Walter 
Donaldson’s “My Blue Heaven/ 1 
Emo Rapee’s “Diane,” and George 
Gershwin’s “S'Wonderful:” That’s 
a medley that could carry any anni 
celebration. • 

Tunes were delivered in the 
familiar Cities Service band style 
by Paul Lavalle. Orch also deliv- 
ered “The Washington Grays 
March” and “The Old Oaken 
Bucket.” Lavalle plays ’em straight 
and clear and that’s the way a lot 
of dialers like their listening. 

Gros. 


,. . ivjvivjvvv mn iivuiVv 

. A; C. Nielsen Co. is figuring its 
current radio ratings on the basis 
of 46,646,000 AM-equipped homes. 
New base is a boost of 1,890,000 
homes over the 1953 figure and 
represents a 98.1 saturation of all 
U. S. homes. 

Latest total is based on a pro- 
jection of Nielsen AM saturation 
data gathered in 1952 on the 1954 
estimate of total families. 


Tony Ford Exits Framer 

Tony Ford has resigned as sales 
manager of Walt Framer Produc- 
tions to join the Gross-Baer tv firm 
in a similar capacity, plus aiding in 
development of new packages. 

Ford has been with the. Framer 
outfit for 18 months, his last as- 
signment having been with the up- 
coming dramatic, series, “Crisis.” 


SPECIAL OPTICAL EFFECTS 
AND TITLES 

On FIRESIDE THEATER 
Television Show 

by 

RAY MERCER & COMPANY 

4241 Normal Avo., H'wood 29/ Cal. 

Sold for Free Optical Effects Chart 


ABC Ups Huntington 

George G. Huntington this week 
was t upped to the newly-created 
post of manager of sales develop- 
ment at ABC Radio. 

Huntington, who’s been with the 
web as a tv and radio sales de- 
velopment writer for the past 18 
months, reports to radio sales pro- 
motion chief Gene Accas. 


time for sales 

WDEL-TV 

Wilmington, Delaware 

* Hundreds of local and national adver- 
tiser! ust. WDEL-TV consistently. . .proof 
positive of its profit potential. Write for 
information. 


Channel 12 


w o i t 

AM TV PM 
If# I i’« a 4 

I (# I la g 


Satei Representative 


MEEKER 


Ntw York 
Cliicagt 
lot Angalai 
Son froncittO 


PSStf&fY 


Sonet’s TV Status 


Washington, Feb. 16. 

Although the Russians claim they 
invented television and that the 
Western world swiped the invent 
tion, some figures announced last 
week by Moscow show how far be- 
hind that country is. 

In the latest Commie boast, the 
Soviets said Russia would produce 
325,000 television receivers this 
year. Next year, they hope to boost 
production to 760,000 sets. By the 
end of 1956, they estimate, produc- 
tion will be at the rate of 1,000,000 
annually. 

Russia has only a handful of tv 
stations in operation. 


Zenith 

miimJZ Continued from page 23 

and in the contribution of radio 
station WBEM to Chicago life. 

CBS will not be permitted to of- 
fer the record of its WBBM-TV op- 
eration in a contest with Zenith. In 
a “McFarland letter” (notification 
to prepare for hearing) to the con- 
testants last week, the Commission 
stipulated that because of the 
Court’s decision “no element qf 
the present operation .of station 
WBBM-TV . . . will be considered.” 
Thus, CBS would be an applicant 
on the same footing as Zenith. 

; Jf the hearings are held, Zenith 
will be required to submit a pro- 
posed program schedule. Situation 
poses an interesting question: could 
it offer in the event it might win 
the contest, to carry CBS pro- 
grams? 


‘I’fast Club’ 

Continued from page 25 ssssL 

to simulcast coverage will be $550 
per quarter-hour. 

While there’s a $2,500 pejr quar- 
ter-hour talent price for the first 
year of the tele exposure, the tab 
rides up on an escalator plan to 
$3,000 for the second year and 
$3,300 the third. 

With these kind of figures being 
bandied about plus the network’s 
eagerness to crack the morning tv 
field with the hopes of anchoring 
its future am. lineup to the early 
morning “Breakfast Club” and 
McNeill’s own personal determina- 
tion to make a video name for him- 
self/the current radio sponsors are 
fearful that they’ll be playing sec- 
ond fiddle to the tv side of the 
dual coverage. The web rebuts 
that they had first crack at the si- 
mulcast and that the door still 
Isn’t closed. 

TV Sifts the Real GW 

What did* "George Washington 
really look like? Are the Gilbert 
Stuart portraits of the first Presi- 
dent Wide of the mark as some au- 
thorities claim? WNBT, N. Y., will 
attempt to set the matter straight 
rnext Sunday (21) when Ben Grauei* 
interviews Malcolm Vaughan from 
11:20 to 11:35 pm. Vaughan is an 
art critic and writer on antiques 
who will come forth with 34 ver- 
sions of the. Washington likeness. 
These consist of 29 portraits and 
five details and he’s pitching them 
as eye-witness accounts— -“docu- 
mented life portraits, painted and 
sculptured by artists who stood 
in George Washington’s presence 
while doing the job.” 

In addition to his writings on art 
and American antique furniture, 
Vaughan scripted two art docu^ 
mentary films, “Gauguin” and 
“Grant Wood,” With Henry Fonda 
and Vincent Price the respective 
narrators; Both pix played the 
Little Carnegie Theatre, N, Y., and 
then toured. 


Drake Snares Sponsor 

Galen Drake show on CBS Radio 
has landed its first sponsor with 
Hunt Club Dog Food pacting for 
the 10:15 quarter of the 10 to 11 
am. Saturday stanza starting 
March 6. 

Series was launched Jari. 2. Ad 
agency is Moser & Cotins, Utica. 


57th Stratf, 118 Wait Cl 7-1900 

GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL 

Room with Private Bath 
from 95.00 

2 Rooms and Kitchenette 
from 160.00 
Monthly on Lease 

Full Hotal Sorvico for Oho or Two 
Parsons Included 

Alio Moderate Monthly Arrangements 


• '1 •* 

Wednesday, Febroary 17, 1954 


From The Production Centers 1 

Continued from pace 31 s5S5S5B55&=lI 

Columbus, O., and WSAZ, Huntingtow, W. Va., is newest announcer 
on Crosley radio-tv staff . . . Will Lenay and Paul Jones combine their 
separate man-on-rthe-bus tape-recorded quizzzes for WSAI’s new week- 
day evening 15-minute series, “Bussin the Town” . . . Cincinnati Pub- 
lic Library reports book circulation recovered from cradle era 
WLW-T Golden Gloves tourney finals promotion drew record 12 603 
boxing crown at Cincy Garden. 


IN MINNEAPOLIS . . 


Alex Victor, formerly WMIN-TV operations director, joined radio 
station WDGY which, along with WLOL and KEYD, is seeking tv Chan- 
nel 9 . . . Northwestern Drug sponsoring neW KSTPJTV show, “j\Iorit* 
Go-Round” ... Recently launched’ “Crusader Rabbit,” WMIN-TV kids’ 
show, claiming twp local fan clubs with 300 members . . . KSTP-TV 
personality Bee Baxter inaugurated series of video talks on the United 
Nations and its operations . . Northwest Radio-Television News Assn, 
elected Ken Knutson, KLPM, Minot, N. D., president; Dick Cheverton* 
WMT, Cedar Rapids, vice president, and. Charles Sargeant, WCCO* 
Minneapolis, secretary-treasurer . . . KSTP radio starting series of 
concerts by St. Paul high school choruses . . . KSTP radio launched 
new series of four-days-a-week noon "Cal Karnstedt farm ^programs 
and had James Morton, Minnesota. Farm Bureau president/ on its 
opener . .. . Joe Floyd, president of KELO-TV, Sioux Falls, S. D . and 
vice president of WMIN-TV here, back from Hollywood where he 
presented plaque award from the two stations to Herbert Spencer and 
Earle Hagen, musical directors of ABC’s Ray Bolgei* and Danny Thomas 
shows . New KSTP radio news show* “Editor,” features narrator 
Bill Ingram. 


Johnson Hits FCC 

ssss Continued from page 24 aaa 

does not compromise these prin- 
ciples. However, this is a judg- 
ment that should be made by the 
Congress after fjill hearings in 
which everyone would be given an . 
opportunity to be heard.” 

Johnson questioned the fairness 
of charging a small 100-watt radio 
station the same fee as a 50-kilo- 
watter or an uncontested applica- 
tion. for a tv station in a town of 
10,000 the same fee as a contested 
application, requiring weeks of 
hearings by the Commission, for 
a city of several million, “Does the 
payment of a stiff fee for licens- 
ing,” he asked, “give any greater 
right to the licensee than he has 
today without a fee?” 

Johnson reminded the Commis- 
sion that it is no “accident” that 
under the Communications Act the 
U. S. “has developed the best and 
finest communications system in 
the entire world.” 


■4* .. . ' ' , 1 — — 

4.1%. Sets, in use rose during the 
period too, however, according to 
the special Trendex reports on 
which the -findings were based. 



BOB CARROLL 

'Currontly 


Fred Allen Show 

NBC -TV, Tuosdays.10 P.M. 

• DERBY RECORDS • 
Management: VAL IRVING 
Direction: WILLIAM MORRIS AGENCY 


The Senator urged the agency 
to suspend any action on the fee 
proposal until Congress has had 
opportunity to explore the question 
! “thoroughly.” 

Johnson’s bill restricts the Com- 
mission to charging “nominal” fees 
I 'for licenses. It is expected that a 
subcommittee of the Senate Com- 
merce Committee under Sen. 
Charles E. Potter (R-Mich.) will 
consider the matter next week. 


Triple Exposure 

Jssss Continued from page 25 
0 \ 

has upped the web’s ratings in the 
Sunday at 8 slot considerably, al- 
though not to the point where they 
pose anything like a competitive 
threat to “Toast of the Town” and 
“Colgate Comedy Hour.” Web’s 
rating for Feb. 7 was 188% over 
that of Dec. 6, with a 6.9 compared 
to a 2.4.: Share of audience was 
up 168%, with 11.0% compared to 


V 


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^Mnesday, 


17, 1954 




TV-VILMS 


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LIKE 



WAS 



RADIO 



New York’s indie tele stations are slowly coming to the realiza- 
tion that syndicated and national spot telepix are providing them 
with program ammunition that’s boosting their ratings to hitherto 
unattained levels. Gotham’s traditionally a two-station town insofar 
as ratings are concerned, with WCBS-TV and WNBT, the flagships 
of CBS and NBC, dominating the picture. WABD, DuMont’s flag, 
and WABC-TV, ABC’s, have been relegated to poor thirds,' fourths 
and at times even lasts. The indies, WOR-TV and WPIX (with 
WAT V a relative newcomer) have been hard put to get a rating, 

except with baseball. 

Picture is beginning to change, however, with top vidpix proper- 
ties boosting the stock of indies and WABD and WABC-TV alike. 
January American Research Bureau report, for example, rates 
wOR-TV’s showing of “Badge 714” in the Wednesday at 9 slot at 
13.2, a rating that’s rarely been reached by the station even with 
baseball arid an undreamed of high for regular programming. 
Likewise, “Ramar of the Jungle” on WPIX registered a 9.9 in the 
Saturday at 6 slot, at a time when sets in use were only 27,3, 
an unheard of share for the station. 

Other high spots in the Vidpix rating picture were WABC-TV’s 
•'Captain Midnight” in the Sunday at 6 slot with an 11.5; WOR- 
TV’s “Dangerous Assignment” with ari 8;3 Wednesday at 9:30 arid 
7.3 Saturday at 9; WOR’s “Man Against Crime” Saturday at 9:30 
with a 9.1, followed by “Inspector Mark Saber” with a 6.8; WABD’s 
“Wild Bill Hickok” Saturday at 7 with a 10.6, followed by “Annie 
Oakley” withr. an. 8,2. Strange . part of the upward rating trend 
via vidpix is that in most cases, the stations had the pix more or 
less thrust upon them, via direct syndicator-to-agency sales, with 
agency buying the time on the stations. It’s paid off far beyond the 
station expectations. f. 



'Hollywood, Feb. . 16. < 

Instead of resisting ; the “in- 
evitable expansion” of telepix,. tv 
networks should be more co-op- 
erative with producers of telefilm, 
it was declared here by Robert 
Eirinberg, prexy of Kling studios 
in Chicago, who Cairie here to see 
vidfilm production get under way 
at the Kling studios here, for- 
merly the Charles Chaplin lot. 

Predicting tv programming event- 
ually will be a 75-25 ratio favoring 
film, the Chicago exec said that 
while the networks haye the power 
and the money, final determina- 
tion is what the public will want 
and accept, and he feels this will 
be in a filmed merchandise. 

Growth of syndication of tele- 
film is an important factor in the 
industry today, and the webs 
should take this into considera- 
tion in their view of vidpix, he 
said. Nets will benefit only when 
they meet with producers, discuss 
the limitations of shows from a 
dollar-and-cents ' viewpoint, and 
figure otit the best way to aid the 
advertiser, something to be rer 
garded as the prime objective, 
Eirinberg added. 

Telefilm is superior in every 
way, and the continually increas- 
ing number of tv channels is build- 
ing up such a demand for product, 
that despite local live program- 
ming, there is and will be a call 

( Continued on page 40) 


Tag for the Samuel Goldwyn Jr., 
vidpix company will be Westward 
Productions. Richard C. Brown 
has been set as story editor for the 
firm. 

A former mag - writer, Brown 
also served a session as assistant 
to actor Jose Ferrer. ' 




Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

Authors Playhouse, telefilm pro- 
duction firm which has signed vi- 
deo deals with some of the top 
American authors, has obtained ex- 
clusive television rights to the en- 
tire estate of the late Ring Lardrier 
and will film four of the humorist’s 
stories for inclusion in the first 
group of 39 half-hour pix to be 
completed by September. ; 

Producers Eugene Solow and 
Brewster Morgan concluded the 
deal with Lardner’s widow, Mrs. 
Ellis Lardner, with payment on a 
profit-sharing basis. John Lardrier, 
son of the humorist, is already 
Penning the tv adaptation of “A 
Erame-Up,” first of the four to be 
made. Others are “Anniversary,” 
‘A pay with Conrad Green” and 
'Maysville Minstrel.” 

Authors Playhouse, previously 
had concluded deals with such au- 
thors as John Steinbeck, Lloyd C. 
Douglas, Ben Ames Williams, Jo- 
seph Hergesheimer, William Saro- 
yrin, John Hersey, Gladys Hasty 
Carroll, Lucian Berman and Chris- 
topher LaFarge. 


Definitive survey showing that 
second runs of network film shows 
don’t affect the size and behavior 
of the audience .was released last 
week by the A. C. Nielsen Co. 
While pointing up the fact that in 
the 16 network programs totalling 
103 reruns testejl last summer, no 
appreciable audience change took 
plaeey Nielsen stressed the fact that 
each particular rerun situation 
should be examined individually. 

Nonetheless, differences as . to 
ratings, share cf audience, “holding 
power” and length-of-viewing be- 
tweef first run and rerun were 
negligible. Additionally, compari- 
sons between winter first run arid 
summer rerun were compared to a 
“control group” of 11 live shows 
which showed the winter vs. sum- 
mer characteristics as the filmed 
repeats. 

Average rating for the film group 
on first run was JJ3.9 and 28.0 for 
the second run. The control group 

(Continued on page 40) 





‘Liberace’ 31.2 Tops Kraft; Cisco’ Hot 


Resolving the local television 
news show, where the integratipn 
of film plays such a dominant role 
isn’t coming off too easy. Stations 
around the country are complain- 
ing that, unlike radio, Where news 
programs have been (and still are) 
the commercial backbone of the 
Operation, the ty news program 
isn’t selling in the way it was an- 
ticipated. ' 

As a result, the tv newsreel isn’t 
the commodity it should be, arid 
the major newsfilm makers and 
distributors are reportedly more 
than a little concerned over their 
future prospects. They can’t get 
the prices they feel they’re, entitled 
to from the stations because the 
latter, in turn, are finding spon- 
sorship coin for tv news shows 
harder to come by. 

At stake are the filmed output 
and operations of four major com- 
panies, Where the competition for 
the station dollar is becoming so 
tough that some of them are selling 
their footage to the stations for the 
cost of print to get off the hook. 
Topmost, of course, in the newsfilm 
sweepstakes are NBC and CBS, 
which, since setting up their own 
worldwide tv news coverage opera- 
tions, have moved into a dominant 
position. Each network has ari in- 
vestment in combing the globe for 
newsreel said to be in excess of 
$3,000,000. Among the two net- 
works the competition for exclu- 
sive coverage, grows hotter by the 
day, all of which entails heavy coin 
outlays. 

A great deal of their footage, of 
Course, is siphoned off into spon- 
sored network programming, as, 
for example, NBC’s Camel News- 
reel and the early morning “To- 
day” show. But the real coin intake 
was envisioned from processing of 
the footage for shipment to local 
stations. 

Competing with the two net- 
works are the UP-Fox Movietone 
setup and the INS-Metro (News of 
the Day) operation, with the latter 
also including the INS-processed 
Facsimile. The film companies, Of 
Course, are still turriing out their 
product for theatres, but today tv 
is the more important element and 
represents the difference between 
loss or profit; Fox, for one, it’s 
reported, has been unhappy thus 
far over failure to realize the tv 
Station potential on revenue, but 
obviously, with the competition 
growing stiff er, notably since the 
large-scale entrance Of the two 
major networks, is committed to a 
sink-or-swim participation in the 
tv newsreel sweepstakes. 

Just why local tv news shows 
haven’t caught as they did in radio 
(except in some isolated cases and 
cities) remains a matter for con- 
jecture. For one thing, it’s con- 
ceded that the average tv news- 
caster, reading from a prepared 
script, renders himself meaningless 
in terms of achieving a personality 
or a character of his own. Secondly, 
the bulk of the filmed footage is 
geared to network coverage, leav- 
ing a void in the “localized treat- 
ment.” The average station prides 
itself on its hometown status, “by, 
for and of” the community. That 
goes for its tv personalities, pro- 
gramming and coverage. In radio 
a. tape recorder solved the .. prob- 
lem. The sponsor was ready to un- 
derwrite it because it was commu- 
nity stuff. In tv it’s not that simple. 



in 



Late Nite Snackery 

In an analysis of 250 letters 
picked at random from nearly 
13,000 pieces of mail received 
in an 11-day contest on its 
“Late Late Show,’ ■ WCBS-TV 
made a number of Interesting 
discoveries. But down at the 
bottom in the, “miscellaneous” 
category was one meaty find- 
ing that 16% eat snacks while 
watching the filiris. 

So station’s Spot Sales Dept, 
is pitching the show as an 
ideal vehicle for. food or 
beverage sponsorship. Inci- 
dentally, with coffee prices in 
upbeat, Lipton’s Tea has put 
in fo* two weeks of spots on 
station’s “Late Show” and 
“Early Show.” 



, V 


WNBT has come up with the 
cutie of the year to hypo its “Mid- 
night Movie.” Gotham flagship 
of NBC has set Jim Moran as host 
for a series of stints at opening, 
breaks and closing. Erstwhile 
Hollywood pressagent, who’s used 
regularly on Steve Allen’s premid- 
night cross-the-boarder on the sta- 
tion, will do a live intro of about 
two and a half minutes in Which 
he’ll plug the film arid engage in 
his w.k. deadpan screwballisms at 
the breaks. In the windup the 
towering, be whiskered story teller J 
and stuntster will carry on with 
“Night Games” for the stay ups. 

The Moran menu tees off Fri- 
day (19). 


LOWENTHAN HEADS 
ANS SETUP IN EAST 

Leonard JLowenthan this week 
was named v.p; in charge of N.Y. 
operations of American National 
Studios, the Fred Levy-Berriard 
Prockterrtopped vidpix operation. 
HeTl head up all eastern operations 
ofiftie firm, which has no distribu- 
tioir setup of its own. Lowenthan, 
an attorney, is also a v.p. of 
Prockter Television Enterprises, 
Prockter’s own packaging firm. 
He’ll headquarter in N. Y. but will 
shuttle between both Coasts in the 
course of his duties. 


Dougfair Corp., the Douglas 
Fairbanks Jr.-Don Sharpe produc- 
tion outfit which turns out the 
“Douglas Fairbanks Presents” tele- 
pix, has started production on a 
second cycle of 39 of the pix fol- 
lowing wrapup of a deal with 
Rheingold Beer to expand its spon- 
sorship of the series. Brewery, in 
line with expansion of its brewing 
and distribution to the Coast, is 
retaining its eastern markets and 
additionally is carrying the film in 
five Coast markets. 

Dougfair meanwhile has closed 
a deal with Interstate TV, the 
Allied Artists telepix subsid, to 
distribute . the films in non-Rhei n- 
gold markets. First cycle of 39 
were held by NBC Film Division, 
Which now is syndicating the films 
ori a rerun basis with Walter Abel 
cut in as host under the title 
“Paragon Playhouse.” NBC had 
apparently decided not to handle 
any more of the Fairbanks films 
for the time being, and so Dougfair 
closed with Interstate for the new 
cycle. Films are being shot now 
in Great Britain, with Fairbanks 
hosting and starring in one out of 
every four. 

Under Rheingold deal, consum 
mated via Foote, Cone & Belding, 
brewery retains its sponsorship in 
N. Y., New Haven, Binghamton and 
Atlantic City and also picks up five 
Coast markets as part of its ex- 
pansion move. Additionally, brew- 
ery has a separate deal with Fair- 
banks for his commercials for the 
suds. Thesp reportedly pulls down 
$5,000 a week for the blurbs alone, 

ARMSTRONG DEALERS 
CO OPING ‘PLAYBACK’ 

Armstrong Tire & Rubber Co 
has set a deal to sponsor Screed 
Gems* “The Big Playback” in every 
market Where an Armstrong dealer 
will go into bankrolling on a 50-50 
co-op basis. Screen Gems and Arm 
strong have Serit letters to dealers 
in 160 cities notifying them of the 
deal and asking them to indicate 
whether they desire to play the 
series, Which stars Bill Stern in 
narration with .film clips of great 
sports events. 

Series was carried last season by 
Ethyl Co. in 46 markets, with that 
deal sparking production of the 26 
quarter-hours. It’s, been syndicated 
outside the Ethyl markets and is 
playing rerun in several of the 
.original 46,. Currently, Series is in 
first run and rerun in some 40 mar- 
kets, With the 160 dealers contact- 
ed in other markets. 


Syndicated and national spot vid- 
pix continue to rack up strong 
ratings in key markets, with Cleve- 
land and San Francisco showing 
particularly high results for the 
telepix. "Liberace,” with a 31.2 on 
WEWS, tops all Wednesday night 
competition in Cleveland, includ- 
ing “Kraft TV Theatre.” In San 
Francisco, “Badge 714” is tops with 
a 29.0. 

“Cisco Kid” tops Chicago with a 
25.6 on WBKB, while “Amos & 
Andy” on KOMO-TV and “Life of 
Riley” on KING-TV are tied for 
first spot in Seattle with 31.0. In 
single-station outlets, “Favorite 
Story” tops St. Louis again with 
47.3 on KSD-TV, while “Death 
Valley Days” is first in New Haven 
with a 29.3 on WNHC-TV. 

Cleveland — “Liberace” .31.2 
(WEWS). is toprated vidpix in this 
area, besting Wednesday night 
showings and topping “Kraft TV 
Theatre:” “I Led Three Lives” 30.1 
(WEWS) is second best, coming at 
10:30 p.m. spot on Friday evening. 
With the exception of live show on 
Friday at 6 p.iri., WNBK has series 
of vidpix all with hefty ratings. 
They are “Superman 28.3, Monday; 
“Sky King” 21.5, Tuesday; “Wild 
Bill Hickok, 21.6, Wednesday; “Kit 
Carson” 18.7 Thursday, and “Cisco 
Kid” 27.3, Saturday with following 
6:30 stanza on same day being 
“Annie Oakley” 27. All ARB rat- 
ings. ‘ 

San Francisco — “Qgdge 714” 
(KPIX) again leads all packaged 
shows here with high score of 29.0; 
“Cisco Kid” follows (KRON-TV), 
with 27.5; “Douglas Fairbanks Jr. 
Presents” (KRON-TV) 25.0; “Vic- 
tory At Sea” (KRON-TV) 17,5; 
“Candy Theatre (KPIX) 16.0, top- 
ping competing "Peter Potter 
Show” on KGO-TV (which drew 
10.0); “Crown Theatre” (KPIX) 
13.5, topping competing Bishop 
Fulton J. Sheen on KGO-TV (who 
drew 7.5), 

Seattle — “Amos & Andy” on - 
KOMO-TV and “Life of Riley” on 
KING-TV tied for top spot for 
Seattle televised syndicated tv pro- 
grams at 31, according to latest 
Pulse ratings. “Orient Express,” 
KING-TV, held second spot with 
27.8, followed by “Superman” at 
(Continued on page 40) 



Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

Bob Hope’s partnered in Ameri- 
can National Studios, the outfit 
which purchased Eagle Lion Stu- 
dios, board chairman Frederick 
Levy Jr. revealed. In the new tele- 
film operation, Hope joins Ed Pau- 
ley, Daniel Reeves and Levy, all 
of Whom afe als5 partnered with 
him in tl e Los Angeles Rams pro 
football team. 

Amount of Hope’s Investment 
was not revealed but is assumed to 
be substantial.: He will not partici- 
pate in management, but Is solely 
in on an investment basis. ;.meri- 
can National, which officially took 
over Eagle Lion Studios Friday 
(12), starts production March 1 
with “Family Next Door” series, 
with Larry Finley’s “Pick Your 
-Winner” starting the next day. 


70 for ’Elizabeth’ 

Guild Films wrapped up a three- 
market deal for upstate New York 
this week on its “Life With EJizai 
beth” series, bringing the total 
rnarkets the show is in to 70. Deal 
was with Daw Drug Co. for Roehes- 
1 ter, Syracuse and Utica, via the 
Carl E. Sillato agency of Roches- 
ter. 

Earlier in the week, show Was 
sold to KTVA in Anchorage, 
Alaska. 





Wednesday* February 17, 1954 







Canny advertisers are by now well aware that TV. re- 
runs are a mighty shrewd investment. The only question 
is “which re-runs”? The answer-NBC FILM DIVISION 
re-runs. 

VICTORY AT SEA 

Reaching more homes on re-run than on first run in 
seven of the eight cities for which comparative ratings 
are available. In New York it reached an average of 
317,000 homes per week during the first three months of 
its first run, compared with 511,000 for the three months 
so far of its current run. 


DANGEROUS ASSIGNMENT 

Pay-off ratings in market after market , as a re-run 
delivering really outstanding costs per thousand. For 
example, ratings in these 3-channel markets : Detroit, 
24.9 at 6:00 p.m., Sunday; San Francisco, 24.6 at 9:00 
p.m., Sunday; Minneapolis -St. Paul, 32.5 at 7:30 p.m., 
Tuesday. 

THE VISITOR 

Sold in over 65 markets , and share of audience proves 
its popularity. For instance, here are some of the latest 
shares in these multi-channel markets : Houston-Galves- 
ton, 80.5% ; Dayton, 55.4%. 


BADGE 714 

Raised its stations* ratmgs for time slots in 14 of the 15 
cities for which ratings are available. In Chicago the 
station previously ranked last in the time period with a 
1.5 rating. Now, with BADGE, the station ranks first with 
20.8 against Fireside Theatre, This Is Show Business, 
and Make Room For Daddy. 


CAPTURED 

First in its time period in Columbus, Detroit, and Mil- 
waukee out of the few markets where ratings are now 
available. For example, in Columbus, CAPTURED ranks 
first against network programs on both competing sta- 
tions: Letter To Loretta and Dollar A Second. 


PARAGON PLAYHOUSE 

Just introduced as a re-run, so only first-run data is avail- 
able thus far. Program led all competition, including ABC 
Kraft Theatre and Story Theatre, in Los Angeles . . . 
drew a 19.9 1953 average against Pabst Bouts and other 
competition in seven-station New York . . . and a 22.1 
against Jackie Gleason Show and other competition in 
three-station San Francisco. 

★ ★ ★ 

These successful profit-proved shows are making sales 
and rating history every day. You’ll find them hard to 
beat for drawing audiences . . . and sales results. Before 
the series of your choice is snapped up in your particular 
market, call or wire today. 



NBC FILM DIVISION 

SERVING All SPONSORS. ..SERVING ALL STATIONS 

HM IIIM DIVISION 30 RmI'MIm flwa. Be* T#ib 29, H. V. * UwhuAif N*'t. 0««9*. »«- • «»••»». Nolly»ee4. • la Caaato IU WirlM. Reyet Veil Helet. 1 areata 



S' 


Source : ARB 




IS 


TV-FILMS 


Wednesday, February 17,1954 



Vidpix; Carter, Bromo Upbeat Trend 


While the “view-with-alarm” $lg-;f 
nals aren’t yet posted at the net- 
works, some sales brass at the webs 
are beginning to cast a worried 
glance at the Inroads vidpix syndi- 
cators are beginning to make on 
what are normally regarded as net-^j 
work clients. As more top Vidpix 
product becomes available for re- 
gional and national spot sponsor- 
ship in selective markets and time 
slots, more of the top agencies and 
bankrollers are alerting themselves 
to the growing vidpix scene; 

Trend is pointecL up by two sales 
last week— Ziv's deal with Carter 
Products (SSG&B) and Schwayder 
Bros. (Grey) for 40-market alter- 
nate-week sponsorship of “Mr. Dis- 
trict Attorney” and Motion Pic- 
tures for Television’s- 20-30 market 
sale to Bromo-Seitzer of its “Janet 
Dean, Registered Nurse” pix. 
Schwayder BrOs. (Samsonite Lug- 
gage), a relative newcomer to 
broadcasting, has been riding with 
NBC’s “Your Show of Shows;” Car- 
ter has always, been among the 
top network sponsors. Nonetheless,^ 
as a result of a multitude of factors 
—better vidpix product, “must 
buy” minimum networks', clearance 
problems, scarce availabilities, web 
demands for bankrolling of house 
packages only, among others— the 
previous network-only sponsors are 
swinging to spot buys via regional 
deals on vidpix. Another network 
baby which recently went into pix 
is Sealtest, with a four-market buy 
of Roland Reed’s “Waterfront,” 

There have been many such na- 
tional spot deals in ; the past, of 
course — Kellogg (Leo Burnett 
agency) with “Superman” and 
“Wild Bill Hickok,” Ballantine (J, 
Walter Thompson) with “Foreign 
Intrigue,” Pacific Coast Borax (Mc- 
Cann-Erickson) with “Death Valley 
Days,” Canada Dry (Mathes) with 
‘■Terry and the Pirates” and more 
recently with “Annie Oakley,” But 
these represented clients who for 
the most part had always been 
heavy spot buyers, even in radio. 

Increasing spot business, over- 
all, in radio and . tv, has been, a 
prime concern of the networks for 
some time now. However, many of 
the top web people have misled: 
the point that in tv, it’s the prod- 
uct availability that’s one of the 
main reasons for the upbeat. Some 
of them have come to. that realiza- 
tion now as a result of having a 
prospective client snatched from 
under their noses by their -vidpix 
colleagues at the same network— 
in- the film syndication division. 
Vidpix toppers have long, recog- 
nized, that eventually networks and 
the. syndicators face a showdown 
battle. That fact is beginning to 
dawn on some of the network brass 
now. 


Rheingold’s N.Y. Lead 

“Rheingold Theatre/* -the Doug- 
las Fairbanks Jr.-starring series, 
led all other syndicated telepix in 
the New York market in January, 
according to American Research 
Bureau’s N.Y. report. Vidpix, syn- 
dicated under “Douglas Fairbanks 
Presents” title, pulled a 26.1 tating 
in its Thursday night slot, topping 
all other films last month. 

ARB-supplied listing last week 
inadvertently omitted the series’ 
rating. 




Developing New Type 
Of 



BUYS 

‘JANET DEAN’ TELEPIX 

Motion Pictures for Television’s 
new film syndication division got 
off to a flying start on its sales 
campaign for the Ella Raines-star- 
ring “Janet Dean, Registered 
Nurse” series, setting a deal this 
week for regional sponsorship in 
some 20 to 30 key markets by 
Bromo-Seitzer. Deal is conditioned 
upon Lennen & Newell agency’s 
being abl? to clear good time on 
key stations in those markets, but 
if the clearance problem is hurdled, 
Bromo-Seitzer starts with the pix 
in late March or early April. 

Series is being produced in New' 
York under the Cornwall Produce 
tions banner (William Dozier is 
partnered with Miss Raines in 
Cormvall), with the first cycle of 
13 already completed and the sec- 
ond currently being shot in color 
and black .and white. MPTV will 
syndicate in non-Bromo markets, 
with air dale starting next month. 

Ireland Off ‘Ellery’ 

Hollywood, Feb. 16, 

John Ireland lias been dropped 
from title role of the “Ellery 
Vlueen vidpix series, after pro- 
ducers Norman and Irving Pincus 
learned he recently made a deal to 
endorse ciggies. 

Producers figured this would 
eliminate any potential tobacco 
sponsor, so replaced Ireland with 
Hugh Marlowe, who was in the 
pilot. 


Hollywood, Feb/ 16. 

An entirely neW breed of writers 
who will • tailor their stuff for vid- 
pix is predicted by Buck Houghton, 
story editor for Meridian Produc- 
tions, which turns out the “Schlitz 
Playhouse of Stars.” Houghton ad- 
vises scribblers . in tv to concen- 
trate on one or two companies, 
acquaint, themselves with . their 
particular requirements, and ham- 
mer at them until they sell, 

He warned against scribblers 
try to take, pot-luck and sell any- 
where in town,, with no knowledge 
of the requirements of the com- 
pany, sponsor or agency. V 

“For example, in our case, 
“Schlitz Playhouse of Stars” wants 
stories with escapism, and with a 
direct appeal to men.; We don’t 
deviate from these needs, because 
we find them best for our partial?- 
lar type of audience, • and ' best 
suited to sell the sponsor’s product. 
Good taste, of course, is always an 
overriding consideration. 

“You might say we’re looking 
for ‘The Petrified Forest' every 
week. We don’t particularly care 
for romantic stories, nor do we 
want comedies, or the ‘Dragnet’ 
type of drama. Those stories spe- 
cializing in such television, fare are 
better suited to present them. . 

“I sympathize with those writers 
who: say they are confused at the 
varied demands of different story 
editors and producers, and that, is 
why I recommend to them that 
they concentrate at a small target, 
with one or two companies, and 
avoid the danger of writing with- 
out knowing requirements before- 
hand. I’m always glad to see 
writers; I usually interview about 
10 a week, and we’re beginning to 
develop a few writers who know 
just what our demands are. 

“We have used writers from ra- 
dio and from motion pictures, and 
found them agile, but on the whole 
I believe that tv will produce an 
entirely new type of writer, with 
beneficial results for the producer 
and writer,” Houghton said. 


SWG T0 KUDO TOP 

A 



< Hollywood; Feb. 16. 

Nominees for the first telefilm 
writing award ever made by the 
Screen Writers Guild have been 
named, and winner Will be an- 
nounced at the annual SWG 
awards dinner at the Beverly Hills 
hotel Feb, 25. ~ 

The nominated writers, each of 
whom designated what he felt was 
his best tele play the past year, 
are John and Gwen Bagni^ “The 
Last . Voyage” ( Four Star; Play- 
house); Howard J. Green, 
“Trapped,” Sovereign Productions, 
Written in collaboration with Ar- 
thur .Ripley, from a story by John 
Chapman; Lawrence Kimble, “The 
Lion Behind You,” Revue; Cath- 
erine Turney, “The Gift. Horse,” 
Frank Wisbar Productions, and 
Eugene Vale., “The Shattered 
Dream,” also a Wisbar vidpic, from 
a story by. Dana Burnett. “Voy- 
age” won the Screen Directors 
Guild’s first telepic directional 
award for Robert Florey last 
month. [John Bagni died of a 
heart attack while driving on the- 
Coast Sat. (13).] 

These vidpix; will be screened 
for the^SWG membership at the 
Lido theatre, Pico and LaCinenega, 
tonight (Tues.); Members will 
vote by written ballot following 
this one and only screening; 


For Syndication Values 

Vi tap ix is currently shooting test 
foctage: on several of the local 
shows on KTLA, Los Angeles, with 
a decision on which of them will 
be produced for syndication forth- 
coming after April 1. Plans for 
syndicating the outlet’s local airers 
had been announced ai /few’ weeks 
back shortly after KTLA; joined 
Vitapix as a stockholder station, 
but the development is proceeding 
slowly. • .. 

Meanwhile, list of markets set 
with Vitapix’s package of 26 fea- 
ture-leiigth films produced in Eu- 
rope by Burt Balaban’s Princess 
Pictures continues to expand. It’s 
now at the 40 mark, with a deal 
also in the works for N. Y. Vita- 
pix’s package of wrestling films 
produced in Hollywood, . which 
went into distribution last month, 
is currently sold in 17 markets. 


Frank Reel to Ziv 

A. Frank Reel has .resigned the 
Silverstone & Rosenthal laWfirm 
to locate, with Frederic A. Ziv in 
a legal and executive capacity. 

Reel had been executive secre- 
tary of the New York local of the 
American Federation pf Television 
and Radio Artists prior to joining 
Silverstone & Rosenthal; 



-M- 


PLAYHOUSE OF STARS 
(Man from Onhidt) 

When two rowdy-dowdies like 
Broderick Crawford and Ted ,de 
Corsia meet up, it’s a lead-pipe 
cinch that fists will fly and brute 
strength triumph. Here it comes 
off in. liberal doses and since vio- 
lence pays off big at the receivers, 
a grisly time will be had by all. 

The story is puny stuff compared 
with the physical aspects. It takes 
a slight switch, a copper conning 
'iliimself into a prison rap to draw 
a confession out of a killer and 
Save an innocent man from the 
hot seat. It’s generally a news- 
paperman that does it. Crawford 
is the sacrificial fiatfoot and de 
Corsia “the pusher” in the pen, 
who, believe it or not, is allowed 
to wear a wrist watch. Wardens 
around the country will snicker at 
this..* But it’s the Bulova (aw’right, 
a Gruen, then) that’s the' tell-tale 
clue that pins the guilt on de 
Corsia. But not until after heads 
have been rocked with punches 
most of the actionful way. . 

There’s gun play and a near- 
prison break to keep ; v the action 
alive and tingling but it’s the sock 
in the jaw that keeps taut the 
tempo. Just like waiting for the 
kayo on fight nights. Two better 
exemplars of the rugged school of 
modified, mayhem than Crawford 
and deCqrsia. are. scarce on any 
casting sheet, and their muscle 
work would be the envy of Pier 6. 
The^others act like sissies com- 
pared with these brutes but they’re 
necessary accessories. J 
Roy Kellino let them slug it out 
past his directorial chair and Rob- 
ert cPage tied in Schlitz with the 
prison pattern, Helm. 

- PEPSI COLA PLAYHOUSE 
(Psychophonic Nurse) 

A cleverly concocted fantasy, 
“Psychophonic Nurse.” might also 
be termed a satire on femme ca- 
reerists. When the too-busy mother 
of the baby in this one complains 
to her hubby: the nurses they’ve 
tried are nig., why he just whips 
up a robot nurse, being an elec- 
tronics expert. Resultant situations 
are humorous, with mom learning 
about mother love the hard way. 

A selfish dame Who can’t stand to 
be away from; her typewriter for a 
moment as She knocks off her 
literary gems,, the mom even beefs 
to her hubby she doesn’t have time 
to call out the signals to the robot. 
But he takes care of that with a 
tape recorder. Unlike his wife, the 
hubby lavishes a lot of love on the 
kid. One day the wife sends the 
robot sub for papa (now there are 
two robots around) out 'wheeling 
the baby around. But the real, pop 
takes over, they’re caught in; a. 
rainstorm and pop is hurt by a 
falling branch. Kid and the father 
are rescued, and mom signs “30” 


| to her career, deciding maybe she’s 
I been somewhat selfish. 

. Lee Marvin’s portrayal of the 
hubby is well-done. Joanne Davis 
is good in the unsympathetic role 
of the spouse, while Effie Laird is 
mechanically apt as the robot 
nurse. . 

Leslie H. Martinson’s direction 
is evenly paced, while Richard Col- 
lins’ adaptation of David Keller’s 
original is a good one. ~ ’ 


AMERICAN NATIONAL 
PREPS ‘WINNER’ TELEPIX 

Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

American National studios will 
telefilm “Pick Your Winner,” an 
audience participation show ; to be 
produced by Larry! Finley, with 39 
telepix being prepped. 

Production gets under way 
March 2, exec producer Bernard 
Prockter said. No distribution deal 
has been set for the series, which 
will be shot in the Television Thea- 
tre originally built at Eagle-Lion 
for the Red Skelton show.. Four, 
guestars will appear on each show. 

Finley retains his KFWB dee jay 
show. - American National will also 
be lensing its first soap opera 
series, with Edward Corine produc- 
ing: " 


Stratmann V ABC Post 

Fred J. Stratmarin has been 
named sales rep and merchandis- 
ing consultant to the western divi- 
sion of ABC Film Syndication. He 
was formerly general manager and 
advertising-merchandising director 
for the Oregon-Washington-Cali- 
fornia Pear Bureau. He’ll work 
with ABC’s Coast office on mer- 
chandising campaigns for food 
retailers and suppliers using ABC 
film product. 

Stratmann reports to ABC Syn- 
dication Coast manager William L. 
Clark. 



JUNIOR SCIENCE 
With Dr. Gerald Wendt 
Director: Harvey Cort 
Technical Adviser: Kenneth M. 

Swczey 

Writer: Milton Subotsky 
39 quarter-hours 
Distributor: MPTV 

“Junior Science” should more 
than fill the bill as a quarter-hour 
series directed to juveniles. It may 
have as much, appeal for the old 
boy of the house. Standout is its 
simplicity, plus an entertainment 
approach that should fasten eyes 
and ears to the educational values 
basic to the skein. With college 
and research credits up. to there, 
Dr. Gerald Wendt plays. the narra- 
tive route sans the stiffness and 
stuffiness commonly • associated 
with the Ph; D. coterie (he’s now 
Chief of Science Education for 
UNESCO). ' .. 

Science demonstrations are 
given rapidly, yet are ; easy to fol- 
low because of the lucid descrip- 
tion and the high visual definition. 
Much of the appeal lies in the use 
of home props to make a point. 
These lend a pop science quality 
and serve as an at-hoine inspira- 
tion for Junior & Co. to follow. 
In two chapters screened by the 
distributing Motion Pictures For 
Television, the subjects were fun- 
damental principles of surface ten- 
sion arid jet propulsion, explained 
via simple construction from soap, 
pipe cleaners, soda bottles, etc. It’s 
fit for a kid. 

The lensing is sharp and virtual- 
ly all in closeup. Series has been 
done in color and so screaned, but 
it should be equally as effective in 
black and white. There’s no ques- 


tion of this being a click sciencer 
for schools, with one show worth a 
couple of weeks in the -classroom. 
The commercial possibilities are 
there as well since “Junior Sci- 
ence,” aside from its positive! qual- 
ities, is a rewarding change of pace 
from the more thunderous sci-fi 
and spaceship packages. Trail . 


SUITED FOR TODAY 
With Charles Irving, narrator 
Producer-director: Max Lasky 
Writers: Dan Klughertz, Ann 

Drevet 

One half-hour 
Distrib: Movies U.S.A. 

Eagle Clothes, one of the larger 
men’s clothing manufacturers, has 

come tip with "s'oine smart public 
relations in this half-hour color 
study of how a suit is made. Pic, 
produced by Max Lasky Produc- 
tions, will be officially preemed in 
Chicago next month and then will 
be released on a free: basis to tv 
Stations via Movies U.S.A. distribu- 
tion facilities. 

It’s smart public relations be*, 
cause while the pie is documentary 
in style, it stresses the Eagle tech- 
niques, of course. And While for 
tv showings some phases of the pic 
and some visual plugs will have to 
be clipped, the pic at the same 
time tells the . consumer what to 
look for in a good suit. Thus by 
indirection, the ■ pic: plugs quality 
merchandise, which is one of the 
strong points of Eagle’s retail-level 
pitch. 

It’s on the question of content, 
though, that the film strikes as 
(Continued on page 40) 


CAVALCADE OF AMERICA 
(The Plume of Honor) 

Cavalcade swings to Austria in 
1794 for this little«-known chapter 
in the life of Lafayette, when he 
was imprisoned by the Emperor 
for liberalist leanings. Narrative 
doesn’t always add up in explana- 
tions but carries enough dramatic 
possibilities and there’s enough 
general interest to set by as an 
okay entry in the DuPont series. 

Action in the Paul Gangelin 
yarn actually' centers around the 
attempts of an- American, Francis 
Kinlock Huger, and a German doc- 
tor, Justus Erich Bollmaii, to res- 
cue the French marquis, who came 
to the aid of the Colonists in their 
struggle against the English. Their 
desire to free him is predicated 
upon his helping America to win 
its freeddin, both being free- 
dom-loving souls, and they; work 
through an unsuspicious Austrian 
doctor who is treating Lafayette 
in his prison. Their rescue is 
short-lived, the Frenchman again 
being jailed; but their dramatic ac- 
tion calls the attention of the 
world to Lafayette’s plight. 

Richard Bauman and Larry Win- 
ter. as the American and German, 
respectively, delineate their roles 
carefully and direction by George 
Archainbaud is assertive in catch- 
ing the spirit of the plot. As La- 
fayette, Maurice Marsac is con- 
vincing in a comparative brief role, 
and his doctor is well portrayed by 
Gabor Curtiz. 

Armand Schaefer’s production 
helming fits the subject suitably 
and his lineup of technical as- 
sistance is headed by art director 
William P. Ross, lenser William 
Bradford and Anthony Wollner and 
Walter Hannemann, handling the 
shears. Douglas Kennedy takes 
time out from his acting chores to 
deliver a long Windup coYnmercial 
for DuPont’s various products. 

Whit. 

' FOUR STAR PLAYHOUSE 
. . (Second Dawn) . 

This is the first Four Starrer to 
be telefilmed in N.Y., and it pos- 
sesses the same degree of skilled 
production quality as those with 
the made-in-Hollywood trademark. 
Reason for the shift was that 
Charles Boyer, busy On the Broad- 
way stage in “Kind Sir,” couldn’t 
take time out for' the coast trek. 
This shapes up as one of the better 
Four Starrers for Boyer, pictured 
as a nian who has been blind all 
his life, then regains his sight 
through an operation. 

A good deal of tension is packed 
into the script as the doc warns 
Boyer the operation, might be a 
failure, or that it ? s possible he may 
regain his sight only for a few 
moments, to lose it again. Reluc- 
tant to go ahead, he finally does at 
the persuasion of his fiancee. By 
his Own request, he’s alone when 
time conies to take off the band- 
ages, and he sees for the first time. 
Then it all begins to fade again, 
and he frantically calls his g.f. and 
brother, to learn with great relief 
it was the coming of dusk which 
made it seem his vision was fading. 

Boyer plays his role with a strong 
sincerity and restraint. Dorothy 
Hart as his fiancee gives a warmth 
to her part, while Luis Van Rooten 
as the brother and Edwin Jerome 
as the doc also turn in fine por- 
trayals. 

Directum by Roy Kellino shows, 
a keen sensitivity and understand- 
ing of the emotional conflict in- 
volved. Merwin Gerard’s teleplay 
is Well-written. Daku. 


Gorham Co. moves into tele- 
vision for the first time with a 
two-market sponsorship deal on 
“All-Star Theatre,” the “Ford The- 
atre” reruns. Screen; Gems has 
sold the silver manufacturer the 
series for Kansas City and Atlanta, 
Deal, Set via Kenyon & Eckhardt, 
also calls for Screen Gems to 
make the commercials. 


Carl ; Sfaiiton to Jamaica 

Carl Stanton, veepee of the NBC 
Film Division, leaves Friday (19) 
for a fortnight’s vacation in 
Jamaica, BWI. 

He’s accompanied !>y his wife. 



WwfaewUy, F<bra«nr IT, 1954 


Z'fifUEfr 


99 




• « » 



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« • • • • • • ••••#••• 


MPTV 

AADTlf 

Iflr I v 


B Y A MARGIN OF NEARLY 3-1 . ♦ . 

TV stations throughout the nation have voted MPTV #1 distrib- 
utor of feature films! The results of Billboard's Second Annual 
TV Film Service Awards show Motion Pictures for Television : 



...Best 


Assistance! 



... Best Merchandising and Promotion Assistance! 



...Best Labeling and Film Leaders! 



. . .Film in Best Condition! 





...Fred Yardlei 

™ggm«a 

Best 



Who Gives 


And 1 78 "new stations" already have bought MPTV Feoture 
Films as their first choice for attracting and pleosing their 
viewers and advertisers. 

We wish to thank oil the TV stations who have accorded us 
, these honors . . . and at the same time pledge ourselves tp 
continue the same high degree of service throughout all the 
coming years! 




m Madison Avenue, N. Y. tl,N.Y. 



FOR TELEVISION, INC 

Feature Film Division 


. E. H. Ezzes, Ceitl Mgr. 

# 655 Madison Avenue 

# New York 21, N.Y. 

# TEmpleton 8-2000 

* Fred Yardley 

216 Tremont Street 

* Boston 16, Mass. 

• HAncock 6-0897 

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♦ 155 E. Ohio Street 

• Chicago 11, III. 

• WHitehall 3-2600 

• 

• MarvLewe 

• 2211 Woodward Avt. 

• Detroit 1, Mich. 

• Woodward 1-2560 


• InrFeld 

# 3905 Travis St. 

# Dallas 5, Texas 

# Logan 2628 

* John Cole 

9100 Sunset Blvd. 
Los Angeles 46, Calif. 

* Crestvjew 1-8101 

• Alex Metcalfe 

• MPTV (Canada) Ltd. 

# 277 Victoria St 

• Toronto, Canada 

• Empire 8-8621 


TV-FIDIS 


Wednesday, February 17 , 1954 



Inside Stuff— Radio-TV 


Jackie Gleason has become the subject of a minor newspaper circu- 
lation battle. New York Journal-American last week started a .front- 
paged series on the comic's life, bylined by radio-tv columnist Jack 
O’Brian, and today (Wed.) the World-Telegram & Sun picked up^the 
ball with the “r$al” (in capital letters) story of Gleason's career. Pre- 
write in yesterday’s paper was frontpaged, and incidentally; gave billing 
"to writer Marte Torre, placing a picture of her side-by-side with 
Gleason’s an\d the same size as his. She’s amusement editor of the 

daily. 

A deep personal interest in religion has cued a few fairrsized names 
to work for scale on “Lamp Unto My Feet,” CBS-TV Sunday religiose 
series. First of these as principal performer last Sunday (14) was 
Fhyliis Kirk, film/ legit and tv actress who is from a family of min- 
isters going back to her great-grandfather. Starred next Sunday (21) 
will be Helmut Dantine, another Holly woodite who’ll be playing a 
Commie official in “The Cross and the Globe,” with the Rev. James 
Kennedy, rector of Christ’s Church, Lexington, Ky.y in the panel box. 

“Lamp” is directed by Allen Reisner and George Crothers is exec 
producer, with Bill Leonard moderating a show that poses an ethical 
or religious problem which is then dramatized and discussed; 

Lucille Ball and Desl Araaz are getting the red carpet treatment 
during their current stay in New York in connection with premiere 
of their pic for Metro, “The Long, Long Trailer,” which opens tomor- 
row (Thurs.) at Radio City Music Hall. Pair are being toasted at a 
Metro party at the W&ldorf tomorrow, then are hosting their own 
pesilu getogether at the Little Club Friday (19). 

Pair will also get an award from the. National TelevisiqjwFilm Coun- 
cil next week for their contributions to filmed teleshows. Twist to 
this one is that the board chairman of NTFC, who’s making the arrange- 
ments for the award for their CBS-TV “I Love Lucy” show, is none 
other than Dr, Alfred N. Goldsmith, consultant to NBC and RCA. 


Screen Gems v.p.-genergL man- 
ager Ralph Cohn planed to the 
Coast over the weekend for a 
series of. huddles on upcoming 
“Ford Theatre” production' and on 
lensing of the several new proper- 
ties the firm has acquired. He’ll 
be there for a week, t . 

He’ll also meet with Robert 
Ballin, J. Walter Thompson v.p., 
on production of the Ford show 
and on commercials for the agency. 



Modern 




TV’s 'No Time For Weakies’ 


Continued from pact. 23 


There’ll be a Couple weeks’ gap between the finale of “This Is Show 
Business” on March 16 and entry of the Carterrbacked “Meet Millie” 
into the 9 p.m. Tuesday slot on April 6. CBS-TV is in a “tb be an- 
nounced” stance on the March 23-30 stanzas. “Millie” has been a 
Saturday 7-7:30 sustainer but the time has been recaptured locally, 
with WCBS-TV, N,Y„ spotting “The Cases of Eddie Drake,” old vidpix 
aeries with Patricia Morison and Dort Haggerty, and Carter sponsoring; 

That’s only for a brief span,- however, since Carter has set Fred Ziv’s 
“Mr., D.A,” for an April 10 start in the Saturday berth. ° 

Zenith Radio Corp. won its first round in its legal chess game with 
RCA last week when Chi Federal District Court Judge Michael L. Igoe 
greenlighted Zenith’s request to attach a $16,065,549 counter-claim 
against RCA, General Electric and Westinghouse. - 
. Zenith is seeking treble damages for alleged restraint of trade and 
Illegal patent monopolies. Under Igoe’s ruling the. claim will be at- 
tached to an RCA suit pending in a Delaware court which charges 
Zenith with patent infringements. 


ABC-TV’s New York flagship, WABC-TV, is completing the termi- 
nology cycle by tabbing tomorrow’s (Thurs.) telecast to Red Cross 
volunteer workers an “open circuit” airer. It’s a half-hour live segment 
In which all Red Cross Workers will be briefed on their upcoming fund 
drive in March. Plan is to have volunteers assemble in the homes 
V>f area leaders to watch the show, which will be emceed by Walter 
Herlihy and will use WABC-TV personalities. Show will dramatize the 
fundamentals of fundraising via .doorbell pushing and will feature 
discussions of the drive by Red Cross leaders. 


FCC now has a chief hearing examiner. The post, which has been 
vacant, for nearly four years, has been given to Edward T. Stodola, 
hearing examiner for the Civil Aeronautics Board since 1943. He is 
a native of Wisconsin. 

Stodpla’s appointment brings the Commission staff of examiners to 
18, the largest it has been in the agency’s history. Job pays $10,800, 
one grade higher than that for examiners. 


Larry Menkirt, program boss at 
W OR and WOR-TV/ General Tele- 
radio outlets in New York, ex- 
plained that, 'with this week’s per- 
formance as the last of its genre, 
he's going to cut out the original 
plan for classics on his three-week 
old hour-long video drama, “Spot- 
light.” When the adaptation of 
Ibsen’s “Doll’s House” is finished 
on Friday (19), he intends produc- 
ing more of the modern dress 
originals. 

Adaptations ate hard enough to 
do, he feels, without the added 
headache of cutting them down to 
fit the three actors and limited 
space he is allowed for this pet 
production. He mentioned that he 
had to discard a program on Van 
Gogh, the painter, “It was swell for 
a big production, but not for “Spot- 
light.” 

After his three weeks, of experi- 
mentation with the new type for- 
mat, he has also decided that he 
doesn’t have a narrative device 
here, but instead a full-blown play 
with three actors. (Until now, in- 
stead of complete dialog/ there was 
much narrative/) v 

From here oii in he intends to do 
mostly modem dress originals. Big 
theme, ;as with the Philco offerings 
oil NBC-TV, will deal with person- 
al prejudices. Menkin intends go- 
ing strong for the every-day prob- 
lem sort of thing. Next week the 
first offering of this kind will be 
one called “Family Tree.” 

In the past “Spotlight” carried 
adaptations of “Wuthering Heights” 
and the Bible (a Joseph story). 


of it returning in the fall. Mean- 
while “Truth or Consequences” 
fills in. Tuesday is more of a poser 
for CBS. Both Gene Autry and Red 
Skelton are flops in terms of mak- 
ing any inroads on Milton Berle. 
Both “Suspense” and “Danger” are 
regarded as “iffy.” “This Is Show 
Business’ is being lopped off, with 
“Meet Millie” going in. 

Unless Arthur Godfrey decides 
to up and lay off for a year or so 
(there have been recurring rumors 
to this effect); CBS considers it- 
self well off on Wednesday. $o does 
NBC. . /> 

The Friday at 8 entry on NBC— 
the Pontiac-sponsored Dave Garro- 
way show— ris a trouble spot for 
the network. Gulf, going great 
guns with its 8:30 “Life of Riley” 
show, wants a stronger show to 
precede it, with Garroway no 
match for the opposing “Mama” 
show on CBS. NBC concurs., 
Saturday’s Big Shuffle 
Saturday will find probably a 
whole new Saturday, night lineup 
on the NBC roster; with the 90- 


TPA SALES CLINICS 
LAUNCH ‘SHOWCASE’ 

Three-day series of sales clinics 
on the. Edward Arnold-hosted vid- 
pix series, “Your Star Showcase,” 
is being conducted for its 24 sales- 
men by Television Programs of 
America this week in New York. 
Sales personnel is being drilled on 
the series at meetings conducted 
by TPA exec v.p. Michael Siller- 
man and eastern sales chief Hardie 
Frieberg at the Hotel Chatham 
yesterday (Tues.), today and to- 
morrow. TPA is . in the middle of 
negotiations on several regipnals 
for the -series, and sales staffers 
will begin selling it locally. 

Five new seles staffers joined 
I the firm in time for the clinics. 
They are Alton Whitehouse, who’ll 
coyer the southeast, Norman Land 
middle': eastern "states; Kenneth 
Fay; Edwin Raster, who’ll take over 
New England and Herbert Miller, 
Who will sell, the midwest. 



Continued from page 38 


First daytime telethon will be done by WATV, Newark, N. J., indie, 
on Sunday, March 28, for the Assn, for the Help of Retarded Children. 
The show will run a full nine hours starting at 10 a.m. 

Decision to make this a daytime go around came from the Assn., 
which noted that most of the coin contributed through other such 
enterprises was made the Sabbath afternoon following an all-night 
aession. Idea is to collect this way without unduly taxing the staff’s 
strength. The charity agency has set a goal of $1,000,000 for ’54. 

Dr. Arno. G. Huth has started two new courses at the New School 
for Social Research, N. Y., covering mass media and international rela- 
tions in the first group and a seminar on international communications 
In the second, First course is a series of lectures with specialists from 
press, films, radio and tv, including Alistair Cooke, Saul K. Padover, 
Arch Parsons, and the following officials of UN Dept, of Information. 
Wilder Foote, director ofi press and publications bureau; W. Gibson 
Parker, chief of production, radio division, and Maurice Liu, acting 
director of the films and visual information division?* 

Second course is for advanced students and pros interested in prob- 
lems of information, propaganda and cultural relations, foreign af- 
fairs and international exchanges and advertising. 

♦— — — 





SS Continued from page 33 

for more and more telepix, he 
averred. Kling, a midwestern com- 
pany, expanded its operations to 
Hollywood because of an upped 
production sked plus the advan- 
tages of weather and varied geo- 
graphical locations for Shooting, he 
said, predicting more and more 
eastern live shows will transfer 

to the coast for similar reasons. 
“Don’t forget, top, that here in 
Hollywood you have the largest 
fine talent , pool available, and this 
is another principal factor moti- 
vating the westward move,” he 
added. 

Eirinberg said Kling plans 
$5,000,000 in production its first 
year here, that this includes 39 
“Reno English” vidpix starting 
Zachary Scott, 39 “Ask Uncle Char 
lie’’ telepix toplining Noah Beery, 
Jr., tv commercial work, and addi 
tiorial series now being blue- 
printed. 

Ending with a final note regard 
Ing the webs, lie cautioned. “;here 


can spend money for a live nek 
work show, On the other hand 
many sponsors can afford telefilm 
for regional and local showings, 
and this is where the future of 
the industry lies.” 

Fred Mi-lesf Kling v.p., accom- 
panied the exec in Hollywood. 


good programming fare for the 
video station. Processes of manu- 
facturing, as depicted, make for in- 
teresting documentary viewing, 
and there’s a valuable consumer 
service in the hints on what to look 
for when buying a suit. 

Lasky has turned out a neat 
shooting and editing job, giving 
the viewer a pretty good idea of 
how clothes are assembled, from 
the design of the fabric right down 
to delivery of the finished product 
to the store. Little acting there ( is 
in the film is good; and Charles 
Irving’s narration is crisp and to 
the point. Script is a thoroughly 
pro job. 

Naturally, when tint tv is avail- 
able to local stations, pic will show 
up much better; with bright tones 
of fabric, etc., making for a bright 
display. Meanwhile, however, con- 
tent won’t suffer via black & white 
showings. Phan: 


minute “Show of Shows” due for 
a breakup as both Sid Caesar and' 
Imogene Coca, go theiir respective 
ways. NBC, however, may still 
cling to the 90-minute: formula, 
with Martha Raye as the pivotal 
star entry. The 8 to 9 segments 
will get some attention, with the 
network still determined to book 
Mickey Rooney into the 8-8;30 pe- 
riod. " Pet Milk is happy about 
Original Amateur Hour” at 8:30 
to 9, but NBC isn’t. CBS won’t 
know for another week yet Whether 
Medallion Theatre” will go off. 

Sunday will probably find both 
networks playing around with new 
shows. Biggest “if” on the NBC 
calendar is Colgate and Its “Com- 
edy Hour:’’ (There’s been talk that 
the network may offer Colgate Sid 
Caesar in the timer-three weeks 
out of four— to retain the billings!) 
CBS’ “Life With Father" 7 o’clock 
entry is perhaps the standout and 
costliest disappointment of the 
year in tv, both in terms of the 
network’s $750,000 investment in 
the property and from an audience 
acceptance standpoint. What John- 
son’s Wax, the sponsor, will do 
about it, is anybody’s guess at the 
moment. And it’s reported that 
General Electric shares CBS’ view- 
point that it’s time something was 
done about making a change in the 
o’clock time, now occupied by 
red Waring. 



Continued from past 35 


Krueger Beer Coin For 
WCBS-TV -Drake* Yidpix 

Krueger Beer joins Carter’s 
Products starting Feb. 27 in spon 
soring “The Casea of Eddie Drake 
rerun telepix series on WCBS-TV 
N. Y. Carter’s took over the 7 
7:30 p.m. Saturday slot a couple 
of weeks ago when it was vacated 
by “Meet Millie,” which moves 
over, to Tuesday to replace can- 
celled “This Is Show Business” on 
CBS-TV. 

“Drake” whodunit stars Patricia 
Morison and Don Haggerty and is 
in for an interim period with Fred 
Ziv’s “Mr. D. A.” going into the 
berth early in April. 


Irish on TV 


sa Continued from page 23 

don’t hate radio and tv, 
l.them. We feel, however, 


2d*Run Vidpix 

Continued from page 35 


FCC Report 


Continued from page 22 sss 

which the report lists as having 
been, disposed of by . “dismissals, 
denials, etc.” In this category, are 
356 out of 1,204 applications re- 
ceived since the lifting of the 
freeze. A goodly portion of these 
dismissals resulted from withdraw- 
als of applications following deals 
by which new companies were or- 
ganized representing competing 
applicants. A substantial number 
resulted from dropouts after filing 
of competitive applications indicat- 
ed necessity of going through hear-, 
ings, Some resulted from with- 
drawals by UHF applicants who 
decided to file for VHF or to forget 
the- whole thing. A few resulted 
from Commission action because 


are very few big advertisers who pi defective applications; 


of live shows had a 31.6 average 
for winter and a 24.0 for summer. 
Share of audience figures gave the 
first run films a 52.1%, with a 
52.2% for their repeats. Control 
group had a 48.4% winter share 
and a 50.2% summer share, 

Similarly, in the ability of the 
shows to hold their audiences, 
Nielsen index based on percentage 
of homes tuned in at. the fifth min- 
ute still tuned in at- the 25th min- 
ute showed the rerun with 89% 
compared to first run 90%. Con- 
trol group had a 90% for winter, 
88% for summer. Length-of-view- 
ing factors showed little difference 
between firstrun and repeat view- 
ers or winter or summer length-of- 
viewing. 

Control group was made up of 
shows which approximated the re- 
run group in network, day, type 
and rating. Their Jan.-Feb. ratings 
were compared with July- Aug. rat- 
ings. Same sample homes were 
used in the pairings, making the 
comparisons possible. 


we love 

We feel, however, that we 
still provide a show, and we expect 
to get paid for it.” 

Stockholders in the Garden have 
invested $20,000,000, he said. “We 
think that we’re entitled — just like 
radio and television people are — 
to a return on our investment. It’s 
not up to us to pay for talent and 
the time on the air.” 

James Lawrence Fly, the former 
chairman of the FCC, moderated 
the RTES discussion in which Irish 
took part: “Widespread sports in- 
formation frill encourage sports, 
Fly said. 

Other speakers on the platform 
at the RTES meeting were Nathan 
L. Halpern, prexy of Theatres Net 
work TV, Inc., and Robert T. Ma- 
son, head at WMRN, AM & FM, 
Marion, O. 


Louisville — Sam Gifford, WHAS 
radio program director, has an- 
nounced the appointment of . Mrs. 
Jane Dennis as supervisor of the 
newly-created WHAS Home De- 
partment. Innovation in the Louis- 
ville station’s program structure 
will initially feature a 15-minute 
daily Home show at 9 a.m., provid- 
ing cooking and home development 
info to Kentucky and Southern In- 
diana women. 


23,8 and “Liberate” at 22.5. All are 
on KING-TV. 

Survey marked first time KOMO- 
TV, local NBC outlet, had been 
“rated after Dec. II preem on the 
air. Other KOMO shows were rated 
as follows: “Cisco Kid” 19; “Nutsy 
the Clown” 15; “Crown Theatre” 
(Gloria Swanson) 14.5; “Life With 
Elizabeth” 14, and "“Annie Oakley” 
13.5. 

Chicago— “Cisco Kid” tops the 
Chi list of vidpix with a solid 25.6 
on WBKB, according to January 
ARB ratings. Other toprated tele- 
pix are “Badge 714,” 22.1 (WGN); 
“I Led Three Lives,” 20.4 (WGN); 
'“Victory, at Sea,” 19.0 (WNBQ); 
“Inner Sanctum,” 16.3 (WNBQ); 
“Foreign Intrigue,” 15.2 (WNBQ); 
“Racket Sqifad,” 14.6 (WBKB); 
“Boston Blackie,” 13.4 (WGN) and 
“Abbott.* Costello.” 12.3 (WNBQ). 

New Haven— This singie-station 
market has come up with some con- 
sistently good figured in latest 
Pulse ratings. Five toppers line up 
as follows: “Death Valley Days" 
(Wed. 7 p.m.), 29.3; “Superman” 
(Tues. 7 p.m.), 25.3; “Douglas Fair- 
banks” (Mon. 11 p.m.), 26.0; “Jew- 
eler’s Showcase” (Sun. 1 •; 30 p.m.), 
24.7; “Foreign Intrigue” (Thurs. 11 
p.m.), 15.3. 

St; Louis— “Favorite Story” 47.3; 
City Detective” 42.5; “Victory at 
Sea” 42^3; “Crown Theatre” 38.5; 
Sport Spotlight” 35.5; “I Lead 
Three Lives” 33.8. All KSD-TV, 

r »♦♦♦♦+♦ ♦♦»♦♦♦♦ • 



♦♦♦♦♦♦♦44 ♦ ♦ ♦♦♦♦♦ M l MH t 


New York 

Don Keariiey, ABC Film Syndi- 
cation national sales chief, took 
over speechmaking chores at the 
network’s New Orleans affiliates 
confab this week vice veep George 
Shupert, who’s laid up with a bad 
shoulder in N. Y. . . . Milton E. 
Olin exited United Artists Tele- 
vision as divisional sales chief to 
join WABC-TV here as an account 
exec . . . Association of Documen- 
tary and Television Film Crafts- 
men (CIO) starting on an expanded 
public relations-advertising . carn- 
paigri, with, Ted Persons handling 
the publicity end . . . Harry Townes 
starring in NBC^Galahad “Inner 
Sanctum” episode rolling this 
week . . . Screen Gems sales v.p. 
John H. Mitchell in Toronto over 
the.; weekend for huddles with 
Cockfield, Brown agency on ‘‘Your 
All Star Theatre” sponsorship by 
Ford of Canada . . ; William Finkel- 
dey, formerly with Consolidated 
Television Sales, joined CBS-TV 
Film Sales as a Gotham account 
exec. ” 

/ Alice Necker, secretary to Bill 
Lacey, film buyer for WCBS-TV, 
becomes his administrative as- 
sistant Feb. 23, succeeding Glyn 
Truly, who joins United Television 
Programs as salesman. 


Vcfocgday, Fctrawy 17/1954 


^SGdETr 


MUSIC 


41 


NEW SALES HORIZONS FOR DISKS 



Music publishers are beginning* 
to shy away from radio and tele 
shows that judge new songs. 

In the past year pubs have dis- 
covered that getting a new tune 
auditioned before a radio and/or 
tv panel can be more of a hin- 
drance than a help. Several major 
publishers have now put a black- 
out on their new copyrights, not 
' caring whether the panel is com- 
prised of' tradesters or non-pros. 
Many of the pubs insist that a good 
review of the platter can’t help the 
tune but that a bad review could 

possibly ruin it. 

Target for the pubs’ squawks on 
radio-tv appraisals are “Judge for 
Yourself” (NBC-TV), Coast dee jay 
Peter Potter’s show (ABC-TV) and 
Fred Robbins’ “The Big Preview” 
(ABC). The pubs have had little 
to say about getting their tunes 
judged on the latter two airers 
since both use disk releases, but 
they’ve been able to hold back 
okays on licensing airing on 
“Judge for Yourself,” because the 
show uses live plugs. 

The pubs have been trying to get 
the diskeries from giving advance 
Releases to the platter preview air- 
ers. Their claim, in the case of 
the Peter Potter show, especially, 
is that the celebs Potter uses as 
judges are in . no position to ap- 
praise a disk. . Their beef against 
the Robbins’ show isn’t as vehe- 
ment (stanza uses deejays from 
around the country), but they feel 
that their songs are put at a dis- 
advantage when pitted against re* 
gional tastes. 

Biggest pub holdback, -however, 
is on “Judge for Yourself/’ a tv-er 
emceed by Fred Allen. On this 
show the pubs object to having 
their songs judged by amateurs. 
According to one pub; “this show 
makes every layman an artists & 
repertoire man and we’ve got 
enough" of them already.” Inci- 
dentally, “Judge for Yourself” is 
going off the air in May. 


CAP SETS PENNAR10 
AS REPLY TO UBERACE 

Holly wood, Feb. 16, 
Capitol has teamed longhair 
pianist Leonard Pennario with Les 
Baxter in four Sides for release 
shortly in what may be the open- 
ing gun battle to challehge Lib 
erace’s popularity with the nation’s 
matrons. Waxworks hopes to build 
Pennario, long a concert hall fig- 
ure, into a pop and semi-classic 
piano personality. 

Reaction to the initial four sides 
will be gauged carefully to deter- 
mine whether Capitol will continue 
with the experiment or forget the 
whole thing. 


Board, Replacing Diaz 

Ernest Lee Jahncke Jr., vice- 
prexy and assistant to the presi- 
dent of the American Broadcasting- 
Paramount Theaters, was elected to 
the board of Broadcast Music, Inc., 
at the company’s annual two-day 
meeting in Boca Raton, Fla., last 
week, Jahncke fills the unexpired 
term of Ray Diaz, national pro- 
gram director of ABC Radio, who 
resigned recently. Diaz resigned in 
favor of Jahncke because of the 
latter’s activity in both radio and 
video fields. 

BMI prexy ~Carl Haverlin deliv- 
ered the annual report to the 
board. 


P-M to Handle Cap Disks 
In 3 O’Seas Countries 

Capito) Records, has lined up 
Pathe-Marcopl, Paris diskery, to 
handle the manufacture and dis- 
tribution of its platters in France, 
Belgium and Luxembourg. 

John MacLeod, Pathe-Marconi 
exec, is now in New York, huddling 
with Sandor A. Porges, manager of 
Cap’s international Division, on fu- 
ture plans. 


KitPs Pic Disk Kick 

Importance of disk clicks is 
agaipi being pointed up via the 
forthcoming Cinemascope re- 
lease Of “New Faces,” whicli 
opens at the Roxy, N Y., Fri- 
day; (19). Production is. spot- 
lighting three of Eartha Kitt’s 
RCA Victor record hits, which 
Weren’t in the original legit 
version of the revue. New ad- 
ditions are" - “C’est Si Bon,” 
“Uska Dara” and “Santa Baby,” 

In addition. Miss Kitt re- 
tains her original numbers, 
’’Monotonous,” “Bal Petit Bal,” 
in which she teams with Rob- 
ert Clary and “Love Is a Sim- 
ple Thing.” Songstress par- 
ticipates in the last named 
tune with several other, cast 
members! 





m 



James B. Conkling, Columbia 
Records topper, was elected prexy 
of the Record Industry Assn, of 
America last week; replacing Mil- 
ton ' Rackmil, Decca prez, who had 
served in that post for nearly two 
years. Term of office runs for one 
year. 

Other officers elected were Har- 
ry Kruse, London topper, and Da- 
rio Sorio, Angel chief, as vee pees 
and Frank B. Walker, M-G-M man- 
ager/as treasurer. John W. Grif- 
fith remained as RIAA’s exec sec- 
retary. 

The board of directors elected 
were Howard Letts, RCA Victor; 
Irving Green, Mercury; Arthur 
Shimkin, Bell; John Stevenson, 
Childrens Record Guild, and Rack-' 
mil. 

The RIAA is set up in five grades 
to fit the earning capacity of each 
diskery. The record company’s 
dues are governed by the grade 
slotting. There are now 46 com- 
panies in the various grade clas- 
sifications. Org *teeu off in 1952 
with 31 diskeries in the fold. 

On the RIAA’s agenda* for the 
coming year is a°campaign for the 
repeal of the 10% Federal excise 
tax on disks. Org presently plans 
no action in pressing for Gov. 
Dewey’s approval of a bill estab- 
lishing record piracy as a mis- 
demeanor in New York State. The 
bill was passed by both Houses of 
the Legislature in 1952 and 1953 
but failed to get Gov. Dewey’s sig- 
nature. The RIAA feels that for 
the time being it seems useless to 
pursue the effort further. 

KENTON ‘JAZZ FESTIVAL’ 
GROSSING TALL COIN 

The Stan Kenton “Festival of 
Jazz” is picking up some tall coin 
on its current one-night concert 
jaunt around the country. The 
group hit its peak take at the Para- 
mount, Brooklyn, Saturday, Feb. 
6, when it scored $i9,200 in two 
performances at a top of $3.60. 

Outfit, prior to coming to the 
Brooklyn Par, scored $9,600 at 
Raleigh, N.C.; $10,800 at the Na- 
tional Auditorium, Washington, 
and $12:000 at the Tower Theatre, 
Upper Darby, on the outskirts of 
Philadelphia. Show has been on 
tour since Jan; 28, when it opened 
in Wichita Falls. 

Following the windup of his cur- 
rent coricert’tour, Stan Kenton will 
lay off for ah extended vacation. 
Tour is slated to run through Feb. 
27, with a final date at the Audi- 
torium, Oakland, Cal. 

Bookings past that date are not 
being made. 


The' disk industry Is currently 
in full swing of a merchandising 
Revolution that is affecting every 
facet of the; business, from long- 
hair to pops. The upheaval actually 
began five years ago, with intro- 
duction of the new speed records. 
But in recent months, the old disk 
biz structure has been transformed 
with new ideas of packaging, dis- 
tribution and selling. ' 

The most important phase of 
the industry’s new merchandising 
approach is the problem of distri- 
bution. Since the end of the war, 
the potential of the ,disk biz has 
almost doubled, along with the in- 
crease in the number of phono- 
graph machines in the homes from 
about 15,000,000 to the current es- 
timate of over 25, 000, 000., .Until re- 
cently, however, the disk distrib 
setup has been a holdover from 
prewar days. 

. Currently, the major disk com- 
panies are searching for new dis- 
trib channels to service the 
doubled market. Bell Records, via 
its Pocket Book auspices, set the 
trend with its displays on some 
180,000 racks in stores also han- 
dling the cheap paper-backed 
books. The major companies, 
meantime, have also been expand- 
ing their market via syndicate ahd 
department store disk lines, such 
as RCA Victor’s Camden label.' 
Columbia Records, on the other 
hand, has been selling to the chains 
and supermarkets via a. sub-dis- 
tribution deal with Elliot Wexler, 
who services these outlets. 

More Fluid Setup 
The distribution setup of virtu- 
ally all the companies is now. more 
fluid than it has been in many 
years. When Label X, Victor’s new 
quasi-indie operation, began look- 
ing for distribs, other labels 
warned their distribs that if they 
handled Label X, they would be 
dropped.. Coral Records, Decca 
subsid, has recently moved into 
the Decca distrib orbit in four 
territories, while several other 
major labels has been, looking for 
new distribs in various areas in a 
scramble to get the livewire out- 
lets for themselves. 

Victor and Mercury* meantime, 
(Continued on page 46) 

DECCA SHUTS 



Barefoot Diva 

The hillbillies are going 
longhair. “The Grand Old 
Opry,” WSM (Nashville) radio 
show, long an Incubator for 
cornball tunes and artists, will 
feature ex-Met star Helen 
Traubel on its March 27 pro- 
gram. Miss Traubel got her 
invite after she, had resigned 
from the Met last year. 

During the diva’s stay in 
Nashville, she’ll appear on 
WSM’s regional show “Sunday 
Down South.” 




Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

The Decca - Brunswick - Coral 
Coast pressing plant was shut 
down, probably permanently, over 
the weekend after more than eight 
years of operation. Economy move 
throws approximately 100 em- 
ployes out of work. 

Decision as to whether the shut- 
down will be temporary or perma- 
nent probably will be reached by 
Decca execs in the east this week. 
George Van Meter, local plant 
manager, is awaiting word on 
whether the plant is to be dis- 
mantled, disposed of or retained 
on a standby basis. 

Plant was opened Sept. 1, 1945. 
it has a capacity of 50,000 records 
per shift but has been operating 
on about a $25,000 disks per day 
basis for the last three or four 
years. . ;• 

Local plant has. been used only 
for the pressing of 78 and 45 rpm 
singles. Firm’s 45 rpm EP and 33 
rpm LP disks are turned out in 
the Richmond, Ind., plAnt. 

RCA Re-Pacts Stoky 

Leopold Stokowski, vet member 
of RCA Victor’s longhair roster 
and one of the diskery’s bestselling 
maestros, has been re-pacted to an- 
other longterm deal. 

Stokowski made his first Victor 
record with the Philadelphia Or- 
chestra back in 1917 ahd has been 
with the label continuously since 
that time. 



Negotiations between the Ameri- 
can Federation of Musicians and 
major radio-tv webs for -a new pact 
entered the final* crucial stage this 
week with entry of AFM prexy 
James C. Petrillo into the picture 
for the first time. Up to now, 
N. Y. Local 802’s A1 Manuti bad 
been carrying the ball for the 
union and had run into $ stalemate 
with the networks. Although Lo- 
cal 802 had previously set a dead- 
line of Feb. 15 for a new pact, 
Petrillo is now extending the old 
deal on a day-to-day basis as lofig 
as the talks proceed. 

. Initial talks between Petrillo and 
the webs, with heads of the various 
union locals attending, also led 
nowhere Monday (15) and another 
meeting was held late yesterday af- 
ternoon (Tues.j. It’s understood 
that Petrillo is taking a firm stand 
on the question of the webs’ using 
more live music on their Shows, but 
he has not as yet indicated 
whether he will support Manuti’s 
demand for live music for live 
shows all the way. 

The initial problem facing Petrll- 
.16 was the webs’ counter-demand 
that quotas for staff musicians be 
abolished. It’s understood that 
Petrillo was irked at this demand 
and sounded off against the net- 
works for stuffing off musicians in 
the programming calculations. 

It’s known that the rank-and-file 
of the AFM has been pressuring 
the leadership to conduct a vigor- 
ous battle for more jobs for musi- 
cians on the networks. . One of the 
biggest squawks has stemmed from 
the webs’ use of transcribed cue, 
bridge and mood music on dra- 
matic shows with live actors. 

If Petrillo insists upon the use 
of musicians for live shows, it will 
be a reversal of his attitude of 
three years ago, when the last pact 
was negotiated. At that time, Lo- 
cal 802 execs also were in favor 
ot putting up a fight for this de- 
mand, but Petrillo overruled the 
N. Y. unit and did not put any 
restrictions on the use of canned 
music into the pact. 


* The disk biz will swing from a 
price war, in progress this month, 
to higher prices in the longplay 
field next, month. It’s understood 
that several of the indie labels, 
such as Westminister and Urania, 
are planning to up their lists from 
$5,95 to $6.45, while the major la- 
bels may standardize temporarily 
at the $5.95 level for 12-inch LP 
platters. 

Dealers and distribs, meantime, 
are buying to their limit from Col- 
umbia Records and RCA Victor, 
both of which have cut, their prices 
radically this month. Victor sliced 
its list on HPs by 30% following 
Columbia’s promotion plan of sell- 
ing one disk at half-price for every 
disk bought at list, which is equiv- 
alent to a 25% discount. 

Victor is limiting its distribs’ 
buying to a percentage of their 
previous territorial sales and the 
distribs, in turn, are expected to 
allocate the cut-price, disks to their 
dealers on a similar basis in order 
to give everybody equal treatment. 
In some areas, retail orders for 
both Victor and Columbia mer- 
chandise have been so heavy, tRSt 
distribs have gone out of stock. 

Victor has also devised a plan to 
protect dealers who had big LP 
stocks, bought at the old price, 
from getting hurt by price cuts 
this month. Victor is permitting 
these dealers to buy sufficient 
platters at the current reduced 
levels to compensate for; the mark- 
downs in their previously-bought 
merchandise. 

Neighborhood dealers, meantime, 
are still enjoying strong biz in the 
classical field. For the first time 
in the New York area, the nabe 
outlets have been able to compete 
with the discount houses, since the 
latter’s discounts are now rela- 
tively small. Many retailers, how- 
ever, expect that longhair biz will 
drop sharply next month when 
prices are restored to their old, 
or higher, level since customers 
are now buying in anticipation of 
the end of the price war. 



GUEST AT D.C. HI-FI FAIR 

Washington; Feb- . 16. 

Recording artists for RCA Vic 
tor, Columbia, Capitol and West- 
minster are slated for guest ap- 
pearances -here in connection with 
Washington’s first High Fidelity 
Fair to be held March 5-7. 

The three days . of the fair will 
feature an exhibit of all national 
brands' ‘ of hi-fi reception com- 
ponents:- -The Washington Audio 
Society,, an. engineering group, will 
hold business meetings during the 
period. A concert will be broad- 
cast ftotfi - the library of Congress 
on the first evening and concerts 
by the Baltimore Symphony will 
be received in the convention audi- 
torium the other two evenings. 


KRAMER JOINS ASCAP 
BOARD IN LESLIE EXIT 

Alex Kramer, Canadian-born pop, 
songwriter, was elected to the 
ASCAP board by the society's dl* 
rectors yesterday (Tues.) '.'to fill the 
unexpired term of. Edgar Leslie, 
Leslie resigned from his long-held 
post as ASCAP board member late 
last year because he wanted to lay 
Off official duties. 

Kramer joined ASCAP in 1942 
when he also became an. American 
citizen. He collaborates on his 
songs with his wife, Joan Whitney. 

Dave Clark, Music Biz 
Character, Dies at 74 

One of the last of the colorful 
holdovers from the early Tin Pan 
Alley era passed with the death of 
David J. (Evad) Clark at 74 in Pil- 
grim State Hospital in Brentwood, 
"L. I., Sunday afternoon (14). Song- 
writer, pianist, hoofer and a poet 
in doubletalk, Clark was an in- 
timate of all the top songwriters 
and other show biz figures, many 
of whom became his benefactors 
over the last couple of decades. 

Clark was regarded as an ec- 
centric whose command of frac- 
tured English bordered on neo- 
literary genius. His friends called 
him “the male Gertrude Stein,” 
and some ad agency exec, who 
knew him Only by reputation, ac- 
tually assembled a. glossary of 
Clarkiana for future publication, 
a project that never came to 
fruition. The Reader’s Digest, 
however, quoted Clark’s observa- 
tions on several occasions and 
Bugs Baer, Hearst columnist, wrote 
a couple of pieces about Clark for 
his syndicate. 

One of his best-known cracks 
was, “It’s great show— miss it if. 
you can”— which later he turned 
into a song. He also is remembered 
for "1 may be wrong but I'm not 
(Continued on page 48) 




Wednesday, February 17, 1954 



Jocks, Jukes and Disks 


By MIKE GROSS 


Mills Bros.: “You Didn’t Want' 
Me When You Had Me"-“I Had to 
Call You Up to Say I'm Sorry" 
(Decca). The Mills Bros, have a 
cleanup slice in “You Didn’t Want 
'Me.” It's a lilting trine that the 
combo projects with top harmony 
technique. Due for plenty of ac- 
tion on all ilevels. Sy Oliver's ar- 
rangement and orch backing gives 
the side an important lift. Reverse 
is an okay sampling of the Mills 
treatment of a neat ballad. 

Les Paul-Mary Ford: “South"-“I 
Really Don’t Want to Know" (Capi- 
tol). On this money platter from 
the Les Paul-Mary Ford factory, 
the honors are split on each side 
between Paul’s guitaring and Miss 
Ford’s warbling. It’s all Paul on 
the rhythmic oldie, “South,” and 
he takes the tune for a jaunty in- 
strumental ride. Sure bet for 

4 ' ukes. Bottom deck is dominated 
iy Miss Ford’s effective reading 
of tender ballad. A tossup as to 
which side will break through. 

Karen Chandler: “Positively No 
Dancing"-“Hit the Target” (Coral). 
Karen Chandler has a noise-mak- 
ing coupling in “Positively No 
Pancing" and “Hit the Target,” 
Thrush demonstrates an effective 
sentimental styling on “Dancing” 


phy" (Victor). Tony Martin is in 
top romantic fdnri on “Here,” giv- 
ing the side a hit-bracket potential. 
It’s a solid ballad entry and Mar- 
tin's powerhouse rendition hugs 
the ear. “Philosophy" is a light- 
hearted novelty that means little. 
Henri Rene’s backing on "Here” is 
lush and attractive. 

Vic Damone: “The Sparrow' 
Sings"-“Until You Came to Me" 
(Mercury). ‘The Sparrow Sings" 
is an above-average Tin Pan Alley 
entry and it gives Damone a chance 
to display his way with a . ballad. 
It should get plenty of jock and 
juke action. ‘-Until You Came to 
Me" is too reminiscent in melodic, 
theme to get very far. 

The Four Lads- Jill Cbrey-Mitch 
Miller Orch.: “Cleo and Meo”- 
“Do You Know What Lips Are For” 
(Columbia). Songsmith Bob Mer- 
rill has: come up with another nov- 
elty that’s pegged for teenage ap- 
preciation and could, make a lot of 
noise in the market. It’s cute and 
catchy and the Four Lads, Jill 
Corey and Mitch Miller!s orch get 
together for a rousing deli ver> r . Re- 
verse is another breezy side that 
will attract spinning attention. 

Hugo Winterhalter Orch.: “Latin 
Lady"-“Heidelberg" (Victor). “Lat- 




MILLS BROS. . . YOU DIDN’T WANT ME WHEN YOU HAD ME 
(Decca) . . . . ... . . ... . . ... . . .1 Had- to Call You Up 

LES PAUL-MARY FORD . . . . . ... SOUTH 

( Capitol I....;.............. . I Really Don't Want to Know 

KAREN CHANDLER . . . POSITIVELY NO DANCING 

(Coral) ^ . . . . . . . . . Hit the Target 

HELENE DIXON ...... MY REWARD IS LOVING YOU 

(Epic) . .. . . ... ... , . ...... . . ...... . ...... .'. , . . . . .Temptation 


and reverses field to project a 
rowdy piping delivery on “Target.” 
Both are solid spinning items, but 
the melodic appeal of the ballad 
side, “Danciifg," may give it the 
edge over the “Ricochet”-styled 
“Target." 

Helene Dixon: “My Reward Is 
Loving Y6u”-“Teniptation" (Okeh). 
Helene Dixon comes into her own 
oh this platter. “Loving You* 
marks her as a potent entry in the 
femme vocalist sweepstakes /and 
the side could come out of left field 
for a big payoff. Tune is a neatly 
constructed blues-styled , number 
and Miss Dixon pounds it across 
with impact. The oldie “Tempta- 
tion," on the . reverse is given the 
kind of flashy orch and warbling 
treatment that goes well with the 
coinbox trade: Phil -Moore’s orch 
supplies top backing oh both sides. 

Bing; Crosby - Guy Lombardo 
Orch.: “I Get So Lonely”-“Young 
At Heart" (Decca). Although this 
mating of Crosby and Lombardo 
can be tagged “cover" sides, each 
slice is potent enough to make a 
dent. . “Lonely" has the better 
chance to step out. Tune is just 
beginning to break nationally and 
the jaunty Crosby-Lombardo treat- 
ment could push it to the top. 
“Heart" is given a slick dance-tem- 
poed workover by Lombardo and 
Crosby croons it effectively. 

Tony Martin: “Here”-“Philoso- 


iri Lady" is one of the most excit- 
ing instrumentals to come along 
in Some time and could start the 
Vogue for strictly instrumental 
waxings all over again. Winter- 
halter gives it a peppery and vi- 
brating workover. It rates top 
spinning time. “Heidelberg" brings 
Graustark into the disk domain!: 
It’s a schmaltz, waltzy item that’ll 
win some attention. Winterhalter’s 
orch and chorus give it a melodic 
going-over. 

Eddy Howard: “Melancholy Me"- 
“I Wonder What’s Become of 
Sally,” (Mercury). There’s a lot of 
disk company action on “Melan- 
choly Me” and Eddy Howard’s 
etching could push it over. It’s a 
slick tune grooved for current pop 
tastes and Howard’s vocal gives it 
added impact. Howard does okay 
by “Sally,” too. 

Percy Faith Orch: “Baubles, 
Bangles and Beads’’-“And This Is 
My Beloved” (Columbia): Percy 
Faith has taken two tunes from the 
current Broadway legituner, “Kis- 
met” and given them a tasteful ar- 
rangement and orch workover. 
Both sides have sock appeal and ] 
should go. over especially well with 
the post-midnight jockeys. 

George Williams Orch: “The 
Knocked Out Choo-Choo”-“The 
R o m pin’ Stomper" - “Creole”- 
“Wjhamboogie" (Coral). . The George 
Williams orch makes ah impressive 


LAWRENCE WELK 

and His 

CHAMPAGNE M U SIC 
129th Consecutive Week, Aragon 
Ballrpbni, Santa Monica, Calif, 

Newest Coral Record Album 
PICK A POLKA 
Recently Released 
NIMBLE FINGERS Album 


Franck: Sonata in A & Strauss 
Sonata - in E-Flat (RCA Victor; 
$5.45). Victor reissue of two choice 
chamber music pieces, Jascha 
Heifetz and Artur Rubinstein in a 
choice, lieautifully-balanced per- 
formance of the gentle, melodious 
Cesar Franck, and Heifetz and 
Arpad Sandor equally well-coor- 
dinated on the more lush Strauss. 

Hindemith: Mathis der Maler & 
Concert Music for Strings and 
Brass (Columbia; $5.95). Full- 
bodied reading by the Philly Orch 
under Eugene Ormandy of the 
Mathis religious try ptitch, backed 
by a lesser-known but lively, in- 
teresting, curiously rhythmic work 
in the Concert Music opus, 

Rachmaninoff: Sonata in G Mi- 
nor ^Capitol; $5.72). Moody, mel- 
odious and appealing opus, with 
Leonard Pennario’s piano work 
holding its own with Joseph 
Schuster’s gifted cello playing, for 
an attractive disk. 

Chopin: Concerto No. % in F 
Minor & Fantasie in F Minor (An- 
gel; $4.95); Warm, sympathetic as' 


well as accomplished reading*: nf 
Chopin by Witold Malcuzynski 
The concerto, backed by the phiu 
harmonia under Paul Klitzki, has 
a dashing, vivid performance, with 
the lovely slow movement full of 
poetry, 

Walton: Belshazzar’s Feast (West- 
minster; $5.95). Vigorous, forceful 
performance of a ! stirring, dramat. 
Ic modern oratorio on the Biblical 
story of the fall of Babylon. Den- 
nis Noble is a fine soloist in this 
l-performance by Sir Adrian Boult 
an d Philharmonic Promenade 
Orch. 

' Delius: On Hearing First Cuckoo 
In Spring & Walk To Paradise 
Garden (London; $2.95). Two fine 
examples of British impressionism 
given poetic, evocative readings by 
the Lohdon Symphony under An- 
thony Collins. 

Haydn: Symphonies Nos. 96, & 

97 (London; $5,595), Two gay sym- 
phonic works, played in clear, 
brisk style and proper light classic 
vein, by the Coricertgebouw Orch 
tinder Eduard von Beinum. Bron. 


four-side wax bow in this coral 

release. The four tunes are Wil- 
liams’ originals and show him off 
as ah imaginative composer and 
orch leader. There are some pro- 
gressives overtones in the overall 
melodic scheme, but he manages to 
hold on to a danceable and excit- 
ing tempo. . : . Orch could. , become 
potent entry for the terpsters. 
“Knocked Out Choo-Choo” and 
“Rompin’ Stomper" should get top 
jock play. 

Vince Carson: “Have Faith’’- 
“Moth Balls” (Cadillac), “Have 
Faith" is a religioso entry that de- 
serves watching.: Could be a sleep- 
er that’ll creep into the top brack- 
ets. Vince Carson croons with 
proper emotion, “Moth Balls” is 
about as appealing as its title. . 

Joan Regan: “Someone Else-s 
Roses”-“The Love I Have for You” 
(London). Joan Regan is an effec- 
tive disk warbler, but she'll need 
better material than on this cou- 
pling to raise her stock. “Roses” 
is a hillbilly-styled item that 
doesn’t carry much weight. “Love 
I Have for You” is a cumbersome 
ballad. 

Album Review 

Matt Dennis: “Sings and Plays 
Matt Dennis” (Trend), This set 
was waxed on location at the Tally- 
Ho Club, Hollywood, arid it retains 
all the intimacy of the small room. 
Dennis has a lot of sock tunes to 
his credit (“Let’s Get Away From 
It All” “Will You Still Be Mine," 
“Everything Happens to Me," etc.) 
and he bats ’em out in a warmly 
appealy style. Virginia Maxey 
comes in for some okay duets while 
Mack Barnett and Gene England 
accomp on drums and bass, re- 
spectively. 

Leith Stevens’ All Stars: “Jazz 
Themes From ‘The Wild One”’ 
(Decca). Stevens has conceived 
some pulsating themes for the. Col 
pic, “The Wild One” and his All 
Stars present them with emotional 
impact, “Blues for Brando" stands 
out as a good bet for release as a 
single. 


PHniEfr 



on 





1. 

2 . 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

7. 

8 . 
9, 

10 . 


OH. MY PAPA .(9) ; Eddie Fisher Victor 

SECRET LOVE (3) Doris Day Columbia 

THAT’S , AMORE (13) . . . Dean Martin ..... Capitol 

MAKE LOVE TO ME (3) . . Jo Stafford .Columbia 

TILL WE TWO ARE ONE (2) Georgia Shaw Decca 

STRANGER IN PARADISE (3) Tony Martin Victor 

I GET SO LONELY (3) . . . Four Knights Capitol 

CHANGING PARTNERS (12) Patti Page Mercury 

HEART OF MY HEART (5) Four Aces Decca 


STRANGER IN PARADISE (4) 

\ 




Second Group 








« ► 
'< * 
■i A 

< ► 


RAGS TO RICHES 

FROM THE VINE CAME ^HE GRAPE 
STRANGER IN PARADISE . . 

D ARKTOWN STRUTTERS BALL . . 
SOMEBODY BAD STOLE DE WEDDING BELL 
ANSWER ME, MY LOVE . . 

YOUNG AT HEART ....... 

RICOCHET 

CROSS OVER THE BRIDGE 
CHANGING PARTNERS 
JONES BOY 
MARIE . 

EBB TIDE 

LOVIN’ SPREE ...... . 

BELL BOTTOM BLUES 








Tony Bennett 


Tony Bennett 


. Columbia 




















Gaylords . . 
Four Aces 
Lou Monte 
Eartha Kitt 
Nat (King) 




• • I « • M * i * ♦ 












t I » I 




















.Columbia 
... . . . .... . . Mercury 

. . ... ....... . . Decca 

. Victor 

Victor 

Cole .... . .Capitol 

Frank Sinatra Capitol: 

Teresa ; Brewer : . . Coral 

Patti Page . . . . ..... .Mercury 

Kay Starr . , ... ... .... .< Capitol 

Mills Bros. ............ . .Decca 

Four Tunes ............ Jubilee 

Frank Chacks field ... . .London 
Eartha Kitt . . .Victor 




•'» • • • •• * «• 


Teresa Brewer .......... .Coral 

1 Figures in parentheses indicate number of weeks song has been in the Top 101 



The top 30 songs of week (more in ease of ties), based on 
copyrighted Audience Coverage Index & Audience Trend Index. 
Published by Office of Research, Inc., Dr. John Gray Peatman, 
Director, alphabetically listed. • 

• Survey Week of : February 5-11* .1954 

A Dime And A Dollar . ........ . .... . .Famous 

Baubles Bangles Arid Beads— -*“Kismet" ....... . . . Frank 

Bell Bottom Blues„_ Shapiro-B 

Boogie Woogie Maxixe .......... . . .... ... ...... . BVC 

Breeze And I , ... . Marks 

Changing Partners- Porgie . 

Creep ....... .: ... .^filler 

Darktown Strutters Ball !. Feist 

Don’t Ask Me Why . . ..... i ............... . . . . . .Harms ^ 

Ebb Tide . . . . .... ... . . .... .Ttobbins 

From The Vine Came The Grape ....... . , Randy-S 

Granada , ... . , ; j. .............. . Southern 

Heart Of My Heart . Robbins 

Hold Me Robbins 

Jones Boy . . Pincus 

Make Love To Me ..... , . . ... . Melrose 

Many Times .t . ......... . . . . ... Broadcast 

Marie . Berlin 

My Restless Lover Chappell 

Oh My Papa ; Shapiro-B 

Secret Love— t “Calamity Jane" ............ ^ .... . Remick 

Stranger In Paradise — *“Kismet” Frank 

That’s Amore—f “The Caddy" Paramount 

That’s What A Rainy Day Is For— t “Easy To Love” . Robbins 

Till We Two Are One Shapiro-B 

Till Then , . Pickwick 

Wanted . . Witmark 

Woman (Man) Studio 

You Alone . . . * . » . Rorico m < 

You Made Me Love You Broadway 

Young. At Heajt ... ......................... Sunbeam 


■» ♦ ♦♦♦♦♦♦ > »♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ + ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦♦♦♦♦♦ t ♦ ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦ ♦ »4 ♦ ♦ 4 ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ 


Second Group 

Answer Me My Love Bourne 

Bimbo .................. ....... . Fairway . 

Cabbages And Kings B & B 

Deadwood Stage-r—t “Calamity jane" .............. Remick 

Don’t Forget To Write . Advanced 

I Get So Lonely , . . Melrose 

I See The Moon Plymouth 

I Speak To The Stars ...... Witmark 

Man Man Is For The Woman Made Garland 

Off Shore Hanover 

Old Shoes And A Bag Of Rice BVC 

Our Heartbreaking Waltz . Village 

Pass The Jam Sam .Chappell 

Rags To Riches Saunders 

Sadie Thompson’s Song— -i“Miss Sadie Thompson".'. Mills 

Somebody Bad Stole De Wedding Bell Morris 

South Of The Border . Shapiro-B 

Strings Of My Heart Alfred 

Under Paris Skies Leeds 

Y’All Conie Starrite 

You You You Mellin 

You’re My Everything Harms 

Top 20 Songs on TV 

(More In Case of Ties) 

Are You Looking For A Sweetheart Calvert 

Bell Bottom Blues Shapiro-B 

Changing Partners , Porgie 

Cling To Me ; Miller 

Cross Over The Bridge Valando 

Heart Of My Heart .......... , ..... . . , .... ..... . Robbins 

I Believe . . Cromwell 

Jones Boy ^ , . i . . , Pincus 

Love Is Such A Cheat ...... ........ ..... .... Caesar 

Make Love To Me Melrose 

■ Marie ...... Berlin ■ 

Oh My Pops < . ( i Shapiro-B 

Rieochet * * . * . * . . * , , • . ■ ... Sheldon. 

Secret Love ■; . Remick 

Stranger In Paradise ................Frank 

That’s Amore . . ........ .... . Paramount 

There’ll Be No Teardrops Tonight ... ........... H & R 

They Don't Play Piana Anymore Presser 

Where Can I Go Without You .Mogull 

You Made Me Love You Broadway 

Y oung At Heart Sunbeam 

You’re A Dan Dan Dandy SorigSmiths 

t Filmusical. • Legit musical. 

' ' ■ : * 1 ' ■ ' V. u 



Wednesday* fitnuiy 17 t 1954 




Hollywood, Feb* 16. 

Capitol Records has entered in- 
to an exclusive deal with Magna- 
trqhics for taping of its. transcrip- 
tion library catalog. Formerly 
available to radio stations, the 
Magna-tronics firm fill make the 
Cap library available on tape to 
commercial inch as banks, fac- 
tories, supermarkets, restaurants, 
department stores and even ceme- 
teries which can utilize continuous- 
ly playing music. The deal, how- 
ever, does not coyer Capitol’s reg- 
ular disk catalog of pops and long- 
hair which* will continue via reg- 
ular disk retail outlets. 

Magna-tronics, headed by Percy 
L. Deutsch, is leasing the Cap 
transcription library and will set 
up its own sales organization for 
distribution to commercial users. 
Cap transcription library, formerly 
active in radio field,: was hfeaded 
by Walter . Hoebner of Capitol 
Broadcasts Sales Division. Magna 
■will take care of all license fees 
and payments to the Music Per- 
formance Trust Fund. 

. Cap’s deal with Magna-tronics 
is in line with a tape development 
that has been growing steadily , in 
the commercial. music market. Sev- 
eral tape manufacturers have de- 
veloped machines that can play 
continuously for up to. eight hours 
without servicing. Cap prez Glenn 
E; W ailichs underlines that the reg- 
ular disk catalog is not being trans- 
ferred to tapes. 


32.0000 Songs Registered 
With SACEM Last Year; 
6 



Paris* Feb. 16. 

According to SACEM (Societe 
Des Auteurs, Compositeurs, Edi- 
teurs De Musique), the ASCAP 
of France, over 32,000 songs were 
registered in the* society in 1953. 

: Biggies last year were “Bolero,*' 
“L’Etoile Des Neiges” (“The Snow 
Start”), “Petit Coquicot” (“Little 
Buttercup”) and “High Noon.” 
Sheet music has fallen off largely 
since the war and a hit which sold 
over 300,000 copies in 1930 now 
only hits about 100,000. Songs from 
films have been on the upbeat here 
with “Moulin Rouge,” “Limelight,” 
“Ruby,” and “The Complaint of 
the Unfaithful,” from ‘La Maison 
De Bonnaidue r ” in the upper 
brackets. 

There has been the rise of a flock 
of newcomer vocalists recently. Of 
these,, three write and sing own 
numbers. Top writer-singers are 
Georges Brassens, Gilbert Becaud 
and Nicole .Louvier and the other 
three are Odette Laure, Tohama 
and Philippe Clay. 

Brassens was discovered at Pat- 
achou’s nitery and this hirsute, 
heavy set. man with his guitar and 

t Uis poetic material soon caught on 
with the young set as well as the 
intellectuals. His disks are in the 
topselling groove and his “Margot” 
has been pushed by Patachou. Gil- 
bert Becaud sings more breezy 
songs and is now a big fave with 
the young set. Nicole Louvier is 
a young Left Banker who sings her 
plaintive chants at the Rose Rouge. 



in . a movie to give specialized 
handling to its imported line of 
; British' His Master’s Voice (HMV) 
disks, RCA Victor has extracted 
the HMV line from its regular dis- 
t ribs and has appoihted a specialty 
distributor, Addison Foster, to sell 
the British disks nationally. Foster 
ls head of a Philadelphia firm 
"hich has been distributing and 
merchandising imported platters 
for several years. 

Foster plans to conduct an ex- 
tensive promotion program for the 
' HMV disks, in addition to giving 
speedy delivery service to dealers 
throughout the country. The switch 
only applies to imported disks and 
does not affect the domestic HMV 
lines produced in the U.S. by Vic- 
tor. 


Scoreboard 

OF 

TOP TALENT AND TUNES 


Compiled from Statistical Reports of Distribution ^ 
Encompassing the Three Major Outlets 

Machines Retail Disks Retail Sheet Music 

as Published in ike Currant Issue 


NOTE: The current comparative sales strength of the Artists and Tunes listed hereunder it 
arrived at under a statistical system comprising each of the three major sales outlets enu- 
merated above. These findings are correlated with data from wider sources, which are exclusive 
tvith Variety. The positions resulting from these findings denote the OVERALL IMPACT de • 
veloped from the ratio of points scored: two ways in the case of talent (disks, coin machines); 
and three ways in the case of tunes (disks, coin machines, sheet music). 


POSITIONS 
This Last 
Week Week 


1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 
9 

10 


1 

2 

5 

4 

3 

9 

6 

10 

8 

7 


POSITIONS 
This Last 
Week Week 


1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 
9 

10 


2 

1 

4 
3 

5 

6 


TALENT 

ARTIST AND LABEL , TUNE 

EDDIE FISHER (Victor) (Many t& 

DEAN MARTIN (Capitol) ...... That’s Amore 

DORIS DAY (Columbia) Secret Love 

PATTI PAGE (Mercury) (Ournging Partners 

v ) Cross Over The Bridge 

TONY BENNETT (Columbia) : . (Stranger In Paradise 

/Rags To Riches 

JO STAFFORD (Columbia) ... . Make Love To Me 

FOUB ACES (Decca) . ... ; Myfl^r 

FOUR KNIGHTS (Capitol) . I Get So Lonely 

GEORGIE SHAW (Decca) Till We Two Are One 

TONY MARTIN (Victor) . . . ( Stranger in Paradise 

1 1 Love Paris 

TUNES . 

(♦ASCAP. f BMI) 

TUNE PU RUSHER 

♦OH, MY PAPA . . ............................. Shapiro-B 

♦STRANGER IN PARADISE . . . . Frank 

f CHANGING PARTNERS Porgie 

♦THAT’S AMORE. Paramount 

♦SECRET LOVE. Remick 

♦HEART OF MY HEART. . ............ Robbins 

♦MAKE LOVE. TO ME . . . , y. Melrose 

♦TILL WE TWO ARE ONE . . Sbapiro-B 

♦I .GET SO LONELY . , . . . ....... :. Melrose: 

♦FROM THE VINE CAME THE GRAPE ..... Randy-S 


Adams Looks Like 

ASCAP Shoo-h 



Stanley Adams, who was elected 
to his first term as president of 
the American Society of Compos- 
ers, Authors Si Publishers last 
year, is seen as a cinch to be •«- 
elected for a second term: Elec- 
tions of new ASCAP officers will 
be held by the board of - directors 
at its regular meeting April 29. 

Adams is regarded as a shoo-in 
for the .prez post because he has 
established himself as an able ad- 
ministrator with the rest of the 
board. Even some of the writer- 
members of the board, who were 
originally opposed to Adams, have 
been won oyer to his side. The 
major publishers on ASCAP’s 
board are expected to go along 
with the writers in seconding an- 
other term for Adams. 

At this point there is no competl- 
! tion with Adams for the top spot 
i in ASCAP. While in former years 
there has been some factional 
' struggle to put over one or another 
candidate, this election is shaping 
up as routine renaming of the In- 
cumbent by unanimous consent. 
The ASCAP prez is elected for 
one-year terms while the board, 
which names the prexy, is elected 
by the membership for two-year 
terms. 

For the past year, since. Adams 
has been in office, the proposal to 
name a general manager to handle 
administrative details for ASCAP 
has ail but faded. Adams has been 
active in handling the key negotia- 
tions with tjie tv webs and indies 
in addition to ‘ overseeing the 
ASCAP operation. ASCAP has 
been without a general manager 
since John G. Paine died some 10 
years ago. 




7 TOBIASES VERSUS 4 


New York. 

Editor, Variety: . 

The Hatfields and the Coys’ feud 
will be as mild as a wet firecracker 
on the 4th of July if the Freed 
family challenges the Tobias clan 
on the numerical supremacy of 
writers. They claim four? We 
claim seven, with one. precinct yet 
to be heard from— my son Jerry’s 
young six-month-old son, who 
shows tendencies of outshouting if 
not outwriting us all. 

My Mrs. Edna, wrote a big rec- 
ord seller in 1923, “The Cats 
Whiskers” and although not in 
ASCAP she counts. Brother Harry 
lost his son Elliot who had sev- 
eral songs to his credit and was 
an ASCAP writer. How dare they 
dispute our supremacy? Freed! 
Humph! . ■ Charlie Tobias. 

(The Freed writing clan includes 
brothers Arthur, Ralph,. Walter 
and sister Ruth— Ed.) . 

Din Belloc Orch Signs 
With M-G-M; Joins MCA 

Chicago, Feb. 16. 

Dan Belloc orch, on the rise in 
this territory, last week pacted 
with Music Corp. of America and, 
almost at the same time, with 

-M-G-M Records. Band had Previ- 
ously received bookings through 
General Artists Corp.; Band is cur- 
rently playing the new Holiday 
Club here for five weeks. 

By day, batonist Belloc doubles 
as a school teacher. . 


Mercury Artists Names 
Burnham Music Chief 

In a move to expand its band 
operation, Mercury Artists Corp. 
has named Bill Burnham veepee in 
charge of the agency’s music de- 
partment. Burnham took over his 
post Monday (15). . 

For the past five years Burnham 
had been heading his own agency. 
Previously he had been associated 
with the William Morris Agency 
and Music Corp: of America. 

Best British Sheet Sellers 

(Week ending Feb. 6) 
London, Feb. 8. 

Oh My Papa . . . . . Maurice 

Swedish Rhapsody . . Connelly 
Answer Me . . . Bourne 
Rags to Riches ... . ; Chappell 

. Tennessee Walk. . F. D. & H. 

If You Love Me. . World Wide 
Cloud Lucky Seven. .Robbins 
That’s Amore . ; ... . . . Victoria 

Ricochet . . . ... Victoria 

Blowing Wild Harms-Connelly 
Istanbul ... . ... , V ; . . Aberbach 

Ebb Tide . . . - Robbins 

Second 12 

Poppa Piccolino ... . .Sterling 

Golden Tango ........ Wright 

The Creep. ........ . Robbins 

Big Ben . . . . . . . . Box & Cox 

Chicka Boom . . . . ... ... . . Dash 

Here to Eternity ...... Dash 

Heart Belongs to You Kassner 
Wish You Were Here Chappell 

You You You . .Mellin 

I See the Moon . . . . Feldman 
Changing Partners . . . . Mellin 
.Tenderly • , Morns 


RIAA Engineering Comm. 
Devises Standardization 



A standard recording and repro- 
ducing characteristic curve is in 
the offing lor the disk industry. 
The model technique in waxing ha$ 
been devised by the Record Indus- 
try Assn’s Engineering Committee 
and has been approved by the org’s 
board of directors. 

Difference between diskeries’ re- 
cording techniques has grown pro- 
gressively smaller in the past cou- 
ple of years and the RIAA’s engi- 
neering committee has devised a 
way of recording that represents 
an average of the techniques of all 
the diskeries. 

In the past, recording character- 
istic had been determined mainly 
by the mechanical properties of 
the sound boxes. In recent years, 
however^ the recording character- 
istic became a matter of engineer- 
ing choice rather than use of equip- 
ment. 


Beethoven ‘Solemnis’ 

Another major longhair album 
by Arturo Toscanini will top RCA 
Victor’s new album line this 
spring. New work, to be released 
next month, is Beethoven’s choral 
work, “Missa Solemnis,” featuring 
the Robert Shaw chorus. Album 
is being issued in an unusual pack- 
age with a Japanese print, suitable 
for framing, visible through a cel-, 
lophane window. George Mnrek, 
Victor's artists & repertoire chief, 
has etched a special 45 rpm disk 
for retailers, explaining how the 
tv.o-disk set should be sold. 

Meantime, Toscanini's $25 four- 
disk limited edition set of the four 
Brahms symphonies has been a 
sellout, with 13.000 copies turned 
over. Although Victor cut its price 
on longplay disks back to $3.99 
this month, the limited edition 
continues at the old list of $25. 


Cap Builds Molly Bee 

Hollywood, Feb. 16. , 
Capitol Records is launching a 
buildup of Molly Bee, moppet 
disker heretofore heard only on a 
free-and-easy country tune basis. 
Gal has etched a pair of sides with 
Van Alexander conducting a full 
orchestra, using his own arrange- 
ments. 


B’WAY MUSIC NIPS MERC 
ON ‘ALCOHOLIC’ ETCHING 

Mercury Records has been 
charged with copyright infringe- 
ment by recording a tune tilled 
“The Alcoholic Blues,” according 
to a suit filed in N.Y. Federal Court 
last week by Broadway Music. 
Mercury claims that it had leased 
the masters and Is not responsible 
for royalty payments, Sammy 
Spear r.ade the waxing inde- 
pendently and, according to Merc, 
has to pay the royalties. 

The complaint charges that 
about June, 1953, the defendant, 
without filing notice of use, obtain- 
ing permission or pay royalties, 
etched the tune. Broadway also al- 
leges that Merc refuses to obtain 
a license from the copyright owner 
as required by law. Pubbery claims 
that the tune was penned by Ed- 
ward Laska and Albert Von Tilzer 
in 1918 and that it obtained the 
renewal copright in 1946. 

Action seeks a declaration that 
plaintiff is rightful owner of all 
I rights and the waxing is a viola- 
tion of those rights. Broadway asks 
that an injunction enjoining de- 
| fendant from distributing the al- 
leged infringed disks and triple 
damages be awarded on account- 
ing of profits. 






Wednesday, February 17, 1954 



c« 

*5i . rt 

X> • u 

£ : g 
2 J 2 £ 

O o o * 

o a v -S 

























































flay, February 17, 1954 








46 


MUSIC 


Wednesday, February it, I 954 


New Horizons for Disks 


Continued from page 41 


have entered into a deal with Pop- 
ular Science for sale of disks on 
newsstands through tljp magazine 
S-M News Co, distribution system. 
Initial tests will comprise 15 cities 
with 1,250 outlets. The initial disk, 
to be sold at regular price, will be 
Perry Como's “Wanted” (Victor), 
with the second disk to be Patti 
Page’s “Cross Over The Bridge” 
(Mercury). Each disk will be on 
the subway racks for a month in 
special multi-covered sleeves. The 
disks will be packaged on both 
special seven-inch 78 • rpm platters 
and on 45s. 

The second phase of the mer- 
chandising revolution covers the 
price problem; Bell Records again 


has made the biggest impact with 
its 35c seven-inch disk. In the 
longplay held, Columbia has its 
low-priced Entre series, Victor its 
Bluebird and Camden lines, and 
Decca, its 4,000 series. 

Many disk execs believe that the 
market potential can be tremen- 
dously expanded over its present 
level by a radical reduction in 
price. A general cutback on all 
merchandise, however, is not re- 
garded as feasible, due to basic 
production costs, although steps 
are being taken to overcome this 
obstacle by a steady mechanization 
of the whole manufacturing and 
packaging process. ___ 




M 


OF tfeur_ RECORD RATINGS 
BY THE TRADE PRESS 


ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN 

Billboard 



MAMB0 (Boochwood) 

DOLORES HAWKINS (Epic) 

70 (Good) 

V 

B (Very Good) 

.Excellent 

BANDERA (Blue Grass) 

AL ALBERTS (Dacca) 

• 

74 (Good) . 

B (Very Good) 


BELLA BELLA DONNA MIA 

SAMMY KAYE (Columbia) 

70 (Good) 

.’. Best Bet 

Excellent 

1. 

BY HECK (Mark.) 

DAVID CARROLL (Mercury) 

75 (Good) 

C+(Good) 

Very Good 

DOG GONE IT BABY I'M IN 




LOVE (Hill & Range) 

CARL SMITH (Columbia) 

RUSTY WELLINGTON (Arcade) 

Best Buy 

76 (Good) 

Bullseye of 
the Week 

B (Very Good) 


DON’T STOP KISSING ME 




GOODNIGHT (Aberbach) 

GINNY GIBSON (MGM) 

SHEB WOOLEY (MGM) 

72 (Good) 

C-RGood) 

B (Very Good) 

Fair 

GO WHERE YOU GO (Gale A Gcyl..) 

, 



PEGGY LEE (Decca) 

71 (Good) 

Best Bet 

Fair 

HOW COME YOU NEVER 

1 



ANSWER (Acuff-Rose) 



* 

JO ANN TOLLEY (MGM) 

72 (Good) 

B (Very Good) 

Very Good 

THE MAN WITH THE 




BANJO (Mellin) 

AMES BROTHERS (Victor) 

New Record ' 
to Watch 

Disk Of 
the Week 

Excellent 

ROMEO AND JULIET (B.nti.y) 




ANDY GRIFFITH (Capitol) 

Best Buy . 

B (Very Good) 

Good 

STOP CHASIN’ ME BABY (Hoiiu) 




THE LANCERS (Trend) 

Best Buy 

Best Bet 


TENNESSEE WHISTLING 




MAN (Studio) 

RED FOLEY (Decca) 

C tw 
Best. Buy 

B+ 

(Excellent) 

Excellent 

WALL OF ICE (Weiss A Barry) 




TOMMY EDWARDS (MGM) 

73 (Good) 

B (Very Good) 

Best Bet 

Y (THAT'S WHY) (R„ubu.) 




SAMMY KAYE (Columbia) 

76 (Good) 

Best Bet 

Best Bet 

Y’ALL COME 

BING CROSBY (<>.««) 

ARLIE DUFF (Starday) 

YOUNG AT HEART (Sunbeam) 

FRANK SINATRA (Capitol) 

BING CROSS Y-GUY LOMBARDO (Decca) 

Best Buy 

CAW 
Best Buy . 

Best Buy 

• t 

Sleeper of 
the Week 

I Disk of 

I the Woek 

Very Good 

Best Bet 

| Broadcast Music, Inc. 

5 0 0 FIFTH flVINUi 

NfWYQDK 36 N Y 

■ ■ 

«*» r ? ’ > b ' s 

^ * s ’ G 1 - 

h 


*~Disk Companies’ Best Sellers 

i CAPITOL ARTIST 

i 1. THAT'S AMORE . ... .. .Dean Martin 

YOU'RE THE RIGHT QNE 

i 2. I GET SO LONELY . , . , . . .Four Knights 

I COULDN'T STAY AWAY FROM YOU 

J 3. YOUNG AT HEART Frank Sinatra 

. TAKE A CHANCE 

l 4. ANSWER ME, MY LOVE ............. . . . Nat (King) Cole 

.■ WHY 

5. WHAT IT WAS, WAS FOOTBALL (Pa.RT I) . . Andy Griffith 
WHAT IT WAS, WAS FOOTBALL (PART II) 

COLUMBIA 

1. MAKE 'LOVE TO ME ..Jo Stafford 

ADI, ADIOS AMIGO * 

2. STRANGER IN PARADISE Tony Bennett 

WHY DOES IT HAVE TO BE ME? 

3. SECRET LOVE . ............................ . Doris Day 

DEADWOOD STAGE 

i 4. MAN .Rosemary Clooney 

WOMAN ... . ............ . . .... Jose Ferrer 

5. RAGS TO RICHES . . . . . .Tony Bennett 

HERE COMES THAT HEARTACHE AGAIN 

t CORAL 

f 1, OUR HEARTBREAKING WALTZ Teresa Brewer 

BELL BOTTOM BLUES 

£ 2. HOLD ME .... Don Cornell 

SIZE 12 :• 

3. PINE TREE, PINE OVER ME Desmond-Barton-McGuire Sis, 
CLING TO ME 

t 4. THE SHEIK OF ARABY , , . '. Buddy Greco 

UP THE CHIMNEY IN SMOKE 
* 5. A SALUTE TO GLENN MILLER (PART I) . . . Modernaires 
A SALUTE TO GLENN MILLER (PART II) 

DECCA 

| 1. STRANGER IN PARADISE . ... ... .... Four Aces 

HEART OF MY HEART 

2. TILL WE TWO ARE ONE Georgie Shaw 

HONEYCOMB 

3. Y'ALL COME . . Bing Crosby 

CHANGING PARTNERS 

4. THE JONES BOY > . . . , . .... Mills Bros. 

SHE WAS FIVE AND HE WAS TEN 

5. ARE YOU LOOKING FOR A SWEETHEART . . Kitty Kallen 
A LITTLE LIE 

t LONDON 
41. CRYSTAL BALL 
THE CREEP 

2. GOLDEN TANGO . . . 

DANCING PRINCESS 

3. SUDDENLY . 

BEAUTIFUL DREAMER 

1 4. F.BB TIDE . . . Frank Chacksfield 

WALTZING BUGLE BOY 

f 5. STARLIGHT SERENADE Stanley Black 

FROM HERE TO ETERNITY 

1 MERCURY 

1. FROM THE VINE CAME THE GRAPE Gaylords 

STOLEN MOMENTS 

2. CUDDLE ME Ronnie Gaylord 

OH AM I LONELY 

3. SOMEBODY STOLE DE WEDDING BELL .. Georgia Gibbs 
BAUBLES, BANGLES AND BEADS 

4. CROSS OVER THE BRIDGE . . . v. Patti Page 

MY RESTLESS LOVER 

. 5. FANCY PANTS .David Carroll 

BY HECK 

M-G-M 

1. TURN AROUND BOY 

CAESAR’S BOOGIE 

2. YOU BETTER KEEP IT ON YOUR MIND ... Hank Williams 
LOW DOWN BLUES 

3. YOU'RE MY EVERYTHING *Joni James 

YOU'RE NEARER 

4. A SINNER KISSED AN XNGEL George Shearing 

MOOD FOR MILT 

5. POPPA PICCOLlNO Nocturnes 

FOR THE FIRST TIME IN A LONG TIME 

RCA VICTOR 

X 1* DARKTOWN STRUTTERS BALL Lou Monte 

I KNOW HOW YOU FEEL 

2. MAN WITH THE BANJO Ames Bros 

MAN, MAN IS FOR THE WOMAN MADE 

X 3* WANTED . . . .. . . Perry Como 

;; LOOK OUT THE WINDOW 

<► 4k OH, MY PAPA .................. .Eddie Fisher 

UNTIL YOU'VE SAID GOODBYE 

5. SOMEBODY STOLE DE WEDDING BELL Eartfia Kitt 

LOVIN' SPREE 

♦ ♦ ♦ ♦♦♦♦♦ ♦»♦♦♦♦ ♦♦♦»♦♦» » » ♦ »*♦»♦♦♦♦ 






i 


Johnston Bros. 

m — 

.Frank Chacksfield 

, . . . .Mantovani 


Lew Douglas 


label X Sets Eastern 
Distrib Via Boorstein; 






in 

Gearing itself for a national 
distribution setup, the recently 
formed Label X last week lined 
up the Transdisc Corp. to repre- 
sent it in east. The Transdisc dis- 
tribution setup will cover the ter- 
ritory from Maine • to Richmond, 
Va., and go as far west as Buffalo. 

Transdisc was set up by Lou 
Boorstein to handle the line. At 
present no deals to distrib other; 
labels have been made by Trans- 
disc. Firm will heiadquarter in New 
York and Set up branches in Bos- 
ton, Buffalo, Hertford, Albany 
Philadelphia and Baltimore. ’ 

Label X already has lined up 
distrib representation in 26 cities 
Distribs for Tennessee, Atlanti 
and Miami territories have yet to 
be set. X plans to release 10 plat- 
ters a month on a twice-monthly 
schedule. 



Brit Nix Work Permit 
For Mary Lou Williams 

London, Feb v 16. 

American pianist-composer Mary 
Lou Williams, due to join the new 
Variety show “Jazz Wagon,” which 
kicks off at Chiswick Empire (Lon- 
don) on Feb. 22, has been refused 
a working permit by the Ministry 
of Labour. Her place in “Jazz 
Wagon” is being taken by West 
Indian pianist-vocalist Mike Mc- 
Kenzie. American dancer-singer 
Taps Miller, also engaged for the 
show, has been allowed in and ar- 
rived last week. He has already 
started rehearsing with the Jack 
Parnell orch around which the 
“Jazz Wagon” production is being 
moulded. 

Reason for nixing Miss Williams’ 
reentry is officially given as the 
fact that she did not leave Eng- 
land until November, and that a 
six-months period must elapse be- 
fore she is allowed to play here 
again. Her manager, Jack Higgins, 
alleged that she had not worked 
in Britain since last summer, and 
that her sojourn here in November 
was “purely social.” 


Willsons Hit Concert 
Trail En Route to L. A. 

Denver, Feb. 16. 

The Meredith Willsons broke 
their jump back to their Beverly 
Hills home with a concert Monday 
night (15) at the local Cbsmopoli< 
tan Hotel ballroom, doing one of 
their "Evenings With Meredith & 
Rini. Willson.” 

The maestro went east for a 
Lincoln Day’s concert in the 3,600- 
capacity Kleinhaus Auditorium, 
Buffalo, his second return within 
a year, continuing his heavy con- 
cert routine which has been 
the radio-tv maestro’s wont in re- 
cent seasons. 


After three more weeks of one 
niters, Ray McKinley will disband 
his orch. Bandleader is pacted for 
the ‘‘Showcase!’ series on WNBT, 
N. Y. He made his initial bow on 
the show Feb. 6 as. vocalist and 
batoner of a six-man combo. Be- 
cause of prior bookings he’ll be 
off the show for the next three 
weeks. 

General Artists Corp., which 
books the McKinley aggregation, 
has cancelled out about 25 dates 
skedded for March. McKinley is 
currently using a 14-man crew on 
the road. 


Steye Sholes, head of RCA Vic- 
tor’s country & western division, 
planed to Nashville last week for 
several weeks of recording. 


SADIE 
THOMPSON’ 
SONG 



V 


From the 
Columbia 
Technicolor 
Picture 

MISSSADItf 

THOMPSON, 



DON’T ASK 
ME WHY 

recorded by 

EILEEN BARTON 

CORAL £61109 
HARMS. Inc. 




America's Fastest 
f Selling Records! 




tr..,lne»<Uy, February 17 , . 1954 




RETAIL DISK BEST SELLERS 




Survey of retail disk best 
tellers based on reports ob 
tained from leading stores in 
12 cities and showing com- 
parative sales rating for this 


National 
Ratio, 
This Last 
*k. wk. 


1 .1 

✓ 

2 2 

3 3 _ 

4 . 4 

.5 5 _ 

6 16 
7 6 


8 12 


9 9 


10 19 _ 

11 7 


Artist, Label, Title 


EDDIE FISHER (Victor) 

“Oh, My Paph" . . , . . 

DEAN MARTIN (Capitol) 
“That's Amore”. , . . . 

PATTI PAGE (Mercury) 
“Changing Partners” ........ 

DORIS DAY (Columbia) 

“Secret Love" . . 

TONY BENNETT (Columbia) 
“Stranger in Paradise" , f . . . . 

JO STAFFORD (Columbia) 
“Make Love to Me" . . 

FOUR KNIGHTS (Capitol)) 
“I Get So Lonely" ... 

GEORGIE SHAW (Decea) 
“Till We Two Are One" 

TONY MARTIN (Victor) 
“Stranger in Paradise" . . 

LOU MONTE (Victor) 
“Darktown Strutters Ball” . . . 

TERESA BREWER (Coral) 
“Ricochet" 



8 10 21 


12 

19 

EARTHA KITT (Victor) 

“Lavin' Spree” ................. 

5 * 


.. .7 .. 


2 

19 

13 A 

11 

GAYLORDS (Mercury) 

“From the Vine Came the Grape”. 9 

•r 7 

.. . 7 .. 


3 


18 

13B 

10 

FOUR ACES (Decca) . 

“Stranger in. Paradise” . 

9 .. 

3 ... .. 

3 . . 



18 

15 A 

15 

FOUR ACES (Decca) 

“Heart of My Heart" 

• • • .* 

8 .. 

. . 4 . . 

9 

6 

17 

15B 

17 

FRANK SINATRA (Capitol) 

“Young at Heart”. . 10 

4 10 




3 .. 

17 

17 

17 

RONNIE GAYLORD (Mercury) 
“Cuddle Me” 

t • • * . 



1 


10 

18 

8 

TONY BENNETT (Columbia) 

“Rags to Riches” 

• ♦ » 4 

7 ... 10 

. . 10 9 



8 

19 


TERESA BREWER (Coral) 

“Bell Bottom Blues” 

8 . . 


- 


7 . . 

7 

20 


IIILLTOPPERS (Dot) 

“From the Vine Came the Grape”. . . 

• • • • 

... 8 

. . .10 


• • • « 

4 


FIVE TOP 
ALBUMS 


D C. Symph Seeks 260G 

Washington, Feb. 10. 
Washington’s National Symphony 
Orcli has launched a drive for 

$260,000 as a sustaining fund for 
the coming year. Orchestra, now 


1 

2 

9 

4 

5 

KISMET 

THAT BAD EARTHA 

GLENN MILLER 

CALAMITY JANE 

SHOW BIZ , ’ 

Broadway Cat! 

Eartha. Kitt 

Limited Edition 

Doris Day 

All Star Cast 

Columbia 

Victor 

Victor 

Columbia 

Victor. 

ML 4850 

LPM 3187 

LPT 6700 

C 347 

LOC 1011 


Inside Stuff— Mnac 

News-Scope, a newsletter for jukebox operators, reports in a recent 
Issue that George Miller, president of the Music Operators Of America, 
virtually concedes that the jukebox ops will have to pay a music per- 
formance fee sooner Or later. The MOA head, according to News- 
Scope, “admitted, that it was only a matter of time before we will lose 
this fight." A bill to amend the Copyright Act to remove the licensing 
exemption from coin machines has been introduced by Sen. Pat Mc- 
Carran and is currently being considered by a sub-committee of the 
Senate Judiciary Committee, Meantime, Stanley Adams; ASCAP prexy 
and head of one of several music groups supporting the McCarran 
bill, has asked Miller to discuss a possible solution to the licensing 
problem. 

Although Dccca’s “Oklahoma" album was the first Broadway cast 
set to top the 1.000,000 sales marker, other albums have also entered 
the golden circle of bestsellers. A1 Jolson’s set; of Songs from the 
Columbia picture, “The Jolson Story," issued by Decea under that 
title, reached the 1,000,000 mark before “Oklahoma." Bing Crosby’s 
"Merry Christmas" set, also on the Decea label, topped that figure 
several years ago. Several Jolson albums, following “The Jolson Story," 
also have come near the 1,000,000 level. 

For the first time in almost 20 years. Bing Crosby, and Guy Lom- 
bardo have teamed up on a Decca coupling of “Young-At-:Heart” and 
“I Get So Lonely." Both Crosby and Lombardo have been with Decoa 
since the company’s inception back in the early 1930s but never re- 
corded together.: They did, however, cut a couple of sides together 
for the old Brunswick label which eventually was absorbed by Decca 
Those numbers were "Young And Healthy" and “You’re Getting To 
Be A Habit With Me;" ’ 

The ■Cdpacabana. New York nitery, has come to the fore again as 
the launching point for pop market product. Current show is featuring 
“Somebody Bad Stole De Wedding Bell," which has. been : cut by 
Georgia Gibbs (Mercury), Eartha Kitt (Victor) and Ella Fitzgerald 
(Decca). Tune was penned for the Copa production by Bob Hilliard 
and Dave Mann. 

Past hits originating in Copa shows have been “Dearie” and “There’s 
An Awful Lot Of Coffee In Brazil." 

E. B. Marks, Music will celebrate its 60th anni next Friday (26) with 
a coektailery and luncheon for close friends at Toots Shor's N.Y, 
eatery. The anni observance will run two weeks during which time 
Marks will run an exhibit at its homeoffiee of memorabilia covering 
the firm’s 60 years of operation. Festivities will be headed up by 
Herbert E. Marks, son of firm’s founder, “ ‘ 

. -Coca Cola, which has been picking up the lab for the NBC-TV Eddie 
Fisher show, is tying in with RCA Victor on Fisher's next release 
via a special multi-colored disk sleeve with the singer’s picture and 
a plug for the soft drink. Disk will be distributed to Coca Cola’s 
bottlers as well as the disk jockeys. 

- t ■ ■ 

Ever since Arthur Tracy (The Street Singer) has been dcejay-whirled 
around, as part of the' RCA Victor “Show Biz" Album, he has been 
getting so much word-of-mouth that it threatens “to pull me out of 
retirement." Tracy is a successful realtor in Washington, D. C. 


over 25 years old, played to a total 
of over 200,000 persons in the past 
year. 

It has been experimenting - with 
pep music and offered a concert 
recently of the music of Rodgers 
& Hammerstein. 


Coral Pacts Premice 

Nitery thrush Josephine Premice 
has been inked to a longterm pact 
by Coral Records. 

Miss Premice will cut her first 
eight sides for the label March 7 
when she winds an engagement at 
the Town Casino, Buffalo. 


ASCAP Execs Go West 
FoirMembership Meet 

ASCAP’s Coast membership will 
convene for its semi-annual meet- 
ing in Hollywood hext Tuesday 
(23) at the Ambassador Hotel 
where the Society’s execs wiirpre- 
sent a financial and operational 
report. Stanley Adams, ASCAP 
prexy, is training out to the Coast 
today (Wed.) together with L. 
Wolfe Gilbert, board member who 
is returning home, and controller 
George Hoffman. 

ASCAP, incidentally, is now ro- 
tating its membership meetings on 
the Coast among the various hotels 
in Los Angeles. Formerly, the 
meetings were regularly held at 
the Beverly Hills Hotel. 



■■ 


Names With C.H. Concert 

Frank Amaru, RCA Victor exec 
in the International Division, is 
tying in with “The Mam bo Con- 
cert," skedded for a Carnegie Hall, 
N. Y., bow Saturday (20), by re- 
lasing the deejays and record librar- 
ians in the New York area a 
Special mambo kit of 30 platters 
of Victor’s Latino artists appearing 
on the bill. 

Kit includes such Chile paclecs 
as Noro Morales, Sylvia De Grasse, 
Perla Marini, Mercedes Valdes and 
Alfredo Saydel. “The Mambo Con- 
cert" currently is being prepped 
for a 25-city tour, 













48 


MUSIC 


Vednesday, February 17, 1954 



New York 

Irvin? Deutch, general profes- 
sional manager of. Peer Interna- 
tional, back at his desk a -ter a 
business trip to Chicago Irvcrig 
Fields Trio held over for five 
weeks at the. Thunderbird Hotel 


Las Vegas 


Combo a' so 


nabbed a Monday - thru - Friday 
tele show on KLAS-TV, Las 
Vegas Thrush Pau’a Stevens 
opens at the Elegante Club, Brook- 
lyn, Feb. 23 . Milton Karie han- 
dling d r ck promotion for The Tay- 
lor .iVia' ‘■-’s oa Eureka Records . 
Verna Leeds, Original Records 
thrush, on deejay trek through the 
midwest. Henry Okttn, promotion 
head for Original, plotting d.j: trip 
through New England for the 
Dixxy Sisters. 

Ira Brant begins his fourth 
month; at the Harwyii Club, N.Y., 
doubling as solo 88er and fronter 
of, his own trio. Harvey Geller to 
New Englahd this week on a dee- 
jay contact trek, for. Joy Music. 

George and Nicholas Alexander, 
giiitaritsts and singing duo, return 
to the Sherry Netherland’s Carni- 
val Room, March 2 . . . Bernice 
Parks, currently at the Casino 
Royal, Washington, opens at the 
Latin Casino. Philadelphia, Feb. 25 
... Slim Gaillard held over at the 
Birdland for another six weeks... 
Tunesmith Charlie Tobias due back 
from the Coast March 1. 


London 

• Annie Ross, ex-Lionel Hampton 
singer, arrived in London last 
week for an indefinite stay . . . 
Sax-player Chris Curtis opens with 
his own band at the Trocadero 
Restaurant on Feb. 20, replacing 
Ronnie Pley dell . . . June Christy, 
scheduled for a solo tour, has had 
to cancel as her husband is to un- 
dergo a major operation. London 
agent Harold Davison, hopes to re- 
open negotiations for' the tour 
later . : . Blackpool, centre of Brit- 
ish summer entertainment, will 
feature the bands of Ted Heatfe 
Jack Parnell arid Geraldo this 
year. Singer Anne Shelton is to 
be featured in Lawrence Wright’s 
''On With The Show” . . . Edmun- 
doRos and society bandleader Alf 
Van Straten negotiating a com- 


pany for the furtherance of vari- 
ous united entertainment projects. 

Hollywood 

Harry King orch opens at the 
Cocoanut Grove tomorrow (Wed.) 
night for a six-week stand ... Tex 
Beheke set. for a four-Week stand 
at the Palladium, starting April 16 
. Hal White crew, with Clessa 
Williams vocalizing, played the 
Valentine Party dance at the Capr 
istyar.o Beachcombers Club . . . 
George Fields trio using harmon- 
ica, xylophone and bassoon as mu- 
sical background for the Staii Fre- 
berg j»how on KNX . . . Pete Ru- 
golo’s new outfit cut its first sides 
for Columbia . . . Eddie Bradford 
ankliiig Bar of Music at the end of 
March to provide backing for 
mime Arthur Blake’s one-man con- 
cert tour . . . Stan Kenton modern 
jazz package booked by dee jay- 
promoter Gene ., Norman for a one- 
night ; stand at the Shrine Audito- 
rium Feb. 28. 


Chicago 

Blue Barron and Tex Beneke 
orchs playing one-niters in Chi ter- 
ritory this month and next . 
Edgewater Beach now showcasing 
Dixieland band. Dixie Dukes, on 
Friday nights for the late crowd . 
Gay Claridge held over . at Oh 
Henry, while Art Kassel is held at 
Martinique indefinitely . . .. Carl 
Sands set for Baker Hotel in Dallas 
for four weeks beginning March 
29 . . . Xavier Cugat to Roosevelt 
Hotel, New Orleans, March 11-24 
...Shep Fields pegged for fort- 
night at Rice Hotel in Houston 
beginning Feb. 25 . . Dick Jurgens 
to Shamrock, Houston, March 30 to 
April 16. 


Pittsburgh 

Dorsey Bros.' band opens week s 
engagement at Vogue Terrace Mon- 
day (22). And that big room has 
following orchs lined up for week 
engagements during bowling ban-: 
quet season in May: Shep Fields, 
Hal McIntyre, Joy Caylor’s all-girl 
outfit, Tony Pastor and Blue Bar- 
ron, ; .Reid Jaynes playing nightly 
at Eddie Aschner’s Club, where 
week-end music is augmented by 
Rhythmaires, Dave Carey, Tommy 



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♦Stranger in Paradise (Frank) . . 

2 

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112 

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♦Oh, My Papa (Shapiro-B). . . 


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3 

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tChanging Partners (Porgie) . 


1 

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8 

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6 

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5 

♦Secret LoVe (Remick) . 

. . . 

4 

3 

2 

3 

4 

8 

4 

5 

2 

5 

5 

4 

83 

5 

4 

♦That’s Amore (Paramount) . . 

• • * 

6 

• •' . 


5 

3 

3 

5 

3 

3 

4 

3 

6 

69 

6 

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♦Heart of My Heart (Robbins) 

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♦Rags to Riches (Saunders) , . 

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12 

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Lavelle and George Zinssur . . Nel- 
son Maples, spending his third 
winter in Florida, at piano and 
organ at bar operated down there 
by former Pittsburghers A1 Mercur 
and Dave Harris . . . Eddie Cole 
Foursome into the Twin Coaches 
Lounge. Big room there presently 
has shows weekends only but will 
resume them on a regular basis in 
the spring . . . Marty King combo, 
with Louise Shaw on the vocals, 
has checked in. at the Sleepy Hol- 
low Tavern In Legionier for an in- 
definite engagement . Joe Negri 
Trio opened indefinite stay Mon- 
day (15) at Dore’s Restaurant in 
East Liberty, replacing organist 
Everett Hadyn . . . Sammy Kaye 
booked for Horizon Room at 
Greater Pittsburgh Airport week 
of March 11. 


Boston 

Joe Holicker’s trio moved into 
the Moulin Rouge replacing the 
.Nick Jerret Trio who switched to 
the Barclay Club, Cambridge . . 
Syl Dubano has taken over the 
lead alto chair in Mike Gaylord’s 
Blinstrub orch. replacing Bill 
Dewey, who is now a full-time en- 
gineer on the staff of WHDH . . . 
Carl Rand two-beaters back at the 
Savoy for a couple of weeks . . .. 
Society maestro Herbie Sulkin va- 
cationing in Florida for a month 
leaving Tony Vye in charge of 
operations during his absence . . . 
Jack Sager’s Cellar-Dwellers work- 
ing weekends at Elsie’s. 


Dallas 

Frances Langford opens a two- 
week engagement at the Shamrock 
Hotel, Houston, on Feb. 16. Also 
on the bill will be Hoctor & Byrd, 
dancers. Hal. McIntyre band re- 
places .Paul Neighbors orch . ... 
Sonny Howard, vocalist, Teddy & 
Phyllis Rodriguez opened a two- 
week engagement at the Balinese 
Room at Galveston last week. 


Dave Clark 

Continued from page 41 


far from it” and “I bought a new 
dictionary to see - what he said to 
me.” 

His biggest song hit was "Have 
You Seen My Henry / Brown?” 
which he did for Mary Cahill, and 
he also wrote “It’s Cottonland In 
Georgia.” His lyrics were also on 
the doubletalk side, but Clark, was 
always careful that the rhymes 
were in the right place. . 3 

Clark broke into show biz as a 
nightclub performer with a piano- 
playing and hoofing routine. Some 
45 years ago, he became a news- 
paperman with the N. Y. Morning 
’felegraph and then later joined 
the songwriters’ ranks. 

Clark never became a member of 
the American Society of Compos- 
ers, Authors & Publishers but, for 
the last few y&ars, ASCAP sup- 
ported him by a special financial 
endowment. Before that, Clark was 
taken care of by numerous friends. 

ASCAP made arrangements for 
the funeral which was held yester- 
day (Tues.) at Universal Chapel in 
N. Y. 



Concert Hits SRO $5,800; 



For the second of his three spe- 
cial concerts with the N. Y. Phil- 
harmonic, last Saturday night (13) 
at Carnegie Hall, N. Y., designed 
to woo new listeners to longhair, 
Andre Kostelanetz trotted out a 
real symphonic pops program that 
had lightness and verve as well as 
mood, melody .’and color. Reaction 
was evidenced, in a second SRO 
house, this time grossing $5,800 as 
against the first concert’s $5,500 
(press list • being smaller), 

. Enthused audience made a study 
in itself — an entirely new Philhar- 
monic aud, young and receptive. 
It’s obvious that this new group, 
won to longhair by the Kosty 
draw, ought to be retained and cul- 
tivated. • Management, impressed 
with the two b.o. figures if not 
with the musical missionary angle, 
is reported already planning such 
Kosty repeat concerts next season. 

Program opened with a rakish 
‘‘Sorcerer’s Apprentice” (Dukas), 
followed with a sensitive ‘‘After- 
noon of "a Faun” (Debussy), and 
into a light, airy reading of 
Weber’s "invitation of the Dance” 
that was delightful. First half 
wound with a rousing, rhythmic 
reading of the Enesco Rumanian 
Rhapsody No. 1, on which the boys 
and Kosty really went to town. 
Second half offered the first N. Y. 
performance of the concert suite 
from Tchaikovsky’s opera, "Queen 
of Spades,” and Ferde Grofe’s 
"Grand Canyon Suite,” both done 
lushly. . 

Final concert this season, next 
month, will find a. slightly- more 
solid program, with Prokofiev and 
Stravinsky as well as Gershwin. 
This new-found audience can take 
it. ‘ Bron. 


Decca’s Tkreeway Shift 
Of Branch Mgrs. in East 

Decca Records has reshuffled its 
eastern distribution exec setup 
,with a thrCeway shift of branch 
managers. William Donovan, for- 
merly head of the Richmond, Va„ 
office, has moved to Boston with 
William Crowley going from Bos- 
ton to the Albany office. Donald 
Hotiens completed the switch by 
going from Albany to Richmond. 

Al Simpson, head of Decca’s 
eastern division^ made the changes. 


€ol Execs Take to Road 
For Promotion Tour 

A flock of Columbia Records 
execs hit the road last week on a 
promotion tour of distribs to kick 
off the diskery’s' . forthcoming 
product Group consisted of Paul 
Wexler, sales chief; Irving Town- 
send, promotion director; William 
Neilsen, sales manager for Col’s 
subsid, Epic Records, and Charles 
Schicke, Epic promotion .manager. 

Mitch Miller, Col’s artists & 
repertory topper, is also scheduled 
to make a promotional junket later 
this week. 


Ralph Flanagan orch booked for 
a one-nighter at Louann’s, Dallas, 
Feb, 26. 


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Wednetday, February 17, 1954 





Henie Ice Revue Set 
For Calgary. Stampede 


First Vauder in 7 Years Due For 


The American Guild of Variety 4 


Artists has started picketlttg I^ng 
Island, N. Y., cafes, following a 
decision in Nassau County Su- 
preme Court which; held that 
aGVA was a bonafide union, and 
entitled to press for betterment of 

working conditions, v 

: The decision delivered by Jus- 
tice 'Ritchie stated that the ques- 
I on qf whether acts are inde- 
nendent contractors, as claimed by 
a group of Long Island operators 
who sought to restrain AGVA from 
ticketing their spots, has nothing 
to do with the question - of their 
attempting to get a minimum basic 
agreement, trying to impose union 
shop conditions in the niteries or 
posting of a bond. 

Court also stated that the im? : 
position of AGVA demands upon 
the cafes doesn’t Violate any anti- 
trust laws. Question came up 
when the nitery owners stated that 
AGVA, outside of chorus em- 
ployees, was a trade association 
because most of the members were 
indie contractors, and therefore 
would be subject to antitrust laws; 
However, the court pointed out 
that the union was subject to the 
injunction laws of New York State. 

Decision is seen as creating a 
legal precedent, inasmuch as the 
court ruled that the question of 
whether acts are independent con- 
tractors doesn’t affect the right of 
the union to attempt to organize 
the cafes, 

For many years the question has 
been argued of whether variety 
talent coming i into niteries or thea- 
tres with their own acts and who 
l work without apparent supervision 
from nitery owners are employees 
or indie contractors. The decisions 
that have come down are indecisive 
and apply only to the spots on 
which decision is based. Thus the 
Radio City Music Hall, N. Y., case 
in which the court ruled that acts 
playing there are independent con- 
tractors applies only to the Music 
Hall. 

The Long Island cafe situation 
has been boiling for nearly ' six 
months since AGVA attempted to 
organize the jurisdiction. Union 
had refrained from picketing while 
decision was being mulled. Mean- 
while, most of the Nassau county 
*; sprits are oh the unfair list, but 
bulk of them have been getting by 
with talent belonging to the Ameri- 
can Federation of Musicians and 
some have been hiring non-union 
acts. 

Dunn Quits H’wood Grade 
Office, Going It on Own 

Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

Henry Dunn has resigned as 
head of the Hollywood branch of 
the*Lew & Leslie Grade. Agency 
to go in business for himself. Dunn 
resigned at the end of his contract 
period, having been with the office 
for three years. Prior to coining 
to the Grade outfit, Dunn was na- 
tional administrative secretary of 
the American Guild of Variety Art- 
ists, and previously was teamed 
with Alan Cross in a vaude and 
cafe turn. 

Temporarily succeeding Dunn in 
the Hollywood post is Elkah Kauf- 
roan, of the Grade’s London office. 
Kaufman recently arrived in the 
IJ.S. from England and went to the 
Coast with Lew Grade, agency’s 
prexy. 


‘Cycles* $45,990. Regina 

Regina, Sask., Feb. 16. 

■‘Ice Cycles of 1954” drew 20,000 
customers and grossed $45,990 dur- 
ing a six-night stand in the Sta- 
dium here which, closed Feb. 6. 
Gross was 25 percent up on last 
year, when the icer played four 
nights. Tickets sold at $2.75, $2.20 
and $1.65. 

Presentation was under Regina 
Inhibition Assn, auspices on a 
60-40 split. 


Hindu Singer's O'Seas Dates 

Amru Sani, Hindu singef now at 
Jvil Sazerac Room of Washington’s 
v>ld New Orleans Club, leaves for 
a cabaret tour of Italy after the 
*>• C. date. ■ 

,. Tjicn she goes to London for a 
■tint. at. a West End supper club, 
^turning to the U. S. in the fall. 


New Des Moines Aud. • 
Pacts Manager at 10G 

Des Moines, Feb 19. 

The Veterans Memorial Audi- 
torium commission has announced 
appointment of Axel H. Reed, man- 
ager of the Mayo Civic Auditorium, 
Rochester, Minn., for the past eight 
years, as general manager of the 
new Des Moines. $5,250,000 audi- 
torium at a salary of $10,000. He 
will report for duty about July 1. 

Reed is president of thie Inter- 
national Assn, of Auditorium Man- 
agers. Before he became manager 
of the Rochester auditorium, his 
work included promotion of Navy 
recruiting and . in trades, sports 
and amusement fields. 

It is expected that the auditori- 
um, now under construction, will 
be open by Jan. 1, 1955. 



The American Guild of Variety 
Artists last week passed a prece- 
dent-seating resolution that would 
make it mandatory for the British 
revue coming into the Flamingo, 
Las Vegas, to have 60% for the 
cast from the U. S. Show, produced 
by Harry Foster, head of the. Fos- 
ter Agency, London, and booked 
through the . William Morris 
Agency, slated to open : April: 15. 
Ron Fletcher will produce, with 
Vera Lynn and Tommy Cooper 
heading the cast. 

Henceforth all foreign variety 
revues will have to conform to the 
percentage of American perform^ 
ers set by the union. 

Grade Feuds With Equity 

London, Feb. 9. ' 

The Lew & Leslie Grade organi- 
zation is at loggerheads with Brit- 
ish Equity. 

Grade has had. several inquiries 
for English chorines for American 
touring musicals, circuses and fairs, 
and closed a deal to export around 
30 gals for these shows, with pay 
to be around $100 per week, 
against the English rate of about 
$20,— Transportation costs were 
also involved. 

Deal has been, stymied by 
Equity, Which is demanding that 
London agents deposit two weeks’ 
salary in advance, plus cost of 
transportation. This would involve 
an advance of about $6,000, which 
the agency is not prepared to do. 

The girls are hoping to override 
Equity opposition, as they are 
anxious to have the new experience 
as well as the extra pay. 

ALBERT, WIFE MARGO 
SET FOR 1ST CAFE DATE 

Eddie Albert and his wife, 
Margo, will team in a nitery act 
which will open at the Waldorf- 
Astoria, N. Y., April 1. It's the 
first cafe date for this tandem. 

Albert & Margo are being 
booked by the William Morris 
Agency. 

New Act: Hildegarde 
And Johnny Johnston 

Hildegarde & Johnny Johnston, 
v,ho recently combined as a new 
act, will make their bow with a 
series of dates on the Statler Ho- 
tel time. Tandem debuts at the 
Statler, Washington, Feb. 26 for 
16 days and then follows with the 
inn time in Detroit, Buffalo and 
Cleveland. 

Duo is also committed to a series 
of concert stands in the midwest 
starting next September. 


‘Capades’ 78G, N. Haven 

New Haven, Feb. 16. 

A full week of “Ice Capades” 
last week (4-10) meant a full till at 
the Arena boxoffice for the steel- 
gliding outfit. 

Show was in for nine perform- 
ances, all SRO. At regular $3.60 
top, plus $4.80 weekend top, 32,000 
stubholders paid an approximate 
$78,000 turnstile fee. 


State, N.Y.; New Act Situation Looms 


Calgary, Alta., Feb. 16. 

The Sonja Henie ice revue has 
been signed for six night perform- 
ances and a matinee in the Stam- 
pede Corral as an added attraction 

at this year’s Calgary Exhibition 
and Stampede. 

It will be the first time an ice- 
show has been presented here in 
midsummer and Miss Henie’s first 
appearance in Western Canada. 



Chicago, Feb. 16, ' 

Chi’s newest cafe, the Encore 
Room, did a fast fold last week 
after less than a five-week tenure 
arid with the new ’show only four 
days in the running. Encore own- 
ers Milt Schwartz and Ralph 
Mitchell said * they dimmed the 
room '■for repairs,” though. ; it’s 
known that biz was sorely off, 
With one weekend show hosting 
only two paying customers. 

Performers on the last card, Leo 
De Lyon, Arthur Walsh and Sheila 
Arnold, were booked for different 
lengths of time — the longest being 
three weeks — and each settled 
separately with the house for the 
unplayed time. Terms of settle- 
ment were not disclosed. The acts 
followed the sock four weeks of 
Artie Shaw and his Gramercy 5, 
evidently before the Randolph St. 
room had established itself in the 
public mind as a showcase* of top 
vaude talent, which it aspired to 
be. 

What the bonifaces will do next 
with their upstairs bistro is open 
to conjecture. Chief problem, as 
they see it, is that the: staircase 
to the Encore leads from the Pre- 
view Lounge downstairs. Both 
Schwartz and Mitchell seem to feel 
that the doorway should locate it- 
self on the street, and it’s likely 
that the repairs whereof they 
spoke are such as would be neces- 
sary to extend the entrance out 
of the Preview Lounge. 

Another problem that has been 
no trifle, as panicky booking of the 
last show bears out, is that the 
3-seat room was unable to book 
name talent at an agreeable price. 
All acts considered deigned to ac- 
cept a percentage deal, and the 
house refused to go out on a limb 
for an expensive drawing card. 

The Encore apparently still has 
serious intentions. It had had a 
quick demise last November after 
two weeks of A1 Morgan, Doodles 
& Skeeter and Maria Velasco, and 
the alibi then was that it was off- 
season for cafes.. Previously, the 
second-floor bistro had been known 
as the Omar . Room and had done 
adequately well with a rumba band 
policy. 



Pittsburgh, Feb. 16. 

Bobby Fife, comedian, and Carl 
Gerold, musical clown, never 
thought their jobs would be per- 
manent at Allen’s Cafe in East Lib- 
erty, but things almost turned out 
that way. The two of them are 
finally closing at Allen’s Saturday 
night (20), Fife after 15 years and 
Gerold after 12. The latter was the: 
comedy drummer in the stage band 
at the Enright Theatre, next door 
to Allen’s, in 1929, when Dick 
Powell was the m.c. there. 

Management of Alien’s has felt 
for some time now the need of 
“new faces” and recently became 
convinced of that when a couple of 
“exotic dancers” were booked in 
with Fife and Gerold. Biz imme- 
diately took a jump. So the, new 
policy will be on the vaude-yariety 
side, with emphasis on femmes. 
Luke Riley, longtime maestro at 
Casino, local burlesque house, and 
Ralph Granada head the new musi- 
cal unit. going into. Allen’s Monday 
(22) and there’ll be plenty girls, 

The 15 years for Fife and the 
even dozen for Gerold constitute 
an all-time record locally for con- 
secutive nitery runs. 


First vaudeville show at .Loew’s 
State, N. Y., since 1947 is in the 
works for Easter week. Negoti- 
ations are still going on for Julius 
LaRosa to play that house, starting 
April 17, for two weeks. Filial ink- 
ing is being held up while Loew 
execs palaver with Local 1 of the 
International Assn, of Theatrical 
Stage Employees, on stagehand re- 
quirements, for the, house. 

LaRosa will be getting a report- 
ed $21,000 guarantee with over- 
ages starting at $105,000. He’ll sup- 
ply the surrounding show and the 
band with Archie Bleyer batoning. 
Others on the show will be Ella 
Fitzgerald, Saxon & Herbert and 
Wells & 4 Fays. General Artists 
•Corp. set the deal. 

For many years Loew’s State has 
been synonymous with vaudeville 
in New York. Until the Palace 
opened, it was the only liv£ talent 



Ottawa, Feb. 16. 

Police clampdowns have closed 
two prominent local niteries, the 
Claudierre and Fairmount. Using 
14 police from Montreal and three 
from Hull, . provincial authorities 
raided the Chaudierre on the Ayl- 
mer Road and Fairmount on the 
Mountain Road, both within a few 
minutes of the heart of Ottawa; 
and seized more than $5,000 in 
liquor; Both dubs lost their li- 
censes to sell liquor and officials 
indicated the places would cancel 
floorshpws and shutter at once. 
Raiding police refused to give rea- 
sons for the raid and license can- 
cellations, but a Montreal provin- 
cial police authority is quoted as 
claiming the clubs were selling 
liquor after legal hours. 

Meanwhile, the Gatineau Club, 
oldest nightspot of the district, is 
closed for extensive renovations 
and redecoration. Gatineau man- 
ager Joe Saxe is in New York look- 
ing over bookings for a mid-March 
reopening of his 1, 000-seat room. 

HAVOC INKED TO NITERY 
DATES; OPENS AT PIERRE 

June Havoc has been signed for 
a series of nitery dales; She’ll open 
at the Cotillion Room, Hotel Pi- 
erre, N.Y., March 23, and thence 
to the Thunderbird Hotel, Las 
Vegas, May 13. 

The dates were booked through 
the Mercury Artists Corp. 

Atlantic City Op Gets 
Cut on Tax Rap Jail Term 

Atlantic City, Feb. 16. 

Fight made by Leroy B, Wil- 
liams, owner of Club Harlem sepia 
spot here, against serving a three- 
year jail term following conviction 
on an income tax rap, has ended 
with Williams gaining a reduction 
of sentence to 18 months, which he 
is expected to start serving at 
once. 

A Federal jury in Camden last 
March found Williams guilty of 
evading ^approximately $10,000 in 
income taxes for 1950 and 1951. He 
was indicted in 1952 by a U. S. 
Grand Jury after hearing special 
revenue agents who were members 
of the “racket squad” probing gam- 
bling in the resort area. 

It Was Williams’ second trial on 
income tax evasion charges. He 
was acquitted during a four-year 
investigation which started here in 
1937 and' ended with the convic- 
tion of Enoch L. Johnson, the then 
Republican boss, in 1941. However; 
Williams was later convictrid on 
charges of perjury and sentenced 
to prison in 1940. 


Draper’s 2d N.Y. Recital 

Paul Draper will give his second 
N. Y. dance recital of the season 
April 4 in Carnegie Recital Hall, 

Tap classicist gave his first Goth- 
am recital in several years at the 
92nd St. YMHA Dec. 16. He’s been 
Working in Europe for some sea- 
sons. 


house on the act standard, the 
other theatres being geared to 
presentation or bandshow format. 

Leo Cohen, who books talent tot, 
the Loew theatres, has been scout*' 
ing around for some time for shows 
that could be set at the State and 
Capitol, both New York; Capitol, 
Washington, and other Loew 
houses in other cities. Paucity of 
suitable names has stymied these 
ventures. . 

However, with the State negoti- 
ations for LaRosa; an entirely new. 
situation is coming into focus. It’s 
no secret that there have been 
many lean weeks in the former 
stageshow houses since they went 
into straight pix. It’s becoming 
evident that big moneymaking 
films are practically as scarce as 
live names that will spell lively 
boxoffice. .. 

The scramble for top pictures is 
so keen that pic distributors have 
been able to tell various vaude 
houses that they will deny them 
their top product, because they do 
riot care to have percentages start 
at the figure which takes iri the 
generally huge stageshow costs. 
Thus the former vaude houses have 
been forced away from live talent. 
After the dropping of stageshow* 
they are then on an equal bidding 
basis with other houses, and then 
find that they can get the top prod- 
uct only occasionally. 

It’s a Long Wait 

However, the former vauders 
have. found that it’s a long wait be* 
tween moneymakers and they can- 
not live on the few fat weeks that 
the film distribs grant them. Many 
have been considering vaudeville 
or some kind of live presentation, 
if. and when suitable talent be- 
comes available. 

The Stale, on the vaude stand- 
ard, got by’ with second run pix 
and first runs that were not of the 
top cut. They may try that policy 
again during the sporadic weeks 
when they have vaudeville. The 
ideal combination for that theatre 
would be stage shows during thie 
times it cannot get the big films. 

The Capitol had been consider- 
ing going back to vaudeville, but 
the tremendously profitable "From 
Here lb Eternity” veered Loew 
execs from that course of thinking. 

Another aspect of tlie State’s re- 
turn to pictures points up the fact 
that it’s possible to make Cinema- 
Scope installations in such a way 
that stageshpws arp stiJI possible. 
State had shown “How to Marry a 
Millionaire” in the anamorphic 
process. 

For performers and talent agen- 
cies, the opening of life State pre- 
sents a new hope that vast amounts 
of talent may again have a theatre 
showcase. Performers such as 
LaRosa fwho previously worked La 
Vie en Rose in New York) had no 
theatrical outlet here. The Palace, 
on the vaude standard, doesn’t 
have that kind of budget, and the 
Radio City Music Hall has np need 
of names because of their presen- 
tation policy. 

It’s also an indication that record 
names may have a showcase. As 
the case of LaRosa ■’indicated to 
many, the faves of juves and teen- 
sters aren’t drawing the mature 
element who can afford to pay '$5 
plus tax minimums at niteries, and 
the youngsters cannot afford that 
kind of tap. Thus the only spot 
they can show locally is in a the- 
atre since nitery economics do not 
dictate drastic enough reductions 
to entice the highschool kids still 
living on an allowance. 

After LaRosa is signed, the 
State will have a new kind of prob- 
lem. It’s been so long since the 
State had stageshows that the 
thought of live talent is no longer 
synonymous with the State. They’ll 
have to get customers back to that 
trend of thinking. 

They’re Still Building 
Hotels in Miami Reach 

Miami Beach, Feb. 16. 

Despite one of the. worst seasons 
in Miami Beach, hotel building 
continues. A new hospice, the 
Fontaihbleu, will be ready for oc- 
cupancy next December. 

It’s being built by Ben Novack, 
who constructed the Saris Souci. 
Erected at a reputed cost of 
$6, 000, 000,. inn will have a large 
room for a nitery operation, as well 
as a ballroom suitable for the con- 
vention trade. 



VAUBEVHJLB 


t4&$B&nr 



(At 51 st Street- — Next to Lindy's) 

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY tSjlh 

' 7i*> -;;■ ' • . ' .■' •, 

With grateful acknowledgement to % our friends in show 


business whose patronage has made this new and larger 


establishment possible 


Gordon Andrews 
Steve Allen 
Buddy Arnold 
Paul Ash 
Jan Arden 
Ray Anthony 
Paul Barry 
Sid Bass 

Nicholas Brodsky 
Ted Brown 
Eric Bernet 
Ben Barton 
Ames Brothers 
Norman Brooks 
Milton Berle 
Joey Bishop 
Larry Best 
Tony Bennett 
Red Buttons 
Milton Blackstone 
Phil Bodner 
Herman Bernstein 
Irv Brebach 
Sam Bramson 
Ray Block 
Jerry Bergen 
Lew Black 
Walter Bloom . 
Jerry Blaine 
Lew Carey 
Roger Coleman 
Jerry Cooper 
Robert Clary 
Richard Carlson 
Cress Courtney 
Co 2 y Cole 
Leo Cohen 
Ralph Curtis 
Bob Carroll 
Myron Cohen 
Lee Cooley 
Tony Curtis 
Larry Darnell 
Lynn buddy 
George DeMarlo 
Paul D' Amato 
Billy Daniels 
Larry Douglas 
Jimmy Durante 
Danny Dayton 
Dagmar 
Bullets Durgom 
Allen Drake . 
Eddie Davis 
Milton DeLygg 
Sammy Davis Jr. 
Billy DeWolf e 
PhH Davis 

Gratefully, 


(Lilted Alphabetically) 

Charlie Drew 
Mickey Deems 
Al Frisch 
Stan Free 
Jerry Field 
Phil Foster 
Eddie Fisher 
Joey Forman 
Freddie Fields 
George Freems 
Benny Fields 
Bernie Green 
George Gilbert 
Jackie Gleason 
Sid Gould 
Sid Gary 
Irving Grey 
Lester Gottlieb 
Sid Garfield 
Dick Gabbe 
Paul Grey 
Harold Gary 
Dick Henry 
Kurt Hoffman 
Bob Hilliard 
Richard Hayes 
Jim Hilliard 
Buddy Howe 
Ray Meatherton 
Jack Hurdle 
Joe Higgins 
Jack Irving 
Nat Keiken 
Marvin Holtzmdn 
Johnny Johnston 
Oscar Katz 
Ray Katz 
Sid Kroft 

Bernie Kamber 
Dick Kallman 
Sonny Kirig 
.Gig Kaye 
Roger Lewis 
Art Lund 
Jay Lawrence 
Four Lads 
Peter Lorre 
Jerry Lewis 
Mario Lewis 
Jack E. Leonard 
Jerry Lester 
Ben Leedy 
Steve Lawrence 
Wynn Lassner 
Pinky Lee 
Gary Morton 
Jack Miller 
Frank Marlow 
Irving Mansfield 


Tom McAvity 
Marty Mills 
Toots Mondello 
Russ Morgan 
Guy Mitchell 
Barry Nelson 
Phil Napoleon 
Lew Nelson 
Jackie Parts 
Lew Parker 
Jack Prince 
Al Perry 
Jules Podell 
Benny Payne 
Byron Palmer 
Jack Philbin 
John Pransky 
Teddy Powell 
Bobby Ramsen 
Archie Robbins 
Buddy Rich 
Don Russell 
Maurice Rocco 
Al Span 
Lop Seiler 
Frank Satenstein 
Dick Shawn 
Herkie Styles , 
Frank Sinatra 
Sonny Sands 
The Skylarks 
Manie Sacks 
Hank Sanicola 
Jules Schacter 
Mike Sloan 
Jules Sty ne 
Bobby Sherwood 
Don Seat 
Danny Scholl 
Henry Slate 
Sid Slate 
Jerry Sager 
Norwood Smith 
Jerry Taylor 
Eric Thorsen 
Mel Torme 
Ivan Tors 
George Treadwell 
Billy Vine 
Bobby Van 
Sam Weiss 
Earl Wilson 
Earl Wrightson 
Art Weems 
Jackie Winston 
Donny Welks 
Allan Walker 
Ralph Watkins 
Florian Zdbdch 



-HABERDASHERS 


Custom Tailors 


Marti Stevens with Don Pippin; 
Milt Shaw and Ray Bari Bands; 
$1.50 and $2.50 convert. 

Slick and .sleek in a stunning 
velvet gown* described by the 
femmes who are up in that depart- 
ment as "typically French,” with 
its moulded waistline and torso, 
Marti Stevens makes an immedi- 
ate sight impact at the St. Regis’ 
Maisonette. She’s also OK for 
sound. 

Possessed of a classy chassis, 
the hourglass couturier, job (with 
its striking flounce effect at the 
bottom) is matched by a savvy 
songalog style which is best suited 
for the chichi environs of i this 
plush Pierre Bultinck bistro. 

Her accent is on popularly ap- 
pealing French ballads— “Douce- 
men” is a good new. one, as is 
“Chez Moi”— and she mixes it up 
With “Young-At-Heart,” “Three 
Coins In The Fountain,” “Birth of 
the Blues,” “1 Love Paris,’* “C’est 
Magnifique,” “Pigalle” and “Auf- 
Wiederseh’n,” indeed a United Na- 
tions pot-pourri. . 

Miss Stevens has-been doing 
her stuff in the intermediary 
league boites like the Blue Apgel 
and the schooling has stood her 
ih good stead for^the big league 
Maisonette. The fact that she is 
Loew’s Inc.* prexy Nick Schenck’s 
daughter is no secret by now, but 
she has long since proved that her 
show biz talents lie in a different 
direction from the film tycoon. 
Latter would have to concede his 
daughter has been evidencing a 
sophisticated song style of merit 
that requires no nepotism to com- 
mand attention. 

Per usual, .the suave dansapa- 
tion of Milt Shaw’s "society” band 
is . tiptop backer-upper for the 
songstress and the hoofing cus- 
tomers alike, and the alternating 
Ray Bari combo is likewise in 
the tradition. Maitre d\ August 
will be a busy kid during this 
semester. Abel. 

. t 1 

Palmer House, Clii 

Chicago, Feb. 11. 

Romo Vincent, .Robert Maxioell, 
Federico Rey & Pilar Gomez, Em- 
pire tight, Emil Coleman Orch 
(TO); $3.50 minimum, $1 cover. 

The next four weeks at the Em- 
pire Room of this Hilton hostelry 
will be agreeably diverting, and 
the present spread should do all 
right at the door, even in these 
times of slack cafe biz. There are 
quite a few doctors in the house ; 
to deliver the hypo, as the medi- 
cos are holding conclave On these 
premises currently. Variegated 
layout keeps them applauding 
zealously. ' 

It’s rotund Romo Vincent’s first 
appearance in this room, though 
he’s familiar* in town from yearly 
dates at other niteries, and he. 
keeps the dignified clientage warm- 
ly engrossed in his dialect mono- 
logs. He’s a relaxed performer 
whose conversational delivery, 
table-touring and self-mockery set 
him amiably with the crowd, and 
he sustains an idiom of humor that 
never hits the belly but always 
succeeds in rousing a steady round 
of chuckles. 

Robert Maxwell is greeted by a 
strong following here w h i c h 
awards him an ovation for pop, 
classical and novelty harpistry and 
personable patter between times. 
In a dim blue spot he sprinkles an 
artful “Ebb Tide,” a tune which he 
authored, and follows with a lively 
Olio of tinkling Charleston music 
and “12th Street Rag,” simulating 
piano. From small harp he issues 
a medley of oldtime faves and, re- 
verting back to the large instru- 
ment, caps his segment on pol- 
ished Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 
by Liszt. His fluid fingerings earn 
him a loud begoff . 

Castanet-clicking terp team of 
Federico Rey & Pilar Gomez reaps 
bravos and pies in the second spot 
for nimble editions of flamenco 
and Spanish peasant dances. Light- 
footed Rey gets a big mitt for solo 
on 18th century bolero and, with 
Miss Gomez, who displays, plenty 
Of Verve and tasteful comedy in 
her footwork. Lcs. 

Itasin Sdreot, X* Y. 

Sylvia Syms, Bobby Hackett and 
Buck Clayton Bands ; $2.50 mini- 
mum, $1 general admission. 

The new Basin Street Club 
which shuttered for a lew Weeks 
after initially experimenting with 
dual room operation, has now re- 
opened with a straight music policy 
in a hep groove. While the nearby 
Birdland is stressing the bop or 
progressive idiom, this spot is rid- 
ing with the Dixieland and swing 
rhythms for the more traditionally- 


minded clientele. With future book- 
ings including such names as Louis 
Armstrong* Lionel Hampton and 
Woody Herman, Basin Street, is 
now among the few remaining 
showcases for big bands in New 
York, 

The current show adds up to a 
neat getaway for the new pohey, 
with two fine combos and a sock 
song stylist in Sylvia Syms. Miss 
Syms, who has developed a large 
following in Greenwich Village via 
her regular Village Vanguard book- 
ings, is a smart,: sophisticated song- 
stress who knows how to bend a 
note with the best. She’s most ef- 
fective on the rhythm numbers, 
such as “Love Me or Leave Me” 
and calypso numbers, which she 
projects with drive and humor. 
Her handling of such numbers as 
“September Song” and “These 
Foolish Things” is also marked by 
a savvy attack that compensates for 
a slight vocal weakness on the bal- 
lad long notes. 

In the Dixieland manner, Bobby 
Hackett, with a lineup of top side- 
men, works over the oldtime favo- 
rites with bounce and color, Hac- 
kett’s trumpet is complemented by 
Lou McGarrity’s trombone and 
Hank D’Amico’s clarinet against a 
rhythm section consisting of Cliff 
Leeman on drums, Lou Stein on 
piano and Arnold Fisherman on 
bass. 

Buck Clayton, another standout 
trumpet man, heads a fine quartet. 
This combo really moves under 
Clayton’s swinging horn and Jim- 
my Crawford’s flexible skinbeat- 
ing. Group also supplies expert 
accompaniment to Miss Syms. 

Berm. 

Sands* Las Vegas 

_ Las Vegas, Feb. 10. 

. Tallulah Bankhead (with Dean 
Fuller), Merv Griffin, Page & 
Bray, Copa Girls (10), Ray Sinatra 
Orch (12);- no cover or minimum. 

* — - 

Tallulah Bankhead, who made 
an auspicious nitery debut here 
last year, is just as sparkling in her 
second try. With the Copa Room 
sold out a week in advance, solid 
biz is assured throughout the four- 
weeker. Accolades underline the 
entire 30-minute stint, despite the 
fact that Tallu presents the same 
act second time around. Only ex- 
ception is a brief funny piano bit 
as Liberace’s sister.” 

Headliner’s personality presents 
contrasts. . There’s the. main dra- 
matic bit, Dorothy Parker’s mono- 
log, A Telephone Call.” There’s 
also the hilarious gambling skit 
wherein an innocent gal enters a 
rumpus room” (casino); and dis- 
cover? a character named Nicholas 
the Greek. 

Miss Bankhead, attired in long 
white gown, jewels and a white 
£ u i er r/ rock , is striking in her short 
bob. Star’s profunda vocal of “Bye 
Bye Blackbird,” with a fast 
Charleston terp to .wind it is a no- 
talent bid that evokes top mirth re- 
action, and may also be Tallu’s 
tongue-in-check opinion of night- 
club entertainment. Withal, hoy- 
denish quality of the Bankhead 
personality is .most refreshing. 
Dean Fuller, leading the Ray Sin- 
atra orch and accompanying star 
at piano, ^proves outstanding in 
support. Gus Schirmer staged the 
act. 

Producer Jack Entratter has 
woven okay support led by young 
warbler Merv Griffin, Freddy Mar- 
tin alumnus, who pleases in croon- 
ing of “Tenderly.” He belts 
“Stranger In Paradise” for gobd 
returns. “No Business Like Show 
Business’, is well done with excep- 
tion of a few impressions. 

Making ■ their initial American 
appearance are Page & Bray, 
yciuthful French dance team. They 
display undoubted artistry in a 
colorful adagio, and their acro- 
batic offerings net salvos. 

Copa girls shine in a pair of 
numbers, most effective being the 
handsomely costumed “Manhattan 
Serenade,” a rhythmic impression 
of the blues that features Charles 
Nelson on vocals. Bob. 


We ffnee day, Febnury 17, 1954 

U VI© em Rose, X Y. 

Vic Damone, Lenny Kent & Rose 
Marie, Van Smith and Jovita 
Orchs, $5 minimum. 


It’s possible that Vic Damone s 
opening session at Monte Proser’s 
spa was sabotaged by the nearly 
an hour of entting up which pre- 
ceded him, Lenny Kent & Rose 
Marie, who formed a team a few 
months back, must have gone 
through thejr entire repertoire- 
solo and paired— but they were on 
the winning side during most of 
the route and they got off while 
still ahead (see New Acts). 

Thus it became a matter of com - 
parative talent in the see-if-l-can- 
top-you sweepstakes and Damon > 
just didn’t have that impact here 

One of the basic negatives in the 
Damone stint is over-production, 
wherein most every number be- 
comes a Federal case, what with a 
dark room and those spots prod- 
ding the singer from various an- 
gles. He doesn’t have the weight 
to support such heavy atmosphere, 
not to mention that his act isn’t 
gaited for a change of pace. In 
this largely one-dimensional stint, 
it’s easy for the customers to bo- 
come uneasy. And if you can t 
rivet: their attention, you’re a dead 
duck. 

Damone’s equipment is no more 
limited ; than dozens of other vo- 
calists whose selling appeal virtues 
measure the difference. He’s a 
pleasant sort with a will to please, 
but he isn’t giving himself much 
leeway in an introductory set of 
mostly slow-paced numbers over- 
dosed on the pashy side and not 
. (Continued on page 52) 




RED CAPS 

with 

DAMITA JO 

Currently: 

GIRO'S, Miami Beach 

Direction: MCA 



Management 
HESS MAYER 

420 MADISON AVE. 
New York PL 5-4544 




WHEN IN BOSTON 

It's Me 

HOTEL AVERY 

The Home of Show Folk 

Avery ft Washington Sts. 


FIRST TIME ON NEW YORK STAGE 
TOWN HALL, February 29, Sunday Evening, 8:30 

FOLK SONGS of the PHILIPPINES 

CATALINA ZANDUETA, Soprano 

ALBETRTO VALDES BLAIN, Guitarist— - 5 Authentic Cos turn* Changes 
Pars. Hep.: JOLYON WYRZYKOWSKI, 331 E. 23d Street T«|. MUrray HIM 9 2573 


PHIL LAWRENCE and MITZI 

Youth on Tap 

Currently: MOTEL STATLER, Buffalo. N. Y. 
Opening: Fob. IS, NEIL HOUSE, Columbus, O. 

Dir.: GENERAL ARTISTS CORE. M,t.: KEN GREEN6RASS 



51 


Wednesday* February 17, 1954 








»> * 

# 




from ANNA SOSENKO 

re: HILDEGARDE 
and JOHNNY JOHNSTON 

TO: . . . LAWRENCE BARNETT 
MCA ARTISTS LTD. 


Dear Larry: 

After an association qf several years, you can imagine how exciting it was to learn that 
your associates, JOHN DUGAN, DAVID BAUMGARTEN and JACK TALENT fall men whom 
I not only like personally but who are wonderful ropresentatiyes) were excited about the 
Idea of MV TEAMING HILDEGARDE WITH JOHNNY JOHNSTON! . . . so much so . . . that 
they immediately went out and booked the aat for months in advance. When you've been 
at this business as long as I have one can understand an occasional lagging of enthusiasm. 
But this merely proves the agent will always be as good as the idea which inspires him, 
no matter how many years the agent and artist are working together. 


I was on the coast when I happened to hear JOHNNY JOHNSTON at the Biltmore Bowl 
with a friend of mine who was interested in him for another project. I met his manager 
SAM WEILER, who is the kind of a manager people dream about. Out of the blue. l envis- 
ioned a wonderful act between HILDEGARDE AND JOHNSTON. I could see some delight* 
fful moments during which they'd be singing nostalgic songs. HILDEGARDE playing the 
piano, and JOHNSTON playing the guitar. I could see some fun between them with the 
harmonica which he also plays. I imagined a charming dance routine. (It won't upset 
th^ dance business but it will be amusing and they will get "A" for effort, I am sure.) 

I believe it has the makings of a FINE, CLEAN. CHARMING. COLORFUL AND ENTER- 
TAINING SHOW and it will have that WHOLESOME AMERICAN LOOK ABOUT IT. 

Let's face N Larry, John, David and Jack ... people are getting SO MUCH ENTERTAIN- 
MENT for NOTHING TODAY, they are SURFEITED. When people go out and have to 
PAY A COVER CHARGE they have the RIGHT TO EXPECT the ULTIMATE IN IMAGINA- 
TION, VITALITY, ELEGANCE and lasf BUT CERTAINLY NOT LEAST.. . ENTERTAINMENT! 

I found JOHNNY JOHNSTON a very talented artist of skill and enormous charm. What 
I think of HILDEGARDE is "generally known" don't you all think? She can't possibly be 

more wonderful than ( always said she w as ' 1 1 1 

To those people who query this move let me state that those who know mb in the the- 
atre know I am one of those mercurial managers. I get aS RESTLESS as the artist and 
that's saying a lot. I believe IN "CHANGE " as much as I believe IN THE NEEb TO 
EAT TO SURVIVE. But. I beli.v. in "CHANGE" VVHEN IT IS LEAST EXPECTED. HILPE- 
GARDE has proven the point that she is! a SUPERB "ONE WOMAN SHOW*'. She and I 
know we are not in business to GO ON "PROVING". We are in business to give the pub- 
lic the MOST EXCITING ENTERTAINMENT IT IS WITHIN HILDEGARDE'S POWER TO 
^ PROVIDE AND WITHIN MINE TO DIRECT AND PRODUCE. It is my firm conviction 
the public will welcome the type of show HILDEGARDE and JOHNNY -JOHNSTON are 
now rehearsing, It will be a simple, warm and charming show which we all HOPE every- 
one will love. WE'LL TRY. Most heartwarming for the moment, however, is the way 
managements have been calling for future bookings. WHO CAN ASK FOR ANYTHING 
MORE? 

The new musical conductor, arranger, and pianist is the brilliant musician OSCAR 
KOSARIN. HILDEGARDE'S superb violinist accompanist, ROBERT NORRIS, contjues 
on. ROY SOMLYO will be in charge of production. SOLTERS AND O'ROURKE are han- 
dling press relations. By the way, your own press department has been very coopera- 
tive, and we are thankful. You know that SIEGEL AND SPIEGLER have been our long 
time accountants and MARTIN J. DESMONI has been our attorney for many years. 
They will Continue to function for H ILDEGARDE and me. SAM WEILER has a fine 
personnel for JOHNNY JOHNSTON. MEANWHILE CONTINUE TO CALL ME ABOUT 
THE BO OKINGS. YOU'VE MADE US ALL VERY HAPPY. I can't sign off on this memo 
without asking you to thank John Grandi of the Stqtler Hotel Company for coming up 
first with the bookings for the five Statler hotels. 

Sincerely and with thanks, I am 


Manager • . . Director . . . Producer • • « 

FOR HILDEGARDE. 

Now Working in Cooperation with 

SAM WEILER In the Joint Interests 

Of HILDEGARDE and JOHNNY JOHNSTON 


v 


Wednesday, Febraary 17, 1954- 



ACTA Ba&ed on Lakewood, NX tons’ 



A series of court orders is sty- 
mieing the American Guild of 
Variety Artists' plan to organize 
Lakewood, N. J. Union’s executive 
board had already voted to put 
that resort area on the unfair list, 
when the Lakewood Hotel Assn, 
attorneys, Laporte & Meyers, ob- 
tained two ex-parte orders which 
have the effect of enjoining any 
action until court hearings take 
place. First order, was obtained 
last week in Lakewood* . which 
would not have prevented AGVA 
from taking action against Lake- 
vood from New York. However, 
a second order taken in the N. Y. 
Federal Court made the injunctive 
movefc completely effective. 

Legality of one action was con- 
tested by AGVA, which .declared 
that the Jersey order had been 
served fraudulently. According to 
the union, a committee of inn- 
keepers had been negotiating with 
union reps in Lakewood when the 
hotelmen asked for caucus. When 
they returned to the conference 
room, a marshal accompanied 



BILLY GILBERT 

Currently 

COLONY CLUB 

DALLAS, TEXAS 

Personal Mgt.:— DAVID L. SHAPIRO 
1774 Broadway, N. Y. Cl 5-5368 


COMEDY MATERIAL 

For All Branches of Theatricals 

FUN-MASTER 

me ORIGINAL SHOW-BIZ GAG file 
(The Service of tho STARS) 

First of 15 flies $7.00— All 35 Issues $22 
Singly: $1.05 Each IN SEQUENCE ONLY 
Beginning with No. I— No Skipping) 

6 3 Bks. PARODIES, per book. .$10 • 

• MINSTREL BUDGET....:... $25 • 

• 4 BLACKOUT BKS., oa. bk...$25 • 

• BLUE BOOK (Gags for Stags) $50 • 
HOW TO MASTER THE CEREMONIES 

$3.00 

GIANT CLASSIFIED ENCYCLOPEDIA 
>OF GAGS, $300. Worth over a thousand 
No C.O.D.'s 

BILLY GLASON 

200 W. 54th St., Now York 19— Dept. V 
Circle 7-1130 


CHICAGO HAIR GOODS COMPANY 
428 So; Wabash Ave. Chicago 5, II 


Latest Comedy M aterial 

for MC'i, Magicians, Enter- 
tainers, ate. Send (or our 
latest price list of great 
ORIGINAL gagflles, mono- 
loos, dialogs, parodies, 
skits, etc. Written by show 
biz top gagmen. Or send 
$10 for $50 worth of above. 
Money back If hot satisfied. 

LAUGHS UNLIMITED 

106 W. 45 St., N. Y., N. Y.. JU 2-0J73 



them, and the injunction was 
served. 

The order forbids AGVA to re- 
strain its members from working 
the Lakewood hotels, enjoins the 
union from talcing action against 
members and agents to service that 
area, and forbids any action on the 
Lakewood matter until the issue, 
is decided In court. Papers are re- 
turnable in New York tomorrow 
(Thurs.y. Both these orders rescind 
AG YA’s unfair action against the 
re sort inns. >. : ■ 

‘Hit and Run' Claim 

According to AGVA the ex-parte 
move had been made out the day 
before the. scheduled; conference, 
but* opposing attorney said it was 
made out the same day. ’ 

Counsel for the hotelmen claim 
that this procedure had to be fol- 
lowed in order to protect “people 
who own property In Lakewood 
against 'hit and run artists’/’ At- 
torney stated that in December 
“two gentlemen from AGVA came 
before several . hotelmen in Decem- 
ber arid shoved a paper in front of 
them in the half-light and said 
.‘sign this.’ When they refused the 
shows were pulled from three ho- 
tels.” Legalite. stated he wanted 
no repetition of this incident. And 
when it appeared after prelimi- 
nary parleys that no agreements 
would be reached, the court order 
was served on AGVA. 

However, AG V A claimed . trick- 
ery in the service and stated that 
the fact that the paper was taken 
out in advance of the parley indi- 
cated that they were not bargain- 
ing in good faith. 


Martino Seffor 12-Week 
Brit Vande-Concert Tour 

London, Feb, 16. 

Al Martino is set for a J 2-weeks’ 
tour of variety theatres and con- 
cert dates throughout Britain, com- 
mencing May 17. He was here for 
the first time last summer, • and 
made a big impact with his fort- 
night’s stint at the London Palla- 
dium plus out-of-town dates. 

This time he will not be play- 
ing the Palladium but will head- 
line the big variety theatres 
around the country. Lew & Leslie 
Grade are handling the four. 



Night Club Reviews 


Continue 4 from, part M 


Xe VIA En Rose 

particularly well arranged for his 
pipes. 

Best of his middle hook are 
“Our Love Is Here to Stay” and 
“Can’t Take That Away From Me,” 
but the &gue into an announced 
medley of standards doesn’t get 
off the ground. If he wants to do 
“Ebb Tide,” that’s his * business, 
but the lyric Is lost under an in- 
strumental shroud. Okay on a fin- 
ishing “Why Was I Born.” Good 
backing by piano, drums and bass 
throughout"’ a most difficult array 
in which Damone appeared to be 
suffering from preem jitters. 

Trau. 


Waldarl-Asioria, N. Y. 

Connie Russell, Bob Hamilton 
Trio i Nat Brandwynne and Mischa 
Borr Orchs; $2 cover, $2,50 week- 
ends . " , 


218G D.C. Take 
Points Up Strong Yalue 




Indications of the coin that can 
be made in ; display of iceshows 
when a town is evenly apportioned 
is seen by the fact that the show- 
ing of “Ice Capades” at the Uline 
Arena, Washington, scored .the 
highest blades gross. in the history 
of the house, beating the previous 
high by almost $30,000. Show 
scored $218,000 in 14 performances 
recently, having made a terrific ! 
comeback from last season, when 
Show hit just a little more thJn its 
expenses. Last season, other icers 
shows dropped a healthy wad in 
the Capital. 

Washington’s “Ice Capade” gross 
is supplying an object lesson to the 
big freeze entrepreneurs. There 
will be two displays there with 
Arthur Wirtz’s “Hollywood Ice Re- 
vue” slated for April 6, and good 
grosses for that show are indi- 
cated. 

This is contrasted to last year, 
when Sonja Hepie. played almost 
at the same time as "Ice Follies.” 
She didn’t do tc\ well herself, and 
at the same time drained off 
enough of the “Follies” coin to 
make it a losing proposition. 


Columbus, Feb. 16. 

All liquor advertising copy in 
Ohio must be submitted to the 
State Liquor Dept, for approval be- 
fore publication, or display, it was 
revealed last week by Anthony J. 
Rutkowski, state liquor director, 
who originally issued the order on 
Jan. 21. 

Under the ruling, all printed ad- 
vertising. dealing with alcoholic 
beverages must be submitted to an 
advertising committee of the de- 
partment headed by Joseph Har- 
rell, assistant director, The order 
is intended to prevent any “abuses” 
arising in the future. The. rule 
does not apply to beer advertise- 
ments on radio and television. 

Already there are reports that 
the committee is not approving the 
copy fast enough and a backlog of 
the stuff has accumulated in the 
basement of the liquor department 
awaiting the group’s action. 

Meanwhile, legal objections were 
heard. Paul R. Gingher, counsel 
for the Ohio Newspaper Assn., 
said: “We never have objected. to, 
and have even assisted in, drafting 
certain standards which liciuor. ad- 
vertising should follow. However, 
we always have been unalterably 
opposed to the principle of censor- 
ship in any form, including prior 
approval of advertising, regardless 
of the character of the advertis- 
ing.” ' 


Shamrock, Houston - 

_ , « Houston, Feb. 9. 
Carl Ravazza, Harbers & Dale 
Paul; Neighbors Orch; $1.50-$2.50 
cover. 


Nashua Bars Christine 

Nashua, N. H., Feb. 16. 

Christine Jorgensen will not 
be permitted to make a public ap- 
pearance in this city, it has been 
announced by a majority of the 
City Licensing Board. 

There had been no formal appli 
cation for a permit* but Police 
Chief Joseph L. Regan said a Lo- 
well, Mass., nightclub operator had 
asked if the performer could bring 
shim to Nashua. 

Christine had been banned from 
the Lowell clubs, as well as the 
Latin Quarter in Boston. 


Vaude, Caife Dates 


New York 

Eileen Barton tapped for the 
Latin Quartet*, Boston, March 8 . . . 
Charlivels set for the* Shamrock 
Hotel, Houston, March 30, follow- 
ing a stand at the Edgewater Beach 
Hotel, Chicago, March 5 . . . Peggy 
Ryan & Ray McDonald pacted for 
tiie Helen Traubel show at the Co- 
pacabana, N. Y., next Thursday 
<25). Joey Bishop assigned to the 
comedy spot on that card . . . 
Billy Sheppard on a ‘holdover ses^ 
sion at the* Chateau. Rochester . . , 
Eddy Arnold and Andy Griffith set 
for the Feb. 24 session at the 
Olympia Theatre, Miami . . . Chan- 
dra Kaly Dancers to the Seville 
Theatre, Montreal, March 25 ... . 
Tony Carter at the Rustic Cabin, 


Combination of Connie Russell 
and the Bob Hamilton Trio gives 
the Empire Room a colorful attrac- 
tion of unusual appeal. 

Miss Russell (see New Acts) is a 
songstress with a big voice, . charm, 
looks and refreshing vitality, who 
gives each number, a distinctive 
treatment, while excelling in the 
novelty ditties. 

Miss Russell is preceded by the 
Boh Hamilton Trio, w.k; dance 
combo from tv’s “Show of Shows,” 
who put on a fast, entertaining 
show. Hamilton, who works out his 
own choreography, is accompanied 
by Florence Baum and Helena Se- 
roy, two lookers with plenty of ab- 
ility and an uncanny sense of 
rhythm. v 

Show, which has the trio in sync 
motion most .of the time, starts off 
with “Blacksmith Blues,” which 
warms up the customers. Next 
Hamilton does a takeoff on . Fear- 
less Fosdick, the comic strip de- 
tective, with the gals terping the 
parts of two hoods. “Artistry in 
Bolero,”, by Stan Kenton, is a 
briefly that allows a change of 
pace.' 

Final number, “Crazy Man, 
Crazy,” a takeoff on jitterbuggirig, 
shows the trio to. best advantage^ 
in a. • sock routine. They’re top 1 
pantomime dancers witty a distinct 
flair for the unusual. Trio ' does 
wonders on the small floor, with 
Hamilton standout and getting fine 
support from his femme partners. 
Costuming is colorful and imagina- 
tive. Nat Brandwynne orch is in 
great form for both acts. Mischa 
Borr is relief. tiift./ 

Village Vanguard. V. Y. 

Trade Adams , Will Holt, Enid 
Mosier, Clarence Williams Trio; $3 
|. minimum. 


Whether stomping through a bop 
number or whispering a dreamy 
moonlight routine, Carl Ravazza 
can flip on the charm switch . H i$ 
second two-week stint in the Sham- 
rock' Hotel’s Emerald Room is sure- 
fire. The personable crooner is a 
sock hit. 

He hits them hard with “My 
Lady Loves to Dance”, and then 
quiets them down with a whis- 
pered non-music interpretation the 
“Old Master Painter.” A comedy, 
vein “Always Marry a Woman 
Uglier Than 'You" is followed by a 
deep-South boogie, “Rock, Rock 
Rock.” " ’ 

He spread a clever Little Pedro 
number next and audience reaction 
proves it favorite. A calypso 
number follows in the same spirit. 
As a closer, Ravazza relaxes in a 
chair and rims through a group of 
nostalgic numbers that score 
sharply. 

Harbers & Dale present dance 
routines done in sophisticated 
manner. Splitting their move- 
ments, part acrobatic and the rest 
smooth ballroom manners* they ‘re 
especially Well received. 

Paul Neighbor’s orchestra back- 
grounds the show commendably and 
plays for dancing. They’re fin- 
ishing a two-month stand at the 
Shamrock and are a cinch for an- 
other repeat. Jedo, 


THE 


KIRBY STONE 





Currently 

LAST FRONTIER 

LAS VEGAS 

• 1 

Mgt,: WILLIAM MORRIS 
Agency 





Gene Krupa bill, Saturday (20). 

Denise Darccl has been rebooked 
for. the Cotillion Room, Pierre Ho- 
tel, starting May 4. . .Johnnie Ray 
to the Seville Theatre, Montreal, 
starting tomorrow (Thurs.). . . Nejla 
Atcs starts at Cafe Society, Feb, 
22 ...Bob Manning down for the 
Celebrity Club, Providence, March 
1. : Kay Thompson to start at the 
Palmer House, Chicago, March 11 
. .Jack Carter tapped for the Bali- 
nese Room, Galveston, May 7. 


Although current bill at the Vil-. 
lage Vanguard, is shy on name tal- 
ent. nitery has a, sock attraction in 
holdover chirp Trade Adams. 
Songstress, who’s new to the 
Gotham bistro belt, gives out with 
some vibrant piping. Distaffer has 
a solid repertoire that ranges from 
standards to special material. In 
latter vein her bit. about European 
cars is a Sure pleasei*. Tune de- 
liveries include “I Get a Kick Out 
of You,” “Someone to Watch Over 
Me” and„ “Come Rain or - Come 
Shine.” .... 

Following Miss Adams, who. 
opens the show, is folksinger Wilt 
Holt, reviewed under New Acts;, 
Closing frame is handled by Negro 


Englewood Cliffs, N. J.. on . the- singer Enid Mosier. Femme .who 


Hollywood 

Les Paul & Mary Ford set to re- 
turn to Hollywood for a two-week 
stand at the Cocoanu't Grove, start- 
ing April 21 . . , Norman Brooks 
made his Coast bow last night 
iTues.) at Mocambo * . . Joyce Tay- 
lor, Mercury Records vocalist, 
opened at Billy Gray’s Band Box 
Monday (15) with Buddy Lester * 
Byron Palmer debuts his new act 
Feb. 24 at the Sands, Las Vegas 

. . Julius LaRosa follows Billy 
Daniels into Ciro’s Feb. 26 . . . 
Rus3 Black, former; keyboard ac- 
companist for Dorothy Shay, opens 
late this month at Bob Hall’s Wild 
Goose in Sherman Oaks, replacing 
Marvin Ash . . . Irene Ryan set for 
a return date at the Park Lane, 
Denver . . . Jad Paul, singing pian- 
ist, held over at Pete and Billy 
Snyder's Melody Room* 


bowed at this Greenwich Village 
spot last September, is still in need 
of stronger material. At show 
caught she failed to register with 
anything of an exciting nature. Gal 
performs in a tight-fitting gown 
and in one number puts her cos?- 
tume to advantage via some stren- 
uous body movements. A more 
vitaminized songalog, however, is 
necessary. 

Neat show backing and rhythmic 
tunes for customer terping are pro- 
vided by the Clarence Williams 
Trio, regulars at this cellar in- 
timery. Norman Martin, Miss 
Adams’ husband in private life, 
dispenses keyboard accompani- 
ment for his spouse., Jess.' 


LEW 


BLACK 

and 

DUNDEE 

(Beauty and 
. the Least) 

A ritw noli ln 
Glamor Comedy 

UUged'by 
Mervyn Nelson 

’ —mgt.'— ■ ~ 
Cait FrlnRlin .. 
Lou Walters: Ent. 

. 1 576 Broadway . 
. Hew York 



A. GUY VISK 

wfiting Enterprises 

presents 

"BEST COMEDY BITS" 

- Bk. of 5 professional acts: $5/ 
Monologues, Sketches- and Pantomimicry 

94 Hill Street - Troy, N, Y. 

. (The Mirthplace. of Show Biz) 


MIND READING ACT 

T,B. forces sole of finest Mental Code 
in .biz. Act complete or Code only. 
Also single act. 

WILLIAM BARNETT 

1167 So. Hoover,* Los Angeles, Calif, 


W ANT E D 

Female piano accompanist for male 
singer. Must be tops in technique and 
ability; . able to arrange. Attractive, 
smart dresser. Know jazz and other, 
styles. ; Some traveling. Write or 
phone for appointment. , Sid Shayev 
1776 B'way, N.Y. Circle 5-8628— Room 
1907. 


Sweethearts of Song < 

HERB and BETTY WARNER 

Currently 

BRITISH COLONIAL HOTEL 


A' 


Nassau, Bahamas 

THANKS - JIMMY GRADY 




Wednesday, February 17, 1954 






■ '■ ' '7v, '/>s J 

ww#- I 

’ V- j 

S r 1 

y/r/f/S*\fy I 

Wifi?. 

■//WM, 



1 ^- - 




, ^ 
•>$? 


> A * 

<V 

. i 


OPENING FEB, 17th for 2 WEEKS 

COCOANUT GROVE 

Ambassador Hotel, Los Angeles 


OPENING MARCH 11th for 4 WEEKS 

Empire Room 

WALDORF-ASTORIA 


NEW YORK 


>1 

" ' .yCdfS 






■> " 
V' 
'V'/ 


Personal Management 
TlD BAUMFELD 

Press Relations 
ART FRANKLIN 


fsy I 

-47t* 

» a* 


Bookings— 





Wednesday, February 17,. . 1934 


VARIETY BILLS 

WEEK OF FEBRUARY 17, 1954 
Numerals in c»nn«ctl«n with bills toslow Indies!* *p*nlnf Say •» show 
whether full *r spill WMk 

Letfer In parentheses Indlcafaa circuit. (I) Independent! (LUmwHM) Maul 
<P> Paramaunt! <R> RKOi (S) Stoll; IT) Tivoli; <W> Warner 


US VtOASr NEVADA 


NSW YORK ciTY L Armstrong All S 


Arlyne Frank . 
GentsMell 
Brunhilda Roque 
Jayne Hornby 
Wally Boag 


. Ivanova 
Rockettes . 

Corps de Ballet 
Sym Ore 

Palace ID It 

Vallls 

Nightingales - 

Henny Nadel 

L Blue & Yvette 

Pigmeat Co 

Appletona 

Rosa A La Pierre 

Fontaines 

CHICAGO 
Chicago <P> 19 
: Gilbert A Russell 
Bobby Jule ■ ■ ' 

Larry Best 


C Williams Bd 
Eddie Vinson 
Checkers 
Pea Lea Bates 
Freddy A". Flo 
MIAMI 

Olympia IP) 17 
CecU Shirley 
Steve Martin 
Susan Brooks ' 


Copacabsna 

Tony Bennett 
Myron Cohen ' . 
Cerneys 

Lorraine A Brunner 
Sandy Evans 
M Ourso lire , . 
Frank Marti Ore 

..Hotel Ambassador 

Jules Lands Ore 


Lester Lanin Ore 
Jan Brunesco Ora 
Hotel Statlor 
Horace Heldt 
Hotel Taft 
yinront Lopes. Ore 
■.Otlin Quarter 
Doodles A Skeeter 
LAM Murray 
Mon Toy . 


Detort Inn 

Jackie Miles _ 

Lea Charlivels 
Betty Reilly 
Cl Cortes 
Nick Lucas 
Wild B Davis Trip: 
£ Skrivanek Ore . 

. Flaming* 
Yreddy Martin Ore 

Last Frontier 
Ronald Reagan 
Blackburn Twins 
Evelyn Ward 
The. Continentals 
Honey Bros 
Golden Nugeet 
Jimmy Kennedy 
Ben.Berl 
Pittl Joy . 

Joe Venutl Ore 
Sands 

Tallulah Bankhead 


Cl Rancho Vogat 

Harry James Ore 
Marilyn Canter 

Sahara 

Kathryn Grayson 
Jack Carter 
Sujata A Aaoka 
Cec Davldsoh Ore 
• Silver Slipper ' 
Maxle Rosenbloom 
Hank Henry: , 
Sparky Kaye 
Nicholas Trio 
Bill Willard . 
Jimmie Cavanaugh 
Virginia Dew 
Bill Willard 
Joan White 
G Redman's Ore 
Thunderblrd 
Dlosa Costello 
Slate Bros 
A1 JahnsOrc 



LENNY KENT tc ROSE MARIE 
Comedy* Snots . 

55 Mins. w 

La VieEnRose, N. Y. 


CONNIE RUSSELL 

Songs 

25 Mins. 

Waldokf-Aatorla, N. Y. 


Le Vie in Rost IbarvasA Julia 


RENO 


Vic Damone 
Lenny Kent 


Frlaara A Reynolds Rose Marie 


June Havoc ■■ . . 
SALT LAKE CITY 


Van Smith Ore 
No. I Fifth Avo 


Capitol (F) 20 only Jimmy Komack 


Festival Modern 
American Jazz 
Stan Kenton Ore 
Dizzy Gillespie 
ErroU Garner 
June Christy 
Charlie Parker 
Lee Kohitz 
Candido 


AUSTRALIA 

AUCKLAND Moreno* 

St. James (T) 15 Muracs 
Walton A O'Rourke Max Blake , 
Charly Wood Co * Seyler Heylen 


Charmonlzers 
Bob Downey 
Harold Fonvlllo 
Hazel Webster 
Old Roumanian 
Sadie Banka 
Billy Vine 
•loe LaPorte Ore 
D’AoulIa Ore 
Two Guitars 
Vladimir . Rozhen 
Lubov Hamshay 
MishaUzdanofF 
Senia Karavaeff 
Misha Markoff 


Lee Sharon 
Rob Murray 
T Ashtons 
Ruby Richards 
Art Wane; Ore. 

B Harlow* Ore 

Lo Ruben Bleu 
Julius Monk 
Jonathan Winters 
l8sbella..Roblns 
Artie Johnson 
Jackson Sisters 
N Parris Trio 
Versatile* 

"Nice To See : You* 
Fay. DeWltt 
Don Llberto 
Georgle Kaye 
A1 Norman 
Lou - Nelson 


Lowe A Ladd . 
Cook A Jeans' 
Parcsco 3 
Guy .Nelson 
Chevalier Bros 
. B Vaughan 
Renita . Kramer 
Bouna ' 

Bert Duke A Joy 
SonVa Corbcau 
.Dorothy Hall 
Show Girls 
Nudes 

MELBOURNI 
Tivoli (T) 15 
Guus Brox 
O’Hagan A. Stead 
John Blythe 
Balcombes 
Gloria Dawn 


Betty Meddlngs 
Frank Cleary 
John Bluthal 
Male Ballet 
Ballet Girls 

SYDNEY 
■ Tivoli <T) 15 

Tommy Trlndcr 
Toni Green 
Joe Lee 

Dagenham Girl P 


Motel ' New Yorker. Dorothy Keller 
Ed. A Wilma Leary Patti. Ross 
Jo Barnum Linda Lombard 


Ben . Dova 
Steve Klsley Ore 
Dee Drummond 
A Rnlllnl Trio 
. Hotel Pierre 
Denise Da reel 
Mata A. Hara 


Linda Lombard 
.Margy Duncan 
Paula Stewart 
Carol Ohmart 
Salvatore Gibe Orr 
Pahrhlto. Ore 
Village Barn 
Rachel Ellen 


Stanley Melba Ore j ac k MaIone 
Chico Belli Ore Carell A °Carlvle 
Hotel Plaza 1 Careu * caMVI ® 


W Latona A, Sparks Carson 


6 De Pauls 
Mary. Priestman 
Littlejohns . 
Harry Moreny 
Lloyd Martin 
Toni Lomond 
Maureen Helman 
Ballet Girls 


Ted Strneter Ore Hal Graham 

Monte Ore Vlllagb vJni 

Hote! Rooseve'* Enid Mosier 

r Iui « rri D°.M. rc Win Holt 

m ■?« ci® ■ ■ ® 9 * Trude Adams 

Marti Stevens r. wminma t 


Larry MacMahon 
Joe . Fur st 
Hal Graham Ore - 
Village Vanguard 
Enid Mosier 


BRITAIN 


Milt Shaw Ore 
Ray Bari Ore 
Chnvlotte. Rae . 

Hotel Sherry' 
Netherland 

Alexander Bros 


Lenny Kent and Rose Marie Connie RusseU is a little gal with 
joined forces a few months ago and ® plenty big voice. a lot of viva- 

are currently being showcased at cious oomph and the fwl of . a 

Monte Proser’s expanded saloon as ^ ell moods 

a winsome twosome. . Comic Kent a *\d with all audiences. She proved 
fs a oipable singer who’s been this to everyone s obvious satisfac- 
knoeking around neat the top at «<>* at her «}«a8ement at 

various key city cafes and has done «*** e wJ^? ld ° rf " 

well in tv as guest or replacement Astoria. It S; her first really im« 
fodder Rose Marie has been a big portant cafe date and should prove 

B^^&v I^uS^rc ‘Baby’] & some years new andj 

*&%&?/** SS* SS'SSiS " P mi — ^li^^ryngms; 

Joy Jayson Bill Clifford Ore iPin head ' who laces her repertoire With 

HAVANA 5S*ShS5 mm»1n 5 l»gth 

Montmsrtrs ** Dominicks and structure to vintage or special her sones with * ahittoo mS 

M de Paris orq * Hect attraction vauders than bistros. If vfsor Darticu arlv sinli Ihl wnrS 

. ffe • 

5S8& fear*; c many a hill TfSPth^Mto «"th" Empire, 

E°Antuncz Orq „ l.g; 0r " the audience in 

q de la piaya orq Rene & c Delaine -.'JJJY . ■' hand almost from: the start when 
Sam Souet Mano Lopez ■ . how-.they re getting over and never ehp nut*! pvervnnp at. pacp with •! 

Olga Chaviano Marta A Alexander letting the deal lag. Kent is a hYt nf fntrn^nrtprfnl 

•W^^iciw • • ' Skillful, self effacing jokester with Berinrd^ 

Rav C ca? S on a RoSeS orq ^ none Of that artificial heartiness, irothlr fast one tft YnnS 

^defayS* 1 Senen Suarez <*rq and he throws out the one-liners Go ^wliich Jhe reminds 

and asides With a neat sense of h nttnn W ^ftkPi? e m?u?hPte °inrhirf y 

timing values. Rose Marie can put Sj Utt L q VC i4ris ^^TairvtS" 

over a song >n any vein, though ob- “Thrillls Gone ’^“Gonna tTvp Tin 

viously a better hand; atv the :1am- • T^e“imd° S5?*whKh ^hi' 

poon than the lilt. She’s a good a cn;t nrnH?,.tTnl, h h 

cutup by herself and a fine foil for TT , 

•.. . ■■ • l.« Miss Kusseii, wno s ■ been to Hoi- 

girl with a winning smile, and stowS? work in the^ aumenee 8 S ^a“ iywond. is on tv and has waxed a 
recommends a couple of spots, , builder-upper fbr h tte*act ?tseir ? couple of records, ds a natural for 
When crossing Potsdamer Plats, „ r r ^ppe tor tne act itseit ^ She's got, an. easy charm 


Montmartre > 

M de Paris Orq 
Michelle Due 
Pedro Vargas 
Bergaza A Terraza 
Rosendo Rosell 
Monsigneur Orq 
E Ahtunez Orq 


Olga Chaviano 
Waited Nicks 
Juliet tc Sandor 
Ray CarSon 
(ondelayo 


Dominicks .. . 

Helena A. Hector 


Klko Gonsalves 
A. Romeu Orq . 
Senen Suarez Qrq 


East 


Continued from page 2 


niteries. She’s got an easy charm 


BLACKPOOL 
Pslsta (l> 15 
Bonar Colleano 
- Eric Jamies 
Edorlcs 
Rayros 3 
David' Berglas 
Devine A King 

P on Peters 
eplnos Circus 
BOSCOMBR 


3 Helios 
Leslie Randall 
Jo Jac A Jonl 
J A S Lamonte 
GRIMSBY 
PalaCe (I) 15 
Ehre Boswell 
Kirby A Hayes 
Skating Vogues 
D A J De-Mott 
Billy O'Sullivan 


CHICAGO 


ITUne Adams WIICII U VBSIUB I Thaw ma iimll .. . J 11A , “ 

c Williams Trio one- comes into Friedrichstrasse. %'f du °’ whether that appeals and her delivery tags 

Waldorf-Astoria H re the best-known niteries of ^suiting each other or essaying her as a chirper of more than ordi- 

connie Russell hbiiln Werb once located. After those crazy + mixed-up tunes. ‘‘3-D Is nary talent. She ought to be a 

Hamilton Trio. Berlin we a Pain in the Eyes to Me has an crowd bleaser wherever she soes 

SiSW offbeat connoiation that’s not .of- Nad Bmudwhne 6 mch f g^es* her 

they call this city s soviet aecior. fensive in an era when crispier text fine suDDort Hift 

VGO Today, Friedrichstrasse (formerly seems to get bV. • One of their high • , . . 


Blue Angel 
Tany Roman 
Neville Black 
Val Navaro 
Grace Nichols 


Llppe A Balisch 
Bobby. May 
Bob Bromley 
BUI Griffin 
N A J Waldo 


called “the city”) still shows many registries is a “Moon” number with LYNDA GLORIA 
ruins and deserted areas. It even femme at the piano. Their take- Sones 

. ... .. . j.1 4.1 I 1 . n< n, .... 


Bob WeDyck. Trio ■ i Boulevar-Dears (7) 


Hippodrome (1)15 P A J Yulle 


Joe Stein 
Noon Broa 
Josie 

Jack Grieve 
Marsh A Lorraine 
Billy Gay 


Julie A Marie 
Sheba- 

HACKNEY 
Empire (S). 15 
Rita Martell 
King Bros 


Moulin Rouge Girls Terry. Hall 


BRIGHTON 


Terry James 


Hippodrolha (M).15 June Birch 


BISck Orchid 

Guy Cherney . 

Ross A West 
Lurlene Hunter 
Ken Sweet Trio 

Ches Parc# . 

Helen Traiibel 
Buddy Hackett 
Du Pree Trio 
Brian Farnon Ore 
Chamaco Band 


rMStote 1 ® war and expropriation campaigns. a bHght, Vivacious package in the 

Edo.w.t.r BMcb One is Rheintenassen. t Inside, 2?,, “* r ‘J5®i. i f , S®J? i |.^ f s ho w i te shapely person of Lynda Gloria, a 

Rosalind Courtright signs strike the eyes: No Boogie .. r n ?wa Ai? S *Trrtii lt0 " lush * dark-foatured looker With a 

Johnny O'Brien ^ Woogie permitted.” Awfully crowd- gather, a w elcome two- act. Trau. slinky figure accentuated by a rich. 

B 6 b C Kh , k B 0 rc°' lts ed (mostly juveniles) and stuffy in A stylish skin-tight gown. Femme 

Palmer House here, forcing the visitor rapidly to viua. bkmijix has a provocative personality 

Romo Vincent . head for another destination. But ~ on *® _ , which gets on the right side of 

Fedwicb Rey • the same Situation obtains in D °“ London even the most -staid ringsiders in, a 

pilar Gomez Kasino Melodie and Clou (former- Half Norwegian and half Span- matter of seconds. There is noth- 

Empirc Eight iv on attractive hallroom) ish, Vida Bendix is. a newcomer to ing classy about her performance 

Emil Coleman ore }y J^mended West. End cabarets, makirtg iier and, if anything, it is 6n the brash 

4GELES cnnt^°arS nnltaiin Aitee (formerly first London appearance at thjs side. But it proves a fine antidote 

■? * l4U -spots are on .Stalin Allee. (forme^y u it ra -lush nitery^ She is an ele- to the current winter chills and 

ivifidred ^sevmnur Frankfurter Allee), East Sectors g a nt-looking redhead with, a me- should prove a boxoffice tonic for 

Marguiitc pUSuia Giamor Alley. One spot is n&med lodious set of pipes and a re- these Piccadilly nightspots. 

a Browne Ore . Budapest, the other one Warschau. strained, dignified .personality. Miss Gloria speaks and sings in 
NormanBrooks Here, many SED (Commie Party) There is v a slight minus quality in several languages and dances in a 

Paul Hebert ore functionaries (recognized by badges projection, although the few ring- universal style. . But, like most 

Moulin Rouge in their buttonholes) and Vopo siders on hand gave her an ovation foreign-speaking performers, she 

De CastVo sls ( 3 > (People’s Police) officers linger, opening night. makes the general error of not Jn- 

pominique . Many customers are tie-less. A Like most Continental perform- eluding a sufficient proportion of 


war and expropriation campaigns, on Billy Daniels that s a wallop. . His 


make her 
has come 


Frankie Vaughn - 
Fayne A Evans 
W Keppel A B 
Joe Church 
David Hurst 
Des O'Connor 
Bruce Forsyth 
Conway A Day 
Keefe Bros A A 

BRIXTON 
Empress (I) 15 

Leo Fuld 

. F-' Bamberger A P 


Yvonne Prestige 
K A M John 
Baker A Douglas 
Ybng Family 
Sheila Murphy Co 
. NORWICH 
Hippodrome (I) 15 
Laurel A Hardy 
Roslare ' 

Jaul Arland 
Harry Worth 
Kayes Pokes. 
Ursula A- Gus 


Bob Kirk Ore 1 
.. Palmer House 

Romo Vincent 
Robert Maxwell 
Federico Rey 


stylish skin-tight gown. Femme 
has a provocative personality 
which gets on the right side of 
even the most -staid ringsiders in a 


Conrad Hilton Hot'l Pilar Gomez 


Margie Lee 
. Capek 


I Empire Eight 
Emil Coleman Ore 


tos ANGELES 

Ambassador Hotel [Manon Smith 


r DB 1 I 1 UCIRCI » » , n |J 91 a 

5 Robwtis & Rof A Ray 

Lorraine 

NOTTINGHAM 


3 Robertis 
Peter Ross 
Olga Varona 
Richard Sis 
CHISWICK 
Empire (S) 15 
Gladys Morgan. 

Joan Turner 
Gerry Brcreton 
Max. Gcldray 
Bobble Collins 
Fred Atkins 
Dunn A Grant 
Rusty 

Hayden A Day 
EAST HAM 
Granada .(I) IS 
W Delyse A J 
Nixon A Dixon 
Maxwells 
Crochet 

Metropolitan (I) 15 

Dr Crock Co 
Marge Henderson 
Kimber A Peabody 
Iris Sadler 
Anita 

N A ,N Grant 
EDINBURGH 
Empire (M) 15 

Peter Dulay 
Anne Shelton 
Ronnie® Collis 
Skyliners 
V Julian Pets 
Tommy Fields 
Ballet Montmartre 


Empire (M) 15 
Billy Cotton Bd 
K A A Alexis 
Dave King 
Angelos 
Fred Lovclle 
Evy A Everto 
Avis Daintori 
George Meaton 
PORTSMOUTH 
Royal (M) 15 
Rex Roper & Pat 
Diana Decker 
Jeffrey Lcnncr ' 
Nitwits 

Gold A Cordell 
Scott Sanders . 
Austral 

Krandon A Kama 
SCUNTHORPE 
Savoy (I). 15 
Carroll. Levis Co 
SUNDERLAND 
Empire (M) 15 
Peter Brough 
Ronald Chesney 
Ossie Noble 
Peter Madden 
Les Raynor B 
D Dandies & E 
Edward Victor 
Michael Mitchell 
Jimmy Gilmore 


Martha Wright 
De Marios 
Stan Fisher 
Henry King Ore 

Band Box 

Billy Gray 
Moore A Lessy 
Larry Green Trio 

Bar of Music 

Arthur: Blake 
Jayne Manners 
E Bradford Ore 
Biltmore Hotel 


Mildred Seymour 
Marguerite Padula 
A . Browne Ore 
Mocambo 
Norman Brooks 
Paul Hebert Ore 
Moulin Rouge 
B Mlnevltch H R 
De Castro Sis (3) 
Dominique 


(People’s Police) officers lli 
Many customers are tie-less. 


Tyrrell A Winslow Tom Canyon 


Ladd Lyon 
Artie James 
llal Derwin Ore 
Clro's . 

Nat "King" Cole 
Dick Stabile Ore 
Bobby Ramos Ore 
Charley Fby's 
Wiere Bros 


Atlantis Hotel 

Henry Tobias 
Sid Lewis Ore 
Pcpe A Susie 
Algiers Hotel 
Buddy Walker . 
Mai Malkin Ore 
Tony A Renea 
Bar of Music 
Bill Jordan 
Guy Rennie 
Harvey- Bell 
Beth Challis 
Gina Valenta 
Ethel Davis 


Loi < isi ta H5ff Johnson made-imWest Berlin suit is an ad- ers, Miss Bendix makes the com- English songs. Rhythmic numbers 

Barbettes < 5 ) vantage.- Food hefe, as well as in mon mistake of having too few m -French and Spanish have a 

tI™ those State^owned restaurants, songs with English lyrics, but her s ¥J lfl l 1 han ’ 

Fluff Chariton called H.O. (Handelsorganisation), foreign-language numbers have a vide! additional color 35 ^^^ 1 !^ 

Bob Snyder ore tc ffpnprallv not bad but served at unique appeal and are delivered viaes aaaiuonai color, but that is 

® rather hiffh East Mark Prices which with- a real touch of sincerity. not always enough to hold ^public 

carmen To?re 8 nniv vp^v^fPw F^st rSents can By generally accepted standards interest when the lyrics are beyond 

ctrdini only very few East residents can , her stage presence leaves room for comprehension. . Too many subtle 

j Bachemin aixorci.- ■ some imnrovempnt ■ She^ hag a nuances can be. missed by a nOn- 

Ro'n n ¥lrry a orc ° tc Then tendency^ to hug^ ^the m^e^ even for linfiu^tic. audience. ; + 

... as well as at Johanmshof, is obvi- her calypso and flamenco numbers, Although, she carefully introes 

^Ml BEACH busly a spot of East Berlins grand which reejuire b. freer dndmore tune with sn explanation . of 

monde: many Soviet-German and v ^ a i delivery its theme, the chanteuse has only , 

Ichuy Reyesj°orc Soviet state officials, most of them Act is attractively backgrounded 0 na ^ngiish song in her routine 


Fluff Charlton 
Bob Snyder Ore 
D Arden Dancers 
Sfatlef Hotel 
Carmen Torres 
Cardini 
J Bachemin 
Frankie Carle Ore 
Ron Perry Ore 


MIAMI-MIAMI BEACH 


WOLVERHAMPTON Fred Thompson 
Hippodrome (I) 15 Blrdland 


FINSBURY PARK B Wareham A Babs T eir y Gibbs 

..... . > ' I/\a M AAna v* 


Empire (M) 15 

. Merle , A .Marie 
Dorothy Squires 
Ilylda Baker 
Skylons 

Jimm.v Wheeler 
Jackie Ross 
Musical Elliotts 
Mongadors 

GLASGOW 
Empire (M) 15 
Roy Rogers 
Dale Evans 
Trigger 
Rey A Ron.i.v 
Fred Harris A C 


Hal Monty 
Diana Dors 
Barney Powell 
Inky Williams 
Jimmy Hawthorn 
JAB Grantham 
WOOD GREEN 
Empire (S) 15 
Arthur English 
Eddie Gray 
Harris Lebus Co 
Clarkson A. Leslie 
Ron Bowlands 
Peggy Cavcll 
Maggie Graham 
Seaton O’Dell »■ 


Joe Mooney 
Art Tatem 

Shoremedo 
Preachey Rollo 5 
Ray Mambo Ore 
Lynita 

Beachcomber 

Sophie Tucker 
Nat ‘King’ Cole 
Dick Shawn 
The Dunhills 
Harry Richman- 
Eddie Heywood 3 
Lert Davvson Ore 
' Casablanca 


L'Alglon 

Chuy Reyes Ore 
L'Aiglon Strings 
Charlie Farrell ■ 

: Latin Quarter 
.Jane Morgan- 
Bernard Bros 
The Szonys 
Veronica Bell 
Ruth Costello 
Ralph Young 
Piroska 
Ernie Amato 
Cortez Ore 
Campo Ore 
Antone A Ina 
Sid Stanley Oro 
Allan Drake 

Lord Tarleton 
Jack Stuart Ore 
Jcannie Moore 

Leon A Eddie's 
Myra Davis 
Chuck Fontaine 
Acres O’Reilly 
Jackie Gordon 
Billy. Austin 
Nancy Kent 
Charlotte Waters 
Bill Gray 
Ualph Gilbert 

Nautilus Hotsl 

Phil Foster 


~ — ~ -lu.uvvsuybtTvv uuLivgivuiiucu j ” , j H . ' , 

well dressed. Hajo is a rendezvous by Hermanos Deniz’ rumba aggre- t. 8 / 16 P, 6 ? 1 ? 6 ® herself. Titled 

snnt. of this sector’s show biz peo- eatiort. Jill Allen, the onlv femme .1 MK e Men, it_s an ideal Vehicle 


Betty A Jane Kean X " t on> ^ In a 
T^I 0r Girls Sid stanley Orc 


Cabaret Bills 


NEW YORK CITY 


Blue Angel 

Anita Ellis 
Josephine Premice 
Burl .Ives 
Jorle Reines 
Bart Howard 


Jimmy Lewis 
Anthony Roberts 
Colobrlty Club 
Emil Cohen 
Marty Gumty 
Ed Schaefer 


Jimmy Lyons Trio Stuart Harris 


Ron Sotr 

Jimmie Daniels 
Madmoiselles ' 
Oliver Wakefield 
Kaye Ballard 
Dolores Brown 
Cafe Society 
Goofers 
4 Tunes 


Alfred A Lehore 
Roger Steel Ore - 
Chateau Madrid 
Paul Roguet 
Tanya Reyes 
Marta Nita 
Pupl Campo Ore 
Freddie Alonso 
Sarita Herrera 


Tony Vale. 

Dave Tyler Ore 
Celebrity Club 
Alan Gale 
Freddie Stewart 
Larry Foster 
The Williams (2) 
Teddy King Ore 
Ciro's 
Frances Faye 
The Red Caps 
The Trcnicrs. 

Jo Thompson 
Clover Club 
Lena Horne 
Paul Gray 
Betty Luster 
Tony Lopez Ore 


Patio 

H Stern Striugs 
Sans Squci Hotel 
Carl Bi'isson 
Eddie Snyder 
Sacaras Ore 
Ann Herman Dors 
LaRue's 

Carihen Cavallaro 
Louis Adler Ore 

' Roney Plaza - 

Milt Herth Trio 
Gcbrge Hines Ore 
Saxony Hotel 
Los Chavalcs 
Trini Reyes 
Val Olihan Ore 


Selma Marlowe Line He ehe 

Woody Woodbury rony Ds La Cru* 

Dl Lido Hotol * ■ V 7 Gruz 

Ritz Bros Vagabond* 

Zig A Vivian Baker Vagabonds (4) 
Freddie Calo Ore Maria Neglia 

Empress Hotel Condos A Brando 

Hal Edwards Ore Mary Ann Bentlej 

M Darby Dancers . Frank Llnale Oro 


spot of this sector’s show biz peo- gation. Jill Allen, the only femme * *t. s . an idea i vehicle 

pie. Signs are everywhere, but batoner on the nitery scene/ alter- i.v er j® ra - . personahty. It s 
they harmlessly read “Long Live nates for the customer terping. bright and noisy and, a? a contrast 
the German-Soviet Friendship” or Myto: to some others, is also highljf di- 

"Drink Tea Only From People’s e F 0 v . 

China Republic.” .(Hate signs aria GILBERT BECAUD ae&^h roLs C "he^ 

^ ome f ^ ve dlsap fA n M^«c ment immediately took up both op- 

peared). In some of these 3pots, 30 Mins. tions held on the artist and her 

there is more or less second-rate is Olympia, Pans original booking for a ’ fortnight 

cabaret program rolling up. . Gilbert Becaud is that not-too- has been extended to six weeks. 

The ^ hotel situation is slightly rare phenomenon hpre of a com- She will do fine here; she could do 
paradoxical. Usually there are poser-turned-singer. After com- even better as a star in a Gohtinenr 
hardly any rooms to let in those posing racy songs for Edith Piaf. tal type of floorshow. Myro. 

better Established houses. As Jr.cques Peals and others, he started. . • r - ' ■ .: — 

Eastern authorities have stopped his own stint this year -and after 3 CHOCOLATEERS - 

all private travel into. Berlin be- the breakin hit off with the young- Comedy 

cause of -the Big- . Four meeting, fi’ set and is now one of the leadr 

rnanv rooms are ernbtv Even most * n g P°P smgers here. Becaud is Palace, N.Y. . 

IJf th^ scribes from behind the Iron y° un 8 and gopd-looking and has a Three Chocolateers, i group of 
1 n~fpp TuWnJ ^ warm ^ ^manner on stage. However, Negro lads; is a long established 

Curtain prefer, taking Toonis in his gurg iing, free-wheeling ap- name in the variety field. Last 
West Berlin hotels. Rooms in the proach still lacks the touch of style group reviewed undet* that tag 
Soviet Sector cost DM 10-20 per art d uniqueness to put him in top in Variety was in 1937, but cur- 
night (approx. 50c to $1). When a brackets. He has to cut down rent batch doesn’t look old enough 
Western visitor' wants to sleep in on flamboyant mannerisms and' to be the same personnel, 
an Eastern hotel, he has first to straighten out a song rep before As presently constituted, the 
apply to Police Headquarters for a he is ready for possible U. S. present combo lacks form. They 
certain certificate. chances. knock themselves out in fiance and 

AH in all, night life in East Ber- There is a tendency to salt a few aero work, but their comedy is 
lin is certainly not as poor as it corny sentimental numbers into his lacklustre. A series of grimaces, 
was some years back. After all, essentially throaty and light rep, falsetto singing and a spot of panto 
the Commies have allowed Western w hich could be eliminated for bet- doesn’t register... An overhauling is 
dance music, and when midnight - 4^5 y ians indicated for midcity audiences, 

has passed by and the number of ^ s -.-foP^ln. Ws style as it depicts a Jose , 

drunks has crown there’s hnocii* bra ? h fll rt a t ion with a Winning ap- ; ■' ■ . 

peal * Also well heard are “Les AYERIL. & AVREL 
waitresses dancing with customers, Croix,” a pulsating lament, “Danse Dance- Aero 

* auj *ni j . i Avec Moi” and “Mes Mains.” More 25 Mini. v 

But one thing is still definitely work, and ease should niake Becaud Bellevue Casino, Montreal , 
missing m those Eastern niteries— one of the staples and a possible Hoofer? Averil & Aurel add the 


Ed r ”rds M orc Mar?°An* BsSiVr atmosphere or at least the feeling bet for intime slotting in U. S. icing to the current Natalie Koma- 
u by Dancers [Frank Linai* ore 1 of privacy, | niteries or TV. Mosk. I (Continued on page 55) 



uEcmncATB 


Wedn«*daj, February 17, 1954 


Plays Out of Town 


By the BetitllMl 

New Haven, Feb. 15. 

Robert Fryer 6c Lawrence Carr presen. 
tation of musical comedy Jn ' two i acts, 
with book by Iler^rt ai^ Dorothy Fields 


lines here and, except for a ten- 
dency toward repetition in ensem- 
bles, offers lively diversion in its 
assignment. * 

Staging is creditable in regard 


m u »io bv Ar | h )J r H 5 c ^- ,, iJ t l 5' w»uer« y surs to smooth blending of song and 
sKricv Booth? ^atJre. ^ib^ Evsns, st0 ry, and Jay Blacktop s .dynamic 
Cameron Prud homme. Mao Ehrnes. Ray conducting has pitmen and cast on 

their toes every minute. Bone. 


Mlelziner; costumes, Irene Sharaff; chore 
oRraphy. Donald Saddler; musical- direc- 


tion, Jay Blackton; orchestrations. Rob- 
ertRussell Bennett; original dance mu-lc, 
Genevieve Pitot; productlon assoc^te; 
Simon P. Herman, At Shubert, New 
Haven, Feb, J5. '34; M top 


Mrs, Rose Koch. 
Ruby Monk ... 
Cora Belmont , 
Molly Belmont 
Lillian Belmont 

Gus 

Half-Note 
Willie Slater ... 
Flora Busch . . 
Trixie Flynn 
Phil Flynn ... . 

Burt Mayer . . 

Carl Gtbbclson 
Lottie Gibson . . . 
Ophelia ...... 

Man :■ ,.■>.■ • • - 
Baby Betsy Busch 
Mickey Powers . . 
Dennis Emery ... , 

Lcnhy 

Sidney . 

Viola 

May 

Mr, Curtis 


The Burning Glass 

Hartford, Feb. 11. 

Theatre Guild and John C. Wilson 
presentation of drama In three acts (four 
scenes) by Charles Morgan. Stars -Cedric 
Hardwlcke. Maria Rlva; features Walter 
Matthau, Scott Forbes. Directed by 

« — , —i-v-r ; i -Luther Kenhett; settings. Oliver Smith; 

........ Cindy Robbins lighting, John Davis; costumes, Noel Tay- 

Gloria^.Smlth | | OJ . > ^ New Parsons, Hartford, Feb, 11. 

'54; *4.20 top. „ . 

Mary Terriford Marla Rlva 

Christopher Terriford . . . ... . Scott J orbes 

Lady Terriford ; . . . Viola Roache 

Tony Lack ... Walter Matthau 

Gerry Hardllp .......... William Rperick 




Edith Case 
. . Mae Barnes 
Mary Harmon 


. . . Reid Shelton 
Robert Jennings 
. Warde Donovan 
. Anne Francine 

... Pat Ferrier 
Bob Haddad 


boo nauunu Gerry Hardllp .......... wunam itoencn 

....... Larry Laurence Lord Henry Strait ....... Ralph Clanton 

. .Cameron .Prud’homme Montagu Minthrop ,. . . Cedric Hardwlcke 
......... Shirley Booth i nspec tor Wigs . Basil -Howes 

Pretty Prego Guard . , . . .*■.*. Rhoderick Walker 

Thomas Gleason 

’ ' Ray°Mafone This play fails to generate 
Wilbur Evans enough heat to carry it during its 
L ' ar, iddie ' roS three-stanza span. Like so many 
Maria KarnUova other English plays that have 
• , v • failed to make the grade here, 

Rich Ray^iyson “Glass” is too talky. Counterpart 






^E^nccr ■ ciat br.vn Damon, Liiiia* Donaii! of the American production is on 

pat Ferrier. sigvn. Mona Tritsch; Bex the boards in the English prov- 


Cooper. ..Peter cennaro^ Bob^ Haddad, | jnces sodded for a London open- 
ing. 


Larry Howard. Bay 

Rellley, Eddie Roll. . . _.. . 

Singer c : Suzanne Easter, Lola -Fisher. 
Colleen O’Connor. Pat Roe. Jean^ Sincere, 
LI I>1 Staiger; John Dennis, Warde Dono- 
van. Thomas Cleason, Ray Hyson. Frank- 
lin Kenned*'. Larry Laurence. George 
Lcnz, Reid Shelton. 


Her Nobel Aim 

Celeste Holm, costar of “His 
and Hers” (48th St. Theatre, 
N.Y.), was quoted by Marie 
Torre in an interview last 
week Ih the N. Y. World- 
Telegram, as saying, *T*d like 
to win the Nobel peace prize.” 

According to the article, 
“When Celeste Holm was a 
xhild of six, she was asked, by 
her mother what she wanted 
to do when she grew up, and 
young Celeste replied, .‘I want 
to stop all wars.’ ” 



Feather in Schang s 

NYCB Needs a Ballerina 

Fred C. fechang, prez of Colum- 
bia Artists Mgt., pulled a 10-strike 
over the weekend, signing Maria 
Tallchief as prima ballerina for 
the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, 
which Schang is having revived, 
after several years' layoff, to tour 
next season. Dancer, perhaps the 
finest ballerina America has pro- 
duced, has been star of the N. Y. 
City Ballet the past five seasons. 
Schang had Frederic Franklin 
signed* as premier danseur as well 
as maitre de ballet, and had four 
femme leads inked. He needed a 
top ballerina, a scarce commodity 
these days to complete his roster, 



Note for advocates of theatre bars end smoking in the auditorium 
in Broadway legit houses: “New York audiences do not smoke in the 
theatre, -and they are not served with tea and coffee. There is little 
coughing, no rattling of cups after the curtain goes up, and no rush 
back from the bar, because New York theatres do not have bars.” From 
“Manhattan Diary,”: in the London Evening Standard; by British come- 
dienne Hermione Gingold, featured in John Murray Anderson’s “Al- 
manac,” at the Imperial, N. Y. 

From the same piece: “I notice none of that anti-British feeling they 
talk about in the newspapers. Not once have I been reproached 
for trading with Red China. Americans are even kind enough to tell 
me that I have no British accent, which means that they can under- 
stand what I say. When I say something funny, it is reported in 
everybody’s column, and I wonder how it gets there. The other day 
a digest magazine sent me $ 10 . That was for the perfectly common- 
sense statement that when we British call it a draft, Americans call 
it cross-ventilation.” 


‘Glass” deals with a young Brit 
ish scientist-genius who has dis- 
covered a means of harnessing the 

power of the sun. Via a particular and now has found it. 
formula, he utilizes the upper stra- Tallchief reportedly get- 

Preem of this new musical to- ta as a mighty magnifying glass . s f > 17 =’ to P $200 with 
night (15) didn’t exactly bring the and pinpoints the sun’s rays to any ^_from . ^175^ to _*ZOO witn 
house down, but it shook the place and any activity. This lens NYCB, is -believed ^to have rignea 
rafters a little during its high power— when harnessed properly for around $500 with Ballet Russe. 
spots. From audience viewpoint, —can do good or evil. Plot deals Troupe will do a 30-week tour next 
show is now In the “glow-of-satis- with the attempt of a foreign pow- season. Miss Tallchief; who was 
faction” category rather than the er to steal the formula, attempts with BR before joining NYCB, 
“rush - out - and - tell-your-friends” of his government to inveigle it, will stay with the latter for its 
status. It has a number of standout his kidnapping, return, etc. summer season this year on the 

features but. is going to require “Glass” can be best described as Coast, and will rejoin it for its 4th 
added impetus before it can get an intellectual melodrama, In the European tour in the spring of 
the checkered flag in the smash nit latter capacity, it exploits some of 1955. (Miss Tallchief also played 
sweepstakes. Indications are_tn^t t he hammiest gimmicks seen in the Anna Pavlowa role. in the Es- 

??"> e “TL ls . t her Williams Metro iilm, “Million 


Coney Island, play's l<*Se. >1 Dollar Mermaid"). . 

take up squatters' rights in Times s , ruc „ 0 n of a major centre of a Ballet Russe also signed, an- 
Square. foreign country, threats of world other NYCB lead, in Michael 

In format and execution, “Beau- destruction, etc. In the intellectual Maule. Four femme leads, under 
tiful Sea” reverts to the style of department it deals with the mor- Miss Tallchief, are Nina Novak, 
musicals prevalent before the ad- a j s 0 f world problems facing uS Gertrude Tyven, Yvonne Chou- 
vent of allegorical, fantasy-type today. teau and Irina Borowski. Male 

and The use of the melodrama is leads, Upsides Franklin and Maule, 

SU< ^ a l haV ^;^n!nl la « 1 f Ze r^onf S< ^pn supposed to dramatize the moral- include Leon Danielian, Victor Mo- 

• told ity thesis. This fails because it’s reno and Akan Howard. 

ifmply 1 and vbcal l or terpsichorean oldhat stuff and because of the ob- Now NYCB has a problem 

action follows the standard routine vprv^wpfi — to find a new to P ballerina, 

of cues, rather than being blended | 5 ® , v}f n nf!7 we ^l awa ? e of what is There are other fine femme danc- 
into the book thread to a pro-: Productionwise and direction- ers in the froupe, but none fits 
s “ S enfoyment” whfch wise^Gli^ blend^X ^e prima ballerina bill. 

should be even more pronounced ^enc^Firs^apf i^ovprlv^lpthar" ~ 

after polishing of production- ened with gentle comedy, have 

. Score has melodic qualities that their roots deep, in tragedy, 

hold the ear pleasantly and should caused by continued talk. The first Aleichem folk yarn, “A 

project several of the tunes into Castwise, the actors do a com- Tale of Chelm,” is delightful buf- 
popular acceptance. These include petent job. Maria Riva (Marlene foonery involving a simple-minded 
“The Sea Song,” “Alone Too Long,” Dietrich offspring), as the wife of schoolteacher, neatly portrayed by 
and “More Love Than Your Love.” the scientist, plays her role with Edgar Grower. He’s effectively 
On.a couple of lively ditties, tagged plausibility, Scott Forbes turns in henpecked by his wife, nicely done 
“Happy Habit” and “Hang Up,” the a « okay performance as the man by Berta Gersten, especially when 
former puts the brakes on proceed- of science.- Waltec-Matthau, as the be gets all mixed up trying to fil- 
ings and thelatter Completely halts scientist’s partner and pursuer -of ure out the sex of a goat she’s sent 
them. Lyrics make an overall nice his (the scientist’s) wife, is also him after in the hopes of making 
complement to melodies. good. Cedric Hardwicke is con- a sup piy 0 f blintzes. 

If there is any more room for vmcing. as^th^ prime minister as p er etz’s “Bontche Schweig” mid- 

feathers m Shirley Booth s cap, her IS William Hnarinlr a fziraicrn „ . • - - 

performance here should crowd its 
way into* the millinery. She sings, 
she cavorts, she emotes, and she 
even does a baby snooks number 
that’s a resounding click. It all adds 
up to a fine job. 

Wilbur Evans 'lends a booming 
voice to the musical department 
and a seasoned flair to the thesping 


Backers of the Oliver Smith and Playwrights Co. production of “in 
the Summer House,” which wound lip its Broadway run Saturday ( 13 ), 
include lyricists Betty Comden and Adolph Green, $200 each; Philip 
Langner, co-operator of the New Parsons Theatre, Hartford, and co- 
producer at the Westport (Conn.) Country Playhouse, $350; playwright 
Arthur Laurents, $350; lyricist John LaTouche, $400; musicomedy 
actress" Carol Channing, $500; Lucia Chase, founder and co-director 
of Ballet Theatre, $700; Howard Dietz, lyricist and Metro ad-pub vee- 
pee, $700; playwright William Inge, $700; William H. Walling, husband 
of actress Peggy Wood, $700; producer .John W. Gardiner, $750; Ruth 
Field, wife of Marshall Field, $1,400;; actress Helen Menken, $1,400; 
playwright Tennessee Williams,. $1,400; Smith,: co-producer of; play, 
$14,000; Roger L. Stevens, realty operator and a member of the Play- 
wrights Corahd corgeneral partner with Smith in the “Summer House” 
production (it’s understood the Playwrights Co. is only nominally 
involved ih the presentation and not financially), $27,145; Ben Tobin 
and -A. R. Glancy, realty partners of Stevens, $1,400 and $2,800, re- 
spectively. Production is capitalized at $70,000, with provision for 
20% overcalL 


; “There are so many reasons why you do a play,” said Ina Claire, co- 
star of “The Confidential Clerk,” in an interview last week with 
William Hawkins, drama critic of the N. Y. World-Telegram. “The worst 
1 ever did, was because of curiosity about a director. Plays are easier 
to get than directors. I’ve always wondered why stars didn’t play 
smaller parts as they got older, I never wanted to be a star. . I wanted 
to be a good actor. They saw personality or something, and made 
me a star to make money out of it. Then I took lessons to find out 
what I was doing up there on the 'stage.” 


Exit of Ivor Brown as drama critic of the London Observer, effective 
in June, is understood to stem 4 from the desire of the new editor to 
get a younger man.. Brown, regarded in theatrical- journalistic circles 
as one of the top critics in London, is in his mid-60s. Kenneth Tynan, 
who’ll succeed him, is in -his 30’s. Brown has been With the Observer 
since 1928, and his five-year contract expires in June. He’ll receive a 
small pension from the Sheet, provided he does not. take a job With 
any other publication. Besides his regular Observer stint, Brown has 
authored about 20 books of non-fiction, mostly about legit. 

Tynan, who has caused something of a stir in West End theatrical 
circles in the last couple of years, was formerly drama critic of Lord 
Beaver brook’s Evening Standard, blit was dropped after a policy dis- 
pute. . He is currently critic for the Sketch, Tynan, 1 incidentally, is 
due in the U.S. March 23' on an assignment for Punch. 


William Roerick, a foreign 
agent. Oliver Smith’s one-setter 
English livingroom is authentic. 

Eck. 


The World of Slioloin 
Aleichem 

Chicago, Feb. 13. 


dlepiece is a powerful slice of 
drama, thanks to a gripping mute 
acting job by Jacob Ben-Ami as 
the man who, when . he gets to 
Heaven after a life of extreme 
hardship, asks only for a fresh 
roll and butter. Alice Childress, as 
the defending angel who recounts 
for the heavenly court the man’s 
travails on earth, and Grower, as 


Howard da Silva & Arnold Perl produc- 

„ tt_.„ „ j ln three parts, based on Perl's uavous u»» emm, anu wurrm, aa 

one ' He s a good cnoice from ine drama tization of stories by Shoiom Aiei- Father Abraham, supply strong 

casting angle. Mae Barnes puts the chem and I. L. Peretz. Directed by da cnnnnrt in thic spoupnoe 

Stop sign on things with a terrific siiva. Features Jacob Ben. Ami. Anne support in mis sequence. 

romUHnn ftf "Hano TTn” ami malrp« Revere, da Silva, Gilbert Green, Berta 
rendition Of Hang up and maKes Gers ten. Alice Childress; with Marjorie 

her presence felt on other occa- Nelsoiii Cliff Carpenter, Edgar Grower, 
ffions. Ray Malone and Carol Leigh John DeVoe. Costumes, Aline Bernstein; 

come through As a personable pair Theatre, chi^Feb i3. er *54?$3.70 top 
of song-and-dance youngsters; 

Maria Karnilova gets in some good 


“The High School,” based on 
Aleichem’s “Gymnasium,” is a 
much more complex story, dealing 
as it does with educational segre- 
gation. But here again the pathos 
is lightened by humor. Ben-Ami 


licks as top femme terper; Cam- "lakes this tale come alive with a 

eron Prud’homme and Aiine Fran- standout delineation of the father 



• UUUIV UdlCd UQvA IU Uic tui A* u* j 1 w _ J L,r A MM «1 • n Ai »l ...Li- L llld UUOMItUOi lliunvo ^ U1VG 

the century, with vaude performer nzed-py Arnold Perl, two. of which to help the lad find a school where 
» . . • •: _ i are based on Sholem Alelrnem u 


Lottie Glbson running a ^theatrical I a ^ , }? as ^ d he can squeeze in through the 

boarding house^ ^ on the side. Ro- . Jewish folktales and i -the third i an quota syste m. 

mance _nas bypassed her till she adaptation of an I. L. Peretz fan- xhe father’s sacrifice includes 


a 


m 

he 


SiTV ■ -"*■ * . “V'T pvpninp however herauce thrmiah a loucmng scene wnere ne 

Shakespeare. Love blooms but is evening, " Qw ev e r, Decause xnrougn ..9 ^ , nr5rtr : nal 

temporarily blighted when it de- Howard da Silva’s skillful treat- 1 shmears tne .senool principal, 



Ireely invites the phrtieipktien of bHW «# U.% domlneermg 

and LotUe do!?t“?e e“-to-eye at the viewer's imaginatien-an invi- *•>» goads on both father 

first but eventually call a truce Nation that’s all too i rare^ ^these days, son. 


that means good news all around 

Against this nostalgic back- 
ground, plus Hie colorful atmos- 
phere of Coney Island, settings and 
costumes have gone a bit hog wild 
on flash for pleasing eye entertain- 
ment. There’s a clever piece of de- 
signing in a setting snowing (via 
lights) a scenic railway in action. 

Choreography is used along sup- 
plemental, rather than primary, 


Da Silva’s manipulation of the Da Silva’s contributions are not 
sparse props, used as hints rather limited to his fine direction. As a 
than impedimenta, and Bernard pushcart bookseller, he serves as 
Gersten’s lighting are pleasing the narrator who weaves the pieces 
demonstrations of Implicit stage- together with Aleichem anecdotes 
craft. The players for the most Thesa bits are not a small part of 
part work with a warmth and be- the evening’s charm, 
lievability. that gives easily accept- Word-of-mouth plus plenty of 
ed breadth and scope to Aleichem’s organizational backing augurs wel 
turn-of-the century world. And the for this production during its four 
tales from this wofld, while leav- week visit here. Dave, 


Backers of the Robert L. Joseph and Jay Julien production of 
“Mademoiselle Colombo,” currently in its seventh week on Broadway, 
include theatre owner-producer Anthony B. Farrell, $3,200; Richard 
Avedon, photographer and husband of actress Doe Avedon, $1,600; 
composer Leonard . Bernstein, $1,600; Bruce Barton Jr., son of the ad 
agency owner, $1,600; Mey^r Davis, orch conductor-contractor, $1,200; 
Celia Weiner, wife of ad agency owner Lawrence Weiner, $1,200; film 
actress Gloria DeHaven, $1,000; William P. Harris and Mary D. Harris, 
parents of actress Julie Harris, who stars in the play, $800 each; tv 
director Sidney Lumet, $800; actress. Patricia Benoit, $600; Dorothy 
Wheelock Edson, associate editor of Harper’s. Bazaar, $500; Catherine 
Dives,, of Harper’s Bazaar, $400; James E. Stroock, prexy of Brooks 
Costume Co., and Bianca Stroock, his designer-wife, $400 each; Judith 
Ann Quirk, of Harper's Bazaar, $3Q0; Dorinda P. Dixon and Barbara 
Slifka, both of Harper’s Bazaar, $2Q0 each; actress Nina Foch, $200, 
and tv director Frank Satenstein, $200. Presentation is capitalized at 
$80,000, With provision for 10% overcall. 


Legit Bits 


Leland Hayward, on the Coast to 
supervise the “Anything Goes” 
telecast Feb. 28 with Ethel Mer- 
man, Bert Lahr and Frank Sinatra, 
air-commutes to New York most 
weekends. Between video confabs, 
he’s readying film productions of 
“Mister Roberts” and “Spirit of St. 
Louis” • . . Incidentally, legit 
stager David Alexander planed. 
Monday (15) to L. A. to direct the 
“Anything Goes” vidcast . . . Sam 
Zolotow, N. Y. Times drama re- 
porter, confesses that he took his 
recent vacation only on the man- 
agement’s threat of docking his 
pay if he stayed on the job. 

London production of “Seven 
Year Itch” closes Feb; 27, then 
goes on tour . . Peter Cotes, who 

staged “Pin to See the Peepshow” 
on Broadway last fall, has pro- 
duced and directed “Walk Into My 
Parlor,” a comedy by Jane Robert- 
son, as a touring vehicle in . Eng- 
land . . Dale Wasserman, who is 

serving rs production manager for 
the Broadway engagement of the 
Azuma Kabuki troupe, has collabo- 
rated with Jack Balch on “Sylves- 
ter,” a dramatization of the Ed- 
ward Hyams novel, “998.” Attorney 
Martin H. Leonard is negotiating 
for its production next season . . . 
Jane Sparks, daughter of actress 
Nydia Westman, is playing Bessie 
Watty in the ELT production of 
“Corn Is‘ Green” ... Bernard Hart, 
co-producer with 'Joseph M. Hyman 
of “Anniversary Waltz,” is in 


Roosevelt Hospital, N. Y. t with a 
fractured leg sustained in a fall 
last Saturday night (13). 

William Hughes, currently miss- 
ing from the N. Y. scene,* is ap- 


pearing in “Tobacco Road” at the 
Civic Playhouse, Los Angeles , . . 
Composer Alex North's 12-year-old 
son Steven joined the cast of the 
off-Broadway production of “Cli- 
mate of Eden” . . . Jeff Warren 
planed to London last week to ap- 
pear there in the George & Alfred 
Black musical, “Wedding in Paris,” 
which stars Anton Walbrook. 

. Sidney Kingsley’s new play, a 
comedy not yet definitely titled, 
is set for production early next 
fall. Meanwhile, the author is al- 
ready working another script, a 
drama . . . Jose Ferrer and Gilbert 
Miller still hope to produce “The 
Dazzling Hour,” which they tried 
out on the Coast last summer ... 
Cornelia 'Otis Skinner has left for 
London, where she’ll open Feb. 23 
in her solo revue, “Paris '90” . . . 
Elaine Perry, already in produc- 
tion with the Jean Kerr-Eleanor 
Brooke comedy, “King of Hearts,” 
has . optioned for next fall “In 
Time a Giant,” by Mann Rubin. 

Note to N. Y. Times drama critic 
Brocks Atkinson; David Brooks 
has been replaced by David Atkin- 
son in “Girl in Pink Tights” . . . 
Tommy Bodkin is company man- 
ager of “Confidential Clerk,” with 
Oscar Olesen general manager, 
Barry Hyams and Martin Shwartz 
pressagents, Maxine Keith radio-tv 
representative, Del .Hughes stage 
manager and Stuart Vaughan as- 
sistant . . . 

Producer-realtor Roger L. Ste- 
vens is the subject of a two-part 
profile by E, J. Kahn, Jr., in the 
New Yorker mag of Feb. 13-20 . . . 
“I find a rather prim note bn my 
program to the effect th?* I was 
(Continued on page 58) 




Wednesday, February 17, 1954 



. Paris, Feb. 9. f 

Paris newspapers and legit folk 
are getting more, voluble of late 
on the differences between U. S. 
and Gallic legit tastes. The recent 
lukewarm N. Y. reception of “Mile. 
Colombe” and Roland Petit’s Bal- 
lets De Paris, which were of hit 
proportions here, is adding fuel 
to a grievance which, has been 
brewing the last few years. Early 
demise this season on Broadway 
of "The Strong Are Lonely” and 
“The Little Hut,” other longterm- 
ers here, have fanned this into an 
important Paris topic. 

One French paper has advocated 
» possible trip stateside for lead-' 
ing French playwrights to get the 
Xj; s. pulse. Anouilh, with five 
Broadway frowns, is most in the 
news He has made no statements 
himself but the complete U, S. 
veto of all of his plays has dis- 
turbed factions here. 

Conjecture is' on as' to the Wel- 
come that will be meted out ;to the 
newest Jean Anouilh hit, “L’Alou- 
ette” (“The Lark”), if and when 
John Huston takes this to N. Y. 
next season, as he plans to do. 
Dealing with the trial of Joan of 
Arc, this: runs to farce and high 
comedy, to give a lively, theatrical 
picture of Joan, with a stunning 
performance of Suzanne Fion as 
the future saint on trial. Miss Flon 
is talked of to repeat the role on 
Broadway. 

Paris is a much more open legit 
centre than N. Y., with Oyer 100 
new plays flooding its 70-odd the- 
atres every year, and the lower 
operating costs give plays a greater 
chance for staying power. Various 
U. S. and English plays have made 
their way here, and French crix do 
not wield the heavy power of their 
U. S. counterparts. Recent sixrday 
presentation of the Stratford 
Memorial Theatre’s “Anthony and 
Cleopatra” was an SRO ‘ affair, in 
spite of the lukewarm crix and the 
French penchant for usually over- 
looking the work of the Hard. 

The socko success of “Porgy 
And Bess” is a good sign here, and 
this musical comes back again next 
season for a six-week stint at the, 
Empire Theatre. “Annie Get Your 
Gun”- was a" moderate success here, 
compared to the phenom grosses 
racked up by Such old chestnuts as 
the present revival of “White 
Horse Imi” and other operetta- 
type, saccharine morsels. How- 
ever, all this is not deterring in- 
ternationally-minded authors, and 
“Tea And Sympathy” and “Tea- 
house of the August Moon” are be- 
ing readied for next season. There 
is also talk about a possible “Pal 
Joey,” “South Pacific” or “Guys 
And Dolls/’ ■ < 



Hollywood, Feb. 16. 

Total of 36 numbers, including 
several recreations of memorable 
legit highlights, will comprise Ar- 
thur Blake’s one-man . concert 
which the mime breaks in at the 
Wilshire Ebell Theatre here. April 
2-3 prior to a U. S. and European 
tour. Blake closes March 31 at 
the Bar of Music, local nitery. 

Included in the concert will be 
s. ch items as Helen Hayes in 
“Victoria Regina,” John Barry- 
more in “Hamlet,” Walter Huston 
singing “September Song” in 
“Knickerbocker Holiday” arid a 
satirical bit called “Any Jessie 
Matthews Musical.” Latter, of 
.course, is^designed more for Brit- 
ish consumption; 

Lindfors- < Countess , Set 
*. For London March Bow 

London, Feb/ 9. 

Lord Vivian has just closed a 
deal with the management of the 
Saville Theatre here for his new 
show. This is a new play by J. B. 
Priestley and Jacquefta Hawkes 
(Mrs. Priestley) titled “The White 
Countess.” Gust , comprises Viveca 
Lindfors, recently, back from 
America; Maurice Teynac, French 
sta .r; Robert Harris, Owen Holder 
and Alan MacNaughten. ‘ 

Show opens at the Gaiety Thea- 
tre,, Dublin, Feb. 15 for two weeks, 
then a week each at Bradford, Ox- 
ford and Birmingham, coming to 
the Saville March 24, 


Be An ‘Angel* 

Robert Lee Oshinari’s pitch: 

“Dear Angel: You are cor- 
dially invited to back a big, 
fast, funny Musical Revue 
that looks like a Hit Show! 
(one punctuation mark). ’The 
Best Show In Town’ will be 
loaded with the best talent in 
Show Business in a $250,000 
lavish production that should 
make . Broadway History ! ! . 
( note two, punctuation iriarks ) , 
Even the Critics should pay to 
see this beautiful Musical with 
its brilliant topical lampoon 
sketches . . . stunning eye-fill- 
ing dance numbers . . . and 
wonderful . catchy tunes of 
smash potentiality! ! ! (three 
punctuation marks — - natch). 

' Be an Angel and let me know 
how much you would like to 
invest in ‘The Best Show In 
Town.’ Yours for a Hit 
Show , .” 



Latouche- Jerome Moross musical 
opening March 11 at the Phoenix 
Theatre, N. Y., is already being 
readied for possible transfer to 
Broadway. With that idea, Alfred 
de Liagre Jr. is sitting in With 
Phoenix partners T. Edward Ham- 

bleton and Norris Houghton on 
the production. The Broadway 
presentation would presuiriably be 
in association with him. 

An additional $50,000 financing 
has been raised for “Apple;” bring- 
ing the. budget for the musical to 
$65,000. Those putting up the ex- 
tra coin will have an interest in 
that show alone, while the regular 
Phoenix backers are understood to 
be in for the usual $15,000 al- 
lotted for each Phoenix Offering. 

Entire project of the Broadway 
transfer of the show depends, of 
course, on its .favorable reception 
at the Phoenix. 

Playwrights Seek Delay 
On ’Sabrina’ Pie Release; 
SuDavan Okays Tour 

The Playwrights Co., producer of 
“Sabrina Fair,” is trying to per- 
suade Paramount- to delay release 
of the film version of the Samuel 
[ Taylor comedy beyond the sched- 
uled date next fall. Margaret Sul- 
lavan, .costarring with Joseph Cot- 
teri in the stage edition at the 
National, N. Y., has agreed to tour 
next season if the picture is not 
released by then. Audrey Hepburn, 
Humphrey Bogart and William 
Holden star in the film. 

Miss Sullavan’s run-of-the-play 
contract with the legit show ends in 
May. She plans a vacation next 
summer in Spain. The Playwrights 
Co. is seeking a suitable star re- 
placement to continue the comedy 
through next summer and, for 
whatever period is available before 
the release of the picture, perhaps 
a limited road tour. 

2d U. S. Legit Troupe 
Heads for Puerto Rico 

Puerto Ricans, Who were recent- 
ly afforded a looksee at some clas- 
sic plays dOne i IT English by the 
Group 20, Players, are also getting 
ari opportunity to view American 
presentations ini a lighter vein. 
The Caribe Hilton Hotel and Tapia 
Theatre in San Juan have booked 
The Touring Players, American le- 
git group. Outfit will Offer pocket 
editions of the musicals, “Finiari’s 
Rainbow” and “Paint Your Wagon.” 

• Touring Players’ s t a n d this 
month differs frorii the Group 20 
engagement in that the latter 
group went to the island under the 
sponsorship of the U. of Puerto 
Rico. Venture was conducted as a 
Cultural’ experiirient in language 
and goodwill, with the group of- 
fering such works as “Taming of 
the Shrew,” “St, Joan” and “An- 
drocles arid the Lion/’ 


New Moppet Musical 
For Maine Strawhatter 


Bryan Turner and Edward Ochs- 
en, producers and directors of the 
Windmere Summer Playhouse, 
Seal Harbor, Me., have obtained 
the rights to the musical works of 
Frida Sarsen-Bueky, Composer of 
children’s music. Duo will utilize 
the newly-acquired tunes in a kid- 
die play tagged “Adeline in Dream- 
land,” which they’re in the process 
Of writing. • 


Offering will be presented for 
moppet consumption at the Satur- 
day matinees Playhouse, which 
opens July 6, will also present the 
usual adult fare on a Tuesday- 
thru-Saturday schedule. 


Report; Claims Cast 
Took Cuts to Continue 

New York. 

Editor, Variety: 

Your report on : “Harvey” on 
grosses last week from Los Angeles 
is about as out of line as I have 
ever: seen. The loss for the “Har- 
vey” company, of which I am now 
the sole proprietor, was $2,505 — 
not $4,500 as quoted. This included 
a salary of $1,000 to Frank Fay. 

If you woipld check with the 
booking office, you will find that 
the Biltiriore Theatre has played 
to many lower grosses than the one 
you quoted. Of . course, the Bilt- 
more Theatre also lost some 
money, but it cooperated to the 
limit to keep this road 'attraction 
going. In their eagerness to keep 
the show going until we could work 
out a proper route for it;, all other 
members of the company reduced 
their salaries between 25 arid 
33V6%, 

This production of “Harvey” is 
a firstclasS one and received really 
smash notices in Los Angeles arid 
San Francisco. The only bad notice 
it got was from 1 the Hollywood 
Daily Variety, where the reviewer 
implied that everybody but Fay 
was a bushleaguer and not fit to* 
walk on a stage with him. This 
statement was made about a cast 
Which includes Enid Markey, Who 
creates her own interpretation Of 
the Josephine Hull role and in 
every way stands up to the wonder- 
ful original performance of Mrs. 
Hull. 

Mary Chase, the author, has 
given her blessing to the produc- 
tion, and Frank Fay believes that 
this is as good a company as has 
ever played in support of him in 
the. role of Elwood P. Dowd. 

The crack about Fay’s: ego is 
really what annoyed me most. 
While I don’t underestimate his 
ego, he is, after all, a great per- 
former who has for years enriched 
show business with his talent and 
Originality. Without egos, we 
wouldn’t have any actors, 

“Harvey” closed in Los Angeles 
Saturday night (13) and it is our 
present plan to reopen it in the 
east in the spring with the same 
production. 

The original production cost was' 
only about $14,000 but, as you must 
realize, there have been heavy 
losses during the six weeks we 
have played, only one week of 
which was profitable. We consider 
these losses an investment in a 
very valuable road property and a 
potential popular-priced revival 
for New York. 

Edward Choate. 


‘SEASON’ OFF TO GOOD 


Glasgow, Feb. 16. 

With cast headed by Joseph 
Buloff, Sylvia Regan’s ‘.‘The Fifth 
Season” has opened its ftritish tour 
at King's Theatre here to good 
notices. BulofT was Singled out for 
special rave meritioris. 

Play is presented by Liniiit & 
Dunfee, with Richard Bird han- 
dling the megging chores. Rpn 
Randell stars with Buloff, and Sup- 
port includes English film actress 
Honor Blackman. 

Leading members of the British 
clothing trade are well to fore in 
audiences in view of play’s locale, 
the N. Y. Seventh A ve. garment 
centre. • 


(Feb. 15-28) 


Detective Story— Bryant H. S., 
Queens, N. Y. (19-20). 

Com Is Green— Lenox Hill Play- 
house, N.Y. (17-21). 


LEGITIMATE 57 


uu hid wards its Laoys nonor; 


All It Forgiven 

There’s nothing like a good 
notice to cure a theatrical 
grudge. Billy Rose was report- 
edly burned at Brooks AAkin- 
spn, drama critic of the N.Y. 
Times, because of that sheet's 
“unofficial Interim report” a 
Week before the agreed-upon 
deadline for reviews of his 
production of “The Immoral- 
' ist.” 

But when Atkinson’s “offi- 
cial” notice turned out to be the 
• only favorable one tat least by 
a daily first-stringer), Rose re- 
printed it as an ad in the other 
dailies. Introductory copy, over 
Rose’s byline, referred to At- 
kinson as “the Dean of Ameri- 
can drama critics.” 



“Wish You Were Here,” which 
folded last Saturday night. (13) in 
Chicago, wound Up with a net of 

about $100,000. On the basis of 
the standard. 50-50 split between 
management and backers, that rep- 
resented a 16.7% profit for the 
latter on their $300,000, investment 
(including $50,000 overeall). Coin, 
was distributed, sonde tiine ago. 

Leland Hayward-Jqshua Logan 
production had earned; about $200,- 
000: profit on its 597-perfbrmarice 
Broadway run ending last Nov. 28, 
but approximately $75,000 of that 
Was spent on renovating the show 
for the read, and the additional 
$25,000 was lost on the 10-week 
Chicago run. As a ; result of the 
flop of musical there; plans for 
a subsequent tour were dropped. 

Accurate figures on the Chicago 
operation and closing are due in 
about a week or so. After that, 
there will be small added revenue 
from Jack. Hylton’s current Lon- 
don production- and from stock 
rights, etc. However, there’s vir- 
tually no prospect of a film sale, 
as the basic story rights are owned 
by RKO, which filmed Arthur 
Kober’s original play, “Having 
Wonderful Time,” in 1938. 

Channing on Straight 
Salary for ‘Town’ Stint; 
Russell Not Due Back 

Carol Channing, who takes oyer 
April 5. as star of “Wonderful 
Town,” succeeding Rosalind Rus- 
sell, will get a Straight salary, 
without a percentage. Her contract 
extends through. Oct. 2, but gives 
‘her renewal option, presumably 
for the road. 

Miss Russell, who is withdraw- 
ing for an RKO film commitment, 
will then get 2Vfe% of the profits, 
instead of her present 10%. Her 
present 10% of the. gross will, of 
course, end with her exit from the< 
musical. Contrary to trade scuttle- 
butt, the filmstar has no option to 
return to the show. 

Miss Channing, currently re- 
hearsing with director George Ab- 
bott, is making a point Of not at 1 
tending regular performances of 
“Town,” as she wants to avoid the 
possibility of Instinctively imitat- 
ing Miss Russell’s portrayal. She 
hasn’t seen the show since shortly 
after its opening nearly a year ago. 

Frail/Angels’ Trips In 
Lightly on London Stage 

London, Feb. 16. 

“Angels in Love,” presented by 
Jack de Leon at the Savoy last 

Thursday (11), is a comedy by 
Hugh Mills dealing^ with an adult 
Lord Fauntleroy who is as inno- 
cent in married life as he was as 
a child. The 1 plot is frail arid too 
much of the humor has a sex 
derivation, but an excellent cast, 
headed by Henry Kendall, Barbara 
Kelly and Kynaston Reves, helps 
to keep the fun rolling. 

Prospects must be considered 
limited and will, depend largely on 
the pulling power of the stars. 


'" (Chicago, Feb. 16. 

The ChicagovTribune isn’t taking 
any aspersions on its drama: critic, 
Claudia Cassidy. Not in its own 
columns, anyway. For that rea- 
son, apparently, the self-styled, 
“world’s great e st newspaper” 
killed a syndicated Column of last 
Sunday (14) by John Chapman, 
critic of the affiliated N. Y. Daily 
-News.:-.. 

The article in question, on the 
general theme that drama critics 
are becoming an “extinct species,” 
mentioned that “there, may be 
three or four in Chicago” and men- 
tioned by name only two aisle-sit- 
ters outside New [ York — Bill: 
McDermott, vet reviewer in Cleve- 
land, and Norman' Nadel, of the 
Columbus (O.) Citizen. It par- 
ticularly cited the latter for his 
Broadway show-train junkets for 
his [readers. 

Chapman's piece, distributed by 
the Tribune-Daily News Syndicate, 
and regular printed locally by the 
Tribune, failed to mention Miss 
Cassidy, who is generally regarded 
as too critic in Chicago and one 
of the most important outside 
New York. Besides covering leeit, 
she’s also music reviewer for the 
sheet. 

Chapman’s column said in part, 
“Without anybody noticing it. an- 
other species has all but vanished 
—and as yet there are no laws or 
sentiment favoring its preserva- 
tion. I refer to the drama critic. 
The remaining colony in the U. S. 
makes its habitat in New York. It 
is a small' and generally elderly 
group with Only one female. 

Outside of New York f^w. if any, 
true specimens exist. There may 
be three or four in Chicago, a 
counle in San Francisco and one 
each in Dallas and Los Angeles. 
But even these are not full- 
blooded drama critics: their racial 
strain has been diluted or contami- 
nated by their having also to re- 
view movies, music, art galleries 
and lecture halls in order to exist. 

“It has become clear that no- 
body has become intensely Inter- 
ested in [the preservation of the 
.species, let alone its propagation. 
There are game preserves for b f- 
falo and whooping cranes, but 
none for the professional play re- 
viewer, If the critic is going to 
survive, It must do so through its 
own courage and will-to-llvc. 

“The reason for the decimation 
of the critic is the stcadv attrition 
of its feedingrground. Until now 
New York is the Only place it can 
eat. Such cities as Denver, where 
Eugene Field once flourished as a 
critic, and Cleveland, where Bill 
McDermott used to be able to keep 
busy, have become barren. Metrop- 
olises like San Francisco and Chi- 
cago, once great production cen- 
ters where reviewers gorged and 
multiplied, don’t offer enough 
work to keep a paid playgoer alive. 
The road has vanished.” 


Chi Showcase Resumes 
With Distaff ‘Dinner’ 

Chicago, Feb. 16. 

After its closing two weeks back 
became something of a community 
issue along the North Shore, the 
Showcase Theatre in suburban 
Evanston resumes again next week 
as the Chi area’s onjy year-round 
professional stock company. New 
lease on life came when some $20,- 
000 rolled in last week to an in- 
formal citizens committee which 
spearheaded the fund-raising 
drive. Funds were in the .form of 
contributions and over 800 “season 
tickets" at $12 each. 

Producer Hope Summers signed 
Patsy Kelly to star in a distaff- 
switched “The Woman .Who Came 
to Dinner,” which tees off the new 
series . of two-week productions 
next Tuesday < 23). Gene Lockhart 
follows with “You Can’t Take It 
With You.” 


Marathon Arrau 

Claudio Arrau will present all 
18 piario sonatas by Mozart during 
the 1955-56 season in N. Y. As 
part of the Mozart Bicentennial 
Celebration in 1956, pianist will 
also perform all the original 21 
piano concertos, This season, Ar- 
rau. gave ail 32 of Beethoven’* 
sonata* at Town Hall, N, Y., in 
seven concert*. 



LEGITIMATE 


Wednesday* February 17 , I 9 S 4 



Plays on Broadway 


The I'onlldentlnl Clerk mannered and lacking in change of 

prewntatlon* comedy TnUiree acts by Of the featured players,. Miss ] 
t. s. Eliot. Stars Ina Claire, Claude Rains, jyiacMahon i s expressive in the bit 
. a h n on r DoS«lo 9 WofMn . Newton BiicH. part of the woman who mothered 


Joan 

Hichjrd *N«wton.':'Suged b/"e. Marlin youths, Douglass Watson is 

JSSTSBrfflK'Xl'SSSK «*««»* * 

*M; $ 7 .eo top ($12 opening). _ tn _ young secretary* Newton Bliek is. 
sir Claude Muihaminer. . . , . xiiaude R-jifs properly poised as his retired 


SlK^niiinr ’ V.' ^ .V bouSa^witVon predecessor and Richard Newton 

B?m»g1ian Richard Newton [ 5 , acceptable as the girl’s fiance. 

- ■ British director . E. Martin 


LusaSta An/'el 
Lady Mulhammer 
Mrs. Guzzard . 


Joan Greenwood 

Aline MacMahon | Browne, who has staged all Eliot’s 
plays, has done a rather realistic 



Continued front page 56 


on. 


Girl on the Via Flaminia 

Circle-ln-the-Square production of dramm 
in three acts by Alfred Hayes. Directed 
by Jose Quintero. Setting* 8 “d costumes. 
Keith Cuerden; lighting, Noah Kalkut. At 
Clrcle-ln-the-Square, N.Y., Feb,. 9, .54, 
$3 top, 

English Senzeant James Greene 


T S Eliot is a talented writer job with this one that makes it as 

who just won’t come to the point, lucid as the material allows. Paul __ 

Or perhaps when he does come to Morrison has provided the scenery, due for a preem at Glasgow Citi- 

il, can’t put it into readily intel- costumes and lighting. Presen tar zen s Theatre this spring, the au 

ligible words. Anyway, in The tion is by Henry Sherek, who pro- ... • ---- - 

Confidential Clerk,’’ Morosco The- duced the London original, and 

atre, the St: Louis-born British Producers Theatre (Roger L. 

poet has qomposeff'another Of his Stevens, Robert Whitehead alid 

apparently glib,- presumably pro- Robert W. Dowling). Hobe. * 


distressed by these goings 
From Wolcott Gibb'* review of 
“Lullaby," in the New Yorker . . . 

N. Y. Mayor Robert F. Wagner ap- 
parently doesn’t care about the 
first-nighter Broadway vote. At 
the opening of “Confidential 

Clerk" last week he and a large ~ 

party (including at least one rep- . ' * ® a rr firms 

resentative of the management) Robert - - • - - ■ ■ ■ ■ • • • • • Leon Penn 

arrived . about 10, minutes late, oc- 
cupying an entire down-front row, 

“All in Good Faith," new play 
with Glasgow setting by Citizens 
Theatre actor Roddy; Macmillan, is 


English Sergeant i^unu.. 

American GI Andy MUligan 

Adele Pulcinl Lola D AnmuvUo 

Mini! ............ EmlUe Stevens 

Nina Sylvia Daneel 


. Antonio . . . 
Bolgoglnlnl 
Carabiniere 








Felice Orlandi 
Louis . Guss. 
Jason Wlngreen 


thor will have a part in it. 

Cyril Rltchard, British actor- 
director who’s staging “Barber of 
Seville" at the Met Opera House, 


Legit adaptations of three novels 
stemming from World War II have 
been pitched at New York theatre- 
goers in recent weeks. Extant also 
are film versions of the same liter- 
ary works, * 

While “Caine Mutiny Court Mar- 
tial" is doing SRO as a legiter, 


found comedies that will have audi 
ences scratching their pates for 
months. 

“Clerk" should be at least mod 


Lullaby 

Jerome Mayer &IrI Mowrcy (in as$o- 


Friday (19) , will also play^ the part upcoming is the Columbia-Stanley 
1 of the comic servant, Ambrogio, m Kramer celluloid treatment of the 
the show. novel. With “From Here to 

Albert Dekker will recreate his Eternity" filmization a mopup 


. .. „ elation with Toby Ruby) presentation of role of Willy Loman in the Hous- PV Arv where “Stockade." based on 

erate boxoffice, partly on the au- comedy m two acts (four .scenes) by Don ton nrnrii 1 rH nn nf <<n d otk Af Q | everywnere. ^aiocKaue^^uiwa.^^ 

thorns devoted following and espe- K S 

heavy cast, including Ina Oairt,.SrC5i«EC.SSU-WKrS' «T mST*,;. 

Claude Rains and Joan Greenwood ftfiKr .••••> President .Theatre. 

as costars, with Aline MacMahon V.ViV.V. V xu mS recent entry, also off- 

and Douglas Watson among the fea- Mother 


tured players. Its obscurity and 
gabbiness are bound to limit its 
appeal to the esoteric and, of 
course, the name draw of the stars. 


Kay Medford 
, Mary Boland 

»J -. • 


Broadway has had a run, the last 
couple of seasons, of plays based 
on the silver cord theme Or. varia- 

wh ni Vitp niav’^mVanin^ is how- tions thereof. None has been par- 

knows ticularly outstanding or successful, 
ever, maybe only the author knows, , <T lllla ^ v „ the D on Appell 


guing’into 1 tv as a cf sthig .xotault- nj^Se W fn — tile ^Sauare^is^ Alfred 


Jo Kaiser into the. Chi cast of 
“Seven Year Itch” replacing Mary 
Warren, recovering from an ap- 
pendectomy ... Bev Kelley, who’s 
been pressagenting “Wish You 
Were Here," which closed in Chi- 
cago Saturday (13), rejoins Ring- 
ling Bros, circus as radio-tv pub- 
■*Wish" company 


novel, “The Girl on the Via 
Flaminia." In adapting his book 
for legit presentation Hayes has 
done an admirable job in making 
the switch from novelist to play- 
wright. “Flaminia" Should do as 
well off - Broadway as "Caine 
Mutiny’’- is doing on the Main 
Whether play could hold up 


Stem 

lesque touenes to tne play, that I ucuy- cniei . wish cunipany I • - r - th hiffleafiUe comDetition 
they destroy whatever pathos there manager Jim Troupe back to New V n <jT M ain stem is ^uestlon- 



rather 8 f^fnterviewX and^articles entrant, y 'isn’t likely to break 'the 
himself ^rep^tlJg^s fe r d ^ s P lte Sever « 1 thin « s ln ^ 
customary, “It means What you 

Aului. u ** .vir A n _. M L nn „ tiicic aic av jiiaiij iaisc ui uui* 

w 11 !^ les( l u e touches to the play, that licity chief 

hut in the case of at least one spec. * than >iA?frAir Hrh ofanai* nofUAe 4-iia**A mfinAcfpr .ii 

tator, Eliot isn’t flattering himself 
Like the sahie playwright’s “The 
Cocktail Party" of four seasons 

ago, “Clerk" is a verse play that three or' four hilarious moments, I ATP AM, handling the “Julius Cae- .. A M v . 

sounds like prose, only rather pre- there isn’t enough consistent fun to sar" film at the Selwyn. -Via' 

cise prose, though when the text make the -opus score in that direc- Edward H. Brink Jr., operator Sf-Jiwo win 

Is published it will doubtless turn tion. Too many writing styles come of . Theatre-in-the-Round, Grand however, was scripted by Irwin 

out to be, as did “Party," printed into play. Rapids, Mich., strawhatter, hits. > > * iaw v . . 

mostly in the form of verse. The Specifically,, the Work deals with New York Feb. 27 on biz relative . Stage ^ersion is a poignant ac- 
new piece is similar to “Party," too; a mama’s boy of 3fl who elopes to upcoming season ... . Playwright count of. life in Italy immediately 
in its small cast (in this . case sev- with a nitery cigaret girl. Mania Ken Parker's new book of eight following country’s liberation by 
en), fashionable London drawing follows them to their honeymoon- original plays for legit and tv pub- U. S. troops in World War II. 
room locale, its bright chitchat ing hotelroom,; to break up the lished by Northwestern Press of Offering is peopled with credible 
suggesting momentous, overtones nuptials. Then she moves in on the Minnesota, under tag “Parker’s characters. Hayes’ denunciation 
and, above aill, its cool remoteness, couple back home, either, to wreck Television Plays" . . . Harold Lev- of the chocolate caridybar bargain^ 
The dialog usuallv in the fiuise^ ■ .the. marriage or frorii fears ^of being itt’s “One Foot to the Bea” will ing tactics of the American soldiers 
of personal Smalltalk but occasion- 5*^ 5 r o i J? d an o«-Broadway nin of in dealing with the squalor-ridden 

allv dealing in the author’s charac- guts enou .Sh to stand up to the 230 performances at the Originals populace is potently projected via 

tenstically g aloof fashion with emo- 2 nl ^ PJayh° u s e Feb. 28. Paul punchy dialog and stimulating per- 

tional matters, generally suggests J a " d with ^°f d ' s Haven in. the Dark" is formances. Although play is ar- 

philosophical meanings on succes- may Start * nex * **»#«*: * ‘ h ™“!5r 


J h . e h r n.’f, “n , 1 ,. 1 1 Too many phony situations and 
ouina 1 to ° frequent wisecracks shatter, a 

L w good deal of the validity which the 

play intrinsically has. There’s poig- 
nancy in the long first scene, as the 


terms life imposes on us. Although 
the author seems to advocate the 
latter; his hero finally turns from 
an “imposed" life of security aftd 
wealth to pursue a risky career as 
a humdrum church organist. Which 
view is the author expressing? As 
always, he doesn't make clear. 

By taking a transparently trite 
story-«-the original is said to be 
Greek drama, but seems even old 
er than that— and treating it in 
stylized symbolic form, Eliot seems 
to be performing a sort of ritual 
exercise in classic comedy. It’s fre- 
quently interesting and occasion 
ally enthralling 


ten by Lee Gilmour, of - the' Amer- 
ican Theatre Wing, for the Nation- 
al Foundation for Infantile Paraly 
* li • j , - * •. , 1 sis, was given in-the-round by 

freshly-married duo goes to their shadows, dramatic group of the 


hotelroom, and the man reveals 
himself a frankly scared person till 
the femme uiiderstandingly puts 
him at ease (and to bed). Kay Med- 
ford, recently in “John Murray 
Anderson’s Almanac^’ and Jack 


the Playhouse. out, it fails to carry an emotional 

“New Fountain,” new play writ- wallop. However, its good points 

far outweigh this weakness. In its 
present surroundings there’s little 
doubt that work will have a long 
run. 

Firstrate cast gives incisive por- 
trayals under the .polished direc- 
torial hand of Jose Quintero. 
Major assignments are held down 
by Betty Miller and Leo Penn. For- 
mer gives a sensitive characteriza- 
tion of an Italian girl who rather 


written an interesting, passionate 
drama of the conflict between arms 
aiid intellect in impoverished Ire- 
land of 1938, but irll find its audi- 
ence in students of the theatre 
rather than in the Broadway leoit 
crowd. 

Carroll isn’t telling a pretty 
story here. It’s a tale of the dis- 
integration of a family and a home 
The lives of two brothers and two 
sisters are thrown into chaos be- 
cause of the country’s ecclesiasti- 
cal rigidities and economic prob- 
lems. 

One brother is forced to abandon 
his farm to seek a better life else- 
where, The; other brother, who be- 
lieves that active opposition is the 
only way to sdlve the country’s : 
problems; dies defending the farm 
from the bankers. A sister is sent 
to an insane asylum, and the other 
is abandoned by a suitor who 
promised marriage. Through all 
the turmoil, Carroll expounds a 
philosophy for the reformation of 
the individual rather than force 
again’st the state. At times it’s stir- 
ring and Vibrant drama, but a lot 
of pedagogic soapboxing creeps in. 

The cast, under the able direc- 
tion of Harry Wagstaff Gribble, 
turns iii an excellent job. - Helena 
Carroll, the playwright’s daughter, 
is wistful and appealing as the for- 
saken sister, while Gerry Jedd has 
several electric moments as the de- 
mented sister. Thomas Clancy, as 
the brother who believes in the 
ruth of guns, is fiery and believ- 
able. Edward Walsh keeps his role 
as the solid member of the family 
in a minor key, but it's effective. 
George Ebeling is okay as the au- 
thor’s spokesman for the intellect 
and Larry Bolton alleviates the 
sombre mpud. .occasionally with 
some neat comic bits. 

Edgar Lansbury’s sets and Leo 
Garen's lighting contribute to the 
overall gloomy atmosphere. Gros. - 

The Backbone 

Steve Parker it Bernard Hart produc- 
tion of draipa in three acts (six scenes) 
by* Andrew McCuUough. Directed by Mc- 
Cullough. Designed and lighted by Abe 
Feder. Assistant to producers. Happy- Fel- 
ton; At Edwin Burke Memorial Theatre* 
N.Y., Feb. 14. # 54; $3.60 top. 

Laseano ..... . . ... i . . Philip Kenneally 

Douglas David Davis 

Hodgins PhUip Abbott 

Waters Steve Parker 

Lovett George Martin 

Riley ..... .- v Sandy Kenyon 

Jerry Jess Cain 

Gorgson George Kluge 

Wlldeat Michael Galloway 

Slanovlch Jerome Gardlno 

Harris Ed Stroll 

Soldier Richard Holland 

Runner Robert Mills 

Captain Bill Sharon 


College of St. Rose, Albany, last 
week, where it wais followed by a 
roundtable discussion, with Dr. 
Hyman M. Forstenzer, of the N. Y. 
State Mental Hygiene Commission, 
as moderator. Opus dramatizes 


Warden play the young couple with the nroMems of ^vounKiriri^d- l\? n ot ai i; Ita “ a 

a great deal of charm, awkward -ustment to a Dhvricaf disability f han : 1° h Y". gl ' y 
strength and conviction, justmeni 10 a pnysicai aisamnty keenlnrf with a 

The play hits a sharply false note 

F^fetiilai ^n 5 \H?nhm^h 0I1 Th^ r ^n lice and tabbed as a pros'tie. As 
Festival in Edinburgh. This will soldier, Penn turns in a con 


in the second scene with the ar- 
rival of Mary Boland, as the 


takes up house 

• keeping with a soldier without 

Mused^by^poUo. benefit of clergy. Circumstances 

. J lead to her being picked up by PP-, 


Sergeant 






Andrew Walsh 


•resting and occasion- mother, who barges into the hotel- be his last assienment ther^ nrior the soldier, Penn turns in a con- 
ing, but enigmatic and room like a private detective, act- tVkina vincin^ performance, underplaying 
exasperating. So “Clerk” is un- ing like a femme in a burlesque f° r soc k effect. Loia D’Annunzio 

likely to repeat its current London farce rather than an outraged or oireetor ot warma woit, Ltd., L,on- a j s0 dominant as an Italian 
click here. lonely parent. Opus goes steadily oi: 5 f « woman who allows soldiers into 

Play’s story is about a British downhill . from there for the two her home for food and wine. Felice 

financial bigwig who brings in his scenes of the second act although ♦ a L ± ^.ii 1UIT1 inealre ' Orlandi as an embittered GI draws 

full impact from his role. Other 
supporting parts are played effec- 
tively, with Louis Guss adding a 
light touch to the proceedings with 
his humorous characterization of 
an Italian swindled in a blackmar- 
ket transactihn. 

Keith Cuerden’s settings and 
Noah Kalkut’s lighting aid in the 
play’s effectiveness. Jess. 


illegitimate son to be his confiden- there are frequent moments when 
tial clerk, or what we’d call his playwright Appell’s sense of 
personal secretary. The youth is human relations or vernacular 
soon on the verge of falling In lov£ speech make the situations per- 
with the tycoon’s forthright ward, suasive 
really his illegitimate daughter. Miss Boland, very amusing at 
But when they realize their rela- scattered times, uses too many 
tionship, the girl gets herself en- styles of acting (perhaps it’s the 
gaged to a rising young financier, scripting or direction) to be effec- 


presiimably of no family back- 
ground 

The highly contrived finale in 
volves the appearance of an obscure 


tive or sympathetic. Miss Medford 
is really a comedy-dramatic find, 
and Warden is surprisingly good 
too. Four-character play has *A1 


woman who, It turns out, mothered Ramsen in the stock role of the 
both young men. She reveals that bellhop, which he illuminates with 
the secretary isn’t the millionaire’s some amusing bits. 


Edinburgh, this fall. 

The Arena— Rochester’s longest 
run (3V6 years) resident profes- 
sional year-round theatre^ — ap 
peared on CBS Radio’s “Stage 
struck” program Feb. 7. Group did 
a scene from Arnold Sundgaard’s 
comedy, “The Kilgo Run.” Produc 
ers Dorothy Chernuck and Omar 
K. Lerman also made a few com 
ments on the show 
Leo Fuchs* of the Yiddish thea- 
tre, has bought a play by George 
Miller, called “The Comedian, 
which Fuchs will star in next sea- 
son, in his first English-speaking 


son at all, but that the apparently 
commonplace young financier- 
fiance is actually the long-lost il- 
legitimate son of the millionare’s 
giddy wife. AU of which enables 
EHot to prattle about inherited 
characteristics and paternal and 
filial affection. 

As to performance, “Clerk” is 
unevenly, but in some respects 
brilliantly, done. Miss Claire, re- 
turning to Broadway after about a 
10-year absence, is magnetic and 
superb as the absent-minded— one 
might also Say absent-headed — 
wife. Rains gives an excellent per 


Co-producer Jerome Mayer has 
directed, occasionally with sensi- 
tivity, but more often with sheer Philip Howard. They’ll do it first, 


Wise Have Not Spoken 

Trio Productions presentation of drama 
in three acts (four scenes), by Paul Vin- 
. _ - w . ... - cent Carroll. Features Helena _ Carroll, 

role on, Broadway. Fuchs will CO- Edward Walsh. Thomas Clancy. George 
produce the comedy-drama with Ebellng,_ Gerry Jedd. Directed by Harry 


brashness. Ben Edwards' sets of 
hotelroom and mama’s living room 
are suitably drab. Bron. 


instead of “He’s Such a Doll,” as 
previously announced. 

Ernestine Perrie, who will di- 
rect four plays at the International 
Theatre Festival at the Bermudianai 
Theatre, Hamilton, Bermuda, in 


Wagstaff Gribble; settings, Edgar Lans- 
bury; lighting, Leo Garen. At Cherry Lane 
Theatre, N.Y., FeD. 10, *54: $2.40 top. 

Una MacElroy Helena Carroll 

Peter MacElroy . Edward Walsh 

Francis MacElroy Thomas Clancy 

Andy Redferh y Y Jlin Flynn 

Martyn Langley . . . . .Dermott MacNamara 


Paddy Ardee 

Sylvester Tlffney. 


Two Democratic members of 
Congress, Reps, Lee Metcalf, of 
Montana, ahfl Roy W. Wier, of 
. .w, 1 - - - Minnesota, joined last week In in- 

f?^ manc ® in ^ difficult role ^of troducing a bill which would bring 
tunning ssofvflnance, Sk illfully about the restoration of Ford’s 

piavers g Theatre, where Abraham Lincoln 

players, with no good scenes for was assassinated On April 14, 1865 


Scions Prep Bill To 

a. j* April, Will stage the Broadway ^ Catherine MacElroy...,. 

Restore D. C. Ford’s chaoei Players .production of 

Washington, Feb. 16. Ghrfstopher Fry a The Boy With a 

Cart,” April 4, 11 and 18. 


Larry Bolton 
George Ebeling 
.... . Gerry Jedd 
, Patrick Clancy, 
Marriott Wilson 


liimself. 

, Miss Greenwood, a British film- 
legit actress making, her U. S; de- 


The measure would direct the 
Secretary of the Interior to make 


but, makes a positive impression as a st M(dy of what would have to be 
ail emotionally insecure, assertive done add hoW much It Would cost, 
ward. She is attractive looking, Similar bills have been Introduced 
with a booming, somewhat hoarse in other years, but without making 
Voice, blit seems studied, overly any headway. 


Londoq, Feb. 9. 

Karl Stepanek being paged by 
J. C. Williamson Theatres for lean 
in “Dear Charles” for extensive 
Australian tour . . . Bernard Del- 
font has signed Hal Monty for a 
six^month tour of the provinces of 
his “Folies Bergere” revue; which 
opens on the Moss Empires circuit. 
Show plays for two weeks mini- 
mum at each house. 


Off-Broadway theatre continues 
to move in where the uptown an- 
gels fear to tread, 

Paul Vincent Carroll’s “The 
Wise Have Not Spoken” has been' 
kicking around Broadway produc- 
ing offices for this past several 
years. Despite Carroll being a two- 
time winner of the N. Y. Critics 
Circle Award, it took the ambitious 
young producing outfit; Trio Pro- 
ductions, to finally get this play on 
the boards at Greenwich Village’s 
200-seat Cherry Lane Theatre. 

The uptowner’s caution, how- 
ever, is warranted. Carroll has 


The Lambs Club, which spon- 
sored the one-shot tryout of “Back- 
bone” Sunday (14), is undoubtedly 
hoping to duplicate the success of 
“StRlag 17,” a prior Lambs' preem. 
Both shows have a World War II 
motif; deal With American GIs and 
utilize all-male casts. Although 
Andrew "McCullough’s new play is 
an attention-grabber, with some 
forceful dramatic moments, it 
doesn’t have the humorous flow of 
4 its predecessor. Despite an occa- 
sionally strong laugh line, “Back- 
bone” has an overall depressing 
theme that might receive general 
audience resistance. 

Play’s title stems from a Rud- 
yard Kipling quote to the effect 
that the non-commissioned Officer 
is the backbone of the army. 
Focusing on the early days of 
World War II, McCullough pre- 
sents a vivid, effectual account of 
the brutal treatment accorded a 
group of recruits in a medical de- 
tachment by a maladjusted ser- 
geant, Despite the three-striper’s 
obvious maltreatment of the men 
under his command, he’s permitted 
to continue in his authoritative ca- 
pacity until he decides to transfer 
out, of his own accord, to a rougher 
outfit. 

That the sergeant is a psycho 
case is made apparent by the au- 
thor in a stirring second-act scene 
in Which the non-com lets out 
some of his inner feelings; during 
a drinking spree. However, Mc- 
Cullough probably didn't want to 
leave any doubt as to the non- 
com’s mental state arid during the 
play’s final stages puts the sergeant 
through an. emotional breakdown' 
in which a childhood fear of his 
father is brought to the fore. 

Cast assignirients Wete given 
potent essaying. Philip Abbott was 
impressive as the brutal sergeant, 
while Philip. Kenneally did well as 
a kind-hearted corporal. David 
Davis as a medical officer whose 
surgical talents were being dissi- 
pated as a result .of his army serv- 
ice, - turned' in a believable per- 
formance. Jess C&in as a flippant 
GI tossed off most of the plays 
laugh lines with aplomb. Effective 
support- was provided by the re- 
maining performers. Abe Feder s 
skeleton sets„ were imaginative, 
While McCullough’s direction main- 
tained a taut pace. •Jess. 


^edneidafi February 17, 1954* 


LEGITIMATE 


59 



W $24,600, ‘Wish’ $37,100 


Chicago, Feb. 10, 
With fine weather and a big 
dental convention sparking first-of- 
the-week grosses, the legit picture 
here took on a rosier hue last 
week. Departure notice helped 
“Wish You Were Here,’* which 
closed Saturday (13). 

Estimates for Last Week 
Evening With Beatrice Lillie, 
Blackstone (7th wk) ($4.40; 1,358). 
S19 500. 

* Good Nite Ladies, Great North- 
ern (7th wk) ($5; 1,500), Over 
$12,500. ■ . ■' 

Seven Year Itch, Erlanger (21st 
\vk) ($5; 1,334) (Eddie Bracken). 

Almost $24,600. 

Time Out for Ginger, Harris (5th 
wk) ($4; 1,000) (Melvyn Douglas). 
Topping $19,300. 

Wish Yim Were Here, Shubert 
(10th wk) ($5; 2,100). $37,100. 

Closed Saturday (13). 



In Fifth 


Continuing its hot b.o. pace, 
the N. Y. City Ballet racked up. 
nearlv $50,000 at a $3.60 top at 
City Center, N. Y., last week, in 
the fifth, week of its winter run; 
Actual take was $49,430.70. Tax is 
retained as usual, because of org’s 
non-profit status. Previous week, 
troupe hit an alltime high for it- 
self and for the ballet at the Cen- 
ter. with a sock $52,075 gross. 

Ballet Theatre racked up a neat 
$36,150 in seven performances 
through Texas . last week. Fort 
Worth (on guarantee) brought $3 ,- 
500; San Antonio, $5,100; Austin 
(guarantee), $3,900; Port Arthur 
(guarantee), $3,750, and Houston 
(three shows), $19,900.) Troupe 
does another series of splits this 
week, then opens a week’s stay in 
Los Angeles Monday (22). 

Roland. Petit’s Ballets de Paris, 
in their fourth stanza last week at* 
the Braodway Theatre, . N. Y., 
grossed about $31,700. 

‘Porgy’ $30,500, St Louis; 
‘Story’ Swell $19,000 

St. Louis, Feb. 16. 

First of a two-week frame of 
“Porgy and Bess’’ wound up at the 
American Theatre Saturday (13) 
with a whammo $30,500. Hoiise 
was scaled to $4.88. Gross includes 
20% tax retained by non-profit 
operation. ' 

. June Lockhart continues to grab 
plaudits from the crix and “The 
Philadelphia ' $tory/’ in which she 
had the top role, concluded a 
week’s frame at the Empress The- 
atre Sunday (14), with gross a 
swell $19,000 at $2.50 top. “Life 
With Mother,” with Billie Burke, 
tees off a week’s session at the 
Empress tonight (Tues.). 

‘Harvey’ $19,800 (3 Wks) ; 
‘Hoad’ Meagre $1,200, L.A. 

Los Angeles,' Feb. 16. 

‘Harvey” finally closed over the 
weekend after the producers suf- 
fered a two-week economic drought 
brought on by insistence that the 
si tow be kept running. In three 
sessions lit the 1,636-seat Biltmore, 
the comedy grossed $19,800. 

Town’s only other offering last 
week was John Carradine’s revival 
production of "Tobacco Road,” 
which skidded to . around $1,200 
and may wind up this session. Last 
week, incidentally, the auditors ap- 
parently added gross and cost to 
considerably over-estimate, the tal- 
ly. Actual gross was approximate- 
ly U, 800. 

“Come On and Play,” new revue 
slated to open last Week at Ha- 
rout’s Ivar, bowed last night 
ai •■) 'biter a weekend delay. 
Also opening last night Was “She 
tJood It in Dixie,” a John Cousin 
Production which relights’ the 
Beaux Arts. 


Blackstone $10,000, D.C.; 
Ballet Lively $21,000 

. Washington, Feb. 16. 

■ That lively oldtimer, Blackstone 
the Magician, and his full-length 
stage production, coaxed a hand- 
some $10,000 through the wickets 
at the Shubert Theatre last week 
despite the. low. ($2) ceiling on the 
tab. Blackstone played an addi- 
tional matinee last Sunday before 
moving on to Baltimore. . 

At the National Theatre, the 
Royal Winnipeg Ballet, making its 
first appearance outside of Canada, 
drew surprisingly well, thanks in 
part to. guest star Alicia Markova. 
Take for the week came to $21,000. 

Bernie Ferber, Shubert house 
manager, has revived “Mr. Rob- 
erts" for two weeks with Tod An- 
drews in the starring role. Play re- 
opened at the theatre last night 
(Mon.), Fact that the theatre has 
gone to the trouble to produce, 
in effect,, a play for a single fort- 
night engagement is an indication 
of the shortage of product on the 
road for legit houses, “The Burning 
Glass;” .starring Cedric Hardwicke 
and Broadway-bound, opened at 
the National last night for two 
weeks. 


Current Road Shows 

(Feb. 15-27) 


/Man* $4350j Rochester 

, Rochester; N. Y., Feb. 16. 

. Man and> Superman,” Arena 
J heatre’s third , annual Shaw pro- 
duction lived up tb expectations, 
possihg $4,850 in 17 performances 
loi’ the healthiest three-week 
stanza since the* fall-Wihter season 
opened. The 300-seat theatre-in- 
tn e-round spot was scaled at $1.90 
and $2.40. r 

“Mister Roberts’* opens tomor- 
row (Wed.) for ’three weeks. Strat- 
ton Walling is Roberts and . James 
Harwood, Ensign. Pulver. John 
oedwick directed. . 


Burning Glass (Cedric Hard- 
wicke) (tryout)-r-National, Wash. 
(15-27) (Reviewed in Variety this 
week). ' 

By the Beautiful Sea (Shirley 
Booth tryout)) — Shubert. New 
Haven (15-20); Shubert, Boston (22- 
27)) (Reviewed in Variety this 
week)...-. 

Evening With Beatrice Lillie 
(Beatrice Lillie) — Blackstone, Chi 
(15-10); (American, St. L. (22-27). 

Girl in Pink Tights (Renee Jean- 
maire, Charles Goldner) (tryout) — 
Shubert, Phila. (15-20); Forrest, 
Phila. (22-27). Reviewed in Variety, 
Jan. 27, ’54). 

Good Nite, Ladies— Great North- 
ern. Chi (15-27). 

Guys and Dolls— Shubert, Bos- 
ton 15-20); Colonial, Boston (22-27). 

Moon Is Blue — Shubert, Detroit 
(15-27)). .. 

. My Three Angels (Walter Slezak) 
— Plymouth,. Boston (15-27). 

New Faces— Currant, S. F. 415- 
27). 

Oklahuma-^Nixon, Pitt. (15-20); 
Taft, Cincy (22-27). 

Porgy & Bess— American, St. -L. 
(i 5-20); Music Hall, K. C. (22-27). 

Seven Year Itch (Eddie Bfacken) 
—Erlanger, Chi. (15-27)). 

South Pacific (Jeanne Bal, Webb 
Tilton)— Lanier Aud., Montgomery 
(18-20); Florida, St. Petersburg 
(22-27). 

Stalag .17 — Lyric, Allentown (15- 
17); McCarter, Princeton (18-20); 
WRVA* Richmond (22-25); Center, 
Norfolk (26-27). 

Time Out for Ginger— Melvyn 
Douglas) — Harris, Chi. (15-27). 

Twin Beds— Locust St!, Phila; 
(15-27). 


Current London Shows 

London, Feb. 16. 

(Figures denote premiere dates) 
Airs Shoestring, Royal Ct. (4-22-53). 
-Alice Looking Glass, Princes (2-9-54). 
Angels In Love, Savoy (2-11-54). 

Anna Lucasta, Hippodrome (1*26-54). 

As Long As Happy, Garrick (7-8-53). 

Big Knife, Duke York’s (1-1-54). 
Birthday Honours, ICriterion (10-6-53). 
Boy Frland, Wyndham’s (12-1-93). 
Charley’s Aunt, .New (2-10-54). 
Confidential Clerk, Lyric (9-16-53). 

Day By The See, Haymarket (11-26-53). 
Escapade, Strand (1-20-53). 

Folios Bergere, Pr. Wales (9-24-53). 

For Better Worse; Comedy. (12-17-52). 
Guys and Dolls, Colliseum (5-28-53). 
Housaipaster, St. Martin’s (1-19-54). 

King end I, Drury Lane (10-8-53). 

Love From- Judy, Seville (9-25-52). 

Love Match, Palace (11-10-53). 

Mother, Embassy (2-15-54). 

Mousetrap, Ambas. (11-25-52). 

No Other Verdict, Duchess (1-21-54). 

- Old. Vic Repertory, Old Vic. (9-14-53). 
Paint Your Wagon, Majesty's (2-11:53). 
Private Secretary, Arts (2-3-54). 
Pygmalion, St. James' (11-19-53). 
Question ;of Fact, PlccadUly (12-10-53). 
Reluctant Hereto, Whitehall (9-12-50). 
Ring Out Bells, Vic. Pal. (11-12-52). 
Seagulls Sorrehfe, Duchess (6-14-50); 
Seven Year Itch, Aldwych (5-14-52). 
Sleeping Prince, Phoenix (10-5*53). 
Someone Welting, Globe (11-25-53). 
Troplcana, New Watergate (2-10-54). _ ■ ■ 
Wish You. Were Here, Casino (10-10-53). 
Witness Prosecution, W. Gard. (10-28-53). 


SCHEDULED OPENINGS 
Burning Glass, Apollo (2-18-54). 

Fifth .Season, Cambridge (2-24-54). 
Grey Fedora, New Lindsey (2-23-54). 
I Am a Camara, New <3-12-54). 
t Capture Castle, Aldwych (3-4-54). 
Liberty Bill, Strand (2-25:54). 

Paris '90, St. Martin's (2-22-54). 
Wadding In Paris, Hlpp. (4-3-54). . 
You'll BO Lucky, Adelphi (2-25-54). 


Twin Beds’ Neat $16,000 
In Stanza at Detroit 

Detroit, Feb. 16. 
The 1,482-seat Cass relighted 
last week for the first time in a 
couple of months and did capacity 
biz with “Twin Beds.” Even on 
twofers, at top scale of $3.60, it 
grossed a good $16,000. Current at 
the Cass is the National Ballet of 
Canada, in for a week;- 
The 2,050-seat Shubert relighted 
Sunday (14); with “The Moon Is 
Blue,” in for two weeks. Top is 
$3.60. Shubert also' has lined up 
“Oklahoma” for a two-week en- 
gagement beginning March 1. 



. Boston, Feb. 16. . 
Hub’s two legits, “Guys and 
Dolls,” in seventh week at the 
Shubert, and “Ondine,” in second 
and final week at the Colonial, 
spurted : ahead of the previous 
stanza. Musical, which moves to 
the Colonial Monday (22), is now 
expected to stay three weeks in- 
stead of the skedded fortnight, due 
to the cancelling of the New 
Haven date. Will move instead di- 
rect to Philadelphia. 

Newcomer this week is “My 3 
Angels,” comedy costarring Wal- 
ter Slezak, Which opened Monday 
(15). at the Plymouth for a two- 
weeker.V Coming in next Week is 
“By the Beautiful Sea,” a new mu- 
sical comedy . starring Shirley 
Booth, which opens a limited en- 
gagement at the Shubert Feb. 23. 

Estimates - for Last Week 
Guys and Dolls, Shubert (1,700; 
$6 Fri.-Sat. f $4.80 other nights) 
(7th wk). Due to upbeat in 
Wednesday matinee, m us i c a 1 
topped previous week, winding 
With a slick $42,220. 

Ondine, Colonial (1,500; $4.80) 
(2d wk) (Audrey Hepburn, Mel 
Ferrer). Final week set house rec- 
ord. for straight play with hefty 
$36,200. House is dark until Feb 
22 when “Guys and Dolls” tees off 
with matinee performance, 


CLOSED LAST WEEK 

Boychlk, Embassy (1-13-54). 
Trial A Error, -vaude (9-17-53). 


$10,400 in Pittsburgh 

Pittsburgh, Feb. 16. 

“The Winner” was anything but 
that at the Nixon last week. De- 
spite subscription backing and at 
least one very favorable notice, 
with the two others just so-so, new 
Elmer Rice play never got started 
and finished With a very weak 
$10,400. Even the weekend, which 
has been heavy all season, didn't 
turn lip more than a handful. 

Puny take was all the more sur- 
prising in view of the excellent 
word-of-mouth “The Winner” got 
generally. Audiences liked it a lot 
and went away talking. Fact that 
there were no names in the cast, 
however, is believed to have miti- 
gated against its road chances. 
Nixon currently has “Oklahoma!” 
back again, followed by Blackstone, 
and then it looks like two dark 
weeks between March 1-13 until 
“Stalag 17” returns on the 15th. 

San Anton’ Stands ’Em In 
Wings at ‘Carmen’ Show 

San Antonio, Feb. 16. 

The 10th anniversary season of 
the San Antonio Opera Co. ended 
Sunday afternoon (14) with “Car- 
men,” and . Met contralto Rise 
Stevens in the title role. The 
house, which seats a little over 
6,000, reported 7,300 paid admis- 
sions. 

The demand for tickets was so 
great that 800 folding chairs and 
some 500 standees were sold. Then 
the fire commissioner prohibited 
further sale, and an additional 50 
people were permitted to stand in 
the wings during the performance. 
“Carmen” was an hour late getting 
started, since it took that long to 
get everyone seated. Incidentally, 
this was one of the hottest Febru- 
ary days in the history of San An- 
tonio. 

The season comprised four 
operas, others being "Otelld,” “La 
Traviata” and “M'adame Butterfly.” 
Good houses accompanied these 
operas too, although none of them 
approached the “Carmen” sale, 
which was the biggest in the his- 
tory of the San AntoniQ Opera Co. 
— : — . ■ . — • '.) ■ ' - ... 

‘Okla.’ $22,1 00, Rochester 

Rochester; Feb. i6. 

“Oklahoma”, drew over $22,100 
at the Auditorium, Rochester, here 
last week. 

Musical is current at the NixOn, 
Pitt. 




t Kcfa $22,600, 



. Broadway biz continued to slip 
last week for all but the smash 
entries. In some cases the drops 
were; slight; However* seven shows 
Registered dips ranging from $1,000 
to $4,200 from previous stanza’s 
takes. 

Broadway entrants this week are 
“The Winner” and “Ondine,” both 
Playwrights Co. productions. For- 
mer preems tonight (Wed.), while 
latter opens tomorrow (Thurs.). 
Last week’s hew additions were 
“The Immoralist” and “Confiden- 
tial Clerk.” Previous session’s sole 
Closer was “In the Summer House,” 
which folded last Saturday (13). 

Estimates for Last Week 

Keys: C (Comedy), D (Drama), 
CD ( Comedy -Drama) , R (Revue), 
MC (Musical Comedy), MD (Musi- 
cal Drama), O (Opera). 

Other parenthetic designations 
refer, ■ respectively, to top prices; 
number of seats, capacity gross and 
stars. Price includes 20% amuse- 
ment tax, but grosses are net: i.e., 
exclusive of tax. 

Caine Mutiny Court Martial, 
Plymouth (4th wk) (D-$6-$4.80- 1,- 
062; $33,000) (Henry Fonda, John 
Hodiak, Lloyd Nolan). Over $32,- 
700, with standees at ail perform- 
ances, but take held down because 
of theatre party commissions (pre- 
vious week, $33,400). 

Can-Can, Shubert (41st wk) (MC- 
$7.20; 1,361; $50,160). Nearly $50, r 
700 (previous week, $50,600). 

Confidential Clerk, Morosco (1st 
wk) (C-$7.80; 935; $30,200) (Iria 
Claire, Claude Rains, Joan Green- 
wood. Opened: Thursday (ID to 
three favorable notices (Chapman, 
News; Coleman, Mirror); Hawkins, 
World-Telegram), three negative 
reviews (Atkinson, Times; Kerr, 
Herald Tribune; Watts* Post) 
and one noncommittal opinion 
(McClain, Journal - American); 
Grossed almost $24,200 for first 
four performances and three pre- 
views. 

Dial M for Murder, Booth (67th 
wk) <£>-$4.80; 766; $20,801) (Mau- 
rice Evans). Nearly $15,700 (previ- 
ous week, $15,300); closes Feb. 27 
to tour. 

Fifth Season, Cort (56th wk) (C- 
$4.80; 1,056; . $25,227) (Menasha 

Skulnik, Richard Whorf). Over 
$23,000 (previous week, $23,200). J 

His and Hers, 48th Street (6th 
wk) (C-$4.80; 925; $22,927) (Celeste 
Holm, Robert Preston). Almost 
$19,500 (previous week, $19,700). 

Immoralist, Royale (1st wk) (D- 
$6-$4.8Q; 1,035; $31,000) (Louis 

Jourdan, Geraldine Page).. Nearly 
$21,200 (previous week, $25,400 in 
eight preview performances), 

In the Summer House, Play- 
house (7th wk) (D-$6-$4.80; 999; 
$23*500) (Judith Anderson). Under 
$16,600 (previous .week, $12,500); 
closed last Saturday (13) after 55 
performances at a loss of its entire 
$85,000 investment plus a deficit 
of around $25,000. 

John Murray Anderson’s Alma- 
nac, Imperial (10th wk) (R-$7.20; 
1,400; $50,300). Nearly $39,200 

(previous week, $41,000). 

Kind Sir, Alvin (15th wk) (C- 
$6-$4.80; 1,311; $39,460) (Mary Mar- 
tin, Charles Boyer). Over $25,500 
(previous week, $27,600). 

King and I, St. James < 151st wk) 
(MD-$7.i0; 1,571; $51,717) (Yul 

Brynner). Over $34,300 (previous 
week, $33,500); Patricia Morison 
joined cast last night (Tues.) as co- 
star, succeeding Annamary Dickey; 
musical closes March 20 to tour. 

Kismet, Ziegfeld (11th wk) (MD- 
$7.20; 1,628; $57,908) (Alfred 

Drake), Over $57,800 (previous 
week, $57,900). 

Lullaby, Lyceum (2nd wk) (C- 
$4.80; 995; $22,845) (Mary Boland). 
Over $6,500 (previous yveek, $7,- 
800 for first five performances). 

Mile. Colombe, Longacre (6th 
wk> (CD-$6-$4.80; 1,048; $26,817) 
(Julie Harris, Edna Best). Over 
$15,700 (previous week, $18,700). 

Me and Juliet, Majestic (38th 
wk) (MC-$7.20; 1,510; $58,000). Al- 
most $37,600 (previous week* $37,- 
200 ). 

Oh, Men, Oh, Women, Miller (9th 
Wk) (C-$6r$4.80; 920; $23,248) 

(Franchot Tone). Held at almost 
$23,000. 

Picnic, Music Box (51st wk) (CD- 
$6-$4.80; 997; $27,534). Over $18,- 
500 (previous week, $19,300). 

Prescott Proposals, Broadhurst 
(9th wk) (CD-$6-$4.80; 1,160; $29,- 
500) (Katharine Cornell). Over 
$15,300 (previous week, $19,000). 

Remarkable Mr. Pennypacker, 
Coronet (7th wk) (C-$7.80; 1,027; 
$28,262) (Burgess Meredith, Martha 
[Scptt). Topped $22,300 (previous 
week, $22,600). 

Sabrina Fair, National (13th wk) 


(C-$6-$4.80; 1,172; $31,300) (Mar- 
garet Sullavan* Joseph Gotten). 
Nearly $30,600 (previous week, 
$31,200). . 

Seven Year Itch, Fulton (65th 
wk) (C-$6-$4.80; 1,063; $24,400) 
(Tom Ewell). Over $22,600 . (pre- 
vious week,. $23,600). 

Solid Gold Cadillac, Belasco 
(15th wk) (C-$6-$4.80; 1,077; $28,- 
300) (Josephine Hull), Held at over 
$28,300. 

Tea and Sympathy, Barrymore 
(20th wk) (D-$6-$4,80; 1,060; $28,- 
300) (Deborah Kerr). Held at al- 
most $28,600. 

Teahouse, of the August Moon, 
Beck (1.8th wk) (C-$6-$4.80; 1,214; 
$31,681) (DaVid Wayne, John. For- 
sythe). Held at nearly $32,200. 

Wonderful Town, Winter Garden 
(50th wk) (MC-$7.20; 1.510; $54,- 
173) (Rosalind Russell). Almost 
$46,600 (previous week, $48,000). 

Miscellaneous 

Coriolanus; Phoenix (4th wk) 
(D-$3; 1,150; $15,000). Almost $10,* 
000 (previous week, $11,200), 

Ruth Draper* Vanderbilt (3rd 
wk) (CD-$3.60; 720; $13,000). 

Opening This Week 

Winner, Playhouse (CD-$4.80; 
999; $21,500) (Joan Tetzel, Tom 
Helmore). Playwrights Co. produc- 
tion of play by Elmer Rice; opens 
tonight (Wed.). 

Ondine, 46th St. (D-$7.80; 1,139; 
$39,512) (Audrey Hepburn, Mel 
Ferrer). Playwrights Co. produc- 
tion of play adapted by. Maurice 
Valency from French, by Jean 
Giraudoux; ope n s tomorrow 
(Thurs.) night. 



Philadelphia, Feb. 10. 

“Girl in Pink Tights,” lone at- 
traction in Philly last week, 
waltzed off With top take of $49,- 
600 for its second Shubert Theatre 
stanza. Tuner is being rewritten. 

Cast changes found David Brooks 
stepping out, to be replaced by 
David Atkinson. But public de- 
mand never lessens. Show went 
clean every performance and is 
sold out for remaining week of Its 
run. 


‘PACIFIC’ OVER $35,600 
IN NEW ORLEANS WEEK 

New Orleans, Feb. 16. 

“South Pacific” took in over 
$35,600 at the Civic Auditorium 
here last week. 

Jeanne Bal-Webb Tilton starrer 
is splitting: current week between 
the Saenger Theatre, Mobile (15- 
17), arid the Lanier Auditorium, 
Montgomery, Ala. (18-20). 


‘Glass’ $10,200 for Four 
In Hartford Tryout 

Hartford, Feb. 16. 

Healthy take of $10,200 was 
grossed' last Thursday- Saturday 
(11-13) in four performances by 
“The Burning Glass” in a tryout 
at NeW Parsons here. Usual tariff 
of $4.20 top prevailed. 

House stays dark for the time, 
with nothing specific pencilled in. 
Slated for tryouts this spring are 
“Sailors Delight,” starring Eva 
Gabor, and “Child of Grace,” star- 
ring Uta Hagen. 


‘Angels’ Above $13,200 

In Baltimore Stand 

Baltimore, Feb. 16. 

“My Three Angels” grossed 
above $13,200 here at Ford’s last 
week. Good notices and favorable 
word-of-mouth contributed to brisk 
weekend biz but first portion of the 
week was spotty. The Walter 
Slezak starrer. Was the fourth play 
on Theatre Guild-ATS subscrip- 
tion. 

Blackstone is currerit at Ford’s 
with “Dial M for Murder” set to 
follow ori March 15. 


‘Faces’ 26G, Frisco 

San Francisco, Feb. 16. • 
Eartha Kitt returned to “New 
Faces” Monday (.8) and with her 
return the grosses, which had skid- 
ded during her eight-day absence 
from the show (to fulfill a Buffalo 
nitery engagement), stepped up 
again to a solid $26,00(1. 

Healthy advance is set fpr re- 
mainder of run. 








Wednesday, Febnury 17, 1954 


Ballet Reviews 


Nat’l Bailee of Canada 

Buffalo, Feb, 12. 

National Ballet Guild ot Cahada presen- 
tation, featuring Celia Franca. Davk, 
Adams, Grant Strate, Raymond Roller. 
Angela Leigh, Lois Smith, Irene Aplrte. 
Jury Gotshalks. Dlrectod by Miss , Franca; 
musical direction, George Crum; pianist, 
June McBride. At Erlanger, Buffalo, Feb. 
12. '34; $3.00 top. 

Whatever their reported differ- 
ences,. the National Ballet of Cana- 
da and the Royal Wlnnepeg Ballet 
have one thin? In common. Both 
picked the Niagara Frontier for 
their inaugural American showing, 
the RWB (unofficially) at Niagara 
Falls last summer and the National 
here this week. The coincidence 
gives local balletomanes a classic 
opportunity for comparisons, some 
of which may be invidious. 

For a group only three years 
old, the National is a remarkable 
aggregation. Under the artistic 
aegis of Celia Franca, who also 
danced the feature role at the 
opening performance, the presen- 
tation is characterized by a strik- 
ing proficiency in all departments. 
The pteem, which included two 
acts of “Giselle” and an after- 
piece, “ G a la Performance,” 
brought Into the limelight a : young, 
lpvely eorp-.de ballet whose grace 
and fluidity in both the folk dances 
and the traditional classic routine 
of the “Giselle” story was pro- 
jected with an ease and charm 
of manner relaxing to witness. 

Miss Franca, who serves as artis- 
tic director as well as featured 
ballerina, is an amazing performer. 
She possesses the dramatic flair 
and the gift of lyric physical ex-r 
pression of a fine artist. Her crea- 
tive directional ability and organi- 
zational skill to which the ensemble 
bears witness would appear to 


match her choreographic attain- 
ments and set her forth as some- 
thing of a genius in her metfleY. 
Kay Ambrose's handsome costumes 
and settings for both offerings are 
done With consummate taste. 

David Adams brings a virile, per- 
sonable quality , to the male roles 
he enacts, which are all to fre- 
quently absent from among his 
contemporaries. As a- male ballet 
le?d, he should bear watching. 

• The performance of Antony Tu- 
dor’s “Gala Performance” to a 
Prokofiev score proved an alto- 
gether delightful, spirited after- 
piece. It .s a shrewdlyrlimned 
lampoon of backstage and footlight 
ballet mores, its sharp caricatures 
of ballet troupe personnel, includ- 
ing the Italian. Pussian and French 
ballerinas (delightfully danced by 
Lois Smith, Angela Leigh and 
Irene Apine) are not . only some- 
thing for t’.e prompt book, but, 
as projected, suggest deeper and 
more serious overtones than the 
musical and choreographic text 
might at first indicate. 

The interpretive work of all of 
the members of the cast in this, 
oresentation marks the company 
as a factor to be reckoned with 
in our continental ballet. If this 
is a fair example of Canada’s de- 
veloping national art and culture, 
our neighbor to the north cm well 
be proud of it. Burt. 

Ballol^ iii^ Paris 

(BROADWAY, N. Y.) 

Norah Kovach and Istyan Rabov- 
sky, Hungarian dancers who fled 
Soviet rule last year through the 
Iron Curtain to Berlin, made their 
U. S. stage debut at the Broadway 
Theatre, N. Y., last Tuesday (9), 



announces 


THEY ARE ORGANIZING 
A CONCERT TOUR FOR 
CONDUCTOR - ARRANGER - COMPOSER 

HARRY SOSNIK 


AS A RESULT OF THE MANY REQUESTS THEY HAVE 
HAD FROM CONCERT MANAGERS THROUGHOUT 
THE COUNTRY who have heard HARRY SOSNIK on 
his famous TREASURY RADIO SHOW which is broad- 
cast daily throughout the land, many were impressed 
by SOSNIK's superb conducting, arranging and com- 
posing on the many shows he was affiliated with in 
the past, and more recently an the ORCHID AWARD 
TELEVISION SHOW. He also arranged and con- 
ducted hour long color television shows for the 
major networks in the past few weeks. 

TRIUMPH took a poll of HARRY SOSNIK's popularity 
rating among the concert managers of the country 
and Was amazed at their immediate reaction, which 
proves that SOSNIK's consistently fine work on radio 
and television over the years has definitely left 
memorable impressions. 

TRIUMPH PRODUCTIONS and HARRY SOSNIK have 
evolved an excitingly colorful format which will be 
a pleasurable night in any theatre or auditorium. We 
are convinced SOSNIK will make his first concert 
tour a "REPEAT MUST" in the ensuing years. 

TRIUMPH PRODUCTIONS 

113 W«il 57th Strtct, New York City 

Currently booking HARRY SOSNIK for 1954- 55 Concert Tour 
Address inquiries to Kenneth Alton or Jay . Lurye 


as gpest artists in a specialty with 
Roland Petit’s Ballets de Paris. 
Team is an excellent dance duo 
and a fine b.o. draw under normal 
circumstances. They offer the pas 
de deux from “Don Quixote” as 
an added number to the regular 
program. • 

But added to the Petit troupe as 
a sort of last-minute gesture, in the 
fourth week of the group’s six- 
week N. Y. run, move is probably 
too late to hypo a boxoffice licked 
from the start by opening-night 
staging fiascos and bad notices. It 
also seems a little late to capitalize 
on last year’s escape-story head- 
lines, or even on the Ed Sullivan 
“Toast of the Town” tv appearance 
of the duo last fall. 

Other than that, however, the hus- 
band-and-wife ballet team makes 
an exciting novelty. Two ballet 
stars, who have performed lead 
roles at. the Maryinsky Theatre in 
Leningrad and the Bolshoi Theatre 
in Moscow, are a gifted duo. He’S 
the better of the two, with terrific 
speed in his turns, with high leaps 
and multiple spins in mid-air, and 
other virtuoso bits. She’s also High- 
ly talented, quick and sure in her 
fouettes, and brisk in all her move- 
ments. What they lack mainly is 
style and a certain high taste, 

Rare sight of Soviet-trained 
young dancers in the west is pro- 
vocative. It’s interesting to , note, 
via their work, how the Russians 
apparently ignore poise and grace; 
concentrating^nstead on technique 
ana dance brilliance. With speed 
and showy qualities to burn, the 
two show off their type of ballet 
to the hilt. It’s excellent stuff for 
a ballet entr’acte, tv bit or nitery 
act. • 

Duo, who also did the specialty 
with Petit ? s troupe in Paris last 
fall, may stay with the Parisians 
during the short tour that follows 
the N, Y. date, although they will 
have to fill an engagement at the 
Sahara, Las Vegas, in March. They 
should go very well in Vegas. 

Bron. 

Slarenska, Franklin Join 
Pitt Ballet for Fla. Tour 

Pittsburgh, Feb. 16. 

Mia Slavenska and Frederic 
Franklin, who recently closed a 
tour with their own company, will 
be the stars With the international 
Repertory Ballet Co. when Francis 
May ville, local impresario, takes 
his Pittsburgh troupe on a tour of 
Florida next month, opening with 
a Miami booking on March 5. 

The company, which will also be 
augmented by Salvador Juarez, 
who is staging the International’s 
production of “Les Sylpliides,” is 
breaking in its road program with 
two -performances here at the Nix- 
on Theatre on Sunday, Feb. 28. 
Miss Slavenska and Franklin, how- 
ever, will not dance in the Pitt 
engagement. They’ll be here then, 
however, to join the May ville com- 
pany, Which departs for the South 
the following day. 

May ville recently got back from 
Florida, where he managed the 
Jose ‘Greco ' company in several 
dates down there. 


Shows in Rehearsal 

Keys : C ( Comedy ) , D ( Drama ) , 
CD ( Comedy-Drama ) , R ( Revue ) , 
MC (Musical Comedy), MD (Musi- 
cal Drama), O (Operetta). 

Anniversary Waltz (C) — Joseph 
M. Hymari & Bernard Hart, prods.; 
Moss Hart, dir.; Macdonald Carey, 
Kitty Carlisle, stars. 

Golden Apple (M) — Norris 
Houghton & T. Edward Hambleton 
(Phoenix Theatre), prods.; Hugh 
Ross, dir, v 

King of Hearts (C) — Elaine 
Perry, prod.; Walter Kerr, dir.; 
Jackie Cooper, Donald Cook; stars. 


’Alice’ in London 


• London, Feb. 16. 

Ralph Birch opened a six-week 
season of a nevV adaptation by Fe- 
licity Douglas of Lewis Carroll’S 
"Alice Through the Looking Glass'’ 
at Princes Theatre last Tuesday 
(9). Despite drawing powers of Bin- 
nie Hale, Walter Crisham, Mar- 
garet Rutherford, Michael Denison 
and Griffith Jones, show drags and 
is unlikely to prove profitable, be- 
ing badly timed and below West 
End standards. 



I 


Drama Grlx 

Continued from page 1 


asking his audience to disregard 
the very opinions, he’s used all 
his logic and skill and guile to 
make persuasive. It’s hardly sur- 
prising, therefore, that producers, 
authors, actors, etc., tend to regard 
such critical disclaimers as croco- 
dile tears. 

Yet most thoughtful trade ob- 
servers concede that critics are 
perfectly sincere in welcoming au- 
dience "revolt,” at. least when it 
involves patronizing shows that 
have received unfavorable notices. 
Everybody, with the possible ex- 
ception of jealous rival managers, 
authors and such, deplores the fail- 
ure of the public to support shows 
that have received enthusiastic 
notices. In that case, the "revolt” 
is universally regretted. 

The answer to this apparently 
contradictory critical attitude, it’s 
figured, is, that .most of the critics 
are genuinely alarmed over the de- 
cline of the theatre in the U. S. 
This is not only because their pres- 
tige and ultimately their livelihood 
must reflect the; state of legit. 
Most of them like the theatre and 
are interested in its economic wel- 
fare as well as its artistic quality. 

Most critics, it’s felt, honestly dis- 
like and deplore the fact that they 
have come to have a virtually de- 
cisive effect on the boxoffice. They 
regard the life-or-death impact of 
their reviews as a responsibility 
which they must try to ignore but 
cannot ever really forget. This 
tends to make reviewing an oner- 
ous chore instead of a self-expres- 
sion satisfaction. Only an ego- 
maniac would derive pleasure from 
the destructive boxoffice effect of 
a pan, but all critics enjoy the 
sense of power in boosting a show 
with a favorable notice. 

Virtually every first-stringer in 
Nevv York has recently expressed 
approval of the apparent "revolt” 
bf audiences this season. John 
Chapman, of the N. Y„ News, wrote 
to that effect in a Sunday column 
a couple of weeks ago. Perhaps 
the most explicit on the subject 
recently was Richard Watts Jr., in 
his "Two-6n-the-Aisle” column last 
Sunday (14) in the N. Y. Post. 

Watts wrote, "Let us be thank- 
ful for even small blessings these 
days. Maybe the one I have in 
mind suggests a trend. 

"Playgoers in increasing num- 
bers are beginning to question the 
edicts of those givers of theatrical 
dogma, the drama critics. It isn’t 
the most impressive revolt conceiv- 
able, and I wish it were sometimes 
fought on behalf of plays that rep- 
resented worthier causes, but it is 
a fine and encouraging sight for all 
of us, even for the reviewers.” 

Critic went on to regret the lack 
of "revolt” for “Billy Budd,” a flop 
of several seasons ago, arid the re- 
cent “In the Summer House,” and 
to minimize the public support of 
“Kind Sir” and “Sabrina Fair,” 
for instance, which he hadn’t liked. 
However, he stuck to his general 
point, including, “But, even when 
the plays don’t justify it, 1 like 
the hint of audience revolt and its 
implications/’ 


CM E 01 Seena? . 

(Wbo’o on Stage?) 

Genoa, Feb 2. 

Anna Magnanl presentation of revue 
two acta by Michele Galdleri. Stars W mi 2 
Magjnani. Luigi Clmara., Andreina Paul* 
features ..Cesare Danova. Glanrico T.ri. 
achl. Florla TorrigUnl^ Jl. Temos. PameU 
Mathews. Nunxio Gallo. Mario Slletti 
George Zorttch; June Graham Dancer, 
Directed by Galdleri; dances' Ml ssGr ?: 
ham;, sets and costumes, Leonor Finl and 
Sfardslao Lepri; mimes. Jacques Lecoa 
At Teatro Augustus. Genoa; $4 top. • 

Anna Magnani's return to the 
boards after a long, successful 
cinematic interlude is the feature 
of this review— -and of the Italian 
theatrical season as well— arid it 
is probable that she would be pack- 
ing them in ‘ regardless of the 
value of the show itself. That 
Michele Galdieri has also written 
a tasteful review will only , help 
Miss Magnani on her way and 
point to a successful, tour of Italy. 

There is little; pretense at a story 
ling, and sketches are sandwiched 
between dances and production 
numbers, most: suggested by cur- 
rent events. Best r is a sketch show- 
ing a neo-realist Italian pic direc- 
tor at work on a Naples street lo- 
cation— good for plenty of yoeka 
even to the uninitiates; Show ap- 
pears to have been written with a 
Roman audience (arid show biz one) 
in blind, and many of the laughs 
are aimed intramurally at other 
sectors of show biz, thus best ap- 
preciated by those of the metier. 
There’s plenty for the general 
trade, however. 

June Graham’s dances are gen- 
erally . good, though sometimes too 
unconventional for local consump- 
tion. The show is still; Miss Mag- 
narii, who has lpst none of her mag- 
netic audience appeal, while gain- 
ing in prestige during her 10-year 
absence. Material here gives her 
a chance to range, all over the en- 
tire scale, but i whether playing it 
straight or giving out with her own 
personal brand of earthy humor, 
she. has the audience right where 
she wants them and they want her. 

As a short-skirted, updated Alice 
in Wonderland who knows all the 
answers; as the Moulin Rouge's 
Goulue; as a prostie who interrupts 
a stage rehearsal and: shows up 
other performers, or whenever on- 
stage, she melts even the tradition- 
ally glacial Genoese reserve, for 
healthy mitting. 

Assisting her is a cast chosen 
principally for acting ability, 
though Andreina Paul has looks as 
well, and is wasted in bits. Luigi 
Gimara, Giamico Tedeschi, Cesare 
Danova, all help put over the show. 
Not least credit, however, is due 
costume work and 'feet design by 
Leonor i^ini and Stanislao Lepri, 
unusual, colorful, and vastly imagi- 
native. Hawk. 


( Theatre indicated if booked) 

Winner, Playhouse, tonight 
(Wed.). - , 

Ondine, 46th St., tomorrow 
(Thurs.)). 

Girl in Pink Tights, Hellinger, 
Feb. 27. 

Burning Glass, March 3. 

Golden Apple, Phoenix, March 

11. ...... . . 

By Beautiful Sea, March 25. 
King of Hearts, March 31. 
Anniversary Waltz, April 7. 
Child of Grace, Booth, April 8. 
Year Around, April 19. 

Pajama Game, May 12. 



BROADWAY ANGELS, 
INC 

Common Stock 
Price 50c a Share 

Write or phone for t an offering 
circular to 

BROADWAY ANGELS, INC. 

29 W. 65th St., Now York 23 
TRafalgar 4-1 81 5 


SUMMER THEATRE 
DIRECTOR WANTED 

Michigan— $ Arena Playi. Reheariali begin 
June 3, thru Aug. 25. Write, include eg*, 
experience, addreis. phene, eatery decked, pi*. 
If potiible. Will write gr call fer interview 
in N.Y.c. March I te 6. 

Bex V-21454,: Variety, 154 W. 46 th St. 
New York 36, N. Y. 


CAB CALLOWAY 

EIOHTY-SEVENTH WEEK « Sportin' Uf. 

“Porgy and Bess" 

• Currently 

AMERICAN THEATRE, St. Louis 
CONCLUDING TWO WEEKS 

Storting Fob. 22 
CIVIC AUD., KANSAS CITY 
Mgt.: BILL MlTTLER, 1619 Broadway, Now York 


THEATER DE LYS 

NOW BOOKING for SPRING-SUMMER-FALL 

For Information: write Anita Post, General Manager, 

121 Christopher Sti; NYC or Phone WA 4-6232; WA 4-8782 


Wednesday* Fcfcrnaiy 17, i$54 


PTSSBBPi 



Mary Ptekfoed's Autoblof 
Otis Lee Wieie, editor and pub- 
lisher 8 of McCall’*, to hosting a 
Stailery to celebrate Mary Pick- 
ffl’s autobiography which starts 
Urializing in the March issue. 
?!ouis Biancolli, music critic of the 
if y World-Telegram & Sun 
ghosted it. ■ He also did the Mary 
rarden biog (Simon & Schuster) 
,f,S'the Kirsten Flagstad . story 
(Putnam). Former was serialized 
iJ, woman’s Home Companion. 

Doubleday will probably publish 
the book version, depending on the 
reaction that Miss Pickford gets 
from the McCall’s four-parter. The 
book version is longer, and the 
vet film star will probably okay it 
but first wants to make sure it is 
durable enough for publication be- 
tween covers. If not, she would 
return the reported $15,000 advance 
from Doubleday and let it go at 
that as a monthly serial. Book 
version, incidentally, when and if 
it goes through, will be generously 
illustrated with many oldtime film 
scenes, Hollywood personalities, 

■ etc. . 

Hy Gardner’s *i* (Correct!) 

Hy Gardner’s al fresco autobiog 
will be titled *‘i” (lowercase) which 
is the only deference to a modesty 
that he doesn’t pretend to. Says 
the N. Y. Herald Tribune colum- 
nist, “As my subtitle, Sort of 
Biographical Notes and Anecdoes 
of a Broadway. Columnist ; indi- 
cates— this in upper and lowercase 
mind you— the personal pronoun 
just about expresses, all the ego 
to be found in any Broadway 
columnist. The only most modest 
sop to vanity is that I’m giving 
it the e.e. cummings treatment by 
lowercasing the title ‘iV* 

It’s slated for a May ms. dead- 
line for Holt publication. It’s 
primed for the fall and will em- 
brace his career as Capt. Hy Gard- 
ner in World War II, as a p.a., 
and now as a columnist. 


'Pernicious* U.S. Literature 

Films and American comics were 
blamed at a Cooperative Party con- 
fab in Glasgow for a decline in 
moral standards among British 
youth. 

Mrs. Ann Flynn, young mother 
of five children, said the best film 
boxoffice draw today was the pic- 
ture which showed most of the fig- 
ure and least of the clothing. 
J. MacLachlan, Lanark councillor, 
said: “The British Govt, should 
prevent the import into this coun- 
try of pernicious American litera- 
ture, comics and other horrifies, 
which have a harmful effect on the 
minds of young readers.” 

Horseracing Tomes 

Baron Valentin Mandelstamm, 
for 15 years prior to World War II 
the French government’s represen- 
tative to the American motion pic- 
ture industry, . has • an article in 
‘The Thoroughbred of California” 
on horseracing in France. 

Piece, part of a three-part sur- 
vey, will be expanded into a book 
for publication in the U. S. He’s 
also preparing for publication in 
France a tome on American horse- 
racing. He leaves for Spain Feb. 
18 tp act as adviser on pictures in- 
tended for the U. S. market. 

New Forbes Ed 

Byron Mack, ex-Time magazine, 
is new editor-in-chief at Forbes 
magazine. 

' Bob Heimann resigned as editor 
to become assistant to the prez of 
American Tobacco Co;, Paul Hahn. 

St. Louis Italian Wkly. Anni- 
, [1 Pensiwo, Italian weekly pub- 
lished in St. Louis, celebrated its 
50th year of publication with the 
current issue, an eight-page anni- 
versary edition. The paper, the 
only Italian language periodical in 
Missouri, was founded, by Luigi 
t-arnovale, an author and editor, 
and taken over a few years later 
*>y Dr. Carlo .Cottpne. 

For the past 40 years its pub- 
lisher has been Dr.- Ceasar Avigni. 
V ai 'lo Marselli is the present editor. 

Eloise-Abelard Drama 
• The Morning Star, play about 
si?, tragic love of Peter Abelard, 
i^th century scholar, and his stu- 
oenti Heloise, written by Henry 
J-,* Haskell, contributing editor of 
Va 6 Kansas City Star and former 
foreign editor; has just been ‘pub- 
hshed cGlerin Publishing Co., Kan- 
sas City; $2.50). The play was 
' u men some time ago and pro- 
from manuscript at the U. 
v 1 Kansas Theatre, Lawrence, 
£an$., Oct. 29, 1952, under direc- 
Tion of Dr. John Newfield, drama 
P l of and theatre director. 

, Kcnnance is told in blank verse, 
nnnging the characters of Heloise, 
Abelard- and- Canon Fulbert into 


sharp focus. Author stresses the 
human qualities of the lovers, tell? 
ing the story lucidly and with 
great frankness. 

The form of the play Haskell 
calls “experimental,’* It’s designed 
for backgrounding with medieval 
chants and chansons, with which 
the author also is ‘familiar as an 
accomplished musician. The mu- 
sic was a part of the first produc- 
tion, but is no part of the pub- 
lished work. 

Play should be excellent for lit- 
tle theatres, university groups and 
the like. If is the fourth play Has- 
kell has authored, ’’The Inconstant 
Moon,” “Serenade” and “The Sun 
for Sorrow” having been per- 
formed by- workshops in Kansas 
City several years ago. 


Musical Books 

Louis Biancolli, music critic of 
the N. Y, World-Telegram & Sun, 
aiid the late Herbert F. Peyser, 
ditto on Musical America for many 
years, have edited “Masters of the 
Orchestra,” for Putnam publica- 
tion in . March, with a collaborative 
assist’ by Robert Bagar, also of the 
W-T-Sun, and Pitts. Sanborn. 

Another musical book is Helen 
Noble's “Life With the Met,” a 
backstage closeiip of her more than 
30 years association with the Met- 
ropolitan Opera as secretary to Ed- 
ward Ziegler, the asst, general 
manager. She also is a singer. 

CHATTER 

Los Angeles Mirror switched 
from tabloid to eight-Column size. 

St. Louis Post-Dispatch opened 
a bureau in Hollywood with Ed 
Harris as chief. 

Harry Essex’s show biz novel, “I 
Put My Foot Right In,” will be 
published May 19 by Little, Brown.. 

Ruth Ericsori in Hollywood for 
two weeks to ogle studios for 
Movie Play, Movie Time and Movie 
Spotlight. 

Lee M. Merriman, editor of the 
Pasadena (Cal.) Star News, elected 
a trustee of the Pasadena Play- 

Haiico A ccn 

C. Walter Hodges' “The Globe 
Restored: A Study of the Eliza- 
bethean Theatre,” due via Coward- 
McCann in March. 

Paul Denis has video profiles in 
current issues of TV World, TV 
People, Television Life, TV Car- 
nival, TV Star Parade. 

Harold Rosenthal, N, Y. Herald 
Trib baseball scribe, authored a 
yarn on air pollution in the May is- 
sue of Mechanix Illustrated. 

Bob Harrison upped his April 
print order for Confidential to 
1,250,000; the previous bimonthly’s 
1,000,000-copy order sold out. 

The Ted (editor of Holiday) Pat- 
ricks poured at “21” in a get-to- 
gether for their friends on occa- 
sion bf their 25th anniversary. 

Ned L. Pines, publisher of 
Screenland and Silver Screen mag- 
azines, and William A. Rosen, v.p. 
and ad director, arrive in Holly- 
wood, Feb. 22. 

Elizabeth, N." J., Daily Journal 
marked its 175th anrii yesterday 
fTues.) with a special edition re- 
prising history of its area from the 
Revolutionary era. 

Ted (“Escort Service”) Peckham 
has written a memoir of his grand- 
parents, titled “Grandma Rolled 
Her Own,” which Coward-McCann 
will publish in May. 

Emily Kimbrough, lecturer-au- 
thor and star of her own show on 
WCBS, N.Y., has written “Forty 
Plus and Fancy Free” which Har- 
per’s will issub March 3. 

Bill Willard, vet Variety mugg 
in Las Vegas, on a sabbatical to 
complete his novel, “Snake Eyes,” 
with a Las Vegas locale. Bob 
Clemons, of the Las Vegas Sun, 
new replacement. 

Louis Kronenberger’s “Company 
Manners” due via Bobbs-Merrill in 
March, Another drama critic, Jo- 
seph Wood Krutch, has authored 
“The Measure of Man,” also a BM 
March publication. 

Peggy Wood, the legit actress 
who has the name role in CBS- 
TV’s “Mama,” tells the story of her 
experience with Norwegian . food 
abroad in “The Groaning Bord,” 
in February Gourmet. , 

Speed Lamkin’s “Easter Egg 
Hunt,” to be published by Hough- 
ton Mifflin, is a Hollywood novel. 
Same firm bringing out “News 
Editing” by BrUce Westley, Asst. 
Prof, of Journalism at U. of Wis- 
consin, . ■ 

' Edmund Wilson’s “Five Plays, 
the first of which, “The Crime in 
the Whistler Room” was produced 
by the Provincetown Players in 
1924, being published by Farrar 
Straus & Young, with a preface by 
the author. . , x 

Donald B. Bigelow, assistant 
professor of history at Columbia 
U. and in 1952 conductor of “Semi- 
nar,” the weekly educational tv 
series -on < ABO,- has- been -signed by 


McGraw-Hill to write a biography 
of Ulysses S. Grant 

Ralph Foster, formerly assistant 
commissioner of the National Film 
Board of Canada, has formed a 
publicity firm, Communications of 
Canada, in Toronto, in partnership 
With Art Wells. Both are onetime 
staffers of the Toronto Szr. 

Saturday Evening Post launched 
its serialized autobiography of Bob 
Hope (as told to Pete Martin) in 
the Feb. 13 issue with a cover 
painting of Hope by Rockwell 
Kent. It marks first time a show 
biz personality has been given the 
mag’s cover treatment. 

“Almost A Hero,” from Metro 
trade press contact Bill Omstein’s 
first book, “Ma and Me,” will be 
reprinted in the /upcoming week- 
end edition of the N. Y. post. A 
dramatization of the sa me story 
was given recently over WMGM, 
N. Y., on. the “American Jewish 
Caravan.” 

, “Canada’s Mr. Broadway” is title 
of Stanley Handnian’s piece on ex- 
Montrealer Robert Whitehead in 
the Feb. fi issue of Weekend Pic- 
ture Magazine, a Sunday insert, 
like This Week, in 23 dailies. 
Whitehead’s activities as member 
of Producers Theatre, Inc., on 
Broadway, are. discussed. 

Edward J. McGoldrick Jr., who 
was Director of Alcoholic Therapy 
of the City of New York, under 
Mayor LaGuardia, and himself a 
Teformed alcoholic, has authored 
“Management of the Mind” (How 
to Conquer Alcohol and Other 
Blocks to Successful Living”). 
Houghton Mifflin will publish in 
May. , 

Doris Betts, of the Chapel Hill 
Weekly (N. C.) and the Statesville 
(N. C.) Daily Record, won the 
$2,000 prize in the first Putnam- 
University of North Carolina prize 
in their contest which was judged 
by Pearl S. Buck. Marjorie Kin- 
nan Rawlings and James Street. 
Mrs. Betts’ novel is “The Gentle 
Insurrection” and Putnam will 
publish in April. . 

George J. Kochenderfer, news- 
man for 49 years, was named edi- 
tor emeritus of the Mansfield, O;, 
News Journal, of which he has 
been editor since its founding in 
1932. D. K. Woodman, executive 
editor, replaces him. Virgil A. 
Stanfield, city editor for . eight 
years, moves up to become manag- 
ing editor, and Harry West be- 
comes city editor. 

Joseph Hayes, whose play, “Leaf 
and the Bough,” was done on 
Broadway in 1949, after having 
been tried out by Margo Jones in 
Dallas, is having his first novel, a 
Random House publication, select- 
ed as a Literary Guild book selec- 
tion. It’s rarely that a first novel 
is a book club selection. Hayes has 
written almost 20 plays for non- 
short stories;, this is his first book. 

Travel editor Horace Sutton’s 
new footloose book is titled “Sut- 
ton’s Places,” an April publication 
via Holt, which is also bringing 
out, “The Big Fix,” the story about 
Brooklyn’s political racketeers, by 
Norton Mockridge and Robert 
Prall, N. Y. World-Telegram & Suri 
crime reporters. They previously 
authored “This Is Costello.” An- 
other Holt publication is Peg and 
Walter McGraw’s “Assignment: 
Prison Riots,” based on their NBC 
radio series, “The Challenge of 
Our Prisons.” 


Alperson % 

Continued front page 3 


person is already down For a per- 
centage as producer plus 5% of 
the gross for serving assjiaison 
with 20th on distribution activities. 
Investors, who are talking a court 
action, feel the producer should 
recoup his added investment with- 
out taking an extra percentage of 
the profits. 

Based on present-day standards, 
the budget for converting the 
Broadway revue into a film was an 
extremely modest one. With the 
cast and writers participating on 
a percentage deal, it was set at 
$200,000. Of this sum, $100,000 
was obtained by a' bank loan, with 
the remainder coming from private 
sources who contributed in a 
manner similiar to investors in 
legit shows. By. employing the 
original legit costumes* using sim- 
ple sets and filming It as presented 
on the stage without resorting to 
unusual camera angles, “Faces” 
was completed in 15 days. 

Alperson’s. tie with 20th stems 
from a deal he has with the com- 
pany to provide a certain number 
of pictures for release. He in- 
cluded “Faces” as one of the 
group. Arrangement with 20tli 
calls for the Indie production com- 
pany to receive 35% on the first 
$400,000 after deduction of distri- 
bution costs and bank loan and a 
5(J-50 split thereafter. 


UTERATO 


*1 


SCULLY’S SCRAPBOOK i 

HHtutnau By Frank Scully tttUtttMMM 


Hollywood; 

Once^ in an ancient city whose name I no longer remember (or is 
that Longfellow?), some characters held a political convention and 
tried to save it with a Hollywood personality. The name of the town 
comes to me now. Fresno. Fresno, California. The idea was to keep 
alive a two-party system of government. 

The party in power had held a quiet get-together a few weeks pre* 
viously. Thirty party bosses smoked up their affairs in a matter q( 
hours and then blew to various parts of the state to get the dough t« 
move their blueprint into office. 

Then the other party, the majority party that usually drew a minority 
of the votes, gathered together 1,500 delegates, or about 1/20 of 1% 
of the state’s total population, and one 1 Hollywood celebrity. Though 
the people had demonstrated for years that they favored this ’fcarty 
in registration 3 to 2, they almost invariably voted the minority in 
power when it came to vote in the finals. 

In fact only once in 60 years did the voters of this bewildered state 
vote as they registered. On that occasion the elected gpobernatorial 
goober swelled with pride and conked out after his first speech as 
governor. His heart stopped beating for one minute 12 seconds. After 
that his friends (all six) called him Governor. Zombie. 1 

The normal political procedure was designed to confuse candidate* 
as well as voters. Thus the Confusion candidate usually got the nod. 
The two parties were called the Majors and the Domos. The Majors 
(who were’ really the minors) put over a cross-filing gimmick about 
40 years ago. This permitted candidates of both parties to file for 
office in each other’s party. This worked out fine for the Majors 
because they had enough money to file in all the parties, but the 
Domos had little money and indeed barely enough to pay the filing 
fee in one party. 

Soon the Majors were all over the place. They had control of bill- 
boards, press and other media of building up matadors, as bull-throwers 
are known elsewhere. In the end, the voting peasant became so con- 
fused he voted against his own political party preference practically 
every time. 

In order to give some semblance of hope to the poor peasant who 
registered as a Domo and voted as a Major, the masterminds of ,the . 
Domos decided that what their productions needed was a pre-primary 
convention to freeze the peasant ‘in the Domo frame so that subse-. 
quently he would vote at the primary arid the runoff for- the candidate 
of the party under which he was registered. 

Having been associated with speech-making from his boyhood in 
Newark where his father owned a convention halt, he acquiesced to 
make the keynote speech of the; convention of the Domos. Few of 
the peasants had ever heard his name and figured he was intended 
for window-dressing and to add glamor by bringing up a collection 
of starlets to pose with the old crocks who were offering themselves 
as candidates. But he had a. surprise for them. 

The evening before the convention the gentlemen of the press, which 
is what muggs who work for the dailies are called in that common- 
wealth, were in a lather. They learned that the city .’desks in Los 
Angeles, to the south of Prune Town, U.S. A., had the speech on their 
desks but it was not planned to release it until 11:30 the following 
day. That was Saturday, the day the dailies have practically no adver- 
tising and get out a rag more to keep a franchise than anything else. 
The correspondents covering the convention were not to get copies 
of the speech until 11:30 a.m. Saturday. The correspondents of north- 
ern^ metropoli were to be similarly kept in the dark. 

It was generally agreed that between what happens to newspapers 
on Saturday afternoon and what would happen Sunday when the nomi- 
nations came in Saturday night, Schnry’s speech, even if it rivalled 
Lincoln's Gettysburgh Address, would get even less attention than 
Honest Abe’s did on its premiere. 

So I Importuned Schary to shake bis speech loose: for a sneakview 
among the gents of the press both north and south of the convention 
city, on Feb. 5 instead of Feb. 6. 

An aide named' Allen Rivkin, also a scriptician, was at a loss (o 
see how both parts of this long frankfurter, which runs 1,000 miles 
along the Pacific seaboard, could get .the same amount of mustard at 
a moment’s notice. But I pointed out that It would be like a studio 
sneakview and the scribes would merely hint at what the keynoter 
was going to say and, anyway, his ad libs would still be left to startle 
the world on the morrow because nobody, not even Keynoter Schary, 
knew quite what he was going to say when the applause set him really 
on fire. # 

Ever a friend of a Hollywood fugitive from a smog, attack, your 
mugg called up Schary and gave him the picture. He admitted he was 
greener in this field than a colt tasting grass for the first time after 
being weaned. He agreed, however, that sneakviews had their uses 
and promised to send down copies of his speech to the press room 
of the California Hotel. 

Minutes passed. No Schary, No speech. Minutes became what 
seemed like hours. Still no speech. Dissenters mumbled that if it 
didn’t come soon the whole thing would be down the drain as far 
as their papers were concerned. 

Finally, as deadlines felt the hot breath of oblivion breathing down 
their necks, the Schary speech arrived. It covered 11 Immaculately- 
typed pages. All hands fingered the pages and decided that here was 
probably the best speech that would be delivered in the entire con- 
vention. Some of its success of course would depend on delivery but 
as a ''speech it had vision, statesmanship and fire, 

All hands were sitting on the edges’ of their chairs at 11:30 the 
next morning. The press was parked like sidcipeh in the orchestra, 
pit of the auditorium. The Keynoter was stopped 11 times for rounds 
of applause. 

His first ad lib really did it. He could have been nominated from 
the floor for any office he wanted right there. He blasted at a char- 
acter currently touring the Republic and branding all Domos as 
"enemies of the state.” Schary said this kicking around of the word 
“treason” in this manner was appalling. “We heard it in Nazi Germany 
— enemies of the state.’ We heard it in Fascist Italy— .’enemies of 
the state.’ We heard it in Communist Russia — ‘enemies of the state.* 
Sinclair Lewis wrote a book years ago entitled ’It Can’t Happen Here,* 
and the principle character sounded not unlike this senator now under 
discussion.” 

From there he went back to his speech. “They can talk all they 
wish,” he said. “They can ridicule from now till doomsday. But they 
cannot remove from the American scene the benefits and the rewards 
earned by Americans through the New Deal and the Fair Deal.” 

He cited Jefferson, Jackson, Wilson, Roosevelt, “and the great con- 
temporaries, Harry. S. Truman and Adlai Stevenson,” as parties to a 
great tradition of liberalism, “If it is true that we are living in ah 
era of name-calling, we must not blindly resort to the same tactic. 
We must not allow any one to make a dirty word out of the bedrock 
of the party,' which is liberalism, because liberalism by basic definition 
means something that ‘extends democracy.’” 

His delivery and indeed his mannerisms sounded so close to Adlai 
Stevenson at many points that it made one wonder if the air of Prince- 
ton and Newark hadn’t breathed this sort of freedom into both of them 
at about the same time. 

Before Schary was out of the hall the names of the gubernatorial 
candidates, which were Graves and Cross, both sounded as if they 
were headed for Forest Lawn. Schary could have had the nomination. 
But Loew’s, Inc., alas, has the lad in an iron-clad contract. Maybe 
in 1958? - •'* • ; . • 


Broadway 


fiii® in i P®nTrn riMuT iom: 


■tress, sailing Feb* 29 to reside 
London. 


and Andre Dumas inked for new 
Jean de Letraz farce, “Pleasure of 
Lover 




London- 


Vejheedsyt February 17 , I954 


fit) made 93 films in the same 
period. 

Three German and three foreign 



,yif Hannen Suffer. who ta. fart toded b, l, w 

John Van Druten here from Lon- celebrated his golden wedding faJly valuable." “Moulin Rouge” T -„ pr _ __ • „ ■ 

»n to look oyer. Paris legit and annl, recuperating frqm attack of (England): “Le Balsire de la Peur” ;*?£* ^ e88ert °h - * - Caribbean 


L.onaon. ■ . _ . . aaolef confab on production of his “I Am pneumonia. 

Gene Barry! hit fjjjkani to J 8 ® 1 ® 1 a Camera” at La Bruyere Theatre. Eddie Bi 
In • the drumbeating f for Para- “sign of Toros,” new Pol Quen- manager, n 
mount* Red Garters. tin olay. into Gymnase the middle torninnorod 


annl, recuperating trqm auacn 01 (En g laAdr . "LeSalairede la Peur” ^ . a Caribbean 

pneumonia. ' > (France), and “Liii” (U. S,), are the Frankie Lalne ailing with ♦», ; 

Eddie Bryson, Columbia sales | ore ig n flims, # trouble. “ng w th throat 

manager, back at his desk after a L Republic will make r film in Howard Diets vacation.™ 


jiclty 

home 


“ Republic will mage a mm in Howard Dietz vacatinnin* it 
following a Germany about the political and West Indies. m 8 m the 

human task of BIAS (Radio Station Alex Gottlieh hnsnituKvaj ... 
2 Of Lew & in U. S. sector of Berlin), tehta- ^ dne y trouble P * ^ ed Wlth 

in. hospital tively titled “Big Whisper. It Don McElwaine on vacation f mm 
nt' Avnpnted i.rill ha Hv William Die- iv. 1 n from 


Corp. prexy, reel 
tor’s Hospital fol 
dectomy. 

Robert Taylor, 
sea fishing off Mil 
next week for . 
Broadway shows; 


residence in France, chiefly for his hew play, “Not . of Ag 
reasons of health, opens at the Love,” which preems in May. 
St. Regis’ Maisonette March 11. Longtime expatriate Tom 
' Robert S. Benjamin, United Dycke in the American He 


Garson Kanin, here With his 


VwUfiMn Die- 

W^spiWl foUawto* -n Ve^Uch' at CrUz ^ 

Robert Taylor, currently deep goes to Italy for a new pic, “Les S p aW? nf ^Should* Haooen To and Renle iSerardin Guy Madison to San Diego tour- 

Wishing olTMiaml waters, due In | Gaites De I/Escadr<m.'’ 

Broadway shows; • series of rep performances in Mos- . Youhamah mAkes his t.ifhon 8 *? te^^thrM * mohths Q tout J? etro a£ter three months in 

David Katz, formerly managing cow early in April as a cultural nHtfih'^dphut'when he will be on of F?pnchRiviera and Italy. Eu w w™ , A _ 

^wlnn flint, 6 a ?ter y ’bein C ff bedded of C f.pnfner^d t romina^fTparis^for the Palladium bill beginning March Comedian Alfredo Pereira back 0 £ Texas to plug^ Riot Cell 
culation again after being bedded ^ Leningrad corning to Paris for 2 2, which is topped by Nat King from a tour of Portuguese Africa Block 1L” P 8 m ^ el 

Green back * SSSJ^ ^ Jr 7 managing: * f WBerlinin a Pa^dena sani- 

HS'V5^S^3gr&& redP? J C MetS;, hbstSda SlfbS- gTSST ° T ** tS totake ^. 

ion promotion chores. • ■■■■; has set Michel Francois as lead SaVthJ ^ fv^2°PoH««S 1 y ^Presldentand Mrs. Celal Bayar 

Shirl Conway, after longtime and Fernand Ledoux as director of C0 P y - kantna * fpaturpd Turkey here 118 guests of the 

residence in France, chiefly for his new play, “Not of Age for fe sS Georee Robev who received r >?f TWr? NariLal imder film,mdustry, 

reasons of health, opens at the Love,” which preems in May. a kniehthoSd in the ^New Year? ?i2SfJ 4 Edgar Bergen guest of honor at 

St. Regis’ Maisonette March 11. Longtime expatriate Tom Van Honor? List S to be orincipal i Glu?eppe dinner tossed by Swed- 

Robert S. Benjamin, United Dycke in the American Hospital iS r J a L t i8 't or 1 ! 0 ^ s Anm isl ?n Club o£ L - A - , T . 

Artists board chairman, back in with a fractured femur as result 8 L t v pl c?^ 0W s luncneo Comedian Vasco Sant^as com- ^ Tyrone Power and Lmda Chris* 

town after a week of huddling with of the family pet dog tripping the th p a tH ci a y Meciina had a 24-hour P an y ^ iU f M e J^ 0 o E H 2 an , tn P to the 

indie film producers on the Coast. ex-Broadway p.a. He may be.wrlt- qt (^over mLoiSon when return- B . an _ de ^ ra ^rtountiltb^end Brazilian Film Festival. 

Jerome Lawrence nnd Robert E. ten to at the hospital, 63 Blvd. fj i P ?o N Arom Madrid where ^e ? f February. Biz has been excel- Debbie Reynolds heading for 

Lee, who authored Helen Traubel’s Victor Hugo, Neuilfy-SUr-Seine. had hPPn filmmg ‘‘The Last Wit- lent so far v / military bases m Japan and Korea 

^ - >- * — naa oecn uimiug xitc uaa* — — — — when she completes her role in 


^ u 6»* "wscu suCTi ui uunur ai 
Giuseppe testimonial dinner tossed by Swed- 
, ish Club of L. A. . 

aa s com- Tyrone Power and Linda Chris* 


act, due in from the Coast for 
the diva’s debut at the Copa Feb. 
25. ■. ‘ 

Dan Terrell, Metro’s eastern 
publicity director, back from Cpast 
after aiding in the arrangements 



By Hal V; Cohen 


had been filming “The Last Wit- 
ness” with Orson Welles. 

As a result of a broken wrist, 
Vivien Leigh was out of the cast 
of “The Sleeping Prince” for two 
nights last week; replaced by her 


Local boy John Beattie in Frank understudy, Greta Watson. 

Iff'® ^UOtHfAfr” A0 11 a HltVlKAlf TaK« _ '>Af Jm' J ' •' _ 


Ireland Sol Baer Fielding awarded the 

Hv Ma^wpii Swpenev George Washington Carver Insti- 

Ban (Reader* Mkk^DelahUnty to ^htToad/’ qUC for producIn * 


for the Ed Sullivan “Toast of the Fay’s “Harvey” calls himself John Walter Gifford, who has been month 


gander U. S. terpery setup next 


Town” tribute, to Metro. 


Barrie. 


handling special exploitation for Old Vic. director Hugh Hunt in 


The William Brown Meloneys Lenny Litman dropped the line Metro for the last five years, left to gander Universities’ Drama 
(playwright Rose Franken) off to of girls, captained by Rosemary the company last week to branch Festival in Dublin. 

Europe today^Wed.) via S.S. Queen Balllie, at his Copa. ■■ ; out as a specialist in roadshow pro- Seamus Byrne’s Abbey play, 
Elizabeth and an extended sojourn Jimmy Balmer, B Harris circuits motion: ■ ■ “Design for a Headstone,” skedded 


In England and on the Continent, yet, celebrating 45th year in the-l j oe Datshkovsky, Mexican ad- £or production in Belgium- 
Arthur tlnsfln. Rfm nf Samuel atre, business this month. I - s i — - -- ■ • 6 - < 


Arthur Rosen, son of Samuel atre business this month. 
Rosen, exec Y.p. of Stanley War* Florian Zabach, a 'hi 
ner, branching into general film in- Carousel recently, back 
dustry work via Cinema Lodge Heller’s again this week. 


viser bn cinema and studio equip- 1 Robert Morley planed to Eng- 


A . . V , Cozy Cole and his All Stars cur- 
Abbey play, rent at the Latin Quarter, 
me,” skedded Royal Winnipeg Ballet current 
leiiim. at Her Majesty’s to fair biz. 

Chirper Yolanda Lisi topping 


B’nai B’rith and the local Variety 
Club. v.: 


tipcoming “Berlin . Adventure,” 
back in. his captain’s uniform for 


U 1 A ,|._ ITo'UbV.V, ' « • klrt t,!* A* . ■% ■■ J A * J 1 l UUUCIl iUUiltJ w. lUldUUd USl lUPDing 

rartrtJiefi" ro»nrtw' taVirfa ment, planed to London last week | and after tryout of his new play, Jack Horn’s new Main Cafe which 

Jackie to begm a study of Cinemascope “Hippo Dancing,” at Dublin Olym- preemed Feb. 16. 

Hellers again this week. and for confabs with Spyros P. pi a . “The Verdict” with Maurice 

tcrtafnmpnt^al S plttySfirffh^Hada^' Sk ? u I? 8, n f . HiraMnr “Julius Caesar” (M^G) preemed Schwartz, slated for the Monument 

K„r> TTircnb PAnrnA.PPrt ^ 1 rharSar'/atihnhV^^^SV S 0Ve ^ nm S here with benefit for Variety National Feb. 22. 

loi ph Pt 8 U 1 P ° r Lunch - o^ AdllPhi ^ilms, Pjanes to New club’s campaign to aid blind chil- Ving Merlin, and. femme fiddler* 

Aiic fim» cti/ u° r e dren. now at the Sheraton-Mount Roy- 

. a' T™ 2£ d „?:! r Radio Eireann readying produc- al’s Normandie Room. 


,/Ty3 n 




dren. 


Alis Foster, long-time star of his “Intimate Relations,” and ne- u Radio Eireann readvinfi produc 

n ■» i - J 1_ r XVAUIO fill CdUU X CdUJ lllg piUUUl. 


Alfred Katz, pressagent and per- With Casino closing, Vickie general of the British Film. Pro- 

sonal rep, flew Saturday (13) to Reynolds, chorus captain, is stick- ducers Assn;, left hospital last 

California on the first leg of a two- ing around to do some club work week for two to three weeks’ con- 


month around-the-world combined as a single 
biz and pleasure trip. He’ll plug “Time o 


a single. • valescence in the country after un- 

Time of Cuckoo” is first show, dergoing major surgery. 

stay beyond scheduled Play- Ahdra McLaughlin, costarring 


Venezuela 


UA’s “Robinson Crusoe” overseas, to stay beyond scheduled Play- 
Edgar Vincent, of the Muriel house run since “Peg O’ My Heart” 

Francis publicity office in N. Y., three years ago. 1 Langdon’s ice pantomime, “Sinbad 

off to Italy in two weeks as per- Hildegarde, Johnny Johnston and the Sailor,” at the Empress Hall, 


last week. 

Chanteuse Odette Laure cur- 
rently starring at Club St.-Ger- 
main-Des-Pres in first North Amer- 
ican appearance. 

“Moon Is Blue” slated for a two- 


■ By Helen T« Co'ogan . lean appearance 
Andra McLaughlin, costarring Professor Ling a success at 1‘Moon Is Blue” slated for a two- 
with Norman Wisdom in Claude Teatro Nacional with hypnotism week session at Her Maiestv’s 
Langdon's ice pantomime, "Sinbad act . opraing Sh 1 to “^£ 01 “ wlX 

the Sailor,” at the Empress Hall, John Bux, Spanish comic who’s the Verdun Operatic Society's 


sonal rep with Met contralto Rise Jan Murray booked for annual HU- chosen sweetheart of the American appeared in U.S. spots, now in offerine of “WiTard Jif “ 
Stevens, who’s making her Italo lell Academy benefit show at Forces in Europe for 1954. nitery work here. B 1 ™ l£dra 01 ^ 

debut in a new opera next month Mosque March 14. Annv Berrver. currently playing Tnni's Bar in pacWn Parana* - m . 


debut in a new opera next month Mosque. March 14. 
at Milan’s La Scala. - ■■■■■ 

Mattiwilda Dobbs, Atlanta-born 
Negro coloratura soprano of the 
La Scala Opera, Milan, and Royal 
Opera House, Covent Garden, ar* 
rived in N. Y. last weekend for her 




— : a — ^ ^ fTvm 

Anny Berryer, currently playing Toni’s Bar in eastern Caracas 
femme lead in. .V al Parnell ana featuring Charlie Potter,, with 
Bernard Delfonts Folies. Bergere steve »Weltner as pianist and 
revue, “Pardon My French, at_the yiadimir, guitarist. 


“Polish Night of Stars” staged at 


first U. S. concert tour, under of the Nautilus. 


By Lafy Solloway . 

Phil Foster into Driftwood Room 


Prince of Wales, opens at the Em- Biggest show biz news in Caracas tb GMreia sllrtS/ w 

bassy pub Feb. 17 for. the Barnett ltl & \* ng time is word that Xavier wiS, 5fp1a V ?^cf 

Bros, for two weeks with options. Cueat’s band Will Dlav here Drob- with deejay 3 last week for Mer- 


management of Sc^Hurok, 

The Max Blouets have returned 
to Paris after a 25th wedding anni- 

. versary swing through the . U. S., aw cum. ^uh v^uu soirees 
with side trips to Montreal and stay at the Flamingo Hotel 
Caracas, Venezuela, where their jack E. Leonard and Al 


Donald O’Connor accompanied Martins Theatre, branches out into 


•os. for two weexs wun options. c U g a t’s hand will play here prob- 
Jacqueline Cook, lessee of St. a bly this month or early March. 

. . 1 • ml. A. _ — . . ol AM « V « A __ v - i. . ... _ . 


cury. 

Gertrude Neisen and Al Green- 


"Pans »U" Degmning reo. shows nightly 
After the West End run, Miss natirt 8 r>Pi 


David Grey doubling as nian- 


Jack E. Leonard and Al Martino Skinner will do a short provincial a gj n g editor of Caracas Journal- 


son is an exec at the new hotel follow the Ritz Bros, into Di Lido tour. 

there. Blouet is long time manag- Hotel’s Moulin Rouge on Feb. 25. 

ing director of the George V. Paris, George Jessel to emcee Variety _ _ % 

and his 25th wedding anni com- Tent’s annual Show of Shows for San FraitrKfn 

cldes with his. quarter-of-a-century benefit of Variety Children’s Hos- uau 1 iflUlwl,w 

at the famed Paris hostelry. pital Feb. 19th. 

^Valerie Bettis Joins the faculty Nat King Cole Joins Sophie Earl (Fatha) Hines at Club Hang- 
Connecticut College School of Tucker in neW show at the Beach- over. 
t^ e » Panc ««v a ^ London (July comber tonight (17), with Dick ' Hoagy Carmichael into the Ital 

12- Aug. 22) after an absence of Shawn holding over. ian Village, 

five years. Stage and screen Van Heflin, Aldo Ray and Tab 


twice - weekly English language 
publication, and as ballet instruc- 
tor together with his wife, Eva, 


By Ted Friend 

Earl (Fatha) Hines at Club Hang- 


ian Village. 


Omaha 


By Glenn Trump 
John McMillan, physics profes- 
sor at Omaha U., named prexy of 


Jimmy Durante topping San Omaha’s Magical Society. 


choreographer will also take part Hunter, headed. up company which Francisco Auto Show, 
in the 7th American Dance ;Festi- stopped off here enroute to an Dfirothy Shay packing the Vene- 
Yal week of Aug^ 16 and will re- island off Puerto Rico for shooting tian Room of the Fairmont Hotel. 


case Theatre tubthumper;. joined 
Aaron Cushman' 6c Associates last 
week. 

Dany Robin, French pic star, in 




Love” opening at Monroe Theatre 
in March. 

Actors Club staging a benefit at 
Opera House on June 25 to pay off 
club’s $5,000 debt whereby it may 
start afresh. 

French Casino reopened for bur- 
teque, and Moulin Rouge has re- 


f in hi ij «i 


Jose Limon, and Louis Horst on 
the dance faculty, which numbers 
23 leaders in the modern dance 
world. 


of Warners’ “Battle Cry.” 


Sarah Vaughan penciled into 
Downbeait Club, opening Feb. 23. 


, Ore. 


Jack Durante heading new 365 outstanding young man of 1953. 


vaiaaa o iuuhivui uwvi^ j *■ . « . . . . . - 

Omaha Community Playhouse V er Wl hack to all-girl revues from 
opens “Secret Service” Feb. 19, vaude policy. 

running through March 7. : ' 

Cheyenne, Wyo., radio announcer MimiAnfiAiui 

Larry Birleffi named that city’s 


By Ray Feves 


Club show, which includes Rudy 

PdrHAiri/ic 

Bea and Ray Goman’s “Gay 90’s” 


At least one-third of state’s 


county fairs to have new buildings ceum Feb. 25-27. 


By Leg Rees 

Canadian National Ballet at Ly- 


or additions as result of Ak-Sar- 


Dagmar at the Capitol Theatre show moves to Mapes Hotel in Ben’s matching fund for perma- 


Dany Dauber son big click on 
stage at Gaumont Palace. 


for two weeks. 

Stan Kenton and “Big Package” 


Reno for , ten day run. 

Sportsters Jackie Jensen and 


nent county fair improvements. 
First Omaha Centennial sports 


Minneapolis Symphony to give 
all-Gershwin pop concert, March 
14. 

Arthur Fiedler and his Boston 


Gabriel About finishing up a new month. 


unit inked for two nights late this Boots Erb new owners of the Oak- attraction proved a flop, with only Pops orch here for one-nighter this 


land Bow and Bell restaurant, 


legiter, called “Call Me Master.” 


Vivian Dandridge, Cap Harris 


“Jazz at the Philharmonio” due and Flame Day in at Jack Lawler’s 
here again March 5 at the Alharii- Tropics. 

bra. Guy Mitchell appeared in a one- 

Legit hit “Kean” closed down by nighter at the Jantzen Beach Ball- 
star Pierre Brasseur’s appendix room last Saturday (13). 


9,000 turning out to see two hockey week. . • 

exhibition games by Cleveland Edyth Bush Little Theatre offer- 
and Providence , of the American ing “George Washington Slept 
League. Games drew pannings for Here.” 


attack. 

Best U. S. seller here is Ernest 


George Shearing Quintet played 


United Artists will release 
“Limelight” here later this year. 
Elisabeth Bergner will tour Ger- 


being almost devoid of tough con- 
release tact work. 


Hemingway’s “The Old Man and torium last Monday (15). 
the Sea.” 1 


a one-nighter at the Benson Audi- many shortly with a Rattigan play. 


William Duggan signed Jack 


‘Love of Four Colonels” into Benny and His Gang for a four- ary. 


Filmbuehne Wien will preem the 
“The Robe” (20th)) late in Febru- 


By Mark Curtis 


Comedian George Gobel contin- 
uing at Hotel Radisson Flame 
Room. . 

Phil Spitalny and his Hour of 
Charm set for annual Builder* 
Show In Auditorium March 13-21. 
The 21st annual Northwest 


Comedie des Champs-Elysees late day date at the Auditorium July 1. Luise Ulrich was named hon- 1 show for two frames, 
in March. Ben Yost’s Royal Guards, How- orary chairman of German Screen 

Uon Ameche off to Germany for ard & Wanda Bell and The Spark- Actors Guild, 
huddles on forthcoming vidpix lets in at Amato’s Supper Club for “Roman Holiday” (Par) picked 
series there. two weeks. 


Four. Lads topping New Golden Sports, Travel & Boat Show comes 

• n ..*» L • A. ^ t* _• . ^ •• . A M. 1C. 


to the Auditorium here April 16* 


ry chairman of German Screen Alvino Rey and King Sisters set 25. ’ . 

ors Guild. for Riverside opening this week. Penny & Kelvin into Persian 

Roman Holiday” (Par) picked Patti Page moved up her date to Palms with exotic dancers Jean 
i? a k,.„«n. Aw I.,, Di«n*iic.**nt March 18. . Idcll . & Irene and tapster-emcee 


- v.T- as February film by Protestant March 18. Idell & Irene and tapster-emcee 

Bernard Kreisler, of the Inter- Evelyn Ford is packing the Film Guild of Germany. March of Dimes telethon pulled Jane Ruby, 

national Film Assn., here for con- patrons into the Blue Heaven with Furtwaengler’s tour with the $21,000 over local KZTV, featuring . Northwest Variety club cele- 

fabs with industry reps. her chirping and well endowed Berlin Philharmonic through West Lee Giroux emcee, Joe E. Brown, brated 20th anni with testimonial 

Jean Anouilh’s legit hit, “The frame. Gal is a comer. Germany cancelled because of the Jack Haley and Beatrice Kay. dinner for retiring Chief Barker 


Lark,” picked up by Tennent’s, 
Ltd., for future production in Eng- 
land. 


Jerry Murad’s Harmonlcats, conductor’s sudden illness. ' Rusty Draper into Skyroom of Bennie Berger. Since, inception m 

Pamela & Louise, Shirley Martin About 425 German pix have the Mapes, March 17, a year after 1934, it has raised more than mii- 
and The Sparklets held, a second been shot since the war ended. In his first engagement here; initial lion dollars' for various phiian- 


Jacqueline Porel, Robert Vattier I frame at Amato’s Supper Club, I addition, DEFA (Soviet Zone out- 1 date outside of San Francisco. ithropic causes; 


Wedn<*d»y+ Fcfcnwy ,17 t 1954 


63 



teen," "Three Wishes for Jamie" 
and "Carnival Ih Flanders." 

Surviving are his parents, three 
sisters and two brothers. 


DAVID X CLARK 

David J. Clark, 7f, ^vet Pan 
Alley songwriter, died in Pilgrim 
State Hospital,- Brentwood, L. I., 

T Details in Music S ection, 

MABEL Pj^Kj® . ■ 

Mabel Paige, 74, actress; 'died 
reb 8 in Van Nuys, Cal. Making 
Er debut at the, age of four in' 
-van the Virginian/* she toured 
«ith her . own stock company in 
"Ste South for 30 years. The Paige 

: ffifeatre; Jacksonvme. Fla., was 
® ablished by. her *nd she in- 
formed at the ^ house for a number 
of vears in starring roles. . < 

Miss Paige appeared in a number 
of silent films. After a retirement 
«f 11 years she returned to the 
in the 1930s. She was seen 
on Broadway in several plays in- 
rluding "Lost Horizon/* "Out of 
•fhe Frying Pan/* “TWo Blind 
Mice” and "Gramercy Ghost." 
Among the films in which she 
appeared were "Young and Will- 

iri!" "Lucky.' Jordan/* "True to 
Life” and “Murder, He Says." 
Surviving are two grandchildren. 

FREDERICK LEWIS ALLEN 
Frederick Lewis Allen, 63, best- 
selling author, historian-editor, 
died Feb. 13 in New York. In 
1914 lie joined the editorial staff 
of The Atlantic Monthly and after 


embracing Australia and Egypt are 
recorded. 

Miss Hampton made hey stage 
debut at the age of four, and, for 
the past 40 years or more, she ap- 
peared ; in a number of distin- 
guished productions including "The 
Second Mrs. Tanqueray," "The 
Two Mrs. Carrolls/’ “Ghosts," "My 
Son, My Son" and "Outward 
Bound.” 


JOSEPH RACKOW 
Joseph Rackow, 70, managing 
director of Cinema Sc General 
Films, Ltd.; indie distributors in 
Ireland, died in Dublin Feb. 2. He 
held a similar post with Cinema & 
General Publicity, Ltd., screen ad- 
vertising contractors and distribu- 
tors of trailers. 

Rackow, who founded; C & GP 
in 1933, also controlled Sight & 
Vision, (Wholesale) Ltd. and Cine- 
ma- & General Equipments/ Ltd. 
Surviving are his wife and three 
sons. One son, Peter, js a director 

in his father’s film companies. 

- " . ■» _ ’ 

BILLY NEWTON 

William Newton Smeltz Jr., 75, 
known professionally as Billy New- 
ton, died Fqb. 12 in a Philadelphia 
hospital. Song and dance comedi- 
an for 55 years, _ Newton toured 
South America with the Panama' 
Exposition Show in 1902 and *1904. 
On the Pantage. circuit he was 




In everlasting and loving memory of our deeply 
beloved and wonderful husband and father, who 
passed away on March 13,1953. 

MRS. SOPHIE REMOS and daughter, HILDEGARD; 

Lester and Stanley * 


two years went with The Century 
Magazine as managing editor. . 

In 1923 Allen joined the staff 
of Harper’s Magazine, becoming 
associate editor in 1931: and editor- 
in-chief 10 years later. He. was 
also a -veepee of Harper & Bros., 
book pubbery that puts out the 

Books written by Allen include 
"Only Yesterday," "Since Yester- 
day.” “The Lords of Creation" and 
a biography of "The Great Pier- 
pont Morgan." He collaborated 
with his wife, Agnes Rogers, on 
three books of pictures - and text. 
These were “The American Pro- 
cession,” “Metropolis" and “I Re- 
member Distinctly." 

Surviving besides his wife is a 
son, Oliver, a Life mag staffer. 


known as the little man in red and 
on the Keith circuit with the 
team of Banks & Newton, billed as 
the man and half dancing act. 
From 1920 until retirement three 
years ago he worked with his wife, 
Margaret, as Newton & Newton. 

Son also survives. 


SAM HERMAN 

Sum Herman, 65, Chicago the- 
atrical .booking agent; died Feb. 8 


Caldwell. H. Brown, Jr. 

1911-1936 


In Miami Beach. Early in his 
career he was noted as a spotlight 
singer in Chi neighborhood the- 
atres, entertaining between feature 
films. Around 1928 he joined the 
Bala ban St Katz theatre chain and 
conducted Charleston contests 

throughout the circuit. ^ 

For tli e last 25 years Herman had 
been a theatrical booker, special- 
in. club dates and; amateur 
shows which he emceedi himself; 
Ailing for several years, he is sur- 
ged by wife, five sisters, and a 
brother. ■ 


LOUISE HAMPTON 

Louise Hampton, 73, British ac- 
Jiess. died Feb. 11 in London, after 
being taken ill the previous week- 
end with bronchial trouble. Her 
actor husband, Edward Thane, 
hom whom she had been sepa- 
rated. died three weeks previously. 
.Although her list of. credits in 
Afro’s Who in the Theatre" ex- 
pends to alntost three columns, 
there is no indication that she ever 
pia -ved America, al£bQty£h ,tqurs 


KEN McCLURE 

Ken McClure. 52, radio news, 
caster and publicist) .died in San 
Antonio Feb. 7. Joining San An- 
tonio’s WOAI in the early ’30s, he 
broadcast for the station from 
time to time until 1946. In World 
War II he was correspondent for 
ABC in England and also served 
as consultant to the NBC. 

Following the war McClure be- 
came a WBAP. Fort Worth, staff- 
er, then entered the public rela- 
tions field. Author of two books, 
he was a former national president 
of the Assn, of News Broadcasters 
of America. 


HILDA OHLIN 

Hilda Ohlin, 45, concert and op 
eratic soprano, died Feb. 12 in New 
York. She had appeared with the 
Chicago Civic Opera Co. for five 
seasons, during which time she 
took part in more than 50 per- 
formances. 

During recent years Miss Ohlin 
was seen in concerts and recitals 
with major orchs and oratorio so- 
cieties in' 36 states. She had also 
performed at New York’s Town 
Hall. 

Surviving are three sisters. 


STEPHEN AUER 
Stephen Auer, 52, Republic pro- 
ducer, died in Beverly Hills, FOb* 
i," after a lingering illness. At 
Republic since 1939, he: became a 
producer in 1944, Among. his Rep 
pix are “Missing Woman/’ “Woman 
in Dark," “Duke of Chicago//. Red 
Ryder scries and Allan Lane oat- 
ers. 

Survived by wife, brother John 
(also a Republic producer, and sis- 
ter. 


GREG O’BRIEN 

Greg O’Brien, 20, dancer, died 
Feb. 15 in' Chicago Of a heart at- 
tack. He was appearing as a mem- 
ber of the Empire Eight, terp 
troupe, at the Palmer House, Chi- 
cago. He previously performed on 
.Broadway*, . musicals,* ’’Seven-, 


JAMES G. CAMPION 

Janies Campion, 66, veteran mo- 
tion pic^re operator and leader of 
the Kansas City, Kahs., IATSE lo- 
cal, died in that city Feb. 11. He 
had been in failing health for sev- 
eral years. 

A native of Canada, Campion ar- 
rived in Kansas City, Kans., jin 
1903 and helped organize Local 
498, IATSE. He served as its busi- 
ness agent for 30 years. He was 
also boothman for the Electric: 
Theatre, major house on the Kan- 
sas side; for 30 years. 

Surviving are his wife, a son, two 
brothers and a sister. 


DAVID L. JOHNSTON 

David L. Johnston, 30, onetime 
associate film producer, was beaten 
to death Feb. 10 at his home: in 
Sherman Oaks, Cal. His assailants 
were later seized by pblice. After 
eight, years in the mail room at 
Paramount studio, he became .as- 
sistant to talent executive Rufus 
LeMaire at Universal-International 
in 1948. 

Two years later Johnston joined. 
Samuel Goldwyn as talent chief. 
In 1951 he returned to UI and 
drew associate producer credit On 
Wings of the Hawk" and “The 
GlOnn Miller Story." His brother, 
Harry, survives. 


poser and co-writer "Vaya Con 
'Dios," died Feb. 14 in L. A., after 
lengthy illness. ~ 

Survivors include wife, ■" Inez 
James, 'who also coUabed oh 
"Vaya/' and four children by. a 
previous marriage. 

BRUNO G; HARDER. 

Bruno G. Harber, 54, pioneer 
motion picture technician,, died in 
Dallas Feb. 7. He helped devise 
the sound disk used in early talk- 
ing pictures. 

Although his film sound methods 
are considered obsolete, Harber 
still held: several patents to inven- 
tions he developed in the late 
1920’s. 


BENJAMIN LUST 
Benjamin Lust, 63, founder and 
head of the Ben Lust Theatre Sup- 
ply Co,, died in Washington Feb. 
11, after a long illness. A brother 
of >D. C; area circuit operator Sid- 
ney Lust, he set up his supply busi- 
ness more than 35. years ago. 

Also surviving are his wife, a son 
and Jtwo half-brothers. 


JOHN BAGNI 

John Bagni, 43, screen and ra- 
dio-tv writer, died of a heart at- 
tack Feb. 13 in Hollywood while 
driving his car which subsequently 
crashed. Both he and his. Wife; 
Gwen, were film and legit players 
before teaming as writers eight 
years ago. 

Writing in pictures, radio and tv, 
couple was just nominated for the 
Screen Writers Guild’s first tv film 
award on the basis of a script they 
did for the Four Star Playhouse. 
It was titled “Last Voyage." 


ARTHUR A. SEGER 
Arthur A. Seger, 68. boardwalk 
concession operator in Asbury 
Park, N.J., died Feb. 14 in Ocean 
Grove, N. J. A pioneer in the board- 
walk amusement industry in As- 
bury Park, he was owner of the 
Casino Amusement Co. and Sport- 
land-Fascination Co., which oper- 
ated boardwalk concessions for 
many years. 

Wife; a son and a sister survive. 


JAN MAKLAKIEWICZ 

Jan Maklakiewicz, 54, Polish 
composer, died recently in Warsaw. 
His death was announced by the 
Warsaw radio Feb. 9. Maklakie- 
wicz’s compositions included the 
music for the ballets "Cagliostro in 
Warsaw" and the “Gold Duck." He 
also penned symphonic poems, can- 
tatas and folk suites. 

He was Professor of Composition 
at the Warsaw Academy of Music. 


ALFRED BURT 

Alfred Burt, 33, composer-ar- 
ranger, died Of cancer Feb. 7 in 
Hollywood. For a number of years 
he was pianist-arranger' for band- 
leader Alvino Rey, and composed 
Christmas carols and other re- 
ligious music, 

His wife and daughter survive. 
Interment was in Marquette, Mich. 


Mrs. Grace Davis, one-time cos- 
tume designer on staff of Radio 
City Music Hiall, died in New York 
Feb. 8 after an Illness of several 
months. A former Pittsburgher, 
whose daughter, Rossalyn Davis, 
was a dancer, Mrs. Davis used to 
make the costumes for practically 
all of the femme nitery dancers in 
Pitt at one time. 


Timothy Crane, one-time vaude 
performer who sang in the ’20s 
with -euch turns as Otto Gigi & 
Margaret Savcrn as well as Joe 
Stanley & Co., died Feb. 11 In 
Woonsocket, R. I., following a 
heart attack. He was a former city 
editor of The' Woonsocket Call. 


Father,. 59, of Hal Cooper, pro- 
ducer of DuMont’s “Magic Cot- 
tage," died of a cerebral hemor- 
rhage in New York Feb. 14. His 
mother, another son, Paul, and a 
daughter-in-law. TV actress Pat 
Meikle (wife of Hal), survive. 


Allister Dunn, 45, onetime man- 
ager of the Orpheum and United 
Artists Theatres in San Francisco, 
died in that city Feb. 11 after a 
long illness. A member of the Va- 
riety Club, he is survived by his 
mother, a son and daughter. 


MRS; ANNIE NELSON LIABLE 
Mrs. Annie Nelson Liable, 89, 
a midget dancer, died Feb. 11 in 
Louisville. Mrs. Liable, who was 
four feet tall, two inches shorter 
than her husband, George, who 
survives her, had. toured the U. S. 
and Europe with her husband for 
approximately 50 years. 

The Liables retired from the 
stage 15 years ago. 


BENTO FARIA 

Bento Faria, 78, playwright, died 
of pneumonia-4n Oporto, Portugal, 
Feb. 6. For 30 years he was one 
oi the most prolific writers of melo- 
dramas some of which are still pro- 
duced in provinces of Brazil, Portu- 
gal and Portuguese Africa. He also 
penned many operettas and re- 
vues. 

A son and a daughter survive. 


CHARLES RERR 

Charles Kerr, 61, production 
exec for 35 years, died Feb. 14 in 
L. A., of muscular distrophy. He 
started in films in 1918 as assistant 
director and was second unit di- 
rector, writer, production manager 
with such companies as FBQ, Fa- 
mous Players, Goldwyn and vari- 
outs indies. . . 

Widow and brother survive. 


CLIFFORD S. WALSH 

Clifford S. Walsh. 62, retired ad 
agency exec, died Feb. 15 in Scars- 
dale, N,Y. He was an original as- 
sociate in the Newell-Emmett ad 
firm, which was reorganized as 
Cuhningham & Walsh after his re- 
tirement in 1949. 

Wife and a daughter survive. 


LILA FIELD 

Lilia Scholefield, 65, dramatist 
who wrote under 'the name of Lila 
Field, died in London Feb. 9. 

She was the authoress of “The 
Goldfish,” a children’s play pro- 
duced in 1911 in which Noel Cow- 
ard (then aged il) starred. 


LARRY RUSSELL 
Larry Russell, 40, arranger, com- 


. William C. Goodwin, Altec Serv- 
ice Corp. field engineer, died in 
Philadelphia Feb. 9, With Altec 
for : some 25 years, he > headouar 
tered at the firm’s Philadelphia, 
office. 


Luigi Bonclli, 61, playwright, 
died in Siena, Italy, Feb. 13. He 
wrote such plays as “The Empress 
AmuSes Herself.” “The Sick Lady’s 
Doctor" and “The Boatload of 
Comedians." 


died Feb. 8 in Santa Monica, Cal. 
Five daughters and a son* survive. 

Fred Sumner Cue, 78, one-time 
concert pianist, died In Center 
Harbor, N.H., Feb. 9. 

* pi i , 0 , ■ i 

Mother, 59, of actor Lee Graham, 
died Feb, 9 in Hollywood. 

MARRIAGES 

Margery A ‘ Rice to Harry W. 
Priekett, Albany, N, Y„ Feb, , 6. 
He's a tv, producer with Barry, 
Enright & Friendly. 

Alyse Schwetz to Owen Thorp 
Jr.^Newark, N. J., Feb; 14. Bride 
was' a -researcher for MGM. 

Marlon Gates to Jerry Fujikawa^ 
New York, Feb; 14. Bride is an 
actress; he’s an actor currently ap- 
pearing on Broadway in “Teahouse 
of the August Moon." 

Jean Craver to James Kontoleon, 
Feb. 6, in Wheeling, W. Va. Groom 
is production manager of WTRF- 
TV there. 

Adeline G. Cassaboom to George 
D. Estes. Amherst, N. H.; Feb. 1. 
Bride formerly conducted home 
services program over ; station 
WFEA, Manchester, N; H. . 

Mrs. Margery Straus Cummings 
to Edward A. Wolpin, Los Angeles, 
Feb. 10. Groom is general profes- 
sional manager of the Pafamouht- 
Famous music firms in N. Y. 

Suzanne Cloutier to Peter Usti- 
nov, London, Feb. 15. Bride is an 
actress; he’s a British actor-play- 
wright. 

Phyllis Rosenberg to Nicholas 
Atallo, New York. Feb. 14. Bride 
is secretary to Melvin L. Gold, ad- 
pub-tv director for National Screen 
Service. 


William F. Weisheit, 64. chief 
projectionist at 20th-Fox, died of .a 
heart ailment Feb. 6 in Hollywood. 
He joined Fox Films in 1926 and 
had been head boothman for sev- 
eral years. His wife survives. 

. Edwin Bonnell, 87, retired actor, 
died Feb. 8 in Ventura, Cal. He 
(Created and played “Uncle Remus” 
in the early days of radio. Prior 
to that he was a blackface comedi- 
an in vaudeville. 


Eugene C. Crotty, 78, retired 
musician, died in Exeter, N.H., Feb. 
6, after a long illness. A native of 
Taunton, Mass., he was a band- 
master ahd music ihstructpr for 
years. 


BIRTHS 

Mr. and Mrs! B. B. Kahane Jr., 
daughter, Hollywood, Feb. 7. 
Father is in Metro’s industrial re- 
lations department* Grandfather 
is a veepee at Columbia. ’ 

Mr. and Mrs. Lea Ashton, son, 
Glasgow, recently. He’s a thesper 
with Glasgow Citizens' Theatre, 

Mr. and- Mrs. Pat McCormack, 
son, Los Angeles, Feb. 7. Father 
is a sound editing 1 supervisor, 

Mr. and Mrs. Dean Linger, 
daughter, Santa Monica, Cal.. Feb. 
8. Father is publicity manager at 
KNXT. 

Mr. and Mrs. Dix Harper, son, 
Chicago, Feb. 7. Father is an- 
nouncer at station WLS there. 

Mr. and Mrs. Eddie Koch, son, 
Pittsburgh, Feb. 9. Father's floor 
director at WENS; mother is Carol 
Hirth, of singing Hirth Sisters. 

Mr. and Mrs. John Stewart, 
daughter, Pittsburgh, Feb. TO. 
Father's an announcer at KDKA. 

Mr* and Mrs. Don Marxen, son, 
Feb. 10 in Wheeling* W. Va. Fa- 
ther is a director at WTRF-TV, 
Wheeling. * 

Mr. and Mrs.. Victor Blau, son, 
Hollywood, Feb. 9. Father is vee- 
pee of Warner Bros, music com- 
panies. -• 

Mr, and Mrs. Sam Brown, da ugh- . 
ter, Hollywood, Feb. : 5. Father is 
assistant to the executive direc- 
tor of the Academy of Motion Pic- 
ture Arts & Sciences. 

Mr. and Mrs, William Asher, sort, 
Santa Monica. Cal., Feb. 4. Father 
is director of the “I Love Lucy" 
scries. % - 

Mr. and Mrs. Alan Simpson, 
daughter, Dublin. Feb. 3. Mother 
and father are legit players; father 
directs Dublin Pike Theatre. 

Mr. and Mrs. Edward Morey Jr,, 
daughter. Burbank* Cal.. Feb. 12. 
Father is a producer at Allied 
Artists. 

Mr. and Mrs. Charles S. Stein- 
berg, daughter, New York, Feb. 
12. Father is assistant east coast 
publicity director for Warner Bros., 
Mother is the former Hortense 
Rosenstein, an ex-WB staffer. 

Mr. and Mrs. James K. Guthrie, 
daughter, San Bernardino, Cal,, 
Feb. 14. Father is an orch con- 
ductor; mother, Jane McGowan, is 
a Wagnerian soprano. 


Genevieve Foley Leix,. 44, secre- 
tary at Paramount studio for 20 
years, died Feb. 9 in Hollywood 
after a long illness. Her mother 
and three sisters survive. 


Juan Auli, 70, composer, died in 
Barcelona recently. He authored 
music of many hit operettas and 
rtvues in Latino countries. 

Father, 86. of author John P. 
Marquand, died Feb. 14 in Car- 
lisle, Mass. 


Mrs. Ida Jermain Sell, 72. moth- 
er of chanteuse Hildegarde. died in 
Milwaukee Feb. 9 after a long i»i- 
ness. 


Alex Finlayson, 41, assistant film 
director, died Feb. 7 in* Culver 
City, Cal., following internal 
hemorrhages; His wife survives. 

Christian A. Jespcrsen, 91, for- 
mer symphony orchestra- musician, 


Rodin Nudes 

SS Continued from page 1 ^ 

Rodin sculptured masterpiece, 
“The Kiss." This is classic art, 
.of course, but the manner in which 
•it is used in the ad has raised 
some' eyebrows. " 

Alongside the two nudes is, this 
text: “Not since ’The Big Parade’ 
and 'A Farewell to Arms’ has the 
screen been so bold! Every gen- 
eration has its own love story . . . 
This is ours!” 

When the ad row started there 
was strong indication that the Pro- 
duction Code wou’d withdraw its 
previously-given approval of the 
film. This would have been a 
1 ike 1 y f o 1 1 o wu p t o p re ss i n ser t i o n s 
of ads nixed by the Ad Code. 
Benagoss had threatened this. But 
since the Ad Code standards ap- 
parently now have been met, 
there’s no danger of loss of the 
Productiott Code bteky. ' » nvj( « > 


1 




ediM»day, FAmry 17 t I 954 




THE 

SAN FRANCISCO 




-AND WE 



SAN FRANCISCO EXAMINER 

AROUND TOWN 


THE SAN FRANCISCO NEWS 

VAUGHN MONROE 
STILL IS TOPS 

He Packs 'Em In 
At Ital ian Village 

By Dotl Pitts 

ANOTHER HIT t Vaughn Monroe opened 
Wednesday evenng at the Italian Village* 

VaughnJtasjrea^^ 

height over the years which he has steadily 
retained. While flash-in-t he-pah s ingers may 
momentarily move by Monroe, yon can be 
sure that when all the shouting is over 
Vaughn still wil l be ri ding high. 

It’s easy to see why Vaughn stars on his 
weekly coast-to-coast “Camel Caravan” radio 
show. He is one of the most commercial 
singers in the business toddy. 

SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE 

VAUGHN MONROE IS 
HIT IN FIRST SJ. 
NIGHTCLUB APPEARANCE 

dy The Owl 

The voice ,of Vaughn *Monroe may now he 
heard among the foghorns of San Francisco 
Bay. He is at the Italian Village, making his 
first night club appearance in town, and he's 
brought a first-rate show with him. 

But the star, of course, is Monroe, who 
sings all his v old favorites; “Ballerina,” 
“There, I've Said It Again,” “Ghost Riders in 
the Sky,” “Racing With the Moon,” “Mule 
Train” and “Let It Snow.” 

Young America will not be deprived of 
Monroe's voice during his stay here. For the 
next few weeks, the Camel Cavalcade will 
originate in San Francisco, while MOnrOe will 
be— as they say in the cigareite trade— “-pack- 
ing them in at the Italian Village* 

Exclusively 

RCA VICTOR 

RECORDS 

Publicity— 

MARVIN ORAGER 


By lyaii Paul 

I must confess that I have never been a 
Vaughan Monroe fan.. This may be because 
his records remind me of our foghorns. 

But Vaughn Monroe in person, as eye'd 
and ear'd at the Italian Village, is a horn of 
anothwhuo^^Jiorn^fjglent^asJLenajised 
to put it. Monroe does to gals what the other 
Monroe does to guys. I heard one pretty 
brunetteaighV^OhlS^ 
gives you the idea. 

Monroe is a gracious, smooth-type singer 
of the ballads that have made his RCA- Vic- 
tors best sellers.. 

OAKLAND TRIBUNE 

By Don Steele 

Vaughn Monroe proved his worth "to the . 
Italian Village management from the momenfr 
he stepped to the mike last Wednesday night. 
Injdain^English^J^ 


S. F. CALL-BULLETIN 

ABOUT TOWN 

By Gene De Forrest 

■ • ... . ■ 1 

-PACKING THEM IN. . . 

Vaughn Monroe— one of the country's top 
song stars-— is packing the Italian Village— 
and he's especially popular with the 
femmes! 

* ' * * 

The music Vorld was startled to hear, in 
May of last year, that Vaughn Monroe- 
established as tops among the country's band 

A s . ' • 

leaders— was dissolving his organization to 
become a single performer. He entered this 
phase of allow business with his name already 
a national byword— and has devoted his time 
to records, motion pictures, radio, television, 
theater and, night club appearances* The cur* , 
rent eng agement at the Italian V illage is Mon- 
roeV^jfirsL^West^Coawt^^agpearance^^jis^ 
“single”— and he's proved that he's an even 
better entertainer without his baton* 



30 RocMbIImt Plena 3 j j t|. Michigan* A vnm MARSH ARD MU SIC 



VOL. 193 


PablUhed Weekly at 154 West 48th Street.New York 36, N. Yu by Variety, Inc. Annual subscription 810. Single copies. >8 fonts. 
Entered as second class matter December 22, 1005, at the Post Office at New York. N. Y„ under he act of March 3. 1870. 

COPYRIGHT. 1054, BY VARIETY. INC., ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 


NEW YORK, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 1954 


NBC SETS UP 


c 


r 


PRICE 25 CENTS 


INC.’ 



* The junkie situation in the 
dance band and jazz field is worse 
today than it ever has been. The 
percentage of addicts is highest 
among the younger - generation of 
musicians and the recent arrests 
of a number of topflight jazzmen 
has spotlighted an evil that is now 
the No. 1 problem of this phase 
of the music biz. 

At the present time it’s become 
virtually impossible to organize a 
band of young jazz sidemen with- 
out a complement of reefer ad- 
dicts — and worse. In some cases 
goofing off by the tooters has 
grown to a point where band man- 
agers ;are afraid to book their 
units a couple of months in front 
because of the uncertainty about 
their personnel. One topflight jazz- 
man recently had to turn down a 
$2,000 date' for a week in Las 
Vegas because the three other 
members of his quartet were flying 
too high on the stuff at the time. 

One of the ugliest facets of the 
problem is that some operators of 
jazz clubs and minor disk labels 
are profiting from the addicts: 
Tooters are desperate for the 
junk, and are willing to play un- 
der-scale and, in one flagrant in- 
stance, it is said that a small jazz 
label, now. defunct, used to pay 
off on recording dates with dope. 

The dominant explanation for 
the spread of addiction is that 
many kids with musical talent are 
trapped by false hero worship. Un- 
fortunately, it’s pretty well known 
that certain topflight jazz figures 
are on the stuff. The legend that 
these jazzmen have created their 
best ideas while under the influ- 
ence of drugs has taken hold 
among their idolators and imita- 
( Continued on page 48 ) 



Doing Landoffice Biz 
In Mardi Gras Season 

New Orleans, Feb. 23. 

This old town on the Mississippi’s 
levees is. already cracking at the 
seams as visitors continue to pour 
m by air* rail and motor car for 
the Mardi Gras celebration.. 

The hotels are already booked 
solid until after Ash Wednesday. 
Railroads have established Pull- 
man “cities” in .their yards to 
house tourists. There isn’t a motel, 
*uto court or private room to be 
had. 

From now until next Tuesday 
12), the big day when everybody 
masks and joins in the fun and 
revelry, there’ll be parades each 
■bight, ■■followed-", by elaborate cos- 
tume balls and tableaux in Munici- 
pal Auditorium. 

This has been a record season 
dances-, some 62 organizations 
having scheduled soirees in the 
l °wn hall this season. 

The nightspots and bistros, es- 
pecially those in the historic 
(Continued on page 50) 


Knocks ’Em Dead 

Latest class of sponsors to 
join the vidpix bankrolling 
fold on the local level is fu- 
neral parlors. Guild Films has 
two mortuaries sponsoring its. 
“Liberace” series, the Smith 
Funeral Parlors in Seattle and 
the Bisch Memorial Home in 
Springfield, 111. 

Phil Bisch, v.p.-general man- 
ager of Bisch, writing . in the 
.. trade publication, the Ameri- 
can Funeral Director, said 
sponsorship has brought in a 
flood of commendatory letters. 
• But with customary under- 
taker’s reserve, he didn’t say 
how business was. 


N. J. Thriving On 
N. Y. Burley Tabu 

If New York city legalizes bur- 
lesque, the north Jersey burleycue 
parlors, would probably be put 
out of business overnight. Accord- 
ing to a poll by Harold Minsky, 
operator of Adams, Newark, ; nearly 
49% of the audiences come from 
New York, with the Gotham bor- 
oughs contributing an even larger 
share of the Saturday night audi- 
ences. 

Minsky, having suffered a spell 
of bad business, personally headed 
a crew that polled audiences com- 
ing into the house and the results 
answered a lot of questions for 
him. 

For example, during severe cold 
spells, and when roads were icy, 
business was decimated to a dimin- 
ishing point, The poll also pointed 
out that Minsky is better off with 
burly attractions that are fairly 
well known in New York. 

This has been borne out with 
the gross tallied recently by Lili 
(Continued on page 50) 


NBC. has blueprinted formation 
of a fifth department which would 
encompass virtually all show biz 
facets and produce paydirt that 
could in time surpass that of net- 
work revenue. It’s set up as NBC 
Enterprises and joins the four 
other major brackets of the web- 
radio and tv, the Film Division 
and the owned-and-operated sta- 
tions sector — as a separate money- 
making powerhouse. That this is 
no mere dream scheme is reflected 
in the fact that NBC Enterprises 
originates at the top, from net- 
work prexy Sylvester L. (Pat) 
Weaver, who has posted Ted Cott, 
v.p. over radio programming, to 
superintend the setup. 

In its projected super-ramifica- 
tions, it goes beyond some of the 
foremost production-licensing-mer- 
chandising patterns in the indus- 
try such as Bing Crosby Enter- 
prises, Walt Disney’s outlets and 
the Bill (Hopalong Cassidy) Boyd 
distribution. The difference would 
be in NBC’s greater facilities to 
“stride like a Colossus" over the 
entire show biz field and utilize its 
artist and production roster for 
such invasions as the motion pic- 
ture industry. 

With tv drama and comedy pro- 
gram availabilities, plus owner- 
ship of scripts, feature flimjs would 
be made as reruns with all hands 
coming into the deal on a reduced 
fee basis but eligible for partici- 
pation as a separate entity. * All 
(Continued on page 40) 




MIDWEEK LEGITGOING 

Leblang . Theatre Ticket Agency 
is conducting an active campaign 
to get legitgoers to attend the the- 
atre during the week, in effort to 
cut down on the excessive bids for 
weekend tix. Vet New York brok- 
erage firm has posted placards at 
its special counters in Macy’s, Wan^ 
amaker and Gimbel Bros, depart- 
ment stores pointing up the ad- 
vantages of patronizing the theatre 
Monday-thru-Thursday. Signs are 
also spotted at ticket agency’s main 
outlet on 47th Street. 

Advantages listed numerically 
are along the lines of ( 1 ) cheaper 
seats, (2) more seats available, 
(3) better locations and (4) wider 
accessibility of baby-sitters. 


A lot of things are happening 
to further the show biz career of 
John Cassavettes, and tv may have 
supplied the link heretofore missr* 
ing in a chain of events that could 
.make him the find of the year. The 
24-year-old Cass (a truncated, han- 
dle that’s perhaps better fitted for 
the marquees in his newly-found 
upbeat status) has been knocking 
around at the usual stock compa- 
nies and cast in a couple of tv’ers. 
At the moment he’s assistant stage 
manager and understudy in ‘‘The 
Fifth Season,” at the Cort Theatre, 
N. Y„ but he figures to leave that 
behind pronto if he gets 20th-Fox’s 
affirmative decision on a screen 
test made last Saturday (20) on the 
Coast. Cass was rushed out there 
as a potential replacement for Mar- 
lon Brando in the latter’s ankling 
of the lead In “The Egyptian.” 
Studio answer is due in 10 days. 

Meantime, Columbia Pictures 
wants him for a test and he’s being 

(Continued on page 34) 


— ' — ’♦ ■ . By - ABEL. GREEN . 

Stagehands Vf. Actors ** Paul Raibourn, veepee of Para- 

It’s an old story, but per- ™$ nt nf .Sj5£Si r ^ h h 

haps still news. Stagehands vfsTon ^tiST now ^ 

are annarentlv more imoortant vision .system now cotnpleting .Its 

than aSs ly Important winter test at Palm Springs, Cal., 

w „ 4U 'n * , . • makes clear Paramount’s reasoning 

For Ruth DraperVsolo dra- in developing Telemeter.. “Since 
matic jketches^at the Vender- it will take $350,000,000 to blanket 
bilt, N. Y., there are seven the country, when and if Tele- 
stagehands. meter becomes a practical, nation- 

For “Lullaby,” Don Appell wide operation, isn’t it smart for us 
comedy at the Lyceum, N. Y., to work close to the budget, on a 

there are four actors and 15 limited basis, as we are doing in 

- stagehands. Palm Springs?” 

Coincidentally, from the south- 
ern California desert resort came 
GBI 17 T* # O- > Telemeter executive veepee Carl 

II I I im AQ .MfllTV Leserman’s findings that the 148 
1 i* A • A llllvw Ulvl J sets now in service there— on a $1 

fee basis — have averaged $10 per 
9 month revenue. That means a 
‘ 33% usage, certainly better than 
one picture per week viewed at- 
home, for the $1 fee. (There is a 
The New York Times will be $3 minimum obligation, on top of 
visually “covered” for the first the $21 installation of the “box” 
time by an outsider when the CBS- ^ich . ■ constitutes Telemeter’s 

, 7» 0 ^ b v'r eV< l‘ eS 4 ^ toHvUion in 
of its 90-minutes to a “Life” of (Continued on page 13) 

the paper, Tentative date Is March 
21, a week before the show put oh 
by the TV-Radio Workshop of the 
Ford Foundation, scrams, its Sun- 
day 5 to 6:30 slot after its con- p , •• ^ \ 

tracted sixmonth. LdlDOlIC i 3p6T ASKS 

The Times has always resisted ' Albany,, Feb. 23. 

bids from Hollywood, indie pack- The Evangelist, Catholic dioce- 
agers and television In general to san weekly, giving a personalized 
get inside the sheet for a closeup twist to 1 its campaign against “The 
of its workings. The nod to “Omni- Moon Is Blue,” has asked the 
bus” is considered a tribute, espe- Academy of ^Motion Picture Arts 
dally since it’s departing. and Sciences to vote against Mag- 

Figuring in the segment will be gieJVfeNamara, who has been nom- 
the top brass, headed by president- inated for the “best actress” Oscaf* 
publisher Arthur Hays Sulzberger, via her role in the film. Paper also 
'who’ll be joined by editors and editorialized against the film’s title 
mechanical men on the third tune (music, Herschel Burke Gil- 
and fourth floors. Four to five cam- bert; lyrics, Sylvia Fine), which is 
eras will go Into the building on among the nominees for “best 
West 43d St. for a capsule on how son?” of 1953. 
the first Monday edition is assem- “Both actress and song are in- 
bled. (Continued on page 61) 


which constitutes Telemeter’s 
“home boxoff ice-”) 

. Raibourn envisions tollvision in 
(Continued on page 13) 

Award No ‘Oscar’ To 
‘Moon’s’ Femme Star, 


Roosevelt Hotel 

NEW ORLEANS, LA. 

./ .';■:■ ' 

Currently presents 

The Hour of Charm 

All Girl Orchestra and Chair 
Featuring EVELYN and her Magic Violin 

Under the direction of 

PHIL SPITALNY 







Buenos Aires, Fd>. 23. ■ + 

Practically every one connected 
with Argentina’s picture industry 
is suffering from “festivalitis” at 
the present time, preparing fever- 
ishly for the International Festival 
scheduled to openin Mar del Plata 
March 6. Others had been rushing: 
to get off for the Sao Paulo fete in 
Brazil. Even President Perori has 
the festival virus and officially an- 
nounced he will attend the Mar 
del Plata affair, marking his first 
visit to the spot since becoming 
chief, executive nine years ago. 
This adds up to a triumph for Press 
Minister ApOld, who fostered the 
idea of holding a film festival. . 

Local studios are foregoing their 
customary February vacation so 
that producers can complete pic- 
tures marked as entries, while sev- 
eral local stars, with an eye ■ on 
festival awards, have postponed 
contracts to work in Mexico and 
Spain, pleading it their duty to act 
as hosts to the foreign visitors. As 
another sop to American film in- 
terests, designed to bolster their 
pledge of participation, Apold’s 
office has issued import and re- 
lease permits for foreign news- 
reels* which have been banned 
since April 1, 1952. 

Already- 17 Nations Entered 

So far 17 countries have pledged 
participation in the fete: Austria, 
Canada, Chile, ' Czechoslovakia, 
Spain, U.S., France, Great Brit- 
ain, Hungary. India, Japan, Mexi- 
co, Poland, West Germany, Rus- 
sia and Sweden. More than 40 
feature films have been entered. 

American distributors still await 
(Continued on page 63) 



To Fete 8th Ann as Team 

Hollywood, Feb. 23. ' 
Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis 
will mark the eighth anniversary 
ot their teaming by returning to 
the 500 Club, Atlantic City, where 
they started, for a two-week stand 
starting July 25, 

They opened there that date in 
1946 for two weeks. ’ Fizzled open- 
ing night but stayed on and finally 
lasted there 18 weeks. Team is 
currently working in Hal Wallis’ 
“The Big Top.” 


Kaye Leaves ’Em Panting 
For More in Virtuoso 
110-Min. Phillv Stint 



HORACE HEIDT 

Currently Hotel. Statlor, New York 
Under Personal Management 
WALTER PLANT 
Statler Hotel, New York City, N; Y. 


Reprise World Citizen 
Idea; Seeks Thesps’ Aid 

New York. 

Editor, Variety: 

As; an actor obliged by sheer ne- 
cessity to turn politician, I want to 
announce to my theatrical friends 
through Variety the founding of 
a new political party unique in the 
annals of political endeavors. 
Unique first because it will be 
worldwide in aim, character and 
eventual administration, cutting 
across all national frontiers, color 
lines, racial and language differ- 
ences, a one-world democratic pop- 
ular party with a global viewpoint: 

It will be further unique because 
it is founded by a so-called stateless 
person, a legal nonentity on the 
very bottom of the political and so- 
cial ladder. 

It is to be Called The World Citi- 
zen Party, and its prime goals are 
world peace through a just world, 
law or government, general mate- 
rial security and well-being through 
(Continued on page 60) 


By JERRY GAGHAN 

Philadelphia, Feb. 23. 

. Danny Kaye worked an hour and 
50 minutes at the Shubert Theatre 
last night (Mon.) and . had a near- 
capacity audience' lashed to the 
chairs, calling f9r more; Few acts 
could go such a course. Kaye’s 
turn is greatly expanded over his 
only previous visit here five years 
ago, when he played Jour-a-day at 
the, Stanley-Warner Mastbaum. 
Comedian’ wasted no time getting 
at pgwholders, teeiiig right off with 
.his gypsy -number, . which divides 
J the • house into three choral sec- 
tions. 

Kaye is in. a class by himself 
at getting' audience participation. 
Either they come pre-sold, or it’s 
magic. Last evening’s docile stub- 
holders got right into the chorus 
work without even a warmup. 
After that, the comedian owned 
them. He swung quickly into take- 
offs of a -German lieder singer, 
scholarly English baritone, Span- 
ish flamencos with kidding im- 
prest! of Jose Greco, burlesque of 
a glamor boy vocalist, and Scot- 
tish songs, all interlarded with 
gags and clowning. 

Along about 11 o’clock, after 
having been on since 9:55, Kaye 
squatted on the stage apron, bor- 
rowed a cigaret and matches from 
a front row, chatted casually about 
his daughter, told a French story 
or two, and engaged in small talk. 
Abruptly, he thanked audience for 
(Continued on page 61) 



JOSE FERRER CURTAILS 
CLOONEY HONEYMOON 

Jose Ferrer, currently in Lorn 
don, will cut short his . delayed 
honeymoon with Rosemary Clooney 
td return stateside on March 8. 

He’ll head immediately for the 
Coast for Universal’s film version 
of “The Shrike,” in which he’ll 
star and direct. Ferrer played the 
lead on Broadway in Joseph 
Kramm’s Pulitzer Prize winner and 
also reenacted the role in a recent 
revival at N; Y.’s City Center. 



Unless He Faces Probers 


Hollywood, Feb. 23‘. 

Actor John Brown has been noti- 
fied he faces suspension from the 
American Federation of Television 
& Radio Artists unless he testifies 
before the House Un-American 
Activities Committee within the 
next 90 days. Ruling was made by 
the AFTRA board on charges that 
he had taken a “Fifth Amendment 
position” before the Committee 
last year. 

Brown appeared before the 
board, denied present membership 
in the Communist Party and stated 
he had signed the AFTRA loyalty 
oath. He declined, however, to dis- 
cuss party membership during the 
period prior to the time such af- 
fidavits were required. The union 
has a ruling that all members must 
testify before Congressional com- 
mittees. 


Paris, Feb. 16. 

Jean Bouchel-Ysaye, who took 
over the directorship of the Em- 
pire Theatre two years ago, has 
turned this original white elephant 
into one of . the top dance and 
operetta theatres here. After the 
ill-fated beginning with the Mau- 
rice Chevalier musical, “Plein 
Feu” (“Full Fire”), the theatre hit 
its stride with ballet companies and 
the importation of “Porgy and 
Bess.” 

Bouchel-Ysaye told Variety that 
he would like to make the Empire 
a two-week stop for all U.S. musi- 
cals before opening in England. 
He believes there is a big audience 
here, for the U.S. musical as evi- 
denced by the boff reception of 
“Porgy.” He feels this could serve 
as a road show as well as help in- 
culcate a growing -need here for 
an advance in musical comedy 
tastes. 

French crix are also beginning 
to take up this attitude since the 
last spate of new musicals here 
were still in the line of out- 
moded musical books and tradi- 
tions. Ysaye is now trying to get a 
showing of “South Pacific” and 
“The King and I” at the Empire. 

This season already has seen suc- 
cessful runs at the Empire of the 
Roland Petit Ballet De Paris in 
September and October; the Grand 
Ballet Du Marquis De. Cuevas in 
November, December and Janu- 
ary, and, at present, V it has the bal- 
let company of the Spanish dancer 
Antonio which garnered neat no- 
tices and looks in for a good two- 
month run. 

Next up is the Opera of Monte- 
Carlo and then a revival of “The 
Four Penny Opera,” based on the 
rewrite of the 18th Century opera, 
“The Beggar’s Opera,” of- John 
(Continued on page 61) 


Wednesday, February 24, I 954 

KY. Tines’ on Amy Morale 

Hanson W. Baldwin, the N. Y. Times* military expert, in his 
Sunday (21) feature, “McCarthy and the Army” pointed up and 
paired “Senator's Inquiry ajid Marilyn Monroe’s Visit to Korea 
Show Service’s Weakness.” - 

Bypassing as politics, Baldwin’s diatribe against the Wisconsin 
Senator’s meddliifg into Arnjy protocol, and his (McCarthy’s) at- 
tack on Secretary of the Army Robert T. Stevens, show business 
will be gulled by the part about Miss Monroe: - 

“It is completely true, as Senator McCarthy said, though 
-"not |n the way he meant it, that ’we witnessed a disgraceful 
performance Hast week!, and I think it is up ty Secretary 
* Stevens to correct it quickly.’ ^ 

“It is alAo up to Mr. Stevens, and especially to General Ridg- 
way, to correct the weaknesses in service, morale; epitomized 
by the visit of Miss [Marilyn] Monroe to Korea. On two oc- 
casions during the visit of the motion picture actress, troops 
rioted mildly and behaved like hobbysoxers in Times Square, 
not like soldiers proud of their uniform." 

“their conduct must have delighted the Communists and all 
who hope for signs of degradation and decline- in the United 
States. Their poor discipline, it is true, merely reflects some 
of the softness on the ’home front.’ But the Army cannot 
tolerate this if it is to remain an Army. 

“Mr. Stevens might weil ascertain why Miss Monroe was in 
Korea anyway. Sweater girls and young ladies scantily clad 
in ermine-trimmed bathing suits have nothing to do with 
military morale; tours by such as these are not the stuff of 
discipline and pride and toiighness. 

“The Army Special Services officer, charged with trying 
to provide recreation for the troops, too often has .usurped ' 
the functions of command instead, of implementing them. 

“The Army needs fewer McCarthys and Monroes, less dema- 
gogues and. less Hollywood and more leadership and moral 
fibre from the top down. It is up to Secretary Stevens and 
his immediate superiors and subordinates in the Defense 

Department to restore the soul of the Army.” 



Fred Allen- Tells Friars: ‘Nothing You Gan Say 
Against Georgie, Unless Y ou’ re a. Woman* 


- ■■■ 2/24 

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Subscription Order Form 

Enclosed find check for $ 

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Street * 

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U. S., Russ Actors 


London, Feb. 23. 

Invitations to affiliate with the 
International Federation of Actors 
have ben sent to thespers’ unions 
in America and Russia, according 
to a report made by Gordon Sandi- 
son, British Equity general secre- 
tary, after attending an executive 
session in Vienna.- The Federation, 
he says, has ceased to be a Euro- 
pean organization and is now seek- 
ing worldwide representation. * 

Already 14 countries are affiliat- 
ed and promises to join up have 
been received from Australia, New 
Zealand, Canada and Ireland. San- 
dison hopes that the Federation 
will make a small contribution to 
the lessening of international ten- 
sion and explains they are limiting 
discussion ' to professional ques- 
tions. This, however, makes it 
possible to study common prob- 
lems “away from the atmosphere 
of suspicion arid cold war.” It also 
gives, he says; the tolerance of ac- 
tors the chance to assert itself.- 


.’S 

SOCKO LEGIT DEBUT 

Hamilton, Bermuda, Feb. 23. 

Legit debut of John Barrymore 
Jr., "at the Bermudian theatre here* 
last 'week drew sock notices from 
the local reviewers. Both the Mid- 
Ocean News arid the Royal Gazette 
lauded Barrymore’s performance, 
Although' the 22-year-old actor has 
.appeared in a number of films, his 
engagement here marked his first 
legit performance. He had been 
slated for a summer stock date sev- 
eral seasons ago but_howed out of 
the deal. Barrymore appeared here 
in “The Man,” with Dorothy Gish 
co-starred. 

Current attraction at the Ber- 
mudian is “Design for Living,” 
with Sylvia Sydney starred. 


Rep. Ceiler Intros Bin 


Under Antitrust Laws 

Washington, Feb. 23. 

Rep. Emanuel. Ceiler (D., N.Y.), 
has finally introduced his bill to 
put the legit theatre and other 
branches of entertainment under 
the anti-trust laws. 

The New Yorker, ranking Dem- 
ocrat on the House Judiciary Com- 
mittee, promised such legislation 
after a N.Y. Federal Court rilled 
in ! the Shubert anti-trust case that 
legit was not “busines” as defined 
under the Sherman Act. Judge 
acted as a result of the Supreme 
Court’s decision that professional 
baseball was a sport and not busi- 
nes to be regulated by the Sherman 
Antitrust Law. (Goverriment has 
announced it will appeal the Shu- 
bert decision), 

Since that time, a Federal court, 
also acting on the basis of the Su- 
preme Court decision, has thrown 
out an antitrust suit against Inter- 
national Boxing Club, of New York, 
and ruling that professional fights 
ing was exempt from the antitrust 
laws. 

Key language of the new Ceiler 
bill, an amendment to the Sher- 
man Act, assert? that “the words 
’trade or commerce’ as used herein 
include all forms of trade or com- 
merce subject to the provisions of 
this Act Unless . specifically ex- 
empted therefrom by statute.” 

Since . fighting, baseball, legit 
theatre, etc., have never been ex- 
empted from the law by statute, 
they would be included automati- 
cally. 

Amendment would also apply to 
motion pictures. However, there is 
plenty of precedent in the Federal 
courts, including the Supreme 
Court, that the antitrust laws do 
apply to motion pictures. Hence the 
Ceiler bill would not alter any- 
thing here* 


By ABEL GREEN 

“Tonight we art saluting Darryl 
Zanuck’s Orson Welles; we are also 
saluting Georgie Jessel for . his 
many talents and his versatility—; 
a sort of Noel Coward without 
money,” was the way toastmaster 
Jack Benny opened up the sellout ' 
Waldorf-Astoria (N.Y,) . fete. The 
Sunday night (21) dinner in the 
grand ballroom of the flagship 
Hilton hostelry grossed $35 ;000 plus 
$20,000 from the ads in the souve- 
nir journal. Proceeds are divided 
between Friars Club’s Needy Fund 
and American Heart Assn. Fund. 

“The committee under whose 
auspices we now salute a versatile 
gentleman, who has given so much 
of himself, did have a little diffi- 
culty explaining to Georgie that 
you can’t be the guest of honor 
and toastmaster at the same time,” 
continued Benny. “I chose to be 
the latter, which sort of makes me 
a lieutenant ’toastmaster general 
of the United $tates\ But to be 
second to any of his accomplish- 
ments” — pause for emphasis — 
“is plenty all right. I have known' 
Jessel to go • out with Shirley 
Temple and- Clara Kimball Young 
at both and the same time, and 
when both were in their prime. 
That’s why you probably get the 
idea how I must feel up here— it’s 
like being stranded oh an island 
with DiMaggio and Marilyn Mon- 
roe — you have a feeling you’re not 
necessary.” 

This was a sample of the brilliant 
afterdinner speaking in which 
Senator Warren G, Magniison. New 
York’s Mayor Robert F. Wagner 
Jr., Helen Hayes, Fred Allen, Bob 
(Continued on page 22) 


PHILLY MASONS TO 
HONOR GEN. SARNOFF 

; Philadelphia, Feb. 23. 

Gen. David Sarnoff, chairman of 
the board of RCA and NBC, has 
been named recipient of the annual 
humanitarian award of the Golden 
Slipper Square Club, Masonic phil- 
anthropic group: 

Gen. Sarnoff will receive the 
award at a dinner meeting of the 
club in the Bellevue Stratford Ho- 
tel here, March 3. Harry S. Sylk, 
drug chain head and owrier of 
WPEN, is in charge of arrange- 
ments for the meeting. 

.Designation of Sarnoff was for 
his “outstanding contributions to 
the field of human relations 
through his preemirience in the 
field of radio, electronic? and tele- 
vision, not only as a service to all 
mankind but as a vital part of the 
security of the nation,” according 
to Judge Joseph Sloane, of Com- 
mon Pleas Court, who served as 
chairman of the club’s humanitai- 
ian award committee. 



Wednesday, February 24, 1954 


NCT1JRBS 


US. 70% DUAL 




Programmer or “B” pictures, 
once a glut on the market, are cur- 
rently in short supply, making it 
increasingly difficult for dual bill 
situations ;to round out their pro- 
grams. The major studios, making 
fewer and bigger pictures, have 
almost completely eliminated their 
“B” films, and even such outfits 
as Republic and Allied Artists, 
once among the major suppliers 
of programmer product, are shift- 
ing to the biggies. As a prime ex- 
ample of the change is Rep’s in- 
tention to cut its slate of 60 pix 
annually to 22 a year. ; 

That distribs may be neglecting 
a vast market is indicated in the 
fact that approximately 70% of the 
nation’s theatres are Operating on 
a double feature basis. With the 
number of houses in the U. S. vari- 
ously estimated at between 15,000 
and 20,000, it becomes a question 
whether a big coin source is not 
being dropped without careful 
study. 

To be sure, the less-and-bigger- 
picture policy of the major pro- 
ducers has had the effect of caus- 
ing some dualers to shift to one 
(Continued on page 23) 


Army Sans Stereo 

Washington, Feb. 23 
The Army and Air Forces Mo- 
tion Picture Service has con* 
tracted for its first Cinema* 
Scope pic, Warner’s “The 
Command.’’ Film is slated for 
plays at 37 military installa- 
tions in this country which 
have wide screen facilities. 
However, the deal does not 
require the use of sterophonic 
sound which is not installed. 


Bid to Participate In 
United Artists’ 35th Anni 

Samuel Gdldwyn and David O. 
Selznick have declined invitations 
to participate in United Artists’ 
35th anniversary, celebration > Dis- 
trib had asked both producers to 
okay showings of their outstanding 
pix, which had been originally re- 
leased by UA, at a “festival” pro- 
gram set up by the Museum of 
Modern Art, N.Y. 

The plan calls for a daily screen- 
ing at the Museum’s private thea- 
tre, with the entire group of 
selected pix numbering, perhaps, 
21. Trade execs, press reps and 
others are to be invited, with the 
idea of making the showings a 
focal point of part of an extensive 
institutional campaign for UA. 

. Selznick and Goldwyn would 
have figured importantly in the 
series of pic showings because of 
the memorable quality of Some of 
their product over the years. 
Among the Goldwyn pix which UA 
distributed were “Dodsworth,” 
“Dead End,” “Stella Dallas” and 
“Wuthering Heights,” Selznick’s 
UA releases included “A Star Is 
Born,” “Nothing Sacred,” “Spell- 
bound” and “Rebecca.” 

Reason for the two filmmakers’ 
aloofness was not given officially. 
But the point is made that they 
(Continued on page 22) 

Mike Jeffers Jury, 6-6 
On SEG Newsletter Libel 

Los Angeles, Feb. 23. 

After a trial last lasting more 
than 10 months the $200,000 libel 
suit filed by Michael D. Jeffers 
against the Screen Extras Guild 
. Jvas dismissed in Superior Court 
because of a deadlocked jury. 

Jurors were split, 6 to 6, after 
hearing testimony of 87 witnesses. 
Jeffers contended he had been 
libeled by a SEG newsletter. 



Far East holds a growing po- 
tential for quality film entertain- 
ment from all nations, Edward 
Ugast, 20th-Fox’s Far Eastern su- 
pervisor, said in N. Y. last week. 
He added, that Hollywood “hasn’t 
even scratched the surface” of the 
Asian market. 

Ugast, who was here on a vaca- 
tion and Who left for the Coast Fri- 
day (19), said the answer in the 
Orient was bigger pictures and 
more theatres and that “The Robe” 
in Cinemascope and pix like “The 
Greatest Show on Earth” were an- 
swering this requirement. Thefe is 
a healthy theatre construction pro- 
gram under Way in Japan, Singa- 
pore (where he makes his head- 
quarters) and throughout Malaya, 
he reported. 

CinemaScope is catching on fast 
in Asia and grosses rolled up by 
“The Robe” attest to the popularity 
of the new Widescreen method, he 
maintained. Ugast estimated that, 
by the end of 1954, there should be 
some 500 houses equipped for Cine- 
ma-Scope throughout the Far East; 

Business in Indo-China has been 
badly hurt by the war, he reported, 
( Continued on page 24) 




More Receptive to Film 



OPTIONS Kill DEAL 

Dirk Bogarde Loses Out as Bran- 
don Successor in Egyptian.’ 

London, Feb. 23, 
Dirk Bogarde, who was Slated to 
plane to Hollywood last weekend 
as a replacement for Marlon Bran- 
d0 in 20th-Fox’s “The Egyptian/' 
vvas cancelled out following a dis- 
pute between J. Arthur Rank, to 
— e is under contract, and 
over options. 

Rank was determined the deal 
would be for a single picture only 
since Bogarde’s appearance in 
Egyptian” would involve a serious 
dislocation of his British produc- 
tion schedule. 


New York City newspapers are 
beginning to lend a friendly ear.] 
to cooperative contest ideas pro- 
posed by picture houses. While the 
pages of the dailies haven’t been 
completely thrown open to film 
promotions, theatre pub-ad staffers 
report that newspaper editors and 
promotion men are now more in- 
clined to listen to the proposals of 
film-men. 

In recent weeks three N. Y. pa- 
pers — the Mirror, the journal- 
American, and the World-Tele- 
gram & . Sun— conducted contests 
based on film angles. The World- 
Telly’s contest is a joint effort with 
RKO Theatres in the metropolitan 
area and is built around “How to 
Marry a Millionaire” (20th) set to 
play the circuit shortly. Contest 
involves the selection of femmes 
who most resemble the stars of 
the film— Marilyn Monroe, Lauren 
Bacall and Betty Grable. Prizes 
are substantial, including a trip 
(Continued on page 20) 

LAUGHTON NON-INNOVATOR 

His First Film Direction Will 
Use No New Tricks 


Capitol, N. Y., Assures 
Paramount $175,000 

V* 

Capitol Theatre; N. Y. showcase, 
has guaranteed Paramount mini- 
mum film rental of $175,000 as 
basis of a deal for booking “Knock 
oh Wood,” Danny Kaye comedy. 
Pic opens at the house Easter 
Week, and a 10-week run is figured. 

Pact also provides for an 30-20 
distrib-theatre split. 

Hefty guarantee points up. the 
extent to which Broadway houses 
are going in the competition for 
top product. In bidding for pix, 
the exhibs are stressing both guar- 
antee and longer runs. On the lat- 
ter point, the Cap, for example, 
cut overhead Substantially via elim- 
ination of stage bills, consequently 
can hold a ■'film 'much longer than 
with the vaude combo policy. 


UNEXPLAINED SURGE 
OF COLUMBIA SHARES 

Unfounded rumor mysteriously 
set afloat in Wall Street circles last 
week sent Columbia’s common and 
preferred stock issues to new high 
for the year via an unusually heavy 
volume of trading on the N. Y. 
Stock Exchange, 

Of undetermined origin, was the 
report that Col had intentions of 
buying up its own $4.25 preferred 
securities at $105 per share. It 
has sold as low as $59.50 over the 
year and in recent weeks Was 
quoted at $70 and slightly higher. 
The issue climbed to $89 on 
Wednesday (17), then began to 
Slide and closed the week at $81.50. 

Col issued no formal statement 
denying, any pending stock buyup 
but made it clear in private talks 
with inquiring Wall Streeters that 
there were no such plans. Col 
reps professed no knowledge of 
how the rumor came about and 
could not pin down its origin to 
any one source. 

The enthusiasm anent ; the pre- 
ferred stock apparently brushed 
off on the common issue as well. 
Total of 10,700 shares changed 
hands Wednesday, bringing a gain 
of $2;25. It reached a new high of 
$23.37% on Thursday and at the 
close of business on Friday Was 
quoted at $22.87%. The Col com- 
mon has a low of $11.62% for the 
year. 


Some Sell RKO Short 

N.Y. Stock Exchange sources 
revealed this week that some 
investors are selling RKO: 
short, that staking their in- 
vestment on the anticipation 
that the common, stock issue 
will go down - in price. This 
would happen, of course, if the 
Howard Hughes proposal to 
buy out the company at . the 
equivalent of $6 bar share 
doesn’t result in a deal. 

Total of 23,100 short interest 
shares were reported as of last 
week; This compares with only 
400 a month previous. 


Columbia 'Fluid’ 




Minneapolis, . Feb. 23, 
Here for reading appearances, 
Charles Laughton said he. has no 
new techniques or tricks in mind 
for his initial film directorial 
chore, marking Paul Gregory’s 
picture producing debut. He told 
Morning Tribune columnist Will 
Jones he has no desire “to revolu- 
tionize the world.” 

“People seem to think I do things 
a little differently when I act or 
direct for the speaking stage, and 
I suppose I may do things a bit 
differently when I direct the pic- 
ture, but it will not be anything 
startling,” he said. 

The Gregory-Laughton picture, 
an adaptation of an unpublished 
noyel, Davis Grubb’s “The Night of 
the Hunter,” will start in Holly- 
wood after Laughton finishes as di- 
rector of “The Caine Mutiny Court 
Martial,” road company. 


Columbia will hold back on de- 
cisions regarding how it will li- 
cense its CinemaScope product un- 
til the end of the year. Company 
wants to maintain a “fluid position” 
with respect to stereophonic sound 
until the time is at hand for actual 
release of a C’Scoper. 

Col’s first in C’Scope is “Three 
for the Show,” which went ; into 
production last week with Betty 
Grable, Marge and Gower Cham- 
pion and Jack Lemmon In lead 
spots. In view of a long shooting 
sked plus about six months for 
Technicolor lab work, Col figures 
that “Show” will riot be ready for 
distribution until next November- 
or December. 

The company will map its 
C’Scope exhibition, policy at that 
point, taking into consideration 
whatever new marketing arid li- 
censing developments have taken 
place on the C’Scope front in the 
interim. 


Goldwyn’s ’Dolls’ Bid 

Hollywood, Feb. 23. 

Latest film producer to put Hi 
a bid for screen rights to “Guys 
and Dolls” is. Samuel Goldwyn, 
who is reported making a cash of- 
fer of $65.0,000 against 5% of the 
gross. 

Understood Metro has offered 
$600,000 for the show while Wil- 
liam Goetz’s bid calls for $300,000 
against 10% of the gross— which- 
ever is higher; Goetz had slated the 
production for Columbia release 
through a recent three-picture 
deal. 


Hollywood, Feb. 23. . 

The nickel cup of coffee is just 
a fond memory— and so are the 
Dollar Bills. Inflation has hit the 
Pine-Thomas unit. 

For 14 years the one-time press 
agents turned producers have been 
turning out pix in a definite price 
slot designed to meet a ' specific 
market demand. . No more. From 
now on they’ll be independent; pro- 
ducers whose efforts will have no 
budgetary limits except those de- 
manded by the property they’re 
making. 

“Times arid the market havo 

f hanged,” Bill Thomas . declared 
his week in announcing the firm’! 
second change in . production in 14 
years. “It doesn’t pay to take a 
chance in today’s market on lim- 
ited budget, pictures.” ; 

“What happens'’ chimed in Bill 
Fine, “is that you can get nickeled- 
and-dimed to death. So we are go- 
ing to make pictures for whatever 
they require to be made ’Veil. That 
means we’ll use top casts and top 
directors;” 

Thei switchover in production; 
thinking is not just something to 
(Continued on page 33) 


Distribs Private Eye 


& 







Long Holiday Weekend Hypos Trade; ‘Miller’ 
Champ by Big Margin; ‘Trailer/ ‘Cinerama 9 Next 


First-run biz in principal key 
cities covered by Variety this 
stanza is perking as a result of 
long Washington’s Birthday week- 
end. Even in cities along the At- 
lantic seaboard where rain hurt 
somewhat late Sunday (2D* the 
great upbeat on Feb. 22 gave near- 
ly every big pic smash returns. 
Some idea of this upsurge is re- 
vealed by the huge $1,320,000 total 
hung up by the four biggest gross- 
ing films. 

“Glenn Miller Story” (U) is the 
new champion, with nearly $480,- 
0Q0 grossed in some 12 keys. It 
is outdistancing its closest competi- 
tor by better than $120,000. “Long, 
Long Tralier”. (M-G), out for the 
first time this round, is finishing 
second, perhaps reflecting the 
great, campaign and the popularity 
of Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz and 
their tele show. 

“Cinerama” (Indie) is winding up 
third; being solid to huge in some 
10 key cities Where now playing. 
“Knights of Round Table” (M-G), 
which held in first place for six 
weeks, is dipping to fourth. “Hell 
and High Water” (20th) is captur- 
ing fifth position, being good to 
smash. 

“Money From Home” (Par), 
which opens at the N, Y. Para- 
mount this Week, is winding up 
sixth. “Khyber Rifles” (20th) is 
taking seventh position. “Julius 
Caesar” (M-G) is eighth while “The 
Command” (WB) is ninth. “Majesty 
O’Keefe” (WB) rounds out the Big 
10 . 

“Rob Roy” (RKO)* “Forever Fe- 


male” (Par) and “Living Desert” 
(Disney) are the runner-Up films 
this round. 

Both “Top Banana” (UA) and 
“New Faces” (20th) loom as poten- 
tially big newcomers. Latter shapes 
big on preem date at N. Y. Roxy. 
“Banana” is smash in N.' Y. and 
Philly, but modest in LA. Fresh 
engagements saw “Could Happen 
To You” (Col) getting nice biz in 
Philly and Pitt while the film’s run 
at N. Y. State continues sock in 
sixth round. 

“She Couldn’t Say No” (RKO), 
also new, /shapes smash in Chi and 
okay in Seattle. “Bait” (Col) is 
great in Chi. “Boy From Okla- 
homa” (WB), also a newcomer, is 
good in Boston but sluggish in 
Clevelarid arid Balto. 

“Riot in Cell Block 11” (AA), 
big in Detroit, is socko in N. Y. 
“Act of Love” (UA) still is great in 
second stanza at N. V Y. Astor.- “Go 
Man Go” (UA), fairish in Cincy, 
looms big in Indianapolis. 

"Sadie Thompson” (Col), shapes 
fast in Toronto. “3 Young Texans” 
(20th) is rated tepid in Indiana- 
polis. 

“Jubilee Trail” (Rep) looms loud 
in Omaha. “Hamlet” (U), out on re- 
issue, is brisk in Chi arid nice in 
Pitt. “Cease Fire” (Par) is neat in 
Buffalo. 

“War Arrow” looks good in De- 
troit. “French Line” (RKO) hit a 
new house record opening week in 
Denver. “Wicked Woman” (UA) is 
good in Denver. 

( Complete Boxoffice Reports on 
Pages 8-9) 


Hits Payola Trend 


A hush-hush realignment and 
tighter Supervision of exchange 
officials of some of the majdr dis- 
tribs is taking place as result , of 
allegations that certain supervisory 
execs are taking payolas from cir- 
cuits for granting favored terms on 
pictures. Charges, although not 
aired openly, also include reports 
that somd exchange personnel havs 
interests in drivel ns which re- 
ceive special attention in film 
deals. 

The manner of payoff is varied. 
In one case, an exchange exec is 
said to have received $3,000 as his 
(Continued on page 22) 



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PICTUBES 


Wednenday, Ftbnmy^ 1934 



N. Y. attorneys for dissident 4 
RKO stockholders have -.been of- ' 
fered a free trip to. and from Las 
Vegas to interview Howard Hughes 
in connection with their N. Y. and 
Delaware suits against the airman. 
But the legalites have, nixed the 
invitation,' preferring to have 
Hughes come to them; He won't; 

'While these backstage develop- 
ments appear not particularly 
meaningful on the surface, actual- 
ly they figure somewhat signifi- 
cantly in the full context of HKO’s 
complex legalistics. 

- Harry Halperin, repping stock- 
holders Louis Schiff and Jacob 
Backs, filed actions in N. Y. Su- 
preme Court and Delaware’s Chan- 
cery Court which seek to block the- 
Hughes buyout of all RKO assets 
at the equivalent of $6 per share. 
The deal would involve over $23, ■ 
000.000. 

Halperin Contends that the com- 
pany is worth closer to $90,000,000 


and wants an . order enjoining 
RKO from presenting the Hughes 
offer to all ^stockholders for their 
majority approval at a meeting on 
March 18. 

In Delaware, the plaintiffs filed 
a Complaint but made no motion 
for a temporary injunction, as was 
done in N. Y. A Delaware hear- 
ing was held Saturday (20) and 
( Continued bn page 22 ) 



Easter With 215 Prints 

Moving to alleviate the pressing 
shortage of Cinemascope prints, 
20th-Fox has spread the process- 
ing work out over five labs and 
expects to have 215 prints avail- 
able for ‘‘Prince Valiant/’ its 
Easter attraction. 

Print manufacture on 20th ’s 
Cinemascope shorts has been -al- 
located to Consolidated Labora- 
tories in the east. Other iabs turn- 
ing out Cinemascope prints in- 
clude Technicolor, De Luxe i n 
N. Y., Color Corp. of America on 
the Coast and the De Luxe lab at 
the 20th studio. 

By March 20, 20th expects . to 
have on hand, and available for 
domestic booking, 334 prints of 
“The Robe,” 300 of “How to Marry 
a Millionaire/' 300 of “Beneath 
the 12-Mile Reef/’ 300 of “King of 
the Khyber Rifles/’ 160 of “Hell 
and High Water/’ 65 of “Night 
People” and 75 of “New Faces.” 
“Night People” will be the first 
of the CiiiemaScopers to be print- 
ed entirely in Technicolor’s dye- 
transfer, imbibition process. Tech- 
ni so far has done all Cinema- 
Scope w ork on Eastman color posi- 
tive stock which, comes consider- 
ably higher than the regular Tech- 
tii method. Including the expen- 
sive magnetic striping and sound 
recording procedure, 20th pays 
12c 'a foot for CineniaScopers 
printed on Eastman positive. 

On this basis, and not consider- 
ing foreign print demands, 20th’s 
print bill on seven CinemaScope ! 
films well exceeds the $2,000,000 
mark. 


Asst. Sales Mgr. Post 
Abolished at RKO Pix 

Post of assistant sales inanager 
at RKO. Pictured is being eliminat- 
ed fallowing the switch by Walter 
Branson Yrom that job to general 
manager of foreign operations. 
Branson’s previous duties on the 
domestic front are being absorbed 
by a newly-created divisional 
sales setup. 

Herbert H, Greenblatt has been 
upped from mid western district 
manager . to central division chief, 
headquartering in Chicago. J. Her- 
bert MacIntyre has been promoted 
from western district to western 
division manager. Nat Levy con- 
tinues as head of the east-south 
division, and Harry Gittleson, sales 
administrative manager, has been 
named . exec assistant to general 
sales manager Charles Boasberg, . 

Branson was named foreign chief 
on a temporary basis three weeks 
ago, filling in for Alfred Crown, 
who resigned to join Moulin Pro- 
ductions. James R. Grainger/ RKO 
prez, winged into N. Y. for a One- 
day visit last Wednesday (17) and 
worked out a. deal for Branson to 
take the foreign assignment per- 
manently. Branson and Robert 
Wolff, RKQ’s chief in England, 
now arc on the Coast to onceover 
new product. 

Grainger and C. J. Tevlin, stu- 
dio operations head, also worked' 
out aq extension of RKO’s employ- 
ment pact with the American Fed- 
eration of Musicians, providing for 
the same 5% salary, boost stipu- 
lated in the recently-signed new 
deal between A. F. of M. and other 
film companies. 



MORE RKO CENSOR <JKKF? 

•> 1 ' ' ;*• 

‘Son of Slnbad* Opens With 
Strip-Peel Main Credits 

■ ■ i 1 . '* y* ■ 

Already at odds with the Pro- 
duction Code Administration : over 
“The French. Line,” which is being 
released without Code approval, 
RKO appears heqded .for another 
rhubarb anent pic standards with 
its upcoming “Son pi Sinbad/’ Re- 
cently completed. 

Intelligence; from the Alleged 
inside'say s'ome striking, effects are 
achieved right at the, outset as cast 
and credits - are • flashed' on ; the 
screen. These name lihes are su- 
perimposed . over an/ exposure of. 
peeler Lili St. Cyr in a dance turn 
reminiscent of Minsky’s free-rein 
days. 

Code authorities have taken no 
action on the film as yet. But the 
point is made that deletion of Miss 
St. Cyr would mean elimination, 
obviously, of the credit billings 
which are on the same film. This 
would entail the printing of new 
credit frames. 




PUBLIC PLEA 



SHORTS, CARTOONS IN 
REISSUE PROTESTED 

Exhib beefs are mounting relat- 
ing to the continued reissuing of 
shorts and cartoons by almost every 
distrib. Noting that it’s almost im- 
possible to keep track of every two- 
reeler. issued within the past five 4 
years, an Allied midwest unit notes 
. that alert small-fry usually call the 
fact to the theatrenien’s attention. 

Says Charlie Jones, of Allied of 
Iowa, Nebraska and Mid-Central: 
“It is getting to be more than I 
can take to have kids coming out 
‘'bout every two or three shows and 
reminding you with a slight refer- 
ence that you’re pulling something 
on them aiid that they've seen that 
old cartoon before.” 

Jones com pi kins that exhibs are 
paying full price for the cartoons 
and “the distributor makes Yuli 
price profit from something that 
lias once been liquidated,’’ He 
points out that a reissued feature is 
usually half-priced or less. So “why 
not shorts?” he asks. 


In art effort to inject 3-D with 
new life, the Pola-lite Co. has de- 
veloped a single-strip, single-pro- 
jector dimensional pic system to 
be made available to exhibs at a 
cost of $100. Only condition to the 
sale is that the theatreman also 
mast contract for 6,000 pairs of 
viewing, glasses, at 10c per pair. 

In discussing the setup in N. Y. 
this week, A1 O'Keefe, Pola-lite’.s 
distribution v. 5 p., also un/eiled a 
new line of plastic-framed spec- 
tacles which accent wider viewing 
range. 

Distributors, of course, will de- 
termine the extent to which any 
switch is made to single-print 3-D. 
Upon prpduction of a 3-D film, 
prints must be processed to con- 
form with the one-unit projection. 
Costs involved are insignificant, 
claims. O’Keefe. Further, a com- 
pany could save about $125,000 in 
release prints per 'film since only 
one 35m print would be required. 

So far, only Universal is employ* 
ing the Pola-lite system. “Crea- 
ture from, the Black Lagoon” and 
“Taza, Son of Cochise/’ are being 
made available via the single-strip 
method as well as standard dual- 
print. Success of these two pix 
will figure as the tipoff on whether 
other studios follow the U lead. 

Although there’s no new 3-D 
production now underway, various 
(Continued on page 61) 


Minneapolis, Feb. 23. 

At Allied States board of di- 
recaor’s meeting in New Tork this 
week, Bennie Berger, "North Cen- 
tral Allied president. Will press 
for immediate “direct action” to 
supplement local body’s recent 
resolutions charging that present 
sales policies in industry sound 
death knell for thousands of small 
exhibitors. Resolutions call upon 
20th-Fox and - other companies to 
release Cinemascope pictures with- 
out. stereophonic sound and ask 
distributors to make top ! product 
available for small-town exhibitors 
and subsequent theatres at rentals 
within their reach. 

Berger will advocate national 
body launch large newspaper ad- 
vertising campaign throughout na- 
tion to acquaint public , with al- 
leged threat to exhibitors' exist- 
ence and how many towns may be 
deprived of best, pictures because 
of film companies’ policies. Ads 
would call for public’s support end 
cooperation in drive to remedy 
matters. 

He’ll also ask directors to con- 
sider institution of legal action, if 
necessary, ( and recourse to Justice 
Department and U. S. Senate 
Small Business Committee in ef- 
fort to make distributors relent. 


Mitchum Masseur Scene 
OK (He Didn’t Enjoy It); 
’s ‘Act Adult’ 




of 3-D 


Matty Fox has dropped his inter- 
ests in 3-D with the sale of his 
stock in Pola-lite Company, manu- 
facturers of viewing glasses, to 
Commercial International. Latter 
outfit, taking 100% ownership of 
Pola-lite, previously was associated 
with Fox on a partnership basis/ 
Fox also, has folded All Dimen- 
sions, Inc., which he had. set up) 
with Boris MorroS. This outfit had 
dealt in the Moroptican system of 
single-strip 3-D, tieing in the sale 
or lease of Moropticon’s projection 
apparatus with the sale of the Pola- 
lite spectacles to theatremen. 


By FRED 1IIFT 

The film industry is making a big 
mistake by continuing to take the 
view that the public is naive and 
that films must be tailored to the 
teenage level. So emphasizes Jean 
^legulesco, director under contract 
to 20th-Fox. 

“We should have a grateful pub- 
lic-grateful that we consider it 
adult,” he commented in N. Y. last 
week during a break in the loca- 
tion lensing of “A Woman’s 
World,” his third CinemaScoper. 
He though films could be adult in 
treatment and still be within the 
intellectual reach of the public. 

'■CinemaScope alone isn’t the an- 
swer,” he said. “Good pictures are.” 
Ho added thoughtfully that it was 
dangerous to deal in such plati- 
tudes because “the public are 
doublecrossers. They like one 
thing today and, given the same 
tiling a few months later, they turn 
thumbs down on it. So there’s no 
such thing as a gilt-edged security 
in this business.” 

Negutesco observed that he 
would very much like to see a pic- 
ture like “Tea and Sympathy” 
brought to the screen. Told that 
the Production Code had already 
nixed that subject, he instated that 
“if it’s done on the screen as tact- 
fully and honestly as on the stage,” 
the picture not only would be a big 
hit, but it also would prove com- 
pletely acceptable. Yes, he’d love 
to do it himself. 

This is somewhat in conflict with 
the director’s general views on the 
Code with which he is in complete 
(Continued oh page 24) - 



If eternity’ Wins, Col 
Will Be Fully Prepared 

Columbia homeoflice has sig- 
naled all of the company’s do- 
mestic branches to have the full 
run of over 4Q0‘ prints of “From 
Here to Eternity” in work to coin- 
cide with the Academy Awards an- 
nouncements on March 25. This is 
a Thursday and Col is out for 
maximum bookings of the. pic over 
the Weekend that follows; 

The key angle, of course, is that 
“Eternity” is a strong contender 
for Acad recognition on a number 
of counts and Col aims to cash in 
on the immediate publicity values 
accruing from the Oscar announce- 
ments. 

“Eternity” reaped a total of 13 
nominations, topping all other 1953; 
pix. It’s in the tunning 'via best 
picture nomination, best actor 
(Montgomery Clift and Burt Lan- 
caster), actress (Deborah Kerr), 
supporting actor (Frank Sinatra), 
supporting actress < Donna Reed), 
direction (Fred Zinnemann), 
screenplay (Daniel Taradash) and- 
other credits. 



Britain “will be the last bastion” 
to fall to the 20th-Fpx campaign 
tb introduce four-track stereo- 
phonic sound as the standard, ac- 
cording to Arthur Dent, head of 
Adelphi Films, indie British pro- 
duction-distribution outfit. 

Arriving in N. Y.. last week for 
an o.o. of the American film, scene 
and also to sell and acquire pix 
and to discuss coproduction deals, 
Dent said British exhib opposition 
to stereophonic sound was based 
partly on the cost involved and 
partly on a . reluctance to place 
themselves at the mercy of a 
limited number of suppliers “who 
may be tempted to take advantage 
of the situation.” 

Nevertheless, he observed; even 
the limited number of Cinema- 
scope installations in Britain to 
date have already begun to hurt 
indie producers since theatres that 
once . were open to their product, 
are increasingly closed to them. 
"If the circuit can’t find room for 
the standard picture, the producers 
have to go to an independent op- 
erator, As a rule, that means less 
money and a less desirable house. 
Also, the independent theatres are 
swamped with product,” Dent said. 

He added that, within • another 
couple of months, when the 75 
J. Arthur Rank theatres are 
equipped for CinemaScope, things 
would become even tougher on 
the independents and that they 
stood to lose “between £8,000 and 
£10,000” as the result of the loss 
(Continued on page 13) 


Techni Lab for France 


First step in expanding Techni- 
color processing facilities to the 
European continent proper— -it’s al- 
ready operating a British plant- 
should come within 90 days when 
Techni experts to sign the neces- 
sary contracts and reach agree- 
ment with the French government 
for the establishment of a Techni 
lab in France. 

There has been talk, too, of 
Techni labs being blueprinted for 
Italy and Germany, with the lat- 
ter reportedly in quite an ad- 
vanced stage. . 

In his annual report, Herbert T. 
Kalmus, Techni prexy, indicated 
that, in France, Techni would pro- 
vide the patent licenses and know- 
how with the French providing 
“most, if not all, of the money.” 

Europe to N. Y. 

Oreste Duval 
Joe Shribman 
Elizabeth Taylor 
Michael Wilding 


Italian • Films Export, currently 
under fire as a “monopoly” f r0 m 
the Independent’ Motion Picture 
Distributors Assn., is angling for 
indie American product to add to 
its release sked. 

Observers- said this week they're 
puzzled by the move since thev 
can’t spe how this would take IFR 
off the hook as far as the Fed- 
eral Trade Commission is con- 
cerned. They point out that a 
more logical explanation would be 
that IFE was anxious to strengthen 
its lineup. 

In addition, there’s the fact that 
American indie production is def- 
initely increasing and outsiders 
are seeking proper outlets. With 
a functioning exchange setup. IFE 
is in a position to answer these 
demands. At one time it was 
known to. have considered handling 
French, pix along With the Italo 
imports, but this plan appears to 
have been junked. 

Only comment from IFE execs 
last week to the indies’ action in 
beefing to the trade body was “no 
comment.” However, Italians, good 
traders themselves, are reported 
as seeing the indies’ move suspi- 
ciously coincidental with the ap- 
proaching renegotiations for a new 
U. S.-Italo film agreement, Asked 
about this unofficial reaction Ar- 
thur Mayer, JMPDA prexy, called 
the suspicion “nonsense,” pointing 
out that when, as a matter of 
courtesy, he had informed the 
other trade Assn. (MPEA) of the 
indies’ impending complaint to the 
government, the response from 
Johnston office had been definite- 
ly negative and indeed one of, re- 
gret at the indie’s decision to cry 
copper. •. 

Notwithstanding, some Italians 
see the IMPDA move, along with 
the protest against subsidies voiced, 
by the Society of Independent Mo- 
tion Picture Producers, as a care- 
fully designed plan to back up 
MPEA in calling for the elimina- 
tion of any financial aid in the 
next Italian pact. 

Mayer and Ephraim London, 
IMPDA counsel, are expected to 
go to Washington soon to appear 
before Federal Trade’s export di- 
vision in substantiation of . their 
charges against IFE. Mayer’s org 
had maintained that IFE was in- 
terfering with “free and fair” 
competition In ' the handling of 
Italo pix in "the U. S. market. 

L. A. to n. Y. 

John Beal 
Ralph Blane 
Edward Choate 
Dane Clark 
Chester Ersklne 
Marilyn Ersklne 
Romer Grey 
Billy Halop 
Sam Handelsman 
Robert Lee 
Irving Levin 
Gene Lockhart 
Hal R. Makelim 
Hugh Martin 
Ray McDonald 
Ralph Meeker 
Gene Negulesco 
Helen O’Connell 
Mary Pickford 
Stuart Reynolds 
David Rose 
Stan Seiden 
Don Sharpe 
Red Skelton 
Charles P. Skouras 
Paul Small 
Ed Sullivan 
William T'alman 
Don Wilson 

N. Y, to Europe 

Richard W. Altschuler 
Stell Andersen 
Ben. Bart 
George Hamid, Jr. 

Robert F. Hawkins 
Henry Hewes 
Phyllis Hill 
David Hughes 
Joy Kim 
Gertrude Macy 
Charles B. Moss 
Vera Ralston 
Mrs. Edward G. Robinson 
William Saal 
Henry Sherek 

N.Y.toLA. 

Harry Ackerman 
Herbert Kneeter 
William Miles 
Anthony Rose 
Earl Rowe 
David O. Selznick 
Teresa Wright 



PICTURES 


5 


' fcam«J>y» February 24, 1954 





Two contrasts In the passing show business of the week’s events war? 
rant punctuation. One is the manner in which two inexpensively pro- 
duced filmusicals, “Top Banana” (Phil Silvers/ and “New Faces/’ have 
jnade impact despite , their short budgets; And the other is the con- 
trasting impact of the wealth of top Metro pictures, as cavalcaded on 
the now much discussed Ed Sullivan tv “toast of the Town” salute 
to Metro s 30th anniversary. 

^eo the Lion roared his trademark with gusto and justifiable pride 
as glimpses of “Mutiny on the Bounty,” “Grand Hotel/’ “Min and 
Bill/' “The Big Parade,” et al., were unspooled. In the flashes it is 
evident that Metro need have no concern about sitting on its frozen 
assets beyond economic reparation. Ail that’s necessary is to con- 
trast this type of quality product with what is being seen celluloid- 
wise on the home video receivers. When the time comes when tv 
cad make it economically worthwhile for quality product into the 
home, whether sponsored ( as now ) or tollvisioned (as proposed) , 
Metro is sitting pretty. So are all the others with worthwhile reser- 
voirs of choice pix product. 

As for the Phil Silvers and Leonard Sillman revues, both shot on 
admittedly “quickie” budgets, it proves anew the show biz adage 
about talent will out. You Can print a “dog” book on the most 
expensive vellum and you can’t give it away in relation to an ap- 
pealing newspaper, printed on ordinary news stock. And while gild- 
ing the lily enhances certain values* viz., the Metro cavalcade above- 
mentioned, if Silvers and his burleycue drolleries or Eartha Kitt, and 
her more modern stylized song-and-comedy confreres have the stuff, 
it will click— with or without a lush production. 

There is further food 1 for thought, of course, in the parallel tech- 
niques — a filmed transmutation of Virtually the original legit, style. 
But that is for the Hollywood pundits to mull further. Abel. I 




Jointly-Owned Depot For Prints and Service 
Called Off— After Being Set 


The first serious attempt to 
streamline operation of the film 
business for economy and effici- 
ency purposes has been called off. 
Major companies have completely 
scuttled the quondam highly-re- 
garded idea of setting up a jointly- 
owned outfit which would handle 
the servicing of all prints, includ- 
ing .inspection, storage and servic- 
ing, to exhibitors. 


Kill That Oxford! 

British producer Arthur 
Dent in N.Y. at present testi- 
fies that British films are now 
assiduously eliminating actors 
With too “refined” British in- 
tonations. 

Not just for American au- 
diences. Audiences in Scotland 
don’t like over-Oxfordized ade- 
noidals. 


Pooling plari that had been pro- 
jected was limited to physical con- 
tact with prints only and did not 
touch upon the sale of pix to the- 
atremen in any way. However, the 
program had been figured to repre- 
sent a substantial savings to the 
distribution end of the business if 
adopted on a nation-wide, basis. 

Warners was the first to pull out, 
after agreement had been reached 
on the workability and economy of 
the system. RKO, Metro and 20th- 
Fox followed the WB lead in that 
order, meaning the end of the 
whole scheme. 

Companies now feel that the pro- 
posed tieup, while representing a 
savings of millions* of dollars over 
the long haul, would possibly 
hamper their freedom of move- 
ment at a time when such freedom 
is vital. In this respect, company 
executives point to the wide var- 
iety of screen sizes and shapes and 
the variety of opinions among the 
studios anent which aspect ratio or 
piocess is to endure. 

The pooling agreement had 
reached * the point where office 
space and personnel had been 
sought for the mutual operation. 
Plan had been to establish the 
joint facilities first in N. Y., with 
? spreading-out to other key areas 
to. follow. 


9 


I 


Memphis, Feb. 23. 
Usually quoted in denunciation 
of films he bans in this town, Cen- 
L1 °y<l -T Binford has praised 
Tennessee Champ” as a picture 
of a thefoe he’s never encountered 


"T* mix ture # of prizefighting anc 
bid-time religion. This is a Metre 
release, which will be given a.bal- 
. °° opening at LoeW’s State here 
inis Friday (26) with Keenan Wynr 
on . J^nd from the Coast. 
Meantime, Binford is positive 
two other films, “Sidestreeti 
• Vi .°tlywood” (also, known as “ A 
lr gm in Hollywood”), and “Mair 
treet Girl.” Of these features the 
ensor declares: “They aren’t go- 
(Continued on page 18) 


TECHNTS PEAK 
’53 BIZ; HURT 


Despite uncertainties caused by 
the adoption of new photographic 
system, coupled with a trend to- 
wards fewer features, Technicolor 
showed the greatest profit in com- 
pany history last year and had a 
top work and sales volume, Her- 
bert T. Kalmus, Techni prexy, re- 
vealed in his annual report last 
week. ' 

Color lab during the calendar 
year of 1953 showed a $4,700,000 
increase in sales, from $33,020,559 
in ’52 to $37,701,770 last year. Net 
profit was $2,371,735 against $2,- 
0690)6 in 1952. The 1953 ta* bite 
was $5,053,834 as against $4,271, - 
082 in 1952. 

Extent to which the new processr 
es have affected Techni biz is indi- 
cated ih’ the sharp drop of quarter- 
ly earnings from -mid-year onward. 
In spite of this, the company net 
was $2,371,735 or $2.46 per share 
before the 100% stock split. 

Evaluating the impact of develop- 
ments on Techni, Kalmus listed on 
the negative side the trend towards 
fewer films and the decreasing 
print demand. 

On the positive end, KalmUs 
pointed out that there is a differ- 
ence of between l : V4c; to lV6c. per 
foot between the Techni price and 
the higher cost of prints made on 
Eastman or Ansco positive stock 
( Continued on. page 22 ) ! 


Bob Pirosh Producing 

Hollywood, Feb. 23. 

Robert Pirosh, haying completed 
five-year writer-director contract at 
Metro, is exiting studio to produce 
“Change of Heart” independently 
abroad. 

Plans to begin filming in France 
in early fall. He’s discussing pic- 
ture-a-y ear-deal with Metro start- 
ing next January. 








•»t , . . . t 




% 


V Paris, Feb. 23. 

Reflecting pressure from their 
own producers, the French gov-; 
ernment now has proposed a re- 
i ciprocity deal under which Amer- 
ica’s Motion Picture Export- Assn., 
in return for 20 import permits, 
would agree to take on 20 French 
pix for distribution in the U. S. 
The French are still willing to re- 
mit $200,000 a month under any 
new pact and are apparently 
ready to forego a subsidy in favor 
of the new reciprocity arrange- 
ment. 

• • x 

Jacques Flaud, head of the 
French Centre National, the gov- 
ernment’s film section, and chief 
French negotiator, confirmed this 
change in the French attitude to 
Variety - . He and Marc Spiegel. 
MPEA’s Continental manager, are 
skedded to meet this week for 
further discussions. 

( MPEA spokesman in N. Y, yes- 
terday [Tues.l insisted the Assn. 
still hasn’t been notified of the 
French demands.) 

One of Flaud’s assistants, who is 
going to attend the Argentine film 
fete in Buenos Aires March 8 to 
18, will confer there with MPEA 
prexy Eric Johnston, briefing him 
not only on the French position 
but on the whole progress of the 
negotiations which have been 
stymied for months. ' 


Reaction in New York I 

i • 


American company reaction to 
the new French proposal makes, 
these two main points: (1) MPEA 
insists it has a valid, signed agree- 
ment and expects the French to 
live up to it. (2) The demand for 
reciprocity in distribution is' based 
on the fallacious impression abroad, 
that MPEA is in a position to force 
any decision on its member com- 
panies. It’s further pointed out 
that any agreement along these 
lines would be a clCarcut violation 
of the U.S. antitrust laws, a cir- 
cumstance w'bich is apparently 
neither, understood nor appreci- 
ated in Paris. 

French talks have been veiled in 
secrecy by MPEA, with even some 
of the American companies’ for- 
eign managers not at all clear 
what’s happening. This was done 
to prevent any “leaks” to the press 
which might prove embarassing. 

For a while the Americans also 
were not at all clear what the 
French meant by “effective dis- 
tribution.” It’s now clear they’re 
referring to a reciprocity deal. 

Flaud said last week that the 
bogging down of the agreement, 
Miich Johnston signed in Paris 
late last year and which Flaud has 
refused to implement, was. due to 
“French and U.S. indiscretion.” 

The original French deal, which 
Johnston signed called for a two 
year deal stipulating 110 U. S. 
dubbing licenses. It also raised re- 
( Continued on page 23) 


Handy Andy 

Washington, Feb^23. 

An employee of the Library 
of Congress did thousands of 
dollars worth of damage to 
ol$, bound copies of film fan 
magazines by tearing illustra- 
tions from them, the Library 
has disclosed. 

“A well-meaning but mis- 
guided employee/’ reports the 
LC Information Bulletin,", “re- 
cently undertook to compile 
albums relating to motion pic- 
ture history and to enrich 
them with illustrations torn 
from the collection of bound 
motion picture magazines. 

“Before his activities were* 
discovered he had caused dam- 
age which can be repaired 
only at the cost of many thou- 
sands of dollars. Although the 
U. S. District Attorney declin- 
ed to prosecute-on the grounds 
that the employee intended to 
present the volumes to the Li- 
brary, his services have been 
dispensed with.” 


No More Camilles? 

Film stars aren’t what they 
used to be, says Jean Negu- 
lesco, 20th-Fox director cur- 
rently locationing "A Wom- 
an’s World” in N.Y. 

He clinched this by saying: 
“Today you almost got to have 
a happy ending in pictures. 
It’s because we’ve got hardly 
any stars left who can afford 
to die at the fadeout!” 



Montreal, Feb. 23. 

Russian films,, still following the 
Communist line, ^ although less 
idolatrous now that Stalin, is dead, 
pay the price of being a propa- 
ganda' medium rather than a me- 
dium of entertainment. This truism 
is; reaffirmed by Fred Clark, first 
Canadian journalist to travel in 
the Soviet Union since 1946. In 
the Canadian Sunday supplement 
“magazine,” Weekend, Clark re- 
ports overall production quality 
of Russian features far short of 
American, British, French and Ital- 
ian product. Russian color film is, 
however, quite good. 

In outlying districts and subur- 
ban areas, “Tarzaji” is a heavy 
fave with youngsters and occasion- 
al Deanna Durbins of around 1938 
are popular with all ages. The 
U. S. films shown usually carry an 
apologetic prologue to the effect 
that they were captured from the 
Germans in '45. when the Red 
Army moved into Berlin. 

Russian films play up Russian 
glory, including scientists and gen- 
erals of the Czarist regimes. An 
80-mihute offering titled “The 
( Continued on page 22 ) 

CINERAMA STOCK IS 
SUDDENLY ACTIVE 

• Neither Wall Streeters nor of- 
ficials of the company could ex-, 
plain the sudden recent demand 
for shares in Cinerama Produc- 
tions, Corp. Call for the shares 
upped the quotation from 214 to 
2 7 /h, the first time in months 
the stock has shown any activity. 

Originally shares in Cinerama 
Productions were privately owned 
and holders of the stock were un- 
der a restriction not to sell or buy 
shares for speculation. Investors, 
however, were relieved of the re- 
striction if the shares were held 
for a period of more than a year; 
Recently the shares were being 
peddled actively, with . brokerage 
firms offering the issue. Former 
officials who held large blocks; of 
shares began to unload at the time 
when Stanley Warner assumed the 
production and exhibition rights 
to the medium, with Cinerama Pro- 
ductions down for a slice after all 
expenses were deducted. 

Cinerama Productions stock is 
not listed on any Wall St. board. 
A company spokesman, however, 
said this week that an attempt will 
be made to obtain an over-the- 
counter listing. Under the rulings 
of the National Assn, of Security 
Dealers, a stock must hit “3” be- 
fore it can be officially placed in 
the over-the-counter category. The 
company spokesman Said that a 
special request might be made for 
the listing even before the stock 
reaches the “3” mark. Cinerama 
Productions shares, incidentally, 
are not to be confused with Cin- 
erama, Inc., a publicly held issue 
that’s long been traded over-the- 
counter. 


With the technical development 
phase of Cinemascope now largely 
completed; 20th-Fox is focusing at- 
tention on pushing perfection of its 
Eidophor color theatre tv system. 

Spyros P. Skouras, 20th prexy, 
and Earl Sponable, director of 
technical research, have been 
spending a good deal of time in 
Zurich in consultation with Swiss 
technicians who are working on 
the prototype models of the Eido- 
phor. After overcoming initial dif- 
ficulties, work on the units is said 
to be progressing very satisfac- 
torily. 

It was in researching Eidophor 
that 20th came upon its new high- 
reflectivity screen. According to 
technicians, there is no reason; wliy 
the Eidophor could not be adjusted 
to project a color tv image over 
the same wide screen now utilized 
for CincmaScope. 

Since Cinemascope has now. 
been launched successfully and the 
wide screen appears to be here to 
stay, Skouras reportedly feels that 
it is important to give the theatres 
another novelty push by introduc- 
ing color tv on the large screen 
before it becomes generally estab- 
lished in the home. 

Development of Eidophor was 
well on the way when Cinema^ 
Scope came along and took up all 
the time of 2Qth/s technicians. The 
system was demonstrated early In 
1952 ih N. Y. f using a laboratory 
model. Since then, the Swiss, who 
invented Eidophor, have been in- 
structing a more practical and com- 
(Continued on page 18) ' 

‘Venal Vendor of Slop’ Tag 
Tied on Woods, Chicago, 
By Archdiocese Editorial 

Chicago, Feb. 23. 

The Catholic press here is in- 
flamed over the booking of a pic- 
ture. Theatre is feeling the brunt 
of the attack. A permanent boy- 
cott was ordered against the. Woods 
Theatre by. New World, official 
Catholic newspaper of the Arch- 
diocese of Chicago, whose front 
page editorial in the current Issue 
denounced the Essaness deluxer as 
a “venal vendor of slop.” 

. Woods has earned this tag, as 
far as New World is concerned, 
for having brought "shame and dis- 
honor” upon the Windy City by 
showing the Legion-condemned 
“Moon Is Blue” last year and by 
scheduling “French Line” for Chi 
debut next month. 

Editorial was written by the pa* 
per’s editor, Msgr. Thomas A. Mee- 
han, who urged his readers to 
eschew the Woods “now and in the 
future” and called upon all faiths 
to aid in the boycott. 

Actjng under instructions from 
Samuel Cardinal Stritch, Msgr. 
Meehan approached Eddie Silver- 
man and Ralph Smitha, owner and 
manager, respectively, of the 
Woods, to give up their booking 
of “Line.” Smitha. said lie found 
nothing morally objectionable in 
the film and cited the Censor 
Board’s passage sans cuts as “fam- 
ily entertainment.’’ 

In contrast, Msgr. Meehan’s edi- 
torial described “French Line” as 
(Continued on page 22) 

Par ‘Lazy 8’ Demonstration 

Hollywood, Feb. 23. 

Paramount will give first press 
demonstration of its new “Lazy 
Eight” widescreen system at stu- 
dio March 2 System exposes two 
negative frames at time by run- 
ning “taking” film through camera 
Sideways. 

Double frame negative is proc- 
essed on standard size release 
prints. Picture can be blown up 
to various projection ratios with- 
out definition loss through use of 
a variable prism lens, to be avall- 
i able at $750 per. 




REVIEWS 




, Bieeatlvfe S*lta 

i , r . > t ill »|^..|» - - 

Class dram* with cast 

and potent libjMDlty ^prospects* 



toned int# a generally creditable fonniila.- After th*t.jie inaiiitains 
CinemaScopc ttcturelWhen It con- aome, action and thrills bat they 
centretes on ul material featured are routine. \ .. _ 

in the itaM production, “Faces” if The story opens with an after- 
2 i£ *b St Fortuntely producer house murder lira night club. The 

vote most Of the footage to theieg- ^ J.ijrh She fl^ nfew York fo 
it sketches and mifleal numbers. „5S P !SI 


firdfcr* 


IV SKeVCUU* ana wwvni uui uwi», ^ iU^ .■ lb. tniiirV nwn nn r/thp 

If ho hadn't, “Faces” could have gj filers "gj 1 * 

srl b »u n, tts!i «i 33£W.SM^JS£ 

in'thp wit 1 ■ tn f n ana and the other to arrange an acci- 

’'"or^tiSg what'take. plaDe oflt ^“g^^nSfiSfifto'S! 
stage, “Faces” is genuine entertain* Neither is Id htlf d ftn 


Loophole 


Suspense melodrama, fairly 
entertaining for program dat- 
ing In smaller situations. 

Bollywood, Feb. 17. 


night but, of theOLO. oniy two make 
It and they hart tV swim out to 
the Greek U-Bbat which is waiting 
to pick them up. 

Attractive island backgrounds 
are enhanced by the color lensing 
and. the treL; across the mountain- 
ous country provides a vivid back- 
cloth to the entire production. Al- 
though the incident has something 


stage, “Faces” is genuine entertain a tight guessing xui.d Artut. r*iea*e of uMv wr> rf~rwpeti^ 

iT* fflSSig ,*£ff r rni wSe X S.1UX S.V- SSSfftSSfe- SSS&fiSUS!** tmiSwai 

he P ects contact the girr and carry on rected ay Harold schuRter.^ Soreenpiay,; There are a couple of minor, femme 
S?f-! c ?S!5 ) ^5?S?flEi® ught to be resort social life. Expectancy. dissi r W“r«n Doi»*u»^j»^y % ceorso poles but ho romance, The main 


josiah^waHffr 1 Dudteifl./.-f." PiSji. P?iiK,'rn Best known of the “new faces" iT revealed £Tthd gunman 

^ *■*.?:**+*.»» 

and ••Uskadar#," ’Although .these ®" ross glacier to cHmax the plot ^p^itira 0 are*at*the head^of^r 

gSTiSsr* : aIK* ESS w-fi V»& «*?y nave -.ten in- S“ wttneJsVfrSm'&ice. , . , .B^«^-:-::::::::::-:;«dS ass I^L. 1 «g»8ggt -Wrtto*- 

■ - eluded in the picture, Wisely too, These three Principals, and Wil- Georgia Joanne. Jordan team* brjc Honimann gives an in- 

MGM has a class drama for class for Miss Kitt has . a remarkably Ham Bendix, a Ranger, are capable Kt. iSSSrki* V.^.V/.RfcSrd®*!!^ ' Bo?t th * skipp?r of 

bookings in this all-star offering, appealing way with a song. She i n responding to the situations into — -- — thr Greek_u **oat. 

lit is a quality presentation^ certain also scores solidly With her much- which they are tossed by the script Sufficient measure of Suspense Robert Westerbys script has a 

to attract the discriminating in its acclaimed “Monotonous” and teams and King's direction. Mature’s melodrama is presented in “Loop- documentary approach while Wil- 

key runs and, if sheer weight of with Robert Clary for ‘Bal. Petit heroics come over well and Miss hole” for it to be a fairly enter- kie Cooper has- done a solid job 

marquee names means anything, Bal” both from the original Leon- Laurie pleases also. Betta St. John taining entry for program dating in of Technicolor color lensing. Edit- 

will go good, elsewhere. ard Slllman production. _ h e ?, ds Ah?. the smaller situations. The names ing could be Improved by scissc ing 


Shelley winters more than satisfactory. 
.; Paul Douglas nest known of the “ 


— f. T j ■■■■ JAVMU . vi 1 , 11 ft* 

yton ufmmis ^Uabl y competent supporting 


with Mature saving Piper Laurie, **SSS* 

the witness, from. Price. • . Mr. starling • .Payton Lummls 


marquee names , mean! 
will go good elsewhere 


ard Sillman production. 


Houseman production is a real pro Alice Ghostly, June Carroll, Vir- in price/ but it is a rather thank- M . . th ' deals with 

job; of a calibre that doesn't come ginia De Luce and Paul Lynde are less role. Harry Cheshire, Walter feller trv- 

along too often. Cameron Hawleys entrusted with the solo and fea- Reed and Ken Dibbs (uncredited) thAiam^caus^d 

novel, ‘^Executive Suite,” was good tured numbers but receive able who does the killer in the opening L"? A® g «I;S u «f 0 ^ tioqn??7rftm US hto 

reading, and Ernest Lehman has support from a group of singers sequence are among other cpmpe- the theft of : *». trom^ ms 

fashioned it into screen form as a and dancers. tents, 

dramatically L.«.MiMarc ■ iL - —.—a* 1 _ iH a: x«. I chnpfairo immpHiativIv arid having 


a few hundred feet. 


Myro. 


Texas Bad Man 

Routine western programmer 
with Wayne Morris. 


picture humanizing big business e nne, rates particular kudos for the ance gets neat values from the out- shortage immediately ana nayrng • -j .Hollywood, Feb. 18. 

and its upper echelon personalities. “Boston Beguine,” and Clary's door locations and tossed in for waited over the w« ncent >, M 

Under Robert Wise’s direction, the piece' de resistance Is “I'm In Love thrill action are an avalanche, a fof- it ^°^ n ’ J} e s naturally suspect ^rguS Eiain 1 ,' 

film’s movement never becomes with Miss Logan,” the lament of est fire and the glacier bit. Colorful by Charles McGraw, tough bonding RUe y, S heb Wooicy. Dire^tcd by uivi* 

heavy and he deftly avoids the^pit- a young boy smitten with his teach- Indian ^dances, typical of western company myestigator. . , tt wawStS? edito?* 

it..! « «l I, aiva’ I*nbli1fpfl ltl : wi rv * r iUa i»Ac<ni4 lifo nnrl mink 4Ain*icf dn 1 li«rAn^i« hflfllr IBnQR CalnCrS* uU yV«rrCIilOn» Cdllor, 


fieavy OIIU lie UPU v r d VUUIlK UUy SUIIUCU Win* l»w IWM- *««*«** V wivwa va — T- r» • ■ • - | fin rf. ram »rfl fill WarrontAn* I 

falls that could .have resulted in er# Miss De Luqa is effective as the resort life, and other^such tourist Sullivan’s fired from thojpnk iam neidsi mui iSoJf KSushaS. At 
making this a ponderous show. ^ dumb blonde who's in the show bait are seen, The 3-D lensing in and hounded from other^jobs py Fox Hollywood, Fbb. 17 , *m. Running 

Eight scene-stealers vie for the b ecaU g a she » 8 related to the backer, color by William Snyder is good, McGraw, but all the time keeps his •* wins. 

star billing and each Is fine, witii Miss Carroll Is tops in her spot- as is the Roy Webb score. The edit- eyes open for the man he believes gait pWa^e Morris 

some standing out oyer wl 'fJ light number, “Penny Candy.” in* is choppy. Brog. pulled the heist. The climax is lSr* V/ .... »V ......... . . Elaine Riley 


amounts to standout p«f ormances ** & Graimmrvery much in evidence 
by all concerned in the urama. <Ler j n s ^g e production, is not. 
tainly Fredric March s ^racteiriza- given enough to do in the film ver- 
tion of the controller^ a man witn slon teams With Lynde and 
a bookkeepers m.md aT ? a co i? Mis« nhostlv for A socko burlesaiie 


a bookkeeper s mmfl Miss Ghostly for a socko burlesque 

drive, will he remembered of “Death of a Salesman” and im- 

the really^sock deliniations. bo presses in i takeoffs of a Congres- 

Wllllam Holden s-porirayal of. t s j 0 nal investigation of jazz and a 
idealistic, but .R ra ^^»- a 3 Si ng *| 1 - e p- lampoon of southern writers, Tru- 
ecutive. Also effective as^the . * man Capote style. Lynde and Miss 

stars are Louis C a l h ern, c5 Ghostly also deserve more atten- 
stockbroker who tries_ to- tui n mis addition to the “Salesman” 


Saskatchewan 

(COLOR) 

Northwest Mountles versus 
Indians with Canadian Rockies 
background and average pros- 
pects. Alan Ladd, Shelley Win- 
ters for marquees. 


w a, » 11 . *_•••! ffii_ *■ jiiiiitnif ie ”** i » • m i«» f »*,•! •!,«« * * i r«nk r eiguson 

pulled the heist. The climax is . Lola . . Ei&ine Riiey 

rather contrived, spoiling some- Mack .............. .......sheb Wooiey 

f ha ‘ TSw,'. .•.v.v.vAftS'n.aS 

tancy built up by Harold Schuster s Bartender Mort muir 

direction, but Sullivan is vindicated Bradley .Nelson Leigh 

and returns. to a better bank post. . . — 

Plot gimmick that gets the story Th » s « a stock western program- 
underway has a cross-towii teller mer for supporting bookings and 
entering Sullivan’s bank with a in its market the .name of Wayne 
group of examiners and walking Morris _ packs sufficient weight to 


ecutive. Al« effective the pt^er Mi® : .KHrinT thTSffiTiA «P to ferry, it. .The 62-minute Running 

stars are Louis ^ mis- Ghostly also deserve more atton- ' Hollywood Feb 23 resolving of this, Warren Douglas time is suitable, to filling the lower 

fo^tun^^^p^wonal^ainf^Barl^ra tion. In addition to thj ‘‘Sglesiriiiii” ^ fr °S ' v y; B?bSSSk -Mo^s pfa^an honest sheriff 

fortune to pereonaL gdin, ^ sketch, Lynde is hilarious as a production, sur* Alan Ladd, sheUey Win- Bricker and Dwight V. Babcock ^Morris Pjays an nonesi snenn 

Stenwyck, neufoUc. heii r s , Wait r t .. aVel lecturer relating his expert- /• c*m>i maintains interest. _ trying to Rrevent : a..mmoked tno 


Pidgeoii, a a executive never able 
to rise above a “number two posi- 


ences in Africa. 

The backstage story has some 


S?ii h '».i , ? gh A O I Br i* n u ,l,ch * rd «, L0 5?' J , £ r Producer Lindsley Parsons as- led by his dishonest dad from mak- 
RMui WRish ^oJy «d en .?r e enpi a yf gS semWed a competent cajst to enact ing off with the annual' spring 
Doud; camera (Technicolor). John Seitz; the chief roles and they do ac- cleanup of . gold from the local 


IU - -------- , - ._ s rne oacxsiage siory nas some- ttaoui waisn. Story and acreenplay. GU semmea a competent capi iu cum;, *“6 * “.L V I 

tion; Paul Douglas, .tne nearty sats _ do with stalling a deter- *>o«U; camera (Technicolor). John Seitz; the chief roles and they do ac- cleanup of. gold from the local 
executive: -June «lyj^oldgis . . SlSSa^St^r SWSf KS?r ed r *''- cepteble tobs? particularly Sulli- mine; Rrank Ferguson hr the a,d, 

wile, and Shelley W • , 1 . _ nr has a chance -to See the show. In o'Rourk* • . van, 'McGraw, Dorothy Maloney as and a right smart operator, so^Mor* 

glais’s out among the addition, there’s ;.an^ incongruous ’£•?*■ ’.V.V aieiiey winters the teller’s wife; Don Haggerty, rishas his work cut out for him to 

amoiir. Standing Foch with romanfce between Miss De Luce, iltoche f °CM-ro?°Nfflh smart policeman; Don Beddoe, the halt the theft and bring the 

is a tall blonde from Texas, and crook; Ma^Beth ; _Hughes, ^^ers to just^ . 


commands pro- as a tall blonde irom Texas, and Smith ........ Hush o*B»rian croox; iviary neui nu K iies, 

? ?cim?Ji ma resnect and" 1 audience Clary, a Frenchman who’s about ••"i.v lc «wj5 d h°“i* blonde 'girlfriend, . and Richard 

f essional respect anu r twn h/knda chnrtAr Sul®? v»'“ii , «‘*v ^ Siivcrheeis rapvm taxi oDerator who helps 

cvmnathv. Dean Jagger, Tim Con- two neaas snorter. ■ , , , ^ Chief Dark cloud Antonio.Moreno ? e , e ,T. e _’ iaxi op x ^ p 


l^OOiVAiua * — w r “ m . /-I* 

sympathy. Dean Jagger, Tim Con- 
sidine and the others are good. 


blonde girlfriend, and Richard Morris heroics come off okay and 
Reeves, taxi operator who helps Ferguson is a smooth heavy. Elaine 


« ' yniex liar* uoua Antonio Moreno « — ’ r ' ‘ pii, v flcfuro* nr»lv hripflv a«; a 

From the technical standpoint, Lawaon ., George j. Lewis Sullivan. Kiicy iigures omy Drieiiy as a 

situne.Auu r;sj”; ad *he CinemaScoDe photography is Lowell. .Gilmore William Sickner plays his cam- femme interested in the sheriff. 

««* »tawSSSeffi5rIR^.i5 8^.^..V.V.V.V.V.-^» < »» er« ove?^» Angeles 1 ’and Malibu Others involved, arej® westeru 

Pa showed in his novel timate revue and the Vast screen Merriu Henry wills scenes to help the presentations £yP e inc ^ Sheb Wooiey, 

-death of seems hardly necessary. At theatre Briu ................ Robert d, Herron physical appearance and Paul Denver Pjde and i Myron ^Healey. # 

an n5 ex^ive S who S ran’a ohe^man usf^iorpr^^^.'^e light 'source ^ Th/ scenic~sblPidoni of th, is 


'Cameron Hawley, lonltime ad the ^.S^e^hoto^aphy is ifflSWftiS 

mcr of Armstrong Cork Co. of not always satisfactory. Its an in- i6uer Frank Chase 

L u B l * . -i hlc nnvol Hmalp ppvna and the vast, qrrpen MerrIU Haiirv Wills 


Ss, J ce £“ .Jpptondors^ of the {he'mliotoma. 1 


The drama is built ti?p«hf» ta ^ , n?i»**m5 i, two’ a nnmhers" toickdrop for this Northwest Moun* 

the several vice presidents ties versus Indians adventure tale, 

over the top position* with -most ot Wds th6 pr&ctic 0 of cuttius ftWfly if hoc Alan Ludd th^ mail* stop 
the conflict in the film version cen- from a sow performer and focusing and prospects for average returns 
tered on March, as he tries to seize on the reaction of another on-stage j n Hie outdoor action market. Shel- 
power, and on Holden, as '^e' tries- entertainer. This was especially ir- i C y Winters is toplined, also, to 
to prevent the move^ Climax finds ntating ln Miss Ghostly s Boston ^ V e the marquees a femme name. 
Holden the winner after an Beguine number. But these are other than that value, though, she 

sioned speech on business ideals mjnor criticisms for what is, after is completely miscast and lends a 
versus dividend payments. . all, an enjoyable picture. Holl. ludicrous touch to an otherwise 

Along with its other outstanding > — — • okay actioner. 

qualities, the production^ hasthe Hjftnrf«r«oil MiflNion Main lina of Conflict has to do 

right kind of technical suppoit to lPangeroi|Cri«lllSMOn with h ow one heroic Mountie, 
make it a ciass show. I n ,^his.cate- (3-D - COLOR) against rules and regulations, pre- 

gory are George Folsey 8 Ph° t( J§ ■ ” ■ ■ , _ vented the American Sioux from 

raphy, the art direction and se 1 - Melodramattc Ihr^r in 3-D arousing the friendly Canadian 

tings, the editing and spemi and Technicolor with enter- C ree Indians against the whites, 

effects. Of particular note espe- tainment suitable for regular T he Aaron Rosenberg production 

cially in this day when d f amatic market bookings. and Raoul Walsh's direction of the 

scores are mostly overused, the — - _ ! Gil Doud screen story give the set- 

screen’s drama does not Jtave to Hollywood, Feb. 23. up a rugged presentation that pays 

compete for audience attention ^ RKO^reieart of^irwii^AUen i production, off with plenty of action for the 


Brog. 


ludicrous touch to an otherwise . R^ramm 

/ “ — — okay actioner. - London, Feb. 2. (His F^tner K^rtrawi 

n . Main line nf eahflipf liae i A British Lion release of Mayflower Pro- (fHbNLtt) 

Dangerous Mission urlfh 3 nr!,,, 6 auctions. Stars Dirk Bogarde, Denholm Paris Teb. .9. 

% n firkin PI With how one heroic Mountie, Elliott. Akim Tamlroff. Pirected by Lewis t £*ZZZlnl- av Mm. 

(3-D - COLOR) against rules and regulations, pre- Milestone. Screenplay. Robert Westerby; ®d!icti5!i StareJ«fn^Sl!bwSy DuSed 

M .. 1M . , n vented the American Sioux from v T |aBovsk 0 v? r mUslc U Hobe^GuV by Berth^mieul screenpUy, Berthoinieu: 

Melodramatto thriller in 3-D arousing the friendly Canadian At C«lXn, S London; F^b a,* '^Running dialog. Roger-Plerrei camera. Georgcs 

.nd Technicolor with enter- C ree Indians against the whites. &?SB$tiiffi * ‘ r.rt l , on: Rimtax ti»ef % imSis? 

tainment suitable for regular The Aaron Rosenberg production Li*ut. Graham . Dirk Bogarde T»„rand 

market boo kings. Sf^?°ji wain's ; direction pf the * e « £a p« 

TX 11 a V u no Gil Doud screen story give the set- Capt. George Two Gerard Oury PL°^J ino ’ * * * “ ’ Dr ^iina B Goya 

Hollywood, Feb. 23. up a rugged presentation that pays Capt. . Papadopoulos Eric Pohlmann Mother^ Mon p uv ^ue S 

RKO release of IrwinAUen production, off with nlpntv nf nrtfAn fnrthn PatrOklis Alec jaango wirecior 

Stars Victor Mature. Piner Laurie. WIL j _ ui ULLion ior xne Nightclub singer Kay ■ Callard 

Ham Bsndix. Vincent Price. Directed by outdoor f an , lenser John Lieut. Poole Columbia has a mild programer 

Louis King. Screenplay. Horace McCoy, Seitzs U$es the Technicolor cam- Girl-friend L1 m Gastoni . this-comedv which starts with a 

JL& S ^ the most of the loca- good“i£ K ^ SreSlse. How- 

b °Ladd e is the Indian-raised Moun- •••••••••• gSk.’ S* 

flsas 4 r. 1 .. ts. -a,. B»n»in, time, w tie whp sees the de-arming of the W.'i’S'wW™.-- • • • A, gS2 n L S55 one 'of the 


They Who Dare 

(BRITISH-COLOR) 

Dirk Bogarde In a British-made 
drama of a wartime Comman- 
do raid on a Greek island; 
okay where war pictures are 
still acceptable. 


the Vincent M. Fennelly produc- 
tion has its slam-bang moments, 
but' the script by Joseph F. Poland 
could have furnished more such 
scenes. Otherwise, the plot basis 
pans out. Lensing by Gil Warren- 
ton and the other credits are stand- 
ard for budget expenditures. 

Btog. 


Le Portrait de Son Pere 
(His Father's Portrait) 
(FRENCH) 

Paris, Teb. .9. 

Columbia release of Bertho-Orsav Film* 


»\v Fares 

(C’SCOPE - COLOR) 

Entertaining filmization of the 
legit revue. Attractive and tal- 
ented newcomers impress. 
More than satisfactory b.o. 
anticipated. 


with background music. The film . starrvktSTiffi^ outdoor' ^ fan and W tZ ?}****> ringer - Kay Callard 

_ ® . T»irf Ao#i if licac ond Hum Biodlx^ VlDccnt Piicc, Directed by OUloOOr. Iall. AnO 1611S6F eJOlm Lieut, Poolo r*********** Russell Enoch 

has no^seorc. Instead it Louis King. SeycfnpWs Horace McCoy. Seitz's U$es the Technicolor cam- Glrl-fHend Usa Gastoni 

most effectively, the natural BaCK- w Ri BumRtt. Charles Bennett; *tory. eras to make the most Of the loca- Marlne Boyd Sam Kydd 

vround sounds that Would be heard McCoy and Jamea Edmlaton; camera ti iY 1 UI T d Marine Barrett Pe i?. r „.5 u ©. 0 ii 

Broa. (Technicolor). William Snyder; editor. M°_ n S^es. . # . Sgt. Evant • • ‘V.i il’ 

In a SCenC. n-nv ur.hV. Ore. T.nHH le fh. Tnil,nn-MienJ Mnn«_ Tnnlla Michael MeUinxer 


mins. ,eD - ^ ltumun * ume * ^ ™£2P V «K« w5y . inithisa h^ld entry. One Of the 

Matt victor Mature g iSl a « %. — — ”, , . . top young comics here, Jean Rich- 

LouUe .. . piper Laurie “ on that will help the sioux plan “They Who Dare” is a dramatic a rd, plays the role of a peasant 

Adame' :: i :::: : : : . ^v&t®pSS rightTnd hasto a iSd the^ ^egfiS A^**<* io last world war at the thrown jj*to_an important role 

M.rv Reftn St. Jnhn IIJJIH dUU QdS IO lCdU Uie rcglnieiU nmnt whfin . thd British Eighth amnnO lha .Pnne pllfp. But he 


imn« wine. /» tie wno sees the de-armmg of the 
victor u 9 f„r, : iriendly Crees as a stupid regula- 
. V Piper Laurie tion that will help the sioux plan 


m 

'2sh : 8 t £g2t' # 2 - ior es Sii th” *o«ks“ 

P»»ur -. nennis Weaver footage is devoted to a Commando pedestrian treatment and story, 

E1 * er Harry Cheshire J^^^Ne^ftirther, attack on one of the Dodecanese This will do well here on the Rich- 

V*i* noccihirn^inom fnn this • ami. • wit v'SSS' hSn^vS? fh!' -Islands ' to / putj. harassing aircraft ard naine, but for the U; S. it j s to® 


c* «••••••••••••• 


ifl c=, : "’ Sr ™ c ;^ , "” e 1 ^ cI 0 “" e r “ i r" s d f t B ^ “ffiWrays, the streightJine for realism infilml l e ;™s r a'codi3f in his will givWg 

binsic* by Murray Grand, a EUsse : S Bpyii; star names that rate okay* for the character competently and bis fans . '• Jrnn th Pt fcasip a °bV his 'peasant 

Alan Melville, Herbert Far jeon. Francis market will like his riprrine-dn The mis-,' in his forthright direction the basic been brought up by his peas^*; 

teSX 8tiSS^8(-.55S&*iBaS!. Picture gets rolling with high cast Mto ^Winters plly's her role *|22g? “fjjifig.' 

era (Cinemascope), Lucien Ballard. Pre- meller, well-plotted, but settles #na wno gei5 jmxca up Jn HU ine « . » h *; h A h vmine WnndAM through and displays a 

flavor bee y n ?5&ainel it TOulS seems to have gotMA into the |"t thu s^ve, the makes WjMrtojr 

ginia De Luce. Paul Lynde, Bin Muiiikin, have been a real taut thriller sat wr0> ng picture. Robert Douglas, main fighting force a chance to brings around ms esirane 


Luther Davis and John Clevcland. Cam! and who VPt.s mixpH im in nll thP island Of 30,000 pe< 

era (CinemaScopc), Liicien Ballard. Pre- -.meller, Well-plotted, but . settles WhO gels jniXed upjin gll tile . - . . 

viewed at Academy of Music, n.y., Feb. down to a routine unfoldment about Mountie action, with a misfit per- nanwui ot nmc uomD 

1 1 n n 5 n ; v R u r r a f 1 ^ the halfway mark. Had the starting formarice so out of place here it soldiers have t<f put t 

Ci?r^ Aii?e G&y?J?ne 5SroiL vir- flavor been sustained, it would seems to .have gotten into the out- or actipn, and^t 

ginia De Luce. Paul Lynde, Bin Muiiikin. have been a real taut thriller set wrong picture. Robert Douglas, main fighting torce 

n smn*v e PnnrwnrH Jl S against colorful Glacier National Mountie inspector who finally re- proceed unharassed. 

Lawrtnce. e John i^verty rEiizabe*i^L«gue! Park, site of much of the footage, alizes he is wrong and Ladd right; Apart from the_ 

Faith Bur well, Clark Ranger. Louis King’s direction gets the film J. Carrol Naish, scout; Hugh formalities, the entif 


mother. 


. lUMVIllg WHII Vlgllt bUbUCllbt CllIU w VAAOMf UIC Olltlill r U1 OMU 15 AUiiSO -VfVUVMf van * - A « ’ 7 . i I tl’/kUAiiA IlilO 

“New Faces,” a spritely Broad- 1 continues that air up until the Winters; Richard Long, Jay Silver- mountainous island from the re- c °mic aspects. Ricnara^p, a., . fl 
way rewie of two seasons ago, ! script by Horace McCoy, W. R. heels, Antonio Moreno and the mote beach landing . point to the too straight. Lensing a h a . . o ^ 
since then on tour, has been fash- 1 Burnett and Charles Bennett goes others are effective in varying main targets, For half the journey are par. 



Wednesday, February 1954 


ncrratvs 



♦ Mi I M ♦ ROUBEN MAMOULIAN. 

(Vet legit-film producer-director Rouben Mamoulian, in welcoming 
the N.Y. Times* Bosley Crowther for the first annual presentation of a 
plaque by the Screen Directors’ Guild for “best film criticism ” had 
these pungent remarks on the subject of critics and criticism.) 


There are some words in the the- 
atrical vernacular which have for 
us an almost atomic impact, For 
instance: “Smash hit!" To our ears 
this sounds more jubilant than a 
Sousa march! Another word: A 
"flop,” or one quite unrelated to 
Thanksgiving,. “A Turkey" — these 
are messages of doom! 

Then, we have words which act 
as irritants. Of these the most in- 
• cendiary is the word: “Critic!” 
When you've said: “Critic!” yoir 
can automatically add: “Mischief, 
thou art afoot!” Once this word has 
cut the air like^a razor blade every 
theatrical heart, no matter how 
sturdy, skips a beat. The mood oi 
easy relaxation is shattered: 

It is said that critics dish out a 
great deal of abuse. The truth is, 
they also receive a lot of it.* The 
only difference Is that their abuse 
gets printed* Ours is strictly “word- 
of-mouth.” 

An actor once went, to perform 
in Australia. He was met by an 
Australian friend. ‘ The first ques- 
tion the actor asked was, “How 
many critics in Australia?” The 
. Australian replied: “Not many. Our 
main trouble is' rabbits.” 

Mercurial Attitude 

I am sure most Of us here know 
how mercurial we can be in our 
attitude towards a critic. 

You have just made a picture, 
and Mr. X, a critic, gives it a rave 
notice. You immediately proclaim 
that Mr. X is a great critic. What 
intelligence! What taste! What 
alertness in recognizing talent! 

You make another him, and Mr. 
X gives you a much less favorable 
review. You are worried, now.. Not 
about yourself— about the critic. 

. He is slipping. 'He is losing his 
grip. He is soured. 

You follow with another picture, 
and this time Mr. X tears you limb 
from limb. Shocked by this out- 
rage, you cry: What has happened 
' to this man? He is a ruthless critic, 
a cynic who would sell his grand- 
mother for a wisecrack. He simply 
hates' all motion pictures! 

It is, undoubtedly, this kind of 
emotional calamity that gave birth 
to the flippant notion that “a good 
.. critic is a dead critic. ; . .” 

Criticism is as necessary to life 
on this, earth as is love, freedom, 
and man’s creative impulse! With- 
out the critical faculty there can 
be no progress and no civilization. 
Art itself is, in a way, a criticism 

of life. 

I remember once, in Venice, I 
found myself at the^ end of, a day 
in a small church. Dusk had fallen. 
The church was .. dark. There was 
not much to see. I started to leave, 
when the guardian of the church 
came to me and said: “Signor, you 
cannot go without having seen our 
Titian Madonna.” He took me back 
to a small chapel and indicated a 
painting. All I could see in the blue 
shadows was a vague outline of 
some figures and pale faces. “We 
.need a light,” he said, and lit a 
candle. With a reverent hand he 
brought it towards the canvas, A 
vision of beauty came -to life. The 
proper light brought out every line 
of that graceful composition, the 
lovely colors, the whole spiritual 
radiance of the painting. 

The critic is that light. He it* 
lumines a work of art. He unravels 
its deeper meanings and its secret 
delights, which may be hidden 
from eyes less sensitive or less 
trained than his: Hei also discloses 
its faults, if there are any. His 
high function is to appraise arid to 
record with a keen mind a pas- 
sionate heart and -an uncompromis- 
"ig sincerity, man’s creative 
V achievements. 

Critics are an ancient and noble 
profession. One should be proud to 
belong to the family; which in- 
cludes bright' spirits like George 
Bernard Shaw, Edgar Allen Poe, 
Keats, Shelley, Voltaire, Ben John- 
son, Daqjte, Aristole, and many 
ethers whose voices ring like a bell 
across the vastness of space arid 
time. . 

While no art creation, including 


motion pictures, needs an inter- 
mediary between itself and the 
audience, because its impact upon 
the heart and mind Of the specta- 
tor is direct and spontaneous, still, 
it benefits greatly by the function 
of h true critic: 

; The film critic stimulates a 
sharper arid wider audience inter- 
est. He disseminates knowledge 
and a deeper appreciation of mo- 
tion pictures. At the same time 
he helps us, by pointing out the 
flows and merits of our work, arid 
by encouraging the making of finer 
films . •. . 

What makes a good critic? 

Criticism from an enemy is 
worthless, because it is wholly mo- 
tivated by hostility. Valuable 
Criticism comes from a friend. The 
Critic , should be a friend— not to 
any particular person, or groUp, or 
group, or craft but to the medium 
within which he functions. So a 
film critic must be dedicated to the 
medium of • the screen with his 
whole heart and mind. He must 
not set himself above it, or patron- 
ize it. He must respect the potential 
nobility and greatness of motion 
pictures. With that attitude, the 
harshest review is helpful, because 
it is prompted by devotion. 

A good critic must, alsri, combine 
within himself the innocence of a 
child With the wisdom of those 
whom Shakespeare" calls “the 
judicious.” . Like, a Child he must 
retain the freshness and alertness 
of his approach. He must be the 
ideal spectator; open-minded, 
eager, sensitive. On the other 
hand he must also be an expert, 
who is familiar with the intricate 
structure of films, the many ele- 
ments of which it is composed. He 
should be able to differentiate be- 
tween these. He should know, for 
instance, where the script ends and 
acting begins. He must perceive 
the technical means behind the 
dramatic effects. He must know 
about producers, writers, actors, 
cameramen, set - designers and 
many others, who contribute 
to the final results. Oh, yes 
he must even know a little about 
directors. 

Conscience of Audience 

There exists in some minds a 
quaint notion that a good critic 
should be objective, dispassionate. 
You can be objective in science, 
which is based upon laboratory test 
and proof. You can prove, in 
arithmetic, that twice two makes 
four. The rub is, that in the the- 
atre twice two cari sometimes make 
100 and sometimes a zero! Films 
are not a matter of calculation or 
formula, but a matter of taste and 
opinion. The critic must have taste, 
and then the only honest thing he 
can do is to express his opinion. This 
he must do with conviction and 
feeling. How can you be cold in 
reacting to a medium which deals 
primarily in emotions? A critic 
Who does not feel acutely and in- 
tensely is wasting his readers’ time, 
as well as his own. 

While being subjective,' a critic 
should not be bound by prejudice, 
precedents, or conventions. He 
should encourage .originality and . a 
free play of creative imagination. 
He must be quick in recognizing 
young talent. And, finally, he 
must also have a talent of his 
own— a talent for criticism. 

They say, that: a poet is the con- 
science of the people, So a true 
critic is the conscience of the audi- 
ence. 


fiosustbw Heads UFA 

Hollywood, Feb. 23. 
Stephen BosuSto w was elected 
president and board chairman of 
United Productions of America for 
the ninth consecutive term. 

Other officers are; Robert Can- 
non, veepee; Charles Daggett, pub- 
ad veepee; T. Edward Hambleton, 
treasurer; Merviri Getzler, assist- 
ant treasurer, and M. Davis, secre- 
tary. 


Ed Sullivan’s “Toast of the 
Town” (CBS-TV) tribute to Metro’s 
30th anni last Sunday (14), has had 
the Indirect effect yt causing the 
film industry to reevaluate the tre- 
mendous backlog of oldies in the 
vaults of the 'producing companies. 
Fear that color tv would make 
these pix obsolete has been partly 

dispelled, as. a result of the gen- 
eral public comment arid reception, 
accorded the presentation of ex- 
cerpts from some old Metro films. 

Wall St. brokerage firms, pre- 
viously concerned about the effect 
of tinted video on the vintage black- 
and-whiters, are reassuring their 
clients, citing the views of the 
critical fraternity. One firm, for 
example, in a wire on stocks that 
merit attention, stressed the, com- 
ments of Jack Gbuld; radio-tv- edi- 
tor of the New York Times. Said 
Gould, in part, in a review of the 
“Toast”-Metro show: “The excerpts 
from the old films . . . made a 
Viewer’s mouth water after years 
of Watching the dog-eared films on 
video. No doubt about it. Holly- 
wood’s huge backlog of films is 
going to be worth Its- weight in 
gold • ' * : . All the recent talk about 
color television making the back*, 
log obsolete is so much poppycock.” 

The brokerage firm’s bulletin 
also cites Gould’s comments on 
musical productions. “Looking at 
Gene Kelly’s dance to ‘Singing in 
the Rain,’ ” said Gould, “made a 
television viewer realize how little 
ty really has done in the realm of 
musical production: In contrast 
‘Show of Shows’ or the ‘Comedy 
Hour’ seems like beginner’s stuff.” 

Views such as Gould’s has made 
Wall St. realize that when and if 
the film companies decide to re- 
lease all or part of their backlog 
to television, there’ll be a tremen- 
dous return for investors in film 
stock. 


Mary Pickford ‘Me, Too’ 
On Thalberg Slight 

Just as the hassle seemed over 
anent “credits” cfli Ed Sullivan’s 
“Salute to Metro” tv show, Mary 
Pickford made a late entrance. 
This was regarded as curious since 
Miss Pickford has never been iden- 
tified with M-G. 

In any event, the former actress 
Stent out a press statement declar- 
ing it “unthinkable arid inconceiv- 
able that the late Irving Thalberg’s 
name could have been omitted 
from- the M-G history, as on the 
Sullivan program. Miss Pickford 
noted that Louis B. Mayer and 
David Q. Selznick, who previously 
beefed about being ignored, “are 
well capable of looking after them- 
selves.” She added: “I issue this 
statement as my personal defense 
of Irving Thalberg, whose memory 
I revere.” 

A footnote provided the intelli- 
gence that Miss Pickford is in N.Y; 
in connection with publication of 
her autobiography in McCall’s mag. 


Muffed the Fantasy 

San Fraricisco, Feb. 23. 

A San Franciscan who crit- 
ized a 3-D color film with his 
fists, was sentenced, to $200 
fine, or 30 days in jail. He’s 
John M. Novak, 39, a janitor 
by trade, and convicted of dis- 
turbing the peace. 

He was tossed intp the 
clink last Dec. 18, after he 
suddenly went on the warpath 
while watching the 3-D epic, 
“The Nebraskan,” at the Para- 
mount Theatre. 

Police said he became so 
angry when boiling oil and fly- 
ing arrows seemed to come at 
him from the screen that he • 
punched Donald Haley/ as- 
sistant mgr. of the theatre on 
the nose. ' 


H-Bomb Realism Due 

Washington/ Feb. 23. 

A heretofore restricted mo- 
tion picture,: showing the de- 
structive power of the H-bomb 
as revealed at its tests in Eni- 
wetok Atoll in the Pacific, is to 
be released for film theatres 
and television. . 

Film in full version was 
shown to top Federal offi- 
cials -and members of Con- 
gress. Later, an abridged ver- 
sion was screened for lesser 
Fe’der k al officials and those 
from states . and cities; Deci- 
sion now is to make the 
American people aware of 
what will happen if H*bombs 
fall on the United States. 



Pitch by Harry C. Arthur, chair- 
man of the California Theatre 
Own Assn., for tax. relief only on 
theatre tickets scaled ' up to 85c 
has resulted in an 6ut-of-public- 
vltew hassle With key members of 
the Council of Motion Picture Or- 
ganizations. Point is made that 
the National Tax Committee of 
COMPO has been given a unani- 
mous vote of tonfidence by the v 
tremen, yet.. Arthur has taken it 
Upon himself to call the turns in 
the tax campaign, even though his 
theory and the COMPO reasoning 
differ. : 

There, were no dissident voices 
heard when the COMPO tax group 
was mandated! to seek out the best 
deal they could with law-makers 
anent elimination or partial reduc- 
tion of the 20% Federal admissions 
levy. COMFO-ites now are in 
process of striving for total vic- 
tory. But they’ve given themselves 
enough flexibility to switch to a 
move for non-total relief— which- 
ever looks within the realm of 
achievement as influential Capitol 
Hill sources are sounded out. 
Meaning, 100% tax wipe out will 
be pressed for if .lt looks possible 
but there could be a “settlement” 
based on either a scaled or 
straight-percentage lopoff of the 
20% bite. 

Burning the COMPO partisans 
is the fact that Arthur hag pro- 
posed, publicly, a specific level at 
which tax advantages should be 
given. They feel that industry pol- 
icy concerning the tax should he 
left to the authorized committee 
and “grand-stand plays” by indi- 
viduals are out of order, 

Arthur’s idea is that low-admis- 
sion theatres require the tax bene- 
fit as an economic must. Con- 
versely, he feels, the tail-tariff 
houses are of secondary considera- 
tion. For this reason he is asking 
the tax break only for exhlbs 
Charging up to 85c per admission. 

READER NEW COUNSEL 


Simultaneous bookings, covering 
from one to three states, are pay- ; 
irig off handily at the boxoff ice. 
Such saturation playoffs, calling for 
250 to 300 theatre dates within a 
period of a week, are particularly 
effective for specially-selected pic- 
tures which have either (1) a local 
identification or (2) are capable of 
being uniquely exploited on tv. 

In, the. latter category are 'horror, 
shock or science fiction pictures, 
as for example; Warner Bros, 3-D 
entry, “Phantom of v the Rue 
Morgue,” which has been set for a 
250-theatre mass area booking but 
of the Cincinnati; Cleveland and 
Indianapolis exchanges starting 
Feb. 24. Dates are being backed 
by hefty tv, radio and newspaper 
campaigns, which cover and over- 
lap into the three zones selected. 

WB has been one of the foremost 
exponents of this technique, gen- 4 
orally credited to Terry Turner, 
former RKO exploitation chief who 
put oyer the reissue, “King Kong,” 
via this method two years ago and 
proved the potency of tv exploita- 
tion for “shock" pix, Turner, now 
with General 1 Tele-Radio, spe- 
cializes in this type of exploitation. 

Current “Phantom” campaign 
by Warners is being run by the" 
company on its own, and is pat- 
terned after successes with “House 
of Wax,” “Miracle of Fatima,” 
"Beast from 20,000 Fathoms,” “The 
Will Rogers Story” and “Boy from 
Oklahoma.” 



Cafes, TV, Motels and Realty All 
Need Green’s O. O. 


Bernard L. Green, Trenton, N, J., 
has been named general counsel 
for Walter Reade Theatres. He’ll 
supervise legal activities for the 
circuit, making his headquarters at 
the chain’s homeoff ice in N. Y. 

The Beade interests, besides the- 
atres, include restaurants, a tv sta- 
tion in Asbury Park, motel opera- 
tion and real estate. Green has 
been a practicing attorney in Tren- 
ton for 16 years. 


Pathe Labs Sue American 

Los Angeles, Feb. 23. 

American Pictures Corp. is de- 
fendant in a suit filed In Superior 
Court by Pathe Lab, asking $3,011 
plus interest for the processing of 
“Paris Models.” 

Plaintiff claims the film company 
■ has paid less than $800 of the total 
1 processing bill of $3,800. 


Duffy Vs. Griffith On 
‘Forced’ Sale of 1938 

Washington, Feb, 23. 

Another treble damage antitrust 
suit was filed with U. S. Supreme 
Court when Duffy Theatres, Inc., 
carried an appeal against Griffith 
Consolidated Theatres to the tri- 
bunal. 

Duffy, which lost In both the 
trial and appellate courts, estab- 
lished two film theatres in Man- 
gum, Okla. In 1935 the expanding 
Griffith chain,. Duffy’s brief con- 
tends; tried to buy them out and 
later tried to buy an interest in the 
two houses. At the end of 1936, 
says the brief, Griffith offered 
$20,000 for the theatres, upping the 
figure to $22,000 in 1937 with the 
threat of opening a competing the- 
atre. Duffy accepted the final offer 
but Griffith changed its mind. 

Instead, it opened a competing 
theatre in a large converted store 
and offered Duffy $16,000 for his 
two properties. Duffy says that 
salesmen for the film companies 
stopped calling on him due to Grifr 
flth “master contracts” and that 
Duffy was finally forced to sell to 
the circuit for $12,000 in 1938. 

Several months after the final 
antitrust decree against Griffith in 
December, 1950, Duffy filed his 
suit. 

Lower courts held that Duffy’s 
contract of sale constituted a re- 
lease to Griffith and also stated 
that the 13-year delay in filing ac- 
tion constituted a ratification of 
the sale. 


STAR AND DISTRIB OF YEAR 


Loew’s Inti. Singles Out Stew 
Granger and Abe Gotfrled 


Loew’s International bestowed 
its second annual “M-G-M Hall of 
Fame” awards last week, with 
Stewart Granger being chosen as 
the star of 1953. 

Honored, with him were Abra- 
ham Gotfried, Metro manager in 
Thailand, as distributor of the 
year, and. Gustave Zelnick, man- 
ager of the Metro Theatre in Cairo, 
Egypt, as exhibitor of the year; 

Granger, was named of the basis 
of b o. returns on “Scaramouche,” 
“Young Bess” and “The Prisoner of 
Zenda.” Gotfried led Metro’s 
Thailand office to first place over 
all other M-G offices in the Loew’s 
International quota standing. 


FICTCHE GROSSES 


VeAi«jay t Fcbraary 24 , 1954 


‘Mffler’ Mighty f&M LA Leaden 



Los Angeles, Feb. 23. 

“Qlenri Miller Story” rode high 
over the long holiday weekend and 
is pushing to a socko $55,000 or 
hear in initial round, two locations, 
to topple other newcomers. Holi- 
day biz generally was good despite 
high temperatures favoring out- 
door activities. However, only 
three of six new bills are register- 
ing good trade* V 

The arty “One Summer of Hap- 
piness” Is heading for a wow $10,- 
000 at small El Key, “Long, Long 
Trailer” is rated good $25,000. in 
two locations. "Top Banana” 
failed to get a good start and looks 
only lean $15,000 or less in four 
houses. Slow $9,000 shapes for 
“Man Between” in three Spots. 

Also in three sites, “Loophole” 
paired with “Texas Bad Man” 
looks mild $10,000. “Cinerama” is 
fancy $33,000. for 42d,,week at WB 
Hollywood. This along with “Julius 
Caesar,” up to good $4;500 in 15th 
week, and “Living Desert,” smart 
$4,500 for 10th, top. the holdovers. 

Estimates for This Week 

Hillstreet, Pontages (RKO) 
(2,752; 2,812; 80-$1.25) — “Glenri 
Miller Story” (U). Smash $55,000. 
Last week, “Taza, Son Cochise” 
(U) and “Ride Clear Diablo” (U), 
$15,200. 

Loew’s State, Egyptian (UATC) 
<2,404; 1,538; 70-$1.10) — ”Long, 
Long Trailer” (M-G). Fine $25,- 
00. Last week. State, “Saadia” 
(M-G) and “Give Girl Break” 
(M-G) (2d Wk), $3,800; Egyptian, 
“Knights Round Table” (M-G) (8th 
wk), $8,900. 

El Rey (FWC) (861; $1-$1.25)-^ 
“One Summer Happiness” (Indie). 
Great $10,000. Last week, “Little 
Fugitive” (Indie) (8th wk-5 days), 
$ 1 , 200 . 

Los Angeles, Ritz, Vogue, Loyola 
(FWC) (2.097; 1,363; 885; 1.248; 70- 
$1.10)— .“Top Banana” (U) and 
“Man of Conflict” (Indie). Light 
$15,000. Last week," “Bigamist” 
(FR) and “White Fire” (Lip). 
$19,200. 

Globe, Iris, Uptown (FWC) (782; 
814; 1,715; 70-$1.10)— “Man Be- 
tween” (UA) and “Three Young 
Texans” (20th). Slow $9,000. Last 
week, “Wicked Woman” (UA) and 
Gay Adventure” (UA), $7,200. 

Orpheum, Wiltern, Fox Holly- 
wood (Metropolitan; SW; FWC) 
(2, 21 3; 2,344; 756; 70-$1.10)— 

“Loophole” (AA) and “Texas Rad 
Man” (AA). Mild $10,000; Last 
Week, excluding Hollywood. “Para- 
trooper” (Col) and “Charge 
Lancers” (Col) (3d wk-5 days), 
$t« 500. 

_ ^Fox Wilshire (FWC) (2,296; $1- 
$1.50)— “Red Garters” (Par) (2d 
wk). Dull $6,500, Last Week, with 
preem coin, $11,800. 

Beverly Hills 
(bW) (1.757; 1,612; 70-$1.10)— “Rob 
Boy (RKO) (2d wk). Medium $10,- 
000. Last week, $13,400. 

Los Angeles, Hollywood Para- 
mounts (ABPT-F&M) (3,300; 1,430: 
95-$1.50)— “Command” (WB) (2d 
$23,000. Last week, 

^«v.qOO, 

Artists, Hawaii (UATC- 
£* S) (2,100; 980; 70-$1.10)— ‘ 

Money From Home” (Par) (2d 

$17 700 Neat $14, ° 00, Last we€k > 

Rialto (Metropolitan) (839; 70-90) 
Ca " to n r nn sto T r y'’ (WB) (2d wk). 
S^ 1 j ^J_,$3 I 000. Last week, $4,400. 

Chinese (FWC) (1,905; $1-$1.80) 
r- Khyber Rifles” (20th) (3d wk). 
Modest $10,000. Last week, $14,100. 

Arts (FWC) (90-$1.50)— 
Living Desert” (Disney) (10th wk). 
Sturdy $4,500. Last week. same. 

Four Star (UATC) ($1.50-$2.40) 

~ ’* ul i”*£ aesar ” (M-G) (15th wk). 
Good $4,500, Last week, $3,000. 
Warner Hollywood (SW) (1.364- 
~T “Cinerama” (Indie) 
(43d wk). Started 43d frame (21) 
after fancy $33,000 last week. 


Broadway Grosses 


// 


Estimated Total Gross 
This Week . . . , .$673,900 
(Based on 25 theatres ) 
Last Year . . ...... . . $851,700 

(Based on 23 theatres) 



’ HIGH 18G, 
CINCY; ‘TRAILER' 12G 

. Ciiicinhati, Feb. 23. 
Biz is on the climb at all except 
°. ndd l. tIie major houses this ses- 
5' Biggest coin total is going to 
The^ Command,!’ strong at the 
flagship Albee. “Long, Long Trail- 
er shapes solid for the Palace. 
Caprtol appears just okay with 
Great Diamond Robbery.” An- 
other new bill, “Go, Man, Go!” 
stacks up fairish at the Grand. 
Keiths continues above par with 
“Khyber Rifles.” 

Estimates for This Week 
Albee (RKO) (3,100; 64-$l)— 
“The Command” (WB). Strong 
(Continued oh page 20) 


$32,000, Qeve 

Cleveland, Feb. 23. 

Pacing fleld by a wide margin , 
“Glenn Miller Story” is mighty at 
the Palace, for greatest week at 
this house in many months. “Long, 
Long Trailer” is rated smart at the 
State. “Hell, High Water” is fancy 
in second rouhd at the Hipp. “Man 
Between” looks only mild at the 
Hanna, which generally is used by 
legit but is playing Aims during 
the. lull between legiters. 

Estimates for This Week 

Allen (S-W) (3,000; 55-85)— “Boy 
From Oklahoma” (WB). Light $9,- 
500. Last week, “The Command” 
(WB) (2d wk), $8,000 in 5 days. 

Hipp (Telemanagemept) (3,700; 
55-85)— “Hell, High Water” (20th) 
(2d wk). Fancy $20,000 following 
$27,500 last week. Stays on. 

Ohio (Loew’s) (1,200; 55-85)— 
“Glass Web” (U) and “Border 
River” (U). Oke $5,000. Last week, 
“Easy To Love”( (M-G) (m.Q„ $4,- 
800. 

Hanna (Hanna Co.) (1,500; 75-90) 
—“Man Between” (UA). House, 
usually devoted to Legit shows, is 
taking film flyer, sponsored by 
Essick-Reiff interests, who leased 
house between legiters; Mild 
$5,000. 

Palace (RKO) (3,300; 55-85)— 
“Glenn Miller Story” (U). Wallop- 
ing $32,000 after great local bally- 
hoo campaign: Holds, Last week, 
"Bad For Each Other” (Col), $8,- 
000. 

State (Loew’s) (3,450; 55-85)— 
"Long, Long Trailer” (M-G). Smart 
$19,006 or near. Last week, “For- 
ever Female” (Par), $5,600 in 5 
days. 

Stillman (Loew’s (2,700; 55-85) 
— “Alaska Seas” (Pair). Thin $4,000 
in 5 days. Last week, “Cease Fire” 
(Par), $4,000. 

Rep’s Altschuler Off 
On 6-Mo. European Tour 

Richard W. Altschuler, Repub- 
lic’s foreign chief, planed to Lon* 
dori Sunday (21) as initial stop on 
European tour of company offices. 
While in London he will attend 
sales convention of the firm’s 
Britain and European branches 
scheduled to start Feb. 25. 

Following this sales conclave, 
Altschuler heads for Rome for 
huddles with Rep managers in the 
Italian territory. Then he will in- 
spect other key points in Europe. 


‘Miller’ Pari** M At 
Huge $32,000; Hell’ 20G 

Buffalo, Feb. 23. 

“Glenii Miller Story” Is standout 
here this stanza with mighty tak- 
ings at Lafayette. “Hell, High 
Water” is rated powerful at the 
Century, but not close to “Miller.” 
“Cease Fire” looms neat at Para- 
mount while “Command” is sturdy 
in second Center session. • 

Estimates for This Week : 

Buffalo (Loew’s) (3,000: 90-$1.25) 
—“Knights Round Table” (M-G) 
(4th Wk). Good $10,000. Last 
week, $13,000. 

Paramount (Rar) (3,000; 55-80) 
— “Cease Fire” (Par) and “Monte 
Carlo Baby” (Indie). Neat $11,000. 
Last week, “Money Froni Home” 
(Par) and “Golden Idol” (AA) (3d 
wk); $13,000. « 

Center (Par) , (2,000; 55-80)— 
“The Gommand” (WB) 2d wk). 
Fancy $10,000. Last week, $17,000. 

Lafayette (Basil) <3,000; 50-$l) 
—“Glenn. MRler Story” (U). Smash 
$32,000 to pace city. Last week, 
“Paratrooper” (Col) and “Killer 
Ape” (Col), $13,200. 

Century (Buhawk) (3,000; 55-80) 
—“Hell; High Water” (20th). Pow- 
erful $20;000. Last week; “Rob 
Roy” (RKO) and “Below Sahara” 
(RKO), $7,500. 




$53,000, Philly 

Philadelphia, Feb. 23. 

Long holiday weekend helped 
both newcomers and oldies here 
this week despite rainy Sunday 
setback. Washington’s Birthday 
(Mon,) saw lines at most houses. 
“Knights of Round Table,” with 
$1.50 top, set new record at the 
Randolph with a terrific total. 
“Top Banana” broke fast with 
usual normal scale at the Goldman, 
and is heading for a sock stanza. 
“Hell and High Water” still Is 
strong in third round at the Fox. 

. Estimates for This Week 

Arcadia (S&S) <625; 99-$1.50) — 
“Julius Caesar” (M-G) (3d wk). 
Sock $17,000. Last week, $20,000. 

Boyd (SW) (1,459; $1.30-$2.80M 
“Cinerama” (Indie) (20th wk). 
Terrific $21,000. Last week, $23,500. 

Fox (20th) (2,250; 74-$1.50) — 
“Hell, High Water” (20th) (3d wk). 
Strong $25,000. Last week; $28,000. 

Goldman (Goldman) (1,200; 50- 
99)— “Top Banana” (UA). Smash 
$19,000. Last week, “Majesty 
O’Keefe” (WB) (2d wk), $14,000. 

Mastbaum (SW) (4,360; 99-$1.30) 
—“Rob Roy” (RKO) (2d wk). Slim 
$13,500. Last week, $20,000. 

Midtown. (Goldman) (1,000; 74- 
$1.30) — “Conquest of Everest” 
(UA) (2d wk). Weak $5,000 in 5 
days. Last week, $8,500. 

Randolph (Goldman) (2,500; 99- 
$1.80)— “Knights of Round Table” 
(M-G). Terrific $53 >000. Last week, 
“Sadie Thompson” (Col) (5th wk), 
$ 11 , 000 . ‘ 

, Stanley (SW> (2,900; 74-$1.25)— 
“Should Happen to You” (Col) (3d 
wk). Neat $15,500. Last week, 
$17,000. 

Stanton (SW) (1,473; 50-99) — 
“Living Desert” (Disney) (4th wk). 
Sturdy $10,000. Last week, $11,000. 

Studio (Goldberg) (500; 85-$1.25) 
-r-“Captain’s Paradise” (UA) (9th 
wk). Big $3,700. Last week, $3,500. 

Trans-Lux (T-L) (500; 99-$1.20)— 
“Moon Is Blue” (UA) (17th wk). 
Socko $5,600. Last week, $5,200. 




Estimated Total Gross 
This Week ... . . .$3,137,300 

( Based on 2$ - cities, and 232 
theatres, chiefly first runt , in- 
cluding N. Y.) 

Total Gross Same Week 
Last Year . . ... .$3,000,400 

(Based on 23 cities and 234 
theatres J 




, Mpls.; Trailer 


Minneapolis, Feb. 23. 
With such heavy boxoflice am- 
munition among the many new- 


comers as “Glenn Miller 
“The. Command,” “Long, Long 
Trailer” and “Little Fugitive,” 
good, times back again here this 
inning. Excellently exploited, 
“Miller Story” is the standout at 
Radio City with a terrific session. 
“Command” is very big at the Or- 
pheum while “Trailer” is rated fast 
at the Gopher. The State’s “Money 
From Home,” lone holdover,, is still 
in chips. 

Estimates for This Week 

Century (Par) (1,600; 65-85)— 
“Saadia” (M-G). Thin $2,500. Last 
week, “Jennifer” (Indie), $2,900. 

Gopher (Berger) (1,000; 65-85)— 
“Long, Long Trailer” (M-G). Noth- 
ing but accolades for this and 
heavy exploitation is. helping. Fat 
$8,000. Last week, “Hell’s Half 
Acre” (Rep), $3,400. 

Lyric (Par) (1, 000; 65-85)— 

“Stand at Apache River” (U) and 
“White Fire” (Lip). Good stuff for 
action fans. Nice $4,500. Last 


week, “Take Me to Town” (U) and 
“Veils of Bagdad” (U), $3,000. 

Radio City (Par) (4,000; 85-$l) — 
“Glenn Miller Story” (U). Excit- 
ing raves and, helped by fine bally 
and big ad campaign, is really go- 
ing to town. Advanced admissions 
ne deterrent. Terrific $29,000. Last 
week, “Khyber Rifles” (20th) (2d 
wk), $10,500. 

RKO-Orpheum (RKO) (2.89Q; 76- 
$1)— “The Command” (WB). Sec- 
ond Cinemascope pic at house. 
Tall $12,000. Last Week, “3 Sailors 
and Girl” (WB), $8,000 at 65-85c 
scale 1 

RKd-Pon (RKO) (1,600; 40-76)— 
“Pubic Enemy” (WB) and “Little 
Caesar. (WB) (reissues). Hefty $6,* 
000. Last week, “Glass Web” (U) 
and “Tumbleweed” (U), $5,000. 

State (Par) (2,300; 85-$l— 

“Money From Home”- (Par) (3-D) 
2d wk). Still strong at $9,000. Last 
week, boffo $16,000. 

World (Marin) (400; 55-$1.20)— 
“Little Fugitive” (Burstyn). Crix 
are praising this one. Okay $3,800. 
Last week, “Cruel Sea” (U) (2d 
wk), $3,300. 


Hub; Kn^hts' 3SG 

Boston, Feb. 23. 

Holiday weekend, parlayed with 
school vacation’ and 
weather is hypoing big here this 
stanza. “Money From Home” at 
the Met, shapes as best of nowcom- 
ers, “Pinocchio” at the Memorial 
is doing strong day biz. “Knights 
Round Table” shapes ojkay In sec- 
ond frame at the State and Or- 
pheum while “Best Years of Lives” 
in third and final at the Astor, fig- 
ures to pull ahead of second week. 
“Boy From Oklahoma” at the 
Paramount and Fenway is only 
fair. . 

Estimates for This : Week 

Astor. (B&Q) (1,500: 60-$l.l0)— 
“Best Years of Lives’* (RKO) (re- 
issue) (3d wk). Final week should 
hit fast $11,000. Last week, $10,000. 

Beacon HtU (Beacon Hill) (800: 
50-$l) — “Living Desert” (Disney) 
(3d wk). Nice $7,000. Last week, 
$8,000. s 

Boston (Cirierama Productions) 
(1,354; $1.20-$2.40) “Cinerama” 
(Indie) (8th wk). Nifty 26,000. Last 
week, same. . 

- Exeter (Indie) (1,300; 60-$l)— 
“Gilbert & Sullivan” (UA) (5th 
wk); Neat $5,000 -after $6,000 last 
week. 

Fenway (NET) (1,373; 50-90)— 
“Boy From Oklahoma” (WB) and 
“Thunder Over Plains” (WB). Oke 
$5,000. Last week, “Public Enemy” 
(WB) and “Little Caesar’V(WB) 
(reissues), $6,500 in 9 days. 

Majestic (Shubert) (1,500; $1.20- 
$2.40) — “Julius Caesar” (M-G) (9th 
wk). Good $6,000 or less. Last 
week, $5,500. 

Memorial (RKO) (3,000; 50-90)— 
“Pinocchio” (RKO) (reissue). Solid 
$20,000. Last week, Taza, Son of 
Cochise” (U) (3-D) and “Gentle 
Gunman” (U), $12,000. ■ ' ' - 

Metropolitan (NET) (4,367; 65- 
,$1.10)— “Money From Home” (Par) 
(3-D). Good $27,000. Last week, 
“The Command” (WB) (2d wk-5 
days), $9,000. 

Orpheum (Loew’s) . (3,000; 90- 
$1.50)— '“Knights Round Table” 
(M-G) (2d wk). Fast $22,000 fol- 
lowing $34,500 in first week. 

Paramount (NET) (1,700; 50-90) 
— “Boy From Oklahoma” (WB) and 
“Thunder Over Plains” (WB). Fine 
$14,000. Last week, “Public 
Enemy” (WB) and “Little Caesar” 
(WB) (reissues), $18,000 in 9 days. 

Pilgrim (ATC) (1,800; 60-95)— 
“Bad for Each Other”: (Col) and 
“Drive a Crooked Road” (Indie). 
Good $11 ,000. Last week, “Saadia” 
(M-G) and “Drums of Tahiti” (Col) 
(2d wk), $7,000. 

State (Loew’s) (3,500; 90-$1.50) 
—“Knights Round *Table” (M-G) 
(2d wk.) Not bad at $13,000. Last 
week, $21,000* 

Trans-Lux (764; 50-90)— ‘Steel 
Lady” (UA) and “Ft. Algiers” (UA). 
Nice $5,700. Last week, sub-runs. 

‘MILLER’ TERRIF 36G, 
DET; ‘RIOT* STOUT 20€ 

Detroit, Feb. 23. 

Biz is terrific at the downtown 
spots this week. “Glenn Miller 
Story” is terrific at the Madison 
with lines, at nearly every : show. 
“Khyber Rifles” is big at the Fox. 
“Long, Long Trailer” shapes sock 
at the United Artists. “Money 
From Home” is having a strong 
second week at the Michigan. 
“War Arrow” looks good at the 
Palms. 

Estimates for This Weak 

Fox (Fox-Detroit) (5,000; $1- 

$1.25) — “Khyber Rifles” (20th). 
Big $36,000; Last week, “Three 
Young Texans” (20th> and “Miss 
Robin Crusoe” (20th), $18,000. 

Michigan (United Detroit) (4,000; 
80-$D— “Money From Home” (Par) 
arid “Redheads from Seattle” (Par) 
(Continued on page 20) 


Washington, Feb. 23. 

Business looks generally strong 
In midtown, hypoed by a long 
Washington’s Birthday weekend 
Two newcomers are setting the 
pace. “Glenn Miller Story’’ tops 
the town at huge total, while 
“Long, Long Trailer” also is big 
Of the holdovers, '‘Knights 5 
Round Table” is tall at Capitol. 
“Command” alsq is smash in sec- 
ond round. “Cinerama” looms 
great fti 16th stanza. 


Estimates for This Week 
Capitol (Loew’s) (3,434; 90-$1.56) 
— “Knights Round Table” (M-G) 
(4th wk). Handsome $20,000 after 
$23,000 last week. 

Columbia (Loew’sV(l474; 55-85) 
—“Long, Long Trailer” (M-G) Sock 
$15,000. last week, “Three Young 
Texans” (20th), $6,000. 

Dupont (Lopert) (372; 90-$ 1.25)— 
“Julius Caesar” (M-G) (3d wk). 
Smash $10,000 after $11,000 in 
second. Holds. 

“ Keith’s (RKO) (1,939; 74-$l) — 
springlike-f “Glenn Miller Story” (U). Tremen- 
dous $30,000, and sensational for 
this house. Last week, “Best Years 
Life” (RKO) (reissue) (2d wk). 
$ 8 , 000 . 

Metropolitan (SW) (1,200; 55-$l) 
— “The Command” (WB). (2d wk). 
Big $10,000 after $13,000 opener. 

Palace (Loew’s) (2,370; 85-$l) — 
“Money From Home” (Par) (2d wk). 
Cozy $14,000. Last Week, $21,000. 

Playhouse (Lopert) (435; 55-$l)— 
“Living Desert” (Disney) (8th wk). 
Okay $4,000. Last week, $4,000. 

Warner (SW) (1,300; $1,20-$2.8Q) 
—“Cinerama” (Indie) (16th). Smash 
$22,500. Last week, $19,000. 

Translux (T-L) (600; 90-$l;25) — 
“Eternity” (Col) (26th Wk). Neat 
$3,500. Last week, $4,000. 


‘Hell’ Sockeroo $16,000, 
Seattle; T’trooper’ Big 
10G, Tiki’ TaH 5G, 2d 

Seattle, Feb. 23. 

Trade shapes very spotty here 
for a holiday week, with many 
pix failing to measure up to ex- 
pectations. However, “Paratrooper” 
looms big at Coliseum and “Hell 
and High Water” is heading for a 
great session at the Fifth Avenue. 
“Nebraskan” is getting no place 
at Paramount while “Eddie Cantor 
Story” is light at Orpheum. “Tanga 
Tiki” still is Very big in second 
round at the Blue Mouse. 

Estimates for This Week. 

Blue Mouse (Hamrick) (800; 90- 
$1.25)— “Tanga Tiki” (Indie) (2d 
Wk); Still big with $5,000 after 
$6,200 in first round. 

Coliseum (Evergreen) (1,829; 65- 
90)— “Paratrooper” (Col) and “Thy 
Neighbor’s Wife” (20th>. Big $10,- 
000 or near. Last week, “Alaska 
Seas” (Par) and “JiVaro” (Par), 
$6,800. 

Fifth Avenue (Evergreen) (2,500; 
$1-$1.25)— “Hell and High Water” 
(20th). Cinemascope. Great $16,000 
or close. Last week, “Forever Fe- 
male” (Par) and “El Alamein” 
(Col), $6,300 at 90c top. 

Liberty (Hamrick) (1,650; 65-90) 
—“She Couldn’t Say No” (RKO) 
and “Terfor Street” (Lip), Okay 
$6,000. Last week, “Hell’s Half 
(Continued on page 20) 


‘HELL’ TORRID $14,000, 
L’VILLE; TRAILER’ 13G 

Louisville, Feb. 23. 

“Hell and High Water” is riding 
high this week at the Rialto. Billed 
as “first time at popular prices,” 
which means 54c and 75c at. this 
main stem house, it will probably 
hold. “Public Enemy” and “Little 
Caesar,” pair of oldies, are doing 
great at the Mary Anderson. “Long, 
Long Trailer” looks lively at the 
State. 

Estimates for This Week 

Kentucky (Switow) (1,200; 54-75) 
—“Forever Female” (Par) and 
“Private Eyes” (AA) (2d wk). 
Sturdy $6,000. Last week, $7,000. 

. Mary Anderson (People’s) (1,200; 
5.4-75)— -“Public Enemy” (WB) arid 
“Little Caesar” (WB) (reissues). 
Excellent $7,000. Last week. “Com- 
mand” (WB) (2d' Wk), $7,500 at 
99c top. This was first C’Scoper at 
this house. 

Rialto (Fourth Avenue) (3.000; 
54-75)— “Hell, High Water” (20th). 
Bi| $14,000. Last week, “Botany 
Bay” (Par) arid “Fighting Lawman 
(AA), $9,000. 

State (Loew’s) (3,000; 54-75)— 
“Long, Long Trailer” (M#G) and 
“Prisoners Casbah” (Col), Heading 
for lively $13,000 or close.- Last 
week, “All Brothers Valiant” (M-G) 
and “Conquest Cochise” (Col), 
$7,000. 


Wednesday, Feb*nwy 24, 1934 


PICTURE GROSSES 



Mer’-Satchfflo Mighty 5SG,2d 



“Banana’ Ditto 27G, ‘CdT2$G 


- Chicago, Feb. 23. 4 

Looks like another buoyant week 
here with biz at high ebb although 
a few entries show signs of weak- 
ness. Big'gest news among _ the 
three newcomers is the lush $32,- 
000 the Woods is racking up with 
"Hell and High - Water." United 
Artists is sturdy $18,000 with 
"Bait” arid ‘‘Man Crazy.” ‘‘She 
Couldn't Say No’* and “Marry Me 
AgSn“ lobk nice’ $18,000 at Mc- 

Vickers. • • . ; 

Still the top coin getter is 
"Glenn Miller Story” coupled 
v.ith Louis Satchmo Armstrong 
Btageshow in second week at Chi- 
cago Mighty $58,000 looms. Roose- 
velt’s prospects are bright with 
"Majesty O'Keefe” is big in first 
holdover round. Surf with reissue 
of “Hariilet” and World with 
"Rome 11 O'clock,” are both hav- 
ing exceptional second stanzas. 

“MOney- From Home” is still 
hefty at Grand in third round 
while “Forever Female” holds a 
fair pace at Monroe. Oriental is 
very good with fourth of “Khyber 
Rifles.” ‘‘Knights of Round Table'' 
shapes sturdy in sixth frame at 
State-Lake. Ziegfeld is light 
with “Gilbert and Sullivan” in the 
fifth. . 

Palace still continues to build 
with “Cinerama,” still boffo in 30th 
session. 

Estimates for This Week 
Chicago (B&K) (8,900; 98-$l. 25) 
—“Glenn Miller Sjtory” (U) with 
Louis Armstrong onstage (2d wk). 
Great $58,000 or over. Last week, 
$73,000. 

Grand (RKO) (1,200; 55-98)— 
“Money From Home” (Par) (2-D) 
(3d wk). Still big at $17,000 after 
$22,000 last week. ^ * 

Loop (Telem’t) (609; 90-$1.25)— 
“Living Desert” (Disney) (9th wk). 
Brisk $7,800. Last week, $8,700. 

Me Vickers (JL&S) (2,200; 65- 
$1.25)— “She Couldn't . Say No 
(RKO) and “Marry Me Again. 
(RKO). Plump $18,000. Last week, 
“Eddie Cantor Story” (WB) (3d Wk). 
$15,000. 

Monroe (Iindie) (1,000; 55-98)— 
“Forever Female” (Par) (3d wk) 
Fair $4,300. Last week, $7,300. 

Oriental (Indie) (3,400; 98-$1.25) 
—“Khyber Rifles” (20th) (4th wk) 
Fancy $18,000. Last week, $21,000 
Palace (Eitel) (1,484; $1.25-$3.60) 
-“Cinerama” (Indie) (30th wk) 
Boffo $43,000. Last week, $42,500 
Roosevelt (BfcK) 1,400; 55-98)— 
“Majesty O'Keefe” (WB) and “Gun 
Belt” (UA) (2d wk). Big $16,000 
Last week, $24,000. 

Selwyn (Shubert) (1,000; $1,25- 
$2.40)— “Julius Caesar” (M-G) (9th 
wk). Light $8,600. Last week 
$10,500. ' 

.State-Lake (B&K) (2,700; 98^ 
$1.25) — “Knights Round Table” 
(M-G) (6th wk)r. Lively $23,500 
Last week, $28,000. 

Surf (H&E Balabah) (685; 98)— 
Hamlet” (U) (reissue) (2d wk) 
Bright $4,500. Last week, $6,000. 

United Artists (B&K) (1,700; 55- 
98)— Bait” (Col) and “Man Crazy” 
20th). Solid $18,000. Last week 
“Ft. Bravo” (M-G) and “Three 
Young Texans” (20th) (2d wk) 
$13,000. 

Wpods (Essariess) .(1,198; 98- 
$1.25) — “Hell and High Water” 
(20th). Mighty $32,000. or close. 
Last week, “12 Mile Reef” (20th) 
(6th wk), $13,000. 

World (Indie) (687; 98)— “Rome 
11 O’Glock” (Indie) (2d wk). Very 
good $5,000. Last week; $7,300. 
Ziegfeld (Lopert) (430; 98) — 
Gilbert and Sullivan” (UA) (5th 
Vrk). Dim $2,300. Last week, 
$2,700. * 


Estimates Are Net 

Film gross estimates as re- 
ported herewith from the variv 
ous key dties, are net; i. e.» 
without the 20% tax. pistrib* 
utors share on net take, when 
playing percentage, hence the 
estimated figures are net in- 
come. 

The parenthetic admission 
prices, however* as indicated, 
include the U. S. amusement 
tax. .. 



Pittsburgh, Feb. 23. 
Town has a couple of blazing 
leaders this week in “Glenn. Mil- 
ler Story” at Fulton and “Long, 
Long Trailer” at the Penn. “Mil*? 
ler Story” is standout with a ter- 
rific take at the smaller Fulton. 
It Should Happen To You” on 
holdover is being helped by the 
twin overflows.: Against this com- 
petition, “Forever Female” is lan- 
guishing at Stanley. “Cinerama” 
continues sockeroo at Warner as it 
nears the three-month mark. 
Estimates for This Week 
Fulton (Shea) (1,700; 85-$1.25)— 
“Glenn Miller Story” (U). Started 
off like a house afire. Looks to be 
around awhile. Smash . $29,000 or 
over, terrific for this smaller spot 
Last week, “Crazylegs.” (Rep) -arid 
“Flight Nurse-” (Rep), $6,000. 

Harris (Harris) (2,100; 65-$D— 
“Should Happen to You” (Col) (2d 
wk). Cashing in on overflow from 
Fulton next door and from Penn 
few doors away. Nice $8,500. Last 
Week, $12,000. 

Penn (Loew’s) (3,300; 65-85) — 
“Long, Long Trailer” (M-G). Long, 
long lines at boxoffice over week 
end; sock $23,500 or better. Sticks, 
natch. Last week, “Wicked Wom- 
an” (UA), $10,000. 

Stanley CSW) (3,800; 65-$l)— 
“Forever Female” (Par). Excellent 
notices but only slow $9,000 looms. 
Last week, “Command” (WB) (2d 
wk), $13,500. 

Warner (SW) (1,200; $1.30-$£»0) 
• — “Cinerama” (Indie) (11th: wk). 
Weekends are still very big and 
week days are picking up, too. 
Extra Washington Birthday mat- 
inee should boost this to great 
$22,000. Last week, $21,200. 


«!*■«» ■* Tnfc' fot 15K 

Indianapolis, Feb. 23. 

Biz is moving in narrow groove 
at first-runs here this stanza, only 
real standout being “Long, Long i 
Trailer," hangup at Loew’s. It may 
hold. “War Arrow” at Circle shapes 
nice but “Three Young Texans” at 
the Indiana shapes up. slow. 

Estimates for This Week 
Circle (Cockrill-Dolle) (2,800; BO- 
SS)— “War Arrow” (U) and “For- 
bidden” (U). Nice . $10,000. Last 
week, “Cease Fire” (Par) and 
Marry Me Again” (RKO), $8,000. 

Indiana (C-D) (3,200; 60-85) 

Three Young Texans” (20th) and 
“Vicki” (20th). Tepid $8,000. Last 
week, “The Command” (WB), 

$ 11 , 000 . 

Keith’s (C-D) (1,300; 50-76) — 

“OK. Nero” (IFE) and “Trent’s 
La6t Case” (Rep). So-so $4,000. 

Last week, “Money From Home” 

(Par) (2-D) (m.o.), $6,000 on m.o., 
after first week 3-D at the Indiana. 

Loew’s (Loew’s) (2,427; 60-85)— 

Long, Long Trailer” (M-G) and 
“El Alemein” (Col). Hefty $14,000. 

Last week; “Sadie Thompson” (Col)' 
and “Prisoner Casbah” (Col), 

$12,500. 

Lyric (C-D) (1,600; 50-76)— “Go 
Man Go” (UA) arid “Donovan's 
Brain” (UA). Big $7,000, with All- 
Star Jamboree replacing second 
feature Sunday only. Last week, 

“Border River” (U) and “Under 
Cover Agent” (Lip), $5,500, same 


setup. 





In Toronto; ‘Money’ 17G, 
lie’ Strong 9G, 3d 


. Toronto, Feb. 23. 
i ( « • L° n g, Long Trailer” and 
Money from Home” are city’s 
only newcomers arid both look big. 
Also doing nicely on holdover -are 
Botany Bay” and “Forever Fe- 
Jiale” insecond stanzas. “Sadie 
Thompson”, is fancy in third. Sec- 
ond frame of “Quo Vadis” stays 
phly four days in second week/ to 
ojake way for “Glenn Miller Story” 
at the Uptown. 

_ Estimates for This Week 
Downtown, Glendale, Mayfair, 
Scarboro, State (Taylor) (1,059; 
95a; 470; 694; 698; 35-60)— “Jack 
Slade” (AA) and “Terror on Train” 
(M-G). Neat . $15,000. Last week, 
T Wicked Woman” (UA) and “Steel 
Lady” (UA* $17,000. 

Eglinton, University (FP) (1,080; 

(Continued on page. 20) 


U; 

Sock 22G, 2d, ‘Wild’ 5G 

Kansas City, Feb; 23. 

Best money here currently is 
holdover of “Glenn Miller Story” 
in four Fox Midwest first-runs 
where still very big. “Long, Long 
Trailer” strong at the Midland, is 
top new pic but considerably be- 
low “Miller,” Missouri’s newcom- 
er, “Wild One,” is dull. Holdovers 
in art houses are doing satisfac- 
tory biz. “Jivaro” looms fair at 
Paramount. Much needed rain 
bolstering outlook. 

Estimates for This Week 

Kimo (Dickinson) (504; $1-$1.80) 

“Julius Caesar” (M-G) (6th wk) 

Still pleasant at $2,200. Last week, 
$2,800. 

Midland (Loew’s) (3,500; 50-75) 
—“Long, Long Trailer” (M-G). 
Strong $12,000. Last week, “Sadie 
Thompson” (Col), $11,000, below 
hopes 

Missouri (RKO) (2,650; 60-85)— 
“Wild One” (Col) and “Combat 
Squad” (Col). Dull $5,000. Last 
week, “Best* Years Lives” (RKO) 
(reissue), $5,500, but under expec 
tations. ■ , % 

Paramount (Tri-States) (1,900; 
65-85) — “Jivaro” (Par) and “Alaska 
Seas” (Par). Switches house pol- 
icy temporarily to dual policy, 
fairish $6,500. Last week, “Cease 
Fire” (Par) (3-D), somewhat 
pointing at $6,000. .. 

Tower, Uptown, Fajrway, Grana 
da (Fox Midwest) (2,100; 2,043; 
700; 1,217; 65-85)— “Glenn Miller 
Story”. (U) (2d wk). Socko $22,000, 
topping most first weeks for these 
houses. Last week, giant $31,000, 
best figure a Universal picture 
ever garnered in this four-house 
combo, and one of all-time great 
takes here. 


San Francisco, Feb. 23 
Market Street is being helped 
by the presence of 13,000 sailors 
from the fleet in town for the holi- 
day Weekend along with the usual 
Washington’s Birthday upbeat. 
Glenn filler Story” is easily 
standout With a terrific session at 
the Golden Gate, best at this house 
in many weeks. “Money . From 
Home” shapes big at Paramount 
while “Easy to Love”is okay in 
second Warfield stanza. “Cine- 
rama” continues great despite 
being in its eighth week at the Or- 
pheum. 

Estimates for This Week 
Golden Gate (RKO) (2,850; 65- 
$1)— “Glenn Miller Story” (U). 
Terrific $38,000. Last week, “Kill- 
ers From Space” (Indie) and 
“Captain Scarlet” (Indie), $9,500. 

Fox (FWC) ’ (4,651; $1-$1 .50)— 
Khyber Rifles” (20th) (3d wk). 
Oke $13,000. Last week, $15,000. 

Warfield (Loew’s) (2,656; $1- 

$1.50)— “Easy to Love” (M-G) (2d 
wk). Good $11,000. Last week, 
$15,000. 

Paramount .(Par) (2,646; 95-$1.25) 
•—“Money From Koine’ '(Par) and 
“Safari Drums” (Indie). Last 
week, “Majesty O'Keefe” (WB) 
and “Sweethearts Parade” (Rep) 
(2d wk), $10,000. 

Si. Francis (Par) (1,400; 95-$1.25) 
—“Wild One” (Col) arid “Man 
From Cairo” (Indie) (2d wk). Nice 
$10,000. Last week, $15,000. 

Orpheum (Cinerama Theatres, 
Calif.) (1,458; $1.80-$2.80)— “Cine- 
rama” (8th wk) (Indie). Wow $33,- 
000. Last week, $34,000. 

United Artists (No. Coast) <1,207; 
65^95)— “Personal Affair” (UA) and 
• Gay Adventure” (UA). Okay $5,- 
500. Last week, “Paratrooper” 
261) and “Drums Tahiti” (Col) 
(3d wk), $5,000. 

Stagedoor (A-R) (370; $1.80- 

$2.40)— “Julius Caesar” (M-G) (9th 
wk). Big $7,000. Last week, 
$ 8 , 000 . 

Clay (Rosener) (400; 65-85) — 
“Titfield Tunderbolt” (U) (5th wk). 
Fine $2,700. ’ Last week, $2,900. 

Vogue (S. F. Theatres) (377; 85 
$1)— “Rome, 11 O’Clock” (IFE). 
Nice $3,500. Last week, “Leonar- 
do Da Vinci” (Indie) (5th wk), 
$1,800. 

ST. LOO CHAMP STILL 
‘CINERAMA,’ WOW 31G 

St. Louis, Feb. 23. 
Three-da^ holiday and excellent 
weather are boosting trade all 
over town currently. “Cinerama, 
which grabbed the biggest money 
last session, will repeat this week 
despite being in second stanza at 
the Ambassador. In fact, an extra 
matinee will enable it to go far 
ahead of its nearest competitor. 
“Long, Long Trailer” looms socko 
at Lpew’s. “She Couldn’t Say No” 
looms solid at the St. Louis. 

. Estimates for This Week 
Ambassador (Indie) (1,400; $1.20- 
$2.40)—^ “Cinerama” (Indie) (2d 
wk). Wham $31,000, to pace city 
after $28,000 opening stanza 
Fox (F&M) (5,000; 60-75) — . 

‘Money From Home” (Par) and] 


Long Washington's Birthday 
weekend is hypoing first-run biz on 
Broadway this stanza, probably to 
highest figure since year-end holi- 
days. Some theatres were hurt 
some by Sunday (21) night rain but 
not as much as feared, and mati- 
nees that day were unusually big. 

Mild, dear weather Monday (22) 
sent trade zooming, night holding 
remarkably strong: 

Top coin is going to the Music 
Hall with “Long, Long Trailer” 
and stageshow. Initial session end- 
ing today (Wed.) is heading for many .months 
smash $157, 000 or close. “Trailer” I Paris (Indie) 
hit a new Sunday high for Hall on 
Feb. 21 and enjoyed the biggest 
Washington's Birthday business in 
theatre's history. Long lines and 
three-hour wait were experienced 
on Monday* 

The two musicals* taken almost 
bodily from Broadway legit musi- 
cal shows, at the Victoria and 
Roxy also are socko. “Top Banana’’ 
is soaring to a great $27,000 at the , 

V ictoria while “New Faces,” in spot. 
Cinemascope, looks to reach smash I Rivoli 
$92,000 in first week at the Roxy. 

“Riot in CeU Block 11” looks 
headed for great $28,000 open- 
ing week at the Mayfair. “Gene- 
vieve,” fifth newcomer, soared to 
terrific $18,700 at the arty Sutton. 

“Highway Dragnet” with vaude- 
ville also is way ahead of par for 
a possible big $26,000 at the Pal- 
ace. “Intimate Relations” looks 
big $7,000 at the Baronet opening 
round, 

“Glenn Miller: Story” is topping 
its opening week with a huge $92,- 
000 at the Capitol. Second stanza 
of “Act of Love” is holding with a 
great $24,000 at the Astor. 

: “Should Happen to You” looks 
likely to reach big $23,000 in sixth 
round at the State, to top the fifth 
week. “Millionaire” held at good 
$13,000 at the Globe in 15th ses 
slon. 

“Majesty O’Keefe” is continuing 
nicely in third-final week at the 
Paramount with $33,000, "Money 
From Home!’ opens Friday (20). 

“Rob Roy” held at okay $11,500 
In third stanza at the Criterion. It 
is being replaced Friday (26) with 
“She Couldn’t Say No.” 

Estimates for This Week 

Astor (City Inv.) (1,300; 80-$1.80) 

—“Act of Love” (UA) (2d wk). 

First holdover round ending to- 
morrow (Thurs.) is headed for 
socko $24,000, including Washing- 
ton’s Birthday. Initial week Was 
$23,000. Stays on. 

Baronet (Reade) (430; 90-$1.50)— 


of vaudeville. Current week wind- 
ing up tomorrow (Thurs.) looks to 
hit big $26,000 or close. In ahead, 
Jivaro” (Par) with vaude, $19,500. 

Paramount (Par) (3.664; 70-$l,80) 
—“Majesty O’Keefe” (WB) (3d- 
finalwk). Current stanza ending 
tomorrow (Thurs.) continued nice 
With $33,000, getting a healthy lift 
from Washington’s Birthday long 
weekend. Second week was $37,- 
000. , “Money From Home” (Par) 
opens Friday (26), first Paramount 
pic to play this Par flagship in 


(568; 90-$1.80)— 
“Captain’s Paradise” (UA) (22d yfk). 
The 21st week ended Sunday. (21) 
was very good $7,500 after $9,000 
for 20th week. 

Rialto (Mage) (600; 50-98)— 

“Strlporama” (Indie) (21st wk). 
Present stanza ending tomorrow 
(Thurs.) . looks to reach sock $5,- 
200. Last week, $4,200. Stays on, 
and likely will continue on after 
March 1 when Brandt- takes over 


(UAT) (2,092; 95-$2)— 
“Khyber Rifles” (20th) (10th wk). 
The ninth week ended yesterday 
(Tues.) was okay at $9,500 after 
$9,700 In eighth. 

Radio City Music Hall (Rocke- 
fellers) (0,200; $l-$2.75) — “Long, 
Trailer” (M-G) with stage- 
show., Heading for sock. $157,000 
in initial session ending today 
(Wed.). Holds. In ahead, “Knights 
of Round Table” (M-G) and stage- 
show (6th wk), $123,000, to round 
out a very solid run. 

Roxy (Nat’i. Th.) (5,717; 65-$2.50) 
—“New Faces” (20th ) . This latest 
C’Scope pic from 20th-Fox is head- 
ing for great $92,000 or hear in 
first 6tanza ending tomorrow 
(Thurs.). In ahead* “Hell, High 
Water” (20th) (2d wk-10 days, 
$65,000. 

State (Loew’s) (3,450; 85-$1.80)— 
“Should Happen To You” (Col) (8th 
wk). Present frame ending tomor- 
row (Thurs.) is pushing to big 
$23,000, with lift from long holiday 
weekend. First week was $22,000. 

Sutton (R&B) (561; 90-$1.50)— 
f’Genevleve”. (U) (2d wk). First 
round ended Monday .(22) night 
soared to terrific $18,700, one of 
all-time top weeks here. In ahead, 
“Living Desert” (Disney) (14th wk), 
$5,700. 

Trans-Lux 60th St. (T-L) (453; 
90-$1.50--“Holly and the Ivy” 
(Pace) (3d ,Wk). Current session 
ending today (Wed.) looks to hold 
at sock $8,000 after $8,500 for sec- 
ond week. Stays on indef. 

(540; 


“Intimate Relations” (indie). First s u 'wk)’ 

session ending Friday (26) looks to S25^n?hT ft .Vni 

reach big $7,000. In ahead, “Final JfePuu " h ^ 7 nn 

T*»Rt” (Indip) (4th wk-^ Have) night hit smash $8,700 after $7,700 

$3*000. ^ ■ yS '* for 49th week. Set to run 52 weeks 


Capitol (Loew’s) (4,820; 70-$2.20) 

— “GICnn Miller §tory” (U) (3d wk). 

Initial holdover stanza ended last 
night (Tues;) held with great $92,- 
000, including Feb. 22 trade. First 
week was^O 1,000. Set for run here. 

Criterion (Moss) (1,700; 85-$2.20) 
r-“Rob Roy” (RKO) (3d wk). Week 
ended last night (Tues.) slipped to 
okay $11,500 after $14,000 in sec* 
ond. Holding two extra days to 
bring in “She Couldn’t Say No’ 

(RKO) on Friday (26). 

Fine Arts (Davis) (468; 90-$1.80) 

— “Conquest of Everest” (UA) 

(12th wk). The 11th frame ended 
last night (Tues.) was big $7,300 
after $7,000 for 10th week. 

Globe (Brandt) (1,500; $1-$1.80) 

—“Millionaire” <20th) (16th-final 
wk). Going only^four days of this 
week. The 15th jrbund ended Mon- 
day (22) night held with good $13,- 
000 after $14,000 for 14th session. 

“The Robe” (20th)> playing here 
after preem run at the Roxy, opens 
Saturday (27). 

Guild (Guild) (450; $1-$1.80)— 

“Hamlet” (U)- (reissue) (2d wk). 

Current round winding up. today smash at Orpheum. “Rob Roy 
(Wed.) is holding with fancy $11,- looks just okay at Brandeis. “Long, 
000 after $19$^ Opening week. Long Trailer,” possibly best of 


to make it a full year, all-time 
mark for an arty theatre in the 
U. S. 

Victoria (City Inv.) (1,060; 95- 
$1.80)— “Top Banana” (UA). First 
round ending tomorrow (Thurs.) is 
heading for smash $27,000. Holds, 
natch! In ahead, “Forever Female” 
(Par) (6th wk-9 days), only $10,- 
500 but winding a fairly fine run 
here, 

Warner (Cinerama Prod.) (1,600; 
$1.2Q-$3.60) — “Cinerama” (Indie) 
(38th wk). Present week conclud- 
holiday weekend helping, The 37th 
ing tomorrow (Thurs.) looks to hit 
wow $45,000, with extra shows for 
round was $41,500. Stays on indef. 


Omaha; ‘Trailer’ Trim 
7G, ‘Rob Roy’ Oke 5^G 

Omaha, Feb. 23. 
Biz is spotty here this week. 
“Jubilee Trail” is lusty if not 
at Ornheum. “Rob 


Holiday (Rose) (950; 70-$1.80)— 

‘Bait” (Col). Opened yesterday 
(Tues ). Last week, . “Duffy of San 
Quentin” (WB) (2d wk), was fine 
$10,000 after $12,000 opening 
round. > 

Mayfair (Brandt) (1,736; 70-$1.80) 
—“Riot in Cell Block 11” (AA), 

The initial week ending today 
(Wed.) is heading for smash $28,- 
000 or close. In ahead, “Escape Ft. 

Bravo” (M-G) (4th wk-6 days), 

$8,700. . 

Normandie (Normandie Theatres) toiy 
(592; 95-$1.80)— “Golden Coach” scale. 

(IFE) . (5th wk). Present session 
winding today (Wed;) looks like 
sturdy $9,500 after same in fpurth 
week. Continues on with this con- 
tinuous-run policy, launched after 
three weeks on two-a-day. 

Palace (RKO) (1.700; 60-$1.20)— 


new offerings, is nice at the Omaha. 

Estimates for This Week 

Brandeis (RKO) (1,100; 50^75)—. 
“Rob Roy” (RKO) and “Mystery 
Lake” (RKO): Okay $5,500, Last 
week, “Pubic Enemy” (WB) and 
“Little Caesar” (WB) (reissues), 
$5,500. 

Omaha (Tristates) (2,000; 50-75) 
^torig, Long Trailer” (M-G). Nice 
$7,000 or near. Last week, ‘‘Cease 
Fire” (Par) and “Outlaw Tcrri- 
(Broder) $7,500 at 65-90c 


(Continued on page 20) 


i “Highway Dragnet” (AA) and 8 acts 


Orpheum (Tristates) (2,890; 70- 
90) — “Jubilee Trail” (Rer'. Loud 
$12,000, Last week, “Command” 
(WB), sagged after weekend to 
$12,500. 

State (Goldberg) (875; 50-80)— 
“Easy to Love” (M-G), Mildisll 
$3,500 aftet $6,500 opener. 


10 


PICTURES 


Wednesday, February 24, 1954 



98% OF 175 
OPPOSE STATE-CITY LEVEL 



Nation’s press is virtually solid 4 
in support of Aim industry ele- 
ments out to do away with govern- 
mental “guardians” of screen mo- 
rality. 

Over a recent period, a total of 
175 newspapers editorialized on 
cehsorship (exclusive of the boil- 
erplate used by many of the Small- 
er papers) and. of these: 98%: went 
on record as flatly opposed to the 
principle of city and state-level 
censorship. 

Breakdown on the newsprint 
opinion shows that 67% dealt with 
“self-regulation” by the industry 
and nine out of 10 papers in that 
category Were in support of self- 
imposed standards. 

About 27%’ of the editorials 
which discussed the Production 
Code plugged for “revisions” or 
“changes” in line with the . mod- 
ernization theory advanced by such 
industry ites as Samuel Goldwyn. 
About 7% of the opinion anent the 
Code were strongly critical and 
would prefer to have the Code 
dropped. 

No Like Classification 
Only 1% of the papers dealing 
with Self-regulation favor a “clas- 
sification” system, meaning desig- 
nation- of certain pix for adults 
only, as i& done in England. 

Excluded from the rundown on 
the press pros and cons were all 
Catholic periodicals which, for the 
most part, favor the Code as is 
but also would like to keep govern- 
ment censorship. 

Notable exception is the Com- 
monweal, a weekly, which is some- 
times regarded as the “rebel.” 
Current issue has a piece by asso- 
ciate ed William P. Clancy, who 
raps the stand taken by most Cath- 
olic papers. He quotes an editorial 
which condemned the U. S. Su- 
preme Court for its decision in the 
“M” and “La Ronde” cases. The 
editorial quoted by Clancy con- 
tained this rhetorical question: 
“Why is the Constitution of our 
land made the cloak of protection 
for those who would poison our 
minds and rob the flower of purity 
from our youth, just, as it has 
> been used to protect those who 
would change the Constitution and 
our form of government?” 

Clancy comments: “This is fair- 
ly typical of the measure of rea- 
son and restraint to' be expected 
from many Catholic papers when- 
ever film censorship is discussed. 
In this view no problems or am- 
biguities exist. The case is strictly 
either'or. One is either moral and 
therefore a supporter ■ of movie 
censorship or opposed to censor- 
ship and therefore an advocate of 
‘filth,’ ‘license’ and the corruption 
of youth. No vexing considerations 
of complexity — or charity — disturb 
this black and White world. There 
are the good guys ■ and. the bad 
guys, the sheep and the goats. In 
between them ate only the ‘con- 
fused’ liberals — and most of them 
are goats in disguise. Considering 
the authority and strength of those 
who hold this view it is, perhaps, 
understandable that the Court has 
refrained from abolishing all prior 
censorship, of motion pictures at 
one stroke, preferring to do away 
with it piece by piece, film by 
film, censor by censor.” 

Clancy quarrels with advocates 
of the Code and outside censor- 
ship on a number of counts. To 
equate the Code and moral law (as 
has been done by the Motion Pic- 
ture Assn, of America) “seems ar- 
rogant if not blasphemous” to the 
by-liner. 

His analysis of the Code is this: 
“Some of its provisions are good; 

. some are indifferent;, some are 
anachronistic; some are Stupid; and 
some are practically vicious.” 

Other observations made by 
Clancy include: 

“The status quo, no matter how 
Imperfect it may be, seems to hold 
a fascination for many Catholics 
because they fear that any change 
must be a change for the worse”; 

Archbishop Ritter’s blast against 
“French Line” in St. Louis is a 
“model of what should be done in 
affairs of this kind. Pressure is a 
legitimate part of the democratic 
process. Those liberals who attack 
it whenever it assumes a Catholic 
guise contribute only to their own 
repi^ipji t^OAfp^ion.’V' 



Providence 
Raps ’Moon,’ Seep Court 



on 

Providence, Feb. 23. 

“The Moon Is Blue/’ which 
Cheeked into the Metropolitan 
Theatre last week, was hit hard by 
Bishop Russell J. McVinney of 
Providence, through the diocesan 
newspaper, “Providence- Visitor," 
and a letter read at all Sunday 
masses throughout Rhode Island. 

Quote: “The money-mad dealers 
in lechery now have the solemn 
blessing ; of the tourts of the land. 
The law may no longer be invoked 
to stem the floods of spiritual and 
moral hemlock purveyed by the 
theatres, 

“The misguided liberals who 
make a fetish of freedom and cen- 
sor all censorship, Insist that no 
play be denied the boards Or 
screens of our theatres. ... But I 
cannot imagine even these liberals 
permitting the baby to drink arse- 
nic disguised as milk.” 

. The Sunday punch: “I urge all 
decent people, Catholic and nou- 
Catholic, to stay away from those 
theatres which presume to stage 
such spectacles.” 



'STRIPORAMA' YANKED 


Amarillo Exhlb Fined $100 
— Too Hot For Texas ‘ 


Amarillo, Tex.* Feb. 23. 

Feature based on striptease 
which “left little to the imagina- 
tion” has been hustled Out of town 
after a single showing and Thomas 
Luttrell, manager of the Capitol 
Theatre, has been fined $100 and 
costs. He pleaded guilty to, show- 
ing a “lewd and lasciviotis” film. 

The “Striporama” was being run 
off recently when deputy sheriffs 
stopped the show. Authorities 
said that the local Ministerial 
Alliance had objected. 

Deputy Who saw “Striporama” at 
the Capitol thought it “pretty 
trough.” Patrons in the house at 
the time of yanking got- their 
money back. 



Columbus, Feb. 23. 

Ohio’s Estate film censorship division is getting back for re-re- 
view many films previously banned, Resultantly, Clyde Hissong, 
state education director and chief censor, and his board are try- 
ing to arrive at some new policy in the light of recent U. S. 
Supreme Court decision. 

Lined up and waiting for review are such films as “Ecstacy ” 
“The Outlaw,” “The Miracle,” “Mom and Dad” and" “We Want a 
Child.” 

“Everything we ever barred may come back,” Dr. Hissong 
sighed. : 




LIKE FASHION: 



Washington, Feb. 23. 
“Standards Of decency and mo- 
rality” are not “a dress to be 
changed with every passing fad” 
and therefore the Motion Picture 
Code doesn't need modernization, 
Senator Andrew D. Schoeppel (R., 
Kas.) told the Sedate' on Friday 
(19). He urged that the Code be 
supported in its present form. 

Admitting that the motion pic- 
ture industry is suffering from eco- 
nomic problems, he argued that 
they will not be solved by “off- 
color” and “trash and filth” motion 
pictures, Schoeppel followed by 
about a Week a similar stand by 
Senator Edwin C. Johnson (D.. 
Colo.). 

“It Is a matter of common knowl- 
edge,” said the Kansan, chairman 
of a Small Business Subcommittee 
which recently investigated prob- 
lems of the exhibitors, “that the 
industry is experiencing serious 
economic problems; The^exhibitors 
in my state are under great pres- 
sure as a result of declining box- 
office and the effect of the onerous 
20% admissions tax which, I hope, 
Will be eliminated in this session 
of< Congress. 

“But despite these difficulties, 
know that no movie exhibitor in 
Kansas is going to put dollars above 
ethics by showing an off-color film. 
They know that in these days when 
we are all concerned with the prob- 
lems of juvenile delinquency, every 
motion picture should be the kind 
of motion picture that a man is 
not ashamed to take his wife and 
children to see. 

“The studies carried on by my 
committee show that the industry 
has problems but it is clear that 
these problems are not going to 
be solved by trying to show pic- 
tures that do not conform to ac 
cepted standards of decency and 
morality. In my view such pictures 
not only do harm to the industry 
as a Whole, but in the long run 
will hurt those who make and show 
them. 

“The American, public is not go- 
ing to pay for trash and filth in 
the name of artistic license. Wom- 
en's clubs and parent-teacher or- 
ganizations and religious groups 
and all right-thinking people be 
lieve that morality is not a dress 
to be changed with every passing 
fad. 

“I am happy, therefore, to see 
that the responsible leaders in the 
production, side of the industry 
make clear that they are not going 
to be stampeded into abandoning 
standards which have always been 
tight „aqd ,\yhipb haye, ,kep.t their 
PfOfjMct^ fqr ijaroily ,sef ing,” b t 


Suit to Block RKO Sale 
Calls Assets Too Great 
For Hughes’ $23,489,478 

Wilmington, Del., Feb. 23. 
Two RKO Pictures Corp. stock- 
holders. haive asked the. Delaware 
Court of Chancery to block How- 
ard Hughes’ proposed plan to buy 
up all the stock in the corporation. 

Louis Schiff and Jacob Sacks of 
New York said in their action that 
unless the defendant is enjoined 
by thip court of equity, assets of a 
value in, excess of $97;000,000 Will 
be transferred for the mere sum 
of $23,489,478.” 

Their suit is designed to stop 
any decision of stockholders, sched- 
uled for Dover March 18 on the 
recommendation of the RKO. board 
of directors to accept Hughes’ offer. 

The two minority stockholders, 
pointing out they now have litiga- 
tion in New York courts in Which 
an accounting of RKO funds is de- 
manded, asks the Delaware court 
or a temporary, injunction against 
the consummation of the sale, 
pending^ a hearing and final dis- 
position of the case. 

Schiff and Sacks claim that the 
RKO . board is dominated by 
Hughes and that the directors have 
carried out policies “damaging and 
detrimental” to the firm which has 
resulted in damages, they said, 
amounting to more than $38,- 
500,000. 

And, it is added, “In a number 
of instances the design and - pur- 
pose of such negligence, misman- 
agement and waste was to benefit 
the defendant Hughes and the 
Hughes Tool Company, “of which 
he is the sole owner.” 

The action was filed -in Chancery, 
by Herbert L. Cobin, Wilmington 
attorney for the New York counsel 
of the two mfen. 


CARDINAL RAPS ’LINE’ 


Methodist Says Church Publicize 
Poor Films — Incite Curiosity 


Helping RKO’s Rentals 
On Tepid Trench line’ 

Allied of Iowa, Nebraska & Mid- 
Central expresses bewilderment in 
its current bulletin over the cen : 
sorial fuss on RKO’s “French 
Line.” Appraising the Jane Rus- 
sell starrer in a Screening report 
to members, the organization rates 
all values of the film as “good” 
and predicts that the Technicolor 
musical should be a “good grosser.” 

Report sees “nothing too excit- 
ing about the controversial dance 
sequence. Have been better and 
‘hotter’ dances in other pics. Looks 
like a publicity deal to get top 
terms from a 2nd or 3rd bracket 
film.” Capsule cbmment also, re- 
minds members that the picture 
has no Production Code seal. 







Los Angeles, Feb. 23. 

James Francis Cardinal McIn- 
tyre denounced RKO’s “The French 
Line”, in a letter read Sunday in 
every jchurcb. in his Archdiocese, 
which encompasses fqur counties in 
Southern California. The letter 
called on 800,000 Catholics to shun 
the picture, which, he declared, 
“offends public decency and. the 
traditional standards of any Ameri- 
can community.” „ 

The Cardinal added that the 
film, released without the seal of 
the Production Code, was “a per- 
nicious threat against the moral 
life of the community” and stated 
further “the defying* of morality 
and decency, as, well as the rejec- 
tion of the Code to which they sub- 
scribe, is a manifestation of the 
policy— confuse and divide.” 

While numerous other church 
groups joined in condemnation of 
the picture, a view from a different 
angle was expressed by Dr. Everett 
Palmer, chairman of the Radio 
artd Film Commission of the South- 
ern California Conference of the 
Methodist Church. He said: “It is 
time churches stopped giving pub- 
licity to a poor film — publicity 
only inciting people to see it.” 

“French Line” is slated to open 
here. ^tomorrow .(Wed ), .at the Or< 
pheum and Hatmtil-ttiteafree.' 


Albany; Feb. 23. 

Attempts to define by law “im- 
morality” and “incitement to 
crime” are contained in bills intro- 
dq$ed last Week by State Senator 
Earl Brydges and . Assemblyman 
J. A. Fitzpatrick, both Republicans. 
Consultation had occurred first 
with the Governor’s staff, the State 
Education Dept, and other state 
functionaries. Bills are reactions 
to the recent U. S. Supreme Court 
decision on “La Ronde.” 

The general definition of “im- 
moral”, and “of such character that 
exhibition, would tend' to corrupt 
morals” is that it shall denote- a 
film or part whose “dominant pur- 
pose or effect is erotic or porno- 
graphic; or which portrays acts of 
sexual immorality, . lust, vulgarity 
or lewdness, or which expressly pr 
impliedly presents such acts as de- 
sirable, acceptable or proper pat- 
terns of behavior,” 

The specific definition of those 
terms would apply to a film or part 
which “expressly or impliedly pre- 
sents as desirable, acceptable or 
proper patterns of behavior acts re- 
lating to sex which constitute felo- 
nies or misdemeanbrs; its theme, 
manner of presentation or both 
present sex relations as desirable, ^ 
acceptable or proper patterns of 
behavior between persons not mar- 
ried to each other; it portrays ex- 
plicitly or in detail an act of adul- 
tery, fornication, rape or seduc- 
tion; it portrays nudity or a simu- 
lation thereof, partial nudity of- 
fensive to public, decency, sexual 
relations of any kind, or actual 
birth, or if it presents scenes por- 
traying sexual hygiene, sex organs, 
abortion, methods of contraception 
or venereal disease.” 

This definition is all-encompass 
ing. It covers every type of pic 
ture imaginable under the general 
or believed category of “immoral.” 

“Incite to crime” would mean 
a picture or manner of presenta- 
tion in which the commission of 
unlawful acts or contempt for law 
were set forth as “constituting 
profitable, desirable, respectable or 
commonly accepted acts of be- 
havior” or if film “advocates or 
teaches the use of, or the methods 
of the use of,„ narcotics or habit- 
forming drugs.” >£91 


Newark, Feb. 23. 
Local theatremen are marshall- 
ing their forces to cbmbat a new 
censorship ordinance proposed by 
Comm, of Public Safety John B. 
Keenan, In addition to requiring a 
license for almost every form of 
entertainment that charges admis- 
sion, Keenan’s proposal advocates 
the revoking of the permit of those 
who present a ‘‘lewd, obscene and 
indecent” performance. What is 
particularly irking exhibs, however, 
is a section of the ordinance which 
allows revocation of a licence for 
misrepresentation on billboards, 
stills in theatre lobbies, or state- 
ments in the theatres or other 
places. 

Theatre operators feel that the 
proposed “misrepresentation” sec- 
tion is dangerous in that it can be 
used for “shakedown” purposes. 
They point out that while Keenan’s 
proposal may he sincere, future 
authorities could use it for their 
own purposes. For example, it’s 
noted that a theatre could be 
called down for displaying a still 
with a scene that has been cut 
from : the picture. Another instance 
cited is that a picture could be 
billed as “colossal” or “sensation- 
al,” adjectives whidh a city official 
may feel do . not apply to a par- 
ticular picture. - 

A' reading of the ordinance 
comes up in about two Weeks. It’ll 
be presented to the five commis- 
sioners of the Newark government 
and it requires the okay of three 
for passage. In the forefront of the 
fight against the bill is the Fed- 
eration bt N. J. Theatres < an exhib 
organization devoted to legislative 
matters relating to theatre oper- 


ation. 


JANE RUSSELL DANCE 
100% OUT IN O HIO 

Columbus, Feb. 23. 

“The French Line” (RKO) will 
do business in Ohio but with a 
heavy cut. State film censorship 

board last week licensed feature 
minus Jane Russell’s five minute 
song and dance routine. Dr. Clyde 
Hissong chief censor labeled that 
section “Unsuitable for general 
exhibition;” 

Censor board has had the film 
several weeks and viewed it several 
times bjit delayed action until it 
was able to examine a script. 

Asks 65QG for Re-Use Of 
' Scripts on Bluenose Circuit 

y Vs . Angeles, Feb. 23. 

New angle of the re-run routine 
in- showbiz came up in Superior 
Court where writer Mario Silviera 
demanded $650,000 from Clasa 

Mohme, Inc., arid Gustave Mohme, 
importers of Spanish films. Suit 
is evidently based on the fact that 
members of the Screen Writers 

Guild collect a percentage payment 

for re-use of scripts Written for 
one presentation. 

Silviera says that four years ago 
lie wrote a series of translations of 
Spanish films for screening by the 
N.Y. Board of Censors. He says 
he was paid $75 each with the un- 
derstanding that they would be 
used only once. Later, he declares, 
the defendants used his transla- 
tions in screenings before other 
censor groups throughout tii® 
toanWTuai puir«i tszt n 





s 



(N'Y. Stotk Exchange ) 

For Week Ending Tuesday ( 23 ) 


1953-54 > 4* Weekly VqI 

High Lowi $ v : In 100s . 

1 7 1 '2 ' 12%' Aid Br-Pair Th 175 
50% 38% ,-fPBS, “A” 38 

5012 38%j|CBS,“B” ... 15‘ 

■23-8" il%;^Col. ‘Plc. . .v.- 174 
12% ' TO pecci ....... :V- 104: 

52 3 8 41% • Eastman K4k; 182 ■. 
14 5 8 10% Loew’s ,. . . 437 

734 4% Nft Thea. ... 283 

30% 24%' Paramount . .. 80 
36’ £ 25% PMIco . . . r 76- 
29 % 21 : 11CA : ... . ... . 272. 

5' 8 2% RKO Piets. .. 535 

51 a 344 RKO Thea. V, . 107 

414 2%; Republic . . ... 16 

11% 9 3 A Rep.,i»fd. . . . 4 • 

12 >8 8% ■ Stanley .War.. 391 

2214 13 % 20th-Fox 328 

20 1 a . 14 • Unijr. Wt ./. 30 
70 .61 Univ., pfd. > *170 

17 >8 11% Warner Bros.' 14 . 

84 62% Zenith . . . , . 59 : 


Net , 

.Weekly Weekly Toes. Change 
High Low Close for week 

16% 15% 16% — 

• 47% '45% 47 +1% 

47% 45 47% 4-1% 

23% 20% * 22% 4-1% 

10 9% 97/8 +1% 

52% 50% 51% -fl 

14% mi 14% + % • 


6% 

6% 

6% 


28%' 

27% 

28% 

-f % 

29 

28 

28% 

+ % 

25% 

24% 

25 

.. 4- % 

.5% 

5% 

5% 


4% 

4% 

■ 4% 

— % 

.3%. 

'3% 

• 3% , 

— .% 

11% 

11 

11 


14% 

13% 

14% 

+ 1% 

21% 

20% . 

: ;20% 

— % 

19% 

18% 

19% 

+ %■ 

70 

68% 

70 

+1% 

14% 

14 

14% 

+ % 

68 

64 

67% 

+3 


American Stock Exchange 

■ m- ; _V • 


6 2% Allied Artists 39 

■ . 4% . 

4% 

4 % 

+ % 

173.i 8% Du Mont . . . 39 

10% 

934 

’9% 

— % 

IV* 12% Technicolor 294 

■ 12% . 

123g 

12% 

•f % 

3% 23/4 Trans-Lvx ... 21 

‘ 3% 

2 7 /s 

3 

— Ys 

^ Over-the-Coiinter Securities 

*■ 




Bid 

Ask 


Capitol Records 


9% 

10 

— % 

Chesapeake Industries 


2% 

3% 

— Vs. 

Cinerama . . 


1% 

2% 


Color Corp. of Amer. 


1% . 

2% 

_i_ .. 

Pold.rOid * / .. t. f »-!••• • • ••••••« 


39% 

40% 

. 42 % 

U. A, Theatres ............... 


11% 

13 


Walt Disney 


9 

10 

— % 

* Actual Volume. : t 






1111^* ; • • 

\ Quotations furnished by Dreyfus & Co.) 




By- MIKE WEAR > 


While Will Street interest has 
been centered on the Howard 
Hughes buy-in deal and the up- 
swing of RKO Pictures ’ stock, the 
trend in the Street last; week ap- 
peared to be towards more stand- 
ard shares. - . Trading generally* in 
Wall Street in, the five days, up to 
Tuesday (23) was fairly, much a 
selective affair, with averages 
about. even after three days of ide- 
. dines and two of- advances. Many 
traders evidenced an interest in 
such old-line favorites %s Stanley 
Warner . _( theatre end of the WB, 
setup), Loew’s and Paramount is- 
sues. 

The SW shares hit a new’- high at 
14V / 8, reflecting: solid boxoffice 
grosses as well as continued great; 
returns from showings of ‘‘Ciner- 
ama.” Latter, now playing in IQ 
different key cities, has been gross- 
ing around $1,0001000 monthly in 
recent sessions. General Precision 
Equipment,- on the Big Board, 
edged to a new high of 30%, which 
was up over nine ‘points, from the 
year’s low. 

T echnicolor’s financial statement, 
showing the highest gross in the 
company’s history despite a dip in 
the final two quarters' (caused by 
the shift over to new techniques), 
was not reflected bullishly. This 
was probably because the : traders 
felt that thereductlon in the staff 
at the studio, announced the pre- 
vious day, was an adverse factor. 
Despite this, Techni was only off 
fractionally, Most analytical serv- 
ices rated the’ company prospects 
favorable, particularly in . view of 
its deal with Polaroid and the new- 
dimension method Paramount is 

bnnging out With “White Christ- 
mas.” ' 

Spurt in Republic’s common and 
Preferred attracted attention for a 
tune, with the . latter near the 
year's high. National Theatres 
stockholdovers did not care much 
for revelations at the stockholders’ 
meeting. Cost of installations for 
v Scope, written off largely in the 
past yeaiy proved an adverse fac- 
: or with stockholders who had 
hoped for higher profits, 

■ Dissemination of news that Par- 
amount was readying to pit its new 
^ e J^ 0Sc °pic setup against C’Scope 
fj 1 v, or 3 * D created new interest 
, n p ar shares although this stock 
nas been Hovering near thq tyipr’sl 



Henry R. Arias, film importer 
and exporter; Leo Abrams, vet dis- 
tribution exec, and Myer^P, Beck, 
indie ad-pub agent, have formed 
Arias Quality Picures, Inc , to en- 
gage in the distribution of Ameri- 
can and foreign films in the U. S. 

Arias is president of the new 
outfit. . ; * 

20TH SETS PARIS LAB 
TO HANDLE STEREO 

I * > * 

Decision to equip its Paris dub^ 
bing plan* for stereophonic sound 
has been made by 20th-Fox, with 
the .cost running to more than $50,- 
000. A German dubbing plant, un- 
der contract to 20th, already has. 
the equipment, and an Italian out- 
fit is. skedded to get it. 

Move is expected to ease the 
print bottleneck, particularly since 
Technicolor’s London plant is 
skedded to start turning out imbi- 
bition prints of Cinemascope pix 
within another couple of months.. 
Up till now, dubbing of Cinema- 
Scope pix for foreign consumption 
had to be done in Europe, with the 
tracks shipped to the Coast for 
proper mixing and recording. 

Once Techni in London gets go- 
ing, both the magnetic striping of 
prints and the recording will be 
transferred to London. ' 


high prices for some time. In ad- 
dition, reports that Technicolor al- 
ready was realigning additional 
cameras to handle the hew Para- 
mount dimensional system was 
viewed by many as bullish f6r the 
Whole Industry. The reason, of 
course, is that should the Par proc- 
ess be greeted with the acclaim ex- 
pected, it would mean that the vast 
majority of exhibs would have the 
answer for dimensional pix at less 
than $1,000 total outlay. 

ABC-Paramount stock was pushed 
up consistently to close right near 
the new high of 16%. Strong the- 
atre business and more favorable 
results from the tele operations 
were reported back of the move. 
There was nice play, too, in 20th- 
Fox shares on the upside, but the 
stock did not manage to top its old 
peak. ' >. $ fc 31 n i l 1 



Minneapolis, Feb. 23. 

When business at his theatre fell 
off as much as 50% after the town’s 
stores instituted Saturday night 
closing, D. G. Raunenhorst, exhib- 
itor in Slayton, Minn.; near here, 
staged a successful one-man cam- 
paign to induce the merchants to 
start keeping their business places 
open again. 

After taking it oh the chin in* 
creasingly for three weeks, Rauen- 
horst contacted the merchants in- 
dividually and got one in each line 
to pledge they’d resume the Satur- 
day night openings. They listened 
sympathetically to his troubles and 
A^hen he promised to run quarter- 
page ads *n the local newspaper 
listing the stores there was a quick 
response. 

Raueiihorst’s first newspaper ad 
carried the names of 36 business 
places to be open on Saturday 
night and when he lined up 14 
more the retail dealers’ association 
decided to reverse its closing deci- 
A 11 are °Pen again and the 
theatre s Saturday night business 
is getting back to normal again: the 
exhibitor says. 

In an effort to stave off a state- 
wide movement toward Saturday 
night sstore closings, North Central 
Allied is bringing the Slayton de- 
velopment to exhibitors’ attention 
throughout Minnesota. 

The case, of Slayton , may be re- 
garded as typical of ’small towns 
of around 2,000 population. Light- 
ed shop windows and lighted the- 
atre marquees are the heartbeat of 
downtown.” Otherwise the old 
Wheeze about taking in the side- 
walks after dark is strictly plausi- 
ble. There are thousands of burgs 
like Slayton in the U. S. A. Many 
oi the 90-odd retail establishments 
in Slayton are one-man businesses. ' 
Few have too many employes, and 
none are unionized; If they work 
Saturdays, workers get compensat- 
ing time off . in the midweek. In- 
bad weather or when business is 
poor the owner, under the Con- 
ventions of small burg “paternal- 
ism,” will often let clerks, go home 
early and himself handle Until clos- 
ing. Closing hour is Invariably 
flexible. 

Of significance to students of 
America’s changing sales system, 
the original “resolution” in favor 
of Saturday night closing was put 
through the local “Chamber of 
Commerce” by salaried, managers 
of chain stores who were disin- 
clined to_ give their all for absen- 
tee proprietors. Exhibitor Rauen- 
horst played on this latter circum- 
stance in rallying “local” coopera- 
.jtionto restore Saturday night as a 
trading (and paid entertainment) 
night. 


1945 WANGER SUIT 


Tentative settlement of a nine- 
year-old suit against Universal, 
originally brought in N. Y. Fed- 
eral Court by Walter Wanger, was 
approved last week in a pre-trial 
hearing before Federal Judge John 
C. Knox. Discontinuance of the 
action, however, is subject to sub- 
mission of settlement papers to 
the court by April 15. 

Wanger, who later assigned his 
rights as plaintiff to Jacques Grin- 
ieff’s Motion Picture Development 
Corp., charged in his 1945 action 
that U had erred ih its earning 
statements on four pictures the 
company distributed for him. Made 
in 1942 through 1945, the quartet 
includes “Arabian Nights,” “Eagle 
Squadron,” “Gung Ho!” and “Sa- 
lome, Where She Danced.” 

Seeking an accounting, Wanger 
claimed he was to get 50% of the 
gros§ under the distribution deals 
minus certain deductions. But, 
he alleged, an inspection of the 
statements showed them to be ‘‘in- 
complete, false and a violation” of 
the agreements. 

Repping Grinieff’s . Motion 
Picture .Development Corp. is 
1 Schwartz • At ; Jtohlich; 1 >'< 1 noli' 


That Ho Loans for Recreation Rule 
Causes Exhib Pique in Minneapolis 


IA Board Meets March 15 

Regular semi-annual general ex- 
ecutive board meeting of the In- 
ternational Alliance of Theatrical 
Stage Employees will be held the 
week beginning March 15. 

It’s slated for the Roosevelt 
Hotel in New Orleans. Internation- 
al topper Richard F. Walsh will 
preside. 

FOUR NEW 1.000 CAR 
PARKS DESPITE STEREO 

Los Angeles, Feb. 23. 

Regardless of 20th-Fox’s insist- 
ence on stereophonic sound in 
Cinemascope exhibition. Pacific 
Drivein Theatres is investing $1,- 
200,000 in four new 1,000-ear the- 
atres equipped for single-track 
sound. Each ozoner will have 
screens measuring 100-by-60 feet 
for the showing of anamorphic pic- 
tures. One theatre is ‘already un- 
der construction and ground has 
been purchased for the other three. 

William H. Forman and Mike 
Rosenberg, Pacific executives, . con- 
tend that even though 20th-Fox re- 
fuses to back down on its demand 
for stereophonic sound, other pro • 
ducers making Cinemascope . films 
will be agreed to single-track sound, 
since drivein houses now represent 
more than 20% of the total dis- 
tribution income. 

Stereophonic sound, they assert, 
is impractical for . ozoners. They 
point out that, unlike a Convention- 
al theatre, the "drivein has no 
permanent fixing of sound horns 
behind the screen for fixed direc- 
tional - sound, 'the ozoner fur- 
nishes individual speakers for 
each car, and the addition of a 
second speaker, they declare, 
would add nothing to the quality 
or dramatic effect i nthe audi- 
ence’s ears. 

Company’s first booking of a 
CinemaScope film, takes place this 
week when Warners’ “The Com- 
mand” op^ns an outdoor first-run 
booking at the Valley Theatre. 

As Expected, TOA Is 
Cordial to Arbitration 

Theatre Owners of America, as 
anticipated, has accepted the in- 
vitation of Eric Johnston, prexy of 
the Motion Picture Assn, of Amer- 
ica, to take part in a new industry 
arbitration conference. In a letter 
to Jbhnsto.n< last week, TOA prexy 
Walter Reade Jr. disclosed that 
S. H. (Si) Fabian, Mitchell Wolf- 
son and TOA general counsel Her- 
man M. Levy have been named the 
exhib org’s delegates to the confab. 

‘ TOA has long been an advocate 
of an industry arbitration system. 
In fact, it is largely responsible for 
setting in motion a renewed at- 
tempt to bring about a suitable 
plan, haying forwarded a request 
to Johnston following its recent 
Washington board meeting. 

On the other hand, Allied States 
Assn., which reps indies and small 
circuits, has been strongly opposed 
to any arbitration plan that does 
not include the arbitration of film 
rentals; Allied was largely respon- 
sible for upsetting the implementa- 
tion of a plan in 1952, having nixed 
it for its failufe to include film 
rentals and because of dissatisfac- 
tion with clauses pertaining to pre- 
release pictures. 

Allied hasn’t as yet acted for- 
mally on Johnston’s new request 
for another meeting, but Allied 
leaders have stated unofficially 
that the exhib org’s board would 
turn down the invitation which 
specifically states that arbitration 
of film rentals will not"be included 
in the talks. Allied’s board, meets 
in New York Friday (27), but, ac- 
cording to an Allied executive, the 
subject of arbitration has not been 
placed bn the agenda. There is a 
likelihood, however, that John- 
ston’s invitation will be .discussed 
and 'ah' be? pt-e&hl&l.l 


Minneapolis, Feb. 23, 

Exhibitors in this area have dis- 
covered that the Small Business 
Administration in Washington 
won’t sanction any loans for the- 
atres seeking to expand via Cine- 
maScope Stereophonic Sound in- . 
sta nations. Rule is not to make 
any loans “the purpose of which 
would be to finance recreational or 
amusement facilities.” 

Why— ask exhibitors — this preju- 
dice against their kind of busi- 
ness on the part of the Eisenhower 
Administration? How does this 
prejudice square with a promise of 
sympathy at the time the hope of 
ending the 20% admission tax was 
dashed? 

One exhibitor figures he’s given 
the Federal Government $40,000 in 
admissions taxes during 4he same 
time period he’s gone into the red 
by $25,000, It turns him that the 
Government is arbitrarily opposed 
to loans to his type of private en- 
terprise. 

LAW AIMS AT VANDALS; 
MAKES DAD CULPABLE 

Albany, Feb. 23. 

Two bills which would establish 
the liability of a parent, guardian 
or person .having custody of an 
“infant” for willful, malicious or 
Unlawful destruction or damage to 
the property of another have been 
introduced. They seek to clarify 
the Domestic Relations Law in this 
matter. One or more recent court 
decisions have held there is liabil- 
ity under certain conditions. 

The first measure was introduced 
by Stanley; J. Bauer and Assembly- 
man William J. Butler, Erie County 
Republicans. The second was pre- 
sented, last week by Assemblyman 
Martift'J. KnoiY, Queens County 
Reoublican. 

Kriorr’s bill^ reads: “A parent, 
guardian or other person having 
legal custody of an Infant who 
willfully, maliciously or unlawfully 
damages or destroys the properly 
of another, after having once pre- 
viously committed a siihilur act of 

which the parent, guardian or 
other person having custody has 
knowledge, shall be liable for such 
damage or destruction of prop- 
erty.” It would take effect imme- 
diately. 

The legislation is aimed at cur- 
tailing vandalism. 

V — ■ 

United Paramount Seen 
Getting Out of Nabes 

Minneapolis, Feb. 23* 

Industry circles here are won- 
dering if the exlefit to Which 
United Paramount has been re- 
ducing its local neighborhood the- 
atre holdings indicates a belief 
that the handwriting is on the wall 
for such type of operations. 

Whereas circuit formerly domi- 
nated subsequent-runs it now has 
fewer of the uptown houses than 
one local independent group, while, 
another has an equal number of 
theatres. 

In the past year United Para- 
mount has dropped two neighbor- 
hood houses when leases expired 
and sold another theatre for com- 
mercial purposes. It’s now down 
to four uptown houses, compared 
to its five downtown, one of which 
^expected to be relinquished to 
Cinerama shortly. 

Whether UP may eventually pull 
out of the local subsequent-run 
field entirely is a source of local 
exhibitor circles’, speculation. 

UP has not installed Cinema- 
Scope or new wide screen in any. 
of its Twin Cities neighborhood 
theatres, although six such inde- 
pendent houses already have done 
so. It has never entered the drive- 
in. theatre field in the territory, 
presumably being held back by the 
consent decree. 

Compared to the four UP neigh- 
borhood houses here, the W.* R.' " 
Frank still has five, after abandon- 
ment of two, and the Volk Bros, 
operate a quartet of theatres. 
RKO Theatres is only represented 
here by' fWdktoWhtoVvh lfdiise4. c 9 1 


Wednesday, February 24, 1954 








5 - H 

5 5 1 1 
; s i <5 A 

! ulll 











Wednesday, February 24, 1954 


PICTURES 


13 


Par’s Telemeter Cost 


Continued from page 1 


"from five to seven years, more 
likely the latter, or even longer." 
Kor does he limit it to pictures as 
the prime lure for at-home toll- 
viiion. Tfcfife’ is strong accent on 
sports/ bi^j^Uc events (a Broad- 
way letftrttftnilere, the Met, and 
the like) and, imssibly super-fash- 
ion shows, -and other must-see 
events, as , the raison d'etre for 
' * deposit a fee in- 


Screen Publicists Guild 
Building Strike Fund 

The Screen Publicists Guild, cur- 
rently negotiating for a new con- 


causing L 
the-box for.h 
iconoscopes. 
Rai 

meter is ;■ jnSjl 


Cal., which Is even closer to Hoi- tract at United Artists, Columbia, 
lywood, and which too has moun- Warner Bros, and Universal, is 
tainous ranges to interfere- with building up a war chest and organ- 



Plant of 



Film’s Safety 


izing strike machinery for a pos- 
sible walkout/ Homeoffice pub-ad 
staffers of the four companies as 
well as at 20th-Fox where negotia- 
tions haven’t as yet started are con-* 
tributing a minimum of 10% and 


good video reception. Teleeter in 
stallations in Glendale are now 
going on. 

Instead of both creating a false 
test value Raibourn looks upon 

the Hollywood-adjacency as- a .. . „ X1 , ,, 

showmahship expediency so that * s high as 25.6 of their weekly 
the picture producers will always salaries to a strike fund. 

; h av « an awareness of values and Preparations, according to an 
oe-iooKing ^over me hreactions. But, more importantly, SPG spokesman, afe being made 

1 the competitiveness from a freer because Of the generally unsatis- 
availability of gratis entertain- factory progress being made with 
ment, such as the seven channels the companies, which so far have 
in New York, isu’t 1 the point — at. nixed the union's demands for a 
least hot now* Telemeter’s major wage hike and a revision of the 
concern is to weigh and resolve all minimums for the various pub-ad 
values and fully test out all bugs, categories. 

With a $350,000,000 national net- In addition to amassing the war 
work program to set up Telemeter chest, the SPG has appointed com- 
bi all top key cities, Raibourn says mittees to bontact freelancers and 
Paramount, Leserinan, et al., want advertising agencies to convince 
to really do a year-round checkup, them not to undertake work in the 
and not just one year. Summer- domain of the film pub-ad staffers, 
time reactions; ’'holiday seasonal A special group has also been 
reactions, graphs on weather in named to contact exhibitors to ex 
relation to Telemeter subscrip- plain the SPG’s fight and to gain 
tions, and all such facets, will their support in pressuring the dis- 
require a many-raonth series of tribs. SPG; feels that talks have 
appraisals. . reached the serious stage, and as a 

A trained corps of University of re sult Ihe executive board of the 
Southern California researchers u Pl on I s holding strategy meetings 
and market, analysts are constantly '*t least once a week, 
sampling- public reaction in Palm 
Springs, arid will continue, until 
that “five to seven years, or more, 
from now when we think; we’re 
really ready to go,’’ 

Raibourn makes light of certain 
exhibitor and other industry fears 
that “with the' necessity for Fed- 
eral/Communications Commission 
approval the picture, business is 
inyiting Federal film censorship 
We may be able even to so hook 
it up over, closed-circuit leased 


Housewife Matinee 


analysis of Tele- 
ated on technologi- 
cal progfe?$ /and habit-shattering 
changes that \have come to pass. 
“Look at the ' drive-ins; isn’t that 
the best answfer that people will 
pay for comfort? And if we can 
make it even more comfortable for 
them not go out into the night, 
driving, parking, babysitting, be- 
fore-or after-theatre drinking, and 
encourage stay-home audiences to 
get top quality entertainment, 
who’s going to fight it?” 

Beers and Status Quo 
He makes light of beer, razor- 
blade and kindred sponsors pre- 
ferring to maintain the. status quo 
by underwriting major sports 
events/because of the advertising, 
by mathematical calculations that 
sports promoters will get a greater 
yield for the at-home, sans com- 
mercials, projection of videoed 
events, and getting a tithe of the 
Telemeter take. Same with pic- 
tures and other televised enter- 
tainment. 

The proposition that theatre 
owners will be competing for the 
same events’ on closed-circuit tv 
hookups, as supplementary fare to 
pictures, is undisputed ■ by Rai- 
bourn. He feels there will be a 
market for both, but tolivision is 
bound to outbid the theatres, he 
observes. 

In the main, however, he is more 
and more convinced that the great 
common denominator which always 
commands a paying public — con- 
venience and comfort-— will be the 
key to subscription television. 
Naturally, he - thinks “Telemeter 
will be. the answer because it is 
the most realistic and the ; most 
. practical and closest approaches 
the theatre boxoffice in that it is 
simply a case of pay-as-you-see. 
This is. no different than going to 
the Paramount Theatre; you pay 
as you see thj? show. The other 
systems defeat that premise of 
‘convenience and comfort’ which 
I stress because it places a burden 
bn the customer. Whatever the 
technique, an IBM calibrated card, 
a punchcard. system, a metred tape, 
that means going to some depot to 
get the card add mail it in. Some 
say you can -buy it any newsstand, 
any Western Union office, but 
whatever it is,- even if it’s as sim- 
1 -e as picking up the phone, it 
can’t beat the Telemeter tech- 
nique-money in the slot and 
there you are!" 

Raibourn isn’t -writing off the 
theatregoing habit, nor does ; he 
even prophesy the ; extermination 
of conventional exhibition meth- 
ods in cinemas, deluxers or nabes, 
but he envisions that the same 
appeaj which made for the mush- 
rooming of 5,000 ozoners will cre- 
ate this vast supplementary box- 
office-in-the-parlor system. 

His prophecy is tied in wiyth 
other technological improvements, 
both on tv and on the theatre 
screens.. If in three or four years 
color television is as realistic as 
the 27,000,000 of black-and-white 
video sets in use now, the stay- 
home appeal will be increased. If 
a clear- non-commercial channel 
for special events is available at 
judicious hours it. Will cement that 
stay-home appeal. • 

Can’t Match Cinerama 
Raibourn, fft short, regards Cin- 
erama as “the. only thing, with 
which home television will be un- 
able to compete. Ail the other 
scopes, big screens, stereophonic 
: sound systems, pSeUdo-third di- 
mension techniques will be the 
same on tv; only Cinerama has a 
quality in theatre film exhibition 
vhfch Video can’t match.’’ 

if Palm Springs can get $1 • a 
head on an average of two or three 
times a week from^ stay-at-homes, 
that is a pretty good convhicer. 

Admitting that perhaps this pari 
tieular resort is an* extraordinarily 
eaptive’’ audience, because . of 
normal tv being hampered by the 
interfering San Jacinto Mts., Tele- 
meter will next invade Glendale, 


It’s . stressed that the strike fund 
assets are being deposited in a spe- 
cial fund. If a walkout is not re- 
quired, the coin Will be returned to 
the staffers with the usual bank in- 
terest added. 

Coast Pact Signed 

Hollywood, Feb.- 23. 
New working agreement be- 
tween the Publicists Guild and the J 
major film companies was formal- 


. ly signed by both parties. Contract 
lines as to bypass FCC approval or | is retroactive to last Oct. 26 and 

runs four years. 


disapproval. 

Incidentally, Raibourn footnotes 
here that the U. S. Supreme Court 
decision in the “M" and “La 
Ronde” state censorship cases “is 
the worst thing the picture busi 
ness could experience; it’s a li 
cense to every sharpshooter . to 
kick over the traces and place our 
vast, public-interested industry in 
great jeopardy." 


Pact ups senibr flacks to $210 
a week and provides for the re- 
opening of negotiations in two 
years, or at any time the cost Qf 
living in L. A. goes, up five points; 


Dent 


Continued from page 4 


REFUSE ADMISSION 
TO PROVIDENCE ZOOTS 

Providence, Feb. 23. 
Providence theatre managers 
struck back at rising vandalism in 
downtown theatres by summarily 
of outlets. Rank has told 20th refusing admission to zoot-suited 

prexy Spyros P. Skouras that he pustomers and their girl, friend? 

, , Sunday. Terming the harm that 

would. not install complete Cinema- “sharpies’’ caused more -de- 

ScQpe -units in more than 75 situa- structive to business than tele- 
tions. As in the 'U. S., 20th will vision, managers plan is described 
hot sell any British theatre not as “permanent’’ until rowdies learn 
equipped for stereophonic sound to behave themselves, 
along with the large screen. Extra police cruisers are patrol- 

Brltish producers are reluctant ling downtown streets to prevent 
to go into CinemaScope produc- retaliation by the gangs 
tion in the light, of the obviously 
limited market at home and . the . ^ 

28 Scribes Pen 26 UI Pix 
In Record Prod’n Surge 


mented that' the ; problem became 
even riiore severe With Cinema- 
Scope due to the higher cost. 

Dent, who makes between four 
and five films a year, said British 
producers were annoyed over what 
they consider is the preferential creased activity in the writing mill, 
treatment given by the British where 28 scribes one working on 26 

Board of Censors to the American sc ripts, the largest number in a 
companies. One aspect of this is 


Hollywood, Feb. 23. 
Heavy production at Universal- 
International is indicated by 


m- 


P.M* Instead of 2:30 Start For 
Cinerama 


* . Chicago, Feb; 23* 
Palace Theatre Here is experi- 
menting with a “housewives mat-, 
inee" for “Cinerama" on Fridays, 
beginning Feb. 26. Pic will go on 
at 1 p.m. instead of the usual 2:30 
as a gesture to get the hausfraus 
home in time to prepare dinner. 
Managers* of legit houses are 
watching the experiment with in? 
terest. . 

Early hour showing is result of a 
published letter to the editors of 
or.e of Chi’s dailies, wherein the 
writer evinced a need for the ad- 
vanced curtain. 





the fact that the Americans don’t 
submit their scripts in advance 
to the British censor whereas most 
British producers do. Another in- 
volves the impression that the Brit- 
ish censor is a good deal more 


year. 

Writers and their scripts are: 
Herbert Baker, “Spring Song"; D. 
D. Beauchamp, “Man Without a^ 
Star"; Robert Blees, “Tacey Crom- 
well"; Oscar Brodney and Patrick 


lenient With American imports Ford, Lady Godiva of Coventry : 
than he is with local product. Syd Boejim, “They Stole $2,500, - 
“I have heard it said quite open- 000"; Borden Chase, ‘Pillars of the 
by a prominent British producer Sky’’; Roy Buffum, “Song of Bali"; 


ly by a prominent 
that, had he made ‘From Here To 
Eternity,’, it would have never got- 1 
ten an/*A’ certificate, but he would 
have been stuck with the restricted 
‘X’ rating," Dent said. He submits 


W. R. Burnett, “The Outer Dark- 
ness." 

Franklin Coen, “Two Faces 
West"; William Danch and Devery 
Freeman, “Francis Joins the 


his own. productions to the Pro-f WACS"; Gil Doud, “To Hell and 
duction Code, office in Hollywood Back"; Harry Essex, “1980”; 
for approval “unless they’re abso- Charles Hoffman, “Three Gobs in 
lutely: safe” • ; , • Paris"; Russell Hughes, “Nevada 

While in the U.S.„ Dent intends Gold"; Peggy Fenwick, "“Misslssip- 
to buy pix for distribution in Brit- p j Landing"; Ketti Frings, “Fox- 
airi and also to sell some of his flre ». jack Leonard, '‘Plains of the 
own. His .“Intimate Relations Mohawk"* T ■ ■*« 
opened last week; (20) in N. Y; Europe." 

^en^^r^f^dubbbd 1 fQms Jfrohi James Moser, “Fort Starvation"; 

abrSod r Sse'“ySu^ ^n? put Eng- 
lish voices ohto foreign tempera- 

ments." Theatre biz in Britain was Lawrence Roman, The Tight 
up, he said, adding: “We think it 
may well be so because our tele- 
vision programs are so bad." Brit- 
ain now has approximately 2*000,- 
000 tv sets. 


FOR 
ON B1AY 


Broadway is becoming a week- 
end business proposition as far as 
first-run theatres are concerned. 
Most N, Y. deluxe theatre managers 
feel that it is more or less a tem- 
porary situation. They point out 
that it has happened before, and 
always has reverted back to a nor- 
mal setup when the alignment of 
patronage has been adjusted. : 

Many exhibitors see the current 
setup* with N. Y. dqbbed a week- 
end cinema town, as stemming 
from several factors. It was made 
glaringly apparent that such a sit- 
uation existed early this month 
because the bulk of big first-run 
houses had overly-extended long- 
runs. For a time, many theatres 
had product that had been 
launched around Christmas time. 
The films had been held over re- 
peatedly so that exhibs could 
bring in their new fare for the 
two February holidays. Feb. 12, 
and Washington’s Birthday (last 
Monday). 

. Another factor, aside from so 
many venerable longruns, was the 
severe cold and stormy conditions 
iii January which kept many at 
home. 

Despite the: very apparent situa- 
tion when Broadway first-runs do 
the bulk of their business Satur 
day-Sunday, and then flounder 
through the weekdays, most vet 
managers feel that it is a cycle. 
And one which will disappear When 
some semblance of normalcy is re- 
stored. 

, * * 

By more normal conditions, N.Y. 
exhibitors cite the trend towards 
many stores establishing big 
branch stores in outlying Greater 
N. Y. areas. This keeps many shop- 
pers away from Broadway . except- 
ing for weekends. This tendency, 
too, is accentuated by the fact that 
it is more costly to make a junket 
to midtown New York City than 
formerly. Where a bus ride and 
the subway is needed to get to 
Broadway, this represents 60c out- 
lay per person. 

Normally, Broadway first-runs 
ha$e been able to maintain 
healthy pace on weekdays, which 
added to the sharp upbeats on the 
weekends has kept most houses 
in good shape. It is the recent 
sh§rp slumps on weekdays that 
have perplexed many managers. 
However, the film houses have 
been through the “weekend town’,’ 
phase before, with the normal sta- 
tus always returning. Perhaps the 
most drastic of recent switches to 
a weekend operation occurred" dur- 
ing th£ World’s Fair when it re 
quired record out-of-town crowds 
to cheer Broadway operators 
These came on the weekends. On 
Other days, it was rather dismal. 


To overcome the “cautious rcs»> 
ervations" of municipal officials 
regarding the safety of acetate film 
currently in use, the Eastman? 
Kodak Co. in cooperation with the 
Metropolitan Motion Picture The- 
atres Assn. (N. Y.) invited a group 
of New York City authorities, ex- 
hibitors, and reps of distribs and 
tv companies to . its Rochester, 
N. Y., plant to witness a see-for- 
yourself demonstration. 

Visitors spent a full day at the 
Eastman plant last Thursday (18) 
and saw a series of nine tests 
which,, according . to ^Emanuel 
Frisch, MMPTA proxy, ‘‘left no 
room for doubt as to the safety of 
acetate film.” Frisch declared that 
the natural result of the demon- 
stration would be^an attempt to 
obtain lower insurance rates for 
theatres. D. John Phillips, execu- 
tive direc/or of MMPTA. said a 
report of the: tests Would he mad* 
and that he hoped that it would 
find its way to the fire insurance 
rating companies, In addition, 
MMPTA, as a result of the tests* 
hopes to gain additional conces- 
sions from the city, particularly 
in relation to the amount of film 
that may be stored in projection 
booths. This problem became acute 
during the introduction of 3-D 
films which required Oversized 
reeis. At that time theatres suc- 
ceeded in obtaining some rcvisioni 
in the administrative code of New 
York City to allow for the. larger 
reels. . 

No Nitrate Since '50 
According to Frisch, Eastman- 
Kodak had. completely discon- 
tinued the manufacture of flam- 
mable nitrate film in the U. S. in 
1950 and in its plants abroad two 
years ago. The tests at Rochester, 
he said, proved beyond doubt that 
it is difficult to ignite acetate film. 
In one test, he reported, nitrate 
and acetate film were interwoven 
and ignited. While the nitrate loot- 
age was burned to ashes, he said 
the acetate film was good enough 
to reprint. Frisch also noted that 
acetate film is completely lacking 
in toxic fumes. 

City officials who witnessed tho 
demonstration included Comm. 
Arthur C. Ford and Deputy Comm, 
Nicholas J. Kelly, Dept, of Water 
Supply, Gas and Electricity; ComiW. 
Edwin W. Kleinert, Board oi 
Standards and Appeals; Comm. 
Edward T. McCaffrey, Dept, of Li- 
censes; chemical engineer Vincent 
Matties, representing Fire Comm. 
Edward F. Cavanagh jr.; Lt. E. J. 
Holdsworth, representing Deputy 
Chief Arthur J. Massct, in charge 
of Divisions of Fire Prevention 
and Combustibles, and Deputy 
Chief Edward Connors, member 
of the Board of Standards and Ap- 
peals, 


Squeeze"; Jack ' Sher, “The Gal- 
ileans"; Guy Trosper, “Dolly Hes- 
sian";. George Van Marter, “Shad 


Andre Previn Batoiis Derby 

Hollywood, Feb. 23. 

Mitchell Leisen, general director 
of the 26th annual Oscar Derby 
appointed Andre Previn musica 
director of «the show. Event, wil 
take place March 25 at the Hoiiy- 
wood Pantages theatre. 

Bobby Heifer, also a Metro musi 


PROPOSED N Y. LAW 
RE FILM ‘INSPECTION’ 

Albany; Feb. 23. 

An amendment to the New York 
City administrative code which 
would prohibit the bringing Into a 
projection booth of “any film 
which has not been inspected and 
repaired and bears evidence of 
such inspection and repair, imme- 
diately prior to its shipment for 
projection purposes" is proposed 
in a bill introduced by Senator 
Mario M. DeOptatis, Brooklyn 
Democrat. 

- Its effective date would be 
July 1. 


20th's Upcotners 

Six C-Scone Plus Six Standard Pix 
Set for Release 


ow Valley"; George Zuckerfqan, /cal staffer, will function as orches- 
“Chief Crazyhorse." 1 tra manager. 


Even split of CinemaScope and 
standard pix is represented by the 
12 features 20th-Fox has set for re- 
lease between February and June. 
Five-months period also will see 
nine CinemaScope shorts go into 
release. 

Of the six CinemaScope and six 
standard pix on the 20th release 
sked, all but one are in color. 

20th’s ‘ ’New Faces" goes into the 
Roxy Theatre, N.Y., Feb. 19, re- 
placing “Hell and High Water" af- 
ter a comparatively short three- 
week tenure. Following “New 
Faces" the house will play “Night 
People." “Prince Valiant " also a 
20th CinemaScoper, is the Easter 
booking. 


Wednesday February 24, 1954 



WATCH FOR MIAMI AREA SATURATION 









. jywsiztK, lonoom oFFict 

• ft. Mart Hi's Plan, Tnfiliir Squin 


PfiStlETr 


INTERNATIONAL 


IS 



Of O.S., Brit, Product; Slow Turnover 


Sydney, Feb. 16. 

Independent exhibitors in the 
Aussie zone jure presently forecast* 
ing a product shortage as top Hol- 
lywood and British films hit unpre- 
cedented lohgruns in the key spots 
here; Suburban exhibs are ah 
ready ^worried regarding the slow 
product turnover from the keyers 
to the suburbs. 

Over the last six months,, for ex- 
ample,* only ^three films have played 
at Greater- Union Theatres' 2,600- 
seat State here. These were 
“Queen Is Crowned” (Rank), 
“Here to Eternity” (Col) and 
“Cruel Sea". (Rank), Terrific click 
here of CinemaScope, with “Robe” 
(20th), ip ninth week at Hoyts’ Re- 
gent and “How to Marry Million- 
aire” (20th) at same loop’s Plaza 
in third week, probably will keep 
these films out of the suburbs un- 
til the indies quit their fence-sit- 
ting on C’Scope equipment buys. 

Indicative of the buoyant biz in 
Aussie (interrupted only by the 
visit of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth 
II) is the smash hit chalked up by 
Universal’s “Walking My . Baby 
Back Home,” currently in its 
seventh week at Greater Union 
Theatres’ Lyceum, and same 
chain-s 920-seater Odeon, Mel- 
bourne, now, playing Columbia’s 
“Red Beret,” in eighth week. 

Metro? with its own suburban 
circuit as well as keyers, spots top 
product on a day-and-date policy, 
This policy is irksome to indies 
who aver that by the time a Metro 
film goes out on general release 
it has had the “guts” played out of 
it. Paramount, with own shOwwin- 
dows in the top Aussie keys, is an- 
other distributor . doing solid biz 
with good product, likewise mean- 
ing that theae’s less pix for the 
suburbs. United Artists hit the 
jackpot here with “Moon Is Blue,” 
currently in ninth' week for Hoyts 
at the Plaza, Sydney. 

Norman B. Rydge, chairman of 
Greater Union, arid Ernest Turn- 
bull, chief of Hoyts' loop, predict 
that this year will be a powerful 
one from a boxoffice viewpoint via 
the outstanding product coming 
from Hollywood, and British stu- 
dios; Both toppers forecast key 
cinemas . taking out additional 
weeks of playing time right over 
the 1954 span. 


r. 


British Yeast Heir Rises 




in 

London, Feb. 16. 

James P. Sherwood has acquired" 
Warren Chetham-Strode’s latest 
play, “Silver and Golcf,” which 
was tried . out for a week at the 
Connaught Theatre, Worthing. J. 
Arthur Rank Organization is al- 
ready bidding for the film rights. 

Sherwood, whose family amassed 
a fortune in yeast, has been dab- 
bling in show biz, mostly touring 
West End musical hits, and has 
risen suddenly with Frederick 
Knott’s London arid Broadway 
smash, “Dial M For Murder.” * 

He has also acquired "Guy Bol- 
ton’s latest play, “Guardian An- 
gel,” for the West End.. Play goes 
into rehearsal. March 8, with Rich- 
ard Bird directing, and opens out 
of town, at the Theatre Royal, 
Brighton, March 29, prior to com- 
ing to the West End. 

Sherwood also has lease of Wav- 
erly Market, Edinburgh, where he 
stages annual Christmas circus. 


Wtster Damage Closes 

Paris Moulin Rouge 

Paris, Feb. 16. 

The big Moulin Rouge . cabaret 
n Pigalle will be closed - for two 
months because of damages suf- 
fered .when a water main burst, 
after a sudden thaw and flooded 
the house. Damage is estimated 
at about $900,000. 

Shuttering will put 120 workers 
out of employment and throw off 
all the contracts of this big vaudery 
>vhich had a top variety bill every 
two . weeks With two headliners, 
supporting acts and a cancan 
chorus. Jo France? the owner, says 
work will be pushed ahead as 
rapidly as possible to get the nitery 
open again. 




Running Others’ Notices 


London, Feb. 16. 

Actor Michael Redgrave and 
critic Harold Hobson have been 
taking potshots at each other in 
the correspondence columns of the 
Sunday Times. Redgrave an- 
swered the critic’s adverse notice 
on the Paris production of “Antony 
and Cleopatra” by accusing him of 
sitting at home and picking up a 
few of the French reviews “and, 
throwing these over his shoulder to 
conceal the absence of his tracks, 
leaps to his conclusions.” He also 
refers to “wellrmetlted unfair- 
ness?,” and suggests that he quoted 
the only bad notice of his perforrii 
ance. 

Hitting back, Hobson asks 
whether Redgrave will never learn 
to let sleeping dogs lie. He denies 
that he’d quoted the only bad 
notice and refers to another which 
said “the- odd thing is that Michael 
Redgrave,, the single player in the 
company considered by the press 
to have a reputation, is the least 
good actor of the lot.” 



Vienna, Feb. 16. 

With the exception of the Rios- 
enhuegel studios (Russian), where 
the biopic, “Alexander Girardi, 
(he was a noted famous . comedian 
around the turn of the century), is 
being shot, all studios here are 
closed down. And It seems they 
will remain shuttered for . quite a 
while. Desperate efforts by govern- 
ment and producers to get work 
started again have, been in vain so 
far. The two . state-owned banks 
have given the producers a cold 
shoulder. 

West German distribs recently 
.were blamed for the trouble. It is 
reported here that they refused to 
grant credits on pix made in Sie- 
vering, Grinzing and Schoenbtunn. 
Besides, the stars want “-D” marks 
instead of Schilling, arid the na- 
tional banks , won’t allow this. 

Various plans of American pro- 
ducers have been shelved, Hardly 
a week passes that at least one U.S. 
exec does not give interviews to 
the local press saying he plkns to 
produce. Inquiries at the hotel a 
few days later by Variety always 
reveals that the would-be producer 
has returned to the U.S. . 


RYDGE HEADS FOR U.S., 
LONDON LATE IN FEB. 

• Sydney, Feb. 16. 
Norman B, Rydge, board . chair 
rrian of Greater Union Theatres, 
leaves for the U. S. and London at 
the end of this month. Rydge will 
looksee latest cinema trends 
abroad, and also will huddle with 
J. Arthur Rank and John Davis. 
Rank holds a 50% interest in GUT 
Boxoffice has been buoyant right 
around the GU-circuit with, both 
British and Yankee pix. Greater 
Union topper also will probe Cin 
emaScope more fully during his 
U. S. visit, plus other new boxoffice 
lures for Aussie patrons. 



Unload Suburban Spot 

London, Feb. 23. 

The Stoll theatre group is nego- 
tiating the sale of the Hackney Em- 
pire, one of the three London sub- 
urban vaude theatres under its con? 
trol. The’ group recently disposed 
of the . Shepherd’s Bush Empire to 
the British Broadcasting Corp, as a 
tele theatre. ’ 

Reports have been current here 
that the circuit was disposing of 
its three London suburban thea- 
tres, but this apparently is without 
foundation. An offer had been 
made for the takeover of the Wood 
Green Empire, but was rejected by 
the company. 


in Gate 
To Form New Group 

Dublin, Feb. 16. 

Bowouts from Dublin Gate The- 
atre Co., due to take place after 
season ends with tour in March 
are preliminary to formation o 
new group, to be known as Dublin 
Globe Theatre. 

First directors in new outfit wil 
be thespers Jack McGowran* Den 
his Brennan and Godfrey Quigley 
and Michael O’Herlihy (brother o 
filmactor Dari O’Herlihy), : who is 
the Gate’s scenic designer. He wil 
design and produce for the Globe 
company, which opens at Cork 
Opera House April 26 with Ladis 
las Fodor’s “The Vigil.” Two other 
plays, as yet undecided, will go in 
to . rehearsal for subsequent short 
tour. 

Directors of Globe are all well 
known, with McGowran also 
known in British films. Quigley re- 
cently returned from U. S. after 
TV stints. 



London, Feb. 23. 

If the recent negotiations here 
could be put into story form, they 
might justify the title - “There’s 
Drama in Cinerama,” for the hush- 
hush confabs that were initiated 
by Joseph Bernhard during his re- 
cent European stint, arid which 
ended up in something of a tussle 
between two brothers. On the one 
side there was Prince Littler with 
the giant Stoll Theatre, and, on the 
other, his brother, Emile, (partner- 
ed by Tom Arnold) extolQng the 
London Casino as a potentfln show- 
case for the new screen medium. 

The negotiations have yet to be 
finalized but well-informed trade in- 
siders. are overwhelmingly of the 
opinion that they will end -in a vic- 
tory for Littler .'and Arnold, al- 
though it may be many months be- 
fore their theatre becomes vacant. 
Also that it may take tin\e to make 
the necessary conversion to accom- 
modate the three screens and three 
projection booths required for Cin- 
erama. 

The current tenant of the Cas- 
ino is Jack Hylton, who is present- 
ing the British version of “Wish 
You Were Here,” with an all-Brit- 
ish cast, The musical has been run- 
ning since last October and may 
stay on for several months. 

The forecast that Prince Littler 
was out of the running for the 
Cinerama deal was given added 
credence when it became known 
that Hylton has a deal on with the 
Stoll to stage his Italian importa- 
tion of the Bergman-Rossellini op- 
eratic production of “Joan of Arc,” 
currently a smash in Italy. 

Prior to his return to N.Y., Bern- 
hard intimated that he hoped to 
return here soon to conclude ne- 
gotiations. In the interim, it is un- 
derstood, Sir David E. Griffiths is 
repping Cinerama interests in the 
negotiations. 




Poster of Dietrich Gams 


Rome, Feb. 16, 

While Marlene Dietrich was 
shocking Las Vegas nightclubbers 
with a flimsy gown which accentu- 
ated the upper part of her torso, 
in Italy her shapely, . silk-encased 
gams oh a billboard poster were 
enough to start the locals gaping 
and gasping to such an extent that 
the law had to step in. The offend- 
ing poster which police tried to 
suppress as indecent on the com- 
plaint of an outraged citizen, illus- 
trated Dietrich in the film that 
made her fapious, “The Blue An- 
gel,” which was making the rounds 
again in Tuscany. 

The story goes back to last No- 
vember when Carlo Laberti of the 
city of Foligno complained to the 
law that a poster showing Marlene 
and her /legs was indecent. The 
police tried to suppress the poster 
and the case went to court. 
Florence courts have just ruled 
that the poster is okay and no more 
indecent than any average illus- 
trated newspaper or film magazine. 
Marlene and her limbs, conse- 
quently, are now back in circula- 
tion in Tuscany. 





‘Wind,’ ’Roman’ Top 
Pix in Berlin; German 
Films Still Dominate 

Berlin, Feh. 16.' 

German pix are maintaining 
their dominating role here. Six of 
the 13 big West Berlin preem 
houses currently are showing do- 
mestic features while four are 
playing U. S. films. Two others 
have pix of French origin and one 
is Swedish. 

“Gone With Wyid” (M-G) still is 
packing them for a third month at 
the Kurbel while “Roman Holiday” 
(Par) continues a high grosser at 
the Astor in its sixth week. Both 
are considered must-see films by 
the public. Of the two French pix 
currently running here, “Adorables 
Creatures” is in its eighth week at 
the Cinema Paris. 

“The Last Bridge,” a Columbia 
release of a (German) Cosmopol 
production, was preerried at Film- 
buchrie Wien and received excep- 
tionally fine press appraisal. This 
German film, which was made in 
association with a Yugoslavian out- 
fit, stars Maria Schell. 

Production activity is still brisk 
here. Capitol started shooting 
“Maedchen mit Zukunft,” directed 
by Thomas Engel. CCC will start 
shortly with “My Sister and I,” 


Buenos Aires, Feb. 23. 

Labor Ministry has announced 
that the obligatory vaudeville in 
film-theatres law will start operat- 
ing in March. This caught the en- 
tertainment industry unawares and 
aroused such a squawk that the 
start may be postponed until the 
end of March. \ 

Exhibitors, especially those in 
nabe districts? are at their wits’ 
end about where to find the talent 
to put on their stages. They are al- 
ready ■ in financial difficulties 
caused by the low admission scales 
for film performances, and many 
are unable to renew or repair 
projection equipment. Because of 
this sound is often inaudible and 
exhibition subject to frequent in- 
terruptions. Of course, this only 
encourages patrons to patronize the 
bigger first-runs. 

Power supplies, even in Buenos 
Aires itself, are so erratic, that 
projection, refrigeration and light- 
ing equipment suffer from fre 
quent changes in voltage. Some- 
times in damp weather' periods, 
power supplies are cut off and ex- 
hibition has to be Suspended. 

One circuit not bothered by the 
Vaudeville Law is Lococo’s, which 
opens the Folies Bergere Show 
from Paris on March 26 at the de 
luxe Opera. The circuit also has 
set the Marquis de Cuevas Ballet 
to follow. 


Other Foreign News 
On Page 16 


SCOT PIC PRODUCTION 
TO START UP AGAIN 

Glasgow, Feb. 16. 

Production of films is to start up 
again in Scotland. Newly-formed 
Films of Scotland Committee is 
headed by Sir Alexander King, 
cinema magnate, and members in- 
clude Robert Clark, head of Associ- 
ated British Pictures Corp. at Els- 
tree, Eng. 

' Others backing the group include 
Dr. John Grierson, documentary 
producer; Neil .Paterson, author of 
“Mari; on a Tightrope” and “The 
Kidnappers” and George Singleton, 
leading cinema exhib. 

• Sir Alexander told Variety: “A 
large number of interests competi- 
tive with Scotland are producing 
films, and are introducing them- 
selves to potential customers in the 
United States, Canada arid through- 
out the Dominions. The, impor- 
tance of this new world market to 
Scottish prosperity is increased by 
; the advent of television, which now 
i takes the film into millions of 
i homes throughout the world.” 


London, Feb. 16. 

There are still signs of pros- . 
perit? in West End first-run situ- 
ations, even though grosses ‘are 
not as spectacular currently as a 
few weeks back. . The Industry is 
surprised, however/ that, at a time 
when the legit theatre has taken, 
a serious nosedive, receipts in pic- 
ture houses have held at above 
average level. 

The best recent results were 
achieved by holdovers. The Leices- 
ter Square’s “Glenn Miller Story” 
(U) held at a sock $10,000 in its 
third frame, while the London Pa- 
vilion’s “Moqn Is Blue” (UA) fin- 
ished its sixth round with a great 
$8,700.. 

“How to Marry a Millionaire,” . 
only C’Soopcr current, at the 
Odeon, Marble Arch, looks fine 
$9,000 in its fifth session. 

Among the newcomers, “Calami- 
ty Jarie” (\VB) finished Its first 
frame at the Warner with a sturdy 
$9,000, but “They Who Dare” (BL) 
was below expectations with a fair 
$5,500 af the Carlton. Recent 
British entries Into the West End 
scene have disappointed. Both 
“Love Lottery” at the Gaumont 
and “You Know What Sailors Are” 
at the Odeon, . Leicester Square 
were not even rated okay. 

Estimates for Last Week 

Carlton (Par) (1.128; 55-$1.70)— . 
“They Who Dare” (BL) (2d wk). 
Delow. hopes at moderate $4,80.0, 
after disappointing $5,500 opening 
week. Stays another round. • 

Empire (M-G) (3,099; 55-$1.70)-- 
“Weak and Wicked” (ABP) (2d 
wk). Average $10,500 after open- 
ing round landed $12,000, stays 
until Feb. 22, when Metro opens 
its festival screenings with a pro- 
grain change each night for a 
week. 

Gaumont (CMA) (1,500; 50-$1.70) 
— “Love Lottery” (GFD) (3d wk). 
Poor $2,800 after $3,300 in second 
frame. “Star of India” (Eros) 
opens Feb. 18. 

Leicester Square Theatre (CMA) 
(1.753; 50-$1.70)— “Glenn Miller 

Story” (U) (3d wk). Keeps in the 
sock money with $10,000 after 
smash $10,400 previous round. 
“Should Happen to You” (Col) 
opens Feb. 18. 

London Pavilion (UA) (1,217; 50- 
$1.70). “Moon Is Blue” (UA) (6th 
wk). Great $8,700. Stays on. 

Odeon, Leicester Square (CM A ) 
(2.200; 50-$ 1.70)— -“You Know What 
Sailors Arc” (GFD). Heading for 
fair $7,800. •- 

Odeon, Marble Arch (CMA) (2,- 
200; 50-$1.70). “Millionaire”, (20th) 
(5th wk)! Still in money with fine 
$9,000 after $9,500 for fourth 
frame. Stays a sixth week. 

Plaza (Par) (1.092; 70-$1.70)— 
“Cease Fire” (Par) and “Lost 
Treasure of Amazon” (Par). Steady 
$7,600. "Hobson’s Choice” (BL) , 
opens Feb. 26. 

Ritz (M-G) (432; 30-$2.l5)— 

"Julius Caesar” (M-G) (2d wk). 
Looks big $2,900 after $3,3,00 
opener. Here after 13 weeks at 
Carlton. 

Otialto (LFP)— (592; 50-$1.30)— 
“Arena” (M-G) (4th-final wk). 
Down to $2,000 after $2,300 in mild 
third frame. “Manon des Sources” 
(Indie). Opens Feb. 19 . ' 

Warner (WB) (1,735); 50-$1.70)— ’ 
“Calamity Jane” (WB) (2d wk). 
Helped by favorable press. Hold- 
| ing at nice $7,800 after $9,000 in 
first week. Stays a third round. 


Another British Film 


Carlisle, Eng., Feb, 16. . 

Vaude bills are being tried out 
at the Lonsdale Theatre, leading 
northwest England cinema, owned 
| by the Associated British Cinemas. 

• Twice-nightly program is star- 
i ring new recording singer David 
I Whitfield with comedian Boriar 
| Colleano, and features Wilson, 

I Keppel & Betty, Fred Lovclle and 
: Richman & Jackson. 

; Innovation is proving strong 
rival to adjacent Her Majesty’s 
Theatre, which also offers vaude 
► and musical shows. Experiment is 
likely to be repeated after more 
weeks of films, for which house is 
l primarily intended. 


INTERNATIONAL 


'VAHIITY'*' LONDON 0FFIC1 
• st. Mirtln'i flaco, Trafalgar Square 


See New BOT Formula Eliminating 



London, Feb. 16. ♦* 

The Board of Trade has adopted 
a new formula which, to all intents 
and purposes, eliminates the like- 
lihood of future prosecution of ex- 
hibitors for quota : default. The 
plan, is receiving the full hush- 
hush treatment and members of 
the industry, who have been ad- 
vised of its . contents, have been 
. sworn .to; secrecy. 

The industry received its first 
intimation of the new formula 
when British producing interests 
began to inquire why there were 
no prosecutions arising from the 
700 quota defaults in the 1952-53 
period. The plan was then ex- 
plained as one which allows a -sub- 
stantial margin of default. 

Although the quota is basically 
set at 30%, theatres in competitive 
positions are accorded relief; the 
extent of which i* governed by 
their booking position. All the 
major circuits have to fulfill the 
complete 30% without relief, but 
for independents, where there is 
not total exemption, the quota may 
be as low as 10%. 

Under a hew points plan devised 
by the Board of Trade, prosecu- 
• tions will not be instituted against 
exhibitors with a 30% quota if 
their fulfillment figure is 20% or 
above. Likewise, theatres with a 
20% quota will have no official 
action if they satisfy a quota of 
10% and upwards. 

The scheme is known officially 
as the 10 Points Relief Formula, 
and by ordinary, simple arithmetic,: 
eliminates all prospect of prosecu- 
tion for exhibitors whose quota is 
set at 10%. 


‘3d Man Theme 

Encounters Sour Note 

Vienna,' Feb. 16. ; 
.* Anton Karas, zitherplayer and 
composer of the . “Third Mari 
Theme 0 and recently a winegarden 
Owner in Sievering, encounters 
great difficulties in running his 
biz. ' 

After the city granted him a li- 
cense, he opened up. But his 
license was revoked a few months 
later by the Chamber of Commerce 
on the grounds that there are suf- 
ficient winegardens there already. 
Karas is taking the matter to the 
Supreme Court. 

Brit Film Attendance 
Ahead of ’38 But Tax 
Hurts, Sez Scot 


Yanks Doing Mex Prod. 
Avoid 15% Added Tax 

Mexico "City, Feb. 16, 
Americans who make pix in 
Mexico are benefitted along with 
others who export films by the 
exemption of cinematographic pix 
from the additional 15% "ad va- 
lorem tax on. exports. The govern- 
ment has ordered this tax for a 
variety of natural and manufac- 
tured products as a means of hypo- 
ing foreign ‘‘trade and bringing 
home more coin* particularly dol- 
lars. 



on 





asts 


Shifts in Theatre Use Accent 



IN MOSCOW, LENINGRAD 

Paris, Feb. 16. 

Meeting this week between 
Pierre Descaves, administrator of 
the Comedie Francaise and gov- 
ernmental. arid cultural reps, of- 
ficially confirmed that the Com- 
edic Francaise would give 20 the- 
atrical presentations in Moscow 
April 7-18, and in Leningrad April 
21-25. This is the first French legit 
foray to Russia since prewar days. 

Moscow Will have 14 presenta- 
tions with Moliere’s “Tartuffe,” 
“Hommage A Moliere” and “Le 
Bburgcise Gentilhomme,” Pierre 
Corneille’s “Le Cid” and Jules 
Renard’s “Foil De Carotte” as part 
Of the rep. Leningrad will have six 
showings of “Bourgois Gentil- 
homme.” 

This might well be the begin- 
ning of a more liberal exchange 
of cultural and show' biz items be- 
tween France, and Russia. Rus- 
sia l>as already agreed to ap 
pear at the Cannes Film Fest in 
March and. a tour of the Moscow 
Ballet is again in the offing. This 
was broached last year but never 
came off. The recent tour of a 
group' of specialized Russo musical 
and pantomime artists here did ex- 
tremely well, and a sojourn of the 
Moscow Ballet would - probably 
break b.o. records at the Opera, 
where it is to be housed, if it goes 
through. 


Glasgow. Feb. 16. 

George Gilchrist, new prexy of 
the Scottish Cinematograph Exhib- 
itors Assn., aimed what he called 
a “back-handed swipe” at woeful 
weepers in the cinema industry at 
the. annual confab of exhibs here. 

“We have had a stomachful of- 
defeat, talk,” he said. “It must stop. 
The facts show that we can be 
soberly optimistic about the future 
of this industry.” 

Admissions today Were running 
at over 25,000,000 per week in Brit- 
ain, he said. In 1938, with tv still a 
toy, they amounted to only 23,000,- 
000 a week. The snag was the en- 
tertainment tax; in prewar days it 
was only 16% and now it is about 
40%. 

. This injustice:, said Gilchrist, the 
British Chancellor must put right 
in his next budget. 

But he warned that the happy 
days when a cinema manager had 
only to open- the front doors and 
get out of the way of the charging 
patrons had gone. 

"Now, like almost every other 
industry, if we want any business, 
we have to go out and find it,” he 
stated.* “Fortunately; we in the cin- 
ema business can rejoice that the 
25-year lull in research and plan- 
ning is over, and that riew techr. 
niques and ideas are being devel- 
oped.” 

The exhib said much gloom cur- 
rently circulating in Great Britain 
was inspired by the supposed con- 
dition of the industry in the U. S. 
For example, they had Sir Alexan- 
der Korda writing a few weeks be- 
fore that 6,000 cinemas had closed 
in America. But he had left it at 
that. To give a truer picture, he 
should have added that they had 
been largely replaced by riew 
houses and some 4,000 new drive- 
ins. 


London, Feb, 16. 

Overtures from the BBC to the 
British picture industry, seeking 
greater cooperation between ty 
and films, are meeting with little 
response from the trade. The four 
major associations have agreed on 
a policy of only restricted co- 
operation. 

At the same time they have im-. 
posed a definite ban on direct tele- 
casts of film preems, mainly, at the 
request of exhibitors whose rer 
search shows that these events, 
advertised in advance, had a detri- 
mental effect ori boxoffice receipts. 

Little progress has been made 
by the BBC in its search for more 
films to bolster to programs. It 
had hoped that the “Current Re- 
lease” feature, which ran for more 
than a year as a fortnightly pro- 
gram boosting the latest product, 
would^ye the way for freer chan- 
nelling nf screen material. 

But the industry is more ada- 
mant than ever, and now has is- 
sued an edict that future programs 
supplied to the BBC .should be 
restricted to half-an-hour, with not 
more than three excerpts from 
current product. 


2131). S. Films Offered 
Germany in Current Year 

’ Berlin, Feb. 16. 

According to statistics revealed 
by SPIO, top organization of the 
West Germaa film industry, 510 
feature films have been offered for 
the 1953-54 season via their dis- 
tributors up to. the first of Janu- 
ary. U. S. heads the list With 213 
productions followed by Germany 
with 133 pix and Frarice with 60. 
Italy has 49 and Great Britain 15. 

It's expected that about 20 more 
films will be imported during the 
second half, making 530 pix for the 
^fhole season. 

Over 279 films (55%) of the total 
already have been released in West 
Germany up until the end of 1953, 
of which 132 were American. 

Commies toDo Rewrite 
Of ‘Don Giovanni’ 

1954; Peasant as 


Vienna, Feb. 16. 

A “progressive” version of Mo- 
zart’s “Don Giovanni” is announced 
by the Commie press as part of the 
1954 program of the Russian- 
operated portion of Wien Film. The 
Soviet studios are located at Rosen- 
hugel, on \ the city’s ‘outskirts, and 
Were seized as “German assets” 
while other, studios in western sec- 
tors are operated, also under Wien 
Film name, by the Austrian State. 

In the 1954 project, the Spanish 
amorists role is to be subordinated, 
to a minor part, with more em- 


phasis, on the character of Masetto, 
A Dart from • the naftiral rplnr- the peasant;- who is to have hti- 
tance of the industry to facilitate dignity, an active worid out- 

television’s direct opposition to l°°k, tt courage an ^ . noble-minded- 
cinemas, the industry takes the !! e . ss ‘ D f n / U i? n ’ him?e K’ 
view that the main function of stripped of ^is *ho m +rnp C cn/Htuai 
BBC’s tele setup is to encourage and .exposed in the true spiritual 
live entertainment, and not rely emptiness and vanity of the noble- 
on filmed programs. man. 

Script writers Ernst Henthaler 
arid Herbert Kolm-Veltee sa> their 
Ajgfacolor "Don Juan” will “have 
a realistic foundation, more dy- 
namic and rapturous than the origi- 
nal.” It will refrain from “idealiz- 
ing the hero of erotic adventures.” 
Composer , Alfred Uhl has under-, 
taken the job of adapting the Mo- 
zart score. 


Paris, Feb. 16. 

Theatre shifts from one category 
of show biz to another are taking 
place here arid seem to be indicat- 
ing the status of legit* pix and 
music-hall. In the general change- 
overs films seem to be getting the 
worst of it with three of the big- 
gest firstrun and nabe houses 
changing over to music-halls arid 
even tp a department store. In 
some . offbeat , cases* niteries have 
hied over to legit. As it stands, 
legit has gained, music-hall has 
forged ahead . and niteries have giv- 
en ground during this time for a 
different face status. 

The big nabe pic house, Mozart 
Pathe, seating about 2,000, has giv- 
en way and will become a depart- 
ment store. This points up the 
W-k. fact here that pix have lost 
patronage ’since the war. Biz is 
held up by tab increases but the 
wary French are shopping for their 
pix. The big! firstrun house, the 
Alhambra, ^yhich has had pix and 
supporting stage shows, will soon 
become primarily a music-hall, and 
the immense Olympia, /which has 
been a ' firstrun filmhouse for 15 
years now; goes back to music-hall 
this week under the aegis of Ray 
Ventura an<J Bruno Coquatrix. 

The Rocheouchouart-Pathe has 
become a newly-furbished legit 
house, the Theatre Des Arts, and 
opens soon with a transcription of 
Anita Loos’ adaptation of the 
Colette novel, “Gigi.” Two, niteries, 
the Romance, a Pigalle flesherie, 
and Chez Agnes. Capri, become in- 
time legit houses. Also on the block 
is the big nabe house, The Pigalle, 
whose fate is as yet uncertain. No 
new pic houses have opened since 
the war, but many got facelifting 
jobs which are still going on in 
many houses, 


With No Pix Skedded, 

Its Brit. 



British Outdoor Acts' ' 
New Agency Revenue 

«. London, Feb. 16. 

New source of revenue for the 
booking of acts has been tapped by 
Lew & Leslie Grade and is bring- 
ing in very healthy revenue. This 
is a series of talent bookings for 
fairs, agricultural shows, exposi- 
tions, horticultural shows, sports 
arenas, local corporation parks, po- 
litical rallys and seaside shows. 

Mostly comprising sight acts 
such as slackwire, dog acts, jug- 
glers, and motorcycling, they’re in 
great demand for the months of 
June, July and August. The ad- 
vantage of such bookings is that 
these are the lean months for iri- 
door entertainment when many of 
these acts probably ^vould have to 
lay off. 

; The Grade agency sold around 
$30,000 worth of acts last year, and 
already has sonic $15,000 bookings 
in advance for this year, Besides 
some of the major agents handling 
this , type of biz, Jimmy Quin’s, 
agency (backed by English comic 
Bud Flanagan) also is bidding for 
this new trade. 


Brit. Indie to Spend 

$2,8Q0,00Q on 6 Films 

: London, Feb. 16. 

George Minter, head of the in- 
dependent producing and releasing 
outfit, . Renown Films, announced 
a six-picture — $2,800,000 — program 
which will include “ThC Glorious 
GlOsters” which has also been an- 
nounced as a vehicle, by Warwick 
Films. Lineup includes one 
GiriemaSeoper,* “The Foolish 
Laver;” which is now being 
scripted by Noel Langley. This 
will be delayed until there are an 
adequate number of anamorphic 
installations* 

Renown laid claim to “Glosters” 
some months back when the title 
Was registered with the . British 
Film Producers Assn. It is under- 
stood that Warwick registered a 
similar title with the Motion Pic 
ture^Assn. although -planning it as 
a British venture. Other pix on 
the Renown program include Mai 
Zetterling in “Dance Little Lady,” 
Robert Newton and Hildegarde 
Neff in “Trilby and Svengali” 


London, Feb. 23. 

With, no productions scheduled 
until the summer, Metro’s studio 
at Elstree has pinkrslipped its en- 
tire staff with the exception of de- 
partmental heads and maintenance 
crew. Altogether, 320 workers have 
been dismissed, a number of whom 
have already been absorbed . by 
other units. 

Firings were dictated by the nor 
mal economic demands of the in 
dustry following two-years of con- 
tinuous activity during which nine 
pictures were Tensed at this ] 

The last completed picture was 
“Beau Brummel,” starring Stew- 
art Granger and Elizabeth Taylor 
which came off the floor last week. 

The next film likely to start roll 
ing will be the Spencer Tracy star- 
rer, “Digby,” which will go into 
production probably late in May or 
early June. No other casting ar- 
rangements have been made as yet 
In the last two years, M-G’s Brit- 
ish studio has completed a number 
of top ranking pix including “Ivan 
hoe,” “Knights of Round Table, 
‘‘Invitation to Dance,” and ‘‘Crest 
of the Wave.” ****«• 


Wanamaker First Yank 
On BBC’s ‘Curtain Up’ 

■ London, Feb. 16. 
Sam Wanamaker, currently star- 
ring in Clifford Odets’ “The Big 
Knife” at Dukh of Yorks Theatre, 
is the first American to be chosen 
by the BBC for its “Curtain Up” 
drama series. He will play the 
role of the mountebank impresario 
in S. N. Behrman’s “The Pirate.” 
It will also be the first U. S. play 
in the series. 

The broadcast is 'set for Feb. 24 
on the light program. The radio 
adaptation is by C. E. Webber. 
Martyn C. Webster is producing. 

London Legit Bits 

Londrin, Feb. 23. 
Jack Hylton’s “Joan Of Arc,” 
the Ingrid Bergman starrer, is ex- 
pected to come to the Stoll Thea- 
tre, Kingsway, some time in May 
ThVlast thrpp namprf dr June . . . Alissande White, in- 

am although Knights, in Cinema- the London. Hippodrome first 
Scope, has completed its first-run week in May, has resigned, claim- 
on, Broadway at the Radio City ing. she is not experienced enough 


SCENTED-SCENERY ODOR 
HIT PARIS OPERA AUD 

Paris, Feb. 16. 

The new bigscale version of 
Weber’s opera, “Oberon,” preemed 
today (Tries.) at the National Opera 
here. Massive opus, which cost 60,- 
000,000 francs ($180,000) to mount, 
took nine months’ work and, for 
further statistics, needs . eight tons 
of scenery and the aid. of 500 peo- 
ple. It will probably be an even 
bigger popular triumph than the 
recent opera-spec,. “Les Indes 
Galantes,” Which in 125 performr 
ances grossed $7,500 at each show- 
ing. This is bigger, richer in music 
and spec and has delicate odors 
wafted into the aud by specially- 
scented scenery. This will be an- 
other feather in the cap of director 
Maurice Lehmann, whose lush pro- 
ductions have ‘helped advance the 
cause of lyric theatre in France. 

Various themes have been trans- 
posed in the present version of the 
125-year-old opera, to give a great- 
er scope for the more numerous 
ballet sequences. Costumes and 
decor are by Jean-Denis Macles 
and the musical arranging is by 
Henri Busser and Emmanuel 
Bondeville. Big feature is. the* hur- 
ricane, which will easily outdo the 
shipwreck and volcano of “Gal- 
antes” in spec. 

It looks like Lehmann has an- 
other success on his hands, which 
should take its place in the SRO 
ranks .here. 


Music Hall. 


Goldsteins Mull Mex Pix Prod. 

Mexico City, Feb. 16. 

Dickers for a U. S.-Mexican com- 
1 bo to produce at least six pix an- 
nually in Mexico are being con- 
ducted here by Robert and Le- 
onard Goldstein. Miguel Aleman, 
Jr., and Antonio Badu, toppers of 
Tele-voz, frontline international 
pic-radio-tv producer, would be the 
other half of setup. 


$18,500,000 Gross in ’53 
For Yank Cos. in Japan 

Tokyo, Feb. 16. 

Final boxoffice figures for films 
released by the 10 major U.S. com- 
panies distributing their product 
here reveal a boff total of approxi- 1 agement can get one. 
mately $18,500,000 for the past year ~ ’ ~~ ' vm! 

or about 37% ahead of 1§52. 

Metro, Paramount and WB came 
out on top with all three bunched. 


for such a top role. Blacks are 
trying out riewcomer Susan Swin- 
ford and retaining Miss White for 
minor role and understudy 
Alan Paton’s “Cry the Beloved 
Country,” which has been running 
for free at St. Martini on the 
Fields Church and packing ’em in, 
is being transferred to a West 
End theatre as soon as the man- 


Sir Laurence Olivier has. cast 
Googie Withers and John McCul- 
lum for leads in Ronald Miller's 
new play, “Waiting For Gillian,” 
which he acquired for the West 


Metro got $3,500,000; Par, $3,- End.' Rehem-sate start March 1 
300,000; WB, $2,800,000; 20th-Fox, Patrick Hamilton, author of 
$2,300,000; RKO, $1,750,000; Uni- R 0 pe, ‘^readying a 'riew play which 
versa!, $1,730,000; Columbia, $1,- firm of Linnit & Dunfee will pre- 
380,000; Republic, $860,000; United sent later this year. Vernon Syl- 
Artists, $700,000; and Allied Art- vaine working on comedy for Same 
ists, $300,000. firm. 


London Film Notes 

London, Feb. 16. 

As soon as Ronald Shiner fin- 
ishes in J. Arthur Rank’s film, Up 
To His Neck,” he starts a riew pic 
for British Lion, titled “Aunt 
Clara.” Shiner acquired the film, 
which./ is based on Noel Streat- 
field’s novel of same title, and sold 
it to BL on the condition that 
Margaret Rutherford be Engaged 
for title role with himself also in 
the cast . . . Jimmy Woolf, exec of 
Romulus Films, of which . his 
brother, John Woolf, is head, .is 
now in Hollywood dickering witn 
two American film names Tor star- 
ring roles in “Witte Of Etna , 
which his company is making 
Italy with Ronald Shiner also 
starred- . , . Alfred Shipman is 
anxious to get Richard Greene for 
film he is to make in March whicn 
will have; Italian background . • • 
Jed Harris is now in Munich try- 
ing to purchase several German 

films for the American market. 



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Wednesday, February 24, 1954 



hade Stuff— Pictures 

Believing "that much confusion still exists” among show bizites 
about the true nature of Communism, freelance writers Victor Lasky 
and Maurice Zolotow, who both write extensively about show people, 
started out to spearhead a move whereby individuals in show, biz can 
voice "their firm opposition to Communism and all its works,’ How- 
ever, the idea dibd in transition as both discovered unforseen hurdles. 

Device ior; registering opposition to Communism suggested by the 
pair, who termed themselves "a self-appointed committee of two," was 
to have been a fulbpage ad in Variety In which the position of show 
bizites could be forcefully 'stated, . In a memorandum to "friends in 
show business,” Lasky and Zolotow suggested that the "friends; sign 
.copy prepared by the pair and chip, in to defray . the cost of the ad. 
"If you’re broke," the memorandum says, "we don’t expect a dime. 
But if you're working, and this statement means a great deal to you, 
we’d appreciate your contributing what you can." 

Statement written by the writers noted, in part,, that "Bed agents 
are exceedingly busy in' our business— show business. Kicked out of, 
Hollywood, after, in many instances, pleading the Fifth Amendment, 
they have joined the already well-established Red apparatus here to 
spread the very latest in the party line along Broadway; Madison 
Avenue, in. Radio City and other show business haunts. The. shocker 
is that, despite the. numerous examples of Red perfidy and betrayal 
of bur times, at international gatherings of state or in our own union 
meetings, the Communists are still able to get across their propaganda 
in our business." 

As the petition started circulating friends pointed out that it re- 
quired some important agency ( “like Equity”) and not any ’ self- 
appointed committee of two” to make it tick. 

Rights of individuals to refuse to answer questions on subversive 
activities before a Congressional investigating committee were upheld 
last week by playwright Robert E. Sherwood- Writer stated his 
views in answer to query from a student at the sixth annual Columbia 
College Forum on Democracy. The question was: "What is the writ- 
er’s responsibility if called before a Congressional investigative com- 
mittee?” . -\ 

"That is impossible to answer because it depends entirely on the 
circumstances," said, Sherwood. "But some : of the investigations, are 
simply Witch and headline hunts.’’ He stressed, however, that if he 
weite asked whether he wei^e a Communist or had associated With 
Communists his answer Would be "no," but he noted: "But I cer- 
tainly respect the rights of anybody to refuse to answer." 

In his speech before the: forum, the three-time Pulitzer Prize win- 
ner noted, that to a certain extent, every writer must associate himself 
v, ith political affairs, "Every writer feels a certain moral responsibility 
for his times," he said, "Today freedom imposes a responsibility that 
none of us can evade if \ve are to perpetuate our civilization/’ 

In reply to another question— whether Communist and pro-Commu- 
nist foreign artists apd their works should be barred. from the U, S. — 
Sherwood said: "Absolutely not.’’ 


Who** a ‘Director’? 

Hollywood, Feb. 23. 

A bitter battle is brewing 
between* Studio Music Direc- 
tors and Screen Didectors 
Guild over latter’s insistence 
on studio enforcement, of little 
known contract clause limit- 
ing right to use word "direc- 
tor." SDG spokesmen contend 
only head camerman, art di- 
rector besides meggers have 
right to use word "director” 
• in_credits. 

Music Directors feel . SDG 
move “wrong in principle." 
They say there’s no other, word 
to describe their work which 
has existed in one form or an- 
other since long before there 
were even movies. 


While the Louis B. Mayer spleen with the Nick Schenck-Dore Schary- 
Metro (current) faction is a wide-open secret, David O. Selznick’s 
irritation with Schary, and vice versa, is hot so generally known, even 
intra-trade. It came to a head with Selznick’s unequivocable irritation 
over the Ed Sullivan “Toast of the Town” tv salute to Metro on its 
30th anniversary, and the alleged misplacement or slighting of credits: 

< 1 ) as regards "Gone With the Wind” which he ( Selznick ) even ’made - 
off-t lie-lot, but which Metro merely distributed; t.2i, the alleged 
slighting of Mayer and Irving Thalberg; and (3), the alleged in- 
ference that Schary was "taking in too much territory, because, while 
he is present head of production” Selzniefc stressed /that “Metro’s 
greatness antedated his regime.” < Schary, for his part, reiterated to 
the contrary, and also in: an address the ensuing Tuesday (16) before 

the Los Angeles Advertising Club.) 

the Selznick-Schary schism is surprising because the latter was 
considered "one of Selznick’s bright young men." Schary had worked 
under Selznick when the latter had his own production org and was 
part owner of UA. Selzhick’s auspices accounted for Schary becoming 
production chief at RKO until Howard Hughes’ advent forced him to 
exit the Gower St. plant with the resultant Metro affiliation. 

Publicists at 20tH-Fox have been told that they’re no longer to hand 
out shooting scripts to the press." New procedure is to ask What’s wanted 
and to make available only that portion of the script that has been re- 
quested. Ruling is an upshot of New York Times critic Bosley Crow- 
ther’s review of 20th’s. "Hell and High Water,” in which he quoted at' 
length from a foreword, to the Aim which wasn’t actually in the picture. 
Later. Crowther expressed his regrets over the error in a special piece 
in which he also explained how it all happened. 

He had seen the film at a preview and had been struck, by the fore- 
word: Wanting to quote from it. he asked for — and got — a copy of 
what was described to him as the final shooting script. In it was the 
fox’eword as quoted in the original review. Actually, when the narra- 
tion was recorded, certain mentions of the White House and Atomic 
Energy Commission were Omitted. 

What bothered 20th was that Crowther devoted a good part of his 
review to the foreword that wasn’t there, quoting it verbatim and 
punching holes in it. 


PIMSTEIN SUES LIST 
ON RKO ’SERVICES’ 

A suit asking for $226,000 ha£ 
been filed in N. Y. Federal Court 
by Harry Pirn stein, former RKO 
Pictures, exec, against Albert A. 
List, chairman of the ^Tboard and 
controlling stockholder of RKO 
Theatres. Pimstein, Who :• ankled 
RKO Pix when Howard Hughes, 
regained control of the company 
from the Ralph Stolkin syndicate, 
charges that List reneged on pay- 
ment for services rendered by 
Pimstein which . resulted in. List’s 
acquiring control of the theatre 
chain.. 

Complaint says Pimstein had an 
exclusive agreement with List to 
act as pd visor and negotiator . in 
the securing of large/ blocks ; of 
RKO Theatre stock, particularly 
those held by Howard Hughes. 


’Recession’ Talk Abets 
to 



. Washington, Feb. 23. 

Current economic conditions are 
providing a strong boost to pro- 
posals to reduce the 20% , admis- 
sions tax. The more talk there is 
about recession'; the more members 
of CSiigress urge that an easing of 
consumer taxes is needed to quick- 
en the business tempo. 

Newest to support tax cuts as ’a 
method of reversing the economic 
trend is Senator Walter F. George 
(D., Ga.), pyobably the most in- 
fluential Democrat in Congress on 
tax matters. George, ranking mi- 
nority member Of the Senate 
Finance Committee , recommended 
several changes past weekend. Qne 
of these was elimination or reduc- 
tion of the consumer excises on 
goods and services. 

The House Ways and Means 
Committee, which is how working 
on tax bills, expects to consider a 
reduction or elimination of the 
admissions tax in the early part 
of March, It appears virtually cer 
tain that the committee will rec 
ommend relief from this present 
levy*. 


ILLINOIS EXHIB SUES 
IN ANTITRUST RAP 

St. Louis, Feb. 25. 

Antitrust charges were made 
against 11 motion picture produ- 
cers and distributors in a $1,200,- 
000 damage suit filed recently by 
the Grand Opera Company Corp., 
operator of the Marlow, Herrin, 
111., and the Marlow Amusement 
Corp., operator of an Ozoner near 
Herrin, in the East St. Louis US. 
District Court, In seeking mone- 
tary damages the petition charges 
that the houses in and near 
Herrin have been discriminated 
against in favor of a theatre at 
Marion, 111., five miles away and 
one in Frankfort, 111., 14 miles 
from Herrin. Both houses are own- 
ed by the Fox Midwest Amusement 
Corp., 

As a result of the alleged dis- 
crimination which began iil 1945, 
the petition states that the houses 
in Herrin are denied the oppor- 
tunity to show f irstrun films until 
after they have been shown by 
the competing . Fox Midwest 
houses. 

The defendants listed are 20th 
Century-Fox Film Corp.; Warner 
Brothers Pictures Distributing 
Corp. ; U ni versa! Film Exchange , 
Inc.; Paramount Pictures Corp.; 
Monogram Pictures Corp.; Repub- 
lic Pictures Corp.; RKO-Radio Pic- 
tures, Inc.; Loew, Inc.; United Ar- 
tists Corp.; Columbia Pictures 
Corp, and the Fox Midwest Amuse- 
ment Corp. 

Stanley Prenosil Added 
To COMPO’s Press 

Council of Motion - Picture Or- 
ganizations is enlarging upon its 
press relations work with the hir- 
ing of Stanley Prenosil, veteran 
newspaper man. : He was with As- 
sociated Press for years. 

Prenosil will be COMPO’s con- 
tact with N. Y, papers, news agen- 
cies and commentators and also 
will prepare material for use in 
the campaign against the Federal 
admissions tax. 



Continued from Pace 5 


Coster’s Latest 
Stand h Mexico 

Minneapolis, Feb. 23. 

/With sympathetic help from Edi- 
torial writers on newspapers in 
this region, the seven council fires 
into which the old Sioux Indian 
nation is divided are .protesting 
the making of an "inaccurate" mo- 
tion picture on Sitting: Bull for 
U A release: This Chief was’ the 
Napoleon of /the tribe who. Glister 
foolhardily attacked in ^thp .Big 
Horn Mountains With extermina- 
tion results known to everjMSC^bol- 
boy and long the blush ot the 
U. S. Cavalry. : v •• 

Present feud over Cusjte^.Last 
Stand is one of a whole series of 
feuds after the facts raging for 
75 years. Failure to respect schol- 
arship is now charged against W, 
R. Frank, an American, and the 
Tele Voz, a Mexican film , outfit 
of Charabusco. Letter firm is 
headed by a son of former presi- 
dent Miguel Aleman of Mexico. 

"Sitting Bull” - with Mexican 
scenery, Mexican technicians and 
Mexican extras to play Sioux In- 
dians has the Dakota Montana 
country in an uproar. Frank is 
blamed doubly since he is primari- 
ly an owner of motion picture 
theatres in this ; area and ought 
to have more respect for Sioux 
history and pride. Gov. Sigurd 
Anderson of So. Dakota and Ralph 
Peckham of the Motion Picture 
Set Painters Union are among 
those fanning the fires of regional 
outrage./ . ■ ' • ' ■ ... . 

Goldstein In Mexiqdv/ 
Mexico City, Feb; 23.' 

Robert Goldstein has jUst ar- 
rived from Hollywood to confer on 
problems of "Sitting Bull," ; Cine- 
maScope-Technicolor feature for 
UA, which got under way ^yester- 
day (Monday) at the Charahysco 
Studios under > difficulties, Gold- 
stein is expected to enter; the pro- 
duction* on a basis of capital invest* 
ment and know-how. 

This is an interlude for Gold- 
stein who is reported from Holly- 
wood hooking up With Leonard 
Goldsiein, now on leave from 20th- 
Fox, to coproduce for RKO. 


Binford 

Continued from page 5 


Closed-circuit theatre television,- is seriously handicapped by the 
unavailability of equipment. There arfr altogether 112 big-sereen tv 
units in the United States. Some of these are not in theatres, hav- 
ing been installed in hotels, and a few units are not operable, being 
in areas not easily hooked up because of long line problems. 

Nate Halpern of Theatre Network Television points out tlriat there 
arc a few units specially built for small theatres which are marginal 
for some closed-circuit events. "Other so-called portable equipments 
being talked about in trade circles are . not standard theatre tv equip- 
ment, but mostly component parts of sets built four or five years 
ago for bars, grills and hotels in the early days of tv, when public 
places were novelty viewing points. These set parts are available at 
bargain rates — they have been stored away for years collecting dust.” 


Recent editorial in Life on film censorship drew a protest from the 
Motion Picture Assn, of America, Manning Clagett, MPAA’s public 
. .relations rep in N.Y., replied in a letter that the editorial Was con- 
sistent with. Life’s alleged anti-picture business attitude. "Actually, 
it’s not clear whether you are. for or against governmental censorship,” 
wrote Clagett. "On one . hand you indicate ‘any censorship is stulti- 
fying.’ But then after noting that political censorship exists in seven 
states and more than 50 cities, you say: ‘It may be hoped that the 
Supreme Court’s decision will eliminate some of these, but not all.’ 
Does this mean you advocate* just a little , governmental censorship 
of movies? Maybe only two or three states and a dozen, or so cities?" 


Metro’s reception for Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz last Thursday (18) 
at the Waldorf-Astoria, NY., was marred by the invasion of an appar- 
ently disturbed bobby-soxer. Gal slipped through the cordon of M-G 
flacks and latched on to Miss Ball,. following every step the star made 
and interfering with the greetings and the picture-taking. An attempt 
to oust the youngster brough forth an emotional outburst in which 
she threw herself at Miss Ball and. threatened to throw herself under 
■ car if removed from the reception. Metro officials were reluctant 


ing to play Memphis anywhere or 
anytime." 

In the present instance the man- 
ager of the Sunset drivein in West 
Memphis, Ark., went along with 
Binford’s judgment. Said Bob Kil- 
gore, who nearly always books the 
films banned by Binford: "These 
pictures are not suitable for my 
situation." 

Memphis Film Row notes of late 
a tendency of distribs in Nashville 
to invite Binford to. see -their prod- 
uct, hoping he’ll react unfavorably, 
so that pictures can be 'advertised 
elsewhere as "banned in Mem- 
phis," 


pact model incorporating several 
neW features. 

Work was held up for a long 
time by the strike at the General 
Electric plant in Schenectady 
which had been assigned to turn 
out the electronic parts of the. two 
prototypes. At last reports, Eido- 
phor had incorporated the color 
wheel advocated by CBS as part of 
its color system. Since then, the 
tv industry via the Federal Com- 
munications C o m mi s s i o n has 
adopted a compatible, all-electronic 
system of colorcasting. According 
to Sponable, Eidophor can- switch 
to the new color system without 
trouble. 

There are at present some 100 
theatres with theatre tv installa- 
tions. While a good many of them 
have carried off-hour events as 
commercial propositions, there 
hasn’t been an outstanding pro- 
gram carried over the closed cir- 
cuit, for some time. 

Skouras is said to be confident 
that, once Eidophor comes pn the 
market, it will be Widely accepted 
by exhibs and that increase in. turn 
will break the program bottleneck 
which so far has blocked any 
large-scale development of theatre 
video. - ' 


INTO JOSEPH 
SPOT AT CINERAMA 

Everett ,C. Callow has been 
named pub-ad topper of Cinerama, 
succeeding John Joseph who re- 
signed to become public relations 
head of ^Hilton Hotels in N. Y. 

Callow" assumes his new post 
immediately, with headquarters at 
Stanley Warner’s N. Y. office. New 
appointee has been director of ad- 
vertising and publicity for the 
Philadelphia zone of SW theatres 
since 1938, He joined the com- 
pany, originally Warner Bros. The- 
atres, in 1929, coming from New 
York where he was a Morning 
World staffer. 

During the war, Callow was a 
public information officer for the 
Marine Corps. 


Florence Bates* $45,000 Estate 
San Antonio, Feb. 23. 

Ann Oppenbeimer, granddaugh- 
ter of actress Florence Bates who 
died in Hollywood on Jan. 31, will 
inherit the bulk of the actress’s es- 
tate according to a will field for 
probate. 

Estate is valued at $45,000. 


to use force. The teenager’s father was notified, but he didn’t show 
up until the end of shindig. 


Cole Porter, whose life was depicted in Warner Bros ’ "Night and 
Day," a 1946 release, apparently is set for a return film engagement. 
Metro has scheduled “The Cole Forter Cavalcade," being written by 
Betty Comden and Adolph Green. 

Previously the late A1 Jolson was the only show biz personality who 
was subject of two biographical films during his lifetime/ “The Jolson 
Story" was released by Columbia in 1946 and the sequel, “jolson Sings 
Again," was brought out in 1949. Both are due for reissue soon With 
stereo sound. 


Story in Variety on Anatole Litvak balking at a 20th-Fox assign- 
ment to do “Desiree” in Cinemascope and ending his multiplerpic deal 
with the company is denied both by Darryl F. Zanuck, 20th’s produc- 
tion chief, and by Litvak. Latter cabled from Paris that he’s "an 
enthusiastic* C’Scope partisan" and never was "officially assigned" the 
"Desiree” direction job. Zanuck states that 20th okayed Litvak’s 
postponement of his commitment to allow him time for an outside 
production; This is a UA project to be made in Europe. 


Dru Sues Over ’Quentin’ 



Los Angeles, Feb. 23. 

Suit for 10% of the producer’s 
gross on the film, "San Quentin 
Story," was filed by. Joanne Dru 
in Superior Court. Actress de- 
clares her contract called for 
$1,000 in cash and a percentage. 
She collected the cash, she * says, 
but the producers failed to go 
through with the percentage deal. 

Defendants are Swarttz-Doniger 
Productions, Inc., Warduff Produc- 
tions, Inc., and Warner Brothers. 


K. C. Fox Midwest House 
Safe Robbed of $1,300 

Kansas City, Feb. 16. 

Jack Steele, manager of the 
Vista, Fox Midwest northeast nabe, 
robbed by two masked men whose 
system was almost the same as at 
the robbery of Bill Collier, man- 
ager of Fox Midwest Gladstone 
Theatre a month earlier. Steele 
was seized in 9 midtown section 
about 11 p.m. and forced to lay 
on the floor of the bandits’ auto 
while they drove around. 

About, midnight they went to the 
theatre and forced Steel? to open 
I the safe, from which they took 
$1,300. The bandits then told 
Steele he would find his car in the 
neighborhood later; it was found in 
the theatre parking lot. 




Wfc «*** ro * Wf 

M-G-M PICTURES TOP THEM ALL! * { 

THEY’RE FAVORITES AT THE MUSIC HALL I 

‘"Mogambo” started the Hit Parade in 
October, launching a new M-G-M record of 
8-pictures-in-a-row at the famed Music Halil 
Now " THE LONG, LONG TRAILER” is 
delighting audiences of the world's most 
famous theatre, with a terrific line-up of 
other big M-G-M hits to follow one after 
another. On Broadway and across the nation 
it's a happy celebration as M-G-M's 30th 
Anniversary rolls merrily along ! 

it ? . 


/ 


$ua Gni5^°r 

' at4J ford 

N©w Playing l 

THE LONG, 
LONG 


SALUTE TO ED SULLIVAN’S 
"TOAST OF THE TOWN" 

Approximately 50,000,000 people heard andsaw 
the M-G-M Auniversary Show, Sunday night, Feb- 
ruary 1 4th, on CBS -TV's hour-long show! Never 
before has any company’s line-up of pictures 
received such visual selling to the nation ! M-G-M 
takes this opportunity to express gratitude to a 
great showman, Ed Sullivan, for a magnificent job! 



Lucille Ball, 
DesiArnaz 




Elizabeth Taylor, Vittorio Gassman , 
~ n Ericson 


xBlyth, Howard Keel, 
Fernando Lamas 


William Holden, June Ally son, Barbara Stanwyck, 
Fredric March, Walter Pidgeon, Shelley Winters, 
Paul Douglas, Loui$ Calhern 




pvcTimES 


Wednesday February 24, 1934 




8) 


Last 


DETROIT. 

( Continued from page 

(2d wk). Strong $18,000, 
week, $26,000. 

Palms iUD). <2,961; B0-$1)— “War 
Arrow” <U) and “Miss Body Beauti- 
ful” (AA>. Good $16,000. Lasi 
week, “Majesty O'Keefe” (WB) 
and “Flight Nurse” (Rep) (2d wk); 
$14,000. 

Madison (UD) <1,000; 95-$1.25)-— 
t’Glenn Miller Story” (U). Tre- 
mendous $36,000. Last week, 
“Wicked Woman” (UA) and “Fort 
Algiers” (U), $9,000 in second 
week. 

Broadway-Capltol (UD) <3,500; 
$0-$l) — “Riot in Cell Block 11” 
<AA) and “Paris Playboys” ,<AA). 
Big $20,000. Last week, “Creature 
from Black Lagoon” (U); (3-D) and 
“Texas Bad Mari” (Lip), $25,000. 

United Artists (UA) (1,938; $1> 
$l;25) — “Long Trailer” (M-G), 
Socko $18,000. Last week,. “Give 
Girl Break” (M-G) and “Donovan’s 
Brain” <M-G), $7,236. 

Adams (Balaban) (1,700; OS- 
SIES) —“Knights Round Table” 
i M-G) . ( 9th wk). Oke $5,800. Last 
week, $6,137. 

Music Hall (Cinerama Produc- 
tions) (1,194; $1.40-$2.80)— “Ciner- 
ama” (Indie ) (49th w r k). Solid $21,- 
000. Last week, same. 

Krim (Krim) <1,000; $1-$1.50)— 
“Julius Caesar” (M-G) (2d wk). 
Great $11,000, Last Week, $13,000. 


‘Knights’ Tall 
Mont’I ; ‘ 


1 , 000 , 

•’ Big 25G 

Montreal, Feb. 23, 
“Knights of Round Table” is 
socko at the Palace here this ses- 
sion. with upped prices helping 
“Follow Girls” looks solid at 
Loew's. New product at all spots 
is helping overall total. 

Estimates for This Week 
Palace (&T.) (2,625; 75‘-$l;25)— 
“Knights Round Table” (M-G). 
Wow; $40,000.’ Last week, “1£-Mile 
Reel” (20th) <2fl wk), $15,000. 

Capitol (C.T.) (2,412; 50-80)— 
“Blowing Wild” (WB), So-so $14,- 
000. Last week, “Botany? Bay” 
tParl, $16,000;. 

Princess ( C.T.) (2,131; 50-80) 
“Majesty O’Keefe” (WBh Dull 
$10,000. Last week, “Escape Ft 
Bravo’’ (M-G), $7,000. * 

Loew’s (C.T!) <2,855; 50-85)— 
“Here Come Girls” (Par). Rig 
$25,000. Last week, “Easy To Love” 
(M-G) (2d wk), $13,b00. 

imperial (C.T.) (1,830; 34-60)— 
“Drums of Tahiti” (Col) and “At- 
lantic Convoy” (Col). Slow $6,000. 
Last week, “Diamond Queen” (WB) 
and “Yukon Vengeance” (WB), 
$ 6 , 000 . 

Orpheum (C.T.) (1,048; 40-65) — 
“Man from Cairo” -(Lip) and “Ter- 
ror Street" (Lip). Oke $7,000. Last 
week, “Steel Lady” (UA) and 
“Stranger op Prowl” (UA), $6,000. 


Miller’ Whopping 246, 
Baito; ’Hell’ Socko 18G, 
’Rob Roy’ 



v Baltimore, Feb. 23. 
With the exception of two new 
smash grossers, b iz continues mild 
here this w-eek. Glenn Miller 
Story” is terrific at the Hipp while 
“Hell and High Water” is bIso 
sock at the New. Moon Is Blue 
is cashing in on its censorship pub- 
licity in its second round at the 
Playhouse. "Money From Home 
continues nice in its third session 
at Keith’s. 

Estimates for This Week 
Century ( Loew’s-UA) 13,000; 50- 
$1.25) — “Knights Round; Table 
(M-G) (4th wk). Okay $7,500 after 
$10,500 for third. 

Hippodrome (Rappaport) (2,100; 
35.90)— “Glenn Miller Story (U). 
Giant $24,000 or close, Last Aveek, 
“Sadie Thompson”; (Col) (5th wk), 
$6,800; 

Keith’s (Schanberger) (2,400;> 25- 
80)— “Money From Home Par) 
(3d wk). Nice $8,500 after $11,500’ 
for second. 

tittle (Rappaport) <310;25-9q)— . 
“Living Desert” (Disriey : (6th wk). 
Strong $3,500. Last week, $3,700. 

Mayfair (Hicks) (980; 25-70)— 
“Hell’s Half Acre” (U), Starts to- 
morrow (Wed.) after a slow $2,200 
for second week of “Tumbleweed 

New (Mechanic) (1,800; 35-70)— 
“HeJl, High Water” (20). Spck 
$18,000 or near. Last week, Men 
Crazy” (20th), $7,500 _ 

. Playhouse (Schwaber (420; 50- 
$i)_“Moon Is Blue” (U A) (2d wk). 
Torrid $6,500 after $7,000 opener. 

Stanley (WB) (3,200; .35-85)-- 
“Boy From Oklahoma” (WB). 
Tepid $7,800. Last week, “Com- 
mand” (WB) (2d Wk), $8 800. ■; 

Town (Rappaport (1,600; .25-80) 
—“Rob Roy” < RKO). Fait $8,500. 
Last week, “B*yst Years Lives” 
(RKO) (reissue), $8,000. 


Trailer’ Smooth $11,000, 
Port; ‘Hall’ Bangop 14G 

’Portland, Ore., Feb. 23, 
Town is loaded with holdovers 
this round, but newcomers are 
strong enough to take up ■■ the 
slack. “Long, Long Trailer^ « 
lofty at United Artists while Hell, 
High Water” Is rated smash at Or- 
pheum. “Money From Home” 
looms nice in second Paramount 
week. ' ' " ■■ >• ;. 

Estimates for This Week 
Broadway (Parker) (1,890; 65-90) 
— “Taza, Son of Cochise” (U) and 
“Charge of Lancers” (Col). Loud 
$7,500. Last week, “Bad For Each 
Other” (Col) and “Paris Model” 
(Col). $5,800. 

Guild (Indie) (400; $1.25-$2.40)— 
“Julius ‘ Caesdr” (M-G) (3d wk), 
Big $3,500. Last week, $6,000. 

Liberty (Hamrick) (1,875; 75- 
«D— “The Command” (WB) (2d 
wk). Big $5,500 in four days. Last 
week, $9.4004 t 
Oriental (Evergreen) (2,000; $1? 
$1.50) — “Khyber Rifles” (20th) 
(5th wk).- Fine $3,000. Last week, 
$3,400: 

- Orpheum (Evergreen) (1,600; $1- 
$1.25)— “Hell, High Water” (20th). 
Smash $14,000. Last week, “Mari 
In Attic” (20th) and “Man Crazy” 
(20th), $5,500. 

Paramount (Port-Par) (3,400; 65- 
90)— “Money From Home” (Par) 
and “Monte Carlo Baby” (Indie) 
(2d wk). Fine $8,000. Last week, 
$ 10 ; 200 . 

United Artists (Parker) (890; 65- 
90)— “Long. Long Trailer” (M?G). 

ofty $11,000. Last week,' “Para- 
trooper” (Col) (2d wk), $3,700. 

. \ ~ 

‘French’ Record 16G, . 

Tieriver; picked’ 6G 

Denver, Feb. 23. 

“French >Lihe,” playihg at- the 
indie Broadway Theatre, .is head- 
ing for a new. house record this, 
stanza, tl is easily, standout in a 
generally strong week. “Wicked 

Iaaimik <ilIinA/l 'in 


INVENTION TO STOP 
THEFT OF SPEAKERS 

El Campo, Tex., Feb. 23. 
Joint invention of a local man 
And a late Bay City, Texas, inven- 
tor may soon solve a major- prob-| 



Policy; Deemed Ideal For 



8 ) 
Shines 


SEATTLE 

( Continued from page 

Acre” (Rep) and “Sun 
Bright” (Rep). $4,500. 

Music Box (Hamrick) (850; $1.25- 
$1.50)-— “Julius Caesar” (M-G) 
(4th wk). Good $4,000. Last week, 
$5,200. 

Music Hall (Hamrick) (2.300; $1- 
$1.25) “The Command” (WB) ’ (2d 
wk). Fair $4,000 in three days 
Last week, $6600. 

Orpheum (Hamrick (2.700; 65 
90)— “Eddie Cantor Story” (WB) 
Lightweight $7,000 or under. Last 
week, “Majesty O’Keefe” (WB) 
and “Red River Shore” (Rep) (2d 
wk-5 days), $3,600. 

Paramount (Evergreen) (3,039; 
65-90)- “Nebraskan” (Col) (2-D), 
and “Drums Tahiti” (Col). Sluggish 
$8,000. Last week, “Money From 
Home” 1 Par) (2d wk), $7,400. 


ST. LOUIS 

(Continued from page 9) 
“Redheads Seattle” (Par). Opened 
today (Tues.). Last week, “Botany 
Bay” (Par) and ‘‘War Worlds” 
(Par), fair $11,000. 

Loew’s ( Loewis) (3,172;. 50-75)' — 
“Long, Long Trailer” (M-G) and 
‘.Great Diamond Robbery” (M-G). 
Socko $18,000, Last week, “Easy 
To Love” (M-G), $lfi,500. 

Missouri (F&M) (3.500; 60-75)— 
'Jivaro” (Par) and “Alaska Seas” 
(Par). , Good $8,500. : Last week, 
Treasure Sierre Madre” (WB) 
and “Kiss of Death” (20th) (reis 
sues), $6,500. 

Orpheuiri (Loew) (1,500; 50-75) 
— “Easy To Love” (M-G). (m.o.) 
Hep $9,000 or close. Last, week, 
{Stranger Wore Gun” (Col) (3-D) 
and “Slaves Babylon” (Col), $8,000 
Pageant (St. L, : Amus. ) ( 1 ,000 
90)— “Conquest of Everest” (UA) 
Fancy $5,000. Last week, “Little 
Fugitive” (Burstyn) (6th wk) 
$3,00Q. 

St. Louis (St. X. Amus.) (4,000 
60-75)— “She Couldn’t Say No’ 
(RKO) and “Dragonfly Squadron” 
<AA). Solid $14,000. Last week 
“The Command” (WB) (2d wk) 
$7600. 

Shady Oak (St. L; Amus.) (800; 
90)— “Cruel Sea” (U). Lofty $4,- 
000. Last week, “Tonight at 8:30” 
(Indie) (2d wk), $2,500. 


lent of the ozoners— the theft 
speakers.' 

The device, a visual and audible 
warning system, is being patented 
by B. N. Alsbrook, one of the in- 
ventors. who is copwner here of the 
El Campo Electronics CO. The 
method is the product of two years 
of experimentation by Alsbrook 
and T. H. Harkey of Bay City who 
died Jan. 14. 

The key to the idea ts a control 
board equipped with a set of lights 
and a bell, or similar audible warn- 
ing device. 1 Wires from the control 
panel attach to a speaker on each 
of the driveinV parking ramps. 
The other preakers in turn are 
Wired to the speaker attached to 
Jthe control board and each has its 
own light. When the speaker cord 
is severed, the light goes on auto- 
matically. As soon as it flashes, the 
bell starts ringing. All the attend- 
ant has. to do is to go . to the in- 
dicated ramp and locate the severed 
cord by looking for the light on the 
speaker post.. . 


Lament of indie producers that 
{Broadway lacked sufficient outlets 


CINCINNATI 

(Continued from page 8) 
$18,000. Last week, “12-Mile Reef” 
(20th), $16,500. 

Capitol (RKO) (2.000; 55-85)— 
“Great Diamond Robbery” (M-G) 
and “Give Girl a Break” (MrGh 
Okay $7,000. Last week. “Biga- 
mist” <FR) and “White Fire” (In- 
die). $5,500. 

Grand (RKO) (1,400; 55-85)— 
, “Go Man Go” (UA) and “John 
Smith, Pocahontas” (UA). Fairish 
$5,500. Last week, “Cantor Story” 
(WB) (m.o.), $5,000. 

Keith’s (ShOr) (1,500; 75-$1.25)— 
“Khyber Rifles” (20th) (3d wk). No 
complaint at $5,000 after $6,000 
second stanza. 

Palace (RKO) (2600; 55-85 V— 
“Long. Long Trailer” (M-G). Solid 
$12,000 or near. Last week, “Wild 
One” (CoD, $8,000. 


TORONTO 

(Continued from page 9) 

1.558; 40-75)— "Forever Female” 

(Par) (2d wk). Nice $11,000. Last 
week, $14,000. 

: Hyland’ (Rank) (1,250; 60-90)— 
“The Sinner” (Indie) (6th wk). 
Hefty $5,500. Last wfe.ek, same. 

imperial <FP)6 (3,373; 50-85)— 
“Money From Home” (Par); ? Big 
$17,000. Last week, “12-Mile Reef” 
(20th) (3d wk), at 60-$i scale, 
$ 11 , 000 . 

Loew’s (Loew’s) (2,096; 50-80)— 
“Long, Long Trailer” (M-G). Big 
$16,500. Last week, “Knights 
Round Table” (M-G) (5th wk), $10,- 
500 at $1.50 top. 

Odeon (Rank) (2,390; 50-90)— 
“Sadie Thompson” (Col) (2-D) 1 3d 
wk). Big $9,000. Last week, $12 ; - 
000 . 

Shea's (FP) (2,386; 40-75)— 

"Botany. Bay” (Par) (2d wk). Nice 
$11,000. Last week, $14,000. 

Towne (Taylor) (695; $1.25-$1 .75) 
—“Julius Caesar” (M-G) (9th wki. 
Trim $4,500 in final week. Last 
week, $5,000. 

Uptown (Loew’s) (2,745; 65-$l)— 
"Quo Vadis” (M-G) (reissue) <2d 
wk-4 days). Hefty $10,000 with 
“Glenn Miller Story” now due in. 
Last week, $14,000. 


Woman 41 looms good in twn spots. 
'Money From Home” is still in the 
hird Denham week. “Hell, High 
Water” looms fine in second round 
at the 'Denver. Same is true of 
‘Command”' in second' frame at 
Paramount, 

Estimates for This Week 
Aladdin (Fox) ( 1,400 ; 5Q-85)— 
“Gilbert and Sullivan” (UA). Good 
$5,000. : Last week, “Little Fugi- 
tive” (Btirstyn), $6,000. 

Broadway (Wolfberg) (1,200; 50- 
85)— “French Line” (RKO). Rec- 
ord $16,000 for house. Stays, 
natch. Last week, “African Queen” 
(UA) and “High Noon” (UA) (reis- 
sues), $4,500 in 5 days. . 

Denham (Cock-rill) (1,750; 50-85) 
— -“Money From Home” (Par) (3-D) 
(3d wk). Oke $6,000, or better. 
Last week, $7,000. : 

Denver JFox) (2,525; 50-85)—- 
“Hell, High Water” (20th) (2d wk), 
Good $12,000.. Last week, $23,000. 

Orpheum (RKO) (2,600; 5Q-85k— ; 
“Rob Roy” (RKO). Fair $6,000 in 
5 days. Last week, “Killers from 
Space” (RKO) and “Vigilante Ter- 
ror” (AA), $8,000. 

Paramount (Wolfberg) (2,200; 50- 
85) — “Command” (WB) (2d wk). 
Good $11,000. Last week, $15,OOOJ< 

Tabor (Fox) (1,967; 50-85) — 
“Wicked Woman’ ’(UA) and 
“Dragon’6 Gold” (UA). Fair $3,500. 
Last week, “Creature from. Black 
Lagoon” (U) (3-D) and “Fangs of 
Arctic” (U), $4,000. 

Webber. (Bailey) (712; 50-85)— 
“Wicked Woman” (UA) and “Anna- 
purna” (Indie). Good $2,500 or near. 
Holds. Last week; “Creature 
Black Lagoon’.' (U) and “Fangs of 
Arctic” (U), $1,500. 


Canadian Bell & Howell 
Set for April Go-Ahead 

. Chicago, Feb. 23. 

New Canadian subsidiary, Bell & 
Howell Canada, Ltd.,, has been es- 
tablished by B&H to riianiifacture 
and assemble motion picture and 
slide projection equipment in 
Toronto. Compfmy is now negoti- 
ating for 30{0QQ square feet of 
space and expects to - put the new 
plant into production by April, 
O. T. Bright, former general serv- 
ice . mariager of B&H here, (will 
helm the Canadian company, v 

Manufacturer .of motion. : picture 
equipment is makihg its Second ex- 
pansion move in as many months. 
In December, company purchased 
the' TlireO Dimension Co, hi Chi. 
Charles H. Percy, B&H prez,' calls 
the Canadian, market the fastest 
grqwirig in the world today. “The 
new company has been established 
to meet its tremendous . present 
and. potential demand, £or photo- 
graphic equipment,” he said. '' 



Alexander The Great, ancient 
world conqueror and boy tyrant, is 
the prospective “hero” of two films. 
Robert RoSsen has the exterriuna- 
tor in mind for next summer’s 
shooting, arid probable United Ar 
tists release. MeariWhile 20th-Fox 
/also is Working up. the biography 
via “The Conqueror” by Robert 
Hardy Andrews, .. 

Latter is due for the Cinema 
Scope grand treatment under 
Frank Ross, who produced “The 
Robe.” ■ 

It will be recalled that another 
old historic scourge of ’humanity, 
Attila the; Hun, is upconfing in film 
biography— also, in two rival 
productions. 


.({.Dailies 


of ' for modest-budget special pictures 
may be lessened by the conversion 
of "the Rialto from .a sexsational 
policy to a firstrun house, for these 
so-called “specials.” -Hduse, cur- 
rently operated by Janies Mage, 
under lease from Arthur L. Mayer, 
will be taken Over by Brandt The- 
atres early next month, Acquisi- 
tion of the theatre will give the 
Brandt qtitfit its fourth. Broad way 
firstrun., situation, the ethers being 
the Mayfair^ the Globe arid the 
New York. Latter was recently 
converted to a firstrun,-. In addi- 
tion, Brandt operates a number of 
grind houses on 42d street. 

Rialto, which; will be closed for 
several days for refurbishing, will 
launch . its new policy with the 
United Artists release, “Go, Man, 
Go,” the stoty of Abe Saperstein, 
founder, of the Harlem Globe- 
trotters.V Picture, by present stand- 
ards a modest budgeter, was 
brought !h at about $300,000. it 
was .filmed entirely in New York. 

It stars Dane Clark and was direct- 
ed- by J ames Wong Howe, the. well- 
knowri cameraman who made his 
debut, as a jnegger with “Go.” 

Because of Hie coin needed^ to 
launch a New York opening, pic- 
tures in the category of “Go” have 
often found it difficult to find a 
Broadway outlet, frequently neces- 
sitating the~ by-passing of a Main 
Stem engagement. Thus, 'it missed 
coin from an important market 
and lessened its bargairiing power 
for subsequent circuit runs. 

David “Skip” Weshner. pro- 
ducer’s representative for . “Go,” 
explained it thijs way: “There's al- 
ways been certain typ? of pictures 
which have . found it. difficult to 
find a horiie in New YbrkV/ ( The 
overhead of the big houses; aro too 
high to support these pictures.; In 
order to get i picture set up in 
^lew Tfork, you have to ; spend a 
treirieridous ariiouht for advertis- 
ing. You can't do it • Without- a 
minimuiri advertising budget of at 
least $15,000.So, bythe time, you ’re 
ready to open a picture you have 
a tremendous investment “If your 
picture doesn’t go, you’re stuck. 
As a . result, certain types of pic- 
tures have had to forgo New York. 
The percentage is against the pro- 
ducer.” 

Weshner points out that a thea- 
tre like the Rialto, although it has 
a sizable nut, is. in a valuable loca- 
tion. “Because of the traffic,” he 
indicated, “R makes it possible for 
certain types of pictures to earn a 
profit ori Broadway from the tran- 
sient trade.” In addition, he notes 
that advertising expenditures for 
the opening of these pix can be 
brought down to about $8,000. 

As for “Go,” which has already 
played 2 d^tes, Weshner said he. is 
hot particularly interested in the. 
big class houses, since the sports 
angle of the picture makes it a. 
natural for the action houses. “I’m 
just as willing to accept the second- 
ary houses,” he said. “You don’t 
have to buck the overhead and the 
setting is better.” On the b?sis of 
early returns, Weshner predicts an 
$800,000 domestic gross for “Go.” 


Continued from page 3 


Metro’s upcoming adaptation of 
Scott Fitzgerald’s “Babylon Revis- 
ited” will be done in two versions 
—one in CinemaScope arid the 
other in standard Widescreen, prob- 
ably 1.75 ; 1 . Jack Cummings, who’s 
producing, left N. Y. last week 
for a couple weeks in England, 
then continues 6n to Paris where 
exteriors will be shot beginning 
the first week in March. r * 

Dual version is in ' line With 
M-G’s tentative ‘ policy .anent 
C'Seope. Initially, at least, the 
company’s C’Scopers Will be li- 
censed only to accounts fully 
equipped to handle the process. 
However, when the C’Seope market 
is played out, there’s a chance that 
the C’Seope pix in regular format 
will be sold to theatremen who 
don’t have the special equipment. 
It’s to cover this possibility that 
“Babylon,” for example, is being 
made in two versions. 

Van Johnson, Elizabeth Taylor 
and Walter Pidgeon have the lead 
spots in the film. 


to Nassau, a complete' wardrobe 
and appearances on tv. According 
to one pub-ad executive, this is 
the fiast contest the World-Telly 
has run in about 10 years. 

The Journal- American contest, 
in cooperation with the Organiza- 
tion of the Motion Picture Indus- 
try of the City of New York, con- 
sisted of selecting the best pictures 
of the year. The contestant who 
most closely matched the picks of 
J-A film critic Rose Pelswlck re 
ceived a cash award. Top prize was 
$500 and it was presented at a 
cocktail party at the Radio City 
Music Hall. . 

The Mirror’s contest was an- 
gled at small-fry and consisted of 
coloring pictures of “Heidi,” film 
currently at the Little Carnegie 
Theatre. 

Theatreineh feel the newspapers 
are more cooperative now since 
they top have been hit by tele- 
vision and are employing all sorts 
of gimmicks as circulation boost- 
ers. They point to the recent 
breakout of Lucky Buck, Bonanza 
Bills, and other contest ideas be- 
ing^ used to attract readers. Use 
of film, angles, theatremen note, 
is just another effort in the over- 
all build-circUlation cairipaign. 


Loew's 



20c 


Annual stockholders meeting of 
Loew’s, Inc., will be held tomorrow 
(Thurs.) at the company’s home- 
office screening room. 

Directors of the company last 
week declared a regular quarterly 
dividend of 20c per share on its 
outstanding stock. Melqn is payable 
March 31 to stockholders of record 
March 12. 


Italian Frogmen Feature 

“Heli Raiders of the Deep,” first 
war picture to come from one of 
the former Axis nations and depict- 
ing action against the Allies, is to 
be released in the U. S. by Italian 
Films Export. 

. . The Italo import, originally, en- 
titled “I S.ette Dell ’Orsa Maggi- 
pre,” recounts the wartime exploit* 
of Italy’s “frog men” whose under- 
water operations resulted in the 
sinking of two. British warships, the 
Valiant and the Queen Eliza- 
beth. 

Film is also being prepped for 
release in Britain under the title 
“Human Torpedo.” Reaction of 
British audiences . is awaited with 
some apprehension by IFE. French 
actor Pierre Cressoy plays the lead 
jin the pic. 


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NCTCBKS 


Wdbie«df7» February 24, 1954 



Fnaitf Jessel Salute 


Continued from Wl I 


+■ Hope, Ezio Pinza, Danny Kaye, 
Oscar Hammerstein 2d, Robert M. 
Weitman, Jesse Block and Harry 
Delf participated. Block Introduced 
Benny as his lifelong pal. 

Fred Allen commented on Ben- 
ny’s oratorical brilliance, “When 
he arrived from the Coast with 
four writers I knew he was gonna 
be unusually^ bright this evening/’ 
On writer credits, Allen added: 
“Bishop Sheen now gives screen 
credit to Matthew, Mark, Luke and 
John.” Allen commented on Sen- 
ator Magnuson, Frank Folsom and 
Mayor Wagner on the dais/ “some 
of the boys Jessel knew as a kid 
on the, east side.” The payoff crack 
was: “There is nothing bad you 
can say about Georgie unless 
you’re a woman, Cantor had told 
. Jessel that money was a curse so 
Eddie has money; and Georgie has 
memories . . •!’ 

After some more Allen bon mots 
about “no-cal herring” and “home- 
made seltzer,” the comedian fi- 
naled them into Allen's allay with, 
“Jessel’s creed is that to be born 
a gentleman is an accident. To die 
• a gentleman is an achievement. 
Georgie is far from an earthly 
memory but he has achieved being 
a gentleman.” 

Bob Hope’s Quips 

" Bob Hope had a tough spot, com- 
ing oh so late, It Was for that rea- 
son that the Friars board had cau- 
tioned abbott emeritus Milton 
Berle that if, as and when he 
would preside, to introduce the 
toastmaster, to “keep it down and 
not give out with 20 minutes of ‘on 
my way down to the Waldorf.’ ” In- 
cidentally, a direct result of this 
admonition Was Berle’s . failure to 
grace the dais as befitted his posi- 
tion as the honorary abbott. (Joe 
E. Lewis, incumbent abbott, opened 
that same night at Lou Walters’ 1 
Latin Quarter, Miami Beach , hence 
unable to attend). 

. Hope’s, quips none the less were 
punchy and pungent. Some Hope- 
isms: “Howard Hughes looked 
down oyer the Painted Desert 
while flying his plane and out -red 
, ‘retouch it!’ . ; Milton Berle rer 

, taliated by having Sherman Bill- 
ingsley barred from Lindy’s . 
Jessel is the Beverly Hills Farouk 
.• . . also Manischewitz’s answer to 
Bishop Sheen . Georgie was 
with WilHam Morris When the 
Morris office had its ‘first’ — vogel 
. . . Jessel being made an honorary 
Sioux is like a bar mitzvah with 
tommyhawks.” 

Jnterspmed were a flock of in- 
side stuff* asides such as “don't un- 
derstand why Berle didn’t show”; 
“gotta keep cutting as I go along”.. 

. Eddie Fisher, Ted Lewis, Bob 
Kintner, Leonard H. Goldensdn, 
Tony Martin, Frank M. Folsort were 
introduced from the dais. Pinza 
sah? a parody on “Some Enchant- 
ed Evening” eulogizing Jessel, with 
accent on “noodle soup and 
blintzes,” and a reference to Jes- 
sel’s “Hurok” picture fori20th-Fox 
where he had Pinza personating 
Chaliapin. 

Helen Hayes recalled when she 
and Jessel both played Cleveland 
In different theatres, and “I was 
very much in love With him for 
that one week,” whereupon she 
recalled Jessel topped her, “I often 
wondered what would have hap- 
pened if we’d both 1 een booked 
together in Erie, Pa.” 

Oscar. Hammerstein 2d ob- 
served that he’s “the only straight 
man at this table and I know ex- 
actly what I’m saying (and I don’t 
like it),” adding that he’s the only 
young oldtinffer who can make the 
statement that be never was with 
a Gus Edwards act. Danny Kaye’s 
salute was on the serious side, ac- 
centing Jeksel as a legend within 
his own time. 

This cued Benny again to recall 
how Kaye and Hope and the other 
comedians are always such a smash 
at the London Palladium but that 
he (Benny) “never quite made it; 
for example, once I was invited to 
have dinner at No. 9 Downing 
Street, so you see how close I do 
really cbme!” 

Senator Magnuson’s speech was 
a 30-second quickie, “Here’s ? guy 
who had a decent app r oach to 
life,” which promoted Benny to 
observe, “I barely had time to col- 
lect my thoughts/’ Benny’s ap- 
proach to the Kinsey report Was 
not who, where, what but “when, 
and then he assured the ladies in 
the audience that was the end of 
that kind of banter. 

Alliiding to how tough it is be- 
ing Mayor Wagner, Benny thought 


this “was th# second toughest Job 
next to being the headwalter at 
the Cops, especially when Martin 
& Lewis are th*re/’ . ? 

All agreed this was a tribute- 
Jessel richly deserved because of 
his lifetime work for all causes, 
creeds And colors. It was indeed 
“an evening to remember, an event 
to conjure with.” 


METROPOLTTAN 
$5,j)00,000 TO TECHNI 

Technicolor has made an agree- 
ment with the Metropolitan Life 
Insurance Co. providing for a loan 
of $5,000,000 on Oct. 1, 1954. 
Money, which Will bear Interest at 
the rate of 4%% per year is re- 
payable over a 15 year period. 

Coin Is: to be used, for the. con- 
struction or acquisition of addi- 
tional plant facilities and may be 
applied to working capital and/or 
other corporate purposes. 

Repayment starts Oct. 1, 1957 at 
the rate of , $380,000 annually. 
Among other things, the agree- 
ment restricts cash dividend pay- 
ments subsequent to Dec. 31, 1952, 
to earnings from that date, plus 
$ 1 , 000 , 000 . 


§eek Peace on 

RKO reps have opened new 
talks with the Production pode 
Administration, with the ap- 
parent view of obtaining A re- 
versal of PCA’s rejection of 
“The French Line.” . Discus- 
sions have taken place on the 
Coast and indications are that 
the film company is willtiig to 
backtrack, that is, ease tip on 
its heretofore* defiant stand 
concerning the Code, 

• According to Holly'wood 
sources, PC A reps have been 
inxpressed with the “sincerity!’ 
of the film company in its 
willingness to seek out an 
agreement Which would mean 
Code approval for “Line.” 
Since the original Code nix, 
the pic has been running into 
censorship problems in vari- 
ous areas. ■' ' ' 


Soviet 


Continued front page 5 



Continued from page 4 


Ships Storm the Bastions” portrays 
an admiral named Ushakov who 
led a Russian fleet into the Adriatic 
Sea in 1798 and drove the French 
fleet from the Ionian Islands. As 
interpreted by Russian historians, 
these islands were the pivot of 
Napoleon’s defense, and with their 
loss the whole French campaign 
collapsed. Lord Nelson and Lady 
Hamilton are brought into the pic- 
ture as scheming, ruthless reac- 
tionaries hut kindly Ushakov, of 
course, outsmarts them. • 
Anything resembling light ro- 
mance is confined in a Russian film 
to the worker> and his girl. She 
is invariably prodding him to great- 
er production in the factory or 
leaving him because he fails to 
make his. quota. Animated cartoons 
and newsreels, regular items be- 
fore the feature, also are loaded 
with party sell. i 

Biggest success in recent months 
is “Silver Dust,” a story of Amer- 
ican capitalists fighting over who 
will get the monopoly of a hew 
weapon for germ warfare. 

In Moscow, Clark visited the 
Metrdpole Theatre which houses 
three separate cinemas, each seat- 
ing approximately 300 persons. All 
seats are reserved at six rubles and 
performances, are not continuous. 
A deluxer such as this may show 
the same film in all projection 
rooms or offer a choice. While the 
payee waits for a performance to 
finish he is entertained by a string 
orchestra or he may wander around 
the foyer which displays large pho- 
tos of current Red stars arid friends 
of Russia. Only stills recognized 
by Clark were those of singer Paul 
Robeson and Toronto’s Dr. James 
Endicott, chairman of the Cana- 
dian peace Congress,’ who recently 
was awarded the Stalin Peace 

Prize. 

\ • • 



City ‘Conspiracy’ 

Chicago, Feb. 23. 

Petition was filed in Chicago 
Federal District Court last week 
asking for a preliminary injunction 
to prevent a major distributor and 
a large theatre chain from con- 
tinuing with their alleged con- 
spiracy to drive the Liberty The- 
atre, Michigan. City, ind., out of 
business. Defendants in the case 
are Loew’s, Inc.,, Indiana-Illinois 
Theatres, and Jack Rose and Alex 
Manta. Judge Julius Hoffman said 
he would hear the case at a later 
date. 

Liberty; attorneys, S eymou r 
Simon and Sheldon Collen, charged 
the circuit headed by Manta and 
Rose with going to any length to 
take pictures away from the Lib- 
erty, even to the point of bidding 
itself into losses. Indie-operated 
theatre had been splitting product 
with the Lido and Tivoli of the 11- 
l^linbis-Ihdiana chain, until the- cir 
cuit asked distribs to throw the 
pictures open for bidding. Since 
Loew’s was the only distributor to 
comply, no other film companies 
Were named in the suit. 

Liberty is operated by Louis 
Philon. 


RKO asked for a quick trial, hop- 
ing to dispose of the issues pronto. 
Halperln agreed on condition that 
Hughes and four RKO. execs would 
submit to deposition-taking. Judge 
Collins J. Sietz set a March 8 trial 
date, one . week later than RKO 
wanted, with this contingent on 
presentation of the depositions. 

Timing. Factor . 

Roy McDonald, RKO attorney, 
yesterday (Tuesi) advised the 
Delaware tribunal that the March 
8 date would mean the trial would 
run into conflict with the March 
18 . stockholders session and a 
March 22 trial date in a separate 
Nevada suit. The timing, rather 
than the matter of depositions, 
would be a detriment to both the 
corporation arid the., stockholders, 
said McDonald. 

Consequently, the Delaware ac- 
tion, now likely will be placed on 
the court’s regular calendar; mean- 
ing the hearings will be off for 
some time. , . V 

Halperin’s N... Y7 suit is dual- 
pronged. On one end, the lawyer 
charges Hughes with having wasted 
$38,000,000 and he wants it recov- 
ered. Hearing on this count is set 
for tomorrow (Thtirs.); 

It’s on the second part that Hal-, 
periii complains, as he did in Dela- 
ware, that RKO should be figured 
as worth $90,000,000, and not the 
$23,000,000 which Hughes is offer- 
ing. Halperin had asked for a tem- 
porary injunction to block the 
transaction but at a- hearing yester- 
day he withdrew this "without 
prejudice” to his clients. In other 
words, he can ask for the injunc- 
tion again at any time. 

Halperin stated that the injunc- 
tion move is being held in abey- 
ance pending Hughes’ availability 
for the interview. The attorney 
wants to question Hughes and J. 
Miller Walker, William Clark; Gar- 
rett Vain Wagner and James R. 
Grainger about the valuations of 
RKO assets. 

However, since it’s regarded as a 
certainty that Hughes will not ap- 
pear, the next step is up to Hal 
perin. He could ask the N.-Y. court 
fbr either a permanent injunction 
or resubmit his hid for a temporary 
injunction. 

Who Travels? 

On the RKO side, it’s said nor- 
mal for a plaintiff ’s "lawyer to go to 
the defendant’s place of business 
to take testimony, and at his own 
expense. Louis Kipnis, stockholder 
attorney in the Nevada action, did 
this, going to Las Vegas to see 
Hughes at an interview set up by 
RKO counsel. 

Regarding the. Nevada suit, RKO 
will ask for a dismissal of this at 
the March 22 hearing. That is, if 
the stockholders’ conclave takes 
place as skedded and the Hughes 
purchase proposal is accepted. 

Re the RKO worth, Halperin 
claims there’s lots more: than meets 
the eye or carried on the books. He 
points up, for example, -that 700 
back-number features are listed at 
only. . $1 each . but these actually 
represent assets of closer to $25,- 
000.000. This would be, he states; 
via reissue apd/or tv licensing. 


GALA OPENING FOR 
4TH BLOW OF W 

“Gone With the Wind/’ the fabu- 
lous all-time top grosser which 
Metro will reissue in May, will be 
re-launched, in a manner similar 
to a big, new picture. It’ll get the 
sam® treatment that Samuel Qold- 
wyn has successfully followed for 
“Best Years of Our Lives,” Tenta- 
tively scheduled is a ‘world 
preeih” in Atlanta, home of. late 
Margaret Mitchell, author of. the 
bestselling hovel. 

This will be the fourth time 
around for “Wind,” the picture 
first having been released in 1939. 
Following each reissue of the 
David O. Sleznick production, Met- 
ro has withdrawn it from the mar- 
ket and waited for a new crop of 
filmgoers. Policy has paid off hand- 
somely at the boxoffice. 

M-G is strikilg completely hew 
prints, gearing the production for 
widescreen, presentation, 
striking completely new prints, 
gearing the production for wide- 
screen presentation. : 


Goldwurm&Wiesenthal 
Form New Import Firm 

New import-export outfit called 
European Flinty Assn, of America, 
Inc., 4 has been formed by Jean 
Gold wurm, Times Film Corp. 
prexy, and Harold Wiesenthal of 
Arlan Pictures. ‘ Purpose is to se- 
cure a steady flow of top: European 
productions : aVid this is to be 
achieved by giving the European 
producers* a participation -in : the 
company. 

Europeans will be repped on the 
new company board by Albert Rob- 
ert Amon, general manager of 
Mondex Films/ Paris; Hell be a 
v.p. and will be in charge of buy- 
ing continental, films for U.S. dis- 
tribution. He left N.Y. for France 
last week. 

European Films Assn, also" In- 
tends to participate in the financ- 
ing of film production abroad and I 
tp distribute in Europe indie pix 1 
made in the U. S. Eventual aim 
is to consolidate with other indie 
distribs in America to form some- 
thing akin to a United Artists of 
the foreign film. Idea has been 
kicked around for some consider- 
able time, but never came off. 

New outfit’s first release will be 
'Versailles,” the Sacha Guitry pic 
which is to be edited down from 
three hours to an hour and three- 
quarters. Lensed in Eastmancolor, 
and featuring an all-star cast, pic 
will be dubbed as it’s tabbed for, 
national instead of just artie re- 
lease. <• 


Tochaicelor 

Confined from pace s — 

and that this difference, amounting 
to “a tremendous figure,” is v 
“very determining element” in tha 
industry. 

He further cited the elimination 
of the excess profits tax, -to which 
Techni was Subject and Holly, 
wood's switch to color. Kalmus said 
he was hopeful of solving the prob- 
lems encountered by Techni and he 
underscored the possible profits 
from Techni’s licensing agreement 
with DeLuxe Laboratories, its pro- 
posed Trench planKand the deal 
under which it will; turn, out the 
Vectograph single-track 3-D prints 

In listing the Techni pix handled 
in 1953, Kalmus said there were 
100, an increase of 11 from 1952, 
Already set for 1954 are 99, three 
less than in ; the prior year, but 
there is a. prospect for. additional 
films. . . 

Tabulation showed that Techni 
in 1953 shipped 560,550,932 feet of 
positive print footage as against 
461,219,752 ln -1952. The report 
further indicated an investment of 
$763,000 in permanent assets in 
1953, bringing the total of such in- 
vestments since 1945 to about $7,- 
500,000. 

Kalmus made lengthy mention 
of the new system of double-frame 
exposure 4 ! with which it has been 
experimenting for over a year and 
Which is ; said to provide superior 
clarity and visibility especially in 
projecting : a * Techni film on the 
wide screen. Par is currently using 
the process on Its “White Christ- 
mas/’ Techni is also active in color 
tv research, and Kalmus sees the 
advent of recording pix on tape as 
a possible advantage to Techni 
since the lab is equipped and ex- 
perienced to deal with electronic 
photography and projection. 

: TechnicC| or Ltd.; Techni’s Brit- 
ish subsid, m 1953 processed 30 pix 
and remitted $249,746 after $115,- 
856 in taxes. The 1952 comparison 
is $248,559 after $118,066 in taxes. 
The British plant has 35 films in 
production or active preparation. 



Continued from page S 


share pf the “winnings” on a horse 
race be# which a circuit topper 
placed for him. In other instances, 
the exchange staffers reportedly 
collect via golf “bets.” The extent 
of, the payola is unknown. Distrib 
homeoffice executives became 
aware of. it only recently, and are 
currently cracking down sharply 
via quiet shifts and “resignations.” 

It is for this reason that the 
homeoffices have been reluctant to 
grant more autonomy to field staf- 
fers and demand that all film deals 
be approved by the New York 
office. Exhibs’ organizations have 
long fpught for greater authority 
for the. local exchanges, pointing 
out that the men in the field are 
more aware of the local business 
situation, particularly in dealing 
with indie; Ops who are facing box 
I office difficulties. 



Hollywood, Fpb. 23. 

Next president of the Mdtion 
Picture Sound Editors is Morse 
Opper, of Columbia, who was nom- 
inated without opposition.; 

Other nominees are: veepee, 
Charles Freeman, James Graham 
ar.d Henry De Mond; v secretary, 
Lawrence Kaufman; treasurer, 
Richard Jansen; sergeant-at-arms, 
Ed Scheid, A1 Drips and Wallace 
Haynes. 


Exhibs Aid RFE 

Film theatre drive in . support of 
the Crusade for Freedom cam- 
paign to expand the Work of Radio 
Free Europe will take place dur 
ing the week of March 15 to 21. 

Theatre Owners of America, 
which is sparking the campaign oh 
the exhib level, has named liaison 
officers in eaqji TOA territory to 
help theatremen organize* the pro- 
motion. It will consist of the 
showing of a trailer; running one 
minute, and. six seconds With Bing 
Crosby as the' narrator. ‘Theatres 
will be asked to show this subject 
and to arrange for patrons to sign 
Freedom Scrolls and donate 
“Truth Dollars” in the lobbies of 
i the houses. 


Continued from page S 


trite, corny and dumb, spiced up 
with sex because the dialog drags; 
the plot is outworn and the so- 
called star has nothing . . . but 
nothing ; . except the body God 
gave her, and this she exploits to 
the delectation of degenerates. God 
forgive her!” 

Of the. controversial dance se- 
quence; Smitha said he found it 
nowhere as suggestive as that Jane 
Russell did in "Gentlemen Prefer 
Blondes,” and that dance raised no 
objections. Smitha did promise 
New World that the Woods would 
not indulge in a lewd advertising 
campaign such as was done in St. 
Louis, « 

Archdiocesan newspaper last 
month started a regular weekly 
listing of current pix and their Le- 
gion of Decency ratings, with full- 
length tv films also included in the 
list. 

Same paper carried a front page 
editorial in January, when the 
U. S. Supreme Court’s ruling on 
“M” and “La Ronde” was an issue, 
blasting the court for practically 
“ruling out the concept of moral- 
ity.” This editorial said that the 
producers of “filth” in Hollywood 
could never “free themselves from 
the censorship of the law of. God.” 

But the paper isn’t angry with 
the whole industry. Current is- 
sue sports 'a story with a six-col- 
umn head praising top film excc9 
for reaffirming their trust in the 
production code. . 


Goldwyn, Selznick 


Continued from page 3 


long since hav0 severed all con- 
nections with the Company and 
want to give their full time to their 
present-day affairs. 

Coincidentally, Selznick was in- 
volved with another anniversary— 
Metro’s— -only 10 days ago and this 
developed into a kiiigsize but short- 
lived hassle oh both Coasts; The 
producer bitterly cdmplained that 
he was not adequately spo Vi(? htecl 
as the producer of “Gone With the 
Wind” en the Ed Sullivan tv show 
which was staged as a salute to 
M-G. 

The distasteful results, fbr Selz- 
nick, of this “anniversary” episode 
has had no bearing on UA’s birth- 
day observance, though. 


WcJnerftyf Ftbrniry 24,1954 


ncnniBS 


23 


Repablic, Allied 

Continued from page 3 ss! 

feature. The trend, however, hasn't 
been so extensive as to write off 
the tandem situations. The shift to 
a solo feature policy is most nota- 
ble in houses equipped with Cin- 
emascope, but most recent statis- 
tics reveal there are currently only 
1,759 'theatre® both in the U. S. 
and Canada with C’Scope units, 
thus leaving a large market open 
for the small-budgeters. 

Drivelns, Too 

In the U. S., only the south and 
southwest are almost exclusive 
one-feature territories. In other 
areas, there is a hefty .sprinkling 
of dual outlets, including most Of 
the driveins. 

Drought in the programmers is 
not only effecting the indie nabe 
houses but is also hitting key cir- 
cuit houses in double feature ter- 
ritory. However, the latter, largely 
equipped with Cinemascope, are 
not as seriously touched when ex- 
hibiting One of the widescreeners, 
rounding out their program with 
C’Scope shorts. It r s, however, hit- 
ting the smaller houses' (sans 
C’Scope) sharply, resulting in a 
big scramble for secondary prod- 
uct. 

The shortage of second feature 
material has launched Paramount 
on an experiment, the company 
having: acquired six 30-minute pix 
made independently in England, 
and plans to sell them in the U. S; 
as ‘‘second feature.” Another move 
to alleviate the lower-half shortage 
is that undertaken by Republic, 
which is reediting, cutting down 
and retitling a large number of its 
previously-released pictures spe- 
cifically for the dual bill market. 

Despite the shortage of the pro- 
grammers, indie producers appear 
reluctant to step in, feeling that 
the big money comes from the key 
situations which demand solid b.o. 
attractions. Frequently, there has 
been talk that the half-hour vidpix 
currently available would . ideally 
fill the breach, but exhibitors have 
staunchly nixed playing ball with 
the videoites. 


Paris Blind 

Si Continued from page 5 ssss*- 

mittances from a monthly $120,- 
000 to $200,000 and made avail- 
able to the French $400,000 over 
the two year period, the coin be- 
ing taken from a former aid fund 
accrued in France. 

Agreement was worked out by 
Johnston while Flaud was in Ar- 
gentina. Bugs arose when the 
French official returned to be 
faced with a fait accompli. MPEA 
was informed next that the French 
wanted a one year deal, involving 
a $300,000 subsidy to be used in 
setting up a U.S. . office to plug 
French imports, There was also a 
question of the 20 permits which 
the Americans want to “borrow”, 
against next year’s quota'. 

These are the same permits for 
which the French now want re- 
ciprocity. Deal three years ago 
gave the MPEA _11Q licenses, 20 
more than the quota stipulates. 
When the agreement was renegoti- 
ated in 1953, the French deducted 
the 20, which had been borrowed, 
and came up with a total of 70. 
Eventually, with the Americans 
granting the subsidy concession, 
the French came back to the 110 
total. 

What French Can't Grasp 

There is at present every indi- 
cation that MPEA will flatly nix 
any deal involving reciprocity as 
being an unworkable and illegal 
proposition. On the other hand, 
despite the Very considerable pres- 
sures brought to bear by indie 
importers and the Society of In- 
dependent Motion Picture Pro- 
ducers, both of whom oppose sub- 
sidies as a curb oft competition in 
the U.S. MPEA appears willing to 
go ahead with the original pact 
calling for financial aid to the 
French. The export assn, has never 
called this coin a “subsidy” even 
though it follows along the Italian 
pattern. 

There, MPEA originally agreed 
to shell out 12V£% of its earnings 
in Italy as an aid to the local in- 
dustry to establish Italian Films 
Export in the U.S. It wasn’t long 
before IFE expanded into distribu- 
tion. In last year's Italian agree-, 
ment, Johnston stipulated that the 
subsidy— reduced to 10%- ; ^-cbuld 
be used for promotional purposes 
only. 

Company execs, apart from ex- 


Pine-Thqmas’ New 'Big’ Pix 

Continued from pace 3 


pressing surprise at the French 
reciprocity request, comment that, 
even were such An understanding 
to be reached, it would hardly work 
to the benefit of the French since 
the major distribs aren’t properly 
set up to handle foreign Imports, 
a fact that has become obvious 
oyer the past few years. Feeling 
is that the French are willing to 
cut off their nose to spite their 
face in pushing the reciprocity 
proposition. > 

American spokesmen are in- 
creasingly unhappy over foreign 
inability to grasp the realities pf 
the U.S. film market. “They can’t 
understand that here the govern- 
ment can't tell us what to do and 
what riot to do,” one commented. 
“They always think we’re just us- 
ing our independence as an excuse 
to turn them down. The best thing 
MPEA could do would be to dis- 
tribute a copy of the antitrust 
laws in all the major territories. 
Maybe that would ram the truth 
home to them.” ' * 

They See ’Conspiracy* 

Extent to which the impression, 
persists abroad that there is a con?* 
spiracy abroad within the Ameri- 
can industry to keep out foreign 
films is illustrated by a remark 
nlade by a British traveler in N.Y. 
recently. 


New York Truckers Seek 
More for Print Delivery 

Albany, Feb. 23. 

The application of Smith & How*? 
ell Film Service for * a 10% in- 
crease in tariff bn 15 specified 
routes for theatres between Buf- 
" falo, Albany and. New York will be 
heard by a Public Service Commis- 
sion examiner Thursday morning 
(25). ■ 

The company sought to have the 
application effective: Jan. 25, but 
this was not granted, pending a 
hearing. The latter action was 
taken because a PSC investigator 
reported its operation ratio of 
89.76 for a given period, in 1953, 
was better than 93 ratio used as a 
standard by the Interstate Com- 
merce Commission and the PSC. 
Net is the difference between that 
figure and 100. 

Schine arid Smalley Theatres are 
among those who oppose the re- 
quested increase. 

The PSC investigator reported 
that since 1948 Smith & Howell re r 
ceived these increases: 10% for 
Albany, effective Jan. 26, 1952; 
10% for New York and Buffalo, 
Jan. 12, 1953; 10% for Albany, New 
York and Buffalo, Aug. 23, 1953. 

Petitioner contends that the 
latest increase is necessary to 
makeup for other losses in com- 
l modify transportation. 


be announced and later forgotten, 
as often happens in Hollywood. 
Pine and Thomas have a long rec- 
ord of never announcing their 
plans until all details have been 
worked out— and this drastic, 
switch in approach the problem of 
making pictures is no different, 

Firm already has three, proper- 
ties lined up for production under 
its “whatever it takes” policy and 
the first one, “Run For Cover,” 
will go before the cameras June 1. 
As proof that the unit which re- 
leases through Paramount means 
what it says in announcing top tal- 
ent, William •*. Dieterle already has 
been signed to direct the film and 
the partners have some top stars 
in mind for the key roles. 

“Cover” will be followed by 
“Lucy Gallant” and “Far Hori- 
zons;” Screenplays have been com- 
pleted oil both and the problems 
of casting will be met in the hear 
future. ; 

“The important thing,” Thomas 
emphasized, “is that in the future 
we will recognize no budgetary 
limitations on the pictures we want 


to make; And, incidentally, Para- 
mount is 100% behind us in this 
switchover. 

“But we don’t want anyone to 
think that this means we are' 
switching away from our approach 
to providing film entertainment. 
We still want to make commercial 
pictures, not artistic ones, 

“However,” he added, “it’s no 
longer commercial to make, the 
kind of pictures we’ve been mak- 
ing.’’-- : • 

As a part of the new technique 
for the Pine-Thomas unit; each 
project will.be studied from a com- 
pletely individualistic basis. Each 
picture will, get the process it ap- 
pears to be best suited for and 
the decision to use color or not 
will be made on the same basis. 
Similarly, partners intend to get 
the best possible names as mar- 
quee bait.. 

There’s only one thing that won’t 
be changed. 

“We’re still gonna get out on 
the road with each picture,” 
Thomas promised. “We’re gonna 
sell each one, just as we have in 
the past.” 

• • y. - i : : : 



Mr. Exhibitor! 

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s' 


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HCTIJ1M 


Wedaeida^ Fekrnirjr 24, 1954 



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NEW YORK 

Bussell V. Downing, managing 
director of Radio City Musk Hall, 
N. Y., named chairman of dinner 
committee for N. Y, Variety Club's 
first annual Heart Award Dinner, 
it was announced; by Tent 39 tem- 
per Edward Fabian. ' 

Dinner on May 6 will honor Wil- 
liam J. German, head of Variety 
Club Foundation to Combat 
Epilepsy. , . 

Mitchell Wolfson, a member of 
directorate of Theatre Owners of 
America and operator of a Florida 
circuit, received citation for his ef- 
forts in employing physically 
handicapped. Citation was pre- 
sented Wolfson In Washington by 
Maj. Gen. Melvin J. Mass, U. S. 
Marine Corps Reserve, a member 
of the President’s Committee on 
Employment of the Physically 
Handicapped. 

Jules Lapidus, Warner Bros, 
eastern and ' Canadian division 
sales manager, on swing of the 
company’s branch offices in the 
central district. 

PHILADELPHIA 

George Murphy, film actor, re- 
cuperating here following opera- 
tion to remove small growth from 
vocal chords. f 

Jack Romaner, Stanley-Warner 
shorts subject booker, left com* 

S ariy tb go into bit for himself in 
. Y. Irv Loomis, film supervisor, 
replaces him. V 

Bert Leighton, manager of the 
Grand. Lancaster. Pa., working 
with dislocated shoulder as a re- 
sult of a fall. 

Jack Engel celebrated 25 years 
on Vine St. (18). Engel started 
with Universal, switched to RKO 
and finally wound up with Screen 
Guild. 

Phil Silvers was in town Feb. 17 
In conjunction with world preein 
of ‘’Top Banana” at Goldman The- 

Joe Nevison. district maifager 
for the A. M. Ellis chain, returned 
to insurance business. 

Walt Disney received National 
Educational Assn, award Feb. 17 
for his film, “Living Desert” at 
Haddon Hall, Atlantic City. 

Danny Kaye made personal ap- 
pearance at Sunday morning (21) 
preview of “Knock on Wood” at 
Mkltown Theatre, with Paramount 
and Decca Records sponsoring in- 
vitational showing. 

Stanley-Warner Lindley adopted 
policy of German films on week- 
ends, 

Ulrik Smith. Paramount branch 
manager, is distributor chairman 
for Brotherhood Week in this area. 

Bill Gandall. Universal flack, 
worked with Elmer Rickard, man- 
ager of Stanley, on exploitation 
campaign for “Glenn Miller 
Story.” 


named chairman of the Variety 
Club bouse commlttoo for 1954, 
Lee’s Woodland ozoner in Parks 
Township near • Leechburg, Pa., 
will not reopen when the outdoor 
season arrives, Harold A. Lee, the 
owner, stated he refused to collect 
a 10% amusement tax for the 

county. ■ v . ., * 

Ted Grarice elected president of 
the Tri-State Drive-In Theatres 
Assn, for 1954. Other offices are 
James Nash, veepee; Joseph Volpe, 
secretary, and Ernest Stern* treasr- 
urer. Both Volpe and Stern re- 
elected to directorate along with 
John A. Robb. - • 

Harold (Red) O'Donnell, veep 
of operators union and a projec- 
tionist at the Art Cinema for last 
12 years, left that theatre to. go 
with the SW circuit. A1 Yerman, 
from nabe Triangle, replaces 
O’Donnell at the Art Cinema. 

Stan Dudelson, former RKO 
salesman ..here, resigned as UA 1 
manager in DeS Moines to join 
his father, Moe Dudelson; who was 
with UA a long time, in operating 
National Telefilms Associates, in 
Detroit. * 

M. A. Silver, zone manager for 
Stanley-Warner circuit, and his 
wife returned from month’s vaca- 
tion in Palm Beach, Fla. Silver 
stopped off in New York for a 
S-W board meeting. 

With Cinemascope installations 
completed in 10 neighborhood and 
suburban houses, “The Robe” has 
opened extended second-runs in 
most outlying spots. 20th-Fox sent 
Hal Marshall here to kick off the 
campaign. 

Picture business going all-out to 
cooperate . with Cambria County 
officials in celebrating county’s 
150th anni this summer. 

Earl Gordon celebrated his first 
anni as manager of the Squirrel 
Hill, the.; clicko art naber. 

Bert Steam, head of Co-Opera- 
tive Theatres, indie booking com- 
bine, headed for Coast to huddle 
with Maurice L. Conn and Connie 
Mack on latter’s life story. Steam 
and Conn tied up the screen rights 
to the Mack saga several months 
ago. 


let’ 9 In schools with special rate of 
50c for student groups. 

* “Go Man Go” pegged for RKO 
Grand on March 9. 

Bell & Howell absorbing DeVry 
Corp., manufacturer of film projec- 
tors, as of April 15. Purchase 
price undisclosed. 

McVickers switching to Wednes- 
day openings as permanent policy 
with current bill to build up week- 
ends. 

* Abe Platt of B&K and Bob Flan- 
nery of Whiteway Signs are co- 
chairmen of amusements for cur- 
rent Red Cross drive. 

B&K -settled for $20,000 from 
auctioneers for art objects, furni- 
ture, and other gingerbread ac- 
cumulated from refurbished thea- 
tres. 

Ray Hemple appointed head of 
special trailer department at Na- 
tional Screen Service vice Bill 
Harris who ankled the company a 
week ago for Fllmack Trailers. 

Jack Garber, B&K flack, back at 
his desk after surgery and conva- 
lescence. 


PITTSBURGH 

William F. Adler, ed-publisher 
of Pittsburgh and tri-state edition 
of TV Guide, elected prexy of 
Northside Amus. Co., which owns 
Ben Amdur’s Garden Theatre on 
the Northside, % 

Harry Rees, who until recently 
was with UA. has joined the Han- 
na organization here as salesman 
for its Franklin Film Exchange. 

Meade Theatre in Meadville be- 
ing purchased by Salvation Army, 
and will be remodeled into the SA 
headquarters there,. 

Eli Kaufmann, who operated an 
indie poster exchange here for 
many years, went to National 
Screen Service in New York on a 
roving assignment as a tv trailer 
rep. 

Hollywood Theatre at Hastings 
acquired by the Moose lodge and 
will be re-named Moose Theatre. 

Ray S c o 1 1, telesportscaster, 


.../ 





ST. LOUIS 

Leon Jarodsky, owner of the 
Lincoln and Paris, Paris, 111., 
readying his new 500-car ozoner 
near that town. 

Francis Barry, Navy vet, suc- 
ceeded James Bradshaw as mana- 
ger of the State, O’Fallon, 111., 
owned by Charles Goldman, St. 
Louis. 

Dominic Frisina, head of the 
Frisina Amus. Co., closed the 
Frisina in Taylorville, 111., and re- 
opened its ; Capitol, a 1,224-seat 
house in- same town. Company re- 
tagged the Ritz, a 560-seater, . the 
New Frisina, in the same city; 

For . first time in 14 years pol- | 
icy at the Roxy, Ramsey* 111., 
owned by Woody* Proffer has been 
changed. It now shows three fea- 
ures weekly instead of four, 

Henry Zack, former office mana- 
ger for Universal’s St. Louis ex- 
change, now a salesman for Re- 
public; replaced by William Emas, 
formerly with Allied Artists here.. 

Ralph Welch shuttered his Ill- 
inois, Newman, 111, 

Eddie Rudolph, Jr., who oper- 
ated the State, Columbia, 111., un- 
til' it was destroyed by fire early 
last year, joined, the St. Louis sales 
staff of Republic. 

Norvin Garner, owner of an 
ozoner between Liblourne and 
New Madrid, Mo., constructing an- 
other near Dexter. Mo. 

Publix Great States Circuit sold 
the Orpheum, a 1,200-seater in 
Quincy, 111., to Perry Heffler but 
will continue to operate the Wash- 
ington, 1,493-seat house in same 
town, 

St. Louis Amus. Cq., relinquished 
its lease on the nabe Aubert; 
house will be concerted into a su- 
per market. 


rr-RMMO CITY MUSIC HUl- 

.Rockefeller Center \ • ■ 

LUCILLE BALL • DESt ARHAZ .. 
"THE LONG, LONG TRAILER” 

Photocfsphed in Anrco Color 
Print by Technicolor • An Ni-G-NI Picture 
*nd SnCTACilU STAGE rUttNTMION 


LOS ANGELES ■ 

Warners has slated its 3-D pro- 
duction, ; “Phantom of the. * Rue 
Morgue,” for mass booking in 250 
theatres out of Cincinnati, Cleve- 
land and Indianapolis, opening 
Feb. 24. . 

Saturation booking, covering 70 
theatres in Southern California/ set 
by Allied Artists for “Riot ih Cell 
Block 11.” Film will open March 
31, accompanied by a TV-radio 
campaign blanketing the area from 
L. A. to San Diego. 

Don Halley, formerly with :the 
United Paramount circuit in Kan- 
sas City, appointed manager of the 
Los Angeles Paramount theatre, 
succeeding Buzz Davenport, who 
entered private business. . 

Columbia closed a deal to dis- 
tribute “End of the Affair,” to be 
produced by David Rose and David 
Lewis in England with Deborah 
L-Kerr starring. 


DALLAS 

Henry Munder sound engineer 
for Dorsett Laboratories of New 
Orleans, installed a special Pana- 
phonic sound system at _ Melba 
Theatre here for showing of 
“Wings Of the Hawk.” Exhibitors 
throughout, the area invited to the 
demonstration. 

The Plaza at Denton reopened 
under the ne\y ownership of C. L. 
Robinson, who also owns._and op- 
erates the El Ranchq Drive-In 
there* 

Home Theatre, White Face, for- 
merly owned and operated by Jack 
Holman, sold to J. B. Prather, who 
operates, theatres at Hale Center. 

The 183 Drivein here opened a 
new heated auditorium and snack 
bar. a 

Walter Penn joined sales staff of 
Metro exchange here. 

More than 100 theatre owners 
from Houston and other parts of 
Texas gave testimonial luncheorf 
for S. M. Sacks, manager of RKO 
exchange in Houston; 

Col. Vic Barraco succeeded by 
Dick Wygant as prez of Houston 
and Gulf Coast Theatre Owners 

An extra usher at Loew’s State 
in Houston confessed to police 
that he set four fires at the hpuse 
and one at the nearby Majestic, 
nil in the last two months. 



BURT LANCASTER., 

HIS MAJESTY 


PARAMOUNT 


CHICAGO 

. B&K held business meet of all 
department heads last Wednesday 
(17) at Blackstone Hotel, with 
John Balaban and Dave Waller- 
stein at helm. 

“Rose Marie” set for Staite-Lake 
on March 4, with “Long Long 
Trailer” pegged to open the Chi- 
cago the following day barring 
holdover of present bill. 

Complete fire inspection of al 
Chi theatres last Week resulted in 
100% okay by Chief James Collins 
of fire prevention bureau. 

James Thompson, former man- 
ager of United Artists Theatre, in 
Masonic hospital following heart 
attack. 

Clark Theatre installing wide 
screen and refurbishing; 

Surf exploiting reissue of “Ham* 


DENVER 

At its February meeting the di- 
rectorate of Allied Rocky Moun- 
tain Independent Theatres elected 
Neil Beezley, prexy and national 
director; Fred Hall, veepee; Gus 
Ibold, treasurer, and Joe Ashby, 
general manager. Set May 3 as 
convention date. 

Variety Tent 37, having settled 
with insurance companies for 
losses ih the last year’s dishsterous 
fire, is looking for new location. 

John Sandro and Fred Penny, 
Aladdin doormen, joining the U.S. 
Marines. 

. Ben Benda, Ritz manager, pro- 
moted to similar job at Santa Fe, 
with the Ritz spot going to Eddie 
Specht, recently of Rapid City, 
S. D. Henry Herzog quit, the Santa 
Fe post. 

Lorane McCarthy reopened the 
Ute, Strasburg, Colo., after face- 
lifting. 

James Nicholson, Realart veepee 
here taking over operation of ex- 
change from Robert Patrick, who 
intends concentrating on a few out- 
standing roadshow films. Laura 
Haughey remains as Realart office 
manager and booker. 

Mrs, Otto Wcddeiifeld bought 
the Zala, Madrid, Neb., from the 
E. J. Touey estate. 

Fox Inter-Mountain Theatres 
changes included moving of Ed 
Doty, manager of the Foie, Cald- 
well, Idaho, to Las Vegas, N. M., 
as city manager, where he succeeds 
Jack Fleming, who went to Walsen- 
burg, Colo., in a similar capacity. 


Hollywood, Feb. 23, 
Columbia signed' Rudy Mate to 
direct “The Bandit*,” a Lewi* J. 
Raehmll production, starting March 
1 . . . Josef Shaftel, indie pro- 
ducer, signed Edgar Ulmer to di- 
rect “Tlv Bandit,” starting March 
15 . . . Ross Hunter draws produc- 
tion reins on UI’s “All That Heav- 
en Allows,” based on a novel by 
Edna and Harry Lee ... Harold 
Gordon drew a role In UI’s “Ben- 
gal Rifles” . . . Robert Francis 
plays a cadet in Columbia's “Mis- 
ter West Point,” co-starring Ty- 
rone Power and Maureen O’Hara 
. . Schenck-Koch signed John C. 
Higgins, author of “The Swamp 
Fox,” to do the screenplay . 

Carl Faulkner, 24 years with 20th- 
Fox, renewed as head of the studio 
sound department. 

Gale Storm signed as femme 
lead in “Three Gobs in Paris,” with 
Tony Curtis, Gene Nelson and 
Paul Gilbert as mile toppers, at 
UI . .... . Columbia’s “The Pleasure 
Is All Mine” switched to “Three 
for the Money”; Hecht-Lancaster’s 
“Bronco Apache” to “Apache,” and 
“Athena” to “Adam and Athena? 

'. Phil Carey snagged a featured 
role in “Mfster West Point” at Co- 
lumbia . . Judith Ames drew a 

key role in. UI’s “The Matchmak- 
ers” . . . Vincent M. Fennelly. 
picked Beverly Garland as femme 
lead opposite Wayne Morris in 
“Two Guns and a J Badge” at - Al- 
lied Artists . . . Carl Dudley and 
camera crew to Lake Geneva, Wis., 
to shoot “ice Boating,” a two-reeler 
. Hal Wallis handed Mara Lane 
a contract calling v for one film a 
year. " 

Paul Douglas will co-star with 
Stewart Granger and Grace Kelly 
in Metro’s “Green Fire,” to be 
produced by Arinand Deutsch on 
location in Colombia ;. . . Comdr. 
Marshall Beebe; doubling as tech- 
nical adviser and actor in Para- 
mount’s “The Bridges of Toko-Ri” 

. . Mark Robson negotiating for 
screen rights to James A. Miche- 
net’s “The Jungle,” for indie film- 
ing in 1955 . . . Anthony Ross drew 
a role in Paramount’s “The Coun- 
try Girl” , . . Warwick Produc- 
tions signed Richard Widmark to 
star in “Prize of Gold,” to be 
filmed in England . . . Lt. Col, O. F. 
Lassiter will function as technical 
adviser on Paramount’s “Strategic 
Air Command” . . . UI signed 
Dianna Cyrus Bixby to pilot a. spe- 
cial jet camera plane for sequences 
in “This Island Earth.” 

Columbia signed Gary Merrill to 
star in “The Black Dakotas,” with 
Wallace MacDonald producing and 
Ray Nazarro directing . . . Metro 
assigned Lana Turner to a “guest” 
spot in “Deep in My Heart,” the 
story of Sigmund Romberg, which 
Roger Edens . will produce with 
Jose Ferrer starring . . . Dianne. 
Foster plays femme lead opposite 
Robert Francis in the Bryan Foy 
production, “Those Reported Miss- 
ing,” at Columbia . . / Gordon 
Lockert.e, head of the newly or- 
ganized G-L Productions, opened 
offices on the Hal Roach lot with 
a program of three features . . . 
Jobfi Ericson j oined Stewart Gran- 
ger, Grace Kelly and Paul Douglas 
in Metro’s “Green Fire.” 

Susan Hayward will co-star with 
John Wayne* in RKO’s “The Con* 
queror,” the story of Genghis Khan 
. . . UI assigned Julia Adams as 
femme lead opposite Don a 1 d 
O’Connor in “Francis Joins the 
WACS” . . . Jerry Schnitzer, Bob 
Stevenson and Rita Rayburn or- 
ganized Gallery Films for the pro- 
duction of industrial and commer- 
cial pix . . . Kurt Kasziier drew a 
pivotal role in Metro’s “Babylon 
Revisited,” to be filmed in France 
. . , John Ford , negotiating for 
screen rights to James Warner 
Bellah’s novel, “The Valiant Vir- 
ginian” , . . Moulin Productions 
closed a deal with British Pictures 
Corp. to co-produce “Moby Dick,’’ 
with John Huston doubling as pro- 
ducer and director . . . Hugo Haas' 
“Bait”given a“B” rating by the 
National League of Decency. 

Mark Robson will direct “Phfft” 
at Columbia ... . Metro’s “Athena” 
will be filmed as “Adam and 
Athena” . , . Jerome Courtland 
back in town .for a role in “Those 
Reported Missing” at Columbia ... . 
Columbia bought “Which. One,” 
new- tune by Lester Lee and Ned 
Washington, to be sung in “Three 
for the Show” ... Philippe de Lacy 
arid his “Cinerama Holiday” troupe 
completed their California shooting 
and left for Chicago to film another 
sequence . ... Lance Fuller snagged 
a role in “Syndicate,” to be pro- 
duced by King Brothers for RKO 
release. 

. Hugh O’Brian's first film since 
leaving UI is ‘‘Broken Lance” at 
20th-Fox . . Wanda Hendrix plays 
femme lead opposite Gary Merrill 
in “The Black Dakotas” at Colum- 


bia . . . Mamie Van Boren cast as 
second femme lead in UI's “Francis 
Joins the WACS’* . . . Allied Artists 
signed Lyle Talbot and Florence 
Lake for roles, in. “Two Gjuns and 
a Badge” . . . Robert Francis, plays 
a prisoner of war in ““Those .Re- 
ported Missing” at JColumbia . 
Donna Reed drew a top role in 
Metro’s “The L&st Time I Saw 
Parig,” formerly titled “Babylon 
Revisited” . . . Dkk Powell’s first 
producer job under his RKO con- 
tract is “The .Conqueror” . . 

Philip Tonge snagged a comedy 
role in UI’s ”The Matchmakers” 
. * Vincente Minnelli put Metro’s 
“Brigadoon” back before the cam- 
eras for the final week of shooting. 


Milehimir Masseur 


, Continued fr.om page ,l 4 


accord as a helpful instrument un- 
der which practfcally anything can 
be brought to the screen. 

He cited the instance of “River 
of No Return” for which he 
megged some added footage. It in- 
volved a shivering Marilyn Mon- 
roe, .naked under a blanket, get- 
ting a massage from Robert Mitch- 
um. “We took the script to the 
Code people and they told us that 
there was absolutely no chance of 
getting this scene into the film,’* 
Negulesco related. 

No Thrill! 

“So I took it up with Darryl 
Zariuck, and we decided to go 
ahead ariyway; on the assumption 
that we could Create an inoffensive 
scene. I told Marilyn that, under 
no circumstances, could either she 
or Mitchum give the impression 
that they were enjoying them- 
selves. When we showed the film 
to the Breen office, not a foot of it 
v/as deleted.” 

Negulesco, who megged “Three 
Coins in the- Fountain” in Rome 
for 20th, said he was convinced 
that CinemaScope demanded much 
more location shooting than iri> the 
past since artificial backgrounds 
tended to show up a lot more. He 
didn’t think the Hollywood unions 
had a right to quarrel with this 
practice arid commented that it 
added greatly to the realism of pic- 
tures 'and to their acceptance 
abroad. 

“In ‘Three Coins’ we had a scene 
where three girls throw coins into 
ar old fountain to bring them luck. 
When we did that scene, an on- 
looker informed us that, tradition- 
ally, people threw the coins over 
their shoulder. That’s the kind of 
detail you just don’t know unless 
you’re on the spot, and it adds 
color, too,” he declared. 

'“A Woman’s World” so far has 
Clifton; Webb, June Ally son, Glenn 
Ford, Lauren Bacall, Charlton 
Heston and either Fred MacMurray 
or Paul Douglas in the cast. It also 
features the the $210*000 Ford ex- 
perimental dream car which has 
been touring auto shows. Buggy 
is insured for the amount it cost to 
riiake. Negulesco said he was us- 
ing a new CinemaScope camera 
lens said to give considerably bet- 
ter depth than the taking lenses in 
use so far. 

“We’ve got a lot to learn yet 
about making CinemaScope films,” 
said the man who was also respon- 
sible for making . “How to Marry 
a Millionaire.” Stereophonic sound 
was still far from perfection, he 
observed, particularly at the shoot- 
ing end where it’s difficult to con- 
trol the sound when a person isn’t 
moving but standing still and turn- 
ing his head while conversing. 


Asia 


Continued from page 3 


with many theatres overrun by the 
Communist forces. The country is 
serviced film-wise from France. 
Ugast said he had seen a number 
of Russian propaganda pix that 
circulate in his territory, but he 
didn’t think the Soviets were very 
successful in selling their line. 
“The people know it’s propogartda,” 
he said. 

According to Ugast, British and 
French films are finding increas- 
ingly friendly reception, particular- 
ly in Japan. Local production 
flourishes iri Japan, India, Siam, 
Malaya, Hong-Kong and .the Philip- 
pines. “The more better pictures • 
we make, the more this, is an in- 
centive for local producers; to raise 
their standards,” he maintained* 





Wednesday? Fekrnary 24 , 1954 


BAMW-TBUVISmN 


1 







«l JUUTT l UlL lllAL 







Edgar Bergen’s career in tv as part of his new deal for Kraft 
starting in the fall may be in straight dramatic roles without bene* 
fit of his longtime “associate” and alter ego, Charlie McCarthy. 
Bergen’s contract With Kraft is on a longtime basis, calling for a 
full hour weekly radio show, in which he’ll be disk jockey, coni* 
mentator, host with guest celebs, etc. 

However, pact also provides for Bergen’s integration Into the 
brace- of Weekly hourlong tv dramatic stanzas (NBC and ABC) 
sponsored by the food and cheese company, and it’s reported that 
Bergen will star in a number of the segments as a dramatic per- 
formed sans McCarthy^ However, for special holiday program- 
ming on the Kraft tv shows, the format will, likely be switched 
for a return to the Bergen-McCarthy comicalities. 

High command of Kraft and j. Walter Thompson, agency on 
the aetbunt, returned from the Coast recently after finalizing 
plans for the new Bergen deal. ! 

Sequel to Efcens "Kiss of Death’ 


Sparks ABC Bid to^Woo Burr Tillstrom (Temporary 
Pinchhitter) Away From NBC 


Chicago, Feb. 24. 

The televised kissing demonstra- 
tion conducted last week on WBKB 
by disk jockey Jack Eigen and pic 
starlet Cleo Moore has touched off 
reverberations that transcend the 
duo most intimately involved. 

The hard facts of the episode 
are these: Eigen was fired by 
WBKB as emcee of ' the late Mon? 
day night tv Show on the grounds 
of “extreme bad taste.” Miss 
Moore, in town to tubthump her 
latest film, “Bait,” produced by 
Hugo Haas . for Columbia release, 
got the publicity break of her 
young career via the cross-country 
press play given the incident. j 

But from many angles it’s the 
backwash of the televised passion 
session that has the more signifi- 
cant overtones. It sparked the first 
overt move in ABC’s not-so-secret 
campaign to lure. Burr Tillstrom 
and his “Kukla, Fran and Ollie” 
troupe away from NBC. The fact 
that Chi ABC veep Sterling (Red) 
Quinlan turned immediately, and 
successfully too, to KFO’s Fran 
Allison and Tillstrom as tempor- 
ary, at least, replacements for the 
Monday night period is viewed as 
more than an emergency happen- 
stance (Although Tillstrom’s cur- 
rent NBC pact which expires in 
June is an exclusive on his Kukla- 
politan identity, it does not per- 
clude his own outside work as an 
Individual.) 

Tillstrom’s relations with the 
Balaban & Katz theatre family 
have long been close, dating back 
to his and B&K’s pioneering tv 
days with WBKB. Now that B&K 
and WBKB are important factors 
in the ABC setup as a result of the 
merger with United Paramount 
Theatres, it’s an open secret that 
B&K prexy John Balaban would 
like very much to have Tillstrom 
back on the. team. And with Swift, 
present sponsors of the NBC-TV 
Sunday afternoon “Kukla” show, 
unhappy with the time slot, the 
timing seems right for a proposi- 
tion from ABC. 

In quite another way, this latest 
chapter in the Eigen story has its 
impact on the Chi NBC head- 
quarters. It h^s rekindled the 

(Continued on page 36) 



NBC arid packagers Mark Good- 
son and Bill Todman still envision 
a Fred Allen within their tv orbits, 
despite the fact the comic’s “Judge 
For Yourself” Tuesday night panel- 
talent show drops out of the Old 
Gold sponsorship schedule in May. 

Within the next week Goodson 
and Todman will audition a new 
show for Allen as a likely OG can- 
didate for the fall. Like “Judge” 
h 11 be a variation on the panel 
theme, but otherwise the format's 
being kept under wraps. 

, Giggie company has bought 
Truth or Consequences” (sans 
Ralph Edwards) as replacement for 
Allen, at least for the summer, but 
there's, no commitment as yet foi\ 
a fall entry. • : 



I “Today” shagged its highest 
Nielsen to date in the period 
Jan. 10-23 but the record 
didn’t get into the; book due 
to , a clerk’s error. Nielsen’s 
office quickly sent subscribers 
the data as an insert. 

The NBC-TV 7 to 9 a m. 
crossboarder drew an average 
of 9.7, against previous high 
of 8.4, with the half-hotiirs prq- 
'■ gressing from 7.5 to 10.1, 10.3 
and 10.B, versus previous peaks 
of 6.6, 9.4, 9.0 and 10.2 for the 
| respective segments. 



That variety stanzas, no matter 
how costly or ambitious, don’t fit. 
into the early evening (7:30 p.m!) 
viewing habit, is further reflected 
in the cancellation of the “Arthur 
Murray Party,” slotted In the .7:30- 
7:45 Monday segment on NBC-TV. 
Program has alternate- week spon- 
sors — Associated Products and 
Consolidated Royal Chemical— and 


Like Polo On Sunday 

Arthur Murray attributes 
the demise of his 7:30 p.m. 
“Arthur Murray Party” NBC- 
TV show thusly : 

“How can you get an audi- 
ence at that time when every- 
body’s out having cocktails?” 


both have turned in their exit 
notice, effective upon termination 
of the current cycle in April. 

Similar situation pertained to the 
Wednesday evening 7 to 7:30 
“Stork Club” show (though the lat- 
ter has been a WNBT, N.Y., local 
presentation due to inability of the 
network to clear stations for the 
sponsor, (Chrysler Dealers). Chry- 
sler as a result has cancelled out 

Murray show, despite the 15- 
minute capsule format, is one of 
the most costly of its kind, paying 
some of tv’s highest fees for guests. 

Network plans to install a singer 
in the time period, with possibility 
that either Rosemary Clooney, 
Frank Sinatra or Tony Martin will 
go in. 


TV’s Links & Rackets 

NBC-TV Will telecast a couple of 
annual sports classics. On ' June 
19 the web will cover the final 
round of the National Open Golf 
Tourney at Baltusrol, N. J., em- 
ploying the Cadillac-built mobile 
unit which figured in the tv’ing of 
President Eisenhower’s inaugura- 
tion. Cameras will follow the tee- 
offs from 4 to 6 p. m. 

The National Tennis Champion- 
ship (singles) will be covered Sept. 
4-6 at Forest Hills; L, I, ' ’ 


f 

I 



♦ t 




In Bid for Krafts Full Hour 




By GEORGE ROSEN 
Present pace of sales on the 



NBC-TV early-morning “Today” 
show (some clients are committed 

for next Christmas and some even 
are projected into Valentine’s Day 
in ’55), indicates that the erbss-the- 
board marathon program ' will hit 
the $8,000,000 mark in gross- time 
sales this year. For ’53 “Today” 
chalked up $5,000,000. . 

Pursuing th6 same sales pattern 
of introducing the magazine ’’in- 
sertion” concept into tv to .attract 
the smaller advertiser at low-cost 
participation. : the network^ 11 to 
noon “Home” show, which preems 
next Monday (1), has thus far at- 
tracted pre-showtime sponsors with 
billings in excess of $1,000,000. 

Some time next fall NBC-TV Is 
expected to preem its late night 
counterpart of “Today”— -namely, 
“Tonight,” either as a 90-minute or 
two-hour presentation, growing out 
of the present Steve Allen-emceed 
40-minute (11:20 to midnight) 
show on WNBT, the web’s N. Y. 
flagship. This too will be slanted 
for “insertion” advertising along 
lines of the magazine plan. 

• As a combined three-pronged op- 
eration geared to the “Pat Weaver, 
thinking” in injecting new sales- 
programming patterns into video, 
NBC envisions the day when the 
three shows might account for" 
$33,000,000 in annual gross billings 
—which is pretty much of a net- 
work in itself. 

The “Today” show is capable of 
fetching a $15,000,000 annual gross, 
under ideal SRO conditions. As an 
indication of its unique sales pat- 
tern and the type of “insertion” 
business it attracts, sponsors spe- 
cializing in seasonal pushes are 
committed to the show for Christ- 
mas, New Year’s, Mother’s Day, 
Father’s Day, for graduation time, 
for the first hot spell (and the first 
cold spell next year). Deals have 
been set with automotives for the 
year-end “new car preview”, time, 
etc. 

In contrast to the single client — 
Kiplinger News Letter— that was 
lined up in advance of the “Today” 
preem, the “Home” show has spon- 
sorship commitments thus far from 
Aluminum Co. of America. Amer- 
ican Greetings Corp., Avoset Corp., 
Dow Corning Corp., General Mills, 
James Lees & Sons, and Sunbeam 
Corp. As in the case of “Today,” 
the show is attracting clients who 
have never used tv before. And 
like the morning entry, it can be 
bought for one or any number of 
“insertions.” Its SRO potential 
on an' annual basis is $8, 000,004). 

Plans on “Tonight” are currently 
in the blueprint stage. Although 
the network has found it difficult 
to recapture the 10:30 to 11 p. hi. 
segment from the stations (with 
practically all affiliates sold out 
locally during that half-hour), the 
web has already had assurance 
that, from 11:20 on, the outlets 
will welcome the coaxial ride with 
a major live showcase. As a two- 
hour nightly attraction, it’ll be 
geared for a $10,000,000 billings 
potential. 


COWAN’S ’ABOUT TIME’ 
VICE ‘QUICK AS RASH’ 

. ABC-TV has slotted a new Lou 
Cowan panel session starring Dr. 
Bergen Evans as a replacement for 
the departing “Quick as a; Flash” 
in the Thursday at 8 slot. New 
paneller, a Chicago origination, is 
titled “It’s About Time,” and deals 
with famous events which must be 
identified via recordings, scram- 
bled headlines, dramatic vignettes, 
etc. It’s slated for a March. 4 
preem. 

Panel consists of former Chi Sun- 
Times drama critic Robert Poliak, 
housewife Sheri Stern, ex-Quiz Kid 
Ruth Duskin and Chi announcer 
Vim Cottschalk. Web’s, buy of the 
package, incidentally, evens the 
score for Cowan, who had his 
“Comeback Story” dropped a cou- 
[ pie of Weeks back. 



, Sudden return to New York last 
week of Bernice Judis and husband 
Ira Herbert, managerial factotums 
of WNEW, N. Y., within a few 
days after they had left for a 
scheduled month’s stay at Boca 
Raton, Fla., gave impetus to the 
reports that the lucrative indie op- 
eration is in process of being sold. 
Station execs admitted, “negotia- 
tions are in progress” but nothing 
finalized yet. Price mentioned is 
$ 2 , 000 , 000 . 

, For some time it’s been general- 
ly bandied about that the new 
ownership, topped . by William 
Cherry, Providence, R. I.,' depart- 
ment store owner and broadcaster, 
was anxious to .dispose of WNEW 
for a fast capital gains deal. Sta- 
tion was bought by Cherry for $2,- 
50,000 ($500,4)00 in cash) a few 
years back from Arde BuloVa. Last 
year it was reported that George 
Storer had initiated some talks for 
acqu isition of the station, but noth- 
ing happened. 



The Edward R. Murrow Friday 
night “Person to Person” CBS-TV 
show, upon which both Murrow 
and the network embarked last 
fall with something approaching 
trepidation, for nobody knew what 
the “remote interview” idea would 
add up to, looms as the “sleeper 
of .the year.” 

Sponsored in the east by Amoco 
and in the midwest by Ifamm Beer, 
“Person” now has additional 
clients bidding for it. Parker Pen, 
for one, has let it be known that 
it’s yenning to alternate with 
Amoco as anchor in the east and 
would use additional stations In 
the. midwest outside the Hamm 
coverage (Detroit, for example). 

On the last Nielsen, “Person” 
emerged with a 30.2. (Previous 
tally was ,24.7). What makes the 
rating unusual is that “Person,” 
slotted in the 10:30-11 p. m. seg- 
ment Fridays, has only 38% cov- 
erage of available tv homes (be- 
cause so many stations won’t clear 
time). In contrast to the 80, 90 
and 100-station lineup prevailing 
for most major get work shows, 
“Person” rides along with only 33 
stations. 

Emergence of Murrow as a ma- 
jor tv personality on his own (plus 
the inherent showmanship in the 
stanza which slots an Eleanor 
Roosevelt one week then comes 
on With an Eddie Fisher) is con- 
sidered the vital element that’s 
given “Person” its permanent sta- 
tus on the Columbia rosters. 

Although “P to P” hiatuses at 
the end of June, the Friday at 
1:30 spot will be kept warm by the 
same, producing-scripting staff but 
with a change in format. 


Lax ’Girls’ Now Ex 

ExrLax, after a 26-week try, is 
dropping “Leave It to the Girls” 
on ABC-TV after the March 27 
telecast. Series never left the 
ground in its Saturday at 7:30 slot, 
garnering low ratings and under- 
going several format changes, 
latest of Which was a switch 
whereby for one week the panel 
consisted of men with Maggie Mc- 
Nellis moderating and Eloise Mc- 
Elhone acting as guest star. 

Network hasn’t yet set a replace- 
ment for the Martha Rountree 
package. 


Having lost its 20-year-old and 
still potent “Lux Radio Theatre” 
to NBC effective next August, CBS 
has no intention of relinquishing 
Edgar Bergen to the opposition 
next season, particularly since 
Bergen’s upcoming sponsor, Kraft, 
is lavishing coin for a 60-minute 
weekly segment on the full net- 
work facilities. That’s a mighty big 
chunk of coin, as network radio 
sponsorship goes these days. Plus " 
the f*ct that CBS is alerted . to the 
knowledge that NBC is putting up 
a mighty big battle for the busi- 
ness and is offering Kraft the Sun- 
day night 9 to 10 period. ABC 
Radio is in there pitching, too. 

Since there’s still no certainty 
that Jack Benny will be back In his 
Sunday night radio slot next sea- 
son for Lucky Strike, despite CBS 
board chairman William S. Paley’s 
personal pleas to Benny to stay 
put in AM, the Bergen defection, 
on top of Lux, could throw Colum* . . 
bia for a serious loss. Nor would it 
contribute to CBS’ happiness to 
stand by and watch NBC grab off 
such major acquisitions. 

CBS has asked Kraft and it 9 
agency, J. Walter Thompson, to 
hold up on any network commit- 
ment for Bergen until it adjusts 
its rate pattern. For a sponsor to 
come in with its own show (Ber- 
gen’s new deal is with Kraft) for a 
full hour of time is something of 
a precedent these days in radio, 
and apparently CBS* wasn’t pre- 
pared. rate- wise, for such a con- 
tingency. 



Miller Brewery, which sponsored 
the initial Robert E. Sherwood tv 
show, “Backbone of America,” 
failed to pick up , its option last 
week, on Sherwood’s second video 
original. “Pontius Pilate,” with re- 
sult that NBC is in process of ne- 
gotiating a deal with Hallmark to 
pick up the tab. Expectations are 
that “Pilate” will go into the regu- 
lar Hallmark 5 to 6 p. m, period 
on Easter Sunday. 

NBC was apprehensive over re- 
ports that Sherwood’s “Pilate” 
contained sensitivities involving 
the Jewish faith. As result the 
network submitted the script to 
eminent Jewish scholars, who gave 
it an official okay. 

Whether or not “Pilate” will 
originate from New York or the 
Coast is still to be determined. 
Cast has not been chosen yet. 

CLETE ROBERTS TO 
COVER WORLD FOR TV 

: Houston, Feb. 23. 

Clete Roberts, world reported 
has been signed by KPRC-TV here 
and will offer ‘the station global 
news coverage, according to Jack 
Harris, veepee of the Houston Post 
in charge of KPRC and KPRC-TV. 

Roberts, will travel around the 
world for KPRC-TV with a camera 
gathering filmed feature stories to 
send back here to KPRC-TV on a 
new' series which will start in April 
titled “World Report.” He will 
leave here on March 3 for the Far 
East. He will take with him 1,300 
pounds of equipment in 33 
packages. 


Martha’s 15G Guestint 

Martha Raye will pull down $15,- 
000 for a five-minute skit on the 
NBC-TV “Arthur Murray Party” 
next Monday (March 1). The Mur- 
ray quarter-hour customarily pays 
fancy fees to guest talent who then 
turn the coin over to a favored 
charity. 

Mrs. Murray (Kathryn) will ap- 
pear in the sketch with the Big Mo. 



KABI«-T£I-KVISIOW 


Feknury 24, 1954 



IT'S CBS-TRENDEX VS. NBC - 

IN RATING HASSLE; BERLE’S OUCH 


The rating hassle appears to be 
breaking out all over again. It's 
the Nielsen and NBC forces on one 
side; Trendex and CBS on the 
other. This time the stars them- 
selves are getting into the act. Mil- 
ton Berle, for one. has been doing 
a bum over the Trendex projec- 
tions, which seems to give CBS 
much the best of it, and feels the 
time has come that • the broader, 
more penetrating Nielsen canvass 
got a better shake in the trade and 
public prints. 

NBC, which fares considerably 
better in the Nielsen returns, goes 
along with Berle and is currently 
drumbeating the fact that four of 
the top five shows and seven of 
the top' 10 in the newest Nielsens 
... <foi* the two weeks ending Jan. 23) 
are NBC programs. 

The Trendex Top 10 report (for 
the later Feb. 1-7 period) tells a 
different story,, more to CBS’ satis- 
faction and happiness. While Niel- 
sen puts Milton Berle in . the No. 3 
—spot, with only “I Love Lucy” and 
"Dragnet” ahead of him, the Trend- 
ex report relegates him to eighth 
position, and moves the Jackie 
GleasOn show into the No. 3 berth, 
ahead* of both “Dragnet” and 
Groucho Marx, while it’s the Niel 
. sen, tally contention that .GleasOn 
merits no better than the No. , 6 
spot. 

Both NBC and Berle, who has 
been keeping steady company with 
the leaders On the Nielsens, 
wouldn't, be averse to a showdown 
on the rival rating situation, con 
tending that the Nielsen is the 
"bible under the pillow” of the 
Madison Ave. agency-sponsor fra- 
ternity “and that's what counts.” 

Perhaps the greatest disparity 
that show's up week-to-week is in 
the Sunday at 8 “Toast of the 
Town” vs. “Colgate Comedy Hour” 
competition. Those overnight 10- 
city Trendex reports have been 
giving the CBS-TV “Toast” practi 
cally all the honors on audience 
pull. In contrast, the new Nielsens 
spot NBC’s Colgate hour; in the 
No. 5 slot, with “Toast” out of the 
Top 10 running. It’s been that way 
for a long time, ' 

Again NBC makes much of the 
fact that Arthur Godfrey’s Wednes- 
day night CBS-TV show is missing 
from the Nielsen Top 10* plunging 
from a 50.9 a year ago to 40.2 in 
the new listings, only 4.4 points 
higher than Joan Davis’ (NBC) 35.8 
arid only six points higher than 
"My Little Margie’s” (NBC) 34.2. 


Sods Coin for MBS Nows 

Miller Beer has just inked for 
one hews show via Mutual and is 
on the brink of signing for an- 
other. “Robert Burleigh and the 
News,” a five-minute, three-nigh^-a- 
weeker out of Washington, went to 
the brewery last week. The show 
preems on March 1 on a; 500-station 
hookup. 

Femme commentator Hazel Mar- 
Jcel is in the works to do a Tues.- 
Thurs. 10-minute roundup of news 
for Miller also. The pactihg is ex- 
pected to be done this week. 



Denver, Feb. 23. 
Harry Huffman, chairman of the 
board of KLZ* (radio and tv), says 
there have been discussions With 
Time, Ind., over their buying the 
stations (price mentioned is 
$4,000,000), but insists that as yet 
there is no firm basis for bargain- 
ing. Huffman says that Time start- 
ed the talks, but that at present 
KLZ is not for sale.” 

Meanwhile, Hugh Terry, vice 
president and general manager, is 
in a local hospital suffering from 
exhaustion, brought about by a 
heart attack His illness is at- 
tributed to steady and incessant 
work in connection With KLZ get- 
ting a television permit and also in 
the activities surrounding the set- 
ting up of new studios in a large, 
remodeled building. * • 




While refraining from any outspoken opinions on the matter, 
some of the CBS-TV execs, along with others in -the trade, 
see more than casual significance attaching to two separate 
and distinct revelations in connection with the Wednesday night 
“Godfrey & Friends” video show. “A year ago or two years ago 
it couldn’t happen” was the way one CBS official summed it up. 

Almost concurrently, Nielsen's listings catyp , out Jast week, 
showing Godfrey’s Wednesday stanza missing from the Top io 
ranks for the first time in nearly three years (except last No- 
vember, when it was 11th), while at the same time the network 
revealed that CBS-Columbia, the manufacturing arm of CBS, Inc.,, 
was moving into the sponsorship picture. Latter fits * into the 
category of a “house account,” generally interpreted to mean 
that the network is finding the going rough on latching on to a 
regular client. CBS-Columbia has taken over the segment vacated 
by Chesterfield. 

Godfrey’s Monday night “Talent Scouts” is still in the Top 10 
Nielsen payoff aiid his morning cross-the-board radio show con- 
tinues to rule the roOst. But it’s no secret that the NBC boys 
have been silently rejoicing Over the inroads that the Joan Davis 
and “My Little Margie” competition has been making on the God- 
frey Wednesday hour; ; ", : 1 , . -V 


WM. KEENE 

What Have I Done 
for you recently? 

„ LE— 2-1100 




Now that the Saturday night 
CBS-TV “Medallion Theatre” vid- 
pix series is being cancelled by 
Chrysler effective April 3, the net- 
work is moving to entrench a 
“house show” into the 10:30 
to 11 time period. Going into 
the time slot is the new Eddie 
Mayehoff “That’s My Boy” situa- 
tion comedy series, one of the ma- 
jor items on Harry Ackerman’s 
Coast agenda of promising prop- 
erties awaiting exposure. . Chrysler 
will continue to foot thd bill. 

Cy Howard, whose contract with 
CBS expires in August, is in proc- 
ess of negotiating a new contract 
with the web and it’s probable that 
he’ll get the nod on the Mayehoff 
production . reins. ( Howard was 
identified with the Martin & Lewis 
“That’s My Boy” Hal Wallis pic, re 
leased by Paramount, which fea- 
tured Mayehoff.) 

Ackerman has been in N. Y. the 
past week huddling With program 
veepee Hubbell Robinson on the 
Mayehoff and other upcoming 
stanzas. 


Mardi Gras ’Commentator’ 
In NBC-TV Cable Pickup 

“Home” will have 25% of its 
time sliced on March 2, the day 
after it preems on NBC-TV. . The 
11 to nooner will surrender its 
last 15 minutes so that the web’s 
cameras can size up the Mardi 
Gras in New Orleans from 11:45 
to 12:30. At one point last week 
Ford Motor Co. was interested -in 
footing the bill for tv'ing the fete, 
but with a night telecast also card 
ed for an hour starting- midnight, 
Mardi Gras civic officials lifted an 
eyebrow or two on “overcommer- 
cialization.” A single shot may be 
worked out, however (a colorcast 
was discarded some time ago, inci- 
dentally, due to cable difficulty ). 

Highlighting the Mardi Gras will 
be shots of. the Rex and Cortius 
parades and the nighttime corona- 
tion hoopla. In New York, Joshua 
Logan will do some of the covering 
description.' The Broadway pro- 
ducer is strictly a New Orleans 
booster, having opened his, “Kind 
Sir” there before the Gotham' de- 
but of the Charles Boyer-Mary 
Martin starrer. N.O. is his home-? 
town. 



CBS-TV ’ 

Also Goes to ‘Cutaway’ 

As Aid to Local Coffers 

CBS-TV’s 7 to 9 a. m. “Morning 
Show’’— -the web’s hoped-for an- 
swer (beginning March 15) to 
NBC’s ’’Today”— is making five- 
minute segment available as local 
cut-ins from its N. Y. flagship, 
WCBS-TV, and elsewhere along 
the route. The “morning cuta- 
ways” will be spotted five minutes 
before the half-hour and the hour 
(7:25, 7:55, 8:25 and 8:55) similar 
to the technique originated on 
Today.” In addition, there will 
be a dozen 20-second announce- 
ments and eight identification 
spots. 

The first capsule and the one at 
8:25 will provide N, Y. and regional 
news by Harry Marble; 7:55, local 
regional weather sizeups by Tom 
Reddy, and at 8:55 Margaret Arlen 
will do a “how to” femme feature. 
Latter segment already has its first 
sale, in ahead of the web in this 
regard, with Renuzit latching on 
twice weekly. Fve spots also have 
been sold, two of them to Old 
Dutch Cleanser and the others to 
the All detergent. . Other stations 
on the skein can either sell the 
capsules , or take the network serv-? 
ice. 

With Walter Cronkite and 
Charles Collingwood heading up 
the news divisions of “Morning 
Show,” the former will surrender 
his Saturday 6:20-25 p. m. “Date 
line U.S.A.” on the local, with Bob 
Trout replacing,, and Collingwood 
will depart “Eye On New York,” 
with Marble taking this Saturday’s 
(27) spot, after which Edward P. 
Morgan will-be the regular. 


BARBER'S OFFBEAT STATUS 

Sportsc aster Now Doing Non- 
sports Assignments For CBS 

Red Barber seems headed for a 
career that mixes his sports pun- 
ditting With more “serious” chores 
-r-not unlike crack singers who 
prefer to showcase their talents in 
dramatic spheres. The Redhead’s 
narration job on CBS Radio’s re- 
cent “Dead Stop” traffic docu- 
mentary feature satisfied his bosses 
that he Could handle offbeat, non- 
sports assignments with the same 
authority reflected in his baseball, 
etc., stints. 

The web tapped Barber for the 
special “World Day of Prayer” air- 
ing coming up MtarCh 5 at 10:45-11 
p.m. Appearing with him will be 
Ralph Bunche Jr., Dodger pitcher 
Carl Erskine; Mrs. Douglas Hor- 
ton, ex-president of Wellesley Col- 
lege, and Gale Storm of “My Lit- 
tle Margie.” • 

Barber taped the show Monday 
(22) and left by auto next, day for 
the St. Pete camp of the N. Y. 
Yankees. 



ALL CARDINAL GAMES 


Job, Alice Griffin Do 
B’way Beat for 


Herring to L.A. 

Seattle, Feb. 23. 

Charles Herring, news director 
of KING-TV here, is going to Hol- 
lywood to work for KNX and CBS- 
TV, and Richard Ross will replace 
Herring as news chief at KING- 
TV. Change is effective March 6. 

Herring will do local news at 
KNX and cut-ins on GBS-network 
news programs. ; 


St. Louis, Feb. 23. 

Through a deal made last Week 
with WTVT, UHF, Channel 54, in 
Belleville, 111., 14 miles from St. 
Louis, all road games of the Cardi- 
nals during the forthcoming sea- 
son, will be telecast. This , will be 
in addition to broadcasts of all of 
the games over a 100-station mid- 
west web'. John' L. Wilson, exec, 
v.p. of the ball club and a biggie 
at Anheuser-Busch, sponsor of 
the deal, said the telecasts of the 
out-of-town games will be simul- 
casts and be handled by Harry 
Caray and Jack Buck. i 

The first tv’d will be from Mil- 
waukee April 15 when the season 
tees off for the local club, Dick 
Meyer, gen. mgr. of the ball club, 
said that despite the removal of 
the Browns to Baltimore, local area 
fans will be able to enjoy baseball 
throughout the season through the 
.telecasts. [ j , } 3 ; 1 1 o j i; t n 


Effective Monday (22), John and 
Alice Griffin are appearing several 
times Weekly on the WOR-TV, 
Ni Y., nightly program from 11- 
11:30 p. m., “The Man From Times 
Square.” They will give opening- 
night reviews of new plays, offer 
features and interviews, and report 
on news of the theatre, opera, and 
ballet. 

Griffin has been connected with 
television as a writer, actor and 
director in the U. S. and Canada 
since coming from England two 
years ago. * 

Frisco Academy Awards 

San Francisco, Feb. 23. 

Judges have handed down their 
decisions on the winners of an- 
nual Bay area tv Academy Awards. 
The contest, in its fifth year, was 
headed by the choices of Dr. Thom- 
as Groody and William Winter as 
best male performers. 

Several other kudos were made, 
including those to Patricia Blake 
and Patty Pritchard as distaff lead 
ers; Hartley Sater, for his public 
service program discovery; with 
other awards to writer Caryl Cole 
man, Dr. Mortimer Adler and 
Parian K<y$ler Rqye.. 1 j . j- r r q i 


Washington, Feb. 23. 
National Assn, of Radio and TV. 
Broadcasters 1 is planning a mam- 
moth $20-per-plate testimonial din 
ner here March 31 -honoring Justin 
Miller on the occasion of his retire- 
ment as board chairman,. Judge 
Miller, who was president of the 
association from 1945 to 1951 will 
be succeeded by Harold E. Fellows, 
who will hold down two posts, 
prexy^and board chairman, simul- 
taneously. - . 

Dinner will be held in the main 
ballroom of the Mayflower Hotel, 
preceded by a reception hosted by 
Broadcast Musici Inc., which will 
provide entertainment for the eve- 
ning. Profits from the dinner will 
go toward purchase of a send-off 
gift. 

Among speakers at the dinner 
will be* Judge Bolffha Laws of the 
U. S. District Court for D. C., a 
longtime friend of Miller; G. Rich- 
ard Bhafto; veteran broadcaster,' of 
WIS, Columbia, S. C., a member, of 
the committee which selected Mil- 
ler in 1945; and Arthur B. Church, 
prexy of KMBC and KMBC-TV, 
Kansas City, Mo. 

Miller, who is 65, gave up a 
judgeship on the U. S. Court of 
Appeals of the D. C. Circuit, to 
head up the broadcasters organiza- 
tion. A native of California, Where 
he still maintains a home (In Los; 
Angeles), he taught law in various 
colleges arid . universities before 
coming to Washington. Recipient 
of many honors, h)s biography is 
one of the longest in “Who’s Who 
in America.” 


Minneapolis, Feb. 23. 

As an aftermath of the WTCN- 
TV recent expose of unlawful pin- 
ball cash payoffs in a number of 
St. Paul establishments, the station . 
and St. Paul Mayor John Daubney 
are at loggerheads again following 
the latter’s renewed attack upon 
WTCN-TV and its hitting back at 
him. 

Cohtfoversy over the mayor’s 
charges that the WTCN-TV investi- 
gation and expose were politically 
motivated, emphatically denied by 
the station, flared yp once more 
after a city council appointed com- 
mittee made a “lengthy investiga- 
tion” and recommended in its re- 
port that there be no prosecutions 
of the alleged pinball machine of-, 
fenders “because of lack of ade- 
quate evidence.” 

Comprising three city officials— 
the police chief, council public 
safety commissioner and city at- 
torney— the committee in its report 
also ' took WTCN-TV severely to 
task. 

t ■ 

Mayor Daubney, a candidate for 
reelection next month, immediate- 
ly charged, in a statement to the 
press, that “WTCN-TV abused the 
public interest for partisan politi- 
cal purposes.” 

He also announced that he’d re- 
fer WTCN’s activities in the matter 
to the FCC. 

Refusing to take the mayor’s 
punch on the chin lying down, 
WTCN-TV countered the same 
night on its 10 o’clock news pro- 
gram when assistant news director 
Dick Horning, pinchhitting for ail- 
ing John Ford, assailed the mayor 
and committee. 

Horriirig defied the mayor to car? 
ry the matter to the FCC, charged 
that the WTCN-TV investigators 
were bulldozed, browbeaten, and 
ntimidated when they voluntarily 
appeared before the committee to 
present their evidence and claimed 
that an attempt was being made 
to “whitewash” delinquent officials. 
It was Horning who had direct- 
(Continued On page 34) 


Nettle’s Radio Buy 

Nestle Co., which in January 
bought into ABC-TV's “Space 
Patrol” as cosponsor with Ralston- 
Purlna, has joined the cereal; outfit 
as cosponsor of the radio version 
of the scierice-fictioner. Nestle 
moves into the Saturday a.m. slot 
April 3. . 

ill Cecil & Presbrey 



On Tap For VHF 

Memphis, Feb. 23. 

WMPS, Memphis’ ABC affiliate 
owned add operated by Plough, 
Inc., and WREC, CBS outlet here, 
o.&o. by Hoyt Wooten, open their 
battle this week for VHF. Channel 
3 here. WMCT, o.&o. by the Com- 
mercial Appeal, Scripps-Howard 
ayem daily and WHBQ-TV, which 
was sold last Week by Harding Col- 
lege to General Teleradio, are the 
other two Memphis VHF outlets 
operating on Channels 5 and 13 - 
respectively^ 

The WMPS-WREC hearing be- 
fore the FCC is ejected to be a 
rip-tearing affair with both sides 
geared to “throw the book” at each 
other. Both stations will have score 
of witnesses making the jaunt to 
Capital Hill from here. Wooten, 
Abe Plough, chairman of WMPS 
arid the Pharmaceutical Co., Har- 
old Krelstein, WMPS prez, and 
other front-liners of both outlets 
have been on scene in Washington 
for weeks putting the final touches 
to their exhibits arid case before 
the FCC. Hearing will probably 
last about seven weeks. . m 


VedmyJayy February 24, 1954 


BAMo-ivlevision 



By coincidence, a * OTCJTV rebuttal to ad chief g EmS e Maul’s 
charges that tv is pricing itself out of the market was Provided bv 
Chi NBG-TV. program manager Ben Park speaking here last week 
to the Junior* Chamber of Commerce. Park spelled out in detail 
the network s recognition that traditional selling and programming 
practices carried over from radio are putmoded, especially for the 
upcoming color, era. And he outlined how the NBC-TV magazine 
concept as conceived by prexy Sylvester (Pat) Weaver is designed 
to meet many of the criticisms of tv's HCL such as aired by Mogul 

Park conceded that only a relative few bigtime spenders can 
afford ' a show of the lush production dimensions of a “Comedy 
Hour” costing $85,000 per stanza'; or that many, smaller bankroll- 
ed, although anxious to use video, can stand the 13-week tab for a 
once-a-week' ride on a daytime soaper which adds up to $100,000. 
But, he argued, the answer to video’s skyrocketing costs is not 
cutting corners on show budgets in an attempt to tailor them to ad 
budgets. Rather, the NBC-TV answer, at least, is developing pro- 
grams of a scope which no individual bankroller could underwrite 
but which a flock of advertisers, big, medium and small, can use 
in any variety of combinations to get the exposure they desire. 

By selling “circulation” via insertions in “Today” or ‘Home” or 
the blueprinted nighttime “spectaculars,” Park argued,' the net- 
work can have the freedom to fully exploit the medium’s program- 
ming potential while at the same time keeping it within the price * 
range of the advertisers* individual kitty. 



CBS-TV ‘Woman’ Has That .Nighttime Look In 
Pacting of Major Names 


CBS Television’s dominance in 
the daytime weeper picture is not 
mere “expedient” programming 
and, in fact, figures to go upbeat 
as time goes on and as rival NBC. 
continues to give the soapers the 
back of its hand in favor of other 
formats. Columbia’s banner cur- 
rently waves over seven of the 
sudsers that! will become an octet 
when, on April 5, “Portia Faces 
Life” takes the 1:15 to 1:30 slot. 

The web’s No.. 1 indication of its 
faith in the hearts-and-flowers 
skeins is supported by the unusual 
player bookings in its recently 
launched “Woman With a Past,” 
berthed at 4 o’clock. Never before 
in daytime drama history* has such 
a succession of Holly wood-legit-tv- 
troupers been billed. Starring are 
Constance Fprd, Gene Lyons . and 
Mary Sinclair, a trio that could 
carry the strip all the way. But 
“Woman” also stocks a number of 
regulars with triple credits, in- 
cluding John Ridgely, Jean Staple- 
ton, Bram Nossen, Anne Hegira, 
Geoffrey Lumb, Beverly Roberts, 
Dennis Harrison, Lilya Skala, 
Kathleen Comegys, Jay Barney, and 
Marta Linden. All of them are at 
home in the major emoting me- 
diums and familiar faces to night- 
time viewers, the latter fact giv- 
ing their daytime outings a “legit” 
complexion. As a footnote, how- 
ever, it’s of some Interest as a 
trend-maker that . they’re virtually 
all new to daytime dramatics. 

“Woman With a Past” is some- 
what away from orthodox soapers 
on its strictly adult slanting in 
which illegitimacy is the central 
theme. Richard Brill produces with 
Marcella Cisney directing. 



General Foods has put all 
imors about the Red Buttons 
low to rest by coming through 
ith a 52-weeker on the CBS-TV 
)mic that gives him a new lease 
* the 9:30 p. m. Monday time 
ntil March 14, 1955. If the Ben- 
in & Bowles ad agency was con- 
; rned about the rating of Buttons, 
ie renewal didn’t bear that out. 
i the last Nielsen (for the fort- 
ight ending Jan. 23) Buttons 
lowed a respectable 39.8, but 
hen placed alongside the 64.3 of 
1 Love Lucy” the gap is too close 
»r comfort since Buttons had been 
tpected to enjoy more of an in- 
-ritance from the 9 o’clock 
ucille Ball-Desi Arnaz stanza. 

In an attempt to close the gap 
ider the same roof, the Buttons 
low is getting a new deal, with 
I'tie Stander coming in as head 
riter and a change being effected 
the producer-director opera- 
5ns, . > 3 > v t :' i 


Color TV Schedule 

NBC-TV 

Excursion — Feb. 28, 4 p.m. 
Ping Dong School — March 
8-9, 10 a.m. 

. Opera (“Taming . of the 
Shrew”) — March 13, 4 p.m. 

Name That Tune — March 
15, 8 p.m. 

On Your Account — March 
19, 4:30. p.m, 

3 Steps to Heaven — March 
22-23, 10:45 a.m. 

Eddie Fisher — March 31, 
7:30 p.m. 

CBS-TV 

New Revue — Feb. 26, 5:30 
p.m. 

Paul Tripp’s Party- — March 
2, 5:30 p.m. 



Hope on Garroway 

Detroit, Feb; 23. 

Pontiac is sticking with Dave 
Garroway’s Friday night half-Kour 
on NBC-TV for another 13 weeks 
and will keep the show next season 
if the network will slot it in a later 
time period and provide a studio 
where an audience can be used. 

Pontiac’s decision to hang onto 
the show, a revival of Garroway’s 
earlier. Chi-based variety stanza, 
represents more than $900,000 ih 
gross time and talent billings for 
the second 13-week cycle, which 
starts March 13. Despite the fail- 
ure of the from-New York version 
to make much of a dent in the 
ratings parade, Pontiac reportedly 
figures Garroway is doing a selling 
job for them. 

Show’s format is to undergo 
some tightening with more em- 
phasis on the musical portions. 

Deal was set by W. Biggie Levin, 
Garroway’s manager, with reps 
from the MacManus, John & Ad- 
ams agency sitting in with Pontiac 
brass; 


WXYZ’s Reorg 

Detroit, Feb. 23. 

Realignment of exec positions 
and a split in radio and television 
took place last week r at WXYZ, 
ABC o&o here, with ' John; Pival 
becoming v.p. in charge of tele 
and Hafpld S. Christian v.p. in 
charge of radio. James G. Riddell 
continues to head the combined 
operations as prexy of WXYZ Inc. 

Succeeding Pival in his previous 
post as tv sales chief is Ralph Daw^ 
son, while Harold L. Neal moves 
up to manager of radio sales to 
Succeed GhHsft&rt > « ? 9 1 1 . i ) i y ; 


Sam Fuller has been armed with 
a mixture of shotgun and adrenalin 
that looks more and more like 
trouble-shooter status for the erst- 
while 1 exec producer on the Coast of 
Colgate’s “Comedy Hour.” Fuller 
was brought to New York from the. 
Pacific ramparts recently to be- 
come the No. 2 man in veepee Tom 
McAvity’s program . patterning at 
NBC-TV, with v.p. Fred Wile go- 
ing to Hollywood, in the exchange 
to boss the programming setup 
there as “Hell Bent for Burbank” 
bids to take on an aura of trans- 
continental reality. 

One of Fuller’s prime duties, 
it now appears, is to ride herd on 
the producer and consultant corps 
Within the NBC framework, find 
out what they’ve done, what they’re, 
doing, and put ’em to work, per- 
haps even designating an “Opera- 
tion Transfer” for such production 
ivory as. the web might find more 
suitable to function away from 
their present base. That could 
mean an exchange of mastermind 
personnel between east and west. 

Although the program - produc-. 
tionend is figured to be in Fuller’s 
more immediate ken, the long arm 
may well extend to such other fac- 
ets as the writers and directors. Mc- 
Avity is believed to have given Ful- 
ler complete freedom to use the 
whip in an effort toward working 
efficiency. 

Fuller’s pullaway from the Coast 
appears to have been pegged on 
the future status of “Comedy 
Hour” itself. There’s a keen strug- 
gle now going on between the web 
and Jersey City (Colgate hq) on 
the fate of the Sunday night Show 
opposite Ed Sullivan’s CBS-TV 
“Toast of the Town.” There's been 
no blueprint yet on the top budget 
stanza as far as next season is con- 
cerned. Of more immediate con- 
cern, perhaps, is the absence of 
any agreement between web and 
sponsor on an acceptable summer 
replacement. Last year Colgate 
berthed “The Big Payoff” in the 
hiatus period, but that’s been re- 
jected because of its identification 
as a daytime half-hour strip on the 
rival CBS web, aside from a pos- 
sible disinclination to take a chance 
with a giveaway show following 
the name-calling stir directed 
against Walt Framer’s other prop- 
erty, “Strike It Rich.” 




New Type of Talent 
As Peg for TV Shows 

On the theory that J. Fred 
Muggs, the chimp, is one of the 
prime attention-getters of NBC- 
TV’S “Today,” a couple of other 
shows are fashioning similar pegs 
around which to hang their pub- 
lic relations. The web’s upcoming 
(March 1) 11 to noon “Home^ 
crossboarder is counting, for in- 
stance, on infants to do lh* trick. 
These will be a series of filmed 
inserts showing the crawlers in 
action and perhaps inspired in 
part by Jack Barry’s “Oh Baby” 
capsules for Mennen’s powder. 

“Home” producer Jack Rayel 
said last week, incidentally, that a 
Chicago personality whose name is 
imbedded in deep freeze at the 
moment Will come east to try out 
on “Home” in a closed circuit set- 
up working with ed-in-chief Ar- 
lene Francis. The shakedown will 
determine his status as a male 
counterpart to Miss Francis. 

With CBS pitting itself against 
"Today” in the 7 to 9 a.m. slot 
starting March 15 (under title of 
“Morning Show,” a tag that’s been 
used by the web previously for its 
ayem fare), one of the gimmicks 
will be a “disk doggie” puppet de- 
signed by BII & Cora Baird, who’ll 
bring their, other props to the 
stanza. The platter pooch will 
he one of the show’s main identi- 
fication marks and has been dubbed . 
Humphrey the* %bft . '• rB * 6 \ 


Ho w’ya Fixed For Tint? 

Even the. Friday night Gil- > 
lette boxing bouts will get 
color exposure under ,NBC- 
TV’s plan to give every bladk- 
and-white show the rainbow 
treatment. 

Negotiations are now undfer . 
way for a tint pickup of the' 
bouts from Madison Square 
Garden, N. Y., some time in 
March. . 


K&E, Grey, Lefton 



Near $15,000, 



Kenyon & Eckhardt’s and Grey 
Advertising’s snagging of two' of 
the .three couplings of RCA’s busi- 
ness — rated at a' lush $12,000,000 
now but subject to a hike of per- 
haps another $3;000,000 in the 
giant outfit’s color tv and elec- 
tronic upbeat for ’54— are under- 
stood to relate back to the ad agen- 
cies’ “master” performances on 
the web last year. K & E, which 
has been awarded' the RCA-spon- 
sored radio-tv sliows plus RCA- 
yictor home instrument division 
and RCA institutional advertising, 
drew the plum on the basis of. its 
work for the Ford Motor Co; 50th 
anni NBC-TV show last spring 
which ,aimong other kudosings, 
“brought out" Mary Martin and 
Ethel Merman in a cavalcade of 
their trademark tunes that has 
since been encased in an album. 

The largesse to Grey, which 
takes in NBC as a whole and RCA 
Victor records, comes as a result 
of the agency’s handling of the 
web’s Film Division which will be 
a year old next month. 

Third divvier of RCA’s coin Is 
A1 Paul Lefton, which has been 
earmarked for home appliances 
and electronic products, the latter 
being a new . account for the com- 
pany as it has handled sojne of 
the home appliance business. RCA 
Communications stays with Qehn- 
rich Associates and financial adver- 
tising with Albert Frank-Guenther 
Law. 

J. Walter Thompson, relieved of 
the. meaty RCA account, theoreti- 
cally had six months from Jan. 1 
to ride the business to conclusion, 
but all changes are effective imme- 
diately. Respective account execs 
are being set up. 


MIDNIGHT MIDDLEBROW 
GAB ON TAP AT WNBT 

Packager Louis G. Cowan . and 
WNBT (N. Y.) program director 
Dick Pack are working on a Satur- 
day midnighter that would assem- 
ble top guests for a middlebrow 
session encompassing .literature, 
drama, hews features, et al. Half- 
hour would segue from the recent- 
ly installed Chock Full of Nuts 
“Showcase” and push back the sta- 
tion’s “Midnight Movie” to 12:30. 
Ben Grauer will moderate and ten- 
tative teedff is March 6. 

Show is partly inspired by the 
click of the roundtable discussion 
of Billy Rose’s controversial “The 
Immoralist,” given nightly across- 
ffie-board .treatment on the NBC- 
TV flagship. Homosexual theme 
of the play at the Royal Theatre 
Was kicked around on a lofty plane 
by some of the biggest names in 
town, with Rose buying the time 
and studio facilities only. i * ; ' 1 


Chicago, Feb. 23. 

TV networks and stations, rating 
services and station reps came in 
for ' a lambasting here last week 
seldom equaled by a responsible ad 
agency head when Emil Mogul 
fired an all-encompassing barrage 
of criticism at tv industry practices, 
speaking before the Chi Television 
Gouncil. 

The owner-prez of the agency, 
bearing his name charged that the 
tv industry is suffering from -Van 
acute case of Hollywooditis,” 
marked by “smugness, complacent 
cy and even- arrogance” with both 
profits and waste running at uncon- 
scionable levels. He warned that 
it’s time the advertisers take a 
hard look at the medium and its 
costs, suggesting that “a baker's 
dozen of the top advertisers and 
agencies «could bring these prices 
down by refusing to pay them for 
a short period." 

To backstop what he called his 
“indictment” of an industry, Mogul 
pointed out that his agency has 
been in tv since 1947 and that cur- 
rently 53% of his billings and 73% 
of his overhead are earmarked for 
video. He described tv as the “most 
wonderful” medium ever devel- 
oped but said if it failed to put . its 
economic house in order pronto it 
would come tumbling down like 
the proverbial house of cards. 

‘Shameful Waste’ 

Warming to his task, Mogul ac- 
cused the networks, or rather the 
top two, of being victims of “that 
peculiar altitude about show busi- 
ness that makes people forget the 
value of a buck.” He cited top 
brass “thumb twiddling,” back- 
stage personnel padding, and the 
long-term talent pacts costing mil- 
lions of dollars as a “shameful 
waste" of money and manpower. 

These excesses, Mogul claimed, 
are contributing to tv’s overall 
costs which, despite declining costs 
per thousand viewers, have already 
driven out many pioneer clients 
and saddled video with the highest 
mortality rate of any ad medium. 
Especially with coloi* nigh, only a 
handful of blue chip bankroUers 
will be able to continue to under- 
write tv’s HCL. 

Both the webs and the individual 
(Continued on page 34) 



Sports promoters have been . 
handed a new weapon in the war 
on video. Last Wednesday night 
(17) CBS-TV televised the Jimmy 
Slade-Clarence Henry heavyweight 
fight for Pabst Blue Ribbon. Beer 
and only 617 ringsiderS, paying a 
thin $1,585, turned out to see the 
fisticuffs first hand. Immediately 
the electronic medium was blamed, 
.and it appears with some justifica- 
tion* too, since Slade and Henry, 
while . not exceptional names are 
Recognized as at least better men 
than the near-empty house Indi- 
cated, 

The tv coverage was part of the 
regular "Blue Ribbon Bouts” sc- 
ries via the web, and never before ' 
had the fight gate registered so 
low. It was pointed out, too, that 
a convention of. war veterans was 
being held in the Nation’s capital, 
where the fight was held, and that 
half of the 617 attendees were 
probably conventioneers. 

Neither of the pugilists, on the 
.other hand, are particular favor- 
ites in D. C. Henry is from Los 
Angeles and Slade from New York. 
Moreover, Henry, who has been in 
semi-retirement for 18 months, has 
only fought twice since returning 
to the ring. He won the brace but 
the competition wasn’t big time. 
Slade, a heavy now, lost his. iast 
fight to light heavy** Harold John- 
son. 




There's an air of . Undisguised 
optimism around the plushier ABC 
offices tliis week, ' based on the 
belief by the network's toppers 
that the web is “over the hump." 
What’s chiefly responsible for their 
bright outlook is not so much the 
fact that they got through four 
affiliate fi\eetings with nary, a dam- 
aging blow, but the* latest Nielsen 
ratings, Which show practically 
every one: of the web’s major prop- 
erties on the upgrade. Looking 
back on a relatively minor list of 
sponsor defections since the “new 
ABC” unfurled its banners last 
fail, : the web feels 'that with its 
important properties how showing 
respectable and still increasing 
ratings, its blue-chip bankr oilers 
are ready to stay with them for. a 
longtime. 

Actually, the new Nielsens aren't 
going to send NBC and CBS into 
a panic, but they are the best yet 
for the web and cap off a steady 
climb of several months for the 
web’s top shows. No ABC show 
is near the top 10 yet, but the net 
has succeeded in dominating a 
couple of time periods and is the 
second-rated in many . more in- 
stances. Moreover, properties Mke 
the Danny Thomas show and the 
U, S. Steel and Motorola dramatic 
opuses, which several months ago 
had been cause, for alarm, now are 
weft up in the 20’s ratingwise, 
ceriainly a matter for sponsor sat- 
isfaction. 

Web’s casualty list since the fall 
has been relatively slight, in terms 
of number of defections and 
amounts Of coin lost. Speidel was 
the top bankroller to ankle, but 
Dodge filled in quickly as the alter- 
nate week backer of the Thomas 
show. Sealy Mattress dropped 
“Comeback Story.” Thor let go 
“Quick as a Flash.” Tootsie Roll 
called it quits on “Tootsie Hippo- 
drome,’’ Viceroy parted ways with 
“Orchid Award.” and American 
Home Products bowed out on co- 
sponsorship of John Daly’s news 
segment. And Ex-Lax is due to 
exit “Leave It to the Girls.” 

Big Guns Satisfied 
‘ But the big boys, Like Steel, 
Motorola, Kraft, American Tobac- 
co, Armour, Pepsi-Cola, Sherwin- 
Williams and the like, are staying 
put and signing those renewals 
steadily. And with the new shows 
now achieving solid Nielsen scores, 
the web has every expectation of 
continuing thusly. 

Biggest surprise in the rating 
picture was “Motorola TV Hour,” 
which jumped from a 16.8 in the 
first January report to 27.7 in the 
second report, with no spectacular 

(Continued on page 34) 


Inside Stuff 

Television, commercials had 
an unexpected influence last 
week among members of a 
' New York narcotics ring. Po- 
lice who broke, the gang and 
arrested the ringleaders rer 
ported that the password for 
the gang was “Take Tea and 
See.” “Tea’' arid “C” under- 
world jargon for heroin and 
'.cocaine. 

But “Take Tea and See’ is 
al$o 'the tv phrase used in 
commercials by the National/ J 
Tea Council’s institutional spotNjj 
campaign on tele. 




Broadcast Music has completed 
plans for its ’54 sked of 47 pro- 
gram clinics, with the first two 
slated for delivery on March 81 
Everything, including city and 
hotel, has been arranged. More-, 
over, 35 of the “how to fix radio” 
meets will be held before 'the 
NARTB conclave in Chicago in 
late May. 

To fill the needs of the 47-stop 
program, BMI - had to collar 42 
travelling and 94 local “doctors.” 
In the case of the migratory lot, it 
will be broken down into 16 sep- 
arate _.teams, each to be guided 
around by one of three, top BMI 
execs— Carl Haverlin, prexy, Glenn 
Dolberg, Veepee, or Russell Sanjek, 
director of projects. Field reps of 
BMI will do chores as clinic chair- 
men in their respective areas. 

Kickoff dates on March 8 will 
take place in the southwest, one 
in Austin, and the other in Albu- 
querque. After the: NARTB con- 
vention, 12 clinics will remain and 
these will commence on June 7, 
with eight in the U. S. and four 
for Canada. 

BMI pointed out that each of 
the clinics was arranged with the 
state broadcasting setup. . Heavier 
distaff participation has been writ- 
ten into the plans by Haverlin & 
Co. this year than was previously 
done. 


Portland, Me., Feb. 23. 

J6hn Hi Norton Jr. K onetime ABC 
central division chief . who joined 
Mt. Washington TV Inc,, last 
month as general manager, was 
elected a v.p. of the company at a 
board meeting last week. Firm is 
currently constructing a transmit- 
ter atop 6,288-foot Mt. Washington 
in New Hampshire for operation 
on Channel 8. Firm will headquar- 
ter in Portland. 

Principals in the outfit are prexy 
John W. Guider; Pittsburgh indus- 
trialist William H. Rea; Portland 
businessman . Charles L.. Hildreth; 
Manchester (N. H.) engineer Wil- 
liam F. Rust; Portland broker John 
M. Kimball; Oliver Broadcasting 
(WPOR, Portland) prexy Harold 
Meyer; Faust Couture, owner of 
WCOU, Lewiston and l WFAU, Au- 
gusta; Kennebec Broadcasting 
WTVL, Waterville) prexy Carle- 
ton D: Brown and U S. ambassador 
to Pakistan Horace Hildreth. 



Hollywood, Feb. 23. 

A pitch for reorganization on the 
basis of one overall writers’ union 
will be made at a membership 
meeting of Telcvisipn Writers of 
America, to be held tomorrow 
(Wed.). Screen Writers Guild, 
rival of TWA, has been talking 
such a move for well over a year, 
but no actual proposal has yet been 
submitted to members. - 

Ben Starr, TWA regional chief 
here, said "Action speaks louder 
than words, and we’re going to get 
this one union. We. will suggest 
several courses of action- to bur 
membership, and it is up to them 
to decide which they want to 
pursue: 

“Wc have always been in favor 
of one democratic Union. We are 


Univ. of No. Carolina’s 
'American Adventure’ - 
Stirs Radio Excitement 

Chapel Hill, N, C.. Feb. 23. 

The Univ. of North Carolina has 
completed its first dramatic radio 
series prepared for, national dis- 
tribution. Entitled “American 
Adventure,” the 13-program series 
was produced by the Communica- 
tion Center of the University, and 
.deals with some of the basic, val- 
ues of western man as these values 
have been used and interpreted in 
this country. The program includes 
a story based on one phase of the 
life of Tom Wolfe,. Tar Heel 
alumnus. . 

Series of half-hour dramas were 
written by John M.. Ehle and di- 
rected by John S. Clayton. Many 
of them are based on historical in- 
cidents and characters. The pro- 
grams will be broadcast first over 
the stations of the . National As- 
sociation of Educational' Broad- 
casters, through whom the Univer- 
sity received a Fund for Adult Edu- 
cation grant-in-aid for the produc- 
tion of the series. They will then 
be offered! to other stations and 
networks in this coufltry and 
abroad. 

Prof, Robert Schenkkan, who 
prepared the proposal on which 


General Teleradio interests gave 
parent company, General Tire and 
Rubber, $1,156,644 to add to the 
latter’s net earnings for the fiscal 
year of ’53. The money came sep- 
arately from the Wide Tcleradio 
holdings. . In all, the Tire empire 
netted a total of $7,431,802 during 
the session or $5.87 on each com- 
mon share. * 

General Teleradio, with Tom 
O’Neil as board chairman arid 
prexy, controls Mutual -and owns 
the Don Lee and Yankee* vvebs and 
several stations, which include 
WOR-TV in New York, KHJ-TV, 
Los Angeles; WNAC-TV; Boston; 
WGHT-TV, Hartford, and their sis- 
ter radio operations, as well as 
KFRC in . San Francisco. Two 
weeks ago O’Neil acquired WHBQ 
and WHBQ-TV in Memphis fbr $2,- 
500,000. In turn, fhis brings Mu- 
tual’s radio stations to eight, so it 
is expected by web officials that 
either WEAN in Providence or 
KGB in San Diego (both without 
tv counterparts) will be sold to 
keep the FCC quota on par. 

William O’Neil, head of the tire 
company arid overall, chief of its 
several members, noted that the 
broadcast subsids beat the ’52 rec- 
ord, “While the industry as a 
Whole suffered a decline in radio 
time sold,, our subsidiary enjoyed 
a 10% gain in time sold,” he said. 
“Also, it now has 17 of the nation’s 
largest 25 advertisers.” 

The coin shelled out to the par- 
ent company by son Tom O’Neil 
didn’t include anywhere near . ali 
the net earnings for his group, since 
much of it was thrown back into 
(lie operation for (1) the new 
Memphis acquisitions and <2) the 
recent purchase of Phillips H. Lord 
vldpix properties and the ..expan- 
sion of them this year. 


Wednesday, February 24, 1954 

Hie Yodelers’ Corner 

No one knows, exactly how or why U happened, but the* 7:30 to 
8 p.m. area within the tv networks' programming framework is 
now virtually monopolized by the top singers in video, With the 
exception of the cross-the-board John Cameron Swayze news show, 
the 7:30 to 8 segments have, now become “tune time” for tv, with 
such .major entries as Dinah Shore, Perry Como, Eddie Fisher, 
Jane Froman and Jo Stafford variously holding down the early- 
evening periods with quarter-hour shows and responsible for 
cumulative billings running into millions of dollars annually. 

Still another singer moves into, the “yodelers' corner” In April, 
when the “Arthur Murray Party” vacates the 7:30. o'clock Mon- 
day night period' on NBp-TV. Network is now negotiating for 
either Rosemary Clooney, Tony Martin or Frank Sinatra to move 
into the Urge. . ‘ ? 




Big Challeitge, 



listener Services’ 

Extend to NBC O&O’s 

•* 

WNBC's recently inaugurated 
around-the-clock listener services 
for the N. Y. area are being 
adapted" to use by the NBC radio 
net’s four other o&o’s. Services in- 
clude such data as traffic and 
weather, 'school closings in emer- 
gencies, flight reports, employ- 
ment listings arid about a score of 
other features spotted throughout 
the. day over the full week. Such 
items as fisherman’s service and 
beach temperature info will, of 
course, not obtain in regions 
where they don’t apply. v 

Air time and promotion for .the 
five-station feature (including the 
web’s N. Y. flagship) will cost up- 
ward of $200,000. JThe o&o’s latch- 
ing on are^WRD (Washington), 
WTAM Cleveland ) , WMAQ 
(Chi) and KNBC (Frisco). 




)1 


tired, of seeing writers floundering > the . scries is based and who was 
around, and propose to do sonic- active in the development of the 
thing about it,” Starr stated. He j series itself, says that emphasis 
said he could not d'sclose actual | fl0rn the beginning was on produc- 
steps TWA plans before they arc J > n S ■; “powerful dramas about real 
presented to the membership for ! people, plays which say something 
approval. | worth hearing.” 


SWG, strong advocates of ro- 
organkation with the one overall 
union, .originally began talks seek- 
ing such a goal under Uie umbrella 


Nine Univ. of North Carolina 
professors served as consultants 
lor the series, reading and criticiz- 
ing each script' before it was 


of the Authors League .of America. I .produced. 

Protracted discussions, however, | Afore than 70 students, faculty 
have caused sonlcohi SWU to feel : members and Chapel Hill towns- 
sueh a move would' be best outside' 1 people participated in the prep-' 
the ALA; i (Continued on page 36) 


FOR EXPORT SALES 

CBS, Inc., "is- channeling its ex- 
port sales under newly-formed CBS 
International as a division of the 
parent company', with Lewis Gor- 
don tapped as prexy by Frank 
Stanton. Prior to the all-encom- 
passing . sblup, export products 
were handled by the individual 
manufacturing setups including Co- 
lumbia Records. CBS-IIytron 
(radio and ty tubes, etc.), and 
CBS-Columbia, radio-tv receivers 
and phonos. Foreign clients of the 
respective companies will now be 
able to deal directly with a single 
agency. 

Gordon was with Sylvania Elec- 
tric Products for 22 years and was 
in charge of its foreign depart- 
ment. 


On ’53 Radio Spots 

Philadelphia, Feb, 23. 

Local and national spot billings 
reached an alltime for WCAU 
Radio in 1953, according to sales 
manager Jack de Russy. Station 
has Worked along dual program- 
ming line designed for the listen- 
ing audience' and, at same time, 
meet advertising needs of spon- 
sors. Typical of this dual achieve- 
ment, de Russy declared, were 
WCAU’s women's participators, 
with the station carrying the top 
six in Phflly area; 

Another highly successful reve- 
nue producer, both for advertisers 
and station was “Operation Satura- 
tion” first inaugurated in the fall 
of 1951, In 1953, this plan ac- 
counted for 16% of the national 
and local spot revenue. 

Latest saturation package was 
purchased by the Texas Co., which 
kicked off Feb. 15. Deal involved 
one of the biggest news, weather 
and sports program sales in WCAU 
history. The 52-week. 17-program 
package includes a Mon.-through- 
Sat. sports and weather show, 
“Texaco Star Sports” (11:05-11:15 
p. m.), and a weekend schedule of 
five five-minute; three 10-minute 
and three 15-minute news, Weather 
and sports programs. 

Larger audiences in area were 
evident, De Russy said, in the in- 
crease of radio set sales to dealers 
in Philadelphia during first three- 
quarters of 1953, When radio set 
sales * totalled 120,421, or an in- 
crease of 8.2% over correspond- 
ing 19?2 period. 


— ■ V - NBC is makmg tint tv news at 
( a fast- clip -as it . exposes its regular 
shows to the rainbow medium, but 
after the. ball is over the big head- 
lines will come from two other 
sources. These, said Barry Wood 
last week, will be the web’s mobile 
unit, which showed its potentiali- 
ties initially in colorcasting the 
New Year’s Day Carnival of Roses 
from the Coast, and a stepping up 
in displays on which the color de- 
sign is applied “from scratch.” 
Wood, exec producer of NBC’s 
young color corps, says it’s com- 
paratively simple to work out a 
color scheme for shows that are 
going, but the big challenge for 
the web will come .when new 
stanzas and ' formats are • devised 
and the tint patterns worked out 
“from the very beginning.” 

Currently, agencies and sponsors 
get together with NBC’s prismatic 
unit, pinpoint this or that com- 
bination of colors and the corps 
goes to work, making additions or 
deletions with the consent of the 
parties concerned. But brand-new 
programs aimed specifically and 
excclusively for color Will make 
NBC’s best efforts so far take a 
back seat, Wood declares, “because 
we would then be. working in the 
manner of a portrait painter, who 
goes directly from his palette to 
the canvas, instead of doing a pic- 
ture in black and white and then 
figure out where to apply color.” 
Wood hinted at a “color showcase” 
along these lines, saying, that the 
best time for such an exclusive ex- 
posure of tint would be during the 
summer with its “Operation Hi- 
atus.” 


Of more immediate concern ir 
Wood’s ken is the . barnstorming 
unit that’s out in the field. It does 
not matter whether it's a Cherrj 
Blossom Festival or a circus— 
either one would make a cracker- 
jack color show, Wood emphasized 
But best of all would be bringing 
to the homescreens the multitud* 
of special events “there for th< 
asking.” 

Wood points to the exciting ex- 
amples shown in newsreels ovei 
the years, “and, you can imagine 
the enhancement these will gel 
when color is added. A horserace 
is a horserace and. some of us maj 
only be interested in the results 
but with the jockeys and the 
crowds, the flesh of the horses 
themselves and some of those 
flashy poles caught in color— well 
you might put aside your Racing 
Form and turn your eyes to the 
color values.” 


WNBC Rhythmic Pitch 

WNBC, the N. Y. flagship of 
NBC, is carding a poetry reading 
stanza titled “Anthology” in co-op 
with the Poetry Center of the YM 
& YWHA, starting Sunday (28). 
First of the recordings will bring 
together Helen Hayes, Edith. Sit- 
Well. Carl Sandburg, Laurence 
Olivier. Noel Coward and Theo- 
dore Sturgeon, with Harry Fleet- 
wood as annotator. Coming up 
are . Robert Frost, Tennessee WiU 
liams, Truman Capote and the late 
Dylan Thomas. 

Steve White is producing and 
Draper Lewis directing and supply- 
ing the continuity bridges. 


PHILLIES, ATHLETICS 

SEED SET 


Philadelphia, Feb. 23. 

Local ball fans will get complete 
radio baseball coverage again this 
season with two stations, WIP and 
WIBG, dividing the 308 games 
played by the Athletics and Phil- 
lies. WIP will cover all the home 
games at Connie Mack stadium and 
WIBG will handle the 154 road 
games, During the. last two seasons 
WIBG carried only t'hdse road 
games that didn’t conflict with a 
game on the home lot. 

In addition, each station will 
carry 40 exhibition games played 
by the A’s and Phils in the South, 
starting March 6. These broadcasts 
will also be carried over a network 
of stations in Eastern Pennsylvania 
and NeW Jersey, Contract negotia- 
tions with these stations are nbvv 
being completed by the sponsors of 
the programs, Atlantic Refining 
Co,, Chesterfield Cigarets and Val- 
ley Forge Beer. 

Byrom Saam and Claude Haring 
will announce all the Athletics 
games arid the Phillies’ .schedule 
will be covered by Gene Kelly ; and 
George Walsh. 





The radio and television business may not .be one big happy 
family, but judging from the number of brother acts in the busi- 
ness,. it loobs like It at times. Struck by some of the circum- 
stances of these brother vs* brother ( and brother -plus-brother ) 
setups, the following is an “off the top of the head” rundown on a 
.. few of them. ■. . . 

■ Ih the competing class,' the classic example is Ted & Ira Herb- 
ert, latter the. sales v.p. of WNEW. N. Y. and the former special 
account exec for WABC, N. Y. on the Martin Block show. Twist 
here is that Block is a. WNEW defection, with Ira on record as> 
stating Block will never be as effective as he was in the WNEW 
days. Another competing brother act is Dick & Bob Lewjne, the 
former top programming man in the CBS color echelon and one- 
time daytime programming chief at the web, the latter eastern 
program topper of ABC-TV. 

On the agency side, there's Arthur* Jr. & Roger Pryor, former 
heading up radio-tv at BBD&O as a veep, latter holding down the 
same post at Foote, Cone & Belding. 

Also in the competitive class are Ed A Walter Herlihy, former 
on staff at NBC and Walter a staffer at ABC (although to hear 
them each do the Kraft commercials, one would think they were 
one ..and -the same). Then there’s such offbeat combinations as 
NBC prexy Pat Weaver, and brother Doodles, oi* Art Cartfey arid 
brother Fred, a J. Walter Thompson producer who recently di- 
rected Art in his “Kraft TV Theatre” stint in “Burlesque.” There’s 
William weiritraub agency veep Harry Trenner and frere Baron Jr., 
an ABC-TV producer; and Wm. Morris teevee topper George 
Gruskin and brother Ed, a partner in Inter-Continental TV Films, 
a vidpix outfit producing overseas. And there’s CBS-TV producer 
r Jerry Danzig and brother Frank, a Coast packager. 

On the more cooperative side, there’s the Jones twins, Charles 
* & Eugene, who are two of NBC News' top cameramen. Tom 

( Ruthrauff & Ryan) Slater often subs for brother Bill when lat- 
ter is indisposed. Lou Sposa works as camera director for brother 
Uennis James'. And there’s NBC exec veepee Bob Sarnoff and 
brother Tom, with the web on the Coast. 

Which brings to mind father-and-son relationships. Of course, 
there’s David Sarnoff and sorts. Atherton W. Hobler is chairman 
of the exec committee of Benton & Bowles; son Herbert W. is 
Teleprompter’s new national sales manager. Les Arries Sr. is di- 
rector of sports at ABC-TV; Les Jr. is general manager of .Du- 
Mont’s Washington outlet, WTTG. Growing vidpix scene has 
some of famous motion picture fathers in the broadcasting pic- 
ture— there’s Sam Goldwyn Jr., who’s, heading up his Own vidpix 
production outfit; Richard Yates; sort of Republic prexy Herbert, 
is heading up Republic’s vidpix subsid. Studio City Productions, 
as distribution v.p. ; Burt Bala ban, son of Par’s Barney, has his 
own production firm, Princess Pictures, filming 26 featutres in 
Germany for Vitapix. distribution. 

List is only partial, but it might answer some queries by broad- 
casting hrass who sometimes wonder how those well-guarded 
secrets get out. 



Announcer Happy Felton has 
finalized his franchises on the 
“Knot-Hole Gang” in two other 
cities, besides New York, where 
he handles the show. The program, 
in its fifth year on WOR-TV in the 
big city, is the pre-game session 
foi all the Brooklyn Dodger home 
frays. Starting this season, Felton 
has arranged for Bobo Newsome 
to do similar chores for the Balti- 
more Orioles via WAAM-TV and 
WMAR-TV, and for Dizzy Trout 
on WJBK-TV in Detroit for the 
Tigers’ games. 

The program has been copyright- 
ed and will be called “Knot-Hole 
Gang’’ in all three markets. Format 
includes bringing in a couple of 
sandlotters each day of a home 
game to warm up with the major 
league athletes. Felton, who has 
primed Newsome and Trout, both 
former big league players, will re- 
tain overall sayso for each telecast. 

In order to get permission for 
the packages to be aired as an in- 
tegral part of the regular telecasts, 
Felton had to clear through the 
ball teams involved. 

Esskay (meat packers) and 
Schmidt Baking have already inked 
to sponsor the Baltimore “Knot- 
Hole” stanza. There are no takers 
in Detroit yet, Ten New York 
banks just closed a deal with Fel- 
ton to collectively sponsor the pre- 
game Dodger program. All the 
banks will be billboarded daily, 
five at outset and five at the close 
of the programs, with a different 
one as host for each game. 

Advertisers Hear Kobqlc 

Houston, Feb. 23. 

Edgar Kobak, former prez of the 
Mutual Broadcasting " System and 
now prez of the Advertising Re- 
search Foundation, was .principal 
speaker of the 21st annual ^con- 
vention of the Southwest . Assn, 
of Advertising Agencies which 
met here at the Rice Hotel. 


1 Everything’s Up to Date 
In Kansas City Again For 
DuM Despite KCTY Exit 

Another factor has popped up in 
why DuMont let KCTY slip away 
so easily after only a six-week ownr 
ership of the Kansas City UHF’er. 
Apparently it wasn’t as hard as 
some thought for the web to find a 

new home for its airings in that 
all important market. 

• Elmore (Buck) Lyford, station re- 
lations head for DuMont,- went to 
KC. on the heels- of the announced 
shutdown last week, and there 
made a feint at the NBC and CBS 
affiliates, but came up with KCMO- 
TV as its local showcase. The hew 
primary affiliate, managed by Joe 
Hartenbower, is owned by Mere- 
dith Engineering, which operates 
WOW -TV, Omaha, KPHO-TV, 
Phoenix, and WHEN, Syracuse — -all 
DuMont affiliates. It wasn’t too 
hard for Lyford to convince Hart- 
enbower that carrying DuMont 
emanations was a good idea, since 
KCMO-TV • is now handling only 
the limited number of ABC-TV of- 
ferings. 

Three or four of DuMont’s 
shows are definitely set for the 
new affiliate before KCTY ceases 
operating, Sunday (28). Bishop 
Sheen was already aired last night 
(Tues.), and the “Plainclothesman” 
is upcoming. The shows will ap- 
pear on both outlets Until the shut- 
down takes effect. 



ABC last week set up a new busi- 
ness affairs department to handle 
negotiations and contracts affect- 
ing all radio and tele programs. 
Department will also handle con- 
tract affairs for the New York flag- 
ships, WABC and WABC-TV. 

Unit will be headed by James A. 
Stabile, who for over a year has 
been administrative manager of the 
tele program department. He join- 
ed the web’s legal department in 


Meet ’opened on Thursday and 
continued until Saturday (20). . 


u | 1951, moving Over from the Wil- 
l liam, Morris agency. 

./ -Aiuj? i n i i i 


'i / 1.1 ':•» ( ;■ ( 




re 



By FARRELL DAVISSON 

Chicago, Feb.~23. 

Back in. radio’s more bounteous 
days there used to be a flip retort 
by some of the niore candid, suc- 
cessful broadcasters which read 
something like this: “Give me six 
hustling salesmen and who needs 
a program director?” If such is 
the badge of success and maturity 
then television, Chi style at least; 
has arrived. 

It’s been a fast switch for the tv 
program toolers. Time was. in the 
quite recent past when the guys 
with the show ideas were on the 
top of the tele totem pole.; Going 
back less than a half-dozen years, 
the local program plotters, who to- 
day are lucky to shoehorn a 15- 
minute “experimentar format into 
fringe time, had literally hours in 
which: to exercise their imagina- 
tions. And if- they Were really 
lucky, with the homeoffice cards 
falling right, some of their home- 
town projects blossomed out on 
the bigtime via network pickups 
and the .local p.d.’s. became .na- 
tional figures of sorts trade wise. 

Cases in point are “Zoo: Parade,” 
creation of the early WNBQ pro- 
grammers which is still riding on 
NBC-TV. Or “They Stand Ac- 
cused” developed by WGN-TV pro- 
gram director Jay Faraghan which 
won . attention a couple, seasons 
back on DuMont. Then there are 
several local shows which date 
back to the adventuresome trial 
and error days that are still going 
strong, many of -which admittedly 
would have a hard time getting at- 
tention starting from scratch today. 

All this, of course, before the' 
networks had spread their morn- 
ing, noon and nighttime wings 
with the resultant contraction of 
local programming activities at 
the four Chi tv Stations, three of 
them web owned and operated 
and the third, WGN-TV, affiliated 
with DuMont. This, too, preceded 
the era of programming out of a 
can, curtainraised by the early 
flash popularity of the feature 
films and the subsequent arrival 
of the syndicated vidpix, Likewise 
it pre-dated, the emergence of the 
local bankroller into big man pro- 
portions whose influence the past 
four years has spread from the 
sales office into the studios. 

No Time for Experimenting 

Much of the waning importance 
of the program director, shifting 
him out of the “genius” into one- 
of-the-boys class, is a natural out- 
growth of tv’s success as an adver- 
tising vehicle with close program- 
sales liaison a necessity for best 
operational efficiency. In the 
early warmup days when circula- 
tion was low and the sponsorship 
pulse only starting to throb, the 
station brass could permit their 
program lads to play around with 
new formats and ideas, writing off 
the flops as necessary launching 
expenses. Now, however, the pic- 
ture is reversed with sustaining 
time the exception and with sev- 
( Continued on page 36) 


HUB'S SOS FOR TALENT 


WBZ Alerts Agencies to Be On 
Lookout For New TV Faces 


Boston, Feb. 23. 

Concurrent with the general re- 
vamping of programming at both 
WBZ and WBZ-TV, the station has 
sent out a general SOS for audi- 
tioning of professional talent. Ap- 
parently intending to expand its 
local programming, the bigwigs 
feel it’s time to bring some new 
tv faces and radio voices, into the 
stations’ setup, and all local agen- 
cies have been alerted to dig up 
some talent to fill the gaps. 


Kraft Reprising Ball 

Kraft, which sponsors the brace 
of hour dramatic tv shows on NBC 
and ABC,: will reprise its Costume 
Ball and make If an annual affair, 
It’s one of the major social shin^ 
digs on the tv calendar, with Kraft 
taking over the N.Y. Waldorf- As-r 
toria Ballroom for the occasion. 

Idea is to' invite all supporting 
players of all the 'Kraft presenta- 
tions, garbed in the . costumes in 
which they appeared in tlie Kraft 
plays: Last season, the first annual 
event brought out several hundred 
performers. 

This year’s ball will be staged in 
May. 

‘What to Do About 
UHF Conference 
Set for March 1 

•• 

Washington, Feb. 23. 

Ways and means of promoting 
ultra high video will be explored 
here next Monday (March 1 ) at a 
conference sponsored jointly by 
the National Citizens Committee 
for Educational Television and the 
Joint Committee on Educational 
Television. Sessions will be 1 eld at 
the Statler Hotel. 

Educational tv’s stake in UIIF, 
Citizens Committee director Rob- 
ert R. Mullen points r out, stems 
from the fact that three-fourths of 
the 250 channel reservations for 
noncommercial stations are in the 
ultra high hand. In many large 
cities, including New York and 
Washington, educational tv stations 
will probably have the burden of 
pioneering UHF. In Los Angeles 
the only TJHF station on the air is 
KTHE, the U. of Southern Cal’s 
noncommercial outlet. About one 
third of the 29 educational stations 
so far authorized are for UHF. 

Representatives of broadcasters, 
manufacturers' and dealers’ asso- 
ciations, as well as members of 
FCC, . will participate in the con- 
ference. Mullen has also invited 
the networks and major transmit- 
ter makers to send reps. He has 
called for a “thorough" discussion 
of UHF, its “problems-and poten- 
tialities.” 

Canada Cabinet Minister 
Can’t Call Life His Own 
Since Quiz Show Targeting 

Ottawa, Feb. 23. 

Local radio quiz show has crept 
into the personal life of Rt. Hon. 
C. D. Howe, cabinet, minister and 
acting prime minister, and he and 
his family don’t like it. Show is a 
type that gives clues, and Howe is 
presumably, the answer to the cur- 
rent stanza with the result that 
ardent quizzers phone Howe at 
home and in Parliament about “Do 
you wear a wig?” “False teeth?” 
"Talk in your sleep?” They also 
phone his friends and other cabi- 
net ministers. 

Right now, Parliament is rewrit- 
ing Canada’s criminal code, includ- 
ing the section oh lotteries and 
games of chance. As acting prime 
minister, the man who is “it” in 
the quiz show will have plenty to 
say about the revisions. 


Free time grabbers in radio have 
either run out of ideas or have 
taken heed of the close scrutiny 
being given them by Broadcast Ad- 
vertising Bureau, because In the 
last few months they have almost 
disappeared from the scene. There’s, 
no guarantee, however, that they'll 
stay that way. 

They appeared at the rate ol 
about three a month through late 
last year, according to BAB rec- 
ords, but not. one single instance 
has been reported by the radio 
Organization to its subscribers 
since that time. Scorching warn 
Ings were sent out by BAB, some 
time a little Indiscriminately (ones 
a Bible publisher was admonished, 
for offering indies the opportunity 
to read passages from his editions, 
BAB never said anything about thi 
publisher asking for bis name men 
tioned in the way of free plugs ) 
but apparently with effect. 

In the main, stations have re 
ported legitimate gripes to BAH 
concerning . various manufacturers . 
etc., who have thought up ways t« 
grab off free time aftid free plugs 
Sports Afield and Life mags were 
among offenders, according to 
BAB. The latter, for example, 
sending out info as carried in their 
current issue, and naturally ex 
pected a plug for material sup 
plied. The radiomen considered 
the move “misleading” since Li.fr 
was known to have bought some ail 
lime on various stations, and a few 
outlets might have carried the stuff 
with the expectation of picking- 
up the mag's biz. One station man'; 
ager sent a letter to Life’s offices 
saying, In rote, that* if the mug 
runs the news he picks up locally 
lie'll run theirs; otherwise— and hr 
enclosed a rate card. 

Phillips 66 gas was also included 
in BAB's list of offenders, as wai 
PAG, through Household v Inin 
Service, which forwarded recipei 
for women’s shows that included 
PAG grand, names. 

Mickey Spillahc's publishers got 
into ftie act in ’53 too, figuring 
that the guy’s books were note* 
worthy enough to elicit radio newt 
attention when a., new one came 
off the presses. Not so, says BAB 
And BAB’s list went on and on, 
but no more. 



Ethel Waters has been pacted to 
become a regular, feature of the 
five-a-week “Tex A Jinx” show on 
WNBT, starting March 1, when the 
N, Y. flagship of NBC goes . into a 
realigned schedule (I to 2 p. m.) 
based on the entry of the web’s 
“Home” hour. It will mark the 
first steady teleshowcasing for the 
singer, until now a guest star who 
clicked a few weeks ago when the 
show .received a tint exposure as a 
color preem for the local. Since 
then, station execs have been high 
on Miss Waters as a tv performer. 
She’ll be spotted for 10-minute 
talk-song segments with „her ac- 
companist, Reginald Beane. 

■ In its neW berthing, the “Tex & 
Jinx” stanza will launch a March 
1 to 28 Scholarship Contest with 
$1,000. going to winners of an es- 
say* letter or poem on the theme, 
“Portrait of New York.” There'll 
be 12 first-class selections arid 400 
consolation prizes, latter consisting 
of the 20-volume set of the 20th 
Century Encyclopedia. Entries will 
be available at 10,000 stores in the 
met area. 


While the station naturally con- [ 
tinues .to have plenty of amateur 
and untried performers begging 
for an opportunity to break into 
the media, the brass prefers to 
latch onto some professional 
performers rather than serve as an 
Incubator for some starry-eyed ■ 

Tuio'j n ^ : >ri c t I » i 


Sidelight concerns another local 
indie airer’s quiz session which de- 
mands labels and boxtops. Lunch 
customer, asked why he dug into 
a ; thick steak so often, complained 
his Wife, hot on the trail- of the 
prize (nearly $4,000), bought great 
quantities of sponsor’s dog food. 
P^if had no^an^^q,,^ L„ 


KCLW.35G Sole 

Hamilton, Tex., Feb. 23. 
The FCC has approved the tranS- 
’ fer of license of KCLW here from 
| Clyde, Weatherby to C. M. Hatch 
1 and Coy Perry. 

! Sales price was said to be 
.1 $35,000. 

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vwmvpwj j ? 


A BBC Exec Looks at D5. TV 


By RONNIE WALDMAN 

Mr. Waldman, head of the BBC’s 
Light Entertainment, returned to 
England recently after making an 
intensive study af sponsored tele • 
vision in the U. S. Under the 
heading, “Big Business Ruins TV,” 
he wrote the following article foY 
the Reynolds N ei os in England ; 

First discovery irt my check-up 
on sponsored television in Amer- 
ica was a behind-the-scenes battle 
waited* by sponsors against rocket- 
ing program costs. 

Individual sponsors* jibbing at 
the exorbitant prices for the sole 
ownership of a program, will pay 
only for a portion of it. 

Thus, one ninety-minute program 
I saw was interrupted 13 times for 
advertisers’ announcements; There 
is much more of this interference 
than on sponsored sound radio. 

We know that we shall never 
really be satisfied in Britain until- 
the BBC is able to offer an alter- 
native television program. But it 
America alternative programs are 
not devised for public service— 
rather for its destruction. ThiMH 
how it works. 

A certain sponsor has a success- 
ful comedyrsituation show at a cer- 
tain time on a certain day. So the 
other sponsors, in a bid to meet 
this 1 competition, stage the same 
type of show at the same time. If 
you want that type of show,, “alter- 
native choice” disappears. 

Everything in American TV is 
considered . from - the . sponsor’s 
point of view. That is logical 
enough. After all, he is paying for 
the programs. But it does mean 
that no member of the American 
viewing public can see; ALL the 
best programs for the simple rea- 
son that .they are all screened at 
the same time. 

Most of the New York stations 
operate a 17-hour day. But there 
just isn’t the quality material for 
all that time and a huge quantity 
of old films is used to fill out time. 
Surprisingly enough, they include 
a large number Of ancient British 
films. * 

The sponsors are not interested 
in minority tastes and practically 
the whole of their material can be 
labelled “light entertainment/’ 

Of course, there is the occasional 
class production, like “King Lear” 

, — but such Occasions are labelled 
in huge letters— FOR PiySSTIGE 
PURPOSES ONLY. 

Program timing, dictated by the 
advertiser, is ruthless. I saw Bob 
Hope cut off just as he was reach- 
ing the climax of his act to prevent 
him intruding into the 20 seconds 
scheduled for the advertiser. 

It doesn’t matter who the artist 
Is, the sponsor is only concerned to 
get his dollar’s worth of time. 
American programs are monoto- 
- nously regular in their planning. 
You can take any printed program 
for any week in October and find 
that it will describe, almost in iden- 
tical detail, a program in the fol- 
lowing May. 

Many of the big-name programs 
are filmed in their entirety. For 
this technique there is an expert 
who knows just where the laughs 
and applause SHOULD come in. At 
intervals, prescribed by him, in the 
sound track, laughter and applabse 
are dubbed from special recordings 
of sound effects. 

One thing from which we can 
learn is the way the American 
build programs round a star rather 
than an idea; their standardization 
of cameras was an improvement 
on the British method. 

There is not the slightest doubt 
that the tremendous wealth behind 
sponsored TV is able to mount the 
finest array of talent in the world. 

On program quality I reached 
the conclusion , that their best is 
better than our best; that their 
worst is infinitely worse than ours. 


Serious challenger to the control 
of the commercial sponsor is 
emerging. That is dollar-in-the* 
slot television. 

There is a possibility that the 
telemeter, in which the viewer can 
choose his program, will oust the 
sponsor who is the sole arbiter of 
program choice. 

At present dollar-in-the-slot tele- 
vision is mostly Concerned with 
world film premieres* for which 
half a dozen people, gathered to- 
gether before one set are glad to 
put a couple of dollars in the slot 
— the proceeds of course shared 
by the film company and the tele- 
meter owners. 


Hartford^. Feb. 23. 

AS result Of the merging of 
WTHT and WONS here into 
WGTH, the Connecticut State Net- 
Work has been reorganized. Skein 
handles public service programs 
statewide. 

The CSN approved the dropping 
of WTHT and substitution of 
WGTH. General manager Fred 
Wagenvoord of WGTH was named 
prexy. Remaining as secretary is 
Paul Baiimgartel, of the former 
WTHT. 

The new board of directors in- 
cludes: Samuel . Elman, WATR, 
Waterbury; Julian Schwartz, 
WSTC, Stamford; Edward: C. 
Obrist, WNHC, New Haven; Leo 
Borin, WHAY, New Britain; Ger- 
ald P. Morey, WNLC, New London; 
Edmund Waller, WTOR, Torring- 
ton; and . Jack Dahlby,' WNAB, 
Bridgeport. „ 


Hartford— Three Nutmeg femmes 
have been named to the executive 
board of the New England Chapter 
of the American Women in Radio 
and Television. Jeanne Porter of 
the announcing staffs of WELI, 
New Haven and WKNB-TV, New 
Britain; Marjorie C. Stavola, traf- 
fic manager of WTIC here; and 
Mrs. William A. Grady, radio and 
television director of the Randall 
Coi here, were named to the exec 
panel. 


Hairiman, Gardiner Set 
Indie Packaging Outfit 

Lon Harriman and Bob Gardiner, 
ABC-TV production staffers, last 
week set up their own indie pack- 
againg outfit and are currently 
peddling a musical segment featur- 
ing WNEW (N.Y.) deejay A! “Jazz- 
bo” Collins. It ? s a late-niter with 
Buddy Hackett’s combo, dancer 
Dick France, Tani & Dran Seitz 
and singers Jackie Paris and Car- 
men McCrea. 

Harriman and Gardiner, who'll 
continue in their* network posts, 
are dickering with WABC-TV, the 
Gotham flag of the net, over pbsr 
sibility of landing the segment 
there, for a five-a-week exposure. 
.» .. '' — — 

WNBT, Board of Education 
Team on Student News 

In a. co-op chore with N.Y. City’s 
Board • of Education, WNBT is 
putting together a news program 
slanted for students on the junior 
highschool level and program di- 
rector Dick Pack will slot it as a 
Saturday half-hour daytimer mid- 
March. Show is titled “Let’s Look 
at the News,” with John. Wingate 
presiding in a filth and live stanza 
highlighting three or four major 
news events of the week. One of 
the segments will feature an inter- 
view with a network correspondent. 

. Serving as producer on the sta- 
tion’s end , will be Bill Berns, news 
and special events director, with 
Enid Roth assisting. Jim Me An- 
drew, radio-tv head of the Board 
of Eduction, and associate Jerry 
Meyers will work with the NBC-TV 
flagship on the series. 

WDAS Expands 

Philadelphia, Feb. 23. 

Max M. Leon, candy manufac- 
turer, amateur symphony conduc- 
tor and- owner of WDAS, an- 
nounced expansion plans for indie 
oulet following a construction per- 
mit grant from the FCC increasing 
the station’s N power facilities to 
1,000 watts. 

Architects plans are now ready 
for a new building and transmitter, 
Leon said, and he plans to erect 
a modern station on a six-and-one- 
half acre tract in the heart of 
Fairihount Park. 



Referring to Variety’s story on his “Dixie Doodle” travels, CBS 
Radio .sports director John Derr comes back thusly on the golfing 
activities of his wife: “Peggy played well in the Tampa Open with 
exception of the third round and I’m sorry she didn’t take a prize 
to back up your encouragement of her effort. On that day. after dart- 
ing well with two pars, she had *dog trouble’ on the third hole and 
it upset her and her score. Some neighbor’s favorite pet dashed on 
the course after she had driven on the third hole, picked up the ball 
and ran into the bushes. After a committee ruling permitted her to 
drop another ball without penalty, she promptly drove that one over 
the bushes— out of bounds. Tm glad' she never saw the dog again 
or I’d be facing a lawsuit plus action by the ASPCA or something.” 



Cox’s Houston P.A. 


Houston, Feb. 23. 

Wally Cox is scheduled to make 
a personal appearance - at the 
HOuston “Do It Yourself Show’ 
scheduled to be held here March 
14 to 21. 

Reynolds Metal, sponsors of “Mr 
Peepers” program on the NBC- 
TV, will have a booth at the show 
and the local distributor for the 
company is making arrangements 
to bring Cox here. 


In his “Outlook for the Electronic Industry” speech last week before 
the New York Society of Security Analysts, Robert C. Sprague, chair- 
man of the board of Sprague Electric Co., made a number of pungent 
points of which the following is typical: 

“One oL the best indications I know' of that color is not going to 
make black and white television obsolete is the fact that television 
itself had not yet supplanted radio and gives no sign of doing so. 
Today there are approximately 120,000,000 radio sets in use, located 
in about 94% of the nation’s homes and in more than three quarters 
of the cars , on the road. The number of radios is increasing each 
year, the ratio having risen from one and one-half sets per household 
at the end of the war to about two per home at the present time. 
Demand for home sets of all types was down slightly last year, to 
7,100,000 from 7,700,000 in 1952, but this was more than offset by a 
sharp increase in auto radios, to 5)200,000 from 3,200,000.” 



The Radio and Television Exec Society has named Its nominating 
committee for new officers during the ’54-’55 session. Bob Sarnoff 
has been labeled as chairman of the new five-man group. Others 
include, Bob L. Coe, Reggie Schuebel, Julius F. Seebach Jr., end 
Irving Showerman. 

The five will be responsible for selecting contenders for the top 
five RTFS exec posts and those for the 10-man board of the organiza- 
tion; George Shupert recently replaced Jim Gaines as RTES prexy, 
and he will finish out the term. 

Decision of the nominating committee will be handed down 
May at the annual meeting. 


in 


Mutual’s “Game of the Day” begins on the web March 28, opening 
with, coverage on pre-season warmup games in the south and. south- 
west. When regular season opens on April 13, MBS will sked addi- 
tional programming for outlets on the line who are to be blacked out 
when the game emanates from their area. 

In its fifth successive year, the “Game” will be sponsored locally, 
chiefly with some areas opened for national and regional advertisers. 


DuMont is going to make Brotherhood Week the occasion to garner 
a national reaction for one of its highly-touted local stanzas, “Magic 
Cottage.” Throughout this week, WABD, Gotham key for the web, 
is presenting as part of each day’s half-hour stanza special stories 
about Pinoechio in search of brotherhood: On Saturday (27), the 
quintet of five-minute segments Will be lifted from the strip and be 
redone via the coaxial as a half-hour package. This is the first time 
any part of “Cottage” will receive the network treatment. The Sat- 
urday condensation, done live, will be offered in collaboration with 
the National Conference of Christians and Jews. Air time will be 
from 7-7:30 p.m. 


IN JVEr YORK. CITY . . 

Laddie Boy Dog Foods has latched on to WNBC’s “lost and found,” 
one of the station’s clock-around listener services ... Thomas F. Strom- 
bel joined David O. Alber Associates publicity office . Patti Pickens, 
of the original Pickens Sisters, subbing for sister Jane on NBC while 
latter fills a cerebral palsy benefit in St. Pete, Fla. . . . John W. Christ- 
ensen named v.p. and chief engineer of CBS Labs . . . Millicent Brower 
now doing the Grace Sargent role on “Nora Drake”. . Joe Bier cele- 
brates his 16th year as WOR farm*editor on March 15 v Mutual 
aired a panoramic view of the Knights of Pythias 90 years of operation 
in a special broadcast Sunday (21) . . . Leslie Caron was heard on the 
“To France— With Music” show, via WQXR, yesterday (TUes ). In 
subsequent weeks Dany Robin and Colette Marchand will be heard 
. . . WHLI previewed the 1 new American opera, “Darling Corie” before 
it was preemed at L.I.’sJIofstra college. The work, composed by Elie 
Siegmeister and Lewis Allen, was heard Thursday (18) . . George 

Wolf, director of radio-video for: Geyer Advertising now a v.p. . . , 
Lionel Colton joined Walker Representation last week. He’s a v.p.. 
now too ... John Royal back from six-week swing of South America 
and Europe ... Robert Saudek, of Ford Foundation radio-tv workshop, 
Jinx Falkenburg and Arlene Francis have joined Consultant committee 
of French Broadcasting System . . . David Cassidy joins Gotham sales 
staff of John E. Pearson Co. < ' 

CBS’ Gene Autry ends personal appearance junket Sunday (28) at 
Birmingham, tour having teed. off Jan; 15 . General, Foods renewed 

Robt. Q. Lewis' cros6board CBS capsule . . . Eric Hodgins’ illness will 
keep him off his “Minority of One” series for the next few weeks, CBS 
subbing him with. “Mr. . Chameleon” dramas . . . “Backstage Wife’* 
starts 20th year on air. tomorrow (Thurs.) . . . Peggy Allenby added 
to cast of "Just Plain Bill” . . . Charme Allen new to “Helen Trent’* 

. . Blossom Seeley & Benny Fields to originate their 7 to 8 p.m, 
WMGM show next Tuesday (2) from Atlantic City Convention Hall, 
where they’ll participate in the resort’s star-studded Centennial hoopla. 

Arnold Peyser has joined the Faye Emerson-Skltch Henderson pro- 
duction staff at NBC’s local stations. Incidentally, Ernest de la Ossa, 
as manager, accepted the award from Morningside Community Center 
for “constructive contributions in the field” by the outlets. 

IN CHICAGO . . . 

Holland Reichert has been named manager of production facilities 
at WMAQ-WNBQ with Ken Christiansen moving over from ABC to 
fill Reichert’s previous post as supervisor of program operations . . , 
Mutual’s Bobby Benson in town 'last week to receive the “Hobby Boy 
of Ajnerica” kudo at the annual Hobby Show • . . Cliff Knoble new ad 
manager of Raytheon's radio-tv division ... Vet Chi NBC staff an- 
nouncer Louis Roen recupping after minor surgery . , . WGN news 
director Spencer Allen appointed to the Radio-Television News Direc- 
tors Assn, advisory board to plan the RTDNA’s second annual news 
seminar to be held May 18-21 ab Northwestern U. . , . F. Willard Butler 
added to the Chi NBC radio spot sales office . . . WIND will again 
air the Northern Indiana high school basketball finals with Bud Camp- 
bell at the' mike-. . . George Herro, Chi Mutual sales promotion- 
publicity director, Robert MacDonald, Quaker Oats ad manager, and 
Gale Block!, Chi BAB rep, serving as judges of the radio advertising 
section of the better copy contest sponsored by the Bublic Utilities 
Advertising Assn, v . Chi NBC news director Bill Ray’s 7:55 a.m. 
daily WMAQ newscasts have been renewed for another year by Tal- 
man Federal Savings & Loan . . . WMAQ sales manager Rudi Neubauer 
to New York- this week for sales conferences. 

IN WASHINGTON . . . 

FCC Commissioner Frieda Hennock vacationing in Miami Beach . . . 
Carleton Smith, general manager for NBC stations here, named vice 
chairman for town’s Cancer Drive ... Frank M. Folsom, RCA prexy, 
named to a special task force investigating government procurement 
methods by former : President Hoover, chairman of the Commission 
on Organization of* the Executive Branch of the Government . . ♦ 
WTOP-CBS tv personality Billy Johnson, whose cartoon moppet show 
is a top rater, has cut a “Music in the Forest” platter to be used in 
U.S. Forest Service’s forest fire prevention drive . . , WWDC-Mutual 
will broadcast 15 pre-season exhibition games of the Washington Na- 
tionals in addition to its regular American League baseball' schedule 
. , . Claude Mahoney, CBS newscaster and editor of “CBS' Radio Farm 
News,” has been named one of 4he judges' for the White House New* 
Photographers’ Assn, annual exhibition to be held at Library of Con- 
gress week of March 14 . , . Pick Temple, WTOP-CBS tv hillbilly 
singer, cited by American Assn, of University Women for “pleasant 
handling of children” and lack of “rowdyism” . , . Special gimmick 
of the Hi-:Fi Fair, skedded for, March 5, 6, & 7 under aegis. of WGMS 
and player manufacturers, is a contest to name “Miss Hi-Fi,” the 
femme with the most beautiful ears! . . , Ken Spamon, BMI rep, in 
town to huddle with NBC’s Jay Royen on plans for April 9 clinic. 

IN SAN FRANCISCO ... 

Jimmy Durante, here for local Auto Show, traded radio quips with 
Max Baer on latter’s KLX sesh (21) . . . George Shearing, at the Black- 
hawk, radio-tvisiting . . . KFRC’s Bill Sweeney and wife, Muriel Land- 
ers, help dramatize (26), local Actors Workshop presentation of “Death 
of a Salesman.” . . . KCBS preemed ,.(21), “The Family Reads” with 
Josiah Reed Bartlett and wife . . . KGO-TV bossman Vince Francis 
presented S.F. Citizen’s Award by Jr 1 . Chamber of Commerce . . * 
Gordon Soltan, star end for S.F. 49er football team, preems (24) a 
three-day-a-week sports sesh for KNBC . . . Fairmont Hotel installing 
360 tv sets , . . New shows: Del Courtney^ KLX interview sesh from 
Oakland’s Jack London Square; Dick Wynne’s KCBS “Meet Your 
Neighbor,” and CaiToll Hansen’s new KCBS sports show. 

IN PITTSBURGH . . . 

Gerald D. Coleman, chief engineer of WBUT. in Butler, is also that 
radio station’s new acting manager. He succeeds Kenneth l^hite, Who 
quit to go into business for himself , . / Dave Williams has left WKJF- 
TV and Bob Conelly has resigned from W CAE to join the WENS sales 
staff. Latter had previously been with Cabot & Coffman agency . . • 
Augustine B. Kelley; who has just announced his candidacy for an 
eighth consecutive term in Congress from Westmoreland County, is an 
uncle of Mary Jane Mueller, head of the KQV traffic department . . * 
Ketchum, McLeod & Grove outfit here has been appointed the adver- 
tising agency and public relations* counsellors for Westinghouse Broad- 
casting Co. ... Ed and Wendy King’s noontime show on KDKA, “Meet 
the Kings,” has been extended for another quarter hour. They’re 
now on from 12:15 to 1 o’clock 

IN MINNEAPOLIS . . . 

Plan devised by committee; here for Metropolitan Opera auditions 
of air, attracting 120 contestants from Minnesota and four neighboring 
states, so successful it will be used as pattern elsewhere. Entrants 
had won in district competitions and been passed by local sponsors, 
so that standards on which judging was made were high . . • Burton 

(Continued on page 40) 


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Wednesday, February 24, 1954 


TELEVISION REVIEWS 


31 


WHO'S THE BOSS? 

With Walter Klernaa, Dick Koll- 
m«r, Polly Rowles, Sylvia Lyons, 
Horace Sutton; Betty Furness, 
Gene Stanlee, meats; others 
Producer: Lester Lewis 
Director: Charles Dubin 
30 Mins., Fri„ 9:30 p.m. 

Sustaining 
ABC-TV, from N.Y. 

Packager Lester Lewis has 
whipped up an interesting treat- 
ment of a program idea by Allan 
Kalmus (Jo Dine &) and Irving 
Settel which could hit the mark 
pit further development. In "Who's 
the Boss?” four panelists quiz 
secretaries to determine the identi- 
ties of their bigwig , employers. 
Stills and names are flashed on the 
screen for Viewers and on the 
initialer two of the: bosses were in 
the studio in Betty Furness, the 
Westinghoiise whiz, and Gene 
Stanlee, the “Mr. America” of the 
rasslin' Coterie, The other bossmen 
represented by their Girls Friday 
(and on Friday night, yet) were 
hotel magnate Conrad Hilton and 
Mayor Robert F, Wagner of New 
York. 

It’s a neat name-popping parade 
that should lend itself to a more 
thorough examination of the habits 
and foibles of the biggies, provided 
there’s less quizzing and more 
about the bosses in the post-deter- 
mination spots. With no intention 
to rewrite the format, there might 
be ohe employer: pitched whose 
identity also is kept a secret from 
viewers — all-around, suspense could 
develop from that, 

Panelists>are actor Dick Kollmar, 
actress Polly Rowles, Saturday 
Review travel ed Horace Sutton 
and . Sylvia (Mrs. Leonard) . Lyons, 
wife of the N. Y. Post columnist. 
Stanlee’s identification was partic- 
ularly tough (especially for the 
girls) since wrestling is not What 
it used to was on tv. There were a 
couple of okay vignettes such as 
the mayor’s sec expounding briefly 
on hizzoner’s. sartorial excellence 
and Hilton’s "take a letter” gal 
mentioning that the. next Hilton 
inti opening will be in Istanbul. 
The secs can win up to $100 on 
panelist missouts. Incidentally, 
Walter Kieman is about as unob- 
trusive a moderator as there is 
around. “Who’s the Boss?” fills the 
breach on ABC in the exit of 
George Jessel’s "Comeback Story,” 

Trau. 


HERE IS THE PAST 
With Dr. Casper Kraemer 
Producer: Warren A. Kraetzer 
Director: Lewis Freedman 
30 Mins., Sat., 10:30 aim. 
WCBS-TV* N. Y. 

Here is an interesting new series, 
probably intended for teenagers 
and youngsters on a Saturday 
morning but profitable for grown- 
ups as well. New educational series 
presented by WCBS-TV. and NYU 
is designed to give viewers . a 
glimpse into the field of archeol- 
ogy. And as presented in' its in- 
troductory program last Saturday 
(20), info is being tied into today’s 
living to give it a greater perti- 
hancy and interest. 

Conducted by Dr. Casper Kraem- 
er, NYU archeology prof, who 
states that "our ancestors are 
under our feet” (meaning in the 
fossils and relics dug up by ex- 
cavators and scientists), series is 
intended to show what our fore- 
bears looked like, how they lived, 
and their effects on and relation- 
ships with Us. Sitting ip his living- 
room chair, Dr. Kraemer talked 
for a half hour, couching his lec- 
ture in informal, colloquial style 
and speech, on an almost elemen- 
tary level, with a friendly, per- 
sonal approach. 

Introductory session was a little 
dry, and a few more exhibits dis- 
played in the first half would have 
broken up the steady shot of the 
professor talking. But otherwise 
it was very interesting and prom 
ising. There were photos, exhibits 
and specimens. Dr. Kraemer put 
matters on a personal basis with 
such facts as his own collections 
of safety-pins and crabs (both an- 
cient) and his ..nephew’s interest 
in dinosaur footprints (which, be- 
lieve it or not, are all over New 
England). Programs like these 
make sense. * Bron. 


UNIVERSITY 

With Dean Ormond, J. Drake, Pro- 
fessors Robert Iglehart and 

Morris Shamos 

Producer: Warren A. Kraetxer 
Director: Ed COopersteln 
30 Mins., Mon., 9:30 p.m. 

WATV, Newark 

In collaboration with Now York 
U., WATV in Newark has inaugu- 
rated one of the commendable edu- 
cational tv programs of the sea- 
son. Titled "University,” the series, 
presented Mondays 9;30 to 10 p.ni., 
is designed to "show how universi- 
ties develop leaders in .’ the arts 
and sciences, help enrich our cul- 
ture,, enhance the nation's produc- 
tivity, and further human under- 
standing.” 

Moderator of the series is Or- 
mond J. Drake, assistant dean of 
NYU’s College of Arts and 
Sciences. Each week various facul- 
ty members will- discuss their re- 
spective specialties and conynent 
on how their work is related to 
the general concept of a univer- 
sity. In the future it’s planned 
to touch on such diverse topics 
as archeology, atomic energy, law, 
music, philosophy, the social 
sciences, etc. ^ ~ 

The initial instaUment (22) fea- 
tured Robert L. Iglehart, chairman 
of the department of art education 
at NYU’s School of Education, and 
Dr. Morris H. Shamos, assistant 
professor of physics at NYU’s 
Washington Square College of Arts 
and Sciences. 

Out of two objects — a skull and 
a fish — came an intellectual exer- 
cise that was at once fascinating 
and stimulating, as both Profs. 
Iglehart and Shamos spoke natural- 
ly but eloquently as they drew 
on their wealth of knowledge. By 
a strange but welcome happen- 
stance,. they didn’t recite, or relate 
facts; briefly but intriguingly they 
touched on the different approaches 
science and the arts would take on 
a given subject. 

"University” is good , educational 
tv because the men are so full 
of their subject and: so— fluid in 
their expression. They have no 
doubt that the listener and viewer 
at home is as interested and in- 
trigued as they— no dull, pedantic 
profs, just alert, alive men bring- 
ing to the viewer some of their 
knowledge. 

The entire tone of the program 
was set by the moderator, whose 
Well modulated and resonant voice, 
plus an enthusiastic personality, 
generated a feeling of a pleasant 
and rewarding excursion into 
knowledge. Rose. 


— - WITH PAPER 
With Arnold Stang, Constance 
Brigham* Art Fleming; Taylor 
Grant, narrator 
Producer: Eddie Nugent 
Director: Roger Shojjie 
W riters: Nugent, . Alan Rief e 
30 Mins., Wed. (IT), 8 p.m. 
AMERICAN CYANAMID CO. 
WABC-TV, N. Y. 

American Cyanamid and its 
public relations counsel, Barber & 
Baar, came up with a somewhat 
unique use. for television in its 
ope-shot presentation of "Life 
With Paper.” Airer w©s used as 
a goodwill gesture toward the pa 
per industry, which had its con 
ventions last week in N. Y. Cy 
anamid deals with the industry 

(Continued on page 40) 



OF MANY THINGS 

With Bergen Evans, H. Allen 

Smith, John Lewelleh, Jim Gray 
Producer: Jay Sheridan 
30 Mins.; Tues., 7:30 p.m. 

CITY NATIONAL BANK 
WBKB* Chicago 

(Hartman) , 

After a from-Chi sustaining ride 
on ABC-TV during- which it was 
not seen locally, "Of Many Things” 
is now getting hometown exposure 
on ABC’s WBKB with City Nation- 
al Bank paying the freight. As 
tipped by the tag, this entry* out of 
the Louis G. Cowan Chi packaging, 
branch and hosted by Northwest- 
ern prof Bergen Evans of "Down 
You Go” identity Via DuMont, 
plays the field on subject matter. 
Simple format has the well-read 
prof chatting with various authors 
ties about their respective special- 
ties. Since the guest’s contribu- 
tion is a "basic part of the half-hour, 
the show, as a series, will undoubt- 
edly have its ups and downs, de- 
pending on the glibness and ease 
of the invitee. But as prefaced on 
on the opener (16) the approach is 
from the adult level and the proj- 
ect bids fair to garner an upper- 
crust following. . 

Teeoff stanza was fortunate in 
having H. Allen Smith on hand to 
discuss practical jokes, from the 
historical and philosophical angles. 
After a slow start hampered by a 
strained sight gag involving an ex- 
plosive cigar, the show built into 
an interesting session as Smith 
watmed to his work and Evans re- 
laxed. Smith, besides getting in 
some healthy plugs for his latest 
book, "The Compleat Practical 
Joker,” .recounted some classical 
gags out of the Hugh Troy and Jim 
Moran grabhag and cited some fa- 
mous American names such " as 
Mark Twain, Henry Ford and Jack 
Dempsey who loved their little 


CAMEL NEWS CARAVAN 

"Camel News Caravan” became 
enshrined last week (16) as the 
first news .program to ride the 
tint route. The history should end 

there because color added nothing 
to the 7:45-8 p.m. John Cameron 
Swayze crossboarder. Swayze him- 
self looks slick enough in mono- 
chrome; that identifying red car- 
nation merely accented a studio 
set overburdened with hues and 
taking the play away from the 
reportage; / Film clips of Chiang’s 
Nationalist troops on the march in' 
Formosa were a washout, and dit* 
to an al fresco fashion celluloider 
from Florida. 

Color would undoubtedly hypo 
certain segments of a news and 
feature show, but there would 
have to be savvy planning. For 
one thing, the reelage would have 
to be mated to the system for 
which it is intended, 

The colorcast was timed to bally- 
hoo the sixth anniversary of "Cara- 
van” with NBC and the cigaret’s 
ad agency, William Esty, pulling 
a cocktail precede at the Center 
Theatre, the Web’s tint headquar- 
ters in N. Y., and dinner in the 
Rainbow Room of the RCA Bldg, 
after the viewing. That part of it 
was a click. . Trau. 


THE ASKING EYE 

With Jim Burke 

Producer: Burke 

Director. Frank Wiziarde 

15 Mins.; Tues. & Thtirs., 5:45 p.m. 

Sustaining. 

KMBC-TV, Kansas City 

After searching for some weeks- 
for. a means of bringing before ' the 
public current topics, KMBC-TV 
has launched this . twice-a-week 
series with, its director of special 
events, Jim Burke! It's intended to 
gather comment and visual mate- 
rial about problems of the day, 
questions of moment and generally 
interesting topics with the added 
local touch. 

Format has Burke as moderator, 
or interviewer, with a group or a 
person of local import or a famous 
visitor to K.C. This show-caught 
Burke quizzing Mrs. Frances 
Vaughn, chairman of the Kansas 


Censor Board, on recent develop* 

ments which have catapulted mo- , T , .. . ... 

tion picture censorship' ihto"'ttre _ f^- 0 F® a * i handicaps aside, from the 
news. Mrs. Vaughn accented the t°P man down it s a Competent 


news. Mrs. Vaughn accepted the 
challenge .willingly; and the quar- 
ter hour developed into a chatty 
and informative spell,. Madame 
Censor giving forthright arid sin- 
cere answers to a list of questions 
with which Burke covered the na- 
tional and local angles and the 
methods and procedure of censor- 
ship. 

in other sessions Burke delved 
into the coffee situation, educa- 
tional problems and V.F.W.-Ameri- 
canism stand, it’s well begun as a 
public service entry and well 
scheduled at the pre-dinner hour. 

Quin. 


BREAKFAST CLUB 

With Don McNeill, Fran Allison, 

Sam Cowling* Johnny Desmond:*! 

Eileen Parker* Eddie Ballantlne 
■ oroh • 

Producer: Cliff Petersen 
Director: Lynwood King 
Writer: Eddie McKean 
60 Mins.; Mon.-thru-Fri., 8 p.m. 

CST 

Sustaining 

ABC-TV, from Chicago 
. It’s going to take riftucV burring 
off of rough edges If the simulcast- 
ed video version of ABC’s "Break- 
fast Club” is to have anything like 
the durability of its radio counter- 
part which spans two decades as an 
early morning breadwinner. The 
problems of translating to tv the 

Don McNeill-helmed freewheeling 
AM format were plenty apparent 
on the opening chapter Monday 
(22). : 

As a sustaining exposure of a 
four-client SRO radio strip, the tv 
treatment has some built-in tech- 
nical. hurdles, such as the precise 
timing needed for the cutlns of the 
radio-only taped commercials while 
at the same time keeping the »tv 
cameras busy. All of which is 
going to take some getting used to. 
before the tele show captures the 
easy-going flavor identified with 
the McNeill gang on radio. 

And even with the internal bugs 
worked out, it’s still to be deter- 
mined whether the opus will be- 
coriie a morning tv habit as It has 
been for millions of radio dialers. 
Unlike the AM’er the tv showcas- 
ing faces some highpowered com- 
petition, at least in . the central 
time zone, from NBC-TV’s "To- 
day,” and soon, CBS-TV’s "Eye 
Opener.” In short, will the corn 
continue to sprout as it has so suc- 
cessfully on radio or will it Wither 
under tv’s more exacting glare? 

As dictated by the sold-out AM 
portion, all the standard BC fea- 
tures are retained. There’s the 
from - the - audience interviewees 
chatting with McNeill, the morning 
prayer and the traditional march 
around the breakfast table. Just 
how this latter fixture is to be han- 
dled videowise without becoming a 
milling melee is still to be figured 
out. There’s the clowning by Sam 
Cowling and the singing of Johnny 
Desmond and Eileen Parker. And 
there’s the Monday, Wednesday 
and Friday, visits by Fran Allison 
with: her Aunt Faririy character. 


bunch capable of handling their 
individual chores with aplomb and 
p-leasant friendliness. -One of the 
. riiore hopeful signs was the ease 
with which McNeiR bridged over 
some of the first-show miscucs. 

Theres’ a lot of coin and pres- 
tige riding on this first ABC-TV en-. 
try into the morning parade, rol 
the least of which is keeping the 
radio BC bankrollers happy. Posi- 
tive reports from the audience and; 
client jury boxes will have to 
come in rather quickly if the ex- 
oensive-by-mornlng-standards show 
i'j to survive, Dave. 


rn 


Program really got moving with 
Evans’ famed sly wit coming 
through as the pair discussed fa- 
mous hoaxes such as the recently- 
revealed Piltdown Man -phony 
that’s thrown the anthropological 
world into an uproar and the Min- 
nesota rune stone over which scien- 
tists are still debating. 

To cover during any lulls, John 
Lewellen serves as sort of unob- 
trusive middleman, keeping the 
conversation pinpointed. 

Banklt blurbs were given an 
okay sell by WBKB staffer Jim 
Gray. pave. 





Three fun-riiaking guests and 
some good material gave Bob Hope 
an above average 60 minutes last 
week in tlfe comic’s newest outing 
along the cable this year. With 
plenty of fine topical gags and 
seme leering references to his 
Satevepost biography, Hope had 
little trouble achieving a pace that 
kept the show humming. 

Some film clips were mixed in 
with the sketches to provide* a 
background flavor as Hope roamed 
Hollywood to recreate his Strug- 
gling days in a tie-up with the 
mag series which led to the show’s 
climax— presentation of Hope (via 
the coaxial cable) of the Norman 
Rockwell cover painting of the 
comic. Rockwell himself, at the 
other end of the line, made the 
presentation in a split screen ex- 
ample of electronic magic. 

Jerry Colonna, Nelson Eddy and 
Gloria DeHaven were the guests of 
the evening, with Colonna romp- 
ing away with the show. He did his 
"Ebb Tide,” broke up Hope with 
what appeared to be a sly adlib 
in a boarding house sequence and 
disappeared to plaudits with his 
"I Love Life” finale. 

Eddy, in a melange of serious 
and comedies, Was at his best in 
a "Quartet From Cahuenga Pass” 
skit with Hope in which pair, as 
Pinza and Lanza, disrupt the even 
tenor of freeway traffic. And Miss 
DeHaveri, after some effective 
clowning with Hope in the board- 
ing house routine, scored solidly 
with a song-andrdance routine on 
"Nice Work If You Can Get It” 
Pert and talented, She’s a welcorpe 
addition to anybody’s variety show. 

Hope’s opening monolog moved 
smoothly from Ike’s upcoming visit 


to P,alm Springs to Howard 
Hughes’ purchase of RKO via Joe 
McCarthy, Marilyn Monroe and the 
coffee shortage. It sounds., more 
devious than it was, for the jibes 
moved swift and straight. Show’s 
serious note came midway when 
Hope took time out to present an 
award to the founder of Girl's 
town, Tex. 

Les Brown orch had a trifle 
more than the usual number of 
vocals to back but handled them 
with the usual skill. Choreography 
for two ensemble numbers, partic- 
ularly the opening samba, rated a 
bow. Technical crew’s job was well 
done all down the line. Kap. 

Transplantation of a daytime 
show to one of the most important, 
p.m'. segments of the week didn’t 
work out too well in the case of 
Garry Moore’s takeover of the 
Jackie (Reason show on CBS-TV. 
Moore carric in with a pair of 
singers and he commandeered Art 
Carney and Audrey Meadows, 
regulars on the Gleason display. 
Moore is an affable enough per- 
sohality to make his mark on the 
nighttime channels, but unfortu- 
nately he didn’t arm himself with 
sufficient ammunition to make 
perinanent dent for the Gleas< 
inob. 

The top effort of the' stanza was 
a satire of "Dragnet” which came 
off well. Bit had a good bite with 
its lampoon of mystery brought on 
by nursery rhyme. The major dis- 
appointment was a rural sketch by 
Carney and Moore, which was too 
slight to carry as much time as 
Was allotted to it. 

The Moore singers. Denise Lor 
(Continued on pagv 40) 


ELMER DAVIS 
(Commentary) 

15 Mins., Sumy- l R.m. 

ABC-TV* from New York 

There's much to be thankful for 
in '.'the return of Elmer Davis to 
the video airlands. He’s been back 
on ABC for several weeks, after an 
enforced layoff because of health, 
and starting next Sunday he moves 
into the more effective 3:30-3:45 
p.m. Sabbath time period as a 

back-to-back attraction with Martin 
Agronsky’s "At Issue” (certainly 
as rewarding a parlay in the reailm 
of public opinion as one could de- 
sire).' 

The major plus in Elmer Davis' 
15-minute segment is that he seems 
l(i be completely unaware of the. 
disturbing changes that have taken 
place in news reporting and' com- 
mentating since he originally 
staked a claim in the field. He 
proceeds under the premise that 
authoritative and factual'y-proved 
opinions,, backed by a personal 
viewpoint, are valid commentary. In 
fact, on his present ABC-TV series, 
he sits in his clmir arid reads the 
results of. his personal cogitations 
on the .'important happenings of the 
week. He doesn’t talk about inci*’- 
denials or events that have a mo- 
mentary impact, but, calmly and 
positively, states with no timidity 
or hemming and hawing, his con- 
clusions on the political decisions 
both national and global that were 
.written and talked about during 
the preceding week. 

Somehow or oilier the viewer 
gets the impression that Davis is 
not looking back over his shoulder, 
nor trying to placate a sponsor, a 
network or any other high power, 
This isn’t a man of courage be- 
cause of any lack of ambition or 
acceptance of the restraints of 
physical limitations. Davis appears 
on the air as an intelligent and bet- 
ter equipped and informed indi- 
vidual than the run-of-the-mill 
commentator, but, first of all. as an 
American fully aware of the de- 
niands and rewards of his heritage 
who is sure that he is talking to 
other such Americans. He doesn’t 
pull h’s punches; he evades no im- 
portant issues; he gives the results 
of his fact findings, amplified by 
his background and thinking. He 
never talks down to his viewers 
and listeners, blit treats them with 
the respect befitting serious and 
well Informed individuals welcom- 
ing the thinking of a man who lias 
made news commentary his - life 
work. 

On last Sunday’s (21) stanza 
Davis tersely arid unequivocally 
first. -stated the situation, then with 
positivenoss commented oil the re- 
sults of the Berlin Conference, the 
issue on recognition of Communist 
China, the Indo-Chiria situation, 
the Army vs. McCarthy,, the Rc- 
nubliean abuse of the Democrats, 
the charges against Chief Justice 
Warren, the actual figures of the 
security risks, the possible infer- 
ences from Dr. Margaret : Mead’s 
findings on her most recent trip. 

To the viewer who has placidly 
read his newspaper each day, ac- 
cepting without argument the sin- 
gle viewpoint propounded, Davis 
must surely provide art intelllec- 
lual hotfoot. To the opinionated' 
and objective Viewer, as least ore 
substantiated fact, stated ’without 
fear or reservation on this 15-mln- 
ute stanza, should make him pause 
and think and — it is hoped — ques- 
tion. 

Many, certainly, must be happy 
that Elmer Davis Is not awure that 
the times have changed the atti- 
tude and approach of the com- 
! men la tor. Rose. 


ECHOES OF ISRAEL 
With Morton Freeman, Hazel Scott, 
Rep. Jacob K. Javits 
Producer-director: Shmiiel Fershko 
Writer: Mendel Koharisky 
15 Mins., Sun., 1 p.m. 

WARD, New York 

This is a quarter-hour pilch for 
the Israeli labor movement with 
little entertainment values thrown 
in. It’s a worthwhile cause but 
the message should be delivered 
with more subtlety that evidenced 
on the preem. show Sunday (.21 >. 
Morton Freeman, Series’ emcee, 
slugged across the importance of 
the work don> by the National 
Committee for Labor Israel until 
it became a bit monotonous. 

Only respite from the pitch spiel 
came in # brief interlude with 
guest Hazel Scott. Her keyboard 
work and warbling of an Israeli 
tune were effective. Session with 
Rep. Jacob K. Javits, however, was 
a stilted and routine gabfast. Pro- 
ducer-director Shmuel Fershko 
batoned a five-piece orch a spir- 
ited instrumental that filled the 
gap between spiels and guests. 

Scries will have to accent the en- 
tertainment values and sharpen its 
scripting before it can hope to 
catch on. Gros. 




Wednesday, February 24, 1954 




Wednesday, Febrnary 24, 1954 


VAKIEfY 


S3 


\ 


/ 



remember this date. 








i 




television 


a service of Radio Corporation of America 


♦ 

10:00 HIDING DONG SCHOOL 10.30 IH. ONE MANS FAMILY 10:45 SR THREE STSP TO HEAVEN 1000 HI HOME 


BAMO-TELEVISIOX 


• I , • 

Wednesday, February 24 , 1954 


1 


ABC Execs; 'Over the Hump’ 


Riblett to Philco 


Continued from pace 28 


star or program on the night rated 
(it was “The Last Days of Hitler"). 
Danny Thomas segment continues 
its steady climb, with a 23.7 as 
compared to the previous 22.9. 
Thomas show ranks second in 
Tuesday at 9 slot, behind -Tire- 
side Theatre’s" 4Q.1 but well ahead 
of "This Is Show Business" 15.2. 
Likewise, “U. S. Steel Hour" is up 
from 20 ;4 to 22.4, slightly behind 
CBS’ “Danger" and “Suspense" 
block (23.9 and 23.6), behind NBC’s 
"Armstrong Circle Theatre’s" 32.7, 
but ahead of subsequent “Judge 
for Yourself ’s" 21.8. 


Web’s older shows continue to 
score, with an offbeat item like the 
Sunday night “You Asked for It” 
coming up with a 28.2 (from the 
first report’s 25.9) to easily top “Life 
With Father" and just a fraction 
behind Paul Winchell’s 28.7. “Lone 
Ranger" tops the web with 34.6, 
well ahead of all competition in 
its Thursday' at 7:30 time period. 
And “Stu Erwin" tops Friday at 


- •> 




7:30 with a 31,2. “Ozzie & Har- 
riet," another ABC vet, follows 
CBS’ "Mama" Fridays at 8 with a 
28.9, but is well ahead of NBC’s 
“Dave Garroway Show’s" 15.7. 
Another oldie, "Name's the Same," 
with a 21.3, tops Ed Murrow and 
"See It Now" on CBS with a 16.9 
to dominate the Tuesday at 10:30 
period. And Walter Winchell, -still 
behind ."Philco Playhouse" and 
Fred Waring, nonetheless- jumped 
from a 9.3 to a 17.7 in the new 
Nielsen / 

All told, then, a question of new 
properties has all but been re- 
solved for this year for the net. 
There’s still problems in the Ray 
Bolger, Paul Hartman and George 
Jessel stanzas, with big sponsor- 
ship stakes in the first two, but 
viewing, the situation as a whole,, 
web is pretty much satisfied with 
the picture: It’s only natural, web 
feels, that some of the weakies 
will have to be eliminated and that 
a certain number of sponsors have 
had to drop. But in light of the 
numbep»>of casualties thus far 
the satisfactory rating results that 
are beginning to accrue, there’s a 
strong feeling that the worst is 
well behind the web in its change- 
over from a stagnant stop-gap op- 
eration to a competitive and crea- 
tive medium. 


Philadelphia, Feb. 23. 

Paul G. Riblett, end coach of 
the U. of Pennsylvania football 
team and a familiar figure on 
Franklin Field for the last sixteen 
years, has been named special rep- 
resentative for community rela- 
tions for Philco. 

Appointment was announced by 
Harold W. Butler, y.p. in charge 
of industrial relations at Philco. In 
recent years Riblett has been ac- 
tively associated with the Com- 
munity Chest, the Red Cross and 
other drives and fund-raising proj- 
ects. 



St. Pan! 



*9 i 


Continued from page. 20 

ed the probe of the pinball ma- 
chine cash payoffs, employing a 
Utaff of amateur U. of Minnesota 
student investigators at a $700 co»t 
to the station and Ford who nightly 
on his news program made the ex- 
poses, naming the allegedly guilty 
establishments, showing photos of 
them, telling of the large amounts 

deposited in the machines and the 
small payoffs and accusing St. Paul 
city officials of being remiss in 
their duties. 


WPTZ, Pldliy’s Only 
Non-Newspaper TV’er, 
On a Byliners’ Spree 


Philadelphia, Feb. 23. 

WPTZ, only tv station in Ph|n y 
not owned by a newspaper, em- 
ploys more local newspaper per 
sonalities than other two outlets 
combined. Early Selby, col umnist 
on the Evening Bulletin, is latest 
fourth estater to join WPTZ talent 
roster, taking over 11 o’clock Sun- 
day night news show; 


FM s Dying?’; 2 


Cohtlnued from page 27 


Eileen BARTON 

Currently at the 

BOULEVARD, N. Y. 


stations are operating on the “all 
the traffic can bear" thesis, Mogul 
charged. And both the network and 
station rate, cards are pegged on 
inflated set counts, according to 
research conducted at his shop. He 


asserted that the present common- 


CORAlp RECORDS 


William Morrit Agency 



ly used 27,000,000 national tv set 
circulation total was an overcount 
of 10% by his reckoning, 

Mogul’s suniup of rating serv- 
ices was pithy. He said, "They 
stink.” Nielsen nosecounting was 
the only one that even partially 
escaped the adjective o» the 
grounds that it could be., okay if 
it’s sample base Were expanded. 
He said he had "the feeling that 
many of the rating services are in 
cahoots with stations." He declared 
station men have cited examples 
where their ratings have gone up 
when they have subscribed to a 
service. 


COLGATE COMEDY HOUR 


Mgt.: William Morris Agancy 




Some of the station reps also 
came in: for a lashing. Agency top- 
per gave cases in his dealing with 
reps where they’ve been unable to 
decipher the client stations' rate 
cards. He left no doubt as to his 
feelings that in many instances the 
reps aren’t providing their stations 
with effective service. 




LAS VEGAS CLUB 

SS East 54th Street 

(Next to Bill’s Gay 90*$) 

I Spaelal Mat.rial by MILT FRANCIS 


St. Louis — Dick Kasten has 
been elected president and gen. 
mgr of KSTL. Associated with the 
station since its beginning in Jan. 
1948, Kasten previously was em- 
ployed by WPEO, Peoria, 111. He 
also has been associated with the 
tv affiliate of KSTL, KSTM-TV. 
He. succeeds the late William E. 
Ware, who died last year. 



ro’W 


ing 




Chicago, Feb. 23. 

If FM radio is gasping its last 
breath, the word hasn’t sifted down 
to two Chi FM’ers — WFMT and 
WEFM — which are rolling along oil 
new crests of dialer popularity. 
Both operations are currently en- 
joying the top attention in their 
respective histories, thanks in part 
to the upbeat interest in quality 
sounds sparked by the high-fidelity 
hoopla touched off by the major 
set manufacturers. 

WFMT, launched on a shoestring 
in late 1951 by Bernard and Rita 
Jacobs, is something of a Cinder- 
ella yarn. After an earlier hand- 
to-mouth existence that included 
on-the-air appeals for listener con- 
tributions, the station is now com- 
fortably in the black as d straight 
advertiser-supported operation with 
ho functional music or specialized 
service sidelines. 

What's more, the owners con- 
sider WFMT now so well-en- 
trenched not only with its audi- 
ence but also with its bankrollers, 
that they are hiking their rates 
this week from $75 to $400 an hour. 
Thirty-second spot' rates go up 
from $4.50 to $30. New rate struc- 
ture puts the FH’er above many of 
-its hometown AM colleagues. 

Also in the works is a covey of 
new programs, several of them in 
the offbeat idiom, to he included 
in the station’s daily 18-hour sched- 
ule of highbrow programming with 
its heavy emphasis on classical mu- 
sic and jazz, literature and com- 
mentaries. Likewise, WEFM, which 
is operated by Zenith Radio Corp. 
as a public- service without paid 
advertising, has completely re- 
vamped its music library and re- 
production equipment. The station, 
managed by Ted Leitzell, programs 
light and middleweight classics al- 
most exclusively. 

WFMT is the only indie Chi FM 
station' that airs live music. 
(WMAQ-FM, the Chi NBC o&o du- 
plicates some of WMAQ-AM’s con- 
certs.) Already on WFMT with a 
Sunday night live concert is the 
Fine Arts Quartet and basso An- 
drew Foldi with a recital every 
third Saturday. 

Due to start later this month are 
the "Poetry Magazine of the Air," 
featuring Northwestern XJ prof 
Robert Breen in readings from 
Poetry mag; Daily News columnist- 
critic Sydney J. Harris With a Sat- 
urday night commentary; Literary 
critic Gilbert Highet with a tran- 
scribed Wednesday night commen- 
tary, and Studs Terkel with a Sun- 
day afternoon jazz session. 

WFMT’s monthly program guide, 
which has a circulation of 8,000 at 
$5 per year and with a $110 page 
rate for advertisers has developed 
into a not inconsequential adjunct. 


The first vice crusade ever un- 
dertaken by a Twin Cities’ radio or 
tv station, the matter resulted in 
considerable newspaper and other 
publicity for WTCN-TV and led to 
the summons of Ford and Horning 
before the St. Paul city council 
where., they denied political mo- 
tivev mut refused to swear out 
complaints against the offenders, 
asserting that was the officials’ 
duty and they were only acting in 
a news capacity. 


Other newspapermen on the 
WPTZ payroll include Hariy Har- 
ris, Bulletin tv columnist; Lanse 
McCurley, Daily News sports edi- 
tor; Charles Lee, former book edi- 
tor of the defunct Philadelphia 
Record and New York Times book 
reviewer; Don Rose, Bulletin edi- 
torial page columnist, and Jerry 
Gaghan, Daily News columnist and 
Variety mugg. 


Both insisted the crusade •• was 
prompted principally by complaints 
received by the station from wives 
of men who had lost most of their 
wages playing the pinball ma- 
chines and by a desire to bring the 
news to the public. After the ex- 
poses the cash payoffs ceased. 


Philly Westinghouse station has 
slanted format of several shows to 
capitalize on newsmen names 
"Skinner's Spotlight" daily 2 to 
2:30 program, uses Rose, Harris, 
Lee and Gaghan as regular fea- 
tures.. 


■ 


Continued from pace 1 


yenned by NBC’s Samuel Chotzl- 
noff for ah Upcoming opera in the 
web’s television series. Curious is 
that Cass wouldn’t have a singing 
role in the projected "John the 
Baptist,”, due in May, The thrash- 
ing would be by an offscreen voice; 
This kind of arrangement indicates 
how hot Chotzinoff is for the lad. 


To be sure, theres’ a talent exec 
in the picture, but. thereby hangs 
another tale. Cass has been repped 
for about a month by William Mc- 
Caffrey (Agency). The actor is a 
discovery’’ of McCaffrey’S, stepson, 
James O’Connor, on a palship 
basis. James spotted him at ah 
eastside boite hear the McCaffrey 
residence in Beekman PI. McCaf- 
frey has been in the habit of drop- 
ping in for his 1 1th or 12th cup of 
coffee to polish off the night, and 
it wasn’t long before his manageri- 
al eye fastened on Cass as a dra- 
matic prospect although he had ac- 
tually seen his. work previously, 
notably on a Theatre Guild-"U. S. 
Steel" ABC teleshow starring Faye 
Emerson and Robert Preston in 
"Hope for a Harvest." 



: Curwi tfty 

Fred Allen Show 

NIC-TV, TiMdoyt. 1 0 P.M. 

• DIRBY RECORDS • 

Managamont: VAL IRVING 
D.lraction: WILLIAM MORRIS AGENCY 


It wasn’t until a week ago Sun- 
day (14) that the situation came 
into sharp focus, That was when 
Cass played the matador role in 
the Budd Schulberg one-acter on 
bullfighting in which he was ku- 
dosed for his top performance on 
the CBS-TV "Omnibus." The Coast 
test quickly followed under the 
nursing of Famous Artists, han- 
dling this chore for McCaffrey in 
Hollywood. There’s also a bid in 
for the lad from NBC’s “Robert 
Montgomery Presents." - 

Cass isn’t the handsome type In 
the accepted sense. He has looks 
in the offbeat class. 


at the 


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Lancaster, Pa. 


market prosperity ... . ... loyal 
jl viewing audience. Write for 
\l information 


Softs RepresentofiVe 


WGA 


M E E K E R 


■ S'elrwron Station . 
C'5' r McCollouflh,( , reiicl#'>t 


New York 
Chicago 


lea Angelea 

San Fr.ancia.ee 


In an effort to expand its roster 
of network shows and film pack- 
ages, Barry, Enright & Friendly 
has earmarked $100,000 for kine- 
scopes and pilot films of new prop- 
erties over the next few months. 
Included in plans are a couple of 
house packages, but the firm is 
pushing for outside properties and 
ideas, Number of programs to be 
prepped depends on type, with any- 
where from nine to 15 possible 
under the budget. 

Firm will present the properties 
for network deals, but in the case 
of the pilots, may dicker deals for 
syndication vfa outside distribu- 
tors. Firm already has its five-min- 
ute "Oh Baby" series in syndica- 
tion via Official Films. 


WLEV-TY 


Bethlehem V Allentown Easton 


Pre-planned coverage reaches the homes — the 
people— in this rich market. Write for information. 


StemiT'an Slahon 


— ■■ — ^-v Scrfoi Roprotentafivo 

NBC MEEKER TV, Incorporated 

Affui a Ntw Yark • Chicaga • l«i Angiltt • Jon Frcntiu* 




Wednesday, February 24, 1954 



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Sundays, 9:15 to 9:30 P.M. 

ABC-TV Network 



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And on RADIO: 

Mondays through Fridays, 2;45 P«M* 

Thursdays, 10:30 - 11 P.M. 

/ 

N BC — Coast to Const 


MANAGEMENT: 

M. GALE 

40 West 48th Stroot. Now York 
Publicity: DAVID O. ALBCR ASSOC. 


r: I .1) U') O'- rcJ 


■« 1- ' l .C 








New Yoric 

Shortly after an announcement 
that Bill Anderson was departing 
as its press info chief for. a similar 
post at WNBC-WNBT, WOR-TV, 
the General Teleradio outlet, lured 
Mary Jane MacDougall away from 
the NBC ojco’s. Anderson replaces 
Phil Dean as the publicist for the 
two NBC stations, while Miss Mac? 
Dougall, who was Dean's assistant, 
moves into Anderson's old job. 
Both appointments take effect this 
week. • • • 

John Pavelko cast for NBC’s 
•‘Robert Montgomery Presents" 
March 1 and "Three Steps to Heav- 
en" soaper March 4 ... Econom- 
ics Labs, for Soilax, takes a cycle 
on Garry Moore's CBS Tuesday 
2:15-30 segment starting March 2 
. Nancy Kelly, in from the 
Coast, just finished off an appear- 
ance on "Medallion Theatre,” and 
she's now slated to do the fifth 
anni show for “Suspense” . . . 
Gotham mayor Robert F. Wagner 
will take responsibility for lining 
up a good many of the performers 
slated for Retarded . Children tele- 
thon via WATV March 28. He's 
honorary chairman for the Assn, 

. Rodney D. Chipp, DuMont 



WWJ-TV 

NBC Television Network 
DETROIT 

' Associate AM-FM Station WWJ 
Owned and Opcfaftd by THE DETROIT NEWS _ 

National Repretentativa 

THI GEORG! P. HOLLINGRERY CO. 


engineering chief, to tour South 
America for a month to consult 
with station operators and act as 
the web’s unofficial "goodwill am- 
bassador" , . . Tot Brucie Weil, 
who cuts ’em for Victor diskery, 
guested on Elotse McElhone's 
WPIX show Monday (22) . . . Al 
Bemie returns to the .Kate Smith 
show on March 3 after a week’s 
engagement in Buffalo's Town Car 
sino . . Oscar Brand is down at 

Camp Pickett, Va., directing pro- 
duction of "Tubby the Tuba.” 
When he returns shortly he’ll do 
six movie-short shadow-plays for 
Dynamic Films. 

Agent Al Grossman has formed 
a packaging outfit, Telecraft Pro- 
ductions . . Collette Marchand 

slated for the Ed Sullivan show 
this Sunday (27) ... . . Treva Frazee 
into "The Plainclothesmah” on Sun- 
day (28) . . . Seriously stricken with 
allergy condition, Larry Menkin, 
WOR (AM-tv) program chief, now 
on the mend in United Hospital, 
Port Chester, N. Y. 

Chicago 

Frank Reynolds has been tapped 
to do the WBBM-TV local news 
cutins on CBS-TV’s "Morning 
Show” bowing March 15 against 
NBC-TV's "Today” . . , Robert 
Merriam, fifth Ward alderman and 
possible mayoralty candidate, takes, 
over the Sunday evening half-hour 
next, week usually occupied by va- 
cationing Lee Schooler's "Press 
Conference” on WGN-TV for a 
series of shows dealing with civic 
problems . . . Oliver J. Dragon’s 
version . of “St. George and the 
Dragon" done by Burr Tillstrom 
and his Kuklapolitan associates 
gets a double hometown exposure 
this weekend with the Boston Pops 
orch at the Civic Opera house. 
Saturday night (27) performance 
will be .a benefit sponsored by the 
Chicago Council of Foreign Rela- 
tions and the Sunday night (28) 
presentation will., be an added at- 
traction to the Pops concert . . . 
Joe . Kelly, longtime host of the 
"Quiz Kids," helms a new after- 
noon kiddie-angled Show on WBKB 
starting Monday (1) . . . Ed Stock- 
mar, Chi NBC-TV salesman, has 
racked up 25 years in the NBC 
family . , . WGN-TV has com- 
pleted installation of the INS fac- 
simile hookup with the fax trans- 
mitted photos due to be incor- 
porated into the station's news 
shows next week . . Plymouth 
Division of the Chrysler Corp, has 
snapped up Jack Angell’s 6:05 p.m. 
five-minute newscasts for a five-a - 1 
week ride On WNBQ , . . Jack I 
Mulholland, Chi NBC tv sopts sales 
chief, vacationing in Florida . . . 
Fred Lloyd joined .Kling Studios 
as a slide film photog. 


San Francisco - 

Due to network program infiltra- 
tion of KRON-TV's ayem hours, 
station’s leading kitchen expert, 
Edith Green, tendered her resigna- 
tion, effective March 8. Mrs. Green 
felt the 9 a.m. spot offered to 
her locally lacked enough home 
penetration to warrant further 
telecasting ... Harry Diner re- 
signed MCA to join KPIX’s sales 
staff . . . Al Constant, manager of 
Bakersfield’s KBAK-TV, appointed 
Frank Beazley sales manager . . . 
New Fresno telestation KBID con- 
ducted a 17-hour Heart Fund Tele- 
thon-racked up $19,330 on the 
tote board . . . "Winterland Wrest- 
ling” cancelled from KPIX’s air- 
lanes. 

Detroit— Joseph L. Avesian has 
been appointed director of pub- 
licity for WXYZ and WXYZ-TV, it 
was announced by James G. Rid- 
dell, prexy. 


Kissing Hatches 

Whether intentionally - nr 
otherwise, the on-screen 
smooch session with Cleo 
Moore that got Jack. Eigen 
fired from Chi’s WBKB last 
week was inspired by a kiss- 
ing marathon staged as a pub- 
licity stunt at the now defunct 
Luna Park, - Coney Island, 
abdllt 20 years ago. Whether 
Eigen Was "around” in those 
days is not determinable, but 
coincidentally he has known 
Bert Nevins for some years. 
Nevins. is the N. Y. publicist 
who, as a then comer-upper 
(one of his accounts is Pali- 
sades Amusement Park ) , 
pulled the Luna osculatory 
stanza that lasted about 20 
minutes, far longer than would 
be practical in video for such 
clinch closeups (Miss Moore 
claimed a seven-minute kiss). 
As with Miss Moore, the win- 
ner of the Luna lip-to-lip tour- 
nament was a blonde but the 
latter .had no "Bait" angle as 
applies to Miss Moore’s' Co- 
lumbia film of that name. 

. Apparently Miss .Moore is 
hot a tv tabu. She appeared 
on. the Chock Full O’Nuts 
"Showcase” last Saturday 
night on WNBT, N. Y., going 
the smooch route with an- 
nouncer Wayne Howell as a 
sort of re-enactment of the 
Chi smack, but emcee-comic 
Gary Morton gave her the 
mock iceberg treatment. She 
also turned up on George Jes- 
sel’s ABC-TV show on Sunday 
for another kissing klatch. 


Chi Programs Sit on Formats 


Continued from page 29 


Eigen 


Continued from page, 25 


■ 


heated, if hush-hush, NBC debate 
over renewing the gabber’s con- 
tract which ends March 31 as the 
six-night-weekly host of the 
WMAQ radio show from the Chez 
Paree. The problem is this: The 
show fetches in close to $10,000 
weekly in a time period that ionly 
a few years back was virtually un- 
salesable. But it’-s a matter of rec- 
ord, whether by inquiries from 
the FCC, the local AFTRA office 
or the openly hostile attitude off 
the local press, that the show has 
hurt WMAQ’s prestige and public 
relations. Either way the issue is 
resolved, morale at the NBC plant 
is going to suffer, and this includes 
the top brass. 

The whole matter is perhaps 
best summed up by the newspaper 
ads for the film which read: Her 
kisses are easy and warm — she 
gives them freely to lure unsuspect- 
ing victims — in a diabolical plot.” 


■ 


II. of N. C. 


Continued from page 28 

O 


I 




aration of the series: Ehle spent 
nine months in writing, the scripts. 
"We took as much time as we 
thought we needed," he says, "to 
do the work the best we could." 
John Clayton directed most of the 
plays during the fall and winter 
months Of last year. 

The 13 programs of 'the Amerir 
can adventure cover* a variety of 
topics. The first program, "King 
With Crown,” is a study of dig- 
nity and self-sacrifice, the story 
of a slave boy on a slave ship. 
“Hearthfire" is. the story of a Ten- 
nessee family forced to leave the 
family homestead when the TVA 
constructs Norris Dam. A reveal- 
ing study of the latter days of 
Thomas Jefferson is presented 
through the eyes of his grandchil- 
dren. "Grenade," a war story, ex- 
amines some aspects of basic 
patriotism. 

A comedy show, "The Federal 
Lion,’’ deals with political attitudes 
and is built around the incident 
in which the Emperor of Morocco 
gives Andrew Jackson a lion. 
"Pioneer Call” is the story of the 
South Carolina family Who makes 
a pioneer journey to the new lands 
of Alabama, only to find after sev- 
eral years that their oldest son 
wants to move on to Texas. Ex- 
cerpts from letters and journals 
of an actual, pioneer family docu- 
ment the story. 

"An Unfound Door” is the story 
of novelist Thomas Wolfe when as 
a young man he is offered security 
at the price of his dream of be- 
coming a writer. 


St. Louis — Jack Buck has been 
signed to pair With Harry Garay 
in broadcasting the Cardinal b.b. 
season. 

MUl 


eral formats, such as the how-to- 
do-its, the quivers, the weather 
shows, et al, time-tested and 
proved, the prudent station exec 
thinks twice before okaying out- 
lays- for new ventures.. Once: that 
gross-net curve starts climbing 
into respectability it becomes in- 
creasingly difficult to shell out 
dough on spec. 

With the exception of ABC's 
WBKB, where veep Sterling (Red) 
Quintan is in the process of com- 
pletely revamping his daytime 
schedule, new -program projects 
are virtually at a standstill at all 
the Windy City plants. One sta- 
tion, CBS’s WBBM-TV, at the mo- 
ment doesn’t even have * formally 
titled program director. Dissatis- 
fied with . some of the ratings 
WBBM-TV has been . registering 
during its first year, veep H. Les- 
lie Atlass recently shifted Al Bland 
from his WBBM-TV program berth 
back to WBBM-AM, bringing in 
Les Weinrott as a program consult- 
ant in an attempt to hypo the tele 
operation. , 

With NBC’s WNBQ practically 
SRO locally, especially when the 
upcoming network ."Home" show 
takes a daily hour bite, program 
chief George Heiriemann is sipend- 
ing more time trying to hang onto 
some of his pet local projects 
against the network and vidpix en- 
croachments than he’s able to de- 
vote to new schemes for what little 
fringe tijne is still open. He’s al- 
ready been forced to drop the well- 
received “Animal Playtime" hosted 
by Win Stracke during the noon- 
hour, to make room for "Home”. 
And he’s busting out his Saturday 
afternoon "Jet Pilot” show because 
the sales boys have a hot prospect 
for the time with an' outside pack- 
age. 

Baseball Inroads . 

WGN-TV’s Faraghan has his 
problems too with the baseball 
season just around the corner. 
With the Trib station again carry- 
ing the Cubs and White Sox home 
daytime games, once he gets the 
fore artd aft baseball adjacencies 
set and hig. regular strips tele- 
scoped into th$ pre-1 p.m. period, 
his summer, schedule will be drum- 
tight. And there are few openings 
in the station’s nighttime roster 
with the DuMont shows and the 
locally sponsored celluloid com- 
bination of feature films and vid- 
pix. 

While, the wholesale program- 
ming reshuffling at WBKB certain- 
ly ranks as a major overhaul with 
several hew personalities being in- 
troduced, the "New Look" strategy 
here is as much a shrewd opera- 
tional move designed to 'get . the 
full mileage out of the AFM quota 
staffers as it is an attempt to come 
up with a $resh approach to local ■ 
daytime programming. Bucking 
both the CBS and NBC : daytimers 
and soon WGN-TV’s baseball, the 
, new WBKB layout has been put 
together by Quinlan and his pro- 
gram director, Dan Schuffman, with 
considerable help from the sales 
crew. As developed earlier at the 
pre-merger WBKB by the then 
general manager John H. Mitchell, 
sales-programming cooperation has 
become a. science with the com- 
mission time peddlers having an 
active voice; in show, planning. 

It’s not that the Chi program- 
mers aren’t earning their money, 
what with the four outlets running 
16-18 hours a day with all the at- 


tendant problems of overseeing 
schedule juggling and, of course 
client, relations. It’s just that some 
of them are beginning to feel thev 
Could wear their titles with a little 
more aplomb if they were dome 
more actual program planning 
And they all privately admit that 

the local scene could stand some 
new excitements now and then and 
that can only come by breaking 
out of the tried-and-true mold that 
has . hardened considerably the 
past five-plus, years. 

WBAP-TV’s ‘Sunup’ 

Fort Worth, Feb, 23. 

On Monday (22) one of the most 
ambitious local programs ever con- 
ceived began on WBAP-TV. Hour- 
long show, featuring news, weath- 
er, and special events from Foit 
Worth, Dallas and the State of 
Texas, is titled "Sunup” and is to 
bv. telecast Monday through Friday 
from 7 to. 8 a.m. 

WBAP-TV news and special 
events department, headed bv 
James A. Byron, gathers, edits, and 
presents the imique news program. 
Coordinator and moderator for the 
program is WBAP raclio and tv 
writer and newscaster Jack Nun- 
nery, and -weatherman Larry Mor- 
rell. Bob Grammer; Operations su- 
pervisor of WBAP-TV, will direct 
the. daily programs. 

Each morning, “Sunup” will start 
with a film recap of the previous 
day’s news, the "Texas Kews” reel 
that ran at 10 p.m. the preceding 
night. 


TO AN EXECUTIVE 

Here It a ' young man of 44, who I* per- 
tonally respected by over' 75.000 families in 
tha Metropolitan Arab, bocaute at hit organi- 
tatipnal activities (true American spirit). 
M*i^ emewd, to«tt*ma$tered and quiz-mas* 
torod aver 300 functions for worthy causes. 
Pleasant personality, splendid mixer, out- 
standing detail man. creative ability, promo- 
' tional, . publio relation's and sales minded. 
Seeks change front present petition and can . 
offer Ana references. Can. prove to ba a valu- 
able astet to the right opportunity. Earnings 
at a start mutt be. In $7,500-$l0,000 dais. 
For Interview write Box V-19254. Variety, 
154 W. 46th. St.'; Naw Verb 36. N. Y. 


SEVERAL TV NETWORKS 
AND RADIO STATIONS 

arc Interested in format submitted by. Alice 
Pitman in her opening venture In the TV 
field. Proposed program it being circulated 
.to sponsors, and is entitled “Give Us A 
Home," dealing with placement of children 
In tetter homes. Alice Pitman, 33 Argyle 
Road, Brooklyn 18, N. V. 


IN THE 'EAT* YEARS PREPARE 
FOR POSSIBLE ’LEAN' YEARS 

Are you now keeping mo*t ef yeur earnings 
and'dolng the most with them for the future? 
I am a personal financial advlsar, an- expert 
oa frusta, taxes. Investment, insurance, etc. 
Call CO 5*7466. (after 12 Noon) for appoint- 
ment (no charge?. Dr. Wm, I. Grcenwald. 
College Professor of Economies, Author, and 
. Research Analyst. 


OPTICAL EFFECTS 
For RUNG STUDIOS 
Chicago and Hollywood 
by RAY MERCER & CO. 

4241 Normal Avo., H'wood 29, Col. 
Sand for frta Optical Efforts Chart 


JUST 40 MINUTES 
FROM BROADWAY 

Landscaped acre, 20x40 swimming pool, seven- 
room Insulated Colonial with screened patio 
for gracious year-round living. Port Chester- 
Rye area, view ef . Sound. Private dock, ten- 
nil court avallablo. $39,500. Dolane. Port 
Chester 5-0842 or MUrray Hill 8-5000. 


JINGLES arranged by 


and sung by 


mm- 


MOTT'S APPLE JUICE (Curront ortd for 3 Ytars) 

UPTON TEA AND SOUP . (Talont Scouts ovor 4 Yoars) 

WOODBURY - JERGENS (Louolla Parsons Show Vh Yaors) 

also Carolina Rice, Sterling. Salt, NabUce Vanilla Wafers, 

and others. 

C * NEW PHONE NUMBER • *~| 

SLIinoi* 7-4195 (or TWining 7-4292) j 




o 


Wednesd ay, February 24 , 1$1>4 

. i ^ — — ^—— — 


RADIO REVIEWS 


37 


Canada s 'Exploring Minds’ 

' Montreal, Feb. 23. 

In an attempt to determine the usefulness of ty in communicat- 
ing complex, ideas and to determine the relative teaching power 
of four means of mass communications, the Canadian Broadcast- 
ing Corp. Monday night* (22) conducted an interesting experi- 
ment on their program “Exploring Minds,” which will bear watch- 
ing by educational-minded tv impresarios in the U,S. 

Dr. E. S. Carpenter of the Dept, of Anthropology, U. of Toronto, 
gave a talk on the relationship between language and thought. . 
Thirty students were in the audience during the lecture, another 
30 followed the program via tv sets* still another 30 heard the 
audio portion of show only and a final group was given copies 
of the talk to read and study during the time of the program. 

At program’s end, all 120 students wrote a test on Dr. Carpen- 
ter's talk. The test was given two parts first part to test their re- 
tention of the actual content of the lecture, the second to test their 
comprehension by asking for answers on the lecture’s implications. 
The results, CBC hopes, will show some facts about learning by 
word of mouth, tele, radio and reading. The general viewing aud 
was also urged to contribute to the experiment and 'final results ' 
will be discussed by Dr. Carpenter and colleagues on the March 
8 edition of the program. 


PLASTER AND PREJUDICE 
With Henry’ Fonda, Vickie Vola, 
George Petrie, Helene Dumas, 
Ralph Camargo, Mary Patton, 
others 

Director: William Marshall 
Writer: Virginia Travers 
30 Mins.; Sun. (21), 9:30 p.m, 

ABC, from N. Y. 

The forms that prejudice— ^racial, 
religious, ethnic, and in this case 
just plain vagueness — can take sup- 



was only because it was a half - 1 T ac u g. Imamnsitinii 
hour show, with no more time to | 19SIC 01 lIHaglllaUOU 
spare. 

But plot aside, it was in Miss 
Travers’ sincere and intelligent 
writing and in equally earnest arid 
effective ~ acting by a solid! cast 
headed by Henry Fonda that the 
play found its message pushed 
across. Fonda delivered in his 
usual fine style as the narrator, the 
locfcl newspaper editor. George 
Petrie and Vickie Vola as the cou- 


LONG ISLAND U. F0RUM 
With Alvin C. Bahnsen, others 
producer: Fred Barr 
Writer: Bahnsen. a 
30 Mins.; Sun., 10 p.m. 

WWRL, N. Y. 

Long Island U.’s- air forum 
proved in its second session to be 
an adult and comprehensive study 
of current events. Comprised of 
three well-versed students from the 
the school and moderator Alvin C. 
Bahnsen, professor of history and 
government, the week’s panel neat- 
. ] y traversed the field, so to speak, 
in discussing to what extent the 
U! S. should involve itself in the 
IndorChina conflict. 

The three panelists engaged in 
a well-documented dissertation. In 
their knowledge and debating skill, 
they didn’t have to give an inch to 
the oft heard politicos and pro- 
fessional experts. 

Probable reason the debate was 
so slickly handled is largely due 
to the able Prof. Bahnsen,, who ap- 
pears to have considerable radio 
experience (is also heard in a UN 
series on WWRL) from which he’s 
greatly benefited. On the few oc- 
casions the boys digressed— and 
they were informative digressions — . 
moderator skillfully turned . the 
subject back to its original course 
without losing a step or an impor- 
tant thought. 

The WWRL presentation,. though 
testimony to the intelligence of ex- 
ceptional Bahnsen and crew, can- 
not be studied as a purely academic 
form. Unfortunately, the current 
events panel idea is getting broad 
attention from several • Gotham 
sources, most of which, if they, can- 
not offer as much talent as WWRL, 
do give out with big names. To the 
casual radio log reader this 
amounts to a great deal, and he 
might just as easily, as not, turn 
elsewhere for info. 


Mumford Quits NBC Press 

Alex Mumford has quit his NBC 
press berth, effective March 1, to 
launch his own publicity-promo- 
tion company in New York. Mum- 
ford has been working out of Syd 
Eiges’ press sector as liaison be- 
tween the web and Colgate on 
“Comedy Hour.’’ 

He has been steering the pub- 
licity, promotion and exploitation 
for all the soap outfit’s shows on 
the net. 


plied the basis for this joint pro- ! p ] e , Helene Dumas, Ralph Caninr 
duclion of ABC’s; Public Affairs f 
Dept, and National Conference- of 
Christians and. Jews. Well-timed 
for the beginning of Brotherhood 

Week and presented on the eve of 
Washington’s birthday, it spelled 
out succinctly and precisely a case 
history in cause and cure of preju- 
dice; cause being fear, cure being 
knowledge. 

The Virginia Travers script 
(based on Pete Martin’s story) 
traced the trials of a young realtor 
and his. wife . who were planning 
a low-cost housing development in 
a peaceful town. They immediate- 
ly ran into trouble from the “nice 
people” of the town, who didn’t 
want that “undesirable element” 
from across the county line inovr 
ing into the town. Pair were 
snubbed by friends, scared by an 
“accident,” subjected to social 
bribery^ and nearly stymied by zon- 
ing laws, but persisted arid won 
out. If the denouement — showing 
that the townspeople’s revered an- 
cestors were just as “undesirable” 
an element as those that sought 
to come in— was overly simple, it 


go, Mary Patton and others as the 
townspeople delivered excellent 
and true portrayals. Chalk up a 
fine job for director. William Mar- 
shall and all concerned with the 
production. * Chan. 

MELODY MOMENTS 

With Jim Baker, Johnny Romeo 

' ■ Trio . 

15 Mins., Sat., 6:45 p.m. 

WTRY, Troy 

New program has two unusual 
facets. It features WTRY’s promo- 
tion director, Jim Baker, as a 
singer, and presents straight live 
music— a rarity today in Capital 
District originations. The Johnny 
Romeo Trio, which plays at the 
Crystal Lounge; supports Baker. 

Spotlighting current and yester- 
year favorites, show makes easy 
listening. Baker, who doubles as 
emcee, possesses a pleasant tenor 
and a friendly personality. Romeo 
threesome — piano accordion, ; gui- 
tar and bass, with celeste in one 
number— backed up smoothly and 
registered in solo spot. Guitarist 
Johnny Layette carrie through well 
on his segment. Jaco. 


WNYC 


WNYC, New York indie, racked 
up another musical winner in its 
10-day American Musical Festival, 
which wound up Monday night (22). 
It’s the 15th annual outing for the 
Festival and station rates a how 
for undertaking such a hefty pro- 
gramming task and delivering with 
taste and imagination. 

The Festival kicked off on Lin- 
coln’s Birthday (12) with Its “Mid- 
day Symphony” spotlighting Ariier- 
ican Colonial Music and wound on 
Washington’s Birthday with the 
National Orchestral Assn, concert 
from N. Y.’s Carnegie Hall under 
(he baton of Leon Barzin. Slotted 
between were over .150 other pro- 
granuriing events that completely 
covered the American Music field. 
Primarily a longhair series, station 
programmers oven found time to 
squeeze in a salute to jazz with a 
neat roundup of hep composers 
and artists. 

In all the Festival was a master- 
ful programming accomplishment 
and it should keep the dialers 
anxiously .waiting for the station 
to get its 16th annual festival goii)g. 

\ . Gros. 


Minneapolis — WMIN-TV and 
radio has appointed Mylo Beam, 
formerly with KLAS, Las Vegas, 
Ney., as radio advertising lnana- 
ger; He succeeds Art CarlSoh who 
resigned to join KSTP. . ^ 



f « # 


TODD PURSE 

210 Mins.; Moriday-thru-Friday 
IVJW, Cleveland 

One of the newest diskers to 
move into the Cleveland jockey 
sweepstakes, Todd Purse has . al- 1 
ready carved a respected niche-in 
the afternoon listening field as I 
well as in his one evening stint, 
on Saturday. 

Purse, who did ah ABC network 
program in Chicago, projects 
pleasant appeal, sells his program 
by way of a velvet and soft line of 
gab and offers a wide range of 
tunes, with greatest emphasis .on 
the popular leaders of the day. Un- 
like many' other diskers he does 
not attempt to “sell” any one rec-| 
ord or star, but presents those with 
top appeal. 

Interviews, with both . visiting | 
stars and studio viewers — the lat- 
ter bobbysoxers — also are part of 
the afternoon offerings; Value of 
interviews might be challenged 
since those with soxers have a tend- 
ency to be too long, flighty, and 
thus cut into record time, Mark. 


THE LITTLE LATE SHOW 
With Bud Mason 

30 Mins,; Suit, -thru-Sat., 11:30 p.m. 
Sustaining 
W6 y, Schenectady 

Bud Mason, one of WGY’s newer 
announcers, deejays this origina- 
tion. recently substituted for NBC 
band remotes. It runs a half-hour 
vec knights; 45 minutes on Satur- 
day and Sunday. Popular and stan- 
dard music is supplemented by, a 
weather report, greetings to indi- 
vidual dialers and chit-chat. 

Mason was feeling his way on 
blocks caught, the indication be- 
ing that program would shake 
down into a reasonably list-enable 
one. Mason registered as friendly 
but loquacious; his striving for a 
light touch sounded slightly 
strained. Music encompassed a 
fairly wide range. He tops off 
show, with « a five-minute news 
roundup, after which station . goes 
to the transmitter for an uninter- 
rnptcd, air-nighi "rtiDSicar presenta- 
tion. Jaco, 


(AND IT JUST HAD TD BE A ZENITH) 

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familiar Zenith Crest. Because only Zenith, 
out of 35 years of devotion to engineering 
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There is only one picture tube that can truly 
be called ■GHIIM • • • Zenith's. This is the 
original tube that works just like the movies* 
own Silver Screen, It concentrates all the light 
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There is only on# Super-K Chassis, and it’s 
built by Zenith. Together with the Cjnebeam 
Picture Tube, it gives wonderful, long-lived 
performance way out on the fringe, even in 
TV’s toughest trouble spots. 

There is only one leader In FM, the High 
Fidelity of Broadcasting , and that’s Zenith , 
Zenith’s Super-Sensitive FM sound is built into 
this and every other Zenith TV set. 

Until you’ve operated all other sets you 
can’t appreciate Zenith's one-knob, one-click 
Tuning. UHF strips optional, extra. Optional 
at slight extra cost is a Zenith-engineered 
Continuous Tuner giving eiasy access to all 
70 UHF channels. Spotlight Dial shows chan- 
nel from across room. Exclusive "Lazy Bones" 
Remote Control and private earphones op- 
tional, extra. 

Every Zenith television receiver is built to one 
fine quality standard, whether it is the lowest 
priced table model or the highest priced com- 
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$Manu fact utcr's suggested retail price (subject to change) 
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ASK ANY ZENITH OWNER 




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Backed by 35 years of Leadership in Radionics ticlusively 
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T V-FDLMS 


Vednejdijr, February 24* 1954 



Hollywood, Feb. 23. + 

Standup comics were a novelty 
with the beginning of tv, but today 
the standup comic’s days are num- 
bered, because the novelty’s long 
gone. That’s the belief of Bill 
Asher, “I Love Lucy” director, who 
advises the standup comics to go 
into situation comedy rather than 
become passe. (Practically all the 
comics in the vidpix sweepstakes 
have embraced the situation comic 
format.). 

Asher, who also directed the 
first vidpix in the Danny. Thomas, 
,Ray Bolger arid Eve Arden series, 
declared, “When a standup comic 
is in front of the camera dishing 1 
out his routine, he’s mainly audio, 
not visual, whereas viewers, turn 
, on their sets to See personalities, 
not to hear them, and they’re dis- 
appointed. 

“The sad part of it all is that 
there is some very good talerit 
being wasted in ■ standup type of 
comedies. If this same talent, say 
someone like Bob Hope, went into 
situation comedy, their values 
would be enhanced considerably. 
Such a coversion would benefit 
Bob Hope, .and give him a show 
of real durability. It’s much 
easier to db situation comedy every 
week/ once you’ve established your 
characters 

“Danny Thomas is a good exam- 
ple of a standup performer who 
had only so-so results until he 
made the transformation into situ- 
ation comedy. I think Danny 
would admit he was a flop as a 
standup on tv, but he is a real suc- 
cess today in the situation form. 
Milton Berle hit the skids, and 
then came back via situation com- 
edy. Jackie Gleason is still' an- 
other example of a comedian who 
made the grade in situation come- 
dy. - His ‘honeymooner* sketches 
ire the highlights of his program. 

“Humility is an important ingre- 
dient in any situation comedy 
show; there is no place for the 
smart aleck. The audience must 
be interested in seeing what the 
characters will be doing every 
week. Situation comedy will be 
here forever, because there is 
strong self-identification, and many 
comedic themes* to be integrated. 
It’s a release for people to see their 
own little squabbles portrayed oh 
a show such as ‘Lucy.* It’s pure 
escapism, and when the audience 
sees it it takes a tremendous 
amount of pressure off of them. 
Oh top of this; you want something 
easy and relaxing, not too heavy, 
When you’re watching tv. 

“On the other band, continuation 
of the standup routines will even- 
tually destroy the comics. There 
is one important facet regarding 
any comics making the switch to 
situation comedy, and that is that 
they have to be good and believ- 
able actors.” . 

Director gave a good deal of the 
credit for success of “Lucy” to. 
the show’s writers, saying their 
contributions were invaluable, that 
in tv where they have to come up 
with a good script each week, their 
worth is far more important than 
in pix. He said that while Ldcille 
Ball and Desi Arnaz were the prin 
cipal ingredients in the show be- 
ing a hit, it was the right combina- 
tion of scribblers which kept the 
show on top for. so long. 



New York 

Art , jBreecher, formerly *>f Motion 
Pictures for Television’s Chi office, 
and George Turner, ex-Guild Films 
New England rep, joined Official 
Films as sales staffers , . . Animated 
Productions filming' four animated 
sequences for “The Small College,” 
documentary being, readied by 
Alfred P. Sloan Foundation’s 
“American Inventory” for presen- 
tation next month on NBC-TV 1 . , . 
Martin Manner tapped by Ameri-. 
can Medical Assn, to direct their 
series of documentaries for tv, 
“What to Do” . . Bob Hope com- 

pleted filming of a trailer for thea- 
trical and video exhibitionr. for 
Boys’ Club Week March 29 . . . 
Reub Kaufman, Guild Films top- 
per, back from huddles in Cuba, 
with Don Fedderson, his partner in 
“Liberace” arid “Life With Eliza- 
beth” productions, planing back to 
the Coast after a. brief N.Y. Stop- 
over . . ; Television Programs of 
America sales staffers back on Ihe 
road after- their four-day sales 
clinic here .v. . Guy V. Thayer Jr., 
Roland Reed Productions veep, ,in 
town for agency huddles ... Jack 
Gross and Phil Krashe back fo the 
Coast- after their meetings with 
ever Bros., and the Lever agencies 
on “Big Town’’ . . » Jimmy Yoham 
tapped by the Signal Corps for 
training films last week Ama- 
deo Barletta Jr., general manager 
of CMA-TV, Havana; in town look- 
ing ait product . . . William E. 
Huston, ex-Muzak, and 1L P. Fine- 
man, former Coast picture pro- 
ducer, joined the expanding com- 
mercial sales staff of Sereen-Gems 
as account execs. 


‘Victory’ Distrib Deal 
For Theatres on Tap; 



With bids already in frOm sev- 
eral major film distributors, the 
NBC jllm, Division will set a distri- 
bution deal in March for theatrical 
release of “Victory at Sea.” 

Reediting of the vidpix series 
(with a. complete rescoring of Rich- 
ard Rodgers’ music)- into a film 
house feature running just short' of 
two hours, has already been com- 
pleted. - 

“Victory” will soon go into its 
second rerun cycle on tv stations 
around the country. 


TOO MUCH OF SAME 
FILM COM’L, SEZ HILL 

Cincinnati, Feb. 23. 
An appeal to tv film sptfnsors 
to vary commercials \yas made by 
James Hill, general manager of 
[.Olympus Film Productions, Inc., to 
advertisers during a tour of its 
plant here last week. 

“Advertisers would not dream-of 
offering the same tv show week 
after week,” Hill said, “yet .some 
of them think nothing of repeating 
the same canned commercial. It 
might have been terrific the first 
few times, but when the public has 
too much of the same commercial 
it’s a dead duck.” 


Marine Corps Vidpix . 
Series in March Bow 

Pilot film of the Martin Jones- 
Henry Olmsted^Gordon Knox dra- 
matic series with a Marine Corps 
background, “The Resolute,” will 
get a Defense Dept, premiere early 
in March. Producing trio will fol- 
low up the first showings a couple 
of weeks later with agency screen- 
ings in N. Y. 

Shooting on the initialer at 
.Quantico is complete, except for a 
filmed intro by Marine Comman- 
dant Gen. Lemuel Shepherd, being 
shot this Week in Washington. 



Hollywood, Feb. 23. ' 

Smalltime distributors of vidpix, 
who can’t make the financial guar- 
antees to producers which the well- 
heeled. top distribs are now giv- 
ing, are on their way out of the 
telepicture, it’s predicted by Herb 
Golden of the Amusement Indus- 
tries division of Bankers Trust in 
N. Y., following a survey of the tv 
pix field here and in Gotham. 
Golden returned Saturday to N. Y., 
following his annual trek her^e. 

Here to discuss financing by 
Bankers . Trust of telepix and pix 
production. Golden said he fore- 
sees a consolidation of the' more 
stable distributors and producers, 
with most of the shoestringers in 
both branches being weeded out. 
Eventually, he sees only a few tv 
pix indies outside the consolidation 
orbit. 

Growth of the syndication field 
has been a remarkable develop- 
ment in vidpix, he stated. “We ad- 
vance money to producers on the 
basis of cash guarantees they re- 
ceive from distributors, after first 
checking the distributors to be cer- 
tain the guarantee is okay,” he ex- 
plained.. 

A survival of the fittest phase is 
now in progress here and in N. Y., 
he said, the result being that many 
of the 200 tv distributors are dis- 
appearing from the scene, as arc 
some producers. “The promoters, 
the so-called ‘idea men,* are vanish- 
ing. He cited as his idea of good, 
solid producers Gross-Krasne , Inc., 
Hal Roach Jr., Jack Chertok and 
Roland Reed. Golden’s bank • fi- 
nances G-K’s “Big Town” series, 
[and in the past has put up the coin 
for Mark : VII’s “Dragnet.” 

As a result of the stabilization o{ 
the industry, there is much more 
emphasis on quality, with the vid- 
pix. companies displaying more 
know-how in the face of increas- 
ing competition, Golden opined. He 
said the fact that stations around 
the country today have a choice of 
a good deal of product has forced 
the producer to up his quality if he 
wants to stay in business. 

TPA SETS DISTRIB 

’GALLANT’ 



CAVALCADE OF AMERICA 
(Margin For Victory). 

DuPont again dips into history, 
dramatizing the story of an Ameri- 
can spy in the Revolutionary war, 
and the result is a highly interest- 
ing production intelligently pre- 
sented by Jack Denove. Producer 
Deriove has given this episode fine 
production accountrements, but 
probably the most effective factor 
in its success is the teleplay by 
Arthur Ripley, who also directed. 

Edward Ashley plays a dual role, 
that of an American merchant who 
provisions the British, and', is ■■■on 
the best of terms with them. In 
his Other identity, he ferrets out 
military info and gets it to Gen- 
eral Washington. Purportedly a 
true slab of US. history, this 
stanza deals with the spy’s success- 
ful strategy,’ whereby he outwits 
the British who are aboqt to at- 
tack the French coming-’ to aid 
Washington. He convinces the 
enemy Washington plans to attack 
N.Y. when they leave, so that the 
British call off their campaign 
against the French, thereby sav- 
ing the day for Washington. 

Ashley is very good in his dual 
role which he plays with restraint, 
and without heroics, Francis L. 
Sullivan turns in a competent’ per- 
formance as the arrogant British 
commander; John Hoyt convinces 
as the pomipus know-it-all Hessian 
leader, and Myma Fahejr is good 
in the role of the spy’s sister. 

Ripley directs with a firm hand, 
and keeps it moving rapidly; 

Daku. 


Meridian’s Go-Ahead 

/ ’ 


> 


Par-Owned KTLA Nixes 
RKO ’French Line’ Spots; 
OK for Other Stations 

Hollywood, Feb. 23. 

Paramount-owned KTLA nixed 
spot commercials from RKO on 
it controversial “French Line,” but 
CBS-owned KNXT and NBC’s 
KNBH both accepted the tele- 
blurbs. KTLA rejected the spots 
on the ground that the pic was 
“offensive to certain groups.” 

A KNBH spokesman explained, 
“According to the NBC continuity 
department, there is nothing of- 
fensive about the commercials, as 
presented to us. We are an ad- 
vertising medium, not a censorship 
body. Under those circumstances, 
there is nothing to do blit accept 
these commercials, just as news- 
papers have accepted ads on 
'Frenoht Lane 7V s i j '? I ’ c i < 



Hollywood, Feb. 23. ‘ 
Meridian Productions began 
preparations for its next season’s 
product, following renewal by 
Sclilitzr for another 26 'weeks of 
“Playhouse of Stars” vidpix series. 

Budget for the new group ap- 
proximates $650,000. Production 
begins March 3 Q at the Goldwyn 
studios, with Bill Self as producer. 
Edwin Self, ad chief for Schlitz in 
Milwaukee, is here discussing 
stories for the next season’s prod- 
uct, 


Filmites’ Citation 

For Lucille & Desi 

Ed Sullivan will be toastmaster 
and will present the award at the 
National Television Film Council’s 
luncheon Friday (26) in New York 
honoring Lucille Ball and Desi 
Arnaz “for their major contribu- 
tion to films for television.” 

Meeting will be presided over by 
Melvin Lc R3olij NTJWJ prtxy* / > 4 


Television Programs of America 
has picked up distribution rights 
to “Captain Gallant of the Foreign 
Legion,” half-hour telefilm series 
being shot, in French Morocco 
with Buster Crabbe starring. Series 
originally was to be handled by 
Official Films, which had an option 
on the property, but after screen- 
ing first three half-houFs, Official 
decided it wanted out. 

Harry Salzman, topper in Teie- 
pictures of Morocco, Inc., which 
is producing the series, thereupon 
got a release from Official and 
firmed its deal with TPA. Latter 
is currently concentrating on its 
Edward Arrtold-starring “.Your 
Star Showcase” anthology series 
and probably won’t bring “Gal- 
lant” out till late this spring. 

’$ ’State Police’ 
to 




Robert Nathe of King’s Knight 
Productions last week completed a 
tieup with*state police agencies for 
a new vidpix series of state law- 
enforcement groups titled “State 
Police.” Series, which will cite a 
state police officer each week, will 
be produced in N. Y. 

King’s Knight also controls 
video rights to “The Saint” who- 
dunits and the Arthur Treacher- 
Arnold Stang vidfilm. “Bulletin 
From Bertie,” pilot of which is 
now being shown to agencies and 
the nets. ' 


FORD THEATRE 
(For Value Received) 

His inheritance squandered and 
deserted by his wife, Peter Law- 
ord' says to James Whitmore, 
“bow’d you like to make $2,000?” 

Answers Whitmore, “who do I 
have to kill?” 

Replies Lawford, “me” 

There you have it, the axis 
abound which this story revolves. 
It has elements of suspense, good 
acting and strikes a note of sur- 
prise at the finish to maintain vigi- 
lant interest. The gun passes back 
and forth but nary a shot is fired. 
It so happens that Lawford has a 
fatherly devotion for his son. who 
is being taken abroad by the 
mother, Marie Windsor. 

Whitmore, tries to convince Law- 
ford that there’s an easier way out 
of his dilemma, such as using the 
money to buy a farm in Kansas. 
When ,his son i$ sneaked out of 
the house by the butler to enjoy 
a visit with Lawford, the whole at- 
mosphere changes. The farm idea 
now sounds much better to him 
than a wordly exit , and the mid- 
west gained two new sons of the 
soil., 

Whitmore’s performing gives 
him the edge over Lawford, the 
part being more meaty and sym- 
pathetic. Lawford, however, has 
an impressive way with dialog and 
makes the role of the weakling 
effective.. Miss Windsor is around 
just enough to get sneers at the 
set: Arnold Laven’s direction 
paces the action evenly. Helm. 


DEATH VALLEY DAYS 
(Yaller) 

Over the years on radio and now 
on television, the “Death Valley 
Days” series has maintained a good 
batting average-— so the occasional 
misSout, as ip the case of “Yaller ” 
is . certainly excusable. Latest in 
the vidfilm series misses in all de- 
partments to provide a slow-mov- 
ing half-hour that won’t hold too 
many viewers. 

This time the. Ruth Woodman 
teleplay follows a tired formula — 
the rich boy whose family wants 
him to learn the mining business 
literally from the bottom, ignoring 
the fact that he has claustrophobia. 
In the pinches, he proves himself 
a man to w-in the poor but honest 
waitress in the mining camp 
restaurant. 

Stuart McGowan’s direction 
manages to maintain . an air of 
credibility in the creaking chron- 
icle but he doesn’t get much help 
from his thesps. Ray Boyle is the 
boy and Jan. Shepard (actually 
Mrs. Boyle) is the gal, but neither 
is very convincing, and about the 
best portrayal is that of Griff Bar- 
net as the slightly thirsty camp 
doctor. Technical credits are 

about par for the course, Kap. 

\ . . • 

FIRESIDE THEATRE 

(Joe Giordano and Mr. Lincoln) 

Abraham Lincoln would have 

been truly amazed to know all the 

trouble his Gettysburg address 
caused one Italian family someth) 
years later had he been able to 
look ahead to this “Fireside The- 
atre’- celebration of his birthday. 
Frank Wisbar- has fashioned 


heartwarming tale around what 
happens when the young son of 
an Italian caffe owner is chosen to 
recite the classic speech at Lin- 
coln’s Birthday ceremonies at his 
school, and as a novelty dialectic 
offering it stacks up satisfactorily 

Whole plot motivation in the 
Ellwood Ullman script stems from 
the wishes of the Italian’s wife to 
have her boy well-dressed when 
he gets up for his recitation, it 
starts out with a pair of shoes, ends 
up with a complete outfit for both 
the lad and his sister, all the while 
the husband is crying extrava- 
gance and refuses to attend the 
exercises. When the wife returns 
all the raiment, husband is shamed 
into bbying them back- again for a 
happy ending. 

Acting -honors are about evenly 
divided between Mario Siletti and 
Argentina Brunetti as the Italian 
couple, each socking over a charac- 
teristic performance which does 
them proud. Frank Yaconelli as 
the uncle finely, etches his role, 
too, and Peter Price lends convic- 
tion to the son taught in the midst 
of his parents’ tugiof-war. Phil 
Tplly as a epp; Hal Taggart as 
school principal and Gloria Tablott 
in daughter role also contribute in 
support, Whit. 

FOUR STAR PLAYHOUSE 
(The Gun) 

George Haight's first production 
for Four Star, “The Gun,” is a good 
telepicture, a tale of suspense in- 
congruously located in completely 
domestic surroundings, the very 
contrast giving it more impact. 
Frederic Brady’s plot is a simple 
one— the loaded gun bf a detective 
vanishes while he’s relaxing in his 
kitchen — but the manner in which 
director Frank McDonald and the 
competent cast carry it out makes 
for an interesting half-hour. 

When the weapon disappears, 
everyone is suddenly suspect: The 
sleuth takes after the mailman, the 
milkman, a neighbor, even thinks 
his wife (who is ill) swiped it. 
Transformation of a neighborly, 
domestic aura to .one sprinkled 
with suspicion and fear is well ex- 
ecuted. Eventually, it’s discovered 
their baby has it, in the way the 
little monster points the loaded 
gqn at his parents, with pop final- 
ly getting it, makes for a heat cli- 
max. 

Dick Powell turns in* another 
(Continued on page 40) 

WATV’s Old Keystone Pix 
Tun Time’ Enters ’Howdy* 
Den & Comes Out Smiling 

“Howdy Doody” has, long been 
the nemesis of other station’s after- 
noon kiddie stanzas. But during 
these last few weeks, WAT V, New- 
ark indie, has cautiously raised its 
head and said, “Doody ain’t so 
tough.” 

Opposing Doody is low-budgeted 
stanza, built around ancient Key- 
stone film comedies, called “Fun 
fl?ime.” The show, on almost three 
months now, picked up Castle 
Products four weeks ago to cover 
the Wednesday nut for the kid 
strip, and last 1 week th,e Thursday 
and Friday dates were covered by 
Dueling Farms and Charms, re- 
spectively. Going price in each 
was $500 per on a 13-week: cycle. 

WATV’s “Junior Frolics,” on be- 
tween 5*5:30 p. m.— just before the 
NBC-TV kid offering, beat out 
Howdy locally in the last Telepulse 
ratings 15 to 14.3. On the basis of 
the advantage, the indie told its six 
sponsors for the show (mostly ani- 
mated film cartoons) that the go- 
ing price for a one-time shot will be 
upped at the end of existing con- 
tracts from $800 to $1,000. It was 
the first time the little puppet was 
beaten in the Gotham market dur- 
ing the late . daylight hours. 





- ffi 

In the new telepix production 
outfit formed by Samuel Goldwyn 
Jr., named Westward Productions, 
Ltd., young Goldwyn Is listed as 
exec producer and Manny Reiner 
is general sales manager. Reiner 
will also continue as foreign sales 
manager for Goldwyn Sr, 

The vet indie filmmaker report- 
edly will finance Westward; which 
has headquarters at the Goldwyn 
studio on the Coast. Mrs. Frances 
Goldwyn also will have a role in 
the new tv operation, including as- 
sists in selection of story proper- 


sometimes amusing iiftbb^ ties to be leiised by her son. * 


TV-FILMS 


Vriwifiyi February U, 1954 




Hollywood, Feb. 23. 

Vidpic producers around town have been stricken with optionitis 
as the various sponsors and agencies take a gander at their budgets 
and next season, and are now in the process of deciding whether 
of not to bankroll current shows for another season. 

First to be renewed this year was Revue’s Pepsi, followed last 
week by Schlitz’s re-optioning of its “Playhouse of Stars” series 
produced by Meridian. Frank Wisbar got the OK from P&G for 
another cycle of his “Fireside Theatre” this week. 

“Four Star Playhouse” renewal comes up in April, and the 
> /execs involved in that series are mulling several formats fo offer 
Singer Sewing, although each calls for retention of company’s es- 
tablished star system. After viewing , the six .vidpix made by Wisbar 
under the aegis of Bing Crosby Enterprises, General Electric is 
expected to decide on whether to give the next 10 GE’S to BCE 
or Stuart Reynolds, who previously produced some for the com- 
pany. • 

"Cavalcade of America” contracts have been given to Jack 
Chertok, Flying A and Jack Denove, and DuPont, it’s believed, Will 
award one of these companies the pact for next season’s product, 
based on what the sponsor feels is the best tele celluloid of . the 
current crop. / Another renewal up soon is Screen Gems’ “Ford 
Theatre,” due in the spring. Still another on which a decision is 
upcoming fh the near future is Chertok's “Lone Ranger” series. 

Only series which aren’t concerned about renewals, at least not 
on a national level, are those syndicated properties which are sold 
on a regional and local basis, hence don’t depend on any one angel 
to carry the load. Into this category fall such series as Revue’s 
‘‘City Detective,” Ziv’s “Favorite Story,” and Roland Reed-M. Bern- 
hard Fox's “Waterfront ” 




Newly-purchased vidpi^t division 
of General Teleradio will start op- 
eration in full swing by April 1, 
when definite production plans are 
expected to be concluded. No 
word on personnel has been made 
yet, but Dwight Martin, exec vee- 
pee of Teleradio and its top utility 
iiifielder who has been handling 
the operation to date, doesn’t fig- 
ure that he’s to be the firm’s boss 
when things get spiling. Instead, 
he will return to the firm’s policy- 
planning board.. 

Since the time of the film pur- 
chases in late December, ’53, from 
Phillips H. Lord, package pro- 
ducer, neither Martin nor Tele- 
radio boss, Tom O’Neil, had made 
a decision anent distribution rights, 
but now, Martin has said that the 
company will definitely do its own 
distribution, plus that of other Vid- 
pix producers. It is understood, 
however, that Teleradio will only 
handle outside sales for si share in 
pix ownership. 

On Friday (19) Teleradio indi- 
cated that it has resumed produc- 
tion of the “Gangbusters” series 
through the facilities of Visual 
Drama, Inc., the producing subsid 
of Phillips H. Lord. Already in 
production when the sale* of all 
the Lord packages was made, the 
(Continued on page 40) 


Mdtzer to Van Praag 

Newton E. Meltzei* last week 
joined Van Praag . Productions as 
producer-director- writer of the tel- 
epix outfit. Most recently with 
CBS-TV, Meltzer was at one time 
director, of special programs for 
Telenews, and previous to that, was 
with Paramount Pictures. 

He’ll operate in all phases of the 
Van Praag setup, industrial and 
educational as well as tv-films. 




Hollywood, Feb, 23. 

Bing Crosby, who has angeled his 
telepix company for several years, 
may become an active vidfilm pro- 
ducer next fall, working on a series 
to be made by his Bing Crosby 
"Enterprises. Crosby said he long 
wanted to take an active part in 
production but hasn’t had time. If 
he finds a suitable series, he’ll 
work on it for the fall. . He em- 
phasized Basil Grillb, BCE exec 
veepee, will remain top man, with 
Crosby coming in solely as produc- 
er. He wouldn’t star in such a 
project, reiterating his aversion to 
weekly series on grounds it would 
hurt him theatrically. 

In fact, despite previous an- 
nouncement he’d do four telefilms 
for General Electric next season, 

. he’s not sure he’ll do any. 

“Just done two this season for 
kicks. There’s no money in it. I 
haven’t decided whether I’ll do 
any next season,” he said. Groaner 
pets negative of GE vidpix after 
initial run, he’ll' likely have them 
distributed after commercial is re- 
moved. MS M r cR9 id ) ?»' 


Chicago, Feb. 23. 

Although the long-heralded tv- 
motion picture marriage is still to 
be fully consummated, there are 
plenty of fringe romances spring 
ing up between the tWo industries. 
One of the currently hottest affairs 
is that between the Kellogg cereal 
firm, Leo Burnett, its ad agency 
and Warners studios. 

Romance centers around Guy 
Madison, who as the star of the 
Kellogg spot-booked “Wild Bill 
Hickok” vidpix series the past 
four years, has become a nations 
figure to the extent that his mo 
tion pic career took on new life 
with Warners starring him last 
year in the 3-D “Charge at Feather 
River” and the newly released 
“Command,” On the theory that 
“what’s good for GUy Madison is 
good for Kellogg” because of the 
latter’s widespread use of his pic 
and name for merchandising pur 
poses, Kellogg and the agency have 
gone all out to help Warners pro 

(Continued on page 40) 


The new innovation that will 
revolutionize handling of syndi- 
cated new&film for tv stations by 
furnishing nearly instantaneous 
distribution of the film via coaxial 
cable with kinescoping equipment 
on the station end is being care- 
fully explored by the major news- 
film operations in N. Y. While 
none of the newsreel companies 
would commit themselves : as to 
when such an operation would off 
could go into effect, they did ad- 
mit they were studying costs and 
sounding out stations as to the 
easibility of adopting such a tech- 
nique. 

Plan was devised originally by 
WCCO-TV, Minneapolis, which 
had its engineering staff go to 
Work on a method of providing 
kinescopes of good quality. Sta- 
tion came up with a shutter at- 
tachment that costs $45 and is said 
to eliminate flicker and other kin- 
nie faults. Device was demonstrat- 
ed privately some months ago at 
the National Assn, of Radio & 
Television News Directors in Wash- 
Qgton, and the newsreel outfits 
got to work on the project. ’ 
Newsreels, under the plan, 
would process film in N. Y. and 
Washington and put it on the 
cable to: subscriber stations im- 
mediately. Stations, using kine- 
scoping equipment and the WCCO 
developed attachment, would "take 
it off the cable and put it on the 
air as quickly as it takes to process. 
With the key objection to current 
distribution of newsfilm being the 
time element, the- newsreels would 
overcome One of their major hur- 
dles. At the same time, use of the 
process, involving cable costs and 
processing and raw stock at the 
station end, would be more expen 
sive than current air freight rates, 
which generally provide same-day 
service. 

United. Press Movietone, for one, 
is actively researching the project 
and has squnded out DuMont on 
possibility of using the Web’s cable 
facilities for the service. It’s also 
been feeling out stations, but has 
no commitments thus far. Firm, 
however, ^ is aiming at starting 
service on a trial basis, at least, 
within three months. INS-Tele- 
news and CBS Newsfilm also re- 
ported actively working on the 
project. 



Alexander Packaging 



—Just Name the Product 


New wrinkle in . production and 
sales of filmed tv commercials has 
been devised by Alexander Film 
Co. of Colorado Springs. Firm is 
marketing a series of blurb pack- 
ages covering various industries 
^open-ended” and otherwise pro- 
duced so that individual dealers’ 
names, addresses and voice copy 
can be used with the films. 

Latest in the series is a package 
of six 20-secoitd spots combining 
full animation and live action for 
tire sales and service outfits. Spots 
are sold in a package on an ex- 
clusive and unlimited use basis, 
with a minimum price of $450. 
Others in the series arp packages 
on beer, milk, bread, icecream, 
banking and dry cleaning. Alex- 
ander claims the package idea can 
give local sponsors filmed spots 
that compare with national adver- 
tisers’ at low commercial cost. 


Newman’s MCA Shift 

John Newman has shifted to the 
telefilm sector of Music Corp. of 
America. He had been head of 
the MCA press dept, for a number 
of years. 

Gene Maslow, former assistant to 
Newman in the publicity division, 
lias been upped to department top- 
per. . 



Sees U. S. Vidpix 



London, Feb. 23. 

A fear that American-made tv- 
films may flood the British market 
and annihilate all competitors, is 
expressed by Gordon Sandison, 
general secretary of British Actors’ 
Equity, in a report to his. members. 
This stems from the reported BBC 
decision to import some of (he top 
U.S. tv programs. 

Probing the economics of the 
question, Sandison declares that 
he knows of American tv-films, 
which have already covered their 
production costs in the American 
market, and are being offered to 
Canada at knock-down prices. A 
half-hour telepic, he says, can be 
bought for as low as $150. No 
British film, or BBC-TV transcrip- 
tion, could possibly compete with 
these prices because the local in- 
dustry does not have access to a 
vast and profitable home market to 
cover its Basic costs. It was quite 
clear that America was in a posi- 
tion to buy its way into the tv 
markets of the world by undersell- 
ing every competitor. 

Unless they can effectively stop 
the dumping of American telepix 
when commercial programs are in 
troduced, Sandison warns that this 
industry, may follow the pattern 
of the motion picture industry, in 
which Hollywood now occupies 
7.0% of screentime thruoghout the 
world. The key to the future is 
to stop the BBC “saving money” by 
importing cheap thriller and situa- 
tion comedies, he says. 


Practice of playing filmed shows 
twice a week or more on local New 
York stations got a new impetus 
last week when WABC-TV, the 
ABC flagship, decided to air re 
peats of the network “Ozzie 
Harriet” show. Station Will repeat 
the Friday at 8 telecast the follow 
ing Wednesday at 9 each week. 

Station, like a couple of Other 
Gothamers, has been doubling on 
syndicated shows like “Orient Ex- 
press” and “China Smith.” On the 
network side, it doubles with “The 
Stu Erwin Show,” replaying the 
latter after the Friday, night net- 
Wpjlf )§xpo$ij$e. j.[' a j f t e > r i * o •< 



Los Angeles, Feb. 23. 

Breach of contract suit filed by 
writer Lewis Clyde Stoumen 
against Primrose Productions was 
settled out of court for an undis- 
closed. 

Paintiff declared he wrote a 
number of scripts for the “Ring” 
series of half-hour telefilms in 
1951. The first one, “Trouble. at 
Pier 12,” was produced, after which 


McCORMiCK NAMED 
UPA VEEP IN GOTHAM 

Hollywood, Feb. 23. 

Reflecting its increased Interest 
In tv-film production, United Pro 
ductions of America last week 
elected Don McCormick, manager 
of UPA’s New York studio, vice- 
president of UPA-New York. Car- 
toonery plans to step up sales and 
production of tv commercials from 
its N. Y end, following its split a 
couple of months ago from Screen 
Gems. 

Board meeting also reelected 
Stephen Bosustow president and 
board chairman , of UPA for his 
ninth consecutive term. Other offi- 
cers reelected at the session were 
Robert Cannon, v.p.; Charles Dag- 
gett, public relations v.p.; T. Ed- 
ward Hambleton, treasurer; Melvin 
Getzler, assistant treasurer, and M. 
Davis, secretary. 

P&G Renews Fireside 

Hollywood, Feb. 23. 

Frank Wisbar Productions 
(“Fireside Theatre”) has been re- 
newed by Procter & Gamble for 
44 telepix next season, marking the 
sixth consecutive year. Overall 


♦ Economic forces at work in the . 
television industry are slowly ham- 
mering out a situation under which 
all but a few top producers will 
be able to place their vidpix prod- 
uct on the market. The pattern is 
emerging slowly but surely — the 
outlets for telepix, once so numer- 
ous, are either drying up or set- 
ting standards so high that only a 
chosen few producers have the 
coin or knowhow to meet them. 

The three outlets for telefilm, 
network, national spot and syndi- 
cation, are slowly contracting. The 
nets, With their demands for a 
piece of the show as a condition 
for placing it on the air for a 
sponsor, are freezing out the vidpix 
producers. National spot field is 
still fertile, with more and more 
advertisers realizing the advan- 
tages of picking their own markets 
and stations and times via film, 
but clearance problems are prov- 
ing tougher to hurdle as the webs 
put the. clamps on prime time and 
the stations ; are confronted ' with 
more and more vidpix sponsors. 

Jrhe syndication field, which tra- 
ditionally has absorbed most of the 
vidpix product, is undergoing still 
more far-reaching changes. At one 
time a syndication outfit was all 
too eager to grab any properties 
that came along, be they old or 
new, five-minute or hour-long, 
drama or documentary, limited or 
general in appeal. Now, the dis- 
tribs are becoming highly selective 
— . over the past couple of months 
several syndicators have turned 
down properties that a year ago 
would have been grabbed up with- 
out a qualm. NBC Film Division 
decided it didn’t want the new 
cycle of “Douglas Fairbanks Pre- 
sents” vidpix, even though it had 
a nine-market sale in its pocket 
with Rheingold. Off idol Films re- 
linquished its option on “Captain 
Gallant of the Foreign Legion,” a 
Morocco lpcationer starring Bus- 
ter Crabbe; ABC Syndication, or- 
ganized last fall, still is sitting 
tight with only two properties — 
and only, according to v.p. George 
Shupert, because he hasn't yet 
seen anything he wants to pick up. 

* Demand a Share 
It’s all due to competition. One 
phase of the growing competition 
takes the form of a reluctance to 
distribute outside product on a 
straight percentage basis. The dis- 
tribs now want a piece of each 
property they peddle, and while 
they’re willing to back up any deal 
with guarantees, they're making 
sure it’s the right product before 
they put their coin into it. Change- 
over from straight distribution to 
production-distribution has taken 
form over the past few months, 
and it’s been sparked by the for- 
( Continued on page 40) 



budget will be $1,500,000, repping 
a hike over the amount of the last 

]4ly? rieS W SUSPCnd * d v .[$00. of Telenews newsreel facilities/, i 


Possibility that Eastman Kodak 
may enter vidpix production was 
broached last week when Edouard 
P. (Ted) Genock, former Para- 
mount newsreel and Telenews 
exec, joined the company as head 
of tele production. Ostensibly, Ge- 
nock will turn out spot announce- 
ments on film for local Kodak deal- 
ers, but it’s, understood thut Kodak 
may produce its own film series 
which it Will sponsor either via 
network or national spot. 

A veteran newsreel correspond- 
ent and exec, Genock joined Para- 
mount in London in 1930, and with 
the exception of a year with March 
of Time, was with the picture com- 
pany until 1952, for the latter 10 
years as news editor in N. Y. He 
then joined Telenews as editor-in- 
chief , where he remained until the 
recent Hearst-Metrotone acquisi- 





NBC Sets Bp 'Colossus Inc/ 

Continued from page 1 aaaa— i i ' T 


contracts With cast or , packagers 
will be on a 50-50 split. No major 
outlay would be needed under this 
thinking and pix would be made at 
low cost with a view to developing 
product of the sleeper type. 

NBC’s Own Roadshows 
Weaver and Cott envision that 
television playwrights would coop- 
erate because of the angle on al- ; 
most automatic film production, 
similar to the book publishing and 
legit fields. Also encompassed is 
a series of roadshows of legit,, vari- 
ety and opera units, including in- 
tact troupes, top stars and the 
NBC Opera Co., the latter already 
charted: . as one of the . first: Of the 
cross-country junkets. It may 
eventuate into the establishment, 
of musichalls in New .York and 
Hollywood where now acts can try 
out material or established names 
can work on special projects be- 
fore audiences as test showcasers. 
There’s great hope that the net- 
work would be in a prime position 
to. evaluate its comedy develop- 
ment plan via actual offscreen try? 
outs. \ 

Schools For Aoters 
Also embodied in NBC Enter-: 
prises is a school embracing actors, 
particularly tv emoters, with fran- 
chises to be set up in key and me? 
dium cities along lines of the. Ar- 
thur Murray and Fred Astaire 
dance structures. These franchises 
would take in such novelties as 
kinescope lectures on dramatic 
techniques by the web's stars, di- : 
rectors and producers. Not dis- 
counted, either; is the potential 
coin from the fertile cosmetic field 
which would be a natural stepoff 
from the network’s makeup de- 
partment. 

But perhaps the greatest poten- 
tial lies in reaching, the at-hOmers^ 
Via waxed editions of, radio and 
tv live airings that; currently lay. 
largely in an embalmed state after 
the broadcasts. The vaults alone 
would produce a vast amount of 
ajeady-to-be-made material f or 
home use. From this would come 
an independent record label dis- 
tinct and separate from RCA, but 
the latter parent would process the 
platters. On the other, hand, NBC 
Enterprises would be in a position 
to bypass the parent, on distribu- 
tion, leading to possible wider 
sales and with no strictures on 
prices. Thus the new division 
Would be enabled to offer artists 
waxed showcasers and the royalties 
therefrom to keep them from rival 
record companies such as now ob- 
tains in cases where RCA Victor 
cannot "hold” performers. A work- 
ing agreement with Victor is to be 
worked out so as to bring the com- 
: petitive end down to a. minimum. 
As a side issue to the production 
of feature pix, the new' company 
would enter home, distribution of 
8m and 16m films of NBC events 
on a rental plan. 

Weaver and Cott look with long- 
ing at the "millions in merchan- 
dise” enjoyed by the Disneys and 
Hopalongs on comic * books, toys, 
dolls, syndicated strips, pictorial 
books, hats, et al., and Enterprises 

COWBOY ‘G-MEN’ IN 
MAJOR VIDPIX BUY 

Another national advertiser 
moved into the vidpix ranks this 
week when Dixie Cup, in its fitst 
tv effort of any kind, picked up 
"Cowboy G-Men” in 18 markets, 
with options on six or seven more. 
Firm also bought "Western Thea- 
tre” in five more markets where 
"G-Men” was already installed. 
Deal was set via Hicks & Greist 
agency. 

"G-Men” deal was set via United 
Artists TV, in what’s probably the 
last sale for the telepix . distrib. 
Firm is dissolving, with one prop- 
erty, "John Kieran’s Kaleido- 
scope," already virtually unloaded 
(to ABC Film Syndication) and 
"G-Men,” its only half-hour show, 

. in the process of being transferred 
to the Joe Harris combine. Pros- 
pect is that once the Harris deal 
is consummated, the western series 
will be handled for syndication by 
National Telefilm Associates. UA 
made the deal on this one, how- 
ever, and some adjustment will 
probably be made on the basis of 
the deal. "G-Men” is produced by 
Harry Donovan’s Mutual-Tele- 
mount Productions on the Coast; 
with Chemical Bank coin backing 
the latest cycle. 


would turn them into largesse via, 
say, J, Fred Muggs, the “Today" 
ehimp; Uncle Miltie getups; and 
items stemming from "Mr. Peep- 
ers," "Zoo Parade" and, possibly 
"Kukla, Fran & Ollie." Also, of 
course. Pinky Lee hats and an ex- 
tension of the merchandise-license 
facets of "Howdy Doody" since the 
web already shares in sales on the 
latter, ; 

Other talent and programs that 
fit under the. roof, hut contingent 
on agreements with the parties, are 
the Ralph Edwards "This Is Your 
Life," the Friday night Gillette 
bouts, Paul Wlnchell’s Jerry Ma- 
honey; ."Today"— -such as a news- 
pictures-of-the-year book or alma- 
nac; "Home" (starting March 1), 
which would be appropriate for 
cookbooks, syndicated columns and 
products, and the numerous deriva- 
tives available on the Kate Smith 
shbw. . .'v. 

Rights and royalties are being 
Worked out, but there’s a big tal- 
ent angle in that subsidiary rights 
or merchandise money tied in with 
stars would enable the net to pact 
the performers at a lower cost to 
sponsors,, with the total take - of 
names to be greater from the over- 
all' pot. 

Cott would continue to preside 
over AM programming, at least for 
the present; but would devote most 
of his time to NBC Enterprises, on 
which he’s had a quiet headstart. 


Revolution on Coast; 

1 Sponsor for 3 Hours 
Of Jarvis Deejay Show 

Hollywood* Feb. 23. 

In a precedental move in West 
Coast radio, H. J. Caruso, Dodge- 
Plymouth dealer, Is taking over 
sole sponsorship! of the three hours 
of Al Jarvis’ "Make Believe Ball- 
room" on . KFWB on Saturday 
mornings, 9 beginning this Week 
(27). Up to now; deejay sponsor- 
ship' has been split up among as 
many as 20 bankrollers an hour. 

Jarvis thinks the Caruso move in 
paying for the entire block of time 
between 9:30 a. m. and 12: 30 
p. m. on Saturdays may signal a 
return to the old system of platter- 
pusher sponsorship. Deejay, who 
celebrated the 21st anni of the 
show Sunday (21 ), believes the sin- 
gle-sponsorship is a move toward 
giving the program back to the 
listener, in addition to giving a 
sponsor much more for his money. 
The new Saturday show will have 
only six commercial spots during 
the three-hodr period. 



Hollywood, Feb. 23, 

T elescrlpters have been lined up 
for a dozen half-hour vidpix, to be 
produced by Jack Denove for the 
Christophers. Series is given chan- 
nels gratis, and is not open for 
'Sponsorship. Name personalities 
work for nothing, but scribblers 
are paid over-scale, , and non- 
names, crew and tunesters draw 
regular pay for the work. 

Among writers now working on 
the series are Eugene Vale, Robert 
Andrews, Arthur Ripley, Robert 
Stevenson, Larry Marcus and Cyril 
Hume. Production begins soon at 
the Goldwyn studios. 


O’Neil Telepix I 

Continued from page 39 

detective series was suspended to 
give time for revision of format 
William Clothier and William Par- 
is, who produced for Lord since 
the series first went on video in 
’52, Will continue in the same ca- 
pacity. First, 13 will be completed 
by April 30. ” 

This is the only property in the 
making right now because for the 
remaining several Martin isn’t sure 
Whether production work will be 
farmed out as here or done by 
Teleradio itself. To purchase stu- 
dios of its own will require an out- 
let of another several thousand 
dollars over the original $1,000,000 
investment*. : 


'Advekire/ ’Science’ 



Hollywood, Feb, 23. 

- A series of 26 15-minute telepix 
tagged "Adventure Album," and a 
flock of "Popular Science" short 
subjects will be released to tv 
next month by vet distributor, Toby 
Anguish, who acquired the "Sci- 
ence" shorties from Paramount. 

Anguish updated the "Science 1 ’ 
shorties, : slicing some of the half- 
hour pictures to 15 minutes, and is 
releasing 13 half-hour hriefies and 
78 15-minute segments for tv. 

Wallace Taber Is seen as the 
hunter in "Adventure," which was 
shot in India, Africa, Alaska and 
South America. Both series are in 
color. ' 



Continues from page 3t 




Continued from page 38 


competent portrayal for Four Star, 
as' the detective. Good in support 
are Dorothy Green, as his wile; 
Peter Votrian, Doug Fowley, Frank 
Scannell, Larry Blake and Ray 
Farrell, the tot. Daku. 

GEN. ELECTRIC THEATRE 

(Foggy Night) 

The fog hangs heavy like a sec- 
ond mortgage and a car is rammed. 
Lady at the wheel of the rammer 
gets out to investigate, opens the 
car door and a dead woman tum- 
bles out. Here is the perfect setup 
for a psychological drama and a 
perfect romp for Claire Trevor. 

Tense ana taut as any zero hour, 
the action tykes off from there. It 
becomes a good guessing game un-. 
til a gent with squeaky shoes 
strolls by. Miss Trevor was sure 
he was. the one that walked away 
from the death but she can’t make 
the police believe her. They’re 
convinced she’s slightly -off her, 
rocker and humor her out of her 
"haze." By now the looker is 
more convinced that the flatf ooties 
need psychiatry. 

But h this isn’t the tell-tale clue 
that finally turns up the killer. 
Posing as an insurance adjustor, 
the killer calls on Miss Trevor, ac- 
cepts a cup of tea but without su- 
gar because of diabetic tendencies. 
A friendly druggist recalls that the 
suspect . bought insulin, which 
tipped Trevor to beard him alone, 
without the aid of the doubting 
coppers. It nearly ends fatally for 
her but the gendarmes hick in on 
time. * 

Miss Trevor is in complete com- 
mand and compels rapt interest 
with a sensitive and believable per- 
formance. Lawrence Ryle and 
Paul Frees are important helpers, 
.Alfred Greene’s direction keeps 
the plot boiling and wellguard the 
devious turns in Douglas Reyes’ -ex- 
citing script. Helm., 


Panin, U. of Minnesota non-commercial radio station KUOM general 
manager, now in England under a Fulbright grant rdcording special 
material for National Assn, of Educational Broadcasters, invited to 
participate in a BBC quiz contest for title of "Brain of ’Britain” and 
won three times to qualify for semi-fin|ls . * . John Ford, ace WTCN- 
*TV personality, hospitalized by nervous exhaustion . . . Bob & Ray 
in from New York to headline special WCCO-TV show to promote 
Heart Sunday campaign. Other acts included George Gobel, appearing 
at Hotel Radisson Flame Room ... . , RCA 50,000-watt television trans- 
mitter now in process of installation on Channel 11 to enable WTGN- 
T\£ and WMIN-TV, Sharing it, to boost their! power to 316,000 watts 
maximum allowed by FCC. 

JJV PHILAPELPHIA . . . 

Don Mellvaiae, of KYW, has received citation from Defense Secre- 
tary Wilson and Maj. Gen. William E. Bergin, commending him for 
entertaining troops in Korea, last year , . . John D. Schener, Jr., exec- 
utive assistant to general manager at WFIL stations, . was member 
of the Pennsylvania delegation attending President Eisenhower’s White 
House conference on Highway Safety (Feb. 17-19) . . Robert N. Pryor, 
v.p. in charge of public relatlohs for the WCAU stations, will serve 
as one of three judges on Gold Medal radio-tv panel of the National 
Board of Fire Underwriters, March 3, in New York . . . Rolland V. 
Tooke, general manager of WPTZ, has been elected to the board of 
directors of the Chamber of Commerce of Greater Philadelphia . . . 
Joyce Jullaho, femme medical student and first place winner on a 
Godfrey "Talent Scouts" show, is now featured vocalist with Mae 
McGuire’s; on both the WIP daily wakeup program and the Weekly 
Mutual web broadcast . . . Murray Arnold, former program director 
at WIP who resigned last week after 21 years, with .the station, has 
been named assistant station director at WPEN . . . WCAU-TV has 
been tapped for Freedoms Foundation 1954 Award for its special 
Independence Hall telecast which launched Philadelphia’s Community 
Chest campaign. Eddie Albert, Grace Kelly and Charles Colllngwood 
starred on show. 




Continue* from page 31 



Continued from page 39 


mation of such . operations as Mo- 
tion Pictures for Television’s film 
syndication division, ABC’s film 
operation. Television Programs of 
America and the like. Latter have 
made it a matter of public record 
that they won’t distribute unless 
they’ve got at least a share of 
Ownership. 

Just as important is the tremen- 
dous flow of product currently on 
the market; Whereas at one time 
supply fell far short of demand, 
it’s now caught up and in many 
situations exceeds, demand. In- 
creasing number of stations 
doesn’t have a direct bearing on 
supply and demand. In new mar- 
kets, demand per se is the same 
as in an old market — that is, if a 
station needed 20 hours a week of 
programming in an old market, 
those same 20 hours sold, to the 
older station could be sold to the 
new market. There’s no need , for 
new product for a new market; In 
the case-of a new station in 'an old 
market, there are other factors to 
be- considered' — station’s audi- 
ence, for example, may deter spon- 
sors from switching .from the old 
station in the market, or the new 
station’s financial position may 
prevent it from spending too much 
coin on film. 

So while supply has pretty much 
caught up with demand, it becomes 
a case of quality rather than 
quantity. A syndicator won’t upick 
up a property unless he’s pretty 
certain it’s going to sell, under the 
toughest conditions and with the 
growing awareness of .sponsors, 
stations and public to good pro- 
gramming, the distributors are 
proceeding -with caution. 


extensively, and' it decided to do 
this public servicer as: a means of 
cementing its relations with the 
industry. 

Just how much .good the show 
did them is another question, how- 
ever. In concept and execution, 
the program was. a model of how? 
not-to-present-a-documentary. Its 
method of pointing up the role of 
paper in modern-day living played 
like something out of a high-school 
auditorium, and even pros like 
Arnold Stang and Art Fleming 
seemed a little embarrassed by the 
whole affair. 

Scripters Eddie Nugent (who 
also produced) , and Alan Riefe set 
the. scene for the documentary in 
a supermarket, with Fleming an 
improbable representative and 
Stang a .disbelieving: consumer. 
Script had Fleming convincing the 
scoffing Stang of the; value of pa- 
per, via demonstrations, film clips 
and even a fashion show. Entire 
affair was marked by poor Writing, 
hesitant acting and uncertain pro- 
duction. A filmed documentary 
would have been far superior and 
would have punched across the 
point with far more impact. 

Chan. 


OUT OF THE RABBLE 

With Fred Dallam, Rudolph Pug* 

liese, J. Duncan Powell, Harold 

Teagle, Tom Macklin, Ed Baker, 
: Frank Kemp , 

Director: Robert C. Jones 
Writer: Allen Bryce Redman 
30 Mhis.; Sat., 3 p.m; 

WMAR, Baltimore 

WMAR and the U. of Maryland 
joined forces to present "Out Of 
The Rabble,” the winning script 
in the Victor Frenkil tv playwright- 
ing contest. Frenkil, a local build- 
ing contractor, awards a cash prize 
annually to the college student 
whose video play is selected by a 
panel of judges at Maryland U. 
This year’s winner was the work 
of Allen Bryce Redman of NYU 
and his play about an incident in 
the Revolutionary War fitted neat- 
ly into the Washington’s Birthday 
programming at WMAR. 

WMAR staff had many problems 
m coordinating the production 
with the student actors at the state 
university 32 miles away from the 
local station. A double technical 
staff was required and a scale 
model of the set was used so that 
the actors could rehearse with 
some idea of the actual setup. The 
student actors had just one final 
rehearsal at the station before the 
shbw went on. 

. Redman’s script, with its empha- 
sis on dialog rather than visual 
values, did not help the under- 
rehearsed .actors. His play dealt 
with a group of colonial soldiers 
who > contemplate desertion on 
Christmas Day, 1776 . They mis- 
trust General Washington and, 
after the desertion scheme is 
launched, the silhouette of the gen- 
eral in prayer in his tent causes 
Uiem to renew their faith in the 
Revolutionary cause as the army 

River teS t0 Cr ° SS the Dela ware 

M tll( ? ent ca ^ delivered stand- 
ard collegiate level thesping, with 
Fred Dallam, in the dortaiilatit part 


of McTavish, projecting a more 
convincing characterization than 
his associates. 

Technical staff succeeded fairly 
well in creating the effect of ex- 
tremely cold weather. 7 Direction 
seemed insecure a$ a result of di- 
vided authority. Burn; 


Tele Followups 

i Continued from page 31 ; 


and. Ken Carson, were only ade- 
quate for the needs of this period, 
although Miss Lors indicated that 
if given the material, she could 
approach Mss Meadow’s skill in the 
sketch department. 

In the guest department, Al 
Martino gave a full-voiced rendi- 
tion of Gleason’s themer, "Melan- 
choly Serenade” for a good rating, 
while The Goof ers, current at Cafe 
Society, N. Y., were forced to 
hurry through one number which 
combined musicianship and acro- 
batics. foir an amazing effect. They 
play instruments while in an in- 
verted position oh a trapeze and 
do other similar tricks. Jose. 



Continued from page 39 


mote the latest feature film. Also 
a factor in the Kellogg.. campaign 
to plug "Command” is the belief 
that Madison’s appearance in the 
earlier 3-D film helped the Hickok 
vidpix ratings. 

Since the tv film is riding on. 80 
stations around the country., Kel- 
logg and Warners are timing the 
promotion with the actual •theatre 
booking of the feature in as many 
locations as : possible. Project thus 
should benefit the individual ex- 
hibitors and could conceivably 
change the thinking of many the- 
atre men about performers who 
work both media. 

As their contribution Warners 
has put together a 20-second film 
which the Burnett agency is rout- 
ing around to the stations carrying 
the Hickok series. 'The promotion 
film plugs both the vidpix and 
“Command.” And on the vidpix, 
Kellogg is giving over 20 seconds 
of its final commercial on two 
shows in each market for a direct 
plug for the feature film. Consider- 
ing the number of markets in- 
volved, the film plug adds up to 
a lot of Coin. Direct tie-ins at the 
local level are working out by the 
station’s promotion staff and the 
theatre owners. 


Greensboro, N. C. — A poet and 
former commercial manager of sta- 
tions WGBR-WEQR in Goldsboro 
has been named sales manager of 
station WAYS- AM Charlotte. N. L. 
Royster, author of three books of 
poetry and a former Charlottean, is 
returning to his home city after 16 
years of radio experience in the 
Carolinas. 




MUSIC 


41 


F«hnmyy 24, 19S4 


DECCA CONTROL FIGHT IN OPEN 





Broadcasting hai Its “ratings” and the Music Bis has Its 
“charts." It has gotten- so that a songwriter or a music pub- 
lisher doesn't know what he has until he has made "the sheet," 
or any of those other "charts.” 

It has reached the proportions of a vicious cycle, in that disk, 
jockeys, radio*-tv and. other program designers, and almost any- 
body and everybody having to do with the utilization of popu- 
lar music first looks to "the charts" before making a move. 

If it’s "up there on the charts,” it’s assumed that the song has 
wide public acceptance and is moving forward to even greater 
popularity. Thus, it Is a .well-cushioned selection for pror 
graniming. 

All of which is good in theory^-and also In practice. But 
not always Infallible. For one thing, the fact that good songs 
which might be slow in making ‘’the charts" just as often are 
the equal of— -or superior to— the tunes which already are "up 
there” is accepted by even the most ardent proponents of the 
chart addicts. More fallible te the trade^knowledge that hy- 
poed songs, because of that w-fc Tin Pan Alley institution known 
as "the drive”— not to mention payola— frequently enjoy a bat- 
ting average beyond their true worth. In fact, in no time 
they are displaced by the more meritorious slow-starters but 
longer-lasthig tunes. 

With "the charts," also, has evolved a fallacious intra-trade 
appraisal of songs and records and singers and all other com- 
ponents. Because if the "chart" is. phoney, or rigged, or in- 
nocently erroneous, the entire trade operates on a false premise. 
Dee jays, for example, whose programming of "the top 10" is 
frequently based on casual references to these charts for their 
information, might be compounding an error. Their plugs are 
based on a misconceived calculation, with result that that there 
Is confusion and spleen within and without the trade. 

Variety is proposing to all of the major diskeries that if 
these "charts” are so important, then let the industry under- 
write a true rating-appraisal. Let this become common in- 
formation for the entire music business. Take the routine of 
calculating this or that series or sequence of plugs out of any 
fallible body, and leave the responsibility with the trade itself. 
The Record Industry Assn, of America is the logical depository 
of this service. Vahiety will publish this information, or the 
RIAA can service it to the other trade papers as it sees fit. One 
thing will be certain— no diskery will pout : that the modus 
operand! of the plugs, regional calculations, etc., are at the 
whim of any trade sheet. Nobody will be charged with any 
"rigging." 

The information, presumably, will have been carefully col- 
lated in the most scientific manner possible. The fact that 
the record companies and all the contiguous components make 
no complaint when the conclusions are favorable is besides the 
point. To cover any and all instances, where the human ele- 
ment might create a damaging circumstance to this or that out- 
fit, the RIAA’s function would serve as automatic insurance. 
At least if somebody goofed on the mathematics it would be the 
record industry’s own duly designated agency. 

As a matter of fact, this is a service which the RIAA should 
be assuming. The major music publishers underwrite their own 
"sheet"— the Dr. John G. Peatman’s Office of Research. The 
broadcasters over the years have underwritten Hopper, Nielsen, 
et al. Many a. non-show biz industry maintains research in- 
formation for the commonweal. The diskeries, so wrapped up 
in their liaison between the creators (songsmiths-publishers) and 
the cuffo exploiteers (the network of disk jockeys), have blinded 
themselves to a trade fundamental. That is, a service by itself, 
for itself, and for any and all whose knowledge of songs and song 
interpreters (recording artists) may be a plus for that par- 
ticular trade. * 

The most affirmative thing that can evolve at the present 
time is this service by the phonograph industry’s own RIAA so 
as to circumvent any allegations about misinformation, capri- 
cious calculations, or other mishaps that may come when an 
industry gets as "chart"-happy as has the music biz. Abel. 

SADOFF PRO MGR. FOR 
BOURNE; UP McGREGOR 

In a reshuffling at Bourne Music 
last week, Bob Sadoff moved in as 
professional manager replacing 
Jerry Johnson; Sadoff was switched 
over from his professional man- 
ager’s slot at ABC Music, Bourne 

subsid. ■ , 

The ABC professional manager s 
post was turned over to Charles 
McGregor, who had been heading 
Bourne’s standard and educational 
department for the past eight 
months. McGregor previously had 
been with the Russ Morgan music 
firm. Johnson ankled the Bourne 
spot after a two-and-a-half year 
run. 



A long-smoldering fight for con- 
trol of Decca Records broke out 
into the open this week with the 
launching of a bitter attack on 
proxy Milton R. Rackmil by George 
L. Lloyd, member of Decca’s board 
since it was founded ini 1934. 
Lloyd sounded off against Rack- 
mil in a letter to stockholders, 
soliciting support for a plan to 
form a Decca Records Stockhold- 
ers’ .Protective Committee. 

Tagging Rackmil, Who also is prez 
of Universal Pictures/ as a "part- 
time president,” Lloyd charged 
that there has been a "deteriora- 
tion in our operations 1 ; since 1950." 

In an unanimous statement, Dec- 
ca’s board of directors yesterday 
(Tues.) counterattacked with the 
disclosure that Lloyd had been 
voted off the board Feb. 1J. At. 
the directors’ meeting then, accord- 
ing to the statement, it was voted 
to reduce the number of directors 
from six to five and to declare 
Lloyd’s office vacant. The board’s 
statement declared that "Lloyd’s 
letter (to the stockholders) is un- 
doubtedly his reaction to this fact." 

The board yesterday charged 
that Lloyd "has for some time 
been making . inordinate demands 
Upon the management — unusual 
demands to say the least • — for 
the appointment of a member 
of his family to one of the 
most important and sensitive 
positions in the organization, and 
he had also demanded that the cor- 
poration designate his personal 
counsel as general legal counsel 
for the corporation." Cohen & 
Bingham firm is now Decca’s legal 
rep. 1 

Decca board’s statement contin- 
ues, "Upon management’s rejection 
of these demands, as not in the 
corporate interest, Mr. Lloyd in- 
stigated a behind-the-scenes cam- 
paign * . , Mr. Lloyd is now em- 
barked upon a project to induce 
stockholders to remove the present 
management and to replace it with 

. (Continued, on page 48) 







Contacting Contact 

Guy Lombardo, * favorith . 
target for songpluggers for the 
past couple of decades in his 
stand at the Hotel Roosevelt. 
N; Y., got a taste of how the 
other side lives last week. 
Lombardo became a contact- 
man himself and made a tour 
Of the N„ Y. disk jockeys in 
behalf of his latest Decca re- 
lease with Bing Crosby on 
"Young at Heart" and "I Get 
So Lonely." 

It’s the first time Lombardo 
has hit the deejay trail for his 
waxlngs. : 


Cole Porter Is Just 



Ira B. Arnstein is back in. the 
courts again. In a suit filed in N Y, 
Federal Court last week, Arnstein 
claimed that Cole Porter, one of 
his pet targets; infringed on his 
copyrights with the score for "Can- 
Can." Max Dreyfus, Chappell 
Music topper, legit, producers Cy 


♦ Competitive potential of pre- 
recorded tape to the disk industry 
is taking on new dimension#. A-V 
Tape Libraries, a leader in the 
pre-recording tape field, is hitting 
the market with a low-priced tape 
line within the normal price struc- 
ture of the waxeries. Recording 
outfit is issuing a 99c. 15-minute 
tape of standard pop instrumentals 
which will be delivered to retail 
outlets in two or three weeks. 

The 99c tape is a come-on for 
future lines, which will go for 
higher tabs but will still fall into 
the low-price category. A-V ex- 
pects to followup with a $1.99 tape 
of show tunes. Firm claims that 
despite the high cost of raw stock 
it Can still make a. profit on the 
low-price issues. Prior to the in- 
troduction of the new line A-V’s 
catalog, of approximately 125 
tapes, ranged from a low of $4.85 
to a high , of $11.75. A reduction 
in the price list of A-V’s present 
catalog is also in the works. 

New low-priced releases fall in 
line with the expansion of the 
tape-recording industry.; It’s only, 
been during the’ past few years 
that ; the tape machines have 
achieved public acceptance. Origi- 
nally classed by most consumers 
as a luxury item, some machines 
are now available’ at around $100. 
Trade reports Indicate that by the 


Feuer. and Ernest Martin, and Cap . . ... , 

itol Records were also named as t*^ this year there Will be an 




Rubbery topper Redd Evans is 
stepping into the recording bus! 
ness. Evans last week set up the 
indie Redd-E label and is currently 
lining up distributors around the 
country to peddle his initial re- 
lease. 

Evans will keep his diskery yen-, 
ture apart from his pubbery (Jef- 
ferson Music) operation and will 
not make tunes cut by major rec- 
ord companies, Move into the 
disk biz, according to Evans;; was 
sparked by the desire to get songs, 
turned down by the diskeries, on 
"ax. He plans to accept tunes from 
other pubs Within the limits of his 
Pressing and distribution setup. 
Raul Saltzman will be the label’s 
general manager. 

initial Redd-E release is a cou- 
pling of "Trapped” and "Idle Gos- 
sip” Slice was cut with the Don 
Costa orch and Evans, himself, 
handling the vocai. 



For Thunderbird Repeat 

The Sauter-Finegan band, which 
recently completed, a stand at the 
Thunderbird Hotel, Las Vegas, has 
been booked for another stand 
there in June for two weeks. 

The crew will precede that ses- 
sion with a two-week date at the 
Hollywood Palladium. 


The four major networks 
wrapped up a settlement, with the 
American, Society of Composers, 
Authors & Publishers on tv li- 
censing yesterday (Tues.). Pact is 
retroactive to Jan. 1 when 
ASCAP’s contract with the nets 
expired. 

It’s understood that the licensing 
percentage fees are less than 
ASCAP has been getting under the 
old pact, but due to the increased 
gross from tv, ASCAP stands to 
make more coin from that outlet 
than heretofore. An estimated 
$8,000,000 take is expected this 
year from the webs and the indies. 

Negotiations between ASCAP 
and the indie tele stations are ex- 
pected to be finalized shortly. 


defendants. 

Arnstein charges that Porter 
culled- "I Love Paris” and "Come 
Along With Me" from, his song, 
"Waiting." He also claims that 
• -C’est Magnifique” was lifted from 
his T 933 copyright, "I Only Want 
to Prove," and that "Allez Vous En" 
was taken from his ’34 copyright, 
"Boys Club." 

The suit also charges that . Porter 
never Wrote a tune in h'is 35-year 
career and that the majority of the 
800 songs in the Porter catalog 
were copied from Arnstein’s com- 
positions. 

In explaining why he was asking 
for an injunction, Arnstein said 
that a case takes two or three years 
before it comes to trial and by that 
time the plaintiffs have made be- 
tween $10,000,000 and $15,000,000. 
dissolved the corporation, divided 
the profits and left town without 
paying the plaintiff "even if he 
happened to win." 

Arnstein advised the court that 
it get prominent musicians to ad- 
vise it on the merits of his claim 
and not stooges or "tune detec- 
tives” who are retained by the de- 
fendants to deny, the truth and 
whitewash the "culprits," Arnstein, 
who acts as his own attorney, has 
appeared in court regularly over 
the years with infringement claims 
against top writers. He hasn’t won 
yet. 


estimated million-and-one-quarter 
tape machines in U; S. homes. 

A-V’s 99c 1 5-minute disk also 
offers more playing time than the 
similarly priced' shellac. New tape 
will be released on a double track 
and at a speed of 3.75 inches per 
second. MOst machines made for 
home consumption operate either 
at the 3.75 speed or at 7.5 inclv 
per . second. Some machines are 
equipped to Handle both speeds. 

(Continued on page 48) 




In Tzena, Tzena’ Suit 

Judge Vincent L. Leibell is ex- 
pected- to hand down his decision 
on the Mills Music suit against 
Cromwell Music on the alleged in- 
fringement' of "Tzena, Tzena" in 
about five weeks. The trial wound 
up in N.Y. Federal Court recently. 

In the action Cromwell claimed 
that “Tzena" was a traditional 
Hebrew melody while Mills alleged 
that it had a new adaptation by 
Julius Grossman and Captain 
Miron. "Tzena" racked up a 1.500,- 
OOti disk sale via the Decca slicing 
by Gordon Jenkins and’ The Weav- 
ers, but only 50,000 sheet copies 
were sold; It was on thfc flip side of 
"Good Night Irene." 


SPENCER, H&R SETTLE 
HASSLE OUT OF COURT 

Hollywood, Feb. 23. 
Tunesmith Tim Spencer and Hill 
& Range Songs have kissed and 
made up in a friendly, but com- 
plicated, settlement of the differ- 
ences which arose out of joint 
ownership of Tim Spencer Music. 
That pubbery will Continue to exist 
as a H&R subsidiary, but under 
another name, and Spencer will 
operate a new firm to be known 
as Gaviota Music, Inc. 

Gaviota starts in business with 
several tunes from both the old 
Tim Spencer and H&R catalogs 
which Spertcer purchased as part 
of the settlement of the dispute. 
However, H&R will continue to 
publish "Room Full of Roses” and 
other Spencer tunes already in the 
catalog as well as several new ones 
purchased under the terms of set- 
tlement, but Spencer will no longer 
operate under an exclusive song- 
writing pact with H&R; 

Spencer, incidentally, has cre- 
ated a . sacred version of the 
"Roses" melody and it will be pub- 
lished as part of H&R’s gospel cat- 
alog under the title "Christ Is A 
Wonderful Saviour." 


The Songwriters Protective Assn, 
is propping a series of huddles 
with Harry Fox, agent and trustee 
for the publishers, for an adjust- 
ment of latter’s collection fee tab. 

For the past several years, Fox 
has . been assessing the pubs 314% 
of the monies he collects for them. 
The SPA pact with the Writers 
and publishers states that both 
should share in the mechanical 
royalties after collection fee deduc- 
tions, not to exceed 214%, had 
been made. 

When Fox hiked his rates, SPA 
was hesitant about bringing the 
matter to a head but decided to 
make the move after some Writer 
pressure. 


Cap Names Bittaker 
Mgr. of Int’l Division 

Floyd Bittaker, who Was Capi- 
tol’s first employee when the plat- 
tery was formed a decade ago, has 
been, named manager of the inter- 
national department of Capitol Re- 
cords in Hollywood, effective 
March 1, by prexy Glenn E. Wal- 
lichs. Bittaker will report to 
Sandor A. Porges, director of . the 
international department in New 
York. 

Bittaker, who Set up Capitol’s 
extensive distribution system, has 
been serving as Coast regional 
operation manager for Capitol Re- 
cords Distribution Corp. 


DECCA REP ACTS CAVALLARO 

Carmen Cavallaro, vet pianist 
with Decca Records, has been re- 
pacted by the diskery for two more 
years. 

Cavallaro has been with the label 
for the past 15 years, r 


♦ 42 


MUSIC 


VttoJiyv Febrnaiy 24 , 1954 


Tin Pan Alley’s Global Cooks Tour 



By ABEL ^BEEN 

Even the Old World, In recent 
years, has been influenced in its 
so-called “native” music by exter- 
ior forces, undoubtedly a good deal 
of it American, because the popu- 
larity of* U. S. pop miisic— col- 
loquially called "Yankee jazz"—* 
has long since touched every cor- 
ner of the globe. It is only natural, 

; that reciprocally a melting pot land 
like America should, does, and is 
constantly seeing influences of 
French, Italian, Germanic, Vien- 
nese, Afro-Cuban, Latin and other 
musical origins. Hence, the gamut 
runs from "La Vie En Rose" 
through “Uska Dara" to "Eh Cum- 
pari.” 

Where the Parisian influence was 
dominant for years, right now a 
combination of such songs and 
singers as the following speaks fOr 
itself as regards the Italian and 
America-Italian song styles and 
stylists: Dean Martin and "That’s 
Amore" (not unlikely as the next 
Academy song winner, incidental- 
ly); Perry Como and "You! Alone," 
Julius LaRosa and "Eh Cumpari," 
Phil Brito and "Come Back to Sor- 
rento," backed by his lasagha con- 
cept of "Darktown Strutters Ball"; 
RCA Victor’s current bestseller, 
Lou Monte’s dominantly Italian 
version of the Shelton Brooks clas- 
sic, with Louis Prima for the 
Equity label dittoing; Alan Dale’s 
"Honey, Honey, Honey," along with 
Buddy Greco’s Italian version of 
"Sheik of Araby"; Capitol’s new 
Tommy Leonetti, not to mention 
Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra, Bob 
Santa Maria, Tommy Mara (MGM 
label’s "More Than Ever"), A1 
Martino’s “Way Paesano" (Capitol), 
as Italian-backgrounded vocalists. 
Dolores Grey also went on an Italo 
kick with "Poppa Piccolino," while 
Toni Arden has ■ befen doing "Sor- 
rento" for a couple of years. , 

In other idioms, there have been 
Germanic schnitzelbank and Hei- 
delberg campus songs; romantic 
arias . from the. South Aitefcican and 
south-of-the-border lands; ' Israeli 
"horas”; Gallic, Espagnol and Nea- 
politan ballads : Irish come-all-yes; 
tempestuous Turkish ditties; Ital- 
ian tarantellas, secular Hebrew ex- 
cerpts like >4 Eili -Eili’?, and even 
czaristic Russian influences ("O 
Chichorni," "Dark Eyes,’’ and the 
like). This United Nations medley 
of song influences, long before 
there was such thing as a UN, have 
enriched the American pop song 
reservoir, along with its qwn na- 
tively contrived wealth of sophis- 
ticated and hinterland folk music 
that has run the gamut from 
Rodgers & Hammerstein to Acuff- 
Rose, from Cole Porter to Hank 
Williams. 

Some Misses 

The recent disk output reflects 
this in large doses of variety and 
Versatility; Generally it enriches 
the land, but also sometimes it 
misses, and when it does it is dis- 
mal. Victor’s current anthology of 
"Borscht," some old sides made by 
Mickey Katz, is a negative exam- 
ple. Unlike the Israeli "horas," and 
the music from the steppes or the 
poignant traditional hymns like 
"Eili Eili" or "Kol Nldre," a Cats- 
kill Mt. attempt at hybridizing 
standard tunes into “fractured Yid- 
dish" is a missout. For one thing, 
some of it borders on outright bad 
taste, especially with the dialectic 
asides. Colloquially, apparently 
these have restricted acceptance 
but which — if some non-dialecti- 
cian were to ask for literal transla- 
tion— -could be construed as not 
passing for polite parlor conversa- 
tion. 

The music business has been 
most circumspect in good taste, at 
least to a major degree. The salty 
accents that a sibilant singer can 
give a lyric is something for in- 
dividual judgment and individual 
interpretaton. (And' in this regard 
to digress for the nonce, Columbia 
and Rosemary Clooney certainly 
goofed with "My Baby Rocks Me 
(With One Steady Roll),’’ which is 
strictly for the r&b releases, about 
which more anon.) 

A broad satire by Stan Freberg, 
on Capitol, of "C’est Si Bon," paro- 
dying Eartha Kitt’s earthy style, 
is one thing, even if the dialectics 
border on the 7th Ave. touch, but 
Mickey Katz and His Kosher-Jam- 
mers, to give the full billing, go 
overboard. "Tico Tico" becomes 
"Tickle Kitzel.,” "Feudin’ and 
Fussin’ Mit Mine Cousin" stems 
from "Feudin’ and Fightin’," "Mis- 


sissippi Shmootz," nee "Mississippi 
Mud," means "dirt" ("shmootz"), 
and it is that; "Take Me Back Tzu 
Die .Prairie" Is a parody on "Red 
River Valley”; and there are other 
blintz treatments of "St, Louis 
Blues" and "Manana," plus a “Yid- 
dish Jam Session." 

Folk music of Semitic origin has 
enriched the ASCAP and BMI 
catalogs bver the years — "And the 
Angels Sing," "Anniversary Waltz” 
and p "Joseph, Joseph" come 
to mind— and these were done 
with dignity, yet preserving the 
basic appeal. Conversely, satiric, 
parOdyized, comedic or para- 
phrased treatments of standards, 
such as the above octet, merit the 
same careful application. 

Market for Novelties 

Novelty on wax is few and far 
between. It should be encouraged. 
There is a warm market for it, as 
Homer & Jethro (Victor) and 
Lonzo & Oscar (Decca) have evi- 
denced, not overlooking the afore- 
mentioned Freberg and even Spike 
Jones who, when he is good is 
socko, but tdo has to be watched. 
His "Chinese Mule Train” is a 
classic of a sort; but his Yid- 
dishisms in "Tennessee Waltz” 
were off-base as much as Mickey 
Katz’s "Borscht." 

Katz is a seasoned trouper. He 
clicked resoundingly in a Yiddish- 
Amencart revusical, . "Borscht- 
Capades," and singly has produced 
some bright and often funny plat- 
ters, both for Capitol, his present 
Company, and Victor. But it’s one 
thing playing to a limited audi- 
ence; it’s another putting it on wax. 
Some of the "Borscht," broadcast 
for general consumption, could 
well spill over into mutual em- 
barrassment. 

The yen for novelty in recent 
weeks sees Decca reissuing "Where 
Do You Work-A John l by Frank 
Luther, presumably to catch the 
Italian vogue, at the same time it 
sees Merv Griffin balladeering a 
Verdi strain and making "All the 
Livelong Day" (with Paul Weston) 
a popularly appealing ballad on 
Columbia. 

,o ft The li harkback t0 the nostalgic 
20s witnesses the gang song tech- 
nique paying off for the Four Aces 
With "Heart of My Heart;" a pat- 
teriv which Ray Bolger first set On 
bl sp eCG a disk ing of "Once in Love 

£ my ” iirom "Where’s 
Charley ?), and which Don Cor- 
nell reprises rather effectively on 
Coral with the "Hold Me," the 
oldie, by the late Ira Schuster, Lit- 
tle Jack Little and Dave Oppen- 
heim. There are any number of 
piano ragtime" stylists (Ben Light, 
et al.); and authentic bayou and 
cajun music has been captured on 
P®Ps. Just as: Gisele MacKehzie 
(Capitol) is doing with her French 
Canuck stuff. 

The quest for novelty sees Buddy 
Hackett doing a pair of funny 

(Continued on page 45) 



LAWRENCE WELK 

and hia 

CHAMPAGNE MUSIC 
130th Consecutive Week, Aragon 
Ballroom, Santa Monica, Calif. 

Newest: Coral Record Album 
PICK A POLKA 
Recently Released 
NIMBLE FINGERS Album 



Grieg: Peer Gynt Music (Mer- 
cury; *$5.95). Incidental music to 
the stageplay includes the two w.k. 
suites and much music that is un- 
familiar. This striking album gives 
meat to the .score, in a richly- 
played rendition of the melodic, 
lush strains by the accomplished 
Oslo Philharmonic. Solveig’s Song 
is beautifully sung by Eva Prytz. 

Rachmaninoff Plays Rachmani- 
noff (RCA Victor; $5.45). Graceful 
set of recital encore pieces — 
Schubert Serenade, Kreisler Lieb- 
esfreud, plus a dozen of Rachmani- 
noff’s own short works, in Etudes' 
and Preludes — makes a loving 
remembrance of an . excellent 
pianist, firstrate composer and fine 
gentleman. 

Shostakovich: Sonata for Cello 
& Piano (London; $2.95). Engaging 
work, in melodic, romantic vein, 
more classic than modern, and 
richly played here by Emanuel 
Brabec with a lyric cello ' tone. 
Pianist Franz HolCtschek assists. 

Modern French Music (Capitol; 
$5,72). Unusual disk of four se- 
lections, well-played by Concerts 
Arts Orch under Vladimir Golsch- 
mann. Milhaud’s Le Boeuf sur le 
Toit, though entertaining, gets a 
little repetitious after a while. 
Honegger’s gentle Pastorale d’Ete, 
Ravel’s gay though delicate Tom- 
beau de Couperin and Satie’s 
graceful, haunting Three Gymno- 
pedies offer charming style con- 
trasts. 

Humperdinck: Hansel & Gretel 
(Angel, 2 LP; $9.90). Attractive 
disking of the w.k. opera, with 
sweep, color and beauty, especially 
in the purely orchestral passages. 
Voices are ‘properly light for this 
opus, and very expressive; Elisa- 
beth Schwarzkopf is a fine Gretel, 
Elizabeth Grummer a good Hansel, 

Bron. 


Jocks, 



■By BERM SCHOENF 


Eddie Fisher: "Anema E Core"? 
"A Girl, A Girl" (Victor). The 
flood of Halo-inspired tunes has 
not, apparently, yet reached Its 
crest. Now Eddie Fisher comes up 
with a couple of tasty ravioliitems 
in "Anema E Cote,* a big ballad 
that he belts to the hilt, and "A 
Girlj A Girl,” a bright number with 
an infectious beat. On the same 
label, Mario Lanza turns up with 
a more serious Italian standard in 
"Lolita,", which will have little 
chance in the market, with a pow- 
erfully rendered "Granada" oh the 


Et Le Chevalier"-"Mimosas" (Co. 
lumbia). Lily Pons is rarely re£ 
resented in the pop releases and 
these sides are not strictly n 0 n, 
either. Both tunes are French 
with an arty flavor. Miss Pons give? 

* J* « ® . . lon £bajr interpretations 
aimed at special audiences. 

Mel Torme: "Just One More 
Chance ^-"The Anything Can Han. 
pen Mambo" (Coral). The decline 
of Mel. Torme in the wax sweep* 
stakes Is One of those show biz 
mysteries. Torme can sing with 
the best and he shows it again on 


Best Bets 


EDDIE FISHER 

(Victor) ... . . 
FOUR ACES 
(Decca) . 


1 •. • • • • • • "e ♦ 






f, • •• • • 1 




• 9 » 1 




• •• • 


ANEMA E. CORE 
.A Girl, A Girl 
SO LONG 

...Amor 




flip. For Capitol, A! Martino goes 
on the Italo kick with a snappy 
tune , ; "Way, Paesano," while Dan- 
ny Capri, on the indie Pic label, 
comes up with. "Mama Nicolini," 
who is probably related to Dolores 
Grey’s. "Poppa Piccolino" for Dec- 
ca a couple of months ago. 

Four Aces: "So Long"-*‘Amor" 
(Decca). Four Aces maintain their 
hit. stride on this coupling. "So 
Long" is a neat rhythm ballad on 
which this vocal combo showcases 
its tight harmonizing with top com 
mercial appeal; Solid for jukes and 
jocks. Flip is a colorful workover 
of the standard, "Amor," and this 
side could also build. into a top hit. 

Dick Lee-Ray Martin Orch: "The 
Book’V’Cinderella" (Essex). "The 
Book," a moderate Inspirational 
import from England, gets an ef- 
fective rendition from singer Dick 
Lee and Ray Martin orch on this 
British-cut side. Label X also has 
a good cut of this tune with 11- 
year-old trumpeter, Frankie Ava 
on, supplying the background a la 
"O Mein Papa:" The juve angle on 
this side will help. On the Essex 
reverse, Lee does nicely on a good 
tune, "Cinderella." 

Arthur Godfrey: "Soft Squeeze, 
Baby’’-"Mooii, June, Spoon" (Co 
umbia). Arthur Godfrey’s warbling 
requires a special kind of cute 
number and this coupling provides 
the right kind of material. 
"Squeeze" is a simple one-fingered 
ype of melody with about a four 
note range in which Godfrey feels 
comfortable. He gives it an easy, 
pleasant workover for good com- 
mercial results. Flip, delivered in 
andem with Janet Davis, is a med 
ey : of oldies with a backporch 
flavor. •• 

Harry Belafonte: "Hold ‘Em, 
Joe"-‘Tm Just A Country Boy" 
(Victor). Harry Belafonte is a su- 
perlative folk singer who knows 
liow to sock over a Calypso num- 
ber with top results. "Joe" is a 
good sample , of the genre with 
Belafonte doing a stylish job that 
rates plenty of spins. Flip is a 
ovely slow ballad which, unfortu- 
nately, is dimmed by -the excite- 
ment on the other side. 

Lily Pons: T ‘Le Loup, La Biche 


Pft&ltiTY 



on 





1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

7. 

8 . 

9. 

10 . 


SECRET LOVE (4) Doris Day 


MAKE LOVE TO ME (4) 

OH, MY PAPA (10) ...... 

THAT’S AMORE (13) 

TILL WE TWO ARE ONE (3) 
STRANGER IN PARADISE (4) 
CHANGING PARTNERS (13) 
HEART OF MY HEART (€) 






























Jo Stafford . 
Eddie Fisher 
Dean Martin 
Georgie Shaw 
Tony Martin , 










.Columbia 
. Columbia 
. . : Victor 
. . Capitol 
.Decca 
. Victor 












Patti Page 
Four Aces 


FROM THE VINE CAME THE GRAPE (1) ...... ... . . ...... Gaylords 

STRANGER IN PARADISE (5) . . . 


Mercury 

.... Decca 
. .Mercury 








Tony Bennett 




. Columbia 


Second Group 


























CROSS OVER THE BRIDGE 
YOUNG AT HEART . 

STRANGER IN PARADISE 
FROM THE VINE CAME THE GRAPE 
DARKTOWN STRUTTERS BALL 
I GET SO LONELY . . . 

SOMEBODY BAD STOLE DE WEDDING BELL 
LOVIN’ SPREE 
ANSWER ME, MY LOVE 
TILL THEN . . . 

RICOCHET .... 

RAGS TO RICHES f 

JONES BOY . . . 

CHANGING PARTNERS 

























Patti Page , . . 
Frank Sinatra 
Four Aces . . . 
Hilltoppers ... 
Lou Monte 
Four Knights 
Eartha Kitt i 
Eartha Kitt 
Nat (King) 
Hilltoppers 










Mercury 
. . ....... Capitol 

... . , . . . ..Decca 

.......... : . Dot 

. Victor 
* •'* Oflpilol 

i v • « . .... . ..Victor 

• .Victor 
Cole ..... . Capitol 

• • - * ....Dot 

Teresa Brewer .... ... . . . , Coral 

Tony Bennett ........ Columbia 

Mills Bros, . . . ..... ...... Decca 






, Kay StaH ........... .\ Capitol 

t Figures in parentheses indicate number of weeks song has been in the Top 10] 

I 


the oldie, "Just One More Chance ” 
with a neatly modulated vocal. 
Flip Is a routine' Latin tune with 
some comedy mambo grunts and 
an okay lyric, 

Sarah Vaughan: "Come Along 
With Me’VTt’s Easy to Remember” 
(Mercury). In "Come Along With 
Me," Sarah Vaughan has a tune 
with solid potential and she gives 
it a commercial interpretation with 
only a couple of her typical bent 
notes. Miss Vaughan is in her best 
stylized form oh the standard, "It’s 
\Easy To Remember.” Perhaps one 
reason that Miss Vaughan has 
failed to come up with a hit re- 
cently is that she is bucking the 
trend to complete simplicity in 
vocal projection. 

Jerry Wallace: "Gee, But I Hate 
To Go Home A16ne"-"That’s What 
A Woman Can Do" (Allied). Jerry 
Wallace is promising vocalist with 
jumping baritone pipes. He works 
naturally with a good rhythmic 
beat on "Home Alone," a tune with 
some chances. Flip is a slower- 
tempoed ballad that Wallace de- 
livers with a bluesy quality that’s 
a mixture of Nat Cole and Johnnie 
Ray. 

Gene Klavan: "O, Mein Papa’’- 
"Ricochet" (Columbia). "O Mein 
Papa" has been a hit in a straight 
version by Eddie Fisher for a cou- 
ple of .months dnd now must sub- 
mit to .the inevitable parodies. The 
publishers, Shapiro - Bernstein, 
don’t like Gene Kla van's version, 
regarding it as "bad taste." Klavan, 
WNEW, N. Y., disk jockey, pours 
on the sauerkraut . a bit heavily 
and gives a veddy British workover 
to "Ricochet." Homer & Jethro 
give "Papa" a comball parody un- 
der the title of "O Mine Pappy" 
and their humor is right out of the 
cider jug. Their parody of '‘Chang- 
ing Partners" in "Swapping Part- 
ners" is more suitable to their 
country gag style. 

Hadda Brooks: "If You Love 
Me -"Trust In Me" (Okeh), Hadda 
Brooks is a polished song stylist 
but she doesn’t get much .chance 
to sing on "If You Love Me." For 
some reason, she does thisi lyric 
mostly as a recitation. It’s an off- 
beat approach that could pay off 
on this fine ijumber. On the flip, 
Miss Brooks does get around to 
singing and once again she displays 
that fine jazz quality that has made 
her fave among the aficionados. 

^ Tommy Dorsey Orch with Jimmy 
Dorsey: "My Friend the Ghost”- 
Make Love to Me" (Bell). The 
Dorsey Bros, have a catchy novelty 
. in "Ghost." Orch gives it a 
rhythmic, danceable beat and Gor- 
don Polk belts out the elite lyric in 
top style. Rates spinning time. 
Reverse showcases the Dorsey 
dance tempo to good effect while 
Polk gets across a lilting vocal. 

Album Review 

Pat Nothrop-Tony Burrello: "I 
Love New York" (Riverside). Riv- 
erside Records, an indie Chicago 
label, has packaged a valentine to 
New York with songstress Pat 
NothrOp, pianist Tony Burrello and 
love songs to Gotham by such 
songsmith stalwarts as Cole Porter, 
George & Ira Gershwin* Richard 
Rodgers & Lorenz Hart, A1 Dubin 
& Harry Warren, and Vernon Duke 
heading the pack. It’s an attractive 
blending in all departments with 
plenty of. nostalgia for those who 
’ike to rehear such evergreens as 
‘Manhattan,” "42d Street," "I Hap- 
pen to Like New York" and the 
ike. 


Indie Signs Vocal Combo 

The indie Rainbow Records has 
agged the Variety Boys, vocal 
combo, to a three-year pact. 

Diskery headquarters in Phila- 
delphia. 



$ 1 , 950,000 

With 106,000 

Keeping' an even keel for the 
last couple of years, the Music 
Performance Trust Fund allocated 
$1,800,000 to the relief of unem- 
ployed musicians last year from 
royalties collected from the disk 
industry. Total is par for the 1952 
figures, indicating that the disk biz 
gross was the same for the two 
years at the "about the $200,000,000 
. retail mark. 

In addition, Samuel R. Rosen- 
baum; the Fund's trustee, allocated 
$150,000 from the MPTF No. 2, 
created by tv film producers, be- 
tween June, 1952, and July, 1953, 
with another $300,000 from the 
same fund being distributed from 
July of last year to June this year. 
Under agreement with both indus- 
tries, the royalties from disks and 
tv are accounted for separately, but 

AFM Disk Licensees 

Over 1,500 disk- companies 
were licensees of the Ameri- . 
can Federation of Musicians at 
the end of last year, but of this 
total, only about 250 com- 
panies are going concerns. 
The rest of the labels reported 
no sales for the year in their 
statements to the Music Per- 
formance Trust Fund, which 
collects a .1% royalty on each 
disk sold. • 

Last year, the AFM canr 
celled, labor agreements with 
44 disk companies and nine out 
of the 153 transcription com- 
panies, because they defaulted 
on their payments to the 
■MPTF. 

the allocations for cuff o concerts 
are made out of the joint sum. 
Rosenbaum estimates that some 
$900,000 will be distributed in the 
first half of this year from disk 
royalties; augmented by $236,000 
from the -tv fund for the same 
period. 

5,929 Projects 

During last half of last year, the 
Fund sponsored" 5,929 ; projects 
which provided 106,000 job dates 
for musicians in 10,975 different 
performances. That compares with 
70,800 dates during the 'first half 
of last year and 101,000 dates dur- 
ing the last half of 1952. 

Total operating expenses of the 
Fund during last year totalled 
slightly over $110,000, Which was 
$9,000 less than the expenses were 
in 1952. Under both Funds' setup, 
the. coin must be spent during the 
year it was collected, hence the 
Fund has no carryover surpluses, 
The job projects are suggested by 
the heads of various American Fed- 
eration of Musicians* locals and the 
MPTF provides the money for the 
musicians. 

In a breakdown of the fund's 
operation in the Los Angeles area, 
Rosenbaum’s report detailed how 
the coin from the disk and tv in-v 
dustries. contributed to the cul- 
tural life of the city via its spon- 
sorship of concerts in parks, vet- 
erans hospitals, charitable institu- 
tions, etc. Total expenditure for 
L.A. by the Fund last year amount- 
ed to $85,000. 




Dick LaSalle’s Orch 



Dick La Salle orch will play 
with Hildegarde & Johnny John- 
ston for two weeks when the duo 
opens at the Hotel Statler, Detroit, 
March . 15. La Salle began a stand 
there Feb. 1. 

Orch has . been playing the mid- 
west hotel circuit (Palmer House, 
Chicago, and Sehroeder Hotel, 
Milwaukee), swinging east after the 
Detroit date for a gig at thef Hotel 
Statler, Buffalo. La Salle, who had 
been dishing out his dance music 
sans vocals for some time, recently 
added a glee club and vocal quar- 
tet to his outfit. 


SPA Accountant Eyeing; 
Coast Publishers’ Books 

Spreading its audit system from 
toast to coast. Songwriters Pro- 
tective Assn, has sent its account- 
ant, Dave Blau, to Hollywood to 
’heck publishers’ books there. 
Over the past couple : of months, 
SPA has beep conducting exten- 
sive audits among publishers, for 
payments of royalties to writers 
>n lyric folios. 

Blau will be on the Coast for 
wo weeks. 


Carlton on Road Again 
For RCA Disk Reactions 

Joe Carlton, RCA Victor pop 
artists & repertoire chief, has been 
hitting the roa^ for r the past . Week 
visiting disk jockeys and Victor 
distributors around the. eastern 
seaboard to plug the company’s 
latest releases. 

■ Carlton has been making such 
trips regularly to get a grass roots 
reaction on the current disk pic- 
ture. 



..Gene Becker, recently appointed 
director of special pop repertory 
for Columbia Records, planed to 
the Coast' last. Week for some re- 
cording sessions. During his three- 
week stay he’ll cut the Dan Terry 
band. • 

Terry is one of the trio of new 
bands Which Columbia is currently 
building, the others being Larry 
Elgart and Pete Rugolo. 


Best British Sheet Seilers 

(Week ending Feb. 13) 

London, Feb. J6. 

Oh My Papa Maurice 

Answer Me Bourne 

Rags to Riches. , . . .Chappell 
Swedish Rhapsody ..Connelly 
Tennessee Walk. . . F. D. & H. 
If You Love Me. .World Wide 
That’s Amore. ... . . . .Victoria 

ChmtTLucky Seven. .Robbins 

Ebb Tide .....Robbins 

Blowing Wild Harms-Connelly 
I See the Moon. . . . . .Feldman 
Don t Laugh At Me. . . . . .Toff 

Second 12 

Here- to Eternity . . . . . . Dash 

Ricochet . ... . . . . . . . . Victoria 

Changing Partners . • . . Mellin 
Heart Belongs to You . Kassner 
Golden Tango , . . . . . . .Wright 

Istanbul , Aberbach 

The Creep.. ; .Robbins 
Poppa Piccolino .. — Sterling 
The Book ... ...... .Kassner 

Chicka Boom.. ... Dash 

Don’t Ever Leave Me . Bluebird 
Big Ben ...... . . . Box & Cox 


LA. Locals Up in Air After New 
AFM-Web Pact: 



Decca Inks Acquaviva 
On Instrumental Sides 

Tony Acquaviva, Who has been 
doubling as a musical director and 
personal manager for songstress 
Jorii James, has been inked by 
Decca Records for instrumental 
sides. 

Acquaviva formerly was in 
M-G-M Records’ stable of macstros. 


Big 3 Gets Copyright ' 

To Joni’s M-G-M ‘Love’ 

The Big Three has taken over 
the copyright on the new Joni 
James M-G-M number, “Am I In 
Love,” which was originally with 
Tanglewood Music. Latter firm is 
owned by Miss James and her 
manager, Tony Acquaviva, 

Miller Music, of the Big Three, 
is giving the tune a top plug treat- 
ment,.- 


LIL ARMSTRONG IN N Y. 
BOW AT CHILDS’ EATERY 

Lit Hardin Armstrong, one of 
the top femme personalities in the 
jazz field and leader of an orch 
back in the ’20s, will make her 
first appearance in New York in 
over 10 years at Childs Paramount 
Restaurant, N. Y„ Sunday (28). 
The pianist, former wife of Louis 
Armstrong, has just returned from 
a 16-month tour of Europe. 

Miss Armstrong Will play an 
afternoon concert at Childs with 
an all-star group. Conrad Janis’ 
crew is a regular at this spot. 


♦ Leaving a trail of bitterness In 
the ranks of N. Y, . Local 802, 
James C. Pctrillo, American Fed- 
eration of Musicians p ». exy, 
wrapped up a new agreement with 
the major networks last Week 
without putting up a fight for 
more live musicians. New deal With 
NBC,; CBS arid ABC, . covering ra- 
dio and tv, runs for five years And 
boosts scales 10%: the first three 
years with another 10% hike the 
last two. Negotiations with the Mu- 
tual net will be conducted sepa- 
rately. ... ■ . •' 

In addition to the scale hike, 
Petrillo also won maintenance of 
present staff quotas at the net- 
works. The major t nets will con- 
tinue to employ 60 men apiece at 
weekly scales of $200 per man as 


RETAIL DISK BEST SELLEHS 


PSxiEfr- 


Survey cf retail disk best 
tellers based on reports ob- 
tained from leading stores in 
13 cities and showing com', 
parative sales rating for this 
and last week. 


National 
Rating 
This Last 
wk. wk. 


Artist, Label, Title 


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8 


EDDIE FISHER (Victor) 
“Oh, My Papa” . . : 


9 1 


7 10 


90 


DORIS DAY (Columbia) 
“Secret Love”..;....... 


5 5 3 10 


DEAN MARTIN (Capitol) 

“That’s Amore'’......... 5 


8 


_82 

62 


TONY BENNETT (Columbia) 
“Stranger in Paradise” . . . 3 


• • 


5 .. 


9 


6 


JO STAFFORD (Columbia) 
6 “Make Love To Me”. 


9 2 


10 


6 


PATTI PAGE (Mercury) 
“Changing Partners” . . , . 


8 6 


8 


FRANK SINATRA (Capitol) 
15 “Young at Heart” 


8 6 6 


2 .. . 


6 


9 


GAYLORDS (Mercury) 
8A 13 “Vine Came the Grape”. 


8 . . 10 fl 8 3 


FOUR KNIGHTS (Capitol) 
8B 7 “I Get So Lonely”. ..... 


. . 10 4 


GEORGIE SHAW (Decca) 
10 8 “Till We Two Are One” . . 


4 10 9 . 


9 


11 10 


LOU MONTE (Victor) 
“Darktown Strutters Ball”, 


12 15 


FOUR ACES (Decca) 
“Heart of My Heart” . 


8 .. 


13 


NAT (KING) COLE (Capitol) 
“Answer Me, My Love” ..... 


9 


5 


14 A 11 


TERESA BREWER (Coral) 
“Ricochet” . 


6 


10 


6 


14B 19 


TERESA BREWER (Coral) 
“Bell Bottom Blues” 


16 


HILLTOPPERS (Dot) 
“Till Then”. . . 


6 


10 


Ji9 

40 

_37 

_36 

_24 

_24 

M 

21 

20 

_17 

J5 

15 

14 


TONY MARTIN (Victor) 
17 9 “Stranger in Paradise” . . 


PATTI PAGE (Mercury) 
18A .. “Cross Over the Bridge” . 


10 


11 


8 


10 


FOUR ACES (Decca) 
18B 13 “Stranger In Paradise” . 


ISC 17 


RON GAYLORD (Mercury) 
“Cuddle Me” . , 


10 


10 


TONY BENNETT (Columbia) 
21 18 “Rags to Riches”. . 


9 


22 


F. CHACKSFIELD (London) 
“Ebb Tide”. . ..... . 


# • 


6 


HILLTOPPERS (Dot) 

23 20 “Vine Came the Grape”. 


«. • #4 


9 8 


24 A 


JOSE FERRER (Columbia) 
“Woman” 


10 


EARTHA KITT (Victor) 
24B 12 “Lovin’ Spree” . . 

•• ♦ • • ♦ 

. . .. .. 


: : — 

9 9 4 

FIVE TOP 

ALBUMS 

1 

THAT BAD EARTHA 

Eortlio Kilt 

Victor 

LPM 3187 

2 

KISMET 

Broadway Cost 

Columbia 

ML 4850 

9 

GLENN MILLER 
STORY 

Rim Soundtrack 

Decca 

DL 5519 

4 

MUSIC FOR 
LOVERS ONLY 

Jackio GUatan ; 

Capitol 

8352 

• 5 , 

songs for 

YOUNG LOVERS 

Frank Sinatra 
Capitol 

H 488 


SarnofF Vs. Petrillo 

Agreement between : the 
AFM and the webs on a new 
pact Last Week followed imme- 
diately on a two-and-a-half 
hour conference between RCA 
board chairman David Sarrioff 
arid AFM prexy James C. Pc^- 
trillo. It’s understood that Sar- 
rioff warned Petrillo that union 
could not tell him how to run 
his business, grid that the Fed- 
. eration would face a tough 
fight if It persisted in its de- 
mand for live music for live 
shows. 

Petrillo asked the heads of 
14 ’locals how they wanted to 
proceed in the negotiations. 
Only two locals, New York and 
Los Angeles, voted to strike 
if necessary. The other 12 
voted to sign the agreement. 

against the old $182 .rate; The nets 
originally proposed dropping of all 
quotas but compromised on this 
issue when the AFM withdrew a 
demhnd for live music for all live 
shows. 

Petrillo ’s settlement left the 
leadership of both the NeW York 
and Los Angeles locals up in the 
air. Both of these locals' promised 
an allout fight for more live music 
and were counting on Petrfllo’s 
support on this demand. The AFM 
chief, however, dropped this hot 
potato as “Impractical” arid 
reached an Agreement with the 
webs after one week of negotia- 
tions. 

802 Weakened? 

Local 802 members feel that Pe- 
trillo has weakened the union’s po- 
sition by permitting the webs to 
continue their practice of taping 
bridge, cue and mood music for 
use on live dramatic show's. A1 Ma- 
nutl, Local 802 prexy, wrote a 
strong letter to the N. Y. Times 
Saturday (20) denouncing the nets 
for this sluff off of live musicians. 
Petrillo, however, had already 
made his settlement with the webs, 
Circumstances around the inew 
pact are identical with those of 
three years ago when the N. Y. 
local voted to strike on their de- 
mand for more live music, hilt Pe- 
trillo intervened then with an 
agreement similar in all details 
to the present one. At the follow- 
ing AFM convention, Petrillo 
then denounced “the aristocracy” 
of union members, referring to 
studio musicians, as being selfish 
arid arrogant. 

Since the main base of Petrillo’s 
support comes from the small lo- 
cals around the country, the AFM 
chief was apparently not willing 
to engage in a long and costly 
fight with the nets over demands 
that predominantly affect the N. Y. 
and L. A. tooters. The hinterland 
locals favor Petrillo because of his. 
work in behalf of the Music Per- 
formance Trust Fund, which pro- 
vides jobs for unemployed tooters 
via cuffo concerts. 




Sammy Kaye is returning to 
New York this week from Miami 
to prep his orch for a series of 
college dates. Initialer is at Wes- 
leyan College, March 6, with a 
series of orie-nighjters following 
before Kaye opens at the Horizon 
Room, Pittsburgh, March 11, for 
a one-week stand. 

Kaye then goes to the Hotel 
Roosevelt, New Orleans, for four 
1 weeks, opening March 25. 












Wednesday, Febrnary 24 . 1954 


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Vedncwhy, February 24, 1954 


MIJSIC 



Scoreboard 


TOP TALENT AND TUNES 

Compiled from Statistical Reports df Distribution 
Encompassing the Three Major Outlets 

Coin Machines Retail Disks Retail Sheet Music 

Qis Published in the Current Issue 

nr S(ll€ * ,trenflth °* th * Artists and Tunes listed hereunder is 
ar ™ f ? d Lm^ThnaoR ,t ^ tiCaX SV ® tem comprising each of the three major sales outlets enw 
^ are u ? orre x lated with data from wider sources, which are exclusive 

th «« findings denote the OVERALL IMPACT d* 

SCOTe % f ' 00 ™** in the case of talent (disks, coin machine*}; 
and three wags in the case of tunes (disks, coin machines, sheet music). 


Tin Pan Alley Cook’s Tour 


Continued from page 42 


POSITIONS 
This Last 
Week Week 

1 3 


TALENT 

ARTIST AND LABEL TIJNE 

DORIS DAY (Columbia) . Secret Love 

EDDIE PISIIER (Victor).......,.. |?, h ' M >’ Pa P a 

/ Many Times 

JO STAFFORD (Columbia) Make Love To Me 

DEAN MARTIN (Capitol) ..... ....... That’s Amore 

• ■ . < > : * > 


TONY BENNETT (Columbia) . 
PATTI PAGE (Mercury) . .. . 
GEORGIE SHAW (Decca) 
FOUR ACES (Decca) ........ 

GAYLORDS (Mercury) 
FRANK SINATRA ^Capitol) . 








( Strati tfer T n .Paradise 
) Rags To Riches 

. (Changing Partners 

) Cross Over The Bridge 

Till We Two Are One 

: (Stranger In Paradise 
* ' ) Heart Of Mv Heart 

...... Vine Came The Grape 

. , . . . . Young At Heart 


POSITIONS . 

This Last 

Week Week TUNE 


TUNES 

(•ASCAP. fBMI) 

TUNE . . PUBI.ISHF.R 

.•SECRET- LOVE Remick 

*OH, MY PAPA. Shapiro-B 

•STRANGER IN PARADISE Fraiik 

•THAT’S AMORE ; " Paramount 

(-CHANGING PARTNERS p or gie 

•MAKE LOVE TO ME ’ Melrose 

•FROM THE VINE CAME THE GRAPE Randy-S 

•HEART OF MY HEART , ^ Robbins 

•TILL WE TWO ARE ONE ........ Shapiro-B 

i YOUNG AT HEART . ...... .Sunbeam 


HETAH. SHEET BEST SELLERS 


— — ISahiety — — - 

Survey of retail sheet music 
best sellers based on reports 
obtained from leading stores in 
13 cities and showing com- 
parative sales rating for this 
and last week . 

* ASCAP t BMI 


National 

Ratine 

This Last 

wk. wk. 


Title and Publisher 


<5 

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1 4 I 


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1 1 . ^Stranger in Paradise (Frank) , 2 

2 2 *014 My Papa (Shapiro-B). ... 4 

3 4 ^Secret Love (Remick) .... , ; 3 

J * 3 tChanging Partners (Porgie) . ' 1 

5 5 ♦ThaUs Amore (Paramount) . . 8 

6 ~ 6 »Heart of My Heart (Robbins). 5 

11 Mine Came Grape (Randy-S). 

. 8 8 *TiH Two Are One (Shapiro-B) 6 

.9 15 f Young at Heart (Sunbeam). , 7 

_*Q 11 *Hfake Love To Me (Melrose). V. 

11 7 *Ebb Tide (Robbins).. ■. 

12 9 tRicocbet (Sheldon) ... . . . . . . 

13 ... »TiU Then (Pickwick)...-... 10 

IV • , * Answer Me, Love (Bourne) . . ♦ . 

15 10 *Racs to Riches (Saunders) . . 


8 3 10 

it 8 ..V 

.. 5 5 

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7 10 4 


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. 10 9 


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5 3 110 

1 2 105 

3 6 102 

2 I 83 

4 4 65 

6 5 60 

■ 31 

10 10 2 9 

. . . . 22 
.. ... 20 
9 18 


I monologs on Coral (being a Uni- 
versal flimsier, naturally Milton 
Rackmil segued him to the Decca- 
Coral family), but the jui-y is still 
out with the rotund con\edian, as it 
is with “Deacon” Andy Griffith’s 
first four sides for Capitol, “Foot- 
ball” and “Romeo & Juliet.” Mil- 
ton Berle couldn’t click monblog- 
irig on wax, even at his height as 
“Mr. Television,” and Wally Cox’s 
try last year was an equal missout 
(both Victor), despite the indus- 
try’s tall memory of how many 
millions Moran & Mack (“The Two 
Black Crows”) once sold on plat- 
ters. • 

Disk Showmanship 
The disk showmanship continues 
apace, as it has in its signally sky- 
rocketing postwar years. There is 
much thought and ingenuity put 
into almost every major, recording 
although, for all the enterprise, 
there will crop up mis judgments 
because of the constant struggle to 
strike that public nerve. The net- 
work of' disk jockeys is the daily 
proving ground to determine if 
“it’s gonna break for a hit,” and 
so they try. 

Pee Wee Hunt clicks with a re- 
vival of “O,” so Sammy Kaye is 
trying it with " Y”— and for insur- 
ance backs it with another Italo-in- 
fluenced pop, “Bella Bella Donna 
Mia.” The Axel StordahU (June 
Hutton) could have cut down their 
current “Gee” to “G” and continue 
the souped-up alphabetic bid for 
tlie Hit Parade, and recently there 
was a pop titled 

Fittingly Peggy Lee and Victor 
Young’s Decca disking of “Where 
Can I Go Without You?”, which 
they coauthored, is superior to Vic- 
tor’s Wyoma Winters’ version, 
Which is more hillbilly, despite the 
usually suave Henri Rene musical 
background: Victor Young &. His 
Singing Strings .give but with lush 
instrumental versions of (he 
"Glenn Miller Story” love theme 
(by Henry Mancini) backed by 
“Geraldine,” an original. 

The major labels’ a&r execs, arc 
not Wanting for personal artistic 
achievements, as witness Colum- 
bia’s Mitch Miller and Percy Faith 
mating on “The River” and “Edel- 
ma,” two • instrumentals, wherein 
Miller does the oboe and -English 
horn solos; and Victor’s Henri 
Rene takes to his equally trade- 
marked musette accordion on ‘’Sea- 
shells” and “Madcap,” his current 
instrumental entries. Not to be 
outdone, and in fact registering re- 
soundingly, are Paul Weston^ ver- 
sions of “Autumn in Rome” and 
“Indiscretion,” themes froni the ' 
Italian-made “.Indiscretion of An 
American Wife.” 

The showmanship continues with 
the obvious film-disk hookups; Tfic' 
“Glenn Miller” pic has been given 
muiti-coverages, and Guy Mitch- 
ell's “Red Garters” excerpts, a Col 
disk of the Par pic in which he 
appears. Tony Bennett recourses 
to the upcoming Sigmund Rom- 
berg-Leo Robin legit musical, "The 
Girl In The Pink Tights”; Tommy 
Leonetti on Capitol is reviving the 
Rudof Friml-Irving Caesar stand- 
ard, “And Still I Love you” (good); 
Lcs Baxter had turned in another 
lush coupling on Cap in “Atlantis” 
and "Flirtation Waltz”; and Col 
is giving ; Frank Parker the full 
| treatment with a pop ballad called 
"Parker’s Lament” (Engvick-Wiid- 
er), which might incline to limit 
j it to himself as a "theme” song 1 
( despite its general appeal as a ‘ 
pleasing ballad. „ 

Doris Day (Col) also recourses ' 
j to the new Romberg musical (tunes 
I presumably from the trunk of the : 
j late, great operetta composer). Vic- i 
: tor, having snared The Voices of ’ 
I Waller Schumann is giving him 1 
the full treatment with "Haunted < 
House” (Schumann-Robert Wells). < 
Incidentally, it is notable that i 
there is no copyright on songsmith- 
, ing talent A guy called Cy Cobcn > 
; bids fair to outstrip Roy Acuff and ‘ 
| Hank Williams for his hillbilly- 1 
type of song output. And whoever \ 
! Johnny Richards and Carolyn i 
! Leigh may be, they’ve done, noth- ^ 
ling but give Frank Sinatra 
| "Young-At-Heart” which may pos- ] 
sibly prove to be one of his big- 
. gest hits. (Sunbeam Music, a BMI 
J firm, is the publisher, and they’d 
i be smart to anchor the Richards- ‘ 
i Leigh team). * s 

j And so it goes. Joan Javits, t 
! niece ot New York’s Congressman c 
(Jacob K. Javits, and Phil Springer t 
seem to be suddenly prolific; they c 
gave Earth# Kltt “Lovin’ Spree”, t 
a neo-hillbilly tune, . backed by 
Dave Mann and Boh Hilliard’s ^ r 


• “Somebody Bad Stole De Wedding 
i Bell”, a calypso, on Victor. It’s 

• going to be a tossup which side 
L .will dominate as the "selling” side, 
: both being that good. 

> Miss Kitt is g good example of 
intelligent handling within RCA 
■ Victor’s a&r department and/or 
within herself; Even her "Bad 
; Eartha” album has wisely kept the 
; s.a. aspects at a minimum, with 
result that “C’est Si Bon”, "Santa 

• Baby” and others to date are gen- 
erally pafatable and generally ac- 
ceptable. This is in direct anti- 
thesis to embarrassing dialectic 
takeoffs as above indicated. 

The vet Mann-Hilliard writing 
team is in high again, and so are 
Bobby Melliri and Fritz Relchel, 
and Jack Fulton-Lois Steele in the 
"new writer” category. Even Milton 
Berle, who has more than a couple - 
of good songs to his ASCAP credit, 
lias turned out a good one, "You’re 
All That I Need”, for newcomer 
Charlie Applewhite (Decca). (It’s 
notable how many femmes now 
are songsmithing; was a time When 
Carrie Jacobs-Bond, Mabel Wayne, 
Dolly Morse, Ann Ronell, Sylvia 
Dee, Peggy Lee and Dorothy Fields > 
were the few dominant dirndl 
Berlins). 

To complete the current; platter 
appraisal there is a potent cheese- 
cake quartet in Jane Russell, Con- 
nie Haines, Beryl Davis and Della 
Russell, with their sprightly church 
hymns, both Coral sides being la- 
beled "Make A Joyful Noise. Unto 
The Lord” (proceeds of the platter 
to various religious groups), and 
mimic Mel Blanc does his comedy 
stuff for Capitol. 

Potent Pop Parade 

It's a potent pop parade of new 
potentials, and only a most cursory 
sampling, The orthodox versions- 
are primed for the respectlvejnar- 
kets of established artists, although 
it is now trade-accepted that there’ 
ain’t no such thing. From now-: 
where a nobody can and frequently . 
does outsell the established star.' 
The problem for the latter is to : 
keep pace with the advenlurousi 
upstarts who may sing it in Italian, 
or play it in Braille. But generally 
it’s in good taste. 

The reference above to the r&b; 
(rhythm & blues) plotters— a fancy 
latterday cognoipen for what the 
trade used to call “race” records 
—is something unto itself. There, 
are instances there where the' 
single-entendre in the -lyric!.?) con- 
notations would make Dwight Fiske 
.sound like Elsle^Dinsmorc. But in 
the main; the business which sells 
.platters into the millions, and 
broadcasts them Into . millions of 
homes, is pretty shrewd in its 
judgment, so that whether for 
home or tavern consumption there 
is nothing awry. 


* 

Longhair music, which has made 
rapid strides in the disk field over 
the past five years, is steadily 
growing as staple radio program- 
ming fare. According to a survey 
of some 1,500 radio outlets made 
by Broadcast Music, Inc., stations 
are now using an average of 6.4 
hours of classical music per week. 
That compares with 5.75*hours dur- 
ing 19u3 and less than that in pre- 
vious years. 

A majority of the stations also 
indicated that they plan to use 
more longhair music in (he future, 
while only 50 outlets stated *t,hat 
they would reduce the time alloca- 
tion. Of the 1,500 stations polled, 
onjy 316 said that they did not 
use concert music. 

Increased use of classical music 
is due largely to BMI’s intensive 
"cultural” push on the airlanes. 
BMI issues a concert pin-up sheet 
which lists the availability of new 
recordings and also provides 
scripts to accompany the music. 

New Kitt ‘Faces* Album 
To Be Based on 20th Pic 

RCA Victor is issuing a special ' 
“New Faces” album featuring the 
six tunes Eartha Kitt warbles in 
the 20th-Fox Cinemascope filmusi- 
cjjJ. Victor previously had issued 
the original Broadway cast album 
ol the musical as well as individual 
etchings by Miss Kitt. 

Album is expected to hit the 
market within three , weeks. 


¥ ■ 


Wednesday, February 24, 1954 



Inside Stuff— -Music 


Goast deejays have long been hassling with diskeries over what 
they contend is favoritism shown some ef t’ ;;* confreres w* o have 
special shows, but it remained for A1 Jarvis to do something about it. 
Jarvis took his- beef directly to the record companies, contending tnat 
the practice gave, one deejay an unfair advantage ovrr all others since 
he could -claim hie plays records before his competitors even receive 
them. Jarvis has already gotten assurance from Bobbi Dieterle of 
Cadence that the indie would see to it that all deejays get db'ks at 
the same time and has been advised that RCA Victor will, revise, if 
necessary, its distribution setup to accomplish the same results. Other 
platteries are expected to follow suit ere long to end what has been 
a Coast beef of major proportions. 

The Buddy Morrow orch has been traveling under the Tommy Dor- 
sey banner — on wheels, at least — for the past week. Morrow's band 
truck broke down in Newark last Thursday (18) en route to a date 
in Hanover, Pa. : A series of quick phone calls to Dorsey's manager 
Vince Carbone and bahdboy Tino Barzi had - them hotfooting to 
Greenwich, Conn., where they picked up the Dorsey band truck and 
drove it to the stranded Morrow men in Newark. Morrow has been 
using the borrowed truck to get to his one-nite stands despite the 
"Tommy Dorsey Orchestra” label on the side. The truck goes back to 
the Dorsey garage today (Wed.). ‘ 


Philadelphia singer Georgle Shaw is the latest example of how 
much a disclick can boost a bankroll. Last fall, Shaw was playing in 
Philly clubs for around $300 a week. Currently, as a result of his. 
bestselling ‘‘Till We Two Are One” for Decca Records, Shaw is getting 
$2,000 weekly, with bookings set for the Mocambo in Hollywood and 
other top spots. A1 Gallico, general professional manager with Sha- 
pirb-Bernstein Music, is handling the singer. 


Royalties on Jo Stafford’s current Columbia Records click, ‘‘Make 
Love to Me,” is being dished out to eight writers. Tune originally was 
written as a jazz instrumental, under the monicker of “Tin Roof Blues,” 
by jazzmen Leon Poppolo, Paul Mares; Benny Pollack, George Brumes, 
Mel Stitzel and Walter Melrose. Lyrics were added by Bill Norvas and 
Alan Copeland. E. H. Morris is publishing via its Melrose Music firm. 



ROBERT MAXWELL 

His Music 





DANCE 


MGM 11671 
K 11671 


78 RPM 
45 RPM 


MGM RECORDS 

THE G R f: A T C- 5 T NAME IN ENTERTAINMENT 


7Q1 SEVENTH AVE NEW YORK 36 N Y 




Disk Companies’ Best Sellers 


4M 

CAPITOL 
1. 1 GET SO 


ARTIST 

Four Knights 


2 . 

3. 

4. 

5. 








. .Dean Martin , , 
« • 

.Frank Sinatra ’’ 


LONELY 

I COULDN'T STAY AWAY FROM YOU 
THAT'S AMORE" ......... 

YOU'RE THE RIGHT ONE 
YOUNG AT HEART 
TAKE A CHANCE 
ANSWER ME, MY LOVE 
WHY ■■ . • ... . 

WHAT IT WAS, WAS FOOTBALL (PART I) . . Andy Griffith 
WHAT IT WAS, WAS FOOTBALL (PART II) 




.Nat (King) Core 


. .Tony Bennett J 
. . Jo Stafford 


After a six-year feud songwriters Jule Styne and Sammy Cahn are 
collaborating again. During the separation both Cahn. and Styne were 
working with a flock of different collabbers, Their reunion effort is 
the score for the upcoming 20th-Fox filmusical, ‘‘Three Coins in, a 
Fountain.” 


COLUMBIA 

1. MY HEART WONT SAY GOODBYE 
THERE'LL BE NO TEARDROPS TONIGHT 

2. MAKE LOVE TO ME . . . 

ADI, ADIOS AMIGO 

3. SECRET LOVE : . 

DEADWOOD STAGE 

4. MAN ... i . . . . . ; . ... Rosemary Clooney 

WOMAN v . . . . . . Jose Ferrer 

5. RAGS TO RICHES Tony Bennett 

HERE COMES THAT HEARTACHE AGAIN 




.Doriis Day 


Perry Como is riding with the fastest-selling number in his career 
in his current “Wanted” release for RCA Victor. Victor has already 
shipped over 250,000 to its distribs, representing reorders over the 
initial run. Usually, Como disks have built slowly before breaking 
through for topsellers. 


CORAL 

1. BELL BOTTOM BLUES . . . 

OUR HEARTBREAKING WALTZ 

PINE TREE, PINE OVER ME . Desmond-Barton-McGuire Sis. 
CLING TO ME 

HOLD. ME v ..; . 

SIZE 12 • , ; 

A SALUTE TO GLENN MILLER (Part I) . 

A SALUTE TO GLENN MILLER (PART II) 

THE SHEIK OF ARABY 
UP THE CHIMNEY IN SMOKE 


2 . 


3. 


4. 

5. 


.Teresa Brewer t 


. .Don Cornell 
.. Moderiiaires 
.Buddy Greco 1 




The Charles H. Hansen Music Corp. is basing Its latest music folio 
on the Capitol Records album, “Bozo’s Nursery Songs.” Folio, which 
was arranged for elementary piano by Ada Richter, includes nine 
kiddie songs used in the disking. It’s priced at 75c, 


DK1CA 

1. TILL WE TWO ARE ONE 
HONEYCOMB 

2f. STRANGER IN PARADISE 
HEART OF MY HEART 
4 3. JONES BOY . . 

SHE WAS FIVE AND HE WA&.TEN 

4. Y’ALL COME . 

CHANGING PARTNERS 

5. YOUNG AT HEART 

I GET SO LONELY ' 

LONDON 

1. CRYSTAL BALL 

THE CREEP 

2. IF YOU LOVE ME ... 

C'EST LA VIE 

3. F.*B TIDE 

WALTZING BUGLE BOY 

4. GOLDEN TANGO t 

DANCING PRINCESS 

5. STARLIGHT SERENADE . . 

• FROM HERE TO ETERNITY 






Georgie Shaw 
. Four Aces 
.Mills Bros. 


Faith-Bennett 



Bennett 

package 


Percy Faith and Tony 
are preparing a concert 
for a 30^day swing. They’ll split 
the take 30-50 after expenses 
Tour will be handled by Willard 
Alexander, who reps Faith. (Ben- 
nett is under contract to JVIusic 
Corp. of ’ America.) Although the 
teeoff date has not yet been set 
Alexander currently is setting up’ 
engagements and routing the tour 
Faith expects to carry a 38-piece 
orch with him. This package will 
mark the first of a series of tours 
planned for . Faith. Current plans 
are Faith to hit the concert route 
twice a year with a top vocalist 
sharing the headline spot. 

Columbia Records also will focus 
its promotional guns on the Faith- 
Bennett package since both wax 

for the disk^ry. 

- * - 

Yma Sumac's Cap Disks 
Spark Sellout Concerts; 

.at 


Bing Crosby 

Crosby-Lombardo 

........ : Johnston Bros. 






.Vera Lynn 




• • p t • * •* 


. Frank Chacksfield 
. Frank Chacksfield 


. Stanley Black I 


In the reshuffle of ad agencies which will rep RCA, Grey Advertis- 
ing has taken over the RCA Victor disk division account except for the 
custom records division. Latter department will continue to be han- 
dled by the Ross Roy agency. 




MERCURY 

1. FROM THE VINE CAME THE GRAPE 
STOLEN MOMENTS 

2. CUDDLE ME v. . ......... . 

OH AM I LONELY 

3. CHANGING PARTNERS 

WHERE DID THE SNOWMAN GO? 

4. SOMEBODY STOLE DE WEDDING BELL 
BAUBLES, BANGLES AND BEAD$ 

5. MELANCHOLY ME . . Eddie - Howard 

I WONDER WHAT’S BECOME OF SALLY 


. Gaylords 

.Ronnie Gaylord 

Patti Page 

. #• 

.Georgia Gibbs 


i • » • 


Lew Douglas 


M-G-M 

1. TURN AROUND BOY 

CAESAR'S BOOGIE 

2. THERE'WAS A TIME Tommy Edwards 

WALL OF ICE 

3. YOU BETTER KEEP IT ON YOUR MIND . . .Hank Williams 
LOW DOWN BLUES 

4. YOU'RE MY EVERYTHING ....... 

YOU'RE NEARER 

t 5. POSITIVELY NO DANCING 

HOLD .ME CLOSE 




. Joni James j 
, .Alan Dean 










.Perry Como 
.Lou Monte 


.Ames Bros. 


RCA VICTOR 

1. WANTED .... 

LOOK OUT THE WINDOW 

2. DARKTOWN STRUTTERS BALL 
I KNOW HOW YOU FEEL / 

3. MAN WITH THE BANJO 

MAN, MAN IS FOR THE WOMAN MADE 

4. OH, MY PAPA ...... 

UNTIL YOU'VE SAID GOODBYE 

5. SOMEBODY STOLE DE WEDDING BELL Eartha Kitt 

LOVIN' SPREE 

*♦♦♦»♦♦♦♦♦♦ »♦♦♦»♦ »»♦ ♦ ♦»♦♦ ♦»♦»♦♦♦♦ ♦♦♦♦♦♦»+ 


.Eddie Fisher 


Yma Sumac continued her SRO 
concert pace in her debut showing 
at Carnegie Hall, N. Y., last week 
17 ). The Peruvian warbler scored 
a socko $5,700' at a $3.60 top to an 
overflow crowd. She’s been hit- 
ting high - grosses around the coun- 
try since her trek began Jan. 16 
The advance sales for the rest of 
the tour, which winds March 3, 
make it look like it’ll be the same 
b.o. story. 

Interest in Miss Sumac’s trilling 
technique • has been sparked and 
sustained by her Capitol Records 
albums. 

With her husband, Moises Vivan- 
co, she has put together a colorful 
program of Peruvian song, dance 
and instrumentals. Her forte is 
the long vocal range (five octaves) 
and. she doesn’t spare herself in 
giving the customers what they 
want to hear. 

Vivanco, heading up a 20-piece 
orch, splits tlie spptlight with his 
wife with a flock of his original 
compositions. Some are vivid and 
exciting but he’s on too long. 
Cholita, Kori and Najala, Peruvian 
dancers, complement the vocals 
and instrumentals nicely with their 
spirited terping. Gros. 



Bid at Carnegie 

The mambo, which has been get- 
ting wide showcasing in New York 
due to the growing Spanish popula- 
tion, got a toehold in the concert 
field Saturday (20) night at . Car- 
negie Hall. Latino bash, which 
was in the longhair groove, drew 
an overflow crowd. Billed as “The 
Mambo Concert,” offering was pro- 
duced by Irving Schacht arid fea- 
tured original music composed by 
Gilberto . Valdes, with special ar- 
rangements by Tito Puente. Valdes 
also fronted a 40-piece orch. 

Concentration on plush arrange- 
ments which kept the fiery mambo 
beat almost completely under 
wraps, caused some disgruntlement 
among the seatholders. 

Appearing in the production 
were guitarist Arsenio Rodriques, 
88ers Jose Curbed and M. Joyle 
Brown, terpers Guy Barry & Mari- 
na and Bob Roberts & Rosemarie, 


vocalists Alfred Sadeli Rosa Roche, 
Mercedes Valdes, Macucho, Mirta 
Silva, Antar Daly and Aida Pujol. 
Also on hand were Pupi Campo, 
Nora Morales and “special guest 
artists” Sylvia DeGrasse and Dami 
ron. Art Ford and Bob (Pedro) 
Harris emceed. 

Frantic body movements dis 
played by the dance teams wiere 
among the top applause winners, 
while the frenetic wiggling of Miss 
Silva, a buxom chirp, resulted in 
her having to begoff. Tickethold 
ers appeared to be the usual Sat- 
urday night date crowd and not 
particularly Spanish dominated 
Top price was $4 80. Incidentally 
a 2-city tour of the concert is con 
templated. ' Jess. 


LABE X ON KID KICK; 


Label X, RCA Victor’s new 
quasi-indie label stibsid, is off'on 
a__iiddie kick with the inking of 
li-year-old Frankie Avalon. Ava- 
lon is a trumpter who has ap- 
peared on several video shows. 

His first release for X is “The 
Book” and “trumpet Sorrento,” 
“The Book” is a British religioso 
import launched a couple of Weeks . 
ago by Dick Lee and Ray Martin's 
orch for the indie Essex label. 


Jo.\DO.\ 

RECORDS 



“The finest sound on record” 


SONG WRITERS 

NeW publishing company dutiret orig- 
inal numbtri—kubmit. lyrics and l*«l 

shoots. 

FORD PUBLISHING CO. 

Room 1020 

30 N. LaSaHo S». Chicago 2, III. 






America's Fastest 
^ Selling -^Records! 





48 


MUSIC 


Wednesday, February 24, X 954 



New York 

M-G-M Records’ distributors Jim 
Sanborn (Cleveland) and Herman 
Gimbel (Baltimore) in town for 
sales huddles .• . . Dick Linlce, Capi- 
tol Records promotion manager, in. 
Miami for a week for Andy Grif- 
fith’s stint at the Olympia Theatre 
there . . . Songstress Marie Russ*'* 1 
inked to the new Brand Records 
label . . The VibraNotes, jm 
trio, paxted for personal manage- 
ment by Bernard Tansky ... Bob 
Stewart, M-G-M Records crooner, 

, tapped for a 13- week radio-tv 
series by WLW, Cleveland . 
Tunesmith Norman Gimbel pro- 
filed in the March 10 issue of 
People Today mag. 

Chicago 

Trianon ballroom celebrating its 
32nd anni this week . . . Beryl 
Booker Trio set to open Stream- 
liner March 9 for three weeks, 
with Mil-Con-Bo trio following for 
three beginning March 30 . , ..Don 
McGrane held over at Radisson 
Hotel, Minneapolis . . Dave Bru- 

beck currently playing midwest 
college circuit in one-night con- 
certs at Purdue, Wisconsin. Ober- 
lin, and Cincinnati University . . . 
Johnny Hamlin pegged for Terrace 
in East St. Louis March 8 for 
fortnight. . . Chuck Foster bowing 
in at Peabody Hotel, Memphis, 
March 8 for month engagement. 


London 

Ted Heath has an offer to fly 
his whole ork to South Africa to 
take part in the Durban Centenary 
Celebrations in the spring. Due to 
play a tv show in Belgium on 
March 31, the Heath date has been 
cancelled through the opposition 
of the Belgian ^Musicians’ Union 
and Ministry of. Labor . . . Yma 
Sumac will tour Britain commenc- 
ing April 25. Harold Fielding is 
presenting her at 20 concerts 
around the country . ; . . British 
singer David Hughes returned from 
the States, on Friday (19) to embark 
immediately in variety again at 
Nottingham Empire on Monday 
(22). While in the States he re- 
corded a d,uet with Jo Stafford . . 
Singer Carmel Quinn to the U.S. to 


Greot New Release I 

WOODY 

HERMAN 

and 

The New Third Herd 


LOVE S A DOG 


MARS RECORDS. INC 

1151 Wttl 41th St.. Niw York 34,. N. Y.l 


SADIE 

THOMPSON’S 

SONG 



V 


From tho 
Columbia 
Technicolor 
Picture 

MISS SADIE 
THOMPSON? 



settle there permanently as a sing- 
er of Irish material , * . The dispute 
between Dublin promoter James 
Carr and the Musicians' Union has 
finished amicably. The MU has 
given its okay for British orqh Ken 
lVi(ackintosh, Stanley Black and 
Freddy Randall to fulfill their dates 
for Carr and the promoter has, in 
return, agreed to discontinue the 
legal proceedings he has taken 
against MU officials . . . Ella Fitz- 
gerald and Oscar Peterson Trio in 
line for British dates if Official okay 
is given, 

Pittsburgh 

Lionel Hampton orchi booked 
into Vogue Terrace week of April 
5 . . . Charge Splvak plays for 
annual Mardi Gras of New Ken- 
sington Junior Women’s Club at 
William P«m Tavern on Friday 
(26) . . . Howard Webb, organist, in 
his fifth month at the Sheffield 
Towers in Aliquippa . . Charlie 

Klugr, a musician at KDKA during 
the 20 years that station had a staff 
band, is presently a producer there 
and handling a number of record 
shows .... . Bill DiNardo replaced 
A1 DeRosa on sax with the Piccolo 
Pete band at Castle Inn V Four 
Lads come back to the Copa week 
of March 8 . 


Omaha 

Tex Beneke and Russ Carlyle, 
crews slated to follow pianist Vir- 
ginia Mathews at Scottsbluff’s 
Mallard Club on March 25 and 
April 22, respectively , . . -Rose 
Hampton; concert soprano, joining 
Drake’s University of Fine Artists 
March 8-20 as “artist in residence’’ 
. . . Frankie Yankovic slated Wed- 
nesday (24) for King’s, Norfolk, 
Neb. 


Scotland 

Sid Phillips’ orcb in for two- 
weeks 1 ^ stanza at Green’s Play- 
house, Glasgow . , . Frankie 
Vaughan, young English crooner, 
set for return date at Empire, 
Glasgow, in June ... Billy Eck- 
stlne likely to top vaude at both 
Edinburgh and Glasgow Ertipire 
Theatres in June . . Eddie. Cal- 

vert’s “O Mein Papa’’ holding the 
top slotting among Top IQ tunes 
here . . . Robert Wilson set. for 
summer season at Portrush, North- 
ern Ireland. 


Reefer-Happy 

Continued from page 1 


tors. The latter comprise the su- 
per-hip school of young jazzmen 
to whom “straight" jazzmen, even 
in the cool school, are squares. 

While the locals of the Ameri- 
can Federation of Musicians have 
regulations on their books against 
drug addicts, these are rarely en- 
forced. A proposal has been made 
to put an absolute ban on addicts 
by withdrawal of their union 
books and thus threatening them 
with a loss of income. It’s believed, 
however, that if police action is 
not effective, AFM action would 
be even less so. 

Last; week’s arrest of Stan Getz 
in Los Angeles on a narcotics rap 
was the latest in a recent series 
of such incidents. Two other bril- 
liant young jazzmen, Gerry Mulli- 
gan and Chet Baker, both Coast 
performers, were also involved in 
narcotics charges several fnonths 
ago. Getz, incidentally, is regarded 
as among the foremost jazz sax 
players and, in Europe, is ranked 
on a level with Louis Armstrong 
and other such greats. 


TV DELIGHT- FIVE FEET OF DYNAMITE 

MAUREEN CANNON 

Currently 

CASINO ROYAL. Wash., D. C. 

Then 

TOWN CASINO. Buffalo 
COPA CLUB, Pittsburgh 

TV-DUQUESNE BEER SHOW 


" ' ! ■ ■ R ■ ■ ■ ■ R ■ I | | l 

Exclusive Management 

ASSOCIATED BOOKING CORPORATION 

JOE GLASER, Pres. 

New York i. Chicago I Hollywood 1 

J - * v “ Pi 9 ’ 4600 I 203 No. Wabash | 8619 Sun se r Blvd. 1 



The top 30 songs of week (more in ease of ties), hosed on 
copyrighted Audience Coverage index & Audience Trend Index . 
Published * by Office of Research, Inc., Dr. John Gray Peatman, 
Director, 'alphabetically listed. 

Survey Week of February 12-18, 1954 

A Djme And A Dollar— t“Red Garters’’ ......... Famous 

Answer Me My Love ..... . ... . . ... ... . . Bourne 

Baubles Bangles And Beads— *“Kismet" ........ . .Frank 

Bell Bottom Blues . . .\ . ... . . .... . . ... . . ... Shapiro-B 

Bimbo • ....... Fairway 

Changing Partners . . . . . t... ; ....... . . Porgie 

Creep' Bdiller . 

Darktbwn Strutters' Ball \ .... . . ...... Feist 

. Heart Of My . Heart ; . , . , . . . . . . , . . «,i • ... • • , ■ . • ^ Robbins 

I Love Paris— +“Cab-Can" ....... , ........ .... . ..» « . . Chappell • 

Jones Boy .Pincus ■ 

Make Love To Me . . . . . . . ...... , . . . . . . ..... Melrose 

Marie * . ■. . . ... . • . Berlin ■■ ■ 

No Other Love— *“Me And Juliet’’ . . ...... . . . . . . . Williamson 

Oh My Papa : . . .. . . ... .......... ...... .. . Shapiro-B 

Pass The Jam .Sam' ............ .. . . • . « . ... » . . . ». . Chappell- 

Pine Tree Pine Over Me . . ...Miller 

Ricochet i . Sheldon. 

Secret Love — t “Calamity Jane’’ .Remick 

She Was . Five And He Was Ten . . .......... ... Roxbury 

Somebody Bad Stole De Wedding Bell ...... , ..... Morris 

Stranger In Paradise— *“Kismet" .............. . . Frank 

That's Amore— rt“The Caddy" . . ..... . . . Paramount 

That’s What A Rainy Day Is For— t“Easy To Love" . Robbins 

Till We Two Are One . . ... .... Shapiro-B V 

Till Then . ................ . . ........ . . . . . . . , Pickwick 

Wanted . . x . .-IV it mark 

Woman (Man) . Studio 

Y’ All Come .... Starrite 

You Alone . ,v. . . . . . . . . Roncom 

Young At Heart Sunbeam 


Second Group 

... .... .. ....... . Marks 

. . . i .... Valando 

Advanced 

.Spier 

Robbins 






Breeze And I- .... , 

Cross Oyer The Bridge 
Don't Forget To Write . 

Down By The Riverside 
Ebb Tide . . . . . 

From The Vine Came The Grape Randy-S 

Granada ............. . ..... ............... . .Southern 

Hold Me . . . . * . . Robbins 

I Can’t Believe That You’re In Love With Me .....Mills 

I Get So Lonely . Melrose 

I Really Don’t Want To Know . . . . . . . ..... ... , . H & R 

I Speak To The Stars Witmark 

Lost In Loveliness Chappell 

Melancholy Me , \ Sheldon 

My Restless Lover ........ Chappell 

Old Shoes And A Bag Of Rice BVC 

Our Heartbreaking Waltz Village 

Poppa Pidcolino Chappell 

Rags To Riches . Saunders 

Tennessee Whistling Man Studio 

Turn Around Boy . Brandom 

You’re My Everything Harms 


Top 20 Songs on TV 

(More In Case of Ties) 


And This Is My Beloved— *“Kismet" Frank 

Bell Bottom Blues . Shapiro-B 

Changing Partners ; Porgie 

Darktown Strutters’ Ball * v Feist 

Ebb Tide ."Robbins 

Granada Southern 

Heart Of My Heart . Robbins 

Look Out The Window Paxton 

Man Mam Is For The Woman Made Garland 

Melancholy Me Sheldon 

Oh My Papa Shapiro-B ~ 

Ricochet Sheldon 

Ridin’ To Tennessee Johnstone-M 

Secret Love Remick 

Sobbin’ Women Robbins 

Soft Squeeze Erwin-H 

Somebody Bad Stole De Wedding Bell Morris 

Stranger In Paradise ...v ....Frank 

That’s Amore Paramount 

Woman (Man) Studio 

Young At Heart Sunbeam 


t Filmusical. 


Legit musical. 


Tape Slash 

Continued from page 41 


Although still in its formulative 
stages the tape industry is faced 
With the speed standardization 
problem that hit the disk industry 
a few years back. 

In line with the growth of the 
tape recording field, some radio- 
tv manufacturers may incorporate 
tape recording facilities in console 
models, It’s also understood some 
manufacturers are considering put- 
ting out machines solely for play^ 
back purposes. 

An increase in . sales and growth 
of the company’s operations have 
cued a revamp of the A-V opera- 
tion. Ray Rand has been appointed 
sales manager for the org. He also 
continues as sales manager of 
Audio & Video Products Co., which, 
like A-V Tape Libraries, is a divi- 
sion of Audio & Video Products 
Corp. Johh Beaumont has been 
promoted to the newly created post 
of production manager at . Ar V , 
Tapes. Beaumont will be in charge ' 
of selecting new material, pro- 
gramming and overall production 
for A-V Tapes and Background 
Music division. 


Dacca 


Continued from page 4 i 


Neal Jones To Columbia 

Dallas, Feb; 23. 

Neal Jones, country comic, has 
joined the ranks of WFAA “Sat- 
urday Nite Shindig" performers 
who have been signed to a record- 
ing contract since the show orig- 
inated. 

Jones was signed by Columbia 
Records and cut his first record 
last week. 


a management of his o\vn choos- 
ing." 

• While Qecca once; had the pres- 
tige of ;being the No. 1 company i n 
the industry, Lloyd asserted that 
‘.‘after four years . during which 
Mr. Rackmil has been its presi- 
dent, Decca has, as I see it 
dropped to last place among the 
major record companies." 

At the same time, Lloyd de- 
clared “Rackmil obtained frequent 
salary increased for himself. Ex- 
clusive: of bonuses, from a salary 
of $39,750, Mr, Rackmil leaped to 
$54,392 in 1949, then to $85,000 in 
i950 and 1951— and finally to his 
present annual scale of $122,500 
plus $18,500 for unaccounted ex- 
penses, an aggregate minimum 
stipend upwards of $140,000 per 
year to be paid out by our com- 
pany and its new affiliate, Univer- 
sal Pictures Co., until his contract 
expires in 1959,’’ Lloyd also con- 
centrated some of his fire on th® 
present Decca-Universal setup un- 
der which Rackmil is . permitted to 
devote one-third of his time to the 
diskery’s operations. 

In making his bid for stock- 
holder support, Lloyd said that 
Rackmil and his family owned 25,- 
173 shares of Decca stock while all 
other officers aiid directors, other 
than Rackmil and .himself , owned 
2,313 shares or approximately only 
a 2% interest in the company. 
Lloyd disclosed that he and his 
family own about 18,500 shares of 
Decca stock. 

Lloyd ; asked Decca stockholders 
to indicate whether or not they 
would support him in any future 
action against. Rackmil. “Before I 
expend any more of my time and 
money," he said, “all I want, is to 
know that I have the endorsement^ 
of our stockholders." . 

Lloyd wound up his stockhold- 
ers letter with, “Do hot be misled 
by the annual earnings report for 
the year 1953 . . . I believe Mr. 
Rackmil will report earnings for 
the year in excess of $1,000,000. 
But don’t be deceived by such fig- 
ures — they represent mainly divi- 
dends and earnings derived from 
Universal Pictures and not from 
our own company, Decca Records.” 


High On All Li sis! 


7TTTT 


PINE 3 
OVER ME 

MILLER MUSIC CORPORATION 


DON’T ASK 
ME WHY 

recorded by 

EILEEN BARTON 

CORAL #61109 
HARMS. Inc. 




BMI ‘w, up' hi, 

AT HEART 



RECORDS 


MANX SINATRA . * . 

•m c, os . Muy 

Published by 

sunbeam Music coup. 






Wednesday, February 24, 1954 




ijix ■:■ ■■■': . s • >■•' v "'- 


g-'.'j'fi , 

r> ;^ v - ■ 






MARKS 


ANNIVERSARY 


7 


®s5®' 


V/ 


y 





AMAPOLA 
ANDALUCIA 
BALLIN’ THE JACK 
BA-TU-CA-DA 

BLUES MY NAUGHTY SWEETIE 
GIVES TO ME 
THE BREEZE AND I 


DOWN SOUTH 
EL RANCHO GRANDE 
FRASQUITA SERENADE 
GLOW-WORM 
HONEYMOON 

HOT TIME IN THE OLD TOWN 
TONIGHT 

I WONDER WHO’S KISSING 
HER NOW 

IDA/ SWEET AS APPLE CIDER 
IN THE GOOD OLD SUMMER TIME 
IN THE LITTLE RED 
SCHOOLHOUSE 
JAZZ ME BLUES 
JUNGLE DRUMS 
LA COMPARSA 
LET’S DANCE 

LIFT EVERY VOICE AND SING 
LILLI MARLENE 
MALAGUENA 

MAMA DON’T WANT NO PEAS 
AN’ RICE 
MAMA INEZ 
MANHATTAN 
MARTA 

MOTHER WAS A LADY 
MY GAL SAL 
MY LITTLE DREAM GIRL 
MY SHAWL 
NEGRA CONSENTIDA 


OH DIDN’T HE RAMBLE 
ORIGINAL DIXIELAND ONE-STEP 
PAPER DOLL 

PARADE OF THE WOODEN 
SOLDIERS 

THE PEANUT VENDOR 
PIEL CANELA 
PLAY FIDDLE PU V 
POINCIANA 
SARI (Waltz) 

SAY ‘SI sr 

SHE WAS BRED IN OLD KENTUCKY 
SONG OF THE ISLANDS 
SWEET ROSIE O’GRADY 
71 

TAKE BACK YOUR GOLD 
TANGO OF ROSES 
THERE’LL BE SOME CHANGES 
MADE 

TOYMAKER’S DREAM 
TWO LITTLE GIRLS IN BLUE 
UNDER THE: BAMBOO TREE ( 
WALTZ ME AROUND AGAIN* 
WILLIE 

WHAT A DIFf’RENCE A DAY 
MADE 

WHAT’S THE USE OF DREAMING 
WHEN THE BELL IN THE 
LIGHTHOUSE RINGS 
YOU DIDN’T WANT ME WHEN 


l 


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\ 


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WAR 


MAR 


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B U ! L 0 


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© RADIO CITY 
harry link G £ n prof mgr 



POR AT 

NEW Y 


ION 

O R K 


V •/ / 















50 


VAUDEVILLE 



Wednesday, February 24, 1954 



By GORDON IRVING 

Glasgow, Feb. 23. 

Roy Rogers, Dale Evans and 
Trigger have hit a lively trail on 
their United Kingdom vaude bow. 
Western stars are mobbed every- 
where they go by scores of cheer- 
ing juveniles, and business at the 
Empire Theatre is capacity, with 
ektra matinees set. This despite 
prices being tipped 50%.. 

Arrival of the cowboy hero and 
his horse Was well-timed for a Sun- 
day, when kids were not in school. 
At Prestwick Airport, when Trig- 
ger touched down by KLM flight 
from New York, horse was mobbed 
by hundreds of youngsters, many 
wearing miriature cowboy and cow- 
girl suits. 

In Glasgow, 30 miles from, the 
airport, the kids began to gather 
at 10 a.m. despite arrival of Rogers 
and his horse being timed for 6 
p.m. Anxious mothers telephoned 
the Central Hotel, where Trigger 
was to make a spectacular ride up 
the inside stairway to the luxury 
Arran suite and a fullscale press 
confab. 

When Rogers and Miss Evans 
drove up' to the hotel in a red 
sportsenr, having motored from 
England, there were mobs of 
youngsters cheering wildly to greet 
them. 

In white stetson cowboy hat, 
Rogers went out into the Central 
Station, adjoining the hotel, and 
made a round of the crush barriers 
with a bowing Trigger. 

Flacks even set Up a luxury bed- 
room inside the hotel for Trigger, 
but the horse was later accomo-’ 
dated in ordinary. British Railway 
stables alongside workipg animals. 

Rogers has vocal backing in his 
current roadshow from the Whip- 

SauterV Red Cross Stint 

James Sauter, president of USO 
Camp Shows, will head the theatri- 
cal committee in the forthcoming 
Red Cross campaign. In addition, 
he’ll also serve as chairman of the 
Radio and Television division Of 
the Public Infoimation Committee 
of the campaign. 

Campaign, which tees off March 
1, is seeking $5,900,000 in New 
* York Citv toward a notional goal 
of $85, OOP, 000. 


porwills group. A number of Brit- 
ish acts support him, but he does 
most of the emceeing himself. 

Cowboy actor has brought three 
of his 30-minute adventure tv 
films, and a deal may be made with 
the British Broadcasting Corp. to 
show them over the U.K. video 
network. 

Said Rogers: “The films are 
sponsored by an American food 
corporation, and my sponsors have 
no objections to my selling them 
in Britain if the BBC wants to have 
them. We have already made 65 of 
them, and although they are inter- 
rupted with advertising material 
in the U.S., that would be omitted 
if they were shown in the U.K,” 


Mardi Season 

Continued from page 1 


Bill Miller’* Credo 

Las Vegas* Feb. 23. , 

Bill (Sahara) Miller’s -tal- 
ent booking philosophy is 
that “it’s worth any price if* 
it’s a first,” and Ben (Fla- 
mingo). Goff stein’s attitude is* 
“What’s the difference, a few 
thousand more or less; the 
overhead is still there when 
we open our doors every day. 
With several hundred people 
on every top hotel’s payroll, 
so a few grand extra for some 
socko headliner isn’t going to 
break us. And if it brings in 
the people, that’s the an- 
swer,” ■ , . 

Both talent impresarios, 
along with the others on the 
local Strip, attest to the fact 
that whether it’s Pinza or Mel- 
chior, Tallulah or , Dietrich, 
the Gabors or Kathryn Gray, 
son — whether it’s freak or 
genuine talent is secondary to 
the fact that the curiosity ap- 
peal (a “first”) is the domi- 
nant factor. 


French Quarter along Bourbon St., 
are doing a landoffice business 
nightly. This is the first time 
since the Sugar Bowl game last 
New Year’s Day that the operators 
have heard the cash registers sing 
such a merry tune. All of the 
spots, most of which feature strip- 
pers, have embellished their floor 
shows. Lines of visiting firemen 
stand outside waiting for a chance 
to get in. 

Officials estimate that visitors 
and tourists here for the Mardi 
Gras will spend some $5,000,000. 



Continued from page 1 


New Acts 


THE NIGHTINGALS (3) 

Songs 
5 Mins. 

Palace, N.Y. . . _ , 

Virginia Ashley* Ruth Gold and 
Vivienne Solonikas comprise The 
Nightingals. Their operatic type 
voices are no deterrents in dishing 
up pop number. Theirs is a polite 
act, so to speak, saiis gimmicks, 
stress being bn the pipes depart- 
ment. - . 

They open with a fast ’ Gonna 
Live ’Til I Die,” move into “I’m 
in Love With You,” and close to 
nice mittings with first an opera 
and then a jazz rendition of a piece 
from “La Boheme.” Trio have 
toured with Gene Autry and have 
a number of disks to their credit. 

■ Holl. 


MARTA NITA 
Danee 
10 Minor 

Chateau Madrid* N.Y. 

Marta Nita is an attractive ballet 
dancer who knocks off a fine series 
of terps in the Latin idiom. The 
dances are well designed and pro- 
jected vigorously. She portrays a 
tourist gadding about in Spain and 
a spirited interpretation of “Mala- 
guena.” As concession to nitery 
audiences she does a fast samba. 

Miss Nita is sufficiently skilled 
.o hold down solo spots in most 
niteries. Some enlargement of her 
routine is indicated if she’s to be 
steadily employed in £pots other 
than those with Latin trade. 

Jose. • 



BILLY GILBERT 

Csrr^nsl'f 

STORK CLUB 

SHREVEPORT. LA. 

Personal Mgt.: — DAVID L. SHAPIRO 
177* Broadway, N. Y. . Cl S-SMS 


St. Gyr, who pulled close to $25,- 
000, beating her previous record at 
that house about two months ago. 
She scored around $22,000 at . that 
time. These grosses are phe- 
nomenal for burlesqueries. 

Consequently, Minsky is on a 
prowl for names that are familiar 
to New Yorkers and they do not 
, naye to be native to the hurley 
jurisdiction. Minsky has booked 
Nejla Ates, the Egyptian belly 
dancer, starting March 5. 

It’s also been observed that the 
groups coming from New York are 
fairly sizable, enough to fill a car. 
This way the cost of tunnel tolls 
is split up among the passengers 
and thus the individual costs 
aren’t any higher than fares for 
those taking the bus. *■ 


COMEDY MATERIAL 

For All Bronchos of Thoafricofs 

FUN-MASTER 

THE ORIGINAL SHOW-BIZ GAG FILE 
' (Tho Servlet of thi STARS.) . 
First of 15 flits $7.00— All 35 Issuts $23 
Singly: $1.05 Each IN SEQUENCE ONLY 
Btgfnning with No. 1— No Skipping! 

• 3 BkS. PARODIES, par book . $.10 * 

• MINSTREL BUDGET.. . . ■ . $25 • 

*4 BLACKOUT BKS., tt. bk. . $25 • 

• BLUE BOOK (Gags for Stags) $50 • 
HOW TO MASTER THE CEREMONIES 

$3.00 

GIANT CLASSIFIED ENCYCLOPEDIA 
OF GAGS, $300. Worth ovtr a thousand 
No C.O.D.'s 

BILLY GLASON 

200 W. 54th St., Now York 19— Dapf. V 
Clrcla 7-1130 


The other Northern. New Jersey 
burlesque spots also have a high 
proportion of New York trade. This 
is especially true of the Hudson* 
Union City, which has always had 
many New York patrons. Busses 
from Manhattan stop a few feet 
away from the house. 

Minsky has been working on the 
theory that if shows are designed 
so that women won’t be scared 
away from them, his chances of hit- 
1 ting profitable grosses are in- 
creased. This has been borne out 
by the fact that couples as well as 
large parties of femmes come to 
the house. 

. The New York trade is contribut- 
ing to the support of the three 
Jersey hurley houses. The Adams 
and Empire, . both Newark, and the 
Hudson, Union City, are presently 
located in the area and it’s antici- 
pated that a fourth house, the 
Colony, also Union City, will open 
witn burlesque. 

Presently, indications point to 
the fact that the New York bui> 
lesque trade is locked up for the 
Jersey houses for the time being. 
The Fact Finding Committee, made 
up of theatrical craft union reps, 
has made no headway in its at- 
tempts to get licensed burlesque 
in New York. 

The only alternatives to going 
to Jersey for New Yorkers with a 
yen for that form of entertainment 
are the 52d St. spots. But that’s 
an extremely expensive form of 
burlesque. 


‘Miss Connecticut’ Tiff 
May Lop Off Promoter 

• New Haven, Feb. .23, 

Indications here are that pre- 
liminary eliminations in the state- 
wide competitions for “Miss Con- 
necticut” in the Atlantic City “Miss 
America” Pageant will find the 
longtime promoter himself elimi- 
nated from that capacity in this 
annual event. 

According to official^ of the Con- 
necticut Junior Chamber of Com- 
merce, that organization was ap- 
proached by A. C. Pageant execs 
who offered a franchise to Operate 
the setup this year in preference 
to localite Al Patricelli, who has 
run the contests throughout the 
state for the past eight years. 

Patricelli has already conducted 
various local contests and plans to 
seek ap injunction against the 
Junior Chamber entry into the 
field. He bases his claim on his 
registration of “Miss” titles in 
some 22 communities throughout 
the state. Jaycee claim is that 
their title of “Miss Connecticut 
.Jayceg” is no Infringement. 

Ousted promoter states he will 
continue local eliminations and 
will sue A. C. Pageant reps if they 
refuse entry to his ultimate choice 
of “Miss Connecticut.” 

‘Opry’ 5G, Salt Lake 

Salt Lake City, Feb. 23. 

John Kelly hit a jackpot here 
last Tuesday (16), 'when his “Grand 
01 r Opry” played a full hquse at 
the Coliseum. Cast, headed by 
Minnie Pearl, T. ^ Texas Tyler, 
George Morgan, L’onzo & Oscar 
and Ferlin Huskey, drew 4,500 
customers to the b.o| and with a 
top tab of $1.50 hauled in a ntfat 
$5,000 fbr one performance. 

This was Kelly’s second try .here. 
He had his bunch in during Octo- 
ber for two shows on a Sunday and 
barely staggered to an even break. 


LES BLUE & YVETTE (2) 
Cyclists- Jugglers 
8 Mins. 

PslftCC ■ ■ ■ 

This’ is a* standard unicyle- jug- 
gling act with the male partner 
carrying most of the load. Pair- 
show the usual dexterity in maneu- 
vering the one-wheelers arid add 
to the thrills by juggling various 
objects while in motion. 

Highlights of the act, at closing, 
Is the lad’s balancing of cups and 
plates on. his head while perched 
on the tall unicyle. He works up 
to three sets of cups and plates and 
then neatly tosses in a spoon for a 
socko closing. Holl. 


UCIENNE DELYLE 
Songs 
25 Mins. 

L’Olympia, Paris 

Lucienne Delyle is one of the 
eading disk voices here, with her 
;op numbers selling in the smash 
category. Possessed of a husky, 
dramatic voice, a la Edith Piaf, shV 
eschews emotion for clean, well- 
enunciated delivery. She looks au- 
thoritative and can also blend the 
lighter and more mellow Parisian 
chants into her rep. 

Might be worth a U. S. chance, 
since French songstresses seem in 
demand stateside.. Monk. 


ADA MOORE 
Songs 
,12 Mins. 

^Heaven, N.Y. 

Although this small room above 
Jimmy Kelly’s Greenwich Village 
nitery is headlining two Negro 
thrushes (Claudia McNeil is re- 
viewed under New Acts)* they 
don’t get in each other’s way. Miss 
Moore is an impish sqpgstress with 
an ebullient styling that comple- 
ments Miss McNeil’s more digni- 
fied delivery. • 

Miss Moore doesn’t go over- 
board on the energy department, 
either. She . knows when to rock a 
tune and when toshug it. When 
she hits with “I Could Write A 
Book” or “You Made Me Love 
You,” the tunes take on a captiva- 
ting new rhythmic aspect. And 
when she segues into “One For 
The Road” or “Down In 
The Depths,” her somber mood 
pervades the room. She also has 
a knack of peppering the tunes 
'Ovith wry physical and vocal man 
nerisms that add to her oyeral 
song-selling style. . 

She’s a comer who should he 
kept busy on the nitery belt. 

Gros. 


Saranac Lake 

By Happy Benway 

Morey Amsterdam stopped off 
at the Will Rogers for bedside 
chat in every room. 

Mabel King Hutchings, IATSE 
product, in from N. Y. for regular 
rest and observation period. Ditto 
for William O. Stamps, designer 
and painter with the Wolfson 
Meyers Theatre Circuit, Miami. 

Louise Noll, secretary to Dr. 
George E. Wilson', Medical Direc- 
tor of Will Rogers hospital, back 
from N. Y. 

Raymond (IATSE » King, of CBS 
of N. Y., in for a weekend to see 
his sister, Mabel King Hutch- 
ings (new patient), . 

Shirley (IATSE) Houff, who beat 
the rap here, signed up to hold 
down the projectionist duties at 
the Star Drive-In, Malone, N. Y. 

Robert V.iniello, Metro photo 
publicity staffer froiri N. Y., ended 
his observation routine and is 
skedded for major surgery. 

Write to those who are Ul. 


PAUL PERI 
Songs . 

35 Mins. 

Bobino, Paris 

Paul Peri possesses a fine tenor 
thait can do justice to light and 
dramatic songs, he has built a rep 
with a strongly individual, stylized 
stint that makes this personable 
young man a likely entry for U.S. 
boites in the -Gallic chanter cate- 
gory. Peri has a nice timing and 
uses his hands well in dramatic , 
ballads. 

Rep includes haunting street 
ballads, plus poetic or cheerful 
pops, and he gives each fine de- 
lineation and delivery. Mosk. 

CLAUDIA McNEIL 

Songs 

19 Mins. 

Heaven* N.Y. 

Claudia McNeil is no newcomer 
to the ballad belt. She’s been carry- 
ing the torch song for some time 
now (although she’s not listed in 
Variety’s New Act files) but her 
repertoire is fresh and inviting. 

Colored femme ^packs power and 
(Continued on page 52) * 


THE V ALLIS (2) 

Dance 
5 Mins. 

PdldC€ft 

Fresh from midwest niteries, the 
Vallis are making their first Broad- 
way outing at the Palace. She’s a 
luscious blonde with a nice pair 
of stems; he’s a handsome lad. 
They team nicely for a pleasant 
stint, opening with a softshoe. 

Variegating headgear is the key 
to their act, billed as “fashion in. 
steps.” With ‘ onstage shifts of 
chapeaux, they reel off the terp 
styles represented by the different 
hats, including the cakewalk, 
Castle Walk, Charleston, etc. It 
all comes over effectively. Good 
bet for nitery, vaude and tv book- 
ings. Holl. 

OOLAN FARLEY 
Dance 
10 Mins. 

Apollo, N.Y. 

In addition, to being beautiful, 
this ofay stripeuse can do hohest- 
to-goodness ballet steps, which is 
more than many in her trade offer. 
Oolan Farley starts in striking red 
scanties, and ends iri striking red 
scanties (sans a few gossamer 
Scarfs) to loud applause. 

Theme is girl undressed up for 
a masquerade party who, after a 
few under her belt (no other 
proper name available), takes off 
the belt,- and who at the strike of 
12 terps prettily offstage. Things 
were kept fairly within the realm 
of decency at this vaude theatre, 
and she was still a wow. . 



LENNY COLYER 

"Mr, Specs Himself" 
OPENS MARCH 1st 

TOWN CASINO 
Buffalo 

PtP. Met. AL BORDB 
203 N. Wabash, Chicaga 


"Solid Entertainment" 

VARIETY. 



RED CAPS 


DAMITA JO 

Currently: 

CIRO'S, Miami Beach 

Dlrectloa: MCA 


CECIL YOUNG QUARTET 

Featuring: GERALD BRASHER, tonor and bongos • FRANK SKEETE, bass * JIMMY RODGERS, drums 


Currently appearing STREAMLINER, Chicago 
Management: SHAW ARTISTS CORP., 5*5 Fifth Avenue. New York 


Wednesday, February 24, 1954 


VAVDEWUJB 


51 




The American Guild of Variety 
Artists last week, in executive ses- 
sion voted to give, national admin- 
istrator Jack Irving and an imple- 
menting committee power to put 
the Toronto area on the unfair 
list It was felt by the executive 
board that the Montreal area would 
take care of itself, but the possi- 
bility of putting this region out of 
bounds to AGVA members wasn’t 
discounted. As soon as Irving gives 
the word, AGVA members may not 
accept work in Toronto without 
permission of the union. 

This development followed the 
failure of bookers to show up at a 
meeting called by AGVA of those 
setting shoWs in Canada. Irving 
made a trip to Montreal over the 
weekend and conferred with agents 
and presided at a meeting of per- 
formers. They’ll- now process for 
signatures of minimum basic; 
agreements in that area. 

In Toronto, .the area is more 
pressing due to the fact that the 
American; Federation of Musicians 
is setting up an auxiliary local to 
comprise performers. AFM is 
charging acts $10 per head initia- 
tion. Otherwise AFM tooters will 
not play for AGVA members. \ 

AFM is acting similarly in Mon- 
treal, but isn’t pressing for mem- 
bership,. although ; an indie union, 
Canadian Assn, of Variety Artists, 
is expanding its activities; Irving 
declared that he revoked the fran- 
chise of one Montreal agent for 
keeping a CAVA franchise. 

At the same time, AGVA adopt- 
ed a resolution authorizing the 
national administration to "throw 
AGVA’s financial and moral sup- 
port behind The Revue Dancers 
and the Corley actions to be 
brought by them against the Mu- 
sicians Union in Toronto.” Revue 
Dancers had to go off a Canadian 
Broadcasting Co. show because two 
of the four dancers in the act re- 
fused to join the AFM auxiliary:. 
Ernest Corley, a puppet act, also 
refused to* go into the AFM. Both 
acts are suing the tooters’ outfit, 



10-Wk. Tour of Britain 
. Set for Guy Mitchell 

London, Feb. 23. 

Guy Mitchell is to make a 10- 
week tour of Britain this summer, 
but his itinerary will not include 
a single date here. The tour kicks 
off May 3, and will comprise weeks 
at the biggest provincial theatres, 
including Glasgow, Manchester, 
Liverpool, Newcastle; plus Sunday 
concerts and a week of one-night 
stands. ^ 

Lew & Leslie Grade are nego- 
tiating the tour, which Will be his 
third visit here. With Frankie 
Laine, he is the biggest American 
record seller in Britain and the 
current bestselling list of top disks 
here includes three titles by him, 
“Cloud Lucky Seven,” “Cuff of My 
Shirt” and “Chieka Boom.” 

There is a possibility that he will 
be booked again later this summer 
for London appearances, probably 
at the London Palladium. 



Henning Gets Comedy 
Slot at Toronto Expo 

Pat Henning has been signed for 
the comedy slot at the Canadian 
National Exhibition to be held in 
Toronto starting Aug. 29. This 
season, for the first time in many 
years, the name slot isn’t occupied 
by a comic. Cowboy Roy Rogers is 
topping the layout. 

Henning will precede this stand 
with a date at the Sahara Hotel, 
Las Vegas, on : the show With 
Sonja Home, Feb, 23, and has been 
pacted for the Elia Kazan film 
production of “East of Eden” 
which starts in April. 

Leon Newman set the deals for 
Henning, 








Pay Promptly in Miami 

Miami, F/eb. 23. 

. Outgrowth of Ca'lumet City (111.) 
nightclub operators’ lockout of 
American Guild of Variety Artists 
brought heavy fines here for 
Strippers Val De Val and Bobbie 
Joy, Who at the time, kept work- 
ing despite guild’s warning to acts 
that the area was on unfair list. 

Local board of directors of 
AGVA assessed Miss De Val a 
$1,000 fine, while Miss Joy got off 
with a $300 rap. Amounts were 
determined by salaries command- 
ed by the pair. Both paid imme- 
diately so that they could continue 
working, Miss De Val at the Gaiety 
Club and Miss Joy at the Paddock. 

According to Jerry Baker, head 
of the local branch of AGVA, ail 
clubs will be closely scanned for 
other violators who come here to 
work the extensive exotic dancers 
route in greater Miami. 


Toronto, Feb. 23. 

Toronto agents have been put in 
the middle in the hassle between 
the American Guild of Variety 
Artists and the American Federa- 
tion of Musicians. AFM has threat- 
ened the percenters with revoca- 
tion of franchise if they continue 
to book AGVA talent, and the per- 
former union has threatened them 
with revocation if they continue to 
deny employment to AGVA acts. 

The Toronto local of AFM is at- 
tempting to set up an indie chap- 
ter for performers, Robin Logan, 
former AGVA rep in Toronto, has 
gone over to the new outfit, and 
currently Lou Smolove, AGVA rep 
from New York, is in charge. 
AGVA prexy Jackie Bright has 
made several trips to Toronto in 
an effort to straighten out the 
situation. A. Frank Real, of the 
law firm of Silverstone & Rosen- 
thal, AGVA national counsel, was 
also in town in an effort to 
straighten out the situation. Real 
had repped AGVA last week in 
Montreal, 



Plan Pi 


to 


London, Feb. 23. ’ 

Negotiations between the Lew & 
Leslie Grade Agency and British 
Equity to transplant British chorus 
girls for Carnival shows in Amer- 
ica have now reached the point 
where they have been referred to 
the American Guild of Variety Art- 
ists in New York. Agreement on 
major points of principle have been 
reached between the agency in 
London and the union. 

Art original proposal that trans- 
portation costs should; be advanced 
to the girls and then deducted 
from their earnings was rejected 
by the British union, whose action 
was subsequently endorsed by 
AGVA. The ruling has been ac- 
cepted by the Grades. 

British Equity said last week 
they welcomed the idea of British 
chorus girls being allowed to work 
abroad provided union conditions 
a iid rates of pay were observed. 
Points of detail had been referred 
to the union in New York, which 
were now being resolved with 
agency execs. 


Mack Troupe, AFM to Aid 
Goetz Fund Dayton Show 

Dayton, Feb. 23. 

Ted Mack and troupe of his 
handpicked amateurs are due here 
March 10 for a benefit show to 
build up the Barbara Goetz, Kelt- 
ner Memorial Scholarship Fund. 
Fund was established several years 
ago by Col. Joseph Goetz, head of 
Armed Forces Professional Enter- 
tainment Branch, in memory of his 
19-year-old daughter, Who died of 
polio in ’5Q. Young matron was 
Goetz’s only child, and he has de- 
voted himself to building a per- 
petual scholarship in her memory 
at Washington’s St. Cecilia 
Academy, her alma mater. 

Show, to be he held in the new 
6,000 seat of U. of Dayton Field 
House, will be completely cuffo so' 
far as talent and overhead are con- 
cerned. AFM is donating orch from 
its Welfare Fund, and Mack is 
picking Up check for his troupe’s 
expenses. Roscoe Ates, Alan Mow- 
bray and possibly others will plane 
from Hollywood to appear. All-out 
cooperation is a . warm personal 
tribute to Goetz, whose Pentagon 
chores consist of arranging shows 
for this country’s worldwide 
troops. 

Patachou’s 3d at Empire 

Patachou has been repacted for 
fhe Waldorf-Astoria Empire Room, 
N.Y., starting Oct._l, for her, third 
engagement at that spot. Gallic 
chanteuse has been signed to that 
spot for a five-year deal on a six- 
weCk basis. 

Patachou will also play other 
spots on the Hilton chain as part 
of her deal. 


Boston, Feb. 23. 

The Old Howard’s license, re- 
voked last November when several 
strippers and the management 
were found guilty of participating, 
and producing an “immoral and 
lewd” show, has been reinstated, 
and the ancient theatre swung back 
into action yesterday (Mon.). No 
longer billed as burley, the house 
will operate oh a four-shoWs-a-day 
policy, featuring a line of girls, an. 
exotic, dancer, three acts of vaude 
and suburban pix. Tom Foran is 
handling the booking of acts. 

The Casino, under the same man- 
agement and only a couple of 
blocks from the Howard, which 
was shuttered at the same time, 
continues out of action. But it’s 
figured that its license will also be 
restored if the Howard obeys the 
licensing board edict and doesn't 
run afoul of the law. Shuttering 
eff the two theatres kayoed biz in 
the once-lively SCollay Square area 
and the merchants are very anx- 
ious to have both theatres running 
full tilt again. 


Chi Casino Reopening 



Onto Strippers Row 

Chicago, Feb. 23. 

Police clamp is again being ex 
erted along the North Clark St, 
strippers row, which recently was 
revitalized; with the reopening of 
the French Casino. In recent 
months the district had been re- 
garded as wide open, owing to po- 
lice neglect, but the Casino’s re 
turn to lights apparently rekindled 
the interest of the force. As a re 
suit of stepped-up patrolling, gam- 
bling and B-girl practices have de- 
clined drastically. 

Casino naturally rouses wariness 
because of the much-publicized in- 
cident that caused; its closing in 
1950, when two customers were 
beaten with baseball bats, New li- 
cense had been issued to Albert 
Nadolna recently for the club, but 
Chi police Suspect he is a front 
for Harry Boshes, the Casino’s pre- 
vious owner. 

Business so far has not been 
exciting at the relighted strippery. 


Schnoz, Auto Show Draw 

in 


San Francisco, Feb. 23. 

In. spite of heavy rain-storms 
since the opening of the Auto 
Show at the Civic Auditorium 
Feb. 13, Jimmy Durante and his 
support wound up Sunday (21 
with 87,000 admissions clocked 
and gross estimated at $93,500. 
Tickets were priced at $1.75 for 
adults and 75c for children. Total 
nut was $102,000. Durahte and 
acts cost $40,500 and Ernie Heck- 
scher orch $12,500. 

Show, headed by Durante, and 
including Eddie Jackson, Georgie 
Tapps and Clifford Guest, was a 
twice-a-dayer, 3 and 9 p.m. Du- 
rante was guest of honor at the 
Press Club Gang dinner Friday 
night (19). 


NEW HOUSTON CLUB MGR. 

Houston, Feb. 23. 

Arthur Lang has taken over 
management of the Egyptian Room 
at the Oasis Supper Club here. He 
at one time managed the Planta 
tion and Southern Dinner Club 
here. 

: The Gypsy Edwards combo has 
been signed as . initial attraction. 


Costly To Pitt Room 


Pittsburgh, Feb. 23. 
Vogue Terrace had to cancel a 
ot of banquets and parties this 
week when Jimmy Dorsey Was hos- 
pitalized in New York for ulcers. 
Dorsey Bros, and their band were 
to have opened here, last night 
(Mon.). . : 

When his physician said J. D, 
couldn’t work for some time, Tom- 
my Dorsey Called Jerry Donovan, 
owner of the Vogue Terrace, and 
offered to come in with the orches- 
tra himself or postpone their con- 
tract With him until fall. Donovan 
preferred to wait until both Dor- 
seys were available, and they’ll fill 
the date in September. 

Vogue Terrace is a 1,100-seat 
room catering to crowd affairs and 
usually has a pre-sold lineup for 
an attraction, such as the Dorseys. 
So Jimmy’s illness cost the man- 
agement a pretty penny. 





London, Feb. 23, 
The news that the two house 
bands at the Copacabana are under 
notice has heightened rumors about 
the future of London’s newest nit- 
ery, and an official statement is ex- 
pected Within a few days. In the 
meantime, it is confirmed that no 
cabaret arrangements are being 
made after the current stint of 
Maxine Sullivan, which terminates 
March 2. 

The Frank Weir aggregation, 
which only moved into the Copa 
earlier this month, received pro- 
visional notice last week. The Latin 
American combo, headed by Fran- 
cisco Caves, ends its engagement 
next month. 

The Copa was opened last May, 
just before the Coronation, and is 
operated by Eustace Hoey, a for- 
mer partner of Harry Morris in the 
Colony Restaurant. 


Las Vegas, Feb, 23. 

Scarcity of headliners is appar- 
ently causing a change in the 
thinking of Las Vegas buyers. First 
major break from the traditional 
buying of the Route 91 spots is 
seen by the fact that the Patio, 
slated to open April 9, will be on • 
jazz name policy. Dinah Washing- 
ton has been set as the initial head- 
liner. The Kenneth Later Agency, 
New York, will rep the spot in the 
east. 

The amount of coin spent on top 
acts seems to be a secondary con- 
sideration among the casino crowd. 
They’ll continue to pay in the up- 
per brackets for names. However* 
the search, for new and suitable 
talent is becoming; too much of a 
backbreaker for many cafes. Many 
attractions that they’ve come up 
with • are' good for only one 
time around, since quality of the 
act is such that their curiosity val- 
ue has been exhausted with one 
visit. They’ve also tried units and 
tab musicals in an effort to get 
away from names. 

Jazz personalities haven’t been 
tried as consistent policy in the 
Nevada gambling halls. However, 
if successful, it gives the bonif aces 
entree into an entirely new set of 
attractions. Patio’s experiment will 
be a matter of acute inerest among 
the talent buyers in the area. 



Litman Ties With Pitt 
Agency As Adviser 

Pittsburgh, Feb. 23. 

Lenny v Litman; owner of Copa, 
downtown nitery,. will become as- 
sociated’. with the George Claire 
Associates booking agency first of 
the. month, in a supervisory ca- 
pacity only, when Claire leaves 
Pittsburgh for Miami Beach to 
open an office there in association 
with The Vagabonds. Claire will 
cOntinue-to book his two big local 
accounts, Vogue Terrace and Hori- 
zon Room, from his Florida head- 
quarters. 

To look after the remainder of 
his Pitt biz, he has set up a group 
here consisting of his sister, Lu 
Claire, a nitery dancer; A1 Marsido, 
bandleader, who will he in charge 
of the music department; Morry 
Fremont, veteran 10 percenter Who 
heretofore has been on his Own, 
and Litman, who is to operate as 
an overall adviser in the setup; 
This will, not interfere with his 
operation of the Copa, but may 
possibly lose the Carousel account 
for Claire Associates since Jackie 
Heller's room, which Claire has 
been booking for the last year, and 
the Copa are in direct competition 
for talent and furthermore are lo- 
cated just across the street from 
each other. 


N.H. Park Injury Award 

Manchester, N.H., Feb. 23. 

A Hillsborough County Superior 
Court jury has awarded verdicts 
totalling $5,382 to Harry B. and 
Catherine Hill of this city, who 
brought suits against the Pine Is- 
land Park Co., Inc, 

0 The. actions resulted from in- 
juries which Mrs. Hill claimed she 
suffered when hurled from a car 
on the “Dragon’s Den” ride at the 
local amusement park. 



On Transient Violation 


Atlantic City, Feb. 23. 
Failure to order three women 
entertainers In the Yacht Bar, mid- 
city spot formerly known as Bab- 
ettes, to register under the re- 
sort’s transient registration ordi- 
nance, resulted in the trio and 
Nathan Goldberg, spot’s Operator, 
being haled into Municipal Court 
here (18) and receiving a suspend- 
ed 30-day jail sentence and a $100 
fine, also suspended: 

Goldberg contended that his case 
was not covered by the ordinance 
since the girls, were not employ- 
ees, but rather what he termed 
“private contractors,” retained by 
management, a view not shared by 
Muncjpal Judge Benjamin Rlmm. 
All four had been arrested as de- 
tectives were inspectinjg the 3 a.m. 
show and started asking questions 
about registration. Taken to police 
headquarters, the girls said they 
were Liddie Murphy, 27, Lois De- 
fee, 30, and Dana Stevens, 23. 

The ordinance, adopted here last 
June, requires that workers who 
have not resided in Atlantic County 
for the previous 12 months must 
register with police 48 hours after 
they are hired. Enacted as a step 
to eliminate crime by transient 
workers, the act calls for the 
photographing and fingerprinting 
of all registrants. The ordinance 
makes employers liable if workers 
fail to register. 

Other New Jersey resorts have 
adopted the ordinance which, in- 
cidentally, is now under attack in 
the New Jersey Supreme Court as 
unconstitutional. 


Mont’l Group Goes 0’Seas 
For Shows to Can. Forces 

Montreal; Feb. 23. 

Following several successful 
troop-entertainment shows in Ko- 
rea and Japan, the Canadian Army 
last Saturday (20) planed a small 
unit of Montreal performers to Eu- 
rope for the benefit of Canadian 
Army and Air Force personnel sta- 
tioned in Germany and France. 

Combo was headed by Jacques 
Norrnand, with femnfe singers 
Jeanne D’Arc Chari ebois and Ann 
Somers, guitarist Curley Reid and 
an accompanist, Actual tour of 
service camps is confined to five 
days, with Norrnand (who operates 
the top French nitery in Montreal, 
Club St.-Germaine-Des-Pres) stay- 
ing over in Paris for a looksee at 
possible talent: 

Reid Will also cut several plat- 
ters for a Parisian record com- 
pany before returning to Canada. 
Tour is being handled through the 
J New Franco-American agency here. 





VAUDEVILLE 



Name Policy May Resume in Mpls. 


Minneapolis, Feb. 23. they , say customers aren't spend* 
a * « n«ar Alltime low^Twlfl ing. Getting the blame is a tighter 
rides’ ^iiih^life'ivgctting a boost, luxury dollar, increasing unemploy- 
ed tiS HieeVStarlight Club ment, a general slump due to agri- 
wlth Jim y S _ H-^nny culture's downtrend, tv and the po- 

^ re Str 1 ^ iSSt as i lice department's spot checking of 
S* act ‘“poller ' Rimin’ motori5s^,a campaign: againat 
Youngman’s last two appearances drunken diiving. 


tfsai 


Give Em Room 

Albany, I*eb. 23. 
Assemblyman . Daniel M. 
Kelly has re-introduced, in 
amended- form, a bill which 
would require the owner, 
operator or sponsor of a hotel, 
restaurant, dancehall or sim- 
ilar place where dancing is 
provided for patrons, to fur- 
nish a minimum amount of 
space per dancer. 

The New York City Demo- 
crat has increased the pro- 
posed “floor" from one to 
three square feet .per person 
of half the seating capacity of 
the room or rooms where 
terping is permitted. • 

The measure amends the 
General Business Law. 


Wedneadgy, February 24, 1954 



New Acts 


here were at the Hotel Radisson One of the developments has of half the seating capacity 
Flame Room. been the disappearance of exotic the room or rooms win 

If the policy gets Off to a favpr- dancers from the local theatre cafe terping is permitted, 

able start ' the Spot, Which has been scene. A year ago eight such Twin The measure amends 1 

usinff low-budgeted Shows, will fob Cities establishments Were employ- General Business Law. 

low with other important perform- Ing them. Then the police clamped 55^55^=====—= 

trs Hc££ says. down by . ordering out the stripteas- _ _ i_i, , 

Although there’s nearly 1.000,000 ing arid the gals started losing l J A||i|o]| TimeS LaDieiKS 
population in the Twin Cities, and their drawing power. t Now only “ n 

suburbs, the area, since the local two theatre cafes, both in Minne- VailflA HArllllP* Km 

Hotel DS Ni collet • bowed out more apoli.s, offer feminine bumps and faUaC W .H*| 

than a year and a half ago, has had grinds, and one of these, which Mni^ IWiowwl *|)pi> 

only a single supper club, the Min- used to include two dancers in its IiUllryidpvU 

ncapolis Hotel Radisson Flame shows. Is down to a single torso London, Feb. 

Room Going as high as 43,000 a twister. Under the Heading, “The 

week for acts, that bistro has been Under a different ownership a . t/ 


Vaude Decline; Raps 


Continued from pace St : '55SS5SSB«BSs2l 

warmth in her piping attack. She ing Ingredient of the act. Her two 
takes a slow ballad for a smooth English language songs, “Eter- 
and captivating ride and gives the nally"’ and "Merci Beaitcoup for a 
livelier items an. enjoy able bounce. Lovely Evening,” are by far, the 
Her songalog is a well-balahceq strongest entries. The aggregra- 
potpourri of some of Tin Pan tion maestroed by Sidney Simone 
Alley's best. From her opening, does a deft job of backgrounding 
“What Is This Thing Called Love?’ and also caters for the dansapation. 
to her begoff close to 20 minutes myro. 

later, her grip on the tablers never ■ ,7 ■■■ / — 

^Included in the standout soihga- TrunSe/ 

log are “Someone To Watch Over | o Min/ 

Me,” "Happiness Is A Thing chateau* Madrid N Y 

SsJJJrijr Shfc oi^e et Ste?^aSd .. Raul Roquet siarts off as a sing. 
Miss McNeil's big frame is. 

neatly decked out in a classy gown, opening with an audience partici- 
Her winning manner un front pation pitch that , gets a good re- 
makes her a natural for intime sporise. He then goes into a classi- 
rooms on both sides nf. town, The ^l 7C hoi ?,^ r ^ * 1 "l_pV hlC 3 n j ime ,!c : n ^ s ' 
9 Heaven, incidentally, is a small- say® ., 2, r l ? n w?,ii« mfnc ie 

room adjunct to Jimmy Kelly’s Da P5% JUJw S t ' 

Greenwich Village cafe. Gros. . A s Roquets act is now consti- 


ncapolis Hotel Radisson Flairie shows, Is down to * single torso London, Feb. 16. m* w1w * VI1 .-r” ' v v tuted, the employment horizons are 

Room. Going as high as $3,000 a twister. Under the heading ‘‘The Pass- AMl iur he m limited. However, expansion of his 

week for acts, that bistro has; beko Under » different ownership a • . ?“!”*, I1‘A M,NG<)S <5> ™'? 1 * H . or f s and a^occastonalde- 

enjoying good business, but it seat, few years ago, the Starlight Club, jo* a TradiUon. _t^ he^Lffl ados 1 S«»*. r parture mtojnstnunentals is^bet. 

only 150. George Gobel just fin- then Curly’s, used occasional name Times recently published a la- V’JJAy ter suited to the Norte Amen- 

ished there, “Quintetto Allegro” is acts. Three years ago the Minne- ment on the decline in variety and A ^he Flamingos in each of their SSXnlni?^ 

current and. Carl BrissOn comes apolis Club Carnival played the emergence of revues with four numbers demonstrate’ fine r ■ j 0 - (i 


Jose. 


clubs and theatre bars for the most f 0 r high-budgeted shows. 

part are shedding plenty of tears . — 

over what they describe as “the . 

worst business ever.” Even the |nfl|j»f Turin (|tir ■| , l| 
ones that seem to be still pulling MUItl IWII1 Ulj Wl 

large crowds are crying because F or 


March 4 for his annual engage- biggest name acts in the business arG virtually little close harmony and youthful - ■ 

merit. They’re representative of regularly, but after losing a large wms,, bounce, a pleasing combination for BORRA 

what the room has been offering, wad of coin, tossed in the sponge, more than f string of vauaevme ^ sta ^ USa The colored quintet is ju ae ica 

Aside from the Flame Room, the At that time the Nicollet and Radis- acts. The piece which , according just as acceptable in a supper club 2 5 Mins, 

comparatively few minor' night son Hotels here" also were^ going to the custom of the paper; was as a vaude house. _ • „ Bobino, Paris 

clubs and theatre bars for the most for high-budgeted shows. '■ ' unsigned, was inspired by the What comes out when they|smg ^ ay of f in a c i ass pick- 

part are shedding plenty of tears news that the Palladium will^ be reminds p0 S%J , t » ys and I this ingr attSung 

over what they describe as “the # n . running a full-scale r^vue for sev- number^ Zmon * ^the four ^ turn is a sure aud getter, Borra. 

worst business ever.” Even the ]ni||At Turin f|lv f|||||C eral months during the summer ^The > £ovs l h aV f vibrancy^ looking like a benevolent Svengali, 

ones that seem to be still pulling IllQICI 1 Will vllj vlUUo when there will be no vaudeville {}f ( }k V mea’sant / '£nd make the most starts his act with a series of fine 

large crowds are crying because Par Watarinff I ifliinr in the West End of London. of the fwo “V” values — visual lighted cigaret manipulations as 

-v . ■ - ior Watering Liquor The story has focused attention Snd^r they mcreas . b manifold under his 

„ n . u Minneapolis, Feb. 23. on the change that has . taken • ' — he P goes 1 8 * mto £ 'the^^ ^ud an^deftly 

Judge Reserves Decish A dozen Twin Cities liquor es- P>“Cf, -»toost ;iinperceptlU^ . «i THE APPLETfXNS (S> ’ Yrom %^er haS 

On AGVA Lakewood Move .abashments including several ^“ S .Vartfy r f« «mbat Upgrowth ‘ Slw® ?e“7ttfe ^‘'anl'rtt 

Decision was reserved last week nightclub and theatre bars, have a nd influence of tv and partly in palace, N.Y. , f un begins. He picks them clean 

by Justice Francis F. X. McGohey been indicted by the Federal grand an attempt to lure the public to Although this top apache act has an( j reac tions are always good for 

in N, Y . Federal Court on^ the plea j ury for watering their alcoholic^ something fresh, managements . b ^ e ^f ^ n ? A l?n a s r om fhiv a, ? r e n< nit solid ypeks. He also does stunt 

of the Lakewood. Hotel Assn, for ■ . e 0 _ j -- rnVi-- have more and more adopted the a _ Palace regular, they are .not W1 th his mouth fflrever full of 

a temporary injunction to restrain stoc ^ s and refilling bottles of more po ii C y 0 f billing their vaudeville listed in Variety s New Acts ping-pong balls and finally coughs 

the American Guild of Variety expensive brands with cheaper in- programs as revues, using titles to Mif,i h,«a ; viroinia up an egg. ^ 

r ...kii. w.gmt n qcac JL 1 lO — IVlliZl JlddSC, YiiBUUo Rnrra ic naplrhd nv ni« wifp wrlft 


^ _ Minneapolis, Feb. 23. on the change that has taken 

Judge Reserves llecish A dozen Twin Cities liquor es- place, almost imperceptibly,, in the APPLE 

On AG VA Lakewood Move tablishments, including several ®em^P?rtly r toS g m£?s! 

Decision was reserved last week nightclub and theatre bars, have and influence of tv and partly in palace, N.Y. 


lnnk niVasarit and make the most starts his act witn a senes ot tine 
of the^wo “V®" vaTues — visual lighted cigaret manipulations as 
Anrt vnrhV values visuai they increase manifold under his 

ana vocai. - ; hep sleight-of-handing. After this 

«w.w, .nutnmnvo - he goes into the aud and deftly 

THE .APPLETQNS (3> whisks watches from eager hands 


• . • ■ • .• ... , J UA J AMQ . frilVlA MtVVllWAU 

of the Lakewood. Hotel Assn, for a# 

a temporary injunction to restrain ^cc^ 8 and refilling bottles of mor< 

the American Guild of Variety expensive brands with cheaper in 
Artists from putting the Lakewood toxicating beverages, 
area on the unfair list. . Except for one corporation. th< 

AGVA had contended, that the ' Pa „i p-i amA n i0 htM,,W fh, 
temporary restraining order which 


• tin an 

Mitzi- Haase, Virginia, Borra is backed bv his wife wbo 


area on me untair list. Except for one corporation, the the shows are given a Dunesque 

AGVA had contended that the I ' Pan i Flame nitrhtcliih thP touch by the inclusion of a bunch 

temporary restraining order which ■ raui ■ ame nigniciuD, ine 0 f nude femmes, thus inspiring 

tied up AGVA the previous week names of the alleged individual of- suc h titles as “Festival of Nudes,” 
should not have been granted, footers are being withheld until “Les Filles d’Eve,” “Tassels and 

since it was out of the court's after the warrants are served and Twirls,” “Cavalcade of Nudes,” 

jurisdiction. Claim is that the tiff the arrests made. “They Couldn’t Wear Less” and 

properly is a labor dispute. Under the previaus administra- "Eve’s in the Limelight.” in the 

Two orders had been taken out tion, the Internal Revenue Dept, current week, 24 theatres are fea- 

against the union by the hotel bps. annually conducted similar cam- turing these so-called revues. 

First was legal only in New Jer- paigns, but instead of prosecuting with the seasonal demand for 


incite the public. In many cases ' -ui 6 Borra is backed by nis wne wno 

inn iho the shows are given a burlesque Tr i bbe y and Charles Tnbbey i ends body to the act. This would 
ion. the the T nSiSo n ol v bunS- P ut apache number It be a fine'plush nitery item or for 

ab, the tfi ucb -K:S!LS2 , “S5 1 .® f i;.5SK5 resembles free-for-all. _ the- two _ vaude and lv. Mask. 


of nude femmos, ^ thus n«Pinhg femmey^ g<rini after each other vaupe ana 

?.V cb -'ivhl-le'.^he;- male takes tu*ms sock- SHIPWAY TWINS 


* j Un “J “Les Filles d’Eve,” “Tassels and ing ’em around. They all bounce Acrobatics 

ed and Twirls,” “Cavalcade of Nudes,” off the floor with ease, although it g Mins. 

“They Couldn’t Wear Less” and appears at times es if each has Empire* Gi 

;«iet.v»_ “Eve’s in the Limelight.” In the been knocked down for good. The i — ■"* - 


Glasgow 


UCCIl lUlULACU UUWI 1 Ivl BWv mw J llA .1 

closing is particularly effective. It 
includes a simulated knifing and 

concludes with one of the chicks ^ acla appearance, offer a prom- 


sey, and the second order, which 
was debated before Justice Mc- 
Gohcy, enjoined AGVA from mov- 
ing against the Lakewood spots 
from New York. 


ew Jer- paigns, but instead of prosecuting with the seasonal demand for t n^pd thrm eh a DaDer win- ™mg act on the multiple bars with 

r, which criminally, as in this instance, per- pantomime it isn’t possible to give »eing tossea tnrougn a paper w a highspeed quota 0 f thrills. 

ice Me- mitted out-of-court settlements. an accurate picture of the vaude ■ . ' Open with agile rolls and twists 

mnv - scene, as more than 45 are cur- TAVVA RFY rs on the bars, and swing briskly from 

rently being staged, apart from a I Snco X ’; e ‘ bar to «s parallel. . Pair ;do 

nnmhpr of ice nantos both in Lon- ; J,“ e co complete revolving turns, and som- 

T? U thP P i?ovinre, n These ^ ■* -j « v ersaults off the bars on to ground, 

don and the provinces. ^ Chateau Madrid, .. . • Wind with gimmick of one accoin- 

- 1 usually stay for several weeks at Tanya Reyes is a young flamenco plishing the two-and-a-half somer- 


, Cafe Dates 


THE 


Currently 

LAST FRONTIER 
LAS VEGAS 

Vlflt : WILLIAM MORRIS 
A|«ney 


Chicago 


one situation (unlike revues and d ancer who apparently is still in m the air in swing from bar 

Rettv p™ straight vaude, Which are on a the formative stages. She shows to ground alr m swing from bar 

March 3 for three frames with single wee ^ booking normally) some fast/ cleat woi^ and authentic Good booking for vauderies in 

Dannv Thnmn.^nri <;nnhT^TuMrer and employ straight performers as dance designs. Some sections of mos t situations. ^ ’ 

-“‘-er .1 7— ' 

% ei A 0T 'fprtni.ght at ac «- ■ . . J , heel clicks come off well and her 

Club Hollywood, Akron ... Dinah Of the 30 undisguised variety mus i ca i background adds consider- "Master of h 
Kaye slated for week at Park Lane, bills in Britain last week, only one ably to the value of her act. 

Denver, beginning April 3 ... Car- is headlined by an American act. Miss Reyes’ costuming needs a 
men Miranda pegged for 16 days at This is at the’ Finsbury Park Em- complete overhauling. She’s a PglP 

Shamrock, Houston, beginning pire, where Laurel & Hardy were chubby kid and by wearing slacks 

April 19 . . . Lenny Colyer .booked topping the bill. The others fea- her callipygean tendencies are ac- 

in Town Casino, .Buffalo, March 1- ture local acts, not a few of which cented. Generally, however, she 

Vv . ao11o ^“ 1 1 8 Wltb two weeks at have been touring the country for can qualify in most situations P fl VTI 



Gord. 


veu (is a iiuiuua ui vauueviue - \ : i ; ”, •’ r . ' 

cts • and tend to slow up her turn. The 

* . . , , heel clicks come off well and her 

Of the 30 undisguised variety musical background adds consider- 
>ills in Britain last week, only one a bly to the value of her act. 
s' headlined by an American act. Miss Reyes’ costuming needs a 
rhis is at the’ Finsbury Park Em- complete overhauling. She’s a 


Alpine Village, Cleveland . . . 
Cathy Barr and Eddie South cur- 
rent at Wilhurst Country Club, 
Denver. 


many years. 


where touches of Latin are needed. 

Jose. 


" Master of Mischief" 

BOB \ 
BAXTER ^ 


Sues Yma Sumac For 
Inca Dinka 


— Sues Yma Sumac For s»n”r BER “ YEB 

» , r ™- 1 "* 1 *? , Inca Dinka Dough Emtosy Club, London 

* 3Ul Gilu6fla. comic, opcticQ' it . . * — , f r: « . , ■ Annv Berrver is r vocalist of' 

Don Hammoild’s Seven Seas Fri- *ngda _who used to bo dist Son I?? Some months she 

oay (191 . . . Jack LeMalre, comic, ? been the femme singing lead 

joined Muriel Lynne Trio at the had Yma Sumac as the keystone, • th . lotpct “Foliec Bereere” re- 
Colony Club... WMdell Hall qrch hassled suit against. Miss ] Sumac ‘yue fn Soh anl has been a 
and pianist Betty Jane Bllumas into in N.Y. Supreme Court, claiming positive asset in that French style 
nitery <ind bar at Hill Hotel . . . $152,000 in commissions allegedly revue; Now she is doubling in ca- 
pianist Molly Croft returned to owed by the singer. baret for a two weeks' season at 

Dunclee Dell. Miss Curiale claims that she was this swank Bond Street nitery, but 

■' ■' instrumental in selling series of is failing to make a comparable 


“Functional humor for 
all occaiioni.” 

Confacf-DICK HENRY 

1733 Broadway, New York 


Dundee Dell. 


Bobby Brandt, dancer who played Capitol Records and 1Tn P a ^’ 

the Empire Room of the Ten Eyck Miss Sumac didnt pay off on the T he i 
Hotel in Albany over the weekend, deal. Miss Suiriac was served with 8 *ie naj 


The reasons are twofold. Firstly, 


will open at the Palmer House in papers at her Carnegie Hall; N.Y., 
Chicago March 9, for four weeks, recital last Wednesday (17). 


SUSAN BROOKS 


deal.. Miss Suiriac was' served with sbe bas no t grasped the fact that 
papers at her Carnegie Hall; N.Y., in London, unlike Paris, theatre 
recital last Wednesday (17) audiences are vastly different from 

■ the : nitery clientele; and, secondly, 



M 


COMEE 





Managomtnt 

HESS MAYER 

420 MADISON AVE. 
Now York PL 5-45*4 


FOURTH RETURN ENGAGEMENT 
OLYMPIA THEATRE, MIAMI 
FEB. 17th r 1954 

MIAMI HERALD, GEORGE BOilRKE: 
M LOVELY SUSAN BROOKS IN A MILE 
A MINUTE ACROBATIC DANCE THAT 
IS TH E ESSENCE OF DYNAM IC SKILL,” 

Managimml. 

BERT JONAS U50 Broadway, N.Y.C. 


h v i rli t. i, i.' I. 


the difference in the two media 

UaM Am 'Calls for special presentation and If Managan 

QOld lflpIS. Up* material when performing in J HESS MJ 

i-nk no cabaret. She is not helped, either, madiso 

Minneapolis, Feb. 23. by an act that is largely composed Ilfiw yJra 15 ® 

Joe Rosenneld, 45, is charged of French language songs, although ILnMnMMMMM 

:in a Federal yi'hite slavery indict- this is to be remedied. 

I ment with having sent one or more There is nothing wrong with her 
(prostitutes to a Superior, Wis:, voice; on the contrary, she has a iamjeAi 

! brothel while he was floor manager tuneful pair of pipes and a -force- 1 WtlcN 

: ol Vic’s, one of the leading local fat dramatic style. But lacking a 

i nightclubs. working knowledge of the Eng- 

!« A rrested by . UATI 

i f°. ff 1 r V/? e b Q lTlfi w ^ nce and is * apparently, unable to II U I I 

I the cits jail for U.. S. marshals, describe the content of her num- — . u 

! After having been associated with bers. Other French artists, notably Tfc« Hoi 

j Vic’s for three years, Rosenfield Maurice Chevalier, make this part Avmv ( 

i wa$ let out a month ago. of the routine a basic and fascinat- 

i ;; • Jut. 1 ) Lv> jai r :0 J) i . I i ■ r « i I i i •. ii , : n i ^ «»,■! I 


WK t 

m?' » 


WHEN IN BOSTON 
It's fh% 


Tht Home of Show Folk I 
Avery It Wotklagtoa SH^^J 

^ * 








NIGHT CLUB REVIEWS 


Wednesday, February 2 V 1954 



By LARY SOLLOWAY 
Miami Beach, Feb. 23, 
Expected influx of vacationers 
has come, with hotel-cafes all offer- 
ing new shows and only the Beach- 
comber coming up with a change in 
lineup among the straight night- 
clubs. 

Pattern for all, however, saw 
little change in patronage, with 
fair to heavy first show attendance 
and offish second shows for most, 
thanks to hotel-cafe competition, 

Of that group, the Saxony’s Pagoda 
Boom and Casablanca's Club Mo- 
rocco offer two shows, nightly, de- 
spite early hour (1 a, m. ) shutoff, 
on entertainment, required of 
hotels by local law. Others run 
one: performance at 11:30 p.m. with 
adherence to serving of beverages 
only at $2-$2.5Q minimuhis; afore- 
mentioned duo Serve food and fol- 
low the nightclub practice of. as- 
sessing $2.50 libation charge for 
dinner guests and $5-$5.50 food or 
beverage rap at supper show. 

SAXONY HOTEL 
Los Chavales de Espana and 
Trini Reyes are back for a return 
run (6-8 weeks) in the swank Pa- 
goda Room. A click here last year, 
they’re now a more integrated 
group, with the mixture of instru- 
mental, vocal and dance a spar- 
kling hour of class entertainment. 
Careful staging pays off, with 
smooth interchange of position 
among the 11-man unit achiev- 
ing smooth flow and colorful de- 
sign that keeps the pace interest- 
ing and eye-holding throughout. 

Blend of Spanish and continental 
folk tunes, with stateside pops 
worked in, maintains . constant 
build. Vocalists handled by three 
of the company pre backed in pro- 
duction-like manner to add lift; 
violin segments are aligned in im- 
aginative position to heighten im- 
pact with response continuous. 

Senorita . (from . Manhattan) 
Reyes is now a key member of the 
group, and wraps up the revue 
with her flamenco and gypsy 
dances. First spot has her in tight- 
trousered costume, the heel-work, 
finger-sneppirg rhythms highlight- 
ing the mid-sequence. Return finds 
her in gay folk-costume for spins 
around stage and workin of two of 
the unit for an able assist. 

1 BEACHCOMBER 

Sophie Tucker’s contract with 
operators of this hugery calls for 
periodic breaks during the 14-week 
pact to. allow for restups. She’tf 
back for her third session, as 
resplendantly gowned as ever, 
heading up a diversified layout that 
contains the prime ingredients of 
a top variety show, plus a short af- 
terpiece to add *the revue flavor, 
with costarring Nat (King) Cole, 
Dick Shawn,, Harry Richman — 
permanent emcee — and the Amin 
Bros. 

Combo contains plenty patronage 
pull; with solid first shows and 
healthy midnight draw adding up 
to over 1,200 nightly — a profitable 
score at the $2.50 and $5.50 bever 
age minimums assessed. La Tucker 
comes - up with a newly-devised 
catalog in which she revives some 
of the specials written some years 
ago, brought up to date with new 
lyrics. 

This is a sound idea, the newer 
clubgoers among the tourists,* as 
well as the vets, accepting such 
comedy-lined numbers as “Horse 
Playin’ Papa’’as fresh r and funny 
stuff. Admixture contains the nos 
talgic as well, with the limning o 
tunes she’s brought out through 1 the 
years in show biz. Interchanges 
with Ted Shapiro, her invaluable 
accompanist and by now partner 
add to spicy items included, to 
keep them pounding for more 
through a tight 27 minutes. Has to 
beg off, per usual. 

Nat (King) Cole appeared in 
. these precincts for the first time 
last season at the much, smaller 
Giro's. In this big room he is as 
much at home as he was in the in- 
timery, and keeps building 
throughout. an extended stint which 
allows for full play df his record- 
ing hits. Mobile staging has him 
moving from mike to piano, with 
the tablers, after first few num- 
bers, calling for their particular 
fave6. 

Smooth, easy approach to his 
compound of torch and ballad 
tunes, with an occasional jump 
rhythm i inserted to. make for 
change of tempo is highly effective. 
The slim platterman has developed 
plenty savvy and showmanship 
since viewed last, for added im- 
pact that keeps the reaction on 
zirtgy keel throughout. 

YoUng Dick Shawn is another 
Rejrfprmqr, \vhp' started ,on jus way , 


up, from engagements at the better 
hostels here. Click in N, Y. added 
polish and clarity to his comedic 
styling, plus assured manner that 
bespeaks value of experience 
gained. Sets a fast pace and keeps 
the laughs mounting with fluid de- 
liyery, keeping them on the laugh 
side through a route that is fresh 
and original, from the spoof on 
“teen-days’’ routines through an in- 
cisive Billy Daniels takeoff com- ; 
plete to exaggerated weaving 
around mike. ; ...• 

It makes for a running gag for 
early portion, following by his no/ 
standard breakins to look for the 
imaginery uncle returning to the 
Shawns’ besieged . confederate 
homestead with the guns to fight 
off the invading Yankees. Tops 
matters with his lampoon on' 
crooner singing the aria from 
“Pagliacci” for a wrapup. 

Amin Bros., in teeoff spot, stop 
the show with their fantastic bal- 
ancing. and acro-vvork. The foot- 
to-head routines are brought off 
with precision, the sometimes' un- 
believable stunts bringing continued 
gasps and table-poundingi Harry 
Richman introes in suave, authen- 
tic' fashion, then joins the trio of 
toppers in a howl-making after- 
piece that has Miss Tucker coming 
“over the hill” ' with those guns 
Shawn has been waiting; for, Len 
Dawson and his orch rate kudos 
for their adept showbacking. 

NAUTILUS 

Phil Foster has long been a favor- 
ite in this area, with considerable 
following built through the seasons 
he’s played the better hotels and 
niteries. Draw value is confirmed 
with this engagement, the . Drift- 
wood room of this hospice jammed 
or opening night and heavy reser- 
vations on the books for his brief 
stay. 

Churns out his assortment of 
Brooklyn slanted yarns on child-? 
hood days, teenage problems and 
observations on modern methods 
of raising offspring to continued 
aughs. - Adds plenty new lines to 
sharpen the routines and inter-? 
weaves yockmakers on local types, 
hotel owners and guests in a solid 
40-minute canto that sustains hilar- 
ity throughout, with the aud still 
demanding more after several en- 
cores. 

Andre D’Orsay, colored songster, 
warms them quickly with well-bal- 
anced set of pops* purveyed in good 
style to earn healthy reception. An- 
tone & Ina hold over with their 
imaginative terps featuring lifts 
and spins. Syd Stanley and his 
orch have little to do in this lay- 
out, what with Foster eschewing 
use of any music, but handle back- 
grounding required in capable 
manner. 

DI LIDO HOTEL 

The Ritz Bros, opened this new 
est hostel at Christmas time and 
kept the Moulin Rouge room (450) 
packed for two weeks. Since then, 
the amphitheatre-shaped layout 
has seen sparse crowds, although 
booking in acts that have done well 
in the metropolitan centers — Mary 
McCarthy, Lisa Kirk,' Joyce Bry- 
ant, et al. The Ritz freres, back 
for another two frames, prove as 
potent pullers in mid-season as 
they did then, with first two nights 
biz seeing turnavvays by the seofe 
They’re the hottest act in town 
from walkon and workout of new 
number on arrival here, through 
standards — the gypsy mind-reader 
which allows full play for Harry’s 
ad libs and biz with ringsiders* the 
satire on Continental songsters, the 
dancing and “The Guy In The Mid 
die.” They keep the howls coming 
in multiplying stream. Insertion 
of another new sequence, a takeoff ] 
on Mexican disk jockeys, adds to 
the general hilarity. It’s a wrapup 
and a shot in the arm for a new 
hospice that was in the doldrums. 

. Sans Souci Hotel 
This mid-Beach smartspot has 
been on a “new face” (to the area) 
kick for several weeks, latest ex- 
ample being Carl Brisson. Room, 
for seasons, has been popular with 
the cafegoers around, but switch in 
policy has seen in and out results. 
Last feature, Mimi Benzell, did off- 
ish biz despite fact that she turned 
in a top job and was highly praised 
by local press. 

Brisson faces the same problem. 
The handsome Dane is as highly- 
polished and intelligently-staged a 
performer as any to play this re- 
sort, Showmanship is as immacu- 
late as his top-hatted attire with 
aud knowhow displayed through- 
out his 35 minute turn. Big open- 
ing-night crowd contained the so- 
ciety mob as well as the average 
vacationers. 


mike f qj .mobility* perching 4m top 
of chair for switch from the ring- 
side strolls, commands attention 
throughout. His is an adroitly 
planned book, from straight “With 
These Hands’Vto spoofing Texan 
bit, aud participating “Let Me Call 
You Sweetheart,” medley from 
“Hans Christian Andersen,” “Cock- 
tails For . Two” and “Roll Out The 
Barrel.” For the big bowoff there 
is his theme, “Little White Gar- 
denia.” ^Lighting is expert, in line 
with his expertly-contrived ap- 
proach, Sacasas orch handles the 
tricky arrangements superbly. . 

CASABLANCA 

This hotel’s operators are still 
trying ;to bring their Club Morocco 
into the heavy-draw class. Billy 
Daniels and a revue was first at- 
tempt at making the spot a must- 
visit along the glitter belt, with 
fair results and a small profit. Cur- 
rent installation has Betty “and 
Jane Kean and Jerry Vale with 
the June Taylor girls held over, 

'The comediennes are a; well- 
versed act, blit the tough competi- 
tion around . looks to negate any 
big crowd*. pull, although they’ve 
built a rep at Manhattan’s Copa- 
cabana . and other big niteries. 
There’s a chance, however, that ! 
word-of-mouth will aid in the build 
to wind them Winners— the duo’s 
compound being a funny affair that 
spurs the risibilities. 

.Their uninhibited antics include 
a yockful series of impreshes, sub- 
jects including Joe E. Lewis, 
Sophie Tucker, classic bits on Ar- 
thur Godfrey, Ed Sullivan, Jackie 
Gleason, Lena Horne, Polly Adler, 
Jane Russell and Marilyn Monroe. 
They don screwy outfits “to aid in 
the sight values, with Betty prov- 
ing a. top laugh inspirer and Jane 
a valuable straight Who can take 
on a comedy bit as well. Their 
material is original and brought 
Off with perfect timing*— added fillip 
comes with inserts of Betty’s sharp 
hoofing and Jane’s straight thrash- 
ing. 

Jerry Vale comes in with a rec- 
ord rep (Columbia); the good-look- 
ing lad sets up series of pops that, 
in the main, earn him healthy re- 
turns. Still needs work on deliv- 
ery, which at times, is stilted. Vo- 
cally he is fully equipped for the 
in-person bookings, and with ex- 
perience should develop into a 
prime songster along the cafe, cir- 
cuit. June -Taylor’s long-stemmers 
set up their precision routines ex- 
pertly, with costuming eye catching 
and terpability outstanding. 


serves as an object lesson to* the 
bleaters who attempt to coyer lack 
of vocal quality with exaggerated 
style tricks and detours around a 
melodic line that; they are unable 
to handle. The cafe circuit future 
of Miss Wright is extremely bright. 


BI«© Aagel, N« Y. 

Channing Pollock & Lady, Feli- 
cia Sanders, Burl Ives . Orson 
Bean; $5 minimum. 


'The . hoys and -girls in the back- 
V£ might be welt however, since room at this elegant East 55th SL 
she’s continuing to wear the “S,outh drop-in are currently diverted by 
Pacific” hairdo, to eliminate' the a shiny-smooth magician (Chan* 
long, dangling earrings. They. don't ning Pollock), a disk queen (Fe- 
fit. licia Sanders), a’ guitared and 

Stan Fisher, hartnonicist who goateed folklorist (Burl Ives) and 
gets the show off to a good start, a strange young man (Orson 
scores with some amazing technical Bean). It’s a four-week stand for 
work. He caters to the snob appeal the talent but double that for Miss 
with mouthorgah specialties of such -Sanders, playing her third repeat 
items as “Second Hungarian Rhap- at the boite. . 

i». the first Show 

o^er^He c^iWLdroi^one Uny’tsbles^Jvith^everV^e^^tice’of 

Similar editing Would 


with ease- 

help the DeMarlos, who have, five 


their hriet stints Footwise,. they’re ; talent 1 ”™* »■"- ! - PP *’ 

good, but some of the routining is ciauve OI xaipm * 


BUOU, . uui sums ui me ivumuiiib .io nrpcpnpp tViPrpnf ^ Was. in. the 

a little ponderous and the patter , . 

(as with most dance teams) could- 

stand some professional touches. .doves, 

Henry King orch is back in town Precision 

for excellent dance and showback- 1 cool-devil charm pf a master 


ing- stints, with Ann Anderson do- 
ing a good job on the band vocals. 
Tico Robbins rhumband alternates. 
~ • * Kap. 


Ln§t Frontier 9 Las Vegas 

, Las Vegas, Feb. 15. 
Ronald Redofin, Continentals 
(4) , Blackburn Twins with Evelyn 
Ward, Honey Bros. ( 3 ) , Last Fron- 
tier Girls (With Don Lurio), (11), 
Garwood Van Orch (11); no cover 
or minimum .- 


SIierry-Netherlaiid, N.V. 

Charlotte Rae; Lester Lanin and 
Jan Brunesco Orchs; $1.50 and 
$2.50 couvert. 


Ronald Reegan makes his nitery 
bow here with no particular act, 
yet the affable filmstar displays 
such a winning personality, ps he 
weaves in and out of show between 
acts, that his presence gives it a lift 
into the hit class. Package is in for 
two stanzas of assured biz. 

The Continentals, Blackburn 
Twins, Honey Bros , with Ivan Mc- 
Intyre, Continentals give show a 
strong male slant, although support 
isn’t fatal in view of talent load. 

Reagan opens With some solid 
humor and response loosens star to 
point where he is grinning all over. 
Irish and Dutch brogues get a 


sleight-of-hand operator. The so- 
phisticated crowd were as children 
before his suave bafflements. It 
helps with the gals that he is tall 
dark and h. 

The vocal style of Miss Sanders 
is very much her own. She has an 
enigma pair of laughing eyes, half 
shy, half caressing. Above these 
she sports a pair of extremely 
arched eyebrows, She leaves the 
impression of an attractive young 
artist. : who Will mature into a 
greater one. Her material could 
be stronger. She needs at least 
one sock number. 

Massah Ives with his red waist- 
coat, velvet jacket and splendid 
chin-whiskets Was Characterized 
by Bean" as one who converted folk 
music into; fun for highbrows, or 
words to that general effect. The 
observation needs no improving. 
Ives again demonstrated his ca- 
pacity to beguile. He has a great 
advantage for tile long pull in show 
business in that he’s practically 
the only one in his private, sub- 
section of superior hillbilly enter- 
taining. 

Then there’s Bean, as much dis- 
covered this year as was'Imogene 
Coca in, say, 1934. His. comic ma< 


workout.. He intros all the acts and . 
makes strongest appearance with terial is, of course, not as fresh 
the Continentals in “Sweet A<Je- as he makes it seem. That is his 


Charlotte Rae is another intime 
boite alumna who is making the 
grade in the “uptown” class hotel 
rooms. She has progressed well 
since her break-in at the Village 
Vanguard, in New York’s Greenwich 
Village, and now commands atten- 
tion in faster company. 

She is savvy in capitalizing on 
her personality; such as a “Diet” 
number (being inclined to pleasant 
plumpness herself); and her strik- 
ing reminiscence of Kthel Merman, 
in hoydenish mien and manner, 
keys for a strong Merman medley 
finale. In between, she runs the 
gamut from saucy lyrics like, 
“Lechery,” ballads like “Happiness 
Called Joe,” a Hokinson-type 
femme lecturer on primitive ani- 
mals and the like. Her satire is 
broad but funny,, albeit sometimes 
it makes for unsubtleties. 

This class Serge Obolensky bis- 
tro has two sprightly dansapation 
groups in the Lester Lanin orch 
and the Jart Brunesco gypsy en- 
semble who match the Old World 
atmosphere of the Napoleonic 1 
decor, Abel. 


line,” barber shop vocal.. He shines 
as Dutch-jargon bartender in a 
beer-selling bit, a scene that is ac- 
tually overlong and left dangling, 
which with cutting to a punch fin? 
ish would prove A standout. 
k Top honors belong to the Con- 
tinentals, who sock over their ma- 
terial with gusto for applause reac- 
tion. From “Dragnet” opening to 
“Donkey . Serenade,” with appro- 
priate sound effects, harmony and 
arrangements are ear-catchers, 
“Flight of the Bumblebee,” whis* 
tied by Bob Gat’sen, is good. Med- 
ley of spirituals and the “Birch 
Tree,” in Russian, bring raves. Top- 
per is ‘-‘Casey At the Bat,’’ musical 
skit with Garsen as the whimsical, 
redoubtable Casey. 

Blackburn Twins work smoothly 
with Evelyn Ward. Good-looking 
femme stands out if only because 
stage abounds with so many males, 
although., she does possess fine 
singing and terp talent. Twins are 
convincing enough - that they are 
images in “This Guy Reminds Me 
of Me,” and “Reflections In A Mir- 
ror,” which is good choreo job. 
They work well wjjh femme in “A 
Fine Romance” and “I’m A Lady 
From St. Louis.” 


art, ail art which Alexander Wooll- 
cott developed. One story of 
Bean’s was really lifted right out 
of the classic British “Albert and 
the Lion” but only at the very 
end, like a Woollcott re-do, was the 
story recognized. A point in Bean’s 
favor, career-wise, is that he is 
something of a character actor, 
even so young, as well as a mono- 
logist. Many of the great mono* 
logists pf the past; such as Will 
Fyffe, were so endowed. Not that, 
as yet, Bean is entitled to be put 
in the . company of the well-re- 
membered Scot. Land. 


Arison, 


working 


a hand 

o)i • or 


Ambassador Hotel, L. A. 

Los Angeles, Feb. 17. 

• Martha Wright, De Marios (2.), 
Stan Fisher, Henry King Orch 
(14), Tico Robbins Rhumband 
(5); $2 cover. 


Just a little trimming is needed 
to make this one of the best all- 
around entertainment packages of- 
fered at this Schine circuit jostelry 
in some time. It measures up to 
audience demands neatly in all re- 
spects, save for the fact that two 
of the three acts stay on perhaps 
three minutes too long. Cutting 
would eliminate the only lag. 

Wliat boosts this Cocoanut Grove 
layout is the stellar presence of 
Martha Wright, late of “South Pa- 
cific,” who is about the most wel- 
come addition to the ranks of cafe 
singers in some time. This gal 
sings. No tricks, no frills, no ob- 
scuring of the melody line. She 
lias, a fine voice and she uses it 
well. And she’s up there fop a total 
of 30. minutes to generally rapt and 
well-deserved attention. 


Thnnderblrd, Lm Vegns 

Las Vegas, Feb. 18. 
Four Aces, Mickey Shaughnessy, 
Irving Fields Trio, Rafael & Pari- 
sienrie Models (3 ) , Barney ■ Rawl- 
ings, Duffy Dansations (8):, Al 
Jdhn3 Orch (10); no cover or 
minimum. 


Four Aces toplines a sparkling 
little revue, and with a big assist 
by comic. Mickey Shaughnessy, 
three-framer should prove a good 
biz-inducer as soon • as word gets 
around. Only bad feature Js that 
Four Aces follow Shaughnessy. 


Honey Bros. ^ are trio of aero- Producer . Hall Braudis would give 
dancers who ^ deliver thrills and group a better break to build anew, 
comedy adeptly enough in an act if line number were to separate 
thm s a bit long. Ad lib leaps and two acts rather than be placed as 
midair ^somersaults^ are good bjT finale. It’s tough to keep upbuild- 
knOCkabOUterS, while • business in? nr mflintnininir th#» Vtam set-hv 


among dinets does not catch on as 
well. Bob. 


Hole! Jefferson, SI. V.. 

TSt. Louis, Feb. 18. 
Marshall A Farrell, Leroy Bros. 
(2 ) , Heller & Helene, Hal Havird 
Orch (8); $i-$lv50. 


ing or maintaining the pace set by 
Shaughnessy. 

Aces bow in Vegas with numbers 
that marked rise of the four. 25- 
minute songalog has sock- opener 
in “Tell Me Why” penned and 
intro’d by group. “Honey In The 
Horn” is good saga of a trumpeter 
and, having quickly caught on, they 
put over a stirring “My Hero” 
from “The Chocolate Soldier.” 
Highspot offering is their fave 
Rotund Shaughnessy, sporting a 


Youth is prevalent in the current 
layout at this No. 1. downtown spot 

with Marshall & Farrell, comic and „ 

warbling duo, grabbing top honors, crewcut . this trip, is’ big yock- 
Marshall, with fine baritone pipes netter, narrating music-hacked 
and' diction, socks, over his ditties, Stories and tossing around brogues 
with the bespectacled Farrell hand- and characters old and . young at 


line the comedy stuff with some 
neat tap steps and prattfalls. 

Session tees off with Heller & 
Helene, in a graceful ballroom 
routine that scored .solidly. Femme, 


will. Topper of show is comic’s 
emulation of precocious juvenile 
who invades the cinema and gan- 
ders a Gene Autry flicker. 

Irving Fields Trio is a smooth 


a shapely redhaired looker, and the musical holdover that features 
husky male also toss in some stylish Fields in a fast ivory-tickling ses- 
acro stuff along with the twists and Sion with “Mambo Jambo,” and a 
twirls. Their lnterp of “Park Ave. history of famed pianists. Chords 
Polka” cops a fine hand, as does, identifying each, are played, to good 
for a. change of pace, their Gay '90s response. “Americana,” Fields 
routine. oldie, is Well received. 

The Leroy Bros., puppeteers, have Rafael, aided by blonde twins, 
one of the; best such acts to visit is an interesting act, with French- 
this room. The hula hula dancer; man displaying clever hands in hat- 
a puppet inflating a rubber baUpon making routine. He is .also adept 
until ft bursts; Gene Krupa beating at splits in brief dance, and torso- 
the skins until the drums explode, contortionist, and looks' tiny be- 
and a Jimmy Durante burlesque, tween the good-looking Amazons 
are highlights of the routines. who provide window dressing. 
<>''? xanu . . [ r9 /i rig.r iiiif c) ‘..yw***’" 


Wednes^ty, February 24, 1954 


NIGHT CLUB REVIEWS 


55 


Retel New Yorker, N* Y* 

“Silhouette* On Ice,” with Jo 
Barnum, Ed fr Wilma Leary , Ben 
nova Line <5), Steve Kisley Orch 
(8) with Dee Drummond; $1 and 
$2 cover*. 

The Hotel New Yorker has come 
up with another neat ice package 
for the Terrace Room. Produced 
k v Ed & Wilma Leary, who also 
perform in the show, the current 
layout has a Parisian: motif and it 
runs offfast and colorfully. 

Petite Jo Barnum, reputed to be 
a direct descendant of P. T. Bar- 
mini. headlines with a Skillful dis- 
play of pirouettes and split jumps. 
The small rink frames her well 
and, in two numbers, she runs 
through .a full bag of bladester 
stunts for a solid mitt payoff. 

Highspot of the Show . ar^ Ben 
Dova’s circus antics on the ice. 
This is a kndbkabput comedy turn 
in which Dova takes some hard 
falls. Hfe climaxes his drunk act 
by climbing Up a 12-foot prop 
lamppost to teeter in a wide arc 
over the bandstand. It’s a scarify- 
ing bit that’s pehaps too strong for 
a dinner accompaniment. 

The Learys are spotted in a cou- 
ple of numbers, best being an 
apache turn in; Which the femme 
partner is whirled around an inch 
off the ice. They are a goodlooking 
pair With considerable flair for 
dramatic impact. The Learys also 
\vork with the line of four girls 
and one male in a brace of produc- 
tion numbers keyed to a tour of 
Paris. A flashy Afro-Cuban turn 
by the company makes a strong 
windup. 

Steve Kisley ’s orch, featuring the 
maestrb’s fiddle, cuts the . show in 
spirited style: with vocalist Dee 
Drummond supplying the produc- 
tion vocals. Kisley ’s eight-man 
combo, including three reeds and 
solo trumpet, also supplies polished 
customer dansapation rhythms be- 
tween shows with Miss Drummond 
contributing pleasing vocals on bal- 
lads and rhythm numbers. 

' Herm. 


though he’s only batting .500 with 
this current sesh. 

Clicko newcomer here, although 
he’s played some other small rooms 
in town, is Jimmie Komack. Young- 
ster is full of appealing energy 
and wry special song material, a 
package that should keep him mow 
ing arouild the intimery belt and 
provoke $ome legit, interest. After 
a breezy opener about "opening 
numbers,” Komack parodies Holly- 
wood oaters, the current pop hit, 
“Rags to Riches,” the Gabor Sisters 
and the N.Y. Daily News. Most of 
the material may be a bit too cere- 
bral for overall impact but. he’s 
socko with the hepsters. 

His turn could use some tighten- 
ing for better effect. He’s stronger 
at the finish than at the beginning, 
and if he’d prune some of the early 
stuff he'd be a Winner from the 
start. : 

The room’s keyboard regulars, 
Downey & Harold Fonville, on the 
duo-piano, and Hazel Webster, 
soloing, continue to offer a delight- 
ful repertoire of show tunes. FOn- 
ville also supplies the backing for 
Komack’s turn While . Downey ac- 
comps the femme trio. Gros. 


Billy Gray’s, L. A. . 

Los Angeles, Feb. 15. 
Buddy Lester, Leo Diamond;, 
Joyce Taylor, Band Box Five ; $3 
minimum. 


By the time Buddy Lester had 
gone through his initial show at 
the Band Box it was apparent to 
all concerned that Sammy Lewis 
has another comic to add to his ror 
tating stable. This is Lester’s first 
Coast date, and he has made an 
immediate and particularly strong 
impression. 

A standup comic with a zany 
line, Lester dishes it out for better 
than 40 minutes, seldom getting 
worse than a chuckle for material 
that involves prop hats, bad puns, 
sly digs and outright insults. It’s 
in the delivery that his material 
registers best — and any new (to 
the Coast at least) comic who can 
draw steady reaction from the cog- 
noscenti of this spot, where the 
trade includes many of the town’s 
gagwriters, knows he’s made it." 

Layout this time has plenty of 
music in addition to the usual 
comedy, Leo Diamond, currently 
riding the crest of a Waxworks 
Wave with "Off Shore,” is around 
for aboUt 14 minutes of good har- 
monica work, impressing with 
stunts involving various gimmicks 
including an electronic harmonica 
and a vibreharmonica. For them 
a* digs the mouth organ, it’s ex- 
ceptionally good stuff. For run of 
the mill nitery audiences, how- 
ever, he’s on at least one number 
too many. 

Joyce Taylor, Mercury chirp, 
makes her bow here with an effec- 
tive 15-minute turn that shows a 
lot of promise; An eye-and-ear 
filling young chirp, shes’ new to 
niteries and needs to develop a 
feeling for audiences and means of 
establishing the rapport that makes 
a singer click. She shows a lot of 
promise, however, and with the 
right guidance could easily make 
the grade. This time out she's of- 
fering four ■ numbere, ' of which 
"Lonesomest Gal,” because of its 
Kay Starr connotations, might bet- 
ter be dropped. Of the others, 
"Take My Love” is best, / 

Band Box has a neW musical 
combo dishing some excellent 
musical backing, with Pete Can- 
doli on trumpet, Rbbert Clark on 
piano and Frank Capp on drums 
joining regulars Al Viola on guitar 
and Allen- Burns bn bass. Kap. 


Ritz Carlton, Montreal 

Montreal, Feb. 12. 

■Bethe Douglas, Johnny Gallant, 
Joe Settano Trio; $l-$2 cover. 

In a room noted for handsome 
chirpers and individual personal- 
ities, Bethe Douglas, a tall redhead 
by way of Dallas, Tex., ranks near 
the top on both scores. This is 
Miss Douglas’ first appearance in 
Montreal’s best intimery, the Ritz 
Cafe, and despite the fact that she 
does only English numbers (a rare 
exception ; in this bilingual boite), 
she looks good for a return engage- 
ment. 

Elegantly gowned and with an 
appealing voice that belies a some- 
what ordinary songalog, Miss 
Douglas is best when on a ballad 
theme such as “Paradise” or a sul- 
try interp of "Do It Again,” which 
she uses for a solid clincher. 

A, rather demure, uncertain man- 
ner at the mike takes the edge off 
her calypso offering and her pat- 
ter, although brief, does little to 
overall projection which lacks the 
expected warmth. Arrangements 
for the most part are above stand- 
ard, but additional material of a 
more specialized nature is needed 
to lift this attractive chanteuse out 
of the average groove. Miss Doug- 
las gets able support from pianist 
John Gallant and guitarist Pat Set- 
tano during the Session with dan- 
sapation sets being taken- by the 
Settano Trio. Newt. 


Mocambo* Hollywood 

Hollywood, Feb. 16. 
Norman Brooks, Paul Hebert 
Orch (7); $2 cower. 

Lack of an act Will hurt Norman 
Brooks’ debut at the Mocambo and 
the Current fortnight looks like one 
of the milder segments of the year 
as far as nitery auditing is con-: 
cerned. Chief difficulty is that the 
ringsider can’t get anything more 
out of Brooks’ 25-minute turn than 
he could get—and cheaper— out Of 
listening to 25 minutes of Jolson 
records. 

Brooks’ chief difficulty is that 
he has an uncanny vocal resem- 
blance to Jolson— but- he doesn’t 
have the personal magnetism that 
made Joly a grdat performer. Lat- 
ter, of course, never bad great 
platter or radio impact until after 
the biofilm. 

' : A specially-written act might 
help him overcome the weakness in 
the present turn. At the least, it 
could overcome some of the in- 
genuous patter. 

’ Opening night here, of course. 
Brooks was . further hampered by a 
bad case of nerves, But he moved 
earily through the : singing portion 
of the turn; recreating; such items 
as “Best Things In Life Are Free,” 
“They Say It’s Wonderful” and 
“Anniversary Sonig,” among others. 
He also essays some tributes to 
Cantor, Richman and Chevalier but 
these, because of the voice, have 
the flavor of a Joly imitation of 
these singers. 

As a once-around thff circuit at- 
traction, Brooks can get by. For 
repeat biz, he’ll have to build an 
act. ■ 

Paul Herbert orch, backing him 
here, does a fine job. Kap. 


Latin Quarter, Boston 

“The Big Payoff,” with Magda 
Gabor, Gabe Dell, Fran Keegan, °\ 
Ronnie Cunningham, Winson & 
Mixon, Big Payoff Models (3 ) ; 
Harry De Ahge lis Orch (8) , 
Zarde Bros. Trio ; $3 min., $1 en- 
tertainment charge. 


One Fifth Ave., N« Y* 

Jimmie Komack, Chatmonizers 
<3 ) , Bob Downey. & Harold Fon- 
ville, Hazel Webster ; no cover or 
minimum. 


Bob Downey’s intimery on lower 
Fifth Ave., N:Y., has developed a 
solid rep over the years as an in- 
cubator for new talent. Spot has 
repeatedly gambled on new faces 
and, more times than not, the tyros 
have paid off. Downey’s picking 
average continues high even 


time afterward. Were. there a full 
show, every facet woiild make a 
greater impact.' 

The fact that a longer show is 
necessary, and undoubtedly will 
go in, is seen . by the fact that 
many customers leave - after the 
harpist goes off. Singer Anne Dun- 
can goes on much later. The spend- 
ers therefore aren’t around for the 
extra quaff, which is where the 
profits come in. 

Miss St Cyr is in on a per- 
centage deal, and thus the incen- 
tive for the customers to hang 
around is essential: At the same 
time, the heavier surrounding 
show is essential to set Miss St. 
Cyr off properly, give her a more 
suitable buildup and give the cus- 
tomers greater justification for the 
$3.50 minimum. 

The path Miss St. Cyr is follow- 
ing has already been blazed by 
Gypsy Rose Lee. However, Miss 
Lee is inclining more to the lit- 
erary set. She’s more at home now 
at an author’s tea. Sally Rand has 
lectured to Advertising clubs on 
the need of more white space. Miss 
St. Cyr, at this point still sticks 
to her original last, And for (hat 
the burlesque circuits and many 
nitery operators are grateful. 

Jose. 



From 52d St to Park Ave 
Still Is toyal to 


Figuring that nitery audiences 
are people, and therefore not 
averse to picking up few knick- 
nacks (including a mink coat) in Re- 
turn for a few minutes of onstage 
kibitzing and quizzing, plus the 
correct answers, “The Big Payoff” 
is currently taking, a flyer in the 
nitery belt. Teeing off at the Latin 
Quarter, the “Payoff,” at initialer, 
had several minor flaws, the first 
being the lack of sufficient time to 
screen and pick the more unin 
hibited contestants. 

Quizzees ' are selected on the 
strength of answers on the infor- 
mation forms distributed at the 
tables, plus a necessarily short in- 
terview by director Art Stark. The 
second, which can easily be rem- 
edied, was the bypassing of the 
standard warmup session before 
the actual quizzing gets underway. 
(In succeeding shows Madga Gabor 
launched into a five-minute spiel, 
explaining the rules, making With 
chitchat and in general breaking 
the barrier.) 

As for the format; the quizzing, 
limited to male members of the 
contesting pair, although all gifts 
are for the femmes, is interspersed 
with okay bits of terping and vocal- 
izing by the redhaired Ronnie Cun- 
ningham, some slick terping by the 
mixed duo Winson & Mixon, and 
the showcasing of the gift gowns 
and trappings by the shapely mod- 
els Gloria Mosolino, Marla Vernay 
and Janie Janvier. Glamorous Ga- 
bor in addition to modelling the 
grand prize: mink coat, interviews 
the contestants in easy fashion, dig- 
ging out 'pertinent facts from the 
more reticent, meanwhile adding 
eyelure. The actual quizzing is han- 
dled by Gabe Dell, while blonde 
looker Fran Keegan is- the general 
emcee. Stint winds with three pairs 
of contestants onstage, the femme 
members draping the males with 
bolts of cloth in a quickie dress- 
making contest. Gimmick is cute 
and nabs yocks. 

Musical portion is slicklv han 
died by Harry Angelis’ crew with 
Zarde Bros, trio filling the. lulls. 

J * Eire. 


Foirmoiit llfiteL $. F. 

Dorothy Shay, Ernie Heckscher- 
Orch ( 10 ) ; $2 cover charge. 


Lili St, Cyr is now installed in 
one of the tonier sections of New 
York. Making the jump from a 
West 52d St. spot to an East 52d 
St. cafe is like going from Wool- 
Worths to Bergdorf Goodman. Miss 
St. Cyr has made the jump with 
her debut in at the . Park Ave. 
Restaurant. Her previous N. Y. 
stand was at ; the Samoa, 

The stripteuse, however, shows 
no indication of abandoning her 
choice of spots/ Two weeks ago she 
stepped out qf a long and record- 
breaking engagement at Minsky’s 
Adams Theatre, Newark. She’s 
slated for a fling at the El Rancho, 
Las Vegas, and when th? whim or 
the lure of the tall coin overcomes 
her, it’s as likely she’ll play the 
burlesqueries again. It’s something 
a performer would rarely think of 
doing — go back to burlesque after 
getting accustomed to stands in 
the upper strata 4 . It would virtual- 
ly be tantamount to Phil Silvers 
going to work on the Hirst and 
Midwest circuits all over again. 
But Miss St. Cyr, it seepis, can 
flit between the demimonde and 
the hautmonde without injulry to 
her professional position and cer- 
tainly no damage to her purse. 

The engagement at the Park 
Ave. may indicate the universal 
appeal of the body beautiful or an- 
other example of the spread of 
the stripteuse to the more elegant 
centres of entertainment. It’s noted 
that Lee Sharon is a holdover on 
the bill at the Latin Quarter. 
Should this trend continue, it’s 
likely that the major N. Y. boni- 
faces will be scouting acts at the 
Samoa. 

Miss St. Cyr, with her debut at 
the Park Ave*, has in a sense 
caused a transformation in the 
Johnny Ruggierio spot, The oper- 
ator has refurbished his upstairs 
room and has an elevated stage 
that has been decorated by 
Sloane’s, no less. The setting de- 
picts a livingroom, but with an 
odd addition— a bathtub, latter be- 
ing an essential part of the St, Cyr 
forensics. . ' 

The transformation is also en- 
hanced by the fact that the accom- 
paniment comes from the most ele- 
gant of all instruments, a harp, ex- 
pressively Worked over by Gene 
Bianco. The impact that the di- 
vesture makes under the stringed 
background is more pronoun- ed. 
Miss St; Cyr, in the ultra atmos- 
phere of this setting, gives a 14- 
minute performance. There’s a 
touch of Liberace in the act. STie 
lights a couple of wall candelabra. 
She makes her entrance in mink, 
does her boudoir act, and makes 
an exit in the swish of silks. It’s 
artistically done. 


San Francisco, Feb. 16. 
Dorothy Shay has achieved her 
objective of blending the new with 
t lie-old in her new stance, a goal 
she’s had in mind for some time 
and has been building up to 
for several sessions, Discarding 
straightaway ballads as a forte, 
she has effectively fused her hill- 
billying with specialties of new 
vintage, with the residue a solid 
compote of past and present song- 
festing, Moreover, she’s segued her 
text so that the sum total rolls 
along With logical sequence and. 
impact, 

Garbed in a flashing gold sequin 
dinger, she takes off easily with a 
warmer, “Just a Friendly Feeling,” 
and then; follows with a scorer, “If 
It Weren’t for Your Father,” which 
brings a big mitt. From then on it’s 
a succession of clickers paced by 
pert chatter and usual strong hand- 
out of eye-value, . 

These, include “Television is 
Tough on Love” and “Travelling 
Man,” which is effectively 1 staged 
as well as sung, A new item for the 
local set, which she intros as a 
madrigal, is “She Was One of the 
Front Row Gals;” This is of the 
usual top entertainment level 
pitched by Shay and scores for top 
kudos. Equally impacty is “Why, 
Shore, % which if not blue is also 
not quite bleach. 

For encores 'Miss Shay rests with 
her fave “Feudin.’ ” As a closer 
there is her inevitable “Uncle 
Fudd,” Which remains a demand- 
piece, time notwithstanding, Miss 
Shay has had a Frisco fandom 
since her first engagement but her 
current run looks hef best to date, 

Ted. 


Dllnslrab^ Bolton ' 

Betty Clooney, Rudells (9) , Nor* 
ton & Patricia, O’Dells (2 ), Dolores 
Ritter, Michael Gaylord Orch (7), 
Lou Weir; $2 min. 

Boston, Feb. 16. 

Judging from her initial: outing 
here, which garnered slick reaction 
from the opening-night ringsiders, 
Betty Clooney* the lesser-known of 
the former band vocalist sister 
team, should have little difficulty 
carving her own solo nlcne in the 
vocalizing field. Attractive, person- 
able and sliowwise, the gal -s forte 
appears to be with thfc moire 
rhythmical tunes, such as “Ballin’ 
the Jack” and “Deed I Do,” deliv- 
ered with a nice beat in a slightly 
husky voice.: 

However, her ballading of the 
“April in Paris” and “Easy to Re- 
member” variety is also okay, and 
at the. opener her entire stint Was 
well received/ She’s fast in the 
banter department and when 
caught, inserted a couple of extra 
(and unrehearsed) numbers re- 
quested by a group of the boys on 
a night out. Lone letdown in an 
otherwise nifty songalog is the bit 
anent sister Rosemary titled “I’ll 
Never Get Married,” interpolating 
a few bars of her famed “Come On 
A My House." 

.Balance of bill is par for the 
Blinstrub course, opening with the 
leggy Dolores cavorting through a 
sesh of Latino-flavored tap steps 
for okay results. In the followups 
slot, the O’Dells, a mixed pair, 
score strongly with a nifty aero 
stint featuring lifts and head-to- 
heads and bits of ■Indian club jug- 
gling; Norton & Patricia, recent 
Winners of a tv contest* are: a 
graceful pair of youthful terpsters 
whose output consisting of .lively 
stepping and accelerated twirls 
stack as one of the most refreshing 
terp duos to hit here in sometime. 
Youngsters’ enthusiasm: and skill 
make a strong impresh on the 
audience. 

The laugh department is In the 
capable hands of the Rudells, two 
boys and a femme, whose zany 
antics on a trampoline provoke 
heavy yocks. In addition to clown- 
ing, the trio display topnotch tricks 
with entire sesh receiving hefty 
palm action. 

As usual, the musical back- 
grounding is solid, with pianist 
Nelson Hall handling the batoning 
vice Michael Gaylord, absent due' 
to illness. Lou Weir fills In the 
lulls with his Hammond organ 
melodies. Elie. 


Xew Golden* Reno 

Reno. Feb. 17. 

Four Lads, Jay Jason, Tony 
Wing, Sterling Young Orch; no 
cover or minimum. 


Statler Hotel, L A. 

Los Angeles, Feb. 12. 

. Carmen Torres, Cardlni,. Johnny 
Bachemin, Frankie Carle (13) & 
Ron Perry (5) Orchs; $2 cover. 

Bit of class is offered by the Ter- 
race Room for its new show with 
booking of spot’s first straight sing- 
ing star, Carmen Torres, whose 
coloratura chirping is somewhat 
doWnbeated for this saloon’s trade 
by her general choice of songs. 
Such standards as dancer Johnny 
Bachemin and magician Cardini 
find greater hand appeal and fill 
out the 50-minute show. 

Latin looker, who makes good 
use of her pipes, is better known 
abroad for her operatic and concert 
work than in this country, although 
she was featured at the class Ver- 
sailles in N. Y. and toured with 
Danny Kaye. A dramatic song- 
stress, she shows her operatic 
training in every number during 
her 20-minute stand nightly. Open- 
ing night, applause was polite rath- 
er than vociferous. 

Canary’s best-received numbers 
are a pair from “Kismet” and the 
finale “That’s Amdre,” in which 
she finally, gets in stride. “Begin 
the Begiiine” is a number she col- 
ors dramatically, and she lapses 
into French for “Come Back to 
Me, ’’.for which she wrotfe the lyrics. 

Bachemin combines a couple of 
songs and some fine piano mastery 
with his eccentric and stylized 
brand of dancing Which catches the 
crowd. Cardini’s wizardy with such 
props as cards; balls and lighted 
Which he continually is 


The Four Lads have been hold- 
ing to a pretty fair three shows a 
night. Loaded individually with 
talent, the foursome manages to 
display each one to full advantage 
without overshadowing the group. 
In the solo jobs, there’s an excel- 
lent effect when one of the Lads 
moves from the group to play a 
beautiful trumpet for “Oh Mein 
Papa” while trio sings in subdued 
blue light. 

Real identification of style and 
sound comes late for the quartet. A 
clever intro, then spiritual “Rain, 
Rain, Rain,” followed by “Maggie,” 
are all fine enough, but it Is not 
until .“My Blue Heaven” that the 
group is fully identified. Here on 
out, the path is familiar to fans. 
“I Should Have Told You Long 
Ago,” hacking of “Istambul,” is 
recognized as a record hit. 

Jay Jason keeps the light crowds 
fairly happy. His stories gain 
momentum as the evening pro- 
gresses, so that the 3 a.m, crowd 
lavishes the most plaudits. 

Tony Wing keeps close to the 
ground with his dancing in the 
opening slot in this show. Terry 
True’s line is budgeted /out of the 
Golden lineup until spring. Ster- 
ling Young gives vigorous hacking 
fto Lads’ arrangements. Mark. 


current setup, , inasmuch as an in 
.complete show surrounds her. 
j Miss St. Cyf gbes on, winds .up, 
jind* tlitf ‘harpist* ‘dorrtihties l ror a 


Starlight Hub* Mplff. 

Minneapolis, Feb. 20. 
Lenny Collyer, Bob it Dianne, 
Jimmy Hegg, Kay ’ Ramin Orch 
( 4 ) ; no cover or minimum. 

This unpretentious show is first- 
rate In its own way* providing 
pleasing entertainment. 

Comedian Leiiny Collyer keeps 
the c u s t o m e r s' continuously 
amused with his patter, impres- 
sions and clowning. A funny, ver- 
sion of Red Skelton’s “Guzzlers* 
Gin” tv shenanigans scores strong- 
ly. Clever takeoffs on various 
well-known singers, also cop ap- 
proval; 

Bob & Dianne’s daring whirl- 
wind stunts are climaxed smartly 
when the man spins at a swift pace 
with the girl suspended from him 
by one ankle, gyrating wildly. ' 

, Owner Jimmy H^gg is a likable 
! host and emcee and the Ray Kam- 
his band backs Miss Torres and | in orchestra performs its patron 

dancing and show backing chores 
capably. Rees . 


cigarets, 

snatching out of the ozone, is pleas 

However, there’s one flawjn the aptly amazing. 


Frankie Carle emcees show and 


??Uve p « rs 


5 * UBCinMATB 


Wednesday, February 24 , 1954 


IT TAKES A LOT OF DO-RE-MI 
(To do a show) 

(To be sung by producers at backers' auditions) . 

By RAY GOLDEN 

When some prehistoric showman • 

Got that play-producing crave 

There was nothing very complicated to it 

He would merely make a clearing 

In some re-upholstered Cave 

Pull his Cast together by the hair— and do it! 

He didn’t spend a fortune just to clothe his chorus 
They danced around in tiger-skin or brontosaurus 
He charged no fee— and paid no cash 
The shows were free — and what a smash! 

But this' you see — is just rehash-ing. ancient history . . * 

Just ask a play producer how it goes today. 

And please get out your check-books while I sayl 

It takes a lot of do-re-mi to do a show 

The settings just won't come until the dollars go— 

Without that everloving greenback 
They yank the scene back. 

It takes a lot of jack 'to get a Jill to act 
A bankroll that is round and firm and* fully packed 
On stage an actor can’t get passionate 
Unless there’s cash in it. " ; 

Highbrow! LOwdown! Gotta get their dough down; 

Sad or funny they, all need the money. 

It takes a lot of bills to make them bill and coo 
Canaries will not warble for an I.O.U. 

You gotta give a gal a G-note 
To hit that C-note 

It takes a lot of bucks to get that buck and wing 
Without that legal tender they won’t fling a thing 
Before a dancer tour-jete’s off. ' 

Somebody pays off. 

It takes a lot of loot to get those boffs and yocka 
To dig up laughs you gotta dig around Fort Knox 
A comic has. no sensayuma, Without maziima . 

Hope or Benny cost a pretty penny 
And Tallulal\ mutters where’s the moolah? ” 

And so to sum it up— by now you all should know. 

It takes a lot of C. 6. D. to S. R. O. 

It takes a lot, hoy of what you got, boy 

So be an angel and 

Put something, in the pot. boy , . . 

It takes a lot of do-re-mf to Do . . . A ♦ . • Show! 


Richard Rodgers left last week 
for a month’s motor trip through 
the . south, his first vacation in 
many years . . . Now it’s Henry 
Sherek who’s planning a musical 
edition! of “Pygmalion.” He Wants 
Sandy Wilson, author of the new 
London hit, “The Boy Friend,” tp 
do the adaptation and supply the 
songs, with Margaret Lockwood 
and George Sanders to play the 
leads. Gabriel Pascal will be part- 
nered in the production , . . Mrs. 
Robert Rapport, wire of. the gen- 
eral manager of “Teahouse of the 
August Moon” and “Dial M for. 
Murder,” sails March 11 on the 
lie de France for a European va- 
cation . . . Richard Watts Jr., in 
one of his “Random Notes on This 
and That” columns in the N. Y. 
Post last week; wrote, “Hedda Hop- 
per’s recent shocked denunciation 
of 4 The Immoralist/ Which she 
hadn’t seen, , made me sorry I 
couldn’t have given a more favor- 
able notice to the Gide dramatiza- 
tion.” 

Producer John J. Wildberg was 
recently tagged with judgments for 
$1,496 and $2,251 in N. Y. Supreme 
Court. Actions were brought by 
the N. Y. State Industrial Com- 
missioner and represented delin- 
quent unemployment insurance 
payments from Wildberg’s 1950-51 
production of “Black Cniffon” ... 
Edwin Bronr.er, whose “The In- 
truder” Was tried out on the road 
last season with Eddie Dowling as 
director and costar with Margaret 
O’Brien, has an account of the fias- 
co in the recent issue of The Amer- 
ican Writer, . published by the 
Authors League of America. 

Susan Hight, the misssion doll 
of “Guys and Dolls” touring com- 
pany, waV honored J>y her alma 
mater. New England Conservatory 
of Music, at an assembly * in Bos- 
ton last week. Maureen McNalley 
of the cast, is also a grad of the 
Conservatory, Barbara Allen, 
“Guys and Dolls” chorine, out of 
the cast for a. week due to sprained 
back suffered during a routine in 
the show, 

Henry Hewes, second-string dra- 
ma critic ‘and reporter for the Sat- 
urday Review, left for London last 
week, to be gone about a month 
... Renee Jeanmaire, costar with 
Charles Goldner in “Girl in Pink 
Tights,” opening this week, is the 
subject of a front-cover- feature in 
the current Look mag, and a piece 
by Henry Hewes in last week’s Sat- 
urday Review, besides articles in 
the weekend issues of the New 
York dailies. The Rehearsal Club, 
New York boarding house for 
aspiring young actresses, is also 
covered in a picture spread in the 
current Look . . . Gilbert Miller will 
present the Edward Chodorov com- 
edy, “Oh Men, Oh Women” in 
London this spring. . 

-.-Virginia de Luce, recently in 
; Jsew Faces,” will do a USO tout 


of the Missouri and Kansas area in 
“Kiss Me, Kate,” playing opposite 
her husband, Rick Rlccardo, a war- 
rant officer at Ft. Riley . , . Ger- 
trude Macy sailed Wednesday 17) 
to attend the London preem of “I 
Am a Camera” . . . Jack Schlissel 
is general company-manager, Mar- 
ian Bryam and Phyllis Perlman 
are pressagents, with David Powers 
associate, Samuel Liff production 
stage manager, Len Bedsow stage 
manager, Charles Mlllang assistant 
and Molly Leonard production sec- 
retary, for “By the Beautiful Sea.” 

Ward Morehouse, drama column- 
ist of the N. Y. World-Telegram, 
last week picked the Milwaukee 
Braves and the Yankees in this 
year’s pennant-winiiers; Now what 
does pressagent Dick Maney pre- 
dict? . . . Jack Toohey has joined 
the press staff of the Playwrights 
Co., as associate to BilL Fields in 
the handling of “Tea and Sym- 
pathy,” “Sabrina Fair,” “The Wir- 
ner” and “Ondine.” Larry Farrell 
is company manager of “Ondine,*' 
with Malcolm Wells as production 
assistant, William Chambers stage 
manager and Robert Crawley as- 
sistant, George Oshrin is company 
manager of “Winner,” with David 
Clive stage manager and PhRlRi 
Pruneau assistant. Victor Samroch 
continues as general manager foi 
the Playwrights. 

. Jan Klepura and Marta EggertH 
will present “A Night of Opera & 
Operetta” at Town Hall, N. Y., Fri- 
day (26) . . , Robert Hivnor’s “The 
Ticklish Acrobat” will be tried pul 
at the Amato Opera Theatre. N. Y. 
March 8 . .. . French Art Theatre 

. . Present Jean Giraudoux’s 
L Apollon de Bellac” and Mo- 
Here’s “Le Medecin Malgre Lui” ir 
French at Carnegie Recital Hall 
N. Y., tomorrow (Thurs.) througl 
Saturady (25) . . . Carleton Caroen 
ter, currently appearing in “Johr 
Murray Anderson’s Almanac.” ha< 
written the words : and music foi 
three tunes which are contractec 
for publication. Spier Music haj 
“I’m Gonna Wait” and “Nothing te 
Say” and Veronique has “if I 
Wasn’t For You.” 

With “Me arid Juliet” a posSibil 
lty to tour this spring, “By th< 
Beautiful Sea,” already set to ex- 
tend its tryout tour while revision: 
are made, is a prospect to go int< 
the Majestic, N. Y., early ir 
April ; -. Richard Watts Jr.s re 
view of ^Confidential Clerk” wa: 
eiToneously rated a pan instead 0 
an okay .in last week’s Variety 
Correct critical score for the shov 
should therefore have been . foui 
favorable notices, two pans anc 
one on-the-f ence : . London pro 
Queer Jack Hylton is reportedly 1 
candidate for Parliament . . . Brit 
ish actors Denholm Elliott and Vir- 
ginia McKenna will be married ir 
London next Monday (1) . . . Wil- 
bur Evans, featured male lead ir 
“By the Beautiful,’! plays Shakes- 


Same Show^ Fella*? 

Last week’s Metropolitan 
Opera production of ^Barber 
of Seville,” first new one in 28 
years, was hailed by Olin 
Downes, N. Y. Times top mu- 
sic critic, as- “a superlative ' 
performance . . . firstrate en- 
tertainment ... the most bril- 
liant, artistic; and amusing 
performance in 30 years of 
opera in this city.” 

Said Virgil Thomson, ,N*.Y: 
Herald Tribune’s ace review- 
er: “I found it depressing.” 


What would amount to a sort of 
continuing road company Con- 
gressional lobby is planned as parj 
of the legit theatre ' campaign to ■■ 
repeal or reduce Federal amuse- ' 
ment taxes. Idea was worked out 
recently by Wolfe Kaufman, presi- 
dent of the Assn, of Theatrical 
Press Agents & Managers, and 
Ralph E. Becker, Washington at- 
torney representing the campaign. 
Kaufman wAs'-in the Capital as ad- 
vance man for the Royal Winnipeg 
Ballet. , 

Subject io the approval of Actors 
Equity and, presumably the man- 
agements of the various shows in- 
volved, the stars of touring pro- 
ductions playing Washington would 
be asked to meet the Senators 
and/or Congressmen representing 
their hometowns, and urge them to 
work, for repeal or reduction' of 
the present 20% amusement tax. 
Pressagents for the shows involved 
would be . expected to line up the 
meetings, .probably working with 
the Washington theatre, manage- 
ment.- . 

It’s conceded; that most 4 stars are 
residents of either New York or 
Hollywood, but the idea would be 
for them to see the ' lawmakers 
representing their hometowns. It’s 
figured the chief benefit from the 
arrangement would be via publicity 
for the tax repeal drive. It’s also 
figured that virtually all Senators 
and Congressmen will be suckers 
for lunch dates with touring stars, 
since there would presumably be 
pictures, especially in their local 
papers. 


Metop’s 1st New ’Barber’ 
In 28 Years Trim B.O. Hit; 4 
Aud Works Up Big Lather 

The Metropolitan Opera put on 
a new production of Rossini’s 
“Barber of Seville” in N. Y. last 
Friday (19)’ that was lively, color- 
ful and amusing. It will be a big 
hit with patrons, and deservedly 
so. It got a rousing welcome open- 
ing night. 

This reviewer thought it was 
horsed up a little too much, and 
lacked style, but that’s a matter of 
individual taste. Opera hlsocried 
out for production in English, the 
many amusing lines of the spoken 
dialog bringing laughs only from 
scattered Italian standees out in 
left field. 

. Cyril Ritchard, British actor- 
director who staged “Misalliance” 
on . Broadway last season, was 
drafted by general manager Ru- 
dolf Bing for his -first Met staging 
assignment, and made a breezy 
burlesque out of the farcical love 
story. 

Production moved at a good 
pace constantly* with a good deal 
of spirit and fun. Ritchard him- 
self appeared in the mute role, of 
the servant Ambrogio to add 
some amusing touches to the gen- 
erally funny stage business. He 
(Continued on page 60) 


pearean actor in the musical, so 
members of the company are call- 
ing him Maurice. 

Growing importance of off- 
Broadway is highlighted in the 
current issue of Life mag via a 
spread devoted to “Bullfight,” 
current at the Theatre de Lys in 
Greenwich Village; Off-Broadway 
activity was also spotlighted in a 
two-page picture layout in the mag 
section of the Sunday (21) edition 
of the N, Y. Times. 

The American Theatre Wing is 
recruiting theatre folk- to aid the 
American Heritage Foundation and 
Crusade, for Freedom at the radio 
transmission tower in Times Sq:, 
N. Y., erected to dramatize the 
work of Radio Free Europe and its 
broadcasts to Iron Curtain coun- 
tries. More volunteers ^are being 
sought* 



The Ran Diego Union, one of the powerful Coast Copley chain of 
papers, devoted more than a column last week (15) to : an interview 
with writer Myron C. Fagan, who was in San Diego* for a speech on 
his charges that Reds have “absolute control” over much of the’ en- 
tertainment industry. Among other things, Fagan contended he was 
unable to get. his play “Red Rainbow” produced on Broadway in 1946 
because the “Communist-dominated Actors Equity Assn, whispered a 
warning to all of its members that to be seen in ’Red Rainbow’ would 
be professional suicide.” . Fagan said “frightened” theatre owners re- 
fused to make theatres available and charged that other ' show biz 
unions joined a boycott against him. 

Strangest part of the San Diego Union story is that it gave circula- 
tion to Fagan’s charges that the 'critics of the “seven important N. Y. 
papers,” when “Rainbow” finally opened last year, made good on pre- 
opening threats and their reports, instead; of being reviews, “reeked of 
venom, vituperation and vilification.” * While intra-publishing feud3 
are not uncommon, the Union’s story appears' to be the first time that 
any newspaper has lent itself to an attack on all of the major news- 
papers of another city without apparently checking the truth of the 
charges. • * ■ ■ 


Line in the credits in back of the Playbill for “Ondine” reads, 
“Production by arrangement with Schuyler Watts.” Latter had an 
agreement with the original author, the late Jean Giraudoux, and 
made the original English language adaptation of the play. However, 
Maurice Valency, a Columbia U. faculty member, made a subsequent 
adaptation, which; the Playwrights Co. preferred, so an agreement had 
to be reached with Watts. Valency’s Version of the show, staged by 
Alfred Luat, opened last week at the 46th Street, N. Y., with Audrey 
: Hepburn and Mel Ferrer costarred. It drew mixed Notices, but Miss 
Hepburn got unanimq^s personal raves. 

Ward Morehouse, drama columnist 6f the N. Y. World-Telegram, 
.recalled last week his “career” as an actor. He wrote, “When I was a 
police reporter on the' Atlanta Journal we gave the play (’Alias Jimmy 
Valentine’) at the Atlanta Theatre for the benefittfjthe-Poljce Benevo- 
lent Society and grossed $1,200, of which theedps^took $1,000. They 
gave the members of the cast $10 each.^ jwnich was probably about 
right. Later we presented the play at The Atlanta Penitentiary and 
to the most enthusiastic audience I’ve ever heard in a theatre. The' 
convicts gave an ovatiqn at the .£inal curtain to the young, actor 
named W. M. and, with that appearance,; I called it 3 career. The 
drama has hardly been the same since.” 

I What could turn out to be the Cinderella story of the year is ten- 
tatively; cooking up for Shirley Jones, only last season a student at 
the Pittsburgh Playhouse School of the Theatre, After appearing In 
several song-and-dahee shows at the Pitt community theatre, follow- 
ing her selection as Miss Pittsburgh in the 1952 Atlantic City beauty 
pageant, Miss Jones left for New York to try her luck and was imme- 
diately spotted by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein 2d, who 
put her in “South Pacific’* as one of the nurses for the last few months 
of that show’s run. After it closed, she was transferred to another 
R-H musical, “Me and Juliet.” Tomorrow (Thurs.) she’s being flown 
to Hollywood by RodgeFS to make a screen test, on his recommenda- 
tion, for the role of Laurey in the pic version of “Oklahoma.” She’s 
slated to go before the cameras for the tryout next week and has 
been granted a fortnight’s leave of absence from “Me and Juliet.” . 

. Backers of the forthcoming Alexander H. Cohen and Ralph Alswang 
production of “Child of Grace” include Cohen, $7,500; Walter Vincent, 
Actors Fund prexy,. $2,400; William P. Nolan, of Nolan Studios, $2,400; 
Michael Gordon, play’s director, $2,000; John Barry Ryan, stage man- 
ager, $2,000; Andrew Geoly, of Eaves Costumes, $1,200; Louis A. Lo- 
tito, prez of City Playhouses and managing director of the Martin 
Beck Theatre, $1,200; Ethel L. Reiner, producer, $1,200; Julian A. 
Funt, play’s author, $1,200; Walter Reade Jr., of the Walter Reade 
film chain, $1,200; Lucile Lortel, operator of the White Barn, Westport, 
Conn., $1,200; Kal Efron, souvenir program agent, $600, and Milton 
Lewis," tv writer, $300. Production is capitalized at $60,000, with pro- 
vision for 15% overcall. 

Legit observers generally credit sock business of “Oldahoma” at 
Nixon Theatre, Pittsburgh, last week with the $3 top. That’s the lowest 
show has played, to since it started hitting Pittsburgh, almost on an 
annual basis, a decade ago. Unlike most touring attractions, it refused 
to raise the ante on the weekend. Last time around, “Oklahoma” was 
scaled to $3.50, which brought tickets tq $4.55 when the Federal and 
city taxes were added. Big thing was made! in advertisements of the 
reduced prices, and the; quick mail-order response was the tipoff. Box- 
office kept building straight through the Pitt stopoff and musical could 
easily have stayed another week. 


Footnoting Yale U.’s strictly Elizabethan-styled production of “The 
Merry Wives of Windsor” last, week at the New Haven school, with 
excerpts given on the CBS-TV “Omnibus on Sunday (21), is the fact 
that Stephen O. Saxe, the scene designer, is a Harvard grad. But 
he’s at Yale now as a third-year student of scene design, studying un- 
der Broadway’s Donald Oenslager. Saxe has taken the Elizabethan 
playhouse and adapted some of its features to the modern . proscenium 
stage, providing a flow of action from inner to forestage that comes 
close to musicomedy technique. Thus, a scene is played “in one” 
while this set is changed behind a curtain. “Wives” is part of Yale’s . 
February-March “Shakespeare Festival.” * 



London, Feb. 23. 

Cornelia Otis Skinner Was enthu- 
siastically received last night 
(Mon.) in her opening in “Paris 
’90,” at the St. Martin’s Theatre. 
One-woman revue drew mixed re- 
views, however, and appears likely 
to have a modest West End run 
prior to its provincial tour. 

'‘The Burning Glass.” by Charles 
Morgan, which opened at the Apol- 
lo Theatre last Thursday (18), 
under management of Tennent 
Productions, has a tense, dramatic 
theme of politicians pitted against 
a scientist for control of a deadly 
new weapon. Expertly acted and 
intelligently written, play was 
favorably received, and has bright 
prospects. 

The three-acter was directed by 
Michael Macowan with a cast com- 
prising Michael Gobdliffe, Dorothy 
Green, Faith Brook, Michael 
Gough, Robert Speaight, Basil Dig- 
nam, Laurence Naismith arid Ger- 
ald Welch, 


EQUITY FACE IS RED IN 
HOUSTON DEKKER STINT 

Houston, Feb. 23. 

Appearance of Albert Dekker as 
guest star in “Death of a Sales- 
man,” opening tonight • (Tues.) at 
Nina Vance’s Alley Theatre here, 
has been protested by Joanna Al- 
bus, producer at the Houston Play- 
house. Latter spot is fully Equity, 
while the Alley is non-Equity. 

In' squawking to Actors Equity, 
Miss Albus argued that Dekker’s 
appearance with the Vance group 
is unfair competition, The union 
expressed regret over the incident, 
but explained that the Dekker 
stint had been approved by Edd 
Russell, its newly appointed rep- 
resentative on the Coast, so the 
date would have to stand. 

Union officials were obviously 
embarrassed by the situation, as 
only a few weeks ago they had 
Warned Equity members living 
here not to .appear with the Alley 
outfit. That was done at the re- 
i quest of Miss, Albus. . 1 ' V 



Wednesday? February 24, 1954 


LEGITIMATE 


57 



plan lor an “open-shelf library” ♦ 
of scripts by New Dramatists Com- 1 
niittee authors has been submitted 
Jo the League of N. Y. Theatres, 
Setup Would he aimed to make 
Slays by- the group, which has al- 
ready developed several click play- 
wrights, more readily available to 
Broadway managements. 

procedure, dreamed up by au- 
thor’s agent Claire Leonard, would 
involve filing of copies of each 
script by a New Dramatists mem- 
ber in the “open-library” at the 
outfit’s headquarters. Thus, all 
producers on the lookout for suit- 
able plays would not have to wait 
for an agent to submit’ the script, 
but could have them read on the 

premises immediately. 

Number of possible wrinkles re- 
main to be worked out. For ex- 
ample, someone would have tq pay 
the typing of the scripts, which 
would be a sizable item if sufficient 
copies were made, to accommodate 
several producers at once. If only 
single copies were available, oirfn 
other hand, there would presum- 
ably be complications about pro- 
ducers getting a chance to read the 
various new entries. 

With more than one copy of each 
script available, there could be 
disputes over priority on options 
of the more promising plays. On 
the other hand, it’s . figured that 
would stimulate quick reading by 
producers and thus eliminate the 
long standing gripe of authors and 
agents against managements who 
hold scripts unread for lengthy pe- 
riods and thereby keep them : out 
of circulation. 

Under Miss Leonard's proposal, 
the name of the agent involved 
would be printed on each script, 
thus protecting their representa- 
tion. As soon as any script were 
optioned it would be removed from 
the “library.” Whole procedure 
might tend to minimize some of 
the uncertainties and delays in the 
present systeih of individual script 
submission by agents. It would, 
presumably, be a step toward 
equalizing the opportunity for all 
New Dramatists members. 

Miss Leonard has pointed out 
that she has no special interest in 
the plan, except to share in the 

possible benefits for all concerned. 

\ • . 

Exotic Jap Dance-Music 
Co. Sock h N. Y. Bow With 


All This And Lillie Too 

Los Angeles, Feb. 23. 

As legit on the Coast gets 
worse and worse, preSsagents 
are becoming more and more 
. anxious to cooperate with the 
I press. v 

Harry Davies, " in town in 
advance of “An Evening With 
Beatrice Lillie,” reminded a 
critic that the show opens at 
the Biltmore on March 6, a 
Saturday. 

“Saturday,” commented the 
critic. “That's a bad night for 
babysitters. I'd better start 
trying to get one immediate- 
ly.” 

“Tell you what,” responded 
Davies. “If .you have any 
trouble. I’ll sit for you opening 
■ night.” ' 



In ‘Bride’ Gains 


‘Stalag’ First Letter 




fy k/|»wvi , 

A colorful, exotic classical song- 
and-dance troupe from the Orient 
Is beguiling patrons at the Cen-. 
tury, N. Y., since last Thursday 
(18), when Sol Hurok presented 
the Azuma Kabuki Dancers & Mu- 
sicians in their first appearance 
outside their native Japan. This 
is also the first time a major Japa- 
nese classical dance company has 
performed in the western world. 
Presented under auspices of Prince 
Takamatsu (-the Japanese Em- 
peror’s brother) and the Jap Min- 
istry of Foreign Affairs, the event 
becomes a neat exchange of inter- 
national goodwill as well as a 
choice theatrical offering. 

Troupe, assembled for this tour 
from the masters of Kabuki danc- 
ing and music throughout Japan, 
presents a variety of serious and 
comic tales, told in mime, move- 
ment or song. Group is highly ac- 
complished, and its stylized chore- 
ographic movements, as well as 
the added stage business, Is a treat 
to the eye. So ire the brilliant 
costumes and attractive sets. 

Accompanying music, too, has an 
offbeat appeal. Presentations in- 
clude folk dances, Kabuki classics, 
love stories, involved ballet and 
even a revue with geisha girls and 
a . dragon. This dragon is as amus- 
ing a monster as anything seen on 
a Broadway stage, while the spider 
in another dance is just as impos- 
ing a figure. 

Troupe of 24 dancers and mu- 
sicians includes Masaya Fujima as 
choreographer and Tokuho Azuma 
and Kikunojo Onoe as chief 
(lancers. They’ie in at the Cen- 
tury for four weeks, with a change 
of program midway. Run should 
prove to be good boxoffice. Bron . 


David Alexander, who will stage 
the Donald Wolin-DonaLd Flamm 
production of “The Bride Cried,” 
will get a share of the profits in 
addition to his? director royalties. 
Script was originally . brought to 
the director by co-authors Mae 
Cooper, and- Grace Klein, and he 
advised them on the extensive re- 
writes,. 

Alexander’s contract calls for 
him to be Repaid the amount of 
the option he took on the play, 
plus $3,500 fee, the stager royalty 
arid 5% of the producers’ share of 
the profits. If he chooses, he may 
raise up to 20% of the financing, 
in which case he gets X A% of the 
profits for each 1% capital he 
brings in. 

Royalty will be 2% of the gross 
(including tour) until the produc- 
tion cost is recouped, then 3%. 
On subsequent editions of • the play 
produced by Wolin and Flamm he 
has the option of repeating the 
staging for a $1,750 fee and the 
same royalty, or half of the above 
royalties if he lets someone else 
take over the direction. 

Henry C. Brown agency sold the 
play package, Martin H. Leonard 
is . attorney for Alexander on the 
deal, and Charles Baker, of the 
William Morris office, is his agent. 
Helen Harvey, also with Morris, is 
agent for the authors and Morti- 
mer Becker, of Jaffe & Jaffe, is 
their attorney. Harold Scbiff is 
attorney for Wolin and Flamm. 


Princeton, Feb. 23, 
“Stalag 17” preemed here last 
Thursday (18)< as kickoff of the new- 
Princeton U. policy of legit promo- 
tion for McCarter Theatre. Show 
is the first one to hit McCarter 
since signing of Richard Skinner 

as general manager, and promises 
to be forerunner of many legit 
engagements. Switch in. policy for 
the theatre came in midseason and 
thus has made bookings for this 
year hard to get; Anna Russell is 
booked for a single performance 
March 29 and Jose Greco and his 
troupe follow April 23-24 lor a 
three-performance stint. 

“Stalag” cast features . Charles 
Tobias, plus a host of young play- 
ers who do a good job in putting 
the show across. Tobias, in the role 
of Stosh, turns in a topnotch inter- 
pretation of the underwear king of 
the prison camp. Albert Darinibal, 
in a surprisingly smooth perform- 
ance as Sefton, the bejel of the 
barracks, steals the show Carmen 
Filipi and Robert Shawley, as 
Harry Shapiro and Herb Gordon, 
provide much of the solid comedy 
that carries the. show over some 
of the slower moving bits. 

Pace of the show, is rough and 
much of the effect is lost by the 
long pauses between action and 
dialog. Scenery by Ben Saltzman 
is stark and. realistic and lends a 
good backdrop for the production. 

Syd. 


Rudolf Kempe, general music di 
rector Of the Bavarian State Opera, 
Munich, has been signed to con- 
duct at the Metropolitan Opera 
next season. 


MULL 2D MUSICAL TENT 
IN PHILADELPHIA PARK 

Philadelphia, Feb, 23. 
Success of the Playhouse-in-the- 
Park, tent legit operation the last 
two summers in Fairmount Park, 
has encouraged the Park Commis 
sion to consider a musical tent at 
the opposite end of the Park, near 
Germantown, Av., in Chestnut Hill. 
Venture is tentatively figured to 
open for the summer of 1955. 

Sam Handelsman, managing di- 
rector of the Playhouse, which is 
located on Belmont Plateau, who 
would also have general charge of 
the musical tent, comes to Philly 
from N. Y. this week to huddle 
with Jack Kelly, who represents 
the Park Commission. Besides a 
general discussion of the musica 
project* they’ll confab on the se- 
lection of a stager and choice of 
plays for the coming Playhouse 
season. Handelsman, who moved up 
from resident manager last fall 
upon the death of Theron Bamber- 
ger, returned recently from the 
Coast, where he checked on star 
availabilities. 

Playhouse reopens June 14, and 
will run 13 weeks through Sept, 
11, at a $l-$l,50-$2 scale. Areria 
tent seats 1,066. 



More Dignified 

Carol Lee, a member of the 
chorus doubling as a bit player 
in ‘'By the Beautiful Sea,” has 
been promoted from the en- 
semble to become the sou- 
brette for the musical, which 
is currently playing a tryout 
tour. . 

She has chariged her name 
to Carol Leigh. 




Apparently as a result of J. J. 
Shubert’s feud against Milton R. 
Weir, the latter has severed his 
law partnership with William 
Klein, New firm, Klein & Lund, 
will be attorneys for the Shubert 
interests. Weir continues as at- 
torney for the League of N. Y. 
Theatres, however, despite Shu- 
bert’s ultimatum that he be 
dropped. 

Klein, no longer in active prac- 
tice, is expected to confine him- 
self principally to an advisory . sta- 
tus, leaving the day-to-day han- 
dling of Shubert legal matters to 
his new junior partner, Adolph 
Lund. The latter has assisted on 
the account for several years. Ger- 
ald Schoenfeld, an associate of 
Klein & Lund, will now assist. 

Weir, although no longer part- 
nered with Klein, will continue to 
share the same offices with the 
new firm. 

Klein was left $100,000 and Weir 
$25,000. in the will of the late Lee 
Shubert, older brother and former 
partner of J. J. Shubert. 


“Mademoiselle Colombe ” which 
folds Saturday night (27), will rep- 
resent a loss of around $70,000 on 
its $88,000 investment. As of Jan. 
30, it involved a loss of $63,075. Op- 
erating losses for the last two 
weeks, plus a prospective loss this 
week and closing expenses, are ex- 
pected to boost the deficit to the 
$70,000 figure. 

The Robert L. Joseph-Jay Julien 
production was financed for $80,- 
000, plus 10% overcall. . The pro- 
duction cost wag $62,930, including 
pre-opening expense in New York* 
and the 2Vfe-week tryout tour lost 
$2,458 on a total gross of $63,762. 
The first 3Vfc weeks at the Long- 
acre, N. Y., grossed a total of $84,- 
793 and earned $2,313 operating 
profit. 

Accountant’s statement lists $10,- 
210 in bonds, $2,255 due from limi t- 
ed partners On the overcall and $48 
due from employees, for tickets and 
hospitalization. There was $19,067 
in the cash account and $6,925 in 
the tax aecount. Accounts payable 
Included $3,846 production bills 
and $180 operating bills. . Taxes 
payable included $1,471 social se- 
curity,' $1,017 unemployment in 
suranee and $6,331 Federal income 
taxes withheld. There was also 
$736 accrued insurance expense 
payable. 

Weekly operating statement indi- 
cates the production pays a straight 
30% of the gross theatre rental, 
has a cast payroll of about $4,600 
( with costars Julie Harris and 
Edna Best getting an undisclosed 
percentage), pays a sliding scale 
royalty of around . 5% to original 
author Jean Anouilh, a straight 4% 
to adaptor Louis Kroncnberger, 
straight 2% to stager Harold Clur- 
man arid a flat $100 a week to de- 
signer Boris Aronson. Production 
breaks even at around $17,000 
gross. 

Show premiered Jan. 6. 


Off-Broadway is developing into 
a profitable business —• for . the 
newspapers. Present weekly coin 
outlay for ads from off-Broadway 
houses (most of them smallseat-- 
ers), is estimated at upwards of 
$1,500 total. Figure includes funds 
shelled out by the Phoenix Thea- 
tre, which runs 84s regularly in 
the ABC listings in the dallies. (Ad 
budgets . for regular Broadway 
shows run from $1 ,000 to $2,000 a 
week each.) 

•A top showcase like the Theatre 
de Lys in Greenwich Village 
(which can gross around $5;000) 
spends as much as $500 per week 
in. pre-opening advertising, settling 
down later to an average weekly 
expenditure of $300. Weekly ad 
tab for the Village’s Circle-in-the- 
Square (capacity around $2,700) 
averages $200. Rates for these off* 
Broadway displays, exqept when 
run in the ABC listings, are classi- 
fied by most of the dailies in the 
nabe theatre category and there- 
fore cost less than the space taken 
by Broadway houses. 

However, in the case of the pres- 
ident Theatre, located in the Times 
Square area but classified by the 
legit unions as an off-Broadway lo- 
cation, the ad tab remains the same 
as for a Main Stem theatre. Times 
nabe rate is $1 per line daily 
(Continued on page 60) 



+ ♦»+♦♦+ ♦ ♦+»♦ > +»»♦■♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ »»»♦♦♦♦ ♦ » ♦ » ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ » » ♦ ♦ r» ♦ ♦ » ♦ 



By BILL DOLL 

the showman who once subsidized 
an entire herd of buffalo, had lost 
neither his energy Or his fine, mas- 
terly, application of “the gimmick.” 

In ; Philadelphia, prior to the 
opening of “The Immoralist,” he 
wrote a Sunday ad under the head- 
ing “Those Who Read Are Seldom 
Rich.” In it he carefully explained 
that his play was thoughtful and 
literate and that he wished tri bring 
it to the largest possible audience. 
“If you are the boss who came to 
riiy Diamond Horseshoe, this is not 
your cup of oolong.” He went on 
to infer the boss’s secretary, ap- 
preciative of Gide* might be a 
niore proper patron. Topper was 
that best seats would retail at two 
dollars. 

Rose’s reasoning was that, iri ad- 
dition to attracting full houses to 


Illinois Tent Skeds 

Switch to Star Policy 

Music Tent, Highland Park, 111., 
will switch to a star policy this 
summer for this first time in five 
years of operation. The 1,200-seat- 
er. Which can do a capacity gross 
of $25,000, is a non-profit venture. 
B. K. Goodman, Who operates the 
Tent, came to New York last week 
to set deals for name performers. 


Anybody here ever work for Billy 
Rose? 

Many press agents have, and it’s 
not completely improbable that 
many more will, but for the time 
being I am on his payroll and up to 
now it’s been a mighty soft touch. 

Administering to The Theatre’s 
Gentlemen of Genius is a chore sel- 
dom conducive to siting on a 
cushion and munching bon bons, 
but Rose is a compact self-con- 
tained package intent on handling 
every detail of production-includ- 
ing press. So far he has done about 
everything for me except lick the 
stamps for the releases and turn 
the crank on the mimeograph. 

A year ago when most of us were 
having, a tussle with Spring Fever 
something started buzzing around 
in Rose’s noggin. He yearned for 
the kind of action that made, him a 
20 year Broadway wonder from 
“Jumbo” through Diamond Horse- 
shoe, Aquacades', and sundry won- 
drous . divertissements. Forthwith, 
he came rip-roaring out of his 
second retirement with a lapful of 
projects. He was again writing 
“Pitching^Horseshoes” for a couple 
of hundred papers, organizing a‘ 
mammoth musicale called “Or- 
pheus and the Underworld,” and 
fraternizing with the shade of 
Nobel Prize winning Andre Gide 
to tailor the controversial “The Im- 
moralist” for the stage. 

It was immediately apparent that 


On Darkened ’Sea’ With 
Ad Libs, Curtain Talk 

New Haven, Feb. 23. 

“By The Beautiful Sea” left here 
for Boston Saturday (20) with coim- 
paratiyely few- changes at the end 
of its . premiere week’s run, but 
with a number of radical ones in 
the works for its three-week stand 
in the Hub. 

Among changes set are the writ- 
ing of three new scenes, elimina-. 
tion of at least one song, the inser- 
tion of a new song for Shirley 
Booth, possible cast replacements, 
and a major revision in story line 
to shift a sacrificial step in the plot 
from the shoulders of male lead 
Wilbur Evans to the “Lottie Gib- 
son” character portrayed by Miss 
Booth. Terp department, too, will 
get a going-over. 

Probable added out-of-town 
playing time (due to inability to 
get a New York theatre) would in- 
clude three weeks in Philly, a fac- 
tor welcomed by the producers, 
,whcr realize show needs consider- 
able polishing. 

Humorous angle crept into pro- 
ceedings at the Saturday matinee 
when a fuse blowout killed stage 
lights. A single bulb on the pit 
piano was flashed onstage and ac- 
tion proceeded in dim surround- 
ings. Backyard scene had moppet 
on a bench, with Shiriey Booth 
entering to read the line, “Hello, 
little girl, what are you doing, 
sitting out here all alone in the 
dark?,” it brought the house down. 
Moments later, Evans, quoting 
Shakespeare, read, “What is that 
light I see shining through yonder 
window?”. . and there just wasn’t 
any light. 

They finally had to stop the show 
for 10 minutes, but the incident 
gave Miss Booth an opportunity 
for a curtain speech, thanking play- 
goers for their patience. 

‘WALTZ’ SHOULD BREEZE 
INTO N.Y. AT 50G 


“Anniversary Waltz,” Joseph M. 
Hyman-Bernard Hart production of 
the Jerome Chodorov-Joseph Fields 
comedy, will probably conic into 
N. Y. at a cost of around $50 f 000, 
his try-out, potential gross in the j exclusive of bonds. Figure is based 
1, 700-seat Forrest Theatre— even at on the assumption that the Mac- 
the reduced scale— would be $22,- dqnald Carey-Kitty Carlisle co- 
000. Students of Variety buffolo starrer will not have excessive 
will catch quickly that this is more losses out of town. Venture is cap- 
swag than most new shows can italized at $7,000 with no provision 


lure out-of-town at full price even 
with hit notices. 

Ilcresey paid off in several ways; 
it was the talk of Philadelphia, it 
produced near capacity biz, and it 
grossed $19,000 its first Week and 
$21,000 in its finale. Furthermore, 
single insertion of the ad pulled an 
advance sale of $25,000. Latter 
(Continued Ori pige 60) 


for overcall. 

Show, directed by Moss Hart, 
opens March 3 in New Haven and 
plays a two-week engagement at 
the Plymouth, Boston, starting 
March 8, followed by two more 
weeks at either the Locust Street 
or Forrest, Philly. It’s due April 
7 at an undisclosed Brodway the- 
atre. 



LEGITIMATE 


Wednesday, . February 254 , 1954 


Plays on Broadway 


Ondine 

Playwright* Co. production of comedy- 
dram* in three acta, adapted hy Maurice* 
Valency , from original French of Jean 
Giraudoux, Star* Audrey Hepburn, Mel 
Ferrer; features John Alexander, Alan 
Hewitt. Marian Selde*,, Edith , Kin 


might make the character come to 
extra-dimension life,. 4 , 

Of the featured players, Alan 


Kaycee Starfight’s '54 
Budget Upped To 414C 

Kansas City, Feb. 23. 
Budget for production expense 
HewV'is standout* as^a^bombaatic ^-‘^ forthoomlng outdoor sea- 

r Aian Lord Chamberlain and a foxy old son of the Starlight Theatre was 

is.. Rob- judge, John Alexander and Edith boosted in a meeting of the execu- 

ert Middleton staged by Alfred Lunt; Kj n g are convincingly perplexed as tive * committee recently. Richard 
whorf Ughtfng!* r jeai» c< S#oSeiS!iai;* c ®fia*' the ondine’s helpless foster-par- Berger, production director, came 
Hepburn** gown*, Valentina; mu»ic, vir- ents, Robert Middleton is properly out from New York for the occa* 

*u ’S&T# «h ^no 4 ?*i2 St o r Denin?) ’ imposing as the underwater ruler s i on . Committee approved a fig- 

gj* °Sh„ Alexander also appearing in the guis^ of a ur e of $414,000. 

Eugenie Ed^h^Kin;; magician and a hsherman,^ Lloy New hudeet reoresents an in* 

tler Han* >•••••>■« 

. . . Audrey 



Hit 


JSBS.” .......... . . Audr.%ffiS of about $10, 000. most of 

Qthv opdine. • •• i:.v, D SS,.%of,«SSl flshS'mah t who d has which already is earmarked for tal. 


Seitz, Sonia 
Old One . .......Robert 

Lord Chamberlain V, . .... . Alan Hewlt 


Trainer of seal* 
Bertha 

Bertram . . . . 
Violante .... 
Angellque . . 
Venus 

Matho 

Salammbo , 
Lord ........ 

Lady . 
Illusionist . . 
King 

Servant ..... 
Fisherman . . 

2d Fisherman 
Judge . 

2d Judge . ... 
Executioner . 
Kitchen Maid 


Torgesoii the delighted fisherman who has w.mcn "^y. ^earmarKeu xyr 

caught the ondiiie, Marian Seldes ent. Costs have gone up in this 
... L.ioyd Gough is. skillfully hypocritical as M On- department with increasing . de- 
. , .james Lanphier dine’s romantic rival and William mands for performers from televi* 

• ndon Podmode is amusing as the philo- sion, Berger told the committee. 

•. r.'.’.'r.v.Ahn©^ ^ Meacham sophicai king. Some increased costs were account- 

With this new click, the 'Play- ed for by fact the upebming sea- 
wrights Co now has three current son will be the longest yet, the 

hits on Broadway, others being opening show being set for 10 days 

‘Tea and Sympathy” and “Sabrina instead of seven as in the past. 

Fair.” That’s by far the most glit- Berger returned to New York to 

{5 r SL ar Tn y thl!l ratp f ^“Ondlne ” continue on production and talent 
history. In the case ^arSymake details. there until mid-April, when 


. . Gay© • Jordan 

. .Jan Sherwood 
. ; . . V. . .... . Barrg O'Har n 






y Paget 
..William Le Masscm 
... Stacy Graham 
..Rnbert Middleton 
....William Podmore 
James Lanphier 
Lloyd Gough 
Robert Middleton 


it’s true, the show can 


wnm.mU n »Sna much profit, as it’s an expensive 
Robert Crawley production to operate, and becausp 
stacy Graham jtliss Hepburn is under contract 
only until July 1. Hobe. 


he returns here. 


Audrey Hepburn, the unknown 
dancer who rocketed to stardom 
two years ago in her first straight 
part and Broadway debut in “Gigi,” 
zooms to a new high in “Ondine.” 


Play Out of Town 


The Winner 


Playwrights Co. production of drama. In 
two act* (four scene*) by Elmer Rice. . 
Stars Jorri Tetzel, Tom Helmore; features 
Whitfield Connor. Frederick O'Neal. 

The girl really has the magic; she’s ^kSv^At^piaJhillMi N^Y.f’Feh? 1L 
tremendous. v Largely because of *54; $4.00 top ($9 opening). 


Eva Harold ... . 
Marlin Carew . , 
David Browning 
Newscaster 
Arnold Mahler 


.... .Joan Tetzel 
. Toni Helmore 
......Whitfield Connor 

, . P. Jay Sidney 

Lothar Rewalt 

.Jane Buchanan 


Miss Dodd Lily Brentano 

Stenographer ...David Balfour 

Judge Addison ...... . ; Frederick O’Neal 

Hllde Kransbeck ... : . . Vllma Kurer 


her personal incandescence and 
quicksilver performance, “Ondine” 
is a resounding hit, adding lustre 

to an already distinguished season. , . 

But there is another personal Haggerty . .......... Phillip Pruneau 

click in this Playwrightsl Co. pro- Dr. Clinton Ward. Charles _Coppev 
eduction. That is Alfred Lunt as 
the imaginative, gifted stager. One 
of the leading stars of the U. S. 
and England, 'and a recognized di- 
rector, he has turned in the top If there’s anybody more addicted 
staging job of his career in this to shop talk than show people, it’s 
deft but solid, humorous but rue- probably lawyers. What more 
ful “romance” adapted by Maurice natural, then, that Elmer Rice, who 
Valency from the Jean Giraudoux abandoned a legal career some 40 
dramatization of a Continental folk years ago to write “On Trial,” 
legend. “Counsellor-at-Law” and 25 or so 

Miss Hepburn is the ondine, or other plays, should consult Black- 
water nymph in this Jyric allegory stone again for a dramatic sortie 
about a sprite who falls instantly . His newest effort, “The Winner,” 


Come On and Play 

Hollywood, Feb. 15. 

Anne Anderson production of revue in 
two arts (24 scenes). . Musical numbers 
and sketches staged by Tommy Mahoney; 
ballet choreography, Olga LUnick; lyrics,, 
music and sketches,: Danny Jackson and 
Raisa; additional music, Charles Nicho- 
las Vedder; musical director* Ralph 
Wolf;, musical arrangements. Jimmie 
Haskell; duo pianists. Wolf, Byron Long; 
settings and lighting, Claudio, Guzman; 
With Beverly Alber, Mark Anders. Pat 
Carroll, Angel Catalano, Sue England. 
Paul Gartelz, Magda Jahn, Leota Lane, 
Peter ‘Leeds, Jack Mouck, Don McKay, 
Sid Melton, Christy Petersen, Evelyn 
Russell, Asta- Sevahn. Luis Urbina. At 
HarOut'a Ivar, Hollywood, Feb. 15, '54; 
$3.60 top. 


' The Filth Season 

Glasgow, Feb. 16, 

Llnnlt & Dunfee, Ltd., presentation of 
comedy, in three acts. 'by Sylvia Began. 
Stars Joseph Buloff, Ron Randeu. Di- 
rected by Richard. Bird; decor, Paul 
Sheriff. At King's Theafre. Glasgow. '• 
Ruby D. Prince ........ Warren Mitchell 

Shelly .... . . . . . V Jennifer PMpp* 

Lorraine McKay .... . . < Honor Blackman 

FereUi ...... Guido . Lorraine 

Max PlncU* . Joseph Buloff 

Johnny Goodwin Ron Randell 

Frances Goodwin ........ Peggy Livesey 

Marty Goodwin , Iwvid Cole 

Miriam Oppenheim ........ . . Joy Parker 

Dolores . .... . ...... . . . . . Anne Valery 

Midge ................ Elizabeth Wallace 

Caroline HUdy Christians 

Mile* Lewis Campbell Singer 


world. She is mercurial, warm and 
enchanting making “Ondine” a 
Stimulating theatrical adventure. 
The show isn’t everybody’s dish. 


Occasionally a new revue crops 
up which has the makings of a 
possible hit. “Come On and Play” 
fits patly into this slot, emerging 
as sa frequently bright, tuneful 
piece which has enough standout 
numbers and youthful ebullience 

... 7 . . ... ... . . „ . A ^ __ , , to carry it thrbugh to solid biz, af- 

in love with a knight errant, played which the Playwrights Co. Drought ter some of the rough edges are 
by Mel Ferrer as costar. From her to the Playhouse last week, is pre- polished and necessary pruning 
first entrance, she brings a radi- siimably passable, law, but. mediocre have been accomplished, 
aince to the stage, a bewitching drama. In this instance, thorough- . Annp Andmnn nf fpn- 
spell to the poetic fable^of.tniio- ly tured players in the well-remem- 

cence in the reality of a human a good case. For all its professional bered “Lend an Ear." makes her 

competence, it .seems contrived, how as a stage producer here, and 
l hackneyed and stubbornly linen- does it in knowhow style. Lyrics, 

gaging. . music and sketches of Danny Jack- 

“The Winner” is a situation yarn son and Raisa evince a welcome 

music 
-and 
the 

his imagination into the. theatre | divorce, goes out (with adamant in- tively newcomers. 

nocence)^ with various ^ other njen. Only vets are Sid Melton and 
One of these, an ardent Dlder^man, Leota Lane (one of the Lane Sis 
dies of a heart attack in her fur- 
nished room. 

It turns out that he T s just made a 
new will leaving her. a large for- 

.. , * x . . . tune. The widow contests the will, y V u».u».u.». l u . V uc. 9 .< 

the actress infectious playing and there is a trial scene (in the judge s with her offbeat clowning. . Luis 
magnetic presence, the rare, un- chambers, thus eliminating a jury Urbina, who combines ballet with 
earthy quality of the performance d f . Equity card-holders), and the his flamenco dancing, also stands 
might deteriorate into a drab real- girl .wins on the ground that she out, and there are a whole raft of 
tjiat would shatter the show s did not “unduly” influence the de- assisting talented performers. 

Sine theatrf when she % It to.tew her his wealth The Perha fa: funn ie st sketch l s 

^uninhibited “Petite Batement.” 

audience coughing breaks out when given her lawyer-fiance the bounce 
ee and is about to wed the opposing 

attorney, a dashing Princeton man. 

Under the author’s somewhat 
emphatic direction, ; Joan Tetzel 



with him, it offers an electrifying 
experience, even if its meaning is 
not always dear. 

It’s virtually impossible to figure 
'‘Ondine” without Miss Hepburn 
(and difficult enough without 
Lunt’s inspired direction).' Without 


ters), latter swinging over from the 
Turnabout Theatre where her lusty 
talents have proved popular. Of 
the entire cast,. Pat Carroll, a 
robust comedienne, is the standout 


she is off. 

“Ondine” is an elaborate, visu- 
ally beautiful production, with 
Peter Larkin’s brilliantly atmos 
pheric settings of a peasant’s for- 
est. cottage, a 


with Miss Carroll as. a ballet stu- 
rent, partnered with Mark Anders 
and Paul Gerteiz, for a particularly 
clever satire. Entirely different but 
no less hilarious is “The Minuet,!’ 
performed 


, „ . , . . x- by a foursome and 

of a P eas a^ 1“:. goes after the leading role like a ly ricked as a number designed to 

. . - • . r °y al rec ^ 1Q “ puppy with an old slipper, btit still “slow down the mkd tempo of the 

and a stern stone forum at waier s manages to seem mechanical and show,” a solid hit which may be 

edge. There are stunning costumes rather coolly self-conscious. Tom best remembered. Miss Carroll 


wu ac ( or ‘^ esign He l more ' costarred, handles the again scores in her monolog ver- 
Whorf (currently costarrmg in par t 0 f the plaintiff’s debonaire at- s i on of 6. Henry’s “Gift of the 

Cnncnfi’M avnnicito dnwnc f ■ • 1.. — ii! xi . . „ - 


The N.Y. success of “Fifth Sea- 
son,’/’ presented in Britain by Lin- 
nit & Dunfee, looks set to be 
repeat here, thanks mainly to crisp 
direction by Richard Bird and a 
gem of acting by Joseph Buloff as 
little Max Pincus, Latter’s thesping 
was generally acclaimed at the 
preem here, and . the three-acter 
romped home to warm mitting at 
the final curtain. 

British familiarity with activities 
of the women’s garment trade on 
N.Y.’s Seventh Ave. is limited, 
which at once restricts the com- 
edy’s outward appeal. But the 
scene of the fifth and Alack season 
in this bewildering industry is well 
set by cast in opening moments, 
and when the fashion parade tees 
off prior to the arrival of wealthy 
shopowner Miles Lewis, the, stub- 
holders’ Interest is whipped up, 
especially from the feminine ele- 
ment. 

. ; Paul Sheriff’s decor batches the 
atmosphere of a modern office on 
Seventh Aye., with both the fitting- 
room and the business office vis- 
ible to outfronters. This allows for 
glimpses into the former when the 
models are dressing, and changing, 
thus adding both femme and s.a. 
interest, and. contributing . niove- 
ment to the play. 

Well-chosen cast, mainly Ameri- 
can* puts over with zest the story 
of business ups and dbwns during 
the fifth season, when buyers are 
scarce and orders come few and 
far between. . Contrasting types of 
tailor and salesman partners., are 
effectively contrived, while bevy 
of glamor gals who assist in the 
modelling brings beauty and sar- 
torial interest. 

Top honors go to Buloff, the 
American character thesper, for a 
memorable portrayal of the frus- 
trated businessman Pincus, affec- 
tionately known as “Maxie.” He is 
a sympathetic innocent ^ and un- 
schooled character who . thinks 
Hamlet is a financier and has his 
own problems with the women. As 
played by Buloff, the character 
jumps to life with almost three- 
dimensional effect* and there is 
comedy in every shake of his head, 
leer of his voice and resigned 
stride of his legs. 

The part of his salesman partner 
Johnny Goodwin, restless and over- 
ambitious, home-loving yet suscep- 
tible to a good-looking blonde mod- 
el’s attentions, is taken with vigor 
by Ron Randell, who also does a 
sterling job. Honor Blackman has 
the shape and looks as the model 
who nearly Wrecks his home life 
through her crush for the hand- 
some young salesman.. 

Campbell Singer is properly the 
philandering business magnate as 
Miles Lewis, the rich type who 
prides himself on his No. 1 hobby 
of making the girls. David Cole 
does a -sound job as the 17-year- 
old son with his own romantic 
prfeblems. 

There’s other good work from 
Jennifer Phipps, Peggy Livesey 
and Joy Parker on the distaff side, 
and from Guido Lorraine as an 
impetuous dress. designer. Gord. 


changed suddenly when two rich 
young Americans chance on the 
castle, which it transpires they own - 
after finding their car stuck in the 
mud outside. 

Richard" Greene, making a legit 
comeback in the United Kingdom 
and Bill Travers play the two eligi-I 
ble young men whose visit has so 
immediate an effect upon the two 
daughters. 

Virginia McKenna has a. long 
difficult part as the self-sacrificing 
girl Cassandra in love, while her 
more worldly sister (Yvonne Fur- 
neaux) gets her man. The play is 
a triumph for Miss McKenna, seen 
lately in the British film* “The 
Cruel Sea.” She catches all the 
warm romanticism and schoolgirl 
commonsense of Cassandra. 

Greene has. few chances to show 
his talents, and has merely to look 
handsome and pleasant most of the 
time. Georgina Cookson contrib- 
utes a good performance as the ex- 
artist’s model stepmother, ready to 
desert her family at a moment’s 
notice and rush off to London. 
Cyril ,.Luckham, among the support- 
ing players, turns in a delightful 
portrayal of a country clergyman. 
'Direction and decor are right, 
and Stephen Hancock’s incidental 
mi*i)c sets the mood required. Play 
emerges as . a longish evening’s 
entertainment despite competent 
thesping, and the pruning scissors 
must be employed in the second 
act. Tunetip tour prior to London 
should insure this being done. 

Gord. 

Angels in Love 

London, Feb. 19. 

- Jack de Leon presentation 6f. comedy in 
two acts by Hu^h MlUs. Stars .Henry Ken* 
dall, Barbara KeUy. Directed by Bernard 
Braden.. At SaVoy Theatre, London, Feb. 
11, ’54;. $2.20 top. 

Burton . . ; .... /. ...... Mary GiUingham 

Dearest ■■. Barbara Kelly . 

Cedric .. ..... Peter Hammond 

Lettlce ...;. Mary Donn 

Violet Maxine Audley 

Furse ; : . . < - Gregory Scott 

Molyneux' . . ......... Kynaston Reeves 

Sir Pomeroy Henry. Kendall 

Eustace Peter: Reynolds 


‘Fifth Season”), exquisite gowns 
by Valentina for Miss Hepburn and 
eloquent background music by Vir- 
gil Thomson. And despite passages 
\vh6n the enchantment is lost in 
liumdrim talk, the show is steadily 
absorbing, with a genuinely touch- 
ing finale. 

. Miss Hepburn not only gives a 
breathtaking performance, but also 
looks knockout. With blonde hair, 
the actress first appears in a sim- 
ple but fetching peasant gown with 
a suggestion of the elfin. Later, 
she wears a lovely white flowing 
gown with a coronet for her recep- 
tion at court and then a skintight 
nymph costume that reveals her 
nifty figure for the final scene in 
which, because he deceived her, 
her mortal husband is doomed to 
death and she to eternal forgetful- 
nessback in her underwater world. 

As the knight humanly unworthy 
of the selfless love of the sprite 
he impulsively marries and fated 
to be unfaithful to her, Ferrer 
seenis a trifle too mundane. His 
playing of the initial scene of meet- 
ing is nicely handled, with an at- 
tractive blend of youthfulness and 
humor. But although he is physi- 
cally suited to the role, he there- 
after seems to lack the animation 
and suggestion of pixiness that 


Magi,” and pairs amusiri£ly with 


Peter Leeds in “Hot and Cold,’ 


torney expertly, getting the numer- 
ous laughs with ingratiating ease. 

In supporting roles, Whitfield which presents them as an English 
Connor is acceptable in the unsym- and an Italian couple on the verge 
pathetic part of the girl's original of divorce. 

lawyer-fiance; Frederick O’Neal js On the dancing end, Urbini is 
impressive as a surrogate judge, in tops in the ballet number, “Super- 
spite of the overwriting of his_ big stition,” which copped plenty of 
speech, and Lothar Rewalt, Jane applause from firstnighters. 


Buchanan and Vilma Kurer are 
plausible as the respective heart at-, 
tack victim, his widow and his sec- 
retary-assistant-mistress. 

Lester . Polakov designed the 
properly dingy settings for the 
girl’s room and judge’s chambers. 
The play’s title is a misnomer. Case 
dismissed. ■ Hobe. 


Angel Calalano and Don McKay 
display excellent voices, as do Sue 
England, Evelyn Russell and Chris- 
ty Pietersen, latter also a clever 
stepper. Howard Daniels in “The 
Nut Sorter” scores in a novelty 
straightface comedy number, other 
better entries in comedies include 
“Gettin’ Tired Blues,” with Melton 
and Beverly Alber, and “T.V. 
2000.” Paul Garteiz acts as aii-r 
bouncer, and Miss Lane bounces 
James Russo, formerly partnered through several numbers which 
with Michael Ellis in legit produc- blow both hot and cold. 


Russo Clearance 


tions, has been taken off the Assn, 
of Theatrical Press Agents & Man- 
agers’ unfair list. Russo signed an 
agreement with the union to the 


Tommy Mahoney staged most of 
the musical numbers and sketches 
and Olga Lunick handled chore- 
ograhpy on the three ballet num- 


nffonV iw.r 3 „ hers/ some of which still require 

A t 6 pa w c i rb 6 considerable work, Claudio Guz- 

ATPAM members in future opera- man did good work on sets and 

, .. .. * lighting, and duo piano assign- 

Ellis, also tabooed by the union, ments are In the capable hands of 
has withdrawn from the producing Ralph Wolf, musical director, and 
ranks. Byron Long. Whit. 


I Capture the Castle 

Glasgow, Feb. 5. 

Murray Macdonald & John Stevens, Ltd. 
(in association with Linnlt & Dunfee, Ltd.) 
presentation of comedy by Dodie Smith. 
Stars Richard Greene, Virginia McKenna. 
Directed by Macdonald. Decor, Paul 
Sheriff; incidental music composed by 
Stephen Hancock; Costumes, Motley. At 
King's Theatre. Glasgow. 

Cassandra Mortmain. . .Virginia McKenna 
Rose Mortmain ....... Yvonne Furneaux 

Topaz Mortmain ........ Georgina Cookson 

Thomas Mortmain .... Timothy Reynolds 

Stephen CoUy . ..... Roger Moore 

James Mortmain Victor Lucas 

Miss Marcy Joan White 

S’mon Cotton Richard Greene 

Neil Cotton BUI Travers 

The Vicar . . ...... . , ..... Cyril Luckham 

Ivy.Stebbins ............ Vivian Pickles 

Mrs, Cotton . Joan Henley 

Leda Fox-Cotton Elizabeth Ashley 


Quaintness is the keynote of this 
Dodie Smith comedy, the writer’s 
own adaptation of her bestselling 
book, “I Capture the Castle.” It 
emerges as a lengthy dramatization 
of the successful novel, and a por- 
tion of the second act could use- 
fully be cut to the advantage of an 
interesting play. 

The quaint English family of the 
Mortmains live in the ruin,, an 
eccentric father who has once writ- 
ten a successful book, a stepmother 
who was once an artist’s model, two 
romantically - inclined daughters, 
and a lively schoolboy son. Their 
dull, penniless circumstances are 


It was an excellent idea to have 
a play about a grownup Lord Faiin- 
tlqpoy, the champion goody-goody 
of the Victorian era. But it’s a dis- 
appointment to find that the author 
has had to rely on the exploitation 
of sex innocence to : get his laughs* 
and even then experiences some 
difficulty in sustaining the idea. 
By far the strongest feature of the 
production is the excellent cast, 
and what success the venture niay 
achieve will be largely as result of 
their efforts. 

At time of the play, Lord Faun- 
tleroy is 20 years old and>has been 
married for 12 months, but his 
mother is anxious because there is 
no- sign of her becoming a grand- 
mother. It is at this point that she 
realizes that her little'innocent boy 
has grown into manhood without 
any knowledge of the facts of life, 
and, a widowed countess is given 
the job of telling him all about the 
flowers and bees. There is, ap- 
parently, a departure from the 
original brief and the session ends 
up with a romp in a haystack. 

AltHough this is the basic theme, . 
there are a variety of side issues, 
some of which fit into the plot 
structure, but others are com- 
pletely out of place. They are of a 
diversionary nature, often laugh 
provoking, but not in character. 
Allowing for the ragged style of 
the construction, Bernard Braden 
has done an excellent job of direc- 
tion, giving the play force, cohe- 
sion and movement. 

Cast is good, the outstanding 
performances coming from Kynas- 
ton Reeves as Lord Fauntleroy’s 
grandfather, and from Henry Ken- 
dall as an ardent suitor of Barbara 
Kelly, who plays the widowed 
mother, Peter Reynolds, as an 
amateur photographer with a side- 
line in mass-murder, extracts all 
the laughs from his dialog, ‘and 
Maxine Audley nicely suggests the 
voluptuous, experienced countess. 
Peter Hammond as Fauntleroy, 
and Mary Donn As his equally in- 
nocent wife, give expert perform- 
ances. Alix Stone’s decor is one of 
the highlights of the production. 

Myro. 


Hamlet 

Genoa, Feb. 16. 

Italian . Art Theatre Co. production of 
drama by William Shakespeare. Stars 
Vittorio Gassrrian, Apna Marla Ferrero, 
Marla Proclemer. FiUppo ‘Scelzo. Directed 
by Gassman; set. Mario Chiari. At Carlo 
Felice. Genoa; $1.50 top. 

Hamlet Vittorio Gassman 

Ophelia ............ Anna Maria Ferrero 

Queen Anna Proclemer 

King .-....■ Filippo Scelzo 

Laertes Luigi Vannuccl 

Polonlus ............ Antonio Battistella 


The Italian Art Theatre Co., 
headed by Vittorio Gassman. on 
leave from his Metro pic chores, 
and Luigi Squarzina, has come up 
with an elegant, impressive new 
production of the Shakespearean 
drama. Uncut version, newly trans- 
lated into Italian by Squarzina, 1S 
run off on -t single functional sex, 
(Continued on page 60) 


Wednesd*?' FAruiry 24,* 1954 


LEGITIMATE 


59 


B.O. Spotty in CoHyeBtionlessChi; 

,600, ‘Gmger’ SIC 1 




... Chicago, Feb. 23. + 
Loop biz was spotty last week; 
with no major conventions in town 
to provide a- weeknight fillip. 
Single new arrival on the imme- 
diate horizon is “Porgy and Bess” 
into the Civic Opera House next 
Tuesday. (2) for three Weeks. 

Estimates for Last Week 
Evening With Beatrice Lillie, 
Blackstone (8th wk) ($4.40; 1,358). 
Nearly $26,600, (Previous week 
$25,600). ; “ 

Good Nlte Ladies, Great North- 
ern (8th wk) ($5; 1,500). Over $12,- 
000 . 

Seven Year Itch, Erlanger, (22d 
wk) ($5; 1,334) (Eddie Bracken). 
Almost $22,900. 

■ Time Out for Ginger, Harris (6th 
wk) ($4; 1 ,000) (Melvyn Douglas). 
Over $16,600. 



Blackstone 7G, Balto; 
‘Ramshackle’ $3,500 

Baltimore, Feb, 23. 

Blackstone garnered a mild $7,- 
000 at Ford’s here last week. Mod- 
est $2 top and visit a couple of 
seasons , ago mitigated against any 
large returns. Currently dark, 
Ford’s will relight March 15 with 
‘‘Dial M For Murder,” on Guild- 
ATS subscription. 

ZaSli Pitts in “Ramshackle Inn" 
pulled a weak. $3,500 at Donn 
Swann’s Hilltop-Parkway. Neil 
Hamilton in “The Moon is Blue” 
is current. 




Ballet Theatre on Road 

As proof of the current pull of 
dance attractions, there were no 
less than three major terp troupes 
performing In N.-Y. last .week, and 
all doing good business.: One 
group, the Azuma Kabuki Co., 
opening Thursday (18), gave only 
four performances. If it had been 
in all week, trio of attractions 
would have racked up a combined 
grbss of over $100,000. As it was, 
the three troupes hit a lusty gate 
of $87,655. 

The N. Y. City Ballet, in its sixth 
week at City Center/ grossed $40,- 
855 at a $3.60 top. Roland Petit’s 
Ballets de Paris, in its fifth-stanza 
at the Broadway Theatre, reached 
$30,300' at a $6. top. The Kabuki 
dancers garnered $16,500 in its 
four shows af. the Century, with 
regular top at $4.80 and opening 
night at $6. 

On the road. Ballet Theatre 
racked up $30,800 in seven per- 
formances during a split week, 
through Sunday (211 El Paso 
brought $4,0.00 on a guarantee; 
Tucson netted $4,100; Phoenix, 
$4,900; San Bernardino, $4,200, 
and three shows in San Diego, 
$13,600. Troupe opened Monday 
night in L. A. for a run. 

The Kabuki, on basis of its. fine 
notices, may stay in N. Y. two 
weeks longer than the original 
four stanzas skedded. Plans are 
then to tour a week each in Bos- 
ton, Philly and Washington. Com- 
pany would then go to England 
and the Continent through the 
sumiher. They would be back in 
N. Y. in the fall for a repeat en- 
gagement, then head west on a 
jaunt to the Coast, before return- 
ing home to, Japan. 

Current Road Shows 

(Feb. 22-March 6) 

Anniversary Waltz (Kitty Car- 
lisle, Macdonald Carey) (tryout) — 
Shubert, New Haven (3-6). 

Burning Glass (Cedric Hard- 
wicke) (tryout) — National, Wash. 
(22-27) (Reviewed in Variety, Feb. 
17, ’54.) 

By the Beautiful Sea (Shirley 
Booth) (tryout) — Shubert, Boston 
<22-6) (Reviewed in Variety, Feb. 
17. -’54.) . 

Dial M for Murder (Maurice 
Evans) — Walnut St., Phila. (1-6). 

Evening With Beatrice Lillie 
(Beatrice Lillie)-— American, St. L. 
<22-27); Qrpheum, K. C. (1-3); Bilt- 
. more, L. A. (6). 

Girl in Pink Tights (Renee Jean- 
maire, Charles Goldner) (tryout)r— 
Forrest, Phila. (22-27) (Reviewed in 
Variety. Jan. 27. ’54). 

Good Nite, Ladies — Great North- 
ern, Chi (22-6). 

Guys and Dolls— Colonial, Bos- 
ton (22-6). 

Moon Is; Blue— Shubert, Detroit 
(22-27); Her Majesty’s, Montreal 
( 1 - 6 ). ; .. 

My Three Angels (Walter Slezak) 
— Plymouth, Boston (22-27); Shu- 
bert, Wash; (1-6); 

New Facesr-Curran, S. F. (22- 
27); American, St. L. (1-6). 

Oklahoma— Taft, Cincy. (22-27); 
Shubert, Detroit (1-6). 

Porgy & Bess— Music Hall, K. C. 
(22-27); Civic Opera House, Chi 
( 1 - 6 ). 

Seven Year Itch (Eddie Bracken) 
— Erlanger, Chi (22-6). 

South Pacific (Jeanne Bal, Webb 
Tilton) — Florida, St. Petersburg 
(22-27) Florida, Jacksonville (1-6). 

Stalag 17 — WRVA, Richmond 
(22-25); Center, Norfolk (26-27); 
Locust St., Phila. (1-6). 

Tiine Out for Ginger — (Melvyn 
Douglas)— Harris, Chi (22-6). 

Twin Beds — Locust St;. Phila. 
(22-27); Wilbur, Boston (1-6). 


Pittsburgh, Feb; 23. 

“Oklahoma” fell just ,a few dol- 
lars short pf $26,000 last week, the 
best this show has done here in 
several seasons; Final three per- 
formances were to absolute capa- 
city. ■ • 

It was the first time the musical 
has ever played at $3 ($3.90 with 
Federal and city taxes). Even when 
orchestra didn’t go clean early in 
the week,; the cheaper seats in the 
balcony were at a premium. 

Nixon currently has Blackstone, 
with kids admitted for half Of the 
b.o. price at every performance, 
and then house has nothing for two 
weeks, reopening March 15 with 
return of “Stalag 17,” followed in 
succession by “Dial M for Murder,” 
“Child of Grace” and “Guys and 
Dolls;” 


'Road’ Slump?, $900, L.A.; 
‘Play’ Slow $2,800 Starter 

Lot Angeles, Feb. 23. 

With only a trio of smallseaters 
alight last week, local legit had a 
pallid total gross for the frame. 
Same trio hold the fort this week. 

Couple of newcomers; the revue 
‘ Come On and Play” at Harout’s 
Ivar, a 400-seater, and “She Dood 
It In Dixie,” at the 542-seat Beaux 
Arts, got off to alow starts. ‘‘Play” 
achieved about $2,800 for the week, 
while “Dixie” hit only $900; 

Holdover "Tobacco Road,” at the 
400-seat Civic Playhouse, slumped 
to around $900. 





‘Glass’ Mild $16,000, D.C.; 
Andrews-'Roberts’ 15G 

Washington , Feb. 23. 
“The Burning Glass,” with 
Cedric Hard wicke and Marla Riva, 
grossed a mild $16,000 at the Na- 
tional in the first week of a fort- 
nightly stint. 

After five weeks of darkness, the 
Shubert came back to life with a 
$15,000 draw at the b.o. from “Mis- 
ter Roberts,” with Tod Andrews. 
Show is being held for a second 
week. Next on the agenda is “My 
Three Angels,” with Walter Slezak. 

Future B’way Schedule 

(Theatre indicated if booked) 

Girl in Pink Tights, Hellinger, 
Saturday (27). 

Burning Glass, Longacre, March 
4. ; 

Golden Apple, Phoenix, March 

11 . 

King Hearts, Broadhurst, Mar. 31. 
Anniversary Waltz, April 7. 
Magic and Loss, Booths April 6. 
By Beautiful Sea, April 9. 

Year Around* April 19. 

Pajama Game, May 12. 

Current London Shows 

London, Feb. 23. 

(Figures denote premier* dates) 
Airs Shoestring, Royal Ct. (4-23-53). 

Al lc* Looking Glass, Princes (2-0-54). 
Angels In Lov*, Savoy (2-11-54). 

Anna Lucasta, Hippodrome (1-26-54). 

As Long As Happy, Garrick (7-8-53). 

Pig Knife, Duke York’s (1-1-54). 
Birthday Honours, ICriterion (10-6-53). 
Boy Friend, Wyndham’s (12-1-53). 
Burning Glass, ApoUo (2-18-54). 
Charley's Aunt, New (2-10-54). 
Confidential Clerk, Lyric. (9-16-53). 

Day By The See, Haymarket (11-26-53). 
Folles Bergere, Pr. Walea (0-24-53). 

For Better Worse, Comedy (12-17-52). 
Guys end Dolls, Colliseum (5-28-53). 
Housemaster, St. Martin’s (1-19-54). 

King and I, Drury Lane (10-8-53). 

Love Match, Palace (11-10-53). 

Mother, Embassy (2-15-54). 

Mousetrap, Ambas. (11-25-52). 

Old Vic 1 Repertory, Old Vlo (9-14-53). 
Paint Your Wagon, Majesty’s (2-11-53). 
Paris '90, St. Martin's (2-22-54). 

Private Secretary, Arts (2-3-54). 
Pygmalion, St. James' - (11-19-53). 
Question of Fact, Piccadilly (12-10-53). 
Reluctant Heroes, Whitehall (9-12-50). 
Ring Out Bells, Vic. Pal. (11-12-52). 
Seagulls Sorrenfd, Duchess (6-14-50). 
Seven Year Itch, Aldwych (5-14-52). 

: Sleeping Prince, Phoenix (10-5-53). 
Someone Waiting, Glohe (11-25-53). . 
Troplcana, New Watergate (2-10-54). 
Wish You. Were HOre, Casino (10-10-53) 
Witness Prosecution, W. Card. (10-28-53). 


'Angels $16, 


Boston, Feb. 237 

Legit biz continues strong here 
with “Guys and Dolls” winding an 
eight-week run at the Shubert with 
an average gross of $43,260 weekly. 

This is believed to. set a record 
for the house average for a musi- 
cal. “Dolls” moved over to the 
Colonial Monday (221 for final 
three weeks, opening to a sellout, 
matinee and healthy advance sale 
for balance of run. “My Three 
Angels,!’ in first Week ait the 
Plymouth, nabbed nifty notices and 
fared well at the boxoffice with 
the current (second) week expected 
to top initialer. 

Newcomer -this week is “By ..the 
Beautiful Sea,” starring Shirley 
Booth, which moves, into the Shu- 
bert tonight (Tues.) for a limited 
engagement. 

Estimates for Last Week 
Guys and Dolls, Shubert ($6 Fri - 
Sat., $4.80 Other nights; 1,700) (8th 
wk). Final week at this house 
grossed a hefty $41,135, slightly 
off last week’s, figure due to slug- 
gish Wednesday, matinee biz. 

My Three Angels/ Plymouth 
$4.20; . 1,200) (1st wk) (Walter 
Slezak). First week hit nice $16,600. 

ALLTIME NEW HAVER 
HIGH IN $44,593 ‘SEA’ 

New Haven, Feb. 23. 

Full-week stand of “By The 
Beautiful, Sea” (Shirley Booth) 
preem cracked the alltime record 
at the Shubert last week ( 15-20). 
Highest top in theatre’s history 
($6) brought a terrific $44,503 gross 
for eight shows. Previous high 
this season was “Girl In Pink 
Tights.” at $5.40 top, at $40,300, 
also SRO. . 

Dark week current gives way 
next week to breakin of “Anni- 
versary Waltz” (Macdonald Carey- 
Kitty Carlisle) opening tomorrow 
(Wed.). 


SCHEDULED OPENINGS 
Fifth Season, Cambridge (2-24-54). 
Liberty Bill, Strand (2-25-54). 

You'll Bo Lucky, Adelphi (2-25-54). 
Blood Wedding, Arts (3-3-54). 

I Capture Castle, Aldwych (3-4-54). 
First Edition, New Watergate 0-11-54). 
I Am a Camera, New (3-12-54). 
Wedding In Peris, Hipp. (4-3-54). 


CLOSED LAST WEEK 
Escapade, Strand (1-20-53). 

Love From. Judy, Saville (9-25-52). 
No Other . Verdict, Duchess (1-21-54). 


Wilbert W. Wachter, an indus- 
trialist, has been elected head of 
the Midwest Opera Assn., of St. 
Louis, 


‘Moon’ $15,200, Detroit; 
Canadian Ballet $9,000 

Detroit, Feb. 23. 

“Moon Is Blue” . grossed $15,200 
in the first week of a fortnight’s 
engagement at the 2,050-seat Shu- 
bert. Top Is $3.60. “Oklahoma” 
comes into the Shubert for two 
weeks March 1. 

National Ballet of Canada, in a 
week at the 1,482-seat Cass, did a 
poor $9,000. Top was $3. Cass 
now goes dark until March 16 
when it’ll show “New Faces” for 
three weeks. 


‘Porgy’ $34,500, St. Louis; 
‘Philadelphia’ $9,000 

St. Louis, Feb. 23. 

“Porgy and Bess” wound up 
successful two-week frame at the 
American Theatre Saturday (20), 
grabbing ' an estimated $34,500 for 
the last stanza. “An Evening With 
Beatrice Lillie” opened a week's 
frame last night (Mon.) at the 
American. House is scaled to $4,88. 

“The Philadelphia Story,” with 
June Lockhart, wound at the Em- 
press Sunday (21) with a $9,000 
score, with the usual $2.50 top 
prevailing. Billie Burke in ‘‘Life 
With Mother” tees off a two-week 
session at the Empress tonight 
(Tues.). 


‘Faces’ 25?G, Frisco 

San Francisco, Feb. 23. 

Heavy rains, plus record draw 
of Auto Show headed by Jimmy 
Durante at Civic Auditorium, has 
hurt legit biz. However, “New 
Faces,” town’s sole legit, is $till 
in high brackets, with $25,500. 

Jose Greco opens at the Curran 
March 1. with Beatrice Lillie fol- 
lowing March 29. 


After a fortnight of sliding biz, 
Broadway picked up last week, 
with practically all shows register- 
ing increases. Takes for the click 
ehtries remained generally status 
quo. 

Broadway got Another smasheroo 
last week with the bow Thursday 
(18) of “Ondine.” Other entrant 
last week was “The -Winner,” 
which preemed Wednesday (17). 
Sole newcomer this session is 
“Girl in Pink Tights ” which de- 
buts Saturday (27) night, 

Closing Saturday are-’. “Dial M 
for Murder,” which will go out on 
a limited tour, and “Mile. Col- 
ombe.” 

Estimates for Last Week 

Keys: C (Comedy), D (Drama), 
CD (Comedy-Drama), R (Revue), 
MC (Musical Comedy), MD (Musi- 
cal . Drama ) , O ( Opera ) . 

Other parenthetic designations 
refer, respectively, to top prices; 
number of seats, capacity gross and, 
stars. Price includes 20% amuse- 
ment tax, but grosses are net: i.e., 
exclusive of tax. 

Caine Mutiny Court Martial, 
Plymouth (5th wk) (D-$6-$4;80; 
,062; $33,500) )( Henry Fonda, Jphn 
lodiak, Lloyd, Nolan). Oyer $32,- 
300, with take held down because 
of theatre party commissions (pre- 
vious week, $32,700). 

Can-Can, Shubert (42d wk) (MC- 
$7.20; 1,361 ; $50,160). Nearly $50,- 
700 (previous week, $50,700)). 

Confidential Clerk, Morosco (2d 
wk) C-$7.80; 935; $30,200) (Ina 
Claire, Claude Rains, Joan Green- 
wood). Almost $28,900, with take 
held down because of theatre par- 
ty commissions (previous week, 
$24,200 for first four, performances 
and three previews). 

Dial M for Murder, Booth (68th 
wk) (D-$4;80; 766; $20,801) (Mau- 
rice Evans). Over $16,400 (previ- 
ous week, $15,700); . clqses Satur- 
day (27) to tour. 

Fifth Season, Cort (57th wk) (C- 
$4.80; 1,056; $25,227) (Menasha 

Skulnik, Richard Whorf). Nearly 
$23,000 (previous week, $23,000). : 

His and Hers, 48th Street (7th 
wk) (C-$4.80; 925; $22,927) (Celeste 
Holm, Robert Preston). Just under 
$20,000 (previous week, $19,500). 

.Immoralist, Royale (2d wk) (D- 
$6-$4.80; 1,035; $31,000) (Louis 

Jourdan, Geraldine Page). Over 
$21,800 (previous week, $21,200). 

John Murray Anderson’s Alma 
nac, Imperial (Uth wk) (R-$7.20; 
1,400; $50,300). Over $40,000 (pre 
vlous week, $39,200). 

Kind Sir; Alvin (16th wk) (C-$0 
$4.80; 1,311; $39,460) (Mary Mar 
tin, Charles Boyer). Nearly $28,000 
(previous week, $25,500). 

King and I, St. James (152d wk) 
(MD-$7.20; 1,571; $51,717) (Yul 

Brynner, Patricia Morisonh Near- 
ly $36,000. (previous week, $34, 
300); closes March 20 to tour. 

Kismet. Zicgfeld ( 12th wk > (MD 
$7.20; 1,028; $57,908) (Alfred 

Drake). Almost $57,900 (previous 
week, $57,800). 

Lullaby, Lyceum (3d wk) (C- 
$4.80; 995; $22,845) (Mary Boland). 
Nearly $7,100 (previous week, $6 
500). 

Mile. Colomhe, Longacre (7th 
wk) (CD-$6-$4.80; 1,048; $26,817 
(Julie Harris, Edna Best). Nearly 
$13,800 (previous week, $15,700); 
closes Saturday (27). 

Me and Juliet, Majestic (39th 
wk) (MC-S7.20; 1,510; $58,000) 

Under $37,500 (previous week, 
$37,600). 

Oh, Men, Oh, Woinen, Miller 
(10th wk) (C-$6-$4.80; 920; $23,248) 
(Franchot Tone). Almost $23,000 
(previous -week, $23,000). 

Ondine, 46th St. (1st wk) <D- 
$7.80; 1,139; $39,512) (Audrey Hep- 
burn, Mel Ferrer). Opened Thurs- 
day (18) to five affirmative reviews 
(Atkinson, Times; Chapman, News 
Coleman, Mirror; McClain, Jour 
nal-American; Watts, Poet) one pan 
(Kerr, Herald Tribune)) and one 
no opinion (Hawkins, World-Tele- 
gram); grossed over $30,100 for 
first four performances and two 
previews, with theatre garty com- 
missions cutting into take. 

Picnic, Music Box (52d wk) (CD 
$6-$4.80; "997; $27,534). Topped 
$18,900 (previous week, $18,500). 

Prescott Proposals, Broadhurst 
(10th wk) (CD-$0-$4.8O; 1,160; $29,- 

mo 


500) (Katharine Cornell). Almos 
$15,400 (previous week, $15,300). 

Remarkable Mr, Pennypacker 
Coronet (8th wk) (C-$7.80; 1,027 
$28,262) (Bui^ess Meredith. Mar 
tha Scott). Topped $21,300 (pre 
vious week, $22,300). 

Sabrina Fair, National <i4th wk) 
(C-$6-$4.80; 1,172; $31,300) (Mar- 


Joseph Cpttenl. 
(previous week, 


garet Sullavan, 

Almost $31,200 
$30,600). 

Seven Year Itch, Fulton : (66th 
wk) (C-$6-$4.80; 1.083: $24,400) 

(Tom Evyeil). Over $23,600 (pre- 
vious week, $22,600). . v 

Solid Gold Cadillac, ’Belasco 
(16th wk) (C-$6-$4.80; 1,077; $28,- 
300) (Josephine Hull). Held at 
Oyer $28,300. . 

Tea and .Sympathy, Barrymore 
(21st wk) <D-$6-$4.80; 1 .060; $28,- 
300) . (Deborah Kerr). Held at al- 
most $28,600. 

Teahouse of the August Moon, 

Beck (19th wk) (C-$6-$4.80; 1.214; 
$31,681) (David Wayne, John For- 
sythe). Held at almost $32,200. 

Winner, Playhouse (1st wk) (CD- 
$4 80; 999; $21,500) (Joan Tetzel. 
Tom Helmore). Opened Wednes- 
day (17) to One favorable notice 
(McClain, Journal- American); one 
no opinion (Hawkins, World-Tele- 
gram); and five pahs; grossed near- 
y $7,400 for. first six perform- 
ances. 

Wonderful Town, Winter Gar- 
den (51st wk) (MC-$7.20; 1.510; 
$54,173) (Rosalind Russell). Over 
$49,400 (previous week, $46,600). 
Miscellaneous 

Coriolanus, Phoenix (5th wk) (D- 
$3; 1,1 5Q; $15,000). Same as last 
week, almost $10,000. 

Ruth Draper, Vanderbilt (4th 
wk) (CD-$3.60; 720; $13,000). 
Opening. This Week 
Girl in Pink Tights, Hellinger 
(MC-$7.20; 1,527; $53,000 (Renee 
Jeanmaire, Charles Goldner). 
Shepard Traube (in association 
with Anthony B. Farrell) produc- 
tion of musical, with music by Sig- 
mund Romberg, book by Jerome 
Chodorov and Joseph Fields^ lyrics 
by Leo Robin; opens Saturday 
(27). 



Philadelphia, Feb. 23. 
“Girl in Pink Tights” dipped 
slightly during its final week, but 
difference was hardly perceptible 
and tuner was still in terrific class. 
Cumulative effect of notices of 
cast changes, script revisions and 
new material had adverse reaction; 
but for every ticket returned there 
was a .customer, or broker, wait- 
ing. 

Surprise score was tallied by 
Manny Davis’ production of “Twin 
Beds” in its initial stanza at the 
Locust. Show got rough and 
brushoff treatment from crix and 
large segment of first-nighters. 
Town was flooded with twofers and 
it paid off, with virtual capacity 
houses at reduced scale most of 
week. 

Estimates for Last Week 
Twin Beds, Locust (1st wk) (C- 
1,580; $3.90). Discouraging reviews 
had no effect on bargain hunters, 
who gave 40-year-old farce a big 
play, Plenty profit at $15,200. 

-The Girl in Pink Tights, Shu- 
bert (3d wk) (M-1,870; $6.50) (Jean- 
maire, Charles Goldner). Fact that 
this one was sold out before it 
arrived helped it weather mixed 
comment. All but few seats taken. 
Smash $48,600. 


‘PACIFIC’ OVEB $32,000 
IN SOUTHEBN SPLIT 

Montgomery, Ala., Feb. 23. 

“South Pacific,” with Jeanne Bal 
and Webb Tilton, drew just over 
$32,000 last week in a split be- 
tween Mobile and here. Rodgers- 
Hammerstein musical grossed $16,- 
800 in four performances Monday- 
Wednesday 115-17) at the Saenger, 
Mobile, and the. $15,200 balance in 
four more showings Thursday-Sat- 
urday (18-20) at the Lanier Audi- 
torium here. " 

Production is playing all this 
week at the. Florida, St. Petersburg. 


Winnipeg Ballet $11,500 ^ 
For 6 Shows in Montreal 

Montreal, Feb. 23. 

Royal Winnipeg Ballet grossed 
a near $11,500 for six shows at a 
$3.50 top at Her Majesty’s last 
week. Company got excellent re- 
views but failed to draw payees. 

Company was in Quebec City 
yesterday (Mon.) and today. 


Wednesday, February 24 , 1954 



Plays Abroad 


Hamlet 


Continued front page U 

broadly. Even in his best plays, 
most of his characters have a 
and provides Gassman with a per* ^ ^ f caricature. Here they are 
feet vehicle to display his un- flgurts Q r i^ht out of the comic 
doubted range and talent. Jri - books despite the first-rate per- 

•Unusually low formaricos P of a talented company, 

with company s aim at a Henri Cremieux, veteran copied!- 

«iu a 3?s h ?n r r« h ^ as a but&y. 

theatre is 


considered moribund. I chasing 


fathoS'in-law. Michel is 
Sics pafd u°an thesperf^ wife; Madeleine Lambert, 


Maria Fcriero is said to get $25 per 
night) plus some government aid. 
After an Italian tour, company 
moves' into Paris' Theatre des 
Champs Elysees April 10. 

For thote who know Gassman 
only from his many film stints in 
this country and abroad, his ver- 
sion of Hamlet will come as a 

E leasant revelation; for it shows 
im a mature theatre personality 
able to hold his audience through- 
out a SVa-hour production, with a 
voice and range of talent marking 
him already as one of the top per- 
sonalities in the Italian theatre 

today. , • ■ . . .. 

After more than 20 pic stints. 


as i mother-in-law; Catherine Ro 
mane as the nurse,; and Jacques 
Dynarri as plumber and Robert 
Lombard. Andre Barsacq’s direc- 
tion keeps things moving although 
it fails to improve them. Curt. 


Progreft? 

Veteran legit manager, 
walking through N. Y.’s 45th 
St. west at Broadway, paused 
to watch workmen razing the 
Avon Theatre, formerly CBS 
Playhouse 2. 

•They're using fewer men 
to tear down the building than 
we had to hire to strike a one- 
set show,” he muttered. 




NEW ROBBINS ‘ 

BALLET SCORES IN BOW 


time of Storm 

Greenwich M«vrii Theatre jli-esentatlon 
of drama- in three a,cts . by Sheldon. Stark. 
Directed by Michael: Howard. , Settings, 
Robert Soule: costumes. Frank Rrady. At: 
Greenwich Mews Theatre,: N.Y.v Feb. 17, 
'54. . . V /. • 

Miriam Craig 
Carlos Gorbea 
Peter prince 
Joy Saunders 

Chevi Colton 

..... Betty Bendyk 
Jane White 

Mike Kellin 

..... . Janies Karen 

.... Michael Lewin 

... MacGregor Gibb 
..... Sandra Kazan 

... Aniie Fielding 
R. Gxahame Brown 


| Goody Snowden 
Elijah Scourby .. 
Boy 

Dorcas Kendall . .. 
Melinda Dabney .... 
Sarah Wellman 
Mercy Wellnum , , . 
Nathaniel Wellman 
Cadmus Lathrop 






Choreographer Jerome Robbins ^Fs'SmPrlntis? 
has added another attractive work Magistrate HaVes 
to the: repertoire Of the N. Y. City 
Ballet with the premiere of his Banff 
"Quartet” at City Center, N. Y., 

M is s Ferrero "m ak es her legit debut last Thursday (18). Set to music Sheldon Stark’s "Time of Storm 
at 18 as Ophelia, and gives the role of Prokofieff’s String Quartet No. . based on the same theme qov- 
a fine reading, while fitting the 2, Op 92— and danced to strains of 13 ^ f VrSS. «* 

physical aspects perfectly. Antonio a music quartet instead of a ; full ered by Arthur Miller in last y^ar s 
Battistella’s Polonius is a humor- orchestral ensemble — the work is Broadway entry, The Crucible, 
ous, unconventional rendering a lyrical pastoral that aptly catches Both playwrights used the infa- 
whieh may offend the purist^^ut the music’s mood and style. mous New England witchhunts of 

fenler Wlfppo 1 Scelzo and"other vet Prokofieff based his score on old the late 1600s as source material 
actors’ help keep the thespic level Caucasian love songs and dances, for their works. "Storm” however, 
of the production high in all sec- and Robbins follows suit with his lacks the. overall solid impact of 
tors. Direction (by Gassman) keeps' dance “creations. Movements are the other. Also, the Broadway run 
action flowing in unusually smooth inventive though simple; there is of "Crucible” takes the edge off 
manner via lighting, and functional, little- straining for showmanship any possible Main Stem showcasing 
aspects of the impressive and taste- or bravura; what comes through of “Storm.” 

ful set by Mario Chiari (who also are gentle peasant dances, Agree- Besides the "Crucible” damper, 
did the fine costuming). There s no able an d farming to the eye. High Stark's play isn’t strong enough to 

With 


■ • • 4 • ' • • 


■t - • • • • -t ' 


• ♦ ♦ » * • • » • 


• • • • 






JOHN MURRAY ANDERSON'S ALMANAC 
(As of Jan. 30, ’54) 

Original investment (incl. $50,000 overcall) 1 .... . . ... . . . $250,000 

Production cost . . .. . . . . . ........ : , . ; .................. 207,312 

123,914 
38,047 
8,738 
254,097 
321,889 
36,477 
217,621 
41,900 
8,950 
4,063 
22,533 








Total gross for 4Vfe-week Boston tryout 
Tryout loss ... V vV. ..... 

Pre-opening expenses, New York 
Total cost to open in New York .... 

Total gross for first 7V2 weeks in N.Y. 

Operating profit first iVz weeks in N.Y. 

Amount to beb recouped . . ... 

Bonds and deposits < . . . ...... . I . 

Due from authors for torchestrations 
Overcall due from limited partners , . . . . . . 

Cash deficit .i . . . ; . v . . ... , , ... . . ... » 

Weekly Operating Budget 
Theatre’s share of gross ; . . 30% of first $20,000 gross, 25% of balance 

...... 6,000 




• ••••• * «.•••• # 




















t • » t « 't » M * 


• • • » f • 




2.700 ■ 
3,400 

1.700 
485 
300. 
300 
722 

. ■ 745 
6.69% 


doubt that it’s . Gassman’s show, 
however, and he makes it a' mem- 
orable evening. Hawk ; 


spot is the slow movement, 
Jacques d’Amboise and Jillana in 
a lovely pas de deux. Patricia 
Wilde and Herbert Bliss, as one 
team, and Yvonne Mousey And 
Todo Bolender, as another, share 


weather the Broadway competition. 
It's not until the third act that 
"Storm” really settles down to 
some hard-hitting lines and acting. 
The initial two acts, of the: play fail 
to register effectively, from both 
the scripting and thesping angles. 


Payroll for principals (approx.) 

; (Includes 4% to Hermione Gingold) 

Payroll for chorus (approx.) ... 

Musicians (approx.) .......... 

Crew . . ; . ... 

Stage managers .... , . . .... , 

Company, general managers ... 

Pressagents . . . 

Wardrobe attendants, dressers 
Extra stagehands 

Author royalties . . . . . . . . . .... . . . . . . ...................... 

(Indudes .214% to songwriters Richard Adler and Jerry 
Ro§s and about 2(4% for other musical numbers, plus 
About 2% for sketches.) 

Director royalties ... - • • r • < • ... . . V . . 

(Includes 1 VA% ' Tor Anderson, who also shares in the 
author royalties for a combined total of 3%, and 1% for 
sketdi -director Cyril Ritchard.) 

Designer, choreographer royalties ($125 each) 

Share of advertising (approx.) ; . . . . 

Other advertising, publicity (approx.) 

Rentals (approx.) . . ; 

Other departmental expense (approx.) 

Office expense .... ...... 

Miscellaneous (approx.) .... 

Gross needed to break even (approx.) 

Stop limit in theatre contract ....... 

(Note: -The Michael Grace, Stanley Gilkey; Harry Rigby production 
opened Dec. 10, ’53, at the Imperial, N.Y.) 


I>s <|ua$re yerltes 

(The Four Truths) 

, Andre Barsatq production ^comedy honors, with eight other dancers as in the windup act, however. Stark 
In. four acts by. Marcel Ayme : Sets by assist, Mriie. Karinska’s costumes' finally sinks his teeth into the dis- 

are richly eye-arresting, and Jean 
Rosenthal’s lighting is, as usual, 
topgrade. Bron. 


Jean-Denis Malcles. Direction by Andre 
Barsacq. At Theatre de L’Atelier, Paris. 
Feb. 4. '54: $3 top. 

Madame Trevlere, . . . .Madeleine Lambert 
Marlette . ; . . ... . GUberte Genlat 

Olivier Jean-Claude Michel 

M. Trevlere Henri Cremieux 

Nicole Aniie Vernon 

Jouralist Robert Lombard 

M. Jourdan . , .......... Henry-Gaultler 

Madame Jourdan ...... Germaine Belbat 

Plumber Jacques Dynam 

Postman' Jean Sylvatn. 

Eniilien Jacques Rispal 

Helene Catherine Romane 


Continued from page 2 


graceful situation whereby indi- 
viduals underwent mock trials and 
were*put to death when accused by 
children of being witches. 

In the, play’s final stages, Mike 
Kellih turns in a potent portrayal 
of a man faced with death after 
being accused by his step-daughter 
of being a wizzard. As his wife, 
Jane White also shows up well dur- 
ing the- latter part of the play. 


production and distribution of 
abundance by world technical agen- Miriam Craig, as a Woman accused 
cies of democratic and cooperative of being a witch, has some strong 
corporate nature, and . individual moments. Betty Bendyk is some- 
personal freedom in the area of times overly-menacing as Kellin’s 


Marcel Ayme is a successful 
novelist who has had three long- 
run theatre hits since he began 

writing for the stage -five years humin rights-’. ' I malicious stepdaughter. Also turn- 

ago. But his new play is dismally D f r - 

disappointing when one considers Nationar ciuzensnip chevi Colton and James Karen, 

his earlier hits. Usually a man provenlo he Totally Remainder of the cast does okay, 

with a shrewd eye for effective day. Two world wars between Michael Howard directed ablv 
theatrical situations, his talents national citizens and vasL utterly ^ MichaeV Koward^^ 

seen) to have been on vacation foolish ^P*«tapn is^tandoq? Play,'- incidentally; is 

while he was composing "Four convincing evidence of this. Inter- bei g offered at the Greenwich 
Truths,” a poorly constructed, repe- nationalism is not enough. Mew? Theatre in Greenwich Vil- 

tltious farce which works its main Only supernationalism, worldism i age on a voluntary contribution 

or world citizenship is sufficient in basis. Jess, 

one physical world and for one 
mankind to promote world peace 
and material abundance. 

Theatre people are acutely 
world-minded and cosmopolitan to 


Met ‘Barber’ 


Continued from page 56 


joke to death long before the eve 
ning is done. 

Olivier (Jean-Claude Michel), his 
hero, is a prominent scientist who 
suspects his wife of not too much 
fidelity. He has definite proof that 

she has been in Cannes on some ro- niir i, onc 

mantic mission, but she refuses to a degree e onl y surpass e d perhaps by 
admit this despite his pleas that French cab-drivers and UN Secrfc- 
he will forgive all if she only con- tanat secretaries. . 
fesses. A§ a last resource he ‘in- I’m no theatrical celebrity, to be 
jects her, his mother-in-law, his sure, certainly no star, but my no- iutTon Bhoes. 
father-in-law and himself with a tices generally weren’t bad. Any- „,-u Koooil[ , n 

truth drug on which he. has been way, being an Equity member, if in 

doing some research, and some un- a non-legal stateless one, I feel a was excellently cast and sung, and 
pYnpnt^j cifnaiinnc oneno * fhacniAn^- onH because . Alberto Efcdc conducted 


also staged a second-act soldiers' 
drill that’s the funniest bit in N.Y, 
since the bathhouse scene in "High 


expected situations ensue. 
Ayme loves to paint 


BROADWAY ANGELS. 
INC. 

Common Slock 

Prict 50© a Share 

Write or phone for an offering 
■ . circular to 

BROADWAY ANGELS, INC. 

29 W. A5Hi St., Now York 23 
TRofalgar 4-1815 


, rapport with fellow thespians, and ... ... .. . . . 

people 1 1 want therefore to announce here aU Si°f 1 n t r ’ 

that, under the auspices of The musical performance. ; Roberta 
World Citizen Party, I have declared Peters^mqde a pert Rosina while 

singing the difficult coloratura 




« • • . 










. • • • ♦ 


375 

3.500 

200 

1,300 

600 

300 

1,100 

33.000 

32.000 



To 19 Talent Agents 

Actors Equity recently issued 
franchises to 19 additional talent 
agents. Official nods to a number, 
of others have been Approved by 
the union council, but have not be- 
come effective pending compliance 
by the percenters with Equity con- 
tractual requirements. 

Those 111 receiving new fran- 
chises include George Baxt, David 
Bethea, Leo F. Caspare, Dave 
Cohn, Frank L. Esternaux, Hans J. 
Hofmann, Jeff Hunter, Julie Leon- 
ard, Francese Light,, Grace Lyons, 
Herbert Marks Agency,- William 
Schuller, Robert Schultz Asso- 
ciates, Anthony Soglio, William L. 
Stein, Inc., Jo Van Patten (Allied 
Artists Agency), Charles V. Yates 
(Yates Artist Corp.) and Jerry 
Rosen ( Mercury Artists ) , 


Softest Job 


Continued from page 57 


Off-B’way Ads 

Continued from page 57 


my candidacy as a delegate to a | 
Peoples World Convention to be 
convened. 

The only realistic choice today 
is one world or none. Th Jre is no 
longer any middle ground. We now 
have the opportunity, all of us, to 
be peacemakers. Let us not miss.it, 

Garry Davis. 


(Garry Davis, who toured, last 


airs with skill, style, arrf great 
beauty. Cesare Valletti, as -the 
Count, proved also to be a highly 
accomplished artist and singer. 

Robert Merrill was a manly, ro- 
bust Figaro and Cesare Siepi a 
highly entertaining and musically 
fine Basilio. Fernando. Corena 
gave as good a portrait of Bartolo, 
dramatically, as perhaps the Met 


season in '-Stalag 17” and before has witnessed, while also singing 
World War II appeared in "Let’s in superior fashion, Jean- Madeira 
Face It” and other legiters, .founded gave the bit part of Berta both 


the One World movement in Eu- 
rope soon after war’s end \ receiv- 
ing unofficial title of World Citi- 
zen, No. 1.) 



CAB CALLOWAY 

EIGHTY-SEVENTH WEEK u Spaitla' Ufa 

“Porgy and Bess” 

Currently 

CIVIC AUD., KANSAS CITY 
. Four Week • Starting Mar. 1 

CIVIC AUDITORIUM, CHICAGO 

. Mgl.: Bill MITTLER, f61 9 Broadway, New York 


musical and physical dimension; 

This was the first new "Barber” 
at the Met since 1926, and the new 
sets and costumes of Eugene Ber- 
inah, while a little too ornamenta- 
tive, made a striking impression. 
If the Met Can keep this cast in- 
tact, it will have a b^o.s winner. 

Bron. 



(Feb. 22-March 7) 


Corn Is Green — DeWitt Clinton 
H. S. (26-27). 

Hasty Heart-^-Lenox Hill Play- 
house, N. Y. (3-7). 


and $1.50 Sundays; Herald Tribune, 
85c daily, $1.20 Sundays; Post, 92c 
daily, 77c weekends; World-Tele- 
gram and Sun, $1.14 daily (no Sun- 
day edition published); Mirror, 
$1.45 daily, $1.55 Sundays, and the 
Journal-American, 95c daily,’ 99c 
weekends. The News and Brooklyn 
EagJ.e don’t Offer the nabe theatre: 
break to off-Broadway operations 
There are at least .12 off-Broad- 
way groups currently running copy 
in the New York dailies. Heaviest 
concentration of ads, however, is 
in the Times and Post. The Herald 
Tribune and Mirror follow, in that 
order. Big ad splurge undertaken 
by some of these off-Broadway 
units was highlighted recently in 
the Times Sunday drama section. 
Among the larger legit ads in 
that issue were "Girl on the Via 
Flaminia,” currently at the Circle- 
in-the-Square, and "Threepenny 
Opera,” which opens at the de Lys 
March 9. Both ads ran three col- 
umns, with "Flaminia” nine inches 
and "Opera” seven. Also promi- 
nent were two-column displays for 
"World of Sholbm Aleichem,” at 
the Barbizon Pl^za Theatre; "Cori- 
olanus,” at the Phoenix Theatre; 
"Time of Storm,” at the Greenwich 
Mews Theatre; "No Exit,” at the 
Cabaret Theatre, and “Bullfight, 
current at the de Lys, 

Other off-BroRclway offerings 
represented by ads : were “Climate 
Of Eden,” at Current Stages The 
atre; "Miss Julie,” at the Green 
Room Studio; . “Madwoman of 
Chaillot,” at the Actors Mobile 
Theatre; "Pirates of Penzance,” at 
an East 18th Street address; "Shad- 
ow of a Gunman,” at Studio 8: 40 
and “Little Eylof/* at the Province 
itown Playhouse. 


item was great source of solace to 
the Baron of Mt. Kisco, inasmuch 
as pn opening day, blizzard crip- 
pled window sale. 

Angle-Shooting 

My fabulous helper also took 
time . off from monitoring slashing 
rewrite and restaging duties to 
type out a by-line story which 
wound up page 3 in the Daily News. 
In spite of near SRO trade he en- 
couraged the invitation of 50 Philly 
Disc Jocks to his premiere and was 
rewarded with a successful promo- 
tion based on “30 Years of Song 
with Billy Rose.” Peg was founded 
presumably on Anniversary of his 
first lyric writing hit, That was 
Barney Google and- His Goo Googly 
Eyes.” Thereafter his press rep 
drew a comfortable chair close to 
the radio and counted 128 gratitu- 
tious plugs for “The Immoralist” 
while platters were spinning such 
fine Rose oldies as “Million Dollar 
Baby,” “Me aii(^ My Shadow,” and 
“Paper Moon.” 

When it became plain that revis- 
ing the. show cried out for more 
playing time and booking condi- 
tions would riot permit extension 
in Philadelphia-— even though it 
would have been sold out— niy 
mentor phoned each metropolitan 
critic. About his dilemma, he ex- 
plained that he wanted to rehearse 
script changes and - had sold no 
parties or previies for the open 
week. To a man they agreed to re- 
sw “The Immoralist” ; a week af- 
ter it began playing "Paid Public 
Prevues.” He kept faith by ad- 
vertising each prevue as such and 
fully explaining in the papers the 
reason for ' his- request. Even in 
rough shape the show took hold of 
its audiences and wound up with 
$20,000 for its unofficial playing 
time. 

After discharging his obligation 
to the critics. Rose* reached for his 
Wallet arid bought iriidnite time on 
WNBT to produce his own celeb- 
rity packed forum television show 
for five consecutive riights. Last 
week showed another $20,000 and 
another profit, arid the advance 
sale has built to $72,000 with seats 
selling into Easter. 

There are many compensations 
in working for someone who knows 
exactly what he wants, and more 
when he does it for himself, It's 
also nice when it’s a fellow who 
somehow manages to get on the 
front pages even when he sells a 
piece of real estate and who,, at the 
drop of a memo, can bang out a 
piece called "From G Strings to 
Gide” fori the Herald Tribune. 

If I suggested it, he’s probably 
okay a phosphorescent sign on the 
Palisades, but I’d probably have to 
phone the painter. 






WedneiJiy, February 24/ 1954 


/ 


Broadway 

Arthur Kober to Nassau. 

Robert Taylor in Gotham for a 
few days. 

Billy Reed's 7th anni of his Little 
Club celebrated tonight (Wed.). 

Today (Wed.) is Joe Laurie Jr.'s 
birthday and June and Joe's anni. 

’Elizabeth Taylor and her hus- 
band, Michael Wilding, back from 
Europe Friday (19). 

Hiller Innes, Paramount's assist- 
ant eastern production manager, 
off on a two-week vacation in 
Jamaica, B.W.I. . 

Douglas R. Ornsteln, United 
Artists' managing director in Ar- 
gentina, in Gotham to confab with 
homeoffice toppers. 

Agent Lou Wilson’s greetings: 
“Friends should be remembered 
not only on holidays, so may I wish 
you a Happy Feb, 17th.” 

Metro producer Jack Cummings 
sailed for Paris to begin prepara- 
tory wofik on "Babylon Revisited" 
which will be filmed there, . 

’ Gene Barry back to the Coast 
Monday (22) after two weeks of 

S lugging for “Red Garters." He 
as a lead spot in the Par pic. 
The Barry (INS) Faris’ daugh- 
ter, Joyce Early Faris. engaged 
to U. S. Military Academy Cadet 
Richard Mack Renfro. A summer 
wedding is planned. 

Abe Olman, general manager of 
the Big Three (Robbins, Feist & 
Miller), returned to his New York 
homeoffice yesterday (Tues.) after 
a two-week trip to Hollywood. . 

A1 Schwalbergs (Carmel Myers), 
Jerry Pickman, Russell Holman 
and other homeoffice Paramoun- 
teers to Philly. early this week 
for Danny Kaye's vauder 1 opening 
First time femmes allowed in 
the audience for a Circus Saints 
& Sinners "roasting" is today 
(Wed;) because Lucille Ball shares 
the "iall guy’* billing with Desi 
Arnaz. 

Impresario Sol Hurok flew to 
London yesterday (Tues.) for 


father In next season’s production 
of "Moon Is Blue" here ta the 
adaptation by Jean-Bernard Luc, 
Last year’s gross gambling cas- 
ino take was above the 1952 level 
or $17,500,000. Topper was Eng- 
hein followed by Cannes, Nice and 
Deauville. ■ 

Maurice Chevalier will act as 
technical adviser on the forthcom- 
ing "The Maurice Chevalier Story" 
(Par), and hopes to do a U. S. song 
Stint afterwards. . •. * 

«Gaby Silvia signed for the role 
opposite Gerard Philipe in the 
new Theatre National Populaire 
cgit creation, "Buy .Bias," at the 
Palais De Chaillotw 
Patachou will be top half of a 
variety program in March when 
the Theatre Des Varietes goes off 
he legit standard with the exiting 
of "Frere Jacques.” 

Jean Vilar stays on as director 
of the Theatre National Populaire 
after the government commission 
decided not to cut the budget of 
tiis TNP by $35,000. 

Andre Roussin’s new macabre 
comedy, "Le Mari, La Femme Et 
La Mort," with Bernard Blier and 
Jacqueline Gathier, tried out in 
Brussels before opening at. 
Ambassadeurs here this week. 


a 


of 


three-week biz trip in connection 
with future Sadler’s Wells Ballet 
and Old Vic Co. U. S. tours. He’ll 
also visit Paris, 

Ruby Schinasi doing the inviting 
for the wedding on March 2, at the 
Hotel Pierre, of Myrt ; Blum and 
Ruth Rhodes. Blum was married 
to "Babe," sister of Mrs. Jack Ben 
ny. He reps Benny and others as 
financial adviser on the Coast. 

Herbert J. Yates, Republic . Pic- 
tures prez; film actress Vera Ral- 
ston (Mrs. Yates), William Saal, 
Yates’ exec assistant; impresario 
George Hamid Jr. and producer 
Henry Sherek sailed for Europe 
last week on the United States. 

Lawrence Tibbett will be feted 
*t>y top show biz figures for “his 
30 years of leadership in the crea 
tive arts" at a dinner in the Grand 
Ballroom, Hotel Astor, Tfl Y., to- 
morrow (Thurs.). Proceeds will be 
contributed to the Musicians 
Emergency Fund for relief ’ 
needy musical artists. 

Harry Brandt named chairman of 
dinner arrangements for the firs 
annual Variety Club of N. Y. Hear 
Award Dinner at the Waldorf May 
6. It : will be a tribute to William 
J. German, prexy of the Variety 
Club Foundation to Combat Epi- 
lepsy. Music Hall topper Russel 
V. Downing is overall chairman o 
the dinner committee. 

Claude C. Philippe (Philippe o 
the Waldorf), in association with 
the French Cultural Attache in 
N.Y. hosted ai post-premiere party 
for the ‘‘Ondine’’ principals, cast 
adaptor Maurice Valency et al . 
but the Alfred Lunts (Lynne Fon- 
tanne) had an opposition : get-to- 
gether for the Playwrights Co. 
(management) group. 

Jeanette MacDonald’s reason for 
cancelling out her scheduled March 
23 date at the Pierre’s Cotillion 
Room was that she "gets nervous 
singing in a room where my 
friends are smoking and drinking'.’’ 
This despite Miss. MacDonald’s 
click in other key city bistros, but 
apparently she figured the Cotil- 
lion too intimate a boite. June 
Havoc replaces 

No broken ankle has gotten as 
much free space for a performer 
as l’affaire Jackie Gleason, Of 
course, the romantic aftermath and 
the savvy manner in which the 
comedian handled himself in the 
‘‘triangle’* situation made for the 
copy, including two "Jackie Glea- 
son Story" serials, frontpaged both 
in the Journal- American and the 
World-Telegram & Sun. 


the 


By Emil W/Maass ’ 
Marcel Prawy’s "Broadway Sing- 
ers” began touring Austrian prov- 
inces. : - 

USFA plans to take over Bueger 
Theatre, as the Cosmos is becom- 
ing too small. 

Sascha Film Distrib hit jackpot 
with "Moulin Rouge." Sold out a 
week in advance. . 

Austrian , film actress J osefin 
Kipper planted to Brazil, where she 
will appear in "Cohchita." 

Rudolf Holzer re-elected presi- 
dent of Austrian Authors Assn. 
Oskar M. Fontana- is vCepee. 

American sponsored Red White 
Red network arranged charity con- 
cert in Buerger Theatre for victims 
of recent avalanches. 

Nipole HeesterS, daughter of 
famous film, star Johannes, will 
have her legit preem in Volfcsthea- 
tre. They are preparing "Gigi." 


London 


couple of hours daily .following a 
heart attack two months -apo. 

Leslie A. Hutchinson opened a Kay local character /Vc 

fortnight’s cabaret run at Colony ^s. has a small role to Judy 
Restaurant this week. Garland pic, A Star Is. Born,. 

Richard Attenborough, film and Jimmy and Mildred Mulcay stay- 


legit star, starts a new BBC disk 
jockey series next Sunday. 

Max Thorpe, managing director 
of Columbia, vacationing on Rivi- 
era after his recent illness. 


Hollywood 


ing over after two-week Ankara 
engagement to play the Auto 
Show. 

Herb Shriner, Fran 'Warren and 

• Deep River Boys will head Shrine 

Jack Hylton is a prospective at Syria Mosque March 12- 

Parliamentary candidate for his x ■ . _ , 

hometown of Bolton In Lancashire. Gerry Walsh? late John Walsh's 
Elkin Kaufman, in charge of daughter, has featured role in 
Lew & Leslie Grade’s tele section, "Male Animal’' with Mt. Lebanon 
transferred to Grade’s Hollywood Players. 

office to take full control. Beth Miller in from N. Y. and 

Lew Stone’s 21st anni as a band handing out "Glenn Miller _ 

leader is being celebrated tonight Awards" as a promotion for the changed name . to 

(Wed.) with a special gala at Od- picture. Press of Hollywood 

deriino’s Hotel and musical Cabaret. * nf Cupkoh’' iuct eloced Walt Disney to Montego Bay, 

Ben M. Cohn, assistant foreign at piJJh 0 us e anff^nother Arthur Jamaica to supervise work on his 

\aor> fni* Tinivmai nr« riaynouse ana anocner Annur “ 20 , 000 Leagues Under Sea." 


Gladys Swarthout in town for 
concert series. 

Pat OErien returned after three 

Claire 1 Trevor planed in after two 
weeks in N. Y. 

Baqiey BMabans observed their 
25th wedding anni. 

David Rose and Peter Ustinov 
planed in from London. 

Leo Carrillo and Duncan Re- 
naldo planed to Miami. 

Michael Wilding and Elizabeth 
Taylor in from England. 

Jack L. Warner "hosted Don Jose 
Felix de Lequerica, Spanish am- 
bassador to U. S. 

Foreign Press Assn, of Hollywood 

International 


sales manager for Universal* ar 
rived in. town from Paris for. con- 
fabs with Douglas J. Granville, the 
local U topper. . 

Carol Bruce arrived In -London 
over the weekend to start rehear- 
sals on the West End production of 
"Pal Joey," in which she co-stars 
with Harold Lang. 

Larry Adler, one of the guest 
artists on the Frankie Howerd 
sound radio show last Monday (22); 
appeared with Viscountess Boyle, 
Harry Dawson and Gladys Morgan. 
David E. Rose planed to N. Y. 


Laurents play, "Home of the 
Brave," will be done there in 
April. 


Venezuela 

By Helen T. Coogan : 

Fassman Club headed by Clery 
and Gregory, comic, acrobats from 
Palladium, London. 

Xkyier Cugat set to open at the 
Tamanaco late this month with 12 
in addition to the band. 


Louis B. Mayer hosted the Silver 
Jubilee Charity Ball of Junior 
Auxiliary, Jewish Home for the 
Aged. 

Barbara Stanwyck will represent 
the film industry at the Variety 
Clubs International convention in 
Dallas. 



By Florence S* Lowe 
Universal Film unveiled new ex- 
Hotel Tamanaco gets a real test 1 tfiange quarters last week. 

... . . . . - - • I '*** : .A A. * _■ ‘ J . • • 


Barcelona 


By Joaquina C. Vidal-Gomis 

Bolero nitery has Paul Steffen 
Dancers. 

"Les Bass!” is the new Empori- 
um nitery show, y 
Renata Tarrago, new guitar solo- 
ist, to give one concert. 

Liceo Opera House closed until 
next November after a very good 
season, 

The Apolo Theatre has new mu- 
sical show, “War Aganst Love.” It 
stars Amparito Carvajal. 

Legit author Carlos Llopis pre 
senting his new play, “Oh, Doctor” 
with Gasco-Granada Co. 

American pix on Barcelona 
screens are "Melba” (UA), “Spring, 
field Rifle" (WB) and "Tokyo Joe" 
(Col). '>■ • 

"Quo Vadis" (M-G)- gala pre- 
miere at Windsor Palace, with new 
panoramic screen, proved a real 
sensation. 

The Romea Theatre has the Lope 
de Vega Co. in a revival of "Death 
of a Salesman." Spanish version 
is by Lopez -Rubio. 



"White Horse l inn" still going 
strong at Frederiksberg after over 
200 performances. . 

Josephine Baker, star of the new 
Copenhagen cabaret show, "Har- 
lem," got a fine press. 

Danish revue king Stig Lom- 
mer’s new show is an adaptation 
of Wycherley’s comedy, "Country 
Wife." It has some of the most 
risque scenes ever seen here. 

Ib Schonberg, star and manager 
of the yearly circus summer revue 
has offered former minister 0 
justice* K. K. Steincke, a comedy 
turn with popular humorist, Poul 
Sabroe. 


Tom Van Dycke, Variety roving 
mugg, hospitalized here with 
broken hip ; 

Russia and her satellites will be 
present at the Cannes Film Festi- 
val which begins March 25. 

United Artists and Paramount 
feting Jose Ferrer and Rosemary 
Clooney, with the press attending, 
during their stay here. 

Claude Dauphin will play the 


Within few 
con- 


last week to sign a male star and . .... 

director for his upcoming produc- on handling visitors withii 
tion of "The End Of The Affair" days when Inter-American 
in which Deborah Kerr will play ference opens March 4. 

Eemme lead. Venezuelan film censors claim 

Roy Rogers, who Is playing they have never had to scissor 
eight weeks on the Moss Empires Marilyn Monroe pix but that her 
circuit, will do one week in Lon- French and Italian rivals always 
don at the Harringay Arena for need watching. 

Evangelist 'Billy Graham, donating Jose Antonio Villegas Blanco, 
his^full salary^ , . .. prexy of Bolivar Films, planed to hassV RoornTridav 

. . Sir 9 e uf£ e ? ob f y « W n.?Pk?rtSha e m Brazil i° exhibit at Sao Paolo’s film chantoosey’s del 
h^, knighthood at a B^^nglmm festival; His offerings include -- y 
Palace investiture "Light on Mountaintop. 

unable to attend a Variety Ciuo p 
luncheon in his honor last Thurs- 
day (18) because he suffered from 
a heart attack. ; , . __ . . 

Mlckie Katz and his Kosher 
Jammers has been offered to the 
Jewish National Fund for series of 
charity concerts^n London and the f or fourth time. 

ie^TCTrace^Room Playin ^ **** 1 

unable to meet band leader on wr Terrace Room. 

«aiarv . Yankee Inn at nearby Akron 

folded without warning. 

Mel Torme doing a two-weeker 
at Hollenden’s Vogue Room. 

Andre Phillipe, singing pianist, 


Gene Autry and his western 
show here Sunday (21) for two 
shows at Uline’s. Arena; 

Spyros Skouras coming here 
March 22 for annual dinner of 
American Hellenic Educational and 
Progressive Association (AHEPA) 
dinner. 

Hildegarde and Johnny Johns- 
ton due into Statler Hotel’s Em- 

(26) for preem 
debut into a dou- 
ble act. 

Additions to roster of local Vari- 
ety Club tent include Universal 
rep John Horton; Harry Snider, 
Casilto . Royal nitery; Leon Zeiger, 
By Glenn C. Pollen of Casino Royal and Blue Mirror; 

Jan August back at Vogue Room. Leslie G. Arries, Jr., general man- 

Room 

— »• film head; Stanley W. Olsen, of 



Lillian Roth currently topping* 
Chez Paree show. 

Myma Hansen appearing here on 
promotions for Universal -pix. 

-ai a u , «-iu i Merriel Abbott entertainment 

dpr^manatfement of Jolly Joyce of- . ® ., 25 5 h annual director for Hilton chain, in N. Y. 

der managemeni oi uuny uwjrvc v circus at Civic Auditorium, here scouting talent. 

n»rrv comedian is Droduc- ^.? e ! c , s * i u. George Simon transferred from 

Ken Ba y, ’ Mitch Plotkin; vet nitery .press aefe deiiartriieiit to assist in radio- 

?f. Ckage >eent, in circulation after tough secUon at-MCA ass ‘s* in ranio 

andmn open it at the Club Roulc- bout ^ ith illness Y Bob F rel Isbn Palmer House 

vard early in March. _ Orrin Ide’s orch preemed Club choreographer, ’substituting 


Daisy Ma/Sndh®? e H?"eats. fea, «g* »n*-wee£er at Alpine Vil- 
tured at Rendezvous^ are now un- 
der ] 
fice. 


Kaf Ra IV former drummer for ^ wuu choreograpner, substituting in 

^ Tommv norsev’s orches- Ma ?nd Ballroom, first new dance houS e line after death of Greg 
Jimmy & Tommy Dorsey s orenes spo t city has had in dozen years. 

tras, joined the .Muggsy^ Spanier Chris Martin, blues cana 


combo, current at Rendezvous 


canary, 

* I Pinchhit at Cabin Club when ill- 

top- . recording nMS Cancelled .TaoHp .Tnrlrh's date 


O’Brien last week. 

fiertl Capek temporarily out of 
ice revue at Conrad Hilton Hotel 
because of minor spine injury dur- 
ing a performance. 

Louis Satchmo Armstrong ex- 
tended stage segment at Chicago 
Theatre to an hour with special 


Bill Darnell ^ as A ^fnt^ctWd ness cancelled Jackie Jocko’s date, 
celeb at party RCA Victor staged Eddie Lynch, Roxy’s manager, 
in Ritz^ ^ Carltpn K Hotel to posted notice that put burlesque 

its new X la ??}, hous e staff and show cast on week- 

• Baul (Skinny ) D Am ato , of Atlan- to-week basis. Biz very slow. 

tirt^ment 0 ' Committee ^ t fo? £^koff _ Ray Eberle at Cabin Club and jam session for Washington’s Birth 

nf A tTantlc Stv’s Cen- Sauter - Finegan orch, on one- day trade Monday (22). 
ceremomes orAtlantic uity s uen ni ght er a t Aragon Ballroom, got 

tennial,^ March 2. ..,uu together in testimonial party-tieup 

Lil Hardin Armstrong, with for Palace’s “Glenn Miller Story.” 

George Wettling at druips, in .first Hal Binkley Trio back from 

cafe date in Philadelphia and in- Fi or jd a for run at Eddie Sin- By Lary Solloway 

itial appearance here in 16 years, delar’s Sky-Way Club, replacing Denise Darcel opens at the 
at the Rendezvous. . Norman Knuth’s WG AR Starliters, Nautilus tonight (Wed.). 

Gerry Mulligan, who started, who moved to new Sky-Lark Cafe. Joe E. Lewis returned to the 
here as arranger for Elliot Law- Cole Porter gave Karamu Play- Latin Quarter Sunday (21). 
rence, making first eastern appear-^ ers> oldest Negro theatre group in Tony Martin follows Lena Horne 
ance with his progressive jazz.com- country, carte blanche to stage his into the Clover Club next week, 
bo at the Blue Note. “Out of This World” for a month Johnnie Ray playing date at the 

Pat Morrissey had to cancel without paying a nickel in royal- Casablanca with Gene Baylos in 

ties. 


By . Glenn Trump 

Ralph Goldberg has "Stripo- 
rama" set for near future at his 
Town Theatre. 

Jerry Murad . Harmonicats fea- 
tured opening of Legion Club’s 
Palm Garden Feb. 16-17. . 

Mai Hansen, WOW farm ed, re- 
elected chairman of Omaha Safe- 
ty Council’s farm safety committee. 

Goshen County .Fair officials at 
Torrington, Wyo., announced a 
rodeo at this year’s session, Aug. 
26-28. 

Bill Fruehling, prexy of Frank- 
lin County Fair board, finally got 
a Saturday opening for his expo 
this year with dates set as Aug. 
28-31. ' .. 

Alfred Stern, manager of the 
Centennial, heading to N. Y. in 
two weeks to book talent for celeb 
and confer with Bill Gibson on his- 
torical spec. 4 


booking at Celebrity Room, be- 
cause of back injury, with Ken 
Barry and Lynne Fader taking 
oyer lead spots in new show. . 

Eddie Fisher, who once worked 
as a stockboy at Lit Brothers, 
topped opening ceremonies Feb 
17 of department store’s new 
branch in northeast Philadelphia. 

Ruth Brown, who wound up at 
Pep’s Musical Bar Feb. 20, left 
for tour of one-nighters with pack- 
age show containing Billy Eckstine, 
the Clovers and Johnny Hodges 
orch, starting” Feb. 21 in Norfolk, 
Va., and closing at Met here April 
17. 



Central 


By Hal V. Cohen 

Pittsburgh Symphony signed 
conductor William Steinberg for 
two years more. 

Dancing Evans Family feted at 
testimonial dinner- by Homestead 
Park business Assn. 

Basil Rathbone will speak at 
women’s division United Jewish 
Fund dinner March 30. 

William Engstler assigned to 
Warner as permanent resident 
technician for "Cinerama." 

Eddie Mack, Jean Bruno and 
Jayne Carvel head cast of “Queen's 
Husband" at the Playhouse. 

Dick Rauh back to his office for 


Milton Carr new U. P. corre- 
spondent here, 

Rosita Sara reading 
American tour. 

Diana Russell, Georgette and 
La Bella Orquidea featured in 
vaude revue at the Cousino. 

"Blithe Spirit" at the Petit Rex 
with Maruja Orrequia, Teresa . Pi- 


Casablanca with Gene Baylos 
support; 

Dorsey Brothers orch being flown 
in for March private party being 
tossed by Marianne O'Brien Rey- 
nolds. 

. Tenor Jan Bart, after two years 
with Bonds For Israel drive, re- 
turned to regular cafe work at the 
Algiers. 

Lillian Roth feted at a party in 
Jolson Corner of the Lord Tarleton 
before heading for Chez Paree date 
in Chicago. 

Dave Garroway at Roney Plaza 



By Matty Brescia 

Harold Krelstein,, _WMPS prez* 


nana, Norman Day and Chela while recouping from minor head 
Keyes. . ; \ , . .. injuries suffered in auto accident 

Theatre owners .And projection- a t Key Biscayne. 
ists observed Cinematography 
Day" by closing down and going 
to a beach party. 

i i 

By Geeno Garr 

Sagi Vela Co., at- preseht packing 
the huge Teatro Madrid, goes on 
tour in March. 

.. , Helga Linne under contract to 

and Hoyt Wooten, WREC owner, author-impresario Paso Montorio to 
to Washington for . hearing before appear in a new revue. > 

FCC for tv Channel Three here. Alejandre Vega, formerly of the 
Bob Hope skedded for three one- Pilar Lopez Co., joined the Con- 
nighters (25-27) at Nashville, chita Piquer show as leading 
Knoxville and Chattanooga under dancer, 
the Early Maxwell Associates baw- Spanish Ballet. Co. of Pilar Lopez 
ner out of Memphis. (with Roberto Ximenez and Manoio 

Harry Martin, former, prez of Vargas) doing SRO* at Teatro Ai* 
American Newspaper Guild and varez Quintero, 
once theatre editor of The Com- Fernan Gomez at present com- 
mercial Appeal, in town visiting pleting two pix in studios here; he 


with his parents at nearby Sena 
tobia, Miss. 


will reappear at the Teatro 
, media with a new play in April 


Co- 


Wednesday, February 24,. 1954 


63 



AUGUSTIN DUNCAN 

Augustin* Duncan, 80, actof-pro- 
ducer-director, died Feb. 20 of, a 
hi?art attack at his home in Astoria, 
Queens, NX A brother of the 
late Isadora Duncan, he -made his 
BroadwJv debut in 190 (Kin' “Henry 
V • a t the Garden Theatre. He pro- 
duced about 40 plays and had also 
directed a number of productions 
for such outfits as the Theatre 
Guild and the Actors Theatre. 

During the late ’20s, Duncan lost 
his eyesight but continued to per- 
form. His last Broadway appear- 
ance was in “Lute Song” in 1946. 
In 1919 he staged and played the 
lead in St. John Ervine’s “John 
Ferguson.’' He repeated in that 
dual capacity in revivals of the 
play in 1920 and 1933. 

Other plays in which Duncan ap- 
nea red were “Richard II,” “Ham- 
let” arid “The Well of Saints." He 
\vas active in the development of 
the Provincetown Playhouse, N.Y., 
and in the Greenwich Village 
Theatre. He was also a former 
exec of Actors Equity having been 
a member of its Council from 1921 
to 1941, and was a veepee from 
■ 1941 to 1951. 

Surviving are a son, Angus, exec 
secretary of; Actors Equity, two 
daughters and his brother Ray- 
mond, poet-lecturer. 

GEZ A HERC2EG 

G eza Herczeg, ■ 65, playwright and 
scenarist; died Feb.. 19 in Rome. An 
American, he was born in Hungary. 
Among his early plays was the 
musical, “Wonder Bar," written in 
' 1927. ■ • • : 

Prior to coming to the U.S,, Her- 
czeg had been chief of the press de- 
partment for the Ministry of State 
in Hungary. He wrote the book for 
the musical, “Empress Josephine," 
and collaborated on the story, for 
■“Mr. Strauss Goes to Boston,” pre- 
sented in New York in 1944. 

HercZeg's film scripting included 
“The Life of Emile Zola,” “Flor- 
iar\” “The Burning Bush", and 
“Wonder Bar," He also, screen- 
played “Rapture,” an English-lang- 
uage picture produced in Italy in 
1950, as well as that for “Women 
Without Names," 'also made in 
Italy. 


Landscape.” She was married to 
actor Thomas Mitchell in 1937. 
They were divorced in 1939. 

Surviving are her husband, three 
daughters, her mother arid a sister. 

DENIS MYERS 

Denis Myers, 57, journalist and 
playwright who, for the past few 
years, Was filrn critic, of The Peo- 
ple, a London Sunday sheet, died 
in London last week. . 

Myers was a contributor to a 
number of publications including 
Courier and Band Wagon. He also 
was a regular writer for Piet ure- 
ccer, a fan paper published by 
Odhains Press. 


her death Feb. 20 from the third 
floor window of her Chicago apart- 
ment. A daughter survives besides 
her <husband. 


Henry G. Cottar, 81, pioneer the* 
atre operator in Forth Worth, died 
in Dallas recently after a long ill- 
ness. .He .was manager Of the old 
Blue Mouse and Odeor. Theatres 
m Dallas. 


Mrs. Agnes E. Peterson, 79, for- 
mer singer with the Stockholm 
opera, died Feb. 22 in Brooklyn. 
Husband, a daughter and a son 
survive. 


Danvers (Dave) )Lewis, 66, come- 
dian^ died at Blackpool, Eng. Feb. 
6. He was a member of a number 
of double acts, including Daly & 


EDWARD MATTHEWS 
Edward Matthews, 49, baritone, 
was killed Feb. 21 in an auto acci- ! daughters, 
dent hear Woodbridge, Va. The 1 
original “Jake" in “Porgy and 
Bess,” he had toured With the 
Fiske Jubilee Singers. In 1933 he 
appeared in the opera, “Four 
Saints in Three Acts." 

In recent years Matthews was a 
college teachet of voice. 


. Max; Hoffman, • 59, founder of 
WVOM, Brookline, Mass., died Feb- 
20 in Brookline. Surviving are; His 
wife, two sons, his mother and four 


Mar del Plata Fete 


Continued from page 2 


final word on which three U.S. ptx 
have been selected as entries, end 
who will constitute the Yanks dele- 
gation. It is likely that the same 
delegation, headed by Eric; John- 
ston, -due to attend the Sao Paulo 
event which closes Feb. 25 will! 
come on south for the Mar del 1 
Plata jamboree, provided the stars 
are able to spare the time from 


reps, of participating countries , are 
assisting in the project. 


Ditto Mexico 
Mexico City, Feb, i6. 
Plans simmering for several 
years for a film fair in Mexico, 
with Acophlco, lush Pacific port- 


...^ 4i J resort, as the pop: site, seem to 

their respective lots. There is sliiit! 1 * ,ve a V ]®st. The newest 

no certainty that Cinemascope will ! plan is backed by the Acapulcop 
be available; but negotiations be- ! Guerrero state, in which the resort 


MRS* ELIZABETH R. ROGERS 

Mrs. Elizabeth R. Rogers, 99, who 
starred with the old St. Louis Civic 
Opera Company in the 1880’s, died 
in Pittsburgh Feb. 16. She would 
have reached the century mark on 
June 30. . 

A native of Wheeling, W. Va., 
Mrs. Rogers graduated from the 
Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. 
Her father, Captain A. H. Britt, 
organized the first company of 
Union soldiers in West Virginia 
when President Lincoln called for 
volunteers. 

A son, Dr. David B. Rogers, pro- 
fessor of Sociology at the U. of 
Pittsburgh, and five grandchildren 

survive. 


JOSEPH D. WOODBURN 

Joseph D. WoodbUm, 79, for- 
mer vaude and legit performer,; 
died Feb, 20 in Mayville, N.Y, He 
did a comedy act with his first 
wife, the late Bess Woodburn, about 
50- years ago. 

Woodburn, who had been in the 
Broadway production of “Brew- 
ster’s Millions," retired from thfe 
stage about 25 years ago.’ ~ 

CLAIR H. SHADWELL 
Clair H. Shadwell, 57, pioneer 
broadcaster, died in Columbia, S.C., 
Feb. 6 after a one-month’s illness. 
In the radio field for some 25 years, 
he also worked as a publicist. 

Shadwell, who was known to his 
listeners as “The Old Shepherd,” 
Was with WBT, Charlotte, N, C„ 
from 1928 through 1938. 


EDMOND SEWARD 

Edmond Seward, 63, screen 
writer, died of a cerebral hem- 
horrage Feb. 12 in Hollywood. In 
his 22 years as a scripter he was 
associated with Monogram, Walt 
Disney, Warners, 20th-Fox and 
Republic. 

His parents and a daughter sur- 
vive. 


Thomas Weaver, 29, a guitarist, 
died from stab wounds at Bay- 
town, Tex., Feb. 10, His wife sur- 
vives. 


. Lester G. H|ll Sr., ozoner oper- 
ator, died In Dallas recently fol- 
lowing a heart attack. 


Father, 79, of Bob Murphy, Chi- 
cago, radio-tv announcer, died 
Feb; 16 in Chicago. 


. Wife of William Schurr, Warner 
Bros, cameraman, died Feb. 20 in 
Hollywood. ' 


House Reviews 


BABE CLARK 
Mrs. Sophie Rose, 51, vaude per- 
former, professionally known as 
Babe Clark* died Feb, 17 in New 
York after a short illness. She ap- 
peared in Vaude with Joe Woods 
Nine Crazy Kids and other acts. 

Surviving is her husband, Lester 
Rose, formerly with the advertising 
department of Variety, 


EDWARD E. MENGES 

Edward E. Menges, 63, composer, 
arranger and music teacher, died 
in St. Louis Feb. 16. He authored 
a tone poem, “Legend of Sleepy 
Hollow,” and also turned out an 
operetta titled “Trapper Call.” 

Menges, whose “Trapper Call” 
was purchased by author-producer 
Russell Jariney, had recently been 
working with the writer on back- 
ground music for an upcoming pic- 
a ture. 

His wife, a son and a daughter 
survive.^ 

DR JACOB DALEY 

Dr. Jacob Daley died of a heart 
attack Feb. 17 shortly . after per- 
forming a .routine of magic for a 
luncheon of the Art Directors Club 
of New York. Chief of- the Ear, 
ftose and Throat Plastic Clinic of 
the N. Y. French Hospital, he was 
generally acknowledged as one of 
the finest non-pro sleight-of-hand 
experts in the United States. 

He was a member of the parent 
assembly of the Society of Ameri- 
can Magicians and the Inter- 
national Brotherhood of Magicians. 

WILLIAM K. HOWARD 

William K. Howard, 54, vet di- 
rector, died in Hollywood, Feb. 21 
H orn a throat malignancy. He be^ 
gaii directing in 1924. Since then 
he megged pix for Metro, 20th, 
Warners, Paramount, Republic and 
United Artists. 

Howard’s credits included such , 
films as “This Side of Heaven,” 
“Johnny Come Lately,” and “Val- 
iant.” ■ 


RENA HAVILAND 
Rena Haviland, 76, former film : 
actress and onetime vaude per- 
former, died Feb. 20 in Woodland, 
Cal. Miss Haviland began- her 
show biz career at the age of 18 on 
vaude arid stock circuits. 

She went to Hollywood in 1911 
and made several pix. 


EDWIN W. AARON 
Edwin W. Aaron, 59, 20th-Fox 
western sales manager, died Feb. 
20 in New Yolk. He. was a film 
industry vet having been with 
Metro for 25 years in exec sales 
posts before joining 20th in 1949. 
Wife and a daughter survive. 


RACHEL HARTZELL 
Mrs. Rachel Hartzell Thayer, 45, 
former legit actress, professionally 
known as Rachel Hartzell, died Feb. 
20 in New York. Her last Broad- 
i ’ ay appearance was in “American 


RENE BARTHELEMY 
Rene Barthelemy, 65, a pioneer 
of French tv, died Feb. 16 in Paris. 
He began his first tele experiments 
during the early 1920s. 

His work led to construction of 
one of France’s first video stations 
in the Eiffel Tower in 1938. 


SS Continued from page S3 s 

liobliio, Paris 

pants singing gypsy tunes as he 
dances passionately with a bright 
partner. Before this can wear off, 
on comes a peripatetic sculptor, 
Bel Argay, who models weird 
heads in soft clay accomped by 
zany patter. The French are great 
watchers of artists in the streets 
and they enjoy this version of it. 

Two Pepps are a knockabout- 
acro English act that has two zanies 
battering each other for a nice flair 
in pratfalls and mayhem that 
brings yocks. Suzet Mais unloads 
a batch of brittle patter that be- 
longs in cabaret, but the aud also 
expresses approval of her stint. 
Martha & Golder contribute an ec- 
centric dance routine heightened 
by fine rubberlegging and elastic 
mugging by Golder. Mercedes & 
Alberto De Triana supply an aver- 
age carioca number which adds a 
batch of color to the proceedings, 
and the Mathis (2) cavort and jug- 
gle on high uriicycles for hep reac- 
tion. The Curibas complete this 
section with a nice acro-terp act 
that combines some fine apache 
arid tumbling for a nice act. 

Nicole Louvier is a solemn-look- 
ing Left Banker who started her 
chant tour at the Rouge nitery. 
She clefs own songs based on me- 
dieval chants and they have a 
haunting, ear-catching quality that 
makes for fine listening. Paul 
Peri is an energetic singer with an 
excellent tenor of range and 
warmth and a finely chosen rep to 
make this a sock Song stint. Revela- 
tion of the eve is the happy pick- 
pocketing of Borra, who goes into 
the aud for bis honest larceny for 
a fine act. Simone Morin emcee- 
ing and Maurice Boulais orch (10) 
backing is good as usual. Mosk, 


Rex Fox, 82, died at Oxford, Eng. 
Feb. 5. Presenting a novel ventri- 
loquial act on, the wire, he had 
worked in circus and on principal 
vaude circuits. He made two visits 
to America, His wife, who survives, 
is former member of the Elcock 
Sisters. 


Betty Bricker, 64, bit player in 
films for more - than 40 years, died 
Feb; 15 in Holty.wjpod. She was the 
widow of the late Clarence Bricker, 
assistant director and production 
manager. 

Ruth Mitchell, 71, novelist and 
writer of one-act plays, was found 
dead Feb 18 at her home in Los 
Gatos, Cal. Among her novels were 
“Army With Banners," “Of Human 
Kindness” and “They Shall Not 
Pass.” 


Apollo, X. V. 

Duke Ellington Band, (14), with 
Jimmie Grissom; Oolan Farley , 
Dusty Fletcher. Flamingos (5), 
“ Terror On a Train ” (M-G). 


Wife, 54. of Laurens Hammond, 
inventor of the Hammond electric 
organ and founder and prexy of the f 
Hammond Organ Co., plunged to j 


Duke Ellington’s brand of music 
is good listening, with stylings that 
are designed for pewsetters as well 
as dancers. But it didn’t generate 
much excitement at the Apollo at 
session caught. 

Fox trot and jump tunes pre- 
dominate Drummer Dave Black, 
only okay member of the combo, 
breaks away once during the card 
to render some colorful licks, while 
making the skins boom -with sev- 
eral torial variations!. Veteran Ray 
Nance fiddles humorous arrange- 
ment of “Blue Moon.” Another in- 
tegral part of the Ellington group 
is tenor Jimmie Grissom, He pipes 
a passable “Without a Song,” but 
i$ less effective when he starts in 
on “Blue Moon.” 

Evening highspot is work done 
by comic Dusty Fletcher, who for 
22 minutes provokes a steady 
stream of laughter. The few lines 
he uses are vintage Noah, but the 
crowd ttftces to him readily. Elling- 
ton works with him, doing most of 
the chatter, but Fletcher gets the 
yocks just by the way he stands 
listening to the Duke. 

Oolan Farley and the Flamingos 
(New Acts) round out the bill. 


tween 20th-Fox arid Apold con- 
tinue. 

A decision is-alsO awaited from 
London on which three British 
pictures are entered. J, West- 
comb, of the J. Arthur Hank Or- 
ganization, due here for a Colum- 
bia .. Lalin-Amerionn convention, 
will double as a British delegate to 
the festival. 

Three Italian Entries Set 

- The Italian entries have been nn- 
anounced as “Bread* Love and 
Fantasy” (also an entry at. Sao 
Paulo) with “Villa Borghese” arid 
“I Vitelloni." 

Apold is commuting almost daily 
Over 250 miles between here arid 
Mar del Plata, overseeing arrange- 
ments for the event. An outdoor 
site has been selected as the locale 
for presentation of delegations. 

The grandiose state-owned Ho- 
tel Provincial is reserved for the 
guests. The resort’s 50 other luxu- 
ry hotels report having booked res- 
ervations for applicants from all 
parts of . Argentina. 

Polo and “Pato” (mounted hand- 
ball) games will be staged for the 1 • ana 


4 S located, and the federal gov- 
ernment. 

The fair is penciled for dates in 
March; Sponsors hope to attract 
top films and screen players from 
the U.S. and Europe. More tour- 
ists, particularly Americans, are 
also counted - u pon . to attend the 
fair Which is scheduled to last a 
week, - 

The Acapulco city fathers* are 
already busy arranging pavilions, 
stands arid adequate accommoda- 
tions so as to avoid any snarling 
due {o bad management. ' 


MARRIAGES 

Gloria Breneman to Jeff Clark, 
Las Vegas* Feb. 17, Bride is a 
daughter, of the late Tom Brene- 
man; he’s a television actor. 

Mary Ellen Riddick to Lieut,: 
Bruce L. Collins Jr., Corpus Chris- 
ti, Tex., Feb. 20. . Groom is son of 
the owner of the Palace and other 
theatres in that City. 

Jeanne Cooper,, tv and screen ac- 

legit- 


Harry Bernsen, 


in Tijuana last Sept. 9. 

Betty, Ann. Smith to Walter Ja- 
cobs, Columbus, Feb, 20. He’s pro- 
gram director of WLW-C. 

Barbara Calvert to Frank Ross, 

is determined to treat its guests j of 

livichiv a nH thr.ro ic o member of the Mary Kaye Trio of 

vaude arid night . clubs. 


Club, the Automobile Club is or 
ganizipg auto races and the Colon 
Opera Ballet and all Argentina’s 
top talent will participate in shows 
to entertain the visitors. The state 


lavishly and there is a danger of 
exhausting them by over-feting. 
At the Sao Paulo festival, Atilio 
Mentasti and Dr. Oscar Caciei rep* 
resent the producers from Argen- 
tina along with stars Laura 
Hidalgo and Elisa Galve. Latter 
two were stars of the Argentina 
entries “Maria Magdalena” (Sono), 
partially -shot in Brazil, and “Dias 
de Odio” (Sifa), Argentina also will 
exhibit three pictures not entered 
in the contest there: “The Count 
of Monte-Cristo,” “Camille” and 
“La Orquidea.” 


Sylvia Helrelch to Robert Klaus, 
Philadelphia, Feb. 19! Groom is 
publicity director at television sta-. 
tiori WPTZ. 

Virginia Lee to Mort Nusbaum, 
Miami Beach, Feb. 16, Groom is 
a disk jockey with WHAM, Roch- 
ester. 

Doris McLatchie to Pharie Mac- 
Laren, P.aisley,. Scotland. Feb. 11. 
Bride is a radio arid stage actress; 
he’s a tv studio manager and son 
i of -late Donald* MacLarcn, Scot 
I pj.aT’wright'. 

1 . Dora Bryan to Bill Lawton, 
I Oldham, Eng., Feb, 7. Bride is a 
j revue and film actress; he's a pro- 
, fessional cricketer. 

Marjorie Mee-Jones to Kenneth 


Japan’^ Film Festival 

Tokyo, Feb. 16. 

First Southeast Asia Film Festi- 
val has begn set for Tokyo for 16 ; „ Marjorie Mee-Jonea to Kennelli 
days, starting May 5. Countries par- i“H e . n - rv * Newcastle, Eng. Feb. 13. 
ticipating are Japan, Singapore, 

Hong Kong, Indonesia, the Philip- 


pines, Thailand and Formosa. 

Films will be screened at Tokyo’s 
Yamaha Hall. Judges will an- 
nounce winners on May 20. 

Japanese Foreign- Ministry and 
the Tokyo Metropolitan govern- 
ment are joint sponsors with the 
newly formed Southeast Asia Film 
Producers Federation. Diploriiatic 


Variety Bills 

; Continued from pace 53 ; 

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA 


Desert Inn 
Jackie Miles 
Lea Charlivcla 
Betty Reilly 
El Cortes 
Nick Lucaa 
Wild B Davla Trio 
E Skrivanek Ore 
Flamingo 

Freddy Martin Ore 

Lest Frontier 

Ronald Keakan 
Blackburn Twins 
Evelyn Ward 
The Continentals 
Honey Bros 

Golden Nugget 

Wallace 4 Coffey 
Dorothy A tea 
Larry Collin 
Joe Venuti Ore 

Sands 

Tallulah Bankhead 


El Rancho Vogas 
Harry. James Ore 
Marilyn Canter 

Sahara 

Kathryn Grayson 
Jack Carte? 

Sujata A Asoka 
Cec Davidson Ore 
S Henie Ice Hev 
Sliver Slipper 
Maxlc Rosenbioom 
Hank Henry . 
Sparky Kaye 
Nicholas Trio 
Bill Willard 
Jimmie Cavanaugh 
Virginia Dew 
Bill Willard 
Joan White 
G Redman’s Ore 
Tbunderblrd 
Pour Aces 
M Shauffhnes.sy 
. Rafael 
I Fields Trio 


Bride’s a stock arid pantomime 
artiste; he’s Baron in rurrerit pan- 
tomime at Theatre Royal, New- 
castle. 

Jeanne Katz to. Burton Gelfand, 
New York, Feb. 20. Bride Is with 
| Metro’s Film Production Dept. 

Betsy Rosamyer to Maurice Har- 
per, Holly wood, Feb. 14. Bride’s a 
secretary and he’s a sound techni- 
cian at Columbia. 

Georgette Magnani to Vincente 
Minnelli. Riverside. Cal., Feb. 10. 
lie’s a Metro director. 

Jean Herman to James V. Bow- 
ler, Philadelphia. Feb. 13. Bride is 
a voice student at Curtis Institute 
of Music: he’s a news commentator 
with station WPEN. 

Margie Foley to Joe Weisberg, 
Pittsburgh,. Feb. 15. Groom’s the 
i son of Marty and Belle Weisberg, 
i Carousel camera concessionaires. 

! Judv Tardier to Steve Krantz, 
, New York. Feb. 19. He’s WNBT, 
N. Y., program manager. 


RENO 


M * pet Skyroom 

Dave Barry 
Charlie Aaron 
S Kramer &. Co. 
Skyiettes 

E Fitzpatrick Ore 
Ntw Golden 
Charlie Chaney 
J Fontaine 


Clark Brbs 
S Young Ore 

Rivoraldo 

A Rey King Sis 
Baby Mistin 
Three Houcks 
fllyerslde Starlets 
Bill Clifford Ore 


HAVANA 


Montmartre 
M de Paris Orq 
Michelle Due 
Pedigo. Varga* 
Bergaza A Terraza 
Rosendo Rosell 
Monsigneur Orq 
E Antunez Orq 
• C «le la Playa Orq 
Sant Sduci 
I Olga Chaviand 
Frank Gitilli 
Estrella Perez 
Ray Carson 
rondelayo 
Actii & Cellini 


I Marcel Pefore 
Cachia 

Jacqueline Leroi 
R Ortega. Orq 
C Rodriguez Or q 
Troplcana 
S de Espana Orq 
Celia Cruz 
Reno A C Delaine . 
Mano Lopez 
Marta & Alexander 
Paulina Alvarez 
Wong Sis 
Kiko Gonsalves 
A Romcu Orq 
Senen Sugreg Orq 


BIRTHS 

Dr. and Mrs. Anthony Kcnwick, 
son. Chicago. Feb. 11. Mothei*’s Pat 
Tucker, former boxoffice chief at 
Pittsburgh Playhouse. 

Mr. and Mrs. Milt Augenstene, 
son, Pittsburgh, Feb. 15. Father’s 
asst,, chief engineer at WWSW. 

Mr. and Mrs. Alexander Manos, 
daughter, Pittsburgh, Feb. 10, 
Father’s of the Manos theatre 
circuit family. 

Mr, and Mrs. Christopher Knopf, 
son. Hollywood, Fob. 9. Father is 
a screen w'riter. Child is the grand- 
son of producer Edwin ' '.H; Knopf. 

Mr. and Mrs. James K. Guthrie, 
daughter, San Bernardo, Cal., 
Feb. 14. Mother is Jane McGowan, 
concert singer; father’ is an or- 
chestfa conductor. 

Mr. and Mrs. Martin H. Leonard, 
son. Ner York, Feb. 18. Father is 
,1 theatrical lawyer; mother is Julie 
Leonard, a talent agent. 

Mr. and Mrs. Anthony Ferrara, 
i daughter, Kansas City, Mo., Feb. 
! 9. Father is stage director of Star- 
j light Theatre there, 

! Mr. and Mrs. John Jarvis, son, 
Birmingham, Eng., Feb. 2, Fa- 
; ther is an a*ctor. 

Mr. and Mrs. Bernard Serlin. 
daughter. New York. Feb. 20. Fa- 
, ther is Warner Bros. ..homeoffi.ee 
I field exploitation staffer. 











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