By June, RKO could report some progress in its reorganization. Careful scrutiny of the theaters had resulted in the elimination of twenty-eight nonpaying houses.21 Still, Harold B. Franklin had to admit to President Aylesworth that “the gross of RKO Theatres…has shown a decline in the excess of 40%.”22 One of the biggest, still-unresolved problems involved the Radio City theaters. RKO's leases on the Music Hall and RKO Roxy terminated automatically when the corporation went into receivership. However, a new lease with slightly better terms was immediately agreed to, and RKO continued to operate the mammoth houses. An insufficiency of attractive pictures, high operating expenses, and the continued downturn in general film patronage resulted in losses of $210,000 through May 27.23 Scuttlebutt again indicated that the RKO Roxy would close. The Rockefellers, apparently, would not permit this; instead, the theater was turned into a second-run house with admission scaled down to a forty-cent top.24
Specifics of the 1933-1934 program were revealed at the company's sales convention in late June. One of the interesting bits of information was that RKO planned to drop Westerns completely from its program. The popularity of Westerns had fallen of late, and most of the studios were cutting back in this area.25 RKO had made a series of very cheap B Westerns between 1931-1933 starring Tom Keene, but Cooper felt it was time to eliminate them.
On the other hand, musicals were poised to make a comeback. That staple of the early years of the company had been in disfavor until recently. The new trendsetter was Forty-Second Street, a Warner Bros. backstage story that became an unqualified success and sparked renewed interest in the genre. In late May the Motion Picture Herald predicted “a veritable deluge of screen musicals” would be produced during the next few months.26 RKO was not going to be left behind. Melody Cruise opened at about the time the convention commenced and appeared to be a box-office hit. The next effort would be an “aerial musical” entitled Flying Down to Rio.27
Those in attendance at the sales convention learned that the hoped-for independent arrangement between Merian Cooper and financial tycoon John Hay Whitney had been concluded. Whitney's Pioneer Pictures would complete the “first Technicolor special,” to be personally supervised by Cooper and released through RKO.28
Production hummed along after the convention. One of the methods Cooper employed to create decent pictures at minimal cost was called “pre-editing.”29 “Pre-editing” simply meant that more time and effort went into preproduction, thus eliminating unnecessary scenes that would probably be cut anyway. This saved time and footage and, logically, production expenses. The key to the concept was having a complete and polished script ready well in advance of the start of a picture.
Even though the studio executives knew they would not be able to lure high-priced talent to RKO in 1933, some upward movement was made in this area. The signing of Fred Astaire, a move first recommended by David Selznick, represented the company's major coup, though no one realized it yet. Francis Lederer, a Czech performer who had starred in films made in Germany and France, also arrived at the studio. It was hoped he could help balance the RKO pool of contract actors, which was heavily weighted with females at the time.
John Ford moved into an office on the lot to shore up the directing department. The initial agreement called for one picture (The Lost Patrol). Later in the year, B. B. Kahane signed Ford to handle three additional films. The terms were quite favorable to the studio. They differed on each picture, but basically Ford would earn a small salary and a percentage of the gross receipts after each production returned twice its negative cost.30 This was considered a fine deal for RKO, as other studios had paid Ford as much as $50,000 per picture to direct. During this period, Ford and Merian C. Cooper would forge a lasting friendship; after World War II, they formed an independent company together called Argosy Pictures.
Ford was sorely needed, because RKO lost its best director in 1933. After Selznick accepted his producing position at MGM, he convinced George Cukor to join him. RKO let Cukor go, with the proviso that he would return later in the year to direct Little Women. The commitment was honored, Cukor directed the picture during the summer, and the results were beyond RKO's fondest hopes. Only then did the executives realize what a mistake they had made, but nothing could be done. George Cukor would be an MGM employee for most of the remainder of his career.
With respect to stars already under contract, Constance Bennett came in for the strongest scrutiny in 1933. In June it appeared that Darryl Zanuck's new Twentieth Century Company might steal Bennett away from RKO. B. B. Kahane reported the situation to Aylesworth and then made the following recommendation: “Despite the fact that Bennett is probably slipping in popularity and is a ‘tough dame,' our need for personalities is such that we ought not to lose her. After all we have made a large investment, paying her the big salary we have for all these years and no matter what the story is a Bennett picture is readily accepted by exhibitors as an ‘A' picture and is given ‘A' playing time.”31
By November, Bennett's appeal had declined so drastically that Kahane changed his mind. The film that convinced him was After Tonight, an espionage story that performed poorly at the box office. Kahane wrote Ned Depinet that even though the company had promised two more Bennett pictures, he doubted even one should be made: “If it is a fact that Bennett can no longer gross enough to get us out of a $300,000. or $325,000. negative, I do not think we ought to make a picture with her even though we have sold one. We can replace the picture on the program with another Harding, or possibly get another set-up to take its place that will be more attractive to exhibitors.”32
Constance Bennett left RKO but would continue to make movies for other studios. She never regained the level of stardom she had enjoyed earlier in her career, though she was hardly as “washed up” as Kahane believed her to be. If nothing else, this story illustrates the all-encompassing faith that studios held in the star system. A true star could bring the people in to see the most insipid story—or so it seemed. But when a star lost her magnetic powers, it was felt, little could be done to bring her back to public favor. No one seemed to consider the notion of carefully choosing the proper vehicles to showcase an actor's talents and withholding her from anything not appropriate. After all, the studios had commitments, and so a Constance Bennett would be rushed through one film after another to fulfill them.
The one important executive who joined the company in 1933 was Joseph R. McDonough. A former executive vice-president of RCA, McDonough was appointed general manager of Radio-Keith-Orpheum.33 McDonough had been employed by RCA since 1924, working his way up the company ladder from its accounting department. By the early 1930s, he had become one of David Sarnoff's favorite adjutants. McDonough had a reputation as a tough, shrewd businessman with excellent organizational abilities. His job would be to help with the RKO reorganization, and also to relieve some of the pressure on Merlin Aylesworth. Aylesworth was still trying to juggle the twin orbs of RKO and NBC, a task beyond anyone's capabilities. As Mc-Donough became acquainted with his new job, he would take on more and more of Aylesworth's duties.
Not long after J. R. McDonough joined the team, RKO's leaders were jolted by the news that Merian Cooper had suffered a heart attack. B. B. Kahane described the state of affairs to McDonough on October 5, 1933: “I understand the doctors have told Mr. Cooper that if he will remain completely quiet for three weeks or so and then take it easy for the following three weeks, he will be all right. It will take time to rehabilitate the muscle which has caused the heart trouble. During the latter three weeks of the six week period, I understand that Mr. Cooper will be able to be consulted about business affairs…but the doctors think he ought not to return to the Studio until six weeks or so have passed.”34 Pandro Berman agreed to fill the gap until Cooper returned.
RKO tried to keep the news of Cooper's illness quiet—without notable success. David Selznick heard that his friend was seriously incapacitated and might not be able to go back to work for a long time, if ever
. He then began probing to discover if RKO would like him to return as production chief. Selznick was, apparently, unhappy at MGM, where L. B. Mayer and Irving Thalberg still dominated company affairs. Kahane wrote Mc-Donough that Selznick desired to return to RKO, then added that this “is a ‘crazy' business and most of the ‘nuts' are out here.”35 The comment apparently alluded to the wild rumors about Cooper's condition, but Kahane still asked McDonough to consult David Sarnoff about Selznick's interest. McDonough later replied that Selznick “is definitely ‘out' as far as we are concerned,” and thus RKO once again fumbled an exceptional opportunity.36 Under the circumstances, however, no other action could have been contemplated, because everyone fully expected M. C. Cooper to be back at work in a few weeks.
They were wrong. Even though his recuperation progressed according to plan, Merian Cooper had been frightened by the attack and decided to continue resting until December.37 RKO officials had little choice but to grant him the requested disability leave. The situation alarmed them even more than the initial heart attack had. Perhaps Cooper would never return. Even if he did, would he be able to oversee a full program of pictures? The company had to prepare itself for any eventuality.
Oddly, J. R. McDonough then decided to conduct an informal survey to ascertain if Cooper was actually well suited to his position. It would have been more sensible to vet Cooper thoroughly before offering him the job, but the necessity of a rapid switch in production heads had evidently made this impractical. Ben Kahane was asked for his assessment of the man. The only fault Kahane found with Cooper involved story development: “My main concern with Mr. Cooper is that he has been responsible for the absolute waste of thousands of dollars on writing and story costs. We have had to charge off an unusually large amount of money this year because of scripts not turning out satisfactorily and having to be abandoned, and we still have a number of stories that I do not think will be made, and in connection with which we have incurred very substantial writing costs. I would estimate that we would have to charge off at least another $200,000. on the present program.”38
Other industry insiders provided McDonough with more sweeping criticism of Cooper's abilities. Terry Ramsaye called him a “capable but inconsistent producer”: “His chief value is and always will be in the production of an occasional picture of a special type. He is miscast in the chief executive position of a large studio, and probably would be ready to admit this.” Leland Hayward, an agent who represented Katharine Hepburn and Fred Astaire, among others, was even harsher: “Cooper is essentially a trick picture producer. He is not well grounded in dramatics and not equipped to supervise the operations of a full studio output. His particular value to any motion picture company is in production of three to five adventure and novelty type pictures per year. He is of a restless nature, not in the best of health, and physically incapable of withstanding the terrific grind connected with the production of forty to fifty pictures a year.” Three unnamed Paramount executives concurred with the other appraisals, stating that Merian Cooper “is not a good executive, does not possess any particular artistic ability and…his efforts are most productive when confined to trick pictures.”39
The opinions were somewhat surprising because Cooper's initial performance at RKO looked quite good. His pictures were being made less expensively and returning greater profits than those of his predecessors. Melody Cruise earned $150,000 and pointed the way toward more RKO musicals; One Man's Journey, a surprise that cost only $150,000 to produce, made a profit of $157,000; and Morning Glory would eventually win Katharine Hepburn her first Academy Award and generate $115,000 in earnings. Most happily, Little Women, released around the time McDonough was conducting his survey, turned into an immediate blockbuster.
David Selznick had initiated the Little Women project in the fall of 1932. His original concept involved modernizing the Louisa May Alcott novel, but he rapidly had his mind changed for him. Selznick described the circumstances in a wire to Ned Depinet: “In connection with ‘Little Women,' I was personally very strong for modernizing this story until I was flooded with protests from women who had read the book, whereupon I had the questionnaire put on the radio to determine whether I was wrong. The protests I received plus the response on the radio, clearly indicated to me that it would be almost as great a mistake to modernize this story as it would be for example, to modernize ‘A Tale of Two Cities' or ‘Uncle Tom's Cabin.’ ”40
After Selznick left RKO, Merian Cooper kept the project alive. Although this type of film was not Cooper's forte, he assigned former studio story editor Kenneth Macgowan to produce and supported his efforts wholeheartedly. MGM honored its promise, allowing George Cukor to return to RKO and direct the film, and extra money was obtained to upgrade the cast. The filming proceeded a bit slower than anticipated, and the picture went over budget, but it was still a relatively smooth, trouble-free production. Before shooting was even completed, enthusiasm began to build. In July, Cooper wired Ned Depinet: “Just want to emphasize…that LITTLE WOMEN looks to me from rushes like our most important picture of the year, and think it should be sold as such. If big exploitation campaign is put behind the picture, I think it is liable to be better than any of you all realize. Would suggest emphasizing…the four little women, namely Katharine Hepburn, Joan Bennett, Frances Dee and Jean Parker. The four of them together are as charming as anything that has ever been on the screen, and Hepburn gives an even better performance than in MORNING GLORY…. Certainly it should be sold as big as KING KONG, if not bigger.”41
The high hopes were confirmed when RKO previewed Little Women on October 30, 1933. Audience response was thunderous, and reviewers in Variety, Hollywood Reporter, and the Los Angeles Times raved about the production.42 It opened at the Radio City Music Hall in November, breaking all house records. The Motion Picture Herald reported that on Saturday of the first week, at one in the afternoon, “3,000 people waited in the street, with 1,000 ‘standees' in the lobby. Thirty mounted policemen were called to keep crowds in order.”43
Although Cooper was at that time recuperating from his heart attack, he deserved much of the credit for the movie's success. Selznick wired to congratulate him, and Cooper wrote back:
My only good point in the picture was deciding to shoot the works on it…and in letting no one bother Cukor regardless of how many days he was behind shooting time; also in insisting on getting as many motion picture names as possible, regardless of the cost, and not stinting in anyway [sic] on its physical production.
As you and I both know, the chief credit in any picture basically goes to the director and the writers, and certainly no one could have done a better job than George. You proved yourself right in backing him against the field, and he is undoubtedly one of the greatest directors in the picture business.44
Little Women was received enthusiastically wherever it played, eventually earning profits of $800,000 on a remarkably lean production cost of $424,000. The lift it provided to RKO's seven-thousand-plus employees cannot be overstated. Robert Sisk, for example, reported to Ned Depinet that the picture had “put new life” into the sales force in the Chicago exchange: “The stories they all tell of what it has meant to them in combating sales resistance, etc., were most interesting.”45
The film also revived interest in the “classics” and costume pictures; all the Hollywood studios soon began scrambling after such properties. David Copperfield and a host of other 1930s features can be viewed as the progeny of Little Women.
And, for once, RKO's timing was impeccable. The movie industry had come under fire in 1932 and 1933 for presenting a variety of sexually titillating (Mae West was the chief exponent) and violent (the gangster genre) films that many Americans considered despicable and dangerous. Their wrath would ultimately force the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America (familiarly known as the Hays Office) to create the Production Code Administration in July 1934, a censorship department run by Joseph Breen to make certain subsequent studio product co
nformed to the 1930 Production Code. Little Women was just the kind of film the industry critics felt should be produced; they proclaimed it, sent their children to see it, and made it a part of school curricula, enabling RKO to reap the financial rewards.
Figure 7. Little Women (1933). Shooting a scene with the crew and cast members Douglass Montgomery and Katharine Hepburn. The grinning, bespectacled man on the right is director George Cukor. (Courtesy of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences)
Katharine Hepburn probably benefited from the success of Little Women more than any other individual. The picture confirmed that in a very short time she had become RKO's most prominent star. Recognizing her new status, the strong-willed young actress had her first clash with company executives in November 1933.
On the morning of November 14, she finished work on a film directed by John Cromwell entitled Spitfire. There were still a few scenes to be done, but since the scenes were not considered essential and since the studio had promised Hepburn she could leave for the East Coast on that day, it was determined to close the picture down. Hepburn, however, had different ideas. Kahane described what transpired to J. R. McDonough:
Hepburn stated that the additional scenes ought to be made and that if we decided to omit them she would never return to Hollywood. When it was pointed out to her that this would be a breach of her contract and that she could be enjoined from working on the stage or in pictures, she replied that she realized this but was satisfied to give it all up and “get married and raise a couple of kids.” For the extra day's work to do the scenes in question, she demanded $10,000. She said that if we desired to do so we could withdraw the participation which we recently voluntarily gave her, and that she realized in demanding $10,000. now she might be jeopardizing a possible $25,000. or more, but that she had made up her mind that if she worked one minute after the 15th she would have to be paid $10,000.46
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