Moving Picture World (Nov-Dec 1922)

December 23, 1922 MOVING PICTURE WORLD 767 would get a better display in type, for we take it that Mr. Hiehle wants display and not merely a picture. The design obscures the name and makes even the title less prominent, and this is an instance wherein both name and play title have a value. Clearness is to be preferred to prettiness, and the cut is not even pretty because the drawing is too close and it looks more like 15c I HIPPODROME 15 c 40c I -XODAY 40c 1 1;S(> 3 I The Incomparable Achievement j The greatest photodrama,-,o£ Norma Talmadge’s career — The masterpiece oflove, eternal — youth supreme, Como smUin’ through the '^tea of gladness — to find all that the screen can givel Movie.’] Chats Added I You’ll Love Nbnna Talmadge In “SMILIN’ THROUGH” Foil* • Shows Daily A First National Release A CONDENSED CUT a smudge than a design. This “Smilin’ Through” advertisement could have been pulled in by a third with no loss of appeal by cutting out the title design and setting this in two lines to the left of the cut, retaining the present selling lines. In the main, the printer seems to run too much to panel work. A little of this is good for a change, but most of the displays are ruled Mae Murray in 'fascination'' A Brilliant Drama pf a Girl Who Danced With Danger Depicting a Girl’s Great Adventure Between Dawn and Dawn. You Will Rejoice in the Beauty of Mae Murray’s Clothes. Furs, and Short-^eming Shoes Extra Today! “Fox Kews” Extra Today! Peggy Paige Fashion Film By Tumer.*Ebinger Co. Extra Today! “Snub” PoITard A Metro Release A DIFFERENT HANDLING off in somewhat similar manner and the idea becomes monotonous. The device should be saved for use where two or more program units are to be put over equally, as where Barthelmess in “Sonny” and the “Buffalo Bill” serial are given a joint showing. Here two paneled cuts and two panels for the titles work better than they would loose in the space, but this does not apply to the two examples shown, where dropping some of the rule work would have given a more airy and inviting display. For Mr. Hiehle’s benefit, we like very well his display for “The Four Horsemen” and do not like the fussy display for the last day of “Smilin’ Through.” Here the cut is a detractor. They did not think that the plan book suggestion for a hook-up page on “In the Name of the Law” would suit the local merchants, so the local ad man got up his own hook-in lines and found no difficulty in selling the merchants by displaying the matter ready to go into the form. This very greatly simplified the matter of selling off the page, and is a hint to others who may experience difficulty. Show them just how it will look. Don’t bother to set up, but show the rough pencil sketch. —P. T. A.— Thanks An Exhibitor for Capital Copy A. O. Gill, of the Erie Theatre, Hugo, Okla., sends his thanks to Hayes, of Hillsdale, Mich., for the reader reprinted in this department for October 21. Mr. Gill writes that he thinks it hard to beat, so he copied it off into his own display, as the larger of the two advertisements shows. He realizes, as does Mr. Hayes, that he can advertise something besides features and that an occasional little comment will do the house infinite good. He is getting nice results A Paramount Release PLEASING THE PUBLIC from his printer and this paneled advertisement for “Is Matrimony a Failure?” gets nice treatment, to match his carefully written copy. The proportioning of the types could not be much better done, and yet it will be recalled that Mr. Gill’s debut in this department was to get a criticism he could shoot into the printer. Evidently the suggestions were accepted, for since then the Gill advertisements have been decidedly good. He writes that he is cutting down his displays. The display for “Is Matrimony a Failure?” occupies a three sixes, but in another sample he puts over a last day and an ERIE THEATRE TON1GH7 Your C»rca at the EBJE” TUL'RSO.tY WALLACE REID AGNES AYRES and THEODORE ROBERTS In. ■*TOO MUCH SPEED’’ The ^B8tc«l Dioeinc “epecd'' l/0»e — Romante— l.«oghl«r. * n/i Wntiam De Mille Prodortion “BOUGHT AND PAID FOR’’ AGNES AYRE and JACK HOLT Paramount Releases A REDUCED SPACE underline in just half that space and does it adequately. For the matrimonial picture he saw his chance for more good copy, so he took more space and added the Hayes reader. For “Too Much Speed” and “Bought and Paid For” he figured that he would be able to put them over with less talk, so he cut down his advertising space. He seems to reason along the Lem Stewart lines that large displays are of no value unless they get over better copy. Of course you cannot cut it too much without getting the paper busy with the blue pencil on readers, but you can effect a gradual reduction that will bring your advertising down to more reasonable limits, and then you will have more money with which to splurge on a big special. Figure on just how little the paper will expect and then make that your usual space ; building up on this only when you have more to say or wish to say it more importantly. The idea that a three nines will sell twice as many seats as three four and a halfs is fundamentally wrong, else you could take all full pages and crowd the house at extra performances all the time. There is no magic in newspaper advertising save that you put in it yourself with smartly written copy. Mr. Gill also reports that he got good results from a program appeal to patrons to check their preferences on a blank which listed “Society drama, society comedy, love drama, tragedy, classics (from books), comedy drama, slapstick comedy, western.” Were also four lines for favored stars, and spaces for ^ u' and address and telephone number. This is old stuff, but once or twice a year you can dig up the copy, run it and not only get a line on your patrons’ tastes, but you can verify your mailing list and at the same time persuade them that you are giving careful attention to your programs. It would be good work, from this latter angle, even if you threw the replies m the waste basket. It would have ^ t moral value, but no wise manager will basket that stuff until he has taken off the results and if he gets the favored stars checked he can use the telephone numbers to good advantage. — P. T. A.— David Horsley Runs Theatre in Hawaii David Horsley, who figured prominently as a producer in the good old days of the M. P. bales Company, is now conducting the States 1 heatre in Honolulu. He writes that he is coming to New York to make additional contracts blit meanwhile he sends in samples of his advertising. These are on pink paper and cannot be reproduced, but they are interesting examples of what can be done in Hulaland. Evidently he is also connected with the First Naffonal excl^nge there, for one of the ads — on Jirn the Penman,” urges the reader to demand the States program at his own theatre W 'll! for the large spaces taken advertisements. They seem de^^ned to sell the program as well as the house His display for “Go and Get It” is a six htteens, and for Norma Talmadge in “The s^elTnteen deeper— about a seventeen. This lists twenty-one houses play mg First Nationals in the Territory of Hawaii advertiser and we regret that the tint of the paper prohibits reproduction, for they are interesting exarnples and show none of the amaeunshness wfoch too often marks the torl Z in -3^ — P. T. A.— ‘‘All WeP’ Because there _ was a flight aviator i FoT^M Theatr( Fort Myers, Fla., swapped a slide for a aerial bill stunt. Fifty passes were throw trom the plane while it flew over the mai streets. Ten went into the river, but it i still warm down in Florida and small bov dived in and rescued them. -With window cards, extra stifls and general jazz, com Harris playe ^ Sand for three days, wher two days was supposed to be the limit fc this town.