The Exhibitor (1952)

EXTRA PROFITS EP-3 “The Greatest Show” Deserves Great Selling Marie Frye Tells How The Des Moines, Des Moines, Went To Town With Every Facet Of Concessions Promotion With The Stellar Paramount Attraction By Marie Frye, Tri-States Theatre Corporation Des Moines “The Greatest Show On Earth” un¬ doubtedly gave the people of Des Moines the greatest movie thrill of their lives, and, with all respect to the one and only Cecil B. DeMille and to Paramount, a great deal of the local success story should be credited to the Tri-States advertising department, headed by Don Allen and assisted by Russ Fraser, and to Bob Leonard, Tri-State city manager, and Don Knight, manager, Des Moines. These fellows left no stone unturned to interest every man, woman, and child in this area in the picture, and to get them in a “circus mood” days before it opened at the Des Moines. Everyone sensed the con¬ cession possibilities in the film when it was screened, not only for the revenue that might be gained, but for the impor¬ tance in adding atmosphere to the pres¬ entation. I believe showmen everywhere will be interested in how Leonard and Knight handled the concessions angle at the Des Moines. Circus decorations were put up in the lobby of the theatre a week in advance of the engagement. The confection counter took its part in these decorations, of course, with circus posters on the backwall, prominent display of the Nestle material that ties in, and a cutout of Betty Hutton on her trapeze over the stand. Then, on the day the film opened, auxil¬ iary counters were set up in the inner lobby, one stand for the sale of bottled Coca-Cola, another for the sale of balloons and other circus novelties, a small counter for the program salesman, and another stand in the outer lobby, just inside the entrance doors, for hot dogs and orange¬ ade. A carnival atmosphere was effected even before the patrons actually got in¬ side the theatre. A clown and a barker worked on the street in front of the theatre during peak periods, and hawk¬ ers noisily sold their merchandise to the waiting crowds. As is usual during lockouts, many people were unable to get up to the counters in the lobby. Therefore, if we had depended on the merchandising revenue from our counters only, our per capita for the week would undoubtedly have been below average. This was over¬ come, however, by hawking in the aisles during an intermission break, and, as a result, our overall merchandising return was exceptionally high. At the conclusion of each show, the curtain was dropped, house lights brought up, and a barker was spotlighted on the stage. A shrill whistle brought the audi¬ ence to attention, and he said, “Ladies and gentlemen, while we are changing acts in the center ring, our ushers will pass among you with popcorn, peanuts, Crackerjack, hot dogs, and soft drinks. These are for sale! They are real! They are delicious!” Instantly the hawkers appeared in the front of the theatre, two or three to an aisle, noisily calling their wares. At the same time, the intermission music started, and the fun was on! At the first show, the audience (and possibly our hawkers, too) was a little stiff and self-conscious, but after that everybody entered into the spirit of the occasion, and a good time was had by all. For intermission music, Leonard and Knight selected Filmack intermission music 1040, and followed with 782. These were repeated to take care of a six-minute intermission. Then the program went into the newsreel. House lights were kept up, and the hawkers continued to sell, quietly, by merely holding their goods aloft. At the beginning of the feature, the theatre was darkened, and the hawkers left the aisles. A vacant store room near the theatre was set up as headquarters for the hawk¬ ing concession, and Dick Gray, one of the drive-in managers, was in complete charge. Here the corn was popped, bev¬ erages cooled, and the hot dogs prepared and the hawkers picked up their baskets in this room a few minutes before the intermission break. Control of merchan¬ dise and cash was a simple matter. The popcorn, peanuts, and Crackerjack trays were filled with $5 worth of merchan¬ dise. Cash was simple. They sold CocaCola and six cups of orangeade, and the hot dog trays held 40 sandwiches. In addition to his tray, each hawker was given a bank of $2.50 in change. Under this plan it was a relatively simple mat¬ ter for Gray to check them back in aftei the intermission. The Coca-Cola Company loaned cool¬ ers, and generously supplied aprons and caps for all the hawkers and special carrying trays for the drinks. The trays used for the other merchandise were ( Continued on page EP8) EXTRA PROFITS Vol. 7, No. 2 May 7, 1952 EXTRA PROFITS appears every fourth Wednesday as a regular special feature department of EXHIBITOR, and is devoted exclusively to the design, construction, maintenance, management, and exploitation of the¬ atre vending equipment, vendable items, and other profit producing adjuncts for efficient theatre opera¬ tion. . For further information, address EXHIBITOR, published weekly by Jay Emanuel Publications, Inc. Publishing office: 246-48 North Clarion Street, Phila¬ delphia 7, Pennsylvania. New York Office: 1600 Broadway, New York 19. West Coast Representative: Paul Manning, 428 South Mansfield, Los Angeles 36, California. Advisory boards— ' Composed of executives and heads of the conces¬ sions and vending departments of theatre circuits: Leslie R. Schwartz, Andrews, Inc., New York; Bayard M. Grant, Durwood Theatres, Kansas City; C._ Dale Fox, Fox Wisconsin Amusement Corporation, Milwaukee; Frank C. Bickerstaff, Georgia Theatre Com¬ pany, Atlanta; William O'Donnell, 'Interstate Circuit, Dallas; Raymond Willie, Interstate Theatres, Dallas; Harold F. Chester, Theatre Cooperative Candy Com¬ pany, Salt Lake City; Miss Marie Frye, Tri-State The¬ atre Corporation, Des Moines; Louise Bramblett, WilKin Theatre Supply, Inc., Atlanta; Van Myers, Wometco Theatres, Miami, Fla.; J. J. Fitxgibbons, Jr., Theatre Confections, ltd., Toronto, Canada. Composed of manufacturers, concessionaires, and other leaders in the candy, popcorn, and allied fields: _ A. F. Rathbun, Fred W. Amend Company, Chicago; Richard C. Fowler, The Coca-Cola Company, New York; Marvin Spitz, American Royal Candies, Inc., Los Angeles; Vincent O'Brien, Armstrong Pop¬ corn Company, Lake View, la.; Charles G. Mentay, Manley, Inc., Kansas City; W. B. Riley, Brock Cancly Company, Chattanooga, Tenn.; Joseph Blumenthaf, Blumenthal Brothers, Philadelphia; L. M. Shaw, Smith Brothers, Inc., Poughkeepsie, N. Y.; C. M. Said McPhail Chocolate Company, Oswego, N. Y, When the Des Moines, Des Moines, played Paramount's "The Greatest Show on Earth" recently, the concessions department went to town, and seen here is the attractive candy and popcorn counter. May 7, 1952 EXHIBITOR