Motion Picture News (Nov-Dec 1925)

2262 Motion Picture News WTHE SHORT SUBJECT E have with us the short subject. As a box office attraction it is with us now more than it ever was in the past, because the more general use of the so-called "unit program" — which is to say a bill of entertainment complete as entertainment and made up of several individual units — has focussed more attention on the short subject. The result is that showmen exercise greater care in the selection of these pictures and, believing in their judgment as to the worth of them, they adopt more aggressive methods in telling the public about the short pictures. The growth of exploitation along the lines of selling the entire program to the pubi c is not altogether the result of the propaganda of the distributors to promote greater interest in the shorts. But the constant and energetic campaigns of the distributors have had the effect of build n<? up a system of greater aid to the exhibitors in connection with the pictures, so that today the shorts go out with a thorough equipment of accessories and advertising material for the use of the theatres exploiting them. T ALWAYS RELIABLE HE familiar check stunt, which you may or may not have used, is always reliable when it comes to attracting attention to some particular announcement which you wish to make. It was used recently by C. L. Higginbotham, owner and manager of the new Colonial theatre. Seneca, Mo., when that house opened recently. Higginbotham mailed out several hundred letters into the rural districts, and to each was attached his check, payable for two c^t" on the Bank of Seneca. The story states that most of them were really cashed, too, which shows that the material was at least looked over. If the mailing list isn't too large, the cost is not great, and it might well be worth the trouble when you have something really special to announce. T SERIAL EXPLOITATION _£ T is sometimes difficult to understand why the theatres which show serials — and they are many — fail to make better use of their opportunity to build up several weeks of good business by launching a vigorous campaign to sell these pictures to their public. Many of the theatres do support the serials with b:g campaigns, but there are many which do not. The practice of giving the serial the advantages of a complete selling campaign, however, is spreading and with reports coming from all parts of the country of profitable returns on the investments, the practice is bound to grow. The serial distributors furnish excellent advertising aids these days — a fact which may be checked by the exhibitor who will take YOUR IDEA A highly realistic and entertaining window display for Pathe's "The f reshman" put on by a Los Angeles stationary store in a lie-up with Grauman's Million Dollar theatre is shown above. Real furniture was used in the foreground while the background consisted of a six £>v eight feet enlargement. Displays of this sort build business for the store and theatre and make for easier future operations between managers and merchants. the trouble to carefully examine the press books which the distributors are issuing now. A case which illustrates the fact that some exhibitors do give good exploitat on to the serials is the drive which was put on in Los Angeles by Manager Dick Darst of the Hollyway Theatre. The campaign was awarded the $5,000 prize in the Serial Exploitation Contest conducted by Universal. Q EXPLOITING A COMEDY STAR HORT subject distributors are putting more energy into their efforts to obtain general publicity for their stars, with the result that better publicity material is being offered the exhibitor to build up a following for some of the regular players who appear in the short pictures on his programs. An instance is afforded by the set of pictures of Virginia Vance, Educational comedy star, illustrating steps in the "Charleston,"' Seven of the eight poses in the "Charleston" dance routine illustrated by Virginia lance. Educational comedy leading lady. The pictures, along with a full description of each step in the dance, are available through Educational exchanges and due to the popularity of this latest terpsichorean craze newspapers all over the country have used features of this sort on the installment plan, printing one lesson at a time. The material offers exhibitors an opportunity to gain some valuable local publicity in conjunction with their presentations of pictures in ichick Miss Vance appears.