Ballyhoo (Mar 23, 1956)

Page scan 00016 from Ballyhoo

Record Details:

Title:
Ballyhoo
Date:
Mar 23, 1956
Volume:
Ballyhoo (Mar 23, 1956) National
Leaf #:
00016
Language:
English
Collection:
Canada, Global Cinema, and Hollywood Studio System
Format:
Periodicals
Contributor:
Media History Digital Library, Greig Dymond in memory of David Dymond, Paul Moore and Jessica Whitehead
Coordinator:
Media History Digital Library
Description:

Ballyhoo

  • Ontario 'B' District Ballyhoo, editor: Dan Krendel (1952-55)
  • Profit Blitz for ‘Fitz’, editor: Dan Krendel (1955)
  • National Ballyhoo, editor: Dan Krendel (1956-57)
  • Time Out for Ticket Talk, editor: Norman Barker (1960-61)

Ballyhoo (1952-61) was published by Famous Players Canadian Corporation as a mimeographed internal sales and theatre managers’ newsletter. Editor, Dan Krendel, had been division manager of the Ontario ‘B’ District since 1942, and initially created Ballyhoo in 1952 to circulate weekly updates for a regional sales contest. Ontario ‘B’ District Ballyhoo continued until 1955 as a tool for sharing and incentivizing new sales techniques and publicity methods as the movie business declined in the face of television and the baby boom.

In Fall 1955, Profit Blitz for ‘Fitz’ was a nationwide sales contest, named for Famous Players’ president J. J. Fitzgibbons, honouring his 25th year as head of the business. Dan Krendel was made National Drive Captain and edited a weekly newsletter for the campaign.

From 1956 until at least 1957, National Ballyhoo was published weekly with Krendel as editor. He continued the style and content developed earlier for his Ontario ‘B’ District, but now extended vastly for a chain-wide coast to coast scale. Ballyhoo’s sharing promotional tools came at a time of contracting box office as television and automobile ownership became prevalent in the mid-1950s.

By 1960 until at least 1961, Time Out for Ticket Talk continued as a mimeographed newsletter, edited by Norman Barker of the head office publicity department. Time Out was compiled on a less ambitious scale than Ballyhoo. Compared to the earlier national compilation of local publicity gimmicks, Time Out often contained only a single memo or reproduced local story, and was often undated and only informally edited.

– Paul Moore, March 2024

Date Added:
April 11, 2024
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PARAMOUNT HALIFAX I have a note from Freeman Skinner in which he casually mentions that he was successful in tying in with a local jeweller for space in his newspaper ad, plugging FOREVER DARLING, The "Space" he mentions just happens to be a large banner headline across the whole top of the page reading ... "Give a Neima Diamond and Remain FOREVER DARLING to the One You Love ..." In the upper left hand corner is a good sketch of Lucy and Desi in a large heart, and in the body of the ad is a good pressbook ad, The "space" just happened to be a FULL PAGE PROMOTION ... Don't be so modest fella. In addition Freeman mentions that the jeweller gave good mention to the pic and theatre on his regular radio programs for a full week. In addition, Freeman arranged with the American News Co. for displays in all local stores handling the pocket edition of the book, All their trucks were well bannered too, Four down town music stores put in very colourful window displays, and the radio station made excellent use of the song recording during the run, with frequent mention of the attraction, And this is what the lad calls a "casual" campaign, I'td like to see one that he really goes all out on, oXeXoXeXe METROPOLITAN REGINA Jack Heaps cashed in on a local event, and got himself and his theatre plenty of good P.R. Seems that the Regina lads knocked off the Dominion High School Curling Championship, which caused quite a stir around town, Jack got together with Hilliard Gunn of the Capitol, and presented the winners with books of tickets to both sheatres. The boys were presented with their gifts on the local T.V. and quite a fuss was made of the deal .,. and you may be sure plenty of mention was made of the Met and the Capitol, oXeXeXeXe TIVOLI HAMILTON I don!t see too much evidence of livewire merchandising from this spot ... but I do see a good four column pic in the local Spectator of some of the students at Variety Village in one of their plays. A good story accompanies the picture, which will undoubtedly help the sale of tickets when the Hamilton theatre managers put on their annual Variety show. Oh yes ... I do see a six column display ad in the Spec, paid for by C K O C and mentioning several of their giveaway programs, among which was the "Homemakers! Holiday" which had its finale on the stage of the Tivoli. You’1l have to do better than this Don ... if you have any ideas of making the “inners! Circle in our NATIONAL BALLYHOO, You get the top product ... Let's have some top selling jobs.