The Film Daily (1936)

THE Monday, Jan. 6, 1936 &&*\ DAILV 11 « « EXPLOITING THE CURRENT FILMS « « Chicago Campaign on "Mutiny on the Bounty" TpWO weeks in advance of the opening of "Mutiny on the Bounty" at the United Artists Theater, Chicago, all five newspapers started running publicity and art on the picture. On the ship model contest, the theater carried a trailer on it for over three weeks and they also had a large cutout lobby display and distributed over 30,000 heralds made up on one side as a sort of a plan for the ship model builders and the other was devoted to instructions on the contest and the theater playdate. Large department stores were contacted for the appearance of the ship model on a cooperative ad basis. The Mandel Brothers Department store placed the ship in their toy department. Mandel's also used the ship model as a feature of their daily broadcasts over station WGN and during the announcement they mentioned the picture and playdate. In addition to the above, Mandel's distributed over 15,000 heralds on the picture and playdate as well as plans of the ship model. One of the finest feature comments on a picture made in the Chicago papers in a considerable length of time was made by Drama Critic Ashton Stevens of the Chicago "American." His comment was given an eightcolumn head. Reprints of this comment were made by B & K Theaters and distributed in all of their Loop and DeLuxe neighborhood theaters. The "Movie News," a weekly with a 600,000 circulation, ran the serial story on "Mutiny" in twelve installments. They played up the serial for two weeks in advance of the first installment. The first installment was given a two-page break. Trailers were placed in all six of the Balaban & Katz Loop theaters, one week before the opening. A tie-up with the Royal Typewriter Co. resulted in 100 per cent support in obtaining windows, etc. Their efforts were responsible for 14 windows throughout the downtown section of Chicago. — United Artists, Chicago. * * * New York's Intensive School Campaign on "Scrooge" 'THE Loew theaters in New York City prepared a splendid sales campaign on "Scrooge." A special introductory letter was sent to the school authorities offering cooperation for classrooms on the Charles Dickens' classic through the use of the official Study Guide. Both the public and parochial schools were contacted. Follow-up letters prepared for the theaters were supplied to the managers, together with stills for mailing to neighborhood school principals. The stills were intended for school bulletin board posting. Still another follow-up letter was sent to the neighborhood school principals, calling attention to the stills previously sent and offering further cooperation. Every theater manager was supplied with enclosures which were sent to the principals for distribution to their teachers. All Parent-Teacher Associations in the city were contacted and the theater name, playdate of the Loew house serving the neigborhood of each association was given to them. All the angles toward school and parent cooperation were covered in the letter to the association. Emphasis was laid on the fact that "Scrooge" is good entertainment for adults as well as children. Stress was placed on the timeless appeal of the immortal Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol," which is the story of "Scrooge." Theater managers were urged to play up the lovable and familiar figures of the story — Tiny Tim, Bob Crachit, and Mrs. Crachit — and the mysterious ghost of Marley, as well as the repentant Scrooge. — Loew Theaters, New York. Merchants Aid "Splendor" In New Orleans Opening A/f ANY local merchants participated in a huge window display campaign for the pre miere of Samuel Goldwyn's U. A. production, "Splendor," at Loew's State, New Orleans. The entire campaign was arranged under the supervision of Manager Rodney Toups. A week in advance, local newspapers played up the engagement with feature stories as well as plenty of art on the stars. Fifteen suburban papers as well as local school publications also devoted publicity to the opening. A tieup with the Nola Laundry accounted for the distribution of 10,000 special heralds, which were placed in all outgoing packages and had copy reading: "If Miss Hopkins lived in New Orleans we feel certain she would patronize this laundry, where quality work is done because she loves Splendor — See 'Splendor' at Loew's Now." Fifty of the Nola delivery trucks carried cards announcing the opening. The Postal Telegraph Co. arranged special displays in its nine local offices. Coleman Bros, featured table service, silver and glassware with scene stills from the picture. Six local Liggett Drug Stores carried displays on Kaywoodie Pipes, tying up with "Splendor." The Waterbury Drug Store got out special "Luncheons of Splendor." Other displays were arranged with Truly Warner hat stores, and Miller Bros, utilized a display on pearls with Miriam Hopkins. — Loew's State, New Orleans. « « « TIMELY TOPICS >» » »» Korda Makes the Pictures He Wants to Produce TS there a film I would like to do, a piece of work I would like to complete, were I to die tomorrow ? No. Faced with death, making a picture — so little a thing. Oh well, I should regret not seeing the Wells picture, "Things to Come," on which we are so engrossed. But if there is a picture I want to make, then I make it. I am doing the work I want to do — subject to the limitations that everyone has in life — finance, other people's points of view, and so on. There is no time in one's active life to do anything — always one is in the stage of snatching a little education, a little knowledge. One knows nothing about the really interesting things, one sees no places. I have never seen anything — really seen it. I want 35 to 40 years of ripe age — let's say 60 to 95, healthy, vigorous, looking younger than I shall be — comfortably off — not rich. I want to do the things I intended to do when I was 15 — to travel, to find out the things that were so exasperating as youthful studies — the real values of mathematics, for instance, and of astronomy, the classics and languages. One of my greatest desires is to learn golf. I once tried to hit the ball for half an hour and couldn't. I play nothing. I get so sluggish. I must really learn this golf. In my latter years I would probably seek out a nursing home or a monastery where I could spend several weeks each year talking to nobody at all. And in this connection I have noticed that almost every crisis in my life is accompanied by illness. It isn't, I think, that the crisis brings on the illness — it is somehow that the illness is sent to allow us to collect our thoughts and look at ourselves. — Alexander Korda. Local People Aid "Mutiny" Campaign at Bridgeport, Conn. *TWO residents of Bridgeport, Conn., proved important factors in the "Mutiny on the Bounty" campaign put over by Matt Saunders for its showing at his Poli Theater there. He contacted a Miss McCoy, who, he knew, was born on Pitcain's Island, and she loaned him a trunkful of articles she had brought with her. These were tagged and displayed in the lobby. The feature of the display was a miniature ship, made on the island, and which is more than fifty years old. Other articles were donated for display by Arnold Gibson, a local boy who visited Tahiti and actually saw M-G-M shoot scenes there. Saunders was assisted in his campaign by an M-G-M exploiteer. Displays on the Nordhoff-Hall book, on which the picture is based, were obtained in all local branches of the public library. — Poli, Bridgeport. * * * "Mutiny" Float Effective Louisville Ballyhoo f~\NE of the finest stunts em-ployed in Louisville, was a float built for George N. Hunt's "Mutiny on the Bounty" campaign for its showing at Loew's Theater there. The float was made to resemble the Bounty as closely as possible, to scale, including sails. The sides of the ship were lettered with cast names, title and playdate. Three attractive girls, dressed in pirate uniform, were employed to hand out special heralds from the deck as it paraded through the streets. Hunt was assisted by an M-G-M exploiteer. Five thousand blotters were planted in six local high schools for use by the students. These carried copy on the film. The same number of bookmarks were distributed in the public library branches. — Loew's, Louisville. * * * Preview Aids "Bounty" Portland, Ore., Campaign TTED GAMBLE, manager of the United Artists Theater, Portland, Ore., arranged a special advance screening of "Mutiny on the Bounty" for the critics, permitting them to review the picture in advance. A local news commentator, whose interest in the literary and historical value of the picture was great, was inspired to write a series of four 15-minute talks, which were repeated over two local radio stations. The shipbuilding contest was planted with the "Morning Oregonian." — U. A. Theater, Portland, Ore.