Motion Picture Herald (Nov-Dec 1948)

them the impression that they are being personally addressed in your institutional copy. An enterprising manager cannot hope for his share of the business unless he puts out a consistent advertising campaign that sets forth the regular advantages he has to offer in his theatre. SAY IT AS A NEIGHBOR Make it clear in your advertising that your house is a community service. Drive home a well defined idea in each piece of copy. Give your copy a simple, friendly feeling that will subconsciously give the reader an impression that he is being advised personally. This will go a long way towards bringing a close feeling of interest, and in my belief that your theatre and your patrons will respond accordingly. Programs that are mailed to the homes in the community served by the theatre, are excellent places for institutional copy of a general nature. Trailers are good for both general and special messages, with emphasis on the latter since screen advertising should not get in the way of the attractions. Newspaper space should be used whenever some improvement in the theatre, either physical or in policy, is installed. The day-in-and-day-out campaign, however, is the best suited to programs and trailers. Below are some examples of the kind of copy that can well find a place in such promotion, to keep the pot boiling when there is nothing in particular to write about — a time when such promotion becomes so difficult that it is often interrupted, and that should not happen. Many of you can doubtless do better, but here at any rate are some pieces that illustrate the idea : Meeting Place The Blank Theatre is your meeting place. In it we want you to find relaxation from hours of care and work. In it we try to make you feel at home. Only the best in motion picture entertainment is offered, and every thought of our employes is for your particular comfort and enjoyment. We thus are at your service, constantly. Please be assured that every possible effort will be made to see that you are comfortably and favorably seated at any performance. Whenever you feel the desire for the stimulation and satisfactions that only the Comedy and Drama of the Theatre can give you, we hope you will think of the Blank Theatre as the pleasantest as well as a convenient place to get it. Sincerity Success in all great undertakings depends primarily on sincerity of purpose. In direct proportion to this sincerity, temporary successes become permanent achievements. Our Theatre's standards are built upon Stage Equipment 1— STAGE HEAD BLOCKS, PULLEYS, ETC. Check for bent pipe battens, loose holding cleats or cable clamps, overloaded cables, cables not entering grooves of sheaves or pulleys smoothly, loose "belaying" pins at the pin-rail, defective tie-off clamps. 2— COUNTERWEIGHT ARBOR See that counterweights are adjusted correctly in their up and down travel (guide lines should be stretched tight and the "rings" in the arbor should barely touch them when in operation). Check and tighten all floor and ceiling fastenings and all manila ropes or lines in the settings for shredding or other deterioration. 3— ASBESTOS CURTAIN Check for signs of deterioration in fireproofing and breaks in the reinforcing framework makeup. Make sure lines are fastened correctly and at right places on curtain so that it is picked up smoothly without "jerks" a'nd without any scraping at sides of smoke-pockets. A — SOUND HORNS When sound horns and baffles are installed to fly, check to see if lines are installed to fly, check to see if lines or cables are in good condition and are fastened solidly in brackets or cradle, and the cable clamps are tight and fan into grooves of the sheaves without undue friction or bindinq. Check counterweight arbor to see if the load of the horns is perfectly balanced with counterweights or set. Make sure sound cables that run from junction box or stage wall to horns are in good condition, that insulation has not deteriorated, and that they have not been fouled with other lines. 5— PUBLIC ADDRESS AMPLIFIER This amplifier should be given same care and attention exercised in upkeep of the theatre sound amplifier. It is a good idea to install a heavy screen guard over this amplifier if none is already present, to protect it against damage due to handling of stage props or scenery. 6— PUBLIC ADDRESS HORNS Check wiring connections at speaker unit terminal board to see that they are making a good connection. Check for dust inside housing as well as at the screen, or fabric covering on face of the unit. Make sure that no water from a leaky roof is entering these units. 7— MICROPHONES A faulty microphone in most cases is due to shielding being broken at either the mike unit or at plug-in box on stage floor. Make sure that cable is coiled up properly. Check operating lines for length. 8— FOOTLIGHTS Examine the entire trough for dirt and refuse. Check for breaks or bends in the metal and for corrosion. (Troughs, lights, etc., should be cleaned with a solution of diluted ammonia and the reflecting surfaces painted with a good grade of white enamel.) All wiring splices and insulation should be checked for deterioration or breaks, while the various circuits should be checked through to the a.c. contactor switches or directly to the switchboard. 9— BORDERLIGHTS Check as for footlights. The hanging position should be checked carefully so that the equipment is moderately distinct from the cyclorama borders. Also check chain hangers and pipe battens for deterioration or corrosion (these pipe battens should be located correctly in the rings, as in time they have a tendency to move out). Electrical cables; should be checked for breaks in insulation and to see if they are hanging properly. Check strip lighting in the same way. 10— FLOODLIGHTS Make sure electrical feed cables are in good condition. Stage plug-boxes or pockets should be checked to see if receptacles are clean, not corroded or arced, and are well grounded. When a rheostat is used at base of flood or spot, check for cleanliness, condition of guard and control switch. (When the spot or floodlight is not in use, the cable should always be coiled-up evenly and be hung up.) I I— STAGE SWITCHBOARD Check for cleanliness in and around the enclosure (dirt accumulated in resistors or dimmers and contact buttons can cause shorts, arcing and general deterioration). Check set screws on dimmer handle shaft collars for tightness (collars and friction bearing parts should be cleaned and slightly oiled, if necessary). Check individual color master switches and grand master to see if loose or otherwise not operating properly. Check operating rods from shaft collars to contact buttons on dimmer resistors for proper contact. (In cleaning dimmer contact buttons or pins use only fine sandpaper, No. 000 grade.) Check all electrical connections at straps on top of dimmers for looseness or corrosion; also note if insulation on circuit wiring is crackej BETTER THEATRES, DECEMBER 18, 1948