Boxoffice (Jan-Mar 1945)

SELUMSflUS Practical Ideas by Practical Showmen On Merchandising the Motion Picture Busch Cops News Space With Brownout Tiein Sometimes a timely idea will result in valuable exploitation as proved by the recent timeliness of Robert Busch’s “tiein” with the nationwide brownout. Busch, manager of the Uptown, Oklahoma City, contacted the editor of the local daily newspaper several days before February 1 with the suggestion that the publication run a picture of the Uptown’s marquee with a 60-watt bulb burning to give the public an idea of what the brownout would do when it took effect. The editor countered with the suggestion that he use two pictures, one showing the marquee and front fully lighted and the other showing the showcase under the brownout. The lighted marquee showed up in the paper with bold copy advertising a double horror show scheduled for the following night. As a result, the show was a sellout, according to Busch. Huge "Keys" Book in Lobby Then in Window Display KANSAS CITY — A huge facsimile of the A. J. Cronin book, “The Keys of the Kingdom,” properly lettered with the title, etc., was constructed of compoboard and attached to a large panel for a patron-catching display hung on the wall above the doors leading from the lobby to the auditorium foyer of the Uptown Theatre here for an advance display. The book measured 5x7 feet and was built out from the panel to a depth of 18 inches. Stars edged with glitter containing names of stars from the picture surrounded the book. The panel remained up two weeks until “Keys of the Kingdom” opened, then was moved downtown for a window display. War Workers' Show Opens "Burma" at Chicago CHICAGO — “Objective, Burma!” had its midwest premiere recently in two local theatres. They were the Roosevelt, where the picture made its regular debut, and the Paradise, where the film was shown to more than 3,000 war workers and wounded veterans. The tieup was arranged by W. K. Hollander of Balaban & Katz Theatres, Mort Blumenstock of Warners and A. S. Gourfain of the Gourfain-Cobb agency which handles the Motorola Radio account. The Paradise showing was held for Motorola employes to speed up production. The company makes the Handie-Talkie combat radio, used in the film. Nuns See Screening SCRANTON, PA. — Through the courtesy of Manager Frank Loftus of the Globe, nuns of the Scranton area were entertained at a private showing of “Till We Meet Again.” Industry History in Pictures — Charlie White Panels To Tour FPC Circuit A hobby that started on a bet eight years ago formed one of the most widely talked about features of the recent 25th anniversary celebration in Vancouver of the Famous Players Canadian circuit. It created so much favorable interest in the film industry that FPC next summer will take the hobbyist, Charlie White of Portland, Ore., on a tour of its entire circuit of 340 theatres in the Dominion. White, who calls himself “America’s No. 1 Movie Fan,” is a collector of motion picture memorabilia. He has a collection of more than 75,000 pictures of stars and scenes from their production, dating from the earliest flickering beginnings of the motion picture to such currently newsworthy pictures as an autographed picture of Faye Emerson Roosevelt. 10,000 in Vancouver Display Ten thousand pictures from the collection were displayed in various Vancouver stores and in the foyer of the Orpheum Theatre at Vancouver during the Dominion-wide celebration. The photographs were arranged on 53 sixfoot panels and attracted heavy newspaper publicity. A three-column picture in one Vancouver paper showed White and Mary Crompton, cashier of the Orpheum. The latter was dressed in the flashy and attractivelyabbreviated costumes which Orpheum Manager Ivan Ackery placed on 14 theatre cashiers and usherettes during the celebration. White’s prolific collection was begun when he bet a friend he could amass sufficient pictures with which to decorate a playroom in a new home and win newspaper acclaim within four years. Has a Chaplin “Only” He received his first newspaper publicity less than a year after making the bet and at the end of four years he had obtained 25,000 pictures, many of them rare relics of early day stars. White claims to own the only picture of Charlie Chaplin with his mother, for instance, and has a picture of Gloria Swanson in a scene from “The Pullman Bride,” a Mack Sennett comedy produced in 1914. Besides the stills he has many old-time motion picture films including a 50-foot exposure of “The Kiss” filmed by the old Edison company and generally credited with starting the agitation for film censorship. White hopes that his FPC tour will prove so successful that the motion picture industry will underwrite similar tours of the United States to stimulate interest in the history of films. NEWEST ADDITIONS— Charlie White, Portland, Ore., hobbyist, shown above in the foyer of the Orpheum Theatre at Vancouver, B. C., displays the newest additions to his 75,000-picture collection of photographs portraying personalities and scenes of the motion picture industry dating back to 1889. Helping him is Mary Crompton, cashier, in the special costumes worn by 14 Orpheum cashiers and usherettes during Famous Players Canadian’s 25th anniversary celebration. Suburb Theatre Features Amateur Monday Nights EAST HARTFORD, CONN.— Manager Ted Tuttle of the Astor here who dropped vaudeville supplied by the local Gordon Talent Bureau six months ago has started a Monday night stage show made up of amateur talent. Recruiting of the live entertainers was done by trailers and lobby signs. Top performers, chosen by audience reaction, are awarded war bond and stamp prizes. Handbills were distributed throughout the area on the policy change. CAP Group Aids "Victory" BUFFALO — A local civil air patrol squadron helped promote “Winged Victory” by placing a display in the foyer of Shea’s Great Lakes Theatre of its training devices, equivalent to the aid shown in the picture. In addition a Red Cross graduation of 160 CAP cadets of the squadron was held on the stage of the Great Lakes as a further personnelized item for the picture. BOXOFFICE Showmandiser :: Feb. 17, 1945 1