20th Century-Fox Dynamo (June 3, 1939)

“Young Mr. Lincoln Special” NEW DYNAMO 15A EXHIBITORS GALORE ATTEND OPENING (Continued from page 14A) 'T'OO bad Movietone News couldn’t have had a truck and crew on hand; what a greater one-reel trailer that premiere would have made for the first- runs ! • 'T'HERE were more motor- cycles escorting the premiere guests and keeping the crowds back in Springfield than we have seen anywhere at one time, since Jimmy Walker’s NRA parade in New York. And, at that, we’ll bet there were more on duty here! TVfERCHANTS along two ■L’-*- thoroughfares were so pleased with the street decora- tions financed by this company, they took three-column adver- tisements to express their thanks. O TNCIDENTALLY, the Spring- *- field State Journal and State Register reporters did a won- derful job on local coverage. • (CHARLES HOWARD, dean of the critics, of the Boston Globe, has been an entertain- ment judge for 55 years! New- est among the Boston scribes is able John Hutchins of the Transcript. • "IYTEWS syndicates were repre- ’ sented by Dale Harrison, Associated Press; Joan Younger, United Press; George Lait, INS, and Sam Shere, INP. • ED FRIEND of the New York Mirror forgot the Big Town’s night clubs, restaurants and cafe society long enough to hop to Springfield. • i^TTENRY FONDA gives the the first best perform- ance of the year,” Minneapolis Journal’s Merle Potter was tell- ing Milwaukee Journal’s Walter Manfried. SPRINGFIELD Chamber of ^ Commerce Thursday voted 20th Century-Fox its thanks for attracting the nation’s at- tention to that city. They’ll be talking about the crowds that jammed Springfield for years. We’re still hopeful someone found our hat. • IVT ANY a city can learn about efficient handling of crowds from Springfield’s police. It was a masterpiece; traffic was detoured—and, in spite of Old Sol being on a spree, everybody had a thoroughly and never-to- be forgotten day. « /CHICAGO’S Eckhardt was to ^ have been on hand, but a sales deal back home—the ex- hibitor was coming to town on Memorial Day to listen to Clyde’s K-7 story and see the parade. And that’s why he could not attend. e /CINCINNATI’S Station WLW couldn’t carry the broadcast when it was originally made, so an hour later it was “played back.” 'T'HE two local newspapers ran a total of seven editorials on the selection of the city for the world premiere. It was the biggest thing that happened in this man’s town since Abe Lin- coln rode off to Washington to become President. • /c US LAMPE. Syracuse. N. Y., exhibitor, observed: “If only all theatre owners and publicity men would sit down and think as hard about how to exploit a picture as Hollywood thinks about making a picture, this would be a much more profitable business for all of us.” © TJRUNELLA HALL, motion picture editor of the Boston Post, said that her checkup of “UNFORGET- ABLE,” WIRES RHODEN Following is the self-ex- planatory wire sent to Mr. Wobber by Fox Midwest cir- cuit’s general manager, Elmer Rhoden: “Dear Herman: “Premiere audience in Springfield gave ‘Young Mr. Lincoln’ tremendous ovation. Personally I consider it a marvelous entertainment. 1 shall never forget Henry Fonda’s characterization of Young Mr. Lincoln. Fox Midwest division will apply every human effort towards giving this great picture the kind of a campaign it de- serves. Rodney Bush and Lew Davidson, working under supervision of Charlie Mc- Carthy, are to be congratulat- ed for this splendid work in making this a great premiere possible. Thanks to you for selecting Springfield for the first showing. Regards.” readers’ mail, shows that she has been getting more inquiries about Richard Greene in the past four months than she had got on any other male star. Prunella’s column is a good barometer for what New Eng- land moviegoers want and in which and whom they are most interested. • IV ORMAN CLARK of the Bal- timore News - Post said, after the screening: “This pic- ture is money in the bank—and anybody who can’t get a lot of entertainment out of it should be examined. There’s something wrong with his thinking box.” • "DIGHT after the premiere, McCarthy wired branch managers brief, direct quotes verbally given by newspaper representatives from their ter- ritories. © 'T'WENTY - FIVE minutes A after completion of the broadcast. General Manager of Distribution Herman Wobber w : red McCarthy: “Congratula- tions. Program came through splendidly. It was great. Con- gratulations to everybody who worked on this campaign. It is a magnificent job and is bound to get big results.” © IVT AYOR KAP.P, so pleased with the wav things were handled and carried out, made this statement: “Twentieth Century-Fox is welcomed to come here any time. I never met a finer group of men than those who represent your com- pany. It was a pleasure to work with you, to receive your stars. Springfield _ is proud of this event. It is a credit to your company, to your picture—and we want you to come and visit with us again. Twentieth Cen- tury-Fox stars, officials and rep- resentatives will always find our doors open.” • f^ & A. Railroad officials said their trains carried a rec- ord number of passengers. They ran special trains—and in extra sections. • \ NDY KELLEY of Washing- ton, D. C., predicted the “most enthusiastic rooters for ‘Young Mr. Lincoln’ will be the women.” © T OUIS REID represented Cos- mopolitan Productions. Ed- gar Hatrick had expected to be on hand, but other important business prevented him from making the trip. RIDIN’ THROUGH Mure than 50 > 000 p e °p le R1L;ln iniVUUUU packed the streets through which the stars and notables motored en route from the C. & A. railroad station to the Leland and Abraham Lincoln hotels. In the car below are Miss Alice Brady and her secre- tary, with one of Harry Brand’s studio publicists, R. Dannen- baum, protectively on the running board. TIRADE paper representatives X vied with each other for ef- fecting the most complete cov- erage of the event. “Red” Kann’s daily bulletin Wednesday covered the proceedings at length, while Jack Harrower of Film Daily and Sam Shain of Motion Picture Daily wired in crackerjack, informative trade stories. Terry Ramsaye, head of the Quigley Publications, made a distinguished personage. " • T OWELL THOMAS met many ¥-* old acquaintances during the day. His ad-libbing, before the broadcast and at the Mid-Day Club’s luncheon, stood as proof that he is in a class by himself as a speaker. TZASPAR MONAHAN, Karl * Krug and Harold Cohen, the “three musketeers of Pitts- burgh,” took the view that “more humanization of stories of American heroes should be Hollywood’s short-cut to better screen vehicles.” “Young Mr. Lincoln,” of course, brought up the discussion. • DLAND JOHANESON of the * * New York Mirror was mis- taken for a Hollywood star time and again—and did she have a time ducking a crowd of autograph-seekers at the Le- land. \ YOUNGSTER reading a lo- cal newspaper list of guests, shouted to her friends: “Charlie McCarthy’s here!” Enterpris- ing youth that they were they nosed around the lobbies of the Abraham Lincoln and Leland, finally located the bearer of that good old Irish monicker. When someone pointed out the pub- licity chief, one of the girls charged: “Aw, a wise guy from New York!” • DARRON CARTER of Loew’s, •¥» Washington, D. C., was the beau brummel of the party— and a shrewd observer. One autograph hound mistook him for Herbert Marshall, but, then, that’s a pardonable error, for Hollywood would be richer with a gentleman like him. About “Young Mr. Lincoln,” Barron said: “A picture like this is a gold mine for the business and timely. Darryl Zanuck never turned out a better picture.” • CPOKE up a local society belle ^ in the Leland Tavern: “I’ll take Johnny Walker.” And just then The New York Herald- Tribune’s John Walker strutted by—and quite by coincidence, just then, in his conversation with The World - Telegram’s Frank Farrell, he uttered the words: “That’s what you hope.” INS’s George Lait couldn’t hold back a giggle—and the young lady is still probably wondering what it was all about. • SALESMAN Williams of St. ^ Louis, the best dancer at the buffet supper, is a bashful sort, socially speaking. His secret desire was to dance with Binnie Barnes, but the lad never got around to asking. “WORDS FAIL ME IN PRAISING THIS ONE AS IT SHOULD BE PRAISED/’ WIRES EXHIBITORS Robert J. (Bob) O'Donnell, general manager of the Inter- state circuit, wired the following telegram to General Manager of Distribution Herman Wobber: “Just screened vcur ‘Yeung Mr. Lincoln’ for my organiza- tion and words fail me in trying to convey to you the deep and lasting impression that this outstanding picture made upon the entire assemblage. Without any question, Fonda’s performance is one of the finest I have ever seen on the screen. Photography and the manner in which they have portrayed the great Emancipator is splendid and represents an outstanding contribution to American history. Rest as- sured we are going to try to see that every citizen of Texas sees this epic. If you can, please convey our sincere thanks to Mr. Zanuck. Regards.” TXISCOVERED: Hector Dods is some cut-up at the studio editing department—and on the dance floor. Ask Arleen Whelan. ONGRATULATIONS to Transportation Manager I. Lincer, whose handling of tickets and what not brought words of sincere gratitude from the ladies and gentlemen of the press. And an orchid to that ace of passenger agents, the New York Stanton. Central’s George T HEATRE press agents and exhibitors who made the trip on the special train to and from New York were: Harry Brown- ing, M. & P., New England; Charles Taylor of Shea’s Buf- falo theatres; Arch Herzog of Chicago’s B. & K.; Harry Rem- ington of the Fox, Detroit; Everett C. Callow of Warner Brothers, Philadelphia; Charles Winchell, Friedl circuit; Les Kaufman, Fanchon & Marco theatres, St. Louis, and others. • A LL of the important nation- ally circulated magazines had representatives on hand. They were: Katherine Best, Stage; Kyle Crichton, Collier’s; James Frederick Smith, Liberty, and others. • XT AL HEFFERNAN, who has a widely read syndicated column that is written in Holly- wood, came on from the Coast— and renewed old acquaintances. That sun out on the Coast agrees with Hal, for he was be- ing congratulated on his youth- ful appearance. We always thought that it was Florida that claimed the “fountain of youth.” • CORRESPONDENTS of ” ‘ Hearst publications, repre- senting those in New York, Chi- cago, Boston, Pittsburgh, Mil- waukee, Baltimore and Wash- ington, filed a total of 22,000 words on the opening. Four premiere photos were wired to these papers. • UAREY BROWNING, public- itv manager of the M. & P. circuit of New England, made this comment: “ ‘Young Mr. Lin- coln’ deserves the undivided at- tention of every theatre public- ity man and anyone who doesn’t get behind a picture of this qual- ity should be out of the busi- ness.” Right, Harry; if this one doesn’t enthuse and spur them to action, nothing will. • ¥ LOYD LEWIS, Chicago News critic, is an authority on Lincolnia. Lewis has written a book on Lincoln, and we can honestly report that no one got more enjoyment out of “Young Mr. Lincoln” than Lloyd. How he must have wished he had au- thored such a grand story as this picture reveals! • T OOKING her usual lovely self, Rose Pelswick of the New York Journal and Ameri- can was one of the most popular newspaper gals in town. Rose has the knack of anticipating what the fans will like—and Hollywoodians would save them- selves a lot of unnecessary worry if they would follow her writings. « LSIE FINN of the Philadel- phia Record will probably “do” a special story on what she saw at Salem, for she certainly showed a keen interest in the historic sights in that pic- turesque place. • TLLINOIS’ Governor Horner, who has been ill for too long, was perhaps the unhappiest man in Illinois Tuesday. He had hoped to be out of bed to ad- dress the city at the premiere, but his doctor would not allow (Continued on page 18A)