Year book of motion pictures (1932)

BALLYHOOS — The High Sign Use this one on features that are in the super class. When the town gets to know that you only use it on your special attractions, it will begin to carry a lot of weight. The stunt is simple. U£e an auto painted gaudily, carrying suitable banners about the attraction. Another stunt along the same lines is the use of a red ball about three feet in diameter. This is hoisted to the top of the flagstaff on your theater when you are running a special attraction that you are not afraid to ballyhoo. A good advertising gag on this one is to offer patrons their money back if they do not like the picture. □ — Laugh Ballyhoo On a big laugh special, dress a couple of kids as hospital internes. They carry a stretcher around town on which reposes a wax dummy. Signs on the side of stretcher read: "Not dead, just unconscious from laughing at (name of feature)." □ — Masked Announcer You can get air time on your local broadcasting station with this one. It is played up by the station as the "Masked Announcer." A different speaker is used each time, generally some well-known local man, with five tickets to those identifying the voice. It is a good publicity gag, as the listeners hold on in an effort to spot the speaker, and at the same time they get an earful about your coming shows. □ — Juvenile Floats Build up an express wagon float parade toward the end of the summer for the kids to participate. Your lobby carries a sample float, as a suggestion as to how it can be done. Emphasis is placed on the fact that the display can be built on a platform, which will not deprive the kid of the use of his wagon or pushmobile in the intervening weeks. The local stationer and department store should kick in with prizes, feeling that the purchase of decorative material will return a profit. Stipulate that the floats must be the personal work of the child. □ — Parked Fan A well-dressed young chap is parked near your theater, for several days before a big attraction. He is seated in a chair, carrying an umbrella on which is lettered: "I am going to be the first in line to see (star) in (picture), playing here — " □ — Mule Ballyhoo Use a small Negro boy to ride a pony, leading a mule. The latter is blanketed with a sign reading: "If I were not a donkey, I would go to see (picture) at (theater) today." The combination of the small darkey and the big mule makes this a real novelty that is bound to attract the necessary attention. □ — Frontier Stuff On a pioneer western. Use an old stage coach, and secure the loan of a team of horses. Use loud speaker with horns on the roof of the coach, and keep up a running fire of comment on your attraction. This can be made more attractive if it is possible to use several ponies, with kids in cowboy and Indian costumes following the coach, yelling and creating lots of attention for this old-time frontier ballyhoo. □ — Mystery Shopper Use on a big feature, where the girl in question is supposed to impersonate the star. A department store loans one of its fashionable costumes, which is worn by a girl who rides around in a town car loaned by the local dealer. Use one of your ushers as footman, dressed in livery. The tieup is made with several stores, and one in particular, which loans the girl's costume. The footman hops off at each store, and unrolls a carpet from the car to the entrance to the store. The girl is heavily veiled. This can be enhanced by an arrangement with the newspaper, which publishes the fact that the girl buys a certain article from each store to make up the necessary articles used by the star in the various scenes of the feature. □ — Bus Ballyhoo With the cooperation of the local bus company, this simple stunt goes over strong. A man with a loud voice is hired to stop the local busses. Each driver is asked if he passes your theater, where a certain attraction is playing. The ballyhooer is always careful to mention the feature. He also makes it a point to stop the busses that are not going past your theater. The driver gives him the proper directions, and gets a pair of ducats for his cooperation. 689