— — Independent Exchanges To Get Some RKO Films NEW YORK—RKO has completed negotiations with Budd Rogers for the U. S. distribution of a number of RKO pictures through independent releasing organizations. These pictures were not included in the distribution deal set by RKO with Universal- International in January, according to Daniel T. O'Shea, president of RKO Radio Pictures. Negotiations were conducted by Edward L. Walton. RKO vice-president, with Rogers, formerly vice-president and general manager of Realart Pictures, who will supervise the operation in conjunction with Walter Branson. RKO vice-president in charge of worldwide sales, and Nat Levy and Herb Greenblatt, RKO sales executives. Promotion of the pictures also will be supervised by RKO department heads. Al Stern, worldwide publicity manager; Dave Cantor, exploitation manager, and Ben Grimm, advertising manager. All 32 of the major company exchange areas will be covered by the distribution deals and, in addition to the managers of the releasing fu'ms, 94 salesmen will be involved in the selling of the films. Many of these independent companies have already added former RKO employes to their staffs to handle the product. The distribution plan is expected to give "new life" to the films. RKO said, by providing a greater sell-off than could have been anticipated through the normal distribution channels of RKO's former setup. RKO also feels that new sales organizations, picking up the films, will offer a greater stimulant to the sale of the pictures. The independent releasing organizations which will handle the RKO product in the U. S. are, by territories: Albany and Buffalo—George Waldman, Waldman Enterprises, Buffalo; Atlanta and Jacksonville Chorles Simpson and William Richardson, Capitol Releasing Corp., Atlanta; Boston and New Haven Joseph E. Levine, Embassy Pictures Corp., Boston; Charlotte—^Robert F. Pinson, American-Astor Distributmg Corp., Charlotte; Chicago Max Roth and Charles Lindow, Linro, Inc., Chicago; Cincinnati and Indianapolis—Mrs. Selam Blochsleger, Jay Goldberg and Helen Bohn, Realart Pictures of Cincinnati; Dallas and Oklahoma City— Fred A. Meyers, Tower Pictures Co., Dallas; Denver and Salt Lake City Hal C. Fuller, Dimension Pictures, Salt Lake City; Des Moines and Omaha—William Feld, Realart Pictures of Iowa and Nebraska, Des Moines; Detroit Jack Zide, Allied Film Exchange, Detroit; Kansas City—^Robert Herrell, United Film Exchange, Kansas City; Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle and Portland—Newton P. Jacobs, Favorite Films of California, Los Angeles; Milwaukee—W. Benjamin, Screen Guild Production of Wisconsin, Milwaukee; Minneapolis—Donald Swartz, Independent Film Distributors, Minneapolis; New Orleans—Milton Dureau, Masterpiece Pictures, New Orleans; New York Sherman Krellberg and Richard Perry, Principal Film Exchange, New York City; Philadelphia and Washignton—Jock Harris, Screen Guild Productions of Philo., Philadelphia; Pittsburgh—Milton Brauman and Bert Steorn, Pittsburgh; St. Louis—George Phillips and Herman Gorelick, Realart Pictures of St. Louis, and Cleveland— Irwin Pollard, Imperial Pictures, Cleveland and Memphis, Fred A. Meyers, Colonial Pictures of Tennessee, Memphis. WB Promotes Egolf NEW YORK—Hans J. Egolf has been appointed Warner Bros.' supervisor for Belgium, Switzerland and Germany by Wolfe Cohen, president of Warner International. Egolf will make his headquarters in Zurich. He formerly was manager of Belgium and supervisor of Switzerland. Robert Gonze, office manager in Belgium, has been promoted to succeed Egolf as Belgian manager. 'Stage Struck' Receives Special RKO Promotion NEW YORK — RKO has employed Dick Weaver, publicity man for stage shows and special film deals, to promote "Stage Struck," starring Henry Fonda, Susan Strasberg and Joan Greenwood. It is now being shot on location and at the Production Center here. Weaver and his staff of five have opened the campaign. It will continue for 30 weeks up to the time of release of the picture. Weaver will be in full charge of all publicity and exploitation, but will maintain liaison with RKO publicity staffs here and on the coast on all matters of company policy. He said his campaign will have a fourfold purpose. It will aim for public acceptance of "Stage Struck" as a big picture, form a "hard core" of filmgoers prepared to see the picture prior to reviews, produce a "success formula" involving distributors, exhibitors, film salesmen and newspapermen, and establish a "flagship" picture carrying the RKO producing banner. One hundred newspaper critics and amusement editors in key cities will be invited to watch production here. The first group arrived Monday (11) from Boston. It included Elinor Hughes of the Boston Herald, Alta Maloney of the Boston Traveler, Peggy Doyle of the Boston American and Marjorie Adams of the Boston Globe. Telephone Interviews from the set will be arranged for critics who cannot make the trip. Weaver will also contact 30,000 drama groups in U. S. high schools, colleges and community theatres. Letters from those making the picture will be mailed them from time to time. They will receive a special thi'ee-scene script for their own use. William Dozier, RKO vice-president in charge of production, arranged the deal with Weaver. Fae Miske Buys Rights To Burstyn Properties NEW YORK—Fae R. Miske, associated with Joseph Burstyn for many years, has bought all the rights to the Burstyn properties from his estate and will continue in business under the name of Joseph Burstyn, Inc. She has been operating head of the company since Burstyn's death three years ago. Miss Miske has taken over some 20 films, including "Open City," "Bicycle Thief," "Paisan," "Miracle in Milan," "Justice Is Done," "The Quiet One" and "Little Fugitive." All are in active distribution. Her acquisitions include theatrical, non-theatrical and television rights. Some cover Canadian as well as U. S. distribution rights and some worldwide rights. She also has several new films. One is the Greek import, "Stella," starring Melina Mercouri, which has been booked for exhibition here. Another is "Portraits of Shame," a Japanese trilogy featuring the Bungaku Za Repertory Theatre, to be shown here in September. RKO Starts Disposing Exchange Properties NEW YORK—RKO has just begun the job of physical disposal of its exchanges. There are leases to be taken care of and there is office and projection room equipment to be sold. The job is complicated for a number of reasons. One is that this is the first time in the history of the industry that a 30-city system of exchanges has gone into the discard. RKO executives have no pattern to follow. Right now, office and projection room equipment is being inventoried and a study of leases has begun. One exception is New York. Here Bonded Film Storage has solved one problem by taking over the space and equipment. Firms in the business of purchasing office equipment in the bulk have begun bidding or sounding out RKO as to what it has to offer. The company expects to receive queries from other motion picture companies which are talking expansion of field activities. Among them are Allied Artists, Distributors Corp. of America and the U. S. distribution unit of J. Arthur Rank of Britain. In fact, RKO believes that some guarded queries already received have come from those sources. Some key city setups are, of course, more elaborate than others and may turn out to pose special problems. Among the cities having regular two-story exchange buildings leased by RKO are Boston, Pittsburgh, Charlotte and Atlanta. They were especially built for the purposes they have been serving, with large film vaults and loading platforms. The disposition of leases will call for considerable study. Where they are of short duration—say, those expiring this year—they may be allowed to run their course. Where they have a longer time to go, RKO will try to find good tenants to take over the leases. The company is hopeful, too, that some landlords will be glad to take back short-term leases in the expectation of signing up longterm renters. One lease has five years to run, give or take a month or two. That lease was signed only two weeks before RKO decided to give up distribution in the U. S. The indication, of course, is that RKO's decision was a sudden one. What estimate does RKO put on its exchange holdings? The executives won't hazard a guess. They say they are "just feeling our way at the moment." Later on they'll have a pretty good idea. "Oklahoma!" Regular Run In London Opens March 11 NEW YORK—"Oklahoma!" will start a regular run in London March 11 with extended playing time in most of the theatres booking it, according to Walter Branson, RKO vice-president in charge of worldwide distribution. Following a 20-week European engagement in the West End—eight weeks at the Odeon, Leicester Square, and 12 weeks at the Odeon, Marble Arch— it has been playing at 21 key provincial theatres, many of them using the extended playing plan. RKO exploiteers have been busy for 16 weeks backing up the provincial dates, placing photos and serializations of the story in newspapers and using television, radio, records and sheet music to promote the music. 14 BOXOFFICE :: February 16. 1957
Ha^/e you e^er seen svet ^^HOLPiNG POW£R
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