Boxoffice-August.11.1975

Ivan Tors Finishes Film
About Endangered Nomads
MIAMI— Is it possible to film a true
tried. So far the producer-director's picture
"March of the Desert" hasn't been sold to
a distributor or network.
Tors, producer of 30 feature lilms and
720 TV episodes, including "Flipper" and
"Gentle Ben" in Miami, suspects audiences
are more sympathetic to endangered animals
than people.
"March of the Desert" is about an endangered
people: the nomadic Gabras. Tors
spent seven months traveling with them on
the southern border of the brutal Sahara
Desert.
"The southern Sahara is so unknown most
civilizations know nothing of the Gabras
and other tribes. The Gabras them.selvcs
don"t even know what continent they are
on . . . they live from day to day . . . not
thinking about tomorrow. For me it was
an e.Niperiment in filmmaking," Tors explained.
An international cast, including two
Americans, arc featured in the simple screenplay
involving a group of people hopi.ng to
bring a new way of life to the Gabras. They
build a windmill to persuade the nomadic
tribe to stay in one place.
However, the search for water was continuous,
with the tribe covering as much as
30 miles a day.
"We couldn't have lasted half a day without
our own water supply. We had to drink
liquids every half hour to combat dehydration.
The Gabras could go all day if they
had to." Tors said.
The Gabras are truly a free and independent
people. Tors said, who will never
stop their nomadic ways for one strange
reason—women's lib.
"Women of the tribe are equal in every
way to the men. If they settle down and
build a mosque, then they will lose their
freedom and be forced to accept Purdah,
abiding by Moslem religiou.s law. Very restrictive
to women."
Though Tors knows an audience would
rather watch screen comedies, he believes
his movie is important. "Perhaps the Gabras
can be .saved."
Storer Plans Public Sale
Of Warrants for Airline
ATLANTA — Storer Broadcasting Co.,
which owns CATV and radio interests, has
plans to offer publicly warrants to purchase
-•iOCOOO shares of Delta Air Lines common
at
$48 each.
Storer acquired the Delta warrant in 1972
and it earlier this year sold about 450,000 established his know-how a long time ago
shares of Delta common stock at an average in mastering great iprojects," remarks Paul
price of about $32 a share. The stock had Bruun in a recent Suni Reporter column.
been entered on Storer's books in 1972 at "It is to Miami's credit that a man like
S4I a share.
Colonel Wolfson has been designated for
Lehman Brothers has been named to this great civic enterprise as he knows best
handle the sale, expected in early .Septem-
what the entertainment business in Florida
ber, the Wall Street Journal reported.
MIAMI
Qvemight, reports in the papers indicate,
story about a life-or death struggle for
human survival and come np with an entertaining
fictional movie?
changed from Black Thursday to Miracle
the Miami filmmaking industry
Former Miami resident Ivan Tors has Friday. Everything had gone badly at a
Miami City Commission meeting Thursday.
July 31. when "Black Sunday" producer
Bob Rosen attempted to explain his film
project to the city leaders. City Manager
Paul Andrews, a mo.st emphatic opponent,
did everything but haul the filmmakers off
to the pokey. Then, something crazy hapipened.
Friday (1) when Ro.scn returned to
see Andrews and Police Chief Garland
Watkins. a quick huddle ensued and out
popped Rosen, smiling. "We're getting complete
cooperation." Andrews also emerged,
siniling and saying, "We've been given permission
to proceed . . . it's going to be a
good film ... the city will do everything it
can to make sure this is a complete success."
Rosen had been hours away from choosing
New York (where the president of the
Jets was pressuring him to come) or New
Orleans (which thought it had the film in
hand). But why all the fuss in the first
iplace? Well, it seems the city commissioners
were worried that someone might "get the
wrong idea" about a movie on Arab terrorists
in Miami. Fortunately, that misplaced
fear seems to have been dispelled.
Floyd Mutrux, writer-director of ""Aloha.
Bobby and Rose." arrived in town, emotionally
limp and miserable. It seems advance
p.r. reps scheduled ads for his film
one week after it opened in New Orleans.
not in advance . . . Mutrux describes his
modest hit of a film as a ""non-linear movie."
then adds, ""No! I made a McDonald's
poem, one for the McDonald's crowd!"
Miamians Sonja and Harry Zuckerman
are injecting plenty of dough into ""Vigilante
Force." which should hit screens early
in 1975. The Zuckermans were guests at a
gala dinner party given for them and the
film crew recently at the Bistro by Mimi
Harris. Mrs. Harris, who owned the old
Beverly Hills Club and is in on the film
also, was guest of the Zuckermans here
during her stay at the Jockey Club last winter.
Also attending the society event were
stars Kris Kristoffenson. wife Rita Collidge.
Mrs. Robert Prescott, Bo Svenson of '"Part
2 Walking Tall." financier-industrialist Al
Lapin jr. and wife, and 20th Century-Fox
executive vice-president Bill Immcrman.
Gusnian Hall, the gift of Maurice Gusman,
is attracting plenty of attention to the
city. Mayor Maurice Ferre and Col. Mitchell
Wolfson, head of Wometco and the
Miami Off-Strcet Parking Authority, promise
it will be well used. ""Colonel Wolfson
is ;ill about."
Film slar Anthony Quinn. cooling off in
a Key West hotel after the abortive pre-
Broadway tryout of "The Red Devil Battery
Sign," confided to a reporter that the Tennessee
Will'ams play still might see action
this year in New York despite publicized
disputes. Quinn was staying on the island
while the author worked on a new draft
of his play.
"Deep Throat" really scorched .some
ground here last month as several copies of
the Linda Lovelace film went up in smoke.
.Also burned by the state's pro.secutors were
eight or nine ca.ses of the magazine ""Hell's
Bedroom." The films and magazines had
been seized over the last two years in raids
on adult bookstores. The state arranged for
a mass disposition of 117 cases, with most
of those arrested agreeing to plead guihy to
misdemeanors.
David Vassar Film Slated
For General Distribution
W.'\SHINGTON—The Festival of American
Folklife. co-presented by the Smithsonian
Institution and the National Park
Service, has become an annual event on
the mall here co-spwnsored by .American
and Genera! Foods Corp. The most
.Airlines
recent presentation was photographed in
16mm and is being made into a 30-minute
documentary.
The motion picture, photographed in
color and .sound, was directed by David
Vassar of the National Park Service with
a crew of 15. according to Smithsonian division
of performing arts public relations
director Susanne Roschwalb. Vassar. whose
film '"Replenish the Earth" was a prize winner
at the 1974 Chicago International Film
Festival, is the son of Elena Vassar of 20th
Century-Fox.
Upon completion, the documentary will
be available free of charge for screenings
throughout the U.S. to interest American
Bicentennial visitors in the nation's capital
city.
A. S. Caaky. local young filmmaker, assisted
in the cinematic project.
'White Line Fever' Scores
SAN FRANCISCO—'White Line Fever."
from Columbia Pictures, is off and
rolling in its premiere engagements in northern
California. The new action drama
grossed a blockbuster $31,867 in its opening
day at 41 theatres in the San Francisco area.
Jane .Seymour will co-star in "Sinbad and
the Eye of the Tiger."
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BOXOFFICE August 11, 1975 SE-5