Motion Picture Daily (Oct-Dec 1960)

Motion Picture Daily Wednesday, December 14, ];o Drive Set to Overcome Last 'Orphan' Per iot Hyman Move Draws Praise Adv. -Publicity Executives Contribute Messages To 1961 Release Schedules for AB-PT Meeting Here Quality Cite For Films c Top advertising-publicity executives for 10 national producer-distributor r\ XI companies have contributed messages to the compilation of 1961 release sched rrOUl InClUStrV PfePare(* by Edward L. Hyman, American Broadcasting-Paramount Thea A™.il H/T^r T I mUUaU J *es vice-president, for distribuHon to a meeting of the company's northern April-lVlaVJ Uli theatre affiliates at the Hotel Astor here tomorrow and Friday. A * V The messages describe each company's top releases for the early part of the new year and the promotion campaigns planned for them. Hyman said the feature ties in with the keynote of the April-MayJune business drive which he and AB-PT affiliates will sponsor nationally. The drive's keynote is "Promotion." Hyman said the ad-publicity executives have given assurances that they will extend every cooperation to exhibitors who wish to demonstrate what they can do on the local level in the spring promotion drive and that he, in turn, has assured the executives of an all-out effort on the part of participatine exhibitors. r r s Messages for the release schedule brochure were prepared by Charles Einfeld, 20th Century-Fox; Martin Davis, Paramount, David Lipton, UniversalJonas Rosenfield, Columbia; Dan Terrell, MGM; Roger Lewis, United ArtistsRichard Lederer, Warners; Sandy Abrahams, Allied Artists; Charles Lew' Buena Vista, and Milton Moritz, AIP. ( Continued from page 1 ) encourage orderly distribution of quality pictures are being urged to join in a business promotion drive during the April-May-June period to reward and encourage those producers-distributors who have scheduled quality product for release during the period. A description of this product from 10 leading distributors and the promotion plans for it will be a high point of a meeting of the AB-PT theatre affiliates of Hyman's northern states territory at the Astor Hotel here tomorrow and Friday. Hyman in recent months has consulted sales managers and advertisingpublicity directors of the 10 companies on the product and promotion campaigns planned for it which will be available to the exhibitors during what he referred to as "the last of the 'orphan' periods." Directory Compiled He has compiled a directory not only of the April-May-June releases but also of those for the first six months of 1961 from the 10 companies, together with descriptive messages on the promotional plans by each company's advertising-publicity director. Hyman said an analysis of the 1961 release plans shows that there will be 55 releases and two specials, "The Alamo" and "Exodus," exclusive of re Profit -Making ( Continued from page 1 ) ers in all parts of the country which have participated in Hyman's orderly distribution program have annually for the past five years concentrated their promotion and sales efforts on quality product made available by cooperating distributors for the socalled "orphan" release periods of the year. The exhibitors have sought by their special business promotion efforts to encourage the release of more quality pictures in the non-holiday periods. The best of their promotion efforts over the past five years have been culled from 15 previous collections of merchandising plans and reproduced in AB-PT's "Proven Profit-Making Ideas" booklet. Distribution Tomorrow The booklet will be distributed to northern affiliates of AB-PT at their meeting at the Astor Hotel here tomorrow and Friday. It covers campaigns for blockbusters, special shows, holiday packages, group sales, rentals and concessions. issues, available in the first 1961 quarter. This compares with 53 releases in the corresponding 1960 quarter. In the second 1961 quarter, there will be 67 releases and six specials, compared with 53 releases in the second quarter this year. For the first half of 1961, therefore, Hyman's schedule shows a total of 122 releases and eight specials, compared with 106 and no specials in the first half of 1960. Reissues are excluded from the count in all instances. Hyman named the six second quarter "specials" as "Pepe," "The Guns of Navarone," "Cimarron," "The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse," "OneEyed Jacks" and "Spartacus." Ten Companies Included The companies covered in his release schedule include Allied Artists, American International Pictures, Columbia, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Paramount, 20 Century-Fox, Walt Disney Prods., Warner Bros., United Artists and Universal. From these companies' releases in the April-May-June drive period, Hyman classifies a total of 29 as of "quality" grade. This, he said, compares with 11 releases of quality grade in the corresponding 1960 period. He made allowances in this comparison, however, for such major non-recurring circumstances this year as the Hollywood strikes of actors and writers, conceding that it was an abnormal period, but one which permitted plenty of room for improvement even after all due allowances for the emergency were made. Sees 'Compensations' Hyman also noted that the holding back of quality releases last spring because of the strikes had some compensations in that it provided additional quality releases for the current quarter. As a result, he noted, this quarter is showing solid improvement over the corresponding period last year. He said the week before Thanks giving, for example, showed the best business in AB-PT theatres since 1956, and Thanksgiving week was the best since 1954, and may have bettered earlier records than that. However, Hyman explained, AB-PT's current system of record keeping was inaugurated that year, so that earlier comparisons would not be on the same basis. Exceeded Last Year Business for the week after Thanksgiving week exceeded that for the comparable period of 1959, he reported. Hyman attributed the current improvement to the better quality product and better supply of it available, which, he believes, is evidence of progress being made in exhibition's continuing efforts to encourage distribution to adhere to orderly release of quality product. In explaining his view that the April-May-June period now is the one most in need of attention to orderly release, the AB-PT vice-president pointed out that for long the first and third quarters of the year have been the best for business, with the second and fourth quarters shaping up as "orphan" periods by comparison of their limited number of quality releases with the greater numbers in the first and third quarters. Fourth Quarter Improving In recent years, and due in part, at least, to the orderly distribution efforts of exhibitors, Hyman said, the fourth quarter has shown constant improvement, so that at this juncture the April-May-June period stands most in need of improvement. Increased releases of quality product plus concentrated exhibitor efforts to merchandise it to the best of their ability, should result in overcoming the poor showing of the second quarter and give both the industry and the exhibitor a high, year-round level of income. Hyman pointed out that the early start that is being given to plan:i the spring quarter business dj should insure its success, backed by quality releases for the pe which he asserted are "far supe to what we have had in that pe in the past." The drive will run 14 weeks, f Easter Week through the Tuly Fov Week. Hyman said he plans to make annual visit to the Hollywood stu shortly after the first of the yeai see as many completed pictures possible, and to view rushes on oti still before the cameras at the ti. The visit, he pointed out, will pet him to reaffirm the releases on wr special emphasis and efforts sbd be placed in the course of the spi drive. In completing his presentation, j man emphasized how essential it that production, distribution and hibition learn to work together in current uncertain times. "Our joint efforts," he said, " assure attainment of vital indu goals and continuing prosperity for of us." Hyman Feels 'Digest' Fills Theatre Need The new "Movie Digest" publi tion now being distributed to th tres will attain a distribution of 600,000 at the outset, aimed primai at the 16 to 34-year age group wh comprises the bulk of the theatre ; dience, Eward L. Hyman, Amerk Broadcasting Paramount Theat vice-president, said yesterday. Hyman views the new "fan" hookas a valuable promotional piece ; theatre attendance and made availal to it the theatre fists of those operating with his program for orde distribution of quality product, t man has encouraged the magazi from the beginning and said he hot to see it become "the TV Guide the theatre business." Michigan Allied ( Continued from page 1 ) lied unit in singling out a maj circuit executive for praise, sa Hyman's efforts have "benefited tl industry in general and motion p ture exhibitors everywhere." Hyman's sponsorship of a busine drive for the so-called spring orph; period next year also won the con mendation of C. Glenn Norris, 201 Century-Fox general sales manage who offered the "full and complex cooperation of every member of til 20th Century-Fox organization" conducting the drive.