Showmen's Trade Review (Oct-Dec 1943)

October 2, 1943 SHOW M 1'. N • S 'I' R A 13 E I>J I-: V I W 25 No Fancy Frills, Yet Cooking School Can Still Be a Duccess Because of food rationing, that old standby — the cooking school — will differ materially from past culinary sessions. No longer will an expert be on your stage turning out fancy dishes. No longer will you be able to give away baskets of groceries. War-time rationing has changed all that. But that doesn't mean the Cooking School stunt is out altogether ; not by any means. This year, however, you'll have to designate it as a X^ictory Cooking School or perhaps an Unrationed Cooking School. Have a local expert appear on your stage and outline for the wives of your community various way and means of serving delicious and nutritious meals, using the minimum number of ration points. .•\s a door prize, a good cook book should be ideal. No housewife can have too many sources for the proper preparation of palatable dishes and, in view of the many fine cook books on tiie market, this should prove a popular award. Be sure, however, that the book has been issued recently, for only the recent publications along this line are likely to specify simple, unrationed dishes. Get the co-operation of your local newspaper. Conduct a contest in which Vkfives submit their favorite ration-point recipes. Such items as dishware and certain household appliances may he promoted as prizes. Your cooking school may not be as colorful as past sessions, but it can still be as popular and beneficial and as a fine a builder of goodwill for your theatre as ever. 'Lassie Come Home' Screened For Members of Collie Club Many millions of pet owners throughout the country can be made aware of "Lassie Come Home" through just such exploitation as that put over in Milwaukee by MGM field representative Louis W. Orlove. The exploiter screened the picture for leaders of the local Collie Club, whose board of directors were so impressed that they passed a resolution "recommending this picture to the public, and that the members of the club will severally and individually induce their friends and acquaintances to see 'Lassie Come Home' when shown in local theatres." The collie Lassie was termed "without doubt the greatest dog ever filmed in moving pictures." Using the Press Book Cover If accessories are not available or are slow coming in don't forget the possibilities of the press book cover. In many cases these are elaborate aflfairs in striking color and will make fine window cards or, with a little art work, can be blown up into a lobby display. Thai Nostalgic Feeling Certain pictures set in the 1890s or 1900s — like "Coney Island" — offer an opportunity to interest patrons through the use of music from that period. Old timers like Get Out and Get Under, In the Shade of the Old Apple Tree, and numerous others always attract attention, frr everybody knows them, even the kids. Recordings played in the lobby will do the trick. Sam Fitzsimmons at the Rialto, East Rochester, N. Y., made good use of this during the "Coney Island" run. Ideal For Book Shops Based on actual bookstore sequence in the picture, this display in one of Brentano's book shops in New York called attenticn to the Roxy showing of 20th Century-Fox's "Heaven Can Wait." Cut-out figures were taken from blown-up still. Bomb-Shaped Heralds Dropped From the Sky Bomb-shaped heralds distributed from the sky through the courtesy of the Civil Air Patrol rained on Minneapolis recently as an exploitation stunt on "Bombardier" at the RKO Orpheum. On one side of the "bomb" was this copy : "Buy Bonds to Bomb the Axis. Third War Loan in September. Blast the Axis With Your Dollars ! See full training program of U. S. Army .\ir Forces in 'Bombardier' at the RKO Orpheum Theatre, etc." On the other side was this copy: "Be a Bombardier ! Blast the Axis as Bombardier in the U. S. .\rmy Air Forces. Make air crew application now for aviation cadet training as bombardier, navigator, pilot. Men 17 to 26 years of age, inclusive, married men acceptable. Apply at Aviation Cadet Examining Board, Room 12, Federal Office Building, Minneapolis. See 'Bombardier' with Pat O'Brien, Anne Shirley, Randolph Scott (Theatre, Playdate)." Stunt had a three-way effect. It boosted not only the picture, but also backed up the Third War Loan and the Army Air Corps' drive for recruits. Girl Stunt Backs 'Claudia' And Third War Loan Drive When "Claudia" played five Loew's Poli theatres in New England recently, Lou Brown had the title of the film and the message of the Third War Loan — "Back the Attack" — brought on the stage of the theatre between shows. Facing the audience, girls held cards with letters that spelled "Claudia." Turning around, adding more girls, the line of lassies had cards on their backs which spelled out "Back the Attack." An usher at one end held a "Buy Bonds" sign, while another at the other end had "Third War Loan Drive" on the sign he held. Affixed Cards to Lampposts One thousand window cards were affixed to lampposts in prominent downtown sections as part of the campaign arranged by the management of the Paramount Theatre, Seattle, for "Behind the Rising Sun." Permission for the stunt was granted by the local Board of Aldermen. Old-Fashion Ballyh oo Sells Rosers Special For Showman Kleper Sid Kleper of Loew's Poli-Bijou in New Haven, Conn., used excellent showmanship in his campaign promoting "Song of Texas," which was shown together with ".^t Dawn We Die." For one week prior to the run, all ushers doormen, cashiers, and candy girls wore tengallon hats imprinted with copy about Roy Rogers. Ten thousand Roy Rogers four-color fan photos were distributed one week in advance of the run, with theatre ad imprinted on the reverse side. The front window of a leading restaurant displayed a 30 x 40 blow-up of the July 12th issue of Life, the cover of which was a photo of Roy Rogers and Trigger. Five thousand special heralds were distributed at playgrounds, libraries, war plants and busy street corners ; one hundred window cards were displayed in downtown New Haven and its suburbs. A tieup was arranged with five riding academies, members of which were invited to appear at the opening of the picture ; several of the riders carried banners heralding the engagement, and this stunt was a definite attention-getter. Five women's shoe stores used shoe and hosiery bags imprinted with theatre ad, and about 5000 bags were distributed. Tieups were arranged with music stores, and several windows were obtained, as well as counter displays in the five-and-ten on Roy Rogers Hit Tunes. One day before the opening, and on opening day, a boy dressed in cowboy garb and carrying a guitar, was used as a ballyhoo. Ten displays in various restaurants and hotels throughout New Haven included Allen's (Fountain), Eddie Rahm's (leading eatery), Haufbrau, Ashenbrodel, and the Taft lobby. Two-column advertisements were used in the New Haven Register, and the film was heralded one week in advance of the opening on the screen of the Bijou-Poli. Luck Sitting Down A very natural gag was pulled for "Mr. Lucky" by Guy Hevia of the Seneca Theatre, Salamanca, N. Y., when he ran a "lucky pass" night. The idea was simply to place envelopes containing free passes under a certain number of seats. This stunt was well advertised beforehand and personal announcements were made at several club meetings. It was a lucky idea all around. There are no short-cuts to success in this business. It's hard work and being on the job that gets real and lasting results ! Dancing in the Dark With pictures like "Stormy Weather" and "Cabin in the Sky" current, it pays to look around and locate your colored friends when it comes to exploitation. When the former played the Paris Theatre, Paris, Ky., Manager Melvin Gaitskill got the colored man who works for him to do a tap dance at a meeting of the local Lion's Club, meanwhile putting over an announcement of the picture. A week later as the film opened the same fellow danced in front of the theatre to the music from a portable phonograph operated by a young boy. Appropriate signs plugged the show.