Publix Opinion (Dec 26, 1930)

Pictures Get Much Intense Publicity Recent intense exploitation activity in Columbus, Ga., brought resultant box-office receipts to the Royal Theatre. Ballyhoos, a lucky number contest, heralds, sample erackers, displays and other effective means of publicizing ‘Caught Short,’ and ‘Animal Crackers,’ were all arranged and executed by City Manager I. L. Shields. Phileo dealers paid for cost of printing 10,000 rotos, announcing a free radio contest, picture and playdate. Window displays and newspaper ads which called attention to radio exhibit in lobby and attraction were also donated by the dealers. National Biscuit Company gave Shields 15 dozen sample boxes of animal crackers for distribution at the Royal and Grand theatres. Copy on packages plugged picture of same title. Merchants windows displayed attractive cut-outs, etc. Auto, made up to represent cracker box, created considerable comment at crowded thoroughfares and at schools, when laughing record was played. Merchant Foots All Radio Contest Bills Manager J. D. Marpole effected an advantageous tie-up with local Philco distributor that resulted in a publicity splash for ‘‘Feet First,” currently playing at the Paramount, Ogden, Utah. In order to enter the Philco contest advertised in local paper, contestant had to see “Feet First’ at the Paramount, where entry blanks were distributed. Contest called for the breaking down of the word Philco into as many words as possible. Distributor paid for the prizes; console radio and .$100 in cash, which went towards purchase of a Phileco. The merchant also paid for all ads on contest. YELLING CONTEST Vocal outbursts from atop the marquee of the Tampa Theatre in Tampa, Fla., supplied ample publicity for ‘‘Whoopee.’”’ Manager Paul Short staged a ‘Whoopee Calling Contest’ for local stronglunged youngsters. Papers went big for this stunt and crowds witnessing the contest, were big. PUBLIX OPINION, WEEK OF DECEMBER 26TH, 1930 9 ODO 101-200 106-1 +O Or SOO Or 100-10 192m BE CAREFUL! | The Home Office has been receiving carbon copies of managers’ weekly. reports without the name of the the{ atre being shown. This is caused by the corners of the t carbon paper being turned down, and consequently making no impression on the copies. Such copies cause loss of time since it is necessary to check bookings, etc., to determine the name of the } theatre. ; Managers are urged to be } careful in this respect. t g eo DOD 06-0 OO OOO 8+ © O--O0+ H-0--O-0--BOO 10-S-0S05 O 40 © + 0-0 0+ B+ O+O10 + 8+ OO O18 O10+-O+0+-O101-@ WEEKLY PARTIES GET FREE SPACE Tie-up with Dallas Journal nets the Palace Theatre stories and photos every week. Besa Fairtrace, publicity director for the Palace and Melba theatres, effected the tie-up, which takes the form of weekly birthday parties for children who are members of the Palace-Journal Birthday Party Club. Blanks, appearing in the Journal prior to inauguration of parties, were filled in by interested children. Parties, which are already under way, have proved so popular that application blanks are again appearing in the Journal for those youngsters who did not take advantage of the first offer. Gifts, presented at the parties, are donated by merchants. Sells 1000 Tickets In ‘Tom Sawyer” Tie-up One thousand children’s tickets were sold by Manager Herbert A. Kaufman of the Regent, Rochester, to a department store which cooperated with him on ‘Tom Sawyer.’”’ Tickets were given with each purchase of Tom Sawyer boys’ wear. In addition, the store bought and distributed 10,000 roto-heralds, furnished a Main Street window, ran two cooperative ads totaling 72 inches, and circularized their entire juvenile mailing list of 5,000. Sole cost to the theatre was $2.25 for printing the special tickets. A sub-lease has been signed on the Princess Theatre, St. Paul, Minn., to become effective April i, 1930. rent attraction each time. Compictc Wire Repotts of ¢ =4 ONT) Teena bene ere FRONT PAGE SMASH One of the stunts used to put over Prosperity Week in Buffalo was a tie-up with a local paper, offering a bank account for every baby born the day the special week started. The Buffalo Times liked the idea so well that it played-up the stunt on page one the day before Prosperity Week commenced. (See story adjoining.) Mention was given to cur Buffalo Times SATURDAY EVENING OCTOBIR, € 130 BRIBE IS OFFERED VB Babies Born Tomorrow . > Will Get Bank Accounts Yar cat Dove tered Serene Some POLICE / FLASHY DISPLAY! Maximum effect at small cost is achieved by this advance poster at the Palace, Gary, Ind., the work of Art Bullock, house artist. Heads are from Paramount's 3-sheet B, mounted on beaver board and cutout; layout and copy are from the Home Office Advertising Depart ment’s manual on “Laughter.” Current added attraction copy goes over the “Starting Sat.” panel when the display is i for current display. Read Mr. Pre cane eee type of display, om this page! FULTON MARRIED Robert K. Fulton, manager of the Broadway Theatre, Council Bluffs, Iowa, was married to Miss Rose Mary Cuccio, on Wednesday, October 22. Ceremony was held in Sioux City. Paper Opens Page 1 To Baby Gag Expecting nothing more than run of the paper space on a bank account tie-up which he arranged with the Buffalo Times, C. B. Taylor, publicity director for Shea’s Buffalo, was agreeably surprised to crash the front page with picture and story. Note layout in adjoining column. All babies born on Sunday, October 5, the first day of Prosperity Week, were given $1 bank accounts, supposedly through the generosity of Constance Bennett, star of ‘Three Faces Hast,’ current attraction at the Buffalo. It was a cinch to plant a photo of Miss Bennett with a Hollywood baby in her arms, on the front page. The stunt created much favorable comment, and can be engineered in any city at any time as it is surefire human interest material. Banks will always go for this stunt. Another good tie-up made for Prosperity Week, was the placing of signs on 125 chain bakery wagons, plugging Prosperity Week layer cake, as well as the shows at the downtown Publix-Shea houses. The week was also publicized over the radio through the broadcast of a special ‘Good Times’ song, obtained from Famous Music Company. Special stories were placed in all newspapers, especially in financial and special business columns, always listing the current attractions at the Publix Buffalo theatres. A. M. Botsford’s comment on this Jewelry Under Police Guard Ballyhoos Film Jewelry displays under police guard on ‘‘What a Widow” at the Criterion Theatre, netted Publicity Director Bill Coleman of Oklahoma City theatres newspaper pictures and stories. One display, containing $20,000 worth of jewelry, was in the theatre lobby, and a second, worth $50,000, in a jeweler’s window. TAKE A TIP. ON POSTER > DISPLAYS Two ideas which achieve malt. mum effectiveness and at the same time a minimum expenditure of time, labor and money, are embodied in the poster from the Palace, Gary, Ind., which is reproduced on this page, states Mr. A. M. Botsford. Main idea is the use by theatre artists and managers of heads from the accessories of various producers, mounted on _ beaver board and cut out as in the Gary display, which is the work of Art Bullock, house artist. Heads of Nancy Carroll and Fredric March in the display illustrated are from pa AOuNE 3-sheet B on ‘‘Laugher.”’ Other idea is the use of copy from the Home Office Advertising Department’s manual on “Laughter,” so that poster copy and newspaper ads correspond as to selling angles. “We have found the manual copy great for advance selling by means of posters,’ states A, M. Roy, city manager in Gary. “It is much more effective than the customary poster catchline. “By utilizing Ad Sales material for the more important art work, and manual copy, the artist is allowed more time for creating displays and producing proper lettering. Such short-cuts enable us to turn out more and far better work, and have resulted in elimination entirely of several hours work on posters.” Outer art-work on the reproduced display is a stock job, used for several weeks, then retouched or changed a bit so that it looks like a new piece. Lobby Display Depicts Scene In Attraction Reproduction in theatre lobby of the old time dance hall, pro vided ample ballyhoo for “The Spoilers’ at the Waco, Waco, Texas. Manager J. P. Harrison rigged up an exact replica of a scene in the picture, showing cut-outs of Gary Cooper, two prospectors and a dance hostess seated at a gambling table, at one side of the lobby. The other side was occupied by a rickety piano, with cut-outs of woman singer, pianist and dancing couple. EFFECTIVE BALLYHOO Float at the parade of the West Texas Fair, used to exploit coming attractions at the Paramount in Abilene, certainly served its purpose, judging by favorable comments of onlookers. Harold Lloyd in “Feet First” was played up on the opposite side of the display. Truck, which was promoted, was driven through the town at the conclusion of the parade. Manager Al Fourmet states that his house artist, Joe Pendleton, certainly made a. good job of the display. ot sap WAT MAL ee co EN. iz,