A Child Is Born (Warner Bros.) (1939)

HOW TO SELL GERALDINE 1. In selling your showing, play up Geraldine Fitzgerald big. Mount a blowup photograph on a lobby display with this copy: A NEW STAR IS BORN Remember Her In "Dark Victory" and “Wuthering Heights"? GERALDINE FITZGERALD Gives Another Sterling Performance As A Young Murderess Who Thinks She Isn't Fit To Bring A Child Into The World. "A CHILD IS BORN" . Critics claim that Geraldine Fitzgerald has the best speaking voice among performers on the screen today. Sponsor a contest in town to find the girl (good way to sell your show to telephone operators) with the clearest diction. Trials are held over the radio a chance for air plugs. . Find Geraldine Fitzgerald "double." . Geraldine Fitzgerald Tie-up Stills Evening dress Victrola Set of four — 30c First Baby Born... If you can line up enough merchants for this one, you’ve got a natural space and attention getter. First baby born during run of “A Child Is Born” becomes object of attention. All cooperating stores contribute gifts and receive credit in lobby display boards, cooperative advertising, etc. Gifts may include baby ~ clothes, furnishings, photographs and laundry service, baby bank account. Congratulatory wire from stars of picture in hands of winning mother makes good newsshot. “COMMENT CARDS" The Strand Theatre is interested to know how you enjoyed seeing ''A Child Is Born." 1. Invite a representative cross-section group of women in town to a special screening—manicurists, salesgirls, nurses, club women, women doctors, housewives, stenographers, bookkeepers, etc. As they leave the theatre ask them to fill out the comment cards. 2. Have an inquiring reporter stationed in the lobby to quiz the people with the remarks sent out to the street via the P, A. system. 3. Get local newspaper to run a feature story carrying the quotes and photos you get. 4. Change question to: How do you think Geraldine Fitzgerald compares as an actress with Bette Davis, Luise Rainer, Katherine Hepburn and Margaret Sullavan. Cop Stork Find one of those cops who has aided in an emergency delivery to be _ interviewed for feature story and human interest broadcast. After this you might follow it up with a personal appearance at the opening with the mother he aided, her husband and if possible the child as well. | Invite Heads Invite the directors, leading doctors and. head nurses a _. from the local hos pital to be your guests at some “ sereening of the pic~ ture. Ask them for _-comments after the showing and, if usable, exploit them in every way in your printed matter and in your ads to interest the public to see the picture. Maternity Story Contact the maternity wards of your local hospitals for any human interest stories that may develop there — the baby that weighed a pound at birth, the baby born in a taxicab, ete. Arrange to plant story in cooperating paper. Visiting Hours Arrange with local hospitals to set aside a special visiting period when people can view the equipment of a modern hospital. Put special emphasis on the maternity angles —the incubators, the finger-printing and foot-printing apparatus for identification purposes, the delivery rooms, etc. y [10] BIRTH ANNOUNCEMENTS Proud mothers and fathers have been going to extremes recently in getting out witty, odd, illustrative, etc. birth announcements. Conduct a contest in town for the best of such cards or call for original card designs. Use best of these for lobby display. A **Must*’ Contest “Baby Photo Contest” is a must for this picture. Sponsor contest in collaboration with newspaper. Camera stores run special sale. Get your entries in early and each day run different photo in your ad. Display all entries in lobby of theatre. Tie in a dealer angle by having each winner in the preliminaries assigned to a particular merchant who displays photograph in his store. Winners awarded on stage night of opening, prizes are gifts from merchants, ete. Stars of “A Child Is Born”’ send congratulatory wires to aid festivities. An important part of your advance campaign is the Vitaphone Trailer on this show ...It shows authentic scenes from the picture and presents the right selling copy...Produced on the ‘home’ studio lot with the same technique and production care given the feature itself. That's why every Vitaphone Trailer does an effective selling job.