Boxoffice-December.20.1952

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10 Film Companies Win ?!^?,i^S:/.!!f
Philadelphia Trust Suit
PHILADELPHIA—Ten major film distributing
companies won a victory on Saturday
114) in the U.S. district court when a jury
acquitted them of alleged conspiracy to violate
the federal antitrust laws.
This was the first verdict by a jury in
this district holding the distributors "not
unreasonable" in their clearance practices.
The case involved a $300,000 triple-damage
claim filed by Fannie E. Han-ison. owner of
the Bryn Mawr Theatre, charging the ten
companies with discrimination.
The Main Line Theatre, which is operated
by William Goldman, was charged by Fannie
E. Harrison with being discriminated against
in clearances so that it was not able to compete
with other theatres in the neighborhood.
However, in answer to specific interrogatories,
the jury held that the runs and clearances
of pictures in this instance were "not
unreasonable" as the theatres were in substantial
competition.
Defendants were Paramount Film Distributing
Corp., Loew's, Inc., RKO Radio Pictures,
Inc., United Artists Corp., Columbia Pictures
Corp., Universal Film Exchange, Inc., 20th
Century-Fox Film Corp., Warner Bros. Picture
Distributing Corp., Warner Bros. Circuit
Management Corp. and Stanley Co. of America.
Department of Commerce Group
Criticizes U.S. Antitrust Laws
WASHINGTON — The Business Advisory
Council of the Department of Commerce
strongly criticized both the nation's antitrust
laws and their administration in a report
released by Secretary of Commerce
Charles Sawyer on Monday (22).
Strong criticism centered around ex post
facto triple damages. On this subject the
Council said:
"A strong sense of injustice is aroused by
penalizing people for action which they could
not have known to be illegal.
"A large majority of major antitrust cases
are decided by a divided court. For example,
In trade regulation cases in 1948-49 only four
of 11 Supreme Court decisions were unanimous,
dissents running from two to four in
the other seven cases.
"Furthermore, the Supreme Court overruled
30 earlier decisions in 12 years.
"The best efforts toward compliance cannot
cope with such contingencies. Hundreds
of millions of dollars of retroactive penalties
hinge on such a state law.
"Under these circumstances, it seems that
where the evidence indicates lack of wilful
violation, discretion should be used to avoid
any effort to lmpo.se retroactive triple damages,
often covering many years."
Sawyer, In an accompanying statement,
strongly agreed with a Council suggestion to
the effect that a conference section be set
up within the Justice Department for the
purpo,se of settling cases before they reach
the courts. The report estimated that 90 per
cent of the cases would never get to the
courts if there were a setup within Justice
to bring justice officials and businessmen together
for conferences.
Sawyer also agreed that present laws, rulings
and administrative decisions have made
the antitrust field "a jungle," and that businessmen
and their lawyers have an "incredibly
difficult" job in merely trying to obey
the law.
Pix,
Washington, Files
$2,340,000 Trust Suit
NEW YORK—An antitrust suit seeking
$2,340,000 in damages has been filed in U.S.
district court by Pix Theatre Co.. owner of
the Pix Theatre, Washington, D. C, against
eight major distributors and United Paramount
Theatres. Discrimination against the
Pix is charged.
Co-partners in the operation of the Pix
are: Samuel, Faith and Max Cummings, Rose
Chatkin and Cecilia B. Cohen.
Mrs. Edwards' 'Andersen'
Letter Used by Boasberg
NEW YORK—Several thousand copies of a
letter by Mrs. Clara Edwards, motion picture
chairman of the General Federation of
Women's Clubs, praising "Hans Christian Andersen"
ai-e being sent to exhibitors by Charles
Boasberg. general sales manager of RKO Pictures
with the suggestion that they cooperate
with local women's organizations in promoting
the picture.
They also are asked to make blow-ups and
to put the latter in lobbies.
"Perfect in the part of the young cobbler
with a great gift for story telling is a new and
surprisingly ideal Danny Kaye," wrote Mrs.
Edwards.
Another passage from the letter reads:
"And here, in a frame of superlative photography,
is the age-old precept that within
ourselves is the power to make our lives what
we wish them to be."
At the end is a quote from a letter by Robert
E. Sherwood to Samuel Goldwyn which
reads: "Children will absolutely love it and
so will grown-up people who want to forget
theii- troubles and feel like children again."
Jerry Pickman Goes West
For Studio Conference
NEW YORK—Jerome Pickman. Paramount
vice-president in charge of advertising, publicity
and exploitation, left Wednesday (24)
for the coast for conferences with studio
executives.
Pickman attended the Christmas day premiere
of Hal Wallis' "Come Back, Little
Sheba" at the Pine Arts Theatre, Los Angeles,
and the opening of "Road to Ball" at
the Paramount Hollywood Theatre.
He will attend the Adolph Zukor 80th birthday
dinner January 7 at the Palladium,
Hollywood.
To Quarterly Lineup
NEW YORK—MGM has increased its release
schedule for the four months starting
January 1 from 12 pictures originally announced
to 16 features, an average of foiu- a
month, according to Charles M. Reagan, general
sales manager. In addition, two Technicolor
features, "Lili" and "The Story of Three
Loves," will be given special handling although
not listed on the regular release sheet.
Four of the 16 pictures will be in Technicolor,
two of them for February release and
one each in March and April.
For January the pictures will be "Above and
Beyond," starring Robert Taylor and Eleanor
Parker with James Whitmore; "The Clown,"
starring Red Skelton with Jane Greer and
Tim Considine: "The Bad and the Beautiful."
starring Lana Turner, Kirk Douglas, Dick
Powell and Walter Pidgeon, with Gloria
Grahame, Barry Sullivan and Gilbert Roland;
"Desperate Search," staiTing Howard Keel
with Jane Greer and Keenan Wynn, and "The
Hoaxters." a 36-minute subject narrated by
Dore Schary, Robert Taylor, Howard Keel and
George Murphy among others.
In February the pictures will be "The
Naked Spur," in Technicolor, starring James
Stewart and Janet Leigh with Millard
Mitchell: "Rogues March," starring Peter
Lawford: "Ivanhoe," in Technicolor, starring
Robert Taylor, Elizabeth Taylor, Joan Fontaine,
George Sanders and Emlyn Williams,
and "Jeopardy," starring Barbara Stanwyck
with Barry Sullivan and Ralph Meeker.
The March release will be "Dream Wife,"
starring Gary Grant, Deborah Kerr and
Walter Pidgeon; "Confidentially Connie,"
starring Van Johnson, Janet Leigh and Louis
Calhern, and "I Love Melvin," in Technicolor,
starring Debbie Reynolds and a group of
guest stars, including Robert Taylor. Vera-
EUen and Howard Keel.
For April the pictures will be "Battle Circus,"
starring Humphrey Bogart. June Allyson
and Keenan Wynn; "Small-Town Girl." in
Technicolor, starring Jane Powell. Farley
Granger, Ami Miller. Nat King Cole; "See
How They Run." with Dorothy Dandridge
and Robert Horton. and "Never Let Me Go."
starring Clark Gable. Gene Tierney and
Richard Haydn.
Clubwomen Rate 3 Films
Of 11 for the Family
NEW YORK—Three pictiu-es are rated for
family audiences, five for adults and young
people and three for adults in the December
15 joint estimates of current motion pictures
prepared by the Film Estimat« Board of National
Organizations. The family films are
"Hans Christian Andersen" (RKO>, recommended
as an outstanding film of its type;
"Cattle Town" (WBi and "Plymouth Adventure"
(MGM).
The adult-young people films are "The Importance
of Being Earnest" (U-D, recommended
as an outstanding film; "The Iron
Mistress" (WB). "Sky Pull of Moon" (MGM).
"The Thief of Venice" (20th-Foxi and
"Thunderbirds" (Rep). The adult films ai'e
"Come Back. Little Sheba" (Para), recommended
as outstanding; "Kansas City Confidential"
(UA) and "Ruby Gentry" c20th-Pox).
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BOXOFFICE December 27, 1962