Boxoffice-August.21.1954

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August
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No Time Out for DeMille
On His 73rd Birthday
Short takes from the sound stages: It was
work-as-usual for Cecil B. DeMille when the
veteran producer-director observed his 73rd
birthday by continuing preparations for his
next for Paramount, "The Ten Commandments."
He declined a birthday party on the
grounds he didn't "have time to blow out
that many candles." His upcoming "Commandments"
will be DeMille's 70th picture
since he made "The Squaw Man" in a rented
Hollywood horse barn in 1913 . . .
Sandwich-
secretary-treasurer. The Scribe outfit is in
partnership with Bob Hope Enterprises and
Paramount in the lensing of the current Hope
starrer, "Eddie Foy and the Seven Little Foys,"
which Rose is producing and Shavelson directing.
William Holden Assigned
To 'Magnificent Devils'
Among morsels of casting news gleaned
during the period, noteworthy was Para-
Woody Woodpecker
Going to Europe
Woody Woodpecker, the brash penand-ink
character created by Walter
Lantz as the star of cartoons released by
Universal-International, is now to extend
his adventures to the European scene.
Lantz, who is trekking abroad, is taking
4,000 feet of negative with him to pick
up background footage in France, England,
Holland, Belgium and Sweden.
During a two-month stay abroad,
Lantz also will acquire art work which his
animators will utilize to a.ssure authenticity
in upcoming releases.
"Woody Woodpecker in Paris" will be
the first in the new series, with Tex
Avery to direct. Production will start
as soon as Lantz has returned to Hollywood
with the necessary material.
By
IVAN SPEAR
mount's choice of William Holden to co-star
with Deborah Kerr in the Perlberg-Seaton
production, "The Magnificent Devils" . .
Dan Duryea returns to MGM for the first
time in ten years to star in the upcoming
.
galloper, "The Marauders" Miles
will be Tarzan's gal friend Sol Lesser's
in
"Tarzan's Hidden Jungle," in which Gordon
Scott makes his debut as the jungle hero
to a term contract by the studio,
Robert Stack has been set by 20th Century-
Fox for a starring role in "The Racers,"
which also toplines Gilbert Roland, Kirk
Douglas and Bella Darvi inked
.
Adolphe Menjou and Hoagy Carmichael for
top supporting parts in "Timberjacks," upcoming
Trucolor entry which will star
ing in the task along with his preparations for
filming "The Ten Commandments," DeMille
is writing the foreword for the forthcoming
biography of Mary Pickford. Her memoirs Sterling Hayden and Vera Ralston.
are due for early publication by Doubleday.
Miss Pickford, it will be remembered, presented
the Oscar to her longtime friend and Roy Rogers Trio to Star
industry associate when DeMille's "The
In Canadian Exhibition
Greatest Show on Earth" won the Academy's
best-picture kudos for 1952. The veteran producer-director
is doing his own autobiography, Canada, Roy Rogers, Dale Evans and Trigger
Marking theh- first joint appearance in
too—on which the publisher's deadline is 1956, took off Wednesday (18 1 for Toronto to star
when "The Ten Commandments" is released. in the 76th annual Canadian National Exhibition.
The show, starting Friday (27 1, will
He'll be 75 by then . five years
as a production manager and associate continue through September 11.
producer, Gerd Oswald is being upped to directorial
status at 20th Century-Fox. His will be the stage debut of 6-year-old Trigger
A special feature of their two-a-day shows
megging duties will begin when he has completed
his chores as unit manager on "Un-
his eight golden palomino horses in syn-
jr., besides which Rogers also will present
tamed" . . . Newly named officers of Scribe chronized routine. Also making the trek are
Productions, independent unit just organized the Sons of the Pioneers and comic Pat
by Mel Shavelson and Jack Rose, include Jules Brady.
Goldstone, president, and Edward M. Rose, Following the Toronto engagement, the
Rogers troupe will trek to New York's Madison
Square Garden September 30 through
October 17. for the annual show previously
known as the world championship rodeo, but
this year to be billed as the Roy Rogers
Rodeo.
Audrey Hepburn Scheduled
For 'House of Mist' Lead
Here and there in the Hollywoodlands:
"House of Mist," a novel by Maria Luisa
Bombal, South American writer, has been
scheduled by Paramount as a starring vehicle
for Audrey Hepburn LeRoy on
.
Monday (16i gunned his 50th motion picture
by launching producer-director chores on
"Strange Lady in Town," Greer Garson-Dana
Andrews starring vehicle for Warners, on
location in Tucson. It's also LeRoy's fourth
film with Miss Gar.son, they having been
associated earlier on "Blossoms in the Dust,"
"Random Harvest" and "Madame Curie" at
MGM through United Artists has
.
been set for "The Kiss-Off," a suspense mystery
written and to be produced by Frank
Tashlin and Rip Van Runkle. which Tashlin
will
direct.
Rory Calhoun Turns Writer;
Collaborates on Script
Now it's Rory Calhoun, writer. In addition
to his thespian pursuits, Calhoun has found
time to collaborate with Clark E. Reynolds
on script tagged "Shotgun," which has been
Lippert Jr. to Produce
Films in
Mexico City
A new independent unit with a scuthof-the-border
flavor has been established
with the formation of Montezuma Films,
headquartering in Mexico City, by Robert
L. Lippert jr. and Olallo Rubio jr. The
new unit will launch "The Violent Men"
in Mexico next month.
The feature will be the second in a
series of three Ansco Color productions
to be made by Montezuma this year, in
English and Spanish versions, and with
casts combining Hollywood and Latin
American players. The initialer was "The
Black Pirates," filmed entirely in
Salvador with Anthony Dexter. Lon
Chaney and Martha Roth in the leads.
Lippert returned to Hollywood recently
to begin casting "The Violent Men" after
two weeks of conferences with Rubio in
Mexico City. The output from Montezuma
Films will be released in the U.S.
by Lippert Pictures, headed by Robert L.
Lippert sr.
set for independent production by John
Champion. Rolling this week on location
Arizona, the Technicolor galloper is beir
du-ected by Lesley Selander and will be n
leased by Allied Artists. There's just oi
thing Calhoun forgot—he didn't write
part for himself. The cast toppers are Ste:
ling Hayden and Zachary Scott.
U-I Buys Screen Rights
To Two Western Stories
Universal-International went off on
western binge to dominate the story mark
by purchasing two sagebrush propertii
Screen rights were acquired to "Law Ma
a novel by Lee Leighton. and "Dead Mi
Pass," a Saturday Evening Post serial
Peter Dawson.
"Law Man," which recently won the We
ern Writers of America's award as the b<
western novel of 1953. will be produced
U-I by Albert Zugsmith. It will be gi'
Technicolor garnishment. The yarn de
with a sheriff who defies both sides of t
warring ranchers and farmers in order
hang a murderer in a lawful manner.
"Dead Man Pass" has been assigned
Howard Christie to produce.
UA. Schenck-Koch Agree
On New Six-Picture Deal
United Ai-tists has closed a deal w
Schenck-Koch Productions for distnbut
by the end of 1955 of six features. Aub
Schenck, head of the producing compa
and Arthur B. Krim, United Artists pr(
dent, handled the details.
Schenck and his partner, Howard W. K<
have left for the northwest to start
House, U.S.A.," which will be made at
McNeil Island penitentiary. The pr'j
melodrama is from a story by John Hlgg|
The five other pictures will be
Swamp Fox," a story about the Revolutl|
ary war hero Francis Marion; "Desert B«
lion," a Foreign Legion film, two west
and a melodrama.
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