Exhibitors Herald World (Jan-Mar 1929)

48 EXHIBITORS HERALD-WORLD February 16, 192 Simplest Campaign Draws Best; Good Grades Win Free Tickets If there ever was an exploitation idea with more eomnionsense as well as practicability than this one, we'd like to hear of it. Ballyhoo h entirely missing; and the thing is so simple that one wonders why it is not used by every exhibitor. But that's often the way of the world; the most obvious is the last seen. A m u hi* tn t 11 tM. PAVILION ALHAMBRA "Thought I would mail you the attached clipping from our local weekly newspaper, which may grace your Theatre Section of the HeraldWorld and incidentally give some other 'exhib' an opportunity to cash in on the 'stunt'," writes F. W. Zimmerman, owner of the Palace and Grand theatres at San Marcos, Texas. "Wishing you continued success with the HeraldWorld and especially the new Theatres section, which I appreciate very much." Worthy Pupils Given Tickets We'll take the clipping — from the San Marcos Record — and let it tell the story of the campaign, which consists of giving free tickets to all worthy pupils in the first eleven grades of the public schools. In fact, we'll use the entire clipping, because it tells so much that will help other exhibitors in putting over the campaign. "F. W. Zimmerman, owner and manager of the Palace theatre, challenges any city in the United States to show a higher percentage of satisfactory grades in all school work than has been demonstrated here. "To stimulate better grades and reward honest effort, but primarily for the reason of encouraging better deportment in the schools and public places, the management conceived the idea of giving all worthy students up to and including 11 grades, free tickets to Saturday matinees upon present vvL ien in New York be to svre see PAUL ASH AT THE BROOKLYN A PUBLIX THEATRE Despite planes and such, Chicago and New York are not exactly yet within commuting distance of each other. That's what makes the above ad, which appeared in Chicago newspapers last week, an interesting development, with Chicugoans invited to see Paul Ash at the Brooklyn Paramount when they're in the East. ing a signed card from the teacher to that effect. 250 Present Good Grade Cards "The effectiveness of this stunt has been five times greater than was anticipated and over 250 enterprising students presented their good grade cards at the close of the past six weeks' term. At the end of the next school term the number will easily increase to 400. It looks like bad boys and uirls will be hard to find in the course of the next school term. It is not the free ticket so much that spurs on the student, but in truth the gang spirit that prevails among all healthy young fe.lk and the desire to be with the gang. It looks very much like the bad boy is going to be mighty unpopular and be left out in the cold, for that fond but serious-minded parent, who desires the child to be good, is not going to give the little boy 10c for a show ticket if he persists in bringing home poor grades. "The management hopes that the number of free tickets will increase steadily; the loss of revenue at the box office will be more than repaid in the good will incurred. The teachers have responded most graciously in taking on the extra burden of signing so many report cards in addition to the thousand and one details in the daily routine of their splendid work; not one word of complaint has come from them. The Palace has endeavored to assist them in every way possible and has prepared a printed form card which is given to any student and requires only the name of the student and the teacher's signature. The supply of these, cards will never run out as long as the patience of the teacher endures. "Other cities please copy and beat us if you can!" Now what do vou think about that' Addison Will Represent Comerford Theatre Chain H. M. Addison, whose many exploitation feats as managing director of the Great Lakes theatre at Buffalo have been noted from time to time in this department, has been named as special representative of M. E. Comerford, president of the Comerford circuit. In his two years at the Fox Great Lakes, Comerford has been president of the theatre managers' association, active in the Allied Fraternal toy fund, honorary member of the Ismailia Temple, busy in the work of the Kiwanis and Greater Buffalo Ad clubs, and has done much community work from station WKFN, which has a studio in the theatre building. Prospector W ith Guitar Pulls Burros Around City Varied exploitation ideas have been used for "The Trail of '98" in different theatres At the State in Louisville one outstanding angle was the placing of large oil Daintings in downtown store windows. At the Stillman in Cleveland, a popular stock actor ^ad Robert Service's poem from station WTAM. At Birmingham, an itinerant singer with a guitar and dressed as a gold prospector rode a horse about town with two Mexican burros on a leash trailing. HAROLD LLOYD "Dr. JACK " •SAFETY LAST." DEL MONTE VICTORIA mum Fruit* and Vegetable* f: — ■ — ; Macdona Players. — T0-*.lh..-B30»<«. ■ nm and SOPEMil K*TZ BROTHERS LTD. j| t^-JM-e* <— tmmi And here is a glimpse of a page of amuseme ads from the Malaya Tribune, in that Peninsu tucked away at the bottom of Asia. Place Yarbrough On H. O. List Again; He Never Left It. E. D. Yarbrough of the Sheboygan The; tre Newsette at Sheboygan, Wis., calls a tention to a peculiar situation, in the listin of the House Organ Exchange members \ the January 26 issue. Reinhold Wallac was listed twice, once at the Shcboyga and once at the Lake in Milwaukee; Ya brough was omitted. What happened ( course was that in making the correctio of Wallach's address the compositor pulle out the line of type with Yarbrough's nam and thus had Wallach's name in twice. We understand that Wallach is in Cal fornia at present, but we're not alterin his Lake Theatre, Milwaukee, address unt we know the change is permanent. Yarbrough suggests that he be listed onl as the Newsette, "since the name of th editor of the house organ means nothing We don't agree on that, Yarbrough. W all know that in the Exchange we want t be dealing with the individuals who pii out the house organs. To that end we ri quest that those who identify themselve merely with the names of their theatre herewith mend their ways and tells us a who they are. "Intend to have some news for you i two or three weeks," Yarbrough write: "Am working on a new idea in the way c exploitation that, if proven successful, wi be of interest to all of the members an theatre circuits. "Thank you for your past cooperatio and criticisms of our publication. They ar helpful." Theatre Sermon Is Tied Up With Shoiving of "Lonesome A tieup of interest was that effected wit Dr. J. Archer Gray in Lexington, Ky., fc Universale "Lonesome." The Ben Ali theatr ran a trailer on the fact that Dr. Gray wa to preach a sermon in the theatre the fo lowing Sunday morning and the sermon wa to be addressed to lonesome people. Th Lexington Herald carried the same announce merit in its church notices.