PONDERS TAFT-HARTLEY WAL
' '. BIG 5 IN LAST-MINUTE RUSH TO END POOLS BEFORE JULY ] Majority of Agreements Ended to Comply With Terms of N.Y. Decree NEW YORK—The five theatre-owninii: defendants rushed last-minute negotia- >lons to meet the July 1 deadline fixed by the New York statutory court for the dissolution of pools. Most of the pools have already been ended in accordance with the previsions of the antitrust decree. The few still in effect will be severed over the weekend. These Include Warners' pool with Rapf & Ruden covering Warners Claridge Theatre, Montclalr, and Rapf & Rudens Bellevue Theatre. Upper Montclair, N. J. ENDING SKOURAS POOL RKO expected to end pools by the weekend, including a New York pool with Skoura.s Theatres; a pool in Grand Rapids with the Butterfleld circuit, and a pool in Los Angeles with Rodney Pantages. Malcolm Kingsberg, president of RKO Theatres, worked on these negotiations almost to the deadline. Loew's also was ru.shing through the dissolution of a pool with Skouras in New York City. This covered the Astoria and Triboro Theatres, Astoria. The dissolution of pools has been going on for nearly six months. During this period Paramount and National Theatres ended a pool in San Francisco, while National Theatres also dis.solved pools in Kansas City, Denver, Los Angeles and in Arizona. Warners ended pools with Paramount in Philadelphia: in Albany with Fabian; in Brooklyn with Fabian, and in Pittsburgh with Loew's. Loew's In the meantime has ended pools with Fabian In Richmond, Norfolk and Pittsburgh. Paramount has reported that all its pools throughout the coun'.ry will be dissolved prior to the July 1 deadline. On the west coast Fox West Coast Theatres, western unit of National Theatres, has completed its mopping up operations as concerns the transfer in management of heretofore pooled houses and in keeping with the federal court decree in the antitrust suits. FWC RETURNING HOUSES Ten houses In California were turned over to former partners and three more will be similarly transferred by July 1. Simultaneously, the circuit reassumed total management of a quintet of showcases. The ten theatres In the most recent switch are the Lclmert and United Artists, Los Angeles; RIalto. San Francisco: Alhambra. Sacramento; California, Ontario: Nile. Bakersfleld; Aztec, Ml.ssion and Plaza. San Dlcgo, and the Golden Stale, Riverside. Before July 1 the Garfield, Alhambra: Orpheum, Yuma, and Alto, Los Angeles; will be transferred. These are in addition to five theatres turned over to partners on previous dates and Including the Paramount, State and St. Francis. San Francisco; RItz, South Pasadena, and Lyric, Monrovia. The five houses which FWC takes over are Nevada, Reno; Fox and Fltz, Hanford; Ohio Girds for Tax Fight As Cities Talk New Levies COLUMBUS—Ohio exhibitors face a fight to prevent individual municipalities from enacting high local amusement taxes now that Gov. Thomas J. Herbert has signed the bill repealing the state's three per cent tax and leaving the field of ticket levies open to Ohio cities. There is every indication that exhibitors are ready to make the fight. In Cleveland and in Aki-on Harry Goldberg of Warners has conducted meetings to organize motion picture theatre owners into vigilante groups to combat the anticipated onrush of local amusement taxes. Whereever city councils plan to enact tax measures, the exhibitors will step in, it was announced at these meetings. In Cincinnati, the council is ready to levy an admissions tax. City Manager Kellogg was quoted as saying that the levy on amusements will not vary greatly from the three per cent state levy. However, in Youngstown, Councilman John Barber called upon the mayor to introduce an ordinance setting the tax at 10 per cent, a figure which he said was being considered by a number of other Ohio cities. Such a levy would bring in about a quarter million dollar-> a year to Youngstown, Barber said. PLANNING LOCAL TAXES Cleveland, Columbus and Lima are among the cities planning to enact ticket levies. Only city in which there has been definite action against a local amusement tax is Toledo. Here a proposal calling for a tax survey was defeated, a step which was interpreted as killing the possibility of a local tax this year. All In all, exhibitors anticipate some good local level fights, and they point to what exhibitors elsewhere may expect when a state tax Is dropped and local taxing bodies are given authority to impose their own ticket levies. Meanwhile, Pete J. Wood, ITO secretary In a bulletin addressed to the presidents and general sales managers of producing companies declared that the organization's campaign to prevent repeal of the state 3 per cent tax was materially weakened by the Increased number of road shows at increased admission prices. Wood said that exhibitors went before the legi.slature with a strong argument that theatres could not absorb more than the 3 per cent tax and that anything over that Fox and Hyde, Vlsalia. This quintet Is to be rehabilitated, Skouras sa.vs, in which connection the circuit chief has sent R. H. McCullough and Elmer Hanks to the three northern California cities to work with Dick Spier, division manager, on plans for refurbishing. In some cases where delays have occurred, the lawyers for the Big Five have attributed amount would have to be passed on to t pubhc. Falling grosses and reduced i tendance were cited. But, he added, i nouncements of road shows at double avr age admissions gave legislators their bearb ammunition to refute the contention tbi! the public would not support higher adm sions. "As one of the leaders of this busine' and whether or not your company open' theatres in Ohio or elsewhere, you tuTt grave responsibility to see that nothicg now done which gives to city officials a excuse for imposing local taxes at high r»i as this will result in diminishing returns both the theatres involved and to your ca pany as a distributor of pictures. CITES ROADSHOW DANGERS "We have been tr>ing to sell the put on the idea that motion pictures are the < tertainment for the masses, but with ( pictures— ("Henry V." "Best Years ot C Lives," "Duel in the Sun," "Forever Arab and "Captain From Castile"i—circulat tliroughout the country in small, medium a large towns at a minimum admission pt>, of around Si. 50. we face the danger of be continued in the "luxury" class and giv the Congress the ammunition to back the contention for a continuation of the per cent federal tax. and money-himgr) ficials the excuse to impose high local adn sion taxes. "You have a vital interest In this mat You can help by discouraging as far as i sible the prerelease of pictures at hig than regular admission prices." Glenn Norris Takes Over. 20th-Fox Atlantic Post NEW YORK — Glenn Norri.s fom. branch manager for 20th-Fox m \Vashin>: D. C, has been promoted to Atlantic trict manager by Andrew W. Smith Jr, £ eral sales manager. Norris, who succi Sam Gross, killed in a plane crash June will headquarter in Washington. HU I trict comprises that city in addition to Ph delphia and Pittsburgh. Norris came to Fox as a poster cler> 1928 and was transferred to Washlngun salesman In 193". He became branch ff ager in 1946. Gordon Contee, sales manager Ui Washington branch, succeeds Norris i branch manager there. them to doubtful situations. By this M meant Joint operating agreements covei r noncompeting theatres. The lawyers do not think these sltualll can be called pools. The departmenii J justice, on the other hand, wUl chalk] the exhibitor-defendants if they fall to solve these agreements. 14 BOXOFFICE : : June M,
l,L I )eto Wilson P.OODS STRIKE AT THEATRES; MANY ARE CLOSED IN MIDWEST KNSAS CITY — Operations were WBs'd out in at least 22 theatres in a geri of floods that have plagued five midest states this month, and scores moi' wne threatened tliis week as rampag'g rivers rushed toward new high li".'6. Morboats and airplanes were put into j,n.-e at several points to get film de- Uved to flood-isolated communities. N;. George W. Baughman jr., daughter- In-lv I if the owner of the Ritz in Cam- "— :re. Neb., drowned in a flash flood that :15 lives in that community. FOIOKN ACRE.\GE RUINED fjusands of acres of popcorn were buried uiK." the flood waters and the supply to "'re.
- Page 1 and 2: INDUSTRY PONDERS EFFECT OF THE TAFT
- Page 3 and 4: I I He's hotter than a i^S^ firecra
- Page 5 and 6: -,*' - " "t "a 1 » ' ^ w -L « J 1
- Page 7 and 8: lluJi.Hl0H 'ulwu (Z^y^ttdtHHU Ped4e
- Page 9 and 10: : flpiure, ' ' • was i • with ^
- Page 11 and 12: ' mre, ; to ; iidmission , the , on
- Page 13: (HORNER BROS., ^*- -"'""'"« fl'"'
- Page 17 and 18: I "Tight adventure melodrama with P
- Page 19 and 20: m. THE SELZNICK RELEASING ORGANIZAT
- Page 21 and 22: . point W. D I)cal Censors Urged 1)
- Page 23 and 24: i; ridf 1 if hat Sipi'eme Court Rul
- Page 25 and 26: NORMANDIE . :j^;//.H Star TRADE SHO
- Page 27 and 28: : a:.d . amending L New • bt Tvo
- Page 29 and 30: i I ••• • I In Hew York's E
- Page 31 and 32: — I Continued I ontlnued from pag
- Page 33 and 34: I One ' I — Cl^STER FRIEDMAN EDIT
- Page 35 and 36: I hchmg , ?estem : the Sl)r3 Serves
- Page 37 and 38: ?Oth HAS THE ANSWER! C^l AT RADIO C
- Page 39 and 40: Kie 'Johnny 'Clock' ByFhone in Hote
- Page 41 and 42: . . . Stay " s TREASUBE IT! Don't d
- Page 43 and 44: 1 Ids I jply xhibitor Henry Reeve o
- Page 45 and 46: Lachman Re-Elected Head of N.J. All
- Page 47 and 48: ' and . . James . . Maurice . . M.
- Page 49 and 50: . . Lois . . Jane . . Frances . . E
- Page 51 and 52: I I I their I conditions. , hour, ,
- Page 53 and 54: i Ijrilish !o Tax Films \)n Earning
- Page 55 and 56: f What every bride shouldn't know:
- Page 57 and 58: EWS AND VIEWS THE PRODUCTION CEMTER
- Page 59 and 60: \ Casey, - 'NAKED " 'HIGH estimonia
- Page 61 and 62: LOS ANGELES AT ITS BEST WHERE IN AM
- Page 63 and 64: I , deal . . Dave . . Emma . . Barn
l,L<br />
I )eto<br />
Wilson<br />
P.OODS STRIKE<br />
AT THEATRES;<br />
MANY ARE CLOSED IN MIDWEST<br />
KNSAS CITY — Operations were<br />
WBs'd out in at least 22 theatres in a<br />
geri of floods that have plagued five<br />
midest states this month, and scores<br />
moi' wne threatened tliis week as rampag'g<br />
rivers rushed toward new high<br />
li".'6.<br />
Morboats and airplanes were put into<br />
j,n.-e at several points to get film de-<br />
Uved to flood-isolated communities.<br />
N;. George W. Baughman jr., daughter-<br />
In-lv<br />
I if the owner of the Ritz in Cam-<br />
"— :re. Neb., drowned in a flash flood that<br />
:15 lives in that community.<br />
FOIOKN ACRE.\GE RUINED<br />
fjusands of acres of popcorn were buried<br />
uiK." the flood waters and the supply to<br />
"'re.
Change language