A Thousand Clowns (United Artists) (1965)

Free TV Featurette “A Thousand Clowns” was filmed on location in New York and a special featurette was produced with the movie’s stars. All about movie making in New York, it shows Jason Robards and Barry Gordon as they roamed the city for their many scenes, east side, west side, all around the town. Kept light and entertaining, this “seminar” is perfect programming material for independent station or a network affiliate with local time to fill. For your featurette, write to: Exploitation Dept. United Artists Corp., 729 7th Ave., New York, N. Y. 10019 Murray's Room Key To TV On-The-Air Promotion If you have a TV station with a live host for local time, here is a promo that will build audience loyalty and create whacky word-of-mouth for both him and your playdate. The biggest sight-gag in “A Thousand Clowns” is the incredible set for Murray’s Room. (See production story on page 8 for a description of the articles with which it is furnished. ) Local programs that are “stripped” daily are always looking for something to program, so your ideas will be welcome. Call on the program director, explain the gag in the picture and suggest this stunt: Each day on his show, the host discusses Murray’s Room and his way of life. He calls for viewers to lend him any whacky or unusual articles of furniture they have in their homes . and he furnishes his set with them. By the time the movie opens he is living in a junk filled room like the set. He likes it! He conducts his regular program in the midst of it, crediting the donors. He may even invite them on the air for interviews. “What does your wife say about this moose-head?” he might ask, following with questions like: “Does she complain about dusting it? Does it have a name? Where did you get it, anyway, and why?” This promotion costs the station nothing and you nothing .. . even lead to local sponsorship, and here’s how to set that up: Work with the sales director at the TV station that has local time available and approach retailers with the offer to sponsor the stunt described above. The merchant gets an audience that builds daily . . . which is his guarantee that his message is making more than one impression on the viewer. Repetition sells and he knows it as well as you do. and is fun for all. It can Radio Campaign For ‘Better Garbage’ Based on one of the funniest scenes in the picture, here’s a promotion never used in your area before, although a radio personality in New York did it for months. Suggest to a local talk-show host that he use Murray’s plea in the picture for a gag promotion. His angle is that the wants to see a better class of garbage! In addition to his own campaigning, he interviews garbage men, who say that the garbage they’ve collected is very low class indeed. He interviews people in apartment houses who tell him that the low class garbage is giving the neighborhood a bad reputation. This gag can draw spot advertising from supermarkets, grocery and other stores selling fancy foods and party snacks. Savier tins, liver pate cans and wine bottle can upgrade garbage cans all over your community. You'll find this a talked-about and laughed-about running gag that can hold up for the week before your playdate and the first week of its run . . . even longer. Panel Show On Home Decoration Set a forum on home furnishings, using on your panel Antique Dealers, Junkmen and Interior Decorators. You might also include a young adult who has just moved away from home and furnished his/her own first apartment! Subjects for discussion are: e@ Ultra-modern opposed to traditional styles @ What is ‘camp’? @ What is an antique and what is junk? e@ How can old furniture and bric-a-brac be turned into attractive decorations and useful furniture? Treat the show fairly seriously, using many stills to illustrate the way Murray’s Room is decorated and pointing out his camp lamp, many clocks (giving his room a theme) and all the other unusual furnishings that make his style of decorating unique. SATIN ACCESSORIES coner or Later, | De Tif you didn't see Sooner or Later, eee ap “Tops The Stage Play! Se Fal) in love with ‘A Thousand Clowns’ on i You'll Fal) intove with PY Bie \ oa in = dway, you certainl 5 z Y . Uelightful in its 4 "b> Thousand oe , 2 — . \ As Thousand \! rds Harris \,, various excellencies!” 1 Mh, Glowns i ; ney "utr 4 thousand eT rae 9 ” Ny —N.Y. Herald t Ow; screen!” — 1. y. Times tn, vtbune all Clowns Monat De Luxe Sectional Valance Any length (minimum order 10 feet) Ft TOUR. oe ee ss $2.15 3-Piece Streamer 15 feet, strung together, in color Complete Streamer .... $21.50 Sooner or (ater. ng Qoull Fall in Love with, AS Thousand Glowns HANae a8 | d&son Barpara ‘Rebards Harris ORDER all this material from your local NATIONAL SCREEN SERVICE EXCHANGE. All items are manufactured by NATIONAL FLAG & DISPLAY CO., 43 W. 2\st St., New York, N. Y. 10010— gs Tel. 212-OR. 5-5230. In Canada, sep Sooner or fater.. You Fall in Love with As Thousand Glowns J&son Barpara oe fe Pht PCT TE bert LIN) place orders with CONSOLIDATED THEATRE SERVICES, 120 Wellington St., W. Torento, Ontario, Canada. Myre. Clowns’ Se TMI po tlekle-< a “If you didn’t see ‘A Thousand Clowns’ on ' Broadway, you certainly should see it 9x12 Flag Usher's on the screen!” —w. v. times Double Faced, $145.00 Badge Single Faced, $80.00 Each 50¢ FREE Teaser Trailer Tell your audiences weeks in advance of the zany comedy you're getting — and why, sooner or later they will fall in love with “A Thousand Clowns.” ... and tell them with this Teaser Trailer. Continue to use it with regular trailer just before opening and cross plug the picture with it at cooperating or associated theatres. It's available FREE at National Screen Regular Trailer The zany, off-beat quality of “A Thousand Clowns,” is caught and sold intriguingly by its selections of delightful snips from the feature. Get this soon and start running it early with the Teaser Trailer described above. This is also excellent for cross-plugging. With the judicious use of both trailers you can do a terrific selling job at the most important spot — your theatre! Order from National Screen FREE Radio Spots A brimming platter of ’em in varying lengths with plenty of room for inclusion of local playdate information. Order from: Exploitation Department United Artists Corporation 729 Seventh Avenue New York City For Kite Fans, Clubs! There is an important kite flying scene in the movie. Make the most of it. Organize kite-flying expeditions. Announce that kite flyers will meet at a park or picnic area at a particular time for the express purpose of flying kites — and only that! If you get a radio personality to tie-in, he offers to send kites to listeners promising to bring them at the appointed time and fly them. Or a cooperating merchant can make kites available at a special low price. The straight-faced pitch is that there is too much trouble and woe in town, too much gloom — and not enough kite flying. Try to keep this promotion on an adult level. You'll be surprised how many grown-ups will take it seriously and turn up for the stunt. In New York several years ago, several hundred teen-agers and young men and women in their twenties (the major part of your audience) turned out just to “mill”? and brought kites of every description . . . in response to a nitetime talk show suggestion that they all go fly their kites. Talk With Weather Lady Jason Robards has several funny telephone conversations with the recorded voice of the Weather Lady. Suggest to your most communityminded newspaper that it run pictures of local phone company weather ladies, with a write-in angled to this theme: "If You Could Talk To Any of These Weather Ladies, What Would You Say?" A letter a day could be published along with the picture of a different weather lady. If the paper is affiliated with a television or radio station, it will want to use these weather ladies . . . which is even better . . . as the girls are sure to plug the promotion (and the picture) on their own shows, on the air. This can be a big circulation booster for a paper because of the human interest factor and the participation element. Also everyone wonders what the telephone Weather Lady looks like (but only Murray Burns, in your picture, talks to her!) Art Stills These art elements are available as 8 x 10 black and white photographs. Their use is invaluable in promoting the film. Order by number from National Screen TG-Art 2 TC-Art 6 TC-Art 4 TC-Art 5 TC-Art 3 PAGE 1 1