The billboard (Nov-Dec 1894)

Bflfboafd J^dV^t'tTSTng. Brtlboai'd ^^dVeftrsTrig. o •» BOOM +TH B ^^ NEW YEAR'S NUMBER •w-OR-w- Billboa rd Adv ertising Sixteen Pages. Lithographed Cover. Edition 10,000. IT GOES ALL OVER THE WORLD. Send in Your Advertisements. Malce it a credit to the Craft. EDITION ENLARGED. RATES REDUCED. AN ADVERTISEMENT This size In our Superb New Tear's Number, will be Handsomely Displayed and Inserted for ... $2.00 Two ineh Single Column. . One Ineh single column adv. $1.00 Now this spaee would make nice Adv. And All it costs in our Big Edition Is $4.00 How would this suit you, it's your for $1,00 This one would give you a splendid advertisement for $5 00 ONE INCH QUADROPLE COLUMN, $4.00. We want a^ advertiseirient froni every Bill Poster in fiinerica for our big New Year's Nurnber We are going, to send nearly two thousand conrtplirnentary copies to Bill Posters in Great Britain. Soutti Africa and Australia, besides sending one to EVERY PROMINENT ADVERTISER in Arnerica Every Advertiseinent will be worth many times its cost to the advertiser. 41-SeND •*• COPY* NOiA£.<^ Address all cornmunicotions for either the Editorial or Business Department to BILLBOHRD HDyERTISING CO. Remit in any convenient form. - No. il W. EIGHTH ST.. CINCINNATI, 0. , PRUDES DOWN SOUTH. They have had an attack of violent morality in Atlanta. The disorder ap- pears to have first broken out, so far as the South is concerned, in Chattanooga, whe'r^, as was described some ^eeks ^go in the Dramatic News, there was a pro- test against putting up the paper of Hoyt's A Black Sheep. The same poster on its arrival in Atlanta, a^vakened a similar onslaught, and the Woman's Christian Temperence Union, an institu- tion which appears to be perpetually going about seeking something with which to meddle, promptly took a hand in the proceedings assisted by several local parsons. • The Hoyt picture, which • stirred up the people of the communities mentioned, is described by the Atlanta Constitution as follows: The picture carries for its title, TJie Queen of Burlesque, and presents to th» view, ♦he ficrure of a woman in tiehts. The picture has for its backE:round a pe- culiar sha-le of red, while the figure of the woman is made of the most exqniste shade of bine Standing with her weight upon one foot the other being at rest, the ball of the foot onlv touches the floor. The woman's face is anvthine but prettv, leans sHghMv *n one side and glances to the floor. Over her shoulders is a handr some wrap which she is in the act of ad- iusting both of her hands being above her shoulders grasoing the mantle. A delicate, slender wai»t tapers up to a pair of drooping indifferent shoulders, while it rests upon hips, which are out of all ■proportion with the rest of the bodv. The face, not tJrettv. is made less attrac- tive bv the grin which shows a fall set of large teeth, and lips so red that the evidence of paint is apparent. „ At this distance, it does not look as though there was so very much in the bill to becomeTivsterical about. Certain- Iv . it is superflous to say that Mr. Hovt Wnd his partner, l*rant Mc1Ce«, are ab«>nt the last men connected with theatrical management in this conntrv who would resort to an appeal to licentious taste bv wav of attractinc natronage "to any one of their various enterprises Their meth- ods of conducting their business ar» entirelv legitimate, and there is nothing unclean about "their shows or the pro- cesses by which they are brought to pub- lic noti<"e. These well-known facts give a decided tin^e of absnrdjtv to the crusade of the purists in Chattanooga, Atlanta and other Southern cities. In the last men tioned city, in order to complv with the public cUmor.'the chief of police recently made a ease against Billposter Doolev. charg'ng him with putting up indecent oictures. Among the witnesses called to the stand was a clergyman named Bu>- ler, who had done a good deal of the nrotestinir. Here is a part of the cross- examination : Q. nld that picture suggest any lewd ■ thoughts in vour mind? The minister scratched his head and said nothing. O. Can von name anvone whose mind received an imtiure Impression from look- ing at the bills? A • Well, sir there were two men wi*h me wh-n Tssw thenicture.and thevboth agreed with me that they were indecent and imnroner. Q. Did th<»v augcrest any wrong thoughts in voiir mind? A. Well, when a msle looks upon a female in that kind of a costume, im- proper thonehts would naturallv arise Q But that is not v/h«t I want ,to know. What about the effect of thatA Black Sheep picture on vou? A Tt is my endeavor fo keep wrong - thoughts from tnv mind. O Ttt vou attend the theatre? A."t have not been in one in twenty years. . Q. Then you think they should be abolished ? A. Yes, that is my opinion. It would be a fine thing if the morals, or the intelligence, or any part of the conduct of an American community could be guided by a class of people rep- resented by this sort of person, who be- lieves in abolishing an institution which he has not seen for twenty years, and with which he obviously cannot be in the least familiar. A clever satirist once said, in speaking of persons of this type, "To the pure, all things are impure," and this smart speech gains corrobora- tion in the reverend Butler's acknowledg- ment that he is, obliged to "endeavor to keep wrong thoughts from his mind " Evidently the justice before.'whom the case was tried could not find any cause for alarm concerning the morals of At- lanta through the exposure of the A Black Sheep pictures, for he promptly dismissed the complaint, after hearing all the testimony that was offered.— Leander Richardson^s Dramatic News. A NEWSPAPER'S PROTEST. The billboard is an American institu- tion. That it is an effective one the suc- cess of many a spectacular play can testify. There has, from time to time, been an attempt on the part of certain manager or stars to eliminate the bill- board as an advertising medium. In the case of a certain few attraction—those on a highly intellectual basis—the billboard is an unnecessary adjunct. In the gen- erality of plays however, it is a valuable auxilliary, and in that class of so-called drama devoted to spectacular effects, it is the main essential. Take such a stage production as "The Fast Mail" and the billboard is the main reliance of the manager. The fact is the that the news- paper appeals to one class of the public, thebillboard to another. Some plays can do^"thout the one, some plays with- out the; other, but most plays require the assistance of both. "^ The billboard is in danger of losing its chief effectiveness for the theater through a late innovation. Within al- most the last two years, inspired by the results of theatrical advertising, manu- facturers of various commodities have gone to pictorial printers and obtained fancy printing in imitation of those used in the show business. These have arrest- ed public attention on the billboards in the thought that new attractions were criming to town. Instead it has been discovered that the fancily named thing was not a new play, but a new cigarette, chewing gum, patent medicine or break- fast food. So much of this commodity advertising in imitation of plays has dis- gusted the curious public, and the bill- board is no longer an object of interest It isabont time that theatrical managers should take note of this fact For ex- ample, the lithographs of "The Fast Mail" are of little valuesandwiched be- tween the Admiral cigarettes and Tutti- Fruiti chewing gum. At best billboard companies have a "soft snap," paying for rentals with passes, and .getting their work done at a small figure. It is cer- tainly due the theatrical profession, which has given the billboard its earning capacity, that play-printing should not be mixed up with tobacco and medicine ad- vertisements.— Salt I^ke Tribune, Nov A, 1894- Correspondents are requested to write only on one side of paper. Among the Agents. What the Boys Are Doing, and Where They Are Located. „ Tom Henry, whose long stay at the Walnut Street Theatre, Philadelphia, is so notable. Is a hard working advertiser, and of late years he has added to his duties, the work of the Park. It is no easy matter to handle paper for two houses in a city like Philadelphia, and the manner in ivhich the two theatres above mentioned^^^re billed, reflects great credit on genial Tom. He has been at the Walnut ten years His outside work in summer brings him in quite a sum. Joe McGeary of the Bowden Square Theatre, Boston, keeps all the rest of the advertising agents on the move, and it is rarely his house is not far ahead of the others in the matter of billing, he is a hustler of the first class, and is on the go all the time. Joe's friends are many and all the boys visiting Boston call to see him. The busiest man in Brooklyn is Barney Link of the American Bill Posting Com- pany, of Brooklyn. He is on the go all the time, and in consequence he has few kicks coming to him. Last -week he got a contract to put up 500 6x4 stands for Broomfield, the big dry goods dealer of New York.' Sam Lowenstein is still with OlHe Hagan, and is now doing the work for the Hagan in St. Louis. He gave Dark- est Russia a ereatbtHine. and it IS said that it was the best bil'ed theatrical en- tertainment that had been there in rears. Sam has been at the head n the advertis- tising department for Mr. Hagan a num- ber of years, and has a host of frie»ds among the advance agents His snipe work is most excellent. Charlie Stevens, who is the advertising agent of the People's Theatr«». Toledo, has the town all to himself and he bills it we'l. covering the entire citv. His work is most efficient and he has been in tlie emplov of the house for a number of years. He will need to hustle 'next season, as the new house will open the latter part of September and will make a strong bid for public favor." Tohn Keenan is still located at the Em- pire Theatre. Philadelphia, and a visitor to that citv can readilv see that the pop- ular Broad Street house is billed far and near. Mr. Keenan does more summer work than any other advertising man in Philadelphia and consequentlv is busv twelve months in th" vear He is ex- tremelv popular with traveling managers and all have a kind word for one of the best advertisers in the eastern country. Tomrov Cash is certainlv plaHng the Grand Opera House, Pittsburgh, in a front place as regards advertising He has been there only a few monjhs. but alreadv his presence is felt and from a reliable source we learn that he keeps the' rest of the theatre boys worried all the time. Pete Cavanaugh is doing some fine work ahead of Sandow. His specialty is cloth banners and he gets a showing that means many a dollar to the Company. George Cummings is still at Palmer's Theatre, New York, and of course his house is sure to be well heralded on all occasions. George is a qniet fellow and not given to blowing his own horn, but his work is exceedingly clever. His last season in the circus business was '87, with the Forepaugh Show, and he was a most reliable man. Thomas Riley of the Lyceum Theater, Philadelphia, is quite popular with all the agents of the many vaudeville attractions that play his house. Tom is never too tired to keep at it, and the weather has no more effect on hini than rain on a duck's back. • William Harrison is still at the Boston Theatre, and seems to be married to the town, as it has been many years since he "trouped" on the road. He is a first class man, aiid if he was not he could not have remained ten years with Eugene Tompkins. Tom Campbell has two houses to look after, the Academy, and the St Charles in New Orleans. He has put in a number years "with Klaw & Erlanger, and with "Billy" Rowles at his back he is sure to add another success to his great record. When in Buffalo, Tom woke the town up in great shape, and secured a splendid engagement to go ahead of the Soudan. Boone's Arena of Trained Animals i^ now on the North Texas Circuit J.' Cahill is in advance and "daub him up" to the boys as th^'right sort of a boy. THE POSTER PAD. T see that the Franco American Soup people have gone into the poster field quite prom:si£n"v. In New York, and and I doubt not the rest of the conntrv as well, thev ar» using a twelve sheet stand showing the trade-mark of the little cook in colors, and the words "Franco-American Soups." in big. thick white letters on a blue background. The effect is good. Sneafeineofposterscallstoiriind atopic to wh'ch I have aleadv referred in this column some time ago namelv. the im- portance of posters as an advertising inediutn in France and more latterlv in En gland. Of course, whatever Tohn Bull fakes np ought, in" due conrse. to find its wav to America, and 'f the pos^erfad should become the craze, it will affocd scone for .some verv artistic advertising. For some vears back there has been such a demand for posters that it is not an nnusnal thing toTiavean edition printed for collector's use only. It no doubt ap- pears strance that an advertisement should be sought for the same as an an- tique or a curio, but the whole field of American lithography presents no such attractiveness in this deparment as does that of France. Possiblv we have not the artists. But we have many good illustrato'^, whose admirers wonld ap- preciate a bit of work in color which they could obtain wholly for themselves, especiallv if it came through a channel sanctified bv British'app»-oval. There is now being held a poster exhibition in London, and as there is quite a colfection of French posters in this conntrv in the hands o*' men like Mr. A W Drake, of the Century, it onght not to be a dif- ficult matter to have them on show, say at the Aldine Club, for an afternoon and evening.— Art in AdverHsing. \% *;