The Exhibitor (Nov 1938-May 1939)

BM-6 BETTER MANAGEMENT TRUE STORIES FROM ALTEC FILES Nat M. Williams, General Manager of the Interstate Enterprises, Thomasville, Ga. Survey Prevents Serious Blaze in Theatre in South THOMASVILLE, GA.— "Not satisfied with making his regular inspections of the sound equipment in our theatres, our Altec inspector, L. W. McClung, took it upon himself to make all our people 'fire-extinguisher conscious.’ He personally made a survey of extinguishers in the Rose, Mode and Ritz in Thomasville, the Pine in Pelham, Ga., the Ilex, in Quitman, Ga., and the Shaw and Roxy in Quincy, Fla.,” said Nat. M. Williams, General Manager, Interstate Enterprises. "Within less than a week after McClung made his survey, we had a fire in the Shaw Theatre, at Quincy, Fla. The fire was put under control with a minor loss, but if McClung hadn’t made that survey, it could have resulted in a serious property loss, to say nothing of the possibility of panic among the patrons. "What the Altec man did wasn't part of his work, but such extra and unsolicited service certainly makes for an exhibitor's peace of mind.” • • • The regular inspections of an Altec Service inspector guard your theatre against emergency breakdowns. Without obligation, let the Altec inspector in your locality explain the advantages of an Altec Service Agreement. Write to— .ALTEC SERVICE CORPORATION 250 West 57th Street, New York City THE SERVICE ORGANIZATION OF THE MOTION PICTURE INDUSTRY Get THE EXHIBITOR habit modernity and in every ad "The Theatre with the Magic Doors.” HERE INDEED is ballyhoo of the highest order: It is something the patron can work for himself, it is something which attracts the attention of even casual passers-by, it makes this theatre unique among the city’s cinemas, and it is something that cannot possibly react adversely upon the house. Verily, they are "magic doors”! It is not the intention here of going into detail on the construction or operation of magic doors, leaving that to another article in this issue, but it can be said that the heart of the control mechanism is a photo-electric cell. This cell, with which exhibitors are familiar as the essential part of their sound reproduction systems, can be utilized in many more way than merely opening doors. It can be arranged so as to operate a gate-closing device in the box office window, among other things. Another attention-pulling device is what might be called a magic water fountain: one over which the patron has only to lean for the water to start spouting. These, and many other devices did not originate as appurtenances to theatre operation, yet, as should be obvious, they have a distinct showmanship value which may be utilized to advantage by the upand-coming theatreman. So it goes, through many lines of manufacturing. If the exhibitor will but look — and see, and appreciate the possibilities — he will discover many a gadget that, installed in a theatre, can add to the house’s interest for the body politic. Good Sound Truly, a good chair never made a poor picture entertaining, and a good picture never made a board comfortable, although at times the disastrous effects may have been ameliorated. Pictures, of course, must be the major item in any theatre’s seat-selling campaign. yet certain elements of equipment do have their possibilities for advertising lines and newspaper reader copy. FIRST ITEM of equipment that can profitably be advertised and ballyhoo’d is the sound mechanisms, especially in the matter of fidelity of reproduction in the theatre. The names of sound equipment manufacturers are not entirely unknown quantities to a radio-conscious public, and through that link an effective tie-in may be obtained. Hearing Aids It is a small matter, but the providing a theatre with hearing aids is one thing that can create more good will among the users of the equipment than almost anything a theatre can do. One can profitably pause for a moment to consider a campaign to bring hearing aids to the attention of the deafened public. Whether for the air or bone type of hearing aid (the theatre should have avail able both types), the campaign would be the same. We give you Acousticon’s suggested promotion campaign as an example of how new equipment may be announced to the interested public. For checking purposes and to assist in securing all possible exploitation, the promotional angles given here should be followed. LOCAL LEAGUE TIE-UP. The cooperation of the local league for the hard-of-hearing should be obtained by (a) a special mailing to membership; (b) a permanent bulletin board display; (c) supplying the league with weekly programs for distribution at the club rooms; (d) working with the league to distribute, at given periods, special courtesy attendance tickets; (e) the theatre should secure a letter from the league praising the installation, which should be blown-up, placed on display in the lobby. ANNOUNCEMENT MAILING. Upon installation, Acousticon will arrange to send a letter to all hard-of-hearing prospects in the shopping area served by the theatre, with the only cost to the theatre that of postage. COOPERATION WITH DOCTORS should be secured by sending them a special invitation to visit the theatre and inspect the equipment installed for their patients. PREMIERE AND DEDICATION. A special premiere should be arranged for the dedication of the equipment, and effected in cooperation with the local league, hard-of-hearing institutions, schools for the deaf. The mayor and prominent citizens should be present. INSTITUTE COOPERATION. The local Acousticon distributor will cooperate with the theatre during the entire process of the installation and the advance promotion, and subsequent activity of the management. COURTESY CARDS are supplied each theatre for the use of patrons. These are left at the box office, in lieu of a cash deposit when equipment is taken. In this way the management can keep tabs on the use of the equipment and by whom, as well as to approximate the value of the installation in increased patronage. PUBLICITY should be given the installation by display cards, trailers, program announcements. NEWSPAPER COOPERATION should be secured not only for publicizing the installation but chronicling the special events connected with it. CIVIC CLUBS, such as Kiwanis, Lions, Rotary, etc., are generally glad to sponsor groups at special Saturday morning showings for their underprivileged (deafened) children’s fund. OTHER IDEAS include marquee mention of the installation; a broadcast from the theatre of patrons who have used the equipment; lobby display of letters of appreciation; a lucky number drawing made from equipment ticket-holders; offering tickets as added prizes at functions of deafened people; an annual dinner or luncheon honoring the deafened patrons who attended the theatre the most number of times; a special mailing list for those who use the equipment; active participation in the National Hard-of-Hearing Week. Air Conditioning AIR CONDITIONING is a matter on which much may be said in the public prints and in the advertisements of the theatre. While this department will discuss this important matter at a later date, and in much greater detail than is here possible, it would be remiss at this time if it did not point out certain angles that are especially valuable during the winter. Despite all that has been printed to the effect that air conditioning means the February IS, 19)9