Boxoffice-December.20.1952

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STUDIO PERSONNELITIES
Barnstormers
Columbia
GENE AUTRY checked in after o three-week personal
appeoronce tour, during which he covered 20
cities in 13 stotes.
Briefies
Columbia
Producer-Director Jules White gunned "A Pair
of Sneakers," o two-reel comedy starring Welly
Vernon and Eddie Quillon. Felix Adier wrote the
script.
Cleffers
Allied Artists
"White Lightning" will be scored by MARLIN
SKILES.
Warners
RAOUL KRAUSHAAR wos set as musical director
on "The Blue Gardenio," which is being produced
independently by Alex Gottlieb.
Meggers
Columbia
"The Infinite Woman," Edison Morshall's fict ionized
biography of Lola Montez, has been assigned
to ROBERT ARTHUR to produce.
WILLIAM FADIMAN was handed the production
reins on "The Franz Liszt Story/' celluloid biogrophy
of the pianist-composer.
Metro
"The Ruth Etting Story," based on the career of
the nightclub ond recording singer, will be produced
by JOE PASTERNAK.
20th Century-Fox
ROBERT BASSLER is readying "The Twelve Mile
Reef," a story of sponge-diving off the Florida coast,
for a February start. The script is by A. t.
Bezzerides.
Options
Allied Artists
Set for one of the femme toplines in "Jclopy,"
Producer Ben Schwalb's new Bowery Boys comedy,
was MONA KNOX. The megophonist is William
Beaudine.
Columbia
TOMMY FARRELL was signed for "49 Men." Producer
Sam Katzmon booked SUZANNE DALBERT
to portray the femme heavy in the picture which
stars John Ireland and Richord Denning under the
direction of Fred F. Scars.
Independent
Wisberg-Pollexfen Productions signed ROBERT
SHAYNE and DORIS MERRICK for the top roles in
"The Neonderthal Man," a science-fiction melodramo,
which is being directed by E. A, Dupont.
Universal-International
Cast as Barbara Stanwyck's daughter in "You
Belong to Me," the Ross Hunter production, was
LORI NELSON. The romontic drama will be megged
by Douglos Sirk.
Little theatre actor STUART WHITMAN, signed to
a term pact, will moke his film bow in the Victor
Mature-Mori Blonchord vehicle, "Prince of Bagdad."
George Shermon is directing the Albert J. Cohen
production.
Warners
FRANK FERGUSON was signed for o character part
in the Kathryn Grayson starrer, "The Grace Moore
Story," which Gordon Douglos is megging for Producer
Henry Blonke.
Scripters
Columbia
MICHAEL BLANKFORT is penning "River of the
Sun," from Jomes Romsey Ullmon's adventure novel
for Producer William Fadimon.
"The Circle of the Day," from the novel by Helen
Howe, will be screenplayed by JAY DRATLER as o
Willifirn Fadiman production.
Biographer IRVING STONE was togged to write
'ho screenplay of "The Life of Cosonovo," upcoming
Villiotn Fadiman production.
-'' ' mmond," the Kenneth Garnet original,
n-d for Producer Lewis J. Rachmil by
Story Buys
Columbia
Film rights to the Emile Zolo novel, "The Human
Beast," were acquired and the property has been
bonded to Lewis J. Rachmil to produce.
"High Commond," on adventure story about Canadian
bush pilots by Kenneth Gomef, was acquired
and added to Lewis J. Rachmil's production docket.
Metro
Acquired and added to Producer Jock Cummings'
slote was "The Tea House of the August Moon," a
best-seller by Vern Sneider. It deals with the experiences
of on ormy captoin assigned to rehabilitate
a war-torn Okinowon village.
20th Century-Fox
"Be Prepared," a humorous tome by Rice E. Cochrane,
was purchased and assigned to Leonard Goldstein
to produce.
Warners
The independent unit headed by John Wayne and
Robert Fellows purchased "Island in the Sky," o
novel by Ernest K. Gonns, and inked William A.
Wellman to direct the action dromo.
Technically
Metro
"All the Brothers Were Valiant" will be photographed
by GEORGE FOLSEY.
Warners
"Calamity Jane" will be photographed by WILFRID
CLINE.
DON PAGE will be the assistant director on "Blowing
Wild."
Title
Changes
Columbia
"The Velvet Coge" to PROBLEM GIRLS.
Universal-Internalional
"Wings of the Vulture" to WINGS OF THE HAWK.
Stolkin, Corwin, Burke
No Longer in Gamble Co.
WASHINGTON—The FCC Tuesday (9)
decided
that Ted Gamble's Mount Hood Radio
and Television could amend its application
for a Portland, Ore., television channel to
show that Ralph Stolkin. Sherrill Corwin and
Edward G. Burke jr. had sold out their interest
in the company. This reversed the
decision of the hearing examiner, who held
that the application could not be amended
because the deadline for amendments had
been passed.
Stolkin. Corwin and Burke, between them,
owned 43 per cent of Mount Hood's stock,
the same percentage as that owned by Gamble.
The Stolkin-Corwin-Burke stock was sold
to about 30 employes of Portland radio station
KOIN. operated by Mount Hood.
Mount Hood is competing for a Portland
television channel with the company which
operates radio station KGW in that city.
Hearings, postponed because of the wrangle
over amendment of the application, were
scheduled to be resumed on Wednesday (10).
but a further postponement was certain.
'Stooge' Set for New Year's
HOLLYWOOD—"The Stooge," the Dean
Martin-Jerry Lewis comedy produced for
Paramount release by Hal Wallis, will be
the piece de resistance at special New Year's
eve shows scheduled at seven local theatres
the Orpheum. downtown; the Hawaii, Hollywood;
Crown. Pa.sadena; Picwood and Manchester.
Inglewood. and the Gage and Van
Nuys drive-ins.
Party Given for 65 Ready
To Leave on GI Tours
HOLLYWOOD—Film and radio persona;
I
j
,
ities making overseas trips to entertain G]' ''
during the Christmas-New Year's seaso:
joined military brass, leaders of charitabli
and civic organizatioras and state, county anj
city government officials Thursday (18) at I
goingaway luncheon at the California Nb'
tional Guard armory in Culver City.
;
With George Murphy, president of tfcj
Hollywood Coordinating committee, as chair]
man, speakers included Dore Schary, MGI
production chief; James F. Sauter, presider
of USO-Camp Shows. New York, and. froi.
Washington. Col. Raymond F. Stone, chief c
special services, representing the army's adju.
tant general and Brig. -Gen. Frank Dori|
deputy chief of information.
,
Luncheon was prepared and served by arm,
^
personnel from mobile field kitchens fror] li
Ft. Mac Arthur. The 48 volunteer stars and Ij 4
musicians who will carry yuletide greeting,
to military personnel stationed and hospjj
talized overseas is the largest project of it;
kind yet organized by the committee in coj
operation with the Department of Defens(j
USO-Camp Shows, army special services an^
the army air force. They took off by plan'
Friday il9i for Korea, Alaska, the Caribbea,
and the Greenland-Newfoundland area.
;
West: Producer Fred Brisson of Independi
ent Ai'tists, accompanied by publicist Ph
Gersdorf. returned from a month in Ne^
York and Washington, where they draft
plans for the premiere of "Never Wave at
i
WAC." being released by RKO. to be stag"
late in January in the nation's capital.
• • *
West: Francis M. Winikus, United Artist
advertising-exploitation director, was
pected in from New York for huddles wiC
various members of the UA production fam'j
ily.
• • •
West: Harry Cohn. president of Colum^
bia. planed out for Honolulu to check pr
posed location sites for the upcoming fl'
version of "Prom Here to Eternity."
• • •
West: Steve Broidy. president of Allie
Artists, returned from Chicago, where he at
tended a COMPO session.
• • •
East: Walter Lantz, cartoon producejj
trained for New York for parleys with tJhome
office executives on his 1953 prograiril
He'll also talk with officials of Coca-Cola".j
export division on a series of two-mlnut
Technicolor commercial cartoons, which
dubbed into several languages.
• « •
East: Charles Amory, vice-president 111
charge of west coast sales for Pat he Labora