Exhibitor's Trade Review (Dec 1923 - Feb 1924)

Page 32 Exhibitors Trade Review An interior view of one of the United Cigar Stores in Atlanta showing the placard announcing the sale of Metropolitan Theatre discount books, an idea that reached 5,000 people daily during the showing of several First National attractions at the house. United Cigar Store Coupons Exploit Theatre Pull-Together Exploitation Stunt Interests Atlanta Motion Picture Theatre Goers and Brings Them to Show House AJf ANAGER Willard C. Patterson of the Metropolitan Theatre, First National's first run house in Atlanta, Ga., scored a dean scoop that turned December into a Metropolitan with his coupon Christmas book. The plan, which was worked out by Sig Samuels and Mr. Paterson consisted in the printing of two kinds of coupon books for admissions at the Metropolitan. One contained three dollars admission for $2.50 and the other six dollars worth for five dollars. A week before the books were acceptable at the door more than 200 had been sold. The best part of it all is that the theatre did not have to rely on its own efforts to get these books over. A tie-up was made for all the United Cigar Stores to put them on sale and advertise them prominently in the windows and on the stands. The tie-up was arranged through J. A. Davis, southeastern representative for the United Stores. The cards put in the stores were arranged so that they not only advertised the books but arranged for a changeable space to carry the title of the current attraction at the Metropolitan. The United Stores sold the books to their customers at cost, five dollars ; but in return for this courtesy every advertisement run by the Metropolitan Theatre carried the line that the coupon books were on sale at the United Stores. This was also used on the screen and on the program. • It gave the stores good publicity and more than compensated the theatre by bringing the books prominently to the attention of the 5 000 or more customers who pass through the stores daily. An even far more reaching tie-up was effected with the Atlanta Georgian and the American. The three dollars book featured this campaign and 2,000 books were sold to the paper for $2.40 each. With a 23,000 circulation to rely upon, the journals were able to further the distribution immensely. Each one of their 268 carriers were enlisted in the campaign. They were given announcement cards from the Georgian's manager, telling about the proposition. This offered a book to every reader who secured four new six months' subscriptions. Subscription blanks were enclosed with the advertising matter. The carriers themselves were offered inducements to push the campaign. A season pass was given to the five on whose routes the largest percentage of subscriptions were reported. The next ten received twenty-five tickets each, the next twenty received fifteen, the next thirtv got ten and the next thirty flTC. It is important to note that before going through with his plan, Manager Patterson submitted it to the income tax collector. The admission problem was solved by the ruling that coupons covered by the discount were regarded as "Complimentaries." 'RED LIGHTS' POSTERS MAKE LOBBY ATTRACTIVE Managers Finkelstein & Ruben of the Astor Theatre, St. Paul, Minn., made a very attractive theatre front display on Goldwyn's mystery picture "Red Lights" through the liberal use of the posters. Above the marquee were placed two cutouts of the four figures in the six-sheet poster. Below these cut-outs was the title of the film in large letters. The title was repeated above the cut-outs four times in the misty red-light type used on the six-sheet poster. The title was repeated in red lights under the marquee over the doors leading into the lobby. A three-sheet cut-out showing the rear of the train projecting beyond a high cliff, was used on one side of the lobby and a cut-out of three figures from the six-sheet poster was used on the other side. On the sidewalk was placed a lantern with red glass, which lighted up a triangular sign which read: "Watch for 'Red Lights,' the mystery that 'out-bats' 'The Bat.' " This display attracted a great deal of attention through the management's use of cutouts and of the red light which flooded the front of the theatre. KEATON HAT IS MAGNET A big tie-up was effected on Buster Keaton's first feature length Metro comedy, "Three Ages," recently shown at 'V\'ells Theatre in Norfolk, Virgini-a. The tie-up which resulted in a city-wide campaign pivoted arSund the now famous Buster Keaton hat, and was arranged by H. S. Ansley, Metro Exploiteer in that territory. The Norfolk Ledger-Dispatch, with which the tie-up was effected, printed coupons which enabled the city's children to secure the. Buster Keaton hat and several days after other coupons, which, if presented while wearing a Keaton hat, entitled each one to a free pass to the Wells to see "Three Ages." Nearly the en-:tire boy and girl population of Norfolk participated. Naturally the curiosity of the elders was excited and this is the reason why Manager J. J. Madden of the Wells Theatre is now congratulating himself on his wonderful "Three Ages" engagement. SMALL TOWN PUBLICITY PROVES SUCCESS Rockaway House Breaks Records in Test of Press Book Value rjNDER Carl Laemmle's orders to give ^ Baby Peggy's first big picture, "The Darling of New York," a severe, small-city audience test and also to prove the practicability or impossibility of the exploitation stunts outlined for the big campaign book on this unusual production, the picture was booked for a special showing at the Columbia Theatre, Far Rockaway, Manager Howard McCoy, last week. The booking was made seven days in advance of the showing and Joe Weil, Big U exploiteer, was instructed to use nothing but stock material and actual press-book ideas during the campaign. There had been no advance notices about the metropolitan territory on the picture; no posters had appeared anywhere; and to all intents and purposes the picture had received not a line of publicity outside of the special press dispatches which have been appearing in all the papers throughout the country on the phenomenal rise to stardom of this baby movie favorite. The picture was given a logical small city campaign and the results were astounding.. Playing against one of the strongest competing pictures of the screen. "The Darling of New York" hung up new week-day records for matinees and evenings at the Columbia. It quadrupled the average matinee business for the previous three weeks. It brought the whole town to the theatre and the overflow crowds helped fill the opposition house. Money was actually being refunded to patrons who gave up all hope of getting seats at the second evening shows ! TRUMPETERS WIN ATTENTION When Goldwyn's spectacular Emmett Flynn production of Marion Crawford's "In the Palace of the King" was shown at the Rialto Theatre in Newark, N. J., Manager Fernkause took a hint from the opening feet of the film and placed two boys, dressed in oldtime costumes, in the lobby of the theatre and had them blow on trumpets just as the pages do in the opening pages of the picture itself. He also used the two trumpeters in the presentation, in which a number of singers were also used. If you never saw a walking poster and boxoffice combined, take a good look at this one, which was conceived by the manager of the Majestic Theatre of Kalamazoo. Inside of this vehicular booth is a man, who sells tickets through a cubby-hole located on the other side of the device.