Boxoffice (Oct-Dec 1940)

PR AC T I C A E 1'1> E^A S Y PRACTICAL SHOWMEN Sailing ^Qat6 Successful Theatre Parties Tilbury, Ontario — A system of twofor-one shows that packs the house and costs nothing to advertise has been evolved by Harland Rankin, manager of the Plaza, in cooperation with various firms. The shows are confined to eight or ten times a year and are advertised by several thousand small cards that are labeled as a free ticket providing accompanied by one paid admission. Playdate copy and the name of the cooperating merchant or business firm also is on the card. The cooperating firm ostensibly pays for the free admission — thus avoiding the impression that the theatre is in a po Doob and Taylor Win Honor Roll Butions New York — Most recent winners of the M-G-M Honor Roll buttons, awarded for outstanding exploitation campaigns, are Edgar J. Doob, manager of Loew’s, Wilmington, Del., and Charles Taylor, publicity director of Shea’s Buffalo Theatre, Buffalo, N. Y. In Taylor’s case, this is the second time he has been the recipient of an Honor Roll button, his earlier campaign on “Boom Town” having been so recognized. Highlights of Doob's campaign, which was on “Escape,” included daily announcements over the radio; interview with theatre manager; an old song contest, in which listeners were asked to identify numbers, correct answers resulting in the spelling out of “Escape-Loew” by putting together the first letters in each title. Roses, promoted from a florist, were given away to the first 200 women attending the show opening day. Window displays in four downtown stores. Display in the public library, including stills from the picture. A counter display of the book “Escape,” from which the film was made, in a book store. Window cards in 20 important spots. 2,000 star photo cards used by a leading department store, 1,000 mailed to select customer list and the balance put into packages. Six uniformed ushers in a parade carried “Escape” signs. Lobby and sidewalk displays were made up of 40x60s and still layouts. Highlights of Charles Taylor’s campaign, which was on “Third Finger, Left Hand,” follow: Radio tieup with a large furniture company, tying in with wedding articles, featured a six-day contest and offered cash and guest tickets as prizes. Co-op ads with several other large department stores. Special signs on rear of taxicabs. Table cards planted with large drug store chain. Bumper strips on buses and trolleys. Special letters to brides and grooms from a list supplied by the Bureau of Vital Statistics. sition to make frequent admission concessions. Actual cost to the cooperating firm is the cost of printing the tickets and whatever advertising is used. In return the firm receives credit for the show. In some instances the company will provide several door prizes from its stock. Entire proceeds go to the theatre. The tickets (usually 5,000) are distributed in the store, are given milkmen and breadmen to pass among their customers, put in cars, and distributed in the theatre a week in advance. The cooperating merchant is credited on the screen. A Far-Reaching Bally For 'Thief of Bagdad' New York — United Artists’ publicity department’s campaign on “Thief of Bagdad” for its run at Radio City Music Hall started with a costume ball and followed with a volley of stunts that caught the attention of several million New York showgoers. A huge float of the Djinni from the film was spotted in a Thanksgiving Day parade; nine Fifth Avenue window displays by Bonwit Teller department store; window display in a prominent Fifth Avenue jeweler’s window; 150 specially selected other windows, including men’s clothes shops, women’s shops, a sewing machine window and 10 florist shops cooperated. The float used in the parade also was used currently to exploit the picture, and has been made available to nearby cities. Another huge float, displaying an elephant, also was used in New York and elsewhere. A special screening for the juvenile patients at a local hospital made the dailies, and another effective stunt was a skating exhibition at the Rockefeller Center skating rink, performed by experts dressed in original costumes from “Thief of Bagdad.” Tumbling Act A sidewalk ballyhoo consisted of a legit tumbling act of three men, dressed in Arabian costume and carrying a carpet on which was lettered the title of the picture. The trio would roll out the carpet on busy intersections and do a turn. The other bally was a parade of sandwich-men, each carrying a placard with one letter from the title of the picture, all of them together spelling out title, theatre and playdate. The theatre used the advance trailer and posted 600 three-sheets at suburban stations. Special 15-minute broadcasts were spotted in local stations, a mail campaign was addressed to 30,000 theatregoers, and special literature and posters was put in the schools. — Metropolitan Photos Super Ballyhoo — The Djinni float as used in the R. H. Macy Thanksgiving Day parade has now been put to further use by United Artists in behalf of Alexander Korda’s “The Thief of Bagdad.” The huge figure has been transferred to a motored truck, appropriately bannered, and will tour key cities before and during the Christmas holidays, as a flash ballyhoo for the picture which will play in more than 200 situations during Christmas. A “sister” float also has been constructed which displays a huge elephant, a figure of Sabu and a magician. This float, too, will travel to these key city spots. Both floats are pictured here, exploiting the Radio City Music Hall engagement in New York. Chaplins Parade Hartford — A day before the opening and on opening day. Manager Jack A. Simons of Loew’s Poli, in connection with “The Great Dictator,” sent two members of his service staff up and down Main Street in Charlie Chaplin costumes. On a huge display in front of the theatre were placed clippings from the New York press regarding the picture, and the lobby was filled with blowups and displays. BOXOFFICE ; : December 21, 1940 123