The Exhibitor (1954)

Record Details:

Something wrong or inaccurate about this page? Let us Know!

Thanks for helping us continually improve the quality of the Lantern search engine for all of our users! We have millions of scanned pages, so user reports are incredibly helpful for us to identify places where we can improve and update the metadata.

Please describe the issue below, and click "Submit" to send your comments to our team! If you'd prefer, you can also send us an email to mhdl@commarts.wisc.edu with your comments.




We use Optical Character Recognition (OCR) during our scanning and processing workflow to make the content of each page searchable. You can view the automatically generated text below as well as copy and paste individual pieces of text to quote in your own work.

Text recognition is never 100% accurate. Many parts of the scanned page may not be reflected in the OCR text output, including: images, page layout, certain fonts or handwriting.

30 MOTION PICTURE EXHIBITOR I a! uahic / .a ijloilaiiofi f\ cvs To Profitable Merchandising The recent gala midwest premiere of UA's "The Barefoot Contessa" drew a sparkling array of international celebrities and members of the diplo¬ matic corps. Shown at the United Artists Theatre on opening night, left, are, left to right, Belgian Consul General D'eeckhoutte and his wife; Dr. L. Goran and Contessa Guilie Belebnessi; Count Riuieri de Colboli, Italian Consul; and Contessa c'e Calboli; Count and Contessa Daniel de Lattra; Mr. and Mrs. John Hughes; and Baron and Baroness Von Suerstenberg. Hosting the group at far right is Abe Platt, district manager, B and K Theatres. In the center is seen a real gypsy set up with traditional dropery in front of the theatre, where fortunes were read and tips given possersby to the opening of the film, as arranged by manager Jack Thoma; and, right, some barefoot beauties from a windy city charm school who entered a slick-stemmed contest which underscored the title of the film. In large cities inviting royalty, particularly Contessas, should prove sure-fire. Eager Hoosiers Spark MGM's "Paris" Bow Indianapolis — One of the most impor¬ tant world premieres this city has had in years created quite a stir among Hoosiers last week as MGM unveiled “The Last Time I Saw Paris” at Loew’s. To signalize the event, MGM developed the biggest advertising and promotion campaign ever projected for a picture in this city. The high spot was the personal visit of Van Johnson, one of the stars in the film, for interviews, TV and radio appearances. A parade of 25 French sport cars greeted him at the airport. Delega¬ tions of teen-agers from Butler College and high schools were on the reception committee and served as hostesses at the premiere performance. The Indianapolis Star played up a contest to select “Indi¬ ana’s Good Will Ambassadors To Paris,” a couple picked for a Parisian vacation via Scandinavian Air Lines. Johnson made the award from the stage on opening night. Telephone interviews with Elizabeth Taylor and Helen Rose, costume designer, garnered important space in The Times and The Star. A special column on the business pages of the newspapers told of the commercial aspects of a world pre¬ miere, how it brings to the city money as well as excitement. A tieup with the merchants’ Downtown Indianapolis Days, a retailing merchandising promotion, lent added prestige to the world premiere, and nearly all of the radio and TV stations had special features. Exhibitors Get "Hanser^ Notes New York — More than 1,000 leading exhibitors and theatre circuit officials have received a letter from Herbert H. Greenblatt, RKO domestic sales manager, explaining the unprecedented number of promotion tie-ups for Michael Myerberg’s “Hansel And Gretel.” Enclosed with the letter are a broad¬ side of outstanding reviews from New York newspapers, where the Technicolor feature is running at the Broadway, national magazines, and trade papers, and a color souvenir book which details the 15 years of research behind the develop¬ ment of Kinemins, electronically-con¬ trolled dolls which perform in the screen version of the Humperdinck opera. Radio Plugs "She-Wolf'^ New York — Pre-release engagements of the Republic presentation, “The She-Wolf,” are being backed by heavy radio cam¬ paigns in Buffalo, for the engagement at the Lafayette, and in Chicago, where the Jules Levey picture opened at the Loop. Lou Weisberg, Character Merchandising, Inc., is seen with some of the more than 150 items his company has tied-in with Michael Myerberg's "Hansel and Gretel," a current RKO release. Local licensees across the country will promote their individual products in conjunction with local theatres playing the Myerberg feature. DC As 'Long John' Sets Treasure Hunt New York — An unusual cooperative merchandising promotion has been ar¬ ranged on behalf of the forthcoming CinemaScope Technicolor film, “Long John Silver,” between Albert Margolies and Company and Macy’s. The deal was handled by Edith Prigozy of the Margolies organization and Joseph Liebman of Macy’s. Involving more than 500 motion picture theatres and 5,000,000 people in the Greater New York area, the promotion will be initiated after the Christmas and New Year holidays, and will extend for a two-week period. Hewing closely to the story line of “Long John Silver,” which was produced by Joseph Kaufman and will be released by Distributors Corporation of America, the theme of the promotion will follow a treasure hunt pattern. It will be publi¬ cized and advertised as the “Long John Silver” Treasure Hunt. The treasure hunt will involve two basic steps for all entrants, a visit to a theatre in the New York area and a visit to three specially designated merchandise areas in Macy’s New York store. Grand prizes, as well as secondary ones, will be offered to achieve peak interest in all population categories. All age groups will be eligible as participants. Skin Divers Aid '"Underwater!" New York — The country’s skin diving clubs, whose members swim and fish underwater with the help of aqualungs, goggles, and rubber frog’s feet, will par¬ ticipate on a national and local level in the promotion of RKO’s “Underwater!” The clubs have offered their full coopera¬ tion, and plans are being worked out for the ‘world premiere of the film, the first to be released in Superscope, which will be held on Dec. 21 at the Fox, St. Louis. DEAL DIRECT AND SAVE on Quality Theatre Equipment ^ Factory-to-you Values on the BEST for Drlveins and Indoor Houses. SATISFACTION GUARANTEED. Write for complete catalog and valuable portfolio FREE iir si •American ■ . j-*. - K««sas"Ci»y •. JB*. | 1717 Wyartdotte St., November 17, 1954