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Memorial Services Held
For Irving Evans, 44
NETW YORK—Memorial services were held
February 9 for Irving Evans. 44, vice-president
and assistant managing director of
Radio City Music Hall, who died two days
before after a long illness. He became assistant
stage manager of the former Center
Theatre in Radio City in 1932 and in 1933
was transferred to the Music Hall, becoming
stage manager in 1936. In 1952 he was
made vice-president and assistant managing
director.
He was a nephew of Sir Jacob Epstein.
American-born British sculpter, and a
brother of Abner Dean, cartoonist and author.
After entering Harvard at the age of 14. he
left before graduation to study the theatre
in London and Paris, attended the Sorbonne
and was associated with the English
Players in Paris in 1931-32.
He leaves his wife, the former Ludmilla
Selihoff, a former ballet dancer at the Music
Hall; two daughters. Lynn and Jennifer: his
mother. Mrs. Deana Evans, and two sisters.
Ethel Dean and Mrs. Lawrence Herbert,
both of this city, in addition to his brother.
James M. Ashcraft Dies;
Former MGM Fieldman
PHILADELPHIA—James M. Ashcraft. 77.
whose last position in the entertainment field
was field representative for MGM in the
Philadelphia ten-itory. died early in February
at the Dunwoody Home here.
Ashcraft became publicity representative
and then per.sonnal representative for D. W.
Griffith after serving as advance man and
company manager for various stage shows.
He brought "Birth of a Nation" to Broadway
for Griffith and later took Griffith's "Heart;
of the World" to London. In 1929. he was
named director of publicity for Sono-Art and
later he held publicity po.sts with Paramount.
Columbia and MGM before retiring 12 years
ago.
SYRACUSE
M'early 1,000 filmgoers were evacuated from
two downtown theatres recently after
telephone warnings that bombs had been
planted in the buildings. Involved were the
Schine Paramount and Loew's State. Squads
of police joined ushers in searching through
the theatres but failed to turn up any explosive
devices. Harry Unterfort of Schine
and Sam Gilman of Loew's asked patrons to
step into the lobbies for a brief intermission.
Authorities said the telephone threats were
apparently the work of crackpots.
. . . David Susskind.
Barbara Rush, 20th-Fox star, on a personal
appearance tour for her new film. "Oh, Men!
Oh, Women!" stopped here to make an afternoon
appearance at the Post-Standard 13th
semiannual fashion show in War Memorial
Auditorium February 12. Also on the program
as featured singer was Dorothy Collins
of "Your Hit Parade"
producer of "Edge of the City." spent several
days here. He spoke at the Kiwanis Club
luncheon, was interviewed by press and radio
and appeared on television. Sam Gilman of
Loew's was host and Steve Pirozzi of the
MGM Buffalo office handled the promotion.
BUFFALO
Joseph E. Lippert, for the past five and one
half years chief of service at the Center
Theatre, during which time he attended
Canisius College from
which institution he
graduates in June, has
been appointed assistant
manager at the
downtown AB-PT first
run. While attending
Canisius, Lippert was
'-- k a member of the
^ ^^^^ KOTC in which he
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sioned a second lieu-
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Corps. Lippert
Joseph E. Lippert
succeeds J. Richard
Smyth, who has entered the Army. Smyth
was assistant manager at the Seneca Theatre
for several years, later becoming treasurer
at the Paramount, then assistant at the
Center . Maxwell, office manager
at the Buffalo RKO exchange for some 31
years, has been named office manager at the
local exchange of United Artists. Fran
started with RKO-Pathe in Buffalo as an
assistant shipping clerk and advanced to
shipper, assistant booker, booker, salesman
and office manager. Fi'an recently was
elected dough guy of Variety Tent 7. The
Buffalo RKO office closed Friday (8) when
the employes held a farewell party. Jack
a
Chinell. RKO manager and with RKO for
quarter of a century, has not as yet announced
his future plans. Howard McPherson,
a member of the RKO sales staff, has
joined the local 20th-Pox sales staff.
Tab Hunter was in Buffalo Monday (11) to
do some tub-thumping for "The Spirit of
St. Louis," in behalf of which he is making
a crosscountry toiu-. Tab arrived at the airport
at 10 a.m. and was welcomed by city
officials and Bell Aircraft Corp. executives.
There was a luncheon in his honor at noon
in Hotel Statler which was attended by Paramount
Theatres executives. Warner Bros, officials.
Bell executives and newspaper folks.
In the afternoon Tab was interviewed by
radio and TV personalities and posed for a
series of photos on how a screen star takes
on a press agent job. which is to be used in
the roto section of the Sunday Courier-Express.
Tab also was interviewed by local
drama editors. Art Moger of the Warner
Bros, exploitation forces, was here with Tab.
Gil Golden, Warner Bros, advertising manager,
was a Buffalo visitor Tuesday (12) when
he sat in with Arthur Krolick, Charles B.
Taylor and Edward Miller at the executive
offices of the Buffalo Paramount Corp. and
discussed plans for the world premiere of
Ingrid Bergman's new picture, "Paris Does
Strange Things," which will be shown for the
first time anywhere at the Paramount Theatre
in downtown Buffalo, starting Friday (22)
While in Buffalo, Gil visited local newspaper
offices and was interviewed by television and
radio personalities.
Television is proving a real force in the
motion picture education of the younger generation,
one of Hollywood's youngest producers
said in Buffalo the other day. The
producer is Lewis Blumberg, 33, of United
Artists, who visited Buffalo in connection
with "The Big Boodle," set for next month
in Shea's Buffalo, "While telt
spectators much more discrii:
they see an actor or actress they real.y
they are perfectly willing to leave homt ;.i>.;.
come out to a movie theatre to see him.
Blumberg said. "And if an actor has not
appeared in a film for several years, TV,
through back releases, helps to keep the coming
generation informed of his abilities," said
the producer. Blumberg's case in point is
Ei-rol Flynn, who has not appeared in a new
American-made film for five years. Yet, a
spot poll of today's youth shows a definite
acquaintance with the actor, he said.
Eugene Tunick, United Artists district manager,
was in Buffalo for conferences with
Buffalo Manager Al Glaubinger. Both lunched
with Art Krolick, district manager. Paramount
Theatres . Smith, a native of
British Honduras, is the new manager of the
Playhouse Theatre in Canandaigua. Smith
is a former mayor of Belize, capital of Honduras
... In connection with MGM months,
February, March, April and May, local MGM
bookers Betty Kaye and Virginia Callahan
have sent to exhibitors an attractive mimeographed
valentine, reading: "Please don't
keep me in suspense. Don't you think that
this makes sense. Let me know what dates
are mine, and you will be my valentine."
A former Buffalonian, Edmund J. Baumgarten,
formerly associated with the Buffalo
Industrial Bank, now heads Regal Films,
which looms as a major independent producer
because of an alliance with 20th-Fox
Film Corp. It has contracted to deliver a
total of 25 features in 1957. Three of Regal's
works already have been presented in Buffalo,
"Stagecoach to Fury," "The Black
Whip" and "The Quiet Gun," which just
closed a week's stay in the Paramount Theatre.
Baumgarten left the Buffalo Industrial
Bank in August 1942 to join the Lockheed
aviation organization in the Los Angeles area.
Soon after the wax, he joined the Bank of
America, handling film company loan service.
In that field, he met Robert Lippert, who
made Baumgarten vice-president of four of
his companies. When Lippert discontinued
production activities, Baumgarten went into
filmmaking on his own, turning out several
features. Then came the plans which developed
into Regal Films.
Copy-Art Labs Expanding
Into Photo Reproduction
NEW YORK—JJK Copy-Ai't photo laboratory
is expanding into the field of photo reproduction
and has opened a newly equipped
18.000-foot laboratory which can turn out
more than 52,000 still pictures each work day,
according to James J. Kriegsmann, president.
Joseph G. Aurrichio, formerly with RKO
as supervisor of the still department, has been
made vice-president in charge of sales, and
Irving Kroll, who has been with Kriegsmann
for 20 years, is production head. Among the
stars photographed by Kriegsmann are Frank
Sinatra, Perry Como. Vic Damone, Martha
Raye and Anne Jeffreys and Robert Sterling.
Borrowed for 'Ross Story'
Edward Small has borrowed Dianne Foster
from Columbia Pictures to star in UA's "The
Barney Ross Story."
BOXOFFICE February 16, 1957 E-5