Frazee v. Fox Film Corporation
Frazee v. Fox Film Corporation
Opinion of the Court
In this action plaintiff sought to recover eight hundred dollars, alleged to be due him as the balance of salary upon a contract made with defendant whereby he was employed by the latter as a director of the production of motion pictures for a compensation of two hundred dol *662 lars per week and a royalty on all pictures so produced. Judgment went for defendant, from which plaintiff appeals.
Plaintiff’s first contention is that the findings are without sufficient support. It appears from plaintiff’s testimony that about July 16, 1916, in the city of Los Angeles, he was by oral agreement employed by A. Carlos, acting for and on behalf of defendant, at a salary of two hundred dollars per week, in addition to which he was to receive a royalty of two hundred dollars upon the first picture produced and three hundred dollars on each picture thereafter produced; that he produced four pictures upon which no royalty was paid; that his employment continued from July 17, 1916, to January 14, 1917, during which time, except for the last four weeks, he had received from defendant his salary of two hundred dollars per week, but was paid nothing on account of the royalty. As against this evidence, it appears from the testimony of William Fox, president of defendant corporation, that prior to May, 1916, Mr. Carlos was general representative of the company in its sales department, which position he resigned on said date and came from New York city to Los Angeles, where he entered the employ of another corporation, known as the William Fox Vaudeville Company, as general manager of its studios in Los Angeles, and from the time of his resignation occupied no position whatever with defendant, had no authority to act for it, and performed no duties in connection therewith. A. Carlos testified that, while he employed plaintiff at a salary of two hundred dollars per week, his act in so doing was for and on behalf of, and as the manager of, the William Fox Vaudeville Company, for which plaintiff performed services as director of moving pictures, but that he never at any time agreed to pay him any royalty on pictures so produced as director. In addition to this testimony it also *663 appears that plaintiff, upon the payment of his salary, signed pay-roll vouchers whereby he acknowledged the weekly receipt of two hundred dollars from the William Fox Vaudeville Company, thus recognizing it as his employer. Upon this conflicting evidence so presented it was the sole province of the trial court to determine the questions in issue; and having done so, its findings thereon must be deemed conclusive and binding upon this court. This rule, which needs no citation of authorities, applies with equal force to conflicting testimony between the witnesses for defendant as it does to like conflicts between witnesses of the respective parties. Hence, conceding the testimony of Carlos to be inconsistent with that of Fox, both of whom were witnesses for defendant, the question as to which one of them was entitled to credence in the Statements made was for the determination of the trial court.
The judgment is affirmed.
Conrey, P. J., and James, J., concurred.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- EDWIN A. FRAZEE, Appellant, v. FOX FILM CORPORATION (A Corporation), Respondent
- Cited By
- 4 cases
- Status
- Published