THE NEWS AROUND HOLLYWOOD
- The annual gross of US Pictures in the foreign field, is between 800 million and 900 million; while domestically in US and Canada – it is one billion. [There was much talk in the trades at this time in which exhibitors were complaining that their grosses were off].
- A new plan for film rental percentages was proposed for Paramount films in the WB theater circuit – dependent upon the combined grosses of all the theaters – with a set gross agreed upon, say $500,000 pegged to a percentage at 30%, if it goes below, 1% down for each unit under, or 1% more for each unit above. [Many distributors were making similar arrangements for their product when I was still working in the industry in 2013, though the spread was higher 70 to 60% – all the way down to 35% – all pegged to national gross accumulations].
- UA has planned 30 films for the 1938-39 season – all to be A pictures, no Bs. Budgeted at a million or more apiece. Charlie Chaplin “threatens” to make one. [This would be The Great Dictator. He’d been working on it all of 1938, and did not start shooting until Sept 1939. It was released in 1940]. Rumors were swirling around as to whether Selznick will renew or not with UA. He does have two obligations under the old contract, (one of which is ‘Made for Each Other’). No mention is made of his big projects – ‘Titanic’ and ‘Gone with the Wind.’ [‘Titanic’ was being talked about as a vehicle for Hitchcock, and more will be discussed about GWTW].
- RKO has upped Lucille Ball from featured player to co-star with Jack Oakie in ‘The Affairs of Annnabel.’
- Leo Carillo threw a BBQ party on his San Diego County ranch for Clark Gable, Carole Lombard, Allan Jones, Irene Hervey, Irvin Cobb, W S Van Dyke, and Howard Strickling.
ON THE MOVE
- Elia Kazan leaving New York for London on the President Harding. [No big films for this stage director turned film director until 1945, though he did have a credit for a 1937 short, People of the Cumberland].
- Fritz Lang off for a month’s vacation. [It might have been a long vacation. After his one film for 1938 – ‘You and Me’ for Paramount, Lang did not direct another until 1940’s ‘The Return of Frank James,’ a sequel to ‘Jesse James’ – both from 20th Century Fox. It would be Lang’s first western, and mark the debut of Gene Tierney].
- Eugene Pallette returns from his ranch in Wallowa County, Oregon. [Having finished ‘The Adventures of Robin Hood’ in which he played Friar Tuck, he was due for a rest. He would return in ‘There Goes My Heart’ for Hal Roach; and then three films for 1939, including ‘Mr Smith Goes to Washington’].
ON THE INJURED LIST
- Judy Garland is out of the hospital, after being hurt in a motor crash.
- Richard Greene has a throat infection.
ITEM OF INTEREST TO ME
English producer Zoltan Korda will do ‘Lawrence of Arabia’ for Paramount at Denham.