Motion Picture Herald (Jul-Aug 1943)

J u 1943 M A N A R S ' ROUND TABLE 53 Red Cross Graduation Staged By Taylor at Buffalo One hundred and seventy-five Nurses' Aides were graduated by the American Red Cross on the theatre stage at Shea's Buffalo, Buffalo, N. Y. Charles B. Taylor, director of advertising and publicity, was responsible for the arrangements. One of the best wartime good-will stunts ever staged in Buffalo was the graduation of 175 Red Cross Nurses' Aides from the stage of Shea's, Buffalo. Arrangements for the event were made by Charles B. Taylor, director of advertising and publicity for the Shea theatres and it brought the ace Shea house an avalanche of word-of-mouth praise for lending its facilities for such a splendid cause. The newspapers gave the event much publicity, running art before and after the graduation, as well as the list of the names of the graduates. The stage at the Buffalo was specially decorated for the occasion, with Red Cross and American flags predominating. Preston B. Porter, vice-chairman of the Buffalo chapter of the American Red Cross, gave the principal speech; Mrs. John D. Taylor, chairman of the Committee for Civilian Mobilization, gave the oath, and Mrs. Glenny "capped" the nurses and appealed for more Buffalo women to take the training. A special orchestra was engaged by Shea's Buffalo to play the incidental music and lead the audience in the singing of The Star Spangled Banner at the close. Following the ceremonies, Mr. Taylor received the following letter from Miss Merwin, director of public information for the Buffalo chapter: "I want to extend again my personal thanks for all your assistance in making our Nurses' Aides graduation such a wonderful success. "All day today we have been deluged with calls, messages and comments of praise and interest in the corps. The stage ceremonies certainly were well received by the public, and we at the chapter are most grateful to all those at Shea's Buffalo who worked with us and for the opportunity of presenting this activity in such a prominent auditorium." Because of the success of the theatre graduation idea, it is planned to stage another similar event at an early date, at which time several hundred more Nurses' Aides will be graduated. This is a promotion that can easily be worked in any community with the resulting publicity and goodwill that can accrue therefrom. Poppay Uses Scroll Sydney J. Poppay started off his War Bond Campaign by inviting patrons of the Majestic and Strand theatres in Gettysburg, Pa., to "Send Your Name to War." Each person who purchased stamps or bonds at the theatre booth were privileged to sign the scroll. Twedt's Teaser Calendar As a teaser ahead of "Moon Is Down" at the Lido theatre, in Manly, la., H. S. Twedt on the correspondence side of his monthly calendar carried five lines of copy at the top printed in Norwegian. So curious were the recipients of the calendar, that Twedt reports plenty of telephone calls. Gala Parade Heralds "Stage Canteen" in Baltimore Gertrude Bunchez, publicity head of Loew's Century, in Baltimore, arranged a parade for the opening night of "Stage Door Canteen." Participating was a 38piece band, the local 40-8 American Legion Post and a Victoria horse and buggy which attracted so much attention that a police detail was necessary to control the crowd. The Legion post formally adopted the picture as its own, with resultant news stories and photos in the local papers. Extra publicity resulted from a five-day contest in the News Post, a front cover photo tie-in with a weekly magazine, a canteen which was sponsored by the theatre at one of Baltimore's busiest corners, and for which all drinks and edibles were promoted. The radio contributed two five-minute transcriptions on opening day, five daily announcements over a six-day period, and two local programs of fifteen minute periods, interviewed soldiers and sailors in conjunction with the picture with frequent plugs for the theatre and playdates. All leading downtown stores used displays, and cards were located in hotels and apartment houses. Pisapia Fills Theatre With CDVO Benefit James Pisapia, manager of the H*rbor theatre in Brooklyn, N. Y., recently ran a Benefit Show in conjunction with the local Civilian Defense Volunteer Organization that not only resulted in a capacity house but also was the source of creating tremendous good-will in the entire Shore Road section where the theatre is located. Tickets were sold by the Defense organization, which derived a split of the proceeds. A special program was arranged which included a pageant of civilian defense, popular radio and operatic stars and selections by the Armo Corp. Band. Clark Gable was presented in the screen subject titled "Wings Up." The regular two features rounded out the performance. American Legion Posts and a number of civic and business groups participated. In addition to the usual channels of advertising, Jim had the co-operation of all local merchants and used cards in every store. 6,000 special 9 x 12 heralds were distributed house to house. The local newspapers helped publicize the event with stories and photos. Sherred's Faint Check Still effective is the "faint check" gag, which was recently employed by Carl B. Sherred at the Manos theatre, in Ellwood City, Pa., for "I Walked With a Zombie." Copy on the hard ticket read: "This return check will entitle you to resume where you left off if you've fainted while viewing," etc., etc. SPECIAL TRAILERS UIHER vou fuinnT TH6H1! SAME DAY SERVICE We Know How Important It Is To Give You Prompt Service So We Never Disappoint... Try Us FILMACK TRAILER CO. 1327 So. WobashAve., Chicago