The Happiest Millionaire (Disney) (1967)

1916 OLD TIME AUCTION Work with local merchants in setting up an “Old Time Auction.” Newspaper and screen advertising can be given to the merchants in trade for various merchandise. Hold the auction in your theatre lobby or out in front of the boxoffice. The public would bid on the merchandise using the ‘“‘Million Dollar Bills’ which they would be able to obtain from participating merchants the week prior to the auction. A “Million Dollar Bill” would be given with a purchase of a certain amount. This is a very workable tie-in promotion in which everyone will profit. GROUP SALES Group sales have proven to be an important part in planning a well-rounded campaign. Selling blocks of tickets to organizations of all types can be considered an integral part of sales promotion and a guarantee of along and extremely profitable run. The most effective way of selling groups and theatre parties is still the old ‘““door-knocking” way. Handle each situation in a personal manner. Prepare and send an initial introductory letter along with your sales letter or brochure. A follow-up telephone call is most important in arranging a meeting with the committeeman in charge of events and activities. Theatre parties, when dealt with properly, serve two important purposes . . . entertainment and fund raising. After you have talked with the right people and have made that important sale, follow through in helping them with the necessary publicity, advertising ideas, posters, film clips and the tickets they’ll need. Each organization should be given the utmost of attention and should feel that you are helping them make their event a very successful affair. Group sales and theatre parties are tremendous ways of building and maintaining a good mid-week business all during your engagement. Go from one to another. Many organizations are both capable and willing to co-operate in raising money for their cause. POSTER CONTESTS IN SCHOOLS Arrange for teachers to have their students develop ideas for a poster contest. The theme could be ‘“‘My Life As A Millionaire... Each student would draw eight or ten small sketches depicting events out of their lives should they become a millionaire. Prizes can consist of soundtrack albums as second and third prizes. The first prize could be the opening of a new $25.00 savings account at the local bank. Judging could be done by local disc jockeys or television personalities . . . a good way to get a plug on the air. Another possibility along this line is an art and essay contest. The boys would develop their own concept of a 1917 flivver and write a short essay. Girls could draw one of the costumes from the same era and write a short description. THE SOUNDTRACK ALBUM Most theatres play music before the show or during intermission. If you do, then get a copy of the ‘‘Happiest Millionaire’ soundtrack. Start playing all of these wonderful and catchy tunes, written in the same delightful vein as “Mary Poppins,” by the Academy Award-Winning Sherman Brothers. Talk to the principals and music directors of various schools in your community about playing the soundtrack album during the lunch hour. Furnish song books to the music department. Furnish your local radio station with the soundtrack album. The tunes have great public appeal and lend themselves to any type of radio station and programming. This is another plus in getting your opening and the picture publicized. USE ENTERTAINMENT CLIPS Promote your engagement of “‘The Happiest Millionaire” the entertaining way by renting a 16mm continuous projector and using all of the film clips. Set up the projector on the street by your boxoffice or put it in an adjacent window. Another possibility is the window of your local record dealer where there is a lot of foot traffic. Work with the dealer in setting up a display in the window consisting of the 33-1/3 record album along with 11 X 14 color stills from the picture. This will make a wonderfully exciting and colorful attention-getter for the picture and the album. PLACE MATS Get “The Happiest Millionaire” talk started early with the families. A good place to begin is with “Place Mats” at a family patronized restaurant. A special mat, (MIL 200) available from the Buena Vista Specialty Dept., N.Y., has been prepared of the front of the ‘‘Million Dollar Bill’’ shown on page 22 of this pressbook. Have them imprinted locally with your theatre and playdate added. Restaurant owners will go for the unique artwork which depicts the Biddle family. TABLE TENTS A small version of the ‘Million Dollar Bill’ is available on the same mat as the place mat. Use it for imprinting “‘Table Tents” for restaurant and cafe counters, school lunch rooms and drug store soda fountains. A HIGH CALORIE DIET “Become physically fit — try going on a chocolate cake diet!’ This is A. J. Drexel Biddle’s philosophy and can quite possibly be the basis for a contest promotion involving the housewives in your community. Have them write their own version of the “Richest Diet” recipe. Tie in with a local bakery and award prizes for the best entry. COLORING CONTEST When it comes to a coloring contest, the kids are always ready to participate, but when it involves prizes such as the comic book or record album, it’s a sure way to create interest and to start the good ‘‘word-of-mouth” in their families. ANTIQUE AUTO PARADE Contact your local automobile dealers and ask them to sponsor an Antique Auto Parade. In every town you'll find the old-time classics. For added publicity, have the drivers dressed in costumes of the early 1900’s. Award a pair of tickets to those in the oldest car and for the best and most authentic costume. CROSS-PLUGGING WITH TRAILERS Use the theatrical trailer and teaser trailer for cross-plugging in your other theatres or drive-ins. The more screen exposure you can get, the better your grosses will be. MILLIONAIRE RADIO CONTEST Talk with your local radio station and set up a “Happiest Millionaire” contest. Here is your chance to sell block tickets to them to use as prizes for contests or for them to give out to their advertisers. Have the station announce the contest over the air. The public would be asked to submit, in a short letter, their ideas of what they would do with a million dollars. To add humor to the contest, set it up as “‘The kookiest things to do with a million dollars.” Three winners would be read each day and each would receive the ‘Million Dollar Bill’ (see page 22) good for two tickets at your boxOffice. DIRECT MAILING OF PROGRAMS Make the ‘Happiest Musical of the Year’ a “One-In-A-Million” engagement for you. Direct mail the “Happiest Millionaire” heralds. Secure a mailing list from local organizations and direct mailing companies. Tell the public well ahead of your opening that Walt Disney’s greatest, liveliest and happiest entertainment of all time is on the way to your town. If you have other theatres, try cross-plugging your heralds and programs. Get the message circulated around to the largest possible number of people. TEEN DANCE CONTEST Contact your local TV station and arrange a “Happiest Millionaire’ contest on one of their teenage dance programs. Have them display some of the posters as backgrounds. The best dancers (couple) would become “Millionaires for 24 hours.” This would include a chauffeur driven limousine, dining at a choice restaurant, seeing the ‘‘Happiest Millionaire’’ at your theatre, an orchid for the girl and any other prizes you care to add. And, of course, the more prizes you have, the more interest you’ll generate. Page 23