Evening star., 1942-12-11

ner. Some OF his stories are new and
mory. ChaZ Chase need hardly be
the forests a funny little sky pilot
brought up the rear of the column
mounted on a mule. He played a
flute and sang. During the scene
showing the defense of Fort Henry
didn't this little sky pilot shout,
Praise the Lord and Pass the Am
munition" which various chaplains
from Pearl Harbor are disclaiming as
original with them.
Down went the gunner, then the
gunner's mate" then the chaplain
jumps into the fray and "a son of
a gun Of gunner was he" The
cockroach in the omego oil consists
OF the fact that the gunner and the
gunner's mate never fire the gun.
The gun pointer does that.
Incidentally Tin Pan Alley in all
its efforts to produce World War II
song have Topped. These songs are
flops unless the men in uniform
sing them. Jeanette Mcdonald, on
her request tour Of various camps.
says the boys ask for Julia Ward
Howes Battle Hymn of the Repub-
lie, the words of which fit the
emergencies of World War II like a
glove and the music to which always
was, and still is, the answer to a
military bandmaster dream"
May Buy News Reel.
Warner Bros has run into diff
culties establishing another news
reel. There's real shortage of
manpower, since the Army and Navy
have rounded up a great group of
crack photographers. Col. Daryl
Zanuck in North Africa, for in
stance, is bossing corps of 10 ex-
pert lense artists. Then there is the
matter of facilities and raw film.
Head men of Warner Bros. have
been rushing around Washington
from ONCE to ONCE. trying to iron out
the details. They're pretty discour-
aged, since they want a news reel
they admit they have approached
Pathe with view to buying Offer
has been made but they say the
quoted figure of 100000 is not
authentic.
About Count Me In"
Catholic University's musical
Count Me In" has evidently been
acquired by Hollywood for the bull
letins from the production city
state that Eddie Cantor is being
considered for the leading role.
Movie rights for Count Me In"
are controlled by Lester Cowan of
Columbia Pictures, whose wife Ann
Ronnell, provided the score for the
musical. The Broadway production
closed a fortnight ago after a short
run. 1t had Charles Butterworth
and Luella Gear in the principal
roles.
+ you think movie companies are
overlooking any bets on retrieving
nnt long-scurtled -foreiM market.
try to get peep into the New York
laboratories Of the major COM
panies. There you'll see extra
forces at work, night and day, dub
bing Hollywood's English movies
into 1talian-this for the purpose of
following the American nag into
Tunisia.
More than score of American
movies, dubbed with French titles,
already have been sent into North
Africa. Moguls of make believe are
secretly smacking their chops glee-
fully over the prospect Of getting an
early release in Italy itself.
But We won't be completely
happy said one Hollywood tycoon.
until we book few first-runs in
city named Berlin"
Uncle Sam himself is taking a
keen interest in the type OF movies
being sent over to the populace of
North African communities. Here,
for example, are some considered
excellent fare to build up American
ideals and purposes: Joe Smith,
American, Flight c m m and -
Forty Mule Team" Boom Town"
Foreign Correspondent" Long
Voyage Home and The Great Die
tator."
"GaT Tops "Miniver."
Would you figure such a picture
as For Me and MY GAL" currently
at Loew's Columbia Theater, with
Judy Garland and Gene Kelly, in
the same class with Mrs. Miniver?"
No sound analyst OF film values
would of course, but the box Office
actually has them running neck and
neck. In some centers the Garland
musical is even exceeding "Miniver"
in GROSS RETURNS