Wild Boys of the Road (Warner Bros.) (1933)

HOW TO LAND EDITORIAL SPACE AND STIR UP PUBLIC INTEREST ‘“Wild Boys of the Road’’ is a pieture that every man and woman, boy and girl will want to see! You can go to the limit with plenty of powerful exploitation from every angle. Your campaign should be as rousing as the force of the picture itself because it has public appeal and will be widely talked about. This is the type of picture which inspires editorials and pubhe agitation, because of its theme. Hold a private sereening for juvenile court judges, district attorneys, chief of detective bureau, superintendent of railroad, head of. railroad police foree, Big Brother Association and Big Sister Association leaders, and editors of local newspapers. Approach your editors with the idea of getting editorial or news breaks calling attention to the deplorable conditions existing among American youth as depicted in ‘‘ Wild Boys of the Road.’’ These editorials should further reeommend a movement to be started locally to prevent local boys and girls of your eity from becoming ‘‘ Wild Boys of the Road.”’ Certainly after seeing ‘‘ Wild Boys of the Road’’ any editor, no matter how hard-boiled, will be moved to cooperate. Show the suggested editorial below to your editor. It will help you get across your idea and even may be used as an editorial if the editor hasn’t time to write one of his own. (Suggested Editorial) YOUNG AMERICA MARCHING TO HELL! It wasn’t so very long that we were all excited over Young America’s heavy gin parties, its recklessness and the wild abandon with which they “necked.” Yet, somehow, despite the prediction of many well meaning folks, Young America succeeded in working its way out of its irresponsible age. During the past two years, or since depression really set in we have heard very little about Young America’s wild parties. Has Young America settled down? SS It took a motion picture, “Wild Boys of the Road,” to open our eyes to a matter of more serious import than that which disturbed us a few years ago. We attended a preview of this picture, at the invitation of the Strand Theatre where the picture opens tomorrow. We learned what is happening to Young America, in a film that should be seen by every parent, by every boy and girl. Half a million boys and girls, “Wild Boys of the Road” reveals, are today roaming the country, footloose and free, living like animals and literally marching to Hell. This army living in tramp “jungles” and sewer pipe cities, when not being harried by police from town to town, is composed in the main of boys and girls too of respectable families who because of necessity, desire for thrills and adventure, have forsaken their homes. The wanderlust, the irresistible feeling that the grass is greener on the other side of the fence, have caused them to leave home. Some thinking they could secure jobs in other cities after searching in vain for work in their home town. Some have left home irked by parental restriction. But all marching to hell. Suffering cold, disease, and want. Nobody cares for them — they travel via freight trains, riding the rods until alert brakemen and railroad detectives throw them off. Many of them are rapidly developing into potential criminals. They steal to live. How long before they live to steal. We are at loss to suggest a plan whereby Young America marching to Hell can be recalled. But we do think that parents and their children will have a better understanding of life and of each other, if they saw “Wild Boys of the Road.” For your own sake and for the sake of your children, see it. Here’s another idea to arouse public interest in ‘‘ Wild Boys of the Road.’’ Urge the group of people attending the preview to write to the local newspapers with the pointed idea as described above. These letters are bound to be printed among the ‘‘Letters from Readers’’ or some such department which is a regular feature in every newspaper. Perhaps by pre-arrangement, a friendly judge or district attorney or a woman important in civie work will foster the suggestion to start such a movement. This is bound to be reported in the news columns and will stir up interest in the picture. Offering to cooperate by lending your screen and general publicity to carry appeals to your townspeople to support the movement. EXPLOITATION EDITORS LIKE “MAGIC SQUARE” The magie square will prove as big an attention-getter for you as for the countless other showmen who are regularly making use of it. Many newspapers have found the ‘‘ Magic Square’’ so popular with their readers, that they eagerly look forward to a new one each week for each picture. The current square conceals the sentence: THE AMAZING STORY OF YOUNG AMERICA It is solved by beginning with the circled square, moving one square right or left, up or down, not diagonally, and ending with the square which contains the period. Plant with your newspaper, together with the suggested publicity story offering guest tickets to the first twenty-five persons to send in. correct solutions, in care of the Magic Square Edi __‘‘ Wild Boys.of ths Roed’’ is_an_exzscitine dnara «¢ MACRHING TO HELL. tor at your theatre. (Suggested Publicity Story) EARN MOVIE TICKETS TO SEE “WILD BOYS OF THE ROAD” The ever popular Magic Square which has met with favor among thousands of readers of the Daily News, herewith appears again presenting a new problem sentence. Concealed in the Magie Square is a brief description of the new First National Picture, ‘‘Wild Boys of the Road’’ which Opes Neat eae tae, See eee Theatre. See if you can correctly form the sentence from the letters. It’s very easy. Just begin with the circled square, moving one square right or left, up or down, not diagonally, and ending at the square containing the period. Twenty-five pairs of guest tickets to see ‘‘Wild Boys of the Road’’ will be awarded to the twenty-five persons sending in the correct solutions. Be sure to submit your soluJtion no later than (date) ad dressed to Magie Square Edi tor. Cut No. 19 Cut 31sec Mat 5c rsa e on among the boys and girls who are wandering like wild animals about the country, living in hobo jungles, and sewer pipe cities. The leading parts are played by Frankie Darro, recently seen in ‘‘Mayor of Hell’’ with James Cagney, Dorothy Coonan, Edwin Philips, Rochelle Hudson, Ann Hovey, Arthur Hohl, Grant Mitchell, Claire McDowell, Sterling Holloway, Charles Grapewin, Robert Barrat, Ward Bond, Adrian Morris, Shirley a ee sean Dunsted, Minna Gombell and Willard Robertson. William A. Wellman directed. SENTENCING WILD BOYS TO SEE PICTURE, FRONT PAGE PUBLICITY A stunt we suggested for “Mayor of Hell” and with which a Shreveport, La. exhibitor landed a front page news story that gave the picture a dandy break, can also be applied to good advantage to “Wild Boys of the Road.” Practically every town, daily has one or more wild boys of the road picked up by the police at the railroad station and as they come thru the town. Generally the charge is vagrancy. Arrange with your local magistrates or justices of the peace to sentence those boys and _ girls picked up during the run of the picture. to see “Wild Boys of the Road,” after first showing the picture to the court officials. Suggest to the court, that what is revealed in the picture will have a most salutary effect upon those youngsters who leave home for a life of hell as a tramp. All this stunt -will cost you will be a few tickets, but front page publicity will be had. <A further act that will insure additional value to the story, and the stunt, would be to arrange with a restaurant to supply a meal to those sentenced to see the show. This could be served in the theatre, where the reporters could interview the ‘wild boys or girls” as the case may be. Of course if it should happen to be a girl that is sentenced, that would net you terrific publicity. INTEREST PAPER IN STORIES OF STUDENTS WHO HIT ROAD During the past summer there have undoubtedly been many boys and girls who have “hit the road” on vacation. Many have actually “roughed” it and can relate many interesting and unusual experiences with people who actually live the life of “Wild Boys of the Road.” Your newspaper may be sold on the idea of asking for short letters dealing with such experiences. A given number of outstanding letters to be awarded special prizes. This should be of special interest to a newspaper, especially at a time when schools and colleges are reopening and editors try to run features of special interest to students. Page Fifteen