Boxoffice (Jan-Mar 1962)

• ADLINES & EXPLOITI PS • ALPHABETICAL INDEX • EXHIBITOR HAS HIS SAY • FEATURE RELEASE CHART • FEATURE REVIEW DIGEST • SHORTS RELEASE CHART • SHORT SUBJECT REVIEWS • REVIEWS OF FEATURES • SHOWMANDISING IDEAS 1 1 & 1 THE GUIDE TO BETTER BOOKING AND BUSINESSBUILDING Old-Style ABoard Flashes New Life on Lighted Trailer The State Theatre in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, a suburb of Akron, faces large apartment houses and has its own "front yard." Shown here are its light-drenched billboard in the "yard" and, standing in the street, one of the three cars fitted to haul a lighted A-board trailer. Standing beside the car is Edward Smart, manager of the State. The entire State front and the billboard were illuminated at night for two weeks prior to "Flower Drum Song." Floodlighted Billboard In Front of Theatre at Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, Is Also a Boxoffice Help Lew Horwitz and Sanford Leavitt of the Washington circuit, headquartered at Cleveland, are convinced now is the time to return to good old-style ballyhooing. They tried it. It paid off. “I’ll agree with any exhibitor who says that 'Flower Drum Song’ is one hell of a word-of-mouth picture,” said Leavitt, “but we started some old -type ballyhooing prior to its opening. We used floods on the front of the State Theatre and its billboard.” AN AKRON SUBURB 'o ) Their State Theatre is in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, an Akron suburb, and draws not only from these two cities but from others south, east and west. Cleveland gets most of the northward audience. “In addition to the floodlighting, we turned to the old A-board on a trailer with power going back from the automobile to sealed-beam lights on both sides of the trailer board to light it very brightly. We drove through major residential districts in both cities, through the big shopping centers and all other strategic areas every night prior to the opening. As soon as it got dark we were out with the trailer. All three of us — Lew, myself and Manager Ed Smart — had our cars fixed for trailing and also for lighting the board. HEADS OFF POLICE “I went out first to head off any possible police trouble. I didn’t feel, after investigating, we really needed any special permit for this type of advertising. I know I was ‘investigated’ plenty. For the first half hour I was out I had a big police escort, and I knew they were watching to see whether I violated any driving rules, or forgot to use my hand signals on turns or stops. They were really breathing down my neck. “We had no music on the trailer for that would have called for a special permit, but \ I did turn up my car radio to full blast to ' help attract attention to the board. In the shopping centers we really had ’em reading our A — for advance! — board. “There is a big skating rink on the west side of Akron. One night I stopped as close to it as I could, had the radio blasting and all the lights on. A big crowd left the ice and came over to see what was going on. So, between the shopping centers and other strategic areas our A-board was on the move all the time for one of our three cars was out with it. We were followed usually by packs of kids, sometimes the police, and in the major centers we went slowly enough to attract all eyes — and with the radio blasting — we caught all ears and then the eyes read our board. “It paid off. We packed ’em over the holidays right from the start, and we are sure the board was responsible to a large extent for the initial crowds. After that, as I have said, ‘Flower Drum Song’ is a hell of a word-of-mouth picture.” Film Festivals on Weekends Weekend film festivals, which have been developed at the Clark Theatre in the Chicago Loop, continued through January with these attractions: Naughty Marietta, The Second Greatest Sex, Rigoletto, Pagliacci, Lust for Life, The Hustler and Dark at the Top of the Stairs. Golden Age Club Grows To 4,000 in Few Years Cooper Foundation’s Golden Age Club at Lincoln, Neb., had another good year in 1981 with membership going up about 1,000 for a new 4,000 total. It started three years ago with only about 800 members. Cooper officials are well pleased with their returns — endless smiles of appreciation and “thank you’s” from so many of the 60-orover club members. City manager Dean Ziettlow says the dividend of gratitude far exceeds the outlay for the club’s recognition of each member’s birthday. That’s when Cooper sends a congratulatory card and a theatre pass for two to the celebrant. Other times the show is theirs for a flat 50 cents admission. Curbs on 'Dolce Vita' At Worcester, Mass., the Park Arts Theatre advertised its booking of “La Dolce Vita” as “Recommended Only for Mature Adults ... No One Seated During the Performance.” BOXOFFICE Showmandiser : : Jan. 22, 1962 — 13 — 1