The Moving picture world (November 1922-December 1922)

November 18, 1922 MOVING PICTURE WORLD 253 Selling the Rcture to the Ptoblic So EPES WINTHROP SARGENT Making Minor Accessories Show Results in Place of Merely Giving Them Away WHILE this story deals directly with the distribution of the "fanfotos" of the Paramount stars put out by Paramount to advertise the players, it should be considered not in connection with these souvenirs but as a method of handling the distribution of any novelty accessory. The fanfotos, as most exhibitors Unow, are a set if eighteen sepia prints of Paramount stars, autographed by the star and reproduced to give an almost perfect imitation of the original photograph. They were sold for $15 a thousand in quantities. Most managers merely offered them as souvenirs to some special performance, used them backed with the program for some special week, or merely handed them out as advertisements. Lem Wanted More Lem Stewart, exploitation director for Southern Enterprises, possessed of greater vision, figured that they could be made to give more for the money, and he ofifered a special prize of $25 to the Southern Enterprises manager making the most eflfective use of the accessory. The conditions of the contest are best covered by these extracts from the circular letter he sent out: "We believe they can be made a powerful sales asset — the purpose of these is not merely for distribution. The prize will be awarded that method which not only shows the greatest immediate return on the expenditure, but at the same time creates future good will. What this department is after is the method of getting the maximum sales value out of these photos." The additional advice was given that people value most what they have to pay for, and the suggestion made that they be given Paramount Lobby Is Not Strikingly New This Paramount lobby suggestion is by no means new. It has been used on a lot of other South Sea Island stories and probably will be used on a lot more, but it is simple and will catch the eye. It is suggested that the lobby floor be sanded, to carry out the idea, but this depends on what you have on the floor of your foyer and auditorium. If there is sufficient marble or tile between the lobby and the carpets to let the sand be shaken off, the sand is a good stunt. Otherwise, it would be well to leave the sand out. Japanese matting can be used to cover the box office if grass is not easy to procure. Make a conical roof and then sheath the sides, first bathing it in green dye, if you wish, or painting it in green and red stripes, alternating with the natural straw color. Matting can also be used as the mat for the still frames in place of the usual boards, and if Hallowe'en is not too remote, perhaps you can get some of the skull lanterns to suggest the head hunters. The banner shows the title of one of the leading songs from the current Ziegfeld Follies, and perhaps you can tie the music store to a display on the song. It is worth a try, at any rate. value by demanding something in return — information, attendance or mailing list. The prize was awarded Frank J. Miller, manager of theatres in Augusta, Ga., who conducted the identification contest in conjunction with the local newspaper, getting advertising valued at about $800 in return for his small investment of 59 sets of tickets and fifty pairs of passes good during Paramount Week. His idea is not as new as some of the others, but effectiveness and not novelty was to be the test of the contest. How He Worked It The newspaper was permited to take all the credit for the stunt in return for the advertising. This included a four-column display — almost a quarter page — for three weeks before the contest, a number of readers, and a double truck the opening day of Paramount Week. The eighteen pictures were displayed in a prominent window, with the rules of the contest. This was done a week in advance. On the Sunday whicli ushered in Paramount Week a double truck with eighteen advertisements was run. Each advertisement displayed a cut of one of the eighteen stars. Fifty sets of photos and fifty pairs of seats were offered for the fifty best lists. In addition to the identification, the contestant was required to name some of the plays in which each star had recently appeared and a play of theirs scheduled for early release, tying up to the display ads in the Saturday Evening Post and other papers. Five thousand replies were received, and the winners were announced by the paper through the medium of the same double truck on Tuesday, this time with the identifications under the cuts, that the contestants might verify their lists. In spite of the large number of replies received, there was no difficulty in deciding the winners, since minor errors made the reduction of the list a simple matter. The checking was done more on the lists of plays than upon the names, since most of Not So Good With righteous indignation, the Newark Star-Eagle asks a correction of the story recently appearing in this department concerning an athletic meet held in Newark and which, according to the story, was planned by the Branford Theatre and sold to the newspaper. The amusement editor states that the idea originated in the offices of the Star-Eagle and not from the Branford, and that the painting for "The Eternal Flame" on the banner and bass drum as shown in the cut did not appear in the parade, there or elsewhere. It adds that the prize distribution was made on the field the day of the meet and not at the theatre, and adds: "Not only in your paper but in other motion picture publications there have been many misstatements on stunts we have put over for the local theatres. We do not mind the local manager of the theatre getting due credit, but we insist on correct statements." Evidently some short-sighted press representative is killing the goose which lays the golden eggs. the players were well known, and the decision was made upon the fullness of the information given as to_ past and future appearances. The Strand, Birmingham, Ala., opened an information booth in a local music store, the crowds drawn to the store through curi A fai lliiii.uill III (vil.-ir THIS CONVENTIONAL LOBBY WILL SELL "EBB TIDE" IN A PINCH It is not up to the Paramount standard, but it suggests the usual idea and is simple and effective. The cutouts are from the three sheets and the grass should come from some marsh or river bank, if you can find one. The banner is a slogan, and not the title.