Boxoffice-December.17.1955

. . Pioducer
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. . Milton
. . Rugged
: December
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Dynamiting of Airlines
To Get Film Treatment
Headline-snatching as source material for
topical photoplays is still one of the popular
pastimes among Hollywood's filmmakers.
Latest example of such tactics is the disclosure
that producer Harry Tatelman has
registered the title, "Angels in Flight," and is
developing a screen story suggested by the
recent time-bomb explosion which destroyed
a transcontinental plane and killed all 44
of its passengers.
Tatelman has engaged Meyer Dolinsky to
complete the screenplay and plans to begin
shooting, under his independent banner, early
next year. Meantime he is completing his
producer chores on "Run for the Sun," the
Russ-Field production for United Artists,
which is being lensed on location in Mexico
as a Richard Widmark starrer.
Two Literary Purchases
Recorded During Week
Activity in the literary market fell off to
laggardly proportions during the pre-Christmas
period, only two sales having been recorded.
Columbia purchased "Soldiers' Pay,"
a novel by William Faulkner, and assigned
William Fadiman to produce it, with Raphael
Hayes set to prepare the screenplay. The
story, which deals with the retui-n of a critically
wounded soldier to his home town, and
the impact of his arrival on his family,
.
fiancee, compassionate friends and others,
originally dealt with the period immediately
following World War I. It will be brought up
to date Robert L. Jacks, currently
shooting "Bandido," starring Robert
Mitchum, on location in Mexico for United
Artists release, bought "The Lonly Gun," an
original western by Dick Carr. Jacks, whose
next will be "The Proud Ones," at 20th Century-Fox,
has not as yet .set a release for
"Gun."
Bob Hope to Be Guest Star
In 'Gertrude La'wrence'
Bob Hope, who has covered just about every
nook and cranny of the free world as an
entertainer for the armed forces, has agreed
to play himself in that role as a guest star
in "Gertrude Lawrence as Mrs. A.," which is
being prepared by Melville Shavelson and
Jack Rose for Paramount.
Hope entertained wartime troops overseas
with the late actress and will appear in such
a sequence with the star—yet to be selected
who will have the title role.
The opus, rolling next year, will be based
on the biographical tome by Richard Aldrich,
husband of the stage star.
Bob E. Merrill Signed to
Four-Way MGM Deal
Here and there in the HoUywoodlands
Something different In film contracts—a fourway
deal—has been signed with MGM by
Bob E. Merrill, a songwriter, who under the
seven-year pact will write, compose and produce,
in adidtion to retaining outside rights.
By
IVAN SPEAR
It calls for ten pictures in which Merrill
will share the publishing rights and receive
royalties on the tunes. In the past five years
he's had 18 songs on the nation's list of top
ten. including such entries as "If I Knew You
Were Coming I'd Have Baked a Cake" and
"How Much Is That Doggy in the Window?"
of a precedent also was established
and again by MGM when Montgomery
Clift for the first time in his career inked a
contract calling for more than one picture.
He has been booked to a thi-ee-film deal,
under which his first assignment will be the
costarring spot opposite Elizabeth Taylor in
"Raintree County," the Civil War drama
based on Ross Lockridge's prize-winning
novel, to go before the cameras next March
as a David Lewis production ,
. . Warner
Bros, added a new property to its 1956 slate
with the acquisition of "Two Wives." which
Every Day Life"
appeared in the "Drama in
section of Readers' Digest, Margaret Fitts is
writing the screenplay and Beirne Lay jr. will
produce . . . Also at Warners, a casting of
interest: Lloyd Nolan will star with William
Holden in "Toward the Unknown," which
Holden's Toluca Pioductions is filming with
Mervyn LeRoy as the producer-director. It's
slated to roll next month in WarnerColor and
is an original script by the above-mentioned
Lay, dealing with U. S. air force experimental
plans and the exploits of the pilots who test
them.
Taurog Sets 'Little Britches'
As Independent Venture
When Norman Taurog has completed his
current directorial assignment, Paramount's
Dean Martin-Jen-y Lewis comedy, "Pardners,"
the veteran filmmaker will launch
preparations on his first independent venture,
"Little Britches," a father-and-son yarn by
Ralph Moody which received a Readers' Digest
condensation a couple of years ago.
The story deals with an eastern family
which settles down on a farm in Colorado in
the early 1900s. Taurog has signed Allan Kenward
to write the screenplay and plans to
get the vehicle before the cameras next
summer.
Technicolor to Install
Superscope Overseas
Negotiations are being finalized whereby
Technicolor will install Superscope anamorphic
equipment in its London and Paris
plants, it was reported by Joseph and Irving
Tushinsky, developers of the Superscope
process. Heretofore color printing in the system
has been handled only in Technicolor's
Hollywood laboratories.
The agreement calls for the Tushinskys to
start work on the installation late this month
for completion by next February 1.
To date some 30 English and European
filmmakers have indicated they will employ
Super.scope in their 1956 output. The first
subject slated to be printed in Superscope
abroad is an untitled entry produced for
Eichberg Films by Edgar Ulmer, and which
will go before the cameras in Munich before
the first of the year.
Big Filmmaking Spurt
Under Way at 20th-Fox
It's going to be a merry Christmas indeed
for the front office and backlot
toilers at 20th Century-Fox's Westwood
film foundry, where headman Darryl F.
Zanuck, vice-president in charge of
production, has green-lighted the biggest
filmmaking spurt since the advent of
Cinemascope. Between now and the end
of the year camera activity will get under
way on four features, supplementing another
quartet already in work—two locally
and two abroad.
Currently in production are "The Man
in the Gray Flannel Suit," which Zanuck
is personally supervising: "The King and
I," being lensed in 55mm CinemaScope,
and, on location, "The Revolt of Mamie
Stover," shooting in Hawaii, and "23 Paces
to Baker Street," being made in London.
They'll be bolstered, ere the arrival of
the new year, by "The Sixth of June,"
"The Proud Ones," "The Day the Century
Ended" and "Hilda Crane."
Sarita Montiel to Costar
In Tab Hunter Western
Casting notes: Latin American actress
Santa Montiel, a Warner contractee, will costar
with Tab Hunter in that company's upcoming
western, "The Burning Hills" . . .
Shelved for a time. Allied Artists' "Hold
Back the Night," a Korean war drama, has
been reactivated with the inking of Mark
Richman. Broadway actor, for a featured
lead as ont of a detachment of marines . . .
Over at Universal-International, George
Nader was handed the costarring spot opposite
Esther Williams in "The Gentle Web,"
while Leigh Snowden drew the femme lead
.
.
.
in "Johnny Salvo," in which the title-roler
is Ray Danton Victor Mature
will star in Samuel Goldwyn jr.'s next independent
effort for United Ai-tists, "The
Sharkfighters" . Producers John Bash and
Elizabeth
.
Dickinson, who are making the
romantic drama for Republic release, booked
Ralph Meeker as the stellar name in "Brief
Rapture" Ann Sheridan. Dolores Gray
and Ann
. .
Miller are toprank cast additions
to MGM's "The Opposite Sex," starring June
Allyson . Hal Wallis handed Shirley Mac-
Laine a
. .
costarring spot with Shirley Booth
in "Route 66," which he is readying as an
entry for Paramount.
Vincent Sherman to Direct
Two Films for Titanus
Megaphonist 'Vincent Sherman, who has
been in Europe for the past several months,
has been inked by Titanus Films of Italy to
pilot two features, "Behind Closed Doors"
and "Rainy Night." and has arrived in the
film capital to cast the American stai's who'll
appear in the films . . . Henry Ephron drew
the production reins and Claude Binyon the
scripting assignment on 20th-Fox's "Can-
Can," film version of Cole Porter's stage
musical Sperling's United States
.
Pictures tagged Herman Wouk. author of the
best-selling "Marjorie Morningstar," to develop
the screenplay thereof, which Sperling
will produce for Warner release.
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BOXOFTICE
:
17, 1956
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