gether the
DOPR. 1948 BY KEA SERVICE, INO, T, M. RED, SI, 8. PAT, OFF,
"It's a doublo feature, so I'll need at least a buck- couldn't sit through all that without plenty of 'food!"
ATURDAY, APRIL 8, 1948.
Bernard Wicksteed
PRESENTS-
Ou may have noticed that people who travel a lot by air aro inclined to say it's. boring. Let me tell you about 'n trip I've just made across Spain and see if you' think the same.
We took off in our B.E.A. Viking' from ' Gibraltar. The airport there is one of the wonders of aviation, for half of it is built in the sea.
There wasn't enough room in the colony for a modern runway, so they enlarged the British Empire slightly by filling in part of the sea with rock the one thing in Gibraltar of which there's a surplus.
In a few seconds we are over Spain. The geography book 1 had at school starts off about Spain as follows: "The Iberian Peninsula is in shape an irregu- lar pentagon with, the longest side on the north and the short- est on the southwest..." which is no way to work up anyone's interest in a new country.
Seeing it from an airliner is different. You can't help get ting interested. Underneath are
CHILDREN'S ODEONS DOING GOOD WORK
by
J. ARTHUR RANK
'
Africa, generally Impractical. As seems to me that in the Australia, Canada, South
BIRDS EYE
VIEW
bare. brown hills of Andalusia, where the angriest bulls come from. The country is so harren -you don't wonder they're angry,
Snow-capped
name M
And
of a capital city than most of the others in Europe today."
At night the lights are as bright an on Broadway," and the jowels and
mink in the windows make the shops of Bond street seem like village atores. In ong shop I saw the works of Carlos Dickens In Spainish and a volume called "Antonio Adverse."
Wasted time? No!
TAROM Madrid we should have Blown north to Bordeaux, but the weather there was bad, so the pilot took us to Barcolóna and out round the south of the Pyrenees.
Most of the passengers thought this was a frightful born and waste of time, and they impatiently read their magazines as we flew over the heart of Spain. Yet all the while the country below was unfolding history in a way that no writing can
Just back home from four weeks abroad, în sunnier lands, the fun-finding-out man gives you à new kind of travel story
The town is on the Gundal- Gunpowder killed them, and the quivir,
you. probably city is known as "the Paradise of learned at school, along with the Loafers." One of the few remain
other rivers of Spain,
is the manufacture Seville Ing industries noted for barbers and marma- of guitar strings.
so we come to Madrid, with lade, is also on the Gunded the trenches and craters of the civil
One of the Moors who Seville Blocked his harem with war still Ecurring suburbs. the daughters of all the leading There was none of the chivalry of do. nobles In the town. Plenty of swords or Don Quixote about that
to Brother fought brother and You had only to look down, conquerors have made themselves war.
Somehow the understand why half of the New at home
one fathers their sons. by marrying Inlo
one
Just we've
been through World speaks Spanish, for here, in good local family, but this
and natural European minloture, were the can- made sure and married into them seems almost decent
beside it.
vans of Arizona, the rangea Now then, T.Ts, here are your
Mexico, and the mountains of Peru. orange groves. Those little dots, the country since 1500, which isn't The conquering Spanlards took the that go in
now, by realms of the Incas and Indians to regular rows up one long as capitals go. Even
must have elde of every hill and down the
some curious anomaly, it has never their hearts, for they other, are the trees. There are been given the title of city, and is reemed home from home.
But the woman next to me ɛaw so many thousands that if you still officially classed as a town-villa
when none of this. She simply said; stare at them for too long you in Spanish. But its streets. looking
River.
סננם
tho
Madrid has been the capital of
ret spots in front of the eyes and you see them, look more like those "Ilow tedious flying can be."
Shanghai's Russians Live In Daily Fear
By Ed Crighton (Associated Press Correspondent)
of
A HUNDRED miles away on
the right, clearly visible feet culte bllious. It's like
the earth through a screen. against the hard blue sky, in the at Sierra Novada. The tops gleam country
You wouldn't think that such arid ↑
eculd produce this with snow, hence the name, for lusciousness, but that's one of the sierra means mountains in compensations of Nature the drier the fruit The Spanish and nevada means the land the more julcy1
not people down there are. particu larly rich but they're probably very in Britain the serious problem fac-anow.
There's because
oli an ing us. which is too little appreciat-
really, One of the peaks is the high proverb which says you don't need employing ed, is the diMculty of child actors. By Act of Parliament est mountain in Europe outsiden doctor in
house where there's employ children of the Alps. It's 11,600 feet high orange peel lying about-and that's It is illegal to school age in Alm-making, except and called Mulahacen.
Never more than you can say of bananas, during hours so restricted as to be
children heard of it? Nor had I, to be love seeing other children of their honest. own age on the screen, this poses a will keep the children away Obviously I will take time before very difficult problem. "Bunti When the Spaniards settled in
children's Christmas" was from the cinemas; the only we can produce enough
only possible be-Cailfornia they called part of solution to the problem is to aims to satisfy the weekly demand, cause no stmiltar law exists in Aus the Rocky Mountains the Sierra are not so white and their roofs are off the gangplank at Buenos violent inflation, to buy even the
ultimate object. tralia, where regulations covering produce special films for chil. Already, I think, the record is im- working conditions, welfare and Nevada, and from them the dren, and give performances to pressive. In our first year of pra education are considered adequate State of Nevada was named, child nudiences. This convir- duction we made 18 films, all of and are strictly enforced.
In 1940, we made
Now let's ask the steward for tion led me to the idea of the short duration.
45 Aims. which included. three
Children's films are making rapid Saturday Cinema Club.
feature Mma, six series Gims and progress, aided by research and the a glass of sherry. If it's called 11. began in 1942 when we founded ave serint films. Our production fact that the right directors for Amontillado you can look down
National Cinema Club schedule for 1947 called for 74 Aims children's adventure films have now and seo the very ground from which burns, VR Abyiling green the newspaper headlines telling of new States is out of the question for most the Gaumont-British Junior in all, which included eight feature Club, In order to give special per- Bims, six interest films and six series
-T
I present-day world nothing foland and Sweden.
The Odeon
that is our Init
and
formances to children on Saturday films. mornings throughout the Odeon and Gaumont-British cinemas, Then, in 1944, we formed a special section of Gaumont-British Instructional Ltd.
for the purpose of producing enter-
pioneered its work.
'Series' And 'Serial'
·
Perhaps I should explain the dif-
call ference between what we
same
tainment films for children. This "series" film and a "serial" film, and section was placed under the direc- the reason why we are producing the tlon
Field, of Miss Mary
second. The who first rather than the
serial was a familiar feature to hm- SPER
days, and fol- Koers of the silent lows the
lines as a story, lows published in serial forn. Each two- twenty reel section-that is about minutes ends on a note of suspense, return and tempts the audience to how the situation to see the next section, and learn
resolves
itself. From the children's point of this is considered _noi_altogether. satisfactory.
Today there are 400 of these clubs in Britain with a membership of more than 400,000 children between the ages of seven and 14. In addi- tion, the films we are making available to about 000 Saturday shows organised by other clema owning companies.
Typical Morning
are
Let me give you some idea of typical Saturday merning Doors open at nine o'clock; well before
view,
So we have slopted the series film. This consists of a number of com- pleto two-reel episodes, the
It has
only
been found. C.E.F. belleve that they
Great plateau
MHE orange groves begin to thin out, and the country grows brown and bare again. The houses Even from 7.000 feet there's not a free in sight, for this is the edge of the mescia of Spain, the great plateau that covers twice the size of Britain.
not so red.
an area
some
w
of
emigration to the United Russian-Immigrants in Shanghai, the South American countries present less difficulties.
are not THE dream of many of TShanghai's estimated 8,000 have a good job so fortunate as to They And dimcult to obtain White Russians today is to step enough money, in a city shaken by quarter other Latin minimum quantities of a Aires or
of sugar, a half pound American port, and say: "South pound bread
of or one-eighth pound America, here I come!"
sausage, which shops how sell due Life in Shanghai for them, never
10 the reduced publle purchasing power. at any time pleasant since 1937, It is something like the moon. By now a matter of fighting grimly for
While day there's no shelter from the sun,existence and looking with dread moment it appears, and at night it's Chinese Communist victories.
Many Russian immigrants fear that have the best approach to this type which it cume. The vines them so cold that they say in the north the of picture. They are making nims selves don't show at this time winters are nine months long. Yet the fate which they escaped when The
this same country produced one of they fied from the revolution over
paper In Shanghai, Jose Interview with published an leaves, but you can pick out the language that is still the mother them should the Chinese Communists Ferrer, Venczucian Minister to little town of Montilla, with its tongue in a score of different lands.
ever gain control of the city. They China, in which the diplomat de- white walls and red roofs.
The longer you look down on it the identify the Chinese Communists clared that Russian craigrants would more fascinating it becomes.
You
With this, and other countries such Round it the hills are terraced know how a starling appears to be closely with the Moscow government. be welcome to his country.
drao, 11
uniform black at first sight?
SPECIAL TREATMENT
Argentina and Chile, the question no scrap Yet when you look more closely you You And all the colours of the rainbow
The White Russians felt that if the of having
approved guarantors Reds should reach Shanghal their already residing in those countries in its fenthers and the iridescence of
be appears to be one of the major re- the same with the section of the community will women below who work Jewellery. It's
Isingled out for special treatment. quiremnels for those planning to gò those blistering back-breaking meseta.
A number of officers of the White there. slopes to produce such lovely From our plane, á mile and a half Russian army which fought during above, the brown that seemed so the revolution are still in Shanghai, uniform is seen on longer study lo They sense evil portents in news of be the blending of a hundred shades Chinese Communist victories. · Half- of pink and purple.
chlidren of year because they have no the great races of the world, and a two decades ago will catch up with White R-Russian Dally News,
of achievement in which succeed in their undertakings. next stage will be the Alming children's classics.
BY THE
WAY by Beachcomber
The
of
READ the other day in
the
a review of
"What a b-th-r
with vineyards so that of the magic soil is wasted,
should your gloss as you pass and toast the unseen
Over und
stuff.
come
men
1
As
White
Even if a visa was obtainable, the problem of sufficient funds to get to
other part
of
the new country and make a start
to
art
they
NEEDS MONEY White Russian sources in Shang- (If you don't drink you'll get
group your tury in a minute when we
formed fears as to what might be hai report that a Ukrainian to come
orange country.) Don Quixote de la Mancha cune their fate under the hands of the already resident in Buenos Aires has Prodnose: Frightened of libel?
Wine districts
Reds make each day of their stay-suficient influence to help from these parts. La Mancha in Shanghai fraught with apprehen- Ukrainians to obtain their visas, district a little to the right of our Myself: No. Merely a refined way of writing, as In Stories for Girls CHERRY is named after the town route. People who have been there Sion.
uny More thin road say the windmills have dis- by that hour queues of children have connecting link between them being For instance, in "The Beastliest Girl of Jerez, which the Spaniards appeared, but that otherwise it is Shanghai's population, they seek
there has still to be solved. It is some reason of their own much the same as it was when Cer-escape the city's present high cost of estimated that at least $800 (United the appearance of the same charac- In The Fifth," formed outside the cinema. The ters in all of them.
"Bl-w!"
an pronounce Herreth. You can't think vantes lived 300 years ago, beenWhat's up?" queried Edna. what they are
said Monica, may read: for
Bving together with
unem States currency) is required per per-
them yon. children themselves provide traffic found that the children grow fond of "I've lost my -fi-n old hockey-first time you hear it.
talking about the
that hits Cervantes
problem marshals, usually older
wrote his own obituary, ployment children
Idren particular characters and enjoy see-
you know, and it included the in-nicky about employing any Bus-
hardest. for some concerns
Many White Russians admit frank- trained
the Police o Safety Ing them again. by
stick " replied Monica. "Sh !"
formation that "of teeth he had but First, who help other Club members
vouchsafed Freda, "Here comes Miss You don't actually see Sherry- Every effort is being made to pro-Sharp, the old f-1" across the road
look after the
Jerez-Herroth on this trip because six and those in bad condition and slans, whether white or red. Added ly that but for this obstacle
to this is the fear of what might would have left long ago. They do queues. When the
children the doors open, the duce films worthy of the
it is too far away to the left, but worse.ranged, for they had no cor-happen to them in the event of the not fear lack of work. Reassuring children pay
tetters have been received, their
entrance money, who will see them. Chips Rafferty, Saying of the week
almost
Cordoba, respondence with each other.". pines' over
communisation of the area south of example, from White Russians who usually sixpence (about a quarter of star of the British film "The Over Į READ, as I was saying, a review which is another centre for wine. The old capital
the Yangise. a lending role in
have established themselves in Chile what their parents pay for the even landers." plays
of Some poetry in literary ing performance), but the children "Bush Christmas," the first full
convinced me Cordoba doesn't supplement which
recently and who write that living made length film ever to be pay less in the poorer districts. *
today the reviewers are ag place now, at least not from NE of the places where the six-
As one former White officer puts there is cheap. toothed Cervantes lived was I should explain at this point that clusively for children. Like he that
Fortunate possessors of apartments Hero what the air, but when the Moore
It: "I have a good job here. Shang we make no profit from
Aus-absurd as the poets. Overlanders," it was made in children's
I have cut out for my colle
collection: Spain.n thousand years ago there Toledo the next city on our way hal has been kind to me. But J obtuln the required funds by selling films.
prices. But others tralia against natural open air back. only charge we make
Usually the flashes are of a des- were great goings on there. The to Madrid for refuelling. Toledo fought for the Czar. If the Reds get them at high
must work and save-and grounds. Besides being an exciting
a goal of for cach
to be the used to be the capital of Spain, and here..........” criptive
when he nature,
does mosque is supposed formance, and the money collected is adventure story, it is a vividly po succeed in maleing himself the poem, Anest outside Mecca. and one of for 2,000 years it was famous for He did not complete the sentence. US$800 in savings is no easy task devoted to the expense of opening sented lesson in geography.
swords and armour. But they are but drew his forefingers across his considering that most Busslans the Рость the object it describes, the Moorish kings had 600 women
out of date now, and so 15 throat Dikt made an expressive hot earn more than $100 a month and both of them move, as it were, in this harem and 12,000 troops both
in Shanghai. In one skin-as in his poem about to guard them.
The
and
· alxpence or less
per-
the cinema and to various club oc- Uvitics. Any balance is used to meet
a part of the expenses of making.
Incidentally, some of the
x-
The programme begins with com- characters are children and this, I
For munity singing, a cartoon flm and think, is important.
19
d mouse, though it is not in this
Child Players
special films for children.
chief collection:
with scuttling
pleture
a recital of the Club promise. In means very little to youngsters un-r this the children undertake to obey less they can enter into the drama. their parents, to be kind to animals, The doings of grown-ups seem
eyes rustic and run and hidchidekide
whisk
to honour the King and to try to rather remote. When the children Mice don't wear hats
Рост.
As I hide myself under the mat,
And there's only one thing to
betray me--
make Britain a better country to in "Bush Christmas," catch the I am one with the mouse in that live in. A non-fiction Alm may thieves it is a personal triumph for fellow or "The Club Magazine," a every child in the audience. film which portrays the activities of Much of the same can be said of which in- other children all over the world. A "The Little Ballerina,"
Margo Fonteyn to the feature Alm concludes the pro- troduces gramme, after an episode from a screen. It tells the story of a le serial has been shown.
girl who becomes a famous ballet In passing dancer. When It is shown. children
THE admirable "Lucio" revealed
་
What They Love
Children's Education Films
My little round wickerwork hat
from Birmingham and Manchester the other day that Pierre Loti will go with her into the exciting world of the London theatre.
cess.
officer named (who was a naval Obviously, of this programme the
Viaud) got his best Ideas when he New productions include "Circus most difficult films to provide are the
Bertram
was
up a tree, and so converted an serials and features. Before any Boy" which was made in
"Frozen Falls attic in his house into an imitation special films were made for children Mills Circus, and
I hope he installed a starring the English comedian, tree-top,
Loti all the feature films were carefully
his Basque romance selected from the best subjects avall- Claude Hulbert. "Circus Boy" has cuckoo among the branches.
already been shown in Britain and wrote teho" in the very pleasant able, usually films which had com in Italy, where it was a great suc-Ramuntcho" pleted their normal commercial
Little Basque village of Ascain under screenings. Children love serinl series Alms, but there are very few Our films will be seen increasingly the Rhune. He lived in the Hotel multable serials, and I will explain. abroad, as well as in Great Britain, de la Rhune there for some time, later the steps wo have taken to deal They have already been shown in and died not far away at Hendaye. Canada, New Zealand and Australia. I am probably the only man living the River with this problem.
and have been Included in
experl who has leaped across In Norway, Nivelle at Ascain to escape from C.E.F. as we call it, do not actually mental programmes
boring smuggler make the films. They select suitable France, Austria, Germany and Hong- a very subjects for filming. The approved kong. Last year the Dutch put on Hasparren. story is then offered to a production a series of six programmes of our if it swims, we smell it company, which contracts to make it. Aims for child audiences...
We are often asked why wa do Mr Strachey is to be asked, the In the selection of scripts and the, supervision of production C.E.F. has not film some of the great children's percentage of whale meat
(News item.)' The asalstance of an Advisory Council classics. There are various reasons. sausages.
THE question
whether, under the chalemanship of Lady Many of them are unsuitable for the Allen of Hurtwood. On it are ro medium of the film; they are often sausages are more whale than presented government departments mainly descriptive with little action, horse, food officials may abandon Lours of and voluntary bodien Interested in Many of the fairy stories, which their spurs while on
would involve cartoon work, cannot inspection. child welfare and education,
be undertaken yet, because of pro- | (Monday: Mohy 'Dlok: a Tale of Since the war ended it has been' possible to make films abroad. Production dimculties and the high cost the Sausage Fisheries Also re- printed: Borrow's "Wild BausRgċa.") duction has been undertaken in of this modium.
is
from
in
if
you
Lythich
look nich of
ruled
'Toledo,
SOUTH AMERICA OPEN
sound.
** Perhaps you realise now, Vera, that if you'd thought more about your country and less about
Frank Sinatra we wouldn't be in the mess we are now.!!.
for
do
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