Monsieur Verdoux (United Artists) (1947)

v* - KEEP THE CONTROVERSY AT THE BOILING POINT! LADY, CM YOU TAKE A DARE? Lady, start laughing at yourself! It’s your woman’s right to know before hand that when you see Charles Chaplin’s sensational mo¬ tion picture, “Monsieur Verdoux,’’ you see your- self-and how funny you can get. Women without a sense of humor needn’t apply. In “Monsieur Verdoux” Charles Chaplin has used his own, inimitable brand of humor to perpetuate the best joke on women since The Serpent per¬ suaded Eve that an apple was good for the complexion. Every feminine foible and failing is there. In “Monsieur Verdoux” Chaplin puts on the screen all the things a woman’s best friend won’t tell her, without a little urging. As a modem French Bluebeard, Verdoux loves and liquidates the ladies. The ladies bring it on them¬ selves. They’re susceptible, suspicious, sour, sac¬ charine, simple and snobbish. Worse than that, they’re crazy about the fellow. The theme is startling. The love story is strange. And the laughter is earth-shaking. Husbands laugh at “Monsieur Verdoux." Boy friends — even bachelors — laugh at “Monsieur Verdoux.” The ladies? The ladies laugh too—but there is a peculiar quality to that laughter. Most critics have termed reaction to the film “hystericaP’-wouldn’t you know? NOTE: W< The ad above is available as Mat 208 (2 cols.) from your National Screen Exchange. ORD-OF-MOUTH is the lifeblood of showmanship! To keep 'em talking about "Monsieur Verdoux" requires a daring and different approach to your usual ballyhoo. Shown here are two of the regular display ads which are read¬ ily adaptable to this kind of startling showmanship. Both ads are a warning ... a warning to expect a picture that is shocking, different, not "just another motion pic¬ ture!" Make it your business to deluge your town with reprints of this mes¬ sage. Make it one of the key angles of your campaign. For maximum distribution get the "Warning" ad into your regular pro¬ gram mailings; into packages and mail boxes; on the streets and in your lobby, throwing thousands off rooftops in busy sections of town, provided police per¬ mission is obtainable. Make enlarge¬ ments of this ad for display in lobby, in store windows, on street corners, in or¬ ganization meeting rooms and club houses. Also tack 'em up on newsstands, poles, fences, posts. The "Lady, Can You Take A Dare?" is of special interest to the women. Wherever the ladies congregate — in restaurants, hotels, beauty shops, dress shops, offices and stores — those are the logical places to concentrate your circulation. The important thing is to be sure that everybody — but everybody — sees and reads these startling messages! A WARNING! Before you see Charles Chaplin in "Monsieur Verdoux" you must know some facts about the most controversial motion picture of all time. Charles Chaplin, deserting his beloved little tramp charac¬ ter, enacts the role of the slick, sinister and charming French Bluebeard. His business: murder. Charles Chaplin introduces a revolutionary pattern ol screen story-telling, confident the public will wel¬ come the most original humor and the most original drama ever filmed. There is a peculiar intensity of story and an even more peculiar hysteria of laughter in "Monsieur Verdoux." We must warn you - and YOU must warn your friends - that you must come prepared to behold something never before shown on the screen. Please remember, this is not "just another motion picture!" Charles Chaplin has dared to create for your unforgettable entertainment the diabolical but amusing story once told only in whispers. The genius of Chaplin holds a copyright on his type of love story - a love story that hurts, that frightens, that stays with you as a lingering memory. "Monsieur Verdoux" will open at the theatre on _ NOTE: The ad above is available as Mat 307 (3 cols.) or Mat 207 (2 cols.). Order from your National Screen Exchange. Be certain to add playdate infor¬ mation. THE CHAPLIN MOUSTACHE I NEXPENSIVE replicas of the Chaplin moustache are available for giveaway, especially to the young fans to whom Charlie Chaplin is new and exciting. Moustaches are shown actual size. Give this intriguing item widescale distribu¬ tion. To whip up interest among the key publicity media in town, prepare a card locally as shown at right with a false black Chaplin moustache and a blue Van Dyke-type beard pasted thereon. These should be mailed to entertain¬ ment editors, city editors, columnists, radio commentators, educators, civic leaders, etc. CHAPLIN CHANGES! Page Five