The Moving picture world (April 1922)

April 15, 1922 MOVING PICTURE WORLD 753 Selling the Picture to the^Public effect. Most advertisers would be tempted to elaborate the punch in lines of the small type talk and probably would do so at the expense of the entire display. Some never appear to learn that display is purely a relative value and that all lines in eighteen point would give little more display than all lines in an eight point. It is all brass band and no parade, and it does not get over. — P. T. A.— Mexico Has Discovered Hook-up Page's Value The fame of the hook-up page, whereby someone else helps you to advertise and thanks you for the opportunity, has spread to Mexico, where Sr. Douglas Fairbanks, "la major espada del mundo," has introduced the fashion through his performance in "The Three Musketeers." Apparently this is a hook-up page worked by United Artists in behalf of the several theatres playing the attraction, for six houses are mentioned in the display, with a U. A. cover line rbouGLAs" Fairbanks) A SPANISH HOOK-UP PAGE and ears. The hook-ups do not connect very clearly with the title, but at least the idea is put over and succeeding tie-ups will probably be with titles more susceptible of use by the contributing merchants. Pointing Fingers Are Big Point in Lobby Pointing fingers are the chief selling point for "I Accuse" in this lobby display by William Cutts, of the Columbia Theatre, Seattle. These do not show up well in the photograph because the foreshortening gives but a poor display in a photograph, but the idea can be gained. There is a huge hand, apparently modeled, above the box office and each pair of doors also carries the accusing finger for the United Artists' title. Even the doorman seems to have caught the idea, though we presume that he is not a permanent fixture but merely butted in. The finger was a big feature in the trade advertising displays for the Abel Gance presentation, and the idea works just as well in the lobby as it does on the advertising page, and it is well suited to the title and the nature of the play. It is a well established fact that a pointing finger is always a good attractor, and it probably would be more often used were it easier to get over, but it takes good drawing to get proper perspective and the hand shown in side elevation has not the same effect. Mr. Cutts used the finger in every form of advertising, making it a trademark of the produc tion, and it helped largely to bring in the good business that was the reward of his extra effort. —P. T. A.— Granada Advertisements Given Strong Displays Roth & Partington are naturally giving their best efforts to the new Granada, the display house of their San Francisco string. It is not always possible to better the work Jewett Bubar always does, but he puts in his best licks on the Granada layouts. This is one of the best he has done for the new house, simple, yet carrying the idea of the title and the story. It is rather late coming to hand, for this was the New Year's presentation, but it is still sug ness of the draughting and the use of mass colors. They all help to give suggestion for other displays on other titles. Bubar is particularly clever in handling his masses of lights and shades, which is the reason we reproduce so much of the work done for the Roth & Partington houses, just as we stress the Shea spaces for single column displays. They are not so much to be copied as to be adapted. The theatre artist who will make a large scrap book of the best examples shown here — as well as keeping some of the worst, as a warning — will have a library of material well worth his while. —P. T. A. — Double Reader Card Got Large Business G. M. Blake, assistant manager of the Arcade Theatre, Brookhaven, Miss., writes that he gets so much help from this department he wants to kick in with an idea of his own. He sends a throw card which reads : THIS CARD and 10c, or 28c ENTITLES YOU TO see "RENT FREE" with Wallace Reid FOR ONE DAY At the Arcade Theatre Today The capitalized lines were in heavy eighteen point commercial and the others in a light eight point, with the result that at first glance the card seemed to read that you were entitled to rent free for one day. Even after they got the entire message a lot of people seemed to think that it was a discount card and turned in the card at the box office, along with the 28 cents, though this was the regular admission and tax. Are you even up with this department or are you a poor debtor? Kick in. ?TO evll^rOMF aA HAPPY PROrPF^Oli^NFW >ECP* ONE OF BU BAR'S BEST gestive and still worthy of study even though you may have played this Paramount attraction. The idea of these advertisement reproductions is not so much to give the artist something to copy as to provide him with suggestive material which will enable him to handle other titles. Do not pass over an advertisement merely because the title is old. Study its appeal and adapt the idea to some other title. Study the placement of the types, and the relation of the type to the drawing, the effective Special Ticket Office Frank H. Burns, publicity man for the Southern Enterprises theatres in Orlando, Fla., used a three-card mailing campaign on "A Fool's Paradise," starting three weeks in advance, but the big kick was found in a special box office, at the Beacham Theatre, done in imitation of a railroad ticket office. This was started the week before the showing, and then was used for an advance sale for the Paramount special. It was also used the week of the showing with the Texas locale suggested on a specially painted backing. SELLING A UNITED ARTISTS' RELEASE