The Moving picture world (February 1920-March 1920)

February 14, 1920 THE MOVING PICTURE WORLD 1041 Race Track Lobby Helped ''In Old Kentucky Elaborate Campaign and Lobby Dress Put Over "In Old Kentucky" to Limit EVERYTHING from a "real" horserace to a special lobby was used to put over "In Old Kentucky" at the Madison, Detroit. The running horse treadmills similar to those used in Ben Hur were imported from New York by Manager George W. Trendle, and at the proper place in the film the screen was flied and the running horses took up the action and Queen Bess in the flesh swept on to victory. But this was just one of the jazz stunts which helped Mr. Trendle hang up a new house record in the face of the cussedest weather that could be imagined. That was all right to talk about in the newspapers, but he wanted something that would catch the crowd on the street — and he got it. First of all he built the front of the lobby to suggest the back of a racecourse grand stand, the pillars being masked by compo-board to suggest the supports of the stand. Inside, the box office was hidden behind a falsework suggesting the ticket window of a track. White palings led the audience to the various sections of the theatre, carrying out the suggestion of the course and taking them right to the top of the aisles in a proper frame of mind. Plenty of Flags. Outside the house was decorated with streamers including one rope of penants leading clear up to the corner where ■ the side street intersects the main thoroughfare. Hundreds of these flags were employed both inside and outside of the house, and the gay colors bravely fought the snow-ladened clouds and made a bright spot on the grayest of gray days. The colors fairly screamed. All available billboards were bought up for the showing, about four times the usual amount of paper being pasted, and the lithograph display was backed by window and street car cards while a full week before the showing a girl in jockey silks was stationed in the inner lobby to give out heralds. The newspapers got quarter and half pages where smaller spaces were usually employed, and there was a heavy hook-up with the music stores on the plugger song, one establishment selling 1,200 copies of the song in a single day. Right Down to the Show. Not a single angle was overlooked. Everything possible was done to make everyone in town realize that a big picture was being shown, and after they got in they were given a big show. Only a news weekly and a prologue were used in addition to the film, but the prologue, with a colored troupe, was carefully staged and made into a real production. Effort did not stop with getting them in. Mr. Trendle wanted to send them out again, each a booster for the show, and he did that to the fullest degree. It was a real production, and the horserace, which has not been used in stage shows of late, was a knockout. It made them all sit up and take notice. . As a result the week run was extended and made an indefinite engagement. The first week broke all records with the weather against it, and Mr. Trendle wanted to see what it could do under more favorable circumstances. Press Book on "Lost City" Offers Helpful Pointers USEFUL and ornamental" is a timeworn expression which might well be applied to the press book for "The Lost City," the new Warner Brothers serial, for it is both sightly and helpful. Press books must both sell the exhibitor and then help him sell his patrons, and this does both, for it is very attractively printed with a cover in colors, and it is a lesson in good typography as well as in the art of retail film salesmanship, for the contents covers many good selling points as well as exploiting an unusuallj' good line of posters and cuts, the latter ranging from ones to threes, including a very useful notched cut in two and threecolumn sizes which lets in any matter the exhibitor may desire. Except for the portrait cuts, every cut and poster gives emphasis to the animal stunts in the fifteen episodes. The animal angle takes this away from the other serials and the cut and paper layout gives emphasis to these stunts. There are also shown a very useful sticker, a set of animal cards and sheets of decalcomanie pictures which should prove one of the most potent attractors to the kiddies. Two column cuts and mats of a scene from each episode are offered for a weekly change in addition to window cards, slides, heralds and banners. And if all this is not sufficient, there is a series of silhouettes across the top and bottoms of the text pages which have only to be sent to the engraver to supply top and bottom pieces for special ads. They will also work well in the lobby frames. Bosworth Was the Person Behind the Grauman Door MANY forms of doorway advertising were employed to get over the Ince-Bosworth feature, "Behind the Door." At Grauman's, Los Angeles, the door was a massive doorway raised in the lobby and masked by plush hangings, which when drawn apart, disclosed a painting from one of the virile scenes in the play. As an additional feature at this house was the personal appearance of the star, who was disclosed on the stage in a pose from the scene just enacted upon the screen; the picture being stopped and the screen raised at a vital moment. The personal apearances are limited, but running into actual action is always possible and effective. First Race Begins at 2 P. M. Novel racetrack fixings designed by the Madison, Detroit, for "In Old Kentucky" to make the talent feel at home that week.