. . . Recording . . Jeannette "^Mfcwwi defiant Shirley MacLaine Company Will Film Amelia Earhart's Story Shirley MacLaine will star later this \ear in a major film based on the adventurous life of Amelia Earhart. The film, "Amelia,"' will be produced by Shirley's own company, MacLaine Productions, and the script is being prepared by Pete Hamill, prize-winning New York Post columnist who wrote the widely acclaimed novel "The Gift" and screenplays for "Doc" (United Artists) and Paramount Pictures has other films . . . set for production "Framed," an original screenplay by Mort Briskin, and signed him to produce the filin. Phil Karlson will direct and Joe Don Baker will play the starring role. Briskin, Karlson and Joe Don Baker make up the trio responsible for the highly successful production of "Walking Tall." "Framed" will be filmed entirely in Nashville, Tenn. Universal's 'Rooster Cogburn' Continuing Wayne's Oscar Role Hal \\'alli^. committed this year to four priKluctions lor Universal, announced thai John Wayne will star in "Rooster Cogburn," continuing the role of the grizzled gunfighter with the eyepatch which won him an Oscar in 1970 for "True Grit." Also on Wallis's slate are "To Die in California," "The Raid on Villa Joyosa" and "Panic" Walter Shenson, who produced the . . . Beatle.s' films, has moved on to the MGM lot to prepare his first U.S. movie, "We Try Harder," for MGM. Shenson's most recent production, "Digby, the Biggest Dog in the World," will be released in the U.S. this summer by Cinerama Releasing Corp. ... An original script by Robert Blees, "Scoring," will be produced by Arthur Productions, with the writer acting as producer and Arthur Marks, General Film Corp. president, as executive producer. in a joint venture with the USSR, was announced by author-producer Aramais Hovsepian, following his return from the USSR. "Your House and Mine" will be made at the Kino Studio.s, Erevan, Armenia, By SYD CASSYD the L .S. P.iul Kohner is the producer's agent, with Paul Ross handling public relations. Steve McQueen, Paul Newman Teaming in 'Towering Inferno' Hollywood's two lop male superstars will be teamed for the first time with the signing of Steve McQueen and Paul Newman to head the cast of Irwin Allen's multimillion-dollar production of "The Towering Inferno" for 20th-Fox and Warner Bros. Newman will portray the architect of the tallest building in the world and McQueen will be seen as the fire chief who leads the battle against an awesome holocaust when the towering structure catches fire. According to producer Allen, the picture will be made in the same manner as "The Poseidon .Adventure" with John Guillermin signed as director and Allen personally directing the action sequences. This production marks the first time that two major studios have formed a joint venture to produce a motion picture. Stirling Silliphant adapted the screenplay for the screen from two similar novels, Richard Martin Stern's "The Tower" and "Glass Inferno'" by Frank Robinson and Tom Scortia. Production will begin at 20th-Fox in early May. Frank Perry Seeking Eight Major Actors for Same Film Frank Perry is in town seeking actors of major stature for the eight strong central roles called for in "Rancho Deluxe," which he will direct as a Frank Perry-Elliott Kastner co-production for United Artists. Perry hopes to have the film before the cameras before May 1 . . . Deborah Raffin has signed for the much discussed role of "January," nymphet daughter of a Hollywood film executive in Paramount's Howard W. Goch production Jacqueline Susann's "Once Is Not Enough." She joins a multi- Dallas Forty," Paramount's expose of pro football, will have Oscar winners Jerem\ Earner as its writer and Hal Ashby as director . . . Frank Pierson will write the screenplay for Columbia's "Caves of Steel.' a science fiction picture based on a novel by award-winning author Isaac Asimov. The film will be producer Gerald Ayres' next Acrobat production to go before the cameras. His most recent film for Columbia was "The Last Detail." Weaving 'At Long Last Love' Around 23 Cole Porter Tunes Twentieth Centur>-Fox has entered into an agreement with Peter Bogdanovich to film "At Long Last Love," which will contain 23 Cole Porter tunes of the 1920s and 1930s. These are to be integrated into the comedy-romance script by Bogdanovich and will be filmed on several Hollywood studio back lots. Jere Henshaw, 20th- Fox vice-president in charge of worldwide production, said that production is to begin in June for a possible December release. Arthur Butler will supervise the musical scoring and Frank Marshall is to be the associate producer . . . Executive producer Ron Miller has named Jerome Courtland producer and John Hough director of Walt Disney Productions" "Escape to Witch Mountain."' The story of two young orphans with supernatural powers, the Technicolor thriller rolls in April near Monterey, Calif. . . . "Shampoo," which went before the cameras this week with Warren Beatty. Julie Christie and Goldie Hawn starring. is being produced by Beatty for Columbia Pictures. Hal .Ashby directs from an original comedy screenplay by Robert Towns and 'California Split' Character Role Assigned Bert Remsen Bert Remsen. an actor and casting director for Spelling-Goldberg Productions, has one of the character roles in Robert Altman's "California Split." starring George Segal and Elliott Gould . Clift. a discovery in Houston, Tex., will make her cinema debut in World Wide Pictures' "Hiding Place" as Corrie ten Boom, whose book, about her experiences as the organ- star cast headed by Kirk Douglas, Alexis USSR-U.S. Co-Production Pact Smith, Melinda Mercouri, David Janssen izer-leader of a Dutch underground operation a.ssisting Jews to escape invading Involves Two Motion Pictures and George Hamilton . . . Mexican actor \ major co-produclion agreement, m- Pedro Armendariz jr. will play the Chicano Nazis, became a best seller . . . Producer volving two pictures to be made in English policeman buddy of George Kennedy in Lester Welch is conducting a nationwide Universal's and the Filmakers Group's search for an unknown to play the title "Earthquake," contemporary drama about role in his "The Mario Lanza Story," to a massive tremor that destroys much of Los be filmed this fall . . . Hope Lange was Angeles. Charlton Heston, Ava Gardner. signed by co-producers Dino de Laurentiis Lome Greene and a large name-cast of and Michael Winner to star opposite Charles for distribution in the Soviet block, possibly performers already are signed for the film. Bronson in "Death Wish," which Winner is English to the rest of directing for Paramount release. Ms. Lange. manager and sound technician will be sent in the picture, which is being filmed on over from the U.S. "Family Revenge," the Oscar nominees Alan and .Marilyn Bergman have been pacted to write a song for star Roberta Flack has been location in Hawaii, Arizona and New York second picture in the agreement, will be filmed in Hollywood in the summer of the film "99-3/4% Dead,"' a 20th-Fox Picture starring Richard Harris . . . Jordan title role of famed blues singer Bessie Sitiith signed by producer Porter Bibb to play the 1975, produced by international filmmaker Eugene Franks. Written by Hovsepian, the Cronenwelh has been a.ssigned as cinematographer for Universal's "The Front Page," based on Chris Albertson's book of the in Portable Productions feature. "Bessie." story involves a blood feud carried on through three generations in Armenia and being directed by Billy Wilder . . . "North simic title. in Russian, and in the world by the Hov.sepian group. The a two-time Emmy-winner and Oscar nominee, plays the pivotal role of Bronson's wife Alan, Marilyn Herman Writing Song for '99-3/4% Dead' director, two stars, the editor, production 10 BOXOFFICE :: March 25, 1974
BOXOFFICE BAROMETER This chort records the performonce of current attractions in the opening week of their first runs in the key cities 20 checked. Pictures with fewer five listed. than engagements are not As new runs are reported, ratings ore added and averages revised. Computation is in terms of percentage in relation to as normal determined theatre manogers. With 100 per cent as "normal," grosses by the the figures the gross ratings or ' show obove below that mork 'Asterisk denotes combination bills) z2u-^ i-t3
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