Publix Opinion (Sep 19, 1930)

——— 2 r ae 7 PUBLIX OPINION, WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 1911, 1930 THIS ATTRACTION COST NOTHING! LOWRY SCORES HIT WITH His BOYS’ BAND It’s no job to exploit Ed Lowry, master of ceremonies at the Ambassador Theatre, St. Louis, states Thornton W. Sargeant, Jr., publicity director of Publix-Skouras Theatres there. Eddie is the kind of M. C. who makes the publicity department’s job easy by thinking up good stunts to execute. Lowry’s latest tops them all, Sargeant says. It’s “Ed Lowry’s Boys’ Band,’”’ good for publicity, good will and the box-oflice. Arrangements were made with the Conn Instrument branch in St. Louis to furnish instruments to boys not possessing them, at a nominal rental of $5 for one month. At the end of that time the boys could buy them if they wished to. In return for this tieup, Conn agreed to run 1200 lines of advertising, and to pay an in structor for the first month. . 600 Letters Received Then the Ambassador ran a trailer advising boys of the band, and requesting those interested to write Ed Lowry for particulars. More than 600 letters were received. After the first meeting, with the elimination of violinists and pianists, there were two bands —an advanced band of 100 and a beginner’s group of 100. Rehearsals were conducted for more than eight weeks during the summer months. First benefits of the stunt became apparent when parents, bringing their children to evening . rehearsals, began to make a habit of going in to see the show. The kids, too, inevitably talked about Ed Lowry, and created a lot of good will among St. Louis juveniles. Biggest stroke of all, and another of Lowry’s ideas, came with the booking of ‘‘All Quiet on the Western Front” and its 133 minutes of film, into the Ambassador. Here’s Ed Lowry’s Boys’ Band, pictured as it appeared on the stage of the Ambassador Theatre, St. Louis, on the same program with “All Quiet on the Pressed for time with this lengthy feature, Lowry suggested substitution of his Boys’ Band, which he had rehearsed all summer, for the It saved the theatre $4000— Western Front.” regular Publix unit, sensation! the boys worked free—and provided a show-stopping In the corner, meet Ed Lowry, the M. C. whom PublixSkouras merchandisers swear by, not at. Digest the story on this page and learn how Lowry’ provided the Ambassador with one of the finest publicity, good-will and box-office ideas it has ever had the good fortune to execute. Lowry suggested substitution of the Boys’ Band for the Publix unit that week, which resulted in presentation of entertainment which panicked the audience of the Ambassador as nothing has done in years. Saved $4000 Applause was thunderous at the opening of the curtain, and tremendous after the boys finished the “Stein Song” and ‘Anchors Aweigh.’”” Furthermore, the theatre saved $4000 in stage costs for the week, as the Boys’ Band did not cost one cent, the boys playing for the glory of it. Publicity accruing to the theatre as a result of Lowry’s work with the boys was tremendous. Greatly in demand, the band ac CO-OP PAGE IN GEORGIA H. C. Brown, manager, put over this co-operative page of advertising for the showing of “Good News” at the Modjeska theatre in Augusta, Ga. twenty guest tickets distributed as prizes. in “Good News” was displayed A contest was held in connection with the ad, with One of the eight letters in each of eight store windows. The winners were the first ones submitting correct lists of the stores with the letter displayed.by each. THE ALOGSTA WERALD. LOGUSTA CR 3. McClellan Stores Co. H's |{* Re-Opens Soon A *Corplete bew tock of merchandice Bi mew low prices! Des't Mis the Riz Opening Sale! Watch The Herald for Big announcement Hee quer wladewe WOW for ome of Gomez fecal mie! there's ““GOOD News” -and BETTER News---but’ we think the BEST News is the ews that ' we have been chosen as dealer for the NEW Ferunswick: RADIO Copwrect eemmenenent san) * Good News! Belmont 70S Bread St. Theatre TOMORROW and Tuesday and Wednesda Good News! “Mulherin & Marks Wil Open in aFew Days Angvstars will have the epportunity ef seetng “all the ‘pew fall etylea In footwear for men, women ard cht dren... Augusta's Finest Shoe Stere, A New Store With All New Footwear, WAIT AND. WATCH FOR OPENING Good News! ‘The new Dutova Watertite Strap Watch with gensine 15 Jewel Movement IS NOW ON DISPLAY IN OUR WINDOW Concerted te heey ewrvect Lane sctemerged it wuime tanta, Tan) bey sey oye weal you howe the appertenty of weg Oa Wet — Walker-Guillebeau “Cath wt Conte Pre wp AS —Awers Levee” bd FILES Cake) Cre Good News! Good News! t's here---the NEW PALANCED-UNIT RADID HEAR IT—THAT’S ALL! ‘Come Get Your Free Coal. the Genulne OLA ie agentogwr 728 Bly su U-DRIV-IT SYSTEM BATTERY SERVICE toa BROAD FT. Phone “0 ED-LOWRY'S BOYS BAND cepted an-invitation to attend the Rotary Club’s picnic for orphans, and stopped traffic as it rode through the city playing on top of buses. Naturally this is only a beginning. On Lowry’s return to St. Louis with settlement of the musicians’ contract there, the Boys’ Band will lead his parade of welcome, and will probably be used on the stage again. “From its success here,’’ Sargeant says, ‘‘the Boys’ Band can easily be adapted elsewhere. And it offers any theatre that tries it free advertising and publicity, goodwill promotion, a free ballyhoo, and a free stage attraction that will bring in money. Every kid’s relatives and friends will come down to see them. In St. Louis, all credit for the Boys’ Band falls on the shoulders of Ed Lowry.”’ Photo of Lowry with a group of boys from the band, and another shot showing the flash of the Boys’ Band made on the stage of the Ambassador, are shown above. Philco Tie -up For Nov. On Mitzi Green National Paramount-Philco tieup for November will be on Mitzi Green in ‘Tom Sawyer” and for December on Ruth Chatterton in “The Right to Love.” As announced, tie-up for September is on Charles Rogers in “Follow Thru” and for October on Harold Lloyd in “Feet First.” Philco’s 24-sheets, window displays and national advertising on “Tom Sawyer” and ‘“‘The Right to Love”’ are now in work, and show promise of more than measuring up to the high standard which has characterized Philco co-operative aids to date. “Two Little Stars’’ will be the catch line tying up Mitzi Green with the new Philco ‘‘Baby Grand” set. Hattiesburg “American” Lauds Saenger Theatre Proffer of the Saenger Theatre’s facilities for a benefit show by Manager Matt Press earned an editorial in the Hattiesburg, Miss., American, commending the Saenger and urging readers to patronize it as a worthwhile and representative civic institution. American also editorially welcomed Press to Hattiesburg as City Manager. “Romance” Is Advertised By Shadow-Box Display An attractive shadow-box display in the lobby of the Imperial, Augusta, Ga., helped advertise ‘Romance,’ a coming attraction. The display, in the form of a treasure box, was artistically draped. An amber baby spot illuminated a lace kerchief, a faded rose, addressed letters and a photo, which were placed in the box. BEAUTY CONTEST GETS GOOD-WILL By co-operating with the American Legion post in Spartanburg, S. C., Manager Hugh Smart of the Montgomery not only staged a first class beauty contest on the stage of the theatre, but played to a capacity audience and obtained more than 15 columns of free space in the local paper. Only cost to theatre was for construction of inexpensive stage set. The audience determined th winning girl who was later to be an entry in a state-wide competition sponsored. by the various posts in South Carolina. Goodwill of legionnaires was procured through Smart’s efforts in the contest. | Homewood Theatre, Minneapolis, has been sold by Publix. IDEAS TO HELP SOUND AND PROJECTION Following complaints from projectionists in several of the theatres under his jurisdiction, Nate Frudenfeld, division manager for Iowa, has issued suggestions to his managers which he believes will improve projection and sound conditions. They are worthy of consideration by managers elsewhere. Whenever there is anything wrong with the picture on the screen, such as a stop, a breakdown or a blank screen, the usher who is checking the shows is to buzz the booth four times. This is a signal to the projectionist that there is something wrong with the screen. The sound checker is not to buzz the projectionist again, nor go up into the booth to ask about the trouble until the picture is back on the screen or the fault has been remedied. If the trouble is not remedied within four or five minutes, the checker is to immediately notify the assistant manager or the manager, who will at once go to the booth to determine the cause of the trouble. If the shutdown or the trouble is only for a brief period, after the fault has been corrected, the man appointed for this checking duty will visit the booth, find out the cause of the trouble and make a report. LEASES EXTENDED Publix’ leases on the Belasco Theatre, Quincy, Ill., and the Princess Theatre, Alton, Ill., have been extended for an additional five years, commencing November Ist. FREE SPACE IN N.Y.! Splendid 4 column 12 inch ad which appeared in the New York Daily News, paper with largest circulation in the country, as part of the series of Philco tie-up ads arranged with large radio dealer. Note picture and theatre name in upper left. Tie-up is the work of Bud Gray and Arthur Jeffrey of the publicity staff of the Rialto Theatre, where “Animal Crackers” is playing to excellent grosses. YOU’LL AGREE WITH THE MARX BROTHERS that TUN NUTS FROM “COCOANUTS* Now APFrannia mn “ANIMAL CNRACKERS* AT TOD RIALTO THEATRE, TIMES SQ, N. Yo 8) Bio; = ES >. i] 0 Weed. American Cobelin Tap U eutry ever Speaker Face $110, t Uj and % a UY — AIL VIM stores open Daily and Satarday until 11 P.M. \) aint MS Ss | Savings Are: Greater at VIM! FREE DELIVERY FREE INSTALLATION 1 YEAR FREE SERVICE Liberal Trade-in Allowance for Your Old Radio. ONE WHOLE YEAR TO PAY No Interest for Credit i | Canarias SARTRE . NO TIME TO CALL? 4 fine Ke Oblicatice Waste poorer, 1 Me te Yoor Nearest VIM Braach “it es >|