Motion Picture News (Nov-Dec 1925)

November 28 , 19 2 5 2555 AND OURS! HARTMAN'S 7 KEYS T, TELEGRAM ANNOUNCEMENTS HE management of the Strand theatre in Seattle introduced a novel means of advance announcement of a picture. The stunt, used for the engagement of "Lightnin'," attracted considerable notice. A young lady dressed in the uniform of a Postal Telegraph messenger was stationed in the lobby of the Strand at a telegrapher's table. She passed out envelopes containing telegrams printed on the regulation Postal blanks, in imitation typewriting. The copy used in these "wires" read as follows: "Albert Finkelstein, Strand Theatre, Seattle, Wash. It Delights Me Very Much To Learn That You Are To Play The William Fox Screen Version Of Lightnin' In Your Theatre Stop IT Is Said That In The Life Of Each Actor Comes One Great Role And To Me The Privilege Of Creating On The Screen A Character Immortalized By The Late Frank Bacon Was An Honor Indeed Stop I Have Tried To Give To The Picture The Sympathetic And Whimsical Old Bill So Wonderfully Portrayed By Mr. Bacon. Stop It Has Been The Greatest Effort Of My Career And If I Have Achieved Only A Small Portion Of The Success That Came To Mr. Bacon I Am Satisfied Stop I Trust Your Patrons Will Enjoy Lightnin' With The Same Pleasure Given Myself And Others To Make It Using Postal Telegraph For Lightnin' Service. Jay Hunt." "NOCTURNE OF COLOR" H , . M.S. KENDRICK, Managaing Director and Colby Harriman, Technical Director of the Fabian Mosque theatre, Newark, N. J., have, for the first time in motion picture history, presented three films on the one motion picture screen simultaneously. The title of this novelty was called "The Nocturne of Color," and two of the Mosque vocalists rendered a duet entitled "Waters of the Minnatonka" while this unusual novelty was being screened. Mr. Kendrick used three of the five Mosque Projectors to procure this effect and used three different subjects which were supplied through J. Seplowin of the Service Film Corp., New York, of the waterfalls and lakes throughout the world. All titles were eliminated ; two subjects presented up-side down and the other subject in the usual manner. J POWERS* FOOTBALL HERALD AMES F. POWERS, manager of the Bijou in New Haven, sends in a speciment of a mighty ingenious herald for the theatre gotten up in the form of an official program for the Yale-Army game, played several weeks ago. While interest in the game was at fever height, Powers distributed his heralds, which were equipped with a cover of the usual design used at Yale. Under the scene were the Names Yale Army in large type. The letters were spaced to permit the addition of small type which made the message read, on close inspection, as follows: "You Are Losing Enjoyment if you fail to join the Army of fans who go to the Bijou every week." It was a four-page affair and on the inside spread was a flash advertisement for the showing of "The Merry Widow" ry BIGGER PROGRAMS J. HE tendency toward more elaborate programs in which big time professional acts are used to supplement features at the first run houses in large cities becomes more and more noticeable as reports comes in announcing bigger program policies being instituted at this theatre and that. The Howard theatre in Atlanta has inaugurated a new policy in which the regular picture and musical program are supplemented Avith elaborate acts. The acts which Manager Charles Branham is bringing to the Howard have been in many cases big hits of the Balaban & Katz houses in Chicago, and are, without exception, established successes. The new policy was initiated with Melton Monroe, Chicago baritone; and Dorothy South, prima donna of Greenwich Village Follies. ADDED ATTRACTION <(NCIDENT to the showing the film, "Seven Keys to Baldpate," at the Balboa theatre, San Diego, Cal., Manager H. L. Hartman put over a good piece of publicity by advertising for keys large, keys small and keys of odd shapes. He asked that they be submitted in bunches of seven, and for the seven largest keys he paid $7.77, with a similar payment for the seven smallest. For each of the 77 oddest keys he issued a complimentary ticket to the show. All of the display advertising, as well as the lobby, featured the number 7. During the week of the show the winning keys were shown in a glass case in the lobby. Many keys with great historic interest were included in the lots submitted. • For the charity ball held under the auspices of the Catholic Charities, Manager H. L. Hartman contributed as a feature of the entertainment program the Fanchon & Marco revue from the Balboa theatre. WCORNERBLOCK ADS HAT seems to be one of the most intelligent moves on the part of short subject distributors to increase the space devoted to the shorts in the newspaper ads of theatres, is the so-called "Cornerblock copy" which is issued by Pathe in conjunction with several of the company's pictures. This Cornerblock copy is illustrated in the accompanying cut, the illustration having been clipped from a quarter-page ad e of a large theatre. The copy is n furnished in mat or cut form fand may be had by the exhibitor through application to the Pathe exchange which supplies -O him. This copy has had the effect of giving definite place to the short subjects in a theatre's display ads. The prepared copy l£{ issued with features undoubtedly influences the newspaper ads of all theatres — few, indeed, de' viate entirely from the layouts A sample of Pathos Cornerbloci ... , , copy. suggested in the press books. These prepared displays, naturally, are very striking and very effective in shouting the merits of the feature. Before the Cornerblock copy made its appearance, most theatres gave the short subjects a few lines of type in some part of the display. But a few lines of type could not hope to compete with the feature illustrations and drawings for the attention of the reader. Pathe's prepared cornerblock copy is cut down to the small sizes, and yet it offers drawings and complete miniature layouts. 1 he copy illustrated here gives an idea of the display which is accomplished for the comedy on the program which the theatre advertises in a layout dominated by a feature. It requires only a small space, judiciously selected for it, to perform the work required of the advertisement. Moreover, the cut is certain to enliven a display ad far more than a box containing type only ever could Each pressbook of the two-reel Pathe comedies now carries a special insert of the cornerblock ads. This insert is gummed and perforated and all the exhibitor has to do is to rip off the ads and paste them in the dummy of his feature ad copy. This little timesaving idea has helped to increase the use of cornerblock copy. M STAR PHOTO SERIES INIATURE pictures in color of Paramount stars and featured players have been prepared by the company as exploitation aids for exhibitors. These miniatures — 28 of them — may be used by theatre men in tieups with merchants, in lucky number and other contests. The back side of each picture is blank. In this space may be printed an advertisement for the theatre and for the merchant.