The Moving picture world (April 1920-May 1920)

April 24, 1920 THE MOVING PICTURE WORLD 573 Back to the Old Days for ''The Copperhead 99 United Artists Issues Five Folders to Help Exhibitors Put OverlComedy CONTINUING its policy of helping exhibitors to help themselves, the United Artists Corporation has issued five folders on the first Mack Sennett five reeler, "Down on the Farm." These folders range from four to twelve each and severally handle the program and newspaper exploitation, newspaper advertising suggestions, newspaper publicity, lobby display and posters and the music and presentation. The five are issued in a single folder. But perhaps the most radical departure from old methods is the continuance of the art copy, which was first used for "Pollyanna" and very generally taken up by the exhibitors all over the country. The supply of cuts and mats is ample, but in addition there are a number of drawn designs working in from two to four columns or larger, for the use of those larger houses which may wish to make their own displays. Snappy Cuts. There is not a piece of advertising, even in the single column width, which does not suggest the speed of the production, while the layouts are still better. About the best of the lot is a set of three streamers to be used for head or tail pieces, genuinely humorous in their drawing, and capable of being " """"" ' """"""" •» «» r,ii„N miiiiii iimiit .,r niMiir.iiiiir The Art Copy Strips for Head and Tailpieces. ' ' ' ' „, employed in a variety of ways, from a straight tail piece to a page border, as was recently shown in an advertisement for 1 he Lost City. ' They are so spaced that the cuts can be sawn apart, if desired, to get smaller pieces or joined to make a continuation. About the only objection to the material is the suggestion that the house name appear above the layout instead of within the border, but the drawings are so made that the signature can run within tne cut with no alteration. These drawings are supposed to be for iff^^ "i'^ \^'' '^'■S^'' which can th. '51'?."'^' <=,Vt w?'-'^ but in the case of the Follyanna" designs even the smaller houses picked up the art work for special layouT' '^^'■'""^ designs into house Dividing the book into sections makes it possible to distribute the folders to those who have each department of exploitation m charge instead of making it necessary to pass one book from hand to hand The newspaper folder gives suggestions for newspaper stunts, and the music and production folder contains ideas along these lines while lobby work comes as well provided with suggestions. There is somethine from every angle, and to suit every purse ^w^y from the idea that only the first run houses are worth while. Now It is realized that in the aggregate the smaller rentals received from the last run houses mean ' when they are entered ance, and an efforts is now being made to appeal to the small town man and to get his money by helping him to make it. loaned its camels for a Shrine parade in New York. The procession had not gone half a mile before the camels had to be sent back to the stables. They could not keep pace with a man walking in fast march time. The fact is so little known that you can probably get into the pure reading columns with a story and get a little side interest in this unusual story. Here's Another Puzzle for Plain Clothes Men and Cops POLICE hook-ups seem to be growing fashionable. Not long ago the police and detectives were invited to puzzle their brains over "The Mystery of the Yellow Room." Now the Jans Pictures invites exhibitors to puzzle the "flatties" with "Love Without Question," and suggests a prize of a revolver to the officer who can guess the climax, the film being stopped before the denouement. It is a good stunt where it has not already been done, and offers a number of pubjicity angles. I Presswork the Camels F you play "The Virgin of Stamboul" play up the running camels used in the picture for one or more press stories. Ask your patrons if they ever saw a camel run. Most of them will be willing to so swear that they have, and a heading, "Did you ever see a camel run?" will get attention because it seems to sound so silly. All your lives your patrons have been reading about "the fleet ships of the desert," but few of them ever say any camel fleeter than a canal boat drawn by a lame mule. The circus camels are all caravan camels, trained to hold a slow walk for hours, but if they are compelled to go as rapidly as a man in a hurry they soon tire and go on strike. The running camel is as distinct from the caravan beast as a Rolls-Royce differs from a Ford. Most of the camels Americans have seen are the cheaper caravan animals and the running camels used in "The Virgin of Stamboul" are really curiosities in America. Some years ago the Hippodrome management Better Get an O. K. for This HARRY J. TROXELL, JR., of the Photoplay Theatre, Gettysburg, worked a purely local angle in his advertising for "The River's End." It will be recalled that the supposed murderer who comes back in the guise of the policeman is name John Keith. There is a prominent local resident of the same name and the newspapers flamed with the fact that John Keith was suspected of murder. They had to read on to discover that it was a fictitious John Keith, and by that time they were interested in the play. The stunt works well in towns where leading citizens are well known, but it is best, to avoid trouble, to first obtain the consent of the person thus exploited. An injunction suit might prove costly. Gane Took Seriously the Old Stage Coach Suggestion PERHAPS you recall the good old days when about every third plan book suggested that you get an old stage coach and run it through the town, utterly ignoring the fact the coaches are scarce. The idea died out after a time, but William Gane, of the Belmont Theatre, Philadelphia, dug out an old coach; possibly the one the Lubin company used to employ, loaded it with men and women dressed in the period of the play and sent it through the streets properly tagged. And it worked, just as the press men used to say that it would. And if you can't get a coach you can get some old fashioned rig, perhaps. You can always find something in a pinch, and the costumes need not give much trouble if you keep your people in the rig. just as much the bank bal It's Not on Account of the Railroad Strike. William Gane thought this stunt out before a peeved switchman in Chicago made up his mind to cost the country half a billion dollar.s.