The Moving picture world (November 1926-December 1926)

Celling the Picture to the Public J Olds Departmnt Was &stabLbh£d September 23. 1911 bif Us Pixsent 6dUor^ Spes Wlnthrop Sargent Size of the House Organ Sometimes Determines Popularity of the Issue With Theatre Patrons SOME weeks ago we complimented the Penii-State Amusement Company on its new format for the house organ known as The Movie Fan. This was raised from pamphlet size to the familiar style of the tabloid daily newspaper, permitting the use of twice as many cuts and as much more text. We offered the opinion that it was a great improvement. And now K. V. Woodward, who edits the sheet for Manager McCloskey, writes that public opinon has forced a return to the old style publication. Some patrons objected that the size was harder to handle, others felt that the newsprint paper did not give the cuts the same value while a few complained that the new form did not look well on the library table. Since the publication was intended for fan circulation, Mr. Woodward naturally returned to the old size, which still leaves it the best edited fan publication of which we have knowledge. In the old days we should have been inclined to give first place to the little publication gotten out for the Jensen and Von Herberg houses in Seattle by J. W. Sayre. But that issue ceased to exist some years ago and since then the Movie Fan has been the livest as well as the largest house publication in the country. When the size was raised we believed that it had made a decided advance, but evidently the readers thought differently, and forced a reversion to the old style. Undoubtedly the cuts did not show to as good advantage as on the better stock used in the old booklet, but the presswork was as good as that on any of the New York tabs, and there were so many cuts that it was difficult to realize that most of them were locally made and not borrowed. The cuts alone represented a larger investment than most theatres spend on their entire advertising. There is a distinct compliment to Mr. Woodward in the suggestion that the issues are held in the home, but he developed a number of purely local features that made the booklet well worthy of preservation. It was not clip stuff about next week's attractions. There was a wealth of real reading material. But the chief point of interest is the fact that size does determine popularity. It might be well to give thought to this angle if you issue your own house organ. There must be some particular style that will make the greatest appeal to your patrons. Why not find out what that is? In some sections the old vest pocket size may be preferred to the more popular 5x8 style. Other towns may give preference to a larger issue. There must be some "best" size for every town, and this naturally will vary with the city. Why not find out if your issue is popular or whether you can make changes that will give the weekly or bi-weekly sheet greater value. Not many managers can afford an issue such as The Movie Fan has been. It is too costly for general use, even where mats are used instead of original half tones, but if getting out a larger paper will sell more than a sufficient number of tickets to repay the additional cost, a change will be well worth while. And while you are thinking it over, give a thought to the contents. Mr. Woodward pays his readers in smartly written original stuff, both about the pictures and local events. He has been running a series of photographs of old Uniontown that eventually should be put into book form. He has been getting out something that people ask for and preserve. If you can change your style to give this additional value to your own house advertising, it will be permanently profitable. Incidentally the Movie Fan now sports a colored cover changed weekly. Ringed the Winner It comes a bit late after the big fight, but Loew's State Theatre, Newark, made a cleanup with Battling Butler just before the big mill in Philadelphia, by putting a cutout of Keaton in a miniature prize ring in the lobby and advertising ringside seats. A local art student painted a backing of spectators for the experience it gave him, and tl-.e other accessories were easilv achieved. Larmour^s Lobby Was a Local Sensation M. W. Larmour, of the National Theatre, Orahani, Texas, writes that he had them all talkmg a week or two ago about his lobby display. We think he could have brought it to Broadway with the same result. When he played It Must Be Love, he noted that the window cards had an unusually good head of Colleen Moore, so he got them back after the showing for possible later use. On Ella Cinders he made a circular lattice about eight feet in diameter, and on this lie mounted six cutout heads from the old window cards. These were dressed with crepe paper to suggest flowers and in the lower part of each of the six flowers a small lamp was hidden. These lamp sockets carried small flasher devices. Green crepe paper leaves were tied to the wire which fed current to the lamps, the wire itself being wrapped in green to suggest the stem of the vine. To help the illusion the wires were run up through a jardinere at either side off the platform forming the base. The lattice served to frame a cutout "of -Miss Moore as Ella Cinders. On the base of the platform Mr. Larmour set a mysterious light, similar to that diagrammed in a recent issue ; though his display was made before that issue reached him. To increase the mystery he put a radio coil at the base of the lamp with an aerial above and more radio material on the base, conveying the suggestion that the lamp gained its current from the air. A flicker device was also placed in this lamp socket. It had the whole town talking, and it sold I 'l.i fnr a wow of a box office report. SOLD THE BOY FRIEND W. S. Perutz, of the Rialto Theatre, cutout with laree hands. These were would cause them to sway, WITH A LOBBY SAMPLE Chattanooga, Tenn., used the 24-sheet so lightly hung that the slightest draft giving emphasis to the stunt.