very large profits from Rebecca, because it proved to be profitable, even though the producers did not anticipate it. Mr. ATKINSON. They must have missed something. Mr. HINSHAW. I hope that you will qualify this business of community selection, because I want to find out how it is going to be done. Mr. ATKINSON. Well, within the limitation of my time, Mr. Hinshaw, I want to answer every question I can possibly answer which you put. As I understand the first point is I said that theaters were going to be able to establish a standard reputation for family pictures where you can send your children without question. Then you have got the previewing groups, various organizations, local organizations, that are interested in finding out whether a picture is suitable; then the classifying and publishing of that, then you have got your radio. All of these enter into the matter. Now, at the present time, no matter what they say, the local independent exhibitor has to take the picture that he has contracted for blindly. You cannot hold him responsible for it. Mr HINSHAW. How is he going to contract for his pictures under this bill: will you explain that, please? Mr. ATKINSON. At the time that he makes his contract, the producers will furnish a synopsis under section 4 of the bill which will include two things: In the first place, a general outline of the story and a description of the principal characters. Now, that is something that it seems inconceivable to me that you could not decide upon before you decide that you are going to shoot the picture. In the second place, that synopsis will include the manner of treatment of scenes, depicting or dialog concerning crime, vice, or suggestive of sexual passion. Mr. BOREN. May I interrupt? Mr. HINSHAW. Yes. Mr. BOREN. At the present time is there not an organization called the Hays organization, or something like that, that is supposed to do something about those particular points? Mr. ATKINSON. Yes; that is exactly it, Mr. Boren. But, at the present time you have a code, and it has a great many articles in it which I will not try to read in full at the moment-but articles which prohibit certain kinds of scenes and require treating other scenes in a certain way, and the Hays organization itself states, and I refer to page 442, that all through the writing of scenario, the shooting of the picture, and final editing of the film, members of the production code administration-the industry's selfregulatory organization-actively cooperate with the writing and production units to see that the standards of good taste laid down by the production code, voluntarily adopted by the industry but as I say, as a result of the national boycott are maintained. Mr. BOREN. Mr. Atkinson, on that point, there are a number of questions that I would like to ask, but if the Hays organization representative is to testify, I will save those questions until he testifies. Mr. BOREN. Then, I would like to propound a few questions. Mr. ATKINSON. May I complete my answer to Mr. Hinshaw's question? Mr. BOREN. Yes. Mr. ATKINSON. As to how the exhibitors are going to be able to tell from a synopsis. As I said, the synopsis has those two elements in it, just the basic thing you have got to know about any story. The theme, in other words, and the principal characters, and secondly, the manner of treatment. Now here I might take up some of the arguments that the Hays organization will bring against it, because they say that it is impossible to write that for a picture until it is completed. But, I have just read to you what they themselves have said about the way they enforce their own moral code. In other words, they have their own moral code, Mr. Hinshaw. The bill requires little more than the planning in regard to the manner of treatment which is already required by the production code. It includes the substantial elements of the manner of treatment, named in section 4. Mr. HINSHAW. I understand from the statement that you read there that they intend to have these people present while the picture is being written and shot. Mr. ATKINSON. That is what they do now, Mr. Hinshaw. Mr. HINSHAW. But you are setting up something pretty close to that, and you are going to have it all done in advance. Mr. ATKINSON. The Hays Production Code was all done in 1930 and 1934. Mr. HINSHAW. You mean that your method of doing this requires all of this to be done in advance of the time that the picture is shot. Mr. ATKINSON. Yes; Mr. Hinshaw. A great many standards as to the manner of treatment were laid down 6 and 10 years ago and the Hays organization comes in and tells us that they still cannot lay them down in advance in pictures. It just does not make sense. Mr. HINSHAW. I do not know whether you are familiar with the studio procedure in making pictures or not. Have you gone into that? Mr. ATKINSON. Not more than as I have testified. I have never been to Hollywood. Mr. HINSHAW. Have you ever gone on one of their sets and watched them produce pictures? Mr. ATKINSON. No; I have never been to Hollywood. Mr. HINSHAW. You have never been to Hollywood and watched them make pictures? Mr. ATKINSON. No, sir; there are people here who have been to Hollywood and who can answer as to the machinery of it. But, you asked me the question as to how the exhibitor who has never been to Hollywood would contract for pictures under this bill. Everybody would like to go to California, but not all are able to do so, Mr. Hinshaw. And, he is told now that he must, or he can take so many pictures at such and such a price, without any identification; much less a description. Now, under this bill he is going to be given a description and it is going to be part of the contract, and if it is not lived up to he is going to be able to have the regular remedies under a contract, and refuse to go on. Mr. HINSHAW. I would like to ask one question in that connection. Mr. HINSHAW. And I have a complicated situation; but it is true that motion-picture producers hire stars and when they put out picture, as I understand it, it is to be a Shirley Temple picture, or a Cagney picture, or some other kind of a picture, and that is the way they sell them. Mr. ATKINSON. The testimony given in the Senate is that there was absolutely no identification of the pictures. I will read from page 156: "1937-38 was the last year of the heavy printing bills for the distributing end of the business. They did print these books which I have here." The witness then showed the books. But, those books were not binding and were not a part of the contract. The contracts in 1938-39 did not identify the pictures. Mr. HINSHAW. Having decided not to produce a picture which they had previously decided to produce, could they throw that in the wastebasket? Mr. ATKINSON. Having previously sold it? Mr. HINSHAW. Perhaps; but the producers might produce another picture with the same star. Mr. ATKINSON. Possibly. In 1938 and 1939 season there was absolutely no contract identification of the picture. We do not believe that there is sufficient identification of the picture. We believe that there should be full information on the picture and that is the same principle that this committee has applied to food and drugs and cosmetics. The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Atkinson, it will be necessary for the hearing to adjourn at this time until 10 o'clock tomorrow morning. The committee will meet in executive session immediately following the adjournment of the hearings, so we will ask the audience to give us the room as promptly as you can, and to return at 10 o'clock tomorrow morning. Mr. ATKINSON. I shall be glad to return, Mr. Chairman. Mr. MCGRANERY. May I ask just one question before we adjourn? The CHAIRMAN. Mr. McGranery. Mr. MCGRANERY. If these gentlemen are so interested in the figures produced, I have them here. Do you want them in the record? Mr. ATKINSON. Yes, sir. Mr. HINSHAW. Yes. Mr. McGRANERY. In 1932-33-September 1, to August 31, 312. Then, it moved up consistently until 1936-37 for the same period there were 405 feature pictures. Mr. HINSHAW. That was the number of features. That does not give all of the pictures produced. Mr. ATKINSON. No, sir; but it includes all the features released by the Big Eight. The CHAIRMAN. Very well, the committee will adjourn until 10 o'clock tomorrow morning. (Thereupon, at 11:50 a. m., the committee adjourned until 10 a. m. the following morning, Tuesday, May 14, 1940.) MOTION PICTURE FILMS TUESDAY, MAY 14, 1940 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, COMMITTEE ON INTERSTATE AND FOREIGN COMMERCE, Washington, D. C. The committee met at 10 a. m., pursuant to adjournment, Hon. Clarence Lea (chairman) presiding. The CHAIRMAN. The committee will be in order. You may proceed, Mr. Atkinson. STATEMENT OF HENRY R. ATKINSON, MEMBER OF LEGAL DRAFTING COMMITTEE, BOSTON, MASS.-Resumed Mr. ATKINSON. Mr. Chairman: I emphasized three reasons for community freedom in the selection of films; the regional and local differences in morals and tastes; the superiority of national taste to Hollywood; and the identity of community freedom, of home rule, with the preservation of liberty in this country in contrast to the bigotry and brutality of National Socialist Germany. After demonstrating how the bill would give the power of choice to the 12,500 independent exhibitors, I was in the middle of showing how American communities would then be able to improve the screen. Walter Lippmann spoke of "relatively small but cultivated audiences" as generating the forces which conserve, refine, and elevate the public taste. The Parent-Teacher Association has approximately 30,000 branches throughout the country and, as you have heard, some two million. members. These are small and cultivated audiences, but they would not be few in number. The Association of University Women has branches in every State. The Women's Christian Temperance Union has 10,000 local unions. There are other thousands of local branches among the 30 national organizations which seek community freedom. For 5 years these associations have been working for this freedom. All during this time, greater and greater interest, understanding, and awareness of the movies as a social force has been growing. Once community freedom is restored, there will be widespread local activity among these thousands of groups and we will see the tone and quality of the American film improve, upon a firm and healthy foundation. As one example of individual effort, I would like to read a letter from the President of the State Teachers College, Valley City, N. Dak., Dr. James E. Cox. He writes: I am glad to approve Senate bill 280 backed by your committee for the purpose of prohibiting compulsory block-booking and blind selling of moving picture films. In recent years I, with others, have repeatedly tried to secure a better grade of |