The Singing Kid (Warner Bros.) (1936)

INVITE CHILDREN TO SYBIL JASON’S PARTY If you think you can promote food and decorations, give the children an Easter party in your theatre. All you need are some Easter eggs, candy and a few games they can play. How does it tie in with pic? Why, it’s called Sybil Jason’s Easter Party — and blow-ups of Jason form part of the decorations. Needless to say, if there’s a Sybil Jason Club in town, its members are the guests of honor. EASTER IN THEATRE In planning your show, you'll want to give an Easter touch to lobby and front. Artist can cut out and paint cardboard to resemble brilliantly colored Easter eggs, on which there’s copy telling about show. Same idea can be worked by painting bunnies or Easter lilies instead of the eggs. They can all be set up in lobby or put atop marquee. Another variation would be to print giveaways on cut-out eggs or bunnies, with copy again telling folks what you’re offering them during Easter week. LET ‘EM ROLL EGGS Perhaps a local take-off of the White House lawn annual eggrolling contest would get some space. Youngsters are invited to participate via ads and news stories, which also tell folks that you’re offering free admish to the winnahs. If you can promote the eggs, stunt costs only a few ducats —and might get plenty of breaks in local papers. FEATHER FOR HATS Why not give ’em a feather for their Easter bonnets? Needless to say, feather has pasted lettering telling that “The Singing Kid” is playing at your theatre. If you’re playing this show ’round Easter + here’s your special tie-in campaign. AL JOLSON’'S SEARCH FOR BEST DRESSERS Easter and clothes are the same thing to most women, so why not play up the style angle with a search for the best dressed women in town? You call it ‘Al Jolson’s search for Springfield’s best dressed women.” Here’s our suggestion on how to run the stunt: I. Release stories telling that you’re planning search on Easter Sunday. 2 2. Try to get Y 4 t department and dress stores inter ested in idea. Their advertising and window dis plays can tell about it. Biggest angle of course, would be to hold fashion show on stage. This could be given for local charity, in which case maybe debs will act as models and big society leaders will sponsor. 3. On Easter Sunday, photographer stands in front of theatre snapping the best dressers. Sign out front tells folks that it’s Al’s search and that selections will be posted at theatre the next day. 4. After stills are developed, you post ’em out front, with winnahs encircled. If newspaper is willing, publish winning stills in paper, with story telling lucky ’uns to call at B.O. for ducats. KIDDIES’ BUNNY RACE If you think there are enough children who have pet rabbits in town, organize a bunny derby as part of your Easter celebration. Personally, we think that spectators would get a big kick out of it and that the papers might give you a good break on the stunt. Entire gag shouldn’t cost you more than a bit of your time and ducats for the winnets. If need be, nab a few rabbits from pet shop and have kids use them for the race — with nobody knowing the difference. Think it'll click? FLOWERS TO WOMEN In exchange for lobby credit, florist. may be willing to supply you with flowers to give the ladies attending Easter matinee. BE SURE TO CONTACT | VACATIONING KIDDIES Kids will be vacationing from school during Easter week, so make every possible effort to get ’em around to see your show. You can teach ’em by distributing heralds, blotters and the rest in front of school during week preceding vacation. And once they’re out of school, hold special matinees for the youngsters. Sybil Jason party suggested elsewhere on page oughta interest them, and maybe you can offer special cartoon shorts to make ’em want to get to theatre even more. Other angles include kiddie amateur contest, egg hunt, contacting youngsters’ clubs, etc. It’s an angle that can mean plenty of business, so we’d advise you to make sure you contact the kids. EASTER SALE TIE-UPS See if there’s a chance of co-operating with stores on their Easter sales. Copy can read: “A big Easter sale at Loser’s—a big Easter show at the Strand.” MAIL EASTER CARDS As substitute for program, you could send Easter greetings to your mailing list. Card reads along these lines: “Easter Greetings from the stars of ‘The Singing Kid, the big Easter show now playing at the Strand Theatre.” BUNNIES AS PRIZES Wondering about prizes for any contests you’re running? We suggest bunnies, since they’re so popular around Easter time. The children, especially, would consider ’em swell prizes and they don’t cost much « in case you’re interested. An added thought: Man dressed as Jolson in blackface can give away the prize. Then, at the same time, he plugs show—possibly singing a song or two. AN EASTER SUNDAE Maybe drug store manager can be persuaded to invent a Sybil Jason Easter Sundae (get it? ) for the holidays. Still of Sybil can be pasted on window with copy telling about sundae—and about the swell show she’s in at your theatre.